#her brain is huge and full of yummy things

[pippindot]

Last night forced me to takes stock of Pip's food vocabulary. She knows:

Treat, cookie, cookiescookiescookies (different than normal cookie), goodie, dessert, meatball, cheese, cheeseball (different than cheese), egg, bully, chew, and nugget. She also knows Dinner but doesn't care about that word.

She also knows, "Do you want some?" and will come running before she even knows what you're offering.

[joanshan]

Lowering Cholesterol Naturally

We have been inundated with reasons why our cholesterol is too high and that it’s bad for us. Then there’s the idea that there’s “good” cholesterol and “bad cholesterol.” Then we take a ratio of the good and the bad, and voilà – we have a percentage of average risk. Who can really understand all this, and what is this science based on?

Let’s understand that cholesterol is necessary and very much needed by the human brain. A huge part of our brain is composed of cholesterol! A doctor I used to go to once told me that he had patients coming in complaining of brain fog, and when tested, their cholesterol levels were very low. When they began to eat healthy foods containing cholesterol, their clarity of thinking improved.  

So, let’s see why we need cholesterol first. Although higher levels of “bad” cholesterol have been linked to heart disease and are still problematic, the Cleveland Clinic says that we don’t have to worry anymore about eating foods high in cholesterol. (If you have diabetes, many cardiologists believe you should still avoid foods high in cholesterol.) 

Our genes are more implicated in heart disease than diet. If your body is wired genetically to create high levels of bad cholesterol, what you eat is not going to affect that. On the other hand, the field of epigenetics (how environment and your genes interact) shows us that we can quiet adverse gene expression through higher quality diet, supplements, mindfulness, etc. 

Just be sure you work with a very competent health care practitioner – you don’t want to play Russian Roulette with your health!

Cholesterol is needed to maintain cell health and build cells, and it is a precursor for synthesizing things like sex hormones, the bile in the liver, and vitamin D. So, folks, we really do need it!

However, if our percentages of good to bad are out of whack, and so many of us have this problem, it’s time to go to work on our diets. Start by cutting way back or completely out the junky foods and drinks full of sugar and refined grains and other chemicals. That’s a big part of the problem. Read food labels and avoid foods containing hydrogenated oils, or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, for one big example. This has even been banned by the FDA earlier this year. 

Eat foods that are healthy – even saturated fats. For example, although many will cry out in horror, meat fat consumed in moderation will not be harmful for most people! Coconut oil, a very healthy fat, is a saturated fat so you get a green light on that.

Foods which can help lower LDL cholesterol are oats, barley, beans, eggplant, nuts, fruits such as applies, grapes, strawberries, and citrus fruits, being rich in pectin, represent soluble fiber that helps lower LDL. Fatty fishes (think mackerel, herring, tuna, salmon, trout – preferably wild caught) can also help, because they are rich in omega-e fats, which help in the battle against high triglyceride levels.

Avocados are rich in monounsaturated fatty acids are also helpful. It almost goes without saying that extra virgin olive oil is heart healthy – go for the cold-pressed ones, as needed nutrients are not lost through the heating process this way. 

A few supplements which are protective of your cholesterol levels are niacin (vitamin B-3), soluble fiber, psyllium, garlic, red yeast rice (white rice fermented with yeast), ginger, which is completely healthy for your gut as well as tasting yummy, and flaxseed. 

Make other needed lifestyle changes. If you’re a smoker, or perhaps even a drug user, STOP! I know it is much easier said than done, but please work on it because your life may depend on this.

In fact, if you quit cigarettes, after 20 minutes, your blood pressure and heart rate recover from the spiking that smoking causes. Within three months of quitting, lung and blood circulation function start to improve. Within a year, your risk of heart disease is 50% lower than people who still smoke! 

Please get enough exercise that you find invigorating and fun. You’re probably not going to continue to exercise forever if you’re not having fun doing it. You can do this in moderation – too little won’t be much help, and neither will too much! (You can actually hurt yourself by exercising too much.)

Although it is just one of many, many diverse health factors, it can be helpful to lose some weight. If you have a lot to lose, this may be especially beneficial. However, just changing your diet may help in this path to recovery.

If you enjoy alcoholic beverages, please do so in moderation. As a drug counselor and prevention specialist, I would not recommend drinking every day. In fact, a couple times a month is plenty in my opinion, and I’m talking about one to two drinks. You shouldn’t get tipsy – if you do, in my educated opinion (remember – I’m a nerd!), it’s too much. 

I cannot recommend starting mindfulness activities on a daily basis. This can even be five minutes a day! Do something you enjoy, which helps calm you, relax you, and helps you be in the present moment. Some favorites are diffusing essential oils, bubble baths, reading, taking a walk in the woods, etc. 

If you find yourself in a dangerous position with your cholesterol, you can implement natural ways to lower it and also take medication until you can lower the amounts of medication needed or stop completely. This is a good way to control for negative side effects. 

For more detailed information, visit Health And Wellness

As always, please have a happy, holistically healthy day!

Dr. P

Source: Lowering Cholesterol Naturally

[maizumis]

— HAIKYUU BOYS WHEN THEIR CHILD SAYS THEY ARE NOT THEIR FAVORITE PARENT

ft. timeskip!miya atsumu, suna rintarou, iwaizumi hajime, bokuro koutaro, osamu miya

note: reader refered as mom ‼️ not edited cos I'm sleepy </3 enjoy hotties 😽

•ATSUMU opened the door with his daughter in one hand while the other had a huge blue balloon she wanted, hearing the click of the door you turn around and see your little bundle of joy running with open arms to you "mommy! I missed you" event if the two of them went out for an hour and a half, you really missed her too "aww darling! I missed you too! I'm your favorite, right?" she gave your cheek a sweet kiss with his tiny hands in your jaw "yes! mommy the best" at this scene, atsumu was long forgotten on the door, amused about what his daughter just said "and what about papa? he bought you this balloon!" he moved his hand to make presence of it, slightly jealous of you "papa is very good too! it's just mommy is always the best" you let go of her embrace, tucking her brown hairs behind her ear "why don't you go and clean yourself? I can make a choco milk!" she didn't need to be told twice that was already running to the bathroom " ‘tsumu you know she doesn't mean it, right?" pouty atsumu came walking to you "a know but a want to be her favorite now!" chuckling at his childhood behavior, you make sure to peck him before going to the kitchen, even after all this year's you never failed to make him blush "you can be her favorite tomorrow ‘tsum, come hug me now"

• SUNA had his daughter on his lap, paw patrol playing softly on the TV in front of them, you always tease him about how he is more into the show than his own daughter but he is quickly to change the subject, everytime "how was your day at school baby?" the little girl raised her head from his chest, messy hairs blocking her sight " ‘t was okay, I missed mom" his hand was already on the hairs in front of her eyes, using the hair-band he always had on his wrist just in case something like this popped out "and you missed dad too I like to think" she hummed before resting her head on his torso again, little hands roaming around his body like she was caressing him "I did, but mommy is my favorite so I missed her more... I'm gonna go to sleep daddy, wake me up when mom ‘s home" and with that she was out, leaving suna with wide eyes and lots of questions filling his brain, the clack of the open door scares him, even knowing it's you coming home from work, he was deep in thought "a penny for your thoughts, rin?" he sighs before patting the place next to him on the couch, you gladly obey and lay your head on his broad shoulders "she told me you're her favorite" you interlaced your fingers with his, giving him a little squish "you know she is just a child, right? she lives you so much, everytime you're away she only talks about you" a little hope came back to his eyes "really, she talks about me?" you hummed, assuring him he is the one of the biggest thing in his daughters mind "lots, rin"

•IWAIZUMI was playing with his daughter in the backyard, his hands on both sides her waist while he throws her up and down the air "higher daddy! higher!" her little giggle brought life to his ears, this kid was gonna be the death of him "I wanna fly! like the birds we saw in the park!" "that's very high, sweetie" she was screaming her lungs out, non-stop laughing, toothy smile on her face that had a little of chocolate that Hajime gave her after lunch as a secret between the both of them. to lost in their own world, they didn't notice your arrival, they were having the times of their lifes "I'm home! where's my sweet girl and lovely husband?" her eyes got wider than they already were and her smile impossibly bigger "mama! you're home, put me down dad I wanna go hug mom!" he placed her down on the grass and her little legs were running as fast as they could "mommy! we had such a funny day! we saw lots of things outside?" you could tell hajimd was a proud dad, his daughter being talkative and smart, she sometimes reminds him of tooru "yeah? and what else" "I was telling daddy I wanted to be a bird but I missed you so much! you know you're my favorite, mom" hajime's lips were pressed into a thin line while his brows got a little down, you could tell he was feeling a little insecure so a little assurance wouldn't make him wrong "go inside and change your clothes then we can do something together, how does that sound?" she went inside the house screaming he was gonna wear her favorite blue dress, you giggled at her cute actions "hajime, the entire neighborhood can feel you, she doesn't mean it, she is just a child, we did the same when we were her age" he went towards you and placed his big arms around your waist, placing his head on the crook of your neck "I know, but we were having such a good time" your hands came to his face so you could make him see you "and we are gonna keep having a good time! we have to make sure you're her favorite by the end of the day, come on big boy! we are in this together" and with that you started running inside the house, holding his hand in the way in, the feeling of love and pride fulfilling his heart, happiness and love could be described like this exact moment, he thinks

•BOKUTO happily took his son out, ready to spend a little ‘daddy-son day’ as he called them, sometime they would go to his practice or to the aquarium! to learn everything they can about the infinity of animals the ocean has. today they decided they would be going for an ice-cream then straight to the park to play a little "okay bud! what flavors do you want? one or two?" the kiddo look up to the list of flavours that were in front of him ‘so many choises’ he thought before speaking "chocolate and vanilla please!" his choose of flavors made bokuto think about the old days, when you would wait for him in highschool after every practice to go on a date, you always, and he means always, wanted to eat vanilla ice-cream, I didn't matter the occasion "you know, your mom loves vanilla ice-cream! what if we buy a little for her?" his little golden eyes were shinning at the mention of his mom "yes! she's my favorite so she deserves ice-cream for being a good mommy" mid way taking his wallet out of his pocket, bokuto stops, looking directly to the floor "I'm sorry, your favorite what?" "my favorite parent! duh" he tried, he really tried not to have an episode in front of everyone but his deflated hair was exposing him "oh, that's good! your momma is perfect!" "she indeed is, dad!" the laugh of his son made him feel a little better, but ache on his heart was still there; after both of them has their ice-creams in hand, they started walking towards the park hand in hand "yummy! daddy this is delicious! you're absolutely my favorite!" like that? kids changes of opinion that fast? either way, his heart was pumping with joy "of course I'm your favorite! let's go play and the we can buy more ice- cream!" needless to say, you had a fridge full of icecream that night and two sugar rushed boys

•OSAMU has one twin in either side of him, his little girl with two pigtails while is beautiful boy had a green apron on "I know mommy will love this!" the little boy exclaimed, his daughter quickly following behind "uh-huh! mommy always love when we cook for her" osamu was happy he had this life, he didn't expect to have twins the first try but here he was, bragging about his perfect set of kids to his brother every chance he had "yer mommy loves both of ya so much" the kids were trying to make the onigiri shape with the rice while giggling "I know mommy love us! she is my favorite indeed" osamu's heart skipped a beat after hearing is daughters words "ugh she is my favorite too! I love it when mama let us sleep with her" but why is he saying this when he lets them sleep with him too? "that's right! we need to make this onigiri perfect so she is proud" nervously chuckling to erase a little the tension he was feeling "okay, daddy keeps going from here, go set the table and change yer smelly clothes!" the kids were racing to their respective bedrooms, yelling how they were gonna be prettier than the other one. the younger twin was so deep in thought leaning on the kitchen counter that he didn't acknowledge your presence "samu, baby, I'm here, everything okay?" his features relaxing when he saw you, gently placing one hand in your chin to kiss you "everything good sweetheart, the kids just told me yer their favorite parent so am just thinking a lil" you were laughing at his concern, those same kids told you this morning that his papa was their favorite "you want to know something fun ‘samu?" he raised a brow before his hands found home on your waist, gently pressing your chest to his "what, love" your hand came to play with the hairs he has on the forehead "this kids told me this morning you were his favorite, don't take to seriously what they said ‘samu, they love you unconditionally" taking your advice, he pecked you before hearing little steps coming to the room "our alone time has ended angel, a love ya" finishing his words with a sweet kiss

[oveliagirlhaditright]

The Mom Friend

Yeah… though Neku had certainly never signed up to be these four’s mom—and he still had no idea how that had happened—he now knew he wouldn’t change it for the world. Oneshot. Canon compliant. Mom friend Neku. Neo spoilers.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33385999

At first, if you had asked Neku if he had become the mom friend of the Wicked Twisters, he would have laughed in your face.

Because while he would admit he loved the youngins’—and was very protective of them—some old habits of wanting to be cool, and being somewhat rough around the edges, died hard.

But it was with Nagi that Neku finally realized that this was the case.

The girl had decided to go vegetarian, but her body was rejecting not having a lot of protein and thus needed something like nuts this very instance? Who was it but Neku, who went out to buy her some, at near three o’clock in the morning (because he was a good friend and had expanded his horizons that much), since her parents had recently died in a car crash and they could no longer do it for her, the poor girl.

So, Neku crept into Nagi’s dorm window around one-forty-five-ish—which, looking back on it, probably hadn’t been a good idea and could have scared his friend. But, hey: Neku had gotten used to being in the Game. And the week that Coco brought him back before he ran into Beat, he’d been in hiding, and had maybe gotten used to the idea some; and Nagi didn’t seem spooked, so maybe her mind was still stuck on sneaking around in the Reapers’ Game, too—and Nagi took the food out of Neku’s hands like it was the easiest thing in the world before ruffling his hair.

“Much obliged, Lord Neku,” she said as she fixed her glasses in this dim lighting, so she could see him better. Or so Neku guessed. “Now, hopefully, I can feel better enough, that I can work on my essay about the Canterbury Tales. …No one knows such suffering as me,” Nagi moaned, before going back to her bed and starting on the cashews.

“No, problem,” Neku said then—feeling sort of awkward, as he went to mess with a pair of headphones that were no longer on his person anymore—“if you need help with it… I, uhh, guess I could try and lend a hand. I have university coming up soon, too. And I know they’ll have me doing some English stuff, so…”

“Unless you want to be bored to tears, I suggest that you not make such a promise, unless your heart knows little joy,” Nagi warned him.

And Neku didn’t have to be told twice. So, he did backout of helping her with that paper.

But he knew when he visited Shiki soon—and she asked him what he’d been up to—she would still tease him about being the mom friend, for going out and buying protein for Nagi in the wee hours of the morning.

…

And it continued on like that�� and Neku was somewhat loath to admit it, because hey: he had an image to uphold here.

But then again… maybe not, because if this was him pushing out his borders as far as they would go—as Mr. H had instructed him to do three years ago—Neku knew he would gladly do so… even at the risk was being called a “mom”, and even an “old maid”, or something.

Right now, Rindo had severely hurt his ankle… and who was he holding onto as they hobbled away, with designs to get him to a hospital? Neku.

“This is the last time I ever try something from the 90’s again!” Rindo complained, as Neku was half-carrying him to his car now (and how nice it was, that Neku could drive now—from memories of another him that hadn’t lost such formative years—that Joshua had implanted into his head).

“Yeah, Rindo… scooters were cool and everything—yours truly had one—but even I don’t know why you decided to try and bring them back now of all times… Especially since they had a bad habit of spinning right back around and nailing you in the ankle… which you know all too well now,”

And godamnit. Neku really had become the mom friend, huh, if he was now telling his younger friend this venture had been dangerous from the get-go, and how he could have easily seen that if he’d tried to?

Neku pulled on one of his spikes, irritated with himself here, but tried not to show Rindo, lest he think he was mad at him.

“Well, I’d thought about getting a motor scooter,” Rindo explained, Neku loading his pal into his backseat now. “So, I think that’s what got scooters on my brain… But I was trying to be green, and still think of a faster way to catch things in FanGo than walking! And now look where it got me. Oy! …But I guess I shouldn’t be complaining. This should be the least of my problems, when just a few weeks ago I was fighting for you guys’ survival, huh?”

And Rindo paused in where he’d been about to put a hand over his eyes, to peek at Neku now who was currently getting into the driver’s seat—as if he was asking for the past Living Legend to remind the new one to have his priorities straight.

“For real,” Neku told Rindo, whilst he started to pull away now. “When I got out, I was mostly thinking about the Game… about what Joshua did, and how even then, I still trusted him but couldn’t forgive him. And I was so excited to finally meet up with my friends—to finally have some and care about that—be glad, Rindo, that you got out with your friends, and there’s so much trust between you. Like there is between Josh and I now.”

And Rindo set down his phone then—apparently like he had when he first met Shoka in the RG—like he was really listening to what Neku had to say, and he had to appreciate that.

And it might have been his imagination… but Neku could have sworn he saw a flash of blue nodding his head at Neku’s words, as it sat back there with the injured Rindo.

…

The next time Neku ended up being the “mom” for someone in the Wicked Twisters, after the Game, it was with Fret.

It was towards the end of his and Rindo’s sophomore year of high school…

Fret had been ecstatic to come back to life, Neku had known, and wasn’t wasting his second chance. He had really thrown himself into his studies, Rindo had told Neku in private (quite proudly, Neku might add).

If he could keep it up, he would probably even be able to graduate early. And talent scouts were looking at him, Neku had been told: towards a kid who hadn’t strived that hard in school, but now was and excelling because of it.

Naturally, Fret had decided that his calling was fashion—everyone who had been playing the Reapers’ Game with him would have gathered just how much he loved clothes—and apparently he had really thrown himself into designing towards the end of the year, and was trying to put a portfolio together for Jupiter of the Monkey to look at: who the school was suggesting he try and intern with, as they had some connections with (and damn, if Neku didn’t wish he’d gone to Fret and Rindo’s school now, being a huge J of the M fan himself).

Part of Neku wondered why Fret just didn’t try to intern with Shiki during his senior year, but perhaps it was because he was afraid Shiki would just give him the position because they were friends and not because she really thought he was talented.

Anyway… Fret hadn’t gotten the internship. J of the M had said the Fret should try to use less color (you know what? Maybe Neku didn’t like them very much anymore…).

And since then… Fret had seemed to give up on his dream of being a fashion designer, and was trying to be an actor.

And, look: Neku had no problem if him wanting to do both, if he thought he could do it and this was really what Fret wanted… though call him crazy, but he felt like something else was at work here: something that Neku and Shiki had both experienced before.

So, Neku had sat Fret down to talk about it at Ken Doi’s—away from the filmmakers who were currently trying to film in Dogenzaka, that Fret had just been a part of—and laid it all out on the table, “It’s okay… to get Imposter Syndrome. I’ve had it before with my art. Even Shiki has before. But if you want to be an artist, you’re going to fall down a few times… Fret, I feel like you don’t want to be an actor, so much as you don’t mind people dinging your acting, because that isn’t something you care about as much as your designing.”

And after Neku had spoken, Fret somehow looked both like Neku had made him had an epiphany he hadn’t quite realized, and like Neku had stumbled upon the horrible truth he hadn’t wanted anyone to figure out.

Neku took a bite of the yummy curry that Ken Doi had been kind enough to make just for him, after he’d brought Joshua around recently (he’d said he’d missed the two of them. Go figure), and let Fret get his bearings.

And now he was sighing, and running a hand through his hair, much like Neku often did. Neku smiled, finding it hard not to sympathize.

“Oh, man. I really do have to get back into fashion, huh?”

“You do,” Neku agreed, wondering what wonderful articles of clothing Fret might come up with for him to wear in the future. Shoka, too. Really, with those two and Shiki and Eri, Neku had it made in the clothes department, and he was not complaining. “And it’ll be hard sometimes. But most things in life worth gaining are.”

And when Fret smiled back at him, Neku knew he’d made some progress here—which was good—and then he did one thing that was decidedly not mom-like, and let Fret get the bill. Why? Because Neku was a starving college student at this point, and Fret still had parents who paid for stuff for him.

…

And then the last person who needed Neku’s help (…for now, he guessed. Because apparently this was a full-time gig. And at this point, Neku wasn’t complaining because he happily would have taken custody of all the Wicked Twisters long ago if he could’ve), was Shoka.

…Who was freaking out after Rindo having tried to give her a promise ring and wasn’t at all being her usual FanGo loving self, where Rindo was concerned.

And, yeah… Shoka could be a bit of a tsundere sometimes, but Neku felt like the issue ran much deeper.

Neku also happened to see Shoka looking into the mirror a lot lately… And at first, he wondered if she’d become self-conscious like Shiki had been.

But upon hearing the arrogant comments that Shoka still said about herself—that Neku’s surrogate little sister so deserved to say, he thought—he knew that wasn’t the case.

He tried to use a bit of his soul power on her… because it turned out that Neku was strong enough to use it in the RG some, but all that really told the ginger was that it was a deep-rooted issue with Shoka and not what said issue was.

Finally, Neku knew he had to just talk to her.

“Let me in, Shoka,” he urged her—after he’d caught her looking at wedding dresses in her apartment at a group hang-out (it was just the two of them at said hang-out right now; everyone else had gone to get food for everybody). “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

And it was pretty fitting, Neku would later think, that he used Shiki’s old words to him with Shoka here, since she made him think of Shiki some—what with her favorite Mr. Mew hoodie and all. Especially when they’d been in the Game.

And at his question, Shoka sighed—like opening her thoughts to Neku was the biggest burden in the world—and dropped the magazine like it had burned her.

“What?” she demanded, fiddling with the zipper at her neck. “About Rindo? I feel like him wanting to give me a promise ring is silly—and of a time gone by—so of course I told him ‘no’, and give him a hard time about it. Not all of us can be you and Shiki, you know…”

And with that, Shoka seemed content to ignore Neku, and to go boot up her PS5 so she could play the “Stranger of Paradise” demo.

And, hey: more power to her—Neku thought it looked sick, too—but no way was he letting her get off that easily. “That’s a lie, Shoka, and we both know it. So, what’s really going on here?”

