#and perhaps a well-done reference for Leo

[shirokuart]

AWAWA GLAD YOU LIKED MY SILLY BRAINROT!!

Ohhh what if Leo like,,ask Izumi first if they can hold hands/hug to make sure to not surprise him this time, and also that he's okay with it, and, of course by being a tsundere about it, Izumi accepts ("Hmph...since you asked so nicely...")

And so like after a bit Izumi ends up returning the kiss on the cheek,,and Leo is extremely flustered but also happy about it, maybe teases Izumi a bit about it who's of course being the hugest tsundere about it, and maybe they end up falling in comfortable silence? Idk idk

OH WAIT wait hear me out...they sing together...maybe not in same scenario but just. Izumi finds Leo singing by himself then either he joins by himself or Leo notices him and asks him to join him

They live rent free in my head,,,

OMG OMG YOUR SO SMART??? I LOVE THIS I REALLY WOULD LIKE DRAW WHEN I GET SOME TIME I'M A LITTLE BUSY LATELY BUT I WANT TO DO AT LEAST A MINI COMIC ABOUT SOMETHING LIKE THIS HEHE, they would have many wholesomed moments

Izumi could ask him what melody is that for and he proudly says that he composed it himself and start to showing him some songs that used to sing for Kasa since he is his fish friend and even If he complains about leo attitude, listen carefully.

izumi: wow, you're a genius after all

I REALLY LOVE TALK ABOUT THIS WAWAA and I'm so happy you enjoyed the merleo too :') I like to know other LeoPs thoughts

[pinkaditty]

Pavlov's Ghoul Pt 2 (Leo Kurosagi x Reader x Sho Haizono; Tokyo Debunker)

we have someone 2 blame 4 the pavlov's ghoul series: 🐟 anon. they have officially established themselves as a regular and claimed an emoji. they have also given me a sinostra idea... perhaps... maybe... im still thinking abt it

a/n: we're back!!! amen!!!! i don't know how i managed 2 finish this but i did. god i hope y'all like this bc im a little proud of how i managed 2 get this one done!!! i hope i wrote leo in character enough bc that's the one main thing im scared i didn't do right...

quick disclaimer that i write these under the assumption the tokyo debunker boys are at least 18 years old. they appear to be present at a university considering there are professors and a chancellor. not to mention the boys drink, smoke, gamble, and refer to themselves as adults.

OH ALSO this did take a slight turn from the original idea, which was to have him want to spy on someone. i tweaked that idea just a little bit, i hope no one minds.

summary: leo gets fuckin choked the hell out with his own tie amen! in more thorough terms: leo is determined to get a rise out of you. you're determined to get him to shut the fuck up.

cw: choking, implied sexual encounters, multiple sexual innuendos, heavy petting, dry humping, and some odd behavior. MINORS DNI AS USUAL!!!

Psst! Part 1 is here in case you missed it!

Something about being an attention whore for your best friend’s girlfriend was pathetic. That, yet and still, didn’t stop Leo. He assumed you and Sho were dating, but he admittedly hadn’t had the nerve to ask Sho. He knew when you’d come over, though, and would use his stigma to listen to your moans, soft and breathy, through the walls. He'd clutch a pillow to his torso, curling into it as though he could hide his shame from himself. He'd listen intently to the hum of your voice, ordering Sho’s movements as though you were in charge; and to Sho’s immediate compliance without complaint. He was as obedient as a well-trained dog. 

It made Leo laugh sometimes, Sho’s obedience reminiscent of a loyal dog. A mocking smile would be buried into his pillow and quiet laughter would shake his body despite his throbbing erection pressing into the pillow’s other end. Despite his laughter, he knows he’s something of the same. The night he found out you and Sho were screwing still stands out clear in his head. The way your eyes flashed with displeasure at his presence, the way your posture stiffened like a stitch, the way your lips quirked downwards. Displeasure. Anger. Disgust. The way those emotions seemed to twist your face into something beautifully attractive to him. Honeyed rage and saccharine disgust were trickling forth from you, and in that moment, he found himself nothing more than a mere stray, lapping eagerly at the scraps of attention you were willing to give his starving heart. 

The sickeningly sweet voice you spoke to Sho in, he knew, would not get Leo off nearly as well as if you snarled out your words to him. If he were in Sho’s place… 

He quickly shakes his head to put an end to his reminiscent thoughts. He had things to do. 

You were supposed to be coming by Vagastrom today. Latest case had been like hell, but at least it was over. All he had to do was sign the report. That wouldn’t be a problem, so long as he got to try and pester you to death after his signage. Leo was lingering in the Vagastrom garage, occasionally pacing between the garage and the graffiti-layered couch in the entryway.

Leo checks the time on his phone for the fifth time. You were running a bit late. It was getting annoying. He sucks his teeth in annoyance, his mind already wandering to the possible explanations for your lateness. Perhaps another ghoul had captured your attention on the way there, and you were caught up in pointless conversation with them. Leo huffed and rolled his eyes at the thought, crossing his arms impatiently. What was so good about the other ghouls, anyway? Not that Leo would be all that interested, but he was sure he could give you a good time… And yet, you choose to spend your time with the better-natured ghouls. On one hand, he supposes he can’t blame a girl thrust into a new environment for being drawn to kindness, but on the other hand, you could at least not ignore his existence. Over a petty insult, at that. All he’d implied was that maybe Sho keeps you around because you’re good at giving head. Now, you giving him head is a regular occurrence, anyway. Leo just can’t see the problem. 

Leo has to suppress a small flare of rage at the thought of you sucking Sho off. As much as it grates him to admit it, hearing Sho’s moans along with yours pissed him off. He kicks at the floor of the Vagastrom garage, knocking a stray bolt into a pile of tools in the corner. His thoughts quickly wander, his teeth sinking into his bottom lip. It should’ve been—!

Light footsteps make their way down the stairs of the dorm. Leo’s head snaps upwards to find your form descending the steps at a chipper pace. Immediately, his heart jumps into his throat, pounding at an irrationally fast pace. He clenches and unclenches his fists in his pockets, feeling his palms become sweaty. He shakes his head before his face can warm, suppressing any outward expression best he can. He makes eye contact with you reluctantly and nods to acknowledge your presence.

“Kurosagi.” Unfortunately for Leo, your voice is steady and neutral. No hints of displeasure, or anger, or even apathy. Just total neutrality. He clicks his teeth in annoyance and glances down at the paper you’re holding out to him. “Can you please sign this? Yours is the last signature I need.”

Leo hums, looking back at the stairs of the dorm, processing. “Before that, Little Miss Inspector…” he starts dismissively, keeping his gaze fixed on the stairs. “Did I just see you come from upstairs? Had you already been here?” His tone is clearly implying something, a shit-eating grin spreading across his face. He raises an eyebrow, lifting a hand to his chin in mock contemplativeness.

“Yeah.” He’s surprised, as you respond quicker and far more shamelessly than he’d expected. “I was just getting Sho’s signature.” The tone of your voice was oddly lighter, perhaps less neutral than before. Simultaneously, Leo’s gut boils with envy and his shit-eating grin spreads wider.

“I see. So…” He leans in closer to you, a mocking look in his eyes, his grin never leaving his face. “...How long did it take?”

“Excuse me?” Your voice and expression turn somewhat exasperated. Leo has to suppress an actual grin.

“How long did it take for you to clean up? All that cum off your face, I mean.” He gestures vaguely to your face, shifting the other hand to his hip as he smirks down at you.

Leo can’t help the giddiness that shoots through his body as white-hot anger seems to flash behind your gaze. Your brows knit together in anger and your face wrinkles into an offended, angered expression. Perfect, Leo thinks, staring at your expression. He happily soaks up all your attention, flicking his tongue out to run them over his lips, his piercing glinting in the light. He watches as your eyes follow the swift movement, returning his lips to a teasing smirk, lifting an eyebrow at you. 

His smirk morphs into a grin as you turn away, forcefully pushing the report into his chest. “Just sign the report, Kurosagi.” It’d be impossible not to pick up on the venom with which you said his name. It sends a thrill down his spine, and he shivers, biting his lips to stifle the crazed grin that threatened to spread across his face. 

He chuckles cheekily, looking down at you condescendingly. He has you right where he wants you. “How about this?” Leo starts, carefully plucking the report from your hand pressed to his chest. “I sign this,” he waves the report in his hands before tossing it to the side, leaving the papers to scatter across the floor, “when you answer my question.” Both his hands return to his hips, and he leans down, closer to your face, his face covered in a smug smirk and his eyes dancing with mirth. “So?” He starts, making sure to enunciate his words to bring attention to his tongue piercing, taunting you. “How long did it take?” He relaxes his gaze, staring down at you with hooded eyes. He takes a step towards you, to which you take a step back in turn. Leo only smiles and continues taking steps towards you, as you match his pace and take one step back for every one he takes forward. He watches as your gaze continues to emanate anger, exasperation, and disgust. His body feels rejuvenated, as though he’s fed on your negative attention. He sucks in his bottom lip and rolls it between his teeth, attempting to keep his teasing grin from growing into a genuine smile. 

“Come on~, don’t be a drag.” He finally stops walking, having backed you up to the graffiti-covered couch. He stood over you, smirking in response to your defiant expression. He leans forward towards you, veering towards your ear. His lips brush against the shell of your ear as he speaks. “It did take you a while to get down here, ya know?” Leo giggles, light and breathy in your ear, before pulling back, facing you again. He grins wide. “Next time, save yourself the effort and just swallow. Promise it makes things easier~! You can even show him… Like this!” He brings his hand to his lips, positioning his fingers in a “V” shape, and sticking his tongue between them, his mouth wide open. To further mock you, he makes a “Bleh!” sound as he sticks his tongue between his fingers, his body shaking with suppressed laughter. 

Leo honestly wasn’t sure what he wanted out of going this far. Maybe you’d get so angry you’d snap or something. Maybe you’d slap him, or punch him, or kick him, or just yell at him. Whichever you chose, he found himself looking forward to the inevitable sting your retort would leave. 

“...Why do you care?” Your voice is soft, barely there, but Leo can pick up on the anger laced in every syllable. He pretends not to hear you, instead leaning towards you, stupid smirk plastered on his face. 

“Sorry, didn’t quite catch that, Miss Inspector. You should speak up, like you do when you’re ordering Sho around.”

Leo is hardly surprised when you grab his tie and pull him closer to your face. If anything, he revels in it, knowing you’re angry. What surprises him is when you twist him around and push him down onto the Vagastrom couch, climbing over him and pinning him down with your knees on his thighs. You keep an iron grip on his tie, and he stares at your fist warily, lifting his hands in surrender. He scoffs when he realizes you’re not going any further, looking up at you.

“Hmph. You’re bold, but I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.” He grins cheekily at your frustrated glare. Leo was just excited to finally hold your attention, all of it. You weren’t looking anywhere else, you weren’t listening to anyone else, there was nobody around to interrupt. It was just you, free to entertain his whims and give him all your attention. 

He feels you shift on top of him, and stays still as you readjust. Raising an eyebrow, he looks up at you. “So what are you planning to do to me while you have me like this, hm?” He says teasingly as you place your knees on either side of his body. You plop yourself down on his stomach, to which he grunts. He’s about to call you heavy when he feels the warmth of your core seep through his shirt. He shivers, and upon realizing the implications of this, smirks.

“Hey, honor student. Answer me this.” He brings one hand down to your thigh, gently squeezing it before gently trailing his fingers towards your skirt. “Is this because you were just fucking Sho…”, he slips his hand under your skirt and presses his thumb into your clothed clit, “...or is this because I—ack!” 

You were holding the knot of his tie taut against his throat. He instinctively moved his hands to his neck, nails scraping at his tie. He repeatedly gasps for air, staring up at you with wide eyes, as though pleading with you to let him go. Despite himself, he felt his body flush with heat at your unforgiving gaze. Steadily, the shock of being at your mercy turned into the pleasure of being at your mercy. Leo felt a warm feeling spread through his body at the thought of becoming victim to your whims; wherein your latest wish was his newest command. His heart thudded in his chest and his face grew warmer, both from his blocked blood flow and from the embarrassing revelation that this was turning him on. His eyes slowly rolled back into his skull as he still gasped for air, holding the tie and trying to pull it away from his neck.

When you finally release him, he sputters and coughs, turning his head away from you. He holds the crook of his elbow to his face, coughing as his lungs finally fill up with air again. When he catches his breath, he turns to you, attempting to hide the way your satisfied gaze set his body aflame with a deep scowl. “W-What the fuck was that, huh?!” He practically spits the words at you, his brows knitting together as he stared at you with fabricated contempt. His eyes are wide with a heady mix of arousal and fury. He was furious at himself for finding arousal once again in your mistreatment of him, this time to go as far as finding pleasure when you choked him. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to condemn it. Even now, as he warily switched his gaze between your face and your grip on his tie, something in him eagerly awaited the moment you’d repeat the action.

“Well?” Leo snaps angrily, undeterred by your silence. His chest heaves, and his hands are positioned near his throat, prepared for you to do it again. He keeps his gaze on you, your challenging gaze sending shivers down his spine.

“You know Leo, I’ve noticed something.” You start talking, seemingly ignoring his question. He frowns, but keeps quiet, allowing you to continue. “Ghouls are far stronger than humans, right? You could’ve pushed me off of you at any time. Why do you let me continue to choke you?”

