#idk maybe it’s because i was raised by a midwife

[iliveinprocrasti-nationn]

on one hand yes a fetus requires nutrients from the parent’s body but on the other hand. sometimes people calling it a parasite feels a little strange

[glitterguts13]

Idk if you fine with this or not, but what about them having a still birth /miscarriage? This isn't like a kink thing, I just love angst (for genshin)

I'm in the mood to write some angst tonight, so buckle up! Obvious TW for stillbirth/miscarriage as well as topics such as suicidal thoughts and depression.

Mondstadt

Albedo It doesn't hit him at first. He finds his underwear soaked with blood before any sort of pain begins, but he's very aware of what's happening. Tries to keep calm, reminding himself over and over that sometimes these things just happen. He's barely two months along, only learning a week prior of his pregnancy. It hurts, but ultimately he's able to place logic above emotion, grieves quietly for a bit, but moves on rather quickly.

Bennett The guilt swallows him up when the midwife breaks the news to him. His little one is bundled up tightly, born sleeping. Silent at first, he's left shaking, blaming himself over and over because he knows he's unlucky, he should have never even tried to bring a child into this world. Refuses to hold his baby, he can't face them, and it's all his fault.

Diluc There's no warning, only the sudden onset of cramps that leaves Diluc scrambling from the tavern to the closest doctor. Gasping in pain, he begs them to do something, anything. He followed everything they told him to do, why was this happening? The doctor does their best to explain things, that miscarriages are far more common than people think- Diluc doesn't care, once the doctor is certain everything has passed and the bleeding begins to slow, he's shut down. Refuses to speak about it, won't even acknowledge his pregnancy at all.

Kaeya Perhaps, it's divine punishment. His newborn is cradled to his chest, silent and looking angelic. Only crying once he's left alone with his child, begging them to forgive him, and cursing every deity he's ever heard of for taking his child. "Take me! Why...why didn't you just take me instead..."

Mika It was an accident. A mistake heading down the library stairs, his foot slipping out front under him and his body crashing to the ground below. The pain is instant, stabbing him in the gut. People rush to his aid, calling for a medic, a healer, anyone- It's too late by the time they get him help, and Mika is left sobbing, begging for another chance, it was just an accident.

Razor Isn't unfamiliar with stillbirth, it's common among the wolves that raised him to have pups that don't survive birth. However, he isn't prepared for the deep, bone-shattering grief that overtakes him when his child doesn't cry. Limp in his arms, he's left howling in agony while the wolves that raised him stand nearby, quietly mourning alongside him.

Venti It isn't the first time. Beings such as himself didn't hold the same rights as mortals, and each child he's tried so hard to bring into the world, all meet the same end. Venti cradles them close, laughing through his tears, whispering tales of his past, and promises to meet them on the other side.

Liyue

Baizhu The risks were well known, Baizhu isn't a fool. It was a terrible idea to even try, but he was so blindly hopeful that maybe, things would be alright. He wakes with slight cramps, praying that it isn't what he thinks, but by noon, the blood begins to flow. Held up in his bathroom, he sobs, guilt pouring over him like a cold rain. Why did he even try?

Chongyun He wasn't even aware of his pregnancy when it happened. Confused and alarmed by the blood and pain, he hurries to the nearest doctor. Is left in shock at the news, and it takes a few days to process the events.

Gaming The entirety of his family is around, prepared to celebrate the newest addition to their family when the unthinkable happens. Gaming is screaming, begging the midwife to hand him his baby, but no matter how they try, not a breath is to be taken. The joy of the day is dashed in minutes, and Gaming can barely breathe, chest constricted with such grief he's certain his heart will stop.

Xiao Just another form of divine punishment for his past actions. The blood running down his legs mixes with the rain pouring around him. The valley is filled with the sorrowful cries of a mourning bird, but no one pays it any attention.

Xingqiu He's ready every book, listened to every doctor, and followed every rule, so why?? Why did his waters break at only five months? Why was there nothing they could do? What sick, cosmic joke is this? Forcing him to give birth to a child with no chance of survival. Following the events, he locks himself in his room, refusing food and company. It isn't worth it, nothing was worth it.

Zhongli Like Venti, he isn't shocked. His body simply wasn't meant to bring life into this world, not after taking so many in war. Stoic and cold, he buries them under a tree, marking the spot and promising to come back to visit again in the future, when the pain has dulled.

Inazuma Arataki Itto Doesn't understand what's happening. Why is he bleeding? Why does it hurt? It isn't time yet, not for another few months! Ignores it at first, because he really isn't sure what to do, and by the time he's finally ready to seek help, brings his child into the world far too soon. No one sees or hears from him for weeks afterward, but he returns looking exhausted and drained, but smiles and waves it off.

Ayato The cramps he awoke with were mild, and the doctors had already warned him that it wasn't uncommon to feel light cramps in the first trimester. His body was adjusting, womb filling, so he continues about his day as usual. The meeting is dragging on longer than it needs to, and by the time it's done and he takes from his seat, the blood splatters to the ground between his legs. Shocked and horrified, he screams for them to find a doctor, but in the end, it's too late.

Gorou The first two pups are born perfect, healthy, and squalling. Exhausted, he expects the third to be born the same, but the silence is deafening, and before the midwife even has a chance to break the news, he knows. Shuts himself off from everyone, pouring all his time and attention to the two little ones he has, torn between trying to forget and fearing not remembering.

Kazuha Laughs bitterly, tears dripping down his cheeks. Looking down at his silent newborn, he feels an indescribable mixture of hate and bitterness. Why him? After already losing so much, how was it far to lose this too?

"Tomo...please...guide him."

Heizou Doesn't know he's pregnant until he's sitting in front of a healer, being told he's experiencing a miscarriage. His heart sinks, but in the end, he can't really feel all that much since he hasn't even known.

Thoma The whole Kamisato estate hears the desperate wail. Thoma begs the midwife to hand him his child, even for just a moment. Ayaka rushes to his side, holding him close while Ayato quickly makes arrangements for Thoma's child to be buried alongside the other Kamisato family members. Sumeru

AlHaitham Silence. Just silence. Alone at home, trembling quietly on the toilet while his body rejects the little life he'd dared to grow attached to. Never speaks a word of it to anyone, and no one even notices something had happened at all.

Cyno Isn't aware of his pregnancy until he begins to bleed. It doesn't occur to him until later what had actually happened, and he feels ill realizing he wasn't even aware of why he'd been in such pain while in the desert.

Kaveh Screaming. It chills the blood of everyone who hears, and he's inconsolable. Sinks into a very deep depression. Can't bring himself to move from his bed, loses weight rapidly, and finds himself thinking of wandering out into the desert at night. Perhaps his father would be waiting for him alongside his child.

Sethos It's the halfway mark in his pregnancy before it all goes wrong. Tries to deny it, and forces it from his head, but every time he hears the birds overheard, he swears he hears a baby crying.

Tighnari Rational to an extent. He knows the first trimester is the riskiest, and that pregnancies fail all the time, but it just feels so unfair that it happened to him. Thankful he didn't tell a soul, but feels so isolated going through it alone.

Fontain

Freminet He knows he shouldn't be lifting something as heavy as a claymore, but when his siblings are in danger, Freminet can't bring himself to sit by and do nothing. The regret is instant, and the blood causes him to freeze up, the sound of his sibling's voices distant in his ears.

Lyney Sobbing, begging for another chance. Lynette and Freminet do their best to comfort him, but really, their words fall on deaf ears. Nothing is going to be enough to heal the wound in his heart now.

Neuvillette The sight of blood has him frozen in place, stomach-turning. He deals with it privately and says nothing to anyone. Fontaine has horrible rain for weeks, nearly flooding some of the lowers streets.

Wrio Doesn't know, not until he's in a boxing match, and he sidesteps a little too slow. Normally, a single punch to the gut would mean nothing, but this time, he's brought to his knees instantly. Blood begins to pour, but in the moment, all he can do is drag himself upright and finish the fight.

