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scarletwritesshit · 10 months ago

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🌿Raiden Shogun (Ei) x Tighnari 🌿 A Guide to the First Flower's Bloom

Inazuma sure has changed drastically since Tighnari last had a chance to visit. No raging storms pummeling the island every other day, no Vision Hunt Decree on patrol, nothing. Just a relatively calm, peaceful region as far as the eye could see, recovering relatively well from the recently concluded war. It was the perfect chance for him to explore the flora and fauna of the region for himself in almost complete peace.

Venturing out into the wilderness first thing upon arrival in the region was a tempting move indeed, but Tighnari was not as familiar with Inazuma the way he was Sumeru. He couldn’t stick every mushroom he found into his mouth for a little taste test, lest he accidentally consumes something extremely poisonous. Some plants were notorious for not being safe to touch, either.

The best place for him to start his research would be seeking out the assistance of an Inazuman field guide from someone who at least had a solid idea of what they were doing. He didn’t need to traverse the depths of the islands to seek out the most talented of biologists, just a simple field guide to better prepare him for the dos and don’ts of the region.

He made his first official stop be Inazuma city, where he figured that it would be his most accessible option for the time being. A little handbook, that’s all he was looking for, but the book vendors on the street felt overran with fiction as far as the eye could see. It felt as if he could find everything but what he was after, from godawful cliché romance novels to teen fantasy books that always attempted to be more unique than the rest. It was indeed a great contrast to Sumeru, which was full of thoroughly researched encyclopedias and reports as far as the eye could see.

He would have to find something eventually. Theres no way that the simplest of practical resources would be hidden away amongst a long-forgotten community of scholars, or something.

As he was picking up the books and wincing at the strange covers and titles of each, his ears picked up the sounds of two women discussing books close nearby. The chattering could lead him to yet another merchant to check out, so he looked up from the books he was observing and looked to see where the chattering originated from.

He blinked his eyes a few times blankly before dropping the book that he was holding in his hand right onto the stack. That long, braided, purple hair was recognizable anywhere, even to an outsider like him. Especially once news of Inazuma’s situation reached outside of the region, there was no mistaking who that was.

He was looking directly at Raiden Shogun, browsing books and giggling like a little girl with shrine maiden Yae Miko.

He stood there in total disbelief. Wasn’t the Shogun defeated at the end of the conflict? He must’ve not heard the entire story, not like it would pertain to him very much as he’s from Sumeru, but it would still seem like a very important fact to note if she were still alive. The two of them did not currently seem to be of any threat, but Tighnari hastily went back to browsing the books in front of him, keeping his ears perked up just in case. All he heard was pure, innocent giggling and light chatter. Not one trace of the booming maniacal laughter that he would expect to hear from the Shogun. It was rather hard for him to refrain from turning back and glancing over just to reassure himself that they weren’t secretly trying to eye him up. Admittedly, he also found them both to be rather gorgeous in person. Even though he only had a look from behind, there was something about their radiance that drew him towards them. Especially Raiden, her deep purple hair more beautiful than any Sumeru Rose that he had ever laid his eyes on. His tail softly wagged every time he gave in and snuck a peek, until he eventually realized it and grabbed his tail to force it to stop moving.

While he was attempting to make himself focus on the books, and only the books, he looked further to the right of the stand and caught the Shogun herself browsing for books out of the corner of his eye. They made eye contact for a moment, and Tighnari froze in both fear and awe. He braced himself for a possible outburst, but the Shogun instead looked away rather awkwardly. Tighnari remained still, careful as to not make any sudden movements, but she didn’t seem too hostile, oddly enough.

"Shogun?" Tighnari said, to break through the awkward silence.

"Ah! Please, it’s just Ei. The Shogun puppet is dealing with matters elsewhere!" she said, a little startled.

Puppet? Elsewhere? Tighnari sure had a lot of catching up to do on recent Inazuma happenings. He perked one of his ears up in further curiosity.

"Forgive me, but I’ve never seen a kitsune with such large ears before!" she said, holding back her excitement.

"Probably because I’m not a kitsune?" he said.

"Do not pay any mind to her, dearie," Yae Miko said, startling Tighnari. "She’s normally far more reserved than this, but it holds true that she cannot resist a fox of any kind."

Ei reached out to touch his ear, though he flicked her hand away with his ear in response. He had enough common sense to not let every pretty lady touch his ear so casually…as much as he would honestly like to in this situation.

"Now now, have you forgotten your manners after all of those years alone?" Yae said, grabbing her by the shoulder and guiding her back from Tighnari.

"Ah! My apologies, it’s…been a while," Ei said.

Tighnari didn’t know what to make of the situation. Inazuma’s two highest ranking leaders having an ever so casual chat with him in the middle of the city. All he was after was a mere field guide for plants, but it seemed like he would need a survival guide for just getting through the day.

"No worries... oh great Shogun," he said with a tinge of sarcasm.

"Please, just Ei."

"Right. So anyways, if you’re really all that mighty, could you at least help me find the book I’m looking for so that I could at least be on my way faster?”

"Oh, absolutely! And please, do not worry about spending time here, Inazuma is quite open and welcome to all!"

Welcome to all? Sure didn’t feel like it with all the weird looks I’m getting.

"If you say so," he said, blinking. "Now, I’m looking for a guide on local flora. Anything to make sure I don’t kill myself eating something that I ideally shouldn’t."

"Well, it would help if you looked at the right stands. Most of the vendors down here sell purely fiction."

She’s not even going to question why I want to taste test the local plants?

He looked once more at the stands around him. Tighnari took a moment to closely read the covers of the books that he could see, and indeed, they were all works of fiction.

"Sorry, Inazuman script is a bit different than Sumeru’s."

"I can teach you!" Ei blurted out, then immediately covering her mouth with her hands.

Tighnari’s ears perked back out of both surprise and embarrassment. Sure, that meant some more time for him to get to know the lovely Ei personally, but was seeking such company with Inazuma’s Archon truly appropriate at this time?

"Goodness, little ol’ Ei seems quite fond of you to be inviting you over so hastily," Yae said with a smirk. Tighnari still was unsure if he should be flattered or fearing for his life, so he stood there attempting to calm his breathing and stop flushing before he became Yae’s next victim of teasing.

"...Can you just help me find a field guide please?" he said, wanting to get things done and over with.

Yae Miko pulled aside Ei and started whispering in her ears. He wasn’t sure what good she thought that would do, considering how he can still very clearly hear them.

"Go on. Show the little fox boy your knowledge of the vendors here. What was his name, again?" Yae said, a bit loud for someone trying to have a conversation in secret.

"I didn’t quite catch it-"

"Dearie! You couldn’t even have bothered to properly exchange names! You’re really a lost cause when it comes to these things."

"What kind of things? What do you even mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean," Yae said, spinning Ei around go face Tighnari. "Now, go ask him his name and show him around Inazuma little."

"I can indeed! What is your name, before I forget to inquire?" Ei said, as Yae looked on giving her a look that just said "you already forgot to."

"It’s Tighnari. And sure, whatever gets me onto the field faster."

Ei didn’t waste a second at Tighnari’s acceptance. She grabbed onto his arm and dragged him further up the city, a little too eager to show him around the different vendors. Behind them, Yae Miko joyfully giggled, and purposefully lagged behind in order to give the two of them space.

“Oh dear, this should be entertaining,” she said to herself.

#fanfic #fanfiction #genshin impact #genshin impact fanfic #raiden shogun #raiden ei #tighnari #tighnari x raiden shogun #tighnari x ei #ei x tighnari #raiden shogun x tighnari #einari

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ladycatland · 4 years ago

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Just remembered I didn't have this rant yet.

