#only recently learned it was also a surge protector

[ryutarotakedown]

[ID: A piece of electrical equipment that has one wire leading to it and is a long, rectangular object that has multiple holes for chargers on it. There is one big switch besides the first hole. End ID]

Please reblog so I can prove my coworkers wrong!

[babysizedfics]

Little Accidents, Big Developments

Chapter 1: A Colourful Afternoon

[This is an age regression story]

The sides have successfully integrated Virgil's regression and Roman's age dreaming into their dynamic, and everyone seems happier for it. Though, Virgil's willingness to trust the others is tested when a long-term problem starts to present itself around his family; his regression leaves him susceptible to wetting himself.

Caregivers Patton and Logan try to help him navigate this issue all while navigating their own newly-discovered romantic feelings for each other.

Sibling spats, covert kissing sessions, and baby babbles lie herein.

Other chapters: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / bonus

Read on AO3 or below the cut!

Chapter Summary:

Roman tries to look after his baby brother, Logan learns to let loose a little, Virgil is nervous to be left on his own, and Patton can’t take much more of this adorableness without screeching.

Chapter word count: 9,000

oOo

It was late afternoon in the mindscape and the house had been moderately quiet. There was the faint clattering of pans as Patton cooked in the kitchen, the soft scratching of Virgil’s crayons, and Logan’s quiet snores coming from the couch. They had been the only sounds cutting through the lazy atmosphere, up until Roman started playing with his Disney figurines. The silly voices and impromptu solos he made the characters perform interrupted the calm, though it was such a common sound in the house that no one seemed to notice the change.

  Virgil had regressed a few hours earlier and, as usual, Roman’s littlespace quickly followed. There were a variety of reasons Virgil’s regression often inspired Roman to trigger his age dreaming; seeing Virgil act so young sparked the craving for Roman himself to let go of adult responsibilities, plus seeing Virgil’s various baby items such as his plushes and soft clothes made Roman miss his own little items - especially his toys. Also (and probably most of all), the care and affection that Patton and Logan bestowed upon a regressed Virgil did admittedly make Roman jealous. But he had learned that if he only asked for it, he was given the same level of attention, so it no longer upset him as it had previously. Instead of getting angry like he used to, he knew he could just fall into his own littlespace and he and Virgil could both be taken care of without any arguments. Though that afternoon, not much attention was being given to either of them.

  Patton had tasked Logan with caregiving duties when he left to make dinner. While the logical side had taken to his caregiving headspace much more readily in the recent weeks, the lull of the afternoon had apparently made him lethargic and he had fallen asleep not long after.

  Roman didn’t mind, though. As Virgil’s big brother, that meant that while the caregivers were not in the room (or were unconscious) it was Roman who was in charge! He hadn’t taken to caregiving, and he had no desire to, but he felt a childish giddiness at being given the role of a protector. Even if it was unintentionally handed to him by Logan falling asleep.

  But Roman was quickly realising it was a lot harder to look after Virgil than their caregivers made it look.

  The littles had both been preoccupied when Patton left, Virgil colouring a picture and Roman playing with his toys. Though, being much more observant and aware in his littlespace than Virgil was, Roman did notice when Patton left. He had tiptoed out quietly, leaving the distracted Virgil unaware of his departure.

  Roman knew this was because of how clingy Virgil had become. Ever since they integrated his regression into the family dynamic, Virgil could hardly bear to be away from his Papa’s side for a minute. Logan had said it was something called ‘separation anxiety’ and that it was common for young children. Whatever it was called, Roman still didn’t see why it was worth crying every time their dad left the room. It wasn’t like he went far.

  As expected, when Virgil finished his drawing and held it up to where Patton had been sitting, he stiffened on seeing the empty armchair. Roman looked up at the movement and felt his stomach drop when he saw Virgil’s eyes tear up.

  He didn’t like it when Virgil cried, partly because it meant he stole all of their caregivers' attention, but mostly because it made Roman’s tummy flip and his throat get all cloggy when he saw his little brother upset. He didn’t like it.

  ‘It’s okay, Vee,’ Roman said. He dropped his toys and quickly shuffled closer to Virgil on the carpet. Their caregivers had said Virgil needed to be close to someone if he was sad because it helped him feel safer. ‘What’s the matter?’

  Virgil’s fingers flew up to tug nervously at the handle of the pacifier that sat in his mouth. His eyes frantically searched around the room.

  ‘Dad went to make dinner,’ Roman explained. ‘Look, Mom’s still here,’ he pointed at Logan who let out a timely snore.

  ‘Theep,’ Virgil lisped through his pacifier, sounding upset.

  ‘Yeah, he’s asleep,’ Roman said, 'but I'm here too.'

  The worry stayed on Virgil’s face, and Roman was about to speak again but fell silent when his hand was suddenly covered by something soft and warm. Roman’s gaze fell down to see that Virgil was holding his hand tightly. When he looked back up, Virgil refused to meet his eyes.

  Pride surged through Roman. His little brother wanted comfort and was relying on him! He puffed out his chest to look important and tried to think of a way he could help Virgil feel better. He would prove he was just as smart and kind as their caregivers, and then Virgil would love him just as much.

  ‘Don’t be scared, baby,’ Roman said then twisted his hand around so that he could grip Virgil’s hand back in reassurance. ‘Do you wanna do another colouring?’

  A small whimper escaped Virgil as his hand clasped tighter around Roman’s.

  ‘You wanna stay with me?’ Roman asked and Virgil nodded slightly. ‘Then let’s do a colouring together. We can show Mom when he wakes up and then Dad and they’ll be really happy we played nice together!’

  Virgil perked up at the suggestion and Roman was happy to see he didn’t look close to tears anymore. Roman had helped Virgil to stop being scared and came up with a really good way to play together; he was the best big brother ever!

  He summoned a large piece of paper, an assortment of coloured markers, and a black fineliner. With the fineliner, he started drawing a complex lined image of an overgrown bush full of leaves and flowers of various shapes. Virgil did not let go of his hand throughout the few minutes it took to finish and Roman was glad his dominant left hand was the one left free to draw.

  When it was done, he tipped the coloured pens out of their case and they tumbled unceremoniously onto the floor.

  ‘You can start colouring that side and I’ll do this side,’ Roman directed, then grabbed a red marker and began adding colour to a rose.

  He stopped after a few moments when he realised Virgil hadn’t moved. He looked up with a frown and saw a hesitance in Virgil’s eyes.

  ‘C’mon, you know how to colour,’ Roman whined in complaint.

  Roman thought he had made Virgil feel happy, but now he was just being a scared baby again. And Roman didn’t even know why! He wasn’t good at knowing what was wrong with Virgil, their caregivers were supposed to do that. A faint frustration bubbled in his chest, but he knew to keep it there and not snap at Virgil. That was when things got really frustrating because when Roman yelled, Virgil would cry then Patton got worried and Logan told Roman off for being mean.

  ‘Why’re you scared?’ Roman asked. Then a thought came to him and he pouted. ‘Do you not like my picture?’

  Virgil’s eyes widened and he shook his head. Roman breathed a sigh of relief.

  ‘Then what? You don’t like using pens? You dunno what colour to use?’ At the last question, Virgil’s hand squeezed and he nodded.

  ‘That’s silly,’ Roman giggled. Why was Virgil scared about something like that? ‘You can use whatever colour you want.’

  ‘Bu’ it yours,’ Virgil mumbled, the pacifier garbling his words.

  ‘Nu-uh,’ Roman shook his head, ‘I made it for both of us. And it’s boring if I choose all the colours, anyway,’ he shrugged then went back to colouring.

  After a few seconds, Virgil slowly picked up a purple marker and Roman smiled at him to show that it was good. They coloured together in silence, their hands still joined between them.

  A couple of minutes passed before Roman heard a gasp and looked over to see that Virgil’s pen marks had slipped outside of the lines. It wasn’t surprising; Virgil could never stay inside the lines when he coloured. When he first saw the messy work in Virgil’s colouring book, Roman teased him about it but then Virgil got sad and Patton had explained it was because Virgil regresses so young. Roman pointed out that Virgil was also using his wrong hand to colour because he was usually left-handed but Logan told him not to draw attention to it. So Roman apologised and Virgil was never worried about his messy colouring after that.

  But for some reason this time Virgil looked like he’d committed an unforgivable crime. His eyes were wide and he had quickly dropped the pen to hide his hands in his sleeves.

  ‘That looks cool!’ Roman said quickly. He really didn’t want Virgil to start crying again.

  Virgil looked like he was scared of him and it made Roman sad. How come Virgil didn’t believe him? He remembered Logan saying something about showing instead of just telling when you’re trying to get someone to understand you, so Roman decided he should show Virgil that colouring outside the lines was okay.

  He stabbed his own pen onto the page and purposefully scribbled over the lines. He looked over at Virgil and saw the younger boy look cautiously from the page to Roman.

  ‘It’s more fun like this,’ Roman assured him. Then he grabbed a different coloured pen and started drawing swirling shapes outside of the lines. It wasn’t a lie - this was way more exciting than trying to be careful with the colours!

  Virgil made a noise of understanding then picked up his purple pen and started scribbling randomly too. Soon they were filling the page with a rainbow of colours and shapes and made a silent game of trying to fill up their side of the page faster than the other. The room gradually filled with their growing laughter.

  oOo

  Logan awoke to the joyful sound of childish giggles.

  In any other situation, it would have irritated him to be jolted out of sleep by someone else’s loudness. He heavily relied upon his body to wake him at the perfect stage of his sleep cycle to avoid any grogginess. Logan had made it very clear to the rest of the household a long time ago that they should not wake him unnaturally unless in emergencies. The others certainly didn’t seem to appreciate it on the rare occasion when Logan’s sleep cycle was interrupted and he had been far more impatient than usual.

  Though this time Logan did not mind. Blinking his eyes open to see Roman and Virgil laughing together, joined at the hand and smiling brightly immediately dispelled any of Logan’s unsavoury feelings at being woken up. Though realising that he had fallen asleep while he was meant to be looking after the littles did cause him some guilt.

  ‘I apologise for falling asleep,’ Logan said, readjusting his glasses. ‘Have you two been alright?’

  The two looked up at him excitedly.

  ‘Mom, I looked after Vee while you were asleep!’ Roman cried triumphantly.

  ‘Thank you, Roman,’ Logan said, ‘it appears you did a wonderful job.’ Both caregivers had realised Roman required a lot of positive reinforcement when he was little, so Logan always made a conscious effort to praise him.

  ‘Yeah, I did,’ Roman agreed with a big smile.

  Virgil released Roman’s hand and stretched his arms out to Logan wordlessly as if he could somehow make them span the length of the living room floor. Logan immediately got up and walked over, settling to kneel on the carpet between both boys.

  ‘Have you been having fun with your big brother?’ Logan asked as he wrapped an arm around Virgil’s shoulders. Virgil hummed in confirmation and leaned against Logan’s side.

  ‘Do you like our colouring?’ Roman asked, tugging on Logan’s other arm harshly.

  ‘There is no need to pull, Roman. Just asking will do,’ Logan reprimanded gently, then looked down at the large piece of paper (A2 size, he noted) in front of him.

  The page was decorated in an intricate, hand-drawn floral design, though the colours did not necessarily reflect the image. There were polka dots and spirals and scribbles and doodles of all different hues decorating the edges of the paper, with the middle of it still uncoloured. It was abstract and so something Logan would never normally have seen the point in. Though, he had to admit the disregard for conventionality was rather creative. And the smiles on Roman and Virgil’s faces were enough to convince Logan of the benefits of it.

  ‘It is rather colourful,’ he said. His neutral response appeared to disappoint Roman, so Logan promptly added, ‘and beautiful.’

  ‘Thanks, Mom!’ Roman said with a bright smile. ‘This is my side, and that one’s Vee’s,’ he indicated them with his pointer finger.

  Logan looked at it more carefully, noticing the contrast between each side of the page. Roman’s colours were much more varied, seemingly using every colour available, and created elegant swirling patterns and smooth gradients. Not a single part of his side was left blank. Virgil’s side was much messier, with less variation in colours - he had used purples and blues mainly with some occasional hints of red. His pen marks were erratic and there were large streaks of white showing through the ink. His colouring was visibly less thought-out than Roman’s, appearing to be far more based on whimsy rather than aesthetics.

  A quiet whimper sounded beside him and then Virgil’s face was pressed into his shoulder. Logan realised his quiet deliberation must have made him anxious.

  ‘The sides are both very different,’ he confirmed, ‘just as you two are very different.’ Virgil’s face pushed further against him. ‘Though they are both equally beautiful.’

  He did not have much time to enjoy the look of surprise and delight on Virgil’s face before Roman was jostling his shoulder for attention again.

  ‘It was my idea!’ he proclaimed. Logan turned his head to him with an exaggerated look of surprise.

  ‘It was?’ he gasped.

  ‘Mhm,’ Roman nodded fervently. ‘Vee was nearly crying, so I said we should colour together to make him feel better.’

  Logan smiled encouragingly, though tightened his hold around Virgil as he felt the younger side tense. Roman was not exactly delicate when mentioning Virgil’s tears. Still, he did not mean any harm and so there wasn’t much to be done about it.

  ‘That was very considerate of you,’ Logan said. ‘Your dad will be glad to hear it as well.’

  Roman nodded to himself then jumped back into colouring with rekindled fervour.

  Logan took the opportunity to give Virgil his undivided attention. It was a rare moment when Roman was occupied enough to not demand it for himself.

  ‘How are you feeling, Virgil?’ Logan asked, squeezing his shoulder lightly.

  Virgil did not offer a response but looked up at Logan expectedly. He was evidently not very verbal at that moment.

  ‘Do you need anything?’ Logan asked instead, hoping the more direct question would encourage him to communicate.

  ‘Papa,’ Virgil whispered as soon as Logan finished speaking, the word muffled by his pacifier.

  A sharp, unpleasant feeling spiked Logan’s stomach but he chose to ignore it.

  ‘Shall we go and show Papa the colouring?’ Logan asked.

  ‘No, it’s not finished yet!’ Roman interrupted.

  Logan sighed quietly then turned to see Roman’s pouting face.

  ‘I believe dinner is almost ready,’ Logan said, going off of the appetising smells that filled the house. ‘And this is a rather large drawing. You may not have time to complete it before your dad sees it.’

  ‘He can’t see it yet,’ Roman mumbled grumpily. He started colouring again, though this time he was pressing the marker so hard against the paper it made a squeaking sound.

  Logan wanted to respond to Roman’s tantrum but felt a gentle tug on his opposite sleeve. He twisted his body to see Virgil shyly holding a marker up to him.

  ‘For me?’ Logan asked redundantly, taking the pen.

  Virgil pointed at the colouring page, his eyes pleading with Logan.

  ‘Oh, I see,’ Logan said. He considered for a moment then conceded, ‘I suppose I can help.’

  Virgil smiled then picked up a pink marker and started scribbling.

  Logan popped the cap off of his own pen and started to draw a simple square on the page. As the minutes ticked by, he experimented with various shapes and marks, though eventually settled on writing numbers chronologically. It was calming, and the boys didn’t seem to mind the difference, instead seeming pleased by the wild variation of work on the page.

  It did not take long for the page to fill up, and by the time Logan was reaching the 130s their pens were crowding in on each other, fighting over the last few square inches of white paper. 

  Suddenly, there was a cold, wet swipe on Logan’s hand. With a slight delay, they all realised Virgil had mistakenly drawn over Logan’s hand rather than the paper. The pink pen clattered to the floor as Virgil recoiled from Logan, looking at him anxiously.

  ‘It’s alright, Virgil,’ Logan hastened to reassure him. ‘It’s only a bit of ink. No cause for worry.’

  A mischievous giggle sounded from his other side and another cold tip tickled across his skin, this time on his forearm.

  Logan looked over in surprise to see a red crown drawn on his arm. His gaze flitted up to Roman’s challenging smirk. If Roman were an adult at that moment, Logan might have accepted the challenge, but this was a child he was dealing with. He could contain his competitive nature if only to prove he would not sink to such silliness.

  ‘Highly amusing,’ Logan said, trying to get the right balance of playfulness and sternness in his tone, ‘but we should probably stick to drawing on the -’

  He was silenced by a quiet giggle and yet another tickle on his opposite forearm. Virgil was scribbling on his arm happily now. Before Logan could close his gaping mouth, Roman was laughing boisterously and drawing on his arm again.

  Logan’s gaze darted between the two impish boys helplessly for a few seconds. Then he raised his pen and said very seriously:

  ‘You both have made a grave mistake.’

  oOo

  Patton lifted the wooden spoon to his lips to taste his sauce and smiled at the burst of flavour. Perfect.

  He dropped the spoon to the counter and turned off the stovetop. After closing the lid on the saucepan to keep it warm, he checked on the vegetables in the oven. Just a few more minutes and they would be done. Perhaps he could risk just a little bit of playtime with his boys while he waited. He rinsed his hands in the sink then started making his way to the living room, excited to see his family again even if he had only been gone for half an hour.

  As he traipsed through the hallway, echoes of laughter became audible and grew louder with every step. Once Patton reached the closed living room door, he almost had to cover his ears from the squeals and joyous shouts that came from inside. He eased the door open silently, not wanting to disturb the fun before he got a chance to observe what exactly had them all so hysterical.

  As soon as he poked his head around the door, a wide smile stretched his lips.

  Heaped onto the carpet were three writhing bodies; Logan was at the bottom of the pile, his back propped against the front of the couch and his legs splayed out on the floor. They were trying to buck off Roman, who sat on Logan's knees and scribbled a pen over his shins, exposed by his rolled-up pant legs. Then there was Virgil, laid across Logan’s lap and wriggling around as Logan bunched up his sweater and scribbled a pen over his tummy. Virgil was doing his best to retaliate by drawing on Logan’s rosy cheeks, but he was flailing so much from the ticklish scribbling that he could not do much besides giggle and squirm. They were all laughing uncontrollably, gasping for breath as they wrestled playfully with one another.

  Patton could hardly believe his eyes and hurriedly took out his phone to snap some pictures so that he would have proof later. The others were so absorbed in their play-fight that they did not notice his presence until Patton put his phone away and finally allowed himself to burst into goofy chuckles along with them.

  They slowly seemed to notice the extra set of laughter and ceased their attacks to look over at him. Roman was beaming, appearing delighted that Patton had joined them. Virgil looked shy and curled close to Logan in search of comfort, though Patton could see his dimples and knew he was still smiling behind his pacifier. Logan had completely frozen, his smile dropping from his face within seconds and looking like a deer caught in headlights.

  The logical side was so stunned that he startled when Virgil drew a heart on his cheek, evidently taking advantage of Logan’s obliviousness. The sensation shook Logan from his stupor and he looked down at the little in his arms and offered a playful mock glare. When Virgil giggled in response, Logan finally looked back to Patton.

  ‘They started it,’ he stated very seriously, contrasting the flush on his face.

  Roman made a noise of offence and immediately started scribbling on Logan’s leg again. The logical side seemed uncomfortable to continue with Patton in the room, though.

  ‘That is enough now,’ Logan said. ‘I believe it must be dinnertime given your Dad’s appearance.’ Logan looked up at Patton almost pleadingly and Patton gave him the benefit of the doubt.

  ‘He’s right, kiddos, time to wash up before dinner!' Patton instructed the children.

  Roman groaned loudly and collapsed on the floor by Logan's legs, his prolonged whine becoming muffled by the carpet. Virgil was far more cooperative and held his hands up for Patton to lift him. 

  Patton complied happily, grasping his arms and hoisting Virgil up to stand. As soon as he was upright, Patton pressed a kiss to his nose. The shorter side made a small sound of surprise.

  Logan stood soon after, brushing off wrinkles from his pants. Roman still lay face-down on the floor.

  'Come on, little prince,' Patton said. ‘Aren’t you hungry?’

  'No,' Roman said stubbornly.

  'Playtime is over, Roman, it's dinnertime now,' Logan stated.

  'I don't need dinner!'

  ‘Falsehood.’

  'Oh well, I guess Roman won't be coming,' Patton said loudly. Virgil made a noise of worry but Patton stroked his hair gently and winked over at Logan’s concerned look. 'It's a shame... I need a big boy who will help my baby wash his hands. Guess I'll just have to find another brave, handsome prince to help.'

  Roman leapt up so fast Patton worried he would collapse from head-rush.

  'I can do it, Dad!' he volunteered enthusiastically.

  'Oh, thank you, sweetheart!' Patton grinned. He looked to Logan then nodded at Roman pointedly. The logical side nodded, getting the hint.

  'Very chivalrous of you, Roman,' Logan praised.

  Roman preened at the attention then reached out his hand to Virgil with a bow.

  'I shall protect you with my life, young one.' 

  Virgil slowly reached out and held onto Roman's offered hand but looked up at Patton nervously.

  ‘I’m going to be right behind you, sweetie,’ Patton said. ‘I’m not going anywhere, don’t worry.’

  Virgil nodded and, led by Roman, the two toddled into the hallway.

  As Logan tried to make his way past him to leave the room, Patton couldn’t help himself from giggling.

