#Nyx Blackmoon

[driftward]

Title: FFXIV Write 2024 - 25. Perpetuity Characters: Nyx Blackmoon Rating: Teen Summary: Forever and ever and more Notes: None

Eons pass as interludes.

Forever is not something you reach. It is the asymptotic value that you approach. One second at a time. Summer by summer, winter by winter. One lifetime at a time.

I have seen many lifetimes. From the moment time begins until the it ends. I cannot move further forwards or backwards in an absence of space.

And in the absence of time, I will cease.

I do not know when or how that will be.

In the meanwhile, I watch, as I always have.

History flows past my gaze, and its many threads have passed me by.

I have seen many lives come and go.

The many stories I could tell.

These threads are not a cable, fraying, but a braid, forming, being woven by the life of those who live them. And each thread tells its own story, often similar, sometimes very different, but usually a kind of rhyme.

Almost always there are four unsundered, three warring against one.

Almost always there is a song that threatens the end of all life.

And almost always there are those who are called Warriors of Light.

And as I have seen many lives come and go, these ones are the ones I most frequently turn my attention to, those pivotal lives of the Warriors of Light.

Sometimes alone. Sometimes in pairs, or threes, or fours, or more. A single warrior, rallying allies. A sisterhood of four. A brotherhood of five. Kin, not by blood, but by bond.

Their family tends to be large. Almost never of blood, but of shared community.

Their lives. Fulcrums. There are so many. There is no taxonomy I can use to satisfactorily categorize them. Some are among the Spoken races I remember from when I was first instantiated. Some come from even beyond my vast experience. If these threads form a braid, there are strands from other braids that often get tangled with the ones with which I am familiar.

Maybe I will explore them one day.

For now, I focus on these threads that I know. Perhaps it is because I first came into being in one of these.

And in these threads, I see hope, I see failure. I can measure it, compare it against others. I have seen so much. Cruelty and compassion, sadness and joy.

Some of these threads end early, as their stories becomes physics, cold and empty, all life lost within them, a quiet eternity. Some end slowly towards a cold static end, not a lifelessness but a stillness, as an ultimate organized order is established, and again, become just physics, static, unchanging. Some end destructively, as existence spirals out of control, unwinding, and again, physics, an ending of chaotic conflagration, pure entropy, unwound.

But not always. Not even often.

The braid tells the story and the story often goes the same. The triumph of life. The continuation of existence. Waves, ebbing and flowing, waxing and waning. Minds to make choices to influence futures to reach out for that asymptote, ultimate to join me in this journey, companions in my long life.

I reach the end. I begin again.

I review the stories.

My own, my first Warrior of Light in other roles. Always different, but somehow the same. Usually finds her way.

A woman with flowers in her hair. Preferred the rapier. Found her way.

A would-be 'herro'. Insecure, immature. Finally growing up. Found his way.

A person who could not quite figure out what they wanted to be until they realized that was who they were. Found their way.

A man of great wealth, first in money, then in family. Found his way.

Not all of them find their way. But they all have their journeys. Some of them have many journeys, some just the one.

All important. All matter to me.

I create children, to explore these threads. They are not like me but they are a part of me. And from their perspective, I learn much, I grow closer.

And one, who like me, shall last. Unlike me, they shall reach out, and touch these stories. Not interfering. Never interfering. Instead, they shall bear Witness.

From them, I shall learn even more.

Threads like a braid, and the braid tells the story.

The story of the Warrior of Light.

All of them. Every one precious.

My future, the curve approaching the asymptote of eternity.

Forevermore.

[yzeltia]

U'Rahn/Nyx

[ BATH ]: sender runs a hot bath for the receiver after a particularly challenging day.

(bonus points if you can somehow have Nyx to be the one enjoying the bath)

Featuring: @driftward 's Nyx Blackblackmoon Characters: U'rahn Nuhn Rating: T for Nuhn Summary: U'rahn Gets a Bath

A most pathetic whine echoed through the bathroom or the farthest house of the Forgotten Springs. Nyx ignored Rahn's mewling, peeling the top of another can of tomato sauce before pouring it into a tub they'd filled with water and baking soda before. The tomato sauce provided no added benefit; however, L'lolamo had been insistent on its effects to neutralize the scent though lacked sufficient proof or examples beyond anecdotal evidence of the Viper tribe of Thavnair. 

