#Scholarship last date 2024

[ea1cds1]

राष्ट्रीय छात्रवृत्ति पोर्टल 2024:छात्रों को मिलेंगे ₹75,000 रूपये की स्कॉलरशिप

क्या आप एक छात्र हैं जो अपनी शिक्षा के लिए राष्ट्रीय छात्रवृत्ति पोर्टल (एनएसपी) 2024 के लिए वित्तीय सहायता की तलाश कर रहे हैं 75000 रुपये तक छत्रवृत्ति अर्जित करने का सुनहरा अवसर प्रदान करता है

राष्ट्रीय scholarship पोर्टल (एनएसपी) 2024_ राष्ट्रीय छात्रवृत्ति पोर्टल देश भर में योग्य उम्मीदवारों को विभिन्न छात्रवृत्ति प्रदान करने के लिए भारत सरकार द्वारा शुरू किया गया एक वन स्टॉप प्लेटफॉर्म है। यह गंतव्य स्कूल से लेकर स्नातकोत्तर अध्ययन तक शिक्षा की विभिन्न धाराओं में उम्मीदवारों का समर्थन करता है

छात्रवृत्ति राशि: 75,000 रुपये तक

छात्रवृत्ति के प्रकार विवरण:

प्री-मैट्रिक छात्रवृत्ति: कक्षा 1 से 10 तक पढ़ने वाले छात्रों के लिए।

पोस्ट-मैट्रिक छात्रवृत्ति:कक्षा 11 से स्नातकोत्तर तक पढ़ने वाले छात्रों के लिए।

योग्यता-आधारित छात्रवृत्ति: शिक्षाविदों या विशिष्ट क्ष���त्रों में उत्कृष्ट प्रदर्शन करने वाले छात्रों के लिए।

अपनी शिक्षा के लिए वित्तीय सहायता सुरक्षित करने का यह अवसर न चूकें। राष्ट्रीय छात्रवृत्ति पोर्टल 2024 के लिए आवेदन करें और उज्ज्वल भविष्य का मार्ग प्रशस्त करें। अधिक जानकारी के लिए हमारी वेबसाइट पर जाएं

[cheriladycl01]

NBA/ NDA - Sergio Perez x SingaporeanOlympicBasketball! Reader

Plot: You were hot shit in Singapore and America where you played for a women's NBA team. As a professional whose also performed for the WBNA and for a home Olympic Team, you deserve a night out clubbing.

You'd just won gold for Singapore in Women's Basketball Team and you couldn't be prouder of you, your team and the support from your country.

You'd moved away from Singapore when you were 16 with your family to live in New York to be able to participate in the WNBA. You went to a high-school before getting into a college on a basketball scholarship. You played for your university team before being scouted for New York Liberty and playing with them.

Then you had the option in 2020, to start training for the summer Olympics in 2024 with a basketball team in Singapore, it was a lot of travel back and forth between American and Singapore to the point where you knew the first class air hostesses on all Qatar Airways flights.

Training for two separate teams was very hard however you had such a growth in fans over the past few years even being invited to the Met Gala and various other events that had you further in the eye of the media.

Tonight you were celebrating with the girls from your home team in Singapore. All your hard work had paid off and you were currently in one of Singapore's finest clubs.

You were at the bar, watching your friends dance with their partners who'd they'd invited along with them to see the game. You didn't have a special someone to celebrate with, just the girls but they of course were all occupied.

"What's a girl like you doing here by yourself!" a voice says next to you, making you look at the man who was sipping from a small glass he held.

"I'm not by myself, I'm with friends!" you explain looking over his soft features.

"Well, you've been here for an hour and you haven't spoken to anyone" he says making you laugh a little.

"So, what you've been watching me for the last hour? You want an NDA with me or something?" you chuckle not understanding this guys m-o.

"No, no I just thought I'd come over and say hello, I saw you win gold. Congratulations" he smiles offering you a drink which you take suspiciously until the bartender gives you a nod that it's safe.

"You were there?" you ask raising your voice a little above the music.

"Yeah, I was here for the race. Was given tickets from my team!" he answers and that when your drunk mind really looks over his features and you remembered seeing him on a Red Bull advertisement.

"Oh! You are a driver! In F1 right? Red Bull?" you ask looking over him again as you say it to make sure you don't sound stupid.

"Yes, how'd you know?" he asks with a laugh.

"You were on the can of my drink!" you smile, showing the can next to the JaeagerBomb you'd just inhaled.

"Both athletes then!" he smiles and you nod.

"Yep! How'd you find it with all the travelling?" you ask, knowing you'd struggled going between just Singapore and New York.

"It's hard, but seeing all the different places and people is what makes it so great" he smiles. The drinks start to get to you and in seconds you've grabbed his hand.

You took him onto the dance floor, letting your body do the talking as you danced against the man that was probably older than you'd normally go for but you'd had too many drinks to look at those fine details.

His dancing was awkward at first but eventually when he got into it you both weren't caring at the eyes or cameras on the pair of you having fun.

"Hey! We should so play one on one basketball one time!" you shout at him and he nods.

"I'll need your number for that handsome so i cant set a date!" you ask boldly and he nods, taking your phone and putting his number into it.

The rest for you and Sergio, was history.

y/user

Liked by schecoperez and lewishamilton

y/user: Clubbing after winning Gold met this random F1 driver? He brought me lots of drinks.

View all 376 comments

schechoperez: I'm glad i bumped into you when you were hanging out with your team-mates alone...

-> y/user: hey I was partying!

->fan1: no way did Checo find her alone in the club, ITS Y/N Y/L/N

lewishamilton: I didn't have this match on my 2024 bingo card...

->fan2: not even Sir Lewis Hamilton could predict hot WNBA female with Mexican F1 driver.

Your Instagram Story Caption:

Hungover Practice be like ...

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[zaebeecee]

It's Nothing Serious

Secret Santa 2024 ••

Alastor and Anthony have been sharing a dorm for over a year. When Alastor comes up with a project for his social psychology class, it's only natural that he would ask Anthony for his help; after all, who else does he trust more? And besides, it isn't like fake dating has ever gone off the rails in the past, right?

Content: fake relationship, human versions, everyone is old enough to do the stuff mentioned within, drinking, trans Angel Dust, HRT involving needles, fluff and corny romance shit, implied spicyness, a whole lot of characters for a one-shot, Christmas-adjacent situations

•••

Here's my gift for the lovely @luciferfemme for the RadioDust 2024 Secret Santa gift exchange! Fun fact: they made the post that was my primary inspiration for Loveless Bond, for which I remain deeply grateful. Anyway, here you are, darling. Hope you like it!

•••

Six feet tall. Thirty-six years old. Outdated photo of him and his fraternity buddies as the only picture on his profile.

Swipe left on that one.

Five foot eleven. Twenty-nine. Fishing picture, fishing picture, fishing picture, just a dog, fishing picture.

Cute dog, but I don’t wanna hear how big his last catch was all through dinner. Left.

No fats, femmes, or Asians.

Fuck you, buddy. How do I mark a guy as ‘hate’?

Twenty-one.

Like Hell you are, you could be my father.

“Looks like pretty slim pickings in the dating market these days.”

“Holy shit!” Anthony jerked in surprise, nearly throwing his phone right into his dorm mate’s face as he spun around and slipped off the couch. He landed on his ass with a sharp yelp, which only made the guy above him start laughing harder. “Where the fuck did you come from?!”

“Louisiana,” Alastor said with a wide grin, his arms loosely folded on the back of their couch as he leaned over to watch Anthony pull himself up off the floor.

“Ha ha, asshole,” Anthony grumbled. “I thought you were at the library.”

“I was,” Alastor said, straightening up and rounding the couch to plop down next to the other young man. “But it’s the beginning of the semester, Angel, I hardly have that much work to do.”

Anthony snorted. “Since when have you ever gone to the library for legitimate reasons?”

Alastor’s smile sharpened that way it did whenever he was plotting something, and Anthony frowned, leaning away instinctively. In the year that they had known each other, Anthony—Angel Dust, to his close friends—had learned how to interpret many of Alastor’s more enigmatic expressions. When they had first met at the start of Anthony’s first semester at college, introduced to each other as new students who would be sharing a dorm, Alastor had immediately made quite an impression: he was handsome, he was mysterious, he was scary, and he was incredibly unavailable (as made perfectly clear by his laughter when Anthony’s first words to him had been some sort of proposition). It hadn’t taken Anthony long to realize that Alastor simply wasn’t interested in anyone or anything that way; however, it quickly became obvious that it was nothing like homophobia or prudishness, as he had no shortage of time to listen to complaints about the men Anthony was seeing nor lack of scathing opinions on each one of those men.

By the end of the first semester, Anthony and Alastor had become very close friends, to the point that they willingly agreed to remain together in the Spring. Now, in Anthony’s third semester, he had been given the option to move off-campus into an apartment or a house, but he’d elected to stay so that Alastor (who was on scholarship and unable to afford to live outside the dorms) wouldn’t have to get used to a new roomie.

Alastor had been surprised when Anthony told him this, but he had recovered quickly and said something to the effect of ‘I knew you would’. But he was happy about it, and no amount of smug posturing would convince Anthony otherwise.

“So, are we on the hunt for a new beau already?” Alastor asked, leaning around as though trying to look at Anthony’s phone again. The screen was off, but Anthony pulled it against his chest anyway. “I would think you’d be more concerned with your studies this semester, considering how abysmal you failed Calculus this past Spring.”

“Shut up,” Anthony said. “I ain’t lookin’ for a boyfriend, and I ain’t even after a hookup, necessarily. Just seein’ how the pool’s changed in the past few months. Ain’t gotten any better.”

Alastor scoffed, leaning one arm on the back of the couch and smirking at him. “I told you, most anyone you’ll find on those apps are going to be scum, because anyone who’s worth dating won’t be resorting to relying on them.”

Anthony rolled his eyes, crossing his arms and turning his head away. “I’m not gonna give you the satisfaction of callin’ you right.” Alastor didn’t answer. “Wipe that stupid grin off your face.”

“You aren’t even looking at me.”

“I can feel it.” Anthony picked up one of their mismatched couch pillows and smacked Alastor in the side of the head with it. The other boy cackled, shielding himself ineffectually with his arms. “Besides, it’s lookin’ like layin’ off the scene will be for the best right now. Feels like half the guys on here are chasers, and the other half got some kinda ‘you’d better not be trans if you message me’ disclaimer right at the top. I don’t wanna deal with that shit right now.”

“Hm.” Alastor’s smile changed to something Anthony might have called a little bit sympathetic, but then, he shrugged. “Their loss,” he said. “Seems like they’d simply feel insecure about you having more testosterone than them.” Anthony laughed, and Alastor’s grin returned. “If you’re going to be off the market anyway, I suppose I should do what I can to make sure you don’t get lonely.”

Anthony smirked, wiggling his eyebrows briefly. “You propositioning me, Al?”

“What– no, stop that,” Alastor said quickly, color rising to his face as he pointed a single threatening finger and ignored Anthony’s cackle. “What I’m saying,” he said, loudly enough that Anthony’s laughter died down, “is that I have a project this semester, and I think it’s something you could help me with, if you’re amenable.”

