#THEY REDID THE COVER FROM BOOK 5!!!

[fandom-nursery]

Evie agere headcanons

Regresses to around 5-6 years old 

Voluntary regressor. She has a pretty strict regression schedule for herself. Back on the isle Evie figured out the times that her mother was away/completely occupied every week and used that time to regress. Even after coming to Auradon she maintained her schedule 

She spent a lot of time alone and so knows herself pretty well. She has a very good sense of how often she needs to regress and generally knows what tends to put her into/bring her out of her headspace

Back on the Isle she knew her regression was something her mother wouldn’t approve of but there were lots of things like that so it didn’t deter her. She just knew she had to keep it hidden. 

Since she was castle schooled for so long and lived in isolation she didn’t develop the same need to hide her emotions as the others did so she tends to be more expressive 

She likes to make up stories and explain things from her picture books to people 

Evie  is very independent and struggles a bit to let others take care of her. She is very polite and can be a bit anxious. Not in the way carlos is anxious but in a “pleasure to have in clase” kind of way where expends a lot of her energy to make sure she does everything right so no one gets mad at her and she isn’t a bother 

Sleeping makes her a little nervous so she pretty much never naps. Her mom told too many stories of princesses being cursed into a death-like sleep that they never woke up from and they stuck with her 

Evie as a person enjoys being swept off her feet little or not, and Jay and Mal will often scoop her up just to hear her laugh 

She loves to play pretend! Especially tea party games and games where she gets to dress up 

Evie also loves to read or, if the book in question is a little bit too difficult for her while she's little, be read to. 

Evie really loves any food that is prepared to make it look fancy. Tiny sandwiches with the crust cut off and a little toothpick holding it, or fruit that's been cut up nicely, or tiny desserts make her very excited. The other VKs all work very hard to make her food she likes since she tends to have some problems eating while big due to lingering insecurity about her weight. Ben makes it a point to bring her something special from the palace kitchens if he is visiting 

Evie has very good manners that were instilled in her from a young age. She used to get in a lot of trouble for messing them up when she was a kid so now she really sticks to them even though her mother is no longer around 

Evie, as everyone expected, loves dolls and has amassed a big collection. She loves dressing them up and doing their hair and most importantly giving them fulfilling lives where they don’t have to be pretty and are more than just their looks. It’s very therapeutic for her. 

In a somewhat awkward attempt to help take care of Evie and show her love as a friend Mal once brought her a doll she had found while on the isle. It was dirty and the porcelain face had cracked. Some of its hair was missing along with an entire hand. It was old and chipped and looked so far from perfect. Evie fell in love with it. She spent hours tenderly restoring the doll. She cleaned it and made a prosthetic hand out of clay. She designed her pretty clothes and redid some of her paint and styled her hair to cover the bald places. The doll helps remind her that things can and do have value even when they aren’t perfect 

Evie designed herself an entire wardrobe change for when she’s regressed and loves getting dressed in her new outfit choice immediately when she starts to slip. Having clothes that are only for little time helps her regress 

She has some pacifiers that she impulse bought and some she made because they looked pretty but while regressed she never ends up using them 

She came out about her regression in an attempt to make Carlos feel less nervous after he admitted his. Ben is around enough that he has also learned about her regression. A few days after the coronation she also told Doug who was very supportive and respected her wishes for him to not be around while she was regressed. She felt weird about the guy she wanted to date taking care of her while she was little. 

The VK’s do a great job taking care of her. She never had a real desire for a caregiver since she was always able to take care of herself so well but letting other people watch over her has been really nice 

When talking about letting the others take care of her while regressed she requested no nicknames that had to do with her beauty. She wanted to try and avoid feeling like her worth was in her looks while little the way she felt growing up. Because of this her friends usually call her difference talents she has like seamstress, smartiepants, mathwiz, etc

[catominor]

also re: lucius furius house. one i will show and that i like is the description of his study actually

Study/library: Coming off from the passage between the atrium and peristyle, this room is wider than it is deep, with a small hallway to enter it, making it T-shaped. There is a heavy wooden door which can be locked from the inside. The walls of the room proper are plain, a light-brown-ish color, and covered in wooden shelves for holding scrolls. The scrolls are neatly arranged, labelled, and meticulously cared for. Most of the books are of Stoic philosophy, although there is also literature and historical works. The floor is a mosaic, which has a pattern in black and white tiles. Lucius' desk and chair are newer, quite nice, made of carved wood. Above the desk is a window. On it is usually something he's working on writing, kept very neatly; the desk has spaces on either side of the writing surface for storing reference works. On either side of the desk are two bronze stands for holding lamps. Next to one of these is a bust of Marcus Camillus. Next to the desk is a smaller stone-topped table; this is for food, when Lucius eats in his study, which he often does. On one side of the room (perhaps in a niche surrounded by the bookshelves?) is a soft, red upholstered couch with a table next to it, and a trunk with blankets and pillows at its foot; Lucius keeps this area in his study for when he's feeling too under the weather to sit at his desk but still wants to read or work. haunted level: 5/10. It's haunted in a different way than the other rooms of the house so far; haunted in the way all libraries are, rather than by the ghosts of the family's past. Lucius redid this room soon after inheriting the house from his father.

[cryptid-salem]

Salem Reads the Past Doctor Adventures: Part 2

The Murder Game

Written by: Steve Lyons

Judging a book by its cover:

I’m very excited to read this book right off the bat due to it being a Second Doctor adventure. I’ve grown very fond of the Second Doctor over the years and one of my favourite serials is Power of the Daleks so there’s that. I am a little sad there’s no Jamie in this though.

The cover doesn’t impress me all that much, kinda seems like they just redid what they did with The Devil Goblins from Neptune, though I do like the colour scheme a lot more.

It sounds like a murder mystery with the fate of the universe at stake… which I’m not crazy about. Don’t get me wrong I love a good murder mystery, but I don’t always love “fate of the universe” stuff. It’s gotta either be very clever or a fun ride.

How I felt about the book:

Right off the bat, I really like the overall vibe of this story. It’s not taking itself too seriously but it also knows when to take itself seriously.

The mystery of this story is really well done, all the elements of the mystery are revealed in a neat way where you don’t spend too long wondering what the next part is.

It’s also really neat seeing Ben and Polly’s relationship in this book.

The Doctor being so worried for everyone’s wellbeing is good, I love when writers use that part of the Doctor’s personality.

There a character in this book that just get on the Doctor’s nerves and it’s really fun to see them interact.

Should you read this book:

Absolutely! This book is lot of fun and a pretty quick read, it doesn’t suffer from many pacing issues, and is a really well done mystery.

Rating:

3.25/5

[incomprehensiblelentils]

@purlturtle: Thank you so much! That was very cool! Are these novels or graphic novels? Mainly one, some of the other?

I tried to answer this in a reply but it was too many characters lmao. The short answer to your question is both. The long answer is these are the types of Warriors books:

Main series: 8 series of 6 books each with a ninth planned (s8b6 pending Nov 2024). This are the main Warriors books

(I should mention that series 5 is a prequel series going back to the origin of the Clans, which also undid half of the previously mentioned lore lol.)

Super editions: 16 books (SE17 pending Sept 2024), longer (~500 pages), single POV, and allegedly standalone except somewhere around book 7 they made them irrevocably tied into the main series so that if you don’t read them, you will miss crucial information such as the death of a POV character from series 2 or setup for a huge plot element of series 8

Mangas/graphic novels: there are 9 of these, although the first 5 were initially released as three smaller volumes. They are supplementary and focused on mostly detailed flashbacks of events from canon (i.e. Graystripe got snatched by humans and spent like a year trying to get back to ThunderClan, the first one of these was about his journey and meeting his second wife) or explorations of characters who don’t need a 500 page book (Feathertail got one like I said). BUT ALSO they are releasing the first book series as graphic novels starting this year - I think it’s 2 books per one graphic novel volume which is a cool format.

Novellas: these are like 50 pages each, focused on specific events or elements of a particular character, and can be accessed either via individual ebooks or 3-novella paperbacks they started putting out eventually (thank Christ). These vary wildly in quality and there are a couple that the fandom hates so much they basically ignore them entirely. (If you want to make a Warriors fan mad mention “Spottedleaf’s Heart” lol) I have read a few of them here and there but they’re the least “necessary” canon elements.

Field guides: they put out these from 2007-2012, which started as simple reference guides to the Clans and characters and then branched out with a book about the warrior code (including short stories about how each rule came to be) and major battles in Clan history. Also as I mentioned, the older ones include a bunch of lore about Clan history that was immediately retconned with series 5. I own all of these old ones, mostly because they included new little tidbits that hadn’t been established yet. Then they put out an “ultimate guide” in 2013 which is I think most of the above existing content plus a couple new stories, and then last year they did a “10th anniversary version,” which was so badly done and full of errors fandom literally warned people away from buying it. I got a used copy of the 2013 ultimate guide and it’s mostly nice for the art - the gentleman who did the original books’ art, Wayne McLoughlin, passed away in 2015, and they redid the covers and most official art after that and made them (IMO) way worse. Series 6 and forward have had okay covers, but goddamn I hate the newer “zoomed-in cat faces” covers on 1-5.

Anyway! I hope that helps answer your question. I have been buying and reading them in real-time since series 2 book 2 (2005) so I truly do NOT know how one would attempt to parse the amount of story content that currently exists if they hadn’t been doing that.

[talkfantasytome]

Part of my attempt to re-post answers I've given, without the context of specific links to posts based on this feedback and advice.

Anon Asks: I found something that says the map in ACOSF is foreshadowing for E\ain because the compass looks like the Cauldron, there are roses and vines around the map where it could have been something like flames if it was meant to be about Nesta, there are flower petals among the stars (proving Nesta belongs in the Night Court), and Koschei's castle and lake are added to the map.

So, I'm actually going to start off by complimenting the person that came up with that theory. While I disagree with it, it's definitely very interesting and may not be entirely wrong. It's also not a theory that proves E\ain's book would be next, just that E\ain was heavily considered in making the map, which is likely the foundation of the map they'll use for all three of these books.

However, that is A LOT of focus on E\ain. And, I'm sorry, but I can't imagine they would make the map to be all about E\ain when she'll be one main character of six in this set of three novels. Yes, they redid the map, as they redid a number of things for ACOSF. But that map is not solely about E\ain.

I'll explain why I disagree, based on the summary of points:

- The compass: remember the lore Rhys said? That some great goddess created Prythian/their world with the Cauldron. And in Tamlin's house there was, like, a stained glass window or something with a design that looked like the Cauldron was pouring out Prythian...like, the liquid being poured from it created Prythian. The Cauldron is an incredibly important object in their world, and you absolutely should not forget about it, of course. But, like, also, of course there would be a reference to it on the map. It's not solely a direct reference to Nesta and E\ain becoming Fae. It's a reference to the object that supposedly created their world. And, sorry, that takes the cake to two Fae, even two powerful ones like them.

- Roses and Vines: this series is called 'A Court of THORNS and ROSES', which you can find on vines. The maps always had vines on them. What they did when they redid the map was make it a lot more artistic. Let's remember the old map:

This is pretty plan, especially in comparison to the new one. The new one they decided to make more artistic. In the new map, the roses are a reference to the actual name of the series, the book that started it all. And then, you have representations of each court in the map. In the four corners, a symbol for the seasonal courts - interesting that, for Spring, they picked a ROSE specifically...don't tell me that the roses mean E\ain, and then just skip the fact that the Spring Court symbol was a rose when it could have been any flower. And then, in the center of the map, to represent the Solar Courts, you see a moon, a sun, and then at the bottom a sun covered with cloud, that could easily represent Dawn.

