#life saver cactus

[velveteengreen]

found in an understory of bushes at a local plant shop

[reasonsforhope]

Hey cactus! I wanna say I am really greatful for all the hopeful post cause it is really is a big relief to know good things still happen. I also am curious how far you go to do fact checking to see if something actually happened or gives a positive impact cause I personally have problems in doing that myself and would like to know your take on it. Again, thanks for everything and keep on fighthing :)

My fact-checking protocol is that whenever I use a new source, I vet them, primarily by checking their home page to see the focus/tone of their coverage, and more importantly, by running them through one of the best sites ever, Media Bias/Fact Check.

They do report on history of bias and history of accuracy in detail, with sources/examples, and run their own fact-checks regularly. They're a massive time/life-saver.

From their home page: "We are the most comprehensive media bias resource on the internet. There are currently 8600+ media sources, journalists, and politicians listed in our database and growing every day. Don’t be fooled by Questionable sources."

Other than that, I mainly go off context, sourcing, and level of specificity in the articles. I don't go through and check all of the sources of my sources, or anything, unless I genuinely want to read more. That said, I've been doing this for a while, am fairly caught up on science and politics. I also literally work as a freelance fact-checker, sometimes. So I'm pretty good at figuring out when something doesn't smell right and needs more verification. I also have a couple sources that I have mentally asterisked as "90% good, but double-check just in case."

Generally, the bigger and more impactful a claim is, the more I verify it.

I also appreciate when people post corrections and/or more info, which is usually in the notes. I wish I could say I've never posted anything that turned out to be untrue, but unfortunately that is not the case! On the rare occasion that happens, I generally delete the post and sometimes make a separate post about it, or reblog it with corrections, depending on how much the inaccuracy impacts the story as a whole.

[theg-unit]

141 (and friends) professional and  personal Specialty Headcannons.

also I dipped for a hot minute but I spent that time reading twitter thread fics like the internet goblin I am and falling into the multi shipper hole that is PriceNik and poly141 so here are more Headcannons about our favs. 

(also no I won't write Konig Headcannons, I don't like him. pls stop asking)

Areas of interest: academic and personal.

-soap is good at chemistry and chemical equations. the man has the periodic table tattooed on the back of his eyelids and nothing will stop him from making an IED out of literally the most random shit. also knows a concerning amount about atomic physics.  but he also has a passion for all poetry and writes little sonnets in his sketchbook for his partners.

-Price is really good at languages. he's a certified multilingual and is constantly learning. his favourite part is learning niche regional dialects. he is fluent in conversation in all major languages and can speak conversationally in at least 30 others. he also really enjoys horticulture. he can name 50 different grasses according to Laswell.

- Ghost specialises in trigonometry. he can do it mentally on the fly and often comes out correct. he uses it in his sniping, allowing him to be sent on more solo missions, without the need for a spotter. coincidently his secondary talent is navigation, he is bizarrely good at maps and geo guessing games but also used to do orienteering tournaments before his “death”. after the alone mission, despite only being told where the safe house was, ghost seemed to find his way there, without a map, from a city he had only been in for like a week. I like to think his internal sense of direction is like homing pigeon level. you could stick him anywhere and he could immediately find his way back. 

-Gaz is an all-round science man, a jack-of-all-trades. he has a comprehensive knowledge of biology, chemistry, physics, geology and the niche areas as well. zoology, astrophysics, ecology, palaeontology, psychology, genetics astronomy, botany, microbiology and the list goes on. you'll never meet someone with so much knowledge of the natural, social and formal sciences. he's not at university level but he has a thorough understanding of the concepts and case studies for all. he can comprehend the advanced concepts as well. its helped the 141 out of some tight spots. coincidently his personal interest is reading. his room on base and his apartment is full of academic journals and natgeo magazines.

-Alejandro. Mechanical engineering. The colonel of the Los Vaqueros can fix anything with duct tape and a prayer, but he also can build the most robust (and more importantly) high-functioning machinery. all repairs to their vehicles and heavy weaponry on base are done by Alejandro, simply because he doesn’t trust anyone else with the machines that keep his men safe. he also enjoys doing it, it gives him some time to wind down and just tinker with things. His secret talent is weaving and braiding. he was taught by his abuela to not only weave scarves and things like carpets, but also to braid her hair and his sisters once she got too old. (I head cannon him as the oldest and they all lived with their grandma cause their parents died.) he used to braid Valerias hair (as an mlm/wlw besties thing) before she betrayed them. he braided Gaz’s hair once they bonded over engineering.

-Rudolfo. Rudy is an expert in law. more specifically domestic and international criminal law, but he also keeps up with all legal disciplines. due to the proximity of Las Almas to the border, he also keeps up to date with USA law. He's a life saver in sticky jurisdiction missions. he also manages the compounds paperwork for requests. he has a silver tongue that translates to requisition forms. his personal passion is painting though. he feels that sometimes words aren't enough to describe things and loves painting landscapes and the little moments, like a flowering cactus in the middle of the night but also its death the next morning. he knows how fleeting life can be in his profession, and wants to capture all aspects. hopefully more with Ale if they retire.

-Laswell. Algorithms. typical of a spook Kate is an expert in cryptographic algorithms. she spent a few years as a cipher breaker/creator in her early career and hasn't lost her touch since moving to intelligence. all of her transmissions to her sources are hand encrypted and they have a key delivered separately. she creates them herself so that they can't be deciphered. she also does it completely in her head, nothing is typed out. her time off is spent back on her wife's farm, as her passion is animal husbandry. they raise goats, sheep, some assorted fowl and a smaller herd of cattle together.  she has an Australian Shepard and a kelpie/blue heeler dog that she trained herself. 

