#Recommendations and good info sources are welcome.

[eukaryotesrool]

Noronha skink

(Or Trachylepis atlantica) is (unsuprisingly) a species of skink, which I've delved into recently.

It is one of few Trachylepis species to be found outside of Africa, specifically, it is endemic to the South American island Fernando de Noronha, it likely got there through rafting millions of years ago.

This oviparous skink is one of few reptiles to be a pollinator, specifcally of the tree Erythrina velutina, when it eats the plant's nectar, though its diet is made up mostly of bugs.

It is believed to have had no natural predators until some were introduced by humans, such as the house cat, and cattle egret, however, its population has thankfully not been greatly diminished by them. It has a easily torn off tail, which likely helps protect it, like most skink.

The animal's etymology history is quite interesting, to simplify it greatly, it was given a variety of genuses and species names, including now defunct genuses, it was believed to be one and the same as another South American islander skink but most amusingly it was given an already taken species name, the illegitimacy of the name was pointed out, it was changed, BUT THEN it was revived and the ALREADY TAKEN taxon was used for a while before being dropped again.

LOOK AT THIS

Either way the Trachylepis Atlantica is thought to be a brave and curious little guy, and I can say with authority that they deserve love and a watchful eye, though classified least concern classed at the moment, some fear the species' future.

[dewarism]

here it is! welcome to connor dewar 101 the other slides are under the cut!

you may have to zoom in to read them! i was doing my best with the space i had!

his family lives in winnipeg now but he still visits the pas in the summer! in his becoming wild (which you can find on youtube), he talks about his love for clearwater lake which is located northeast of the pas!

also in his playing career, he has made it to the playoffs with the wild twice, and has worn jersey numbers #52 and #26, and reportedly will wear #24 with the leafs.

there is definitely more statistical info about him that i don't have on here that you can find if that type of stuff interests you! he is labelled as a defensive forward, occupying the center position, and usually plays on the bottom six. he was also on the penalty kill for the wild and typically had defensive zone starts.

to get a better feel for his personality than what i can give you here, i recommend watching his becoming wild video and also his podcast episode on wild on 7th (both can be found on youtube, and the audio version of the podcast can be found wherever you listen to your podcasts). feel free to skip through until the part where he comes in but it's a good video where a lot of this stuff was learned!

connor dewar, you were a mn wild staple and i hope that playing for the leafs treats you as good as it can! leafs fans, i hope this was a satisfactory source of connor dewar lore and that you will cherish him like we have! 🩷

[starlightkun]

❧ word count: 8.8k ❧ warnings: cursing, uh reader gets called like a fantasy slur?, this one really focuses on the concept of ‘othering’ in this society and how it manifests in and around jeno and reader’s werewolf/human relationship ❧ genre: fluff, angst but like from outside sources (see warnings), modern magical creatures au, fantasy au, college au if you squint again, werewolf jeno, human reader, ft. werewolf sungchan, human renjun, and dryad jaemin, same universe as strawberry sunday, sequel to pupsick ❧ extra info: this is a sequel to pupsick! it theoretically could be read as a standalone with minimal confusion but i highly recommend you read pupsick first to see how these two crazy kids got together this work is set in the same universe as strawberry sunday! there is no continuing plotline between fics in this universe (aside from pupsick to this one), they simply take place in the same world/magic system and may have overlapping characters (neos may pop up in more than one work!)

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ explore the strawberry sunday universe more here!

“Welcome!” Renjun smacked the tip of his lecture pointer against his TV screen. You jumped a little at the sound. “To your exclusive History of Werewolf-Human Romance crash course taught by yours truly!”

“Waah!” You yelped as you were quite literally swept off your feet by a pair of strong arms around your waist, and grabbed onto Jeno’s hands. A surprised giggle bubbled out of you. “Pup! You scared the hell out of me.”

“You were too slow.” Jeno clicked his tongue in feigned disappointment, nosing along from behind your ear down your neck. “I win.”

“As usual,” you sighed, reaching up to scratch your fingers along his scalp. The warmth of him holding you was a welcome one against the wintery chill of December that was fully set in around you. “If you didn’t need enrichment, I might lodge a formal complaint about the equity of these games, you know.”

“A formal complaint? With what authority?”

“Jaemin.”

Before your boyfriend could respond, an angry shout came from across the park, drawing your attention. You felt Jeno’s arms tense around you immediately. You spotted your friend that had come with you two, Sungchan, over by the water fountains, in a less than friendly confrontation with another man. From your viewpoint, the stranger was way out of his depth. Sungchan was a head and a half taller than him, not to mention a werewolf.

“The fuck did you just say?” Sungchan pushed the guy, who looked about your age, back by the chest. The other guy didn’t say anything, but didn’t move to back down either. Jeno let you go, but only to put himself between you and the other two, despite the distance that was already there.

“I said, say it again, to my fucking face this time, asshole,” your friend practically snarled at him and stepped forward, his fists clenched and teeth bared.

Jeno looked conflicted about leaving you or helping your friend. But before he had to make a choice, the shorter man turned on his heel and stormed off. Sungchan watched until he was completely off the premises before he rejoined you and Jeno. Your friend’s fists were still clenched in anger, and you noticed a prominent vein on his forehead that wasn’t always there.

“What did that guy say, Sungchan?” You asked him softly. You’d never seen your typically good-natured friend get worked up like that. He was always a rather calming presence, especially in contrast to the other excitable wolf with you.

“It wasn’t just some guy, it was another werewolf,” Jeno informed you, though his focus was also on the taller man.

Sungchan stretched his neck out, letting out a sharp sigh. “Yeah, he was a werewolf. He… he called you a knotslut, Y/N.”

You felt your jaw drop as Jeno immediately spat out, “He fucking what?”

“I can assume that’s not a compliment…” You said quietly, though you’d never heard the word yourself before.

“No, it’s not.” Sungchan crossed his arms, and his features softened as he looked down at you. “It’s an obviously derogatory term for a non-werewolf—usually human, and almost always a woman—who only dates werewolves specifically because of the more wolf-ish aspects of us.”

“Or just any human woman who’s with a werewolf.” Jeno pulled you closer to him with an arm around your waist. “I am so, so sorry Y/N—”

“Jeno, shh, shh. It’s not like you’re the one who called me that.” You waved off his apology. “I just… forget sometimes, that this is still kind of all new. Humans and magical creatures all living together.”

“That doesn’t make it okay for him to have called you that, Y/N,” Sungchan said sternly.

“I didn’t say that it did,” you replied just as firmly. “It was just an unpleasant little reality check, that’s all. Thank you for standing up for me, by the way, Channie.”

“Seriously, dude, thank you,” Jeno echoed your sentiments.

Your friend finally gave a small smile. “Of course. There was no way I was going to sit back and let anybody talk about my friends like that.”

You didn’t like the pensive look that was still on his face, though. “Is there something else bothering you?”

“No, I was just thinking…” He gave you two a sheepish look. “Now don’t get me wrong, I think you two are very cute together, and I truly couldn’t imagine a better match for either of you than the other. But that whole thing that just happened… just really solidified that I think for myself, personally, I’d just rather stick with dating other werewolves. No need to worry about weird werewolf fetishists, and my hypothetical future partner wouldn’t have to worry about dealing with stuff like that. Just a lot simpler, you know?”

You exchanged a look with Jeno. Oh, you two would have a lot more discuss about your thoughts on that later. But for now, to give your friend your lukewarm support.

“Yeah, I mean, you’ve got a couple good points,” you offered politely. “Obviously, I want you stay away from weirdos.”

“But…” Jeno hopped in where you had implicitly left off. “Don’t accidentally swear off happiness in your search for something simple.”

“You sound like a fortune cookie, Jeno,” Sungchan snorted. “I take it back, being in love is rotting your brain.”

“He’d need a brain to rot in the first place.” You gently knocked on your boyfriend’s forehead for emphasis, giggling as he scrunched his eyes and nose.

When Jeno hadn’t made any kind of comeback or retort, the taller werewolf asked incredulously, “Seriously? You don’t have anything to say to that, man?”

“She’s right,” Jeno shrugged and knocked on his own head this time. “I’m just a big dumb pup, remember?”

“You two are insufferable,” Sungchan groaned, looking up at the sky in facetious misery. “Why did I agree to hang out with you guys without a fourth wheel?”

You laughed. “Because you and Jeno wanted to play soccer. And you two have officially worn me out, so why don’t you play while I take a nice long sit on the bench?”

“Fine.”

As you watched Jeno and Sungchan kick a soccer ball back and forth, you hugged your knees to your chest on a bench overlooking the soccer field, glad that it hadn’t snowed lately so your butt was staying dry. Your phone buzzed in your pocket, and you took it out to see who was calling.

“Hey, Renjun,” you answered brightly.

“Hey, Y/N. Are you guys still at the park?” Your friend asked, and you could distantly hear the sound of his footsteps echoing behind him. You’d sent a blanket invite out to several of your friends for this afternoon, but Sungchan had been the only one that was able to make it initially.

“Yeah. The guys are playing soccer. I’m taking a break.”

“Do you think you’ll be there much longer? I finished up my essay early so I figured I could join you.”

Oh, he must be in the parking garage on campus.

“Of course! Channie was just complaining about third-wheeling alone anyway.”

“What were you and Jeno doing?”

“Long story, I’ll tell you when you get here.”

“Oh great,” he said sarcastically. “I’ll be there in ten.”

“See you, Renjun!”

“Bye.”

“So Renjun’s coming?” Jeno called out, holding a hand up to cast a shadow over his eyes.

You nodded, knowing that Jeno had only been able to parse out your half of the conversation from the distance he was at. “Yeah, he said he’ll be about ten minutes.”

Your boyfriend gave you a thumbs up before turning back around just in time to avoid a ball that Sungchan had kicked right at his head. “Dude!”

“Like I said! Being in love’s rotting your brain, Lee Jeno!” Sungchan yelled back, throwing his hands up in a grand ‘I-don’t-know’ gesture. “And your reflexes!”

“And I’m telling you, I don’t got a brain to rot, Jung Sungchan!” Jeno jogged after the soccer ball, lining up to kick it in an impressive arc back to the other werewolf.

Renjun showed up fifteen minutes later and plopped down on the bench beside you with a zealous huff. You didn’t even need to ask what happened.

“God, half the morons at our college don’t know how to drive!” He stretched his arms over the back of the bench, rolling his neck out. “And the other half are just jumping into traffic willy-nilly like they’re trying to get ran over or something!”

“Deep breath, Renjun, deep breath.” You patted him on the shoulder.

“As soon as I graduate, I’ll take the biggest, deepest beath of my life, I promise.”

“And until then?”

“Until then, I’m white-knuckling the steering wheel with one hand and laying on the horn with the other.”

You laughed heartily. “That’s one way to go about it I guess.”

“But how are you doing, Y/N?”