[ruthlesslistener]

...actually, come to think about it, the fact that Midwife is named the way she is raises some questions about Hallownest bug anatomy and their reproduction. Typically humans are the only species that assist each other during birth, but this is because a combination of our very social nature and the difficulties that became present with childbirth after we became bipedal and big-brained. The new arrangement of the pelvis to allow a bipedal stance narrowed the birth canal in tandem with our brains (and heads) getting bigger, leading to highly difficult births and relatively underdeveloped babies that require outside assistance from the rest of a social group to heighten parent and infant survival. That's how we got the whole 'midwife' occupation, one of the oldest jobs in the book

But bugs lay eggs, which allow for development outside the parent body, and are generally known for producing many with seemingly little distress. Obviously the bugs of Hollow Knight aren't a 1:1 comparison to our species of bugs, but one would assume that laying eggs would give them an easier way out than the large single births that so cripple human parents- and yet, Midwife is there, and her job is apparently universal enough for her, a centipede, to serve spiders like Herrah the Beast. Which indicates reproductive difficulties being common in the sapient species of Hallownest, enough so for midwifing to be a legit job- at least among the spiders.

Which I guess makes sense, as some of the larger bugs like the Gruz Mother have developed rudimentary vertebrae, so it's not too hard to imagine that the bipedal bugs might have structures analagous to bones, which help steady the body while standing upright, yet makes laying more difficult in their groups (as more primitive species, like aspids, clearly have no problem acting like normal bugs). Or maybe a similar narrowing of the pelvis has occurred for them, where even though they don't have those bony structures to inhibit body flexibility, needing that narrower stance also lead to there being less room to pass eggs. Or maybe clutch size has been drastically reduced in exchange for eggs with bigger yolks to support the developing fetus for longer, as larger, more intelligent brains need far more nutrients than smaller ones, and so in order to grow to maturity, the eggs need to be bigger and more packed with nutrients, which in turn exerts more of a toll on the parents, leading to smaller clutch sizes and far more difficult laying sessions. That could be why Hornet doesn't have any siblings from the Herrah x Pale King cross, though spiders typically have many young. Maybe there were only a few eggs and only one hatched bc of hybrid issues, or perhaps there was very literally only one egg. It's hard to know without further information

Idk. It's sort of a dead-end question with little relevance to the story, especially since the gods are very much not limited by these mortal problems (or at least PK and WL aren't). Either way, it poses some interesting questions for anatomy and population growth in the bugs of Hallownest, especially since there's a whole hell of a lot of variance between different species

[tamelee]

Hey, I saw your ask about Gaiden and I want to add something because this theory used to be my big obsession. I never watched Boruto super intently so maybe I got something wrong, so I’m sorry if it happens. Anyway these are my thoughts:

1. Why on earth Karin would keep Sakura’s umbilical cord (or whatever it was)???? It just doesn’t make any sense. Even if they like each other now it’s still weird as hell. And why would Sakura give a birth outside the village? Shouldn’t they go back from their trip when the pregnancy was advanced??? Also doesn’t make sense.

2. I read somewhere that Orochimaru might have stolen some of Sasuke’s dna years ago when he was his student, and then make Sarada without his knowledge, and I think it makes a lot of sense actually. Sasuke would find out and take the baby because he knows how it feels to live with Orochimaru (not the nicest thing ever), also didn’t want Orochimaru to get sharingan, but he still didn’t want to be stuck in the village, so he asked Sakura for help (she was a medic so I guess she could also check if the baby is OK)

3. Sakura found it as a perfect opportunity to finally get closer to Sasuke, so she convinced him that it’s the best for the baby to pretend that they are her parents.

So yeah, this is the end of the story 😅 I just wanted to share my thoughts, thought that maybe you’d found them interesting 😄 Have a great day!

Hi @pattie1k ^^ ♡ I have a few posts on that topic here and here. And dw, I also don't watch 'Boruto', but I tried reading the Manga (￣ω￣)"

I read that in Japanese culture sometimes they give the umbilical cord to the midwife? I'm not too familiar with this concept but I find this a reach regardless. As I say in the posts too, why would Karin call the desk she keeps the cord in "a part of her" anyway? And it's like you say, none of it makes sense. Orochimaru's hideout would be the last place Sasuke would let Sakura give birth in if it is true he dragged her around while she was pregnant and loved her so much.

No way Orochimaru would need Sakura's help..

Well that was part of my theory too and reason why Sarada stays with Sakura in Konoha.

But I want to get back to your second point. And this is actually a popular Headcanon that I never talked about. Orochimaru having Sasuke's DNA.

I don't remember all the details so feel free to correct me but remember when everything split?

It is WAY more likely Orochimaru was trying to create some sort of OP child with both pure-blooded Uchiha and Uzumaki genes. And btw I said this before but who says it had to be Sasuke's genes anyway? Who says Orochimaru didn't have Itachi's DNA laying around? I know, morbid, but they were both in Akatsuki.. anything is possible tbh (though not likely). Sasuke was with him almost 3 years where he did all sorts of tests and experiments, where Kishimoto made it clear that Snake-man had a thing for Sasuke's body (I know, ew) and just did whatever... why would he not have DNA is more the question. And why would Karin refuse?

Well, it would explain a lot if Sarada was an experiment, but some things definitely went wrong. She should've pretty much been the most OP child to have ever existed. Could the glasses be a hint? I MEAN COME ON IT HAS TO BE. That, or Kishimoto is trolling. Or both. She got the Sharingan, but inherited Karin's bad eyesight. Oops. (Obito wore goggles to protect his eyes, that's different.) Karin can't teach her Jutsu because she isn't raising her and they're keeping it a secret, for what reason exactly? What are they avoiding anyway? Too many questions that were never answers and are now being ignored because they all live in Esaka's Lala-land. Idk, lol, it's fun to think about but I wonder if Kishimoto's narrative is already completely erased. Or maybe Sakura wins the poll and we get another fun Manga about her smashing down the house.

[lazaruspiss]

unorganized fic idea #3

oh this one is a DOOZY. fuckle up buckos. buckle up fuckos. same thing.

Talon Dick fleeing the court by joining the league, Talia takes authority over him to prevent anyone else from taking advantage, catches feelings. Maybe they meet Slade and Dick can woo him as well <3 boy does not know his own charms.

Ok. Exposition. Bruce never goes to Haly's circus. Dick goes to juvie, breaks out, kills Zucco, gets found and snatched up by the court of owls before he can be charged for the murder. He's trained as a Talon, we skip forward and he wants out but unfortunately he's very good at murder so the court isn't letting him go that easy. Where oh where could a kid go where his masters won't follow? To his masters strongest enemies of course! Unfortunately the league of assassins assume hes a spy and torture him for um. Idk a long time. Eventually Talia decides hes telling the truth and that hes a valuable asset, so she trains him and agrees to take responsibility if he turns out to be a spy. Smth smth. I might have a loyalty kink who knows. Dick owes Talia everything and loves her v much. Unlike the rest of the league his loyalty rests solely with Talia, he couldn't care less about Ra's. Dick also has a lot of memory issues bc of the court that Talia helps him with, eventually regaining some of his memories of his parents. Smth smth. Talia hires Slade for something. Maybe patricide. Dick senses chemistry between there two hotties and secretly hopes for them to get together. Maybe nudges and teases Talia a bit. That's side-plot tho so lets ignore that for now and back to the important plot stuff. Bruce gets Talia pregnant, but she doesn't trust him to raise the child with her or to still respect her if she births his son, so she lies and tells him she miscarried. They have a falling out soon after, not just because of the pregnancy but as a result of a lot of long term issues in their relationship. Dick is there through her whole pregnancy, he's essentially her midwife. When Talia gives birth to a boy Ra's starts to show sudden and concerning interest in Talia's personal life due to his search for a male heir. Dick convinces Talia to send him and Damian to live with Bruce so that Damian can grow up semi safe from Ra's and Dick can get revenge against the court.

the amount of editing i have to do to make past me's walls of text readable. i need compensation from whatever made my brain run like this. there were no breaks in the original, i added those. ur welcome.

If i do write this. It'll be a fucking behemoth

no kidding!

i'll also note that the Slade b-plot doesn't line up well timeline wise with the rest of the plot, so i would either rework that quite a bit or just scrap it. also the reasoning for Bruce and Talia's break-up is pretty much my headcanon for most timelines.

[clouseplayssims]

So, while I'm gone I want to start pinning down the MCC rules I want to use for my 'MCC Me Maybe' project that's... well. Be on the back burner because I don't know if I want to record it for youtube, play it on twitch, or just vibe with it on tumblr.

(The things that trouble me.)

Adding a cut because I'm rambling.

