#and i have learned the damn language (yes that's worth repeating) and am not interested in jumping from brazil to thailand to spain to etc.

[cosmogyros]

It's fucking weird how rude people are about immigration sometimes. And I don't just mean bigots being biased and stuff. I mean that, on a REGULAR basis, people ask me if I'm thinking about "going back to the US". And I'm just like... no? What do you mean "back to the US"? I live in Germany. I LIVE IN GERMANY.

I literally fucking started learning German and obsessing on German culture in high school, then I went to college in the US and majored in German Studies, including two study-abroad programs in Germany, then I moved to Germany for grad school and lived there for three years and worked in various German-speaking jobs while studying, then I had to temporarily return to the US but found a German-translation-based job at the US branch of a German company, and made a bunch of German or at least German-speaking friends in my new US city, and then a few years later I was able to move back to Germany, where I got a work visa sponsored by my employer and a full-time salaried job, and after a few more years I acquired my permanent residency, and soon I'll be applying for citizenship.

And people still sometimes ask me whether I'm considering "going back to the US". Like... dude? Would you ask a Mexican living in the US about their plans for "going back to Mexico"? That is rude as fuck.

Immigration is fucking hard. Why on earth would I have gone through all this shit just to throw it up in the air like "Oh well, never mind!"

[ceruleanchillin]

5 Day Stay

| Or, Angel down bad for a week |

Angel x F!Reader

Warnings: language, infidelity, Angst (?), lil bit chili spice at the end

Mon:

Angel felt he was too young to consistently feel so bone-tired, yet that’s how his day had been ending for weeks now. Sometimes it was all he could do to get off his bike and make it to the door, only to have to rest his head against it to prepare to make it to the couch and collapse.

Tonight was one of those nights, and he wanted to be dead to the world until it dragged him back into it.

It was the smell of mixed spices that hit him first. It felt like he was in suspended animation, and slowly being released as different things started to register to him.

His TV was on, someone was rummaging through his kitchen, and music played faintly from his desk. Thinking back to the last time an unwanted guest was in his kitchen, he placed a hand on the holstered knife fastened to his back.

The fridge door closed, and you appeared in the window, eyes focused intently on whatever you were cooking on the stove.

He exhaled, feeling like complete shit. It only spoke to how weary his mind was that he could forget you were staying with him for the next week. Especially after the conversation that led to it.

“I don’t know Angel…really I can afford a motel for a few days.”

“Here? Rusted-through pipes will be the last thing your landlord is worried about when you bring back bedbugs and shit.”

Your eyes had widened at that, but still you brought up the thing that had been chained to your hesitation. “I mean….do you think it’s ok to do this? After we…Nails..Ang-“

He remembered a flash of irritation, more so at himself than you, when you said that. “Yes querida, fuck. If you’re so scared, I most likely won’t even be there the way things are going. Nails is out of town til’ next weekend…”

“Relax Ignacio.” you had cut your eyes at him, and he’d felt his dick jump like it did whenever you gave him attitude. “I’m just not trying to be a problem.”

Your voice calling his name brought him to the present. He caught the last part of your statement, that you didn’t know he’d be back.

“Yeah, we got in earlier than expected.”

“While you’re standing there like a weirdo, let me shame you real quick. How does a man in his thirties still have the kitchen of a frat boy?” You leaned on the sill of the divider. “You’re lucky I already knew you were sad in the kitchen. I had to bring my own tagine.”

He stepped into the kitchen, his stomach coming alive with interest. “One, I don’t know what that is, two, I can’t help it if the kitchen isn’t my preferred room of work.”

He peeked over your shoulder, but the unique pot kept him from seeing what you were making.

“Neither is the bedroom, unless that work is piling up dirty laundry.” you stuck your tongue out at him and turned back to your simmering dish.

“Ha ha. Dinner and a show, she does it all folks!” he collapsed at the table, the day catching back up with him. “Should put your ass on the club’s payroll. End the cashflow problem real quick.”

You turned to him, concern etched on your face. “I heard from Hank about that…sorry. I know now isn’t a great time for that at all.”

Things got awkward like they always did when you referenced the recent changes of his life. He wasn’t sad about getting another chance at fatherhood, this one more tangible than the last. However, he wasn’t entirely sold on everything he’d accepted along with it, and he was pretty sure you at least suspected that. It threw the previously comfortable confusion that was your relationship off track when it was touched on.

“No, it’s not.” was all he could manage.

It was quiet for a beat, the simmering of the food and quiet Neo Soul the only sounds.

“Well,” you started, turning off the burner. “At least you don’t have to eat like a ‘we got food at the house’ meme for once.”

He laughed, a genuine and needed laugh. “Ok, you know what? Keep talking about my pantry stocking skills, and I might take it personally.”

The rest of his night went that way. Anytime you and Angel got together, things were just…easy…better. You spent the evening eating in front of the TV (Angel getting all the way to thirds for what turned out to be olive chicken and roasted potatoes), trading jokes, and going over the finer points of Golden Girls. Angel learned you took it very seriously, and mocked you for being “old”.

It wasn’t until you were nodding off, and he was left with his own thoughts, that he realized he hadn’t enjoyed coming home this much since he moved in.

Tues:

Angel had dreamed he’d been back in his childhood home, but as a grown man. There was music coming from his parent’s room, and when he got to the doorway, his mom was at her dressing table. She hummed along to the soulful seventies music and smiled at him from the mirror. She said something, but he couldn’t make it out, and woke up in the frustration.

He jerked up from his position on his stomach, and slowly came to. With a grunt he wiped his hand down his face, glancing at his phone to find it was six in the afternoon.

It then occurred to him the music wasn’t just in his dream, it was coming from his bathroom. He got off the couch and followed the sound.

“Hey coma head.” you grinned at him from where you were doing your makeup.

He shook his head, trying to let go of the last vestiges of the dream, and how eerie the scene before him was.

He focused instead on the nightmare of products and alien looking tools surrounding you.

He kind of liked the mess, even if he couldn’t see the counter anymore.

“Hey hurricane Ulta.”

You made a face that was a cross between being amused and suspicious. “You sleep in your jeans and buy your shirts in pack form. Don’t act like you know what that is.”

He made a face of mock offense. “That’s so classist.”

This time you paused completely in you what you were doing and twisted your body to meet him. “Uh oh…let me find out you’re actually learning something from EZ.”

“Angel Reyes can know something about something, damn.”

You laughed, lowering your hands from where you’d been lining your eyes to avoid a mistake. “I’m only teasing you Angel Reyes.”

“Looks like you plan on teasing more than me. Some clown is gonna get his hopes and tiny dick up for nothing.”

“There’s this new club in the city that Belinda’s getting us into. It’s bad luck to buy your own drinks on the first night at a new place.” you adjusted the bodycon mini-dress for emphasis. “You doing anything?”

“Club shit.” he started picking through the products, sniffing them every so often. “Then I think I’ve got a call with Nails at some point.”

“You think?” you popped his hands when he got too close to the good stuff, or the things you were using currently.

“Yeah..I think.” he shrugged, only realizing how short he sounded when you winced.

He didn’t know why he got so annoyed when she was brought up around you. He wasn’t like that with anyone else, and he knew you were only trying to support his incoming changes.

“Ok..”

Awkward silence settled in before he found the words to break it.

“Why do you wanna know? You want me to be that clown?”

“Never.” you pinched his cheek, tone pure saccharine jest.

He muttered in Spanish, stepping around you to the toilet.

“Angel!” you exclaimed.

“What?! It’s my bathroom, I have to piss.”

“You better never make me angry Reyes, I could end your whole Casanova game with ease."

Wed:

“You holding on a little tight there mami!” Angel called over his shoulder with a laugh. “You said go fast."

“Shut up!” you giggled, but he wasn’t lying.

You’d asked Angel to take you to work on his bike since even though you spent so much time with bikers, you hardly got to ride one. You were going to the same place anyways. He had been all too happy to shake up his commute, but your speed challenge took it over the top.

He didn’t know how you were up so early, he personally felt like the bags under his eyes were like a PEZ dispenser. You’d gotten in at two am, and still got up with him at eight.

He loved watching you in the morning, you managed to be cheerful without being obnoxious, and it worked better than coffee for him.

He loved how much he was learning about you.

As he pulled onto the street beside the cafe you’d asked him to stop at, he felt your arms uncoil from around him. He may have pretended to shift just to make you pause and hold him a few seconds longer, but he wasn’t going to acknowledge that.

“I didn’t scream, and I’m not shaking, so you still have to buy my breakfast.” You unclipped your helmet, grinning the whole time.

You looked so pretty to him, with the sun hitting your eyes and hair just right. He could catch you at just the right moment, and you’d look so gorgeous, he struggled to believe you were real.

He cleared his throat, afraid his voice would crack if he didn’t. “Fair enough, come break my pockets then.”

You laughed, squeezing his chin and pointing out his pout. “You don’t even have to tell me once sir, I know my worth.”

Once inside, he trailed after you to the counter, using your head like an arm rest when you reached it. “That’s good.”

“Boy!” You swatted his hand away, and it was his turn to laugh at your adorable pout.

“New bet,” he stepped around you while the customer ahead of you wrapped up. “If I get your entire order just right, you buy lunch.”

“Deal.” you leaned on the counter, eyebrow raised at him in challenge.

Angel knew the best part of his day would be watching your expression go from smug to shocked out of the corner of his eye. He nailed every pastry, the iced coffee, and their preparation with ease.

The simultaneously impressed and amused barista looked to you for confirmation. She got a shocked nod in response.

“I know my worth too mama, so don’t skimp on lunch.”

“Fair enough.” You shook off your shock as you repeated his earlier words and shrugged. “Can’t complain I guess. I trained my work husband too well.”

He scoffed loudly, and the two of you went back to swapping smart ass barbs while he tried to ignore the lingering dip his stomach did when referred to him as “husband”.

Thurs:

Angel was a grown man, with years of grown man experience, yet he was sitting on the edge of his bed feeling like a teenager again.

The end of your stay was nearing, and every time he thought about you going back home, he felt weird. He was pretty sure that’s why he’d been a little snappy and annoyed easily at the club the past couple days. He just wasn’t ready to delve into that too much.

Regardless, he had to admit you had some growing effect over him. All morning, while he should’ve been resting and preparing for a charter visit, he was fighting off hard-ons thanks to you.

“Can I borrow your kitchen for the day Angel?” He mimicked your voice in a nasally mocking tone. “I’ll save you some when I’m done baking.”

He’d thought nothing of it when you asked the night before. Really didn’t even feel like you had to at that point.

He realized why when he saw that the desserts you were making for your friend’s brunch were elaborate as hell. The effort took all your attention, and unfortunately for him, his too.

You were baking a lot more than dessert and didn’t even know it.

Now he was hiding in his room, fighting off arousal he knew wasn’t appropriate. You weren’t his and he wasn’t yours.

That didn’t change the fact that you in a short silk lounge set, singing in French (how the hell did you know French?), doing domestic things in his home, did it for him.

He ran a hand over his hair, still damp from his cold shower, and forced himself to finish getting dressed. He had to be ready to face a room of dangerous bikers and prove his patched in worth. He couldn’t be thinking of weird little fantasies and parallels to his parent’s marriage.

He must’ve zoned out again, because you startled him enough to almost make him hit his wardrobe.

“Oh my god Angel try this! I think I did magic.” You excitedly thrust a red cookie his way.

Angel took the offered treat, and found it was a red velvet cookie. “It’s fucking good mi dulce.”

“Really?” You looked so hopeful, so beautiful, that he would’ve lied if the situation called for it.

“Yes, but you know you kill it in the kitchen.” He turned away to put on the flannel he’d fished out.

Now you were in his personal space, smelling amazing, and all his senses were under attack. He couldn’t trust Angel jr. at the moment.

“Baking is different. It’s a whole thing for me...I go all in.”

“I noticed your little Broadway production in my kitchen.” He kneeled down, pretending to look for his shoes as something to do while you were there.

“Don’t shame me.” You pressed your foot into his back, gently pushing him. “It makes for better results.”

‘shit.’ He cursed mentally at the contact.

Luckily, he heard you turn to leave the room. “Oh, EZ said to tell you to hurry up or pick up your phone.”

He rose up once you were gone and checked his phone. Sure enough, he had several missed calls and texts from Gilly, Coco, and EZ. He cursed aloud this time and finished getting ready, determined not to get distracted again.

Of course, his boys having to physically come in and get him when he did just that destroyed that promise.

Fri:

It had come down to the last night of your stay with him, and what he thought was a favor to a good friend, turned out to be more for his benefit.

The hell with the club seemed so far away when he was home now, and he’d laughed more times that week than he had the previous few months total.

Tonight though… Tonight had him so in his head he didn’t know if he was coming or going.

You, sensing something was going on with him, had invited EZ and Felipe to dinner. He didn’t know how you got the latter to agree, his dad had never even been in his home before, but you did it. It went over a hell of a lot better than the last time they tried it too.

The missteps that reared their head when his family tried to talk to each other at length were mitigated by you. You were the perfect buffer, able to get them to engage with you and then each other.

He saw his family in an unfamiliar, but favorable light. His father was actually enjoying his time with him in his house. He knew that night wouldn’t have happened if not for you.

Now, as he distractedly dried the dishes you’d washed, listening to you hit all of the high notes in Loving You, it hit him.

‘She should be my wife’ the thought came so quick, and was so loud he almost jumped, confused if it came from him or someone else.

“Hey dishwasher-less!” you nudged him with your hip. “Move those hands.”

“Why can’t we be a thing?” he blurted.

You dropped the silverware you’d been washing, eyes wide and focused on him. “Um..excuse m-…what?”

He knew that wasn’t the most tactful way to introduce his thoughts to you, but it was his way. Fuck…he didn’t even understand them fully himself.

“You heard me querida,” he put the dish down on the counter, turning to you. “When I stayed with you that weekend that my head was all fucked up-“

“Angel.” your tone made it a warning, but he kept going. He was never afraid of a challenge.

“I was inside you so much that weekend I forgot that’s not how I came in this world. I can’t believe I’m saying it out loud, but I felt home cause I was with you-”

“Stop it!” you hit the sink, rattling the contents.

“Fuck that!” he shouted back, startling you both. He stayed silent for a moment before speaking in a calmer tone. “Fuck that. Why can’t we talk about it? Why couldn’t we talk about it then?”

You didn’t say anything, but he saw your chest heaving with adrenaline, and realized you were just as affected by the conversation as he was.

“You just decided it didn’t matter and put it in this space we can’t touch now. It’s all fucked up!”

“Because,” you hissed. “If you remember, it was all over that Adelita chick, and I don’t know what kind of hold she has or had over you, but it was deep.”

He cringed at that, and turned his attention to the light fixture over your head, unable to meet your heated gaze.

“Whatever feelings I have for you Angel, I put them away in a place where I can still be your friend and keep things in perspective.”

“Feelings you have for me?” he latched on to the lack of past tense, hopeful.

You inhaled sharply. “You are having a baby and just got engaged. What is wrong with you?”

