#currently reading the summer of broken rules

[mr-darcy-where-are-you]

Person: This book is so taylor swift coded

Me: I NEED TO HAVE IT NOW. I NEED IT TO BREATHE. I NEED IT TO FUNCTION.

[sleepless-crows]

does anyone have any book recommendations? please share

[sitp-recs]

July reads ☀️

Happy August! Last month was incredibly busy so I thought of doing a lil July wrapped to celebrate the few treats I got to chance to indulge. They kept my fandom flame alive and gave me a much needed comfort during a really stressful time, so I’m beyond grateful to these works and authors. What about you, what have you been reading lately?

💦 A Two-Fold Light by @lqtraintracks (E, 2k) - Teddy/Draco, Drarry, future Tedrarry

Teddy is hot, in all that statement's permutations. Or: Everybody's falling in love with one another.

🤠 Your Hot Hands by @starquestingfordrarry (E, 7.5k)

Draco always wanted to know where Harry Potter disappeared to. This is not what he expected.

🩲 If The Boxers Fit (A Cinderella Story) by @lettersbyelise (E, 8k)

When Draco ends up shagging a hot, mysterious stranger in a broken Ministry lift and is left with nothing but a sexy pair of red boxers to remember them by, Draco’s friends go sleuthing.

🪞 Crush by @citrusses (E, 8k)

Harry Potter has a secret admirer. Harry's pretty sure that if this person figures out what an idiot he's capable of making of himself, they'll lose interest. So he turns to Draco Malfoy, reformed nemesis and stylish lawyer, for guidance.

🚙 ready, able by @garagepaperback (E, 9.5k)

“Well, even if we went through with it, it wouldn’t work. But thanks for the grand heroic rushing in. A certain element of purity is needed to break it." Malfoy licks his lips, "You’d have to be a virgin.” Malfoy has a problem, Harry wants to help.

⚖️ When the Flood Comes, Anonymous (E, 10k)

Nine years on from the war, Auror Potter is upholding the Ministry of Magic's rule of law. Senior legal counsel Draco Malfoy is challenging it. And absolutely nothing is as it seems.

🇫🇷 The most he’s ever said, Anonymous (E, 16k)

It takes them twenty years.

🩸 on the divine agony of longing by @flimsi (E, 25k)

Speaking to Draco is like poking a beehive - and Harry is a glutton for punishment. In which Harry makes some serious blunders and then tries to fix it. Somehow.

📓 this heaven of mud by @garagepaperback (E, 94k)

winter, 2002: Draco Malfoy is absolutely fine, thank you very much. summer, 2008: Harry Potter is, er- well, not good exactly, but definitely better. Yeah. Better than before. A love story told in two somewhat unreliable parts, over six years.

Bonus: WIP I’m currently reading

🎄 Heavenstruck! by @epitomereally (E)

One and a half years after the war, Draco Malfoy shows up to the Burrow for Christmas.

Next on my list!

🏠 Two Houses, Anonymous (E, 11k)

Two households, both alike in... meddling Floo connections, apparently? Draco Malfoy is a highly professional and well-respected Ministry official, with a demanding schedule, a loving son, and—through no fault of his own—a faulty Floo connection that keeps regurgitating the Minister for Magic through his fireplace.

🪩 Closing Time, Anonymous (E, 18k)

Draco’s been invited to Neville’s stag party in Bristol, and he's confident he knows what to expect. There’ll be too many Gryffindors, for starters, plus a few humiliating team-building activities, some dodgy clubs, and a truly preposterous level of alcohol consumption. But… a drunken Harry Potter climbing into Draco's bed when he’s having a wank? No, he definitely didn't see that coming...

[if-whats-new]

What's New In IF? Issue 13 (2024)

By Erika, Marjorie, Axelle, and Noi

Now Available!

Itch.io. - Keep Reading below

Due to Internal things, the June and July issues will only update on events and games. We hope to resume regular activities and include more pages by August. Note: while Axelle is mentioned, they are currently on a break.

~ ENDED ~

Ended just last week was the Bluebeard Jam! 16 pieces inspired by or adapted from the tale of the same name, which you should check out! Website: https://itch.io/jam/bluebeard-jam

~ ONGOING (VOTING) ~

The 17 entries of the ParserComp are ready to be played and judged! Until the end of July, you can cast your votes!

~ ONGOING (SUBMITTING) ~

Like every July, the IFComp has opened once more their website for intent of submission, a required step to submit your game! You have until August 1st for the intent, then August 28th for the game! They are also looking for an artist to design their yearly logo! (paid) And for prizes for entrants (physical or digital)!

Over on the IntFiction Forum, an initiative to get more reviews for games created outside of the major IF competitions has been started: the Review-a-thon. Check out this post by Tabitha for the rules and other information! This is also a sponsored event, aiming to raise funds for one of the Forum members.

Only a few days left to submit your interpretation of Anti-Romance for the Anti-Romance Jam! The deadline is the end of this weekend!

Only two more days to fix a VN and submit an entry to the Fix the Worst Visual Novels (Jam)!

The deadline for the O2A2 Jam is also coming up this weekend! Only 1.000 words and one asset for everything!

Did you submit an intent to the IntroComp? The deadline to submit your prototype is coming up! Don't forget, on July 31st!

For the francophones, the French IF community is organizing a summer-long camp to create parsers. Join the Confiture de Parser if you're interested!

Until the end of July, a chill IF (text-only) game jam is happening on itch, from the Interactive Fiction Club.

Do you understand or write Ukrainian? Until the end of the year, the Ukrainian IF Festival is happening on itch.io!

~ OTHER ~

The Interactive Fiction Showcase is still running! If you have completed an IF piece this year, consider submitting it! It is happening only on itch!

~ NEW RELEASE ~

We haven't noticed any full releases this week, outside of events we mentioned previously! So don't forget to check those entries!

~ NEW RELEASE (WIP) ~

In Dresburg-Hof (CScript) is a fantasy project where you play as a sergeant. @thetruearchmagos

An untitled pirate IF project, where you can vote for the next path to be written has started on Tumblr. @starrumstories

Ichor of the Last Lament (Twine) is a bronze-age inspired fantasy project. @ichorofthelastlament

The Haunting Shadows (Twine) is a supernatural mature project set in 1890s Louisiana. @thehauntingshadows-if

Heavy is the Crown (CScript) is a fantasy royal intrigue project, where you play a prince. @heavyisthecrown-if

Darkness Reborn (CScript) is a fantasy project inspired by Wildermyth.

Ice and Ember (CScript) is a fantasy project build around an arranged marriage trope.

~ GAMES UPDATES ~

Appt 102 (CScript) has had a massive update, with over 100k words added. @apt502-if

Anastasia - ROTTMNT (Twine) added Chapter 3 to the ongoing demo. @chaoticspeedrun

The Spirited: Origins (Twine) just released the re-written Chapter 1. @yuveim

Pillars of the Light (CScript) has completed Chapter 1 of the demo. @nothingherebutthefog

Two Moons (Twine) has completed its first chapter. @twomoons-if

Alpha, Beta, Omega (Twine) has had a short demo update. @dam-peace

Link Rot (Custom) added a new transmission to the project. @qrowscant-art

Eldritch Tale (CScript)'s demo now includes parts of Chapter 2. @darielivalyen

Broken Fables (CScript)'s demo now includes the first part of Chapter 3.

Heroes and Heretics (CScript) reworked its prologue and doubled the wordcount.

Wake to weep (CScript)'s demo has been updated with extra content.

Scale of Justice (CScript) has been accepted for publication, the demo only having Ch1-5. @myimaginedcorner

Eschaton: The Rebirth (CScript)'s demo now includes the full Chapter 2.

Prismatic (CScript) updated the demo with new content.

The Devil's Privilege (CScript) completed its first two chapters.

~ OTHER ~

If you are interested in critical looks into older IF games, you should read this article about Joe Mason's In the End. @golmac

Chronicles of Tal’Dun: The Remainder (Ren’Py) is looking for playtester for their expanded editions. @the-remainder

The Kickstarter for My Dear Love (VN) has just been launched! @h9o6

The Lonely Shores (CScript) is looking for beta-testers. @thelonelyshore-if

The third part of the Trinity-focused episodes on the Gold Machine podcast was released.

Seven's Deadly (Twine) as opened a call for VA for a podcast based on the game. @cova111 @sevensdeadly-if

Our Life (Ren’Py) is looking for guest artists. This is a paid commission. @gb-patch

We apologize if we missed an update or a release. We are but volunteers trying to find as much info as possible, but sometimes news pass through the cracks.

Please, let us know if something should have been added to the zine, and we will shout it out next week!

