#and theirs was politically charged at the start

[tumbleweedtech]

Absolutely. Just like I do not understand how people insist he betrayed tm9. He didn't know them when he made his choices. When he learned about them, there was growth and introspection. He was actively turning away from his past. He was forced to continue through the motions at the end - and sure, you can say he hid things from them or wasn't entirely honest with them. But you know what? They weren't entirely honest with him in the beginning either. And they routinely tried to emotionally manipulate him and then ghosted him for ages. That they remained friends, and left enough of an impact that he changed in a positive manner i would think shows his care and desire to do right by them. And not only from the kindness of the moment that you pointed out. It was hard. It hurt. Forgiveness, or acceptance? Can be painful. There's a reason they call it the Mortifying Ordeal of Being Known. It isn't always a pleasant feeling. But you can be hurting, and be safe.

oh god how do i say this without undermining the importance of kindness... i do not think essek sees the kiss on the forehead as a good memory. it's a complicated moment in his life, beyond layered and beyond anything that ever runs out of possibilities. i think the kiss on the forehead was important for him, of course, absolutely impossible to deny, i am just saying that he looks back on it with a bit of a heavy heart, and always will, i think. it's a moment of growth, sure, but like every apologize the heaviness of what you did and what those you're apologizing to and for were feeling leaves a bittersweet taste in your mouth. am i making any sense. it is not a happy memory but a dear one.

[lovelybucky1]

victoria neuman is a woman of very particular tastes. in partners, she likes someone interesting, successful, someone on her level. when it comes to toys, however, she wants them quiet and obedient. it’s not their job to take interest in her life and she doesn’t take interest in theirs.

you got hired as her intern at the beginning of the summer. you were surprised when you got the offer because you aren’t exactly qualified for the position. if you asked any of your coworkers, they’d say you’re a personality hire. if you asked victoria, she’d say she hired you for your pretty, sittable face.

you could go on and on about all that abuse of power bullshit and vicky wouldn’t deny any of it. she is abusing her power as your boss to fuck you, and that’s what she likes about it. she’s in charge of everything you do at the office and you hang on her every word. she just wants to make you feel useful, after all.

she started wearing skirts to work instead of her usual pants so you could service her underneath her desk without too much suspicion. vicky wouldn’t be caught dead with her pants down in her office, but a rolled up skirt is a little more subtle.

she doesn’t praise you, but she doesn’t degrade you either. to her, you’re nothing more than a sex toy. you get the job done and that’s all she needs you for. on paper, you’re getting great experience working for a political campaign. in reality, you’re working out your jaw muscles.

[radical-revolution]

Since you alone are responsible for your thoughts, only you can change them.” ~Paramahansa Yogananda

The Buddha got it so much more accurately than Descartes. “With our thoughts, we create the world.” That’s extraordinarily profound. It’s also scary because if we’re not in control of our thoughts and where they take us, the world we create with those thoughts can become horrific. What we are witnessing in our world right now, with the resurrection of openly racist and in some cases literally neo-fascist views, can only have arisen as the result of people’s thoughts.

So if you want just a happy life for yourself, free from worries, anxiety, depression, anger, resentment, bitterness, and a score of other harmful and often self-destructive moods and emotions, you need to train your mind so it becomes less automatic, less conditioned, less distracted, and in its place, more under your direct control.

And if a good society or a sane, fruitful world is to become a reality this will require billions of people to develop control over their minds so that they do not fall prey to the influence of hateful demagogues. It starts with you. I know dozens of people who are politically engaged and active in what we’d call progressive campaigns, know what they oppose, and know what their idea of a good society is. But they’re not in charge even of their own minds, let alone able to convince others to change theirs. They display hatred and a total absence of compassion for their political opponents, celebrate every minor mistake the “enemy” makes, and generally demonstrate precisely the attitudes that they believe we need to eradicate if society is to improve.

If you want a love of life, which is simply a state of mind, you have to develop it. If you want peace of mind then do the work that brings you closer to it. Do not accept being a semi-automaton.

If you want a good society then it really does start with you. Gandhi was another one who got it right. “Be the change you want to see in this world”. You could add, more obviously “Train yourself so that you become the change you want to see in yourself”. Or in the words of another social radical “first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye”.

Martin Stepek

[radiokathryn-if]

How would the ROs react if in relationship stage MC accidentally introduced them as their husband/wife while talking to someone?

Nate, unsurprisingly, corrects you in the next breath. Not only is his image of being engaged to Eva in jeopardy with that statement but it makes your 'relationship' waaaaay too serious for him. He does it harshly too and if you take offence there will be an argument and shouting match subsequently.

The smile on Eva's face would start small and keep growing all day! She gets a warm feeling in her tummy and gazes at you softly, which does nothing to deter the other person from the truth. She takes it in her stride and goes with it, letting herself imagine that it was true, just for a moment──that the ring on her finger from Nate had actually been from you.

Mica doesn't react, in fact adds to your slip up casually. They step closer to you (if they weren't already right next to you) and take your hand in theirs. Or maybe they'd silently take the thing you were holding or slip your bag off your shoulder and over theirs. They give the other person a wide and kind smile and say nothing.

Detective Han freezes up, poor thing. Their face doesn't change but it looks like their chest has stopped moving, stopped breathing. And they have──they're holding their breath for your next words so that they don't have to stumble over theirs. They wait for you to correct yourself, slowly relaxing if you do. And if you don't you might have to get them out of there quickly or they might actually pass out. Intimidating my ass.

José will grin cheekily and wink at the other person. They'll very obviously over exaggerate the connection between the two of you, spinning a tall tale about your star crossed romance and how you gave up a life of money and stability just for them and their love. Will not let you live it down. If you actually get married they'll bring it up in their vows or the speeches.

Ji Han goes with it for your sake. He doesn't want to embarrass you if he doesn't have to. He introduces himself afterwards with a subtle nod to his new title and takes charge of the conversation to steer it elsewhere as soon as possible. Will use it against you when you least expect it. Whispers his new title in your ear during sex to catch you off guard during a climax kind of tease.

Fauve's eyes will go wide and she'll turn to stare at you in shock. She's actually speechless for once. The other person takes this shock and misreads it as you accidentally proposed right in front of them. They're cheering and drawing a crowd. Fauve is still staring at you, jaw hanging slightly as she tries to reboot her brain. Her heart leaps at the thought, and once it's registered she's all smirks and playful winks complaining about where her ring is. Get to it MC!

Jackson takes it in his stride. You'd have talked about marriage with him before, mainly what it was like for him and what he thought of it after going through a divorce. He settles on thinking that conversation was still fresh in your mind for some reason and that's why you introduced him as you did. He politely corrects you with a kind smile but his hand on your back as you walk away from the other person doesn't go unnoticed!

??? will straight up blush! They become a flustered mess making the two of you look like a freshly married couple who's still in the frustratingly adorable stage. They don't bring it up after you leave, or like ever again, but it's a staple memory in your relationship now.

[libraford]

I've started drawing my d&d characters and now my friends want me to draw theirs. I don't know how to politely say 'Nope, bad experiences not doing that again.'

"I'm not open for commissions at this time."

Or do what my mentor does and anytime there's a service people expect you to provide but you don't wanna do it, charge way out of their budget for it. You want me to sketch your oc? $500 an hour.

[streets-in-paradise]

Spoils of War - Dastan x (fem) Secret Assassin Servant!Reader

Prince of Persia Oneshot

Requested by Anon

" Hi OMD when I saw requests for prince of Persia I literally fell on my knees, literally anything for Dastan pls or enemies to lovers with a secret assassin servant reader 🤔"

Sure, anon! i love PoP and love writing for Dastan. Thanks for your request! Hope you will enjoy it as much as i loved writing it 😊

Warnings: Historical minded naturalization of slavery as concequence of war, prince x servant enemies to lovers with political intrigue happening in the middle ( nizam weaponizing the hate of the reader to attempt getting dastan killed.)

Summary:A persian attack destroys the home city of your arranged fiancé during your visit to meet him and the winners take you with them after the sacking. Doomed to become the servant of the man who killed him, your miserable and friendless existence as a slave in a foreign country couldn't get any worse.

Just as you are about to reach a breaking point the brother of the king offers you a dangerous way out that you take full of anger, hate and desperation. Switching your wedding night for a black widow job assassinating your master isn't the honorable first moment of union with a man you dreamed, but fate will keep surprising you as you start to discover the kind of man Dastan trully is.

Notes: This turned out loosely inspired in greek mythology and The Son of the Sheik (1926). I didn't plan it like that from the beggining, i realized midway into the writing but thought it would be cool to tell you.

Tags: @blackheart-beauty @axelwolf8109

The city was doomed and sooner or later your rank was going to become a curse. The man you were promised to was the leader of the last defensive attempt and his fate was falling in battle against the sons of Sharaman. Naturally, it was yours to become part of the loot gained on the sacking and being carried away to the palace. From then you could only expect the worst, you would be theirs to dispose. 

The persian who discovered you and got you out the hiding spot introduced you to some of the royals with the pride of a well accomplished task. He knew he just had found something they would like or, more precisely, fitting for the eye of the youngest prince. A proper reward for the maker of the feat, since you heard then he was the killer of your fiancee, making coincidence allied with the rules of war.  