“Oh, fine. Something kind of… weird, I guess, happened earlier, though.”

“Weird?”

You squinted your eyes at the two werewolves now at the opposite end of the soccer field as before, trying to guesstimate if that was enough distance for your conversation to not be picked up by their superhuman hearing. To be safe, you leaned in towards your human friend and lowered your voice.

“There was this other werewolf here, and he said something about me and Jeno.” You admitted.

Renjun tilted his head curiously. “Said what?”

“Well, more specifically, he called me a-a knotslut?” The word felt unfamiliar in your mouth, and left a bitter taste on your tongue. Your lip curled unpleasantly at the memory it brought up.

His eyes widened as he looked around in alarm, then dropped his own voice to a whisper, “So where’s the body? Because there’s no way Jeno would’ve let someone that called you that leave alive.”

“Jeno wasn’t the one who heard him say it,” you clarified. “Sungchan did. Jeno and I were busy goofing off. Channie had gone to refill his water by the bathrooms and apparently the guy said it over there by him.”

“He probably thought that Sungchan was going to agree with him.”

“Must’ve been a shock for him when Sungchan almost bashed his face in himself.”

Renjun burst out in a full-bodied laugh. “Oh, I’m sure it was.”

“But, I want to ask you something, Renjun. Since you’re here.” You turned on the bench to fully face your human friend.

“Sure, what’s up?”

“You’re a Magical Creatures Studies major. Me and Jeno… it’s not that weird, right? Like, new, I mean? There’s got to be more of a history to humans and magical beings being together than six months ago.”

“Oh there absolutely is!” Renjun’s eyes sparkled as he straightened up in his seat. “I’m actually finishing up a class on Interspecies Marriage right now! Did you know that the earliest written record we have of a traditional werewolf mating ritual between a human and werewolf is nearly two thousand years old?”

“Wait, really?” You weren’t expecting that much precedent. Maybe a couple hundred years, not a couple thousand.

“Yeah! And as for how we would conventionally think of marriage today between a human and werewolf, that still goes back at least 800 years for official written historical records. And that’s just written. There’s oral traditions of entire packs that were equal parts human and werewolf that are much, much older with archaeological evidence to back it up.”

“Archaeological? Like, bones?”

“Well, yeah. But also artifacts of their villages. Things that—”

A movement in the periphery of your eye made you whip your head up to look back at the field. Jeno and Sungchan were leisurely walking over towards you two, the former carrying the soccer ball. You smacked Renjun’s knee to shut him up as quickly as possible. Offended, he seemed to nevertheless get the idea, thankfully, and stopped his never-ending stream of facts.

You smiled up at the two werewolves as they stopped beside you two. “Done already?”

“Just coming to say hey to Renjun,” Jeno informed you as Sungchan grabbed a bag that was next to the bench.

“Hey, guys,” Renjun greeted them.

Sungchan fetched a couple water bottles that were inside, tossing one to Jeno, who caught it one-handed. He then set the soccer ball down by his feet to twist the bottle open.

“And hydrate,” the taller wolf added.

The human rolled his eyes. “Oh. I feel so special now.”

“You guys want to join?” Jeno offered, using his shirt to dab at a bead of sweat on his forehead with the hem. You shamelessly watched his movements. “We can do teams now that we’ve got even numbers.”

“Yeah, werewolves versus humans,” Sungchan suggested with a grin.

“Only if you guys hop on one leg with your hands tied behind your back,” you retorted.

“How are we supposed to kick the ball like that?”

“You can figure it out with your big, non-rotted, pristine brain, Channie. I believe in you.”

“Well not if I’ve got Mr. Fortune Cookie over here making heart eyes at you the whole time.” Sungchan jabbed a thumb in Jeno’s direction, and when you looked over at him, he was already looking at you.

“I’m sorry, I thought you wanted me on your team?” Jeno rounded on him indignantly.

Sungchan shrugged as he finished the rest of his water. “Like you’ll really try if it’s against Y/N.”

Your boyfriend rolled his eyes, but didn’t do anything to dispute the claim. “Fine, then you’re taking Renjun?”

“No. I’m taking Y/N, obviously.”

As you and Sungchan walked out to your own side of the field, you studied him suspiciously.

“Why did you want me on your team?” You asked him, soccer ball in your hands this time. “If you think Jeno and I are too lovey-dovey to compete against each other?”

“Well I took your advice, and I thought about it with my huge, smart, peak condition brain—”

You couldn’t help but laugh in his face at his phrasing, to which he snickered as well.

“—and I figured that even if you don’t give it 110%, you’re still better than Renjun. So not only is Jeno not going to be doing good himself because he’s competing against you, but his teammate kind of sucks too.”

“Ohh, I got you,” you nodded along, which slowly turned into a disbelieving head shake. “I think we need to set you up with someone. You’re too smart for everyone else’s good, your brain’s in need of a little rotting.”

Sungchan turned to you then, squaring his shoulders. “I’ll make you a deal.”

“Hmm, since you’re not a fairy, I’ll hear you out. The terms?”

“If we win and I’m convinced that you actually gave your best against Jeno… then you can set me up on one date.”

“You’re agreeing to a blind date?”

“One.”

“With anybody of my choosing? You won’t back out no matter what they are?”

“I can’t back out of it.”

“And you have to put in an earnest effort, too. You can’t intentionally sabotage it.”

“I can’t back out of it, and I can’t intentionally sabotage it.”

You stuck a hand out to him. “Deal.”

Sungchan took your chilly hand, shaking it with his perpetually warm one. “Deal.”

God you were exhausted. Your legs burned, your eyes were watering from the cold wind, and you sucked in breath after breath of air that nipped at your lungs and seemed to hurt as much as it helped. But finally, someone declared the game over, and that you and Sungchan had won.

You let out an unintelligible, guttural grunt of victory, plopping yourself down onto the grass exactly where you were standing and pumping your fists up into the air from the ground instead. Sungchan jogged up to you, bright grin on his features as he held a hand down to you for a high-five.

“That was awesome, Y/N!” Your teammate celebrated as you weakly slapped your hand down against his. “I told you you were better than Renjun!”

“What? Why was disparaging me even part of your pep talks?” Renjun yelled from afar, tossing his hands up in the air in equal parts bewilderment and offense.

“Y/N!” Jeno ran up to you, skidding to his knees on the ground beside you to throw his arms around you. “Good job! Seriously, you did so good out there! Your passing got better and—”

“See? He’s happier that you won than if he had won.” Sungchan gestured to your boyfriend pointedly.

Through a tired smile, you pecked Jeno on the cheek. “Thanks, pup. You did great, too.”

Then, you turned your focus to the other werewolf still standing above the two of you, the smile dropping from your face. You pointed at him knowingly. “Consider my end of the deal fulfilled now, Jung.”

Sungchan crossed his arms over his chest, not seeming very happy about this, but he didn’t argue. “Fine. Later, okay?”

“Fine…” You gracefully dropped the subject at the moment. After all, you needed time to carefully consider. So for now, you wrapped your arms around Jeno and laughed as he kissed your cheek back two times.

“Hey, what were you and Sungchan talking about, by the way?” Jeno asked as he came into the living room with his after-dinner snack. You were staying at his place tonight to continue binging a show that you, Jeno, and Jaemin had started together.

“When?” You lifted up one side of the fluffy blanket that was on your lap for him to sit down under. Once he had, you immediately scooted closer to rest your head against his shoulder. When he was done eating, he would be the one snuggling up to you like usual, but for now, he did unfortunately have to attend to his inhuman metabolism.

“After we all played soccer. Some deal?”

“Oh, oh, oh!” You sat up straight, excited now. Looking at both Jeno, and Jaemin, who was stretched out on his own couch on the other side of the living room, you announced excitedly, “Sungchan’s letting me set him up on a date.”

“What?” “Seriously?” They blurted out at the same time.

“Yup. The deal was that if I gave 110% in the soccer game against Jeno, and Sungchan and I won, then he’d let me set him up on exactly one date.” You confirmed with a devilish hand rub.

Jeno scrunched his nose up. “How many werewolves do you know, Y/N? I guess I might know some from my pack back home that are nice…”

“That’s the best part. He can’t back out of it or self-sabotage no matter who it is, or what they are. So it doesn’t have to be a werewolf.”

Your boyfriend caught your eye, and you knew that the two of you were thinking the exact same thing. “Oh…”

“Yeah…”

“Hey!” Jaemin snapped his fingers to get your attention. Once you both were looking over at him, despite the fond smile on his face, he made a show of rolling his eyes as he grumbled, “I hate when you two do that. Mind filling me in?”

“Channie’s apparently got this thing about only wanting to date werewolves because it’s easier,” you explained. “You know, no worrying about weirdos who date werewolves because they’re werewolves.”

“And he claims that it’s just not worth any possible… harassment,” Jeno added. He’d apparently polished off his snack while you and Jaemin were speaking, because with two free hands, he pulled you closer to him again, pressing a kiss to your temple. “And after today, I kind of understand why.”

“Jeno, don’t talk like that,” you replied firmly, feeling a lump grow in your throat.

“I don’t agree with him, but I understand him. You don’t want the person you’re in love with to go through something like that. I want to be able to do something to make sure you never have to have someone treat you like that ever again, Y/N. But not if it’s not being with you. That… that doesn’t feel right to me.”

You laced your fingers with the hand of the arm he had around your shoulders, wrapping him even tighter around you. “Of course it doesn’t. Because it’s not right. And you’re not going to do something so stupid, Lee Jeno.”

“I know,” he squeezed your hand.

After a beat of quiet, Jaemin spoke up softly, “Will you… tell me what happened?”

“There was another werewolf at the park today. He called Y/N something awful.”

“What…?”

Figuring it might not be a good idea to say it again around Jeno, especially since your boyfriend apparently couldn’t bring himself to say it either, you jumped in, “Remember how we were just talking about people who only date werewolves because they’re werewolves?”

Jaemin’s face changed from confusion to recognition, then sympathy. “Oh, that’s horrible. I’m sorry, Y/N. That must have been terrible.”

“I’m okay, Jaemin. Thanks.” You smiled encouragingly to your friend. “Now, are we watching the show or…?”

“Yeah, yeah!” The dryad reached for the remote to select your show.

Later, once everyone had retired to bed for the night, you were staring up at the ceiling of Jeno’s bedroom, a discontented frown on your face. Your boyfriend exited the bathroom, flicking the light off behind him and flopping face-first onto his side of the bed. With no hesitation, he rolled over until he could rest his head on your middle. Except you didn’t move your fingers that had been laced together over your stomach as you stewed in your moody thoughts.

A comically confused sound came from Jeno at the unexpected barrier between him and his favorite pillow. And when you still didn’t move them, he lifted his head up to be able to look at you. “Y/N? Baby?”

