#Michal Introduces Her Characters

[sunaleisocial]

Celebrating the people behind Kendall Square’s innovation ecosystem

New Post has been published on https://sunalei.org/news/celebrating-the-people-behind-kendall-squares-innovation-ecosystem/

Celebrating the people behind Kendall Square’s innovation ecosystem

While it’s easy to be amazed by the constant drumbeat of innovations coming from Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, sometimes overlooked are the dedicated individuals working to make those scientific and technological breakthroughs a reality. Every day, people in the neighborhood tackle previously intractable problems and push the frontiers of their fields.

This year’s Kendall Square Association (KSA) Annual Meeting centered around celebrating the people behind the area’s prolific innovation ecosystem. That included a new slate of awards and recognitions for community members and a panel discussion featuring MIT President Sally Kornbluth.

“It’s truly inspiring to be surrounded by all of you: people who seem to share an exuberant curiosity, a pervasive ethic of service, and the baseline expectation that we’re all interested in impact — in making a difference for people and the planet,” Kornbluth said.

The gathering took place in MIT’s Walker Memorial (Building 50) on Memorial Drive and attracted entrepreneurs, life science workers, local students, restaurant and retail shop owners, and leaders of nonprofits.

The KSA itself is a nonprofit organization made up of over 150 organizations across the greater Kendall Square region, from large companies to universities like MIT and Harvard, along with the independent shops and restaurants that give Kendall Square its distinct character.

New to this year’s event were two Founder Awards, which were given to Sangeeta Bhatia, the the John and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, and Michal Preminger, head of Johnson and Johnson Innovation, for their work bringing people together to achieve hard things that benefit humanity.

The KSA will donate $2,500 to the Science Club for Girls in Bhatia’s honor and $2,500 to Innovators for Purpose in honor of Preminger.

Recognition was also given to Alex Cheung of the Cambridge Innovation Center and Shazia Mir of LabCentral for their work bringing Kendall Square’s community members together.

Cambridge Mayor Denise Simmons also spoke at the event, noting the vital role the Kendall Square community has played in things like Covid-19 vaccine development and in the fight against climate change.

“As many of you know, Cambridge has a long and proud history of innovation, with the presence of MIT and the remarkable growth of the tech and life science industry examples of that,” Simons said. “We are leaving a lasting, positive impact in our city. This community has made and continues to make enormous contributions, not just to our city but to the world.”

In her talk, Kornbluth also introduced the Kendall Square community to her plans for The Climate Project at MIT, which is designed to focus the Institute’s talent and resources to achieve real-world impact on climate change faster. The project will provide funding and catalyze partnerships around six climate “missions,” or broad areas where MIT researchers will seek to identify gaps in the global climate response that MIT can help fill.

“The Climate Project is a whole-of-MIT mobilization that’s mission driven, solution focused, and outward looking,” Kornbluth explained. “If you want to make progress, faster and at scale, that’s the way!”

After mingling with Kendall community members, Kornbluth said she still considers herself a newbie to the area but is coming to see the success of Kendall Square and MIT as more than a coincidence.

“The more time I spend here, the more I come to understand the incredible synergies between MIT and Kendall Square,” Kornbluth said. “We know, for example, that proximity is an essential ingredient in our collective and distinctive recipe for impact. That proximity, and the cross-fertilization that comes with it, helps us churn out new technologies and patents, found startups, and course-correct our work as we try to keep pace with the world’s challenges. We can’t do any of this separately. Our work together — all of us in this thriving, wildly entrepreneurial community — is what drives the success of our innovation ecosystem.”

[jcmarchi]

Celebrating the people behind Kendall Square’s innovation ecosystem

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/celebrating-the-people-behind-kendall-squares-innovation-ecosystem/

Celebrating the people behind Kendall Square’s innovation ecosystem

While it’s easy to be amazed by the constant drumbeat of innovations coming from Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, sometimes overlooked are the dedicated individuals working to make those scientific and technological breakthroughs a reality. Every day, people in the neighborhood tackle previously intractable problems and push the frontiers of their fields.

This year’s Kendall Square Association (KSA) Annual Meeting centered around celebrating the people behind the area’s prolific innovation ecosystem. That included a new slate of awards and recognitions for community members and a panel discussion featuring MIT President Sally Kornbluth.

“It’s truly inspiring to be surrounded by all of you: people who seem to share an exuberant curiosity, a pervasive ethic of service, and the baseline expectation that we’re all interested in impact — in making a difference for people and the planet,” Kornbluth said.

The gathering took place in MIT’s Walker Memorial (Building 50) on Memorial Drive and attracted entrepreneurs, life science workers, local students, restaurant and retail shop owners, and leaders of nonprofits.

The KSA itself is a nonprofit organization made up of over 150 organizations across the greater Kendall Square region, from large companies to universities like MIT and Harvard, along with the independent shops and restaurants that give Kendall Square its distinct character.

New to this year’s event were two Founder Awards, which were given to Sangeeta Bhatia, the the John and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, and Michal Preminger, head of Johnson and Johnson Innovation, for their work bringing people together to achieve hard things that benefit humanity.

The KSA will donate $2,500 to the Science Club for Girls in Bhatia’s honor and $2,500 to Innovators for Purpose in honor of Preminger.

Recognition was also given to Alex Cheung of the Cambridge Innovation Center and Shazia Mir of LabCentral for their work bringing Kendall Square’s community members together.

Cambridge Mayor Denise Simmons also spoke at the event, noting the vital role the Kendall Square community has played in things like Covid-19 vaccine development and in the fight against climate change.

“As many of you know, Cambridge has a long and proud history of innovation, with the presence of MIT and the remarkable growth of the tech and life science industry examples of that,” Simons said. “We are leaving a lasting, positive impact in our city. This community has made and continues to make enormous contributions, not just to our city but to the world.”

In her talk, Kornbluth also introduced the Kendall Square community to her plans for The Climate Project at MIT, which is designed to focus the Institute’s talent and resources to achieve real-world impact on climate change faster. The project will provide funding and catalyze partnerships around six climate “missions,” or broad areas where MIT researchers will seek to identify gaps in the global climate response that MIT can help fill.

“The Climate Project is a whole-of-MIT mobilization that’s mission driven, solution focused, and outward looking,” Kornbluth explained. “If you want to make progress, faster and at scale, that’s the way!”

After mingling with Kendall community members, Kornbluth said she still considers herself a newbie to the area but is coming to see the success of Kendall Square and MIT as more than a coincidence.

“The more time I spend here, the more I come to understand the incredible synergies between MIT and Kendall Square,” Kornbluth said. “We know, for example, that proximity is an essential ingredient in our collective and distinctive recipe for impact. That proximity, and the cross-fertilization that comes with it, helps us churn out new technologies and patents, found startups, and course-correct our work as we try to keep pace with the world’s challenges. We can’t do any of this separately. Our work together — all of us in this thriving, wildly entrepreneurial community — is what drives the success of our innovation ecosystem.”

[foxglovekingwisdom]

The Foxglove King Chapter 1 Tarot Card: 3 of Cups Deck: Wild Unknown by Kim Krans

First off, I want to point out the introduction to our main character, Lore. One of my favorite sentences to introduce a character: "Lore could work with that."

Five simple words that say so much about her--other than having an awesome name. She is cunning. She is determined. She is confident in her skills--a battle of minds or battle of wills. Those five words had me instantly drawn into this character, and I love a protagonist that I can stand behind.

Ok, onto our theme--the 3 of Cups. The 3 of Cups in any deck usually represents a gathering of some kind. A celebration. A party. Just enjoying time with friends. The feeling of community.

But this particular image, with the birds on the wire watching the sunset, gives me a bittersweet feeling; like a group of friends watching the sunset knowing they're all about the graduate high school and go to different colleges. You know? There's something pensive and a little morose about it, which I feel is fitting considering that Lore hints several times that she will have to leave soon and she will miss Michal and even his sister, Elle.

The grouping of three birds is interesting too because you have Lore, Michal and Elle. Also Lore, Mari, and Val. And then later (I can spoil a little because I have read half the book! Lore, Gabe, and Bastian.)

She has deep ties to the people in each group, and finds comfort in them, but also knows their connection is fleeting and she will have to say goodbye to them at some point.

The theme of a party found in the 3 of Cups also relates to the upcoming Consecration. The cups remind me of the poison running around town, both in the streets and in wealthy circles (as we will discover.) I do have a personal connection to this chapter--I love the description of the row house. My closest friends in middle and high school were a group of sisters (Three again!) who grew up in the projects. Funnily, their apartment was also two stories with rickety stairs and rattling windows. It was dingy but so comforting; our little haven against the world. Hannah did a good job embodying that juxtaposition--dingy and kind of shitty but also comforting and cathartic. Otherwise I love all the little hints at events to come and the wonderfully rich mythos of this book! Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!

[pikagatogirltits]

Michal’s Updated Fanwalker Quick Guide

So it’s been a long time since I updated my list of fanwalkers, and considering I’ve both expanded and condensed the list since last time I figured it was due time. So without further delay:

Zuzka - R/G female goblin from Ravnica. Animist whose magic revolves around channeling animal spirits. Member of the Gruul Clans, although not one of the ones who followed Domri Rade. Her spark ignited when she was young and she’s been a planeswalker for slightly more than a decade.

Spiros Dimitirou - G male human from Theros. He possesses an innate magical ability that allows him to increase his strength and endurance as well as heal his wounds as long as he’s in physical contact with the ground. One of my younger planeswalkers at around 18, he hasn’t been a planeswalker for very long and is still trying to figure out his place in the Multiverse.

Ganzorig Thundershield - R/W male orc from Tarkir. Uses divinely infused thunder and lightning magic as his main specialty. A former Kolaghan berserker whose first planeswalk sent him to Ravnica where he wound up joining the Boros Legion and was transformed into a honorable knight.

Marta (and Ada) Baumhauer - W/U female human (and geist) from Innistrad. Uses magic to commune with ghosts and channel ghostly powers. Marta is a cathar and Ada is the geist of her twin sister who died when they were young. Ada was possessing Marta to protect her from Emrakul’s influence during the Battle of Thraben when Marta’s spark ignited, bonding the essence of the two sisters and allowing Ada to tag along when Marta planeswalks.

Resetyu - R female khenra from Amonkhet. Uses sand magic. Her spark ignited several years ago (before the Hour of Devastation) when her twin sacrificed his life to protect her during the Trial of Ambition.

Granny Ygg - G/W/U female treefolk from Lorwyn. More formal name is Grandmother Yggdrasil. Former oldwalker. Has gathered a lot of wisdom and knowledge over her very long life, and can use many types of magic. Has numerous communities she’s adopted around the Multiverse that she protects and nurtures. Also know as The Witch Tree.

Yashagoro - U/B male human from Kamigawa. A trained ninja who uses illusions and other ninja magic. Constantly strives to become as close to the “perfect shinobi” as he can be. Morally grey, he sells his services across the Multiverse not because he cares about the money but because he wants to test himself. Partner of Apurva.

Apurva - B/R non-binary Aetherborn from Kaladesh. Uses emotion magic. A vampiric Aetherborn, they were draining a potential planeswalker’s life when they somehow drained the planeswalker’s Spark as it ignited and became a planeswalker themself. Travels the Multiverse for the sake of experiencing as many sensations as possible, every trip through the Blind Eternities infusing then with aether and extending their life. Partner of Yashagoro.

Gwendolyn - G/U/R female human from Dominaria. Uses “legend lore” magic to channel the power of legendary figures from throughout the Multiverse. At its most powerful, able to summon echoes of these figures. Transgender. Part historian, part bard she researches history so she can retell it.

Miya - R/W female human (Auriok) from Mirrodin. Uses steelshaping to rapidly conjure weapons. Spark ignited during the Phyrexian Invasion. Deeply traumatized, she can’t return home. Instead wanders the planes trying to be a Hero of Justice.

Oriana - B female human from Fiora. Uses umbramancy (shadow magic.) An orphan who grew up on the streets before becoming an infamous assassin. A botched job ignited her Spark and sent her to Kylem, where she’s become a regular in Valor’s Reach. Primarily motivated by a desire for fame and glory, she has a soft spot for fellow outcasts.

Meztli - U female merfolk from Ixalan. Hydromancer. Transgender, was able to use the fish part of her biology to naturally transition. Her Spark ignited from the feelings of gender euphoria the first time she saw her more feminine reflection.

Doruk - W/B/G male human from Tarkir. Uses soul magic that allows him to interact directly with the souls of living creatures and inanimate objects. Former Dromoka clan member, his Spark ignited when his family was destroyed because they secretly kept the Azban practice of spirit summoning and ancestor worship alive. 75 years old, although he was born pre-Mending his Spark didn’t ignite until after the Mending. Spent the last decade stranded on Ixalan as the captain of his own pirate crew.

Amelia Stormwatcher - R/U female siren from Ixalan. Pirate who uses storm magic. Loves exploration. Has a butch orc girlfriend back home on Ixalan. Loves to bring her souvenirs.

Spring-Tail - G/W female kitsune from Kamigawa. A cleric who uses nature magic by communing with nature spirits. Traveling healer who seeks to help others, treating their mental and emotional wounds just as readily as their physical ones.

Kalpana - W female dwarf from Kaladesh. Her restoration magic can repair non-living objects with a touch. Loves to tinker.

Lord Anskrieg - W/U/B male human from unknown home plane. Former oldwalker. Uses many types of magic, but primarily relies on law magic, necromancy and artifice. Self-proclaimed tyrant who believes only he has the will to bring order to the chaotic Multiverse. When the Mending happened and he began to age, he devised a plan to persevere his existence using a combination of healing magic and necromancy as well as replacing certain parts of his body with etherium. This has caused him to persist in a strange state between life and undeath that allows him to keep his Spark but maintain a twisted immortality. This has earned him the nickname “The Living Litch”

Eckhart Glöckner - W/B male human from Innistrad. Can use divine and demonic magic in equal measure. One of Anskrieg’s lieutenants. A Skirsdag cultist who had infiltrated the Church of Avacyn as a cathar. Unflinchingly loyal to Anskrieg.

Vorona - U/B female human from Vryn. A necromancer who combines multiple types of necromancy to create powerful custom zombies. One of Anskrieg’s lieutenants. Her ultimate goal is to learn how to retain her Spark in undeath and become a true Litch planeswalker.

Thutmose - W/U male human from Amonkhet. Uses law magic. One of Anskrieg’s lieutenants. Originally a vizier in charge of ordering mummies about their daily tasks, his Spark ignited during the Hour of Devastation as his orderly life fell apart. He sees Anskrieg as being capable of creating the order and structure he craves.

Daichiyama - B/R male ogre from Kamigawa. Uses chaos magic. A follower of an oni of destruction and entropy, he cares for nothing but sowing chaos. Occasionally works for Anskrieg, but just as likely to be an independent agent.

[lady-charinette]

An Analysis of Halloween Ends

The movie isn't that bad, I liked the concept they introduced; to show Allyson also had conflict via Corey, being tempted by evil, clashing with her grandmother, old vs new generation and their differences.

Laurie still being blamed and ostracized for Michael's killings, despite her heroic and survivor role in it and trying to make things better.

But why not show that conflict between Allyson and Laurie by having Haddonfield try to get Allyson on their side, to convince her that her grandmother is also a monster just like Michael, to convince her that her entire family is evil and Allyson tries to distance herself from that by trying to distance herself from Laurie?

Blaming Laurie for all her past deeds, how she barricaded and weaponized herself for years, wasting her life, waiting for Michael to come and finally kill him. Laurie coming to terms with that through writing her memoirs, self reflecting her role, her family's role but also Haddonfield's role in the creation of Michael Myers.