ERIKA, MARJORIE, AXELLE, AND NOI

WHAT'S NEW IN IF? 2024-ISSUE 13

[squoxle]

Squoxle's Enhypen Masterlist

currently under construction: all links still work

link to main masterlist

희승~𝙷𝚎𝚎𝚜𝚞𝚎𝚗𝚐:

1. A Date with Death pt. 1, pt. 2, (series revamp coming soon) 2. Our Little Secret (HeeHoon) | 3. Golden Rule | 4. Sisters Before Misters | 5. You're So Cute (fan req) | 6. Heated (fan req) | 7. The Star In Your Eyes | 8. Ride Me | 9. French Tip | 10. Now or Never | 11. Room #216 | 12. I’m Right Here

제이~𝙹𝚊𝚢:

1. Riches and Royalty pt. 1, pt. 2 (Jay Ending) 2. Coffee After Sex

제이크~𝙹𝚊𝚔𝚎:

1. Love Sick Sim—Full ( pt. 1 pt. 2 pt. 3 pt. 4 pt. 5 ) 2. Laced With Love (yandere anon req) | pt. 2 | 3. Sweet Like Candy | 4. You're My Baby Too | 5. This Means I Love You (yunki)

성훈~𝚂𝚞𝚗𝚐𝚑𝚘𝚘𝚗:

1. Riches and Royalty pt. 1, pt. 2 (Sunghoon Ending) 2. A Party for Broken Hearts | 3. Double Shot (SunSun) | 4. You Drive Me Crazy/Winner Takes All | 5. Blow The Whistle | 6. Fuck Me Like A Slut

선우~𝚂𝚞𝚗𝚘𝚘:

1. Double Shot (SunSun)

정원~𝙹𝚞𝚗𝚐𝚠𝚘𝚗:

1. Maknae Summer Mayhem (Maknae Line) | 2. I'll Make Him Regret It

니키~𝙽𝚒𝚔𝚒:

1. The Babysitter pt. 1, pt. 2 | 2. This Means I Love You (yunki)

OT7:

1. Breakfast w/Enhypen | 2. Public Sex w/Enhypen (Hyung Line) | 3. Enhypen x Love Tropes | 4. Enhypen x Kinks (Legal Line) | 5. Christmas Fun W/ Enhypen | 6. Seven OT7 | 7. Dating Older Girls

Upcoming Requests/Stories:

OOPS!! Looks like you’ve reached the end of this post. Scroll down for current updates about upcoming posts :) happy reading 📖

[dietcokerose]

my nighttime routine for those who asked :)

i don’t usually have a set time for this but it’s usually around 8/9pm

1. I do madfit’s 15 minute stretch for splits routine

2. I take a shower

3. I brush my teeth and then watch youtube while doing my skincare

4. I put on my pajamas and read my book (i’m currently reading the summer of broken rules by K.L. Walther)

5. I get into bed and scroll on tumblr/pinterest until I get tired (usually like 10-15 minutes) and then I go to bed!

[we-are-maladaptive]

Hey! I was wondering if you could do a nsfw fic for Tokoyami? He's my favorite character and he's lacking in content, especially nsfw. So I was hoping to get something like super soft and slow with him? I hc that he likes wax play so if you could also do something like that that'd be great, your work is great I'm currently binge reading some of them before bed lol

you do NOT have to tell me twice! also ty im very flattered you like my work -///- REQUESTS ARE OPEN.Feel free to send me an ask and I’ll write it for you! Remeber to check the rules first.

Fumikage Tokoyami x Reader

contents: nsfw, waxplay, tooth rotting romantic stuff

“A daisy blooming in a desert is worth more than a rose blooming in a rainforest." That was a good way to describe Tokoyami. Throughout highschool he stuck to himself, watching his classmates socialize with each other, laughing when they could be kids, and fighting when they had to be heroes, just finding themselves, blooming. Tokoyami preferred to stay to himself mostly, he’d talk with his classmates back when they were in highschool together, as he too wanted to be a hero, but unlike his classmates, there was something missing. A problem inside him that needed to be solved, a longing for something, but he didn’t know what he was longing for. Whether it be Bakugo calming his temperament, Todoroki helping to heal his broken family, or Midoriya, which I can’t even begin to explain. All of them had identified their own issues, and were fixing each one so that they could prosper. So from afar, he watched his classmates solve their own problems, while he hopelessly was trying to solve his own, trying to bloom. It’s not like Tokoyami was some type of loser or anything, he’d landed himself a high position in #2 Pro Hero Hawks’ headquarters. Sometimes he’d even cover for the winged hero when Hawks was too weak to patrol normally, as he’d never been the same since the incident about 7 years ago.

Tokoyami didn’t really appreciate the sun, as it got in the way of his job. At least he didn’t sweat as much, the black cloak of his trapping in the heat. The day seemed normal enough, civilians pacing around, some of them being familiar faces. The only thing he couldn’t be pouty about though, was the atmosphere. Summer was approaching, and what could go wrong with summer? Festivals, boardwalks, parties, everyone was free for a few months. Not him though, since he was past school and still had to work. To be frank, I think he hated summer. The everlasting sun doing nothing to help his profession. However, the sight of people skipping around and smiling, anticipating what this year’s summer has in store for them, was nice. A particular laugh however, was delightful to listen to. It sounded like music to his ears, light and genuine, a far contrast to the darkness that always clouded up his mind, practically piercing into his head. So he decided to cock his head at the person who had made such a beautiful sound, that was when he saw you. Laughing at the cat who had fallen off the table at the cafe you were currently at. The poor kitty had tried to get a bite out of the cheesecake you were eating, and was not very successful. The sun was shining directly at you, giving a glitter to your eyes and lighting up your skin, making it shine.

 He was grateful that the sun existed now, and he was grateful that he had found his problem.

Even though the sun shines on your skin whenever you two are together, he still prefers the nighttime, especially for this reason; intimacy.

He liked the expressions that you make, a little too much actually. Whether it be the little glitter in your eyes whenever he gives you something, or the little wobble in your bottom lip whenever you’re about to cry. Currently, he likes when the calm expression on your face starts to falter whenever you feel more wax drip down from your ribs, all the way down to your lower stomach. It was warm, very warm, and it tickled too. Too bad you weren’t really in a position to squirm, with your wrists being tied to the headboard.

It went on like that for a while, until he wanted to see more of you, how many expressions he could pull from your pretty face. So that’s exactly what he got.

He took in and savored everything he could get from you. The way your eyes softened when he curled his fingers right into the soft spot deep inside you. The sound of your voice, pleading with him to just let you cum, how could he refuse?

I think the thing he cherished the most though, was your souls intertwining with each other as he slowly thrusted into you. Nothing had to be done quick or rough, he had time. Your hands freed so you could pull his head down to kiss you, and your legs wrapped around his waist. If you had any focus before, it was gone. Everything is now a flurry of pleasure and emotion, for him too. However Tokoyami could feel something else, the thorns wrapped so tightly around his heart have been torn down, letting whatever was inside finally have enough room to grow. In his heart was a daisy, blooming in the desert, he was finally blooming.

Holding you close in the night when it was all over, watching the moon shine over you both in its divinity.

      The sun was nice, yes, but he still liked the night better, nothing could be better than this.

[valleyyofthemoonnn]

thank u beloved mutual @hillcrypt for the tag !!!!! -RULES: answer and tag 9 people who you want to get to know or just catch up with! favorite color: pink. i am pink's bitch. And proud of it last song: anthems for a seventeen year-old girl by broken social scene (shocker)

currently reading: tbh ive been so depressed ive stopped reading entirely which makes me sad :(. i want to read Piranesi though, because of the Laika movie news and a friend said i'd like it. i might get it soon currently watching: been rewatching adventure time and columbo and also continuing new girl ! it makes me laugh currently craving: mmmmmm big sandwich..... coffee or tea: both but i prefer coffee (iced spanish) hobbies to try: duude tbh i really wanna try to play a ttrpg <- is so scared of doing improv but also i wish i had the motivation to do more sewing.. i made a little mouse girl plushie earlier this summer and shes my fav thing ever current au: i have literally no clue how to answer this But i do want to say that ive been thinking a lot about the locked tomb college au. Objectively hilarious au given the everything about that series. i love it tags: @cowboys1million @bacap07 @slytheo @lip-scrub @theworldlookswhite @quantumxwoody @end-of--the-line @dragonpoof17 @lunarblazes woe tag game be upon ye

[lavastories]

UPDATE!!!Everything I’m Currently Reading to Completed to Everything on my Interactive TBR!

LOL, brace yourself guys this is gonna be a pretty long list from all of my interactive platforms across the grid. This will be going by apps with list of stories.

What I completed reading will be in red crossed out. What I’m currently reading will be in green. What’s on my TBR will be in pink. And what I’m considering to read will be in orange. And what I’m unsure about will be in purple. And what I’ll drop reading will be in blue. And undecided will be in black.