Followed closely by the careless yet present surveillance of his uncle, Dastan of Persia came to you presenting himself as the needed comfort for a helpless and terrified woman. His eyes were trying to find yours staring back at him as he insisted over and over that he won't hurt you, but his attempt of checking a superficial wound in your cheek caused an intempestive reaction. 

You spat on his face, but that clear expression of deep hatred didn't stop the course of fate. You became his servant, one exclusively dedicated to him until you could be trusted near any other persian royals. Bis, the man handing you to his prince, was in charge of watching over you. 

Resistance was all that kept you standing, you refused to embrace the new identity coming from the reality being imposed to you. Despite being placed in degrading circumstances you were still a noble from birth and Nizam was the only one who seemed to understand that. 

The world was turned upside down, a vulgar man turned into a prince was master of a servant who was once about to be queen. Dastan irritated you above everyone, the parody of a royal he performed was an insult to your principles and he was always teasing you for staying tied to your manners. Nobody would ever be on your side because you were a stranger even among the people they had enslaved you with. To them you were just the foreigner once engaged to their deceased prince before marriage got to happen, but that wasn't enough to owe you any loyalty. You had no friends there and your family wasn't aware of anything so you couldn't count on them.

In that situation, the brother of the king and his sharp ironic whispering was the only approach you found relatable. Unlike Dastan, he had no interest in acting like a moral grounded hero who rescued you from the ruins. He felt to you like an exhausted nobleman, the only one still able to perceive the oddities of the context surrounding you. 

Your humiliation reached its peak when the prince introduced you with the restant members of the gang of savages he called friends. You were expected to serve them and although he wouldn't allow anyone to disrespect you and no one did. you had the feeling of being admired with vulgarity as if they were showing approval of the leader's new toy. The prideful horror you didn't care to hide caused more and more teasing coming from him. When he finally got sick of it, Dastan admitted to be testing your qualities. 

He said you were beautiful, but lacked humility and that needed to be fixed. 

It was unbearable, you would have done anything to get away from him. Feeling he was the only one you could trust, you later told Nizam about the aberration and then discovered you weren't alone. He shared your bitterness to an even higher extreme, directly feeding the flames of your hate towards Dastan. 

" Do you want to get rid of the rat? So do i. " He confessed to you as a conclusion of your common venting. " I have the power to fix your life here if you fix that for me. " 

" What can be granted to me that would make this any better? " You skeptically recalled. " I lost my life, the small privilege of the highest valued slave is nothing compared with what I once had." 

" I can make your living condition be re-evaluated. " He casually offered you,as if it was an easy task that meant nothing to him compared to other things he could do with the amount of power he had. " I would make one of my two nephews marry you. If you behave and serve my interests it could even be Tus so you would get the illusion of being a future queen again. The union would be strategic, you'll pay me when he will be crowned king. " 

Returning to nobility having only one secret owner seemed infinitely better than being a servant. You weren't bothered by the idea of becoming a political tool of Nizam if that would get your dignity restored.

" An offer like this must demand a higher price than just helping you keep your nephew controlled for you to rule through him, so tell me what it is. " 

" You must kill Dastan." Nizam ordered ríght away. " A chance like this one hasn't been presented in many years. Why do you think I have been following you so patiently? To offer you a friend?" 

He was mocking you but you were too lost thinking on the task itself to care about that detail.

" I knew from the beginning that you were perfect to provide me this service. " 

The absurdity of that claim allowed you to mock him back. 

" Couldn't you find a trained assassin? Or a man of the royal guard? Anyone could do it for a proper price. " 

" If anyone could do it, your prince should still be breathing. When battle calls Dastan is as fast as the lightning. No fíghter can catch him by surprise, he can't be taken down in an ambush. It's impossible to defeat him by force, but he is easier to weaken by passion. "

The implications on that last sentence alarmed you more than the command itself. 

" I think you are mistaken, ... he does nothing but annoy me for his amusement. " 

" He desires you. " Nizam insisted. " The persistence on his part indicates that he wants you more intensely than what he should. What you have to do is tame that wild beast, once he will fall asleep drunk of you he will not even notice the movement of the air as your dagger sinks in his flesh. " 

It offended you, that was an insult to the sacrifices you were making in that hostile environment in order to survive the way you wanted. 

" I'm NOT a prostitute, I still guard the only treasure that you persians haven't stolen from me. I will bleed over the bedsheet of my husband like the honorable practices command, not let Dastan have that before ending him for his blood to mix with mine. Find another way for me to murder him or I am out." 

The energic refusal angered him and he showed you a side of him even darker than what his command inferred. 

" You were simply lucky, girl. How long do you think that luck is going to last if you reject my offer? " He hissed in a threatening tone. " Very soon you will run out of things to loose. If you don't give it to him, somebody else will take it because being our slave means any man here has the ríght to go their way with your pretty body. I'm giving you a chance for revenge and a future reward for the stain consequential to your current condition, more than what you deserve. " 

The cruel vocab was harshly pointing out an actual truth. Once Dastan wouldn't be there and Bis would follow him to war you would remain in the palace alone without any guarantee of protection. Following the orders of Nizam was the only way for you to land a respectable position and you didn't lack motives to kill the prince. Trusting in the word of a man who wanted to kill his nephew was a dangerous move, but desperate times needed desperate measures.

The execution of the plan started in slow moves, with passive receptions of his provocations intending to generate neutral to positive interactions inviting the prince to trust you. A sudden change of mind would have been too suspicious, you only allowed yourself to act progressively more friendly with Bis.Having his best friend on your side was a good mechanism of approach, but given that was also the man taking responsibility for you it was strategical from all pointviews. 

Unfortunately, it all became counterproductive as the intimate proximity needed to be generated for the future success of the job increased. Dastan and Bis were showing true concern for your adaptation when you stopped being mean to them. The orphan made prince shared some particular details of his experience on the drastic change, details that his brothers would never come to completely understand, and the similarity on the feelings he described with yours got to shock you. Despite he was talking of gaining privilege while you had fallen in disgrace, you both knew what it was to feel out of place. Spending time with him was part of your day work and the secret mission, but it also made you start getting to know him at a personal level and doing so was placating your anger. 

The first time he made romantical advance on you he still managed to surprise you. Romantical undertones were hard to spot beyond the aura of attractiveness following his every act, his ways were flirty all the time. However, he put in some real work in making that act very distinguishable for you. 

Under the excuse of helping you avoid work for a while he took you to his favorite spot in the palace, or more precisely on top of it. His hiding place from childhood, where he would go back then when the pressures of change were becoming too much for the street boy expected to become a prince. You were sitting next to each other with little to no space in between, sharing stories of your past lives. Out of sudden at some point in one of his tales he interrupted himself off to apologize to you. 

" Gaining glory with your suffering was never my intention. I can't change the past, but I want to be a helpful part of your future. There is nothing wrong with being a servant if the royal family protects you and I am taking care of that.”��

He wasn’t completely satisfied with that and imagined you wouldn't be either if he would keep it that simple, so he encouraged himself to continue. 

“  I know what it's like to struggle for survival, but I am aware you will never get rid of the noble girl you used to be. Her virtues and flaws will stay with you, only time and use will show you how to deal with that. If I wanted to help you get rid of that tendency to judge others based on their origins, it is not only because I don't want you to hate me ... Do you think I didn't despise nobility before I became a prince? Adapting costed me some self hatred back when I was learning to emulate their ways, that's how I know that you will only be happy if you get rid of all sorts of prejudices. " 

Incredibly wise personal advice with a heartfelt touch, You never imagined he would be capable of such deep thinking. Until then he was to you a brute chosen for the potentiality the king found in his fast movements thinking of forming a fighter. The colorful tale presenting him as a noble hearted boy made a prince in an act of justice was to you an excuse hiding a military reason. It had to be the creation of an unstoppable elite soldier, a mighty weapon for the persian army with fierce loyalty for the king who dragged him out of the mud.

The man you were discovering justified the legend, maybe there was more in him to see than what surface looking would show. 

" Why do you tell me this?" 

" Because I don't want you to hate yourself seeing how everything changes around you, but you fight to stay the same. " 

He made you smile, you couldn't help it. Embarrassed as you were for that moment of weakness, you couldn't even look him in the eye. Noticing you were looking down made him follow your glance and your eyes meet in the ríght spot for something he wanted to show you. 

" See this?" He pointed at the rustic necklace he was wearing. " I keep it since those days, a reminder of the life I left behind keeping me grounded. " 

You were encouraged to inspect it and the prince secretly enjoyed some accidental caressing through your action. 

" Difficult thing for someone living in the heights, always jumping and climbing everywhere. " 

Your mock made him chuckle and the level of intimacy you were reaching encouraged him to get more personal. 

" Did you love him? Is that why being with me becomes such a heavy burden to you? The same hands bringing death to your beloved seeking to caress you... Is that what you despise and fear?" 

Dastan looked lost and regretful. It was as if he feared that any chance to get closer with you was lost forever and he would be the one to blame for that. 

" I wasn't in love with him, but I did love the idea of being a queen someday. " You admitted, wondering to yourself why you were encouraging him. " If you would have grown up in contact with more noble girls, you would understand. " 

" I can't give you a throne, but if you let me I'll make this place your new home. If I once was the one who took away all your safeties, allow me now to be your shelter. " 

The hand you still had on his chest was shaking a bit, so he took it and caressed it to calm the trembling before placing a kiss on its back.