“Does this involve me losin’ a finger or somethin’?”

“There is a non-zero chance, but it’s highly unlikely.”

Anthony frowned. “...I ain’t agreein’ to nothin’ until you tell me what it is.”

“Fine,” Alastor said, rolling his eyes. “I’m taking a class for my social psych minor this semester, Social Influence and Behavior. Essentially, studying the way that people react to others in social settings and the ways changes in one individual might influence changes in another.”

“We both know I ain’t got a clue what the fuck you’re talkin’ about.”

Alastor leveled him with a look. “How one or two people acting weird can make the people around them act weird.”

“Oh, okay. I follow.”

“I thought you might. We were tasked with conducting an informal study over the course of the semester, the subject of which is up to our discretion. I thought you would be perfect to help me out with mine, since it’s… well. It’s fucking with our social circle and seeing how they respond.”

Anthony giggled. “Ooh, that sounds fun. A semester-long prank. Sure, I’m down, what are you thinkin’?”

Either Alastor suddenly looked a little bashful, or Anthony was imagining things. “Well, that’s… part of the reason I wanted to ask you, rather than anyone else,” he said, his voice as hesitant as Alastor’s ever got. “Most of my behavior isn’t considered unusual for me, and I was having trouble thinking of something I could do that the others would view as out of the ordinary. The best option that I landed on was dating someone.”

Anthony’s eyebrows went up. “Dating someone?”

“You see?” Alastor gestured at him with one hand. “You’re surprised by the mere suggestion! It would be perfect!”

“So… wait.” Anthony held his own hands up. “Wait wait wait. Are you asking– I mean, what are you asking?”

“Don’t worry, it wouldn’t be really dating,” Alastor said, and Anthony wasn’t sure if he felt relieved or not. “But you and I really are quite different, and I’m given to understand that sort of thing is subject to quite a bit of social scrutiny, not to mention the idea of me in a relationship is certain to absolutely baffle everyone who has ever met me. And it has the added benefit of the fact that I trust you implicitly and am fully aware that you would not take advantage of this position to my detriment, in addition to the fact that I can rely on you for answers to any questions I might have about how to proceed after a time.”

Anthony was silent for a moment. On the one hand, it was incredibly funny, imagining how their friends would respond to the idea of them being in a relationship. On the other hand, while Anthony would never admit it, he’d been fostering an incredibly annoying crush on Alastor for the past several months and it was only getting worse, a fact that most of their friends (particularly Husk and Cherry) were very adamant Anthony needed to stop immediately. On the other other hand (and didn’t he wish he had more than two sometimes), he couldn’t help feeling deeply touched that of everyone Alastor knew, Anthony was the one that he trusted enough to rely on for this.

Plus, this might get Valentino to leave me alone, so that’s another upside.

“Yeah, sure,” Anthony finally said. “Why the fuck not?”

Alastor did that thing that he did when he was both surprised and excited, the thing that made Anthony imagine he had two big animal ears that had just perked up on the top of his head. “Really?”

“Really,” Anthony laughed. “Sounds like fun, as long as you can handle it.”

Alastor’s expression shifted into a frown. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Should be pretty obvious,” Anthony said with a shrug. “The only way this is gonna work is if we don’t act outta character, right?” Alastor nodded. “So… that means you’ve gotta put up with physical contact from me.”

The very idea made Alastor’s body stiffen up visibly. “...you’re talking about public affection.”

“PDA, yeah.” Anthony tilted his head. “Look, nobody’s gonna believe I’m datin’ someone I never lay a finger on, and they won’t buy that you’re actually in a relationship with anyone if you won’t ever let them touch you. You know how physical I am, so if you weren’t willin’ to put up with that, why would we go out at all?”

Alastor sighed, relaxing. “...you make a fair point,” he said. “But I will be setting ground rules, and you will be respecting them.”

“Yeah, yeah, I got you, Smiles,” Anthony said. “Don’t worry, I ain’t gonna do nothin’ to make you uncomfortable intentionally, and I ain’t gonna do nothin’ without your consent. Just lettin’ you know that if you wanna sell this, we’re gonna have to commit.” He shrugged. “It’s like acting. Think of it as blocking.”

“...right,” Alastor said. “I can do that.”

“Cool. So…” Anthony hesitated. “Uh… when were you wanting to start?”

“As soon as possible.”

•••

“Good morning, everyone!”

The responses ranged from enthusiastic (Charlie) to barely a grunt of acknowledgement (Husk) as Alastor slung his bag over the back of a chair and lowered himself into it. Niffty leaned across the table, pushing a cup of coffee in front of him. “Here,” she said. “We ordered already. We got you your usual.”

“You’re a peach,” Alastor said, patting Niffty on the top of her head and picking up the coffee cup. She smiled, sinking back into her seat. The morning was crisp with just a touch of the scent of autumn in the air, barely detectable under the bouquet of smells coming from the cafe. While Alastor had always preferred studying on his own, he had to admit that he didn’t exactly mind getting roped into this little study group that Charlie insisted on hosting every Saturday morning. They always sat around the same large table together, Charlie paid for everyone with her father’s money (and Alastor didn’t mind wasting that), and it usually devolved into something more fun than simple school work.

“Where’s Angel?” Charlie asked. “He’s coming, right?”

“He’d better be, I ordered the bitch pancakes,” Cherry said.

“It’s a morning study session.” Pentious brushed his long hair back over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow at the table as a whole. “I don’t think Angel’s seen this side of an ante meridiem hour since he left high school and I’m not positive why any of you keep thinking he will.”

Husk snorted. “It’s a tossup,” he said. “He’ll either show up for free food or avoid it because it means work.”

“He’ll be here,” Alastor said. “Don’t worry.”

Rosie laughed. “What, did you wake him up before you left?”

“I threw things on him until he yelled at me, if that’s what you’re asking.”

No one was giving him any kind of unusual look (as far as he could determine), which was something of a relief; it meant that, no matter how Alastor might have been feeling in the moment, the others at the table weren’t suspicious of anything. It wasn’t that Alastor was nervous—what reason did he have to be nervous? It was only Anthony, and they had known each other for over a year at this point—but, as the one with no experience on how romantic relationships were supposed to be conducted at various points, he was incredibly uncertain as to what he was supposed to expect. Anthony had promised him, repeatedly, that he would do his best to keep from making Alastor uncomfortable while simultaneously doing his part to make their little scheme believable, but that told him absolutely nothing about what Anthony might actually do.

Of course, the fact did remain that he trusted Anthony. When they had first met, Alastor had noted his friendliness, and the moment he registered that it was flirting and had expressed his personal distaste for such things, Anthony had stopped immediately. In fact, outside of a handful of exceptions (bumping into each other in their tiny kitchen, grabbing Alastor by the hand when his bad leg gave out and he nearly fell down the stairs outside the library, that one time he’d helped with a particularly stubborn cuff button that Alastor simply could not fasten one-handed), Anthony had taken pains not to make any physical contact with Alastor whatsoever. Despite his friend’s reputation around campus and in various social circles, Alastor had always found him respectful with his hands, even if he had no idea how to control his mouth.

“Oh, there he is! Hi, Angel!” Charlie said, interrupting Alastor’s thoughts. She raised her hand and he followed the line of her gaze to Anthony, who returned the wave with one hand before he lowered it to stifle a yawn. He headed for the table, letting his bag drop onto the floor and slumping into the chair next to Alastor.

“Morning, princess,” Alastor said with a smirk, watching Anthony scrub his face with both hands. “Long night?”

“Nnh. Sleepy. Coffee.”

Niffty began sliding another coffee across the table, but she froze the moment Anthony leaned over and laid his head on Alastor’s shoulder. Alastor jumped slightly, but Anthony remained still, giving him time to adjust to the sensation without giving away their game immediately. It actually wasn’t that bad, after the initial shock of the touch; as a matter of fact, Anthony was actually pretty gentle as he leaned against him, and the white hair brushing against Alastor’s cheek was soft, but not in a way that tickled or irritated.

Is this what it feels like? I can do this.

Alastor leaned to the side as well, pressing his cheek against the top of Anthony’s head before the other young man could move away. “Well, sha, if you’d gotten up when I told you I was getting ready, you could have walked with me and had coffee sooner.”

“Okay, Mr. My Hair And Clothes Always Look Perfect With Zero Effort. Some of us actually have to work to look presentable.”

“…uhm… here, Angel, we got you coffee too,” Niffty finally said, pushing the mug towards him. She was still staring wide-eyed, and Alastor was fairly positive she hadn’t blinked once.

“Oh my god, you’re perfect.”

While Anthony sat up to wrap both hands around the mug and take a careful sip, Alastor took the opportunity to take a quick glance around. Everyone was staring, a variety of expressions on their faces, but no matter what they were thinking it was quite clear that everyone was confused. Alastor kept his usual smile in place; it was really hard not to laugh when Charlie started to ask a tentative question only to get cut off by the arrival of their food.

Alastor turned his head again at a tugging on his sleeve. “Yes, sha?”

“What’d you get?” Anthony asked, his gaze fixed on Alastor’s bowl of pecan oatmeal like he had no idea what it was.

Immediately, he was hit with sudden inspiration. Instead of answering, Alastor got a small mouthful on his spoon and held it up. “Want some?”

Anthony nodded before opening his mouth, instantly reminding Alastor of a baby bird. Alastor fed him the spoonful (he had seen insufferable couples do that in public before), and Anthony ate it happily, humming one of those little songs he hummed when he thought something tasted really good.

“…so…” Charlie finally said. Alastor looked her direction, and was gratified to see that Husk was staring, his mouth slightly open and his face frozen in an expression of confusion that didn’t know if it wanted to be angry or not. “What, um… what’s going on with you two?”

“Going on?” Alastor asked, his smile widening. “My dear Charlie, whatever makes you think there’s something going on?”

“You don’t share food,” Vaggie said, gesturing between them sharply, her brow furrowed.

Rosie held one hand up, her wrist going limp instantly. “You two aren’t actually… y’know…”

“Of course they aren’t,” Cherri said immediately.

“They aren’t what?” Pentious asked, looking around the table quickly. “What? What’s happening?”

Alastor shrugged, looking at Anthony. “You want to tell them?”

“I like makin’ them wonder.” Anthony giggled a little before rolling his eyes. “Okay, fine. Yeah, we’re datin’, you wanna make somethin’ of it?”

Instantly, Niffty muffled a squeal with her hands, and Husk quite confidently said, “Bullshit,” while Cherri almost shrieked the word ‘bitch’ in shock before vaulting out of her chair and running over to start berating Anthony for not calling her (though why he would have was beyond Alastor; he’d have to ask once they were alone).

“When did this happen?” Charlie asked, her eyes wide and her voice doing that ‘I’m about to burst with excitement’ vibrating thing it did before she burst into happy tears.

“Last night,” Alastor said. “I’m sorry, were we supposed to take out space for an announcement in the campus newsletter?”

“No, no, of course not!” Charlie said, waving her hands in front of her face. “I just— I’m happy for you!”

“…thank you?”

“Ignore them, darling,” Rosie said with a casual wave of her hand. “I’ll simply say it’s about fucking time and let it drop.”

