#The Eagle Group PI

[loosesodamarble]

Magic Knight Squad Robe Redesigns

A long time ago, I had the idea of redesigning the uniforms of the Magic Knight squads for the (many) next gen ocs that me and my friends have. I thought it would be fun for the squads to each have a unique article of clothing for the squads' uniforms, to make each group a little more unique beyond their colors.

With the help of my beloved friend Steph ( @cringeyvanillamilk ), that idea has now come to fruition! I commissioned her for all the art you are to see.

And modeling the redesigned uniforms are mine and my friends' next gen ocs.

Representing the Golden Dawn is @lyranova's oc, Alistar Vangeance.

For the Black Bulls is @eme-eleff's oc, Hikari Yami.

Wearing the Crimson Lion King's uniform is @thoughtfullyrainynightmare's oc, Leonidas Vermillion.

From my own collection of ocs and representing the Blue Rose Knights is Dawn Faust.

The representative for the Aqua Deers is also my oc, Merel Faust.

The Silver Eagle's uniform is worn by @koneko-pi's oc, Avalinia Silva.

Representing the Coral Peacocks is @sailor-muno's oc, Bellini Fortuna.

Showing off for the Green Praying Mantises is @faewraithsworld's oc, Sullivan Vixen.

And the model for the Purple Orcas is another of @/faewraithsworld's ocs, Zoisite Ideale.

The CLK and GPM's uniforms have different versions that can be worn by the squad members. As seen below.

Thank you to Steph for taking my commission. And thank you to all my lovely friends for allowing me to turn your next gens into some gorgeous models!

Further notes about the uniforms below the cut.

Golden Dawn: they wear full body coats that are meant to be worn open. Squad members can have tassels added to their coats so they can be tied close if they so choose.

Black Bulls: they're not wearing leather jackets. It's standard fabric, that's all. Jacket length is somewhat adjustable though longer jackets are avoided to steer clear of having the same silhouette as the Golden Dawn.

Crimson Lion Kings: the sashes are sewn so that squad members don't have to wrap the fabric over their shoulder and around their waist every time they don their uniform.

Blue Rose Knights: it's a short cape already attached to a shirt. You'd just put it on like a regular shirt and hope that you don't get the cape in your face as you put it on.

Aqua Deer: it's a scarf, plain and simple. The ends of the scarf are to be a clean cut.

Silver Eagles: this squad retains the original form that a majority of the squad robes have in canon, a short mantle with an long cape attached. For the next gen's version, the fluff of the mantle was made a smaller component so that the feathers can be the main focus, instead of being mostly equal parts fluff and feather.

Coral Peacocks: a waist sash with the end of the fabric being shaped to resemble the tail feathers of a peacock.

Green Praying Mantises: arm sleeves that can just cover the forearms or cover the upper arms too. There's also a version with a slit in the sleeves in case there are squad members who don't want to wear the form fitting sleeves.

Purple Orcas: a vest with pointed hems reminiscent of the triangular shape of the squad robe worn by the previous generation. There are buttons on the vest so they can be worn open or closed to a squad member's preferences. (And most members tend to wear a shirt under the vest. Zoisite only wears his uniform this way because he can.)

[bonefall]

Do you have a list of bb!characters names in clanmew? Because I want to translate some of the names, but I don’t know which ones have been done yet.

I did not have a list! But, for you, I've gone ahead and compiled the ones I have thus far.

I definitely missed a couple of them, but here's 60 translations

Littlecloud = Eebhai ("Little Fat Cloud," a name that was a bit ironic because Littlecloud is a VERY skinny cat. It was given by Nightstar, in the hopes of receiving a blessing.)

Harespring = Yywayayiaoyr (Hare + Will jump up. Invokes a hare that thinks before it leaps)

Mistyfoot = Sooheffepab (Morning mist, refers to the dewey haze of morning, given by Oakheart because he collected her in the morning + Pad, as 'foot' often ends up absorbing a lot of unique suffixes for paw-related parts)

Tangleburr = Mwuprkido (Mwupr = Tangle, twist, knot, Kido = burrs, but also any plant debris that gets lodged in fur)

Patchpelt = Chafaborrl (Patch as in a grouping of similar vegetation. Patchkit and Leopardkit were twin names likely to invoke the image of a leopard hiding in grass as a reference to an old LeopardClan story)

Torear = Hssbupira (Hssbup, Small, rocky outcrop in moorlands that protects one from the wind + Ira, Ear )

Mudclaw = Mulpkach (Mud that is still wet, but not sticky or dangerous, rain mud. + Claw)

Whitewater = Osksrosha (Osk = Color white + Rosha = Sloshing water)

One-eye = Mwiskpi (Mwisk = Missing, Lost, + Pi. Lost-Seeing/Hearing)

Stemleaf = Prryemruss (Prryem refer to the beginning of any plant, where it springs from the ground. It was widely agreed this name is... A Choice, on Bramblestar's behalf)

Stumptail = Borgswash (Borg = Refers to ANY cut cylinder with a flattened top. Original translation, Stumpy, was an accidental translation of a pun as the translator did not know he was born this way, and ergo does not have a cut tail.)

Barkface = Karakbauss (Karak refers to thick, rough bark. Not the type that can be peeled off willows and made into string)

Breezepelt = Hrra'aborrl (A wind that pauses and then picks up pace + pelt)

Nightcloud = Oogarhai (All nighttime hours, from vesper to twilight + fat cloud)

Bayshine = Wawashem (RiverClan and WindClan think this is a weird name, because of an interesting dialect difference between Shadow/Thunder and River/Wind. They think it should be 'Sawawashem')

Thriftear = Paharlira (Paharl is an ancient Lake word, shared with Ivypool by Midnight. Thrift is a hardy species that grows by the ocean.)

Fernsong = Nanyananya (Fern + Yanana, Singing)

Jayfeather = Arkrbufr (Arkr = Screech Eurasian Jay + Bufr, a large feather from a tail or wing)

Downkit = Fuffrmew (Fuffr, soft, small feathers from the chest and body.)

Crowfoot = Rawkpwyyar (Rawk = Carrion Crow Corvus corone)

Redtail = Reyswash (Rey = Yew berry, blood red)

Graystripe = Urrnseek (Urrn = Stormy-gray. Seek = A long, thick stripe)

Brindlewing = Sipbeof (Sip = A short, thin stripe. Beof = A Feathered Wing; Beof is a Tribe word)

Needletail = Nyypswash (Nyyp = The leaf of a pine, but also means a 'harmless thorn.' Something that looks sharp but is actually quite soft.)

Thornclaw = Nakkach

Owlwhisker (Barn Owl) = Weearhussk (Barn Owl)

Owlclaw = Huokach (Eagle Owl)

Hootwhisker = Hrrua'uhussk (Tawny Owl)

Dovewing = Hrrubeof (Rock pigeon + wing)

Briarlight: Pik'kashayu (Shayu is any light source, from which light comes. A sun, stars, bioluminescent things)

Brightheart: Yaywibabun (Intense Heartbeating. Bright is a word about intensity, it means saturated colors, blinding lights, and overwhelming beauty)

Troutstream = Powshshush (Trout was probably named in reverence of the fact there were suddenly trout in the water again; Trout are an indicator species of river health and the River Chell was fucked for several years)

Birchfall = Pyachfew (Downy birch + Fallen)

Birchface = Byachbauss (Silver birch + Face)

Iceheart = Skyyfskababi (Frozen heart + will beat.)

Meltpelt = Bmubborrl (Melting + Pelt. Could also be used to describe being uncomfortably hot, but cats only sweat on their feet)

Ratscar = Eepyach (Black Rat + Scar)

Frostfur = Chikifaf (Frost + Fur)

Snowbird = Sonchpigu (Sound of snow crunching + Generic Songbird)

Scorchfur = Fifkarfaf (Burned + fur)

Lionblaze = Raorgabrrl (Lion + Crackling, refers to fire "eating" tinder, causing it to crack)

Slatefur = Pyabfaf (Slab/Flat Stone + Fur)

Poolcloud = Slofhai (Pool + Cloud)

Toadskip = Amampipip (Common Toad + Bouncing)

Nettlespot = Pokalowo (Stinging Nettle + Circle )

Spotfur = Owofaf (Refers to a single big spot she has on one side)

Tawnyspots = Pyowaposnya (Light brown color + Spotting)

Oakstar = Byochshai (Oak + Star)

Frecklewish = Husswo'shaba (Spots where the whiskers connect + Prayer)

Houndleap = Bayaolu (VERY large dog that howls + will jump)

Stagleap = Aayoolu (Adult Male Red Deer/Cervus elaphus + will jump)

Doefeather = Maa'arfrif (Muntjac + Feather)

Deerfoot = Augpwyyarr (Antlerless red deer + foot)

Deerleap = Augluar (Antlerless red deer + Jumping)

Fawnstep = Myaapab (Baby deer + Will walk)

Spiketail = Kikswash (Spine + Tail)

Cypresspaw = Pfufohpwyr (Pussywillow + Toebean)

Fireheart = Kafyarbabun (Wildfire + Heartbeat)

Squirrelflight = Pishkafsheek (Red squirrel + Soaring like a bird of prey)

Hallowflight = Shahafniooaw (Holy/Healing/Redemption + Flew like a swift, a hard one to translate into English)

[marcmarcmomarc]

Miraculous

Chapter 14: Final Attempt

(In their villa, Adrien’s group finishes their plotting.)