For starters I am not starting off with the original set up. Because that's just not me!! I am a sim creating nightmare and I WILL stay on brand!!!

Instead of 4 peasant families, 2 yeoman families, and 1 gentry family we're starting off with different biomes and each biome has a Jarl, 1 Yeoman, and 2 Peasant families - which are couples, not randomized, because I'm trying not to drown in sims.

I'm going to call this the Race To The Crown Challenge. Because ideally my different Jarls are fighting it out to be the Grand Champion Ultimate Supreme Winner of Time.

Listen I'm tired because I'm staying up for way to long in an effort to make myself sleep on the plane. Even though I never sleep on planes. Expect nothing from these notes. I'm basically responding the PDF at this point.

Each biome will have limitations in terms of what they can grow, raise, etc. but I'll mostly be sticking to the original career choices.

We WILL have a Royal Steward. I can't remember who did it before but it will be on a rotating basis and their aspiration will impact how life works. idk.

No barracks, no almshouse, because we don't need marriage prospects. If we reach a point where we need SUITORS then maybe. Although barracks are useful... maybe if we've got some spare sons?

"Larger" biomes WILL get new families as long as they have empty lots as they move up, but if there's no empty lots? Tough luck honey-booboo. HOWEVER they will get community lots added. Like the market. Yes ma'am.

Shit. Midwife. I think I'll pick one of the knowledge ladies at random. She'll be the midwife for the whole kit and caboodle.

I don't know how I'm going to limit community lots yet. Because I do want to as smaller areas shouldn't have a ton.

Nixing the family limit in terms of children because the biome sizes kind of cover that.

The first biome to reach charter city status? The Jarl becomes the king/whatever. Then we'll move into... idk. A different challenge I feel like there's one but I'm exhausted.

[ravnloft]

about to fight ketheric and i gotta say i am connecting the dots (making up my own hcs and blatantly ignoring canon) re: him and shar and i am now submitting these for peer review

words spreads of an aasimar in moonhaven, born to the hallowleafs, who are devoted selûnites. after the girl comes of age, dame aylin is to find her and escort her as she transitions into the more divine practices of her station.

dame aylin comes to reithwen en route to moonhaven. she is welcomed by the thorms.

melodia, bless her heart, is already in the ground. ketheric has already begun to hear shar's whispers. shar promises him oblivion, relief from the pain, if he does the impossible: turn the hallowleaf girl away from her celestial mother, and into shar's embrace.

"how the fuck am i supposed to do that with another aasimar making eyes at my kid" ketheric says. "kill her. obvi" shar says

aylin falls to a knife in her back. ketheric begins to build his army. a new breed of sharran fanatic is born: the dark justiciar. shar uses the power of aylin's soul being rent from her over and over again as a conduit to imbue her justiciars with dread power.

ketheric, however, has a rival: viconia devir

"hey viconia bet you can't turn this aasimar child away from selûne" shar says

(is this so very self indulgent because it ties into amma's backstory with viconia, and my own hc as to why viconia went from a lolthite priestess to a sharran mother superior? yes. yes it is)

"BET" viconia says

so she tips off the hallowleafs. they flee moonhaven just as ketheric and his justiciars arrive. but, shocker, it was a trap all along, and viconia's sharrans intercept them in the forest

(is there any in-game evidence of shadowheart being an aasimar? no. but like? why else would she be in the world's messiest custody battle. if she's god's favorite princess and the most specialest girl in the world, like, let her be the most specialest girl in the world, you know??)

viconia then raises the girl as her own, with all the trauma that entails

(amma 🤝 shadowheart 🤝 unnamed devir infant: being viconia's biggest failures in the eyes of her goddess)

shadowheart does not know she is an aasimar until she frees aylin from the shadowfell and aylin and isobel reveal the plot to her. maybe she gets special powers as soon as selûne can connect with her again, maybe she doesn't yet, idk

circling back to ketheric. shar spurns him for failing to get the hallowleaf girl. ketheric retreats to reithwen, planning to regroup and scour the countryside for her, except now the harpers and the druids are getting ready to attack him. both isobel and the dark justiciars turn against ketheric in the battle. isobel is killed, and ketheric falls, but because of [gestures] All That With Aylin, his soul is stuck in purgatory. he spends decades (centuries?? idk how old shadowheart is) there until pledging himself to myrkul.

moonhaven is bent but unbroken after the dark justiciar attack. a kindly midwife takes up residence just outside of town and helps the village rebuild. her name is ethel.

[poorlittlegreenie13]

Gretson having a baby?

I’m not the biggest Gretson fan but this is adorable.

Idk exactly how it would work for them logistically at this time period but I could see them either asking a gay guy to ✨donate✨ or maybe Carson realizes she’s pregnant by Charlie and asks Greta to raise the baby with her.

But either way I think Greta would be really scared at first and she and Cameron would have to talk it over a LOT before they committed to anything.

Greta would be hesitant both about what people would think about two women living together and raising a baby, and also about bringing a child into the world during the war & during such a time of hatred.

(Deep down she would also be scared of being a bad mom)

Carson would also be scared considering her experiences with her own mother, but I think she loves Greta enough that she would get over that worry pretty quickly. There’s nothing that could make her leave Greta and she knows it.

But once they actually commit to having the baby, Greta would be all in on motherhood.

She would take such good care of pregnant Carson.

She’s not the best cook but she tries her best and Carson doesn’t complain because she’s always hungry.

Greta would buy everything that she could for Carson and for the baby. She would be constantly shopping for clothes and blankets and everything she could think of. Carson would act annoyed but actually she would be super flattered.

Greta would talk to Carson’s baby bump all the time.

She would also be much touchier than normal. She knows it’s not 100% safe but she can’t keep her hands off Carson, especially in public. She would be constantly holding Carson’s arm, guiding her in the right direction, and touching her stomach all the time.

And at home, Greta would cuddle with Carson as much as she let her. They would sleep with Carson as the little spoon so Greta could wrap her arm around Carson’s baby bump and hold her safe.

Later in the pregnancy, Greta wouldn’t be able to fall asleep without feeling the baby move.

“I just want to make sure she’s okay.”

And Carson would be like, “How do you know it’s a girl?”

Greta just knows, okay?

And because of the time period, if they told the hospital that Carson’s husband was away at war and Greta was her sister, Greta would totally be allowed to stay in the room with Carson while she gave birth.

(I know this because of my extensive ‘Call The Midwife’ watching)

So Greta would be majorly panicking but trying to stay calm.

Carson would probably be chilling tbh she gives me high pain tolerance vibes.

Greta would be touching her as much as they safely could because she loved her girl and doesn’t want to see her in pain.

So Carson would wind up comforting Greta the entire time instead of the other way around.

She doesn’t mind, she loves her slightly wimpy girlfriend.

I think Greta would cry when the baby was actually born.

Carson would cry because Greta was crying.

And then they’d just start laughing at each other.

Greta was right they have a girl :)

All the (gay) peaches that they tell (plus Maybelle) are super happy for them.

Jess and Lupe definitely send them the weirdest baby gift possible… like a hunting knife… or a bottle of whisky. Their intentions are pure.

Maybelle knits them a little baby peaches uniform.

I think they would name the baby after a bird because of Greta’s nickname. Like Lark or Robin.

Aunt Jo would be doing the most. She would be so excited. She loves it when the baby sleep in her arms and she is soooo gentle.

There are no men in that child’s life /pos

Greta would by Mommy and Carson would be Mama

I think more than once, Carson would wake up in the middle of the night and find Greta just watching their daughter sleep, her eyes glassy. Because she’s never seen anything so pure before and this tiny little baby loves her so much.

Carson comes up behind her and wraps her arms around Greta’s waist and whispers that she loves her.

GRETSON BABY. THANK YOU FOR THIS ASK.

[gay-kurapika]

I sort of want to talk about how parents can medically neglect a child because I would be like a fucking expert on it considering my medical history and the way I was raised but I’m not eloquent enough to write something other people should reblog and I don’t want to argue with people. Idk maybe I’ll just share my personal story anyway?

So I have never had a primary care physician, I actually don’t know what that means and if a form asks for that I write “no insurance” on it because I have never once in my 25 years of life had health insurance. My mother didn’t use a hospital to birth me, she used a midwife, and I’m not going to talk about which is better because I literally do not know. The only times I ever went to a hospital as a child was for government mandated shots and one time when I stopped breathing in the middle of the night and I had a slight arrhythmia, and since the doctor just told my mom to take me outside and get me some cooler air she never followed up on that.