Alastor narrowed his eyes at her, which just made her smile grow. “What is about fucking time, exactly?”

“No no, too late, I dropped it. Niffty knows what I mean.”

He turned to squint at Niffty, who still had her hands clasped over her mouth and was nodding furiously. Alastor narrowed his eyes further. “…have we been the subject of gossip?”

“Uh, duh,” Niffty said finally. “And if you weren’t always so damn mysterious, we wouldn’t have to do that!”

As Alastor was processing this, he felt a knuckle thump his shoulder. He turned to look up at Husk, who was looking down at him with an unreadable expression. “Can I talk to you?”

Alastor glanced down at where Husk had tapped him, then back up; normally, that was enough to get him to back down, but he didn’t budge. “Of course.”

He excused himself and followed Husk out the front door, then around to the side of the building where they couldn’t be observed. Once out of sight, Husk turned to him. “What the fuck are you doing?”

“At the moment? Being systematically prevented from consuming my most important meal of the day.”

“Cut the shit, Alastor. You know what I mean.”

Alastor held his hands out as he shrugged. “I don’t understand why you’re being so difficult, Husker. Angel is a perfectly delightful young man. Is there something so wrong with someone wishing to pursue a relationship with him?”

“Normally, no,” Husk said, raising an eyebrow. “But this is you that we’re talking about. You aren’t capable of doing things without ulterior motives.”

“You know me so well.” Alastor didn’t let his smile slip. “What’s next, going to tell me that if I break his heart you’ll break my kneecaps?”

Husk scoffed. “No. Angel’s gonna be in arm’s reach of you, he’ll kill you just fine by himself. But if you’re playing some kind of game, you really might want to rethink this, because while we won’t interfere with whatever he decides to do on his own, his siblings might.”

Oh. Shit. I didn’t think about them.

Anthony’s twin sister, Maria, and older brother, Bernardino—affectionately known as “Molly” and “Arackniss” in their little circle— were textbook examples of avoiding even the pretense of subtlety. While much of Anthony’s speech and behavior could be written off as just him being from New York, Molly had been described as “a Long Island princess who might have a gun in her purse at any given moment”, and Arackniss always sounded like he was a sentence away from threatening to give someone a pair of cement shoes. Alastor wasn’t afraid of them, of course; no, he had only ever feared one person in his life, and that honor belonged to his beloved mother. However, Anthony had made it painfully clear that, whatever issues he had with his siblings (particularly Arackniss), they were his problems and anyone who fucked with his siblings would be very unlikely to see the next morning.

Alastor wasn’t afraid of Anthony, either, but that didn’t change the fact that the thought of upsetting him was deeply unpleasant.

Apparently, he had been quiet too long, because Husk’s expression flattened out into something closer to derisive disbelief. “You didn’t even think about it, did you?”

“I deeply appreciate your concern, Husker,” Alastor said, skirting around the question and laying his hands on either of Husk’s shoulders. “But you have nothing at all to fret about! I know exactly what I’m doing, and Anthony is perfectly capable of handling his family on his own.”

Husk sighed, rolling his eyes. “Your funeral, brother.”

When they returned to the table, Anthony gave Alastor a curious look, but Alastor waved to him, their signal for ‘I’ll tell you later’ when either of them had gossip that needed to be discussed privately. The conversation redirected itself almost immediately, for which Alastor was grateful. He enjoyed being the center of attention, of course, but being barraged with questions made it infinitely harder to just sit and observe his surroundings. That was, after all, the point of all of this.

As they were all getting up to leave, Anthony said, “C’mon, babe. I need some new threads and you said you’d give me your most cuttin’ and brutal opinions.”

Alastor had said nothing of the sort, but he knew coded language when he heard it. “Of course, sha.” He waved to the others, all of whom were staring as they left the cafe together and began walking in the direction of the nearby shopping center. Once they were far enough away and Alastor had determined they weren’t being tailed, he allowed himself a small cackle. “That went well.”

Anthony giggled. “Shit, no kidding. I expected a reaction, but fuck. …hehe.”

Alastor frowned at him. “…what?”

“Butt fuck,” Anthony repeated.

Perplexed, Alastor continued to stare until recognition hit him. “You are hopelessly foul and I hope you walk in front of an oncoming bus.”

This time, Anthony’s laugh was full and genuine. “I’m draggin’ you with me, bitch!” He then directed that smile onto Alastor. “So… I know you didn’t actually agree to shop with me, but d’you mind comin’ anyway? I’ll buy you a soft pretzel.”

Somewhere deep inside, Alastor thought, You don’t have to bribe me, sha. I can’t say no when you give me that smile.

It was a ridiculous thought, but it was far from the first time it had crossed Alastor’s mind, so he dismissed it. “Oh, very well,” he said, playing up the visage of being put-upon enough that no one could mistake it for true reluctance. “I suppose I had nothing else to do, anyway.”

This was going to be a lot of fun, Alastor decided. He couldn’t wait to see everyone’s faces when they learned the whole thing had been a ruse.

•••

Word travels real fuckin’ fast, apparently.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell us!”

Anthony rolled his eyes visibly as he continued putting away the clothes Alastor had helped him pick out. Molly and Arackniss had been waiting outside their dorm room when they returned, and the moment Alastor registered their presence, he suddenly remembered he had something to do in the library and ran away (like a goddamn coward) before either of them noticed him. Naturally, they had started badgering Anthony instantly, following him into the dorm and hardly pausing for breath, let alone any kind of explanation.

Molly wrapped her arms around her legs, glaring up at him. “What, you think you can just not tell us and we won’t find out? That it?”

“If that’s what it was, I wouldn’t never text either of you,” Anthony said, carefully cutting the tag off of a shirt he had decided he wouldn’t be returning. “I was gonna tell you.”

Arackniss scoffed, not straightening up from where he was leaning against the wall next to Anthony’s closet. “Sure you were, Tony,” he said sarcastically.

“I was!” Anthony countered, flinging an empty shopping bag at his brother. “It happened late last night, I had study bullshit this morning, ain’t like I’ve been keepin’ it for weeks or somethin’.”

He could practically hear his siblings exchanging looks behind his back as he put hangars up in his closet. “...you went to a study session,” Molly said finally.

“Yeah.”

“You. Went to a study session.”

“Yes,” Anthony said, carefully controlling his voice so he wasn’t snapping at her. “You’re actin’ like I ain’t never studied a day in my life.”

“Well… not on purpose, anyway,” Arackniss said.

Before Anthony could counter, Molly said, “Didn’t you say he don’t do… y’know. Sex and stuff?”

Anthony frowned at her over his shoulder. “...yeah,” he said. “Not that it’s any of your business. What’s your point?”

“Well…” Molly looked at Arackniss.

He picked up on whatever signal it was, taking over from her. “Tony, you ain’t never dated anybody in your life, and now you’re sayin’ you’re exclusive with a guy who doesn’t even like sex?”

Anthony rolled his eyes. “I don’t care,” he said. “He told me he don’t mind if I keep up my cam work, and anyway, ain’t there more to a relationship than just fuckin’ all the time?”

“Well… yeah,” Arackniss said.

“We’re just surprised you think that,” Molly added.

Anthony turned to them and held up his hands. ‘Y’know what? Fuck both of you,” he said; he didn’t put any real heat in the words, and just looking at their expressions told him they didn’t take it seriously. “I like him, and he likes me, and I don’t give a shit about anything else. And even if it wasn’t for that, I’d stay with him just to piss you off.”

Molly actually giggled at that. “Sounds about right. And I’m guessin’ the aneurysm Ma’d have about you bringin’ home a boyfriend—”

“Who’s both southern and black,” Arackniss interjected.

“—don’t hurt your decision none, either.”

Anthony cackled. “She’s gonna be so pissed, and don’t get me started on Pop.”

“Well, they won’t disown you,” Arackniss said thoughtfully. “I was fuckin’ certain they would when you started your transition. Pops still asks me if you’ve stopped ‘that testosterone shit’ every time we  talk.”

Anthony raised his eyebrow. “And?”

“I say no. And then I call you Tony and he hangs up on me.”

He snorted, grinning. If he actually liked his parents, that would have been incredibly painful to hear. Instead, while his parents’ actions made him mad, listening to how his siblings handled it always filled him with a sense of bitter satisfaction. “Ain’t you the best big brother.”

“You fuckin’ know it.”

“You sure you’re gonna be okay?” Molly asked. “You got bad taste in men, Tony, and a guy like him…”

“I’m sure,” Anthony said. He meant it, too, but in a much different way than either Molly or Arackniss were taking it. Did he really like Alastor enough to put up with this?

…yeah. He did. And that wasn’t going to cause any problems in the future, because he wouldn’t let it. He valued Alastor’s trust and friendship too much to let it.

•••

Alastor had known there would be… reactions, to put it mildly, when news got out that he and Anthony were ‘dating’. In fact, he had been counting on it; otherwise, how was he going to get any sort of data for his project? He simply hadn’t been expecting so many reactions to be quite so visceral or loud.

That study breakfast had only been the first social hurdle. Over the next month, he’d been yelled at by Vox (who’d had a strangely passionate reaction to the news, and for the life of him, Alastor couldn’t figure out why he was so upset), threatened with extreme bodily harm by Valentino, stalked through the library and the rest of the campus by Blitzø and his three little cohorts, aggressively grilled by both Molly and Arackniss, and been stared at by Zestial with an intensity he could feel from the other side of the quad.

It was still funny, of course, but for some reason, it was also sort of… bothering him? Annoying him? He wasn’t sure the phrase that best communicated how he was feeling, just that there was something unpleasant about everyone behaving as though he wasn’t good enough to be Anthony’s boyfriend. Fake relationship or not, it was hard not to take that kind of thing personally.

Maybe that was why, in mid October, he finally broke down and grabbed his phone to make a call.

He was laying on his bed with his head at the foot, turned onto his side with his phone resting on the side of his head without either hand keeping it in place. It freed them up to allow him to pick at the cheap comforter he broke out once it started getting too cold in the building. The phone rang twice in his ear before he heard a click, followed by the soft, comforting sound of a controlled alto voice. “Hello, Alastor.”

“Hi, maman,” Alastor said, unable to keep a smile off his face. “Catch you at a bad time?”

“Nah. Just gettin’ some packages ready for the store this week,” she answered. Just the sound of her Louisiana drawl was soothing after so many unpleasant conversations. “Somethin’s botherin’ you.”

It wasn’t a question, but Alastor still asked, “What makes you think something is wrong?”

“You never call this late unless you got somethin’ on your mind, kiddo.”

He sighed. Either she was too perceptive or he was growing too predictable. It might have been both, for all he knew. “I… did something, and I wanted to tell you about it.”

There was a soft, distant thud, and he could tell his mother had just put down whatever was in her hand. “I’m not gettin’ another letter from your school,” she said; it was almost a question, but it might as well have been a threat.

“No, no, nothing like that.” Alastor hesitated, pulling on a thread in his comforter until it snapped. “I… asked someone out.”

A very long pause followed that, long enough that he almost asked if she was still there. “Is that so?” his mother asked finally. “You went on a date?”

Alastor shook his head, even though she couldn’t hear it. “It’s complicated, but no. I mean we’re dating.”

