#first flight of the scottish hawk

[brewed-pangolin]

Drabble request for Super Soap Sunday:

Origin story of the Soap MacTavish mohawk, 500 words or less...GO.

First Flight of the Scottish Hawk

Ooohhhh I love this!!! I may be one of the few that actually loves Soap's hawk, and this just gives me full range to go creatively nuts with this. Thank you!

Warnings: Mentions of loss at the end. Nothing more than ridiculous MacTavish household shenanigans throughout.

This turned into something I honestly didn't see coming. I couldn't stop writing, and I let the creativity flow through me. If you all like it enough I will expand on it more. Much love 💛

Massive thanks to @deadbranch and @d3athtr4psworld for your input.

Word count 1.4 k (Oops, got carried away again)

If there is one thing you should never do, don't ever dare John MacTavish to do anything. Period.

It's simple, really. All it takes is a few choice words and a push in the right (or wrong) direction and John MacTavish will go full beast mode.

You can thank his sister, Charlotte for the crested motif.

--

After completing basic training at the tender age of 16, John returned home with nothing but a triumphant chip on his shoulder and, more noticeably, a trimmed line of peach fuzz along his scalp.

While his mum and dad couldn't be more proud, his siblings on the other hand were chomping at the bit to get a rise out of him.

Hamish, the oldest of the boys, chimed in first.

"Ye look a'that, mum. Lil John's come back all growned up." He jabbed, before wrapping his arm around his neck forcing him into a tight headlock.

"Not n'the kitchen, Hamish! You'll break tha bloody cabinets!" Mum exclaimed while pushing her two oldest boys into the hall.

"Got'a test tha' strength ma! Can't..oofff" He was swiftly cutoff by John's elbow into his stomach. The two were now fully engulfed in a standing wrestling match.

"Fuck. Off. Hame!" Each of John's words were grittngly emphasized as he wrapped his hands around his older brothers arm.

"Gonnae be a whippin' fer the both a ya if ya donnae knock it off." Mum's warning fell on deaf ears, as this went on for another 10 minutes. By the end of it, both boys had endured the verbal wrath of a furious Catholic Scottish Maiden. (COs can't hold a candle to a pissed off mum)

The twins, Michael and David, couldn't be bothered with real world nonsense. They were too busy with the neighborhood boys playing their own version of 'modern warfare' deep in the backyard woods.

Albiet mildly gruesome in itself, fellow parents enforced a strict 'no guns' rule within the ranks. Imagination would rule the day once more. Sticks were a better option, anyway. And video games were non existent in the MacTavish household.

"Git out me sight, tha' lot'aya!" Patriarchal Rules over all.

Last, and on both ends of the birthing spectrum were Charlotte and Genevieve. John found them in their usual hiding place, the knitting room.

Genevieve, or Evie, as she was so lovingly referred to was only 4. A 'precious surprise' dubbed by mum, and the absolute light of John's eyes.

"How's my favorite lit'le lass, eh Evie?" He could never strain above a whipser when he called to her. And as he knelt down his arms stretched out and awaited her usual 'mighty bear hug'.

But it never came. As she looked him over, her precious green eyes began to water, her face slowly began to contort into a seldom seen melancholy, and then she cried.

"Smooth, Johnny." The sarcastic venom in Charlotte's words was immeasurable, yet still held within it that familiar sibling banter.

"Ooh, no Evie. It's still me. Still yer Johnny." He pleaded as he quickly tried to console her.

"Git out ya arse! Ya makin it worse!" Charlotte chided him as she knelt down to pick up her now inconsolable sister.

"Ah, c'mon Char. Donnae be like that."

Heartbroken is the only word that came to her mind. And being the oldest, she now had two 'children' to console.

"Jus' giv'er a minute, Johnny. She's only seen ya at home. Not like, this." She waved her hand at him, accentuating the difference in his appearance and demeanor. She also lessened her tone, for both their sakes. She'd make a good mother one day.

"Ya think I look tha' different, Char?"

"T'me? Nah. But I knew why yer were gone, Johnny. Evie didn't."

Of course, he'd ask only her this question. Besides their usual sibling rivalry, John looked up to his oldest sister the most. Craved for her approval above all others. Even more so than his parents at times.

"Aye. Is it tha hair, ya think? Bit of a shock t'myself if ya ask me."

"It donnae help yer cause, Johnny. Ya do look like a fuzzy bowling ball."

"Haud yer wheesht, Char!"

The playful jesting slowly began to smooth the lot of them. Evie's sobs eased into soft whimpers as she turned to face her brother once more. Her forehead rested into Charlotte's neck as her eyes once again roamed over her brothers familiar face.

"I donnae like it, Johnny." The high-pitched quiver in her voice nearly broke him to tears. He swallowed hard, forcing those feelings down into the newly formed gullet deep within his chest.

"I know, Evie. It's only fer a little while." His soft blue eyes matched hers, glistening in the dim light as they continued their conversation in wordless speech.

A slow tremble began to form in her lower lip. Quickly she released her grasp around her sister's neck and stretched out to him. It may not have been the bear hug he was expecting, but the comfort of her on his chest more than soothed that aching heart within him.

"The people've spoken, Johnny. What'ya give'm, eh? A typical buzz cut, stylish pompadour, a fricken mohawk?" Charlotte's jab struck a nerve, the evidence all over John's face as his brows furrowed in utter bewilderment.

She answered with her own expression, that sly curl to her lip that John was all too familiar with.

"Donnae do it, Char. I'm warnin' ya."

She had to. In the presence of Evie, Charlotte knew not to speak such fowl language. Silently, she mouthed and provoked him.

'I. Fucking. Dare you.'

That's it. That's all it took. The right words in the wrong direction, by the right person. John couldn't refuse. And like a baited fish, Charlotte swung him in and quickly mounted her victory atop her mental walls.

Six months passed before John returned home again. Military life suited him well. So did his new hairstyle.

It was the typical MacTavish family reunion; mum and dad always the proudest parents in all of Glasgow, ridiculous hairdo aside.

Hamish greeted him with the classic headlock, which again was followed by the verbal chastising of their Iron Maiden mother. (John would tell her one day she'd make the perfect Drill Sargeant)

The twins were currently grounded in their room for saying 'naughty words' in school. John didn't poke too hard, but got this gist it was something about 'God forsaken homework.' The usual teenage behavior.

He sought out his two favorite lasses with overwhelming vigor, finding them yet again within the walls of the knitting room.

"How's my favorite lit'le lass, eh!"

"JOHNNY!" Evie's squeal may have nearly burst his eardrums, but he would gladly go without all sound just to remember that beautiful voice.

He had barely crouched down before she swung her arms around his neck, throwing that much needed 'mighty bear hug' against him.

"Easy Evie, ya ain't such a lit'le lass anymore." His playful strain made her tighten the death grip around him, and he gleefully recipricated.

“Ha? Th’army turnin out softies now, eh?” Charlotte called from the corner as she effortlessly hung her newest knitted masterpiece on the wall, a large afghan in the most brilliant forest green hues.

“Awa’ an bile yer heid, Char.”

“Watch it, Johnny. Tha lit’le rapscallion on yer shoulder gotten a knack fer echoin th’lot of us. Gonnae be eatin soap fer dinner if she keeps it up, yeah.”

Evie strained her neck and forcefully stuck out her tongue in retaliation. The banter was a welcome grief to John. He’d never admit it, but he missed his daily chastising from his oldest sister during those hard days in the field. CO’s could learn a thing or two from the scolding mouths of a MacTavish woman. 

“Ya lookin good, Johnny. Besides the rooster crest. What’re they callin’ya, ‘Mornin Wood?’”

“That’s classified.” The bite in his retort didn’t go unnoticed.

“Ohh, look a’mister fancy pants ov’r here.” Charlotte threw her hands up in taunting surprise. She’d never admit it, but she missed throwing those playful insults at him below the chest. It was an ebb and flow that no other seemed to be able to grasp.

“Donnae matter, Char. Only needs one approval, yeah. What’ya think, lass?” John turned to face the green-eyed angel within his grasp, her eyes slowly studying the features of him, finally focusing on the thick crest atop his head. 

“I like it.” 

“Thas’all I need. Gonnae keep it, yeah. Jus’ fer you, Evie.”

“Pinky swear?”

“Aye. Pinky swear.”

Her voice was the lullaby that tamed the savage beast. The silent tempest on the shores of a violent sea.

John wrapped his finger around hers and gave into the overwhelming power she had hung over him. Evie smiled, and buried her face within his neck. The vice-like grip around him doing nothing but melting that hard metallic soul growing within him.

“Ya gone’n don’it now, Johnny.” Charlotte’s quip was sharp, yet softened as it flowed freely through the air.

John responded in equal softness, an eerily reminiscent silent jab.

‘Fuck. You.’

25 years and a full military career later, Captain John ‘Soap’ MacTavish sat lonely at the bar, pondering the ice within its liqoured embrace and watched as the waves of liquid slowly melded within themselves. He was within pleasant company, something he had truly missed over the remaining years of his career.

He heard the cadence of footsteps first, their possesor non other than the legendary John Price himself. 

“Ya know ya got to drink it for it to work, yeah.” 

“Aye. Jus’ takin my time with it.”

A somberness flowed freely through them, no longer wanting or needing to keep old wounds bound and at bay. Price scanned the crowd once over before returning his gaze to the scarred and crested veteran, both looking more worse for wear within the golden age of their careers.

“Ya know, Soap. I’ve known ya for over 20 years. And somehow I never thought to ask.”

Price paused as Soap brought the cold and perspiring glass up to his lips.

“Why do ya keep the mohawk?”

Soap turned to face his war hardened comrade. A silent shock washed over him as the quiet memory of her surfaced into the realm of his periphery. He sat motionless for a moment, spinning the glass within his hands as her name gracefully returned to the soft tissue of his lips.

“Evie. I kept it for Evie.” It felt like a hymn, to speak her name again after so many years of silence. The sound of it wafting into the wooden rafters before cascading and disappearing into the boisterous cacophony around the bar.

“Who’s Evie?”

“She was my sister.” Soap’s chest tightened as the words fell out of his mouth. 

“Was?”

The slip of the tongue caught him off guard. Soap met Price’s gaze and held within it a cold blue steel. 

“Touchy subject.” Price titled his glass, and gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder before leaving him alone again at the bar with his thoughts. 

An ache formed within his heart. A void that was filled with her memories and locked away from the world's prying eyes. 

His fingers slowly turned the tumbler on the weathered bar while his eyes slowly began to focus on the smallest finger of his hand. Bringing it up to his face he studied its features as a chemist studies the inner workings of molecular bonds.

The slightest curl of a smile formed on the corner of his mouth as the sound of her voice ricocheted within the recesses of his mind. And the green, those bright green eyes like the mossy hills of the Scottish highlands. 

Edited 2/5/24 to include remastered Soap Squad 🧼

“Pinky swear, Evie.”

@deadbranch @sofasoap @d3athtr4psworld @punishmepunisher @jynxmirage @glitterypirateduck @astraluminaaa @shotmrmiller @obligatoryghoststare @homicidal-slvt @ghosts-goldendoodle @a-small-writer-in-a-big-world @writeforfandoms @tacticalanxiety @simpingoverquestionablemen @queen-ilmaree @havoc973 @foxface013 @sadstone-s @haurasha @mykneeshurt @designateddeadend @luismickydees @kkaaaagt

[scotianostra]

On 17th September 1910 Andrew Blain Baird, working as a blacksmith in Rothesay, made the first flight by an entirely Scottish designed and built aeroplane.

Andrew Blain Baird was born in 1862 in Sandhead on Luce Bay in the Rhinns of Galloway, Scotland. One of three sons, his father was a fisherman and handloom weaver. He became an apprentice to a blacksmith in Sandhead, worked as a lighthouse keeper on Lismore, then as an ironworker at Smith and McLean’s on the Clyde shipyards before finally setting up on his own as a blacksmith at 113 High Street in Rothesay, Isle of Bute, when he was 25.

Baird was a daring thinker, a pioneer and innovator. He created many improvements to the plough, built a unique model of the triple expansion engine powered by electricity and was one of the original members of the Scottish Aeronautical Society.

Eager to expand his knowledge of aviation, Baird corresponded with the early aviators Louis Bleriot and S. F. Cody and exchanged information about construction of aircraft and their flight. Inspired by a visit to Blackpool for England’s first ever Aviation Week in October 1909, he returned to Rothesay ready to design and build his own sophistocated monoplane similar to Bleriot’s but with an engine built by the Alexander Brothers in Edinburgh that was 4-cylinder, air-cooled and with water-cooled valves. The control system he would design for his aircraft would be unlike anything that had been developed at the time. His wife sewed brown trussore silk for the wings.

The Baird monoplane, once completed in his own shop in the summer of 1910, went on show at an exhibition in the Esplanade Flower Garden at the front of Bute. and then to the amazement and excitement of all it was moved to the Bute Highland Games on 20 August 1910.

From there it was taken for storage and readying directly to a barn owned by Willie Dickie at his farm at Cranlasgvourity, Bute.

Scottish aviation history was about to be made when in the very early morning of 17 September 1910, the Baird Monoplane was taken by a Mr Scott on his horse-drawn wagon to Ettrick Bay - with its wide expanse of sand reminiscent of the Kitty Hawk N.C. site chosen by the Wright Brothers for their historic flight.

In the sunshine and amid the wide golden sands of Ettrick Bay the first entirely Scottish designed and built plane sat ready to make history.

Andrew Baird was, on that day, assisted by his friend Ned Striven who was an Electrical Engineer with the Burgh of Rothesay and who had assisted him with the engine and related design considerations.

There on the wide expanse of Ettrick Bay beach, Baird and Ned Striven started the engine. All was ready. Hearts raced with anticipation. A small crowd looked on in amazement. And the flight into history began.

Flight Magazine on 24 September 1910,[1] described it as follows:

“Mr Baird was seated in the machine and on the engine being started the plane travelled along the sands at good speed. Naturally, on clearing the ground, the swerving influence of the axle ceased and the influence of the steering wheel brought the machine sharply round to the right causing it to swoop to the ground. The contact was so sharp that the right wheel buckled and the right plane suffered some abrasion by scraping along the beach.”

Andrew Blain Baird had realised his dream - he had flown in an aircraft of his own design and construction.

His was the first entirely Scottish flight of a heavier than air powered craft.

Noted pioneer aircraft manufacturer Tommy Sopwith sailed his yacht into Rothesay Bay in 1910 to visit the Marquess and to attend the Highland Games and there viewed the on display Baird monoplane. Very impressed, he was given permission to incorporate some of Baird’s innovations into the aircraft he was designing and which would have such a great impact on the course of World War I. Over the years, many others from around the world involved in aviation consulted Andrew Baird and learned from his pioneering experience and innovative mind.

