#at the october banquet.

[hanzajesthanza]

truly though, i am comforted by the idea of regis being autistic because… consider. he’s been alive for hundreds of years and has been through so much turmoil and has had to commit to self-improvement and self-control and all of these ideals and principles. and in the same process of that, he had to examine himself—take a good look in the mirror, as the saying goes… though it may not be quite accurate in this case—why he faced these insurmountable issues in the first place which instigated and excerbated his vices in the first place. “treat the cause, not the symptoms.”

and the cause was that he didn’t like himself. he only drank to escape… from himself. so he could be a different self, one that others accepted, but one who very quickly became a terrible person—because that version of himself had none of his ever-so-dislikable and aggravating and unrelatable traits: his know-it-all-isms, his philosophizing, his overthinking. his lack of understanding the social cues he was surrounded by. everything that would “spoil the party.” the libation was the symptom of insecurity and disbelief that anyone could truly accept him for the way he is, unaltered, sober.

and even with all of this time, possibly the span of an entire human life, spent working on himself, spent trying to understand others—he learned two things.

firstly—after all this time—he cannot change himself. he has to live with, and possibly embrace, the parts of himself that long ago made him impossible to gain social approval. even if now, he is living a solitary and even somewhat isolated life.

(note: yes, he only spends three months out of the year nearby fen carn, and the rest of the year he lives in dilingen, in a city—while i don’t doubt that he was an important pillar of the community, with his altruistic tendencies, he also never mentions having any close friends in dillingen. he decided in one night to join geralt’s quest. he didn’t worry that anyone from dillingen would miss him…)

secondly—even after all this time spent trying to have a better relationship with and to fit in with society (and even though he’s become, if i may say with modesty, very good at it, exceptionally good at it), it’s still a very intentional factor of his life, something that takes a carefully prepared set of behavior and mental work. it’s still “mimicking.” again, the span of an entire human lifetime put into understanding people and society and he still doesn’t. there’s still much he does not understand, does not agree with, and even ridicules. he has integrated into the society, but he does not innately understand it. he only understands it through his uniquely analytical perspective, the perspective of an outsider trying to understand.

[roomselfcontain2]

Single room for rent near me visit website brand new virgin pop standard room self with stable power available now at adageorge by iwofe road in port Harcourt city rivers state Nigeria

[reasonsforhope]

Legit though, we should start turning ecosystem restoration and work to make our world more tolerant to the effects of climate change into annual holidays and festivals

Like how just about every culture used to have festivals to celebrate the beginning of the harvest or its end, or the beginning of planting, or how whole communities used to host barn raisings and quilting bees - everyone coming together at once to turn the work of months or years into the work of a few days

Humble suggestions for festival types:

Goat festival

Besides controlled burns (which you can't do if there's too much dead brush), the fastest, most effective, and most cost-efficient way to clear brush before fire season - esp really heavy dead brush - is to just. Put a bunch of goats on your land for a few days!

Remember that Shark Tank competitor who wanted to start a goat rental company, and everyone was like wtf? There was even a whole John Oliver bit making fun of the idea? Well THAT JUST PROVES THEY'RE FROM NICE WET PLACES, because goat rental companies are totally a thing, and they're great.

So like. Why don't we have a weekend where everyone with goats just takes those goats to the nearest land that needs a ton of clearing? Public officials could put up maps of where on public lands grazing is needed, and where it definitely shouldn't happen. Farmers and people/groups with a lot of acres that need clearing can post Goat Requests.

Little kids can make goat-themed crafts and give the goats lots of pets or treats at the end of the day for doing such a good job. Volunteers can help wrangle things so goats don't get where they're not supposed to (and everyone fences off land nowadays anyway, mostly). And the goats, of course, would be in fucking banquet paradise.

Planting Festival and Harvest Festival

Why mess with success??? Bring these back where they've disappeared!!! Time to swarm the community gardens and help everyone near you with a farm make sure that all of their seeds are sown and none of the food goes to waste in the fields, decaying and unpicked.

And then set up distribution parts of the festival so all the extra food gets where it needs to be! Boxes of free lemons in front of your house because you have 80 goddamned lemons are great, but you know what else would be great? An organized effort to take that shit to food pantries (which SUPER rarely get fresh produce, because they can't hold anything perishable for long at all) and community/farmer's markets

Rain Capture Festival

The "water year" - how we track annual rainfall and precipitation - is offset from the regular calendar year because, like, that's just when water cycles through the ecosystems (e.g. meltwater). At least in the US, the water year is October 1st through September 30th of the next year, because October 1st is around when all the snowmelt from last year is gone, and a new cycle is starting as rain begins to fall again in earnest.

So why don't we all have a big barn raising equivalent every September to build rain capture infrastructure?

Team up with some neighbors to turn one of those little grass strips on the sidewalk into a rain-garden with fall-planting plants. Go down to your local church and help them install some gutters and rain barrels. Help deculvert rivers so they run through the dirt again, and make sure all the storm drains in your neighborhood are nice and clear.

Even better, all of this - ESPECIALLY the rain gardens - will also help a ton with flood control!

I'm so serious about how cool this could be, yall.

And people who can't or don't want to do physical stuff for any of these festivals could volunteer to watch children or cook food for the festival or whatever else might need to be done!

Parties afterward to celebrate all the good work done! Community building and direct local improvements to help protect ourselves from climate change!

The possibilities are literally endless, so not to sound like an influencer or some shit, but please DO comment or reply or put it in the notes if you have thoughts, esp on other things we could hold festivals like this for.

Canning festivals. "Dig your elderly neighbors out of the snow" festivals. Endangered species nesting count festival. Plant fruit trees on public land and parks festival. All of the things that I don't know anywhere near enough to think of. Especially in more niche or extreme ecosystems, there are so many possibilities that could do a lot of good

[jamesleech]

Wobble Oil on wood panel 48 x 60in 2024

Working from a photo taken by my late father, I painted a moment from an epic banquet dinner we had together with his old friends, their wives, and their daughters. Through painting, through his eyes, I face grief and the memory of a difficult and regretful time. I spend time with him again in a sideways way.

The act of mining nostalgia and personal history is a destructive one. Missing pieces come into frustrating focus, inaccuracies congeal, and old feelings take new shapes. We can find illumination and healing through contemplation, but by re-experiencing the past, its original colour is altered forever.

- I’m proud to share this painting and a few others with the support of Gallery PFOAC at Art Toronto, in the Metro Toronto Convention Center October 25th to 27th. We’ll be at booth A38. See ya!

[tiaramania]

TIARA ALERT: Queen Mary of Denmark wore Princess Louise's Pearl Poiré Tiara for the banquet during the state visit from Iceland at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark on 8 October 2024.

[juyeoz]

RED AND GOLD — LEE HEESEUNG

SYNOPSIS — decelis was holding their annual masquerade ball and you finally decided to attend. however, who would’ve known that struggling to find your friends would help you find gold?

PAIRING — rival!heeseung x fem!reader

CONTAINS — fluff and slight angst (ending wise), rivals to rivals ??, was supposed to be for halloween…!, kind of rushed as well (fighting writers block rn), and not proofread.

WORDCOUNT — 1379 words

October 31st was Halloween and the day your school hosted their annual masquerade ball at Ju’s Banquet Hall. 

To be honest, this year was your first time attending. You never had time for things like this in the past, but since it was your final year of school, you managed to find some (and with the help of your friends pushing). 

The music from outside the banquet was loud. There was no chance to miss it either. 

“Thank you,” you said with a smile while exiting your mother’s car. 

“Have fun! By the way, you look amazing.” She said as your smile grew bigger.

“Let me take a picture!” 

“Absolutely not—Stay in the car, where are you going?!” You panicked. Your mother was quite the embarrassment when it came to stuff like this.

“Oh, come on! It’s your first year. Let me mark the memory.” She frowned while holding the release button of her seatbelt.

“I’ll send you some, I promise.” You reassured her as she raised a brow.

“100%?”

“Yes, 100%.” 

She smiled at your words and waved goodbye as you took that as an opportunity to leave as well.

Your right hand held onto your belongings, including the dark red mask you were planning to wear while the other pinched at your dress. It was long. You couldn’t risk falling in front of so many people, especially not in your first year of attending.

