#agents of the four seasons dance of spring

[graphicpolicy]

Agents of the Four Seasons Vol. 1 is an interesting concept but a rough execution

Agents of the Four Seasons Vol. 1 is an interesting concept but a rough execution #comics #graphicnovel #manga

Once upon a time, there was Winter. Winter was once the only season in the world-but such an existence was too lonely to bear, and so it created Spring to love. Before long, the earth wished for more time to rest in the cycle, and Summer and Autumn were born. The ones who carry the cycle are called the Agents of the Four Seasons. Hinagiku, the Agent of Spring, disappeared from this land ten years…

[lephamquynhnhu]

Panacea

Chapter 2: Storm before the Blushing Morn

Dan Feng x Fem!Reader

WARNINGS/ TAGS: The reader has a default name, OOC, mentioned of blood. (This is a work of fanfiction, events are not aligned or relevant to the original work)

Word count: ~2k

Summary: He met you on a drizzling day when hydrangea fully bloomed on its field. Amidst the sea of mild pastel petals, Dan Feng never thought the flowery domain that intertwined your fate was the precise thing withered with you. They said he was a dragon, a hero, a sinner, but never a person with love, hatred, sorrow, or joy like everyone else in this world. However, it was a demi-truth. He committed the cardinal sin because of you.

Note: Do you like...pain?

He revisited on a sprinkle day, his signature ambergris aroma mixed with the freshness of humid forest note. You did not know why, but the High Elder seemed to be into rainy days because every time he came, water definitely showered outside. It has been weeks since you met him for the first time, and thanks to the frequency of his visits, you learn that the nonchalant Imbibitor Lunae gradually displays the other side. Although Dan Feng never clearly shows his emotion, you can tell his mood through the draconic tail. When he feels happy, his tail swings side to side and stands still as its owner is interested in or concentrates on whatever your information. In addition to your surprise, he sometimes even punchlines on your venting stories.  

Under the Mulan's foliage, you slowly gaze at the kaleidoscope sky after rain. A mid-summer breeze that carries the scent of white flowers softly blows through, driving the ripples to gleam on the water's surface. 

Immersing in your haze, you forget what was going to do until the Long Scion gives out his curiousness about the bush of Datura Metel in a corner garden. 

"I have studied an organic pesticide which extracts from their active agents." - The elegant smell of lotus still glistens in the morning dew perfumes in your lungs when nudging into them. Suddenly, you shove the flower cart into his arms and tell him to wait for you at a nearby wooden bench. Dan Feng thinks eternal Spring never leaves this sunlit Shangri-La as he wipes the Mulan's petals out of the seat because the flora seems to blossom in four seasons. 

While idly watching Koi fish under silky leafages, the High Elder does not notice you snicker behind. A forgotten raindrop stagnates on the lotus leaf trail like a lost pearl, arousing the quiet pond like his emerald orbs rising in astonishment. Amid the multi-colored palette, Dan Feng finds your smile is the most gorgeous flower when you abruptly pop up with a posy of Emperical Peony. The beam you flashed him still lingering in his mind as Dan Feng reluctantly takes the gift. Your hands lightly brush together via the exchange, reminding him of the existence of those black gloves since he has not seen you take them off once. Nevertheless, he lets it pass and dances his slender finger around the ombre corolla instead.  

"Thank you, Yi Ting." - Imbibitor Lunae softly mutters under his breath, and as the lost ray shines through frost winter, a faint smile stretches on his usually glacial face. 

On that day in the summer season, Dan Feng realizes that he does not return to your place because of its spectacular. He wants to revisit the Shangri-La because he likes spending time with you.

On an Autumn afternoon painted in a burnt orange hue and wafting with a ripe persimmon scent, you are leisurely proceeding to the Dan Feng's residence while absentmindedly grazing a bunch of white chrysanthemums in hand. Looking at the High Elder Statue at the Dragonvista Rain Hall, your mind winds up reminiscing about the previous conversation.

"Yes?" - Transfering your focus toward his position, you represented the confusion as if hearing him wrong. The quiet Long Scion might befriend you and be your custom guest, but it was an extraordinary phenomenon since Dan Feng has not asked you to deliver flowers to his estate before. He patiently repeated the order while reading his scroll in one hand, and the other halfway was lifting the teacup with expressionless features. Looking at his relaxing manner, you unknowingly realize this house became Imbibitor Lunae's office. 

When immersing thought in the past, you are suddenly pulled back to the present by a low thud of a light collision with a follow-up painful cry. Tears are bubbling in the Vidyadhara child's doe eyes as she feels the pain. You swiftly support her to stand up and inspect the body while trying to comfort the child, which results in two news in this situation. A good one is a scratch, and the bad is her cry getting louder even though you used up all your tricks. 

"Pain, Pain goes away!" - You singsong to conjure an apple lollipop appearing in hand, and tears stop falling as she eyes your apologetic smile with compensation. When you clean the last drop of trail wet on her chubby cheekbones and apologize with head patting, other Vidyadhara children circle you to admire the little show. A defeated sigh escapes your breath as you look at their twinkle glims and secretly count the remaining candy's quantity. Unfortunately, in addition to your trouble, with an invitation from a brunette-haired boy, the group of children tugs your sleeves to play blind man's buff with their puppy eyes. 

"Alright, but I won't be lenient." - You confidently state when settling the bouquet on a stone bench. And you keep your line.

Once darkness invades the vision, you start to track down the children. By listening to their footsteps and sensing the airflow, you catch all of them except Ma Tian, the boy with sheen eyes who cleverly outclasses your skill. Finally, thanks to your florist's exceptional technique, you discreetly declare the endgame while detecting his fabric detergent in the wind's stream. 

"Catch ya, little brat!" - You happily exclaim your victory when circling your arms around Ma Tian's figure. However, you immediately realize something is wrong as a familiar ambergris cologne lingers on your nose, and you are hugging a lean body. Hurriedly removing the blindfold, you see Dan Feng mimic your shocked expression while Ma Tian lolls out his head behind the Long Scion. 

"How long do you intend to embrace me?" - The High Elder clears his throat with a light reprimand nuance laces in but does not seem annoyed. If there is anything you would admire about Imbibitor Lunae besides his glorious feats, the quick recovery from an embarrassing situation is one of them. As soon as you two detach, Dan Feng grabs the bouquet and leads you out of the Scalegorge Waterscape, leaving the cheerful goodbyes of those children behind. You do not understand why Dan Feng is rushing in his strides until you see a pink tint on his tip ears. 

When the sunset light turns golden on the greenery beneath, which gets everything basked in the look of burnished copper, you two arrive at the military memorial area where illustrious warriors rest in peace. Passing through hundreds of black marble graves glides their name, Dan Feng unravels your holding hands as he crunches down to place the chrysanthemum bouquet in front of a stone-carved Bai Heng. 

You know that name. She was once a High-Cloud quintet member and a gifted pilot who sacrificed in the third Denizen of Abundance. People say Imbibitor Lunae is never a person with love, hatred, sorrow, or joy like everyone else in this world, but now you can shout out they are all wrong because of the unfathomable somber besieges in his orbs.

"Life is so short when it comes to mortal organisms'' - He mouths in a calm and unwavering tone after a long silence - "No matter what you do, they definitely die." With his back turned to you, it is challenging to figure out its meaning, yet you can degust a longing taste entangled in that clause. Forgotten fragments of sunlight slowly die on your heels while trekking to the way out, and the crescent vaguely takes place in the saturated navy sky. Although the High Elder rarely shared his thoughts with someone else, you hardly agree with this viewpoint.