[eirianerisdar]

hi! i'm really loving icarus, you're a wonderful writer! but i just had a quick question. i love the flock graphics, and they're super helpful! would it be possible for you to maybe list the species of birds for the main 'characters' of the story as well? you don't have to post example photos or anything crazy, but i think just a list like that would be helpful too. sometimes i forget who has what kind of wings, and i think having a list so i can google image the bird would be great.

if that's not something you want to do or don't have time to do or something, no worries!! i really appreciate you taking the time to write icarus in the first place <3

Oof I might as well do a general guide! I never thought a maxiel wingfic would spawn so many specific wing allocations but here's the general list:

Paddock wings in Icarus:

Current grid:

Daniel Ricciardo - Scarlet Macaw (colourful, nimble flyers)

Max Verstappen - Peregrine Falcon (raw speed, inherited from his mother)

Sergio Perez -Crested Caracara (a type of mexican bird of prey)

Lewis Hamilton - Greater Bird of Paradise (beautiful wing plumes, lovely singer)

George Russell - Blue swallow (beautiful metallic-blue feathers, scream like madmen when they fly)

Carlos Sainz - Spanish Imperial Eagle (white epaulets, very regal)

Charles Leclerc - White Dove (need I say more? Perfect white wings, exploited because they're pretty but so intelligent in pathfinding)

Lando Norris - Lucifer Hummingbird (Small, colourful, likes to hover in place)

Oscar Piastri - Little Lorikeet (One of the smaller types of Australian parrot. Very cute)

Yuki Tsunoda - Japanese Long-tailed tit (Photos should be self explanatory. They fly like ballistic missiles)

Alexander Albon - Crested Fireback (National bird of Thailand. Beautiful dark blue and fiery plumage)

Logan - Blue Jay (Commonly found in Florida. Blue, like Logan's current posting, and his eyes)

Pierre Gasly - Osprey (A bird of prey often found near coasts along the European shoreline, and Pierre is from Normandy)

Esteban Ocon - Black Stork (Tall, gangly, also migrates through France)

Fernando Alonso - Kestrel (a type of small bird of prey, hunts by biding their time and waiting then divebombing)

Lance Stroll - Snowy Owl (Lance is cuddly ok and I didn't want to make him a Canadian goose because that's his dad)

Valtteri Bottas - Bullfinch (Look it up. The picture is self-explanatory. The manliest of men)

Zhou Guanyu - Chinese Red-Crowned Crane (A crowned crane for the champion of the universe, as translates his name)

Kevin Magnussen - Raven (Viking. quoth the raven.)

Nico Hulkenberg - Crow (he keeps coming back. As wily as many of their bird counterparts but has a bad rep for being a bad omen)

Retired drivers or drivers not currently on the grid:

Sebastian Vettel - Swiftlet (Extremely good fliers, reaching up to 160km/h and pulls insane G-forces)

Mick Schumacher - European robin (Very cute. Universally liked. Same wings as his father)

Nico Rosberg - Eurasian Sparrowhawk (a bird of prey that hunts by ambushing before a high-speed, agile chase)

Jenson Button - Northern Harrier (hunts in a high-speed flight close to the ground, exceptionally good listeners)

Mark Webber - Cassowary (look up a photo. Just look at it.)

Kimi Raikkonen - Giant Albatross (King of gives no shits, flies very long distances without a care)

David Coulthard - Bush-Stone Curlew (White trousers!)

Romain Grosjean - Red-tailed Hawk (I chose the bird of prey that could best mesh with the phoenix metaphor)

Antonio Giovannazi - White-spotted Starling (Very pretty plumage)

Daniil Kyvat - Great Bustard (I honestly don't remember why. Distributes in Russia)

Nyck De Vries - Common European Sparrow (Small. Commonly found. Unfortunately often hunted)

Nikita Mazepin - Flamingo (Need I say more)

Sir Jackie Stewart - (Clipped) Merlin Wings (Extremely fast Scottish bird of prey. In-fic, Jackie was one of the generation of drivers that clipped their wings, permanently robbing them of flight)

Team Principals and people in the paddock:

Toto Wolff - Black Swan (self-explanatory)

Christian Horner - Golden Eagle (A bit pompous. Matches his hair)

James Vowles - Magpie (Utterly clever, not from any particular prestige)

Fred Vasseur - Partridge (Affable. Cuddly.)

Guenther Steiner - Shoebill (self-explanatory, look up a photo)

Cyril Abiteboul - Eagle Owl (something about his face is very Eagle Owl)

Micheal Italiano - Kookaburra (laughs when they shouldn't)

Zak Brown - Chicken (self-explanatory. Literally and metaphorically)

Andreas (mclaren) - Common Quail (short lifespan)

Mattia Binotto - Pigeon (wants to be as pretty and loved as Charles. Is a public nuisance instead)

Otmar sznafnauer - Peacock (Struts around, can't really fly)

Resident Bastard:

Jos Verstappen - Cuckoo (Cuckoos are brood parasites, and lay their eggs in nests of birds of other species'. The cuckoo parent therefore does nothing while other birds raise their young)

[rockislandadultreads]

October is... National Raptor Month!

The Hawk's Way by Sy Montgomery

When Sy Montgomery went to spend a day at falconer Nancy Cowan’s farm, home to a dozen magnificent birds of prey, it was the start of a deep love affair. Nancy allowed her to work with Jazz, a feisty, four-year-old, female Harris’s hawk with a wingspan of more than four feet. Not a pet, Jazz was a fierce predator with talons that could pierce skin and bone and yet, she was willing to work with a human to hunt. From the first moment Jazz swept down from a tree and landed on Sy’s leather gloved fist, Sy fell under the hawk’s magnetic spell.

Over the next few years, Sy spent more time with these magnificent creatures, getting to know their extraordinary abilities and instincts. They are deeply emotional animals, quick to show anger and frustration, and can hold a grudge for years. But they are also loyal and intensely aware of their surroundings. In this mesmerizing account, featuring sixteen pages of gorgeous color photographs, Sy passionately and vividly reveals the wonderous world of hawks and what they can teach us about nature, life, and love.

This is the second volume of "The Hummingbird's Gift" series.

Raptors of North America by Noel Snyder

From majestic Bald Eagles to tiny Elf Owls, raptors are nature’s most fascinating and powerful birds. As predators with wide ranging habitats and food sources, raptors also serve as a litmus test for the health of their ecosystems. To preserve a species such as the Everglade Kite or Spotted Owl is to ensure the survival of many other creatures. Ornithologists Noel and Helen Snyder have spent nearly fifty years studying and photographing birds of prey in their natural habitat. The result of decades of firsthand field studies combined with key biological and conservation studies by other experts, Raptors of North America presents a comprehensive and captivating account of our continent’s birds of prey. Readers will meet the nocturnal raptors, the owls, and the diurnal hawks, harriers, kites, falcons, eagles, ospreys, vultures, and condors. This book was an editor's choice of the Scientific American Book Club.

What An Owl Knows by Jennifer Ackerman

For millennia, owls have captivated and intrigued us. Our fascination with these mysterious birds was first documented more than thirty thousand years ago in the Chauvet Cave paintings in southern France. With their forward gaze and quiet flight, owls are often a symbol of wisdom, knowledge, and foresight. But what does an owl really know? And what do we really know about owls? Though our fascination goes back centuries, scientists have only recently begun to understand in deep detail the complex nature of these extraordinary birds. Some two hundred sixty species of owls exist today, and they reside on every continent except Antarctica, but they are far more difficult to find and study than other birds because they are cryptic, camouflaged, and mostly active in the dark of night.

Ackerman brings this research alive with her own personal field observations about owls and dives deep into why these birds beguile us. What an Owl Knows is an awe-inspiring exploration of owls across the globe and through human history, and a spellbinding account of their astonishing hunting skills, communication, and sensory prowess. By providing extraordinary new insights into the science of owls, What an Owl Knows pulls back the curtain on the nature of the world’s most enigmatic group of birds.

H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald

As a child, Helen Macdonald was determined to become a falconer. She learned the arcane terminology and read all the classic books, including T.H. White's tortured masterpiece, The Goshawk, which describes White's struggle to train a hawk as a spiritual contest.

When her father dies and she is knocked sideways by grief, she becomes obsessed with the idea of training her own goshawk. She buys Mabel for £800 on a Scottish quayside and takes her home to Cambridge. Then she fills the freezer with hawk food and unplugs the phone, ready to embark on the long, strange business of trying to train this wildest of animals.

Destined to be a classic of nature writing, H is for Hawk is a record of a spiritual journey - an unflinchingly honest account of Macdonald's struggle with grief during the difficult process of the hawk's taming and her own untaming. At the same time, it's a kaleidoscopic biography of the brilliant and troubled novelist T. H. White, best known for The Once and Future King. It's a book about memory, nature and nation, and how it might be possible to try to reconcile death with life and love.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 3.11

222 – Roman emperor Elagabalus is murdered alongside his mother, Julia Soaemias. He is replaced by his 14-year old cousin, Severus Alexander. 843 – Triumph of Orthodoxy: Empress Theodora II restores the veneration of icons in the Orthodox churches in the Byzantine Empire. 1343 – Arnošt of Pardubice becomes the last Bishop of Prague (3 March 1343 O.S.), and, a year later, the first Archbishop of Prague. 1387 – Battle of Castagnaro: Padua, led by John Hawkwood, is victorious over Giovanni Ordelaffi of Verona. 1641 – Guaraní forces living in the Jesuit reductions defeat bandeirantes loyal to the Portuguese Empire at the Battle of Mbororé in present-day Panambí, Argentina. 1649 – The Frondeurs and the French government sign the Peace of Rueil. 1702 – The Daily Courant, England's first national daily newspaper, is published for the first time. 1708 – Queen Anne withholds Royal Assent from the Scottish Militia Bill, the last time a British monarch vetoes legislation. 1784 – The signing of the Treaty of Mangalore brings the Second Anglo-Mysore War to an end. 1795 – The Battle of Kharda is fought between the Maratha Confederacy and the Nizam of Hyderabad, resulting in Maratha victory. 1845 – Flagstaff War: Unhappy with translational differences regarding the Treaty of Waitangi, chiefs Hone Heke, Kawiti and Māori tribe members chop down the British flagpole for a fourth time and drive settlers out of Kororareka, New Zealand. 1848 – Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine and Robert Baldwin become the first Prime Ministers of the Province of Canada to be democratically elected under a system of responsible government. 1851 – The first performance of Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi takes place in Venice. 1861 – American Civil War: The Constitution of the Confederate States of America is adopted. 1864 – The Great Sheffield Flood kills 238 people in Sheffield, England. 1872 – Construction of the Seven Sisters Colliery, South Wales, begins; it is located on one of the richest coal sources in Britain. 1879 – Shō Tai formally abdicates his position of King of Ryūkyū, under orders from Tokyo, ending the Ryukyu Kingdom. 1888 – The Great Blizzard of 1888 begins along the eastern seaboard of the United States, shutting down commerce and killing more than 400 people. 1917 – World War I: Mesopotamian campaign: Baghdad falls to Anglo-Indian forces commanded by General Frederick Stanley Maude. 1927 – In New York City, Samuel Roxy Rothafel opens the Roxy Theatre. 1941 – World War II: United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Lend-Lease Act into law, allowing American-built war supplies to be shipped to the Allies on loan. 1945 – World War II: The Imperial Japanese Navy attempts a large-scale kamikaze attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet anchored at Ulithi atoll in Operation Tan No. 2. 1945 – World War II: The Empire of Vietnam, a short-lived Japanese puppet state, is established. 1946 – Rudolf Höss, the first commandant of Auschwitz concentration camp, is captured by British troops. 1977 – The 1977 Hanafi Siege: Around 150 hostages held in Washington, D.C., by Hanafi Muslims are set free after ambassadors from three Islamic nations join negotiations. 1978 – Coastal Road massacre: At least 37 are killed and more than 70 are wounded when Fatah hijack an Israeli bus, prompting Israel's Operation Litani. 1981 – Hundreds of students protest in the University of Pristina in Kosovo, then part of Yugoslavia, to give their province more political rights. The protests then became a nationwide movement. 1982 – Fifteen people are killed when Widerøe Flight 933 crashes into the Barents Sea near Gamvik, Norway. 1983 – Bob Hawke is appointed Prime Minister of Australia. 1985 – Mikhail Gorbachev is elected to the position of General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, making Gorbachev the USSR's de facto, and last, head of state. 1990 – Lithuania declares independence from the Soviet Union. 1990 – Patricio Aylwin is sworn in as the first democratically elected President of Chile since 1970. 2003 – The International Criminal Court holds its inaugural session in The Hague. 2004 – Madrid train bombings: Simultaneous explosions on rush hour trains in Madrid, Spain kill 191 people. 2006 – Michelle Bachelet is inaugurated as the first female president of Chile. 2009 – Winnenden school shooting: Sixteen are killed and 11 are injured before recent graduate Tim Kretschmer shoots and kills himself, leading to tightened weapons restrictions in Germany. 2010 – Economist and businessman Sebastián Piñera is sworn in as President of Chile. Aftershocks of the 2010 Pichilemu earthquake hit central Chile during the ceremony. 2011 – An earthquake measuring 9.0 in magnitude strikes 130 km (81 mi) east of Sendai, Japan, triggering a tsunami killing thousands of people. This event also triggered the second largest nuclear accident in history, and one of only two events to be classified as a Level 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale. 2012 – A U.S. soldier kills 16 civilians in the Panjwayi District of Afghanistan near Kandahar. 2020 – The World Health Organization (WHO) declares the COVID-19 virus epidemic a pandemic. 2021 – US President Joe Biden signs the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan into law.