“I see.” Another pause. “It’s Anthony, isn’t it?”

Alastor put his hand on his phone and sat up. “How the hell—”

“Oh, please, Alastor.” He could sense her rolling her eyes at him. “After everythin’ you’ve told me ‘bout that boy, I knew if you’d be askin’ anyone out, it’d be him.”

He wasn’t sure what to say in response to that. He wanted to say that it was a fake relationship, or… something, he didn’t know what. “...do you think I’m making a mistake?” he asked instead.

“Who knows?” He could hear her chopping something on a cutting board. “But I’ve told you before and I’ll tell you again, you can’t wait to know if everythin’ you’re gonna do is gonna end up goin’ well. Maybe it’s a mistake. Maybe it’s not. You won’t know until you do it.”

That was a good point, but Alastor wasn’t going to tell her that.

“Are you happy?”

Was he? Alastor thought for a long moment. It wasn’t something he had really considered, always having considered himself fairly content with his life so long as his decisions were just that: his own decisions. Did that mean he was happy? “...yeah,” he said, his voice soft with the realization that he wasn’t lying. “I am.”

“That’s all I care about. I’m happy for you, baby.”

The rest of the conversation was fairly standard, Alastor asking about how things were back home and his mother asking about his studies. When they said goodbye, he realized he actually felt a lot better. He hadn’t realized how much he needed just a little bit of approval. Everything seemed considerably lighter as he got up and left his small room, heading over to knock on Anthony’s door. “Hey, Angel,” he called. “You in there?”

“Yep. C’mon in, ain’t locked.”

Alastor let himself in, opening the door to see Anthony sitting in the middle of his bed with his medication box open in front of him. “Oh. HRT. Bad time?”

Anthony shook his head, drawing his dose out of the bottle. “Nah, s’long as you don’t mind watchin’ me stab myself.”

“Oh, that’s not a problem.” When Anthony gestured to the bed, Alastor sat down, looking over his supplies. “Need any help?”

Anthony glanced at him. “...you any good at givin’ shots?”

“I… have done it before,” Alastor hedged. “Why?”

“Because gettin’ it in my arm hurts less, but I gotta hold the skin taut, so I can’t do it by myself. Usually gotta do it in the thigh and sometimes it bleeds a lot.”

Alastor tilted his head. “...would you like me to give you your shot?”

“If you don’t mind, yeah.”

“You trust me to do that?”

Anthony raised an eyebrow at him. “If you hurt me on purpose, I’ll stab you with my drawin’ needle myself.”

Alastor chuckled. “Fair enough.”

Anthony showed him the proper place to stab, and Alastor held the skin as taut as he could, carefully slipping the needle straight into the muscle just below his shoulder. Anthony sucked in a breath, but he didn’t make any noise of pain, so Alastor made sure he wasn’t drawing blood before he slowly pushed the plunger down. Anthony made another sound, one that made Alastor feel a little strange, and he aggressively pushed the thought out of his mind as he removed the needle. “All done. Bandage?”

“Here,” Anthony said, offering one out to him. “Thanks.”

“Of course.” Alastor removed the little round adhesive bandage and carefully covered the puncture wound. Then, on something of a whim, he leaned forward and kissed the spot. “There you go.”

When he sat up, Anthony was actually blushing. “Uh… thanks,” he said, his voice uncertain.

Alastor felt his own face heating up. Why did I do that? He refused to let it show in his expression or voice, just smiling as he stood up. “You have early class tomorrow. You should get to bed.”

Anthony groaned. “I can’t believe you talked me into taking an 8 AM class,” he complained, not for the first time. “You’re the literal worst.”

Alastor’s smile widened. “I am, aren’t I?”

Anthony flipped him off and Alastor laughed as he left the room, closing the door behind him. He leaned against it for just a second, his hand still wrapped around the handle.

The fuck is wrong with me?

•••

A week after the HRT incident—Anthony wasn’t sure what else he should call it—he found himself in Alastor’s room, both of them sitting on his bed and idly playing gin without paying much attention to it. The cards were just something to do with their hands, most of their conversation focused on the latest gossip and talking about the various upcoming Halloween activities, such as several campus parties, the parade, and the massive haunted house that was always open the whole of Halloween week.

“You gonna go do anythin’ this year?” Anthony asked.

“I never do,” Alastor said, drawing a card from the deck and tossing one down.

Anthony smirked. “That’s why I’m askin’ this year. You wanna?”

He’d expected Alastor to buck at the suggestion, but instead, he looked thoughtful. “What did you have in mind?”

“Haunted house and Charlie’s party,” Anthony said. “Thought maybe, if you were down, we could do a couple’s costume and really weird people out.”

That actually made Alastor perk up. “Yes, absolutely, we’re doing that.”

Anthony laughed. “Great. We’ll go shoppin’ for stuff tomorrow, then.”

The silence that followed was thoughtful. Anthony had known Alastor had something on his mind for the whole evening (for the past week, really), but he wasn’t sure how to ask. It turned out he didn’t have to, though, because Alastor finally spoke again after almost ten minutes of playing cards in silence. “You’ve dated people before, right?”

“Hm? Yeah, kinda,” Anthony said. “Nothin’ that lasted more than a couple’a months, tho. Why?”

Alastor went into a much shorter thoughtful silence. If Anthony didn’t know better, he’d say he was hesitating. “Do you…” Alastor began, then shook his head and started over. “What do you usually do when you’re dating someone? And you don’t have to spare me details just because of my delicate constitution.”

Anthony grinned at that. “Well… we go out, like you and I’ve been doin’. But the dates ain’t usually so frequent.”

Alastor frowned. “Your boyfriends ignored you?” he asked, actually sounding a little bit pissed off on his behalf.

“No, no. I mean… not exactly,” Anthony hedged. “More we didn’t… leave that often.”

“...Angel. I already told you, you don’t have to spare me details.”

“Okay, okay,” Anthony said. “We spent a whole lot more time either makin’ out or fuckin’ than we did goin’ out to dinner or whatever.”

Alastor was quiet for a moment. “...I see,” he said. “And that was… fun, to you?”

“Sure,” Anthony said with a shrug. “You know I like sex. I like kissin’, too. I mean, as long as the guy’s good at it,” he added with a faint sneer. “Why d’you ask?”

“Curiosity. Also, a desire to keep people from catching on,” Alastor said. “I mean… I had noticed those bruises on your neck after you had a successful night out.”

“I never cared if someone saw that I got hickies.” Anthony frowned at him. “...what are you sayin’, exactly?”

Alastor looked somewhat embarrassed. “Simply that it was incredibly common for you to have them, and if you continue to… not… won’t some people start getting suspicious?”

Anthony wasn’t sure how he was supposed to take this. “Alastor, people know you ain’t into this kinda thing. I don’t think people are gonna be suspicious because you didn’t spontaneously grow a libido.” Oddly, Alastor looked even more embarrassed, and now Anthony was positive he wasn’t aware of it. The other young man was actually ducking his head into his shoulders somewhat, and he was avoiding meeting Anthony’s eyes more than usual. Anthony hesitated, but… Fuck it, he thought. He told me to be direct. “Alastor, are you curious about makin’ out or somethin’?”

Alastor threw his hands up before he put his head in his hands, staring down at the cards in the discard pile. “I don’t know,” he groaned. “You’re confusing.”

“Me? The fuck did I do?”

“I don’t know,” Alastor repeated, more insistently. “I’d truly never contemplated this kind of thing before, but I… yes, I suppose I’m curious.” The aggressive way he said it made Anthony pretty sure he had to force it out.

“...you wanna make out?” Anthony asked, trying his best not to sound too hopeful.

Alastor laughed a little, but he didn’t raise his head. “I believe you said you enjoy that provided the guy is good at it, right?”

“You sayin’ you’re a bad kisser or somethin’?”

“I really wouldn’t know,” Alastor said dryly, raising his eyes just enough to give Anthony a single quirked eyebrow.

Anthony shrugged. “If you ain’t done it before, then you can’t say you’re not good.”

Alastor stared at him, like he wasn’t sure how to respond to that. “...you know, most people are bad at things the first time they do them.”

“Depends on how fast a learner they are.” When Alastor looked uncomfortable again, Anthony said, “I got a better idea.” Alastor raised his head once more as Anthony moved back to lean against Alastor’s pillow and headboard, then motioned to Alastor to come closer. “C’mere.”

Frowning, Alastor scooted over to him. “What, precisely, are we doing?”

“Cuddles.” When his best friend made a predictably skeptical face, Anthony continued, “All innocent, I promise. Hands above clothes. Won’t even touch your hair if you don’t want me to. Just a test to see how you feel about the closeness.”

“...well… alright.” When Alastor moved next to him, Anthony helped him get settled. They ended up with Anthony still on his back, one arm around Alastor’s shoulders, and Alastor on his side with his head on Anthony’s shoulder-chest-area and arm across his abdomen.

At first, Alastor was predictably stiff, holding himself like he was either ready to spring up at any second or like he was afraid of putting too much weight on Anthony. After a few moments, however, he began relaxing, and Anthony took the opportunity to place his hand on Alastor’s upper arm and carefully run his hand down to his elbow, then up to his shoulder, then back, making sure the touch was firm enough not to trigger unpleasant physical sensation. “How’s that?”

“Mmn,” Alastor said. There was a long pause. “Your sweater is soft.”

“Yep. You comfy?”

“Mhm.”

In minutes, all of Anthony’s fears of chasing Alastor off were replaced with the thought of never being able to get up ever again as his dorm mate gradually became almost dead weight on top of him. He managed to fish his phone out of his pocket, then found a decent YouTube playlist and set the phone up with its pop socket on Alastor’s little bedside table so they had something to do that didn’t require movement.

After nearly an hour, Alastor stopped responding to Anthony. He looked down and couldn’t resist smiling when he noticed that Alastor had fallen asleep, his cheek pressed against Anthony’s chest and his glasses threatening to fall off. Anthony carefully took the frames off his friend’s face, folded them, and set them on the table. He thought about slipping out and going back to his own room, but the moment he tried to move, Alastor’s grip tightened.

Ah well. Fuck it.

It really was comfortable, after all.

•••

It got to the point that they were cuddling every time they were alone.

At first, Alastor had felt the compulsion to make up excuses for his behavior—it was cold, it was more practical so they could read the same book, they were both tired and they could each lay on the couch that way—but eventually he stopped trying. The fact of the matter was simple: he liked it. Anthony never questioned him, thankfully, but he couldn’t help wondering if he was behaving too strangely. After all, this wasn’t supposed to be a real relationship, and sometimes Alastor felt like he was taking advantage of the situation. He had simply never really been in a position to be so close to someone on such a regular basis, particularly not someone he wanted to be close to, and now that Anthony had opened the door… Alastor had discovered he really, really liked the contact.

Snow was falling gently as the two of them left the dormitory together, the moonlight casting silvery light off the blankets of white all around them, illuminating their walk off campus and to the small neighborhood where Charlie, Vaggie, Niffty, and Cherri were all renting a house together. Alastor couldn’t help laughing as Anthony shivered, pulling his hat down over his ears and his scarf up over his face before tucking his hands into the pockets of his huge white coat. “Cold?” he asked mildly.