-Nik is an expert in psychology. not in your typical clinical way, but the body language, tone of voice, mindset and “takes one look and deciphers your whole life” way. His experience is immense and he applies it all the time. he can tell when a prisoner is lying in interrogation and when he's been made during undercover. Nik knows people, and frequently uses his observations to do things like blatantly walk into a restricted area with only confidence and a blank lanyard. the Russian is unparalleled in putting himself in the enemies mind space or pulling off dangerous acts in a crowded area. he’s been teaching gaz some tricks (e.g. the Amsterdam cafe mission). But on the side, he is an excellent barber. haircuts of any length and a full on old fashioned shave, with a straight razor and everything, is his special talent. he does price’s moustache, Jonnys mohawk (even though he thinks its ugly when short), learnt how to give gas a full hair treatment and even does Kates hair. he uses it for missions of course (its a great source of intel) but he also finds it to be a way to show care to his people. 

bonus:

Valeria: main specialty-economics and accounting. special interest-botany (but strictly focusing on poisonous and hallucinogenic plants)

Graves: main specialty: aeronautics. special interest-being a backstabbing bitch? jk, he's actually super into smoking and curing meats. if he had joined 141 he and ghost would have eventually found common ground there. (ghost actually enjoyed his career as a butchers apprentice)

anyway that's it for now, and I'll try upload more often. feel free to repost on other platforms with credit, my twitter @ is @macG_Unit. also let me know if anyone writes pics based off these, id love to read them. 

[offworldlamb-writes]

DAY 27 OF #FICTOBER24! Sorry for not doing anything the past 2 days, been watching anime and playing games to give my brain a rest.

But here we have prompt 27: Let me remind you. This excerpt was going to be for day one but I didn't like how it turned out for that but I feel it does well for this one.

Kind of part of 3Kingdoms, but it probably won't play out like this in the final draft. But it was still fun! No warnings except for a bad make-out scene near the end.

Lilla has returned to the archives to get another look at the research on the Decay.

xxx

Meryl wasn't on the desk today so Lilla turned to head straight up the stairs-- no point looking for a chat when the cute lady wasn't working today, but a chat was scheduled for her anyway as a young man at the foot of the stairs watched her approach, face lighting up in recognition.

For the life of her she couldn't think why-- if she'd met this man before she would've remembered him for sure, if not because of his honey red hair but for the stunning colour of his eyes. The left was a warm hazel while the right was bright blue, and a faded scar creeping up his neck and cheek cut through the faint freckles scattered across the bridge of his nose. He was stunning, and the fact he was smiling as he turned more towards her only made it all the more concerning that she didn't have the faintest idea who he was until he spoke up.

"This is still pretty far from home, don't you think?" he asked with a mischievous chuckle ringing clear as a bell, and she smiled back in complete disbelief at the man she'd met up in the hills outside Khatta Alnahr. "You made it safely, then? Did you find your friend?"

"Yeah-- I mean she was pissed as shit but she got over it," she replied, and thanked him for his help. "We wouldn't have made it if you weren't there. That recipe was a life saver as well."

"And how's your other friend?" he asked next, with a subtle point to his gloved right hand.

With a frown she was about to ask how he knew Luta was getting fitted with a MET-limb, until she realised it wasn't his own MET-limb he was referring to but his right hand in general, which made much more sense. Luta's hand was already withered from the Decay when they met before and the way he talked about 'surges' and stuff gave the impression this man knew more about any of it than she did, and after confirming that Luta was alright (for now) she gestured to the stairs behind him. "We're looking into stuff to help him and I found a bunch of useful books here last time, but they kicked me out when I started asking for more information. Kind of hoping i could get another look now that it's quieter. How about you?"

"Same; hoping people were busy with festival prep and I could find what I need in peace, but if you don't mind some company maybe I could help you out?"

It was nice to know that even if Meryl the cute receptionist wasn't working today, she still had some help from...

"You never told me your name," she replied with a wry smile, and watched the quick succession of confusion-recollection-realisation go across his face before he apologised with a light laugh.

"Sorry, I tend to get caught up when I'm in the middle of research. I'm Keet, and you're... Lilla, right?" he clarified, shoulders relaxing when she nodded. "Good. Memory's not the best, but... yeah, that's fine. So: upstairs?"

Fishing out the scrap of paper from Rhos Lilla led the way up to the research archives, following the rows and checking the labels carefully to find the right ones. She remembered the funny cactus from last time and frowned when she realised they were passing it by, and doubled back to check again just in case she'd missed the labels.

But they were gone, the shelves stocked with newly bound files that, when opened, revealed soldier-funded research into the local flora, fauna and water sources. Each file she checked was full of the same type of work, but when she made a full lap of the upper ring with Keet's help she couldn't find a single paper she'd read before.

"They must've been moved," Keet grumbled, checking over the page himself one more time. "This was research on the decay, right? These were all here for years: I don't understand why they've moved them now."

"A friend of mine mentioned they're ramping up their investigations over at the Wawr headquarters. Bringing in every person they find that has any signs of the decay," Lilla explained in a low voice, pulling Keet down one of the stack aisles for privacy. "They've probably taken them to their headquarters--" she started to muse out loud, only for Keet to shake his head and gesture towards the floor.

"They'd have copies of everything already, but if they've requested it's removal it's probably down in the basement level," he told her in a low voice, leaning in closer in a conspiratorial fashion. "The door might be locked, but what I'm looking for is probably down there too so that's where I'm headed. How much do you want those papers?"

"Enough that I'm not above a little breaking and entering, so long as we don't attract soldiers," she muttered in response.

They were ushered out by one of the librarians, who looked ready to swat at them with his duster with tight-lipped disapproval, and once they were back down the stairs Keet led the way around the back of the staircase. After a quick check that no one was watching he encouraged Lilla to duck down first, and they decended into darkness together.

She expected winding corridors and dingy little alcoves not unlike a prison underneath the archives, but beyond the heavy door at the bottom of the stairs there was only one room. It was huge and full of shelves that reached up to the roof, and despair sank in her stomach at the idea that they'd have to search all the shelves-- one row alone looked like it would take hours, and she doubted they had that kind of time.

Voicing her immediate resignation to the cause Lilla turned to leave, only to realise Keet was quickly checking shelf ends and labels and disappearing down a row further into the room. "Have you found something?" she asked as she hurried after him, and watched him pull one or two books from the shelves and flick through the pages. Of the four he found only one he stashed away down the back of his trousers, carefully covering it with his shirt again before asking Lilla for her slip of paper and leading the way again.

They found the books she wanted much closer to the door, waiting to be properly archived, and while Lilla would've loved to have done the same as Keet and stashed them all in her pockets she didn't have the space for one, let alone the small pile they'd been looking through the other day.

