#THUS IS SI BEAUTIFUL OH MY GOD

[holymaccaronii]

Am I wrong to think that BE gives off the Goddess of Everything Else vibes? Maybe it’s the green and nature stuff. Uh if you dunno what I’m talking about see here:

https://youtu.be/Bbwp4PbWYzw?si=WT3QbKy5wEZZmOAN

Oh my god you awakened a VERY DEEP memory inside me /pos.

YES I HAVE SEEN THIS BEFORE but not the entire animation until now. I can’t remember from where I’ve seen it (most likely school or Instagram reels) but yes, I totally get the vibes she and BE share, even her voice is one that I imagine BE having 😭.

Also this animation (which is taken from a story I believe?) is interesting since you don’t usually see the “evil” take the role of the creator and the “good” the role of the destructor (IN A SENSE that she’s changing them, shaping them). Ihneaimc does follow the classic good-creates and evil-destroys dynamic, but with the excuses that since BE was initially blinded by lies she (was) innocent, and AM knew the worst of humanity + was programmed for war thus evil. STILL the Goddess of Everything Else and BE share the characteristics aligned with optimism, and like you said, the propagation of green and peaceful landscapes at one point. HEHE just wanted to point out this bc I love yapping and analyzing stuff, thank u for reminding me of seeing that video complete op it was beautiful honestly.

[genedara]

The Death of Innocence

My heart is shuttered, soon it will crumble away

Stifling my tears, I scream day after day

(( The following story contains subject material that may be triggering to some. Such themes include grief and the loss of one’s living and unborn children, graphic violence and suicidal ideation, self-harm and suicide attempt. Read at your own discretion. ))

(( Recommended listening: https://youtu.be/aUCSDCNi6Wo?si=ou96kI7oeNI2MAAc ))

Twenty Years Ago

“Higher, daddy, higher!” Leana shouted as her father playfully tossed his daughter into the air. He caught the child with ease, beaming at the girl while the two of them played. The little elven girl giggled endlessly, squealing with joy whenever she was tossed upward.

“Throw her any higher and you’ll end up tossing her into space,” Genedara said. She held a small bundle up to her chest, a small infant’s head visible. One arm held the child close to her chest while her free hand rested on her pregnant belly.

“What, you don’t want to be the mother of the first space pioneer?” Kath’lien asked his wife, briefly glancing over at the woman he had been married to for the last century.

On their hundredth anniversary Genedara had approached her husband and asked if he would like to be a father. She remembered him scooping her up into his arms and twirled around with joy. Neither of them could remember a period where they were this happy. Genedara had finally established herself as one of the best Arcane tutors in the kingdom and was pulling in enough money to start a family. It only made sense to her to start popping out kids. Both parents were overjoyed when Leana was born, welcoming the baby with open arms. It was a few years before they wanted another and thus Aelriel was born. They had not planned on having anymore but were more than willing to have a third when Genedara found out she was pregnant again.

“Wheee! More, daddy!” Leana giggled as she dropped back down into her father’s loving embrace.

Unknown to the Runestrider family, Arthas had finally crossed into Quel’thalas. With his army on the dead following him he carved his path through Eversong Woods, killing anyone brave enough to stand in his way. Sylvanas had fallen and her ghostly form bound to the Lich King, cursed to do his bidding. The banshee tore through the people she once protected, unable to resist Arthas’s control over her. The army of the dead effortlessly made their way north only coming to a halt when they arrived at Silvermoon City. While battling with the city guard wicked siege engines were brought to the field of battle, raining death from above. The flaming stones punched holes into pristine towers, killing anyone who stood in their way. The happy family’s day was cut short when one of those boulders plowed into the Runestrider estate. In the blink of an eye their once beautiful home was reduced to rubble.

Genedara groaned as she came to, unable to see anything. She could hear the sounds of war raging outside her estate, the dying screams of her people a sound she would never forget. Something heavy had pinned her to the ground, one of the house’s stone walls. It was then when she remembered what she was doing before the explosion. Panic flooded her mind as she tried and failed to free herself.

She couldn’t hear anyone other than herself. She cried out, desperately pushing the wall. Tears streamed down her dirt caked cheeks, her voice rising to a panicked scream as her arms strained against the weight. A series of runes tattooed in white ink ran down her exposed arms which flared to life when Genedara poured mana into them. A invisible hand took hold of the rubble and flung it off, finally feeling the once pinned woman.

“Kath’lien! Leana! Oh gods, no! No no no, not you. Please gods no,” Genedara begged as she crawled over to the bundle of blankets her infant was wrapped in.

He wasn’t moving.

“No gods, please no!”

Outside the rubble a war waged on. Arthas’s troops were cutting through Silvermoon’s defenses like it was child’s play. Whenever someone fell they would be reanimated and forced to fight their loved ones. Those that fought against the rising tide of undead would forever be haunted for the rest of their lives.

Genedara pulled her deceased infant into her arms, holding the bundle close to her chest. She cautiously rose to her feet, ignoring the shards of glass that littered the floor. When she found Kath’lien impaled with a broken wood beam her knees gave way and she fell back down. Just a couple feet away was the body of Leana, her head caved in when one of the bookshelves fell over when the first volley hit.

“Don’t let them past!” someone shouted nearby, his voice carrying over the chaos of war. “Hold your ground! We must give everyone time to evacuate!”

“I can’t kill them!” came another voice. “They won’t stay down!”

“Cut the heads off!”

During all of this, Genedara knelt there, motionless. Her gaze was locked onto the corpse of her first and only daughter. A hole opened up her chest and her heart spilled out as a void filled the cavity. Her arms still held the lifeless infant, holding his body close. Tears flowed down her cheeks, her mind struggling to cope with everything that had just happened. One minute she was having a lovely afternoon with her family and the next they were all ripped from her grasp.

Something else felt wrong. Horribly wrong.

Ever since he was big enough to move, the unborn Lerel was still. He was usually full of life and constantly kicking his poor mother. Leana would often sit with her head on her mother’s stomach singing to her little brother. Genedara would never hear her children ever again.

Something deep inside of Genedara flushed all positive thought out of her mind. In its place was an endless pool of grief and fury, something she would spend next two decades trying to drain the ocean of loss. Her once positive outlook on life took a drastic and sudden shift, turning her once bright and vibrant life into shades of gray and black. She knew, deep down, that she would never experience another day of joy until the day she died. Only then, wrapped in death’s sweet embrace, would she have the strength to move on.

It felt as if someone else was driving her body when Genedara rose to her feet. She watched herself walk over to Leana and carefully scooped her off the ground before walking over to where her husband lie impaled. Without a word Genedara gently laid her son and daughter down on her husband’s chest and moved his stiff arms so that he was holding the two children.

“I’ll be with you soon, my love,” Genedara muttered as she took a step back. “I love you.”

With a wave of her hand a magical flame consumed the body as if it were soaked in fuel. The grief stricken elf stood there and watched the remains of her family turn to ash, only to be whisked away by the wind. The void in her chest swelled, threatening to consume her. Without really thinking, Genedara dropped down to a squat and picked up a shard of glass. She pressed the glass against her wrist and with a quick jerk to the right split the flesh in two and severing a vein. Blood pumped out of the open would as she slashed her other wrist, dropping the bloody shard to the ground when she was done.

As if moving on autopilot, Genedara walked over to the giant gaping hole in her house. She stepped through the threshold and out into an active battlefield. Her tattered and torn gown fluttered in a warm gust of air that carried the scent of rotting meat. It took her several minutes to realize what was happening all around her. With an indifferent gaze she watched as a guard was cut down by a shambling corpse only to watch him get back up after a couple of minutes. Suddenly she was glad she had burnt the bodies.

At least she wouldn’t have to kill them again.

“Ma’am, you need to evacuate!” A guard shouted as he ran over to the half baked bleeding woman. “Oh shit! You need help! MEDIC!”

“Leave me,” she told the guard before brushing past him. “I am not running away. If I am to die then I will take them all out with me.”

As Genedara advanced she discarded what was left of her gown, letting the once expensive fabric drift to the ground. She strode through the sea of death wearing close to nothing at all, allowing the world to see the Enchantress’s trump card. Tattooed with white ink, an elaborate series of runes covered her entire backside, vanishing into her panties and down her legs. A line of runes ran down both arms, ending at the wrist with a single rune on each hand. She sucked in the smoke filled air as the runes started to give off a brilliant orange glow. One by one the runes were activated, the air around the Mage shimmering as the caster drew in as much mana as her body could contain.

A hand was brought up to the air and was quickly balled into a fist as it was ripped downward. As if out of thin air a cluster of large, flaming rocks came crashing down from the sky. One slammed into a guard, killing her instantly while another smashed into one of the Scourge’s seige engines, killing its crew in the process. As Genedara strode towards the front line bigger balls of molten rock fell from the heavens, indiscriminately killing anything in their paths.

“Oh thank the gods, a Mage!” A wounded guard cried out as Genedara walked past him. “Wait, what are you doing?”

Another guard tried to keep her from advancing, roughly shoving her away from thr bsttlefield. What business did a naked woman have with an ongoing fight for survival? What could she possibly do to slow the advancing Scourge?

“Withdrawal your men and run,” Genedara said as she walked past the highest ranking guard. “Or don’t. I don’t care.”

The captain had never seen a woman so casually walk into a war zone. Nor had he ever witnessed a skilled mage fight as if they had nothing to lose. Fire rained down from the heavens, burning everything in its path, living or not. He could see the energy building up inside of the woman since the air around her glittered like diamonds. Bits and pieces of rubble started to drift upwards, acting as if they were suddenly weightless.

“Shit, pull back, pull back! Move, move, move! She’s going to explode!” the guard ordered his troops.

No one argued with the order and every available guard pulled back from the frontline. They the started gathering up whatever civilians were left and rushed out of the area. Genedara stood there, staring down an army alone. She spread her arms wide, took in a deep breath and muttered the single word of power, effectively ending the casting.

The world went silent. The clash of swords could no longer be heard, nor the angry mashing maws of the Scourge. At first the sound was barely audible but as time went on it grew louder and louder. Just as suddenly as the ringing had started it came to a sudden conclusion. Roughly twenty feet in the air, looming directly over the Scourge’s troops. A single pinprick of light formed and danced around, moving like a panicked animal in a small room. One second it was as small as an ant and the next it was fist sized and emitting a blinding bright light.

Genedara stared at the light for its entire duration, watching as it grew to the size of a melon and then collapsed in on itself. The resulting explosion shook the ground for miles around as a massive plume of smoke and fire rose into the sky. A shockwave tore through the Scourge, obliterating anything in its path. Not a single soul remained where the bomb had gone off. The field around where Genedara once stood was littered with body parts, blood and guts strewn all over. Several of the undead started crawling forward and just like that the Scourge’s numbers were replenished and the advance continued. The explosion, while big, had done little to nothing to an army that grew every time they killed. In time the Scourge would overtake the city and eventually the Sunwell. And once Arthas was done with his conquest the Quel’dorei were left with a broken kingdom and a traumatized populace. Quel’thalas would never be the same.

——-

Genedara dropped out of the sky and hit the ground hard. She groaned softly and rolled onto her back, trying to get an idea as to where she was. Only, she couldn’t see anything. No matter which direction she looked in, or how hard she rubbed her eyes, she would see nothing but darkness. Her body was covered head to toe in severe sunburns, the adrenaline keeping the pain at bay for the time being.

“Holy shit, it’s raining naked women!” a man cried out.

“Oh my gods, cover the children’s eyes!” cried a woman.

“I saw her boobies!” a little boy giggled.

A stranger reached out and cautiously touched the naked elf. A moment later she would be covered with an itchy blanket that only irritated the burns. Someone then helped her up and into a chair. It was then that she realized that she hadn’t landed outside and was instead inside a stranger’s house.

“Whoa, Mary, do your old man a favor and go fetch a healer. Go, go, child! Quickly,” a gentle voice said. “Ma’am do you know where you are?”

“No,” was all the elf said.

“Well, for one you fell out of the sky and into my living room. My daughter ran off to get a healer. Is there anything I can do? You’re bleeding and just covered in burns. What happened? Who are you?”

Despite the volley of questions, Genedara sat there in total silence. She wasn’t intentionally being rude, she was just incapable of processing any new information. Her mind, for the time being, would dwell on the death of her family for several years. It would be sometime before the once happy and outgoing mother could regain any semblance of normality. The first few months were spent at the house where she had appeared while she worked out how she got there. Gene didn’t remember casting a portal and just assumed it was a result of the mana she had pulled into her body.

While the healer tended to her slit wrists, the elf just sat there. She would remain in that chair for the next day, doing nothing but silently staring at nothing, quietly accepting the deaths of her children, both living and unborn. In just a single day Genedara lost everything dear. This is why It chose her. The trauma of the invasion of Quel’thalas would pave the road from the wicked abomination’s eventual possession and ruination of her new life.

[tsukumomei]

Flirting and Cupcakes

Khun A.A. with a Tsundere! S/o that accidentally gets stoned.

Pairings: Khun Ahuero Agnis x Y/n,

Endorsi Jahad/Y/n (Friendship)

Summary: The advancement test getting postponed is as unlikely as the northern lights appearing in Hokkaido, but on that specific day, it did. Khun gave the entire team the day off so Endorsi and Y/n went shopping. That didn’t end well though. 🌿🧁

“It was strange, the test was postponed. This was a once in a blue moon occurrence, thus, y/n looked forward to a day of rest and relaxation, but she already knew that wasn't going to happen when her best friend started banging on her door. 

Y/n was used to this kind of thing, how could she not? She was teammates with “the great'' Rak Wraithraiser for a long time. Compared to the self proclaimed leader of the team, ignoring the Jahad princess was a piece of cake. Unfortunately, y/n underestimated her. This lady had the patience of a wild boar, and literally broke down the door.

"What the hell do you want, you crazy woman?!" Y/n shouted, outraged from the loss of the sole thing that ensured her privacy.

"We're going shopping, dumbass!" Endorsi hollered, entering the room. "You promised that you’re gonna pay this time!!"

"When have I promised such a thing??! She yelled back. 

“Come onnn, we haven’t hung out in a long time! Don’t you miss me?”

“I'm not putting up with your high-maintenance ass! I'll go broke!" you retorted.

"How dare you!" Endorsi retorted. "Your boyfriend buys you everything, you spoiled brat!"

"Hey! It's not like I fo-" she was cut off.

"Be quiet you noisy turtles!"

“She started it! Putting words in my mouth!” Y/n yelled back at Rak, and just like that, the whole exchange ended with the h/c haired girl running towards the living room.

She was never going to give in to the brunette’s persuasions.

-or so she thought..

In an attempt to find peace and quiet, the e/c eyed girl sat on the couch beside Dan and Wangnan, who were currently playing video games, but clearly, God was messing with her, the moment she caught a glimpse of the girl who was slicing vegetables in the kitchen.

When Endorsi caught up to her, Y/n spoke as if she had just seen something horrifying. “Endorsi, we’re shopping. I’ll pay.” Y/n told the princess, in an awfully monotonous tone. 

“So you do miss your bestie. Why the change of heart huh?” she replied smugly. 

“Oh shut your face.” She replied, rolling her eyes. “I’d rather have Khun and Bam deal with the kitchen in flames. Let’s go, but you’re paying for lunch!”

“Deal” She happily responded.

As the two women were walking out the door, compressed Rak suddenly appeared. "As the leader, I permit you to do your turtle activities."

“What does that gator even mean by turtle activities? Does he never go shopping?” Endorsi whispered to your ear.

“Guess not.” you whispered back, giggling. 

_____

L/n Y/n, also known as the shinigami hime, was currently an exceptional E-rank regular with beauty, and prowess, rivalling Endorsi Jahad. Due to this, she also gets a load of- ✨fans✨

A little something about her is that she's a sweet tooth, and for her, lunch would never be complete without dessert. Another would be, is that she dislikes getting photographed, so one reason as to why she rarely goes out is to avoid the paparazzi.

Endorsi doesn't seem to mind those things, but y/n is extremely terrified, and starts to run off when she sees a camera pointed at her from her peripheral vision. 

Suddenly, as if God randomly decided to bless y/n, she comes across a little girl, about the same size and age as Miseng. Said little girl was a big fan of y/n, she asked for an autograph and in exchange, the girl handed over the box of cupcakes she held in her hands.

Little did the h/c haired girl know, this wasn't a blessing.

_____

A third detail about y/n is that she is serious, mature, and rational. She rarely ever shouts at people (Endorsi and Khun being the exception.), acts as the big sis of the team, and is definitely not an idiot. At first, Shibisu thought she was messing with the group, but when she started knocking on the cabinets, everyone knew something was wrong.

"Y/n what are you doing?" Isu asked, confused by her weird actions.

"Rats!" Y/n exclaimed, with a grin on her face.

"Respectfully, Ms. Y/n, Goseng and I clean the house thoroughly, there are no rats." Wangnan proudly stated, with his arms crossed on his chest.

The girl shook her head twice, and furrowed her eyebrows. " No! That can't be! I heard them! They said they wanted some berriesss." She replied, dragging the word "berries'' on her tongue like a 5 year old kid.

Shibisu faced the Jahad princess, who was just as dumbfounded as everyone else. "Did you take her to a bar?" He asked, convinced that Endorsi is only acting surprised to avoid getting in trouble.

"Huh?! Of course not! The only thing unusual she ate today was- Oh my- I bet that little shit put something in those cupcakes." She responded, realization hitting her.

"TURTLES! What is going on here?!" Rak hollered at the group.

"Awwww, Is this a baby dinoooo???" Y/n spoke, fussing over the mini Rak and picking him up. "Bam where did you get this oneee???"

"Ah, y/n, that is Mr. Rak." Bam replied sheepishly, while Rak is squirming to get out of the girl's grasp.

"Shhhh baby dino, its okayyy. Bam, You're kiddiiinggggg" she snickered. "Rak big like mountain you know." Waving her hands to prove her point.

"(H/c) Turtle! I am the great Rak Wraithraiser! I. AM. NOT. A. DINOSAUR!!!"

"Hold on, Endorsi, Cupcakes??" Isu inquired. For a minute there, he was distracted by this comedy show going on, but how could they be so sure that this isn't the enemy's doing.

A few of the og members thought so as well.

"Ah you wouldn't know. It's from the fans, duh." Endorsi blatantly stated.

Shibisu had this expression that could be interpreted as "this woman is unbelievable." "Where's Khun?"

"He said he had some business to take care of." Bam replied.

“Romeo, save me! they're tryna tell me how to feel!” she sang to the top of her lungs. "Sing with me baby dinosaur!"

"I AM NOT A DINOSAUR! LET GO OF ME!"

"Hatz, go with Endorsi and find that kid." Isu commanded, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

As of now, y/n is spinning the office chair, still singing Love Story. “This love is difficult, but it's real!” Anyone can do this feat, but her, with that unreal speed of hers, can make anything disastrous.

Rak accidentally flew out the window.

"And go get Khun, before somebody else gets hurt. " Shibisu added, internally face palming.

_____

Hearing that specific news about his lover, only 5 minutes had passed and Khun was already running throuhh the halls of the house and into their shared room, where the team was gathered. However, within those 5 minutes, Wangnan and Ehwa were also thrown out the window.

"The test suspension was a trick wasn't it!?" A distraught Khun asked the boy with freckles, while catching his breath. Poor baby must've sprinted miles. "Shibisu explain the situation! All I got was "H/c turtle dead, I got thrown out the window."!"

As if his voice was a trigger to summon the shinigami princess, said woman rushed to see Khun, and slipped in the process. Not a problem though as the blunette swiftly caught her.

“Oh my pwincee.” the girl cried, her E/C orbs elated and shining.

"I'm here sweetheart, you're okay.." he said, turning all his attention towards her.

"I gotta tell youu a seeecret Agueroo." She cooed.

"What is it?"

For someone telling a secret, she was whispering kinda loud. "I think i may have accidentally caused the extinction of dinosaursss."

"What?" With the obvious bewilderment plastered on his face, he turned to Shibisu who was laughing at the couple.

"As you can see, she's alive. Hatz and Endorsi are already on it as we speak." Isu stated.

Bam entered the room, along with the 3 people who were unintentionally thrown out.

"Blue turtle! Control your turtle girlfriend! Tsk, trying to kill everyone in the team." Rak complained, while Goseng handed out ice packs.

"HUH BABY DINO IS ALIVE!" Y/n exclaimed, 

The investigation team returned. "Turns out the mom accidentally put cannabis in the mixture." Hatz explained. "We can't undo it, but she'll get sober in a few hours."

"She's stoned." Endorsi added, trying to hold back her laughter.

“How many did she even eat?” Khun asked the princess.

“The entire box, I think.” Endorsi mentioned, before propping herself on the couch.

"Endorsi! You got more cupcakes??" Y/n beamed at the brunette.

"No more cupcakes for you bestie, you had enough." She snickered.

"Awww." The h/c haired girl pouted. As of now, the only things in her head were cupcakes, baby dinosaur, and Khun.

The final detail to be shared about y/n is that she is extremely bashful, an absolute tsundere. Never once was Khun able to give her affection without getting kicked in the process, so you could guess the amount of shock Khun felt when she suddenly blurted out-

"I love youu, Agueroo.” Y/n gently pressed her lips on his cheek, and her tone was so much more affectionate than usual. It didn’t fall short in tinting the bluenette's cheeks pink. “I’ve loved you since the Floor of Test, did you knoww that?" she smiled. "Oh, yoou were arrogant, had trust issues, and sometimes I thought you had a sadistic side.” she giggled uncontrollably, and her voice tipsy. "You were an excellent strategist and really cunning, so pretty and charming.. Remember the crown game and hide and seek? Who wouldn’t fall for you when you had the sexiest brain?” she squealed and placed her palms on his cheek. "There were times that, I think, I also saw the you that you made every effort to hide. You were sweet, loyal and lovely and I felt so lucky to be a part of your team. I swear I would've made moves, though I was pretty sure you only had eyes for Bam.” she finished, covering her eyes with her palms.

Somehow, she forgot that they had an audience around. At this point Khun was practically the drug that made her high. Khun however, was at a loss of words, which was also something that rarely (if not never) happens. You'd think that smart mouth of his never knew how to pause, but right now, it did.

If she wasn't stoned right now, she'd be celebrating this achievement.

"Who knew weed was all it would take to make her honest about her feelings." Endorsi plain stated. “Hey flamethrower! Hand me some popcorn. You want some, niece? ” Anaak took the popcorn, seemingly amused as well.

“Hey, remember when this was a comedy show?” Dan asked Wangnan, in which the blonde responded with, “Yeah, I’m pretty sure we changed the channel to tragic romance. This is the part where the MC dies- oh wait, nevermind, now it's a romantic comedy, I'm recording this.” 

"Can I follow youu? Cause mom always told me to follow my dreeeeams." She joked, while poking his nose.

He chuckled in response. "I love you too, idiot." Swept her bangs off and kissed her forehead.

"Father in law~ you betterr be ready cause my pwince is comin to knock youu off yourr thronee~"

"Father in law??" "What the hell are you imagining y/n?." Making Khun more flustered.

"I'm gonna go up the tower to touch the stars and ask God to be your one and only~"

"Sure sweetheart, let's go up together." He answered, playing along.