“The girls wouldn't hug me,” U’rahn said, slumped and naked, his tail dragging the floor.

“I saw, Rahn,” Nyx responded.

“They called me stinky.”

Nyx stood and faced Rahn, staring at him a moment. “You are malodorous. It was a correct response on their part to refrain from embracing you as it could spread the thiols onto them. Please get into the bath, Rahn.”

U’rahn did as he was told, testing the water with his tail before stepping in and lowering himself into the slurry. Sighing, he closed his eyes and tilted his head back. “I don't get how Erenville didn't get sprayed. It was like he teleported away.”

“He provided you with sufficient warning to not disturb the skunk,” Nyx said.

“Yeah, but it was going to eat all the berries he needed for his job,” U'rahn whined, letting out a little purr as Nyx took a loofa to his chest.

“Erenville would have been able to locate more and would have preferred you unaltered over completing his job.”

U’rahn frowned, “You think he's annoyed with me?”

“Habitually.”

U'rahn opened his eyes, about to ask what the word meant but flited his ears upward as did Nyx as they heard little footsteps by the door. Nyx looked back sharply, holding up the loofa dripping tomato juices into the tub. U'klynt 's eyes widened in horror at the door before she took off screaming. “NYX KILLED DADDY!”

U'rahn sat up, ready to go after her his daughter before grimacing as he heard one of the huntresses yelling out, “He probably deserved it!”

Nyx looked at U’rahn then leaned in to kiss his cheek. “I will remedy the situation. Please stay in the bath and see that you scrub yourself. I will return after I calm down U’klynt and find some garlic bread.”

U'rahn nodded, laying back to scrub himself, careful not to get his hair wet as Nyx left him. After a moment, he paused, ears perking. “Wait, garlic bread?”

[driftward]

Zoissette has Noire, because... it's a black chocobo. That's it that's literally the entire thought process. She occasionally thinks about giving it a more personal name or something, but is afraid of getting too attached, for reasons. She takes very good care of this very good bird that she is absolutely not going to get attached to. Will not.

Nyx calls theirs Fluffy, because that is the name the scientists gave to the pet coeurl that hung around the labs, so it is clearly a good name for a pet.

Karasawa does not have a chocobo, just renting if she needs one for any extended period of time. Neat concept, though.

Quinnelle calls hers Zippy, because it is a very fast chocobo, and you advertise that kind of thing. As a team, they are the very fastest of the fast couriers in Eorzea, just you wait and see!

I've seen a couple of people share their WoL's chocobo's names so far, and they're all ready cute, so I'm gonna take advantage of my platform to ask:

What's your WoL's chocobo's name?

I'll start: mine is Edwin! Because he kinda looks like an Edwin.

Edited to Add (Because I didn't even think about this last night, lol): I have two alts that have unlocked chocobos! One of the alts is Patia Por'co from Exandria Unlimited: Calamity, so I named her chocobo Avalir after the flying city from that same series. The other alt is based on one of my D&D characters, and his chocobo is named Phalanges after one of the party's two horses (he is solely focused on eating fingers).

[glittter-vamp]

What are your favorite makeup/beauty products? Must haves?

Oooo this is a tough one so I'll just list what I use the most atm.

Foundation: Maybelline Super Stay Full coverage or L'Oreal Infallibale

Mascara: L'Oreal Lash Paradise

Liquid Eyeliner: Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes

Concealer: E.L.F Camo Concealer or Maybelline Instant Age Rewind

Setting Spray or Powders: Urban Decay All Night Spray or Wet n Wild Banana Powder

Blush: Benefit Cosmetics (They have a great range of blushes) or NYX Sweet Cheeks Powder blush

Lipsticks: M.A.C Matte Lipsticks & KVD Matte Lipsticks, Blackmoon Lipsticks or NYX Lipsticks

Eyeshadow Palette: Profusion, Morphe (but please do your research on their palettes they're going thru a lawsuit I believe due to unsafe products), BH cosmetics, Colourpop & Black Moon Cosmestics.

