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junko-and-riri-domain · 3 years ago

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˚₊·˚ “babes” | ot7 ˚₊·˚

↬ pairing: ot7 x reader ↬ genre: fluff | drabbles | scenarios ↬ warnings: none ↬ w/c: 1.3k ↬ requested by: 🤍 ↬ request was: Hihii I was wondering if you could do enhypens reaction to calling them things like baby or my love in your native language (excluding English and Korean) ↬ a/n (a few things !!)

since i clearly don’t what “my love” in everyone’s native language “babes” is the place holder word and you can imagine it as whatever “my love / love” is in your language !! also i haven’t done an ot7 post in a while so these might be kinda bad and lowkey might not make any sense 💔

also, the 500 followers event is closed (unless you decide to send one in tonight then i’ll still write it 👀 !! ) but somehow we hit 800 followers today !! how this blog managed to get like 200 followers while i was ia is beyond me 😭

but thank you everyone 🥺 i’ll be writing requests from the 500 followers throughout the week and responding to asks as well <33

˚₊·˚♤˚· lee heeseung ˚₊·˚♤˚·

late one night you and hee are laying in bed, unable to sleep so you ask him,

“babes, wanna eat some ramen?” he’s like yes, ramen !! but wait,

“babes?” he asks. “isn’t that fish in russian?” (like that whole “te amo” means “i love you” in tagalog / filipino even though it actually means ‘i love you’ in spanish. but yeah, he’d probably think it was something completely different in another language lmao) once you realized what you just called him you tell him,

“it doesn’t mean fish, it means love in [insert your language].” the dots connect in his head and all of a sudden,

“i babes you,” you hear. you can’t help but smile at him and laugh a little because,

“that’s not how the grammar works, but at least you tried.” from then on if he wanted something from you he’d do aegyo and would say.

“babes, please !!”

˚₊·˚✎˚· park jongseong / jay | self indulgent jay mini fic somewhat related to this req ˚₊·˚✎˚·

you’re chilling with jay one day and all of a sudden,

“hey, babes can you hand me the remote?” you ask. suddenly he’s frozen in place, looking at you like,

“did you just call me love in [insert your language]?” you look at him, slightly tilting your head to the side and you’re all like,

“huh, i guess i did.” in his head, his mind is going crazy because what ?? you l-word him ?? but then you’re just like,

“wait, how do you know what that word means?” and then he gets all flustered and begins to ramble.

“i went on a YouTube spiral at four am, and, uh… uhh… yeah, i just heard it. it sounded unique so i sorta just remembered.”

“when?”

“like, a few weeks ago.”

“what were you watching?”

“the basics to [insert your language] 101.” you’re shocked but not really since jay is basically a language genius. but now your heart feels all fuzzy and warm because he’s learning your language.

˚₊·˚ ✁˚· sim jaeyun / jake ˚₊·˚ ✁˚·

if anything, you probably didn’t call him babes first. why? because you said it to layla. you stopped by jake’s place before the both of you went to your parent’s place. since you haven’t seen layla in a while, she instantly captured your attention (like she so rightfully deserves).

“babes, i missed you!” you say as you smile while petting her and seeing her tail wag in happiness. jake looks at the sight of the two loves of his life and can’t stop the way his heart flutters a little. he doesn’t want to ruin the moment but he wants your attention so he ends up sort of sitting on the ground next to layla and peeks up at you with wide eyes and a smile.

“babes?” he asked. you end up also sitting on the floor, layla settling onto your lap,

“it means love in [insert your language].” he frowns,

“you said you love layla before saying you love me?”

“who says i love you?” he gets kind of pouty because he knows that you love but he wants to hear it. some time passes and when you’re at your parent’s house, you’re talking to them and you tell them in [insert your language],

“i love jake.” he hears the word and his name in the same sentence. so he takes a chance and using the same sentence you said but with your name he says,

“i love ___.”

˚₊·˚ ❆˚· park sunghoon ˚₊·˚ ❆˚··

it probably slipped out in a moment of panic while the two of you were ice skating. sometimes you slipped into [insert your language] due to a surge of various emotions, sometimes anger, fear, or frustration. sunghoon had asked if you wanted to go on a date to the new rink that just opened and you said yes because ice skating with hoon, how could you miss the opportunity ?? he was holding your hand and skating to your pace trying to teach you how to ice skate. but somewhere down the line, he ended up letting go without you realizing it (like when you ride a bike and the person behind you holding the bike lets go !!) so you turn around, eyes wide at the distance between you and sunghoon and you’re like,

“YAH, BABES YOU SAID YOU WOULDN’T LET GO,” and all of a sudden you lose your balance. thankfully, sunghoon being the great skater that he is manages to get to you and holds so you so that you don’t fall. you’re clutching onto his jacket, trying to catch your breath, “i hate you,” you mutter. he smiles as he moves your hair to get out of your face,

“yeah, keep telling yourself that. wait? what does babes mean?” he asks.

“it means love in [insert your language].” suddenly, ice king composure melts. heart going a hundred miles a minute. mind is all like wait what? he accidentally loses his footing and balance, falling while taking you down with him but you’re fine since you landed on top of him.

“are you ok, babes?” he asks to at least try and keep some cool because even though you’re in an ice skating rink, it suddenly feels as if things just got a hundred degrees hotter.

˚₊·˚❂˚· kim sunoo ˚₊·˚❂˚·

he had been interested in learning about your language and culture, mostly for the food… but a+ for effort, right? he would often ask you, “what does this mean?” “what does that mean?” that kind of stuff, since he was genuinely curious. he picked up a few words here and there, occasionally using a word that he knew in a sentence while talking to you. your family asked you to bring him over for a family gathering / party situation sometimes it felt like they liked him more than you. you were sitting down with a plate of food,

“babes, can you hand me a napkin?” suddenly, your and sunoo’s ears are filled with the sounds of “OOO” and your family begins teasing you. to yourself, you’re just like, did i really just call sunoo… but when you look at sunoo his smile is the widest it’s ever been

“you called me love, matji, matji?” (matji meaning like “right” in korean, idk it just felt right to spell that out here ok anyways)

“how did… how did you know?” and he does that thing where he kind of giggles,

“you just confirmed it!”

˚₊·˚✧˚· yang jungwon ˚₊·˚✧˚·

one night jungwon was dropping you off to the front of your doorstep to make sure you got home safe and sound. you were trying to be cute and said,

“saramhae” (saram means person in korean, but what you really meant to say was, “saranghae” which means i love you in korean). jungwon then does that thing where he smirks at you, tilting his head slightly, and he says,

“nado saramhae, babes.” (so like “i love you too, [love in insert your language]” but it’s saramhae because that’s what you said at first) but then,

“babes?” you ask. he plays it off by saying,

“i’m the leader, i need to learn how to communicate in different languages for engenes.” but really it’s just secret language learner pt. 2 exposed.

˚₊·˚⍢˚· nishimura riki / ni-ki ˚₊·˚⍢˚·

ni-ki’s head was on your lap, eyes closed since he was taking a nap and decided your lap was the best thing to claim as his pillow. you needed to get up so to wake him, you poked his cheeks,

“ni-ki,” you said. nothing.

“riki-ah?” this time as more of a question while lightly patting his hair. also nothing.

“babes, if you don’t wake up i’m gonna shove you off my lap.” suddenly, his eyes open and he looks up at you which causes you to jump back in your seat slightly.

“bae-ehbs?” he asks, trying to sound out the word.

“uh huh.”

“wait doesn’t that mean, love?”

“no… it means pabo,” you reply playfully. (pabo meaning like dum dum / stupid in korean, but it’s not meant to sound offensive here !!)

“no it means ‘love’ jay hyung told me about that word when i started dating you.”

“well, if you knew then why’d you ask?”

“wait, so it actually does mean love?”

“you just said jay told you!”

“yeah but i didn’t believe him.” at the confirmation of the word’s true meaning, he feels happy and kind of giddy at the new name he’s earned for himself from you. like heeseung, he’d use it to get something that he wants from you but instead of aegyo it’s more like teasing.

↬ a/n pt. 2 + semi tmi: i speak two languages and i suck at both, english and my parent’s native language. two & a quarter if you count the bare minimum of spanish i learned from taking it during the first two years of high school and the few words of korean i picked up from kdramas lmao 😭

❦ written by riri ( @enhykkul ) | blog masterlist | blog navigation

↬ tagging: @bloom-bloom-pow | @markleepooh | @sunshineshouchan (permanent taglist is open if anyone wants to be in it !!)

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welldonebeca · 4 years ago

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why do we have to go and make things so complicated? (3)

WC: 600+ words Characters: Rey Palpatine, Kaydel Ko Connix. Warning: Pregnancy, light angst, a little bit of lying.

Two weeks. That was how long she pushed herself into ignoring the little birds singing into her ear that she could possibly be pregnant right now. She wasn’t on any birth control, and she had had sex – with Ben – not so long ago. It was plausible, right?

But still, for two weeks, Rey – a doctor, a gynaecologist, nonetheless – pretended nothing was wrong and that the sickness she was feeling could only be a stomach bug, and that she shouldn’t be worried that her period was almost two full months late. Because she couldn’t be pregnant. She couldn’t possibly be pregnant.

Until it was too much, and she needed to know the answer. So here she was, taking her own blood sample and writing a random fake name on a tag, just so she could make it absolutely sure that she was fine. Not pregnant at all.