I was lucky to never break any bones or get seriously sick, but I’ve never had a physical outside of like a gym class? And all they do there is take your weight really, so I don’t know what they do at hospitals. If anything was wrong with me I wouldn’t know, and honestly I would dismiss it because I’ve sort of been told my whole life that if you’re not dying then you’re fine. Like I’m in some amount of pain all the time, but it is normal to me and I don’t think I could necessarily even explain it to a doctor since I don’t know how to talk to doctors.

On an even more personal note, when I checked myself into a psych ward they did take my blood pressure (first time ever lol, and I was like 22) and apparently it’s very high and I should be on medication but since that medication isn’t free I’m not on it. I also know for a fact that I do still have some kind of arrhythmia because I have had my heart stop briefly and had it cause a seizure twice this year, but I refused to go with the paramedics both times because I know I can’t pay for it without insurance and I’d literally rather die than go bankrupt and end up back with my parents (who never taught me how to find insurance in the first place, which would have helped this whole situation). Like maybe I’ll be okay on my own and maybe I won’t but with them I’ll be miserable without any independence but ALSO without any assistance, so why bother?

What I’m saying is I think regular checkups for young kids and like teaching your adult kids how to find insurance on their own, and in general taking your kids health seriously is an important part of parenting and neglecting to do so is abuse. Anyway this wasn’t well thought out enough to be reblogged so don’t, but like if anyone else wants to share their perspective or even make their own post about parental medical neglect that would be cool I’d read it.

[mirandalinotto]

A while back you posed the question as to why Zelda claimed Faustus had ‘Herod like tendencies’ and that was why she feared for the babe. I’ve been wracking my brain ever since and thought perhaps during her time as midwife she witnessed something that scared her. Maybe in his role as High Priest he attended a birth and advised a father to dispose of their female child? Idk, it’s the only explanation I can think of. Thoughts?

That’s a fascinating idea/theory/headcanon! I love that explanation, and I think it’s completely possible that Zelda witnessed Faustus commit (or order) some violent act to be carried out against a female child that caused her to say this line---it’s just never revealed in canon what, exactly, she’s referring to. 

Truly, I think the line, “King Herod-like tendencies when it comes to baby girls,” was just sloppy writing on the part of CAOS, because it’s not supported by canon that Faustus has murdered any female children prior to the speaking of this line. 

I say prior, because later on in the series, he intends to sacrifice Judas and Judith to get the time egg, but that hasn’t happened yet at this point.

But literally any moment in the show can be brushed off with “it’s bad writing,” so, I’d rather try to explain why the reference doesn’t work, and then offer my two cents as to what we can headcanon to make it work. 

(Please keep in mind I haven’t read the novels or comics, so these thoughts are purely inspired by the televised version of CAOS.)

If you want to read my analysis, here it is, below the cut:

What do we know about pre-canon Faustus, specifically with regard to children? We know that he knew about Prudence’s mother being pregnant, but wanted nothing to do with either of them. He refused to marry Prudence’s mother, which resulted in her suicide. Even after the mother’s death, he refused to acknowledge Prudence as his own, and raised her as if she were an orphan, rather than admit he had a child out of wedlock.

This is all pretty shitty, but definitely not Herod-like. In the Bible, King Herod of Judea orders the execution of all male children under the age of two. According to theologists, that would’ve been anywhere between 14,000 and 144,000 (!) children. He does this specifically because he sent the Magi to Bethlehem so that they would report back to him on the birth and location of Jesus Christ. The Magi, however, are warned not to do Herod’s bidding, and never return to Jerusalem to give Herod the information he wants. 

Once Herod realizes the Magi have betrayed him, he orders all the male children in Bethlehem who were born within the last two years (i.e., any child that could possibly be Jesus) to be killed.

But wait! That’s not all! Herod also had three of his own sons put to death, as well as several of his wives. So Herod didn’t just kill other people’s children; he killed his own. 

Side note: “When it was heard that, as part of the slaughter of boys up to two years old, Herod, king of the Jews, had ordered his own son to be killed, he [the Emperor Augustus] remarked, ‘It is better to be Herod’s pig than his son’. This was a reference to how Herod, as a Jew, would not kill pigs, but had three of his sons, and many others, killed. (source)

Now, getting back to CAOS, Zelda says Faustus has King Herod-like tendencies when it comes to baby girls, but that doesn’t work as a reference, because Herod specifically targeted male children, not female children. If you recall my earlier post about this, someone argued that Zelda meant “Herod-like tendencies” separate from the gender of the child, meaning that Faustus had Herod-like tendencies when it came to any children.

But this simply doesn’t make any sense!! There’s nothing in canon to support that Blackwood has killed any children before Zelda speaks this line. If this were true, he would’ve had Prudence killed right away; he wouldn’t have raised her as an orphan, knowing her true identity would cause problems for him later on. As a matter of course, he would’ve had her murdered so as not to complicate the inheritance of his legitimate children.

So, now, here we get to what I think you wanted me to talk about from the very beginning: 

HEADCANON TIME!!!

Now that I’ve explained why the line doesn’t make any sense, here is my theory: Blackwood has killed children before, or else ordered them killed, it just isn’t talked about in canon. Like you said, Zelda was a midwife, so it’s likely she was privy to most of the infant births and deaths in the coven. 

What if Blackwood ordered Zelda to kill the babies? Not directly, but through inaction? It’s implied that Zelda can’t lose a child. It’s not that she’s just so skilled that they never die; it’s actually a magical gift of hers, that not a single baby will ever be lost if she’s the one delivering it. 

So, what if Blackwood was in charge of which women she helped and which she turned away? What if Blackwood made her refuse to deliver certain babies, especially if the parents already knew it was going to be a girl? So it isn’t that Zelda directly killed them, or Faustus directly killed them, it’s that she was forced not to care for that particular mother and child, and the rest was “up to the (Dark) Lord?”

That would explain why Zelda and Hilda, as midwives, are the only ones who know about Blackwood’s “King Herod-like tendencies.” Zelda says the line as if she doesn’t need to remind Hilda about it, so this is something they’ve talked about before. 

Lacking a canon explanation, I think both of our headcanons have a lot merit!

[sidhewrites]

WORLD BUILDING. Approx 1100 words. I had some ideas for the culture of Kellu, the village in which our main character grew up, which of course shaped her values and personality. Pieces of it may or may not change depending. Approx 1100 words.

Content warnings for; mentions of food and alcohol, mentions of infant death/pregnancy/birth.

Architecture: Houses are stone and waterproofed/weather proofed, well-insulated. Usually built around a central hearth, even if it’s just a small fire pit in the ground. The outside is usually plain, with rugs and the like inside. Narrower doorways for most, occasionally wider ones. The kitchen is the largest if not the only room (sometimes folks just sleep on beds around the oven/on top of the oven), and there’s small hearths in every room.

Big city fancy pants houses have heated floors. This is not a city tho.

Population is just big enough for you to not know everyone on sight. Idk, 300 or so?

Life spans are probably shorter than in the city. 50/60 years or so?

Economy:

Bartering, favors, and honor systems are the main forms of trade, though coin isn’t entirely unheard of. It just doesn’t help as much as, say, a new door for looking after the kids for a day so you can hang out with friends.

Everyone has a trade or contributes what they can. Most folks are food producers of some sort -- fishers, farmers, shepherds.

The nearest settlement is a sizable township/city that’s a good few days’ boat ride north. Occasionally merchants will travel and sell wares and bring back news, but most folk never leave home.

Diet: Rye and oat for bread and meals. Barley. Beer especially, some vodka, kvas, etc. P much anything that can be fermented. Berries, leafy  winter greens. Cabbage, potatoes and carrots, beans, peas. And fish especially. Salmon mackerel, herring, and the occasional octopus, crab or squid. Hot teas.

Coffee is a delicacy rarely seen in kellu. Occasionally given as gifts in weddings.

Mobility Aids: Wheelchairs or crutches as mobility aids in the summer. Snow chairs  pulled by goats or sheep or occasionally yaks if youre brave enough in winter -- essentially a wheelchair strapped to a sled so it doesn’t sink into the snow. People dont love it because goats are DUMB and smelly why cant wheels just work on snow??? Crutches and canes tend to get similar weight distribution attachments. It’s common for folk with free time to paint or carve intricate patterns into the wood.