 "Even if it is short-lived, even if fate sometimes turns tragic, limited longevity creates the beauty of lives and valuableness because we learn to cherish life, and not all farewells are regretful. Sometimes, death is also an extrication, and I believe we will rendezvous on another horizon." 

Dan Feng follows your graze to the glitter crepuscule, causing the mellow ray to cradle his features. - "Someday, you also turn into ashes?" - A sliver of bitterness in the question soon morphed into those cyan irises as you confirmed with your bright smile. When the two of you pass through the gate, Imbibitor Lunae abruptly informs you of his next arrival with special requests that combine with osmanthus cake and jasmine tea. It is the first time he proactively reserves in advance because Dan Feng neither notices his attendance nor does he appear on sunny days.  

"Do I have to wait for the rain to meet you?" - Only one sentence, it has changed your relationship ever since. You guess that might be the way he expresses his feelings. 

In a dream, I see myself in my childhood state with a bouquet of blue hydrangeas. Strolling by the seashore, the shells confound in golden sand rustles underneath my bare feet as I search for someone. End then, an abnormal bloodred butterfly hovers around to lead me toward that person; we have passed zillions of landscapes and territories, from glacial rivers where white snow permanently coats mounts to the vast rug crafted by countless vivid blossoms. From the nameless barren deserts with magnificent starry nights crown aloft to the rich prairie possesses coast breezes. I keep going, going.

"Hydrangeas is the soulmate of rains." A distant voice echoes from those feeble wings in the entire journey. It feels like Amber Periods have flown until we reach a field with full-bloom hydrangeas that unfold our presence. Suddenly, my companion disappears into thin air, and I notice a nostalgic glimpse waving his hand from afar as if he has been waiting for me for an astronomical long time. 

"You got my wish fulfilled... Thank you, my comrade." - The boy says in a gentle demeanor. His blue eyes shine brighter than any stars I have ever known, and he also disappears like the bloodred butterfly. His silhouette dissipates into thousands of flower petals as he flashes a warm smile toward me. 

"Wait, H...H..." - A tsunami of impuissant waves brews into my heart when I try to call his name, but none of the syllables come out, and tears continuously cascade from my eyes while I witness the lost world fading.

You wake up from a soothing noise of hot steam oozing out of your old kettle and forget the dream cleanly. "You had a fever." - A low tone voice diagnoses as soon as Dan Feng senses your consciousness. Slightly lifting the heavy eyelids, you see him situating beside your headboard with a botanical book in hand. The glorious sun is far high hanging in the sky to pour its honeyed light through your window, which informs you to oversleep impliedly. You do not notice tears rolling down until the Long Scion points out in skimming your complexion and uses his thumb to caress the trail wetness. Sensing no engagement in conversation, Dan Feng shifts his hand to cover your eyesight and tenderly leans forward.

You only feel a pillowy touch on your forehead afterward. 

"Please do not leave the bed today, and take the medicine on time because this is a prescription from the High Elder." - He faux-orders when rendering your vision. Astoundedly grazing the lingering sensation, you did not know that Imbibitor Lunae has a bizarre way of assessing the temperature. 

Winter at Shangri-La never experiences snow, yet it takes some seasonal features such as the gloomy weather all day with northeast wind seething through every direction. Inspecting the murky clouded skyward, you tug the scarf closer when your breaths dimly turn into silver smoke. As soon as you attempt to lift the white lily cart, a hot stream of fluid smelling like rusty iron runs down your chin, which the soil absorbs its falling drops. When you bring your hand to clean the water, it takes a moment to process it is blood. Your irises squeeze as you dumbfoundedly stare at the ivory gloves tainted with the crimson hue. Just as you intend to step forward, the surrounding spins around as though Earth and Heaven are twitching position, and you kneel only to cough out blood that permeates the fabric. The pollen sparkles in the ether after the collapse, and the shivering lily's petals in chilly winds are the last things in your blurring vision.

[omorily]

agents of the four seasons: dance of spring (vol.1)

[sinclairss]

[DONALD GLOVER, CISMALE, HE/HIM/HIS] When’s the last time anyone heard anything about [LUCAS SINCLAIR]? Old friends remember them as [LOYAL & ATHLETIC] but also [HEADSTRONG & SENSITIVE], no wonder they’re still known as [THE RANGER] around town. Today, in 2006, they are [35] and some people say they remind them of [COZY SWEATERS, BLACK COFFEE, EARLY MORNING RUNS, RED MARKS ON PAPER, THE SOUND OF A BASKETBALL BOUNCING ON A HARDWOOD FLOOR, SCUFFED BASKETBALL SHOES, HALF DRUNK BEER BOTTLES WITH PEELING LABELS, CAT FUR EVERYWHERE EVEN THOUGH HE’S NOT A CAT PERSON (ALLEGEDLY),]. [dani, 23, she/her/hers, est].

biography.

make new friends. step out of comfort zone and try new things. be yourself. that was lucas sinclair’s to-do list to surviving his freshman year of high school. 1986 had different plans for him. lucas did all of those things. he joined the basketball team over hellfire club, much to mike and dustin’s chagrin. he made a lifelong friend in jay demario. and, ultimately, he ran right back to the party when they needed him. he got his ass kicked by his team captain, watched helplessly as the first girl he loved cared for had her bones broken in half, and lost two of his best friends to the upside down. he failed. and that failure stuck with him for years. he was not going to fail anyone else like he’d failed to protect will and el. he was going to make sure his people were okay. and he was going to finish what he started in high school even if it killed him. so lucas sinclair went from benchwarmer to starting point guard, led the hawkins high tigers to back-to-back state championships, and earned himself a scholarship to notre dame so his parents wouldn’t have to worry about paying for his college just because he wasn’t as smart as erica, all while keeping tabs on dustin and mike and writing a bunch of letters he didn’t have an address to send to max that might still be shoved in the back of his closet.

he was an athlete and he played d&d with the hellfire club on the weekends. he dated a pretty girl who followed him to college. he was going to bring the fighting irish to the tournament, get noticed by scouts, and get a shoe deal. maybe he’d become an agent...or he’d play a few years professionally if he was lucky!

but lucas rode the bench his freshman year of college. he worked out all summer to earn his spot on the court and had a fantastic sophomore season...until a new year’s day tournament led to a torn acl. he had surgery, but the rehab was difficult. he fell into a pretty bad place, mis-using his pain pill prescriptions and eventually getting hooked. he made rash decisions including dropping out of school and heading home. he worked at family video while rehabbing his knee and saving up cash to...do what exactly? run off to california? very funny.

he spent two gap years in hawkins, going through the motions, occasionally hanging out with his old friends and and feeling trapped by the four walls of his childhood bedroom. a combination of reconnecting with mr. clarke while trespassing in the hawkins middle school gym and a good therapist that his mom definitely didn’t force him into seeing made things clearer to him. (marian tried, but it was honestly finding some of the old photos of the four of them in his classroom...and all of their old projects still taped up on the walls in mr. clarke’s classroom that gave him the nudge to return to school.)  he’d probably never play in the nba. not on a bum leg, anyway. and if he couldn’t do that, well, keeping the curiosity door open wasn’t a bad trade off.