Romance Club

1. And The Haze Will Take Us

2. 7 Brothers

3. Astrea’s Broken Heart

4. The One: Vol 2

5. Garden of Eden

6. Soulless

7. W: Time Catcher

8. Song of the Crimson Nile

9. Elite Tag

10. The Desert Rose

11. Vying for Versailles

12. Psi

13. The One: Vol 1

14. Hell and High Water

15. Theodora

16. The Flower from Tiamat’s Fire

17. Heart of Trespia

18. Gladiator Chrronicles

19. Seduced by the Rythum

20. Arcanum

21. Shadows of Sanitfour

22. Sophie’s Ten Wishes

23. Path of the Valkyrie

24. Love from Outer Space

25. Dracula. A Love Story

26. Legend of the Willow

27. Wave Patrol

28. Queen in 30 Days

29. Sails in the Fog

30. Heaven’s Secret- Requiem

31. Kali: Flame of Samsara

32. Love, Sin, & Evil: Vol 1

33. Chasing You 2

34. Heaven’s Secret 2 (Currently rereading for LI)

35. Kali: Call of Darkness

36. On Thin Ice

37. Sins of London

38. Rage of the Titans

39. Heaven’s Secret

40. Chasing You

41. My Hollywood Story

42. Moonborn

43. The Thunderstorms Saga

CHAPTERS (Keep in mind this app has SOOOO many books, so I’ll be putting the one’s I’ve started, all 27 books. I see to which ones I’ll be continuing, finished read, on my TBR, or not going to continue.)

1. Paying My Dues - Story by ME

2. Knocked Up By the Hockey Team

3. Bride of Anubis

4. Bad Boy Blues

5. Dangerous Guilty Pleasure - User Story

6. My Best Friend’s Baby

7. Having the Convict’s Baby

8. I Lost My Innocence to the Mafia Boss

9. Slashes In The Snow

10. Hot Hot Hate

11. Ruined

12. Pregnant by my Ex’s Dad

13. Addicted

14. My First Time - User Story

15. Our Story - User Story

16. The Darkest Kiss

17. Emergency Engagement

18. Night Prince 3: Bound by Flames

19. Love In the Deep End

20. COLE

21. Seven Day Fiancé

22. Burn for Me

23. The Dark Ones

24. Promise Me - User Story

25. Nico: A Mafia Romance

26. HALO

27. Waking up Pregnant

Choices (For the sake of the post, I’ll keep the books for this general and away from the VIP books. However, only will have the books of the VIP books that became wide release)

1. The Ghost of Us

2. BloodBound Series

3. The Royal Romance Series

4. The Nanny Affair Series

5. Rules of Engagement Series

6. Open Heart Series

7. Laws of Attraction Series

8. Roommates With Benefits

9. The Royal Masquerade

10. With Every Heartbeat

11. Rising Tides

12. Hot Shot

13. Alpha

14. Dirty Little Secrets

15. The Billionaire’s Baby

16. Surrender

17. Untameable

18. Shipwrecked

19. Kiss of Death

20. Wolf Bride

21. Witness: A Bodyguard Romance

22. Endless Summer Series

23. Hero

24. The Heist: Monaco

25. The Phantom Agent

26. Most Wanted

27. Across the Void

28. Ship of Dreams

29. Desire and Decorum Series

30. A Courtesan of Rome

31. Distant Shores

32. The Duchess Affair

33. Murder at Homecoming

34. High School Series

35. My Two First Loves

36. Ride-or-die: A Bad Boy Romance

37. The Elementalists Series

38. HSS: Class Act Series

39. Immortal Desires Series

40. Wake the Dead

41. It Lives Series

42. Nightbound

44. Haunting of Braidwood Manor

45. Perfect Match Series

46. Foreign Affairs

47. Mother of the Year

48. Bachelorette Party

49. Kindred

50. Blades of Light and Shadow Series

51. The Cursed Heart Series

52. The Crown & Flame Series

53. Guinevere

54. Baby Bump Series

55. First Comes Love

56. A Very Scandalous Proposal

57. LoveHacks Series

58. Passport to Romance

59. Along Came Treble

60. Red Carpet Diaries Series

61. America’s Most Eligible Series

62. Hot Couture

63. Platinum

64. Slow Burn

65. Queen B Series

66. The Freshman Series

67. Wishful Thinking

68. Getaway Girls

69. The Deadliest Series

70. Crimes of Passion Series

71. Veil of Secrets

72. The Unexpected Heriess

73. Big Sky Country Series

74. Ms. Match

75. Save the Date

76. The Princess Swap

77. Home for the Holidays

78. Guarded

79. Hearts on Fire Series

80: Open Heart Series

Episode (So just like Chapters, keeping it close to my history. Because there is so many books)

1. The Mafia Bride

2. Eat Me Up

3. Flirting with the Villian

4. Barely Mine

5. Rule Breaker

6. Tempting Devil

7. Playing Princess

8. Blood Lust

9. Pregnant by a Vampire: The Curse

10. The Gamer Girl

11. Love Life

12. It’ll Be Our Secret

13. Feel Me

14. VAMPS & HUMANS

15. Behind His Mask

16. Unexpectedly Expecting

17. Kidnapped by a Prince

Journeys (This app specifically is more like the more stories you read the more books you’ll have access to. So, I’ll list the ones I have so far.)

1. Linda Brown Series

2. Recipe of Love

3. Don’t Forget Me

4. Love Lessons

5. Vampyra

6. #3SUM

My Candy Love (This app is pretty much one story but progressing with the MC life, which I love!)

1. My Candy Love: High School

2. My Candy Love: College Life

3. My Candy Love: Adulting

5. My Candy Love: Alternate Life

6. My Candy Love: Next Gen

Another World’s History (Wasn’t long since I discovered this app. Fairly new to me like some others that will be in this post but it’s great.)

1. My Name Is Hope

2. Neoxites: Child of Light

3. Codex of Consistency

4. Speculum

5. Parallels

6. Chimera

Forbidden Fruit (This app is very new. They only have 4 books so far. And I haven’t gotten around to reading any of them. So they are all on my TBR)

1. The Legacy of Rosefield

2. Undermind

3. Ghostpice

4. Daughter of the North Wind

League of Dreamers (Discovered this app not too long ago.)

1. Laws of the Beast

2. Wondering Spirit

3. Lullaby of Witches

4. Tablet of Isis

5. The Seal of Nostradammus

6. Silence of the Sea

7. Blooming Garden

8. Chronicles of Ark Dryden

9. Gates of Samhain

YourStoryLand (Discovered this app just recently, and it’s also fairly new as well. Most of the books are on my TBR and my not sure list)

1. Rock Wave

2. Audrey’s Dairy

3. Blue Abuss

4. Behind The Wall

5. The Lily of the Sands

6. City of Nightmares

Real Love (This app freshly discovered with 4 books. Haven’t started any of the books yet. Most are on the TBR.)

1. Look Around

2. Lame

3. The Codex of a Chess Player

4. Empire of Shadows

Seven Hearts Stories (This app recently made 2 years with 8 books. I honestly do like this app and have started reading one book from this app.)

1. The Deadly Biome

2. Illusion of Fame

3. Legend of the Celestials

4. The Era of Fatum

5. The Villain’s Last Wish

6. Mission Fortune

7. The Heart of Atlantean

8. Bride for a Vampire

TWISTMAX! (This app I freashly discovered just last week. Already started one book from there. And I got most on my TBR.)

1. Billionaire’s Revenge

2. Happily Ever After

3. The Boy Next Desk

4. Love & Scandal

5. Ace!

6. My Prince

7. Princess Escape

8. Touched by Love

9. The Prince’s Consultant

10. Threads of Desire

11. Love to Hate

12. All His Secrets

13. About Last Night

14. The Price of Polanco

15. Surprise Husband

16. Tutoring the Football Star

17. Freshman Flirt

18. Living With Guys

19. Undercover Lover

20. Broadway Baby

21. Forbidden Island

22. His Melody

23. Hometown Hookup

24. Lone Star Lovers

25. Go Fur Gold

26. Blood Red Moon

27. Stuck in the Past

28. A Powerful Choice

29. Handcuff Him!

30. Sultry on Set

31. Seduce Me, Senator

32. Chef’s Kiss

33. Dirty Work

34. Cold Case Chemistry

Dream Zone (Also discovered this last week. Haven’t started a story from here yet. So wee will leave all of the stories undecided.)

1. Hostel Story Series

2. Singles in Your Area

3. Half Human Series

4. Wildest Dreams Series

5. Behind the Counter Series

6. Teaching Undercover Series

7. Going Places Series

8. Incognito Mode Series

9. The Impossible Game Series

10. Devil’s Deal Series

11. Project Prometheus Series

12. Rogue Gang Series

13. Man for Hirer Series

14. Ubers Series

15. Time and Time Again Series

16. Colorblind Series

17. My Bloody Classmates Series

18. The Lookalikes Series

19. Honeywood Series

20. Family Business Series

21. Therapy Sessions Series

And the rest of the stories I read are single story apps which are…

1. Havenless

2. Dangerous Fellows

3. Killing Kiss

4. Henri’s Secret

5. Uncoven

I do plan to keep this list and update it with time. But I am happy I have this list so I can update as I go and keep ya’ll up to date. But this is going to be hella fun. Feel free to have this list if you are also using the same app as myself.