Leo goes pale for a moment, your words sinking in. You’re right, technically speaking. If he had chosen to throw you off, he could. His mind scrambles for an excuse, anything to throw you off his trail. He mock scoffs, sneering at you. “How could I even think about pushing you off when you’re fucking choking me?!” He gestures to his neck, the knot a fair distance from his throat, still held in your grasp. 

Before he can say anything more, you lean further into him, placing your hands on either side of his head to steady yourself. “Then push me off.” You stare at him, your expression impassive so as not to get a rise out of him. “Right now.” 

Leo freezes and makes no move to push you off of him. He gazes back at you, swallowing harshly, realizing he’s been trapped. He could push you off to save face, but he didn’t want to. Your gaze, your attention, was what he craved so viscerally. He didn’t want to risk it by ending this a moment sooner, even if he was getting choked. He couldn’t so much as tear his gaze from you, staring back up at you defiantly, still refusing to move. He swallows thickly again, feeling his skin crawl. Your gaze, while hypnotizing, was also beginning to make him uncomfortable. He knew you could see right through him. He knew he’d become an open book, simply from the choice of refusing to push you off of him. He clicks his teeth, partially out of annoyance and partially out of frustration, staring you down as you did to him. He really was trapped. 

“...I think this turns you on, Leo. Right?” Leo startles, a new surge of energy coursing through him. He desperately attempted to deny it, shaking his head and squirming, as though to free himself from you. 

“What the hell are you on about, Inspector? Huh?” He gets defensive, his eyes wide and reflecting your earlier anger. He chuckles, though it comes out bitter, rather than in the teasing tone he’d wanted it to. “It’d take a freak to get turned on by something like this.” He spits the words at you again, sucking his teeth when he finishes speaking. He continues to stare up at you defiantly.

He feels you shift yet again as you lean away from him and twist your torso around, looking behind you. He looks at you quizzically for a moment before he feels your hand press directly against his stiffening cock. He moans, surprised, clenching his thighs together. He hadn’t even realized how hard he’d been this entire time. “I guess you’re a freak, then.” Your words are an obvious taunt, and he can hear the teasing smile in your voice without even looking at you. When you remove your hand, he has to resist the urge to thrust upwards and catch at least one more bit of friction. He groans, shifting and squirming uncomfortably. A portion of his attention was now on his cock, twitching restlessly in his pants at full mast. How had he not noticed this before? His chest heaved, his whole body quivering as he tried to keep it together. His cock seemed to beg for any sort of contact or friction, even jumping when his pants shifted against his tip. 

Miraculously, despite the gasps and muffled, whiny moans sprouting from his throat, and his desperate squirming, he manages to bite back. “If I’m one, then you are too!” His gaze flicks to your skirt, covering the warm, sticky evidence of your arousal. He can feel it through his shirt, the offending heat melting into his own arousal. He takes note of surprise temporarily flickering across your face before returning to an annoyed expression. “What, thought I didn’t notice, huh?” He laughs, a cheeky grin returning to his face despite his arousal. “Come on~. Miss Inspector, I’m not an idiot,” he continues, watching your annoyance grow, feeling excitement flush through his body. “I can feel the heat of your pussy through my fucking shirt. Crazy that you’re this horny even after fucking Sho. Who knew the honor student was such a wh- Urgh!” His hands fly to his tie again, feeling your grip tighten it around his neck. It was looser than before, but still tight enough to restrict his airways. He groans, trying to ignore the arousal that pulses through him all at once. “F-Fuck…” He chokes out, feeling his face warm again thanks to the restricted blood flow. He is gasping for air, twisting and turning underneath you, all in false attempts to free himself from your grasp. 

“I don’t appreciate being talked to like that, you know.” He is barely able to process your voice, soft and stern, almost too quiet to hear over the sound of his heart pounding in his ears. His eyes roll back into his skull, and he groans again, slightly arcing his back in response to the pleasure. He writhes under you, his cock pressing harder into his uniform pants. He looks up at you pleadingly, as though begging you to do something about his throbbing cock. 

He feels your hips move back, lifting yourself off of his stomach and lowering yourself onto his groin instead. Slowly, the pressure on his neck loosens, and he cries out, feeling sudden, warm friction against his cock. His hands reach for your thighs, squeezing them as you settle on his groin, panting heavily and staring intently at where your bodies almost connected. He whines, rolling his hips upwards once, steadying you with his hands. 

You smirk at him, and Leo realizes how needy he must look right now- pupils blown wide, lidded eyes, lips wet and wide open in heavy pants. Some part of him resigns to looking like this, the pleasure of being at your mercy nearly fully taking over. This was insane, and he knew it, but right now, your eyes were on him. You were giving him the attention he so desperately craved, and he didn’t care that he was the victim, or the loser, or the thrall. In his eyes, he’d won. You were speaking down to him in a condescending tone, forcing him to recognize his own hypocrisy, and best of all, you were angry with him. Leo could still spot some anger behind your eyes, anger at him and the taunting words he’d said and names he’d called you. Disregarding his pride for a mere moment, he had to admit, this was exhilarating. It was… perfect.

He snaps back to reality when you start to grind your hips downward, moving your hips back and forth along his length. He moans and grips your thighs, feeling his cock press painfully hard against the restrictive fabric of his pants. In his hazy stupor, he slides one hand closer to your skirt again, slipping his hand underneath and thumbing your clit like he did before. As he does, he peeks back up as you with a cheeky smile, or, at least, the best teasing smile he could muster while you rocked your hips against his, sending his senses into hyperdrive. He grins in satisfaction when you let out a breathy sigh, enjoying the sensation. 

He feels the tie tighten around his neck again, and watches eagerly as you push the knot closer to his throat. He tilts his head back, willingly accepting your whim, the ghost of a smile on his lips. “Hrk!” The knot at last presses into his throat, and he grunts before gasping for air, a shiver running down his spine. He continues thumbing your clit as you resume the movement of your hips, rubbing your heat back and forth over his twitching length. He no longer struggles, but he does make quite a bit of noise. Grunts and groans and gasps are all muffled well by the tie around his neck. Eventually, he starts to feel lightheaded, the choking restricting his breathing and limiting the oxygen getting to his brain. His pace in thumbing your clit becomes sloppy, his panting becomes quicker, and he feels his cock stir urgently as you quicken your pace. He is hit with the overwhelming realization that he’s close. His moans get a little louder, feeling the inevitable release piling in his groin. He attempts to warn you, but he can’t seem to get the words out, his words too much for his blissed-out mind to process. Instead, his nails dig into your thigh, his thumb rubs sloppily against your clit, and his eyes roll back, his jaw going slack as his tongue lolls out of his mouth. He digs his heels into the couch, pushing his hips into yours as you continue your pace, his throbbing cock twitching excitedly under the friction of your warm heat. Sparks begin to pop behind his eyes, and he swears he’s so close, he’s nearly there…

When, suddenly, you stop your pace and release his tie, letting it loosen around his neck. He watches, stunned, as you rise from his lap, walking away from him. He’s barely waking up from his blissful haze, holding his throat as he carefully breathes, blinking repeatedly to keep his vision from swimming. His cock stood hard and lonely, twitching with dissatisfaction at a stolen release. His gaze snaps back to you, as you walk back towards the Vagastrom garage. It takes a few tries, but he summons his voice, scrambling to lift himself from the couch. “Hey!” He sits upright, staring at your retreating figure. When you don’t turn around, he hurriedly stands, holding his head in his hands as he reorients himself. “Hey!” He says it with a bit more urgency, and heads after you after shaking his head. “What the fuck was that, Little Miss Inspector?” He grabs your shoulder and forcefully turns you around, unsurprised to see a neutral expression on your face again. 

“What the fuck was what?”

He crosses his arms and stares at you with displeasure. “Come now, Miss Inspector. I’m the one to play coy. What the fuck was that?” 

He watches as you roll your eyes dismissively and turn away, continuing on your way. “A lapse in judgement.” 

Leo freezes. A lapse in judgement? No, he knows it was more than that. The satisfaction flaring in your eyes while on top of him told him so. He hurries after you, stomping on the ground before he catches up and pulls your sleeve, forcing you to face him again. His cool exterior is cracking, the desperation in his groin reawakening as he pulls you back. “Come on, Miss Inspector~.” He says the phrase a little whiny despite trying to hide his yearning with teasing. “...Don’t make me beg for it.”

His eyes bore into yours, his golden gaze flashing with an amalgam of desire, envy, desperation, and excitement. The words ‘Please give me more’ rested helplessly on the tip of his tongue, ready to betray his calm attitude if you turned away from him again. His face was an open book all over again, his true feelings visible in the way he gazed at you, in the way he chewed on his bottom lip, in the way he tightened his grip on your sleeve. 

He watches as the corner of your lips quirks upwards, as though satisfied all over again. You pass the unsigned report to him again, and Leo realizes you must’ve walked away to collect it. “How about this?” You turn to him, shit-eating grin spreading across your face. “If you sign this…” You tap the report tauntingly, and he stares back at you, realization dawning on him, “...I’ll drag you back to that couch and finish what I started.”

Leo almost balks. His own bargaining chip, used against him. He stares at the report in his hands, part of him wanting to refuse, and the other half wanting to sign it and drag you back to the couch himself. 

His gaze lifts to you, and he finds you gazing at him expectantly, as though you had him right where you wanted, and knew exactly what he wanted. A rueful smile plays across his face as he flips open the report, not bothering to glance at the details before reaching the signatures page. He glances up at you, and catches the tail end of a satisfied smirk, before it drops, returning to the same expectant look. He grips the edges of the report, staring back at you.

Fuck. He really hoped he had a pen on him.

a/n: wrote this in three separate sittings. not sure how, so don't ask. i really hope y'all enjoy this bc lowkey im a little scared i didn't write this well enough! but if you enjoyed, please do let me know yippee!!!

as always... i love likes, comments, and reblogs! please, fill up my notifications with how much you loved my work! i love 2 hear from you all! as i said in the last post, feel free 2 fill the fuck out of my inbox or comments or reblogs. idnc! i love seeing how much you all love my stuff.

okay and finally, the taglist:

@diluxama @animesimpwz26 @mastering-procrastinating @belphiesleftpinkytoe (tagged u jic, u didn't ask but i wanted 2 be sure)

@aayakashii (shamelessly tagging u bc i want u 2 see this and u commented. i wasn't sure but i did it anyway.)

thank you all 4 asking 2 be tagged, i hope you all enjoyed!

[ilsolefiesta]

my natal chart & heterochromia theory

firstly, I would like to emphasize that this is only a hypothesis of mine and it needs a lot more evidence to support it. 

despite heterochromia being a rare phenomenon, I happen to know two people who have it - my mother and my best friend. both of them have Sagittarius Sun, but I think this is just a coincidence. because of this, I became interested in some patterns that could potentially indicate different eye colors.

it's also important to note that here I consider cases of full or partial coloration as "heterochromia". I don't include situations where people have slightly noticeable tone differences or perhaps color veins. also here I'm speaking about genetic heterochromia, not acquired one.

there are many different approaches to the question of identifying the significator of the eyes in astrology. some people say that the Sun represents the right eye for men and the Moon represents the left eye, while the opposite is true for women. some people mention Saturn and Venus.

however, I have a different theory.

in medical astrology the head and eyes in particular are associated with Aries. therefore, I believe that we need to deal with Mars. I also consider the Sun, as its exaltation is in Aries as well. 

to summarize. according to my hypothesis, we have Aries, Mars, and the Sun responsible for the eyes.

next, we need to identify the possible reasons of "corruption". my assumption is as follows: 

1. Chiron, as it refers to oxymoron and contradiction of opposites.

2. Uranus, as it refers to something unexpected and strange.

3. Lilith, as it can provide some specific features, but only if it's involved in some significant and accurate aspects or placed in the 1st house. 

we are now done with the theoretical part. then, I analyzed the natal charts of various celebrities with heterochromia. here are some observations:

`1. Kate Bosworth

damn, her Capricorn Sun, Venus and Lilith… so old-money cored appearance, I admire. her Aquarius Mars in square with Taurus Chiron is interesting, because Air Mars often gives blue/grey eyes, but we have a brown (earth) sector in this case...

2. Josh Henderson

honestly, his heterochromia is a little bit questionable for me and it took me around 20 minutes to observe it in his photos and videos. in some photos and videos, his eyes have the same grey/light blue color, while in others, he has such a green eye that I even wondered if it was Photoshop. however, according to the Internet, he was born with this trait, so we can consider it a common knowledge. his Virgo Mars is squared with Sagittarius Lilith and Scorpio Uranus, and there is also a conjunction between Lilith and Uranus.

3. Alice Eve

another beauty with Capricorn Venus, I begin to think that I have something personal with them… in this case, the situation is more clear. we have an active Aquarius Sun in square with Taurus Chiron (once again). additionally, her Sagittarius Lilith forms sextiles with the Sun and Libra Mars.

4. Jane Seymour

do any James Bond fans out there? because next we have actress who played his love interest. another Aquarius Sun - Capricorn Chiron sextile, + Pisces Mars square Gemini Lilith. her light eye, by the way, have a slight green accent. maybe it's because of the Pisces influence...

5. Mila Kunis

she was so good in "Black Swan"! there is really something magnetic in her appearance. Leo Mars sextile Gemini Chiron. additional influence of Leo Sun-Aquarius Lilith.

6. Dominic Sherwood

another Sun Aquarius. probably it also has some effect... Capricorn Mars-Uranus conjunction. it's secondary, but Cancer Chiron has a trine Scorpio Lilith and opposition with his Uranus.