he returned to notre dame two years and many lifetimes wiser, got a teaching degree, and walked back on to the basketball team. he helped the irish into the big dance and had a pretty successful athletic career while earning his degree. lucas even married his high school sweetheart while on a spring break trip to las vegas (which his mom is still pissed about, by the way!)

he and tracy probably would have moved to chicago if not for charles’ heart attack. lucas had to go home and, thankfully, his wife seemed content to follow him back to hawkins.

honestly? lucas got married because that’s what he thought he was supposed to be doing at twenty-three. some of his friends were married, most of them had kids, and his mom was dying to join the grandma train. lucas was (and is) still searching for something to fill the massive gap left when will and el died. he’s been trying for years: first with athletics, then his romantic relationships, then  with the pills and the weed and the booze he definitely didn’t get from jonathan or steve, but nothing ever makes him feel whole anymore.

the closest thing that does? seeing the spark a kid’s eyes when they finally figure out a difficult science concept. or the pure joy on every face when the girls’ basketball team he coaches finally wins a game. but as soon as he goes home to an empty apartment? he’s fucking lonely.

and he was lonely even before the divorce. he told tracy as much, and it...didn’t go over well. they fought, which was kind of...exhilarating, actually? they’d had a superficial spark that had burned hot and fast but died quickly and they both had just been going through the motions for years by the time lucas admitted that he just didn’t feel like it was worth it anymore.

his life is fine, if boring. he found some joy in coaching and substitute teaching at hawkins middle. when mr. clarke passed away, he stepped in automatically. if mr. clarke wasn’t there to guide the next generation, lucas sure would.

oh, and he’s also an uncle. which is pretty fun.

[fandompost]

Agents of the Four Seasons: Dance of Spring Vol. #01 Manga Review http://dlvr.it/TGQ8JT

[aceshadowstar]

Yen Press Licenses Agents of the Four Seasons: Dance of Spring, Brunhild the Dragonslayer, More Manga/Novels https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-06-14/yen-press-licenses-agents-of-the-four-seasons-dance-of-spring-brunhild-the-dragonslayer-more-manga-/.211958

[themculibrary]

Peggy/Angie Masterlist

a minor distraction (ao3) - brilligspoons peggy/natasha, peggy/angie T, 3k

Summary: Rumors about an organization experimenting with the super soldier serum bring Peggy Carter to Russia, where she meets a young factory worker named Natalia.

A Somebody I'm Longing To See (ao3) - Eliza49 peggy/angie, peggy/steve T, 32k

Summary: In the spring of 1947 Peggy Carter returned to New York, the birthplace of Steve Rogers…

Despite the distraction of a fascinating case and no small amount of peril, Peggy had missed her New York roommate, Angie Martinelli, during her time in L.A.. She had become accustomed to comforting conversation and happy chatter at the end of the working day, and whilst the Jarvises had helped fill the void, it had not been quite the same: after all, Ana and Edwin belonged to each other, but Angie, Peggy felt, was hers, somehow...

-

(This is a sequel to my story, “A Safe Community for Modern Female Professionals.” It takes place after season 2 of "Agent Carter," and depicts Peggy and Angie living together [and getting together] in Howard's penthouse in Manhattan. There is also an SSR investigation, which Peggy leads as Chief of the New York office.)

A Song That Will Not Die (ao3) - chilly_flame M, 15k

Summary: Peggy and Angie deal with a new crisis after moving in together, thanks to their good friend Howard Stark.

A Woman's Touch (ao3) - all_soul T, 59k

Summary: It’s been a week since Peggy saved New York from Dr. Fenhoff, and Dottie is loose in the big city. Regardless of Interim-Chief Jack keeping her off the Underwood case, her fraying relationship with Daniel, and the tightrope that she walks at home with Angie, she’ll find her. Peggy Carter always gets her girl.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea (Burning Bridges Sweeten the Air) (ao3) - DiNovia T, 26k

Summary: Before Peggy Carter can make good on her promise to train Angie Martinelli to protect herself better, an old foe makes a reappearance and a new plot comes to light. Will Peggy be able to figure it out before it's over and done?

Cat Got Your Tongue (ao3) - Meskeet T, 10k

Summary: There’s only two things Peggy’s currently certain about.

One, she’s in love with Angela Martinelli.

Two, she’s a cat.

(Or, the one where Howard Stark turns Peggy into a cat.)

Easy Living (ao3) - sagesiren T, 9k

Summary: Her day had started nearly forty hours before when North Korea had marched too far South for anyone's liking, and she'd been subsisting on coffee and frustration at the American government's incompetence since. 

While her fledgling organization wasn't large enough nor old enough to be regarded as a player on the national level quite yet, her agents were more capable than any others in the country by half, and she still suspected vital information was being withheld. 

Not to mention that the process of moving her base of operations to D.C. - and every agent along with it - was hard enough without a war complicating things.

Or a child.

(It's 1950 and Peggy decides she needs a live-in nanny after gaining custody of her niece, Sharon. Enter: Angie.)

i break wild roses (ao3) - halfmoonsevenstars peggy/natasha, peggy/angie M, 7k

Summary: It’s August 1950 and Peggy Carter, Director of SHIELD, is back in New York for the week, wrangling diplomats and soothing fractured bureaucratic egos by day. By night, Peggy goes out for drinks and dancing with Angie, but it’s a beautiful Russian girl she brings back to the hotel room.

Mapping the Spaces in Between (ao3) - warmspringrain G, 10k

Summary: Filling in the missing moments of Season One.

Morning Mix Ups (ao3) - tiredmoonlight G, 1k

Summary: Sometimes, in the rush of a busy morning, Peggy doesn’t always grab the right clothes.

or alternatively: two times Peggy stole Angie’s clothes by accident, and one time Angie stole Peggy’s on purpose.

Rule #1: Peggy Carter is sometimes wrong (ao3) - burninglights peggy/angie, ana/jarvis T, 25k

Summary: The four times Peggy apologises to Angie, and the one time she doesn't. With an extra few chapters of Angie being (always) right.

Or: Peggy falling in love with another scrappy Brooklyn kid, in a mostly-canon re-write of Agent Carter season 1 and a non-canon-re-write of season 2, because we all know how that went down. Domestic shenanigans from New York to L.A.

//

Peggy Carter pushes open the door and takes a corner seat, still feeling like she's somehow betraying her Queen by being publicly seen drinking coffee twice in a week (and /enjoying/ it, too). Angie spots her from across the Automat and comes hurrying over, a huge, shit-eating grin plastered to her face. “English!” She bends down and pulls the woman into a tight, brief hug.

When Angie finally pulls away, Peggy isn’t sure what she’s more concerned about – the fact that this waitress doesn’t seem to understand the meaning of personal space (of which she herself places great importance) or the fact that she actually finds herself enjoying the said invasion of personal space. She clears her throat. “I have a name, you know,” she says. “It’s Peggy. Peggy Carter.”

Scarlet Cross (ao3) - wreckofherheart M, 40k

Summary: [AU: Second World War]  

Angie and Peggy meet under the most inconvenient and harmful circumstances.

Yet, somehow, this only brings to light something they did not foresee.

[Peggy/Angie]

Someday (ao3) - all_soul T, 7k

Summary: "Well, I look forward to hearing what this is about someday"

"Someday"

In which a day after the events of the season one finale, Peggy climbs through the Griffith window.

