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miseta · 3 months ago

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Chapter 9 ➺ A place for words

Starting over In Madrid

Misa Rodriguez x Reader (Nicky/first person)

After moving to Madrid as the new Real Madrid photographer, Nicky's eyes can't look away from the pretty face of Misa Rodriguez. But how is she going to handle her growing desire for the Canarian goalkeeper when her working contract's strictly forbidding her to date players? Chapter 1 ➺ A harder job than I thought Chapter 2 ➺ Clearly on a bad slope Chapter 3 ➺ Calmly panicking Chapter 4 ➺ Hell Clasico Chapter 5 ➺ Valleys and peaks Chapter 6 ➺ Paris est magique! Chapter 7 ➺ In the haze Chapter 8 ➺ Confusion and directions TW: explicit sexual content +18 8,5K words

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Misa came to the set laughing hard at the girl following her. The high pitched peals of her laugh rang and resonated in the small room, making my insides swarm happily, but was quickly joined by another deeper voice.

Léa Koffi, thirty years old, was a tall and sturdy girl with voluminous light brown curly hair, big heavy lashed green eyes and plump lips that were now stretch in a rather charming smile.

The two goalkeepers, dressed up in their Real Madrid kits, set foot on the background, Misa doubled over with laughter, her beautiful features distorted by her uncontrollable giggling. Léa waved comically her gloves in a theatrical gesture causing Misa to cower on herself as a new burst of laughter took her.

I couldn’t help but broke a smile at their communicative cheerfulness, forgetting my job a moment and peering at them to try to get what was so funny in Léa’s mimics.

“Salut Nicky! I made a joke Misa has liked very much but I don’t know how to turn her off now.” Léa explained.

“Hey Léa, dunno how to shut her down either, I never have.“ I giggled and the French goalie did another strange gesture with her gloves that multiplied Misa’s chuckles.

“Sssstoop! …stoop, por favor!” The Spanish goalie stammered between two peals of laughter. I was still smiling when I felt a pang of annoyance pocking at the sight of my girlfriend dying of laughter so much she didn’t acknowledged my presence.

I patiently waited for Misa to calm down, the goalie still chuckling while looking at Léa with tears of laughter in her eyes, my irritation growing with the more time she spent without having even greeted me.

At last, Misa went silent, retook her breath and turned toward me. “Perdon, I’m ready!“ she rubbed tears from her eyes and waited for pose instructions.

I swallowed her lack of politeness in silence, still vaguely amused by their childish entrance and preferring to focus on getting the photoshoot done quickly “Ok Goalies, as you saw, or did not still you were laughing so much, background is just a gradient of blue and gold, so you have to really impersonate the poses. You are goalkeepers, you are strong, you are walls, and you are Madridistas so you do it with class and heart. You face me both, ready to block a ball, gloves nicely outstretched. Feel it, show it, ok?”

The two girls nodded and took place. I corrected a few details to have them posing perfectly identically. The shot was good but the lights wasn’t so, and I took a moment to adjust them.

“I’m sure you dive like this” I heard Léa say to Misa meanwhile I was orienting the spotlights better. Léa mimicked a very sloppy jump and stupidly shook her gloves. Misa giggled again and replied “I’ll show you the Misa’s style! Wait until we practice!“

“Can’t wait to see a dolphin play football!” Léa spat back and they both burst of laugher. There was something in the situation that was getting me really upset now.

“Please, let’s focus, we don’t have all day!” I shouted, more roughly than I was intending and the goalies stopped, still wearing their smiles but a bit shamefully.

They took the next pose, Misa on her knees and Léa bending behind her so I could zoom to have just their heads on top of another. The two goalies were smiling wide, and being, I must admit, a really attractive duo. That thought irritated me more without really knowing why.

Maybe it was their incessant chatting between the takes, or the way Misa was fighting hard not to laugh at every words of Léa but I was relieved when the French goalkeeper went in the back room to change for her individual portrait.

Now on our own, I peered at the Spanish brunette remaining in the room, bitting my lips. Angela was staying at my place until the departure of the goalie for her international break, and as happy as I was being with my best friend, I missed time alone with Misa very much. Right now, I was having a hard time to stay physically away from her, longing for the tiniest touch between us.

I needed contact with my girlfriend so badly and I dared to approach her in the short laps of private time, taking her hand and resting my head in the crook of her neck to breath in her smell. Misa tensed but swiftly planted a kiss on my forehead before pulling away. “Footballers are really quick to change“ she whispered as she stepped back, living me frustrated I hadn’t managed to kiss her back.

The back door opened and a really classy Léa entered the studio, wearing an almost back navy blue suit with a pure white shirt, the jacket suit’s collar embroidered with a gold Real Madrid emblem. “Not bad, what do you think?“ she grinned, stunning and obviously aware of it.