As you walked up the steps, your phone began to ring. You couldn’t see the contact name but the red and green phone buttons were in your view.

Hopefully it was your friend Eunchae.

“Hello?” You said after swiping right.

“Hey, (Name)! Where are you? Are you here yet?” Eunchae said on the other line.

“Yeah, uh, I’m about to enter the hall.” You replied while squinting at the sign above. You could barely see it.

“Okay, we are at the drinks table. They have fruit punch!” She cheered. She loved fruit punch, it was her favourite drink.

You smiled at her childish tone and told her you were on your way. Once the call ended, you slipped on your mask and walked through the doors of the hall in search of the drinks table Eunchae boasted about.

There were too many people everywhere. You were cramped. It would’ve been better if she told you the colour dress she wore, but she didn’t.

Your brows furrowed as you took out your phone to call Eunchae once more. There was no way you could find her and the drinks table in such a big place.

You unlocked your phone and called her contact, then placed your phone against your ear as it dialed.

And dialed… Then beeped. 

There was no answer. 

Honestly, if you knew this would happen, you would have stayed home. You could’ve been studying during this hour. Studying hard enough to beat your so-called rival, Lee Heeseung, on the next Functions test.

“Great.” You mumbled followed by a sigh of disappointment. You began walking around, hoping she would appear somewhere and soon. Part of you was ready to call your mom back and ask her to drive you home. 

It hadn’t even been 5 minutes yet. 

All of a sudden an arm bumped yours, causing you to stumble due to your heels and land in the embrace of another being. 

A possible stranger and fellow schoolmate.

“Are you okay?” They asked. Their voice sounded quite alarmed. 

“I’m completely sorry, that was my fault.” You replied while regaining your composure.

“Nah, it’s fine. But are you okay? He kind of bumped into you harshly.” 

All you could see were his eyes and lips, and yet, you were able to tell how sincere and worried he sounded. It was almost as if he was the one who got hurt. 

It was funny.

He stared at you in confusion as you began to laugh. He would be lying if he said it didn’t sound pleasing.

“What’s funny?” He asked, clueless. 

“Nothing, nothing. I’m okay, don’t worry.” You replied once you calmed down, a smile still present on your face.

“So, are you here with anyone tonight?” You questioned in an attempt to change the topic.

“Kind of and kind of not?” 

“What do you mean?”

“I’m here with my friends, but I can’t find them. This place is too big.”

“No way, same! They said they were at the drink table as if I’d know where that was.” 

He laughed at your words. 

“Do you want to keep each other company then?” He asked and you nodded. He seemed nice and not creepy.

It was probably the best temporary choice you had.

You two began walking side by side through the crowds of people in an attempt to find a quieter and less crowded place. 

“What should we do?” You asked as he looked at you in disbelief. Due to the silence, you looked over at him only to be met with his shocked expression.

“What?” You asked again.

“Is this your first year here?” You nodded at his words, explaining how it was your first time as a senior all together.

Out of nowhere, he grabbed your wrist and guided you both out of the crowded hall. You had no clue where he was taking you. Maybe he wasn’t trustworthy after all.

Was this how you were going to die? 

All your thoughts clouded your mind, distracting you from the sudden change of scenery.

“Look,” he said and released your wrist in the process. 

You were brought back to reality as you looked around, noticing the many fairy lights and flower filled walkway. 

“Pretty, right?” 

“Very.” You said while walking ahead of him as he smiled.

“I’m guessing you’ve been here often.” You said and brushed your fingertips against the petals of the flowers.

“Not at all, it’s my first year too, but this is where my friends and I met up.” You paused at his words and turned around on your pivot foot.

“And you were shocked at me saying this was my first year? You have no room to talk.”

You narrowed your eyes as he chuckled, muttering playful apologies.

“At least I got to show you this place, right?” 

You remained silent. He wasn’t wrong. Without him, you wouldn’t have found out about this place anyways.

“Oh, by the way, I didn’t catch your name—”

“Can’t. Rules are rules.” He said, interrupting your incomplete sentence.

“Ah, right. I forgot.” You mumbled. That was a pretty stupid sentence anyway. What was the point of a masquerade ball if you were going to reveal each other’s identities?

“If anything, I’m sure we would run into each other tomorrow at school?” He questioned, part of him hoping you two would. You seemed sweet and were dressed beautifully. 

“Of course, I’ll remember you as…”

You analyzed his outfit; he was dressed in a white and gold tuxedo and wore a black masquerade mask which only left his eyes and lips uncovered. 

“As Gold? It’s pretty basic, but that’s the best I’ve got.” You said, quite embarrassed.

“It’s alright, I could remember you as Red as well.” He smiled. 

To you, he was something you never met before.

However, for him, he knew who you were. You were his rival and he was Lee Heeseung. 

To him this was funny, you two were arguing over your assignments at least 5 hours before tonight. 

Now, his heart fluttered at the sound of your voice, the sight of your smile, and your laughter. There had to be something in the air, but he couldn’t bring himself to get away from you. It was his first time seeing you dressed up so formally. It was different from the school uniforms and atmosphere. 

See, he knew if you were to find out about him being ‘Gold’ you would be quite disgusted. Or at least that was what he thought. So, to keep the night alive, he kept it a secret. 

Even the next day he didn’t mention anything. To you, he would always be the boy you wanted to win against, and unfortunately, he was okay with that.

Although Red and Gold went well together, that didn’t mean you two did as well.

© JUYEOZ

ENHYPEN PERM TAGLIST — @miumura @macapunoz @kxppachu

[acesw]

Knowing our Arcanists 14: Druvis III

Welcome to entry fourteen of my series: "Knowing our Arcanists"! This is a series in which I introduce and tell the stories of our fellow characters in Reverse: 1999. For today, we have: Druvis III!

Despite well loved by many, Bluepoch tends to overlook her character ever since we left the first 4 chapters and there's so much potential left behind. After analyzing her, she's one of the characters that left one of the most lasting impressions on me. Lets get started.

Druvis Weyerhauser III is an Irish-American arcanist who was born in the early 20th century on October 23rd. Her arcane skill, inherited from a long and ancient line, allows her to communicate with the wildlife around her and manipulate them to a large extent. Raised in a wealthy family, Druvis has always been familiar with formalities. But at the same time, the woods has always been her calling.

She lived in Ireland throughout most of her childhood. Living with a wealthy and predominantly arcanist family, she grew to love her identity and lineage considering her familiarity with Celtic traditions and sigils. She also read Irish epics and legends growing up.

Its likely that she learned how to do traditional wand-making around this time, using the wood and natural materials around her as a source of power. While strange in style and composition for its time, the powerful arcane conduction became the reason why people commissioned them.

However, her life changed when her mother remarried, and she decided to chase after the "American Dream" during the 20s, where many lesser-known aristocrats migrated to the Americas in hopes to find a respectable footing. Druvis' mother wanted to abandon her traditions, and embrace the "New Age" full of cubism and modern sciences.

The Weyerhaeusers became lumber tycoons who were more adamant in maintaining their wealth and business over honing their arcane skills, leaving Druvis as an outlier among them. She chose to often escape to the woods against her parents wishes, curious and captivated by the whispers of the trees so close to her home. On those nights, away from the banquets, she would listen to the whispers and examine the shape of their growth.

Druvis' defiance and insistence on traditions was often something her mother disapproved of, wanting to raise her daughter as a proper upper class lady, but she never seemed to do anything to stop her entirely. However, she hoped that Druvis would grow out of it and join her in the business.

They were able to buy and profit a portion of the Cascade Range, thus their popularity and their wealth grew immensely from their business. They gained more deals and their stocks increased. This growth remained constant for years, whilst Druvis grew a love for the range for its beautiful flora and fauna. She found the Cascade Range as a place of respite and escape for her, away from the modern society.

In Autumn 1928, stocks began to crash and wealthy families continuously lost their stocks and other earnings. The Weyerhausers lost most of their profits and went bankrupt due to the collapse of the wood supply chain, and her stepfather grew more desperate to replenish those earnings. After selling things like potion formulas, it left him with choosing the last option: to sell and bulldoze the land.

What changed Druvis' life forever was not this, but the unfortunate events that came after. On one night while her parents, their buyers, and workers that were to do the disafforestation. Druvis was also searching for them, wanting to offer a new solution using arcane skills in hopes to persuade her parents away from bulldozing the land.