Someone New (ao3) - TESPO G, 33k

Summary: Peggy Carter only opens her heart to those she can keep safe, and so for the most part it remains locked shut. Little does she know Angie Martinelli has a history of picking locks, defying odds, and breaking all the rules.

suffer what we must (ao3) - the eternal feminine (redpenninja) G, 6k

Summary: "They don’t really know how to talk to each other, he decides, but this is enough. She gives him a little glimpse at her real smile, a small ray of sunlight bursting through dark skies. He wonders how she looks when she smiles at Carter, wonders what she thinks about when she goes home to a large, empty house, wonders how Carter reacts to such a blinding, ethereal light."

//

In which Jack meets Angie, Angie gets desperate, and Jack has an ulterior motive for getting Peggy home from Los Angeles

The Lady is a Tramp (ao3) - maggiemerc M, 21k

Summary: Angie’s got suspicions on what Peggy does for a living and she’s determined to protect her at all costs…to other people. It’s not like she’s crazy and about to risk her life for a dame that’s more hot and cold than the plumbing on the third floor of the Griffith Hotel.

the mothering thing of us (ao3) - QuickYoke, ratherembarrassing E, 59k

Summary: The Black and White Ball was a masquerade ball held on November 28, 1966 at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. Hosted by author Truman Capote, the ball was in honor of The Washington Post publisher, Katharine Graham. -- Director Carter attends.

what they don't see (ao3) - acolonf6 peggy/angie, past peggy/steve T, 22k

Summary: Angie is convinced that her new next door neighbor is a spy, and is determined to find proof of such.

[brookston]

Holidays 1.6

Holidays

Apple Tree Day

Armed Forces Day (Iraq)

Blessing of the Waters (Greece, Turkey)

Carnaval Blancos Negros, Day 3: The Day of the Whites (Colombia)

Carnival season begins (until Shrove Tuesday)

Children’s Day (Uruguay)

Cuddle Up Day

Daruma Ichi (Takasaki City, Japan)

Dezome-shiki (Tokyo, Japan)

Flying V Day

Four Freedoms Day

Greek Cross Day

Haxey Hood (Traditional Old English race, pushing a leather tub to a local pub)

Hornschlittenrennen (Horn Runners Race; Germany)

I Am A Mentor Day

International Day of Astrology

International Jewish and Proud Day

Insurrection USA Day

Kayin New Year (Myanmar)

Maroon Festival (Jamaica)

Missionary Childhood Day

National Davis Day

National Samantha Day

National Share a DAG Day

National Smith Day

National Standard Poodle Day

National Take a Poet to Lunch Day

National Take Down the Christmas Tree Day

National Technology Day

Nurse Day (Mexico)

Parents and Parents-in-Law Day (India)

Pathet Lao Day (Laos)

Phi Day

Schoolhouse Rock Day

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Day (Abeldane Empire)

Sherlock Holmes Day [also 5.22]

Shorinzan Daruma-Ichi (Shorinzan, Japan)

Surb Tsnund (Armenian Christmas)

Swap Day

Take a Poet to Lunch Day

Wassailing the Apple Trees (UK)

Wheel of Fortune Day

World Day of War Orphans

Food & Drink Celebrations

Bean Day (New Orleans)

Dry Bean Day

King Cake Day

King of the Bean (a.k.a. National Bean Day)

National Shortbread Day

Walker’s Shortbread Day

1st Saturday in January

Great Fruitcake Toss (Manitou Springs, Colorado) [1st Saturday]

National Bacon Day [1st Saturday]

National Rib Day [1st Saturday]

National Play Outside Day [1st Saturday of Every Month]

Straw Bear Day [Saturday before Plough Monday]

Independence & Related Days

New Mexico Statehood Day (#47; 1912)

Feast Days

Aleksandra Ekster (Artology)

André Bessette (Roman Catholic Church)

Baldassare Verazzi (Artology)

British Comedy Quotes Day (Pastafarian)

Charles E. Pont (Artology)

Charles of Sezze (Christian; Saint)

Christmas (Original Date) (a.k.a. ...

Christmas (Armenian Apostolic Church, Amish)

Coptic Christmas (Egypt)

Día De Reyes (Kings Day; Mexico)

Heilige Drei Könige (Liechtenstein)

Kolmekuninga Päev (Belgium, Estonia)

Little Christmas (Ireland)

Old Christmas

Reyes Magos (Spain)

Sure Tsnund (Armenia)

Sveta Tri Kralja (Croatia)

Christmas Eve (Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Russia, Ukraine)

Day of Kore Underground (Pagan)

Epiphany (a.k.a. ...

Befana Day (Italy)

Nollaig na mBan (Ireland)

Þrettándinn (Iceland)

Race of the Three Kings (San Pablo, Peru)

Theophany (Eastern Christian Church)

Three King's Day (Florida, US Virgin Islands)

Three Wise Men Day

Trettondagen (Sweden)

Epiphic (The Season of Bad Noise, Devoted to the Indefinable; Church of the SubGenius)

Extra Cuddles Day (Pastafarian)

Gustave Doré (Artology)

Haley Hood (England)

José Campeche (Artology)

Nalujuk Night (Inuit)

Pinky (Muppetism)

Romulus (Positivist; Saint)

Taos Pueblo Deer or Buffalo Dance (Native American)

Tursi (Slavic pagan fertility rite of Jar-tur, the bull) 

Twelfth Day (a.k.a. Twelfthtide)

Twelve Holy Days #12 (Pisces, the feet; Esoteric Christianity)

William McGonagall Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Tycho Brahe Unlucky Day (Scandinavia) [4 of 37]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Day (because Christmas decorations come down this day. It's a sad day for all.)

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [3 of 57]

Unglückstage (Unlucky Day; Pennsylvania Dutch) [5 of 30]

Premieres

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (Animated Disney Film; 1950)

Agent Carter (TV Series; 2015)

The Body Machine (Science Rock Cartoon; 1979)

Casanova Cat (Tom & Jerry Cartoon; 1951)

Come Fly with Me, by Frank Sinatra (Album; 1958)

The Danny Kaye Show (Radio Series; 1945)

Don Quixote de la Mancha (Novel; 1605)

Frampton Comes Alive!, by Peter Frampton (Live Album; 1976)

Hare We Go (WB MM Cartoon; 1951)

Hell’s Fire (MGM Cartoon; 1934)

High School DXD (Anime TV Series; 2012)

Inspector Morse (UK TV Series; 1987)

County Fair (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1930)

Land of the Lost Jewels Noveltoons Cartoon; 1950)

Little Earthquakes, by Tori Amos (Album; 1992)

Luvcast U.S.A. (Animated TV Film; 1973)

My Hero, Zero (Schoolhouse Rock! Cartoon; 1973)

Pill Peddlers (Heckle & Heckle Cartoon; 1953)

Pluto’s Heart Throb (Disney Cartoon; 1950)

Polly Wants a Doctor (Phantasies Cartoon; 1944)

The Revenant (Film; 2015)

Schoolhouse Rock (Animated TV Series; 1973)

Shape of You, by Ed Sheehan (Song; 2017)

SWAT Kats: A Special Report (Hanna-Barbera TV Cartoon Special; 1995)

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Film; 2012)

Wheel of Fortune (TV Game Show; 1975)

Today’s Name Days

Erminold (Austria)

Bogdan, Bogdana, Bogomil, Bogomila, Iordan, Iordanka, Teodosii, Yordan, Yordanka (Bulgaria)

Baltazar, Gašpar, Melkior (Croatia)

Tri králové (Czech Republic)

