#austria pink clock

[the-heaminator]

Ludwig was very very bored, understandably so, England and his brother were discussing something that he really did try to focus on, but seemed to be wholly unable to, his head felt full of cotton wool as per the usual and even as he was sitting in front of the fire with a book he felt something was missing. England had brought Australia, New Zealand and Canada along (He assumed Canada was only there to supervise the younger ones) and they were all currently playing in the snow, he heard the shrieks of childlike pleasure coming from Jack's very strong vocal chords as he was probably chased about in the snow by Zee, he had full clearance to go, Gilbert had let him do so but he knew he was sickly.

Running made his legs and chest hurt so bad, and the cold just made it worse, he loved snow so much, but it made him feel just terrible afterwards, his brother had said that many nations started out sickly, but the way that he seemed to be so scared for him whenever he slept for a bit too long confirmed the fears that he thought he may die at any time. He was an independent nation, the great german empire, but here he was being upstaged by a handful of colonies! None of them were nations in their own right, weans of the British household, and here they were far stronger than him, romping around in the snow like it was nothing.

He pointedly ignored the fact that Canada had technically been a kingdom for longer than his brother, and the fact that Jack and Zee were both nearing 100 at this point. Still, even with a rather noticeable age disadvantage he did look to be of similar age as the two, and was in fact slightly taller than Jack. However, he avoided pointing that out as he had a killer left hook, one which he experienced once when being picky about the way New Zealand was playing with his blocks.

You had to arrange them into colour order or that was wrong, and she was making a bird (?) out of them, so he yelled at her, and he then got punched in the face. Once again he knew Jack was strong but didn't think he was that strong, honestly that boy was something else, Zee slapped him too and left him thoroughly concerned, and that was 10-odd years ago and he kept avoiding the two since then.

He was corralled outside by his brother who said he had some very important discussions to do with England, they probably wouldn't get anything done and keep looking at each other in that weird way that Austria looked at Hungary and Vice vera, he didn't exactly understand what that look meant but it was weird and seemed to be a universal thing that he did not understand, yet another thing to add to that already extremely long mental list. Going outside, bundled up well in boots and whatnot did clear his head marginally, but such relief was short-lived as his skin  froze and his lips cracked almost immediately, but he wasn't coughing yet so that was good.

He could hear the sounds of children yelling not too far away and tromped through the snow as fast as he could without hurting, the snow thick and powdery under his feet, the sky a steely grey a little too dark for 2 o clock, finally reaching along to where the other three were, well at least to some proximity, he wasn't exactly sure what was happening, Canada was yelling at a tree, more yelling up a tree, New Zealand seemed to be laughing her head off, face pink and Jack was no where to be seen.

Ah.

He was in the tree.

Somehow managing to climb up a tree in midwinter, a feat far beyond Ludwig's imagination or comprehension, but a lot of things about Jack was like that, so he just added that image to his worldview from his distance, hoping not to be seen, but from his vantage point in the tree Jack could see all and yelled.

"OI MATE WHAT YA DOING DOWN THERE?"

Ludwig froze for a second, mentally, he was already close enough to that state physically as it was, and with as much might as he could muster he yelled "NOTHING." It wasn't very loud, and certainly not Jack-level loud but it was loud enough for him to hear, and scramble off the tree much like a squirrel and run up to him.

"You finally decided to join us, got bored of being inside?"

Ludwig was still quite frozen in his brain and took a bit of a while to react. "...Ja, sorry I wanted to see what you were doing, that is all. I will leave now."

"You don't have to?" That was New Zealand, who had very suddenly appeared next to him, startling him in no small amount, which prompted a rather mild coughing fit due to him choking on his own saliva, which was hence interrupted by Jack throwing a snowball at his head, landing squarely on his left ear.

And at that moment he forgot that he was quite fragile, and got swept up in a childish wave of adrenaline and chased after Jack, somehow managing to knock him over by ramming his full body into him at a pretty high speed, both ending up upended in the snow, and then New Zealand dropped an armful of snow on them, pinning them down for slightly longer.

Thoroughly soaked, half frozen and tired, Ludwig was having the time of his life, usually ghastly pale face flushed with a healthy colour for the first time in a long time as he laughed, running away from a surprisingly fast New Zealand, only to be stopped by a violent coughing fit.

Of course, this was too good to last, and he nearly collapsed right then and there due to the sheer severity of these coughs, Canada helped him inside with his concerned younger siblings in tow, and placed him in front of the large fire in the kitchen, and politely asked the cook for some warm milk in the best German he could muster, giving a cup to each of his siblings and Ludwig, drinking some himself and feeling the frost thawing from his insides, filling him with a nice content feeling.

He disappeared upstairs for a bit, probably to tell Herr Belichmidt about the incident, Ludwig was completely exhausted, his small store of energy had been completely depleted and the warm milk lulled him into a drowsy, sleep adjacent state, unknowingly leaning onto Jacks shoulder as he slept, Matt arrived a little while later, having witnessed an incredibly awkward scene that he stored mentally for further analysis, with England and Prussia in tow, England looked at Australia and the odd stillness he was exhibiting, and then he saw the juvenile nation of Germany leaning against him, sleeping soundly, as well as Zee, who had conked it not far after Germany.

Both were using him like a heat pack, Prussia pricked up Germany and laid him down in his room, and England was to wake up New Zealand before his better judgement said otherwise and laid her out on the sofa in the library, with the slowly tiring Australia on the foot of it, slowly drifting off to sleep too.

So quiet and calm, truly a blessing from above, the atmosphere soft and comforting, like a well-worn blanket, with the hearth fire merrily crackling, castings its light unto the slowly dimming room.

[brookston]

Holidays 9.30

Holidays

Agricultural Reform Day (Sao Tome and Principe)

Arizona Monsoon Season ends

Army Incompetence Day

Birth of Morelos (Mexico)

Botswana Day (Botswana)

Boy’s Day (Poland)

Chewing Gum Day

Day of Hungarian Folktales (Hungary)

Do Something Wacky With A Grandparent Day

E-mail Debt Forgiveness Day

Frisbee Day

International Blasphemy Rights Day (a.k.a. Blasphemy Day)

International Podcast Day

International Recovery Day

International Thunderbirds Day

International Translation Day (UN)

Jananeta Irawat Birth Day (Manipur, India)

Kokkeisetsu (Japan)

Liberation Day (Abkhazia)

Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Day

Monkey Bars Day

National Black Funding Day

National Chewing Gum Day

National Day of Remembrance for Indian Boarding Schools

National Kratom Day

National Love People Day

National Microcephaly Awareness Day

National Mud Pack Day

National Nonspeaking / Nonverbal Awareness Day (UK)

National Pet Tricks Day (UK)

National PrepareAthon! Day [also 4.30]

National Puppy Mill Survivor Day

National Sporting Heritage Day (UK)

National Teach Spanish Day

Neonatal Intensive Care Awareness Day

Orange Shirt Day (Canada)

Parsnip Day (French Republic Day)

Peon Day (Warcraft)

Pink Out Day

Rabbit Rabbit Day [Last Day of Every Month]

Recovery Day (Canada)

Rumi Day

Secretary Day (Venezuela)

Thunderbirds Day

Time For Yoga Day

Truth and Reconciliation Day (Canada)

World Pole Dance Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Austrian Beer Day (Austria)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil Day

Hot Mulled Cider Day

National Hot Mulled Cider Day

National Soufflé Potato Day

World Stroopwafel Day (Netherlands)

5th & Last Saturday in September

Centzon-Totochtin Drunken Rabbit Day [Last Saturday]

Everybody's Day Festival [Last Saturday]

Family Health and Fitness Day USA (Last Saturday]

International Lace Day [Last Saturday]

National Alpaca Farm Days begin [Last Saturday]

National Ghost Hunting Day [Last Saturday]

Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play [Last Saturday]

Save Your Photos Day [Last Saturday]

World Cyanotype Day [Last Saturday]

World Day of Leukodystrophies [Last Saturday]

Independence Days

Botswana (from UK, 1966)

Republic of Abkhazia (from Georgia, 1983) [unrecognized]

Tinakula (Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

Feast Days

Aequinoctium Autumnale II (Pagan)

Anthony Green (Artology)

Blue-Feathered Swallowing Swallow (Muppetism)

Feast of Soma (God of Ambrosia & Immortality; India)

Festival of Drunkenness (Ancient Egypt)

Festival of Tereteth (Goddess of the Coconut Toddy; Yap Island, Micronesia)

Gregory the Illuminator (Christian; Saint)

Honorius of Canterbury (Christian; Saint)

Jerome (Christian; Saint)

John Waters Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Medetrinalia (Fruits Offered to Goddess of Medicine; Ancient Rome)

Molière (Positivist; Saint)

Plan for the 31st if September Day (Pastafarian)

Ridiculous Excuses Day (Pastafarian)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because Green Day fans will never leave you alone.)

Premieres

Adjustment Team, by Philip K. Dick (Short Story; 1954)

Alias (TV Series; 2001)

The Ascent Of Rum Doodle, by W.E. Bowman (Novel; 1956)

The Big Chill (Film; 1983)

Bird (Film; 1988)

Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey (Children’s Book; 1948)

The Boy Friend (Broadway Musical; 1954)

Car Talk (Radio Series; 1977)

Cheers (TV Series; 1982)

The Clock Store (Disney Cartoon; 1931)

Con Man (Web Series; 2015)

Dad, Can I Borrow the Car? (Disney Short Film; 1970)

Death Valley Days (Radio Series; 1930)

Entergalactic (Animated Film; 2022)

The Family of Pascual Duarte, by Camilo José Cela (Novel; 1942)

Fantasy, by Mariah Carey (Song; 1995)

50/50 (Film; 2011)

The Flintstones (Animated TV Series; 1960)

Go Away Stowaway (WB MM Cartoon; 1967)

Grand Ole Opry (TV Series; 1950)

The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman (Novel; 2008)

The Greatest Game Ever Played (Film; 2005)

Into the Blue (Film; 2005)

Little Women (Novel; 1868)

Louis Armstrong Plays King Oliver, recorded by Louis Armstrong (Album; 1957) [1st stereo album]

Love for Sale, by Tony Bennett (Album; 2021)

Luke Cage (TV Series; 2016)

The Magic Flute, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Opera; 1791)

Marvel Rising: Secret Warriors (Animated Film; 2018)

Methuselah's Children, by Robert A. Heinlein (Novel; 1958)

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children (Film; 2016)

Murder, She Wrote (TV Series; 1984)

Nebraska, by Bruce Springsteen (Album; 1982)

Porgy and Bess, by George Gershwin (Opera; 1935)

The Queen (Film; 2006)

The Rifleman (TV Series; 1958)

The Robe, by Lloyd C. Douglas (Novel; 1942)

The Saint in Europe, by Leslie Charteris (Short Stories 1953) [Saint #30]

Scooby-Doo! And the Monster of Mexico (WB Animated Film; 2003)

A Separate Peace, by John Knowles (Novel; 1959)

Serenity (Film; 2005)

Shine On, by Jet (Album; 2006)

The Steeple-Chase (Disney Cartoon; 1933)

Theme From Shaft, by Isaac Hayes (Song; 1971)

To the Manor Born (UK TV Series; 1979)

You, Me and the Apocalypse (UK TV Series; 2015)

Today’s Name Days

Hieronymus, Urs, Victor (Austria)

Felicija, Grgur, Jerko, Jeronim (Croatia)

Jeroným (Czech Republic)

Hieronymus (Denmark)

Kaur, Kauri, Tauri (Estonia)

Sirja, Siru, Sorja (Finland)

Jérôme (France)

Hieronymus , Urs, Viktor (Germany)

Stratonikos (Greece)

Jeromos (Hungary)

Gerolamo (Italy)

Abgara, Elma, Lamekins (Latvia)

Bytautė, Jeronimas, Sofija, Žymantas (Lithuania)

Hege, Helga, Helge (Norway)

Grzegorz, Hieronim, Honoriusz, Imisław, Leopard, Sofia, Wera, Wiera, Wiktor, Wiktoriusz, Zofia (Poland)

Grigorie (Romania)

Lubov, Nadezhda, Vera (Russia)

Jarolím (Slovakia)

Jerónimo, Sofía, Sonia (Spain)

Helge (Sweden)

Jerome, Jeronima, Gerome, Geromino (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 273 of 2024; 92 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 6 of week 39 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Muin (Vine) [Day 26 of 28]

Chinese: Month 8 (Xin-You), Day 16 (Xin-Mao)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 15 Tishri 5784

Islamic: 15 Rabi I 1445

J Cal: 3 Shù; Threesday [3 of 30]

Julian: 17 September 2023

Moon: 98%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 21 Shakespeare (10th Month) [Molière]

Runic Half Month: Gyfu (Gift) [Day 4 of 15]

Season: Autumn (Day 7 of 89)

Zodiac: Libra (Day 7 of 30)

[skiasurveys]

survey #idk

I have Traveled To:

More than three states in the US

Mexico

Canada (tech i live here)

A place that starts with the letter L

Austria

An island

A big city

Anywhere in Africa

Japan

A place where English is not the main language

Anywhere in the southern hemisphere

India

Netherlands

I Have Read:

Any of the Bible

At least two Harry Potter books

The entire Twilight series

Catch-22

Animal Farm

A Dr. Seuss book

Instructions to a piece of Ikea information

A warning label that made me laugh

A biography/autobiography

Dante’s Inferno

A Chuck Palahniuk book

A newspaper in the last week

Something that made me cry

I Like to Eat:

Spam

Mexican food

Brussell sprouts

Onions

Watermelon

Vegan food

Bacon

Chocolate

New things

Escargot

Hummus

Haggis

Indian food

Home cooking

Fast food

My Favorite Actors Include:

Mark Wahlberg

Morgan Freeman

James Franco

Leonardo DiCaprio

Robert DeNiro

Samuel L. Jackson

Chris Hemsworth

Elijah Wood

Johnny Depp

Steve Buscemi

Robin Williams

Jack Black

Channing Tatum

I Have Listened to These Bands:

Taylor Swift

AC/DC

Jay-Z

Frank Sinatra

Pink Floyd

Fall Out Boy

Incubus

No Doubt

The White Stripes

Skrillex

Tenacious D

Metallica

Britney Spears

Ke$ha

The Beatles

I Have/Had These Pets:

Dog

Cat

Horse

Bird

Hamster

Lizard

Snake

Guinea Pig

Goat

Fish

Mouse

Spider

Pig

Hedgehog

Ferret

I Have Seen These Movies:

Fifth Element

Gone With the Wind

Nightmare Before Christmas

High School Musical

Kickin’ It Old School

Casablanca

Predator

White Men Can’t Jump

AVATAR

12 Years A Slave

Saving Private Ryan

MASH

Mamma Mia!