[1nervegas1]

Canon Book Patrick things!

Currently reading the book and decided to post my findings/things I've noted on this character!

Content warnings for animal death, child death and mentions of harrasment under the cut, Patrick Hockstetter is his own warning

-Patrick was the son of a devout catholic and a paints salesman, and had grown up in a religious household

-His IQ tested as low normal and he'd repeated 2 grades (1st and 3rd) and was taking summer classes so that didn't happen again

-He was very apethetic student and the teachers wrote hardly anything on him on his school reports.

- He'd leave test sheets blank or would just put a large question mark on them

- Was VERY quiet in class so he was pretty much allowed to fail because he was easier to ignore while teachers would focus more on students like Vic and Henry that would often disrupt class and deface school property

-He wasn't stupid at all. Infact, he was very smart, he just didn't bother with school.

-Didn't see any other creature, human or animal, as real. Believed himself to be an actual creature despite that

-Had no real sense of hurting, no real sense of being hurt

-Reality was meaningless to him

-despite life not meaning too much to him, he was very aware of rules. Life had rules and he knew to follow them.. Or atleast try to avoid being caught

-Had to be seated away from the female students in his class. Teachers tried to avoid any contact with him and female students.

-Patrick would draw a picture for his mother every time he'd go to school but he'd only use black and brown crayons

-Fan of arts and crafts, made his own duct tape wallet, it wasn't very well done, the stitching was coming undone and the note pocket flapped around

-Patrick hadn't liked it when his mother had brought Avery home, he tried to tell himself that he didn't care as long as it didn't disrupt his schedule

-Of course, Avery had done that and all the attention had been turned to him, meals turned up late, Patrick was woken up by the crying

-If Patrick was "real" He thought Avery also could be "real" too, he didn't like the thought of that.

-He was frightened that he was being replaced, and when Avery was big enough to do what Patrick would usually do (get his father the paper, hand his mother the bowls when she was baking bread,) his parents would get rid of Patrick all together.

- what he cared about the most was (1) the rules, they'd been broken or changed ever since Avery had come home, (2) Averys possible reality and (3) He could be thrown out and replaced

-Patrick killed Avery as soon as he'd gotten home from school, he felt more alive than ever once he'd got rid of him

-The doctor that pronounced Avery dead thought Patrick was under shock, so he gave him a pill to take

- He wasn't phased at all, wasn't bothered, felt no guilt and after that he'd done nothing like that again but he could if the chance presented itself. Though as he grew up he would become more aware of the rules and that nasty things happened to people that didn't follow them

- He knew the rules but he liked the excitement he felt when he'd killed his brother and he wanted to feel it again

-first he killed flies, with a swatter and then those sticky flytraps you can get for hardly anything at the shop, he'd watch them for hours in the garage dying. Then he figured how much more efficient a ruler was, so he'd kill them throughout the school day, putting their dead bodies in a pencil box

-He'd kill beetles with pins from his mother's pin cushion, he'd catch them impale them and watch them die slowly

-it moved on to animals when he'd stumbled across a hurt cat one day, it was dying in the gutter. He pushed it around with his foot and was soon shood off by an old woman that had seen what he'd been doing.

-He soon found an old rusty amana fridge, he'd heard about how kids could get stuck in there.

-soon animals started going missing around town and he was to blame.

-He almost had a ritual when dealing with the fridge, he'd sway a little, hum a tune.

-The fridge had a hold over him and he'd somewhat fixate on the thing, he'd draw it at school, he'd dream about it at night

-He got very worried when Henry had told him that he'd tell on him and his beloved fridge (decided he would tattle on Henry for breaking Eddie's arm if Henry did say anything) and decided to go clean it out of his latest victim, a pigeon. When he did however he was attacked by "leeches"

-Pennywise found it hard to find what form to take because Patrick was nutoriously hard to scare.

[bonefall]

Nature spirit Star flower? Bleeding Clear Sky dry eight times over? I am curious please explain more

Here's the general idea of it, this would all come after the end of BB!DOTC, which closes out with the aftermath of the First Battle and the naming of Windstar, Riverstar, Thunderstar, Shadowstar, and Skystar.

NOTE: You're basically about to read notes. This is not solidified yet. I have "Moments" I want to build towards, but they're loosely strung together. Fragments.

First off, Hollyleaf's Century gave us the intro to the Four Gods of this region.

They go by many names, but each is connected to a season. Sol, Midnight, Rock, and the man of the hour himself, One Eye, God of Summer.

One Eye was last seen possessing Lion's Roar. It's established that you need a certain number of violent, blood-based sacrifices to invoke him.

And, of course, he is drawn to the smell of death, the reek of rot in the summer's sun. The First Battle called him here, investigating the wonderful scent.

Star Flower is his 'daughter'. Natural objects of great value can manifest into beings of their own once destroyed, and Star Flower was an extinct, localized species of forest flower back at the Lake.

Still working out the exact rules of that, but it seems like nature spirits do have to be born somehow (like Broken to Yellow). One Eye found her in his travels and took her under his wing.

So anyway back to the arrival of One Eye in the Clans

(WIP STUFF, basically put a bunch of ???s past this point, this is plotting stuff.)

He is currently still possessing the body of Lion's Roar, an old and ragged thing. He's not fancy like Sol, who likes to travel around through time with its change powers.

One Eye took a shine to Clear Sky and his warmongering, infiltrating his group, and eventually making his nature known by eating Tom

He has a palette for violent people and accumulated evil. He will promise you 'revenge' to get at your enemy and make you into a delicious meal as well.

Skystar is NEVER getting a redemption arc in BB!DOTC, but he's not a moron either. He realizes that Sharptooth is practically trying to season him, and the horrifying death of Tom is what makes him work with the other Clans

to save his own giblets

Thunderstar Did Not Like That, but there's a bigger fish to fry

(Side note: One Eye was probably deified long ago for being the inventor of fire... vague cooking motif, perhaps?)

The Clans worked together to get rid of One Eye. It's important that the person who landed the final blow was a Tribe-born cat-- probably Sun Shadow.

One Eye vows revenge on his killer's homeland as he dies... not realizing that Sun Shadow was not born here, he was born at the tribe.

(May shuffle this moment to later, you'll see why in a moment)

Star Flower at this moment begins her own work, buddying up close to Skystar, getting close to him so she can stab him in the back

And she does! She drags him to the place where One Eye was buried, and bleeds him slowly, exploiting his 9 lives with a horrible magic loophole;

If he dies of blood loss, StarClan heals THAT, not any of the tiny injuries she's put on his body.

So he's letting out 8x the blood of a normal cat.

But before he can die for the last time, she is interrupted, probably by Thunderstar

She offers him this; "Go on! Take the last sacrifice! One Eye will be grateful to you. You'll get what you want, have your revenge, and Skystar will never threaten you or your family ever again."

Seeing Skystar, pitiful, bloody, and helpless, he refuses this. This wouldn't be honorable. To kill to win his feud is not justice; it's revenge.

(Here's when I was thinking of shuffling that earlier Sun Shadow moment to, have the resurrection be incomplete and have a final fight of partially-summoned One Eye. Angrily lays that curse for having his plan thwarted. Boss fight against half-fossilized cave lion.)

After this, I'm not sure what to do with Star Flower. She just killed Skystar 8 times, so, SkyClan isn't going to take her back.

I could have her be wandering, a loner or rogue who is just part of the background now. Maybe I don't need to wrap it all up here just yet.

So, there you have it! This is pretty rough but it's where I'm at with her.

Since this is post-main arc DOTC, it may make for a very good redux of Thunderstar's Echo. Maybe Thunderstar's Justice? Something like that. Make the central conceit be Thunderstar vs Skystar, wrapping up their arc from the main series.

[thatfragilecapricorn30]

tag 9 people you want to get to know better. tagged by @enigmaticxbee -- thank you!! 💕

currently reading: the summer of broken rules by k.l. walther

last song: wet socks by richy mitch & the coal miners (title is weird but good song 😂)

currently watching: dopesick. i watched painkiller and everyone said dopesick is a lot better (so far i agree). also hoping to watch some txf this week in honor of the 30th anniversary!

current fic: not really reading anything right now but i am working on my slow burn exchange fic!

next on my watchlist: the new season of the ultimatum and finishing the last season of handmaid's tale.

current obsession: still txf... don't think that's going to change 😅

tagging @cyb3rpeach, @thescullyphile, @cutemothman, @perpetually-weirdening, @gingerteaonthetardis, @infernal-hound, @waiting-for-the-day, @jewish-mulder, @mandalorianmuffin

[theresattrpgforthat]

hiya, i love all your rec posts so much! my polycule and i are looking for 4 player games to play (ideally gmless) on our holiday this summer, do you or your followers have any suggestions? thank you!