To help, here's a large image of the new map. Open it in a new tab, and you should be able to see the full size version:

- Flower petals at the top: those aren't flower petals. 👀 Do what I suggested, open the full image, and zoom it in. You'll see that they aren't flower petals at all. They're faeries. That concept of little, winged creatures that look almost like butterflies. I'm sure you can guess why they'd put faeries there. 🙂 They're not floating down, but flying around the sky.

- Koschei's castle: Cassian and Az literally go to where Koschei is. Of course it gets added to the map. So you know where exactly they were in that scene.

They don't redo maps or make additions to tell us what's to come. In fact, maps typically like to avoid giving us information that we don't get in that book. The old map I shared is the ACOMAF map. The ACOTAR map didn't include the extra detail about Velaris, the Night Court mountains, Court of Nightmares, or the Prison. It also added in the Weaver's Cottage and Adriana. All places Feyre goes to in ACOMAF. And the ACOWAR map added in the Forest House in the Autumn Court - a location Feyre passes through - and the Dawn Court Palace. I'd also note that the Faerie Realms on the continent also become expanded in each map. There's nothing in ACOTAR, ACOMAF adds Vallahan, and ACOWAR adds Montaserre. Because those get mentioned in those books. But, they're not that important.

In conclusion, no, the map is not attempting to foreshadow anything with the additional locations. Those added locations solely tell us the locations that will be prevalent or come into play in this book. The symbolism is clearly very symbolic of Prythian, possibly to remind us that that's the main land, still, since the map is expanding. And this map is not going to be created to focus solely on one character like that. That's making one character, a character that has yet to be an MC or even get solid development, the center of attention.

Again, this a very interesting theory! And I'm not going to say that it's definitely wrong. I'm also very certain E\ain's book will be about Koschei. That's why I'm positive she'll get book 6, because Koschei is going to be the final plot. Sarah wouldn't build him up in book 4 as an overarching thread, then have that plot come to a head in book 5, and then have book 6 be something else. So, yes, that will happen. And maybe the map is trying to tie things together to let us know about that, but it doesn't change which book would be E\ain's.

However, I don't believe the map is foretelling that. I think it's all coincidence that it seems tied to E\ain, which is most likely just because she will have her own book and a very large plot that is also the overarching plot. But, I'm guessing that the map is doing what it always does, telling us what has happened.

The anon also included two other links with posts that are unrelated, but essentially saying or assuming that book 5 will be E\ain's. I'm not going to post those answers again, as I feel like I already have answered them and shared my thoughts and beliefs on that and how E\ain's journey will be a lot more on-page than it has been, which is why I can't imagine she's book 5. 🙂

[crystalstar8]

Knights of the Night (Epilogue)

Epilogue

Ch 1, ch 2, ch 3, ch 4, ch 5, ch 6, ch 7, ch 8, ch 9, ch 10, ch 11, ch 12, ch 13, ch 14, ch 15, ch 16, ch 17, ch 18, ch 19, ch 20, ch 21, ch 22, ch 23, epilogue 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/29139240/chapters/71536491

pairing: Jungkook x oc

genre: vampire au, college au, twilight, romance

word count: 1,587

warnings: blood (obviously), kidnapping, child kidnapping, needles, France, human trafficking

notes: vampires, vampire au, college, college au, so many twilight references, blood, needles, kidnapping, children, homelessness, dance, ballet, flashbacks, romance, slow burn, probably no smut, idk yet tho, France, French things, attempted genocide, inaccurate French history, bisexual main character, @strawberriewithchocolate-blog @mozy-j  @daechwitad-2​ @zobadak​ @fallenstar-7​​​

summary: Catalina starts college in a small town all the way across the country. She doesn’t know anyone and isn’t exactly looking for friends. She just wants to focus on dance. But when she meets fellow dance major, Jimin, and adventurous, fellow freshman, Jungkook, Catalina ends up discovering a whole new side to the small college town; one that is dangerous but oh so enticing...

                 Catalina took one last glance around her room before heading downstairs. She heard Jimin’s voice, which put a wide smile on her face. Him and Taehyung were back on time, which meant they’d be able to come with everyone that afternoon.

               She ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time, before landing in the foyer. Taehyung and Jimin were taking their shoes off and setting their bags down, chatting with Hoseok and Namjoon. Catalina threw her arms around Jimin and asked him, “How was your trip?”

               He pulled away and smiled wide, his eyes disappearing. “It was incredible. I’ll tell you all about it later.”

               “I can’t wait,” Catalina said, smiling just as wide.

               “We were gonna go to the beach later,” said Hoseok. “Do you want to go with us?”

               “Sure! I think we’ll mostly just relax, though,” said Taehyung.

               “Here, I’ll help you unpack so you can get yourselves settled before we go,” Hoseok said, following them back out the car. Catalina left the foyer and went into the kitchen. The kitchen was beautiful, so different from when she first came into this house. They had it remodeled, actually, they had a lot of the house remodeled. Everything was a bit more modern, but their antiques were mostly still around. Even Yoongi redid his bedroom, saying he didn’t want to sleep in a rat’s nest anymore. He made an incredible amount of money on the antiques in that room, the museums practically begging him to part with them.

               The light was on in the kitchen when Catalina entered, which meant Jungkook was in there. Sure enough, he was standing in front of the fridge, staring into its contents with bleary eyes. His hair was a floof on top of his head and his pajamas were rumpled. Catalina came up behind him and wrapped her arms around him. She laid her head on his back and listened to the steady rhythm of his heart, something she’s become so very familiar with.

               “What will you have for breakfast?” she asked. He grunted in response, shifting some containers around on the shelf. He finally chose a container of leftovers and cracked the lid to sniff it. He sniffed it three times before deciding it was edible and dumping it on a plate. While it was heating up, he turned and opened his arms, letting Catalina settle into him.

               “Are you gonna surf today?” he asked.

               “You asked me that yesterday,” Catalina said with a giggle.

               “And you said no yesterday!” he said. She could feel his laughter in his chest where her head was resting.

               “Maybe,” she said. “I heard the teaching process is very hands on.”

               He chuckled and said, “Where did you hear that?”

               “Hm, I don’t remember,” she said. The microwave beeped and Jungkook let Catalina go so he could grab his food. She pulled a blood bag out of the fridge and sat down with him at the dining table, sipping at her drink while he ate.

               “What are you guys doing up so early?”

               Yoongi wandered into the kitchen with messy hair and tired eyes.

               “It’s beach day!” Jungkook said, much more awake now that he was eating. “You’re coming, right?”

               “No.”

               “Yoongi, you don’t have to swim or surf or anything,” said Catalina. “You can just sleep on the beach. Or drink wine on the beach. You need the fresh air, you’ve been at your piano for days. Plus, I think everyone would really like to spend some time with you.”

               “When are you going?” he asked.

               “We’re heading out around eleven,” said Catalina.

               “Oh. I’ll think about it,” Yoongi said. “Are Taehyung and Jimin back yet?”

               “Yes, they just walked in a little while ago,” said Catalina.

               “Good,” he said. “I’m glad their flight wasn’t delayed.”

               With that, he left the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

               During the drive to the beach, Catalina made sure to sit in the back of the Jeep with Jimin.

               “So, tell me about the trip,” she said, a giddy smile on her face.

               “Ah, it was perfect!” said Jimin. “I’ve never been to Arizona before so I didn’t really know what to expect about the weather or anything. It really is very dry there. The heat is like heat from an oven. And the places we saw were so beautiful. We camped in the Grand Canyon and… it was insane. The Grand Canyon is insane. Everything was so incredible. And at night, you could see the stars perfectly. When we camped in Death Valley, there was absolutely no light pollution for miles so the sky was amazing. We saw the Milky Way.”

               “Oh wow,” Catalina sighed.

               “You and Jungkook should go next summer,” said Jimin. “You’d love it.”

               “Yeah, I would do that,” said Catalina. “That sounds like a lot of fun. We need to make up for our last trip.”

               They sat in silence for a while before Jimin said, “I can’t believe we’re going to France in two weeks.”

               “I know!” said Catalina. “I can’t believe it! This is something I’ve been waiting for my entire life and I’ll finally be able to do it!”

               “Is your solo ready?” Jimin asked.

               “I mean, as ready as it’ll ever be,” said Catalina. “You know how it is.”

Her and Jimin had both taken the winter semester off to recover from their transformations and to get used to their new bodies. Catalina used that time to choreograph a solo worthy of an audition in France. By now, the beginning of summer, she had perfected it as much as she could.

“I’m going to the studio to practice it tomorrow,” said Catalina. “You should come with me. You can help, or just watch. You haven’t seen it finished yet.”

“What time? I’m babysitting tomorrow,” said Jimin.

“Oh right! You’re doing that every Tuesday now, aren’t you?” said Catalina.

Jimin nodded and said, “Yep, Caleb’s sister has dance on Tuesdays, so I’ll just be there for a few hours.”

“Are you still gonna do that when classes start? You’re signing up for classes in the fall, right?” she asked.

“Yeah, I don’t want to fall behind any more than I am,” said Jimin.

“Me too,” said Catalina. Then she smiled and grabbed Hoseok’s shoulder over the driver’s seat. “And you’re starting classes with us too, aren’t you?”

He laughed and said, “I sure am!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The weather was perfect, and according to Jungkook, the water was ideal for beginner’s surfing. They got set up on a relatively empty patch of the beach. The family closest to them had a few kids, who were building a sandcastle near the water. It was Monday, so thankfully there weren’t too many other people there. Yoongi laid out a beach blanket and immediately laid down, covering his face with his sun hat. He was almost completely covered, with long sleeves and long pants. Catalina figured he was trying to protect his pasty white skin.

               Jimmy K settled down beside Yoongi with a thick book. Catalina had assumed he would be surfing with them that day; he seemed like the type to surf. Jimin and Taehyung lathered themselves in sunscreen and took their spots near the cooler, relaxing and watching the fun just like they promised. After shedding her shorts and tank top to reveal her new white bikini, Catalina lathered herself in sunscreen, since she could already feel herself burning. Then she grabbed her board and met the others down by the water.

At some point, the family next to them left and they were left to themselves on their private stretch of beach.

Catalina, Namjoon, and Hoseok kept their eyes on Jungkook and Jin, who were teaching them the basics of how to surf. They all had boards, rented ones for the newbies, and Catalina was excited to get out on the water. With every glance at the ocean behind her, she felt nervousness twist in her stomach. She had to keep reminding herself that she wouldn’t drown and she wouldn’t get hurt. Her body was stronger than it used to be, which was something she still hadn’t completely gotten used to.

                They were standing on their boards, Jin showing them how to position their feet. Jungkook went to each of them, giving them pointers or fixing their positions. He stepped onto Catalina’s board behind her and nudged her right foot forward a bit, hands on her bare waist.

               “Just keep your knees bent and your legs spread a bit more,” he said. His bare chest was pressed up against her back.

               “…And if you guys fall off, just let the current roll you until it’s settled, then come up,” Jin was saying. “But you guys won’t drown anyway, so no harm.”

               “Right, no harm,” Jungkook said, his hand sliding down to her butt.

She giggled and turned around to face him.

“Did Hoseok get this treatment when you helped him?” she asked with a wide smile on her face.

“He would probably like that,” Jungkook said with a laugh. “But this is only reserved for my favorite students.”

“Ooh, so Namjoon got this too,” Catalina said, winding her arms over his bare shoulders. He threw his head back and laughed. This was her favorite song. The sounds of his laughter, the waves hitting the beach, The seagulls calling overhead, his heart beating in his chest.