Tubbo called Tommy selfish before he exiled him and he was right. But. Tommy's selfishness was justified.

People that are only really joining the smp now probably dont quite get why tommys the "main character"

And while i cant speak for his revolutionary days I know that he gave his disks in exchange for independence. On his own. After already losing a life in the duel.

And from what I know both were his idea! Tommy lost two lives and two disks just to get lmanberg STARTED.

Then he was exiled with wilbur and had to live in hiding. Planning on getting back the country he pretty much sacrificed his most treasured possessions for. Seperated from his best friend. Only wilbur by his side.

He got technoblade involved.

He was there to witness wilbur losing it.

And he tried to talk with Wilbur! Noone ever mentions how he tries to battle against the corruption that grows in wilbur by talking to him. Imitating the way wilbur talks as best as he can.

But hes not quite as good at talking as wilbur and maybe wilbur doesnt even really want to listen to him anyways and it just becomes worse.

And theres pretty much noone there to witness it but technoblade until the festival.

And techno supports the whole corruption thing!

Tommy is pretty much completely isolated, fighting on every front. He fights against manberg, he fights against wilbur (his closest ally even at that point), he fights against dream supporting wilbur.

Then the festival happens and technos "betrayal"

And i was at that point a techno apologist. IF YOU FIND MY POSTS FROM THE FESTIVAL TIME I MADE POSTS LIKE THIS DEFENDING TECHNOBLADE HIGH AND LOW HE DID NOTHING WRONG.

But he also still killed tubbo. And noone but tommy seemed angry about that. So tommy got angry on tubbos behalf and the fucking pit happened and yada yada.

They take back lmanberg and FINALLY. All the selflessness, all the sacrifices he made payed off. He gave so much, he was dealt such a ahit card but he persevered and he did it. He couldve taken the easy way and accepted schlatts offer that one time when schlatt said he could join manberg. But nope, they took back lmanberg and everything was right.

And then techno and wilbur happened.

And every single sacrifice he made was for nothing. Less than bothing actually.

But anyways. Tommy just went through a fckin nightmare, canonically has nightmares about his insane brother and is pretty much fucked.

Everyone is busy with rebuilding and all but now. Now he needs to be selfish. Because hes given a lot and has nothing but trauma to show for it, so before he goes back to serving lmanberg he will be selfish and get his disks back to earn back some of his solid footing. Some ground to stand on. He indulges the stupid ideas he has more as a form of selfcare. And thus accidentally sets Georges house on fire. Not a big deal. Except that dream does make a big deal out of it.

And then the whole pre exile fiasco starts

And people often criticise that he didnt just behave for a few days but honestly? Can you blame him??? The kid has been stuck in a ravine for what mustve been months lorewise! He was as well behaved as Tommyinnit could probably be during that time.

But that chapter shouldve been over by now and he probably didnt have any selfcontrol left and hobestly? Same. You can only be on your best behaviour for so long before you explode. And dream made sure he'd explode too! He sent him whispers that were supposed to rile him up and all. His treatment before and during exile were designed by dream to not be fair in a way that was extremely obvious to him and only him.

And once again his selfishness pre exile was selfcare. It was to better his mental health. To ground him. And dream took that form of selfcare and made it punishable to an apaling degree.

No wonder his mental health plummeted so quickly.

Now dont get me wrong. Selfishness is ok UNTIL you hurt other people with it.

But his offense was minor and dream was the whole reason it spiraled in the way it did

By all means tommy shouldnt even have been punished for it!

It probably was the first time someone actually got officially punished for grieving a house and it was an accident!

Im not 100% sure but i think the days after thr 16th his house was griefed prettyuch daily. Drem himself blew up tnt in it not even an hour after techno left lmanberg! In front of everyone! And noone batted an eye!

Tldr: going after the disks was tommys pretty harmless attempt of selfcare after pogtopia and the 16th and dream took that coping mechanism and made it punishable at the highest decree which is just really fucked up.

#dream smp #analysis #i should stop ranting about blockmen at 5am #but there qre... just so many emotions inside of me...

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poptod · 3 years ago

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The Breeding Kings, pt. 8, (Ahkmenrah x Reader)

Description: Search and creation. In a desperate bid to protect his identity, he convinces you you're not safe in the cities of Egypt, thus assuring you further that your place in life is far away from Egypt––where he was trying to keep you in the first place.

Notes: okay i try to stay as true as i can when it comes to the egyptian language and how hieroglyphs are pronounced but theres so little information on the indus valley. we still dont know how to decode their language but we know the closest language is a form of a modern indian dialect so thats what ive been using hope thats alright WC: 6k

Pounding like a hammer on his cranium brought him back to the land of the living in a dizzy, sickeningly fast whirl. He returned to his body and at once felt the aching of his joints, his throat bereft of water, and the headache reaching from his temple to the base of his spine.

As he blearily opened his eyes, the dryness of them making it rather hard, the pounding of warhammers on his ears continued in clearer and clearer beats. It was then, his hand already covering his eyes from the sun, that he recognized the inside of a bell swinging above him, the massive metal gong sending vibrations throughout his whole body.

"Oh dear Gods," he moaned, the awful sound thrumming everywhere he could feel.

Hazy memories of the night before returned slowly to him, injured only by the continued swaying of the bell above him. After finally filling your stomachs, you drowned yourselves in beer, going from storeroom to storeroom to take whatever they would be willing to give.

"Yogi?" He said in a rough voice.

You let out a long, low whine.

"No talking," you mumbled.

"Oh, you can't stand my talking but you're fine with the bell?"

"Aganu, I can not stand anything right now," you said in the most helpless, exasperated voice that Ahk couldn't help but laugh, even with his head hanging off the edge of the belltower.

His laugh faded away the longer blood was allowed to rush to his head, till he had enough of the pressure and turned onto his stomach. In the very least the bell was not rocking as much as it previously was, swaying instead of swinging back and forth. Below, however, the people had gathered at the foot of white limestone steps that gleamed in the morning sun, their eyes directed to a speaker standing upon those stairs.

Ahkmen squinted, attempting to make out the person's identity.

"-and the decree of the Pharaoh is thusly," they said, their voice faded from the height Ahk sat at.

The moment the words were spoken, Ahk's eyes bulged, his expression dropping from casual humor to dead horror.

"My soldiers have seen my son leave me," they said as they read from the papyrus in their hands.

A hand on his shoulder made him jump, but he relaxed when he saw you, if only for a moment before he was once more petrified by the fear of you discovering him.

"He has gone towards the mouth of Hapi. See my son––the Prince Ahkmen––is not with you. See my son, if he is with you, to me."

"Ahkmen?" You said with a small frown. "Who is Ahkmen?"

"Just some stuck-up Prince," Ahk said quickly.

"Ah, so like you," you said, grinning as you nudged him with your elbow.

"That is... so rude," he said as he only half paid attention, his eyes focused on the crowd below. In a straight voice he continued his teasing with, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to abandon you now."

"You will not make that, you are too full of old beer. You need my potion," you said.

"Maybe so," he grumbled, all too aware of his headache. He looked down, attempting to gauge the tower for an escape. "How.. the hell did we get up here? We must be fifty spans in the air."

"Have you rope?"

"No, I –"

You raise your hand, revealing the rope in it.

"It is on the side, where you forgot it," you chuckled, handing him the long rope. He glared playfully as he took it.

The descent down the perfectly polished walls was, needless to say, interesting, and made less difficult by the removal of your sandals. Ahkmen went first, followed by you, and he immediately took off the moment you landed on the ground. He looked over his shoulder as he turned the corner, spotting one last flash of the scribe calling the name of the missing Prince.