And her heart wasn’t beating like crazy in her chest as she walked to the nurse station to try to find Kaydel and hope and pray to anything she believed in that the nurse would be discreet with the whole plan she’d come up with.

“What can I do for you?” the friendly girl leant over the counter with a smile.

“Look, I have this patient,” Rey looked around. “And she’s kind of a big deal, and I need a pregnancy test for her.”

She offered her the blood sample, and Kaydel took it, winking at her.

“I’m your girl,” she assured her, and read the name of the tag. “Daisy Ridley? Now, that’s a cool fake name. Should I email it to you?”

“Yes, please,” Rey nodded. “And thank you a lot, Kay.”

“I got you,” she assured her with a smile, then reached under the desk to pull up a file. “Oh, this one is for you. The patient is waiting in room 3.”

She sighed, picking it up.

Back to work it was.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” her friend answered as she walked away. “Good luck.”

She had no idea how much she’d need that.

. . .

Rey paced around the living room impatiently, almost feeling like pulling her hair off. Kaydel should have sent her the test results already, she had said they would be ready hours ago. What was taking her so long?

The test had to be negative. It just had to. She couldn’t have a kid right now. Rey had never even thought about having kids in her life and being a doctor didn’t help at all. And how could she be a mother if she had never had a mother herself? Half of her life had been spent with people coming and going, doing the bare minimum to keep her and the other orphan kids alive, her grandmother was much more her friend than anything else in her life.

And Ben… First of all, how would she explain this to Ben? He would freak out.... No, he would probably pass out first. He didn’t even remember they had slept together, and she’d just drop a bomb about a baby on his lap? She couldn’t do that to him, he was her best friend - the first friend she even felt truly bonded with with. Ben would probably leave her if she did that, who would want a random baby like this with someone they didn't even have any feelings beyond platonic for? It would be too much to ask him, too much to offer him. She had settled into being his friend, she could accept being just his friend... She couldn't bare losing even that one thing they had.

“Look,” she raised her head, looking up ar the ceiling at an invisible heaven or whatever and promptly talking to whatever deity was commanding her life right now. “I know I’m not the most faithful woman and never was. But if you help me and don’t let this happen, I promise I’ll go to the synagogue every weekend, and I’ll never work on a single Saturday again in my life, and attend every single…”

The ping from her phone made her rush to the small bar where she’d left it, and an email popped up on her screen.

Kaydel had finally, finally, sent her the test result.

Rey opened the message quickly, ignoring any text in it and jumping right to the pdf file that’d come along with it.

No clinical notes, reference intervals and…

Positive.

She was pregnant.

She was definitely pregnant.

“Fuck.”

. . .

Forever Tags: @emoryhemsworth @amythyststorm33 @shaelyn102 @yknott81 @ria132love @letsdisneythings @maximofftrash @kgbrenner @thefridgeismybestie @magpiegirl80 @mogaruke @unicorntrooper @shadowhunter7 @musicalcoffeebean @megasimpleplan4ever @deemoriarty @05spn18 @malindacath @kdcollinsauthor @random-fandom-fangirl2112 @widowsfics @frozenhuntress67 @averyrogers83 @notyourtypicalrose @nerdypinupcrystal Forever SFW tags: @waywardemo? @newtospnfandom? @thewinterhunter? @amillionfandoms-onlyoneme? @fandomlover2001? @heartislubbingdubbing Star Wars Tags: Open ReyLo Tags: Open why do we...: @giruvega

#why do we have to go and make things so complicated? Series #ReyLo #Reylo fanfiction #Reylo fluff #Reylo imagine #Rey x Ben Solo #Rey x Ben Solo fanfiction

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gumnut-logic · 6 years ago

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Bad Days

Title: Bad Days

Gentle Rain Series

Author: Gumnut

8 Apr 2019

Fandom: Thunderbirds Are Go 2015/ Thunderbirds TOS

Rating: Teen

Summary: Em Harris has bad days.

Word count: 2064

Spoilers & warnings: Scott/Em

Timeline: Sometime after ‘Gentle Rain”

Author’s note: This is to celebrate Nutty injuring her back again yesterday. We all have bad days and Em more so than some. This is also an example of the fact that things are not always as rosy as they seem. I guess we’d all like a Tracy to come to our rescue sometime :D

Disclaimer: Mine? You’ve got to be kidding. Money? Don’t have any, don’t bother.

-o-o-o-

Em Harris has bad days.

There are days that start shitty and will likely end shitty. Days where she is reminded, that yes, she is paraplegic and look, now a double amputee to polish it all off. Days when the nerve pain gets her down. Days where the bare necessities of survival get ahead of her and existence just sucks.

At home, she would call in sick - her practise has back up plans for this exact reason - they’re doctors, they know the deal. She would hole up at home and just get through the day. If it got really bad, she had the visiting nurse to call. There were ways and strategies to get through the suffering and out the other side. Ways to rebuild her core, reinforce her shields and get herself back out there, usually with a smile to face the world.

It was necessary. It happened. She managed it.

But today she wasn’t at home. Today she was on a sparsely populated island in the middle of the southern Pacific.

She had woken to find Scott gone. This was nothing new. The man was a rescue operative, for crying out loud. IR had callouts around the clock. But the moment she gained consciousness, she knew it was going to be one of those days and just for once she granted herself enough selfishness to wish he was there to hold her and simply tell her it was going to be all right.

But she was Em Bloody Harris and she had been doing this alone for a long time. Get your ass out of bed and get the necessaries done, because not doing the necessaries of paraplegic existence really weren’t worth the neglect.

So she got out of bed and to the bathroom and did what she had to do. If there was a moment or two that found her cheek leaning against the coolness of the tiled wall, so be it. She had to get through this, so she would do it any way she could.

By the time she got through her routine, she was exhausted.

The irony of neuropathic pain was that while it damn hurt, it was all fake signals. There was nothing wrong with her beyond what was always wrong with her. It was just a seriously damaged nervous system doing its best to do its job when it couldn’t anymore. Pain was the result and days like today, it could get bad enough to break through her reserves and take her down.

So Doctor Harris downed some painkillers and prescribed herself a day in bed. Curling up under the covers, she closed her eyes and willed the day away.

Unfortunately she forgot to tell the Tracy family.

Sometime after no lunch there was a discreet knock on her door.

She blinked herself awake. She had finally managed some sleep, but her brain hadn’t let her fully escape, providing warped dreams where she was falling and Scott was desperately trying to catch her, but never quite fast enough. Her whole head had spun and it was only the sound of knuckles on wood that had stopped her plunge.

“Em?” Virgil’s voice. “Are you okay?”

Her head was full of cotton wool. The medication had the lovely side effect of dulling her thought processes along with her nerve pathways.

“Em?”

She opened her mouth to reply, but her body chose that exact moment to spasm and instead she found herself curled up working through a wave of pain. There may have been a whimper.

She didn’t hear the click of the door’s lock being overridden, but the voice exclaiming her name and the gentle touch to her forehead was enough to shock her brain into functioning at a bare minimum.

Virgil was crouched beside her bed, worry in every line of his face. “Em, talk to me.”

“Virgil, w-what are you doing in here?”

“Grandma was worried. It is unlike you to miss a meal, much less two. What’s going on?”

She closed her eyes and rubbed her face with a hand. “I’m fine. Juss a bad day.”

She didn’t want to look at him. Em Harris didn’t like vulnerable. Her medical status put her in that position far more often than she preferred and she put up with it, but this was new. This was her boyfriend’s brother, her boyfriend’s family, and to top it all off, Virgil was also one of her patients.

Vulnerability was not an option.

“I’m fine. I just need to get throu-“ And yes, her nervous system was the master of betrayal as it paired up the previous spasm with a lovely demonstration of exactly how bad, bad could get.

She grit her teeth and worked through the pain. Goddamnit, why did it have to hurt so much. The fog in her head wasn’t strong enough. She was due for another dose. She screwed up her face and tears leaked out of her eyes. A moment and she was gasping. Okay, okay, that one sucked. Where was her damned medication?

She opened her eyes to find a hologram of her own body floating above her.

What the hell?

“Em, what medication have you taken?”

“Wha?”

“I need to know what medication you have taken for your neuropathic pain.”

She pointed towards the bedside table and the bottle of pills. Red flannel danced in the shadows.

“I want you in the infirmary.”

“Virgil, I’m fine. I’ve got this handled.” She was so proud of actually finding her voice, she almost missed what he said next.

“Doctor Harris, the patient is in chronic pain, dehydrated and, no doubt, suffering from a low blood sugar level due to self neglect. Our infirmary has equipment that can help. I want you there and I want you there now.”

“I’m the doctor.” It was a stupid thing to say, but her reserves were shot and the thought of being paraded through the house on a stretcher sent chills up what was left of her spine. He would see her. See her injuries. See the real Em Harris. The broken mess under the facade. “No.”

“Em.” He sighed and she suddenly realised she wasn’t talking to Virgil, Scott’s brother. This was emergency responder and medic, Virgil Tracy. The man knew what he was doing. “Trust me.” The voice so many desperate people had heard in the most dire of circumstances.

As with many a rescuee, it worked. “Okay.” Her voice was so small, it was pathetic. So bloody embarrassing. She closed her eyes and hid her face behind her hands.