Allyson fighting with what she knows about her family and what the people are telling her, maybe going to the local library and reading about what happened all those years ago. Reconnecting with Laurie again and reaffirming her role in the family.

IMO it was a bit...odd to introduce a new character in the last trilogy that didn't really have any impact on the main storyline. Corey was supposed to bear Michael's legacy, he was supposed to contradict what the town thought of Michael's creation: the nature vs nurture debacle.

A lot of people justified Michael's creation and evil by saying he was born that way, it wasn't due to the abuse he suffered or anything else, it was in his nature to be evil.

Corey started out a good guy, he was babysitting a kid and trying to play with him (ignoring that he watched a horror movie with a little child). But the accident and the town's accusations and stigmatization of him, along with the constant bullying and harassment, caused him to go down a dark path. Corey was nurtured into evil.

Allyson was this beacon of light in his life, just like family was Laurie's light that prevented her from turning evil. It was supposed to be that silver lining that made Corey tried to do better.

The first encounter between Michael and Corey could've went like this:

Michael choking Corey, them locking eyes and Michael seeing Corey's memories of the accident; seeing the potential to kill in him.

He passes on the legacy to Corey, the power of the Shape to wreak havoc and finish what Michael started. Cue the Master Splinter-ification of Michael in the sewers, chilling with the rats to sort of "mentor" Corey; showing how to wield and hold the knife, calmly staring into Corey's eyes whenever he has a panic. Or not even that. Michael just...slithers away back into the sewers and disappears.

Michael Myers would be gone. But The Shape stays and slays.

If Michael stayed and the scene between Corey and Laurie went differently:

Corey goes on his monolog about, if he couldn't have Allyson then nobody will.

He goes in for the kill, to finally kill Laurie, but Michael intervenes and brutally kills Corey instead. While staring into Michael's eyes, Corey stutters:"...I...I thought you...wanted...to kill....her."

Michael, of course, doesn't say anything. Just before Corey dies, Michael turns back to Laurie. Laurie was in shock that Michael showed up, but quickly recovered and slams a frying pan at his head or stabs Michael.

When Michale gets paraded around town and before he gets thrown to get shredded, Laurie stares at his remains and finally jumps into the shredder herself. Allyson is devastated, but it's necessary for the new generation to grow.

It was all set up perfectly too: Laurie was already writing her memoirs, she was old and at peace with herself and her past, she managed to kill Michael and secure her family's safety. Laurie choosing to die on her own terms and end the 'curse' of Michael Myers would've been an ideal ending to the Halloween franchise. It would've truly ended.

Which one of them dies at the end? They both die. They both die and mark an end to the past and mark the new beginning, the new future ahead of the younger generations. A future without the curse of Michael Myers to haunt people anymore.

[naynah-pinsence]

I’ve been chipping away at the brittle skeleton of the project. I’m like, maybe a fourth of the way through of writing first-draft summaries of what I’m going to consider season one of the rewritten mermaid melody? Writing is hard. 

Anyway, at some point I’ll rewatch and read mermaid melody (pitch, pure, and keep up with aqua) to put some meat on the bones. When I do that, if I post about it, I’ll use the tag “rewrite research” for organization and if you do/don’t want to see that then there you go. Misc. related thoughts below!

1. I am really hoping to do a web comic format, but I currently lack a tablet that I could use to realistically make that happen. So even if I get the skeleton done, it’ll probably be a long while before anything ~officially~ happens in that regard.

 2. I currently have four “seasons” planned. Idk how to split them up as of now, but as I flesh stuff out more, there should be more concrete arcs.

      Season 0 is all backstory about Aqua Regina, Panthalassa, and other world-building stuff. Realistically, all of that information will be spread out throughout the story instead of being an info-dump in a googledoc.

     Seasons 1 and 2 are the core of the series, being Pitch and Pure respectively. I would really like to expand on other characters outside of the main trio. I’m especially interested in how Gaito grew up, Sara’s journey from accidentally destroying her kingdom to being where she is during Pitch, and Karen’s journey to finding Noel. I hope that I can expand the history of Panthalassa in S0 enough to give the Amagi siblings a more interesting role.

     Season 3 will just be Aqua. The potential is being WASTED. I want to explore the world that S2 will leave behind (I’m being vague bc I don’t want to spoil the plan for how I want it to end) and the concept of 1/2 merfolk. NO ARRANGED MARRIAGE.

3. I would love it if I could write a scene of Coco and Sara that has a similar dynamic that’s in this song (spoilers for the Tangled Series. I suggest watching it if you can it’s cute).

4. I don’t want Michal to be reborn. The universe-reset-button doesn’t really work for her, I think. I can’t fully put a finger on why, but part of the reason why it doesn’t work for me is because it feels very Sailor Saturn copy. (Sidenote: I feel like Sailor Moon, being pretty much THE formula for the modern magical girl show, is used a lot for comparison, which is a thing I already did comparing Usagi and ChibiUsa to Lucia and Lukia/Rukia, but in all honestly I really feel like MM is inspired by/borrows from SM a little too much?) The reset-button also is kind of a hit-or-miss for me in general? I think it would be much more interesting if Michal is offered a good ending in S2, but rejects it out of anger and becomes the main antagonist of S3. Michal and Lucia already have some foiled traits, so why not just go full throttle with that?

5. If you look back through my MM stuff, you’ll see I used to use the “Luchia” spelling instead of “Lucia”, which I use now. I switched when I realized that the letter “C” can make a “CH” sound in Italian, which is one of the roots for the name “Lucia”. I feel like a total dumbass for not realizing this sooner, considering the pronunciation of my own family and saint name.

6. I’ve been thinking about Hanon and Rina’s love interests.

      Hanon gets Taro and Nagisa. When Taro is introduced, there is about a seven-year age gap between the two (about 13 and 20). Even when I was a middle-schooler, I found this kinda weird. I now know that a relationship would be very bad and illegal sooooo. With that, I think that Hanon’s crush is pretty natural! I too, was a young teen girl, surrounded by other young teen girls once. A good portion of crushes are on older men: romance is kind of a new thing at this stage in life, and older men tend to seem more attractive than your possibly hasn’t hit puberty yet classmates. A reminder to the kids, DO NOT start a romance with an adult. Taro, from what I remember, is very soft-spoken and polite, so kind of just lets Hanon do her thing? Nagisa, on the other hand, is the opposite situation: younger, he’s interested in her, but she’s not really into him. Idk how I feel about them having a lasting relationship, but I think the relationship acts as a good point of growth. It could be played in two ways: the first is that she thinks that he is too young for her (12 and 15 I think?) and she realizes that she might have made Taro uncomfortable by being on the other side of things. If I solely go this route, Hanon probably doesn’t end up with Nagisa in the end. The second is, if I remember correctly, what ends up happening more or less: Hanon learns to let go and relax. Making a little self-awareness with the first option and ending with the second seems the most appealing to me atm. 

      Rina gets Kaito and Masahiro. There is a hot second where Rina gets a crush on Kaito, but actively doesn’t pursue it. She values her friendship more. Honestly, I kind of liked that plot-point. It shows a good bit of Rina’s personality, and adds some quiet conflict. Again, if I remember correctly, Rina doesn’t say anything to anyone about it, including Kaito and Lucia. It could have been so easy to do a Moon and Mars love Tuxedo Mask thing, but the way I remember it being handled made a more interesting and strong character. I have trouble with Masahiro as a character. On paper, he’s a rebellious and fun dude with daddy issues and secret money, which could be cool! But I feel like he was kind of just slapped in the story so Rina could have a bf too. Because he could be more interesting than just love interest #3, I want to keep him in the story, but idk how at this point. Not as a love interest bc Rina is not into dudes in my story, which also means the mini crush on Kaito is probably out the window. idk

7. I want Rukia to skateboard bc she can’t surf bc of the mermaid transformation. Radical.

[secret-rendezvous1d]

Blogmas having the miss announcing she is pregnant on christmas to P and H?

Hello, hi! 

Welcome to Blogmas 2020.

Many more blurbs, many more chats and a lot more festivities to come; my inbox will be open all through December this year for blurb prompts for Blogmas so don’t feel afraid to pop in a prompt to get written for tis year; all I can say is that if you��re asking for a lengthy prompt, I’m not the right person right now, haha.

I’m welcoming absolutely anything for this year; any AU, any characters, any ideas.

Reblog, like, comment and share your thoughts with me. Please let me know what you think because feedback is always appreciated on here; much more appreciated now given that I’ve not written a lot in a long while. Please let me know what you think.

Enjoy!

DECEMBER, 2022.

YN was no stranger to a positive pregnancy test.

If you told her six years ago that she’d be a mother to a little girl the following year, who was the spitting image of her father, then she’d have told you that you were taking the piss and that they were dreaming all kinds of madness. So, if you told her three days ago that she’d be a mother to a second baby, she’d have laughed in your face and told you to jog on because “one’s enough for me right now.”

Of course, she’d grown up wanting more than one child to teach life skills and nurture and mould into such a beautiful young thing who cared and loved like there was no such thing as tomorrow. She’d been an only child herself and found life to be rather… different. Especially to her friends in school who were children of many in their families. Of course, YN had cousins and she saw them whenever she wanted (moreso on festive holidays and family birthdays rather than her parents appearing on their doorstep for a cup of tea and an offer for the kids to play in the garden until dark) but it never amounted to the same feeling as seeing a sibling on a daily basis, after school or in the morning, someone to wind up and irritate out of love but someone to trust when something came up that she didn’t want her parents knowing.

So when Persephone was born, freshly cleaned and m minutes old and laying her father’s arms in the most pinkest blanket found in her hospital bag, YN deemed it necessary to silently promise to never let her experience a childhood alone. Not that she thought it was a bad thing to be an only child; heck, she was thankful she never had the bickering brother to deal with that only fought for those he loved or the snotty older sister who told her what to do and not to do with her life but loved her all the same. She felt envious of Harry when she was introduced to his older sister but soon felt that Gemma was an older sister of her own flesh and blood with how welcoming she’d been and seeing the brother-sister bond that Harry had, she found it was only necessary to let her own child have that exciting life growing up.

“You’re not eating much this morning,” Harry said softly, inhaling the smell of honey porridge before wrapping his lips around the spoon in his hand and swallowing the thick textured substance. Eyes focused on his wife as sat in her own world, stirring her tea in her china mug, an ashen look on her face - because morning sickness had been a bigger bitch to her the second time than the first time and she wasn’t expecting it to be as bad- as she hid behind a smile. “Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah, I think I’m a little stressed out. I have too much to do this coming week and too little time to do it and I feel so rushed,” she murmured, setting her teaspoon upon the plate that did hold her dry toast before Harry came and joined her for breakfast, fingers curling around the handle of her mug. “I might have to cancel lunch with your mum this afternoon. I need to start wrapping, decorating, planning Christmas day, getting the food in.”

“You’re looking a little sick, I’m sure she won’t mind if you want to cancel.”

“She was so excited though.”

“She’d feel even better if you took some time out for yourself and felt better. Besides, she’s coming next week with Gem and Michal for Christmas dinner so she’s got that to look forward to,” Harry said, plunging his spoon into his porridge before taking another bite and swallowing it, honey sticking to his pink lips, “what can I do to make you feel less stressed? Give me something to do.”

“You could go and pick Seff’s main present up from that toy shop on Oxford Street for me. I got an email saying it arrived yesterday morning so we just need to go and get it. I can wrap the last of her presents up whilst you’re gone and hide yours somewhere where you don’t go snooping,” she stated, cocking an eyebrow up on her browline and staring at him over the rim of her white mug, “like you did last year.”

“In my defence, you did ask me to go and get a pair of knickers from your drawer after your bath.”

Harry had always been one to go snooping when it came to gifts. Anne had told her that the first Christmas she spent with Harry during a conversation that spiked up when YN pulled Anne aside to ask her for tips on what to get him, whether he'd asked for anything specific and whether he was allergic to anything specific that would give her gift idea away if she asked him. And it stuck in the back of her mind every year.

Although, in his defense, he didn’t necessarily go snooping through her underwear drawer to find what she had brought for him, given the fact that she had a brainfart and had forgotten where she hid his most expensive gift for that year; a six-hundred pound watch that she’d seen him eyeing up in the shop window of Gucci every time they wandered passed. She knew he’d reach into the drawer, grab his favourite pair (that she always placed at the front of her pants) and chuck them into the bathroom with a joke that hinted to a little bedroom action when Persephone was in bed.

“You didn’t have to get a pair from the back end of my drawer. Since when do you reach for my period pants when I put all my nice, lacy ones at the front?” She huffed, rolling her eyes as she took a sip of the warm tea and felt it slide down her sore throat, goosebumps rising on her skin because there was a sense of warmth yet a sense of burning; acid reflux had become a bitch, too, and she was looking forward to sending him to the supermarket pharmacy, late at night, to grab a bottle of Gaviscon and heartburn tablets. “Plus, it was in a box with my name on it, sellotaped up on both ends, and put left in the box it came in. You had to open the box to find out what was inside the other box.”

“It fell out?” He shrugged sheepishly and sent her a cheeky smile. Tight-lipped, regardless of how sticky his lips were, and showing off his dimples in the middle of his cheeks. But YN was having none of it and she made sure her face told him that, her fingers tapping her mug. “Okay, fine. Curiosity got the better of me when I found it and I peeked. I promise I won’t this time though. The silent treatment you gave me on Christmas day was horrible.”

“You deserved it. I was excited to surprise you with it and you ruined it.”

“I know.”

The kitchen fell into a comfortable silence and all they could hear, coming from upstairs, was the bathroom tap running as Persephone brushed her teeth and got herself ready before school. Her uniform folded up and placed on her desk, like every morning, right next to the hairbrush that YN used to tie her hair into whatever kind of hairstyle she fancied for the day; today, it was plaits… thankfully, because YN really didn’t want to go through the hassle of doing space buns again.  Her school bag and her lunch box were hanging  off the back of the chair at the head of the table, homework left in her red folder on the table so she could double check her name was written on it before slotting it into her bag, shiny black shoes with a buckle left in the living room where she’d kicked them off yesterday. Coat hanging on the hook in the entryway, where she could reach for it on her way out before clambering into Harry’s Range Rover so he could drive her to school; her favourite mode of transport, she made sure to tell him every night.

“Can you get it by lunchtime today? So I can wrap it before she comes home from school. Otherwise she’ll see it and want it as soon as possible and this is probably the best one of the lot. And we know she follows in her father’s footsteps,” YN smirked, nudging her toe into his shin, “aren’t I right?”

“Like father, like daughter.”

*

The problem with wrapping presents was the backache.

Chronic backache experienced after an hour of being hunched over on the living room floor, sat cross-legged and leaning against the sofa, surrounded by rolled up balls of sellotape that got stuck to itself and useless pieces of wrapping paper that had no purpose on a present because it was too small or too wonkily cut. Bags upon bags full of Christmas presents, all named for family and friends, that she needed Harry to deliver before Christmas eve.

By the time she’d reached the bottom step, after her fourth trip up the stairs to take the newly wrapped presents into her office (locked to save the wandering eyes and the curious toes of her little girl finding them in the corner of her home-office), her husband had arrived home with an excitable Persephone and a guilty look upon his face as he shrugged his coat off and unwrapped his scarf from around his neck. His nose pink, Persephone’s cheeks red, but both their jumpers decorated with crumbs from what she could only imagine came from a cake in their favourite local bakery down the road.