Yet, the entire forest was ablaze by an unknown suspect, leading to the deaths of 13 people, including Druvis' parents and their buyers. The media swarmed Druvis with questions, which further grew as arcane traces were found at the scene. This led to her being blamed and shunned by the media, leaving her to deal with not only grief but also criticism of her name. Due to this, she disappeared from public eye, mostly grieving alone in the burnt forest and taking the time to pick up on things like wand-making again.

As we know in the main story, in the post-"Storm" era, Druvis was offered a place in the Manus Vindictae through Forget Me Not. They shared a similar grief and Forget Me Not used it to his advantage to take her in and cultivate her vengeful feelings towards what happened to her. She helped the Manus for a time, crafting things like Schneider's gun wand and being a supplier of resources.

It was in Chapter 2 that things turned on its head, where Druvis decided to betray the Manus in favor of the Timekeeper. The Timekeeper offered a new path to help move forward rather than settle in revenge against what can't be changed now. By looking forward to the future, life will grow again from its burnt shells, and bring closure to her grief. She remained loyal to the Timekeeper ever since, forever thankful in taking this new path and now strives to fight for the future ahead of her.

Druvis is a really reserved and respectable woman. Despite having the qualities of a decent upper class lady, she was never one to engage in social interaction. She found more comfort in the forest and even vice versa. She better communicated with the trees than with people, but she can immediately switch to her more presentable demeanor with those around her.

With friends, meanwhile, she finds comfort in talking to them and discussing about things like potion-making. She also becomes very protective of them, doing every means of her power to help them out of situations and problems.

Her practices left her a profound knowledge in arcane materials, and it helped her in creating these powerful potions and wands due to its "unusual" compositions.

She absolutely values her traditions and lineage as someone who can communicate with all the wildlife around her. Druvis practices most of her traditions alone and but will also share it with friends. (e.g. making them Celtic ale) It also helped her learn to be thoughtful and intuitive, taking approaches to understand anything that's in front of her.

Her values also go against modernist and industrialist ideals, since it brings significant damage to the forests. Her experiences led her to have a particular distaste for luxuries, fancy parties, and even her family name due to how it became associated with an aristocratic business. From observing everything, she never understood the "American Dream" because of it; because it changed her mother.

Even with how things turned out in the end, Druvis still loved her. She remembers fondly of how her mother used to read her those Irish epics, and allowed her to learn her practices growing up. She's still absolutely thankful for what her mother left to her, even if she didn't become the aristocratic individual she wanted.

Even then, its time for Druvis to move on, since the future won't wait. She may continue to mourn for what was lost, but she now understands that dwelling on the pains will only hinder her growth. But now, she won't let them affect her anymore, determined to continue fighting with her hope and the future.

[conundrumoftime]

My Haladriel fics

I haven't grouped all these together before, so here's a collection of all the complete Haladriel fics I've written so far since October '22. Cannot believe it's been almost two years!

(Some of these fics also feature Celeborn/Galadriel, Celeborn/Sauron or all of them together, because I like a) Celeborn b) multishipping and c) mess. I'll make it clear here which stories those are, so if Celeborn is not your guy or if multishipping confuses or distresses you then that's! fine! just please don't read those ones and then be weird to me about it in the comments.)

Multi-chapter fics

Shadow-Bride (E, 265k words): This is my long long longfic, started in December of '22 and now complete after 43 chapters. Canon-divergence from the middle of s1.

Banquets have burned for you (M, 24k words): Written for eastwynds for the spring '23 Haladriel fic exchange, where the prompt was "one thing happens differently on Númenor, and everything changes." Went heavy on the Greek tragedy influence for this one because it felt fitting for Númenor.

A man is a god in ruins (E, 21k words): At the time this was the longest story I'd ever written and the first multi-chapter story I'd finished since the LiveJournal days. How things change! Canon-divergence from the very end of s1; what if Halbrand decided to leave Eregion before Galadriel got suspicious?

All the kinds of alive you can be (E, 13k words, also Celeborn/Galadriel, also Celeborn/Sauron/Galadriel): so loads of us have written "what if Sauron shapechanged into Celeborn to seduce Galadriel"; this is "what if Sauron shapechanged into Galadriel to seduce Celeborn, because he's furious with her and obsessed with her and sort of wants to be her all at the same time"?

So Wide a Sea (E, 6k words, also Galadriel/Celeborn): After Sauron's final defeat in the War of the Ring Galadriel remembers a long-ago day on Númenor.

One-shot fics

Five times Halbrand's secret got revealed (T, 6000 words): the first Haladriel fic I ever wrote, of five scenarios of Galadriel learning his name. 'Shadow-Bride' is a continuation of one of these five; 'A man is a god in ruins' is the '...and one time it didn't.'

Tar-Mairon of the Shire (G, 3000 words): entire fix-it fluff, probably more '&' than '/', Hobbits make everything better including Dark Lords.

Tempered (M, 3600 words): written for @thecoziestbean for the spring '24 Haladriel fic exchange.

And white winter, on its knees (M, 1800 words): written for the Haladriel Winter Solstice '23, a what-if Galadriel said yes to Sauron's offer story.

Weakened like Achilles, with you always at my heels (M, 4000 words): written for Haladriel Week '24. A little moment after the Tirharad battle and before the volcano.

I have loved flowers that fade (M, 1700 words): they deserved to have at least one nice time in Eregion before she found out who he was!

Weighed Against Our Future (T, 1800 words): A delirious (or is he?) Halbrand on the road to Eregion.

Shine (T, 3300 words) and its sequel Lady of the Seas (E, 3700 words): Halbrand makes Galadriel's armour on Númenor.

Silver Queen (M, 3600 words): my first 'what if Celebrían was Sauron's daughter?' story, sort of a Haladriel fic and sort of a fix-it for Celebrían.

Civil Twilight (M, 10k words, also Celeborn/Galadriel): for Haladriel Week '23. A 'what if Celebrían was Sauron's daughter?' and 'what if Galadriel finds her missing husband?' story combined.

The turn of the tide (T, 1700 words): For Haladriel Week '23. In the Fourth Age after travelling back to Valinor, Galadriel still feels called to the sea.

Though I sang in my chains like the sea (T, 3000 words): For Haladriel Week '23. They were on that ep2 raft for a while; so this is a gapfiller of them getting to know each other better. Or not.

Blood Sugar (M, 7000 words): the only time I've ever done a modern AU, and even then it doesn't really count because he's still literal Sauron in it. Anyway: Glasgow, professional disillusionment, and difficult relationships with your history.

Ficlets under 1000 words

You built a nest inside my soul, you rest your head on leaves of gold (M, 800 words); Numenor alleyway smut.

How shall summer's honey breath hold out (M, 600 words): and why shouldn't Galadriel get to command an army and have a nice time with the enemy general while heavily pregnant.

Gilded (G, 550 words): another 'what if she said yes on the raft' fic

Not for all my little words (T, 775 words) s1 ep8, Elrond-POV on Galadriel and her weird new friend in Eregion.

Miscellaneous fics:

Half-Maia Celebrían short fics: Suo Gân (G, 1000 words), Arda Sahta (G, 1100 words), As Little Might Be Thought (T, 2600 words). All these are Galadriel/Celeborn (and the last one is also Celebrían/Elrond) and Sauron isn't really in them, but they're all about the impact of that being his child.

To hold all the promise of blue-velvet dark (T, 1700 words) - another 'what if Sauron impersonates Galadriel?' fic, this time featuring baby half-Maia Amroth.

Silmarillion rather than TROP: As certain dark things are loved (M, 8000 words, also Galadriel/Celeborn, also Galadriel/Celeborn/Sauron), for @softlighter for the Sufficiently Advanced '24 exchange. Annatar in 2nd Age Ost-in-Edhil.

[hanzajesthanza]

i think it would be really funny if regis had a kind of fucked-up haircut

“he could save everyone except himself” but like with regard to the barbery, and not the surgery. kind of like when chefs don’t cook very well for themselves. or when fashion designers wear sweatpants all day.

but moreover. i think the aesthetic effects of a bad haircut would help to dampen his natural lugosian allure and good looks. to reduce any potential suspicions

[charlotte-of-wales]

Queen Mary attends a State Banquet on the first day of the two day state visit by the Icelandic President to Denmark, at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen | October 8, 2024

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

What’s your prediction for the second slice of the shit sandwich?