Catalina leaned up to press her lips against his, the board wobbling in the sand beneath their feet.

She never wanted this song to end.

[storyteller0417]

Who Are You

A/N Just getting back into writing so please be kind. Loki has inspired me to pick up the pen again.

Rora let out a yawn as she stood in front of her coffee maker willing it to go faster. She looked at the clock letting out a groan, 5:15. Rora had to be at the barn for an early morning riding lesson to prepare for an upcoming show. She gave up hope that her coffee would be done before she got dressed and shuffled to her bedroom. Rora slid the closet door open pulling out a pair of wine colored breaches and her favorite grey sun shirt. She figured she might as well look her best if she was going to have to be up so early. Rora got dressed then sat on her bed to put on her socks and riding boots.

On her way back to the kitchen, Rora stopped in the bathroom to brush her teeth quickly and pull her blonde wavy hair into a low ponytail. She stared at her makeup bag for a moment trying to decide if that amount of effort was worth it today. She let out a sigh before pulling out just the basics. She rubbed on a tinted moisturizer and added some eyeliner and mascara to her eyes.

Rora gave a little nod as if approving of her appearance for the day before returning to the kitchen to make her coffee. She gave a little sip to ensure the taste was perfect before grabbing her backpack and heading out the door. She paused to lock the deadbolt before walking to the elevator to go down to the parking garage.

The doors of the elevator opened and Rora stepped out holding her keys. She walked over to her grey Honda Accord, doors unlocking as she approached. Once settled in, Rora put on her favorite playlist. City life didn’t exactly mix well with Equestrian life so she had a roughly forty-five minute commute to her facility.

.x.X.x.

Thor stepped into the Bifrost. “Where are you headed?” Heimdallr asked, his voice calm and eyes staring straight ahead as he remained ever vigilant of any unwelcome guests trying to access Asgard. “Hello Heimdallr, I am meeting with the Avengers on Midgard to continue searching for Loki. I have received word that they believe he is hiding somewhere in that world,” Thor explained, his deep voice echoing around the dome of the Bifrost.

“As you wish,” Heimdallr stated as he turned his sword to activate the Bifrost, “I will allow no one in or out until your return.” The Bifrost began to rotate and lighting sparked around the two and Midgard became the target. In a flash Thor was gone.

.x.X.x.

Rora was cruising on the highway after her lesson windows down and her music loud, the skyline of the city visible. Suddenly there was a beam of light that seemingly appeared from the clouds and shot all the way to somewhere in the city. Rora slowed her car some bot believing what she was seeing. But as soon as it was there it was gone. She pushed her sunglasses up and rubbed her eyes. “I’m clearly so tired I’m seeing things,” she muttered before stepping on the gas to accelerate enough to flow with traffic.

Rora had planned to wander the city and do a bit of exploring as she had moved there only a couple months prior. Her work and lesson schedule didn’t lend much in the way of free time so she was eager to go out. Rora pulled into her parking garage pulling into her assigned spot. She rode the elevator up to her apartment stepping out to be greeted by a neighbor who she had yet to meet. She wasn’t surprised, such a large building she had no hope to ever know everyone. She walked down the hall to her door and stepped inside.

Rora quickly changed into a flowy green sundress with an open back that fell a couple inches above her knees and a pair of plain brown sandals. The temperature was supposed to be warm today. She stepped into the bathroom and pulled her hair tie out. She redid her hair to a ponytail that sat higher on her head. She grabbed her wallet out of her bag and stepped out of her apartment locking the door behind her. Rora stepped on the elevator this time headed for the lobby. She stepped off the elevator and walked toward the exit.

Rora turned to the right once outside. She had seen a coffee shop down the street on her walks to and from work that had appeared to have an appealing menu. She looked at the different shops along the way during the five minute walk making note of which ones she wanted to stop at on the way home. Rora pulled open the door of the coffee shop and was greeted by a welcoming atmosphere. The tones of the wall were bright and cheerful but not overbearing. Most every windowsill had a plant or two all healthy and some baring bright flowers. The bar itself had almost a rustic feel made of aged wood that had been covered in polish to preserve its appearance. There was a large case on the counter that had more baked goods than Rora knew the name of.

None of this though caught her attention. In the corner of the café away from any of the other patrons was a man with shoulder length black hair and pale skin. His complexion was almost other worldly he was so handsome. He had a coffee of sort in front of him and a book in hand. He was what could be called over dressed for a setting like this. He was wearing a black suit with what appeared to be an emerald green vest underneath. Rora was so startled by his appearance she didn’t realize she was staring.

.x.X.x.

Loki took his coffee from the counter and found a table in a back corner of the café so he could keep a watchful eye on the door should anyone enter that he had successfully hidden from the last few months. He reached into his jacket which successfully hid the green flash of his magic. He pulled out a book and opened it leaning back in his seat some as he began to read.

Loki’s thoughts were interrupted when a recognizable energy entered the café. He peeked over the top of his book expecting to see an Asgardian but instead found what appeared to be a human woman. However, the energy she gave off said otherwise. He looked back down at the page he was reading but felt eyes on him. He shifted his gaze upward and found the blonde woman staring at him. When their eyes met she immediately looked toward the menu hanging behind the coffee bar. Even from afar, Loki could see her cheeks flush. Just who was she?

Loki’s thoughts were interrupted when the door flew open and Thor stepped in followed by Tony and Steve.

.x.X.x.

Rora quickly tried to make herself invisible when the mystery man’s gaze locked hers but she was having trouble focus on the menu when her face was on fire. Her thoughts were interrupted when a group of three men walked in the café. She turned and saw another man who also appeared other worldly, his long blonde hair far too perfect to be real. The second man was Tony Stark, she had seen him on TV many times. She also didn’t recognize the third man. He was as tall as the first, clean shaven handsome.

They appeared to be looking for something, or maybe someone as they scanned the café. Rora looked over to the mystery man but he had disappeared. How had he left without being seen? She turned her attention back to the employee and ordered an iced latte to go. While she waited the trio left and the café returned to its previous quiet buzz as patrons chatted or typed away on laptops.

Once her coffee was done she turned to leave and noticed his book still on the table. She walked over her curiosity peaked. Rora grabbed it reading the title. It was in a language she had never seen before. She went back and forth with herself about taking the book she imagined he would come back in search of it. Rora decided to tuck the book under her arm and exited the café.

Once outside, Rora looked up at the sky. There were a few small puffy clouds drifting across the sky and the sun was shiny brightly. She was reminded of the bright flash from earlier. She was wondering if that had in fact been real and not her exhaustion playing tricks on her. But what could possibly have caused it. As she walked she sipped on her latte pleasantly surprised at the flavor. She would be sure to return to the café more often.

Rora stopped at a little store the entrance sitting under an overhang. From what she could tell on the outside it was a book store. ‘Maybe the owner will know more about this book,’ Rora thought pulling the door open and stepping inside. The bookstore was quiet, it appeared no other customers were around. The store was much larger than it appeared from the outside. Shelves seemed to spread in every direct, every genre imaginable seemed to be available.

Rora moved farther into the store spotting the counter with an older woman standing behind it who greeted her ‘Hello, how are we doing today?”

Rora offered a smile and responded, “I’m doing great, how are you?” The woman responded that she was well before looking down at the book tucked under Rora’s arm. “What have you got there? It doesn’t appear to be anything you found on my shelves.”

“I’m hoping to find out what exactly this book is,” she explained as she placed it on the counter to be inspected. The woman picked it up, inspecting the cover and flipping through the pages. The woman pursed her lips, pulling her glasses down from on top of her head. After a few more moments she clucked her tongue. “I’m sorry dear, I just can’t place this language. It’s nothing I’ve seen in the 30 years I’ve ran this shop.”

Rora smiled and shook her head, “Don’t worry about it. Maybe I’ll be able to find his owner and he can tell me what it is.” She chuckled knowing that the chances of running into that man again were slim to none. “I’m just going to look around for a few minutes,” she added as she tucked the book back under her arm and turned to disappear between the many rows of book shelves. She found herself in a back corner looking at books on dressage. Some of the books she owned already but she was hoping to find something new.

Rora pulled out a book and was flipping through the pages when she felt the mystery man’s book being tugged from under her arm. She turned in shock as she hadn’t heard anyone approach her let alone stand directly behind her. It was him. The man from the café.

“Thank you for keeping my book safe,” Loki stated tucking it inside his coat and it seemingly disappeared. Rora’s face immediately flushed. She was so startled by his silence and the fact that he snatched the book out of her arm that she was struggling to find her words.

“Uh yeah sure. It seemed too important to leave lying on a café table,” she managed to say as her eyes shifted out the nearby window in an attempt to calm her racing heart. A tiny smirk tugged at the corners on his mouth, “Yes well there were some unexpected and also unpleasant patrons that showed up at that café just after you did.”

Rora’s gaze shifted back to his as she remembered the three men. “What were they looking for you for? Did you do something illegal?” She took a step back, his closeness was making her feel flustered. Loki noticed her step and kept his face emotionless but couldn’t help but chuckle internally. “Yes well some may call it illegal, I call it causing mischief,” he said as he turned on his heal to leave, “Thank you again for keeping my book safe.”

Loki began to walk away from her but she followed. “What’s the name of that book?” she asked walking quick enough to stay at his side. Given their height difference his stride was significantly larger than hers. “It’s a history book from my… home land,” he explained looking down at her curious why she wanted to know.

“Well where is that? I’ve never seen that language,” Rora was surprised when he pushed the store door open for her and motioned that she go ahead of him. Loki let out a sigh. She was quite persistent. He was thankful his car was waiting on the curb. “Some place very far away my dear. But I’m afraid I must go,” he stated before opening the door of the car and sliding in. Before Rora was able to question further the black Audi roared to life. Loki pulled away from the curb disappearing into the flow of traffic.

Rora found herself standing on the curb feeling like she had just experienced whiplash. “Maybe I’ll get lucky and run into Tony Stark. He and those two men seem to know something,” she muttered before turning to head home. Today had been so mentally overwhelming she decided it was better to explore the city another day.

[islesnucks]

I WENT TO HIT THE ASK BUTTON BUT INSTEAD I JUST UNFOLLOWED AND REFOLLOWED LIKE 5 TIME I'M SORRY, anyways some Q's for uuuuuuu ALSO YOU REDID YOUR THEME?? I LOVE IT!! sorry that was a lot all at once, here are the real Q's lmao

Kiss, Marry, Hug: Elias, Matty T, Mitch M (i wanted to make this one kinda random ahah)

Kiss, Marry Hug: Monica Rambeau, Wanda, Peggy Carter

weird philly edition Kiss, Marry, Hug: Jake V, Claude G, Brian E

what's your favorite book series, based off of the title alone?

and what's a book that you thought you would never like, but actually loved?

hahahah yeah i saw and i was like wtf but now i get it 

thank you!!!! im still not sure about it but i think i’ll keep it

kiss matty t, marry elias and hug mitch

kiss monica, marry wanda and hug peggy

hahahaha i love this one, ok so kiss jake v, marry claude g and hug brian e, but like honestly i kinda see all of them as father figures they can all adopt me

so basic but im gonna go with the hunger games, i read it because the title was catchy and i wanted to understand what was behind it

black ice by becca fitzpatrick, my mother bought it for me one summer and i thought i wasn’t going to like it becase the cover seemed kinda lame but it turned out to be amazing and is one of my favorites by faaaar

(this answer is related to the one you sent me after about the one trade im happy about) ok so i don’t know much about hockey im still new but im glad palmieri came to the isles he seems to really fit in

now some qs for you

kiss, marry, hug flyers edition: bee, oskar, tk

kiss, marry, hug spiderman edition: tom holland, andrew garfield, toby maguire

kiss, marry, hug badass women edition: nat, gamora, cap marvel

what movie from marvel do you think has the best title?

what movie from marvel do you love but everyone hates and what other marvel movie do you hate but everyone loves?