Dark Shadows

Riding In Cars With Boys

If I Could Have A Super Power, I Would Choose:

Mind control

Mind reading

Teleportation

Flying

Bullet-proof

Speed

Super-strength

Invisibility

All-Knowing

X-Ray vision

Freeze-touch

Time traveling

Invulnerability

Telekenisis

I Am Scared of:

Clowns

Heights

Spiders

Open spaces

Small spaces

Vacuums

Snakes

Needles

Strangers

Michael Myers

Bugs

Tiny holes

Highways

Germs

Police

My Favorite Color Is:

Red

Yellow

Orange

Green

Blue

Purple

Gray

Black

Brown

White

Pink

I Am Currently Wearing:

A t-shirt

A hoodie

Capris

Shoes

A bra

Make-up

Perfume

Deodorant

Hat

Something with a superhero/symbol on it

Nail polish

Scarf

Pajamas

Boxers

Sweatpants

I Would Describe My Best Friend As:

Bossy

Intelligent

Promiscuous

Funny

Whiny

Honest

Reliable

Loyal

Lazy

Adventurous

Unique

Complicated

Open-minded

Well-read

In the Last 24 Hours, I Have:

Read

Drank alcohol

Had sex

Eaten meat 

Danced in public

Went swimming

Changed my clothes more than once

Said something mean

Cleaned

Spent money on something pointless

Sang aloud

Met someone new

Played a game of some sort

Things In the Room With Me Now Are:

A TV

Another person

Something that belongs to a child

A pet

Food

Bed

Art

Clock not connected to a phone/computer

A mirror

Medicine

Books

Drugs or alcohol

The Last Person I Texted Is:

My significant other

Someone who sucks at spelling

A different race than me

A relative

Someone I don’t really like

Someone I went to high school with

My best friend

A person I work with

At home

In the room with me

Knows more than one language 

Is female

Is under the age of 21

Someone I live with

I Am For:

Abortion

Death penalty

Amnesty

Gun control

Gay marriage

Prayer in school

War in the middle east

Marijuana legalization

Banning cigarettes in public places

Higher taxes

Higher minimum wage

Standardized testing

Lowering the legal age for drinking

I Have Committed These Crimes:

Jaywalking

Smoking weed

Shooting heroin

Shoplifting

Breaking & entering

Public intoxication

Hit & Run

Speeding

Opening someone else’s mail without their permission

Burglary

Vehicular manslaughter

Lying under oath

Truancy

I Took These Classes In High School/College:

Home Ec

Physics

Photography

Criminal Justice

Journalism

Debate

Creative Writing

Art

Music Theory

Philosophy

French

Theater

Choir

Psychology

What I Watch On TV:

Reality shows about celebrities

Game shows

News

Reruns of classic shows

Award shows

Modern Family

Doctor Who

Scandal

Infomercials

HSN

MTV

Singing competitions

Cooking shows

Traveling shows

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 9.30

Holidays

Agricultural Reform Day (Sao Tome and Principe)

Arizona Monsoon Season ends

Army Incompetence Day

Birth of Morelos (Mexico)

Botswana Day (Botswana)

Boy’s Day (Poland)

Chewing Gum Day

Day of Hungarian Folktales (Hungary)

Do Something Wacky With A Grandparent Day

E-mail Debt Forgiveness Day

Frisbee Day

International Blasphemy Rights Day (a.k.a. Blasphemy Day)

International Podcast Day

International Recovery Day

International Thunderbirds Day

International Translation Day (UN)

Jananeta Irawat Birth Day (Manipur, India)

Kokkeisetsu (Japan)

Liberation Day (Abkhazia)

Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Day

Monkey Bars Day

National Black Funding Day

National Chewing Gum Day

National Day of Remembrance for Indian Boarding Schools

National Kratom Day

National Love People Day

National Microcephaly Awareness Day

National Mud Pack Day

National Nonspeaking / Nonverbal Awareness Day (UK)

National Pet Tricks Day (UK)

National PrepareAthon! Day [also 4.30]

National Puppy Mill Survivor Day

National Sporting Heritage Day (UK)

National Teach Spanish Day

Neonatal Intensive Care Awareness Day

Orange Shirt Day (Canada)

Parsnip Day (French Republic Day)

Peon Day (Warcraft)

Pink Out Day

Rabbit Rabbit Day [Last Day of Every Month]

Recovery Day (Canada)

Rumi Day

Secretary Day (Venezuela)

Thunderbirds Day

Time For Yoga Day

Truth and Reconciliation Day (Canada)

World Pole Dance Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Austrian Beer Day (Austria)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil Day

Hot Mulled Cider Day

National Hot Mulled Cider Day

National Soufflé Potato Day

World Stroopwafel Day (Netherlands)

5th & Last Saturday in September

Centzon-Totochtin Drunken Rabbit Day [Last Saturday]

Everybody's Day Festival [Last Saturday]

Family Health and Fitness Day USA (Last Saturday]

International Lace Day [Last Saturday]

National Alpaca Farm Days begin [Last Saturday]

National Ghost Hunting Day [Last Saturday]

Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play [Last Saturday]

Save Your Photos Day [Last Saturday]

World Cyanotype Day [Last Saturday]

World Day of Leukodystrophies [Last Saturday]

Independence Days

Botswana (from UK, 1966)

Republic of Abkhazia (from Georgia, 1983) [unrecognized]

Tinakula (Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

Feast Days

Aequinoctium Autumnale II (Pagan)

Anthony Green (Artology)

Blue-Feathered Swallowing Swallow (Muppetism)

Feast of Soma (God of Ambrosia & Immortality; India)

Festival of Drunkenness (Ancient Egypt)

Festival of Tereteth (Goddess of the Coconut Toddy; Yap Island, Micronesia)

Gregory the Illuminator (Christian; Saint)

Honorius of Canterbury (Christian; Saint)

Jerome (Christian; Saint)

John Waters Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Medetrinalia (Fruits Offered to Goddess of Medicine; Ancient Rome)

Molière (Positivist; Saint)

Plan for the 31st if September Day (Pastafarian)

Ridiculous Excuses Day (Pastafarian)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because Green Day fans will never leave you alone.)

Premieres

Adjustment Team, by Philip K. Dick (Short Story; 1954)

Alias (TV Series; 2001)

The Ascent Of Rum Doodle, by W.E. Bowman (Novel; 1956)

The Big Chill (Film; 1983)

Bird (Film; 1988)

Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey (Children’s Book; 1948)

The Boy Friend (Broadway Musical; 1954)

Car Talk (Radio Series; 1977)

Cheers (TV Series; 1982)

The Clock Store (Disney Cartoon; 1931)

Con Man (Web Series; 2015)

Dad, Can I Borrow the Car? (Disney Short Film; 1970)

Death Valley Days (Radio Series; 1930)

Entergalactic (Animated Film; 2022)

The Family of Pascual Duarte, by Camilo José Cela (Novel; 1942)

Fantasy, by Mariah Carey (Song; 1995)

50/50 (Film; 2011)

The Flintstones (Animated TV Series; 1960)

Go Away Stowaway (WB MM Cartoon; 1967)

Grand Ole Opry (TV Series; 1950)

The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman (Novel; 2008)

The Greatest Game Ever Played (Film; 2005)

Into the Blue (Film; 2005)

Little Women (Novel; 1868)

Louis Armstrong Plays King Oliver, recorded by Louis Armstrong (Album; 1957) [1st stereo album]

Love for Sale, by Tony Bennett (Album; 2021)

Luke Cage (TV Series; 2016)

The Magic Flute, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Opera; 1791)

Marvel Rising: Secret Warriors (Animated Film; 2018)

Methuselah's Children, by Robert A. Heinlein (Novel; 1958)

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children (Film; 2016)

Murder, She Wrote (TV Series; 1984)

Nebraska, by Bruce Springsteen (Album; 1982)

Porgy and Bess, by George Gershwin (Opera; 1935)

The Queen (Film; 2006)

The Rifleman (TV Series; 1958)

The Robe, by Lloyd C. Douglas (Novel; 1942)

The Saint in Europe, by Leslie Charteris (Short Stories 1953) [Saint #30]

Scooby-Doo! And the Monster of Mexico (WB Animated Film; 2003)

A Separate Peace, by John Knowles (Novel; 1959)

Serenity (Film; 2005)

Shine On, by Jet (Album; 2006)

The Steeple-Chase (Disney Cartoon; 1933)

Theme From Shaft, by Isaac Hayes (Song; 1971)

To the Manor Born (UK TV Series; 1979)

You, Me and the Apocalypse (UK TV Series; 2015)

Today’s Name Days

Hieronymus, Urs, Victor (Austria)

Felicija, Grgur, Jerko, Jeronim (Croatia)

Jeroným (Czech Republic)

Hieronymus (Denmark)

Kaur, Kauri, Tauri (Estonia)

Sirja, Siru, Sorja (Finland)

Jérôme (France)

Hieronymus , Urs, Viktor (Germany)

Stratonikos (Greece)

Jeromos (Hungary)

Gerolamo (Italy)

Abgara, Elma, Lamekins (Latvia)

Bytautė, Jeronimas, Sofija, Žymantas (Lithuania)

Hege, Helga, Helge (Norway)

Grzegorz, Hieronim, Honoriusz, Imisław, Leopard, Sofia, Wera, Wiera, Wiktor, Wiktoriusz, Zofia (Poland)

Grigorie (Romania)

Lubov, Nadezhda, Vera (Russia)

Jarolím (Slovakia)

Jerónimo, Sofía, Sonia (Spain)

Helge (Sweden)

Jerome, Jeronima, Gerome, Geromino (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 273 of 2024; 92 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 6 of week 39 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Muin (Vine) [Day 26 of 28]

Chinese: Month 8 (Xin-You), Day 16 (Xin-Mao)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 15 Tishri 5784

Islamic: 15 Rabi I 1445

J Cal: 3 Shù; Threesday [3 of 30]

Julian: 17 September 2023

Moon: 98%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 21 Shakespeare (10th Month) [Molière]

Runic Half Month: Gyfu (Gift) [Day 4 of 15]

Season: Autumn (Day 7 of 89)

Zodiac: Libra (Day 7 of 30)

[flirting-with-psychology]

“fool for love”

I have Traveled To: More than three states in the US Mexico Canada A place that starts with the letter L Austria An island A big city Anywhere in Africa Japan A place where English is not the main language Anywhere in the southern hemisphere India Netherlands

I Have Read: Any of the Bible At least two Harry Potter books The entire Twilight series Catch-22 Animal Farm A Dr. Seuss book Instructions to a piece of Ikea information A warning label that made me laugh A biography/autobiography Dante’s Inferno A Chuck Palahniuk book A newspaper in the last week Something that made me cry

I Like to Eat: Spam Mexican food Brussell sprouts Onions Watermelon Vegan food Bacon Chocolate New things Escargot Hummus Haggis Indian food Home cooking Fast food

My Favorite Actors Include: Mark Wahlberg Morgan Freeman James Franco Leonardo DiCaprio Robert DeNiro Samuel L. Jackson Chris Hemsworth Elijah Wood Johnny Depp Steve Buscemi Robin Williams Jack Black Channing Tatum

I Have Listened to These Bands: Taylor Swift AC/DC Jay-Z Frank Sinatra Pink Floyd Fall Out Boy Incubus No Doubt The White Stripes Skrillex Tenacious D Metallica Britney Spears Ke$ha The Beatles

I Have/Had These Pets: Dog Cat Horse Bird Hamster Lizard Snake Guinea Pig Goat Fish Mouse Spider Pig Hedgehog Ferret

I Have Seen These Movies: Fifth Element Gone With the Wind Nightmare Before Christmas High School Musical Kickin’ It Old School Casablanca Predator White Men Can’t Jump AVATAR 12 Years A Slave Saving Private Ryan MASH Mamma Mia! Dark Shadows Riding In Cars With Boys

If I Could Have A Super Power, I Would Choose: Mind control Mind reading Teleportation Flying Bullet-proof Speed Super-strength Invisibility All-Knowing X-Ray vision Freeze-touch Time traveling Invulnerability Telekenisis

I Am Scared of: Clowns Heights Spiders Open spaces Small spaces Vacuums Snakes Needles Strangers Michael Myers Bugs Tiny holes Highways Germs Police

My Favorite Color Is: Red Yellow Orange Green Blue Purple Gray Black Brown White Pink

I Am Currently Wearing: A t-shirt A hoodie Capris Shoes A bra Make-up Perfume Deodorant Hat Something with a superhero/symbol on it Nail polish Scarf Pajamas Boxers Sweatpants

I Would Describe My Best Friend As: Bossy Intelligent Promiscuous Funny Whiny Honest Reliable Loyal Lazy Adventurous Unique Complicated Open-minded Well-read

In the Last 24 Hours, I Have: Read Drank alcohol Had sex Eaten meat  Danced in public Went swimming Changed my clothes more than once Said something mean Cleaned Spent money on something pointless Sang aloud Met someone new Played a game of some sort

Things In the Room With Me Now Are: A TV Another person Something that belongs to a child A pet Food Bed Art Clock not connected to a phone/computer A mirror Medicine Books Drugs or alcohol

The Last Person I Texted Is: My significant other Someone who sucks at spelling A different race than me A relative Someone I don’t really like Someone I went to high school with My best friend A person I work with At home In the room with me Knows more than one language (not sure) Is female Is under the age of 21 Someone I live with