Murmurs of conversations that surrounded him spoke of the same thing––a lost prince, oh how strange!––behind the veils of widows and children who heard the words of the Pharaoh. The ache in his neck worsened as he turned rapidly back and forth, constantly scanning his environment for any surprised faces. Your own, shorter legs barely kept up with his pace, sometimes barely landing back on the ground before you were pulled continuously by Ahk's grasp on your hand.

The edge of the city must've been 5 iteru away––longer than either of them could run in their state. Realizing this, Ahkmen pulled off into alleyways as he had the day before, and hid within the tall, vacant walls.

He panted heavily as the two of you slowed, skidding on the sandy ground before you both fell down in exhaustion. Your chest heaved like his, eyes concentrated on a purely blue sky, as his remained centered on the single exit from the dead end; the only direction you could be approached from.

"Who do we run from?" You finally asked, irritation lacing the knot in your brow.

"Soldiers," he answered instinctively. You had a fear of them––it might subdue your curiosity. "And the town officials. We're a little young to be on our own and I don't want them to falsely accuse us of anything, or put us in any situation where we have to talk to them."

"Uh..." you scanned his composure thoroughly, "okay. I see your fear, but we must think, not run."

"You're right," he said, just barely rising to his feet enough to stumble over to you, kneeling at your side. "You're right. We need to get out of here, but not like this."

"I have one – one potion, of all my potions, in my bag," you said as you looked around, trying to find the packs you'd entered the city with. "The one for the, the – the getting drunk sick, thing in the morning."

"Hangover," he said.

"Etuvaka. Where is my bag?"

"Your what––oh, shit," he went quiet with his last words, grimacing as the blistered memories of last night returned to him in one-scene flashes.

"What?" You whipped round to look at him, a dead panic in your eyes. When he didn't answer, you scooted closer and cried, "what??!"

"We found a loose brick in the street," he said, closing his eyes and leaning back with deep regret in the breath he drew, "and to hide our stuff while we went drinking... we put our bags underneath it."

"Oh shit."

"Verily," he breathed out with a nod.

Several minutes of astonished silence passed before he croaked out, "I had most of our wares in there."

"And my potions," you said, similarly collapsed as he was. "Do you know any else?"

"No, I'm surprised I can remember that we hid our bags at all," he said, running a hand through his unkempt hair.

"And my cat!" You cried.

"Your cat came with us?"

"Yes!! All from Memphis!"

"No, I mean, she came into the city? When did she leave? Or do you even remember?" He said, assaulting you with an onslaught of questions.

"Young, by the wall for the city," you said in almost a whine, leaning against the alley wall.

"Maybe she can help us," Ahk suggested, shifting to sit up straighter with the idea in his head.

"She can not speak Egyptian, dumb head!" You scolded.

"But she doesn't have any eyes," Ahk said, and you opened your mouth to explain that isn't exactly pertinent when he continued with, "so her nose might be much stronger. I hear that when you lose one of your senses, the others grow stronger."

You seemed, at best, dubious of his claims, but spoke after a moment of contemplative silence.

"Okay. But we must to find her, then the bags," you said slowly.

"Absolutely, of course," he said with a nod. "Does she answer to her name?"

You looked to him with a flat expression.

"Does any cat?" You asked.

"Fair point."

"We must have a - a.. a pot, and I will make her food. I need.. fish," you began to count the ingredients on your fingers, "fish head, oil, skin of the goose, and milk."

"That sounds disgusting," Ahk admitted honestly.

"It is. And it is good we will not eaten it."

The most difficult part of your plan ended up being the very first step––finding a place in which to mix all these horrid smelling ingredients. Neither of you owned anything in the city, and staying out of the public eye led Ahk to sacrifice several different ideas, landing you with a final resort.

It was already midday by the time you stood outside one of the city's temple's baking kitchens, the heat of the sun blocked by tarps of orange and yellow swinging from rooftop to rooftop. Already the scent of searing meat and baking pastries filled the air, wandering through little chains of markets all throughout the city, and leading you to one of the biggest kitchens you'd seen. They would not remark upon the absence of one pot, would they?

"There's a way in, back there," Ahk whispered to you, the both of you peering over empty crates. "It's just a tent so we can flip it and get inside."

"And who will we get?"

"Whichever one is closest, I presume," he said, offering no more advice before he ducked out of the hiding spot, heading discreetly across the street.

You followed in a stumble, taken surprise by his sudden movements. When you caught up with him, you knelt to hide behind the same abandoned cart, once more checking the positions of cooks and cleaners occupying the bakery. Most people were sitting at the side of a tall fountain, enjoying the midday break for food.

He left, this time signalling for you to follow him. Without pause you did, crouching down to sneak beneath the tent flaps and into the kitchen, where you were faced with a cauldron half your height. Before either of you could exchange words, you were both grasping the handles, hauling it off the small fire and out towards the space behind the tent. Another makeshift alleyway.

"Do we have to heat it?" Ahk asked, peering into the heavy bowl.

"No, it is not a good for the nose. Borrow the fish, in there." You pointed to the tent. "I will get milk."

The wretched scent stewing below you bathed your face in its' fumes, but remained nothing more than a hint of your actions to anyone further from the pot. Ahkmen had been holding his nose manually the entire time, his voice nasally, which didn't help when you laughed and drew in breaths that tasted of fish milk.

"We're going to have to pour this in the street, aren't we," Ahk said, one hand pinching his nose and the other on his hip.

"Yes, and we can not... soldiers, can not see us," you said, glancing between him and the pot.

"Right. Drop and dip."

"... okay."

Oil was eventually hard enough to find that you forwent the ingredient, leaving you with milk, goose skin, and fish head mixed up till it all softened. The look of it alone made Ahk queasy, and if he ever attempted to breathe too deeply, he lurched with sickness, clutching his stomach. You just laughed.

"Not good, is it?" You said with a toothy grin.

"How many times have you made this shit?" He asked, his face pale as he leaned against the nearest solid wall.

"I make it... not much, and it is smaller many times, so... I am.. dear God, this smells," you grumbled.

"Just get this over with."

The two of you lugged the heavy cauldron out of the alley, shuffling past the temple to dump the product of your work. Your head pounded as you strained, dry and hungry, till you managed to toss the pot out into the crowded streets.

The reaction was instant. Questions and groans rippled through the people who split as the white mixture flooded down the road. More shouts and exclamations followed when the scent truly set in, wafting from the milk already baking in the hot sun. Ahk turned to you to find you laughing, stumbling back as you hid your grinning mouth.

"What's so funny?" He asked, but he was already chuckling with you.

"You rich people," you said as you pointed to a couple fleeing hand in hand, their silken white robes lined with rotten milk. "It is funny to see you run, and scream."

"Alright, you've gotten your kicks. Where's your cat?"

"Quiet. She comes soon."

From the many different streets coalescing into the center outside the temple, cats came, some hairless like yours and others furry and large. They gathered at the spill, sniffing curiously at the strange mixture before ultimately licking away at it.

"You know, I didn't actually expect them to like it," Ahk said above you, both of you peering out from behind the kitchen tent.

"You do not trust me?"

"It's not that," he said with a frown that disappeared at your chuckling. "I just.. it's astounding anything can stand that close to it."

"We did."

"Shut up, Yogi."

It took a little while, but by the time soldiers discovered the debacle, you and Ahk were chasing Sephys down another, smaller street. Her missing eyes were of no consequence as she darted between boxes and legs, jumping over a small mouse who cowered near the wall. Ahkmen's heart was already racing from the proximity to royal guards, doubled by his chasing feet, following after you following a blind cat.