“Hm?” You finally looked down at him, and registered the weight on your abdomen. You unlaced your hands and lifted them to make room. “Oh, sorry, Jeno. I was thinking.”

“About?” He prompted you as he settled in for his nearly nightly head scratches and rubs (they were only missed on the nights that you didn’t spend together). Your fingers began their habitual carding through his hair one way, then scratching gently along his scalp back the other way.

“When you said you understand Sungchan—”

“Y/N, I said—”

“Please let me finish.”

“You’re right, sorry. Go ahead.”

You sighed, keeping one hand in his hair and trailing the other down to caress his forehead, cheekbone, jaw, then tilted his chin up so he was looking at you.

“You’re both looking at it wrong,” you affirmed, holding his gaze steadily. “You don’t control other people’s actions solely by existing. That guy didn’t call me that today because I’m a human or because you’re a werewolf or because he heard me call you ‘pup’ or any litany of things about you and me. He said it because there’s something wrong with him. He said it because for some reason he just couldn’t imagine any scenario where you and I were simply just happy. And I for the life of me cannot bring myself to give a shit about pleasing people like him. So yes, while I do wish that you would encounter as little strife and hurt and injustice in your life as possible, Jeno, because I love you, I don’t believe for a second that any of it is caused by me loving you. I think that when things like this do happen, it’s caused by other people’s hate.”

Jeno’s throat bobbed up and down as he swallowed, and he slowly nodded, his eyes not leaving yours. His hand came up to cup yours that was cradling his face, his thumb gently rubbing over the backs of your knuckles. You leaned down to press your forehead to his, brushing your noses together.

“Welcome!” Renjun smacked the tip of his lecture pointer against his TV screen. You jumped a little at the sound. “To your exclusive History of Werewolf-Human Romance crash course taught by yours truly!”

Now that the fall semester and finals week were over, you were over at Renjun’s place. You had asked him if you could finish your conversation that you were having at the park about werewolves and humans. And truly, you don’t know why you had thought that you two would just grab coffee or something. You shouldn’t have expected anything less than a full-blown PowerPoint presentation from your friend who practically lived, breathed, ate, and slept Magical Creatures Studies.

“Did you just have that laying around?” You asked, referring to the pointer in his hand.

“Yes of course.”

“Of course,” you echoed humorously as you reclined into your seat on his couch. “Anyway, go for it, Renjun. I’m all ears.”

“Okay, so—” He pressed the spacebar on his laptop that was projecting to the TV. The first slide popped up. “Archaeological data. This is where we left off in our conversation. Entire packs have been found that were half human and half werewolf—”

You raised your hand. “Excuse me? Professor Huang?”

“Yes?” He called on you, having fully slipped into his role as lecturer.

“When you say the packs were half human, half werewolf, what do you mean? Like the population statistics were 50% humans and 50% werewolves? Or the individuals themselves were half-and-half genetically?”

“The former. These packs were integrated evenly with humans and werewolves.”

“And you’re saying ‘packs’ specifically. Not villages, or societies, or groups. Why?”

“From what we’ve been able to gather bout how they lived from the artifacts left behind, it seems their social structure more closely mirrored the customs and habits of werewolves than the humans that lived in that same area at the time.”

“So the humans that were in the pack adopted werewolf culture?”

“You’re getting ahead of me,” Renjun beamed at you. “You’re a very perceptive student.”

“Oh. Go ahead, Professor Huang.” You gave him a humble seated bow to proceed with the slide he was on.

“So, the archaeological data itself that was found was, like you said, bones, obviously, but also pots, stone tools, trinkets, even children’s toys or bits of clothing have been found.” He clicked to the next slide. There were pictures of some of the objects he’d mentioned, and a couple more. “This is where it gets interesting. Even if we hadn’t found any human skeletons, we would’ve known that humans had lived there because there were human tools found. Tools that werewolves didn’t need. Like knives to cut their food into bite-sized pieces, and jars that have residue from medicine that we know was used to treat diseases communicable among humans but not werewolves.”

“Wow.”

Next slide. This one had a picture of some objects on one side, pieces of worn leather, smooth colorful stones, and on the other side, a drawing of two necklaces, with matching opalescent stones wrapped securely in them.

“On the left—” he smacked said side with the pointer. “—are the pieces of two leather necklaces that were found with a pair of skeletons that were buried together. The right—” smack “—is an artist’s rendition of what the necklaces most likely looked like originally.”

“They’re beautiful.”

“Werewolves will traditionally bury mates together.”

“Like human couples who buy a plot of land in a cemetery big enough for the both of them before they pass.” You nodded.

“Exactly. This specific pack wasn’t 50/50 werewolves and humans we think. From what we’ve been able to parse out, it was more 80/20, with more werewolves. But they still buried werewolf-human couples together with all the same rites as werewolf couples. This pair right here was a werewolf-human couple.”

You smiled up at the image on-screen, feeling the familiarity of them reach across time to you in that moment. “And the necklaces?”

“It was sort of like a wedding ring-slash-mating claim fusion.” Renjun tapped the two necklaces with zeal again. You were starting to get a little afraid that he was going to damage his TV. “You were asking if the humans in these packs adopted werewolf culture, right? For the most part, yes, they did. They took on all of the werewolves’ culture as their own as far as we can tell. And what they couldn’t do, like eating raw meat, they adapted so they could. Obviously, day to day meals, they’d cook with heat. But many culturally important events held significance in the rawness of the food, so the humans would cure meat in salt ahead of time so they could safely consume it for those instances.”

“What sort of events?”

“The celebration of the solstices, uh mating rituals, burials, any number of things most likely involved the consumption of specifically raw meat as part of the tradition. It was an important staple of the werewolf diet, hence why Jeno has to slam down those protein bars now.”

You chuckled a little bit, able to perfectly picture your boyfriend’s shelf in his pantry that was taken up by boxes upon boxes of protein bars specifically formulated for werewolves. “Ah, yes, the ancestral chocolate peanut butter flavored protein bars.”

“And now you know the important cultural significance of them.” Your friend sighed wistfully, then switched back into his lecture-mode. “Back to the necklaces. So while the humans largely assimilated into werewolf culture, they also introduced a few things of their own. Typically, when two werewolves mate for life, it’s a whole biting and scenting thing and bam— every wolf in a hundred-mile radius gets the message. But human noses and teeth aren’t exactly up to par for that, right?”

“…Right.”

“So these pairs did both.”

“Both?”

“Again, extrapolation, and oral tradition.” Renjun qualified his explanation as he quickly clicked to the next slide, which had bullet points for what he was now laying out to you. “Unlike a normal wound, a werewolf’s mating bite would heal quickly and had no risk of infection, even for a human. But a human couldn’t do that back to the werewolf, and the human can’t really smell that much of a difference. But handmade, matching necklaces with a precious stone? Now that’s something everyone can see and understand.”

You nodded, “Yeah, okay. I get it. You want to make sure that both of you feel honored and loved in however that manifests for each of you, and obviously you want your partner to express their love for you in whatever way feels the most genuine and powerful.”

“Uh… yeah…” Renjun gave you a strange look. “I mean, in the field we look at it as a fascinating example of the blending of different cultures but-but that’s… cool… too…”

You gave him an unamused look before gesturing to the screen and to the left. “Can you go back one?”

He obliged, and you pointed at pictures. “What stone is that? Do you know?”

“Do I know what kind of stone it is?” He scoffed mockingly. “Of course I do, it’s moonstone.”

“Helps werewolves have more control over and less pain through their shift on the full moon.” You smiled as you recognized exactly why the human had chosen it all those years ago. “A perfect choice for the necklace that you intend for your werewolf lover to never take off.”

Your friend put a hand over his heart, looking at you with delight. “I knew you’d like that one. God, I almost don’t want to tell you about the werewolf brothels of the 1600s now.”

“The what?!”

Leaving Renjun’s apartment you were a changed person, but overall better, and now equipped with a lot of useful and important information. Quickly dialing up a contact on your phone, you listened to the line ring one, two times before it was picked up.

“Hey, Y/N!” Jaemin greeted you enthusiastically.

“Hey, Jaemin!” You turned a corner, your destination already in mind. “Are you home?”

“Yeah, Jeno’s at the gym right now but he should be back soon if you want to come over.”

“Actually, I wanted to ask if you wanted to go shopping? With me?”

“So why doesn’t Jeno have any moonstone?” You asked Jaemin as the two of you meandered down the aisles of one of the apothecaries in town. “It seems like something that every werewolf should just be stocked up on.”

Jaemin delicately inspected a few live herbs that were growing in small pots on a windowsill. “Jeno’s… weird about his shifting.”

“Weird how?”

“He doesn’t want anything that’ll make the process like, comfortable at all? For some reason.”

You looked back at him in disbelief. “Jeno? Lee Jeno? We’re talking about the same man who turns into the most pitiful oversized puppy I’ve ever seen when he gets an upset tummy? He wants to unnecessarily suffer once a month, every month?”

The dryad shrugged, “I don’t know what to tell you. I’ve tried to convince him to get some moonstone or at least let me make him a tonic to take beforehand, but I’m sure you know by now how stubborn he can get.”

“Yeah,” you sighed, chewing on your bottom lip. It seemed like your errand was going to be futile.

Sensing your shift in mood, your friend patted your shoulder reassuringly. “I think you’ll have much better luck, Y/N. If there’s one thing that he’s more stubborn about than anything else, it’s how much he loves you.”

“Thanks, Jaemin.”

That apothecary ended up being a bust for moonstone (though Jaemin did rescue a couple new plants that he deemed weren’t being taken of well enough), and you had to head off to the bakery right after that, no time to check out any others that were around.

“Hey, Minseok,” you gave your boss a rather unenthusiastic greeting as you wrapped your apron around you and washed up in the sink.

The sphinx was surprisingly in the back with his own apron on, and not in the office. Whoever was on shift in the kitchen that afternoon must have had to call out today. You just had to come in to prep the doughs and starters that needed to ferment overnight.

“Y/N, good evening,” he waved at you as he packed up a few empty trays. “How are you?”

“Ehh, fine.” You started taking down clean mixing bowls. “And no, I really don’t feel like expounding on that.”

Minseok held his hands up in an easy surrender. “That’s fair. But uh, I feel the need to ask… everything okay with you and Jeno?”

“What? Yeah, yeah,” you reassured him. “Don’t worry, tomorrow’s opening shift is safe.”

“That’s reassuring, but not really why I was asking.” He caught your eye knowingly. Of course, he really did just care.

You nodded, “Thanks, Minseok.”

“Anyway, I didn’t get to do any of my admin work today so—” He untied his apron and hung it on a hook. “Looks like it’s you and me for post-closing tonight.”

“What a party. Me shaping a bunch of loaves of bread and you making Excel spreadsheets.”

Sat on Jeno’s bed that night, you let your head fall forward as his warm hands worked at the muscles of your shoulders and neck.