“Mummy! Mummy, daddy took me for a cake afterschool today. I had a chocolate one with sprinkles and a flake and it tasted like an orange and-”

Harry’s eyes widened and he looked to his wife, who had a knowing grin on her face, and he knew he’d been busted from the moment he walked through the door.

“Seff, you promised me you weren’t going to blab to mummy. That was our secret, little lady,” he chuckled softly, cupping the back of her head with his palm, fingertips cold against her scalp, “mummy wasn’t supposed to know.”

“But it was really good and I wanted to tell mummy about it because she can get one when she goes out shopping with auntie Gem and they can taste it and tell me it was yummy,” Persephone grinned, the gap between her two front teeth starting to fill in with a brand-new adult tooth, all pearly white and jagged, “mummy can buy me another one and herself one and auntie Gem one and we can share them together.”

“Did you bring me anything back?”

Her gloved hands dug around her school bag, school shoes long forgotten by the front door and kicked off haphazardly, her scarf hanging round her shoulders and her hand tucked into Harry’s fist because, YN could only guess, she didn’t want to mess up the plaits still perfectly done up. A rustle of wrapping coming from the flat of her pocket, bringing out a carefully wrapped gingerbread man with a purple ribbon tying it together at the top, a bobble stuck to the top as some kind of festive decoration.

“I brought you a gingerbread man, mummy! With the money Nana gave me in my Christmas card,” she thrust her hand towards her mother and passed it to her; YN was sure the money her own mother had given to her was for something she could use herself but she was thankful, of course, entirely grateful that she’d chosen to share her money to get her something.

“Thank you, baby. We’ll share it for pudding after dinner later, yeah? With some strawberries.”

“Yeah and some chocolate sauce!”

And with that, she ran off into the living room and found a comfy space on the sofa to watch whatever YN had left on the television, leaving her mother and father to tidy the mess left behind in the entryway.

“Maybe a little sauce,” YN said as she reached for the coat on the floor, hanging it on the hook beneath her’s and Harry’s, hanging her scarf over the top and leaving her gloves on the radiator to warm up, “you’ve had some chocolate already today.”

Harry grinned and pressed a kiss to his wife’s forehead, squeezing her arm before sneaking passed her and into the living room, bending over the sofa to look at his daughter from an upside-down position, “come on you, let’s go do your homework at the table.”

“Actually,” YN blurted suddenly, standing in the archway before them, smiling softly at them as they looked at her, “before you do that, can I tell you something? Well, not tell you something. Show you something. I want to give you both an early Christmas present, I guess.”

Persephone perked up and pushed herself to her knees, an excitable grin on her already excitable face as she looked between her mum and dad, a confused look spread across Harry’s features.

“What is it?”

YN disappeared for a second, footsteps heard going up the stairs and a creak heard from a bedroom being opened - and if Harry was right then it was the spare room, because he’d promised to fix the squeaking door but had yet to get round to it, where nowhere really went into because it was empty and desolate and had no decor in it yet. There was a sound of some rustling, faint but still audible if you listened closely, the creak heard again before footsteps were heard descending the stairs, a deep breath escaping her mouth before she turned the corner. A white box tucked under her arm.

“Mummy, what’s in the box?”

“I’ll let daddy open it but sit together to open it because it’s for the both of you and I can’t wait till next week to give it to you,” she stepped across the carpet and passed it over, letting him get a good feel of how heavy it was before he sauntered around the sofa and sat on the sofa beside his daughter. Her hand coming across to touch and stroke the white box, looking at it with furrowed eyebrows, waiting for her father to open the flaps and pull whatever was inside out for them to look at.

Harry’s fingers timidly opened the box, sellotape coming undone as he pulled the contents out and set them upon the top; a white babygrow, a white hat and matching mittens and a sonogram of the ultrasound she had during her doctor’s visit. Biting her bottom lip, she couldn’t help but feel the pit of her stomach drop; unexpected or not, they were expecting a baby and she couldn’t have been more excited - she just hoped his silence meant he felt the same.

“So, what do you think?”

A gasp left his mouth.

“What- does this explain why you’ve been so ill?” He stood to his feet and left the contents behind, stepping around the sofa to grab her into a hug and squeeze her against his chest. The sting of happy tears burning the corners of his eyes as he twirled the both of them around. “God, I had a hunch in the back of my head that you were pregnant but I didn’t want to say anything in case it wasn’t. Christ, you think I haven’t heard you vomiting in the bathroom in the mornings before I wake up? Not eating your usual breakfast? All the same mannerisms from the first one?”

He set YN back on the floor and cupped his forehead with his hand.

“I found out this week, Monday evening actually. I wanted to wait till Christmas day to surprise you but I was too excited and it was killing me keeping it from you. I wanted to come back and shout it at you on Monday but- well, surprise.”

“Daddy, what is it?”

They both looked at Persephone and saw her holding the black and white photograph; a scene they hadn’t ever imagined but never wanted to take for granted. Bracing his weight on his elbows, he leant on the back of the sofa and took the picture from her hands, using his pointer finger to show her just what they were so excited about. His eyes scanned the photo before he found what he was looking for, turning it back to Persephone so he could show her the right place.

“You see that little white blob there? Right here,” he spoke softly, pointing to the middle of the sonogram, waiting for her to nod before carrying on “that’s going to be your new baby brother or sister, little lady.”

Her eyes widened and she looked at him.

“Where are you getting them from? Will they be here for Christmas? Can I come with you to pick one?”

Harry chuckled and looked over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of a tear dribbling down YN’s cheek, his own eyes threatening to flood.

“They’re in mummy’s belly right now. A little tiny dot, no bigger than your fingernail. That’ll grow, just like you did, in mummy’s belly until they’re nice and ready to come out and join us next year.”

“Why next year?”

At this point, YN had taken the space next to her husband, standing straight. She reached for her daughter’s hand, bringing it beneath her jumper and placing it on her bare tummy.

“Because they need to grow nice and strong in mummy’s belly before they can come and meet us,” YN smiled, squeezing her hand as they kept their joined hands underneath her bellybutton, “just like you did. That’s where you started, where you came from, until you came and joined us here. Growing and blossoming until they’re ready to come and see us.”

“Like a flower?”

“Yeah,” YN grinned at Harry, his arm resting over her shoulder as he pulled her into his side, squeezing her tightly to his body, “like the most delicate flower in the world. They need the space and time to grow big and strong in my belly, nice and healthy so they can come out and be a part of our family when they’re ready, and be your little brother or sister.”

“That’s great news, huh, little lady? You’re going to be a big sister.”

“The best big sister ever.” 

[loudsuitlover]

Doctor Harry XXVIII. Tercer movimiento: Lo de dentro.

A/N: Long ass chapter but lovely, I think. I hope you like it too <3 Every other part can be found here

BLUE’S POV

“Are you done?” I giggle as my mum keeps taking pictures of me in our garden.

“Yeah, I think so but I hope you send me some more with Harry at the reception.”

“I will.” I promise her.

I walk inside towards the kitchen and she follows me. It wasn’t really hard to find a dress for the wedding. Coco, Ollie and Marie offered to go shopping with me on Monday afternoon and we genuinely thought it might take all week to find the right dress but it didn’t. It only took a couple of hours.

I asked Harry if there was any sort of etiquette or particular dressing code but he just said apparently you can’t attend a wedding dressed in white and then I asked if he had any preferences in colour but then he just said what he wanted didn’t matter and to wear whatever I wanted. He wasn’t of much help but I wouldn’t have wanted for him to say anything different from that.

I have never dressed for anyone other than myself but I hope Harry likes my dress tonight. I chose a floor-length slip gown made of silk. It is a soft baby blue colour and so soft to the touch I think I could sleep on it. It’s backless too because I’m a sucker for backless shit and I hate bras so I don’t have a problem with going braless. I keep the jewellery and makeup to a minimum but I do wear crimson lipstick and my thin white gold choker. I wear Coco’s long bright grey fur coat and bright grey heels salon heels.

Harry did ask me about the colour of the dress but I guess that has to do with his choice of tie or handkerchief. I know it’s cheesy but it excites me that he would consider my dress so as to match me.

The bell rings and I get the door as I put on my coat. When I open the door, my breath catches on my throat as I’m faced with a very sexy, annoyingly handsome Harry that looks like a bright peaky blinder without the cap.

He’s wearing a fucking bright cream colour vest and cream colour jacket and pants and a baby blue silk shirt, matching my dress. The first few buttons of the shirt are unbuttoned so the almost looks like a handkerchief.

“Fuck.” He grins. “You can’t be prettier than the bride, Blue.”

I giggle and he leans in and touches my Hollywood style waves and lets them drop back against my chest. I knew he would appreciate the hair down.

“I thought you said you couldn’t attend a wedding dressed in white.”

He smiles.

“This is cream” he defends “and the bride knows what I’m wearing.”

“You look dreamy.”

“Let me see!”

My mum comes running from the kitchen and I feel the heat on my cheeks hot enough  I’m sure they look like my lips at this point.

“Oh my God! You look like a brunette James Dean!”

Harry laughs but blushes and I giggle along with my mum like two teenage girl.

“Grasias, Alisia.”

I raise my eyebrows as I remember.

“Está aprendido español, ¿sabes, mamá?” (Did you know that he’s learning Spanish, mum?)

Harry smiles with his lips closed and my mum swoons.

“¿En serio?”

“Sí.” Harry nods. “No sé mucho pero entiendo algo.” (I don’t know much but I understand some.)

“Nena, cosételo.” (Baby, tie him up.)

I chuckle and pray to God he didn’t understand as I gently push him away from my drooling mum towards his car. He gets on the driver’s seat and doesn’t say anything else as he drives away.

“Are you nervous?” I ask him.

He sighs.

“A little.”

“I’m sure it’ll all be beautiful.”

“Yeah, it better be or else Gemma might kill some people.”

I laugh but think it to be true. I’m familiar with the term bridezilla and something tells me Gemma has a character. I guess we recognize each other.

There’s a small grey stone church with a big colourful rose window over the door at the top of a hill and Harry parks the car on an esplanade some meters away from it. When I step out of the car, I notice the ground is covered with loose small white stones that sort of look like snowflakes.

Harry is smiling, waiting for me to join him and only then I realize I’ve been gawking around. It’s such a beautiful place and I didn’t even know of the existence of this church. Then again I’m an atheist.

“I think you’re the most beautiful creature I have ever seen.”

“Creature?” I smile. “I knew you’d like my hair down.”

“Come here.”

His hands wrap around my waist through my thick coat before he pulls me to him and his lips press against mine. Thank God Coco had that fixer spray for the makeup so he doesn’t ruin my lipstick too much.

Inside the church, it’s warmer than I expected. Despite the stone on the outside, the inside is wood and I’m thinking the architects, whoever that was, did a good job with the insulation. There aren’t that many people on the church but I guess it’s normal for the bride’s brother to be one of the firsts to arrive.

The ceilings are so high it’s even hard to appreciate the reredos but it gives the chapel some sense of highness, even I, an atheist, feel closer to heaven. It’s the last hours of sunlight of the day and the winter can be heard outside in the form of wind and leaves but I still think it’s such a nice time to get married. It kind of feels as if they would be safe from the storm, because they’re together, and it also feels as if it doesn’t matter how’s the weather outside, it would always be warm if they’re together. I know, weddings really turn me into a softie.

Harry’s hand on mine guides me along a corridor on the left side of the church. I know in a church, the left side is the right side for us to stand, for it’s the side of sin and that’s where we belong. At the end of the corridor, a few very elegant people are gathered.

“Hey, son.”

A man with grey hair short hair and a gentle smile, a few inches shorter than Harry, gives him a hug.

“Hey, dad.”

He doesn’t look much like Harry and neither does his smile really for he doesn’t have any dimples and his lips are quite thinner but he’s got the same air of kindness about him and he transmits the same goodness as his son.

“This is Indie. Indie, this is my dad, Des.”

“Hello, dear.” He politely offers me his hand and I shake it.

“Nice to meet you, sir.”

He asks me how I’m doing and we start a casual conversation but I can’t help my eyes from drifting to Harry as he frowns and looks around. He really is nervous so I forgive him for abandoning me with his dad.

“Your sister is inside.” He answers his silent question and Harry’s eyes set on him.

“Do you think I can go in?”

“I think yes. She did kick me out but try your luck, son.”

He nods and gives me a look.

“You go.” I encourage him.

It’s way too intimate for me to be in there after talking to Gemma just the once. I don’t even know his mother.

“I’ll be fine.” I tell him.

“Yes, I’ll look after her.”

His green eyes set and travel between us both as if he was considering whether to leave me here or not. But after a few seconds he nods his head as if convincing himself and knocked and opened the door that hid her sister.

“Way to introduce you into the family, huh?” Des starts. “My son and his weird ways, I guess. It’s okay if you don’t remember everybody’s names.”

I giggle.

“I’m pretty good with names.”

“The thing is every young female in the family look alike. Even I get confused and they’re my sisters’ daughters.”

He starts telling me about the members of his family and asks me about mine and I tell him about my siblings and my parents. He finds our names very interesting, naturally, and tells me about how they decided on Harry’s name. I also learn his middle name is Edward.

I don’t know how much time has passed when Harry finally exits the room but his eyes are teary when he does and he’s holding a flute glass with what looks like a mimosa.

“I gotta go check on Michal.” He tries to sound unaffected but I smirk because I know better. “But my mum gave me this for you. She says it’s good.”

I smile and gladly take it from his hand as he turns to his dad.

“I tried sneaking one out for you, dad, but they said some shit about us men having enough with not having to do our makeup or something like that.”

I giggle and Harry smiles teasingly at me.

“That’s alright, son.” Des chuckles. “Thank you.”

Harry nods and like that he leaves us again and opens another door on the same wall. I think it’s beautiful that both bride and groom are that close together only with a wall apart. Des keeps the conversation going about my personal choices on Medicine, whether I like consultation over surgery and so on, until Adam joins us and shakes his head.

“Hello, Des. Long time no see. Hi, Indie. You look beautiful.”

“Thank you.” I give him a smile.

It’s such a shame Marie couldn’t come but your grandparents’ golden wedding is not something one can say not to. I know she would have liked for Adam to be there but she understood his motive. After all, Adam is a part of the Styles’ family and that makes Gemma sort of like a sister to him too. Yet I wish Marie were here. I know for a fact we would have had so much fun and she would have been a cheerleader for me if I freak out at meeting so many important people to Harry in the same day.

“Where’s Harry?”

The moment he asks that, as if on cue, Harry comes out of the groom’s room and places a hand on my lower back. He sighs.

“Just making sure Adam wasn’t having a panic attack or climbing out the window, Gemma’s words not mine. I’m gonna tell her he’s not so she can keep it together.”

The three of us laugh as he rushes to her sister’s room now.

“I remember my wedding day” Des said “I have never been more nervous in my entire life, not even when my kids were born.”

“I don’t think he would climb out the window on this weather though.” Adam jokes.

I laugh with them but don’t say much. I’ll admit I’m nervous. I don’t know what to say to seem worth it of Harry. Thank his mum for the alcohol in this graceful mimosa.

“Alright” Harry says as he joins us “I look like the errands boy but now they want me to say hi to guests and show them to their seats. The things one has to do… Would you accompany me?”

I panic. He wants me to stand there and say hi to every single guest? But he looks so good… And I’m going to say yes.

“I’ll help.” Adam smiles.

“Thank you.”

The three of us say goodbye to Des who has to wait for Gemma to be ready since he’s walking her down the aisle and make our way towards the flowers arches that mark the aisle.

“My mum wanted to meet you already” Harry says “and she’s sorry she didn’t come out to at least say hi but her hair wasn’t done.” He smirks.