ADRIEN: So, we all agree? We make sure Marinette is alone so we can actually talk to her?

(The group agrees. At ICON Park…)

MARINETTE: So, we all agree? You guys hide while they attempt to talk to me, then on my mark, you guys ambush them?

(Everyone agrees. Adrien and his group leave the hotel.)

ADRIEN: Please work, please work, please work.

(Later, they arrive at ICON Park and find Marinette strolling around by herself.)

ADRIEN: There.

(They approach.)

MARINETTE: Ugh. You again?

ADRIEN: Hang on. I know. The sight of us instinctively makes you want to call on your new friends. But think about it. If we’re this persistent, then we must really want you back as a friend. What you’ve done since Heroes’ Day is really good stuff. So, do you accept this token of honesty and agree to return with us?

(Marinette just gives Adrien a half-lidded “Are you serious” look.)

MARINETTE: Isn’t that just your “Everyday Ladybug” speech from Heroes’ Day? And look how well that lasted! Sorry, guys. Actually, no, I’m not. Now, guys!

(As the Crossover Characters leap out of their hiding places, Adrien and the group bolt away once again.)

ADRIEN: And I had hope for this one!

MARINETTE: And don’t think you’ll get out unscathed this time!

ADRIEN: What is she talking about?

(Just then, two stinging glow urchins whiz past him and hit Ondine.)

ONDINE: Ow!

(Her cheeks puff out.)

ADRIEN: What the-

(Urchins, normal pies, banana peels, sports balls, mud pies, filthy diapers, music speakers, melted cheese, uprooted pine trees, axes, and gunshots of the PX-49 antidote whiz past them, thrown and fired by the Crossover Characters’ allies from Municiberg, New Urbem, Royal Woods, Great Lakes City, Scotland, the Boov and Gorg ships, Chicago, Santa Cécilia, Bird Island, Piggy Island, Eagle Island, Pop Village, Bergen Town, Volcano Rock City, Vibe City, Lonesome Flats, Techno Reef, Symphonyville, Hole N’ Fun, Mount Rageous, Vacay Island, TrollsTopia, Chew and Swallow, Gravity Falls, New Berk and the surrounding lands, Monstropolis, the suburbs where Gru resides, Freedonia, Mayflower, Transylvania, Santa Cruz, and Camp Winnepacaca, standing on the sidewalks and overpass. The gang tries their best to avoid the flying projectiles. Alya is hit by an urchin in the neck and instantly swells up.)

ALYA: Ah!

(As she grabs it, her hand puffs up.)

ALYA: Ah!

ADRIEN: It’s okay, shake it off!

(Adrien steps on a banana peel and slips, then gets whacked in the eye with a tennis ball.)

POLLY PAIN: Nailed you, bro!

(Alya and Nino pass and lift him to his feet.)

NINO: Come on!

(Adrien hobbles along in pain. Mylène and Ivan duck to avoid flying tennis balls and mud pies.)

MYLÈNE: Ivan, careful!

IVAN: Don’t worry, we’ll be fine-!

(Ivan’s face puffs out and they scream. Now not looking where they’re going, they step onto a pile of soccer balls and slip. Rose sees them and goes back, helping them to their feet.)

ROSE: Come on!

(She runs off in a panic and starts getting pummeled with urchins, PX-49 gunshots, mud pies, tennis balls, and dodgeballs. A Key Lime Pie flies into her mouth. Her face swells from an allergic reaction. Benny Stein fist bumps another clown. Further down the road, the gang arrives at a group of helicopters hanging more normal pies, dirty diapers, music speakers, axes, and urchins from ropes. Adrien ducks one urchin, but falls off balance and he loses control, running face-first into another urchin.)

ADRIEN: Yikes! Ow! Ow, ow, ow, ow!

(Nora puts her head down and barrels through the ropes, getting zapped along the way. One rope carrying a dirty diaper swings into Juleka’s face, making her retch. A rope carrying a dodgeball swings into Alix’s face.)

ALIX: Ow!

ADRIEN: Forget dodging! Just run!

(The group barrels through the painful projectiles toward the hotel lobby, taking every ounce of pain, including every zap from every urchin, along the way. Finally, they arrive at the lobby and race to the elevator, badly wounded and swollen. They open it and hurry inside. Adrien closes it just as their pursuers arrive.)

MARINETTE: Dang it!

LUNA-TK: At least that should let them know never to get near you again.

MARINETTE: Absolutely.

(Upstairs, the group arrives at their villa.)

CHLOÉ: Adrien, please don’t make another plan to send us near them again.

ADRIEN: No. We’re done.

[lyranova]

Since your requests are open~ and you've opened the door into all the captain wives being friends.... heres where I'll get shy

👉👈 ....maybe, one of them expecting a baby, and they have a little get-together between friends. Like a baby shower but more private?

Hiya Koneko! Of course, and I had so much fun writing this! I know it’s been a while since you’ve requested it but I wanted to make sure I got everything perfect before I posted this (hopefully I did everyones OC’s justice!)! Thank you for requesting it, this was so sweet and fun to imagine and I hope you enjoy 🥺💕!

Solara belongs to @thoughtfullyrainynightmare , Briar belongs to @koneko-pi (the requester), Josele and Sterling belongs to @loosesodamarble , and Lorena, Abigail, and Agnes belong to @hybridanafrost 🥰! While I own Zera! Aika (who is briefly mentioned) belongs to @simpingforthisonedeer !

Word Count: 2,781

Warnings: Mentions of Pregnancy

———

It was a lovely Autumn day in the Clover Kingdom. People were getting ready for the annual harvest festival that took place in the Capitol. It was a time of collecting food, wood, and other things before the harsh winter drifted down from Spade. But they were also celebrating the fact that they had a good harvest year, despite the Zogratis siblings' actions and all the devils that began to pop up shortly after.

It had been a very surprising year, in both bad ways, and in good ways.

Inside the Golden Dawn base, however, there was a different kind of celebration going on. It was a celebration of life, happiness, and excitement.

It was a baby shower. Albeit it a very small and private one.

Walking down the halls of the Golden Dawn base were a group of young women carrying trays with various foods as well as bags and boxes that contained gifts inside.

“ I hope Zera likes the gifts we brought her,” Briar Rose, girlfriend of Silver Eagles Captain Nozel Silva, said as she glanced down at the small box in her hands. She felt someone suddenly place a hand on her shoulder.

“ She’ll like them! It’s the food I’m more worried about,” Lorena Harlow, wife of Green Mantis Captain Jack the Ripper, said as she looked down at her tray of food. It was filled with various different meats from her butcher shop as well as different cheeses and crackers.

“ I’m sure Zera will like all of it, so don’t worry.” Solara Equinox, wife of Crimson Lions Captain Fuegoleon Vermillion, said with a warm and gentle smile. Knowing Zera she would probably worry about how expensive all the gifts and food were and would scold them for spending so much.

“ To be honest I’m sure she’ll love having the company more than anything else.” Josele Canty, wife of Vice-Captain of the Black Bulls Nacht Faust, said with a knowing smile and all of the women nodded in agreement.

Zera Cassia, wife of Golden Dawn Captain William Vangeance, had been put on bedrest by her doctor a few months ago. They hadn’t been able to pinpoint why, but the young woman’s body seemed to get weaker the further along she got. At first they thought the child may be pulling too much mana from her or vice versa and that was what was causing her to be so sick, but that theory didn’t make much sense nor did it contain any proof. So the doctor just put it to her having a weaker than normal body.

“ Oh, do you have Aika’s present for Zera as well?” Josele asked curiously and Solara nodded as she held up the bag.

“ I do, I also have Captain Charlotte’s gift as well.” Solara said with a smile as she held up another bag, the Blue Rose Captain was supposed to be there with them, but was surprised by her squad with her own baby shower on the very same day.

The group walked up to a pair of tall wooden doors and Solara knocked on them, they waited for a moment before it was pulled open to reveal the room on the other side.

“ You guys are early!” Zera said with a sheepish laugh as she held the door open. She had a smudge of dirt on her slightly pale cheek and she had her ash-blonde hair pulled up into a messy bun. Her beautiful floral sundress had a bit of dirt on it and she had her light gray sweater sleeves rolled up to her elbows.

All of these were tell tale signs that she had been gardening.

“ Are we? I thought we were pretty on time.” Lorena muttered as she looked down at her watch, Zera laughed a bit.

“ You probably are, I just lost track of time.” She admitted sheepishly as she moved aside to let them into the room. “ Oh here let me carry some of that!” She added as she reached out to take some of the food.

“ While we appreciate the offer, we’ve got it under control Zera,” Briar said with a small smile as she walked awkwardly past her, the other women said the same as they walked past her as well. Zera pouted a bit before closing the door behind her.

“ Shouldn’t you be on bed rest? What are you doing up?” Solara asked as she set the gifts and food down, when she stood back up she gave the plant mage a slightly stern look.

“ Well, y’see, I kind of got bored sitting in bed doing nothing and my babies were starting to look a little neglected so I decided to tend to them a bit.” Zera admitted with a sheepish look, the women looked at the flowers and saw some had been transplanted into newer and bigger containers, some were just freshly planted, and some were just watered and fertilized.

“ Heh, that’s the thing about us business women and Captain’s wives, we just can’t sit still even when we’re supposed to.” Lorena said with a laugh, and the others laughed and nodded in agreement.

“ I’ll make us all some tea, so everyone just sit down!” Zera said quickly as she walked to the small kitchenette in the room, but was stopped by Josele.