Shoka was sighing once more now—as if the weight of the world was on her shoulders. And it probably was, with this tragic girl—but she shuffled on the couch closer to Neku, which he saw as a good sign. “Fine… I guess I should have known that I couldn’t lie to Mr. Soul-Reader… I just- I feel I look too much like them: Ayano and my little sister. And I know it’s dumb, but I worry about it.

“Will I be like Ayano and settle into one thing? Like, say I get really into being Rindo’s girlfriend here… but I force myself to marry him one day, because he really wants that: what if we end up living a loveless life because of that, I didn’t want to tie the knot but forced myself to just because it was what he desired? And since I look like Little Sis… If Rindo and I do end up together, what if I end up dying young like she did and leaving Rindo alone. It’s too much.”

And here Neku had to pull Shoka into a small hug and kiss the crown of her head, whilst he ran calming hands down her arms. Shoka had been through way too much trauma for someone so young. It wasn’t fair. But even with all of that… Neku had to make sure she was sure of one thing right now.

So, he got off the couch and kneeled in front of Shoka, so she was looking into his eyes, and wouldn’t miss how serious this was. “Shoka… you definitely have a lot of baggage there, that I do think you should talk to Rindo about. And I’m so sorry that you’ve lost so much family for someone so young… but know that your family isn’t you. Their lives aren’t yours, nor are the things that they did. The things you do are going to be totally different from them, and you have to make those decisions for yourself. Got it?”

“Okay, Neku,” Shoka allowed, while she helped to pull Neku back up now. And she seemed to be blushing a little… but that was okay, because so was he. Neku may have been the mom of this little group, but big declarations of the heart like that could still be hard for him.

“Thanks!” Shoka beamed, before throwing herself at Neku to give him a quick hug this time.

And Neku laughed slightly. “No problem. Now, what do you say we get super far in this awesome demo before our friends get back, for being losers in forgetting to take us with them to get the food?”

“I think that sounds like a pretty sweet deal!” Shoka agreed, already pulling away from Neku and going for the controller.

Yeah… though Neku had certainly never signed up to be these four’s mom—and he still had no idea how that had happened—he now knew he wouldn’t change it for the world.

Especially when the rest of his children came back happy—which was always a perfect sight to see—and Shoka did end up working things out with Rindo.

It was a wonderful world, indeed.

Author’s Note: Yeah, I’m headcanoning here that the last Dive that you do (not counting Rhyme) for the little ghost from Shinjuku was Shoka’s sister.

Hope you all enjoyed!

[orionlakehastodie]

Villainholics Anonymous

"It's the height." This was from Alina, their newest member.

"No. I still say it's the hair." This from Brienne. The only blonde one.

"It's the cocky ass way they smile." This from Lily Potter - the vice president.

"And do they all have to be so bloody handsome? Like if villain why hot?" Rey. And her age old problem.

"Admit it ladies. It's their dicks. Their gloriously large and thick dicks." Lizzie Bennet. The president of this club.

There were choruses of assent from all the women - all who had their unable to walk days in various stages of soreness. Today was Lizzie's turn. Fitzwilliam Darcy the menace had been particularly eager the night before.

The Villainholics Anonymous was officially in session to annoint their newest member - Alina Starkov.

"Alright, now we have to hear from our newest member. Alina, you have the floor." Lizzie took advantage of the silence before Rey can wax poetic about Ben's face when sunlight hits it when she watches him sleep in the mornings, or before Lily can sing praises about her husband always getting up to change Harry's nappies and how can a villain be that adorable.

Alina cleared her throat and sighed. "My name is Alina Starkov and I'm a villainholic."

"Hi, Alina." Chorused the other women in sympathy.

"It all started when he pushed up my sleeve and got into my face going all 'what are you' in his hot, deep voice with that accent."

Alina's eyes glaze over and Brienne nods in sympathy.

"It's like they tell you you're the ugliest woman they've ever seen but they're like stripping you naked with their eyes and they love what they see? It's like... turning you on?" Brienne squirms in her chair, subtle smile on her lips.

"Or you know they tell you 'I can take whatever I want' in that annoyingly Disney prince charming handsome face and you're all tied up and you're just thinking damn if I get those plush lips you can take whatever you want and more-"

"Yes Rey, we know. Ben Solo has a face carved by angels and wept over by poets - let Alina speak!" Rey shot Lizzie of disdain before sighing and turning to the large framed photo of a shirtless Ben Solo she kept at her side during these meetings for "emotional support".

Lizzie clears her throat and turns back to Alina. "Do go on, Alina."

"And then he comes and cuts a man in half. And I have blood and gore all over my face but he sweeps over in his ridiculous black cape-"

"Ah yes. It's always the cape." Lizzie smiles, remembering her husband walking through a moor.

"Whatever Lizzie - Darth Darcy is better than Darcy! My husband made that shit fashion." Rey sticks her tongue out at Lizzie and she retaliates by kicking at Rey's chair.

"As I was saying!" Alina glows a little bit brighter with her ire, wanting to share more about her precious Sasha.

"He takes me up into his arms and gets me up on his horse and his chest is so big and warm around me and his arms are so muscly and I just felt like... so safe and hugged and saints when I hug him and I feel all that delicious muscle wrapped around me and I just-"

Alina pauses to fan herself, remembering Aleksander's steamy hugs and how it would lead to her naked and impaled on Aleksander's huge dick.

Lily pats her hand in sympathy and shakes her head. "They're so good at that, at looming so tall and so pretty, with the ridiculous you're mine smiles on their faces and they scramble your brain with their yummy glorious smell and the way it feels so warm when they hold you. Like, what evil motherfucker smells like treacle and woods and comfort?" Lily is still very angry that her amortentia just really smells James Potter amplified. How dare this man.

"Anyway you think you'd move on from them, and then bam. He invites me to all these horse back riding just him and me, and he makes me wear his black kefta."

Brienne whistles at Alina's statement. "These fuckers are good at that. Giving you marriage swords, and marriage keftas. Like - Jaime even went as far as to say it's yours, it will always be yours swords that stand in for my heart. And they look so puppy like when they give it to you and you're just like... omg I'm married. Villains. That's true villainry right there." But even as Brienne says it, she strokes Oathkeeper fondly at her hip.

Alina nods her head, wrapping her own black kefta around her. "And you know it makes you feel like it's just you and him and you don't need anyone else and the next thing you know you're sucking his face in his office, and itching to get his dick inside you."

Murmurs of sympathy from all the women.

"And how is it that a villain can kiss like that? Like they're off to go to war the next fucking day?" Alina blushes as she remembers how she was pressed down into that giant map and if Ivan did not come bother them she would have been dicked down on that map too... okay so she had been dicked down on the map. Once. Maybe twice. Okay maybe once every week.

Rey sniffs and brings out Ben's sweater than she uses to wipe her tears. Lily groans in disgust.

"Rey, honestly that sweater is nasty."

Rey glares at Lily and looks down at her worn quidditch jersey with Potter 01 emblazoned at the back.

"You're one to talk Lily. Anyway. I totally understand Alina, like they kiss you and suck your soul out and make you wonder if they can kiss your pussy the same way they kiss your lips and then they fade away, into the Force, before you can ride that large dick."

Brienne throws a popcorn at Rey. "Don't be such a drama queen Rey. You brought back that fuckable redwood you call a husband from the world between worlds and rode that dick into the sunset after. Mine died in a random as fuck explosion."

Lizzie scoffs at Brienne's words. "And you clobbered Dumb and Dumber in the head and rewrote Jaime back as the rightful heir of Casterly Rock and rode that dick into the sunset."

Brienne rolls her eyes. "Not everyone can have a happy ending walking in the morning mist to kiss me and propose marriage. Some of us had to correct the writing of dumb men. Be thankful a smart woman wrote yours, Lizzie."

Rey nods in sympathy. And Alina clears her throat. This was her Sasha's time to shine. These women.

"Anyway, then after they kiss you like that, you find out they're evil and then they try and kill your friend - as if you want any other dick than their villain dick - but even their jealousy is so hot and so you pretend they're evil, but then you get this weird bond connection thing and suddenly he can just appear in your room like that. I mean, they're already so hot - then they appear heartbroken and pining after you and pretending they hate you but they're just like softboi TM and the next thing you know you're naked and making inappropriate use of the Force Bond."

Alina stops and fans herself, remembering just how inappropriate she and Aleksander have been through the bond, how full of him she was afterwards she leaked him out throughout the day-

"It's them always showering when the bond connects!" Rey's exclamation brought her out of her reverie.

"Like, is he just always showering 24/7 to let me see his beautiful tiddies? And like, am I supposed to not strip and lick them tiddies when I see them? It's like the Force Bond is designed so we can feel bad for the villain and fuck them senseless. Again - if villain why so fucking hot?"

Alina nods in sympathy as Rey is currently sitting on an ice pack because Ben had ridden her vagina sore. It's the damned bond sex. Those always go haywire.

"And then... they become the selfless idiot TM, deciding to let themselves be stabbed in the heart and tells you they're human with you and then when they get resurrected do they get back with you?"

Alina and Rey clutch each other ugly tears pouring and Brienne nods with them, tears pouring from her eyes.

"No. No they bloody don't the wankers. They ride off into a war and get killed by rubble!" Brienne slams her fist on the table and takes a deep swig of her butterbeer.

"They become one with the Force after kissing you senseless and making you feel like you're home!" Rey wails hugging Alina close to her.

"They get speared by a fucking tree to tie the universe back together!" Alina clutches back at Rey wiping at her eyes.

"They tell a Dark Wizard to fuck himself while telling you to save your only son!"

Lily joins the hugging ladies and drags Brienne into it as well.

Lizzie sighs and pounds on her gavel. "Ladies, ladies. Get over yourselves. Your men are back with you - Brienne - Jaime is at Casterly Rock because he said fuck that to riding back to Cersei and stayed with you. Rey, Ben is probably grumbling his way through another Republic meeting because he also said fuck that to becoming one with the Force and crawled back to you. And Alina - sweetheart, Aleksander is out of the tree - because he said fuck that to not being with you. We're here to make sure Alina finds her husband hot because he's now reformed. We don't like hot villains!"

The ladies gathered themselves and Alina wipes her tears and flushes.

"So... anyway, two days ago, Sasha came back from a peace talk with Fjerda, and he was really angry because we just got intelligence about Parem. And he said... we should have kept the Fold so he can just kill them all... and... and I found it so hot, so I... I stripped him naked right then and there in the war room and sucked him dry."

Sympathetic grumbles came out from the other ladies.

"Don't worry Alina, we're all here to get this temptation out of you - but I get it. Villains are hot. Sometimes I make Ben wear the mask..." Rey wipes her tears and sighs dreamily and Lily clears her throat.

"Rey-"

Rey blinks and shakes her head. "Right, right, villains are not hot."

"Alina," Lizzie begins but her phone started buzzing. She peeks at it and her eyes widen, and a familiar flush takes over her face. Brienne catches sight of it and smirks.

"Darcy calling you inferior of birth again, Liz?"

Lily grabs Lizzie's phone and giggles. "Darcy got himself in a lake and wondering when dear Lizzie is coming home."

Rey snickers. "I'm betting it's now."

"Shut up you lot, anyway Alina-"

But Alina was already packing up her bags. "Alina?"

"Sorry. Aleksander just came back from Grisha training - and he said if I'm not home in 30 minutes he'll take all that I hold dear so I only have him. I'm gonna get railed. See you guys next week."

She was out the door in a minute flat and Brienne laughs.

"Remind me, why do we do this again? Last week Rey got called home by Ben who said she was his sweet nothing and she came to the meeting today sitting on a vagina pack."

Lizzie merely rolls her eyes and stands up too. "Well, where else can we brag about having tall, hot loving husbands with big dicks who challenge us mentally and love us for challenging them back? I'll see you girls, I bought more of those vagina ice bags, sounds like we'll all need them."

[fullmetalscullyy]

the way it was - chapter 29

summary:  what if riza never went to war?  riza hawkeye has just married the man she loves. six months into their marriage, an unexpected surprise stops her from following roy to the military. a canon divergence au that explores what might have happened had riza been unable to join the military. there will be plenty of family fluff, angst, and royai.

rated: m | warnings: no archive warning apply

read on ao3

1914

 'cause you're a sky, you're a sky full of stars

such a heavenly view 

Their pride and joy had careened into their bedroom loudly at six o’clock in the morning – on a Saturday – to announce loudly that it was her birthday.

Roy groaned quietly in Riza’s ear, and she couldn’t hold back her own either. Her eyelids fought against her desire to open them, sleep keeping a tight hold on Riza that morning. Even cracked open to the bare minimum, Riza’s vision was blurred and her lids ached.

“Mia?” Roy sounded as tired as Riza felt. The mattress shifted as he sat up, removing his arm from around her waist. The warmth and security of his hold was missed immediately.

“It’s my birthday,” Mia sang happily, bouncing on the spot at the bottom of their bed as she broke out into a happy dance. The six-year-old was completely oblivious to the plight of her parents, too excited at what the new day would bring her.

“Mia,” Roy scolded lightly with a yawn. He rubbed his face tiredly, running his hands through his hair as he smacked his lips. “Listen, you need to quieten down,” Roy scolded her gently.

The dancing stopped. “Why?”

“Mummy is sleeping, and she needs to rest.”

Riza was really trying to wake up, but her body refused to cooperate. Sleep was beckoning her once more, not ready to give her up to the rest of the world just yet.

Rolling over, she struggled to lift her head. “No, it’s fine…” she mumbled.

“Oh…” Mia sounded guilty. “I… I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

“It’s all right, bear.” The use of her nickname softened Roy’s scold a little. “Come on, why don’t we go and talk in your room? Then we can let Mum sleep.”

“It’s… fine…” Riza sighed but was already drifting.

A hand was pressed to the top of her head. It ran through Riza’s hair then fell to the mattress behind her head. Then, Roy’s lips were pressed to her forehead.

“Get some more sleep,” Roy urged gently. “I’ll keep her entertained.”

The next time Riza woke, two hours had passed. She batted her eyes open, hearing Roy and Mia talking somewhere in the house. The latter sounded extremely excited as she chatted away happily, while she heard Roy’s laugh and the occasional yip from Hayate.

“Good morning, sleepy head,” Roy greeted with a smile as he spotted Riza entering the kitchen.

She shot him a tired smile in response, but still made a beeline for Mia and crouched by her chair. Cupping her six-year-old’s face in her hands, Riza grinned at her daughter. “Happy birthday, our Mia Bear,” she announced, kissing Mia’s cheek.

“Thank you, Mum,” Mia smiled brightly. “Look! Look at this badge Dad gave me!” She grasped her t-shirt and thrust it forward, showing off the comically large birthday badge on her shirt. It was a baby blue colour and had a bear on it – of course – holding the number six in its hands. Riza had seen it at the supermarket the week before and knew instantly Mia would love it.

“It’s lovely, isn’t it?”

“Yeah! He said it was from you and him, so thank you! I love it!” Mia threw her arms around Riza’s neck and hugged her tightly. Laughing, Riza pressed a hand to Mia’s back and gave her a quick squeeze.

“Glad you like it.”

“And Dad made me a birthday breakfast,” Mia added excitedly, turning in her chair to look at the table. “I’ve ate it all now, but I had some grapes, a piece of toast that Dad turned into a face,” Mia giggled. “And I even had some of his porridge! I didn’t like it very much.” Mia wrinkled her nose in disgust.

“But you tried it though, didn’t you?” Roy reached for a teaspoon in the centre of the table, picking it up so he could stir his coffee. “You were a big girl and tried something new,” Roy praised.

“Yeah,” Mia grinned. “This breakfast was very yummy! Almost as good as the fun breakfast I had a while ago,” she added, trailing off and looking up at them daringly.

Riza smiled from behind Mia, shooting Roy a look. She was so clearly fishing and was hopeful for more chocolate at breakfast, but that was a no-go. Luckily, Roy remembered his error in judgement from that day.

“Ah, no chocolate for breakfast this time,” Roy reminded her as he popped a stray grape into his mouth. “You don’t want to feel ill like you did last time, do you?”

He lifted the bowl of grapes, extending them towards Riza. Picking a few off their stalks, she gathered them in her hand and started to eat them slowly.

Mia sat back in defeat. “No, I guess not,” she mumbled.

“It would be a very good birthday if you felt sick, would it?” Riza placed a hand on Mia’s head and bent to kiss the top of it.

“No, it wouldn’t be fun,” she agreed. The sullen tone had left her voice as she realised their logic. “But… Can I have some later?” Her wide and earnest eyes were begging her mother to say yes.

“Hm,” Riza hummed, pretending to think. “I don’t know…” she trailed off.

“Please!”

“I suppose,” Riza relented. “You are the birthday girl after all. This day is all about you.”

“Yay!” Mia clapped, legs kicking wildly in her chair. It made her little body jerk from side to side in her chair.

After breakfast and they’d all showered and dressed, the small family made their way into their living room so Mia could open her birthday presents. There was a pile on their couch which Riza had arranged while Roy got Mia ready for the day. She’d picked a lovely green dress to wear to her party. It had a floral pattern on it, the flowers just a shade lighter than the green of her dress so they were almost hidden. It had been an early gift from her grandmother.

The birthday girl’s eyes lit up when she saw the presents, diving for them.

It turned out Roy was also rather adept with a brush and a comb.

“Grew up with a bunch of sisters, remember,” he quipped with a wink, noticing Riza’s inquisitive smile as she admired Mia’s hair.

The perfectly braided hair bounced in their pigtails with Mia’s energy. She looked incredibly cute. Her hair was passed her shoulders now, long enough so that it could be split down the middle and tied off with two green ribbons at each end. However, her fringe was still a lost cause. Even with it styled like Riza’s it had a mind of its own and more often than not, fell over her eyes or ended up mussed up, skewing her parting completely.

Roy wrapped his arm around Riza’s shoulders as they watched Mia animatedly tell Hayate about the present she’d just opened. The dog was shown the toy so he could give it a sniff.

“And see? I have some sense of fashion.” Roy gestured to Mia’s attire.

Riza already knew he did. Around the house he wore shorts or sweatpants with t-shirts, but she’d seen him getting ready for formal military events. He looked incredibly handsome in a suit and tie and knew just how to style himself to make Riza’s heart flutter inside her chest.

“I didn’t doubt you for a second, dear,” Riza smirked, turning her head to peck his cheek.

“Mia,” Roy called, stepping forwards. “Before you get too excited and open any more, I have a present for you to open first.”

Riza shot him a questioning look that Roy very obviously ignored.

“Oh?” Mia asked, intrigued.

“Be back in a second,” he grinned, looking rather mischievous and proud of himself.

Riza narrowed her eyes. Just what did he have in mind here?

There was the distant sound of rummaging that made her raise an eyebrow, then Roy re-entered the room, lugging a huge, rather crudely wrapped, gift. In his arms, it passed just over Roy’s head, and he had to duck to get it through the doorway. From the shape, it was clear that this was another bear for Mia, but it was so large it was ridiculous. It was almost double the height of their daughter and would be nearly as tall as Roy and Riza if it could stand on its legs.

Mia gasped excitedly, carefully but quickly removing the wrapped present from her lap. Her eyes boggled as she took it in, brain struggling to comprehend what she was seeing.

Riza could sympathise with that.

“Uh,” Riza stated eloquently in her surprise.

“Is it a bear?” Mia was in awe, voice barely above a whisper.

“You’ll have to open it and see,” Roy smirked. He was practically bouncing with excitement himself.

Mia did so, carefully. She had to get Roy to help her unwrap from the stomach upward because it was far too tall for her. Squealing happily, she hugged her new best friend and looked up at its face in wonder.

Hayate wasn’t sure. He growled quietly at the hulking form, his hackles raised as his head dipped low to further take in this new thing on his territory that was so much larger than him.

“It’s okay, Hayate!” Mia peeled herself away from her new toy and reached out tentatively for the dog. Once her hand contacted his fur, Hayate flinched and licked his lips, looking up at Mia. “It’s just a toy. Look!” Standing tall, Mia poked the bear and its head flopped to the other side. Poking it again, harder, it tipped over and fell onto its side, making Hayate jump at the sudden thump that sounded. He growled louder while Mia laughed with glee.

“And just where are we going to put that?” Riza muttered the question in her husband’s ear while Mia was distracted.

Roy shrugged. “Let me worry about that.”

Riza rolled her eyes as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders again. The bear was honestly absurd. Where had he even bought it from?

“Where did you even hide that? I didn’t see it anywhere.”

“It was hidden in the garage,” he smiled mischievously. “Chris dropped it off late last night when you were already in bed. It was from the guys at work.”

“Really?” It was one shock after another this morning.

“They’d planned it beforehand after hearing her talk about how much she loved bears while Havoc and I were in the hospital,” Roy chuckled. “But…” He trailed off.

Everyone had been moved across Amestris.

Roy cleared his throat and shot her a reassuring smile as she hugged against his side. “Havoc ordered it into his family’s store and got it shipped out. Everyone still chipped in for it though before they left.”

Riza was touched by the lovely gesture for their daughter. “That was so sweet of them.”

“It was all Havoc’s idea. They can’t wait to hear what Mia’s reaction is,” Roy chuckled, nodding at their daughter. She was bouncing on the balls of her feet, a happy squeal emitting from her throat every now and then as she couldn’t quite believe the present was real. “Fuery more so than the others. Havoc says he isn’t bothered, but I know he wants to know.”

Riza grinned. She’d always thought of Roy’s team being somewhat unofficial uncles to Mia. Now, it definitely felt like it, and the thought warmed Riza’s heart.

*          *          *

Gracia and Elicia were the first to arrive at their house for Mia’s birthday party.

“Happy birthday, Mia!” Elicia giggled, handing over a parcel to Mia that looked a little too heavy for her. It dipped in her grasp as her arms shook with the weight.

“Elicia!” Mia’s cry was full of glee as she ran towards her friend. Skidding to a stop, she grinned at the present in Elicia’s hands and eased it out of the younger girl’s grasp. “Is this for me?”

“Yep! Mummy and I picked it out especially for you. It’s from my Daddy too!” Elicia’s happiness made the three adult’s expressions soften.