“Oh, no, that’s fine. She shouldn’t worry. It’s her daughter’s wedding day. I’m not the important one here.”

“I know.” He smiles. “But you’re the first girl I bring home and she’s excited. Let the woman dream.”

I blush as I look at Adam from the corner of my eye. He’s smirking before he stands on one of the narrow corridors on the sides of the benches and Harry and I continue walking until we stop and stand on the main arch.

“How was your sister?”

“Gorgeous” he states but he’s rather stern “and nervous. She made me go check on Michal because she was at the verge of a panic attack herself.”  

I smile because I know he’s exaggerating. He always is and he looks down at me with a big smile.

“What did you and my father talk about?”

“Family, mostly. He also told me how your mum and him came up with your name, Eddie.”

His jaw clenches and he gives me a death glare but I just laugh at his reaction. Our conversation dies the moment the guests start arriving without giving us enough time to talk in between. I don’t know how many times he’s said this is Indie, my girlfriend but if I concentrate, I can hear him on my mind now.

“I wish there was some sticker or something we could stick on your forehead” He jokes “I’m Harry’s girlfriend.”

I chuckle but when I’m about to playfully swat at his arm, a blonde girl wearing a lilac gown indicates us to our seat and Harry guides me to the very first row. Oh, boy, where have I gotten myself in?

Less than a minute after we sit, his mother stands next to him. She looks even prettier than she does in the picture he’s got on his bedside table and even if she could be my mum, she intimidates me. She’s absolutely gorgeous, with lively green eyes and dark hair and for the love of God she looks so much like her son.

“Finally” she smiles at me “I get to meet you.”

“Hey, mum” Harry stands up from the bench and I follow suit “this is Indie. Indie, meet my mum, Anne.”

“It’s really a pleasure to meet you, darling. Unbelievably, you are even prettier than in pictures.”

Harry grins. Is he proud? I think he’s proud at his mother’s compliments to me. I smile despite the heat on my cheeks.

“Thank you. You look stunning too.”

“Thanks. Uh, here comes the groom!”

We all sit down and see Michal walking down the aisle with his arm intertwine to the one of a woman. I suppose that’s his mum. He smiles at Anne when he gets to us and then he takes his place on the altar and holds his hands together over his belt. He looks at the flowers arch with a big smile waiting for his lover.

A few minutes after, not making him wait too much, everyone in the chapel turns her head and down the aisle, we watch a stunning, very happy and extremely beautiful Gemma making her way all dressed in white; wheelchair included. Her dad walks on her side and their arms are intertwined and only when Gemma’s past us, three little girls dressed in white too come into view. They have spread flowers all over the floor after Gemma and one of them had actually been pushing the chair. They look like little angels.

Michal sits down on a white metallic chair adorned with white flowers, just like Gemma’s, and they both stare at each other and giggle and that’s when the bubble forms and everyone different from them two just gets to stare but we’re all out of it.

I hear the ceremony and as beautiful as it is and as gorgeous as the two of them look, my eyes keep drifting at Harry because he’s smirking the entire time and I have never seen him so handsome.

I cannot believe, out of all the people in the world, he chose me to sit next to him today. I am the first girl he brings home and there’s one part of me that feels so special but there’s another part who wished that wasn’t true because it makes me realize how hard it’s really going to be for this to work. After all, who stays with the first girl they bring home forever?

His green eyes set on me for a second and he smiles. The air is out of my lungs.

“Gemma, you are the smartest person I know but not even you could understand how incredibly lucky I feel to be here with you today and become your husband. I remember wanting to have, and sometimes making up, excuses to talk to you and now look at us.” They both giggle “You are my best friend, Gem, and you’ll always be so today I vow to change your name in my phone from ‘lady friend’ to ‘wifey’.” Soft giggles accompany Gemma’s through the chapel and Michal grins at her before continuing. “I vow to always appreciate your laugh, your smile, your caring nature and that face you make when I add too much chili to your nachos. I promise if there's only one beer left, I'll let you have it and to always make sure there’s Earl Grey on the cabinet. I promise to always love you without conditions or reservations, even when you make me watch the Bachelor, and to show it with care and consideration. I promise I’ll be patient, even if that means I’ll have to listen to how I should have gotten you ice-cream even if you said you were on a diet.” He smiles. “I vow to always remember these vows and to love and honour you for as long as I shall live.”

“Those were really great vows.” Gemma nods her head.

“Right?” Michal’s nose shrinks as he nods along with his almost-wife and everyone starts laughing. “I felt it, I felt like I owned it.”

“You really did, babe.”

They both giggle and just as fast as the distention of laughter have fallen upon us, a sort of intensity covers my shoulders but the smile is still on my face, and on Harry’s, when Gemma clears her throat.

“Michal, I had never believed in destiny until God gave me a second chance and ever since then I’ve always thought he didn’t let me go then because I didn’t yet know you.” I see Harry’s emotion on the way his shoulders tense and hear his breath getting stuck on his throat. I land a hand on his shoulder. “So thank God you took that gap year in Colombia.” And then he lets out something similar to a chuckle and I realize Gemma’s a master, much like her brother, for she knew she had dropped the mood and then masterly lifted it up again. “I have thought very hard about what to say today because I could never list all the things I love about you for I love your thoughtfulness and your kindness but also the way you weirdly get excited about pumpkin late and how your eyes crinkle when you laugh very had. And it’s for those things that today I want to vow that I will never forget that you are the love of my life and that in the darkest moments, I will always have a friend in you and you will always have a friend in me. From this day on, you will never walk alone. I mean, technically you will, but you know what I mean.” Michal shakes his head and laughs and Harry clicks his tongue at her sister’s dark humour but smirks anyway. “I vow to be your strength when you feel weak, to only fight you when you’re fighting yourself and to fight beside you for the rest of the times. I vow to pretend not to be annoyed when you pretend you don’t like The Bachelor and to listen to you when you talk about footie.” She takes a deep breath that can be heard through the church and Michal gives her a loving smile. “You know, when I was studying journalism with Chloe, before every presentation we would look into each other’s eyes and tell each other ‘I believe in you’ and even though we never really talked about what that really means, to me it meant ‘I love you and whatever happens out there, I’ve got your back’ so since words cannot do it, I promise to show you, for the rest of my life, how much I love you because Michal Mlynowski, I believe in you.”

Harry and I stand behind as the just married couple exist the church and I don’t say anything because I know he needs this moment to himself. His eyes are shut and he’s looking up with his hands on his hips. Respecting the silence, I wrap my arms around his waist and rest the side of my head on his chest and it takes him about a second to wrap his arms around me too. I feel his muscles relaxed until he’s as soft as his muscles allow him to feel and rests his cheek on the top of my head.

“You know you’re not alone, right?”

He doesn’t answer nor move so I pull away from him enough so I can look into his eyes. His eyes lock with mine but he remains expressionless.

“You’ve got me.” I offer.

My words change the pattern of his breathing and his eyes set on every inch of my face, as if he was looking for a tiny wound. After not finding any, his eyes set on my lips and even though he doesn’t say anything, I know that look. I’ve seen it before and I know what he wants so I tilt my neck back and press my lips against his in a tender, innocent kiss, letting a flood of butterflies loose on my belly and my heart. When I pull away, he presses a tender kiss on the tip of my tongue and then on my forehead.

“I know, baby.”

He leans down and kisses me again but since he was the one initiating the kiss now, he’s also the one taking control of it, and this time he deepens it and I suck his breath on my throat. My heart’s beating fast and I… I…

“You have no idea what you’re doing now” he whispers “but the only reason I managed to go through that without any artificial sedatives was because you were there.”

I swallow the lump on my throat. I really don’t want to mess up and I don’t think there’s anything I could say to him right now that would really hold the meaning of whatever it is that I’m feeling right now.

             Dinner was surprisingly fun. I thought I was going to be awkward, always measuring what words I could use or what I couldn’t say around them and I genuinely thought the mood was going to be a lot more tense but Harry isn’t as bad around his family as I thought he’d be.

We’ve been casually talking and his mum Anne has proven to be the sweetest woman in the world, explaining Harry’s caring nature and his own kindness, and welcoming me in the family like I had been coming over to birthday parties and family dinners for ages.

Gemma and Michal are also quite funny, which I had already realized as they vowed, and I’ve found out Michal has a real talent when it comes about teasing Harry, which has been quite funny to me.

“Harry, I think it’s time.” Michal tells him.

I tilt my neck to give Harry a look but he just nods at Michal before he stands up. He makes his way towards a little stand I haven’t even seen before after taking a glass of champagne from one of the trays the waiters are holding and I watch him, completely hypnotised, as he smiles and runs a hand through his hair in front of the microphone.

“Hi” He clears his throat “Good evening, everyone. I’m Harry, I’m Gemma’s younger brother, even though I think you all know that and I’m standing here about to give a speech ‘cause she’s begged me to, quite simply.” Everybody laughs but he just raises his eyebrows and shakes his head as if saying it’s the truth. “Uh, when I was thinking about what to say tonight… So 30 minutes ago,” He knows when the laughter is coming so he stops and grins and my heart stops every time “I thought that, uh, I should really start thanking my sister; thank you, Gem, for making it so easy for me to be Mum’s favourite child.” Gemma laughs out loud and everyone joins her. “As most of you know, I’m a doctor, I’m an Anaesthesiologist and Gemma is… Gemma’s brave.” His sister laughs. “She was brave when she stood her ground and decided to study journalism even when most people would tell her no; she was brave when she learnt to live a new life, in a totally different situation and she taught me how to do that; she was brave when she started her own business but mostly she was brave when she agreed to marry Michal.” Michal laughs and nods approving his brother-in-law’s joke and I didn’t really know Harry could be so funny, except I did know. “It’s such a blissful, beautiful thing for me to see my sister trusting and loving someone so much, someone who loves her and trusts her just as much and who clearly married up” He grins and I love it because I can see the chuckle he’s holding back “and it’s also a wonderful thing to win a brother like Michal because… Michal, I love you, you love me, we love each other… Although” he stops to add some dramatism and everyone smiles in anticipation “we kind of are polar opposites. He’s funny,” his hand opened in the air points at the direction of the groom before he rests his palm on his chest “I’m smart. He’s athletic, I’m incredibly good looking” he chuckles and so does everyone else “but the thing we both have in common is Gemma and how much… It annoys us when she makes the whole family watch The Bachelor.” He chuckles. “No, but seriously, Gem, you’re my best sister and I love you more than I could ever say to you. Growing up, we didn’t always see eye to eye, I used to kidnap your dolls and ask you for ransoms and you didn’t let me use your karaoke but I can’t imagine my life without you and I know I wouldn’t be half the man I am if you hadn’t been there to show me what it means like to be strong, to be brave and to be kind. I was told recently that it shows that I was raised among women, and this includes you, dad” he jokes “because I am protective by nature and I think it’s true” his green eyes, amused, nervous and brave look at me for a second before they set on his sister “because, even though I’m younger, I have always been and will always be protective of you, Gem and I’ll protect you because I need you.” He clears his throat but I know it’s an attempt to get rid of the emotion clinging on his throat. “I have always admired you and I always will and I wish you and Michal the very best and a long, happy life full of love and joy because that’s what you deserve. Mum made me say that.” He grins at bride and groom and lifts his glass in the air and so do we all. “So let’s have a toast for Mr and Mrs Mlynowski and for all the good they’ll bring to the world. To Gemma and Michal, I believe in you.”

Bringing my glass to my lips, I still see Harry having a sip of his champagne. I tense up. That’s the first time I see him drink. He comes back to the table and hugs both his brother-in-law and his sister for the longest time and then Michal indicates we shall mingle around for a few minutes whilst they get dessert ready.

Harry rests his hand on my waist and gently pulls me away from the just married and towards the very centre of the hall. I politely decline yet another glass of wine I’m offered and the waiter walks away.

“You can drink in front of me, you know?”

“I know. I’ve done it plenty of times before.”

“I’m not an ex-alcoholic, if that’s what you think.” He smirks.

“That is not what I thought. You said you didn’t drink because you don’t like alcohol. You never said you had trouble with it.”

He nods his head slowly before he leans down until his lips brush the shell of my ear.

“My mother does.” He whispers. “The reason I don’t drink is because I’ve seen what alcohol did to my mum when she was indeed an alcoholic and I don’t want that for me.”

My blood boils. I get furious that he had to go through that too but then I look at him, and it’s like I realize I won’t help anybody with that anger, and then I feel cold that he’s dropping a bomb like this in the middle of a wedding and that he’s trusting me with this now. I give him a lips closed smiles.

“It looks like you enjoy dropping bombs at family reunions.” I joke.

He chuckles. And when a waiter passes next to us with a tray full of champagne glasses, he takes two of them and hands me one with a big smile. I take it and inevitable smile back at him.

“That was such a great speech you gave.” I congratulate him. “Funny, witty, tender… I enjoyed it.”

“Thank you.”

“I didn’t know you had such a way with words.”

“Yeah, I understand why you wouldn’t know that.” We both giggle at his comeback. “But… I actually write sometimes.”

“Oh, you do?”

He nods.

“Yeah, I started doing it as a thing in therapy. You know I had like this journal where I was supposed to write my own feelings and like elaborate on them as part of a bigger understanding… And now, I just… Still write sometimes.”

“Have you written anything about me?” I smirk.

A timid smirk escapes his suppression and he looks away from me. Oh, God; he has.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“You so have.”

I’m about to ask him more on that when a few young people join us. There’s the blond girl who told us to take our seats at the beginning of the ceremony, a tall brunette guy with short hair and a quarterback’s smile and a lanky guy with kind eyes but naughty smirk.

“Nice speech, Harry.”

“Funny.” The girl said.

“Thank you, lads. I think you all know this is Indie and Indie, these are Laura, Max and Liam, my cousins.”

“Oh, hi.”

“Hello there.” The girl I now know is named Laura smiled. “D’you know Mum and Auntie Sally have been talking about you two all dinner?” She smirks.

Harry shakes his head.

“I mean, even at your sister’s wedding, dude, you’re the one who makes the family talk.”

“Your mum and Aunt Sally don’t need a reason to gossip though. We both know that.”

“I suppose you’re right.” She giggles. “But hey, how are you holding up? I bet everyone is driving you crazy, coming up to you to talk, get to know you… Only Harry would introduce his first ever girlfriend in such a day.”

“She can take it.” He grins.

“It’s actually been quite fun.” I admit. “My mum’s Spanish and she’s got eleven siblings so-”

“Crap!” She says.

“Holy shit!” Harry chuckles.

“I’m used to big family gatherings.”

“For the love of God, eleven siblings are quite a lot of siblings.”

“Do they all also have many children?” Harry asks.

“Not all. I have 24 cousins.”

“What?” They all laugh and I laugh along with them.

We keep on talking and I learn a lot of things about Harry’s family, the big picture, but he also learns his fair amount about mine. We also chat with his grandparents for a while and they both are so sweet and British they make my heart swoon.

Harry’s Nana keeps insisting on him bringing me over some time for tea and biscuits for she still keeps of her silk clothes from when she was young and she wants to show them to me. She used to be a dressmaker and she used to design and sew her own dresses so I bet she’s proud of them. Her grandad just sits there and stares at her but he also adds some of the dresses he remembers and that just has me turning into mush. I love elderly couples what can I say?

We go back to our table for the wedding cake and I am so happy and excited I even have one and a half pieces. Harry and I shared the second piece as I talk with Anne about her mother’s dresses. She herself tells me about her wedding dress and it’s only when her eyes drop to my knee and she smiles that I notice her son has his hand resting there. I’m so used to our physical contact, that I think it would be easier for me to notice its absence at this point. My cheeks tinge pink.