Sephys' luck ended as she ran into a man's legs, bonking her head and fluttering back with an unsteady tail. You knelt, swooping her up to coo and pet her head, cradling her like a baby in your arms.

"Uh, sorry," Ahk apologized quickly to the man Sephys had run into. He glared but said nothing, continuing to lug crates of vegetables out of a nearby doorway.

Ahkmen jogged back over to you, looking over your shoulder at the cat.

"Do you think she'll be able to find it?" He asked.

"What?" You looked up at him, flinching away when you found how close he was to you.

"Our bags."

"Oh! Yes, yes. Sephys," you held her at eye level, her gangly limbs stuck straight down, "we must to find my potions. My bag."

She looked blankly to the side of your face. Her nose twitched.

"Good," you said before dropping her.

She trotted off with hunched shoulders, her thin body jumbling her steps. You ran after her, motioning Ahk along when he didn't immediately follow you. He sighed but obeyed, winding back through the streets to the spill, where Ahk attempted his best at hiding his face as he ran by. Fortunately you were only there for a split second before you running off down another street, following the light-footed Sephys.

When she stopped, she pawed at the ground, sniffing the dust that had blown over. You slowed to a halt, kneeling down beside her.

"Atu inke irukirata, Sephys?" You asked as you caught your breath.

"Did we find it?"

"I think, yes," you said, gently pushing Sephys aside and digging your short nails into the loose brick of the street. Ahk knelt at your side and aided you in moving the rock.

Soon, the brick was raised enough for you to pull it out the rest of the way, revealing a pocket within the earth containing leather and fabrics reminiscent of both yours and Ahk's packs. Both of you exclaimed, looking to one another with big grins that devolved into laughter.

"We did it!" He said, pulling the bags out of the tiny hole. He handed you yours.

"We are smart, we know," you said with a sly wink, tapping your temple. "And cat knows."

"Right," he chuckled as he moved to his feet. "Shall we?"

"What we?"

"Uh... never-mind. We should go soon. The guards are nearby."

"I know."

Sephys was the first to jump into the stranded boat, followed by you and then your collective bags. Ahkmen stayed on solid ground to push the canoe back into the water, jumping in as it floated away, and grabbing the oar to resume your travels.

Without the canals of streets that trapped sunlight in alleys and beneath tarps, the cool wind could distract you from the burning sun. Your fingertips returned to grace the water in shallow strokes, breathing slower, and basking in the stillness that could not exist within cities. While you relaxed in the boat's bottom, Ahk remained on his feet and rowed you onwards.

"We have bread, magic, and good friends," you said, a long sigh leaving you as your head tilted back. "We are cakes."

"We're what?"

"You know. He is the... the head, of Egypt," you said.

"Ohh, you mean Kings."

"Etuvaka." Your head fell back down onto the floor of the canoe.

You set off in the afternoon, leaving you little time to travel before the nighttime would set you away. Much deserved sleep was collapsed into, your blankets splayed across the nearest flat, dry surface. The boat was just barely pulled onto the shore, but the thought never crossed his mind as his eyes fluttered open to see you facing him. Already you were dozing, anywhere from a second to a minute from deep sleep.

"Yogasundari?" He asked softly.

"Mm," you breathed out.

"I don't think we should stop at any more Egyptian cities," he said, his voice cracking.

You shifted slowly to your side before you spoke, just barely opening your eyes.

"Why?"

"It was a close call with those soldiers," he said, scanning you for any hint of emotion beyond tired. "I don't want to lose you so soon."

"We have made okay with more.. scary people, and.. more danger. Soldiers are little to me," you mumbled, eyes fluttering shut as you finished.

No, you're little to soldiers, he thought, but said nothing, and relaxed back into the blankets.

"I hope you're right," he said.

Breakfast consisted of bread and what little you could find along this stretch of the Nile. Ahk managed to spear a fish with a sharp stick, but neither of you could manage to eat much after yesterday's snafu. The fish ended up being eaten mostly by Sephys, who purred happily at your discomfort, playing with the bones of her prey. You and Ahk watched in mild disdain.

By midday you were back to burning in the sun, lamenting the lack of shade present in the middle of a kilometer wide river. Despite your discomfort, you continued to wear your longer robes, insisting they helped in keeping the sun off. Ahkmen took a different approach and removed most of his clothes, to your humored surprise.

"Any time you can take off it, you do," you said, laughing as you threw your head back behind loose shoulders. "Bad little boy."

He had to slap a hand over his mouth to stop himself from yelling––well, that or laughing. He couldn't quite tell what was bubbling in his stomach but it seared your name onto his heart. You could make him curl up and die in a single sentence, something Ahk was used to being, not receiving.

The signs of civilization appeared much earlier than they had when arriving in Heliopolis, beginning with trading and passenger ships passing the two of you by. Ahk always looked away. His uneven breathing gave way to anticipation, waiting for the appearance of the city, where his attention would constantly be heightened to perceive every person around him.

It was a cold return to royalty––the state of constant awareness, keeping your posture straight, your gaze steely, your brow firm but not stern. After days spent with you, it was already an alien stature to his body.

He squinted through the bright sun to the distant walls, remarking upon little else besides the pure white of the stone. Tanis was an unremarkable place known only for being a city at the mouth of the Nile river. That made it a trading port, but few people actually lived in Tanis, and much of the population was made up of travellers and traders who never stayed more than a week, or three months at most.

"There it is," he said, raising his hand to shield his eyes from the sun's glare.

"The next city?" You asked as you moved to your feet.

Wind pushed you about as you moved, nearly rocking you over on the gentle boat. Ahkmen was forced to grasp the oar with both hands, steering you through the choppy, foaming waves.

"Tanis," he said. Technically a safer city to be than Heliopolis, but still ruled prominently by the generals of Egypt. "It's a, um.. a military town. Lots of soldiers and such."

He bit his tongue as though it served as a punishment for his little lies. It was for your benefit, right?

"Oh," you said, drawing your knees to your chest. "Are they mad to me?"

"Not... particularly," he said, hesitating after noting your shrunken posture. "Foreigners aren't treated too badly here, since there's a lot of merchants. It's just... you were taken by the Pharaoh's men. What if they're looking for you? I mean, I don't know that they are, but I'm just worried. Do you understand that?"

"You are so scared of me being hurt –"

"For the night," he interrupted you. "Stay outside the city for tonight. Tomorrow we'll need to get camels... start off into the east. You can come then."

You frowned but curled back into yourself.

"Okay," you said.

Early evening settled itself in the skies around you when you reached the city, stopping off on the opposite side of the shore to ensure your 'safety'. Ahkmen's muscles strained, already aching from the multiple efforts to pull the canoe safely onto shore. This time he only pulled it halfway up, leaving it to help you set up a tent for the evening, hidden in a grove of date trees and vines.

"I won't be gone for long. I promise. I'll bring back some actually good food, um... beer, of course," you grinned at that, and he couldn't stop his own smile, "maybe a tarp."

"A tarp?"

"For shade, when we stop for breaks. I think it'll be good if we're going to be travelling by land, we'll be wanting to stop quite often, I think."

"Okay," you said with a nod. "I will see to find maybe things for my potions."

"Perfect. Do you have a sword? Or, a dagger?"

"Yes," you chuckled.

"Alright. I'll see you soon."

Time passed achingly slow without Ahk, sharing the company of no one but your cat. That had been your life for a time, but things were different now, and you had gotten accustomed to his company.

Sephys followed you as you roamed about the trees and bushes, looking for any plant of specific necessity. The ingredients of your potions ranged anywhere from common fruit to materials so rare many didn't believe in their existence.