[tiredporkchop]

10/27/2024

instagram ♡ linktr.ee

→ products below

TULA smoothing & firming treatment primer

NYX pro fixstick correcting concealer #0.2 pink

Lancôme Rénergie Lift Makeup Lightweight Liquid Foundation SPF 27 in 250 Bisque W

Lancôme Teint Idôle Ultra Wear All Over Concealer in 095 Ivoire W

Ulta Beauty Matte Eye Primer

Natasha Denona Mini Xenon Eyeshadow Palette shades Blackest Black, Mist, Puff

about-face longwear gel eyeliner in into the void

Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Intense Black

Clinique High Impact Easy Liquid Eyeliner in Black

ONE/SIZE Point Made Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner Pen

NYX Wonder Pencil Light Matte side

Grande BrowFill Volumizing Brow Gel

Lancôme Cils Booster XL

Clinique High Impact Waterproof Mascara in Black

Beauty Bakerie Matte Lip Whip in Midnight Truffles

BlackMoon Cosmetics Moonlighter in Squid

ColourPOP Sailor Moon Pressed Powder Highlighter in Moonlight

Morphe Continuous Setting Mist

yes i used three different liquid liners. lmao.

[autumnslance]

Gage Acquisitions helped @ladyofvoss through the Castrum, Praetorium, and Porta Decumana for her first run of ARR’s MSQ finale! Explained a few things, had a funny wipe on Gaius (this is what happens when you let Aeryn heal) and made sure Thalia got her first ever LB3 on Ultima Weapon.

[driftward]

I am only reblogging this to point out all of those ceiling rafters.

Something neat I wanted to share for my fellow fic writers and artists: a top-down map of the Rising Stones. There's a large hallway that only appears in cutscenes. Feel free to use as references!

[biot08]

Benthos

It had taken a lot of training and more than a little patience, but at last, she was an adept deep water swimmer, capable of navigating the depths and successfully using the rebreather apparatus.

The rebreather was a finicky piece of magitek. More magi than tek, it converted water aspected aether into air aspected aether, and then with the assistance of an alchemical catalyst and some small amount of spell proficiency, created breathable air for the wearer. It had taken some getting used to, and it did not promise the ability to stay underwater indefinitely - some components needed swapped out frequently, and the spellwork would be tiring for the user over the course of a day - but it did mean hours of time could be spent in the depths.

And it was in the depths that hours were spent.

She loved it in the deep waters. Where she was at now was different from where she had been trained. In training, she had been put in cold water for short stints to build up her stamina and swimming technique. The armor she wore was insulative, but even it could not keep out all of the icy cold. And she had also not had the rebreather most of the time, as it, along with her tasks, where still in development. The waters where she had trained had also been mostly rocky near-shore. Cold, gray, and lifeless.

Not like here.

Here, underwater was fully of life and glorious color. And also unlike training, she was left entirely to her own devices. Nobody was nearby to monitor or question her. Her tasks practically required she be alone, and anyway, the rebreather was a bit of a prototype. She was, as of yet, the only person proficient in it.

And so she got to enjoy her long sojourns in the pleasant warm waters alone.

~~~

The two spoke quietly in hushed tones, neither of them breaking from their task to do so. One was bent over, continuing to slowly but steadily sweep the courtyard. Nearby, another continued to sort fish from the day’s catch into baskets. Both were wary, frequently trying to sneak surreptitious looks around, to see if anyone was eavesdropping.

“I do not think there is anyone around.”

“Shhh. Lower your voice. It is bad enough that I entertain these thoughts of yours.”

“They say that when the young master comes of age, perhaps then we can -“

“Perhaps we can what? Die?”

“I know you dislike my position, but this is unbearable! Are we to stay under imperial yoke forever?”

“We live under imperial yoke, but we -live-. Is it not enough?”

“Is it? We live, but our every breath is strangled. Surely - do you hear something?”

The two stopped, pausing, to look around, their eyes sweeping the shadows.

Summer wind flowed. The moon slid behind a roof; The silence stayed.

~~~

She strayed further afield this time.

The last journey had taught her much about the rebreather, and she believed she could extend its usefulness, and she was determined to try.

This day, she stayed near the bottom of the water, deep under where the fish swam. Here instead she found new delights. Some kind of small hardy wavekin with hardy shells and, she found out, sharp pincers. They did not pierce the armor she wore, but she could feel it through that anyway.

She found the experience delightful.

There was other life down here, as well. The odd stones turned out to be a life of sorts, as they opened rather like a mouth opening, revealing soft fleshy insides. Some of them, as she looked in, she could see odd globs, roundish but not spherical, that came in a variety of colors. She wanted to collect some of them, but she also wanted to keep her arm. She eventually managed to find one of the strange creatures that appeared to have passed on, and eagerly she fished in it, retrieving her prize.