“God, Y/N, did you not use proper kneading form or whatever bakers do?” He chastised you half-jokingly, thumb finding another knot by your shoulder blade. “How did you get this messed up after one short post-closing shift at the bakery? Did Mr. Minseok put you on a dough hook in one of the mixers or something?”

“That actually kind of sounds like it’d feel good at this point.” Your laugh turned into a groan as he had finally loosened up one area of tightness, then moved onto another.

“Seriously, maybe you should look into some orthopedic footwear or something.”

“My shoes were plenty sensible. I was just too tense today, that’s all.”

“Something on your mind?” Jeno continued massaging as you slowly rolled out your shoulders and neck.

“Yeah…”

“Is it whatever you’ve been scheming up with Renjun and Jaemin?”

You whipped your head around to look at him, wincing as you just undid pretty much everything Jeno had just fixed in your neck. “Ow…”

Your boyfriend sighed, gently turned your head back around, and brought his fingers to the sides of your neck. He gently massaged the pain away again as he kept talking. “I’ll let you keep scheming, baby, but if you want to tell me, I’m all ears. Especially if it’ll keep your occupational hazards to a minimum.”

Now mostly pain free once more, you slowly reached forward for your laptop that was at the foot of the bed, Jeno’s hands falling from your neck to your hips as you did so.

“I want to show you something, pup,” you declared, opening the computer up.

“Okay,” he agreed in a sing-song voice, scooting back to sit against multitude of pillows, bringing you with him.

As Jeno hooked his chin over your shoulder to watch what you were doing, you pulled up a new tab on your computer to do a quick search. You already knew the image that Renjun had showed you earlier was available online; you’d found it when you were explaining your idea to Jaemin at the apothecary. Jeno made a small bewildered ‘hm?’ noise as you typed in “werewolf human burial necklaces,” but ultimately stayed quiet as dozens of academic articles immediately popped up, along with the image of the two sets of remains beside each other, the pieces of the jewelry among them. You clicked on the picture to make it full screen.

“So these—” you pointed to the two skeletons “—are a mated pair from over a thousand years ago, a werewolf and a human. Their pack buried them together just like any other mates.”

“Aw,” Jeno kissed your cheek. “It’s us a thousand years ago.”

You smiled to yourself at that, reaching up to scratch his head approvingly before focusing back on the picture again.

“And they also had these necklaces, with matching moonstones.” You tapped the screen again to draw attention to the gems.

“That’s beautiful, Y/N.” He nuzzled his nose into the crook of your neck. “Thank you for showing me this. Really.”

“Jeno…” You twisted to be able to see his face. “Why don’t you have any moonstone?”

You felt him breathe in and back out against your skin, and let him take as long as he needed to gather his thoughts. After a few moments, he sat up straight again, a thoughtful look on his face.

“It’s... kind of hard to explain. But it always felt like, I don’t know, a crutch? Like, I shouldn’t need it?”

“What?” You couldn’t keep the confusion from your voice.

“Saying that out loud, I’m realizing how uh, dumb that is now,” he chuckled sheepishly. “I sort of thought that werewolves before me always went through their shifts without any stuff like that just fine, so why should I need it?”

“Jeno, you realize that sounds like if I said that humans two thousand years ago survived just fine before the discovery of penicillin, so I shouldn’t go to the doctor for antibiotics when I get sick? Right?”

“Y-Yeah...” He grimaced. “Besides, I was wrong about werewolves of the past not using moonstone, clearly.”

He gestured to the picture on your laptop screen, and let out another sigh. “I just wish I knew how we got from packs burying werewolf-human mates together with matching moonstone necklaces to... where we are now.”

“Oh, Renjun has a PowerPoint on it if you really want to know.”

“That’s what you two were doing today? For three hours?”

“Yep.”

“I’ll pass.” He wrinkled his nose. “I think I’ve got a much better teacher right here anyway.”

“This was the first three slides, you know? Bold of you to assume I retained anything else Renjun said after.”

Jeno’s eyes crinkled as he laughed. “That’s fair.”

“So...” You pushed the laptop forward again, then rested your hands over his that were wrapped around your waist. “Will you get some moonstone? I hate to think that you’re suffering every month when you don’t need to.”

“On one condition.”

“And what’s that?”

“We get a matching set.”

You nodded, a soft smile spreading across your face. “Okay. Yes.”

Jeno’s grin was blinding, but you only saw a glimpse of it before you were fully twisting around to throw your arms around his neck. He let you tackle him back into the pillows, pulling you down with him. You laughed as you landed on top of him, his arms holding you tight. You took this as your opportunity to pepper his face with kisses as he always did to you, across his cheeks, and nose, and forehead, until you had a sufficiently giggly werewolf beneath you.

“You were right,” he murmured, the bright grin not falling from his face, but morphing instead into a tender smile as he looked up at you, bringing one hand up to caress your cheek.

“I know I was,” you teased, turning your head to peck the palm of his hand, then turned it back to lean into his touch. “But I have no clue what you’re talking about specifically.”

“Love isn’t pain. It’s what stops the hurting.”

His words went right to your heart, and you could only bite down on your lip and nod so as to not burst into tears then and there. Jeno wrapped both his arms around you again, rolling the two of you onto your sides and tucking you under his chin. You pressed your face into his shirt, basking in how warm and secure and loved you felt and knew you were in that moment. And that Jeno knew he was too. The fact that he knew, he finally got it, and was letting you two put it into practice in your lives, too. Your life, together.

Oh, yep, you were crying. But they were happy tears, loving, loved tears. You were feeling with every fiber of your being.

You breathed in deeply, breathed Jeno in deeply. Being a werewolf, his sense of smell was sensitive, so he didn’t use heavily perfumed products, nor wore any colognes or perfumes himself. So you could just smell clean, fresh Jeno. And he, oh so cleverly, smelled like home, like safety, like love.

When you finally looked up at your boyfriend, he looked down at you so lovingly, you felt another round of tears welling up already. But you held them back just long enough to tenderly brush a stray piece of hair from his forehead, and whisper into the quiet of the night, “I love you, Lee Jeno.”

He pressed a long kiss to your forehead, then murmured back, “I love you too, Y/L/N Y/N.”

Unlocking the back door to Half Moon Bakery the next morning, you flicked the lights on and led the way in with a skip in your step. Jeno trailed in behind you still rubbing sleep out of his eyes. Yeah, he was never going to be a morning wolf, especially when he now insisted on accompanying you when you went in at 4 a.m. to do the pre-opening kitchen prep, instead of coming in for the front opening at 6 a.m. like he used to. You secured your apron around your waist, put on your music, washed your hands, and got to work.

While it was more tiring to have back-to-back post-closing and opening shifts, you tended to prefer being able to bake your own doughs and loaves that you prepared the night before rather than ones that someone else had done. Not that you were necessarily a perfectionist or elitest about it (okay maybe a little bit that), but it was always satisfying to see the end product of something that you had started. To work on something from start to finish.

You hadn’t kept track of time, nor even of where your boyfriend was, until Jeno popped his head into the kitchen—you admittedly hadn’t realized he’d left it—to announce, “T-minus ten minutes until opening.”

“Got it, thanks, baby,” you smiled up at him, hands preoccupied with dusting powdered sugar over some pastries.

When you came to a stopping point with that task, you went to pause your own music, and could finally hear Jeno’s floating in from the front. You took joy in the small delight of Jeno’s voice being carried back too as he conversed with customers, smiling to yourself when you could hear his voice pitch up if he got particularly excited about whatever they were talking about, or drop with confusion as he would ask a customer to repeat an order that either didn’t make sense or he didn’t hear.

As you carried out a tray of cream-filled croissants—matcha flavored and strawberry flavored—you kept your eyes focused on your destination, the display case of pastries up by the register. You knew that these were a popular item, and usually worked to refill them first. There were only two matcha ones and a strawberry left, so it looks like you brought out a fresh batch just in the nick of time.

“Ah, perfect timing, Y/N!” Jeno’s voice made you stop dead in your tracks as you were setting the fresh tray on top of the case and were about to grab the old one.

You stood up straight, looking over at him in alarm. Three young kids, a dryad boy, human boy, and phoenix girl were at the register, barely big enough to see over the counter, accompanied by who you guessed to be the phoenix’s father.

“Hello,” you nodded to them politely, then looked to Jeno for an explanation. “Is something wrong, Jeno?”

“Y/N here is our baker, she makes all the delicious treats you guys eat,” Jeno said to the kids. “Including those brownies you loved so much.”

The adult phoenix spoke up, addressing you, “They loved the limited-edition peanut butter brownies you all had in the summer. They come in and beg poor Jeno here for them almost every day. I’ve tried to explain what limited-edition means to them, but...” He trailed off, giving you a sheepish shrug.

“They were sooo good!” The phoenix exclaimed, clutching her stomach dramatically.

“Why did you take them away?” The dryad asked curiously, a slight pout on his face that matched that of the toad perched on his shoulder.

“Is it ‘cause nobody was eating them? ‘Cause we’ll come eat all of them!” The human gestured to the three kids.

You chuckled, “It makes me really happy that you guys liked them so much. Thank you.”

“I beg her to bring them back all the time too, guys. Never works...” Jeno sighed melodramatically, and you elbowed him in the side.

“I literally made you some last week,” you said to him under your breath through gritted teeth. “Spoiled…”

Your boyfriend simply smiled at you innocently, and you turned your focus back to the children.

“Since I know they were so popular, I will see what I can do, okay?” You told them.

They erupted into cheers, and you found yourself grinning too, feeling your heart warmed to see so much happiness just from your baking. You finished swapping out the trays of croissants as Jeno rang up their order, then you disappeared back into the safety and quiet of the kitchens.

Minseok, whose initial appearance a few hours ago let you know it was 8 a.m., left his office then, grabbing an apron hanging on one of the hooks along the wall.

“Filling in again?” You asked him curiously, taking a fresh pan of bread out of the oven. Must be 11:00 already.

“Johnny called in sick. Or, his roommate called in sick for him. Apparently he accidentally petrified the poor guy,” your boss sighed, washing up in the sink. “He was trying to tell me the petrification usually only lasts ten to thirty minutes so Johnny would be late, but I just told him Johnny could have the day off. Sounds like he’s going to need it.”

You winced sympathetically. Poor Johnny. Mark, Johnny’s roommate, was a friend of Jeno’s, so you were keenly aware of the basilisk’s struggles with his recently developed powers; and Johnny was a new part-time hire at Half Moon, so you had gotten to know the human and had heard from him some of the unfortunate happenstances the two roommates would find themselves in as well. Johnny was at least usually in good spirits about it and seemed to find them funny most of the time.

“Mark’s trying his best…” You tried to put up a lukewarm defense of your boyfriend’s friend.

“I’d appreciate it if he tried a little harder not to petrify my employees.”