7. Henry Cavill

the sexiest Superman in the house (however, he is absolutely not my type, haha). conjunction of Mars and Chiron in Taurus. that's all for him but this was enough for his heterochromia.

8. Svetlana Ivanova

omg, I'm obsessed with here face. the combination of Libra Sun and Virgo Venus makes her images so... pure, angelic? her Virgo Mars is squared by Gemini Chiron and Sagittarius Uranus. + Mars sextile with Taurus Lilith.

9. Elizabeth Berkley

fire combo. Aries Chiron in a trine with Leo Mars. Mars is also squared by Scorpio Lilith. and, finally, there is also a sextile between Mars and Libra Uranus.

last random fun fact about celebrities:

I also had Sarah McDaniel on my list of celebrities with heterochromia. she has such a unique difference - one eye is completely brown and one is completely blue. but when I checked her chart I find nothing. I was puzzled and at one point, I thought about giving up on writing this post. but then, I decided to do some more research about her. and surprise-surprise - her father revealed the truth by showing a childhood photo of her with both eyes the same brown color.

as for my mother, she has Sagittarius Sun sextile Aquarius Lilith & Scorpio Uranus. her Aries Chiron has no aspects to Mars, BUT it squares her 1st house Saturn. her eyes are green, but a half of one eye is blue. my best friend has 1st house Sagittarius Sun-Lilith conjunction, Sagittarius Chiron-ASC conjunction and Aquarius Mars-Uranus conjunction. her eyes are similar to Kate Bosworth's - light-blue/grey with brown part. that's why I can add that the connection of Chiron/Uranus and sometimes Lilith with the 1st house, ASC in particular or even the ruler of the 1st house also makes sense! (don't forget that Aries is the symbolic ruler of the 1st house). it's hard to trace it in celebrities' charts as I don't have information about when they were born, but I guess it's possible to find this connection either.

that's how it is. huh, it was hard to write and search. Thank you for reading!

I would also appreciate if you could share your thoughts on this topic. Perhaps you or someone you know has heterochromia, and could provide more evidence to support or deny my theory.

Pictures credits: Pinterest

[talesofsorrowandofruin]

Trick or Treat? 👻

(Event Post)

🍬 Treat! :D Here's an excerpt from Silver Glass (warning for references to murder and period-typical homophobia. Plus major spoilers, of course):

"So you see," Mr. Altounian finished, "I killed Gwladys to save Alec. Dzovig killed Çelik Bey for revenge. What we did was wrong, but justified. We would never have done it if they hadn't driven us to it." Silence fell. Phil looked around the room. Yo-han's face was blank. Vi and Máté looked as if they couldn't believe what they'd just heard. Lennox was staring at Altounian with a mixture of grief and something she couldn't place. Altounian refused to look at anyone. He stared at the carpet and kept his grip on Lennox's hand. Yo-han had been leaning against the mantelpiece during the story. Now he straightened up. He looked at Máté, Vi and Phil in turn. "And there we have it," he said. "There are only two options now. One, I tell the police everything. Mr. Eames — I beg your pardon, Mr. Altounian — will be hanged for murder. Perhaps certain other facts will remain hidden, or perhaps Mr. Lennox will be arrested for sodomy. Either way his reputation will be destroyed." Phil looked thoughtfully at Altounian and Lennox. Now she recognised that something she hadn't been able to place. It was in the way Altounian clutched Lennox's hand like a lifeline, the way Lennox leant towards him, the way he never took his eyes off Altounian's face. She had never realised how similar she and Lennox were until now. What did you do when you learnt someone you loved had murdered someone you hated? How could you make yourself hate them? Could you ever forgive them? Could you ever stop loving them? Leopold was worse than Davit. He had known from very early in their acquaintance that he was going to kill her aunt. He had befriended her anyway. In a way she was worse than Alexander, because she had fallen in love with Leo after the murder. If Leo appeared on her doorstep one day, what would she do? How could she tell him to go to hell when she never wanted him to leave her again? Phil looked at Lennox, and she understood exactly the turmoil going on in his mind. They were both people who loved not wisely but too well. Yo-han had stayed silent for a while, allowing his last sentence to sink in. Now he continued. "Then there is the other option. I lie to the police. I tell them Çelik Bey's father is a politician and his enemies murdered his son. Mrs. Lennox was killed to stop her identifying them. And a murderer goes unpunished." Altounian laughed, shrill and piercing. "Unpunished? My god! I see her blood everywhere. I can still hear her skull breaking. When I close my eyes I see her face all covered with blood. I can smell it, I can practically taste it, sometimes I think I still see it on my hands, my clothes. Hanging can't be worse than this." He really didn't look well. He was pale and trembling. After observing Altounian for a minute Phil agreed; he certainly was being punished. Considering what Mrs. Lennox had been like, she thought he was being punished enough. Lennox pulled his hand free, but only to put one arm around Altounian's waist and the other around his shoulders. He pulled him close. "So," Yo-han said. "We will vote on it." "Not me," Lennox said. It was the first time he'd spoken since… had he spoken at all? Phil couldn't remember. His voice was quiet and it sounded like he was trying not to cry. "I can't vote. I suspected, but I hoped— I can only say that if you give Davit up, I will go to the police and tell them I planned the murders." Altounian's head snapped round. He stared at Lennox as if he was out of his mind. "They'd hang you too!" "That would be better than living without you."

Adding Glass's taglist: @writingpotato07, @oh-no-another-idea, @sarahlizziewrites, @lightgriffinsect, @kittensartswriting, @acertainmoshke, @author-a-holmes, @sam-glade, @late-to-the-fandom (Let me know if you want to be added to/removed from the taglist!)

[14muffinz]

Too much anxiety to tag everybody, but when I say the concept of His world leo's joining in on peepaw therapy sessions does not leave me alone

I am going to refer to them as their fic titles, because it is 11pm and i am not going to loose sleep over character names. (Using LJ/MJ to refer to main timeline leos/mikeys, and then just the abbreviation for the oldies.)

Included/Referenced are: OMO - @/cherrytraveller

MNMC - @/mutantninjamidlifecrisis

AMW - @/teainthesnow

TAE - @/apatheticrobots

MH - @/characcoon

The new guys, OMO!LJ decides, are like, way off.

He's pretty sure everyone else is seeing it, too, because it almost looks like those two are getting along.

Also. The one who'd waltzed in and claimed the name "Leonidas" and taken no questions had a fucking axe.

Like, what.

"Did you see that?" MNMC!LJ whispers in his ear. "Those two just smiled at eachother. Without banter. What the fuck."

MH!MJ, the only Mikey in the entire meeting (that'd been a real shitshow, don't ask) hums. "Someone go call in the bodysnatcher, we need an analysis, stat."

"Calling it now," TAE!LJ announces, "big one's five years earlier than ours."

"Wow."

TAE!LJ jumps at the newbie's appearance.

"This whole thing is... more common than I thought. So what? We're supposed to talk to eachother? I've done plenty of that already, trust me."

"Oh, please," OMO!LJ snaps.

HW!LJ raises his hands in surrender, looking around at the party before him. There was a little variety among eye colours throughout, strangely enough, and OMO!LJ notes the near impossible shade of bright blue this guy's are.

"You're literally a Leo, there's no denying that there's something," MJ snaps.

"Like, perhaps, why your guy showed up without his sword."

This time, several of them jump at the appearance of AMW, who plops instantly down into his half-used chair.

"Especially why he needed it replaced. Thing's sentimental, he wouldn't just abandon it, and the masks are on the new one. So what happened there?"

"Our ninpo's separated," HW!LJ responds, and it's so painfully a deflection of what really happened there that OMO!LJ and MNMC!LJ lock eyes. "Ever since he showed up, he's been leeching off of mine, which, fair enough, the universe kind of fucked us over like that, but then, like, a few months ago, there was this whole thing, with a black hole and shit, and I tell you, he just appeared with the damn thing."

"Score one for team shit did not yet hit the fan," TAE!LJ deadpans.

"Oh no, I don't mean the bubblegum bitches."

AMW!LJ lets out a choked laugh at the comparison.

"He popped up when Micheal, uh... beamed me up."

Right there with the lovely, painful comparisons.

This whole thing did not work very well when most of them, excluding like 2, had very similar experiences with the Kraang.

"What, so he just showed up then and there?" MNMC!LJ finally needles, his hand a death grip around the arm of his chair.

"Is this an interrogation?"

"Perhaps," OMO!LJ informs him.

~~~

"Wow," Nidas says when he plops himself into his chair. "This is depressing.

There are like, 3 different dead-eyed stares locked on him right now, yeesh. Was this what he'd been like around Nardo at first?

"Oh wow," MH comments, "we finally found one who doesn't combust into tears on the spot."

"Oh, like you were any better," MNMC snaps.

MH side-eyes him.

"It's okay, Mike, you can hair flip," MNMC reassures.

"With what? His overgrown sideburns?"

Well, this is going swell.

He looks over at the quiet one, and realises that he's staring at the arm. Of course he is, given that everyone here, excluding Chin-Stripes over there, were using prosthetics.

"Hey," OMO snaps at him, so of course Nidas focuses in on the guy. "How do you get it? The indifference thing? I've been trying, for like, moths."

TAE sighs, but is interrupted before he could say anything else.

"Oh no, I'm doing terribly right now," Nidas assures him curtley. "But like, I saw the little guy on the way in, so since I came back you're already the fourth Mikey I've had to–"

"Four?" Several voices exclaim.

"Where'd that last from come from?" MNMC questions.

Ah, great.

"Y'know, when they warned us that the circumstances would be a little off, this was not what I was expecting."

~~~

"You got him out?"

AMW!LJ is uncomfortably close to his face.

"Y... yes?" HW!LJ stutters out.

"Teach us your ways."

"Well," he coughs awkwardly, thinking back on what had transpired that fine day. "There's a lot of life-threatening shit involved. Soul-sucking. We kind of almost killed my bro's on accident then we had to like, relive trauma and shit to find them. It was this whole thing."

"So you're traumatised?" MJ prompts with an eye roll.

"For life, man."

("Mood," MNMC mutters under his breath.

MJ very curtly flicks him.)

"From today and onwards, I've seen two different Mikey's with sideburns."

AMW groans, loudly. "So to seperate the two of us, I have to make shit worse? UGH!"

"Hey," HW!LJ offers, placing a hand on his alternate's shoulder. "You'll get your own font of depression eventually, don't worry about it. It'll pass, too, before you know it you'll be right back to Leo "I process trauma through humour and never confront my feelings 'till I die" Hamato."

"Y'all need therapy," MJ deadpans."

"Jokes on you," MNMC!LJ smirks, "we're already here."

[alyjojo]

October 🌹 2024 Monthly - Leo

Preshuffle: You’re breaking a rule or some kind of policy at work, and you’ve done this before. I’m hearing “work smarter, not harder,” and seeing more money on a paycheck. Cutting corners perhaps, to save money.

Meditation: Same as the preshuffle, I’m seeing a paycheck where the amount keeps going up, but it’s coming to you - not being paid out 💰

Main energy: 7 Wands

What’s going on in October:

Temperance rev, The World rev, The Sun, Knight of Wands, 4 Swords rev

You’re pissy about something taking too long, standing your ground with someone even. Someone has to leave and come back later; and it’s a lack of patience that’s chapping your ass - but it’s because you’re ✨so excited✨ for whatever comes after this thing. It’s not finished. You wanted it finished yesterday, tf. You’re getting incredibly impatient with delays, The Star shows something you’re waiting on that’s the greatest thing ever to you, this is THE thing you’ve been waiting for, wanting to do, wanting to put in your… “hostel”…wtf is a hostel? Why on earth…let’s see.

Hostel - an establishment which provides inexpensive food and lodging for a specific group of people, such as students, workers, or travelers. So like an Airbnb. Someone here could be trying to open one and working around red tape and inspections, that sort of thing. But that’s the plan for someone. Not everyone obv. I’m seeing it even more with this Cool Lemonade card, cute patio decor & drinks. At the bottom it’s like other people aren’t doing their jobs, in your opinion. Chop chop 🔪 Another reference to cooking, food, this is the vibe idk, we roll. You’ve felt like your hands are tied until some other thing happens or is approved, until you get something fixed probably.

Or healed. Now I’m seeing someone that’s been down, could be medical or literal healing, and they’re itching to get tf out of the house again, to celebrate, be wild and crazy with Knight of Wands. I NEED TO LIVE 🥳 Or even a hospital stay, if that applies. Drives you crazy. The first half of the month is probably confusion and feeling like your hands are tied, Silver Cloud confirms this. Later on you’ll get the clear though, and like shackles being removed - you’re set free 🕊️ No longer tied to this thing and ready to take off - Knight of Wands.

Some of you are getting divorced and already with someone else, waiting for it to be final. Or switch it. Some are trying to buy things for some independent venture, or a side hustle - and setting up everything you need for that. Others may be just be treating yourselves with some kind of pick-me-up. A hair appointment, shopping, decorating, something aesthetic. This could all be concerning a party, gathering (or wedding) you’re trying to put together, or someone is, and by the end of the month there is news is that all roads are clear.