"Waittt no, I don’t even need to go up the tower anymore, the twinklyy stars in your pweeetty eyes are all I'll ever need."

_____

The following day:

When tsundere Y/n and Khun, who is such a tease, are back;

Y/n opened her eyes with the most painful headache, though the scent of her lover snuggled up against her neck alleviated it.

"Someone confessed to me last night." He whispered.

Y/n's default mode was to get jealous, but then  the embarrassing memory of last night burst through her hangover headache.

"I ALREADY DID THAT 4 YEARS AGO!" Y/n pushed him off and hid under the blanket.

"Oh but not like that,, you practically admitted that I'm your dashingly handsome prince and that you want to marry me~" he teased, poking her through the blanket.

"AHH SHUT UP!!! THAT WAS A ONE TIME THING!!" She said and covered her face with both of her palms.

_____

[ask-the-eu6]

So, can all of you sing the European Anthem? Or is it just the German-speaking countries who can get the words right? Also: who’s the best singer?

Germany: *Takes a deep breath* 

“Alle Menschen werden Brüder,  wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt… “

Germany: *Waits a bit before deciding to continue with a little smile*

Belgium: …

Luxembourg: …

Germany: Oh come on, say something… That wasn’t so bad now was it.

Belgium: Hey you free for dinner tonight? I need someone to serenade me to sleep :)

Luxembourg: Sister, please behave! 

Luxembourg: But uh yes, Germany that was incredible! You have an amazing voice!

Germany: Thank you… *Flattered*

Netherlands: Alright, alright, prick. Let’s hear it.

France: But with pleasure, mon cher! *blows him a kiss*

Netherlands: Hmmmpf... *rolls his eyes*

France: I’m ready! (Link to the song)

Belgium: Awww, “Let's be united like brothers, with a kiss to the whole world.” That’s so sweet!

Germany: Impressive... If only he put that much work in things that actually matter... *sighs*

Luxembourg: But, Germany, Isn’t joy in Europe important?

Germany: Fine. Fine.

Romano: How typical that you had to make it gay again. 

France: Try to do better then~

France: *coughs* SIMP! *coughs*

Romano: *Glares in France’s direction, before breathing in* (Link to the song)

Netherlands: *slow clap* That was actually pretty damn amazing! 

Romano: *Blushing bright red* Shut up potato bastard number two!

Belgium: Damn, the second! But yes that was incredible! A lovely version! I also like the version in Latin though...

Italy: *takes Belgium’s hand* Want me to sing that for you, Bellissima? 

Belgium: Oh, that would be lovely! *fans self*

Luxembourg: *sighs* female privilege. 

Italy:  *takes a deep breath* (Link to song)

Germany: Another beautiful version *wipes away a tear*

Italy: Thank you Germany! :D

Luxembourg: I think that except for my sister and brother, you all have beautiful singing voices that are hard to compare! Perhaps we should indicate the worst singer?

Belgium: Don’t you dare…

France: Oh no! the  worst possible version I have ever heard was from dear Angleterre as seen here: X

Germany: Yes. uhm… That sure is something… 

Luxembourg: Ahahaha yeah alright. You’re not the worst, sis!

Belgium: You little shit! Anyway thank you for your ask!

Some Mun Notes and extra stuff below the cut!

SO how did you like that european propaganda? ;)

Alright so the official English translation (although there are multiple English translations… ) is the following:

Oh friends, no more of these sounds! Let us sing more cheerful songs, More full of joy!

Joy, bright spark of divinity, Daughter of Elysium, Fire-inspired we tread Thy sanctuary! Thy magic power reunites All that custom has divided; All men become brothers Under the sway of thy gentle wings. Whoever has created An abiding friendship, Or has won A true and loving wife, All who can call at least one soul theirs, Join in our song of praise! But any who cannot must creep tearfully Away from our circle. All creatures drink of joy At nature’s breast. Just and unjust Alike taste of her gift; She gave us kisses and the fruit of the vine, A tried friend to the end. Even the worm can feel contentment, And the cherub stands before God! Gladly, like the heavenly bodies Which He set on their courses through the splendor of the firmament; Thus, brothers, you should run your race, As a hero going to conquest. You millions, I embrace you. This kiss is for all the world! Brothers, above the starry canopy There must dwell a loving Father. Do you fall in worship, you millions? World, do you know your Creator? Seek Him in the heavens! Above the stars must He dwell.

There’s also some interesting versions of the anthem out there, some weirder or more modern than others!

Belgian Mun’s absolute favourite, “never fails to make her cry”-version of the European anthem is the following Flashmob around the time of the Lisbon treaty: X DO LISTEN TO THIS ONE!!!!!

An honorable mention for this X multilingual version… However the French and German pronunciation leave to be desired. Luckily the singer apologises in the notes of the video, lol!

Regarding interesting linguistic versions, there is also a version in Esperanto here X, which is a made up language with a combination of rules and word forms from all the European languages. 

Here’s an interesting version in English as well… X I believe it was sung by Albanians which is why the accent doesn’t sound native. Still it’s pretty cool because it is a rock version!

Another Rock version here X! With what I believe is Croatian at the end? Is the following:

Then some honourable mentions:

This one by André Rieu, because he’s a musical genius. X

This version with 10 000 Japanese people! X

Ode to Joy but it’s by the Muppets! X

This one but it is sung by cats :3 X

This X bastardisation by the Piano Guys who combined it with “Joy to the world”

And lastly this covid version by this Dutch orchestra who did it over zoom! X

Okay! You’d think I would have gotten tired of the melody after hearing it so often ;) And trust me it’s been stuck in my head for two whole days. YET I AM NOT TIRED OF IT! I adore the European anthem. :D

So yeah... Thank you for your ask dear!

[askfacultystaff]

Rama Raid's backstory Pt.2.

Rama: *Narrates* Suddenly, Lynn appeared from nowhere in front of me as she asked me a question.

Lynn: Hey, Lincoln! You're coming to my softball game today, right? Lincoln: *Quietly* Damn it. Should've done a head count. *to Lynn* Actually, Lynn, I've got some important business to attend to. Like Ace Savvy VS the Card Shark. *holds out comic* Lynn: Lame. My team has won our last six games, and you're the only member of this family who hasn't come out to support me.

Lincoln: That's because I was supporting six other sisters at their things. Sorry, Lynn, I just can't do it today.

Lynn: *holding her bat threateningly* Sure you won't reconsider?

Rama: *Narrates* I'm acquiesced and is at the game with my family and Bobby in the bleachers. The mascot comes out onto the field and does a somersault.

Mascot: LET'S DO THIS!

Baseball Announcer: Well, it's a beautiful day at the park. Isn't it, Pep?

Pep: *unenthusiastic* Oh, sure it is.

Baseball Announcer: It's the bottom of the ninth with the Royal Woods Squirrels up 3-nothing. Could this be another shutout for star pitcher Lynn Loud?

Rama: *Narrates* The crowd cheers for Lynn. Lynn waves to the people and her family and they all root for her. She then starts doing some things to prepare for her pitch. She lifts her leg, turns her cap, tosses some dirt over her shoulder, and pats her right cheek.

Baseball Announcer: Loud is performing her signature good luck rituals.

Lynn: *doing a Cossack dance* Hutta-hut! Hutta-hut! Hutta-hut!

Baseball Announcer: Hey, Pep, you believe there's anything to these kinds of superstitions?

Pep: *not caring* I don't know.

Baseball Announcer: Well, here's the windup and the pitch.

Rama: *Narrates* Lynn winds up and pitches, but the opposing batter slams it out of the park.

Baseball Announcer: Ooh! Looks like the softball gods did not love that Cossack dance.

Rama: *Narrates* Soon enough, the Daisy Hill Daisies hit the ball each time, thus beating the Squirrels.

Baseball Announcer: Hated that Cossack dance.

*The crowd boos and the mascot looks on with grief*

Luna: DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT, SIS!

Next Part_Pt.3.

Reblogs are appreciated to enjoy backstory

[love-of-fandoms]

Moonflowers (Apollo + OC)

Blood of Zeus Apollo Oneshot, can be read as reader-insert

Pairing: Apollo + OC

Word Count: 4909 words

Prompt: “Do you think the moon is jealous of how pretty you are?” From this prompt list

It was a rare, calm day at the peak of Mount Olympus when Apollo saw it. Nobody was screaming at anyone for cheating, Zeus’ long list of bastards weren’t being harassed for their illegitimate status, and there were no impending threats.

As such, Apollo was able to peacefully stare off the balcony and watch the mortals uninterrupted. He wasn’t watching anything in particular, just observing, eyes flitting from place to place. Occasionally he’d spot one of his many ex-lovers, though to call them ex lovers always sounded wrong. To be someone’s ex implied bad blood between them, but Apollo never created false expectations. He was upfront in the fact that he didn’t do romance, and while he would say pretty words and was always up for sex or cuddling, there wouldn’t be any relationship, not one with commitment, at least. So when he would spot someone he had taken to bed, he would smile slightly, or frown if they weren’t doing well. But he wouldn’t intervene.

It wasn’t a person that caused his gaze to stop on a particular thing, though. Rather a beautiful garden.

There were many beautiful gardens all over the world, many just in Greece alone, but what had stood out at first with this garden was that it wasn’t some palace courtyard, or in the middle of a prosperous city. Neither was it in some rich merchant’s villa. This beautiful, well maintained garden was in the middle of a forest, the Efki Forest to be specific, with not a single town for miles around it. The god’s eyes narrowed in curiosity as he looked at it. There was a small cottage in the garden, and many animals roamed the gardens freely. He admired the beauty, content to look at it from afar, but his contentment to stay on Olympus was disrupted when he caught sight of a specific patch of flowers in the center of the garden.

Moonflowers.

Flowers that bloomed only when the sun was set, or almost set. However, it was midday as Apollo gazed at the widely blooming moonflowers. Apollo barely processed a thought as his feet took him to where his chariot was kept, barely even noticed as he climbed on and allowed the horses to take him to the garden.

Moonflowers blooming during the day wasn’t just rare, it didn’t happen. It didn’t happen unless Artemis blessed them. So that begged the question, why had his twin blessed a random patch of flowers in a random, oddly placed garden? Motivated by his profound curiosity for the occurrence, and perhaps by the ache he felt whenever his sister was gone from Olympus. She had departed on a hunt two weeks ago, and knowing her she could be back today, or in a year.

Apollo stepped off his chariot, allowing the horses to go back to Olympus until he called for them. Looking around, he saw that the garden was even more vibrant up close, and surprisingly the animals were not skittish at all. While most would flee at the very sight of what appeared to be a gigantic human, these animals were calm, and some even approached him and rubbed against his legs. Apollo’s brows furrowed in confusion. He had seen this happen with Demeter and Persephone only a handful of times, Aphrodite once or twice, but most animals were just normal around him. Not particularly frightened, but not particularly inclined to like him either. He crouched down, peering at the moonflowers curiously.

“Oh!” a soft voice exclaimed, and Apollo whipped around, standing as he did so, and the sudden movement caused the rabbit that had been curiously sniffing his toes to bolt off. Standing at the edge of the clearing, where the garden ended and the true forest began, was a human woman. She had long, brown hair, so long in fact that Apollo wasn’t sure it had even been cut, and wore a simple white dress that hung loosely around her pleasantly plump figure. She was short, not just because Apollo himself stood at 10 feet, but even for a human she would be considered short, just barely 5 feet, and in one of her hands she held a basket of what looked like mushrooms.

The two stared at each other for a moment, the human gaping, and Apollo simply studying her with his head tilted slightly to the side.

“Um, h-how may I be o-of serv-vice, Si-ir Apol-Apollo?” she stumbled out, bowing her head meekly, and Apollo’s eyes widened at her easy recognition of him, though beyond that he did not show his surprise.

“I was simply admiring this garden, little one,” he said with a soft smile, gesturing around the area, and the human nodded slowly. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she nodded again.

“Y-yes, I put a lo-a lot of work in-into it,” she stammered, and Apollo’s eyes widened once more, his smile becoming wider as well.

“Oh, this is your garden?” she nodded in confirmation, her hair falling down in front of her eyes as she did so, making her seem even more meek. “Then perhaps you can answer my question,” her face scrunched in worry at the statement.

“Wh-wh-what question?” Apollo chuckled then, the sound soft and sweet, causing the human’s tensed shoulders to relax unknowingly.

“Nothing bad, I assure you,” he said. “I simply wished to know how your moonflowers had come to be blessed by my twin?” he asked, and the woman’s face relaxed.

“Oh,” she sighed in relief. “They’re just such a pretty flower, and only blooming in my garden at night seemed like such a pity, since most only really appreciate it in the day, so I prayed to Artemis to allow them to bloom all the time,” Apollo’s eyes widened.

“And she granted your wish?” the woman nodded. 

“She was… impressed, I suppose,” she was no longer stuttering, Apollo was happy to note, she was clearly in her element talking about her garden, a sort of comfort zone, but her voice was so soft. It was pleasant, melodic even, if Apollo were to be poetic about it, which he always was, but quiet. He stepped closer, wishing to hear her better, and a slight pink came to her cheeks. Apollo thought it contrasted quite prettily with her sea green eyes, which he could see as she timidly rose a hand to brush her long unruly hair out of her face. “I have a-a way with animals,” she explained, gesturing to the animals calmly walking around them, and Apollo’s head tilted in confusion.

“I had wondered why they were so calm,” the woman smiled now, and Apollo’s breath was almost taken from him at the sight. It wasn’t a large smile, only a small quirk of her lips, but her eyes squinted and shone with a joy he couldn’t quite place, and Apollo thought it was one of the most beautiful sights he had seen in his long life.

“I don’t know why,” she began, walking over to a brown rabbit and sinking to sit on her knees in front of it. Instead of scurrying away, the rabbit actually hopped up to her, it’s ears perked happily. She reached down to stroke it across its head softly. “But my presence calms animals, and they make me happy,” her smile widened a bit as another rabbit hopped over, butting its head against the other’s as if fighting for her attention, though it was only an adorably friendly competition. “Call it a nice symbiosis, if you will,” Apollo nodded, approaching her slowly, not wishing to spook the rabbits. She glanced up at him, one corner of her lips quirking further up into a mirthful smirk. “Do you want to pet them?” she asked, gesturing to the rabbits, and Apollo simply nodded. “They’re siblings, Ruo and Dina,” she said, motioning for him to crouch down, he did so, reaching out his hand to stroke them, but he stopped when they flinched away.  The woman giggled a bit, and Apollo felt a pleasant warmth spread through him at the sound. She reached for his own hand, stopping before she touched him, and he nodded his permission. She grabbed the back of his hand, and Apollo found himself in awe of just how… tiny she was. Granted, he wasn’t even in his human, form, and thus was still huge in comparison to all humans, but still. Her fingertips barely met the base of his own fingers as she guided his hand towards the rabbits. They sniffed him cautiously, before one of them hopped forward and rubbed its head against Apollo’s palm.

“Amazing,” he murmured, stroking softly down the rabbit’s neck and back, and the woman grinned.

“Isn’t it?” she exclaimed, allowing the other rabbit to hop up into her lap and snuggle into her soft thighs. Her hand left Apollo’s to stroke the rabbit, and the back of his hand felt suddenly cold without her contact. The woman hummed a nameless tune as they sat there, stroking the rabbits, and after a moment, Apollo realized something in horror.

“How rude of me,” he began, voice quiet as to not spook the animals. The woman’s brows furrowed as she turned her head to look at him. “I have not asked your name,” the woman smiled softly.

“Althaia, my lord,” she answered, and Apollo scowled at the title.

“There is no need to call me such things,” he assured her, hand leaving the rabbit to rest on her shoulder. She flinched in surprise, wide green eyes gazing up at him. For a moment he thought he recognized her eyes, but he ended up attributing it to the forest surrounding them.  “Just Apollo will do,” she nodded shyly, her cheeks pink once more. “Are you alone here, Althaia?” she shivered slightly at the sound of her name in his voice, and Apollo relished in it.

“I-I have the animals,” she answered, gaze darting to the side, and Apollo sighed.

“But there are no other humans? Or perhaps nymphs?” she shook her head.

“I’m the only one,” she said, and Apollo hummed, displeased.

“Well that won’t do,” he said, and Althaia flinched.

“Wh-what do you m-mean?” Apollo was sad to hear her stutter return as she asked him that.

“You can’t be alone for so long, humans aren’t made for it,” he said calmly, but Althaia only seemed to become more distressed.

“B-but my garden! The animals!” she protested, but Apollo held up a hand, stopping her from going on.

“I am not suggesting you leave this wonderful place you’ve curated,” he quickly soothed her, and Althaia’s shoulders slumped in relief. “I simply meant that I would have to visit you, so you don’t get too lonely,” he smiled brightly at her, and Althaia was reminded that he was the sun god as his beautiful grin almost blinded her.

“Oh! You-you don’t need to b-burden yourself with that, my lo-” at Apollo’s look, she cringed. “Apollo,” she amended.

“It’s not at all a burden, I assure you,” his voice was serious as he said this, and he fully turned to her, a huge hand gently grasping her chin to get her to look him in the eyes. “It would be my honor to visit you in such a beautiful place, to be in the company of such a beautiful woman, too” Althaia blushed brightly, trying to avert her eyes, but Apollo simply leaned closer, refusing to allow her to hide. “Would you accept my company?”

“Of course!” she nodded hastily, cheeks a bright red, and Apollo grinned at her.

“Wonderful!” he announced, standing when he realized how much time they had spent in the garden. He had been gone from Olympus for bordering on three hours at this point, and the sun would need to set soon. “Until our next meeting, Althaia,” he bade her, and Althaia bowed her head as he called his chariot, the horses appearing almost instantly before him and allowing him to climb on.

“Goodbye,” Althaia, rose a hand to wave at him as he flew away, going to set the sun. “Apollo,”

Althaia didn’t expect to see Apollo for months, or perhaps he wouldn’t come back at all. But instead, much to her surprise, he came back only two days later.

This time, Althaia was in her cottage preparing a stew with some of the mushrooms she had gathered. Upon realizing this, Apollo shrunk himself to human size, where he stood around 6 foot 3, and knocked on her door. Althaia let out a shout of surprise, dropping a plate in her shock and cursing when it landed on her toe. She stumbled over to the door, whipping it open to reveal Apollo. It was an overcast day, but the sun god still seemed to shine, as if it was him who was emitting pure light, instead of reflecting the sun’s. Her eyes widened.

“A-Apollo!” she greeted, bowing her head. “I di-didn’t expect you to be back so soon!” Apollo smiled softly at her.

“Why wouldn’t I wish to come back as soon as I could?” he countered, and Althaia blushed. She couldn’t be that important. “May I come in?” Althaia’s eyes widened as she stepped aside, allowing him into her small cottage. He found himself having to duck, the cottage more suitable to people around Althaia’s height. A bed was pushed against one wall, with a window just above it, letting light stream in. On the opposite side of the cottage was a table with a shelf where various bowls and pots were placed, and a window above that. A firepit sat in the middle and two chairs next to the fire pit. There were herb racks lining the walls, and Apollo was surprised to see an easel with a beautiful meadow painted across it.

“You paint?” he asked in surprise, and Althaia blushed as she quickly went to cover the painting.

“Um… yes,” she muttered. “Not very well, though,” Apollo’s hand reached out to stop hers without even a glance as she went to throw a sheet over the canvas.

“I would disagree,” he hummed, finally taking his eyes off the painting to look at her, gently taking the sheet from her hand and throwing it back over the chair it had been draped across. “I think this is beautiful,” he told her, eyes flitting away from her to take in the painting, and Althaia simply gaped at him, unsure of what to say. Now that the two were inside the cottage, Althaia could now see that Apollo was in fact glowing, his golden light showing slightly on the walls and her painting. She found herself feeling… dull. Even his eyes were a beautiful golden shade, his blonde flowing hair shining even brighter than a human’s would. She found herself uttering it without really thinking, a stray thought.

“Do you think the moon is jealous of how pretty you are?” she murmured, and Apollo’s eyes widened as he turned away from her painting, fully facing her.

“What?” he had heard her perfectly well, and a small smile was present on his face as he asked her to repeat her question. She blushed, her head ducking down to avoid his gaze.

“I-it’s nothing,” she muttered, and Apollo chuckled, stepping closer to her and hunching his shoulders so he could look her in the eyes. 

“I’m quite sure my twin is prettier than me,” Apollo told her with a soft chuckle, and was pleased to hear Althaia giggle sweetly.

“I’d say you’re both equally pretty,” her voice was still quiet, as if she half-hoped that he wouldn’t hear her, and his smile widened. 

“Why thank you,” he said, accepting her praise. She had met his twin sister, after all. Althaia darted her eyes to the side, avoiding him again. His smile turned down a bit at that, but he tried not to take it personally. She was shy, after spending who knows how long alone with only the animals for company in this forest. Shy and perfect.

Apollo hadn’t realized he was stepping towards her, pulled by an inexplicable force, until Althaia let out a sharp gasp as their chests touched. Her breasts brushed his abdomen as she breathed heavily, and Apollo’s eyes were drawn to a pendant around her neck. It was dull, as if she had worn it for years, but he could still make out the design. It was a half moon, half sun symbol. Apollo’s eyes widened as he lifted his hand to allow his fingers to brush against the pendant. Althaia’s chest stilled as he did so, holding her breath.

“Where did you get this?” he asked, and Althaia smiled shyly.

“You and Artemis gave it to me,” she told him, and Apollo’s hand pulled back as he gasped. That was why her eyes were familiar.

There are only two times a day Apollo and Artemis could see each other when they weren’t on Olympus. Dawn and dusk was their time, when the moon and the sun shared their light over the same place, and the twins could enjoy time together.

Often, they would follow the line across the Earth to spend more time together, making a single dusk or dawn last for hours or days.

It was dusk on this particular occasion. Artemis was trying and failing to improve Apollo’s skills with a bow. While she was the goddess of the hunt, her twin couldn’t use ranged weapons for the life of him. He pulled the string back, breathing in deeply as Artemis had instructed, and focused on the tree he was aiming for. After a moment, he loosed the arrow, and it went flying… a solid 45 degrees to the left of a tree. Artemis began to sigh disappointedly, but they froze at the sound of a startled squeak. Apollo’s head snapped between her and the direction of the squeak.

“Did you-”

“Let’s go,” was all Artemis uttered before she was sprinting through the forest, through the bushes before Apollo felt like he could even blink. He followed her after only a moment.

That was not the squeak of an injured animal. That was a child. A human child. Had he just shot a human child with his sister’s bow?

Apollo burst through the bushes the arrow had gone through, gasping in relief to see a rabbit with an arrow through its side. He was less relieved, however, to see the small child kneeling next to the rabbit, tears welling up in her eyes. Artemis knelt down next to the child, a hand going to her shoulder.

“I’m sorry, little one,” she murmured to the girl, who’s head snapped to gape up at the goddess. “We didn’t mean to scare you,” the girl hiccuped, some tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Did you mean to kill Samis?” she asked accusingly, and Apollo flinched.

“No,” he muttered, kneeling down on the opposite side of the girl as his sister. “That was my mistake, I’m sorry,” the girl looked up at him sadly.