[searchingwardrobes]

Here’s another story from the universe of my novel What Hindered Love. That book was told completely from Chloe’s point of view, but I have several unpublished scenes from Micah’s point of view. Fittingly, this is Micah’s version of what happened on Valentine’s Day when Chloe thought he was hooking up with another woman.

Summary: Once an addict, always an addict. Especially when wires get crossed on Valentine’s Day. Luckily, all Micah has to do is use the code word “busted,” and his friends are there.

Tagging those who might be interested: @vvbooklady1256​ @winterbaby89​ @ilovemesomekillianjones​ @snowbellewells​ @kday426​  @onceuponaprincessworld​ @ekr032-blog-blog​ @nikkiemms​ @bethacaciakay​ @branlovestowrite​ @xhookswenchx​ @thislassishooked​ @sherlockianwhovian​ @ultraluckycatnd​ @flicialy23​  @harshini0​

Anyone else who wants to be tagged for WHL content, please just let me know!

Spoilers for the novel, obviously, so it’s below the cut:

Micah Barrett should have known that his attempts to ignore the fact that today was Valentine’s Day were doomed to failure. Because if there was anyone he knew who would celebrate such a saccharine holiday with childlike enthusiasm it would be Amanda Swisher, the culinary arts student he was training to be his baking assistant. Oh, and he and Amanda had to report to work at 5 am to construct a cake. Shaped like a castle. With turrets. For a wedding proposal. So yeah, there was that.

He wasn’t surprised to hear Amanda crooning Carrie Underwood’s “Cowboy Casanova” as she whipped up batter, but he would have expected her to forgo the traditional Valentine’s colors. Since her hair was flaming red on its own. But no. Amanda had boldly donned a frothy pink dress topped off with a white cardigan covered in tiny pink and red hearts. Her hair was up in a ponytail, per Micah’s own code in his kitchen (he always shuddered to see all that hair dangling over bowls of batter on Cupcake Wars), but she had used a bit of red tulle to tie it back.

“You’re a walking Whitman’s sampler,” he muttered when he saw her, still rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

“Aw, don’t tell me my mentor, my Yoda of baking, is a Valentine’s Grinch,” Amanda teased back.

“Well, they’re both green, aren’t they?”

Amanda just chuckled good-naturedly and rolled her eyes as she slipped the first pan of batter into the oven. Part of the reason he had picked her for the internship, aside from her brilliant fondant work, was her demeanor. He could be charming, but perky he was not. Especially when stressed over an order, particularly the intricate kind they were constructing today. Amanda’s enthusiasm and positivity was a good balance for his intensity.

Micah looked over the sketches of the massive cake they had to construct. Multiple tiers, multiple levels, three different flavors of cake, four different fillings, not to mention it had to look like a castle, complete with turrets. Their client wanted his girlfriend’s engagement ring sitting on the balcony of one of the turrets. Looking over everything now, Micah thought he may have gotten carried away with his brainstorming.

“This girl better say yes,” Micah muttered as he got to work.

“Oh, she will,” Amanda sighed dreamily, “I mean, it’s a fairy tale proposal. They must really be in love.”

“Stop!” Micah yelped when he noticed the container in her hand.

Amanda startled and checked the label. “Baking soda? Oops! It was sitting right by the powdered sugar. Silly me!”

Micah narrowed his eyes at her. Amanda was a little airheaded perhaps, but she was always careful in her work. Something was up, and he had a feeling he knew what it was.

Hours flew by, and Micah had the main portion of the castle constructed and awaiting Amanda’s magic with icing and fondant. He had the first turret constructed as well but was having difficulty with the balcony meant to hold the ring. Cake was light, and he was worried about the narrow turret holding that kind of weight. Simultaneously, he had a batch of Italian meringue going. With his hands full constructing the turret, he called out to Amanda, who was whipping up raspberry filling.

“Hey, turn the mixer down on that meringue, would you?”

Simultaneously, Micah’s cell phone rang, and Amanda snatched it up, “Hello, Micah Barretts’ phone!”

Micah thought to himself that he needed to tell Amanda not to answer his phone like an over-exuberant sixteen year old, but for now, there was the meringue. Micah laughed, shook his head, and gestured towards the mixer. Amanda squealed as she saw the meringue whipping way too fast and giggled, reaching for the mixer’s switch as she continued her distracted conversation with whoever was on the phone.

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

In her distraction, Amanda flipped the mixer’s switch to high. Meringue flew out of the bowl. Micah was surprised when laughter spilled out of his mouth. Must have been Amanda’s influence. Meringue splashed across his eyes as the turret on the cake-castle started to tilt.

“Amanda! Get over here!”

Micah couldn’t see with the meringue in his eyes, even though he was still laughing. He heard a plop and a muffled curse from Amanda, and then she was beside him.

“Quick, brace it with some pillars,” he instructed, relieved that she knew his kitchen as well as he did. He hated using pillars – they screamed 1980s – but what else could they do? Amanda rescued the turret before the cake could crack by slipping two plastic pillars under the balcony portion. She then wet a towel and began gently wiping the meringue from his eyes. Once he could actually see, he took in Amanda’s appearance. She was similarly covered in meringue, and they both dissolved into laughter. They’d been at this since five am, so it was no wonder they were punch drunk.

“It’s all in your hair,” Amanda gasped.

Micah groaned and ran a hand through his hair, feeling the meringue smear through it. It must have made him look quite the sight, because Amanda dissolved in a fresh fit of giggles. Micah stuck his head in the sink and turned on the tap. When he straightened, rubbing his wet hair with his fingers, Amanda was lifting his cell phone carefully by two fingers from the depths of the bowl of raspberry filling.

“Micah, I am so sorry.”

He took the phone from her carefully, futily attempting to wipe the sticky filling off with paper towels. “Josiah’s gonna kill me,” he groaned. “This is my third phone in six months.”

“You make a habit of dropping phones into your baking?”

Micah shrugged. “Or leaving them too close to a burner on the stove. Who was the call from anyway?”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch anything they said.”

Even though the phone was still sticky, Micah pushed the on button. Nothing. He sighed. “It’s ok, Amanda. It wasn’t your fault.” He took the bowl of filling over to the cake layer he had waiting on a cake stand.

Amanda returned to rolling out her fondant and sighed, “I think it was my fault. I’m very distracted today.”

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with the contractor who redid the barn, would it? What was his name again . . . “

He was teasing her, actually. He remembered the man’s name.

“Eric. His name’s Eric.” Amanda blushed enough to match her hair, which was answer enough. “Maybe. We’re going out again tonight.”

Micah paused in spreading raspberry filling and turned to look at Amanda with mock concern. “Third date? On Valentine’s Day? What are this guy’s intentions?”

She rolled her eyes, but smiled as if pleased with his concern. “Calm down, big brother. He’s not that kind of guy. He’s . . . sweet.”

“I’ve never seen him at church.” Five years ago, Micah never would have expected to be grilling someone about a potential suitor’s church attendance. But Amanda volunteered in the nursery at Community Fellowship and sang back up in the praise band on occasion. Her faith was important to her.

Amanda waved off his concern. “He goes to the Baptist church on the other side of town. But, he’s not exactly plugged in there, so he said he might visit Community Fellowship with me sometime.”

“Does he sing or play an instrument?”

Amanda laughed, “You and Hannah always trying to recruit people to the praise team. No, he isn’t musical at all. But he says he loves my voice.”

Amanda blushed again and a dreamy look came over her face. She hummed a little as they continued working, but inevitability she turned the romance talk towards Micah. He was surprised it had taken her this long, honestly.

“So, Micah, do you have any special plans tonight?”

“Yeah, I’m sure there’s a hockey game on tonight,” he answered dryly.

Amanda stopped what she was doing to turn towards him, a hand on her hip. “Micah, I have never seen you date, and it’s not right.”

“Why? I have my business, my son,” my former addiction he silently added. Getting clean and staying clean was a long, difficult process, and it was something few could understand.

“Yes, you’re successful, you’re a good father, you’re a good guy. And well, you’re no Eric, but you’re still not bad on the eyes.” Amanda flicked flour teasingly at him to punctuate her point.

“Oh, I can’t disagree with any of your points,” Micah teased back with a quirk of an eyebrow, “but perhaps I simply haven’t found the right woman.” Chloe’s face floated before his consciousness, but he tamped it down.

“Tina would say yes if you asked her out. I’ve seen the way she looks at you.”

Micah scoffed, “Not my type.”

“But Hannah and Kate told me you have a thing for blondes.”

Only one. Kate and Hannah knew that full well, too, but Amanda was too naïve not to read more into it. Micah straightened from his task carving the cake layers into the shape of the second turret and rolled his shoulders back. “Can we change the subject?”

Amanda may have been naïve, but she had also worked with Micah long enough to pick up on his moods. She made a comment about needing music to work and reached over to where her iPod was docked. When Carrie Underwood’s voice started crooning, he groaned.

“Amanda, what have I repeatedly said about country music?”

She chuckled, “Just teasing.” She switched it to the grunge station and Micah sighed happily as Pearl Jam thrummed through the speakers. “Although why depressing, angst-filled music makes you feel better, I’ll never know.”

Micah tilted his head to the side as Eddie Vedder sang She lies and says she’s in love with him, can’t find a better man, and thought Amanda had a point.

“Actually, you can turn it back. Carrie Underwood’s not so bad.”

***************************************************************

Micah parallel parked his truck into a space outside The Daymark, spotting Chloe’s car a few spaces ahead. Good, she’s still here. He’d replaced the cell phone Amanda had ruined yesterday, and he was glad he didn’t wait until Monday. Chloe’s voicemail sent relief flooding through him, but her text message . . . that had left him equal parts baffled and confused. He pulled it up to read one more time.

I haven’t heard back from you. I’m surprised because this is – you know – important? I’m meeting with the lawyer at The Daymark tomorrow at noon, and I’m hoping it’s all good news. Not that you care. You know, since you’re ignoring me?

Micah could understand Chloe feeling ignored. She was right, it was important news. And she didn’t know his phone was ruined. But if he was reading between the lines correctly – and he usually was where Chloe was concerned – she was upset with him about far more than that.

But he was here now to fix that. As soon as he’d gotten both messages, he had frantically checked his watch and raced to the diner to try and catch Chloe before she left. It was already two, so he had fully prepared himself to miss her. The sight of her car was a beautiful one.

Micah headed down the sidewalk and into the diner, inwardly rehearsing his apology. His eyes found Chloe immediately, and the sight froze him in his tracks. Her head was down, a pretty blush coloring her cheeks. The man across from her held her hands in his, thumbs brushing over Chloe’s knuckles in an intimate gesture. No wonder she was still here two hours later; this wasn’t a business meeting, this was a lunch date! Feeling foolish, Micah turned and headed straight back out the door. He thought he heard Chloe call out after him, but he wasn’t sure. And even if she was, he was too humiliated to face her.

Micah made his way quickly back to the truck, pulling out of his parking space blindly. He was lucky the street was empty. Adam Murray. How could he have been so stupid? The guy was exactly Chloe’s type, and a successful lawyer to boot. Not to mention they had been spending quite a bit of time together.