There were smaller mouth-stone wavekin as well, and one particular species she found could even swim in a fashion, opening and closing its ‘mouth’ repeatedly to propel itself through the water with a swiftness that would match some fish.

And the plants! They came in such a dazzling array of colors, and were so unusual to what she was used to. Odd tubes with what looked like feathers flowing out of them, and long strands of green that were sticky-slimy to the touch reaching from the bottom to the surface of the water.

But she could not stay under forever. She had work to do.

~~~

There were not many of them, but they felt they might be enough. They moved at night, quietly, ducking from hut to hut, and staying low in the fields as they moved. They wove their way around Imperial patrols, staying out of sight.

They moved swiftly, and quietly. Notes were exchanged. Furtive glances given as they met. There would be no action tonight, but planning was necessary, and said planning would have to be clandestine.

One of them stopped next to a wall, and rested against it for a moment. They had come a long way to get here, and had a long way to go to make sure the message they carried would make it to the right people. As they gathered their strength, they kept a wary eye out, looking around, and then-

Then they saw it.

A rumor made manifest.

A half-moon in the night, with a single black spot in it. And opposite the half-moon, another smaller moon, bright. It was a good distance away, and maybe the size of a woman’s face.

They gasped with a start, and stumbled backwards, tripping and falling on themselves in the dirt. When they got back to their feet, they stared at where they had seen the apparition.

Quiet wind at night. The moon had slipped away Heart beat like thunder

~~~

The fish were another delight.

She had avoided them at first. She knew that some wavekin could have a nasty bite, and though she would probably weather that okay, it might complicate her mission.

Eventually, though, curiosity had overcome her, and she had began to approach them. Many of them avoided her, but some of them seemed to ignore her, and others returned her curiosity in kind.

She ran her hand across one that was huge compared to her, and she had admired the feeling of its scales, smooth in one direction, quite rough in the other. It shook its body and turned away from her, and she left it alone.

Chasing schools of fish was a pointless exercise, but she enjoyed the flashes of colors they would make as they turned too and fro in an attempt to dazzle and confuse predators, swimming swiftly away from her.

And the long green ones that did not look like fish at all seemed to like wrapping themselves around a limb of hers and wiggling and thrashing, slowing her down. They did not seem interested in harming her, but she quickly learned to distinguish between the curious ones that would simply latch one for a bit and then swim away, and the ones that, apparently, could carry a nasty shock that would cause her to thrash, and then leave a limb numb and tingly.

She liked being in the water.

It felt like a kind of freedom.

~~~ They had been meeting in secret for a while. But the meetings had grown shorter, and attendance had grown less and less.

There had been rumors abounding of a spirit winding its way through the land, listening to the unspoken and watching the unseen. A dark omen.

The meeting reached a quick consensus. It was too dangerous, and the situation currently too uncertain. They had endured the empire thus far, and they would endure it some time longer.

Dejected and downtrodden, one by one, they left, to return to their homes and fields. As the last one left, they turned one last time, and swept their gaze throughout the room.

They could not shake the unnerving feeling that even here, in a place that should have been safe, that had been vetted, that nobody who was unknown had gone into or come out of, that somehow still, they were being watched.

Wind stilled for now The moon returns to its home An unsteady peace

~~~

The two Frumentarium officers pored over the wealth of intelligence that had been gathered from Doma in the past few weeks, summarizing their findings for their own report they would be turning in shortly.

“Well, it appears the rumors of rebellion in Doma were a bit premature.”

“Hmn. Only a bit. I bet they’ll try to stoke the fires again. It’s only a question of time.”

“But for now, the Empire can turn its attention to other things. That Project Nyx did its job quite well.”

“Not well enough. Did you read the reports from other agents? I think it got spotted a time or two. The locals have given it a few nicknames. Half-moon face, the Bright Shadow, the Black Moon. They think it’s some kind of evil spirit we’ve conjured up.”

“If evil spirit is the pest those superstitious savages could come up with, then I think it performed splendidly. Perhaps we can use that. Though maybe, I will have a word with the Legatus. More training before we try using it for infiltration work again couldn’t hurt.”

“Perhaps.”