Aabel, Aabi, Aabo, Aap, Aapo (Estonia)

Harri (Finland)

Balthazar, Gaspard, Mélaine, Melchior, Tiffany (France)

Raimund (Germany)

Fani, Fotika, Fotine, Fotini, Fotis, Jordan, Ourania, Peristera, Photini, Photis, Theofania, Theofanis, Theopoula (Greece)

Boldizsár (Hungary)

Baldassarre Gaspare, Melchiorre Raffaello, Rafaelo (Italy)

Arnita, Spulga (Latvia)

Arūnas, Arūnė, Baltazaras, Kasparas, Merkelis (Lithuania)

Åslaug, Aslaug (Norway)

Andrzej, Balcer, Baltazar, Bolemir, Epifania, Kacper, Kasper, Melchior (Poland)

Evgenia, Klavdia (Russia)

Antónia (Slovakia)

Baltasar, Epifanía, Gaspar, Melchor (Spain)

Baltsar, Kasper, Melker (Sweden)

Cheyanne, Cheyenne, Howell, Hoyle, Kahlil, Khalil, Melchior, Rowan, Talullah, Tiffani, Tiffanie, Tiffany (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 6 of 2024; 360 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 6 of week 1 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Beth (Birch) [Day 12 of 28]

Chinese: Month 12 (Jia-Zi), Day 25 (Ji-Si)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 25 Teveth 5784

Islamic: 24 Jumada II 1445

J Cal: 6 White; Sixday [6 of 30]

Julian: 24 December 2023

Moon: 26%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 6 Moses (1st Month) [Romulus]

Runic Half Month: Eihwaz or Eoh (Yew Tree) [Day 12 of 15]

Season: Winter (Day 17 of 89)

Zodiac: Capricorn (Day 16 of 31)

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 1.6

Holidays

Apple Tree Day

Armed Forces Day (Iraq)

Blessing of the Waters (Greece, Turkey)

Carnaval Blancos Negros, Day 3: The Day of the Whites (Colombia)

Carnival season begins (until Shrove Tuesday)

Children’s Day (Uruguay)

Cuddle Up Day

Daruma Ichi (Takasaki City, Japan)

Dezome-shiki (Tokyo, Japan)

Flying V Day

Four Freedoms Day

Greek Cross Day

Haxey Hood (Traditional Old English race, pushing a leather tub to a local pub)

Hornschlittenrennen (Horn Runners Race; Germany)

I Am A Mentor Day

International Day of Astrology

International Jewish and Proud Day

Insurrection USA Day

Kayin New Year (Myanmar)

Maroon Festival (Jamaica)

Missionary Childhood Day

National Davis Day

National Samantha Day

National Share a DAG Day

National Smith Day

National Standard Poodle Day

National Take a Poet to Lunch Day

National Take Down the Christmas Tree Day

National Technology Day

Nurse Day (Mexico)

Parents and Parents-in-Law Day (India)

Pathet Lao Day (Laos)

Phi Day

Schoolhouse Rock Day

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Day (Abeldane Empire)

Sherlock Holmes Day [also 5.22]

Shorinzan Daruma-Ichi (Shorinzan, Japan)

Surb Tsnund (Armenian Christmas)

Swap Day

Take a Poet to Lunch Day

Wassailing the Apple Trees (UK)

Wheel of Fortune Day

World Day of War Orphans

Food & Drink Celebrations

Bean Day (New Orleans)

Dry Bean Day

King Cake Day

King of the Bean (a.k.a. National Bean Day)

National Shortbread Day

Walker’s Shortbread Day

1st Saturday in January

Great Fruitcake Toss (Manitou Springs, Colorado) [1st Saturday]

National Bacon Day [1st Saturday]

National Rib Day [1st Saturday]

National Play Outside Day [1st Saturday of Every Month]

Straw Bear Day [Saturday before Plough Monday]

Independence & Related Days

New Mexico Statehood Day (#47; 1912)

Feast Days

Aleksandra Ekster (Artology)

André Bessette (Roman Catholic Church)

Baldassare Verazzi (Artology)

British Comedy Quotes Day (Pastafarian)

Charles E. Pont (Artology)

Charles of Sezze (Christian; Saint)

Christmas (Original Date) (a.k.a. ...

Christmas (Armenian Apostolic Church, Amish)

Coptic Christmas (Egypt)

Día De Reyes (Kings Day; Mexico)

Heilige Drei Könige (Liechtenstein)

Kolmekuninga Päev (Belgium, Estonia)

Little Christmas (Ireland)

Old Christmas

Reyes Magos (Spain)

Sure Tsnund (Armenia)

Sveta Tri Kralja (Croatia)

Christmas Eve (Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Russia, Ukraine)

Day of Kore Underground (Pagan)

Epiphany (a.k.a. ...

Befana Day (Italy)

Nollaig na mBan (Ireland)

Þrettándinn (Iceland)

Race of the Three Kings (San Pablo, Peru)

Theophany (Eastern Christian Church)

Three King's Day (Florida, US Virgin Islands)

Three Wise Men Day

Trettondagen (Sweden)

Epiphic (The Season of Bad Noise, Devoted to the Indefinable; Church of the SubGenius)

Extra Cuddles Day (Pastafarian)

Gustave Doré (Artology)

Haley Hood (England)

José Campeche (Artology)

Nalujuk Night (Inuit)

Pinky (Muppetism)

Romulus (Positivist; Saint)

Taos Pueblo Deer or Buffalo Dance (Native American)

Tursi (Slavic pagan fertility rite of Jar-tur, the bull) 

Twelfth Day (a.k.a. Twelfthtide)

Twelve Holy Days #12 (Pisces, the feet; Esoteric Christianity)

William McGonagall Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Tycho Brahe Unlucky Day (Scandinavia) [4 of 37]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Day (because Christmas decorations come down this day. It's a sad day for all.)

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [3 of 57]

Unglückstage (Unlucky Day; Pennsylvania Dutch) [5 of 30]

Premieres

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (Animated Disney Film; 1950)

Agent Carter (TV Series; 2015)

The Body Machine (Science Rock Cartoon; 1979)

Casanova Cat (Tom & Jerry Cartoon; 1951)

Come Fly with Me, by Frank Sinatra (Album; 1958)

The Danny Kaye Show (Radio Series; 1945)

Don Quixote de la Mancha (Novel; 1605)

Frampton Comes Alive!, by Peter Frampton (Live Album; 1976)

Hare We Go (WB MM Cartoon; 1951)

Hell’s Fire (MGM Cartoon; 1934)

High School DXD (Anime TV Series; 2012)

Inspector Morse (UK TV Series; 1987)

County Fair (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1930)

Land of the Lost Jewels Noveltoons Cartoon; 1950)

Little Earthquakes, by Tori Amos (Album; 1992)

Luvcast U.S.A. (Animated TV Film; 1973)

My Hero, Zero (Schoolhouse Rock! Cartoon; 1973)

Pill Peddlers (Heckle & Heckle Cartoon; 1953)

Pluto’s Heart Throb (Disney Cartoon; 1950)

Polly Wants a Doctor (Phantasies Cartoon; 1944)

The Revenant (Film; 2015)

Schoolhouse Rock (Animated TV Series; 1973)

Shape of You, by Ed Sheehan (Song; 2017)

SWAT Kats: A Special Report (Hanna-Barbera TV Cartoon Special; 1995)

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Film; 2012)

Wheel of Fortune (TV Game Show; 1975)