Micah’s leg started to throb like it hadn’t in years. He pulled over and took several deep breaths, kneading his leg hard with his left thumb. He tilted his head back and thought over all the ways he had learned to deal with the pain: exercise, meditation, prayer, his music. But he knew this pain was more mental – okay, emotional – than physical. So was the desperate desire to numb his pain the way he used to.

With trembling hands, he lifted his phone and hit Ryan Newton’s contact number. When his friend answered, he paused for a moment, and then with a shaky breath, said, “Busted.” He felt a little silly saying it – the code word was Ryan’s idea, though Micah wanted to call it something like “Screw-Up or “Family Disappointment” – but he had to admit he was glad he could convey his need without a lengthy explanation.

“Okay,” Ryan said without hesitation, “I’ll gather the troops. My place is full of rugrats. What about Beau’s man cave?”

“Negative. They’ve renovated it into a kid’s room.”

“Oh right, the adoption thing.”

“My place is fine. I’ll order us a pizza. You just call everyone. Is six good?”

“Yeah, but Logan and I will be there by five. You gonna be ok until then?”

Micah rubbed his leg; the pain was a little more bearable, but more importantly, his urge for pills was gone. “Yeah, but about Logan –“

“Micah!”

“Okay, okay. You’re right. Call Logan. See you at five.”

Micah hung up and slammed his palm hard against his steering wheel. Once an addict, always an addict. How many times had he heard that in rehab? He just really wished he was a stronger man. Maybe then Chloe wouldn’t be on a date with someone else.

*******************************************************

Ryan showed up promptly at five with a six pack of sodas.

“The good thing about your two best friends being a pastor and a recovered alcoholic is they don’t mind swinging back a few Cokes instead of beer,” Ryan quipped as he headed to the kitchen.

“What else have you got there?” Micah asked, gesturing to the plate in Ryan’s hand.

“Homemade chocolate chip cookies via Maggie.”

Micah grinned and grabbed a cookie and a soda just as Logan let himself in. “I come bearing turtle brownies!” he announced, frowning when he saw the cookies. “You guys better eat these too, or Rose won’t let me back in the house.”

“Don’t mind if I do,” Micah said, polishing off his cookie and reaching for a brownie. “The hockey game doesn’t start until 5:30, but the pre-game stuff should be on.”

Logan snatched the remote from Micah’s hand. “Not so fast. We need to talk about how you used the code word. Before Josiah and Beau get here.”

Micah groaned and fell back against the couch, running both hands through his hair. “Crisis averted, guys. Can we just leave it at that?”

“No, we can’t,” Logan said firmly. “That’s the whole point of me being your mentor, remember? Now what was your trigger? Emotional? Physical? Stress related?”

Emotional. He really didn’t want to get into this. But Ryan and Logan were both patient men, and the silence dragged on. “Chloe, okay. Are you happy?”

“Is this still the Scott thing?” Ryan asked across the kitchen island.

“No, he’s dropped that, thank God.”

“Well, that’s great news!” Logan enthused, slapping Micah on the knee. Micah thought about how Logan and Rose were the ones who introduced Chloe to Adam and suddenly had the irrational desire to punch his friend.

It fell quiet again as his friends waited for him to elaborate. “Chloe told me she was meeting with the lawyer today at The Daymark, so I thought I would stop by there. It wasn’t a meeting – it was a date.”

“And that bothers you?” Ryan asked.

Micah chuckled and craned his neck to look back into the kitchen where Ryan was leaning against the island. “Yes, it bothers me, Pastor Ryan. I’m a PK, remember? I know when you’re shifting into counseling mode.”

Ryan chuckled and made his way into the living area. “Sorry, then I’ll shift back to friend mode.” He plopped down into the recliner in the corner and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Why don’t you just tell Chloe how you feel?”

Micah shook his head and looked down at his feet. He thought for a few minutes before looking back up at R

yan. “As much as I’ve hurt her, all I really want is for her to be happy. Adam is a good guy, so as much as it hurts . . . I can’t get in the way of that.”

Ryan narrowed his eyes, and Micah could tell the wheels in his head were turning. “Maggie and Chloe have gotten close, you know. I can’t say any-“

Micah held up one hand, “No need to explain. If anyone understands pastor confidentiality, it’s me.”

Ryan nodded once. “All I’ll say is, I still think you and Chloe need to have an honest talk.”

“When she has a shot at something better?”

“Wait a second,” Logan cut in, “who says Adam is better?”

“He’s never broken her heart, for one.” Micah sighed with relief when the doorbell rang. “That’ll be the pizza.”

He rose from the couch and addressed his two best friends as he walked backwards towards the door. “You’ve successfully talked me down off the ledge, so operation successful. Can we now drop the subject of my non-existent love life?”

Being men, they both shrugged and Ryan picked up the remote to turn to the game. Micah sighed with relief as he fished his wallet out of his back pocket and turned towards the door. His busted leg no longer throbbed with phantom pain. He had an arsenal of solutions at his disposal to deal with that kind of pain.

His busted heart was another story.

[stanskzseungmin]

Operation Miroh | Stray Kids Mafia! AU ~ Chapter 8

Sorry this one took a while. I was trying a different more disjointed writing style to try and create the imagery for this chapter. Took a while because I trashed and redid this chapter like 4 times lmao. Hope you enjoy it <3

~Masterlist~

Chapters:  0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9

1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7

The atmosphere was tense.

The heavy stench of death lingered.

There were so little activity yet it felt as if the dead were back with a vengeance.

~

Heavy panting can be heard as a pair of hands grab at the screen before them.

~

The pristine beach is now a mass grave.

The beautiful clean sand that almost seemed to glow and glisten breathtakingly under the hot sun on a clear yet cloudy day.

~

Somewhere else in the meantime.

It was dark and silent. There were barely any lights. The only lights presents were blinking and on the verge of dying.

The air that once permeated with mutual content and comfort that a family shared, was now tense as a chill traveled up all of the building’s inhabitants' spines. There was no loud yelling. No laughter. No pitter pattering of feet. Just a dark and silent home where ten lived in harmony. 

But of the ten, two were not present: one on the verge of death.

~

The sea sparkled a brilliant blue hue, The dark color perfectly complemented the clear blue sky.

~

The silence was distrubed by a loud metal clattering. There were loud exhales and gasps of disbelief. The medic/engineer collided with the metal cart of supplies behind him as his hands frantically grabbed at the cool metal to maintain balance. His eyes were blown out in shock as panic and fear wracked through his system as it got harder and harder to breathe.

~

The clean beachside front is now polluted and littered with rubble and residue, The tan grains of sand now dyed and stained a brilliant red. The pristine clean and clear water is now filled with lifeless corpses, the bodies floating and swaying with the waves as their faces remained frozen in a silent scream and dead eyes. 

An explosion can be heard in the distance. A demolitionist was in full sprint towards the so called “Paradise.” As he ran, he was pursued, but the pursuers were quickly disposed of by the demolitionist dropping homemade pocket C4 like breadcrumbs.

~

The medic/engineers stared at the third screen down on the left column in horror. The once vibrant green screen signifying excellent health now glowed a menacing red. A sharp contrast to the eight greens surrounding and a singular almost as worrisome orange. 

The red screen.

리노

The heartbeat monitor displayed with a brilliant flashing red orange light has a singular word displaying on the lower left corner of the screen. 

DANGER

With haste, the medic/engineer barrelled out the room and down the hallway. The name of his leader erupted from his throat repeatedly as the inhabitants of the rooms past sprung out of the rooms appearing in the doorways ready, alert and worried. 

~

The demolitionist stood before two unconscious bodies. A pool of blood surrounded the pair as his shoes stepped into the darkening pool staining the dirt beneath him. 

He delicately pried the smaller body off the toxin specialist and very carefully slung both bodies over either shoulders.

||

“Seungmin! Put me down!” You exclaimed lightly hitting his back lightly with your balled fists. 

The chemistry student merely smirked at your immature antics.

The two of you weren’t friends per se, but you wouldn’t go as far as to call the both of you enemies. You were a bit of a goody two shoes and always go out of your way to report all suspicious activity on the campus. You had caught Seungmin picking on Jisung again and went up to the chemist to write him up. As per usual, Seungmin wasn’t having it. He never would.

And here you are now, pathetically slung over his shoulder as he carried you away. You knew where he was taking you. He took you there every time.

Seungmin pulled open the door of one of the more deserted janitor’s closet. It was so out of the way that it’s hardly any janitor’s first choice and it most definitely have a lack of nearby students. Hardly any students passed by here due to the shady and creepy atmosphere.

Even though the walled in city was safe, the paranoia of the dangers outside still lingered. The deserted hallways felt as if it had a distorted reality. There was no present danger but any who walked by without the proper constitution would get so wracked by paranoia where the imagined dangers seemed real. 

In the dark dusty room with a singular hanging bulb, Seungmin would toss you onto the ground. Your bottom met the floor ungracefully as Seungmin closed the door behind him quite harshly. The impact sent vibrations through the walls that would unsettle the dust as vision would slightly get hindered by the particles. You let out a small whine from the stinging pain radiating from the impact. Before you can protest or chide him, Seungmin would kneel before you and pull you into a bone crushing embrace and nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck.

Your arms protest, grabbing and pushing at him and sometimes digging your nails into his shoulders in a dire attempt to make him let you go. Seungmin would let out a small puppy whine and pouted. You felt your defenses weaken at the sound and wanted nothing more but to let him in. Before you even had a chance to raise your arms to return the embrace, Seungmin would pull away with a shit-eating smirk as he brought his index finger to his lips ordering your silence. 

Seungmin was already out and gone with the door shut as he left before you could properly register what just happened, your mind still puddy from your lowered defenses. 

A soft click echoed through the silence.

Every time.

Seungmin got you every time.

And everytime you still lowered your defenses to let him in.

Only for him to leave you alone like a deer in headlights.

~

You swore Seungmin only existed to make your life a living hell. You always thought it was a waste of talent for a practically math genius Seungmin to pick on people. You knew blackmail when you see it.

Doesn’t mean you had immunity towards it. Not towards Seungmin at least.

You noticed how Seungmin and two others hanging around one of the campus’ empty buildings. You recognized the two being top students in their respective subjects.

They were definitely doing shady stuff.

Today however, looks as if it was only Seungmin that’s present. You never saw the other two from your not so discreet hiding spot under the shade of a tree with your nose pressed into a book. 

You rushed to follow Seungmin into the building once you see him disappear behind the closing door. 

You didn’t take that long to enter after the boy. You made it in before the door closed completely, but it seemed as if Seungmin vanished into midair.

Sighing to yourself, you began walking down the dimly lit hallway and peeked into every passing door’s window pane. You noticed how the hallways cameras were all facing down, the led next to the lens were off.

Why were the cameras off?

You also noticed the smoke detectors were also disabled. 

Your thoughts were cut off when you heard a loud explosion ripped through the silence. Your ears rang lightly as it seemed as if the world was moving.

“Seungmin?” You breathed out. Panic bubbled deep within your chest. “Seungmin? SEUNGMIN!”

“Wow, you can’t leave me alone, huh?”

You whipped around to see Seungmin himself in the flesh perfectly fine and uninjured just his attire and visage covered in dark soot. You let out a loud sigh of relief as you ran up to him wrapping your arms around his frame in a bone crushing embrace.

“Alright, dummy,” Seungmin chuckled patting your back lightly. “Did you really have that little faith in me that you genuinely thought I was hurt?”

Seungmin rubbed your back in circles as his other hand rested gently on your waist. You mumbled softly into his shoulders. “Absolutely not. Not at all. You’re totally bonkers, insane. You’re going to scale this building and I’m going to have to write you up. Or worse, writing an autopsy report.”