You were absolutely speechless, no sound coming out from your parted lips as you observed him in amazement. Dastan awaited while eliminating all distance between you and once your lips were close enough he stopped fighting back the urge to kiss you. A long, mad, desperate kiss that left you gasping for air. 

You should have seen it coming, but you were momentarily swept away by his passion. Not only you didn't resist it, you enjoyed it. It was expected of you to be manipulating his passionate energy, yet you couldn't even keep the upper hand when the prince was kissing you. Heat invaded you, as if your whole body was burning of desire for your enemy. 

Those sensations were completely new to you and that overwhelmed you, keeping you far away from the calculative coldness the deal demanded. With your certainties completely shakened, you would still fool yourself thinking you were going to make it. Over and over again you informed Nizam of your excellent improvements claiming to be awaiting for his instructions, but the truth was that you were a victim of Dastan's charm falling for him without wanting to acknowledge it.

The opportunity chosen by Nizam to strike presented itself sooner than what you would have preferred. There was going to be a celebration in the palace and you would have to do more than serving food and keeping the goblets of your masters full. As the new rarity brought with the recent sacking, the local nobles could feel curious and you would have to be presented around them for their entertainment. With your beauty of past days restored and reconceptualized through suggestive dressing you were supposed to bait one of the two noble born princes to want you for themselves and lead the peasant one to his death. Your fate depended on the outcome of that night, no margin for mistakes allowed. 

While circumstances impeded your target from his gentlemanly actions taking for himself the role of your protector, Bis was still there to take his place. It wasn’t hard to see that the outstanding change in your appearance impressed him, but he admitted it in a completely harmless way. It felt as if a friend would be telling you that you looked pretty and tried to cheer you up while making you some company before the great moment. Only then you realized that you may have made your first friend among the persians and the comfort made you feel horrible. Sweet, innocent Bis thought you were nervous merely because you were going to dance for the noblemen and he did everything in his power to comfort you. His kind efforts reached unknown limits when he said he knew Dastan fancied you and he was going to convince him to marry you so wouldn’t have to go through that anymore. 

It moved you, his consideration was not what you would have once expected from the man who caused your doom. The misjudgement generated by your well justified hatred wouldn’t let you see past that and you sold yourself to the wrong master hoping the enemy of your enemies would strategically become your friend. Bis turned out to be your friend and it was most likely that Nizam wouldn’t show you any mercy. You were an easy scapegoat, he would get rid of you before you could open your mouth to accuse him. 

The crossroad you stuck yourself in didn’t have any good way out. if you would confess to Dastan the truth, he would reject you before daring to doubt his beloved uncle. However, if you would desist from obeying Nizam, he would destroy you and the prince would continue to be in danger while completely unaware of that. The only solution was evaluating what mattered the most to you and Bis gave you the answer when you felt a sparkle of excitement beneath the layers of guilt as you heard of his plan to help you. Deep down you were on board with it, Dastan awakened feelings you had never experienced during your brief meeting with your arranged fiance. There was no doubt that you despised him at first, but he kept working hard to change your mind until he eventually did it. 

Unfortunately, you realized that too late. He could only hate you if he knew of the conspiracy, Dastan would never be yours and you could only blame yourself for that. Time would come for you to face the consequences of your mistakes, but that night you were going to get your little farewell before his heart would break in front of you and yours with his. Despite you being mixed in the crowd of dancers, you were still able to make him feel like you were performing just for him. The awe in his beautiful, round eyes following your movements was slowly melting you, he was the only man that mattered to you there. Being his servant had at least one perk and that was not needing to hide for decorum, he only had to make you a sign to approach and you abandoned the group for him. 

“ Is it good like this, my lord?” You purred innocently while proceeding to sit on his lap. “ I hope you enjoyed the show. “

Dastan was fascinated, almost unable to believe what was happening knowing that it was coming from you. 

“ … I loved it, but wasn’t expecting my favorite girl to perform.” 

You chuckled and began to run your fingers through his hair. 

“ Surprise! See how well adjusted I am? I will not be a problem for you tonight.” 

He smiled foolishly, as if his mind was numbed because he was feeling you with all his senses. 

“ Well, it’s becoming difficult to focus on anything else but your ravishing looks.” He admitted, unsure of where he would wish to land his hands first but still doubting if he should do it. “ … It may be arabian perfume what I’m smelling over here?” 

Dastan reached your neck to keep playfully sniffing. Since he could be then sure you weren’t rejecting him anymore, he began to cover that sensitive spot with kisses. A shy gasp escaped from you and he chuckled against your skin, to which you were completely sure you would end up following him to his bedroom. However, your ecstatic responses ended on the way when you noticed the subtle warning look of Nizam witnessing you escape together across the room. 

It shrank your heart and you froze with fear, cursing the moment when you decided to associate with that evil man. The sweet prince was unsuspecting of anything, confusing your sorrow and regret with a fear of his touch making you doubt. Once you were behind closed doors all he did was to hold you in his arms. 

“ I value the effort that you put in for me tonight, but I will not push limits the noble girl in you wouldn’t want me to.” He was sweetly comforting you. “ Imagine this is our wedding night and I’m the husband respecting your choice of not giving yourself to me until I’ll stop being a stranger.” 

You both were laying in the bed over the sheets you changed that morning and he was trying to revive the code of conduct you were supposed to forget, bringing to you the world that didn’t belong to you anymore. Dastan thought the effects of the weight of your secret mission were signs of fear for the loss of your maidenhood to him and doing so he proved to be exactly like the husband you had always wanted. 

“ Would you do that for me?” You asked with hesitation, the tone of your voice shaking as you tried to fight tears of deep regret. “ … Even right here and now, when I am nothing to you? “ 

“ Who says you couldn’t be my wife someday? My sole existence here is a violation to many rules, don’t you think? “ He vaguely teased, also making fun of one of the many insults you proffered to him over the course of your first days at his service. “ I’m a street kid made prince, who would have the nerve to judge if I pick a slave princess?” 

Tears began to fall through your face and that time you were dragging him for a kiss, desperately trying to hush your thoughts and let him know how deeply you corresponded his affection before the inevitable would have to happen. 

“ Nizam … he will never let us be.” You attempted to explain to him right afterwards without choking on the crying. “ Dastan, I did something terrible. I’m the one who doesn’t deserve you. I let him manipulate my emotions … I didn’t want you to save me if I could save myself, there was a time when I truly despise you and he took advantage of me for that.`` 

The bewilderment in his gaze was breaking your heart in advance. 

“ What are you talking about?” 

There was no easy way to say what he needed to know, but at that moment his safety mattered more than what could be of you if he wouldn’t believe you. Fortunately, you remembered you had one proof with some chances of making your story plausible. Dastan was slightly concerned when you stood up to loosen your clothes and search for the well hidden weapon that, had the order been fulfilled, you would have kept away from his sight before he would come to undress you. 

You handled it to him immediately, letting the evidence speak for you before you would have to. 

“ Do you recognize this dagger?” 

Dastan examined it carefully, but there was no doubt in his conclusion. 

“ How?” He defensively asked you. “ Who gave this to you?” 

“ I’ve got it from the hand of your uncle, he strictly commanded me to kill you in your sleep.” You informed him, much to your regret. “ He convinced me with empty promises of manipulating Tus into making me his wife so my position would be restored, back when I used to care about that … Before getting to know you and find out you are all I ever wanted."

You couldn't stand his suffering. He did believe you, but that didn't make things any better. In any case, it was a double betrayal.

" Do you loathe me so much? " He asked you, visibly hurted. " Does he loathe me this much?"

Desperate and unsure of what to do, all that occured to you was being completely honest with him.

" Dastan, i love you! I could have kept the secret and face the rage of Nizam alone, but then the truth would be gone with me and he would still be close to you planning new ways to harm you." You tried to explain him. " I don't care about what could happen to me anymore, I'm doing this for you… I can't let him hurt you."

He stood up in silence and you could tell that he was about to kick you out. Before he could get to even suggest it you threw yourself in front of him embracing his knees.

"Save yourself, my love. Please, be sensical. " You humbly pleaded. " I'm not begging you to forgive me, I know i have just lost you forever and i'm willing to accept my punishment. "

You released him and closed your eyes, still on your knees but adopting a sacrificial position. Dastan understood you were inviting him to take revenge on you if he desired so hoping that would satisfy him. Paying the price for both should stop him from recklessly confronting Nizam.

Not even at the peak of desperation when you were about to be made a war captive he had seen you like that… And you weren't even trying to save yourself, but offering him your life so he wouldn't risk his.

The prince let the dagger fall on the floor, shocked to the realization that you were trully in love with him.

" As you have spared my life, I release you from your debt. " He informed you, then gesturally invited you to rise up. " How could you possibly believe I would have the very same strenght you lacked? If love stopped your hand, so it shall stop mine. "

Inmense gratitude made you smile despite the sorrow. From that point you would accept anything he demmanded of you. Either if he needed help to expose his uncle, or if he was planning to run away so the family conflict wouldn't end in war, you would follow him.

[hippielittlemetalhead]

Okay but hear me out!

Punk King Steve 'The Hair' Harrington! He starts to go Punk even before season 1!

Just! Hear me out!?!