“Thank you, Elicia. That’s very kind of you,” Riza replied on her excited daughter’s behalf.

“Yes, thank you!” Gently, the parcel was placed on the ground and Mia hugged Elicia tightly.

All three adults simpered at the sight, looking proudly upon their friendship with one another.

“Can we go and open it now, Mum?” Mia’s eyes were wide and bright with excitement.

“Well,” Roy interjected, eyes already on the path up to their home, looking over Gracia’s shoulder. “It looks like you have some other guests to greet first.”

Mia poked her head around Gracia’s legs to see who was approaching. Chris waved to Mia as Vanessa and Roxanne beamed, arms laden with gifts.

“I promise though, you can play with it after.” Riza gestured for Mia to hand it over. As she stooped low, there was a niggle of pain in her lower back, but she shook it off. “You’ll get to open all your presents once everyone is here.”

“Okay!”

Unfortunately, Edward and Alphonse were up in North City, so were unable to attend Mia’s birthday, alongside the rest of Roy’s team. She was disheartened to hear her “uncles” wouldn’t be coming, but Mia took it in her stride. Both parents reassured her that they’d come and see her as soon as they were able to.

Rebecca, however, arrived from the East with a surprise appearance from Havoc.

Mia gasped loudly, a hand flying up to her mouth when she saw him enter through the door to their living room. Roy walked behind with a wide smile on his face.

“Aunt Becca! And Havoc!” Her screech pierced Riza’s ears painfully while Mia hopped to her feet and sprinted to the door. She threw her arms around Rebecca tightly, who’d knelt in place and opened them up for her.

“Happy birthday, Princess,” Rebecca greeted, kissing her on the cheek before letting her go.

“And – And – Havoc!” Mia gripped the arm of his wheelchair tightly, her knuckles white as her eyes boggled up at him. “I didn’t know you were coming!”

“It was a surprise,” he winked. In his lap was a poorly wrapped gift, which was handed over to Mia. “Happy birthday, Mia.”

She took it in her hands carefully, marvelling at the gold and red wrapping paper. “This is for me?”

“All for you,” Havoc confirmed.

“Oh, wow.”

“What do you say, Mia?” Riza prompted her daughter’s manners as she lifted herself from her armchair.

“Thank you, Havoc!” Mia threw her arms around his torso in a fierce hug, which made him chuckle in response.

He patted her shoulder fondly. “You’re welcome, Kiddo.”

“Now that everyone is here, who would like tea or coffee?” Roy announced it to the room as Riza made her way through to their kitchen. Some peace and quiet would give her a reprieve to try and relieve some of her fatigue.

Her back was bothering her a lot today, and it made Riza wonder if she’d slept in a funny position. No amount of stretching would grant her relief, unfortunately. And she was so tired today, too. That extra two hours in bed should have been enough, but apparently it wasn’t. It was unfair. It was her daughter’s sixth birthday! She had no time to be tired.

It was happening more and more often lately after she’d entered her third trimester. That niggle in her back was the most prominent one, as well as aching ankles. That was easy enough to deal with though, seeing as most of her work was done at her desk. Life went on as well, so she’d shouldered the pain while running around after Mia and rested when she could.

After placing the water on top of the heat to boil, Riza closed her eyes and rested her hands against the counter. Her spine was perfectly straight, but she was leaning forwards, letting her hands take some of her weight. Relief washed over her ankles, granting her a reprieve. Her head was held high, but her chin dipped as she rolled her previously hunched shoulders.

“Hey, you okay?” Roy’s hands were instantly placed on her tight shoulders, giving them a squeeze.

“Yes.” She leaned back into him, relaxing completely as he steadied her like a rock. A kiss was pressed to her temple, causing a smile to quirk up the corners of her mouth.

His hands ran down her arms to her waist. “What’s wrong?”

“What makes you think there’s something wrong?”

Roy hummed quietly in her ear. His head moved so that his nose was in her hair and he pressed a kiss behind her ear. “I’ve noticed you grimace every now and then. I just want to check everything is alright.”

“You’re too observant,” Riza grumbled good naturedly, making him laugh quietly and pull away from her.

“It’s to be expected, Riza, my dear.”

She had been mourning the loss of his embrace, but his hands ran back up her bare arms to rest atop her shoulders. It was a beautiful contradiction how his hands lit a fire with his touch but still managed to lift gooseflesh on her skin. Riza shivered.

“Expected?”

His hands began to knead at the knots in her shoulders and Riza let out a light moan. It felt heavenly. It was exactly what she needed.

“Of course,” he replied. “I love you too much not to notice when something might be bothering you. Plus, we’ve been together for so long, I like to think I’ve become quite attuned to you,” he grinned.

Again, her body shuddered. Hearing him say such things…

Roy noticed her reaction and laughed. “Do you like that?”

“Yes,” she breathed. It felt like her legs would turn to jelly, she was becoming so relaxed, but hearing Roy’s low voice, telling her how much he loved her and how much he noticed about her… “What else have you noticed?”

“That you’re tired today. And your lower back and ankles hurt, am I correct?”

Riza huffed but nodded.

“Yes,” he hissed in triumph at his correct guess, making Riza laugh.

“Are you happy that I’m suffering for your child?” She made her amusement clear.

“Not at all,” Roy reassured solemnly. “If I could take some of the stress from you, I would. You know that.”

Riza’s heart fluttered in her chest.

“I’m just pleased I can read you so well.”

“I’ll have to make it harder next time,” Riza hummed thoughtfully.

“How can I help you if you make it harder for me?” A chuckle left him as he found a rather tight knot in her trapezius. His thumb dug in deep causing Riza to let out a strangled cry of relief.

“Your shoulders are very tight,” he remarked.

Riza grimaced. “I know. The kid is making them tense,” she added, fondly running her hand over her stomach.

“You can expect some foot rubs tonight for those ankles too. And feel free to let me know what else I can massage,” he quipped, lifting his eyebrows suggestively.

Scoffing, Riza admonished him quietly while he laughed instead.

“Did this happen with Mia?”

“Yes. You’re a much more preferable masseuse than Rebecca though.”

A quiet snort left him. His head dipped, pressing a kiss to the bare skin at her neck as he gave her shoulders one last tight squeeze. “I’m glad.” His voice was a whisper against the crook of her neck. “Why don’t you go and get a seat,” Roy offered, straightening his posture.

Riza turned to look at him, noting the soft smile on his face as he gazed at her. “I can manage to make some tea –”

“Humour me,” Roy interrupted softly, taking one of her hands in his. He lifted it to his lips, pressing a kiss upon the back of her palm. “If you’re tired then I honestly don’t mind.”

Riza opened her mouth to argue, but Roy’s eyes flashed with mischief.

“And don’t lie and say you’re not tired.” He chuckled at her frown. A kiss was pressed to her forehead. “Go and take a seat. I’ll sort the beverages for our guests.”

“Is that an order, Colonel?” An eyebrow lifted in light defiance.

Again, his eyes flashed at her challenge, and a grin spread across his face. “I can make it an order, if you like?” His smile was bordering on wolfish and Riza decided to quit while she was ahead. It was her daughter’s birthday. The party came first. Afterwards, once Mia was asleep, she would teach Roy a lesson for trying to order her around… After his previously offered massage.

“No, it’s okay, I’ll go,” she relented reluctantly.

Pausing in the doorway, she turned and watched him tap a nail on the countertop, staring out the window to their garden, waiting for the water to boil. Once it was ready, it snapped Roy out of whatever thought he was lost in and he jumped to reach for the pot, so he could pour it in the waiting mugs.

A corner of Riza’s mouth quirked up, smiling at her husband. He’d relaxed her completely and having his support meant so much to her.

Turning in place, Roy frowned at her, his mouth turning downwards in exaggerated disapproval. “Go on, Mrs. Mustang. Shoo. I can handle carrying tea and coffees through.”

“I’m going, I’m going,” she placated, lifting her hands in surrender.

[akathecentimetre]

So here’s the thing.

Of course I love The Old Guard. Like, of COURSE I do. It is everything I like and everything you all have gotten used to knowing I like, from found family to unconditional love to the yummy yummy historical tidbits. It’s going to have a truly Great fandom.

But watching it was not, for me, some huge revelatory experience in media because - well, I’ve written it before. Many times, in scattered pieces, across a lot of my fic. And what made me cry last night when I finally watched it was that it’s the spitting image of an epic vampire story that I wrote, over a decade ago, with Rio (@aumerle-that-was​).

Who is now dead. Recently dead. [I wrote a post about her here.]

The Barrens will most likely never make it to publication. It’s huge, and unwieldy, and full of unnecessary crack because I was an 18-19-20-year-old virgin when we were spending the most time on it. But it’s 232,761 words of memories, of laughter, of love, and, as I mentioned in my previous post, of me learning how to write at all.

I miss her. I wish she was still here, to see The Old Guard and love it (GOD she would have loved it). I wish she was here so she could write the most beautiful, unbearable, Italianate fic of Joe & Nicky that anyone could have ever imagined. They deserve a gifset set to her Coldplay “roman cavalry choirs” singing. 

Here’s some tiny images of what we wrote, focusing on various characters (including one called Rio, of no relation; this epic started, if you can believe, as a football/soccer RPF AU). I’ve picked out some character moments rather than historical bits, but fair warning that there’s mention of some nasty/upsetting stuff.

*

It was the need to eat, and the need to live, and the need to go on, and it was, as the last sliver of sun splintered on the deep blue of Capri's sea, utterly unendurable, because he knew that he would, he would get up, he would go on, he would feed, and he would keep living. He would keep living, and the grief and anguish in his mind would keep on with him, the raw, still-bleeding edges of the severed bond breathing with him, and the new fear and hatred he had learned keeping him company with them.

He would just refuse to think, that was all. That couldn't be so hard.

It couldn't.

*

He closed his eyes, and swallowed, shutting down memories and envy and misery at once, and drew a deep, unnecessary breath before he looked out at the Mouth of Truth again. He walked over to it slowly, and put his hand in. "I don't miss you," he said. "And you needed to die." Robin whined sadly behind him. The Mouth stayed open.

*

Things were shutting down, blowing out like lamps at night, and all he could think was thank God, because he didn't want this anymore, couldn't stand it, and he thought it might be his life that was guttering out like a candle, and it was really too much effort to care, because peace.

...but as bad as dying was, it was nothing compared to waking up again.

Fingers were tapping him sharply on one cheek. "'Ey. 'Ey, come on, wake up."

He opened his eyes. And immediately shouted out in a mix of pain, terror, and absolutely overwhelming confusion, because his head hurt so badly he thought he just might have been brained with an axe, and when he struggled into a sitting position it was to the realization that his clothes were soaked with blood, and that just couldn't be good at all. His hands shot to his throat, but when he found that there was nothing there - no torn flesh, no blood, no wound, no nothing - all he could let out was a horrified sort of squeak.

There was the odd laugh again, and it didn't help at all to realize he could feel it now, as if he was tapped into the other man's amusement like some barrel of watered beer left running.

"Very good," the man's voice rumbled, making him jump again, because he didn't just hear it, it was like it was in his ear. "Now then. Follow these regles" - a piece of crumpled paper was thrust into his bloody palm - "and you shall be just fine, yes? Yes. I think you shall be fine." And then the man stood, stepped over him, and opened the door, pushing Rio's nerveless legs aside as it swung on its hinges. "I think I had better go. Too much - commotion. Bonsoir!"

"And fuck you," Rio managed to croak with some vehemence, feeling the amusement fade out and vanish, as though it had never been there at all. If it weren't for the way his head felt and the state of his hands and clothes, he'd have thought he'd dreamed it - got coshed, maybe, and dreamed it. The crumpled piece of paper was telling him otherwise. The slightly-mangled syntax was bad enough without it apparently being straight out of a child's fairy tale.

Never kill when you drink. Never go out in the sun unless you have strength enough. If it is possible, no churches. NEVER TOUCH SILVER. Run from Hunters, do not fight. Be polite when you use your mind, otherwise it will hurt.

Bonds of love are forever.

*

He had got as far as the steps when the world began to shatter, as though cacophony could be made into feeling, sending him in a kind of sideways fall against the stone balustrade, and wondering how he had never known there was this much pain in the world, because it was worse even than the night he had been left to bleed his life out on a London street, worse than silver, worse than anything he could begin to think of as comparison. It was the utter definition of agony, and all he could think was that he needed it to stop, it had to stop, before his mind fragmented and splintered along with it.

It came to him, distant and heartwrenching, that this was what Cruyff had meant by letting go, that he had to withdraw or risk going irrevocably mad, but - fuck, fuck, how could he let go of everything, Cruyff was everything, it was impossible that he should be - imposs -

He fell against the wall, toppled onto his knees, and screamed.

*

“And if you want immortality for someone, the last thing you want is to find yourself becoming a murderer. Unless you're Marco..."  he trailed off with a sigh, and shook his head. "Marco seduced a girl in Babylon --"

"Babylon --!"  Rio gaped.  Babylon didn't even exist any more, God, what sort of timescale were they talking about here?

"He went with Alexander," Gullit said patiently, "and if you want to know more about that, read a book."

*

Gullit bristled and snarled without actually saying anything, giving Rio the distinct impression that the master vampire was more of a real wolf than Robin would ever be. "Go on then," he snapped. "Tell me to my face that you will be able to wake up tomorrow night and do what you have to do. That is all the time I will allow you - and I will know if you are lying."

Rio swallowed.  He thought of silver, and the way it burned even when it wasn't a knife, thought of how it tainted everything, how the thought even of being there one more second alongside that pain was almost impossible.  He thought of how it was now his knife, how he had earned the pain and the ability both, and owned them by name and by right.

He thought, deliberately, of the scars on Ed's body, of the look in his eyes that first night at Stevie's, as though the world were a place of ash and horror and nothing good could even be imagined.

He thought of Gullit, whose sons were dead and had no-one to lay claim to him or who he could be part of but Marco, and who carried on, scarred and limping and casting his damn spells, trying to earn something Rio thought just might be the forgiveness of the twice-dead.

"Yeah," he said then, looking straight into Gullit's dark, hot eyes.  "I could."

"Could you really," Gullit said thoughtfully.  It wasn't, terrifyingly, anywhere near a question.

*

I can make no predictions, so consider this an indefinite promise: you are not going back.

Rio's mind turned into a perfect, careful blank of pure incomprehension.

Back here? he ventured, because if that was it, he really didn't understand, since how not coming back here was anything but good was absolutely and completely beyond him.  How he was supposed to feel anything but thank-you-God about even the idea of never coming back here was apparently a mental leap he was incapable of making.

There was a snort of derision, the horrid sound failing to arouse even a twitch of amusement from anyone. No, Rio, Gullit whispered. He had to live with the possibility of never - that his pain would never end. And now you’re going to live with it too. You’re going to live with the thought that you might never kill Marco... and, due to the extremes of unpredictability this world - and especially Marco - goes to, you’re going to live with the idea that you might never see, or be able to love, Edwin ever again.

He wasn't sure if he was being manipulated, or if it was real, but the sense of something that wasn't even grief – that was beyond grief, was nothing as human as grief – was shocking and immediate and all-consuming.  It was the knowledge that the last memories he might ever be able to make that were his own – even now, as his brain stuttered in a void, he knew that what he had seen here was not his for the taking – the last memories he could truly take for himself would be the look of joy in Ed's eyes, and the clean-cut Roman profile of the vampire who had been able to give and be all he had ever wanted.  The last memory he might ever be able to bring out of his mind in all the days that were his to pass from now until the end of some infinite horror was one of loss.  

It was devastation, wilderness, wasteland, the barrens.

It was exile, and eternity, and Christ! Laurent had given him no such thing as a gift of life, he had given him a curse.

Bonds of love are forever.

And without the ability to love, with only the bonds, with only shackles for his heart and soul worse than those that lay open in front of his mind's eye – with the only thing he had always known suddenly ripped from him and held up to the clear light of unforgiving truth, and shown as worthless, forever didn't seem like any kind of promise at all.

*

He had only recently started getting used to the concept of communicating with his mind, and what glimpses he had gotten of Ruud's had only convinced him that there was more in there than he could ever possibly hope to understand - so he didn't try. But he did know that London was important, and that something was going to happen, so he finished packing very carefully before moving on to Ruud's things, which were still scattered carelessly around the room (a rarity, because normally the captain was as neat as a pin). "You don't deserve this," he heard Ruud say quietly, and he shrugged without looking over his shoulder. "Well. I'm alive, sir." "No you're not," Ruud said - not unkindly.

"I'm here?"

"Yes," Ruud said. He sounded exhausted. "You are. Hooray for you."

*

"Give me one solitary fucking reason why I shouldn't throw you through this wall."

Ruud didn't have the energy to come up with something honest. "Goodwill towards your fellow man?"

He ended up flat on his back in the remains of what had been a parked cab instead, but he was pretty sure it hurt the same amount.

"Fellow man? You don't count," Rio said, sounding horrible and raspy from somewhere off to the side, as Ruud blinked away some interestingly-coloured sparkles and waited for his leg to heal up the nerve-endings enough for things to start being excruciating. "I'm not sure you count as a fucking vampire, you shit."

"No," Ruud grunted, swaying up to a seated position just in time to get punched in the face and fall back again with a broken nose, and the sparkles deciding to take up permanent residence behind his eyelids. "I don't. Tell me how he is."

Rio's skull-face didn't look any better in lamplight and through floating small pinpricks of fake stars. "Sorry, was that you asking for something?"

"Yes," he ground out, lifting a weary hand to his mouth and shoving a crooked incisor back into its place. "And you're going to tell me. I don't care if you feel like disembowelling me, though don't get any ideas - you're going to."

"I'm off disembowelling for the next century, don't worry yourself," Rio growled, and that was the nastiest way Ruud had ever got an answer in his life, and knowing he'd deserved it didn't help at all. "Fuck's sake. How do you think? You left." Right, so apparently git stood for Great Incompetent Tosser.

*

"Like you what?" the man said, getting right to the heart of Rio's inadequacy in the same death-warmed-up voice, and put a shaking hand down against the floor to try and pull his rag-covered body out of the bunk. "He said it would save me. Are you saved?"

Maybe he would just use the hook on Laurent, instead. "Um. Not - really, no." He hoped like hell the man wasn't talking about in the sight of God, because that was one can of worms Rio was never going anywhere near. "He made me, though, too. Just like he did you. So we don't die....yet." Life, Laurent had told him, and hadn't that been a terrifyingly unfunny joke? Rio didn't want to have to use the word 'vampire' among all these living corpses, but he was getting a nasty feeling that between necessary obliquity and whatever arsing terrible explanation Laurent had buggered off after giving, he was going to have to.

He straightened up without the help of Rio's hands, and for the first time Rio could put a face to the voice - he was Rio's height, and big, or should have been were it not for the thinness of his limbs, wrists and forearms Rio could have encircled with two fingers end-to-end, and a broad, now-pinched face which spoke of a starvation perhaps beyond all else Rio had seen, because he knew without even asking this man had not known, at least not consciously, to drink, and yet the strength of the vampire would have kept him from expiring even had he begged for it.

Laurent would have fed him, though. Laurent would have let him know at least what it took to keep going - wouldn't he? Perhaps not, any kind of feeding here was a death sentence to the donor, willing or not, and considering Laurent's one and only set of instructions, Rio guessed that the bastard had just been hoping for the best to work itself out - and in the meantime, what the fuck was he going to do? "Means you're my brother," he said at last, because that was what mattered, in the end, wasn't it, that was why he was here, why he'd ended up in a kind of Hell no-one had even thought of until now, not even the living dead. "An' I'm Rio." He'd first introduced himself as who and what he was so many lifetimes ago that he was amazed it still struck a chord of memory inside him, hearing his voice in the little hut as though he were back in the room in London, wondering why he'd saved a vamp who didn't even have the sense not to kill. "It's - we're gonna be all right. Honest."

[sirengf-moved]

oh boy 1) 2, 5, 7, 10, 15 || 2) 3, 7, 9 || 3) 6, 7, 20 || 4) 4, 9, 27 || part five is embarrassing so none of that shit 💓 || 6) 2, 4, 10 || i gave u so many because i lov u but i'm also fucked up 🍊🌿💐💓

mars i lov u , also don’t worry i’m vain and i love answering questions abt myself so this works perfectly 😌🍯☁️✨🍓🍃 HOLD ONTO UR BUTT THIS IS A LOT :

( part 1 ) 🍨

Have you ever cut your hair yourself?

a: as a kid i think i got something stuff in my hair , gum or ? i’m unsure it’s a foggy memory but i just cut my hair and my mom got soooooo mad bc we had a friend who was a hairdresser and we didn’t tell her or anything and we just cut it , tbh it was pretty liberating but at the same time i don’t remember if i did a good job or not 💀

Do you collect anything?

a: mmm, jars ...... me telling myself i’m gonna gather jars for spellwork and i never actually do it so i just have a shit ton of mason jars , emptied candle jars , small flasks with cork screw lids all sitting around my crystals and incense ect....... rip me.

Are you a fan of bread and butter?

a: yes! i eat fried bread w/ light butter for breakfast most mornings , probably unhealthy but like.......it’s very yummy..... 😔

Have you ever almost died?

a: ive almost drowned at least 3 times, this racist dude thst i almost beat the shit out of nearly ran me over on my way home with his redneck truck ( forgetting i knew where he lived ) , almost asphyxiated myself by swallowing melted chocolate at least 3 /4 times , almost got into a head on collision at a 4 way once, when i jumped from the side of my grandfathers sailboat onto the docks i wasn’t considering how big the leap was and landed fine but almost fell back and would’ve been crushed between the boat and dock , and i thought i was going to die when this homeless man glared me down intensely at the local burger king as i ate my chicken and lowkey cried bc i was also going through an emotional meltdown ( unrelated to said homeless man making vicious murder eyes at me , but that sure didn’t help lol ) i’ve also died a lot in my dreams / almost died in dreamscapes ..... long winded answer but hi mars i’m also fucked up ���

Favorite animal?

a: GELADA MONKEYS! LOOK THEM UP PLS THEYRE AMAZING I LOVE THEM! BIG FLUFFY BOYS!