Fashion: Bright colors and vivid dyes. Multiple layers of wool and furs -- stockings, underwear, skirts/pants shirt, undercoat and overcoat, hats and scarves. Mittens, boots. Some people like to layer skirts so it’s rainbows etc. Some teens wear certain colors to suggest flirting or openness for marriage, but it’s not universal. Shorter skirts/coats are occasionally worn by teens in their rebellious phase, since you Dont Expose Skin (because snow).

Hair styles incorporate braids, beads, etc, and often are long plaits down the back if not pulled up under a fur hat.

Hair long enough to braid is common in every gender. If you don’t have hair or cut it short for whatever reason (usually a sign of someone to be shunned and mistrusted, a common punishment for people who do BIG crimes etc), people often have a plait of yak fur or wool to your hat or coat. Braids are one of the many methods to sort of passively ward off trolls, as well as the color red (?) and it’s just fun and artistic.

Weather: Summer is temperate, usually 60-70s at most, and winter is often brutal but they have lots of ways of coping. Bonfires and heavy coats, often have smaller animals sleeping inside for extra warmth, so its’ not entirely uncommon for a yak to just be chilling inside someone’s house.

Animals: Most everyone has a mousing cat. There’s probably a folkloric tie-in as well. Sheep and Yaks are most common livestock/work animals, and graze on scrub brush at the edge of the woods for the most part. Sheep are regularly shorn. Cleaning, carding, and spinning are some of the most common activities to do in down time.

Occasionally used for meat/furs, but usually milk for cakes and wool and warmth and work

Music and singing are paramount to passing time. There’s shanties, working songs, and plenty of homemade music as well.

Bells: EVERYONE makes bells. From cowbells that hang from the necks of their livestock and heavy iron bells to hang over doors or windows, to small bells made of metal blanks folded around scrap metal/beans/stones/nuts. If you’re not making bells, you’re working with wool, you’re fixing clothes, or you’re weaving cords on which to hang the bells.

Weddings: Marriage has LOTS of bright colors. While most people wear their best dress/coats instead of a single dedicated outfit, there are brightly-dyed cloaks and veils loned to you from family members/neighbors for the occasion. The happy couple make a red cord for bells for each other, with gold or white dyed thread woven in and two or three bells, tie it around the other’s wrist as a sign of engagement.

Babies: Not named until after they survived their first winter. People try to arrange it so that babies are born in mid to late spring so they have as much chance of survival as possible, so there’s a mother’s festival every april or may to celebrate.   Gifts of booties and clothes and other baby materials are given to every mom, doubly so to new mothers. The naming ceremony is probably in the same event, and it’s like a week or two of celebrating babies.  Maybe when the first calf/lamb is born? Midwives are sent for if there’s an unexpected number of pregnancies that year, but everyone has some basic knowledge of how to help in a standard birth, because it’s hard enough to survive that process much less if you’re unprepared and the witch or midwife is busy already.

If the child is ill, has NO chance of surviving, etc there’s a special funerary ceremony. (Not sure what it is yet) but it is NEVER left to die. Even if it’s born out of wedlock, it’s seen as better to raise it anyway with the shame than abandoning it in the woods. While Mylings exist, if you’re found to have been the parent of one, it’s doubly worse. The world is dangerous enough. You don’t need to subject infants to that, and/or make it worse for everyone else too.

Tag List:

@ambreeskyewriting

@desperatlytryingtowriteabook

@dreamywritingdragon​

@fearlings-lament

@quilloftheclouds

Please message me directly to be added/removed from the tag list, thanks!

[ohcnnes]

☢      —     ( LILI REINHART, CIS WOMAN, SHE/HER )     Trading in their scrunchies for gauze bandage rolls might not come easy for ANNE MILTON. This twenty six year old midwife brings medical knowledge, quick thinking and ex-gymnast fitness to the table … but their softness and unwillingness to kill could drag the group down. And while their nurturing nature might raise group morale, their over-thinking might give them a few enemies. That’s the last thing anyone needs right now. Hopefully, in the apocalypse movie that’s now their life, this BLEEDING HEART will make it to the end credits.     ( SAM, 23, SHE/HER, AEST )

OOC.

hello m’ladies, m’gents, and m’neithers my name is sam and this is written at either 1am or 5:30am because im australian and an idiot so pls forgive if there are any super dooper obvious spelling mistakes. anyways some fun facts: i’m an ex film student that now works in a pet store. i’m a whore for ari aster but i hope he goes to therapy or else i think he desperately needs to. 

i’ve played a few iterations of anne before but never something like this and i am so, so, so excited. i will probably never speak in the group chat because i have Social Anxiety(TM) and i am Intimidated By All Of You(TM) but i swear i am friendly pls come talk to me lmao

STATS.

full name: anne marie milton

best known as: anne

age: twenty six

occupation: midwife/registered nurse at a public hospital

star sign: virgo

trope: the bleeding heart

traits: diligent, nurturing, loyal, kind, intelligent, empathetic, meticulous, critical, over-thinking, jealous, anxious, clingy, secretive, overly trusting

drink / smoke / drugs: yes / no / no

MORE INFO.

born and raised in fort elm, she’s the middle child of three with an older sister and a younger brother. the three were raised mainly by their mother after their father passed fighting in the vietnam war when all the children were relatively young

as a result anne has a mother complex. idk if thats a thing but im making it one. she mothers everyone and feels like needs to look after everyone she knows, protect them, help them. hence the obvious move into the nursing/midwifing career

growing up she was pretty popular, like she’s friendly and charming and then on top of that a hot blonde that did gymnastics and cheerleading what do u want from me. was also an over achiever and perfectionist– has severely calmed down since she was in high school but i think she is still a perfectionist at heart like come on she’s a virgo

she sometimes comes off as fake but istg she is that much of a people pleaser. will try to be friends with everyone and obv has huge mom friend/big sister energy

believes in giving everyone a shot and it takes a lot of fucking her over for her to decide she doesn’t like you but even then if u came to her and said u had changed once she’d be like OK HERE U GO ANOTHER CHANCE LUV U 

a big romantic/emotional whore. loves love but always feels like she’s letting people down/not doing enough in relationships so ends up breaking them off before they go too far. and then gets in another relationship fairly quickly bc she just be like that

also giving her a labrador and u cant stop me xx

WANTED CONNECTIONS.

friends: dear god please be her friend she will do anything for u. would love friends from high school, maybe people that didn’t like her/the people she hung out with in high school and they have since become friends, bad influence friends (anne will mother extra hard but also get drunk around), ex-romances turned friends, toxic friendships that should have ended by now but havent, anne would legit try and make friends with rocks if she could so literally anyone could be her friend

romance ended ugly: ok i want one angsty thing sue me im human. the relationship that went too far before anne ended things so when she eventually did it hurt more and seemed more out of no where and anne prob got defensive and mean solely so they wouldn’t fight for it but still prob has so much love for them bc idk yall she got some issues anyways gimme 🤲

hook ups, ex-romances, roommates, people who dislike her (maybe someone she dislikes back but we would truly have to talk about it and figure out a juicy plot bc it takes a lot), party friends, dead ass anything lets go girls 

[hollyhomburg]

of fire and love is amazing!!! also i wanted to ask, about the map, which village is the one where oc lived? is it the one that only says ‘village’? because i remeber she was born far from there right?

I’m so glad you enjoyed the story so far! I think I touch on it briefly in part 3 but the reader was actually raised by her aunt in the capitol city of the human realms, where she went to medical school kind of more of a nurses school since most doctors have some kind of magical powers in the human realms,

note in this story sorcerers are not the same as wizzards- a wizard/ witch is someone who gets energy from outside of them and tries to focous that energy where a sorcerer is someone who is that energy incarnate, think of the difference between planting a flower with a bulldozer vs a trowel, one uses a lot of energy and is ineffective where as one is ponient and exact.)

but after she got fed up with the amount of death, disease, and poverty in the city (around when she was finishing her schooling at 18-19) she decided to move out of the city and eventually landed in the little village deep in the mountains which was desperately in need of a midwife and someone with her skill set, by the time that Jungkook appears at her doorstep she’s been at the village for 2 years so she’s 21/22, where we are in the story now- the reader is about 29/30.