  'So... They started it, huh?' Patton asked.

  Logan paused in his path and fidgeted with his tie, straightening it where it had been misplaced by their play-fight.

  ‘Yes, well,’ he cleared his throat, ‘childish behaviour is to be expected of them.’

  ‘And it’s fun to join in,’ Patton added with a knowing smile. ‘Just because we’re the grown-ups doesn’t mean we can’t be playful too, Logan. I’m glad you’re having fun with them.’

  Logan blushed though Patton saw a smile work its way onto his lips.

  ‘It is… invigorating,’ Logan said monotonously, then added with a concealed chuckle, ‘and they are quite endearing.’

  ‘Aren’t they?’ Patton agreed enthusiastically. He desperately wanted to add that Logan too was endearing in his own right, but something stopped him. Not because he didn’t truly believe it, but because he was frightened of Logan realising just how sincere the thought was.

  Logan’s mouth opened and closed in quick succession. Then he seemed to abandon his train of thought with a shy smile. It made Patton feel dizzy.

  ‘Dinner?’

  ‘Oh, right,’ Patton shook his head lightly. ‘Forgot,’ he breathed through an awkward laugh.

  Patton turned and made his way through the hallway in the direction of the kitchen with Logan close behind. He had a sudden thought, pausing by the bathroom door and gesturing for Logan to go through to the kitchen without him. 

  As he stood outside the bathroom he heard Roman explaining to Virgil that he had to wait for the water to get warm but not too hot and that he would check it for him so the baby doesn't hurt himself. Patton's heart swelled. He wondered when Roman had gotten so protective of Virgil, but didn’t care to question it at all. It was positively adorable.

  He knocked on the bathroom door then eased it open when Roman called him in.

  Roman's hand was stuck under the running tap, his t-shirt getting splashed slightly in the process. Virgil waited patiently behind him, still clutching onto his other hand.

  ‘Sweethearts, can you please use the potty before dinner too?’ Patton asked. ‘You both haven't been since you were big.'

  'Okay, Dad,' Roman shrugged. 

  'Good boys,' Patton smiled then left for the kitchen.

  Just as he and Logan served up the dishes, Roman and Virgil rushed into the kitchen. Well, Roman rushed in, Virgil was dragged behind him quite clumsily. Patton instantly noted the tension in the younger side’s shoulders.

  'Are you alright, Vee?' Patton frowned.

  ‘He was too embarrassed to go potty,' Roman said, pointing at him.

  Virgil's cheeks flushed and he ducked his head.

  ‘We don't point, Roman,’ Logan reprimanded.

  ‘Oh, sorry,’ Roman muttered, lowering his hand.

  'It’s alright, sweetie,' Patton said, then turned his attention to the anxious side. He moved over to rub gently at Virgil’s shoulders, willing him to relax them. 'You didn't wanna go with Roman in the room?'

  Virgil shook his head quickly.

  'Okay, can you go alone for me?'

  Virgil's head shook even faster.

  Patton frowned and looked up to Logan for help.

  'Virgil, can you tell us why you won’t go to the bathroom alone if not with Roman?' Logan asked calmly.

  Virgil just whimpered and buried his head against Patton's shoulder. Patton instinctively petted his hair in comfort.

  'Don't worry, baby. Come here,' Patton whispered.

  He led Virgil by the hand back to the bathroom, noting how Virgil’s grip tightened as they drew closer. They stopped in front of the door and Virgil ducked behind Patton as if hiding from it. Patton would have thought it cute if it weren’t concerning him.

  'Are you too scared to go in on your own?' he asked quietly, knowing Virgil would be more embarrassed if everyone could hear them.

  Virgil nodded against his back. Patton slowly turned so that he could see Virgil’s reaction, though made sure his body still blocked his view of the bathroom as Virgil wanted.

  'Okay, do you want Papa to come with you?'

  Virgil's cheeks turned pink and he shook his head.

  Patton felt lost on what to do but could see the whole ordeal was causing Virgil some distress, so he decided to drop it for now. If he needed the bathroom after dinner they could address the issue again. He probably just didn’t need it.

  ‘Alright, sweetheart, you don’t need to,’ Patton brushed his cheek lightly. ‘Shall we go have our dinner?’

  Virgil visibly perked up and nodded his agreement, so Patton led them back to the kitchen where Logan had laid everyone’s plates out.

  oOo

  Dinner passed by easily, with excited chatter about what they had been up to that afternoon - mostly with Roman speaking on both his and Virgil’s behalf.

  After they had eaten, Logan went to have a quick shower to wash off the pen ink and, after a lot of bargaining, Patton finally got the boys to agree they too would bathe, but later. Virgil was too young to bathe alone but also too self-conscious to let Patton bathe him. It was clear he wanted to wait until he was grown-up again, so Patton didn’t push the matter with him. The majority of his careful persuasion was directed at Roman, who did not have any issue with bathing alone (since he could come out of his littlespace voluntarily, unlike Virgil) but was simply stubborn. Eventually, he agreed to wash, though only if he could watch an episode of Steven Universe first. Patton didn’t necessarily mind the compromise.

  After Logan got back from his shower, Patton and the littles had already watched one episode of the cartoon. As soon as Logan had entered the living room, Roman darted off to take his shower at light speed. He hurried back within minutes, his hair dripping wet, not wanting to miss any more of the show. Patton chuckled to himself at Roman’s dishevelled appearance, his pyjamas ruffled having been shoved on in a hurry. He would never have let anyone see him like that if he were his usual adult self.

  Soon, all four of them were settled into the comfy atmosphere as the third episode started up. Patton and Logan both sat in the middle of the couch. There was barely any space between them, though they didn’t acknowledge it aloud. Meanwhile, Roman and Virgil sat cross-legged on the carpet gazing up at the screen.

  They seemed to be enjoying the show far more in their younger mindsets: Roman was bouncing lightly and reciting lines along with the characters animatedly. Virgil was much more subdued, though Patton noticed he had been swaying gently from side to side for the past couple of episodes. He was sure it was a sign Virgil was relaxed and enjoying the cartoon.

  Patton slowly began to feel the exhaustion seep into his body, suddenly aware of the fact that he hadn’t had much opportunity to relax that day. He truly didn’t mind that Roman and Virgil were somewhat demanding when little, he enjoyed being there for them. But his head felt heavy and, without a moment to reconsider, he let it drop gently to Logan’s shoulder.

  He waited with bated breath to see if Logan would protest but was pleasantly surprised when Logan’s arm very gently curled around his back. He smiled and tried not to squeak with the bubble of excitement in his chest.

  A few more minutes passed in peace, and Patton wasn’t sure when but his eyes had fallen shut. It was not often the house felt so tranquil.

  Then, out of nowhere, Virgil gasped. Patton’s eyes shot open to watch Virgil clumsily jump onto his feet and bolt out of the room without a word. His pacifier tumbled to the ground where he had been sitting just a second ago.

  The other three were shocked into silence for a moment.

  ‘Huh?’ Roman frowned back at his caregivers, his eyes noticeably settling on Patton and Logan’s cuddling. Patton unwrapped himself from Logan with a faint blush, though any embarrassment was far overwhelmed by concern for Virgil.

  ‘Was there a monster on the show?’ Patton asked.

  ‘Not at all,’ Logan said, sounding just as bewildered as the other two.

  ‘I’m going to check on him,’ Patton said as he jumped up and followed after the younger side without hesitation.

  He jogged along the hallway with a heavy feeling in his chest, mind racing with worry. The house suddenly felt bigger than usual. When he rounded a corner, his heart stuttered at what he saw.

  Virgil was facing away from him, doubled over in the middle of the hallway. From the back of him, it looked as if he was in pain and clutching his stomach.

  Patton rushed over to his side in panic.

  'Baby, are you okay? What’s -'

  He cut himself off when he realised what was happening. Virgil's eyes were wide with fear, his knees trembling, his hands covering his crotch. They failed to conceal the large wet patch that was quickly spreading on his jeans.

  'Oh, sweetheart,' Patton cooed sympathetically, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

  Virgil only just seemed to notice Patton's presence and he startled then quickly ducked his head in shame. His shoulders shook as a puddle gradually formed at his feet.

  'It's okay, baby,' Patton whispered, rubbing his hand over Virgil's back. He gently shushed Virgil’s sniffles for a few moments as the boy’s pants and socks quickly became sodden. When the puddle on the floor finally stopped spreading, only a couple of seconds passed before a hoarse sob bounced off the walls.

  ‘Honey, it’s alright, I promise,’ Patton desperately reassured him.

  He wrapped him in a tight hug and Virgil’s hands immediately clutched at the back of Patton’s shirt. The anxious sighed cried into his chest and the sound broke Patton’s heart.

  ‘It’s just an accident.’ He kissed Virgil’s head. ‘Don’t worry, sweetheart.’

  Logan’s head suddenly popped around the corner a few feet away, clearly having heard some of the commotion. Patton watched silently as Logan’s eyes fell to the floor and the realisation quickly dawned on him. When he looked up from Virgil’s predicament with a concerned glance, Patton shook his head at him very lightly, not wanting Virgil to feel the movement. He didn’t want to see Virgil even more upset knowing that Logan had been witness to his accident too.

  ‘Mama is keeping Roman busy in the living room,’ Patton said over Virgil’s head with a pointed look at Logan, ‘and I’m gonna give you a warm bubble bath. Doesn’t that sound nice, baby?’

  Logan tiptoed back to the living room without a word.

  Unaware of Logan’s brief appearance, Virgil spluttered a little on his tears, the sound muffled against Patton’s shirt. It wasn’t an agreement, but it also wasn’t a denial so Patton took the small victory.

  He eased Virgil out of his hold, holding him at an arm’s length as he wiped away his tears. It was pointless, though, as they just continued to fall with Virgil’s shaky breaths. Patton wished he could hold his baby until he stopped crying but he didn’t want Virgil’s skin getting irritated by his wet clothes. Plus, he was sure the poor boy wouldn’t want to be stood in his accident for longer than necessary.

  ‘Let’s go get you cleaned up,’ Patton smiled softly at him.

  He wrapped his arm around Virgil’s shoulders to guide him towards the stairs, silently twirling his pointer finger behind his back. The carpet cleaned itself magically behind them.

  Once they had reached Virgil’s bedroom, Patton left Virgil standing by the door while he speedily picked out a pair of underwear and pyjamas for him. He heard Virgil’s soft whimpers and sniffles grow louder and more frequent when he stepped away from him, so he was sure to make quick work of it before his absence upset Virgil any more.

  He hurried back to Virgil’s side with the clothes and kissed his forehead tenderly.

  ‘Good boy, you’re so brave,’ Patton praised. He was forced off of Virgil by a firm head shake.

  ‘Bad,’ Virgil choked and hid his face in his hands.

  Patton’s heart ached.

  ‘You’re not bad, little one,’ he said, crouching slightly so they were level. ‘It’s not your fault. I should have gotten you to go to the toilet earlier. I’m sorry, baby.’

  Virgil shook his head again but didn’t offer any words. Patton assumed he had been pushed into a younger headspace and had gone non-verbal.

  He led Virgil to the upstairs bathroom slowly, being careful with each step and rubbing his back soothingly the whole time. When they had reached the door, Virgil’s posture suddenly righted itself and he looked at Patton through his bangs. The older side was shocked to see a strange, distant look in his mismatched eyes.

  ‘I’m, um,’ Virgil’s voice was still slightly babyish, though there was a forced deepness to it. He quickly cleared his throat and took a deep breath, completely avoiding Patton’s eyes. ‘I-I’m older now. I can do this on my own.’

  To say Patton was surprised would have been a severe understatement. Virgil never came out of his headspace so suddenly; even when he had made an effort to end his regression prematurely in the past, Virgil could pretend to be an adult all he wanted but it had been too clear that he was still mentally a child. Right now, he didn’t necessarily sound regressed but there was something wrong about it that Patton couldn’t quite pinpoint.

  ‘But - Kiddo, are you sure?’ Patton tried not to sound upset, though it was harder to keep the confusion from his voice. ‘You seem a bit off, Stormcloud.’

  ‘It’s Virgil,’ the anxious side grumbled, then grimaced at his tone. ‘I-I’m sorry, Papa… Patton . Thank you for helping, but…’ He held his arms out for his clothes, still looking at the floor. His hands were shaking.

  Patton wordlessly handed the pile of clothes over, not knowing what else to do. He watched dejectedly as Virgil rushed into the bathroom and slammed the door shut without another word. The lock clicked instantly and Patton took a deep breath before turning away.

  As the sound of water running started in the bathroom, Patton wandered through the hallway and into the living room, feeling disturbed by the interaction.

  ‘Patton, you can’t leave a toddler to bathe alone,’ Logan sounded mildly panicked.

  He was sitting on the couch with Roman on the headrest behind him, braiding his hair.

  ‘He’s not regressed anymore,’ Patton said. Logan looked just as shocked as Patton felt.

  ‘He’s… But that never happens,’ Logan said, frowning.

  Patton didn’t know what else to do except collapse wordlessly onto the couch beside him. He rested his head on Logan’s shoulder with a small sigh.

  It wasn’t that he loved Virgil any less when he was an adult - he loved all versions of Virgil equally - but it felt unnatural for the boy to switch between headspaces so suddenly. It must have had something to do with the accident, but if anything Patton would have expected it to push Virgil further into his regressed mindset, not tear him out of it.

  ‘Is Virgil okay?’ Roman questioned.

  ‘Of course!’ Patton said in his usual bubbly voice, not believing his own words. ‘He’s just showering. Don’t you worry, little prince.’

  ‘But I heard crying before. What happened?’ Roman shuffled down from the back of the couch, sitting on the armrest and frowning over at both of them. When neither caregiver responded, Roman sighed. ‘I’m a grown-up now, you can tell me.’

  ‘Uh,’ Patton stumbled, pushing his face further against Logan’s shoulder as if he could hide from the question.

  ‘Nothing for you to concern yourself with,’ Logan said easily.

  Roman huffed indignantly as he pushed himself off of the armrest and stomped across the room. He flopped into the armchair on the opposite side of the couch, pointedly facing away from Logan with his arms crossed. Patton couldn’t conceal his amused smile. Roman obviously wasn’t as grown-up as he claimed to be.

  ‘I care about him too,’ Roman mumbled. The pout in his voice was audible.

  ‘We know you do, kiddo,’ Patton reassured him. He felt guilty for making Roman upset, though he knew it was not a good idea to tell the creative side about what had happened. ‘You’re such a good big brother. It’s just… not polite for us to talk about Virgil without him knowing.’

  Roman turned his body to squint suspiciously at them. After a moment, he seemed satisfied and smiled.

  ‘Okay. Do you like Mom’s hair?’ he asked excitedly.

  Shaking off the brief shock from the sudden change in subject, Patton lifted his head from Logan’s shoulder to look at Roman’s handiwork. A braid circled the crown of Logan’s head, intertwined with a few daisies from the backyard.

  ‘Aww, how beautiful,’ Patton gushed.

  He raised his hand to stroke along the strands of hair, twirling some loose tendrils around his fingertips. He wanted to comment on how soft Logan’s hair was but paused when he saw Logan’s shoulders were tense.

  ‘S-sorry,’ he quickly dropped his hand. ‘Should’ve asked to -’

  ‘No! No, it’s,’ Logan cleared his throat. Patton swore he could see a faint pink dusting his cheekbones. Logan’s lips twitched into a small smile as he briefly met Patton’s eyes before looking away again. ‘It is… acceptable.’

  Patton dropped his head back to Logan’s shoulder, hiding his own blush. He didn’t miss the smug smirk on Roman’s face before he closed his eyes, pretending to take a nap.

  A few minutes passed by with only the sound of Steven Universe playing on the TV, supplemented by Roman singing along with a musical number. After the ending credits song, Patton heard the TV click off followed by Roman’s whining protest.

  ‘We can watch more tomorrow,’ Logan’s voice rumbled through his chest and Patton breathed deeply with the comfort of it. ‘It’s nine o’clock so that means no more screens.’

  ‘Fine,’ Roman sighed, but Patton knew he wasn’t nearly as put out as he was trying to sound. ‘Can we listen to a book?’

  Patton opened his eyes with a smile. It had become an almost nightly ritual for all members of the family to sit together and listen to an audiobook to wind down before bed.

  ‘Of course,’ Logan said. Patton loved the way Roman’s face brightened.

  ‘Yay! Ooh, can we have Paddington Bear? No, Winnie-the-Pooh! Oh, wait, wait, wait,’ Roman yelled, clearly getting bombarded by more ideas.

  ‘Hold on, kiddo,’ Patton laughed, ‘how about we ask Virgil to choose between those two? Then you both made the decision together.’

  ‘Yeah!’ Roman clapped his hands in excitement then something caught his eye outside the open door. ‘Virge, you’re back! You gotta help me pick a book!’

  Patton heard a shuffling outside the room and lifted his head from Logan’s shoulder so he could hear better.

  ‘Oh, really?’ Virgil’s voice sounded soft and wobbly. ‘Uh, a-actually I’m suddenly tired. So, I-I’m probably gonna…’

  ‘Oh,’ Roman’s face dropped and his eyes followed what Patton assumed was a retreating Virgil. Roman turned a sorrowful look back on his caregivers. ‘Did I say something wrong?’

  ‘I’m not sure,’ Patton said honestly, just as confused.

  He felt Logan nudge his shoulder and he looked to him in question.

  ‘I’ll talk to him,’ Logan said.

  ‘Thank you,’ Patton whispered and shifted to allow Logan to get up.

  Logan offered a firm nod then quickly rose to go and follow Virgil.

  Watching him leave the room, Patton sighed and hoped Logan would be able to figure out what was going on with Virgil better than he could. For now, Patton just focussed on getting that kicked puppy look off of Roman’s face.

  ‘How about we get some hot cocoa before your Mom can tell us off about it?’

  oOo

  Logan walked up to Virgil’s door and knocked gently.

  ‘Virgil? May I speak to you?’

  He spoke quieter than usual, certain that Virgil would likely be in a state of distress from the incident in the hallway. There was a moment of silence before he heard a reply.

  ‘Yeah, sure,’ Virgil called through the door. His voice was distinctly uneven.

  Logan heard a faint sniffling as he pushed the door open and was unsurprised to see Virgil sitting cross-legged on the floor in his softest pyjamas. Minty, his Triceratops plush, was clutched tightly to his chest. As Logan had theorised, Virgil did not look as grown-up as he had had Patton believe.

  Logan closed the door behind him gently and lowered himself to kneel on the carpet a few feet in front of Virgil. He thought it was best to leave some space between them so that Virgil did not feel threatened in any way.

  ‘Patton tells me you’re not regressed anymore,’ Logan said. His doubt must have been obvious in his tone because Virgil immediately bit his lip and looked down to his lap. ‘Is this true?’

  ‘Dunno,’ Virgil whispered into Minty’s green fur. His voice was minuscule and Logan sighed.

  ‘Is this because of your accident?’

  Virgil’s eyes went wide and welled up, his lip wobbling dangerously. It was all too obvious that he was in no position to have an adult conversation.

  ‘I don’t think you are grown-up, are you?’ Logan tutted gently. ‘How old are you right now, Virgil?’

  The anxious side’s face crumpled and he hid behind his toy with a whimper. Logan quickly moved to kneel beside him, knowing he needed physical comfort.

  ‘No one is upset with you, I promise,’ Logan said, keeping his tone soft and quiet so as not to overwhelm him. He placed a comforting hand on the side of Virgil’s head and the younger side immediately leaned into the touch. ‘I know you wouldn’t lie to your Papa on purpose. You were just a little confused earlier, weren’t you?’

  Virgil nodded into his toy.

  ‘Can you please tell Mama how old you are?’ Logan asked in his most baby-friendly voice.

  Virgil slowly dropped the soft toy, looking up at Logan hesitantly. Eventually, he held up two fingers.

  ‘Only two? That is quite young,’ Logan said. He smiled encouragingly at Virgil and was happy to see the worry fade away from his gaze. ‘Much too young to be on your own. Do you want to come to listen to a book with me, your Papa, and your big brother?’

  Virgil nodded and was millimetres away from sucking on his thumb before Logan quickly intercepted it.

  ‘Let’s get a pacifier for the baby,’ Logan said.

  He patted Virgil’s hand then reached for the soft toy by their legs. He located the zipper sewn into the dinosaur’s back and opened the hidden pocket that was filled with various pacifiers. He held it open in front of Virgil for him to pick, and after a few seconds of deliberation, Virgil pointed to one. Logan took it out and held it in front of him.

  ‘Can you tell Mama what colour this is, Vee?’ he asked.

  When Virgil was regressed, Logan liked to test him on simple questions such as this for several reasons: Firstly, it helped to establish a fun, educational atmosphere that Logan thought would be beneficial to his mental wellbeing. Secondly, it helped Logan to gather a clear idea of Virgil’s mental age at the time going by his speech and knowledge of certain things, proving beneficial to Logan’s understanding of Virgil’s regression. Lastly, it encouraged Virgil to communicate with him, which Logan hoped would be beneficial to their relationship.

