#anything for laurus

[aspiringtrashpanda]

The love of my life, reason to live. I humbly ask you, once again, to indulge me with attentive bf Beel who knows Mc's appetite like the back of his hand. He knows exactly how long to wait before eating off their plate. Thank you in advance, i love you so much❤️

anything for my love, my everything, my personal banner maker.

also wow beel nation, are you okay? first three requests are beel-centric like WHAT?

Characters: Beel x MC, brothers make an appearance Attentive bf Beel, pure fluff with the teensiest bit of spice No warnings apply

It was a normal evening. Satan and Beel had been on dinner duty, Lucifer had been at RAD late, and Levi had been holed up in his room for three whole days. Something about the release of a new horror roguelike. Mammon had tried to sell Asmo on his latest get rich quick scheme, promising that all he would need as an investment was a lock of Asmo���s hair, and well, that wasn’t going to fly. Only one glass of demonus had been spilled across the table - Mammon having lunged towards Asmo to get it himself - and Belphie had fallen asleep mid-sentence a record low of twice. 

A completely normal evening. 

The brothers, however, worried a storm was on the horizon.

“Did ya see that?” Mammon hissed to Levi, the latter grumbling under his breath. Apparently the distraction had sent him back to level 1. 

Lucifer sighed, humming over the lip of his glass. “He’s going to hear about that later.”

“Really, his table manners are going to be the death of him one day,” Asmo lamented, flicking his fork with a flourish. A piece of sautéed hemlock freed itself from the prongs and smacked against Satan’s cheek. He brushed it away with a scoff. 

You paid them no mind, choosing instead to focus on Levi’s handheld console, Beel's chewing a comforting soundtrack to your right.

The screen visible from where you sat, you leaned into Levi's personal bubble, watching his little avatar slash through blob-like monsters. He jolted at your proximity, scowling when a walking skeleton stabbed his character through the heart.

“Not cool!” Levi shimmied his chair away from you. “Everyone needs to stop distracting me!” 

With a shrug, you turned back to your plate, finding it empty. Beel’s jaw moved continuously as he smiled down at you. His indigo eyes glimmered with affection, and you had the impression that he cared not about his brother’s whispers. Only about you. Your heart swelled, the familiar heat spilling through your veins and flooding the tips of your fingers.

You excused yourself from the table. Beel followed you exactly 5 seconds later. 

“You’re not having dessert?” The question slipped out as you looped your arms around his sturdy middle, as you rested your head against his body’s warmth. It was strange for him to leave the dining room so quickly. Usually, he joined you in your room after obliterating whatever sweets Luke had made for him to try. 

“I will be.” His answer vibrated through his frame, buzzing through your skull. 

Your mind went to the gutter, the muscles of his abdomen contracting as he leaned down, as he pressed a kiss to the crown of your head. His exhale rustled your hair, his hands so strong, so large as they covered your hips. 

A violent blush burning your skin, you managed a flustered squeak, “Oh! I didn’t realize it was that kind of night.”

He paused. Straightened up. Blinked twice. The confusion in his gaze was but a brief flash before it was overtaken by sheer enthusiasm. If he was a dog, you were certain his tail would be wagging. As he pulled you flush against him once more, he laughed, “I meant that I’d have dessert when you’re hungry again in an hour, but I could go for that kind of sweet, if you’re offering.”

As you led him to your bed, the last thing on your mind was whether you’d be peckish within the hour. 

However, at breakfast the next morning, you found yourself realizing that you had ended up munching on one of Luke’s cookies after a healthy dose of debauchery. Beel had raced from your bed to return with a plate of goodies in exactly 96 seconds (you timed him on your stopwatch app - a new record!), and you had curled up in front of your television to watch the latest episode of Barbeque Life before Lucifer came by to ensure that Beel slept in his own bed. 

You smiled. Beelzebub was always so attentive and receptive to your needs. It didn’t surprise you that he understood your stomach’s schedule. 

“Tell me, hon,” Asmo sang the moment Beel left the table to retrieve more hell coffee from the kitchen, “Is everything alright with you and Beel?”

Multiple utensils clattered to their plates, wide eyes swiveling from brother to brother. Mammon looked particularly spooked, while Lucifer simply pinched the bridge of his nose. 

“Uh, yeah?” You swallowed your devilbee honey pudding, the sweet treat turning bitter on your tongue. “Why? Did he say something?”

Shoulders relaxed instantly, sighs of relief bouncing back and forth like ping pong balls. The table was an appropriate length for table tennis, you supposed. However, while the brothers laughed off the strange question, your uncertainty only grew. 

Levi pretended to wipe sweat from his brow, an exaggerated gesture you were sure he learned from an anime. “Oh? Okay, phew. We were worried he was in trouble lol.”

Your chest felt warm, your heart pounding. “Why would he be in trouble?”

“Well because he-” Levi started, just to squawk as Mammon swatted his face, “Er, n-no reason!”

A beat of silence. Beel’s heavy footsteps as he returned to the dining room, coffee pot in hand. You were keenly aware of the tightness of your throat, your swallow lodging halfway down your esophagus. As Beel refilled Lucifer’s coffee, you couldn’t help but wonder if he felt the tension hanging in the air.

It was never fun walking into a silent room, acutely aware that everyone had been talking about you. 

“What’s going on?” Beel asked, settling back into his seat. He accented his words by snagging a muffin from your plate, picking at the hell berries crusting the top. 

Before you could ask him the same question, Asmo shrieked, “He just did it again!”

Satan shook his head slowly, Mammon gawking at the giant demon next to you. Lucifer continued to read the morning paper, refusing to participate in such shenanigans. 

“RIP Beel,” Levi muttered, “It was nice knowing you.”

The confusion escalated tenfold, frustration pricking at the soles of your feet. You threw up your hands, huffing, “Okay, is someone going to tell us what you’re all going on about?”

Beel peered curiously at his brothers as they averted their eyes, as they pretended that their meal hadn’t been interrupted. His fingers brought a piece of your toast to his mouth, his brow creasing as he chewed thoughtfully. 

Belphie raised his head with a yawn. “Beel keeps eating your food.”

“From your plate,” Mammon added.

Satan nodded curtly, “Without permission.”

Your stomach dropped. You weren’t sure if you were disappointed or relieved.

“Oh,” You glanced around the table, noticing at that moment that Beel had moved your plate in front of him. “That’s it?”

Asmo pointed in accusation, protesting, “Doesn’t it bother you?”

“No?” This was so absurd. You were used to bonkers conversations at every meal, but their sheer concern was truly comical. “Actually…”

It was Belphie who cut in, propping his chin in his palm. Rubbing sleep from his eyes, he drawled, “They’re always done eating. Beel knows when they’re full.”

The looks of disbelief on Mammon and Levi’s faces were so similar, you wondered if they were twins. They spluttered in surprise, the latter exclaiming, “But they hardly ate their breakfast! How could they be full?!”

And Beel - sweet, calm, confident Beel - shrugged. As if it was the most obvious answer in the world, he explained. “They’re sleepy in the morning, and not very hungry. They only eat a little bit. They’ll be hungry in about 2 hours. That’s why I pack the leftovers before we leave for RAD.” 

This time, the brothers weren’t the only ones shocked. Lifting your jaw from the carpeted floor, you gasped, “The leftovers aren’t for yourself?”

A bright vein of pride shone in his eyes, fuschia within the indigo depths. “I mean, I partake, but only after you’ve had your fill.”

“Huh,” was all you managed to respond, your brain too busy flipping through the memories of all the snacks and meals Beel had brought you regardless of request. His fingers curled around your shoulder, amusement brightening his face. 

The gentle squeeze brought you back to reality, just in time to hear Mammon say, “Hey Beel, do ya think you have telepathic abilities outside of you and Belphie?”

“What a stupid question,” Satan scoffed, though you knew he was waiting for Beel’s answer himself. 

Your fingers curled around his, anchored on your shoulder, grounding you in the moment. And what a moment it was, for Beel simply snorted, “Nah, I just pay attention to my partner.”

Why Mammon considered that a declaration of war, you weren’t entirely sure. But two hours later, when Beel passed you a container of carefully wrapped leftovers, you knew that you were the luckiest person in the world. 

*・゜・*:.。.*.。.:*・☆・゜・*:.。.*.。.:*・☆・゜

My requests are open! Find out more HERE. Banner made by @4laurus - have you seen her Beel?

[theromaboo]

The Sixth Day of Julius Caesar

I once heard someone attributing Julius Caesar's illness (which might've been epilepsy or mini strokes or something else or maybe it wasn't a specific chronic illness at all. It's controversial right now) to wearing a laurel wreath, and I don't really understand how that works.