“ I’ve got it. You just sit down and rest, it’s your day after all.” Josele told her kindly as she placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, Zera sighed in defeat.

“ No one lets me do anything anymore.” Zera pouted before walking over to the couch and sitting down, Solara and Briar chuckled.

“ We’re just trying to help you out, is all,” Briar said with a small awkward smile and she sat down in a small chair across from Zera. Solara nodded in agreement.

“ We know you’re independent and that you like to do things yourself, but it doesn’t hurt to have a little bit of help every now and then, does it?” Solara asked with a knowing look, and Zera sighed dramatically. They both had a point.

“ It’s just annoying y’know? I feel like I’m nothing but a bother to everyone.” She admitted as she crossed her arms, the moment she started feeling unwell and was put on bedrest was the moment everyone started treating her differently. Especially her husband.

“ Believe me, we understand, but you’re not a bother to anyone Zera.” Josele said as she came back with a tray full of tea cups, the woman all nodded in thanks and each one a cup and saucer.

“ They’re right, and you should enjoy it while it lasts, ‘cause once your kid arrives all of the attention will be focused on them. Believe me.” Lorena said with a knowing smile, Lorena had two little girls from her first husband who had sadly passed away years ago.

“ By the way, where are Agnes and Abigail? And Sterling too?” Zera asked with a frown, both Josele and Lorena smiled.

“ They’re downstairs playing with Yuno and the others. They'll be here later.” Josele told her before taking a sip of her tea.

As the morning transitioned into the afternoon the women talked and laughed amongst each other as they ate snacks and drank their tea. The conversations mainly revolved around catching up on things they had missed as well as their husbands.

“ So, you’re saying William has been the one caring for your flowers for the past 3 months? Oh those poor things!” Briar said as a hand came up to cover her mouth in surprise, and Zera couldn’t help but laugh.

“ He has! Oh he nearly drowned my Orchids and Dandelions a couple of weeks ago, the poor things, so now he’s banned from coming near them ever again!” Zera said in a light hearted manner as the women nodded and laughed.

“ I certainly can’t blame you,” Solara said with a soft smile before she sipped on her tea. “ I can only imagine Fuegoleon doing something like that once I get further along.” She added as she placed her hand gently on her slightly protruding stomach.

It wasn’t only Zera and Captain Charlotte who were expecting, but Solara was as well. Although she was only three months along at the moment.

“ Heh Fuegoleon will probably be just as bad as William, if not, he’ll certainly give him a run for his money!” Lorena said with a laugh as she ate a cracker with a piece of meat and cheese on it, Briar chuckled as she set her tea cup down.

“ I wouldn’t be too sure, Nozel can be very protective as well, and I have a feeling he’ll be a lot worse than both Fuegoleon and William.” Briar said with a small knowing smile as she sat back in her chair, the other women only nodded. Nozel may act cold, but he was actually a very warm person.

“ Well I can assure you all that Nacht will have all your husbands beat on the overprotectiveness.” Josele said with a shake of her head but a loving smile on her face, all the women had to admit, Nacht would probably be very protective of Josele and their future children, if how he treated their adopted daughter Sterling was of any indication.

“ Now, should we open some gifts?” Solara asked as she clapped her hands together, and the women nodded.

Solara began to hand Zera different bags and boxes while telling her who they were from.

The first gift she was handed was a small box beautifully wrapped with green and gold paper and a small bow. Zera gently unwrapped it and smiled at what was inside.

It was a sling, one that wrapped around her body and held the baby close to her. It had a beautiful floral pattern and was made of lightweight fabric that wouldn’t get her or the baby hot, but it was sturdy enough that it could hold the baby’s weight.

“ We working mama’s gotta be hands free y’know.” Lorena said with a grin and wink, and Zera nodded with a bright smile as she thanked her friend for the thoughtful gift.

Next was a beautiful box covered in black, white, and gold wrapping paper with intricate designs on it. Zera gently opened the box and her smile widened.

Inside was a beautifully sewn hat, shoes, and coat. It was made in gender neutral colors and designs since no one knew if they were having a boy or a girl yet.

“ I thought the little one would need warm clothes since it would be arriving in the middle of winter.” Josele said warmly and Zera nodded in agreement as she thanked her.

The next gift was a beautifully wrapped red and gold box with beautiful patterns on it. Zera opened it just as she did the others and laughed softly.

It was a beautiful three tiered mobile. On the top layer were the stars and moons, on the second tier were clouds, and the third tier had the different continents, animals, plants, and people on it. It was simple, and yet beautiful.

“ Knowing you and William, I thought your child would be an adventurous explorer themself. So I thought I would give him a sneak peak at what the world looks like.” Solara said with a smile, and Zera thanked her before handing her something else. “ This is from Aika, and this is from Charlotte.”

Zera opened the beautifully designed boxes and couldn’t help but ‘ooo’ as she looked at them. Aika’s gift was a beautifully designed notebook that had a small note written inside, and Charlotte’s gift was a beautiful scrapbook for photos.

Finally Zera was handed the last gift, it was wrapped in silver and pastel green wrapping paper and had a beautifully delicate bow around it. She opened it gently, just as she had done before, and tilted her head at what was inside.

It looked similar to a communication device, but small and more round. She pulled it out and saw another beside it, she looked up at Briar.

“ What is it?” She asked curiously and Briar smiled while grabbing the other device and holding it up.

“ These are baby monitors,” she said as she began to talk into it. “ It lets you hear the baby from a completely different room, and it works all the way to the outside of the base too. So when you’re working on your plants or if William is outside with his squad you can still hear your baby.” She explained and couldn’t help but shift awkwardly as everyone ‘ooed’ and ‘aahhed’ over it.

“ This is a great gift Briar! Thank you so much!” Zera said happily as she placed the box and devices aside.

“ Don’t worry, everyone will get one during their baby showers too.” Briar assured her other friends with a small smile. “ I think it’s something everyone with a baby should have.”

Zera put all her gifts aside before asking how much all of it cost. Her friends all began to laugh and tease her, saying how it wasn’t any of her business how much the gifts were, and that they were completely priceless.

As the ash-blonde haired woman listened to all of her friends laugh and smile she felt her heart fill with so much warmth and love that it was nearly overwhelming. As a child she couldn’t have imagined having so many close friends, and she imagined they probably felt the same way. Suddenly she watched her friends look at her in surprise.

“ Hey Zera, what’s wrong?” Lorena asked in concern as she sat up.

“ Why are you crying?” Briar asked with a frown as she sat up in her chair, and that’s when Zera put a hand up to her cheek and felt the tears on them.

She was so overwhelmed and so thankful that she had begun to cry.

“ Ah sorry! I don’t know what came over me!” Zera said as she wiped her tears away. Solara and Josele moved closer to her on the couch as Briar and Lorena moved to sit in front of her. “ I’m just…so happy right now!”

“ I never thought I’d have an amazing group of friends like you, ones that support me and ones that I can support in return, ones that understand and are in similar situations that I’m in. It’s nice, and I’m so thankful you’re all in my life.” Zera said with a bright smile as her friends smiled back.

“ I…have a favor to ask of you,” She began suddenly after calming down a bit. “ If something happens to me, and I’m not around for my child, can you all watch over them for me?” She asked softly and the room went deathly quiet.

“ Pfft what are you talking about? Of course you’re gonna be here!” Lorena scoffed as she crossed her arms, and Briar nodded in agreement.

“ She’s right Zera, you’re going to be around for your child so there’s no reason to assume you won’t be!” Briar said firmly and with a serious expression.

“ Did the doctor say something to you? Or did he insinuate that your condition has gotten worse?” Josele asked in concern, and Zera shook her head.

“ It’s nothing like that! It’s just…” Zera frowned as she tried to find the right words. “ You know how some people give their children godparents right? Well instead of godparents I want my child to have an entire godfamily to rely on. I want my child to be surrounded by people who will love them and care for them and support them, and I can’t imagine a better group of people to do that than you guys.”

“ I see where you’re coming from,” Solara said thoughtfully after a moment. “ They say it takes a village to raise a child, and so you want us to be that village.”

“ Exactly! But only if you guys want to, of course.” Zera said quickly as she began to grow sheepish. The other women looked at each other for a moment before they all smiled and nodded.

“ I think we would all be honored Zera, but let’s hope that we never have to cross that bridge.” Solara said and the others nodded in agreement as Zera laughed.

“ Trust me, I don’t plan on leaving my child any time soon!”

Soon the conversation turned to much lighter subjects, such as the hope that all of their children will be as close as they are when they grow older despite being from different squads and families, and that they’ll look out for one another and support each other.

That hope filled the group of women’s hearts for many many years, and eventually, came to fruition.

———

Thank you all so much for reading and I hope you all have a good day~!

[svnnyd4ys]

(some of the) eah royals as incorrect quotes!

Blondie: Apple noticed only today that they can label their email inboxes, but they took apart their entire bloody laptop two weeks ago. Lizzie: This reminds me of the Apple who couldn’t turn on the coffee maker, but remembers about 500 digits of pi. Blondie: I’ll be delighted to inform you that this is the very same Apple.

!!!

Duchess: The best way to gain someone's undying loyalty is by saving them from a perilous situation. Ashlynn: So you're just gonna wait until Briar is in danger and save them? Duchess: Of course not, I'm going to create a situation that puts them in danger and then save them. Ashlynn: ... Ashlynn: You're insane.

!!!