( part 2 ) 🥧

Do you believe the butterfly effect is real?

a: hm... i feel like every action mayhaps has some sort of consequence but personally i’ve been seeing that like, how can this be true when you have billionaires who use slave/sweatshops/prison labor but yet are rewarded with vast riches? how can you have all of these people of power constantly doing bad , horrible things and not getting their karma? will they get it ten fold? down the road? is their karma their internal struggles? do they not have any moral qualms? are they MAKING the karma for others? these are questions i constantly ask myself to be quite honest....

Do you believe in witches and/or magic?

a: yes , for the most part. there are some i believe because i can feel it , their energy and majesty in the way they hold themselves and how they view the world, some people just scare me with how they go through life with such certainty on everything, certainty terrifies me to be honest. i do definitely believe in magic! it’s in everything! from someone cooking you something that you regularly cook but it tastes better bc they made it? magic! it’s everywhere! and also practical magic ( spellwork / spirit work / deity & entity work / tarot & oracle ect ) it all interests me and i love talking about it , to people who also believe and practice and KNOW AND RESPECT CULTURE/ HERITAGE / CLOSED PRACTICES! c:

Do you believe in anything mythical/supernatural? (Bigfoot, Mermaids, Vampires, etc.)

a: sorta , i’ve had too many rhythmic taps / scratches on my window in the deep hours of the night to not believe. i’m not sure if i believe in vampires as in modern mainstream standpoint but i’m pretty open to just about anything existing..it’s just this world is so weird and i’d be naive to think that just bc i can’t perceive it with my own eyes, it just simply doesn’t exist... u know?

( part 3 ) 🍡

If a friend called you to help hide a body, would you help or turn them in?

a: i ain’t no snitch. also kinda depends on the friend, bc i wouldn’t turn anyone in regardless ( unless they killed someone innocent / were a budding serial killer omg ) but like do i answer calls? rarely , am i also the one everyone always goes to? yes. either way i’d prolly help you bury the body, answering the phone however? another story. ( who am i kidding i’d be so excited that a friend wants to talk or smth then get roped into this whole drama episode )

Have you ever had a crush on someone that, now as you look back, is completely embarrassing?

a: YES , STORY TIME! okay so i was like 17/18 and i liked this guy and at the time i thought i was being soooooo oblivious about it , but like a few months later a friend was like ‘ did u like so and so? ‘ and i was like ‘ was it that obvious? ‘ and they were all like ‘ painfully ‘ and to this day i still get randomly reminded by my brain how stupid , cringe worthy and weird i acted , like my brain is relentless in reminding me how fucking fat of an L that whole crush thing was........ 🙃

How would you react if you had a secret admirer?

a: depends, ive had ‘secret’ admirers who turned very obsessive in my past, so i’m naturally wary , but idk if someone thinks i’m cool i have no problem with that , but if you put me on this weird pedestal then i have a problem ... 🤲🏽 td;lr : id be as humble as possible bc then i’m reminded i’m perceived.

( part 4 ) 🍰

Favorite actress?

a: lupita n’yongo!!

Favorite type of food?

a: savory / rich/ salty food, i don’t really care for sweet foods ... or fried foods ? i don’t like large portions either tbh, i like to feel full not like dead lol. my favorite types are either seafood or seafood coupled with steak and other assorted meat and sides .

Favorite sport?

a: i liked playing volleyball, i like watching soccer and occasionally college football ( ik ik.... ) but i also love watching women’s professional gymnastics!!

( part 6 ) 🌯

Ever kissed someone who wasn’t single?

a: i don’t think so.... no! it sounds like smth i’d do on accident or smth tbh ... but not smth i’d do purposely!

Have you ever done anything illegal?

a: yes! lots of things! but i’m not gonna list them all here, nothing too serious but lol yes haha

Ever lied straight to someone’s face?

a: daily occurrence tbh, i’m really good at lying , i had to get good at it as a kid in order to avoid shit so 😌 now i can convince gross men that i’m in a relationship with a huge weightlifting bouncer and we have 3 kids and hes on isle 6 and will be back soon when i’m in walmart and some creep attempts to talk to me too much! and they’ll believe me.......

[steve0discusses]

Yugioh S4 Ep 13: Yugi Dies in California, Makes Everything Awkward

Hey guys. Yugi’s DEAD. (again, but way earlier in a season than I thought he’d be)

So lets get into it.

Last we left off, Pharaoh got imbued with the powers of Lime Green. A green that I swear used to be more Aqua, but seems to sort of shift and change depending on if it’s day or night.

As a consequence, Yugi now can’t have any communication with Pharaoh. I guess this makes it so now Pharaoh is split with his “light” side but like...both Yugi and Pharaoh have both light and darkness so...I see the metaphor going on, but I don’t think the metaphor actually...worked when you think about all the screwy stuff Yugi has done even without Pharaoh around. So just don’t think about it.

The big consequence of the Yugi Banishment was more that Yugi wasn’t there to tell Pharaoh how the Oricalchos card works because--and I say this a lot--but Pharaoh doesn’t know how to read.

Pharaoh’s biggest downfall isn’t so much his greed or pride this episode, it’s his goddamn illiteracy. If he took just five seconds to study the fine print then...he wouldn’t have even cast the Oricalchos in the first place. He did it because he wanted to protect his dragon Timaeus on the field, but the Oricalchos made Timaeus immediately disappear so...Pharaoh cast this for no reason other than the plot really wanted him to do it.

Just kinda shocking that Pharaoh, of all people, made such a huge card mistake when he’s supposed to be from where all cards came from. Then again, he’s separated from Yugi who I guess had more card input than I realized, because the rest of this episode is just Pharaoh playing kind of like a dumbass.

And on the voice acting side, the guy who plays Pharaoh had to try and talk even deeper--which was kind of funny when he’s already as deep as he can go. So...it just seems like Season 1 Pharaoh to me, except he laughs more.

TBH Pharaoh was WAY more rude to PaniK than he ever was to Rafael.

(read more under the cut)

Meanwhile, Rex and Weevil have joined the pack.

Only to be hassled by the pack.

And so, since this is a show about cards, how do you make Pharaoh look like a bad person when he...always plays cards, and is usually a good person for doing this same card playing thing?

And as the person in charge of the Death Count, sorry Yugi, that doesn’t even make sense to me. If you’re telling me that JUST NOW cards are suddenly real and not 10+ episodes ago, and if you’re telling me that all of the other times Dark Magician Girl died didn’t count?

If I had to count every time that a card died when I’m pretty sure they were real then we would also have to count most Bakura duels, probably that Pegasus duel, any Shadow game, really, and like...I don’t want to do the math so I am not counting Dark Magician Girl, y’all.

She was alive at the end of this episode, and as far as I’m concerned, her prime function--the reason she exists--is to die a lot. She’s a card, that’s what they do, and I doubt she even felt bad about it. Like...I don’t think the cards are mortal. Does that make sense? I just...maybe it hurt her but like...does she care? She’s a god in this universe.

You can’t kill Zeus. And like maybe people can hassle Zeus but like it would be maybe the sensation of an itch to Zeus if you stab him directly through the throat--that’s how I feel about Dark Magician Girl. She can take a beating and won’t even know it’s happening. Girl is freakin Zeus.

A lot of this Rafael arc is about making a false reality to justify your actions. Rafeal’s was a pretty extreme case involving cards that are angels and that are still cards...or something. Pharaoh’s was “I’ll be fine, I’ve always been fine, I’m very good at this, I’m the exception to every rule.” which is a much more approachable and relatable fake reality than Rafael.

Thing is, Pharaoh’s not entirely wrong. That’s usually true for him. He usually is the exception to every rule bending RNG to his every whim. Like there’s a reason why he took the chance on the Oricalchos, it really should’ve worked out.

And TBH, would have liked to see Pharaoh do this for longer than one episode, especially since him going his brand of cray only lasted during a card game, which I don’t really watch anyway. But eventually all good things must end, and it catches up to him when he realizes the horror he has wrought.

Spoiler, it’s not that horrifying.

Like for reals, I have seen Pharaoh do some THINGS and maybe this is a sign I’ve seen too much Yugioh when I’m like “lol Pharaoh went nuts and that was it???”

I cannot believe he did not pull out even so much as a single knife this entire episode. The hatchets are right there. Then again, his puzzle powers don’t really work in the Oricalchos realm so he has to play normie style. But knives are pretty normie. I feel like Pharaoh should have pulled out some sort of makeshift brain teaser involving knives, but youknow, this season is very much more for kids than previous seasons of Yugioh.

Again, what he did to Panik is about 1000x worse than making a Halloween Kuriboh.

But, now that all the cards he sacrificed to the Shadow Realm are being resurrected and used against him, he looks into the blank face of Dark Magician Girl and accepts his defeat.

Which is very similar to what happened to Kaiba in the earlier seasons of this show. Pharaoh got Pharaoh’d.

But...while it is a throwback, heaven forbid that this show used a real ass human as a stand in for Dark Magician Girl in this scene. Could’ve had just any actual person standing around here to make Pharaoh realize a change of heart--maybe even the kid he banished in his head? But nah.

It was Dark Magician Girl for this emotional beat.

I mean we are watching Yugioh but lol, that was a decision the writing team made. Joey Wheeler’s right over there. Maybe remove Tea from that RV? No? Want to use Dark Magician Girl instead? OK then.

Anyway, now that Pharaoh was shamed enough by a paper card to remember how to be slightly more human, Yugi holds his Puzzle high over his head and screams “BY THE POWER OF THE MILLENNIUM PUZZLE!” or something and does his own brand of magic. Surprise, it’s punching stuff.

Punching stuff is always the answer.

So apparently the puzzle is more powerful than Oricalchos. Which we basically knew the whole time, I mean...Pharaoh got possessed by Oricalchos and all it did was make him play cards.

I can’t believe no one got set on fire that entire sequence.

So, since the Oricalchos demanded a soul, Yugi figured out a loophole.

And again, another Yugioh game was ended by someone threatening to kill himself, and this time it was Yugi. Who died so that Pharaoh’s yummy soul would not resurrect the Great Leviathan.

Because, while Yugi may be a soul-copy and somewhat reincarnation of the Pharaoh? Or something? He’s still not yummy enough. Not yummy enough for that Leviathan tummy.

Which lead to this great scene that I’m sure you’d remember vividly if you ever saw it even once. This is so unexpected and wild and everyone should see it.

This is moments following a very heavy death in the show--Pharaoh’s lowest point--and it is just SO JARRING AND FUNNY in context. I don’t think they meant it to be that way but I had to rewind like 8 times.

First off, enjoy this wtf helicopter, and then...

Wow.

A+ animation, I would never have been so bold as to do drop Pharaoh like a sack of potatoes from 50 feet in the air right after killing Yugi Muto on screen. 10/10. Amazing.

And after it happens, Duke kinda looks over and has the gall to ask... “Are you guys all right?” It’s just...

Wow.

I’m applauding at my computer, I am so glad that whole sequence exists. I’ll probably lift it eventually just to have.

And then the rest of this episode is Pharaoh trying to tell everyone what happened but Everyone still doesn’t quite get it, despite how wildly blunt Pharaoh is.

Cue the endless crying, because if this show loves anything, it’s men in eyeliner openly weeping into the dirt at their feet. Thankfully, Yugi had the foresight to get waterproof mascara, because if he’s gonna die, he doesn’t want Yami to blow up that perfectly cut stiletto heel line.

MAN I am so jealous of this teenage boy’s makeup.

And since I asked the void nicely for Yugioh to be in PAD, and now that PAD put Yugioh in there as if it heard me, I will now turn my attention to Sephora.

Please, Sephora, make me a Yugioh makeup line that is waterproof as hell so I can ugly cry in the hottest desert in America and still not smudge, thx.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand Yugi Muto is officially dead!

Didn’t expect that, being real.

Wow.

Really I thought that they would die if ever they ever got separated, but apparently Pharaoh is fine he just...lacks his Yugi half that knows how to read stuff and had a slightly longer attention span.

I can’t believe they cured Yugi of his curse! Congrats, Yugi! You are no longer possessed! 

Y’all. Lets just appreciate the Yugioh Episode 13 curse for a bit.

First episode 13, Bakura killed everyone with like no warning

Second Episode 13 was Ankle-slicing Bandsaw Clown

Third Episode 13 Noah revealed he was Seto’s Secret Already Dead Brother trying to take over Seto’s body

Fourth Episode 13 Yami finally managed murdering Yugi.

Like I dunno if they planned for all 13s to be all the WTF ones, but I’m glad it’s managed so far. I should’ve known when I started this episode that it was a 13, but I just...I just forgot.

Really thought Yami was going to survive this one and we’d have to bury Rafael on this mesa. Lucky for them and the local police, it’s just paranormal murder today.

Anyway...there’s like a lot more episodes of this season left and I don’t know where it’s going anymore. Should be fun. At the rate we’re going, we’re gonna take a bike ride over to New York City to do more card games on the desert Mesas of NYC. Lets see how long Yugi will remain dead.

Maybe next episode Pharaoh will just throw on a bedsheet and Rebecca’s shower sandals so he can go full Egyptian Era? Maybe the eyeliner will be drawn all the way to his freakin ears? Y’all what if he gets really into beads and gold now?

(and if you just got here, this is a handy link to read all of these recaps in chrono order. There’s a lot of them.)

[aliciameade]

Bechloe Week 2019: Day 2 - Coworkers

“In the Closet” - Rated T

Also on AO3

~  ~  ~

~  ~  ~

“Burning the midnight oil again?”

Chloe looks up and over her computer screen and smiles. “Always.”

“Why are you still here?” Beca leans against the empty desk across from Chloe’s and pockets her iPhone. Her clear intent to focus on their conversation makes the ever-present butterflies in Chloe’s stomach stir.

She uses the welcome interruption to stretch, arching her back as she lifts her arms. She knows it makes her shirt ride up; it’s why she does it. “I need to get my team’s budget for Q2 uploaded before midnight.”

“Procrastinate much?” Beca says with a smile. It isn’t lost on Chloe that her eyes seem to pointedly avoid Chloe’s once she’d finished stretching.

Chloe shrugs and rolls her chair back from her desk to twist absentmindedly back and forth. “I work better under pressure.”

“I feel that.” She watches as Beca pulls something out of a back pocket of her jeans: a keycard, which she waves conspiratorially. “I swiped Aubrey’s badge when she was in the bathroom and I’m going to raid the snack closet. Want something?”

Yeah. You. “I’m good, but thanks,” Chloe replies with a dismissive wave. Her long-standing crush on her coworker—or rather, her ability to control her crush—tended to wax and wane. Sometimes, Chloe feels a zing of happiness when she and Beca catch each other’s eye as one walks through the other’s area and it would keep her happy the rest of the week. Sometimes, Chloe walks past the copy room to find Beca on her hands and knees in front of the huge printer/copier trying to fix the paper jam and Chloe returns to her desk mind so full of fantasies that she would have to step into the restroom to touch herself.

It wasn’t that dating coworkers is disallowed. Neither is the other’s supervisor; they aren’t even in the same department. But Chloe had spent the first three months of Beca’s employment sure the woman was straight, or, at the very least, in a relationship with a man. Beca started to bring in personal items for her desk and Chloe loved the glimpses into her life until one of those items was a photo of Beca kissing the cheek of some guy in front of the entrance to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

“Some guy.” Chloe knows who it was: Jesse, Beca’s boyfriend.

Or, she assumes he’s Beca’s boyfriend. She was always meeting him for lunch, or he would stop by the office just to bring her a cup of her favorite coffee, or she’ll say, “Jesse,” when Chloe teasingly asks her who she’s texting when she notices her smiling at her phone.

That smile was something else. It did things to Chloe. Twisted her up inside. Made her second-guess her words from time to time which was a rarity for her when she had a crush. But “crush” seems an ill-fitting term for what she feels for Beca. Enamored. Bewitched. Besotted. Those are more apropos.

But hidden among all the photos and trinkets, Chloe had noticed one tiny flash of bright colors. A rainbow bracelet, one of those rubber ones that companies toss out at the Pride parade every year, wrapped around a cup on Beca’s desk. She’s thought a lot about that bracelet: if Beca just likes bright colors (that didn’t seem right). It doesn’t have to mean anything, of course; maybe Beca is a good ally.

Or maybe Beca’s something other than heterosexual and got the bracelet because she caught it at a Pride parade celebrating herself.

Chloe raps her nails on her keyboard a few times trying to remember what she was in the middle of doing before Beca interrupted her but her focus has shifted. She thinks about snacks, or, more accurately, the fact that Beca is in the snack closet. More than once over their few years working together, a fantasy has slipped through Chloe’s mind involving bumping into Beca somewhere in the office long after working hours—a conference room, the restroom, the break room, the snack closet—and making a suggestive comment to her, followed by a lengthy daydream of pinning her to a wall or sitting her on (or bending her over) the conference room table.

“Oh, my God, chill,” she says with a mind-clearing shake of the head. It does little to clear away the lust, though, and despite the nonstop argument happening in her brain, she rolls her chair back from her desk to stand.

She isn’t going to the snack closet. She just needs to take a lap, walk through the empty halls to give herself something else to think about.

Except in doing so, she finds herself stopped in front of the half-opened door of the snack closet watching Beca rifle through the cabinet that houses the company’s supply of chips, cookies, and crackers. There are already a few options on the nearby table, one of them being Chloe’s favorite (Oreos) and she can’t help but wonder if Beca had chosen it for her despite turning down her offer.

She sneaks up behind Beca until she’s inches away, then leans in with, “Boo!”

Beca’s reaction is a combination of a gasp and the word, “Shit!” as she tries to flee only to be trapped between the cabinet and Chloe. “Oh, it’s you,” she says after whipping her head around, eyes wide with surprise. “Jesus, don’t do that, dude.”

“Couldn’t help it,” she says with a shrug and doesn’t make an effort to move back and give Beca space. It was too nice to be so close to her. She smiles brightly when Beca turns around after finishing straightening out the bags of snacks she’d disrupted in her fright. “Find anything yummy?”

Beca seems taken aback by Chloe’s proximity but doesn’t comment on it. Instead, she swallows and tilts her head toward the choices on the counter. “Can’t go wrong with Cheetos.” Beca’s eyes are furtive; they refuse to hold Chloe’s gaze more than a second and in their nervous flitting, land on what seem to be Chloe’s mouth more than once.

The possibility thrills Chloe and she bites her lip as a test and it works; Beca’s eyes fall to her lips again. “So, I’ve been wondering,” she starts, “how long have you and your boyfriend been together?”

Beca’s brow furrows in confusion. “Boyfriend?”

“Yeah, you have pictures of him all over your desk. Jesse?”

A bark of laughter escapes Beca and she covers her mouth with a shake of her head. “Oh, my God,” she says with a small groan as she drops her hand. “Jesse is not my boyfriend.”

Chloe’s heart picks up pace. “No?”

“Best friend. Not boyfriend. Gross,” she adds under her breath.

“Any boyfriend?”

The corners of Beca’s mouth twitch. “No.”

“Girlfriend?” she hedges.

At that, Beca’s left brow arches. “No.”

“Partner of any kind?”

“Single and ready to mingle,” Beca says and then seems to regret it, grimacing. “I mean, uh, no.” She’s still thinking so Chloe waits for her to continue. “Um...you?” The question is forced and she can tell Beca feels awkward, but then again, Beca seems to feel awkward during most of their interactions.

The good news of Beca’s singledom makes it easy for Chloe to slip on a flirty smirk. “Oh, I’m very ready to mingle.”

“That’s nice,” Beca says with a tight jaw and a nod.

“Mm, it is.” Chloe lets her eyes slip to Beca’s lips and lingers there long enough that Beca’s blushing when she looks up again. “You know, Beca—”

She’s cut off by Beca darting forward to kiss her. It’s quick but there’s no doubt in Chloe’s mind that it was intentional and she smiles into it in the brief moment it lasts.

“I’m sorry,” Beca says the second their lips part. “I shouldn’t have just—”

“Ready to mingle, indeed,” Chloe interrupts with a wider smile as she steps further into Beca’s personal space to rest a hand on her shoulder, thumb grazing the curve of her neck. She hadn’t been expecting it to play out this way, with Beca kissing her first. She hadn’t been expecting it to play out at all; she’d really been more on a fact-finding mission of curiosity, to crank up the flirtation and see if Beca would bite or not.

Instead, she seems to be the one who got hooked.

“Don’t apologize,” she continues. “I liked it.”

Beca manages to blush even harder but her chin lifts and the uncertainty in her eyes begins to fade. “Well, I mean, you’ve been hitting on me pretty hard, so I figured I’d put you out of your misery.”

The direct, punchy flirtation rattles Chloe, unprepared for it as she is. She also hadn’t expected Beca to call her out on her past—and current—behavior. “Was I that obvious?”

Beca squints at her. “Painfully.” Then she smiles one of the genuine smiles that always ties Chloe up in knots. “Took you so long to make a move; you forced my hand.”

“Well, I do like a slow burn.” She’s not totally sure how she’s keeping her cool right now; her insides feel like they’re on the spin cycle.

“The snack closet though? Of all places.”

“I had a fantasy.” She says it before she thinks she should maybe censor herself and it’s her turn to cover her mouth and blush. “Shit, forget I said that.”

This time, she gets both eyebrows lifting, accompanied by what should be an illegal smirk of impressed surprise. “Seriously? In here?”

“Oh, my God.” She has to cover her face with both hands. She’s legitimately mortified; admitting to your crush seconds after learning it’s mutual that you’ve fantasized about having sex with her in a closet at the office is high on Chloe’s list of what not to do [in real life].

“Hey,” Beca’s saying as she drags Chloe’s hands away from her face. That’s all she says because she leans in to kiss Chloe again.

This time it’s not as shy and it’s definitely not as quick. It’s slow and gentle and does wonders to erase Chloe’s moment of oversharing. She sighs and puts her hand back where it was along Beca’s neck and likes that Beca tilts her head when she does it like she’s inviting her to it. She likes how soft Beca’s lips are and the way they retreat only to return at a different angle. They’re figuring out what works, that first kiss that is as unfamiliar as it is thrilling and she knows they find their rhythm and angles when she hears Beca exhale. It’s not a moan, not even close to one, but it’s definitely a sound of pleasure.