What Ahk had yet to find out were the uses of your potions––not so much practical as they were fantastical. The hangover cure was the most useful, but given the right ingredients and the right amount of time, you could also fashion mixtures that allowed you to hear the Gods' and Goddesses' words, or to see the stars and know your direction even in daylight. Considering the sun was still a thing, the latter wasn't one you made often.

Flowers played an integral part in a few of your brews, though the role was usually outshone by other, more exotic ingredients. Roses could be used to enhance your lusting potion, as well as the Commander spell and the To Shadows mix. Blue lotus lillies that grew within the Nile had a magic all their own.

You settled down on the riverbank, pausing in a space between overgrown bushes that led straight to the shore. Mud and sand crawled up from the softly rippling waves, carrying rocks and tiny fish that Sephys batted at, blindly attempting to use her dull claws.

"Stop that," you said, hitting her gently on the head after she splashed you.

Lily pads, their roots and stems towering off the river's floor, slowed the already feeble current passing by your side of the shore. There were few flowers among them, and the moss that surrounded them were a more vibrant green than the pads, but you still traced your fingers over the tops as though you would walk across them. Someday, perhaps; out of all the incredulous things you had encountered in your time, giant lily pads didn't seemed quite a normal thing in comparison.

Reaching for one of the purple flowers, you began to pull, attempting to uproot the vine that grounded it. In the end you twisted the stem till it thinned and broke, allowing you to free the lotus. You spun it round on your fingers, entranced in the symmetry of the petals, till you tucked it aside and reached for another flower.

Altogether you spotted four blue lotus flowers, each boasting vibrant purple and pollen as yellow as the sun. The true properties of the blue lotus were subject to your active imagination, as they appeared to boost one's connection to the divine, as well as intensifying both romantic and lust-filled thoughts that hid in the corners of the drinker's mind. Commonly it was brewed into tea used for Egyptian ceremonies––you made syrup out of it, or boiled it into potions that altogether cancelled out the sugarpea-like taste of blue lotus.

You decided to leave two of the flowers as they were, and left with two of your own. Sephys followed you as you stood from the shore, returning inland into the groves of trees, to where Ahk had originally left you and your bags. There you knelt in the dirt again, setting one flower aside and crushing up the other with a mortar and pestle. Occasionally you dripped a few strands of honey from your glass bottle into the mixture, allowing the petals and the pollen to mix easier, into yellow-ish paste that would last as long as you boiled it and kept it bottled up. With that, you set up the fire, allowing it to bubble before you slowly poured the mixture into an empty bottle, and corking it up once you were satisfied.

"Wonderful. Now I'll never use it," you said to yourself, cheerfully, and in your own native language.

Sephys sniffed the mortar in which you had ground up the flower, licking when she realized there were traces of honey inside. You didn't bother to stop her––if she wanted to get sick, she could, and if she wanted to get high, she could do that as well.

The other flower you set out to dry in the spotted sun shining through palm leaves, and left it alone to return to the river. It was there you remained until evening, watching ships stop and leave on the opposite shore, stopping by the city Ahk found himself lost in. Worry did occur to you, though you had little time to dwell on it before a small canoe was making its' way back across the river.

By then the sun had lowered to a point in the crystal-clear sky that rays of gold and red reflected off the water's surface, bouncing back in shimmering waves. The rowing of an oar within water marked Ahk's return, and you waited patiently at the edge of the river, watching as he made his way back with a grin that lit up the moment he saw you.

He splashed as he jumped out of the boat, hauling it onto shore before wrapping you up in a tight––and very wet––hug.

"Look at you!" He said as he pulled away, his hands on your shoulders and his eyes on yours. "You're still alive!"

"You are mean, Aganu," you said, grinning as you stared up at him with that same starstruck look.

"You're right up there with my mother on that belief. I've gotten what we need, but I also brought something for you," he said, motioning you over to the beached canoe.

You followed him, looking over his shoulder as he rifled through the bags and protective fabrics tossed into the raft's bottom. First he pulled out a clay jug, which he set down gently beside him, before returning to pull out a large, orange tarp.

"Garish, but... only color they had," he said, handing it to you. You took it with mild confusion.

After several cases of food, he drew a lute, handing it to you with great care to notice your reaction. Your mouth fell open part way, eyes widening as you twirled it around in your hands.

"This is... money," you said slowly, your brow furrowing as you traced the thin strings.

"It did cost a little, but I'm sure we'll get plenty of use out of it," he assured you.

"You can.." you motioned strumming it, but were reluctant to touch the strings, "do the, uh... music?"

"No," he said, his face falling into a slight grimace. "No, not really. I mean, I can make it make sound, but whether or not those sounds are good are, well, um.. up to the listener. I was thinking you could play it. It seems like something..." he sucked in a breath, "... you'd like."

"You will do the words," you said, suddenly energized as you took his hand, dragging you over to the little fire you'd made hours ago. "I do the music."

"You want me to sing?" He asked with a soft chuckle.

"Yes!" You nodded ardently.

You pulled him with you as you sat down, your legs stretched out across the blanket you'd set out earlier. He followed, crossing his own legs as he watched you fiddle with the position of the instrument, accustoming your arms to the feel of its' weight.

When you at last plucked a string, a single, high note hummed throughout the grove of trees, silencing the bugs and birds that inhabited the riverside. You looked up, glancing around at the sudden quiet. Your eyes fell to Ahk, who nodded with a smile, gently encouraging you.

A finger on the fret board and the tone changed, growing higher in a pentatonic that appeared to clash without the other notes making up the hymnal. So you slid up further, creating a minor tune that still thrummed in the lute's echo chamber. You breathed in shakily, hoping to calm yourself before you continued.

Ahkmen, sensing your nervousness, decided to stand and gather fallen twigs and branches for the fire to lessen the stress of an audience. His absence allowed your shoulders to release from their tightened state. With that, you stroked all three strings in a swoop of your thumb, discordant but not unpleasant in its' reverb. Different positions on the wooden board brought about different notes, sliding up and down in crescendos that sounded not unlike the instruments of elders played by the side of the road. A single string worked better for you--at least for now--than attempting to use all three, especially at the same time.

A string twanged when you accidentally pulled the string to the side, and you flinched, looking up to Ahk with a worried look. He didn't seem to mind, so you continued.

He began to hum as he returned to your side, tossing in the smaller twigs to restart the embers of the fire. You tried to ignore him until you realized he was singing in harmony, no words in the tune, but twisting around your lute like vines overgrown with roses.

A burst of fire sprouted from the stone circle, reaching up higher than you stood on your feet. Ahkmen jumped back with a yelp, covering his face automatically with his hands, though he landed back with no more injury than a bruise on his bottom. Your mouth fell open and you dropped the lute, rushing over to his side.

"You are good?" You asked in a frantic voice, your shaking hands hovering above him.

He clasped his head, groaning as he sat up.

"I'm alright," he assured you, patting your knelt thigh. He started to chuckle, "I'm just sort of stupid."

"No, no," you said, but could offer little comfort besides that.

That alone made him snort, his head falling back down to the ground as he laughed. You giggled with him, your shoulders shaking as you covered your mouth, hiding your smile from view.

As you both calmed, he asked something that had been on his mind for a good while.

"Why do you cover your smile whenever you laugh?" He asked in a soft voice, one that demanded no answer.

You paused, your lips parting as your posture straightened.

"I... I do not know," you said, looking away. "It is.. something to... I do not want soldiers to see me smile. They think I am.. 'up to something'."

"Why would they think that?" He asked with a frown.