“C’mon, let’s get you out of that bed.” She couldn’t see him at that exact moment, but she knew he was offering her his arms.

So bloody embarrassing.

She pushed her self up, but, of course, today was a bad day so her body protested.

Loudly.

He caught her as she fumbled, scooping her up with a ridiculous lack of effort and held her close as she rode through it. She ended up gasping, her head on his shoulder, and she discovered he used the same aftershave her father had.

And then she was in tears.

Oh god. Em Bloody Harris bawling her eyes out all over his red flannel shirt. There were comforting noises, his chest rumbling with his soft voice. There was movement. She clenched her eyes shut, desperate to keep the world at bay.

And then he was laying her down on soft, cool sheets. There were beeps of medical machinery. The gentle touch of his warm hands on the skin of her back.

And the pain disappeared.

Oh god, the relief had her sagging into the bed. All her breath rushed out in a whimpered sigh.

Warm fingers brushed her hair out of her eyes. She looked up to find worried brown looking down at her. “Better?”

“Better.”

A small smile of relief flashed across his face, but then he was fiddling with an IV bag, hanging it far above. Exhaustion washed over her.

She didn’t feel the prick in her arm as sleep finally took her.

-o-o-o-

The next time she opened her eyes she encountered a pair of worried blue.

“Em?”

She swallowed. “Scott.” He was sitting beside her bed. She was in the infirmary. How?

Her brain finally decided to start functioning properly and memories lined up in all their embarrassing glory.

Shit.

“Uh, uh, uh.” His hand came down gently on her shoulder, holding her in place as she made to push herself up off the mattress. “You are staying here.”

“But I’m fine.”

A single arched eyebrow. “Tell me what happened.”

“Nothing happened. It was just a bad day.”

“That has you curled up in bed in pain.”

“It happens. I deal with it.”

His lips thinned. “Em, you’re not alone anymore.”

She opened her mouth to scoff at his words, but then their meaning sunk in and her mind jack-knifed.

Her hand was wrapped in one of his and she frowned at it. His other hand reached up and caressed her cheek. “We are not unfamiliar with the effects of injury in this family, Em. We help each other. Yes, there are bad days. We all have bad days. But those days pass better with help.” A ghost of a smile. “This family specialises in help.” He swallowed. “The thought of you hurting alone...I am so glad my brother is a stubborn ass who will chase up any member of this family hiding a damned illness. Please, Em, we’re here. There is no shame in asking for help.”

Her heart was in her throat. It had never occurred to her. She had not even thought about it. All she had seen was embarrassment and inconvenience. His fingers were so warm on her cheek. She closed her eyes and revelled in his touch.

No longer alone.

Oh god, it had been so long.

She bit her lip and was astonished to find herself holding back a sob.

Bloody hell, not again! What the hell was wrong with her today?!

His fingers brushed away a tear. His shadow fell across her eyelids and his lips touched her forehead. Whispered. “Think about it.” A smile against her skin. “I love you, Em Harris, and with me comes a large, bumbling family. You will never be alone again.”

His words had her eyes open and seeking to look at his expression, but he was too close and his lips were brushing hers, his hand in her hair. Ever, ever so gentle. Her gorgeous Scott Tracy.

She fell into the moment.

But he eventually broke it off and she missed his touch as he stepped back, sitting in the chair beside her bed, that still slightly smug smile of his knowing exactly the effect he had on her.

“Virgil says he is going to order a second TEEPS machine for you. Until then you can use Gordon’s as needed. Knowing Virgil, he’ll go and pick it up himself just for peace of mind. No doubt the second machine will be here before we have to worry about the both of you needing it at the same time.”

She blinked. “Why does Gordon need a TEEPS machine?” The thought of the cost of one, much less two, froze her brain for a moment.

“Ah, you’ll have to speak to Gordon about that. You’d be the first one to kill me if I divulged my brother’s medical information to you.”

Bloody hell, yes, she would be following up on that immediately. She had to know this stuff. What if she had to treat him? What if he needed her help? An image of the younger Tracy’s laughing face danced across her mind. Why did he need a TEEPS machine? She was almost terrified to find out.

But then she had seen Virgil’s medical records. Why wouldn’t his brothers’ medical history be any different? Her heart clenched.

“Hey, Gordon’s fine. It’s managed. And yours will be, too.” His hand tightened briefly on her arm. “Now, you focus on you.” And his hand was touching her cheek again. So distracting.

He leant in again. Another kiss.

Oh.

Perhaps he was right. Perhaps her bad days could be a little less bad. Perhaps...and her mind lost its train of thought as his tongue begged entry.

Oh god.

-o-o-o-

FIN.

#thunderbirds are go #thunderbirds #virgil tracy #thunderbirds fanfiction #scott tracy #em harris #scott/em #gentle rain #warm rain

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ammeh7 · 6 years ago

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7KPP Week 2019 - Day 2

Hobbies || Worldbuilding

Valrise + music, at three different times in her life

I finally had to come up with siblings for Valrise for this!

Names and ages at the start of the fic, for anyone who likes a reference: Ophelia (10), Emmaline (8), Linette (7), Larissa (7), Rhiele (5), Tremont (4, first son), Cerise (2), Brandel (1, second son). Valrise is 6 years older than Ophelia and was probably an accident.

I Can’t Music, and attempting to research for this fic just got me lots of ads for children’s music lessons, so if I said anything that makes her sound like an idiot or is unrealistic, just let me know.

Minor content warning for the middle section (avoiding intimacy with her first husband). If you’re concerned, scroll to the end for details.

The piano was one of the few trappings of nobility they had left.

She suspected it was only still there because her mother hadn’t figured out how to get it down the stairs to sell. Or maybe she’d decided it compensated for the threadbare rugs and shelves conspicuously absent of curios. It made them look, perhaps, like they might hold social gatherings, have their talented daughters perform for their guests.

In reality, it was years out of tune, and of the seven daughters, 16-year-old Valrise was the only one with any idea how to play. There hadn’t been money for individual music tutoring since Ophelia was just starting on basic scales—a couple years of group vocal lessons, and then it was up to Valrise (“You have such a lovely voice, dear, I’m sure you can do better than that overpriced troubadour!”) By that point, the piano twanged unpleasantly, a bulky corner decoration rather than an instrument.

There were probably smarter things to spend her scrimped-together savings on, but…she missed it.

Getting the piano tuned did have a practical justification, she’d convinced herself—with Rhiele turning six, it’d make five of them passing the lap harp around during her attempts at music lessons. Counting Valrise, that would be six of them sharing it for practice. If they had the piano as well, there’d be more opportunity for everyone to practice instruments, more options for accompaniment, better chances for her sisters to grow the skills expected of noble ladies.

So she’d sold a brooch that had been a gift from an optimistic merchant’s son, and inquired around until she found a tuner with a good reputation who was willing to work cheaply. At least in this case. (She might have had to bat her eyelashes a bit and sigh wistfully about how much she missed playing, but in the end she’d gotten three piano tunings for the price of the brooch.)

Hopefully, her mother wouldn’t return from her outing until after the tuner was finished. She might not notice that the piano was suddenly in tune, but she’d have opinions on Valrise’s use of money, or perhaps take this as a sign they had some great trove of savings secreted away and she could afford some indulgences of her own.

Right on cue, the tuner closed his box of tools and stepped back with a smile. “It should be set, Miss—my lady. Feel free to try it out.”

She sat down hesitantly, hovered her hands over the keyboard. “I’m afraid I’m several years out of practice, so I’d request that you don’t judge my fumbles too harshly,” she smiled over her shoulder.

The first few notes were hesitant, but her hands remembered even if her mind didn’t, and soon her fingers were flowing over the keys, a song she couldn’t even recall the name of filling the room.

She hadn’t remembered how satisfying she found this—the range of notes, the expanse of the keyboard, the timbre.

The last note faded out and she came back to herself. “It—sounds lovely. Thank you.”

Movement at the door caught her eye, and she looked over to see Ophelia, Emmaline, and Larissa all peeking their heads into the room.

“I told you she’d be good at it,” Larissa whispered loudly to someone in the hall. Probably Rhiele—she still liked to hide from strangers, and Linette in her determination to be the “good twin” would never have abandoned her math exercises to spy on what was happening across the castle.

“Are you going to teach any of us?” Emmaline asked eagerly, noticing Valrise looking their way. “So we don’t have to share?”

“Of course,” she said, glad they seemed excited. This would be good for them. She knew it was the right choice.

The footman came over to show the tuner out, and the girls entered the room, Emmaline and Larissa rushing up to the piano and plinking at the keys while Ophelia came over to stand by Valrise.

“It’s good to see you play again,” she said quietly. “I missed it.”

“Me too.”

The floor harp was by far her favorite thing in the house. Her entertainment and her sanctuary.

The same talents that had helped her to catch a wealthy baron’s eye now also helped her play the part of an adoring wife without having to do anything terribly…wifely. He loved her singing, had had the harp and piano moved to the room below his study and bade her to play with the windows open.

She didn’t mind the man, but she felt no great passion, no tender affection at the thought of him. The thought of kissing him, of lying with him, left her with a sense of cool distaste. She endured the first, but for the other…

The dream-wine had been a terrible plan. It was miraculous it hadn’t crashed apart around her already.