You didn’t have a good comeback, and so with that, Minseok took a tray of half-moon dipped cookies that were ready to go into the front with him. Jeno popped back in just a couple minutes later with the empty tray, already snickering.

“It’s not funny,” you pointed at him, warning in your tone. You knew what he was laughing at, surely having asked Minseok why he was working up front today.

“It’s a little funny,” he argued.

“No it’s not.”

“Come on, I bet Johnny thinks it’s funny.”

“And I’m sure Mark is mortified and hates his life right now.”

“Yeah, that’s kind of Mark’s general state of existence,” Jeno pointed out, meandering around the kitchen towards you.

You turned around to face him as he came up behind you, crossing your arms over your chest. “Be nice, pup.”

“Mmm, I’ll consider it,” he teased, standing in front of you and crossing his arms to mimic you. “Why?”

“If you don’t, I won’t ask Minseok if we can bring back the limited-edition peanut butter cup brownie.”

Jeno narrowed his eyes. “You wouldn’t disappoint those little kids just to teach me a lesson.”

“And, I won’t give you the peanut butter cookie discard I saved you from earlier.”

You saw his face perk up at that. His eyes glanced around the kitchen countertops searching for it. “You saved me one?”

“Well not if you’re going to be mean. I’ll just give it to Mark, sounds like he needs a pick-me-up right now a lot more than you.”

“Okay fine it’s not funny! It’s so unfunny! I definitely didn’t dribble water all over myself when Mr. Minseok told me because I laughed and choked because it was so funny. Because it’s not funny! I promise!” Jeno pleaded with you, uncrossing his arms and grabbing your shoulders desperately. It was then that you could see that the front of his shirt and apron did in fact have wet marks on them.

You rolled your eyes as you reached out to touch the damp material. “Jeno, seriously?”

“That was before I learned that it wasn’t funny! I’m sorry!”

“Is this why you came back here? To get a new apron?” You surmised, already knowing the answer by the nervous little smile you got in response.

“And return the empty pan and see my beautiful girlfriend that I love so much,” he added, which admittedly, did make you smile fondly as you pulled him over towards the sink by his forearm.

You held out a hand expectantly. “Apron.”

He untied the garment and handed it to you, and you went to swap it for one of the spare ones. Hopefully it would be mostly dry by the time you two left so you could just take it with you and toss it in the laundry when you got home. Jeno had taken a couple paper towels to the worst patches of his shirt, but unfortunately, it was grey, so he was just going to have to look like someone who didn’t know how to drink water for as long as it took to dry.

“Here.” You handed him the fresh apron, accepting the used paper towels in return to toss out for him.

“Thank you.”

“Honestly, how did you survive this long without me, Lee Jeno?” You clicked your tongue in feigned disappointment as you watched him put his apron on, leaning against the counter with your hip.

“Says the girl with strawberry frosting on her face,” he shot back smugly.

“What? Where?” You squeaked, looking around for a napkin.

But Jeno was already grabbing a paper towel, and held it under the persistent drip of the faucet that Minseok couldn’t seem to keep fixed. He grabbed your chin, leaned in close, and gently wiped the damp napkin over a spot on your cheek.

“Right there,” he murmured.

You looked into his big, brown, heart-stopping eyes for just a second before surging forward to close the short distance between your mouths. He smiled into the kiss, the paper towel falling from your cheek as he then gave you one, two more short pecks before pulling back.

Jeno was still holding your chin and pinched it in between his fingers affectionately as he looked at you with his adorable eye smile. “Alright, unfortunately, if I’m back here any longer, Mr. Minseok will come looking for me.”

“I suppose I’ll let you get back to work, then,” you sighed facetiously, grabbing the hand that was on your face and giving it a squeeze before letting it go.

“Yeah, you’re too much of a distraction back here, you know.”

“Shut up and go work, Jeno.”

⤷ blog masterlist  ⤷ anthology masterlist

[tiptapricot]

🌙✨Travelers of the night!✨🌙

The time has come for us to share the month of prompts for Moon KnightCember! This is a collaborative list put together and shaped by many lovely fans who have contributed ideas, designs, information, guidance, and more to make a fun December fan event for all!

This event is open to all forms of Moon Knight, from comics to the MCU show, and participants are welcome to create for any version or mix they desire. Prompts are available every other day to give people the ability to choose their pacing, and one or both prompts can be used depending on preference. When participating, please use the hashtag #MKcember2023!

Good luck in your creative fight, we can’t wait to see what you create!

Big thanks to @crystaljelly64 (who also did all the graphics here), @belablue222, @fdelopera and all the others that contributed to the making of this event! :-D

(Basic IDs in ALT and full image descriptions including written out prompt list and live links under cut! A transcript of the Cinco Pa’ Las Doce Instagram highlight is also included under Resources.)

[ID:

Image 1: The moon knight-cember prompt list. Moon knight envelops the prompt calendar with his cape, white cloth encircling the edges and black filling the background behind the prompts. The Moon Knight-cember title is written in stylized text above the calendar, the C a golden crescent dart and the background behind it light blue and snowy. The prompts read:

1st: “Headspace” and/or “Home Is Where The Heart Is”

3rd: “Supernatural Encounter(s)” and/or “Good Friends”

5th: “Cab-allero” and/or “Constellations”

7th: “Chanukah Sameach” and/or “Gelt and Gus/Crawley”

9th: “Candles” and/or “Chanukiah”

11th: “Chanukah Food” and/or “Dreidel”

13th: “Tzedek” and/or “Perseverance”

15th: “Shabbat” and/or “Kiddush Cup”

17th: “Rainy Day” and/or “VHS Tape”

19th: “Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives” and/or “Notes”

21st: “Judgement” and/or “Negative Space”

23rd: “Blast Off!” and/or “Sink”

25th: “Calm Before The Storm” and/or “Little Bug”

27th: “Floating/Blurry” and/or “Phone Call”

29th: “Reflection” and/or “Every Grain Of Sand”

31st: “Cinco Pa’ Las Doce” and/or “Together”

The days of Hanukkah, December 7th through the 15th, are highlighted in glowing gold. The rest of the prompt text is a light blue.

Image 2: A list of basic definitions for words on the prompt list. The definitions read as follows:

Caballero (Spanish): “Knight” ; “Gentleman”

Chanukah Sameach (Jewish): “Happy Hanukkah”; common greeting during Hanukkah

Gelt (Jewish): chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil and given to others to inspire charity

Chanukiah (Jewish): menorah or lamp used for Hanukkah

Dreidel (Jewish): spinning top; played with during Hanukkah

Tzedek (Jewish): “Justice”; “Fairness”; how things should be

Shabbat (Jewish): the Jewish day of Rest

Kiddush Cup (Jewish): cup of wine that’s blessed during Shabbat/Jewish holiday meals

Cinco Pa’ Las Doce (Spanish): “5 minutes til 12”; a New Years Eve song from South and Central America

Image 3: Text that reads: Links and Sources. For more info on Hanukkah and Shabbat, you can go to myjewishlearning.com, and you can also find examples of prayers and services from Jewish YouTubers!

Check out @belablue222’s story highlight “CPLD 🌙 🕰️” for more details on the song and tradition, as well as how it connects to Moon Knight! (Transcript from Instagram below ID)

Links and recommended posts will also be added below cut!

Image 4: text that reads: Slide 7: Text that reads:

Reminder!

During a time of folks using current events to spread hate and vitriol, it’s important to stand firm with love and support for Jewish people and make sure our spaces are firmly free of antisemitism. Fighting fire with fire is never the solution, and support and action for groups in peril does not and should not require falling to different types of bigotry or antisemitic tropes. MKCember is a celebration of a beloved Jewish character and all aspects of that should be respected and loved, and focus on joy and genuine exploration. While creating your works, be aware, be vigilant, and be informed, and together we can make something lovely! /end ID]

Resources:

MyJewishLearning.com

Chanukah Sameach

Gelt

Chanukiah

Dreidel

Tzedek

Shabbat

Kiddush Cup

Post by @fdelopera about engaging with Moon Knight and Jewish celebrations respectfully and carefully during this challenge

Cinco Pa’ Las Doce Instagram highlight (transcript below)

Transcript of Cinco Pa’ Las Doce deep dive by @belablue222:

“Cinco Pa' las doce: a cultural deep dive and its ties to the moon knight system.

Disclaimer: I am latina, but i cannot speak for all of the traditions practiced or not practiced in all latinoamérica countries due to how many of us there are, as well as how unique each of our traditions are. Because of this, I will be using traditions that are more widely practiced.

As we approach the end of the year, places all over the world prepare to bring in the new year with all sorts of traditions and customs. It is a time of celebrating, mingling, and integrating. It’s a time for one to connect to their background of where they come from, and embrace tradition.

New Years is especially important in latinoamérica, and has traditions that go back decades or even centuries. Today, i will be talking about a well known and beloved tradition, as well as others that are commonly practiced in central and South America.

Cinco Pa’ Las Doce

Written in 1963 and performed by Venezuelan actor and singer Néstor Zavarce, Cinco Pa' Las Doce is a hauntingly beautiful song about a person wanting to run home to hug their mom for New Years, with the sound of bells playing throughout the street. The song became immensely popular throughout latinoamérica throughout the years, and there are many different versions with many different styles, but the original one still remains the iconic classic widely known.

In typical tradition, people with gather together at 11:55pm on New Year’s Eve and spend time together, thinking about past memories, wondering what the new years will bring, and enjoy each others company as the song plays. Once the song ends, it is midnight, and people will celebrate this by doing many different traditions, here are a few of them that are most commonly practiced...

Typical traditions:

Fireworks: like a lot of other places, fireworks are often lit in the biggest of cities, or the smallest of villages, the colors brightening the sky of the new year.

12 uvas: eating 12 grapes at midnight is a tradition that is ment to bring good luck for the new year, and represent 12 wishes that will only come true if the grapes are eaten quickly.

Walking a block with a suitcase: when the clock strikes midnight, some people will grab a suitcase and walk (or even run) a block around their neighborhood for them to be able to travel and go to many places in the new year

Lentils: lentils have significance in many different ways for latam countries. some will eat lentils or lentil soup at midnight, others will pocket them or even wrap 12 of them in a bill, no matter what, lentils are meant to bring good fortune and prosperity for the new year.

Yet what does this all have to do with Moon Knight?

The Moon Knight system in the MCU are both Jewish as well as Latino. New years is a great way for them to connect with their latam roots, while also being respectful to their other traditions as well. They can enjoy latinoamerican foods that are customary to the winter seasons, sing songs in spanish, and enjoy many other things. they could even intigrate things or come up with new traditions so they can comfortably celebrate el año nuevo.

From an artistic standpoint, it's a good way to ponder what their relationship is with these traditions that have deep ties to family, and the potential effects it has on them due to their own relationship with their family. Do they struggle? Do they reclaim? Do they pass these traditions on?