Blondie: *fills up bottle and drinks from that* Ashlynn: *brought 4 bottles of water so this wouldn’t happen* Apple: *drinks straight from the tap* Duchess: *dehydrates* Lizzie: *drinks from the puddle of water on the floor* Briar: *licks the tap, doesn’t even need a drink*

!!!

Duchess: Fine! Judge all you want but... Duchess, points at Ashlynn: Married a lesbian. Duchess, points at Lizzie: Left a man at the altar. Duchess, points at Blondie: Fell in love with a gay ice dancer. Duchess, points at Apple: Threw a girl’s wooden leg in a fire. Duchess, points at Briar: Lives in a box!

!!!

Apple: From now on we will be using code names. Apple: You can address me as Eagle One. Apple: Blondie is “been there done that”. Apple: Briar is “currently doing that”. Apple: Ashlynn is “it happened once in a dream”. Apple: Lizzie is “if I had to pick a wonderlandian". Apple: And Duchess is.. Apple: Eagle Two Duchess: Oh thank god.

!!!

*Briar comes home absolutely drunk, undresses, and stands in Blondie’s bedroom.* Blondie: Babe, are you.. coming to bed? Briar: No thank you, I’m sure you’re lovely but I have a girlfriend. Briar: *Lies on the ground and falls asleep* Blondie: ...

!!!

Briar: Well, aren’t you all a rag-tag group of adventurers with unclear goals and good hearts! Oh, let me guess: you’re out to save the world! Duchess: Well, actually, that sounds like a pretty fair assessment. Ashlynn: More or less, I guess... Apple: That sounds awesome! Let’s do that! Lizzie: I’m new here, but I am open to the concept. Blondie: I thought that’s what we were doing, guys, come on!

!!!

Duchess, reading the newspaper: Huh. Did you know Nickelodeon opened a hotel? Briar: Yeah, I went there once. There was a dead squirrel in the pool and I made some of Ashlynn cry by telling them it was the real Sandy.

!!!

Apple: Guys, there’s a monster under my bed and it’s really ugly. Duchess, on the bottom bunk: Honestly, fuck you.

!!!

Blondie: What makes you think it's okay to watch Hannibal given its subject matter? Ashlynn: Sometimes, I watch television shows for entertainment purposes. Briar: Because I condone murder and cannibalism.

!!!

*The squad's reaction to being told they're the chosen one* Apple: I will not let you down. Duchess: Sounds fun. Ashlynn: K. Blondie: No, I'm fucking not. Lizzie: Do I have to be? Briar: Please god, I am so tired.

!!!

Ashlynn: I think I just figured something out. I got to go. Briar: Aren't you forgetting something? Ashlynn: Uuh...*hesitantly kisses Briar's forehead before running out.* Briar: No, pay your bill! Damn, who raised you?

!!!

Briar: *sighs* Blondie: You bored? Briar: Yeah. Blondie: Wanna start drama for no reason? Briar: I thought you’d never ask.

!!!

Lizzie: Punch me in the face. Duchess: ...Punch you? Lizzie: Yes, punch me, didn’t you hear me? Duchess: I always hear ‘punch me in the face’ while you’re speaking but it’s usually just subtext.

!!!

Apple: Be right back, gonna hit the toilet for a quick power sob.

!!!

Briar: I'm hot, I’m tall, I'm gay, and I'm on my theatre kid arc.

!!!

Ashlynn, writing in their diary with a glitter gel pen: I'm losing my sense of humanity. Nothing matters. God is dead. There's blood on my hands.

!!!

Duchess: If we were in prison you guys would be like my bitches.

!!!

Lizzie: Don’t weep for the stupid. You’ll be crying all day.

!!!

Blondie: I was born for politics! I have great hair and I love lying! !!!

[rickypowell23]

Child Custody Investigations Virginia - The Eagle Group

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[lignes2frappe]

« THRILLER » DE MICHAEL JACKSON : L'ALBUM LE PLUS VENDU DE TOUS LES TEMPS EST-IL LE MEILLEUR ALBUM DE TOUS LES TEMPS ?

Sorti le 30 novembre 1982, ce zénith de la culture pop fête ses 40 ans…

Tout commence en 1979 avec Off The Wall, le premier album sur lequel Michael Jackson collabore avec le légendaire producteur Quincy Jones (Ray Charles, Franck Sinatra, Dizzy Gillespie…), l’album que beaucoup considèrent comme son premier « vrai » album solo.

Malgré le succès critique et les quelque 10 millions de copies écoulées, Michael, 21 ans, ne peut cacher sa déception. Ce qu’il veut, ce n’est pas être une star de plus. Ce qu’il veut, c’est devenir la plus grande star de la planète.

Et pour ce faire, quoi de mieux que de sortir le disque le plus vendu de l’histoire de la musique ?

Porté par cette ambition démesurée, il s’entoure d’une dream team de renards des studios (les musiciens du groupe Toto, le parolier Rod Temperton…) pour élaborer 42 minutes de musique destinées à faire tomber tous les records.

Aussi extraordinaire que cela puisse paraître, le plan marche comme sur des roulettes : classé 37 semaines de suite en tête des charts, il ne faut pas plus d’un an à Thriller pour se vendre à 32 millions d’exemplaires et détrôner Elvis, Pink Floyd et les Eagles.

Tandis que ce chiffre est aujourd’hui estimé au-delà des 100 millions (!), Thriller tend paradoxalement à trop souvent être résumé à ses performances commerciales. Certes, les deux vont de pair, mais ce serait un peu vite oublier toute sa science et toute sa maestria.

La preuve track-by-track.

1. Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’

Un démarrage en trombe. Six minutes de funk sous tension au cours desquelles Michael, à la croisée des Bee Gees et de James Brown, chante avec une agressivité dans la voix que l’on ne lui connaissait pas jusque-là.

Ajoutez à cela une ligne de basse complètement folle, des cuivres ultra-dynamiques et un « ma ma se/ma ma sa/ma ma ku sa » opportunément piqué à Manu Dibango, et c’est à se demander sitôt le morceau terminé par quel miracle le soufflé ne va-t-il pas aussitôt retomber ?

2. Baby Be Mine

Réponse à la question précédente : en ralentissant le tempo avec une presque ballade aux intonations rnb qui glisse sans effort – qui a dit Rock With You 2 ?

Qu’importe si à être un peu trop gentillettes les paroles flirtent avec la parodie (« Wooon’t you stay with me until the morning suuun? »), Michael insuffle ce qu’il faut d’énergie dans l’exécution pour relever la sauce.

Du tout bon.

3. The Girl Is Mine

Après Girlfriend sur Off The Wall, retour du Beatle Paul McCartney, pour le tout premier single de l’album.

Un peu trop candide, pour ne pas dire peu trop poussive, cette querelle pour s’attirer les faveurs de la « doggone girl » ne trouve grâce aux yeux des « fighters » que pour avoir assuré à Michael un maximum de passages sur les radios mainstream.

N’écoutant que leurs cœurs d’artichaut, les « lovers » louent eux le côté bon enfant de l’exercice.

4. Thriller

Indissociable de ses 14 minutes de clip vidéo, pris en tant que tel, ce conte d’Halloween « ce funk vieux de 40 000 ans » dixit Vincent Price n’en demeure pas moins d’une redoutable efficacité .

Gloire en revient principalement à cette rythmique implacable qui à chaque couplet grimpe crescendo pour s’achever en apothéose sur le « ‘Cause this is thrillEEEEER!!! » qui entame le refrain.

De quoi donner envie de s’habiller en cuir rouge de la tête aux pieds et d’aller danser dans un cimetière.

5. Beat It

Le solo de guitare qui a changé le cours de l’histoire de la musique, les Crips, les Bloods, Michael qui joue au voyou… Beat It c’est le morceau rock de Thriller qui plaît aussi bien aux vieux hardos qu’aux minets un peu trop propres sur eux.

Et puis Beat It c’est, comme sur tout l’album, des intonations incroyables dans les vocaux, à l’image de ce refrain à la limite de l’absurde qui se répond à lui-même

Oui, MJ est un interprète trop souvent sous-estimé.

6. Billie Jean

Après avoir marché comme un zombie sur Thriller, puis joué de l’air-guitar sur Beat It, voici donc le moment d’allumer les cases sur le sol.

Second single de Thriller, mais tout premier titre classé numéro 1, Billie Jean superpose basse, synthétiseur, riff de guitare et onomatopées avec un degré de précision et d’aisance inégalé.

Plus qu’un classique, Billie Jean c’est Michael Jackson qui fait du Michael Jackson à son meilleur.

7. Human Nature

Une aventure sans lendemain dans un New-York féerique où les notes scintillent et où les « why » répétés en boucle se font atmosphériques.

Nul besoin de tout comprendre à tout, juste de se laisser emporter par le sentiment d’émerveillement qui se dégage.

Le meilleur slow jam de la discographie de Michael ?

8. P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)

100% feel good, cette avant-dernière piste poursuit comme unique objectif de faire bouger toutes les parties du corps humain.

Que ce soit en soirée ou en journée, que ce soit en 1982 ou en 2022, la formule fonctionne immanquablement.

Seul regret, comme pour Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’, qu’aucun clip dûment chorégraphié n��ait jamais été tourné.

9. The Lady In My Life

Avec Baby Be Mine, le seul titre pas sorti en single.

Une ballade somme toute classique qui vaut essentiellement pour la palette vocale dont fait étalage Michael.

Les ronchons pointeront qu’elle pâtit de la comparaison avec sa jumelle She’s Out of My Life sur Off the Wall, ils n’auront pas forcément tort.