The little angels that were throwing flowers after Gemma come running to our table with flowers crowns on their little heads and I recognize those curly locks, similar to Harry’s, on one of the little girls’ mane of hair. The must all be under 5 years old and they look so adorable I wonder how I haven’t noticed them during dinner. The tallest one blows on a bubble blower on Harry’s face and he tilts his neck back frowning jokingly and making the little one laugh.

“Oh, bubbles on my face, just what I wanted.”

He leans down, resting his elbows on his knees, so he can see the kids eye to eye.

“They dressed you up like little angels today, didn’t they? Then why are you still fighting to be the devil?”

“I won gold on my last gymnastics competition.” The little kid just changed the topic and Harry gasps exaggerating his surprise.

“That is very impressive, May.”

She nods her little head and I notice her eye drifting to me intermittently. She clearly doesn’t know who the fuck I am but I think she’s too shy to ask. Harry follows her sideways gaze until our eyes meet and then he smirks and leans down to whisper something at the little girl’s ear. Her mouth opens wide as she stares at me and I smile at her before I give Harry a look. He just smirks.

“She has got such long hair.” Little May says.

“She does.”

“Lucy, Lucy!” May tilts her neck so she can talk to younger little girl. “She’s a mermaid.” She whispers.

I look at Harry but he just grins.

“Why don’t you guys introduce yourselves?”

“My name is May and I’m 4.”

“My name is Lucy Ecran and I’m 3 and my mummie is called Angela and my daddy is called Finn.”

“We are sisters.” May explains.

Yeah, I figured that on my own the moment they started talking. I grin at then and offer they my hand and they shake it.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, girls. I love your dress and your flowers. And congrats on the gold.”

“She really is a mermaid, Lucy.”

I suck my lips inside my mouth so I don’t laugh but before I can tell Harry to tell the girls the truth, a little boy dressed like a man comes running and tags May. She panics for a second but then her little chubby hands swats Harry’s chest as she yells tagged and runs away.

I was not expecting Harry to stand up from his chair and jog after the little girls but the two of them erupt into an adorable fist of giggles and the image warms my heart. I don’t know why I’m surprised, Harry’s so caring it makes sense these little girls would like him. He’s funny too and I’m sure he actually listens to them when they want to tell him stories about kindergarten or gymnastics.

“They love him.” Anne says.

Tilting my neck, I realize she’s also looking at them as they run around.

“Naturally.” I agree. “He’s sweet.”

Her green eyes, much like her son’s, lock with mine.

“I am so happy Harry finally found you.”

I swallow at the way she said that. Finally found me… As if he had somehow been looking… But I have to admit, sometimes I feel like we found each other too. I guess… I never thought I was going to find any other person ever again and yet, when we’re alone and I look at him and we I hear him breathing beside me on the bed, I just think… It kind of had to happen.

“I thought I was never going to say the day.” She smiles but her eyes are getting teary. “He’s been… Like… Gone, for a while.”

“How was he? Before the accident.”

She takes a deep breath. I don’t know her but I think my question caught her off guard.

“He was… He laughed a lot and he had all these plans; he could talk about the future for hours… He joked all the time too.”

“Well, he still has his fair amount of jokes.” I smile.

She grins.

“I guess he now has someone who laughs at them.”

“He’s great.” I nod. “I actually admire you for having raised such a wonderful, caring, kind man. I don’t want to take the credit away from him, after all, he chooses to be like that every day, but I still think the bigger part is thanks to you.”

“I’ve always wondered how he’d do in a relationship because, as caring and affectionate as he is, he’s also always had a very clear, very private inner world. He’s a private person, he’s always been, so I wondered… You know, if he would actually let someone really in. We’re very close, we’ve always been… He’s helped me so much, even when he was just a boy, but still sometimes I felt like there was always another part of him I couldn’t really reach.”

My eyes look away from hers. I can’t tell her that I’m worse than her son at that. I don’t know what to say so I just sigh and shake my head.

“Well, I… I think that’s… Good.” Anne’s eyes set on mine and I can’t believe I’m about to sort of contradict her on the first night we met. “I mean he doesn’t have to share everything with me.” I need to fix this. Come on, explain yourself, Blue. “I’m happy he shares whatever he needs or wants to, but if he wants to keep some things to himself, that’s cool too.”

The corners of her lips curl up in a lips closed smile and I feel relieved that she didn’t feel offended. I mean I never meant to, but some people these days, they take everything to heart…

“That’s a beautiful way to see it.”

I smile.

“I love the way his mind works, the way he thinks… Fascinates me and every time he shares that with me, I feel… Lucky and special and I think it’s a gift he’s giving me but he doesn’t have to.”

“Who doesn’t?” Harry runs a hand through his hair as he stands before us and his mum giggles.

“Did you catch her?” I ask.

“May? She’s a gold medal gymnast.” He frowns as if saying are you crazy?

I laugh and he smirks.

“I tagged Adam.”

The three of us giggle and in the background, we see Adam running after the kids. I think Marie would love to see this.

“Harry, dear.” Harry’s Nana reaches her hand to Harry’s waist and he turns his body and hold her hands to welcome her in our small group of three. “I wanted to come chat some more to Indie.”

Harry gives me a smile and helps his grandma sits down on his chair. Michal calls his name and he gives me questioningly look as asking for my permission so I frown and shrug and he reaches his now brother-in-law and his sister. His mother, his grandma and me start a conversation about books and I feel excitement takes over me as the three of us talk about Virginia Woolf and Sylvia Plath and Anne tells me growing up her mum and dad used to have this little library, on such small house, but that to her it always looked quite big and she wondered how it was possible for someone to read that many books.

My parents themselves read quite a lot. I don’t remember a single moment on the garden, being little and playing with my siblings that my dad wasn’t reading a book. He used to read them with a pencil too and he used to underline shit. I think I got that from him, all my copies are underlined.

Anne excuses herself to join her children and Harry’s Nana, Esme, tells me about her own experience, growing up and getting married and having kids, when all she was supposed to do was just that.

“And I was happy, I swear, I don’t think two people could love each other as Edward and I love one another but that is because he knows, you know? He told me, when we going to get engage, he said to me ‘Esme, I know you don’t love me now, but you will and that’s a promise’ and he was handsome, you know, he was very handsome but all I wanted back then was to have a voice of my own.”

“A room of one’s own, eh?”

She smiles.

“That’s right. And that’s what I got. I could do whatever I wanted, you know, Edward was just the guy who would support me, no questions asked. I think that’s why I did that many dresses. It was my own thing… And he loved them all.”

From the corner of my eye I can see Harry’s grandad surrounded by his family and yet his green eyes would look for his wife. They got married in 1950 and it just sounds so crazy to me that in that time, I mean it wasn’t that long ago, was it? Still women had to do as men told them.

One of Harry’s cousins, a pretty girl as well, for everyone in this family seems to be out of a magazine, joins Esme and me and Esme starts boasting off her granddaughter, much like she would do of Gemma or Harry, I’m sure.

I see Harry making his way towards me. He has been talking to his mum and I wonder whether she’s told him about our chat over him. I wouldn’t mind if she did, I think it would be nothing new for him.

“Blue,” he bows a little so I can listen to him better from my sitting position “do you want to dance?”

My lips curl up at the corners and I stand up. My eyes lock with his. He seems timid.

“Thought you said you didn’t dance.”

“Mum told me to ask you. Come on, I asked for this song.”  

I roll my eyes but let him guide me to the dance floor. It sounds like a song from the eighties and it doesn’t surprise me but I don’t know what to expect when a very deep voice starts saying “Girl, you know we belong together. I have no time for you to be playing with my heart like this. You’ll be mine forever, baby, you just see.” But after that, a very beautiful, soothing voice takes the lead and I haven’t seen the singer but I know he’s black. We belong together and you know that I’m right.

Harry’s hands rest on my back, behind my waist, and mine intertwine behind his neck as we slowly move. I have never done this with him but my heart is about to explode. Why do you play with my heart? Why do you play with my mind? He doesn’t say anything and neither do I for I’m listening to the song he said he asked for and I feel like a tide untie inside my body. I feel the waves moving up and down and I swear I feel just like I do after we untangle from one another after our closeness. I am on my tippy toes at the edge of losing conscience, right in that place where so far he’s only got me naked, but right now, even though I’m fully dressed, I am feeling naked on everything that’s not clothes.

When I can't sleep at night without holding you tight

Girl, each time I try I just break down and cry

Pain in my head oh I'd rather be dead

Spinning around and around

“D’you know the song?” He asks me at last.

I shake my head and he just nods but his green eyes don’t leave me as his gaze undresses me.

“You introduced me as Indie to everyone.” My voice comes out as a whisper but he’s unfaced by it.

“That’s how everyone calls you.”

“But you call me Blue.”

His eyes look into mine but he remains silent and stern, his lips are closed and I know he’s not going to comment on that. Yet somehow I understand, not everyone gets to call me Blue and he likes it just as much as I do.

“Mum loves you.” He says out of the blue. “I can’t leave you now.” His eyebrows raised on his forehead but I swat his chest because I know he’s kidding.

“We should visit your grandparents one day.”

“You wanna visit Esme?” He smirks.

“And Edward.”

“Oh, so you wanna make sure I really don’t leave you, eh? Becoming Nana’s friend too… Should have known before I brought you in here…”

I roll my eyes and he just chuckles.

“You don’t have to worry, baby, don’t have to try either.”

“I like them.” I confess. “You have a beautiful family and your speech was beautiful too.” He smirks. “And… I mean… So are you. You’re beautiful as well.”

His lips, still closed, curl into a smile and I feel my face heating up.

“Thank you, baby.” He leans down and presses a chaste kiss on my lips. “Mum’s probably watching us.” His whisper sounds muffled against my lips and I chuckle.

“Do your cousins still think I’m a mermaid?”

“Now they think you’re the princess of the sea.” I give him a warning look but he swears to be innocent. “That was all Max. So are you having fun?”

“I am, yes. And you?”

“Yeah.” He smiles. “I meant every word I said up there.”

“Guay.” I smile. “Me alegro.” (I’m happy for you.)

I tilt my neck back and capture his lips with mine and we kiss slowly and intimately, even though yes, his mum is probably watching and who knows who else but I can’t bring myself to care. When we pull apart, out of breath, he pecks the tip of my nose and smiles.

“I realized something today…”

My pulse accelerates and I swallow the fear and the anticipation of what might be to come but he just smiles and his green eyes burn into mine and he doesn’t say anything else. I don’t need him to. I know what it is.

I rest the side of my head on his chest and we keep dancing for Lord know how long. But after that slow dancing of ours, there comes some drinks and he actually drinks a little too and we end up jumping and dancing with his cousins and Gemma and Michal and I’m happy to see him like this.

I don’t know what time it is when Anne approaches the two of us with her coat on. Harry and I are resting our bags on the structure that holds the white marquee where the party is dying down.

“Here you are.” She smiles. “I was wondering, would you guys like to sleep at home tonight? You can leave whenever you want tomorrow but just so you don’t have to drive all the way back to Grad now.”

Harry’s eyes search for mine but I have nothing to say.

“Thank you very much Mum, we would really appreciate that.”

“Of course!” She smiles. Wow she really did want us to stay. “Go grab your coats, say bye. I’ll wait by the car.”

We do as we’re told and I walk with Harry towards his car. Anne’s standing next to the driver’s door and I almost smile. I don’t know why it surprised me that Harry lends his mum his car but for some reason I had pictured him to be some sort of car lover that doesn’t let anyone drive it. I wonder if he’d let me. The ride is silent and I take this time to myself. There’s nothing wrong with any of this. There can’t be.

I recognize the main road of Bellamond from last weekend. We pass the football field where Harry parked when we went to Tino’s and take a turn to the right. We drive past a school, an outpatients clinic and past a small park.

“Was that where you went to school?” I ask Harry.

“Yes.” He smiles.

“Is it still the same? I mean, was it like that when you were little?”

“How old do you think I am, miss?”

I throw my head back and laugh while he jokes about how there used to be dinosaurs when he went to school but for the rest of it, it’s pretty much the same. I imagine a little Harry with huge green eyes and curly hair walking inside school, when kids are so little their school bags are bigger than them. I imagine him having a cupcake on the recess for somebody’s birthday and eating a small sandwich with pickles the rest of the days.

“And we’re home!” Anne croons.

Stepping out of the car, I can’t really see much in the dark but I see a huge garden, carefully looked after, and a two floors house with a white door and white windows that contrast with the bricks.

“Your bed is made.” Anne whispers as we enter the house. “Now, I’m exhausted but you kids can have a cup of tea or something. I just… You will have to excuse me but I need my beauty sleep.”

“Sure.”

“Of course, Anne, thank you very much.”

“Oh, nonsense, this is your house.” She dismisses me. “Anyway, good night. Sleep well.”

“You too.” Harry smiles. “So… Do you want tea or water or milk or even… I don’t know, are you hungry?”

“No.” I frown. I’ve eaten so much I think if I roll up in a ball I might actually make one. “I’m good, thank you.”

“Okay.” He whispers. “Then let’s go to bed.”

He walks past me and turns on the light in the kitchen. The cupboards are white but the countertop and the household appliances are dark grey. Harry gets two glasses from the cupboard over the sink and fills them with water and asks me to turn off the light before we make our way upstairs.

I’m the one opening the door for his hands are full and when I enter his childhood room, I have a look around and feel my insides warming up. My house is a lot less personal. Even growing up, my Mum did the decorations of the entire house and even though she did it thinking of us and I loved my room, it still doesn’t feel as personal as this. There are posters from different bands and Elvis on the wall and he’s got a record player on the corner near the window. The room is painted a dark blue and even if it might make the space smaller, it also makes it cosier.

He takes off my coat and places it on his desk alongside his.

“I quite like your room.”

“You do?”

I nod at his rhetorical question and feel his hands over my ass. I tilt my neck to look at him.

“Come here.”

His hands fully wrap around my hips and he pulls me to him until my chest collides with his and he kisses me. His lips mould against mine and his tongue gently pushes inside my mouth. He smells so good… And fuck, this suit… Looks so sexy on him. This Peaky Blinder thing is really doing wonders to my sex thrive. I gasp and his hands grab my ass and I feel his nails sinking down the back of my thighs over my dress.

“H” I gasp “your Mum’s here.”

“My Mum’s passed out on her bed.”

His lips from my mouth to my chin and to the side of my neck and his warm tongue makes my skin cold when he moves away. He nibbles on my neck and his hands squeeze the flesh on my body through my silk dress. His touch is exquisite.

“She could hear us.” My voice comes out as a desperate moan, betraying me like a bitch, and I feel Harry smiling against my skin.

“Well, then you’d have to be quiet, won’t you?”

His mouth comes back to mine before I can answer and his hand, warm and big, cups one of my breasts and makes me moan on his mouth. His hands caress my legs, from my knees to my hips and the dress slips against my skin when he opens his fists.

His lips kiss my neck again. He knows it makes me fucking wet when he does that.

“I haven’t told you” I whisper “but you look so fucking sexy in this suit.”

His white teeth skim my skin as he grins.

“D’you like it?”

“You look like Tommy Shelby.”

He chuckles against my skin.

“And that turns you on?”

“Can you imagine if you were a Peaky Blinder?” I cup his jaw so he looks at me.

Fuck me, he is so handsome. I can feel the definition of his jaw on my hands and his eyes look so hungry and intense with dilated pupils against the brightest green I’ve ever seen.

“I would die.”