“Fuckin’ freezing,” Anthony answered.

“You’d think you’d be used to the cold,” Alastor observed; he was cold, too, but he was certainly handling it better than his friend. “Yankee and all that.”

“Yeah well it doesn’t work like that.”

Alastor chuckled. “I’m sure they’ll have cider and you can warm yourself up.”

“Mmn.” Anthony looked at him, curiosity obvious on every inch of what was visible of his face. “Semester ends next week.”

“That it does. You going home?”

“Only if I can’t come up with an excuse to go somewhere else,” Anthony said. “You?”

“Can’t,” Alastor said. “Don’t have the money to travel. The dean’s letting me stay in the dorm over the break. I don’t think I’m the only one who’s staying, anyway.”

“Maybe I’ll just stay with you,” Anthony said. “Unless you’re just dying to have the place to yourself.”

Alastor glanced at him, surprised. “Oh… no, not particularly,” he said. “You know I get bored when I’m left on my own for too long, anyway.”

Anthony laughed. “You’d go through all my shit.”

“I don’t know where half of your belongings have been. No thank you.”

“Shut up,” Anthony said, punching Alastor lightly in the shoulder. “...your project is due next week, I guess?”

Alastor hadn’t let himself think about it very much. “Yeah. I need to finish writing it this weekend.”

“Boring.”

There was something else Anthony wanted to ask, Alastor could almost taste it. He could probably guess what it was, too.

Are we going to tell people it was a prank tonight?

Alastor was glad he didn’t ask, because honestly, he wasn’t sure what answer he would have given.

The house was decorated to an almost nauseating degree with lights, winter-themed foliage, and various lawn decorations of both the inflatable and the non-inflatable varieties. The door was open before they got a chance to knock, and Charlie (beaming from ear to ear as usual) waved them in. “Hi guys! Come on in, come on, it’s freezing outside!”

“You said it,” Anthony said, stepping in past her and pulling off his hat and scarf. His cheeks and nose were all pink, and Alastor had the bizarre thought that it was very cute. “Sorry we’re late.”

“Oh, no, you aren’t,” Charlie said as she took both of their outerwear and hung them up. “Everybody’s in either the living room or the kitchen, and my dad’s here, and I already made him promise to behave so you’d better also behave or I’ll do something drastic,” she added, pointing at Alastor’s nose.

He felt himself go cross-eyed before he nipped lightly at the air towards her finger, making her withdraw her hand. “Like what?”

“Like telling your boyfriend on you,” Charlie said decisively.

Alastor wasn’t sure what to say to that. He settled on, “My, haven’t we grown unreasonably cruel.”

“I’ll beat him up for you, sweetheart, don’t worry,” Anthony said, giving Alastor a wink.

They headed into the room where the Yule party was just getting into swing. Alastor took a moment to absorb the scene: Husk, Cherri, Niffty, and Blitzø were in front of some kind of complicated-looking board game, but they looked more like they were arguing over it than actually playing, while Stolas sat behind Blitzø looking through the rules pamphlet like he was trying to make sense of it; Pentious was sitting in front of Vaggie’s record player, holding up different records to Millie and Moxxie (who were occupying the same chair) like he was getting opinions on what to play next; Vaggie and Luna were at the island connecting the kitchen to the living room and appeared to be doing Jell-O shots; and from the sound of things, everyone else was in the kitchen, which suited Alastor just fine.

He followed Anthony to the center of the room, returning greetings as they were noticed, but they didn’t get far before Rosie appeared and thrust cups of hot cider into both of their hands. “Here, you both look frozen to death,” she said.

“Thank you, my dear,” Alastor said. “How’s the drama this evening?”

“Woefully undramatic,” she said, looking incredibly disappointed. “But I’m sure something will crop up for us to talk about for the next month.”

Anthony grinned. “It better. That’s the only reason I come to this shit.” He leaned closer to her and added in a lower voice, “Then again, maybe someone should just make some drama.”

Rosie leaned in the same distance and responded in the same tone, “If I get my way, I will be.”

“Ooh, dish, what?”

She grinned. “Gonna sleep with Charlie’s dad.” Alastor immediately choked on his cider, and before he could form words, she waved. “Ta, boys,” she trilled, heading back for the kitchen.

“Rosie!” Alastor snapped at her retreating back. “You are a hussy!”

“No, darling, I’m a harlot!”

In spite of the warnings, threats, and threats disguised as warnings, the evening progressed rather smoothly. Niffty was imposing strict limits on the drinking to prevent anyone from getting out of control (“Do not wreck this house, we are renting it!”), which meant the arguing never went too far and no fights broke out, not even from Cherri. When Alastor and Lucifer finally did lay eyes on each other, it was from across the room, but with Anthony and Charlie to steer them away from each other, he didn’t get a chance to do more than tauntingly smirk at the pompous asshole. There were some other people there that Alastor didn’t know—apparently, they were Lucifer’s work friends, but Charlie referred to them as aunts and uncles, so he wasn’t sure what to think—but he managed to avoid interacting too much with strangers, which was usually the reason he didn’t go to parties.

Roughly three hours later, after people had eaten and were milling around again, Alastor found himself sitting on a couch with Blitzø on one side of him and Millie on the other, deep in a conversation about (of all things) French Impressionist film and halfway through his fourth glass of cider when he felt Blitzø nudge his arm with his elbow. “What?” he asked, looking down at him.

“Look,” was his only answer, nodding to somewhere on the other side of the room.

Alastor obliged, his eyes landing on Anthony, who was talking with Niffty (about her clothes, judging by both of their body language). “...it’s Angel,” he said, perplexed. “What’s your point?”

Blitzø rolled his eyes. “God, you’re a fucking dumbass,” he said. “Look, will you?”

He still had no idea what the other guy was on about when Millie went, “Ooooh, I see,” and immediately started giggling.

“What?” Alastor asked, when neither of them explained.

Almost immediately, he felt someone lean against the couch. “Hey, honey,” Moxxie said, leaning down to kiss Millie on the head. “What’s so funny?”

“Look,” Millie said unhelpfully, pointing subtly over at where Anthony and Niffty were standing.

Moxxie squinted at him. “I have no idea what you’re– oh, no, I see.”

“For fuck’s sake,” Alastor said, looking at Moxxie. “What are you three talking about?”

Fortunately for him, Moxxie was basically incapable of not sharing information when he knew something. “Look over his head.”

Alastor sighed, looked at Anthony, then looked up, and– Oh, he thought, color rising to his cheeks. “...isn’t mistletoe a little… corny?”

“Nah, I think it’s romantic,” Millie said, clasping her hands together at her chest. “Besides, y’know Charlie wouldn’t’a put it up if it weren’t supposed t’, y’know, inspire.”

Alastor rubbed the back of his neck, looking away. “I don’t– I mean, Angel probably wouldn’t… you know…”

“Are you kidding? You think Mr. PDA would get all embarrassed if you kissed him?” Blitzø asked skeptically. “Besides, he’s standing under it, he’s practically begging–”

“I swear t’ god Blitzø if you say he’s askin’ for it I will eat yer kneecaps.”

“Well, he is!”

“You could always just ask,” Moxxie told Alastor as the other two immediately started bickering about ‘appropriate language’. “And if you aren’t comfortable, obviously, don’t do it.”

Am I comfortable with something like this?

A few months ago, Alastor would have just laughed at the question, or given some kind of sarcastic form of ‘no’ if pressed to answer. But now… he didn’t know if he was or not, and he was finally realizing that he was never going to know if he was or wasn’t unless he actually tried something. He just nodded to Moxxie, finished the rest of his cider all at once, and thrust the empty glass at Blitzø. “This was your idea, so you have to hold this.”

“What– yeah, okay, man, go get some.”

Alastor ignored him, getting to his feet and crossing the room to where Anthony was standing. The closer he got, the more clearly he could hear his voice; he was aware that his own thoughts were somewhat jumbled, but there was one thing he knew for absolute certain. It was something he had been thinking for days, a deeply sober sentiment that he knew the alcohol was not influencing one iota.

I don’t want him to go.

“Oh, hey, Al,” Anthony said, turning when he noticed him. “You’re not leavin’, are you?”

“No,” Alastor said, shaking his head. He thought to say something else, but he didn’t; he couldn’t do anything but just look at Anthony.

Apparently, this was odd. Anthony frowned, tilting his head. “...you okay?” he asked at length.

“What? Yeah. Yes,” Alastor corrected. “I’m fine. It’s just… I…” He wasn’t sure how to say it, and on reflex, he glanced up at the mistletoe again.

It wasn’t meant to direct Anthony’s own gaze, but it did, and the moment he registered the little bit of green decor, his cheeks flooded with pink. “...oh.”

Alastor was only vaguely aware of Niffty scurrying away, giggling. Anthony looked back down at him, both of them at a loss for words. Alastor wasn’t used to his speech failing him, because his words were how he had always navigated through life. It was how he had gotten himself out of trouble, and sometimes into it, for many years. But now… what was he supposed to say?

Anthony wasn’t speaking either. But he also wasn’t moving. Alastor didn’t know what to make of it. All he knew was that all of this thinking was making it worse, so instead of thinking, he would just do something.

When he first leaned forward and kissed Anthony, the other young man gasped, as though so much buildup still hadn’t prepared him. Before Alastor could even think about moving away, Anthony flung his arms around Alastor’s shoulders and pulled him closer. Even though they didn’t part lips, even Anthony was out of breath when they parted, and Alastor was fairly certain both of their faces were on fire.

He only noticed the room was silent when someone yelled, “Hell yeah!” which triggered either laughter or vehement shushing from most everyone else in the room. Anthony immediately started giggling, burying his face in Alastor’s shoulder.

Alastor couldn’t bring himself to look at the rest of the room. It wasn’t just because it was embarrassing, it was because the sight of Anthony flushed so pink and overcome with laughter was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. “...are you ready to go?” he murmured.

“Mhm,” Anthony said into Alastor’s shoulder, nodding.

No one seemed terribly surprised when they took their leave, bundling back up in their coats and heading out into the snow once more. The walk back felt both longer than it ever had and so short it was as though it passed in a blink. They were outside the dorms when Alastor took Anthony’s sleeve. “Wait,” he said.

“Y-yeah?” Anthony asked, turning to look at him.

Immediately, Alastor didn’t want to say anything, so he forced out the first words he could without giving himself time to process or second-guess. “Be my boyfriend. I mean… really. My actual boyfriend.”

This time, Anthony was the one who kissed him.

An hour later, they were in Alastor’s room, coats and hats haphazardly scattered on the floor and Anthony’s back against the wall. Alastor grabbed his wrists and pinned them, covering Anthony’s mouth with his own.

Judging by the sounds Anthony was making, he was a fast learner when it came to this kind of thing.

When they parted, Anthony tilted his head back, exposing the line of his neck, and Alastor was unable to resist leaning down enough to kiss his throat. He could feel Anthony’s groan reverberating through his own lips. “Oh, god, yeah,” Anthony moaned. “That’s so good…”

Something about those words, the way Anthony said them, sent a shiver through Alastor’s body. Before he could second-guess it, he bit down on Anthony’s neck, making him cry out and arch his back to press their chests together. Alastor released him. “Too much?” he panted.