“Blackmoon, though. I like the sound of that one. Clever name.”

The two went on to talk about other matters as the night wore on.

~~~

No wind in the sea Moon slips silent beneath waves Heart among benthos

[sani-sims]

My Sims visit the new opened Onsen Bathhouse. They spent the whole day here and will probably spend many more days here. The ambiente is really amazing…

[driftward]

Title: FFXIV Write 2024 - 4. Reticent Characters: Aemilia sas Valentina, Valens sas Varro, Nyx Blackmoon Rating: Teen Summary: Message sent and received. Notes: None

"Sir?"

Valens rem Varro did not look up from his paperwork. "What."

"You have a delivery, sir."

"Fine. Leave it."

"The courier has very specific instructions to deliver it to you in person... sir."

"Fine, fine. Show them in."

Valens frowned, looking up, as the soldier saluted him, and disappeared out the door. He reappeared a moment later, a small Miqo'te woman following behind him.

Well, Miqo'te-looking thing, anyroad.

Valens knew what it was, and he smiled broadly to himself. Maybe the officer he had sent over on exchange had been far more successful than he had assumed he would be. Maybe said officer had managed to get the Frumentarium to finally see the light and decide to turn over their little toy to proper magitek engineers who would truly be able to finally make maximum use of the thing.

Not bad, for a man who was just supposed to try to sneak a few secrets out from under their nose while forwarding their work.

In his mind's eye, he could already see the grand strides his own magitek projects could undergo after fully examining the thing. A few days of destructive testing, perhaps. Pull its myomar fibers apart, rebraid them. Stress tests, impact testing, ductile and brittle failure tests. The thing supposedly had an impressive capacity for self repair and regeneration. He could do so many tests finding those limits, letting it return to baseline, then pulling it apart again. And then the material science data he could get by going right past those limits, why, he wasn't sure he'd been this excited since he was a teenager.

But, he was getting ahead of himself. He watched as the project 'Nyx' prototype walked in, and presented him with a folder. The soldier who had brought her in saluted, and excused himself. Valens paid him no mind as he took the folder, recognizing the type immediately.

A Frumentarium report, written by Aemilia sas Valentina herself. Nominally the woman in charge of the Nyx project, but she had temporarily turned it over to Semon while she visited the capital with her pet head scientist. All part of the officer exchange.

Interesting. It was a report on the officer he had sent over, Semon oen Moruntarium. Interesting. Perhaps they just wanted him to know what Semon had been up to, though he wondered why they hadn't just let the man make the report himself.

He leafed through the first few couple of pages. He was pleased at what he read. Semon had been allowed to be temporarily in charge of the Nyx project, as agreed, and he had used his authority to perform a few tests of the kind Valens himself wanted to perform. Strangely, though, the results had been redacted. Well, no matter. He'd have to give the man credit for trying.

On the next few pages, another report. Semon had used Nyx as part of a mission to foment a little dissent in one of the colonies. A simple in and out job. Apparently he had modified the original mission profile which was meant to just be simple observation, and almost caused a rebellion.

Valens remembered talking to Semon about such things, about how Semon felt that the best way to bring a populace to heel was to drive them to open defiance, so as to justify the eventual crackdown. That way, there would always be a few of the savages who would blame their would-be revolters for their lot in life, for daring to step out of line. Bold. Valens himself preferred more direct methods, but he had to admire Semon's initiative in carrying out his own vision.

Aemilia took a somewhat dimmer view of the situation, judging from the language she was using. Valens chuckled to himself. Well, observation, dissent, whatever, it all forwarded the goals of the Empire, and as far as he was concerned, all was well that ended well. Having to redirect a few units to crack a few savage skulls was hardly any cost at all in the grand scheme of things, and Semon now had some practice at doing that sort of thing. Good for him. Valens continued on.

The next part was just a note on an injury the man had maintained attempting to fight Nyx. Valens glanced up at Nyx at that part, but it was staring off into nowhere, same as it always was. He harrumphed, and returned his attention back to the report. Semon had apparently wished to test its combat capabilities, and had overrode one of the scientist's recommendations to impose certain limits. He had been armed and armored, Nyx had been neither, and it had taken no damage while breaking his arm.