"I think it is my home, my clothes," you said.

"Where you're from," he mumbled, sighing as he shut his eyes. "I've never liked those damn soldiers. The only people who want to be my father's soldiers are the ones who will abuse the power, and those who abuse power are not good people."

"What do you say?" You asked, furrowing your brow.

"You've probably already realized this, but there's quite a lot of nationalism in Egypt. A lot of my people don't like foreigners," he explained. "It's a crude and primitive frame of thought. I'm sorry."

"It is not for you, to say sorry for," you said, meeting his eye as he turned to you, still lying flat on his back.

"I know," he grunted as he sat up.

But I am the Prince. Can I claim that?

"Here, though, there is nothing but us," he said.

He scooted closer to you, resting his palms on your knees.

"You don't need to do that anymore," he said. "I want to see you smile."

"I do not -"

His fingers crawled like spiders up your shirt, teasing your sensitive stomach with light brushes that brought you far too easily into cackling. You fell back, your hands subconsciously coming up to cover your mouth, much to his disappointment and amusement. He reached up, pinning your hands above you with one arm while the other continued to tickle up from your waist and onto your chest as you laughed helplessly.

You continued to writhe in his grasp, your smile wide and blushing as he sat on your hips, pinning you further to the ground. Your legs kicked against the floor, sometimes budging against Ahk's back. Ahk continued to grin at your laughing stupor.

"Stop! Stop!" You cried through the laughter, attempting to wriggle out of the hands pinning you down.

Tears blurred into the edges of your eyes and he finally ceased, leaning back with cheeks aching from his smile.

"And I'll do it again if you don't stop covering yourself up like that," he said, ever so slightly leaning in closer, till he hung over you like the sky.

Nothing but silence from you––the words couldn't form in your head or on your tongue, so you simply nodded, eyes flickering across his features. He fell into a similar silence, scanning your near vacant expression. Close enough to feel your breath.

Your gaze drifted upwards. A halo of stars glowing around him. Above you, pinning you down, as he had weeks or months ago––sneaking you across a river turned into sneaking you down a river, painted stars became the heavens, speaking of your laughter rather than the Gods and their stories. But your eyes remained the same, staring into one another, puzzled by your hesitance to part.

"We must sleep," you said softly, making no move to get up.

"Yeah," he said, and he appeared to be just as reluctant to move.

The fire crackled beside you, now burning through larger branches and leaves that emitted smoke high into the starlit sky. Dancing flames illuminated the dips and rises of his face, the long eyelashes surrounding cold, grey irises, and the curls of his growing hair nearly overtaking his eyes.

You dared not breathe.

#ahkmenrah x reader #Ahkmenrah #Night at the Museum #rami malek #rami malek character #ahkmenrah x male reader #ahkmenrah x female reader

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sarcasrnspasrn · 7 years ago

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with all this talk about rudolph im going to talk about santa claus is coming to town and the beautiful mess it is, welcome to my ted talk

so i havent watched this special in a year so this is me relying on my memory but here’s some of my favorite parts

frank sinatra is telling us the story

he straight up opens kids’ mail to santa to help set the stage, like its not an invasion of privacy or anything, like jeez dude

how kris gets to the kringles in the first place is wild... the baby is given to the “burger meister meister burger” but he says “nah” so tryna bring him to the orphanage but the guy just freakin... loses the sled and then the animals somehow get him to the kringles... wild

the kringlesreally like making toys but the problem is they cant get the toys over the mountain to the village... but they keep making toys. you just see this huge pile of toys sitting outside their house at one point and at this point kris was like a pre-teen. like how many toys did they have by the time he finally went to the village?

“i’m a man now, tonta”

the "if you sit in my lap today” song is very weird and kinda creepy

burger meister meister burger is so obviously designed to make you hate germans with all the stereotypes its ridiculous

at the end of his official decree banning toys it says “no kidding”

he banned toys because he hurt his leg from stepping on a toy soldier’s bayonette or something

even after being kicked out once kris keeps going back to deliver toys

his eyes go really wide and are like completely blue and its terrifying

the song “one foot in front of the other” is pretty ridiculous

he manages to befriend the winter warlock

the evil winter warlock who’s been terrorizing the mountain for years

by giving him

a freaking

“choo choo” train

another scene features far too many teeth in kris’ mouth and its horrifying

kris said he’d save the burger meister a bright red yoyo but gives him a blue one

kris’ penguin friend topper is dumb and i think we forget about him halfway through

jessica completely falls in love with kris for some reason

the song where she sings about it looks like an acid trip

toys are outlawed and kris keeps bringing them but not only that the kids keep playing with them out in the open like how stupid can you get

the kringles and the mr. winter eventually get arrested but the cops just ignore jessica even tho shes right there

she later moseys straight on over to their jail cells like its no big deal like what security?

she talks to the winter warlock and all he has that’s of use is magic feed corn that can make reindeer fly

so she uses it

and they fly away on the reindeer

they never explain how they get out of the cells like theyre just flying away

the kid saying their names mispronounces blitzen as “blister”

when listing of the reindeer they mention rudolph as a shoutout to their other special

but the inconsistencies are enormous and the specials cant possibly connect, like santa and mrs claus look different, its a whole bunch of elves versus 8 kringles (and mama kringle), etc etc

when theyre on the run theres wanted posters

but kris says theyll never recognize him now

because he grew a beard

he starts laughing maniacally about it

jessica probably just realized she made a mistake running away with him

they get married on december 24 and jessica pulls a present out of her butt

kris used to make a lot of trips but had to limit them to one day due to overwhelming demand

so what day does he choose?

thats right

his fuckin’ anniversary

thats gonna make your wife happy

also jessica really lets herself go by the end like the body type doesnt even remotely match

frank sinatra starts driving to the north pole i guess at the end of the special and a bunch of the animals and... the winter warlock??? all jump on his mailmobile like... rude

a bunch of idiot kids near the end are marching along right in front of the mailmobile like that’s so dangerous

god i love this special 11/10 it gets better with age

#ylimespam #txt #santa claus is coming to town #s/o to the elf practice meme for convincing me to post about hte beautiful mess #i could also go on about the rudolph one - has a little less but its there #the mistakes i meawn #fuck #christmas

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trpg-dingusmaster · 8 years ago

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The plot was actually furthered! And a new character joins the party.

I missed a few sessions, not sure how many. Time isnt real.

anyway. a week or so ago, maybe two? The dm for the evening was running 90lbs FineCoal, though nobody knows I call it that.

a few things happened since I was there for this campaign.

- the new guy in the group (who I met during Bassun on the Sea) is playing a gnome pyrotechnic in this game

- the gang/faction we are most at odds with blew up a children’s hospital in what I assume was retaliation for liberating their sweatshop and stealing the rights to the land it was on but I’m not sure.

-new things were added to our base of operations but none of those were new bedrooms or a kitchen upgrade so its still cramped and weird like theres like 6-9 people living there but only 2 bedrooms? I assume this is what my character was doing while I was gone.

this session, as we went into town to restock things and sell stuff we noticed a new faction running around putting up fliers and standing on corners looking official while giving an announcement.

“By the decree of the Templars in one week all citizens will be reporting for a mandatory community meeting. We will be patrolling the streets until then to be certain that everyone attends and that no trouble is caused. Nonattendance is punishable by law.”

we did some investigating on who these people are and found out that they’re pretty basically the military police? they are I think supposed to answer only to the highest authorities but its possible they may not be in full cooperation but maybe thats just me thinking too far ahead. They may also have, or at least at one time had, some kind of agreement with the gang the party is against the most. Rumors say they are probably the reason magic no longer exists in the walled up nation.

time passes and we head to the meeting, the gnome is dressed up and disguised to look more like a child in hopes he’d be able to sneak around and investigate further. Hugo supplies him with some booze, coal, and sawdust/wood scrap to assist in any explodey shenanigans he might need to get up to.