« Thriller », victime de son succès ?

Le problème de cet album désormais à l’aube sa cinquième décennie de domination culturelle, c’est qu’il est devenu très difficile de l’écouter autrement que comme une collection de hits. Non pas qu’il ne fasse pas preuve d’une absolue cohérence, mais chacune de ses pistes est devenue un standard à part entière.

Pis, à force d’être rejouées jusqu’à l’overdose, ces dernières ont fini par perdre de leur éclat, de leur magie : qu’elles passent en club, en voiture ou au supermarché, elles s’écoutent sans y penser, presque comme un fond sonore.

Alors oui, tout cela ne rend sûrement justice ni au génie de Michael, ni à la vision de Quincy Jones, mais n’est-ce pas là le prix à payer pour avoir réussi le pari d’accoucher du disque le plus vendu de tous les temps ?

LE THREAD TWITTER

Publié initialement sur Booska-p.com le 15 novembre 2022.

[objiowillian]

MOPART ;Este término sería usado por la Chrysler principalmente desde los años 20, siendo introducido como una marca independiente desde 1937. La firma MOPAR luego se fundó, como un fabricante de partes de fábrica original para los coches de las marcas del grupo Chrysler. En Canadá, dichas partes eran vendidas bajo lo nombres Chryco o AutoPart, hasta que la marca MOPAR fuera introducida al mercado automotor de dicha nación hacia finales de 1970. El término "Mopar" ha pasado a ser usado ampliamente entre los fanáticos y entusiastas de los coches de la Chrysler como una referencia ambigua de los coches producidos por las filiales de la Chrysler Group LLC. Este término ha sido incluso incorporado para designar a los vehículos fabricados por cualquiera de las plantas de la Chrysler en las marcas Dodge, Chrysler,  Plymouth, Imperial Hornet, o DeSoto, más las recientes adquisiciones como las marcas Jeep, y para los modelos producidos sobre la base de las plataformas de Chrysler pero remarcados como Fiat para los mercados europeos,[3]​ y en algunos de los casos para los coches de la marca Eagle, que fuera la última marca en ser adquirida por la Chrysler en 1987, tras la absorción del conglomerado AMC. En 1970, cuando el LT-1 estaba en escena, se lo consideraba una de las "maravillas modernas del mundo", y con buenas razones. El LT-1 era un motor con elevadores robustos de increíble rendimiento, un árbol de levas de 178 y un carburador que presentaba una admisión de aluminio única en su tipo que podía alcanzar los 780 pies cúbicos por minuto. Además, este motor podría producir 370 caballos de fuerza si estuviera instalado en el vehículo insignia de Chevy, el Corvette. Pero a medida que se aprobaron las leyes, llegó el momento en que Chevy debía reducir el par motor y la potencia de salida del LT-1, para que el motor pudiera cumplir con los estándares de emisiones. En 1972, GM redujo la potencia del LT-1 a 255.

[agirlwithachakram]

things I found delightful about peacemaker (and most of them are spoilers)

the bald eagle made bald eagle sounds and never did the red-tail hawk scream

chris being a superhero and having the worst time just getting out of an apartment building

amber showing up to bone a bodybuilder, finding some weird guy who won’t take his mask off, and going with it because fuck it, threesome

adrian’s absolute confidence in not getting social cues and telling everyone else to be direct and/or announce their intentions (seriously, good for him). and like, the difference between what he expects from the team--these people should know what i’m worth--versus others, like his coworker--who cares about this guy’s opinion, say stupid obvious lies until he goes away.

GLASSES. no one ever has glasses in these things. they always wear contacts or got lucky with their vision. i think the last bespectacled super I ever saw was Pied Piper. and I love that Vigilante has prescription lenses in his mask and whenever it comes off he puts on his regular glasses. i feel so seen.

also, i know they’re meant to look dweeby, and they do, but what I noticed is that they have a broad field of vision so he can stay aware of his surroundings and they have big nose pads for comfort. his suit also looks way more comfy than peacemaker’s despite having more armor. it’s made to fit well and protect without hindering movement. chris’s is really more to show off his scary muscles and make a statement. vigilante’s statement is his knife in your throat and you’re dead now.

I could really go on about his entire character. the way he’s cast and styled as a perfect blend of annoying dweeby sidekick--oh, you know he’s kind of cute now that I--OH GOD THIS GUY IS SCARY--aw look at his lil smile. i have never seen a character quite like this version of Adrian Chase. I want to put him in a room with Will Graham and see what happens.

the theme song intro?!? all of it, but especially Eagly coming in at the end to spread his wings like ta-daaaaa

almost everyone is a murderer so to differentiate the good (or on the side of good) murderers from the bad murderers, the bad one are the bigots

every time chris freaks out and/or cries

we knew early on that chris was queer, but what with the whole “it’s not gay if it’s a three way” thing it was nice to have it textually acknowledged, even by a bigot. it also implies that adrian is queer too, as having sex with a woman and a bi man is pretty bisexual!

on that note, MMF threesome. cool

john doing his best and mostly succeeding

Auggie won’t be baited into starting a fight on camera but also like. hand to hand, no weapons or armor? he’s afraid. he saw adrian gleefully destroy his lackeys with minimal effort. he acts like mr tough guy but he needs his toys. vigilante only likes his toys.

home sweet home??? out of nowhere? what was that? why was it so good?

harcourt thinking she lost rock paper scissors but adebayo actually getting the less professional and more charge-in-make-a-mess partner.

LEOTA TAKING ON THIS SUPER SECRET BORDERLINE ILLEGAL JOB that ends up involving THREE (actually four, but she doesn’t actually work with that one dude) mercs with huge murder records because she needs to pay the bills after losing her ANIMAL SHELTER JOB and this is the only one her mom can get her. and her first serious attempt to take initiative is to sic one of the murder dudes on the other one’s nazi dad.

everybody’s somebody’s dumbass sometime. obviously chris is center stage here, and adrian, but leota messes up a lot, and john, and even harcourt makes mistakes.

leota running into the problem of lying to loved ones for their safety but in the end Actually Working That Out By Telling the Truth and Doing the Right Thing before their relationship really goes to shit

harcourt, despite seeming like the cool competent popular girl, being the one to start the group chat and thereby admit she likes these losers and also she’s one of them

the range of comfort with killing: john and leota freaking out about killing people at all, chris getting conscience pangs about killing some people, harcourt doing it as needed without flinching, and then there’s adrian. vigilante will see a person and ask “is anyone going to kill them” and not wait for an answer

the duct tape thing. i assume adrian’s thinking he would rather die than be tied up with duct tape, therefore it’d be better to kill these civilians rather than subject them to such torture. this is a guy who nearly got his toe cut off with a dull pair of shears like five episodes back and is probably still bitter about it. though, I think he secured goff’s jar to himself with duct tape, didn’t he? i guess it was just on the suit. or maybe that was the thing that triggered his dislike of duct tape.

the vet staff talking shit on John instead of the guy who was going to murder them for convenience’s sake

my dude lives in a trailer. he’s a super dude living in a trailer park. hell yeah. america.

the Ubisoft trees outside Chris’s house. just hold shift and freerun, guys, you’ll be fine.

Alastair! That damn demon, I love seeing him around.

“the SEBRING?”

[camarilla-intuition]

Locked Tomb Daemon AU concept notes.

I’m leaving old concepts in these notes but crossed out, since I considered a couple options for each character. Contains only spoilers for Gideon the ninth, not Harrow. that will be a seperate post some other time!

Gideon: Lion? Strawberry tiger? Eagle? Bearded vulture for its bone Eatin. Big, gold and red, wants sun and space and freedom, Feral ish. He/him. Settles sometime in the normal puberty range, never thinks about it to much, because what is there to think about. but his settling does relate to their internal decision that they gotta get out of the Ninth for the second. Just as vocal with other people as Gideon is, which is odd to other houses where sometimes daemons just don’t address other humans.

Harrow: Cotton mouth? Weasel? Horned sea snake, something that doesn’t know what the sun can do for it, salt water, venomous, slow on land, faster in the water which they don’t know, also wears bone paint. Weird intense eyes. She/her. Spends most of her time coiled around Harrows neck. I might draw a little comic about her settling later? idk but its serious spoilers. She for sure settled early

Ianthe: oriental mini kingfisher? Small, Colorful, easily hidden? Blue headed hummingbird? Grey or Pied Butcherbird, Duller colors, surprising violence, corvid, song bird, makes symbolic sense out of her stabbing Nabs through. She/her

Coronabeth: bird of paradise or golden pheasant, he/him, constantly strutting into room ahead of her, grooming hair and other twos feathers in private. 

Naberius: Peahen Demoiselle crane? She’s Spurred and capable of fighting. Viewed as a matching set to the girls, iridescent feathers on neck. Less attention grabbing. Than Coronabeth but still pretty n vain.

Palamedes: wears a moth pin deceptively, long tailed weasel, stoat? Something with clever hands. She/her

Camilla: fisher cat, otter? Monitor lizard or Frill necked lizard? Also wears a moth pin. He/him

Abigail: ram, he/him,  

Magnus: mastiff or leonberger dog

Jeannemary: unsettled, Likes being a mimic of others based on the admiration she feels in certain scenes. he/him

Isaac: unsettled for most of book, likes being a hooved animal like Abigails, lots of pack species associated with fourth house. He/him. Settles into something maybe after the murder? uncertain. maybe beagle?