Flicking through the pages she noted down what she could, but there was so much to go through it was impossible to choose which parts were most important. It didn't help that Keet was beginning to loom, though he mumbled the author's name in curiosity and she cast him a glance over her shoulder. "You heard of him?"

He replied with a gentle huff. "I know him. He lives in a town a few miles out-- if you go and meet him I'm sure he'll help you out. No breaking and entering required."

Slapping the file shut Lilla gladly agreed, and started back towards the door. "Anything's better than being stuck down here.

Hurrying back out through the door they made sure to close it behind them, and were two steps back up to the main floor when they heard someone coming down to meet them. There was no excuse for being here and Lilla knew that, swearing softly under her breath and doing a cursory glance of the hall behind them in case there was a little nook or something they'd missed. Nope, just two feet of painted walls and the doorway. Fuck!

Undoing the top two buttons of her shirt and untucking one side of it she grabbed Keet by the arm and pulled him closer, mumbling a quick apology as she stuffed one of his hands up underneath to hold her waist. He caught on quickly enough after that and nodded as he pressed her up against the wall, giving her a second to mess up her hair before catching her in the sloppiest kiss she'd had in a while.

It really sold the situation. By the time they were discovered he'd hitched her leg up with his free hand to make it all the more compromising, and at some point she'd stuck her tongue in his mouth and got a real good feel of his hair between her fingers. Maybe she was a little too into it: the archivist gave them fair warning by calling out when he spotted them, but it wasn't until he swatted at their arms with his feather duster that she actually paid attention.

It was the same tight-lipped man from upstairs, and he was hissing his disapproval as he continued swatting until they'd stepped apart. "Let me remind you that this is a library, not a bunk house! Go do your business elsewhere!"

Fixing her shirt Lilla mumbled some apologies as Keet fought to hide a cheeky grin alongside her, quickly tidying his hair in the process, and they scurried back up the stairs together without another word.

[mornmonday]

Where are these numbers coming from? What parts of these processes have specifically been analyzed? Are we counting emissions from the beef industry as purely leather industry creations? Is it more sustainable to throw away a cow hide that's already created as a side effect of producing beef? These are great numbers but I don't see the story behind them represented here.

Its great that we have new emerging technologies that will give us more sustainable leather alternatives in the future, but are they going to be about 50% plastic like other leather alternatives are these days? Things like cactus leather require a significant amount of petroleum to manufacture (at least in every case I've ever seen), and something being half plastic really takes the punch out of its claim to sustainability. Do these CO2 emissions calculations include the pollutants released when that half-plastic-pleather breaks down in a landfill? I understand you want to make a big point about re-use being the ultimate climate saver (and I agree there!) but we still have to acknowledge that a lot of this plastic will end up being thrown away, as every material eventually reaches the end of its usefulness. Is pleather recyclable, like some plastics are? Cuz that would be really cool, and I would be interested to know how the recycling process of plastic that is half cactus compares to the recycling process of full plastic, which is already pretty inefficient (and honestly I feel that recycling is a lie designed to keep liberals calm in the face of a plastic / oil industry that's going to kill us all, cuz we know plastic recycling contributes almost ¾ of the pollution of just producing new plastic).

Do you think we could lower the amount of emissions significantly by scaling down and de-industrializing the beef (and other meats) industry, and making better use of hides already produced by the animals we eat?

There will never come a day when the whole world is vegan, perceived morals aside let's just be practical. Total world veganism would mean another wave of cultural genocide against indigenous ways of life in North America (just speaking about the cultures I am familiar with in my local area, not claiming to know every indigenous culture and diet on the planet or whatever) and a lower quality of life for a lot of disabled people. But now im getting preachy, so I'll end this here.

PS: consider reading this article if you want more info on why I feel that ultimately producing any new plastic is long-term worse than shifting our meat industries to use "waste" hides and just keep making real leather. https://www.npr.org/2022/10/24/1131131088/recycling-plastic-is-practically-impossible-and-the-problem-is-getting-worse

If anyone actually gives a shit about sustainable clothing instead of just circlejerking about vegans bad, here you go This source shows that synthetic leather is far better than animal corpse skin but still not truly sustainable

Overall, we need degrowth in the fashion industry and should focus on re-use and repair instead of making new things, but Part IV of that page has a whole report on future sustainable options such as using mycellium or other plant based alternatives for when we do need to create new clothing. In the meantime the science is clear: pleather is objectively less pollutive than tanned and treated cow corpse skin, and no cow has to die for it.

[diemondgrimm]

My lil fairy garden got some upgrades 🌞

[bluestembers]

I love Huernia Zebrina flowers so much

[crohnicgamer]

This is an image I wake up to on my phone. This is amazing.

[hellyeahsucculents]

Some blooms this morning 🌺

[yourlocaleldritch]

@mechanicaldemonio is showing me West of loathing for the first time. Here are my thoughts so far:

I like the dialogue. How is the character so flexible?

Awwww Russel! Best bird

Pie saver?

Crimbo is a good word.

CAN OF INFINITE BEANS??????

Love how the Brother has no faith in us

Turnip carrrrrr

Why do we walk like that?

Pete! He looks so goofy!

I never wanna hear about spitoon again. All that for a lousy ring.

I like the game soundtrack.

...Cellar Goblin?

Poor Horace :( I hope he stops losing his horses.

Ahh, the infamous Susie. She scares me.

I have acquired a cowboy hat (irl). All he/theys look good in cowboy hats

Noooo not Gary the goblin :(

Pigeon-infused oats? Excuse me?

Bill the cactus man? Is he ok? Stick the newspaper to his face?

Detonation plunger?

HORSE!!!! FEED THE HORSE OATSSSS!!!

NOOOOO THE HORSE IS GONE

Time to engage in mortal combat. Oh, we're dead. Oh, we have won.

GHOST HORSEEEEEEEEEE. Cold horse? Won't eat oats? Why not?

Ayyyyy the horse ate the oats

NO NOT THE GRAVES

Haha Boneyard.

Sleepy snake. NOOO THE SNAKE IS DEAD

Another snake. NOOO NOT THE OTHER SNAKE

GOOD LUCK SNAKE!!!! I like how snek jumps. NOOO THE SNAKE IS DEAD!!!!

Snake horse!!!!!! Yayyyyyyyy. I hope he didn't go to the 12th dimension

Yay we helped Horace!