He is however captured, somehow they know right away that he was in disguise. Based on how the dm described the encounter its not clear if its because of the rolls the gnome and healer made to craft the disguise OR if they had some other means, perhaps some magical means, to see through the disguise.

they load him up in an armored wagon to pick up other stragglers to the meeting and he gets a view of just how numerous and well armed the templars are. the gnome, wanting to stall some of them from being at the meeting or maybe bringing them to a trap says that he knows of a factory where the children are still working and are being withheld from the meeting. The templars say theres no time but would like to go there later and arrest the factory workers or something so he did the only reasonable thing and set the wagon on fire from the inside, eventually the wagon stopped and the doors were opened and he weaseled away to rejoin the party at the meeting.

mean while the oh so important address the templars wanted to give was a strange one.

-several books are now banned possession and reading of these books is punishable to the full extent of the law. some of these books were: the complete writing of alexander graham bell, the notes and diaries of nikola tesla, the legions, the crystal eye, history books from this year to this year, historical writings from these authors,

-all crystals, precious, and semi precious gems are now outlawed, ownership and use of any is punishable to the full extent of the law

-immediate search and seizure would begin, no back aly, mine, sewer, or forest would go unchecked

this was an odd because most of the citizens and even the players themselves are unable to read in the first place and are much too poor to own any crystals or gems.

never the less how dare they and Hugo threw a bottle at the speaker. the gnome caught the tail end of this and he, the healer, and the healers sibling set to starting a riot. claiming that these new regulations were going to raise taxes and the seizure of the gems was literal out right theft from people too poor to probably have any of worth anyway, it would disrupt businesses and the searching would be more like ransacking and vandalism.

hugo, the one handed girl, jamie, and the gnome then head off to the library once the riot seems to be getting going and the templars were all distracted. the healer- wearing a stolen high ranking gang uniform meets up with some lower ranking members if that gang and convinces them that increased templar activity would mean without a doubt a crack down on their criminal activity. Sooner or later whatever hold the street gangs have over the people would no longer suit the forces that allowed them to gain so much power. these people spread that word. the people are in a full on frenzy now.

Its also worth noting that a particular new npc was pointed out to us more than once during all of this: a very burly bald and beardless man well over seven feet tall but has otherwise only human features.

the group at the library find several books to steal but not quite enough and certainly not all the right ones. with further searching a secret door doubling as a book self hiding a spiral stair case is found and the one handed girl- being the one who can read the best of the lot is sent down to investigate. the rest stay upstairs waiting to hear her scream for help and to defend their position. the one handed girl finds several more books that the templars had listed as illegal but ALSO one that had a solid black binding and hundreds of blank black pages. upon picking it up she feels a powerful connection to it.

several templars enter the library and a fight begins, but it is quickly ended by the new oddly specific but unnamed npc. the group escapes, calling bruce the cabby to gather the party, drop three of members, healer, healers sibling and gnome head to the ruins hospital to loot. since there would be no one around to stop them what with the mayhem and murder happening. on the way the healers sibling witnesses and exchange between a templar and a higher ranking gang member, an exchange that suggested if the the two factions had any sort of agreement it was probably over/off the table now... but another interpretation could be: shut mouth don’t talk about that where someone could hear/see you. we don’t know yet.

heres where I got confused because the prty split up, at some point during the looting the healer found a strage door that the bombing had uncovered? or made easier to access because it wasnt hidden anymore? with the gnomes help they enter leaving the sibling to continue to loot. there was a long tunnel? and then a strange chamber with strange device that when described was probably a tesla coil. There was also an unusually large person guarding the room about 8 feet tall and very burly. there was also a book in there. I’m pretty sure he was guarding the book, which I assume was the writings of tesla based on context. they gnome and healer question the guardian trying to figure out what he was and why he was there. for some reason a fight begins? the tesla coil is part of some kind of trap system that does some clever stuff but I didn’t catch it. the two kill him and loot his body we didn’t get a description of his face i’m pretty sure it was too messed up from the fight? or maybe I just missed it, but I cant help but wonder if he too was bald and beardless?

when the group that headed to the cabin arrived, the one handed girl had begun investigating the books and discovered a note: unfortunately the note was a prop and the only one who could actually read all of the dms handwriting was me but HUGO cant read for shit, I’m not even sure he knew what books were until that day. but I don’t think the bits I picked out that others couldnt read were that important.

what it amounted to seemed to be that, something happened and it might happen again and they- the templars we assume -could not let that happen. I’m pretty sure I read a bit that said like- ‘we cannot allow ‘them’ to rise again,” but I wont know if that particular bit is important until the rest of the books are examined but even if it is I think think the group will be fine.

there was also a very old bank note worth over 200 coppers but probably needs to be appraised, at least to figure out how old those books are/how long they were in that secret room? idk but I’m sure theres something important there... surely its not just because the dm is concerned the party will starve to death in winter and thought to give us extra money to survive with.

the three who went to the hospital got back to the cabin, I’m pretty sure they stole a wagon.

the plan is, to examine the books a bit, then wrap them in leather and seal the leather in wax to bury them where we will be building something, then also having some decoy holes dug/filled in? and if a templar is like wtf is all this- we explain that were in the middle of construction or something and thats where we’re building stuff?

but I sort of suspect that have some magical or supernatural means of detecting things? so it might not matter... but if winters coming we probably need to have some weapons and defenses anyway because hungry wildlife is an issue we’ve been told.

the only book not getting buried is the black one- that is staying with the one handed girl. to what end? I’m sure we’ll find out.

Hugo is down to 44lbs FineCoal- the cabby requested payment in furs and meat instead of coal and copper this time around.

the ruffian, the noble, and the nobles guard were not present again, I’m pretty sure they just don’t like showing up to these campaigns with the weird rules.

#90lbs FineCoal #huntsman josiah hugo

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viralhottopics · 8 years ago

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Baltimore mother seeks justice years after son was killed by police

Years before Black Lives Matter, cases like Kevin Coopers vanished into obscurity now theres hope for police reform, if it can survive the Trump administration

Greta Carter-Willis has spent a lot of time praying, crying and thinking at the threshold between the kitchen and dining room of her south-west Baltimore home.

It was at that spot, nearly eleven years ago that a Baltimore City police officer, barely a year out of the academy, shot and killed her 14-year-old son Kevin Cooper.

His body was laying right there, she said, gesturing. We can make little changes, paint, take the carpet up, but it still remains the same. I have to live with that mental vision in my mind all my life This is my home, I cant just up and move.

It was the sense of pain and injustice around that incident that brought Carter-Willis to the Baltimore federal courthouse on Thursday, to speak in favor of the agreement negotiated between the city, its police force, and the Department of Justice in the wake of the Freddie Gray case. The future of the agreement to reform the citys policing, known as a consent decree, was thrown into uncertainty Monday after attorney general Jeff Sessions released a memo asking to halt its implementation against the wishes of the city mayor, police commissioner and general public.

Despite a cold, driving rain, dozens of residents lined up for their three minutes to address the federal judge in the case and implore him not to delay the agreement, as the Trump administration requested earlier this week. Speakers represented faith groups, high school students, non-profits, law-enforcement and like Carter-Willis, mothers of those killed by police. And despite their disparate backgrounds, the overarching position of the city was clear: Justice delayed is justice denied, as more than one speaker quoted from the Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr.