During Caesar's time, a laurel wreath would've most likely been made out of the plant Laurus nobilis, you know, bay leaves. Caesar might've gotten a stomachache if he ate a significant amount of them, but I am yet to read any sources that mention Caesar eating straight laurel!

Laurel wreaths could also be made out of a plant called Prunus laurocerasus (though I don't know if it was used for laurel wreaths in ancient Rome. I can't find anything about that). Its common name is cherry laurel, and it is toxic. I've read that you can irritate your skin if you touch it too much, but you'll have to eat it if you want to get the really bad effects.

I don't think Caesar was out here constantly eating all of his laurel wreaths. I'd assume that if he was, people would've made fun of him for it and therefore it would be mentioned somewhere.

I think the reason someone came up with this idea is because it's ironic. Caesar apparently liked his privilege of wearing a laurel wreath at all times because it hid his thinning hair (Suetonius, Life of Julius Caesar, 45.2). It'll be so ironic if his illness was caused by it. However, without any evidence of Caesar eating laurel wreaths made out of cherry laurel, this is an incredibly weak theory.

[bonefall]

Got some cool generated names in lifegen (clangen mod) and though they’d be fun to translate! I’ll start with the protagonist and his family. Also sorry if the formatting is off tumblr was acting weird and i had to jump through some hoops to send this.

Rainbowember | Solysskip

Direct, Solyss (Rainbow) + Kip (Ember) I like this name because he’s an insecure healer who took a long time to pass his apprenticeship, so it seems fitting.

Ghostclover | Kepbachafa

I thought this name would make sense as a name for a suspected fading kit who lived. In game she’s a mtf trans Molly, but I decided that she was actually assigned a Gib at birth since the fading kit thing. She later figured out she contained Mollyness.

Tempestecho | Kychkarraoyaawo

This one was pretty direct too, and I think it’s a good candidate for a nickname due to the length. Maybe Kychaawo?

Fintwist | Sseoshigashig

Fintwist kinda brings to mind a fish twisting it’s fin to turn around for whatever reason, so I think dance works for that. Nickname could be Sseoshig.

Curlewback | Byyrbesaofa

Went with the sand martin to keep the shorebird connection! Also, used spine-mane since I couldn’t find a word for back.

Yellowdapple | Aweenkonpen

Direct, not much to say about this one, haha.

Tawnygale | Hrrua-ubafwu

Decided to go with the tawny owl over the color since he isn’t that color, and has a weather suffix. ‘Bafwu’ seemed the closest to gale to me so I went with that.

Logblaze | Chok-kafyar

No I don’t know what this name means either? Sounds like an off-brand Lionblaze.

Fallenbird | Fewlwheer

This name struck me as an Honor title, and he spawned in with a bite scar, which makes that fit even more. I like to think his original names prefix was Wheer, so the Honor title represents how the swift fell, but got back in the air.

Riverlotus | Sbasspowo

I’m glad I managed to find the word for the waterlily, I wanted to show this name off, I love it.

Falconlaurel | Mweeliliprraponma

This was an interesting one, for sure! I wanted to go with an actual falcon species, instead of just going with Raptor/Yassga. This guys a mediator, so I went with the merlin. There wasn’t a word for laurel I could find but I thought that I could translate the vibe, since laurel brings to mind honor and triumph. I decided that, for a mediator, Prra-ness would be an associated feeling/goal, so I chose Primrose (Prraponma) as the suffix because of the winter association example. So his name, could also be translated back as Merlinprimrose, or just Merlinrose for short. Nickname could be Mweeponma?

Springbreak | Mwarussmimanaw

Honestly I just wanted show off that I got a cat named Springbreak. Anyways I went with it being Spring as in the season, and decided that I would use mimanaw (lounge) instead of anything related to breaking/shattering, to make it so that her name basically means a break in Spring. Though, Springbreak could be a good Dishonor title, Yiaokerroch. Jump-shatter, you hurt yourself by springing. Anyways nickname could be Mwanaw.

Branchripple | Baryennipa

I decided to use the future tense of ripple, to make the name mean that she will make the branches ripple. She graduated early, so its to say that she will make an impact.

Fintwist is absolutely drawing me in, fantastic use of the brand new "fin-wing." I've got an image in my mind of one of them decorative dragon koi, swirling around and around.

Koi aren't common in Clan territory, and when they ARE seen they're dealt with, but it's also possible for this one species I like a lot to have a light, shining morph. I should make a special word for that color of Tench when I get there...

Also congrats on Springbreak that's AWESOME I love it. And Logblaze? Sounds like a big bonfire to me! Maybe your cats like to BBQ ThunderClan-style!

ANYWAY, MISSING WORD TIME

Curlew = Urloop I just named this one over here, after you'd already sent this ask!

Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis) = Skoka BY the way, in my Willow Quest, I learned something heartbreaking....... bay willow doesn't grow here. I misidentified a willow. God have mercy on my soul Bayshine's name is BAY LAUREL-Shine, Skokashem. Oops. I will be repurposing the Wawa word in the Lexicon to a different type of willow.

Cherry Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus) = Reyoka Both of these are made into laurel wreaths btw, and the wood is burned because it smells nice. This one has red berries and less uses in general, but smells nicer when burned.

Gale = Harloo A very strong wind.

White Clover (Trifolium repens) = Glem This is the one you think of when you think of a classic three-leaved clover. It has short, round petals, and its flowers are typically white. This one is favored by grazing animals.

Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) = Powglem This one has pinkish flowers with longer petals, and is used for medicinal purposes. This is the one used for Cloverfoot's name.

[craftylittlenerd]

Snippet Sunday

Tagged by @westernlarch for another snippet Sunday, or more like snippet Monday as I got to spend the day with the family yesterday 😁 Tagging @kalliesa @luciferbecons @partofmycharm @misseffect  @serendipitys-teapot @hauntedjellyfishtraveler to participate if you are so inclined.

So I have a few projects in the works and I debated on weather I post a snippet from one of my fanfiction or from one of my original works. After some debate I figured I post a snippet from my oldest fic that I’ve been taking a break on as I’ve hit a bit of a road block with it. 

Working Title: New Life “So, you’ve been staying here with the Commander?” Castis asks outright; he was never a man to beat around the bush.“ Until she wakes up, I don’t...we’re in this together... I...”  Castis nods understandingly, “Towards the end of your mother's illness, I never left her side.”  His voice grows soft as he remembers Laurus, how Corpalis Syndrome robbed her of being able to do the simplest of tasks. The subtle shake of her hands, the smallest stutter or slurring of words in her otherwise eloquent speech, the weakness she felt in her body. It was too late before either of them realized that these were all early symptoms and not just signs of old age. The disease took its time, taking Laurus away from him slowly over two and a half years, the preventive medication barely doing anything but prolonging the inevitable. Robbing them of their golden years together.  Garrus remembered how his dad hovered over his mother every chance he got while he and Sol had to coax their dad into simple tasks like eating or sleeping. Now the tables were turned, and it was his father’s turn to do the same to his son. Castis could see the weariness on his son’s face, how his clothes fit loosely around his frame.  “I cannot fault you for wanting to do the same, but I will fault you for the smell. When was the last time you showered? Garrus felt like he was thirteen all over again with that question and the look, spirits his father knew how to make him feel like a child.  His father grined, knowing he’d gotten Garrus right where he wanted him. “Wash up; your sister will be a bit longer with the doctor. Then we can go grab a bite to eat.”  Garrus looks around, unsure of what to do or even if he could use the shower in Shepard’s hospital room. He didn’t have a clean change of clothes either, not having returned to the Normandy in the last few days. Miranda and Dr. Chakwas were always able to shoo him away when Shepard was heading into another surgery. Even primarch Victus was able to persuade Garrus out of the Commander's hospital room while one of the other crew members visited.  Usually, he returned to the Normandy to shower, if not quickly buff his plates before changing his clothes. Sometimes he was able to get some sleep; other times, Garrus had enough of an appetite to eat a small meal.  When someone couldn’t visit, or no surgery was needed, Garrus stayed by Shepard’s side no matter how much the staff grumbled. He didn’t want her to wake up alone thinking she was resurrected again; it was her biggest fear. Something Shepard had confided in Garrus early on if not Cerberus, then the Alliance, or worse, some other fringe group would try it again.  It made her uncomfortable in hospitals — even the med bay on her own ship made her skin crawl. Yet she pushed that down anytime any of her crew was injured, or doctors at Huerta needed supplies they wouldn’t otherwise be able to get in Reaper-controlled territory. It's why Garrus never left because he knew Shepard would never leave any of them. Even when Ashley was in the hospital and the two women were at odds, Shepard still looked out for her friend.  “I can’t; there’s no one...I don’t have...” Garrus stammers as his father tossed him a small travel tote.   “I made a call, was able to pull a favor and get you an overnight bag, and your pilot friend Joker said he’d be by momentarily.”   One of these days, Garrus told himself he’d stop being surprised by his father. Today wasn’t one of those days, and tomorrow wasn’t looking any better. Garrus looked at the bag he had just caught mid-air like it was some puzzle to be solved. Upon opening it, he found a change of clothing, some toiletries, a sanding stone and buffing brush, and a few other needed items.  “I’ll watch over her until you’re done washing up. She won’t be alone, son I promise.” Garrus nodded and went into the small bathroom with a mundane shower hoping to get enough hot water to drown the ache in his muscles.   Once Castis heard the bathroom door latch, he pulled a necklace out of his pocket. The slim golden chain of turian design had a simple locket holding an image of his beloved. “Laurus, what do I do? You were always better at these things than me.” Sighing, Castis sat in the all too familiar uncomfortable hospital chair, watching over the woman who captured his son’s intrigue. Castis wasn’t ready to call it love yet. He’d only heard Garrus’s side of things. Made the connections during those long conversations when Garrus first arrived back home. He even approved of the human commander; she was more turian than the two of them combined. Castis knew the feelings were mutual, Victus had told him as much when they talked that morning. There were rumors of a taboo hand-holding incident with a high-ranking Reaper Advisor and the famous Commander on Menae.  Though here she was frail and in a hospital bed — Commander Jane Shepard of the Normandy, first human Spectre, hero of the Citadel, conqueror of the Collectors, Savior of the Galaxy. Her image on the extranet and vids didn’t do Shepard justice, painting her as a larger-than-life figure for humanity to live up to.  Something Castis was sure even she couldn’t live up to. Maybe it would have been better if she had died in battle — to die for the cause, be the legend she had been built up to be. An honor for any family. What more could the Alliance ask for? Yet what kind of world would she be waking up to? What impossible pedestal would she be put upon? All of that didn’t matter to Castis, what mattered was his son, as selfish as that was — but he knew Garrus. No matter where Shepard went, he knew Garrus would follow.  “I’m not good at these things. Garrus's mother was the delegate and worked in the diplomatic corps back on Palaven. She turned down a council position after the kids were born, wanted to give them some form of stability. Something Citadel life doesn’t always allow. I know my work didn’t allow that even after joining C-Sec. Duty always came first. It’s the turian way, but Laurus could always find the balance.” 