I Am For: Abortion Death penalty Amnesty Gun control Gay marriage Prayer in school War in the middle east Marijuana legalization Banning cigarettes in public places Higher taxes Higher minimum wage Standardized testing Lowering the legal age for drinking

I Have Committed These Crimes: Jaywalking Smoking weed Shooting heroin Shoplifting Breaking & entering Public intoxication Hit & Run Speeding Opening someone else’s mail without their permission Burglary Vehicular manslaughter Lying under oath Truancy

I Took These Classes In High School/College: Home Ec Physics Photography Criminal Justice Journalism Debate Creative Writing Art Music Theory Philosophy French Theater Choir Psychology

What I Watch On TV: Reality shows about celebrities Game shows News Reruns of classic shows Award shows Modern Family Doctor Who Scandal Infomercials HSN MTV Singing competitions Cooking shows Traveling shows

[alsjeblieft-zeg]

426 of 2023

“fool for love”

I have Traveled To: More than three states in the US Mexico Canada A place that starts with the letter L Austria An island A big city Anywhere in Africa Japan A place where English is not the main language Anywhere in the southern hemisphere India Netherlands

I Have Read: Any of the Bible At least two Harry Potter books The entire Twilight series Catch-22 Animal Farm A Dr. Seuss book Instructions to a piece of Ikea information A warning label that made me laugh A biography/autobiography Dante’s Inferno A Chuck Palahniuk book A newspaper in the last week Something that made me cry

I Like to Eat: Spam Mexican food Brussell sprouts Onions Watermelon Vegan food Bacon Chocolate New things Escargot Hummus Haggis Indian food Home cooking Fast food

My Favorite Actors Include: Mark Wahlberg Morgan Freeman James Franco Leonardo DiCaprio Robert DeNiro Samuel L. Jackson Chris Hemsworth Elijah Wood Johnny Depp Steve Buscemi Robin Williams Jack Black Channing Tatum

I Have Listened to These Bands: Taylor Swift AC/DC Jay-Z Frank Sinatra Pink Floyd Fall Out Boy Incubus No Doubt The White Stripes Skrillex Tenacious D Metallica Britney Spears Ke$ha The Beatles

I Have/Had These Pets: Dog Cat Horse Bird Hamster Lizard Snake Guinea Pig Goat Fish Mouse Spider Pig Hedgehog Ferret

I Have Seen These Movies: Fifth Element Gone With the Wind Nightmare Before Christmas High School Musical Kickin’ It Old School Casablanca Predator White Men Can’t Jump AVATAR 12 Years A Slave Saving Private Ryan MASH Mamma Mia! Dark Shadows Riding In Cars With Boys

If I Could Have A Super Power, I Would Choose: Mind control Mind reading Teleportation Flying Bullet-proof Speed Super-strength Invisibility All-Knowing X-Ray vision Freeze-touch Time traveling Invulnerability Telekenisis

I Am Scared of: Clowns Heights Spiders Open spaces Small spaces Vacuums Snakes Needles Strangers Michael Myers Bugs Tiny holes Highways Germs Police

My Favorite Color Is: Red Yellow Orange Green Blue Purple Gray Black Brown White Pink

I Am Currently Wearing: A t-shirt A hoodie Capris Shoes A bra Make-up Perfume Deodorant Hat Something with a superhero/symbol on it Nail polish Scarf Pajamas Boxers Sweatpants

I Would Describe My Best Friend As: Bossy Intelligent Promiscuous Funny Whiny Honest Reliable Loyal Lazy Adventurous Unique Complicated Open-minded Well-read

In the Last 24 Hours, I Have: Read Drank alcohol Had sex Eaten meat (ew!) Danced in public Went swimming Changed my clothes more than once Said something mean Cleaned Spent money on something pointless Sang aloud Met someone new Played a game of some sort

Things In the Room With Me Now Are: A TV Another person Something that belongs to a child A pet Food Bed Art Clock not connected to a phone/computer A mirror Medicine Books Drugs or alcohol

The Last Person I Texted Is: My significant other Someone who sucks at spelling A different race than me A relative Someone I don’t really like Someone I went to high school with My best friend A person I work with At home In the room with me Knows more than one language Is female Is under the age of 21 Someone I live with

I Am For: Abortion Death penalty Amnesty Gun control Gay marriage Prayer in school War in the middle east Marijuana legalization Banning cigarettes in public places Higher taxes Higher minimum wage Standardized testing Lowering the legal age for drinking

I Have Committed These Crimes: Jaywalking Smoking weed Shooting heroin Shoplifting Breaking & entering Public intoxication Hit & Run Speeding Opening someone else’s mail without their permission Burglary Vehicular manslaughter Lying under oath Truancy

I Took These Classes In High School: Home Ec Physics Photography Criminal Justice Journalism Debate Creative Writing Art Music Theory Philosophy French Theater Choir Psychology

What I Watch On TV: Reality shows about celebrities Game shows News Reruns of classic shows Award shows Modern Family Doctor Who Scandal Infomercials HSN MTV Singing competitions Cooking shows Traveling shows

[clocksaroundthisworld]

Pink Chrono-Daydream

Innsbruck, Austria

[buckybarnesdollface]

Mountainside: Chapter 2

Summary: Will sharing a bed change things?

Warnings: Female reader, SMUT, lots of smut, fluff, mentions of cancer and infertility 

          I awoke the next morning feeling as if I was wrapped in a warm cocoon. Bucky’s body was curled almost protectively around me, arm still secure around my waist. I could feel his warm, slow breaths on the back of my neck, and his Henley had ridden up my body so that his large, warm hand was pressed directly to the exposed flesh of my belly. My cheeks flushed and I tried to move, but his grasp tightened and pulled me even closer to him. He let out a soft groan, that had my entire body heated.

           “Where are you going?” he mumbled, voice hoarse and low with sleep, and I bit my lip.

           “I was gonna get up.”

           “Listen.”

           I wrinkled my nose. “What?”

           “Listen,” he repeated, and I did. Outside the cabin the wind was howling, whipping through the trees and rattling the windowpanes. Once he was satisfied I’d heard what he wanted me to hear, he continued. “The storm started three hours ago; the snow’s likely to be heavy by now, and the power went out over an hour ago. Why rush to get out of bed? It’s not like there’s anything for us to do but sit and wait for the snow to stop so the team can come get us.”

           “The power went out?” Sure enough, a glance at the black screen of the digital clock on the nightstand told me as much. I frowned, rolling onto my back. Bucky made no move to lift his arm, his hand still pleasantly warm on my stomach. When I turned my head to the side to look at him, he was also frowning, but his eyes were soft.

           “Did you sleep well?” he asked, and I nodded.

           “Very well,” I admitted, and a small smile touched his lips.

           “Me too.”

           My heart fluttered in spite of myself, and I tilted my head back to stare at the ceiling, focusing on keeping my breaths calm and even. Things were silent for a moment, and then Bucky spoke again.

           “Last night, on the phone with Steve…” he started. “Are you really that upset about being stuck here? Because at dinner you seemed to agree that it was kind of nice.”

           I sucked in a sharp breath, feeling my face redden. I hesitated before answering. “I’m not upset,” I finally said. “It is kind of nice being here. It’s just…”

           “Just what?” Bucky prodded. I could feel his blue eyes watching me intensely, but I couldn’t bring myself to look at him. I was sure my face was as red as a tomato at this point. I took a deep breath, figuring it was better to be honest than try and come up with a story.

           “When you said Natasha knows about this place – Have you…have you been here together?”

           I felt stupid and pathetic as soon as the words came out of my mouth, but I had to know. It had been nagging me since yesterday evening. I peeked over at Bucky; his brow furrowed.

           “No. This place used to belong to her sister, Yelena,” he explained. “I was on mission here in Austria last year and needed a place to lay low. Natasha suggested I stay at the cabin.” Bucky looked over to me, one dark eyebrow cocked. “Why do you ask?”

           “No reason,” I mumbled. His words had eased the storm in me, and now I just wanted to drop it. Bucky, however, had other plans.

           “Seriously, (Y/N), why do you ask?” he repeated, and then a slow grin spread over his face. “You were jealous!”

           My face went white. “I was not!” I cried, my answer both too quick and too defensive to pass as the truth. Bucky’s grin was wicked as he sat up to lean on his elbow, the hand he still had on me pinching my side playfully. I squeaked and rolled away from him, and I would have rolled right off the bed had Bucky not caught me and pulled me back to him so that we were face-to-face. He was still grinning but it was warmer, eyes soft.

           “You have nothing to be jealous of,” he chuckled. “Nothing has ever happened between Natasha and I, and nothing ever will.”

           “I’m not jealous,” I grumbled, and Bucky smirked.

           “Of course you’re not, doll,” he replied, and then he rolled away from me to stretch his arms above his head with a tired groan. “Well, since we’re awake, how about some coffee?”

           “The power’s out,” I reminded him, and he snorted.

           “You never heat a kettle over a fire, doll?” he asked. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were such a princess.”

           With a mischievous grin, he rolled off the bed out of my reach before I could hit him. I threw a pillow at him, but he caught it one-handed and laughed.

           “Easy, doll,” he chuckled. “You’re gonna pull your stitches if you get too wound up.”

           Now that I was awake and sitting up, the aches and pains in my body were starting to resurface. My muscles were stiff and my arm was stinging, and I scrunched my nose. Seeing the change in my demeanour, Bucky slid open the drawer of the nightstand and dropped a bottle of Advil into my hand.

           “Here, this’ll help,” he said. “I’ll go get the coffee started.”

           I shook a couple of pills from the bottle and tipped my head back to swallow them. I leaned back against the headboard with a sigh, and then forced myself out of bed to follow Bucky to the kitchen.

           Bucky was stoking the fire when I walked in. I went right to the window to assess how bad the storm was. The snow had already drifted against the side of the cabin, almost reaching the bottom of the window. The wind was relentless, swaying trees and whipping snow in every direction so it was hard to see anything but white. I pulled away from the window, just as Bucky set a couple of mugs on the counter and spooned some instant coffee into each of them.

           “Steve wasn’t kidding about it being a bad storm,” I mused, and Bucky shook his head.

           “This is just the beginning, too. It’s going to get much worse.”

           The kettle started boiling, and Bucky grabbed it and brought it back to the counter, filling the mugs with the steaming water. He stirred two spoonfuls of sugar into mine, just the way I liked it, and then slid it across the counter to me.

           “Thanks,” I murmured, letting the heated ceramic warm my hands. We sipped our coffee in silence for a few moments, the only sounds the crackling of the fire and the howling wind outside. It really was peaceful here, and I admitted as much.

           “Yeah, it’s the kind of place you go when you want to get away,” he murmured, eyes fixed on the window over my shoulder. He met my gaze, a sad smile on his face. “Sometimes it’s too much, y’know? I mean, I know I’ve been living in the twenty-first century long enough now that I should be used to it, but I grew up in the thirties – We didn’t have cell phones, or computers, or the internet, or even a fraction of today’s technology. We didn’t feel the need to constantly know what’s happening in everyone’s lives, and we weren’t able to be reached by the single press of a button. Things were simpler…quieter. Being here reminds me of that.”

           A smile tugged at my lips, and Bucky’s brow furrowed.

           “What?” he asked. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

           “I like it when you talk about yourself,” I told him. “Especially when you talk about your life before the war.”

           Bucky snorted, but his cheeks were tinted pink. “Most people hate listening to old men ramble,” he pointed out, and I shook my head with a chuckle.

           “You aren’t a typical old man,” I said. “And besides, it’s very rare to get any stories out of you. So when you do open up, it’s nice. It’s like getting to see a glimpse into the elusive mind of Bucky Barnes.”

           Suddenly Bucky frowned, eyes casting down to stare at the mug in his hands. “You wouldn’t think it was so nice if you got more than a glimpse,” he mumbled. “I don’t open up because no one wants to see what’s underneath. The surface is safe, but anything deeper and you’re approaching dangerous territory.”

           I pursed my lips; he looked so sullen. I reached across the counter to slip my hand over top of his, and he looked startled but he didn’t pull away. “The right person won’t be scared,” I murmured, and he shook his head.

           “They should be. Most people are.”

           “But not everyone.” I bit my lip, and Bucky swallowed hard as he held my eyes. The air was suddenly heavy, but the sound of a giant crack outside had us jumping. Bucky had rounded the island in a second, placing himself between the door and me. “What was that?” I asked warily.

           “I don’t know,” he admitted. “I should go outside and check it out, though.”

           My eyes widened. “Are you insane? It’s snowmageddon out there!” I cried. “Buck, you can’t go out there.”

           “If there’s something out there, I have to take care of it,” he said, having made up his mind. He was already pulling on his boots. “Stay here. Lock the door behind me, and keep your gun close just in case. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He zipped up his jacket and grabbed his pistol, and I frowned.

           “Buck…? Be careful,” I said softly, and an unexpected grin flashed across his face.

           “I’m always careful, doll,” he said, and then he pulled open the door. The wind blew flurries into the cabin, and Bucky turned to wink at me before he disappeared out into the blizzard.

           I did as he said, locking the door behind him before grabbing my pistol from the shelf by the door. I tapped the grip with my fingertips restlessly, pacing the kitchen, my coffee forgotten. I couldn’t imagine anyone being out in this blizzard, but what if they were? What if HYDRA had found us, and Bucky was out in that storm trying to fight them off? Surely I would have heard gunfire by now if that were the case, though…

           Minutes passed that felt like hours, and then there was someone pounding on the wooden door. I held my pistol, ready to aim just in case, and cautiously walked over to the door.

           “(Y/N), it’s me!” Bucky shouted, pounding again. I could barely hear him over the roaring of the wind, but I quickly unlocked the door and wrenched it open, to reveal a very cold-looking Bucky. I stepped aside so he could come in, and then I was dusting the snow off his shoulders.

           “So what was the noise?” I asked, and he frowned.

           “The wind snapped a bough off one of the pine trees,” he replied as he shrugged out of his jacket. I took it and hung it off a hook.