“She has three babies,” the girl said, her eyes narrowed, and Apollo and Artemis exchanged a look. “Are you sure you’re sorry?” Apollo cringed, sighing before nodding.

“I am,” he said to the girl, who turned her bright green eyes to glare directly at him. “How can I prove that to you?” the girl stood suddenly, one hand shooting out to grip Apollo’s finger, unable to even reach his palm to actually grasp his palm. She also reached out to hold Artemis’ skirt. The two gods exchanged awkward glances, before the girl began to lead them further through the forest.

“Where are you taking us, little one?” Apollo asked, and the girl just looked over her shoulder to shoot him an upset glare. His eyes widened, and he shrugged his shoulders.

After a minute or so of walking, the girls hands dropped to her sides, and at first the two gods thought that perhaps her small arms had gotten tired being raised so far above her head, but then the girl crouched down in front of a bush, whispering softly.

“Hey guys,” she murmured, and the gods were stunned when three baby bunnies timidly hopped out of the foliage. “Y-your mom is-isn’t coming back,” she stuttered through some tears, and the baby bunnies seemed to understand her, their ears drooping sadly. “But this guy is gonna take care of you,” she said, gesturing over her shoulder at Apollo, whose eyes widened in shock. Artemis’ hand rose to her mouth to stifle an amused chuckle. 

The girl grabbed the bottom of her skirt, lifting it slightly to make a sort of hammock, and gestured for the bunnies to hop in. They did so without complaint, and she stood, turning to Apollo. 

“Do you know a safe place for them to live?” she asked, and Apollo nodded, a soft smile on his face.

“I do,” he confirmed.

“And you will feed them at least twice a day?” she asked, and Apollo nodded again.

“I will,” he agreed.

Usually, a god of Olympus would be offended at the audacity of a mortal just presuming that a god would do them a favor. Or presume that the mortal could just decide how a god repays them for a slight. But Apollo found himself endeared to this young girl.

“Where will you take them?” she asked, and Apollo smiled.

“I will bring them back to Olympus,” he said, and the girl’s eyes widened.

“O-Olympus?” she gasped. “Are you-” Apollo nodded, cutting her off.

“My name is Apollo, this is my twin sister, Artemis,” the girl gasped, bending at the waist in a low bow.

“I-I’m sorry!” she squeaked, and Artemis sighed, kneeling down next to the girl.

“Don’t apologize, little one,” she soothed, and the girl took in a deep breath. 

“B-but I-I shouldn’t ha-have,” Artemis cut her off.

“It’s alright, sweetheart,” she assured the girl, turning to Apollo.

The mortals would just call it “a twin thing”, but their connection went deeper than that. Upon sharing a look, they both knew exactly what they would do. Artemis place a hand on the girl’s small shoulders, standing and leading her to Apollo. The two gods brought their hands together, a burst of deep blue and yellow light came out from their hands. The girl flinched back, her eyes squinting at the assault to her eyes. When the light faded, the gods held a beautiful pendant between them. One half was the sun, the other the moon.

“What is your name, little one?” Artemis asked, and the girl blushed.

“Al-Althaia,” she answered, and Artemis and Apollo smiled. It was the same, radiant smile on their faces, and Althaia couldn’t stop her mouth from falling open in awe.

“Well, Althaia,” Artemis began. “Accept this token from us,”

“As proof that you have done no wrong,” Apollo finished, and the two gods knelt to drape the pendant over her head and around her neck. The girl grinned shyly, and the two gods grinned back. Apollo cupped his hands together, placing them in front of where Althaia held her skirt, and after she nodded, the bunnies hopped into his palms. After a moment, Artemis turned to her brother, whose glow was beginning to fade as night truly began to fall. “Go back to Olympus, I’ll take care of her,” he nodded, calling his chariot to carry him back.

“Althaia,” Apollo breathed, his hand going to her cheek, gently tilting her chin back so he could meet her eyes. He laughed breathlessly. “They’re still alive, you know,” her eyes widened.

“Wh-what?” she gasped, and Apollo chuckled.

“The three rabbits, they’re still alive,” he repeated. “You didn’t tell me their names, so I had to give them new ones, I hope you don’t mind,” Althaia’s mouth dropped open in shock.

“Th-that was t-twenty years ag-ago,” she gasped, and Apollo nodded.

“Olympus is a special place,” he said, and Althaia giggled.

“Really?” she quipped sarcastically, and Apollo grinned at the sass, glad that she was at least coming out of her shell enough to say that.

“-and as such,” he continued, his grin fading to a fond smile. “Aging works differently. For some, it slows, but for others, it stops completely,”

“Wow,” she muttered, and Apollo nodded, his hand finally dropping from her cheek, only to grasp her own.

“Would you like to see them?” he asked, and Althaia’s eyes widened.

“Y-you mean… go to Olympus?” she gasped, and Apollo nodded.

“Of course,” he said, beginning to lead her out of her cottage, calling his chariot. He only stopped when Althaia dug her feet into the ground, eyes wide. “What is it?”

“A-am I even allowed on Olympus?” she asked, and Apollo shrugged.

“Gods are allowed to bring mortals to Olympus, as long as they don’t bring too many,” he told her, eyes warm, and Althaia hesitantly began to follow him once more. She blinked, and suddenly Apollo was 10 feet tall once more, and there was a golden chariot behind him, pulled by beautiful golden horses. His huge hands dropped to her waist, and he raised his brows. “May I?” she nodded, and he lifted her up onto the chariot, stepping on behind her. “Ready?” he asked, and Althaia nodded, this time with more apprehension. 

Apollo clicked his tongue spurring the horses forward, and Althaia screamed when they were suddenly airborne. Apollo laughed, an arm wrapping around her waist and hoisting her higher, so the crown of her head rested just under his chin.

“Relax,” he said in her ear, and Althaia’s hands went down to grasp tightly at his forearm. If he was mortal, Apollo was sure she would’ve scratched his arms deep enough to draw blood. Her looked down, seeing her eyes tightly squeezed shut. “We’re above the clouds, open your eyes,” he told her, and Althaia shook her head.

“It-it’s scary!” she said back, and Apollo’s grip tightened.

“You have no need to be afraid, Althaia,” he said, lips brushing the shell of her ear. Althaia shivered. “I would never let you fall,” he assured her. “Open your eyes, little one, see how beautiful things are from up here,” Althaia nodded this time, taking a deep breath in before opening her eyes. She gasped at the sight that affronted her eyes.

They were above the clouds, indeed, but she could still see through breaks down into the forest. The sun hit the clouds in the most beautiful way, making them shine yellow and orange.

“Wow,” she murmured, and Apollo chuckled.

“Beautiful, right?” he prompted, and Althaia nodded vigorously.

“It’s gorgeous!” she shouted above the wind, and Apollo nodded, tucking his chin against her neck.

“Just like you, little one,” if he had been able to see her face, Apollo would have been both endeared and amused by  the fiery blush that took over Althaia’s cheeks.

They rode to Olympus in silence after that, and it wasn’t long before they were in one of the many gardens. Althaia looked around excitedly, turning to Apollo when she didn’t see any of the bunnies.

“Where are they?” she asked, and Apollo chuckled, leading her further through the garden, softly calling for them as he did so.

“Come out!” he called. “Dusk, Ef, Ki!” he continued, and Althaia looked at him in surprise at the names.

Althaia grinned at the rustling of bushes ahead of them, kneeling down just in time for a large rabbit with a soft auburn coat to dart forwards. Without missing a beat, the rabbit lept into her arms, excitedly snuffling at her neck as she embraced him. Apollo chuckled, amused.

“This is Dusk,” he told her as he knelt down beside her. “He’s the most… exuberant of the three,”

Dusk, when we first met.

Two more equally large rabbits came out after their brother, though more careful with the approach. One, who Althaia remembered had a grey coat last she saw, had a coat of almost pure black, with some brown fur peeking out when the light hit it just right. The other was a light brown color, with a white spot just on his nose. They cautiously sniffed at Althaia’s legs before following their brother into her embrace.

“Ef,” Apollo pointed to the almost-black one. “Ki,” the light brown one.

Efki, my forest.

After a couple of minutes, Althaia finally raised her head from gazing in adoration at the trio of rabbits, who in that time had shuffled off her lap and were contently laying against her. Tears were in her eyes as she smiled brightly at Apollo, who was taken aback by her expression.

“Th-thank you,” she breathed, and Apollo smiled softly, shifting closer and raising his arm, an invitation if she wished for it. She took it, leaning against Apollo’s side with a happy sigh.

“Of course,” Apollo placed a kiss to her temple, a sign of affection so common for him that he didn’t consider how it would affect a girl with little to no contact with people for possibly years. Althaia flinched, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, to find that he was looking at her adoringly, golden eyes shining. “Anything for you,” he said softly, a whisper that Althaia could barely hear. She smiled shyly, relaxing further into Apollo’s side, content for now to snuggle with the rabbits and the sun god.

[crackheadgeminibby]

don’t leave me

pairing: henry cavill x black!reader, platonic chris evans x black!reader

warnings: language, age gap, angst

word count: 2.9k

i do not consent to my work being copied in any way, shape or form or reposted on any other platform

not my picture

You throw open the door to your shared house with Henry as you roll your eyes and hear him practically stomping behind you.

“You have got to be kidding me! Are you fucking serious?”

You throw your clutch on the couch and open the fridge in search of a water bottle. You hear the door to the house slam shut and Henry huffs loudly.

“He kept touching you and checking you out. And you did absolutely nothing. At all!”

Henry and you were just coming back from a party one of his celebrity friends was throwing. You were both having a lot of fun and drinking more than you should have been, without consequence, until Chris got there.

You had been friends with him since you had met him while you were interning on his PR team over 6 years ago. You had been a little starstruck at first and, as much as you had tried to hide it, he immediately saw it. He had made a joke about it that you had found funny and you had both started making stupid, random jokes until he had asked if you wanted to hang out. Of course, you had agreed and thus was your beautiful friendship born.

You both always joked about the fact that your body would mummify before you got laid again until he got the idea of introducing you to his hot, single friend. You would have been stupid to refuse so you shrugged and told him to bring it on. He certainly did when the following weekend, he hosted a barbeque and introduced you to Henry.

At first, it was awkward between the both of you because neither of you knew how to approach the other. A couple of hours and many beers later, you were in the stupidest but longest conversation ever, which ended with him coming home with you. You had thought nothing about it, but he had stayed the whole night and had offered to take you to breakfast the next day. And then lunch, 2 days later. Followed by dinner, a week after.

Even though you had told him multiple times, Henry never seemed to believe that Chris and you had never and would never cross the limits of friendship. This had strained the friendship between Henry and Chris, and sure, you felt bad about the situation, but you couldn’t really do anything more than reassuring Henry every time he asked about Chris and you. Thus, your current predicament.

Chris had arrived at the party already a bit buzzed and particularly clingy. He had hung around you almost all night and always kept his arms around your shoulders or your waist. Considering that Chris and you were very close, it didn’t mean anything at all to either of you: you were just 2 friends at a party, getting drunk.

Henry didn’t feel the same way when he saw Chris supposedly checking you out shortly after. He had stormed over and started making a scene, which you had begged him not to do, so you had simply taken his arm and pretty much dragged him to the car. You had driven the whole 45 minutes back home with Henry ignoring you and pouting in the passenger seat.

You open your water bottle and roll your eyes again as you take a swig.

“He was drunk, Henry! Did you want me to just leave him to blackout on the floor or something?”

“Yes.”

You scoff, put the water bottle on the counter, and cross your arms as you raise your eyebrows.

“Seriously?”

Henry looks at you straight in the eyes and shrugs. You roll your eyes yet again and start to head to the bedroom as Henry follows behind you.

“You’re acting like a dick, Henry. And like a fucking child.”

“At least I’m not acting like a… a tramp.”

As soon as he finishes his sentence, you stop in your tracks and turn towards him. You narrow your eyes at him as you tilt your head to the side and ask,

“Excuse me?”

He crosses his arms and stares at you.

“With that fucking dress and those heels. I mean, seriously. It’s like you want him to feel you up.”

Your eyes start to fill with tears from hurt and anger as you tell him, through gritted teeth,

“Fuck you, Henry.”

You head back to the living room and take your clutch from the couch. You hear Henry sigh and walk back to where you are,

“I didn’t mean that, I’m sorry.”

As he sees you putting your shoes back on, his eyes widen,

“Wait… Where are you going?”

Tears have started falling down your face as you look at him and scoff,

“I don’t know. Anywhere away from here, away from you, you fucking asshole.”

You open the door and get in your car as you see him on the porch.

As it’s almost 1 in the morning, he whisper-screams, “Y/N! Come back, please. I said I was sorry.”

You don’t offer him a second glance as you back out of the driveway and start driving.

Shit. Where the fuck are you gonna go now?

You bitterly laugh to yourself as you realize that the only place you can go to at this hour is Chris’ house. You start the long drive ahead of you as he lived on the other side of the city.

You finally get there an hour later. Henry had tried calling you multiple times, but you had declined every single one of his calls.

Knowing that he was probably sleeping off all the alcohol he had consumed at the party, you ring Chris’ doorbell and knock on his door loudly multiple times. After 5 minutes of incessant knocking, you finally see the light turn on inside. Chris opens the door as he’s standing there, half-naked, with his eyes barely open. He blinks multiple times before asking,

“Dude, what the fuck? It’s like 3am.”

You start feeling a little guilty as you wince and look up at him.

“I’m sorry. Henry and I got into a fight and I didn’t know where else to go.”

Chris sighs and slowly nods his head as he steps aside to let you in. You immediately walk towards his bedroom as you know that, at this late hour, Dodger is safely in bed, probably snoring.

As soon as you enter the room, he gets down from the bed and runs over to you. You smile as you kneel next to him and as he starts licking all over your face.

“Hi buddy! Oh, I missed you too, it’s been so long!” You pet his head and scratch his belly as he starts rolling around next to you. Chris smiles from the doorway and starts to head to his closet.

“Pretty sure you didn’t bring any clothes in that miniature little clutch of yours, so t-shirt or long-sleeve? And black or white?”

You smile as you remember all the other times that you slept over after a party. Chris always preferred that you both ended up at the same place after a party to make sure you were safe so he had started buying shirts and boxers that he reserved for you for when you slept over.

You continue to pet Dodger as you look up at Chris and say, “Black and long-sleeve, please.”

He nods his head and reaches inside his closet before throwing a red shirt and black boxers at you.

“Thanks.”

You get up from the floor and head over to the guest room which, to be honest, was pretty much your own room as your belongings were spread out everywhere.

You go to the bathroom and start changing before you start hearing noises at the door. You finish putting on your sleeping clothes and folding your dress and you open the door to find Dodger looking up at you with his big, brown eyes, whining as Chris leans on the door frame. He shakes his head before saying,

“I swear to God, every single time you come here, it’s like I don’t exist anymore.”

You laugh at him as you put the dress on the dresser and head to the bed as Dodger follows you before settling down next to you.

Chris enters the room and sits on the bed next to you as you get under the covers.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

You exhale, look up at him and shrug as your eyes start to sting from tears.

“He got mad because of the party. Said you were checking me out and trying to feel me up and whatever.” He rolls his eyes as he listens to you. “Then I told him he was acting like a baby and being a dick and he said that I wasn’t better because I was acting like a tramp”, you finish, imitating his accent.

Chris’ eyes harden and he balls his fists before looking back at you,

“What the fuck is wrong with him?”

You shrug and say, “I don’t know. He’s like insecure and doesn’t trust me or something but this is really starting to piss me off. I’ve told him literally a million times that nothing is going on between us and he still does shit like that.” A tear falls down your face and you wipe it away before saying, “It’s whatever… I just wanna go to sleep.”

Chris nods and gets up from the bed before turning off the light, “Good night.”

You softly smile and answer, “You too.”

You turn towards Dodger and pet him, “God, Dodger… What should I do?”

You’re woken up a few hours later by Dodger quite literally eating away at your hand. You giggle and softly push him away before stretching. The sun has almost completely risen, and you can hear some noise in the kitchen.

You get up and brush your teeth before heading to Chris’ kitchen as Dodger follows you. You find him with a cup of coffee in his hand, making French toast and dancing as he sings along to a song playing from his computer.

You laugh and say, “Okay, Rihanna, calm down.”

He jumps and turns around to look at you, wide-eyed.

“Jesus, dude! Don’t fucking scare me like that.”

You roll your eyes and get yourself a cup of coffee just as Chris plates the last slice of bread. He hands you your plate and you both head to his backyard where you always eat breakfast after a party. You sit down and take a sip of coffee as you start eating. You can feel Chris’ eyes on you as he eats so you turn towards him and raise your eyebrows. You slightly smirk and ask,

“May I help you?”

He rolls his eyes and swallows his bite. “How long are you gonna stay here?”

You tilt your head to the side and laugh. “Why? You got plans or something?”

He shakes his head with a smile on his face and shrugs. “No. But you can’t hide out here forever. You guys literally live together. And I’m pretty sure I have no clothes to lend you for work tomorrow.”

You sigh and shrug. “I don’t know. I guess you’re right. I’ll probably just leave this afternoon or something.”

He slowly nods his head and says, “I know that what he told you was really fucking shitty. But you know what I think?”

You chew as you gesture for him to continue.

“You’re both very… non-verbal people, you know? You guys need to hash out all of your problems once and for all. Clear the air, you know what I mean?”

You nod as you know he’s right.

At first, you were worried that exactly this would happen to Henry and you. You both liked to show your thoughts and feelings through actions and not words. It didn’t cause you problems at the beginning of your relationship, so you had thought that you had created some sort of silent communication, but you were clearly wrong.

You’re about to agree with him when you faintly hear the doorbell from inside the house. You frown and turn towards Chris. “There’s someone at your door.”

“Huh?” He knits his eyebrows together and takes out his phone before pulling up the camera footage from his front door.

He grimaces and bites his lower lip as he looks back up at you.

“It’s him…”

Of course it is.

You sigh and leave your plate and coffee cup on the table as you head towards the door.

You sigh deeply before opening it.

Henry exhales heavily as he sees you behind the door.

“Oh, thank God, you’re here. I’ve been knocking on all your friends’ doors. I’m pretty sure they all hate me now.”, he chuckles slightly.

You scoff and shake your head as you walk to Chris’ living room. You sit down on the couch and motion for Henry to do the same. He hesitantly follows your instructions and sits down on the seat in front of you.

You wait for him to start talking as Dodger comes and lays down next to you. You pet him as Henry starts,

“I am so sorry, Y/N. I had no right whatsoever to say what I said last night. I know that it’s not an excuse, but I was drunk, and I was mad, and I was scared and I just… There’s no way to justify what happened. I’m sorry and I didn’t mean it. At all. I’m just… bad with my words.”

You frown and shake your head. “Scared? Why were you scared?”

“Because I’m literally terrified of losing you. You are so far out of my league. You’re so smart and ambitious. So beautiful and funny. I just don’t want to lose you.”

You softly laugh. “Well, you’re really going at it the wrong way, you know.”

He looks at you and chuckles also. Your expression becomes serious again as your conversation with Chris from last night comes back to you.

“Henry… Honestly, how many times do I have to tell you that nothing is going on with Chris? Believe it or not, he’s not my type.”

Both Henry and you turn around as you hear Chris hiss, “Damn Y/N. That hurts. Right in my feelings.”, he jokes as he fake pouts and points to his heart. He nods to Henry and says, “Don’t mind me. Just bringing the food back inside before I get an ant infestation. I’ll be out of your hair in a minute.”

You turn back to Henry and continue as Chris heads to his room, “I’m serious, Henry.” He softly hangs his head, “I don’t know how much more of this I can take.”

He looks up at you, alarmed, with tears in his eyes. “No, I… Don’t say that, please.” He gets up and takes your hands in his before sitting next to you and looking deep into your eyes. “I’ll do better. I’ll be better, I promise. Just…. Please don’t leave me.”

You sigh and look down at your intertwined hands.

“Okay. Under one condition.”

He nods hastily, “Yes, anything, I promise.” You gaze into his soft blue eyes and stroke his cheek.

“You have got to talk to me, Hen… Stop keeping everything inside because that’s when it blows up. When something’s wrong, talk to me, ask me about it. And I know it’s easier said than done, but when I tell you something, I mean it and you gotta believe that, okay?”

He softly nods and leans towards you. He gently puts his lips to yours and kisses you as his hand reaches for the back of your neck. He delicately deepens the kiss and guides you to his lap as his hands rest on your hips. You subconsciously start grinding on him as his mouth slowly starts leaving kisses on your jaw and neck. You softly moan before you jump as you hear a loud clap.

“Okay, that’s enough. Here are your bag and clothes. Please keep it in your pants and go home. Thank you!”

You giggle as you feel the heat rising to your face. “Sorry, Chris.” You get off Henry’s lap and take your clutch and clothes from Chris. You turn towards Henry and heartily laugh as you see his face that’s redder than a tomato. If you didn’t know what had just happened, you would have told him to go to the doctor’s because being that red is probably unhealthy.

Henry gets up from the couch and hurriedly makes his way outside. You follow him while still laughing and stop on the front porch. You turn around and hug Chris before saying, “Thank you for being there and for listening to me.”

“Of course, Y/N. You know it’s never a problem. Mi casa es su casa.” You roll your eyes playfully and bend down as you hear Dodger whine from the door.

“And you, sir, I will be seeing you very soon. Promise.” You kiss his head and wave to both as you enter your car. Henry starts driving and you follow behind him.

You smile and shake your head.

These two were going to be the death of you.

[jokertrap-ran]

(未定事件簿) EVENT!「致斯卡提的情诗」 [Tears of Themis] EVENT: A Love Poem to SKADI Translation (The Manor of Hermes: Lu Jinghe Route)

*Tears of Themis Masterlist / Mobile Masterlist *Spoiler free: Translations will remain under cut *The tracking tag for ALL Event Stories will go under: #Tears of an Event

Expensive Sculpture:

MC: What a pretty sculpture…

Lu Jinghe: Isn't this one of Lale's artworks?

MC: Lales? That famous oil painter? Did he do sculptures too?

Lu Jinghe: Of course. Although Lales was publically well-known as an oil painter…

Lu Jinghe: His sculptures are also just as valuable as his oil paintings.

Lu Jinghe: Actually, each and every one of these sculptures are extremely expensive due to there not being many to begin with.

He circled the sculpture a couple of times before finally squatting down behind the statue.

Lu Jinghe: For such a large sculpture like this… I'd say that it'll be something exceedingly hard to obtain without the right assets and connections combined.

MC: Which means the owner of this Mansion's…

Lu Jinghe: That's right. They're someone wealthy and respectable; someone with a big circle of friends.

MC: ...Is that so…?

Lu Jinghe: Okay, Lawyer sis; let's not think about this for now.

Lu Jinghe: I found something else too.

MC: What?

Lu Jinghe: Look.

He brought his right hand in front of me; in his palm, laid a single Purple Jewel Fragment.

MC: A fragment of "Allie's Winter"!

Lu Jinghe: You bet’cha!