What about pre season 1 Steve goes on one last business trip with his parents to like New York or Boston or something cause he still had hope that maybe if he went with them after a victorious sophomore year making Varsity and actually having decent grades and a reputation at school built on charm and being a good little Harrington heir his parents would actually act like they care. What happens is he ends up being dragged along to and shown off at boring dinner parties but is otherwise left alone and unsupervised. He stumbles across a music store where he is obviously out of place but the music playing is loud and angry and matches the knot filling up his chest. So he spends most of the trip exploring the city with this group of people who recognize the anger in him and aren't the type to gatekeep cause what's more punk than finding your own path? Even if it's not the same as theirs he still deserves the space to find out.

And yeah he seems more the 'infiltrate and dismantle' type than the 'throw a flaming brick' type but the spirit is there.

So he learns to coiff his hair and make it big but not so much his mom would kill him. He learns to wear pants and style his shirts so they accentuate his form not make him look soft and respectable and to accessorize in small ways that are obvious to those who are observant enough to look and to those who know what to look for but still not be so showy his parents will get on him for anything. He gets a bunch of tapes and spends time making mixtapes of his favorites and buys a walkman so he can listen to his music without his parents hearing. He learns how to discreetly add a bit of blush and natural tinted mascara and tinted chapstick cause he learns he likes makeup but that sort of thing would cause problems in a place like Hawkins. He builds a greater tolerance with these people he's come to trust and learns you can actually enjoy getting drunk when it's just being stupid with some friends and not meant to make a statement. And before he has to go home he's gifted a bottle of sheer pink nail polish that makes his nails look healthy and taken care of and natural but he'll know and that's all that matters.

Steve goes back to Hawkins a little different, a little meaner, a little looser and more self-assured. Steve goes back to Hawkins and notices Nancy Wheeler. The perfect prissy princess with an edge that intrigued him even if he saw it by accident. And he spends the entire time he woos and subsequently dates her trying to bring that out, that bit of steel and fire that still really worked with her soft hyper femme aesthetic. And he falls head over heels for this girl who is soft but resilient and polite but opinionated and who obviously wants MORE and he wants to give it to her.

But then Will Byers goes missing, followed by Barb and Nancy is showing her steel but at the side of Jonathan Byers as his parents leave messages extending their trip and leaving forwarding numbers that he knows won't work when he really needs them. And he breaks the camera and that makes him feel like he's falling back into who he was before the music and the summer away from this small town. They fight in an alley after he says things he doesn't believe but knows would hurt because he couldn't get the clawing in his chest to just go away. And he takes the beating because he knows he was wrong and he remembers the scared looks people gave him that one time he got into a bar fight he doesn't actually remember but knows he won with a guy who wouldn't take a no from one of the girls in the group Steve was drinking with.

So he takes the beating and doesn't press charges and goes to apologize after dumping Tommy and Carol and comes face to face with something from his worst nightmares. He goes back after running away because he can't leave them there. He picks up a bat with nails run through it and lets loose the thing clawing in his chest. He keeps himself between the monster and the others and he keeps them safe. Will comes home. Barb doesn't.

He goes to Indianapolis for a new camera for Jonathan and comes back with more angry music. He keeps making trips and comes back with the sides of his hair shaved in not quite a Mohawk but close and a tattoo or two in places he can hide easily and a heavy leather jacket. The changes make the pacing thing in his chest quiet some and he wears a smile around Nancy and the Hollands and he walks tall through the hallways of Hawkins High his senior year.

Tommy Hagan tries to say he went bitch for Nancy Wheeler since he doesn't sleep around anymore or take his frustrations out on those weaker and less fortunate than him and he tries to say Steve is joining the freaks like Munson and his nerds but even they won't have him. Tommy Hagan and some others try to jump Steve in an empty hallway after school and before practice to "teach the dethroned King a lesson", because if Byers could leave him a bloody mess then he was never that tough. The others sport bruises and split lips and bruised egos. Tommy Hagan had a broken nose and bruised ribs and a look of fear when he's within 10 feet of his former best friend.

Steve Harrington has no throne and no court but he still undeniably wears the crown.

(part 2) (part3.1)

[mouse-drawings]

Alien Home

You visit a home that isn’t yours. Your friend claims it’s theirs. This family claims it’s your friend’s. Even though nothing here fits your friend. Even though your friend is a lion and the house is a box that could only fit kittens. Your friend says it’s their box. This family says it’s your friend’s box.

You want to burn down the box and those who own it.

A story about the one time Zabava took Roseline to visit Zabava's home colony.

Zabava's return to her home colony was big news. It was clear the moment the guard let her and Roseline in that a simple short visit would turn into several days worth of celebrations. As soon as they set foot on the colony grounds, they were met by the ever growing group of ants hurrying to welcome Zabava back with hugs and kisses.

And she returned every single one. Every greeting she would let go of the carriage she pulled forward and lower herself to an ant's level. Then, while still lowered, she would introduce Roseline. 

Roseline was offered a different kind of greeting. An ant would either give her a hand to shake or a head to press hers against. She accepted every gesture at Zabava's instructions. 

“It's to remember you. Also, it's polite,” Zabava had explained before. 

They were led though the city by an ant of unknown relation. Every second ant introduced itself and it was always one of six names, so Roseline simply couldn't remember if this specific ant did and which name it was. Zabava seemed to know exactly who it was, so Roseline didn't care to ask. But to make it easier for herself, she started referring to the ant as Guide. 

Guide showed them around while catching Zabava up to speed with all the colony news.

“I'm sure you’ve noticed that we’ve made the second ring,” Guide commented, having to hold its head up to look at Zabava's face. 

“Yes. It is nice to see the outcity grow.” Zabava replied, keeping her gaze on the road. She spoke quieter than usual. Her volume seemed to lower every time an ant's antennae twitched at her voice until finally she spoke so soft that the twitching stopped. 

Roseline thought it was ridiculous and so spoke at her normal volume. “What's a ring?” She watched Guide's antennae twitch with great delight. She wished she could scream loud enough to deafen anyone who dared twitch their antennae at Zabava.

“It's what we call a road that makes a complete circle around the Hill.” Zabava explained, looking at Roseline, voice still small. “Before I left, there was only one ring. They talked about making the second one to open space for outsiders.”

“And now it's complete!” Guide added proudly, “If you were any regular outsiders, you would be staying at one of the inns by the second ring. But, since you are with Zabava, you will be staying in the Hill's living chambers, free of charge!”

“I like free stuff!”

“Ah…” Zabava didn’t share Guide’s and Roseline’s excitement by the looks of it. The way she hunched down, the way her antennae drooped… It was not a look of nostalgia. “Are the living chambers the same?”

“Yes!” Guide continued with its excited tone, before seemingly noticing Zabava’s mood and  carrying on more apologetic, “Unfortunately… The Queens put focus on developing the outcity, so the incity has been in mundane maintenance mode for some time now. It’s clean and cared for.” It added the last part as if it was any reassurance.

If that was considered comforting here, it was no wonder Zabava struggled making friends with other bugs.

Zabava sighed, but accepted the poor excuse of consolation. “I’m glad to hear that.”

“In any case,” Guide changed topics, much to Roseline's displeasure, and gestured at a big gate made out of red stone that they were approaching. “I'm sure you remember the Big Gate.”

Zabava perked up immediately. “The name stuck?”

“Yes. It is a big gate.”

“It is.” Zabava clicked her mandibles amused. 

“Once you go in, a guard will escort you to the living chambers.”

“Hol’up. Where are we supposed to put this thing?” Roseline gestured at the carriage behind Zabava. It was full of freshly hunted game and curious souvenirs, all caught and chosen by Zabava. Roseline was sure it was at least part of the reason they were welcomed so warmly.

“We will bring it to the warehouse,” Zabava answered for Guide and then turned to it for confirmation, “That is why we are at the Big Gate. Correct?”

“Correct! The Big Gate is this big to allow supplies of any size to pass and the tunnel it is connected to leads to the warehouse. Then from the warehouse you can go to other parts of the Hill.”

Roseline considered the information, hands on her hips. It didn’t sit right with her. She didn’t feel like leaving their things with these bugs, especially after that talk about the living chambers. In fact, she prayed for the Hill to collapse on all of them, so Zabava didn’t have to stay there. But Roseline doubted it would make the grasshopper happy.

She concluded her thoughts aloud, “I don’t really trust anyone I don’t pay with my things, but I trust Zabava.”

“Thank you,” Zabava said in a tone so warm, Roseline wanted to knit a blanket out of it and cocoon in it until the end of time. Then the grasshopper turned to Guide. “Thank you, too. Queen Antoinette should be proud.”

“Happy to help.” Guide didn’t react in any way to the last part. It took the last steps to the Big Gate with the duo, gave Zabava a goodbye hug once a guard walked up to them, and left.

Roseline silently wished it to find the dirtiest puddle to faceplant into.

This incity guard also gave Zabava a hug, but didn’t introduce itself. It also didn’t speak much. Roseline didn’t mind.

“What was that about a queen being proud?” She took the opportunity to ask Zabava.

“Hm? Ah. It’s a way of thanking a colony mate. Telling them that they did well. You usually know their birthqueen, so you tell them that she should be proud.”

“And if you don’t know that?”

“You could instead name the current branch they work at. ‘Scouts should be proud.’ But it’s weird if they did something unrelated to their job. You could say ‘The colony should be proud.’ But it’s saved for truly monumental tasks. Usually, you just don’t say it.”

“Oh, interesting. And what do you say when…”

The conversation continued until they reached the warehouse, where Zabava needed to sign a few things before leaving the carriage there. She also took one special box of souvenirs with her.