           “We aren’t going to have any trees coming down on the cabin, are we?” I asked. Bucky shook his head, snow falling to the floor.

           “No, we’re safe in here.” He toed off his boots. “It’s wild out there. I haven’t seen a storm like this since my time in Siberia.”

           His cheeks were ruddy from the cold, and ice crystals had accumulated on his eyelashes like tiny diamonds. His jacket had done little to protect him from the snow, as his shirt was as soaked as his pants.

           “You’re covered in snow,” I griped. “Go change into some dry clothes. I’ll make some fresh coffee to warm you up.”

           Bucky shot me a grateful look before heading to the bedroom. I heated the kettle back up over the fire and then poured two fresh cups of coffee. I handed Bucky his as he came back out to the kitchen.

           “Thanks, doll,” he murmured. “At this rate, the snow’s gonna be halfway up the cabin before nightfall.”

           “I’m just glad winters in New York aren’t like this,” I breathed. “God, can you imagine having to dig your way out every time it snows?”

           Bucky nodded in agreement. “I don’t mind a little snow here and there, but I’ve spent enough time in Austria and Russia during the winter to last me a hundred lifetimes.”

           I grinned. “Who’d have thought that the Winter Soldier would hate winter.” I teased, and he shrugged.

           “You spend enough time living in the snow and ice and cold, with very little sunshine, and you’d hate it too.”

           “That must be why you liked Wakanda so much.”

           Bucky took a sip of his coffee. “I liked Wakanda mostly for the same reason I like it here – Things were simpler,” he said. “The city may be the most technologically-advanced in the world, but it’s surrounded by miles of farmland and plains. T’Challa let me live just outside the city, in my own little hut, and I farmed the land. I may have grown up in New York City, but farming in Wakanda and having no cares in the world was an absolute blessing.”

           “It sounds perfect,” I admitted. “I’ve always wanted to see Wakanda; I’ve never been.”

           “I’ll tell you what; I’ll take you with me the next time I go,” Bucky told me. “How’s that sound?”

           “You’d do that?” I breathed, and Bucky nodded.

           “Sure. You’ll love it. And I know you and Shuri would get along great.”

           I grinned into my mug, cheeks pink. I couldn’t believe Bucky and I were making plans to travel together.

           As the day wore on, the blizzard only got worse. The snow was already partly covering the windows, and I was thankful that I wasn’t claustrophobic. A quick search of the cabin revealed there wasn’t much to do here; Bucky redressed my arm with a new bandage, and then we heated some canned soup over the fire for lunch. I had found an old copy of Bram Stoker’s Dracula and had laid back on the couch to read it despite having already read it twice before, just to give me something to do. Bucky had sat on the floor, leaning against the armchair, with a piece of firewood and one of his knives. He had been whittling at the piece of wood for half an hour now, and I looked up from my book with a scrunched nose.

           “What is it you’re making, anyway?” I asked. “Other than a mess of wood shavings, that is.”

           Bucky looked up from what he was doing to give me a disparaging look. “You’ll see when it’s finished,” he replied, and I rolled my eyes dramatically.

           “Fine,” I sighed, dragging out the word. “Where did you learn to do that, anyway?”

           “My grandfather,” he replied. “He taught me when I was a kid. He used to make beautiful carvings, some as tall as me.” He grinned ruefully. “My knife skills have improved over the years – I was certainly no professional when I was younger.”

           Seeing Bucky reminisce had quickly become one of my favourite things. I smiled. “Well I’m looking forward to seeing what you’ve made.”

           It was another hour before Bucky finally set down his knife on the coffee table. I looked up from my book, curiosity winning over as I set the book on the table, and sat up straight. Almost hesitantly, Bucky set the little wooden figure in my hand. It was a little wolf, head raised in a howl. The details were intricate, right down to the fur patterns and the tiny teeth. My eyes widened in awe, and I shook my head as I met Bucky’s gaze.

           “Bucky…” I breathed. “This is…this is beautiful. You’re so talented! How did I not know you were so talented?”

           “It’s not something I go around advertising,” he mumbled, cheeks pink and expression bashful.

           “Jesus, you and Steve never cease to amaze,” I said. “Steve with his drawing, and you with this. Wow. Shit. And here I thought Steve was the artistic one.”

           “Steve is the artistic one,” Bucky told me. “He’s the one who took art classes in school. I focused more on baseball and boxing. This was just more of a hobby that I kept to myself.”

           “Well you’re clearly more than meets the eye, Bucky Barnes,” I murmured, turning the wolf over in my hands in wonder. “This is amazing.”

           “Keep it,” he said, and my eyes rounded.

           “What?”

           “Keep it,” he repeated with a shrug. “I want you to have it.”          

           “Thank you,” I breathed sincerely as I ran my fingertips over the surface. I looked up at Bucky with one eyebrow arched. “Just out of curiosity, why a wolf?”

           Bucky’s lips quirked up, and his eyes glittered. “Back in Wakanda, the kids used to call me ‘Ingcuka Emhlophe’,” he explained, a fond expression on his face. “It means ‘White Wolf.’ I liked it a lot better than being referred to as ‘The Soldier’ or ‘The White Boy,’ so I never stopped the Wakandans from calling me White Wolf.”

           “White Wolf?” I chuckled. “Because you were the only white guy in Wakanda?”

           “Something like that,” he admitted with a small smile.

           I grinned. “I like it. It suits you.” I looked down at the carved figurine again. “I really do love this, too. It’s like I’ll always have a little part of the White Wolf with me.”

           A childlike grin took over Bucky’s face at my words, and he nodded. “Exactly,” he murmured, and in that moment, a bond was created between Bucky and I.

           The temperature dropped when the sun went down, and the wind and snow hadn’t let up. We’d lit candles all over the cabin, both as a source of light and extra heat, and despite the storm raging outside it made the cabin feel pleasantly cozy.

           “It feels like we should have a Christmas tree,” I murmured. “With the candles and the fire, it would be completely cozy.”

           Bucky chuckled. “I could go out there and cut a tree down for you, doll, but we’d have nothing to decorate it with.”

           “I love how you aren’t questioning why I’d want a Christmas tree in February.”

           “Who wouldn’t want a Christmas tree in February?” Bucky replied. “Hell, Christmas year ‘round is something I could get behind.”

           “So, Bucky Barnes loves Christmas,” I mused. “Add that to the mental file of things I’ve learned about you since getting stranded here.”

           “We stay here any longer and you’ll officially know more about me than anyone but Steve,” he snorted, and I laughed.

           “I think I already have that in the bag. For instance, how many people can say they know you’re a cuddler?”

           Bucky’s eyes narrowed. “The hell I am –”

           “You were snuggled right up to me all night, Barnes; don’t try to deny it.”

           “I was keeping you warm,” he protested, and I smirked.

           “And after I’d woken up and you held me tighter like you didn’t want me to get up?”

           Bucky flushed crimson. “Tell anyone and I will make sure you get put on all the bullshit missions,” he mumbled, and I giggled.

           “It was cute,” I assured him. “I wish more people knew that Bucky, instead of the tough and stoic Bucky you show the world.” My face softened. “I wish I knew that Bucky better. He might just be one of my new favourite people.”

           “That Bucky doesn’t come out very often,” Bucky said, ducking his head. “Besides, he’s too soft. You can’t be soft in this line of business.”

           I shook my head. “You’re always in a work frame of mind,” I accused. “Doesn’t it get exhausting?”

           “Why do you think I was okay with being stranded here?”

           We were silent for a minute, and then I bumped his arm playfully with mine. “Enough serious talk,” I said. “Come sit by the fire with me. I’m starting to get chilled.”

           Bucky grinned and followed me to the living room. I took the fur blanket from the back of the couch and spread it over the hardwood floor in front of the hearth and settled onto it, my back leaning against the coffee table. Bucky settled down next to me, pulling a brown bottle from under the table.

           “Look what I found earlier,” he said, holding it out to me. It was whiskey. I took the bottle from him with an eyebrow arched.

           “You can’t even get drunk,” I pointed out, and he shrugged.

           “Doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it. It’s single-barrel and aged twelve years. This is top-shelf whiskey,” Bucky replied. “Open it and tell me it’s not smooth as hell.”

           Tentatively, I unscrewed the cap and took a mouthful. It was strong but smooth, warming my belly almost immediately. I grinned as I handed the bottle back to Bucky. “It is pretty good,” I admitted. He took a swig and nodded.

           We each downed another mouthful, and then Bucky turned his head to look at me with his head slightly cocked to the side. “You’ve gotten to learn a bunch about me,” he said, “but I want to hear about you. Tell me something about (Y/N) (Y/L/N) that no one knows.”

           I wrinkled my nose. “I’m an open book.”

           “Then you’ll have no trouble with this. C’mon, (Y/N), there must be something no one knows about you. Let’s hear it.”

           Biting my lip, I gazed at the fire. I wasn’t sure if it was the whiskey buzzing in my veins or just how at-ease I felt right now, but when I opened my mouth the words came spilling out.

           “I got married, when I was seventeen,” I admitted quietly, and Bucky’s eyes rounded. “When…when I was sixteen, I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. They caught it early enough that they could treat it with chemo, and we thought it had worked. But then it came back, and I got really sick really fast. My boyfriend at the time – Adam – was scared I wasn’t going to make it through the second round of chemo. We had made plans to go to Columbia together to study law.” I shook my head, sad smile on my face. “We were young and we thought we were in love, so we wanted to be married before…well, before I died.”

           Bucky was looking at me with a mixture of shock, horror and respect. He shook his head, jaw agape. “(Y/N), I didn’t…I had no idea,” he breathed, and I chuckled.

           “No one on the team knows,” I replied. “The only people that know are my family, and Adam and his family.”

           “But you’re healthy now?” he asked, worry creasing his brow. I nodded.

           “They ended up having to remove my ovaries because the chemo wasn’t working the second time, and they took out my uterus too, just to be safe. I still have check-ups every year to be safe, but I’ve been cancer-free ever since.”

           “And…your marriage…” Bucky shifted uncomfortably. “Are you still…?”

           “God, no,” I snorted. “As soon as it was clear that I was going to make a full recovery, Adam realized that seventeen was way too young to be married. He wanted to be able to explore his options at Columbia – That’s what he told me. ‘And besides,’ he’d said, ‘I eventually want to have kids someday, and you can’t give me that.’”

           Even now, saying it left a bitter taste in my mouth. I scowled, taking a large swig of the whiskey. Bucky frowned.

           “What is he doing now?”

           The question caught me off-guard. “He’s a divorce lawyer in Manhattan, ironically enough,” I replied, and Bucky snorted.

           “So he’ll be easy to find, then,” he said, and I eyed him skeptically.

           “Why would that matter?”

           “Because the Winter Soldier just might pay him a visit when we get back to New York.”

           My eyes widened, and I leapt up onto my knees and shook my head vigorously. “Bucky, no,” I said. “Don’t you dare.”

           “Relax, I was only gonna threaten him. Maybe rough him up a bit, y’know, scare him –”

           “No. It was fourteen years ago, it’s in the past.” I grinned. “Besides, that asshole actually did me a favour – imagine if we were still married. I’d be absolutely miserable, in a loveless marriage and likely working as an underpaid lawyer. I would have never met Tony, or become an Avenger. And I wouldn’t be sitting here with you right now. So even though at the time Adam broke my heart, now I’m grateful for what he did.”

           “I still think he deserves to have his ass kicked,” Bucky grumbled. He met my eyes, his gaze fierce but soft. “I underestimated you, (Y/N),” he murmured apologetically. “I knew you were tough, but…To go through what you did at such a young age, and then to have the one person you thought had your back abandon you like that, for selfish reasons…”

           He shook his head, disgusted, and I chuckled. “Everything happens for a reason,” I said. “Honestly, the hardest thing to move on from out of the whole situation wasn’t the cancer or the divorce from Adam; it’s the knowledge that I will never be able to have children of my own.”

           I glanced down at my hands, suddenly sad. Bucky had urged me to open up, and now that I had started, I couldn’t stop. I bit my lip to keep it from quivering.

           “(Y/N), hey,” Bucky murmured, and then he was kneeling in front of me and taking a gentle hold of my chin to lift my gaze to his. He was frowning, but his eyes were soft. “Wanna know something else about me that no one knows?”

           My lips twitched. “Another Bucky Barnes tidbit? Of course.”

           Bucky’s smile was sad. “I can’t have kids either,” he told me. “After all the experimentation HYDRA did on me to try and copy the serum Irskine created for Steve, it…messed with things. At first it was just a suspicion, but…When I started getting my life back on track, I wanted to know for sure. I got them to run tests while I was in Wakanda, and the results confirmed my suspicions; the experiments had made me sterile.”

           My heart sank, and I felt tears spring to my eyes. “Oh, Bucky…” I whispered, and then before I knew what I was doing I had thrown my arms around him and pressed my face to his chest. I had startled him; I could feel it in the way his body tensed. But then his arms wound around me and he smoothed my hair with a large hand.

           “It’s funny,” he murmured, “how you never really realize you want something until you’re told you can’t have it. Steve was always the one who dreamed about settling down and having kids; I was always wanting to travel and see the world. But after everything I’ve been through, settling down with a family sounded nice. Of course, life had other plans.”

           “You deserve so much more than life has given you,” I sniffed, pulling away from him. He reached up to brush his thumb across my cheekbone, catching a stray tear that had escaped, and smiled sadly.

           “So do you, doll,” he murmured. “You’re an incredible woman – Kind, strong, smart, beautiful…Anyone that doesn’t see that is an idiot.”

           My heart fluttered against my ribcage, and I bit my lip. His mouth was close enough that if I just tilted my head and leaned in…

           No. I pulled back, and lifted the bottle of whiskey to my lips to down a large mouthful. That was a bad idea; a very bad idea. It was just the candles and the fire and the alcohol and the situation – I didn’t really want Bucky. Did I?

           I cleared my throat. “I must be surrounded by idiots, then,” I joked, to ease the tension in the room. Bucky chuckled and settled back into the spot next to me.