“Nothing..I mean a lot, but nothing to do with this. I know-“

“I know,” you pushed away from the sink and reached up to cup his cheeks. “That you’re scared Angel. You’re scared, because you’re gonna take two steps you’ve never taken before at once, and you’re trying to sabotage it.”

He shook his head, taking your hands from his face and holding them tightly in his own. “No..mi dulce, no. I’ve been struggling with this all week, longer if I’m being honest. Tonight sealed it.”

You snorted humorlessly, looking around the kitchen as if something in the room would help you get through to him. “I cook you some big boy meals, and treat your speakers to some musical taste, and you’re ready for vows?”

“Don’t put this all on me. Tell me you don’t feel it. Right here and now, to my face.”

He watched your expression soften, and let you put one hand back on his face, your thumb gently stroking his cheek. “Ok, I can’t do that, but I also can’t just fall into a situation with you either.”

He scoffed and shook his head. “We both know we didn’t just fall into anything. We sat here and let it build and didn’t say shit, and now I have to. This week just made it too real not to.”

He placed his forehead to yours, his own hands cupping your face. “Please…”

He watched you have an internal battle by your changing features before you finally leaned into him. The moment you did, his lips were on yours.

He knew it was more than just a kiss a few seconds in. Everything he’d felt that the previous week was alive and confirmed between you too. He could feel you telling him you had moments like his own.

He palmed your thighs under your sundress before grasping them tightly and lifting you up. He placed you on the counter while you two separated for air. Your chests heaved in unison, and neither of you had to say you wanted the other touching you again before it happened.

He gripped your hair, tilting your head back for access to your neck. The smell of vanilla and cocoa butter surrounded him as he worked his mark all over your skin.

Your legs wrapped around his waist, and you pressed yourself against his jeans.

He hated he couldn’t feel the heat he knew was emitting from your core through the thick material of his jeans, and slid his other hand up your thigh to your panties.

Your entire body twitched when he ran his fingers over you through the thin cloth. It wasn’t just hot it was soaked.

“You need me that bad mami?” he pulled away from your neck, satisfied with his work, and beginning to work at his jeans.

“And quick.” you breathed into his ear, your tone and the sensation making him shudder.

The ache against his jeans didn’t need to be told twice to find its way into your heat. He slid your panties to side and pressed his thumb against you. You jumped, whimpering your need again, and he pulled your panties way from you.

You’d gotten them around one ankle before he was inside of you, and they were no longer your focus.

You clung to each other so tightly there’d be evidence on both of you.

In the quiet, he wondered if your mind was racing with the same thoughts that his was. What now? How do we get this again?

He pressed kisses to your cheek just as he started to move. You inhaled, your nails sliding down his back. Not quite catching the skin, but enough to set him on fire all the same.

He mapped out a rhythm by your whimpers and how you grasped at him until he crafted the right one.

This was the conversation he’d needed. Every thrust from him, every cry from you, every bit of give and take to heighten the other’s pleasure. The two of you were admitting that everything that was between you was deeper, realer than you’d wanted to admit. He loved you, and you loved him, and you were engraving that on one another.

The flirtation, the way you could be yourselves around each other, the heatless jabs. Good friends was always a ruse.

Your face was buried in his neck, and when he felt dampness he knew came from your tears, he hiked your legs higher, moving deeper.

You cried out so loudly it echoed in the kitchen, drowning out the soft crooning of an eighties songstress.

“I know baby, I feel it too.” his voice was choked by the threat of tears of his own.

He’d never been here before. Not with Adelita, not even close with Nails. He was terrified. Terrified for it to end because he never felt so good. Terrified for it to end because it might never happen again.

“Angel..” your voice sounded so small, but it was strong enough to anchor him back with you. “I’m close, I’m so close.”

“Let go,” he encouraged. “Let me have it querida.”

Your body seized up with your release, his name the only thing he caught in your unintelligible babble.

You clenched up repeatedly in the aftershocks, and that drug him over the edge with you, biting your shoulder.

His vision tunneled, pinpricks of pleasure traveling up and down his spine. Your hands smoothed up and down the area, and he realized it was because he was shuddering.

He gripped the counter for support, pulling back slowly. He was searching for a way to ask if he’d changed your mind, but the act hadn’t made words for his thoughts any easier to find.

It didn’t matter, before he could even speak you stopped him. Your eyes were glazed over with tears that had nothing to do with pleasure this time.

“That was all that I can give you Angel. It’s not right, none of this is, but it’s all I can give you.”

AN:

Am I the only one who wishes she had reference photos for their home/club layouts? Lol, it’s such a weird non-factor thing, but still. From memory, I’m pretty sure Angel only has one bedroom though.

No shade, no hate but this was partially inspired by how over Nails Angel looked when she was putting her back into it….🥴

I played with a few canon-timeline things + knocked the dust off my smut writing ability (I’m going under my humiliation rock now, no calls plz)

[noethicalconsumptionunderdisney]

Just saw your delightful post about Laex’s houses and I wondered how you would sort the rest of the family ? Also , @wisteria-lodge wrote a post about Gryffindor / Slytherin that would probably interest you .

Holy shit, I am so sorry this is getting back to you so late, anon!  This got lost in my Drafts and I totally forgot about it until I was recently trying to dig some stuff back up and got slapped in the face with this.  So even though this is months and months (and two Sorting essays lol) later, let me try to answer this the best I can:

(Links to Alex, Justin, and Max and their respective essays, so I don’t have to repeat myself)

Everyone else (...that I bothered to sort at least) below the cut:

All of the other Big Characters:

* Jerry Russo: Slytherin/Ravenclaw.  

Slytherin Primary- He broke off from the wizard world and chose a normal life because he met The One, and figured that being mortal was worth it if it meant being with her, going against what was expected of him from his community, and everything he’d believed about himself in order to do it.  

I also do believe he’s ambitious to an extent about his sub shop-- he certainly seems to care the most about whether it does well, and we know he cares a lot about his family legacy from how upset he was when it seemed that legacy would end (the times the kids might all lose their powers, that time they almost lost their lair).  Beyond that, he doesn’t seem to give much thought to the world outside his family, or even to his long-lost sister, who’s likely been kicked out of his inner circle, so I don’t think saving the world has ever really been a huge priority for him like it is for the kids.

Ravenclaw Secondary- One reason he makes a really good teacher is that he knows and remembers most of the spells the kids need to learn.  What he doesn’t remember, he can always look up in a spellbook, which he has a ton of.  He also has a lot of various magical trinkets that he’s collected over the years.  Plenty of them have value in terms of teaching, but I really do think most of their collection is because he thinks they’re neat.  This is also probably why they have a subway car as part of their sub shop, so that he would have a reason to use it, and therefore have a reason to have it.  

(You could argue Hufflepuff Secondary in regards to how he invests in his business, but even there, he likes to cut a lot of corners and doesn’t seem to feel particularly bad about doing so, as long as he doesn’t get in trouble for it.)

* Theresa Russo: Hufflepuff/Gryffindor.  

Hufflepuff Primary- She could be Slytherin too but I keep circling back to how much she cares about the traditions and cultures she left behind, and how, while she is happy in the life she has with Jerry and her kids, she’s still genuinely sad about losing that connection.  I also think about it in terms of her difficult relationship with Alex, how she calls her mija, how she pushed so hard to give Alex a quinceañera (that she didn’t want), how she was upset that Alex was failing Spanish, and how out of her depth she is with the wizard world.  

It has to sting a bit that her husband’s world, which she has no real connection to outside of him and the kids, has such an impact on everyone’s daily lives, while her world kind of gets left behind, either because the kids aren’t as interested, aren’t as exposed, or because she has to keep her extended family away from her immediate family so that magic doesn’t get exposed, how she has to follow the rules of a world she doesn’t even like that much.  Or perhaps she doesn’t like it because she’s lost so much to it.

Gryffindor Secondary- The Movie in particular solidified this one for me, just the way she gets curious about magic and Jerry and Max’s journey even though she thinks they’re strangers, dives headfirst into it despite Jerry worrying about letting a mortal be part of the adventure, and how she sees a parrot turn into a human, who is clearly Bad News, walks right up to her, and tells her all the shit she’s been put through and why she needs that stone.  

There are great moments from the show, too-- the ones that stick out to me are her talking back to the van Heusens when she knows damn well they’re vampires, and her getting Alex to teleport her to Megan’s so she can stand up for her kids’ right to have their powers, powers she doesn’t even like most of the time.  She definitely has a temper, and it’s usually played for laughs, but I also think it fits because she’s an incredibly brave person, and while there are definitely times when she runs away scared, more often than not she’ll stand her ground even in times of danger (and probably a few times where she maybe should’ve been more careful...).

* Harper Finkle: Slytherin/Hufflepuff

(Note: I like to think of this one as the Best Friend sorting, because it’s used a lot with Main Character’s Best Friend (and the Girl Friday, but this is Disney Channel so that’s not as common here), and because that combination tends to make for some pretty damn good ones.)

Slytherin Primary- I think it’s very possible Harper has a Hufflepuff Primary Model here, because it took me some thinking and rewatching to decide this, but nah, Harper’s best friends with Alex for a reason, and it’s not out of, like, the goodness of her heart or whatever.  Harper does like being part of things -- she enjoys being part of the Russo family, she enjoys being in clubs in a way Alex doesn’t get, she was excited to be invited to Gigi’s tea party because she thought she was being included in their “high society lady” rituals -- and she likes doing the nice, kind, good thing, but on the occasions where she does act purely in her own self-interest, she doesn’t feel the least bit guilty about it.  

We see this side of her more in seasons 3 and 4, but as early as season 2, we see her taking advantage of Cupid’s arrow making Justin fall for her even after Alex informs her of the situation (and only starting to hate it when she gets tired of his clinging, not for ethical or compassionate reasons), happily accepting the ribbons that make Alex’s Gryffindor squirm, because “it’s about time she got some appreciation,” and deciding she’ll continue to work for the vampires that just tried to eat her and her best friend because she “kinda needs the job” (honestly, mood tho).

Hufflepuff Secondary- More often than not, it seems Harper is taken advantage of rather than the one taking advantage, though, and I think this is why.  Working hard makes her feel good!  Being dependable makes her feel good!  She’s upset when it’s revealed that Alex used magic to help her win at everything she tried when she was little, and that she’s actually bad at those things.  She cares about earning her accomplishments, not just getting them.  She has a perfect attendance record and she cares about it a lot.  And that’s the core of what a Hufflepuff Secondary is: show up every day, and try as hard as you can.

She also prides herself on her moral support.  She’s generally willing to drop everything to help Alex and the thing she got the most furious with Alex for saying was that she was a bad friend.  This ties back to the Slytherin Primary thing, but I think it has a lot to do with how much work she puts into everything, and how much work she does for Alex, when Alex won’t do her own, and she doesn’t even mind doing it, maybe even likes doing it, as long as she gets credit for her dedication.  Luckily, Alex does appreciate her as a friend, even if she doesn’t show it as often as she probably should, and has her moments where she’ll come through for Harper too.

* Juliet van Heusen: Ravenclaw/Gryffindor.

Ravenclaw Primary- She goes against her natural instincts to hunt humans and instead sticks to animals as the more “ethical” path.  Granted, she was given a soul by her parents, which both helps her blend in better and might be what leads to her more ethical behavior, but I do think her Ideals are something she chose to live by, rather than something that was given to her, and I think part of why she likes Justin is that she connects with him intellectually, so I lean Ravenclaw for her Primary.  

Gryffindor Secondary- She tends to be pretty forthright and brutally honest a lot of the time.  She tells her parents she’s dating Justin by just... shouting that she likes him and then running back to tell him, she answers Zeke’s question about a horse-drawn carriage by implying that she killed them (for context, he’s a mortal), and she motivates Justin to win by bluntly telling him she’ll have to break up with him if he loses his powers.  She’s restrained enough to keep her vampire secret, but... not very restrained outside of that.

* Mason Greyback: Slytherin/Gryffindor.  

Slytherin Primary- His main motivation seems to be Alex, and he’s very singlemindedly dedicated to her most of the time.  The only times I can think of where he isn’t focused on her is in that first episode, when he wants to paint dogs, and only gets focused on her when she casts a spell on him, and in that moment where he sees Juliet again and confesses his undying love (oops).  He says afterwards that werewolves are “very loyal,” and I think based on the episode where we meet Mason’s parents, we can infer that that means “loyal to their own,” as they don’t like him dating a non-werewolf.  They might not include Alex in their definition of “their own,” but Mason clearly does, and puts her above everything, even citing her as his main motivation to “stay good” against Gorog’s influence.

Gryffindor Secondary-  For his impulsivity and temper, yes, but also for his dedication to Big Romantic Gestures, which I think are the ultimate Gryffindor Secondary love language.  Not that other Secondaries can’t perform them, but I think with Gryffindors it’s more likely to be a regular thing.  He tries to be more subtle in the apartment arc and it comes out more passive-aggressive, and then he ends up Doing The Big Thing anyway, like breaking the elevator in desperation or running to Bermuda to save Alex.  Even the big sculpture he makes Alex for their anniversary earlier that season, while it does take a lot of time and effort, there’s still this element of just throwing yourself wholeheartedly into something and focusing exclusively on the thing until the thing gets done (to the point of neglecting everything else) that feels more to me like Gryffindor Secondary’s battering ram than Hufflepuff Secondary’s slow and steady tortoise.

...+ a few others I thought were relevant:

* Zeke Beakerman: Ravenclaw/Ravenclaw.  To his own detriment, even: when he runs for president against Justin, he ends up voting... for Justin, because he really thought it through and Decided that Justin would probably be the better leader.  (And then retracts it because he’s morally opposed to Justin not voting.)  It’s played for laughs, but I think that does show he puts ethics before himself (and... possibly before reason.  Such are Idealists, lol).  He also likes to gather a lot of obscure knowledge and hobbies such as clogging, collecting skills because he finds learning them fun.  Ravenclaw, through and through.

* Stevie Nichols: Gryffindor/Slytherin.  Perhaps a much more stark example than Alex on both sides: more unscrupulous and more mischievous on the Slytherin side, more committed to her Cause and her Ideals on the Gryffindor side.  They bond over their shared Slytherin-ness, naturally meeting in detention because where else, and I actually think their shared Gryffindor is what ultimately comes between them- Stevie wants to convert Alex to her Cause, Alex freezes her and lets her die (maybe?) because she believes her Cause is evil.  Because unfortunately, sharing the same emphasis on Ideals and method for determining them, doesn’t always mean you’ll have the same ones.

* Rosie: Slytherin/Slytherin.  She lies to Justin when she meets him, saying she’s a wizard, when she’s actually an angel, and it doesn’t get much better from there.  She turns her wings white around Justin and acts good right up until she has him, then she starts influencing him to turn bad, so when it’s revealed she’s an Angel of Darkness, he’s too far gone to be upset.  But that Slytherin loyalty works both ways -- while his Slytherin loyalty to her made him do bad things and join the Angels of Darkness, her Slytherin loyalty to him made her convince Alex to save him, because she’d fallen in love with him for real and wasn’t okay with Gorog disposing of him once he’d outlived his usefulness, and that caused her to turn on Gorog for good, and then For Good, when she rejoined the Good Angels.  Just as she was the one who turned Justin to the dark side, she’s the one who turned him back to the light, and I think they were able to have this influence on each other because of that shared understanding of Slytherin loyalty.