Once they were on the path to the living chambers, they picked up where they left off.

“I get it now.” Roseline nodded. “You have five queens and each queen has a name and each ant has the name of its birthqueen.”

“Six queens.” Zabava corrected. Though the hall they walked down was tall enough to fit her, she still hunched down. Probably afraid of her antennae constantly brushing against the ceiling. “Five queens and one grandqueen.”

“Six queens… six names… It all makes sense now.” Roseline nodded again, with confidence. 

“Speaking of the Queens.” The incity guard spoke up, making Roseline jump. She had almost forgotten about it! “The Queens will probably want to see you soon to plan the celebration with you. So, please, don’t wander too far from your room.”

“Thank you for the information,” Zabava replied just as the guard slowly stopped in front of a door. Zabava stopped as well. “And thank you for escorting us.”

The guard nodded and promptly left.

Though it felt like they were finally alone, Roseline had seen more guards along the way and assumed they were patrolling the hall. Moreover, both walls had endless doors along them, which probably hid many sleeping ants behind them. They looked the same, except for a symbol carved and painted in them. Roseline had never seen symbols exactly like these, but she had done enough counting all over the world to guess that those were numbers. She knew a few inns, or “hotels”, that were just like that. 

“They gave me a different room.”

“Huh?” Roseline's attention snapped back to Zabava. 

“I used to live in a different room,” the grasshopper explained, setting down her box of souvenirs and opening one of the doors, “It doesn't matter. They are all the same.” She picked up the box and held the door open with her leg, waiting. 

Roseline happily took the unspoken invitation and walked past Zabava into the room. The grasshopper soon followed, having to hunch down even more to avoid hitting her head on the door frame.

Maybe if this hill did collapse, they’d build a new one with taller ceilings and doors.

The room did not impress with its size or furnishing. The ceiling was as tall as in the hall, meaning Zabava remained slouched. It was big enough to have a two-bug bed, bed tables and shelves on two walls without it feeling too cramped. It really was like a hotel room. But it was free and it didn't give the feel of a prison cell, so Roseline didn't mind. 

What Roseline did mind was the bed. For her, it was big. She could lay in the middle and unfold her wings and she would still fit. 

However.

Roseline wasn't a big bug. Every ant in this colony was taller than her. This bed was probably comfortably long for them as well. Which meant that for Zabava it was too small. Which was a crime. It was one that was committed quite often, unfortunately, but even in Zabava's home colony? It should be punishable by death. 

“We should ask for a bigger room,” Roseline said, folding arms on her chest. 

“It's okay. I fit there,” Zabava reassured, setting her box down beside the bedside table. 

“And I fit in my own cocoon, but I crawled out anyway!”

“There is no point. I said, all rooms are the same.”

“Surely not all of them. I betcha the Queens sleep in queen-appropriate rooms with queen-appropriate beds.”

“We are not asking to live in the Queen chambers. The drone chambers are connected to them.” Zabava sighed and gave her antennae a couple nervous strokes. “We live here for free. It feels inappropriate to ask for more.”

Roseline paused, hands on her hips.

She could say many things. 

She could say that free stuff didn't have to be aphidshit quality. That they weren't poor no matter the currency. That if they didn't like the free thing, they could buy a better one. 

She could say that this free room is a requirement, not a gift. That if everyone wanted to play family with Zabava, they should accommodate her like one would. That a comfortable bed was the least her colony should provide.

Roseline could say many things. 

But what were those words worth? Zabava wasn’t one to buy whatever you throw at her. Forcing her to accept what she didn’t want was as useless as trying to feed a pupa.

Roseline wished she could do something, instead of just talking. Killing a queen and all the drones to make space for Zabava, for example. But alas.

“If that’s what you say, ‘Bav,” she said with a shrug and sat on the bed, “I trust you.”

“Thank you,” Zabava nodded and clicked her mandibles, like a chuckle. “I know it’s hard. You wanted to say more.”

“Nuh-uh. How’d you figure?”

“You do this–” Zabava put her hands on her hips– “when there’s much to say.”

“Nuh-uh!” Roseline crossed her arms.

“When you disagree–” Zabava mirrored her moth friend– “it’s this.”

“Why, you–!” The moth put hands on her hips again.

Zabava cackled. Loud and clear. Louder than she had been all day.

Roseline let her arms fall by her sides as she let the wonderful sound pass through every part of her body, from her antennae to her claws.

This was what Zabava was supposed to be. Big and loud. Towering. Like the sun at its zenith. Not whatever this colony made her act. Sad and small. Sun covered by the clouds.

The moment got rudely interrupted by a knock on the door.

The clouds came back.

Zabava went to open the door. She should burn them all with her sunlight.

“Yes?” She asked hushed and soft instead.

A guard stood on the other side. Beside it stood a different ant. This one was bigger and seemed much older. Either that was a soldier or…

“Grandqueen Antoinette!” Zabava gasped.

Roseline silently cursed as she hurried off the bed and to Zabava’s side.

One thing Roseline noticed about this colony was that they all wear some sort of cloth of the same pale magenta color, like a dried up purple flower. Zabava wore a similar cloth over her wings and armor, though it looked way better on her.

The grandqueen wore an outfit made from the same cloth, except with deep blue accents, though not deeper than the night sky. The outfit was a shirt tied just above the abdomen with long sleeves, widening at the hand, and a cape. Way fancier than what a worker or a guard wore.

It would suit Zabava very well.

Roseline should ask around for the cloth, since robbing the grandqueen would be too troublesome. Besides, though the grandqueen was half a head taller than the guard, Zabava was still taller. Whatever outfits she had wouldn’t sit on Zabava as well as they do on the queen.

“It has been a long time, Zabava,” the grandqueen spoke. Calm. Quiet. Yet very commanding. Stern. The tone reminded Roseline of Granny. Though, Granny’s voice was much softer and lacked the clicking of an ant mandible.

“It has.” Zabava’s own voice was even quieter. It was bordering on a whisper. The grandqueen’s antennae still twitched like there was something wrong with it.

Roseline wanted to tear off those antennae.

The grandqueen remained unaware of Roseline’s thoughts and maybe even her very presence. She opened her arms and gave Zabava a nod. This resulted in the grasshopper kneeling down and pulling her in a greeting hug.

“Welcome home.” The grandqueen patted Zabava’s head and gave her antennae a couple strokes.

“It’s good to visit.” Zabava pulled away and, still kneeled, gestured at Roseline. “My friend and employer. Roseline.”

“Hello!” Roseline’s voice caused all other bugs to flinch. She only felt bad for one of them. She offered the queen a handshake, which the other reluctantly accepted. “Honored to meet you!” The other bugs flinched again, though Roseline failed to understand it this time. She got her hand back and looked at Zabava. “Did I say something wrong?”

“You cannot refer to Grandqueen Antoinette as ‘you’. It’s impolite.” The grasshopper explained before anyone else could. “Nothing you’d know. It’s okay.”

“Ah.” The moth looked back at the grandqueen. “Sorry about that.” Roseline didn’t like unwittingly insulting others. She preferred to do so knowingly and with expressed intent.

“You are pardoned.” The grandqueen nodded. “As Zabava noticed, you would not know that. Many outsiders make the same mistake. It is not a common practice. Now, stand up, Zabava, I want to introduce you to someone, before other queens summon you for themselves.”

The grandqueen and her guard led Zabava and Roseline through the endless halls of the Hill. Roseline guessed they were going deeper in, since they didn’t go through the warehouse again. Although, there really was no way of knowing, since the incity had many exits and entrances. 

The walk was almost completely devoid of conversation. Occasionally, the grandqueen would ask if Zabava remembered this part of the Hill and Zabava would reply with ‘Of course, it’s a’ and name of it. Roseline didn’t feel like starting anything herself due to the grandqueen’s presence. An ant guard was easy to ignore, but the grandqueen? She had a weight to her. She commanded the space around her.

Envy poisoned the well of feelings that Roseline tried to keep shut. Something too close to fear was brewing in that well. It called Roseline to stomp at every and to spread her wings as far as possible.

Thankfully, she managed to hold on until they arrived before another door. The ceiling had gotten taller and all other doors were replaced with beautiful paintings on the walls. They told some kind of story about eggs and ants.

“Do you remember this place, Zabava?” The grandqueen asked yet again.

But Zabava didn’t reply right away. She looked around, at the door and the walls. She looked at the guards by the door and at the ceiling. Her antennae moved quickly, trying to pick up on a familiar scent. 

“I don’t,” she confessed shamefully, “We passed the nursery on the way here and it smells similar.”

“It is expected, since you have never been here. Only a few selected caregivers are allowed here.” The grandqueen’s words made Zabava sigh in relief. 

Grandqueen Antoinette walked up to the door and the guards opened it for her. She kept walking and gestured to follow her.

Zabava passed the guards with ease, but when Roseline tried to do the same, she was stopped by their spears in her face.

Unfair!

Before she could complain, the grandqueen’s guard, who had also stayed behind, pulled Roseline by the shoulder to itself. It kept its hand there, its claws digging into her shoulder.

Roseline hissed and crossed arms on her chest, but didn’t do much else. 

She wished she was coated in poison. She imagined becoming a spider and killing all three guards in an instant and then the queen. She prayed for any nearby deities to curse every ant in this colony.

Then she realized that the door to the room was still open. Probably so the guards could keep watch of what was happening inside. Whatever. It meant Roseline could watch as well.