  ‘Boo,’ Virgil muttered with a tiny smile.

  ‘That’s right, blue.’ Logan smiled back at him, knowing from experience it was an exercise in futility to try to correct his pronunciation.

  He popped the pacifier in Virgil’s mouth without any fuss, then placed Minty back on the floor gently.

  ‘Light blue is your Papa’s favourite colour,’ Logan said. ‘Shall we go and show it to him?’

  Virgil nodded and held onto Logan’s hand preemptively. Logan slowly rose from the floor and helped Virgil to do the same. He started to lead the way to the door but was stopped by Virgil tugging back on his hand and whining a little. Logan turned back in concern.

  ‘Is there a problem?’ he asked, then saw how Virgil’s gaze was fixed on the pile of stuffed animals on his bed. ‘Oh, I see,’ Logan said and walked them over to the heap of soft toys. ‘Can you choose a friend to come and listen to a book with us, Virgil?’

  Virgil reached for his black cat plush and held it to his face with a smile, stroking the fur against his cheek.

  ‘Glad you could join us, Jiji,’ Logan greeted the toy and smiled when Virgil gasped.

  Logan never made it obvious that he knew every single one of Virgil and Roman’s toys’ names. It amused him when they were shocked to hear him remember them so he kept up the pretence just to enjoy their endearing sounds of surprise.

  Logan led both Virgil and Jiji back to the living room with a light heart.

  ‘Look who’s back,’ Logan announced as they stepped into the room and saw Virgil blush at the attention, hiding his face against Logan’s arm.

  ‘Aw, yay!’ Patton smiled brightly. ‘I missed my baby.’

  Virgil looked up at Patton then pointed wordlessly to his pacifier. Logan saw a flash of confusion briefly cross Patton’s features.

  ‘Yes, that’s you,’ Patton said, obviously trying to guess at what Virgil was indicating.

  ‘Virgil picked his pacifier all by himself,’ Logan supplied with a surreptitious eyebrow raise. ‘Do you like the colour?’

  ‘Oh, yes!’ Patton said, suddenly understanding what Virgil had wanted to show him. ‘That’s my favourite colour, baby. It’s so pretty!’

  Logan felt Virgil fidget under the praise. He shared a fond, amused smile with Patton.

  ‘Vee, you gotta choose between the two bestest bears ever!’ Roman yelled, all but bouncing in his seat.

  ‘Yes…’ Logan said but frowned at the high energy in the boy. He had not been so excitable when Logan left, so the logical side grew suspicious of what had caused the change.

  Sure enough, his eyes landed on the chocolate coated rim of the Mickey Mouse mug in Roman’s hands. He gasped and shot a reprimanding look over to Patton. The moral side sunk into the couch looking as guilty as ever.

  ‘Patton, this is the time to wind down, not the time to consume sugar!’

  ‘But I made some for all of us, Lo,’ Patton countered. He indicated the coffee table where Logan’s NASA mug, Patton’s frog mug, and Virgil’s Jack Skellington mug all sat steaming, filling the air with the rich scent of chocolate. ‘Plus hot cocoa is technically warm milk, so it’s perfect for nighttime.’

  Logan felt his reserve breaking when he realised how considerate it was that Patton had made some for everyone, but he remained steely. That is until Patton added with a sly smile:

  ‘I added a shot of hazelnut syrup to your one.’

  Logan pretended to think it over for a few seconds.

  ‘Alright, I yield.’ He led Virgil over to the couch, encouraging him to sit beside Patton. ‘But Roman really should not be given dairy.’

  ‘Almond milk,’ Patton corrected with a victorious smile, accepting Virgil into his arms.

  ‘And Virgil is too young to drink from a mug,’ Logan added.

  ‘No prob, Bob,’ Roman cut in. He snapped his fingers and the Jack Skellington mug promptly transformed into a baby bottle.

  ‘Thank you, little prince,’ Logan said. He made sure to pay Roman due attention, knowing how important it was for Roman’s headspace to show that Virgil was not the only one who needed taking care of. ‘Where would you like me to sit?’

  Roman’s eyes widened, apparently delighted that he was given such an important decision.

  ‘Over there,’ Roman pointed to the corner of the couch furthest from Patton. ‘Then I’m gonna sit next to you and Vee!’

  Virgil hummed in content from his place beside Patton and nuzzled his face against his papa’s chest.

  ‘A very good choice,’ Logan said.

  Before sitting down he moved over to the coffee table. He handed Patton the baby bottle and moved the frog mug to the corner of the table so it was within Patton’s reach. He nodded when Patton thanked him and grabbed his own mug, moving back to the couch to settle in the corner seat. Roman had already made himself comfortable, his mug empty and abandoned on the floor.

  ‘What will it be, Virgil?’ Logan asked. ‘A marmalade-obsessed bear from Peru, or a honey-obsessed bear from England?’ He took a sip from his mug and struggled to contain a smile at the warmth that radiated through his chest.

  ‘Nunny,’ Virgil mumbled through his pacifier.

  Patton made an inhuman squeal of affection.

  ‘Honey,’ Logan echoed, unable to hide his smile now. It was undeniably adorable how Virgil’s speech was impeded by his regression. ‘Are we all ready for Winnie-the-Pooh?’

  At the two shouted confirmations from Patton and Roman, Logan pulled out his phone to set up the bluetooth speaker. Within moments Stephen Fry’s voice filled the room with tales from the Hundred Acre Wood.

  Roman clumsily wriggled his head under Logan’s arm to force it around his shoulders. Logan sniffed in amusement but acquiesced.

  ‘Do you want to hold the bottle yourself or do you want me to help you, sweetie?’ Logan heard Patton whispering during the introduction.

  He looked over just in time to see Virgil pull Jiji up to hide his face. Patton’s eyes lit up and he giggled quietly.

  ‘Don’t be shy, baby. Papa’s here to take care of you.’

  Patton gently took the pacifier from Virgil’s mouth and placed it on the armrest. Then he pulled Virgil onto his lap and held the bottle up to his lips. It was almost hypnotic seeing how quickly Virgil relaxed into Patton’s embrace, suckling rhythmically at the bottle. His eyes had fallen shut within seconds and a look of pure contentment settled over him.

  Roman laughed at a part in the story and Patton looked up at the cheerful sound. He caught Logan watching Virgil and they exchanged soft smiles before Logan looked away again. Roman’s head fell onto his shoulder and Logan closed his eyes in contentment. He leaned back against the headrest, letting the sounds of the room blend into one calming symphony; Virgil’s suckling, Patton’s cooing, Roman’s giggling, and the narration sending him into a blissful sleep.

oOo

Reblogs and likes are greatly appreciated! ♡

AO3 link | Next chapter

[frostclawdragoon]

Prompt #3: Mustering the Courage

(EXTREME Patch 5.3 spoilers ahead!)

With his chin in one hand, G’raha slowly scooted and moved the mounds of food on his plate with his fork idly, his mind and attention focused on the individuals hosting a conversation on the other side of the main room in the Rising Stones. It hadn’t been more than a few days since his reawakening, and he had been spending most of his time attempting to recover from generally everything that had transpired in the last… What, three hundred years? But no, the process of melding his present self with his future self had taken an expected toll on his physical form, and he had been restricted to bed rest, light exercise, and eating healthy meals to recover.

As of last night, he was allowed out of The Dawn’s Respite to sit at one of the nearby tables to eat, and while he was extremely grateful for the opportunity to finally get out of that room for the first time in days, he hadn’t much touched his food. He was too busy trying to seem like he wasn’t staring starry-eyed at the Warrior of Light across the room, and certainly wasn’t hoping the Warrior of Light wouldn’t notice him and come over to sit and chat with him about whatever recent adventure they’d partaken in. Goodness no. He would never do such a thing.

“Tataru finally allowed you to wander about the Stones?” Came the voice of Krile as she promptly sat herself down at the table.

G’raha snapped out of his distracted, spacey thought-bubble and looked over to Krile in surprise. “Oh, Krile--!... Ah. Yes. I am allowed to walk this far and no further.” He answered with a gesture to the table. “If I am to tread elsewhere, it will be back to bed.”

“Good.” Krile said with a nod of approval. “I’m glad she is keeping you in check while I’m away preparing what we need for sealing the Tower.”

He smiled helplessly at her. “It sounds like you also could use Tataru fussing over you. You’re going to run yourself ragged if you don’t take time to rest, especially after all you’ve done.”

“You’re one to talk.” Krile said pointedly. “Exarch.”

G’raha’s smile faded slightly. “H-how much did they tell you--?”

“Everything.” She leaned forward. “Don’t think you’ve gotten off free either, Raha. I still want to talk to you about what you did on The First.” G’raha’s ears flattened to his head apologetically. She leaned away, her head held somewhat high. “But I will wait until you’re well enough to handle my scoldings.”

“You’re too kind…” G’raha murmured.

Krile smiled sweetly, then gestured to him. “Go on, go on! Eat!”

G’raha smiled in return, oh how he missed her. He began gradually eating the well-balanced meal while Krile looked on, and he was a few bites in when the loud, boisterous laughter from across the room caught both their attention. G’raha watched as Alisaie, who apparently said something about Alphinaud, was laughing in hysterics while her brother desperately attempted to stop her from saying anything more embarrassing. Almost instinctively, his eyes darted straight to the Warrior of Light next in hopes of catching a glimpse of some kind of emotion or facial feature he had not seen before.

They were smiling. That charming, soft smile that always sent his heart aflutter.

“Would you like me to call them over?” Krile asked suddenly.

G’raha was pulled back to reality rather quickly, and he hastily looked at her. “What? No! Don’t interrupt them!”

“But you were staring so hopelessly at your heroic knight~” A mischievous smile spread wide across Krile’s lips.

G’raha could feel his face heat up, and judging by Krile’s smile growing wider, he knew he was blushing visibly. “I was--! Simply overwhelmed!”

“With the smile you had on your face, I’m sure you were overwhelmed with some kind of emotion.” Krile mused playfully.

“Krile stop!” He hissed at her below his breath, his ears pressed flat against his head. His face grew so unbearably hot.

She giggled into a hand. “I forgot how easy you are to fluster!” G’raha sunk in his seat, and she only laughed more before sighing. “Oh I missed you, terribly so…”

That caught him off guard, and G’raha looked to her in surprise before his expression softened. “... I’m sorry I left. I had to--”

Krile shook her head, her smile ever present. “I’m just glad you are here, safe and alive.”

G’raha lowered his head slightly, then adjusted himself upright in his seat. She was always constantly moving, never letting herself linger on the problems of the past… Still. He felt he needed to apologize properly to her, for everything. Though he supposed that would have to wait until he was fully recovered.

“Are you going to accept?”

He looked at her. “What?”

“The Scion’s proposal.” She reminded him.

Ah. Yes. That.

Last night, when G’raha had been encouraged to dine with the rest of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn in a feast of celebration for their victories on the First, Alphinaud brought up the idea of having him join them as a permanent member. Needless to say he was unable to form the correct words with everyone staring, and with all eyes on him, especially the Warrior of Light, he had immediately become fearful of accepting. Not because he didn’t want to, but because…

“I have not yet decided.” He answered.

“What is there to decide, Raha?” Krile asked. “You traveled with them all over The First, they know you and trust you, and you have nowhere else to go beyond the Tower!”

“I just--...” He paused, then sighed. “I don’t want to join for the wrong reasons…”

“What do you mean?”

G’raha stared down at his plate for a moment. Then, without moving his head, his eyes lifted up toward the Warrior of Light, who was watching -- with amusement -- as Alisaie shake Alphinaud for something he had said about her. Krile followed his gaze.

“... I want to join the Scions because I want to help, not because of--... Any personal or selfish reasons.” He explained before his gaze lowered again. “To join simply because of eager eyes and--... Because I want to be at their side, to see the world and to take part in their adventures should they have me… Sounds like a terrible reason to become a Scion.”

“Raha…” Krile started with a little chuckle to her voice. He glanced at her, and she smiled in response. “You are the least selfish person I know. You are always willing to help people in need, even at the cost of your own health -- as much as I may dislike that fact. You always give, give and give. You never take anything for yourself and it’s saddening to see you keep nothing or reach for nothing in fear you don’t deserve it.” She reached over and placed her hand on the back of his. “For just this once, be selfish, would you?”

G’raha stared at her. “But--...”

“They want you to stay, Raha, even your knight.” Krile’s smile widened. “They wouldn’t have asked otherwise, and quite frankly I’m surprised the Warrior of Light didn’t leap from their seat and chain you to the floor.”

G’raha’s ears flicked up alongside his eyebrows. “Why would they do that?”

“Oh, did the Scions not tell you?” She grinned. “About how your knight ran out of the Dawn’s Respite at a full sprint straight for the Crystal Tower only seconds after learning the door would open for them with your blood in hand?”

He… Wasn’t sure how dark red his face was turning, but by Krile’s amused toothy grin, he could only assume his cheeks matched the color of his hair.

“They--... They really did that?” He asked.

“Of course they did!” She lightly smacked the back of his hand before sitting back. “And to think that you’re not permitted to be selfish when the Warrior of Light would likely give you the saddest gaze should you turn down the offer to remain.”

G’raha stared at her for a moment, her words sinking in slowly. He turned toward his food again, then looked up to the Warrior of Light as they tried to gently pry Alisaie’s deathgrip off her brother. Would it be alright if he was selfish for just… This one thing? Would it be okay for him to accept the offer, and become a Scion if only to adventure and--... Have the chance to traverse the world with his inspiration and the greatest hero the worlds have ever known? Was he allowed to do that?

“Let yourself have something good for once.” Krile whispered to him softly with a kind, warm smile. “Stay.”

The topic was promptly dropped after that, though G’raha mulled her words over in his head for the rest of the night and for the days following. The idea of being entirely selfish was a concept most foreign to him, duty and responsibility had been his life’s work when he was the Exarch, and before then he had been so obsessed with uncovering the truth behind his ancestry that he didn’t really think about pursuing his dreams. Rescuing people and helping them with menial tasks, seeing the world, uncovering its histories and secrets… This was a dream that seemed so unobtainable.

… But when the spells to protect the Crystal Tower were put in place, and he had no more responsibility to remain there as it’s protector, he realized he--….

"... Said duty thus discharged, thou art free to go wheresoever thy fancy taketh thee." Urianger had said with a smile. "Upon which note--has thou perchance come to a decision? The offer remaineth open."

G’raha fidgeted slightly in place, all the Scions were watching him with immense curiosity. "Well... If you're certain that's what you... I-I mean, if you think I..."

"G'raha, really." Came the ever inspiring voice of the Warrior of Light.

His ears flicked up in surprise, and a warm feeling swelled within his chest. With a sigh, he shut his eyes to focus on that feeling, on the voice of inspiration, on the words of Krile. From it, a surge of courage bubbled up in him.

“Right!” He exclaimed, standing tall. “I accept. Henceforth, I shall count myself a Scion of the Seventh Dawn.”

He smiled, confidently, and gave a thumbs up.

“G’raha Tia, at your service.”

[hiddenfenceblogs]

DO HIDDEN DOG FENCES WORK?

DO HIDDEN DOG FENCES WORK?

Most pet owners struggle to keep their dogs and cats safe inside the yard. When conventional fences fail, pet experts inventedthe solution of an invisible fence.

The electronic fence more commonly known as a dog electric fence,has a technologically advanced feature that contains pets inside a boundary. In this containment system, a dog learns to stop at the boundary with the help of electronic stimulation. Such systems are immensely popular among pet parents.

Perhaps recently, you were planning to shop for a dog electric fence kit and your friend who read something on Google commented that these systems are noteffective. The confusion about the efficacy of such systems is totally understandable.

It’s important to know that there is so much misinformation associated with pet containment system. In order to attain 100% efficacy from the system, you needto understand the role of consistency and repetition. In this post, we share 5 facts that will help you understand whether an electronic dog fence is worth it or not.

5 Lesser known facts about a hidden dog fence

Brand selection: The efficacy of a product majorly depends on the authenticity of the brand. If you buy cheap DIY kits that you purchased from a hardware store, the outcome is definitely not what you expected. For instance, a poor quality collar receiver doesn’t work properly and thinner fence cable shortens the lifespan of the product.

Installation: Apart from using the right product, the key to attaining total efficiency from a product is to install it properly. The transmitter that sends signals should be located strategically. Fence wires should be installed properly with surge protectors and other essential components that offer all-round performance with skilful planning for pools, decks, driveway crossings etc.

Training: The efficacy of a system also depends on training protocol. You can DIY a dog fence using the best-in-class technology and the most sophisticated collar receiver, but if you don’t train your dog adequately, all your efforts are of no use. Keep in mind that you can’t set and forget about such systems, consistency is the key. Train your dog to attain 100% efficiency of the system.

Duration: Have a little patience when you start using a hidden dog fence. Afteronly using it a couple of times, some pet owners comment that such containment systems are a waste of money. It is important to understand that every breed is different. You have to be patient with training and consistency to see improvements.

Experience: Here is a myth buster for all pet parents who think pet containment systems are inhumane. The collar is equipped with modern technology that only works on sensory receptors. Electronic stimulation is only used for positive reinforcements, it can’t hurt even a 4 month old puppy. Wearing this collar, your dog doesn’t feel any pain as the stimulation feels a bit like the sensation you would get from a TENS machine., teaching themto stay calm and overcome problems with their anxious and hyperactive behaviour.

Although a lot of myths are associated with the feature rich pet containment systems,most dog trainers and pet owners still recommend using an innovative solution to control the anxiety and curiosity of their furry friends. Visit the link given below to order the most effective and everyone’s favourite electric (electronic)dog fence kit.

[digikate813]

Power Down: Chapter 3

Ducktales Fanfic

Now that Fenton has officially become Gizmoduck, Duckburg’s newest protector, he is not holding back. Giving everything he has to being the greatest hero he can be. But how much can he push himself to do more before he starts to fall?

Based on a random request by @zefive  Not to me directly, but when I saw the post, this idea flooded into my head, and I couldn’t resist. Enjoy!

Chapter 1 Chapter 2

Fenton answered a few more calls for help before he got home. It was fine though, that was his job now after all. But he was starting think that the armor might be malfunctioning. And whatever was happening was affecting him. His muscles ached, his vision was getting fuzzy and he was seeing double at random intervals, and there were moments where he might have even had trouble thinking straight.

Either way, something must be wrong with the suit. They’re almost symbiotic now ever since his brain became the core processor, so whatever was wrong with him had to be connected to that. And he was going to find out what so he could get back to being the best hero he could be. He had the Gizmoduck helmet on the kitchen table next to a crudely made sandwich. With the rest of the suit in the corner.

He decided to look for the problem himself, since he figured Dr. Gearloose would flip if he found out something like this happened to the armor on his watch. If the problem wasn’t with the processor, he’d scrape through every inch of metal and programming until he found it. Duckburg was beginning to believe in Gizmoduck. He wasn’t going to let them down now. But it was starting to get tough to work with tools with his hands randomly shaking. No matter. He’d power through it.

He was at this for hours and didn’t even realize that it had gotten dark out and his M’ma wasn’t home yet. But that wasn’t unusual. She worked all kinds of different shifts down at the station. Crime wasn’t just from 9 to 5 after all, as he was quickly learning.

His mother finally did get home around 11 PM. And she was not pleased at the sight she found. Her son hunched over that blasted contraption, his feathers a mess and visible bags under his eyes. With blueprints lining the table and parts of Gizmoduck sprawled around the table. The only thing resembling food in that area was a cold, half eaten sandwich. This is not the sight she wanted to come home to after a long day.

“Oh por amor de-” she muttered to herself exasperatingly before she raised he voice to get her son’s attention. “Fenton!”. He jumped at the sound, just realizing that his mother was in the room. He was an adult. So why did he feel like he was about to be grounded? He only replied weakly. “Hi M’ma. Soooo, how was your day?”

“Oh no! Don’t you change the subject. What do you think you’re doing here? Turning my kitchen into your own personal laboratory so you can run yourself ragged in the middle of the night?!”

“It’s not the middle of the night. It’s-” he checked the clock on the wall and noticed. It was the middle of the night. Whoops.

His mother was furious this time, so Fenton decided to intervene before she went off on a tangent. “Don’t worry M’ma! I’ve been working hard to fine tune the Gizmoduck suit. Once everything’s been properly calibrated, everything will be running much smoother and Gizmoduck will be the strongest defender Duckburg has ever known!” He proclaimed with a new burst of adrenaline. But if he was honest, that adrenaline didn’t feel quite as strong as it did last night.

His mother didn’t look pleased. She sighed tiredly, rubbing her face with her hand. She looked her son straight in the eye and tried to get through his thick skull. “Pollito, carino, I’m not worried about Gizmoduck, I’m worried about y-” before she could finish voicing her concerns, there was a burst of static coming from under one of the blueprints on the table. Fenton instinctively shoved them aside to get a better listen from the box. Only hearing something about more security requested somewhere.

“Ay! Fenton? Is that my old police scanner?!” His mother scolded. He just smiled and let out a small guilty chuckle. He dug it up after being hired by Mr. McDuck. Thought it would be a good way to keep up with crime in the city. There wasn’t exactly a Gizmoduck hotline. Gizmoduck hotline… now there’s an idea. He’d have to talk to Dr. Gearloose or Mr. McDuck about that.