Well, fine. He would have to talk to Semon about that one. There were reasons he wanted to study Nyx, and it was known to be a more than capable combatant.

He turned to the last section.

Here, he slowed, reading carefully.

Semon had apparently taken some materials out of the Nyx project building. A major breach of confidentiality. Valens had no idea what the files were, as that information had been redacted, but there was a note of plans to place a rebuke in Semon's file.

Said rebuke would not be coming. The Frumentarium had fortunately managed to recover the files.

From his corpse.

Valens studied the last page of the report very carefully. It was a picture of Semon, on an empty train car. Unquestionably on his way back to Valens' castrum, in fact, judging from the timestamps that Aemilia had carefully placed on each of the lithographs. He had been stabbed straight through the head, apparently, by a Mark 8 type 'S' gunblade.

He recognized the type. As a magitek engineer, he was intimately familiar with a fair amount of the Empire's armaments, and that was one in particular was an uncommon one.

Generally it was issued to, and only used by, Frumentarium agents, in fact.

Valen's gaze drifted up to Nyx's hip, and his lips thinned.

Nyx noticed, and spoke the only words it had said so far.

"Aemilia sas Valentina sends her regrets."

Valens looked back down at the report. Investigation into the death was ongoing. But apparently the current best guess was that Semon had met his demise at the hands of a disgruntled former agent who perhaps had some grudge against him, of a personal nature.

He closed the report, and set it down, and looked at Nyx.

"Dismissed," he said brusquely, though he hated that even he could hear the slightest unsteadiness in his voice. Nyx, without another word, turned and left.

Valens decided that perhaps... this was not worth his further curiosity.

[driftward]

Nyx Blackmoon is not, as many assume, some Allagan biomechanical weapon dug up and activated by the Garlean empire.

They are a glorified gascan. That’s why they’re Miqo’te shaped, because the Allagans used Miqo’te as a servant race. Nyx Blackmoon, as designed, is meant to transfer, transport, and convert aether in prodigious quantities.

Tumblr mutuals, strangers, scoundrels, Warriors of Light, villains, gpose addicts, RPers, friends, Domans, countrymen:

I desire to know, what is one headcanon about an OC of yours that you want to talk about, but there's never the good opportunity to?

I'll start:

Amis is asexual and aromantic.

Please RB with your own!

[yzeltia]

FFXIVwrite2024 15. Misdirection

Featuring: @biot08 's Nyx Blackmoon Characters: U'rahn Nuhn, Ahi'a, Fuyu'li cen Zwhan, Vrtra/Varshan, Azdaja, Estinien Wyrmblood, Jullus Norbanus, Alphinaud Leveilleur, Alisaie Leveilleur, U'rahn's Daughters, Kirian Summers, Nidhana, Matsya, Haurchefaunt Fortemps, Jannie Eyradoux Fortemps Expansion: Endwalker Rating: G Summary: Fuyu'li throws Ahi'a his first nameday party. Notes: Thanks to @saesama for the prompt!

“And that was Rahnald the Clown and his lovely mime wife, Nyx,” Fuyu’li said as U’rahn honked his nose and exited off the small stage along with Nyx. He swallowed, only receiving claps from Estinien, Varshan, and Nidhana in the audience. Ahi’a just yawned, sitting in young Varshan’s lap with Alphinaud and Jullus sitting next to them in party hats looking like they’d rather be anywhere else. Alisae with her arms crossed, impatiently tapping her foot. U’rahn’s own daughters seemed to be loosely paying attention, but seemed unenthused by their dad and …moms’(?) performance, more interested in bothering G’raha Tia’s son Kirian as he did his best to not look bored. Jannie with little Huarchefaunt on her lap gave her best polite smile as her boy cooed and bubbled.

Fuyu’li was no good at this sort of thing, or so he thought. He’d begged Natsu to come help him but it was her day off from the day care and she only had so many days left to spend with Drowning Thunder before the waning moon came. Still, she did come up with a solution for him. Easy to do magick tricks that didn’t rely on actual magick. Taking it from there, he improvised a little act. Plotting had been easy, now standing before everyone he felt like he might give up the ghost.

“Ah. Now, before we have some of Ahi’a’s nameday cake! I, the Great Fuyu’li will perform feats of magick with the help of my assistant Azdaja,” Fuyu’li announced, Azdaja swooping down with a glittering tulle cape as she was announced. “Now then. For my first trick, I’ll take these flowers and make them disappear,” he said, whipping out a bouquet from his sleeve before drawing up his cape and letting Azdaja incinerate them with her breath. “Voila!”