“Thank you,” Seungmin whispered into your ear resting his chin on your shoulder.

“I wasn’t serious.”

“I was.”

You pulled back slightly in confusion to see a genuine smile on his face with his eyes show a loving and touched emotion. You felt your lips twitch upwards upon sight of him looking so vulnera-

“Now stop stalking me, dummy creeper.”

You would most definitely hear a pin drop from the silence that followed.

You fell for it again.

~

“Wow [by 3RACHA], you actually came,” you perked up from the bench you were sitting on.

“Of course I did, dummy,” Seungmin smiled, putting his hands into his black hoodie pocket.

“No fucking with Felix?” you jested with a smirk playing on your lips.

“Do you not realize who I am?” Seungmin scoffed. “Let’s just say Felix won’t be leaving detention without being griefed.”

“You customized an exit denial device didn’t you?”

“Ooooh yea,” Seungmin chuckled. 

“It’s not an ice bucket above the door is it?”

“Lame.”

“Oh dear,” you hand went up to your cheek in worry for the freckled Australian.

“So how am I going to get up there?” Seungmin pointed to the roof, his eyes never leaving yours wearing a face of disbelief.

“Uhh… parkour?”

Seungmin quirked an eyebrow.

“Sorry, I didn’t think that far ahead...” you looked off to the side rubbing the back of your neck nervously.

“You give me a boost and launched me up there?”

“Bad idea.”

“I stand on your shoulder and you stand up?” Seungmin suggested slinging his arm around your shoulders while pointing upwards with his index finger.

“Even worse,” you shrugged off his arm.

“So what do you suggest?” 

“Just get on my back, I’ll carry you up.”

“Your noodle arms can carry me?”

. . .

~

“I hate this place,” Seungmin mumbled. His arms were loosely wrapped around your shoulders with his legs finding purchase hooked onto your waist, his chest flush against your back. 

You let out a loud exhale as you gripped on the window sill. You looked back to see Seungmin gazing longingly at the wall. That damned wall.

“What do you want to do?” You whispered as you continued your climb.

“I want to destroy the wall.”

Your hand reached over the edge of the roof one after another as you pulled the both of you up.

“You do know what is out there, right?” you settled down on the cold roof, bringing your knees to your chest,

“Yea,” Seungmin sat next to you pulling you into his lap as you both gaze at the wall. At your vantage point, you can see beyond the tall concrete walls lined with barbed wire at the top. 

“The walls protect us from dangers outside. So many mafias and gangs. So much corruption. That doesn't include all the murders and kidnappings.”

“But what if the true dangers aren’t what is out there? But in here? Those mafias exist for a reason. What if they’re rebelling against something from inside? The people here are hardly people anymore. They’re sheeple that can be herded by the shepherd called the government.”

“I don’t want to become like them,” you whispered. “What if the schools existed only to turn us all into sheeple, brainwashing us into the same system. Schools only exist to condition people to work 8 hours a day. I don’t  want to be like them. I don’t want to lose my humanity.”

“You won’t. I promise,” Seungmin whispered into your hair. “You see past the wall, right?”

“It’s dark and empty.”

“I know. Dark, so we won’t be attracted to the government’s light like moths only to discover it’s a flame and empty, so we could be free without any restrictions.”

“Wait, we?” you whispered, shock evident in your voice and you broke free from his embrace to face him.

“Of course, dummy,” Seungmin smiled genuinely. “I promise.”

Seungmin thought to himself right then and there, ‘I’ll get you out of here, I promise.’

“This better not be one of your stupid blackmails again, Shit-min.”

. . .

[bicokun]

I probably redid this and the following page 4 or 5 times, and that's only counting the digital version. I first tried my hand on this version a couple years ago and let it sit before overhauling the first page into the current first 1 1/2 pages. I still have some traditionally inked "first page"s on actual comic book art board from 10 years ago, too, so I'm happy to finally be putting something out. This page isn't too exciting, of course, as it's just an establishing shot, but hopefully it sets the scene adequately and you will all enjoy what's coming.

Horror U Issue 1 Cover

[zallano]

The HereAfter, Chapter 15

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 16, read on AO3!

The entire chapter under the cut

-

Mumbo finally understood his dreams, his lost memories. Though, he didn’t understand why he lost his memories in the first place.

Experiencing his dreams was like reading a book. He read the first few chapters and then stopped reading it for a few months. Over those months he began doing other things, reading different books, having other dreams. Events that happened in the book slipped from his mind. When he came back to read the book, he had forgotten all that happened before, so he read back slightly and then remembered it all.

Though, he still didn’t know what was going to happen in the next chapters because he hadn’t read those yet.

It made no difference though. He arrived at the shopping district island and he didn’t have much time to stay and contemplate his dreams. He stepped out of his boat and dragged it up the beach, far enough away from the tide.

The shopping district was a lot more active this day. He saw hermits walking around, talking, laughing, and shopping. Mumbo walked along the beach and toward where Grian’s cart was.

“What are you wearing?” Mumbo heard a voice laugh loudly. It sounded like Iskall. He turned the corner and saw Grian and Iskall in a fit of laughter. Grian was wearing a rather odd yellow and blue outfit and holding what appeared to be another copy of the same outfit. ‘Oh no,’ Mumbo thought. ‘Do I have to wear that too?’ 

“I’m wearing what I wore last time- it changed color! You’re still wearing your shorts. Unbelievable. Not golf at all,” Grian said. Iskall shook his head. “How do you know what you’re supposed to wear to golf? You’ve only golfed once! - Oh hi, Mumbo!”

Mumbo chuckled and walked toward the duo. “Okay, what’s going on here?” He asked. “Iskall is making fun of my outfit. Though, it’s okay, because you get to wear it too and I won’t be alone,” Grian smiled devilishly and dropped the clothes into Mumbo’s arms. “Oh brilliant, thanks Grian,” Mumbo said sarcastically and rolled his eyes.

“You can change into that shorts shop. It’s where I got my amazing shorts.” Iskall smiled cunningly and pointed to a shop right next to Grian’s.

Mumbo nodded briefly and walked into the empty shop. Inside he got a better look at his outfit. He got a little green hat, a white shirt, red vest, and a green kilt. He quickly changed and watched how his outfit turned colors. “What in the world-?” He muttered. The once green and red clothes turned to blue and yellow. He assumed this was exactly what happened to his clothes before. Possibly the clocks caused whatever he wore to change.

There was no doubt the clocks had affected him. Both him and Grian changed under the influence of the blue clock. Suddenly the blue clock disappeared that day. Though, Mumbo wasn’t exactly sure if the blue clock actually disappeared. Possibly it divided and took over the two of them.

Mumbo shook his head and walked out of the shop toward his giggling friends. “Aha! My hypothesis was correct!” Grian pointed to Mumbo. “Your clothes changed as well,” he gestured to his own outfit. “Mine used to be blue and red.”

“That’s so weird,” Iskall chuckled. “Yeah we are weird, being all clock-consumed-like,” Grian joked. “Clock consumed? What does that mean?” Mumbo asked. Grian shrugged. “Y’know, the blue clock, it consumed us.” He explained. Mumbo knitted his eyebrows in confusion. “But-? Wouldn’t that make it that we consumed the clocks? Wait-” He was cut off by Iskall. “You guys eat clocks?!?” Iskall laughed. “No!” Grian and Mumbo shouted in unison.

“Okay, okay, let's just get to the golf course. At least we know the way through the nether this time,” Iskall headed toward the nearest portal. “Nether?” Mumbo muttered quietly. “Wait you haven’t even been to the nether yet?”

Mumbo shook his head. He stared at the portal. There was no way this was ‘safe’. “Well, there’s a first time for everything!” Iskall jumped into the purple portal. Mumbo watched as Iskall disappeared a few moments later. “Wh- what happened? Where did he go?” Mumbo circled around the portal. It wasn’t like a door. Iskall didn’t walk through it. He completely vanished.

“This is the nether portal. You go through it to the nether dimension.” Grian explained and stepped inside the purplish divider. “Woaghh,” he gurgled, his voice shaking. “Are you okay?” Mumbo asked. “Just follow me!” Grian said, his voice still having some sort of strange echo and shaky effect. He vanished seconds later.

Mumbo stared at the portal. He didn’t like it. He didn’t trust it. He had no knowledge if his friends were actually okay. Though, they seemed to have done it many times before. He took a deep breath and slowly extended his hand out to touch the portal. His hand went straight through and he immediately felt the energy of the portal. He felt a sort of ticklish feeling slowly reach up his forearm. It didn’t feel threatening at all.

He stepped into the portal. He felt his entire body shake, similar to what he felt when he had touched the blue clock. His vision had a purple tint and he couldn’t focus on anything. The portal affected his vision so much that he was beginning to feel nauseous. There was no way he could do this. Though, right before he was able to jump out, he was no longer in the overworld.

“You did it!” He heard Grian shout. “Congratulations!” Iskall clapped. Mumbo stumbled out of the portal onto the white ground. He slowly looked around. Everything was built out of white blocks. Though, he could see that there was a faint red hue to everything unlike in the overworld. He also felt a lot heavier. This place seemed to have a much more intense gravitational pull. “This is the nether?” Mumbo asked and stood up.

The two nodded. “Well, yeah. Not in its organic form though. We changed the nether a whole lot. It’s a firey, dangerous, evil mob infested dimension.” Iskall explained. Mumbo’s face cringed slightly. “I don’t want to be here,” he backed up toward the portal. “It’s okay! The nether hub is safe -for the most part- plus the country club portal isn’t that far away,” Grian told him and gestured to follow.

Mumbo followed hesitantly.

Another portal trip later, the trio was in an entirely different place of the world. Possibly nether travel wasn’t that bad. He knew it would take a lot to get used to, as would everything else in this world.

The golf course was very fancy. Cub and Scar were talking a little ways away. Cub turned around and waved at the three. “Ah, finally they’re here.” He said.

“Three players? Okay Grian, I see your tricks.” Scar walked over. He spun his trident in his hands. “Although, unfortunately for you, I brought Jellie along with me and Cub.” Scar smiled smugly and a small grey four-legged animal walked over from behind him. “Cats can’t play golf, can they?” Iskall asked. Scar shrugged. “Jellie sure can,”

Mumbo had never seen such an odd-looking animal. It had fur and pointy ears, a long tail and paws. It was weird, though Mumbo could see that it was kind of cute.

“That’s- a cat-?” Mumbo watched Jellie from a distance. Jellie rubbed her head against Scar’s leg and purred. “Is it attacking you-?” Mumbo asked. Scar laughed.

“Oh no, she just wants to be pet.” He crouched down and scratched Jellie behind her ears.

Mumbo slowly nodded. “Ah, Okay. Well- I still don’t know how to play golf and I’m going up against a cat that apparently can. This isn’t fair,” he shook his head. “Jellie doesn’t have thumbs, so it’s fair.” Scar pointed. “Plus we can all teach you,” Cub chimed in and opened a chest. He took out a few tridents, banners, ice, and ender pearls. He tossed each set to everyone.

“Okay, let's start playing!” Scar exclaimed.

“Wai-“ Mumbo began. “I still don’t know how to play guys,” he told them. “You want to read forty or more pages of useless instructions?” Grian asked. Mumbo shrugged. “I guess not,”

“Scar and I can explain. We’re running a bit late though, we only have so many hours before it’s night,” Cub said.

-

“I DO NOT LIKE THIS!” Mumbo exclaimed as his trident shot him into the air. “Use the ender pearls!” Grian told him. Mumbo struggled to throw the weird greenish blue orb. It flew out of his render distance. “I’m going to DIE!” Mumbo yelled, he was falling, falling quite fast.