           “Men are dumb,” he said simply. “They were dumb a hundred years ago, and they’re dumb now. The only thing that’s changed is that now they have more ways to be dumb.”

           I arched an eyebrow. “Are you speaking from experience?” I asked, and he shot me a rueful grin.

           “I’ve done my fair share of dumb things when it comes to women,” he admitted. “My mother raised me to be a gentleman, and I had sisters so I knew how to act around girls. But sometimes none of that mattered and I still did something stupid to ruin things.” He shrugged. “No one is perfect, I guess.”

           “I don’t know…From what Steve has said, you were pretty smooth with the ladies in your day,” I teased, and Bucky snorted.

           “I could have gone on one date with one girl and Steve would have thought I was Casanova,” he deadpanned. “The poor kid couldn’t even talk to a dame without damn near having an asthma attack.”

           The laughter bubbled from my chest before I could stop it. Bucky grinned, and I shook my head as I struggled to compose myself.

           “Tell me Steve was wrong, though,” I insisted after a minute. “Tell me you weren’t the ladies’ man he makes you out to be.”

           Bucky’s cheeks flushed, and he pursed his lips. “I’ve been with my fair share of girls,” he admitted with a shrug, and I nodded.

           “I figured as much.”

           “But,” he continued, “I was always good to them. I never treated them as objects, and things always ended on good terms. My mama raised me well.”

           “I never suggested any different,” I told him, and his brow furrowed.

           “Then why does it matter how many girls I’ve been with?”

           “It doesn’t; I was just curious to see if Steve’s stories were true.”

           Bucky was silent for a moment, and then he turned his head to the side to look at me. “(Y/N), can I ask you a question?”

           I hesitated. “If you’re asking how many guys I’ve been with, a lady never tells,” I joked, trying once again to ease the tension in the air. Bucky’s lips twitched, but he shook his head.

           “No, not that,” he said. He wet his lips before continuing. “Did it actually bother you to think Natasha and I had been here together?”

           My stomach was in my throat. Bucky’s eyes searched mine, and I couldn’t pull my gaze away as I swallowed nervously. I couldn’t lie, though; the alcohol had my wits dulled, and he would detect a lie as soon as it came out of my mouth. Finally, I shrugged.

           “I wasn’t thrilled about it,” I admitted, and he frowned.

           “Why, though?”

           This was where it got complicated, because I wasn’t entirely sure myself why it had bothered me so much. “I don’t know. She’s just so beautiful, and the two of you have so much in common, I…” I felt the heat creep up my neck to my face. “It just…it bothered me to think that the two of you had been here, maybe in a similar situation to the one we’re in, and maybe she got you to open up to her in a way no one else had been able to do. I hated the thought that the two of you are perfect for each other and that…that things happened, and that she likely knew you better than I ever would.”

           By now, my cheeks were flaming. I had torn my gaze from his to stare instead at the fire, watching the flames like they were the only things holding me down. I had opened my big mouth, and now there was no going back. I felt embarrassed, pathetic and vulnerable, and part of me wished the flames would swallow me whole.

           “That’s…a lot to unpack,” Bucky finally exhaled, and I buried my face in my hands.

           “I’m sorry,” I groaned. “I shouldn’t have said anything…”

           “The only thing you have to be sorry for, doll, is thinking that I would, in any scenario, choose Natasha over you.”

           I froze, and then peeked through my fingers at him cautiously. He was watching me intensely, and I swallowed hard as I removed my hands from my face.

           “What are you saying?” I asked quietly, and Bucky chuckled.

           “I’m saying that, just as I’ve told everyone a thousand times before, Natasha is not my type. We’re almost too similar, in the wrong ways.” He shook his head. “I told you this morning that you had no reason to be jealous of her, doll. I meant it.”

           My voice was small. “I had no right to be jealous,” I whispered. “It’s not like I expected anything to happen between you and I.”

           “No?” Bucky had shifted his body to face me, and now he was looking at me with the same unreadable expression I’d seen on his face twice the day before. His flesh hand reached out to tug gently at the sleeve of my shirt – his shirt – as he wet his lips and looked back up to meet my eyes. “So you’re telling me,” he murmured, “that you have no idea what you’re doing to me, walking around here wearing my shirt?”

           I tugged my bottom lip between my teeth. Bucky’s eyes were hooded, and I felt my whole body heating under his gaze. I swallowed before speaking.

           “I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” I breathed, voice barely above a whisper, and he shook his head.

           “What did I tell you about apologizing, doll?” he told me. “I’m not mad. How can I be mad when you wear that shirt better than I ever could? It’s almost sinful, what it does to me, seeing you wearing my clothes.”

           “So is that why you gave me the shirt in the first place?” I asked, feeling suddenly bold. Bucky’s eyes glittered.

           “I gave it to you because you were turning into a popsicle and I knew my body heat would be trapped in the fabric and it would warm you up faster,” he replied with a chuckle. “In the moment, my thoughts had been about making you comfortable. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I’d let anything happen to you.”

           My insides melted. “Did that concern for me come as concern for a teammate, or a friend…?” I asked. “Or…?”

           “Or,” Bucky agreed, his own cheeks pink now. “Something else. Something more. Something I hadn’t been able to explain for weeks now, until the second I saw you with my shirt on.”

           My brow furrowed. “Weeks?”

           This time he ducked his head. “Remember that mission in São Paulo a few weeks ago?” he asked, and I nodded.

           “The one where I jumped onto that school bus to save those kids?” I asked, and Bucky frowned.

           “You mean the one where you almost died?”

           “If I didn’t do something those kids would have died –”

           “(Y/N), you were on a third-storey balcony and you jumped onto a moving bus whose hood was entirely engulfed in flames…” Bucky shook his head. “That’s not the point. The point is that when I saw you jump onto that bus, I swear to god my heart stopped. I mean, there’s the concern you feel for your teammates when they’re in a dangerous situation. But then there’s the heart-wrenching fear you get when you’re about to watch someone you care about get seriously hurt or even die. And when that thought crossed my mind, (Y/N) – the thought that I was about to lose you – I’d never felt more terrified for someone else in my entire life. And I couldn’t understand at the time why it mattered so much to me, but now…Now I get it.”

           For a few seconds, the air hung heavy as neither of us spoke. The only sounds in the cabin were the howling of the wind outside, the crackling of the fire in the hearth, and our shallow and ragged breaths. I realized that my body had slowly, subconsciously gravitated closer to Bucky’s; our knees touched, and my hand was resting on his thigh. My eyes caught the way his gaze lingered on my lips before flicking up to meet mine, and before I could talk myself out of it, I was sitting up and capturing Bucky’s lips with mine.

           There was no resistance as his soft lips moved against mine, hands on my waist to pull me into his lap. My legs straddled his hips, and my arms circled around his neck as his hands held tight to my waist. My tongue teased his bottom lip and his mouth yielded to mine, allowing me to explore the kiss deeper as his hands roamed across my back and pulled me closer to him. His lips broke from mine to trail down my jaw to my throat, where he nipped teasingly at the sensitive flesh. I tilted my head back to allow him better access, and as his mouth nipped and sucked at my throat, no doubt leaving his mark on me, his hands had slipped under the hem of his Henley to knead at my flesh. I let out a soft groan, and felt him grin against my neck.

           “Y’know, doll,” he murmured, lifting his head to nip lightly at my earlobe, “as much as I like seeing you wearing my shirt, I think I’d like it even more if I got to take it off of you.”

           I shivered, and then I was lifting my arms so Bucky could slowly tug the shirt over my head, revealing that I wasn’t wearing a bra. His gaze fell to my chest, eyes dark as his tongue darted out to wet his lips. I should have felt exposed, but the hunger with which he was regarding me with only had me dizzy with desire. He took his time admiring me, hands slowly roaming my curves, but avoiding my breasts purposely.

           “God, you’re even more beautiful than I imagined,” he murmured, voice husky, and I took his face in my hands and pulled his mouth back to mine in a fierce kiss. My fingers ran through his hair and he sighed into my mouth, flesh hand sliding down my back to give my ass a playful squeeze. I squealed and he grinned wolfishly.

           “Oh, this is gonna be fun,” he chuckled, and my body trembled in anticipation. When he leaned in to take one of my nipples into his mouth and suck lightly, I keened, fingers tangling in his hair.

           “Bucky…” I whined, and he peppered soft kisses across my chest.

           “Yeah, doll?” he murmured, hands massaging my hips as his mouth tended to my breasts. I let out a huff, trying to compose myself enough to speak. His touch already had me hazy, though, and it was difficult to form words.

           “Too many clothes,” I finally managed to mumble, and he took the hint as he leaned back enough to yank the t-shirt over his head. My eyes dropped to his bare chest, and then my fingertips were tracing the dips and planes of his hard muscles. I could feel those muscles contracting under my touch, and when I reached his shoulder where metal met flesh I hesitated. Bucky scowled.

           “It’s not pretty, I know,” he mumbled, and I pursed my lips. I pressed a quick kiss to his mouth before letting my lips ghost over the puckered skin on his shoulder. Bucky inhaled sharply, and when I reached down to thread my fingers through his vibranium ones and lift his hand to kiss his knuckles, he watched me with burning eyes and a slack jaw.

           “There isn’t a single thing about you that could make me want you any less, Bucky Barnes,” I whispered, and then his free hand was cupping the back of my neck and pulling my mouth back to his. The kiss was slow, tender and deep, and I hugged my body tighter to his in an effort to be closer to him. In doing so, it put me in a position to feel the bulge in the front of Bucky’s sweatpants. I rocked my hips against his experimentally with the tiniest of whimpers when I was rewarded with the friction I craved, and Bucky’s breath hitched.

           “Doll…” he rasped, hands tightening on my waist. I pulled back to meet his gaze with hooded eyes.

           “Please…” I begged softly. “Bucky, please.”

           I was fully aware of how desperate I sounded, but it was a shameless awareness. The need to feel his touch ran so deep it was practically an ache – An ache I desperately needed him to soothe. His eyes were black pools of lust as he looked at me, licking his lips as he contemplated his next move carefully.

           “So needy, baby girl,” he murmured, fingertips teasing as they skimmed across my bare flesh. I shuddered and he grinned lazily. “God, the things I wanna do to you…You want me to touch you, doll?”

           I nodded, unable to speak. Bucky’s eyes sparkled.

           “Gonna take real good care of you, sweetheart, I promise. Gonna show you how a real man treats a woman as incredible as you.” He kissed the valley between my breasts, hands playing with the waistband of my sweatpants. I was on fire, between his words and his touch, and I was spiralling into a daze that I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to leave. “Is that what you want, doll?” Bucky murmured. “You want me to take care of that ache for you?”

           I whimpered; was it that obvious I was aching for him? I could only nod meekly, but Bucky shook his head.

           “Words, doll,” he said, gentle but firm. “I’m not doing a thing until I hear you say it.”      

           His voice was still husky, but his eyes were suddenly cautious, as if he wasn’t sure I actually wanted this. I frowned, in disbelief that even now he was letting his insecurities convince him he wasn’t the only thing in the world I wanted. I took his face firmly between my hands and held his gaze to mine.

           “I want you to claim me as yours,” I whispered, “so that when anyone sees the two of us together, they know I belong to you and only you. I want you to fuck me so good that I can still feel you even after we’ve gotten back to New York.”

           Bucky’s eyes darkened until just the thinnest ring of blue remained around his pupils. “Oh, fuck,” he choked out, and then he was laying me down as his mouth claimed mine in a searing kiss. The blanket was soft on the skin of my back, protecting against the chill of the hardwood underneath, but I wouldn’t care if I was laying outside in the snow if it meant Bucky would touch me.

           His hands slowly – agonizingly – dragged the sweatpants from my hips. I let out a huff of frustration and he chuckled.

           “Patience, darlin’,” he breathed. “I wanna take my time with you, but I promise I’ll make it all worth it.”

           Bucky kissed his way up the inside of my leg and then down the other, purposely ignoring where I needed him the most. When his hands finally pushed my legs apart at the knees to expose me, I was a mess, biting my lip with my chest heaving. His eyes raked over my core hungrily before flashing up to my face.

           “Fucking hell,” he rasped. “Look at you, doll; you’re dripping like honey.”

           “All for you, Buck,” I said, breathless. “This is what you do to me.”

           Bucky groaned, and then his fingers swiped through my folds. I gasped at the sudden contact, back arching off the floor, and the grin that stretched across his face was pure sin. Pulling my legs over his shoulders, he wrapped his arms loosely around my thighs and then licked a clean stripe up my slit. I cried out, back arching again, and his arms tugged my hips back down gently.

           “Good girl,” he murmured, before his mouth went back to work. His tongue explored my folds, and then dipped into my entrance to gather my juices. I squeezed my eyes shut, hands fisting into the soft fur of the blanket beneath me as electricity buzzed through every nerve in my body. “Sweet as candy,” Bucky murmured into my flesh, and I keened.

           When his lips wrapped around my clit and sucked, my hips bucked and I writhed in Bucky’s grasp. He let me shamelessly grind against his face for a few moments, but then his arms were firm as they pushed my hips back down to the blanket and held them there. His mouth continued its assault on my core, licking and sucking and nibbling until my chest was flushed and I was reduced to incoherent moans and whimpers. With my hips locked into place, I had to use my hands to direct his mouth. My fingers tangled in his hair, tugging on the dark locks to hold his face to me, and Bucky groaned into me, sending vibrations through my core that had a fresh wave of heat crash through me. I tugged harder, nails scraping his scalp, and he growled.

           “Oh, you’re asking for it now,” he said in a low voice, and then he was teasing my entrance with not one, but two fingers. He pushed them into me slowly, watching my face for my reaction, and I moaned obscenely as he curled them and his knuckles brushed my walls. With a triumphant smirk, Bucky’s lips reattached to my clit as his thick fingers pumped in and out of me at an excruciatingly slow pace. My breaths were coming out in sharp rasps as I felt the coil in my belly tighten, teetering oh-so-close to the edge.