[weavingthetapestry]

"Scotia is so named after the Scottish tribes by which it is inhabited. At first, it began from the Scottish firth on the south, and, later on, from the river Humber, where Albania also began. Afterwards, however, it commenced at the wall Thirlwal, which Severus had built to the river Tyne. But now it begins at the river Tweed, the northern boundary of England, and, stretching rather less than four hundred miles in length, in a north-westerly direction, is bounded by the Pentland Firth, where a fearfully dangerous whirlpool sucks in and belches back the waters every hour. It is a country strong by nature, and difficult and toilsome of access. In some parts, it towers into mountains, in others it sinks down into plains. For lofty mountains stretch through the midst of it, from end to end, as do the tall Alps through Europe; and these mountains formerly separated the Scots from the Picts, and their kingdoms from each other. Impassable as they are on horseback, save in very few places, they can hardly be crossed even on foot, both on account of the snow always lying on them, except in summer time only; and by reason of the boulders torn off the beetling crags, and the deep hollows in their midst. Along the foot of these mountains are vast woods, full of stags, roe-deer, and other wild animals and beasts of various kinds; and these forests oftentimes afford a strong and safe protection to the cattle of the inhabitants against the depredations of their enemies; for the herds in those parts, they say, are accustomed, from use, whenever they hear the shouts of men or women, and if suddenly attacked by dogs to flock hastily into the woods. Numberless springs also well up, and burst forth from the hills and the sloping ridges of the mountains, and, trickling down with sweetest sound, in crystal rivulets between flowery banks, flow together through the level vales, and give birth to many streams; and these again to large rivers, in which Scotia marvellously abounds, beyond any other country; and at their mouths, where they rejoin the sea, she has noble and secure harbours. Scotia, also, has tracts of land bordering on the sea, pretty level and rich, with green meadows, and fertile and productive fields of corn and barley, and well adapted for growing beans, pease, and all other produce; destitute, however, of wine and oil, though by no means so of honey and wax. But in the upland districts, and along the highlands, the fields are less productive, except only in oats and barley. The country is, there, very hideous, interspersed with moors and marshy fields, muddy and dirty; it is, however, full of pasturage grass for cattle, and comely with verdure in the glens, along the watercourses. This region abounds in wool-bearing sheep, and in horses; and its soil is grassy, feeds cattle and wild beasts, is rich in milk and wool, and manifold in its wealth of fish, in sea, river, and lake. It is also noted for birds of many sorts. There noble falcons, of soaring flight and boundless courage, are to be found, and hawks of matchless daring. Marble of two or three colours, that is, black, variegated, and white, as well as alabaster, is also found there. It also produces a good deal of iron and lead, and nearly all metals. 'The land of the Scots', says Erodotus, 'in the fertility of its soil, in its pleasant groves, in the rivers and springs by which it is watered, in the number of its flocks of all kinds, and its horses, where its shore rejoices in inhabitants, is not inferior to the soil of even Britain itself'. Isidore tells us: 'Scotia, with respect to the wholesomeness of its air and climate, is a very mild country; there is little or no excessive heat in summer, or cold in winter'- and he has written of Scotia in nearly the same terms as of Hibernia. In Scotland, the longest days, at midsummer, are of eighteen hours, or more; and, in midwinter, the shortest are of not fully six; while in the island of Meroe, the capital of the Ethiopians, the longest day is of twelve hours; in Alexandria, in Egypt, of thirteen; and in Italy, of fifteen. In the island of Thule again, the day lasts all through the six summer months, and the night, likewise, all through the six winter months. The manners and customs of the Scots vary with the diversity of their speech. For two languages are spoken amongst them, the Scottish and the Teutonic; the latter of which is the language of those who occupy the seaboard and plains, while the race of Scottish speech inhabits the highlands and outlying islands. The people of the coast are of domestic and civilized habits, trusty, patient, and urbane, decent in their attire, affable, and peaceful, devout in Divine worship, yet always prone to resist a wrong at the hand of their enemies. The highlanders and people of the islands, on the other hand, are a savage and untamed nation, rude and independent, given to rapine, ease-loving, of a docile and warm disposition, comely in person, but unsightly in dress, hostile to the English people and language, and, owing to diversity of speech, even to their own nation, and exceedingly cruel. They are, however, faithful and obedient to their king and country, and easily made to submit to law, if properly governed. Solinus, the historian, in describing the manners and customs of the Scottish nation of olden time, says:- 'In its social observances, the Scottish nation was always rugged and warlike. For when males were born to them, the fathers were wont to offer them their first food on the point of a word, so that they should desire to die not otherwise than under arms, in battle for liberty; and when, afterwards, they are grown up and able to fight, the victors, after drinking of the blood of the slain, besmear their faces with it. For they are a high-spirited race, of sparing diet, of a fierce mettle, of a wild and stern countenance, rugged in address, but affable and kind to their own people, given to sports and hunting, and to ease rather than toil'. 'The Scottish nation,' writes Isidore, 'is that, originally, which was once in Ireland, and resembles the Irish in all things- in language, manners, and character. For the Scots are a light-minded nation, fierce in spirit, savage towards their foes, who would almost as soon die as be enslaved, and account it sloth to die in bed, deeming it glorious and manly to slay or be slain by, the foe in the field; a nation of sparing diet, sustaining hunger very long, and rarely indulging in food before sunset; contenting themselves, moreover, with meat, and food prepared from milk. And though they are, by nature, a people of generally rather graceful figure, and goodly face, yet their peculiar dress much disfigures them.'"

Chapters 7-9 of the fourteenth century ‘Chronica Gentis Scotorum’ by John of Fordun, edited by W.F. Skene and translated by Felix J.H. Skene, 1872.

There is a reason I have quoted these chapters at some length, and it is not just for their interesting description of the mediaeval Scottish landscape. The last paragraph (Chapter 9) in particular is an infamous passage, and it has frequently been used to summarise the so-called ‘Highland/Lowland divide’ even in the modern day. In fact, it is a passage with a complex history and should be taken with a large pinch of salt, especially since Skene’s translation, though the most famous and widely used, is itself very much a product of its Victorian context.

John of Fordun was probably a priest who hailed, as his name suggests, from the village of Fordoun in the old county of Kincardineshire (now Aberdeenshire). His ‘Chronica Gentis Scotorum’ (’The Chronicle of the Scottish People’) is perhaps the earliest surviving example of an attempt to write a comprehensive history of Scotland from its mythical origins. Traditionally the entirety of the work edited and translated by the two Skenes in the nineteenth century was thought to have been composed by John of Fordun some time in the late 1300s, but recent research suggests that he only composed the first five books, covering the history of Scotland from its earliest times to the death of David I in 1153...

John of Fordun’s views on Scotland would be interesting because of his status as the country’s earliest surviving ‘historian’ alone, but chapter 9 (the last paragraph quoted above) in particular has a long history of its own. This firsthand description of Scotland by a fourteenth century Scot, who grew up in the Mearns only a few miles from the Mounth, is invaluable. Many have taken John of Fordun’s words in Chapter 9 at face value, and the first half of the chapter is frequently quoted in modern history books, though historians have often then reinterpreted the passage to fit their own preconceptions. For Victorian historians, his depiction of linguistically distinct, mutually antagonistic, peoples with markedly different dress and lifestyle seemed to confirm their heavily racialised view of Scottish history, with “Noble Savage” Highlanders and canny Lowlanders locked in an eternal struggle. More recent historians, less concerned with simplistic ethnic categories but still seeking to establish the roots of the so-called Highland/Lowland divide, have taken the account as evidence that the fourteenth century witnessed the birth of the Highlander as a distinct entity to be reviled by the ‘Lowlander’. 

However some have argued that Fordun’s account might not have been entirely original. He references several Classical authors, which is not particularly unusual, but in some sections he seems to rely more on the accounts of these authors than the experience we might assume he had as a Scot himself. It has therefore been suggested that this part of John of Fordun’s history may have drawn on an earlier account, perhaps one composed by the author of Gesta Annalia I- this was possibly Richard Vairement, a thirteenth century Frenchman who acted as chancellor to Alexander II’s queen Marie de Coucy, and who would certainly have had cause to rely on classical accounts of Scotland. This raises further questions about whether the views of Scotland expressed in John of Fordun’s chronicle really reflect his own fourteenth century experience, or if they perhaps reflect an older viewpoint, perhaps that of a French immigrant in the 1260s.

Even if the account is John of Fordun’s original work, there are issues with both his viewpoint and the way it has been interpreted in the modern era. It is worth pointing out that the chronicle never uses the terms ‘Highland’ and ‘Lowland’- Skene’s use of the term ‘highlanders’ above is actually his own interpretation of the original Latin which seems to refer instead to the people who inhabit the islands and mountains. Instead of ‘Lowlanders’ we have the ‘people of the coast’, who speak the ‘Teutonic’ language- probably to be identified with what we now call the Scots language, which, like its close relative English, is a Germanic language. The people of the mountains are said to speak the “Scottish” language, presumably Gaelic. However despite first impressions, the people of the coastal plain and the people of the mountains cannot be easily equated with the modern concepts of Lowlanders and Highlanders. If we are to see the divide between the two peoples as linguistic, then it must be pointed out that, during the fourteenth century, Gaelic was widely spoken in many areas which are not generally considered to be the ‘Highlands’- notably Galloway and Carrick in the south-west of Scotland, but also parts of Fife and other areas. 

If we are to see the split as geographic, with Lowlanders inhabiting the coastal plain-then it must be pointed out that areas which some people now consider to be ‘Highland’, such as Easter Ross, fall into this category, while many areas of southern, Scots-speaking Scotland, such as the Southern Uplands, are hilly and remote. And even if we decide to abandon the somewhat anachronistic terms ‘Highlander’ and ‘Lowlander’ when referring to Fordun’s account, I would argue that the ‘division’ of Scotland between two separate peoples was a lot less distinct, and a lot more fluid and complex in the fourteenth century than the chronicler suggests. Thus, although a fascinating source, we should beware of stereotyping ‘Highland’ and ‘Lowland’ Scotland during this period, especially if these stereotypes look rather like a Romantic fantasy of Barbarian Highlanders and Civilised Lowlanders. 

Some additional notes:

- It seems that John of Fordun means Hadrian’s Wall when he says ‘Thirlwall’, and it looks like he associates the wall of Septimius Severus with Hadrian’s Wall as well, though the location of Severus’ wall is actually a bit of a mystery. 

- The Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland were not officially part of the kingdom of Scotland during the fourteenth century, which is why John of Fordun says that Scotland stretches as far north as the Pentland Firth, which is the strait between Caithness and Orkney. The whirlpool he refers to may be the Swilkie.

- Since Fordoun is only around ten miles from the Cairn O’ Mounth, a well-known pass through the Grampian mountains which was used by several armies in history, it is interesting to note that John of Fordun describes the mountains that “formerly separated the Scots from the Picts” as “Impassable (...) on horseback, save in very few places, they can hardly be crossed even on foot, both on account of the snow always lying on them, except in summer time only”.

- John of Fordun’s description of the upland parts of Scotland as "very hideous, interspersed with moors and marshy fields, muddy and dirty; it is, however, full of pasturage grass for cattle, and comely with verdure in the glens, along the watercourses” is intriguing. The ‘romantic’ appeal of Scotland’s upland scenery does not seem to have been widely appreciated in the Middle Ages, and although the first part of John of Fordun’s description, regarding the ‘hideous moors’, reflects this, his other comments are not wholly negative.

- The account of Scottish diet and agriculture seems to be accurate- peas, barley, and oats were common crops, while wool was an extremely important export. Certainly the country was rich in fish and, although the Scots were not able to exploit the herring to the extent that others did (the Dutch for example), Scottish salmon was a notable export. Highland hawks were also much sought after by the nobility.

- ‘Thule’ is a mysterious location often mentioned by mediaeval and early modern writers- theories as to its identity include Iceland, Shetland, Orkney, and Greenland.

-  When John of Fordun states that the people of the mountains are ‘unsightly in dress’ we cannot necessarily assume that they wore what we consider to be ‘Highland’ dress nowadays- kilt, plaid, e.t.c. Kilts came into use in the later Middle Ages (it’s worth noting they are not likely to have been in use in William Wallace’s time) and even then they looked very different from the neat modern version.

- The statement that the people of the mountains are “hostile to the English people and language” raises a couple of questions. For a start, late mediaeval Scots speakers often used the term ‘Inglis’ (English) to refer to their language, rather than the Middle English spoken in the south of Britain, which was sometimes called southron instead. However Middle English and Old Scots were still often seen as being the same or similar languages, so should we assume that, by the ‘English people and language’, John of Fordun is stating that the people of the mountains hate the people of the coastal plain (i.e., that so-called Highland/Lowland divide?). Or should we interpret this as meaning English in the modern sense, and that the people of the mountains hate the English even more than their fellow Scots on the coastal plain? Since the next phrase talks about how they don’t like people of their own ‘nation’ either, this might be the case, but in the aftermath of the Wars of Independence, there was no shortage of anti-English sentiment among the people of the coastal plain either. 

-  “They are, however, faithful and obedient to their king and country, and easily made to submit to law, if properly governed.” - this is a sentiment which would not have been out of place in the eighteenth or nineteenth century, but it must be remembered that it comes from a very different, mediaeval context, not a time of kilted Highland regiments fighting for the Empire. There was some feeling in late mediaeval Scotland, however, that one of Robert Bruce’s successes had been his understanding of the west. 

- The last part of chapter 9 is taken up by two passages from the ancient authors Solinus and Isidore and, although they are used to prop up John of Fordun’s own account, it would be wise to remember this before they are used to draw conclusions about the behaviour of fourteenth century Scots. 

All in all, these chapters, and especially chapter 9, are an important and well-known source. Even though I would caution against taking the whole work at face value, it is certainly worth becoming familiar with, since it has influenced so many subsequent accounts of Scotland, for better or worse. For further reading, I would also recommend perusing Martin McGregor’s article “Gaelic Barbarity and Scottish Identity in the Later Middle Ages”, and Dauvit Broun’s “Attitudes of Gall to Gaedhel in Scotland in Scotland before John of Fordun”, both published in the book “Mìorun Mòr nan Gall: 'The great ill-will of the Lowlander'? Lowland perceptions of the Highlands, Medieval and Modern”, ed. McGregor and Broun.

If anyone has any questions about any of the statements made here, please feel free to fire them my way!

[brooklynislandgirl]

📝

Bits and Bobs || Accepting

Two glasses of wine deep and Mikhail has a new game. His fingertips glide back and forth across her wrist and maybe it’s distortion or the fact that everything is surrounded by a nice Sirrah glow but he feels far closer to her than he actually is and that the intensity of his dark eyes seem to block out everything else. Maybe it’s both and she doesn’t realise it yet, but she is very agreeable in this moment. She takes one last sip for the moment and sets her glass down on the coffee table before narrowing her eyes {inadvertently scrunching her nose while doing so} and tilting her head to one side, considering the first question carefully.

what color reminds your muse of mine?

“Oh, dat one easy,” she says as soon as it processes through her mind, distilled into its rawest essence. “Midnight blue. Now you’d t’ink I’d go black but you’re more subtle dan dat. You’ve got depths an’ shallows an remind me of a star strewn sky ovah Mount Ka’ala, highest point on O’ahu, part of Waiʻanae mountains. If ya nevah seen da view from dere, den ya nevah really live an’ it scare me jus’ a lil cause I no like da dark but I t’ink I’d brave it t’ show you. Like take you to see, not shoyu...uh..soy sauce.”