He frowns amused.

“Do you want me to be bad and rough?”

My cheeks tinge pink. No, I don’t. I like it the way he does it; gentle until he drives me crazy and then fast and hard and rough. My lips clench between my legs.

“I want you” My heart beats furiously on my chest “in my mouth.”

He doesn’t have any witty remarks to give me and that’s what I thought. Any other day, I would have teased him but he looks so fucking good and I can have him to myself now.

“You’ve been driving me crazy all night.” I confess.

I carefully lower down my hand from his shoulder to his chest and I feel his heartbeat, as fast as mine, and I love the way he’s looking at me. I touch him, I touch his chest and his arms and the buttons of his vest and he just lets me give me the same lustful adoration he’s given me plenty of times before.

I can say anything else because his mouth crushes against mine and he can posses me with one kiss and he does, his warm powerful tongue pushes my lips apart before it finds my own and caress it. His fingertips sink on my hips as he takes a deep breath through his nose and then his hands caress my belly until he cups both my breasts and squeezes them.

“Fuck, I want you.”

Still in my dress, I make a show of it as I get on my knees before him and his lips part. I unbutton his pants but keep the rest of his clothes on so I can see him and hooking my fingers on the hem of his pants, I slowly pull them down his thighs and leave him on just his boxers.

I love having him like this, all to myself, without saying a word or having control of the situation. He’s let me have the control for now and I know he trusts me like that. He doesn’t need to know what I’m going to do next. He just stands there and lets me have him and I feel fucking special for that.

I snake my hands under his shirt and caress his abs as I watch every seam of his jacket and the way it hugs his muscles. He is so fucking hot. I hook my fingers on his boxers and pull them down his legs so his hard, healthy, desperate cock is right there for me. I lick my lips before I hold the base between my fingers and lick a slow, timid stripe from the base to the line where the head begins. He gasps. I do it again.

“Please, baby” he groans “don’t play.”

Our eyes meet and I give him a little smile before I wrap my mouth around him and give him what he wants.

“Fuck.”

I feel his fingers tangling on my hair until his palm massages my scalp and I bow my head, slow and superficially at first, so he’s not yet reaching my throat, before I take him out of my mouth and lick him. His lubrication mixes with my saliva and always holding his base, I devour him like I’ve never devoured anyone ever in my life.

I want him and I want him forever and I know this might not be the most romantic time to realize that but that’s what it is. My yearning for him overcomes every other thought I might have in this moment and all I can think about, and all I am even, is just another part of him.

This time he doesn’t need to ask me to look at him because my eyes search him. I can’t take them off him. The sight of his manhood, this thick and close, drives me crazy so I think the fact that my eyes still look for him talks about how wonderful he really looks tonight.

Our eyes lock and I let my tongue out as I feed myself with him before I wrap my lips around him and suck. I feel him throbbing on my tongue.

“Fuck me, baby…” He groans. “You’re driving me crazy.”

Every time my tongue takes an extra slow lick he closes his eyes so I do it all the time because I love watching him and the way he grunts and moans when I suck him. I free him with a pop and pump my wrist instead, sucking his balls inside my mouth instead and his grip on my hair tightens.

“Shit.”

He’s fighting for breath and I revel on how vulnerable we both are right now. I’m keeling on the floor for him and yet he’s the one at my mercy. I lick him from the base to the tip and lick the crown of his hard on in circles. I smile when I look up at him.

“Fuck, you know perfectly fine…”

What I’m doing. I hold his thighs so I can use him as counterweight and leverage as I bop my head and feel his muscles tensing under my hand.

“Oh, baby”

I clench my thighs together trying to relieve some of the tension his grunts and moans are building on the lower side of my belly and between my legs and Harry places one hand on the wall beside him to support his weight whilst I bring him closer and closer to the climax with my mouth. I don’t take my eyes off his and I know that drives him crazy. His jaw is clenched when his lips don’t part and he lets out soft grunts. His hand moves from my hair down my cheek and his fingertips caress my upper lip.

“Fucking hell, love.”

I have all of him and I moan as he fills my mouth until I feel him on the back of my throat. I know when to stop so as not to gag and when I look up at him, he moans.

“I’m gonna cum, love.”

I nod my head while I keep on sucking and in a second, like he promised, he moans and I feel his hot cum on my tongue. I lick and swallow all of it whilst his thumb caresses my cheek lovingly and I lean my head on his head, revelling on his tenderness. When I get him out of my mouth, I give him a shy smile and he chuckles softly before he lifts me back to my feet. When I’m standing up before him, he wraps his arms around my body and pulls me to him in a tender hug almost unsuitable after what I just did to him. I hug him back and we stay like that for a few seconds.

Then his hand moves to the low of my back and he lays me on his bed but stands between my legs. His hands grab my thighs and pull my body to him until my ass is on the edge of the mattress.

“You look so fucking gorgeous in this dress, love.” His hand moves from my thigh to my belly until he cups my breast. “So fucking sexy.”

I desire him so bad it’s starting to hurt but he’s right there for me and I just have to be a little patient. He takes off my heels and then his hands caress my legs from my ankles to my hips, pulling my dress up with them. I moan when his fingers move my knickers away and he touches me. I’m dripping for him, I don’t think I’ve ever been this soaked and I feel like if he touches me twice I’ll combust.

He gathers some of my wetness on his fingers and slips two inside me and I moan and bite my bottom lip because I have to be quiet. I close my fist on his duvet and cling onto it while he thrusts his fingers slowly in and out of me.

I try to be as quiet as possible so only muffled strangled moans leave me every once in a while but I can listen my own wetness and Harry’s breathing. His other hand snakes up my torso and takes the strap of my dress off, exposing my breast before he wraps his lips around my hard nipple. He sucks and licks my breath and I arch my back and bite on my bottom lip. He’s taken off his jacket but it’s even sexier to see him with the cream vest and the blue silk shirt.

“That’s it, baby, you’re being so good, so quiet.” He whispers against my skin.

“Oh, Harry…”

I feel his hot hard on against my thigh as he keeps moving his fingers in and out of me. He hovers me and I hold onto his arm that’s moving his fingers inside me.

“Harry, please” I whisper “get inside. I need you, please.”

I don’t have to say it twice before I feel him filling me and satisfying my frustration. My hands curl around his biceps and he grinds his hips with a delicious, torturous rhythm and we both gasp and softly moan as much as we try to be quiet.

“You’re so beautiful.” He moans. “And you feel so good, fuck.”

I moan and feel my nipples hardening and the knot on my belly tightening and tightening and tightening. My walls flutter. And so does my heart.

“Are you close?” He whispers.

“Yes, fuck, yes.”

His lips cover mine and I feel my muscles tensing before I lose conscience for a couple of seconds. Harry keeps pounding over me trying to reach his own climax and overstimulating me. I moan and he kisses me so as to muffle my sounds. We could be heard but fuck, I think I’m gonna pee myself and if I pee on him I’d die from embarrassment.

“Harry, I-”

“Fuck, baby, you’re squirting.”

With another thrust he comes inside me and kisses me deeply but slowly, as if trying to calm me down. I have never felt like this before. I mean sex with him is always amazing but fucking hell I am exhausted, beyond consumed. I kiss him back and take deep breaths.

I’m not fully aware of the next few minutes, but I know he got me cleaned up and took my dress off for me before he took the rest of his clothes off and got in the bed with me. When I turn around, he’s grinning like a kid and I ask him what’s on his mind.

“I’m just thinking, teenage Harry wouldn’t believe this.”

I laugh.

“I’m serious” But he’s grinning when he rests his weight on his elbow next to me and hover my torso. “I can’t believe I just fucked someone as fucking gorgeous as you and that you’ve had me in your mouth and that you’ve fucking squirted. Jesus Christ, I think this was the best night of my life.”

I blush.

“That… Uh… That had never happened to me before.”

He grins.

“If only I had known about this Tommy Shelby fantasy of yours sooner…”

I laugh again but it’s harder and harder to keep my eyes opened so I rest my head on his chest and he hugs me.

“That had nothing to do with Tommy Shelby… It was all you…” I yawn. “I’d have you over him any day. I’d have you over anyone.”

[kosmosian-quills]

Novel Prep Tag

I was tagged over a month ago I’m so so sorry!!! by @writingonesdreams​! Thank you for your patience with this one!

I’m doing this for Angel!

FIRST LOOK

1. Describe your novel in 1-2 sentences (elevator pitch)

The crown princess of a small island country is on the run after the royal family is overthrown. She has to learn to survive with a group of criminals while hiding her true identity.

2. How long do you plan for your novel to be? (Is it a novella, single book, book series, etc.)

Well originally I saw this a standalone novel, but after some talks with a few people I am considering a backstory novella set before the story starts, but I won’t properly begin this until after I finish the first draft.

3. What is your novel’s aesthetic?

An opulent royal castle, a dense forest in a storm, old collapsed buildings, soldiers stood neatly in line, posters and propaganda.

4. What other stories inspire your novel?

The main ones that come to mind are mostly stuff from here on tumblr! I’ve read a lot of amazing writer’s works, and honestly the writers themselves are the people who inspire me most. I mean. @writingonesdreams​, @cirianne​, @ardawyn​, @eluari​ all have amazing WIP’s and are awesome people!

But ofc the question stipulates stories, so I’d have to say - the Persona game series and Anastasia!

5. Share 3+ images that give a feel for your novel

MAIN CHARACTER(S)

6. Who is your protagonist?

Królewna Anjelika Maciejewska Górskanka - The Crown Princess of a small island country, and the only child of the King and Queen.

7. Who is their closest ally?

Before the story, it’s got to be her Maidens of Honour (especially Kasia) and Michal, the man who is in charge of protecting her.

During the story, it’s technically still Michal, and a few individuals that I have not introduced yet.

8. Who is their enemy?

The disgraced former army General who betrayed her family and tried to kidnap her, and now has total control of her country.

Her sadistic cousin too, who is now captain of the secret police that is in charge of hunting her down.

9. What do they want more than anything?

To be safe and free with her friends and (some) family again, without having to run and hide anymore.

10. Why can’t they have it?

The General’s hunt for her is very impeding of a peaceful life, and some of her friends are captured or otherwise separated from her during the initial weeks of chaos that the country decended to.

11. What do they wrongly believe about themselves?

She believes that her life will never be able to return to normal (and it will not ever be the same), but as long as she has her friends she will be able to grow stronger with them together.

12. Draw your protagonist! (Or share a description)

Anjelika is approximately 5′5″, has brown eyes and brown hair that is just shorter than shoulder length. She is skinny and has some lower body strength thanks to her regularly dancing ballet. She is graceful and has a “public” smile and a “private” smile.

PLOT POINTS

13. What is the internal conflict?

The Princess battles with her identity, who she was before, who she pretended to be, and who she is now. Three very distinct facets of her identity that she struggles to overcome and accept as a part of her, mainly due to the upeval that her life became.

14. What is the external conflict?

The General’s rule is ruthless and relentless. He’s actively hunting her down with the purpose of wedding her and forever making him a part of the royal lineage. She doesn’t want that to happen, and simply wishes that she had any semblence of power to make it all just stop.

15. What is the worst thing that could happen to your protagonist?

Recapture, being humiliated in front of not just her citizens, but the remainder of her family and especially her friends.

16. What secret will be revealed that changes the course of the story?  

Where the Princess has been hiding the whole time, if that counts. Basically, Anjelika’s story starts as soon as the overthrow happens. Michal’s takes place almost a year later, and they sort of meet up for the climax.

17. Do you know how it ends?  

Kind of. I have an idea, but because I haven’t decided on a climax I cannot really say for sure with regards to the fate of some characters (some I really want to kill and others I am on the fence about, for example).

18. What is the theme?

Loyalty, friendship, (found) family, bravery, survival, and acceptance of one’s true self.

19. What is a recurring symbol?  

Roses and other flowers. Roses are a symbol of the royal family, and the buds that grow throughout the story sowing seeds of hope for a better future, that things will get better.

20. Where is the story set? (Share a description!)

The small island nation of Kosmos. It’s a country just off the coast of Poland with shipping ports to Sweden, Denmark and Germany too. Has a mountanous region in the centre of the country, the capital city (and the castle) are on the south-east coastline. They’re famous for flowers, making food and clothes adorned with them is a huge cultural draw for many (rose vodka is nice enough, but some especially corn poppy vodka is practically lethal when it’s homemade).

21. Do you have any images or scenes in your mind already?  

The Princess with her friends on the day after the overthrow when she witnesses something that she did not want to see.

The separation that leaves Anjelika alone in her own country, hunted like a dog.

One of her friends joining the rebels to help rescue their captured friends.

A semi-canon, not-quite-decided-yet scene in which Matylda has a position of power over her tormentor.

I have many. My problem is getting them written down!!

22. What excited you about this story?  

The thought of friendship and loyalty even through such awful times, trying to stay strong and true to one’s goals and ideals. Just. The friendship, ok.

AND the prospect of it being full enough to publish one day and own as a thing that I did.

23. Tell us about your usual writing method!

Mostly daydreaming, a rough planning of scenes and what I want to happen, and writing very very little. I need to get better at this honestly.

Tagging a few people. Sorry if you’ve already been tagged! I’m very curious to see yours, but feel free to ignore!

@cirianne​, @ardawyn​, @eluari​, @dove-actually​

[itsclydebitches]

So the story goes like this: I’m in London for the month, popping into every used bookstore I find, and while in one I spot Captains' Logs Supplemental: The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages. Though baggage weight limits won’t let me buy it (I have already bought so many books) I did snap pics of the “Past Prologue,” “Cardassians,” and “The Wire” entires. And then transcribed them. Because I thought the other Garak stans might enjoy this info!

Worth the read imo 💜

Episode #3 “Past Prologue” Original Airdate: 1/11/93 Written by Katharyn Powers Directed by Winrich Kolbe Guest Starring: Jeffrey Nordling (Tahna), Andrew Robinson (Garak), Barbara March (Lursa), Vaughn Armstrong (Gul Dunar), Richard Ryder (Bajoran Deputy), Susan Bay (Admiral), Gwynyth Walsh (B’Etor)

“We didn’t want your typical Cardassian in there,” says director Winrich Kolbe of the creation of one of DS9’s break-out characters, the Cardassian spy Garak. “Obviously it would have been hard to put a real Cardassian soldier in a clothing store. Perhaps it would have been terrific, who knows, but what we felt we had to deal with was somebody abnormal—at least as far as the Cardassians were concerned. It was one of those things where I wasn’t quite sure whether Andy Robinson would be the right guy. I had a different idea as to what type of actor I wanted, but Andy Robinson was available and turned out to be terrific. What I wanted, which shows how far off I was, was Sydney Greenstreet. I have to admire an actor who has to come in at three in the morning and stay in that kind of makeup for the rest of the day and still be able to give a performance.”

Comments Michael Piller, “One of the things about ‘Past Prologue’ that bothered me was that Bashir’s performance was in a very broad range—and this was newness. I believe we have strange aliens, strange makeup, spaceships, explosions and wormholes and costumes that are crazy, so that the people within them have to be entirely credible. If those people get too big in their performances, then you go into opera, and it becomes space opera, foolish and unbelievable. Patrick Stewart really led the way with us in Next Generation, which is to underplay. When you think you’re going to go big, you come down, and it has much more power and credibility. You believe there’s a space station or a spaceship like Enterprise. The biggest problem with the early shows is that some of the performances were too big or too restrained. We had to find the even tone for the ensemble to work together. Our voices weren’t quite right, and the performances were uneven. The first episode hurt the character of Bashir because he was so broad in those scenes with Andy Robinson that he looked like the greenest recruit in the history of the Starfleet, and that hurt him for two or three episodes. If we were shooting it today, his performance would be much more credible, and he wouldn’t have the same reaction from the audience that he has now.”