           Bucky must have been able to tell I was close, because he added a third finger and grazed my clit lightly with his teeth. I cried out his name as he pushed me over the edge, eyes squeezed shut and hands curling into fists in his hair. He pulled out his fingers and helped me ride out my high with gentle licks and soft kisses, and when my body finally relaxed, boneless, against the blanket, he kissed his way up my body to press his lips to mine.

           I tasted myself on his tongue, and I hummed delightedly. Bucky grinned into the kiss and nipped at my bottom lip playfully.

           “I have never seen something more beautiful than you when you come undone, doll, fuck,” he breathed. “If I died right now, I would die a happy man.”

           I giggled and pinched his side teasingly. “We’re not done yet,” I told him wryly, and then my hands were shoving Bucky’s sweatpants off his hips. He kicked them off impatiently, and my hand immediately wrapped around him. He grunted, and I felt the heat pool in my belly as I let out a soft whine – He was thick and hot and impossibly hard in my grip, and my walls were already clenching in anticipation.

           I began to slide my hand up and down his shaft, and a low hiss escaped Bucky’s lips as his eyes fluttered shut. I tried to push him off me so I could trade my hand for my mouth, but Bucky shook his head.

           “No,” he said gruffly, and my brow furrowed in confusion.

           “What?”

           I must have had a hurt look on my face, because his eyes widened and he was quick to press a tender kiss to my lips. “Oh, baby girl, no, it’s not like that,” he said quickly. “I would love to know how your mouth feels, trust me, but right now, my god, I need to be inside you so badly it hurts.”

           “Oh…” I breathed, biting my lip. Bucky’s hand replaced mine on his length and he lined himself up with my entrance, teasing it with the tip. My breath hitched, and he looked at me imploringly.

           “You sure about this?” he murmured, and instead of answering I rocked my hips against his, allowing him to slip fully inside me in one smooth stroke.

           Bucky’s eyes rounded; I had surprised him. They quickly darkened as he let out a low groan, and I bit my lip, letting out a whine as he stretched me better than I’d ever been stretched before. Bucky held still for a moment, giving me time to adjust to his size and him time to compose himself.

           I tilted my head up, lips searching for his, and he dipped his head to oblige me. When we broke apart, he rested his forehead against mine, breath hot against my face.

           “Tell me when you’re ready,” he murmured.

           “I’m ready,” I replied without hesitation. “Please, Buck…”

           With a strangled groan, Bucky slowly slid out of me before pushing back in. I drew a shuddering breath, relishing in how full I felt with him inside me. The pace he set was languid and unhurried, and despite having been so desperate to feel him, now that we were joined, I was more than happy with slowing things down. There was no need to rush – We weren’t leaving the cabin anytime soon, which meant we had plenty of time to learn every inch of each other’s bodies.

           Every languorous stroke was well-placed, hitting me in all the right spots until I was whimpering and entirely at Bucky’s mercy. I quickly came to the conclusion, though, that Bucky was just as much at my mercy as I was at his; I could feel it in every tender touch, kiss and thrust that he was all in – That this was more than just fuelled by desire. It had been a long time since someone had been so attentive to my body and my feelings, it made my heart swell.

           “Look at me,” Bucky suddenly whispered. “Look at me, doll.”

           I hadn’t even realized my eyes had been closed, and I blinked them open, only to have my breath catch in my throat. Bucky’s face hovered above mine, his eyes fixed on mine. I could see the fire dancing in his irises, casting golden streaks through the pools of blue; he had never been more breathtaking than he was right now. It wasn’t the colours in his eyes that had taken my breath away, though; it was the expression they held. Bucky, normally so closed-off and hard to read, was an entirely open book. His eyes held everything that his mouth couldn’t say – Trust, happiness, reverence, adoration…There was even something else there, something I dared not even put into thought for fear of ruining if before it could even begin. He was completely vulnerable, vulnerable for me, and I knew how big of a deal that was for him. With a lump in my throat and my heart fluttering wildly against my ribcage, I lifted a hand to brush my fingertips across his lips.

           “James…” I said breathlessly. The use of his real name had him groaning softly, and then he was dipping his head to kiss me deeply. He snapped his hips into mine, still at the same slow pace, but with more force behind the strokes now. A breathy whine escaped my lips and Bucky pressed his forehead to mine, chest heaving as he fought to even his breathing.

           “Eyes on me, doll,” he panted, rolling his hips into mine and earning another wanton moan. “I want to see you when you come apart around me.”

           “Fuck…” I whimpered, forcing my eyes to remain open despite it being so natural for them to drift shut as the coil in my belly tightened. Bucky’s gaze was piercing, hungry, and unabashedly intimate as he fucked into me, slow and hard and so unbelievably good that the rest of the world – the storm still roaring outside, the knowledge that HYDRA was probably out there looking for us, our teammates back home planning to rescue us – melted away until it was just him and I, our bodies joined in the most profound and visceral way, energy buzzing from his body to mine and back again until it was impossible to tell where he ended and I began.

           I reached my climax only seconds before Bucky did, brows knitting together as I struggled to keep my eyes on him, lips parted as I gasped sharply. Bucky’s eyes clouded over with pure, unadulterated desire, and then his hips stuttered and he was spilling into me with a groan that rumbled deep in his chest, his expression one of absolute bliss. His mouth found mine as we rode out our highs; the kiss was sloppy and lazy, both of us absolutely spent, but it was also sweet and tender. Bucky’s nose bumped mine affectionately, and then he was dipping his head to press his face to the juncture between my neck and shoulder.

           My fingers carded idly through his damp hair for a handful of seconds, and he hummed contentedly. Then his arms circled under me and he rolled us over so he was on his back and I was sprawled across his chest, our legs tangled together and his softening member still inside me.

           Neither of us said anything, but we didn’t have to; our bodies had already said everything that needed to be said. The wind still wailed outside, but the fire kept the cabin cozy, and the flames from the hearth and the candles bathed the room in a warm, golden glow. Bucky’s hand brushed through my hair before his fingertips swept down the naked expanse of my body, raising goosebumps on my flushed skin. I turned my head to press my lips to his heated chest, burying myself further in his embrace, and in this moment – skin-to-skin, curled up on a soft blanket by a crackling fire – I was more grateful than I ever thought I could be for a plane crash in the mountains in Austria.

[bpod-bpod]

Deep See Fish

When putting life under a microscope, a clock is ticking. Fragile cells and their molecules inside often only last for hours or minutes – scientists much balance techniques to make their samples more visible with the need for a quick peek. A new technique called DEpigmEntation-Plus-Clearing (DEEP-clear) uses chemicals to sluice away opaque chemicals like fats, leaving tissues transparent and glassy. Tissue clearing is nothing new in histology, but DEEP-clear also washes away distracting pigments from coloured tissues at the same time, quickly producing samples that can then be purposefully stained with specific dyes. Here, light sheet microscopy uses horizontal 'sheets' of gentle laser light to pick out fishy details, later virtually reassembled in 3D. In these zebrafish heads dyes highlight dividing cells in pink and cells in the nervous system in green. Researchers hope DEEP-clear can now help to highlight similar cells in human tissues too.

Written by John Ankers

Image from the TU Wien and Max Perutz Labs

Max Perutz Labs, University of Vienna, Vienna BioCenter, Austria

Image copyright held by the original authors

Research published in Science Advances, May 2020

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[aprilskyforever]

Tmblrvision 2019 aesthetics

the vibes and associations i get while listening to the songs. based mainly on melody.

GREECE: the popular-girls-at-high-school (or maybe college) stereotype - pillow fights, road trips, gossip, passing notes in the classroom, cheerleading 

ALGERIA: lonely, sleepless nights after just getting dumped. lethargy. deep forests and wide streched landscapes without end

POLAND: jogging through a suburbia in rain. gray daily commute. overcast weather. the feeling that there must be something better than this

JAPAN: the first real love, kids playing in a meadow, waterfalls and butterflies, shy gestures and looks, the first misunderstanding and fight, but also the first reconcilation 

THE NETHERLANDS: a frustrated and restless author, he has writer’s block that never really lets go, he’s never content with his work. wrinkled paper, broken pencil ends, colliding with others on walks

SLOVAKIA: modern ballet, faint light, a couple, a farewell you don’t want to say

ISRAEL: party and ceremonies in a village where the older women are in charge; they do the cooking, leading the dances, and make sure everyone is involved and having fun

ICELAND: army boots, lighters and torches, pills, disassociation

ARMENIA: racing dogs, or maybe a tiger tamer, a queen on her throne dressed in a fur cloak 

FRANCE: bisexuality; the flags and those colours. smoke. dance on a float at pride, but not entirely euphoric. bubblegum, soap bubbles, cartwheels and other acrobatics

CZECHIA: a hall of mirrors or glass labyrinth where you can’t find your way out. constant shift between lights on and off, constant feel of being hunted; stress

ROMANIA: oriental palaces, a secret love affair with the sultan in order to get his money, terracotta, blood red and mosaic blue

PORTUGAL: a buzzing shopping street in strong sunlight, attractive people at cafés and restaurants, sunglasses, stores too expenisve for you to visit, still everything feels exciting

MONACO: the most popular guy and girl from high school are now adults, have become famous, they’ve released a summer hit that evryone loves besides you. you just don’t get it 

BELARUS: to be one with the elements, feeling the wind tug your hair, the earth tremble beneith your feet, hearing the oceans roar

LITHUANIA: a date at the bottom of an empty outdoor swimming pool, watching the stars, smoking weed, torn jeans and flannel shirts

HUNGARY: green grass. small lakes. cloudy, rain in the air. scent of wood. riding in a pick-up truck. visitng places that carry happy memories for you, but now you’ve broken up with the person you created those memories with

ALBANIA: teenagers discovering a city; on a playground, between concrete walls, on rooftops. sparkling chemistry

UKRAINE: a car ride through a big city at night, the car is expensive and drives fast and you have no idea where you’re going, you’re both afraid and a little turned on at the same time. neon lights. drugs are offered

CROATIA: a scene from a musical set at a café or maybe a diner, a waitress is the main character but all the visitors and staff are dancing, they even get out in the street. cappuccino colours, big flowers. 

ITALY: a carnival, but everything is a little off/cursed. you get hypnotized by the wheels of fortune, the clowns don’t look too friendly, one tent is having a burlesque show, the rides are creeking and jangling

AUSTRALIA: a festival in summer. hot sun. mingling, dancing drunk at the back of the audience, beer, loose tank tops, denim shorts

ESTONIA: a ship. the crew running around getting everything in ready and in order. riding on the waves. can also be a family packing for a road trip

SWITZERLAND: walking along a beach in sunset. lots of people, vendors along the way. wind in your hair. someone is doing a performance. orange, pink, purple. 

LUXEMBOURG: a small restaurant with a dancefloor. tension between a couple, they’re eating in silence, dance together, something doesn’t feel right but they can’t tell what it is

MOLDOVA: nature romance, but sorrowful. riding thourgh a forest, drinking from the small brooks, dacning in an wood anemone valley pretending everyhing’s alright while pushing away your anxiety

SPAIN: growing up; looking at oneself for too long in the mirror and not be content with oneself, get the impulse to smash it with a punch, shave one’s head, tear down all posters and throw out all toys

BULGARIA: being on the way to the most important boxing game of one’s life, alternatively to commit murder. blood splashing on the walls like a pollock painitng. the audience cheering you on in slow motion

EGYPT: a smokey club 90 years ago, red glittery dresses and white suits, live music, something more in your drink besides alcohol

AUSTRIA: being home alone, talking to oneself and dacning like no one is watching, watching the sunset through the window, autumn leaves falling

RUSSIA: glistening snow and northern lights, a car ride over scandinavian mountains, fjords and forest in the middle of winter

LATVIA: preteens on tiktok, boys staying out too late, skateboards and scooters, afro hair 

UNITED KINGDOM: royals of the street, breakdance battles, a boombox on the shoulder, graffiti, bengals (are they called that? you know the smokey coloury things often used at football games and marches and stuff), flashmobs

SWEDEN: graduation (or just schools out for summer), a peptalk before an important event, hugs where one is lifted up and spinned around, the first swim of summer

IRELAND: love letters, having a secret crush on your best friend, sweaters and skinny jeans, baking together, flowery bed covers

DENMARK: riding in an old mustang on cliffs along the ocean, stopping to watch the sunset, laying on top of the hood watching the sky, hearing the yells from cranes, geese and seagulls

SLOVENIA: running ink, bonfires, thin papers, bathtubs filled to the brim, strobe lights

SERBIA: spices, powders in all different colours, tobacco, tulips, terracotta

LEBANON: before the last grand battle in a movie, standing on the top of a mountain watching your enemy at the horizon, horses... and no one knows that just some nights ago, you and your enemy met at a club and danced very close to each other

NORWAY: grandfather clocks, dark silver gray, white show lights

BELGIUM: an eerie dark forest, bats, running without knowing where you put your feet

GERMANY: gathering around something; running down the street knocking on every door urgning everyone to come out because something important is happening

FINLAND: riding the bus while it’s raining, following the drops racing down the window, finding joy in the small things while the rest of your life is quite miserable

[hamlets-ghost-zaddy]

st. jude (the patron of lost causes)

Part 8/8

Donald Malarkey x Reader

A letter arrives in Paris a day after you do.

Constance, having impersonated you to the British mail officer, waves it as a white flag of truce, charging through your newly assigned convalescence hospital ward. “Mail from Austria!” she sings, snapping your eyes up from the young officer you’ve been ordered to keep special watch over, changing out the cold compresses for hot ones over his hollowed eye-sockets. You blink once, twice, pretending the boy’s incomplete face hadn’t morphed into Don’s the longer you looked. Though, you think, I’m grateful for a reason to look away.

Thrust under your nose, you have nowhere else to look but at an envelope scrawled with blue-ink letters, messy and nearly-illegible and absolutely perfect. You savor your name on mailing address, Don’s on the return, lettering too large initially before turning thin and cramped. In your imagination, Don’s warm laughter tickles your ears, his smile sheepish, and he offers weakly: ‘What do you want? I can’t help it if ‘convalescence hospital’ is too long to fit on the envelope!’