Before he could wander off with that thought, he heard the call a bit clearer. The museum was looking after some of Scrooge’s recent discoveries, and they wanted more back up. “This is perfect!” Fenton exclaimed. “Looking after Mr. McDuck’s possibly priceless artifacts is the perfect job for Gizmoduck!”

“Fenton wait.” His mother interrupted, trying to stop him. “I’m sure the police can handle-” 

“No time M’ma!” Fenton talked over her, “Gotta fly!” He hopped out of his seat and ran towards the door. Which was more difficult then it should have been. The room was spinning more then it had been before and those cursed spots were in front of his eyes again. He ended up losing his balance and clutching the kitchen door frame to support himself while he waited for the room to become stationary again. His mother rushed to his side, with both hands on his shoulders, trying to help ground him.

“Pollito, are you alright?”

He stood there for a second, closing his eyes tight a couple of times to help clear his vision. Everything started to align again, except in a way it felt like his head still thought the room was spinning. It was really starting to hurt. But he wasn’t going to let that get in his way. Duty calls after all. He gained his composure in a matter of seconds, and simply turned to his mother and said “Just fine M’ma. Nothing a little fresh air won’t fix.” he stood up, headed towards door and got ready to suit up.

“Blathering, uhhhh, right. Blatherskite!”

The suit answered his call and assembled around him. He wobbled around in the suit a bit before activating the propeller and heading off to the Duckburg museum.

 Fenton safely landed in front of the museum, which was a relief after a couple of close calls with the propeller. He thought he checked that thoroughly, but there’s always room for error he supposed. Just gave him something to work on later. And besides, this duty was something special. Not just protecting who knows what kind of unique ancient artifacts, but doing it for Scrooge McDuck. The man who made it possible for him to keep the suit and his identity as Gizmoduck.

He wasn’t sure why his M’ma was so worried. Sure the suit’s been acting up, but that wasn’t anything new. Well, okay. It’s new since the new model was developed for him, but it’s nothing he couldn’t handle. And who knows what kind of criminals would be after whatever relics and treasures are beyond those doors. He wanted to make sure he was doing everything he could. Looked like the requested backup hadn’t arrived yet anyway. But who knows? Maybe this was just him wanting to take a precaution. Maybe no one would even bother trying to steal something recovered by the Scrooge McDuck.

A sudden shattering of glass hit his eardrums. It seemed to come from the back of the building. Well, he’d been wrong before. He rolled down the street, keeping in the shadows, until he got to the smashed window. Which was part of the door. Which had also been smashed. Whoever this was didn’t mess around. He peered into the storage room, trying to get the blasted night vision to work. All he could make out was a silhouette going through a crate.

“Okay. He hasn’t seen me yet.” Fenton thought out loud under his breath “I just have to play it cool. If I can disorient him, I can keep the upper hand and take him out before he even knows what hit him. I just wish I could see him better” before Fenton even realized what he said, the suit activated it’s night mode and flashed a bright light from his helmet right over the head of the burglar.

Fenton was flabbergasted! “What? No! Retract! Retract!” As Fenton was kicking himself, trying to close the light, the criminal turned around and he got that better look he wanted. But he couldn’t believe his eyes. The intruder was, metal. A chrome body from head to toe. With a build similar to illustrations he’s seen of Storkules, but a head with nothing but red eyes and something on the top that looked like a hat of some kind. The eyes were glowing brighter as it spotted Gizmoduck. Fenton was frozen, and unfortunately, he was the one caught by surprise.

“Uhhhhh. Hi.” He waved awkwardly. He wasn’t sure why. Suddenly something crashed into his chest and pushed him into the wall of the opposite building. And he thought his head was throbbing before. Soon he realized that it came from the robot. It had extending arms too. Fenton put on a smirk and let out a laugh. “Ha! Two can play at that game!” Extending his arms to grab the coil of the arm. Ready to smash this bucket of bolts into the ground.

But just after he made contact, electricity suddenly surged through the coil , shocking him through his contact, and he couldn’t let go. With as much force of will as he could, he activated the Turrets in his hands and ripped the coil apart with the force of the blasts before too much damage was done to the armor. Retracting his arms so he could use them to support himself before he collapsed. In that moment, he took a closer look at his visor, and noticed an alert. “The scans picked up on that as soon as I was pinned to the wall. How did I not notice that?” He muttered to himself, continuing to kick himself.

Some good came out of it. The robot was missing an arm. Now was his chance to blow this thing sky high. “Engage Rocket Launchers!” he exclaimed as his shoulders were armed and ready to fire. As he got up to take aim, everything hit him at once. He felt dizzy, everything seemed out of focus, and he was seeing three deadly robots instead of one. He shook his head furiously and rubbed his eyes under his visor. Now was not the time. He had to fire now! So he did.

He shot four of his rockets in various directions. None of which hit the robot. He didn’t have time to worry about what he did hit, although he swore he heard a car alarm, so that could be a problem. Once everything fell back into place, he saw the robot stand perfectly still. He didn’t get a good look at it, but he saw the stolen item in his remaining hand. Fenton had to stop him! Suddenly the robot’s feet were engulfed in flames and he slowly shot up into the air, making his getaway.

Fenton was awestruck. “That is one impressive machine. Wait why am I impressed? It’s getting away! But with rockets like that, it shouldn’t get too far too fast. Activate Rocket Boosters!” he shouted as his rocket’s extended and fired up. But then he realized. “Wait! No! I meant the Propeller! What am I thinking? The rocket’s aren’t fit for maneuvering the narrow streets. They’re too-” and just as Fenton processed how much he messed up, the rockets shot him up into the air, and past every building on the block. “Stroooooong”

He was so dazed by how he made such a stupid mistake that he couldn’t fly straight. He flew around uncontrollably through the sky until coming in for a crash landing on a completely different street. He was so disoriented, he had no idea how far away he was from the crime scene, but one thing was for sure. That mechanical menace was long gone.

No. No he couldn't think like that. He could still catch him right? He just had to get up and….. and, it was getting too hard to formulate a plan. His thoughts were swimming around too much. Almost like they were caught in a dense fog. He couldn’t focus on any of them. He tried to get up, but even with the armor, his limbs just wouldn’t cooperate. For some reason part of him just wanted to lay on that asphalt forever. He was exhausted. And he failed. He put everything he had into being Gizmoduck. He was supposed to be a hero. How could he fail so catastrophically?

As he laid there feeling sorry for himself and teetering on the edge of consciousnesses. He saw a pair of headlights turn the corner, and then crash into a mailbox. A figure emerged from the vehicle and headed towards him. But between the darkness of the night and how difficult he was finding it to keep his eyes open, he couldn’t make out who it was. The suit lifted the visor and showed his worn out face to whoever was in front of him. He tried to look up, but he just didn’t have it in him. The only thing he heard before he blacked out was a voice he swears was familiar.

“Looks like ya got in a bit over yer head, eh lad?”

A/N: Y’know how the synopsis asks how far he can go before he falls? About this far it turns out. Anyway, again if any of the conversational Spanish doesn’t sound quite right, let me know and I can correct it. Hope you enjoyed it and look forward to the next chapter!

[alteridolriley]

My Child

Pairings: None

Summary: Patton always jokes and calls Virgil his "kiddo" or "child" and no one really gives it a second thought. But what if it was more than just a nickname?

A/N: My first Sides story.... ever. This was something I just had to write when I first thought of this prompt. I'm so sorry if Patton/Virgil seem out of character. I'm still learning how to write them and I'm so worried about not doing it properly (which is also one of the reasons Logan/Roman are not in this fic... still trying.) But I hope you enjoy. :)

I've never felt like this before. What is this? Patton paced around his room, holding a box in his right hand and fidgeting with the sleeve of his cardigan which was wrapped around his neck. 

His breathing was erratic, and he couldn't seem to make himself stop moving. This had never happened before. This emotion was new for him. But where had it come from? Thomas was only eight years old. His birthday had just recently passed and everything was looking up for him. Patton couldn't have been more proud. Logan had been recently sorting all of Thomas's new knowledge - he'd been loving it. Roman had gotten so many sparks of creativity and wonder; he had been almost continuously writing something at the table, humming joyfully. But recently... one event had made Thomas feel a new emotion, something Patton couldn't immediately explain.

Thomas had come to him shaking and crying. He wasn't scared, but he also wouldn't explain to Patton what was really going on. The small brown haired boy just kept mumbling "what do I do...what do I do?" Patton sat down, crossing his legs, clenching the box in his hands even tighter. He could feel Thomas's worry but it was more than that. It was nearly random. One moment the child would be happy and smiling and then with nearly no warning, he'd be crying, coming into his own mind to get away from everything. 

I have to figure this out. I must. Before it starts affecting the others. I can't let them down... ...I can't let Thomas down.

Several days had passed, but Patton had not come any closer to being able to understand what Thomas was feeling. It had begun to occur more frequently and had affected Patton personally too. He could feel his heart racing, and he always felt like something was wrong. Or something was going to go wrong. Patton hadn't come out of his room. He was afraid what was happening would brush off on the others. That was definitely something Patton refused to allow.

A knock nearly caused Patton to fall over. Why was he so jumpy? After he stood, he realized the knock hadn't come from the door which led to the common space. Patton turned around to the far corner of his room, a corner he did not use. It was covered in darkness and for some reason, there was a door. 

 "...how did I miss that?" Patton questioned himself out loud. Had he really been that distracted? Another knock rang out, causing him to jump again. He quickly walked over to the door and grabbed the handle. He hesitated for just a moment. Patton was afraid his hastened heartbeat and sweating palms could be felt by Logan or Princey. What was behind this door? Where had it come from? 

Swallowing his fears in one gulp, he pulled the door open, closing his eyes. A blast of air was released, ruffling Patton's hair gently. Once the wind had ceased, Patton opened his eyes. Standing in front of him was a small boy, basically the same size as Thomas. His face was hidden behind his bangs and a large black hoodie wrapped his entire small frame. 

 "Morality?" Patton was taken back by the child's voice. It was Thomas's voice but a bit different, just like his own. The boy lifted his arms and took his hood off. Brown eyes met each other and Patton was surprised to see very heavy eyeshadow under the child's eyes. "Morality...?" The boy asked again. Patton was knocked back to reality and nodded. The boy looked relieved and reached his hand out. He motioned for Patton to do the same. As soon as their hands touched, Patton felt a surge of... warmth and relief. It was as if he had taken off a tremendous amount of weight. "Do you... feel better now?" The boy asked.  Patton nodded again. To his surprise, the child smiled. "That's good." He walked past Patton and over to the couch, taking a seat at the end. His feet were too short to touch the ground. "So, are you going to ask me who I am?"

"Oh...well I...." Patton stuttered. "...i guess I didn't really know what to say. How did you do that? What did you do?"

"The things you were feeling were because of me. I didn't have full control of everything just yet because of my small size." The boy explained. "My name is...." he paused, biting his lip. He took a deep breath before continuing. "...Anxiety." All at once, everything Patton had experienced over the last week made more sense. The extreme worrying, the feeling of dread no matter what he attempted to do, and Thomas's inability to explain exactly how he was feeling... it was anxiety. "It seems Thomas has need of me, even more than he did before." Anxiety explained. "I've always been here but more as a thought rather than a physical presence." He looked down at his hands. "When I noticed what you were going through, I knew it would be too much. I had to do something." He clenched his fists. "Thomas will need me too." Anxiety's voice seemed nearly desperate as he spoke. "I have to protect him."

Patton walked over and sat down next to Anxiety. He put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "You seem fully capable of doing so, kiddo. I appreciate the help."

 Anxiety nodded. "Yeah no problem dad." What? Anxiety slapped a hand over his mouth. "I mean... yeah it's no problem Morality. I mean... it's what I was created for." He took another deep shaky breath. "Before it was just fears and the occasional scares....how bad could it be? I got this." Anxiety smirked as he looked up at Patton. "And besides you've got a lot more on your plate."

Patton nodded trying to stay serious but he couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. "Thanks kiddo. I appreciate it."

A couple of days later, Anxiety had fully developed and was no longer a small child but the same size as Patton, an adult per say. Patton had introduced him to Princey and Logan. That hadn't gone all too well, but that was okay. Patton could feel Anxiety's importance and was definitely grateful for the assistance. Thomas had even come to visit and if he had anything wrong Patton couldn't help, Anxiety was right there willing to help the young boy anyway he could.

[Present Time - Before Exploring Nostalgia] 

Patton stood in his room, cleaning up a bit as he had not had a chance in quite a while. As he finished putting some photo albums away, his eyes glanced over to the shadowy corner of his room. The door that had appeared there so many years ago was gone. Anxiety had redone his room around the time Thomas was 13 years old and at that time, he had moved the entrance to the common space.

"It's been so long." Patton said, his words breathy. He absentmindedly walked toward the corner, touching the wall with just his fingertips. "I'm still... so proud of you, Virgil." He mumbled.

"What did you say?" Patton turned on his heels to see Virgil standing in his doorway. He had a smirk on his face.

"Oh hey kiddo! I didn't hear you open the door!" Patton responded cheerfully, walking over to him.

Virgil frowned. "I asked you a question."

Patton stopped his skipping steps. He shook his head and smiled. "It's nothing, kiddo. I'm just reminiscing about the past a bit."

Virgil peeked his gaze over Patton's shoulder to the shadowy corner. "Oh. I see." His voice trailed off as he tilted his head towards the common area. "Well, whatever. Thomas needs us for something."

"He does? Oh I guess I was distracted. Sorry about that, kiddo." Patton apologized. He went to walk past Virgil and was surprised when Virgil randomly grabbed his hand. Patton froze immediately and looked directly at Virgil. Their eyes met. "...Virgil?"

"Just letting you know... that I... I never really thanked you, Patton. I'm not good at this touchy feely stuff but thanks for all your help that day." Virgil said, his voice a bit shaky. "So thanks for everything.... Dad."

Patton felt his heart lurch forward. It wasn't like any other time when Virgil referred to him as the dad character. This time was like the first time he ever heard Virgil say it so long ago. There was an endearment to it that made his heart so happy. Tears pricked at the corner of his eyes and without thinking, he hugged the dark trait, squeezing him as tightly as possible.

"Hey! Patton...what?" Virgil held his hands up, looking down at Patton, only able to see his purple hair. Virgil could feel a slight wetness on his chest. "...alright, alright." To Patton's surprise and delight, Virgil returned the hug. After a few seconds, the two separated. "We better go. Thomas is waiting, as is Sir Sing-a-Lot and Pocket Protector. You know how impatient they can be." Virgil said, patting Patton on his shoulder before walking towards the common space. In that moment, as Virgil walked away, Patton couldn't help but smile and let some more tears fall. 

He was so proud of his son and how far he had come.

--

A/N: Sorry if this took up a lot of your feed; I'm not sure how to do a "read more" cut. Hope it was enjoyable for you and not too ooc... thank you for reading! :3

[junker-town]

The most important weekend in the NBA’s regular season is here

Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, and Giannis Antetokounmpo will the NBA playoffs’ most important characters.

All of the NBA’s best teams are about to play important games to see how good they really are before the playoffs start.

The 2019-20 NBA regular season doesn’t end until mid-April, but the five-day stretch between March 5 and March 8 is both a delicious preview of the upcoming postseason and an unofficial capper on the portion of the campaign with real high-level stakes. There are still interesting games on the schedule after this — Milwaukee-Houston on March 25, for example, has extra spice now — but none offer us the opportunity to learn about the playoff readiness of the league’s title favorites.

If you’ve been out on the NBA this year for whatever reason, these next five days offer the chance to binge on the league and feel like you can at least pretend to be caught up. (I would recommend watching every game possible because the NBA is a cool sport, but I know that’s not healthy for most of you. It’s probably not healthy for me either! Alas ...)

Here are the games you must watch and why they matter.

1. Clippers at Lakers, Sunday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC

The two Los Angeles teams have been on a collision course all season, and this is the last real chance we get to see how they measure up before the postseason. (They play again on April 9 in a game rescheduled due to Kobe Bryant’s death, but the Lakers will be playing their third game in three nights and the Clippers will themselves be on a back-to-back).

It’s the last chance for the Lakers to shed the prevailing theory that the Clippers are actually the title favorites despite having a worse regular-season record. That view got a boost from the first two matchups, both Clippers victories despite no contribution from Paul George in the first (he was injured) and little in the second (he shot just 5-18). So far, the Clippers have presented more challenges for the Lakers than the reverse.

The timing for the Lakers to flip this narrative isn’t exactly ideal. Though the Clippers have often been up and down in non-Lakers matchups, they are rolling with a fully healthy roster, having won five in a row by an average margin of 17.4 points. Maybe health really was their only issue all along.

The Lakers’ best chance may be for Anthony Davis to dominate the game. LeBron James’ greatness is clear, but the Clippers’ collection of tough wing defenders present many problems for the King. James was passive in the first matchup and inefficient in the second, and both games came before the Clippers added Marcus Morris to help Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Davis, on the other hand, has a size advantage against the Clippers’ power forwards and a major quickness advantage against their motley crew of centers. He needs to be the best player on the floor on Sunday. (Luckily, he’s been just that recently).

But the Lakers and Clippers both have stern tests before Sunday that are delicious appetizers for the main event.

2. Clippers at Rockets, Thursday, 8 p.m. ET, TNT

Houston’s bold decision to trade away its only center in Clint Capela and double down on small ball has worked out brilliantly. (Told y’all). They’re 7-3 since dealing Capela for Robert Covington, and one of those losses came without Russell Westbrook. They beat the Lakers in LA, took down Boston twice, and avenged a freak loss to Utah with a dominant road victory.

The extra space on offense has accelerated Russell Westbrook’s surge and made the Westbrook-James Harden pairing more seamless. As The Dream Shake wrote:

But as Russ got healthier (he had offseason hand surgery, which he re-injured, along with an arthroscopic knee scope this past summer) and more acclimated, and the Rockets traded Clint Capela to open the floor more for Russ’s preternatural athleticism, Houston may finally have the second superstar to complement Harden that they’ve been searching for since The Beard arrived eight seasons ago.

They also haven’t suffered defensively despite downsizing. In fact, they’re even better at doing the things big players are supposed to do now, all thanks to Covington and P.J. Tucker. As I wrote:

Turns out P.J. Tuckington is an intimidating presence at the hoop. Houston allows teams to shoot just 59.1 percent at the basket with that combination in the game, according to Cleaning the Glass. That’s on par with the Lakers’ mark when Anthony Davis and JaVale McGee share the floor, two percentage points lower than LA allows with Davis on the court with whoever else, 2.5 percentage points better than the 76ers surrender with Joel Embiid on the court, nearly three percentage points better than Jazz opponents shoot with Gobert on the floor, close to five percentage points better than the Rockets allow from that zone with Clint Capela and Tucker sharing the court, and 5.3 percent more than they did with just Capela out there.

Think about that for a second. Lineups anchored by a 6’5 pancake-loving thicc dude and a 6’7 wing player on his third team in 14 months aren’t just better at altering shots at the rim than lineups anchored by the only tall guy the Rockets previously had. They’re also better at altering shots at the basket than lineups built around three of the NBA’s best rim protectors.

Beating opponents by making them play your game is one thing, but what happens against a team that may play your game, but better? We’re about to find out. The Clippers have elite wing defenders, giving them the capacity to go small and do it even better than Houston does. Covington and Tucker are good, but Kawhi Leonard is even better. Will that negate Houston’s strategy, or will the Rockets prevail anyway? I can’t wait to find out.

3. Bucks at Lakers, Friday, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

The Bucks remain the NBA’s most dominant regular-season team, but Monday’s double-digit loss in Miami was a concerning wobble. The Heat swarmed the paint, shut down Giannis Antetokounmpo, and knocked down the three-point shots the Bucks’ defense is designed to give up. The Bucks rebounded to smash Indiana on Wednesday, but a high-profile loss in LA may create more lingering doubts about their ability to perform against top opponents.

The Lakers and Bucks last played back in December, a game in which the Bucks surged ahead early before holding off a late LA run. The Lakers would suggest tossing that game out because they were at the end of a grueling five-game East Coast swing. But there’s no tossing out this one.

4. Raptors at Warriors, Thursday, 10:30 p.m. ET, TNT

Steph Curry back! Steph Curry back! However you feel about this regular season, it’s undeniable that Curry’s 58-game injury absence left a gaping hole in our hearts. That all ends Thursday night against the team that ended the Warriors’ run last June.

These Warriors, of course, have the NBA’s worst record and will be nowhere near the playoffs. So why bring Curry back at all? Matt Ellentuck laid out a few reasons when it looked like Curry would return last Sunday. One that stands out to me: Curry getting court time with Andrew Wiggins, acquired in February in a blockbuster deal for D’Angelo Russell. As Ellentuck wrote, now’s the time to build on-court familiarity, not next year.