She’d been so childishly terrified of that first night. She’d known the tincture was a soporific, one unpopular due to side effects of disturbingly vivid dreams, but quick-acting and accessible. She’d just meant to delay things, let him think he’d nodded off after a night of feasting and put the whole affair off until she’d had time to settle in a bit.

But he’d pulled her close, gotten her bodice open before it took effect…and the next morning she’d discovered that if an idea were planted and the circumstances were believable, those “vivid dreams” could be mistaken for reality.

She should have taken that reprieve as the windfall it was and not pushed her luck. But it turned out that if you manage to avoid the first night, the next time…was still the first night.

And “settling in” turned out to be much less of a panacea than she’d hoped.

She could perform the part of the adoring and grateful wife when they were together, but too much and it got under her skin, made her sick with it, made her worry she might let the mask slip.

Playing, though—playing let her escape from pleasing her husband and please her husband all at the same time.

He thought the music was for him. It wasn’t.

And when her husband came in and kissed her shoulder, told her to wait up in her chambers that night, she’d only be acting the doting spouse if she prepared two goblets and some cut flowers, wanted to flirt a bit over a glass of wine before they got to business.

The problem was that it worked too well. She never meant to keep it going for an entire year.

She’d faked her way through one pregnancy already, “late courses” and “morning sickness” and a morning of dramatic weeping in the bathroom. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could maintain the ruse. Soon she might need to—

A loud crash came from the study upstairs, and her fingers halted on the strings with an unpleasant twang.

“Darling? Is everything all right?”

“I believe,” Zarad says, “that you promised me a private concert.”

Valrise tilts her head in exaggerated recollection. “Oh? I’m fairly certain I said that I might give you a private concert, if you behave.”

He grins. “Exactly! So as we are surely in agreement that my behavior has been beyond reproach for at least the past three hours—”

She gives him a flat look.

“—and you carelessly neglected to specify a duration when making your promise—”

“It was hardly a promise—”

“—there is really no debating the fact that you owe me a private concert.”

“I suppose that’s fairly ironclad,” she says, walking over to the floor harp in the center of the music room he’s brought her to. She settles herself, takes a deep breath.

She plucks out a single chord, then stands. “Well, since I carelessly neglected to specify a duration in my promise… I hope you enjoyed your concert.”

Zarad laughs, eyes dancing. “Ah, but you must agree that the word ‘concert’ carries an implicit minimum length. At least a quarter hour, certainly.”

Part of her wants to keep arguing, silly hesitations holding her back. Her time with the Baron has turned the idea of playing for her husband into something underhanded, scheming—and as someone used to impressing people with her singing, she’s a bit worried she’ll come off lacking in comparison to the apparently legendary voice of his mother.

But he’s hardly the Baron, and she has no intention of giving up singing permanently, so better to take the plunge now than put it off. And in the end, she really does want to.

She pretends to consider for a long moment, then sits back down. “Fine. But if you get yourself murdered by a bookshelf while I’m playing, I’m going to be very cross.”

“I’ll be the very soul of caution,” he says. “Although, if there exists a bookshelf so determined to murder me that it manages to sneak its way into the music room, I fear I may have met my match.”

She laughs, bringing her fingers to the strings.

She plays.

And maybe it’s a little bit for him.

If you came down here for the detailed content warning:

During the second section, Valrise (Ambitious Widow) is married to her first husband, who wants an heir. She doesn’t want to sleep with him and has successfully avoided it by drugging him so he’ll fall asleep and think they did, but is worried she might have to eventually (and has been in some intimate situations with him she found distasteful, not much past kissing.) She also faked a pregnancy and miscarriage at one point. It’s all described pretty vaguely and she’s safe at the end. If you’d prefer to skip that but are still interested in reading the rest: You can read up to the first break, then instead of reading the section that starts “the floor harp was by far her favorite thing in the house”, search for the first instance of “Zarad” and pick up again there. All you need to know for the third bit is that she used to play “for” her first husband as a means of avoiding him, and that he died in a freak accident while she was playing in the room below.

#7kpp #7kpp week 2019 #7kppweek #7kpp week #zarad #My MCs #fic

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eatbreathewrite · 8 years ago

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The Adventures of Todd and Granny

(Alternatively: “I Saw Granny Ethel with the Devil”)

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V

Grocery Store

Todd the demon is a he, now, if only because Granny Ethel insists upon using copious ‘Dear boy, keep trying’ and ‘Atta boy!’ critiques to varying degrees depending on how well his needlework, crochet, and knitting attempts progress.

Gender isn’t a concept the demon concerned himself with before. If Todd had been, say, a girl named Tonya, he supposes he’d be a she instead. If Todd had been gender-neutral and properly communicated with his grandmother, he supposes she would call him they or child, appropriately. Granny Ethel isn’t one to discriminate. Even when she properly wears her glasses and sees his obviously un-Todd-like appearance, only shaking her head and smiling with a good-natured “kids these days” on her lips. But he wouldn’t mind if Granny Ethel called him boy, girl, thing, or abomination, so long as she stayed happy.

Granny Ethel is a patient woman. Todd simply can’t understand why or how she’d become the black sheep of her family, especially after a full week of living with her hospitality. Through the constant baked goods and the modest but satisfying three-meals-a-day; the careful (oh-so-careful) dusting of trinkets and bookshelves with tiny cloths and feather dusters not fit for large claws, which he insists upon doing while she looks on in worry before brewing more coffee; the midday television re-run breaks spent sealing cash donations into envelopes and discussing human rights issues instead of watching old shows, he simply can’t think of her as anything but a paragon of her kind.

It’s a problem with them, he concludes. Not her.

It isn’t a decision he makes lightly.

Spending such a brief time with her, he’s already learned so much more about humans than he ever would have cared to know, beyond perceiving them as vessels or a means to an end. There is much suffering in the world—sometimes even more than that in Hell—but there is also kindness.

He’s known that, but he witnesses it first hand during their first trip outside of Granny Ethel’s home.

“Come, now, Todd, we have much shopping to do. I’m afraid my pantry isn’t stocked appropriately for the upcoming food donation drive and I can’t just skip it this month.”

Todd remembers addressing an envelope to the local food bank—most people would stop there, figuring their good deed was done.

“I also have to stock up on this week’s groceries. Feel free to buy whatever you want, dear. I can cook anything, you know! At least, I try. I suppose you’d like some snacks, too. But I am so glad you’re here; think of all the bags we can carry between the two of us!”

There is no car in Granny Ethel’s driveway, or a garage to store it. He wonders how they’re going to make it to the grocery store as he waits for her to lock the door behind them, as she hobbles down the two small concrete steps with her cane in hand.

It isn’t until she’s halfway down the sidewalk that he realizes they’re walking. In public.

An old crone in black and a demon at her side, wearing a handmade shawl so lovingly stitched with various, terrifying occult symbols.

He isn’t the only one who sees a problem with this—the neighbor’s dog, a small, bug-eyed thing, yaps indignantly at them from the front lawn as it bounces around the dewy grass at its owner’s feet, soon erupting in warning yowls and howls, before falling silent mid-yip when Todd locks eyes with it. The neighbor—Maurice, if he remembers Granny Ethel’s gossip correctly—stands frozen, watering can dangling limp from his hand as he overwaters the begonias at his feet, mouth hanging open in undignified disbelief.

“Good morning, Maurice!” Granny Ethel calls with unmitigated cheer, and a hint of pride. “Nice morning, isn’t it? Oh! Have you met my wonderful grandson Todd? He finally came to visit! We’re going shopping now. Will you watch my house?”

Maurice simply stares, dumb with shock.

Halfway down the block, another neighbor’s car brakes with a squeal before they make it out of the driveway and they stick their head out of the window to gape.

Shutters crack open. Curtains are shoved aside.

Before Todd knows it, they are the cul-de-sac’s center of attention.

Granny Ethel doesn’t pay it any mind and continues obliviously on, waving to each face in turn as those faces pale, yet hers remains rosy.

“My, such a busy day today. I haven’t seen everyone out like this since the Fourth of July block party. Oh, if you’re still here during summer, Todd, we should definitely take part. Maybe we should start knitting an American flag for the occasion. What do you think?”

He can only nod.

They make it to the grocery store without incident—aside from the broken fire hydrant caused by a distracted driver and the one, single person who ran away screaming, and the handful that crossed themselves, and the one person bold enough to snap a picture with their phone before Todd grabbed it from their hands and threw it while Granny Ethel wasn’t looking, too distracted with how well the city’s roadside flowers were blooming—and Todd, ever the gentledemon, takes a small shopping cart from its line and trails behind Granny Ethel as she consults the list taken from her purse.

As expected, those within the store stop and stare. Even the calming elevator music jolts to a pause.

A young man in an employee vest, who looks high, shoots Todd the demon-horn hand sign and smiles before swaggering away to the frozen food aisle, and the manager meekly approaches them, skirting around a fresh fruit display.

“Ma’am, is there—is there something I can—do you need help?” he asks, sweating from his receding hairline to his neck as he tugs at his collar and straightens his frumpy tie.

“Oh! I’m so glad you asked. I didn’t see any sales circulars by the door—what kind of specials are on right now? Particularly on things like pizzas and cereals and whatever else young men like to eat.” Granny Ethel leans in close to the man, close enough to loudly whisper, “See, my grandson here is a quiet, shy boy despite his appearance, and I don’t think he’d ask me himself, but I bet he’d love to get some junk food to snack on between meals.”