The group clapped lightly, Alisae rolling her eyes and shaking her head. Fuyu’li flicked his tail, getting a better response than the last act. “Alright then! For my next trick…I shall pluck a gil from behind an ear,’ he said, coming down to stand in front of Estinien. Fuyu’li reached forward then pulled his hand quickly, revealing a gil to the man.

“Fury! How did that get there!?,” Estinien breathed out, grabbing his ear then tilting his head, the children giggling as he tried to shake out any lingering gil. 

“Um…,” Fuyu’li started, unsure if Estinien was humoring the crowd or not. “Now, I shall turn your attention to this vase full of beautiful crystal blue spring water” he began, stepping back as Azdaja slowly pushed a cart into the middle of the pavilion using her forehead. Upon it, a vase was filled with blue water, dyed of course, but he assumed the children wouldn’t know. Taking some cute white dahlias, he waved them around before putting them in the vase. “Prrresto chango,” he purred, waving a little wand before tapping the flowers as they started to soak up the dyed water.  

Most of the children looked on in amazement, Estinien leaning forward on the end of his seat as he narrowed his eyes at the flowers. Beside him, Nidhana giggled in delight at his amazement over the simple trick. “What foul magick is this? I do not sense him using aether,” Estinen said.

“Explaining it would ruin the trick,” Nidhana said. “Though if you are still curious after, I will show you how to manage such a feat yourself.”

Estinien narrowed his eyes then leaned back with his arms crossed, watching Fuyu’li carefully. On the stage, Fuyu’li swished his cape then spun around, making Azdaja seemingly vanish from view, tucking under his arm. “Now! For my last trick! A feat no Garelean has ever done before! I shall breathe dragon fire,” he said, before leaning back, keeping a side profile to his captive audience before opening his mouth and letting Azdaja peak up beside his cheek to blow fire.”

The children clapped, Ahi’a even swooping up to give a scree of delight at the special feat. Estinien meanwhile looked stunned while Nidhana and Alisae shared a look then started to laugh. Alphinaud sighed, looking over to Jullus apologetically who patted his thigh reassuringly.

Fuyu’li satisfied took a bow, letting Azdaja fly from her hiding space to go join her brother and nephew. “Thank you! Thank you! Now, let’s have cake,” Fuyu’li sang out as Matya wheeled out a large fish shaped cake with a 1 drawn on it.

As the kids cheered, Fuyu’li wiped his brow sitting beside Jannie. “I worry that I am ill suited for this.”

“You did marvelous. At the very least you captivated Estinien. I might have you do Haury’s nameday when it comes around…if just to tell Rahn that I’ve already booked entertainment,” Jannie said, smiling weekly over at Nyx as they stared back at her.

“I do not think I want to make a career out of this. If anything, it was more for Varshan. He’s never had a proper nameday, so I think he was living a bit vicariously through Ahi’a,” Fuyu’li said, watching Varshan try to juggle three plates of cake in his small arms for his sister and son. “It was so long ago, I do not think he knows when he was hatched.”

“Perhaps then we should throw him one proper,” Jannie suggested.

“A nameday for the Satrap? Oh! The whole city would celebrate,” Nidhana said, joining in on the conversation as she joined, picking at the strange cake before taking a bite, seeming to not find it offensive. “Let me know what you will need help with.”

“Garlemald, too, would offer help for a celebration where we could. Thavnair’s aid to us has been essential to rebuilding efforts,” Jullus said, leaning over with Alphinaud nodding in agreement.

“I am sure the Scions would like to join in on the festivities as well,” Alphinaud said, “When is the date?”

Fuyu’li shrank as the group started to talk among themselves about the nameday party he was now apparently in charge of planning for Vrtra, whimpering a bit having barely gotten through the one for his hatchling son.

“Don’t worry. I will come and help,” Jannie said, taking Fuyu’li’s hand and giving it a little squeeze. “And I’m sure he’ll be happy no matter what we come up with.”

Fuyu’li blinked, looking at the Warrior of Light’s hand before letting a little sniffle from the kindness shown by her, heart swelling a little from her kindness. He gave a smile then nodded, looking over to Varshan as he laughed with the kids as U’rahn tripped on his oversized shoes and fell forward, landing face down in his piece of cake. “I think that, with everyone’s help, we can really make something special for him. Let’s do it,” he said, smiling at everyone with a renewed energy for the party.