Castis sighed again as he looked down at the locket in his hand. “You two would have gotten along. From what I’ve been told, you're a strong, confident woman, eloquently spoken, and have a wicked sense of humor — all things my Laurus was.”A hitch in Casti's voice. “If not for you, I have a feeling I would have buried a child and my wife. It’s a debt I can never repay, yet I owe you my thanks, Commander.  You brought my son back to our family. He was able to say goodbye to his mother,  but if you could just do one more impossible thing and wake up.”  Castis leaned over Shepard’s bed and placed the locket next to her head, pinning it to the pillow so it wouldn’t get lost.“Laurus, watch over our son’s mate. Help the commander find her way back to the world of the living. I’ll watch over our boy — make sure he keeps both feet on the ground.”  Garrus had exited the bathroom, washed and dressed in the items his father had brought him. The clothing hung looser than Castis liked, his brave child wasting to nothing. Still, he didn’t blame Garrus; he knew too well what it was like to wait in this hell. How it aged your soul and left you a shell of who you once were. 

[cdragons]

Crass Family Moodboards & Headcanons

These are moodboards and headcanons for the Crass Family in my Snowbaird AU story, "Feathers & Threads Soaked in Red." I also plan to make some for the Snow Family and the Covey in District 12. If you are curious after reading these, please visit this page and read the story!

Icarus Magnus Crass - played by Richard Madden

Icarus Magnus Crass is the Head of the House of Crass. He was an only child and had an extremely strict upbringing.

Before his current position as Secretary of Defense, he was the youngest soldier to quickly rise to the rank of General.

Icarus was groomed to be the next president by his father should the elderly President Ravinstill have an "unfortunate" demise

He lived an extremely isolated childhood - his education consisted of private tutors before attending the Academy & University

His only comforts in his childhood were Sephia Rose & his piano

Had a long-term engagement to an obscenely wealthy heiress before he went public of his relationship with Sephia Rose and was sent to the military

When he married Sephia Rose, in his vows he told her: "I was born to love you."

He would often use the secret tunnels to watch Sephia Rose sleep when she first came to the manor - he had never met anyone so different and pretty.

Icarus is someone who had every opportunity to grab power, but he chose happiness. In choosing love, he lived a fulfilling life with a wife who he loved more than anything and was blessed with children he would give his life for in a heartbeat. He is who Snow could have been if Coryo had just been medicated.

Sephia Rose/Kore Hayes - played by Haley Bennett

To the Capitol's Elite, she is Kore Hayes. But to herself and her family, only then can she be Sephia Rose.

She and Icarus have built a life together in the capitol, where she is the mother of three children with all Covey names.

Sephia was very scared of Icarus when they first met as children - she didn't know if she was safe around Capitol children.

But she and him quickly got along after he would show her his piano and even play a song of an old lullaby.

Before she founded her clothing brand "Lis et Rose", she modeled for some of the most exclusive clothing brands in the Capitol and even found ways to model her own clothes.

When Icarus enlisted in the military, she presented offerings in the garden to pray for his protection

During the war, she would write letters to Icarus every day while he was on the war front, and she always place a kiss at the end of each letter.

SHe made sure that he children knew all her Covery's skills, including how to garden and cook.

Sephia Rose lived an incredibly harrowing life. But her resilience for hope had helped her find light in the darkest of tunnels. She never lost touch with her roots and often told her children stories of her childhood. She is grateful every day for the love that blossomed between her and her husband.

Laurus Orion Crass - played by Josha Stradowski

Laurus Orion Crass, or Laurie, is the firstborn to Icarus and Sephia Rose and heir to the Crass House and fortune.

Because of his position, Laurie always had a lot of pressure placed on him due to society's expectations for him to be a military man like his father.

He knows that he is very fortunate to have such incredible role models for parents who only gave him support and love while teaching him how to exercise caution

He was a premature baby by almost 4 weeks and had to be placed in the ICU due to his lungs not being fully developed and still sometimes has asthma attacks

Before his godmother died, he would often play at her office whenever he visited due to his health issues as a baby, and this inspired him to want to become a surgeon.

He learned the piano from his father, and it would serve as a great way for them to bond when he came home from work.

He is very proud of the name his mother gave him - Laurus, which means victory, and Orion was his dad's favorite constellation.

Laurie is not a fan of Casca Highbottom - he noticed at a very young age that the Dean would always stay too close to his mother whenever they came in for parent-teacher meetings.

Laurie Orion is no stranger to the Capitol's dangers and hypocrisies and makes it his personal goal to fulfill his godmother's wish of establishing clinics in the districts before her "death." He may or may not have a crush on a particular girl he met in District 4. He is Sejanus Plinth if the boy had some goddamn impulse control.

Agalia Iris Crass - played by Annalise Basso

Agalia Iris Crass is the second eldest and only daughter of Icarus and Sephia Rose.

Because of how much she looks like her mom, her father had always been very protective over her

Agalia was born right before the war broke out - just enough time for her father to cry at her birth.

Ambition + Moxie - she has dreams of becoming a principal ballet dancer by her early 20s.

Her endless curiosity and good heart remind Sephia Rose of Kaety Amaryllis - Aggie often wishes she could remember her godmother.

Like her brother, she takes a lot of pride in her name - irises symbolize hope and valor, and Agalia means joy.

She first remembered dancing at five when her mother sang Lavender's Blue to her baby brother.

She designed and made all her costumes since her very first recital and even crocheted all her sweaters and cardigans.

Aggie Iris is the kind of girl who will fool you with her sweet smile and pretty eyes only to tear you apart with her spitfire spirit. While she despises the inhumane nature of the Hunger Games, she still has a little bit of anger towards the rebels since they "killed" her godmother. While she doesn't remember what she looks like, she swears that she can hear her voice every time she plays her music box.

Arcturus 'Arthur' Lucus Crass - played by kid on pinterest

Arcturus Lucus Crass, or Arthur, is the second son and youngest child of Icarus and Sephia Rose.

The sweetest kid you will ever meet in the history of the world - he's also the most likely to accidentally wander off (his parents got him a leash)

Nature kid with the greenest thumb - he will spend hours on hours with his mom in the greenhouse

Out of all the kids, his temperament and behavior most resemble their mother.

Every animal will fight to the death to protect this kid - every single one of Dr. Gaul's mutts loves him.

Speaking of animals, he has a penchant for walking in public like any animal from ages 2-6, and the leash only encouraged him.