... And I think that’s more than enough for now!  It’s been fun to think about all this, and even better to finally share it.  Again, sorry it took so long, but hope you enjoyed!

(P.S.: Btw, totally agree on that Gryffindor/Slytherin post-- it fits Alex so well (though definitely more the Jack Sparrow/Lovable Rogue variety).  I’m glad you see it, too!)

[stormyknight-writing]

A young prince and his knight ride on a quiet road headed towards the town of Ennehal. The prince, demanding as he is, has asked to be brought to town - with an escort, of course. The library held within the walls of the grand castle, filled to the brim with books, is not enough. As one with so much free time as the youngest prince, he has read near to every book in its possession.

The small town lies some ways away from the largest of the royal castles, and as such is a long ride. To the knight’s chagrin, this means plenty of time for the prince to talk. Often eloquent and fast-talking, the prince is barely understandable for the knight. The quick speaking quickly turns to mush, no matter the knight’s repeated encouragement to enunciate.

“Lorenz! Were you listening?” He calls from behind in his usual, sing-song tone. “Are we nearing the town? This saddle is far too wide and firm. My usual is being mended, so I have to use this rubbish.” Always complaining, he is.

Peering past the trees, the knight - Lorenz - tries to give him even a rough guess to stop his prince��s moaning. “Perhaps a half of an hour? It is hard to guess, what with the thick foliage.”

He hums. “Oh, but it is beautiful, isn’t it?”He spurs his horse up to Lorenz’s side.

“Yes, I suppose so.”

The prince finally quiets down, for a spell. But once the town is within sight, he pipes up once again. “Oh, I wonder what new books they have! In such a town like this, they must have something worth reading, no? I’ve gotten oh-so bored of reading the same however-many books at the castle. Do you have any suggestions, Lorenz?”

“I doubt that I share any interests in literature with you, my prince.” While that is true enough, in reality, he spends the majority of his time reading far too many romantic novels for someone of his age and position.

“Oh, pish! I bet you knights read good books. Well, if you even read.”

“We do read, my prince. We simply do not have the time to do so as often as you do.” The dirt and gravel below soon turns to cobble, and as it does, townspeople begin to crowd. Any members of the royal family rarely goes into the surrounding towns, especially in such a simple state and with so few companions as he.

Lorenz dismounts his horse, practiced and as elegant as a lanky, slightly clumsy man as he. A hand is extended to the prince---such small legs give difficulty.

If Michael didn’t insist on such a large horse, this problem wouldn’t be seen.

“No, no, I can do it myself. Must make a good impression, shouldn’t I?” he whispers, swinging one leg over his horse. “I am getting better at it, too.”

“Yes, but a prince falling off of his horse and onto the stone would make a worse impression than getting help from his knight. His personal knight, might I add? Here to make sure he is safe?” But, despite his chastisement, Lorenz brings his hand back to himself but keeps an eye on the prince. He gets off, descending with a thud.

He heads towards the large crowd, making pleasantries of small waves and hellos. Lorenz, knowing his place, heads off towards the stables to hitch the two horses---not without making sure the prince is within his sight, of course. Behind him are young men and women alike squealing about him---why they would, Lorenz has got no idea---and how they adore young Michael Kilian Grünewald.

He’s just a little brat, really. Doing anything he wants, and most of that seems to be pestering me, and getting the attention of common people.

When Lorenz approaches, Michael quickly turns around. “Oh, Lorenz! Let’s go in, shall we?” He pulls Lorenz’s hand tight to his side. It stays stiff and nervous. “I think I know where the library is, so follow me!”

He hums while he leads Lorenz into the library, seeming to know exactly where to go. Once he seemingly finds the right section, he lets go and gets to browsing the books. “You may go, Lorenz. I think I’m quite safe in the library, no?”

He stays at that until the sun begins to set, long past when others around have been pushed out. Lorenz approaches him with not a lick of stealth from his heavy boots and, although thin, loud chain armor. “My prince, I believe that we should get going. At this rate, you may be late for supper.”

“I’m not one bit hungry,” he closes his book and sighs, “But I suppose you are right. Don’t want anyone worrying about me, do we?”

“Indeed. And, you have lessons early in the day, so you need rest.”

“Ugh, do I really? I’ve learned damn near everything there is to know about every subject there is to teach me. And I’ve two years until I am an adult---two more years of this teaching.”

“Language. It is important, though, even to go over things you already know.” He pauses to help Michael onto his horse, “When I train I still go over even the most basic footwork.”

“This isn’t fighting. It’s just how to speak, who to speak to, and other rubbish like that. As if I didn’t already know all of that.”

Lorenz sighs, but keeps his mouth closed. Even but another word will keep Michael talking about this for hours, and he’s even more annoying when he’s trying to make a point rather than talking about nothing but his interests.

[rayinberkeley]

I'm confiscating the word LITERALLY from the English language

Yes, we all know that person who is "literally" this, and "literally" that, all the time. It's a word as mindlessly used as when people just learned a big word and want to stick it into every sentence to sound smart. Or as thoughtless as how people respond to everything, no matter how shocking (or even not slightly surprising) with, "Oh my god!" I've known people who say it with just as much gusto if they see someone getting hit by a car in the street, as they would if they saw a pair of shoes they want on sale. 

 And I don't just mean people using "literally" when they are saying something that can only be taken as figuratively. That is problematic, but is hardly the crux of the problem. I mean those who think they're technically using it correctly, but in fact, would be better off if they just abandoned this word all together.

Those of you overusing the word, literally, in the stupidest ways imaginable lately have begun to drive me out of my freakin' mind. And clearly I am not the only one to have noticed its rising use, worse than when teenage girls use the word like as every other word of all their damned sentences:

Now please notice I didn't say you're "literally driving me out of my mind," because obviously that's NOT how that word is used. Clearly "out of your mind" is a figurative use of words. Yes, I know this. But that's not even the biggest problem with people over-using this word.

Apparently it's not new to misuse this word, as the following video demonstrates, showing the many people in literary history who have done the same...

So if above I'd said teenage girls used "like" as "literally every other word," that would be believable hyperbole, but I didn't use it there because it's just stupid and unnecessary to do so. I refrained. Please do the same.

Besides, in that case, it's not really needed for hyperbole. It's not witty when you people use it in this manner. It's merely this crazy trend for people to use it constantly without any thought whatsoever. It's the opposite of witty. It's witless. Notice I didn't say it's literally witless because there's NO NEED to use the word there. The sentence functioned just fine without it.

Again, everyone is aware of the way it's incorrectly used by people like Zack here:

But even still, I don't even care if you're using it in what you think is a technically correct way according to a dictionary, or if you're using it in some intended hyperbole. I'm pulling the plug on this word NOW.

Listen up people. There's a way that this word is meant to be used and a reason most of you are not intelligent enough to do so correctly. And that reason actually cannot be stated through cold dictionary terminology. The only reason for this word to be used is to differentiate from the figurative meaning of a literary phrase.

Are you constantly doing this? Then you're using a word you don't need in a way that isn't even for its purpose. It's just verbal filler.

A literary phrase, such as blind as a bat, is a phrase used so often that it's become known as a dead metaphor. When you are going to use such a phrase, but you really mean it in the literal sense rather than the figurative, only then does it make sense to use the word literally. That's the ONLY reason to ever use this word.

Notice I did not say, "That's literally the ONLY reason to ever use this word," because that would make no goddamned sense whatsoever, yet this is the manner in which you people keep using it.

Not everything in life is literary. Not everything in life has a dead metaphor behind it that you need to distinguish your overblown thing you're talking about so as to differentiate it from a figurative meaning. Not everything you do is a literary moment. You "literally just went to the store," but I don't understand how you can figuratively go to the store, or why you going to a store would be such a moment of literary worth that you should want to add such emphasis. Just say, "I JUST went to the store," if you wish to add emphasis that you were just there, because "just" does the job for you.

Of the past 100 times that I've heard the word used, I would have to say that merely 3 or 4 of those times had the word used correctly. (Notice I didn't say "literally 3 or 4 times" because there is no reason to. The word is NOT supposed to be synonymous with "merely" or "virtually" or other emphasis words, despite what that lady in the above video said. I said merely. It did the job just fine. I wanted to put emphasis on the number, but I didn't use literally to do so, like you all seem to do all the time, because THAT'S NOT WHAT THAT WORD IS FOR!!!!!

Imagine if I'd just learned the word, "anthropic," and I read in the dictionary that it means, "of or relating to human beings," and I realize, I'm a human being. Technically it means I am anthropically writing this blog post. Are you going to argue with me that I'm a human being? Well I am! So I'm anthropically using the word right, and you are just anthropically a moron if you think otherwise!

Does that sound dumb? It is dumb. It's what you're doing with "literally" in every sentence. If I said that all the time, you'd be like, "Why is this guy constantly confirming that he's a human being?" You'd be suspicious that maybe I wasn't, and I was hiding the fact, and you'd probably call for scientists to do experiments on me because I might be from outer space. It comes across as a little desperate for you to be convinced I'm human and not a brain-eating invader from the planet Zirploxicon.

So why are you constantly begging people to believe you really mean the words you're using? It comes across as desperate, like your words are carelessly thrown out, but this time you're not being a word salad tosser.

Before you ever again use the word, literally, please ask yourself if you're using it for its actual particular purpose. I'll give you an example of its proper use, where it makes sense to say it:

"I really didn't want to stay through the entire show. I was just there to see the number where my sister sang her song and then I left. So you can literally say it was over for me when the fat lady sings."

If the answer is no... then DON'T FUCKING USE THE WORD! If you're offended that I just fat shamed my sister, you never met her. She deserves it.

You'll notice you probably don't need any word in most of the moments when you do use it. Your words probably stand on their own. Trust more often that they do. Like when I said I haven't heard the word used correctly the past 95 out of 100 times I've heard it used. That right there said all I needed to say. To add literally is to add an unnecessary word that is only being used stupidly anyway.

In the example above, there is a proverbial or figurative saying that something isn't over until "the fat lady sings." In other words, people often use that saying even if there's a situation that's over, but nobody's singing, and nobody's fat, and there might not even be a lady involved at all.

In this sentence the speaker is actually differentiating between the figurative by saying that he means an actual fat lady is singing, and therefore, his interest in the play is literally over at that point. This is the only reason you'll ever truly need to use this word.

Why do I keep repeating myself? Because I want this shit to sink in to your skull. I do not want it to literally sink into your skull, no, but I also feel no need to say that I want it to figuratively sink into your skull, because you already know what I mean. No reason to use literally or figuratively there. None whatsoever.

Literal and figurative are opposites. You only need to use either if you are making yourself clear which of the two you mean, much like in osteology the word distal and aproximal are opposites. You have no need to constantly use either of those words all the time to add emphasis to things that are neither distant or close by, do you?

Am I getting through to you here?

These are literary devices, used for rhetorical purposes. Your life is not so fucking profound that everything in it is literary. You don't literally go down to the store, and that's because you've never figuratively gone down to the store. You just go to the fucking store, okay? You don't need to add drama to going to the story. You don't need to add "oh my god" to everything you do either, because not everything about your every day experience requires you harken to a deity! And even when you do want to add emphasis, please add dramatic words that make some goddamned sense. Like, "I practically just went to the store," or "Wow, you won't believe what I just saw at the store."

So let's stop using the word all together. Because let's face it, I really can't trust you to use it correctly. And again, notice I didn't say "I literally can't trust you" because THAT'S..... NOT..... HOW..... YOU..... USE..... THAT..... WORD!!!!!!!!

[vikinglanguage]

for the asks: #s 4 6 8 9 10 & 11!

4. How old were you when you first started learning a second language? What language was it?When I was 9, I started mandatory English in school. Even before that I knew a few very basic phrases, and I distinctively remember telling my mum “I love you” when I was like 6, and her saying “I love you too”, which then stuck with me.Even before that, my sister taught me to say “me llamo Amalie” and “¿cómo te llamas?”, when we went to Spain when I was 5 years old, but that was the only Spanish I knew from ages 5 to 15.

6. What’s something you have a hard time expressing in your target language(s)?Oh, like, everything. My primary target language is currently German, but I’m also keeping Spanish in mind here.I think what really frustrates me about language is that I generally just really don’t enjoy small talk. Like, to me a good conversation is about culture, politics, linguistics, literature, things I find interesting. And I just never get to a level where I can talk about those subjects, because I NEED to have a certain base level before I get to that. In order to conjugate verbs and remember to use the right definite article I need to practice it, but I’m just not interested in repeating sentences like “sie sieht den Vogel” or “tenía cinco años”. Unfortunately that is a stage I need to pass before learning more complex vocabulary, because first I have to start utilising the vocabulary that I have already.Yes, I know that as someone learning on my own, I am very much in charge of which order I learn things in, but I think that really, my main problem is that I have yet to find an order that fits my needs.I’m just so god damn annoyed that I can’t seem to figure it out, because clearly I must’ve gotten something right when I was learning English, especially after ages 12-13.

8. Are you a grammar snob in your native language(s)?Somewhat. While I largely think that the grammar rules should be adapted to fit a language as it currently is, there are just some things that annoy me. And I will correct people on those things, if I know that it’s an opening to poke fun around grammar or other language things, or just to exasperate my mum.For an example, in Danish we have the difference between “hans/hendes” and “sin”, which I think is a really good an useful difference, that also plays nicely into the concept of “sig”, and I would prefer to preserve that as part of the Danish language. Likewise, I think it’s a great shame that a word such as “hin” (an old word equivalent to “that” (actually I guess somewhat like “yon” or spanish “aquél”), nowadays we just use “den” for both “this” and “that”)However, I will never correct the grammar of someone who has made it clear that they might struggle with grammar for whatever reason, or really, just anyone whom I don’t know that well and didn’t ask for correction. Unsolicited grammar advice sucks, unless you’re gently bullying your sibling or Austrian flatmate.

9. Language pet peeve?I have so many, most of them related to Danish. A lot of them are just people not being able to, you know, speak.-saying hångklæde instead of håndklæde or promade instead of pomade-using syntes and synes interchangeably (syntes is past tense of synes)-messing up hans/hendes vs sin-people saying et hamster instead of en hamster-people who say that meme is intetkøn, because fuck you its fælleskøn and I do not take constructive criticism.-people who claim that “English is actually one of the hardest languages to learn!”, shut up, you barely have any grammar worth speaking of and your sentence structure is so straightforward it’s almost laughable. Sure, the spelling is awful, but have you seen Danish? Have you HEARD French? If you speak a romance or germanic language I very much doubt that English is hard.-PEOPLE WHO MAKE FUN OF THE ACCENTS OF STRANGERS. SHUT UP. AT LEAST THEY’RE TRYING TO SPEAK YOU’RE LANGUAGE WHICH IS PROBABLY MORE THAN CAN BE SAID ABOUT YOU.-people from the south of Spain. Stop that. There’s an s there. Please say the s. I beg of you. It’s right there. Spanish is supposed to be easy to pronounce. THE S IS RIGHT THERE.-when someone claims I’m not pronouncing a Danish word correctly because I don’t speak what would be the Danish version of RP.-generally people thinking dialects are bad (nb: yes, there’s a lot to unpack with pet peeves and dialects vs. the “correct” version of a language, i know, i know, i know)-people who think I’m being aggressive because I don’t use emoji’s when texting-people claiming that text can’t even come close to conveying emotion and meaning in the same way that speech canI could probably make this ten miles long if I wanted, but I’m gonna have to call it quits here.