Though weird thing- I think in whatever world we’re writing about here- people don’t age the same because the years are different? Like a year has maybe 200 days and each season has about 50 days? Idk I’m still playing around with this idea!

[irepookie]

Infinity

Summary: QUEEN AU where Roger (akaRow) is a teen single dad and aspiring rock star

Warnings: fluff fluff fluff and some cursing.

Words: 2090

I changed the names Cause I feel more comfortable writing it that way (idk why) but I could re-change them if that'd help you getting more into the story.

Rowan Queen: (tho you can imagine Ben as well. This is my take)

Chapter 1: I'm here

Written from his mother's POV, which gives us some insight on the family background and history as the first day of the rest of their lives unravels.

Gina Marie Queen (neé Thomas) had always been ahead of her time. She was never a fearful woman. Not for men anyway. She hadn't had a father -that alcoholic piece of shit was nothing close to that.-

And for all she knew, she hadn't had a husband either -another waste of space-. She had finally kicked him out hers and her son's life after 10 years of hell when that drunk asshole's rehearsal fits had made her lose the daughter she had been longing for since she could remember.

He could throw plates at her, and she'd fight back burning his beloved match tapes. Or intoxicate his food. Those were her favorite paybacks.

He could verbally abuse their son, and wake up with pink hair the next day. (Rowan's idea when he was 10)

But the night he had pushed her and she had broken waters at month number 5, that was it.

It should have ended earlier, she knew. Her unborn daughter shouldn't have had to suffer the consequences for Gina to finally throw his shit out the window and soak them in the Jack Daniels bottle he hid under his side of the bed and light them with the lighter he'd switch his bloody cigars.

But unfortunately that's what it had taken.

And she would have strangled him in his sleep if she had known Rowan would be taken care of while in jail. But she wasn't. And someone had to think of the rebellious trouble maker too.

And when her son -yes, she decided that rebellious trouble maker was, more or less, worthy of the title despite being the spitting image of the his father- became a father, Gina feared her granddaughter would have the same fate. Row had it in his genes and , as much she had tried to raise him as best as she was capable of, that fear never faded.

So when the phone rang

"Rowan Queen?"

""I'm his mother"

"I'm from the Hospital's maternity aisle. We call to inform you that his daughter's mom has disappeared after giving birth..."

That was all she needed to hear before dropping the phone and leaving it hanging upside down

"ROWAN EUGENE QUEEN! GET YOUR FUCKING ASS HERE THIS INSTANT!"

"I've got rehearsals with the band..."

"YOU GOT SOMEONE PREGNANT, YOU IDIOT??!"

"Me? No!"

"WELL THINK AGAIN!"

"Mum..."

"Just got a call from hospital saying your daughter's mother has disappeared after birth!!! And they called us!"

He was high school's infamous Playboy. Blonde, Blue Big eyes, and a charming smile. And on top of that, one of the four members of a wannabe rock band. The Hot Drummer, they call him .Gina knew. She didn't need to hear about his reputation to know the likelihood of him getting someone pregnant was high. But she had pictured it differently.

She grabbed him by the wrist and pulled, but he didn't move. He kept staring at nowhere.

"Rowan!!!"

No reaction.

She had to slap his cheek in order to get him out his shock

"What do you want?!"

"We're going to hospital, right now"

"What? Why?"

"To work this shit out!!"

"But we have to rehearse"

"Fuck that shit Rowan! They've just told us you got someone pregnant and she run off! That's the most important thing right now so get in that this instance!!"

He did as told. It was a tense car ride. And Gina remembered Elsa. Her baby girl. And how for her father's fault she wasn't there.

"So what now?" Row asked

"We're putting her up for adoption, unless they can contact the mother, although I don't think she should have a say. But if you're the so called father and your name is in the file, we can leave your part signed and then go home."

"Oh"

Gina thought she caught a hint of disappointment in his voice.

It had to be her imagination. Disappointment over what? Missing the wonderful experience of being a teen dad? Ha.

He did look thoughtful. He hadn't even turned on the radio.

Something was off.

But she figured he'd just want to get this whole thing over with, and that he'd sign her over to a better family. As anyone with minimum common sense would

Right?

Then, as they waited for the application, he asked if he could see her.

Her answer was immediate "No"

"Why?"

"How come Why? Why on Earth would you want to see her?"

"Well I'm here. You've been freaking out , and freaking me out as well. Might as well see who this fuss is about"

"A baby. That's it. You don't need to see one. They all look the same. Small, Wrinkly, like a large prune. There you have it"

"Well I wanna see my... That small wrinkled prune"

Damn. He had said <<mine>>. He already considered her his.

Gina changed her strategy.

"Your name is on the certificate, right. But that means nothing"

"Why would it be there otherwise?""

"A mistake. Or maybe the mother just wants to tangle you up."

"The mother's gone"

"Yes. For now. It's called Baby Blues, and when it's gone She'll have you exactly where she wants to. Because I'm guessing she won't be no straight A student either, and you'll have to sustain them both -if you ever make it to college- and you'll end up getting married, and maybe you don't even love her, but divorce is even more tedious than getting married. That's why I've Never done it. So you'll both be stuck as cashiers in whatever low cost store, and then she'll confess that you were her high school crush but that the kid is actually her ex boyfriend's and then you'll throw a fit, and you'll get in a fight and you'll end up grabbing whatever is on your reach to hit whoever's on your reach...."

"Wait mom. I just... I just wanna see her." Row cut her off " Whoever the fuck she may actually be, I'm the one who's here. And I ain't signing anything without knowing who I'm making decisions for. That's all. I just want to see. I don't even want to touch her or whatever. Just knowing who's the reason I had to turn the boys down today. Then I'll sign the paper and we'll go home."

"She's in the NICU anyway. Doubt they'll let you in"

"What's NICU?" Gina caught genuine concern in his voice.

"Nothing bad." She reassured.

They handed the files, and she took them "I'll fill them"

She got through the first page, and he was gone.

Shit. That stubborn bastard.

She didn't want him to be a father. He was 19 for fucks shake. Had never had one of his own. He had only moved out a couple months ago. Nothing lasted much for him. Wether it was a girlfriend, a job, clothes... His longest pet had reached one year alive. And he couldn't go long without getting injured

Not even his drum kit had survived the move, and was litterally patched up. She'd consider herself guilty of murder if she allowed a baby to be on that list. Not to mention the alternative was that she'd be the one, sooner or later, to take over. Because he was never patient and would stress too much -if he didn't lose interest first- or get fed up and cause her shaken Baby syndrome. And just as she was too young to be a grandmother, she was too old to raise a second kid.

So she stormed inside the NICU aisle ready to get him out of there. And what she saw was quite breathtaking. The look in his eyes was priceless: such fondness and marvel... Only comparable to when he had first seen that red Ludwig drum set through the glass of the local music store.

"I've never seen something so awesome in my life!" He had said.

They had never been able to afford it. He had tried to get a job after school, to save up everything. But it hadn't been enough. And he'd go everyday to that street, and just stare at the shiny wonderful kit for hours, hands on the glass, knowing that the likelihood of ever owning it was almost non existent.

He ended up making acquaintance with the owner. They tried to bargain for it, but his lowest price was way too high for them. He did get to play it once tho, and it was an undescribable experience. Murray, the owner, let him give it a try out of pity when someone else bought it, as a farewell. And had never seen anything like it again.

Now this baby was, technically, his -regardless of what biology could say- and he was about to give it away.

Gina did know on first hand it was, having been a volunteer on midwife assistance with her aunt. And 10/10 woman who swore to never want anything to do with their child changed their minds as soon as they laid eyes on them. Only those who really followed through -take it away, I don't wanna see it- walked out there with empty arms.

Now Row was looking at that baby ad if she was a treasure, but that meant nothing in the long term. His father had done something similar to Elsa's sonogram.

Her poor little girl. So young.

So helpless. She had been so naive thinking he would ever change.

But she wasn't gonna make that mistake again. She loved her son, but he really wasn't good at anger management.

She couldn't expose another innocent child to such danger.

"Rowan, come here now. You've seen her. Got what you wanted. Met her. Now let's get this over with"

His hand was resting on the top of the incubators glass, even if he had unglued his eyes from the tiny being inside and nailed on her now, as if he had been staring at the sun for a long while and was now blinded.

"Why the hurry?"

Was she hearing correctly?