~*~

what song reminds your muse of mine?

“Bob Dylan’s Make You Feel My Love. F’I close my eyes, I could almost imagine ya sitting at our piano an’ singin’ it.” She gives a little blushing shrug and clears her throat. It’s a fraction of a key off, and without accompaniment it might sound a little rough.

“When the rain is blowing in your face...And the whole world is on your case...I could offer you a warm embrace...To make you feel my love...When the evening shadows and the stars appear..And there is no one there to dry your tears...I could hold you for a million years...To make you feel my love.”

~*~

what scent reminds your muse of mine?

“Dere’s dis library in Prague, da Klementinum, and is one of da most beautiful kine I’ve ever seen. An’ I know ya sit dere an say ‘but Beth, dat no smell...but it is. Subtle. Dream of a million books, paper, parchment, skin. Da binding of glue an’ leather an’ wood. You can smell da ink, too an’ alla bits used t’ make it. An’ dere’s a cleanness, a dustiness, an’ from people, dere’s a hint of colognes or perfumes, no kine quite distinct enough to linger. And of course dere’s always a lil bit coppery tang, a sharp but never cloying sorta aftertaste. And when I breath ya in, is...is like dat. Bes’ way I can describe it.” ~*~ what meme reminds your muse of mine? It’s the first time she’s pulled out her phone in hours. Unlike most people of the modern age, Beth isn’t so attached to the device that she needs to be on it every sparing second, and certainly when she is spending time with someone, they are her sole focus. Her little fingers fly over the screen on their search and is seemingly ignorant to being observed.  Moments like these are rare, when she doesn’t seem painfully aware of every detail in the world around her and the shy smile that blooms is unrestricted, uncultured, and a little crooked.  “Here, dis one.” She offers him the phone.

~*~

what sound reminds your muse of mine?

“Jus’ before one storm break, da air all but crackles wi’ ion particles dat ya can feel dance on ya skin. An’ den it get really hush, holdin’ it’s breath. The tide doesn’t roar so much as it hums, expectantly. Tentative kisses on da sand, an’ even da trees shake deir branches before goin’ all still. It’s a combination of all of doze...da loudness an’ da stillness...dat you remind me of. Only happens on ocean coasts, is nevah da same inna city, an’ pity dat.”

~*~

what setting reminds your muse of mine?

“Somewhere in da English or Scottish moors, when da sky all grey alla time, an’ every kine is misty an’ green, despite lack of sun. Some kind of dilapidated country estate li’dat Thrushcross Grange from Wutherin’ Heights. One of them white shirts and dark pants. Boots up to your knees. Lurking in half-glass windows. Mebbe is haunted, mebbe not. I can see you ridin’ horses too, for wha’evah is worth.”

She laughs. Takes her glass off the table and gestures at him with it before looking away. It’s too easy to picture him like that. And to come up with a dozen what ifs. It almost feels a little silly. She lifts the wine and takes a less than delicate drink.

~*~

what fashion style reminds your muse of mine?

“Dat one coat of yours. One with all dem buckles an’ and silver buttons? Or mebbe a cloak, long an’ dark an’ fluttery in da wind. ‘S nevah dat ya look bad in regular clothes, I mean you make any kine look good, really. Like should have been a model or somet’ing...but I dunno. I jus’ t’ink ya can pull off more historical kine wi’out making it look...cheesy. I t’ink it mebbe your cheekbones or jus’ how slinky you are.” ~*~ what feeling does your muse associate with mine?

This particular one saw the levity drained out of her and enshroud Beth in a sense of...confusion. Brows knit above her gaze and her eyes themselves darken not exactly with suspicion but something in the relative neighbourhood. She grows both quiet and nervous at once. She is silent for almost a full minute. 

She neither explains nor pads out her answer. “Longing.” ~*~

what animal does your muse associate with mine?

“Uhm...” It’s hard one-eighty degree turn from where she’d been to where she’s going with this and perhaps she’s more specific than she ought to be, but if experience has taught Mikhail anything is that Beth’s brain tends to latch onto ideas like lifelines. “Pallid Harrier. Circus macrourus. Is a migratory bird kinda like a hawk or falcon. Scientific name from ancient Greek, in reference to da way it circles its prey in flight, an’ possibly da long tail. Tends to breed an’ hunt in eastern Europe, an’ dere’s a rare kine variant dat live in Britain. Is a beautiful an’ deadly creature, preys on small vertebrates an’ sometimes fish. Doesn’t really belong in da world of man...well, people. Like putting an angel or a god on display an’ den aksin’ dem to treat it wi’ respect.”

~*~

what holiday does your muse associate with mine?

“Midwinter. Or Yule. Whatever ya wanna call it, is da winter solstice an’ da longest night of da year. Traditionally celebrated to appease da Wild Hunt, or out of fear of it. I dunno. But as wi’ mebbe all winter holiday, seems like da key to it is celebratin’ with a feast, drinkin’, an’ a sacrifice. Mos’ people now a days forget dat winter ‘til spring were once called da starvation months....an’ by giving up dat blood, dey were ensurin’ survival as well as da sun’s rebirth. But I mean dat in a good way, not nearly as gruesome as it sounds. Uhm...mebbe giving a couple days an’ I come up wi’ some kine mo’beddah an answer.” ~*~ what season does your muse associate with mine?

“Winter. Is my favourite... all da t’ick an’ warm clothes ya get t’ wear, an’ snow...which true story...nevah did see until I came t’ New York when I was sixteen. It was so weird an’ wonderful an’ I kinda fell in love with it. Like waddah-sky-glitter, too hard f’ explain. It’s cocoa an’ coffee, an’ it’s long nights inside with a fire in da hearth, and cuddling up, reading an’ stuff undah da blankets, an...too... Winter’s da best time to surf, da conditions are perfect for killah swells. But like me, I t’ink you prefer da quiet, dim, an’ jus’...intimate nature of a quiet winter night.”

[thelonelywitchandthelonelytides]

Herb Correspondents Master Lists Part 1. (A-D)

Hello this is the start to a series i will be doing. i really hope you enjoy!

Acacia (Acacia Penninelvis)

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Sun          Element : Air         Symbol : The Afterlife

Gods : Osiris, Astarte, Ra and Diana

Uses  

Common Ingredient in protection spells.

Can help enhance psychic powers.

To make a great mediation incense combine with sandalwood.

Burn the leaves on charcoal to increase personal power.

African Violet (Saintpaulia Ionantha)  

DO NOT CONSUME!

Energy  : Feminine          Planet : Venus          Element : Water

Uses

Can be used in protection rituals.

Good for enhancing spirituality.

Agrimony (Agrimonia Eupatoria)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Jupiter          Element : Air

Star Sign  : Cancer

Uses

Use in spells about exploring true feelings.

Protection spells.

Useful in building a psychic shield.

Reducing negative influence.

Banishing negative influence.

Reverse and rebound hexes.

Enhances healing spells.

Helps sleeping.

Spells/Rituals

Sleep Spell = “If it be leyd under mann’s heed,

                        He shal sleepyn as he were deed;

                        He shal never drede ne wakyn

                        Till fro under his heed it be takyn.”

Alder (Alnus Glutinosa)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Planet : Moon, Mars          Element : Water, Fire

Gods : Odin, Apollo and Aphrodite

Animals : Ravens, Hawks, Seagulls and Foxes

Common Names : Scottish Mahogany, King Of The Forest, Tree Of The Fae

Stones : Lapis Lazuli and Amethyst          Colour : Purple

Uses

Use in rituals to allow access to faerie realms.

Facts

Do not cut down, or face bad fortune from fae.

Wood does not rot but hardens.

Almond (Prunus Dulcis)

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Mercury          Element : Air

Uses

Use in fertility, money, luck charms.

Use in hand fasting rituals and love spells.

Use in rituals for overcoming addiction.

Great as a carrier oil.

Aloe (A.Vera Barbadensis)

DO NOT DRINK ALOE JUICE IF YOU ARE PREGNANT! KEEP AWAY FROM PETS! CAN CAUSE ALLERGIC REACTIONS!

Energy : Feminine          Planet : Moon          Element : Water

Gods : Venus and Aphrodite          Star Sign : Cancer

Uses

Use to create an amulet against accidents and misfortunes.

Use in spells for love and beauty.

Use in lunar spells.

Alyssum (Lobularia Maritima)

CAN CAUSE DERMATITIS IN SENSITIVE PEOPLE!

Planet : Mercury          Element : Air

Uses

Use in protection against hexes and glamours.

Use to deflect spells aimed to mislead you.

The smell is said to evoke peaceful energy, spiritual and emotional balance.

Wearing a sprig helps to prevent and calms angry encounters.

Makes a good addition to moon and fae gardens.

Amaranth (Amaranthus Spp)

DO NOT EAT RAW IN LARGE AMOUNTS!

Gods : Huitzilopochtli, Artemis, Demeter

Uses

Spells to mend a broke heart.

Dried amaranth flowers can be used to call forth the dead.

Used in Pagan ceremonies.

Used to decorate images of Gods/Goddesses.

Rituals

= A crown of Amaranth flowers worn on the head speeds healing.

Angelica (Angelica Archangelic)

DO NOT USE IF PREGNANT OR IF DIABETIC!

Planet : Sun          Element : Fire          Gods : Venus

Angels : Micheal and Gabriel

Uses

Used for general protection.

Use for hex breaking.

Use as protection against evil spirits.

Use for blessings.

As an incense its excellent for exorcisms, healing and protection.

Spells/Rituals

Protection = Grow angelica on your property to protect your garden and home.

Amulets = Carry or add to amulets to increase longevity or to ward off illness and evil spirits.

Potions = Add to potions that are designed to remove curses/spells or to banish evil in an area.

Anise (Pimpinellaa Anisum)

CAN BE TOXIC IN LARGE QUANTITIES! DO NOT USE ESSENTIAL OIL UNDILUTED! USE WITH CAUTION IF USING IRON SUPPLEMENTS!

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Mercury and Jupiter          Element : Air

Gods : Apollo          Zodiac Sign : Gemini

Uses

Protection from evil spirits and intentions.

The scent is said to stir up lust.

Aids in divination

Can be used as an offering to spirits.

Spells/Rituals

Restoring Youth = Hang an anise seed head from your bedpost to restore lost youth.

Sleep = Use in pillows to keep away nightmares and ensure a good night’s sleep.

Holy Water = Add to holy water for blessings and exorcisms.

Warding = Can be used in Holy water for blessing and exorcisms.

Apple (Malus Domestica)

Energy : Feminine          Zodiac Sign : Taurus

Goddesses : Aphrodite, Iduna, Freya, Pomona and Eris

Symbols : Love, Fidelity, Fertility, Marriage, Beauty, Vanity, Wisdom, The Soul, The Afterlife and Immortality

Uses

Apple blossoms can be used in love and healing incense.

Can be used as an offering to the dead at Samhain.

Apple tree wood can be used to make wands.

Spells/Rituals

Altars = If you slice an apple width wise, you can see a five-pointed star. They can be used to decorate altars during harvest rituals.

Fidelity = Give an apple to you lover as a gift. You eat one half and your lover eats the other. This will ensure fidelity.

Soulmates = If you peel an apple in one piece and throw the peel over your shoulder. It will fall in the shape of your soulmate’s name.

Arnica (Arnica Montana)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Sun          Element : Fire

Gods/Goddesses : Freya, Ra and Apollo

Associations : Midsummer, The Harvest and Honour Spirits

Uses

Use in protective rituals.

Use in rituals for crop fertility.

Spells/Rituals

Drive away a thunderstorm = Burn arnica to drive away a thunderstorm, saying : “Set arnica alight, set arnica alight, thunderstorm take flight”

Protection : Plant arnica to keep an area free from spirits entering or leaving the area.

Ash (Fraxinus Spp)

Energy : Feminine          Element : Fire, Air and Water

Uses

The wood can be used for wands, staves and besom handles.

It’s a good attracter and conductor of energy.

Spells/Rituals

Sleep = Sleep with ash leaves under your pillow to receive prophetic dreams.

Good Luck = Carry a leaf of ash in your pocket for good luck (ensure that there are an even number of leaves.)

Asparagus (Asparagus Officinalis)

Planets : Mars and Jupiter          Element : Fire          Gods : Zeus

Symbol : Lust and Fertility

Uses

Lust spells

Fertility spells

Astragalus (Astragalus Membranaceus)

DO NOT CONSUME DURING MENSTRUATION OR IF YOU HAVE AN ACUTE INFECTION!

Planet : Jupiter          Element : Air

Uses

Use to increase energy for a variety of applications.

Basil (Ocimum Basilicum)

Planets : Mars          Element : Fire          

Gods/Goddesses : Vishnu, Tulasi and Erzulie

Uses

To bring happiness, love, peace and money to the household.

Use in spells for attracting love.

Aids astral protection.

Brings luck in physical journeys.

Use in peacemaking spells.

Rituals

Protection = To protect yourself when leaving home rub some basil on your forehead.

Bayberry (Myrica Cerifera, M.Carolinensis)

AVOID CONSUMPTION!

Energy : Feminine          Planet : Jupiter          Element : Earth

Uses

Use in luck and prosperity spells.

Use in money drawing spells.

Spells/Rituals

Luck = Add bayberries to a luck or fortune drawing charm bag.

Bay Laurel (Laurus Nobilis)

Energy : Masculine           Planet :Sun          Element : Fire

Gods/Goddesses : Apollo, Zeus, Aesclepius, Ceres, Hermes and Cerridwen

Zodiac Sign : Leo

Uses

Protection spells.

Banishing and exorcism rites.

Can purify and drive out illness.

Spells/Rituals

Wishes = Write a wish on a dried bay leaf and burn it for the wish to come true.

Sick = Give a laurel wreath to the ill and it can help aid recovery.

Betony (Stachy Officinalis, Betonica Officinalis)

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Jupiter          Element : Fire

Spells/Rituals

Protection = Can be added to protective mixtures, grown around the home or carried by an individual to protect from negativity, misfortune and hexes.

Protection = Scatter near doors to prevent unwanted energies and people from entering.

Sleep = Stuff into a pillow or place underneath to prevent nightmares and night terrors.

Bindweed (Convolvulaceae)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Planet : Saturn          Element : Water

Uses

The vines can be used for binding spells.

Use to create bridges and connections between realms.