10. What’s your opinion on learning dead languages?I think it’s so fucking cool. Hebrew was a dead language until someone thought to revive it. I say it’s time we bring back Punic. Or something. Idk, I think learning dead languages is a really interesting concept, seeing as the insight it gives into long gone cultures and just the concept of speaking a language that NO ONE is a native speaker of? win. Who’s to say you’re wrong? The scholars? Were they alive in 200 AD, I don’t think so.

11. Who is one person (famous or not) that is a language-learning inspiration for you?Both of my parents, as well as my sister. All three speak fluent English and are somewhat conversational in German, and my mother can somewhat get by in Spanish, Italian and French.My Austrian flatmate who of course speaks German (both standard and her own western Austrian dialect WHICH IS VERY DIFFERENT), English, has good French comprehension and is well on the way to learning Danish.I hate to go on and on about MIKA on every single one of my blogs, but MIKA, being fluent in English, French and Italian (arguably Spanish, depending on who you ask), having picked up Italian just like, along the way. I really like the fact that he writes texts not just in English, but in French as well, and, as of more recently, Italian.Following that thread, I appreciate people who write pop in their native tongue. Not everything has to be English, I mean Denmark won Eurovision with Dansevisen because it was A GOOD SONG. Not because anyone knew what the fuck the text was about, but because THE MUSIC was good. Also I cried on the bus the first time I listened to Elsker Dig Mer by Oh Land, because it just hit so much harder than Love You Better. Why didn’t the hard rock barefoot fire Hungarians win ESC 2018? Evades me.

[horanggae]

hi my dear aera! (=^･ｪ･^=)

wow, your major is so cool! what made you decide studying psych sci? aww, yes it was!!<3 a fun fact about me is that my grandparents also have their birthdays on july a few days before and after mine so that’s why we celebrate all together! yes, they mainly serve breakfast dishes (everything related with eggs and bacon) and they’re mainly famous because of their pancakes!! but every time I go there I usually order chicken tenders or burgers because I’m not so keen to eating scramble eggs outside home (i hope this doesn’t sound too weird). oh, may I know when its your birthday? is it soon? I kinda feel your birthday was on spring because you give me warm vibes.

oh really? that sounds so easy, i really thought it was something more complicated (*μ_μ) thanks for the help!! you’re pisces!! (i just googled the dates between this sign and you might be a baby born in spring or late winter!!). I’m glad you don’t know who am I yeeet! (I swear I have pressed the damn follow button around three times already?? instead of your inbox, i’m really clumsy (＞﹏＜) oh, and are you good with handling alcohol? actually I don’t drink any type of alcohol, I only have tasted strawberry soju (it was really good but definitely burned up my throat) and radler’s! (germany’s lemon beer, and it is really good).

I do count this asks as convos! that’s so nice to read!! (I really try to always send you nice asks so I’m really happy that you get to experience some of my feelings and emotions) no way aera!, but I consider you such a good english speaker? I really thought you were from north america or europe because of your way of writing and the use of some words I have never read before! May I ask when did u became so good with english? I bet you’re really good with your mother tongue! thanks for the recommendations! I’ll try to write some drabbles this last vacation days!

oh it’s really cool to read your type of sleeping! for me once I lay down I completely die and wake up until the very next day, so I’m a heavy sleeper (alarms never work for me unless I have something pretty important like an exam or a vacation trip, and when I’m really worried about something).

oh! me too<3 on real life (well not real? just in person lol) I really tend to talk a lot so I’m glad I’m not overwhelming you with all of my questions and writing! thank u for the nice wishes, obviously I wish you to stay safe as well ^^ oh so you’re also fully protected now! did u get any side effects after the two shoots? I couldn’t move my arm for the whole day haha. oh my I have never thought about living the y/n lifestyle?? maybe I am??

this is already so long and I haven’t answered your questions, i’m deeply sorry!

oh I would totally love to see you become part of the performance unit!! and also if you really get to marry hao can I go to your wedding? (･ω<)☆  shipping expenses are really the worst way of spending money (｡╯︵╰｡)

time to reply back!!

what’s in the ihop menu & your favorite item on it? – somehow I already replied to this question at the beginning! ^^ but it is chicken tenders with dip of honey mustard!

astro sign? – i’m leo!

do you like alcohol? if yes, what type and/or brand! – haha, again I already talked about this! I don’t dislike it but I’m also not the greatest fan? and the only one I like drinking is any brand of radler beer! (I don’t have so much experience with alcohol) a small fact: I started to drink alcohol only two years ago when I was studying abroad!

which unit would you like to join? – vocal unit!! I would love to be part of the creating process of writing a song and also would love to learn how to sing (I don’t know how to sing but I would love to learn from any of the members!! specially dk’s!!)

kiss, date, marry: hoshi, jun & dino!! – i see what you have done here      ♡( ◡‿◡ ) i would kiss dino, date hoshi and marry jun. (I think of dino as someone to take care of, for hoshi I think it would be kinda overwhelming because he deserves a lot and also is kinda highly demanding? and for jun, he’s my type! tall, funny, smart and caring<3.)

your fave album? – teen age or you make my dawn! both albums have some of my all time favorite tracks also the special units on teen age are something worth repeating!!

your current stash of svt goods or maybe are you starting collect rn? – I happen to also pay a lot on shipping and I also recently started to like svt, so far I have bought some albums along with my sister who’s also a big fan (we have one of each of this albums: semicolon, director’s cut, an ode, henggarae and for your choice we bought the three versions!) I think I’m only missing their first ver. of lightstick because its the prettiest lightstick I have ever seen! (also my bank account suffers every time I buy something (╥_╥).

how is it working at your sister’s cafe? (any out of the ordinary happening (✷‿✷) – it’s really great! i love spending time there and I also love to work with coffee! I also enjoy preparing food (we sell salads and sandwiches). I think asia’s cafe’s are something from another world? they are so pretty and have such a wide variety of drinking options! i really enjoy bubble tea drinks! do u like milk tea with boba?

this is really long, please take all the time you need to reply and don’t feel obligated to answer all of it (I just wanted to share all my thoughts with you)!! I hope you’re having a great week, wishing you a lot of health and happiness, also a lot of luck with your college homework! (≧◡≦) ♡

–f🐯❤️

hello f🐯❤️ how are you doing!

IHOP sounds like a nice place to chill before classes and probably late into the night... Naw it doesn't weird though, it's your preference! I don't eat prawns outside of home either, I just find it icky(?). You're right!!!! I'm a spring march baby! I swear I never receive notifications from you at all? Only recently the one I saw was tmttxt (?) but I think they changed their username so I can't find out now when I tried searching for them again. (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)

I've always wanted to learn and understand the human mind more when I was in high school but my grades didn't allow me to pursue psychology in college (in my country you'll have to be the top percentile to get into courses like psych) so I ended up diverging from what I want, to something that piqued my interest as a child, which was design. Loved it as a pastime and as a getaway but I couldn't churn anything out for assignments. I decided to just follow what I really wanted in uni since I was still set on studying psych even after meeting with a college guide + I had a window of opportunity and now here I am as a year 1! ( ꈍᴗꈍ)

I enjoy alcohol but my tolerance level isn't high :-( so I usually drink with caution unless I'm with the people I trust! I prefer cider more though bc of the crisp and light taste! Talking to you feels like a writing to a penpal; we are living our own respective lives, but we make time for each other to write back!!! I enjoy talking to you sm like there isn't any pressure to immediately reply back and it's really like receiving a letter but in asks form!! ❤️❤️❤️

English is my first language, but i kinda winged it the entire time when I was younger! I learned a lot of English words from reading; I was an avid reader until I was 17 when I started using smartphones, my reading habit disappeared. But when it comes to grammar and sentence structure, embarrassingly, I'm extremely bad at it. (´ . .̫ . `) my vocabulary is pretty strong bc of the books I've read over the years! I just started picking up reading again and have just finished the miracles of namiya general store & the seventh day, both recommended by wonwoo! I'm so happy I managed to read a little everyday and still retaining the same eagerness and anticipation (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)

Do link me your drabbles if you ever do write, I'd love to read your works!!! ( ◜‿◝ )♡ aw man i wish I was a heavy sleeper like before ㅠ ㅠ feels like growing older made me a light sleeper. The first was worst in terms of soreness, the second was mild— felt like they didn't administer the vaccine at all ahskskdlflr but I did felt a little feverish during the night but everything is fine! How about you, are you feeling better now?? If I ever get married to hao that is (≧ ᴗ ≦) but I'd love for hao to just be a friend who I can speak freely to under the stars hehe.

I realised I haven't asked about your major, also why did you pick that major?

I hope you're doing well in the cafe! Damn, makes me wanna work in a cafe too... There's vacancy at my uni's Starbucks but it's too far of a commute for me to consider </3 ㅠ ㅠI hope interesting things happen at the cafe so that it spice up your vacation break hehe.

[dwestfieldblog]

THOSE WHO DO NOT WANT TO HEAR MUST FEEL

This temporary apocalypse could be seen as a globally overdue Long Night of the Soul, an initiation of sorts which might result in a deeper understanding of what actually matters for human evolution (despite the very best efforts of the scum who are trying to reverse any spiritual progress because it weakens their hold.) There are several ways in which the negative side could truly take over, starting with the horror nightmare prospect of DT (aka ‘Just Another Scumbag’ as Bannon once called him) re ‘elected’. The realistic pessimist in me is sure that if he wins, this planet in this dimension is finished. His winning will be a final signal to the world to give us up. In my lifetime, we have never been so close to the mass breakout of totalitarianism and utter lack of empathy than we are now. Actual fascist populists, not some wet Liberal bleating but the real thing, ready to go live. Covid has bankrupted hundreds of thousands of businesses, millions have lost their jobs, migration from the truly poor and dangerous countries continues...into the becoming poor and dangerous countries. Those who live there and are already ruined by the disasters in every home will be easy prey for the populists. Speaking of whom...

Steve Bannon has spent a great deal of time and other people’s money in setting up a network to overthrow the (arf arf arf) ‘deep state’ and replace it with... a new deeper state...still run by the rich, who will use the populists, who in turn will use the mass of the angry and frightened...etc etc...And power, as most people recognise it, will stay in the hands of the unhuman swine with the most gold and the least soul. WER NICHT HOREN WILL, MUSS FUHLEN...

‘...the human nervous system properly programmed, can edit and orchestrate all experience into any gestalt it wishes. We encounter the same dismal and depressing experiences over and over again because they are repeating tape loops in the central programmer of our brains. We can encounter ecstasy over and over by learning the neurosciences that orchestrate all in coming signals into ecstatic tape loops.’ R.A.Wilson. Prometheus Rising, Hilaritas Press.

It takes a lot of effort and Will to do this but what else is worth it other than to attempt to break out of the vicious cycle and evolve? Even I have managed this when I focus on choosing it. Giving up ingrained behavioural habits often hurts; this is, however, a choice. It doesn’t have to unless you are a masochist.

Flew to England for three weeks in August, full flight sold out, all of us wore masks (apart from one 6 foot 6 mad eyed American who kept pacing up and down the cabin.) Right up to the point where we were all given a bottle of water, some crisps and two biscuits...All masks off at the same time, all passengers attempting not to breathe while we drank and ate. Love seeing how many in both countries wear masks under their nose or even only on their chin. As Bill Hicks would say ‘Any questions why we’re f.....d up as a race?’ As Jonathan Pie does say; ‘Put a f...... mask on.’ I have been coughing since February, and drinking heavily, so not especially optimistic about getting C19.

I avoided almost all of the news while in UK, watched five minutes in total on the TV and only read headlines in the paper. It was enough. Since I have been back in Prague I have continued to avoid the news other than that which I am told by friends and students but I can tell from daily receiving over one hundred emails that things are truly breaking. Hexagram 23 and total Weltschmerz is upon us. Mental health is twisting up globally. One by one, all my friends are suffering serious damage, one way or another. Hearts are breaking apart and many damnable souls, who should be burning, are not. People are afraid to breathe or to embrace, looking to the very worst set of leaders in my lifetime for answers and being manipulated en masse to mass crises.  

(Jaz Coleman....On the Day the Earth went Mad...watch the video, listen. Feel. Weep. Rage. Change.) QUI NOLERUNT AUDIRE DEBERE SENTIRE.

Love the interviews I saw with those who voted for Trump and realised they made a mistake...after FOUR YEARS. What clued them in? Which particular excremental atrocity of his foulness gave them the alert? Will the Electoral College let him ‘win’? Before I left, I saw the Trump interview where he said ‘It is what it is’, with regard to the massive number of deaths in the USA. ‘We are below the world’. Blood pressure rising, I even checked his Twitter account where he published two letters, one from the eternally unlovely NRA and the other from the American Police Federation, assuring him he was the best president to ever serve their interest and they would back him to the hilt. His plan to stir the US up into open civil war continues and Putin sits back and smiles. As does Jared it seems, the smug sadist advisor in the same style as (England’s off Broadway Trump) Boris’s Dominic Cummings.  Herd Immunity? Well yes it might work at some point after a few years and millions dead. You evil alien bastards. The  main individuals in the British Government will make millions from a no deal Brexit, perfect timing. The country will die.

The newest PC bullshit has got even the wonderful JK Rowling into trouble just for speaking her mind politely about transgender issues. I love PC... it is how dumb useless Liberals can act out their secret fascist impulses and feel hard of c..k and wet of p...y...feel good to be so righteous... same with overly ill humoured religious folk,  but the PC tribe cannot use God to justify anything so they are a bit weaker...You morons... ‘People who menstruate’, People with a cervix’? PEOPLE? Really? Women is a bad word is it? Too specific? (Well it has the word men in it, so seems almost inclusive.) You bastards are annihilating language; raping semantics...get another hobby you ridiculous cretins. (Be sure the populists well understand how to manipulate such fools.)

Extinction Rebellion is being used (among a multitude of other groups in other countries, hello Black Lives Matter) by the Kremlin to stir up shite, they are mostly well meaning on the road to Hell. Stop being so dumb and stop helping those who are against you at home and abroad. Dogmatic faith leads to mistrust, violence and hatred, says the lone derranger...And as for the absurd Q Anon, it is those who seek a Deeper State who are using you to do it. Well done.

Jacob Blake, shot seven (count them) times in the back by police even though charged with no crime and paralysed was handcuffed to hospital bed. That goofy twat of a 17 yr boy who wanted to be a policeman, shooting at blacks because he believed he had carte blanc (arf) from Trump to defend his country against ‘terrorists’...he will probably escape much punishment because... he was bullied at school...WHO WASNT?? The only people who weren’t were bullied at home. Guns ‘open carry’ in various states as the NRA rejoice in what they encourage. ‘Your first amendment means I can say your second amendment sucks d...s’. JimJeffries. Damn straight. By the time even I was 17, I had grown out of wanting to kill half the world. Wannabe cops are a little slower. 