Seconds before he hit the ground he felt electricity travel through his veins. His arms were covered in purple sparks. He had no time to ask what was happening to his body before he teleported out of the air and landed safely where the ender pearl had landed.

“Wh-“ he rubbed his head. He landed on the green, somewhere near Scar, though he was behind. “Aha! ConCorp is still ahead!” Scar exclaimed and high fived Cub. The cat, Jellie, immediately began to attack Mumbo’s shoelaces. Mumbo found out once they all began playing that Jellie did not know how to play golf and was only here to cause mayhem. “Thanks, Jellie..” he muttered and redid his shoelaces.

A moment or two later, an ender pearl landed right next to Scar and then Iskall appeared. “Concorp, no longer in the lead,” Cub stated, tutting. Iskall fist-bumped the air. “Aha! Take that, the people who own this place and can probably legally kick me out!” He laughed.

“Where’s Grian?” Mumbo asked. “Oh you know,” Grian’s voice appeared to come out of nowhere.  Mumbo looked up to see Grian stuck in a tree branch. “You guys are really observant, huh? I fired my ender pearl right after Mumbo did.” He said and tossed an ender pearl into the hole of the green.

“Hey! We have an order we play in! Cub was supposed to go next,” Scar called Grian out. Grian shrugged and jumped out of the tree. “Better luck next time but we won the first hole!” He grinned. “Are we scoring by which team makes it to the hole first or are we actually playing properly?” Iskall asked. The group shrugged.

“Okay, onto the next hole, I guess,” Cub shook his head, chuckling.

-

The group of hermits went onto playing a lot more holes. ConCorp, of course, was in the lead with points. Jellie somehow managed to get in the way of the hole each time any non-ConCorp member would try to golf. Grian was convinced she was sabotaging the game but Scar disagreed. Though, they all mostly stopped paying attention to the points and were just having fun so it didn’t matter all that much. Grian kept getting stuck in trees, Iskall actually did somewhat good, and Mumbo struggled to not freak out each time he used the ender pearls. He wished he could say that he was used to it but he really wasn’t. Although, he was having a lot of fun playing golf.

They were now on the last hole. This was supposed to be the most difficult hole, according to Cub, though Mumbo wasn’t sure how true that was. He could see the green from where he stood. Scar hopped into the small pool of water and took out one of his tridents. “I’ll go first this time,” He smiled. Grian and Mumbo exchanged glances before shrugging. “Fine, we’ll be left in the dust anyway.”

Scar chuckled and launched himself into the air using the trident and then threw an ender pearl. He landed in hay bales below and waited there for a second before teleporting away. Jellie also teleported away a few moments later. “Okay, who goes now?” Iskall asked. The other three shrugged. “Fine, I will,” Mumbo spun his trident and stepped into the pool.

He raised his trident up and aimed it toward where the green was. He saw Scar and Jellie down there already, though, they seemed distracted. Mumbo sighed and used his trident to launch himself into the air, then he threw another ender pearl. He clenched his eyes shut before he hit the ground. Thankfully, he was teleported away.

Immediately when he landed, he heard ticking again. Mumbo reacted quickly and covered his ears. Where was it coming from this time? He glanced around, and no longer caring about his position in the golf tournament, he stood up and went looking for the source. Scar and his cat was nowhere to be found.

Mumbo stumbled slightly as he wandered into a nearby forest. He glanced around. His clock was freaking out. There must be another clock somewhere.

“Uhhh, Jellie, this is weird but it looks so cool on me! Matched my belt.” He heard Scar’s voice over the ticking. “Scar?” Mumbo called out. He pushed his way through some birch trees and found Scar and Jellie standing in a crater. Scar turned around when he noticed Mumbo.

He had a clock around his neck.

“Scar!” Mumbo called. “Yeah?” Scar looked back at him concerned. “Are you okay?” He asked. “Take that clock off!” Mumbo jumped down into the crater. “Why? I just put it on. Jellie likes it!” He smiled. Mumbo furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “-What?” The ticking was getting louder, far more intense. Soon, Grian and the others arrived.

“No!” Grian yelled once he saw the clock around Scar’s neck. “Take it off! Quick!”

Scar looked between the two hermits. “I don’t understand-?” He paused. “Why?” He asked again. Mumbo realized that Scar was not going to take it off. He reached for the necklace. Scar tried to swat his hands away but Mumbo grabbed onto his necklace. His hands began to shake. He felt the clock’s power. He felt powerful. He felt as if he could do anything. He didn’t notice, however, that his clock was going back in time. He was going back in time.

Then he was back at the top of the crater. Lag. Specifically, rubberbanding. ‘Oh no, why now-’ Mumbo jumped back into the hole. He tried getting closer to Scar, he tried telling Scar to take off the clock, he tried warning him of the dangers and what had happened to the other hermits with clocks. Though, he was too late. Right as he touched Scar’s necklace, another lag spike hit. Then, to add insult to injury, the all too familiar yellow text appeared on everyone’s communicator.

Goodtimewithscar has left the world

Mumbo watched as Scar disappeared in front of him. He was confused- shocked- scared even. What caused the lag- twice? Why was this one different? If glitches in the world normally caused hermits to leave, why did it take two lag spikes in order for Scar to disappear? Mumbo stepped back, horrified.

Was this his fault?

Did he cause this?

Grian, Iskall, and Cub arrived back soon after. Cub stared into the crater. “No..” He said and glanced at his T-chat. “He.. no,” He shook his head slowly. He couldn’t believe it. Iskall stared at his T-chat. Grian wouldn’t look at the hole. He stepped back away from the crater.

Jellie meowed, alarmed. A broke, sad, fearful meow. She looked heartbroken. She pawed at the dirt where Scar had been standing previously. She glanced back a Mumbo and then back at the empty space. She mewed and curled up in the dirt. She laid her head on her paws and mewed sadly. She waited...

Though, it seemed as if she knew that he wasn’t coming back.

[chaoticluxraydesign]

Planning

Our group initially planned on creating a guide about dating for Millennials in Singapore. We first came up with the overall content and sketched the layouts of our assigned pages. I was tasked with the Cover, a Comic as the Premise and Content Page. 

I first came up with 2 comic strip drafts and explained the story to the group to get feedback. They liked the story on the left, which depicts a main character finding a date through a dating app. This established the art style that we were going to use as a cute, cartoon-ish style. Then, I proceeded to draw out the more concrete draft, with a proper layout and text:

Next, I worked with my group to come up with a general colour scheme. We knew we wanted to use soft colours, and the initial palette was based on pastel pink, purple and blue.

After Feedback 1:

The first feedback was that the comic may be too time-consuming to do. Hence, I decided to scrap it for a much shorter premise for the book. I felt that was enough to introduce our main character, as well as convey our idea of a said main character wanting to find a date. 

Our e-book underwent some restructuring in terms of content and flow of pages. We brainstormed and researched for content together to determine the final content flow. We decided to combine the content page with the “comic” so that pages 5-6 could remain a spread of a map. Hence, I came up with a second draft of the content page:

I next worked on character designs. I got inspiration from Pinterest for the stylistic direction of our e-book. I especially liked the style that utilises minimal colours, with cute, hand-drawn, cartoon-ish characters and objects.

My initial idea was to make the main character androgynous, as seen in the first comic sketch. However, I noticed that classmates were more likely to see the character as a girl and suggest adding a male character as a counterpart in their initial feedback. With these references and feedback, I proposed the main character (coloured):

Whilst creating the cover page, I felt that the colour of the girl’s hoodie did not stand out because the cover had a lot of pink and white elements. So I chose a darker shade of blue instead. I also did up the graphics for the content page:

Art Direction and Graphics

With my pages settled, I begin my role of maintaining the art direction of the e-book. I compiled a list of graphics of the girl that my members needed for their pages so that I may start to draw them. I also devised a way to keep the style of icons as similar as possible. Because there are many people working on the design, having everyone submit their own completed graphics would have been rather disastrous for the art style. Since most of the group enjoyed creating flat icons, I proposed that they sent me the vectors of their icons and I would add colour to them.

I did this by importing the vectors (without fill) from Illustrator to Photoshop and colouring on a layer beneath the vector outlines. We decided to standardise a basic black stroke for our icons. By standardising the colour palette to just 3 colours and applying colours in a stylised manner, I managed to achieve a style that worked coherently despite different people handling the outlines. The colours chosen were analogous colours that complemented each other and of different tonal values to ensure that the coloured icons did not look too flat. 

We encountered the problem of different art styles when one particular line work stood out more than the others. It did not really follow the cutesy style we had going. To solve this, I worked with the groupmate to select some references from Google and redid the graphic in a more suitable style:

Compiling the e-book

Whilst the rest of the group were working on their pages, I set up the InDesign document to be used and inserted completed graphics first. I created a border made of red-pink lines and a ribbon and included page numbers and a Snow background in the Master page. I also set up character and paragraph styles to standardise the text in the e-book.

After my group members transferred their Illustrator files to me, I coloured and exported the icons in .PNG as it preserves transparency. Most of the graphics were done in 72ppi as the e-book was not meant to be printed, and that resolution was good enough for web-browsing. However, I found that some icons lose a lot of quality when exported and recoloured them in 300ppi instead. (It is a bit difficult to tell from the image below, try this link instead)

Our group met up on Zoom to work on the e-book together. Since only one person could work on the file at a time, I shared my screen with the group and started compiling all the content. Everyone chipped in by giving feedback on where edits should be made to improve the design. For example, the content on page 3 was divided into 2 sections but did not have a clear-cut distinction between the sections. Some groupmates pointed this out and I added a pink divider to solve it. This was a team effort.

I utilised the text wrap function of InDesign to subtly give text boxes a more interesting look. Since the initial idea was to have a lightbulb overlap a text box, I decided to wrap the text around the lightbulb’s bounding box.

After exporting the e-book to .pdf, I opened it on my macbook preview and found that the colour had changed slightly. I did a bit of research and learnt that different software rendered colours differently. I then tried to open it on the Google Chrome browser and the colours looked correct. Remembering that our e-book was to be viewed on both laptops and mobile, I opened the file on the Google Chrome browser on my iPhone, and it seems the colour looked different as well. The page was more yellowish and the pink was duller. This could be due to the settings for my device’s screen. Therefore, I concluded that the e-book should be viewed on the browser of a laptop or desktop.

After Feedback 2:

One main feedback we got concerned the map page. The outline of the map appeared to be too light and difficult to notice, and the legend looked too much like the bubbles accompanying the geotags. To fix this, I worked with my groupmate to come up with a few edits to the design of the map. We removed the waiter graphic and shifted the legend down. We also added more content to explain the 3 different categories we had. Finally, we changed the colours of the corresponding geotags on the map to further emphasize that they belonged to their respective categories. 

Another feedback we got was the inconsistent spacing between the heart-shaped bullet points and the text beside it, which I promptly fixed. 

Challenges

One of the biggest challenges I faced was collaborating on the style for the e-book. Up until now, most of my design works have been solo projects which gave me full control over the design. However, with groupmates, we have to adapt to each other’s styles and sometimes that involves sacrificing our own preferences.

To make things easier, I proposed the workflow and a simple style that I felt was both appealing and easy enough to work with given our project constraints (deadline, inability to have physical meetings, lack of software for some members). I was lucky to be in a very helpful and accommodating group, though keeping the style consistent was a rather persistent problem we faced. Since I was in charge of compiling most of the pages and graphics, it was extremely time-consuming. 