It’s also possible that it’s not you stuck at all but someone else, maybe your maid of honor - for someone - or bestie, and you’re up in arms about it. Things will work out just fine from what I can tell. Enchantment shows you have a creative & magical 🪄 touch, again I’m seeing decor & aesthetics but even if it’s decorating yourself. Makeup, your style, your tan idk - how you carry yourself, it attracts people to you and that will work in your favor in this situation. Patience at the bottom, sounds so simple but is so hard 😣 I see you being defensive, but only at first, because you have to wait, because someone else’s issue is taking priority, etc. It’s temporary. Could also be that someone vital or important can’t be at some event, and their hands are tied. For the color, Spirit said “banana” so…that’s for someone. Idk why.

Signs you may be dealing with:

Leo, Sagittarius, Capricorn & Gemini

Oracle: ✨

Origin 🌱

Initiation - Creativity - Vitality

Blessing ✨

Fulfillment - Well-Being - Enlightenment

47 Enchantment

We are enchanted when the Muses sing the Art Spirit into us.

We enter into October as:

Silver Cloud ☁️:

“Every silver lining has a cloud.”

If confusion is a familiar state for you, then you already know Silver Cloud. Clarity is only available by journeying with him for awhile. Through a willingness to be in confusion, we find clarity. You are to slow down, meditate, contemplate, rest. If you were to know what lies ahead, you might not take on the next task willingly. You’re not supposed to know, you will when it’s time. Bide your time in gratitude and know that clarity will come along the way.

What is to be learned in October:

Cool Lemonade 🍋

“My dreams got answered.”

There are times when chasing dreams leaves us winded and unhappy. If this gift has been given, it’s to remind you there is always a plan. If you fear you’ve been sidetracked from your right path, have faith you’ll be guided back to it. There is not always a complicated reason why things didn’t work out how you wanted them to, it may be simpler than you think. Are you sure your prayers weren’t answered? Or was it a reply you refused to hear? You will find total peace when you appreciate the gifts you have, rather than pining for what you lack. Sometimes, we all need to be reminded that the point of prayer isn’t to get what we want, but to ask to be of service. Cool Lemonade reminds us to only seek to be of service in our lives, closeness with Spirit must always be put before what we’d like to have.

Yellow may be a lucky color 🍌

[thekaijudude]

You know how you described how each Ultra Brother can take on an entire army of Kaiju? Well, define what ya mean by ARMY of Kaiju if you don’t mind. And maybe how each of them could handle an army of Kaiju perhaps?

Im basically just gonna bust out the lookup list as a refresher here:

iirc this was done 1-2 years ago where I spent about 2 hours or so to work out the scaling based on official statements/numbers as well as canon feats (I also had to make a number of assumptions to at least make the scaling linear)

I am always referring to this list for any form of powerscaling asks for those that miss it, it covers all canon ultras from 1 NG all the way up to Noa.

And of course theres also my postulated extension of canon here:

But I rarely ever need to use that one since its beyond the usual scaling that canon vibes at rn

So back to the standard list, where a standard New Gen Base form can be considered as 1 NG and 1 NG can one shot a standard mid tier 2 kaiju using his finisher

In that same lookup table, I also calculated that the UB are anywhere from 1000 - 10 000 NG (may be stronger, will justify later)

Also when I say UB level Ultras, I generally classify Ultras that are at least as old as Taro or can be scaled to the UB, such as of course the 6 UB, Leo Brothers, Great Eight, Regulus, Toregia, Great, Powered etc, the logic that undergirds this differentiation is M78 Proportionality Constant/Scaling which I derived based on calculation as shown in the standard list

Thus far, my calculations seems largely consistent with canon feats as covered before in detail

Using all of the above, a way to answer your first question is that a UB can probably take on either 1000 to 10 000 mid Tier 2 kaiju (Taro can definitely take on at least 10 000 since I rmb i specifically calculated this number based on him, I think i include the calculation in the first link). An example of a mid tier kaiju would be something like Gomora/Red King, which means no Tier 2 kaiju with some form of hax abilities like Zetton or specs in a certain stat like Skydon with his durability.

So I suppose just the UBs' finishers alone could do the job (not even gonna bring in their reality-warping abilities) since theres really nothing an army of Tier 2 kaiju can actually even do to a UB level Ultra's durability in the first place. So, is how each UB can handle an army of mid-tier 2 kaiju really that important at that point tho?

Heck they mostly likely could no diff the same army without using their finishers, we have seen normal attacks from UB level Ultras being able to one shot New Gen Base forms (Possessed Taro, Toregia etc), which scales higher than mid-Tier 2 kaiju anyways, which is why I say UB Level Ultras could potentially scale higher than 10 000 NG

Thanks for the question!

[thoughtfullyrainynightmare]

Prompt: Campfire Characters: Fuegoleon & Leopold Genre: Sibling fluff Fanfiction type: Oneshot Length: ~0.6k A/N: Okay, but we really do need more of these to expressing brotherly love

Being royalty, and a knight, meant not having a lot of time for spending with family, sadly. Which meant that at times, there was a need to combine the two; family time and duties. And that could be done through a training mission between just Fuegoleon and Leopold.

Though ‘training mission’ made it seem something more than the camping trip it had been, even if it had been accompanied by some advise, discussing Fire Magic as an attribute, as well as tactics and methods one could use on the field. But it was merely a framework for the conversation during the day, and as evening rolled in, they lit a campfire.

The crackle of the burning logs filled the air, combining to the scent of pine and birch as a gentle breeze brought in fresh air that combined with the smell of approaching rain. But still, the sky was empty of clouds, allowing the blanket of stars light the sky.

And the two brothers merely sat there, looking into the fire, and enjoying the silence.

There was no need to say anything, not really anyways. But still, Leo wanted to say something.

“Thanks, aniue,” he uttered, with a tone that was far more silent than usually. “Today was a lot of fun and I learned a ton!” A bright smile rose to him as he looked at his brother, filled with pride and admiration.

“You’re welcome Leo,” Fue smiled. “We don’t get a lot of chances to bond, outside of work.”

“Yeah…” Leo admitted, they really didn’t spend a lot of time anymore. If you didn’t count things that took place with the entire squad. “I remember when we were little and you and aneue used to take me on adventures!”

“Adventures?” Fue quirked an eyebrow.

“Yeah! Like to the gorge! It was so awesome,” he thought back.

It was a distant, faint memory, but he re remembered looking down into the gorge, thinking about how deep it was. It had been a bright, sunny day… summer, if he wasn’t mistaken.

Fue let out a chuckle, thinking back to that particular ‘adventure’, when Mereo had somehow got it into her head that Leo needed to climb out of that gorge by himself. ‘To make him strong’ had been the only explanation, along with some reference to lions he had never been able to confirm himself.

“I wish we could do this more often,” Leo continued, looking into the campfire. “We should bring aneue with us next time.”

Another chuckle left Fue as he thought about it. “We certainly may,” he replied, glancing at Leo. “But still put us through a proper bootcamp if we did,” he grinned.

“She would!”

There was a pause, during which they shared a glance.

“Maybe the trips to Yultim are enough…” Leo chuckled, scratching the back of his head.

Fue nodded as a reply.

They both loved and admired their sister dearly. But. They also knew that Mereo wouldn’t let them off easy, especially because they were her brothers. It might have been only her way of showing that she cared, wanting to make sure that they could handle themselves when it came down to it. But there was also only so much tough love they could handle on one go.

Perhaps camping trips such as this, was something for just them two. No sisters allowed.

Just them, and the crackling of the campfire.

[isabellahawkes]

Defending 5 Tropes Everyone Hates In Fiction

Today  I’m going to defend the tropes in fiction that everyone hates. I’ve  been watching Authortube and Booktube for several years, and over a  period of time I’ve realized that certain tropes get more blind hate  than they deserve. So I’ll be talking about the five tropes everyone  hates — or, so they claim to — and explain why they’re really not that  bad.

1) The Self-Insert: People make fun of self-inserts because they, in theory, drag the quality of the story down. But what exactly is a self-insert? Well, it’s supposed to be a character that resembles a more perfect version of the author, typically the main character. This character is hot and can do no wrong, and defeats all of their enemies easily.

However…what is actually a self-insert? The main character. Of any novel. Especially if it’s written by a woman.  Women authors are more often than not accused of writing self-inserts,  especially if the main character is also a woman, and bonus points if  they have the same hair color. Because brown is such an uncommon hair  color. Self-inserts are typically also referred to as Mary-Sues. Here’s a  tip: Go in the opposite direction from anyone who uses that term today  unironically.

I’m  not saying that self-inserts don’t exist in fiction, or that people  don’t write “Mary Sues”. But let’s be honest, this is just another way  to dig at a woman author for not writing the just perfect and acceptable  representation of a woman. The character is likable? Self-insert. The  character is unlikable? Self-insert. The character is good at most  things? This is wish fulfillment. The character is completely  incompetent? She’s so pathetic…so she must be a self-insert.

Aside from this primarily being directed at women — even  though some of the most renowned male authors have never had trouble  expressing their own self-inserts (Leo Tolstoy, Victor Hugo, Stephen  King, etc)— self-inserts by themselves aren’t even a bad thing.  Writing a character that has the same traits as the author doesn’t mean  the quality of the story will be less than. If anything, the author  will know how their character would realistically react to any  situation.

To  be clear, I’m also not saying you should just write characters that are  exactly like you. But it’s pretty impossible to write a character that  is exactly like you as you keep writing your story. As you develop your  character, they become a separate entity from you. It’s possible that by  the end of writing your manuscript, your “self-insert” only has a few  traits in common with you. And that’s the strange thing about people  critiquing self-inserts — this is you assuming you know the author. And 9  cases out of 10, you don’t. Not even if they’re a YouTuber. So really,  it’s kind of a creepy accusation. A better critique of a main character  would be that they excelled in everything too easily, or they were so  “perfect” it was annoying…you don’t need to drag the author’s perceived  personality into the mix. Also, make sure the character is actually too  perfect, rather than you don’t expect a woman to be capable of doing  anything.

2) Flashbacks:  I’ve seen a lot of people who hate flashbacks, and honestly this is one  on the list that I can see why people do. However, I’ve seen a lot of  hate being thrown its way…and I personally love flashbacks. When they’re  necessary. I love multiple timelines, when done well. I love a  nonlinear story structure. Flashbacks tend to get hate because sometimes  the flashbacks are placed in awkward times in the story, or they don’t  seem to add much, or they just confuse the audience. These are totally  valid criticisms, but I think like with self-inserts, they’re not always  done horribly.

A  common piece of writing advice is to start your story where the story  starts, otherwise known as the inciting incident. The inciting incident is not always where a flashback takes place in the main character’s  story. Perhaps the most well-known example of this is the show  Lost. For one thing, Lost has a big cast, but it would’ve been annoying  to follow these random characters with family issues that seemingly  don’t have much of a connection until they crash on an island, probably,  what, in the third season? Sometimes a story starts with a catastrophic  event that brings up memories for the main character. It wouldn’t be  effective storytelling to start off with Jack ruining his alcoholic  dad’s reputation and then crashing on an island…that’s some out of  nowhere twist.

Also, sometimes a story needs flashbacks, typically in the mystery and  thriller genres. Maybe readers who don’t like flashbacks don’t enjoy  those kinds of stories, but I just think the flashback hate would  actually ruin a lot of cool stories.

3) The “Chosen One”:  I honestly think that people who hate the “Chosen One” storyline don’t  actually read many chosen one stories. That’s because their complaints  are bizarre oversimplifications about what the chosen one could be…but  never is. I’ve heard people say that the chosen one is randomly chosen  for no clear purpose or reason. The three most popular examples are Harry in Harry Potter, Frodo in Lord of the Rings, and Katniss in The Hunger Games is brought up a lot for some reason.  Critics of this trope act like these characters were just randomly  chosen by some all-knowing being to save the world…and that’s just not  true. All three of these examples weren’t “chosen”, they were victims of  life circumstances, as are all of us.

Harry’s parents were murdered and a protection spell was placed on him, and it was all because of Voldemort. He  made the decision to go after Harry because he heard of a prophecy that  Harry could be his undoing. It also could’ve been Neville. The point  is, this wasn’t some grand design from God, it was circumstances that  led to Harry being the chosen one. In Lord of the Rings, Frodo  inherited the ring. Gandalf and Frodo even have a discussion about how  it didn’t have to be Frodo…but that’s too damn bad, it is. And Katniss  became a symbol for the rebellion in Panem because she was the first  person in a long time to actively show some resistance against the  Capitol. Again, this was due to life circumstances.

The point of the Chosen One is never to show how incredible these everyday heroes are…in fact, it’s the opposite. The  point is that random things happen that lead these heroes down  extraordinary circumstances…and they never want it to, but it’s too damn  bad. I just think people who critique this trope aren’t  actually even talking about the trope when it’s used, they’re just  borrowing jokes from CinemaSins.

4) Teenage Heroes/Super Soldiers:  When people complain about this trope, I get really confused. For one  thing, teenager heroes are typically in young adult books…which you’d  think would be obvious. But a lot of adult YA readers don’t actually  seem to like teenagers at all…so why are you reading about them? I also  get confused when people complain about this trope because they say it’s  not realistic…meaning, it doesn’t reflect real life…they don’t buy that  young people are targeted by any particular industries because they’re  young…

Not  only does the military target high schoolers because that’s when  they’re most physically fit, their minds are also more impressionable.  Universities do the same thing. Every industry  targets the youth to mold into a good soldier, a good student, a good  worker bee, another cog in the machine, if you will. But each person  targeted feels special, kind of like a hero. Sure, it might  sound weird to have an army made of up of 13 year olds because of the  kids you see around you. But back in the day, that was the norm, it’s  only unusual sounding by today’s standards. Just Google the age of King  Tut and you’ll be surprised how wrong you are.