Everything is the new normal. Too late for a mid life crisis unless I die at 108 but I never forget that statistically there is more chance of being killed by death than anything else. ‘Heres to my love! O true apothecary! Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die.’ Walking... see three funeral services shops in the road leading to/away from the hospital, clever businessmen...walking...masks off, between two conveniently placed flower shops and smoking outside the fuming crematorium in black suits and highly polished shoes. Waiting. That’s us.

I MISS YOU MARLENE. I MISS YOU MARLENE. I MISS YOU MARLENE. Nice headline seen on US newspaper...‘Can any good from cyberstalking your online crush?’I wondered that after falling in fascination with a woman in Germany who wrote like a poet and wove a spell of stories to charm and beguile. I would have walked from London to Hamburg to see if she was real. Everyone expresses love and the need for it in different ways. Reprogramming a deeply imprinted circuit is usually uncomfortable and so it proved for both of us. We shall see...if there is time. ‘One of us is crazy and the other one’s insane’

I can remember one of the days I Changed (seven years old?) We had a history lesson and were told about English kings and their ‘Divine Right’ to rule. Because God told them. And they told the people. And the people believed them. I remember the light in the classroom, where I was sitting, the smell of the tables, old unused ink wells, pencil shavings... and just thinking whatever a child’s version of F..K OFF...THATS BULLSHIT ISNT IT? would have been. That was the first moment I started questioning the class system, gullibility and bastards. A couple of years later, the absolute freedom of being, sent to collect the class register, walking down the empty corridors and not in the classroom...a beautiful feeling of being OUTSIDE. Free. Two of many experiences which have never left me. (The Angel Choir, the Rituals, the EYE across the Multiverse dream, the Reconnection...) Even if Freedom turns out to be as much of an illusion as everything else, it is still as beautifully sensual to me as music.

One summer night in 1990 after my 3rd breakdown, I had a dream. I think. Bear (or even bare) with me on this, I know how this sounds but it is only reporting what I saw in my mind. Two Aliens, thin and shadow like, came though my open bedroom door in the night (I could see the silhouettes) and one took a long shiny silver needle like a hypodermic for a horse and stood behind me and pushed the needle in through the top and centre of my skull, penetrating my brain. I FELT it slowly being pushed in, it hurt but I was paralysed. There was no voice but I heard (try not to laugh) ‘So now you have Superintelligence’. They moved out, the door closed, I slept. As usual with me, I remember every single dream I have ever remembered as if they were films I have watched over and over...and after a dream, the atmosphere stays with me for 23 whores. Later that day, I picked a big hardback book to find some info on something (A Cyclopaedia) with pages as thin as a bible. I sat almost motionless and without food for eight hours, DEVOURING every subject in it. Economics, geometry, geopolitical events, medicine, beliefs, systems.....the next day I finished ninety percent of it and went on to read books by five philosophers from second hand shops, started watching insects, stopped swearing, worked out, and read and read and read. All the knowledge I hadn’t cared about in school and college I picked up that one summer. It led to making new friends, new possibilities, new work, new love and led me to fly to Prague in this sequence while continuing to practice many ‘New age’ techniques by a writer called Stuart Wilde. They all worked and I continued...with regular fallings and breakthroughs.

‘Religion was invented when the first scoundrel met the first fool’. Faith is believing what you know not be true’. The seeker finds a belief and stops thinking for themselves...‘Every ideology is a mental murder, a reduction of dynamic living processes to static classifications, and every classification is a Damnation, just as every inclusion is an exclusion.’RAW

I had a four hour conversation with a Christian bloke, thirty, intelligent, believes in Satan as an actual being with horns. Etc. He couldn’t quite see any flaw in saying that any prophet who saw angels, white light and heard the voice of God, healed, etc but was not actually Christ, was only being tempted and used by the devil. He told me to watch the beautiful side of evil...

‘Every act of authority is, in fact, an invasion of the psychic and physical territory of another’. Human progress ‘is the concrete manifestation of some person’s refusal to bow to Authority.’  

‘WE GOT ELECTED ON DRAIN THE SWAMP, LOCK HER UP, BUILD THE WALL. THIS WAS PURE ANGER. ANGER AND FEAR IS WHAT GETS PEOPLE TO THE POLLS. THE DEMOCRATS DON'T MATTER, THE REAL OPPOSITION IS THE MEDIA, and the way to deal with them is to flood the zone with shit.’ Said Bannon, who also said. ‘Darkness is good. Dick Cheney. Darth Vader. Satan. Thats power.’ Has he met Putin yet? Is he also on speed dial along with Boris and Trump? People! Create better leaders. NOW.

Happy birthday Aleister Crowley on the 12th October and Happy Halloween to all readers, stay healthy and sane (arf) Remember you are magick...buy the re-release of Musick to Play in the Dark by COIL and become moonlight... And those in America, if you actually do truly believe in a good God...go and vote and remove that evil ego and his cohorts in the White House with absolute overwhelming victory or we are done in this lifetime. Be healthy.

LOVE!!!

[lokgifsandmusings]

Definitive Ranking of Book 1 Episodes, #12/12

12. 1x12 Endgame

Amon stands and lets Korra expose him for drama, Asami and Hiroshi are just like Kevin Bacon, let’s hide in an empty room from the bloodbender, people weren’t all that into justice anyway, and Aang brings the funk.

What? It hasn’t been over 4 months since I last did one of these...get out of here!

For those who don’t know, I’ve been going back and rewatching each LoK episode, then definitively ranking the entire season with a series of metas, starting from “worst” to “best.” Wait, no quotes because it’s DEFINITIVE.

I began with the beautiful, heart stopping, breathtaking, life-changing shitshow that was Book 2, because its flaws in some ways became the show’s greatest strength, so it felt very worth the dive. Then I went to Book 4 probably because that’s the time period that interests me a ton, and it was a solid season, but one that sort of felt like it needed some polish. Book 3 is damn near perfect in my opinion, and the one I want to end on for that reason.

So yup, we’re in Book 1! And here’s the thing: rewatching this show, the first season is the one that gives you the least back. It’s not particularly deep or nuanced. And that’s fine! It did a good job expanding the world building, the aesthetics were beyond on-point, and I’ll stand by the characterizations as pretty dang compelling, even if Mako never landed for me until Book 3.

At the same time, had this been the one season mini-series it almost was...I just don’t see still talking about it. And yes, I say that knowing the end game (you see what I did there?) would have been a bit different. But it doesn’t really change that the greatest success of Book 1 was its set up and potential. So, I guess it’s not a shock that the episode at the bottom of this list is its finale. Which is best depicted here:

Yeah, it sounds harsh for something that was ~fine~, but each time I rewatch it, it gets even less fine. However, there’s also been a lot on this already. If you haven’t already, read @got-your-back-always-will’s piece on why it was so damn disappointing. Or you could read my words where I call it a narrative beer fart (I think I use this term a lot, to be fair), point out the leaps in logic and reasonable action necessary for it everything to occur, and then talk about kind of shitty, sexist, ableist implications. Hell, even my photo recap touches on this.

Yes, it was all unintentional, but just imagine a character as intersectional as Korra being sent off with her depression having been magically healed by a male character (yes I know Aang is her, but imagery matters and she was passively sitting while he did his thing) and then hooking up with the guy who treated another woman as something stuck to his shoe.

And I mean, add to that the way the main plotline just FIZZLED. Oh man, people aren’t oppressed anymore because the guy who wanted to help them was actually a bender? WHAT. Everything Amon and the Equalists were set-up to be, and it just ends with a crowd shrugging and looking sad.

Like...this ending isn’t the worst thing that’s been on TV. It’s just formulaic and feels not well-planned, which is kind of weird because wasn’t this the only season that *had* been fully scripted? I really don’t want to pile on as if it’s the most toxic thing ever (not by a long shot), but would this have actually been satisfying to anyone?

I feel like I’m going to just end repeating myself, and I really don’t want to pile on. So instead, I think it’s important to zoom out and look at what the season was supposed to be accomplishing as a whole.

Korra is the opposite of Aang. Not in a moral sense, but in the sense that Bryke’s process in creating her was literally, “instead of a spiritual, not-super-physical, reluctant male hero who was not happy about his role, what if we had a girl who was super into it, non-spiritual, and kind of a hockey-kid type?”. They talk about this on podcasts and stuff. Aang’s narrative was about how he needed to embrace his role since the world needed him. We’ve seen this before (though Aang and ATLA was very unique, don’t get me wrong) with stories like Harry Potter, or LOTR, or the Star Wars OT, and so on.

That kind of arc is sort of best summed up by this quote from our pal Dumbledore:

“It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it. Those who, like you, have leadership thrust upon them, and take up the mantle because they must, and find to their own surprise that they wear it well.”

But when you have a character that WANTS to be the hero, what do you do? You write a world that doesn’t want *them*. You write a struggle in their quest to find a place for themselves when the role they’re so ready to take on doesn’t really make sense anymore.

This is the point of the Equalists. Benders are the privileged minority, extorting the oppressed masses in the nonbenders. The Avatar in some ways represents the ultimate bender (with her inherent abilities), and is now in a world skeptical, scared, and teaming for revolution.

Specifically against her and her power structure. There’s the spiritual aspect to her role, but she was out-of-touch with it in the first season, while also facing a very here-and-now kind of problem.

The conclusion that Korra needed to reach as a character, and where she gets at the end of Book 2 actually (and then spends Books 3 and 4 fine-tuning that role while also going through a very powerful healing arc) is one where she stakes her OWN claim in the world. She defines her role in a way that’s significant to her and the meaning in her heroism comes from her assertion of that agency, and the way she basically screams for her right to exist into being. The world will find it *does* need her, and here’s why, damnit.

Book 1 didn’t get there at all. Fuck, it didn’t even address things like how Korra’s actions out of bravado were because of her horrible fear of appearing weak. That fear...it’s only something she got over after her healing arc, when she learned that being afraid isn’t a weakness, and she can recontextualize that fear and find a kind of strength in it. Now, it’s possible that whenever it was decided that Book 1 would be 1 of 4 seasons, they made sure to keep room for Korra’s character growth. Except...in 2x01 she’s rather backdialed, so it’s a difficult case to make.

Then, remember how her solution had been (more or less) to punch things? Which is why @projectvoicebend has been referred to as “biting satire” thanks to their exaggerated depiction of that? But in Endgame, she literally saves the day with brute force. Not that Amon *shouldn’t* have been knocked out of a window, but this is rather bizarre messaging.

She unlocked airbending in a time of desperation, and used it aggressively to get rid of the threat. Like...okay. But, we didn’t need to see an entire season to buy this kind of thing happening. Hell, if she had been de-bended in 1x04 and someone else was threatened, I could still see this happening.

Was the implication that it’s the power of love? Had it been Bolin or Tenzin there, just sucks for them? I kind of find that hard to swallow, too. Really, they just needed Amon to be unmasked, and this is the way they contrived Korra to do it. It wasn’t exactly a huge character moment as much as it was leveling up in a video game.

Now, I do think overall it’s good that Korra didn’t find a place for herself in the world at the end of the first season. That was hard-earned, and even creating the new spiritual age wasn’t the endpoint of that theme since people were resistant to change—of losing control. However, could there have at least been an indication that REFORM WAS GOING TO HAPPEN? Yeah, the revolutionaries aren’t exactly blameless here seeing as they bombed an entire city, but Endgame literally reset the tensions in Republic City. Well, until Shiro recapped the creation of an entire democracy for us in 2 sentences.

It was like...the set box that Bryke had created at the beginning of the season needed to stay perfectly intact. And it wasn’t organic at all for Korra to be the person upholding that, because she is inherently such a transgressive character. This is why I’ve called it a round peg in a square hole, and this is why had *that* been the ending to the series, my own reaction would have been as dejected as the people who realized Amon painted a scar on his face.

Hell, what does this even mean on a thematic level? Desperation breeds education? Never idolize anyone who promises simple solutions to your problems? Reincarnation has its uses if you’re in enough pain?

Really, this show is supposed to be about Korra’s growth and trajectory, and...I just am struggling to see much of anything here.

Frankly, it gets worse the longer I think about it too. Equalists are like, bad and junk. Bombing cities and brutalizing your enemies (while evoking genocidal language with that whole ‘impurity’ thing) is not good, mmkay? But from another entirely valid angle, isn’t part of what Amon stood for really about disarmament? Should they have been so cartoonishly evhul that they suddenly needed to de-bend the pacifistic airbender children?

The only thing that kind of worked in this plotline was Asami and Hiroshi. And yeah, I know I’m the ultimate Asami fangirl so it’s going to read biased, but I’m serious: she was the only nonbender we really heard from about this. She was the one who had the same pain that her father had (her mother’s death at the hands of bending gangs), and experienced the same type of oppression he did, and still resoundly rejected violence. I’m not sure what she saw as a pathway to reform, but she could tell that Hiroshi’s actions weren’t coming from a place of empathy any longer, even if it might have begun like that.

Rewatching everything today when nazi punching discourse is disturbingly not theoretical, there is something a little frustrating about how simplified even this conflict was made. I’m not saying the Equalists are fascists at all, but can we at least try and position ourselves in the nonbender perspective, when there’s a lot of valid grievances, and Amon is just doing exactly what Aang did to Yakone (initially, back when he was targeting just triad members)? That’s worth a conversation! Sure, we got Asami standing up to Tarrlok in 1x08, sure, but her drive to take down her father was so clearly personal thanks to the years of deception, that the nonbender oppression sort of got swallowed in it all.

I still think it worked better than anything else, especially how Asami was not able to bring herself to harm her father the way he was willing to do. It’s tragic, and I don’t even begrudge Bolin swooping in for the save for that reason, even though the whole passive-woman/active-man thing is what I’m bitching about for Korra. But it’s different. Right?

I also found Tarrlok and Amon’s ending perfectly fine (and VERY jarring for a Y7 show) given that it was another exploration into abuse, the cycle of violence, and a kind of poetic self-fulfilling prophecy. But that’s more for 1x11.

God, you know what it is? Bryke never figured out what they wanted to say with Book 1. They had great worldbuilding ideas, and the tensions set up were quite compelling. It just lacked a *point* beyond “this might be cool to explore.” It was, and then the time came to tie it up, so it splatted.

In the end, they’re just damn lucky that Korra had something to say of her own.

Book 2 ranking/essays found here

Book 4 ranking/essays found here

[surveysonfleek]

803.

Do you feel comfortable wearing tube tops? not really. i hate the way they look.

Has something someone said today annoyed you? yes.

Can you hear the crickets chirping at night? sometimes but not tonight.

Do you like listening to new music, or just sticking to your favorites? i like doing both.

So far, where have you been on vacation? many places. too much to list right now, i’m tired lol.

Did you ever feel that there was something you couldn’t tell anyone? yes.

Do you tend to gossip, even if you don’t mean it to cause harm? i definitely have before. i’ve don’t do it much anymore lol.