☆ Obtained: Expensive Sculpture! ☆ Obtained: Purple Jewel Fragment!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Expensive Sculpture Info]

A Sculpture from Lales, an Oil Painter. There are not many of such sculptures made by Lales being circulated in the world, thus, not only are these works very expensive, but they're also hard to obtain. This particular piece located in the Mansion is shocking in both size and exquisiteness; in order to purchase something like this, the buyer must have accumulated a large wealth of money along with undoubtedly strong personal connections.

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

Strange Wall-painting: 

Lu Jinghe: Wait!

MC: What's wrong?

Lu Jinghe: Is this… The Cult of Rebirth?

MC: The Cult of Rebirth? What's that?

Lu Jinghe: Have a look at this picture.

He pointed to the artwork mounted on the wall.

Lu Jinghe: Find anything odd about it?

MC: Hearing you say that, it does feel a little off…

MC: This painting has… Wings, weird-looking skulls, and… Eyeballs?

MC: Why would you combine these things together?

Lu Jinghe: Because they're the iconic symbols of the "Cult of Rebirth".

Lu Jinghe: The Cult of Rebirth was a heretical cult popular among a small circle of people in the last century.

Lu Jinghe: They believe that people are born bearing sins.

Lu Jinghe: But at the same time, they also believe that everybody has a chance to cleanse themselves of such evil.

Lu Jinghe: The skulls here represent evil, the wings, of chance; and the eyes, the gaze of "god", himself.

MC: Wow… You really know your stuff.

Lu Jinghe: I heard my teacher mention it back when I was taking the class on "Art and Religion".

Lu Jinghe: Although it was a niche cult, it's followers included a good many artists and painters back during its prime.

Lu Jinghe: And inspired by the strange doctrines and customs of the cult, they proceeded to create many "amazing works of art".

Lu Jinghe: Like the famed "Seven-day Prayer" series of artworks; they're basically showcasing the whole process of how this religion is worshipped.

Lu Jinghe: The painting before us is very similar to that of the third artwork in the "Seven-day Prayer" series in terms of its content and the technique used in its creation.

MC: I seem to recall seeing the "Seven-day Prayer" series of artworks on the internet before… But they all looked pretty "distorted", so to say.

Lu Jinghe: In the field of Art, distortions and mania are sometimes deemed as a type of "beauty".

Lu Jinghe: Although, I must say that the "beauty of mania" that is expressed in works related to the Cult of Rebirth only panders to a very small group of people who find it aesthetic…

Lu Jinghe: It's not just you; it's something that many people who study Art may not even recognize or accept.

Lu Jinghe: And that's precisely why there are only a small handful of people who understand these paintings, as well as the teachings of the Cult of Rebirth.

MC: But for this painting to appear here of all places? Wouldn't that mean that…

Lu Jinghe: There may be believers of that Cult here.

MC: …..

Lu Jinghe: Wait, there's something else here.

Carefully checking the painting again, he made an unexpected discovery on the back of its frame.

Lu Jinghe: A Purple Jewel Fragment. It should be the missing piece from "Allie's Winter".

☆ Obtained: Strange Wall-painting! ☆ Obtained: Purple Jewel Fragment!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Strange Wall-painting Info]

The Cult of Rebirth, a heretical Cult that was popular among a small group of people in the last century. Many “amazing artworks” were left behind as it’s legacy due to the many artists and painters that had been part of their following, among which is the “Seven-day Prayer”, that has garnered the most fame.

The painting that has been hung in the Living Room of the Western-style Mansion is very similar to that of the third painting in the “seven-day Prayer” series in terms of the content portrayed in it and the technique being used.

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

Incomplete Roster:

MC: Wait a minute, Lu Jinghe.

I opened the case before us and retrieved something from its depths.

Lu Jinghe: A Roster… But part of it's already destroyed.

MC: What's wrong?

Lu Jinghe: Look at how these words are being written; find anything odd?

MC: Hmm… Looks like they're a combination of skulls and feathers…

MC: Could this be encrypted, by chance?

Lu Jinghe: That's right. This is an encryption method unique to the Heretical Cult of Rebirth.

MC: And can you understand this type of encryption?

Lu Jinghe: Yup. I once saw it on one of the paintings that were presented during class.

Lu Jinghe: Although this "Cult of Rebirth", with an exceedingly small following, didn't leave any written records behind…

Lu Jinghe: They still managed to leave behind many works of art as its legacy, due to the large number of artists and painters in their midst.

Lu Jinghe: The second painting of the "Seven-day Prayer" series depicts the Cult of Rebirth's Sacrificial Ceremony…

Lu Jinghe: And it also depicts and shows how this manner of encryption came to be, in detail.

Lu Jinghe: But at the same time, the trick to solving this puzzle also lies within the very same painting itself, hidden from sight.

MC: So you're saying that… You can understand what's being written?

Lu Jinghe: Of course, I ended up specifically studying up on everything to do with the seven paintings in the "Seven days Prayer" series.

Lu Jinghe: Now, let me see…

Lu Jinghe: He took the Roster and went through it page-by-page.

Lu Jinghe: ...The number that's being recorded here should be the number of "tributes" that the Cult members gave.

MC: "Tributes"? And what would that be?

Lu Jinghe: "Tributes" for the leader of the Cult.

Lu Jinghe: The Cult of Rebirth believes that people are weighed down by sin upon birth, but at the same time, everyone also has a chance to clear themselves of such sins.

Lu Jinghe: And that the reason why you'll encounter such misfortune, is due to the sins you bear.

Lu Jinghe: So you'll have to cleanse yourself of these sins, if you wish to be rid of misfortune.

Lu Jinghe: But cleansing yourself of such sins alone isn't enough; you require a "Messenger of God".

Lu Jinghe: And this person is the very head of the Cult. He declared that he was the son of God, hence, possessing the ability to communicate with God.

Lu Jinghe: And believers can get him to play "Oracle" for them, as long as they pay the proper tributes.

Lu Jinghe: Their sins can be cleansed, so long as they do as the "Oracle" instructs.

Lu Jinghe: The speed at which the "Oracle" works is tantamount to the amount of "tribute" paid. The more tributes you give, the more efficient it will be.

MC: Isn't this the same method being utilized by Multi-level Marketing Organizations now?

Lu Jinghe: Yes, but back during the era where the Cult of Rebirth was at its prime, scientific knowledge itself wasn't exactly something that was widely known, so…

MC: Then, how much did the people listed on this Roster pay?

Lu Jinghe: Let me see…

Lu Jinghe: There are some who handed over land instead, and some who used gold as their tributes; all of which amount to huge sums of money.

MC: Why…

Lu Jinghe: Looks like it's very likely that this Mansion is a gathering hub for the believers of the Cult of Rebirth.

MC: ……

Lu Jinghe: Oh, right. This Roster also came with something else.

He handed me the thing he had been holding in his hand.

MC: A fragment of "Allie's Winter"!

Lu Jinghe: Yup.

☆ Obtained: Incomplete Roster! ☆ Obtained: Purple Jewel Fragment!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Incomplete Roster Info]

A Roster that’s been badly burnt. The visible part of its content is as follows: (Ps. Chu Dai has already translated the contents of the Roster, so please go on ahead and read it with a peace of mind~) “Year 19xx, Month x, Day x. The amount of “Tribute” everyone gives will be recorded in this book for easier verification in the future. …… L.Mー Tribute Amount: Five properties and one ranch in Sakya Fyjord; the title deed to which have already been transferred. …… J-S.Hー Tribute Amount: Twenty gold bars; has already been sent to headquarters. …… Y.MーTribute Amount: Five gold bars and an Orchard; the items and the title deed to which has already been transferred. May the Son of God cleanse your sins as soon as possibly; may you be pure and untainted forever.” 

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

Worshipped Idol:

There was a shrine atop the table with strange patterns painted all over.

There was also a photo in the middle of the shrine.

MC: Lu Jinghe, do you make any sense of this?

Lu Jinghe: This is… An idol of the God that the Cult of Rebirth prays to!

MC: An idol of the God they pray to? Are you certain?

Lu Jinghe: Of course, I'm sure about it.

Lu Jinghe: Even though the Cult of Rebirth is such a small heretic Cult that not many people know of it…

Lu Jinghe: The paintings that have been painted onto this shrine is still something that's kinda famous in the world of Art.

Lu Jinghe: Some of the decorative Frescoes on the roof of smaller churches are based off this painting.

Lu Jinghe: Or stained-glass arrangements, so on and so forth.

MC: Based off this? But this painting's full of… Eyes, strange skulls and wings…

MC: Not exactly suited for your ordinary church…

Lu Jinghe: What's being imitated isn't the content, but rather, the composition of the painting.

Lu Jinghe: The shape and colour of the paintings you're talking about are quite vastly different.

Lu Jinghe: Hence, it's not an easy task at all to skilfully integrate this…

Lu Jinghe: Into a piece of work, and at the same time, express what the painter truly wishes to show.

Lu Jinghe: But still, the painting on this shrine is very skilfully done. It expresses the especial secretively of the Cult of Rebirth exceedingly well.

MC: That's true. You can imagine just what sort of Cult the Cult of Rebirth is...

MC: Just by looking at this God.

Lu Jinghe: Later, a great artist in the world of Art chanced upon this painting and was inspired by it.

Lu Jinghe: After that, he utilized a similar composition method when painting a church mural.

Lu Jinghe: In the end, the fresco became an immediate success the very moment the church opened to the public.

Lu Jinghe: And consequently, this manner of composition also rose in popularity.

Lu Jinghe: But a large part of the masses only knows of the works of this great artist, and not the divine intent that had been behind it for the Cult of Rebirth.

Lu Jinghe: I, too, learnt it by chance back when I was studying in Florence, Italy.

MC: So, just what exactly does this shrine represent?

Lu Jinghe: According to the teachings of the Cult, if there's something you require God's help with…

Lu Jinghe: The first thing to do is to pay the leader money in an expression of "sincerity"; in other words, "paying tributes".

Lu Jinghe: And the next step would be to enshrine an idol of this God in your own home for twenty-one days, to await the day where God descends and graces them with his presence.

MC: So this picture that's on the idol is placed here because…

Lu Jinghe: Look, there's a message at the back of the picture.

Lu Jinghe: "I hope that the great God can cleanse my daughter of her sins and wake her from this madness."

Lu Jinghe: "-Lasture Modro".

MC: So Mr. Lasture was one of the Cult of Rebirth's believers… Did he enshrine this statue for the sake of his daughter, Allie?

Lu Jinghe: Correct. And judging from the sheer size of this deity, I'd say that his "tribute" was by no means small.

Lu Jinghe: And his position and status in the Cult itself was probably not a low one either.

MC: ……

Lu Jinghe: Right, there was also something else in the shrine.

He revealed the palm of his hand.

Lu Jinghe: I found this behind the photograph earlier; it should be one of the missing Jewel Fragments of "Allie's Winter".

☆ Obtained: Worshipped Idol! ☆ Obtained: Purple Jewel Fragment!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Worshipped Idol Info]

A shrine unique to the Cult of Rebirth. One is required to enshrine this divine box at home for twenty-one days if they require the help of “God” to accomplish something. Lasture enshrined this wish-granting box here for the sake of his daughter, Allie, in hopes that God could “cleanse her sins and wake her from the madness”. It looks like he has forked out quite a lot in terms of “tributes”, all for the sake of this one God.

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

Divine Message Ⅰ:

A roll of sheepskin parchment laid under the rags of the bench that had been placed in front of the bed.

Lu Jinghe stepped up, giving the roll of parchment a once over.

MC: Find anything?

Lu Jinghe: How about you tell me if you found anything first before asking me that, Lawyer Sis?

MC: ……

MC: The shape of these words feels like a combination of both skulls and feathers alike…

MC: Is this some sort of code?

Lu Jinghe: I knew you’d figure it out! That’s right, this type of encryption is…

Lu Jinghe: Exactly the same as the one I saw in the famed second painting of the “Seven-day Prayer” series.

Lu Jinghe: If I’m not recognizing it wrongly, I’m pretty certain this is an encryption method unique to the Cult of Rebirth.

Lu Jinghe: On one hand, it is to ensure that internal information is not disclosed, to prevent the government from sanctioning them; and on the other hand, it is to show and express the “divinity” of the leader…

Lu Jinghe: The Cult uses iconic skulls and wings to represent different characters.

Lu Jinghe: Similarly, they also use this method to convey information to each other.

MC: Then what's written on this sheepskin parchment is…

Lu Jinghe: “Your prayers have been heard by God.”

Lu Jinghe: “In a couple of days, a servant of God named Geraldi will arrive to cleanse the sins of Allie Modro.”

Lu Jinghe: ……

MC: ……

As I recalled what Lu Jinghe said, my eyes drifted elsewhere…

A gleaming object in the gaps between the bench that had been placed before the bed caught my attention.

MC: This is…

I edged towards the bench in front of the bed.

MC: It's the Jewel Fragment we're searching for!

☆ Obtained: Divine Message Ⅰ! ☆ Obtained: Purple Jewel Fragment!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Divine Message Ⅰ Info]

The Cult of Rebirth’s Leader’s reply to Lasture. The content of the letter has been translated and is as follows:

“Dear Mr. Lasture Modro,

Your prayers have been heard by God. In a few days, a servant of God by the name of Geraldi will arrive to cleanse the sins of Allie Modro.

I hope your dreams come true.”

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

Handwritten Divine Message:

MC: Lu Jinghe, look at what’s inside this drawer! There’s an actual jigsaw puzzle in there!

Lu Jinghe: Want to try piecing it together?

MC: No thanks… I don’t know how long it’ll take for us to piece these 20 pieces together when there’s no complete picture for us to refer to…

Lu Jinghe: So what? I know what the picture’s supposed to look like when completed.

MC: !!!

Lu Jinghe: From the looks of the image printed on the puzzle pieces…

Lu Jinghe: It looks exactly the same as the fifth artwork from the “Seven-day Prayer” series that I once saw.

Lu Jinghe: I still remember how it looks; we’ll be done in a jiffy.

His hands continued in their movements as he spoke, and soon, puzzle pieces that had once been scattered all over the floor were brought together as one complete picture.

At the same time, he took out a piece of white paper from his pocket and sketched the image that the completed puzzle formed onto it.

MC: Why did you sketch it down?

Lu Jinghe: “Seven-day Prayer” is one of the few paintings about the Cult of Rebirth that still currently exist…

Lu Jinghe: In addition to depicting the whole worshipping process of the believers, it also records a whole lot of things about the Cult’s unique code of encryption.

Lu Jinghe: They often use such graphical encryption methods to transmit information, so I wanted to redraw this picture and see…

Lu Jinghe: If there’s anything hidden in this puzzle.

MC: Did you figure anything then?

Lu Jinghe: Yeah. According to how the encryption of the Cult of Rebirth works, the message that’s being conveyed in this puzzle is…

Lu Jinghe: “To Geraldi, there’s no need for you to seriously treat his daughter at all; just be aware that after his daughter passes away...”

Lu Jinghe: “You’ll need to find a way to transfer all the properties of the Modro Family, including the Western-style Mansion to the Son of God through any means necessary.”

MC: If that’s so, then isn’t this Geraldi guy just a conman!?

Lu Jinghe: ……

Lu Jinghe: Try looking again and see if there are any other loose pieces.

MC: Let me have a look…

MC: Nope… Nothing here.

MC: But I found some Jewel Fragments in one of the corners.

Lu Jinghe: Alright then… I guess it's not all for nothing.

☆ Obtained: Handwritten Divine Message! ☆ Obtained: Purple Jewel Fragment!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Handwritten Divine Message Info]

A puzzle that was left out in the Collection room, pieced together into a complete picture. After translating the pattern of the picture according to the workings of the unique encryptions of the Cult of Rebirth, the obtained content is as follows:

“To Geraldi, there’s no need for you to seriously treat his daughter at all; just be aware that after his daughter passes away...You’ll need to find a way to transfer all the properties of the Modro Family, including the Western-style Mansion to the Son of God through any means necessary...”

There are 20 pieces to this puzzle that conveys this information. If we were to convert it to 4 digits, the numbers will be “0020”; and it seems like these four digits have some correlation with the locked code case in the same room where the puzzle was found, and the secrets hidden within.

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

Traces of a Magic Circle:

MC: (I finally managed to collect all the Fragments!)

MC: (The notch on the lock of the door is similar to that of the strange rune segment of “Allie’s Winter”...) 

MC: (The Purple Jewel, in it’s entirety, is supposed to fit in here...)

MC: (Guess I’ll just slot it in and see how it goes.)

☆⋅⋆…⋅⋆⋅⋅⋆⋅…⋆⋅☆

MC: Lu Jinghe, look at the ground!

MC: Is this a Magic Circle?

Lu Jinghe: This is the Cult of Rebirth’s “God-inviting Circle of Blood”.

MC: ???

Lu Jinghe: The Cult of Rebirth will always draw a blood formation like this one before they proceed to cleanse their fellow followers of their “sins”.

Lu Jinghe: They believe that God can be guided from the Realm of the Gods to the Human Realm through this, further increasing the success rate of “cleansing one’s sins”.

Lu Jinghe: And the name of the person being cleansed of sin will be written on the edge of this “blood formation”.

Lu Jinghe: So, who was this formation created for…?

He walked to the edge of the circle where a line of handwritten words could be vaguely seen.

Vague as it was, it wasn’t too much trouble for us to recognize it, for we’d already seen this name many times within this Mansion.

"Allie Modro".

Lu Jinghe: So it really is for her…

MC: But from the looks of it, it seems like the circle wasn't completed…

Lu Jinghe: That’s right, but the “God-inviting Circle of Blood” is usually only painted on the very same day they cleanse someone of their sins…

Lu Jinghe: I’m afraid something must have happened to Allie Modro on the day where they were supposed to “Invite God” and “cleanse” her of her sins.

☆ Obtained: Traces of a Magic Circle!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Traces of a Magic Circle Info]

The unfinished "God-inviting Circle of Blood" that had been in the Sacrificial Room. The name of the person being cleansed of sin has been written at the edge of the "blood formation"—— Allie Modro.

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

Collection Room's Code Case: Study Notes

MC: So many books! And lots of them are on famous codes!

MC: Oh? Are these books… For learning the Akkadian Language? 

I continued sifting through the things within the Case.

MC: (There are also some wastepaper and notes that were used to practice writing the words of code…)

MC: (And the owner of all this stuff is…)

I looked through the covers of the notes and books again.

MC: (These books were all given to Allie from a Private Tutor by the name of Lalyre…)

MC: (Looks like she was studying these codes along with Akkadian.)

MC: (All these notebooks used for practice belong to Allie, but there's one under the name of Winter…)

MC: (Unless Winter was studying alongside Allie?)

MC: (And then, he also took this change to use the two languages?)

I hurriedly flipped through "Winters" notebook.

MC: (There’s another sentence on the last page…)

MC: “Thank you… For being willing to fulfil this dream of mine…”

☆ Obtained: Study Notes!

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[Study Notes Info]

The notes that Allie and Winter left behind, from when they were both studying Akkadian and other kinds of code.

☆⋅⋆…⋅───── ⋆⋅A Love Poem to SKADI⋅⋆ ────⋅…⋆⋅☆

[darkdevasofdestruction]

Sibling Protection Squad ~ Arthur Shelby

He may be a dummy, but he’s so cute c’:

There weren’t too many words to describe the eldest Shelby sibling - Aggressive, maybe kinda dumb, clearly a drunk, an ex-soldier still majorly plagued by the horrors of the war - And it’s true, most of these sound incredibly negative, and it almost seems like there was no redeeming quality for him.

But only God knows how big his heart is, and how he’d give his life for his family, especially for Tommy, because that’s how much he loves them, but in this dark and cruel world, only filled with death and smog, there’s no place for such warm feelings...

Or so he thought, until one cold and snowy winter, where Arthur was walking down the streets of Birmingham with his brother, and suddenly, a honey-coated voice ripped them away from their business talks, and as they looked up hill, he noticed a lovely young woman dancing in the snow with a little girl who looked a lot like her - The little one was playing around with the falling snowflakes, giggling gleefully, while the older one’s hands were freezing as she was making a flower crown from the prettiest winter flowers there were.

The eldest Shelby didn’t even realise he stopped dead in his tracks to gaze at the h/c woman, mesmerised by her...Her everything, really.  But was that her sister or her daughter? And, moreover, he’s ugly as hell, a drunk, he talks loud and he’s rough, how could someone as soft and delicate ever even think about staying within a 10 kilometer radius from him?

“Brother, why do you look so upset? Go talk to her.” Thomas put both his hands on his brother’s shoulders, smiling encouragingly at him. “I can’t, Tommy, I can’t. Look at ‘er, she’s...She’s perfect! I’ll just scare her away. And that kid, what if it’s hers? What if she’s married? I can’t just intrude in her life like that.” Arthur sighed, hanging his head and sighing. “Go after her, brother, otherwise, I will, and I will wife her, and she will become a Shelby, just not the you’d wish her to be.” Tommy smirked slightly, provoking his brother, knowing very well how he can be. “Don’t you dare, Tommy! You can’t do this to me!” the elder one pursed his mouth, getting flared up by his brother, who felt like a winner, as always. “Then go there and talk to her! It’s that simple. Now go along. I’ll go home, and when you’re done here, I want to know how it went.” Tommy pushed his brother towards the girl, winking and giving him thumbs up to get the courage to proceed.

Let me call you "Sweetheart," I'm in love with you. Let me hear you whisper that you love me too. Keep the love-light glowing in your eyes so true. Let me call you "Sweetheart," I'm in love with you. 

She sang like a beautiful nightingale, putting the flower crown on her hair, picking her up and twirling around together - It almost seemed like the most blissful, domestic dream, the one that without realising, he wished for the most. However, as he got enchanted by her mermaid-like voice, he noticed another man approaching them, and he tensed up, thinking it was her husband, and his heart sank in disappointed, his dreams completely ruined.

“Hello, little lady. Why are you here, alone, when the sun is going down?” the man asked, scaring the girl and pulling the little girl behind her, getting in a protective stance...This man clearly wasn’t her husband, Arthur thought, as he watched carefully the interaction between those two. “Just enjoying this beautiful winter day with my little sister, hoping for no outside disturbances.” she held a smile on her face, but it was clear her voice was passive-aggressive enough, as the man was screaming DANGER with his mere presence. “Well, I’d say it’s getting late. How about I escort you home, safely, and you sing for me all night long, sweet songbird.”  the man chuckled, stepping closer to the girls, and Arthur could see how uncomfortable and scared the girl was. “Sis, this man is creeping me out. Can he leave us alone?” the little girl asked innocently, tugging on her sister’s long coat. “He WILL leave us alone...If he knows what’s good for his life.” Y/N’s voice became lower, more threatening, as she slowly letting her chin down, looking like a lioness ready to protect her kin. “Aww, don’t be like that, toots, c’mon, I’ll treat you well!” the creep walked quickly in front of her, grabbing her arm violently, only to get slapped and pushed away. “Go away, if you don’t want to get hurt even more. I warn you now, before I slit your throat.” looking closer, Arthur noticed the glint of metal in her hand, but he was going to intervene before she could get her hands dirty. Just then, the man got visibly angry, his face scrunching into an ugly mug, and he violently grabbed her by the arms, and thus, it was his time to act.