Something involving the Waleses or Edinburghs. I lean towards it being the Waleses, since the Edinburghs were the second slice last time (the 2023 shit sandwhich, which confirmed Archie and Lili were using Prince/Princess titles) but since they're keeping lower profiles, it may be the Edinburghs again.

I think it may be one of these:

A new royal patronage for Kate from The King, probably something sentimental to Charles or one that used to be Her Late Majesty's. I'm on the fence about it being cancer-related...I feel like it could go artsy.

A declaration from Charles about William and Kate having authority to issue royal warrants. The right for the Prince of Wales to issue royal warrants isn't automatic. He has to be given permission by the monarch. It's assumed that William and Kate will someday be granted this ability, but Charles hasn't announced it yet. I do feel like maybe Charles would grant Anne that authority too, in recognition of her work as The Princess Royal (and that would actually be pretty big news).

Announcement of a state visit to UK in November and at the banquet, Kate, Anne, and Sophie have Charles's family order. The BRF traditionally receives a state visit in October or November each year. Since Charles is traveling in October, if there's a state visit in the autumn, it will probably be November. (November state visits are typically announced towards the end of September.)

A state thing happening while Charles is down under that requires the Counsellors of State, which William and Edward would do together because it can't be avoided or delayed till Charles returns. (If Counsellors of State are called while the monarch is away, they need two Counsellors to attend the matter.)

And it's very tinhatty (like 3%), but something involving a Sussex loss - maybe their titles get taken, maybe something with the bullying/staff reports, the lawsuits collapse, or some other kind of exposure that cancels them in a way we haven't seen yet. I don't usually give tarot and astrology a lot of weight, but when different readers in different circles on different platforms are seeing the same thing, I do consider that something to pay attention and right now, a lot of people are saying October/November looks very problematic for the Sussexes.

[runnning-outof-time]

More Than Charm | Tommy Shelby x Reader

Request: no - part two of Actions Speak Louder … inspired by a comment from @holacia3

Pairing: Tommy Shelby x Reader

Summary: Tommy’s got a lot of making up to do, both to (Y/N) and her parents. To anyone else, this would be a challenging feat….but Tommy Shelby isn’t anyone else.

Warnings: drinking, language

Word Count: 2493

A/N: I’m sorry it took so long for this second part to be written. If you’re still interested enough to see what happens next, thanks so much for sticking around. I’m not 100% sure it came out how I wanted it to, but I’m happy with it nonetheless. Enjoy! :)

A/N 2: oh and what a better time to post this than on the day they got married? - thank you to @eatdirt420 for suggesting I pick a day in between the two seasons that won…I hope this day is considered to be that!

I’D LOVE TO KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! - YOUR COMMENTS & REBLOGS HELP ME WRITE!

Comment/Message me if you’d like to be tagged in future stories similar to this one!

- December 12th, 1920 -

If you told (Y/N) that this day would finally come around, she probably would have laughed in your face.

Tommy proposed to her in October of 1913. They were planning to have their wedding in August of the next year. But no one had anticipated the fact that Tommy and his brothers would have been shipped out to fight a war in France just one month prior.

The wedding had to be postponed due to the conflict, and it stayed postponed for seven long years - both due to the war continuing longer than anyone could have imagined, and also because of the ‘mess’ that Tommy and the family business got themselves into just shortly after they returned from the Western Front in 1919.

(Y/N) thought it’d be better to wait, to allow their wedding to have the spotlight that she felt it deserved. But she’d by lying if she said that the prospect of her walking down the aisle got bleaker with every year that passed.

But today it finally happened. She finally walked down the aisle, took her fiancé’s hands, and vowed herself to him for the rest of her life. He, in return, vowed the same for her, and she and Tommy then walked back down the aisle as husband and wife.

Now it was time for the reception.

Tommy and (Y/N) decided to take a moment to themselves before going out and greeting all of the people who joined them on their special day.

“What’s wrong?” he asked her as he shut the door behind them, making sure they were alone in one of the rooms just of off the large banquet hall. He noticed that something had been eating at his wife since the ceremony was finished.

“Nothing,” she quickly responded, noticing instantly after she’d answered him that her haste had given her true feelings away.

“You’re picking at your nails, love,” he nodded at her hands, catching her in the act, “something’s bothering you. What is it?”

(Y/N) took a deep breath and let it out as a sigh. “My parents, Tommy,” she answered, her response only scratching the surface of what she wanted to say.

“What about ‘em?” he asked with furrowed brows.

“I’m worried what they’re thinking…how they’re taking this,” she divulged.

“Fuck what they’re thinking,” he was quick to brush it off, and he promptly earned a glare from his wife in response.

“Seriously? You can’t just say that,” she said, looking at him with wide eyes. Tommy stayed silent. (Y/N) turned from him with a huff, pressing the heels of her hands into her eyes in hopes to alleviate some of the stress and worry she was feeling. “You can be so crass sometimes, Thomas,” she sighed, shaking her head as she looked at the ground.

“I’ve got this covered, love,” he responded, moving to stand behind her.

“I’ve heard that before,” she remarked, snorting after she spoke.

“I’ve got it covered,” he assured her, wrapping his arms around her midriff so he could pull her flush against him.

“Please don’t mess this up,” she whispered as she placed her hands atop his forearms.

“I won’t,” he mumbled as he pressed his lips to her neck.

(Y/N) couldn’t help but lean into his touch, her eyes slowly closing as she got lost in the feeling of his lips pressed to her skin. “We’ve gotta get out there, Tommy,” she finally spoke after a few moments had passed.

“They’ll be fine for a few more minutes,” he disregarded her statement, continuing his ministrations.

“Tommy,” the repeating of his name came as a breath this time.

“Just wanna spend some time with me wife,” he mumbled before spinning her around so that he could kiss her lips.

The reception was in full swing now. Tommy and (Y/N) had been playing host, going around to all of the guests and thanking them for being part of their big day. (Y/N) was so happy to see Tommy back to acting like his old self. Usually his smiles and lighthearted behavior were reserved for her eyes only but today, while in front of family and friends, his guard had been completely lowered.

Her parents hadn’t yet made a scene, which (Y/N) was thankful for because they very well could have if they wanted to. They stood off to the side and watched with smiles as their daughter celebrated her wedding day. (Y/N) wasn’t sure if she should be relieved or worried that Tommy hadn’t gone over to them yet.

“Don’t look now, (Y/N),” (Y/N)’s sister, Josephine, started while looking over the younger woman’s shoulder, “but Tommy’s on his way over to mum.”

(Y/N) looked as soon as her sister finished speaking. Sure enough, Tommy was now talking to her mother. She held her breath as she watched the two conversate.

“What is he going to do?” she wondered aloud, frozen as she silently hoped that this wouldn’t be the time where the train got derailed.

The two talked for a moment longer before Tommy offered his hand to her. Time seemed to go slow as (Y/N) watched a smile form on her mother’s face before she accepted Tommy’s hand and allowed him to lead her to to the dance floor.

“He got her to dance,” Josephine pointed out, grabbing hold of her sister’s arm as a look of shock formed on her face, “no one gets mum to dance.”

“And it looks like she’s enjoying it,” (Y/N) remarked, feeling an immense relief wash over her as she caught the wide smile that was present on her mother’s face.

“Leave it up to Tommy Shelby, right?” Josephine grinned as she looked over at her sister.

(Y/N) couldn’t help but blush. She tried to play it off, but the fact that Josie’s grin grew made it obvious that she had caught her initial reaction. “Yeah,” she conceded with a slight nod before adding, “but mum’s the easier of the two to convince. I’m interested to see what he’s got planned for dad.”

The evening had gone as swimmingly as it could have. There were many laughs and smiles, and the love could practically be felt in the room.

The dance seemed to do the trick: (Y/N)’s mother had decided to put her feelings of hesitance in the past and accepted Tommy as her son-in-law. Her only qualm now was that the two hadn’t gotten married sooner.

Much like (Y/N) predicted though, her father was going to be a harder person to sway. He stayed at the table for most of the evening, watching the event happen around him. She tried to get him involved a few times, but to no avail. The only time he stepped away from his seat was for the father-daughter dance.