Blackberry (Rubus Fructicosus, Rubus Canadensis)

Thorny Branches                                              Blackberry Leaves

Zodiac Sign : Aries                                           Zodiac Sign : Scorpio

Element : Fire                                                    Element : Water

Uses                                                                    Uses

Protective Wreaths.                                 Aphrodisiac Tea

Spells/Rituals (Blackberry Leaves)

Health = Dip nine leaves in a natural water source and lay them on a burn or a red inflamed area. Say to each leaf as you lay them on the wound :

“Three ladies came from the East, one with fire and two with frost, out with fire, in with frost”

Berries

Energy : Feminine          Element : Earth

Uses

In magickal cooking for prosperity.

Used to celebrate first harvest festivals such as Lughnassadh.

Black Cohosh ( Cimicifuga Racemosa)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Planet : Pluto          Element : Fire          Zodiac Sign : Scorpio

Uses

Use in sachets for love, courage and potency.

Add to holy water and sprinkle around the room to drive off negative influences.

Bluebell (Hyacinthoides)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Planet : Saturn and Moon          Element : Air

Symbol : Truth, Humility, Gratitude, Everlasting Love and The Fae

Uses

Love spells.

Wear in a wreath to be compelled to speak the truth.

Rituals

Love = Turn a bluebell flower inside out to ensure you will win the heart of the one you desire.

Sleep = Place under a pillow to prevent nightmares.

Burdock (Arctium Lappa)

Energy : Feminine          Element : Water          Planet : Venus

Uses

Use in rituals, amulets and spells to ward off negativity and for general protection.

Use for general healing.

Spells/Rituals

Protection = The root can be carved into a figure, dried and carried or worn as a protective amulet.

Calendula (Calendula Officinalis)

Planet : Sun          Symbol : Love

Other Names : Marigold

Uses

Love potions.

Good addition to dream pillows.

Spells/Rituals

Warding = Hang wreaths of marigold over a door to keep evil and negativity from entering.

Cardamom (Elettaria Cardamomum)

DO NOT CONSUME IF PREGNANT OF IF YOU HAVE GALLSTONES!

Energy : Feminine          Planet : Venus          Element : Water

Uses

Use in lust sachets

Use to relax the body and to clarify the mind

Spells/Rituals

Love = To encourage a love interest, chew some cardamom seeds before talking to them.

Chamomile (Chamaemilum Noblie)

Planet : Sun          Element : Water          Zodiac Sign : Leo

Chakra : Throat          Gods/Goddesses : Ra, Cernunness and Lugh

Uses

Use in money, peace, love, tranquillity an purification spells.

Aids meditation.

Spells/Rituals

Protection = Make an infusion to wash thresholds to help keep unwanted energies or entities from passing through.

Ritual Bath = Use in a ritual bath to release a loved one or release feelings of pain, loss or anger.

Chestnut

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Jupiter          Element : Fire

God : Zeus          Symbol : Fertility, Desire and Abundance

Uses

Use as talismans can be used for justice, success and to gain sympathy at your audience and to encourage knowledge.

Staves made from this wood encourage longevity, increase energy, enhance intuition and helps with growing energy.

Chrysanthemum

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Sun          Element : Fire

Spells/Rituals

Altar = Used to decorate your altar for Samhain and for ancestral altars.

Blessing = Burn the dried flowers during house blessings.

Cinnamon (Cinnamomum Zeylanicum)

Planet : Sun          Element : Fire

Uses

Aids in healing spells

Love spells

Use for charms for love, happiness and money

Cloves (Syzygium Aromaticum)

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Jupiter          Element : Fire

Uses

Use to attract good luck and prosperity.

Use as an aphrodisiac.

Spells/Rituals

Prevention = Burn to prevent people from spreading rumors about you.

Friendship = To keep friendships strong make each friend a cloth bag with seven cloves inside, wear always.

Coltsfoot (Tussilago Farfara)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Planet : Venus          Element : Water

Uses

Use for holidays such as Imbolc, Ostara and Beltane.

Use in love, tranquillity and money spells.

Can be burned during divination rites.

Comfrey (Symphytum)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Planet : Saturn          Element : Water          Gods/Goddesses : Hecate

Uses

Protective magick

Substitution for borage

Spells/Rituals

Protection = Add a comfrey leaf to your luggage to make sure it isn’t lost or stolen.

Protection = Wrap your money in a comfrey leaf for a couple days to protect it.

Cleanse = Add to a ritual bath

Corn (Zea Mays)

Energy : Feminine          Planet : Sun          Element : Fire

Uses

Use as an offering in harvest rituals.

Use in spells for luck, prosperity and abundance.

Crocus ( Crocus)

DO NOT CONSUME!

Planets : Mercury and Venus          Element : Water

God/Goddesses : Venus, Eos, Persephone and Aphrodite

Uses

Decoration for spring festivals.

Spells related to new beginnings.

Used in spells for love, friendship, settling disputes, peace and divination.

Cyclamen

DO NOT CONSUME! DO NOT CONSUME OR TOUCH IF PREGNANT!

Energy : Feminine          Planet : Mars          Element : Water

God/Goddesses : Hecate

Uses

Use in spells to increase joy and happiness and also to send away unwanted people.

Love spells.

Spells/Rituals

Protection = The oil can be worn to protect oneself from a broken heart.

Sleep = Can help keep nightmares and hexes away.

Daisy (Bellis Perennis)

CAN CAUSE DERMATITIS IN SOME PEOPLE!

Energy : Feminine          Planet : Venus and The Sun          Element : Water

Uses

Offering to Goddesses.

Good wreaths at Beltane.

Spells/Rituals

Love = Daisies are most commonly known for their diviniatory :

“He loves me, he loves me not” spell practised by young girls.

Dandelion (Taraxacum Officinale)

Energy : Masculine          Planet : Jupiter          Element : Air

Zodiac Signs : Sagittarius and Pisces

Gods/Goddesses : Hecate, Brigid, Belenas and other solar deities.

Uses

Aids in calling spirits.

Increases psychic ability.

Spells/Rituals

Spirits = Pouring boiling water over a bowlful of roots will aid in calling spirits.

Wish = Make a wish and blow the seeds off a dandelion head.

Devil’s Claw (Harpagophytum)

DO NOT USE; IT IS AN ENDANGERED SPECIES!

Planet : Mars          Element : Fire

Uses

Useful for banishing, exorcisms and purification

I hope you guys found this helpful. Just this post took me a couple hours. I do intend to do the rest in 4 or 5 letter bundles (Though i may not post one instalment every day). If anyone has any suggestions, ideas or needs help fell free to comment or message me. Blessed be!

[skippyv20]

Thank you😁❤️❤️❤️❤️

      Palace of Holyroodhouse

The Palace of Holyroodhouse has been an important royal residence for centuries. With previous inhabitants including Mary Queen of Scots,

it has been the scene of many turbulent events in the complex relationship between England and Scotland.

Holyrood was founded as an Augustinian abbey in 1128 by David I, son of St Margaret of Scotland, an Anglo Saxon princess who fled to Scotland after the Norman Conquest. According to legend, it was built on the site where the King had a vision of the Cross– the Holy Rood – glowing between the antlers of a stag, while out hunting on Holy Cross Day.

When Edinburgh became the capital of Scotland in 1437, successive monarchs found the royal chambers at the abbey far more comfortable than Edinburgh Castle. Keen to impress his new Queen Margaret Tudor, James IV

had the abbey guesthouse converted into a palace. He also decided to develop the grounds: in 1507 a loch was drained to make space for gardens and sports such as tennis, hawking and archery.

James V

made further improvements, building new lodgings in a huge tower protected by a moat and drawbridge. His fortifications proved a shrewd investment: Holyrood was attacked and burned more than once during conflict with England through the 1540s, but the tower survived.

It was in the tower that in 1566 Mary Queen of Scots witnessed the brutal murder of David Rizzio, her Italian secretary and rumoured lover.

Rizzio was stabbed 56 times by a group led by Mary’s husband Lord Darnley, and it is claimed that his bloodstains can still be seen in the Northwest Tower today.

After Mary’s enforced abdication and flight to England in 1567, the palace became home to Mary’s son James VI, Scotland’s first Protestant King.

By the time he acceded to the English throne in 1603, the household had swollen to around 600. However, with the court’s move to London, Holyrood faded in importance: Charles I was crowned King of Scotland there in 1633, but from 1646 the palace was entrusted to the care of the Duke of Hamilton whose descendants still hold the post of Keeper.

Holyroodhouse was damaged during the Civil War when Oliver Cromwell’s soldiers occupied the building. A fire, whether deliberate or accidental, caused major damage. The Palace was rebuilt in 1671 after the Restoration of Charles II to the throne,

and it is this 17th-century building we see today. The man responsible was Sir William Bruce, who designed a tower to match James V’s tower and create a symmetrical facade. He also created the suite of Royal Apartments, with their ornate plasterwork ceilings, and laid out the quadrangle which lies at the heart of the Palace.

Charles II never saw the Palace he had commissioned; he handed it over to his brother, James, Duke of York. James fled the country after William and Mary came to the throne, and Holyroodhouse was allowed to lapse into decay.

Bonnie Prince Charlie held court at Holyroodhouse during his 1745 bid for the throne. The Duke of Cumberland, who defeated Charlie at the pivotal Battle of Culloden, also stayed at Holyroodhouse.

It was not until George IV made his much-publicised state visit to Scotland in 1822 that efforts were made to restore the Palace interiors, but the real change came when Queen Victoria decided to use Holyroodhouse as a royal residence once more.

Despite its long associations with the Royal Family, it was only in the 1920s that Holyroodhouse formally became its official residence in Scotland. Today the Palace of Holyroodhouse is used as a Royal Palace, but is also open to the public all year round. It also is a centrepoint for celebrating the best of Scotland.

This is most evident in The Queen’s ‘Holyrood Week’ of engagements, undertaken every year from the end of June to the beginning of July. Her Majesty attends several engagements around the country to celebrate Scottish culture, history and achievement.

The Investiture held in the Great Gallery is for Scottish residents whose achievements have been recognised in the twice-yearly Honours List which appears at New Year and on The Queen’s Official Birthday in June.

King George V and Queen Mary held the first garden party in the grounds of Holyroodhouse and the tradition has been maintained to the present day. Each year, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh entertain around 8,000 guests from all walks of Scottish life during Holyrood week.

State apartments  

A suite of state rooms, each more elegant than the last, lead to the state bedchamber, where only the most favoured and high-ranking visitors would be allowed. Perhaps the most impressive room is the Great Gallery, hung with 89 paintings by Jacob de Wet, depicting real and imaginary kings of Scotland.

The Gallery once served as a state dining room, but is now used for investitures and official receptions. Another important chamber is the Throne Room, where Knights and Ladies of the Order of the Thistle have an official luncheon when a new member of the Order is named. A special exhibit on the Order of the Thistle forms part of the visitor tour.

Mary, Queen of Scots rooms 

The best-known feature of the Palace is the suite of rooms used by Mary, Queen of Scots, when she lived here. These rooms were the first to be opened to visitors, in the Victorian period, and are maintained as they would have looked during Mary’s lifetime.

It was in this suite of rooms that Lord Darnley, Mary’s second husband, led a group of supporters to seize and murder Mary’s secretary, David Rizzio.

Darnley and his men burst in upon Mary and her retinue while they were dining. Rizzio clutched at Mary’s skirts, but they tore him away, carried him to a nearby chamber, and stabbed him to death. The room where Rizzio was seized, and the bedchamber beside it, are maintained to evoke the terrible event.

Dining room Image Credit: Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2018

Throne Room

The Throne Room originally was the Guard Room, but got its name from the two thrones in the room.  The Thrones were commissioned by George IV.  I almost missed these because my eyes were drawn to the large portraits on the walls.  Charles II who is responsible for how the palace looks today and James I of England (also known as James VI of Scotland) are among the monarchs who have portraits in this room.  

The Queen hosts her lunch for the Knights and Ladies of the Order of the Thistle, the highest order of chivalry in Scotland, in this room.  You will see and learn more about the Order of the Thistle throughout Holyrood Palace tour.

The Throne Room has some impressive portraits in addition to the thrones.

The Morning Drawing Room

The Morning Drawing Room was a room for more private access to the Queen and significant Holyrood Palace history took place here.  It is where Queen Elizabeth appointed the First First Minister of Scotland, Donald Dewar.

 She also had an audience with Pope Benedict in this room.

RCT

King’s Bedchamber

The King’s Ante Chamber, the most important waiting room of the palace, before entering the King’s Bedchamber.  Of course, the focal point of the King’s Bedchamber is the beautiful bed, but the King would not sleep there.  The room was more a show of power and status.  The artwork on the wall of the Greek deities and the elaborate ceiling help reinforce the King’s stature.

The Grand Gallery

The Grand Gallery is the room where the Queen holds State functions, including investitures – among others, Sean Connery was honored here.  ‘Grand’ is about right. This room is long, elegant and the walls are covered with 96 portraits of Scottish monarchs.

The Queen’s Lobby and Ante Chamber

In the Queen’s Lobby they have some of the jewelry and regalia for the Order of the Thistle on display, as well as other honours, such as medals given to those honoured as Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE), or Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE).  

Next, you enter the Queen’s Ante Chamber which is the oldest part of the castle.  You can tell by looking at the windows and seeing how thick the walls are. They must be about four feet thick.

Holyrood Abbey

The ruins of the abbey were depicted in the painting called the Ruins of Holyrood Chapel by the French artist, Louis Daguerre.  

The Abbey is located directly behind Holyrood Palace and was founded in the 12th century.  The original abbey included more buildings (cloisters, dormitory, etc) than the Holyrood Abbey ruins you see today.  By 1500, the Holyrood Abbey was one of the largest and most impressive monasteries in Scotland. 

[captain-kingliamsqueen]

Always Yours - L (Liam x Riley)

With a Heavy Heart Part 2

I’ve had this part sitting for SOOO LONG!!! but anxiety was through the roof...BUT ive decided to just do it...so here it is!!!! It’s been a while since part one was posted so if you need to go back and catch up....https://captain-kingliamsqueen.tumblr.com/post/175839022176/with-a-heavy-heart <--- this is the place to be! :P

Please let me know what you think, Your Feedback means the world to me!!!

Pairing: Liam x Riley PLUS A LITTLE CAMEO FROM A SPECIAL FRIEND!!!

Summary: …Rileys making a run for it...but where’s she going and what's the true reason for her leaving?