"How come Why the hurry? Because we both have things to do"

"I've already cancelled the one plan I had..."

"Well I still have an errand to get done."

He didn't reply, eyes back on the child

"Rowan" she approached him, making sure not to look at the kid. "Rowan Eugene Queen, look at me when I'm talking to you" she ordered in a strict tone

"What?"

"Papers. Signature. Now"

"I'm thinking about it"

"Thinking about...?! Thinking about what? What's there to think? Sign these and we'll go home, and we'll never have to look back at this! Nobody has to know."

"And what about the raisin?"

"The what?"

"Her. What about her?"

"She'll be fine. Adopting couples love newborns. She'll go to a fit, nice marriage and will be very happy. And we'll resume our lives"

"And I'll never see her again?"

"Why do you care?"

He just shrugged and turned his attention back to her. Gina watched him watch her. Goddamn. She was losing him.

"Are you the father?" A nurse asked, walking towards.

*Don't say it. Don't say it. Don't say it*

Gina prayed.

"I suppose I am" He said it so naturally, with such a bright genuine smile that Gina almost forgot how critical those words were.

"Well, I'm Callie, and I'm on charge tonight. Congratulations, Mr... Oh, Queen." Her eyes widened When reading the tag on the incubator. "We're glad at least someone's here"

"Yea, well..." He scratched the back of his head nervously

"Don't worry. Her mom will get over it." She turned to Gina "You must be Gran..."

"No I'm not" Gina snapped harshly before she could finish the sentence "We were leaving"

"We were not"

"Rowan, I will not repeat it. Sign those bloody papers and get your ass back in the car"

"What if I don't want to?"

"This is serious! There's no other way!"

"Yes there is!"

"You can't be serious!" What 19 year old would ever choose this?

"Well I am"

"You don't even know what serious means! You have no sense of responsibility! You've never finished anything you've ever started!"

"Maybe I want to change! Maybe I can grow up if you stop pestering the shit outta me day In day out! This is not your decision!"

"I'm not letting you do this Row!"

"Then go! Leave me the fuck alone and stop getting in my way!"

Before Gina could answer, a small cry came from the incubator.

And she found herself walking backwards.

It was right she couldn't stop him but she wasn't gonna take part on it.

So she turned around and left, as the nurse explained Row how to hold his newborn daughter.

"You're not gonna break her, I promise. You'll do fine. Because you're here. Just because you're here I know you're gonna be a great dad. You already are" Callie said, putting his trembling arms on the correct position before lifting the small white bundle out the incubator.

They usually didn't do it unless it was necessary for a feed or a change, but she thought this was even more important: they had to meet each other properly: The little one needed to hold on to someone after being abandoned. And there was something in the young boy's eyes that told her he needed just the same.

So with a reassuring smile Callie placed her on Rowan's arms, who brought her closer to his chest by instinct, a small smile already on his lips as he took in her features.

She was gorgeous. And he didn't know why, but he found her to be the most perfect thing he had ever seen. He instantly knew he was gonna protect that wrinkled prune at all costs.

"Hey there, lil'raisin. I'm..." He swallowed the lump in his throat "I'm your Dad and... I'm here now."

🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶

Hope you guys liked it

It's my first fic on Tumblr so I still don't have the formatting completely handled and my phone won't let me select all the paragraphs at once to put it all in regular font.

Let me know what you think. Thank you all!!😍😍😍😍

~Pookie

[keshetchai]

okay so as i watch prince of egypt i always have two questions about it, and since your jewish and since moses is a big part of the jewish religion and i saw you answer the questions on the one post about poe i was maybe wondering if you could answer some of my questions, since i was never raised religiously at all and i'm kinda interested 1) from the start was god planning on making moses the man who delivers the hebrew people and is protecting him when he goes down the river or (part 1)

was it like just plain luck and he chose moses later on and 2) with the burning bush was he TRYING to lure moses there or was it like a first come first serve thing where whoever got there first was gonna be chosen and 3) why wasn't the killing of jewish baby boys the last straw for god like why didn't he do something when that happened?? i guess you could make the argument he did do something by giving moses if moses was always supposed to be the deliverer. thanks for answering my (part 2) for answering my questions in advance!! i'm sorry if i come across as offensive, i've never been raised religiously and after watching poe it's really piqued my curiosity 😊 (part 3)

THIS IS AN OLD-ISH ASK SORRY....

I mean, like.....good questions. 

1.) No it’s not plain luck Moses is chosen. Moses (Moshe) is a descendent of Levi, one of the sons of Jacob/Yisrael and Leah. (You ever heard of Joseph and his coat? Joseph is one of the sons of Jacob who ended up in Egypt no thanks to his older brothers.) 

OR, in a more chronological order, skipping some less memorable generations: 

Adam and Eve have at least three sons. Everyone remembers Cain and Abel, but of course, it’s Seth who continues the line of humanity. Several generations of his line later, you get Noah. Noah has three sons: Japheth, Ham and Shem. Again, we can skip two of them, and focus on Shem (which is where linguists derived the word Semitic, as in semitic languages).

Shem’s family line eventually gets to Abraham and Sarah. These are our proto-Jewish folks. Hebrews is probably most accurate. They believe in God and Abraham gets circumcised as part of his covenant with God. Abraham and Sarah have Isaac, who is real grateful that God banned child sacrifices. Isaac marries Rebecca. Rebecca gives birth to Jacob and Esau. Jacob is Rebecca’s favorite and idk, he gets to inherit because of a switcheroo. (Details are in genesis sorry). 

Then AH HA!!!! JACOB!!!!! Jacob is special! He wrestles someone (Probably an Angel of God) until they give him a new name - Yisrael (Israel), which is...literally wrestling with God. (Or prevails with God, but that less fun sounding.) God Wrestler. That’s it! There you go! Looooonnnnggg before the term “Jewish” was around, the hebrew people with a covenant with God were just all Israelites. 

Anyways Jacob ends up with more wives than he bargained for (importantly: Rachel and Leah also Bilhah and Zilpah), and his wives have 13 children in total - 12 sons, and one daughter Dinah. These twelve sons become the 12 tribes of...Israel! Anyways first Yisrael and his family dwell in Hebron, and baby Joseph gets a cool coat and prophetic dreams and his brothers, fed up with Joseph proclaiming he was going to be the hottest shit ever, sell him into slavery where he ends up in Egypt and then works for the Pharaoh. 

Later Jacob/Israel and the other 11 brothers & co reunite with Joseph due to famine in the land, and Jacob dies and Joseph carries him back to their homeland to be buried. The Cave of the Patriarchs/(in Hebrew Double Tombs) is in Hebron - which is now in the region known as the West Bank. There’s a whole political aside here but this is already long. tl;dr Jewish people were denied access to a holy site for 700 years. 

ANYWAYS......LEVI! Levi is one of the 12 sons of Jacob, and his line of descendants are important! They’re one of the few distinct remaining tribes (The Levites) and one of the following generations produces GUESS WHO?:

Yes! Miriam, Aaron, and Baby Moses! Miriam is a Prophetess, Moses is a prophet, and Aaron is a priest (and all his descendants are also priests). 

SO YOU SEE: When God makes a covenant with a man and says “LOOK: YOU, YOUR DESCENDANTS, AND I - AND ANYONE WHO AGREES TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS - HAVE A DEAL,” then you see, in the Torah, this is pretty literal. 

If you read Exodus, this is elaborated on a bit more (The current Pharaoh is bad, he forgot Joseph being awesome earlier in Egypt) and like, God is pretty adamant about being the God of Moses’ ancestors. 

I think that answers 1 and 2, but as for 3.) I mean...again this is where you really miss out on a few cool bits that aren’t in Prince of Egypt:

16 And he said, "When you deliver the Hebrew women, and you see on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall put him to death, but if it is a daughter, she may live."17 The midwives, however, feared God; so they did not do as the king of Egypt had spoken to them, but they enabled the boys to live.18 So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, "Why have you done this thing, that you have enabled the boys to live?"19 And the midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are skilled as midwives; when the midwife has not yet come to them, they have [already] given birth."20 God benefited the midwives, and the people multiplied and became very strong.

The Hebrew midwives are the ones told to murder the boy babies. And they don’t. They basically lie and tell Pharaoh “Uh, sorry, Hebrew women just give birth before we can get there and murder the boy children.” 