Accepting the letter with careful fingers, touching as little of it as possible—perhaps to preserve the sanctity of mail, you so rarely received any, or to preserve the sanctity of his handwriting, the first sample of it you’ve seen—you slide a nail along its lip and draw out the letter inside. Your fingers are shaking; you’re not sure when that started.

“I wish Eugene would write to me,” Constance says to the air above your head.

“Did you ask him to?” you ask, distracted as you recall how to read, your eyes caught and stuck on the first words (“my love”). Sure you’ve misinterpreted the words, sure your mind only conjures what it desperately wants (needs) to read, you begin again. But no. It reads the same.

“Well, no,” Constance prattles, “But the implication was definitely there when I said goodbye to him.”

You’re not listening—how could you possibly with the world held at range, muffled by a shining ring that pierces your ears, bright and yellow but maddeningly loud?—to her, not comprehending the flustered patter of her worries. You’re not doing much of anything: not breathing, not blinking, not moving, all in fear that the letter might disappear, might be spirited away back to him, as if he didn’t mean it and could take it back from five hundred miles away.

“What—?” you finally croak, when you reach the last line of the letter, when Constance has long-since petered into silence, frowning at you in concern. Swallowing past a dry throat, you try again: “What does this mean?”

“What does what mean?” Constance asks, practically.

You read to her: “‘I’m coming to you in Paris, so you’re not allowed to go anywhere. I’m coming home.’”

Paris in July is a riot of color, of life, and the wet heat blanketing the city—making sheets stick at night, your uniform during the day—makes you wonder if Bastogne or Haguenau truly existed. If they happened. The cold, a freeze you thought so deeply seeped into your bones that your blood would never melt, is distant in the joyous jubilation of Paris in summertime, Paris in victory.

But death fills your nostrils, ghosts haunt your sight, and when the long days on duty at the convalescence hospital inch to an end, your muscles are limp, your body is weary, and your soul tired. You appreciate Constance inviting you out to the dance halls, the jazz lounges, and the USO shows with her various beaus, but there’s an unspoken understanding that it’s all a courtesy. You wouldn’t accept, couldn’t accept, not when the war was over but the greatest horror had been saved for the end in that little, damned German town.

You’d come alive, you know as you mark off the calendar hung up in the nurse’s sleeping quarters, when time brought you July 23rd and a train from Austria brought you Don Malarkey. You ignore that line in his letter—that one you and Constance can’t make sense of—because you can’t stand the thought of him coming here, to Paris, only to be ripped again from your arms, bound for the States and Oregon. Bound for a life without you, ocean liner ticket in his back pocket and a suitcase of opportunities in hand. Opportunities that didn’t fit you. So, you ignore it. (Or, you try to, but the minutes before sleep, or as you bathe before a shift, or take a meal break, are too quiet and your brain insists on filling it with thoughts of what if—what if—what if—)

And, on the twenty-seventh, when the morning shift ends, and you hurry for the metro and Gare de l’Est without bothering to change from your nurses’ uniform (as if every slight offering could tempt the clock faster), you wait for energy to surge through your veins, to blossom across you skin and in your chest. But, you only rush faster as if the wind will fill your hollowness.

Those sunken gaps where eyes should be, those skeletal men in the camps where laughter should live, those ghosts where living boys used to stand—

You plunge into the train station’s crowd.

The crush of humanity tosses you in its mad current, and you allow it to drag you along, only breaking for air to squint at the chalkboards announcing arrival times, delays, and departures; only turning on your heel to pace the ruler-measured straight train platforms when you reach one end, hurrying to retrace your sentry path. The great clock in the station’s lobby, luminescent and gold, ticks on. The chalkboards announce a train from Strasbourg—his train—but where—?

Arms are tight around your ribs, a chest is hard against your back, and a laugh is low and warm against your hair.

You kiss him before you see him—the surest way to check he’s real, he’s there, because the war has taught you not to believe your eyes. If you did, you’d suffocate from the weight of the horrors, the depravity—but ah, he’s kissing you, his nose bumping yours in his eagerness to tilt his jaw to match your jaw, to kiss you so your lips will slide and lock into place. As if he kisses you well enough, for long enough, nothing could break him from you, or you from him. You taste the sweetness of coffee with sugar on his mouth, smell the sweetness of fresh showers and fresh laundry, touch the sweetness of his downy soft curls, his sun-taut skin, his double-blessings of double-icons.

When you break away, he kisses your fingers clasped in his, devoting time to kiss each knuckle, the basin of each palm. Then, those earth-brown eyes meet yours and thank God they’re still there, there are no more ghosts than when you last saw them, that light shining past phantoms still flickers in those brown irises, strong and stubborn. “Thank God you’re here, that I’m returned to you,” he whispers, his voice caressing ‘you’ with a tenderness that paints pink onto your cheeks.

You squeeze his hands, words flown from your mind. He doesn’t seem to notice, too busy marveling at your hands in his, your face holding a smile for him. Occasionally, he presses more kisses, soft and vague, to the pads of your fingers, your nose and cheeks, as if to assure himself you still breathed from one second to the next. Finally you muster, “How is it possible that the three weeks since I got your letter felt longer than the whole war?”

His grin, opening like a flower for you, dominates his face. He kisses you again, assuring against your lips: “It’ll be worth it, I promise.” Yet, he pulls away suddenly, your lips chasing his a few inches, askance for more kisses. “But can you lead us to a church? Maybe Notre Dame?”

You restrain yourself until the bridge connecting Paris to its religious heart, the Île de la Cité, and Notre Dame’s graceful spires rise above you like the fragile arms of a ballerina, reaching heavenwards in holy praise. “Don,” you begin shaky, nibbling your lip. “Don, I—” Your voice falters, fails; if you ask the question, you’d have to hear the answer. Do you want that? Do you want to know what he meant when he said he ‘was coming home?’ If he boarded a ship for Eugene, Oregon tomorrow morning; could you stand knowing?

“Yes?” he prompts.

“I—” you try again, sucking in a deep breath, and knowing you have to stand knowing. “I was wondering if you’re going home, to Eugene?”

“Well, uh, of course,” Don replies, stretching out the word, blinking at you. His eyes sweep around—to the neat, pale Parisian townhouses capped with black shingles and dotted with spilling flower boxes, to the men on bicycles and the women with little dogs—and he says, “As much as here is nice, I’m sure, I’m going home.”

“Oh,” is all you muster.

He notices how you deflate, how happiness evaporates from your eyes, and he frowns. “Why? What do you mean ‘oh’?”

“It’s nothing, nothing at all,” you insist, feeling foolish. He meant what he wrote, and meant precisely as he worded it: he’s coming to Paris and then he’s bound for home. You should have expected as much; he has every reason to crave the familiarities of home, to seize them the first instance he can and—

He pulls you to a stop, cradling your face with both hands, his thumbs rubbing away the stray tears that slipped the gate and managed to leak from your eyes. “‘Nothing’ she says while she’s crying,” he teases gently, his mouth quirking, his eyes betraying his worry. They’re not soil now; they’re something more solid, ancient, and buried deeper in the earth. Something unmovable, and maybe that thought prompts you to admit:

“It’s just what you wrote in your letter, that you’re coming home. You’re going home to Oregon soon, and just stopped off here, and of course I’m happy for you, but—”

His laughter interrupts you, confuses you, and before your mouth can pop open in protest, he’s kissing you anew. Gentle at first, but then he’s nibbling your lip, biting it, exploring how your body—flooding with heat and your throat squeaking involuntarily—responds to each new sensation. He delights in your reactions, delights in knowing they’re his doing, and when he breaks from you (you suspect your mouth matches his: red and swollen), he says, “Eugene is the place I call home, but my home…” he shakes his head as if in correction, “My life is you. You battled away the ghosts, you fought back the gray, and revived this.”

He places your hand on his chest. Under your palms, his heart beats, jackrabbit quick.

A pause. Then, he pulls one of his icon necklaces from under his uniform. Checking the image briefly, he pulls it off only to thread over your head. “I know it’s not a ring, but there is a church—” he gestures and you squint up at Notre Dame. You hadn’t noticed you are stopped in the great square in front of her, hadn’t known she witnessed your foolishness “—we exchanged symbolic things, if you know what I mean, and . . .”

And you had fallen in love with him, your spirit and happiness married to him, since a supply tent in Haganau.

You nod, breathing, “Yes, I do,” because you know what he means; you’d swear to it. You kiss him now, and when your forehead rests on his shoulder, you find your fingers turning the new icon around and around. Holding it up to the bright July light, you squint, asking, “Who is it?”

“Anthony of Padua.”

You kiss the icon, kiss Don, and feel as though you could kiss the day itself or kiss Paris in all of its riotous color and wonderment: what you knew you lost hadn’t been found. What you didn’t know to need, had been given generously, abundantly.

Life finds a way.

[brookston]

Holidays 8.5

Holidays

Bogotá's Carnival begins (Colombia)

Damn the Torpedoes, Full Speed Ahead Day

Fiesta de San Salvador (El Salvador)

Genes For Jeans Day (Australia)

Homeland Thanksgiving Day (Croatia)

International Traffic Light Day

National Blackmail Day

National Failures Day

National Underwear Day

National Youth and Children’s Day (Kiribati)

Nuestra Señora de África (Ceuta, Spain)

Return of the Queen (Johnny English)

Tutti Frutti Hat Day

Umuganura (Harvest Thanksgiving; Rwanda)

Victory Day (Croatia)

Work Like a Dog Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

805 Day

Green Peppers Day

National Couscous Day

National Waffle Day

Oyster Day

First Friday in August

Braham Pie Day (Minnesota) [1st Friday]

International Beer Day [1st Friday]

International Mustache Day [1st Friday]

Moxee Hop Festival begins (Washington) [1st Friday]

National Water Balloon Day [1st Friday]

Tomboy Tools Day [1st Friday]

Twins Day Festival begins (Twinsburg, Ohio) [1st Full Weekend, begins 1st Friday]

Independence Days

Burkina Faso (from France, 1960)

Feast Days

Abel of Reims (Christian; Saint)

Addai (Christian; Saint)

Afra (Christian; Saint)

Albrecht Dürer, Matthias Grünewald, and Lucas Cranach the Elder (Episcopal Church (USA))

Cassian of Autun (Christian; Saint)

Clipping the Church Day (Yorkshire, UK)

Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major (Catholic Church)

Enola Gay Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Emygdius (Christian; Saint)

Lucretia Borgia Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Memnius (a.k.a. Menge; Christian; Saint)

Oswald of Northumbria (Christian; Saint)

Putanesca Sauce Day (Pastafarian)

Sacrifice to Salus (Ancient Roman Goddess of Health)

Tango (Muppetism)

Tasso (Positivist; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Tomobiki (友引 Japan) [Good luck all day, except at noon.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because the yellow car was invented.)

Premieres

Crimes of Passion, by Pat Benatar (Album; 1980)

Luck (Animated Film; 2022)

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, by Pink Floyd (Album; 1967)

Punch the Clock, by Elvis Costello (Album; 1983)

Revolver, by The Beatles (Album; 1966)

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Film; 2011)

Risky Business (Film; 1983)

Running Up That Hill, by Kate Bush (Song; 1985)

Shout, by The Isley Brothers recorded (Song; 1959)

Suicide Squad (Film; 2016)

To Catch a Thief (Film; 1955)

Today’s Name Days

Dominika, Oswald (Austria)

Marija, Nives, Osvald, Snježana (Croatia)

Kristián (Czech Republic)

Osvaldus (Denmark)

Salme, Salmi (Estonia)

Salme, Sanelma (Finland)

Abel (France)

Maria, Oswald (Germany)

Nona, Nonna (Greece)

Krisztina (Hungary)

Osvaldo, Vincenzo (Italy)

Arvils, Osvalda, Osvalds (Latvia)

Mintarė, Nona, Osvaldas, Rimtas (Lithuania)

Oskar, Osvald (Norway)

Cyriak, Emil, Karolin, Maria, Nonna, Oswald, Oswalda, Stanisława (Poland)

Hortenzia (Slovakia)

África, Nieves (Spain)

Alrik, Ulrik (Sweden)

Aphra, Areta, Aretha, Naomi, Neomi, Noami, Noemi (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 217 of 2022; 148 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 31 of 2022

Celtic Tree Calendar: Tinne (Holly) [Day 28 of 28]

Chinese: Month 7 (Lányuè), Day 8 (Geng-Yin)

Chinese Year of the: Tiger (until January 22, 2023)

Hebrew: 8 Av 5782

Islamic: 7 Muharram 1444

J Cal: 7 Hasa; Sixday [7 of 30]

Julian: 23 July 2022

Moon: 50% 1st Quarter

Positivist: 21 Dante (8th Month) [Tasso]

Runic Half Month: Thorn (Defense) [Day 10 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 46 of 90)

Zodiac: Leo (Day 14 of 31)

[skiasurveys]

I have Traveled To:

More than three states in the US | Mexico | Canada |A place that starts with the letter L | Austria | An island | A big city |. Anywhere in Africa | Japan | A place where English is not the main language | Anywhere in the southern hemisphere | India | Netherlands

I Have Read:

Any of the Bible | At least two Harry Potter books | The entire Twilight series | Catch-22 | Animal Farm | A Dr. Seuss book | Instructions to a piece of Ikea information | A warning label that made me laugh | A biography/autobiography | Dante’s Inferno | A Chuck Palahniuk book A newspaper in the last week | Something that made me cry

I Like to Eat:

Spam | Mexican food | Brussell sprouts | Onions Watermelon | Vegan food | Bacon | Chocolate New things | Escargot | Hummus | Haggis | Indian food| Home cooking | Fast food

My Favorite Actors Include:

Mark Wahlberg | Morgan Freeman | James Franco | Leonardo DiCaprio | Robert DeNiro | Samuel L. Jackson | Chris Hemsworth | Elijah Wood Johnny Depp Steve Buscemi Robin Williams Jack Black Channing Tatum