Fell in love with crocheting when he did it with Aggie and Sephia Rose - now he has a playground equivalent to the black market for his toys.

His name was in dedication to his birthplace - the grove filled with amaryllis flowers in his family's garden his mother made to honor her Lillycat.

Arthur Lucus may be a bit naive, but he is not stupid. He's his parents' son after all, and although he is young he does know that there are people who want to hurt the people he loves. But he has a heart so big he loves the whole world, and he even has a fairy godmother who tries to help him in a distant wood when she can.

Tagging: @ethereal-athalia, @valeskafics, @aphroditesmoon, @mitsuki91, @tatumrileyslover, @asa-do-your-thing, @arcielee, @agir1ukn0w, @imsofuckingdonewiththisgoddamn, @dreaming-for-an-escape, @musical-theatre-gay

Please like and reblog and/or comment!

[objectivelythebestcolor]

imo mediterranean bay leaves (laurus nobilis), which are the ones typically found in stores, don't do anything. but i grew up using fresh california bay leaves (umbellularia californica), and they definitely work. apparently there are a couple of other species, but i haven't had the chance to try them.

Who wants to hear my controversial cooking opinion

[alwayslosingtheplot-blog]

Melinoe and other stuff

I'm back! My relation is healed and no longer requires my care. I have my house back. I have my peace back. I have my time back. Ish. I mean, I still have two small kids but what are you going to do?

But enough about that! Islands!

Melinoe - The Nightmare Isle

This is important about this post : I don't usually give trigger warnings (I probably should but usually the stuff I post is vague enough that I don't think it warrants it). This island is not that.

Nothing is depicted in detail, but it is mentioned.

Trigger Warnings! include rape, pregnancy, abortion, and other things related to maternal health.

Now that's done, let me explain a bit about what's going on. Most of these islands don't reference people or their stories overly much because I'm more interested in establishing resources, geography, governing bodies and things that I feel will later inform character-driven stories. That's not the case here. This island is so shaped (literally) by the stories of the people who landed on it that it is impossible to separate them.

___________________________________________________________VisVisible from the capital city of Daphnaie, the oaken forests of Melinoe could be used to make many ships for the finding of new islands, or for building materials. Unfortunately no one will go near it.

The first to travel to the island were a group of religious men and women, although over time it became a sacred place for the woman.

The forests here are not natural, having been planted by Saint Serena. Saint Serena came to the island following the death of her mother, who became pregnant at an advanced age and did not live through it. She gave up the riches and prestige of being the heir to a noble family to devote her life to the care of women.

The trees she planted are grave markers. Following one particular vicious raid and harsh winter that cost the lives of many children, she invited women to come to the island with the ashes of the children and plant a tree for them. This practice is still maintained on some parts of the mainland.

Saint Serena also began the process of taking in girls who found themselves pregnant with an unwanted child, or women like her mother for whom the pregnancy was too dangerous to continue. Once there the women were given several options, one of which was to give their child to a tree (aportion) and another was to gift the child to another family.

It was around this time that men became forbidden from setting foot on the island. This was mainly done for safety concerns following men trying to prevent a woman making a decision, or force her into one.

Sometimes the women wished to stay on the island and keep their children or leave them there in safety. This was allowed, however young boys had to be sent from the island to a monastery in Laurus (where their mother might go with them or write to them). From there they would receive an education and be allowed to do anything with themselves that a young man may wish.

Over time the trees grew and so did tensions with the government, who wished to use these resources for their own gains. This idea was met with outrage from most of the populace, who saw the trees as a memoriam to their children. However, there was a small number not opposed to the idea who pointed out the lack of resources and space for their living and future children.

In order to promote this idea, chastity was promotes amongst unmarried men and women. Prison sentences and mandatory naval service are all punishments dulled on young men found to have 'besmirched' a woman's honor. However, as Daphnaie follows a Maternal line succession, any woman found guilty of such are given fines (sometimes high enough to be the ruin of their family). The hope was that, in making such things seen as immoral, eventually the public favor might turn against the island.

The next step was to replace it as a pilgrim destination with the new, inland cathedral. Money and stone was poured into this project, art was commissioned from all over the islands and every possible thing was done to encourage people to visit the site.

This worked to some degree, as the number of young women travelling to the island dwindled.

However, there was another problem. For a short time, Melinoe was known as the isle of the 'Second Sisters', as it became quite a trendy place to send the daughters who were encouraged not to marry or have children. Another abbey was built near the cathedral, which offered an attractive alternative.

Meanwhile the nobles involved in government, both men and women, starting talking about the waste of the islands resources. They whispered about the selfishness of the nuns who lived there, and the disgrace of the children born there to their noble friends. Who, in turn, spoke to theirs.

The plan was to shut down the island, declaring it full of trees and to make it a national monument to deceased children for a decade or so, at which both a 'disease' would strike that meant that they would have to fell some trees to preserve the rest. Then a few more. Finally it would be turned into a proper lumber camp.

This might have worked, had it not been for a man named Andrew Cannatta. Cannatta was never meant to be a part of a big family in Daphnaie. He was from another island, and married a second daughter and took her home as a business transaction between the two families.

However, an accident tragically took the life of her older sister and sister's husband. This made his wife the heir to the family and they had to travel back to Daphnaie to take over.

There's was a contentious marriage with both spouses feeling that they should be the one in charge of their business and estate. They had a single daughter and, while Andrew wished for a son, his wife refused him and stated that her duty to their family was complete.

Andrew picked out a husband for his daughter that both mother and daughter opposed in order to favor a business deal of his own. He had the man kidnap the girl and force a child on her, thinking that she would be forced to marry him afterwards. He was mistaken.

His wife had them both arrested and, despite his objections, divorced him. She brought the girl to Melinoe. He never found out what happened there, but his daughter later took on the role of head of the family, married and had three other children. He never met any of them, having been disowned. Both men were forced into naval service, where a friendship between them blossomed.

The man was a family of nobles who were privy to the gossip but not the plan. Both men wrongly blamed the island's existence for their downfall and formed a raiding team to kill all of the women living there to make way for the government to take it over. They imagined that they would be discreetly rewarded for these actions and Andrew even believed that they might force his daughter to welcome him back into the family, or turn over the reigns of it over to him.

They arrived on the island. The woman fought back, but they were less in number and had children to protect. Some children died, but most of them fled on a boat with a nun named Sister Lennara. One child got lost in the tress while they were running away. She ran back to try and safe the elderly mother superior, but did not make it in time.

The men, drunk on their victory, cut down a tree in celebration. It was a symbol of all of their plans coming to fruition.

Nature cares not for the plans of men.

There is a lichen that grows on this island that can be found no where else. This moss was sparse and dependent on small bushes and exposed rocks that dotted the island. It may have gone extinct if not for Saint Serena and her planting of trees. Now the lichen is everywhere, growing on all of trees of the sprawling forest that the island has become. When this lichen is cut, it releases a spore. This spore causes hallucinations.

The men, coated in blood and adrenaline from killing the nuns, turned on each other with astonishing speed. They fought, they screamed and ran into the sea. The last one cut out his own eyes and died bleeding on the beach.

Sister Lennara ran through the city as soon as her boat arrived in the harbor, screaming about the attack. The fishermen responded faster than the officials, and they arrived at the beach the next morning to the scene and bodies on the beach next to the felled tree.

None of them dared to step foot off their boots. Not when the ghost of a prestress watched them from the tree-line with haunting eyes.

This was actually the child that had gotten lost in the trees. Having been born on the island and often exposed to a small amount of the lichen spores made her more tolerate of their effects. She knew that they were never to go near fallen trees, and was waiting for the wind to carry the spores away while the fishermen watched her. After they fled on their boats away from the 'cursed' isle, she starting dragging the bodies of the nuns and children to a place to burn them. When this was done, she planted their ashes with acorns, as was the tradition. She left the bodies of the men for the sea to take.

She remains there still, the grand daughter of the man who wanted to destroy her island, acting as a silent protector to those buried and growing there.

_________________________________________________________

It's good to be back.

[7r0773r]

Laurus by Eugene Vodolazkin, translated by Lisa C. Hayden

He had four names at various times. A person's life is heterogeneous, so this could be seen as an advantage. Life's parts sometimes have little in common, so little that it might appear various people lived them. When this happens, it is difficult not to feel surprised that all these people carry the same name.

He also had two nicknames. One of them—Rukinets—referred to Rukina Quarter, where he came into the world. But this person was known to most people by the nickname Doctor, because he was, more than anything, a doctor to his contemporaries. He was, one should think, something more than a doctor, because what he achieved went beyond the limits of a doctor's possibilities.