Almost right across from the doorway, in a dimly lit room filled with all sorts of pillows and foods, sat an ant larva. Zabava sat beside it, giving it rubs and feeding it a mushroom from a nearby plate. Grandqueen Antoinette stood beside her with a hand on her head.

The grub was pretty big for ant larvae. Not that Roseline had seen many, but those few she had seen were definitely smaller. And those never got their own nursery. Nor that much food…

“I see Grandqueen Antoinette is showing Zabava our new queen,” a voice whispered behind Roseline.

The moth jumped.

And hissed. The claws in her shoulder hurt.

She slowly, carefully, looked at the voice’s owner.

The voice belonged to an ant. Unsurprisingly. Not a guard, judging by the lack of weapons. It looked as old as the grandqueen, but was notably smaller than her guard. Its clothes also lacked the complexity and the deep blue accents of the queen’s robes. Perhaps it was one of those ‘few selected’ caregivers?

“I’m not surprised,” replied the grandqueen’s guard to the said carevier, “I was there when the queens argued about the name.”

Gossip? Royal drama? Suddenly Roseline didn’t feel like killing everyone around her right this instant.

“Some queens were against it?” The caregiver sounded surprised.

“Just one. The youngest queen thought it was ridiculous to name a new queen after an...” The guard glanced at Roseline. “...you know.”

“Oh, silly girl.” The caregiver clicked her mandibles in disappointment. “But I assume the grandqueen resolved it?”

“Of course. Grandqueen Antoinette wouldn’t let anyone disrespect Zabava like that. The young queen didn’t like it, but had to accept it in the end.”

“Oh, silly, silly girl.” The caregiver clicked her mandibles again. “The new queen was always going to be Zabava. Not only that, but Zabava the Second has a nice ring to it. It has a proper weight for a queen.”

“Agreed. Though, the other options…”

The whispering between the two ants continued, but Roseline no longer cared.

They named that grub after Zabava? Sure. What an honor for that larva. To be named after the brightest bug in the whole world by a bunch of blind ants. Because, what was it they said? That grandqueen would never let anyone disrespect Zabava like that? Oh, but she would let the entire colony disrespect Zabava every other way. She’d let Zabava be put in the same box as everybody else, even though she had outgrown the box many moons ago. The grandqueen was as blind as the rest of them. A colony of blind idiots. Able to appreciate the sun’s warmth, but unable to see its light, disallowing it to shine, putting it into a box where it wouldn’t shine.

Roseline wished she was a powerful witch. She would curse the queen-to-be to grow up exactly like Zabava. She would grow up to be taller than every other queen, unable to fit anywhere, unable to fit with anyone. She would need to run away to find a place for herself. She would never find it.

“Oh. Grand Caregiver, we meet again.” The grandqueen’s voice pulled Roseline out of her thoughts.

Zabava and the grandqueen walked out of the royal nursery, Zabava closing the door behind herself. The grandqueen’s guard let go of Roseline’s shoulder and went to take its place beside the grandqueen.

Zabava looked so happy. Her wings fluttered occasionally, her mandibles clicked excitedly, and she couldn’t stop grooming her antennae. She quickly walked to Roseline and took her hands.

“They are naming the new queen after me!” She whispered, like it was her most precious secret that she couldn’t wait to share with the world. 

“No way!” Roseline pretended like it was news to her. 

“They are! Zabava the Second. It’ll be in the history books. I’ll be in history books. They’ll remember me. They love me!”

“That’s so cool!”

That was sad. So pathetic. They didn’t know how to love her. They didn’t know how to love the sun.

Too bad the sun thought that was enough.

“Zabava,” the grandqueen called out, “I’m told the other queens are already looking for you. Allow me to accompany you to them.”

Zabava let go of Roseline’s hands and the moth was quick to hide them behind her back. Zabava didn’t need to know her actual feelings.

“Of course,” the grasshopper replied. Quiet. Polite. Happy. 

Roseline prayed for her sun to wake up one day and burn all those blind idiots. And if the gods didn’t care? She would just make it happen herself.

“‘Bav!” She leaned into Zabava’s side as they followed the grandqueen and her guard. “That guard hurt me.”

“What?!”

[disastersteps]

hair can be a experience.

...this is supposedly to be just a rambling but i made it fic-like vibes sdhgshjd

---

Anita.

Hair started off long, straight, and touching the shoulder. Proper, quiet like a mouse, stiff and polite. Just like they would at the Farm. Always following the orders.

Then came the cut with shitty scissors they stole after they first escaped, cut their hair- shorter than their old hair. staring at the dead hair on the sink, feeling free. free. They will grow into the short messy hair that tugs against their neck, themmy telling them that 'you would look better in masculine.' better than feminine. cut the farm from their skin and wear things they want that isn't the Farm.

Fall into the cage, hair gone when they got captured and the hair get longer and messier when they escaped for the second time. Hair? Don't care. Don't want to cut it, cutting mean changing, and changing mean they will get caught. and they don't want to.

But then they cut their hair, on their own terms, on the hands of their lover with mod lining across her arms and the back, smiling telling them they look so handsome. The other lover rolling her eyes, grabbing their chin- their facial hair, feeling her fingers against their fresh and newly beard. Happiness.

---

Julia.

Went on a journey, looking back, she would laugh. But back then, she wears her hair in ponytail- for the job- To be Charge, she keep up the looks. But came to love braiding from the hands of a little shit that throws a cocky grin at her.

And she couldn't save them, a knife in her hand and killing the hair. Chop it off. Mourning and loss. In the middle of the kitchen where the voice of theirs and she never step into that kitchen again.

Open her eyes, seeing them in the diner. Her hair, short and sidecut with a symbol of Charge hiding underneath that only she styled when she is a hero, but she sees them- Let her hair grow longer afterward.

But in the end, she cut her hair again. But it wasn't mourning and loss. It was finally at peace and at happiness. They sees her and feel flushed, told her she's handsome and the other smiles proudly at her. Feeling herself with these two.

---

Mortum.

Science is a routine, and so was hair care. She cares about her own hair. Loves her hair. It's science, dear. Something's part of her life, always had been.

But when she's with clients- With the woman who who kept the business steady with her, her hair up in a ponytail- Show she's business. She's a scientist. And professional one at that. Money is money, of course.

Let her hair down, twisted and braided, smiling ear to ear with the woman who had became her friend- a best friend she didn't expect to have. To wanting to love her only to find out they're her. They look warily. Eyes away, yet she still kept her hair down. Because....

At some point, her hair will be twisted out, all natural and freely. Smiling from the couch, watching them pointing a spoon at the other- laugh and banter across the room. She's a scientist, but she is comfortable in this room. With them, she have that love that science can't tell her.

[theyanderespecialist]

Four requests: 2 of them will a vid request and the other 2 will be a regular degular writing request.

1: Yandere Slender brothers x fem algoid ( zalgo's offspring ) listener. The listener functions a bit like a succubus since their inner demon is a Lust one. So because of that they may or may not have a... close relationship with Offender. Since he's her off-and-on fuck buddy (the listener ends their promiscuous relationship when Smexy tries to turn it into an actual relationship ). The Listener gets most of their clothes from Trenderman. Shockingly Splendorman is a good acquaintance of theirs, maybe even a distant friend. Slender Man has been trying to recruit her despite her politely telling him no. But that all changes when their little half-sibling; Lazari, life gets put into a dire situation. So she cuts a deal with Slenderman that his he keeps Lazari safe, she'll work with him. As the icing on the cake listener even offers to become his proxy once Lazari is fully trained ( the listener isn't skilled with glutton demons ). Other than that everything is up in the air. The listener is Slender's secretary. Polite, professional, and of course sexy. Please and thank you

2: Yandere Moondrop and Sundrop x fem gamer animatronic reader. The arcade is their spot in pizzaplex. Sometimes Sun takes the kids there if they had a very good day and the reader leads them to the child-friendly ones. Moon sees them more than sun because they got that gamer insomnia. He forces them into a charge station to get some rest. Also, the reader has a crush on the night guard that watches the security cameras. They can tell by the goo goo heart eyes the reader gives the guard when they aren't looking. Just something Fluffy and dark, please.

3: Yandere God x GN ghost reader. The reader was murdered brutally and is scared to cross over to the other side because they're afraid nothing will be there for them. The classic Hurt and comfort, please.

4: Platonic Yandere God x GN (ex-)cultist listener. The reader was born and raised in a closed tight-knit community that borderline functioned like a Cult. But as time goes on and the older the listener gets the clearer the signs that everything might not be as they seem. They always saw it even as a kid but, after an incident that got them hurt and in some trouble, they stopped openly questioning out of fear. But as they grew the signs were starting to become more explicit and unbearable. So one day in private the listener openly asks for a sign from whatever divine force out there that whatever thing they're community was doing was it right or wrong and if they should leave ( escape )the community. Please and thank you.

P.S. I know that I'm asking for more than one thing, so take as long as you need to complete all of them. Good luck and take care of yourself love!!!

P.P.S Remember to drink plenty of water and rest well!!!!!

okay I am going to work on the slenderbrothers one in text and such! BUT You have to request the other ones so I do not lose them! Please in separate ones Thank you!