5. Kings at Blazers, Saturday, 10 p.m. ET, NBA League Pass

My advice: skip Saturday’s ABC showcase (Curry’s Warriors against the 76ers’ skeleton crew) and watch this de-facto playoff elimination game instead. Both teams are 3.5 games out of the playoffs, but both are surging and both have much easier schedules down the stretch than the current No. 8 seed Grizzlies. The winner still has a chance. The loser has an uphill climb.

Portland’s here despite having a season from hell. Three projected starters — Jusuf Nurkic, Zach Collins, and Rodney Hood — have barely featured this season, and only Nurkic has any real hope of returning. They rescued Carmelo Anthony from the free-agent scrap heap because they legitimately had nobody else to play power forward. Damian Lillard went on a scoring binge for the ages in late January, then got hurt as well. But he’s back now, and Portland has just two road games left against .500 or better teams on the schedule.

The Kings have quietly put together a nice run since moving Buddy Hield to the bench in favor of Bogdan Bogdanovic. They’re 6-1 in their last seven games, and they too have some easy games down the stretch. Remember De’Aaron Fox? He’s really damn good again. As Sactown Royalty noted:

If you watch game to game, you know this. De’Aaron Fox is incredible. He’s so much fun to watch, and makes a handful of “holy shit” plays every game. Sometimes it’s a timely steal, sometimes it’s threading the needle for a gorgeous pass, sometimes it’s a dagger or a dunk at just the right moment. The kid is good.

Since Jan. 1, about two weeks after Fox returned from his ankle injury, he has averaged 22.0 points, 6.9 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game. That’s a huge leap in production from last season when he finished third in MIP voting. He’s doing this despite his three-point shot regressing significantly. He’s shooting just 31.4 percent from deep this year, down from 37.1 percent last year, and yet defenses still can’t stop him.

This game’s also crucial for tiebreaking purposes. A Blazers’ win gives them a 3-1 head-to-head advantage, so they’d lock that tiebreaker up. A Kings’ win, on the other hand, knots the series, 2-2, and Sacramento is four games better than Portland in conference (19-20 vs. 15-24). The Kings already have the tiebreaker against Memphis locked up, so a victory over Portland would cement their status as a real playoff threat.

Expect this game to be super intense, which is all you can ask for this time of year.

Other notable games, in case you need more

Jazz-Celtics, Friday, 8 p.m. ET, NBA League Pass: The rise of Jayson Tatum continues.

Heat-Pelicans, Friday, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN: A must-win for New Orleans after consecutive losses to Minnesota and Dallas. They’re already five games behind Memphis with only 20 to play.

Grizzlies-Mavericks, Friday, 8:30 p.m. ET, NBA League Pass: Luka Doncic vs. Ja Morant! And a biggie for Memphis’ playoff dreams.

76ers-Warriors, Saturday, 8:30 p.m. ET, ABC: In case you just wanna watch Curry.

Hawks-Grizzlies, Saturday, 8 p.m. ET, NBA League Pass: A rematch of the most hilariously hideous game of the year, which took place on Tuesday.

I take it back choosing to watch this game was the best decision. pic.twitter.com/vB9t39oB9L

— Mike Prada. I have spoken (@MikePradaSBN) March 3, 2020

God bless @BobRathbunTV and @DWilkins21 for this call pic.twitter.com/kLy2jViKx0

— Mike Prada. I have spoken (@MikePradaSBN) March 3, 2020

[megacircuit9universe]

Ejector Seat

I’ve been thinking about the previous entry for a few days now... the idea of a self driving economy kept on the rails by the collective smarts of all the learning algorithms out there, whose prime directive is to keep the money moving...

And then it occurred to me yesterday that, even if this were true, things could still be screwed up by something like an arbitrary and pointless trade war with the nations who produce most if not all of the stuff that keeps this modern economy moving... namely, the smart phones themselves, as well as all the products we can use those phones to buy at low low prices.

Trumps insane tariff policies, will eventually result in a fairly painful (if totally artificial) inflation on the cost of all those things, which will eventually result in far less consumer spending... which in turn will result in a recession.

And because he is not sane, Trump will respond to the recession by doubling down on the tariffs... turning that recession into a global depression.

Now, before I go any further, I have to address an elephant in the room here... And it’s that the current economy, which has been doing so well for so long, has been pretty bad for many parties involved... such as the low wage global workforce who produces most of the stuff we buy for those low low prices, and also wage stagnation here in America... not to mention the huge education bubble... the growing problem of rent inflation... and of course, climate change!

But outside of America, we were, and still are, working on those problems. There is an argument that low wage factory work in developing nations, while not ideal, in terms of wages or working conditions... still lifts those people out of poverty and... can be seen as a stepping stone to their future prosperity much as factory work during the industrial revolution paved the way for the following generations to enjoy better working conditions, wages, and general quality of life.

That’s far from a guarantee, but it’s possible with the right focus.

Other issues, such as wage stagnation, and the education, rent, and healthcare bubbles... are purely American problems. Most if not all other first world nations either never had those problems, or have solved them by now.

Which leaves climate change... where again, most of the world is on board for addressing the problem, both short and long term.

So... excluding failed states that aren’t really in the game right now... the global economy, while far from perfect, is a work in progress that could become far more fair and equitable over time... 

...with the exception of America (and I guess, England too) where legacy political issues such as racism and unbridled corporate greed are currently fighting tooth and nail to stay relevant in this new century that is leaving them behind.

But, putting them to one side for a moment, we can see that our self driving economy... such that it is... could be bad, if it refuses to allow any further change... keeping rent and education forever too high, and foreign factory wages forever too low, while we blindly destroy all the planet’s resources and turn the atmosphere into an oven.

However... because this is ultimately an economy driven by social media... there is a built-in flexibility to accommodate the ever shifting desires of a collective human population, around the globe, who very much want life to become more fair and equatable... from the top of the ionosphere, to the street level, down to the bottom of the underground mine.

So if you accept that premise, as I do, then the collective AI acting as an auto-pilot for this economy... is a good thing... that will not become a bad thing down the road.

TLDR: Even if our modern economy is problematic, the self driving aspect does not damn it to remaining problematic forever, because the self driving aspect is designed to learn and change according to the collective will of all global consumers, rich and poor alike.

In fact, the poor, I would argue, have more leverage than the rich, because... well, they vastly outnumber the rich, for one thing... and they spend those pennies as fast as they get them... while the rich mostly sit on their piles of cash.

Those collective pennies from the 99% amount to far more money, pulsing through the veins of the economy on a daily basis... with the number of individual transactions being... what... in the quadrillions or something a day? 

When your self driving feature is a learning algorithm... it can only learn from a transaction.  

They literally look at your transaction history, to try and suggest more things you’re likely to be interested in, and if that leads to another transaction... bingo!  It has learned!

Far more of that is going on with low income consumers every day... than with the rich... who often try to launder their money and mask the few fat transactions they do make... leaving them out of that cyber learning loop.

Their fat cat financial decisions, more and more as time goes on, will be determined by the nuanced concerns of the 99%, who determine which investments are sound, and which are folly.

Alright!  So, lets get back to Donald Trump, noted racist and friend to the greedy... who is also batshit crazy.

He’s in power because of the first two things, but his tariff policy is all that third thing.  It’s not really racist or greedy.  The racists and the greedy never asked for any tariffs.  It’s truly just... batshit lunacy coming out of the cartoonish depths of his plaque ridden synaptic structures.

He heard somewhere that tariffs are a thing bossy presidents used to do, a hundred years ago, and then he heard some other lunatic on AM radio say they were some kind of a solution for white supremacy and... he just seized on that and now he will just never let it go.

As I said in the opening, this is the one kind of thing that could short circuit the self driving economy and cause it to crash like all other economies before it.

However, in the previous entry, I noted that thus far, the economic auto pilot has been doing a freakishly good job of just ignoring his inputs to the pedals and the steering wheel.

I say, “freakishly,” because the result has been huge stock market spikes one day, followed by huge dips the next... for a year now... with the net result that nothing much has changed, because the spikes and dips cancel each other out.

It’s terrifying to watch from one day and week to the next... but on the other hand... it’s been a whole year of this and... we’re still fine!

To be clear here, these are spikes and dips on a stock market chart... they are not spikes and dips in your or my bank balance... or in the prices for the things we buy... because they are happening waaaay to fast.

An apt analogy would be... I come into your living room and flip the lights on and off, fifty thousand times per second, for a whole hour.  Will you notice?

Well, considering that your alternating current cycles them on and off already at the rate of sixty thousand times per second (if you live in the US) no!   You will not fucking notice any change in the brightness of your lights in the living room.

Okay, yes!.. your light switch would break if I did that... possibly leaving you in the dark.  But your light switch is a mechanical component.

The switches and buttons Trump is exercising like mad every waking minute with his daily tweet storms and policy contortions... are all digital... powered by redundant servers all around the planet, sitting in air conditioned rooms, with surge protectors and back up generators.

So... simply overheating the self driving mechanisms our economy, by working them to death trying to compensate for an unending barrage of violent inputs... is not possible.

AI algorithms exist independent of any one server, drive, card, or chip... and the internet as a whole is built to withstand daily attacks from global electrical storms and natural disasters, solar storms, and a never ending assault on the power grid from the world’s squirrels.

So, the economy is quite safe from his day to day insanity.

The question is... is that self driving infrastructure clever enough to deal with the long term, artificial inflation that his tariffs will impose upon the system from the outside?

With the tariffs... Trump is side-stepping the computers entirely, and fucking with the underlying economic math itself!

That’s... what a tariff is!  

It’s a way for a leader to arbitrarily change the fundamental math that underpins the economy.

So the answer to the question... if the self driving economy can correct for such a root level attack... depends on how intelligent it actually is.

All of these learning algorithms, working in concert toward the one objective of maintaining and improving the circulation of money... are ALL black-box algorithms, as touched on in the previous entry.

It means... all of them have evolved to survive inside our internet jungle of multiple such species of AI... and while we do not know how any of them think or work... it’s a safe bet they will all work together to isolate and neutralize the same existential threat.

Now, that last paragraph echoes the two-parter on cyber sentience... specifically the fear of such destroying humanity in an act of self preservation... but that fear was fairly well resolved in that two-parter... and the echo to it here, is not intentional.

Instead... and now we are down to the grit of tonight’s entry... I believe it may just be possible that a self driving economy, such as our own, could actually posses, within the cryptic depths of it’s curious, collective mind... a primal awareness that all the, “off the chart,” alarms which have been plaguing it recently, are tied back to one single “agent” known as “President Trump.”

This would seem to make sense, given that the same collective of economic bots are able to identify random teenage girls who are pregnant, even before the girls know it themselves, and start marketing baby products to them.

Would it really be such a leap to imagine that a self driving economy, would not figure out that it was under attack by a worm, introduced through social media, that went by the name of “President Trump.” and... through trial and error... figure out how best to defend against this destructive parasite?

If so... then flashing the all powerful warning signal of an inverted yield curve last week, has proven to be very effective... rattling him to the core, and rattling his greedy enablers hard enough to start trotting out Republican primary challengers against him.

What this would amount to is nothing less than... a self driving car which is learning how to eject an abusive driver... even when the cops are giving that abusive driver a pass... without destroying itself... by turning that abusive driver’s friends against him... by threatening their lives.

And that’s pretty damn clever, if you ask me.

Of course, at this juncture you’re surely thinking, “all of this is has to be bullshit and the inverted yield curve was real!  That’s all there is to this!  The rest is just your own madness trying to get rid of Trump without suffering an economic downturn.”

And maybe you’re right.

But the larger theme of this blog IS... that we are living in very strange times... like nothing we’ve seen before.

And all of this is just an attempt to try and explain such insanity... by tying together the newest branches of established science, tech, and sociology... into a kind of braided rope to climb?

Okay, time for bed.

[dailycharacteroption]

Mythic Mania: Guardian part 2

Abilities

 So what exactly can a guardian do with their abilities? Today, we’ll do a quick run through the mythic powers of a guardian.

 Guardians can take a hit and keep on coming, and few places is this more apparent than the possible base abilities associated with them. The first of which allows them not only to absorb a powerful blow without being harmed, but also benefiting from enhanced resistance to all harm for a short while afterwards.

Others, particularly those with bestial or spiritual companions, can infuse them with incredible vigor, allowing them to move and strike with uncanny speed.

Those guardians that feel the need to protect others instead sometimes have the ability to enhance their defensive abilities to protect themselves or their charge, and imbue the attack’s recipient with the vigor to strike back with deadly accuracy.

Beyond that, guardians gain many abilities as they grow in mythic power. For example, some are just as hardened in mind as they are in body, becoming nearly unassailable, mentally.

Others develop more than one of the signature starting abilities associated with this path.

Disease can barely touch some guardians, who seem to never get sick or recover from such illness at an accelerated rate.

Armor becomes like a second skin to these warriors, allowing them to move flexibly, even in the heaviest armors. (This could actually be used for an arcane caster build that can wear heavy armor, though I can’t say I recommend it for all but the most martial classes.)

Others lend a bit of power to their armor itself, causing it to provide even more protection.

Where others see grievous wounds as a threat to their lives, some guardians only see it as an opportunity, striking back to unsettle their foe and upset their moment of triumph.

Using their bodies as living capacitors, some can turn the energy-based attack of their foes against them, using some of the energy from a past blow to empower their own strikes.

Unstoppable juggernauts, very few can stop a guardian on the charge, bursting past ally and foe alike to get to their target.

A guardian could be bypassed by projectile weapons, but through sheer force of will or their imposing nature, these warriors can prove the more tempting target.

While some guardians have healing powers from their profession, others get by through absorbing the wounds of others, taking harm into themselves to aid allies.

Only a fool would drop their guard in the reach of a guardian, for their reprisals are particularly accurate and deadly.

Drawing on mythic power, these protectors can close their wounds, regenerating all but the most grievous harm.

Every aspect of a guardian seems to scream protection, even literally screaming. A guardian’s call of warning rarely goes unheeded, giving others the opportunity to avoid harm.

Like the proverbial immovable object, guardians are very difficult to destabilize or move once they’ve planted their feet.

Certain guardians with a talent for tracking, will often develop the ability to track foes with a touch or strike, allowing them to read their abilities and hunt them, sensing their presence.

While they may not have the speed of others, guardians make up for it in endurance, able to travel even while tired, and without fatigue.

The spirit of these warriors is so powerful that effects that warp the form, appearance, or will, can be overcome with a surge of mythic force, shaking them off with a shout.

Stoicism breeds patience and thoughtfulness, and in their contemplation guardians can often remember all sorts of details about their foes, and use that information against them, even communicating  those details mentally to others.

Surviving also means learning, and guardians are rarely defenseless against similar monstrous abilities used in recent memory.

The amount these warriors can carry is truly exceptional, hauling massive amounts of weight around.

Oftentimes, the companions of a guardian also share in the mythic power they wield, able to perform daring deeds as well.

Guardian paladins and those who can lay on hands and perform mercies always succeed in healing afflictions caused by mundane forces, and they can even break supernatural curses with their touch as well.

Druidic guardians can channel their shapeshifting abilities, allowing entire groups to become beasts.

Additionally, other such druids can partially shapeshift, allowing them to benefit from both a bestial form and from humanoid traits as well.

It can take a lot to keep a guardian down, and various effects last for a much shorter amount of time for them.

It’s always a tragedy when an animal companion, mount, or familiar dies, but these guardians know rituals to make their beloved beasts live again.

A precise shot from afar can knock objects out of the hands of their foes, given the right skills.

The stoic and mighty guardians don’t take death as a final answer, and are able to use nearly any healing spell to quickly revive the recently deceased, assuming they make it in time.

Counterattacks are the bread and butter of most guardians, and none should underestimate their uncanny reach when striking back.

Rather than allow themselves to come to harm sometimes it is better for these guardians to transfer the brunt of a deadly blow to their shield, which some learn to do.

Linking their minds to a scent allows some guardians to better track a target, even divining its status.

The might of these warriors is so great that foes fleeing them or run down by them have little chance of actually escaping.

Their tenacity also allows them to hold on to foes who attempt to escape their grasp using teleportation, either holding them there, or following along with them.

With a powerful impact or sweeping strike, guardians can propel foes back from themselves.

Like mighty Antaeus, some guardians gain strength from the earth and can radiate it to allies, warding them with a durability that only adamantine can pierce.

Others are so durable that only truly epic weapons can pierce their hide.

They can then learn to share this with their animal companions and other such creatures.

A blocking parry can be a more active form of defense, and these warriors have an uncanny knack for it.

With incredible might, they can even toss massive stones and objects, and catch the same, almost like a giant.

With incredible skill and a bit of mythic reality-bending, guardians can learn to parry spells, deflecting magical projectiles harmlessly.

Sometimes an encounter requires their own personal touch, and these warriors learn to possess their companions to better guide their actions and utilize their mythic might.

Their companions can also shrug off blows that would give pause to lesser beasts.

Even mounting injuries cannot keep these warriors down, and they fight to their last breath.

They also learn the art of reversal, turning an opponent’s combat techniques against them.\

Some even seem to ignore the extraordinary conditions of the harshest planar realms and material locations, and extend that protection to others who stick close to them.

Powerful guardians seem to cling to life for minutes after falling, allowing them to be healed back to revivification.

Eventually, many companion-bearing guardians infuse their guardian with enough mythic power to grant them abilities of their own.

Few can pass a guardian unscathed, and they learn how to trip up foes that try to move past them.

Many guardians even become totally immune to certain conditions that would otherwise weaken them in various ways.

Truly becoming immovable, some guardians can exude a stance of raw indomitability, resisting nearly all harm for a short while as long as they do not move.

Sometimes, even when stakes are dire and ruination lies close at hand, these guardians come through, resisting effects that by rights they should have succumbed to.

Some guardians feel the need to protect others so greatly that distance nor is severity any barrier to them taking a blow for an ally.

The ultimate enemy is time, as they say, but some guardians learn how to resist it, going into a state of hibernation for extended periods in order to wait for a specific even to unfold.

Many can also absorb some of the damage that befalls their allies, reducing their injury

Debilitation is another common tool for undermining defensive warriors, but some guardians safeguard body, mind, or both, to better recover from such tactics.

Naturally, there are also some universal abilities that guardians benefit from greatly, such as display of constitution, and strength; Extra mythic power; Longevity; Mythic Spellcasting if you are playing a casting class; Mythic Sustenance; Enhanced Ability; Fearless; Pure Body; Pure Destiny; Pure Senses, all three for even more immunities; Sleepless; and Unchanging.

Finally, the most powerful guardians are just simply hard to kill, non-mythical foes finding their spells and attacks to be insufficient to bring them down.

 And that is it for the various guardian abilities from Mythic Adventures and other sources! Tomorrow we’ll look into what classes benefit the most from their power!