Today’s Name Days

Erminold (Austria)

Bogdan, Bogdana, Bogomil, Bogomila, Iordan, Iordanka, Teodosii, Yordan, Yordanka (Bulgaria)

Baltazar, Gašpar, Melkior (Croatia)

Tri králové (Czech Republic)

Aabel, Aabi, Aabo, Aap, Aapo (Estonia)

Harri (Finland)

Balthazar, Gaspard, Mélaine, Melchior, Tiffany (France)

Raimund (Germany)

Fani, Fotika, Fotine, Fotini, Fotis, Jordan, Ourania, Peristera, Photini, Photis, Theofania, Theofanis, Theopoula (Greece)

Boldizsár (Hungary)

Baldassarre Gaspare, Melchiorre Raffaello, Rafaelo (Italy)

Arnita, Spulga (Latvia)

Arūnas, Arūnė, Baltazaras, Kasparas, Merkelis (Lithuania)

Åslaug, Aslaug (Norway)

Andrzej, Balcer, Baltazar, Bolemir, Epifania, Kacper, Kasper, Melchior (Poland)

Evgenia, Klavdia (Russia)

Antónia (Slovakia)

Baltasar, Epifanía, Gaspar, Melchor (Spain)

Baltsar, Kasper, Melker (Sweden)

Cheyanne, Cheyenne, Howell, Hoyle, Kahlil, Khalil, Melchior, Rowan, Talullah, Tiffani, Tiffanie, Tiffany (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 6 of 2024; 360 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 6 of week 1 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Beth (Birch) [Day 12 of 28]

Chinese: Month 12 (Jia-Zi), Day 25 (Ji-Si)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 25 Teveth 5784

Islamic: 24 Jumada II 1445

J Cal: 6 White; Sixday [6 of 30]

Julian: 24 December 2023

Moon: 26%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 6 Moses (1st Month) [Romulus]

Runic Half Month: Eihwaz or Eoh (Yew Tree) [Day 12 of 15]

Season: Winter (Day 17 of 89)

Zodiac: Capricorn (Day 16 of 31)

[graphicpolicy]

Yen Press Announces Thirteen New Titles for November 2024

Yen Press Announces Thirteen New Titles for November 2024 #manga

Yen Press has announced the upcoming release of thirteen new titles, including nine manga (Agents of the Four Seasons: Dance of Spring; Brunhild the Dragonslayer; Dracula’s on the Night Shift; I Picked Up This World’s Strategy Guide; The Teen Exorcist; The War of Greedy Witches; Praise Me When I’m a Good Boy; mono; April Showers Bring May Flowers), two novels (In a World of Lies, I Fell into an…

[cosmo-lexies]

Dylan Season 1 (2/7)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2: The speed legal limit is too slow, I propose to change it to 120 mph

We carried on to interstate 5. Wooden Town was near. I put on my wireless headphone;  classic country songs that Andrew always had in the car was driving me crazy. I bet he's from the South cause of his music taste and accent, but he never confirms or denies it. Secret agent things, I guess.

He picked up my left headphone. "What do you listen? ... Really, reggaetón."

I got back my headphone and said, "What's the problem? Do you prefer I heard a romantic ballad or something for the style?"

" It's not this. Although you can hear some romantic teen songs," he had changed the mood "and don't know, maybe they encouraged you to look for a girlfriend or boyfriend of your age."

I had a lifeless gaze, "I don't want a relationship, especially with someone of my age. These people want things that I don't want."

"For example? I know, they want to meet you, and you want to be alone. Casual sex with strangers doesn't need that you open up." I didn't think to respond to him. He thought he could get me to play his game, but I wasn't gonna fall this time. "Do you tell your family about your powers or parents?"

"I have a psychologist, don't need that you analyze me. And not; it's better this way." I looked away trying to avoid this conversation.

"The psychologist that sent me reports about you isn't progressing with the therapy."

" Do you hear about doctor-patient privilege?" I said sarcastically.

"This would apply if you go for yourself, not if the juvenile court force you."

"Man, I don't get into trouble, I get passable grades, I have a part-time job, and I go to the shrink session in Portland two times a week. What do you want to me?" I said frustrated.

"Dylan, I want to be well," he started with the good cop approach, "I know that you have had a hard life, but now you have a chance that you need. You are important to me."

"Not, I'm your job."

He took off his sunglasses and glanced at me with his blue eyes. "You're both," he glanced at the road again. "If this life doesn't like you, you have other options. The FAHEA is looking to recruit you; you could get emancipated this way."

"Never do you ask this of me again," Perfect, I was playing his game He knows that I hate this shit of HEA being 'patriotic heroes.'

"Okey, okay. We were already near your house."

"Yo; do you tell them about where you found me?"

"Ahh, not, I won't." He gave me a smirk.  "Remember that you can call me when you need me," he gave me one of his typical cards. There are thousands of theses over my room, but he wouldn't let me get out of the car until I got one.

"I know. Thank you. And I know that I'm important to you."

Andrew tried to help my mother, he rescued me from the street. He found my family and came to see me biweekly. I shouldn't be so moron with him, but he is the only that knows me. And this scare.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3: Dating apps have to be a constitutional right

My aunt's house is the same as every other one in the 'burbs, a standard detached joint. In the town, there is a dentist, some restaurants, one store, and for some reason four casinos. I don't know, don't ask me. Most people are high middle class and work in Portland. The American dream, even though the nearest hospital is thirty minutes by car; although, it isn't a problem for me.

Andrew parked in front of the house. My cousin Elena was with a friend, Victoria. They were making TikToks in the yard. When Victoria saw me, she let up dancing and came towards me.

"Hi, Dylan..." then saw Andrew with surprise "and sir."

"It's my social services worker, ignore him. Do you want anything?" I said friendly.

"Yes. I want to ask something." She touched her hair nervously "Do you have a date for the spring dance?"

"Not," her face lit up "I mean, I don't have because I won't go. I'm not into these things, sorry."

I span, and Andrew was judging me with a glance. I guess because he didn't take off the sunglasses. It was almost night could take the fucking glasses off.

I turn to Victoria and said "But, maybe we can hang up this week. If you want,"

Victoria tilted her head a bit and started playing with her brow hair. "Well, I have to check my schedule, I'll send a DM later."

"Perfect, bye."

Andrew and I continue towards the house. Victoria ran towards Elena and began to tell something.

Inside the house, my aunt and my uncle-in-law were in the kitchen. She was working on the laptop and he cooking dinner.

"Hola, tia. Como estas?" I said. My aunt Luisa loved when I speak Spanish with her because it reminded her of Spain. However, we don't usually speak it because my cousins and my uncle only speak Ingles.

"Hola Dylan," she saw Andrew, "and Mr.Miller. We don't expect you a Sunday," my aunt was tired of Andrew, it was clear.

I guess that a bureaucrat appears in your house about every two weeks without a call before isn't pleasant. Don't get me wrong, she is amazing with me. She tried that I felt at home since the first day; however, the deadpan worker that seems to come to judge you, is a lame extra.

"Dylan can leave us alone. I need to talk with them," he said.

I went up to my room and saw Tomas, Elena's twin, listening to music in his room; he was dancing like he was playing an invisible guitar. When he saw me, closed the door ashamed. He was a total nerd, and I liked this of him. Sometimes I wish I could be as real as him.