When was the last time you were bitten by a bug? last week. damn mosquitos.

Have you ever gotten your hair permed? nope, my hair is already curly.

When was the last time you were in the wilderness? probably the last time i went on a hike.

Do you have a pair of sunglasses that are worth over $200? no. i’m the worst at taking care of my sunglasses.

Would you ever go on a trip to Europe? i would. i’ve been but i’d love to go again.

Are you brave when it comes to trying new foods? depends exactly what it is... i’ll generally try most things.

When was the last time you saw your significant other? today.

Is there a friend that you can always go to for advice? yes.

Have you ever been to a town/place where the people were just creepy? hmm not that i remember.

What’s the fastest you’ve ever driven in a car? 140km/h. not super fast.

If you see a piano, are you tempted to go over and play a little something? haha yes. i wish i kept learning it when i was a kid.

Is there someone you know who bakes amazing sweets? yes, a friend’s mum.

Are you ashamed of your singing voice? haha yes, i wish i could sing.

Has anyone teased you with the “K-I-S-S-I-N-G” song? like when i was 5, sure lol.

Have you ever had a dream where you could understand a foreign language? haha no.

What time is it where you are? 2:14am.

Do you have anything important to do tomorrow? not yet.

Have you ever owned a beanbag chair? nope.

If you own a laptop, do you have a case for it? yeah but i lost it awhile ago.

What was the last movie you purchased on DVD? probably a disney movie. i tried collecting them all on dvd for awhile.

Are you a fan of retro things? they’re nice to look at but i don’t buy them.

Do you do your own laundry? yes.

Have you ever used pastels? yes.

Is there a song you’re listening to at the moment? nope.

Would you be considered to be knowledgeable about World War 2? haha not at all. only the most basic info.

Have you ever been in possession of a hundred dollar bill? yes.

Is there one food you cannot give up, even though you know it’s unhealthy? yes. bread!!! or rice.

Will you bother having a party for your next birthday? nope.

If you’re with someone right now, do you think it will last? i sure hope so. it’s been a long time.

Who was the last person you flipped off? my boyfriend as a joke.

Do you currently have a job? yes.

What was the last movie that was unable to capture your interest? it was a tv show.

Have you heard of the Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers? yes, so handsome.

Do you have something to do, that you would rather not do? yeeeeepppp.

Are you, in any way, feeling hopeless right now? yes.

Is there someone you just need to call and talk to? nah.

Are you one of those people who can eat anything and not gain a pound? no, i wish!

Are you nails painted at the moment? yes.

Is there a song you’ve been listening to lately on repeat? no. i hardly ever listen to songs on repeat.

Do you know who you’re planning to ask to your grad prom? already went.

When was the last time you went shopping? today.

Is there anyone who did something absolutely hilarious today? yes. me!

Are you having one of those days where you feel unattractive? yep.

Do you like hot dogs? yes.

Do you ever get bored of your music collection and get new songs? yes.

Have you ever bought a designer purse? yes.

What’s the limit on how much you would pay for a shirt? no more than $100.

Would you ever like to see the Walk of Fame? i’ve seen it already. it is what it is.

Is it currently humid where you are? nope.

Have you been in any sort of physical pain today? yes. my right foot is randomly sore.

Have you ever heard of the German movie Das Boot? no.

Who were the last people you hung out with? my boyfriend.

Has someone ever called you “obnoxious”? yes.

Most commonly, do you obey rules, or break them? obey.

Do you like making funny faces in pictures? no lol.

Is there something you look back on and go “I can’t believe I did that”? ye.

Are you good at offering advice? i am... it’s just that not all of my friends actually follow it.

When was the last time you had to resort to a map? a couple days ago. i was checking petrol prices around the area.

Your significant other: have you told them you love them lately? yes.

What was the last thing to confuse you? idk.

How many different colors have you dyed your hair? not that many, they’ve all been natural colours.

Do you know someone who always spells “bored” like “board”? nope.

Are you wearing make up right now? nope.

Is there a phrase that you use a lot? not that i know of.

Are you old enough to vote? yes.

Do you have a favorite pair of earrings? yes.

Have you ever been to Disneyworld/Disneyland? both. loved them both.

Have you dated someone more than twice? nope.

Are you a fan of Keira Knightley? don’t like her nor hate her.

Have you ever resorted to alcohol to make you feel better? nope.

Do you own a full-length mirror? yeah but not in my room.

Do you ever go on PerezHilton.com to get all the celeb gossip? i did back when he was actually relevant.

Have you heard about Mel Gibson’s rant/freakout? heard about it, dont know much about it.

Do you wish your bedroom was bigger? yes.

Are you aware of the significance of the date April 14th, 1912? nope.

Do you ever just lay back and watch the stars? i haven’t done that in years.

Lately have you had much time to relax? yes.

Did anything important/changing happen to you in March 2009? hmm yes. it’s the first time i met my boyfriend.

Have you ever felt like a “new person”? sure.

Do you own any expensive jewellry? yes.

What size is your TV? the one in my room is pretty small and i hardly ever use it lol.

Do you occasionally creep on people on Facebook? rarely, but i’ve done it before.

Has there been someone in your life that just wouldn’t leave you alone? no.

Do you hate to use public bathrooms? yep.

Would you consider yourself to be loyal? yep.

Do you find most remixes of songs to be good or bad? usually shit.

Write something to someone who means a lot to you: i love you.

[lykanthropa]

Support Class

Chapter 5: Medics Story

When the sun rises on the horizon, Medic still sits at his desk and stares dead ahead, deeply sunk in his thoughts. He wanted to sleep. Really. But how could he have do that? To wake up the next day and enjoy his life as a mercenary for a moment just to be hit hard in the face by the hand of reality in the next moment? No, thanks. Still, he had tried to persuade himself all night that Friedrich is only an illusion. A bad dream. He had always tried to calculate the probability that Friedrich would ever learn of the writing and that he really come here. To America, to the desert. At least this was in the beginning. The more years passed, the less had he thought of it. Until he had not thought of it in the end anymore. He had forgotten it until Friedrich stood before him. He must have remembered the letter. Otherwise he would not be here. But how did he get it? Medic must know. He'll rub it in for sure… What should he do if the administrator cedes his job to Friedrich? Where is he to go? Two medics are certainly not tolerated. And even if… He could never tolerate Friedrich next to himself. “Sigh…”

Hans leaves the infirmary. It's still very early, the base is still sleeping. He wants to look at each room, to indulge in reminiscences. Just in case he really should go… After some rooms, however, Medic must realize that not the whole base is sleeping. He finds Friedrich sitting in the dinner room at the table. Before him an open book. Probably one from the common room. He is not an illusion. He never was and never will be. And yet it seems as unreal as he is sitting there. Friedrich looks up from his reading when he notices Hans. The Dobermann dogs under the table Medic notices only when they begin to growl. Yesterday he was speechless, but today he wants answers. So Hans sets his most arrogant face. “Since when did you become a dog lover?” A chuckle. “I'm glad you found your voice again. There are some things I would like to know from you.” “First of all I would have liked to know why you are here. How do you know about the existence of Mann Co. and of this secret base? When I had found the letter on your desk, he was still closed.” “Well, what can I say?” Friedrich leaned back in his chair and folded his arms in front of his chest. “As you know, I was always very thorough. This involved not only medical matters, but also paperwork. Before you found the letter that was addressed to ME, I had opened it long ago, copied the contents and locked away.” “What…? Why do you copy letters?” “A habit. Paper can be lost so easily. And this letter was by far the most important I've ever received.” “And then you seal the envelope again?” “Well, I wanted to read the letter in peace. Actually after the wedding of the Prime Minister…” “So you sealed it up again so you can pretend you've just discovered it in this right moment? Weird…” “I don't think we need to discuss who is weird from both of us. After all, you were the one who had removed the entire skeleton from the man.” “So what? This was an important medical progress. You should not have to rat me out. Because of you I have lost my medical license. But, you know what? The guys here don't care if I have a license or not. Chief thing I’m doing my job. And I'm damn good in doing my job. Do you really think you can replace me?” “I think you forget about that it's MY job. It has always been. By your fraud, I was traped in Germany for more than 20 years, after it was being taken over by the Russians and the Americans. You have no idea of what I had to go through. I was forced to learn the Russian language. I had to hear from American soldiers over and over again how stupid we Germans are, while I was taking care of their wounds. A German was worth only if he was an engineer. And a doctor. So I had it better than most. Yet I was a prisoner in my own country. It was only three months ago that the copy of the letter had fallen back into my hands when I cleaned up, and everything came back at once. I made all the preparations to get here. And here I am now.” “This is my only home. You can't take it from me.” “I'm supposed to considerate of you? I don't care what happens to you when you're be dismissed. But I'll tell you one thing. If I become the new Medic, you will have to go. America is big. And the Americans are crazy, just like you. I'm sure someone, somewhere in this country needs a madman like you.” “…you sound very embittered. Should I really have to go, I can only advise you to treat the guys here well. I have acquired myself a certain status here. You should take it so that they have respect you.” „I think I will behave as always. And if they don't agree with it, they got bad luck.” “If you have not changed in all these years, you will have a rough ride.” “I am not interested in whether I get on well together with them. I just want to do my job. I've waited long enough for that. And I was always the better of both of us. You still know that, don't you? The team will already notice that I am the better choice and soon forget you.” “You're only here to take yourself revenge on me.” “This is only partly true.” “………”

“I have gone through all the data and documents. At that time the invitation of my predecessor was for Friedrich König. He was chosen as a primal Medic after careful consideration.” The mercenaries stands tense in the contact room in front of the big screen, on which the administrator speaks to them. The only one in the room who is not tense is Friedrich. He is sure that he will win. When Hans looks at the administrator and Friedrich, then he also believes it. “Hans Freud's deception all these years has the consequence that I dismiss him and appoint Friedrich König as the new Medic of the Red team.” A shocked whisper goes through the whole room. “B-but that's not okay!” Scout says. “We've been working with him for years! He is something like our mama!” “Is this perhaps the status you mentioned earlier?” chuckles Friedrich. Hans ignores him. “Scout’s right. Besides, it could take forever to work in the newbie. And-“ “I am quite capable of doing things to myself” interrupts Friedrich Engineer. “You should not forget that I am your real Medic and he-“ König puts a hand on Hans' shoulder, who immediately shakes it away. “-is just an impostor, a fraud. He has lied to you all these years. Also the administrator. And that is not to be tolerated.” “Hans Freud” the administrator says, “I will give you one day to inaugurate Friedrich König into the rights and duties of a Medic, to pack your things and leave the base.” Hans stares at the floor, but he felt the sympathetic looks of his friends. “………”

Friedrich views the infirmary with a sharp look. In doing so, he inspects every minute detail. He doesn't miss the glass on a shelf with the tumor bread, which itself winds furiously behind the glass in the liquid. Friedrich turned to Medic with a questioning look. He just shrugs. “It’s a long story.” Friedrich leaves it at that and discovers Hans' favorite piece next. His Medigun. “What is that supposed to be? A car battery and a fire hose?” Medic clenches his fists but he makes a game face but he doesn't let his anger show. “Well, basically, yes.” “Great. A tinkered thing, fastened with rubber bands.” “………” “As squalid as your equipment is, so is your team. They smoke, they drink. It is time for a lot of changes.” Hans wants to answer something, but changed his mind. Instead, he will explain his old fellow student how the Medigun works. “Listen well, for I will not repeat myself. The Medigun is a weapon, but its main function is to heal injured team members. It's best to überheal. During healing, the Übercharge will rises…” “Überheal? Übercharge? What is this nonsense?” Hans ignores him and continues with his explanations. “The healing beam remains connected to the healing target until it either moves too far away or is interrupted by something. But the healing beam is flexible enough to be able to heal your future team mates around corners. When the Übercharge bar is full, this sign reads "Übercharge Ready", then you have to activate this lever around here and voilá - the healing target becomes invulnerable. Best is to do it with Heavy.” “What do you mean 'invulnerable?'” “Invulnerably, invincible, bulletproof. Meine Güte, call it as you like. Or should I define this word to you?” “How can this be possible?” “Ach, that’s easy. I have the heart of my team comrades upgraded with a battery. Well, actually it's more of a pulse receiver.” “How is this supposed to work?” “Hehehe… You are a doctor and have no idea about my work you want to take over. Body cut open, heart removed, battery attached with steel needles, heart back in the chest and body closed again. Easy, don’t you think?” Friedrich nods his head. “You're really a sick bastard.” “I thought you knew I'm brilliant since the thing with the skeleton.” A cooing and wing-beating attract Friedrich's attention to the ceiling. There are some of Hans' doves sitting on the ceiling lamp. “You're holding doves in the Infirmary? How unhygienic!” “Oh no. They are completely house trained. For their business, they fly outside.” “Wait a moment… Those are not... the wedding doves, aren't they?” “Yes, they are.” “They cannot live anymore. That's more than 20 years ago.” “This is quite possible. With very good living conditions, doves can get very old.” Archimedes is flown on Medic's shoulder. Friedrich makes an abhorred face when he sees the blood on the bird. “Well, I have to confess that I have mixed something into their food every now and then, which has extended their longevity. Next to the team, they are also my family. Too bad I couldn't see your face when the Prime Minister bawl you out thoroughly. He had so much relied on you, as his close friend, that you make sure his wedding will be a success. At that time I cast a glance at his future bride. A dragon, if ever there was one. I know how much she looked forward to the doves. They should be the highlight of the wedding. She must have burst with anger when there were no doves.” Friedrich stared at him dangerously. And when he opens his mouth, Hans assumes that he will give it to him straight. But he don't defer to it. Instead, he says: “You can take the winged rats with you.” “I woulda do that anyway.” “But the money you have earned in all these years stays here. After all, it is the money I would have earned.” “………” “And now tell me the thing with the Respawn.”