The manager’s eyes widen, blood-shot, as he looks to Todd, who only smiles—which comes off as terrifying, he’s certain, with all the sharp teeth and red eyes involved.

“S-SURE! Junk food. Right. Um—uh, w-well, I think there’s a BOGO—buy one get one free—deal on the frozen pizzas. Uh…most cereals are marked down right now…th-there’s a sale on potato chips…hot dogs…” His voice trails off, too burdened with trembles and fear as he continues to hold Todd’s gaze. “And—you know, I’m sure some other employee can help you, ma’am. I’m not one anymore as of this moment. I QUIT.” That said, he yanks the flimsy plastic nametag from his shirt and runs for the door, followed by half of the shoppers who abandon their carts and drop their baskets, scattering groceries everywhere.

Granny Ethel watches him go, then sighs. “He must have been overworked and stressed. I almost walked out on a job a long time ago for the same reasons, but I needed it. You be careful of corporate America, Todd.”

He takes her words to heart, and he fully agrees.

Shoppers that remain in the grocery mart avoid them at all costs as they meander through the frozen food section, the bread aisle, the junk food corner—and Granny Ethel pays them no mind, filling the cart to the brim with refills of groceries she needs back at home and treats she thinks Todd needs more of in his life. He supposes he does, if she says he does. Far be it from him to contradict her adolescent-savvy wisdom.

Even so, the single shopping cart is far too small for all of the spoils—halfway through the shopping list, he finds them in need of another. It isn’t an issue. Many are left scattered, abandoned, around almost every corner. By the end of the list, both carts are full to the brim, and Granny Ethel is simply beaming.

The checkout lines are deserted—they have their pick. Although only one station is manned by a clerk, and it greatly narrows their choice.

As Todd wheels the two shopping carts to the register, he recognizes the young employee from before, who once again shoots him the demon-horn hand symbol.

“Love your poncho, dude,” Sam (as his nametag reads) comments with a bit of a tired drawl, and there are dark shadows under his eyes as expected from an overworked youth on minimum wage, but he is otherwise energetic, quickly scanning each of the items set on the conveyor belt, and smiling at demon and old woman in turn. “Did the little lady here knit that for you?”

“Crocheted!” Granny Ethel corrects with a grin, preening like a proud parakeet. “It does suit him, doesn’t it? Of course, I would never make something that didn’t suit my dear grandson. He must always be well-dressed.”

“You seem like a really supportive gramma. That’s cool. When I was in my super hardcore death metal phase, mine just dragged me to church every Sunday.” A digital beep accompanies nearly every word as he skillfully rings up each grocery down the line.

“Oh, I would never do that. Mainly because I no longer belong to a church. And also because Todd seems so averse to discussing Bible passages, so I never force him.”

At this, Todd gives a wry smile. He places the final handful of groceries onto the conveyor belt and sidles around Granny to the other side of the checkout, bagging the groceries that have already been scanned. It seems the official bag boy has fled in fright.

“I can imagine. Never one for religion, myself. Oh, and you’re eligible for the senior citizen’s discount, so let me just…” Sam pauses a moment to key in a code on the register and it dings. “Aaand, there. Your total comes out to $204.56. Stocking up for the winter already? It’s only March.”

“Oh, dear, no. Half of this is for the food drive!” Granny Ethel chuckles good-naturedly as she leans her cane against the counter and digs through her small pocketbook and produces a checkbook, then dives back in to search for her favorite pen.

Sam turns to Todd while awaiting payment. “By the way, dude, that costume is killer. I’ve never seen anything so realistic, with the added bonus that you scared the boss away! Totally made my day. My week, even.”

Todd gives a nod, happy to be of service, even if it isn’t a costume. He can’t exactly say it aloud. Perhaps one day he’ll learn how to speak English coherently, but for now nonverbal cues work just fine.

Finally, Granny Ethel finds her pink, plastic jewel-encrusted ballpoint pen and makes out a check to DeVille-Mart, even going so far as to take one of the heavier paper bags for herself, never one to make Todd carry all of the groceries himself. “You have a wonderful day, young man. Thank you.”

“Y’all have a great day, too, Ma’am.” Sam offers a toothy smile, and it seems sincere enough as he sees them off with a lazy wave “Hope to be seeing you shop here again.”

Todd isn’t so sure they’ll ever return once upper management hears about this visit, but it’s nice to know they are accepted by at least one individual.

“Now, Todd, let’s get to the food bank. We have such a long day ahead of us. But there’s a reward at the end of it—I bought ingredients specifically for chocolate turtle brownies!”

If the visit to the food bank is in any way similar to this excursion—and it will be, he decides, as yet another gawking driver’s car slow-collides with the corner vending machine when they pass through the automatic doors—they have a long day ahead of them, indeed.

#original writing #todd and granny #weekly exercise #looks like i got this done early for the week #todd and granny is the tag i'll be using for future entries #feel free to use it too #also yes granny has a name now #I like Anette too though!#original

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abiteofnat · 7 years ago

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THE SUBWAY CAN’T STOP ME FROM HAVIN A GOOD TIME...

Even though my “sea legs” are a little shaky when I’m a billion feet underground and shuttling through the space-time continuum. I love public transit and rely on it to live my life, but the NYC subway is it’s own Narnia of transport. After my family left me for the rats in NYC I was to backpack between Brooklyn and the Upper East Side where two of my best and most beautiful friends recently moved to, each of them very different people and therefore providing me with a week of amazing, diverse experiences and quality #bff time. While I panicked about not having enough to do to keep us occupied I quickly realized I am naive and that NYC is definitely not lacking in things to do, anytime, ever. AND THEY DON’T LACK THINGS TO EAT!

The first couple days were spent with a dear pal Sophia, my crossfit queen and wine connoisseur, and her boyfriend in Brooklyn where the bagels were plenty and we ate a lot of them. Bagel World is where you can find the famous Rainbow Bagel which I believe is an egg bagel with some food coloring stirred in, and with a little plain cream cheese smeared on there it’s the perfect #hangoverhelper and puts a smile on your face. The best thing about NYC bagel delis is the fact they have TUBS of cream cheese for your choosing, and you better believe there are a half a dozen flavors minimum that make the salty & sweet or savory & salty or sweet & sweet conundrum all the harder to decide. I’m a fan of a salty bagel and a sweet cream cheese, i.e. sea salt bagels with strawberry cream cheese (which I tried at Pick A Bagel -pictured below- later on that week) but that rainbow bagel realllyyyy swooned me. And, being a dumbo with caffeine-free brain, I forgot to take pics and just consumed it out of pure glee. May it live on forever in my heart.

I also went to a bombfreaking.com bagel place in the Financial District while Soph was off doing important things, and lemme tell you I absolutely adore that area of Manhattan. While it does feel very “Wolf of Wall Street” and everyone is a business person rushing around under these tall, gray buildings it’s also near the water and feels like a whole new city of it’s own. There are a ton of tiny cafes and coffee shops, bars and mini patios, and a shocking amount of flower shops. I wouldn’t make it a destination area itself but if you’re checking out the One World Trade Center (which is entirely worth seeing, it’s humbling and very breathtaking) you could walk over for a snack and a think. My find of the day was Leo’s Bagels, where I got a poppyseed and chive cream cheese bagel that blew my fucking mind. This bagel was the essential NYC bagel, broiled to chewy perfection and toasted to a golden brown and then SMOTHERED WITH CHIVE CREAM CHEESE THAT I COULD EAT WITH A SPOON FOREVER. I read a book, “The Couple Next Door”, and noshed on my bagel while watching the rain fall on the brick streets crowded with people running underneath newspapers to protect their fancy hair. It was pretty damn perfect.

Outside of bagels, we checked out where to get sangria pitchers and talk about the trials of millennial living which lead us to Barraca, a picture-perfect corner spot in a bustling part of Greenwich. Their happy hour menu was poppin’ and we ordered pitchers of multiple types of sangria, garlic-marinated olives, pan con tomate, and expected menu items such as patatas bravas that were deep fried and topped with a glorious aioli, and then threw in some manchego cheese with grilled toast and jam. It was tasty little bites of tapas classes in a rustic yet modern setting, great people watching, and ideal lounge-forever-and-drink vibes.

We were quite content here and should you want a casual, 5-hour European meal this is your place! Plus Greenwich is a mecca of little bars and late night restaurants, walk a little far to the Meat Packing District to the clubs and fancy pants bars, and the world is your $15 cocktail. Voila!

The last leg of my trip was spent with my oldest and most vegan friend Lolo who went above and beyond to show me an authentic day in the life of her and her huge, beautiful friend group which led us to some pretty cool and totally veggie-friendly spots. Lolo being the wonder she is also let me stop for bagels at any moment and for that she wins an award seeing as she doesn’t even eat bagels! And I’m so indecisive with them!

One of the first places we went to was the food court in The Plaza as it’s a staple for her and I had never been. We woke up ~hella~ early with the world on a Saturday to scamper to Central Park and sit in line for 5 hours to get Shakespeare in the Park tickets for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as it’s free Broadway theater that is packed every single night of the summer, and after scoring four beautiful tickets our eyes were glazed over and my stomach was screaming “FUCK THE ARTS I NEED FOOD”. So we headed to The Plaza, went underneath the elite hotel section to the similarly elite yet casual eatery, and I was shell shocked. I don’t know what I expected, but this food court felt like the most glorious spread of gourmet foods offered to raggedy people like us in baseball caps and tennis shoes.