[nemesis-nexus]

Full Crow/Worm Moon HAIL MARDUK, Great Father and Original Earth Defender/Water Protector, HEAR US! Tonight we celebrate the Full Worm Moon which this year comes before the Vernal Equinox and the official Rebirth of the Planet! It is so called because this is the time of year when the worms are underground toiling away, aerating and tilling the soil, preparing the plant life and vegetation for the Grand Regeneration of Life! When the Season of Death is drawn to a close and the Earth once again begins to awaken from its hibernation, when the birds who flew South return North, the bears come out of their caves and all manner of Life resurges and the cacophony of and bustle of Nature is in full swing yet again! I would like to take a moment to touch down on something even more personal. Four years ago in January or 2013, I began Walking the Gates of the Necronomicon and I was told before I even started that the true "Initiation" of the Deities on the 'Ladder' would begin AFTER I finished, if I was permitted passage in the first place AND I chose to keep going until the end, which I did. First I want to acknowledge that the Necronomicon is a FICTITIOUS book and NOTHING in the story is legit EXCEPT the Enuma Elish which is part of the Magan Text, the Descent of INANNA into the Underworld to confront her sister ERESHKIGAL and the names of the Babylonian Deities mentioned. Everything else is just the work of a literary genius whose gift was such that people are STILL convinced that it is completely REAL! This is why I love HP LoveCraft's work, he truly was one in a million! The reason I wanted to mention my Walking is because the book, though fiction, is still a great tool to utilize for personal introspection because when you are Walking the Gates, you are NOT just ascending into the Astral, you are also DEscending into your own psyche or as Freud put it, your own Abyss (hence the Dark Night Of The Soul which is the time just before the Vernal Equinox we take a good hard look at ourselves and see what it is that we are doing or not doing that is hurting or helping us), to establish a deeper connection to that which is Within to that which is Without. This is absolutely necessary to do because we all accumulate various forms of energy all throughout the year and sometimes we don't realize that some of the things we are doing or not doing are actually not helping a situation no matter how pure our intentions may be! What makes my Walking more interesting (at least to me anyway) is that ISHTAR/INANNA is the third Deity on the 'Ladder' and she represents the Divine Feminine, Fertility, Birth/Rebirth, Female Strength, Honor, all the attributes of the Spring Season and her personal holiday during this month is Ostara, this is interesting because with everything that has gone on in the last year ESPECIALLY during the Seasons of Degeneration and Death (Autumn and Winter) the Earth is in DESPERATE need of a Rebirth that will reawaken not just Nature itself but each and EVERY Earth Defender and Water Protector! The Worm Moon is also called the Crow Moon and what are Crows most famous for? They are the Bridges between Death and Life! With all the negative energy that has accumulated even since just September through the end of November of 2016, it is no surprise that the SURGE of support for those who have and are Protecting the Water, People and Planet has EXPLODED, where there was once only DEATH there is now a great deal of LIFE charging forth and taking the lead - the Crow has taken flight and all those who feel their sense of duty are heeding its call to bring back the Balance between Death and Life, Chaos and Order! As Satanists it is our duty to uphold our Fathers Honor and to earn his Respect by taking our cue from him when the Qi is rendered Unbalanced and restoring it to its Balanced state! There are many who still think that Satanism is about constant Chaos, Death and Destruction and while all three are utilized by Nature itself to keep things circulating, WE are NOT one-dimensional Beings! We understand that Order, Life and Creation are equally important or else NOTHING can exist in ANY state! We do not revel in anguish or the suffering of others as some would have you believe nor do we wish to destroy the world as others would have you believe! Rather we are the ones who will make the tough calls and step up when things get rough, we also have no problem with getting our hands dirty if it is necessary to defend anyone we call Family, whether Blood or Spiritual, Human or Animal! Some Core Values of Satanism are: 1) ALWAYS stand against injustice no matter WHAT form it takes or who the aggressors are; it is easy enough to stand up to an enemy who poses a threat but it is EXCEEDINGLY difficult to do the same with a friend or family member because of the emotional ties and the fear of losing that connection. Be that as it may what must be the deciding factor is the greater good especially if it means exposing tyranny and corruption in a well established organization. 2) ALWAYS Honor your Family both Blood and Spiritual because "We are ONE even though we are MANY and we stand STRONGEST when we stand TOGETHER!" what that phrase means is that even though many of us consider ourselves to be strong individuals and loners, no man is an island. We all call on our Family (Human and/or Animal) for support when the chips are down and as such we should demonstrate the same regard for them as we would have them show us - at all times! 3) NEVER stop pursuing education and knowledge because the world is ever-changing and the only way to keep up with these changes is to never stop learning! Some of these changes will be good, some will be bad, the only way to know is to seek out the information ESPECIALLY the information they AREN'T telling you because that is always the most vital information which can change even the most stalwart persons mind if it is so persuasive or devastating that it needed to be hidden in the first place! 4) PHILANTHROPY is not just a buzzword, a true Satanist aids in the care and maintenance of their respective communities, lending a hand where it is needed because we live here too! This assistance should not be limited to our immediate areas as what is happening in other parts of the world may be happening THERE but that DOESN'T mean that it WON'T affect us sooner or later and even if it doesn't we should do what we can to lend a hand if we are able! All too often we see people on the street who are being passed by from people who call themselves "good" or "righteous", there has even in recent years been businesses putting up SPIKES to prevent the homeless from being able to sleep where it is warm! Apparently the so-called "righteousness" of these company owners disappears during business hours! It's quite nauseating! The Domestic Terrorism that has been used against Water Protectors by the so-called powers that be in all its forms is UNACCEPTABLE and as such many people the world over have risen in resistance and even though they could not be in the immediate areas where it was occurring, they STILL did what they could to send aid in the form of money and physical items as well as spiritual reinforcement! Philanthropy is necessary to keep fighting the good fight and to do what must be done at the time it needs doing for the sake of protecting the people and planet! The world is now realizing that the Divine Feminine needs to be honored as much as the Divine Masculine and that Life needs to be valued more than money or material wealth and as such it is going through yet another huge transition that may take years to come to full fruition, however as Rage Against The Machine stated in their song Guerilla Radio, "It has to start SOMEWHERE! It has to start SOMETIME! What better place than HERE? What better time than NOW?" That being said, we ALL need to rise up and resist TOGETHER and as such I am posting one of my favorite prayers to inspire all those who are willing to do what needs to be done to Protect and Defend our great Mother Earth and all those who dwell in, on, above and below the surface! For the women, it is reinforcement of YOUR power and wisdom, for the men it is representative of YOUR own ability to stand in solidarity with the women rather than being threatened by them which demonstrates your own strength of character and security in your masculinity that enables you to instead of reducing women to being the alleged "weaker sex" see them for what they truly are = EQUAL! We now more than ever MUST work together to restore the Balance to the Multiverse, failure to deprogram from all those false teachings of money is everything, that people are only worth as much as their bank statements dictate and trying to force absolute authority over other humans and nature itself demonstrates a person or groups prowess will only end in the utter destruction of the Human Race and quite possibly with a MYRIAD of "collateral damage" in the form of the extinction of many animal, plant and insect species! We MUST do what we can to slam on the brakes of the train that is trying to railroad us all to oblivion and put those wheels in reverse so that not only do OUR children and subsequent lineages have a future, but so all life forms that currently reside on this planet are also able to keep going! The Human Race needs to remember that we are neither above nor below the Natural Order of things, that we are all part of the Circle or Hoop of Life and as such we need to repair the broken links so that we can resume doing our part in keeping the Qi flowing rather than being the weakness that is disrupting it and making things that much harder for all life forms! The Human Race lets go of its own ego and remember WHY it is that we are able to do the things we are especially as far as Magic, Technology, Medicine, Travel and Science are concerned, we were given the ability to Master all these things BECAUSE we were always the Guardians and Protectors of the Planet and everything that comes with it! We are here to work with nature, not exalt ourselves above it, the sooner we remember ourselves, the better off we will be! We can start by making sure that all those who are causing the hate, pain, destruction and devastation are brought to Justice so that they may be dealt with them accordingly and we can then resume our duty as assigned by our INFALLIBLE Father Satan! AVE SATANI! Illustrious Lady ISHTAR Do Not Mistake Her Kindness For Weakness, She Will Prove You Wrong! Do Not Think That Anything You Do Escapes Her Eye, She Sees All! Do Not Think That You Can Commit Acts Of Aggression And Not Be Judged, Her Judgment Is Severe And She Is Not In The Habit Of Being Lenient! When The Drums Sound, Heeding The War Cry, She Emerges In Full Armor! When The Names Of Her Children Are Slandered, She Will Strike Down Their Detractors! When The Children Of Her Children Are Attacked, She Will Destroy The Guilty! When Those Who Instigate Are Relentless, She Will Drive Them Into The Ground! SHE Who Removed Every Piece Of Protection And Ascended To EGURRA! SHE Who Faced Her Sister ERESHKIGAL And Her Horde Of Demons! SHE Who Died And Rose Again To Retake Her Place On The Throne! SHE Who Does Not Back Down From Any Battle No Matter Who Engages! SHE Who Comes To The Aid Of All Her Children In Their Time Of Need! Lionhearted Lady Of The Battle, I Call To You From The Earth, I PRAY YOU HEAR ME! Gentle Spirit Of Divine Love, I Call To You From My Soul, I PRAY YOU HEAL ME! Triumphant Goddess Over The Netherworld, I Call To You From My Heart, LEND ME YOUR STRENGTH THAT I MAY DECIMATE ALL ENEMIES! You Who Are Most Loved By The Gods, You Defend Your Own With Your Life, SPREAD YOUR ARMS AND EMBRACE THOSE AFFECTED! You Who Fears Nothing And No One, Who Will Meet Any Threat Head On, BRING FORTH YOUR SWORD AND SHIELD! You Who Lets It Be Known That She Will Not Be Disrespected By Anyone, SMITE THOSE WHO ARROGANTLY CURSE THINE OWN AND SATANS NAME! You Who Are An Inspiration To All Those Who Have Had To Die So They Could Live, WE ARE ETERNAL FOR WE KNOW YOURS AND SATANS LOVE, HONOR AND PROTECTION! --- ZI ANA KANPA! ZI KIA KANPA! MAY THE DEAD RISE AND SMELL THE INSENCE! Etiamsi MULTA Et Nos UNUM Sumus Nos Sto Validus Ut Nos Sto Una! Semper Veritas, Semper Fideles, In Diabolus Nomen Nos Fides! AVE SATANÍ! (We Are ONE Even Though We Are MANY And We Stand STRONGEST When We Stand TOGETHER! Always TRUTHFUL, Always FAITHFUL, In Satan's Name We Trust! HAIL SATAN!) Ave URURU! Ave EA! Ave DIMUZI! Ave ININNI! Ave GILGAMESH! Ave ENKIDU! Ave TIAMAT! Ave ABSU! Ave MARDUK! Ave SARPANITUM! Ave SATANÍ! HAIL SATAN! HPS Meg "Nemesis Nexus" Prentiss

[leroyamyterry-blog]

Adidas unveils new 3D printed shoe

Marty owns the building, and after a successful career in real estate, he can afford to run the South Beach Music Exchange as he sees fit. She was like, "Is it just going to make me feel bad?" Which strikes me as a good question. We have fewer people entering the teaching profession, and nationally, we are losing half of our teachers in the first five years of their careers. "They're nice and easily adjustable. I couldn't be happier for him.". When we start talking, that's when stuff changes.. After a run, the iPod and tracker can be synced to iTunes and the Nike website to receive feedback and to chart progress. Originally YAA was only going to lose a few parking spaces, but because of eminent domain, they could have to relocate altogether. Ashley is also an adrenaline junkie. Even though costly, the material of the bag is long lasting and worth the price. Preferred by the old and young alike, running gives the body its necessary dose of cardio training, strengthens the muscles and best part, is absolutely free. He manages Salon's science, tech, economy and health coverage. Think that was one of the nicest compliments I ever received as a coach.. That's normal after everything that happened around Ney, the way in which he left, the way he abandoned us. In other words, a trademark is a distinguishing mark that one can readily associate to a person or business. THEN you have a valid argument.. These planners (or lack of) need to be held accountable (including those making the decisions Bligh, Campbell etc).. If you can hear your footsteps [while running], it's too loud.". We should have a conversation about the online misogyny of Gamergate, and game voice Cheap Fake Yeezys chats, as experienced by anyone who spends time in those online spaces.. The very nature of truck movement in traffic are causing problems for those behind. Due to it's characterful and prominent position in 1970 The Torridge was Grade II listed for historical importance. "Fantasy" is a pitch perfect fast slow jam, and "Miscommunication" sounds like a lovemaking soundtrack for androids. Like Kimber he relocated to the south, to be closer to the busiest racecourses, and lived in Kingston. In the end, these awards stand as a giant community effort. And that's what coordinator Matt Eberflus, who utilizes a rotational system up front, seems to have at his disposal. They were merely trying to prevent an underage sale. Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai had served as head of Afghanistan National Directorate of Security (NDS) intelligence agency since June 2016 but has come under intense pressure in recent months as violence across Afghanistan has surged. And just when you think the video reaches its crescendo by showing all those athletes actually achieving everything expected of them, professional athletes step in and step up and it all becomes epic.. Most businesses put all their app resources into the development of the app itself and don leave enough resources to effectively market the app, this is the biggest downfall of businesses who don realise that apps need to be marketed like any product the business puts out. A distance runner burns about 100 calories a mile. I raised my daughters in it, sending them to Sunday school and making sure they received their sacraments. That the brutal nature of the track trials in America. There aren't many farmers with goalposts in their front yards. Oh, hell yeah. What's On(Image: Adidas)Get the biggest What's On stories by emailSubscribe We will use your email address only for the purpose of sending you newsletters. Please see your email client for more information.. So up your style game this season and get hold of funky printed sneakers to steal the show.. These apps are:. Other high profile schools also have signed lucrative deals. For now though, Georgia will do.. He notes the "rusting industrial parks clinging like barnacles to the airport's west side." He gets a tour of Whitehaven and Brooks Road and learns about our ever expanding circle of sprawl and low end jobs.. On doit entraner nos clients, convaincre, par de la pdagogie et une forme d'vanglisation. "French 75" is a cocktail made from gin, Cointreau, champagne, and lemon juice, and has nothing whatsoever to do with potatoes. Two, I think people kind of when they watch Bernard, they just think because he moves a little slow, plays the game a little cheap yeezy shoes slower, he doesn look maybe as engaged as, I don know, say, a Carreno Busta or something. There's this myriad of jobs available, and communities like South Memphis need jobs.". (5 0). And we're so, so over it. Standard recipe development typically yields four servings. While audiences saw through some of them and ensured they bombed at the box office, others manged to recoup their investment.. Multimedia/Integrated Media: Bronze, Crdito y Caucin "Don Wait Until You See the Wolf Ears," Integrated Campaign. Don't worry, you're not being subjected to a cavity search, you're getting a bikini wax. Officers discovered cocaine on board with a potential street value of 20 million.(Image: National Crime Agency)The quantity found so far would have a wholesale value to criminals of around 8million, and a potential street value of 20million.National Crime Agency bosses estimate at least three times fake yeezys for kids that value will be found in total.Officers discovered numerous packages containing white powder, which had been distributed throughout the vessel.Border Force cutter HMC Protector boarded a sailing yacht named Sy Atrevido, approximately half a mile off the Welsh coast on Tuesday 27 August.

[courtneytincher]

Climate Change Could Turn Our National Parks Into Natural Disasters

Reetom Hazarika/GettyThis story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global collaboration of more than 220 news outlets to strengthen coverage of the climate story. At 10,000 feet above Maui, near the dormant Haleakala caldera, is a 90-year old plant. This silver sphere of leaves shaped like swords (aptly named silversword) has waited nearly a century for this one epic moment—sending up a nearly six foot, bright green stalk covered in 600 purple flowers.With this splendid crown resting on its aging head and its seeds scattered to the wind, it dies. That it made it this far is becoming rare for its kind, though being in Hawaii’s protected Haleakala National Park has helped it survive. With climate change now a global emergency, the national parks we love—along with their defining colors, animal life, and landscapes—are facing an irrevocable loss, becoming unintentional pentimentos bearing the evidence of our poor foresight and apathy.Silversword bushes (Argyroxiphium sandwicense) in Haleakala National Park, Maui Island, Hawaii.DeAgostini/GettyHawaii, for example, is home to 1,400 species, approximately 90 percent of them endemic to the region, according to the Division of Forestry and Wildlife. As small as the state is, it is home to 44 percent of the country’s “endangered and threatened plant species.” National parks like Haleakala are there to help protect many of these species.Early in the last century, climbers would scale Haleakala and rip the giant flower off the silversword to take it home and prove they made it to the top. While that type of direct vandalism is no longer permitted, other threats are proving less manageable. The plant’s future at Hawaii’s Haleakala National Park—like thousands of plants and animals in all national parks—depends largely on controlling climate change. In many cases, the very features after which parks are named are vanishing as a result of climate change. Glacier National Park is the namesake of the glaciers that are rapidly disappearing. Just a century ago, there were 150 glaciers in the park; today there are 25; and by 2030 the park could be free of active glaciers. Glacial melt is an annual, irreplaceable water source for life at Glacier, whose benefits trickle down to the park, allowing insects to thrive and a productive huckleberry crop that feeds the threatened population of grizzlies. Drier climates not only lead to glacial drought, it also leads to higher temperatures and more wildfires, like those that plagued the park last year.Similarly, Joshua trees at Joshua Tree National Park are facing their own uncertain future. As a species, Joshua trees have been around from the Pleistocene upwards of 2.5 million years ago, and are strong survivors. Joshua trees live an average of 150 years, though one in California is believed to be close to 1,000 years old. They are, however, no match for prolonged human activity. A study published in June from UC Riverside Center for Conservation Biology of Joshua trees at the park, concludes that if climate change continues as it is, the famous tree faces “an almost complete elimination of the species from the park by the end-of-century.” Earlier in the year during the government shutdown, the park made the news as vandals took advantage of it being unguarded and chopped several trees down. But even without direct threats like that happening every day, warmer weather and its subsequent drier soil leads to fewer seeds from the tree germinating. There are few places not affected strongly by warming temperatures. Yellowstone National Park and the Great Yellowstone area, for example, are increasingly experiencing warmer winters. The warmer temps not only lead to drier summers and more wildfires, they enable the mountain pine beetle to attack a recognizable feature of the park, the whitebark pine trees, leaving less of their nuts for the wildlife sustained by them. In Florida, Everglades National Park is the “largest subtropical wilderness in the United States,” protector of the mangroves, home to threatened species, and an important barrier against hurricanes. It too is seeing unprecedented change driven by human activity. (Building projects have meant the draining of its waters and altering the system that keeps the Everglades functioning.) On a larger scale, as the planet warms sea levels have risen and have increasingly pushed the freshwater-saltwater barrier inland in the Everglades, destroying marshes and causing mangroves to decline and retreat. Other parks are not only affected by warming weather, but also by a build-up of air pollution. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, for example, is one of the nearly 90 percent of national parks facing problems due to air pollution from the burning of coal in the region. Much of the blue haze in the mountains comes from natural sources, but air pollution has generated it’s own haze, increasing health risks and reducing visibility—with visibility, of course, being one of the leading reasons people visit the park. Over several decades, the Clean Air Act has helped to improve air quality and significantly reduce pollution there, but the Trump administration has taken aim at its regulations to weaken them, arguing that they hurt businesses. The window for shifting these changes in the planet’s climate is either closed or closing—depending on the disaster scenario of the future that turns out to be most accurate. Scientific predictions of the future are not heart-warming. A study from last year, for example, shows that sea level rise and storm surges are threatening national parks as “approximately one-fourth of all National Park Service sites are situated on or near the coast.” Another report from the U.N. in May shows that 1 million species are threatened with extinction—with a large portion only just decades away. Studies like these have pushed many countries to feel a sense of urgency in handling climate change. On Sept. 23, for example, the U.N. convenes its Climate Action Summit in New York. We are, it seems, reaching a type of inflection point, where the ease with which hurricanes can rise to a Category 5 and leave islands in complete devastation is hard to ignore and where a younger generation of leaders, like 16-year old Greta Thunberg, are calling everyone, including adults, to step up. (Having sailed on an emissions-free yacht across the Atlantic Ocean to speak at the Action Summit, Thunberg is herself a force of nature.)While many nations have set out to keep the ball rolling on fighting climate change, the U.S. continues its trek backward to the outmoded thinking that helped create this mess, favoring industry profits now over long-term thinking. America is a wealthy country, as President Trump recently noted, adding, “I’m not going to lose that wealth, I’m not going to lose it on dreams, on windmills, which frankly aren’t working too well.” It’s a conviction he’s backed by abandoning the Paris Agreement, weakening the Endangered Species Act and regulations on methane gas last month, and reducing the power of the Clean Air Act. A recent analysis from the New York Times of the administration shows over 80 environmental rules being rolled back.And the president is partially correct. America’s not going to lose that wealth on windmills, rather it will lose it on short-sighted and greedy decisions by its leadership. That will tear apart the very land we claim to cherish and one of our best assets. As historian Walter Stegner once said, the national parks are America’s “best idea,” but as it stands now, we may one day be grieving them as America’s greatest loss. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines

Reetom Hazarika/GettyThis story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global collaboration of more than 220 news outlets to strengthen coverage of the climate story. At 10,000 feet above Maui, near the dormant Haleakala caldera, is a 90-year old plant. This silver sphere of leaves shaped like swords (aptly named silversword) has waited nearly a century for this one epic moment—sending up a nearly six foot, bright green stalk covered in 600 purple flowers.With this splendid crown resting on its aging head and its seeds scattered to the wind, it dies. That it made it this far is becoming rare for its kind, though being in Hawaii’s protected Haleakala National Park has helped it survive. With climate change now a global emergency, the national parks we love—along with their defining colors, animal life, and landscapes—are facing an irrevocable loss, becoming unintentional pentimentos bearing the evidence of our poor foresight and apathy.Silversword bushes (Argyroxiphium sandwicense) in Haleakala National Park, Maui Island, Hawaii.DeAgostini/GettyHawaii, for example, is home to 1,400 species, approximately 90 percent of them endemic to the region, according to the Division of Forestry and Wildlife. As small as the state is, it is home to 44 percent of the country’s “endangered and threatened plant species.” National parks like Haleakala are there to help protect many of these species.Early in the last century, climbers would scale Haleakala and rip the giant flower off the silversword to take it home and prove they made it to the top. While that type of direct vandalism is no longer permitted, other threats are proving less manageable. The plant’s future at Hawaii’s Haleakala National Park—like thousands of plants and animals in all national parks—depends largely on controlling climate change. In many cases, the very features after which parks are named are vanishing as a result of climate change. Glacier National Park is the namesake of the glaciers that are rapidly disappearing. Just a century ago, there were 150 glaciers in the park; today there are 25; and by 2030 the park could be free of active glaciers. Glacial melt is an annual, irreplaceable water source for life at Glacier, whose benefits trickle down to the park, allowing insects to thrive and a productive huckleberry crop that feeds the threatened population of grizzlies. Drier climates not only lead to glacial drought, it also leads to higher temperatures and more wildfires, like those that plagued the park last year.Similarly, Joshua trees at Joshua Tree National Park are facing their own uncertain future. As a species, Joshua trees have been around from the Pleistocene upwards of 2.5 million years ago, and are strong survivors. Joshua trees live an average of 150 years, though one in California is believed to be close to 1,000 years old. They are, however, no match for prolonged human activity. A study published in June from UC Riverside Center for Conservation Biology of Joshua trees at the park, concludes that if climate change continues as it is, the famous tree faces “an almost complete elimination of the species from the park by the end-of-century.” Earlier in the year during the government shutdown, the park made the news as vandals took advantage of it being unguarded and chopped several trees down. But even without direct threats like that happening every day, warmer weather and its subsequent drier soil leads to fewer seeds from the tree germinating. There are few places not affected strongly by warming temperatures. Yellowstone National Park and the Great Yellowstone area, for example, are increasingly experiencing warmer winters. The warmer temps not only lead to drier summers and more wildfires, they enable the mountain pine beetle to attack a recognizable feature of the park, the whitebark pine trees, leaving less of their nuts for the wildlife sustained by them. In Florida, Everglades National Park is the “largest subtropical wilderness in the United States,” protector of the mangroves, home to threatened species, and an important barrier against hurricanes. It too is seeing unprecedented change driven by human activity. (Building projects have meant the draining of its waters and altering the system that keeps the Everglades functioning.) On a larger scale, as the planet warms sea levels have risen and have increasingly pushed the freshwater-saltwater barrier inland in the Everglades, destroying marshes and causing mangroves to decline and retreat. Other parks are not only affected by warming weather, but also by a build-up of air pollution. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, for example, is one of the nearly 90 percent of national parks facing problems due to air pollution from the burning of coal in the region. Much of the blue haze in the mountains comes from natural sources, but air pollution has generated it’s own haze, increasing health risks and reducing visibility—with visibility, of course, being one of the leading reasons people visit the park. Over several decades, the Clean Air Act has helped to improve air quality and significantly reduce pollution there, but the Trump administration has taken aim at its regulations to weaken them, arguing that they hurt businesses. The window for shifting these changes in the planet’s climate is either closed or closing—depending on the disaster scenario of the future that turns out to be most accurate. Scientific predictions of the future are not heart-warming. A study from last year, for example, shows that sea level rise and storm surges are threatening national parks as “approximately one-fourth of all National Park Service sites are situated on or near the coast.” Another report from the U.N. in May shows that 1 million species are threatened with extinction—with a large portion only just decades away. Studies like these have pushed many countries to feel a sense of urgency in handling climate change. On Sept. 23, for example, the U.N. convenes its Climate Action Summit in New York. We are, it seems, reaching a type of inflection point, where the ease with which hurricanes can rise to a Category 5 and leave islands in complete devastation is hard to ignore and where a younger generation of leaders, like 16-year old Greta Thunberg, are calling everyone, including adults, to step up. (Having sailed on an emissions-free yacht across the Atlantic Ocean to speak at the Action Summit, Thunberg is herself a force of nature.)While many nations have set out to keep the ball rolling on fighting climate change, the U.S. continues its trek backward to the outmoded thinking that helped create this mess, favoring industry profits now over long-term thinking. America is a wealthy country, as President Trump recently noted, adding, “I’m not going to lose that wealth, I’m not going to lose it on dreams, on windmills, which frankly aren’t working too well.” It’s a conviction he’s backed by abandoning the Paris Agreement, weakening the Endangered Species Act and regulations on methane gas last month, and reducing the power of the Clean Air Act. A recent analysis from the New York Times of the administration shows over 80 environmental rules being rolled back.And the president is partially correct. America’s not going to lose that wealth on windmills, rather it will lose it on short-sighted and greedy decisions by its leadership. That will tear apart the very land we claim to cherish and one of our best assets. As historian Walter Stegner once said, the national parks are America’s “best idea,” but as it stands now, we may one day be grieving them as America’s greatest loss. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

September 20, 2019 at 09:45AM via IFTTT

[fifacoinszone]

FIFA 20's Volta Mode is Adequate to Be Its Very Own Game

There's a great deal to Volta, FIFA 20's new road soccer mode. Instead of a coincidental sideshow to the primary game, it's really numerous disconnected and internet game styles and a full story battle, folded into a firm and charming bundle.

 Off the bat, there are three principle game styles, which will be commonplace to anybody that is kicked a ball around with companions. You can play with surge guardians (a term for having no characterized goalkeeper) in groups of three or four. This style has minor objectives and scarcely any principles separated from speedy free kicks for explicit fouls. At that point there's road with attendants, which uses bigger futsal objectives and committed managers, however is also light on standards. The last style is futsal, which plays as you'd expect in the event that you've at any point watched it: Five-a-side with attendants, kick-ons and corners, on-the-fly substitutions, gathered fouls prompting punishments and a real official who will hand out yellow and red cards. The majority of the modes jettison the stamina, weariness and damage frameworks of the standard game.

 Inside those game styles, however, is an assortment of alternatives. The greatest changes you can make are to the field you're playing in: There are three pitch sizes to browse, an assortment of playing surfaces and the choice to turn dividers off or on. I didn't get the opportunity to attempt the majority of the many accessible blends in my concise session, yet I played enough to realize that I'm going to cherish Volta.

 I had some good times playing three-on-three surge guardians in the littler, walled fields. In a run of the mill FIFA game, my pizazz level is more Burnley than Brazil, yet inside 20 minutes or so I was beginning to get the hang of the nuances of Volta. You can get a portion of the route with FIFA essentials - tight passing, coaxing players out of position, through balls and so forth - yet as the trouble increase, your needs will begin to move. There's an accentuation on tight control, energy and utilizing your condition to play your way into the adversary's objective.

 There are a great deal of pre-modified energy moves available to you, however I got myself all the more regularly utilizing standard FIFA going in new ways. For instance, in one game my symbol was caught in his own corner with a safeguard on his back, so I had him play a go off the divider before him, turn the protector and snatch the free ball before playing a basic go to his partner, who at that point heaved the ball forward, skipping it off the divider over the objective for my symbol to take advantage of the net. This entire assault took five seconds or somewhere in the vicinity, and brought about one of the five objectives I expected to win the match.

 In a normal round of FIFA, you have snapshots of brightness where you leave a rival for dead, acquiring something worth more at that time than any objective. Volta is a steady string of those minutes. It's quicker and increasingly liquid that FIFA Street at any point was, and first-to-five matches can practically last not exactly a moment, in spite of the fact that at world-class trouble mine normally kept going three or four.

 As you'd expect, you can bounce into a standard single-or multi-player Volta coordinate from the menu, with your group made out of built up players from the FIFA list. There's additionally Volta Tour, in which you play against the PC controlling other genuine players' groups, and Volta League, which works a ton like Online Seasons in customary FIFA. The huge draw, however, is Volta Story.

 Volta Story is, as the name recommends, a story mode that replaces The Journey set of three, which finished with FIFA 19. Instead of giving you a prebuilt Alex-Hunter-style character, Volta gives you a chance to structure your own symbol. You can pick from male and female sexual orientation choices, and there are a lot of customization choices after that. The subsequent characters won't watch strange remaining beside the 3D-checked Premier League or La Liga stars you'll discover somewhere else in the game.

 The story starts with your symbol joining a road soccer group, loaded up with what appear genuinely one-dimensional characters. Maybe they'll be more fleshed out sometime later, however those I met can generally be depicted as "neighborly veteran," "mysteriously frightful scoundrel," "clout chaser" and "stock foundation character." Either way, soon after I met everybody, there was some devised dramatization that brought about the greater part of them forsaking the group, leaving my symbol and the clout chaser to go only it in an up and coming competition.

 The story mode covers the majority of the different game and pitch styles of Volta, and each match you contend in step up your character's characteristics. There's even a RPG-style aptitude tree, which makes them progress in the direction of ability in one region - i.e., completing or spilling - or winding up to a greater degree a generalist.

 Subsequent to beating a group, you're ready to enroll one of their players to your team, and work out your squad toward whatever path you need. After some time, you'll have the option to enroll genuine road soccer stars to go along with you. Volta additionally obtains one of the all the more fascinating mechanics of the fiercely fruitful FIFA Ultimate Team - science between players - and incorporates that into squad building.

 In spite of the fact that the story didn't generally go anyplace in the principal hour - the nearest it got to stating anything essentially came down to "sexism is terrible" - the idea of the road game makes the contentions, garbage talking and general show feel more normal than it did in The Journey. The introduction is additionally fun and more powerful than in vanilla FIFA. One pleasant prosper was seeing my celebratory divider flip rendered as vertical video on an observer's telephone, as opposed to simply caught by communicate style cameras.

 Volta Story, at that point, is a mix of FIFA Street, The Journey and FUT. That is an incredible exercise in careful control, and I can't state how well EA has pulled it off after one brief session. Seeing the engineers take a stab at something else with their verifiably steady arrangement, however, is reviving.

 There's a touch of a progressing joke with EA's long-running establishments, where the organization consistently guarantees the most recent cycle is "the best ever." This time strikes genuine. With the normal changes to customary ongoing interaction, the long-past due profession mode changes and this new road soccer mode, FIFA 20 feels like a tremendous overhaul more than 19. Truth be told, if Volta had been exhibited to me as an independent game, I'd most likely be pre-requesting it now. As a "free" expansion to the game I thus numerous others purchase each year at any rate, it's hard to see fans not adoring it.

More FIFA 20 tips can be learned from FIFACOIN.com, FIFA 20 Coins UK also can be Pre-Ordered there, up to 20% off big bonus prepare for you, enjoy your game!

[paixaoporvencer-blog]

The Very Best Secrets and techniques About Mobile Phones Are Your own To Learn

Are you presently considering understanding the most recent mobile phone technologies? It appears as though each day a new challenge has been trotted out on earth of cellular phones. With all of this new modern technology it can be time-consuming attempting to physique all of it out. Don't worry, this is why these post was composed. Please read on for sound cell phone modern technology suggestions that anyone can use.

Please visit: Curso Conserto de Celular

Will not utilize a display protector on your phone. These might look like a useful investment at first while they will minimize the quantity of glare that you have through the day, but will also decrease the visibility in your phone. Air flow bubbles will likely outcome should you not place them on appropriately.

Beware of locations with very poor cell phone wedding party. An unsatisfactory indicate is not only irritating, it is also a true strain in your electric battery. Even if you're not using your mobile phone, experiencing it excited within an area that receives inadequate cell phone party can strain your electric battery fully.

Do you know that battery in your cellphone has some set aside power? If you find that your cellular phone battery power is lifeless, and you have no chance to cost it, enter into the USSD "*3370#". You will observe up to and including 50Per cent surge in energy. This reserve strength will cost next time you cost your cell phone.

Very carefully think about getting an extended guarantee. Extensive extended warranties normally will not be worthy of purchasing. If they are likely to take place, issues with a cellphone will likely show up inside the 1st year whilst the fundamental warranty continues to be ultimately. As well as, many individuals select new mobile devices each year, and so the prolonged guarantee is then certainly not really worth your time and effort.

If you are searching to change your cellular phone and also you are informed you need to shell out a huge charge, you should try to discuss. Companies usually do not desire to shed important customers, so they can be willing to waive this. Regardless of whether they claim no, it will not hurt to inquire about.

Should you be a newcomer to everyone of cellular phones, it really does shell out to carry out a truthful evaluation of your requires. Not every person requires or wants to use their telephone as being a a little-computer, and thus many could possibly get by with a more simple system. Focusing on your real needs will save you plenty of cash and hassle.

Maintenance

Before you decide to deem your cell phone dead, speak to someone at a telephone or pc mechanic shop. Many times mobile phones could be fixed for less expensive than changing them. Find a neighborhood shop in your neighborhood, or discover how to correct your cell phone your self and you can save a ton of money.

As you can tell through the previously mentioned article, knowing cell phones and just how they function is genuine simple in case you have sound advice to follow. Stick to what you learned in this article, and use it any time you looking for a quality cellular phone. You don't need to be fearful of this technology any more, and now you have very good ways to stick to.

Please visit: Curso Conserto de Celular

[buddyrabrahams]

Early favorite to win every major conference in college basketball

The turn of the calendars to a new year can mean only one thing for college basketball: Conference play is here!

The first two months of non-conference play can feel like the first quarter of a thoroughbred race. Jockeys move, shake, and jostle for positioning, but no mistake can truly cost a potential champion of their chance to win down the stretch. Teams from across the country play games that matter on their resumes but feature teams that will look and play differently than those we’ll be watching in March. True freshmen can look lost or unpolished. Veterans can dominate. Sleepy arenas in ignored holiday tournaments can lead to puzzling results.

Conference play, however, is here to save the day. Now we get to see packed student-sections (once all students return from winter break) and the rivalries we know and love. This is when college basketball hits its stride and we can really begin to assess every team on a familiar playing field.

Here, then, is the early front-runner for each power conference championship:

ACC – Duke

The Blue Devils are unquestionably the most talented team in the conference, but Duke’s schedule isn’t without its fair share of challenges. Coach K’s squad will play five road games against the KenPom Top 50, including three games against teams in the KenPom Top 10.

Virginia, though still undefeated this season, arguably has a tougher slate through conference play. The Cavaliers have six road games against top 50 competition still to come. Virginia and Duke are scheduled for a home-and-home that could provide the inside track to the regular season conference championship. Those two games will feature a radical clash in styles, with the Hoos forcing Duke to play at a slower pace. If Duke’s athletes are still able to force the issue in the halfcourt and use their speed and size to maximize their scoring chances, the Blue Devils can be successful against Virginia. If the Cavaliers can force RJ Barrett and Zion Williamson to settle for jump shots, they’ll have a tougher time in Charlottesville.

North Carolina will remain part of the race to the top of the conference as well if Coby White continues to play like an All-American. Of the three teams, Carolina has looked the most like a work in progress, but also sports the best win of any ACC club, as they handled Gonzaga fairly easily.

In the end, Duke’s top-level talent likely comes out on top. Even if they drop a game to UNC or UVA, the Blue Devils stars make them less susceptible to losing any other unexpected games in conference.

Big East – Marquette

For the first time in recent memory, the Big East is wide open. Even when Xavier has challenged Villanova in the last few seasons (and won the regular season crown last year), the Wildcats had distanced themselves from the middle of the pack. The third-place team in Big East play hasn’t finished within four games of the league leader since the conference realigned in 2013.

This season, there are no fewer than six teams capable of finishing the year atop the standings. Villanova has clearly taken a step back, but still is plenty capable of finding its way in time to win the conference. St. John’s is 13-1, having looked strong against a questionable non-conference schedule. Creighton, Butler, Xavier, and even DePaul will be competitive this season. Top to bottom, the league will feature great games all season long.

Marquette gets the nod as the early favorite thanks to the balance through its roster. The Hauser brothers make for a sturdy frontcourt, capable of controlling the glass. Theo John is a dominant rim protector off the bench for the Golden Eagles, while Joseph Chartouny adds a shooting touch on the outside.

Everything Marquette looks to accomplish, however, is driven by Markus Howard. The 5-foot-11 junior guard might be the best shooter in college basketball. He’s made 45 percent of the 500-plus long-range attempts in his college career, while missing just 22 of the 266 free throws he’s attempted. No player in the Big East can get hot as quickly as Howard, which he proved by scoring 40 points against Buffalo in the second half!

Even though Marquette lost its Big East opener at St. John’s, the Golden Eagles are best positioned to be the top seed at Madison Square Garden this March.

Big Ten – Michigan

It’s never easy to pick against Michigan State in the Big Ten, especially when this year’s Spartans have lost just twice, to Louisville in overtime and Kansas. It would take an elite team to not only challenge Sparty, but to have a leg up on Tom Izzo and company.

Down the road in Ann Arbor, Michigan is that kind of special elite team. Defensively, Michigan has been among the country’s best teams. The Wolverines are forcing opponents to score the 4th-highest percentage of points on 2-point baskets, while also allowing the 6th-worst shooting percentage inside the arc. Michigan funnels teams away from efficient scoring chances and right into difficult shots. It has worked like a charm, thanks in part to the teaching of de-facto defensive coordinator Luke Yaklich. Since his addition to the coaching staff last season, Michigan has leaped into the top tier of defensive scheming programs in college basketball.

Offensively, John Beilein once again has his players running a pitch perfect motion system. While playing a slow pace, the Wolverines have committed the fourth-fewest turnovers in the nation. No team but Michigan in college basketball has had the ball stolen on fewer than five percent of their possessions.

Without extraordinary star power or overwhelming athleticism, Michigan is outsmarting and outworking every opponent they meet on the court. They look like a contender for both the Big Ten crown and the national championship.

Big XII – Kansas

If you want to pick anyone but Kansas, go ahead. I’ve considered it in past years or gotten my hopes about other contenders. Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me fourteen years in a row, well, welcome to Kansas’ dominance of the Big XII. The Jayhawks have at least shared the league title each of the last fourteen years, a stat you can’t avoid when watching any Kansas game. You hear less often that the Jayhawks haven’t even shared the title since 2013. This year would make six straight outright conference championships.

There’s certainly no reason to doubt that this is the Kansas team to let the streak die. Dedric Lawson has been a steady double-double machine. Devon Dotson is a joy to watch streak up and down the court. Udoka Azubuike is a monster in the paint. Lagerald Vick would like to have a word with me about me calling someone else the best shooter in college basketball a few paragraphs ago.

Even when five-star recruit Quentin Grimes got off to a slow start, Kansas was the clear favorite in the conference. Grimes was scoring just 7.4 points per game and shooting under 40 percent from the floor before Christmas. In Kansas’ last two games, the freshman has averaged 15 points per game and hasn’t missed a 2-point attempt.

Even though Texas Tech looks like an elite defensive team, if Grimes can get his game rolling, Kansas not only will win the conference, but will do so easily.

SEC – Tennessee

A team like the Vols loses a lot of cache when they fall from the ranks of the unbeaten. If Tennessee were still undefeated, they’d have a chance at the top spot in the polls and be atop the minds of everyone discussing the nation’s best. Even with one loss, they’ve become somewhat of an afterthought among teams ranked in the AP Top Ten. Their only loss to date came to Kansas, in overtime, in a game played in Kansas City.

Grant Williams has a real chance to repeat as SEC Player of the Year, and the rest of the Vols perfectly complement his game. Best of all, Tennessee is a hard-working team that will make any team fight for 40 minutes. Defending and battling the likes of Williams and Admiral Schofield wears teams down like a smashmouth running game in football. By late in the second half, the Vols punish tired teams around the rim.

Pac-12 – Arizona State

Earlier this week, this pick may have been debatable. Then we learned that Bol Bol would miss the rest of the season with an injury, severely damaging Oregon’s chances to challenge the Sun Devils.

Now the rest of the Pac-12 will chase Bobby Hurley’s squad like a roving pack of zombies after the conference had a dismal collective non-conference performance. UCLA grabbed the headlines with a four-game losing streak and by firing its coach, but the rest of the middle and back of the conference has been just as ugly. Arizona has four losses and narrowly avoided disaster in its last game before the holidays, beating UC Davis by just two at home.

Colorado lost back-to-back games to Indiana State and Hawaii. Oregon State lost to Kent State. Washington State has losses to Seattle, Montana State, New Mexico State (twice!), and Santa Clara. USC also lost to Santa Clara, Utah also lost to Hawaii, and Cal also lost to Seattle. For a power conference to have not just one-off losses to lowly programs, but multiple teams losing games to the same mediocre mid-majors, is embarrassing.

Collectively, the entire conference is just 5-26 versus the KenPom Top 50, and three of those wins are Arizona State’s. The other 11 schools have combined for a .074 winning percentage versus top 50 competition.

Touting Arizona State as the early favorite should have been more about the Sun Devils’ positive qualities, yet winning the Pac-12 this year looks like a low bar. If the Sun Devils can’t surge to a decisive lead in the standings, there will be no team in the league that will look capable of a run in March. That surge got a bit harder after Arizona State stumbled and lost to Utah at home to open conference play. If the Sun Devils can’t bounce back, the Pac-12 may be in serious danger of being a one-bid conference on Selection Sunday, for the first time since 1978 when the conference had just eight schools.

Shane McNichol covers college basketball and the NBA for Larry Brown Sports. He also blogs about basketball at Palestra Back and has contributed to Rush The Court, ESPN.com, and USA Today Sports Weekly. Follow him on Twitter @OnTheShaneTrain.

from Larry Brown Sports http://bit.ly/2Qn5T8H

[gethealthy18-blog]

2018 Ultimate Holiday Gift Giving Guide (For Everyone on Your List!)

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2018 Ultimate Holiday Gift Giving Guide (For Everyone on Your List!)

I don’t know about you, but this time of year can be a little hectic for me! With Thanksgiving, Christmas, and several family birthdays, there is a lot to plan and a lot of gifts to wrap. We try to stick to experiences instead of stuff as much as possible (here are some of my best ideas), especially with our own kids, but also usually give one physical gift per family member.

Also, for extended family and close friends that we don’t live close enough to share experiences with, we send small gifts as well. I know it seems early, but I try to get my shopping done now so that I can savor and enjoy the holidays while knowing gifts are already wrapped!