THEME: 4-Player-Compatible GM-less Games.

Hello friend! I've got a number of recommendations for you here, and I'm personally very excited by all of the games on this list. Enjoy!

The Creature Comes for Us, by OrionQK.

The Creature Comes for Us is a game that can be played solo or multiplayer which uses a standard deck of cards, two six-sided dice, and the players' imagination. 

You play as a group of people preparing to fight against a currently unknown threat. You will learn (through drawing cards) about the creature that is coming for you, you will find resources and tactics to fight against them, and you will learn more about the unique traits and talents of the player characters. The second part of the game brings together what you've gathered to fight the looming horrors and you will find out if your characters and world can survive the onslaught.

You’re going to need both dice and cards for this one. Slowly uncover the creature that’s hunting you, and then take what you’ve learned and turn to face the horror. It’s inspired by games such as The Quiet Year and The Junkyard. The game comes with a simple outline of the game, and an oracle for each card that you may pull. The game also comes with a number of tips for a shorter game, a longer game, and how to make the game a fun experience for different kinds of players. If you want a great summer spook story, this is worth checking out!

Scary Monsters & Nice Sprites, by Pammu. 

Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites is a narrative RPG about spending your night in one of the only clubs in your city that’s safe for creatures of the night like yourself. All you want to do is have some fun just like the humans do. Play a supernatural creature of choice, put some sick EDM on the speakers and get your game on!

You can alter how long you’re going to play by lengthening or shortening the intimacy meters between each pair of characters. You will roll dice and spend tokens to indicate the advances you make with different characters, narrating what you do to get them to look your way. While this game is primarily designed for a one-shot, the creator also provides ideas for making this a longer game. If you’re interested in a heavily descriptive game that gives all of you plenty of opportunities to flirt with each-other, this is a great option.

Waxworm, by FeatherBoy.

Waxworm is a game about legacies, survival, spite, love, and reclaiming a world taken from you by others. It is also a rule-light solarpunk tabletop role-playing game set in a world covered in water and broken concrete spires baking in the sun, and named for the questionable theory that waxworm moths might be well on their way to one day digesting plastics. Players may find themselves helping regrow broken communities adrift on the waves. They may also find that they are adrift themselves, searching for a community in which they can grow.

In Waxworm, each player acts as a Crew, rather than an individual. These Crews work together to grow and support each other, and face down adversity upon the waves and islands. The core of gameplay involves exploring relations within and between Crews, and exploring how those dynamics shift as crew-members come and go.

Another game inspired by the Quiet Year, Waxworm is a great cozy game that explores a hopeful future. The game is designed to be printed, which means that you can bring a physical copy and not worry about reading the rules off of a screen or having difficulty reading the text. 

Here We Used To Fly, by A Smouldering Lighthouse.

Here We Used to Fly is a rules-light tabletop roleplaying game about a group of friends exploring an abandoned theme park. Over the course of a single session, players will create two versions of the same character: one a child visiting the vibrant amusement park, one an adult investigating the ruins. As they discover or revisit each location in the park, they’ll play out scenes spotlighting moments of joy, frustration, fear, love, loss, and more.

This game feels like it requires a bit of prep, but each character is packaged into playbooks, so all of your options will be laid out in the same place. The play is also structured to make it easy to follow: with each Attraction you visit you’ll move from a childhood scene to a current-day scene. I’m very intrigued by this game and its partner, Endless Summer by Kay Marlow Allen. The whole feeling of nostalgia and whimsy feels perfect for a summer vacation with your loved ones.

Games I’ve Recommended in the Past

Fedora Noir, by Less Than Three Games.

Seemannsgarn, by Max Kämmerer.

Space Bounty Blues, by the Nerdy Paper Games of Rob Hebert.

Swamp Troll Witch(es), by Cats Have No Lord.

[istumpysk]

Operation Stumpy Re-Read

TWOW: Arianne II

The Peregrine made port at the Weeping Town, where the corpse of the Young Dragon had once lingered for three days on its journey home from Dorne.

Could be relevant.

The Dornish prince was three days dying. - The Queen's Hand, ADWD

+.+.+

The town was large enough to support three inns, and all their common rooms were rife with rumors. Arianne sent her men into each of them, to hear what they might hear. In the Broken Shield, Daemon Sand was told that the great septry on the Holf of Men had been burned and looted by raiders from the sea, and a hundred young novices from the motherhouse on Maiden Isle carried off into slavery. In the Loon, Joss Hood learned that half a hundred men and boys from the Weeping Town had set off north to join Jon Connington at Griffin's Roost, including young Ser Addam, old Lord Whitehead's son and heir. But in the aptly named Drunken Dornishman, Feathers heard men muttering that the griffin had put Red Ronnet's brother to death and raped his maiden sister. Ronnet himself was said to be rushing south to avenge his brother's death and his sister's dishonor. That night Arianne dispatched the first of her ravens back to Dorne, reporting to her father on all they'd seen and heard. 

I'm going to laugh if she's sending him a bunch of gossip and hearsay.

"Send a raven whenever you have news," Prince Doran told her, "but report only what you know to be true. We are lost in fog here, besieged by rumors, falsehoods, and traveler's tales. I dare not act until I know for a certainty what is happening." - Arianne I, TWOW

For the record, Jon Connington didn't actually kill Red Ronnet's brother, or rape his maiden sister. However, he's currently holding his own family hostage, one of his men threw a maester from a tower, and only four of the castle garrison survived the attack.

Similar to Daenerys Targaryen in Slaver's Bay, sometimes knowing the truth of a situation doesn't bring much more reassurance.

+.+.+

Huge willows grew along the watercourses, larger than any that Arianne had ever seen, their great trunks as gnarled and twisted as an old man's face and festooned with beards of silvery moss. Trees pressed close on every side, shutting out the sun; hemlock and red cedars, white oaks, soldier pines that stood as tall and straight as towers, colossal sentinels, big-leaf maples, redwoods, wormtrees, even here and there a wild weirwood.

I don't think this is anything, but I get paranoid.

+.+.+

Arianne had once heard her father and Maester Caleotte arguing with a septon about why the north and south sides of the Sea of Dorne were so different. The septon thought it was because of Durran Godsgrief, the first Storm King, who had stolen the daughter of the sea god and the goddess of the wind and earned their eternal emnity. Prince Doran and the maester inclined more toward wind and water, and spoke of how the big storms that formed down in the Summer Sea would pick up moisture moving north until they slammed into Cape Wrath. For some strange reason the storms never seemed to strike at Dorne, she recalled her father saying. "I know your reason," the septon had responded. "No Dornishmen ever stole away the daughter of two gods."

It's astonishing to me that a priest lacks understanding of the scientific field of meteorology.

For some strange reason the storms never seemed to strike at Dorne

+.+.+

The princess lost another game of cyvasse to Daemon Sand, won one from Joss Hood, then retired as the two of them began to teach Jayne Ladybright the rules. She was tired of such games.

There ya go!

You better not be tired.

+.+.+

Nym and Tyene may have reached King's Landing by now, she mused, as she settled down crosslegged by the mouth of the cave to watch the falling rain. If not they ought to be there soon.

Yeah? Is that what you'd like me to believe, George?

Boy, I'm eagerly anticipating the amusing antics that will unfold between Cersei Lannister, the High Sparrow, Nym Sand, and Tyene Sand. That's definitely a plot you can count on happening, no shadow of a doubt.

+.+.+

Prince Trystane had remained safely back at Sunspear, after a tearful parting from Princess Myrcella. 

That moment you realize nowhere in Dorne is safe.

Reminds me of this one:

Steffon and Stannis were thousands of leagues from the fighting and safe from harm, but Devan was at Castle Black, a squire to the king. - Davos II, ADWD

Nope!

+.+.+

That accounts for one brother, thought Arianne, but where is Quentyn, if not with the griffin? Had he wed his dragon queen? King Quentyn. It still sounded silly. This new Daenerys Targaryen was younger than Arianne by half a dozen years. What would a maid that age want with her dull, bookish brother? Young girls dreamed of dashing knights with wicked smiles, not solemn boys who always did their duty. She will want Dorne, though. If she hopes to sit the Iron Throne, she must have Sunspear. If Quentyn was the price for that, this dragon queen would pay it. What if she was at Griffin's End with Connington, and all this about another Targaryen was just some sort of subtle ruse? Her brother could well be with her. King Quentyn. Will I need to kneel to him?

You are too old to be acting like this.