5) One-Dimensional Villains:  For a time, we hated seeing villains that were just evil, for seemingly  no reason. We wanted something different. We wanted villains who felt  real like we do. We wanted funny villains. We wanted quirky villains. We  wanted to see ourselves in villains. Because we wanted to feel  challenged by our material. We didn’t want the good guy to always be  right. We wanted to understand the villain’s point. So…we got a ton of  villains with tragic backstories and redemption arcs. Not one of them  can stay evil unless they’re the last season baddy. That guy’s just Satan. It’s literally Satan most of the time now.

Every  villain’s gotta have a point, or at least a sob story. It’s totally  fine for a villain to have a point, and a sob story. But it’s gotten out  of hand. We’ve gotten to a tricky place where  many writers are unintentionally trying to justify their villains’  actions through their explanations of how a villain got to be the way  that they are. Or, if you’re a writer on YouTube, let’s be  honest, you’re gonna pretend that all of your characters are  three-dimensional people…because you’re the one writing them.

But  not every reader is going to think of your character chart. So, when  you don’t have these tragic backstory reveals, or understand why the  villain is committing genocide, the reader is just going to think, “this  is a one-dimensional villain.”

And that’s okay.

Why  do we need to justify genocide anyway? When we think of some of the  real world’s most evil people, we don’t see their complexity as a human  being…we see a monster. And honestly, I don’t see why every fictional  villain needs to be humanized in every fictional story. It all depends  on the story you’re trying to tell, and your themes. But your story  definitely doesn’t need to give your villain redemptive attributes.

Those are the five tropes I’ve seen get a lot of crap about, even from people  who use these tropes. And I don’t think they’re that bad, they’ve just  been oversimplified. Most any trope can be done well in fiction, they  just need to be utilized in an effective emotional way. And if you still  hate these tropes, well, that’s okay too. Just keeping an open mind is  one of the most efficient ways to improve your writing and expand your horizons.

Also published here on my website, and here on Medium. :)

[cresvalkyrie]

My turn! How could Hauyne react to the reborn trio and how would Orion react to the rejuv trio!

The ask game in question

Hoo boy, this is gonna be a long post. More under the cut!

I’ll start with the reborn trio :D

If Hauyne were to meet Reborn!Leo, she isn’t going to think very highly of him (sorry Leo!). She’d be rather put off by his overall demeanour and would probably assume he’s one of those stereotypical bratty rich kids. If she’s feeling particularly sharp-tongued, she might refer to him as a fù èr dài in private... which is Mandarin for spoiled rich kids (often used in a derogatory manner, especially to mock their materialistic attitudes and lavish, overindulgent lifestyles).

Over time, I’d think she’ll warm up to him, especially after finding out that Leo is aware of his shortcomings and genuinely wants to better himself. That’s something Hauyne respects, and would most likely try to help him in his endeavours in whatever ways she could. I also think they would become unlikely friends, particularly for Future!Leo, though it’s going to take quite a while to get there considering how intimidated Leo is of her presence. (And who doesn’t like having a pseudo-younger sister play wingman? XD)

Next is Suraya... hm. I think Hauyne admires her, at least the way how she carries herself with utmost confidence and purpose. She probably won’t appreciate the myriad tests and trials Suraya will subject her to, especially after she discovers that it was meant to gauge her capabilities as an Aura Wielder. But overall, she might look up to her as a role model and perhaps even an older sister figure.

Blair... well. This is going to be a tough one. Like Orion, Hauyne can sense that xe has killed quite a number of people in cold blood, therefore she could deduce really quickly that xe is someone extremely dangerous and not to be trifled with upon their first meeting. As a result, she’ll keep her guard up around xem, closely watching xyr every move so that she could respond accordingly if xe tried anything (not that xe wants nor plans on harming her, but Hauyne doesn’t know that). I’m not sure how Blair would feel about this lol, since both siblings are like keeping their distance from xem out of uneasiness/wariness but also trying not to make it look too obvious.

She, like Blair, will be not be amused about the “long lost cousin” joke. At one point, Hauyne got really fed up with the jokes and threatens to set the next person who brings it up on fire. Though a part of her does wish that there’s a relative from her mother’s side of the family alive out there...

Okay, with the reborn trio done, let’s move on to the rejuv trio!

I think Orion would get along really well with Imani, considering their similar personalities. They’d indulge her in a battle if she asks, though she’s probably gonna get her shit wrecked (though if it were Reborn!Orion, she might be able to put up more of a fight before losing XD). I’m not sure if they’ll take Imani under their wing, but something tells me they definitely would lol. It’s an open secret in the Reborn League that their champion has a bad habit of “picking up strays”, the strays in question being their juniors.

For Flynn... I think they’ll be rather close with her, since Flynn’s shy and meek personality reminds them of their own sister when she was much younger. I have a feeling that Orion is going to act as something like a mentor of sorts for her, especially if its Future!Orion we’re talking about here. I’m not sure what Flynn would think of this lol, but I hope she’s receptive to this XD

As for Arrow, the two are definitely going to hit it off with how much they have in common! I have a feeling that Orion thinks Arrow is really cool and generally a nice friend to talk to, from geeking over their shared hobbies to sharing their insecurities/experiences as an older sibling. Though they’d be quite aghast to hear that Arrow feels right at home in the sweltering hot desert (the Tourmaline Desert was their least favourite place on Reborn for this reason). 

[glowinggator]

Friendly Competition

Request:  Now I can’t get the image of Mikey and Leo prancing around the lair to try to impress Y/N and Raph and Donnie just exchanging glances like wth in response to this X,D Wait, are you open to requests? Because then I’d totally request if you could do the idea of Leo and Mikey trying to impress Y/N in outdoing each other…

Characters: Leonardo (Pining)/Reader/Michelangelo (Pining)

Content Warnings: Swearing, really brief reference to The Walking Dead (Season 4). 

Word Count: 1946 

“Carl, Carl! Oh my god, dude,” Mikey squeals, clinging tightly to Raph’s side. Any other day, you might have laughed a little at his reaction - once a little brother, always a little brother - but you’re not in much better standing this time. The boy on TV backs slowly away from the zombies a little overconfidently for your liking, and you can’t suppress the rush of anxiety that courses through you. He’s a TV character, sure, but you’ve watched him grow up! He can’t die now, right? 

And when the third walker appears, grabbing onto the young boy and pulling him down, you could have sworn the whole lair screamed. The room is filled with the “no’s” and various swears of your friends as the kid fights for his life, and you press yourself further into the couch to try and put some distance between you and the TV. You flinch at the sound of gunshots as he pushes the walkers away, barely managing to stay alive, when suddenly the room is pierced with a noise that’s somehow even more jarring and terrifying. 

Battle alarm. Of course. Some yokai...alien… whatever it is... had to terrorize New York City now, of all times? 

"Couldn't this have been an email or something? Really, the nerve of some people. Interrupting The Walking Dead now, of all times," You groan jokingly, pausing the show for the boys as they rise to their feet. 

“If you unpause it while we’re gone, I will take you as a prisoner of war and treat the Geneva Convention as a to-do-list,” Donatello snarks. 

You stick your tongue out at him, but you can’t help but giggle. “Noted, D. Hurry back guys, stay safe!” 

“We will!” Raphael calls, waving to you with a smile before stopping at the exit of the lair, waiting for his brothers to catch up. Donatello walks right past him, balancing his tech bō over the expanse of his shoulders. You smile and wave back at Raph, but soon after, you’re met with the excited cheers of Mikey. He takes a running start at one of the nearby guard rails, grinning as he lines himself up at an angle. He jumps, grabbing the bar and spinning himself around it with ease to face you. In the brief second where your eyes lock, he shoots you a wink and a grin, before spinning himself back around and walking off. I mean, you know he’s a ninja and all, but has he always been that smooth with his parkour? Or like, that smooth in general? 

He waves quickly at you with a smile and walks straight past Raph and into the tunnels of the sewer system. “Later, angel!” He chirps. 

Leo boos before taking a running start of his own. Not to be outdone, he avoids the bar completely, instead choosing to flip over it entirely. He clears the bar with ease, landing on one leg and sweeping the other under him to perform a small rotation towards the ground. As he regains his balance, he pushes himself up with one hand and removes his feet from the ground to do another rotation before planting them once more and performing an angled flip. His movements are quick and fluid, as though such acrobatic feats were innate to his nature. As he lands he grins and shoots you a pair of fingerguns - which you laugh at softly - before backing out of the lair. “Later, sweetheart,” he coos, and turns around to walk out properly. You chuckle again once you hear Mikey’s voice echo from the sewers. 

“Show-off.” 

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

You swish the warm drink around in your mug and take a sip. You practically purr at the heat as it hits your tongue: it’s been far too cold for your liking lately. Or, maybe you’re spending too much time in the sewers. Maybe you should invest in some space heaters, if you’re gonna be down here all the time. You twiddle a pencil between your fingers as you fill out the tattered crossword in a vain attempt to wake your brain up a little. Who was Aphrodite’s son again? Did she even have a son? You suppose you’ll get back to that one. 

Raphael stumbles into the kitchen with a groan, fumbling around for a fresh mug. “Good mornin’, Y/N.” 

“Good morning, Raph,” you reply. 

He finally manages to find a mug, pouring some coffee and creamer and pulling up a chair next to you. He leans his head in his hands, clearly not awake yet. You chuckle. “Sleepy?”

He hums affirmatively and takes a sip of his coffee. You pat his shell gently and return to your crossword. You’ve never felt more like an adult, you think sarcastically. It’s like some scene out of a Lifetime movie. 

Out of nowhere, there comes a loud thump from the common area, followed by the quiet swears of Leo. You damn-near jump out of your seat at the sudden noise, barely managing to keep your drink in your mug. It sloshes around the rim, and you quickly put your hand up to steady it. Raph, meanwhile, stays glued to his seat, seemingly unbothered by the loud noise. “Good morning,” he repeats. You snort. “Good morning, indeed,” you reply. 

After a moment of thought, you set down your cup and rise to your feet. You might as well check out the noise and make sure everything is okay. You pat Raph’s head one last time before walking out into the living room, only to find Mikey and Leo whispering loudly at one another. Their voices are so hushed that it’s difficult to decipher what exactly they’re saying, although you can certainly hear them. But judging by the force behind the indecipherable words - and the overexaggerated hand motions - it clearly isn’t a friendly discussion. You clear your throat and wave gently at them, which catches their attention. 

“Everything okay?” You venture. 

“Yeah-” says Mikey. 

“Yeah- It’s- Everything’s all good,” Leo stumbles, only to be cut off by his brother.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” He elbows Leo harshly, emphasizing some point to his brother that you’re clearly missing. 

“Hunky-dorey.” 

“Peachy-keen”

“Perfect.” 

The two keep stuttering and stammering, occasionally elbowing the other without warning. You raise an eyebrow at the strange behavior, and decide to intervene. “Okay,” you drawl, “I’m gonna pretend I didn’t just hear… whatever that was. For your guys’ sake.” You joke lightly, attempting to lighten the mood a little and divert the attention away from that… trainwreck of an interaction. And the boys seem all-too-happy for the excuse, as Leo quickly jumps in with a quick question. 

“Hey, now that you’re here, could you do us a huge favor? We’re having a little…” he pauses, “brotherly competition, and we need someone unbiased to judge.” 

“Oh, that sounds fun!” You chirp, “What kind of competition is it?” 

“It’s-” 

“It’s a parkour competition!” Mikey interjects. 

The tension between the two turtles is thick, and you certainly don’t want to be the one to address it. Perhaps if you ignore it, it’ll go away on its own? Maybe they both woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, or maybe this competition has high stakes? You sigh internally: it’s too early to be thinking this hard. “Sweet! I’m ready to be impressed,” you jest. “Who’s going first?” 

“Me!” 

“I will!” 

They reply in unison, cutting each other off for the umpteenth time today. You chuckle and roll your eyes, which catches their attention. You don’t miss the way their eyes light up… or the way Mikey begins to smirk. He looks almost devious, although you suppose such a mischievous look isn’t an uncommon sight with him. 

“Leo,” he starts, “How about you go first?” 

He takes the bait with a grin, clearly unaware of whatever plan Michelangelo’s formed. “Why certainly!” He rolls his wrist around in an overexaggerated motion, beaming with absolute confidence. “As the eldest brother in the room, I’d be happy to show you how it’s done.” 

And with that, he’s off. His movements are as smooth as silk as he runs towards the nearest crate, grabbing it at an angle to flip himself over once. He lands on his feet with a loud “thump” against the concrete, but he doesn’t waste a moment as he runs towards the nearest wall. He runs up its length the moment he’s in range, this time using his body weight to spin himself during his flip. He’s fluid in his movements, years of practice and training shining through in this brief moment. This time he lands straight up on both feet, although he doesn’t take any reprieve. Instead, he kicks himself up and over, sweeping the leg to enter a combative stance. A final flourish in his display, you assume. And just like that, it’s over. The show only lasted a matter of seconds, but it’s still enough to leave you starry-eyed and in awe. 

“That was fucking badass, Leo!” You clap. 

“Really?” He smiles, “Uh, I mean, yeah! Thanks!” He fumbles with his hands for a moment before finding a spot for them. He rests them behind his head, shifting side to side on his feet. God, that’s so fucking cute. 

You beam: You can’t wait to see what Mikey does! “Think you can top that, Mikey?” 