Word Count: 5,074

Tagged : @starstruckzonkoperatorbat​  @drakelover78​  @queencatherynerhys​ @devineinterventions2​ @jayjay879​  @kawairinrin​  @hopefulmoonobject​ @flyawayblue56​  @gardeningourmet  @blackcatkita​  @syltti78​  @theroyalweisme​​  @hhiggs​  @mfackenthal​  @bruteforcebears @pens-girl-87​ @barbaravalentino​ @umccall71​ @darley1101​ @crookedslimecreatorpasta​ @jamjar84​ @starstruckpixelberryhistoryvoid​ @speedyoperarascalparty​ @katurrade​ @scarlettedragon​ @zeniamiii​ @annekebbphotography @liam-rhys @xxrainbowprincessxx

 ASK IF YOU WANT TAGGED! SORRY IF I MISSED ANYONE! (USED THE TAGS FROM MY “ALWAYS” SERIES LET ME KNOW IF ANYONE WANTS UNTAGGED!!!)

I always notice every single spelling mistake or issue after I’ve posted…so apologies in advance! 

 The envelope sat on the table in front of Riley, leaning against the vase, she wiped her cheeks as she pulled her phone out, scrolling through her contacts she stopped at the one she was looking for, she pressed dial then held the phone up to her ear. The dial tone rang three times then she heard his voice.

“hello?”

“…its riley”

“Riley? Riley Brookes? Well, well, well Riley Brookes what can I do for you?”

“I’m sorry, I know its late” she felt bad disturbing her childhood friend at that kind of time she knew it was late where he was.

“it’s alright, I wasn’t sleeping anyway”

“…I-I need your help, I need your expertise”

“wait a minute, I haven’t seen you in years ri, and now you need my help?”

“I know…it must sound strange…but its urgent…I need your help, just tell me if you can help me”

“of course, I will Riley, what is it?”

“I need you to meet me somewhere”

“alright, um…what about the grill? That restaurant we used to go to?”

“no…I need you to meet me somewhere a little further afield”

“Riley…what’s going on?”

“I’m in Cordonia”

“Cordonia? Where I was born…where I spent the first ten years of my life…that Cordonia?”

“yeah”

“what the hell are you doing there?”

“I met Liam Rhys in new York…I didn’t even know you knew him till I found out you knew Leo, I travelled here a while ago, I competed in the social season as a suitor, we fell in love…” Riley sniffled “he was going to choose me, we were going to get married…but…something happened and…and now he’s been forced into an engagement with madeleine”

“not that bitch!”

“…someone set me up with a picture in the press, as soon as the palace got a hold of it, they removed me from the palace…Liam had max and Bertrand bring me back after a few weeks, and he explained to me what happened, but we don’t know who did it…the guards can’t figure out who did it, I can’t stay here any longer, if I leave…maybe we can find out who…who done it…if they think there’s no chance of me and Liam being together and that ive given up and left…they might get sloppy we might catch them…I can’t let him marry her. He deserves so much better.”

“so, you think I can figure out who done it?”

“I know you can”

“where do you wanna meet?”

“do you remember my grandma’s house…we used to go for a couple of weeks in the summer”

“in Scotland?!”

“yeah…”

“Riley…that’s an eight-hour flight”

“I know, it’s a bit far to travel, but…I have to fight for him…I can’t just sit here like a spare part, I have to figure out who done it! I have to stop their engagement, no matter what it takes”

“alright, I’ll do it, when do you went to meet?”

“my flight leaves in…two hours, just get the earliest flight you can, and I’ll meet you there”

“alright…I’ll see you soon Riley”

“thank you, I owe you big time! I’ll see you soon”

after they both hung up the phone, Riley let out a sigh before putting her phone in her bag.

“god I hope Liam can forgive me” she whispered, once she knew she had everything, her bags sat the door, she made her way back over to the table, she sighed then reached behind her neck and unclasped her necklace. She smiled softly, as she remembers when she got it.

It was one of those nights that they had snuck out of the palace, Liam was wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses as was Riley, in the hopes not being spotted. The two walked hand in hand down the street of shops just opposite the beach. Cordonia was one of those places where a lot of tourists go, this meant that as the shops started the shut, the merchants would start setting up their gazebos and tables to sell their products to the night life. As the two walked past each table, glancing at what they were selling, they came to a stop at a small jewellery stand. The woman behind the stand greeted them with a smile.

“hello, is there anything you’re interested in?”

“we’re just looking thank you, I must say these pieces are gorgeous, ohh my goodness” Riley gasped as she lifted a small charm, it was a solid circle with green and white ropes intertwining. “my granny, she used to have one of these, she lived in Scotland, her whole life, we would visit her for a couple of weeks every year, the year before she died she gave it to me, she wore it on her bracelet every day, and every time I noticed it I would tell her how beautiful I thought it was, when we were coming home, after her funeral, it got lost, we were running late for our flight back to the states, when we got caught in a rush, I’m not sure if someone stole it, or if I dropped it, but by the time we made it to the plane, it wasn’t on my wrist, it broke my heart, that I lost it, I always wore, I refused to take it off in case I lost it, but I ended losing it in the end.”

“let’s get it.”

“what?”

“let’s buy it, then it can remind you of your grandmother and, our evening right here right now.”

“okay…” Riley smirked as she informed the woman of the one she wanted to buy.

“you know, for an extra 4 euros. We can engrave it for you?”

“really?”

“of course,”

“could we do that…”

“of course,” the woman smiles then handed Riley a piece of paper. “just write down what you would like us to put” before Riley would write anything Liam spoke.

“may I…?” he smiled

“yes, of course!” she handed him the pen and paper. Liam wrote down quickly what he wanted it to say then passed the paper to the woman.

“what did you put?”

“you’ll have to wait and see” he smirked.

“I didn’t know you were part Scottish”

“yeah, on my mom’s side, I haven’t been back since my granny’s funeral, ive been dying to go back”

Just a few moments later the woman handed Riley the charm in a small paper bag. They thanked the woman then carried on their walk. Riley took the charm from the bag and turned it over.

 Always

yours

- L

“I love it” she grinned, “I love it so much, I’m going to put it on a chain and wear it as a necklace and I’m never going to take it off.”

As Riley came back to reality, she lifted the charm to her lips, placing a gentle kiss on it, then placed it down beside the envelope. She looked down at her watch seeing that it was just past six o’clock, she took a quick glance around the room, then headed for the door, she grabbed her suitcase and her carryon bag then headed out. She knew there would be little chance of being seen as dinner had not long been served so everyone would be eating.

In the dining hall, Liam watching the door like a hawk, every time the doors opened his heart would beat a million miles an hour hoping it was her. It was when it reached quarter past six, dinner had been served for a good twenty minutes…still no sign of her. Liam messed with his food swirling it around his plate, he couldn’t eat…he couldn’t even think about food at that moment.

He sighed then placed his fork down. “if you will excuse me for a moment” he stated politely then stood from his chair and headed out of the room. He beelined straight for Riley's room, something wasn’t sitting well with him, she wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye…would she? she promised…

As Liam reached her bedroom, he knocked twice…no answer…nothing. After the third time, he whispered “fuck this” he twisted the handle and walked in.

“Riley…” he called looking around the room, it looked as if no one had ever stayed there…his eyes caught the small two seat table at the window, he walked over lifting the envelope. With her handwriting on the front…

For Liam

He let out a shaky breath as he opened the letter, reading it in his head.

My dearest Liam,

It is with a heavy heart that I write you this letter, I know you’re going to hate me for the this, but I couldn’t bear the thought of saying goodbye…

The tears fell down his face as he read it. He knew she couldn’t have left long ago, so he stood from the chair, he bolted out of the room, running for the front entrance. It was just as he got to the doors that he seen the gates closing behind a taxi.

“I love you so much” he whispered. He wanted to run after her…he wished he could…it killed him that he couldn’t. He turned on his heels, walking back into the palace, he walked back down to her room, he slammed the door behind him, picked up the closest object and threw it across the room. As soon as the crash was heard, Bastian came running into the room.

“your Majesty is everything alright?!?”

“she left…she’s gone!”

“hey man what’s going on?” Drake walked in behind Bastian.

“it seems lady Riley, has gone” Bastian informed him.

“no…she is gone Bastian! She left! With all of her things…she’s leaving Cordonia!”

“Liam, why would she leave?”

“why wouldn’t she?! Every person in there looks down their damn nose at her! She has madeleine making stupid remarks at her all damn day! she’s done Drake, she couldn’t stay and be picked on like that!! And I couldn’t expect her to.” Liam sat down in the seat at the table.

“when did she go?”

“I just missed her going out the gates.”

“can we catch her at the airport?”

“no…she had to go…I…I have to let her…as much as I would love to stop her from leaving…I can’t, she chose to go so I have to let her”

“I wish for once you would do something for your own damn benefit Liam why are you so god damn selfless!”

“I can’t…I can’t make her stay Drake, it’s her decision to make not mine. How cruel would that make me…to ask her to endure all that … to expect her to just sit by and listen to people talk about her, call her names, do you know what they were calling her? A slut! A whore!!! They were calling her my mistress…a gold digger…you name it they called her it! She doesn’t deserve any of it! She couldn’t take it anymore no one can blame her for leaving because of it” He sighed as he looked down at the open letter, then he spotted the charm just poking out from underneath. He lifted it, then he realised something.

“why don’t we fly out to New York.”

“there’s no point”

“you can’t just let her go man”

“she’s not going to New York.”

“what?”

“she’s…going to Scotland”

“Liam why would she be going to Scotland? Did she tell you she was going there?”

“no not in those words but…I’m sure that’s where she’s headed, you see this charm? We got it when we left the palace one night during the social season, she seen it whilst we were walking down one of the main streets, she told me a story about how her grandmother had one that was exactly the same, she lived in Scotland and the year before she passed she gave it to Riley, Riley had worn it every day on a necklace chain, she said it made her think of her grandmother and of Scotland, but she lost it just after her grandmother’s funeral on her way back to the states, when she got this she swore she would never take it off, she wouldn’t have left it if she wasn’t going to come back, it meant too much for her to leave it…”

“if she’s leaving and doesn’t want you to go after her…why would she want you to know where she’s going.”

“but that’s just it Drake…she wants us to know where she’ll be…I don’t know what she’s doing but she left this here for a reason”

“your Majesty…if I may?” Bastian butted in “maybe lady Riley, didn’t leave solely for the reason that she couldn’t take it…as you know lady Riley is a very smart woman, if she didn’t want to be found, you wouldn’t find her, she knows the first place you would look is new York so she’s not going there, it would make sense if her loved Scotland that much, that’s where she’s gone!  She wouldn’t have told you where she was going because she knows chances are…someone would be right behind her, I’m just not sure what she would get from leaving?”

Riley cried all the way to the airport, she spotted Liam running out of the building and it just set her off. she just hoped he would understand.

She spent 4 hours on the plane to Scotland, once she landed she hailed a taxi and headed for her grandmother’s house in the countryside. Once she got in, she settled in to her old bedroom. As soon as she was settled, she placed her suitcase on the bed, she unzipped the case, then opened it. She removed the folder from on-top of the piles of clothes. As she opened the folder she removed all the loose papers, she emptied its contents out onto the bed. There were documents, bank statements, pictures of everyone at court, she had collected everything she could before leaving Cordonia. She lifted all the photos then turned to the wall opposite the bed, she got up, removing the large photo frame from the wall, she quickly shifted to determination mode, she had to find out who was behind the scandal, and she had to do it quickly!

 “LA? So that’s where he’s hiding!” Riley whispered as she looked over Tariq’s bank statements.

It was in the early hours of the morning that the doorbell rang, Riley sighed then ran downstairs, knowing who it was, as she opened the front door, she was met with a face she hadn’t seen for way too long.

“Hey Damian” Riley smiled

“hey ri…” he smiled softly pulling Riley into the most loving hug.

“so how ar-”

“no time to chat! Come on!” Damian left his suitcase at the door as Riley pulled him upstairs to her childhood room. As Damian stepped into the room his eyes shot to the wall.

“uhhhh wow! Alright so…what have you got so far?” he asked bewildered as he looked over all the photos, pen lines, documents…everything.

“you might want to sit down” she sighed. Damian sat down at the end of the single bed, then listened as Riley filled him in on what the scandal was, in detail.

“…so, I’ve been trying to work this thing out but ive hit a dead end, the last person I can trace anything to is Penelope, when I spoke to her she said she didn’t have a choice, she had to do it, after that it’s a dead end”

“is it possible it could have been her?”

“no…I don’t believe it was her for one minute, I think she was bribed to do it, I think she was promised a place as a lady in waiting, she couldn’t leave court, she had been telling her parents how well she was doing…”

“by who though?”

“that’s the problem…I can’t figure it out…who would benefit most from me not being queen”

“do you think it was madeleine?”

“I do…and I don’t…she spent the whole social season being truthful…not once did she cheat…she always done it by the book, but she was always so certain she would queen, no matter what happened she knew she was going to get that proposal”

“alright wait a minute…so Olivia got a letter too?”

“yes, here it is, she let me have it when I told her I was looking into who it was. it says that if she didn’t leave, they would reveal the truth about her parent’s death.”

“wait…the truth…I thought they died in a political assassination?” Damian asked confused.

“that’s what I thought too…until…she told me, that they were actually plotting a rebellion…they were plotting to assassinate the royal family, so they could take the throne for themselves”

“NAW! SHIT! This is like movie drama man…no wonder Leo left” he chuckled to himself

“DAMIAN!” riley clapped her hands at him to get his attention back “focus!!”

“sorry…that’s just…wow”

“I know right, but the thing is…that story was never released to the media, it is only known by the monarchy and security… Anyway…who ever sent Olivia that letter is behind mine…meaning they are behind it all”

“Riley…you realise what this means?”

“what”

“it’s one of them…it’s one of the royals”

“what?”

“Riley…it’s so obvious, only the royals and security knew about that story, nothing was printed about it…nothing was posted about it…so I wanna bet…that whoever it was that got Penelope to hire that photographer…was doing it for them…the royal family Riley…they wouldn’t risk someone finding out it was them…they get everyone else to do their dirty work…who do you know answers to the king and queen…no one else?...who would do anything at their monarchies demand?” Damian smirked waiting for Riley to catch on

“-security! Security would do anything for them…if one of the royals ordered them to do something its done without questions no matter what it is!”

“…you find out what member of security it was…you’ll find out who it was that hired them…each member of the royal family has a specific security guard…who would do anything for the monarchy.”

“how did I not see this!”

“because you were too close to it! do you think Liam might have been-”

“NO! don’t even go there!” she snapped “that’s not him…he couldn’t do that to a person, especially not me, he wouldn’t do that to me!”

“are you sure?”