Awww poor Susie. AWWWWWW NOOOOO SUSIE!!!!

Why the doctor got so much tnt? Why it by the fireplace? Ohhh. Poor doctor.

Cow demon pog

Imagine getting your rifle robbed by a worm in a wizard hat

420!!!!

NO DON'T SHOOT THE SLEEPY GUY

Ayyy Genocidal options

God, why are we so murderous??? Go to therapy???

Evil hat. Thanks for looking out for us narrator.

Hard hat acquired. Genocide run let's goooo.

Spoopy horseeee. Her name is Spectre!

TAKE ALICE FOR THE BETRAYAL!!!!! BETRAYEL IS SWAG!!!!!!

The prologue is over.

We are in Dirtwater

THE GUN ISN'T IN OUR INVENTORY THIS IS AWFUL!!! I WANTED PAIN

Free room

No. Another spitoon. Why. Why. Why. That porcelain cow

What do you call non-binary cowboys? Cow people? Cow-havers?

The monsters are op now. This is very inconvenient.

Necromancer journal! Something I never knew I wanted.

Forces of pie

Bean craft

Another dead snake. *sigh*

Awwww Abigail

ohh God no not another spitoon. No please.

You can't add pride pins to in game cowboy hats. I'm so sad. That would be so cool.

The irl hat has a bi pin on it. I am content with life.

That doll is creepy.

(we gave up sometime after this point)

[mazikomo]

Unusual Muse Associations 

triple tagged by @nemo-my-name-forevermore @rumor-imbris​ and @ellztrash. I'm slow I know.

Doing this for my main OCs; the brains, brawn, and beauty gals; Reavilia, Mattie, and Andrea Mixing canon and modern day. Won’t be doing every category, just the ones that tickle my brain. 

Reavilia 

SEASONING: kosher salt. versatile, savory, brings out the best in the dish it's going into

WEATHER: a misty morning, just after a hard rainfall, everything is quiet

COLOR: navy blue, polished gold, and white

SKY: overcast, you know a nourishing rain is coming but it's still a nice day before it does

MAGICAL POWER: healing, it's kinda her whole deal

WEAPON: smoke bombs and her wit

SUBJECT: biology

SOCIAL MEDIA: reddit and instagram

MAKEUP PRODUCT: sharp eyeliner with a deep red lip

CANDY: life savers, something that lasts awhile, partial to the mint ones

FEAR: not being enough, lack of guarantee, small spaces

ICE CUBE SHAPE: ice ball in a glass tumbler

ART STYLE: impressionist, bold brush swatches, impactful but not refined

MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURE: caladrius bird, draws sickness away from others and into itself, then releases it far away

PIECE OF STATIONERY: pocket notebook

THREE EMOJIS:  🦿🪡🍸

CELESTIAL BODY: milky way, beautiful and vast, always something new to be discovered

Mattie Hartford

SEASONING: chili powder, various strengths, must be used carefully

WEATHER: a thunderstorm with heavy winds that you should've been taking shelter for but instead stood in the middle of the yard watching the sky until you had to sprint inside

COLOR: olive drab, mustard yellow, muddy browns

SKY: high noon sun, cloudless

MAGICAL POWER: teleportation

HOUSE PLANT: prickly pear cactus

WEAPON: anything you can shoot or what's on hand, steer clear when she breaks a bottle

SUBJECT: wood/machine shop, good with her hands

SOCIAL MEDIA: tik tok, snapchat, instagram

MAKEUP PRODUCT: yesterday's eyeliner is today's smoky eye

CANDY: a chocolate bar that's been in your jacket pocket for you don't know how long and it's melted and hardened countless time but you still eat it because chocolate is chocolate

FEAR: being seen as less than, heights

ICE CUBE SHAPE: when you freeze a water bottle and it just started thawing out so you can shake it and make that THUNK THUNK THUNK sound

METHOD OF LONG-DISTANCE TRAVEL: horse

ART STYLE: scratchy, heavy linear texture, dadaism

MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURE: gremlin centaur

PIECE OF STATIONERY: a chewed on pencil

THREE EMOJIS: 🐴🍻💥

CELESTIAL BODY: asteroid field

Andrea Levante da Firenze

SEASONING: ginger. bold, pungent, and sweet-spicy

WEATHER: autumn warmth, perfect day to anything

COLOR: scarlet, gold, maroon, sunny orange

SKY: a blazing sunrise

MAGICAL POWER: illusion manipulation, can make you believe anything

HOUSE PLANT: daylily, resilient

WEAPON: throwing knives, rapier, looks

SUBJECT: classic literature but also gym

SOCIAL MEDIA: snapchat, instagram, facebook

MAKEUP PRODUCT: 10 step skin routine then the "no makeup look" that requires practically every product ever

CANDY: anything caramel

FEAR: being helpless, also horses

ICE CUBE SHAPE: small cubes

ART STYLE: art nouveau and rococo

MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURE: phoenix

PIECE OF STATIONERY: fountain pen and an impeccable bullet journal

THREE EMOJIS: 💃🗡🦊

CELESTIAL BODY: the sun, this girl burns bright

tagging whoever is interested! Specifically calling out @straight-into-the-animus tho, TELL ME BOUT THOSE TWINKS

[deldeldel90]

 From the outside, the pastel family - who the commoners knew to be three siblings, but there were four children instead - was the perfect flower garden. 

 The King - a red, thriving rose, eager to right the wrongs in the world. Eager to love, to live. 

 Maria, the eldest, was a Hydrangea. Determined to be herself, graceful, and as beautiful as she was. Prettiest Maria, was the start of the nicknames his dearest gave. 

 Lorena was so strong, a cactus, blooming with bright pink flowers. He never knew Lorena as well as his other daughters, but for him, that was okay. For her, she never noticed, as she was too preoccupied with her siblings, being both a younger sister and an older one. Prettiest Lorena, she was called affectionately. 

 Gwen. Just- Gwen, the King's heart froze whenever he saw her. His dearest … never gave any sorts of nicknames to her. But it couldn't have been that she didn't love their youngest, it was clear that she did, but… he shook his head. In the flower garden, the King thought that she was just as beautiful as the rest of his children, even if the rest of the world didn't think so. She was a Juliet Rose, one of a kind, reflecting both her inner and outer beauty. 