She feels Beca’s hand on her shoulder mirroring her own and that’s what does it. Finally flips that switch inside her that’s been holding her back. She sighs, then lets the tip of her tongue slip along Beca’s lower lip. A tease. A question.

Beca’s copies the motion along Chloe’s lip a few seconds later and her heart leaps.

She inches her hand higher along Beca’s neck until her fingertips are slipping up and into the hair at the nape of her neck. Beca shivers and Chloe does a poor job of hiding her amusement, earning a mumbled, “Shut up,” against her lips before Beca’s tongue slips past her smile.

Someone does moan, then, but Chloe’s not sure who. She doesn’t need to know. All that matters is that Beca is an amazing kisser and things are beginning to escalate. Beca’s hands are in Chloe’s hair and Chloe’s are splitting duty between cradling Beca’s head and holding her waist to keep her close.

When Beca twists away to take a gasping breath, Chloe gives her a minute, just long enough before she proves she’s as good a kisser as Beca, teasing and playing with her tongue in a way that draws out a moan that is distinctly Beca’s.

“Shit,” Beca breathes when she turns away again. She’s all but clinging to Chloe who gives her a reprieve and shifts attention to her neck, trading kisses with teasing licks along its length and when she lets her teeth scrape, more an absentminded accident than anything, Beca moans again and her hips roll up into Chloe’s. “Shit,” Beca repeats, “okay.” She’s winded and it’s obvious. “Okay.”

Chloe eases back to look at her but her head is turned and her eyes are closed. “Okay?”

Beca nods sharply.

“Do you want to stop?”

“Yeah. I mean, no!” Beca finally opens her eyes and faces her. She looks well-kissed. “Sorry, I—”

“You’re right; we should stop.” Chloe says it so Beca doesn’t have to.

Beca starts to smile. “I don’t mean to deprive you of your fantasy.”

“Oh, my God, shut up,” Chloe laughs, giving her a light shove.

“Ah, dude! The edge of this cabinet is digging into my back enough as it is.”

Chloe gasps; the thought of Beca being in any kind of discomfort is horrible. She takes a step back, not even having noticed she’d had Beca seriously pinned awkwardly against the counter and cabinet. “I’m so sorry!”

“It’s okay.” Beca rubs at a spot on her shoulder and Chloe wishes she could kiss it better, but it might be a little too soon for such affections. “For the record, I really didn’t want to stop.”

Chloe’s still turned on and that doesn’t help settle her any. “No?” She watches in disbelief as Beca takes a step to close the distance Chloe created when she moved back.

She watches in disbelief as Beca shakes her head while she leans in and kisses Chloe again, now so confident that Chloe’s not sure how to process it. She retreats after a few seconds, though, and smirks. “My fantasy is doing it on Aubrey’s desk.”

Chloe gapes.

“With you. To clarify.” Beca winks and leans to kiss her again, another thorough yet brief one. “But maybe not for our first time.”

“No, yeah. Right.” Chloe smiles, still spinning. “Totes.”

“So, are you going to ask me on a date sometime this century? Or…”

She finally feels her brain start working again and hops like she’s been zapped. “Yes! Oh, my God, yes. Dinner? Tomorrow?”

Beca nods. “7:00 pm. Pick me up after work?”

Chloe laughs and pulls Beca back in for one more kiss. One, she hopes, will be one of a million more to come.

[imagine-loki]

Gifted

TITLE: Gifted (Sequel to Giftless)

CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: 11/?

AUTHOR: nekoamamori ORIGINAL IMAGINE: 

Imagine that you are Stark’s niece and you secretly share a strong relationship with Loki since he entered the crew. One day you get hurt so bad during a mission that you are about to die.  Loki knows a spell that will save you and share his immortality with you but you and he will be linked forever sharing thoughts, pain, emotions…

RATING: T NOTES/WARNINGS:  Also on AO3 click here

Somehow, Loki didn’t fight you the next morning when you insisted that you needed to go to class. He understood keeping up with your studies, even if he did want you to rest properly.  At least you only had a couple of lecture classes that day, so it wouldn’t be too strenuous.  You’d agreed that Loki could come with you as long as he didn’t misbehave too terribly during them. 

You laughed at him when he tried to leave the tower in his black suit of sexiness. He wasn’t dressing in his battle armor, since he wasn’t technically coming as your guard, but he wasn’t going to fit in wearing a full suit on campus.  Especially not that suit. “You can’t dress like that for college. Unless you’re teaching the class. And even then…” He looked at you confused. You were wearing your usual jeans, t-shirt, converse, and a hoodie stolen from Loki’s closet, your hair braided out of your way. Loki sighed, looking put upon, but magicked himself a pair of perfectly tailored jeans and a comfortable, but elegant sweater. You rolled your eyes, but that was the best you were going to get out of him. “Sit,” you told him, pushing him to one of the nearby chairs.

“So demanding this morning,” he teased, but sat obediently in the chair you’d pushed him into.  You weren’t giving him much of a choice.  Sure he could overpower you, but that would upset you, which he didn’t want.

“You’re trying to blend in, right?” you asked. He sighed, looking even more put-upon, but let you brush his shoulder-length hair. He pretended to be annoyed, but was purring within moments of you touching his hair.  You were one of the very few who could get away with touching his precious hair and he cherished the touch.  You pulled it quickly into a slightly messy manbun at the back of his head.

“What did you do to my hair?” he asked when he stood again and saw it in a mirror. He wasn’t upset, just curious.  You hadn’t hurt his hair or cut it off, so you were safe from his ire.

“Lots of guys wear their hair like that now. It lets you get away with having long hair without people thinking it’s weird,” you explained easily.  You then gave him a mischievous grin and stood up on your toes to place a kiss on part of his neck that was usually covered in hair. “Plus I can do that,” you replied while he shivered at the new sensation and purred. 

You drove to campus and parked, mostly because Loki didn’t know exactly where he was going. He offered to teleport you, but you reminded him again that you were trying to blend in and lie low. It was hard enough blending in being who you were.

Once you had parked, you led Loki to the campus coffee shop to get caffeine. The barista started making your order the second you walked in. You were definitely a regular.  You placed an order for Loki, choosing something he’d like, since he’d never been there before and didn’t know what to order for himself. “New boyfriend?” the barista asked when you picked up your drink. Which was announced for ‘Sigyn’ even when you hadn’t given your name.

You grinned at her. “Nope, same boyfriend I’ve had for two years,” you replied. She just stared when she realized that meant that the man with you was the real Loki. “It’s just his first time visiting campus,” you handed Loki his drink and you left the shop to walk to class. It was nice feeling normal for once, getting to stroll to class with your boyfriend. You strolled leisurely across the beautiful campus and made it to class in plenty of time.

The lecture hall was huge and you hoped the professor wouldn’t notice the extra student. You didn’t need to worry. If they noticed, they wisely didn’t say anything. There were whispers from some of the students, but nothing major that you couldn’t ignore. 

You had to stab Loki hard in the side with a pen when he was flirting innocently with some of the college girls who wouldn’t leave him alone. They giggled at his expression when he got ‘caught’. Silly Trickster boyfriend. He didn’t cause too much trouble though, so you took him out to a yummy lunch on campus. It wasn’t a fancy place, since it was on a college campus, but it was still a nice meal.

After your other class of the day, you headed back to the tower. You’d had to promise Tony and Pepper that you would hang out with them some that weekend instead of just hiding in your apartment. You also had no food in your apartment and didn’t want to go shopping, so you let Loki drive you home to the tower. He really liked driving because he couldn’t on Asgard; he also liked being the gentleman and doing the driving.  He could be extremely old fashioned at times.

You did your homework quickly for the weekend in your pajamas in the common room. You weren’t going anywhere else that afternoon, so it really didn’t matter if you were in pajamas. Even if your uncle grumbled that you were wearing a spaghetti strap tank top. It wasn’t scandalous, but he was your uncle and claimed he didn’t want to see that much skin. 

You luckily didn’t have much homework, but you still wanted it all done so you could enjoy your weekend. You also really loved having access to all of Loki’s knowledge through the soulbond. It made your classwork and homework a lot easier. Yes, it was cheating. No, you didn’t care. You were too overworked as it was. And it wasn’t like you didn’t know the information.  You were just doing the college thing at all to get the degree.

While you were working on homework, Loki got a summons to go talk to Fury. He looked worried at leaving you and really didn’t like Fury much, so didn’t want to see him.. “Lo, it’ll be what, five minutes? You know Fury doesn’t do speeches. I’m just going to sit here and finish this assignment. He probably just has some paperwork or something for you to fill out,” you reminded him. 

He sighed, but got off of the couch and moved to your end of the couch to lean down and give you a kiss. “I will return soon,” he promised. He teleported down to Fury’s office and you went back to your assignment. 

You should’ve known things wouldn’t stay quiet.

A few minutes after Loki had left, the one of the apprentice healers portaled into the room. “Kat, good, you’re here!” she exclaimed. 

You shook your head, hurt that you wouldn’t be able to help with whatever emergency they had found this time. “I can’t help, Claire,” you reminded her, holding up your wrist with the bangle on it. You knew for a fact that all of the healers had been warned that you were out of commission.  Claire completely ignored you, grabbed your hand, made a portal, and dragged you through it. “Claire, I literally cannot help,” you reminded her again. Usually the healers weren’t quite this ninny-like.

“All of the healers are tapped or out on patrol. You’re the only one with any juice left. You have to take this case, Kat,” she pleaded. There weren’t many healers, really besides Healer Julia most of them only had a touch of healing power in addition to their main ability. You sighed and let her drag you to Healer Julia’s desk. Julia was nearly passed out sitting at her desk chair, you could see how drained she was. She recovered insanely quickly, in a couple hours she’d be fine to work again, but she didn’t have the same level of healing strength that you did.

“I know you’re off duty,” Julia greeted you when you were standing in front of her desk. “But it’s Pepper-”

“Aunt Pepper?” you demanded, completely on alert then. “What happened?” you asked, your brain automatically going into healer mode and emergency to deal with mode.  It was the same state you’d been in for most of the last year and your mind instantly wanted to help.

“She was severely injured on patrol.” That was strange. Middle of the day patrols were notoriously safe. Pepper should have been fine. Hel, she shouldn’t have even been out on patrol.  She should’ve been at Stark Industries.  

Julia was digging in her desk drawer for something. She dumped the entire drawer’s contents on the floor and pulled out a key from the mess. “Your uncle should forgive you for this when you save his fiancee,” Julia replied with a glint in her eye. She unlocked the metal bangle around your wrist. She had the whole rest of the infirmary to deal with. Leaving you just the one patient.

Tony was going to kill you, but you couldn’t let Pepper die. They wouldn’t have called you if it wasn’t urgent. “Where is she?” you demanded of Claire. You ran together to the emergency bay. 

You knew the second that you saw Pepper that the healers were right to call you. You had seen wounds that bad and in this same method only twice before. Pepper had been impaled by a large metal spear. “This is bad,” you told Claire. She didn’t have healing magic, but volunteered in the infirmary anyway. You had to focus to call up your healing magic, to get your hands to glow. 

Shit. 

You was still too drained for this healing, but you were going to have to do it anyway. You were the only one who could, if you wanted Pepper to live. Pepper had been nearly gutted when she was impaled. She would die and you couldn’t let that happen. 

You went to her side, your hands just above the wound in her chest. “Pull the spear,” you told Claire firmly. You had gotten used to taking charge in the infirmary over the past year and the healers obeyed your orders without question.  You placed both of your hands on Pepper’s wounds the second the spear was cleared and threw every ounce of power you could muster into her, praying it would be enough to save her.

Tony would be devastated if Pepper didn’t survive.

You didn’t know how long the healing took. You were low enough on power that you were lost to the healing trance. You’d had to let it sweep over you, sweep you away before you could even start the healing. Things were bad when you had to let the power guide you and not the other way around.

“Kat! No!” you heard Loki’s voice from far away. His cool arms wrapped firmly around your waist and hauled you bodily away from Pepper’s bed, breaking your physical contact with her. Your powers were too weak to do the healing with out touching her and the magic snapped.

“Loki?” you asked softly, confused. You looked over Pepper. She was healed, or very nearly. She’d be sore, might scar, but she was healed. She would be just fine.

Loki carefully set you on your feet, like he was evaluating-

Your legs buckled and you would’ve been on the ground if his arms hadn’t still been around you. He caught you easily and supported you.  “M‘m ok,” you murmured, wondering why your vision was dark and getting blacker by the moment. He cursed and you looked up at him, still confused. You were just tired from the massive healing. He held you against him with one arm and used his other hand to summon a portal, through which your uncle fell.  It seemed he’d picked up the portal trick from Doctor Strange. 

“What the hell?” Tony roared in anger. Loki lifted you off of your feet and handed you to Tony.

“Keep her away from Lady Potts,” Loki ordered, gesturing to Pepper on the bed. He stormed out of the room without another word. 

“Kat? What’s going on-? Shit! What the hell happened to you?” Tony demanded, turning his attention to you, even above Pepper. He laid you on the couch in the emergency bay.

“I’m fine, Tony,” you tried to insist.

“You’re bleeding from your eyes, and nose, and ears,” Tony replied as he looked you over. “You haven’t been able to move an inch since I got here. And your eyes are…black. What the hell were you thinking?” he demanded, terror in his voice.  This was magic.  Tony couldn’t fix magic. 

“Pepper,” you told him simply. It finally got through to his brain that it was Pepper lying on the bed. “Go to her. I’m fine,” you added. You weren’t fine.  You were a dirty, rotten liar.  Now that the adrenaline of emergency healing was gone, you realized how badly you weren’t fine. Luckily, you were bound to the god of lies, and Tony believed you.  Or at least believed you enough to determine you were stable while he evaluated Pepper. 

Loki stormed back in a minute later. He ran to your side when he realized that Tony was dealing with Pepper and not you. “You were supposed to take care of her,” Loki growled at Tony.  He had left you in your uncle’s care.

“She’s fine,” Tony replied, too busy examining his fiancée.  He really thought you were stable.

“She is anything but fine. Her body was seconds from shutting down. I don’t even know how she even completed that healing. She should have passed out long before she got to this state.” Loki replied heatedly, fretting over you.  

“Lo, the wound-” you had to tell him where you’d seen it before. Each breath hurt, everything hurt.  Your body was pissed at your abuse of it.  

You managed to move your hand enough to touch Loki’s. You could switch to telepathy with physical contact.  You were too weak to do it otherwise.  /I’ve only seen that kind of wound twice before. When Thor did it to you and Tony/ you told him, desperate to deliver your message.

“Stop that,” Loki snapped at your use of telepathy.  You realized how bad you must look when his voice turned harsh toward you. He fastened the bangle back around your wrist himself. 

Yeah, he was pissed. 

“We will deal with Thor later. Right now, we are leaving.” Loki scooped you up in his cool arms. You couldn’t have fought him if you wanted to. You didn’t want to. You wanted to rest and sleep forever and your head lulled onto his shoulder.

“Where are you going?” Tony demanded, whirling when Loki said you were leaving.

“I’m taking her to Asgard. She obviously cannot get any rest here. She would have died today had I not intervened,” Loki told him, not bothering to mince his words.

“Couldn’t let Pepper die,” you replied sleepily, your eyes closing when you were safely in Loki’s arms.

“Stay awake, darling, just a little longer,” he bid you, finally softening his tone. 

Tony reluctantly nodded once.

“Go. Get her out of here. You’re right. This just proves that we can’t keep them from abusing her kindness or her healing gift. Not while she’s here.” Tony came over to Loki, and therefore to you. “Thanks for saving her, imp. Now go rest. You need to heal.” He kissed your forehead. “Take care of her,” he ordered Loki. Loki nodded, then recited the spell to open the portal back to Asgard.

[jq37]

thoughts on this week's ep?

**spoilers for broadway brawl**

***Before we start, I remembered as I was typing this one of the important notes I lost from last week’s recap: Interesting that Christmas seemingly went off without a hitch. I expected Santa to come back into play somehow (like, someone would check on him to make sure Christmas was still on or he’d call them in to help or something) but he hasn’t, at least not yet.***

My guys, my guys, my guys. Was that something or was that something?

I think I am on record as saying that combat is my least favorite part of ttrpgs generally speaking because I’m here for the RP but when a combat episode shines it really freaking shines (see eg: that first combat ep of Bloodkeep where everyone went full Galaxy Brain except for Matt who couldn’t hit a single thing) and this is such a good example. This is easily a top five ep of the season for me, maybe top three so let’s get into it and break down why it was so awesome.

We start right where we left off with Titania and members of her court having come into the theater to beat the tar out of Misty mid-show.

Quick note: At the end of last ep, it was set up so that Misty was thrust on stage right after hearing the mirror was on stage which would place this fight right at the top of Act 2 but at the start of this ep, Brennan seems to indicate that it’s taking place during what would be the closing number. Which would make more sense but imagine you go see a play, the first act is super dope, and then the second act is an insane, minute long fight that’s pretty unconnected to the plot and then a buff, naked, beautiful man tells you the show is over and you should leave. Wild. Anyway.

Pixies with tommy guns in inherently funny.

So one of the things that makes this fight really great is the way it directly ties into the story in a way besides “These bad guys are in our way.” Misty is using this show as a part of her reincarnation spell so if the show is messed up, it fails and she’s on her last life. Brennan has a cool mechanic of making her roll death saves every round at a difficulty lower than her modifier (which is s/t crazy like 11) but that gets harder with damage done to her and performance checks failed by other players who decide to jump on stage. It’s a great way to make the battle feel like it has more personal stakes and it’s my fave original Brennan mechanic since the Family in Flames Sophie’s Choice situation.

(I love that the death save counter is changed for theater comedy/tragedy masks for this. Nice touch.)

Em, Esther, and Wally are also at the fight which is clutch.

Also, Sondheim is specifically here which is an insane detail to add just because.

WILD that no one knows what’s going on with the ritual initially because, as Lou almost does, getting all the civilians out is the smart move and it would COMPLETELY ruin Misty’s plans instantly.

Lou having Kingston take the stairs bc’s he’s 50+ years old and has no time for that nonsense has equal but opposite energy to him doing extra rolls for Fabian to do unnecessary parkour before a simple attack because Fabian’s Like That.

Murph fireblasts the hell out of Titania’s foot soldiers right off the bat from outside of counterspell range which is very cool.

“Give me a performance check for the cockroach.”

“You’re upstaging me bitch?”

Another great thing about this fight is that because of it’s theatrical nature, everyone’s RPing it more than a usual battle ep (or more intensely maybe is what I mean).

Titania hypnotizes Don Confetti and his goons into fighting for her.

“She doesn’t know she’s in a play but she does sing most of her dialogue which is helpful for you.” Titania is just Like That.

Pete drops an erupting earth and drops a sick 37 damage on those same minions Kug got.

I didn’t notice before but yeah, Ally does roll die like a f-ing beyblade champion.

Emily hearing Murph’s low key, offhand comments and cracking up is great.

“Get Sondheim!” (Emily and then Ally: WHAT?!)

Actual living dude Stephen Sondheim being involved in this fight is just so ridiculous and fun and crazy.

We go around to Misty’s turn and she has to beat a 28 (upped from 10) and she fails which feels worse than a normal failed death save somehow.

Lou, in a very good RP move, tells Pete to tell Misty to end the show so she can tell them not to so the group has a valid reason to not evacuate which is a thing they (or at least him and Ricky) would obviously want to do.

Sophie, the madwoman, jumps out of the balcony, grabs a costume, then runs on stage. Emily’s glee at being told that her grabbing the costume will give her advantage is great. She’s always trying to figure out how to make the most of her moves. She is the living embodiment of the concept of method to madness (which is from Hamlet since we’re talking Shakespeare today). 

Ox is constantly dying (Brennan!) but also it’s like, why was he even there before the fight started? I’ve never seen a non-service dog in a theater.

Ricky: Is this part of it?

Oh, forgot to mention that everything that happens on stage is kinda shielded by the Umbral Arcana so everyone watching thinks it’s part of the show, which is a cool plot detail.

Ricky gets fULLY NAKED (Emily, with perfect comic timing: Now do I roll with disadvantage?) and leaps into the fray. He casts Protection from Evil and Good on her which (1) He does by Magic Mike body-rolling on her while he’s naked and considering how much shorter she is that her raises some interesting questions about positioning and (2) is the most clutch use of this spell I’ve seen in a while. It’s a spell I always wanna take as a Paladin because it makes sense character-wise, but I’ve never been able to actually use it because we’re never fighting fiends, fae, or celestial.

Brennan’s dime change change reversal of the critic’s comments on Ricky’s body rolls when Zac re-rolls his 11 makes me glad I never had to face him in a debate team setting.

Ally: What’s Esther’s deal ;)/Brennan: *Esther’s Weapon Stats*

“Your only secret you’ve ever had in your life is that you have a crush on her.”

Wally has a beautiful singing voice and a working knowledge of Midsummer's which is wild.

Lou’s periodic, “My man”’s when Ally/Pete does something cool. He’s very dialed into being Kingston.

Ricky’s aura keeps everyone near him from being charmed and Misty saves everyone else w/ a nat 20 counterspell. Few things in D&D are more satisfying than a well executed counterspell.

Titania trying to get Pete to be her consort or something when he just over the super posh Priya is very funny.

“I mean between me and Sondheim, get Sondheim!”

“DO WE HAVE HOMEWORK TONIGHT?” (“We did have homework.”)

Anyway, Misty has one success now!

Misty tries to use puppet to get Titania to drop her crown and it doesn’t work. Brennan says the crown is Crown of Stars which I looked up and it’s actually a spell, not a physical crown, but I’m assuming he used the mechanical effects of the spell on a physical item.

Brennan doing all these musical/singing bits when he absolutely doesn’t have to. I love it.

I love Ricky and Sophie being the two martial fighting heavy hitters of the group. Like, the two fighters, having the spellcasters’ backs.

I hope the one kung fu fan in the back of the theater never sees another Broadway show again because he’s gonna be so disappointed. 

“I’m just so inspired by that beautiful penis.”