“yes…I’m one million percent sure…It wasn’t him, why would he do that…in the end…he was the one choosing who to marry, if he didn’t want Olivia or I being queen…he just wouldn’t have picked us…there would be no need for him to go to those lengths!”

“alright…so it’s between those two” he pointed and the two pictures of Regina and Constantine

“I’m going to have to call Liam

“Riley maybe you should wait, until we know for sure who done it?”

“I can’t! I have no choice,…I-I can’t just let him be around them unknowing of what they’ve done…they could be doing anything, they tried to interfere with the kings marriage, it’s a rule that the reigning monarch must be married within a certain amount of time of becoming king or queen, they made sure it was madeleine that was chosen, she went to his room the night before, she gave him a proposal if he picked her, he could still have me…madeleine could be in on the whole thing! I have to call him Damian…for all I know she’s setting him up to fail… I can’t let him be alone with them if they are the reason behind it all.”

“okay…you should call him! But listen…its late…I’m tired and you look like you could do with some sleep, so I’m going to go to bed.”

“oh thanks” Riley retorted sarcastically

“what…I’m just saying’?”

“alright…but we have to start early tomorrow, I have two days before the engagement tour leaves Cordonia I have to figure it out and get back before they leave”

“alright, we’ll figure it out Riley, I promise” Damian stood from the bed, “goodnight riley”

“goodnight D” Riley watched Damian leave her bedroom, shutting the door behind him. Riley's phone beeped in her pocket, she took a seat on the bed as she scrolled through all the missed calls, all the messages from Liam…Drake…Hana…Maxwell. She felt so guilty, she didn’t intend t hurt any of them…she knew they would be worried sick. She wasn’t sure how Liam would be feeling, for all she knew he hated her…hated her for leaving, for not saying goodbye, she just hoped in the end he would be able to forgive her. The more she though about him hating her the more she thought about calling him…just to let him know what was going on, that she would be back…she had to warn him about Regina and Constantine she couldn’t tell him when the real reason she was leaving when she was with him the day before, she didn’t know if anyone would hear her plans, she didn’t know if the room was bugged. she couldn’t call Liam's phone, chances are it was being tracked so she done the next best thing. She pressed dial on drake’s number.

“Riley!” he called thankful that she had got in touch with them.

“Drake…is Liam there?”

“no, but I can try and get him for you, I’m not sure if he’s sleeping though…where are you? What’s going on? Why did you leave?”

“Drake, I’m sorry but I don’t have time to talk, I need to speak to Liam, its urgent”

“alright, I’ll go and get him”

“don’t tell him it’s me…no one can know, they have to think I’m out…ive gone and I’m not coming back”

“Riley…what’s going on?”

“Drake I promise okay, everything’s alright…I’m just being careful”

Riley heard Drake walking then stop and knock on a door. It was just about a minute later that she heard Liam's voice.

“Drake, what’s up?” he mumbled tiredly

“can I come in?”

“yeah sure” Drake walked into the room shutting the door behind him.

“what’s up?”

“I have someone on the phone for you” he told Liam

“here...here’s Liam” he informed Riley then passed the phone to Liam.

“who is it?” Riley heard Liam mumble tiredly

“…just answer it” Drake sighed

“hello?” her heart jumped when she heard his voice.

“Liam” she whispered, “I’m so sorry” she sniffled “I’m sorry for…not saying goodbye…I promised I would but…I couldn’t I just couldn’t.”

“Drake could you give me the room please?” Liam asked Drake. After Riley heard shuffling Liam began to speak again.

“why did you leave the necklace? You wanted me to know where you were…why?”

“because I knew you would understand that…if I was running away and not coming back…I wouldn’t have left it…”

“why did you leave?”

“I had to go, I had to figure out who was behind it Liam…I couldn’t do that at court…I was too close to everything.”

“Riley…you didn’t have to leave…Bastian and the security team are on the case, it’s their priority.”

“that’s the thing Liam…it’s not…”

“what do you mean?”

“Liam…do you remember a little boy that used to play with Leo? His name was Damian?”

“Damian yes, I remember Damian…wait how do you know Damian?”

“when he left Cordonia, he moved to the house next door to me, we were best friends growing up, we stopped talking when we went off to college, but…I found out he went into police work, when he left the force, he became a private investigator, well, he’s here with me, I called him and asked him to help me figure out, who done it…we spent hours going through everything Liam…and the answer is just so obvious and I don’t know how we didn’t see it.”

“see what Riley?”

“its Regina or Constantine…Liam. I’m not sure which one…but it is, Penelope’s card was used to pay for the photographer, she wouldn’t have done something like that unless she was bribed. When I spoke with her she said, she didn’t have a choice, she had to do it! Then it’s the fact of the warning letters…whoever wrote them, they threatened Olivia, they threatened that they would tell everyone the truth about her parents…now the only people who knew about what happened with Olivia’s parents were Constantine, Regina, you and the security team, now whoever did it isn’t going to do it themselves, they aren’t  stupid enough to get their fingerprints on anything, they don’t want to get their hands dirty…now each member of the monarchy has its very own security guard who would do anything for their monarch, if we find out which member of security it is…we find out who did it, but you have to be careful Liam, Bastian is your personal security, he’s the main security of the kings guard, as he was when your father was king…you have to be careful around him just in case. Liam…if I didn’t leave…we would have never found that out, if we just stuck with trusting the kings guard, we would have been puppets, we wouldn’t know anything, you would be marrying madeleine, they weren’t looking into it…not properly Liam…”

“m-my father? Regina? I can’t believe either of them would do this…how-how could they…” Riley could hear the disappointment in his voice.

“I’m sorry Liam, I know this is all hard to hear, this is the people whom you hold close to your heart, to find out that one of them betrayed you, it’s hard, I understand that.”

“okay um…you can’t repeat what you just said to me…to anyone…at least until we find out which one of them it was.”

“I didn’t leave to hurt you Liam…I left to fight for you, I couldn’t tell you my plan in case the room was bugged or anything, that’s why I had to make out that I wasn’t coming back, I won’t lie…I was telling the truth, everything I said about madeleine about not willing to just stand there and let her bully me, sneaking around…all of that was true Liam…I couldn’t do it anymore…that’s why I said I had to go, I had to go so that I could figure out who done this, who caused all of this because I couldn’t take it any longer, you know me Liam…I am a strong willed woman, I try not to let nasty words get to me…but I’m not made of stone, I couldn’t stand there and just let her belittle me…I’m sorry but…it’s not okay to treat someone like that, she played you Liam…just as much as she played me. She told you, you could have the best of both worlds, she told you that picking her would be the best option because she would be the better queen…but she hasn’t acted like a queen once…she’s acting like a twelve-year-old Liam and I’m not sure if she’s in on it all, she knew if you couldn’t pick me, you would take the next best thing…we could still be together…she knew you would pick her if she told you us being together wouldn’t be a problem for her!”

“I know…she played me…she played me good…but you and I, we’ll have the last laugh when we find out who it was that took advantage of you, then I can end the engagement then…me and you, Riley…we can be together, we can get married. Riley, I’ll do everything I can to find out who’s behind it, but…now that we know its them…can…can you come home, I-I need you to come home?” he whispered the last part.

“I-I can’t Liam…not yet, I can’t come back until we know which one done it…whilst I’m not there they’ll think they’ve gotten away with it, we’ll be more likely to catch them if they let their guard down. I promise Liam…I promise I’ll be back as soon as we have whoever’s behind it all, I’ll be on the first flight home. I will not let them tear us apart”

“Riley, all we have to do is speak with Penelope and find out which one of the guards it is, then we’ll know.”

“it’s not that simple Liam, I wish it was but it’s not, we don’t know what their plan was, it may have just been to stop me or Olivia from becoming queen, but we don’t know that…we don’t know what they’re up to…this could just be a small part of it. Like I said earlier, what I said to you before I left I wasn’t lying, I won’t just come back and stand for all of it when I come back Liam, I won’t just stand by and let them talk about me and to me like that. I refuse to do it, I can’t come back until my name is cleared and I know I’m coming back to be with you…for real.”

“of course…and I don’t expect you to, that’s why I didn’t come after you, I mean I wanted to, I really did, it killed me not to, but Riley…you told me that you couldn’t stand it anymore so I had to let you go…I understand…Riley, I do…I just…” he sighed

“I know…that was the plan, I just hope you can forgive me for leaving”

“forgive you…Riley, there’s nothing to be forgiven for…you left to fight for us, I can’t fault you for that”

“well for the record…I’m sorry I had to leave the way that I did, and I miss you”

“I miss you too…”

“I miss you too, you don’t have to apologise, I’m just happy you called, and I know that you’re okay and your coming back, that’s what matters to me Riley, knowing that your coming back”

“and I will, as soon as we figure out who done it, but I need someone to speak to Penelope, we need to find out who it was that asked her to do it”

“of course, I’ll do it first thing tomorrow, Riley.”

“Liam?”

“yeah?”

“what’s going to happen when we find out who it was?”

“I’m not sure Riley…I-I honestly don’t know what will happen…if the country finds out what’s happened, their trust in the monarchy…it won’t last long, if it’s one of them…we have to find Tariq…it’s the only way we can clear your name without effecting the peoples trust.”

“He’s in LA, I just don’t know where exactly”

“what?”

“his bank statements show that his last purchase two days ago, was in LA I could only get a brief copy though, so it doesn’t state his exact location…he could anywhere”

If You Like It....Reblog It <3

[brewed-pangolin]

Soap MacTavish Masterlist

* Fluff

** Suggestive Content

*** Explicit Smut

Photo credit to @jabonmactavish on Twitter • Edit by @deadbranch

Series Masterlist Johnny 'Soap' MacTavish x f!Reader

Series Masterlist Captain 'Soap' MacTavish x f!Reader

Series Masterlist Johnny 'Soap' MacTavish x f!Reader

Character Masterlist Captain John 'Soap' MacTavish x f!Reader

Blue Steel *** WC 3.3k

The Midas Touch * WC 2.8K

First Flight of the Scottish Hawk * WC 1.7k

Broken Memories * (Drabble continuation to Scottish Hawk)

Salvation at the Shelter * WC 1.6K

Morning Glory ** WC 1.4K

Drabbles Masterlist

Pleasured Joystick ***

Höjdpunkt **

Ice Cream Scottish King *

Mathematical Genius ***

Kinky Soap ***

Sinful Sonnets ***

What's in a Name? **

Charcuterie Soap ***

Caught in the Rain *

Extra Baggage **

Drunk Sex ***

French Kiss ***

The Highland Coin Toss ***

Random Soap Headcanons *

Mindful Arrangement ***

Scottish Deranged Husky *

Soap Cuddling Headcanons ***

Civilian Soap ***

Mechanic Soap ***

Soap

If Soap Had a Blog

Soap Thirsting Tirade

Thirsty Soap Thoughts ***

Random COD Scenario Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

[scotianostra]

One that escaped me yesterday.....

September 13th 1895 saw the first successful controlled glider flight in the British Isles made by Percy Sinclair Pilcher at Wallacetown Farm, Cardross, when he rose 12ft in a 45lb monoplane he built himself.

As any schoolboy knows, the first powered flight was by the Wright brothers at Kittyhawk in 1903. However in the final years of the nineteenth century the Scottish based English aviation pioneer, Sinclair Pilcher, conducted many experiments with gliders at Kirkton Hill in Cardross. His first machine, the Bat, made history when it flew successfully from a hill overlooking the Firth of Clyde at Cardross.

With his fourth machine, the Hawk, Pilcher was able fly for a record-breaking 228m (250 yards) from a field in Kent. This caused a sensation, making Pilcher the undisputed leader in the field of unpowered flight.

The original Hawk has survived and is in the collections of National Museums Scotland. Sinclair Pilcher was working on a powered plane and was ready to demonstrate it to a group of onlookers in1899 but the engine crankshaft had broken and, so as not to disappoint his guests, he decided to fly the Hawk instead. The weather was stormy and rainy, but by 4 pm Pilcher decided the weather was good enough to fly. Whilst flying, the tail snapped and Pilcher plunged 10 metres to the ground: he died two days later from his injuries with his triplane having never been publicly flown.

Had the crank-shaft not broke we might have never heard of the Wright Brothers and the inventor may very well have went down in history for the first powered flight.

[krokodile]

dale gribble - 

house: slytherin

wand: rowan, unicorn core, 11 1/4 in, rigid

Rowan wood has always been much-favoured for wands, because it is reputed to be more protective than any other, and in my experience renders all manner of defensive charms especially strong and difficult to break. It is commonly stated that no dark witch or wizard ever owned a rowan wand, and I cannot recall a single instance where one of my own rowan wands has gone on to do evil in the world. Rowan is most happily placed with the clear-headed and the pure-hearted, but this reputation for virtue ought not to fool anyone – these wands are the equal of any, often the better, and frequently out-perform others in duels.

Unicorn hair generally produces the most consistent magic, and is least subject to fluctuations and blockages. Wands with unicorn cores are generally the most difficult to turn to the Dark Arts. They are the most faithful of all wands, and usually remain strongly attached to their first owner, irrespective of whether he or she was an accomplished witch or wizard.

Minor disadvantages of unicorn hair are that they do not make the most powerful wands (although the wand wood may compensate) and that they are prone to melancholy if seriously mishandled, meaning that the hair may ‘die’ and need replacing. - garrick ollivander

patronus: goshawk  (didn’t he have a falcon at some point)

Most commonly referred to as a hawk, a goshawk is a bird of prey. They are commonly found in wooded or shrubby areas, often found towering on trees, looking out for possible prey. Goshawks are slender with short, broad, rounded wings and a long tail, which helps them maneuver in flight. They often attack smaller birds and chase them through the air, a feature that makes them the perfect Patronus. - mugglenet

bill dauterive - 

house: gryffindor (please, he’s a slytherin)

wand: spruce, unicorn core, 11 1/2 in, solid

Unskilled wandmakers call spruce a difficult wood, but in doing so they reveal their own ineptitude. It is quite true that it requires particular deftness to work with spruce, which produces wands that are ill-matched with cautious or nervous natures, and become positively dangerous in fumbling fingers. The spruce wand requires a firm hand, because it often appears to have its own ideas about what magic it ought to be called upon to produce. However, when a spruce wand meets its match – which, in my experience, is a bold spell-caster with a good sense of humour – it becomes a superb helper, intensely loyal to their owners and capable of producing particularly flamboyant and dramatic effects.

Unicorn hair generally produces the most consistent magic, and is least subject to fluctuations and blockages. Wands with unicorn cores are generally the most difficult to turn to the Dark Arts. They are the most faithful of all wands, and usually remain strongly attached to their first owner, irrespective of whether he or she was an accomplished witch or wizard.