He returns your excitement wholeheartedly, shining back with something that seems like… so much more than his typical positivity. In most situations, he radiates so much positivity that one could liken it to a lighthouse for the hopeful. But his attitude seems different from that usual beacon of light. He’s excited, positive, and confident, but that’s not what’s throwing you off. Sure, they’re competitive, but what’s the motivator this time? Ah, you suppose you’ll find out soon enough. You’re brought out of your thoughts by his cheers. “Easy!” 

And god, Mikey’s movements are so graceful that he makes Leo’s look inexperienced, like a giraffe crossing a tightrope. He moves like a swan through water, scaling walls effortlessly and flying through the air like it’s his second home. He starts his routine off strong, leaping at the first waist-high object he could lay his eyes on, performing an impromptu 720 rotation and landing on the concrete protrusion hands-first. He leaps off it as quickly as he landed, using his momentum to propel himself onto a nearby set of steel bars. He throws himself from one to the other with ease, spinning and adding his own flair to each and every movement. You can’t seem to take your eyes off of him while he leaps his way to victory. He uses any ledge possible to propel himself higher and higher, and his movements are so light and quick that they hardly make a sound. And before you know it, he’s standing at the topmost bit of the lair. He plops himself down, dangling his legs off of the precipice and swinging them back and forth. From this far away, you can barely see the way his grin stretches across his face, but you know it’s there. He raises one hand to wave at you and Leo, and the way he wiggles his fingers signals that he knows he’s won. And to be fair, he has. You giggle at the way Leo mutters “show-off” under his breath - where have you heard that one before? - before signaling for Mikey that he’s won and to head on down. And god, the descent is just as impressive. He laughs as he kicks and spins his way down, and despite the competition being over, he continues to shine and demonstrate his skills flawlessly. 

“One and one, baby!”

[hillbillyoracle]

Tarot as Representations

So one of the recommended uses I talk briefly about in my zine, tarot in the time of the apocalypse, is to use tarot cards as icons in a parred down travel altar set up. What I didn't get into too much is how to select these cards to use as representations. I wrote the zine originally with a more experienced practitioner in mind and thought that most folks would select a card based on intuition.

Which will totally work. But recently as I was using cards to set up a petition, I realized there was a lot more I could have said there. Some of it

Astrological Representations

So a lot of people know that Tarot has astrological associations. I knew about a lot of these but I've been learning about so many more recently. You can use these associations to create representations of your work with the planets for petitions, prayers, or other workings. If you have decks you don't need, you can us the card as a base to attach paper talesmins to and give them some rigidity while adding to the correspondences (good for if you need to tuck it in a car visor or a book). Really there are so many options for using tarot as representation for astrological concepts.

The classical planets and the 12 zodiac signs are the most agreed upon from what I can tell and they are as follows.

Classical Planets

Moon - the High Priestess

Sun - the Sun

Mercury - the Magician

Venus - the Empress

Mars - the Tower

Jupiter - the Wheel of Fortune

Saturn - the World

The Moon card is traditionally associated with the sign of Pisces but I've swapped these out a few times and not noticed a major difference. I have also substituted Judgement for Saturn when not working with them in an earthly or cthonic capacity and that's worked alright for me. I try to stick to the traditional associations when reading a spread but when picking a representation it seems like it's slightly less important.

Outer Planets

Uranus - the Fool

Neptune - the Hanged One

Pluto - Judgement

These are less agreed upon but what I've found most common. I use them when reading but I will swap them out when picking a representation. I think they work okay for the most part. But truthfully I don't work with the outer planets a whole lot and don't often need a representation of that.

Zodiac Signs

Aries - the Emperor

Taurus - the Hierophant

Gemini - the Lovers

Cancer - the Chariot

Leo - Strength

Virgo - the Hermit

Libra - Justice

Scorpio - Death

Sagittarius - Temperance

Capricorn - the Devil

Aquarius - the Star

Pisces - the Moon

Just as a note, the signs also correspond with parts of the body and can be used to represent requests or petitions in that way too. I have some times used the Emperor (the sign of the head) and the Moon (the feet) to represent that my request is for my whole body. It's too much to fit into this article but it's easy to find on Google and something to add into the language of what you can represent.

Representing Fixed Stars

It's become more popular to work with fixed stars of the Zodiac (Deneb Algredi, Algol, Regulus, etc) and one way I've been using to set up an altar to the ones I work with is to select the tarot card that corresponds to the decan that the fixed star is found in and par it with the Star card.

The decans and card associations are too many to list here but the principle is fairly straight forward.  There are 4 elements of the zodiac (Fire, Earth, Air, Water) and they correspond with the four suits of the Tarot (Wands, Pentacles, Swords, Cups; respectively). The Aces embody the elements themselves. Without the Aces, each suit has 9 cards, that are then divided by the three modalities of the Zodiac (Cardinal, Fixed, and Mutable). Each of these modalities has three cards representing the three decans of each sign. Each decan covers 10 degrees of a sign and have associations themselves.

Cardinal signs are at the beginning of each season, so they are equated with the beginning of each suit (2,3,4). Fixed signs are in the middle of each season, so they are equated with the middle of each suit (5,6,7). Mutable signs are at the end of each season, so they are equated with the end of each suit (8,9,10). Using this you can figure out what decan belongs with which sign.

Say you want to represent Algol, who is at 26 degrees Taurus. Taurus is a Fixed (5,6,7) Earth (Pentacles) sign. 26 degrees is between 20-30 and so is in the last decan of Taurus. Meaning the card you'd select would be the 7 of Pentacles.

Sun, Moon, Rising

So on occasion, when I realize I probably won't be using a deck but I want to keep it around, I'll pull a few of the cards and use them as artwork. One way I've done that is by displaying my Sun, Chart Ruler, and Rising Sign using Tarot Cards. I don't have any presently to show as an example but I will get stiff paper, attach cards in a grid, and put it in a cheap frame. Now that I know the decans, I would also include the decans in addition to or replacing the sign cards. I use the World here for Rising Sign because it has felt right to me and at one point incorrectly learned Saturn as being associated with Judgement so I still use that when laying out cards for this kind of artwork.

For instance:

The Sun - The Chariot - 2 of Cups

The World - The Devil - 3 of Pentacles

Judgement - The Star - 3 of Swords

Hell of a combination, I know. The reason I've done Chart Ruler instead of Moon is purely because I have a total solar eclipse in my natal chart so they'd use the same sign and decan cards and this way I don't have to have a second deck.

I'm actually working on turning this layout into a spread/worksheet. More on that in another post though.

Deity Representations

I have used tarot cards as deity representation a lot in my practice, especially with travel altars as I mentioned. But it really could be extended to others as well. This is where there's more intuition and less structure to go off of so what I say here is by no means law. Artwork of the cards themselves will dictate quite a lot.

For the Greek and Roman deities associated with the planets, the choice is pretty easy; the Magician can be a representation of Mercury, the Empress for Aphrodite, etc. For Kemetic deities that were syncretized with Greek and Roman deities, you can also use those correspondences too. I have used the Magician card to stand in for both Hermes and Yinepu for instance.

For other deities, my recommendation is to stick with the court cards as your basis. These already are often read as actual people in a given situation and the artwork in a lot of decks will only include a single person - which is just helpful for me personally when using it as a representation in an altar set up.

However, where you want to call a deity in a specific role, combining a court card and a major arcana can be really powerful. When I use the cards in my work the Morrigan, I always use the Queen of Swords as my base. But if I want to call her in her role as prophetess, I might combine the Queen of Swords and the High Priestess. If I want to call her in her role as battle raven, I might combine the Queen of Swords and the Tower.

If you work with the Elements as entities or as guardian spirits, you can utilize the Aces for their representation as they are the embodiment of the purest qualities of each element. This also works in combination with a Court Card for deities you are calling in connection with their association with an element. Say if I wanted to represent Geb, I might use the King of Pentacles and the Ace of Pentacles.

Ancestor Representation

I have not done a lot of this personally though in the times I have tried it, it has worked pretty well. Court Cards not only refer to people but often have associated ages as well and in a pinch I've used the Court Card associated with the gender and age that someone passed away. I have not used this yet for someone who has passed away that was nonbinary but I would probably default to using the Knight or the Page as they're less gendered, even though they correspond with younger age groups. It's imperfect and I'll write more on this later as it evolves.

The age groups associated with the court cards (as I learned them) are:

Page: young, usually under 35

Knight: someone mid career, age 35 - 50

Queen and King: someone at their height or who has reached old age, 50+

I tend to pick the suit for what they were most known for; were they really emotionally oriented (Cups), did they work really hard (Pentacles), were they especially known for their intellect (Swords), or were they fiery and artistic (Wands)?

If you want to use the cards to honor your dead generally, you can always use a representation of a psychopomp who opens the way for you if that's a part of you practice. You can also just use the Death card, perhaps in combination with the Six of Cups. I am much more likely to do this than represent a specific ancestor but I have needed to on occasion and this is roughly what I used.

Spellwork Representations

This honestly could - and hopefully will - be it's own article or zine at some point but I did want to mention a little bit on using the cards for spellwork on the fly. The main ways I've used them so far is either to petition the spirits of the Major Arcana for assistance or use the pips to specify what I want to happen.

The former is pretty straight forward. I personally have found the Major Arcana to be spirits in of themselves, which makes sense to me coming from a Chaos magic background, and I have petitioned them with offerings like I would any other spirit. The Magician has seemed to be most open to this so far but others are helpful in their own ways.

The latter works the best if you've worked with the cards long enough to understand their concrete meanings. Often beginners will have these very general understandings, that are still accurate by all means, but hard to take action on. If you're at a point in your tarot practice where you can see for instance the 4 of Wands know it's connotations with marriage and contracts or the 9 of Swords associations with bringing on nightmares, then this method should work for you.

Sometimes I'll combine this with a deity representation and lay a pip before it as my petition and then give offerings and burn a candle or incense. Just using them as representations for what I want to happen alone hasn't worked well but using them in combination with something else has. Have someone walk over the 5 of Pentacles or 3 of Swords enough times and there will be consequences. Just as walking under the 6 of Wands or the 10 of Cups will bring blessings.

Conclusion

So I hope this was helpful to someone out there. It's been super helpful for me to just grab my deck and go in so many situations. I can grab it and then scrounge for offerings when I get some place and not feel like I'm without something core to what I need.

And I know there are so many variations on this. This is by no means the be all end all of how you can use them and I do hope to expand on some of them in later writing, but I do think this is a decent springboard to experiment with.

How do you use your tarot deck for representations?

[flickeringart]

Thinking and Feeling -  What keeps you civilized?

In order to be able to live in a civilized manner, a person has to align with certain values and standards that enable behavior that doesn’t threaten, disturb or cause disruption in social interactions. The air signs in astrology represents the thinking function, the ability to formulate ideals and communicate with the environment. The air element is the function of deductive reasoning and it allows for a certain detachment from the emotional-physical reality. The thinking function allows us to interact with the world on an intangible level, through sublimating actual experience to conceptual reality. “Communication” is only possible when there’s separation present – where there’s a subject and an object present.

The air element is often referred to as the basis for “civilization”. It is uniquely human; it is what sets us apart from the animals. Without thinking, there are no ideas, no conceptual ideal to strive for. This is not to say that thinking on its own is productive – there needs to be a physical- emotional reality in order for thinking to have something to conceptualize of in the first place. As humans, we are only partly thinking creatures, and we can hardly be said be defined solely by our thoughts. Even though air dominant types might be more justified in basing their identity on their capacity to think and navigating conceptual reality, there is so much going on at a denser, subtler level, a feeling level that might or might not fit into pre-conceived conceptual framework, that might not be understood through concepts.

Thinking is undoubtedly powerful. In a “civilized” society the pen is mightier than the sword, if used skillfully. A lot can be done with a sharp intellect and a quick mind. However, thinking is not responsive, it is a conscious construction. Powerful emotion or overwhelming instinctual reactions are more organic and dynamic. People can hold values and ideals that are perfectly in line with civilized society, but it doesn’t mean that the instinct is ever “tamed” because it can’t be constructed. Thinking can’t hold emotion back and the thinking function can’t ever perfectly define or describe what is felt simply because emotion is subjective and not objective. No person can completely act and behave in accordance with ideas and ideals. Emotions prevent this from happening – they are immediate responses that are personal – not impersonal. This is why, on an intellectual level one can say, “it’s wrong to kill”, but it won’t prevent the person from affectively responding to a situation in a way that results in a killing. Reversely, on an intellectual level one can say, “I have to kill”, but it won’t prevent the emotions from moving in a different direction.

Does thinking really keep us civilized in a real sense then? It seems not; it only creates a façade of civilization, a light façade of connectivity and communion, a light façade of love that stems from detachment from actuality and idealization of potential. The intellectual ideal is impersonal, seemingly more pure than the ambiguous and powerfully primitive emotional response, but in a sense, also inhuman (superhuman?) and inorganic. The thinking function is indispensable, but it is shallow in its own way, less potent and less alive than emotion. Words only have true power in connection to emotion; on their own they are simply tools, empty and dead. Perhaps it is accurate to say that civilization cannot manifest without alignment of the soul and the mind. Thinking can’t control feeling and feeling can’t control thinking, inevitably one is operating separately from the other but they can align. Thinking and feeling are unable to reduce each other to nothing. Thinking doesn’t cancel out feeling and vice versa. Strong emotion might call for intellectual justification socially, yet, since thinking didn’t cause feeling in the first place (at least not consciously), one can only speculate as to what the emotion is or was in response to – why it was so intense and if it was reasonable and so on… In a sense, trying to conceptualize of emotion is like trying to conceptualize of life and it’s never productive because it won’t make the feeling nature be different than it is or prevent it from expressing itself.