 His son was different from his daughters. He was a forget-me-not, and even in his young mind, he drew the conclusion that he had to protect his sisters, just like his father and Miss Molly did. However, his elder sisters were stronger than he was, and most days, they protected him. He was grateful for this fact, but felt guilty at not fulfilling his role. 

 The King tried to smile throughout the pain, tried to sing the same songs his beloved wildflower did. 

 But trying to copy her loving petals only made his thorns grow harsher, driving him to tears most days. 

 He wasn't her, and he would never be her. Maria still asked him, with big, innocent eyes, where her mommy was, and he could barely string together an answer, before Molly came by and smoothed things over. 

 (That woman was truly a life saver, in more ways than one.) 

 Indeed, he was a wilting flower in the beautiful pastel family garden. But as long as his roots stayed still, he would honour his wildflower, his darling, smart, beautiful, kind Lilyth. 

 He just hoped to everything above his children would not wilt the same way he did. 

[artnrandomness]

This is a ref sheet as to how I draw the Peashooter from PVZ: Garden Warfare. And I gotta say, for my first time drawing this iconic plant, it doesn't look so bad.

I'm thinking that, after drawing all the plants and zombies and making bios for their possible in-game personalities, I might make a few short comics about their shenanigans, a few art peices every once in a while too.

Anyway, the bio for the Peashooter (the main one, anyway) is this:

"The Peashooter's an amazing warrior, perservierent and consistent when it comes to taking down zombies. But when not at the enemy lines, he can be quite a reckless adrenaline junkie. But overall, even with those flaws, he still cares for his team, nontheless."

As for the rest of the Peashooters, here are their bios:

1. Fire Pea, due to his ability to permanently stay aflame, can be a bit cocky. Luckly, though, this is only towards the zombies. He's a life-saver when it comes to winter and saving money on his and any other plants' heating bills. His girlfriend is the Fire Flower.

2. Ice Pea, while the coldest Peashooter around, has a warm personality, able to cheer up someone who's feeling down. He's full of the holiday spirit when Christmas arrives.

3. Toxic Pea, while as happy as his BFF, Ice Pea, complains a lot about people feeling distant. This is due to him not having a lot of friends because of his toxic body, which makes him feel quite down sometimes. The Ice Pea is always there for him whenever he feels down.

4. Due to his experience in the jungle, where he grew up, Commando Pea knows every turn and corner when going through a stealth ops. He's a no-nonsense kind of guy that NEVER tolerates any sillyness (although, he does that sometimes for the sake of his teammates when it comes to rookies, though, not willingly). He can be very stubborn sometimes. This is most shown when he fights a horde of zombies without retreating.

5. Agent Pea's your typical spy movie agent: cool under preasure. While he's no-nonsense like the Commando Pea, he's willing to tolerate any sillyness and not get even a bit mad about it, unlike him. With a british accent and a License to Vanquish, Agent Pea's the perfect silent stalker behind enemy lines.

6. Law Pea is always there, whenever there's injustice and suffering and whenever liberty is threatened. He's fast with his weapon/mouth, the Six Shooter and is a great leader and protector. Although, he can be very lazy when there's no action, and due to him being the oldest peashooter (not as old as an old man, thankfully), he'd perfer taking a nap or sitting in his chair doing nothing... unless, of course, there's trouble to be taken care of. His best friends are the acient Sun Pharoah, Armor Chomper and his somewhat love interest, Bandit Cactus.

7. Plasma Pea is a Legend of the Lawn, the smartest peashooter there is. He knows all of existence and can solve any question you have about outer space. He is feared by those who cross his path thanks to his weapon/mouth, the Plasmic Disruptor. He's best friends with the plant Legends of the Lawn, who are Alien Flower, Chomp Thing and Jade Cactus.

8. While he may look gruff and tough, Rock Pea is simply an insecure peashooter who just wants a hug. He, when he was young, was bullied for being a rock plant. While the bulling stoped when he was a teenager, he still felt very insecure and depressed about himself. Eventually though, he met Sunflower, who knew his pain and helped him move on from it. When in battle, while he may be slow, his weapon/mouth, the Rock Shot. He loves to dance, esspecially if it involved anything hawaian.

9. Electro Pea is an adrenaline junkie just like the original, although, he can be a bit of an impatient fellow, sometimes needing someone to calm him down whenever the action ends. He's also a jokester against the zombies; while he's good with pratical jokes, he's not the best when it comes to puns..................but you can always count on him to make a bad pun about how "charged up" he is.

10. The Berry Shooter, although not alive as of right now, was a legend back then. Created by the now dead Aquafina Industries with Crazy Dave as a sucessful last resort to protect their supply of coll drinks, he, alongside his best friend, the Cirtus Cactus, an Aquafina veteran, have protected the industry and their drinks for years. But when Suburbia was being taken over, Dr. Zomboss ended their lives with a powerful heat ray, alongside Aquafina. Even in death, he is honored by all plants, esspecially Rock Pea, who looked up to him in his times of sadness.

[ranger-rai]

So, I am looking for a good team (preferably with 1 ghost type for me since I explore many ancient ruins). I often like to search for evidence of other worlds we might not know about, and my partner is Eevee. So, what other team members do you recommend?

Hmmm.

Well I'm a Pokemon Ranger so my work is mostly about protecting nature and wild pokemon and keeping people from getting hurt in the wild.

Professors are usually more knowledgeable about things like Pokémon stats and compatibility, but since you're asking about exploring, I think I can help you out!

Firstly, not matter what you do, make sure you have a connection to the pokemon and gain its trust. Dont just go around catching everything against its will. Be respectful of its feelings.

If you're a Ruins explorer, you're going to want a solid Ground type on your team. I'd recommend something big like Aggron or Golem in the event of a rock slide or cave in. You could also pair it with something small but capable like a Trapinch or a Dugtrio for helping dig out of situations.

Alternatively a strong fighting time can be very helpful, or a Psychic type.

A fighting type like Lucario is great for its Aura sensing abilities which can be a life saver if you're in danger, similarly with a strong psychic type like a Baltoy.

I can't really recommend any fire, grass, or bug types because they might not do super well in there unless you get super specific.

A fire fighting like infernape would be helpful, a cactus pokemon wouldn't be bad. And maybe a spider like pokemon like Ariados.