“No, no no, fuck no, don’t stop…!”

Alastor bit down again, and Anthony whined, the sound turning into a sort of sharp moan as Alastor began scraping his teeth against his skin. As he began sucking a bruise into his flesh, he discovered that the rougher he was, the more Anthony seemed to like it; by the time he moved away to admire his work, the side of Anthony’s neck was covered in marks ranging from pink to dark red to something bordering on purple.

Anthony was breathing hard. “Fuck, Alastor, you’re so good…!”

Alastor didn’t know what it was, but when Anthony said that, it made him feel like he was going to go insane if he didn’t do… something, he just didn’t know what. He practically growled as he grabbed Anthony around the waist, and his best friend let out an inelegant squeak as he was lifted off the ground and practically flung onto Alastor’s bed. Alastor wasn’t sure how he would feel about this later, but he knew what he wanted now, and what he wanted was to keep making Anthony make those noises.

He stumbled slightly when he kicked his shoes off, but he managed to keep his feet until he could get onto the bed and crawl on top of Anthony, pinning him down and kissing him again. The night devolved into a haze of sensation and emotion, punctuated by Anthony’s whispered encouragement and moans. Alastor wasn’t sure if he was making noise or not—he was too busy listening to Anthony’s sounds to really focus on what he himself was doing—but if the way he felt when Anthony actually moaned the words “you’re such a good boy” in his ear was anything to go by, he was pretty sure he didn’t want to know what kind of noises he was making.

Eventually, he wasn’t able to form any kind of coherent thought beyond, I’m going to have to rewrite my entire paper.

[thgfanfictionlibrary]

Friends to Lovers Fics Masterlist (8)

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 /

Created: June 6th, 2024

Checked:---

101 Ways to Say "I Love You"-papofglencoe (ao3) Summary: There's more than one right way to tell someone you love them. A collection of one shots by AO3 authors papofglencoe (Tumblr: papofglencoe) and sirrah_sirrah (Tumblr: peeta-pit). Includes "Tempest," "Inevitable," "His Hands Were Carved By The Angels," "Love Story," "I Only Love It When You Touch Me, Not Feel Me," "Basic Training," "A Modern Love," and "Indelible." All I Want for Christmas is You-JavisTG (ao3) Summary: Best Friends with benefits Katniss and Peeta discover they’re expecting a baby on Christmas Eve. Turns out they’ve been “exclusive” without the other knowing for months. Their families are coming to celebrate New Year’s Eve with them, and it’s all kinds of awkward when they give their announcement because everyone already knew they were “together” before they knew themselves. Always Rivals-hutchabelle (ao3) Summary: Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark always have been rivals. They're both smart, driven, and poor, and a scholarship to college is the only way to escape their small hometown. Katniss likes to keep her distance, but Peeta's interested in seeing if they can help each other through the rough patches. How long can Katniss resist his sweet, boyish charm? Anything for the Audience-Xerxia (ao3) Summary: My entry for Prompts in Panem April 2015, Day one 'Cheeks' (To begin this round you should test your ability to depict love's most innocent moments: a father holding his child for the first time, a first kiss, or after.) Baptism-JLaLa (ao3) Summary: “Katniss didn’t know if it was kismet or just plain bad luck but she and Peeta Mellark always found themselves on the opposite of a baptismal font, one of them holding a white clad infant and wondering which one of their idiot friends thought they would make good godparents.” Birthday Surprises-Pikelet184 (ao3) Summary: Growing up, Katniss Everdeen’s birthday had always been her favorite day of the year, spending it with the people who meant the most to her and doing the things she loved. These days, though, it was nothing more than an aching reminder of the people she’d loved who’d then left her without so much as even a goodbye. First, her father. Then Peeta, whose sudden disappearance from her life when they were 17 cut almost as deep as her father’s death. But now Peeta’s back. And there are 6 years of history that they’ll need to overcome if there’s any hope for them. Break-katnissdoesnotfollowback (ao3) Summary: Katniss takes a risk on her last day at college, a game with higher stakes than she was expecting. Can she keep up with the game after she leaves behind her friends and one blond roommate with a talent for baking and making her feel hopeful? Consolation-hutchabelle (ao3) Summary: Peeta Mellark doesn't want to be Katniss Everdeen's consolation prize. Context-hutchabelle (ao3) Summary: Katniss needs some advice about her outfit for a date, so she asks her roommate Peeta for his opinion. His surly answer infuriates her until she understands the context for his mood. Delivered-Xerxia (ao3) Summary: Sometimes all you need is a little shove…

[amadouers]

[ … ] ❀ you’re not from around here, are you? i figured because you totally just missed gianna yun walking by. don’t tell me you don’t know who she is ? they kind of look like jennie kim and i could be wrong but i think that they might be 28 years old right now. they’ve been living in palmview for the last month. and i don’t know if anyone has ever told them this before but they kind of remind me of tashi duncan from challengers. if you stick around the town long enough you might catch them in action working as a professional tennis player on hiatus. you see this town isn’t really that big of a place, some folks like to call them the fallen angel of palmview! they took a liking to the name too after a while, go figure. oh crap, they must have heard me yapping. they’re coming this way. i got to warn you though, rumor has it they can pretty stand-offish at times. i wouldn’t take it too seriously though, from the times i’ve spoken to them they seemed pretty ambitious to me. we see each other all the time since they live in that 3 bedroom apartment beside me over in coral cove. i better leave you to it. it was nice meeting you!

statistics  .

full name: gianna yun jiyeon nickname(s): gi, gigi, gia age: 28 years old date of birth: january 16th, 1996 hometown: long beach, california living arrangement: harborview residences #4a, coral cove sexuality: bisexual occupation: professional tennis player

biography  .

there was no doubt gianna yun was destined to do big things in her life  –  she was enrolled in all sorts of classes by her parents growing up, but it was tennis that stuck with her the most. she was later deemed a tennis prodigy, quick to garner attention for her exceptional skills and dedication to the sport from a young age. her parents were supportive from the start, very much willing to do their best to help her achieve her dream. after all she was their pride and joy, that much was obvious.

she made her professional debut at the age of eighteen and attended stanford university on a tennis scholarship. gianna had been playing consistently since then, winning tournaments left and right, steadily climbing through the ranks until she finally rose to number one after she won her wimbledon title and the third grand slam overall, besides winning gold in 2020 tokyo olympics.

it's safe to say she was already at the peak of her career by the time she turned twenty-five, even became the most sought after athlete for brand deals and endorsements.

driven by the need to stay on top of her game (the news reported that gianna yun had been holding the number one ranking for almost 186 consecutive weeks now), she pushed herself a little too hard when she was confirmed to make a return for 2024 paris olympics, leading to a serious injury during one of her trainings. due to doctor's advice, she was pulled out from the olympics and had to undergo a whole year recovery, much to her dismay.

it was every athlete's worst nightmare. she had trouble adjusting to her new routine for the first few weeks, felt restless that she couldn't play for the time being. tennis is all she's ever known in her life, and while she did think about the worst possible scenario (which includes her not being able to play tennis again and have to retire before she's even ready for it) before this, gianna didn't expect it would come so soon. truthfully, she's terrified.

she came to palmview to stay with a friend, an attempt to start fresh in a new place, although she hasn't done much in regards to meeting people, content with keeping the small circle she already has for now. usually one to keep to herself, she spends a lot of time visiting the local gym to work out since that's the only thing she enjoys, other than trying to stay in shape, and has only recently gotten back into playing tennis on her doctor's guidance.

connections  .

best friends with veronica lee

friends with kyro lee, adya khatri, olivia lockhart

exes on bad terms with daniel de luca

doesn't vibe with nell mason for personal reason

a fan of charlotte james' work

[ros3ybabe]

Daily Check-in: April 17, 2024 🎀

today was a decent day up until the end, when I got upset and emotional over some things and ended up crying again. I swear, I've cried the last 6 out of 7 nights, and I'm so tired of it. here's to hoping things finally get better soon because this emotional stuff is seriously affecting my productivity, motivation, and discipline.

🩷 What I Accomplished:

studied chapter 6 of Latin American Spanish on Busuu

listened to 3 podcast episodes in Spanish

completed and submitted my lab report and pre lab quiz, also did my pre lab notebook prep

went to my last chem lab for the semester

went to chem lecture

had a meeting with the Dietetic director to map out some classes for the upcoming semesters

washed dishes

attempted a phone call with my boyfriend for the first time in a week (relationship issues + long distance × love ÷ dating for 2 years = an emotional rollercoaster, and lots of frustration)

washed laundry, did not put away yet

scheduled a therapy session for tomorrow morning

completed a 7 minute pilates abs workout from Madeliene Abeid

completed the 11 minute wake up yoga from Yoga with Adriene

started to do the 5 min daily stretch from Pamela Reif but my dad called me so I didn't finish it

downloaded a pdf of a Spanish textbook

rescheduled my italki lesson because I need to study for chem

scheduled 2 study rooms to study for chem with my chem lab partner

completed the pre class assignment for chemistry

walked ~8k steps

🩷 Good Things That Happened:

saw my dad this morning, who then took me to the campus library a bit early (I love getting to see my dad, I don't get to see him too often since he lives on the opposite side of town)

passed my lab report and pre class assignment

finished my chem lab super fast

had pizza rolls for dinner (I needed something quick and simple cause I've been tired)

got more practice with the chemistry lecture content

woke up esrly enough to do my morning routine

did a complete night routine, including skincare (-didn't read tho, couldn't decide on a book )

more good things happened, I just honestly can't remember them right now. but today was not a bad day.

💗 Stuff For Thursday:

psyc doc appointment

therapy appointment

supplemental chemistry class hours

make sure I'm caught up on homework

apply to/write essays for some scholarship applications

check hours worked if possible to determine next week's paycheck

study Spanish!!! dedicate a good chunk of time to it

do my morning and night routine as best as possible

Thursday is definitely going to be an interesting day, thats for sure. I don't feel as tho I'll have as much to do, but I'm going to find things to do, like studying my Spanish, etc.

til next time lovelies 🩷

ps. check out my depop shop <3

💕 Song of The Day -

Le Sserafim - Antifragile

this has been a long time fave of mine

[missys-mansion-of-mistakes]

September 11th, 2024. Wednesday.

What I accomplished:

2 Slowly letters written

Applied for the Point Foundation Flagship scholarship. (If you're LGBT, from the US, and a student, you should too!)

7 hours of my job

⭐ My phone died 30 minutes into my shift at work, so I just gave in and logged into Discord and Tumblr at my work PC. I'll have to clean my history regularly in case anyone comes into my office while I'm away and uses my PC, but otherwise I think it's fine... this company seems way too out-of-date to care about keyloggers and screen monitoring.

I'm thinking about making a masterlist post about where I look for scholarships. I'm not a scholarship-winning maniac like you hear about on the news, but I did win 3 last year. I could at least help point some people in the right direction if they're lost.

Just glad today is done. Tomorrow: I'm rewarded with another whole day of work! Yippee!

[Photos: todo list, me at my desk at work]

[writingonleaves]

meet our oc - amelie fishel

reckless driving au masterlist

**spoiler free!!**

The basics!