Generally speaking, emotions don’t “fit in” socially and societally because they are strictly personal and untamed – often impossible to fit into a conceptual framework that everyone can understand and make sense of. There is no logic behind emotions because they are immediately experienced and are not part of some pre-conceived conceptual construct. In fact, many people find it insulting when others try to make sense of their reactions and responses, to make them fit into a neat intellectual-conceptual “box”. Emotions demands acceptance no matter what – they essentially reflects organic truth rather than conceptual truth. The feeling function is often devalued and deemed “less evolved”, but without it, we would lack deeper “personal truth”.

------

On a separate note, albeit connected to the text above,

Some claim that thought creates reality and emotional experience is a direct result of subconscious thought patterns and programming. I believe this is true in the sense that there’s a universal blueprint that is set up for us, however, I don’t think that thought creates reality in our own personal lives in the sense that we can separate ourselves from our personal blueprint (reflected by our birth chart) by “working on ourselves”. It is true that one can become more conscious of components and facets of the psyche, but it’s too presumptuous to believe that one could “change” the self for the better to fit a preferred mold. Some people seem to work well with the “law of attraction”, they are able to positively focus and manifest the personal reality they want. This ability is undoubtedly reflected in the birth chart of these people – optimism, a propensity to believe and receive effortlessly. Not everyone is set up that way, which is quite evident considering the struggles and hardships that people face, despite the effort to look on the bright side of life. Some charts are set up in order for the individual to experience pain and crises in order to discover something of value through the death and rebirth process. This is a valid path, although it might not seem blissful or peaceful in the least. For these types it is not realistic or rewarding to soar on the surface of life.

Take Esther Hicks for example, a famous channel, author and public speaker. She helps people to close the gap between their desires and the manifestation of them. She is channeling a “collective thought stream” (called Abraham) in her talks that is concerned with seeing humanity actualize its desires and dreams. Her chart, as shown below (from astrotheme.com) has a grand fire trine with Jupiter, Venus and Mars. This trine blesses her with a certain fundamental and natural faith in her own ability to receive what she wants from life. Her chart is not void of friction and trouble, but this grand trine has her back when the going gets tough. She would have a natural propensity for generosity and an “abundance mindset” as they call it.

The conjunction of Pluto-Saturn-Mars (all in retrograde which makes the energy experienced internally) in Leo points to a charged desire nature, a concentrated and powerful drive that is, for lack of a better word, ruthless and almost painful. As Mars is the fighter of the personality, this kind of configuration makes me think of an insatiable, prideful yet painfully contained fighter who can’t admit to any personal passions without feeling weakened, but at the same time can’t let go and has to have at all. It makes sense, that a person who helps people to get what they want through mental-emotional alignment would understand the pain and dissatisfaction caused by not being able to control life. The conjunction opposes Mercury, which is interesting since she writes and speaks for a living, or rather speaks for an autonomous “entity” of sorts. She lends her communicative ability to something other than herself. When she channels, she’s not in her Pluto-Saturn-Mars mode. Venus and Jupiter, the two benefics, and Uranus nicely support Mercury. She can convey ideas that are revolutionary and speak of happiness and abundance. It strikes me that when she speaks, she speaks to people with frustrated desires (Mercury opposite Pluto-Saturn-Mars) – it is as if she projects this cluster of energy and experiences it through her audience. I’m sure she avoids identifying with it and meets it through others that she encounters. The Pluto-Saturn-Mars conjunction is highly uncomfortable and the person would likely attempt to work around it in any way possible if the chart allows for it. In Esther’s case, she has a lot to lean on in order to avoid its harshness - the trine certainly helps and the Mercury opposition allows detachment. Nonetheless she meets it in her life because it’s part of her blueprint.

My point with all of this is to illustrate that certain “philosophies” and belief systems come easier to others because of the personal astrological setup and it being backed by experience in accordance with the planets. It always makes sense why a person thinks and feels a certain way from looking at the natal chart. Nobody’s wrong and nobody’s right, there’s only the chart and what it allows for and doesn’t allow for. I do believe that no one can act outside of his or her chart. All paths are ultimately valid from a universal perspective. Work with your own blueprint because that is the only way to live anyway.

[aleator]

written in the stars (thor/tony)

A belated birthday gift for @cupcakeenigma​! Love u bb. ♥

“What do you mean you don’t know your birthday?”

Propped up on one elbow in bed, Tony stares at Thor, his usual lazy, post-coital spell broken by this news.

Thor runs a hand through his messy hair, sweeping it back from his face. “Not on the Midgardian calendar. Time works differently between the realms. I suppose I could calculate it based on--”

“No!” Tony exclaims, nearly startling Thor with its intensity. He hadn’t realized this was such a dire topic. “Don’t waste this.”

“Waste what?”

“You can pick your birthday,” Tony says, eyes shining brightly as he sits up the rest of the way. “We have to make it good. I’m thinking...Leo.”

Thor takes a moment to rack his brain as to what Tony could be referring to, but he’s not sure what an actor has to do with any of this so he assumes that’s not the case.

“You refer to…?”

“The zodiac sign?” Tony raises an eyebrow at him. “You’re clearly a Leo.”

“I didn’t think a man of science would believe such things,” Thor teases, reaching over to rub his hand over Tony’s side. Jane had been adamantly anti-astrology from what he recalls.

Tony shrugs. “I don’t. Astrology is totally fake. But you’re definitely a Leo.”

Thor laughs and gives Tony a playful squeeze of his hip.

“Well, either way I cannot just pick my day of birth,” he says, wrapping his arm around Tony’s waist and pulling him in to cuddle him against his chest, which distracts Tony from his plotting for a few moments. “If you wish to celebrate, I can find the Midgardian day it should be. But I’m used to not celebrating so you don’t have to worry.”

Tony pouts a bit but eventually concedes. “We’ll still have to celebrate,” he says, not willing to give up that much, and Thor nods, not wanting to upset him. Perhaps he can introduce Tony to some Asgardian traditions surrounding birthdays in the process.

Tony keeps him in bed the rest of the morning and into the afternoon, though Thor has no complaints about that. Eventually they have to get up and go their separate ways to get some work done, but Thor kisses Tony heartily and promises to be back in time for dinner.

Thor forgets about the conversation for a few days, the matter not an urgent one, until he overhears Rhodes telling Tony about some niece’s birthday party. Curious, he gathers a few star charts and calculates the exact day of his birth on the Midgardian calendar.

“August 1st,” he announces to Tony later that day.

“Hm?” Tony replies without looking up from the thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle that’s been occupying the coffee table for the last week.

“According to the positioning of both Asgard and Earth on the day I was born, my birthday is August 1st,” Thor says. He sets down the tablet where he did the math in front of Tony, but Tony doesn’t even look at it.

“I knew it,” he crows, grinning up at Thor. “A Leo.”

“It’s concerning you have the dates memorized,” Thor says, deadpan, as Tony hops up from sitting on the floor and grabs onto Thor’s arm.

“This is good though, we didn’t miss it yet this year. We can have a big party and everything.”

Tony’s excitement is infectious, and Thor smiles and wraps an arm around him, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “I don’t need a big party, sváss. I’m happy just to celebrate with you.”

“We’ll discuss it,” Tony concedes, leaning back to look up at Thor. “I’m still getting you presents, though.”

“Of course,” Thor says with a nod. He knows how Tony likes to show his affection and even though he hardly needs Midgardian trinkets to know that Tony loves him, he’s long since learned to just let Tony buy him the novelty socks or whatever he’s set his sights on this time.

“You know, I’m a Gemini,” Tony says, letting go of Thor and picking up the tablet from the coffee table. “We should look up our compatibility.”

“Oh--” Thor reaches over to try and pull the tablet away from him, but it’s too late.

Tony pauses, staring down at the screen, then bursts out laughing. He’d closed Thor’s calculations to bring up a search browser only to find that Thor already had several pages on Gemini-Leo compatibility pulled up.

“Well? What’s the verdict?” Tony asks between bouts of laughter, not even resisting when Thor huffs and snatches his tablet back from him.

“Very agreeable,” Thor mumbles, locking the screen so it goes dark before he sets the tablet back on the table. “Apparently we have high sexual and emotional compatibility.”

Tony snorts. “I could’ve told you that already,” he says, looping his arms around Thor’s neck and drawing him down for a kiss.

Thor settles his hands on Tony’s hips and gently pulls him closer, capturing his lips for a hungry kiss. Tony’s right, like he usually is. They don’t need the stars or some false soothsayer on a questionable website to tell them what they already know--that they’re perfect for each other in every way.

[sylvain-writes]

A Little Understanding (Leonardo x Reader)

Rated: T Gender Neutral reader, stutter, anger, feelings of being misunderstood/left out, loneliness, studying abroad, understanding, comfort, established relationship

You’re tired of ‘friends’ thinking it’s cute and/or funny when you misspell or misspeak words, when you get stuck in your stutter, and when you miss cultural references. All you’re asking for is to be heard. And for a little understanding. (This can be read as a companion piece to To Be Seen but is a stand alone fic.) for @whygz

Winter’s chill stung your eyes as you dropped from street level to the sewer below, but you barely felt a thing. At least on the outside. The snow-dusted cars, the holiday window displays, none of it caught your attention while your thoughts simmered and raged inside. 

You seethed and your blood boiled. The events of the day swirled and raged like an animal caged. Your chest ached as your frustrations clawed to get out. 

The Lair, that place of safety and understanding, was almost within reach. You longed to see your real friends, and put the bullshit of university life behind you - even if only for a few hours. 

It grated at your nerves to know you’d have to see your classmates again tomorrow. Even now, those people who you thought were your friends, were still blowing up your phone wondering why you left the library in such a rush. 

They couldn't see what they'd done. They didn't hear the way they spoke to you. They didn't really know you and they didn't seem to care.

You couldn’t speak to them.  Not when they didn’t understand. No, not when they pretended not to understand. 

If you can listen hard enough for context clues, and you can sort through their in-jokes and memes and every little cultural reference… then they can take five seconds to wait for you to sort your thoughts. They can take a moment to listen to what you’re actually saying and wait for it to sink in. You work so hard to ‘not have an accent’, to find the right words, while it seems like they don’t try at all. 

But sticking up for yourself is a losing battle. You’ve tried. You’re tired of going beet red in front of them, telling them to stop and hearing them tell you how cute it is when you’re upset. You’re tired of stumbling and stammering and falling into the stutter you’ve worked so hard to train out of your speech. But that only makes them giggle and coo and treat you like you’re a child. As if only a child is sweet and innocent enough to trip over their words. 

You stomp through the tunnels, your feet knowing exactly which turns to take even while your mind is focused elsewhere. You don’t even realize you’ve made your way into the Pit until you’re walking into Michelangelo’s chest. 

You both step back, you apologizing, him looking down at you with a curled lip and annoyed frown. It seems neither of you were paying attention to where you were going. But he's set to blame you.

“Hey!” He says, his New York accent almost as thick as Raphael’s tonight. “I’m walkin’ here!” 

At first you’re surprised. You’ve never seen Michelangelo angry. Certainly, he’s never been angry at you. Then he throws up his arms in exasperation and repeats himself. "I'm walkin' here!"

Heart pounding, you’re mid-apology when he starts laughing. 

“Dustin Hoffman, Midnight Cowboy!” He shakes his head as he walks past you, still laughing as he goes. 

And the anger in you vibrates from your chest through your throat until it’s pushing past your lips in fiery words, “Cala a boca!”

And he does. Michelangelo, king of pranks and jokes and laughter, snaps his mouth shut in an instant. His voice drops low, all hints of exaggerated accent gone as he gently asks, “What? What’d I do?”

“You don’t get to laugh at me!” You’re still shouting. You hear it. You see the shock in his big blue eyes as your voice gets louder instead of softer. And you wish you could take it back. This anger isn’t for him. But he’s safe and he’s here and he’s getting it all. “Just because I didn’t understand doesn’t make it funny!”

You’re so wrapped up in your own anger at everyone and everything, and shame at yelling at Mikey who’s trying desperately to listen and understand, that you don’t notice Leo step into the room behind you. 

“Hey, what-”

You spin on your heel to face him. “Leo.” 

Seeing him standing there, head tilted in confusion, your face flushes so hot your eyes start to burn.

“Baby," he asks sweetly, "what’s going on?”

“No, don’t-” you start, while Mikey holds his hands up in peace.

“Leo, it’s OK," Mikey tries.

“It’s not,” you argue. 

“Baby, talk to me.”

“Don’t do that!" The shouting scrapes your throat raw as your hands curl into fists at your sides. "Don’t… don’t… don’t talk to me like I’m… don’t call me baby when…” Your fingernails dig into your palms as you struggle.

Donatello is already theorizing as he comes down from his work station. “I believe you’re objecting to Leo’s use of the endearment ‘baby’ whilst you are in crisis. Perhaps it comes across as patronizing? Infantilizing?”

Your eyes blink owlishly at Donnie. With all that’s running through your head, you can't keep up. He speaks too quickly and too strangely for you to translate it all. 

You close your eyes to block out the world, lean your head back, and finally it all comes out in a shout, “I’m not stupid!”