Judith: pony or working horse?

Marta: German Shepard? Gold retriever? Lots of practical working animals in second house

Dulcinea: Orchid mantis

Protesilaus: small Copper butterfly

These are stereotypical for seventh house. Easily mimic-able by Cytherea(will detail in harrow spoiler separate post)

Silas: a leech or tick spider monkey, douc, mangabey, White washed or albino. Freely handles colum’s daemon during soul siphoning. Not vise versa till right at the end maybe?

Colum: lab rat, spaniel type smaller dog?

Ortus: a shy Bull

Aiglamene: one eyed Horned Owl

Crux: a Shaggy Wolf or Coyote

World difference notes:

I’m not following the daemon gender=the gender of your romantic inclinations thing, just going with the feel of the daemons character.

Teacher and other first house constructs just don’t have daemons

People don’t bother identifying their animal species much, there are still the obvious, dogs are dogs and they have meanings like loyalty and companionship, but to most houses the difference between a wolf, a hyena, or a husky seem mostly behavioral that’s relegated to the individuals personality.... the exception is the 6th house who maintain a general knowledge of animal species and symbology of pre resurrection humanity to some extent.

Pal and Cam’s moth pins are not meant to last to long as far as tricks go, but do double as a kind of poker face, giving them a chance to read into the others daemons before people can see theirs. Also pretty common on 6th, where it’s not inappropriate or anything, but also discouraged to blatantly flaunt your daemon.

Sometimes its rumored that if you please God, he’ll tell you all about what your daemon Means. (this is where most of the 6th accounts come from).

There are stereotypes of daemons for each house, second is the most diverse but you’d see a lot of working animals, big ones are less a problem to daily life here than in some of the houses colonies. Third is known for ostentatious, haughty forms to match haughty peoples. Fourth, a lot of pack/schooling/family group animals. Fifth a lot of domesticated types. 6th seems to stay small with less fur or feather, more scales or other. Seventh is bugs, pretty ones esp. Eighth idk but i keep picturing paler colors. Ninth known for big sturdy things or guard dog types from its Cavs, and creepy crawlies from its Necros.

Rumors are that each house has some way to control the types they’ll settle into but its largely false. Eighth and Sixth probably get the most of it.

Dust is not a term used here probably died with Earth or fell out of fashion. Thanergy and Thalergy still the working terms, Sin is less of a prevalent theme, I’m thinking maybe they see Settling as a small death process?

[halothenthehorns]

All in the Family

Chapter 105: Luna Lovegood

Last co-authored with Tiffiny Smith, thanks for all your help!

HPHPHPHP

Regulus found himself tangled in something - the branches of a tree? After a moment of panic making sure it wasn't the Whomping Willow, he disentangled himself and peeked out at the ground below, where the other seven were getting their bearings.

What caught his attention, however, was the giant tower not ten yards away. Despite its forbidding appearance, it had some wide, decent-sized steps leading up to a door with an eagle-shaped knocker, the whole affair had some pretty windows, and there was a well-maintained path with a sign (or maybe three) on it leading to the road some distance away. Regulus couldn't read the sign (it was facing the road), but Potter made a beeline for it.

Then he stopped and stared.

"Well?" Sirius hollered. "What's it say? Where are we?"

"Whose place is this?" Alice asked, staring at the tower.

"The Quibbler," said Potter. "Editor, X. Lovegood. Anybody heard of him?" The pureblood name rang an old bell in his head, but he'd never met one personally.

"Lovegood?" said Frank, furrowing his brow in confusion, the same running through his own mind. Had his mum ever mentioned an oddball named Lovegood in school?

"Don't ask me!" Potter said back. "Listen to this: pick your own mistletoe. And Keep Off the... dir..igg...ibble plums."

Sirius darted over to a bush with radish-like fruits on them and threw one at Potter, who caught it and looked confused.

Regulus decided watching them was a waste of time and set about searching for the book, which was wedged in a windowsill just barely out of reach. He Accio'd it and started reading. Well, Luna was either the wife or kid of this X., and judging by the fact Harry was back off to school, either were likely. Either a student Harry was about to meet or the new DADA teacher.

It wasn't as if he was anxious to be away from here, at least he was finally in a respectable pureblood home again, only the second since all this madness had started counting his own. Yet, for the first time in his life, he didn't care. He had no inclination to get to know these people just because his parents would have wanted him too, not knowing who else they wanted him to befriend, Bellatrix at the top of his list he may start avoiding right along with Sirius now. Best to focus on the part of getting them out of here instead.

Right off the bat Harry was having bizarre dreams. His parents were mentioned, and Potter came back from the sign to join the others. Sirius's mouth was wagging noiselessly at the notion that Mrs. Weasley would cry over Kreacher's dead body. Out of it all, Ron and Hermione wearing crowns was about the most normal part of Harry's dreams, and the dark corridor with a door at the end stood out only because of how irrelevant it was.

Harry woke up, and everyone brightened immediately at the prospect of going to Hogwarts.

"Nothing too bad can happen there, right?" said Potter cheerily, and Regulus rolled his eyes at him. He wasn't the only one. Had he been listening to the past four books?

The hustle and bustle of getting ready to leave was a sharp contrast to the tranquility of the garden. Mother's shrieking, which nobody was bothering to silence, and which Regulus winced slightly at having to read aloud, only added to the distinction.

Then Sirius showed up in dog form, managed to insist his way into Mad-Eye Moody's guard (which was one short) and Molly worried on and on about everything (which Regulus was beginning to understand she thought of as her solemn duty, surpassed only perhaps by Mad-Eye) and causing Harry to liken her to Aunt Petunia, which raised instant protest from Lily.

"Mrs. Weasley is nothing like that vile woman!" the redhead fumed. "Their attitudes may be similar, but they spring from polar opposite motivations."

No one had the death sentence in them to argue with her even if they disagreed, which none did.

The group proceeded to the train until it was time to depart, and Padfoot said his goodbyes to Harry in far too human-like fashion, but it was absolutely ruined by Mrs. Weasley using his real name instead of Padfoot, or even Snuffles. Regulus still couldn't help pausing over the scene regardless as his mind wrapped around every oddity of it. Sirius, as a dog, which he still wasn't used to the idea of. Sirius giving a fond farewell to a godson he'd arguably spent more time worrying about than his own brother. He wanted to talk to him, the urge growing more desperate with every page, but there was a streak of pride deep in him that made the idea loathsome. Sirius would only listen to him now because he was starting to agree with him rather than just wanting to talk to his brother again, Regulus would just have to figure this out for himself.

Once on the train, at least Harry's problems took an easy center stage, Ron and Hermione mock-abandoning him for their prefect duties and leaving him in the company of Ginny, Neville, and the pre-acclaimed 'Loony' Lovegood, per Ginny's introduction.

She certainly did start off a sight, and only got more interesting the longer she talked. Loony did seem to support her, between the butterbeer cork necklace and wearing vegetation as jewelry. This odd paper, the Quibbler, was once again referenced in Luna's own hands, but rather than finally getting a peek at that article mentioning Sirius, Harry instead turned to Neville and they began chatting about some plant.

He admittedly would have grown rather bored with that very fast, if it didn't send some slime all over the whole compartment just as Cho Chang walked in.

Regulus nearly fell out of the tree laughing at the mental image, and even as he caught his breath back and glanced down he saw he wasn't the only one. Peter had been scaling the tree, to join him presumably, but was now only halfway up and clutching a branch precariously for support. Sirius had fallen into the dirigible plum bush and looked covered in them like he was trying to add to Luna's fashion statement.

Literally all of them had gotten a laugh out of it, even that Muggleborn Evans. He smiled to himself and reached down to offer Peter a hand to help him the rest of the way up, watching patiently as he got himself a more steady branch before continuing.

Regulus listened with some unfamiliar dread in his stomach as the two prefects returned to the carriage and explained their new duties, as well as explaining Malfoy was the Slytherin one, to no one's surprise. His parents were already talking about the party they'd be throwing when he got that badge come next summer, and they'd given Sirius a whole new level of shit when he hadn't gotten one. Neither boy had even thought that was possible until they'd seen it in action. Sirius had acted as if he hadn't even cared, and for the first time Regulus squirmed at his fate pressing in on him even sooner than he'd imagined. Now it was next summer that would be the real test instead of even waiting until he was of age and letting his parents down he didn't necessarily want what they did. He certainly had no desire to be a prefect, how would they take that news?

"Hey, you alright?" Peter asked quietly. He'd been picking off leaves and shredding them for his own amusement, he'd even been considering moving a branch over into a patch of sun and maybe closing his eyes and really enjoy this brief respite of anything horrifying happening to them or Harry, but he couldn't very well do that when Regulus started chewing on the inside of his cheek over something as silly as the prefect badges.

Regulus met his eyes in surprise for several moments, before smiling kindly and answering honestly, "I've been better." He glanced down at his brother though and kept reading instead of elaborating, and Peter nodded to himself, Sirius did feel like the problem and the answer on most given situations.

Sirius was too busy still laughing to even notice Peter had ditched them again, let alone Regulus was trying to catch his eye from ten feet above him. Luna Lovegood was a hoot, he wished she was alive and in school with them now! She'd be as much fun to pull pranks on as Evans, this blonde may even laugh along at them!

James was listing against him for support as they all heard the article about Sirius presumably being some singing sensation. "Well go on then Stubby!" James wheezed. "Give us a tune and I'm sure the Ministry will never look twice at you again!"