Amelie Iris Fishel was born on June 11, 2002 in Detroit, Michigan

Her mother, Elise is of French descent and her father, Thomas is a quarter Filipino on his mother’s side. 

Amelie studied at the University of Michigan from 2020-2024 on a full scholarship, graduating with a double degree in communications and design. 

She worked with the Michigan Athletic Department as a photographer, photographing practically every single sport at the college. She was assigned to photograph the men’s hockey team a good amount, thus becoming familiar with the players.

In her last two years, she was the TA in classes that Adam Fantilli, Rutger McGroarty, Gavin Brindley, Luca Fantilli and Nick Moldenhauer took. 

With her time photographing the hockey team, she became the closest (relatively to the others) to Ethan Edwards

Dated twice in college

First time was more casual with a girl named Sara that she met in one of her classes freshmen year. Ended up just fizzling out. They’re still friendly

Second time was more serious with Cooper Volt, a guy on the baseball team

Dated for a little over a year; broke up January of her junior year

Hoping to photograph sports at the professional level

She has two older sisters and is close with both of them.

Colette Susanna is six years older than Amelie. She works for Kate Spade in New York City in fashion merchandising. 

Charlotte Marie is four years older than Amelie. She is studying at Stanford University for her PhD in Physics. 

Danced all throughout her childhood until she graduated high school. At her most intense, she was dancing close to 20 hours a week. She danced a bit in college, but not as intense. 

Nicknames include Ami aka ah-mee (by Ethan and her sisters), Mimi (by Adam)

Key character traits: stubborn, ambitious, rational, blunt, loyal

Clothing style: headbands, bows, hair scarves, etc etc. Amelie loves having some sort of fabric in her hair. 

Bisexual

Meets Jack Hughes during the summer of 2024, when she’s staying at Stanley and Ruth’s — her grandparents — new lakehouse that’s located on the same street as Quinn and Jack’s lakehouse in Bloomington, Michigan. 

She had already known Luke from when they overlapped in college.

Random fun tidbits!

The kind of person who has very few close friends than a bunch of friends (quality over quantity vibes)

Attaches memories to place a lot, to the point where it’s sometimes detrimental

Textbook introvert

Observes and adapts very seamlessly to her surroundings, which helps her photography career

Beer hater

Very good pool player

Sweet tooth - always has some sort of chocolate with her at all times

Favorite musical artists: 5 Seconds of Summer, Chelsea Cutler, Lizzy McAlpine, Miley Cyrus, Maggie Rogers, Noah Kahan 

Big musical theater fan — some of her favorite musicals are The Last Five Years, Dogfight, Waitress and In The Heights

Out of the three Fishel sisters, Amelie is often seen as the most emotional yet hardest to crack.

Will always sing in the car

Loves La La Land

[sonicphobia0601]

Well... I guess it's time for me to be serious. This marks the seven year anniversary of my dad passing away. I still remember the date.

February 11, 2018. I was in my dad's room, watching videos on YouTube and playing Sonic Dash on my tablet. With zero explanation, at 4:30, I lost complete interest in what I was doing. It was raining. My mom came home that night and told me the bad news. That night, I said goodbye to my dad for the last time.

We had his memorial gathering on his birthday. It was supposed to be his sixtieth birthday. A lot of people came to see my family, including the kind of family I don't like giving attention to.

Enough pity on the past!

Why don't you show how you grew as a person? I know you miss your dad, but show what happened afterwards!

Okay then.

2018: Dad died. The beginning of my development of personality started here. After my dad died, I only took one day off from school. I had prom on my 18th birthday and was the only time I pulled a complete all nighter due to attending prom and post prom. I graduated high school that year with cum laude. I start college living on campus that fall. And let me tell you, it's not 100% like the movies. I was on the Cheer team and accidentally discovered my love for horror, playing a bunch of FNAF. I start playing Sonic games, discovering that I actually loved Sonic. Yes, I wrote fanfiction at 16, but it was cringe and trauma dumping at its finest.

2019: I befriend the class snitch (big mistake), got gaslit by both the head of the special needs program along with the class snitch. Ended up alone. Had a mental breakdown that resulted in me getting suspended indefinitely (not proud of myself). Slowly figured out that I wasn't exactly straight.

2020: Remember that suspension from 2019? Well, it cost me a scholarship but it is a blessing in disguise... Because while I was suspended, I was not allowed on campus. And we all know what happened in March of that year. I completely avoided a tactical nuke because of my suspension. It turned out, my old college had a big outbreak of COVID. I honestly enjoyed the first part of COVID because it was quiet and no overstimulating activity happened outside. Got myself a temporary job at a gym as a custodian. It was nasty but the people there liked me. I completed Portal 2. And I attended a Halloween wedding that year. I dressed as a plague doctor for the XDs. That was fun. And I start writing on Wattpad.

2021: Uh... I'm not talking about what transpired here. But long story short, if you are drinking alcohol, GO SLOWLY. You'll thank me later. And that was when I learned of Poppy Playtime. I thought it was an April Fools prank by Zamination. It wasn't. Had fun playing it. And I start college in a community college. I decided to try Archive of Our Own as an outlet for my much darker stories.

2022: I kept getting misgendered online. So I started using they/them because of the obvious mistake. So now I figured out I'm pansexual and nonbinary.

2023: I entered the Billie Bust Up fandom because I found a short on YouTube, specifically one of Barnaby. Got curious. Fell in love with the game. Rest is history. Started a cosplay on Barnaby. Taught myself how to stim discreetly. (Yes, I borrowed Fantoccio's face pat stim)

Now, here we are. 2024. I wonder how much I would grow.

[coochiequeens]

Ladies please share to spread the word about two exhibits featuring women artists in two different cities

Artemisia Gentileschi, Self Portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria (ca. 1615–17). Collection of the National Gallery, London.

Renaissance art calls to mind some of the greatest names in art history—Da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello, just to name a few. Lesser known, however, are the influential women artists who shaped the era.

Referring to a period that bridged the end of the Middle Ages and early Modernism, the Renaissance was marked by a widespread effort to recover and advance the accomplishments of classical antiquity. Originating in Florence, Italy, but soon spreading throughout Europe, Renaissance art saw the advent of advanced linear perspective and an increase in realism. Many women artists—famous in their own time—were among these great visionaries.

Though for centuries, these women artists were largely overlooked in the annals of art history, contemporary scholarship has begun a long overdue reappraisal and rediscovery of their lives and works. Evidence of this resurgence of interest in the women artists of the Renaissance can be seen in the two current major museum shows in the U.S. that are dedicated to just that. “Strong Women in Renaissance Italy” at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston brings together over 100 works from the 14th through early 17th century, exploring the lives and work of Italian women artists and is on view through January 7, 2024.  At the Baltimore Museum of Art, “Making Her Mark: A History of Women Artists in Europe, 1400–1800” is a sweeping exhibition that aims to rectify critical oversight and bring awareness to historical women artists, and is also on view through January 7, 2024,.

In light of these two important exhibitions, we’ve brought together a brief introduction to five Renaissance women artists whom we think you should know.

Plautilla Nelli (1524–1588)

Plautilla Nelli, St. Catherine with Lily (ca. 1550). Collection of Le Gallerie Degli Uffizi, Florence.

Plautilla Nelli was a nun of the Dominican order at the convent of St. Catherine of Siena in Florence—and is considered by many scholars to be the first-known woman artist of Renaissance Italy. A self-taught painter, Nelli led a women’s artist workshop from the convent, and she was one of the few women mentioned in Vasari’s seminal treatise Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects. Because she developed her practice without formal training and was forbidden from studying male nudes, Nelli frequently copied works by other artists, as well as motifs from religious texts and sculpture.

Nelli’s work recently came into the limelight for her immense painting Last Supper, dating to 1568. Measuring over 21 feet long and 6 feet high, the painting remained in her convent’s refectory until the early 19th century, before being moved to another convent’s refectory and, ultimately, being placed in storage. Following an early 20th-century restoration and several more moves, it went on view to the public for the first time in over four centuries at the Santa Maria Novella Museum in 2019. Hanging alongside other masterworks by artists like Brunelleschi, it finally is getting the widespread recognition it deserves.

Catharina van Hemessen (1528–after 1565)

Catharina van Hemessen, Self-Portrait (1548). Collection of Kunstmuseum Basel.

Northern Renaissance painter Catharina van Hemessen was the daughter of prominent Mannerist painter Jan Sanders van Hemessen, and is the earliest Flemish woman painter with verified work that still exists today. Hailing from Antwerp, van Hemessen achieved success in her lifetime, including obtaining the patronage of Maria of Austria, regent of the Low Countries. She was included both in Vasari’s collection of artist biographies, as well as artist biographer Lodovico Guicciardini’s Description of the Low Countries (1567). Van Hemessen’s greatest claim to fame, however, is that she is attributed with completing the first known self-portrait of an artist at their easel—a compositional approach that has become a pillar of the art historical canon, as it has been taken up by artists ranging from Rembrandt van Rijn to Norman Rockwell.

Though she created religious images, she was most well known as a portraitist. Eight portraits and two religious compositions signed by van Hemessen have survived, dating between 1548 and 1552. Notably, there are no verifiable works dating to later than 1554, which have led scholars to believe she ceased painting following her marriage to organist Christian de Morien that year—though there are records she continued to teach three male apprentices.

Sofonisba Anguissola (ca. 1532–1625)

Sofonisba Anguissola, Self-portrait (ca. 1535–1625). Collection of Łańcut Castle Museum, Poland.

Sofonisba Anguissola was one of the most successful women artists of the Renaissance, with a reputation that rose to international acclaim in her lifetime. Born into a noble Milanese family, Anguissola was able to pursue her artistic aspirations with the support of her family, and began her formal training as a teenager; first apprenticing with Bernardino Campi for three years before working with Bernardino Gatti. Her position also allowed for her to become acquainted with Michelangelo, whom she exchanged drawings with. Her early career saw her complete numerous self-portraits as well as portraits of her sisters, including The Game of Chess (1555), which are noted for their realism and liveliness.

Sofonisba Anguissola, The Game of Chess (ca. 1555). Collection of the National Museum in Poznań, Poland.

Anguissola’s reputation as a painter quickly spread, and she was invited to join the court of King Philip II of Spain in Madrid in approximately 1559. Throughout her 14-year tenure there, she completed many official portraits of both members of the royal family and members of the court, adopting the formal and intricate style expected—though unfortunately, no work from this period survived due to a palace fire in the 18th century. Having garnered considerable royal favor, she ultimately spent the remainder of her life continuing to paint as well as teach and engage with young, up-and-coming artists. In 1624, one such young artist by the name of Anthony van Dyck visited Anguissola and recorded his visit in a series of sketches and noted that he learned more about the principles of painting from her than from anything else he had encountered.

Lavinia Fontana (1552–1614)

Lavinia Fontana, Self-portrait at the Spinet with Maid (1577). Collection of the Accademia Nazionale di San Luca, Rome.

Trained by her artist father Prospero Fontana, a teacher at the School of Bologna, Lavinia Fontana is considered the first professional woman artist insofar as she supported herself and her family solely on the income from her commissions. Unconventional for the time, her husband acted as her agent and took a primary role in childcare for their 11 children.  She began her commercial practice in her mid-twenties, creating small devotional paintings, but later began and excelled at creating portraits—and became a favorite of Bolognese noblewomen who vied for her services. Unusual for the period, she also created large-scale mythological or religious paintings that occasionally featured female nudes.