“Is your father still here?” Tommy asked (Y/N) as the evening was drawing to a close.

“Let me see…” she trailed off, peering around his shoulder to find the table her parents had been sitting at, “he is,” she affirmed when she found him in the same seat he’d been occupying all evening. “Why do you ask?” she couldn’t help but question the reasoning behind his concern.

“I’ve not gotten to talk to him yet,” he answered.

“He’s not going to be as easy to sway as my mother was,” (Y/N) warned.

“Doesn’t mean I can’t try, eh?” he cracked a grin. (Y/N) couldn’t help but smile at his determination.

“Please don’t make things worse,” she said before he could leave her side.

“I won’t,” he assured her, leaning in and pressing his lips to her forehead before he turned and walked away from her.

“(Y/N)!” she then heard from behind her. She turned to find Ada approaching her with Freddie in tow. There went the plan of watching Tommy try to smooth-talk her father. “I’ve been looking for you,” the Shelby woman stated as she pulled her new sister-in-law into a hug.

“You’ve found me,” (Y/N) smiled once the two ladies pulled away. She made sure to also acknowledge Freddie, who sent a smile back.

“I wanted to let you know that we’re leaving. It’s getting late and we don’t want to keep Karl’s sitter for too long,” Ada informed her.

“Oh that’s fine. Thank you both for coming,” (Y/N) smiled.

“It was absolutely lovely! We’re thrilled to have you as part of the family now,” Ada said with a smile before asking, “would you happen to know where my brother has run off to?”

“He trying to have a word with my father,” (Y/N) answered, watching as Ada’s eyes widened slightly.

“Best of luck with that,” she stated, “but knowing Tommy, he’ll be able to settle the score.”

“I can hope,” (Y/N) smiled softly, hoping it hid her true emotions. “Thanks again for coming tonight.”

“We wouldn’t have missed it for anything,” Ada smiled before pulling the other woman into one last hug.

By the time the Thornes had left her side, (Y/N) turned again to find Tommy sitting at the same table as her father. They were talking, and by the looks of it, her father seemed to actually be interested in the conversation. (Y/N) felt a smile creep onto her lips as they both lifted their glasses in unison for a drink.

“Whiskey…it sure does help men forget their differences,” the voice of her mother came from beside her, making (Y/N) jump at the sudden company.

“Mum,” she couldn’t help but gasp, her reaction making the other woman laugh. She shook her head and let out a sigh, her smile returning as her mother pulled her into her side. “Tommy really brought whiskey over for him?” she asked.

“He did,” her mum answered with a nod, “was really polite in asking if he could talk with him privately.”

“I can only imagine what they’re talking about,” (Y/N) stated, silently hoping that whatever it was wouldn’t ruin their chances at married life before it even began.

“Oh horses and betting, I’m sure,” her mother threw out a few ideas. “So long as he doesn’t coax him down to Watery Lane, we’ll be grand,” she then added in a nonchalant manner.

(Y/N)’s eyes widened as they found her mother’s. She’d never explicitly told her about the business that Tommy and his family ran. Right now she felt like a child who’d been caught doing something she wasn’t supposed to. That was why the smile that formed on her mother’s face made confusion wash over her. Why is she smiling? she couldn’t help but think to herself.

“The Shelby name is spoken all around Small Heath, darling. It’s hard not to know about the business they’re involved in,” her mother explained her reaction, making her daughter immediately go into panic mode.

“You’re not upset about that, are you?” (Y/N) asked in a weary tone.

“I’m not,” the older woman started, shaking her head softly, “you’ve been with him for a long time now, and he’s not once shown that he wants to be anywhere other than by your side. He’s a good man to you, (Y/N), anyone can see that. I’m happy that he’s the one you married because I know that you’ll be safe with him.”

“I’m so happy to hear that you think that, mum,” (Y/N) said with a wide smile. She couldn’t help but wrap her arms around the older woman and hug her tightly. All of the worries she was harboring had now vanished.

“You’re going to have a lovely life with him,” her mother whispered as she held her daughter tighter.

“I’m not sure what you did, but you made them love you, Tommy,” (Y/N) said as she worked on making sure all of her jewelry was removed.

“You should have trusted me,” he responded, standing from the bed after he’d taken his shoes off. He then moved over to where she was standing so that he could wrap his arms around her waist from behind.

“I should have,” (Y/N) mumbled as she tried to fight the smile that was threatening to form on her face.

“What was that?” Tommy asked as he lifted his chin from her shoulder so that he could look her in the eyes through the mirror. His eyes were wide now and there was a grin teetering on his lips also. He definitely caught what she said…he just wanted to hear it again.

“Oh nothing…” (Y/N) trailed off, playing coy as she bit on her bottom lip.

“Did you just say that I was right?” he tried to coax the answer out of her.

“I said nothing,” (Y/N) held steadfast, although her grin was peeking through despite her attempts to keep it hidden.

“Fine…I’ll just have to use another means of getting it out of you,” Tommy decided, not giving her a moment to process what he said before he was dragging her backwards and - gently - pushing her onto the bed. “What was it you said, love?” he questioned between the kisses he was peppering all over her face, his hands finding the sensitive spots on her sides.

“Tommy!” she shrieked, trying so hard to catch her breath through her giggles. Despite her attempts to either stop his hands or take hold of his face, Tommy continued his barrage of kisses and tickles. “I should have trusted you!”

“What was that?” he stopped all at once, holding himself above her as their eyes met.

“I should have trusted you,” (Y/N) repeated herself once she caught her breath. She took hold of his cheeks with both of her hands and searched his eyes for a moment before adding, “I must’ve forgotten how much of a charmer you are.” She couldn’t help but smile as she watched a grin crack through his composure. If only she could have photographed this moment or found a way to freeze time.

“I managed to keep you for all these years somehow, didn’t I?” he countered, his grin growing, “that wasn’t because of luck alone.”

“I think it was more than your charm that made me stay, Tommy,” she admitted, her smile widening.

“Oh yeah?” his question sounded like he was challenging her.

“Yeah,” her quick response told him what she was up for the challenge.

“Wanna tell me all of those other reasons?” he asked then, one of his eyebrows raising as he spoke.

“Gladly,” (Y/N)’s smile grew more, if that was even possible. Her eyes then flitted down to his lips before returning to his again. “I think I’ll start with your kisses,” she stated, leaving him with no time to respond before she pulled his lips down to match hers in a passionate kiss.

Tagged: @mystcldydrms @the-anxious-youth @cloudofdisney @look-at-the-soul @elenavampire21 @mrsalwayswrite @julkaamazing @evita-shelby @lilyrachelcassidy @notyour-valentine @shelbydelrey @theshelbyslimited @peakyswritings @just-a-blackhole @watercolorskyy @strayrockette @peakyduchesss @alexxavicry @captivatedbycillianmurphy @yummycastiel @dark-academia-slut @tommystargirl @emotionalcadaver @stevie75 @lyarr24 @signorellisantichrist @zablife @anotherblinder @cillmequick @dandelionprints @letal-y-poetica @gypsy-girl-08 @insanitybyanothername @depxiety @raincoffeeandfandoms @dragons-are-my-favorite @acewritesfics @forgottenpeakywriter @cljordan-imperium @brummiereader @areyenotfondofmelobster @everythingelseisextra @little-diable @thomashelbyswife @shaddixlife

MASTERLIST

[tiaramania]

TIARA ALERT: Princess Benedikte of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg wore the SWB Fringe Tiara for the banquet during the state visit from Iceland at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark on 8 October 2024.

[royaltysimblr]

Ophelia of Lausanne, Queen of Windenburg (1620-1673) - Part 9 - Exile & Restoration

Ophelia remained in Brichester for two months following her husband’s execution. Parliament was infuriated with Ophelia’s escape while royalists declared her a heroine. Ophelia had snuck the Crown Jewels and other valuable jewelry with her to Brichester which she stored in her vault at the Bank of Brichester. After two months, Ophelia decided to return to her native Magnolia as a guest of her cousin, King Louis XI. Ophelia was given apartments at the Palace of Blois and the Chateau de Vincenau. Ophelia established her court-in-exile at the Chateau de Vincenau which became a center for Windenburgian politics. Hundreds of Windenburgian courtiers resided at the Chateau de Vincenau with Ophelia, including Lady Pauline Charleston and Cecelia Bentwick. Ophelia’s lady-in-waiting and confidante, Lady Henrietta Burgley died at the Chateau de Vincenau on January 19th, 1659. The death of Burghley deeply saddened Ophelia who had regarded her as a sister. Ophelia kept a lock of Henrietta’s hair in a pendant she wore for the rest of her life.