Misa and I both acquiesced when she settled on the stool at the center of the set.

“We’ll do a few serious official shots and more relaxed ones after Misa’s ok?” I told the French women while catching a glimpse of Misa disappearing in the changing room.

“Ok Nicky!” her green eyes stared at me. “For how long have you been working for the Real ?”

I took a shot of her profil “It’s been eight months now, time passes so fast…” Three months had flowed since our first night in Paris but I felt Misa and I had considered being really together for only a week, our night at Sofie’s party had somehow sealed our mutual attachment.

“Cool, your job looks great although not physical enough for me… oh waouuuu!” Léa’s long exclamation announced the return of the Spanish goalie, her brows going up and her mouth freezing in a gag.

A strangled moan escaped from my throat when I discovered Misa in her Real Madrid suit. She was just sexy as hell, navy blue and bright white both enhancing her complexion, her muscular neck disappearing under the shirt’s unbuttoned collar, showing the letter “M” tattooed at its base. Her thick severe brows and smiling lips made me suddenly dream that her large hands, emerging from the jacket sleeves, would push me against the wall and have their way in my pants. My dirty thoughts accompanied her chic and formal silhouette as she walked to the set and I silently thanked we were not alone or I would never had the strength to stop myself from rushing at her.

“Err… T…turn to the left, I will start with a... a 3/4 pose.” I was appalled to hear myself stutter, and even more when I felt my cheeks grow hot as an amused expression enlightened Misa’s face.

“Now, face the camera, look straight at it”

“I don’t know if I could stand Misa staring at me and looking like that!” The French women dropped. Léa was watching Misa from aside, the girl not even hiding her still opened mouth as she clearly fed on the sight of my girlfriend obediently posing. “You have such a charisma! In French, we would call you “belle gosse”. That means ”pretty child” basically.” Léa said to the Spanish brunette who chuckled with embarrassment. I was surprised at how easily she flirted in front of me, but I bitterly remembered she couldn’t know who I was to Misa.

Jealousy came back in my life like this, crashing over me during a photoshoot, filling my body with anger and possessiveness in a heartbeat. Léa took back Misa’s place in front of the camera, her pretty smile another provocation, her winking toward Misa a silent insult. My face closed, transforming into a mask as I continued to take pictures, both of them having fun, resuming their chatting between the takes, while I was brooding.

At the end of the session, my heart had sunk at the bottom of my stomach. It was true I had been annoyed or frustrated with keeping my relationship with Misa secret, but I had never felt angry or mad like I was being now. I was fuming I couldn’t shut Léa’s mouth, reduced to silently watch them getting along and act like the professional photographer that I was.

Working at the Real, I could only be that, I would never be Misa’s girlfriend.

Sadness field me up and swallowed me entirely as the two women talked together like I wasn’t there, Léa advising “If you put athletic tape that way it will work better, I’ll show you !“ and Misa shrugging doubtfully “I’m ok with my athletic tape, you know…”

I began to gather the lights and uninstalled the set, arms heavy and movements slow, the Spanish goalkeeper finally braking their conversation to walk toward me. “Need some help?” she asked as a shy smile flickered on her lips. Her cute face and soft look smothered me a little and I wished to buried myself in her arms, forget everything but her. As I couldn’t do that, I nodded moodily and let her fold the tripod. Léa joined us at putting away the materials and the three of us finished tidying everything up in no time.

“Thanks for your help, we’re done.” I freed them, eager to be out of here as well.

“OK, bye Nicky!" Léa acknowledged. "Come on Misa, let’s change.”

A new surge of possessiveness fogged my brain as I pictured Léa and Misa undressing together all by themselves in the small changing room behind the back door. I pursed my lips, disgusted by my own imagination, and swallowing the bitter taste of jealousy again.

“See you, Nicky”, my girlfriend softy said but I couldn’t look at her and pretend to search for something in my camera bag. I heard the door shut and my heart with it.

Loneliness and fear knotted my guts. I sat on the floor, arms around my knees, in the middle of the photography material bags, and let my face fall onto my arms.

I couldn’t let our secret relationship last forever. It was already affecting both of us. But I couldn’t quit my job at the Real. I loved it and it was far too soon to tell if it would really work with Misa. I hadn’t the self confidence to convinced myself Misa would stay with me if she found somebody she could be with for real. Somebody like Léa…

My phone vibrated in my pocket, interrupting my dark thoughts, my heart leaping when I read Misa’s text.

“Hola I want to see you more before international break! Can I come in your office 😌 ? I understand if you think it’s too risky 🫡“

A smile stretched wide on my lips, my dark thoughts put aside by the prospect of being just with her, even if it was only for a moment, my eyes prickling while I wrote back to her and rushed out of the room.