Murph, out of character, verbally acknowledging how insane what they’re doing is. I love when someone pauses in a game of D&D to just recite what’s currently happening out of context so everyone can appreciate how crazy it is. D&D. Gotta love it..

Emily and Siobhan have a quick conversation in the background about whether Sondheim did Les Mis or not (not, that’s Claude-Michel Schönberg) while Brennan and Murph are Ring nonsense.

I also was mildly suspicious of Alyssa so I’m glad Kingston checked her out.

The entire roast of Brennan when he’s selecting D6s is an instantly iconic D20 moment. I can’t do it justice. You kinda just have to see it.

“Someone call Wizards of the Coast!”

Em, Wally, and Alyssa go out when Titania puts out a huge spell that blinds Kug.

“Yummy, yummy, tastes like ass.”

On Misty’s next turn, she rolls a fail which makes it 2 failures to 1 success. Brennan mentions that a nat 1 counts as 2 failures and a nat 20 counts as 2 successes. I’m sure that won’t be relevant later because you can’t foreshadow things when dice rolls are completely random.

Misty fails on puppet again again and Titania goes full Wicked Witch of the West on her and starts Jonesing for those shoessss.

Emily’s Emily(tm) move of the session is doing a flying leap at Titania, hitting her with a stunning strike and having Brennan retract the Box off Doom he was pulling out because she can’t save when she’s stunned. She just plummets out of the sky.

Don Confetti respecting the sacrament of marriage as he goes full Opera ghost and tries to garrote Sophie.

Ricky (still naked) grabs the crown from Titania, tosses it to Misty, and, with some improv and a good charisma roll, makes the show suddenly make sense to the very confused but entertained audience.

I’m so glad that Murph decided to turn into a bear and that they made the Winter’s tale ref. I should have had faith in Brennan and Siobhan, the theater nerds. Exit pursued by a bear y’all.

Lou and Emily bonding over being proud of their die for rolling well when they lend it out for a big roll.

Really wish Pete had wild magic surged in this fight. Just to add that extra bit of chaos. 

With a very good turn (no damage taken, no performances failed) Misty only has to avoid snake eyes to get through this turn. She leapfrogs over that low bar and rolls a nat 20, instantly fulfilling her win condition. At this point, the play is superfluous and Titania is still down.

“Brennan lost and now he knows reddit is gonna eat his ass.”

OK, remember how I said earlier that Misty seems like the kind of character you nudge a little temptation at just to spice things up? Yeah, her killing Titania and getting the crown of the Seelie Fae makes me a liiiitle apprehensive, but we’ll see how that turns out.

“I killed my queen! This is America we don’t have royalty here.”

“Bear, I don’t know who you are, but take me on your back, let me ride on stage.” —creator of West Side Story, Stephen Sondheim

Misty charms the critic at the show to make sure they get a good review which is such a fae thing to do.

Kingston’s clearly not loving attacking Don and Co. post “real fight” what with his whole Do No Harm thing (well, that’s Dr’s but same principle applies I assume) is a good character detail. For that matter, so is Ricky just taking Titania’s crown and not beheading her which he super could have done while she was down but it would have been very incongruous with everything else about him.

Brian “This isn’t Loony Tunes” Murphy throws Sondheim as a projectile weapon at a pixie who snaps the pixie’s neck and then does a monologue at the audience.

I love it when someone rolls low on an insight check and Brennan gives them useless info and then they repeat it in their character’s voice.

4 mins from the end of the ep, Siobhan realizes there are two Perrys in this story for the first time and has a bigger reaction to that than almost everything else in this ep except her nat 20.

Ricky looks for costume faun legs to cover his fully out dick instead of costume pants or even his own pants.

Misty starts glowing with reincarnation energy and she runs into her dressing room for privacy. Also, she still super hasn’t told anyone what’s going on. (ALSO, assuming she’s gonna make the world think she died, it’s gonna be wild for the company of the show to have their leading lady put on the performance of her life and then die on opening night).

“Who am I to refuse a crown when it’s placed so deftly upon my head?”

You know that behind the scenes thing where Brennan is like, “Yeah, I knew Siobhan was gonna steal that book,”? I got some of those vibes during the crown scene.

The implications of what Misty did are gonna be left until next ep but Brennan says something about her creating her own court and it looks like she’s recruiting followers in the promo. IDK how I feel about that (these stories tend to have great power--especially tied to powerful magical items--as a corrupting force) but I am very excited to see how it goes down! See you then!

[girls-scenarios]

Love and Relaxation

Idol: Heejin (Loona)

Prompt: Hi~ Could it be LOONA's Heejin scenario: she comforts the s/o about studies and suggests a cute little trip to nearest city to relax? (Can it be mainly focused on the trip?) Thank you so much!❤

Writer: Admin Kiwi

A/N: I need this type of vacation right now and I’m sure a lot of you can relate. I hope this gives you all strength during this midterms season!

♡ Tip Jar♡

You were tired. Heejin could see it written all over your face, even if you tried your best to be energetic whenever she saw you. The sleepiness came through your voice over the phone, and you yawned more than usual, staring off into space before snapping out of it. You talked to her a little bit about your studies, and she knew how hard you were working to get your degree, but you rarely told her about how tired you were feeling, especially since you knew she was working hard too. But now, she had been given a break, and you were still working as hard as ever. Midterms were coming up, and Heejin felt bad that she could do nothing to help you.

You had just called her to chat, laughing about leaving your lunch at home because you were so tired as you left, and she bit her lip. “Would you like me to bring you some food and coffee?” She asked, holding the phone close to her ear and standing to her feet. Your campus wasn’t too far from her....

“You don’t have to do that, babe,” you said, and she smiled, even though you couldn’t see her.

“I want to, though. It’s not like I’m doing anything else right now.” You let out a little laugh on the other end.

“Alright, then. Seeing you and eating something you made does sound good right now.”

“How much time do you have before your next class starts?”

“Like an hour and a half now.”

“Okay, that’s enough time. I’ll throw something together and be there soon.”

“Thank you, I really appreciate it. I’m in the library in one of the study rooms, call me when you get here.”

“See you soon, love you.”

“I love you too.” The line went dead, and she rolled her shoulders. It was time to get to work.

A little while later and she had a cutely packed lunch and coffee in hand, walking towards the library. Hyunjin had teased her as she left that she was being wife material, and the idea made her blush to her ears, but she couldn’t say that it didn’t make her happy.

You were tucked in the back of the library, head buried in your books when she found you. You looked a little bit like a mess, but a cute mess, and she walked over to gently put a hand on your shoulder, making you take out your earbuds and look up at her.

“Food’s here.”

“Oh, thank you. I’m starving.” You shoved your books to the other end of the table and moved your bag so that she could sit down beside you, yawning slightly. She placed the food and coffee in front of you as she sat down.

“Good thing I came then. I wouldn’t want my baby to starve to death.” You let out a little laugh as you began to dig in, and Heejin took a look at the books strewn across the table. Textbooks mixed with research books and your notes lay with scattered notes stuck inside, and way too many of them said “study!!” Wincing, she looked back at you. “How many more tests do you have this week?”

“Four, and an essay. My other test and essay were last night, so at least my professors thought to mix it up a little bit.” She nodded, reaching over to rub your arm.

“You’re incredible, (Y/N). I think my brain would explode reading all of these.”

“I feel like my brain is about to explode,” you said with a laugh, but even the laugh sounded stressed as you leaned into her touch. “Honestly, I’m stressing out a lot, and I can’t wait for spring break. I feel like I might collapse at any minute.” She frowned and took you into her arms, checking your forehead to make sure you weren’t getting sick.

“Don’t say that.... Is there anything I can do?” You shook your head slightly.

“No, just this is enough. It’s really nice to be able to talk to you.”

As she left the library, she couldn’t help but feel a little down. You were so stressed and tired, and she hated seeing you like that. If only she could do something to help....

“Just make their spring break awesome,” Hyunjin suggested when Heejin confided in her. “If their tired, book, like, a spa day or something. Take them to some hot springs and feed them lots of yummy food.”

“A trip! Wait, that’s a good idea, Hyunjin.”

“I’m full of them, obviously.” Heejin rolled her eyes at her best friend and pulled out her phone to Google vacation towns near her. Immediately, tons of spots popped up, and she could feel herself grinning.

“Thanks, Hyunjin. I’m going to take (Y/N) on the most relaxing trip of their lives.”

-

When Saturday finally rolled around, Heejin was so excited that she hardly slept. Even wrapped up in your arms, since you’d come over after your last test to spend the night, she found herself wide awake, thinking about the trip. So it was no surprise that she was up and packing everything into the car when you woke up.

“Since when are you an early riser?” You asked from her bedroom door, grinning sleepily and rubbing your eyes. She just laughed from where she was making you breakfast at the stove and turned around to wink at you.

“See? I told you this was going to be special.” You padded over to her from the bedroom and wrapped your arms around her waist, and she leaned back into you. “Did you catch up on some lost sleep?”

“A little bit. One night isn’t going to make up for a month’s worth of lost sleep though.”

“That’s what this trip is for, then,” she said, turning around slightly to give you a quick kiss as she pulled the eggs from the stove. “I already got all your things in the car. All you have to worry about is eating breakfast and getting ready to go.”

“Wow, what an amazing girlfriend you are,” you said, joking around, but there was sincerity in your voice that made her beam, proud of herself.

“I try. Now let’s hurry and eat breakfast so we can get this relaxation trip on the road!”

The town wasn’t very far away, just a bit further away from the hustle and bustle from the city, but after about thirty minutes of singing along with her to her “iconic girl groups” playlist, you were passed out, head pressed against the window.

“Wow, you were so tired,” she said quietly, reaching over to brush some of the hair out of your eyes before turning down the music. With a smile, she turned her eyes back to the road, nodding her head along to the muted beat of her playlist.

There was only an hour or two more to go. She could stay awake on her own, as long as it meant you catching up on much-needed sleep.

About an hour and a half later, she unbuckled her seat belt and reached over to gently shake your shoulder. “(Y/N), baby, wake up, we’re here.” You jumped a little and blinked sleepily, looking around.

“Woah, did I sleep the whole time?”

“Yes, but it’s okay, you needed it.” She grinned and playfully ruffled your hair before climbing out of the car and breathing in the fresh air. Out here, away from the city, the air was much cleaner.

“This place is beautiful,” you said as you climbed out, looking around in awe and running your fingers through your now-messy hair. “How did you find this place?”

“Lots of Googling. I wanted to find a place near a hiking trail and good picnic spots, but they even have hot springs here so it’s a perfect hit.” 

The hotel itself was gorgeous, made of beautiful stones and wood that perfectly accented the woods and lakes around it. It looked old and rustic, and as soon as the two of you stepped inside, you were greeted warmly by a jukebox quietly playing old hits and a rustic, yet new and updated, interior. A fireplace blazed in the corner, and although it was getting warmer outside, it still felt nice. After a talking to the girl at the front desk for a couple of moments, the two of you had a key and were headed up to the third floor.

“I got a suite,” she said as the two of you walked down the hall, “wait until you see it.”

The room was gorgeous, rustic yet sleek, and the two of you stepped in with wide eyes. A small kitchen greeted the two of you with darkened wood cabinets and speckled granite counter tops that led to bar seating opposite the sink. Plush carpet lined the floor after the kitchen, and the two of you kicked your shoes off as you walked deeper inside, taking in the tan and brown couch and chairs across from a fireplace and a large tv.

“There’s even a balcony,” you said, dropping your bag to walk over and open the balcony door. It look out over the woods, and the two of you could just hear the sound of the hot springs bubbling somewhere down below. Two chairs sat on the balcony, along with a small table, and you turned to smile at her. “We have to eat out here at least once.” Beaming with happiness, she nodded.

“That sounds wonderful.”

The bedroom was just as beautiful as the rest of the suite, with white and tan sheets and blankets covering the giant bed and a rustic wooden bed frame. A huge closet was at one side and a tv was mounted across from the bed, with a large window letting in natural light beside it. You fell into the bed as Heejin moved over to open the door to the bathroom and let out a gasp. The bathroom was huge too, with a Jacuzzi tub, large shower, and a long counter top with two sinks and plenty of towels.

“I feel like a rich girl,” she joked, taking down one of the beautiful robes to look it over.

“No kidding. How did you manage to book this place?”

“Lots of Googling,” she said again, coming out of the bathroom with the robe tied on over her clothes and posing against the doorjamb. “What do you think?” You burst into laughter when you rolled over to look at her, sitting up.

“You look cute,” you said, standing to join her in the bathroom. “Wow, we could just stay in here and never leave.”

“Yeah, but don’t you want to go down and experience the hot springs?” The two of you looked at each other for a moment, before both of you grinned and you reached up to grab your robe.

“Race you to get changed!” Both of you rushed out of the bathroom to find your bags, rummaging through them in an attempt to get your swim suits before the other person. Heejin beat you to the bathroom and locked herself inside, making you groan. “Hey, no fair!”

“Get changed out there, then!” When she opened the door again, her hair was tied up and she was once again wrapped in her robe, wiggling her eyebrows. “You ready, slowpoke?”

“Of course I’m ready, cheater,” you replied a laugh, tying on your robe. “Let’s go.”

The hot springs weren’t the largest she’d ever seen, but they were pretty big, and the steam coming off them made her raise her eyebrows. “Ooh, so pretty.”

“You really found a gem out here,” you said, looking around at the foliage as you hung up your robe.

“I’m glad you like it. I tried my best.” She stepped in first, wincing and splashing you when you laughed. “You can’t tease me out here, or I’ll take you home!”

“Oh, will you?” You climbed in with her, a smug look on your face, and she noticed how energized you looked already. Of course she wouldn’t take you home.

“You’re lucky this place doesn’t do refunds, you brat.”

After soaking in the hot springs for a while, until her fingers began prune-y and you looked like you might fall asleep in the pool, the two of you headed back up to the room.

“Room service time,” she said, skipping over to the phone with the menu beside it. “I heard they make amazing pastas here, is that okay with you?”

“Sounds great to me,” you replied as you headed to the bedroom, sending her a thumbs-up. “Dibs on the shower!” She rolled her eyes, but was smiling as she picked up the phone and dialed the number on the menu. Everything was going great so far.

The night ended with the two of you eating pasta in bed in your pj’s, watching some of your favorite cartoons until you yawned and leaned your head on her shoulder, drifting off. For a little while, she let the cartoons run, enjoying being so close to you, before eventually she turned off the tv and put away the pasta bowls. When she climbed back into bed, she pressed a little kiss to your forehead, promising that tomorrow would be even better.

-

The rest of the trip went so smoothly that Heejin found herself never wanting to go back. The hot springs were wonderful, but so were the hiking trails. The lake nearby was beautiful to sit beside and look at, and the two of you had a picnic there, eating slowly and admiring the view as you just talked and relaxed. The trails weren’t so hard that they were exhausting, and it was nice just to walk around, pointing out the different types of wildlife and trying to find giant pine cones to take home. At one point, you even found a flower, early in bloom, and jokingly got down on one knee to give it to her. She wore it behind her ear for the rest of the day, gently touching it and smiling whenever your back was turned.

She watched as the dark circles disappeared from your eyes, watched as you laughed freely and as your shoulders became less tense. Even at the cute drive-in movie theater, she found herself watching you a little more than the screen, although that was kind of normal for her. She just loved you that much. When the two of you ate dinner on the balcony, watching as the sun set, she couldn’t help leaning over to kiss you. You tasted like the Pho that the two of you had picked up on the way back to the hotel, and she took in the dusting of a blush on your cheeks, hardly visible in the dim evening light.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

The last day was the spa day, and she woke up not wanting to leave. Even if she wanted to go to the spa, she knew the two of you would have to leave early the next morning, and that thought made her not want to get up and go. You were already awake, a first for the trip, reading the book you’d brought along because “you needed to read more for fun instead of school”, and she whined as she rolled over, wrapping her arms around your waist. “I don’t want to get up.”

“Then don’t,” you said, smiling down at her and running your fingers through her messy hair. She yawned and closed her eyes, nuzzling into your stomach.

“Let’s just stay here forever.” You let out a chuckle.

“I wish we could, but I don’t think either of us could afford that.”

“Yeah. I still wish time would stop.”

“Me too.” The two of you sat in silence for a moment, listening to the birds chirping outside the window, before you cleared your throat, making her open her eyes to look up at you. “Hey, thanks for this trip. I really needed it. I was so stressed and tired, but now I feel rejuvenated. Like I can do anything when we get back. I don’t want to leave either, it’s been that great.” She smiled and reached up to lovingly pat your cheek.

“You’re welcome. I did all of this for you.”

“But did you enjoy yourself too?”

“Of course!” She sat up, climbing into your lap as you placed your book on the bedside table. “This has been the best trip of my life, I’m telling you. We should make this a tradition.”

“Really?” You raised your eyebrows and wrapped your arms around her, and she nodded.

“Really. Why don’t we do a little mini vacation for spring and fall breaks from now on?” A grin spread over your face.

“That actually sounds incredible. I’d love to do that, but you have to let me plan some too.”

“Sounds like a deal. Seal it with a kiss?” You laughed, and warmth filled her body as you leaned in to kiss her, pulling her closer. In a few hours, the two of you had to be up and ready for a spa day. But for right now, the two of you had nothing to do and nowhere to go, alone together to do whatever your hearts desired, and it was everything that she’d wanted it to be: perfect.

[mameleh-life]

Likes Navy Shells [yes with the right skirt it's a look thank you very much] and Long Walks on concrete: A social rejects dating profile for the end of the world and other things that might make you laugh 🙈

So the world is ending and I realize my chance of getting to Deal New Jersey for a beach walk [last summer my bubby was niftar and I never made it] is probably slim to none, my chances of getting to Miami and finally having that girls vacay possibly with a munchkie tag along and like an endless calorie limit because hello I'll be tanning and also I never eat that much on vacation anyways except coffee yogurt and chocolate cake and actual coffee [oh wait that's every day of my life no wonder I'm deficient in about a gazillion vitamins #thuglife] and so Yes, yes please give me the slice of chocolate cake with like five different types of chocolate and the thick layer of chocolate molded on top perfectly smooth like a really good facelift because yes I want to gain ten pounds by the end of this because I can and yes if I say a bracha before and after my neshama yeseira gets half the calories. And yes I did check to see if you can marry chocolate cake in America and no, no it's not yet a viable option but if I read enough Cathy comics I could convince myself that yes the chocolate cake is telling me how beautiful I look in this latest kiki riki shell it's so different than the one I wore yesterday 🙌

Also my dating profile needs alot of photos because let's face it my chances of meeting someone who actually can date me is probably less than the chances of me being mistaken for a mama who doesnt tell her kids "yes sheifeleh yes Terra chips are health food look how colorful they are they're vegetables and unicorn chips at the same time and mommy doesnt feel guilty about giving them to you because they were once healthy also they are just so yummy and they are the unicorns of the potato chip world🦄" and so the photos are really just for myself to be like okay okay so I'm single for life but look at that navy shell! I'm so chic I'm a french fashion editor I dont need men anyways I need Vogue and a summer getaway with a well curated edit of 'effortless hippie fashion' and like a pair of pink sunglasses because life should be tinted with Joy theres no other way to live and make it through the day with two babies pulling your hair and telling you mommy I just made a mess [translation: woman your mother is about to go ballistic and you will be cleaning for the next three days because you weren't watching your kids for five minutes so stop getting snacks from the fridge while reading the cat and nat book!]

Oh also I love reading female comedians who are authors: Amy Schumer, Ali Wong, Mindy Kaling and Cat and Nat [mamas!] And my personality is happy go lucky and hyper and my sense of humor is huge and I probably should not talk so much but I cant help it so save yourself the money on the coffee and just swipe left 👍

And lastly when asked my personal goals I probably should just write to have my babies my basherts in my arms my besties all beautiful amazing girls also my basherts on speed dial and a whole closet full of navy skirts, navy cardigans navy shells and headbands just like five million headbands and okay okay cool sneakers are the one fashion thing I still do right👟

So when I'm iy"H fifty and with my still babies and I'm still eating chocolate cake from Sage with my bestie to regain my calm after I just was adulting and you know had to do five million things with mommy brain and slight post traumatic stress disorder [but hey now well all have it together:)] I will say Baruch Hashem life is beautiful and that my friends is how we can find true inner peace by eating chocolate cake and focusing on the brachos 🙌

[sandranelsonuk]

581 Sensory Words to Take Your Writing from Bland to Brilliant

It’s almost too easy.

By using sensory words to evoke sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell; smart and attractive writers just like you are able to make their words burst to life in their readers’ minds.

In this post, you’ll learn:

The science behind sensory details (e.g. why sensory words are so persuasive);

The definition of sensory words (plus examples);

How answering five simple questions will help you write descriptive words that pack your content with sensory language;

500+ sensory words you can incorporate into your own writing (right now).

Let’s dive in.

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The Colossal Power of Sensory Details

Remember the final scene in Field of Dreams when Ray Kinsella has a catch with his dad?

You can smell the grass on the field.

You can hear the sound of the baseball hitting their gloves.

And you can feel Ray’s years of guilt melting away as he closes his eyes, smiles, and tosses the ball back to his dad.

(Be honest. You’re crying right now, aren’t you?)

Field of Dreams made you feel like you were in Ray’s shoes, on his field, playing catch with dad.

The scene creates such a vivid experience for many viewers that whenever they think of playing catch, this scene will come up alongside their own childhood memories.

Here’s why:

When you paint a strong scene in your audience’s mind, you make it easier for them to pull it back up from their memory. You’ve essentially bookmarked it for them so they can easily find it when something — a sight, a smell, a sound — reminds them of it.

That’s the power of content that incorporates sensory details.

And this power isn’t limited to cinema classics capable of making grown men cry. For centuries, literary giants have been packing their prose with powerful words that evoke the senses:

“Cry ‘Havoc,’ and let slip the dogs of war; That this foul deed shall smell above the earth With carrion men, groaning for burial” — William Shakespeare (circa 1599)

In addition to The Bard, authors like Maya Angelou, Edgar Allan Poe, and Charles Dickens excel at sensory language. So do literally every famous poet you learned about in school.

And that begs the obvious question…

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Why are Sensory Details so Effective?