I didn't see Mary in her room, so I knew she was in mine. It's one of two problems that my room has. It was the playroom until my arrival; the tv, consoles, and computer are there. There wasn't another site where put a bed to me. For this reason, I had to share it with my cousins. The other big problem is the door, there isn't a door, and it's impossible to install one because of the stairs. Problems with the attics, doesn't have privacy but doesn't bother me, too.

I arrived when Mary was playing with the console dressed in a cape and a crown. I moved slowly to scare her, but she turn to me and stabbed me with a foam-rubber sword. I made like I was bleeding and dropping on my bed. She stood up on my bed and put the sword over my chest.

"The audacity of trying to attack the Queen will cost you a high price."

"I lament it, sorry my ... queen? Wait a sec, you were the Princess yesterday."

"But, the Queens are more powerful than Princesses. And less merciful. You deserve punishment," she sat next to me. "I wanted to play with you after church, but you weren't when we arrived," she said with some sadness

"Sorry, Mary. I was with a friend."

"Okey, but your punishment will be to play Mario Kart with me."

"Indeed, my Queen, although I need a minute to check one thing."

She began to prepare the console while I checked my Instagram. Mark didn't send me anything yet. I entered his profile, but he blocked me. This was weird. I tried to enter Grindr. 'This account has been suspended for policy violations.' Then check Tinder. 'This account has been suspended for policy violations.'

I tried to install other dating apps, but an error message appeared when they were half-downloaded. The dickhead had blocked me in all apps of picking up. I was furious; I wanted to kill him but couldn't, at least in front of my family.

I was waiting while playing with Mary. I shot off to talk to him when I hear the front door open. My aunt, who was still at the door, asked me worriedly, "Dylan, it's night. Where you go?"

"I need to talk about something with Andrew. I come back immediately." He was about to enter the car when he saw me and stopped. "What's wrong with you, man?" I asked.

"You needed less than an hour to realize it."

"You cannot hack my mobile; it's illegal."

"Yes, it is. The other way is to talk about this with your aunt and then she put parental control on your mobile. Do you want this?"

"This's shit. I know how to take care of myself. I don't need that you watch to me like a child."

"First," his fucking enumerations again, "I don't treat you like a child, but this isn't safe, although you're a HEA. Second, you aren't a child but also an adult, you need your rules and limits. Third, this attack of teen rage is absurd, especially in you. I considered you more mature," this last one hurt me. He got into the car and started it. Then he rolled down the window.

"You are punishing me unfairly."

"Dylan, I am not punishing you. You're not ready for this type of relationship and much less with adults. I tried you have a good life, and nothing good can come of these things," he looked into my eyes. "You go on a date with that cute girl from before, don't get in trouble, and maybe you must think about this dance. I'm sure that you would have a good time if you will go. I'll see you in a couple of weeks." He went.

I didn't know what to say after this conversation. He was probably right, or at least a big part of it, but I was super frustrated regardless. I want to yell and break things, also I want to cry.

I really wanna break things, but in my case, I knew that it wasn't an option if I didn't want to end up being arrested for of a bunch soldiers. I broke down and cried.

[omorily]

agents of the four seasons: dance of spring (vol.2)

[ammg-old2]

“Every time I come here, I’m surprised,” says one of Peru’s best-known chefs, Virgilio Martinez, about the village of Maras. “There’s a huge mountain of shining white pools that produce this very beautiful and very pure pink salt.” Martinez makes a pilgrimage to the Andean town, roughly 11,000 feet above sea level, a few times a year to source the seasoning for his Central restaurant in Lima. The chef organizes his 17-course tasting menu by altitude and serves Maras salt coarse – “we like to really feel it.” Martinez has nabbed a Michelin star, but his real coup? Earning the respect of the locals who take him foraging.

A mineral as well as a metaphor, the crystalline substance signifies both authenticity (“salt of the earth”) and capability (“worth his salt”). In ancient Rome, legionnaires were sometimes paid with the stuff (hence the word salary). Despite meriting more than four pages in the Oxford English Dictionary, the world’s top flavor agent – and how it ends up on our plates – often escapes our notice.

Most salt production involves mining, but that’s not the case in Maras, where the Incas engineered an ingenious system for harvesting sodium chloride six centuries ago: The tiny Qoripujio spring unearths halite (the mineral name for salt) as it trickles through a labyrinth of man-made channels that feed some 3,000 shallow pools, terraced down a mountainside.

Today, men in dusty trousers and women in full skirts, all members of the town’s salt co-op, wait for the pools’ thin layers of water to evaporate. They rake the deposits into baskets and take them to the co-op’s warehouse to be bagged and sold. This slow dance continues throughout the dry season, roughly May to November. Family members have long passed pools down to their offspring, setting up the next generation.

In addition to attracting rock-star chefs and tourists, this marvel of ancient engineering drew photographer Juan Manuel Castro Prieto, who captured these images. “The people of Maras have preserved traditions that have been lost elsewhere,” Prieto says. “I’m always looking to reflect everyday life. Nothing extraordinary happens in my pictures.” Here, however, the ordinary is nothing short of astounding.

[jadienjaystoriesandart]

Green As The Leaves

Warning: Nothing, this is purely fluff.

POV: Second (You/Your)

Notes: This story will have a second part with Ingo, but this one is Emmet. Takes place in Pokemon Hybrid AU. - Back then, hybrids were seen as ‘gods’ to people. So Ingo being the Noble of Sneasler has the Pearl Clan feeling mighty smug about being ‘blessed’ just as the Diamond Clan was with one of theirs being a hybrid. - This is a short oneshot.

Summary: You always noticed Emmet pushed himself alot, keeping a smile on for the sake of a smile. It’s been 3 years since his brothers vanished. And though he’s given up looking, you know his wish is to find his brother. 

----------

You’ve been friends with the hybrid for a while. And though he continues the subway battles, the sadness in his eyes never left. Most now assumed Ingo was dead, it’s been 3 years after all. But when you met Emmet a few months, almost a year now, back, he never seemed to believe that. Stating twins always knew, even if it was through a weak laugh and weaker smile. You held him on the days he did finally let himself cry, letting him just beg for his brother back to whatever deity would listen. Your heart aches for him, trapped in all four arms as he sobs. He would apologize for shocking you during this times, you were human after all, no resistance.

But a soft shush from you and a firm hug would make them stop. “I’m not as fragile as you think Em.” you’d promise him, petting the Galvantula hybrid’s hair to sooth him. He just sniffled at that pressing closer to you. Slowly falling asleep as he ran out of energy. You hated this feeling... helpless, you wanted to help, but... that was easier said than done. You gazed up at the ceiling and scowl a bit. When?

You did find small ways to help out, you agreed to be Emmet’s partner in things. Given you were a former champion, you were a strong trainer and could keep up with the Multi Train. The Agents shockingly took a instant liking to you, but you figured they were just happy their boss was finally moving on, and things could open up again.  Also you forced Emmet to take breaks and vacation time so he didn’t over extend himself. Much to his protests or annoyance, but you weren’t as easily scared of his ‘threats’ to you. Pushing him to bed on nights he needed to rest more than anything.

Suppose that’s how you two fell in love, him showing you the underground system, and you noticing how cute he was when he got talkative and excited with his movements. Maybe it was in the way he insisted in holding you with all four of his arms some nights. Or perhaps it’s because you pretty much moved in with him and fell asleep holding him too.   A first date through an abandoned station, urban exploration as Emmet would chat away about the history of the place. Pulling him to dance in the lights of the stained glass, he was uncoordinated, but you worked with it. 