Now for ghost types:

Ghost types would be super useful for scouting through areas that you can't reach and passing through walls.

Misdreavous is a solid ghost, but I'd also highly recommend the Duskull line due to their strength and size. They have all of the ghostly abilities but as they get bigger they become alot stronger so you might not need a larger pokemon with you.

You could consider the Litwick line, but only if you really need a light source and a way to communicate to others in your team.

And I think that leaves you with a few options, be sure to make a connection with these pokemon, and maybe check in with a ranger station or a pokemon center message board, sometimes you can trade or adopt these pokemon.

While catching is always great, some pokemon need homes or to be rehomed.

So keep that in mind, and be safe out there.

[starchords]

It seems like we’re all using these asks to escape something or another 😂

1, 28, and one you really want to answer!

You're a life saver :')

1. What are three shows in your watchlist that you’ve been meaning to get to?

Number one, is SEE with Jason Momoa, one of my friends did background work on the show in the second season, i need to see her!!! Second, would be Dickinson & third, would be Emily in Paris.

28. Can you swim very well? Do you like swimming?

I can swim very well, i love swimming! I was thinking of doing the polar bear plunge this year, but we shall see.

Do you have any houseplants? Do any of them have names?

oh my god. you should see my room, i have plants everywhere. i have a cactus called spiky bitch, because when i was moving i pricked myself, what a PRICK. :(

[itscinnafox]

STORY NOTES [akafuri] : By The Next Sunrise

Because I had sooooo much fun doing this with a friend (@miss-cactus) :] (also being the first collab' work that's posted) and had a lot of messy notes and drafts, it's just so precious to me not to ramble about it >w< also plenty of fun times in just 2 and half months despite life biting my ass at the same time, totally my stress relief lol. Also, this story really isn't just some cheesy stuff for the sake of romance. It's genuine love (੭ ˃̣̣̥ ω˂̣̣̥)੭ु⁾⁾

Read the story here in AO3 Summary: On the way to his brother’s house, the spring showers had begun again. With an open palm, he let it collect the cold showers and let it flow out from the cups of his palm. They were chilly despite the warming sun, he looked up at the sky, and wondered what the rain would be like in other parts of the world. Furihata smiled. He would find out. Perhaps by one of the next sunrises.

.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ. Rambles undercut ଘ(੭ˊ꒳ˋ)੭✧ .☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.☆ﾟ.

FIRSTLY, @miss-cactus has all my gratitude ♡(ŐωŐ人) without her; AkaFuri will be stranded in France LOL! Seriously, I'll just dump them in some random village in France and just maybe not even finish this story at all even. The time she took to find me a place, translate, edits and also judging me for my description of the place LOL yep... total life saver. With her help it really motivated and inspired me a lot! She's the oil to my car............. you get the idea :] .

BONUS, she's also a translator and translated many amazing works, basically a deity, breathing life back into them. Also, she has original works too :D check 'em out, it's cute! It's in French, but they're easily translated, she's that good! (๑>◡<๑) her AO3

WEIRD FACT, I also had a short break up with my boyfriend of 7 years while writing this. LOL. I was so upset but I got motivated by the similarities, that when he asked for us back I was like 'But-but the similarities though!' but I love him....bleeegh. So I said yes, and we're better than before. YAY!

๑ Story Base ๑ The idea popped when I was listening to 'The sun after washed by spring rain' by Wang Lee Hom on a rainy day on my day off, and florist Akashi just looks so beautiful lol and the rest just came up.... and I really wanted this vibe for AkaFuri something incredibly soft and warm~ just cozy >w< huehue~

This story sets in Spring, spring here, spring there~ Spring is the breath of new life, basically Furi's story lol.

I was also aiming for this story to be short and a bit poetic...... LOL then 11k words later I just gave up and was like: well, if AkaFuri wanna romance then who are we to say no? (Akashi will shave my hair in my sleep lol)

๑ Playlist ๑ Play on Youtube The playlist is by order according to each part within the story. I really love to ramble about this since music is my inspiration for a lot of things and the vibe of the whole premise, section of their development and perspectives.

☆ 11 : 11 by Taeyeon Introducing Furihata's little sob lol and Furi's perspective. After Furihata breaks up with his girlfriend (who again, have no significant in his life what so ever), he goes through the phase on moving forward. It really isn't him moving forward with his feelings for her though, it's just him moving forward from the familiarity of being with her in his life. With her gone, he finally reconnects with who he is, like in this passage : "However, somehow with just a fling of his bag onto the island top threw him years back. He has not always been this tidy and clean." Furihata had basically lived his life to accommodate to those around him. (I wanna stress that Furi wasn't forced into a relationship or was it abusive. It was just a relationship with someone whom Furi had no infatuation for. It just so happens she wanted to date him after the wintercup, and Furi is just like 'yea ok?' but really he didn't exactly thought it through.)

So this is where Furihata moves on from the familiarity. He cries because they dated lol, but really he's just confuse.

☆ The Sun After Washed By Spring Rain by Wang Lee Hom Exactly one year after Furi's break-up. The source of this story idea lol. Also, Furi's perspective. The title and the song is literally what it meant; the sun after the spring rain which brings in new beginnings. I present you, this passage of the story: "Instead, with an open palm, he let it collect the cold showers and let it flow out from the cups of his palm. They were chilly despite the warming sun, he looked up at the sky, and wondered what the rain would be like in other parts of the world."

☆ Reunite by Jordie Power I present you, when Akashi appeared and Furihata's crush on Akashi just awakened and go haywire LOL! In this AU, Furihata has genuine feelings for Akashi. They were long time friends, and there were even a few emphasis of their friendship through high school but because Furihata has a girlfriend and Akashi respected that (although most times, in my brain, is just Akashi crying to Kuroko LOL!)

☆ Passage by Miyano Mamoru Furihata and Akashi's similarities. The song is basically about finding yourself as you age, the experiences you go through as you age (i'm 27 and i'm still confuse lol) Even though this story focuses on Furihata a lot and little less on Akashi except for little hints here and there, Akashi was just as lost as Furihata.