[blorbologist]

📂📂

I think it's forgotten sometimes that Vax and Keyleth visit Whitestone fairly often during the timeskip! As Vax says, 'have-druid-will-travel', specifically citing 3-4 day weekends about once a month. Which is still a huge change for 'were never apart for long until the Slayer's Take trials' twins, but not the immediate complete separation some imply. Given Kiki is involved in the Slayer's Cake to some degree, it might be even more than that! I bring this up because, depending on when Vex and Percy eloped, that is a lot of time spent with your brother and best friend, respectively, without dropping that secret on their feet. Vex says there was never a good time - but was there, really, Vex? Not on any camping trips, or when Vax was poking through the book Percy lent him, or when your mother came up in conversation, or when it was just the two of you, exactly the same, except for the secret heavy in your heart? She absolutely realized Vax would be upset, and rightfully so, and had conflicted feelings between delight and shame and so bottled them up and only shared them when left with no choice. It's strikingly similar to how she confesses her love to Percy in the first place. (Percy, though, probably had zero fucking trouble keeping the secret to himself and very smugly too. He and Kiki can get high and he'll break out into giggles she assumes is because of the debate they were having, but nope! He just remembered he's married and it's secret and it's all theirs alone!)

I've brought up beforehand that I think (in light of Matt's perhaps-fumble perhaps-not with having Gwen, Wolfe and Leona be fairly young in C3) that there was probably a decade-ish gap between Vesper and the twins, during which the family unit was a lot more mobile and capable of short adventures as a result, right? Well, I think Percy and Vex would often make a conscious effort to include Keyleth in on it. If she had enough freedom to start a bakery and take weekend trips early in her career as Tempest, despite all the busywork that likely entailed, I think she could afford the time away to relax with her friends. Because by this point Vox Machina has split into family units: Percy, Vex and their baby in Whitestone; Grog, Scanlan and Pike in Westrunn (idk when they started having their kids tho)... and Keyleth, alone, in Zephrah. Sure, she can travel extremely easily, but it must still be incredibly isolating. Given Percy makes a point to get Cass out of Whitestone here and there, I suspect he does the same with Keyleth. Hell - it's probably him who started their little garden project in Whitestone, as an excuse to get her away from work and in the presence of someone she's not in charge of more often. He could totally handle Melanie's garden on his own (if with more effort than he'd care to admit), but... Keyleth needs small stakes, sometimes. Keyleth needs a friend - needs him. And Percy explicitly avoids politics as he ages, so he can be very familiar with Keyleth's worries and stressors while effectively dragging her away from them. Just two friends and a garden, without Vex and Vesper there to remind Keyleth of what she lost.

[sophieinwonderland]

"i'm doing the same thing as christian missionaries, and that's good!" is a strange take. it's politically charged and attention grabbing, but it doesn't reflect well on you and i also don't see much truth to the comparison in the first place? mainly bc you are one person, not an institution, and informing people about tulpamancy doesn't seem comparable to like. missionary work where institutional power/religious hegemony is directly involved. you seem unwilling to consider these concepts outside of a vacuum and why they get such significant pushback from your audience.

i don't think any of your current activism tactics are harmful, i just don't understand your insistence on drawing these really charged comparisons that draw mostly negative associations and push your allies away from you. i think you've mentioned you don't work well with other people, and i know you've mentioned you purposefully post things to make people angry for engagement. do you even consider yourself part of the greater plural community, or is it the case that, when you talk about spreading your ideology, you really just mean your ideology, alone? and if you do intend to operate alone, do you care about the damage you might be causing to the rest of us?

My ideology is the same as other plurals.

These are not separate in my eyes.

My methods may be be different, but I think we're all fighting to reach the same ends.

Also, I feel like this is losing the plot a bit. This conversation started after referring to cults, many of which ALSO lack institutional power. I don't think the difference between what I'm doing and what they are can simply be reduced to "they have power and we don't," and that's what makes ours okay and theirs not. By that logic, small cults doing it would be fine.

What if we did get power? It's unlikely, but what if tulpamancy became so commonplace in a hundred years that it supplanted major religions? How much institutional power would we need to obtain before it becomes morally wrong to try to spread tulpamancy?

Maybe these things should be judged on a case-by-case basis.

Instead of a simple "proselytizing bad," maybe it's specific tactics in those that are actually bad. Or maybe it's the beliefs they're taught where the problem lies. Or again, how they maintain control afterwards.

Yes, the language is emotionally charged. But maybe it should be in order to actually get people to think about the tactics we're using, and how different or similar they are to those of our adversaries.

I've personally thought about these things a lot.

Maybe if people's view of what I'm doing is determined by how scary the language I use to refer to it, they should analyze how they're letting buzzwords influence their opinions.

I want to lay all my cards on the table though and say that if I see tactics that I think can help benefit our cause, even if those tactics originate from bad groups, I'm going to want to use them.

I'm going to look at how proselytizing religions convert people, how advertisers market to consumers, how politicians gain support, how the media gets attention, etc. Because to me, all of these are just tools that can be used for good or evil. I'll avoid many of the most harmful and predatory tools. But every tool has at least been considered by me on a case-by-case basis.

[itmeansiris]

The Solar System Legacy Challenge: Devastated Gen 1 pt.35

After a week spent recovering the Gratz household almost feels back to normal. It’s a calm afternoon and Kason is in the living room with Venus while Aphrodite and Ishtar are down for naps. Mercury is upstairs lying down, still not fully better. She’d been feverish every couple days and suffered from constant dizzy spells. Her parents stayed until she was strong enough to get out of bed alone, but had to eventually return to Tomarang for work.

A wave of dizziness washes over M and the throb of a headache threatens to ruin a decent day. She gets up and goes into the bathroom checking for something to soothe the discomfort. She reaches for the painkillers on the sink when she noticed the two loose pregnancy test. Overtaken with fear she takes one out and sits on the toilet.

She stares at the plastic little life changer. Hesitating before deciding she had to know. They hadn’t even considered it as an option for why she’d suddenly gotten so sick but it would definitely explain a lot. She waits painstakingly long before the 5 mins are up and she checks the little screen.

M: Watcher no...

But the words across the screen wouldn't change no matter how long she stared at it. Eventually she got up, finished in the bathroom she went back to bed stunned.

M: How did this..? What are we going to do? Another baby!

Her mind was racing. She'd sat upstairs, head spinning for about an hour before she gathers the courage to go downstairs and deliver the devastating news to Kason.

She found him lying in the living, head back, eyes closed. It seemed like he was napping. He looked so peaceful. She stales a moment not wanting to wake him, a weak excuse to not tell him the truth. But after the New Years Eve incident and the week that followed she owed him an explanation and he deserved to know now. It wasn't just her life it was theirs. Without opening his eyes he calls out to her.

Kason: Its not polite to stare.

He teased her. She smiled with sad eyes and Kason sat up and slide over making room for her on the sofa. She sat but didn't get comfortable, her hands shaking slightly. He placed a reassuring hand on her lower back waiting for her to start.

M: I'm pregnant

Completely surprised he doesn't have a moment to tame his reaction.

Kason: Fuck, M... You're sure.

It's not a question. She's holding the evidence in her hands. She stands quickly her body shaking more so than before.

M: I'm so sorry Kason...

He drags his hand across his face and sighs.

He pulls her back down to the sofa. He takes a moment to collect his thoughts, but its a second too many. M frantically starts apologizing, rambling about how it's all her fault.

Kason: M! This isn't your fault...It isn't anyone's fault. We just weren't careful.

They sit in silence. The air charged with tense energy.

M: How are we supposed to do this? We barely kept our heads above water when we had the triplets. I can't believe how stupid we've been. How careless!

Kason: M you have to calm down. You're still not feeling well. This can’t be good for you.

He traces small circles along her back with the pad of his thumb. But even that wasn't enough. He stood and turned his body on the couch and pulled her to tuck her legs around him.

Kason: M, we are not the same people we were almost a year ago. Our financials are in order, our careers secured. We have our home, we have our family and most of all we have each other. I remember our conversation and at the time I meant what I said. But nothing can change the fact that this baby is here now and we both know what you are and aren't willing to do. So with that being said what other choice do we truly have. I'm here for you M, I’m not going anywhere.

Though he had taken it astronomically better than she expected, it didn't settle her unease.

As the weeks passed, M struggled as she approached her 2nd trimester. She tried to be joyous when she announced to her family that they were having another baby and when Winter and Peyton called to say they'd had their new baby. It was a bittersweet moment. She wanted to be happy for her best friends but it felt like a look into her near future. A future she still hadn't been able to accept. The only joy she truly felt was when she was alone with the triplets and her husband. She could let slip away the careful mask she had learned to wear when other people were around. The despair consumed her , making her usually dazzling personally dull, to a minuscule gleam.

As she neared her third trimester Kason did everything he could to help her stay relaxed. Her parents would spend weekends to help her around the house with the kids while Kason was at work. Kason had quickly learned to accept the idea of a new baby but M continued to struggle throughout her pregnancy. Kason worried the depression she was falling into was going to over take her. There were days when she did nothing but lay around, not speaking, or leaving the bedroom for any reason. His world would tilt on its axis anytime he managed to get a small reaction on those days. Every sigh, pull of the corner of her mouth and even her tears were welcomed, because he couldn’t stand the blank slate that she was sometimes.

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[julietwiskey1]

What if ATLA had 6 seasons, the War trilogy (books 1-3) and the Post-War trilogy (Books 4-6)?

This is a question that I think is harder then the four season question. Usually as a constraint I would want to keep the same tone and maturity level of the show. But I think an additional three seasons will need to be more mature and tackle more political questions that don’t quite fit the original show.