The way the flowers upturned when you both passed by them, blooming happily as you’d laugh at his antics. Enjoying the turn of the colder months as he made you a scarf from his own silk, purring when you wore it almost everyday.  Watching the leaves turn brown as you hummed happily to yourself. Emmet would walk beside you through the seasons coming and going. And slowly, things got better between you both. He started to smile for real more, and opened up more about things.

And you would open your heart more to him each day that passed. As the snow began to cover the ground, and things went dormant for a time. In a house that was always warm, with you both watching movies with the snows steady fall outside. 

 In that time, you came to know his desires as true as they were, his want for winning, his love for his pokemon, and still the hope his brother would return. “You really want him home, don’t you?” you one day asked as the snow was thawing outside, and the new flowers were springing up. 

“More than anything.” Emmet told you softly back, holding your hand as both of you sat outside on this fine spring day. Where the last of the thaw was coming, and the green would return in a few months time. A year had passed between you both, and in that time feelings only grew... and you were tired of lying to him. Tired of waiting for the right moment to give him the gift he so craved.

You tightened your fingers around his, “I want to give you a gift, my spider.” You tell him, your other hand detangling from his. Watching as the sun warmed the earth to bring in new life. Turning to him slowly, you gave a small smile, “But you must not tell anyone of how you got it.” you whispered to him.

Several eyes met yours, as he still held your hand, letting you lead him down the forest path and out of the town you two were visiting. Soon though, you lead him off the path, through some brush that had begun to turn green. “Come on.” You tell him with a giggle as he gave you a soft, and genuine smile following you with trust and love. The brush broke away soon, as Emmet could only gasp in awe at the sight of a clearing. The sun hit the area just right, it looked like spring had come early to here. “Woah...” Emmet breathed out softly, looking up at the tree that near shaded the area, allowing dappled rays of light to filter through. And down their trunks to a circle like area.

“This is... beautiful.” Emmet said as he watched some pokemon scurried around the area, and watching them. You sighed through your nose and nodded, “Very... this is a spot I found a year ago today.” you told him as he looked at you. “Then a few days after, I was lead to you.” 

Turning back to him, you lifted your hand to meet his, lacing your fingers with his. “Do you really want him home?” you asked him softly, “Is that your wish? For your brother to be returned?” you looked up at Emmet, soft, gentle, and longing.

Emmet stared at you, confusion in his eyes but he nodded all the same. “Yes... more than anything.” he told you back, his other hand holding your left one, and two arms around your waist. “Why do you ask?”

You gazed at him, his eyes searching yours, you look guilty for a moment, before speaking up. “Before today, I could not grant you your wish... it takes alot of power to do this... but today is peaceful, today is a good day...” you promise him as your eyes glow a soft blue, “Today, your brother will come home.” you near whispered to him.

The shock was there, and the small threads of hope he still held to. Your skin was different, everything was... you weren’t human. As you had curled antenna like grass, soft fairy like wings, and green grass for hair. Emmet could only gap as you were glowing were so softly.

And as the light faded, you turned behind you... there, between the trees that formed a opening stood someone Emmet never thought he’d see again. The tears started to fill his eyes, as you smiled softly to Ingo.

“See... just as I promised, a year to the day.” You told the ragged man with a guy who traveled with him. And you stood aside to let Emmet near tackle Ingo to the ground, loud cries shattering the silence of the forest. Both from anguish and happiness. 

------

Basically you are a Celebi Hybrid if you didn’t know. Which your kind, mythical and legendary hybrids, are super rare. You had to wait for your power to grow before you could help the brothers, but you were drawn to Emmet for his desire and wish to see Ingo again. 

[helenapsent]

I think I should tell you about my setting... Of course, it is in development now, but I probably just want to present it.

In general, this story takes place in a medieval fantasy. There are a lot of characters in it and there are, as it seems to me, several lines of plot development (I'm still working on this). Only four heroes stand out from the whole mass, the narration from which will go and promote the plot of the book (it will be a novel with illustrations): Oddmand Lofgren (priest of darkness), Werner Richter (minstrel), Leonid Amatanidis (a young guardsman, as well as Oddmand's assistant) and Helen Apsent (a young cook, Leonid's childhood friend).

I will tell you about them a little later, and now I will tell you one interesting feature of my fantasy world. Anyway, everything there is connected with religion, or rather in the belief about the existence of Heaven and Hell. But the catch is that it is taught through the prism of well-known drinks - tea and coffee. Coffee is hell, Tea is heaven, respectively.

The seasons and months are for the most part similar to the names of tea varieties (I also wanted to make them look harmonious, well, alternate in a checkerboard pattern, like, for example: summer - tea, autumn - coffee, winter - tea, spring - coffee, but this is too difficult, so I decided that everything would be connected with tea).

The inner energy of the being belongs to each grade of the tea month. It is shown through the fire of different colors (red, yellow, green and blue).

What am I leading all this to? To the fact that these months and energy will play an important role in the plot twist, as a "Ritual of Awakening". The ritual is associated with two Gods watching over the whole world - Paradise (tea) Dog and the Infernal (coffee) Snake - one of which (specifically the Dog) fell asleep for several years and without his intervention, an imbalance began to occur in the world (in other words, bad events began to happen more often than usual (murders, theft, illegal transportation of prohibited chemical and magical agents, etc.)).

The whole district suffers from this imbalance, and in order to get rid of it, you need to conduct a "Ritual of Awakening". For him, you need to collect five doubles (4 women and 1 man, or vice versa), each of which carries the energy of a certain type of tea. The last fifth double should be secret, it is a kind of "milk companion" (milk can be added to both tea and coffee, so that the alignment was chosen exactly like this). These five will have to dance around a large bonfire, and then jump into it so that their energy is released and forms a single image of a "righteous" who will have to wake up the Paradise Dog.

Hence my whole universe got the name "Awaken God" (simply and succinctly, and reliably, like a Swiss watch ha-ha)

Now perhaps I will return to my four heroes. As I said, they are the ones who will acquaint the reader with the whole plot (I will describe them as briefly as possible to keep the intrigue and make you at least a little interested (well, I hope so 👉👈)):

1) Oddmand Lofgren is a Priest of darkness or an "evil sorcerer", the only person who knows about the existence of the "Awakening Ritual" and how it should be carried out.

2) Werner Richter is a Minstrel, as well as the mentor of idi "Big Brother" (this is his nickname) Leonid and Helen. He is a professional in the field of all types of dancing. He belongs to an ancient genus of arachnids (perhaps he can even be considered the only representative of this race, since it was exterminated when he was very young).

3) Leonid Amatanidis is a young guardsman and Oddmand's assistant. He searches for treasures and magical artifacts on the instructions of Oddmand, and also practices the art of fencing. This boy is one of the "companions" for the "Awakening Ritual".

4) Helen Apsent is a young cook, as well as a "Fiery Executioner". She works in a restaurant with her father, has been friends with Leonid since an early age (and in general they look like two drops of water, even from different families) and Werner. In addition, she sells chickens. She is also one of the "companions" for the "Awakening Ritual".

In conclusion, I will only say that these four are a kind of family. They all know each other well and consider themselves to be related people to each other (you can argue with Oddmand, of course, but still it's no different, he joins the whole company of three guys)

Actually, that's all for now. :ь

I think when I'm more or less done, I'll introduce you to it better. I really hope that it will be interesting to you and you will not regret spending time on it...👉👈