Arthur rushed to save her, dragged the creep away from the woman, punching him in the face enough to scare him to run away from there - But now, he was the violent creep who stalked her and heroically saved her... And looking at her sheepishly, he realised that she was awkwardly shifting on her feet, hiding the knife back in the sleeve of her coat.

“Thank you, Mr. I and my sister thank you. Some people can be really...Bad.” she chuckled awkwardly, letting her sister come out from behind her, and surprisingly, despite her shy demeanor, she went to the Shelby and took off her flower crown, gifting it to him. “Here, Mister! It’s a thank you for protecting us! Y/N did this for me, and now, I’m giving it to you! But you have to tell us your name first! Mine is Stephanie, and my Y/N’s name is Y/N!” the usually timid little girl spoke so brightly, jumping up and down cheerfully in front of the stranger, trying to get him to accept the gift, while Y/N could only stare at them with wide eyes, embarrassed and shocked by her behaviour. “S-Steph, don’t bother the poor stranger like that, you’re gonna scare him away.” Y/N put her hands on her sister’s shoulders, trying to calm her down, but the man grinned in amusement, his heart softening. “Don’t worry, ma’am, she’s a sweetling. Name’s Arthur Shelby, at your service.” he extended his hand to her, and she shook it, a small smile on her face. “It’s a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Shelby. Thank you again for coming to our aid. How can we repay for your help?” she asked, slowly walking in the direction of her home. “If you would allow me to honour of walking you home...A drink together maybe...” he suggested, which made the girl look up at him, tilting her head to the side briefly, before nodding in agreement, raised her hand to look at her non existent wrist watch, before slapping her forehead. “I forgot my watch broke recently. Well, the magical way the Sun works tells me it’s going to be dinner time soon, so...If you’re not too busy...” she shrugged simply, opening the door to her little, but very warm, welcoming and cosy apartment, but Arthur didn’t dare step inside. “Nothing to do. I promise to bring you back home whenever you want.”  he spoke, leaning on the door frame, watching the beautiful woman lecture her little sister - The usual things any older sister who’s taking care of a child all by herself - And then taking her purse to go with him.

He wondered how the hell did he manage to convince this gorgeous woman, without really doing anything at all. This woman was absolutely flawless, without even having to dress elegantly, do her hair or make up, and suddenly, he was reminded of Grace and how much effort she puts into being less than perfect compared to Y/N.

This time, his feet didn’t lead him the Garrison, as they always do - The standard, go there, listen to Grace’s singing that leads to a bunch of drunk men sing completely off-tune, and then he gets drunk too, sometimes shit-faced drunk, and he forgets everything, including his problems. Now, however, he brought her to one of those exclusive burlesque cabaret restaurants, which shocked Y/N big time.

“Arthur, I-...I...I don’t think I can afford getting in such a luxurious place. I’m just a practicing physician, I don’t really make a lot of money...And I didn’t dress appropriately either. I-...” the girl stumbled worriedly over her words, only to earn a grin from the man. “Don’t worry, lass, I’m a man and I asked you on a date with me. It would be unbecoming of me to let you pay. Just enjoy the show and whatever you want to drink...And have that beautiful smile on your face.” he looked down for a brief moment, before looking at her face, noticing a soft blush and the spark of mirth in her eyes.

Watching the beautiful girls dance so so enticingly got the girl mesmerised, studying their every move with fascination, then got the Irish whiskey from the table, poured it in the crystal glasses for the both of them, then grinned, stealing a look at the man sitting in the chair glued to hers.

“Do you know how to dance?” she asked, leaning on her armrest to talk into his ear, as the music was very loud. “Uh...No, I’m not good at dancing, sorry. I can try, if you want to-” Arthur fumbled over his words, a bit embarrassed that he never got around to being as great a charming dancer as Tommy...Or a dancer at all, really. “Oh, that’s absolutely perfectly, I’m dreadful at dancing too. It’s a great thing other women are great at it, otherwise life would be SO boring.” Y/N chuckled gleefully, having her elbow on the table, raising her glass to cling with his, a he mimicked her gesture, laughing boastfully. “You’re the most incredible woman I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting.” he barked, and boy, was he feeling lucky as hell that Tommy convinced him to approach her. “And you are the best man I’ve ever met in my life, without a doubt.” he never would have believed that some simple words would be so life-changing for him, coming from the right person.

And that night, oh boy, he talked Tommy’s ear off, and even Polly was there to hear and congratulate him on having such a great date, and now, they all wanted to meet this mystery woman. She was absolutely stunning, and all the Shelbys loved her, especially Polly, who finally thought dear Arthur found someone able to keep him under control, so he would stop being a rabid dog running astray, plagued by the ghosts of his past as a soldier in France. She was his perfect remedy, and likewise, he was showing her there are ways to have fun in life like never before, and that all started with the burlesque show, then the jazz bar where a band sang, then spontaneously going to the outskirts of the city to visit parks, simply to get away from the monochromatic life from Bleak Birmingham.

Because with together, life was painted in the most magical hues and shades of colours brought to Earth by the angels themselves.

Or so Ada said once when they were eating together, as a family, and it stuck with the both of them, so much, that they were sure every time they embraced, a rainbow shot from their hearts, unifying each other.

With Stephanie being there, they almost seemed like a family, the three of them, and it happened almost in an instant, without as much as realising, but Arthur became the girl’s father figure and loved her like his own child, and despite not having a clue how to behave with children, he spoiled the hell out of her, which made Y/N incredibly happy.

But things can’t always be perfect, and everyone knows the Shelbys and the ones they love essentially have a bullseye painted on their forehead, and one day, when, as usual, Y/N took Steph to the hill to play and sing together, only to have a few people come threaten them - Threaten to torture and kill them, unless they tell them about the Shelby family, and it goes without saying, it was terrifying for the two females.

Aggressiveness, curses, violence - One of them dragged Steph away, while the leader punched Y/N’s face once she screamed, telling them to take her, not her little sister, she’s the only one she has in her life anymore.

It all seemed to go as a complete blur - A shadow of the past that came to haunt their nightmares, a perfect reenactment of that horrible night from 10 years ago - Gunshots, screams, blood, even more curses...And enough dead bodies to start a small cemetery.

It was a split second for Y/N to get desperate enough to get the gun Arthur gave her years ago out of her purse and with perfect precision shot the assailants in the head - And as soon as she realised what she’s done, when all the smoke cleared and the enemies fell down on the ground, and her little sister was shaking like a leaf, sobbing and pulling at her hair.

“Y/N?! Y/N, what the bloody hell happened!” a familiar male voice shouted from far away, waking her out of her trance. “Arthur...?” she muttered, her shoulders shaking, just like her arms and bottom lip, which in turn, caused the girl to drop the gun and waiting for the man to come closer to them, she ran to him, crying and shaking him, alternating with hitting him, the panic still messing with her. “DAMN IT, ARTHUR, LOOK AT IT! LOOK AT THIS! YOU PROMISED, FOR FUCK’S SAKE! YOU PROMISED!” she shrieked at him, but poor him, was so confused and shocked of the sight in front of him.

Y/N has been the calmest person in the whole world, the rational one, the only person who could talk sense and ration into him, and yet, there she was, completely freaking out, trembling, wailing and yelling gibberish, and there was nothing in the world scarier than the love of his life being in this kind of state.

“Y/N, calm down and talk to me, please! Calm down, I’m here, everything’s better now. Talk to me, Y/N, talk to me.” he put his hands on her face, getting closer to her, looking directly in her eyes, something he knew worked because Tommy did it, and it always worked for him. “You promised you’d protect us, Arthur! You promised, and look at this mess! I had to kill them all! I DID IT! I’m a murderer, just like them! And look at Stephanie, she’s...She’s hysterical! You were supposed to protect us! THEY wanted to torture us to tell them secrets on YOU! Damn it, Arthur, you bloody PROMISED!” she cried out, and Arthur was lost for words, but actions spoke louder than them, and so he embraced her tightly, stroking her hair, trying to soothe her down. “Shhh, Y/N, calm down, it’s alright now, thank god for that. You’re incredibly brave and strong. You’re incredible, Y/N. I promise, nothing like this will ever happen again, I swear to you, on my honour as a Shelby...On my honour as your husband, this won’t ever happen again.” he rocked her back and forth, trying to relax her, but in reality, it wasn’t her that was shaken up, it was her sister. “Arthur...Look at her. Ten years ago...Something like this happened to us, ten years ago. Why do you think I was alone in taking care of her? I was 10 years old when she was brought into this world...And it was weird, having to share everything...But I got used to it. But 5 years later...Thieves robbed us. Raped and killed my mother, beat up my father to death...We were next...But dad’s gun was useful, just as the gun you gave to me. And it was hell...She was 5, I was 15. Now here we are, 10 years later...She is 15 like I was, I am 25...I’m married to you, and yet, just like then, there’s nobody to save us, but ourselves. And she’s traumatised. What do I do?! What do I do, Arthur, I don’t know!” she cried in his chest, explaining in great detail the ghosts of her past, and he could only bite his lip and hold her even tighter. “How about you give a fuck about me, instead of coddling up with your useless man who can’t even protect his family! How about you stop freezing up after you killed people in cold blood, and come to reassure me, instead of letting me to sob on the floor for days on end, just like when I was 5?!” Steph shakily got up, glaring at her older sister, who gulped in shock and confusion. “Steph, I-I...I was scared too, you know? I-I’m not perfect, I’m not...Immune to all this...I am as traumatised as you are...But I pulled the trigger. I killed them. And I did it to save us. I did everything I could to support US. So please, don’t act like this.” Y/N tried to reason, still clinging onto Arthur, as she took a deep breath, afraid of what would happen next. “No! NO! You just did what they did to us! It’s your fault I have nightmares almost every other night! And since then...You’ve been overprotective and overbearing! I can’t stand you anymore, Gods, it’s like you’re like a bad luck token for everyone! Just wait until the next person you’ll get in trouble is him, and you’ll weep for him, but not for me! How many more people are you gonna get killed before you end up alone?!” the girl shouted angrily at her older sister, then stormed off away from there, to God knows where.  “Wait, no -...Steph, no, don’t go-...!” Y/N tried to run after her, but it was obvios the younger girl wanted nothing to do with her, so she stopped, letting herself fall on the grassy ground, crying hopelessly. “...Y/N...I’m sorry. This is not your fault. What happened was terrible, but this isn’t your fault. You did everything in your power to keep your family safe, and she should have realised that by now.” Arthur sighed, getting next to her, holding her to his chest. “How do you and Tommy get over a fight? I mean...It’s not like you practically raised him...And it’s just a 3 years difference between you, not 10 like with us...But I know you love him to death and would do anything for him...Which is the same as me and Stephanie...I don’t know, Arthur...I just...I’m lost. I don’t know what to do...And what she will do. She never worked, never did anything except go to school but even there, she is below average...But I can’t support her all life, and then, what will happen? Please tell me what to do, Artie, I’m...I don’t know.” she threw her arms around him, and he mentally cursed himself for his inability to keep the family together, but the least he could do was to stay with her and try to make her feel better in any way possible. “Let’s go home, Y/N. Let’s talk to Pol and Ada. They are women, I’m sure they can help us out. We’ll tell them the story and...And if she’s not home yet, we’ll get John to track her down and get her home safely. There’s a solution for everything, that’s what Tommy taught me.” he helped her get up, but instead of letting her walk by herself, Arthur picked her up bridal style, kissing her cheek and making sure she’s alright. “Okay...Okay, Artie...I trust you. I’m sure that...With you by my side...Everything will get better. Eventually, at least. Somehow...But at least I can cope with it.” she muttered, resting her head on his shoulder, sighing softly. “Younger siblings are a drag to deal with, sometimes...But we’re older. We gotta deal with them, somehow, ‘cause we love ‘em. That’s how it works. But at least we have each other now, so it will be easier dealing with their bratty asses.” Arthur barked a laugh, grinning as the girl started playing with his moustache, finally smiling again. “Yeah...Older siblings for the win!” she laughed weakly, hugging his neck.

[sifeng]

Review: Love and Redemption

While I first started watching this drama out of pure curiosity of why people claimed it to be “the second most tragic drama” (after GMP, of course). While there are certainly aspects of this show that could be better, I find it fair to claim that it is a wonderfully made xianxia, and certainly one of the best in the genre within this decade. 

Plot:

According to legends, the god of war saved the heavens in a deadly battle against the demon a thousand years ago. Both fell from the heavens and disappeared from the world. Chu Xuan Ji was born to the world lacking in the six senses which makes her rather clueless and inept. She befriends Yu Si Feng, the outstanding head disciple of Lize Palace who falls for her, thus beginning a xianxia romance that is entangled with the conspiracies from the past. The Zan Hua Tournament is being held in the Shaoyang Sect and its leader Chu Lei has two daughters - his trusted eldest daughter Chu Ling Long, and the youngest daughter Chu Xuan Ji who is lazy and terrible at martial arts. When Yu Si Feng and Chu Xuan Ji meet through a coincidence, they forge a friendship with each other. Yu Si Feng falls for Xuan Ji despite the harsh consequences that he must face as it is forbidden for students of Lize Palace to fall in love. Meanwhile, Ling Long clashes with Wu Tong after she criticized his foul actions at the tournament. In retaliation, Wu Tong accidentally injures Xuan Ji and gets expelled. Having recovered from her injuries, Xuan Ji promises to concentrate on cultivating. Four years later, Xuan Ji and Yu Si Feng meet again. Si Feng wears a mask due to a curse that can only be broken if he finds true love. 

Cast:

Cheng Yi (成毅) as Yu Sifeng (禹司凤)

Yuan Bingyan (袁冰妍) as Chu Xuanji (褚璇玑)

Liu Xueyi (刘学义) as Hao Chen (昊辰)

Zhang Yuxi (张予曦) as Chu Linglong (褚玲珑)

My Opinions:

Plot (My Rating - A-):

First of all, I quite like the pacing in this drama. As the matter of fact, towards the end I actually feel like some things were rushed, not dragged out. It’s never a show that allows you to press the fast forward button, because 1. the tragic moments are super intense and dramatic, and 2. you don’t dare skip over the cute/funny moments because you know there won’t be many left. Second of all, I really appreciate that the writers of this drama really decided that they were going to make the most tragic drama ever. They really dedicated themselves to that craft, and I think they succeeded wonderfully. In terms of plot points, I absolutely loved the whole 9 lifetimes idea. It really brings out the tragedy and beauty of Yu Sifeng - he will do anything to protect those he loves, especially Xuanji. I would not complain if every single lifetime was made into a 45 minute episode, though that would be 405 more minutes of Sifeng being tortured by love on top of the infinite amount of minutes that already exist in this drama. 

One problem I had, again, was with the misunderstanding that separated our two leads. I understand that this misunderstanding was one that had to do with the morals, backgrounds and fates with both of them, and thus was obviously meant to be a separating factor, but with the way the two characters were written, it felt odd that it created such an amount of misunderstanding. Overall, the plot was good, it didn’t have any revolutionary ideas, but it turned up the tragedy factor and had consistent pacing (if not too rushed towards the end). I’m sure there were probably a few plot holes here and there (one of which is why is it so easy to destroy that huge jar thing towards the end? If that’s what’s keeping the universe at balance, shouldn’t it take more than just one Yuan Lang to destroy it?), but overall, solid plot.

Characters (My Rating - B):

Sifeng is an absolute angel. He’s probably the most heroic lead in a drama who acts totally out of selflessness, who will help his loved ones no matter what pain it puts him through, and who can remain so kind, so unbothered mentally by whatever pain everyone puts him through. However, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have faults. He acts irrationally in the face of love and he often mistrusts the people around him. He’s a very complete character that not only evokes viewer’s sympathy, love and admiration, but also makes sense when taking into consideration his morals. He rarely does things that are out of character. If I were to rate just his character I’d probably give an A+.

But, there are other characters in this drama. I do like Xuanji, not as much as I like Sifeng, but I like her more than most drama leads. Despite the whole lacking six senses thing being a super confusing plot hole of sorts (like she clearly likes people in the beginning, Linglong, Minyan, her father, and dislikes people, Wu Tong, but isn’t she supposed to be unfeeling? Also she screamed out of fear when she fell using the teleport tool etc etc), I liked how she wasn’t stupid, but simply naïve. She’s actually a pretty smart person, especially in the first half of the drama, when she defended Sifeng against the Five Sects, and then Minyan after he was caught from Tianxu Tang. She didn’t let herself be manipulated by her father or Hao Chen, but rather thought for herself, took into account what she knew of their characters and came to the correct conclusion that the Five Sects were being stupid. I found myself a slight bit annoyed when she took the Five Sects side on the whole Mosha Xing issue, but given that the argument was no longer Sifeng vs. her father, but rather demons vs. humans, I can sort of understand why she didn’t trust him. Also, he did lie to her a bunch of times so, I suppose that adds to the fact. Though, she failed to use the trait that I used to really like, which was the ability to take logic and character into consideration. Did she really think that Sifeng never loved her? Because like, with all the evidence right there in her memory, I find it hard for anyone logical being to come to that conclusion. Also, I really like how she eventually became as loving of Sifeng as he was of her. She was literally willing to destroy the world, and herself, just to save him. 

As I have said before, no one likes Hao Chen, and that’s good. He’s obviously written to be a character that you should dislike, not only because he gets in the way of Sifeng and Xuanji, but because he is clearly so biased against demons (despite the fact that most demons aren’t even bad at all); because he manipulates Xuanji/God of War so many times and doesn’t even feel guilty whatsoever; because he always says “for the three realms” and yet happens to do things that will completely destroy the peace of the three realms. There are things to like about him, like I am pretty sure that he does actually care about the three realms, and he does want there to be peace, but his ideology about peace, and love, and war are just so skewed that he ends up doing the opposite of what he wants to do. 

Other characters were mostly likable, like Linglong, Zi Hu, Teng She, Minyan (most of the time), Xiao Yinhua, Ruo Yu (sometimes), Wu Zhiqi, etc etc. Some were evil for no apparent reason like Yuan Lang (why does he want to control the three worlds? What happened to him in the past for him to become this power hungry? If these questions were answered this character could be sooooo much more compelling) and Wu Tong (again, why did he start out so violent and cruel? I understand why he become a demon and helped them, but like does he not realize that it was clearly his fault first?) Also, the Heavenly Emperor seems like such an odd character. I understand he is the emperor and so he shouldn’t hold his relationship with Bailin and Xixuan above their faults, but like why was he so okay with like letting a totally faultless Xi Xuan endure several mortal trials all ending with painful deaths? And if that was because he was being a good and fair emperor, why does he let a game board decide fate? He also just stood there while the world was ending, and it took Xuanji to convince him to help her. I would like to know more about this guy and his complete lack of ability to care about anything.

So overall, while I think the main characters were written very well, with complex characteristics, some of the villains were just left tools to push forward the plot. 

Acting (My Rating - A-):

So first of all, Cheng Yi’s portrayal of Yu Sifeng was absolutely amazing. He brought out all of Sifeng’s traits super well, from shyness initially to the cruelness Mosha Xing to his loving gaze at Xuanji to the heartbreak in tragic parts. I’m pretty sure he’ll become a star after this show, and can I just say, he totally deserves it!

(Like can you see the pain in his eyes?)

I was pleasantly surprised by Yuan Bingyan here. I really like how her acting style changed along with the new role she took, as Xuanji she was bright and cheerful, as God of War she was heartless and cruel. You can see in the nine lifetimes that the way she reacts to Sifeng’s death slowly changes. Her crying scenes need a little more emotion, but overall, a super stable performance. 

Chemistry/Romance (My Rating - A):

The chemistry was just amazing. I find it interesting that their kisses slowly got more and more passionate as time went on. 

I think part of the reason they have such good chemistry is because of the acting. Like oh my god their tiny reactions to when the other gets hurt really gives it away that they love each other. 

The romance was also written nicely. While some people complain that Xuanji didn’t suffer enough, I feel like they don’t have to be equal in suffering in order for them to be a good pairing. You could tell from the very beginning that Xuanji liked Sifeng in a different way from other people. And the fact that they went through nine lifetimes together, each one when Sifeng died because of Xuanji... it just makes their romance so much more epic. Add that with good chemistry, good kisses, and good acting, well of course people love this ship so much! Xuanji would destroy the world for Sifeng, because the only person that matters in her world is Sifeng. Sifeng would put himself through ten lifetimes of torture just so Xuanji can be happy, because so long as Xuanji is happy, he will be happy. 

Music (My Rating - A): this one is simple. Just listen to the soundtrack and you’ll understand my rating. I didn’t give it an A+ though, because while all the songs are great, there isn’t one in particular that I love. 

Costumes (My Rating - A-): Sifeng’s costumes are really pretty. Some of Xuanji’s are pretty too, they get prettier as the show goes on, but some of the ones early on were kind of meh.

CGI (My Rating - A+): the best CGI in a cdrama. Just look at the scenes where Sifeng shows his wings! 

Overall Rating: A-

Recommend For: People who like xianxia dramas and dramas that try to incorporate a lot of themes. People who don’t mind their heart breaking a thousand times while watching a drama. People who want to find a couple that you have to root for. People who like super epic guzhuangs with lots of subplots, mythology, reincarnations etc. 

[armenelols]

Hey, sis, the country ask: 1, 2, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 22, 27 and 30. Thank you, if you do them! 😊❤️

*it got pretty long so the answers are under the cut*

1. favourite place in your country?

As a lover of history and mountains, in a country full of both, it’s a bit difficult to choose :D I am going to limit it to places I’ve been to to make it easier for myself. Of those, my favorite would be probably Orava Castle. It lies in the northern part of my country and is one of our largest castles. I’ve been there when I was perhaps ten years old or so, so my memory of the place is a bit blurry, but I remember parts of it and I loved it. Nosferatu was actually shot there. I’ve never seen the movie (I am not one for horror), but I heard it’s pretty popular? :D Anyway Also, we have some caves that are worth visiting - of those I’ve been to, my favorite was Belianska cave. Open-air museums (skanzen in my language) are worth visiting as well.

2. do you prefer spending your holidays in your country or travel abroad?

Depends on what place in my country and which country abroad. Going abroad is always an amazing experience, seeing all the different cultures and places. I long to visit some of the countries in Northern Europe, as well the Mediterranean area for its history. Switzerland is one of my favorite places to visit, I’ve been there twice. But my country can be certainly fun as well - we have beautiful mountains in most of Slovakia, and we are the country with most castles per capital (alongside Wales, each site claims something different :D). I probably prefer going abroad for holiday, but for a simple trip, Slovakia is the best.

5. favourite song in your native language?

I tend to listen to English music more, and most of the new songs in my country are pop (which I don’t listen to), so it would probably be something older from my childhood. So the bands my dad would play in the car - Elán, Lojzo, IMT Smile, Horkýže Slíže, Tublatanka and so on :D No specific song, really.

6. most hated song in your native language?

I have no idea what it’s called, but my classmates listen to it all the time and it always gets me into a murderous mood.

9. which of your neighbouring countries would you like to visit most/know best?

11. favourite native writer/poet?

Well, I’ve been only in two of them - the Czech Republic and Poland, tho I did pass through Hungary a few times. I don’t have any real preference. We have much of common history with Czechs and it's been the country I’ve been the most times to, but really, as a lover of travel and learning about new places, I don’t have a preference.