It is thought that the word vrach, for medical doctor, comes from the word vrati, which means to say an incantation. This similarity supposes that words—words as such, no matter what they meant—played an essential role in the medical treatment process. The role of words was more significant during the Middle Ages than it is now because of the limited selection of medications. So speaking a lot was a necessity.

Doctors spoke. They knew certain methods for treating ailments, but they did not pass up opportunities to address disease directly. Uttering rhythmic phrases that outwardly lacked meaning, they said an incantation over the illness, smoothly convincing it to abandon the patient's body. The line between doctor and medicine man was relative during this period.

Patients spoke. In the absence of diagnostic technology, patients needed to describe, in detail, everything occurring within their ailing bodies. Sometimes they thought the illness left them, bit by bit, along with their unhurried, pain-steeped words. They could speak only with their doctors about all the details of their illnesses, and this made them feel better.

The patients' relatives spoke. They clarified their loved ones' statements or even amended them, because not all illnesses permitted the sufferers to give reliable reports of what they had gone through. Relatives could openly express concerns that the illness was untreatable and complain (the Middle Ages was not a sentimental time) that it is difficult to deal with an ill person. This made them feel better, too.

The defining trait of the person under discussion is that he spoke very little. He remembered the words of Arsenius the Great: I have often regretted the things I have said, but I have never regretted my silence. Most often he looked wordlessly at the patient. He might say only, your body will still serve you. Or, your body has become unsuitable, prepare to leave it; know that this shell is imperfect.

His renown was great. It spread throughout the entire inhabited world; he could not avoid notice anywhere. His appearances drew together many people. He would cast an attentive gaze upon those present, his wordlessness transferring itself to those who had gathered. The crowd froze in place. Only small clouds of steam–instead of words–left hundreds of open mouths, and he would watch how they melted in the frosty air. And the crunch of January snow under his feet was audible. Or the rustle of September foliage. Everyone awaited a miracle and the sweat of expectation rolled down the faces of those in attendance. Salty drops fell, resonating on the earth. The crowd parted, letting him through to the person he had come to see.

He would place his hand on the patient's forehead. Or touch wounds. Many believed that the touch of his hand could heal. And thus the nickname Rukinets, given to him because of his place of birth but rooted in the word ruka, for hand, acquired additional meaning. His doctoring skills were honed over the years, reaching, at the zenith of his life, heights that seemed unattainable for a human being.

It was said that he possessed the elixir of immortality. It is even said from time to time that this giving healer could not die as all other people do. The basis for this opinion is that his body had no traces of decay after death, maintaining its former appearance after lying under an open sky for many days. And then it disappeared, as if its possessor had grown tired of lying there: he stood up and left. Those who think this, however, forget that only two people have left the earth in flesh and blood since the Creation of the world. Enoch was taken by the Lord at the revealment of the Antichrist and Elijah was raised to the heavens in a chariot of fire. Holy tradition does not mention a Russian doctor.

Judging from his infrequent statements, he did not intend to reside in a body forever, if only because he had worked with bodies his entire life. Most likely he didn't have the elixir of immortality, either. Somehow, things of this sort don't fit with what we know about him. In other words, one can say with certainty that he is not with us at present. It is worth adding, however, that he himself did not always understand what time ought to be considered the present. (pp. 3-5)

***

For what you have tamed, you become responsible forever, Christofer said, stroking the wolf. (p. 26)

***

Christofer did not write because he feared forgetting something. He never forgot anything, even when he reached old age. For Christofer, the written word seemed to regulate the world. Stop its fluctuations. Prevent notions from eroding. This is why Christofer's sphere of interest was so broad. According to the writer's thinking, that sphere should correspond to the world's breadth.

Christofer usually left his writings in the places where he had made them: on the bench, on the stove, on the woodpile. He did not pick them up when they fell to the floor: he vaguely anticipated their discovery, much later, in a cultural stratum. Christofer understood that the written word would always remain that way. No matter what happened later, once it had been written, the word had already occurred. (p. 31-32)

***

Ustina's rags were lying by the stove, and their proximity to the fire decided things. Arseny tossed them in the stove without saying a word. It was a natural motion, and he made it. But there was in that motion a sign of irreversibility. This is how it was in some tale he had heard from Christofer. (p. 56)

***

You know, my love, I had simply grown unaccustomed to beauty in my life, he told Ustina. And it unfolds so unexpectedly when crossing a river that I cannot even find the right words. And so on one side of the river I am wallowing in scabs and lice, but on the other there is this beauty. And I am glad to accentuate its grandeur with my wretchedness, since in doing so it is almost as if I am a party to its creation. (p. 143)

***

Little by little, the renown of Arseny's doctoring gift spreads through all of Pskov. People come to him with the most varied of illnesses and ask him to give them relief. They look into the holy fool's blue eyes and tell him about themselves. They feel their troubles drown in those eyes. Arseny says nothing and does not even nod. He hears them out attentively. They think his attention is special, for he who refuses to speak expresses himself by hearing. (p. 178)

***

The young man was willing to spend hours sitting over historical writings. With their focus on the past, they (and this connected them with Ambrogio's visions of the future) were an escape from the present. Movement away from the present—in both directions—became something Ambrogio needed as much as air, because it removed time's unidimensionality, which caused him to gasp for breath. (p. 186)

***

So why did you choose medieval history?

It's hard to say... Maybe because historians in the Middle Ages were unlike historians these days. They always looked for moral reasons as an explanation for historical events. It's like they didn't notice the direct connection between events. Or didn't attach much significance to it.

But how can you explain the world without seeing the connections? said Alexandra, surprised.

They were looking above the everyday and seeing higher connections. Besides, time connected all events, even though people didn't consider that connection reliable. (pp. 192-93)

***

The mayor could have given even more but he knew coins rarely lingered very long with travelers in the Middle Ages. Like money, items also had trouble going the distance. Their possessors often returned home without one or the other. Even more often, they did not return.

Letters of recommendations and personal connections were sometimes more useful to wayfarers than money. In this epoch, which was anything but simple, it was important that someone in a certain place was either waiting for someone or doing the opposite: sending someone someplace, vouching for him, and asking that his travel be facilitated. In some sense, this was a confirmation that the person had a place in life before, too, and that he had not come out of nowhere and was traveling honestly around an expanse. In the most general sense, journeys confirmed to the world the continuity of the expanse, a concept that continued to evoke certain doubts. (p. 202)

***

On Easter Day of the seven thousandth year, Amvrosy said to Elder Innokenty:

I seek seclusion, O elder.

I know, replied Elder Innokenty. There is a time for interaction and there is a time for seclusion.

I have been cognizing the world for a long time and have amassed so much of it inside me that from now on I can come to know it within myself. (p. 327)

***

I no longer sense unity in my life, said Laurus. I was Arseny, Ustin, Amvrosy, and I have just now become Laurus. My life was lived by four people who do not resemble one another and they have various bodies and various names. What do I have in common with the light-haired little boy from Rukina Quarter? A memory? But the longer I live, the more my reminiscences seem like an invention. I am ceasing to believe them and they thus lack the power to link me to those people who were me at various times. Life resembles a mosaic that scatters into pieces.

Being a mosaic does not necessarily mean scattering into pieces, answered Elder Innokenty. It is only up close that each separate little stone seems not to be connected to the others. There is something more important in each of them, O Laurus: striving for the one who looks from afar. For the one who is capable of seizing all the small stones at once. It is he who gathers them with his gaze. That, O Laurus, is how it is in your life, too. You have dissolved yourself in God. You disrupted the unity of your life, renouncing your name and your very identity. But in the mosaic of your life there is also something that joins all those separate parts: it is an aspiration for Him. They will gather together again in Him. (p. 330)

***

What kind of people are you? says the merchant Zygfryd. A person heals you, dedicates his whole life to you, and you torture him his whole life. And when he dies, you tie a rope to his feet, drag him, and tears stream down your faces.

You have already been in our land for a year and eight months, answers blacksmith Averky, but have not understood a thing about it.

And do you yourselves understand it? asks Zygfryd.

Do we? The blacksmith mulls that over and looks at Zygfryd. Of course we, too, do not understand. (p. 362)

[click-to-tweet]

Flower pics before spring ends

1-Syringa vulgaris

2- Prunus sp. (likely Prunus domestica)

3- Prunus sp. (likely Prunus domestica L.)

4- Serpias sp.

5- Prunus sp. (likely Prunus amygdalus var. dulcis)

6- thats a bee (Apis mellifica)

7- Malvae sylvesteis

8- Prunus amygdalus (var. dulcis)

Coolest thing university has given me is the ability to identify plants and i feel like a witch each time i look at a plant and go "Oh yes, Malva sylvestris!"