Random thought (as I type this), my boyfriend had told me this before "Even though we don't need each other, and do well on our own. We have friends but it's so different. Is just something different to have someone you love around, so to an extend, I really do need you and to share everything with you, it really makes me happy." it really is something different to have someone by your side especially when you found someone. (p/s: you definitely don't need to be in a relationship to feel complete. you complete yourself okay? :3) Furi and Akashi have been in-love since high-school, they have accomplished a lot on their own but in a passage, they both felt lost and felt like something was 'empty' that was because they were still in-love, and they met each other and truly want to spend their life together and share everything.

☆ Moonlight by Miyano Mamoru Mmmmmm~ the juice. This is Akashi's perspective when he wants to romance Furihata (∗ᵕ̴᷄◡ᵕ̴᷅∗)՞ and of course, sneakily confesses to him. OH MY GOODNESS! THIS IS LITERALLY THE PART THAT I'VE BEEN DYING FOR! and wrote it sooooo many times. I wanted it steamy and a little desperate after their long pent-up-frustration unprofessed love, without making it 'explicit' kind of way. So I hope I captured it right lolol.

☆ Make Me Love You by Taeyeon Furihata's feelings towards Akashi. I was pondering on a song that would fit Furihata's pull towards Akashi and how Akashi makes him feel every time. No other songs seems to feel like then I was randomly humming to this song while I was working and this is perfect! Also, a wonderful vibe.

I think it has been emphasised a lot on how Furihata reacts to Akashi, how he blushes like crazy, how he also subconsciously wants Akashi to make him fall in love with him. Because deep down, as again, Furihata genuinely loves Akashi but he was never daring enough to do it and since Akashi had never showed any indication, so Akashi had to confess in order for Furihata to be brave enough to smack their lips together to confess too.

☆ Je Fais De Toi Mon Essentiel by Emmanuel Moire Infinitely bless @miss-cactus (and her naughty brother lol) for this! This is song is seriously sooooo beautiful ;w; I don't care if reader's don't listen to the playlist, but OH MY GOD! If nobody had listened to this, is seriously missing out. (just as a song in general is beautiful) and the lyrics are just akjsfhakjsfhaf AKASHI'S WORDS! In Akashi's perspective and the song that Akashi sang to when they were in the car, and Cactus chose the perfect line for it ;w;

This song basically concludes everything!!! From their feelings for each other since high-school and all the way until the day they die! It's basically everything I wanted this story to be about, just their pure love for one another and to share their happiness together ;w;

Also, I want to point out in regards of Furihata's decision on staying in France. It's really not just a spontaneous and reckless decision lol. As stated and shown in the story, Furihata is somewhat a successful person with a career, but Furihata has other passion and interest which he seemed to enjoy doing which is photography and Akashi notices this. Even though with a career, at a time some will have a change of heart. So if Furi wants to stay in France with Akashi, he has thought it through enough, and can afford to even live by even without Akashi's money lolol. ๑ Premises ๑ Cactus, without her, AkaFuri will be hobos. I . AM . NOT . KIDDING ! She just whip out the map of France and pin point me to everything! I didn't ask for that but her soul is made from angel clay and she showed me this beautiful town, and I am floored! I didn't feel that much motivation and inspiration before o(≧∇≦o)

So why not Paris? XD 1, I didn't want Paris, I wanted a natural, country/cottage vibe and not the city. 2, proven by Cactus, "actual paris : if you want a cup of coffee you have to give up your wife and your 2 children bc it's way too expensive" (XD actually there's more but those parts are only between us lol) 3, I want to pull Akashi from his usual portrayal of rich and luxurious life style. I mean.... he's still rich, just not lavish in that lifestyle. In here, Akashi's basically bare as a canvas, and painting it on his own. 4, I google mapped Paris.... and if anything, Akashi and Furihata will probably get run over by traffic LOLOL! 5, we hate the crowds lolol and we'd do anything to drown the citizens for AkaFuri to be alone. I'm not even gonna be discreet about this xD.

☆ Mornac-Sur-Seudre This main village, is the most beautiful town picked by Cactus. It's not so 'in the face' although not so splashed in a lot of colours (except for the oyster huts), it is a very vibrant village. We totally fell in love with it. It's quiet, and not a lot of villagers, so it's perfect for AkaFuri to have their stroll hand in hand (人 •͈ᴗ•͈) They're also very famous for their oysters LOL! So yeah..... Akashi fed Furi oysters.... because....it's yummy.... LOL! Video reference here. There's another beautiful video but I can't find it no more. ;; Other references; here, here and here.

☆ Seagull Train Furihata loves train (and so do I) and since the train exists here! WHY THE HELL NOT?! I really love writing this part! I fell in love with the department Cactus picked and everything was so perfect and beautiful. Pictures and videos of it was just so breath taking ;w; and it's a steam train! I've never ride one before, but I have been into exhibits in the train museum. The smell is amazing lol. It's like sniffing my humidifier......but bigger.

This is the train I had saw mostly from it. the 030 T 3 from 1891. It's still operational so choo-choo!!! they go!

Video reference ; here Train reference; here, here Other references; here, here, here and here.

☆ Saintes & Royan These two towns are what's closest to Mornac. I didn't have much on Royan because Saintes had a beautiful charm, so this is where they would have their wonderful date <3 and talk a little bit about their feelings.

Cactus correcting me on the description on the city as I just woke up from my sleep, is seriously a way to wake up in the morning at 5am XD LOLOL!!

There's a few churches too, and has an interesting history from the Roman empire :D really intriguing.

The bridge where they have their little confession in high-school (◡‿◡✿)

This video here, absolutely pretty!

☆ Akashi's Floristry; Fleurs d’acacia Cactus picked out the most beautiful name! "So either L’acacia (just the tree) or Fleurs d’acacia (acacia flowers)" The Acacia because it rhymes with Akashi's name : Aca - as in 'Aka' in Akashi. Ci - as in sea...because they're near the ocean. A - as in....... h(a)m because Cactus said so... and I can't even disagree because it's where Furi getting some of those..... meat....because Akashi's ham.....like his meat.......y'know..... We're very dignified ( ᵘ ᵕ ᵘ ⁎)

The design of Akashi's 3 story shop/studio/apartment..... I really don't have any reference, it's all in the head LOLOL! Akashi basically lives in simplicity, his shop all on the ground floor, and the second floor is his art studio where paints and do whatever he wants. Finally the third floor is where he stays, it was wasn't very detailed but it's very spacious and cozy >w<!