Edit: oh god I forgot Austria :D been there several times, loved it

From most of our writers/poets, I’ve read only some of their shorter works. But my favorite was Bloody Sonnets, written by Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav in the early 20th century, so I am gonna say him.

12. what do you think about English translations of your favourite native prose/poem?

I’ve never read any, but I’ve just searched above mentioned Bloody Sonnets (it’s an anti-war poem) and found parts of it in English, so for comparison:

ENGLISH:

What caused this wreck, this brutal and ignoble

collapse of morals? What provoked the breach?

What led mankind, in spirit grand and noble,

to plunge in the mud? What vampire? Oh, what leech,

sucking the sap of life out of the breast,

constantly thirsting bloody parasite?

Ah, selfishness! — and to destroy this pest

today we have no troops, no heroes to fight.

Yes, it will twist and tear and rend, and fall,

a tyrant, on the weak and innocent;

although the world is wide enough for all,

it would have sole control of earth’s extent

and even possess the universe, no less,

pitching the other into emptiness —

SLOVAK (same paragraphs):

Kto zapríčinil tento úpadok,

zosurovenie, zdivočenie mravov?

Čo ľudstvo zviedlo s ducha veličavou

vbŕsť do bahna? Ký upír to a mlok,

z pŕs sajúci mu i dnes žitia mok,

krvožíznivec s večnou záhou žhavou?

Ech, sebectvo! to! — a niet nad ohavou

tou zvíťaziť, vojsk, rekov po dnešok.

Hej, ono krivdí, hnetie, zdiera, týra

svevoľne, kde len stihne, slabšieho;

hoc zem je pre všetkých dosť šírošíra,

chce, aby strela sa len pre neho;

ba končiny si svojí všehomíra,

kams’ v prázdeň vytískajúc iného —

Personally, I prefer the original, tho the translation isn’t bad - it’s just that Slovak and English are different in every possible way, so the translation is difficult and the words sounds more poetic in the original :D

14. do you enjoy your country’s cinema and/or TV?

I don’t watch TV at all and rarely go to the cinema so can’t say. I am more for literature.

16. which stereotype about your country you hate the most and which one you somewhat agree with?

My country isn’t very well-known so I didn’t encounter that many stereotypes - thus I am not passionate about them, so I will be speaking in general, rather than hate or agreeing. The only occasion when a foreigner said something about our country was in Switzerland, when a random guy immediately went ‘Peter Sagan!’ (our cyclist), and once in Italy a guy went ‘Hamšík!’ (our football player) and said to us three words in Czech. So I had to google a bit what people think of us, and what I got was ‘drinking too much, problems with internet, constantly grouping as with Czechs and Russians and eastern Europe in general, us having beautiful women, us not having a sense of humor, thinking Czechoslovakia is still a thing'.

So.

About alcohol - I don’t drink, but many Slovaks do. However, not to the extent that they would be constantly drunk - usually only in restaurants, on visits, celebrations, holidays, and when they aren’t driving. At home, it’s not that often. It doesn’t seem too much to me, but I don’t know how much people from other countries drink so can’t judge. By the way, this extends to the part of the country where I live so can’t say about other parts of Slovakia (goes for all stereotypes).

Problems with internet - false. The only places where I have problems are public spaces and my dorm.

With Czechs, we have much of common history, and to this day, we consider ourselves brothers and sisters and easily understand each other’s languages. But in the end, we are separate people, so Czech and Slovak aren’t the same. Czechoslovakia hasn’t been a thing since 1993.

Older people here speak Russian since it was mandatory for them in school (for us, it’s English). I was never taught the language - in school, we got to choose between German and Russian and I chose German since it would be more useful for me. I don’t understand the Russian alphabet (don’t not how it’s called in English, for us it’s azbuka), and I understand very little of the language itself since I’ve never really encountered it. However, after a little exposure, it probably would be more understandable to me. In Croatia, we didn’t have much trouble communicating while speaking, despite us talking in different languages. But really, it depends on the person and the language. I’ve heard that Slovak is the language easiest for all Slavs to understand, but if it’s true, I don’t know.

We aren’t in Eastern Europe. We are in Central, and we are more of a mix between West and East, so grouping as with one or the other is incorrect.

Can’t judge on beautiful women and I have no idea how did this become a stereotype - one of the rare ones I’ve actually heard about :D

About the sense of humor, once again depends on the person. Period. But we are private people, so that may be where the stereotype is coming from.

18. do you speak with a dialect of your native language?

Not really, the only difference between my way of speaking and the ‘correct’ one is that I pronounce words with ľ harsher. For example, ľudia is pronounced with ľ (basically soft l, closest to pronunciation would be ‘li’ but it’s still very different), but here we pronounce it ludia.

22. what makes you proud about your country? what makes you ashamed?

Proud? Our nature, culture, historical monuments. Ashamed? Politicians.

27. favourite national celebrity?

No one, I am not very interested in celebrities in general.

30. do you have people of different nationalities in your family?

My dad has a few distant cousins in the Czech Republic, but other than that, I am not aware of anyone.

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #711: Very Green Day (Kingdom Hearts)

10:45 a.m. Outside of the Coffee Place in Traverse Town........

Aqua/Terra: (Burst Out Laughing at What is in Front of Both of Them) AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Lea: (Stares at the Laughing Couple in an Annoyed Manner.....All While is Hair is Dyed Completely Green) ............... (Slowly Turns his Head to Isa) Why didn't you let me say home today?

Isa: (Calmly Reads his Book While Ignoring the Look Lea is Giving Him) Cause Aqua and Terra would be worried if you didn't show up.

Lea: One day of me not meeting up with you guys here wouldn't kill anyone. And besides, they're laughing like a bunch of loons here!

Isa: Well, consider this punishment for trying dye your hair green. (Casually Sips on his Cup of Coffee)

Lea: (Glares at Isa) Well, excuse me for not wanting to get pinched 24/7!

Aqua: (Trying her Best to Calm Herself Down) Oho, Lea!~ We're sorry. (Wipe a Tear from her Eyes) We didn't mean to laugh at you like that.

Terra: (Tries Calming Down as Well) Yeah. (Snickers a Little) We were just....Really caught off guard by that brand new color of that hair of yours. What gives?

Lea: (Sighs as he Turns Back to Aqua and Terra) Well, if you two lovebirds must know, I've been wanting to prevent myself from getting pinched by the two numbskulls that happens to be my kids. (Starts Rubbing the Back of his Hair Back & Forth) So I figured I would try and....dye the very front of my hair green for a while. At least until the holiday is over and done with.

Isa: But once he tried doing that, with little to no knowledge of how to properly dye parts of his hair and without asking name for assistance, he somehow to get his entire hair green. Thus, his own stupidity has grown immensely stronger than before.

Lea: (Turns Back to Isa With Anger in his Eyes) OH AND LIKE YOU HAVEN'T TRY AND DID ANYTHING STUPID IN YOUR CRUMMY LIFETIME!!!

Isa: While I'll admit that I have done some reckless, idiotic things from time to time, but at least I wasn't dumb enough to try dying my own hair color for a simple holiday. Just goes to show you that your own stupidity knows no bounds to almost anything. (Takes Another Sip of his Coffee)

Lea: (Hands Shaking in Anger While Growling) You..... Smartass piece of-

Terra: Lea, come on. Just try and calm down for us, okay?

Aqua: Terra's right. We didn't mean to laugh at you earlier. (Smiles Softly) The hair color really does look nice on you.

Lea: (Sighs as He Turns to the Couple in Front of Him) I admire and am thankful for your kind and honest hearts. (Glares Back at Isa) At least you didn't sit here and belittle me for a couple of minutes like an asshole!

Isa: Love you too, Lea.

Terra: Well, look on the brighter side, at least the day it couldn't get any worse for you-

?????: ('GASPS') AXEL!!!!?

Everyone in the table turns around and see Kairi with a very surprised and horror look on her face.

Lea: Uh. (Smiles Very Awkwardly at Kairi) Heyyyyyyyyyy there, lil.sis! Good morning! (Chuckles Awkwardly) How are you today?

Kairi: (Almost at a Loss of Words) Y-Y-Y-Your hair.........

Lea: Oh! You mean this bad boy? ('Heh') Funny story about this actually. You see, I-

Isa: Your brother thought it be a good idea to dyed his hair green for St. Patrick's Day.

Lea: (Glares Back at Isa While Silently Growling at Him) Do you SERIOUSLY not know the concept of shutting up?!

Isa: (Simply Shrugs) Just telling the honest truth here, my dear.

Lea: Yeah, but I don't want Kairi to know about all of tha-

Kairi: Axel.........

Lea: (Slowly Turns Back to Kairi and Immediately Gets Terrified Once He Sees the Scary, Angry Look in her Eyes)

Kairi: Explain.......

Lea: O-Okay, sis? I know this might be the most stupidest thing I have ever done in life.... B-B-But I only did this to save myself from getting pinched today! I swear to god!!

Kairi: So..... your idea of being green for the holiday IS TO DYE YOUR OWN HAIR COLOR!!!?

Lea: Well, I mean..........When you put it like that....(Chuckles a Little Bit Awkwardly) It almost sounds blike a bad th-

Kairi: IT IS A BAD THING!!!! I mean, seriously! You could've brought yourself a green shirt! You could've ask ME to get you a green shirt, matching ones even! NOT DYE YOUR HAIR IN A PUKEIST GREEN COLOR!!!

Lea: Ah come on, Kairi! It doesn't look that bad!

Kairi: Lea, I JUST did your hair weeks ago!

Aqua: Aww~

Kairi: Your hair was already beautiful as it is! And now you did all this and just.....('UGGGGHHH') (Makes her Way to her Big Brother) C'mere, you!

Lea: Woah woah woah, hold on a second! What are you- GAHH! (Winches in Pains As Kairi Pulls his Ear, Making him Get Up From the Table) Not the ear! Not the ear!!

Kairi: (Angrily Walks Away from the Table While Dragging Lea Along with Her) You are coming with me!

Lea: Jesus Christ, sis! Where are we even going!?

Kairi: To my place! We are NOT going back to town till I change EVERY SPECK of your hair back to their original color!!!

Lea: (Turns to Isa and the Others) Guys!!? H-HELP!!!!

Isa: Ah. I wish I could but....(Holds Up the Book he Was Reading) I'm not finished reading this book yet.

Terra: (Smiles Sheepishly While Rubbing the Back of his Head Back and Forth) Plus, we're not entirely done with our cup of coffee yet so uh.......(Slowly Shrugs) Sorry!

Lea: (Glares at Three of his Friends While Still Being Dragged in the Ear by Kairi From a Bit of a Distance) Screw you guys!! All of you SUCK!!!!

Aqua: (Happily Waves Goodbye to Lea) We love you too, Lea!~ We hope you and Kairi have a good time together!

Terra: (Sighs as He and the Others See Lea and Kairi Are Already Off into the Distance) We're terrible, aren't we?

Aqua: I hope Lea isn't too mad at us for not helping him.

Isa: I wouldn't worry too much about him really. He'll be able to get over it eventually.

Terra: You know, it still kind of baffles me how people takes this whole "Pinching Those Whose Don't Wear Green" Rule that seriously nowadays.

Aqua: ('Sigh') I'm just glad that all of our children doesn't participate in that kind nonsense. Isn't that right, Vantias? (Sips on her Cup of Coffee)

And with that, Vantias immediately ran back to the dark portal while wearing a green shirt.

Happy (Late) St. Patrick's Day Everyone!

@26shann

@keyenuta

@khtext

@caleb13frede

@albion-93

@ma-lemons

@cyber-wildcat

[thegc4life]

Do you any other Hawks fic ideas you'd like to write? Or is Hawks-sensei all you've got on your mind right now?

Wyv. You know not what you ask. I have to put them in categories, Wyv. Categories.

Kid!Hawks:

-Kid!Hawks growing up with the LOV (both as a permanent thing and various ridiculous drabbles) This involves Unwilling Big Brother Shigaraki, scarily willing Big SisterToga who knows all the coolest knife tricks, Best Uncle Twice who sometimes on his real good days doubles as temporary Dad, the Dad who teaches you how to hot wire cars and laugh people’s money straight out of their wallets Compress, mother-henning can-not-leave-you-alone-for-one-god-damn-minute Spinner, True Mom Kurogiri, Big Sis Mag who seems to be the only actual one that realizes that children need to sleep at some point for the love of god, extremely confused but horrifically soft Dabi who may or may not eventually turn his whole life around because of this feathered idiot that needs someone to make sure he lives a happy life whether it be a permanent shrinking or not. Oh, and Machia. The best Mountain Monster Dog brother (?) a boy could ask for.

-Kid!Hawks with UA (staff edition) also both in temporary and permanent circumstances. Temporary is already in progress. Permanent? Oh boy, permanent world. They raise him within UA so as to keep him from the Commission. Hawks often sits in on their classes with coloring books, picture books, or just to sit there and watch them. He is very smart. He picks up on things, but mostly he just likes being around all the staff. He picks a new person to sleep with every week because some of them have really shitty sleep schedules and even as a kid he knows they would feel bad keeping him up, thus forcing them to go to bed through good-person guilt so he tragets the sleepiest looking people for the week (hint: Aizawa gets picked a lot, and even if he’s not sleep deprived Hawks would pick him because he adores his grumpy cat Dad). Thirteen does crafts with him all the time. She watches every kid show and gets really into it with him. Hawks and Mic make the meals and they sing the entire time. They sing together throughout the day. Hawks will chirp out a line of notes and out of nowhere Hizashi will burst in to sing the lyrics. Midnight reads him bedtime stories cause her voices are the best. She does his nails and lets him do hers. He practices on the UA students to surprise her with new designs (the students fall over their own feet to offer to be his test subject). Snipe does little challenges with him. Things that, while technically helping him get used to controlling his quirk, are more fun than anything else because Hawks enjoys using his feathers in games. Hawks dresses up like a cowboy for an entire month, quoting old western movies and driving everyone but a very proud Snipe up the wall. Hound Dog and Hawks go on walks together ALL THE TIME. They explore the woods around UA and Hound Dog tells Cementoss to change up the geography every once in a while so they have something new to explore. He teaches Hawks how to go camping and Hawks fricken adores him and is always on his shoulders just kicking his feet or napping in Hound Dogs hair. Ectoplasm is Hawks favorite person to play any kind of tag based game because the others are too easy to catch with his feathers. But with Ectoplasm and all his clones? hawks goes nuts. Ectoplasm cried once when Hawks asked Aizawa for peg legs for Halloween and when someone asks him if he wants to be a pirate he says no because he wants to be a super cool hero like Ecto for Halloween. No one will be as cool as him. Hawks fricken loves Vlad. Like, adores him. Whenever Vlad is in the room Hawks will just go hang off his shoulders, or tuck under his arms with a book to read, or just lean against him. He has a little stuffed bull dog that has Vlad’s exact resting bitch face and carries it with him every time he leaves the dorm because he feels safer with it. He goes to Vlad when he’s injured because Vlad just takes care of it, gives him a hug, and doesn’t tell him to be more careful. Just asks if Hawks learned something and moves on. Hawks and Nezu are penpals. They see eachother every single day, but they are penpals. Hawks grows up with the most beautiful calligraphy handwriting because he keeps trying to out-do Nezu’s. He absolutely tattles on every single teacher in these letters, giving Nezu years worth of blackmail. Hawks thinks Nezu is a stuffed animal until he is fourteen because Nezu never fesses up. He just thinks the staff is even cooler for letting a stuffed animal run the place. He only ever cries around Nezu.

-Kid!Hawks UA(Student edition): So many. There’s lines I’ve written where they’re still in school when Hawks is kidified. When they’re already pros. In Canon, in Hawks-sensei, I even a small blurb sentence of Deku running a preschool that Hawks gets put into in an AU with quirks still. I can’t even... there’s too many students, cause I’d do all 1-A and 1-B. My favorite one to randomly wake up in a panick and write about though is the one where it’s Hawks-sensei verse based and Kid!Hawks gets taken in by the Monoma family. Rui and Eiko are older and Monoma is a pro-hero by then. The pure amount of fluff, sass, and Hawks spoiling that will happen. Big Brother Rui and Bigger Sister Eiko.  I think about this one a lot.

-I’m currently (slowly but progressing) writing a gift for @saltwater-sweets where Kid!Hawks is taken in by the Uraraka family. Like, he’s not even shrunk in this one. Uraraka’s newlywed parents were involved in the accident he first saved people in and they found him before the Commission. They realized his homelife situation and opened their home to him and now he is Uraraka’s big brother and that one line I threw out there? About him being a global superpower in household moving? Teaming up with Uraraka for that? Yeah.

-Kid!League of Villains and adult Hawks. Yeah, you heard me. They all get shrunk instead of him. And he can’t just... turn them in. They’re kids. They haven’t done any of the crimes their older counterparts have. And if it’s a permanent thing? They stay kids? Then he has a chance to really, truly save them. To give them the happy lives stolen from them. The Commission doesn’t like that. So Hawks takes them and runs. Dabi can be an adult too, I guess, if that’s the ship or something, but I just really wanna write Kid!LOV and Dad!Hawks.

-Kid!Aizawa. Dad!Hawks. Same concept. Beautiful dream. Need I say more.

-Kid!Hawks, Best Jeanist

-Kid!Hawks Gang Orca

-Kid!Hawks RUMI!!

Vigilante Hawks:

- Raven was born and I dived down that rabbit hole so fast I went back in time. Raven. But from a way earlier age. Those guys mugging Hawks when he was fifteen? The spark. Hawks stayed on the streets, he never went back, and he learned some things. He got some freedom, learned some shit, and realized that hero society was pretty fucked up. Shigaraki starts the LOV up and realizes there’s this whole underground community he was never aware of that Hawks has been building for years. It’s great.

-Hawks was never found by the Commission so he was never ‘Hawks’. His Dad raised him as a criminal but Hawks, with his little heart of gold, took every chance he could to make something good out of the bad deeds. Then he got old enough and he took full control. You ever seen the Levi OVA’s of Attack on Titan? Where he’s walking down the stairs and you realize every single person there is part of a huge ass gang of awesome with Levi at the head? That. THAT.

-Hawks loses his shit in Canon and goes completely AWOL. full Feral. He sees the problems, and he is prepared to do whatever it takes get rid of them. Whatever it takes.

AU Hawks

-Horribly injured, recently retired at the ripe old age of 23, and looking for something to save him from depression. Hawks meets Todoroki Fuyumi who gets him a job at her school. This one makes my brain happy.

-Takami Keigo and Todoroki Natsuo meet in college, graduate together, join the same hospital, and open one as partners as soon as they can. Ship or no ship, they go through their entire lives together. (I just... I really like the Todoroki sibs, okay?)

-Takami Keigo was born a lot earlier. So much, earlier, in fact that he is classmates with this overly optimistic ball of light named Yagi Toshinori and the grumpy ball of flame Todoroki Enji. Big Three anyone? Also, everyone needs a dumb smart birb to keep them sane. Hawks loves his friends, and he’ll kick anyone’s ass that tries to hurt them be it physically, mentally, or emotionally. Also, he meets Nana. 

-I LOVE THE IMAGINARY KAMAKIRI FAMILY DYNAMIC OKAY?! literally anything with Hawks involved in their lives, okay?! I did not expect to spiral so hard when I made up Hideo and his relationship with Kamakiri but my god did I spiral! I just really love them!

-I’m a sucker for the classics. Tattoo/flower. Coffee shop. College. Roommates. Love. 

- (she made me write this) a story surrounding the amazing love story of my sister and Iida Tenya with Aizawa crashes the wedding even though he was invited and Mirio is her maid of honor, with Eri as the ring bearer, and All Might is the flower girl. Twice is the officiator. Uraraka releases a flock of fake pigeons (not real ones cause they don’t deserve that). Oh, and everyone else is there too, I guess. Except for Mineta. Cause he’s in jail.

Right now, at this very moment, I can not for the life of me think of any others but I KNOW there’s at least seven more that I just can’t remember because my brain is work dead. Wyv. @wyvernspirit do you see what you’ve opened here? Close the box! Close it before it’s too late! There is always more! I am never without MORE ideas!

[crackimagines]

Going Dark (FE: Three Houses Full Fic)

Overlord AU Masterlist

Other Au’s Listed Here!

---

With Ainz being transported to Fodlan unable to find out how the world works, he takes it upon himself to find out and prepare his followers and House Isekai for what’s to come.

Ainz dons his persona, the Dark Warrior Momon, once more to investigate Fodlan with his trusted companion Nabe.

Prologue

[Oath of Loyalty to the Supreme Being - Overlord]

Ainz sat down at a table the Pleiades had set up for him, big enough for the denizens of the Great Tomb of Nazarick to sit at. He was at the head of the table while his Floor Guardians took both sides of the table while the Pleiades stood to the side.

(Sebas) “Lord Ainz, everyone is now here. Shall we begin the emergency meeting?”

(Ainz) “Yes. Now, let us discuss the information we have gathered thus far on Fodlan.

(Albedo) “Then I will begin my findings first.”

She cleared her throat as her wings flapped gently.

(Albedo) “In terms of the people and technology, they appear to be slightly behind the world we were at before. While their number of magic casters appear to be higher, the levels of spells and power they wield seem to be lower than expected. This information was all gathered at the Monastery.”

(Cocytus) “AFTER CLOSELY STUDYING THE KNIGHTS OF SEIROS, THEIR RELICS AND FIGHTING CAPABILITIES APPEAR TO BE ON PAR WITH THOSE OF OUR OLD WORLD. THE RELIC WEAPONS ARE NOT TO BE UNDERESTIMATED, BUT I AM UNABLE TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT THEY ARE A THREAT TO US IN PARTICULAR. HOWEVER, THE LOW LEVEL MOBS AND UNDEAD WE SPAWNED NEAR THE MONASTERY TO SEE HOW POWERFUL THEY ARE, THE KNIGHTS OF SEIROS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO TAKE THEM DOWN EASILY. THIS INFORMATION WAS GATHERED AT THE MONASTERY.”

(Demiurge) “The politics of this world appear to be a bit more stable, with the Church of Seiros leading everyone. The Holy Kingdom of Faerghus and the Leicester Alliance appear to be pleased with the Church, but something about Edelgard’s actions and words seem to say otherwise. At least regarding the Adrestian Empire. I will need more time to fully assess her intentions, along with Rhea. This information was gathered at the Monastery as well.”

Ainz took a moment to process all the information given to him. Truth be told, he could not care less about the politics of this world. It wasn’t the one the tomb was in, so he just wanted to return as quickly as possible.

The issue that bothered him the most was the unknown power difference in Fodlan.

In his world, he was practically a god to everyone, and most of his followers couldn’t even be harmed by their most powerful weapons. He and the others of Nazarick were mostly level 100, while the strongest in that world appeared to be around 40-50.

Now, he had no idea if he was underpowered or not.

Ainz looked at his own hands and then back to the Floor Guardians. 

(Ainz) “Aura, Mare, do you feel any limitations in your spellcasting?”

They were quiet for a moment before they nodded.

(Aura) “Y-Yes actually, Lord Ainz. Something hasn’t been feeling right ever since we got here, and I think that’s the issue!”