Short answer:

Our brains handle sensory words differently than ordinary words.

In a 2011 study published in The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, experts found that our brains process “tangible” (i.e. sensory) words faster than other words.

And in a study published for Brain and Language in 2012, psychologists found that a certain part of our brain is “activated” when we read sensory words.

In other words:

So, we know why sensory details are powerful. And we know writers have been tapping into their power for a long, long time.

Now let’s define them and go over a few examples:

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What are Sensory Words?

Sensory words are descriptive words — using imagery, they describe how we see, hear, touch, taste, and smell the world around us.

Let’s break each one down:

#1. Sight Sensory Words

Words related to vision describe the appearance of something (its color, size, shape, and so on).

Examples of visual words:

Her golden hair looked disheveled thanks to the gust of wind.

He was a towering presence.

I ordered a large orange juice, but the waiter brought me a teeny-tiny glass the size of a thimble.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Sight Sensory Words.

Angular Azure Billowy Black Bleary Bloated Blonde Blue Blurred Blushing Branching Bright Brilliant Broad Brown Brunette Bulbous Bulky Camouflaged Chubby Circular Colorful Colorless Colossal Contoured Cosmic Craggy Crimson Crinkled Crooked Crowded Crystalline Curved Dark Dazzling Deep Dim Dingy Disheveled Distinct Drab Dreary Dull Dusty Elegant Enchanting Engaging Enormous Faded Fancy Fat Filthy Flashy Flat Flickering Foggy Forked Freckled Fuzzy Gargantuan Gaudy Gigantic Ginormous Glamorous Gleaming Glimpse Glistening Glitter Glittering Globular Gloomy Glossy Glowing Gold Graceful Gray Green Grotesque Hazy Hollow Homely Huge Illuminated Immense Indistinct Ivory Knotty Lacy Lanky Large Lavender Lean Lithe Little Lofty Long Low Malnourished Maroon Massive Miniature Misshapen Misty Motionless Mottled Mountainous Muddy Murky Narrow Obtuse Olive Opaque Orange Oval Pale Peered Petite Pink Portly Pristine Prodigious Purple Quaint Radiant Rectangular Red Reddish Rippling Rotund Round Ruby Ruddy Rusty Sabotaged Shadowy Shallow Shapeless Sheer Shimmering Shiny Short Silver Skinny Small Smudged Soaring Sparkling Sparkly Spherical Spotless Spotted Square Steep Stormy Straight Strange Striped Sunny Swooping Tall Tapering Tarnished Teeny-tiny Tiny Towering Translucent Transparent Triangular Turquoise Twinkling Twisted Ugly Unsightly Unusual Vibrant Vivid Weird White Wide Wiry Wispy Wizened Wrinkled Wrinkly Yellow

  #2. Sound Sensory Words

Words related to hearing often describe the sound they make (known as onomatopoeia), but this isn’t always the case.

Examples of hearing words:

He had a big, booming voice.

The sound of screeching tires was soon followed by the deafening sound of a car horn.

As I peeked under the bed, the cackling laughter coming from the closet made the hairs on my arms stand up.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Sound Sensory Words.

Babble Bang Barking Bawled Bawling Bellow Blare Blaring Bleat Boom Booming Bray Buzz Buzzing Cackle Cackling Chatter Chattering Cheer Chiming Chirping Chuckle Clamor Clang Clanging Clap Clapping Clicking Clink Clinking Cooing Coughing Crackle Crackling Crashing Creak Croaking Crow Crunch Crunching Crunchy Cry Crying Deafening Distorted Dripping Ear-piercing Earsplitting Exploding Faint Fizzing Gagging Gasping Giggle Giggling Grate Grating Growl Grumble Grunt Grunting Guffaw Gurgle Gurgling Hanging Hiss Hissing Honking Howl Hubbub Hum Humming Hush Jabber Jangle Jangling Laughing Moaning Monotonous Mooing Muffled Mumble Mumbling Murmur Mutter Muttering Noisy Peeping Piercing Ping Pinging Plopping Pop Purring Quacking Quiet Rant Rapping Rasping Raucous Rave Ringing Roar Roaring Rumble Rumbling Rustle Rustling Scratching Scream Screaming Screech Screeching Serene Shout Shouting Shrieking Shrill Sigh Silent Sing Singing Sizzling Slam Slamming Snap Snappy Snoring Snort Splashing Squawking Squeaky Stammer Stomp Storm Stuttering Tearing Thudding Thump Thumping Thunder Thundering Ticking Tingling Tinkling Twitter Twittering Wail Warbling Wheezing Whimper Whimpering Whine Whining Whir Whisper Whispering Whistle Whooping Yell Yelp

  #3. Touch Sensory Words

Touch words describe the texture of how something feels. They can also describe emotional feelings.

Examples of touch words:

Two minutes into the interview, I knew his abrasive personality would be an issue if we hired him.

With a forced smile, I put on the itchy Christmas sweater my grandmother bought me.

The Hot Pocket was scalding on the outside, but ice-cold in the middle.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Touch Sensory Words.

Abrasive Balmy Biting Boiling Breezy Bristly Bubbly Bubby Bumpy Burning Bushy Chilled Chilly Clammy Coarse Cold Cool Cottony Crawly Creepy Cuddly Cushioned Damp Dank Dirty Downy Drenched Dry Elastic Feathery Feverish Fine Fleshy Fluff Fluffy Foamy Fragile Freezing Furry Glassy Gluey Gooey Grainy Greasy Gritty Gushy Hairy Heavy Hot Humid Ice-Cold Icy Itchy Knobbed Leathery Light Lightweight Limp Lukewarm Lumpy Matted Metallic Moist Mushy Numbing Oily Plastic Pointed Powdery Pulpy Rocky Rough Rubbery Sandy Scalding Scorching Scratchy Scummy Serrated Shaggy Sharp Shivering Shivery Silky Slimy Slippery Sloppy Smooth Smothering Soapy Soft Sopping Soupy Splintery Spongy Springy Sputter Squashy Squeal Squishy Steamy Steely Sticky Stifled Stifling Stinging Stony Stubby Tangled Tapered Tender Tepid Thick Thin Thorny Tickling Tough Unsanitary Velvety Warm Waxy Wet Woolly

  #4. Taste Sensory Words

Taste words are interesting. Though they can describe food, they’re often used in comparisons and metaphors.

Examples of taste words:

It’s a bittersweet situation.

Her zesty personality caught Karl’s eye.

The scrumptious jalapeno poppers comforted Karl after his bitter rejection.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Taste Sensory Words.

Acidic Appetizing Bitter Bittersweet Bland Buttery Charred Contaminated Creamy Crispy Delectable Delicious Doughy Earthy Fermented Flavorful Flavorless Floury Garlicky Gingery Gritty Hearty Juicy Luscious Medicinal Mellow Melted Nauseating Nutritious Nutty Palatable Peppery Pickled Piquant Raw Refreshing Rich Ripe Runt Savory Scrumptious Stale Sugary Syrupy Tangy Tart Tasteless Unripe Vinegary Yummy Zesty

  #5. Smell Sensory Words

Words related to smell describe — yes, you guessed it — how things smell. Often underutilized, sensory words connected with smell can be very effective.

Examples of smell words:

The pungent smell was unmistakable: someone in this elevator was wearing Axe Body Spray.

No matter the expiration date, it was clear from its rancid stench the milk had gone bad.

The flowery aroma was a welcome change after the elevator and milk incidents.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Smell Sensory Words.

Ambrosial Antiseptic Aroma Aromatic Briny Citrusy Decayed Decomposed Doggy Fetid Floral Flowery Foul-smelling Fragrant Gamy Gaseous Horrid Inodorous Malodorous Mephitic Musky Musty Odiferous Odor Odorless Old Perfumed Piney Polluted Pungent Putrid Rancid Rank Redolent Reeking Scent Scented Sickly Skunky Smell Smoky Stagnant Stench Stinky Sweaty Tempting

  Note on Taste and Smell:

Because they’re closely related, some sensory words can be used for both taste and smell. Examples: fruity, minty, and tantalizing.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Taste and Smell Sensory Words.

Acrid Burnt Fishy Fresh Fruity Lemony Minty Moldy Mouth-watering Rotten Salty Sour Spicy Spoiled Sweet Tantalizing

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Sensory Details: Examples in the Wild

Imagine the following headline came across your Twitter feed:

How to Avoid Using Boring Stock Photo Images in Your Content

Would you click it?

Better question…

Could you read the headline without falling asleep?

The answers are probably “no” and “heck no.”

Now imagine you saw this headline:

Much better, right?

The simple addition of the sensory word “cringeworthy” changes the tone of the entire headline. Instead of yawning, you’re thinking of an awkward or embarrassing moment you really don’t want to relive.

Let’s look at a few more modern-day examples of sharp people using sensory language to spruce up their content:

Using Sensory Words in Author Bios

I’ll pick on me for this one.

Here’s the author bio I used for one of my first-ever guest posts:

Kevin Duncan is the owner of Be A Better Blogger, where he helps people become the best bloggers they can be.

Now look at the author bio my friend Henneke wrote for Writer’s Block: 27 Techniques to Overcome It Forever:

Henneke Duistermaat is an irreverent copywriter and business writing coach. She’s on a mission to stamp out gobbledygook and to make boring business blogs sparkle.

My bio is devoid of sensory words (or any interesting words at all, if we’re being honest).

Henneke’s is chock full of them.

Her bio is interesting.

Mine is boring.

The lesson? Add at least one sensory word to your author bio.

Using Sensory Words in Social Media Profiles

Some people opt for brevity when writing their social media profiles, and that’s fine.

But if you want your Twitter profile (or Facebook, Instagram, or any other social media profile) to stand out from the crowd, sprinkle in a sensory word or two.

Like so:

Mel Wicks is a veteran copywriter who knows a thing or two about the effectiveness of descriptive words, so she uses them to spice up her Twitter profile.

Here’s an example from my badly-neglected Instagram account:

“Enchanting” and “adorably-jubilant” are wonderful sensory words — so wonderful, it’s a shame they’re wasted on a profile no one sees.

Look at your own profiles and see if there’s a place to add a sensory word or two. They’ll help your profile jump off the screen.

Heck, see if you can use enchanting and adorably-jubilant.

They deserve to be seen.

Using Sensory Words in Introductions

The opening lines of your content are so important.

If you’re a student, your opening sets the tone for your teacher (who we both know is dying to use his red pen).

If you’re an author, your opening can be the difference between someone buying your book or putting it back on the shelf in favor of one of those Twilight books (probably).

And if you’re a blogger, writer, content marketer, or business; your opening can hook the reader (increasing dwell time, which is great in Google’s eyes) or send them scurrying for the “back” button.

It’s why we put such an emphasis on introductions here at Smart Blogger.

Sometimes our openings hook you with a question.

Sometimes we strike a note of empathy or (like this post) focus on searcher intent.

And sometimes we give you a heaping helping of sensory words:

Imagine you’re sitting in a lounge chair on the beach, staring out over the glittering sea, the ocean breeze ruffling your hair, listening to the slow, steady rhythm of the waves.

In the above opening for How to Become a Freelance Writer and Get Paid $200 – $1K per Post, Jon Morrow uses sensory language to set a scene for the reader.

And it’s highly, highly effective.

Using Sensory Words in Email Subject Lines

Like you, your readers are flooded with emails.

And with open rates in a steady decline, people are trying anything and everything to make their email subject lines stand out:

Emojis;

Capitalized words;

All lowercase letters;

Two exclamation points;

Clickbait that would make even BuzzFeed go, “that’s too far, man.”

You name it, people are trying it.

Want a simpler, far-more-effective way to help your emails stand out from the crowd?

Add a sensory word.

Brian Dean loves to include words like “boom” in his subjects:

The folks at AppSumo and Sumo (formerly SumoMe) regularly feature descriptive words in their subjects and headlines.

Here’s one example:

And sensory language appears in most everything Henneke writes, including her subject lines.

In this one she also uses an emoji related to her sensory word. Very clever:

Now that we’ve covered several examples, let’s dig a bit deeper…

Let’s discuss some practical steps you can take that will make adding sensory language to your writing a breeze:

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How Descriptive Words Can Pack Your Writing With Sensory Language

If you’ve taken a good English or writing class, you’ve probably been told a time or two to “show, don’t tell.”

This means you should create an engaging experience for your audience; not just tell them what you want them to know.

You accomplish this by using descriptive language that conveys sensations and lets readers experience your words (rather than simply read them).

And how do you do that, exactly?

Ask yourself these five questions when you’re writing:

#1. What Do You See?

It isn’t enough to tell your readers there was a scary house in your neighborhood when you were a child. Describe the house to them in vivid detail.

What shade of gray was it?

Were the doors boarded up?

Precisely how many ghostly figures did you see staring at you from the upstairs bedroom windows, and how many are standing behind you right now?

Paint a mental picture for your readers.

#2. What Do You Hear?

We listen to uptempo songs to push us through cardio workouts. Many of us listen to rainfall when we’re trying to sleep. Some of us listen to Justin Bieber when we want to punish our neighbors.

Want to transplant readers into your literary world?

Talk about the drip, drip, drip of the faucet.

Mention the squeaking floors beneath your feet.

Describe the awful music coming from your next-door-neighbor’s house.

#3. How Does it Feel?

Touch sensory words can convey both tactile and emotional sensations.

Can you describe to the reader how something feels when touched? Is it smooth or rough? Round or flat? Is it covered in goo or is it goo-less?

Paint a picture for your reader so they can touch what you’re touching.

The same goes for emotions. Help the reader feel what you (or your character) are feeling. Draw them in.

#4. What Does it Taste Like?

Does the beach air taste salty? Is the roaring fire so intense you can taste the smoke? Is the smell of your roommate’s tuna fish sandwich so strong you can taste it from across the room?

Tell your audience.

Be descriptive.

Make them taste the fishiness.

#5. How Does it Smell?

It wasn’t a basement you walked into — it was a musty, moldy basement.

And you didn’t simply enjoy your Mom’s homemade lasagna. You inhaled the aromatic scents of sauce, cheese, and basil.

Evoking the sense of smell is possibly the most effective way to pull readers out of their world and into yours.

So when you sit down to write, ask yourself if it’s possible to describe how something smells. And if you can? Do it.

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The Massive Sensory Words List: 581 (and Counting) Descriptive Words to Supercharge Your Writing

Once you’ve asked and answered the five questions above, your writing will be packed with sensory details.

In time, you’ll build up your own massive list of sensory words you can reference and sprinkle throughout your work.

But in the meantime, here’s my list.

Bookmark them.

Print them.

Use them often:

SIGHT

SOUND

Angular Babble Azure Bang Billowy Barking Black Bawled Bleary Bawling Bloated Bellow Blonde Blare Blue Blaring Blurred Bleat Blushing Boom Branching Booming Bright Bray Brilliant Buzz Broad Buzzing Brown Cackle Brunette Cackling Bulbous Chatter Bulky Chattering Camouflaged Cheer Chubby Chiming Circular Chirping Colorful Chuckle Colorless Clamor Colossal Clang Contoured Clanging Cosmic Clap Craggy Clapping Crimson Clicking Crinkled Clink Crooked Clinking Crowded Cooing Crystalline Coughing Curved Crackle Dark Crackling Dazzling Crashing Deep Creak Dim Croaking Dingy Crow Disheveled Crunch Distinct Crunching Drab Crunchy Dreary Cry Dull Crying Dusty Deafening Elegant Distorted Enchanting Dripping Engaging Ear-piercing Enormous Earsplitting Faded Exploding Fancy Faint Fat Fizzing Filthy Gagging Flashy Gasping Flat Giggle Flickering Giggling Foggy Grate Forked Grating Freckled Growl Fuzzy Grumble Gargantuan Grunt Gaudy Grunting Gigantic Guffaw Ginormous Gurgle Glamorous Gurgling Gleaming Hanging Glimpse Hiss Glistening Hissing Glitter Honking Glittering Howl Globular Hubbub Gloomy Hum Glossy Humming Glowing Hush Gold Jabber Graceful Jangle Gray Jangling Green Laughing Grotesque Moaning Hazy Monotonous Hollow Mooing Homely Muffled Huge Mumble Illuminated Mumbling Immense Murmur Indistinct Mutter Ivory Muttering Knotty Noisy Lacy Peeping Lanky Piercing Large Ping Lavender Pinging Lean Plopping Lithe Pop Little Purring Lofty Quacking Long Quiet Low Rant Malnourished Rapping Maroon Rasping Massive Raucous Miniature Rave Misshapen Ringing Misty Roar Motionless Roaring Mottled Rumble Mountainous Rumbling Muddy Rustle Murky Rustling Narrow Scratching Obtuse Scream Olive Screaming Opaque Screech Orange Screeching Oval Serene Pale Shout Peered Shouting Petite Shrieking Pink Shrill Portly Sigh Pristine Silent Prodigious Sing Purple Singing Quaint Sizzling Radiant Slam Rectangular Slamming Red Snap Reddish Snappy Rippling Snoring Rotund Snort Round Splashing Ruby Squawking Ruddy Squeaky Rusty Stammer Sabotaged Stomp Shadowy Storm Shallow Stuttering Shapeless Tearing Sheer Thudding Shimmering Thump Shiny Thumping Short Thunder Silver Thundering Skinny Ticking Small Tingling Smudged Tinkling Soaring Twitter Sparkling Twittering Sparkly Wail Spherical Warbling Spotless Wheezing Spotted Whimper Square Whimpering Steep Whine Stormy Whining Straight Whir Strange Whisper Striped Whispering Sunny Whistle Swooping Whooping Tall Yell Tapering Yelp Tarnished Teeny-tiny Tiny Towering Translucent Transparent Triangular Turquoise Twinkling Twisted Ugly Unsightly Unusual Vibrant Vivid Weird White Wide Wiry Wispy Wizened Wrinkled Wrinkly Yellow

TOUCH

TASTE

Abrasive Acidic Balmy Appetizing Biting Bitter Boiling Bittersweet Breezy Bland Bristly Buttery Bubbly Charred Bubby Contaminated Bumpy Creamy Burning Crispy Bushy Delectable Chilled Delicious Chilly Doughy Clammy Earthy Coarse Fermented Cold Flavorful Cool Flavorless Cottony Floury Crawly Garlicky Creepy Gingery Cuddly Gritty Cushioned Hearty Damp Juicy Dank Luscious Dirty Medicinal Downy Mellow Drenched Melted Dry Nauseating Elastic Nutritious Feathery Nutty Feverish Palatable Fine Peppery Fleshy Pickled Fluff Piquant Fluffy Raw Foamy Refreshing Fragile Rich Freezing Ripe Furry Runt Glassy Savory Gluey Scrumptious Gooey Stale Grainy Sugary Greasy Syrupy Gritty Tangy Gushy Tart Hairy Tasteless Heavy Unripe Hot Vinegary Humid Yummy Ice-Cold Zesty Icy Itchy Knobbed Leathery Light Lightweight Limp Lukewarm Lumpy Matted Metallic Moist Mushy Numbing Oily Plastic Pointed Powdery Pulpy Rocky Rough Rubbery Sandy Scalding Scorching Scratchy Scummy Serrated Shaggy Sharp Shivering Shivery Silky Slimy Slippery Sloppy Smooth Smothering Soapy Soft Sopping Soupy Splintery Spongy Springy Sputter Squashy Squeal Squishy Steamy Steely Sticky Stifled Stifling Stinging Stony Stubby Tangled Tapered Tender Tepid Thick Thin Thorny Tickling Tough Unsanitary Velvety Warm Waxy Wet Woolly

SMELL

TASTE & SMELL

Ambrosial Acrid Antiseptic Burnt Aroma Fishy Aromatic Fresh Briny Fruity Citrusy Lemony Decayed Minty Decomposed Moldy Doggy Mouth-watering Fetid Rotten Floral Salty Flowery Sour Foul-smelling Spicy Fragrant Spoiled Gamy Sweet Gaseous Tantalizing Horrid Inodorous Malodorous Mephitic Musky Musty Odiferous Odor Odorless Old Perfumed Piney Polluted Pungent Putrid Rancid Rank Redolent Reeking Scent Scented Sickly Skunky Smell Smoky Stagnant Stench Stinky Sweaty Tempting

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Are You Ready to Unleash the Power of Sensory Words?

It’s time to say goodbye.

Goodbye to lifeless words that sit on the page.

Goodbye to indifferent readers ready to move on to something, anything, else.

You now know why sensory details are so effective. You know how to sprinkle descriptive words throughout your content. And you now have a massive, ever-growing list of sensory words to bookmark and come back to again and again.

Variations of the following quote have been attributed to everyone from Carl W. Buehner to Maya Angelou, but regardless of who said it, and how they said it, it’s true:

“People may forget what you said, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.”

It’s time to make your readers feel.

Are you ready?

Then let’s do this thing.

About the Author: When he’s not busy telling waitresses, baristas, and anyone else who crosses his path that Jon Morrow once said he was in the top 1% of bloggers, Kevin J. Duncan is the Blog Editor and Social Media Manager for Smart Blogger.

The post 581 Sensory Words to Take Your Writing from Bland to Brilliant appeared first on Smart Blogger.

from Julia Garza Social Media Tips https://smartblogger.com/sensory-words/

[moffixxey]

581 Sensory Words to Take Your Writing from Bland to Brilliant

It’s almost too easy.

By using sensory words to evoke sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell; smart and attractive writers just like you are able to make their words burst to life in their readers’ minds.

In this post, you’ll learn:

The science behind sensory details (e.g. why sensory words are so persuasive);

The definition of sensory words (plus examples);

How answering five simple questions will help you write descriptive words that pack your content with sensory language;

500+ sensory words you can incorporate into your own writing (right now).

Let’s dive in.

Pin Image

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The Colossal Power of Sensory Details

Remember the final scene in Field of Dreams when Ray Kinsella has a catch with his dad?

You can smell the grass on the field.

You can hear the sound of the baseball hitting their gloves.

And you can feel Ray’s years of guilt melting away as he closes his eyes, smiles, and tosses the ball back to his dad.

(Be honest. You’re crying right now, aren’t you?)