An interesting thing to ponder to the ethereal bells of Cinco Pa' las Doce.” (End of transcript)

[quinloki]

Welcome to today’s ’what’s been rattling around in my brain’

Bc I think I have you to thank/blame for this but I can’t remember, it’s mafia Marco tho so….. close enough…..

Ok so picture this. Bodyguard Marco right, but he’s actually from an opposing family being your bodyguard bc his actual face is relatively unknown. I’m thinking devil fruits still are a thing and he normally just shows up as the phoenix, or works on the backend healing people Izou is torturing for info (WHY IS THAT HOT I WILL UNPACK THAT IN THERAPY SOMEDAY)

Anyways! Your family is up and coming and keep getting in the way, and they find out about a bodyguard posting for the boss’ kid. Marco’s got some fake (or real) documents of some like, ex military combat doctor stuff and some letters of recommendation from like idk shanks Or something so he’s an easy pick. And he’s good at the job, not the least bit weird or overbearing. Polite. Never complains about where you wanna go or what you wanna do, just taking in any info he can.

And then dun dun dun arranged marriage for combining families but the person you’re supposed to marry is the worst. Like gross disgusting. And as the wedding approaches Marco realizes that well, he’s gonna be out of an info source anyways once you marry, so maybe the jig is up. But he’s gotten fond of you, and maybe at this point they have enough to totally sink your family. But he doesn’t want you to come to any harm! So he slips a little something into your food and out you go while he takes you back to his family.

And like damn at first it’s like red flag omg creepy you just got kidnapped but then you realize…: well now you don’t have to marry that icky guy, and Marco isn’t a bad person …. You’re given more freedom to come and go here too, without constantly being under your father’s control so maybe it’s not so bad…. And really Marco is so sweet and a much better match than that other guy anyways. And he did this for you after all, bc he couldn’t let anyone else have something he wanted

>.>

(WHERE DO I SIGN UP???)

Idk where this has come from but idc I’m enjoying it and thought you might also enjoy <33333

This sounds like something @mamaalpha needs to be held accountable for too - because it reminds me of the Marco x Reader idea we had.

I say had, but we're currently conspiring behind closed doors on a collab for it (no rush, we're both pretty swamped right now), but that said the idea is similar to this with a few differences.

So I won't get into too much.

Though >.> I like the idea of devil fruits for this (idk if it works for what we're going to do, but for this) cause yeah, uh, Marco healing people that Izou's working on. >.>

uh

I don't even think I'mma worry about unpacking that in therapy to be honest. I'mma just sit here and enjoy it XD It reminds me of the line in A Light Touch (is it arrogant to talk about my own work? whatever, I'm gonna do it anyway) - the idea being "Will you come to fear the [flames] that heal you more than the pain?"

Whew.

Just gonna chew on that for the rest of the day I think.

[lexsang]

Could you recommend sources about sanguinarian vampirism? I tried to look for it but most recommend books seem to be published by sketchy/charlatan authors and it makes doubtful if they are genuine or not (besides some of them have very prejudiced views towards sang).

Videos, podcasts, articles, sites or books are all welcome recommendations and I would be very grateful if you had them.

Thank you very much!

(Sorry for how long it took for me to get back to you, the past few weeks have been hectic to say the least, but I've been thinkin about this ask since you sent it) My main issue with the vast majority of content on sanguinarian vampirism out there is that it is made by people who are just interested in vampires, and have no actual experience living through the things we live through. They often times come off as halloween-spooky, and inauthentic, with an emphasis on shock factor for an audience that doesn't understand that we really do actually exist.

Books are definitely not the place to look from my experience if you're interested in learning about sanguinarian vampirism. They are one of the best places if you're wanting to learn about psychic vampirism or vampiric witchcraft, but they're not for the blood drinkers.

Videos can be good learning material, but I haven't seen any on sanguinarianism that aren't just people talking about their experiences in the community, and it can get fairly full of unnecessary drama and zero useful info quick. I used to watch videos from the creator below, though I personally didn't get much out of them, but that may not be the case for you. Most of the videos are on psychic vampirism, but there are a few on sanguinarianism if I'm remembering correctly.

With Podcasts, I'm sure there are a number of one offs on paranormal podcasts if you look hard enough, but the time is most likely not worth it. The link below is one of the best I have seen, a series of great interviews with real vampires (I was lucky enough to be one of them, though that's not why I suggest this series), and the second is a youtube channel called Coffin Lounge (I would link, but youtube is being weird), which could be good, but I don't now yet. I have only listened to a little bit of the first episode, and it is more goth community centered than vamp, but there may be good stuff since since each episode is with a new guest.

Sites are the best bet so far, with forums being one of the best places to look imo.

Sanguinarius.org and their connected forum, VCMB.org were where I first realized I wasn't alone, and wasn't crazy. The biggest benefit of forums like this one, is that you are, without a doubt, listening to real people's experience, and seeing real vamps figure it out for themselves. There is so much information in the VCMB, even though it isn't very active anymore, the experiences are still there.

theredcellar.com has also been a personal favourite for ages. It is full of plenty of articles that focus on the medsang perspective, and it is home to some really down to earth vamps who are all wonderful. They also have a forum, as well as a discord that is linked on their site.

The absolute best teachers, however, are just regular old vampires. You will learn more in a few hours than you could hope to learn in months from articles and the sporadic info online by sending someone a message and asking if they have the capacity to answer your questions. Whether you are an awakening vamp looking for advice, or just interested in the real, visceral experience that vampires live through, most are kind and willing to share. Everyone's experience is different, and speaking to multiple people will help you realize just how colourful and varied the world of vampirism is.

And if you are a vampire, I know that this is cliché, but experience is a great teacher. So much of vampirism, from what I've seen and experienced myself, is about trying to run away from the vampiric experience, and be as human as possible. It has stopped being about that for me. Manage your health of course, and don't go without feeding for too long if you can help it. Take the substitutes you need to take to control the beast when you need to take them, but feeling those cravings instead of fleeing from them is a great way to become more familiar with vampirism. No one will be able to tell you more about your vampirism than yourself. Learn to meditate in those moments of hunger. You are a vampire, it's ok to allow yourself to be just that from time to time.

I hope this was helpful! Please feel free to ask if you have any more questions, I'm more than happy to help if you feel that I can :)

[thegodsaremyhome]

I've started worshiping lady hecate, lady aphrodite and lady athena

A lot of lady hecate devotional activities talk about doing witchcraft I'm doing my research but if you could explain would be wonderfull you don't have to tho all the love <33

(Maybe just tell a few things about lady aphrodite and lady athena that you think not enough beginners know)

Unfortunately, I haven't worked very much with Athena, so I can't atest for much of what she's like or what information may be helpful to you (And any folks who do work with her are welcome to reblog or reply with any info you might think is helpful.)

As for Hekate, I've actually begun to work with her recently as well! I would like to point out that you definitely don't have to do witchcraft in order to worship her. You can do other things, such as stargaze, spend time doing activities outside at night, read books that are more darker in tone(or just read in general, research and gain knowledge,) and if you gave a dog then you can make spending time with them a devotional act to her too! I think there are plenty of things you can do that doesn't involve withcraft but does involve Hekate. Hell, I've even devoted time playing video games before, if the game I'm playing has a dark and mysterious tone.

That being said, if you do really want to do witchcraft, that's great too! It's a lot of fun, and has brought me a lot of peace since I've begun doing it again. I would recommend doing as much reasearch as you can before you start doing anything, and be careful what information you're taking in. There's a lot of incorrect out there, so always check to make sure your sources are good, and double check with other sources too to make sure they're saying the same thing. I would personally recommend starting with protection magic first. It's simple, and the basis for a lot of your practice. Nothing more important than keeping yourself safe! Grounding is also very important.

As for things that not many new worshipers are aware of about Aphrodite is that she's not as scary as she seems. When you read her myths- if you aren't already familiar- you may feel very intimidated about working with her. But trust me when I say that she is so kind and so gentle. I have never felt anything other than safe with her. That being said, she's also been associated with war, so she definitely isn't somebody to be triffled with. She is great and powerful, and strong. But that makes her love all the more beautiful to me. Because she can be fierce and angry, but she chooses to treat us with kindness and love.

Some other things to note, not necesarily only relating to Aphrodite: Altars do not have to be fancy, nor do offerings. They can be as simple or as extravagant as you please. Water is just as good of an offering as anything else. Also, Theoi.com is a great place to learn information and myths about the gods. I will never ever fail to recommend it to beginners.

Feel free to let me know if you have any other questions, and good luck! <3

[count-skribula]

i saw that you were welcoming infodumps that relate to dracula! i have a not so fun fact about bram stoker and oscar wilde to share :)

so. we know for a fact that wilde was invited to a bunch of dinners at the lyceum theatre. we know stoker wrote those invitations, and it's overwhelmingly probable that he was also responsible for making the guest list. we have tons of evidence showing that stoker was pretty close friends with wilde's parents. basically, we may not know the specifics of their relationship-- we have no solid evidence that justifies saying they were close-- but we do know they knew each other. they hung out in the same circles, their families were friends, stoker presumably chose to invite wilde to all his cool club dinners, and wilde certainly kept in touch with florence.

wilde also adored both henry irving and ellen terry, the leading players of the lyceum, so he found a lot of excuses to visit the theatre. he and stoker shared a passion for walt whitman's poetry. they went to the same university, where stoker recruited wilde to the philosophical & historical society-- though wilde was never a particularly active member. all this to say that wilde was definitely, inarguably, someone who had a presence in stoker's life.

in stoker's only work that can be even remotely considered autobiograpical, which is actually a biography of his boss + allegedly close friend henry irving (titled personal reminiscences of henry irving; wouldn't recommend it, it's not exciting reading), he never mentions wilde. not once. not even when he just straight up lists all the famous people who visited the lyceum theatre.

the book was published after wilde's conviction for gross indecency. there's no record of stoker voicing any opinion about the trials or the conviction-- no public outrage, no public mourning. nothing. wilde's brother wrote to him about the whole ordeal, but there's no evidence stoker ever replied. ellen terry was vocally supportive of wilde. author hall caine, to whom Dracula is dedicated (under the petname hommy-beg), expressed shock and grief and moral outrage. but as far as we can tell, stoker said nothing.

to me, that's one of the loudest silences in history. the only indication of an opinion we ever get is that some years later, he published some articles arguing for the moral benefits of censorship of plays and novels.

florence kept the letters wilde had written her till her dying day, though. apparently her family was convinced she could have prevented the tragedy if she had just married wilde instead of stoker, which is..... certainly some kind of take lmao

(most of this info is taken from Barbara Belford's biography on Stoker plus Talia Schaffer's article on the influence Wilde had on Dracula. they both end up... idk, sort of trying to psychoanalyze a guy who's been dead for a century in a pretty invasive way that kinda skeeved me out? but all the claims i'm repeating here are pretty well substantiated by historical sources, which both authors were very good at tracking down. i know i probably don't need to cite my fucking sources in a tumblr ask or explain why i'm choosing to rely on flawed sources but it's the grad school brainworms i can't help myself)

Don’t apologize for citing sources I love you for it ❤️

Also that’s SUPER interesting, there just seems like a lot of uncovered bts drama happening with stoker and wilde’s relationship but like you said so much of it is just speculation and it’s easy to slip into territory of disrespecting dead people by theorizing too much about their personal life. But it is a really fascinating subject to learn about

And I’m realizing asking for info dumps is an amazing way to get through the off season so YESSSS THANK YOU!!!