Minor disadvantages of unicorn hair are that they do not make the most powerful wands (although the wand wood may compensate) and that they are prone to melancholy if seriously mishandled, meaning that the hair may ‘die’ and need replacing. - garrick ollivander

patronus: deerhound (i would’ve said basset hound)

As the name suggests, the Deerhound is a large sighthound bred in Scotland to hunt deer. A Scottish Deerhound named Cleod played Padfoot in Harry Potter and Order of the Phoenix. Although they were bred for hunting, Deerhounds are gentle dogs with a very friendly nature. Deerhounds are eager to please and will happily drive away Dementors with their irresistible urge to chase their prey! - mugglenet

john redcorn - 

house: gryffindor

wand: apple, phoenix core, 13 in, supple

Applewood wands are not made in great numbers. They are powerful and best suited to an owner of high aims and ideals, as this wood mixes poorly with Dark magic. It is said that the possessor of an apple wand will be well-loved and long-lived, and I have often noticed that customers of great personal charm find their perfect match in an applewood wand. An unusual ability to converse with other magical beings in their native tongues is often found among apple wand owners, who include the celebrated author of Merpeople: A Comprehensive Guide to Their Language and Customs, Dylan Marwood.

This is the rarest core type. Phoenix feathers are capable of the greatest range of magic, though they may take longer than either unicorn or dragon cores to reveal this. They show the most initiative, sometimes acting of their own accord, a quality that many witches and wizards dislike.

Phoenix feather wands are always the pickiest when it comes to potential owners, for the creature from which they are taken is one of the most independent and detached in the world. These wands are the hardest to tame and to personalise, and their allegiance is usually hard won. - garrick ollivander

patronus: black bear (unusual) (would’ve said buffalo or stallion but this one works)

The formidable form of the black bear is often enough to scare away even the bravest of explorers, not to mention Dementors! Often mistaken as a deadly predator, the black bear mostly feasts on berries, grasses, and roots complemented with fish and carrion. This is often how people see you – a fierce opponent who will protect yourself and those close to you but who has a softer side hidden away from the world. Black bears are known for their adaptability, and this is often seen in how resourceful you can be. No matter the situation you find yourself in, when you come to call upon your Patronus, the black bear will be fully prepared to fight in your corner.  - mugglenet

[planetalkinguk]

Episode 399 - The One Before The Big One

Join, Carlos, Matt, Nev and Armando for this week's programme. You can watch the podcast here - https://youtu.be/YxiTjL63t7k

In this week's show we interview a listener of the show and 747 Freighter Captain, John Jester. 

In the commercial News we play with some aviation Lego, we take a look at a super jumbo hotel & we also check out the mile high club.    In the military, we'll take a look at the security situation (from an airplane perspective) in Europe; French aircraft manufacturer Dassault (Dah-sew) lands another big order; a local Japanese prefecture isn't too fond of the Osprey; and a Blackhawk helicopter flies with no-one on board for the first time.

Here are the links to the stories we featured this week :

COMMERCIAL

Boeing 747 Cockpit by Darren Jones Joins LEGO Ideas First 2022 Review Stage https://brickshow.com/2022/02-12/

TAKE THE RED-EYE: AIRBUS A380 PLANE TO BE TRANSFORMED INTO HOTEL https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/airbus-a380-hotel-plane-toulouse-b2012120.html

Airline offers private 45-minute flights for its passengers to join the Mile High Club https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/mile-high-club-flight-love-cloud-b2008900.html

Rossiya to retire Boeing 747s, Russia abandons passenger model https://www.aviacionline.com/2022/02/rossiya-to-retire-boeing-747s-russia-abandons-passenger-model/

British Airways Returns To Sydney In March Using Boeing 787s https://simpleflying.com/ba-sydney-return/

British Airways announces huge new flight changes as free snacks return for passengers https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/british-airways-announces-huge-new-26096905

Tenerife holidaymakers 'detained' for 90 minutes on airport tarmac sparking fury https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/tenerife-holidaymakers-detained-90-minutes-26190311

Oaklands Rest Home resident taken to Bournemouth for plane spotting https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/19909209.oaklands-rest-home-resident-taken-bournemouth-plane-spotting/

MILITARY

American F-15 fighter jets arrive in Poland https://www.thefirstnews.com/article/american-f-15-fighter-jets-arrive-in-poland-27826

American bombers arrive in Britain https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/american-bombers-arrive-in-britain/?fbclid=IwAR1We5DymuQL0ZiQyNerkQrI1MozWDQh64DlwSdeY8VlRB2ZotCliIALFYs

Russian, Belarusian Aircraft Perform Joint Air Patrols https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/russian-belarusian-aircraft-perform-joint-air-patrols-200455

Dassault Signs Another Deal For Rafale Fighter Jets; Bigger Order Expected From Indonesia – French Weekly https://eurasiantimes.com/dassault-signs-another-deal-for-rafale-fighter-jets-bigge-indonesia/

Okinawa gov't requests US Marine Corps to cancel training using Ospreys https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20220208/p2a/00m/0na/011000c

For the first time, Black Hawk helicopter flies without anyone aboard https://www.defensenews.com/land/2022/02/08/black-hawk-helicopter-flies-unmanned-for-the-first-time/

Our latest episode is now ready for your listening pleasure --

[ukforcesnews]

Exercise Terminal Strike delivers capability

Exercise Terminal Strike recently took place in the challenging terrain of the Scottish Highlands, and provided a valuable training opportunity for Royal Artillery and Royal Armoured Corps Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs), who are able to guide in close air support on the battlefield.

Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) specialists from the Royal Engineers checks a detonated 3kg payload at RAF Donna Nook after it was dropped by an RAF Hawk during Ex TERMINAL STRIKE. Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC) and Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) personnel from the Royal Armoured Corps, Royal Artillery Corps and RAF Regiment Air Land Integration (ALI) Cell participate in one element of Exercise TERMINAL STRIKE at RAF Donna Nook in Lincolnshire.

By the end of the exercise soldiers will maintain their qualification as ‘Joint Terminal Attack Controllers’ or JTACs and they have been training in five locations across Scotland, North East England and the East Anglian coast. Normally taking place over two weeks, twice a year, Exercise Terminal Strike was extended to 4-weeks to maximise on Operation Shader preparations for those due to deploy in early 2019.

Soldiers belonging to the Tidworth-based 1st Artillery Brigade have been training alongside the Royal Air Force and troops from the USA, the Czech Republic and Estonia, as well as observers from Switzerland and Canada. They have been controlling fire from a plethora of aircraft, including a squadron of USAF F15 fast jets, RAF Typhoons and Tornados, Lightning 2 (F-35B), Wildcats from the Commando Helicopter Forces and Army Air Corps Apache helicopters from the ground and from state of the art simulators.

A member of the Royal Artillery conducts vital training related to their role as a Joint Terminal Attack Controller at RAF Donna Nook as part of Exercise TERMINAL STRIKE 21. Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC) and Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) personnel from the Royal Armoured Corps, Royal Artillery Corps and RAF Regiment Air Land Integration (ALI) Cell participate in one element of Exercise TERMINAL STRIKE at RAF Donna Nook in Lincolnshire.

Joint Terminal Attack Controllers facilitate Close Air Support in direct support of ground units. Close Air Support has been a key force multiplier on the battlefield since 1918. Forward Air Controllers (now called JTACs) have been employed within the British Military since 1941. The UK Military currently draws JTACs from serving personnel from the Royal Navy (Royal Marines), British Army (Royal Artillery and Royal Armed Corps) and Royal Air Force (RAF Regiment) for service within 3rd (United Kingdom) Division,  1st  Artillery  Brigade, 1st Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Brigade, 3 Commando Brigade, 16 Air Assault Brigade, RAF Force Protection Force (RAF Regiment) and within the Special Forces Support Group.

A member of the Royal Air Force Regiment’s Air Land Integration (ALI) Cell conducts vital training related to their role as a Joint Terminal Attack Controller at RAF Donna Nook as part of Exercise TERMINAL STRIKE 21. Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC) and Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) personnel from the Royal Armoured Corps, Royal Artillery Corps and RAF Regiment Air Land Integration (ALI) Cell participate in one element of Exercise TERMINAL STRIKE at RAF Donna Nook in Lincolnshire.

JTACs are selected through aptitude screening before undertaking the 8-week JTAC-Certification Course at the Joint Forward Air Controller Training and Standardisation Unit (JFACTSU) based at RAF Leeming. After initial Certification the JTACs complete (up to) 12-months of continuation training before undertaking exercise Initial Strike to gain their initial Qualified statues. Once Qualified, JTAC must maintain their skills through a series of training requirements with frontline aircraft and simulators.

The opportunities also continue from there on as a JTAC from Corporal/ Bombardier to Warrant Officer. Officers are selected for JTAC training (from (Army) Lieutenant/ Flight Lieutenant) to lead Battle Group and Brigade level Tactical Air Control Parties (TACPs). These officers have opportunities to continue to use their JTAC skill set in positions within the Joint Air Liaison Organisation (JALO) and UK Air Support Operation Squadron (ASOS) up to Commander/ Lieutenant Colonel/ Wing Commander. 

A member of the Royal Artillery conducts vital training related to their role as a Joint Terminal Attack Controller at RAF Donna Nook as part of Exercise TERMINAL STRIKE 21. Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC) and Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) personnel from the Royal Armoured Corps, Royal Artillery Corps and RAF Regiment Air Land Integration (ALI) Cell participate in one element of Exercise TERMINAL STRIKE at RAF Donna Nook in Lincolnshire.

© Crown Copyright 2021

Special thanks to Photographer: Cpl Ed Wright RAF

For video news from the British Armed Forces: https://www.youtube.com/britisharmedforcesdaily

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[eagle-eyez]

Virgin Galactic will become the first rocket company to launch the boss when Richard Branson straps into one of his sleek, shiny space planes today, 11 July at 6am PT or 6.30 pm IST.

The Briton is hoping to finally get the nascent space tourism industry off the ground — but also go one up on Jeff Bezos by winning the race to be the first person to cross the final frontier in a ship built by their own company. Bezos’ lift-off is set for 20 July from West Texas.

The self-described tie-loathing adventurer and troublemaker will join five company employees for Sunday’s test flight from New Mexico's southern desert — the company’s fourth trip to the edge of space.

Virgin Galactic will broadcast the launch on its website as well as its YouTube channel from 6.30 pm India time

"The skies over Spaceport America are ready. Soon our Unity22 mission specialists will soar above New Mexico and see Earth from a whole new, spectacular point of view," Virgin Galactic tweeted.

Join us July 11th for our first fully crewed rocket powered test flight, and the beginning of a new space age. The countdown begins. #Unity22 https://t.co/5UalYT7Hjb. @RichardBranson pic.twitter.com/ZL9xbCeWQX

— Virgin Galactic (@virgingalactic) July 1, 2021

// // ]]>

Meanwhile, as you prepare to watch the first steps towards making space tourism a reality, here's a refresher on Branson’s ride and company:

Boss on board

Just a week shy of turning 71, the London-born founder of the Virgin Group says he's "not apprehensive at all and it is the dream of a lifetime” to ride into space. The longtime fitness fanatic put in extra effort to prepare for the brief up-and-down flight. “I’m in my 70s now so you either let yourself go or you get fit and enjoy life.”

His wife, children and grandchildren will be there as he climbs aboard the rocket plane that’s attached to a dual-fuselage aircraft for takeoff.

During the three to four minutes of weightlessness, “I’ll be looking back at our beautiful Earth and taking it all in and realize that only 500 other people have done this."

Closer to 600, actually, but still a relatively small number. Upon landing, he’ll celebrate with "a great, great grin on my face."

Who else is flying?

Two pilots are needed to fly the rocket plane from the time it’s released from the mothership to shoot into space until it glides down to a runway. It will be the third trip to space for chief pilot David Mackay, a Scottish-born test pilot for the Royal Air Force who went on to fly for Branson’s Virgin Atlantic, and the second for chief flight instructor Michael Masucci. Chief astronaut instructor Beth Moses, a former NASA engineer, is also launching for the second time. Joining Branson as space rookies are lead operations engineer Colin Bennett and Sirisha Bandla, a vice president. The six will grab a lift from mothership pilots C.J. Sturckow, a former NASA astronaut, and Kelly Latimer.

Rocket plane

Virgin Galactic’s spaceplane, Unity, will take off attached to a specially designed double aircraft nicknamed Eve after Branson’s late mother.

After reaching nearly 50,000 feet (15,000 meters), the plane will be released and drop for a moment or two before its rocket motor ignites to send the craft on a steep climb toward space, exceeding 3 G’s, or three times the force of Earth’s gravity.

The motor will shut off once the craft reaches space — a maximum altitude of about 55 miles (88 kilometers) is anticipated — enveloping the ship in silence as everyone but the pilots unbuckle, float and gaze out the 17 windows at Earth and the black void of space.

After a few minutes of weightlessness, the occupants will strap back in as the plane reorients itself for entry — folding up its wings, then folding them back down in a unique technique known as feathering. The rocket plane will glide back, NASA space shuttle style, to conclude about 15 minutes of free flight.

Track record

Founded in 2004, Virgin Galactic got its start when Branson teamed up with aircraft designer Burt Rutan to provide the necessary spaceship technology.

A 2007 rocket motor test in California’s Mojave Desert left three workers dead and three more injured.

Then in 2014 the rocket plane Enterprise — named after the “Star Trek” ship — broke apart during a test flight, killing one pilot and seriously injuring the other.

Unity, the replacement ship named by the late physicist Stephen Hawking, began flight tests in 2016.

Unity made its first trip to the edge of space with two pilots in 2018 and the second in 2019, both times from Mojave.

The operations moved to New Mexico’s Spaceport America, with the plane soaring from there on 22 May to achieve the company’s third spaceflight.

What's next?

After Branson's launch, Virgin Galactic plans two more test flights this summer and fall before inviting paying customers on board.

The next one will include more company employees, and the last will have Italian Air Force members conducting research.

If all goes well, the first of the more than 600 confirmed ticket holders will climb aboard next year.

The company plans to reopen reservations once Branson soars.

Initial tickets went for $250,000; no word on whether that will change.

Branson promises a surprise after his ride to “give more people the chance to become an astronaut — because space belongs to us all.”

In the meantime, scientists are lining up for research rides, including Southwest Research Institute’s Alan Stern, who was behind NASA's New Horizons mission to Pluto and beyond.

With inputs from agencies

source https://www.firstpost.com/tech/science/dream-of-a-lifetime-70-yr-old-virgin-galactic-owner-richard-branson-set-to-fly-into-space-9796531.html