☆ The Drive-in theatre Bruuuuuh......the confession is the thing! Akashi sneaking in his opportunity to confess. What more is there need to be said? AkaFuri : mlemlemlemlemlemlemlemlem~

Ohh~ Akashi's pretty Bentley of course.

☆ The Landes The finale of their romance ❀.(*´◡`*)❀. I think we all know what a Volkswagen van looks like LOL! And they had the funky in the van and Akashi took Jean's advice with the bamboo charcoal.

Cactus showed this pretty place and I'm just ヽ(；▽；)ノ

Of course I'd really like to say it again. Furihata's decision to stay with Akashi was really not for the sake of a 'happy ending' or so. They've had deep feelings for each other since high-school and bonded closely, but Akashi didn't show any indication of romantic interest out of respect for Furihata's relationship, and Furihata knowing nothing about Akashi's mutual feelings just kept his feelings to himself. As told by the story, Furihata has a career and stable income. But even though his life is dandy in Tokyo with his job, that doesn't mean it's something he wants to keep pursuing or maintain, as we age, we search for something else to add into our experience. Not to say that we're forever unsatisfied, it's just how life is. We accomplish something, and we move on to another thing, and then another and another. It's really something beautiful about it, and life's just us exploring :] In Akashi and Furihata's case, is that they've already have what they wanted, a life of their own, choosing their own path and what they don't have was each other and now that they've bonded and opened up themselves, they can finally pursue another beautiful life together (>*^▽^*<)

๑ Book, Night on the Galactic Railway by Kenji Miyaza ๑ This is a real book. Also, my favourite! There is an anime as well, but if anyone wants the PDF feel free to drop me a DM and I'll give it to ya'.

In here, the story of the galactic railway impacted their lives a little bit differently. With Akashi the loss of his mother and Furihata to live the last adventure before death.

It is shown they have extreme love for this book, and it really is a beautiful book and there's just endless things to talk about, as it is place in an infinite travel of the train through the galaxy, meeting new people, seeing new things, the mysteries of stories and making meaningful relationship despite never being able to see them again.

The sentiment of Giovanni and Campanella is also similar to Akashi and Furihata. Before anything else, they want to have their adventure together before eventually parting their ways (and i really mean, until death do them apart.)

๑ Other Juices ๑ There some nitty stuff that aren't just there for show xD Well, kind of but there's some sentiments and stuff so...

☆ The Sunflower Maybe because I'm bias to sunflowers LOL! But Furihata is pretty with yellow! Sunflowers with darker brown florets are absolutely beautiful. The pendent I had in mind was literally the one I had when I was a kid (but I donno it's gone now lol). I googled other sunflower pendent but it's ugleh...

It associates with the theme of this story which is 'Sunrise' as in new beginnings, Furihata's fresh start to pursuing the person he actually loves.

Sunflowers also grow towards the sun. They radiate pure joy and positivity. They also symbolise unwavering faith and unconditional love; which is AkaFuri's undying love here despite the years.

Sunflowers are also given to show their deepest to the person, so Akashi gift him a sunflower :3 also because Furi looks pretty in yellow, fight me.

In chinese myth, sunflower are best for business... So with Furi around, Akashi's business will bloom LOLOL!

Funfact: In greek myth, a nymph named Clytie fell deeply in love Apollo, god of the sun. Although Clytie was beautiful by nymph standards, Apollo did not reciprocate her feelings, or acknowledge it. (except Akashi appreciates Furi's love okay?) After days of hopeless devotion, the nymph then transformed herself into a sunflower and constantly turned towards the sun so she could always be with the one she loved (Furihata's chasing sunrises because Akashi is there ok?).

☆ The Happy Street Cats :D This is actually a real book I have, a gift by my teacher before I leave S.Korea. The passage idiom is extracted by this page as well.

The front cover of the book is also yellow.

Yellow : Sunrise + Sunflower.

There's so much yellow in this story LOL!

☆ The Movie Cactus : Idol movie Me : *internal screaming* I swear we are always soooooooo close to making this whole thing crack XD

This scene is a real brain wreck lololol. (Still contemplating if it was romantic enough)

☆ Akashi's Florist number I extracted that number from an oyster restaurant LOLOL! Thankfully Cactus changed it.... we were planning on a crack bonus in which, Furihata orders oysters before calling Akashi.

It didn't happen. But if it did.

Furihata will order some oysters. And not regret it.

*Akashi judging*

☆ French Dialogues + Akashi teaching Furihata French Bless Cactus, she's my happiness now. I have no idea how many weird noises were coming out from our mouths just to understand how the French consonant 'R' sounds like to put it into words LOL! XD Without her, it'd be a disaster.

We were looking at other romantic phrases and found the perfect one ;w;

“Je suis ton bonheur.” means "I am your happiness" (oh god, google translate voice just keeps playing in my head LOLOL! help) Which, what else can be said? LOL Akashi's happy ok? Since this story is from Furihata's perspective, I really wanted to put him into the spot of being a foreigner (he speaks english and mandarin lolol just clueless in French, because Akashi is supposed to guide him). So while Cactus work her magic, being the Akashi to my Furihata. I tried to emphasis a lot on the characters expression etc, at least to indicate of what was going on....tbh even I forgot what they were saying. *just as clueless as Furi and Cactus cackling somewhere.

Everything in here is just Cactus being amazing ;w; and pure patience LOLOL!

๑ Side Characters ๑

☆Shérine ............ We butchered the original female side. Her name was Camille.... but I was sooo tempted to name it after *coouugh* :] because it's pretty. Also her hair was blond with hazel-green eyes.... yea we buried her.

Shérine wins now... Shérine is life.

Shérine will be in their wedding.

☆Jean Kirstein (of AOT) It's JEAN! ...........someone gotta tease Akashi with no filter.

(ﾉ^ヮ^)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧ FINAL NOTES

The last section when Furihata wakes up and makes his decision, believe it or not, I was in the bus. While typing to Cactus, I was literally shaking in the bus and my eyes stung because of dust and I was in tears. I was between crying and laughing. Finished it at home ;w; Cactus was such a darling through it all.

I really had fun writing this with Cactus ;w; she's the best!!!!!!! And hopefully we'll make some crack stuff because we're hooligans like that XD.

:D BYE!