+.+.+

No good would come of wondering about it. Quentyn would be king or he would not. I pray Daenerys treats him him more gently than she did her own brother.

The irony of this thought occurring immediately after she ponders the absurdity of her own brother as king shouldn't be lost on you.

+.+.+

It was only as she settled down that Arianne realized Elia Sand had not returned from her explorations.  [...] The cave proved much deeper than any of them had suspected. Beyond the stony mouth where her company had made their camp and hobbled their horses, a series of twisty passageways led down and down, with black holes snaking off to either side. Further in, the walls opened up again, and the searchers found themselves in a vast limestone cavern, larger than the great hall of a castle. Their shouts disturbed a nest of bats, who flapped about them noisily, but only distant echoes shouted back. A slow circuit of the hall revealed three further passages, one so small that it would have required them to proceed on hands and knees.

Giving House of the Undying, House of Black and White, and Red Keep vibes.

+.+.+

And all at once she found herself in another cavern, five times as big as the last one, surrounded by a forest of stone columns. Daemon Sand moved to her side and raised his torch. "Look how the stone's been shaped," he said. "Those columns, and the wall there. See them?" "Faces," said Arianne. So many sad eyes, staring. "This place belonged to the children of the forest." "A thousand years ago." Arianne turned her head. "Listen. Is that Joss?" It was. The other searchers had found Elia, as she and Daemon learned after they made their way back up the slippery slope to the last hall. 

Wait a second, I know this scene!

Are you telling me that wasn't real?

Okay, but what about this?

↓ 

Might I ask about these corpses in the ice cells? They make the men uneasy. And to keep them under guard? Surely that is a waste of two good men, unless you fear that they …"

"… will rise? I pray they do." - Jon VIII, ADWD

x

"Thrice I flew Silverwing high above Castle Black, and thrice I tried to take her north beyond the Wall," Alysanne wrote to Jaehaerys, "but every time she veered back south again and refused to go. Never before has she refused to take me where I wished to go." - Fire & Blood

Shit!

Okay, but what about this?

↓

Mormont snorted. "Because I sent him, why do you think? He's bringing the hand your Ghost tore off the end of Jafer Flowers's wrist. I have commanded him to take ship to King's Landing and lay it before this boy king. That should get young Joffrey's attention, I'd think … and Ser Alliser's a knight, highborn, anointed, with old friends at court, altogether harder to ignore than a glorified crow." - Jon VIII, AGOT 

Shit!

Okay, but what about this?

↓ 

The Cinnamon Wind was spinning all around them and he could taste the rum on Gilly's tongue and the next thing her breasts were bare and he was touching them. - Samwell IV, AFFC

Shit!

Gosh, it's almost as if the creators of Game of Thrones pulled an entire season and romance from their ass.

+.+.+

Their passageway led down to a still black pool, where they discovered the girl up to her waist in water, catching blind white fish with her bare hands, her torch burning red and smoky in the sand where she had planted it.

That black pool sounds familiar.

Blind white fish swam in the black river, but they tasted just as good as fish with eyes once you cooked them up. - Bran III, ADWD

Where else does this river go?

+.+.+

"I caught two fish," said Elia Sand. "You could have died," said Arianne again. Her words echoed off the cavern walls. "… died … died … died …"

A bit ominous.

+.+.+

"Elia, this must end," she told her. "We are not in Dorne now. You are not with your sisters, and this is not a game. I want your word that you will play the maidservant until we are safely back at Sunspear. I want you meek and mild and obedient. You need to hold your tongue. I'll hear no more talk of Lady Lance or jousting, no mention of your father or your sisters. The men that I must treat with are sellswords. Today they serve this man who calls himself Jon Connington, but come the morrow they could just as easily serve the Lannisters. All it takes to win a sellsword's heart is gold, and Casterly Rock does not lack for that. If the wrong man should learn who you are, you could be seized and held for ransom–"

[...]

"You are a Sand Snake, and Prince Doran would pay any price to keep you and your sisters safe from harm." That made the child smile at least. "Do I have your sworn word? Or must I send you back?"

"I swear." Elia did not sound happy.

"On your father's bones."

"On my father's bones."

That vow she will keep, Arianne decided. She kissed her cousin on the cheek and sent her off to sleep. Perhaps some good would come of her adventure. "I never knew how wild she was till now," Arianne complained to Daemon Sand, afterward. "Why would my father inflict her on me?" "Vengeance?" the knight suggested, with a smile.

Later:

Arianne was on her way back to her own chamber when she heard muffled laughter from the adjoining room. She paused and listened for a moment, then pushed the door open to find Elia Sand curled up in a window seat, kissing Feathers.

[...]

"Feathers is a man." A serving man, but still a man. It did not escape the princess that Elia was the same age she had been when she gave her maidenhead to Daemon Sand. 

Lmao.

This is why I'm never having children. I would be cursed with raising another version of myself.

+.+.+

Mistfall's new sellsword masters called themselves Young John Mudd and Chain. Both knights, to hear them tell it. Neither behaved like any knight that Arianne had ever met. Mudd wore brown from head to heel, the same shade as his skin, but a pair of golden coins dangled from his ears. The Mudds had been kings up by the Trident a thousand years ago, she knew, but there was nothing royal about this one. Nor was he particularly young, but it seemed his father had also served in the Golden Company, where he had been known as Old John Mudd.

That's considered fAegon evidence.

Young John Mudd (Young Griff), son of Old John Mudd of the Golden Company, bears the name of previous kings in Westeros. However, it's clear there's no real ancestral ties to that royal bloodline.

+.+.+

At evenfall a fine supper was served to them in the solar, high in the Tower of Owls, where they were joined by the dowager Lady Mertyns and her maester. Though a captive in her own castle, the old woman seemed spry and cheerful. "My sons and grandsons went off when Lord Renly called his banners," she told the princess and her party. "I have not seen them since, though from time to time they send a raven. One of my grandsons took a wound at the Blackwater, but he's since recovered. I expect they will return here soon enough to hang this lot of thieves." She waved a duck leg at Mudd and Chain across the table. "We are no thieves," said Mudd. "We're foragers." "Did you buy all that food down in the yard?" "We foraged it," said Mudd. “The smallfolk can grow more. We serve your rightful king, old crone.” He seemed to be enjoying this. “You should learn to speak more courteous to knights.”

"If you two are knights, I'm still a maiden," said Lady Mertyns. "And I'll speak as I please. What will you do, kill me? I have lived too long already."

Princess Arianne said, "Have you been treated well, my lady?"

"I have not been raped, if that is what you're asking," the old woman said. "Some of the serving girls have been less fortunate. Married or unmarried, the men make no distinctions."

"No one's been doing any raping," insisted Young John Mudd. "Connington won't have that. We follow orders."

Chain nodded. "Some girls was persuaded, might be."

"The same way our smallfolk were persuaded to give you all their crops. Melons or maidenheads, it's all the same to your sort. If you want it, you take it." Lady Mertyns turned to Arianne. "If you should see this Lord Connington, you tell him that I knew his mother, and she would be ashamed." Perhaps I shall, the princess thought.

Might as well start the obituaries now.

+.+.+

That night when she told Ser Daemon what Chain had said, the Bastard of Godsgrace seemed as perplexed as she was. "Storm's End was still held by men loyal to Lord Stannis when last I heard. You would think Connington might do better to make common cause with another rebel, rather than making war upon him too." "Stannis is too far away to be of help to him," Arianne mused. "Capturing a few minor castles whilst their lords and garrisons are off at distant wars, that's one thing, but if Lord Connington and his pet dragon can somehow take one of the great strongholds of the realm …" "…the realm would have to take them seriously," Ser Daemon finished.

Including Daenerys!

+.+.+

Near dusk on the fourth day, not long after Chain and his wagons had taken their leave of them, Arianne's company was met by a column of sellswords down from Griffin's Roost, led by the most exotic creature that the princess had ever laid her eyes on, with painted fingernails and gemstones sparkling in his ears.

Lysono Maar spoke the Common Tongue very well. "I have the honor to be the eyes and ears of the Golden Company, princess."

"You look…" She hesitated.

"…like a woman?" He laughed. "That I am not."

"…like a Targaryen," Arianne insisted. His eyes were a pale lilac, his hair a waterfall of white and gold. All the same, something about him made her skin crawl. Was this what Viserys looked like? she found herself wondering. If so perhaps it is a good thing he is dead.

(Please give yourself a moment to laugh at her discomfort at the sight of someone resembling a Targaryen.)

That's considered fAegon evidence.

It's another reminder that people from Lys have the Targaryen look.