Lolo led me to the coffee that to this minute of my life is still the best iced coffee I’ve ever had, and with a splash of almond milk and simple syrup I couldn’t quite believe that coffee from a French stand in a food court was changing my entire life. It’s called Epicerie Boulud, and you should go N O W.

We also stopped and got sushi from the sushi stand which would be a running trend of the weekend (little did I know). One of the things I love about my girl is she is an avid sushi fan even though it’s just veggies and rice all wrapped up because she’s meat free, and I can eat sushi for ever single meal without turning into an actual piece of tuna and be happy. It was VERY VERY good sushi, and the men making it were so happy to be rolling up some rolls for the line of people sitting along the prep station and watching. Nothing like live theater, no matter what kind it is.

After this meal we went to Central Park with some goodies from Whole Foods and picnicked until the show started, and my oh MY free Shakespeare was remarkable. The set, the costumes, alllllll of it was so extra and not to mention you’re watching it in the middle of Central Park with Manhattan lighting up all around you!

The last meal spent in NYC was at ~drum roll please~ Chelsea Market, a spot I had never gotten to and was so eager to see. IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Within this old, brick + steel building there are a billion little shops and curiosity stalls, one at which I bought an ancient postcard of Lady Liberty that I’m obsessed with. This was also the first trip I went out on the river to see Lady Liberty and I think I fell in love a little bit. That statue made me so damn emotional and I kind of can’t wait to go back and wander Ellis Island for a bit. Plus, the boat had a bar on board, and who doesn’t love a Blue Moon while cruising on the Hudson?

At the Chelsea Market we went to Lolo’s favorite place which is called Beyond Sushi and it’s completely vegan and grassy sushi + other sides that SHOOK ME. TO THE CORE. First off, the rice was purple. Second of all, the side of kimchi was so good that I ate it like salad all on it’s own and almost forgot to eat the other aspects of my meal. Try any and all things on the menu; it is all so fresh and delicately made that you don’t even realize there’s no fish/dairy/animal product in them. I’m the first to scoff at sushi that’s devoid of the most insane amount of tobiko/ahi tuna/octopus, but this was legitimately crunch and full of flavor and a remarkable balance of flavor.

Yep. It’s unreal. Yep. See those test tubes of sauce? The plum sauce is best on EVERYTHING. HOW HELPFUL IS THAT.

Right next door to Beyond Sushi is Pineapple Express, the glorious spot where the nicest woman in the world stayed open to make me one of the Insta-famous pineapples filled with pineapple soft serve and topped with fresh fruit, coconut shavings, and an umbrella. Also vegan, this makes the most luscious dessert to end a salty meal with and is perfect for sharing as long as you don’t mind accidental spoon wars. O.M.G. it was so good! And tip this woman well, she loves her job makin’ pretty fruits.

WOWZA AM I RIGHT? Although the Chelsea Market closes relatively early, it is so worth going for a bite to eat and a wander about. You never know what treasures you’re going to find!

Thanks for reading through my NYC adventures, I promise I also have fun Chicago spots to try and that I’m not leaving annyyy time soon. Ok? Ok.

Until next time, Happy Eating!

-Natalie

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gocchisama · 8 years ago

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Normal is the new beautiful : Story of Nagahama Neru (長濱ねる）

Have you ever fell in love with one of your classmates? Peeking at her desk, hoping she doesn’t notice you, so you can keep looking at her. Someone you want to start a conversation with, but you’re too shy to do so. Japanese high schooler are often on the romantic side, thanks to this huge culture carried through manga and anime. Neru has this perfect image of lovely girl next door that you often see in shoujo or shonen. But it isn’t fiction. Sometime life doesn’t go the way you wanted, and you have to force your way through, building this such needed resilience to go forward. Behind this sweet smile, stand a girl who search for answers. Is Keyakizaka one of them?

“A girl in search of her honest feelings”

Let’s talk about the girl herself for a bit. Someone who’s into Keyaki most surely knows her unusual introduction to the group. Like Shinoda Mariko before her, Neru joined as 1.5 gen member because she didn’t went to Keyakizaka final audition. Her parents forbid it, even taking her back to Nagasaki. But seeing Neru’s potential, Keyakizaka staff invited Neru’s parent to attend a Nogizaka concert, and it eventually changed their mind. She then joined as Hiragana Keyaki (under-like members of Keyakizaka) and Kanji Keyaki kennin for the second single, Sekai ni wa ai shikanai. It was though for her; she couldn’t mix as well as the other kanji keyaki because she started late (she wasn’t in Silent majority senbatsu), but she didn’t took part in hiragana lessons either because she was busy in kanji keyaki promotion. Question rised: where did she belong to? Up to this day, we still don’t know. But don’t let her choose between kanji and hiragana, it’s impossible.

Most of pessimistic fans would say it’s a staged scenario to push her. Because she’s having an hard time, fans start feeling sympathy toward her. Well yes, she is popular (because of this romance affinity japanese have) but struggling to know her place in Keyakizaka was real. Yonetani nanami confessed in a Keya Room episode that she didn’t accepted Neru right away. It’s only natural, right? When someone is a newcomer in your close circle of friend, you can’t immediately be comfortable like you are with the others. However Neru won member’s hearts with her natural joy, easy going character, and light sense of humor. Members were fast to realize she just wanted to get along with everyone, and not taking someone’s else place. Being Hiragana instead of Keyaki didn’t matter anymore.

“Neru, like Yurina, was given a Solo in Keyaki second single”

With that issue resolved, Neru started to work on her individual skills. Fans started to notice her thanks to her weird and lovely individual PV, where she sang all names of the periodic element board, and thereafter all irregular english verbs. To see Neru doing a moonwalk while chanting uranium, or spelling sleep slept slept while headbanging, you have to admit it marks people mind. In her third attempt, it was a regular short film about “rules”, where she displays great acting skills, feeling very genuine and natural. Furthermore, she took part in Japanese variety show, answering quizz in order to earn 1 million yen for her team, something that only a few idol of the 48group could. Before being in Keyakizaka, she won a special prize in a cooking contest, with innovative kebab style sugar crepe.

Neru is smart, cute, funny and talented. She gets closer and closer to this “shoujo” ideal fans yearn for. It didn’t take long before she claims top position in member’s popularity chart, even being number one in Twitter most mentions in the group. Neru profile has high standard, but as a matter of fact, it isn’t something original. We have seen many other idols who are good at everything, like Yamamoto Sayaka. So why is she exceeding observers expectation in term of popularity? Because it is Keyakizaka. By contrast, something cool will always shine in a pool of cute, and vice versa. Because Keyaki is about rebellion and willpower, Neru orthodox image comes out amplified. Management is fully aware and try to develop it, by giving her a slow paced, cute song as solo. Neru presence and importance in Keyakizaka increased as her personality balance well with the style of the group.

“high socks, pink cardigan and silver ribbon; Japanese uniform aesthetics bring out the best of japanese girls feminity and youth”

Neru’s situation can be seen as very propitious to a success in Keyakizaka. But it isn’t the case, and she had to deal with a lot of pressure in a short period of time. People are often worried of Yurina hectic schedule, but Neru’s has nothing to blush from it : Not only she participates in all Kanji A and B side, but she also has to learn Hiragana B-side songs. Not counting her 2 solo and duo/quatuor with Yurina and Yuichanzu. Despite her hard work, she had to compromise. It’s quite cruel to put her in Yurina’s place in hiragana first showcase for their silent majority performance. You could obviously feel the lack of training, and beyond that, the gap of character between Neru and Yurina. It was management mistake to think Neru could manage to do a decent performance with such little time. And it affected her image. That her dancing is subpar of other members, or keyakizaka standard.

Can you imagine it? She was 17 when joining Keyakizaka (like Akanen) and was at the end of crossroads, where you choose to continue college. She’s a diligent student, but chose to be an idol. This same world that sometimes shows a cruel side, like asking for a perfect performance with minimum of preparation. An unfairness that could waver anyone’s determination to reach their goal, because they are not capable. Japan is still a society that hugely rely on academic background, and to choose the idol path instead of college is understandably contested by her parents. This is something that contrast with her overall sweet side. She went as far as confronting her parent to do what she wants to do. She’s not hesitant like those shounen female character who are often painted as weak and dependable to the male hero.

It’s not about being all sweet, or all cool of a character. Even though Keyakizaka staff built Neru character to be sweet, it doesn’t exclude the fact that each person hold a complex personality, that you need to cover as a whole to understand someone. Neru didn’t dislike studying. She likes subject like Philosophy, or science. But she wanted to try something new, something she decided for herself, and not what her parents told her to do. Despite her sweet character, she was actually the first to do an act of rebellion.

youtube

“Nagahama Neru is in fact a very entertaining girl, very connected to her fans”

It would be pretentious of me to know what kind of girl is Nagahama Neru. But there’s few hints scattered on all the data available. First, her blogs. She talks a lot about her relationship with the members. Probably because she was in a delicate situation of not belonging to kanji nor hiragana, becoming an important member on both side is now her biggest strength. She entrusted herself the mission to help the members get closer, like W-Keyakizaka no uta song. To break the distance between generation, is a harder task than we think. For example, Yukirin confessed she never was close to Kojima Haruna, despite many concerts, senbatsu promotions they did over the years. It’s hard, but it is also essential to build the group unity. The girls need to learn to open their heart.