An hour later, Medic is sitting with his team at the table in the dinner room. It's his last day with them. Besides, he still owes them an explanation. They all sit quietly and look at him. Even Scout sits still. “I don’t know where to start…” “We don't blame ya, Doc. Just start from the beginning. These Friedrich is also German, isn't he?” “Yes… Okay. It started in Germany 25 years ago. Until I was 21, I lived at my birthplace Rottenburg, until I went to Berlin for a medical study. It was 1938.” “Why didn’t you study in Rottenburg?" Scout asks. “This was not possible. I loved my town, but Rottenburg is a hicksville. It's a quiet town for older people. During my studies, I met Friedrich. Before I even knew his name, I knew that much hope was put onto him. He was intelligent and handsome and came from a wealthy family who had a lot of influence. This was probably the reason why he had such a close contact with the Prime Minister. He had trusted him very much. We have never understood each other very well. He probably saw a danger in me. Next to him I was the best student. Well, for that reason, I was always the only one with whom he played chess…” “That’s our Medic!” “Thanks, Demo.” “Did he already have this embarrassing hairdresser at that time?” “Hahaha! Yes, he did.” “Don't interrupt him all the time, Kid!” Sniper pokes Scout in the rips with his elbow. “Ow!” Medic sighs. He'll miss that terribly. “You okay, Doktor?” “Yes, Heavy. I’m fine.” “Njet, Doktor. Call Heavy Misha.” “What?” Surprised, Medic looks up to his best friend. “My name is Misha. Proper name is Mikhail. But family calls me Misha. Team is also my family.” Medic is stunned. He has been working with Heavy for almost four years now and they've even become best friends. But to call him by his first name, he didn't had this idea. “Well, while we're on it,… My name is Dell.” Engineer introduces himself. “I am Tavish Finnegan. Nice to meet ya, lads.” “Call me Jane Doe!” “Hahaha! Jane? Isn’t that a girl’s name?” “Jane Doe…? The story behind this name is a little gruesome…” “Shut up, maggots! Jane is a good name!” Spy rises from his chair. “Now I'll introduce myself.” “Here he comes.” The Frenchman gives Scout a warning look. Then he clears his throat and starts again. “So. My name is Aimeric Aloïs.” “Geez! None can pronounce that! Are you from a noble family or something?” “These are normal French names.” “Crazy…” “What’s your name, Scout? Instead of complaining, you should introduce yourself now.” Sniper suggests. “My name… My name is err… Max Power.” The entire team looks at the youngest with a raised eyebrow. Only Spy is laughing. “Max Power? In your imagination, perhaps. His name is Benny.” “Don’t call my Benny!” “Your mother calls you that too.” “She is the only one who can do that. But woe to one of you call me by this name! My proper name is Ben…” “Benjamin.” “Fuck you, Spy!” The whole team is laughing. Medic too. Oh yes, I will miss it very much… “What is your name, huh? Mister ‘I piss in jars’.” Sniper takes off his hat. “Ya can call me Mundy, mates.” “Mmphhff! Mmpf!” “It's very nice to meet you. I am Hans Freud.” A strange feeling spreads in Medic. It is as if he would to become really acquainted with them all on his last day with them. “Continue, Hans.” And an even more remarkable feeling is to be called by them by his proper name. But…it’s nice. “Well, at the age of 28 I successfully completed my studies and got my medical license. That was 1944. The Second World War had already been in full swing for several years and Berlin was attacked several times. But I was lucky that my whereabouts were not affected. Likewise, I knew how to dodge the draft. I wanted to carry out experiments and not afford boring medical services.” “And you did, didn’t you?” “But of course~ I had my license, but I was not working in a hospital. I wanted to be a doctor of science. But I had to practice. I had the permission of my professor to use the premises in the institute. I had begun with small experiments. Nothing important. Had opend heads of dogs and played with the synapses. Equipped some organs with small circuits... Don't look at me like that. The animals were fine after that. They probably had a longer life than normal. But at some point I wanted to try something great. And I needed a person for it. However, I hardly believed that one of the students are willing to stoop to do it. So I went off to find someone suitable and finally met a homeless person, whom I had promised money when he helped me with my experiment. He agreed immediately. The risk was too great to be discovered, so I did the surgery in the late evening. I stun him with chloroform and then carefully cut his body open from top to bottom. After all, I wanted to remove his entire skeleton.” “That’s sick…” “Oh Scout. You don’t understand that. This should be a giant advance in medical history. Today, we are on a better level than we were twenty years ago. But if they had given me the chance, perhaps we would be much further today. I didn't do it for fun... Na ja, maybe a little bit. In any case… When I had just taken the skeleton out of the body, Friedrich suddenly appeared. To this day I have not forgotten his facial expression. He said he knew I was up to something, and that's why he was shadowing me. He turned on the heels and I knew he would tell the institute's leadership. No one would understand, and if I had not made myself invisible, I would have end up in the penitentiary or the Asylum. My whole future as a doctor had been destroyed. And I wanted revenge. One night, I had sneaked into the institute, broke open the door to Friedrich's office, and had been looking for something I could get him back for it. I found a letter from the Prime Minister. He had commissioned Friedrich to prepare his wedding because he didn't trust anyone else. And it should take place in two days. If that was not the perfect revenge, I thought to myself. And then I discovered Mann Co.'s letter on his desk.” “And so you have learned of their existence.” “Yes. I learned everything from it. Who and what is Mann Co. is, in which country it is, why they want him and how much they pay. I was stunned and was equally angry and happy. I knew that Friedrich was a good doctor, but in contrast to him, I was brilliant! Why wasn't I chosen? They must have watched him for a long time to decide that he could be suitable for work at Mann Co. I took the liberty to take up his identity and taking the job in his stead. Another perfect revenge. I knew he would never miss this opportunity. And moreover I was glad that I could leave Germany. The war was already as good as lost. I was glad I did not have to stay there to watch the Russians and Americans overrun us. I had only one day to prepare everything. But I knew where I could get fake papers. I packed all my things and contacted the person who was noted in the letter. He would help me enter America. But first I went to the wedding to blow it up. I crept around the church, while everyone was in the church for marriage. I knew how much the future bride of the Prime Minister loved white doves. There was a van with boxes of wedding doves. The van was not locked and the ignition key was still plugged. And there was no one to watch the birds. No one would have thought anyone could steal wedding doves. I got in and drove away.” “Wow, Doc!  When you were young, you were really cool! Burglary, identity theft, break up a wedding, car theft… Cool. I would have been proud to call you my Bro.” “Thanks, Scout… At a lonely place I wanted to release the doves into freedom. However, they didn’t seem to care. They just didn’t want to get out of their cages. That didn't even change when I shook the cages. Only one dove jumped out and flew on my shoulder. I took it and threw it in the air. I had thought the dove was about to leave when suddenly it sat on my shoulder again. I threw it in the air again. When I turned back to the other doves, I heard a cooing behind me. I looked around, but couldn’t find anything. Until I noticed that this dove clung to the fabric of my suit on the back. A very clingy dove. I don't know, but that touched me and I decided to keep them all. They were alone, I was alone... Wedding doves are bred. They would not have oriented themself in the wilderness anyway. So I went to my secret accommodation with the van, took my belongings and the fake papers and went straight to the contact person. I showed the papers and the letter. He had been looking at me for a long time, and I was afraid that I got busted. But then he led me to an airport where a private machine was waiting for me. And then my new life began.” “Wait a sec… We've only been working together for three years.” “Now it’s four years.” “But you said you started 20 years ago as a Medic. Where were you?” “Well… I was working with another team. A BLU Team. They were quite different from you. From the very beginning they had called themselves by their first name. But they did not often make jokes. They were very serious. Real veterans. Accordingly, they were old. Beside them, I sometimes felt like a greenhorn. The Heavy there, however, didn't liked me very much. Like the most of them. For 22 years I was with them before I came to you.” “Do you missed them?” “No, no. I don’t belong to any Team Classic. I am not that far yet.” “That’s…so much…�� “I’m sorry. I thought it doesn’t matter where I was or what I did before. I just wanted to do my job well. Tja… And now, I don’t have a job anymore.” “What will you do?” “I don’t know.” “Hey, it's half as bad, Doc. You've earned so much money. You just buy a pretty house on the beach and spend your remaining years of life there.” “Would not be a bad idea, if not two things would be against it. First, I'm not the type for a quiet life. And second…” The team looks at Hans expectantly. “I have no more money. It's now owned by your new Medic. After all, it’s lawful to him. I just earned it for him…” “So you are not only homeless but also poor? Mundy, can’t you let him live in your van?” “It’s okay. I'll manage it.” “How? You don’t even have money for a train ticket. Without train you are not able to leave.” “………” “We'll chip in for you. All together. I mean, we all earn good money. Each of us could give you half a million.” “Are you serious?” The whole team nods in agreement. Medic cannot help but smile. “I just need money for the train ticket, an apartment and food. I don't want to retire. I will look for a new job and earn my own money this time.” “Would you then agree with 50,000 dollars?” “Sounds good. Thank you very much. Only now I notice how much I will miss you.” “We will miss you too, Doc.” “Misha will miss Doctor very much.” Heavy takes Hans firmly in his arms. And suddenly everyone else does it too. Everyone puts his arms around the other. Scout even lays himself on the table to be part of the group embrace. Hans have to brace himself. Behind his eyes it starts to burn. They never saw him cry. No one ever saw him cry. “I um… have to pack my things and clean up Archimedes.” The Mercs reluctantly to let their Medic go. As soon as Medic is out of the room, Friedrich enters from the other side. He had now stored his things in his new bedroom and made himself familiar with the rest of the infirmary. When he had left, he came into a small passage room with a desk and a whiteboard on the wall above with the inscription: ‘This job has worked 0 days without an accident’. The 0 was very conspicuous for the strict German. But not for the reason that these idiots have managed their job 0 days without accidents, but because this number was more like an egg, crooked and oblique, and even get out of line. He just deleted the number with the rag and replaced it with a perfect 0 from a perfect hand movement. This team is not perfect. Friedrich had seen the cigarette butts and all the alcohol bottles. But that will change. A few days with him and in this base, order and discipline will prevail. But how should a team know discipline and order, if their own Medic is not better? “What's going on here?” Friedrich asks as he steps in and sees the Mercs standing together. “You have nothing to do?” “Shut up, old man! Who do you think you are?” The Dobermann dogs, who are sitting faithful on to the right and left side of their owners, begin to growl. “And your stupid curs are also annoying.” “Scout…” The dogs jump on all fours and growl even more menacing. “Leave it be, Scout.” Heavy puts a hand on Benjamin's shoulder and takes a few steps towards Friedrich. He had crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked unimpressed. “Why make trouble? Team can understand well with new Medic.” Suddenly there is this look of the German again. These look, which is intended only for Heavy. “I know you Russians… You just want trouble. I have lived under Russian servitude for many years. I know you inside out. And how do you speak at all? How long do you live in America now? Three years? Your English leaves a lot to be desired. Unsurprisingly. The Russian brain is clumsy and slow.” “Hey! Don't talk to Misha like that, geddit?” “Успокойся…” Suddenly it becomes quite still in the room. Friedrich looks at Heavy penetrating. And then he answers in Russian. The team can do nothing more than listen. Neither of them understand a word. But Heavy, and he looks surprised and a little hurt. Friedrich grins disgustingly. “Three years in America and still no good English. I have learned the Russian language within a year. Do not start a war with me. Neither in English, nor in Russian. I am sick of you Russians.” And with that, Friedrich turns round and goes. “Hey, Heavy. What did he say?” The Russian turns to the others. “Bad Doctor said, Misha is fat and stupid. And that he'll make my life a living hell.” “And what did you say before?” “That he should calm down. Nothing else.” “Such an asshole.” “But hey! Something good has it. Ya can now speak Russian with our new newcomer” Sniper tries to relax the situation a bit. “I don't want to talk to bad doctor! I hate dis doctor!” “That'll go off all right, boys. We have no choice but to manage with our new Medic in the future. Let's get the money. Medic… Hans will not stay with us for long.”

[ruffsficstuffplace]

The Keeper of the Grove (Part 25)

Ruby’s kitchen should have been massive, more than enough space for a crew of four or five with their own work stations, if nearly half of it hadn’t been taken up by two giant refrigerators (one standing, the other a deep freezer), a massive tank of milk, and the biggest cookie jar Weiss had ever seen, so large even someone as tall as Qrow would need a ladder to access it, and a second person to open the whole lid than the smaller inner section.

The other half was where a small table for six had been wedged in, along with a counter, some cabinets, a sink, and a massive clay oven powered by natural gas.

Save for the water filtration unit in the corner—a device that was one of Penny’s many “backpacks,” she learned—everything was scarred and aged from hundreds if not thousands of years worth of use, cleaning, and accidents, along with faintly smelling of freshly baked cookies.

Weiss was no stranger to antiques—ironically, the market for treasures of times long past was never more thriving, competitive, and prolific than in ‘the city of the future’ Candela—but this was a whole new level.

Ruby served Weiss cookies and milk on a plate and a glass—both made out of clay, both with lovingly, intricately carved detailing of plants and animals that had to have taken days of hard work and decades of constant, intense practice beforehand.

“Bone appetite, Weiss!” Ruby said as she sat across her with her own dinner.

“It’s pronounced ‘Bon appetit,’ Ruby,” Weiss replied, reaching out for her glass, before she hesitated.

“What’s wrong?” Ruby asked as she dipped a cookie into her milk. “Weren’t you hungry?” she continued as the cookie disappeared into her mouth.

Weiss’ stomach growled. “I still am...” she muttered.

“Then why don’t you dig in?” Ruby asked as she chewed.

“I’m afraid of breaking these,” Weiss replied, gesturing to the plate and the glass.

Ruby snorted, wet, half-chewed crumbs spilling out of her mouth. “Seriously?”

“Yes! They're obviously antiques! How old are these? How old is everything in here? And for that matter, how old is the tree this house is inside of?”

Ruby swallowed and shrugged. “Dunno, should probably ask Penny when she’s done with her maintenance, or Uncle Qrow when he gets back,” she replied as she dipped another cookie and shoved it into her mouth. “What does it even matter?” she continued as she chewed.

Weiss frowned. “You’re not afraid of me accidentally breaking a valuable piece of your history and culture?”

Ruby smirked. “Go on,” she said through a mouthful of cookies. “Get one of the plates from the cupboard, drop it, and see what happens—watch your feet, though!”

Weiss got up out of her seat and did. She held the plate for a few moments, feeling the intricacy in the carving, how light it was for something made of clay, before she dropped it a good distance from herself.

Thunk.

Nothing.

No shatter, no crack, not even a scratch. Weiss picked it up, brushed off some of the fine powder that the kitchen floor was littered with. “How did you make these?” Weiss asked as she put it in the sink. “Where do you even get the materials for this?”

“Ask a Maker who does plates and stuff in town, and from the Valley, where else?” Ruby replied as she drank some milk. “Why all the interest in plates all of a sudden?”

“Because they're amazing, that’s why,” Weiss replied as she walked back to the table.

Ruby looked at Weiss in amusement.

“What...?” Weiss asked as she sat back down.

Ruby chuckled. “Weiss, I get that you’re not from here, but this just what we eat our meals on or drink from, and sometimes use to play with my dog—nothing more,” she said as she picked up another cookie.

“First of all, fair point,” Weiss said as she finally took a cookie. “Second, you have a dog?” she continued before she took a dainty bite out of it.

“His name’s Zwei!” Ruby replied as she chewed. “And he’s not really a ‘dog’ but I don’t know what he is in Nivian, and Penny still can’t find a ‘reasonable translation to accurately encompass what Zwei is exactly,’ whatever that means.”

Weiss swallowed. “Why haven’t I seen him?”

“We rent him out a lot of the time with the Watchers on hunts, or at the Pits, usually to help save someone who took on something or someone way past their league,” Ruby explained before she swallowed. “We have to, since he eats a LOT, and we can’t support him with just our salaries, even if Blake pitched in!”

Weiss nodded. “What’s the Pits?” she asked before she took another bite.

“It’s a bunch of big arenas, where we fight each other or animals for practice, tournaments, and some festivals.” Ruby said as she grabbed another cookie. “I used to want to be a professional Pit Fighter, but it turns out there’s SO much going around meeting people, shooting commercials, meetings with agents and stuff, and I just like the killing things and getting paid to do it part!” she said before said cookie disappeared into her mouth.