It was a must that I push my way down to that courthouse and let that federal judge know, please do not hold this consent decree, Carter-Willis told the Guardian. Its too late for my son, but it will help somebody elses child and it will make it better for the next generation and its a right step for this department. Its a right step for this city to have them be accountable to another agency. Because as long as theyre policing themselves, its not gonna get any better.

Late Friday, a federal judge agreed with Carter-Willis and the others who trudged out to throw their weight behind the agreement, tossing out Sessions request for more time. Still, the saga clearly indicates that project of cultivating progressive reform in police departments nationwide no longer has an eager partner in Washington DC.

Kevin Cooper at age 12. Photograph: Greta Carter-Willis

It was just a plastic dustpan

As is the case in many fatal police incidents, it was Carter-Willis herself who called 911 in 2006, hoping for some assistance as her son experienced an emotional disturbance. He had knocked over his TV during an argument, and tossed some clothes out the window. Normal teenager stuff, as Carter-Willis described it.

After a short chat with officers the situation had resolved enough that one of the responding officers left. The second, Roderick Mitter, stayed behind to finish up paperwork when tensions ratcheted back up.

The officer walked past and Kevin was mumbling, Carter-Willis said. The officer asks him what are you saying and he says Im not talking to you so he just kept walking.

As Carter-Willis tells it, the officer began following the teen through different rooms, jawing with the teen as both grew more and more agitated. She recalls asking the officer several times to leave her home.

In the kitchen, as the rankling grew louder, Cooper picked up a plastic dustpan. The kind you get at the 99 cent store, Carter-Willis said.

Her version and the police version begin to diverge here. Carter-Willis says her son was merely holding the dustpan; police say he assaulted the officer with it, breaking it over his head and lunging at him with the jagged plastic.

In either case what happened next is clear. Mitter maced Kevin, deemed it ineffective, drew his gun, and fired. The bullet, which penetrated the teens heart, likely killed him instantly, Carter-Willis would later learn.

From there, the aftermath was predictable. Police held a press conference that day and declared the shooting justified. The officer was not charged with a crime, and has since been promoted to detective. The city offered Carter-Willis a pittance of a settlement in a civil case that her family ultimately lost to the citys well-resourced lawyers. Years before Mike Brown and the rise of Black Lives Matter, cases like this often vanished into obscurity without attracting protests, headlines, national attention or trending hashtags.

They just discarded him like a bag of trash, like his life meant nothing, said Carter-Willis. But his life did mean something. It meant something to me, to the community. He was an uncle, a neighbor, a classmate.

Greta Carter-Wilis in her home at the location where her son, Kevin Cooper, was shot and killed by the Baltimore Police Department in 2006. Photograph: Jamiles Lartey for the Guardian

Grave concerns

Carter-Willis keeps a hatbox in her home jammed with press clippings, important documents and pictures related to her sons case. Among them, the full DOJs 2016 findings on the Baltimore Police Department (BPD).

The report found broadly, a pattern or practice of unconstitutional conduct by city police, characterized by rank racial bias and warrantless targeting of black residents.

When the DoJ report came out, i started crying, Carter-Willis said. I felt vindicated with that report because you had outside ears, you had outside eyes to understand that what [black residents] are saying is really happening.

They werent talking about Kevin, she added, but they were.

In conjunction with that report the Obama DoJ, the city of Baltimore and its police department entered into negotiation for a consent decree, or a joint reform agreement enforceable by a federal judge. Similar agreements had been utilized in other problem departments like Los Angeles, New Orleans and Detroit to achieve reform after systemic use of force or discrimination issues were discovered. That agreement had already been signed by all parties before the Obama DoJ left power and was awaiting a public comment before it would, in all likelihood, have gone into effect later this year.

Enter the Trump Administration. Trump campaigned on a platform opposing virtually any scrutiny of law enforcement, and selected an attorney general in Jeff Sessions who most expected to embrace the same. Earlier this week, Sessions made good on that expectation, filing a memo to the Baltimore court charged with enforcing the consent decree there, asking for a 90-day pause to review and assess the agreement. The DoJ also asked the judge to postpone Thursdays public hearing, a request that was denied, setting the stage for Carter-Willis and nearly 50 other Baltimoreans to weigh in before the court.

John Gore, the head of the civil rights division for the DoJ, had a lonely job Thursday. Of the dozens of speakers, he was the only person to express any interest in slowing down or potentially not following through on the agreement, citing grave concerns.

Those concerns were not shared by Baltimore mayor Catherine Pugh or police commissioner Kevin Davis, both of whom pledged to move ahead with the reforms with or without the DoJ. Both lamented however, that the speed of the roll-out and the public trust would both be hampered without federal involvement.

Paradoxically, Sessions was arguing that the federal government had no place in telling local law enforcement how to reform, and simultaneously, telling the officials in Baltimore that they were wrong about the path they laid out with the Obama administration in negotiating the consent decree. Gores concerns were also not shared by any of the public who showed up to comment. Indeed the handful of voices who didnt support the consent decree at the public hearing did so because they found it not strong enough.

All this paperwork and all this stuff yall doing is just so they can get federal money to keep on doing what they are doing, said Marcella Hill with her voice breaking. Like Carter-Willis, Hills son was shot and killed by BPD. Nothing is going to change the attitude and the personality of [the police] until someone goes to jail.

The many fractures

On Friday, Justice James Bredar approved the agreement over the objections of the Department of Justice. It would be extraordinary for the court to permit one side to unilaterally amend an agreement already jointly reached and signed, the judge wrote. Now it is time to enter the decree and thereby require all involved to get to work on repairing the many fractures so poignantly revealed by the record.

Thats good news for advocates who want to see police reform initiatives struck in the Obama era survive the Trump administration. Many saw the DoJs attempt to wriggle out of the Baltimore consent decree as a trial balloon for trying to back out of older agreements that are already in place with other cities. But in what has become a minor theme of the Trump presidency, its possible, if not likely, that federal judge rulings like Bredars will stymie future attempts in place.

Generally speaking, to modify a consent decree you have to demonstrate that circumstances have changed, so I think a lot of judges are going to be skeptical if DoJ says Weve completed this review and turns out everything is fine in these departments, said Christy Lopez, a former DoJ official during the Obama administration and the leader of the team that produced the departments investigation into the Ferguson Police Department.

It may not be that blatant or easy but what this does signal, is that when monitors come in and say Hey, [the police department] is not there yet or Hey, they need to do this to make this thing work, DoJ is not going to have their back on that. DoJ is not going to be on the side of reform any more. And that can have a tremendous influence, Lopez told the Guardian.

Sessions has claimed that his department remains committed to reform in Baltimore and elsewhere, but the language used in the memo explicitly questions the role of the federal government in that reform, and seems to question the premise that many of the reforms rest on that systemic discrimination is endemic to certain departments.

The misdeeds of individual bad actors should not impugn or undermine the legitimate and honorable work that law enforcement officers and agencies perform in keeping American communities safe, the Sessions memo from Monday reads.

If they want to talk about actions of a few bad apples, then yes, it is clear that some police officers are more likely to use force and much more likely to commit misconduct than others, said Sam Sinyangwe, an activist and data scientist with Campaign Zero. Almost never are they held accountable though. We need to put in place systems and structures that can ensure accountability, and those are the types of things that these consent decrees are trying to produce, and that are now being undermined.

As for Carter-Willis, shes just glad judge Bredar heard her appeal and decided to move ahead. It would restore my trust, she paused, somewhat But im still going to be vigilant. Im still always going to be watching. Im still keeping an eye on them not just for my grandchildren, but for my great-grandchildren.