Klingon renegades Lursa and B’Etor, of course, were introduced in the Next Generation two-parter “Redemption,” and were used as part of an attempt to tie Deep Space Nine into existing Trek continuity. The characters eventually perished in battle against the Enterprise in the feature film Star Trek: Generations.

“The creative synergy allows you incredible opportunities,” remarks Piller. “It’s interesting how we used them. Essentially, we had a story and, in the case of Lursa and B’Etor, we said, ‘Hey, we’ve got a real kind of Casablanca spy story and we need someone to really be doing double dealings and bringing money and doing gun exchanges; why don’t we use the Klingons—and use those characters that we love so much? It works out just fine to use those guys because then there’s a connection and an identification. There’s a backstory, there’s a history, and all of these things make for such a richer series.”

Says Ira Behr, “There’s no doubt that people like [TNG characters like] Lwaxana [Troi] and Q and Vash and a bunch of others. They have a certain life to them as characters and an energy that certainly helped The Next Generation and helps us too. The characters that don’t have to be Starfleet and don’t have those strings we have attached so often. A lot of times you have people performing those characters who take a lot of relish in doing them, so they’re fun to have come back.”

Piller doesn’t feel that in exploiting The Next Generation’s voluminous history Deep Space Nine has an unfair advantage, appealing to those already familiar with Trek lore. “You have to look at the shows themselves,” he insists. “There’s no question in my mind that conceptually, each of these shows would work because they’re about the new characters. In ‘Past Prologue,’ there’s a moral dilemma for Major Kira where she has to confront her loyalty to her past life and what her new life is going to be. It’s really about her. It’s illuminating our new characters. As I’ve always said, the guest stars are catalysts. There have been times when I have not been satisfied, more prior to my arrival, that the shows have been about the guest stars, but ultimately the shows that succeed are when the guest stars are serving as catalysts to illuminate our characters.”

Episode #25 “Cardassians” Original Airdate: 10/25/93 Teleplay by James Crocker Story by Gene Wolander and John Wright Directed by Cliff Bole Guest Starring: Rosalind Chao (Keiko O’Brien), Andrew Robinson (Garak), Robert Mandan (Kotan Pa’Dar), Terrence Evans (Proka), Vidal Peterson (Rugal), Dion Anderson (Zolan), Marc Alaimo (Gul Dukat)

“I didn’t have a lot of faith in this show at first,” admits Ira Behr. “It was such an issue-oriented show that I thought we would oversimplify a complicated issue, but what got me into the show was when I realized this was not only a chance to bring back Garak but to do this whole weird little number with what’s going on between him and Dukat. To me, that nailed the character and I knew after that happened we were going to see a lot of Andy Robinson, who’s become quite popular on staff. What did not work for me was the kid and O’Brien. I thought that was very obvious stuff compared to the rest of the episode. Sometimes we have a tendency to overload the stories. Ultimately, who cared about this kid? It was weak compared to the rest of the episode.”

“As an actor, when I got the script, I didn’t realize Dukat was being set up to take the blame,” says Marc Alaimo, who portrays Gul Dukat. “But I played him as a man who was being set up. A man who was taking the dive because he had wanted to remove the children but his orders were to leave them. I never really understood that story. It seemed complicated to me, and I never quite understood how he got blamed for it.”

Episode #42 “The Wire” Original Airdate: 5/9/94 Written by Robert Hewitt Wolfe Directed by Kim Friedman Guest Starring: Andrew Robinson (Garak), Jimmie F. Skaggs (Glinn Boheeka), Ann Gillespie (Nurse Jabara), Paul Dooley (Enabran Tain)

“It just so happens some of the best shows are the least expensive, because we’re forced to be concise,” Ira Behr comments. “Our conceptual thinking of two guys in a room who are struggling for survival, or against each other, frequently makes for very good drama. This episode was an opportunity to show Bashir with a real strength that he hasn’t had before.

“[Story editor] Robert Wolfe talked passionately about doing this show, and we had always talked about the fact that Garak might have been George Smiley back in Cardassia and maybe we should explore that. Then I went to the movies and came back and said, ‘He’s Schindler.’ Why don’t we do Schindler and Smiley, and then Michale [Piller] said do all four stories, every one different. Robert came up with the idea that he tells this story about his best friend and it turns out to be him. Then you meet his mentor and best friend, who says, ‘I hope he dies, but tell him I miss him.’ That’s perfect; it’s all great stuff.”

Admittedly, “The Wire” could be perceived as an attempt to repeat the success of first season’s “Duet,” and the staff was aware of the similarities. “‘Duet’ was Kira’s crisis as much as the guy’s crisis, and this was much more Garak’s show,” offers Behr. “I thought that was a little dangerous, and we knew we were doing it, but let’s face it, the Cardassian monologue is great and Cardassians like to talk. They’re also great fun to write.”

Says David Livingston, “It’s a bottle show. It’s basically Andy Robinson in a room, but it’s very compelling because it’s one man intervening. Kurt Cobain needed Siddig. If he had had Sid he might have pulled through, because Sid knocks some sense into Andy’s head and says, ‘You’ve got to get off this stuff.’”

According to director Kim Friedman, “‘The Wire’ was kind of a challenge because most of the episode was two people in a room, Sid and Andy Robinson. It’s very hard to create pacing and energy for a show that is basically set in a room. But ultimately I was very pleased with the whole episode. I think my favorite moment was the implant withdrawal scene, which results in a fight between Bashir and Garak. It was just a very powerful moment.”

Paul Dooley, who played the menacing Enabran Tain, returned in DS9’s third season two-parter “Improbable Cause” and “The Die is Cast.” He is known for his role as Martin Tupper’s gay father in the HBO sitcom Dream On.

[farsight-the-char]

Languages people in Persona Effect can speak because this is something I think about. Will update as more characters are introduced.

You, Makoto Lee: English and Japanese fluently, as well as basic understanding of the common alien languages in preparation for becoming a diplomat. Speaks English normally.

Michal Ivanov: Russian fluently, English roughly, and he tries to learn common Asari to impress Xan later in the fic. Speaks Russian normally.

Zail K’Zal: Fluent in common Asari and Batarian, and learning English and Drell. Can understand basic phrases in most languages used in Citadel space and Omega station. Speaks Batarian in casual/combat settings and Asari in formal spaces.

Kinney K’Zal: Common Drell fluently and is learning Asari. She can also use her Omni-tool to communicate with Hanar properly. Speaks Drell normally.

Xan K’Zal: Can read and sign in Asari common well enough, though best speak a bit slowly with them because rapid pacing of words can overwhelm them. Can use their Persona to communicate with anyone telepathically. Can read common Qurarian, which they do to connect to their father culture. Signs in Asari Sign Language in public and uses Persona Telepathy on missions.

Freya: Speaks/Reads most of the common Elcor languages, and can understand most common phrases used in Citadel space. Speaks common Elcor normally, though uses her Persona for Telepathy on missions.

Lili K’Zal: Speaks common Asari fluently, speaks some Batarian and Quarian and understands most of the common phrases in Citadel space and Omega Station. Is learning common Elcor with/for Freya. Speaks Asari normally. 

[josebarrmageddon]

Thoughts on Halloween 2018

The Halloween Franchise is a hot mess and I love it. Well, I like most of them, but regardless, i’m a fan. Being a fan can make it hard to review something, because I’m not really in a critical mood, I just want to sit down and enjoy it. So this isn’t meant to be a real review, just a quick rundown of what I thought. I’ll try to keep this spoiler free, but it is best if you see the movie. First of all, I loved it. It was everything I wanted out of a new Halloween, but I knew that going in. I don’t think anyone was really worried about it being bad and the crowd i saw it with was having a blast gasping and screaming and laughing. The opening scene and title card got a huge applause. We knew that this movie was in good hands.

As the credits start, a decayed pumpkin is seen coming back to life, almost saying that this series is back. Ignoring all other entries, this only follows the first movie, so Laurie Strode is alive and once again played by Jamie Lee Curtis. She has a daughter and a granddaughter, Karen and Allyson, but there is a fractured relationship. Karen resents her Laurie for not being a great mom and focusing more on surviving another Michael attack. Allyson is a little more sympathetic towards her and wants her to be happy and part of the family again. It was important to address the trauma that Laurie would’ve experienced after the first movie and it’s done well here, with her having moments of panic, self-destructiveness, and ultimately being tired. Her family as well are either trying to help her or fed up with her paranoia and cut all ties.  

As we continue Laurie’s story, we also get to see more characters with her granddaughter, Allyson, played by Andi Matichalk. We see her and her friends represent everyone who grew up watching or hearing about these movies, only for them its actual history. There’s debate over what happened that fateful night and what Michale Myers is. Scenes with them and other teenagers at the school takes you back to the first movie with Laurie, Annie, and Lynda. The movie is almost in two parts, one follows the new Laurie story and the other acts like an homage to the original. So it really is half sequel, half reboot. It moves through the same motions as the first without being a rip-off. There are several nods to shots, lines, characters, and even sequels all through out. Michael’s doctor, Dr. Sartain, is even called “The New Loomis” by Laurie. He’s does emulate Loomis by having a fixation on Michael and keeping on eye on him. Nick Castle returns as Michael Myers and is just as intimidating as ever. He is still able to fit into his surroundings and still is in no hurry to run after his prey. 

Along with Curtis and Castle, John Carpenter returns as a producer and composer. While not directing, his presence is felt with the film’s new score. You hear the classic Halloween theme a few times, but for the most part, the score is brand new. There is a new main theme that kicks ass, it will not disappoint. David Gordon Green and Danny McBride, known for comedy, also did a stellar job at reviving the character of Michael Myers. Like I said before, the movie has parallels the first and the biggest one of all is mood. Much like Carpenter’s, Green’s movie is slow and keeps it’s kills subtle with little to no blood. However, as it progresses, the kills become more intense and some even top the kills in Rob Zombie’s versions. The camera moments and color scheme are also noted as being similar in style to the original. The motion-censored lights scene, the high school dance, the running through the streets. It actually makes you feel like it’s Halloween more than the first Halloween.

Now, there are a few things that left me wanting more. There are a few characters who are introduced and just leave the movie without much of a resolution. That’s gonna be a problem with some people because there are people who we want to see killed and others we want to live, but some of their fates are underwhelming. There are points when Michael isn’t wearing the mask and some shots are a little too close to revealing his face. The final fight with Laurie and Michael is suspenseful and masterfully done, but it drags a bit too long and has some false scares. Those may be my only gripe. Halloween(2018) is a phenomenal movie and an even greater sequel. It immediately ranks as my second favorite in the franchise. In case anyone’s wondering, my order is this.

John Carpenter’s Halloween

Halloween(2018)

Rob Zombie’s Halloween

Halloween H20

Halloween II (2009) or H2

Real quick about the titling. In order to avoid confusion of which Halloween we’re talking about, the first does have John Carpenter’s name in front of it and Rob Zombie is known for putting his name in front of his movies too, so that clears up that confusion. Zombie’s sequel is also sometimes branded as H2(2009).

This isn’t the first time that the franchise has been rebooted. Halloween H20(1998) was the 7th sequel, but only followed the first two movies, so Michael and Laurie are siblings in it. You could make the argument that Halloween III: Season of the Witch(1982) is itself a reboot, since it’s not tied to the Michael Myers mythos at all. In fact, the whole series is starting to feel like a “pick your own adventure” book. Halloween was rebooting itself, before rebooting was cool. It has been said that this is meant to be the final movie, but I don’t think anyone is buying that. As climactic and final as everything feels, I wouldn’t mind another one, though I have absolutely no idea where else you can go after this one without feeling like a retread. It’s sole purpose is to end Michael Myers, but after a successful opening weekend, no way is anyone letting that happen. Regardless of what happened in the future, this one movie will stand proudly next to John Carpenter’s Halloween. Happy 40th Anniversary.

-Jose Barr (10-25-2018)

[teenageread]

Review: Graduation Day

Synopsis:

In a scarred and brutal future, The United Commonwealth teeters on the brink of all-out civil war. The rebel resistance plots against a government that rules with cruelty and cunning. Gifted student and Testing survivor Cia Vale vows to fight. But she can't do it alone. This is the chance to lead that Cia has trained for - but who will follow? Plunging through layers of danger and deception, Cia must risk the lives of those she loves - and gamble on the loyalty of her lethal classmates.

Plot:

Cia wanted the Testing process over. Finding out the President agrees with her, but the rebel leader does not, puts Cia in a sticky situation of trying to figure out who she could trust, and how can she even test that loyalty. When the President assigned Cia the task of killing those who are in support of The Testing, a list of thirteen names. Gaining Zeen on her side, telling him that Symon killed Michal in front of her, Cia needed a team to complete the hero list. After all, killing one will send them all running, so she would need to act fast, and trust others to do the job that the President assigned her. On her list she has herself, Tomas (her loving boyfriend), Ian (a believed rebel), and those she would need to test their loyalties: Raffe, Stace, Enzo, and Brick. WIll never even made the list, as remembering what he did during The Testing, Cia was certain she could never trust him, despite Will already proving he has what it takes to kill. With the rebels planning on acting soon, Cia and her team will need to compromise a fool-proof plan to kill those who needed to be killed, figure out the real consequences to those that got redirected and make sure that she and Tomas make it out of this thing alive and allow them to go home, back to their Five Lake Colony in one piece.  

Thoughts:

What a way to end the series. Joelle Charbonneau introduces us to a world where those who got to go to university goes through a testing process that involves lying, death, and betrayal. Sixteen-year-old Cia passed her Testing, remembering what happened to her, she went to university with the plan to take the Testing process down. Starting off where the previous book ended, Cia is given a list of twelve names to kill. Knowing our girl does not have a killing bone in her body unless she really needs to, there is no way Cia, even with Tomas, could kill everyone on that list without being caught. Thus, Cia needed a team to figure out who she could really trust. As part of the series the main theme was trust and its foe, betrayal, having this be a main theme in the final book really tied the books together, as Cia has to trust, something her father told her not to do, to complete her mission. With fast writing and a quick plot, Charbonneau really spent no time messing around, which did not allow for a lot of character development, especially in the relationship department. I wish Charbonneau spent more time building and finalizing Cia’s and Tomas’s relationship because despite this being the third book there together, I did not feel like their relationship was real. A rarity for this 2010s trilogy lacking a love triangle (although Raffe did try), Tomas was barely seen in book 2, yet it was expected that he and Cia were perfectly still in love, despite so much time separated. Charbonneau did not even make them have any fights despite Cia keeping stuff from Tomas, and Raffe seeming to be glued to her hip. It felt that Charbonneau was focused on wrapping up the story of all loose ends, they forgot to give us some strong relationships in these besides who Cia can trust and who she couldn’t. Some good plot points are figuring out the powers behind the Testing process, and what happens when you were redirected, as despite previous books' thoughts if you're redirected you are not killed. Overall, it is not the most stellar end to a series, but it is a good ending as all loose ends are wrapped together, with some dramatic moments and loving reunions, it provides a solid ending for the series.

Read more reviews: Goodreads

Buy the book: Amazon

[pikagatogirltits]

Michal Introduces her Characters: Fanwalker Quick Reference

Ok, so here’s a project I’ve been working on when I had some spare time over the course of the last few days. I like to make characters. It relaxes me and it’s a great way to stretch my creative muscles.So watching everyone else make their fanwalkers has inspired me to make my own. I’ve been coming up with ideas for something like a year now, and as a result I know have 22 fanwalkers of my own. Problem is that I haven’t really introduced them all to you. So here’s a quick guide to my fanwalkers. I’m hoping to eventually get around to writing a story starring some of these guys and gals. If you guys want to know more about anyone, just send me an ask!