Ophelia’s children took up residence with her at Chateau de Vincenau. Ophelia devoted her time to the education and upbringing of her younger children, Prince George and Princess Sophie. Ophelia attempted to raise her son George as  Jacoban, but this was immediately stopped by Prince James. However, he permitted his sister, Princess Sophie to be raised as a Jacoban. Ophelia was able to recreate court life in Windenburg at the Chateau de Vincenau, observing the same ceremonies as she did five years ago. During this time, Ophelia developed close relationships with her daughters-in-law, Caroline and Augusta. Ophelia particularly doted on Augusta’s daughter, Princess Matilda who was raised alongside George and Sophie. 

From 1658 onward, Windenburg was thrown into chaos. Parliament had dealt with a massive revolt from the Isle and Victoria and peasant revolts across the country. Windenburg had been heavily sanctioned during the years in which Parliament controlled the country, causing the economy to slip into despair.  After 4 tumultuous years and the death of the Duke of Dartmouth, a newly formed Parliament offered the throne to Ophelia’s son, Prince James. James sailed to Victoria on September 18th, 1662, and landed in Dunkeld. James accepted the throne of Victoria with the nobility pledging their loyalty to the King. James traveled to Windenburg along with the Victorian army and received the Crown of Windenburg on October 1st, 1662. James promised to uphold and cooperate with the new reforms Parliament made in September of 1662. This new parliament was largely Royalist, Peteran, and Liberal. One of the new reforms they had adopted a month prior included Freedom of Religion, finally ending the Religious Wars in Windenburg. 

With the accession of James VI, Ophelia, and her court-in-exile returned to Windenburg. Ophelia returned to Windenburg on October 28th, 1662, expecting a warm welcome at court. Ophelia found Windenburg to be hardly different and still felt like an outsider after 30 years. Ophelia did not attend the coronation of her son but hosted a large banquet in his honor at Hertford Castle. Ophelia was given an allowance of 160,000 pounds a year along with the use of any royal residence. Ophelia chose Hertford Castle and Stonesby Hall as her dowager residences. Ophelia lived a relatively quiet life in Windenburg, only attending official functions at court. Ophelia acquired Devonshire Abbey and Howard Hall in 1664 which she refurbished for personal use. Ophelia often invited her children and the rest of the court to Howard Hall in the autumn for hunting.

[twister-sister]

With October coming around the corner, is Halloween celebrated in JK au? If so, who gets the most into it? I see JK wearing the best costume of Jack Skellington~ P.S. Love your art and aus! hope you have a great day/night wherever you live at!

"If I am Jack, will you be my Sally ?" - JK

Yes!, Halloween is celebrated through the entire month of October each sector hosts an array of festivities Week 1 - Home, sector, business decorating, and setting up for the month.

Week 2 - Spooky Halloween-themed music festival and carnival, singers from all around including other dimensions perform 💎 and ❤️ territory

Week 3 - Terrifying haunted rides, houses, walk-throughs, and horror movies/slasher films projected in a stadium, all-night swimming, and bonfire by Songbird Lake ♣️ and ♠️ territory

Week 4 - Quiet hay rides through the autumn landscape, animated and not-so-scary films, such as Scary Godmother projected on the side of Clover castle, campfire with spooky stories and s'mores 🍀 territory

Week 5 - A week-long banquet in the center of Jester Square all are welcome to attend and camp in the fairground, on the day of Halloween there is trick-or-treating and a costume ball at Jk's Manor, his children are required to participate in, much to Hearts dismay 🎭👑 territory

Awww thank you so much!! >//w//<!! I'm so glad you enjoy them and my art!! <3 <3!!

[fisheito]

Crimson Phantom: the one that gfkion got me

Flashback to my old yakutier list: in the top tier, you'll notice that one of these is not like the others:

SO WHAT IS IT DOING THERE????????

Perhaps the reason Crimson Phantom R5 ranks so high is cuz of the PERSONAL HISTORY i got with it. The straw that broke the fish's back? the last drop of water that makes the cup run over and spill onto my socks MOST iRRITATINGLY?Hm. Maybe. Prepare yourself for the longest post yet:

Let me give you a timeline...

May 2022: start playing nuca during Mystical Banquet. First SSR is Endless Banquet Garu. I am intrigued by his musculature and adorable puppy eyes. July 2022: Idol Fest. I only care about Olivine. Captain Oli is the one SSR i get, and i am exceedingly happy. October 2022: Eerie Escapade. I pull for Garu, but get 3 Yakumos. I am bitter and ignore him entirely. November 2022: I don't have many SSRs, so I consider building my 2-star vampire yaku. This would involve unlocking his rooms for the stat boost. I ask Friend A, who also plays nuca, what his rooms are like. Friend A says "it was roleplay cringe but free' I respond, "i expected as much" and do not build up vampire yaku. December 2022: I get Friend B to start playing nuca. Since we live together, it is very easy to spark impromptu , impassioned nuca discussions in the middle of the kitchen. February 2023: Friend B discovers the main menu- Past Events and Galleria, most notably. Their eyes sparkle as they look thru the events they missed. "When did you start playing?" they ask. "Since THIS event." i say, pointing to the Mystical Banquet banner. "Can I see who you have?" I give them my phone. They express mild awe as they scroll. We continue life as usual. March 2023: Friend B gets Spring Chaos Edmond and i am JEALOUS. I say so- regularly and loudly. During one such griping session, this occurs:

Me: you JUST started playing . you cannoT be destroying me in the rolls like this!!! i'm getting NOTHING!! Friend: but you have so many units that I don't! That I didn't even have a chance to get!!! Me: none of them are Beautiful Bride Edmond??!!! Friend: BUT YOU HAVE VAMPIRE YAKUMO Me: ?????????? so??? Friend: GOD HE'S SO BEAUTIFUL AND I'M SO SAD I MISSED HIM Me: you can have him. he's not doing anything over here. i wanted garu!! Friend: YOU HAVEN'T EVEN UNLOCKED HIS ROOMS? THAT'S NOT FAIR. GIVE HIM TO ME. I'LL TREAT HIM RIGHT Me: i wish i could dude i wish i could

Please imagine the utmost confusion on my face the moment my friend equated Bride Edmond's beauty to Vampire Yakumo's.

Because,, from the moment I started nuca, I had zero interest in yakumo's general aesthetic. I was long soured off the vibes due to an extensive history of dating sims shoving a Certain Guy into my face:

"Certain Guy AKA 1st potential love interest is imperious red/black guy who's also kinda the True Ending so we're only giving you the illusion of free will and you will be disappointed by the lack of care we give to other routes compared to this guy. You wanted a character that wasn't him? HAHAHA nah that nobody dies in a ditch offscreen. You were SUPPOSED to fall in love with the 1st guy we showed you and find his attitude problems attractive for the rest of your blissfully coupled life." (The freshest wound at the time was Nobunaga from that Specific branch of the ike series)

Butbutbut!! Yakumo is not imperious??? He's nothing like what you're describing??

Yes, dear reader, your assessment is fair. UNfORtUNATeLY, I'm a shallow ho and just the LOOK of his redblack skeleton embroidery was enough to repel me. The only thing that kept Yakumo in the Neutral zone was that his story self was Wibbly.

Looking at VAMPIRE yakumo, however... This was not wibbly. Here, with his hair slicked back and his torso seemingly widened and his generic bishonen-vampire-halloween-cosplay ...... it irked me. I did not like it. This look was everything I hated about those redblack domineering types haunting my past. The one interesting thing about yakumo (his wibble. his personality subversion of the aggro trope) and they GOT RID OF IT? Nah. I'm not into it. I refuse it out of principle.

I was steadfast in my dismissal of vampyaku for months.. But that was because I played alone- without outside influence.

Then that March conversation with Friend B happened.

SUDDENLY, SOMEONE introduces the POSSIBILITY that YAKUMO in THIS form can be attractive? Huh? Seriously? People think that?Legitimately never occurred to me. Unfortunately, my friend's words are in my head now.