The crash of heavy dumbbells hitting the floor is the only sound as the voices of the turtles fall silent.

“I’m not stupid. And… I’m not a baby. I’m not cute. I’m not funny.” Your chin falls to your chest and you dig your hands deep into the pockets of your hooded sweatshirt. Tears slide down your cheeks and over your lips as you mumble. “Eu só sou eu. I’m me. Just me.”

"Leo," it's Raph speaking now, "maybe we should…"

He's hushed and you release a broken sigh. 

You don’t even notice your shoulders are trembling until you feel Leo’s hands rest atop of them to hold you steady. 

“I know you,” Leo says so quietly you almost missed it. “I see you, remember?”

“It’s hard!” you whimper as the tears continue to fall.

“What is?”

You shrug and sniff and wrap your arms around yourself before you answer. “This. All of it.” 

You’ve been away from your family for eight months. And keeping the turtles a secret for more than half that time. Even with the friends you’ve made, it so often feels like you’re alone in this crazy city in a foreign country. You want to tell Leo just how alone and lost and angry you feel by the way people take you for granted, but he pulls you into his arms and the intensity of it all starts to fade away.

Leo holds you for a minute and when he pulls back a bit you notice you’re the only ones left in the room. He leads you over to the couch in the Pit and sits you down. 

“I’ll be right back,” he says, but you aren't ready to let him go. He kisses your hand before releasing it. “Right back, I promise.”

When he returns, there are steaming mugs in his hands and a blanket slung over his shoulder. It’s sweet and he looks all kinds of cute and cozy as he plays the part of a gentleman. But a cup of cocoa and a cuddle isn’t going to solve anything. However, maybe, you think, it can help you get through the night without ripping another unsuspecting sweetheart’s head off. 

“I really have to apologize to Mikey.” You’re embarrassed for losing your cool with him

Leo gives a little nod, but doesn’t push anything but a warm mug into your hands. He slides into the space between you and the armrest of the couch, snuggles close to your side and brings his own cup of cocoa to his lips. "I take it things at study group didn't go so well."

Your tears start up again, but you have no more words. It feels like you've been allotted only so many words in a day and you used them all up before getting to your boyfriend. That breaks your heart and makes you cry harder. Even then, they're silent tears. 

"I used to feel alone all the time."

You raise your head at Leo's confession. He's had sensei and his brothers, April and Casey. But, you realize, that's an awfully small circle of people to know and to trust.

"They didn't really understand me. They didn't get me." 

You lean into Leo's side remembering what a struggle it was for him the first time he opened up to you. And you've seen how hard he works to lead his brothers, to hold the family together. To find their strengths and make use of those in balance. 

But his brothers so often think he's too hard on them, too serious, too focused on training. 

"I got left out and made fun of… it was lonely. Until I met you. You listen. You take time to get to know me, to understand."

With Leo's presence a solid comfort beside you, his words coming steady and smooth, you calm down enough to find words. You shift your body toward him before you speak.

"You were quiet, in the beginning. Had to listen really hard to get to know you."

"Pff," Leo turns away with an almost laugh. "First time I heard I was quiet. The guys complain I'm always barking orders and-"

You lean in and kiss his lips. A simple thing. Chaste. Barely a touch. "I'm not the guys," you remind him. "You can always talk to me."

Leo snuggles in closer. You take your mugs and set them on the coffee table so your hands are free. But before you can wrap your arms around him, he pulls you into a hug. 

In his arms it's safe and quiet and warm. "It really sucks," you whisper.

Leo hums as he brings his lips to the crown of your head. "It really does." He lifts you into his lap and the blanket comes with you. 

Soon his hand is in your hair, his fingers running through it. And he swears a little when his fingers catch on your curls. It doesn't hurt, but hearing him swear has you burying your face in his neck. It’s mostly to hide and muffle your giggling. Judging by the way Leo takes your face in his hands and peppers you with kisses after, he doesn’t mind the bit of laughter. You know he’s happy to have helped you find your smile.

[dearjamesxo]

[drabble under cut]

They’re on their way to wish Bea luck when it happens.

Billy, Spike and Jessie trudge against the midafternoon crowd, Spike boasting a story from his childhood – no doubt exaggerated to the moon to impress Jessie. Billy listens with half an ear, hands stuffed in his pockets and eyes on the ground. He doesn’t react when someone bumps into him.

“He’s in a mood,” Jessie teases to Spike when Spike tries, for the fourth time, to include Billy in the conversation.

Spike snorts, “I can see that. Which is why I’m trying to cheer ‘im up.” He sidles into Billy’s space, claps a friendly hand on Billy’s shoulder and asks, “Come on, mate, who shoved that monumental stick up your arse?”

Billy’s jaw twitches. He tucks his chin into his chest and hunches further into himself, hoping to relay how much he doesn’t want to talk about it.

“Is it the whole we’re not good enough tripe?” Spike questions, rolling a hand in the air to encompass the tripe he’s referring to. “Because the way I look at it, we got lucky. Who wants to go to a stuffy old ball anyway?” Spike’s tone suggests he does, but Billy refrains from pointing it out, “Let Bea and the good doctor go and deal with all that crap, while we—” He leans back and grins across the breadth of Billy’s shoulders, winks at Jessie, “—get to enjoy ourselves!”

Billy doesn’t respond, simply shrugs and keeps his pace, his shoulder colliding with another man’s. Again, Billy doesn’t even seem to register that the man told him to, watch where yer goin’!

Yes, Billy’s in a mood, definitely, but it doesn’t have anything to do with Bea or Watson or the ball Spike mentioned. In fact, it was Billy’s idea to go find Bea before Watson collects her at Mrs. Smith’s shoppe.

As usual, Watson’s swanning Bea off to perform for another investigation, some undercover business that apparently, “Only Beatrice has the maturity and patience to pull off,” thanks for the confidence, “the rest of you will merely serve to attract unwanted attention.” As if Bea done up like a gateau de savoie won't attract attention. Although Bea has learned to carry herself less woodenly than she did, she isn't exactly graceful when laced into a gown. Jessie's the better candidate, equipped with supernatural powers to boot, but Watson's mind was made up. Besides, Billy's noticed that he and Bea have some sort of connection; they seem to get each other in a way that leaves everyone else behind.

Howbeit, Watson’s condescending remark isn’t what gets Billy’s dander up either. That honor goes to His Royal Highness, Prince I-Have-To-Escort-Helena. Not that Billy wants to go through the trouble of pampering and primping for a ball he’s sure he’ll hate every minute of. But Leo could’ve at least had the courtesy to pretend he was regretful, since he already has so much experience pretending to be something he isn’t.

Billy scowls at his shoes, kicks a pebble harder than he means to. He ducks his head and picks up his pace when he hears a strangled yelp and sees, from the corner of his eye, a man clasp his ankle and hop on one foot.

Oops.

It’s then that the short hairs at the back of his neck rise, his scalp tingles, the sensation of being watched shivering up Billy's spine. He lifts his chin and, immediately, his gaze is drawn to the end of the street.

“Isn’t that—?” Jessie starts, tugging Billy’s wrist to get his attention. Then, much quieter, under her breath, “Oh,” as if she's figured something out.

Billy yanks his wrist out of her light grasp and squares his shoulders, ignorant of the utterly baffled Spike sends Jessie behind his back. “Wait here,” he gruffs and stalks toward the end of the street. Or more precisely, toward who lingers there.

“We’ll meet you!” Spike calls after him and wraps an arm around Jessie. She tries to resist, head craning, but Spike guides her down the cross street in the direction of Mrs. Smith’s shoppe.

Like a wolf preparing to lunge, Billy stalks toward Leo, expression hard and fists clenched. Leo returns the sentiment with a rigid, neutral set to his features, stare unwavering. Billy inwardly chastises himself for the heat of desire that rushes through him upon seeing Leo. No matter how pissed he is with the prince, Billy can never deny how attractive Leo is like this, all lofty courage and attitude, golden against the smutty backdrop of the Marylebone rookery. God, Billy wants to strip Leo of his finery, fuck him until he remembers who he really belongs to. And it isn't, Billy thinks in a possessive growl, Helena.

Theirs will never be a public romance, a reality Billy understood from the start, only it didn't feel so impossibly cruel until the moment Leo casually mentioned he would be attending the very ball Bea and Watson would with Helena on his arm. As if he wasn't lounging between Billy's legs, his back to Billy's chest, his fingers laced with Billy's. It never ceases to amaze Billy how terrible Leo is at reading a room because Jessie's discomfited expression alone should've been a clue that something wasn't right. Even so, Billy kept his mouth shut because he's supposed to be fine with it, isn't he?

Easier said than done, Billy knows now.

As much as they - Billy and Leo and Leo and Helena - have an agreement, it still cuts deep when Billy has to step aside so Leo can appease his mother by flaunting the person society deems Leo's best match.

“What’re you doing here?” Billy demands to know the instant he’s within earshot.

Leo flinches slightly, then musters the confidence to say, “I’d like to have a word.”

“With your side piece?” Billy mocks disbelief, “I’ll bet.”

“Billy, please, if you would just listen—”

Billy’s in front of Leo now, standing at the closeness he’s grown accustomed to since he and Leo became he and Leo. He didn’t mean to narrow the distance so quickly, wants to hold on to the anger because it’s easier, except that to put himself anywhere else in Leo’s orbit feels intrinsically wrong.

“Better make it quick, your highness,” Billy sneers, “I’m sure your lady doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”

“For goodness’ sake,” Leo erupts through gritted teeth, though his tone maintains a respectable volume as propriety demands, “I’m not going.”

This stops Billy's mounting rage in its tracks, all at once replaced with a confusion that shows itself on Billy's face. A simple “What?” tumbles out of his mouth as he frowns at Leo as if Leo told him the sky is actually green.

“I’m not going.” Leo repeats.

Billy grabs Leo by the upper arm and drags him out of the middle of the crowded street, into a narrow lane that separates the butcher’s and an Indian-owned tearoom. Leo doesn’t resist, allows Billy to manhandle him, and stops moving altogether when Billy pushes him against the brick wall just inside the lane. Suddenly, Billy’s flooded with concern.

“What happened?” Because it has to be something awful if Leo can shirk his responsibility for the evening. “Is Helena alright?”

Leo’s brows furrow, eyes flickering between Billy’s, down to hover on Billy’s mouth before they slip to the ground where they remain. He huffs a humorless laugh, “Helena’s fine, you massive boor.” and slumps against the wall Billy has him pinned to by the shoulders, defeat obvious in his posture.

“Then what—?”

“It’s you!”

Well, that can't be right. Leo's never missed an engagement his mother's insisted upon for Billy in the weeks they've been, well, them. Billy has to make sure, “Me?”

Gesturing helplessly with one hand, Leo explains, “How can I go and act as though I care about anything my mother’s contemporaries have to say when all I can think about is you, here, upset with me?” A tiny smile curls Billy’s mouth, “I love you, you idiot.” Leo says as though he's said it a thousand times - he hasn't, this is the first and Leo doesn't appear to notice he's shared such an important declaration in the middle of a rant. Billy wants to say it back all the more for it. “Helena made a fuss when I told her, practically pushed me out the window so I would come find you.”

Floating on a wave of giddiness, assuaged by Leo's words, Billy remembers how much he likes Helena. Helena who has her Henrik in Münster and swore not to intrude on Leo's relationship with Billy as long as Leo issues her the same respect.

Billy leans in and places his forehead against Leo’s, hands sliding from Leo’s shoulders to cradle Leo’s jaw, resting the pads of his thumbs gently at the corners of Leo’s mouth. A small chuckle escapes him, unable to contain it, and Billy shuffles forward to press their bodies flush from waist to hips to knees, fondly brushes the tips of their noses, then tilts his head and captures Leo’s lips in a sweet yet hot-hungry kiss.

When he pulls back, he wonders, “Or maybe it’s Helena I should be thanking?” He hooks a thumb over his shoulder, smiling playfully, “Should I be kissing her instead?”

Eyes in grumpy, feline slits, Leo protests, “Don’t you dare.”

“Mm, you’re right, she’s really not my type.”

Abruptly, Billy untangles himself from Leo, bends enough to grab Leo by the back of the thighs and lifts. Leo cries out shrilly, startled, the action forcing his legs to wrap around Billy’s waist and his arms to lock around Billy’s neck. Cackling, Billy pins Leo with his body, his fingers kneading the sensitive flesh just below Leo’s arse, eliciting a moan that he swallows greedily.

“Is this really the appropriate time?” Leo pants, throwing his head back when Billy grinds their hips together, making them both groan.

“Not even a little bit.”

As Billy leans in for another kiss, Leo interrupts by putting two fingers to Billy's lips. “Perhaps,” He says, voice pitched suggestively, “We should take this elsewhere,” Here, Leo kitten licks Billy’s parted lips, darts his tongue into Billy's mouth quickly, moves on to dot Billy’s jaw with a trail of dry kisses. He reaches Billy's ear and continues in a whisper, “Somewhere you can spread me open,” A nip to Billy’s earlobe, “And show me what happens when I upset you?”

Billy's cock twitches in interest. He takes in Leo’s pink cheeks and glassy, blown eyes, decides, “Sounds like a marvelous idea.”

In a swift sequence of motions, Billy drops Leo to his feet, carefully repositions him, crouches, and then hoists Leo over his shoulder. Spike was right, Billy grins, patting the swell of one of Leo's arse cheeks in victory, who wants to go to a stuffy old ball, anyway?