Nakahara Hinata - W - Female Human miko (shrine priestess) from Kamigawa. Raised as a cleric of Terashi, the kami of the sun, and the Myojin of Cleansing Fire, she specializes in spirit channeling, healing, sealing magic and barriers.

Kota - U - Female Human archaeologist from Zendikar. Is traveling the multiverse studying the history of whatever planes she visits. Uses runes and other magical symbols to cast her magic, with her specialty being divination spells. Latina, because not everybody from Zendikar needs to be white and as a creator I acknowledge the importance of diversity, even if it’s just a fan character

Cadeyrn One-Horn - B - Male Elf from Lorwyn who uses poison magic to augment his swordsmanship. Was well beloved by the other elves for his beauty until an unfortunate hunting accident broke one of his horns. Now travels the multiverse performing acts of heroism solely for the sake of the fame and glory it gives him.

Kenna - R - Transgender Female Human who uses kinetic manipulation magic to enhance her speed and strength. Loves the freedom being a planeswalker gives her. Was originally going to be from a custom plane, but I’ve since retconned her into being from Dominaria.

Spiros Dimitirou - G - Male Human from Theros. Has a connection to the land that allows him to draw strength and stamina directly from it. He's black skinned as part of my goal to make my fanwalkers as diverse as I can.

Otakar - UG - Male Vedalken from Ravnica. Simic aligned biomancer. Travels the multiverse observing lifeforms on each plane to inspire new creations back home on Ravnica.

Ganzorig Thundershield - RW - Male Orc from Tarkir. First planeswalk was to Ravnica where he became a Boros soldier. Paladin who uses combat enhancement magic and lightning magic. Learning combat styles and tactics from across the multiverse to create an army back on Tarkir to defeat Kolaghan and revive the Mardu.

Marta Baumhauer - WU - Female Human from Innistrad. Had a twin sister named Ada who died when they were babies whose geist followed Marta around and grew up with her. Became a cathar shortly before the events of Shadows over Innistrad. Her Spark ignited during the Battle of Thraben while Ada was possessing her to protect her from Emrakul's influence and as a result Ada's gesit has become fused with Marta. Uses basic clerical magic from her cathar training but also can use magic to communicate with and control ghosts or channel their powers. Ada is able to manifest herself to help her sister as well, kind of like a Stand.

Resetyu - R - Female Khenra from Amonkhet. Uses sand magic, think of her powers as a mix of Gaara from Naruto and Crocodile from One Piece. Likes pulling pranks and telling jokes. Her Spark ignited a few years before the events of Amonkhet block so she was actually off plane when the Hours began.

Zuzka - RG - Female Goblin from Ravnica. A Gruul aligned druid. Uses magic to channel the power of various creatures, with her specialty being to transform herself into the creatures. You may know her if you follow my side blog....

Granny Ygg - GWU - Female Elder Treefolk from Lorwyn. A pre-Mending walker. Kind of the Big Good of my fanwalkers, she has many communities across the multiverse that she's sort of adopted as hers that she watches over. Granny Ygg is but one of many names she's gone by over the years and her personal favorite. It's short for Grandmother Yggdrasil.

Yashagoro - UB - Male Orochi from Kamigawa. Abandoned by his tribe at a young age, he was raised by a clan of ninjas. Uses various forms of ninja magic. Sells his services as a spy, assassin or sabotuer to clients across the multiverse. Works closely with Apurva.

Apurva - UB - An Aetherborn from Kaladesh. One of the rare life draining Aetherborn, became a Planeswalker when they drained a potential Planeswalker to death. The person's Spark ignited and was somehow drained into Apurva. Has an incredibly easy time planeswalking for some reason and each planeswalk seems to infuse them with aether and extends their lifespan. Uses magic to enhance their natural empathic abilities into fullblown telepathy and mind magic. Makes their living as an interplanar information broker. Works closely with Yashagoro.

Lord Anskrieg - WUB - Male Human from an unknown homeplane. A pre-Mending walker. Much like Liliana, he lived for thousands of years before the Mending happened, which caused his years to suddenly catch up. Too proud to sell his soul to a demon, he instead turned to a mix of dark rituals, alchemical experiments and infusions of healing magic to prolong his life any way necessary. As a result, his body and soul have become twisted into something that straddles the line between living and undead, and he's earned himself the nickname "the Living Litch." A tyrant who wishes to rebuild his empire, he's the Big Bad of my fanwalkers.

Gwendolyn - GUR - Transgender Female Half-Elf from Alara. Her father is an elf from Naya and her mother a mage from Bant. A traveling bard who collects legends from across the multiverse. Her magic is similar to Tamiyo's in that she channels the legends she learns to cast her spells, either by invoking legendary feats or by summoning the heroic spirits that performed them.

Miya - RW - Female Human (Auriok) from Mirrodin. Uses magic to create duplicates of any weapons she's seen. Is unable to return to Mirrodin because of severe PTSD. Inspired by Archer EMIYA from Fate/Stay Night.

Daichiyama - BR - Male Ogre from Kamigawa. Uses chaos and destruction magic. An anarchist who travels the multiverse solely for the purpose of spreading misery, suffering and chaos. Occasionally works for Lord Anskrieg. One of my villains.

Eckhart Glockner - WB - Male Human from Innistrad. A Skirsdag cultist that posed as a cathar. When his particular cell of cultists were discovered and attacked by the true church, his Spark ignited and he found himself before Lord Anskrieg. Has since become Anskrieg's loyal lieutenant. Weilds life and death magic with equal skill alongside his sword skills.

Ariane - BG - Female Human from Innistrad. Uses magic to control insects, arachnids, and other creepy crawly creatures. Was persicuted as a witch in her home village, and has since come to embrace the name "the Swarm Witch." Has found a new home on Ravnica with the Golgari.

Getsugan - UBR - Genderfluid Kitsune from an unknown homeplane. Not a humanoid kitsune like the ones from Kamigawa, but rather a traditional style kitsune that takes the default form of a nine-tailed fox the size of a horse. A pre-Mending walker and a natural shapeshifter. A wild card whose motives are hard to read. Their magic is based off of traditional kitsune tricks like illusions and curses.

Cypria - G - Female Elf from Mirrodin. Uses ranger/hunter magic. Her first planeswalk was to Innistrad where she became a werewolf. Her copper growths take the form of natural gauntlets that cover her hands and lower arms, and in werewolf form her claws are also coated in copper.

Oriana - B - Female Human from Fiora. Uses shadow manipulation magic. A street urchin who worked hard to climb her way up to being one of the best spies/assassin in Paliano until she was betrayed by a client. Her name means "gold" and she chose it herself to remind herself of her own worth. When on other planes she uses Paliano as a surname.

[theconservativebrief]

Republicans can only lose during Thursday’s hearing when Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, now facing explosive new allegations from Julie Swetnick that he was present at “gang rapes” during high school, and his first accuser Christine Blasey Ford appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The GOP’s absolute best-case scenario is an excruciatingly boring hearing with few fireworks for the nightly news.

“When you’re a Republican, there are no good options — only less bad options,” Brian Darling, a former staff counsel for Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) who also previously worked for the Judiciary Committee, told me this week. “Nothing good can come out of this hearing for Republicans.”

Republicans have a lot to worry about. Ford might appear sympathetic — already, more Americans believe her than don’t. Kavanaugh could look defensive and not credible — he has already shifted from insisting he “never had a blackout” to admitting “sometimes [he] had too many” beers with his friends. Not to mention the unseemly optics of a panel of old white Republican men sitting in apparent judgment of a woman alleging sexual assault.

I reached out to Democratic and Republican lawyers with experience in congressional testimony to ask them what to expect in Thursday’s hearing, which is likely to look more like a prosecutorial cross-examination than a typical Senate hearing. Most did not want to be quoted by name, as Washington prepares for the most important Senate hearing in years.

Senate Republicans are hoping the hiring of Rachel Mitchell, an Arizona prosecutor who has worked on sex crimes cases, to lead their questioning of Ford and Kavanaugh will minimize any bad optics and allow for a professional (read: boring) hearing. They are betting she will bring orderly and lawyerly questioning that introduces enough doubt to keep Kavanaugh’s nomination afloat but without appearing to bully Ford.

Democrats, on the other hand, will be tasked first and foremost with helping build Ford’s credibility and strengthening her standing as a witness. Then they can go after Kavanaugh when he takes the stand.

“They’re gonna help her out as much as they can,” one former Democratic Senate counsel told me. “They’ll point out she had no incentive to make accusations and focus on the costs she’s paid.”

This is what to expect: Republicans trying to walk a line of undermining Ford without outright attacking her, while Democrats seek to support her and surely land a few jabs at Kavanaugh.

The stakes, meanwhile, are merely the future of the Supreme Court and the balance of power over the next few decades in Washington.

The No. 1 rule for Republicans is the fewer fireworks, the better. Washington attorneys expect the GOP’s questioning to stay narrowly focused on the incident Ford alleges, that Kavanaugh pinned her down and tried to force himself on her at a high school party.

“It’ll be a very lawyerly questioning — testing the memories, talking about the circumstances,” Darling said. “It’s gonna sound more like a courtroom questioning of a witness.”

Hiring Mitchell helps guarantee professionalism from the GOP side, even if having outside counsel for a hearing like this is borderline unprecedented. It is also a sign of the strange dynamics of Thursday’s hearing — Republicans will almost act as prosecutors, while Democrats will act more like the defense. The implication is that Ford, not Kavanaugh, is the one on trial.

Democrats expect Republicans to “dance the dance” — assuring Ford that she deserves to be heard while making the case that her allegations are either categorically untrue or that she has become mixed up somehow.

The tempo, scope, and depth of the questions are likely to pick up as the questioning goes along, I was told. For the Republicans, that will give the appearance that there are ample doubts, or at least questions, about what really happened at that party more than three decades ago.

Democrats also expect Republicans to try to set a high burden of proof. They’ve sought to frame the allegations as a prosecution, which would indicate that any reasonable doubts about Kavanaugh’s guilt should lead to his metaphorical acquittal. But Democrats see it very differently: Any chance that Kavanaugh did do what Ford says he did should be disqualifying for a potential Supreme Court justice.

Republicans do have one get-out-of-jail-free card if they don’t like the direction of the testimony: an obscure Senate rule that prohibits a committee hearing from running longer than two hours consecutively while the Senate is in session, without the consent of both the majority and minority.

The GOP could invoke that rule to “slow things down,” Darling told me. “They want to get through without it turning into a circus.”

The most important Democratic imperative at Thursday’s hearing is pretty simple: Help Christine Blasey Ford tell her story and be believed. But there are still pitfalls for the minority.

The Democratic case for Ford’s credibility will likely emphasize that she had little to gain personally by coming forward with her allegation against Kavanaugh and that she has been subject to character attacks and death threats since she did. Democrats will also surely lean on the general belief that a woman who has been sexually assaulted should be believed.

Democrats will have to decide whether to also introduce the allegations Ramirez made that Kavanaugh shoved his penis in her face while they were drunk during their freshman year at Yale, or newer ones brought forth by Julie Swetnick, which detail Kavanaugh as present at a party during her own “gang rape.”

Ramirez has said she would be willing to testify separately before the Senate. Swetnick’s accusations became public the day before the hearing, and Republicans attacked them immediately, particularly through her choice of lawyer, Michal Avenatti, who also represents porn actress Stormy Daniels, who has alleged an affair with Donald Trump.

Republicans are also watching closely to see whether Democrats embark on “a fishing expedition,” as Darling put it, and explore unrelated issues like Kavanaugh’s alleged misstatements about stolen documents during the George W. Bush administration or whether they stay focused on the sexual assault allegations.

In general, both Democratic and Republican attorneys agreed that Democrats will need to strike their own balance between landing the right punches without appearing to grandstand and while ensuring Ford is given the spotlight and space to tell her story. Everyone is aware that several presumed 2020 Democratic frontrunners sit on the Judiciary Committee.

Senate Republican aides still believe that their wayward senators could be turned off by Democratic grandstanding, which could bring them home to vote for Kavanaugh. In that light, the Thursday hearing — and the lines of questioning deployed by Democrats — could also be pivotal.

The wild cards are Ford and Kavanaugh themselves. Kavanaugh seemingly previewed his strategy in his Fox News interview, a performance that suggests he will deny most any wrongdoing from his youth (even against evidence to the contrary) and lean on his friends’ and family’s attestations of his character. Ford remains more of a mystery, even to Democrats, as Politico reported Wednesday.

Most senior Republicans have treated the Ford hearing as a formality that they must get through before advancing Kavanaugh’s confirmation. They don’t exactly appear to have an open mind, though they are careful to say Ford has a right to testify.

“It should be clear now to all Americans that Democrats are engaged in a coordinated effort to stop Judge Kavanaugh’s confirmation by any means possible,” Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) said Monday. “As I have said before, every accuser deserves to be heard. … We should hear from Dr. Ford on Thursday as planned. Then we should vote.”

Indeed, Grassley preliminarily scheduled a Friday committee vote on Kavanaugh in hopes that his confirmation is a fait accompli.

But at least a handful of Republican senators are undecided on Kavanaugh. Thursday’s hearing, and the perception of Ford’s and Kavanaugh’s credibility, could be crucial for them. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) has said the issue now at the heart of the Supreme Court battle is whether a woman who has been abused is to be believed. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), another undecided vote, has said that if you believe Ford, then you should vote “no” on Kavanaugh. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) pushed to make sure Ford was given a hearing.

As long as Democrats stay united against Kavanaugh, just two Senate Republicans could sink his nomination. Neither Murkowski nor Collins sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, but Flake does. These three senators will be the most important audience for Thursday’s hearing — along with the American public, which was already unenthused about Kavanaugh’s nomination, a feeling that only deepened since the allegations against him became known.

The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to gavel in the hearing at 10 am Thursday. Get ready.

Original Source -> “There are no good options”: Republicans prepare for the Kavanaugh hearing

via The Conservative Brief

[pikagatogirltits]

A glorious guide to a gaggle of great goblins.

Inspired by @talrand-sky-summoner, I’ve decided to share my wonderful little goblin children!

Zuzka, Zhur-Taa Animist - One of my fanwalkers, and the star of my new side blog @zuzka-zhur-taa-animist. (*winkshamelesspromotionwink*) A goblin druid from the Gruul Clans on Ravnica whose Spark ignited when she got caught underfoot during a riot/stampede and was almost stepped on by a cyclops. Her magic lets her summon various beasts or imbue herself and others with beast aspects, but her real specialty is wild shaping into the form of various beasts. Also, a lesbian.

Pleasant-Odor-Of-The-Earth-After-The-Rain - Pleasant-Odor for short. One of my D&D characters I’ve played for two different games now. A goblin nature cleric from a tribe of good aligned goblins who live in a swamp. Naive to the ways of the outside world, they were sent adventuring by the numerous goblin nature deities they worship for mysterious reasons. In the one game I played them, wound up in a city that exploited goblin workers to prosper so they started the “Goblin Goblin Liberation Front” to campaign for goblin rights. AFAB Non-binary individual, prefers they/them pronouns. 

Yarp - A character concept I’m still waiting to find the right D&D game to play in. A goblin barbarian who was literally raised by wolves. Named after the only “word” he ever says. The least developed so far because I want his personality to be influenced by whatever party members he finds himself with.