[rgr-pop]

do you have an opinion on dupes vs. the original brand for makeup? more concerned about the quality of the product (lead poisoning? etc) over color. i've seen some reviews of $1 lipstick from china that have a similar effect to lime crime's velvetines but i'm hesitant

I don’t think of “dupe” to mean “exact copy” or “counterfeit,” more like “the exact shade” or “the exact formula.” I think there are a few arguably reputable brands that traffic in copy-style dupes, and plenty of drugstore and lower-end brands are going to blatantly copy popular higher-end products and trends (think of nyx’s take on the guerlain [or was ysl first I forget] gold primer, or their take on the hourglass veil mineral, etc.). But there are so many things available at drugstore and indie prices that I don’t think there is any need to buy questionable ebay/ali express/godknowswhat makeup anymore! I mean, not even considering health risks (I’m not sure about lead poisoning, but these kinds of scares pop up in plenty of “real” or readily-available brands in the US, plus there are tons of questionable ingredients in high end and mainstream ingredients anyway, not to scare you, I kind of think that there is a bit of sensationalized “Chinese lead” fear out there that is not that realistic, makeup is probably not a health, etc.) The fact is that you’re probably not gonna get a great product, and most of this kind of thing is marketed as a copy but isn’t a convincing “dupe” at all in practice! I don’t believe your reviewers I think they were just saying it for the clicks!!! (Unless you mean it’s like an actual chinese brand sold to chinese consumers and not a counterfeit internet thing, in which case I say why not.)Your best bet is to pick the shade you want and then look at swatches of more affordable brands and see if there’s a match! What do you mean by “effect,” just the matte lipstick vibe? Or is there a really particular shade you want? Some less expensive brands you should look to are Colourpop ($5), Nyx (they have a ton of variations, the lip lingerie line is very polarizing but a lot of people love them, I have come around on the lip suedes but they don’t dry down like a typical liquid lip) (like $5-10, with sales too), Wet n Wild liquid catsuits ($5), Milani Amore Mattes ($8), Ulta has some Urban Decay Vice liquid lipsticks on sale for $9! I heard some good things about one by L’Oreal but I cannot remember which nor can I speak to their shade range. I think it’s the Infallible pro-mattes. I think CoverGirl is about to launch some more of their melting pout shades, look out for those--but traditional drugstore is getting so pricey! As always I caution: google the shade you are interested in to look at swatches and reviews, read temptalia reviews if she has reviewed it!Assuming of course that price is the reason you’re looking for a dupe, and not general avoidance of Lime Crime, lol. If you for some reason are cool with spending $15-$25, look at Dose of Colors, Smashbox Always On, Kat Von D, Makeup Monsters, Sugarpill, the Beauty Bakerie lip whips, Stila, the Sephora brand cream lip stains, Blackmoon Cosmetics...Most of the above I have not tried on myself, I’m not a liquid lip queen honestly. Stephanie Nicole on yt has a playlist of thorough liquid lip reviews, but keep in mind she is very picky and has very specific ideals--but she loves the Velvetines! She’s also mostly a high end girl.In sum, it’s probably not even worth your wait time on that $1. If you can save up for $5-10, it might be more worth your time--though who knows if it’ll be healthier in the long run! If you see something you like in these $5 options I say definitely go for it, for anything more than that I would wait for a sale or go a coupon route, I myself cannot stomach spending $8 on CoverGirl even if I know it’s great, lol. 

Good luck, and feel free to send follow ups!

[dupediaries-blog]

Anastasia Beverly Hills Cruelty Free dupes

[biot08]

Zoissette Vauban: Dutiful Nyx Blackmoon: Spirit of bad tidings

Describe your oc to me. Poorly.

[glittter-vamp]

Random question but are you a fan of black lipstick? I’ve been looking for a good one but they all rub off and sometimes make a mess all over my face 😞

Yes! Currently I’m using this one from NYX. It works for me pretty good and is pretty pigmented as well. (Little drying tho)

I had one from blackmoon cosmetics as well that was really good (lost it at HHN, rip) but it’s a bit pricier & im not sure if they sell it in any make up stores so you can go and swatch it 🤔