I Have Listened to These Bands:

Taylor Swift | AC/DC | Jay-Z | Frank Sinatra | Pink Floyd | Fall Out Boy | Incubus No Doubt | The White Stripes | Skrillex | Tenacious D | Metallica | Britney Spears | Ke$ha | The Beatles

I Have/Had These Pets:

Dog | Cat | Horse | Bird | Hamster | Lizard | Snake | Guinea | Pig| Goat | Fish | Mouse | Spider| Hedgehog Ferret

I Have Seen These Movies:

Fifth Element | Gone With the Wind | Nightmare Before Christmas | High School Musical | Kickin’ It Old School | Casablanca |Predator | White Men Can’t Jump AVATAR | 12 Years A Slave | Saving Private Ryan | MASH | Mamma Mia! | Dark Shadows | Riding In Cars With Boys

If I Could Have A Super Power, I Would Choose:

Mind control | Mind reading | Teleportation | Flying | Bullet-proof | Speed | Super-strength |Invisibility | All-Knowing| X-Ray vision | Freeze-touch | Time traveling Invulnerability | Telekenisis

I Am Scared of:

Clowns | Heights | Spiders | Open spaces | Small spaces | Vacuums | Snakes | Needles | Strangers | Michael Myers | Bugs | Tiny holes | Highways | Germs |Police

My Favorite Color Is:

Red |Yellow | Orange |Green |Blue |Purple |Gray |Black |Brown| White |Pink

I Am Currently Wearing:

A t-shirt |A hoodie |Capris Shoes| A bra |Make-up |Perfume |Deodorant |Hat |Something with a superhero/symbol on it |Nail polish |Scarf |Pajamas |Boxers |Sweatpants

I Would Describe My Best Friend As:

Bossy |Intelligent |Promiscuous |Funny |Whiny |Honest Reliable |Loyal |Lazy | Adventurous |Unique |Complicated |Open-minded | Well-read

In the Last 24 Hours, I Have:

Read |Drank alcohol |Had sex |Eaten meat  |Danced in public |Went swimming |Changed my clothes more than once |Said something mean |Cleaned |Spent money on something pointless |Sang aloud |Met someone new |Played a game of some sort

Things In the Room With Me Now Are:

A TV |Another person |Something that belongs to a child |A pet |Food |Bed |Art |Clock |not connected to a phone/computer |A mirror |Medicine |Books |Drugs or alcohol

The Last Person I Texted Is:

My significant other |Someone who sucks at spelling |A different race than me |A relative |Someone I don’t really like |Someone I went to high school with |My best friend |A person I work with |At home |In the room with me |Knows more than one language| ) Is female Is under the age of 21 | Someone I live with

I Am For:

Abortion | Death penalty |Amnesty |Gun control |Gay marriage |Prayer in school |War in the middle east Marijuana legalization |Banning cigarettes in public places |Higher taxes |Higher minimum wage |Standardized testing |Lowering the legal age for drinking

I Have Committed These Crimes:

Jaywalking |Smoking weed |Shooting heroin |Shoplifting Breaking & entering |Public intoxication |Hit & Run |Speeding |Opening someone else’s mail without their permission |Burglary |Vehicular manslaughter |Lying under oath | Truancy

I Took These Classes In High School/College:

Home Ec |Physics |Photography| Criminal Justice Journalism |Debate |Creative Writing |Art |Music Theory |Philosophy |French |Theater |Choir Psychology

What I Watch On TV:

Reality shows about celebrities |Game shows |News |Reruns of classic shows |Award shows |Modern Family |Doctor Who |Scandal Infomercials |HSN |MTV Singing competitions |Cooking shows |Traveling shows

[kontextmaschine]

What's going on in Oregon?

"Traditional" Oregon is pretty rural and as things have aligned nationally "red". It's seen itself as a sort of free soil-free labor utopia and been wary of outsiders wrecking it, which since the 70s has mostly been aimed towards California, and a fear that Oregon would follow its path, by giving up country virtue for city flash.

Oregon has a lot of internal cohesion though, so after the decline of the lumber industry (which was read by "Red" Oregon as engineered by extralocal big gubmint under the influence of urbanites alienated from rural life) and through the rise of "Portlandia" care was taken to preserve the interests of rural Oregon

As "red" and "blue" became more all-encompassing in the late 2000s with rural sorted to red, there was a narrow D majority but a spirit of bipartisanship and cross-cutting loyalties remained; when a gun control bill looked to pass on a party-line vote a D from eastern Oregon defected, and so on. Revenue bills further required a 3/5 supermajority.

But that's worn off as things progress. In 2018 the Dems got that supermajority, (people noting already that quorum monkeying was an option) and forces internal to the legislature have undermined bipartisanship.

Now, Oregon only recently (2012) and partially moved away from an every-other-year "citizen assembly". Features of this system are 1) that legislators tend to be local big wheels with extensive ties and ongoing business in their districts and 2) a vs.-the-clock setup where legislative tactics focus on delay past the end of session, when all unpassed bills are killed.

There was already a walkout earlier this year over gun control and something else that the Dems folded to but what made this one more critical is (like I keep saying of Wendy Davis' 2013 "pink shoes" Texas filibuster) that it ate up time close to end of session and if upheld a few more days would have killed lots of critical bills like the one just passed to end urban single-family zoning statewide.

The "militia" thing was a sideshow to all that, but like the legislator in question is in fact a rural baron operating a private network of military logistics and special forces trainers in a hinterpand filled with disillusioned veterans! All those cute Cascadian and State of Jefferson flags do mean there is a strong sense of local particularism that takes the idiom of secessionist movements! In the form of those "Patriot Prayer" marches, Red Cascadia has been sending warriors on raids into Blue Portland!

On my trip I got a real Red Vienna/Black Austria sense, that they saw the Portland metro swollen with non-Oregonians arrogantly telling Oregon what to do, and were proud of their legislators, glad that someone was finally doing something about it. That's a real thing.

[twenty-nothing]

OneHundredFortyFour

I have Traveled To:

More than three states in the US Mexico Canada A place that starts with the letter L Austria An island A big city Anywhere in Africa Japan A place where English is not the main language Anywhere in the southern hemisphere India Netherlands

I Have Read:

Any of the Bible At least two Harry Potter books The entire Twilight series Catch-22 Animal Farm A Dr. Seuss book Instructions to a piece of Ikea information A warning label that made me laugh A biography/autobiography Dante’s Inferno A Chuck Palahniuk book A newspaper in the last week Something that made me cry

I Like to Eat:

Spam Mexican food Brussel sprouts Onions Watermelon Vegan food Bacon Chocolate New things Escargot Hummus Haggis Indian food Home cooking Fast food

My Favorite Actors Include:

Mark Wahlberg Morgan Freeman James Franco Leonardo DiCaprio Robert DeNiro Samuel L. Jackson Chris Hemsworth Elijah Wood Johnny Depp Steve Buscemi Robin Williams Jack Black Channing Tatum

I Have Listened to These Bands:

Taylor Swift AC/DC Jay-Z Frank Sinatra Pink Floyd Fall Out Boy Incubus No Doubt The White Stripes Skrillex Tenacious D Metallica Britney Spears Ke$ha The Beatles

I Have/Had These Pets:

Dog Cat Horse Bird Hamster Lizard Snake Guinea Pig Goat Fish Mouse Spider Pig Hedgehog Ferret

I Have Seen These Movies:

Fifth Element Gone With the Wind Nightmare Before Christmas High School Musical Kickin’ It Old School Casablanca Predator White Men Can’t Jump AVATAR 12 Years A Slave Saving Private Ryan MASH Mamma Mia! Dark Shadows Riding In Cars With Boys If I Could Have A Super Power, I Would Choose:

Mind control Mind reading Teleportation Flying Bullet-proof Speed Super-strength Invisibility All-Knowing X-Ray vision Freeze-touch Time traveling Invulnerability Telekinesis

I Am Scared of:

Clowns Heights Spiders Open spaces Small spaces Vacuums Snakes Needles Strangers Michael Myers Bugs Tiny holes Highways Germs Police

My Favorite Color Is:

Red Yellow Orange Green Blue Purple Gray Black Brown White Pink

I Am Currently Wearing:

A t-shirt A hoodie Capris Shoes A bra Make-up Perfume Deodorant Hat Something with a superhero/symbol on it Nail polish Scarf Pajamas Boxers Sweatpants

I Would Describe My Best Friend As:

Bossy Intelligent Promiscuous Funny Whiny Honest Reliable Loyal Lazy Adventurous Unique Complicated Open-minded Well-read

In the Last 24 Hours, I Have:

Read Drank alcohol Had sex Eaten meat Danced in public Went swimming Changed my clothes more than once Said something mean Cleaned Spent money on something pointless Sang aloud Met someone new Played a game of some sort

Things In the Room With Me Now Are:

A TV Another person Something that belongs to a child A pet Food Bed Art Clock not connected to a phone/computer A mirror Medicine Books Drugs or alcohol

The Last Person I Texted Is:

My significant other Someone who sucks at spelling A different race than me A relative Someone I don’t really like Someone I went to high school with My best friend A person I work with At home In the room with me Knows more than one language Is female Is under the age of 21 Someone I live with

I Am For:

Abortion Death penalty Amnesty Gun control Gay marriage Prayer in school War in the middle east Marijuana legalization Banning cigarettes in public places Higher taxes Higher minimum wage Standardized testing Lowering the legal age for drinking

I Have Committed These Crimes:

Jaywalking Smoking weed Shooting heroin Shoplifting Breaking & entering Public intoxication Hit & Run Speeding Opening someone else’s mail without their permission Burglary Vehicular manslaughter Lying under oath Truancy

I Took These Classes In High School:

Home Ec Physics Photography Criminal Justice Journalism Debate Creative Writing Art Music Theory Philosophy French Theater Choir Psychology

What I Watch On TV:

Reality shows about celebrities Game shows News Reruns of classic shows Award shows Modern Family Doctor Who Scandal Infomercials HSN MTV Singing competitions Cooking shows Traveling shows

[surveysonfleek]

1509.

I have Traveled To: More than three states in the US Mexico Canada A place that starts with the letter L Austria An island A big city Anywhere in Africa Japan A place where English is not the main language Anywhere in the southern hemisphere India Netherlands

I Have Read: Any of the Bible At least two Harry Potter books The entire Twilight series Catch-22 Animal Farm A Dr. Seuss book Instructions to a piece of Ikea information A warning label that made me laugh A biography/autobiography Dante’s Inferno A Chuck Palahniuk book A newspaper in the last week Something that made me cry

I Like to Eat: Spam Mexican food Brussell sprouts Onions Watermelon Vegan food Bacon Chocolate New things Escargot Hummus Haggis Indian food Home cooking Fast food

My Favorite Actors Include: Mark Wahlberg Morgan Freeman James Franco Leonardo DiCaprio Robert DeNiro Samuel L. Jackson Chris Hemsworth Elijah Wood Johnny Depp Steve Buscemi Robin Williams Jack Black Channing Tatum

I Have Listened to These Bands: Taylor Swift AC/DC Jay-Z Frank Sinatra Pink Floyd Fall Out Boy Incubus No Doubt The White Stripes Skrillex Tenacious D Metallica Britney Spears Ke$ha The Beatles

I Have/Had These Pets: Dog Cat Horse Bird Hamster Lizard Snake Guinea Pig Goat Fish Mouse Spider Pig Hedgehog Ferret

I Have Seen These Movies: Fifth Element Gone With the Wind Nightmare Before Christmas High School Musical Kickin’ It Old School Casablanca Predator White Men Can’t Jump AVATAR 12 Years A Slave Saving Private Ryan MASH Mamma Mia! Dark Shadows Riding In Cars With Boys If I Could Have A Super Power, I Would Choose: Mind control Mind reading Teleportation Flying Bullet-proof Speed Super-strength Invisibility All-Knowing X-Ray vision Freeze-touch Time traveling Invulnerability Telekenisis

I Am Scared of: Clowns Heights Spiders Open spaces Small spaces Vacuums Snakes Needles Strangers Michael Myers Bugs Tiny holes Highways Germs Police

My Favorite Color Is: Red Yellow Orange Green Blue Purple Gray Black Brown White Pink

I Am Currently Wearing: A t-shirt A hoodie Capris Shoes A bra Make-up Perfume Deodorant Hat Something with a superhero/symbol on it Nail polish Scarf Pajamas Boxers Sweatpants

I Would Describe My Best Friend As: Bossy Intelligent Promiscuous Funny Whiny Honest Reliable Loyal Lazy Adventurous Unique Complicated Open-minded Well-read

In the Last 24 Hours, I Have: Read Drank alcohol Had sex Eaten meat Danced in public Went swimming Changed my clothes more than once Said something mean Cleaned Spent money on something pointless Sang aloud Met someone new Played a game of some sort

Things In the Room With Me Now Are: A TV Another person Something that belongs to a child A pet Food Bed Art Clock not connected to a phone/computer A mirror Medicine Books Drugs or alcohol

The Last Person I Texted Is: My significant other Someone who sucks at spelling A different race than me A relative Someone I don’t really like Someone I went to high school with My best friend A person I work with At home In the room with me Knows more than one language Is female Is under the age of 21 Someone I live with

I Am For: Abortion Death penalty Amnesty Gun control Gay marriage Prayer in school War in the middle east Marijuana legalization Banning cigarettes in public places Higher taxes Higher minimum wage Standardized testing Lowering the legal age for drinking

I Have Committed These Crimes: Jaywalking Smoking weed Shooting heroin Shoplifting Breaking & entering Public intoxication Hit & Run Speeding Opening someone else’s mail without their permission Burglary Vehicular manslaughter Lying under oath Truancy

I Took These Classes In High School: Home Ec Physics Photography Criminal Justice Journalism Debate Creative Writing Art Music Theory Philosophy French Theater Choir Psychology

What I Watch On TV: Reality shows about celebrities Game shows News Reruns of classic shows Award shows Modern Family Doctor Who Scandal Infomercials HSN MTV Singing competitions Cooking shows Traveling shows