Weiss shook her head. “Sounds barbaric,” she said after she swallowed.

“Is it really that far off from when humans put two guys in a ring and watch them beat the crap out of each other with just their fists?” Ruby asked while she chewed. She swallowed. “Besides, it’s got like one of the best names in Actaeon.”

“What’s it really called, then?” Weiss asked as she took drink of her milk.

<The Pits!> Ruby said, words that were supposed to sound like a threatening growl from one animal challenging another.

Weiss snorted, milk shooting out of her nostrils. She started half-coughing, half-laughing as she hurriedly wiped her nose with her sleeve.

Ruby frowned. “What’s so funny...?”

“What did you just say?” Weiss asked, her eyes tearing up.

<The Pits…?!> Ruby repeated.

Weiss burst out laughing all over again. Her clutched her sides, and began to tilt to the side.

“Wait, Weiss--!”

She fell out of her chair, reached out for the table but only ended up taking her glass of milk with her.  She landed on the floor with a soft thud, followed by a splash as some of it spilled all over her face.

Ruby hopped out of her chair and rushed over to her. “You okay?” she asked.

“I’m fine,” Weiss replied.

Ruby sighed in relief. “That’s good! I’m going to laugh at you while I help you up now, okay?”

Weiss scowled at her, but took her hand still.

Qrow sent a message asking for help hauling his and Blake’s share of the day’s hunt--”We ran into a herd of not-so-little pigs that had just too few visits from the big bad wolves,” read the parts of his message in Nivian.

As it was still too early to turn in for the night, Weiss headed out along with Ruby and Penny back to the Tube station, where they would be arriving with Zwei. She spent the walk looking around at the swamp as the sun set and night began to creep in, marveled at the dancing lights in the water and in the trees, bugs and plants of all manner of hues providing a beautiful spectacle, and more than enough light to make your way on the road.

“That solves the problem of getting back here at night,” she thought to herself.

They had to wait at the platform for the others to arrive, as the handlers had to coordinate and adjust the flow of water and all other trips.

A log came in—Zwei’s, by Ruby’s request. The handlers opened it as they usually would, before they all stepped well back. At first, Weiss assumed that there was a mistake, as it was filled with what looked like a giant mass of black fur that occupied all available space in the log.

Then it started moving.

A gigantic, monstrous paw reached out to the docks, found purchase and began to pull the rest of himself out. A head followed—the fanged, slavering face of the Queen of the Damned's favourite dog breed. Then a second head popped out, identical and attached to the body by a different neck. They both looked around, saw Ruby, and began to pant happily, thick, viscous trails of drool dripping from the two sets of jaws.

Weiss eyes widened and her pupils shrank as a massive, two-headed beast stepped out onto dock, about the size of a tank, if not larger, with a proportionately-sized bobbed tail wagging happily atop his rear-end.

Ruby threw her arms in the air. “Zwei!”

The hellhound barked in what Weiss assumed to be delight before he took a dainty step towards Ruby, and both heads leaned down to lick her, his tongues so large and powerful he covered every inch of her body on both sides and lifted her a good few feet off the ground.

The now slobber-coated Ruby laughed. <I missed you too, boy! Zwei, this is Weiss!> She switched languages as she gestured to Weiss. “Weiss, this is Zwei!”

Weiss became very, very still as both of Zwei’s heads loomed over her and started sniffing. Then, they both opened, and she found herself looking into two hot, moist, smelly abysses lined with titanic fangs, before two giant tongues darted out to meet her.

<NO! ZWEI! DON’T--!>

Too late.

Whatever dirt, grime, mud, and grass Weiss had on her skin disappeared, replaced with an inch thick coating of thick, hot, two-headed mutant hound slobber. After her feet were back on the ground once more, she let out a tiny, strangled whimper.

Ruby frowned. “… Sorry about that, he’s, uh… really affectionate.”

Another log arrived, containing Qrow and several bloodied sacks. “Let’s get all this meat loaded on Zwei ASAP, folks!” he called out as he climbed out. “Zwei hasn’t done his business yet and I’d rather not have to haul all that back home, too!”

Weiss’ eyes slowly turned to Ruby.

“It’s where we get most of our fuel for cooking and heating...” Ruby explained sheepishly.

Weiss turned back to Zwei, then at Qrow who was coming over with the sacks. The two of them spent a few moments staring at each other, unsure of how to react.

“… Weiss, you can sit this one out, Ruby, help me out here,” he said as he handed the sacks over to her.

Blake arrived with yet more meat. She skirted around Zwei to get to Weiss, giving him a wide, wide berth, before she pressed a large jar of ointment and a cloth into her hands. “Dry bath,” she said in Nivian with some trouble, miming rubbing it into her skin before wiping it off with an invisible rag.

Weiss opened it and began to liberally began to coat herself with it, weeping silently all the while.

The “dry bath” did its best, handily soaking up all the slobber on Weiss, but it and a special odour-eating bacteria solution Ruby kept around because of him were just no match for the amount of affection that Zwei had shown her.

If it was any comfort, the scent of “dog” slobber also had to compete with the more pleasant (if still funky) smell of the others and the freshly killed boar they were butchering in the kitchen. More importantly, Ruby promised she’d pay for a private bath at the hot springs the next morning.

In the meanwhile, distracted herself by sorting through her care package with Penny and Ruby in the living room. Among other useful items, she found a new Fae-made comm-crystal, a printed copy of her parole agreement, a Nivian-Actaeon primer on some helpful words and phrases she should know, a list of areas of interest and public services in the Bastion, several pairs of clean underwear and clothes for most occasions, a small stipend of “Shinies,” and several bottles of a milky fluid kept in an insulated bag.

“Live Gut Bacteria Culture,” Penny read for her. “Consume once daily for improved gastrointestinal health, or to aid in acclimation to Viridian Valley food and water. Keep chilled. Do not consume if contents turn blue.”

“Do I HAVE to drink this...?” Weiss asked.

“Though it will definitely cause distress to your gut flora in the short term, in the long term, it will greatly reduce the chances of your getting sick from ingesting the local water or food, along with allowing you to safely expand your culinary choices,” Penny explained. “As you are now, anything boiled, stewed, or served with a sauce is out of the question, and some oils may be suspect, which is unfortunate considering a number of Fae staple foods and commonly offered fare belong in those categories.”

“Does that include the pancakes at the hot springs?” Ruby asked.

Penny nodded. “Even if they are not made with the water there, the sheer amount of exposure the cookware receive might be enough to trigger a negative reaction.”

Ruby's eyes widened, horrified at the prospect. “Take it, Weiss! The pancakes will be worth it, I promise.”

Weiss sighed. “Fine…” she muttered as she uncapped it, and knocked down in one gulp. She preemptively cringed, before she found that save for the sour, yoghurt-like taste, it wasn’t that bad!

Then it actually made it to her stomach, and she could feel the war between her local gut flora and the foreign bacteria kick off to a violent, terrible start.

Weiss groaned, curling up on her side and clutching her stomach.

“I’ll go fetch a bucket!” Penny chimed as she went off, taking the cultures with her to store in the fridge.

“Want to turn in for the night, Weiss?” Ruby asked as she put a hand on her shoulder.

She whimpered and nodded her head.

For lack of space, Weiss had to sleep in Ruby’s room.

The neatness of the house didn’t extend there, as it was a giant mess of discarded clothes, toys, and mementos all arranged around a pile of pillows, blankets, and cushions in the center, with an Info-Grid terminal on one side, and a hammock on the other.

“The hammock’s yours, unless you want to sleep together,” Ruby explained as she helped Weiss in, an arm around her shoulder and the other holding the bucket Penny had fetched.

“I’ll manage on my own, thanks,” Weiss muttered.

She crawled into the hammock, curled up on her side with the Eluna plushie hugged to her chest. Ruby offered her a pillow and a blanket from her collection, but Weiss was already shutting her eyes and trying to will herself to sleep, so the day would finally be over.

“Good night, Weiss,” Ruby whispered, leaving the bucket by her side before she left—the nocturnal animals were coming out of their dens, and needed as much culling and surveillance as their diurnal counterparts, if not more.

As the gentle rocking of her hammock helped negotiate a temporary truce in her stomach, Weiss realized something: her plan to go into the Valley, to be free of her father, to start a new life somewhere else, and to see what it’d be like to just be her, than “the daughter of Jacques Schnee” had in fact worked.

… Just not in the way she expected.

[thereisnoneedtocallmesir]

The 100 ask game

I saw this on @osleyakomwonkru​ her blog and she ended it with “if you want to do this, go for it”, and I’m a massive nerd that likes the ask game so I’m going for it

1. What Station on the Ark would you be from?

Arrow station, it is the furthest away from the other stations and because I hope that there would be a lack of machines like the kind on factory station, mecha station, hydra, station and farm station, seeing as those are NOT usually quet machines

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark?

Either stealing something or because of something that happens if I become overstimulated. I have autism and a spacestation would never stop producing sound so things like going to the wrong place, not following certain orders that I might not even have processed, or if someone tries to stop me from leaving a place with too many stimuli MAKING them let me go

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground?

Nah

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..)

Assuming I’d know about their (former) existance, a penguin

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be?

Probably Sinclair

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they?

Uuuhm lets see, assuming we are still on the original earth but with the peeps from season5, I’d say Raven(tech), Niylah(she can get and process food and make clothes, and in general seems like a usefull person), Octavia(fighting and strategy), Jackson(healing) and Maddie(she knows the land and can also gather food)

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to you?

I think either Trikru or Trishanakru

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? (example: Octavia=Okteivia…just make it up!)

I think it would be jessika, though for this I am using the The 100 wiki so idk how good of a job I am doing interpreting that

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious

At first I liked him but season 2 Finn can just go die in a fire, ooh wait he got stabbed by Clarke before the fire came...

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does?

Not. I’d like the thought of not suffering but I would not trust some sorta chip

11. What character do you relate to most?

I think Charlotte, she was dropped in a shit situation and had no idea how to deal with the situation(though her situation is on a whole other level)

12. What character do you like the least?

From the ones currently alive, Kane. He went from dick to pretty decent BUT NOW HE’S BACK TO AN ASSHOLE LIKE C’MON MAN

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical)

If I’d be able to get my hands on it, cargo pants(I like ma pockets), some kinda shirt with half long sleeves(I can’t really handle ones with really short sleeves and long sleeves aren’t very useful if it becomes hot) and some kinda jacket, depends on what kinda jackets I would be able to get my hands on

14. Favorite type of mutant animal?

The butterflies

(also WHERE DID THE MUTANT ANIMALS GO LIKE THEY WERE THERE AND THEN THEY JUST FORGOT ABOUT THEM FOR A WHILE OR SOMETHING?)

15. What would your job be on the Ark?

Sorting things like scrap metal. It doesn’t require a lot of social interactions and I LOVE sorting things. So I’d probably enjoy doing it a lot, work hard and probably become faster as I do it more

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked?

Yeah

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive then who would have made the best commander?

Uuuuhm probably Roan yeah

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty?

Judging from how I act when sleep deprived, like an idiot(like getting jumpscared by my own hair, multiple times) that is also smort, like I’d probably find a way to make a shitton of bombs, and I would find useful stuff and forget where I got it from

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach?

Not really an option but more like Clarke. There should be some kind of system that is democratically voted on that applies on ALL crimes of the same sorts. Spur of the moment emotions are NOT a good way to judge anyone

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone?

I am not sure to be honest

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis?

Either by Kane’s side or in Polis

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there?

I would look around and hope for dear life that they have noice cancelling headphones(for autism reasons), and maybe even some sort of small solar panel and generator to charge it

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint?

I would probably have some tattoos on my arms, my hair would be in a ponytail with some small braids in there and I’d probably wear war paint around my eyes

24. Favorite quote?

“Ge smak daun, gyon op nodotaim.” (Get knocked down, get back up), like it’s part of my phone background

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning?  

I agree with @osleyakomwonkru​  “Luna, because I think she could outlive everyone either by fighting until the death OR by stomping off by herself and outlasting everyone out of sheer willpower (keeping @easilydistractedbyfanfic‘s answer again)” 

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE

Least favorite: I think Kane and Abby

Favorite canon ship: Lincoln and Octavia or Lexa and Clarke

Favorite noncanon ship: probably Niylah and Octavia

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo?

I don’t know to be honest. Though if I had to choose a guest star it’d be Hayley Kiyoko, just because I think that she is awesome

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time?

Be bored as fuck, and if they had the tools I’d try to figure out how to take random objects apart and put them back together(hopefully I’d succeed, though I would steal the camera from Murphy to record what I do so that I can check what came from where)

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die?

I’d probably go exploring somewhere and get lost

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of?

I think Shaw, because he was talking about some war where Diyoza fought in and I am interested in what happend before the firs time the world ended

31. A character you’d bang?

LEXA AND OCTAVIA

I REPEAT, LEXA AND OCTAVIA(I am very gay okay)

and also Raven

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden?

If they would let me I would stay in the Bunker. The Space thing wasn’t as planned, and I wouldn’t survive on my own in Eden

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground?

Yes. And I would probably try to learn how to fight and how to speak trig(I really like the language okay), and then the basics of skills like healing, sewing, which foods are edible and which aren’t etc

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits?

It would probably also be that I try to get away from a place with too many stimuli and then if someone tries to stop me I’d make them let me go. Especially if looking at the fights in the pits was an obligation (though I somehow feel like I would be more likely to get to talk to Octavia, well Blodreina, and explain it and maybe be allowed to stay away from all the noise, and if needed clean up the bodies and process the meat as reminder of why you shouldn’t break the law or something. At least more likely than that I’d be able to organize anything like that on the Ark, but  don’t know why I think that)

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with?

I think I would bond with Raven first, because she would be able to explain to me how a lot of stuff works so if I see an opportunity I would ask her a lot of questions and only continue asking about things she seems to get exited about. It would probably be more difficult to get along with Bellamy because I just don’t like what seem to be his thinking patterns and his morrals

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself?

Not at all

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do?

Watch, observe and learn. Learn who they are, what they do, when they do it, how they respond to different situations, who holds what kind of position in their group and what their intentions might be or how I could learn those

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite?

Favorite is Shaw, least favorite is McReary

39. Would you Spacewalk?

Legally yeah, not worth the risk of getting caught though

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat?

Space Algae, seems to be the easiest to throw down and not have to chew

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it?

I wouldn’t start a war, but if a war has already been started(officially or unofficially) and attempts to end it peacefully fail I will try my best to finish the damn war

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes?

I’m fine with both

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia?

Depends on what my sister does and what the traitor did but probably yeah

Generally speaking I wouldn’t stop Octavia. I would only talk to her to try to stop her from burning down the farm, so that I can gather a bunch of different kinds of seeds and everything that might be ready(the medicinal plants probably don’t all grow in the one green spot left) and THEN I would let her do her thing

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper?

I would probably stay around for a bit, to process things and explore, and then I would go to sleep

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet?

Raven, Shaw, Niylah, Octavia, Jackson and Diyoza, though they probably wouldn’t just all get along perfectly