***

The freshly taken photos of the goalkeepers were quickly displaying on the computer as they uploaded. I was staring vaguely at them, thrilled to see my girlfriend coming, yet a bit mad, when she entered my office still wearing her suit and I couldn’t help but grin interrogatively at her.

“I didn’t changed since you seemed to like that suit so much” she answered my silent question with her own irresistible mischievous smile. A particularly gorgeous shot of the footballer appeared on the screen, making her point.

I glared at them both, real and digital Misas, and jumped on my feet to reach the door under the curious stare of the goalkeeper. My hand dipped in my pocket to retrieved the office’s keys to turned it inside the keyhole, the light chuckle of the goalie music to my ears when I locked the room from inside.

The few steps separating us closed, I did not wait another second before kissing her, forcing my tongue between her lips and finding my way inside her mouth. Her taste relieved me as she moved her tongue with mine, her arms pulling me close to her at last. Our nose collided as we oriented our faces to kiss better, our making out lasting without really fulfilling my need of her. I pushed more, searching for something else, something that was probably not in her mouth, my longing for her growing with my irritability and I went to bit softy her upper lips. Hearing her sigh aroused me. I moved to her neck, wanting to hear more of it and I nipped her again, feeling my teeth sink in her skin.

“Ay! Nicky! You’ve planned to eat me for real or what ?” Misa’s hand fell on her neck as she winced.

I froze in guilt of having hurt her “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to bit you like that! Are you bleeding?” She put her hand away, revealing only a red mark but no wound. “Huf, it’s not! I’m so sorry Misa! I got carried away… I… I guess I was still mad at you for being that hot it messed with Léa’s head earlier.”

Misa stopped massaging her neck, amazed “What? Nicky you’re not jealous of Léa, are you? And you bit me for it?”

The mention of the evidence brought back my anger, mixing with guilt to change in bitterness “Didn’t you see the way she was looking at you?! Or what she dared say!… Arrr…she’s having a crush on you I tell you that! Plus you seemed to find her so damned funny! And I could say nothing…”

“Nicky!” Misa’s soft laugh fed my wrath, but when she held my hands, boring her brown eyes in mine, I felt it starting to melt away.

She spoke calmly, “It’s not like that. We, footballers are not modest, we spend far too much time sharing what you would consider intimate moments all together. We’re used to compliment each other on our body, training or behavior, to make fun of each other… Valé, Léa said things but it’s not bound to mean she has a crush on me.”

I pouted in response, unconvinced. The room was quiet with the computer finishing to upload the photos and putting itself on stand by mode. The goalie’s face came so close I could feel her breath. Red spots sprinkled her cheekbones, her lips corners twitching as they murmured “Even if it was the case… it’s you I want.”

“Oh Misa…” I fell onto her mouth, hugging her like my life was depending on it. “I want you too!” I love you so much, why can’t I just tell you?

I got lost in our kiss again. Feeling Misa’s lips moving on mine was all that mattered, my heartbeat fastening at the precious thought of her wanting me, needing me. I craved to feel more of her desire right now, her sexy suit boosting my longing for her and my hands slipped under her jacket to free her shoulders. “Nicky! Not now, not here! Are you crazy ?” Misa shot me an alarmed look but finished to take off her jacket and we connected our lips one more time.

“I want you now, please!” I panted between kisses.“Please!”

Misa shuddered at my begging. Her fingers played a moment with the hem of my T-shirt and I stepped back, taking her with me until my back hit the farthest wall of the office. I doubled my efforts “Misa please, just… touch me, tócame! ” my breathing becoming pleading sighs.

The goalkeeper was clearly battling against herself, unable to decided if she should take the risk of us hooking up at our working place. Her furrowed brows and tensed features were turning me on like hell and I worked at unbuttoning her shirt, grinning in victory when I sensed her grasp my top and pull it over my head.

Her mouth was unable to resist the urge of kissing my exposed breast. “Fuck me, please!” I gloated, keeping my voice low. That seemed to make Misa give away her last reluctance, delicately sucking and nipping the skin there.

She pulled back, blushing hard. “You want me to fuck you in your own office, Cariño?” she breathed, her timid voice showing she was excited as fuck to overstep the limits and being begged for it.

Misa shyly willing to play our little game set my body on fire, I guided her hand down to my pants and she thrusted it inside over my underwear.

Her fingers pressed unbearably lightly through the fabric. I whined, bucking to increase the pressure of her touching but the brunette’s hand deliberately stayed out of reach. “Qué passa? Lost your tongue?” She asked before finding my mouth and kissing me like a goddess, my complaints dying on her lips. “No, it’s still there. Say it, is that you really want ?”

I moaned again, surprised to discover Misa really enjoying herself at edging me, thrilled to be excited so much by her ordering me around.

I yelped, ready to do anything she’d want to feel more of her fingers.

“Please Misa! Fuck me in my office!”