During that convo (a convo which, unbeknownst to me, caused the first cracks in the healthy moderation i held for this game), i jokingly offered to unlock vampire yaku's rooms so my friend could watch them. A peace offering. "PLEASE!!!!!", they yelled,, with effusive sincerity.

Ah... well now I had to commit...

Determined to give my friend a Nice Thing, I threw excess knives at yakumo in my spare time. "I might as well unlock these rooms, and see how bland they are, and maybe sorta achieve vindication when I show them to my friend and they find out how Not Worth It vampire yakumo is compared to bride edmond" (I am fueled by spite and pettiness.)

thus, with time... ROOM 1 UNLOCKED!

Yakumo is wallowing again. Nothing new. He's handling the new cooking duties well, though. Good for him! Eiden is perceptive and wonderful, as usual... ah, eiden, beloved eiden.....i adore him and all the Sense he brings to these traumatised clan members ☺ Oop, there they go! initiating the cliche roleplay! Biting. Blood. Yep. Guess we're doing this.

AND NOW WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT ROOM 2

I was so self-satisfied when i unlocked R2. I mean, i wasn't going to show my friend until i unlocked EVERYTHING, but so far? From what I saw? this ain't it. this is SAD. this is... so very unsexy.

the only thing anchoring me to the present while watching this room was eiden's cheeky self. As Friend A remarked long ago, this was indeed cringe roleplay (but eiden is free).

I'm not very adept at voice reading/recognition, but i still felt something was up with yaku's voice. Meaning, it was different. he was REALLY laying it on heavy... It being the Role? Where was his tremulous soft voice? Naaaaaah, here in R2 we got yaku DROPPING octaves like they're on fire and affecting a drawl that...i think... is supposed to add to the seductive dangerous mood? i think? i'm really not good at parsing the horny from the Not fjkdrhgdu

with every extended vowel leaking thru yaku's fangs MY ANTI-NOBUNGA DEFENSES ARE BRISTLING yaku is REALLY playing it [Count Drakumo] up and he is NOT himself and, wait, he's spiralling? ooohhhhhh ok this is not good this is not fun he is not having fun

yes ok we've been over this my boner is dead killed by sadness that's just me not everybody is like me and i should let ppl like what they like MOVING ON

ROOM 3: OOOh Girl How they gonna react after THAT disastrous scene Woah!

Yakumo, angry???? Standoffish???? REfusing to be near Eiden? Interesting.... I mean. No! Not interesting! There's nothing interesting about vampire yakumo! Cliche as hell!!! Conventionally decent-lookin whatever-man is growling and hiding his face in a shadowy corner while saying things like "oh i'm a horrible monster .who could truly love me?!" and "stay away!! i'll only hurt you!!!"

Eiden: starts spouting truths about how the perception of "bad" and "undesirable" traits don't negate an entire person's positive traits and that someone's value can't be determined by such rigid thinking

Me: dammit eiden. stop making sense. i'm trying to hold a grudge here .............i'm starting to get hungry...

ROOM 4: OOPS I LOVE EIDEN AGAIN

I LOVE YOU EIDEN AND READING THIS ROOM MADE ME LOVE YOU EVEN MORE yakumo is, once again, spiralling in his self-hatred. i, on the other side of the screen, am getting weary. tbh, if you asked me to react to yakumo in real time, i would not know how to behave appropriately. i probably would have dismissed his concerns in some way (empty reassurances or bored ignoring).

but eiden??? ebeatutiiful emotionally UNconstipated FULL OF EMPATHY FIBRE eiden? candid... communicative... accepting yet not encouraging the dark thought patterns. . a self-aware king...

so when eiden gets in front of that mirror to demonstrate the self-talk "training":

I AM SO ENDEARED AND IM LO IBVE UHJIJM....

When Eiden gives yaku a chance to try, poor snakey doesn't know what to say. So Eiden whispers all these nice words and affirmations while standing behind yaku, expecting him to repeat them outloud THEN OF COURSE THE SILLY GUY ESCALATES TO HORNY AND I HAVE TO 🤣🤣🤣

ok, i'll begrudgingly admit... pretty cute interaction... and funny... if there's one way to win me over it's The Funny... how dare. how dare this room make me smile. I'm having a little giggle. Over a Yakumo room. THANKS eiden. For injecting humour into anything and making everything seem more tolerable...

After the practice run, Yaku ends up spilling his actual fears about his dual natures... but eiden insists that he can handle both.

yaku: if i think these dark thoughts does that make me a bad person eiden: well we all have layers n stuff so go wild yaku: if. if i. wanna lock u away all for myself and gnaw on your bones forever and keep u attached to my skin like an anglerfish absorbs mates into their flesh. will u hate me??? eiden: girl let your freak flag fly. i can take u ;););)

OKAY. SO MAYBE I CAN SORT OF SEE THE POTENTIAL FOR *NOT-AS-SAD* HORNY. THIS IS QUITE NICE (i comment mildly, gesturing to the emotional catharsis and deepening your understanding of another person). Now that yaku is emboldened in uh, being himself? all versions of himself? let's see how boinking is gonna go. hopefully it will be quite the departure from R2's struggle hours...

FUFIOKIN. ROOM 5: BANE OF MY EXISTENCE

The FIRST thing that strikes me when the room starts is

EIDEN YOU ARE SO HOT WHAT TH BRWOIJAOIEWFSKAESFKJLFEA?

INIPPL?

EIDEN'S HANDS? I'M BITING THEM? LET ME BITE THEM??? Yeah so i'm just staring at eiden displayed proudly in the mirror and a bird could probably land in my mouth with how it was hanging open, thinking, "yall know how to lewd your protagonist, nuca.... respect....." i'm distracted, but i need to move the room along so

.? ⚠! (ALERT NOISE) (ping!) the only yakumo room i've unlocked at this point is the OG SSR/Story H. i may have seen idol r2, too. so my current image of yakumo at this point is: -wet -crying -subby little baby

therefore, him saying he's GOING TO TEASE EIDEN causes my brow to upturn. 🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨 really? really, yakumo? YOU? are you even capable of doing that? can you do more than one thing [be wet baby]? i doubt it. these games always choose one niche for a character and stick to it... you caNNOT drift into switchery. try it i dare u (<- famously lesser-known last words)

eiden, in line with "i can take all of you", responds that he likes both. and btw, this ain't one-sided. he warns that he's about to weaponise bottoming again. if yakumo thinks he can just lead eiden around, lolollololo l good luck. my boy's gonna squeeze him dry (seriously. i have zero faith in yakumo's ability to stay in control of any situation)

OK! so! they're fukin *mundane hand gesture. rollin it along*

yakumo slows his roll and is all, actually, part of the fun is looking at you confused and needy :3 so he's going at a super lax pace and adjusting his dick angle and some other tactical penis feint that's edging eiden into horny frustration

as if i'm cheering on my fave racehorse, i start YELLING when eiden ~~snatches back the reins~~~~

WEAPONISE! 👏THAT!! 👏BOTTOM!!!!!!!👏🏭🎬ATTABOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!📣📣📣🔊📢🔊🎖🥳📣🔊📢

wait what ........HOW HAS HE NOT LOST IT? if eiden went off on me like that, uhhhhhhhhhhh hahahaha rest in pesis i'm losing immediately but... crybaby.... is holding it together? in fact, he somehow TAKES CONTROL AGAIN??????? THET F ????

idk guess i'm shocked with processing another side of yakumo that i didn't expect,, i avoided yakumo because his look served potential for "2000s toxic seme" energy. but i tolerated him because his ACTUAL personality was NOT That. yet... now he's showing that exact domineery junk and i'm ..ok with it? Is it specifically because i've only seen him be pathetic in every other room?!

i'm just gonna...a. take a moment here to... maybe sort of understand the predicament i'm in along with my growing . something. admiration? for yakumo. uhhh.... hmmmm..........

yeah ok whatever people can be freaks about nipples i guess

SHIT I FORGOT HE HAS COLD HANDS . SHIT. I FORGOT I LIKE COLD HANDS SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'M INTO THAT?