[kin-of-the-sea]

I just watched Children of the Sea last night and feel so incredibly changed. What a wonderful experience. I was glad to find a blog that still posts about it. I’d love to know what your main takeaways were from the movie — be they personal conclusions or interpretations of the on-screen events. Sorry if this is a weird ask, I’m new to tumblr and just very excited. xx

Hello there!

Sorry it took me a while to reply to this; welcome to Tumblr, I hope you're enjoying your time here(and this may be a bit random, but I recommend changing your profile picture to something other than the default images, that way other folks on here won't automatically assume that you're a bot cause there's been a lot of those lately).

I'm very glad that you came across my blog; I'm very passionate about this movie, it's always been my special interest since I read the manga way back when & this movie reignited it for me! I'm always happy to come across people who also enjoy this series!!

Now, with that being said, lemme answer your question & share some of my thoughts on this movie

As someone who read the manga series prior to watching the movie, I feel like this was as good as an adaptation they could get from such an esoteric narrative from the original source material. While I still would recommend the manga for any newcomers who want to have more info/context for certain scenes, both of these works are still open-ended enough for the audience to be mesmerized, confused, and have their own personal interpretations on what they just saw. It leaves you with more questions. and enough room to come up with your own answers, which is how I felt after reading the manga, and I'm glad that feeling was kept intact in the film.

I'm also aware that there were scenes from the original storyboards that were cut for time, which is understandable. But if they ever release those storyboards to the public, I will be preordering that immediately 👀 !!! I have a feeling that I know what scenes were cut, but I want to see the boards with my own eyes(here's a previous post where I mention one of the scenes I would've like to see happen on screen)!!!

I like that Dehdeh got a significantly larger role in the narrative in the film adaptation; while she still had importance in the original manga, she never directly interacted with Ruka. It was her that took Kanako out to search for Ruka instead of Jim. In this way, they gave her a slightly more active role & more screentime compared to the manga. I consider her to be the MVP of the story(yes, Jim & Anglade had great importance in the story, but I feel like Dehdeh gets less attention compared to those two).

In terms of on screen events, there's one that got me by the throat, especially since it wasn't in the manga(SPOILERS AHEAD): it's after Umi ingests & absorbs the meteorite and he & Ruka fall out of the sky; watching Ruka hold him closer to her & then he transforms into Sora as he shields her from the impact of the fall....I lost my mind(cause it just cements how important they are to each other and how they just want to keep each other safe, you know despite it all being doomed by the narrative 😭) !

This is the scene I'm talking about:

I hope this answers some of the stuff you had asked me here; you take care & have a wonderful day!!!

[nicosraf]

Hii!! Sorry if someone already asked, but where do you get the inspiration and info about angels? I've always had an interest in learning about them but it's so hard!! I don't know where to look and I feel like there's so many sources and some of them are contradictory. If you have any recommendations, I'd welcome them <3

Hello!! Aghh it's hard to answer this for me because I don't have a good single source book/video, which is what I think you might be looking for.

It also depends on your interest in angels! Your interest could be more canon/theological or more mystic/mythological. You could be strict with what the Bible says or you can venture into angelogy by looking into the Celestial Hierarchy by Pseudo-Dionysius; me, personally, I lean toward sticking to the Bible.

I can tell you what not to do (!): Don't watch those short "Angels: Explained !!" Youtube video essays and tiktoks. Here is why: they'll say a sentence like, "There are angels that are cherubs, and they're at the second highest level of the hierarchy." What's the issue with this? The issue is that the first part is biblical (... mostly) and the second part is from Pseudo-Dionysius. It could be my academic brain, but not being clear about where certain "facts" come from leads to a lot of the contradictions that you might be seeing.

I do think the best course of action is to begin w what the Bible says. You can look up mentions of angels in the canon Bible and examime how they act/look. For me, that's where I got the majority of my inspo! I thought the Bible stories with angels were cute. I know it's a meme these days that angels are scary, but angels can be so sweet sometimes, like when an angel came with bread/cake for Elijah, which is depicted here :) :

But yes, I recommend starting with angel Bible stories and then running wild. The "canon" for Christian angels is the Bible, and all the angelogy and more mystical leaning stuff built off from that canon, for the most part. (It gets influenced by other religions, after all)

I wish I had a good set of primary (the Bible, sorta) and secondary sources for you... Maybe I can put one together eventually, since a few people have asked!

Also, yes the information is all very contradicting, even in the Bible I think! So don't worry. Have fun with it! Take whatever you like about them and interpret them however you like!!!

Oh and I have to mention that I get a lot of inspo from Medieval and Renaissanc angel art, like the colorful wings. I just think they're neat !

[what-even-is-thiss]

Do you have any good resources for learning more about Dionysus?

Depends on how in-depth you wanna get.

I haven't actually read the Dionysiaca yet because I'm too busy making my way through various translations of the Aeneid and the post-homerica and Dionysus doesn't have much to do with my current project. The other main reason I haven't read it is the reason most people don't read it. It's stupid long and kind of unfinished. But the Dionyaiaca is a main source for info on Dionysus. It's basically an epic poem that tells the story of his journey to India. Read that if you're really committed.

If you want a summary and a place to start with most major figures in Greek and Roman mythology, theoi.com is a really good resource. It cites the sources and has a collection of public domain translations of various bits of Greek and Roman literature as well as fragmentary texts and good quality images of statues and pottery, which are also really useful primary sources for myths themselves.

Here's a link to his main page:

If you want info on Orphic Dionysus that's a little harder because Orphism was a mystery cult and they put more emphasis on ritual and symbolism than telling stories. You can dig through the orphic hymns to find some info about Dionysus and other orphic gods

Orphic literature is difficult to find in general because a lot of the surviving writings by people who practiced the religion are fragmentary and translations of them are unpublished so you've gotta click through layers of 90s style websites and university libraries to read them if you aren't a professional archeologist who can read ancient Greek. But if you wanna get serious about it I would recommend digging into the reference section on the Orphism wikipedia page. That has led me to most of the useful information I've found.

If you're interested in current spirituality around Dionysus Bacchus, his modern worshipers often discuss stuff on the reddit page r/dionysus and in my experience they're generally helpful and chill people willing to answer questions and help you find things as long as you're respectful of them and what they're there to do.

[cyberstudious]

hi, im an high school sophomore interested in computer science and im also new to your blog. i was wondering if you would recommend conputer science and what have been your strengths and pitfalls with the field? thank u so much for your time.

Hi! Welcome to my blog, haha thanks for stopping by and sending an ask!

My path was self-taught game dev/web dev -> CS degree -> cybersecurity, so that's the perspective I'm writing from. My current job is basically just writing code for cybersecurity-related things (which I really like!). I do enjoy computer science and I think it's a great field to get into because you can do so many different things! I listed out my personal pros/cons under the cut but the tl;dr is that CS is a good field if you like constantly learning things, building things, and knowing how stuff works under the hood.

things I like about computer science:

so many options and things you can learn/specialize in

having programming skills and knowing how computers work gives you the foundational knowledge to succeed in a lot of things, both practical and theoretical/research-based. if you don't really like programming, there is plenty of theoretical math stuff you can do that's related to CS (this is what my partner is going back to grad school for haha)

lots of info available online for self-guided learning

do you want to learn how to make X? someone has almost certainly already written a tutorial for that and put it online for free. there are lots of open-source projects out there where you can read their documentation and even look at the code to figure out how things work!

there is always more to learn

tech evolves and you have to keep your skills up to date - that means there's always something new and interesting happening!

being able to build things

do you want to make an app? a website? a video game? a quick script to automate some annoying task that you do all the time? you can do that. all you need is a computer and some time! once you have some skills, it's amazing when you realize you can just Make Stuff literally whenever

understanding how things actually work

in a world of apps & operating systems that actively try to hide the technical layer of how they work in favor of "user friendliness", there is power to understanding what's actually happening inside your computer

problem-solving mindset

this kind of goes hand-in-hand with being able to build things, but eventually you get the hang of looking at a problem, breaking it down, and figuring out how to build a solution. this is something that I knew was an important soft skill, but I didn't really have any concrete examples until I started working with some technical but non-programmer coworkers. knowing programming & how to build things really does just help you solve problems in a concrete way and I think that's pretty cool.

things that can make computer science difficult:

programming is a cycle of failing until you succeed

programming is not something you get right on your first try - there's a reason that patches and updates and bug fixes exist. this might take some getting used to at first, but after that it's not an issue. failing constantly is just part of the process, but that means that solving those problems and feeling great when you figure it out is also part of the process!

there's so much to learn, you will have to go out and learn some of it on your own

a CS degree will not fully prepare you to be a professional developer, you will likely have to learn other languages & frameworks on your own (this is kind of a good thing btw - the average college probably isn't updating their curriculum often enough to teach you relevant frameworks/some professional coding things).

there is always more to learn

this is the other side of tech always evolving - sometimes it can feel like you're constantly behind, and that's okay - you can't learn literally everything! just do your best, explore a bit, and figure out the subset of things that you're actually interested in

lots of screen time

there are tech jobs where you can be active and move around and stuff, but I work from home and write code most of the day so I spend a ton of time in front of my computer. this isn't a huge problem, I just make an effort to spend time on my non-computer hobbies outside of work. something to note when you're looking for jobs, I suppose!

occasional toxic culture?

I'm thinking of "leetcode grindset bros" here because that was a common character at the college I went to - just ignore them and do things at a pace that feels comfortable to you, you'll be fine

on a related note, in my experience there will always be some dude who has been programming since like the age of 5 and seems to know everything and is kind of an ass about it, ignore these people too and you'll be fine

things are getting better, but CS is still very much a male-dominated field. however, there are plenty of organizations focused on supporting minority groups in tech! you can find a support group and there will always be people rooting for you.

that got kinda long lol, but feel free to reach out if you have any more questions!

[capriciousleo]

𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐞 <𝟑

Hello and welcome to my blog, lovelies!! <3

My name is Laura, I am 20, and I go by she/her. I’m a sleep-deprived chaotic STEM major with dad humor, so what’s uppp?😼 It’s very nice to have you here!