Field of Dreams made you feel like you were in Ray’s shoes, on his field, playing catch with dad.

The scene creates such a vivid experience for many viewers that whenever they think of playing catch, this scene will come up alongside their own childhood memories.

Here’s why:

When you paint a strong scene in your audience’s mind, you make it easier for them to pull it back up from their memory. You’ve essentially bookmarked it for them so they can easily find it when something — a sight, a smell, a sound — reminds them of it.

That’s the power of content that incorporates sensory details.

And this power isn’t limited to cinema classics capable of making grown men cry. For centuries, literary giants have been packing their prose with powerful words that evoke the senses:

“Cry ‘Havoc,’ and let slip the dogs of war; That this foul deed shall smell above the earth With carrion men, groaning for burial” — William Shakespeare (circa 1599)

In addition to The Bard, authors like Maya Angelou, Edgar Allan Poe, and Charles Dickens excel at sensory language. So do literally every famous poet you learned about in school.

And that begs the obvious question…

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Why are Sensory Details so Effective?

Short answer:

Our brains handle sensory words differently than ordinary words.

In a 2011 study published in The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, experts found that our brains process “tangible” (i.e. sensory) words faster than other words.

And in a study published for Brain and Language in 2012, psychologists found that a certain part of our brain is “activated” when we read sensory words.

In other words:

So, we know why sensory details are powerful. And we know writers have been tapping into their power for a long, long time.

Now let’s define them and go over a few examples:

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What are Sensory Words?

Sensory words are descriptive words — using imagery, they describe how we see, hear, touch, taste, and smell the world around us.

Let’s break each one down:

#1. Sight Sensory Words

Words related to vision describe the appearance of something (its color, size, shape, and so on).

Examples of visual words:

Her golden hair looked disheveled thanks to the gust of wind.

He was a towering presence.

I ordered a large orange juice, but the waiter brought me a teeny-tiny glass the size of a thimble.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Sight Sensory Words.

Angular Azure Billowy Black Bleary Bloated Blonde Blue Blurred Blushing Branching Bright Brilliant Broad Brown Brunette Bulbous Bulky Camouflaged Chubby Circular Colorful Colorless Colossal Contoured Cosmic Craggy Crimson Crinkled Crooked Crowded Crystalline Curved Dark Dazzling Deep Dim Dingy Disheveled Distinct Drab Dreary Dull Dusty Elegant Enchanting Engaging Enormous Faded Fancy Fat Filthy Flashy Flat Flickering Foggy Forked Freckled Fuzzy Gargantuan Gaudy Gigantic Ginormous Glamorous Gleaming Glimpse Glistening Glitter Glittering Globular Gloomy Glossy Glowing Gold Graceful Gray Green Grotesque Hazy Hollow Homely Huge Illuminated Immense Indistinct Ivory Knotty Lacy Lanky Large Lavender Lean Lithe Little Lofty Long Low Malnourished Maroon Massive Miniature Misshapen Misty Motionless Mottled Mountainous Muddy Murky Narrow Obtuse Olive Opaque Orange Oval Pale Peered Petite Pink Portly Pristine Prodigious Purple Quaint Radiant Rectangular Red Reddish Rippling Rotund Round Ruby Ruddy Rusty Sabotaged Shadowy Shallow Shapeless Sheer Shimmering Shiny Short Silver Skinny Small Smudged Soaring Sparkling Sparkly Spherical Spotless Spotted Square Steep Stormy Straight Strange Striped Sunny Swooping Tall Tapering Tarnished Teeny-tiny Tiny Towering Translucent Transparent Triangular Turquoise Twinkling Twisted Ugly Unsightly Unusual Vibrant Vivid Weird White Wide Wiry Wispy Wizened Wrinkled Wrinkly Yellow

  #2. Sound Sensory Words

Words related to hearing often describe the sound they make (known as onomatopoeia), but this isn’t always the case.

Examples of hearing words:

He had a big, booming voice.

The sound of screeching tires was soon followed by the deafening sound of a car horn.

As I peeked under the bed, the cackling laughter coming from the closet made the hairs on my arms stand up.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Sound Sensory Words.

Babble Bang Barking Bawled Bawling Bellow Blare Blaring Bleat Boom Booming Bray Buzz Buzzing Cackle Cackling Chatter Chattering Cheer Chiming Chirping Chuckle Clamor Clang Clanging Clap Clapping Clicking Clink Clinking Cooing Coughing Crackle Crackling Crashing Creak Croaking Crow Crunch Crunching Crunchy Cry Crying Deafening Distorted Dripping Ear-piercing Earsplitting Exploding Faint Fizzing Gagging Gasping Giggle Giggling Grate Grating Growl Grumble Grunt Grunting Guffaw Gurgle Gurgling Hanging Hiss Hissing Honking Howl Hubbub Hum Humming Hush Jabber Jangle Jangling Laughing Moaning Monotonous Mooing Muffled Mumble Mumbling Murmur Mutter Muttering Noisy Peeping Piercing Ping Pinging Plopping Pop Purring Quacking Quiet Rant Rapping Rasping Raucous Rave Ringing Roar Roaring Rumble Rumbling Rustle Rustling Scratching Scream Screaming Screech Screeching Serene Shout Shouting Shrieking Shrill Sigh Silent Sing Singing Sizzling Slam Slamming Snap Snappy Snoring Snort Splashing Squawking Squeaky Stammer Stomp Storm Stuttering Tearing Thudding Thump Thumping Thunder Thundering Ticking Tingling Tinkling Twitter Twittering Wail Warbling Wheezing Whimper Whimpering Whine Whining Whir Whisper Whispering Whistle Whooping Yell Yelp

  #3. Touch Sensory Words

Touch words describe the texture of how something feels. They can also describe emotional feelings.

Examples of touch words:

Two minutes into the interview, I knew his abrasive personality would be an issue if we hired him.

With a forced smile, I put on the itchy Christmas sweater my grandmother bought me.

The Hot Pocket was scalding on the outside, but ice-cold in the middle.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Touch Sensory Words.

Abrasive Balmy Biting Boiling Breezy Bristly Bubbly Bubby Bumpy Burning Bushy Chilled Chilly Clammy Coarse Cold Cool Cottony Crawly Creepy Cuddly Cushioned Damp Dank Dirty Downy Drenched Dry Elastic Feathery Feverish Fine Fleshy Fluff Fluffy Foamy Fragile Freezing Furry Glassy Gluey Gooey Grainy Greasy Gritty Gushy Hairy Heavy Hot Humid Ice-Cold Icy Itchy Knobbed Leathery Light Lightweight Limp Lukewarm Lumpy Matted Metallic Moist Mushy Numbing Oily Plastic Pointed Powdery Pulpy Rocky Rough Rubbery Sandy Scalding Scorching Scratchy Scummy Serrated Shaggy Sharp Shivering Shivery Silky Slimy Slippery Sloppy Smooth Smothering Soapy Soft Sopping Soupy Splintery Spongy Springy Sputter Squashy Squeal Squishy Steamy Steely Sticky Stifled Stifling Stinging Stony Stubby Tangled Tapered Tender Tepid Thick Thin Thorny Tickling Tough Unsanitary Velvety Warm Waxy Wet Woolly

  #4. Taste Sensory Words

Taste words are interesting. Though they can describe food, they’re often used in comparisons and metaphors.

Examples of taste words:

It’s a bittersweet situation.

Her zesty personality caught Karl’s eye.

The scrumptious jalapeno poppers comforted Karl after his bitter rejection.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Taste Sensory Words.

Acidic Appetizing Bitter Bittersweet Bland Buttery Charred Contaminated Creamy Crispy Delectable Delicious Doughy Earthy Fermented Flavorful Flavorless Floury Garlicky Gingery Gritty Hearty Juicy Luscious Medicinal Mellow Melted Nauseating Nutritious Nutty Palatable Peppery Pickled Piquant Raw Refreshing Rich Ripe Runt Savory Scrumptious Stale Sugary Syrupy Tangy Tart Tasteless Unripe Vinegary Yummy Zesty

  #5. Smell Sensory Words

Words related to smell describe — yes, you guessed it — how things smell. Often underutilized, sensory words connected with smell can be very effective.

Examples of smell words:

The pungent smell was unmistakable: someone in this elevator was wearing Axe Body Spray.

No matter the expiration date, it was clear from its rancid stench the milk had gone bad.

The flowery aroma was a welcome change after the elevator and milk incidents.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Smell Sensory Words.

Ambrosial Antiseptic Aroma Aromatic Briny Citrusy Decayed Decomposed Doggy Fetid Floral Flowery Foul-smelling Fragrant Gamy Gaseous Horrid Inodorous Malodorous Mephitic Musky Musty Odiferous Odor Odorless Old Perfumed Piney Polluted Pungent Putrid Rancid Rank Redolent Reeking Scent Scented Sickly Skunky Smell Smoky Stagnant Stench Stinky Sweaty Tempting

  Note on Taste and Smell:

Because they’re closely related, some sensory words can be used for both taste and smell. Examples: fruity, minty, and tantalizing.

→ Click here to unfold the full list of Taste and Smell Sensory Words.

Acrid Burnt Fishy Fresh Fruity Lemony Minty Moldy Mouth-watering Rotten Salty Sour Spicy Spoiled Sweet Tantalizing

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Sensory Details: Examples in the Wild

Imagine the following headline came across your Twitter feed:

How to Avoid Using Boring Stock Photo Images in Your Content

Would you click it?

Better question…

Could you read the headline without falling asleep?

The answers are probably “no” and “heck no.”

Now imagine you saw this headline:

Much better, right?

The simple addition of the sensory word “cringeworthy” changes the tone of the entire headline. Instead of yawning, you’re thinking of an awkward or embarrassing moment you really don’t want to relive.

Let’s look at a few more modern-day examples of sharp people using sensory language to spruce up their content:

Using Sensory Words in Author Bios

I’ll pick on me for this one.

Here’s the author bio I used for one of my first-ever guest posts:

Kevin Duncan is the owner of Be A Better Blogger, where he helps people become the best bloggers they can be.

Now look at the author bio my friend Henneke wrote for Writer’s Block: 27 Techniques to Overcome It Forever:

Henneke Duistermaat is an irreverent copywriter and business writing coach. She’s on a mission to stamp out gobbledygook and to make boring business blogs sparkle.

My bio is devoid of sensory words (or any interesting words at all, if we’re being honest).

Henneke’s is chock full of them.

Her bio is interesting.

Mine is boring.

The lesson? Add at least one sensory word to your author bio.

Using Sensory Words in Social Media Profiles

Some people opt for brevity when writing their social media profiles, and that’s fine.

But if you want your Twitter profile (or Facebook, Instagram, or any other social media profile) to stand out from the crowd, sprinkle in a sensory word or two.

Like so:

Mel Wicks is a veteran copywriter who knows a thing or two about the effectiveness of descriptive words, so she uses them to spice up her Twitter profile.

Here’s an example from my badly-neglected Instagram account:

“Enchanting” and “adorably-jubilant” are wonderful sensory words — so wonderful, it’s a shame they’re wasted on a profile no one sees.

Look at your own profiles and see if there’s a place to add a sensory word or two. They’ll help your profile jump off the screen.

Heck, see if you can use enchanting and adorably-jubilant.

They deserve to be seen.

Using Sensory Words in Introductions

The opening lines of your content are so important.

If you’re a student, your opening sets the tone for your teacher (who we both know is dying to use his red pen).

If you’re an author, your opening can be the difference between someone buying your book or putting it back on the shelf in favor of one of those Twilight books (probably).

And if you’re a blogger, writer, content marketer, or business; your opening can hook the reader (increasing dwell time, which is great in Google’s eyes) or send them scurrying for the “back” button.

It’s why we put such an emphasis on introductions here at Smart Blogger.

Sometimes our openings hook you with a question.

Sometimes we strike a note of empathy or (like this post) focus on searcher intent.

And sometimes we give you a heaping helping of sensory words:

Imagine you’re sitting in a lounge chair on the beach, staring out over the glittering sea, the ocean breeze ruffling your hair, listening to the slow, steady rhythm of the waves.

In the above opening for How to Become a Freelance Writer and Get Paid $200 – $1K per Post, Jon Morrow uses sensory language to set a scene for the reader.

And it’s highly, highly effective.

Using Sensory Words in Email Subject Lines

Like you, your readers are flooded with emails.

And with open rates in a steady decline, people are trying anything and everything to make their email subject lines stand out:

Emojis;

Capitalized words;

All lowercase letters;

Two exclamation points;

Clickbait that would make even BuzzFeed go, “that’s too far, man.”

You name it, people are trying it.

Want a simpler, far-more-effective way to help your emails stand out from the crowd?

Add a sensory word.

Brian Dean loves to include words like “boom” in his subjects:

The folks at AppSumo and Sumo (formerly SumoMe) regularly feature descriptive words in their subjects and headlines.

Here’s one example:

And sensory language appears in most everything Henneke writes, including her subject lines.

In this one she also uses an emoji related to her sensory word. Very clever:

Now that we’ve covered several examples, let’s dig a bit deeper…

Let’s discuss some practical steps you can take that will make adding sensory language to your writing a breeze:

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How Descriptive Words Can Pack Your Writing With Sensory Language

If you’ve taken a good English or writing class, you’ve probably been told a time or two to “show, don’t tell.”

This means you should create an engaging experience for your audience; not just tell them what you want them to know.

You accomplish this by using descriptive language that conveys sensations and lets readers experience your words (rather than simply read them).

And how do you do that, exactly?

Ask yourself these five questions when you’re writing:

#1. What Do You See?

It isn’t enough to tell your readers there was a scary house in your neighborhood when you were a child. Describe the house to them in vivid detail.

What shade of gray was it?

Were the doors boarded up?

Precisely how many ghostly figures did you see staring at you from the upstairs bedroom windows, and how many are standing behind you right now?

Paint a mental picture for your readers.

#2. What Do You Hear?

We listen to uptempo songs to push us through cardio workouts. Many of us listen to rainfall when we’re trying to sleep. Some of us listen to Justin Bieber when we want to punish our neighbors.

Want to transplant readers into your literary world?

Talk about the drip, drip, drip of the faucet.

Mention the squeaking floors beneath your feet.

Describe the awful music coming from your next-door-neighbor’s house.

#3. How Does it Feel?

Touch sensory words can convey both tactile and emotional sensations.

Can you describe to the reader how something feels when touched? Is it smooth or rough? Round or flat? Is it covered in goo or is it goo-less?

Paint a picture for your reader so they can touch what you’re touching.

The same goes for emotions. Help the reader feel what you (or your character) are feeling. Draw them in.

#4. What Does it Taste Like?

Does the beach air taste salty? Is the roaring fire so intense you can taste the smoke? Is the smell of your roommate’s tuna fish sandwich so strong you can taste it from across the room?

Tell your audience.

Be descriptive.

Make them taste the fishiness.

#5. How Does it Smell?

It wasn’t a basement you walked into — it was a musty, moldy basement.

And you didn’t simply enjoy your Mom’s homemade lasagna. You inhaled the aromatic scents of sauce, cheese, and basil.

Evoking the sense of smell is possibly the most effective way to pull readers out of their world and into yours.

So when you sit down to write, ask yourself if it’s possible to describe how something smells. And if you can? Do it.

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The Massive Sensory Words List: 581 (and Counting) Descriptive Words to Supercharge Your Writing

Once you’ve asked and answered the five questions above, your writing will be packed with sensory details.

In time, you’ll build up your own massive list of sensory words you can reference and sprinkle throughout your work.

But in the meantime, here’s my list.

Bookmark them.

Print them.

Use them often:

SIGHT

SOUND

Angular Babble Azure Bang Billowy Barking Black Bawled Bleary Bawling Bloated Bellow Blonde Blare Blue Blaring Blurred Bleat Blushing Boom Branching Booming Bright Bray Brilliant Buzz Broad Buzzing Brown Cackle Brunette Cackling Bulbous Chatter Bulky Chattering Camouflaged Cheer Chubby Chiming Circular Chirping Colorful Chuckle Colorless Clamor Colossal Clang Contoured Clanging Cosmic Clap Craggy Clapping Crimson Clicking Crinkled Clink Crooked Clinking Crowded Cooing Crystalline Coughing Curved Crackle Dark Crackling Dazzling Crashing Deep Creak Dim Croaking Dingy Crow Disheveled Crunch Distinct Crunching Drab Crunchy Dreary Cry Dull Crying Dusty Deafening Elegant Distorted Enchanting Dripping Engaging Ear-piercing Enormous Earsplitting Faded Exploding Fancy Faint Fat Fizzing Filthy Gagging Flashy Gasping Flat Giggle Flickering Giggling Foggy Grate Forked Grating Freckled Growl Fuzzy Grumble Gargantuan Grunt Gaudy Grunting Gigantic Guffaw Ginormous Gurgle Glamorous Gurgling Gleaming Hanging Glimpse Hiss Glistening Hissing Glitter Honking Glittering Howl Globular Hubbub Gloomy Hum Glossy Humming Glowing Hush Gold Jabber Graceful Jangle Gray Jangling Green Laughing Grotesque Moaning Hazy Monotonous Hollow Mooing Homely Muffled Huge Mumble Illuminated Mumbling Immense Murmur Indistinct Mutter Ivory Muttering Knotty Noisy Lacy Peeping Lanky Piercing Large Ping Lavender Pinging Lean Plopping Lithe Pop Little Purring Lofty Quacking Long Quiet Low Rant Malnourished Rapping Maroon Rasping Massive Raucous Miniature Rave Misshapen Ringing Misty Roar Motionless Roaring Mottled Rumble Mountainous Rumbling Muddy Rustle Murky Rustling Narrow Scratching Obtuse Scream Olive Screaming Opaque Screech Orange Screeching Oval Serene Pale Shout Peered Shouting Petite Shrieking Pink Shrill Portly Sigh Pristine Silent Prodigious Sing Purple Singing Quaint Sizzling Radiant Slam Rectangular Slamming Red Snap Reddish Snappy Rippling Snoring Rotund Snort Round Splashing Ruby Squawking Ruddy Squeaky Rusty Stammer Sabotaged Stomp Shadowy Storm Shallow Stuttering Shapeless Tearing Sheer Thudding Shimmering Thump Shiny Thumping Short Thunder Silver Thundering Skinny Ticking Small Tingling Smudged Tinkling Soaring Twitter Sparkling Twittering Sparkly Wail Spherical Warbling Spotless Wheezing Spotted Whimper Square Whimpering Steep Whine Stormy Whining Straight Whir Strange Whisper Striped Whispering Sunny Whistle Swooping Whooping Tall Yell Tapering Yelp Tarnished Teeny-tiny Tiny Towering Translucent Transparent Triangular Turquoise Twinkling Twisted Ugly Unsightly Unusual Vibrant Vivid Weird White Wide Wiry Wispy Wizened Wrinkled Wrinkly Yellow

TOUCH

TASTE

Abrasive Acidic Balmy Appetizing Biting Bitter Boiling Bittersweet Breezy Bland Bristly Buttery Bubbly Charred Bubby Contaminated Bumpy Creamy Burning Crispy Bushy Delectable Chilled Delicious Chilly Doughy Clammy Earthy Coarse Fermented Cold Flavorful Cool Flavorless Cottony Floury Crawly Garlicky Creepy Gingery Cuddly Gritty Cushioned Hearty Damp Juicy Dank Luscious Dirty Medicinal Downy Mellow Drenched Melted Dry Nauseating Elastic Nutritious Feathery Nutty Feverish Palatable Fine Peppery Fleshy Pickled Fluff Piquant Fluffy Raw Foamy Refreshing Fragile Rich Freezing Ripe Furry Runt Glassy Savory Gluey Scrumptious Gooey Stale Grainy Sugary Greasy Syrupy Gritty Tangy Gushy Tart Hairy Tasteless Heavy Unripe Hot Vinegary Humid Yummy Ice-Cold Zesty Icy Itchy Knobbed Leathery Light Lightweight Limp Lukewarm Lumpy Matted Metallic Moist Mushy Numbing Oily Plastic Pointed Powdery Pulpy Rocky Rough Rubbery Sandy Scalding Scorching Scratchy Scummy Serrated Shaggy Sharp Shivering Shivery Silky Slimy Slippery Sloppy Smooth Smothering Soapy Soft Sopping Soupy Splintery Spongy Springy Sputter Squashy Squeal Squishy Steamy Steely Sticky Stifled Stifling Stinging Stony Stubby Tangled Tapered Tender Tepid Thick Thin Thorny Tickling Tough Unsanitary Velvety Warm Waxy Wet Woolly

SMELL

TASTE & SMELL

Ambrosial Acrid Antiseptic Burnt Aroma Fishy Aromatic Fresh Briny Fruity Citrusy Lemony Decayed Minty Decomposed Moldy Doggy Mouth-watering Fetid Rotten Floral Salty Flowery Sour Foul-smelling Spicy Fragrant Spoiled Gamy Sweet Gaseous Tantalizing Horrid Inodorous Malodorous Mephitic Musky Musty Odiferous Odor Odorless Old Perfumed Piney Polluted Pungent Putrid Rancid Rank Redolent Reeking Scent Scented Sickly Skunky Smell Smoky Stagnant Stench Stinky Sweaty Tempting

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Are You Ready to Unleash the Power of Sensory Words?

It’s time to say goodbye.

Goodbye to lifeless words that sit on the page.

Goodbye to indifferent readers ready to move on to something, anything, else.

You now know why sensory details are so effective. You know how to sprinkle descriptive words throughout your content. And you now have a massive, ever-growing list of sensory words to bookmark and come back to again and again.

Variations of the following quote have been attributed to everyone from Carl W. Buehner to Maya Angelou, but regardless of who said it, and how they said it, it’s true:

“People may forget what you said, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.”

It’s time to make your readers feel.

Are you ready?

Then let’s do this thing.

About the Author: When he’s not busy telling waitresses, baristas, and anyone else who crosses his path that Jon Morrow once said he was in the top 1% of bloggers, Kevin J. Duncan is the Blog Editor and Social Media Manager for Smart Blogger.

The post 581 Sensory Words to Take Your Writing from Bland to Brilliant appeared first on Smart Blogger.

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