Everyone turned to the twins with wide eyes.

[”What’s wrong, Lord Momonga?” - Overlord]

(Mare) “U-U-Um...I don’t feel like I’ve completely been stripped of power but...something IS missing.”

Everyone else in the room started to examine themselves and realized that some of their abilities did feel dampened.

This made Ainz even more tense, though his skeletal face didn’t show it. 

He had no idea what they would be up against in this world, and from the looks of what assignments House Isekai was assigned, this world wouldn’t stay peaceful for long.

The fact people like Class VII with their advanced guns and technology struggled against some of the people here, and Persona users were having trouble with what should be inferior foes was almost enough to make him shudder.

He had no doubt that his group were in the upper tier of power in the House, there would be no telling what kind of curveballs could be thrown at them, especially since he didn’t know how magic worked in this world.

In his world, it worked like an MMO. Now, it was a complete unknown. 

Ainz couldn’t afford to be careless here.

(Ainz) “It appears we need to gather information from beyond the Monastery in order to fully understand the situation we’re in. I want everyone to take no chances. There’s no telling if Fodlan possesses enemies more dangerous than our old ones. From what I can gather, we have been limited in our skills and spells. Not completely gone, but that must mean precautions must be taken more than ever.”

Ainz stood up from the table.

(Ainz) “I want everyone to be travelling in pairs when gathering information. You are not to be permitted to travel outside the Monastery unless you have my blessings. Narberal Gamma!”

(Naberal) “My lord.”

(Ainz) “Prepare your adventurer gear and be ready to leave with me.”

(Albedo) “Lord Ainz, are you-”

(Ainz) “I intend to go as Momon in this world, yes.”

(Sebas) “My lord, with all due respect, it would be much better to send the Pleiades out in reconnaissance. The risk of going out is terribly great-”

(Ainz) “That is precisely why I am going out myself. I need to understand firsthand how this world works, otherwise we may commit a grave error in the long run. We have no idea how long we will be here, and when we will return. I understand and appreciate your concern, Sebas. That goes for the rest of you.”

Ainz was about to announce the meeting’s end before noticing Yuri’s expression.

The other Pleiades noticed it too, and Lupisregina tapped her on the shoulder.

(Lupisregina) “Sis?”

(Yuri) “...”

Yuri quietly motioned towards the door with her head. 

Everyone understood immediately. There was someone listening in.

They drew out their weapons and prepared their magic silently as CZ2128 and Narberal quickly headed to the side of the walls.

CZ pulled out an assault rifle while Narberal pulled out a staff.

The two battle maids looked at Ainz for the signal.

(Ainz) “Very well, this meeting is adjourned.”

Narberal kicked the door down as CZ aimed her rifle down at the hallway, finger on the trigger

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

(CZ) “Identify yourselves or die in the name of Ainz Ooal-”

(Aqua) “AQUAAAAA!”

(Kazuma) “KAZUMA! KAZUMA! IT’S KAZUMA, DON’T FUCKING SHOOT!”

[My Dear Personage - Overlord]

Everyone’s faced turned from tense to completely disappointed and annoyed.

(Shalltear) “What are those idiots doing down here?!”

Ainz walked out to meet them.

(Ainz) “Explain yourselves, now.”

(Kazuma) “W-WE WERE JUST WONDERING WHY YOU ALL WERE DOWN HERE!”

(Aqua) “Y-YEAH! ALL OF US SAW YOU GOING DOWN SO WE WERE CURIOUS! IT WAS EVERYONE ELSE’S IDEA TOO!”

(Ainz) “...Everyone else?”

Minako, Minato, Yu, Akira, Doomguy, Rean, and Megumi popped their heads around the corner.

(Yu) “Uh...hi.”

(Akira) “I mean, I’m a Phantom Thief. Eavesdropping’s my thing.”

(Minako) “I’m just nosy.”

(Minato) “S-Sorry.”

(Rean) “We were just concerned is all! Well, at least me and Megunee were.”

(Megumi) “H-Hi, Ainz...!”

Doomguy shrugged.

HOW DID WE NOT NOTICE ANY OF THEM?!

(Narberal) “You insects DARE TO EAVESDROP ON LORD AINZ?! I WILL CUT YOU DOWN WHERE YOU STAND IF LORD AINZ PERMI-”

(Ainz) “H-HEY HEY HEY! CALM DOWN!”

Ainz frantically waved his hands to calm her down, and which he turned back to Kazuma.

(Ainz) “AND WHAT THE HELL KAZUMA?! WHY’D YOU-”

Before Ainz could panic any further, he felt his emotions suddenly calm down as a blue glow emitted around him.

(Ainz) “...ahem...It was only House Isekai that followed us here, correct?”

(Megumi) “Y-Yes. Everyone else is unaware that you’re even gone!”

Ainz sighed internally and shook his head.

(Ainz) “You’re lucky that I was here to stop them. If you did that while I was absent, I’m fairly positive you all would have died. Regardless, how much did you hear?”

(Aqua) “Well um...the entire thing.”

(Yu) “W-Well, just so that we didn’t get your heart rate up for nothing, since we’ve been here a little longer, we can provide specifics on what we’ve seen!”

(Minako) “Oh yeah, that’s right! We’ve been doing a field study or two outside!”

(Megumi) “Doomguy, Sara, and I have been working with the church.”

(Ainz) “...Well, I suppose you will be of use then. We speak not a word of our information to the church, or any of the other houses. Understood?”

Everyone nodded.

Ainz at first suspected that some of House Isekai might tell the others, but when he thought about it a bit more, who in their right mind would want to betray House Isekai?

All of them were in the same boat as the others.

If they made enemies of anyone, then there’s a good chance they won’t be coming back alive to their world. Cooperation is absolutely vital for everyone here.

Still, couldn’t hurt to be careful.

(Ainz) “Demiurge.”

(Demiurge) “My lord?”

(Ainz) “Collect the information House Isekai has gathered and see if we can find anything of use. Even mundane details might help us in the long run. Everyone else, as of this moment, House Isekai is under my protection. That does not extend to the Golden Deer, Blue Lions, or Black Eagles.”

(Everyone) “Yes, Lord Ainz!”

Naberal walked behind him as the House representatives went into the room to discuss with Demiurge.

(Ainz) “Now, Naberal. Let’s get going, we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

[Overlord Opening]

---

Side Story:

The Raven-Black Warrior

[First, Let’s Gather Information - Overlord]

The first thing that the people of Garreg Mach’s town noticed that day was how bright the sun was shining. It was a blinding but comforting light. 

The second thing they noticed was the man and woman that they had never seen before.  

She wore a simple brown cloak, but she was the most beautiful woman they had ever seen.

He was just as captivating, for an entirely different reason. He was extremely tall and wore armor as black as night, complemented with a golden trim that accented his body. 

The two swords he had on his back were bigger than the woman who was accompanying him.

No one knew their names but everyone was too afraid to ask, letting them go on their way.

Guards took notice of them and kept a close eye if they attempted anything, they were the most suspicious people in the past few months alone.

(Nabe) “It appears that adventurers don’t appear to be part of this world. Everyone is staring at us.”

(Momon) “Well that’s how it was back then, but you seem to be right. They seem to be less in awe and more on guard. Not that I blame them.”

In his old world, Ainz and Narberal posed as adventurers, Momon and Nabe, looking for quests and worked their way up from the bottom to the top for their heroism and the way they blew through quests.

It seems like the MMO aspects were completely alien in Fodlan, judging by the way everyone looked at them with fear.

When they found their way into the Inn, the same reaction was made by everyone inside.

There wasn’t anything noteworthy inside the inn, not the people or the decor.

He went to the counter and took a seat. There was a woman in knight’s armor next to him, but Ainz didn’t pay any mind to her. She was most likely a guard on break or something. The innkeeper turned around and jumped at the towering man in armor before her.

(Innkeeper) “M-May I help you?”

(Momon) “How much for the night?”

(Innkeeper) “Uh...100 gold.”

Ainz reached inside his belt and pulled out a small pouch. Looking inside, it was only 50 gold.

(Momon) “...I only have 50.”

(Innkeeper) “Then I’m sorry. We cannot allow you to stay.”

Nabe’s face scrunched up, insulted that her highness should even have to pay for a room. Already knowing how she is in this situation, Ainz raised his hand.

(Momon) “Then that’s fine. I’ll just take a drink. Ale’s fine.”

The innkeeper nodded and went to get the drink as requested.”

(Female Knight) “Psh, all that fancy armor and you can’t even get a room. Money well spent.”

The two turned to the woman who finished chugging down her mug.

(Momon “Hm?”

Upon closer inspection,the woman had messy blond hair, and the knight’s uniform seemed to be of higher craft.

It was then Ainz noticed her sword. It was some jagged and uneven yellow sword. His thoughts were interrupted from Narberal’s reply.

(Nabe) “Watch your tongue.”

(Momon) “Nabe-”

(Female Knight) “Ah, yeah no that’s my bad. Didn’t mean any offense!”

The knight turned towards Ainz and smiled.

(Female Knight) “Just saying that if you spent the money to get that bad boy made, I don’t blame ya one bit! Not to mention those swords too. Jeez, you aren’t compensating for anything, are ya?”

Ainz laughed.

(Momon) “I could ask you the same thing. That blade of yours isn’t just for show, is it?”

(Female Knight) “What, you mean Thunderbrand? Hah, I bet it could kick your butt in a fight!”

Nabe frowned and was clearly getting annoyed at her gloating.

Ainz was starting to take a bit of liking to this woman. It reminded him of a player who was bragging about their gear and how hard they worked for it, daring anyone to take them on in PVP.

Thankfully, he was in a situation where testing his abilities was necessary.

(Momon) “That’s a bet I’d be willing to take.”

(Female Knight) “You’re on! It’s been a while since I’ve fought someone who looks like they can back up their talk!”

The ale was brought to Ainz. He grabbed the mug and motioned it towards the female knight.

(Momon) “Name’s Momon.”

The female knight hit Momon’s cup with hers and nodded.

(Female Knight) “Momon, eh? That’s a strange name. I’m-”

The door burst open, a blue haired woman dressed in dark green running in.

(Blue Woman) “Catherine!”

(Catherine) “Bah, hang on. Shamir, what’s going on?”

Shamir walked up to Catherine and cut in front of Ainz and Narberal.

(Shamir) “We’ve located the enemy camp, but there’s far more than we expected.”

(Catherine) “Who’s going with us?”

(Shamir) “Us, Jeralt, Alois and a few recruits. The rest of the knights are still investigating the Death Knight.”

Catherine finished the rest of her drink in a single gulp and turned to Ainz.

(Catherine) “Shame, looks like our duel’s gonna have to wait!”

Right as she was about to get up, Ainz spoke up.

(Ainz) “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to accept some help?”

(Shamir) “You a merc?”

(Ainz) “Adventurer. We’re new to the country and my friend and I are here looking for work.”

(Catherine) “Huh. Talk about convenient.”

(Shamir) “Might not get paid, that alright with you?”

Momon got up and nodded.

(Momon) “Fine by me. Let’s get going.”

Wasting no time, the four of them headed out of the inn and towards the outskirts of town.

Later...

[Non-Player Character - Overlord]

As they walked down the road, Narberal continued to frown at Catherine and Shamir.

(Momon) sigh “Nabe, is this about-”

(Nabe) “Yes it is, Loooorrrr-...ahem, Momon.”

(Momon) “We’ve been over this. Do not hold it against people if they treat me the way they do.”

(Nabe) sigh “It’s something I can never fully be comfortable with-”

(Momon) “Nabe, I brought you with me because you’ve been with me the longest out in the field. I appreciate your concern but-”

Momon stopped talking when he noticed that Catherine was slowing down a bit to walk side by side with them.

(Catherine) “So, where do you two come from?”

(Momon) “Ah, we come from the Alliance.”

(Catherine) “Any house? Heard your lady friend call you a lord.”

Ainz internally sighed while Nabe’s face flinched.

(Momon) “That’s something we’d rather not discuss.”

(Catherine) “Ah, I understand that. Wouldn’t wanna deal with nobles all the time myself when I can just go where I please. That freedom is nice.”

(Momon) “So what exactly are we fighting?”

(Shamir) “Bandits. Some monsters and demonic beasts started attacking nearby villages, but we managed to put them down pretty easily. Now we just have to deal with the bandits raiding the survivors. They think nothing can stop them since the knights are busy with other tasks.”

(Momon) “And who do you all work for?”

(Catherine) “Lady Rhea and the Church of Seiros. Specifically, we’re the Knights of Seiros, a division of elite warriors meant to enforce her will.”

(Momon) “Has there been any other cases of monsters near the Monastery?”

(Catherine) “Well there’s...actually, now that I think about it, I don’t think so.

Ainz and Narberal took a mental note of that. The Church appears to be keeping quiet about the residents of Nazarick being in House Isekai, and they don’t appear to be suspicious of the fact that they were the ones who made the monsters appear.

But what was a demonic beast?

Before he could ask, they met up with the rest of the knights. 

(Jeralt) “Finally you made it. The bandits are about to make their move.”

(Alois) “Now, let’s...Huh? Who’s this?”

(Catherine) “Momon and...Don’t think I ever caught your name, missy.”

(Nabe) “...I am Nabe.”

(Shamir) “We’ll see if he and his friend are useful or not.”

(Jeralt) “Name’s Jeralt. Captain of the Knights of Seiros.”

(Alois) “Alois, Jeralt’s second in command!”

Upon first glance, they all appeared to be seasoned veterans. Even though their tone was mostly casual and informal, the way they held themselves and their weapons showed that they knew what they were doing.

(Momon) “It is a pleasure to meet you all.”

Everyone turned to Narberal who didn’t say anything at first.

With a slight nudge, Narberal turned to them.

(Nabe) “Let’s get this over with.”

Ainz shook his head.

(Momon) “Come on, at least say hello.”

(Alois) “Hah, I see your daughter is a bit shy!”

Narberal’s calm face exploded into a panic.

“DAUGHTER?! THERE IS NO ONE THAT COULD BE LORD MOMON’S CHILD, AND EVEN IF HE WEDDED, I COULDN’T-”

“H-HEY! Watch what you’re saying!”

“...Ah...”

“...”

Alois burst out laughing while everyone else sighed.

(Alois) “Ah, so you aren’t related! Apologies, the way you two talked made me think otherwise!”

(Momon) “Pay it no mind, but please do not try to fluster her like that.”

Jeralt hit Alois in the back of the head.

(Alois) “AH!”

(Jeralt) “You haven’t even seen the man’s face, what made you think that they’re family to begin with?”

Well, it’s not like Alois was completely off the mark.

Ever since the rest of his guild members disappeared, Ainz did view all of Nazarick’s beings as his children. Narberal, the Pleiades, and even the Floor Guardians were his sons and daughters.

Highly dysfunctional and psychopathic sons and daughters, but that nevertheless.

(Catherine) “We’re almost right on top of their camp. We should get moving, already.”

(Jeralt) “Agreed. Let’s go.”

As the knights made their way, Naberal turned to Ainz.

Her face was still blushing, and it looked like as if she were ready to cry or punch something. Most likely both.

(Momon) sigh “Don’t worry about it, okay Nabe?”

(Nabe) “Y-Yes, Momon...”

----

[As Swift As Wind - Fire Emblem: Three Houses]

UNIT SELECTION:

Begin the battle?

>[Yes] No

Victory Conditions: Rout the enemy

Defeat Conditions: "Momon” or “Nabe” falls in battle.

----

[Psychological Warfare - Overlord]

The group hid behind several trees as they looked at the massive bandit camp. They had kidnapped a large amount of people, as well as their belongings.

(Momon) “Bandits...”

(Alois) “Those dastards think they can do what they want when we’re not around! We’ll show them!”

(Catherine) “I’m not going to stand by and let innocents get herded around like cattle!”

(Shamir) “Get your heads clear. We have to think of a plan, there’s far too many of them for us.”

Ainz and Narberal didn’t really care about the villagers, if they were to tell the truth.

Ainz only joined in because it’d be a good way to find out the strength of those around here.

Even though he wasn’t using any spells and his real power, he would at least see how dangerous bandits and soldiers of this world are.

Monsters like goblins or monsters in general did not seem commonplace in this world at all, which meant there was no good way to gauge how lethal everyone is, or what their levels and experience is. RPG elements seemed absent much to his dismay.

Even if these were bandits, which are normally low level mobs, he would pay dearly if he underestimated them.

That being said, there were no other plans he could think of to accurately assess how dangerous they all were, so there’s just one thing to do now.

Brute force his way in, just like Momon would.

(Momon) “...I have an idea.”

(Jeralt) “What’d that be?”

(Momon) “They’re expecting the Knights of Seiros. They aren’t expecting someone like Nabe and I. While I distract them, you can free the villagers.”

(Alois) “No offense, but I doubt you and your big swords there could cleave through all of them.”

(Momon) “Hah, I accept your challenge!”

Ainz motioned Nabe to follow and started to walk into sight.

(Catherine) “What are you doing?!”

(Momon) “Stick to the plan.”

(Bandit) “HEY, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!”

The bandits attention focused on the two walking up towards the camp, alerting the rest of them and making them draw their weapons.

Ainz pulled out his twin greatswords as Nabe pulled out a broadsword.

(Momon) “Raiding towns as monsters are already attacking them? How low...”

(Bandit) “We’re doin ‘em a favor! Either live under us or die by the monsters and church! Now, I’m asking again real nice, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!”

(Momon) “My name is Momon. And this is Nabe. You all would do well to remember these names.”

(Bandit) “Psh, what? You gonna “deliver justice” to us evildoers or some shit? And what’s with that getup! You’re trying a bit too hard don’t you think?”

Narberal gripped her sword tightly, wanting to kill all of them for insulting her lord.

Ainz’s head tilted to her to where only she could hear.

(Momon) “Steady your hand a bit longer. I promise you will be able to kill them to your heart’s content.”

Narberal nodded and tried to keep calm.

She then noticed that the group had finally managed to get around the bandits and cut them free.

(Nabe) “Momon-”

(Momon) “Focus on the bandits, not the villagers.”

(Bandit) “You better get out of here if you know what’s good for you...Then again, your armor looks REALLY expensive. And those swords ya got too...!”

The last of the villagers finally ran away with the recruits as their escorts.

Catherine nodded.

(Momon) “Hoho, you’re more than welcome to come and get it!”

(Bandit) “HAH, GET ‘EM BOYS!”

(Momon) “Nabe.”

[Clash - Overlord]

Nabe grinned for a moment before raising her finger to them.

“Lightning.”

A line of electricity shot out, piercing through three bandits’ chests and killing them instantly.

(Bandit) “What the hell?!”

(Bandit 2) “MAGE! TAKE HER DO-”

Three more bandits were cleaved in half as Ainz’s sword went flying through the air and stabbed the ground, shooting debris out from the impact.

One of the bandits who survived looked into the air and realized Ainz had flipped into the air, and tossed his other sword down.

When he landed, Ainz grabbed both of his swords and spun in a massive circle, cutting anyone down who was too close.

(Bandit) “FUCK! WHAT THE-”

An arrow went through his head, shot by Shamir who emerged from the trees.

Catherine and Alois charged in with their weapons cutting everyone in their way down.

Another group of bandits tried to make a run for it before being run over by Jeralt’s horse.

Narberal caught up with Ainz and cut another bandit down swiftly.

(Momon) So, looks like bandits are still weak as ever...

He turned his attention towards how Catherine and Alois were fighting. They were killing the bandits left and right, not even breaking a sweat.

Shamir’s deadly efficiency made sure every shot that was fired hit the bandit right between the eyes.

(Nabe) “MOMON!”

Ainz knew a bandit was coming from behind to slash at him. He would’ve already taken care of it, but he wanted to see just how strong these weapons were.

When the sword made contact, it bounced off and didn’t even leave a scratch.

Truth be told, he was more than a little disappointed.

The bandit slowly backed away as Ainz turned towards him.

(Momon) “Do you want to try again?”

(Bandit) “AAAH!”

Right as he turned around, he was impaled through the stomach from Narberal’s sword, which she violently kicked him off.

(Nabe) “Disgusting insect...”

Ainz then examined Narberal’s state, to see if she was struggling either.

In terms of level, Narberal was around level 60, and just meant to serve as a distraction in the tombs of Nazarick.

However there was just only a few patches of dirt and blood that got on her. She hadn’t even sustained an injury or broke a sweat.

(Momon) “Good grief, I suppose it was my mistake to expect more from bandits.”

(Nabe) “Your compassion for these humans are too great, Momon. They do not deserve it!”

(Momon) “Perhaps. Finish this up, Nabe.”

(Nabe) “Understood.”

Casting another lightning spell from her finger, she shot at a group that was heading towards Catherine and Alois, and fried them.

Their smoking bodies fell to the ground and finally there was silence.

(Catherine) “Alright, think we’re in the clear! That was some fancy moves, Momon!”

(Jeralt) “Gotta admit, you’re skilled.”

(Alois) “I’ve never seen anyone move like that! You’re incredible!”

(Shamir) “Hm. Not bad.”

Narberal smiled for the first time this entire trip.

(Nabe) “Of course he’s incredible.”

(Momon) “Now, now. Let’s not get too cocky. We should go find the villa-”

GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

Everyone immediately turned and ran towards the source of the sound. When they finally got back on the roads, the villagers encountered a massive demonic beast.

(Jeralt) “Damn it, I thought we got rid of all of them!”

(Alois) “EVERYONE, GET BEHIND US!”

(Momon) Ah, there we go. Knew a quest would have SOME final boss if the mobs were too easy.

Getting into stance, the villagers all got behind the Knights as the beast slowly walked up.

It was some form of a giant wolf, with the fangs almost as large as a man.

Ainz and Narberal tried to buff themselves with passive skills but where shocked when nothing they said was activating it.

(Nabe) “M-My magic...!”

(Momon) “I see, so this world took our buffs away. Meaning-”

Although his face couldn’t smile anymore, he’d have the widest one at this very moment.

[NPC Battle - Overlord]

(Momon) “WE JUST GOT TO FIGHT IT THE OLD FASHIONED WAY!”

Ainz and Narberal charged first, followed by Catherine and Jeralt. Shamir and Alois stayed back to ensure that the civilians would be safe, letting Shamir fire off arrows.

The wolf swiped its paws at Ainz, barely blocking in time with his dual greatswords. The arrows seemed to bounce off the demonic beast when it made contact.

(Shamir) “Damn it!”

It pushed him back, almost making him lose balance with the force behind it.

Retaliating, Ainz swung his sword at the hide of the wolf, but it was reflected off.

Narberal casted another lightning attack and fired it head on.

The demonic beast was damaged, although not by much.

It tried swinging at Narberal next, but Catherine parried its claws in time, using Thunderbrand to cut parts of the claws off, making it roar in pain.

Wasting no time, Narberal quickly put distance between her and the beast.

Jeralt’s horse ran by and he threw a javelin into that arm, making it roar even louder.

The demonic beast spun around, using its tail to knock everyone back.

Ainz was caught in the attack and flew backwards. When he got up, he started laughing.

(Ainz) “I FORGOT WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO FEEL PAIN!”