"Your Grace is kind," said Waters with a smile. A wicked smile, the queen thought. Aurane did not resemble Prince Rhaegar as much as she had thought. He has the hair, but so do half the whores in Lys, if the tales are true. Rhaegar was a man. This is a sly boy, no more. Useful in his way, though. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

↓ 

"Serra. I found her in a Lysene pillow house and brought her home to warm my bed, but in the end I wed her. Me, whose first wife had been a cousin of the Prince of Pentos. The palace gates were closed to me thereafter, but I did not care. The price was small enough, for Serra." - Tyrion II, ADWD

Somewhat worrisome, because Aegon also resembles young Illyrio.

A naked boy stood on the water, poised to duel with a bravo's blade in hand. He was lithe and handsome, no older than sixteen, with straight blond hair that brushed his shoulders. So lifelike did he seem that it took the dwarf a long moment to realize he was made of painted marble, though his sword shimmered like true steel. - tyrion I, ADWD

↓ 

He was a lithe and well-made youth, with a lanky build and a shock of dark blue hair. The dwarf put his age at fifteen, sixteen, or near enough to make no matter. - Tyrion III, ADWD

+.+.+

"I am flattered. The women of House Targaryen are said to be without peer in all the world."

"And the men of House Targaryen?"

"Oh, even prettier. Though if truth be told, I have only seen the one."

That's considered fAegon evidence. The author made it ambiguous.

Lysono Maar is the spymaster for the Golden Company, it's possible he's met Viserys Targaryen.

Her brother Viserys had once feasted the captains of the Golden Company, in hopes they might take up his cause. They ate his food and heard his pleas and laughed at him. - Daenerys III, ADWD

+.+.+

"Do you play cyvasse, my lord?" asked Arianne. "My father has been teaching me. I am not very skilled, I must confess, but I do know that the dragon is stronger than the elephant." "The Golden Company was founded by a dragon." "Bittersteel was half-dragon, and all bastard. I am no maester, but I know some history. You are still sellswords." "If it please you, princess," he said, all silken courtesy. "We prefer to call ourselves a free brotherhood of exiles." "As you will. As free brothers go, your company stands well above the rest, I grant you. Yet the Golden Company has been defeated every time it has crossed into Westeros. They lost when Bittersteel commanded them, they failed the Blackfyre Pretenders, they faltered when Maelys the Monstrous led them." That seemed to amuse him.

That's considered fAegon evidence.

He might find it amusing if he knows they have another Blackfyre.

+.+.+

By midmorning a light rain began to fall, as they were making their way north through a land of green fields and little villages. 

x

The rain still fell, soft and steady. The sound of moisture dripping off the leaves was all around them, and every mile or so the music of another little waterfall would call to them.

x

They travelled to the music of steady, lashing rains beating at the treetops up above, though underneath the green great canopy of leaves and branches she and her riders stayed surprisingly dry. 

x

And finally Griffin's Roost emerged from the sea mists, on a grey wet day as the rain fell thin and cold. 

Rain falling from start to finish...

+.+.+

"Has no one told you?" Halden Halfmaester favored her with a smile thin and hard as a dagger cut. "Storm's End is ours. The Hand awaits you there." Daemon Sand stepped up beside her. "Shipbreaker Bay can be perilous even on a fair summer's day. The safer way to Storm's End is overland." "These rains have turned the roads to mud. The journey would take two days, perhaps three," said Halden Halfmaester. A ship will have the princess there in half a day or less. There is an army descending on Storm's End from King's Landing. You will want to be safe inside the walls before the battle." Will we? Wondered Arianne. "Battle? Or siege?" She did not intend to let herself be trapped inside Storm's End. "Battle," Halden said firmly. "Prince Aegon means to smash his enemies in the field."

Let's talk about a few things.

One.

Previously covered in ADWD's Epilogue.

There's two hosts in King's Landing, both belonging to the Reach.

Randyll Tarly and Mace Tyrell had both brought armies to King's Landing, whilst the best part of the strength of House Lannister remained in the riverlands, fast melting away. - Epilogue, ADWD

Mace Tyrell intended to deal with Aegon and the Golden Company after Margaery's and Cersei's trials.

"[...] we must destroy Connington and his pretender now, before Daenerys Stormborn can come west."

Mace Tyrell crossed his arms. "I mean to do just that, ser. After the trials." - Epilogue, ADWD

If Cersei carries out a massively destructive and violent act at that trial, causing significant harm to House Tyrell (and we have a lot of reasons to believe she will), then it seems logical to conclude that the host coming from King's Landing intends to join Aegon, not fight him.

"… as for Connington," Tyrell repeated, "what victories has he ever won that we should fear him? He could have ended Robert's Rebellion at Stoney Sept. He failed. Just as the Golden Company has always failed. Some may rush to join them, aye. The realm is well rid of such fools." - Epilogue, ADWD

Two.

"Battle," Halden said firmly. "Prince Aegon means to smash his enemies in the field."

Once again, the author is reinforcing the idea that Aegon is lacking necessary skills for this job.

In Jon Connington's last chapter, we learned the Golden Company does not currently have the strength to face enemies in the field.

The great beasts would be useful in a pitched battle, no doubt, but it would be some time before they had the strength to face their foes in the field. - The Griffin Reborn, ADWD

Now, at Aegon's command, they're going to ABANDON THE WALLS OF STORM'S END, and meet the King's Landing host in an open field.

That is unbelievably stupid, and the only reason it won't end in disaster is because the Tyrell host probably isn't coming to fight.

Regardless, what is it telling us about the future?

Ser Jorah considered that for a moment. "Robert should have been born Dothraki," he said at last. "Your khal would tell you that only a coward hides behind stone walls instead of facing his enemy with a blade in hand. The Usurper would agree. He is a strong man, brave … and rash enough to meet a Dothraki horde in the open field. But the men around him, well, their pipers play a different tune. His brother Stannis, Lord Tywin Lannister, Eddard Stark …" He spat. - Daenerys IV, AGOT

This is the problem with Jon Connington: he's dying, therefore he's no longer patient.

He will allow Aegon to be reckless, and use flawed strategy.

" … once we have Storm's End . . ."

The princess let that aside go without comment, though it gave her considerable pause. Storm's End. This griffin is a bold one, it would seem. Or else a fool. The seat of House Baratheon for three centuries, of the ancient Storm Kings for thousands of years before that, Storm’s End was said by some to be impregnable. Arianne had heard men argue about which was the strongest castle in the realm.

Three.

Has this girl lost her mind? Why would you voluntarily go to Storm's End when an army is descending upon it?

Catelyn Stark also found herself in the middle of a dispute at Storm's End, but Catelyn Stark isn't the heir to Dorne.

+.+.+

"Your brother is not at Storm's End, we know that now," Ser Daemon said, as soon as they were behind closed doors. "If Daenerys Targaryen has dragons, they are half a world away, and of no use to Dorne. There is nothing for us at Storm's End, princess. If Prince Doran meant to send you into the middle of a battle, he would have given you three hundred knights, not three."

Do not be so certain of that, ser. He sent my brother off to Slaver's Bay with five knights and a maester. "I need to speak with Connington." Arianne undid the interlocked sun and spear that clasped her cloak, and let the rain-soaked garment slip from her shoulders to puddle on the floor. "And I want to see this dragon prince of his. If he is truly Elia's son…"

"Whoever's son he is, if Connington challenges Mace Tyrell in open battle he may soon be a captive, or a corpse."

"Tyrell is not a man to fear. My uncle Oberyn–"

" –is dead, princess. And ten thousand men is equal to the whole strength of the Golden Company."

"Lord Connington knows his own strength, surely. If he means to risk battle, he must believe that he can win it."

"And how many men have died in battles they believed that they could win?" Ser Daemon asked her. "Refuse them, princess. I mistrust these sellswords. Do not go to Storm's End."

I think it's a little concerning that the designated Voice of Reason doesn't want her going any further in this journey.

+.+.+

"Ser Daemon, you squired for my uncle Oberyn," she said. "If you were with him now, would you be counseling him to refuse as well?" She did not wait for him to respond. "I know the answer. And if you are about to remind me that I am no Red Viper, I know that too. But Prince Oberyn is dead, Prince Doran is old and ill, and I am the heir to Dorne."

"And that is why you should not put yourself at risk." Daemon Sand went to one knee. "Send me to Storm's End in your stead. Then if the griffin's plans should go awry and Mace Tyrell takes the castle back, I will be just another landless knight who swore his sword to this pretender in hopes of gain and glory."

Whereas if I am taken, the Iron Throne will take that for proof that Dorne conspired with these sellswords, and lent aid to their invasion. "It is brave for you to seek to shield me, ser. I thank you for that." She took his hands and drew him back to his feet. "But my father entrusted this task to me, not you. Come the morrow, I sail to beard the dragon in its den."

Yeah, I don't have a good feeling about any of this.

I don't think the danger is the host coming from King's Landing. I think it's the decisions she makes after that.

Final thoughts:

What happens when Daemon Sand is the more likeable man in the love triangle?