Another problem we faced was broken links when passing the InDesign documents around. We did minimal transferring of files. When we did, we found that links sometimes got broken. To fix this, I suggested using InDesign’s package function and explained to the group why links broke and how to fix them. We zipped the packaged folders before sending them to other groupmates. Since I am working on an earlier version of Indesign, I learnt that I should use the .idml files to open the document instead.

Design Document 

I helped out with the Design and Layout, Production, and Reflection sections of the design document. Since I handled most of the InDesign and compiled graphics, I helped to add the more technical parts of the design document. I also explained the design principles our group used in our e-book. 

Workspaces

Better quality gifs can be found here: ID | PSD

[rigelmejo]

I just tried Glossikas new site. Which reminded me how much I hate it still! Wooh!

So basically (for those curious), glossika used to make a course of maybe 3000 sentences (or more) per language, aiming to cover up to B2 in a language. Now, I can't find the exact numbers right now but I think the lessons may cover 2000-3000 words, so not ideal for languages with few cognates to your native language. But a decent basis (much more words than pimsleur). The old audio files basically worked as audio flashcard files, with a srs like study schedule you'd study them with (or randomly), which I imagine worked well because I've studied audio files in that manner and it worked great for me. So their old audio files were great! I've downloaded the Chinese, Japanese, French, and Korean old files. Which they no longer sell. Which is annoying as fuck cause I'd happily buy them. But alas, glossika is one of those companies that would love monthly subscription money from people instead of a 1 time 300 dollar payment. (Shout out to Pleco, my favorite language app ever, that ONLY does free stuff and one time purchases to own forever - I respect one time pay models so much, I love them dearly).

Well glossikas new version, is to offer up their audio files as sentences with text/audio on digital "flashcards" where you study 5 at a time per session, in srs spaced repetition format. So basically they redid their audio course so instead of 30 minute audio files and a book (if you want to read too), instead it's in Anki format. I fucking hate it. Why do I hate it? Well for one, you can't buy the old files, and you also can't just listen to the current sentences in that old way of just fucking listening to 30 in a row. You have to stop what your doing, focus on the flashcards since now you MUST read too instead of using it as an audio-only course. You MUST do flashcard format even if like me u take 1 hour to get through 5 flashcards (when if presented in audio only format I can get through 60 sentences aka 2 audio lesson files). For another, I find the new format slows one down. It turns lessons into tiny bite size pieces like duolingo, which to me means unless you're diligent and do 20-60 sentences a day, you're going to finish courses AGES SLOWER than when using the prior format. Just... they used to be one of the few Really Good actually could get you to "know enough to converse and maybe immerse" level in a language resources that was suited to audio if you preferred lessons in a car/during commutes/during walks/during a busy fucking life. If you could focus for 90 days and just make time to listen, then listen as review regularly for a while, you could make a fuckton of progress! Their new model means unless you're the kind of person who goes wild on anki and gets through thousands of cards a year... you will progress slower.

And if you ARE someone who does well with anki? I recommend anki INSTEAD. BECAUSE the user made anki 6k core deck, the memrise nukemarine Lets Learn Japanese decks, the clozemaster app japanese common word deck, are ALL sentences with audio going up into 6k sentences or more! Covering more content than glossika, free! In the same flashcard app format! The ONLY reason id use glossika (personally) instead of those 3 alternatives, is if I want an audio only method that's just FILES and no fucking app I have to drop everything and force myself to manage to focus on. (I'm really really bad at focusing on flashcards apps I move at a snails pace on them which is why I prefer audio flashcard files in 30 minute chunks so much more). And even if you like audio files in large chunks? Clozemaster radio mode IS THAT. GLOSSIKAS only plus is they have real people speaking, clozemaster has machine audio. But the anki decks and memrise decks all have natural audio!!! So compared to modern glossika, why even use modern glossika??? Why pay a monthly subscription fee when free better alternatives exist???

All this to say that... today I tried glossikas modern website flashcard bullshit again. They don't even have an app. I was annoyed at its weak points (the time it took to load audio, the lull in time over and over again), again extremely hyper aware I could go fucking open clozemaster instead for a better experience.

I'm glad I downloaded their old audio files, because they are genuinely good. But god I am so frustrated and disappointed with their modern offering. It has the same content, but in some ways presented more difficult to access and use. (If you prefer app srs flashcard format though you would find it easier to use now, and if you do want to specifically test glossika and work thru it at a quick intensive pace it may be worth the money for you - it does do a decent job of covering good a1-a2 level stuff and at least preparing you for immersion at maybe a B1 level for Japanese. However if money is a concern, again I think ankis core 6k user made deck, nukemarines LLJ memrise decks, are way better free alternatives that also use real natural Japanese audio and cover more material in the same srs flashcard manner).

[rishikeshrafting]

Rafting in Rishikesh

At Rishikesh, the sun doesn't beam on you, yet inside you... Also, the streams don't stream by you, yet through you. You live every one of the long periods of the past, very quickly. You begin to think about the present, as the most recent day of your life. Your heart pulsates uncontrollably, in a vast differentiation to the enchanted reciting of the sages; and the distraught spout of the stream seems like a memorial. Life appears as time, and you wish that the seconds were heavily influenced by you. Rafting in Rishikesh It's the ideal thing for those adrenaline insane, juvenile hearts.

 Rishikesh is a famous spot for wilderness boating and other experience exercises. Consistently, a large number of vacationers rush to the World Capital of Yoga, to track down their lost spirits, and stay in the lap of nature. In the interim the more energetic spirits, have a good time with out their pontoons and their guts for a test. It is a supernatural fight against the quick streaming cold ebbs and flows of the Ganges. Wilderness boating has various degrees of trouble, contingent upon your preparation. Little preparing modules are likewise accessible for novices, whereby they are prepared to fight the fierceness of the Ganges. Punching and High Siding through the franticness, most rafters have gotten back from Rishikesh, with a reestablished love forever. The best an ideal opportunity to visit Rishikesh for boating is from September to November and from March to May. It covers a few kilometers, the way being sprinkled with rapids which range from Level 1 to Level 5.

 Different nearby travel services offer bundles, which as a rule incorporate a rafting trip, short-term outdoors, and a journey among the slopes.

 The Gateway to Himalayas, Rishikesh additionally has to bring to the table, a variety of other experience exercises. It is the first objective in Quite a while to have a Bungee Jumping point, built under master fashioners from New Zealand. One could likewise enjoy climbing, mountain trekking, precipice bouncing, rock ascending, kayaking, rappelling also. Skiing should be possible at Auli, roughly 8-9 hours drive away from Rishikesh, from January up till March. It is additionally probably the best slant in Asia. Those with a craving to sentiment the heavenly ethos could likewise camp unobtrusively on the banks of Ganges.

 Rishikesh likewise presents a large group of different administrations like Ayurveda and Reiki medicines, crystal gazing administrations and so on A plunge in the Holy waters of the Ganges is an absolute necessity. It makes certain to be an extraordinary otherworldly encounter. Those on an otherworldly mission could likewise visit the Lakshman Jhoola, Trayambakeshwar Temple, Shiv Mandir, Bharat Mandir, Rama Jhoola and so forth You could likewise look around the swap meets, which sell different strict stuff, and garments.

 The inviting salt of the earth people at Rishikesh will display with satisfaction, the happening to the Beatles to their little town. The more musically proficient Mozarts will sing The Happy Rishikesh Song for you.

 Getting to Rishikesh is conceivable by rail and street. The closest air terminal is the Jolly Grant Airport (around 15 kms.), which as of now handles two departures from Delhi. Getting to Rishikesh by a vehicle from every day air terminal is the most achievable problem free alternative. For going around in Rishikesh, autorikshaws, called Vikrams are the most ideal alternative.

 Most convenience and eateries can be found in Lakshman Jhula, High Bank and Swarg Ashram. The Holy City is a vegan center by law, and doesn't sell liquor. Anyway most cafés in Lakshman Jhoola will serve you veggie lover delights, produced using the nature's best items. A ton of ashrams, similar to the Swarga Ashram, furnish convenience alongside Yoga classes. Rishikesh is the place where experience is strangely simple to discover. Furthermore, boating in Rishikesh could be your definitive and most happening experience throughout everyday life!

 To book an occasion in Rishikesh, do visit our site. You can pick among the most well known Rishikesh occasion bundle agendas or make a redid one.

For More Info:- rishikesh rafting online booking

[suan9264joh]

Baby Sofa

Your foam sofa will be a critical endeavor, given that it offers various significant length of determined organizations. You will possibly use it basically reliably to improve your vibe and lifestyle too. Along these lines, it is sensible to perceive the ideal one! This is because; there are varieties to peruse keeping watch. It is comparably fundamental for pick the one that makes your youngsters make some great memories and agreeable as they watch their favorite.Therefore, with a staggering grouping of stunning and rich foam love seats kind that suits all of your necessities at home, considering this current buyer's guide is an adroit technique for simplifying your decision and invaluable.

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1.Marshmallow Furniture, Spin Master Children's Foam Chair

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2.Butterfly Craze Kid's Pillow Bed

This easy to-mind foam cover features in maritime power blue and white stars frivolity! The excessive, fragile pad cover similarly incorporates magnificently in 2 arranged sizes, for all ages including and adults. The thing has straightforward conveyability and eating up least time as differentiated and an inflatable pneumatic bed or bed.Additionally, it is an ideal partner for trip travel or outside. Dependent upon works out, it will in general be changed over into a lovely floor lounger seat a lot of equivalent to a level cushion bed. The cover is well known for its machine launderable nature on dry line and delicate cycle. Ideal for TV watching, rest parties sleepovers, book nooks, additional momentary guests and ground surface for any play tent.

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3.Sweet Seats by Animal Adventure

Sweet Seats is verifiably your spot with respect to forward-thinking seating and improving your phenomenal bubbly. This is because the seat offers decisions to upscale rental seating that are superb, impeccable, and splendidly monetary arrangement very much arranged. The other key thing with this popular seat is that it offers redid and huge help Room complex subject outlines and animal Adventure's rich toys are renowned by pervasive assessment materials and sharp plans, appreciating kids and supporting suffering youth memories.There are Sweet seat collection character foam lounge chairs twofold as flawless agreeable excessive pals and super room elaborate design. These specific seats are astutely made using dimensional features, rich surfaces, weaved and sweet verbalizations, and a tolerant yet generous arrangement.

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4. Costzon Kids Sofa, Children Couch Armrest Chair

If you have been glancing through foam lounge chair that features cute two strawberry pads with enchanting in appearance, sensitive in tendency, and helpful in using, by then this ought to be your favored outcome. With this thing, it is, henceforth, possible to finish a lot of activities like sitting on it and have fun.The material used has an assignment to do especially concerning security. To ensure prosperity, non-destructive material that has experienced and passes TB117 insistence is picked. The other critical part to determine is similarly dispersed first rate, strength and agreeable wipe. Firm wood layout advancement with fragile coral fleece cover offers sufficient assistance for hanging on for the greatness of 132 lbs.

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5.Marshmallow Furniture, 2-in-1 Children's Foam Sofa

This Flip-Open foam Sofa is arranged exclusively for youths. Having Disney's Cars 3, unmistakably the thing has an adaptable seating decision! The easy to-clean slipcover features delightful character craftsmanship and prosperity zipper for little fingers confirmation from crushes. This strong polyester slipcover is removable for attire to keep up cleanliness young kid couch.A amazing prize idea for events and birthday occasions, this makes the ideal base for snacking, scrutinizing, resting or sitting before the TV at home. Featuring lightweight foam plan, flexibility is possible and less complex.