Fun facts about your one and oni :

I am very interested about MBTI ! From around 3 years of digging info from multiple sources, I can proudly and surely conclude that I’m an ENTJ muahaha

I’ve spent 5-6 years deeply learning astrology and other forms of divination, and I consider myself quite knowledgeable! However, I am well aware there’s always a place to grow, and that’s precisely what I’m doing :) We love a self-aware qween

I’m a Ningguang main and kinnie, and I adore this woman so, so much. She’s my pookie. But, the moment I’ll get Ayato... I’m sorry Ning, but I think he will take your place, I don’t make the rules😔 You can’t blame me for going after what my heart tells me💔

My Genshin faves are: Ningguang, Ayato, Zhongli, Ei, Kazuha, Diluc, Nahida, Jean, Itto, Sara, Xiangling, Hu Tao, Capitano, Pantalone... I think this is enough, bc I feel that the list can go on for another 5 names😭

I am also an anime and manga fan!! My faves gotta be: Death Note, HxH, Kaguya-Sama: Love is War, Kakegurui, Death Parade, AOT, Junji Ito, and, ofc, Naruto which will always be my comfort anime :’) I also watched Black Butler, but I heavily prefer the manga instead. Now that I think of it, I need to catch up on it, I missed like 30+ chapters💀

In my free time I love crafting, so I usually go after knitting and embroidering!

I’ve also been learning how to play piano for the past couple of months!

Fav food: Mediterranean

Fav shows: Reign, AHS, Friends, Suits, The Crown, Downton Abbey, The Penthouse, Sky Castle, The World of the Married (yeah I watch k-dramas too teehee). If you have a good historical-style C-drama recommendation, pls tell me the name!! I’m a sucker for those😩 Actually, tell me all the shows you recommend, I’d love to add them to my must-watch list!!

Fav movies: The Godfather & The Addams Family

And lastly, my sweet kin-list: Ningguang, Zhongli, Ayato, Yae Miko, Kaguya Shinomiya, Tsunade Senju, Navier Trovi.

[classpecting-the-hoyoverse]

What You Gotta Know

Hello! My name is Shane and I go by She/They. I am a Sylph of Heart who is dedicated to classpecting and theorizing your favorite Hoyoverse characters!

"What is classpecting?" I hear you ask. Also known as godtiering or Hero Titles, classpecting is a mythological power system where a person's godlike abilities and character arcs are determined by their personality. This system originates from the webcomic Homestuck, which ran through 2009-2016. It's a good read and I highly recommend it, but beware of its dated and crude humor and its CWs if you decide to check it our for yourself .

I am currently the only one running this blog so please be patient!

My main blog can be found here. It's all chaos

What I Will Answer

Character requests! Any character from either Genshin Impact, Honkai Impact 3rd, or Honkai Starail will be accepted. One character per request. (I promise I'll get into Tears of Themis one day!)

Shipping analyses or duo analyses based on their classpects. One ship per request!

Land analyses for any characters are welcome. One character per request!

SBURB headcanons are welcome.

Currently not accepting any session analyses at the moment.

There will be spoilers for all the media I’m covering!

Inbox will close after at least 10 submissions and will not open until its all been cleared out. I don't want to overwhelm myself 人^ ^人.

Discord Server

Yes! There is a Discord Server for this blog now for those that want to discuss Classpects and Hoyo games with others in a more cohesive place.

Extra Reading

Some of the sources that I will take info from for classpects

Some blogs that have a lot of classpect content that I highly recommend looking through!

@/sburbanalysis

@/dahniwitchoflight

@/homestuckexamination

@/classpect-analysis

@/classpectingshitposts

[darktypehuman]

(( alright, I haven't gotten too much feedback on the navigation blog post but I figure that's more just because I don't have too many followers, so the post may not have circulated very far. regardless, I do think I'm going to start up the out of character navigation account, since I think it could be very helpful to getting new accounts seen!

lmk if ya'll have any thoughts on what is important to be added in a bio. i'm going with currently-revealed info about the blog's character/characters (one post per blog, with multiple character bio sections) like name, age, pronouns, occupation, pokemon team, what region they can be currently found in (If any), if they have a preferred type/s, if they have support pokemon, and appearance/distinguishing traits

for a mod section i figured things like if the mod is an adult/minor and if they're comfortable interacting with minors/adults (Ik some people aren't, and that's a valid boundary to set!)though this would be optional to share, what account they'll be following from, and their main if they're comfortable with that (Assuming it isn't the blog they follow from), how to refer to the mod, and possibly other things the mod wants known/to clarify.

finally an account navigation section, detailing if the account has any boundaries they want people to follow (eg, no sapient pokemon), and possibly some relevant links; maybe to specific tags, or their about section etc. This section would be for general housekeeping stuff, so if a mod wanted they could ask to have their rules/dni here.

I think a specification/clarification to if the account is just pokeblogging (fully in character as a blog), pokeblogging and rp (some interactions, so not just the character's blog), or a multifandom/general rp account (though I might set a limit on those so I don't get overwhelmed) would also be useful.

I've also seen a few introjects (I believe that's the term?) and systems posting pokeirl stuff on like, personal accounts (ish? they look like my main account at least), maybe a specification if you're cool with rp/interactions and not just vibing and remembering your source could be good? This one may just be because I have anxiety and dont want to overstep anyone's boundaries by accident lol. I'm a singlet so I don't know things.

any suggestions/advice would be very welcomed! i want to make this blog as useful, accessible and just generally handy as I can. if anyone has any themes they recommend too, i'd appreciate it! i've been using the same accessible themes a lot and variety is fun. oh! i also think the account would be useful for things like community discussion posts or information sharing, like on tags to use instead of "Unreality" (lmk if i need to remove the word itself so the post isn't filtered out for people) to make the community more accessible for people

i also want to share people's art! i adore seeing everyone's creations, and i think it would be wonderful to show them off!

tagging @realpokemon specifically bc i know a lot of people first start out by seeing your content ))

[regalokitchens11]

Luxurious and Affordable Modular Kitchen Ideas

Source of info: https://www.regalokitchens.com/blog/luxurious-and-affordable-modular-kitchen-ideas

Introduction

It may be difficult to find a balance between luxury and budget when designing the modular kitchen of your dreams. Attractive flexible kitchen layouts add style to your house while offering helpful solutions for your everyday cooking necessities. A gorgeous kitchen that goes within your budget can be achieved with creative materials, smart storage solutions, and fashionable finishes. With the help of our professional recommendations, learn how to improve your kitchen without compromising quality or style.

Support Open Shelving

A stylish and affordable approach to give your modular kitchen a modern feel is with open shelves. You can display lovely dishes, plants, and decorative pieces by removing away bigger cupboards and installing open shelves in their place. This design not only provides a luxury touch but also produces an awareness of space, making your kitchen feel more open and wide. With the help of Regalo Kitchens, you can create customized shelving that complements your taste and storage requirements, keeping your kitchen looking as good as it functions.

Choose Quality Materials Wisely

Materials are an important factor in creating a rich feel. Select long-lasting, reasonably priced materials of superior quality. For example, engineered quartz kitchen counters are an attractive alternative to marble ones. Although it costs less and requires less maintenance, it has a similar appearance to marble. Similarly, for cabinets, think about laminate finishes, which offer a clean look at a far lower price. Regalo Kitchens has a range of material choices so you can achieve that luxurious design without going over budget.

Include a Kitchen Island

The usefulness and appearance of your modular kitchen can be greatly improved with a kitchen island. It functions as a multifunctional area for dining, cooking, and interacting with others. Large islands may look costly, but you can make a smaller, less expensive one that still looks well in your area. To give the island a more luxurious look, think about placing bar stools or stylish pendant lighting above it. Regalo Kitchens focuses on creating customized islands for your kitchen that fit your requirements and price range.

Play with Colors

The sense of richness is greatly influenced by color. For decorative walls or cabinets, think of using striking, deep-hued colors like deep burgundy, emerald green, or navy blue. For a well-balanced effect, combine them with basic backsplash and countertop colors. Start with basic elements like kitchen accessories or a painted island if you're not sure you want to commit to a whole color scheme. Regalo Kitchens' experts will help you in choosing a color scheme that reflects your own taste and highlights the attractiveness of your modular kitchen.

Smart Storage Solutions

Functionality is just as important as looks in a luxurious kitchen. You may add luxury and keep your kitchen clean through the use of creative storage options. Think about vertical pot and pan separators, lazy Susans, or pull-out drawers. These features increase the amount of storage space and improve kitchen productivity. Regalo Kitchens provides creative storage options that match your modular kitchen concept perfectly, guaranteeing both looks and usefulness.

Lighting Matters

Any area can be transformed with the right lighting to make it look more luxurious and welcoming. Make use of a combination of job, natural, and decorative lighting in your modular kitchen. Hidden lighting, under-cabinet lighting, and pendant lights above the island can all be beneficial to create a stylish and cozy feel. Select trendy fixtures which attract attention and improve the room's overall appearance. At Regalo Kitchens, we can help you choose the right lighting solutions that will both properly brighten your kitchen and fit in with its style.

Add a Touch of Luxury with Finishing Touches

The simplest things can have an important effect on how your kitchen looks overall. Your kitchen can be upgraded without an entire change by adding luxurious finishing touches like high-end equipment, stylish walls, and decorative accessories. To give your kitchen a more premium look, choose attractive tiling, fashionable taps, or unique cabinet knobs. Regalo Kitchens can help you choose the right finishing touches for your modular kitchen to give it a unified, luxurious appearance.

Include Natural Elements

A peaceful and luxurious environment can be created in your kitchen by using natural components. To add warmth and appearance, think about including wooden elements like open shelves or a chopping slab countertop. Furthermore, adding plants to your kitchen—whether in the form of decorative pots or herb gardens—can breathe new life into it. It's also important to have natural light in your kitchen. If possible, add skylights or make sure your kitchen has lots of windows. Natural features are important in kitchen design, and Regalo Kitchens can help you combine them into your modular kitchen.

Keep it Simple

Less is more in some situations. Simplicity and beauty can be expressed through simple layouts. In your modular kitchen, pay attention to simple shapes, clear areas, and the required components. To create an improved environment, go for simplified cabinets, a softened color scheme, and practical decoration. You can achieve a luxurious, open, and welcoming look through choosing quality over quantity. Regalo Kitchens' design specialists will help you in creating a simple kitchen that is both fashionable and cozy.

Conclusion

It is possible to create a luxurious yet reasonably priced modular kitchen with the correct concepts and design techniques. Regalo Kitchens is a professional in guiding you in achieving the kitchen of your dreams while making sure it stays within your budget. You can design a kitchen that fits your needs and shows your taste by using features like open shelves, high-quality materials, innovative storage, and effective lighting. Explore the many options we have for modular cooking areas, and allow us to assist you in creating a room you will like for many more years to come. With Regalo Kitchens, enjoy the luxurious lifestyle you deserve right now!