Let it be known, I'm Team Bastard of Godgrace. I'll let you guys enjoy the one assuming the role of Joffrey.

Next chapter: The Forsaken (Aeron Dam-phair)

-> return to menu <-

[littlesparklight]

<3 thank you @papillon82fluttersby :D

The Rules: Tag (9) people you want to know better and/or catch up with, then answer the following:

Four ships:

Zeus/Ganymede: feel like it'd be a crime not to start here, haha. I've always been into mythology, but randomly thinking about Ganymede's myth a couple years ago now (that long!!) got me wanting to read Greek myth stuff, and I started with the Iliad (for the Trojan-related angle) and the Bibliotheke, and so. I might currently be more focused elsewhere but this is still my beloved ship <3 You can do so much with them, and, especially, I'd say, by interpreting them as mutually in love. There's obviously other m/m couples in Greek myth and even one of those that at first looks tragic doesn't need to end that way (Apollo/Hyacinthus) but there are so many reasons Zeus/Ganymede is the one that has me by the throat.

Menelaos/Paris: Honestly, looking back I'm not quite sure how I didn't zero in on this one from reading the Iliad itself the first time, because this is definitely one of the flavours of ships I love. This ship is also what led to, first, Helen/Menelaos/Paris for me and then Helen/Paris, because 99% of the time I just don't care at all about het ships. This ship is also why I currently am like I am about Paris! Make no mistake, I didn't hate or dislike him before that, either, like the majority of Tumblr (and elsewhere) seem to do; reading the Iliad I mostly thought him kinda hapless and inoffensive, so going from there and liking him wasn't that big of a step. The possibility of them having bonded during those nine days in Sparta (or in Troy!), going from friends (or more) to enemies with complicated feelings still in the background is just so damn juicy to me.

Carmilla/Laura: original novella flavour! One day I hope to do a rewrite/retelling of my own, that would definitely end with Laura going or otherwise together with Carmilla, one way or another. The way Carmilla talks to/about Laura and what they feel for each other is just. so great. The caterpillar quote. The one about Laura loving her or hating her, and especially "love will have its sacrifices; no sacrifice without blood". And you know. The boob-biting to feed is extremely inspired and very hot, even if Le Fanu undoubtedly didn't mean it that way. I don't care. They're mine now. :)

Darth Vader & Luke Skywalker: Since I am so deeply into gen&family ships aside from romantic/sexual shipping, it feels, again, like a crime not to mention these two. The ST might have broken the back of my fannish engagement in SW currently, but these two? I love them. I love Luke's impossible and earnest belief in his father's inherent goodness, I love that fucking scene at the end of ESB where Vader reaches out and Luke reflexively, despite everything, says 'father?' HOW CAN YOU NOT LOVE IT???

Last song: Oh, uhh... I don't remember, but it's possible it was Teeth by 5 Seconds of Summer (happens to be one of my Helen/Paris songs for late war lol). I end up listening to a row of songs while drawing, sometimes (which is the only time I can listen to music and actually do something else at the same time), but it could have been another one, just as well.

Currently reading: Iliaden - en cover, by Dimitrios Iordanoglou, which is a (pretty heavily, sometimes) abridged and modernized version of the Iliad where the language is extremely slangy sometimes and the setting has been moved into "present day". Everyone uses guns and stuff. Apollo's main epithet is now "the Bomber" lol and he uses bombs and grenades. It's both extremely fun(ny) and really interesting, even if the language used sometimes make me wince even when I get why he's chosen it. But it's exactly because I know the changes he's made etc. that makes it extra interesting. When he keeps lines word-for-word from the Iliad they both stick out and fit in very well and it's interesting to see that, too. Also, and much longer than the above, is Paris in the Epic Tradition : a Study in Homeric Techniques of Characterization by Roberto Nickel, his thesis from 1997! I've mentioned it before; Nickel is exploring the possibility of the Iliad having changed/presented Paris (a lot) differently from how he might have been in traditional oral epic material. It's really interesting!

Last movie: Dungeon and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves! Loved it, a lot of fun, and despite how long it was, it all moved along at a good clip, nothing dragged.

Craving: Uh... :C Fics/art for my rare pairs? lol

Tagging: @a-gnosis @battlinghurricanes @crowlilies @my-name-is-apollo @scribeprotra @kebriones

[the-orange-tabby-cat]

ALBUM OF THE DAY: Lorde - Melodrama (2017) (5/?)

WHICH PEDRO BOY IS BASED ON? Frankie Morales (Catfish)

ALBUM VIBES (listen to it on Spotify)

The lows and highs of a relationship while on a coming of age story. A big part of Melodrama lyrics is between what it used to be and the current state of the relationship, Lorde is direct about her emotions and how well-aware she is about trying to fill a void with anything else. Frankie enjoys having control of his life but often shifts between patience and a quick temper when under stress. He also had a past of substance abuse, making the album's theme of finding oneself while taking it anywhere to avoid the pain relatable as well.

FRANKIE MORALES CODED LYRICS

“Did it frighten you how we kissed when we danced on the light up floor?” (Green Light)

“I whisper things, the city sings 'em back to you” (Green Light)

“Oh God, I'm clean out of air In my lungs, it's all gone. Played it so nonchalant, it's time we danced with the truth” (Sober)

“I'm acting like I don't see every ribbon you used to tie yourself to me” (Sober)

“We pretend that we just don't care, but we care (but what will we do when we're sober?)” (Sober)

“We know that it's over In the morning, you'll be dancing with all the heartache and the treason, the fantasies of leaving” (Sober)

“A couple rebel Top Gun pilots flying with nowhere to be, don't know you super well but I think that you might be the same as me, behave abnormally” (Homemade Dynamite)

“I'll give you my best side, tell you all my best lies” (Homemade Dynamite)

“Our rules, our dreams, we're blind, blowing shit up with homemade dynamite” (Homemade Dynamite)

“We'll end up painted on the road, red and chrome, all the broken glass sparkling I guess we're partying” (Homemade Dynamite)

“I overthink your p-punctuation use, not my fault, just a thing that my mind do” (The Louvre)

“Can you hear the violence? Megaphone to my chest” (The Louvre)

“Blow all my friendships to sit in hell with you” (The Louvre)

“I understand, I'm a liability, get you wild, make you leave” (Liability)

“The truth is I am a toy that people enjoy till all of the tricks don't work anymore and then they are bored of me” (Liability)

“I know that it's exciting, running through the night but every perfect summer's eating me alive until you're gone, better on my own” (Liability)

“They're gonna watch me disappear into the sun” (Liability)

“The waves come after midnight I call from underwater, why even try to get right?” (Hard Feelings/Loveless)

“It's time to let go of this endless summer afternoon” (Hard Feelings/Loveless)

“You asked if I was feeling it, I'm psycho high know you won't remember in the morning when I speak my mind” (Sober II (Melodrama))

“Lights are on and they've gone home, but who am I? Oh, how fast the evening passes cleaning up the champagne glasses” (Sober II (Melodrama))

“And the terror and the horror, God, I wonder why we bother” (Sober II (Melodrama))

“We told you this was melodrama, you wanted something that we offer” (Sober II (Melodrama))

“Break the news—you're walking out to be a good man for someone else, sorry I was never good like you” (Writer In the Dark)

“Slow like pseudo-ephedrine, when you see me, will you say I've changed?” (Writer In the Dark)

“I ride the subway, read the signs I let the seasons change my mind” (Writer In the Dark)

“These ribbons wrap me up but when I reach for you there's just a supercut” (Supercut)

“I'll be your quiet afternoon crush, be your violent overnight rush” (Supercut)

“Because ours are the moments I play in the dark, we were wild and fluorescent, come home to my heart” (Supercut)

“In my head, I do everything right” (Supercut)

“All of the things that I offer you and all of the shit that we harbour make all of the kids in the choirs sing "woo-hoo"” (Liability (Reprise))

“Maybe the tears and the highs we breathe, and maybe all this is the party, maybe we just do it violently” (Liability (Reprise))

“Every night, I live and die” (Perfect Places)

“Are you lost enough? Have another drink, get lost in us, this is how we get notorious” (Perfect Places)

“If they keep tellin' me where to go I'll blow my brains out to the radio” (Perfect Places)

“All of our heroes fading, now I can't stand to be alone” (Perfect Places)

“All the nights spent off our faces trying to find these perfect places, what the fuck are perfect places anyway?” (Perfect Places)

TRACKLIST (highlighted are the most Frankie Morales coded songs)

1. Green Light (03'54")

2. Sober (03'17")

3. Homemade Dynamite (03'09")

4. The Louvre (04'31")

5. Liability (02'51")

6. Hard Feelings/Loveless (06'07")

7. Sober II (Melodrama) (02'58")

8. Writer In The Dark (03'36")

9. Supercut (04'37")

10. Liability (Reprise) (02'16")

11. Perfect Places (03'41")