Lavinia Fontana, The Visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon (1599). Collection of the National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin.

In the early years of the 17th century, she was invited to Rome at the invitation of Pope Clement VIII and was soon appointed as an official portraitist at the Vatican, counting Pope Paul V as one of her sitters. Her career success continued to thrive, as evidenced by the numerous honors she received, and the bronze portrait medallion cast in her likeness by sculptor and architect Felice Antonio Casoni. She was also one of the first women elected to the Accademia di San Luca in Rome.

Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–1653)

Artemisia Gentileschi, Self-portrait as a Lute Player (ca. 1615��1618). Collection of the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford.

Unlike many of her predecessors, Artemisia Gentileschi has maintained a level of renown over the centuries, with her dramatic and dynamic oeuvre that was unprecedented in her own time. Her Baroque compositions helped usher in a new era of painting. Today, her paintings draw the attention of global audiences. Born in Rome, her father was the painter Orazio Gentileschi, who trained Artemisia starting at an early age. Inspired greatly by the work of Caravaggio and his use of high-contrast compositions, her paintings garnered and maintained attention for their naturalism and nuance, as they broke from the idealism of generations past.

Artemisia Gentileschi, Judith and Her Maidservant with the Head of Holofernes (ca. 1623–1625). Collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts.

In 1612, Gentileschi relocated to Florence, which is where she first achieved major career success, including securing patronage from the House of Medici and being the first woman to attend the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno. From her oeuvre, Gentileschi has become most well-known for her self-portraits as well as religious scenes, specifically the story of Judith Beheading Holofernes—of which there are at least six known variations she completed. Gentileschi’s tendency to portray women as the protagonists of her works—and as equals to their male counterparts—made her innovative in her time and has subsequently secured her legacy as one of the most influential artists within Western art history—of either sex.

[anastasiaoftheironwood]

The Gwenn A. Nusbaum-WWBA Scholarship For Emerging Poets:

Walt Whitman Birthplace Association (WWBA) invites applications for the Gwenn A. Nusbaum-WWBA Scholarship.  The $1800 scholarship is offered in the spirit of Walt Whitman’s poem, “O Me! O Life!” He writes: “That you are here – that life exists and identity, / That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.”

Applications are sought from those poets at the early stages of their careers, ages 25-35 years.  This scholarship, awarded every year, aims to encourage and assist an emerging poet in their creative poetry writing endeavors.  Their emerging poetry career should be of exceptional artistic quality and should demonstrate a passion for poetry, an awareness of the power of the poem, an originality of perspective and skillful use of expressive language.  They will be expected to produce additional strong work during the scholarship timeline of one year, July 1, 2024 – July 1, 2025.

The application is open January 1 – April 1, 2024.

There is no application fee. 

The winner will be notified May 20, 2024. 

An Award Ceremony will be held as a Zoom and/or at the Walt Whitman Birthplace State Historic Site, the last week in June 2024, date TBA.

The Scholarship is administered by WWBA.  The winner is selected by an independent and diverse panel of three (3) judges who may include, but are not limited to, poets, professors, scholars, writers and WWBA representatives. Past Panelists included Victoria Chang, Cornelius Eady, Juan Filipe Herrera, Jane Hirshfield, Dean Kostos, Molly Peacock, and WWBA representative Trustee Robert Savino. Panelists for 2024 include Kwame Dawes and Dorianne Laux.

[farmingtoncanalfriends]

June 2024 News: Arts & Ideas Bike Rides; Events at the Learning Corridor; "Ride the State" June 22; Shoreline Greenway Trail Walk Part II

Dear Friend of the Farmington Canal Greenway,

We wanted to wish you a happy summertime and provide you with a few important updates:

* Arts & Ideas Festival Farmington Canal Bike Ride, Saturday, June 15, 9am-12pm

Join Elm City Cycling and the International Festival of Arts & Ideas for a bike ride on the Farmington Canal. The ride will be approximately 3 hours and will leave from the New Haven Green at 9am. Helmets and registration are required. Register here.

As part of Arts & Ideas, there will also be a Shoreline Greenway Trail bike ride on June 22 that may be of interest.

* "All Things Pollinators" Event at the Learning Corridor, Saturday, June 15, 10am - 1pm

Join our partner organization Community Placemaking & Engagement Network (CPEN) for a special "All Things Pollinators" celebration at the Urbanscapes Native Plant Nursery, located next to the Trail at the Newhallville Learning Corridor. In addition to the plant sale, there will be numerous exhibitors and workshops and lots of family-friendly activities at the nursery. Rain date is June 16.

* "Ride The State," Saturday, June 22, 2024 -- Only a Few Spaces Left!

This is a great opportunity to ride the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail all the way from New Haven to Massachusetts in a supported group ride setting. It is an amazing way to see the many sides of Connecticut including both historic cities and rural scenery. There will be a shuttle returning riders from Massachusetts to New Haven after the ride is complete. “Ride The State” is always a great experience and a unique way of seeing Connecticut! Register here. (We have some scholarships available for low-income riders -- please contact us if interested in this opportunity.)

* SAVE THE DATE: Preview the Shoreline Greenway Trail Extension into New Haven, Part II of II -- Sunday, August 18, 9:30am-12:30pm

On April 20 we completed Part 1 of our walking preview of the Shoreline Greenway Trail extension in New Haven, following up on the City of New Haven's release of new plans for the trail back in March. Read more about the walk in the New Haven Independent. Part I covered the area between Lighthouse Point and Fort Hale Park, and Part II will cover the section between Fort Hale and Long Wharf. Stay tuned for details on Part II in our next newsletter!

* CT Trail Census - Get Involved with this Awesome Data Project! We are really glad to be participating in the CT Trail Census again this year, as we have since 2017. Participating in this research project provides us really valuable data about trail usage in New Haven and across the state.

Last year our infrared counters showed that there were over 150,000 trips taken on the trail in New Haven, and the trendline continues to go up, up, up! We need help this year with collecting manual count forms that enable us to calibrate our infrared sensors. Please contact us if you are interested in helping out with this fascinating and useful project – we really need help completing some manual counts to make sure our infrared counter is calibrated correctly!

_________________________________________

As always, thank you for your ongoing support. 

New Haven Friends of the Farmington Canal Greenway www.newhavencanalfriends.org

facebook.com/NewHavenCanalFriends

[scholarshipformedicalstudents]

Scholarship for Medical Students, Scholarship Last Date - AIPMST Primary - 2024 Click here

[aimreedtrust]

AIM Educational Request: 2023-2024-004

Name: Vijitha S

Year: 3rd Year (5th Semester)

Course: BSc. Agri

College: Kumaraguru Institute of Agriculture, Erode

Type: Private

Sponsor Type: Part Sponsor

Fee Type: Tution fee & Hostel fee

Total Fee: 1,00,000

Planned Fee: 60,000

Sponsor Received: 60,000

Amount Needed: NIL

Last date: ASAP (delay might cause fine)

Comments: Vijitha has good academic records in 10th and 12th. She is a single parent child. Her mother is a daily worker and managing the family expenses. Her elder sister is discontinued her studies due to financial issues.

We supported her to pay the fees for the last two years. She has performed really well on her academics inspite of being Tamil medium student which brought lot of difficulties to her from the start. She is very strong in studying Agriculture as a first graduate.

Her family managed to pay ₹44,250 for this year and we have requested them to arrange the pending amount. we will plan to contribute based on how much we receive.

We as team fighting a lot to address as many requests as possible to avoid dropouts of the students from college. Many like-minded NGOs and individuals supporting us in this initiative.

We really wanted to support this girl student and being Agriculture is her dream added more encouragement in supporting her. She had chosen this agriculture course by dropping a govt. EEE seat in Karaikudi Azhagappa engineering college where the fees is very less compared to the agriculture seat which she is studying now. Please contribute to support for bright future of her and our society!

To donate: please use AIM’s new Account number from AIMREEDTrust.org/donate or UPI 9489611290@paytm (mention scholarship ID - your name as reference). Once done, please share the screenshot for our reference.

Rajeev and Bathurjaman for #AIMREEDTrust

#Verified

[luckymathur]

SVMCM

The Swami Vivekananda Merit-cum-Means Scholarship (SVMCM) is a flagship scholarship program launched by the Government of West Bengal to support students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds who show academic excellence. Named after the iconic spiritual leader Swami Vivekananda, the SVMCM aims to provide financial assistance to students pursuing undergraduate, postgraduate, and diploma courses across various disciplines. The scholarship is based on both merit and financial need, ensuring that deserving students can continue their education without financial barriers. SVMCM helps foster academic growth, empowers students, and promotes equal opportunities for education across the state.

[aimlayresearch]

Your Guide to MBA Admission 2025: Key Dates and Tips 

The MBA Admission 2025 season is officially here, offering aspiring business leaders an opportunity to transform their careers. With top business schools worldwide opening their doors, competition is fierce, and preparation is crucial. Here’s everything you need to know to navigate the MBA admissions process effectively.

Understanding the Admission Process

MBA programs typically require a combination of academic qualifications, professional experience, and personal achievements. The key steps include:

Eligibility Criteria: Ensure you meet the minimum requirements, such as a bachelor’s degree and relevant work experience. Some schools also mandate a minimum GPA.

Standardized Tests: Most business schools accept GMAT or GRE scores. It’s essential to prepare thoroughly to achieve a competitive score.

Application Components:

Resume: Highlight leadership roles, career achievements, and extracurricular activities.

Essays: Write compelling essays that showcase your career goals, personal values, and how the MBA aligns with your aspirations.

Recommendation Letters: Obtain strong endorsements from supervisors or mentors who can vouch for your potential.

Interviews: Be prepared for in-depth interviews that assess your communication skills, critical thinking, and cultural fit with the program.

Key Deadlines to Watch

Most MBA programs have multiple application rounds, typically spanning from September 2024 to March 2025. Early applications often have advantages, such as higher acceptance rates and scholarship opportunities. Ensure you research deadlines for your target schools and plan accordingly.

Tips for a Successful Application

Research Schools Thoroughly: Identify programs that align with your career objectives and values. Attend virtual info sessions, connect with alumni, and explore curriculum offerings.

Focus on Your Unique Strengths: Highlight what sets you apart, whether it’s your professional background, leadership experience, or personal journey.

Invest in Test Prep: High GMAT or GRE scores can strengthen your application. Consider prep courses or tutors if needed.

Start Early: Begin crafting your essays and gathering recommendation letters well in advance to avoid last-minute stress.

Financing Your MBA

MBA programs can be expensive, but various funding options are available:

Scholarships: Merit-based or need-based scholarships offered by schools.

Loans: Federal and private student loans.

Employer Sponsorships: Some companies offer financial support for employees pursuing MBAs.

Conclusion

MBA Admission 2025 is your gateway to unlocking new career opportunities and enhancing your leadership skills. With early preparation, thorough research, and a strategic approach, you can secure your place in a top-tier program. Start now and take the first step toward a brighter future.