Basically a Bunch of Kickass midwives saved the day (and also the babies), is the answer. 

Also in Exodus: Moses’ actual mother “pretends” to be his nursemaid/nanny because the Egyptians were like “oh, you! You’re right for this job! Nurse this Hebrew baby we’re adopting!” 

[feynites]

@justanartsysideblog I did some Four Moms, Four Horsemen, Moms of the Apocalypse... idk what we’re calling it now, but The One Where Everyone Raises Mel AU.

Elven babies are very... delicate.

Lela had never seen one, until a few weeks ago. She’s seen some vashoth babies, and some human babies. Grey and pink and brown, none of them newborn. One time she saw a dwarven baby. It was at a distance; a little thing, tinier even than the baby they rescue from the Hinterlands. Like a wrinkly little potato, she had thought. But she hadn’t really gotten close enough to appreciate the delicacy.

Everything about the elven baby they find is so small, it makes Lela want to cry. Fingers and toes, mouth and little nose, and pointed ear tips, are all soft and fragile and utterly miniature. Lela traces them carefully, whenever Da’len – as Kel has taken to calling the baby, until they can figure out what they’re going to do about this situation – cries.

Da’len cries a lot. Hunger, she thinks. They’d taken the baby to Redcliffe, after the discovery. Olwyn had carried her, bundled up in one of her robes, and they’d been able to barter some milk from the locals, as Maibrit and Kel asked around to see if anyone was missing a baby. Maybe, they thought, tragedy had struck, rather than malice. Maybe there were some relatives, or some poor mother, out of her mind with worry. Lela would have liked to think so, but she wasn’t really surprised when no one seemed to know anything.

Her own parents had left her as soon as her magic manifested. Children got abandoned. It… wasn’t uncommon.

The villagers spare them some goat’s milk, but it’s not really the same thing as mother’s milk, Lela thinks. Kel says that halla milk works best for elves; her clan uses it at times, so after the first day, she sets out to follow a rumour of Dalish who live in the Brecilian forest, and see if she can trade for some. Olwyn seems torn between going with her and staying to look after the baby, who might need her healing magic, if things go astray – Lela knows how to patch wounds, but she has no idea what spells to cast on infants. Olwyn’s worked as a midwife, she knows how to tell when something is wrong with human and elven babies.

But Kel can handle herself. Insists she’s used to it, and that she’ll travel faster and safer alone – the Dalish won’t be as skittish around her, or as quick to notch arrows. Lela supposes so. Most of the Dalish she crossed out in the Free Marches were wary, and not eager to make small talk. They were a reserved people, she thought.

Very different from the mercenary elves who joined their camp from the cities.

For a few days, then, they stayed in Redcliffe. Lela didn’t hold Da’len very much. She was too afraid of breaking her, somehow. Or getting startled and sending a jolt through her. Olwyn did most of the looking after, although Maibrit fed her a fair few times as well, holding her carefully, and frowning a little as she tilted her head. Her ruby eye would gleam, just a bit, while Lela watched, and felt her stomach flutter slightly at the image of the striking dwarven woman, being so gentle with their foundling.

“Funny baby,” Maibrit would coo, sometimes.

“What’s funny about her?” Lela wondered, at length. Edging closer, almost hovering.

Maibrit didn’t answer, though. Just shrugged, and then, quicker than Lela could counter, turned towards her and put the baby straight into her arms. Lela almost fumbled. And then she stilled, moving very, very carefully, as the warm weight settled in her grasp. Da’len looked up at her with little grey eyes, blinking, startled but not particularly afraid, it seemed. It was amazing. Lela held her breath as she took in the sensation of holding the baby, and feeling her move, as she shifted just a little.

Her throat closed up.

“Oh,” she managed, before her voice failed her completely.

Da’len made a tiny grasping motion with her hand, and Maibrit made an odd noise.

“Are you crying?” she asked.

Lela blinked.

She couldn’t let go of the baby to tell, but come to think of it, her eyes were suddenly quite wet. And her chest felt as tight as her throat, which refused to let her answer. So she settled for a very brief nod, before she finally risked shifting her grip again. Enough to better cradle Da’len’s head, and feel the soft wisps of hair on top of it.

“I never held a baby before,” she had admitted. “Wasn’t sure I ever would. Is it safe?”

Maibrit made another strange sound, and then tucked her own self in closer.

“Of course it’s safe, Spark,” she assured her. “Babies don’t spit acid or anything. Well. I mean, they spit some unpleasant stuff, but it’s mostly just… spit.”

Lela managed a tiny smile, before Da’len’s gaze stole her attention again. And felt something shift, and it felt a little bit liking being doomed. But maybe not in a bad way. Things fell into silence. After a while Olwyn came to put Da’len down for her nap, and Maibrit had climbed into Lela’s lap and kissed her senseless. Which was very pleasant; especially when she buried her hands in Maibrit’s hair and sucked her bottom lip between her teeth, and felt her gasp against her mouth.

After that, though, Lela got better at helping with the baby. Holding her, feeding her, changing her. Even bathing her. Kel came back with a pack full of halla milk, and Da’len seemed to like it a whole lot better. Enough that they’ve been trying to figure out if they should head back to Skyhold. There’s no one in Redcliffe eager to take an elven baby in. The chantry doesn’t take elves, and the villagers have been hard done-by of late, and babies are a lot of work.

And they’re small, and delicate, and precious, and Lela doesn’t think she’d trust strangers with their Da’len anyway.

She thinks about this, when she wakes up to the sounds of the baby crying. Coming from the next room, in the little inn willing to rent out to them. Maibrit had paid extra for privacy, and the consideration of a baby; they’re the only ones staying in the place right now, apart from the owner.

Lela gets up, careful not to jostle Maibrit too much, and heads into Kel and Olwyn’s room.

They’re awake, of course. Maibrit probably would be, too, but she had an Idea three days ago, and proceeded to spend a ridiculous amount of time putting together some kind of gently heated baby-carrier before falling against Lela in an exhausted heap.

“Second time tonight,” Olwyn murmurs in concern, as Kel rocks Da’len.

“Here,” Lela says. “I’ll take her. Maybe a little air will help.”

It’s a warm night.

“Keep her bundled,” Olwyn reminds her, and Lela wraps Da’len up, doing it just as Olwyn showed her – which earns her a relieved and approving look, before the human mage slumps against Kel. Everyone’s been short on sleep. Da’len rarely goes a night without having some kind of upset or another, though she’s at least been less gassy since Kel brought the halla milk.

As Lela swaddles Da’len, she can’t help but count fingers and toes, and marvel at tiny nails and the little wrinkles of her knees. All safe and in order, wrapped up in the softest blanket they could get, before Lela lifts her again, and settles her against her chest. Some of Da’len’s cries quiet as she is carried out of the inn, and into the starlight.

Kel says that elves don’t really dance naked under the moon, or commune with the stars, but Da’len certainly seems to do a little better when she is surrounded by the night air. Lela keeps her head covered, and stares at the perilously tiny points of her ears. Walking back and forth around the inn; not really going anywhere. Just moving. It seems to help. After a few minutes, Da’len’s crying has stopped completely. A few minutes more, and she’s sleeping against Lela, mouth moving as she falls into the land of dreaming.

Lela gives it a few minutes more, before heading back inside. Her own thoughts feel quiet, because her feelings are very, very large.

She thinks… she thinks they should keep this baby.

All of them.

In the qun, she knows, tamassrans raise babies and children together. She doesn’t like of things about the qun, but this part always seemed like a good idea. Lots of tamas. Lots of mothers. Maybe…

…Well. Even if the others don’t think it’s a good idea, Lela doesn’t think she can let this little one go, now. She’ll have to talk to them all about it. See what Maibrit thinks, especially. But not tonight. Da’len drools on her tunic, and Lela takes her back to her cradle. She pulls it carefully out of Olwyn and Kel’s room. The two women are sleeping, wrapped up around one another. Tired from their earlier wake-up, and all the activity that’s come upon them so quickly. Lela thinks she can manage the baby for tonight, even as tiny and fragile as Da’len is. She carries her with confidence, hefting up her cradle and moving it into her and Maibrit’s room. Maibrit is a lump in the bedroll, and has claimed Lela’s pillow.

Da’len settles without waking again, and Lela presses a kiss to the top of her soft, dark hair.

“Sleep well,” she whispers.