"Don't encourage him," Remus rolled his eyes, but far too late, Sirius began singing the last Sorting Hat song they'd heard verbatim.

Lily, Alice, and Frank didn't think he could make the next top charts or anything, but they were reasonably impressed he even remembered the thing from the beginning of their year.

Regulus seemed to be ignoring them above anyways and didn't let them have any more fun with it, predictably, as he kept reading the next article as well, something about Fudge murdering goblins into pies, it was just too funny! Sirius still hadn't climbed out of the bush.

"Oh stop you idiots," Lily finally had enough, her temper snapping, they literally could not take anything seriously! "In case you've forgotten, Sirius is a wanted man for multiple murders! How is laughing at this poor girl helping that?"

"Haven't forgotten," Remus scowled at her, instantly insulted she seemed to think otherwise.

"No harm in laughing off this drivel in the meantime," James finished, completely unrepentant as he grinned at her.

Lily glanced down and saw Sirius Black was still smiling, the first time she knew of he'd done so in the face of this bleak future ahead of him, and hesitated saying anything back.

Regulus hadn't really thought much of the article, no sane person would believe that long enough to hear anyone out, and yet the real story was just as convoluted. Instead he'd kept going, now killing any pretense of a good mood as Malfoy barged into the compartment. His blood chilled at the parting words he left, not in fact more arrogance, but a sly observation of apparently having noticed Sirius on the platform!

His idiot brother was already safe back at Grimmauld place though, he quickly soothed himself, whether he wanted to be or not. Malfoy, Lucius or Draco, were no match for him even if he wasn't.

His mouth was still much more dry than usual though as he forced himself to keep going, but Sirius' snort of disbelief echoing up below wasn't as comforting as he would have thought.

Things only got more grim as Harry got off the train, and Hagrid of all people was absent from his usual post. None of them could even imagine it, the giant of a man had been there every year for the lake ride, now even that was changing. Would nothing in this future remain the same?

Clearly not, as even the carriages were now being pulled by beasts! What was happening to this school?

Peter saw Regulus's disturbed look as he read about the description of those ghastly horse-like things, and shouted loud enough that Stoatshead Hill had likely heard. "Ha! Take that you arseholes, I wasn't making them up!"

"Huh," was all James and Sirius could manage to say to that, while Remus's eyes widened with just as much excitement as if he were hearing about Blast-Ended Skrewts all over again.

"Fascinating, I'm so f'ing sorry Peter! What do you think they even are? Why can only you see them?"

"I can too," Frank frowned at the lot, but even Alice gave him a look of shock for the declaration.

He shrugged and looked just a bit shy at all attention suddenly on him. "What? Hadn't come up."

"How about all the ruddy times the 'horseless carriages' were mentioned!" Lily accused. "What on Earth are they?"

"Don't know," he frowned and tensed his shoulders as still everyone was looking at him now. "I've tried looking them up, but as Harry's said himself, it's a pretty big library when you don't know what you're looking for."

"What kind of Ravenclaw are you?" Sirius scowled.

Peter just smiled that finally his friends didn't think he was playing some weirdly elaborate prank on them any longer. It was no wonder to him his dormmates often thought he was soft in the head, seeing things they couldn't. Now the next time he swore he saw one in the forest, they'd actually believe him!

"What does it say that this Loony girl can see them too though," Sirius grinned and looked up at Peter obviously. He flipped him off, and Sirius laughed.

James and Remus released a breath both of them had been holding for a painfully long time, things really were going back to normal.

[kckv]

The Braavosi smiled

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[veronawrites]

Interview Tag 💌

Thanks for the tag @purpletaecup <3

Rules: answer questions and tag 20 blogs you are contractually obligated to know better!

Name/nickname: Verona/V

Pronouns: She/her

Star sign: Taurus

Height: 157-8 cm / 5'2 I don't know it's been ages since I last checked, but yes I'm tiny :(

Time currently: 15:15pm

When is your birthday: 27 April

Favourite band/groups: BTS, Little Mix, Paramore, Eagles, Bon Jovi, Fleetwood Mac, Queen, The Beatles, Maroon 5

Favourite solo artist:  Bishop Briggs, Tori Kelly, Sam Smith, Jessie J, Ariana Grande, Alicia Keys, The Weeknd, Dua Lipa, Michael Jackson, Beyonce, Celine Dion, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Krystian Zimmerman (my favourite pianist), Vladimir Horowitz, Martha Argerich, Sviatoslav Richter

Song Stuck in Your Head: Black Swan (idk why lol), It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas (clearly someone is still in Christmas mood), Fly Me to the Moon, Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2

Last Movie You Watched: Outside the Wire

Last Show You Binged: Lucifer, Mr. Queen

When You Created Your Blog: I honestly can't remember!

Last Thing You Googled: International brokerage firms lol

Other Blogs: None

Why I chose my url: It's a play of my baptismal and first name :)

Do you get asks: nope! I haven't actually posted any of my writing HAHA

How Many People Are You Following: 300

How Many Followers Do You Have: Idk why 120 people actually follow this account that barely has anything in it, but I'm VERY grateful 🥺

Average Hours of Sleep: 9 HAHA yes, I sleep a lot.

Lucky Numbers: I haven't felt like I have any tbh, but if I have to say I'll go with 9.

Instruments: Piano. 24 whole ass YEARS of PIANO. Lord have mercy.

What I’m Currently Wearing: My PJs! heheh

Dream job: I'm a classical pianist who really enjoys chamber music, but it's practically non-existent where I am lol my dream job would be something to do with interior design since it's something I've always been interested in, although I don't have any background in it :( But, hey! That's why it's a dream, yes? :D

Dream trip: NZ, South Korea, Canada, UK, Northern and Central Europe 

Favorite food: Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Italian

Favorite song: Pied Piper, Seesaw, Sweet Night, Stigma, Dis-ease, Spring Day, Lie, Serendipity, Filter, Mikrokosmos, Home, Make It Right, Louder than Bombs, On, Fly Me to the Moon, Summertime, Tori Kelly's cover of Seal's Crazy, Bishop Briggs' Like a River, ugh idk there's so many!

Top Three Fictional Universes You’d Like To Live In: Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Marvel Cinematic Universe and Bangtan Universe, if that counts?

tagging: @jiminssthetic @xjoonchildx @ladyartemesia @suqakoo @bloomsuga @sugasbabiie @kimnjss @wwilloww ugh, idk who else to tag :(

[theginger-patrick]

ART 311 - May 11, 2020 The Heroes’ Journey

The Heroes’ Journey is an extremely prolific narrative structure that we see everywhere around is entertainment media. In one of my previous posts, I listed some of my favourite authors and their works which are particularly important to me because of their effective world-building and foreshadowing. Many of these authors’ bodies of work feature stories which are solidly set within the Heroes’ Journey structure, but there’s one story not listed there that I would like to focus on specifically. That would be Contact by Carl Sagan, my single favourite stand-alone novel. As it was first published in 1985 and a movie adaptation starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey being released in 1997, I shouldn’t have to worry about spoilers, but here’s a spoiler warning: SPOILERS BELOW!

The premise of Contact is relatively simple. It’s a story about an astrophysicist performing SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) research at an radio-telescope array who receives what turns out to be a message from extraterrestrials, first contact, and the resultant reactions . As soon as most people hear that premise, they’ll assume that it’s either an apocalyptic armageddon style story, a science fiction horror story, or some sort of Star Trek First Contact style story where the aliens come to Earth and peacefully usher humanity into a new era. This story is none of the above. Instead, it’s a breathtakingly beautiful, moving, and awe-inspiring narrative supported by hard science fiction. Hard science fiction is science fiction which is soundly routed in factual science and mathematics. Anyone who comes to know me knows that I am hardly a religious or spiritual person, in fact I’m an outright atheist, however, this novel expresses in better form than I ever could in words the sense of the numinous which I feel when I see images like that of the Eagle Nebula’s Pillars of Creation (taken by the Hubble Telescope and released to the public in 2015), when I read papers on the research done at the LHC (CERN’s Large Hadron Collider in Europe), or when I read about advancements in technology and our understanding of the universe which can be used for the betterment of our species.

There are three acts to Contact much like any traditional Heroes’ Journey narrative: The Message, The Machine, and The Galaxy. 

The Message:

Our protagonist, Eleanor “Ellie” Arroway, spends her early childhood being raised by supportive and loving parents, though her father Theodore “Ted” is the most influential on her life. He is her first mentor on her Heroes’ Journey, and helps to promote and develop her love of learning. From a young age Ellie is intensely inquisitive and devours new knowledge with a voracious appetite; she becomes particularly infatuated with the constant of π , known as “Pi”. This is of particular importance, so take note, and I would argue that this is Ellie’s call to adventure and is never refused or ignored. Unfortunately, while in sixth grade, her mentor and father Ted passes away to be replaced with her step-father John Staughton who is decidedly not supportive of Ellie’s non-feminine interests. Their acrimonious relationship is an important part to her characters development, though it was difficult for me to see it when I first read this novel as a teen.  

The novel proceeds quickly through her middle and high school years, primarily using these years to highlight the sexism which was (and still is to a degree) wildly rampant in the STEM fields at the time. I viewed much of this to be further motivation for our hero to pursue her goals, though now with the added motivation of proving her step-father's opinion of her interests to be wrong. Her post-secondary education furthers her love and interest of science, gives her experiences in more social pursuits (*cough* sexual et cetera *cough*), and introduces her to ETI (just look at SETI and guess), and two mentors: two role models with one also being an antagonist of sorts. All of this concludes with her graduation and employment with SETI.