NOT THE NECK BITING AGAIN AHAHAHAHAAHHAHHA FOR REAL?????? VAMPIRE COSPLAY SERIOUS????? (<- my voice has gone an octave higher as i start panic laughing)

i don't know why i didn't expect that here. do i just not think ahead? it's stupid count drakumo. of course he's gonna suck blood. at least twice. maybe the rest of you saw it coming, and rolle dyour eyes. ahahaha, how very trite. how very standard.

did the active shattering of my preconceived yakumo.png weaken me THAT much? was i sudddenly swept up into the revelation thata game was Finally going beyond the yaoi dichotomy? to make someone subby AND dommy? Was i SO swept up that the "cringe vampire roleplay" bypassed my eyerolling sensor?!?!?!

i've got a single nervous bead of sweat making its way down my back and it's cuz of the very simple combo of hole/temperature/neck

so while i'm taking another impromptu wary pause , stewing at how DEVASTATED i may or may not be idk whatever it's not a big deal that the neck bite isn't shown on screen

LOGIC: that makes sense. animating and drawing that separate pose in this setup would be way too much work for 2 sentences. HORNY: TEAR INTO HIM. SUCK HIM DRY. LET ME

SEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

yeah for real. I'M feeling attacked right now. eiden trying his best not to splort from the three-pronged feel-up (struggling like an amorous salmon up a waterfall) when suDNDEnly

......?

*RECORD SCRATCH* ?!?!?!?!?!??!?????!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!???!!!!!??????????????????????? ?????!?!?!?!?????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?????E?!?FKFOO>>>>?VFF??A""????":??"??????!?!!??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

👆

WHAT WAS THAT?

*runs into the adjacent room like it's a reality tv privacy booth* *slams the door and stares incredulously at the camcorder* *points toward the room i just left*

IS THAT ALLOWED?

Is Yakumo legally allowed to say "fuck"?????

*falls into a hushed and baffled whisper* i don't have enough Japanese comprehension to parse exactly what yakumo said oh god i wish i had the comprehension is this a translator liberty? is it real? because if the original speech was actually more reserved but the translators were like "bro that ain't sexy. just write FUCK"?? i guess that wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility? but if yakumo legitimately said "fuck" ...... AND dropped the honorific from eiden's name?! .......... huh! ohhhhhhhh *ruffles my hair out of confusion* did he really say that? i mean ok he's a grown ass snan i shouldnt ' be scandalised like i hear d an infant say FUCK as its first word , 11 months out of the womb ....... *deep breath* ok. don't dwell on it. gotta return to the task at hand. *steadfastly turns the doorknob and returns to my previous location*

so eiden looks like what i feel right now (in the key of: !?!?!?) thankfully the surprise doesn't last long in the face of his shamelessness (blessed be eito), so he tries to repeat after yakumo but yakumo's drilling him so hard that brain mysgh muysh can't really... speak..prororperly

SUHUT THE FUCCK UP YAKUMO I'VE NEVER BEEN SO OFFENDED BY SUCH A SHORT SENTENCE GO AWAY WITH YOUR THIRTY SHADES OF COUNT DOMKUMO PARADING IN HERE THINKIN YOU CAN DISH OUT ORDERS LIKE THSI WHEN YOU'R E NORMALLY A SOBBING MESS BY NOW=====----

*pinches in between my brows* uueugh...... eiden doesn't get to finish his task but they go at it until the screen goes white with that powerful SPLOOSH we all know and love

and yakumo FINALLY breaks character getting juiced released a bit of his control i guess we hear an "uhu" at last. he uses his pathetic wibble to ask eiden for more because he's still hard. of course he is...... mans is never done.......dick ouroboros with the way he never ends.......

BUT THEN EIDEN PULLS A FACE THAT GRABS MY ENTIRE BRAIN AND FLOODS ME WITH SO MUCH AFFECTION

I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY JUST LOOK AT HIM SLUTTY BLEP i was having an out-of-body experience i was suddenly going over every BL i've ever played and how none of the protags were ever this unabashedly INTO IT (of course we are only here because we build upon the foundations of our gay ancestors THANK YOU GAYASS SPIRITS OF YORE , ) BUT! i'm experiencing a grand realisation of how far we've come and how eiden being a slutty versatile dweeb enriches my life to untold measures and his stupid cute little ;P thirsty look is going to sustain me for years and also i love it so much i'm going to screenshot it and keep it in my gallery just so i can look at it whenever i think about homophobia existing ever . i love u eiden get that dick and hole forever💖

now that yakumo is all vulnerable and Himself and freed from his edgy persona , he's just pounding into eiden liek 🥺 i'm just a normal snokai right? 🥺😥 so it's ok to act the way i truly want to❓ you'll accept all of me? 😖 i'm not a horrible irredeemable monster ?? 😧💦 you still want me? here?? with you???🥺🥺🥺 i'm allowed to make you feel good??😢?😭?😥 of course eiden affirms all this with a big moany yes (in surprisingly eloquent words despite the state of his anus)

and to top it all off, the room provides a full circle of plot by letting eiden complete his failed "repeat after me" task from before..- with a horny addendum about how he can't get enough of yakumo's dirty expressions, because of course our boy has to get the last word.

ahhh,,, like an epic movie,, it all comes together. loose ends tied and fucklines affirmed. tasks fulfilled; pervert's journey complete;; we, the audience, can go home with satisfied closure.

after-credits sceNe: when the post-nut clarity hits yakuei, i am brick'd with overwhelming concern about eiden's leg. how has it NOT cramped this entire time, being held up like that.? what was that? at least 15 minutes?! of lifting up one leg and spreading it so wide? damn, boy, is ya potassium that powerful? no calf cramps? nothing? eiden your sexual athleticism is unrivalled. i am in awe.

Note!

When i first watched these rooms, I didn't have headphones. Months later, i finally got to watch the scenes WITH SOUND. and i was so very pleased to hear that yakumo's voice in R5 was a nice middle ground between his suuuuper drawly heavy cosplay mode R2 angstvoice,, and his regular uhuu soft voice. it's definitely more himself, but with the added confidence of roleplaying ehuehue so it's just nice!! to hear him being more secure in himself!! and enjoying the situation!! but also teasing eiden and enjoying the power plays?? yay! near the end he returns almost fully to his regular voice due to , you know, whiny pleady 🥺 feels-too-good things afoot and that just .... upped the affection for me.... ugh... so he CAN do both......

in future watches, i eventually take the time to look at yakumo's face instead of eiden's. . .

and i do NOT like where my subsequent thoughts go

oh no he's hot.......................

WE RETURN TO REALITY. IT IS SOME TIME BETWEEN MARCH AND MAY (2023). I HAVE AT LAST UNLOCKED ALL OF CP YAKUMO'S ROOMS. I AM IN MY ROOM AND I AM SHOOKETHED. Shortly, I seek out Friend B, the catalyst for this train of horror and realisation. I tell them the task is done. Eventually, i give them my phone so they can watch their beloved vampire yakumo rooms. I couldn't even hand it over with the derisive scoff I THOUGHT I would show. the look of absolute dismissal that used to appear whenever someone mentioned crimson phantom yakumo. No, i handed it over with thinly concealed amusement . perhaps even excitement, that someone would soon share in something that so pleasantly surprised me. A part of me wished for them to return my phone with a disappointed "tch". to tell me that, oh, that wasn't very good after all. you were right. i could have missed out on vampire yakumo and lost nothing. Unfortunately, they returned my phone later that evening . their eyes glittered with the glee of someone whose hopes were beautifully fulfilled. "OH MY FUCKING GOD I KNEW it was gonna be amazing!", they bubbled. "Yeah." is all i could say... . I spend the following weeks slowly falling victim to yakumo's charms. By June, I am putting up posters of him all over my room while talking about how much i hate him.

SUMMARY: like nuca itself, it started as a joke and now the quences have conned. i'm suffering the cussions, reperfully. eiden did NOT help. he was beautiful and amazing from every angle and that added to the positive associations with these rooms,, and by extension, yakumo. and now? now i hate this snakeboy for what's he's done to me. i'm p sure he's actively moving the goalposts on my preferences as i type. i'm scared. he has too much power . that this mushy noodle would subvert tropes by following the old kabedon-seme script then DO IT AGAIN by hitting me with the SUBVERT REVERSE BEAM #2 and now i dream about railing him under the moonlight.

it was all downhill from that accursed roleplay. eiden's a gayteway drug. he fkoin got me. and now yakumo's got me too