While it wasn’t nearly as powerful as he was expecting the name “demonic-beast” to be, it still posed a bit of a threat if he was way too careless.

However, it’s been so long since anything had actually managed to hurt him. Even though his specialty wasn’t swordfighting, it got his adrenaline going once more.

It was a feeling a player finding an enemy in a video game that could actually pose as a fun boss battle.

Narberal had a mixed expression on her face. A half scowl and smile. She was happy he was enjoying himself, but at the same time it was her duty to protect him.

Ainz went into the fray once more, trading blows with the surprisingly agile demonic beast.

The two traded and dodged their attacks, seemingly being at equal skill.

Catherine and Jeralt got back up and saw Ainz single-handedly taking it on.

(Catherine) “Jeez, what is he?!”

(Jeralt) “I don’t believe it!”

Finally landing a score that struck home, one of Ainz’s greatswords got stuck into the uninjured arm of the demonic beast, making it howl out.

(Momon) “Catherine!”

Catherine managed to shake off her awe and swiped at the tail of the demonic beast, cutting it cleanly off.

Jeralt used his lance to stab the beast in the leg, making the lance come out the other side and ensuring it can’t move.

Shamir finally got into a good position in the trees and let an arrow loose, the arrow going into its eye.

Alois used his axe to lop off the lower jaw of the demonic beast when it was staggered, finally leaving Narberal an opening.

(Nabe) “Dragon lightning!”

An even brighter line of electricity shot out of her fingers, but it quickly transformed into the shape of a dragon as it charged straight into the demonic beast, making its entire body shake.

Once it stopped, Ainz hopped into the air and dug his swords straight into its neck.

Letting go and quickly grabbing the hilts with opposite hands, he pulled them back out in a way to decapitate the beast, and let its headless body flop onto the ground. 

[Non-Player Character - Overlord]

With one final sigh, Ainz swung the blood off his blade and sheathed them on his back.

Narberal quietly sheathed her sword on her belt and stood alongside him.

(Alois) “Now THAT was even more amazing!”

(Catherine) “Show off.”

(Shamir) “Like you’re one to talk.”

(Jeralt) “That’s enough already. Let’s get these villagers home.”

Everyone nodded and made sure all the villagers were safely home. The recruits offered to protect them as they reported back to Garreg Mach until an actual guard detachment came. 

When they finally arrived back in Garreg Mach’s town, Catherine turned to the two adventurers.

(Catherine) “You’re not busy tonight, are you?”

(Momon) “I do not believe we are.”

(Catherine) “Then, how would you like to work with us? Bet you all would help out the Knights of Seiros greatly.”

(Shamir) “Hah. That’s high praise coming from her.”

(Momon) “It depends. May I speak to the leader...who is that by the way?”

(Alois) “Wow, you must really be out of the loop! The leader of the Church of Seiros is Archbishop Rhea. I’m sure she isn’t busy at the moment!”

(Momon) “Then let’s go find her. We’ll make our decision from there.”

Catherine and Alois went to speak with Rhea in private. After a few silent moments, a knight opened the door to the Hearing Chamber.

(Knight) “Her lordship wishes to see you now.”

[Gazing At Sirius - Fire Emblem: Three Houses]

Ainz nodded, and both he and Narberal went inside and found her standing in the middle.

He had seen her a couple times when every single person had their weapon pointed at them, but it didn’t seem that they knew who they were.

Knowing that she basically ruled all over Fodlan, Ainz did what his followers normally did upon seeing him.

Ainz got on knee, with his arm over it and other arm over his chest.

Narberal had a face as if someone had insulted her creator AND Ainz at the same time, but quickly did the same. It bothered her to no end, but she was going to have to suck it up.

(Rhea) “There is no need for such actions. Please, rise.”

Doing so, she smiled.

(Rhea) “I heard that you decided to help out the Knights of Seiros, even without the promise of pay?”

(Momon) “I may be an adventurer, but I would never turn away from those in need.”

(Rhea) “Such a kind heart you have, mister Momon. You have my respect and admiration. However, I cannot permit you into the Knights of Seiros with just this action alone.”

(Momon) “...I understand, my lady.”

(Rhea) “That being said, with your combat prowess impressing two of my highest in command, Catherine and Alois, I will permit this, if you choose to accept. You will fight alongside the Knights of Seiros asa mercenary. But with enough time, you may enlist in the ranks of the Knights.”

(Momon) “I accept this with the highest honor, my lady.”

(Rhea) “And what about you?”

Narberal was about ready to spit in Rhea’s face, the idea of pledging allegiance to someone else other than Ainz repulsed her to no end. But knowing the reprimand and cataclysmic setback that insult would have, she nodded.

(Nabe) “I accept this with the highest honor...my lady.”

(Rhea) “You have my gratitude. Please, rest within the Monastery. We have quarters waiting for you. Your assignments will begin soon.”

Bowing, they both left towards their quarters.

Their beds were set across from each other, but they had no real need of that. They could use the teleportation rings to go back to House Isekai’s dorms.

But for the time being, they would stay here and learn firsthand how the Knights of Seiros acts.

He was satisfied that they managed to infiltrate a bit more subtly into the Church of Seiros. It was a lot better than attempting to be a student. Done that once, no need to do that again.

Ainz felt like he didn’t need to worry about the Floor Guardian’s relations with the classmates of House Isekai as much due to prior experience with Kazuma and his group.

That being said he was quite curious about the others. Class VII, the Phantom Thieves, the Doom Slayer, all of it was quite perplexing. 

Just what kind of mess was he getting into this time?

However, he decided to not jump down that rabbit hole tonight.

There was more pressing matters to attend to.

That being Narberal.

(Momon) “Naberal Gamma.”

Hearing his voice say her name in that angry of a tone sent shivers throughout her entire body.

And it was also the fact he used her real name.

(Narberal) “U-Uh...-”

[First Wife War - Overlord]

BAP!

(Narberal) “L-Lord Ainz?!”

(Ainz) “What was THAT back there with Rhea?”

(Narberal) “I-I’m afraid I don’t understand?”

(Ainz) “Narberal Gamma, you are aware of the face you made when I knelt, correct?”

---

---

(Ainz) “We are extremely lucky that Rhea did not mention that! Or that anyone else was in the room!”

(Narberal) “I-I apologize with all my being, Lord Ainz!”

She immediately got on her knees and was about to shout even more, but Ainz stopped her.

(Ainz) “Enough. I know you’d be willing to slit your own neck to apologize.”

(Narberal) “...Do you wa-”

(Ainz) “No, I do NOT want you to do that!” sigh

Ainz facepalmed, and then attempted to rub his temple, A. forgetting that he doesn’t have one anymore, and B. he was wearing a helmet.

(Ainz) “Refrain from making that face. Remember, we are BLENDING in.”

(Narberal) “I...I understand.”

(Ainz) “We should be safe in the Monastery. Wash yourself up and relax for a little bit before returning here. I need to make a call to Albedo.”

(Narberal) “Yes, Lord Ainz...”

Ainz could tell Nazarick’s stay in Fodlan was going to be a very long one... 

[Crazy Scary Holy Fantasy - Overlord]

Crazy Scary Holy Fantasy Akumu no arisama Do what, do what, do what you want to! Akui no souzou shitai

[grimdarkandhandsome]

USA State Mottos, Ranked

Epistemic status: Silly post.

Yesterday i realized the 50 states of the US had eclectic and delightful mottos. I’ve ranked them for you from coolest to uncoolest.

1: Ad astra per aspera - Kansas

To the stars through difficulties. This is beautiful and it looks great written out. I am confident Kansas will be the state closest to the stars (after resolving difficulties).

2: Salus populi suprema lex esto - Missouri

Let the welfare of the people be the supreme law. It sounds great, it’s grand, it’s bold, and it’s a wonderful priority.

3: Regnat populus - Arkansas

The people rule. I imagine a time traveler approaching Emperor Nero and saying, ‘I have two words for you....’

4: Labor omnia vincit - Oklahoma

Labor conquers all things. It’s a great attitude towards self-improvement, and i think more phrases should end in omnia vincit.

5: Sic semper tyrannis - Virginia

Thus always to tyrants. The flag clarifies the situation by showing a emperor being stabbed. This is delightfully overaggressive when placed next to Washington’s motto.

6: Excelsior - New York

Ever upward. A nice-sounding word. Definitely sounds like a sword.

7: Esse quam videri - North Carolina

To be, rather than to seem. A pretty cool choice of priority. Not like those videri states with their big gold cufflinks.

8: Dum spiro spero - South Carolina

While I breathe, I hope. A harmonious phrase that celebrates the indefatigable human potential for improvement.

9: Equality before the law - Nebraska

Choosing English instead of a stylish foreign language is a missed opportunity to show off. But this phrase gets better the more you repeat it. I like to imagine that when Nebraskans are cornered by journalists they just bark ‘Equality before the law!’ and close ranks.

10: Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono - Hawaii

The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness. It’s in a local language, it’s very beautiful written out, it outlines a plan to benefit the entire ecosystem, and it’s just generally quite radiant.

11: Alis volat propriis - Oregon

She flies with her own wings. Very cool sentiment. Only marked down because the words don’t look quite as cool as omnia does.

12: Dirigo - Maine

I lead. It’s terse, it’s taut, it’s claiming victory out of nowhere, it’s Maine.

13: Live Free or Die - New Hampshire

Penalty for using boring English, but bonus for being the only state to realize you can append ‘or Die’ to any motto.

14: Audemus jura nostra defendere - Alabama

We dare defend our rights! Bonus for being the only state to realize you can prepend Audemus to any motto.

15: Serit ut alteri saeclo prosit - North Dakota

One sows for the benefit of another age. Yes, i know, it kindof sounds like ‘Search for the altered sequin among the prosaic’, but the meaning is quite cool. Radical long-game altruism.

16: Si quaeris peninsulam amoenam circumspice - Michigan

If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you. What??

17: Eureka - California

I have found it. A counterpoint to Maine’s Dirigo, and a geographical counterpoint as well.

18: Equal Rights - Wyoming

A wonderful priority, and charmingly bald phrasing.

19: Alki - Washington

By and by. This is Chinook, apparently. Washington is apparently the opposite of Alabama, who dares to defend.

20: Crescit eundo - New Mexico

It grows as it goes. I don’t like it as much as Ad astra per aspera, but i decided to rank all improvement mottos evenhandedly to avoid bias from the order i read them in.

21: Esto perpetua - Idaho

Let it be perpetual. It is quite verbally beautiful and it captures what we were all thinking - Let Idaho be the same forever!

22: Friendship - Texas

Could be phrased more stylishly, but it really is a rather nice motto.

23: Under God the people rule - South Dakota

I imagine a South Dakotan time traveler in 1300 CE pulling her hair and saying, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s not that hard, how many times to i have to explain the hierarchy?’

24: Montani semper liberi - West Virginia

Mountaineers are always free. Cheeky!

25: Deo gratiam habeamus - Kentucky

Let us be grateful to God. Very resonant words. Less focused on improvement and more remarking on the fact we made it this far.

26: State sovereignty, national union - Illinois

I know it’s confusing, but we put it in the motto and eventually you’ll get used to the concept. What a nerdy motto!

27: Nil sine numine - Colorado

Nothing without Providence. What beautiful and assonant words. A theme of several states is ‘The big thing is totally paramount, but the small thing is also cool just in a secondary sort of way.’

28: Forward - Wisconsin

In its troughs and at new peaks, Wisconsin always wants to do better :)

29: Industry - Utah

I didn’t know that. But it is a cool attitude. They say that most domains of human endeavor require hard work first of all.

30: Wisdom, Justice, Moderation - Georgia

I just think it’s a little boring. But i like prioritizing wisdom.

31: Virtue, liberty, and independence - Pennsylvania

The last two are, like, the same thing.

32: Qui transtulit sustinet - Connecticut

He who transplanted sustains. Apparently this is a phrase from the Vulgate Bible. I’m guessing the Europeans are the ones who transplanted. I like the sonics but i’m not convinced on the sentiment.

33: Fatti maschii, parole femine - Maryland

Strong deeds, gentle words. Note: I found that translation on Wikipedia and i don’t speak Latin so i don’t know if it’s the best one. I think this motto sounds like a humorously awkward compromise and probably seemed offensive from a 1800s-gender perspective as well as from a modern gender perspective.

34: With God, all things are possible - Ohio

Ohions are optimists whereas Coloradons are pessimists.

35: Liberty and prosperity - New Jersey

Tedious ‘list of nice things’ format, but i kindof like looking at New Jersey as a Utopian El Dorado.

36: Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem - Massachusetts

By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty. Sir, can you lower your sword and read me those criteria again?

37: Hope - Rhode Island

Inferior version of Dum spiro spero, but pleasantly minimal.

38: All For Our Country - Nevada

Typical Nevadan slogan, a people known for their radical push for big government and federal power.

39: Agriculture & Commerce - Tennessee

Not really cool enough for a crowd to shout in unison with their hands over their hearts. But at least it celebrates feeding the people i guess.

40: Ditat Deus - Arizona

God enriches. A weird mix of 100% religious and very lukewarm. God is a plus. Never turn down God when you don’t have to pay extra for Him. But the words do sound nice.

41: Stella quarta decima fulgeat - Vermont

May the fourteenth star shine bright. I hope the fourteenth state is a good one. This one has a impressively high style-to-substance ratio.

42: L’etoile du Nord - Minnesota

The star of the North. I’m not that impressed. If Oregon, Texas, and New York had joined in and chosen L’etoile du Ouest, Sud, & Est respectively, then this would have been cool. Pleasantly unique choice of language tho.

43: Virtute et armis - Mississippi

By valor and arms. Suddenly, we are amoral & fighting! Mississippi is apparently the most weapon-themed state.

44: North to the Future - Alaska

It was wise to clarify why North is good. Minnesota would have chosen A star featuring Anchorage.

45: Our liberties we prize & our rights we will maintain - Iowa

I don’t know, it’s just not exciting phrasing. Our lives are of utmost importance, & our safety will be protected. We have wonderful dogs, & we love our cats. Iowa is being maintained. Needs work.

46: Union, justice, confidence - Louisiana

Are these the top 3? Do political attack ads here accuse candidates of being secessionist, lax, and meek?

47: Liberty & Independence - Delaware

Freedom & Self-Direction. Free Will & Autonomy. Adulthood & Unpredictability. Wild & Unleashed.

48: Oro y plata - Montana

Gold & silver. Why should you live in Montana? Cash cash money. Autos deportivos y bling.

49: The Crossroads of America - Indiana

Next.

50: In God We Trust - Florida

Perhaps in Florida, bad things do not happen to good people.

Honorable mentions:

- Justitia Omnibus - Washington DC

Excellent!

- Samoa, Muamua Le Atua - American Samoa

Translation: Samoa, let God be first. (Samoa, imma let you finish...)

- Joannes Est Nomen Ejus - Puerto Rico

Translation: John is his name. Enough said.

(Honestly i changed my mind about the order partway thru typing this but didnt bother to reorder them.)

I think the messy inconsistency of these mottos is fairly beautiful. Despite having no style guide and apparently quite scattered priorities, these 50 governments share open borders and pretty excellent harmony by international standards.

Source: Wikipedia

[sagiow]

We run a very tight ship - Chapter 4

kickass awesome moodboard courtesy of @jomiddlemarch​

Read the first three chapters here or on AO3

“Welcome aboard, Miss Green. Ready to set sail for the grandest of voyages?”

Emma smiled tightly, forcing her eyes to follow her lips, and knowing they failed. Instead, she averted them, hiding their escape behind a wholly unnecessary adjustment of her glasses. She stood between the First Mate and the chaplain in the haie d’honneur greeting her family aboard the most luxurious ship of their fleet, in the most breathtaking of atriums, by the grandest of staircases - so the heavy-handed brochure said. Captain Summers bowed low to the young lady, and lower to her mother beside her.

“Captain Summers,” she offered her hand daintily, never more the great lady then among her grossly underpaid staff. “I trust everything has been arranged as instructed?”

“To the letter, Mrs. Green. Your guests have been given all the best cabins, the most prestigious reserved, of course, for the bridal party. I must say, your daughter has truly outdone herself with the decoration and planning. Alexandria Line’s future is bright indeed,” he enthused, to Emma’s inner cringing. Dial it down, dude.

“Well she better has!” snapped the bride-to-be. “My wedding is the event of the year in this town and probably all of Virginia: it has to be absolutely perfect in every way. A question of Green family pride, which I’m sure she has very close to heart,” she added sweetly, as a cat offering a cleanly killed prey to its owner, and Emma braced for her to start eating the head. “After all, it’s probably the only Green wedding she’ll ever have the chance of organizing.” Crunch, there it is.

Ignoring her gift, Emma distributed programs to the guests, the embossed letters popping elegantly from the cotton cardstock. “We will let y’all settle in and hope you join the Captain tonight at eight for a welcome dinner,” she explained, her voice pleasant and professional, just greeting regular guests onboard as she did twice a month, every month of the year, year after year since her very first summer job as a stewardess; despite her mother's protests, Papa Green knew the value of learning the ropes from the very first rung up. “Do spend tomorrow getting acquainted with our wonderful Empress Queen and her numerous amenities; I personally recommend our luxurious spa and state-of-the-art virtual golf course. The rehearsal will be held on Tuesday, giving us Wednesday for any and all last-minute adjustments, and we’ll have the ceremony on Thursday. Reverend Hopkins is our onboard chaplain, and will be performing the service.”

On cue, the tall man next to her stepped forward, his hands clasped piously before him, visibly not as comfortable with discomfort as she was. “It’s a great honor to be marrying you, Miss Green,” he said, but cut himself short. Oh no, you beautiful doofus.

“You'll be what now, Reverend?” exclaimed the groom-to-be, his arm wrapping around Alice’s waist possessively. “Maybe buy me a drink or two before you marry my fiancée?”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Stringfellow,” the chaplain stammered. “I misspoke. I meant-”

“Oh, lighten up, buddy. I’m just fuc- sorry, screwing with ya. Just don’t misspeak – or stutter, ugh-  during the actual wedding, will ya?” 

God, please do, she prayed intently, while Frank turned his devilish dark eyes to her.“Hey, Soon-to-be-Sis, you better have stocked up on that premium bourbon I asked for, and left a case in the Honeymoon Suite. Which, as I also specifically requested, now better have mirrors on the ceiling and a heart-shaped hot tub."

"Oh Frank, no!” gasped Alice, shoving him away forcefully. “I insisted on 1896 Paris Art Nouveau, not 1986 Niagara Falls By-the-Hour Motel!”  

“Just fucking with you, babe,” he replied with a slap to her ass. Always the gentleman, Frank. “No, seriously though, Em, one major problem with that that fancy schedule of yours: when the hell’s the bachelor party?”

“The bachelor party��s anytime we’re not in her fancy schedule, Bro!” shouted a man descending the stairs. He was not clad in the cruise line’s signature green and white uniform, but in the most garish Hawaiian shirt and ostentatious sunglasses Emma had ever seen, as did the rest of the group of young men behind him. This time, she did not bother to hold her irritated sigh.

“Jimmy my boy! I knew there’d be no better best man for me! Finally, some good fuckin’ plannin’!” The two men embraced, slapping each other vigorously on the back. “You,” Frank then pointed to a helpless steward. “Take my stuff to my room, she’ll tell you which. And you,” he added with another clap to Jimmy’s chest. “Take me to the booze.” And without as much as a goodbye to their families, they stormed off across the atrium, a frat boy riot of jeers, shouts and high fives.

Slowly, Emma returned her attention to her overly merry mother, her smug sister, the clueless captain and the confused churchman. “Well, boys will be boys,” dismissed the matriarch, to relieved chuckles all around. “But they are right. There is so much to celebrate! Young love, and such a brilliant match! Alexandria Line and Stringfellow Sails coming together, what a dream! Come, dear, let’s get you settled in.”

With a gracious gesture, she motioned for the remainder of the bridal party to follow them and she closed the parade with a touch to Emma’s arm. “Do come by shortly, darling, I want to review the menu for tonight,” she said. “I do hope you’ve given our family’s famous desert its rightful place of honor.” That ancient apple nightmare? Yeah, rightfully in the trash, Mother, but she only agreed meekly. 

The families gone, the crew followed suit with visible relief, until Emma was left with the silent reverend, who shuffled his feet, perhaps regretting not having managed to vanish along with the rest.

“Uh... my congratulations.” He somehow made it sound like both a question and an apology. “They seem... swell.”

She could only do what she was taught best to do in such cases: smile and nod. And scream internally so loudly that each and every one of her cells shook.

“I can hear that,” he said, startling her. How the fuck- “The hamsters spinning, in your head. Something’s bothering you. Anything I can do to help?”

She looked at him, at the kind concern she’d seen so many times offered to the crew members on their long voyages away from friends and family, now focused solely upon her, and it was both wonderful and terrifying at once. She tucked an imaginary loose wisp of hair back into her bun and shrugged. “It’s nothing. Just the pressure of planning this event. It’s different when it’s... personal." Like your harpy of a baby sister marrying your jackass of a high school sweetheart.  

“I can imagine. Tall order you’ve got there. What was it, 1896 Art Deco?”

“Art Nouveau,” she corrected. “She’d have decapitated you for that mistake. Actually, no, that’s too swift and painless. Eviscerated’s more like it. With a blunt butter knife. Or her bare hands, if she hadn't just gotten her nails done.”

“Lovely. I see why the hamsters scamper thus; you’ve let the viper into their cage. You need a mongoose to chase it off: I might have just the thing.”  

Curious, she let him continue, cradling the leftover programs against her chest to muffle the embarrassingly loud drumming that emanated from it. “I have to cover for José at the jazz bar tonight, you should come by. I’ll make you the special drink I concocted for the occasion: the Blushing Bride. Now I see the name’s totally wrong. And the formula, too; I think it’ll need less subtlety and a lot more bitterness. Will you please help me?” he asked, leaning closer, with that somewhat shy smile of his that just begged to be kissed.

Instead, she pushed her glasses up her nose from the half-millimeter they had slid down, and felt in horror her body do that weird half-shrug, half-nod shuffle that it thought conveyed casual nonchalance. Real smooth, nerd. “If I’m released on time from that sure-to-be-extensive menu review... sure.”

“I’ll have you paged urgently at ten, something about the swan that’s being fattened for the wedding dinner,” he winked. “Or the peacocks they probably requested to act as ringbearers or footrests. Ha, Peacocks... that should be our safeword – uh, shit, no, uh... I meant code word. Code!” Oh no. He’s even more beautiful when he blushes.  

Oh shit. He said safeword... as in sex. Kinky sex. With him.  

Oh fuck. Now I’m blushing too. And my palms are sweaty. That’s gonna stain the paper. And leave marks. That he can probably see. Nooooo.

“I’ll... let you get to it, then,” he stammered again, backing away before waving awkwardly and turning to sprint. Don’t look at his ass, don’t look at.... oh fuck me, I'm staring at a pastor’s ass. I’m going to Hell. I’m getting brutally murdered by my family first and going straight to Hell afterwards.

I just have to find a way to stop the world’s worst wedding first, and have less than five days to do so, and a beautiful chaplain-cum-bartender that’s familiar with safewords to not fuck along the way.  

I'm so unbelievably screwed.