The first sign of extraterrestrial life is shown in the form Ellie discovering a repeating message of sequential prime numbers directed at Earth; this is not something that could randomly occur in nature. This is where the meat of the story begins; the crossing of the threshold. At first there’s skepticism among the scientific community, as there should be, but the message is received by unassociated and independent facilities. As the scientific community works through political channels to ensure redundant monitoring (this is set during the Cold War era) humanity is temporarily united in this realization that we’re not alone in the universe and a desire for further knowledge. This all culminates in the discovery of humanity’s first ever high-powered radio broadcast embedded in the message being returned to us, and industrial innovations and schematics needed to create a machine of unknown purpose embedded even deeper. Thus ends Act 1.

The Machine:

Tests, allies, and enemies are abundant in this part of the novel. Honestly, this is one of the most exciting parts of the entire story for me with all of the political machinations, discussions of about the new technology imparted to humanity by the extraterrestrials (nearly all of which are theoretically possible and grounded in real science), and discussions surrounding the philosophical implications and dilemmas of this new reality. I will glaze over most of it because otherwise this post would truly become a short novel in its own right.

The most important bits to take from this act (in my opinion) are the tests and enemies and approaching the inmost cave. The tests of Ellie’s dedication to following through with her life’s work in finding new funding and conquering adversity in the form of unnecessarily contrarian colleagues and critics, personal relationship, and physical and psychological recovery after a traumatic event. The enemies of this act are primarily the extremist religious and political groups which oppose the construction of The Machine and/or want to bring on the rapture, and . They ultimately destroy The Machine which is being built and funded by the government of the United States in a terrorist attack, and this appears to be the nail in the coffin of the project. The only way in which this is salvaged is through the efforts of an ally Ellie, who has a back-up machine in the works that was being used for “testing” components. The ordeal of this movie is undoubtedly the moment of activation of the machine, when the passengers and the world are witnessing the processes taking place from the opposing perspectives of the interior and exterior.  The five passengers within the machine were confronting their fear of the absolute unknown considering this is a machine of foreign origin and technology never before used. Here ends Act 2.

(I am aware that this is Interstellar, not Contact. I just couldn’t find a GIF from Contact)

The Galaxy:

Approaching the inmost cave is what the story transitions into after The Machine activates as the passengers pass into the wormhole network which transports them to The Station. This would also likely cover the Reward (Seizing the Sword) phase. Throughout this sequence in the novel Ellie and the rest of the passengers are getting their first real reward to years of work and dedication with The Message and The Machine, but it’s obvious to the characters and audience that they’re currently in transit somewhere which has further implications on the story/mission. The trip to the station is an endless montage of breathtaking and mind-blowing scenes showing the depth and breadth of the capabilities of the extraterrestrials. Upon arrival, the passengers experience isolation and we later learn that the extraterrestrials were inspecting their memories. They used this data to put each passenger through a highly emotional and cathartic experience which was used to teach each passenger something about themselves of value. It is also when the most beautiful and numinous piece of information is given to Ellie when she asks the alien, who has appeared before her as her dead father Ted, how they experience when they create the numinous (she learned from the alien that the aliens are currently building a freaking galaxy, Cygnus A, using Sagittarius A which is the supermassive black hole in the center of our Galaxy, and is a massively powerful source of radio signals. Already a freaking numinous feat). It answers with Pi. Imagine how this would impact Ellie. Her "discovery” of Pi was one of the most formative experiences of Ellie’s early life. Specifically, the alien states that buried in Pi’s decimals is an encoded message. Imagine. Pi is a universal constant. It is something determined by physical and mathematical relations that just exist; you can’t “build” or “encode” Pi. The alien goes on to describe how they found this message in vague detail and directs Ellie on where to look.This entire combination of phases only concludes once the passengers have returned to Earth. 

Their return could likely be classified as combination of the Roadblock phase. Upon their return to Earth, rather than Ellie and the other passengers having a triumphant and joyous return no time appears to have passed on Earth, despite them having spent hours if not days on The Station. They are questioned. There are Inquiries. Politicians and the public are furious that billions of dollars were “wasted” on something that apparently just spun up to a specific speed in place, then stopped. None of the instruments of human origin attached to The Machine recorded anything; there was no sense of movement, no great amount of time had passed just mere moments, no radiation, nothing. Eventually, all of the inquiries “determine” that it was all a big hoax perpetrated by some evil capitalist (the ally that Ellie secured funding and the backup machine from) in order to amass wealth and develop a monopoly on many of the associated technologies and emerging industries. The detection of The Message was all done via the coordination of desperate SETI scientists with this man and his satellites up in space to defraud the world. Fortunately none of the passengers are punished in any way, despite many of them having been scientists deeply involved with the discovery, decoding, and understand of The Message and the construction of The Machine.

The Return of the Elixir phase in this novel is both a phase to be celebrated and mourned. Ellie discovers that her father Ted wasn’t her biological father and that instead the man she thought was her step-father was her biological father. This is a loss of identity that she mourns deeply, but with the experience, perspective, and humility she has gained through this whole journey she is able to forgive her mother’s infidelity and come to terms with this bit of knowledge. She is also able to conduct research regarding Pi to help confirm her story regarding their journey in The Machine and discovers the message hidden in Pi’s decimals. A perfect circle. Ironic as hell and yet an absolutely beautiful impossibility thrown in by Carl Sagan that elicits a sense of the numinous in anyone I know who has read the novel. In closing, not only has Ellie’s Heroes’ Journey given her more wisdom and grace as a human, but also a powerful piece of knowledge that validates her entire experience and does the very thing scientists hunger for the most: she expanded humanity’s understand of the universe and of how much there is more to discover.

I know that that was one hell of a lot of word vomit on the blog, so if you read it all the way then thank you.

[incorrectsmashbrosquotes]

Okay so, I had a weird idea after watching “The Gentlemen” in theaters last weekend and I thought you guys might find this interesting.

If you want me to so into more detail on it, like the backstories of the individual characters, just tell me through comments and asks.

Three Houses: Gangster AU

The Church of Seiros is now the Police department, headed by Commissioner Rhea and her right hand man Captain Seteth. The police try to maintain order in a city divided up by gangs and dominated by fear, mainly due to the heroic efforts of Detective Catherine and her partner Shamir, as well as Lieutenants Alois and Gilbert. But even though the cops seem to be the voice of law and order, many can’t help but feel that Commissioner Rhea has her own agenda at play.

The Blue Lions, or simply called “The Kingdom” by those in the know, are one of the oldest crime families in the city. An offshoot of the Russian Mafia, their previous leader was assassinated by some of his inner circle. Many thought and/or hoped that The Kingdom would collapse without it’s king, but teenage Dimitri stepped up to lead, aided by his core group of childhood friends, Felix, Ingrid, and Sylvain who were all born into the life like him. 

With the aid of his personal hatchet-man Dedue, Dimitri purged unsavory elements from the gang he never truly wanted to lead. Recruiting some fresh talent, professional thief Ashe, back-alley medic Mercedes, and flunked out scientist Annette, Dimitri rules his Kingdom with a firm but fair hand, despite his initial bloody take-over giving him the reputation of “The Blood-Thirsty Boar”.

The Black Eagles are another gang with history, referred to as “The Empire” by a lot of cops. Founded by German political refugees who fled the Fatherland during Hitler’s rise to power, The eagles went uncontested for the longest time. They are also involved in some of the most questionable shit you can imagine, and not even many of it’s members want to know the depths of the gang’s dirty dealings. Led by the ruthless Edelgard who seized control from her own parents at a young age, Edelgard has a gentler hand than many who came before, but the lurking presence of professional sadist Hubert is enough to dissuade any ideas of rebellion.

Commanding a powerful inner-circle, Edelgard has her hands in many pies, from up and coming politicians like Ferdinand, to entertainers like Dorothea. Others are straight-up hired muscle like Bernadetta, who can shoot the wings off a fly, and Caspar, a professional bone-breaker. Even weirder is mad-scientist for hire Lindhart and foreign personal assassin Petra who both work for “The Flame Empress”. Many believe that Edelgard wants to straight-up take over the city, and with the power she weilds, she may just be able to.

The Golden Deer are the new kids on the block. The up and comers. The crazy motherfuckers. No one saw them coming, but they’re here now and they’re here to stay. Unlike the Empire and the Kingdom, The Deer are not one single Crime family, but an Alliance formed from all the remaining independents and private contractors in the city to keep from being taken by the Kingdom or the Empire. They’re led by Claude, a half-Japanese half-Cheyenne professional bastard who exploded onto the scene like a millennial firework.

Aided by professional ass-kickers, Leonie and Raphael, crazy back alley scientists, Marianne and Lysithea, and assorted other scoundrels like Ignatz and Hilda, Claude has big plans for the city, mainly using up-and coming politician Lorenz to be their voice in government. The Alliance is loose and shaky, mainly held together by Claude and his inner-circle, but if he were to die the Alliance would almost certainly collapse, something Edelgard and Dimitri are very aware of.

In a city ravaged by crime and ruled by fear, a new face arrives...

Byleth. No one knows who he is or where he came from, though Rhea seems to have a pretty good idea. But they’ve gained a reputation as one hell of a private contractor, solving problems for any who can throw a few bucks his way. They’ve made an impact on the city in a very short time, gaining everyone’s attention, and everyone wants them on their side.

One things for certain, the City will never be the same.