All these plants are common around where I live. They have been embedded into our culture, idioms, cusine, they have created our idea of beauty, what we can create with these plants we have considered delicious, the soil these flowers bloomed we have considered sacred, we have given them names and then named our children after them. We made up stories about them and believed in those stories. They happened our lives, and our lives revolved around them, us, as a tiny society in the seaside, became one with those plants. They were our food and we were theirs.

They have taught us of love and we have lived up to that. We tried to live up to that.

They have taught us how to live, in harsh conditions, starving of food, love, thirsty and unwelcome, they have taught us of how to love and strive. They became our food when we had none. Our shade when we were burning, our fire when we were freezing, our stories when we were bored.

They were how we learned not to fall or to get up, how we learned sharing, wisdom, patience. They were our greatest, most selfless teachers. Their scent filled up forests, pastures, even cities. They were there during the most important times of our lives, the scent of flowers was there for our birth and death, and when we graduated and married and laughed and cried. My city, it smells of lilacs.

Malvae Sylvestris was "İlmik" for me, when i was growing up. It grew during the rainy season, it made delicious börek filling and also was great with a side of youghurt. It is "ebegümeci" for some people still, which derives from "ebe gömeci (midwife's burier)", for its use in abortions before healthcare was as easy to reach. To some, this is medicine for the stinging nettle, or burns.

Prunus amygdalus is, well, almond, it is food to say the least. Almonds, "çağla" before almonds mature, and if fruits did not exist we would gnaw on the dried liquid dripping from the bark. The inedible variation, Prunus amygdalus var. amaratus, contains some amount of arsenic. The scent reminds me of thr bitter almond cookies, delicious really, to Gabriel Garcia Marquez it apparently inevitably reminded of thr fate of unrequited love. "Love in the Times of Cholera" smells like bitter almonds, the story, the whole story does.

Not a picture of them here, but here, stories about Morus nigra and Laurus nobilis and Rosa damascena and Galanthus sp.

You must know Apollon and Daphne, and how the poor girl was absolutely hating this god because of Apollo's cockiness and ego, how she begged the gods to be forgiven for a fault she did not commit. How, just as she was about to give up, she was turned into a tree, a laurel. How her body, still alive, now as a tree, had not found peace as Apollo made crowns out of her leaves, oh just because he loved her so much. This is a warped, horrible story about love, and about how we can sometimes do nothing or anything can be forgiven when they are out of love, no matter how badly we hurt others. This is glorifying being blind- as was Apollo. A beautiful story regardless.

Rosa damascena is again from greek mythology, and is a prettier, kinder, more gentle story- or as pretty and kind and gentle as Greek mythology goes. This is how Aphrodite's blood colored the all white roses red, as she was rushing to reach her dying lover. This is what she did for the one she truly loved, she was hurt and she did not care. This is what we think of true love. The lover died regardless. Red roses smell like blood to me, since then.

And do you want to hear yet another story? This is a regional story for snowdrop. Legend says that snowdrop was a delicate flower. So delicate yet so brave, so brave yet so in love. It was in love with the sun itself, and each day as it waited under the soil to bloom, the more the longing in its heart grew. The flower, in cold weather, imagined the gentle rays of the sun, pretty days of the spring. Each time it tried to repress its longing, it grew inside of the flower a little bit more. Each time the flower dreamt of beautiful, warm days of the spring, the cold felt colder. The snowdrop, being the brave little soul it is, then decided to bloom right that moment. The poor flower though, was gentle. Other flowers shouted, and the wind whispered to the seed, "do not bloom." "If you bloom now, the cold will kill you. If you bloom now, the snow will freeze you." It kniewz the snowdrop knew very well that the cold would kill it, and the snow would freeze it. One day, the flower waited for the snow to melt. Two days, for the air to get warm. Three days, the snowdrop was impatient. It longed for the sun more strongly than anyone had ever wished for something. The snowdrop turned its head away from other plants waiting under the soil, and started growing. It grew, grew, grew... But it was impatient, and the snow was still resting on the soil. The snowdrop did not care, and reached up, until it could finally see the sun. The already delicate flower was weakened already, and the cold was too much for it. Yet soon, the morning came and the sun was up. The sun rays were as warm and as gentle as the snowdrop had imagined, and the light was as beautiful. The sun smiled upon the snowdrop, and the snowdrop had seen the sun which it had missed for so long. It had touched the light for as much as it could... But the cold, the cold and the snow was too much, and the snowdrop was the only flower around. There died the poor flower, right that night, having seen the sun at the expense of its own life.

And yeah, mulberry. Would love to tell the story myself, but no. Just read, directly, from the source.

[cxnsolatio]

“  because  i  know  something  you  don’t  know.  ” (hi!)

✚✚✚  melody  —  @summerxmelodies

the princess bride sentence starters ⁽ ⁿᵒ ˡᵒⁿᵍᵉʳ ᵃᶜᶜᵉᵖᵗᶦⁿᵍ ⁾

❝ Congratu-fucking-lations ❞ Law quipped, the corners of his lips already turning upwards in a satisfied smirk, ready as ever to have a little gaiety at someone else's expense: hers. How Melody responded from this moment on would dictate whether Law found her entertaining and worthy of his wit made verb, or tedious and deserving of nothing but a turn of his heel and shrinking figure into the horizon. ❝ So you know one thing I don't. ❞

Something. A thing, singular; not a few, and perhaps not worth much. Knowing alone was no argument; except, of course, when he found it convenient to make it so. Law gathered there was only so much he knew, a drop in a sea of endless knowledge. The road to erudition was toilsome, long-drawn and serpentine, not a path for the easily weary. It forked at numberless turns; forced the walker into unseeable promenades, its paving a never-ending labour. Before the impossible task, Law found himself humble but never contrite over his decision. Those first steps his parents had helped him take would always be regarded as both a pleasant domestic memory and a fateful intervenience. He enjoyed being a pirate, loved being captain to a wonderful group of people worth more than he could provide for, but being an academic he adored with reverence, as well as deference.

Yet, before others, Law fashioned himself a savant, ego inflated by a no means small curriculum, and really, how many pirates could boast of having been to school and undertaking academic endeavours alongside their official, illegal means of persistence? Law's name was closely associated with the noun 'laurel', after all, and the leaves of Laurus nobilis were the crowning symbol of scholarly pursuit. It should be no wonder that he cared so deeply about acquiring knowledge — some might say he was destined for it since baptism — and to flaunt what intelligence he bore did no wrong, either. If anything, it presented a mild nuisance, but no harm.

❝ Well? ❞ He nigh barked with impatience, but equal measures of curiosity and amusement lurked beneath his closed semblance. ❝ Let's hear it then. What's so important that you must share it with me? ❞ if, indeed, she must. To be fair, Melody had never classified the secret information only she possessed as to its importance, but it must be something interesting, or else why even bring it up impromptu?

Was it factual? Anecdotal? Whatever it was, Law hoped it was two things. One, indeed interesting and useful, it not for the current moment, then to store and bring up at a more convenient timing which suited his needs. Another tool in his arsenal of planning and conquering, one piece of intel and one calculated step at a time. Two, that it was worth the benefit of his undivided attention, which Melody had for now, yet for how long?

His arms crossed over his chest as if in silent warning. He would not stand for time lost on pointless nothings. Unless Melody succeeded in piquing his humour, now that she'd succeeded in garnering his curiosity, in which case the verbal exchange would prove fruitful all the same. Trafalgar Law was not a man easy to amuse.

[bluewinnerangel]

Larry Loves Laurels

EDIT: June 30th 2021 because sOmEoNe’s still at it EDIT again: July 2nd because now the other one’s at it too EDIT AGAIN: July 3rd ok now they’re both it at the same time...

This is something I wanted to gather in a post for a while now and with the recent post of Louis wearing a cap that includes a laurel wreath, it’s time to let this monster out of my drafts. It became a long masterpost/timeline of the times laurel wreaths showed up on their clothing or in some other way.

Louis loves laurels. This was a big one, when he wore this shirt while perfoming a bunch of songs for the first time (sept 14 2019):

And H has 2 massive laurel tattoos:

And that’s quite inchresting as Larry = laurel. Literally.

putting a cut in, this gonna be a long one:

The name “Larry” is short for Laurence/Lawrence, which in turn comes from the Latin Laurentius, meaning "From Laurentum" (a city near Rome) which is thought to be derived from the Latin laurus ("laurel"). The name could also be derived from the Old Greek word Lavrenti meaning "bright one, shining one". 

(also “bright one, shining one”, GHUH)

It’s so simple, so loud, it’s pretty much a smack in the face.