First three seasons are the same. Only major difference is we don’t need to speed run Zuko’s redemption at the end, we can start it and finish it in the fourth season. Then we mirror the last three seasons with the first, where it went water, Earth, Fire now it goes Fire, Earth, Water and we watch the gaang shrink down each season instead of grow.

I would start the season with a search for Ursa that fails. We see Zuko take charge as a leader and Azula’s uncertainty in the world and after her breakdown. Azula manages to give the group the slip at the end and head off on her own. Through out the season Zuko and the gaang face threats to the throne and the questions over the colonies and other conquered territory. Azula joins up with the bad guys and it’s a question of if she is truly with them. Half way through she is betrays them and saves Zuko and the gaang and rejoins the group as fully redeemed and accepted. Later half is her becoming friends with Ty Lee and Mai again. The season ends with them finding Ursa and the Fire Nation people staying behind as the gaang head to the Earth Kingdom, though they still show up for arcs and episodes in upcoming seasons.

Season five is earth and focused on Toph and Earth Kingdom politics. Toph is working towards teaching metal bending and opening up her own academy. They fight rouge Fire Nation units and the like. But also succession of Bumi’s rule of Omashu is explored and the Dai Li continued rule in Ba Sing Se. As inner turmoil still besets Ba Sing Se we see them try and help King Kuei become the leader he needs to be. Perhaps if we are feeling bold we can question the full extent of the White Lotus interest in the city and if it is for the good of the Earth Kingdom or self interest. Jet and the other freedom fighters make a return and can play the hero’s when the gaang needs them. The season ends with Toph going home, being accepted by her parents and opening up her academy where we say goodbye to her.

Season six, the final season, we are left with just Sokka, Katara, and Aang. With a focus split between Aang looking for his people and Sokka and Katara trying to restore theirs. We see Sokka become a strong leader and growing into his own and becoming ready to pick up the mantle of chief when his father is ready to move on, perhaps even taking it for awhile when his father is injured. Katara searches out for SWT bending texts and she takes up Hama as a master where we have a redemption arc for Hama (or better yet this is our first introduction to her character and other survivors of the death camps). Aang continues his search for his people with hints of them being out their but ever elusive. The climax for the season is the village being once again strong and they are able to resist an invasion by either Pirates or former Fire Navy, showing their renewed strength. But we have another episode to close off the show. Probably just an extended Iroh’s tea shop episode where we see everyone that we have been saying by to for the past three seasons one last time (happy Azula with her Mom!). For the very end we see Aang say goodbye to everyone leaving by himself only for the final shot to be of him finding a surviving Air Nomad.

Let me know what y’all think. This was just my first idea and playing with mirroring the first three seasons onto the past three seasons. Though their are probably better ways to tell a story. I’m particularly worried of not enough going on and cutting back the cast as we get closer to the end.

[heaven-s-black-box]

Notes- Modern Star Wars pt.1

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Recovery date: August 15th, 2022

Description: N/a

Notes: N/a

Parts: 1 2 3 4

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- the jedi all go to the same temple, in this au the jedi religion is no different then being Jewish, Muslim, Christian, ect.

- Caleb and Cal are neighbors, they've been besties since kindergarten (I refuse to separate these two, they are now a pair)

- Caleb's nickname is Kanan

- masters= parents (adopted or bio, a few exception cases like Ahsoka and Ani, Obi wan and Ani, ect.)

- obi wan is qui gon's bio kid, Anakin was adopted

-Ahsoka is adopted by plo koon

- while I would love to include all clones, last time I tried that I fried my modern AU, so here's a more edited list with my faves

- Jango had Boba and Omega

- Rex and Cody are brothers, they're boba and omega's cousins

- the bad batch(quintuplets) + domino twins are brothers and are boba and omega's first cousin once removed (so Jango's aunt/uncle's kids)

- pretty much everyone in the fett family joins the military to some degree

-Bd-1 is Cal's small dog, C3P0 is a golden retriever (or possibly a service dog for Ani due to childhood trauma) and R2 is a cat (maybe a tuxedo), Chewwie is one of those big super fluffy dogs, Chopper is a ginger cat, and Jar Jar is Padme's overly excitable yippy dog (couldn't decide on a breed)

- Hera and Kanan eventually adopt a wolf dog they name Dume, Chopper hates sharing attention

- Kanan adopts Ezra

- Sabine is related to Bo-Katan and Satine (somehow, I know she's the same clan so extended family!)

- After meeting clan Wren (I am writing this as I watch Rebels) I have decided Ursa was Satine and Bo-Katan's adpoted first cousin once removed

- Hera is totally Airforce, like I feel like that's the closest to her role in rebels, her and Kanan met in highschool

- their song, which later became their first dance at their wedding, is "Ain't no mountain high enough"

- Zeb is another friend of theirs from highschool, he was a year or two younger

- Zeb is a security guard, Ezra is an animal conservationist (see him and Loth wolves), his parents had a radio show where they talked about endangered species

- Kanan is a firefighter (because irony) and Cal is an elementary school teacher who is in charge of his school's fencing club

- in this au Kanan's injury comes from a job, once he's blinded he joins Ezra in his work

- Cere is a highschool music teacher, Merin is a history teacher who also has an elective cultures course, and Greez is a freelance pilot who's business is definitely totally 100% legal(/s aka he takes some shady jobs)

- Cere and Greez are neighbors, Merin works at the same school as Cere, and she meets Cal through her

- Din obviously adopts Grogu at some point, and Luke volunteers at the temple's Sunday school which is where he meets them(???)

- I feel like Luke would own a martial arts school, Leia becomes a politician like her mum, Anakin would be a robotics engineer

- Satine is prime Minister of Mandalore, Bo- Katan is either military or lawyer (she strikes me as the lawyer type), Sabine was going to join the military but ended up pursuing an artistic career, Korki wants to go into politics like his aunt

- Mandalore works like the u.s where it's a bunch of small countries a trench coat, except they're more functional... mostly

- Obi wan is either a social worker (helping other kids like Anakin) or some kind of diplomat, he only became a diplomat cause he took a few classes to spend more time with a cute international student *cough* Satine *cough* and found he was good at diplomacy

- Plo Koon and Ahsoka are body guards/ security, Plo has his own company, Ahsoka started as being in charge of marketing (I consulted my mom for Ahsoka's job and she suggested marketing because she's so bubbly)

[writermuses]

Hello darlings!

I'm still alive/here. I know I owe all the things and I appreciate you all following my "queue that" rule because I haven't been on my computer to write let alone draft. In case you're wondering what I've been up to I'll give you a bulleted list of the teacher life near D.C. under the read more.

🩵 Natty

Here's some chaos:

My student pulled the fire alarm and rather than addressing that for the felony it is, kiddo is on a 1 month suspension (you get 45 days for fighting) Worth noting this student was previously expelled 2 years ago for a gun situation.

We've had 2 mob fights at my school and another at the next closest high school (they also had a stabbing and the response was "well at least it wasn't our school on the news this time")

I've had more meetings than there were days of the week and worked past 5 nearly every day (we love unpaid work... i'm talking like full time job hours of unpaid labor)

My school has gone through more than 12 principals in my 6 years here and the new one has given me 9 blocks of classes to have my students research, make posters, assemble 550 meal kits, complete a reflection, and present a summary (to whom? idk bro) All while never answering my emails... in case you're wondering it costs 20k to get the groceries for this task alone. As of right now I have 3 students that can build the 550 meal kits. We have 2 80 minute blocks to build them all or our low income families have nothing to eat over spring break 👍

Our bell schedule is changing so that we'll have 3 lunches with students required to be in the cafeteria, instead of 2 where they're in our classrooms. This will end all in school clubs (RIP Four Square Club 😢 ) and we need 350 more chairs in the cafeteria 😂 fyi I had to have 3 students standing per block for 4 weeks because we couldn't get desks and chairs for my classes of 33. When I got desks they gave me elementary cubby desks. (I teach HS. The average 'kid' is like 5'5 hahaha)

The students booed the new principal so loudly at the pep rally that I could hear it with earplugs in and she didn't send their bitch asses back to class. She said, "Hmm, I think I hear some boos? Wouldn't be the first time, won't be the last."

Here's some cute shit:

My nearly non-verbal gem of a human told me a joke: Why did the sun go to class? To get a little brighter!

That same student: His current hyperfixation is roasting my lack of an immune system. He calls me his weakest superhero 😂

In a room full of extremely politically divergent teenagers, they almost unanimously agreed that a person facing criminal charges shouldn't be allowed to run for office and then had civil discourse about it.

The hype of my Afghani students getting to teach their class the Arabic alphabet when we started our new module. (Also their hype over the teachers showing up to their club's fundraiser)

A parent made shirts for the seniors on our 🏀 team (just 4 boys). They got to pick their favorite and most impactful teacher and she wanted each one to have a different teacher wearing theirs but 2 of them insisted it be me and wouldn't budge 😭 (also one of them interviewed to play ball overseas so 🤞 for him)

A parent made the staff valentines day cupcakes

A student in culinary arts gave me a banging cinnamon roll the size of my head

A quiet student from last year came by to tell me he bowled nearly 300 and made brownies- they were not pot brownies, I took the risk and it was worth it 😂

2 of my kids with over 100 absences showed up this week! They won't pass but 👍 nice to know they're like alive