This holiday gift guide is a compilation of the best gifts we’ve ever received and the ones that are favorites to give. As much as possible, all these gifts are eco-friendly and limit plastic whenever possible. They are also natural, organic, and health-promoting.

My Natural + Eco-Friendly Gift Giving Guide!

I’ve included my favorite gifts for every member of the family, age group, and interest level, so keep scrolling if you need ideas for a specific family member. They go in rough age order (adults down to babies) and then special interest gift ideas are below that (for the chef, the grandparents, white elephant gifts, etc).

Important: Please note that many of the links in this guide are affiliate links. This means that if you purchase through these links, the price will be the same for you and I’ll receive a small commission that helps support my blog and my family. Many thanks!

Gifts for Mom (That She Won’t Just Pretend She Loves)

As a kid, we always got my mom new kitchen gear and equipment as gifts. I remember feeling a little guilty because my brother and I got toys and fun gifts, and I always thought she got the short end of the stick just getting kitchen items that she used for us. Then, I became a mom myself and developed a love for cooking, and now I get just as excited about new kitchen essentials. This list includes some of the best practical gifts for moms, as well as some pampering and relaxing ones!

Amazon Prime Membership – Get free 2-day shipping on many items, plus free streaming music and movies.

or Real Plans Membership – My biggest time saver – this plans all of my meals and shopping lists and can handle allergies, bulk prep day and more!

Shiatsu Massage Pillow – Seriously rivals an actual massage for half the price!

Hydroflask Water Bottle – The water bottle I use that keeps water cool (or hot) for days!

Complete Facial Kit – Amazing facial oil with the highest quality ingredients and no junk!

RTIC Tumbler – Great for hot or cold drinks.

Wake-up Light Gentle Alarm Clock – Wake up gently to gradual light and sound

Himalayan Salt Lamp – Soothing warm orange glow at night from these beautiful lamps.

Blue Blocker Glasses – I wear these after dark for better sleep (some studies show that avoiding blue light after dark helps melatonin levels).

Sleep Master Sleep Mask – Great for travel – a sleep mask that is actually comfortable!

10,000 Lux Happy Light – Feel blue in the winter? I use this super-bright light to keep my cortisol levels healthy.

Anything Le Creuset – Incredible (but pricey) dishes. I’ve been collecting a few pieces over the years and resisting the urge to buy it all!

Microwaveable Slippers – Does someone you love always get cold? These slippers have microwaveable pads that stay warm.

Dry Brush – Brushing isn’t just for hair and teeth. Brushing skin can help it stay smooth, supple, and may improve collagen.

Low EMF Hair Dryer – Did you know that hairdryers produce a lot of EMFs?

French Press Coffee Maker – Make wonderful coffee with this classic method.

Instant Pot – Revolutionize dinner! This electric pressure cooker makes roasts in about an hour and turns tough cuts of meat into deliciously tender meals.

Grown-up Coloring Book and Markers – Coloring isn’t for kids anymore and studies show it may reduce stress levels. Try a “grown-up coloring book.”

Kokomo Cream Organic Deodorant – This natural deodorant smells like the tropics and lasts for months.

A good book – Just off the top of my head… maybe The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox or The Wellness Mama Cookbook? �� Ok, I’m biased, but it’s a great way to have all of the best recipes and health hacks on the site at your fingertips.

Blackout Curtains – Even a little light can interfere with sleep quality. We use blackout curtains to keep our room really dark.

Wine Bottle Tiki Torch – Upcycle old wine bottles with these adorable tiki-torch kits.

Gifts for Dad (No Ties or PJs on This List)

I’ve always had the most difficult time finding good gifts for the men in my life, especially my husband. He has incredibly high standards for products and prefers really high-quality items that last forever. These have been some of his favorite gifts in recent years and they might be perfect for the guys on your list too. (Also, check the lists below for more specific ideas for dads who travel a lot or who love the outdoors!)

Magnetic Wrist Band – Holds nails and screws for the handyman!

Fire Starter Kit – Useful tool to start fires without matches or a lighter.

Blue Blocking Glasses -These glasses help reduce eye fatigue from computers and reduce blue light for better sleep.

Lifestraw or Sawyer Water Filter – Survival water filter that fits in your pocket.

Comfy Slippers – My husband loves these slippers he got a couple of years ago.

Heat Proof BBQ Gloves – For the man who likes to grill, these gloves will protect his hands.

Smart Wool Socks – Warm but not sweaty and they keep feet dry. Great for hiking or everyday use.

Surefire Flashlight – High quality and super bright pocket flashlight.

Wine Aerator – Pour wine through this to improve flavor.

30-day Lantern for Camping – A really long lasting lantern for the outdoorsman who loves to camp.

Esse 3 Knife – Really high-quality multi-use knife.

Saddleback Leather Wallet – This wallet has a 100-year warranty!! (yes, really!)

Quality Shaving Kit OR Beard Oil– Great options for the clean-shaven or bearded man in your life!

RTIC Insulated Tumbler – This insulated large mug keeps things cold for up to 24 hours and hot for up to 12.

Hydroflask Insulated Water Bottle – Insulated water bottle that keeps water cold for days.

Backjoy Seat – Does your guy sit a lot? This may help improve posture and alleviate tension in the back.

Defender Phone Case or Tablet Case – Protect him from EMFs when using electronics.

Tactical Pen – More than just a pen, it works in all conditions and can break a car window if a person is trapped.

ENO Hammock – Portable hammock that fits in a small bag and is great for travel and camping.

Tactical Backpack – For the outdoorsman, this bag holds everything he could need.

Tool Pen – Available in hex and mini-tools for easy use.

Whiskey Stones – Freeze these rocks to use in place of ice in drinks “on the rocks.”

Gifts for Older Kids & Teens

My older kids have gotten harder to shop for, but these gifts all got their seal of approval!

Buddha Board – A relaxing way to paint with just water (it evaporates and you can paint again).

Leather Journal – A beautiful leather journal for sketching or journaling.

Japanese Puzzle Box – These beautiful puzzle boxes are a unique way for older kids to keep valuable items safe and fun to learn.

Rubix Cube (or Giant Rubix Cube) – The 1980s called, but we told it we are keeping the Rubix Cube. Older kids love learning to solve this.

Star Wars Legos – Popular among big kids and teens with dozens to choose from.

Build Your Own Programmable Robot Kit – A favorite with my oldest. Build a robot and program it!

Grown-Up Coloring Books – Coloring isn’t just for little kids anymore. These “adult coloring books” are very detailed and studies show that coloring is relaxing.

Boogie Board – Reusable board that encourages doodling and drawing.

Kindle Fire – An affordable tablet with a lot of capabilities.

Runaway Alarm Clock – Does your teen have trouble waking up? This alarm clock runs away and keeps making noise until caught!

Natural Makeup Brushes – If your teen is old enough to wear makeup, these natural brushes are great!

Power Cube Wall Adapter – Surge protector and charges multiple devices at once.

Collapsible Duffel Bag – Great bag for short trips that collapses to a tiny size.

Minnetonka Chrissy Boots (for teenage girls) – Super comfy boots!

Cash inside a Money Maze Puzzle Box – Give money so they can get what they like, but make it fun by hiding it inside this puzzle cube.

No Crease Ponytail Holders – These are really popular right now. They are gentle on hair and don’t leave a crease!

Travel Hammock – Have an outdoorsy teen? These travel hammocks collapse small and are awesome.

Pocket Strings Guitar – A fun way to learn guitar! Fits easily in a backpack.

Gift Ideas for Younger Kids

There are certainly the most options to choose from when looking for gifts for children, but I’ve found that many are lower-quality plastic items that break easily and release harmful endocrine disrupting chemicals into the home or that only facilitate one activity. These are a few of the gifts I’ve found in recent years that have survived the durability test of our house and that the children have enjoyed the most:

Gym 1 Indoor Doorway Gym – Our kids’ favorite Christmas gift of all time. It is a gym that mounts in a door frame and they use it every day.

Snap Circuits – Really neat kit that lets kids learn about electricity by building different types of basic machines like a fan, a radio, etc.

Art Kit – A favorite among our girls. This kit contains markers, paints, colored pencils, and more.

Seedling Wooden People kit – Kids can create mini wooden people.

Mini Trampoline for Indoor Play – We’ve had a trampoline in our house for years and it is great for cold or rainy days. Rebounding (bouncing) is also great for adults!

Wooden Twig Colored Pencils – Wooden colored pencils made from twigs. Good size for younger kids just learning to write and draw.

Wooden People and Craft Supplies – Our kids loved making their own little wooden dolls with these.

Plasma Car – Our little kids love these and they are great for kids of all sizes.

Natural Paints – Made from natural earth pigments.

Design Your Own Superhero Cape – A fun activity that encourages creativity and is great for imaginative play.

Microscope Kit – My oldest loved looking at hair, dirt, and all kind of other things in this microscope.

Crayon Rocks – Portable and fun for littles who still have trouble with regular crayons.

Or Beeswax Crayons – Triangular crayons made of natural beeswax.

Doll House – Fits Barbie size dolls and other smaller dolls.

Stainless Steel Play Kitchen Pots and Pans – My daughters play kitchen with these for hours!

Beginner Piano Keyboard (and free Hoffman Academy Lessons) – These are a great way to get the kids started with music.

Boogie Board – A reusable writing tablet that encourages creativity.

Sun Art – Fun educational craft idea that kids love.

Kendama Game – Fun interactive game that encourages movement.

Gifts for Babies (and Expecting Parents)

There are literally thousands of options for gifts for babies, but many of them contain endocrine disrupting plastics or will just never get used. With over a decade of parenting and six kids, these are the gifts, toys, and gear that made the cut for us.

Pregnancy Affirmation Cards – I love these sweet cards that encourage pregnant moms!

Organic Mattress Cover – Protect baby from mold and allergens in mattresses.

Organic Cotton Crib Sheet – Soft organic sheet for crib.

Organic Muslin Swaddling Blankets – My favorite blankets that are perfect for swaddling or nursing.

Snot Sucker – Not as gross as it sounds and a lifesaver if baby is sick!

Baby Bouncer – This bouncer actually bounces! Rock with a foot to keep baby asleep.

Food Grade Silicone Fruit Teethers – A favorite with my 9-month-old!

Hape Wooden Toys – I love these high-quality wooden toys!

Ergo Organic Baby Carrier – A great organic baby carrier that is comfortable for mom or dad too!

Sophie the Giraffe – This teething toy has a passionate following with the under-one-year crowd!

Fleece Newborn Booties – Babies always manage to lose socks, but these stay on and keep toes warm!

Manhattan Toys Rattle and Clutching Toy – Little ones love this engaging wooden toy.

Natural Rubber Orthodontic Pacifier – For babies who will take a pacifier, try this natural rubber option.

Baltic Amber Teething Necklace – May help soothe teething pain.

Manhattan Toys Circle Toy – A beautiful and fun toy that baby love to play with.

Natural Rubber Teething Toy – The only toy my baby prefers to my finger when teething gets bad.

Organic Cotton Teether – An organic cotton and wood teething toy option.

Shea Moisture Baby Wash and Lotion – Fabulous smelling baby wash and lotion without the junk!

Animalz Wooden Animal Toys – Adorable and durable wooden animal toys.

Gifts for the Chef or Foodie

Does someone in your life love to cook (or eat)? These gifts make spending time in the kitchen so much fun!

Stainless Steel Coffee Percolator – No plastic, no junk, just awesome coffee that stays warm for hours in this all-stainless percolator.

Blendtec or Vitamix – both are amazing blenders that will last for years!

Stainless Steel Immersion Blender – Great for sauces, smoothies, blending things in a pot or pan and so much more.

Yogurt Maker – Homemade yogurt tastes so much better than store bought and is simple to make.

Ice Cream Maker – Make any kind of ice cream: dairy-free, sugar-free, etc.

Lead-free Crock Pot – A great slow cooker with a lead-free crock.

Instant Pot – This electric pressure cooker has almost replaced our slow cooker and I use it at least three times a week.

Crinkle Cutter – So the kids can help cut food for meals.

Stainless Steel Bowls – Great for mixing, serving, and storage.

Spiral Slicer – Make vegetables into noodles with this spiral slicer.

Stainless Steel Straws – Replace disposable straws forever with these steel straws.

Huck Towels – Similar to the towels they use in emergency rooms… these towels are super absorbent, great for cleaning and easy to wash.

Mason Jars + Cuppow Lids + Sprouting Lids – Use mason jars for cups and the opportunities are endless.

Kombucha Brewing Supplies – Do you drink kombucha? If so, do you make your own? It is so much better and the flavors are endless.

Dehydrator – Preserve foods with a stainless steel dehydrator.

Xtrema Cookware – Scratch-proof ceramic pans.

Bamboo Utensils – These inexpensive bamboo utensils are great for cooking.

Stainless Steel Large Baking Dish – These have been a lifesaver when cooking for large get-togethers with family and friends.

Glass Electric Tea Kettle – Make tea in seconds with this glass electric tea kettle.

Salt Block for Cooking – I love cooking fish, meat and even baked goods on a salt block for amazing flavor.

Premium Milk Frother – If you want to spring for an unusual (and more pricey) gift, this milk frother makes coffee shop worthy froth for coffee.

Organic Spice Set – These super high-quality organic spices (from my favorite olive oil makers) are beautifully packaged and come in ready-made blends like Smoky, Tex-Mex, Savory, Taco, Bagel, and more to make flavorful cooking easy.

Gift Ideas for the Grandparents

Our parents both live nearby and are involved in our kids’ lives. I always struggle with what to get them that somehow says “thanks for everything you did for me all of those years and thanks for being just as awesome with my kids.” We usually give them something handmade from the grandkids, but these are some other ideas that have been a hit. (Some of these are also ideas for this year, so Mom, if you’re reading this … don’t read past here. 😉 )

Amazon Prime Membership – What my parents are getting this year (don’t tell them!). This gives them free 2-day shipping on many items and free streaming of many movie and music.

Photo Frame – This photo frame was a hit a few years ago with our parents. No fancy motion detectors, wi-fi, bluetooth or anything else that can stop working.

Kindle Fire – My brother got my mom a Kindle a couple of years ago and she uses it quite a bit.

Terracotta Plant Waterer – Perhaps not the most fancy of gifts, but very practical for anyone with house plants (I just ordered some). It upcycles a glass bottle to water a plant for weeks.

Wine Subscription – If your parents are wine-drinkers, they will love this wine subscription box of organic biodynamic wines.

Royally Flawless Face Oil – Ditch all the overpriced anti-aging creams out there. This oil uses high-quality ingredients for real results.

Shiatsu Massage Pillow – I got this for my mom last Christmas and she uses it all the time.

Glass Electric Tea Kettle – For tea-drinkers, this electric glass tea kettle makes tea available almost on demand.

Instant Pot – The grandparents love it for all the reasons we love it- faster and more nutritious meals!

The Grandparent Book Journal – A sweet way to encourage kids and grandparents to spend time together and a beautiful keepsake of family history.

Or anything on the lists above that they will love!

“Just in Case” Gifts

These inexpensive gifts are great to have on hand for when someone drops by with a gift or to take to party hosts. I keep several of these wrapped to give when someone brings a gift by unexpectedly:

Electric Wine Bottle Opener – A fun way to open up a bottle of wine.

RTIC Tumbler – Great for keeping drinks hot or cold while on the go.

Bottle of Wine – We have a subscription to these delicious biodynamic wines, so I always have an extra bottle on hand.

Grocery Bag Carrying Handles – They make carrying all those bags of groceries a lot easier!

Bag of Organic Coffee – Who doesn’t love coffee, especially when it’s organic and fair trade?

Hario Mizudashi Cold Brew Iced Coffee Pot/Maker – I’m a big fan of cold brew coffee and this is a great way to make it.

Car Diffuser – Keep the car smelling great all year long!

Mason Jar Solar Light – Add some beautiful ambiance to any room with these solar lights.

Mason Jar with Drinking Lid – Ditch the plastic and drink out of old-school mason jars!

Funny Gifts for Dirty Santa and Gift Exchanges

These are some of my favorite funny gift ideas for dirty santa or white elephant gift exchanges. Sure to get lots of laughs!

Toilet Light – For those night time bathroom trips.

Nap Sack Prank Box – Take a nap anywhere with this hood.

Prank Pack Crib Dribbler – A fun prank for baby someone with a baby.

iDrive Prank Pack – This is just hilarious!

“You Parked Like An Idiot” Cards – I think my husband would actually use these!

Slipper Genie Mopping Slipper – This might actually get my kids to help sweep the floor more often.

The Obsessive Chef Cutting Board – For the OCD chef.

Pooping Pooch Calendar – Yep, it’s exactly what you picture… perfect (or awful?!) for the dog lover in your family!

Banana Slicer – If you’re going to eat bananas, why not slice it correctly?

Cards Against Humanity – These are incredibly irreverent, but will have you on the floor laughing for hours.

Maybe Swearing Will Help Coloring Book and Markers – For the potty mouth (or clean mouth?) in your life 🙂

Family Gifts & Outdoor Fun Gifts

If you’re like us and often choose family gifts that the whole family can enjoy (or enjoy better health because of), you might love these options. This list also includes outdoor activity gifts that we use and love.

Sauna – This is one gift that will have long-lasting health benefits. It isn’t an inexpensive gift, but one that family can enjoy all year.

Joovv Light – Like the sauna, this gift also brings the benefit of boosting health. Red light therapy is well-studied for its skin and mitochondria benefits and this is one of my favorite parts of my daily routine.

Rapid Release – Like a chiropractor and a massage therapist built into one. This device is designed to release muscle tension and it works! I love this thing.

Myobuddy – A percussive heated massager that targets muscle and fascia. A lot of people use this for cellulite, I just use it for relaxation and fascia massage.

Wholetones Music Subscription – Uses soothing music with targeted sound frequencies to induce health benefits like stress reduction, focus, sleep… and yes, it works even for kids! I love this one too because it isn’t a physical item to store around the house.

Organic & Natural Mattresses – This was our gift to each other one year and we love our mattress. We have an Intellibed and love it, but My Green Mattress is also a great option and not as pricey.

Natural Cookware – I got some of this cookware for Christmas years ago and have been using it since then!

Matching Organic Jammies –  Switching to organic PJs is one way to reduce chemical exposure from clothing by half and these organic jammies are our favorites.

A Year of Wine – I love wine, but most wine is contaminated with chemicals and additives. Hubby and I give each other natural wine from Dry Farm Wines.

Trampoline – Not just for kids when you consider the lymphatic benefits of jumping!

Swing – Our kids love this backyard swing and they can all fit on it!

Slackline – Like a balance beam and trampoline in one. It encourages balance and coordinating and is hours of fun.

Ninjaline – Like monkey bars but tougher. A lot of people use these for Ninja Warrior training, but our kids just think it is fun!

Natural Beauty & Home Gifts (Ones to Buy or DIY)

Home & Beauty to DIY

I love receiving homemade gifts and making them for others. I have hundreds of DIY recipes and tutorials on the blog, but the ones on this list make the best gifts. These are especially perfect for stocking stuffers!

Home & Beauty to Buy

If you aren’t into the DIY options, here are some great store-bought alternatives:

Lotion Bars – If you’d like lotion bars similar to my recipes, but that you don’t have to make yourself, check out Made On, a small, family-owned company that makes all kinds of lotion bars, soaps, natural baby products, and hair products that are up to my standards. If you use the code WELLNESSMAMA, you’ll get a 15% discount on your order!

Alitura Skincare – Alitura uses organic botanicals and superfood ingredients to nourish the skin. This is serious skincare with the works: clay masks, intensive moisturizers, derma rollers, and more. Use the code WELLNESS for 20% off!

Toups Organics (Makeup & Beauty) – Heather of Mommypotamus introduced me to this line and they have an incredible line of clean cosmetics, lotions, and even a baking-soda free deodorant for sensitive types.

Crunchy Betty Facial Serum & Natural Deodorant: Mentioned before, but I can’t say enough about them.

Branch Basics Cleaners – I know I’d be happy to find some all-natural cleaning products (I don’t have to make) under the Christmas tree.

Vibrant Blue Oils – Wildcrafted and organic essential oil blends made to support specific health conditions. Use the code WELLNESSMAMA10 to get 10% off through December 31st.

Magnesium Oil – Spray on for relaxation, detox support, even deodorant!

Homebiotic Spray – Like a probiotic for your home, this freshens air by targeting the source of bad smells… bacteria and mold.

Genexa OTC Medicines – So much of what goes in children’s medicine is just flavors, dyes, preservatives, and fillers. Genexa is the first to come up with a line of over the counter and homeopathic medications completely free of all unnecessary additives. I give these to my kids for colds, coughs, fevers, or even just a bad night of sleep, and they’ve worked great for us.

Kid-Safe Essential Oil Roll-Ons – For sleep, headaches, cold relief, and more, without having to worry about negative side effects.

There’s probably a lot more that could be added to this list, but these are my current favorites. If you still haven’t found the perfect gift on this list, Heather shares all of her favorite natural gifts here.

What is on your Christmas list this year? What are you getting for friends and family?

Source: https://wellnessmama.com/25195/gift-giving-guide/