Again like all my posts I’m not saying they’re definitely doing this on purpose and that this is the meaning behind it. Let’s be real here, basically all I’m doing is me see plant me point, but after 10+ years of similar nonsense it wouldn’t be too crazy to think this has turned into some “let’s see if they catch this muwhaha” chaosgay sidebehavior again (I’m tired). It’s also mostly just a Fred Perry catalogue (the brand’s logo is a laurel wreath) but there are some other occurences that do make me go oh wow you lil shit, so darling just hold on, just sit back, pretend to relax, and let’s get this going:

june 5 2015

This not exactly fitting his regular style (at all) sighting of an H in Fred Perry:

lil edit: now that he’s wearing the jacket again in 2021 I saw this pic resurface so let’s just have in in here as well:

june 12 2015

april 18 2016 (for these I’m just gonna link @bulletprooflarry​​​ ‘s tags because it shows both the events and the reactions to it, I hope that works, sorry if tumblr’s gonna be stubborn with that)

Then louis-

-tomlinson one day decides it’s time. And demonstrating already why it might not be just a random brand choice: the day the man was papped in the larry outfit, the “home made” shirt (H’s tat) and “ellesse” pants (LS, for what, hmm?), is also the first sighting of him wearing Fred Perry too. He wears ‘ellesse” often around this time, but AFAIK Fred Perry only shows up 3 times in 2016, two days in a row and again a few days later. Here’s him in the outfit ft. chocolatemilk

and the vest (source)

april 19 2016 

stuntcuddling in a laurel shirt

I don’t think he wore a larry clowncostume the day before whatever this photoshoot was just for the fun of it, maybe because of it. Just look at this, I mean he looks good modeling but this is just ridiculous:

(x)

Also this was around the time Louis was constantly papped either with strollers or just anything really like he was a kardashian, just insane amounts of times. There is probably a nice timeline of it somewhere but I’m blind so instead here’s a google search for articles in april alone.

Intermission: I was just going around checking if people close to them wear this brand too, and I found 2 instances of James Corden on papwalks in FP shirts too (as well as 2 for Liam on stage, none for Niall or Zayn), but the timing just made me aggressively flop my he-got-the-dagger-arms so I’m gonna mention it: it was right after these pics of louis. Did... did James dark larrie again here? 3 days after Louis+laurel+gf pap pics, there’s an article of James+laurel+wife pap pics (april 22nd 2016) To make things worse, the other time was oct 17 2015 (bears? belfast? that whole uh... *vaguely gestures* time). But I mean, call it a boinky coincindoinky, right? Moving on.

april 26 2016

Then the 3rd sighting, + ellesse cap

and that’s it for louis as far as I could tell for about a year, but then there’s H:

september 29 2016

H’s Another Man photoshoot

dec 1st 2016

finds the coat again

jan 21 2017

That spaceboy cardigan sighting, this is a weak one

I mean, it’s just unspecified leaves.

june 25 2017

L’s photoshoot for The Observer Magazine

Also: The above not being Fred Perry is a big hurray, because this is where our dear Louis either starts asking his stylists to include laurels everywhere and they have trouble finding anything beyond that brand or he just got a brand deal because:

The beloved James Dean ones

same photoshoot, two more pieces:

july 11 2017

In the Back To You clip on his instagram

I don’t know why this one’s extra funny to me

july 18 2017

Photoshoot for Vice

oct 11 2017

Just Like You cover, guess what?

louis wearing larry on his heart part 2828

september 23 2017

For SIDMAG, baby here we go again

apparently this photoshoot has its own tumblr so here’s that link

clearer view of the pants^ (gif from here):

december 2 2017

THANK GOD SOME NON-PRED FRERRY, but to be fair the mans just wearing a rich people brand like rich people do

december 22 2017

Miss You’s vertical spotify video

Despite Harry wearing a ton of different stuff in 2017 including loads of floral prints and a large range of wild stuff, he somehow manages to avoid laurel wreaths/branches altogether (as far as I could find, apart from the maybe spaceboy).

june 4 2018

Harry’s Gucci campaign, straightgay up wearing a laurel wreath, but to be skeptical again that just fits the whole Gucci aesthetic (also I didn’t look at the clothes he’s modeling for as that wouldn’t make much sense, but I thought, maybe the accessories are a pass, I mean he’s also wearing his own rings)

yes I’m including

more pictures

than necessary

I mean 

yes

nov 27 2018

some more tommy on the X factor 

march 12 2019

Two of us spotify video, 2 burberry sweaters this time, because apparently these things come on twos.

april 25 2019

does this count

the little heads

too far?

That was all fun and games (get it, because olympic games), but the unhinging is yet to start, would you believe it? points at a taco

may 8 2019

Because, welp, Louis adds Laurel Wreath to his 28 Songs playlist (lyrics here)

sorry I don’t think I was clear lemme try again:

LOUIS. ADDS. 

L A U R E L  W R E A T H. 

TO. HIS. PLAYLIST.

(he doesn’t have the playlist anymore, but here’s the post, here’s the list of songs)

...and if you think he doesn’t gayvinci code with his spotify playlists, you might - be wrong. For instance, the song “Party and Bullshit” before “Just Like You”? I mean come on.

august 6 2019

hi

september 14 2019

Back to Louis’ performance in Madrid. Look at this man go showing off his 28 tattoo while Kiwi’s playing in the background with a laurel wreath on his heart, about to debut Too Young, Defenceless, Habit, and DLIBYH like what more do you want, the man’s a walking larry billboard.

september 21 2019

seriously is he standing this way making sure we see the lil logo with his leg out and holding his shirt so it doesnt possibly fall over it like really son

september 27 2019

THE BALLS ON THIS FAN. THE SMIRK ON HARRY 

the universe be universing x

oct 23 2019

His Breaking Down Walls series on his youtube

that little pull at the logo LOL

gUySs LoOk At My ShIrT

louis be like 

and the moment is repeated in all his 5 chapter videos too

nov 17 2019

Hits radio interview and perfomance, yes it’s the round thingy:

november 23 2019

DLIBYH promo

Grandpa WHAT is that shirt

dec 11 2019

Fine Line Spotify listening party

Grandma WHAT is that wallpaper

iS tHaT fErN!?

Bright shining golden branches of unspecified leaves that do not NOT look like laurels

jan 27 2020

Walls listening party

more pictures than necessary because LOOK AT HIM

me seeing yet another laurel:

february 1 2020

Photoshoot For fabulous magazine

march 3rd 2020

WMI directors cut Q&A videos

mans wearing this larry joke of a jacket again (what were those days tho, when they seemed to have resorted to bluegreening, really what were they on)

december 4 2020

peculiar spaceboy comes back

april 10 2021

And the mess that made me finally finish this post:

EDIT july 3rd 2021:

may 25th 2021

Louis puts that cap on Cliff in E’s insta story

june 10 2021 Harry / Louis

It appears that if you want to get your picture taken with harry all you need to do is wear some ~subtle~ larry shit and then we got him going YOU THERE YEAH YOU TAKE A PICTURE WITH ME

Louis’ laurel skull cap comes back yet again as he’s playing football with some kids 

He’s also pairing it with some wild bluegreening but ok

june 30 2021

Harry’s in Italy, has been for a while shooting MP, Louis showed up with a tan from all the rain in england yesterday and now suddenly we got Harry stuntcuddling in a laurel shirt, is this 2016 again?

anyway don’t wanna put stunt pics in here but it’s included in potato mode inside this horrible oddly specific meme so have that instead

So as this is going on I just keep piling up posts that are all redundant because this is the masterpost but I still wanna link here too, anyway

~next day~

july 1st 2021

People have also pointed out these as laurels

Another one of his floral print shirts that when initially making this masterpost I would have ignored (as I haven’t included any of those and there are plenty that include ~unspecified leaves~), but given the context (the uh.. laurel flanking days) I guess these unspecified leaves are more convincing than let’s say the spaceboy cardigan for sure so let’s just include them (also again maybe the reason they’re going at it so hard has something to do with the fact that I had to cut out O of the pic here)

~next day, yep laurel game stronk~

july 2nd 2021

Nevermind the blue greening AGAIN and then he did some more

Really these two take the crown:

this one as a close third

really bitch both bluegreening and laureling in one outfit not just once but 3 times really this trick ass bropal bitch

anyway

~NEXT DAY AND IT’S BOTH OF THEM:~

july 3 2021 Harry / Louis 

Don’t want to give this context but I think I gotta because it matters: Louis is with friends watching the UEFA Euro game in England (E’s there too). Harry is in Rome, at the game (O’s there, full on expecting some pap bs soon) (I mean quite a day)

Not only is Harry’s laurel jacket back

the laurel skull cap is as well 

this isn’t a great pic showing off the cap but it’s a great pic of him so buh it’s gonna be in here

I guess have this. But it’s clear in the linked vid.

Does the cap know the bomber jacket is in love with him?

...