In variety, she shows that her intelligence isn’t all about having good grades. There’s also how she use her screentime to get noticed. When to make cute face, react to host pun or joke, give sassy anecdote of other members. She’s also aware it’s good to show her emotions, when being overjoyed by other members reaction when joining the 2nd single senbatsu, or when Watanabe Risa read Yonetani nanami’s letter apologizing to her. How she juggles with those opportunities helps her not being a one-dimensional idol. Watanabe Mayu was much more of the orthodox style, but her image of cyborg idol was too strong and she had a hard time to graduate from it.

“In Keyakizaka 4th single, she was next to Techi. Will she be center in the 5th?”

With all the opportunities brought by management, her good image as an individual (the others are more known as pairing, like Za cool, Yuichanzu), and the necessary change of Keyakizaka type of song makes me think she will lead the A-side of the next single. Neru never showed the ambition to take the 0 position, but if it’s the need of the group, she will gladly take it on. Because Neru has a great sense of responsability. When we think of reliable, mother figure-like character, we tend to think of Fuuchan or Oda nana. Neru is more like of a “i will do my best” responsible type. She doesn’t want to let people down.

In the future, we can expect her to break through in variety. This little sister character is loved by japanese audience, like Hirose Suzu or Arimura Kasumi before her. Her presence in variety is Key for Keyakizaka to get national recognition. But as said above, she’s also the key to tie kanji and hiragana keyaki together, and ensure the group unity. Without noticing, Neru became an irreplaceable existence for Keyakizaka outside and inside. You don’t need to read manga to follow exciting stories. You just have to follow neru’s normal life. I wish i could live such an exciting life, but unfortunately, pink cardigan and cute skirt doesn’t suit me as much as they suits her.

#nagahama neru #keyakizaka46 #hirate yurina #moriya akane #sugai yuuka #長濱ねる #欅坂46

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hoynovoy · 3 years ago

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Chase Stokes & Madelyn Cline's Relationship Timeline

It’s a tale as old as time: Two people meet, fall in love on a huge new TV series, then fall in love all over again in real life. Chase Stokes and Madelyn Cline’s relationship timeline proves that while they’ve already been dating for a year, they first connected long before making it official, thanks to their breakout Netflix show Outer Banks.

After the premiere of Outer Banks in April 2020, viewers connected with the love story between John B. and Sarah, thanks to Stokes and Cline’s strong chemistry. “We wanted to make sure it was real and it had depth to it,” Cline told Seventeen about their onscreen romance in April. “There were things that Chase and I specifically added to the script that felt personal. You have to sell it. It’s got to be compelling.” Naturally, fans started rooting for them to get together in real life, with their wish coming true just a couple months later. Now, you’d be hard-pressed to find a celebrity couple as obsessed with each other as these two.

April 2020: The Social Media PDA

Fans first started to think that Stokes and Cline may actually be a real-life item when it was revealed that they were living together at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, along with their Outer Banks co-stars Rudy Pankow and Drew Starkey. They also started leaving flirty comments on Instagram that went beyond co-stars simply supporting each other. For instance, when Cline posted photos from 1883 Magazine spread, Stokes couldn’t help but respond with thirst. “Heart rate... decreasing... help,” he wrote.

June 2020: Instagram Official

After months of speculation, the co-stars made their real-life relationship Instagram official. Stokes shared a photo of Cline having dinner with him on the beach as they watched the sunset, captioning the post “Cats outta the bag” with a heart emoji. Cline re-posted the photo, writing that she had “fallen and I can’t get up.” Aww, young love.

After making the big reveal, they simply couldn’t stop gushing about each other. Just a couple days later, Cline posted an Outer Banks promo photo of her and Stokes, but dedicated it to their love in real life, writing, “This one.”

September 2020: Music Video Lovers

The couple aren’t just TV stars — they’re music video vixens. In September, Cline and Stokes returned to where it all started — the Outer Banks of North Carolina — to star in the music video for Kygo’s remix of “Hot Stuff,” Donna Summer’s iconic 1979 disco hit. The pair sneak into a local bar to steal a couple drinks and flirt, which ends with them dancing and making out — so basically, another onscreen representation of their actual romance.

November 2020: “I Feel Very Happy”

In November, Cline gushed about her boyfriend to Entertainment Tonight, saying how surreal it was to star on a huge series with her loved one. “Love is tight,” she said. “It's cool to share this experience with your favorite people and also your favorite person. I feel very happy.” She also opened up about how they connected as friends first, and keep that same energy while filming.

“I think because we were friends before this, we understood how we worked as individuals before we were seeing each other,” she said. “When we go to set, we're individuals and we are still, at the very minimum, best friends and we are screen partners. We're there to support each other... I really, really love that and respect that about him and our relationship.”

April 2021: 1-Year Anniversary

The couple celebrated their one-year anniversary in April, proving that they were still going strong. “365 w/ u,” Stokes wrote on Instagram, sharing a sweet photo of Cline walking on the street. Cline commented on the post saying, “And I’d do it again.”

May 2021: Best Kiss Winners

At the MTV Movie & TV Awards on May 16, the couple proved that their love was just as heated offscreen as it is on Outer Banks. After winning the Best Kiss award, Stokes freaked out onstage, pretending to forget the names of people he wanted to thank. But Cline saved the day in a move right out of her Outer Banks character Sarah’s playbook, telling him to “shut up” and planting a fat one on him, much to the crowd’s delight. It’s safe to say that there will be many more moments like this in the future, especially on Outer Banks Season 2.

Get More Dating Advice Here

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felicia-cat-hardy · 3 years ago

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Chase Stokes & Madelyn Cline's Relationship Timeline

April 2020: The Social Media PDA

June 2020: Instagram Official

September 2020: Music Video Lovers

November 2020: “I Feel Very Happy”

April 2021: 1-Year Anniversary

May 2021: Best Kiss Winners

Get Relationship Advice Here

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scootoaster · 4 years ago

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The right way to walk your dog

A nice, relaxing stroll. (Stephen Goldberg/Unsplash/)

Walking your dog seems simple enough—it’s just you, your pup, and the great outdoors. But without the right equipment and approach, a much-anticipated W-A-L-K can be disappointing.

Get some good gear

Search for “walking a dog” online and you’ll find pages of photos with people holding leashes attached to a collar around a dog’s throat, which is exactly what the experts we spoke to advise against.

“I’m not a big fan of anything around the neck that’s pulling,” says Anna Mynchenberg, a manager at Bark, the company behind BarkBox. “I can’t imagine having any pressure on my neck, so I wouldn’t want to do that to my dog.”

There are simply too many reasons your furry best friend might pull on the leash, pressing the collar against their windpipe, says Kate Perry, a dog trainer based in New York City. That could choke them or, in a worst-case scenario where they leap off a bridge, leave them dangling by their neck.

A comfortable harness

You can avoid potentially strangling your dog by buying a harness. There are many to choose from, including models that can help keep an eager canine from pulling on the leash. Mynchenberg, who has a master’s degree in human-canine life sciences from Bergin University of Canine Studies, says she likes harnesses with handles because they offer an easy way to grab and hold your pet.

Going a little deeper, if your dog is stronger than you, or if you’re training a puppy, consider a front-clip or no-pull harness. Leashes that attach at the back of a dog’s shoulders only reinforce pulling, Perry says. But fasten one to the front, and it’ll block much of your pup’s power and keep them from yanking, she explains.

Before you strap on a harness, though, Perry recommends taking a few days to familiarize your dog with the equipment, as they may not be comfortable with it at first. That means creating positive associations by putting it on and taking it off multiple times in a row while giving them treats, and buckling them in during meals and playtime.

A leash that lets you maintain control

For most, if not all, of the time you’re walking your dog, your hand will be holding a leash—so get something comfortable. “You want something you can really grip,” Perry says. For a medium-size dog, she suggests a ½- to ¾-inch-wide nylon leash. Try rope-style leashes for another option.

Perry’s ideal leash is 6 feet long with three sets of knots along the length to use as grips if your dog pulls away from you (also the perfect length to help you keep proper social distance from anyone you walk by). If you don’t want to knot up your lead, you can buy a leash that has two or three loops sewn in.

A waist leash is another option. Mynchenberg says she likes these because they allow her to keep her hands free to work on training or simply enjoy time with her dog. Perry, however, isn’t a fan of these, as your dog could pull and injure you. Ultimately, it comes down to how well you know your dog and how well you’ve trained them, she says.

Another note: Don’t get a retractable leash unless you’re going to spend a lot of time roaming parks, beaches, or hiking trails, where you can let your dog run relatively free. On city streets, they can be more trouble than they’re worth. For one, you don’t really have control when you let the leash spool out, and while you’re supposed to be able to reel it back in, they sometimes malfunction. Perry has also seen unsuspecting pedestrians walk into leashes linking dogs and owners that are far apart.

Other useful options

A harness and leash are the bare minimum you need to walk a dog, but you should bring a bunch of bags along to pick up your pup’s poop, too. Don’t forget treats, either, especially if your dog is highly motivated by snacks, like Mynchenberg’s two boxers, Hercules and Denver. “If they want that squirrel, you have to have something better,” she says.