Woo! That was A LOT. they are a lot

Other meanings

So besides it literally being the meaning of the name “Larry” this interpretation of the laurel tattoo (and with that the use of laurel imagery in general) really shouldn’t be overlooked.

I can’t make this post without mentioning what laurels symbolize in general. In short, the laurel wreath is often used as a symbol of unfading glory, a power status symbol of victory. (In long: the golden laurel crown symbolizing the transience of glory, victory and power instead). It’s used in family/home crests a lot, including nautical themed ones. 

Just scrolling google you find all kinds, this one’s one hell of a larry:

Guys are we a yachting or sailing team or championship??

Harry take note, I found one where the leaves are replaced with fish:

Fred Perry has its own history as well. In very short: it’s one of those brands adopted by british working class sub-cultures like mods and chavs, fitting Louis’ aesthetic in 2017-2020 (saying 2020 because we’re all eyeing the new era). Could be it’s just purely this and pre-2017 were just coincidunkirky hiccups, but I feel the man found the best of both worlds and ran with it.

Bonus:  maybe coincidentally  styled-in-fred-perry  fetus Harry  (a haiku by me)

(I tried to find other members wearing this brand in 1D days but all I have so far is 1x Louis and 1x Niall together with H in the next pics, doesn’t mean they weren’t all just styled in it occasionally tho, I mean, it doesn’t look like it but there’s a limit to how deep I dive):

In conclusion

[woodsteingirl]

i don't know anything abt ur ocs :( so tell me the basic get-to-know-you/rundown of everyone! (or at least the main ones!)

Omg so at this point NO one knows anything about them this is the first time ive talked about them since the idea is fairly new!! so there really isn’t a central plot yet, it’s more follows the instability of Late Republican Ancient Rome from a firsthand account, but not one that actually was up close and personal with it, yk!

so the main characters are Titus Livius Florentius Decimus Virius Laurus, Cassia Faustilla, and Lollia Maia. One of them (Florentius) is super into the arts, poetry, philosophy, etc. I imagine he’s one of those guys that’s really enamored with Greek culture for whatever reason. I also think maybe his whole heart really isn’t in politics. He came from a family which held a lot of political power at that point, so he was kind of thrown into it whether he liked it or not. He’d probably be happier being a farmer-poet in some backwater province than a senator in Rome Proper TBH.

Moving on to the other one! his name is Decimus Virius Laurus. He’s like the polar opposite of Florentius. He's in politics because he wants to be and because he worked for it. He had a particularly illustrious military career, leading him to be elevated into a higher position in the political world. Not quite a novus homo, but from a family who hadn’t been of great importance in recent politics. Hes much more concerned with the worldly aspects of life than his counterpart, Florentius. He had such a well rounded military career not only because he was naturally good at actual fighting, but he also had a good mind for strategy. I don’t think he’s as far as Cato the Elder was in “preserve the old republic”-ism but I don’t think he’d be necessarily pro- the incoming autocracy. Strong sense of needing to preserve dignity and keep up appearances.

Since it’s ancient Rome, what’s more in character than being in a lavender marriage!! Florentius’s wife is also gay. I named her Cassia Faustilla <3 They have a mutual understanding and both have lovers outside of wedlock that they actually care for. But yeah enough about her love life omg… aside from being gay she also is thee most logical character out of the four main characters. You’ve got military intelligence one side, creative genius from the other, and Lollia’s really good with people but neither one of them is very good when it comes to straight oratory OR general common sense. She’s pretty much masterminding Florentius’s political career from the sidelines while also managing to keep up the appearance of Roman Matrona pretty well all things considered.

okay the other lesbian <3 love and light <3 so her name is Lollia Maia. Which is probably my favorite name of the 4 of them… she’s probably not originally from Rome the City, maybe she’s from a Roman family out in Macedonia. or somewhere. I like to think that she and Florentius are related by some means, which is how she was introduced to Cassia. Maybe he was on some military thing in whatever province she lived in and was like oh come stay at our house for a while! and in roman fashion she would be there for months but like. she just never left and has been there for well over the time expected. she’s just never going to leave. She’s the performing arts girlie <3 since she is so into it there’s no way she’d be normal about anything and she’d be so dramatic and fun. it would be silly!!! Plus I feel like charisma/public relations is the one area I've not covered already. so. thinking about it this group literally has all it needs to be really good at politics but they’re too busy being gay to do anything about it…

[craftylittlenerd]

WIP Wednesday

Form my ME post war story I’m currently working on. Its a flash back to when Shepard was in the hospital from Garrus POV: “So, you’ve been staying here with the commander?” Castis asks out right, he was never a man to beat around the bush.

“Until she wakes up, I don’t...we’re in this together... I...” 

Castis nods understandingly, “towards the end of your mother illness I never left her side.” 

His voice grows soft as he remembers Laurus, how Corpalis Syndrome robbed her of being able to do the simplest of tasks. The subtle shake of her hands, the smallest stutter or slurring of words in her otherwise eloquent speech, the weakness she felt in her body. Before either of them realized that these were all early symptoms and not just signs of old age it was too late. The disease took its time taking Laurus away from him slowly over two and a half years, the preventive medication barely doing anything but prolonging the inevitable. Robbing them of their golden years together.  

“I cannot fault you for wanting to do the same son, but I will fault you on the smell. When was the last time you showered?”

Garrus felt like he was thirteen all over again with that question and the look, Spirts his dad knew how to make him feel like an idiot.

[aevalon]

I was tagged by @phlox-valley Thank you 🙏

1. Fav colour(s)- I don't really have any, but I've been told by people that blue and green suit me if that counts for anything.

2. Currently reading - I'm always jumping between several at any given time but today I'm prioritizing Laurus by Eugene Vodolazkin.

3. Last song - I can't even remember. It was probably something by Bendik Giske.

4. Last series - Can't remember this either. I think I was trying to give Kamen Rider a shot (because of Hideaki Anno's film coming out) but I couldn't get into it.

5. Last movie - The Secret of Roan Inish. One of my faves.

6. Sweet, savoury, or spicy - Savoury

7. Craving - Hm. Well the other day I randomly remembered these buñuelos that were sold at this corner store I used to live by years back. I'd do anything to get my hands on those again.

8. Currently working on - Nothing at the moment but I should probably be working on my class schedule for the next semester.

I'll tag @palebluerosary @river--daughter @orchideennacht @waterfieldsy @bludblum @rillkeanheart @awayinafairyring @sanftmuetig @the-precious-kid if you'd like to do this.

[x0401x]

Since Violet and Gilbert got married in the later novels, do you think the army knew about it? I am honestly more curious as to what happened in Julia's Wedding. What did the ever prideful bougainvillea relatives do to Violet and what did Colonel Gil do about it? Too many unconfirmed information....

From the description of how it went, I think only Laurus was invited out of Gil's colleagues.

Honestly, I don't think they'd do anything too bad to her, given that she'd have Gil and his sisters as a shield. Also, Violet's adoptive family is literally related to them. They can't badmouth her when she's just as rich and was educated in the same way as them. Not to mention that she's basically a celebrity and acquainted with tons of famous people from various fields. Let's not forget that she took part in the war, so she's got credits even if Gil never tells anyone that she's an actual war hero. It'd be really fun to see anyone try to give her any sort of bullshit, just to get completely obliterated in, like, ten seconds flat by her curriculum.

[f4rfields]

get to know me tag

i was tagged by @auroraoptica! ty i’m happy someone wants to know more about me..

Favorite movie/s: pacific rim... shout out to the people who met me from the pacrim fandom because i love u all

Favorite Band/s: of montreal, capsule, kraftwerk, R.E.M., tricot, stars, and babymetal. i also like chipzel, alina orlova, knife city, and carly rae jepsen.

Favorite Decade: aesthetically? 80s. i’m still waiting on the decade where things are finally cool.

Day or Night: day, especially morning, but my body def doesn’t feel the same about it

Nicknames: laur, lauru, laurbo, uhhh... mom used to call me “toodles” and to this day calls me “lor-tor” and “lor-lor” lmao

Zodiac: capricorn - idk anything else

MBTI: i get infj/infp a lot but i don’t like mbti that much so i’ll share my enneagram instead which is 2w3

Favorite Vehicle: my legs, am i right, ladies? who else here loves locomotion??? ok but in all seriousness i like riding the lightrail here in az so i think that one

Pets: 3 cats - ghost, louie, and marco. ghost is my sweet baby girl who is a bit of a diva, louie is a playful but lovable goofball, and marco is the sweet older stray kitty who has decided he’s a part-time housecat these days.

uhhh i will leave this open to anyone who wants to do it bc i don’t know how many people like being tagged in these things these days... but i will tag @helenpace, @itswilliwaw, @allthezipofnukacola, and @blessedalmalexia