And if you like to accessorize, consider a fanny pack. They can hold treats, your phone, your keys, and whatever else you normally would’ve shoved into your pockets or carried in your hands, Mynchenberg says.

Plan when to walk your dog

A misty morning walk will keep your dog cool. (Tadeusz Lakota/Unsplash/)

Depending on your dog and the reason for walking, you should hit the street one to four times a day. That could include one long exercise trek, two shorter workouts, and/or bathroom time. Mynchenberg suggests heading out in the morning or evening to avoid midday heat and traveling less-crowded paths to avoid overstimulating your pup. These numbers may vary depending on your pet’s age and energy level, as well as whether you have a fenced-in yard.

Keep things consistent

As soon as the leash is on, decide which side you will keep the dog on for the duration of the walk. “If I’m walking with a child, I won’t let them zig-zag around, but will hold them in my left or right hand,” Perry explains. “You’re loving your dog by giving it some order.” Stop to reposition them if they wander astray while you’re moving. It’s also important that if multiple people are taking the dog out, they all maintain the same basic procedures, Perry says.

Think about the route

In short, don’t walk your dog on hot surfaces. If you can’t touch the ground with your bare hand or step on it with bare feet, it’ll hurt your pet, Perry and Mynchenberg both say.

Beyond that, though, the preferred path depends on the dog. Among Mynchenberg’s companions, Denver will walk on anything because he’s had a lot of experience getting to know different environments. Hercules, on the other hand, took a long time to walk over bridges. If something is new, dogs sometimes respond with fear or hesitation—so if they’re not a fan of what’s around them, you’ll know, she says.

Pick up your dog’s poop

That’s it. That’s the tip. Don’t let it decompose in nature or “fertilize” someone’s yard. Send it straight to the landfill.

Keep your dog’s pee away from people

Generally, try to find a grassy area or curb for your dog to urinate on and stick to it. Ideally, you’ll want to train your dog to pee in one or a few spots and keep them away from hosing down anything people might touch or pick up, including trash cans, Mynchenberg says.

Learn to handle distractions

If your dog has a high prey drive, anything that moves quickly will spark excitement, Mynchenberg says. Having the right equipment is one part of the solution, but training is the other. For example, Mychenberg’s dog Hercules will react to people and other canines, so they taught him to heel to her right side. He knows this means treats, pets, and praise, so he responds to the command well, she says.

You should also train your dog to look back at you every time they see a squirrel or something interesting, to essentially ask permission to investigate. Whenever your pooch does so, you’ll want to reward it, Mynchenberg says. She explains that every time Hercules sees a person, he checks in with her.

If your dog isn’t well-trained yet, it’s important that you understand their triggers and how much they can handle stimulus-wise. Know what to look for and keep an eye on your surroundings so you can manage any potential problems before the situation escalates, Perry says. Cities like the one she lives in are full of distractions, so she likes to stand between two parked cars and do command training to get the dog she’s with to focus on her and ignore whatever’s whizzing by.

Don’t always follow the same route

Once you’ve established a solid walking regimen, it’s good to keep things interesting. “Dogs will find something to sniff even if the path is familiar, but it adds that extra layer of excitement if you go somewhere new,” Mynchenberg says. If you’re still training your dog, however, stick to a route your pup is used to, which limits distractions.

Understand the risks of exercising with your dog

You may be a marathoner or an expert cyclist, but your dog may not be (we’ll bet they can’t even ride a bike). “Just like humans have to work up to running or exercising, dogs do, too,” Mynchenberg says. “You’re not going to be setting any personal records on your dog’s first run.”

If you do exercise with your dog, pay attention to them and make sure you meet their needs first. That means running when it’s cool out, bringing a bottle of water to keep them hydrated, and taking frequent breaks. After all, a dog’s normal body temperature is a few degrees higher than a human’s, and they’ve got a full suit of hair. “Imagine having a fever, with a coat on, and running,” Perry says.

Riding a bike with a dog is more complicated because wheels move faster than legs (even four of them). Any ride you take will have to be fairly leisurely. There’s also the risk that your dog pulls the bike off balance. But before you even get on a bike, you’ll want to make sure your dog is used to being near them. A good way to familiarize them with the machine, Mychenberg says, is to walk them next to it. To avoid having to hold anything while riding, you can get a bike seat attachment that connects to your dog’s leash.

Be careful when going off-leash

Before you set your dog free, make sure you know the leash laws in your area. Many places require dogs to remain linked to their humans at all times. You’ll also want to have rock-solid commands that will make them come to your side immediately, stop what they’re doing, and drop animals and objects they’ve picked up, Perry says.

Both Perry and Mynchenberg stress that enclosed areas, like a dog park or fenced-in yard, are most ideal for off-leash sessions. That goes for well-trained dogs, too, because once you take the leash off, a lot of factors will be beyond your control. Even wide open areas like beaches and parks are risky because your dog may encounter an unexpected trigger or unseen danger, says Perry, who has also authored the book Training For Both Ends of the Leash. In such situations, it’s crucial to have a deep understanding of your pet and a learned list of commands.

Cool down after the walk

Once you get back home, you can flop down and relax or try to squeeze a little more productivity out of your pooch. When a dog is calm and tired post-walk, Mynchenberg likes to take advantage of that time to work on essentials that are tough when a dog is amped up, like crate training.

Not every walk is going to be perfect, but if you have a plan and know what you and your dog want to get out of it before you go, each one will be better than the last.

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tentaculi · 7 years ago

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🛌📱🔖🎠 for poppy & willow

UNUSUAL QUESTIONS | meme // @cyniceds

WILLOW

does your muse prefer to sleep under many layers of blankets or only under a few?

it really depends on the season for her, me thinks. in the summer she can chill with just a sheet over her and be fine. during the winter she’s definitely cuddled up with a handful of blankets and suddenly hard to find ( because she’s so heckin’ small she gets lost in all of them ).

is your muse the “oversharing” type?

she totally is but not in the “traditional sense”. most people seem to overshare about their personal lives and that is something that willow keeps pretty secret about ( only her fam and those who are super close to her know full details of her background ). willow’s brand of oversharing is more centric around a puppy she saw the other day, or how oreos are her favorite type of cookie ( because they’re a sandwich and a cookie and that’s amazing ! ). little things that people don’t typically care to know about strangers straight from the get go is what’cha get with her!

is your muse a daydreamer? what do they tend to think about? have they ever caught themselves while lost in thought?

kind of! willow doesn’t really focus on dreaming or thinking about the future so much as…. how much she loves puppies and how she wishes she could be in a field full of flowers surrounded by them. she’s definitely easy to please and a lot of the time her interests ( no matter how grand or simple they may appear ) are what she thinks about. the girl has definitely caught herself once or twice deep in thought and had to snap herself out of it – this usually ends up in a smile and bashful giggle if anyone is around to notice.

does your muse like amusement parks/carnivals/festivals?

um, heck yes? i can just imagine willow flourishing and loving going to an amusement park, carnival or festival of some sort. any place where there’s fun rides, fried food, and the ability to win huge stuffed animals count her the heck in !!

POPPY

does your muse prefer to sleep under many layers of blankets or only under a few?

alright, this is a seasonal thing for poppy, def. during the summer, poppy tends to get like, mad warm while sleeping. this doesn’t exactly bode well when the sun is being relentless. that means that she might start with a blanket or sheet on her ( mostly because she runs cold blooded ) and during the middle of the night – thanks to tossing and turning, she ends up on top of her sheets / blankets or with them on the floor. when it comes to winter she’s practically a burrito. the girl is probably wrapped up in a minimum of two blankets and has onsies ( YUP onsies ) that she puts on to help keep warm too.

is your muse the “oversharing” type?

uh, nah? not really. poppy is a pretty open book and will pretty much answer any questions someone throws her way buuuut she isn’t telling all her personal secrets right out the gate. there are some things that only people who are close to her get to know ( mainly her past w/ her ex ) and even then she has to be real comfortable with you. otherwise, she doesn’t have a problem talking about her day to day life, what her fears are, how she likes her pizza, etc.

is your muse a daydreamer? what do they tend to think about? have they ever caught themselves while lost in thought?

you bet! poppy has her head in the clouds like 16/7 ( the other eight hours are reserved for sleep ). she’ll pretty much think of anything and everything that crosses her mind. will there ever be any alien contact ( y’know beyond her relationship with joey )? will dinosaurs come back? why don’t more people like bucky barnes? will she ever amount to like anything? how many stars are in the sky? what’s europe like? there’s a crap ton of other things she thinks about too but those are just some! she doesn’t always realize when she’s floated off into her own universe but she can totally pull herself back from reality. i think the fact that she thinks this way, as often as she does, translates into why she loves having deep, meaningful conversations. it’s a way to let her train of thought out.

does your muse like amusement parks/carnivals/festivals?

oh, totally. she’s not even going to try and hide the fact that she does. there’s this big part of poppy that’s totally a kid at heart, the girl even has a couple of stuffed animals on her bed. that paired with the food and rides is a win win. she’s never been to disneyland / disneyworld or universal studios so you bet those are on her bucket list. poppy would so be down for a cool music festival too. music is actually a really big part of her life. concerts and the like are her shit! so if she got to go to coachella or outsidelands she’d probably cry… a lot.

#as always ty for sending these in ily and can always count on you to help me develop my chars more b l e s s #cyniceds #the naive ( headcanons. )#the dreamer ( headcanons. )

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