Misa’s hand left my jeans only to come back under my panties a second later. Her dominative behavior had me wetting like crazy. I groaned as her fingers spread my intimacy, her other hand found mine and pined it to the wall, her mouth back against my lips to muffled my cries again.

My eyes shut as her fingertip found my clit and began to flick it slowly. She whined too, pushing me harder against the wall while I was going far away from my office, lost between her tongue in my mouth and her fingers gathering all the pleasure they could from my body. Completely overwhelmed, I barely felt Misa’s hand leaving mine to grasp the nap of my neck as she changed her flickering pace to fast and rough at once. I was so drenched her wobbling against my core made lapping sounds. I let a loud moan erupted against her mouth, shocked as enjoyment took over me so quickly.

My face fell on her shoulder as I came, breathing out my orgasm through her long hair, the delightful feel stretching my lips in awe. “Already? I heard the goalie whisper as soon as it faded. She lift my face as I guilty nodded but I noticed something had shifted inside the goalie, her eyes were hungry like I’d never seen.

“Oh no no…” she murmured, leaving my pants and grasping my face in her hands, the one slick with my own wetness coated my cheek and spread the smell of sex around us. It was her turn to take my lip between her teeth, pulling softy before letting it go. “After the scene you made, I think I want to fuck you more.” she said, her breathing deep and her eyes hooded.

The strangled whimper I let out was cut off by her heaving me in her arms, grasping my bottom, and I hold to her broad shoulders as she walked me toward the desk. The brunette pushed away the papers and stuff covering the surface in a swift move and dropped me on it. My legs ensnared her waist, keeping the girl as close as I could as she unzipped my jeans. “Take off your pants, in fact take everything off” she commanded, her Spanish accent heavier with her sighs as she gathered her hair in a bun.

I obeyed so willingly, undressing completely and sitting back on the cold surface. As I looked up at the gorgeous goalkeeper already bending over me, her completely unbuttoned shirt coming out of her suit pants revealed her bra and shaped abs. My gaze rose back to her face, her feature looked harder with her hair tied up. “You drive me so crazy!” I confessed. Her soft and luscious lips parted to let out jerky breaths, and she was back at touching me in a heartbeat.

My oversensitive core sent ripples of electricity through by body. I let my hands travel on her shoulders, arching more to deepen the sensations. My palms lost themselves along the contracted muscles of her back as she pushed her way inside. My head fell backward, lost in the wonders of pleasure as I relished on each of her thrusts in me.

My fingers descended on her waist and slipped under her suit pants. Feeling her bare plump ass under my hands, I realized she was wearing a thong and waste no time before grasping her cheeks, pulling the goalkeeper waist against me and feeling her fingers sinking further.

“This is so good… you feel so good! I can’t!” I half moaned half whispered and reluctantly left her ass to lie down on the desk as pleasure became too intense for me to stay standing. Droplet of sweat pearled on her temples. Misa was blushing heavily as she watched my naked body spread on the desk, her fingers curling and stroking my walls a moment. I gasped when all I wanted to do was to shout obscenely how good she felt. But then she grabbed my thigh, and started to fuck me for real, faster and deeper.

Bliss. Everything was quiet around us apart from the muffled sounds of our rasping breaths and the wet noises of her fingers pumping in and out. Misa’s face had that concentrated look again, the one she had on our first night when she had made love to me. I felt going wetter, if that was even possible. Her lips opened again and she closed her eyes while she continued to fuck me at a fast and steady pace. Bliss. Misa! Unbearable bliss. The sight of her beautiful face went blurry as tears of pleasure filled my eyes.

I hold on two or three more seconds, focusing on how fucking good it felt to be fucked by Misa Rodriguez.

Her name tumbled from my lips several times, coming again much stronger than I expected. I felt the tears escaping the corner of my eyes, my body and mind trying to take in the unbearably good feel. Her fingers left me and her hand dropped my thigh, but I couldn’t move, feeling properly knocked out by one of the greatest orgasm of my life.

“Nicky, you ok ?” Misa's voice asked.

“Hell yeah” I managed to say, floating, blissed out. I blinked and more tears ran down my temples.

Hovering, I rose up slowly to discover the goalie sat in the armchair and cleaning her hand with a tissue, her cheekbones still a bright shade of red. She looked all shy and sexy again like she didn’t dare to fully realize what had just happened here. My juices had dripped abundantly on the desk making the scene worthy of a bad porn movie ending. Standing up, I felt more wetness running down my thighs, I crossed eyes with the goalie who returning my shocked look with an embarrassed grin before handing me a tissue.

I wiped myself, put my cloth back on and went to sit on her lap, nesting my more than satisfied body against her torso. My head fell on her shoulder and Misa slowly stroked my hair as I sensed myself drowsing with the endorphins.

“You remembered when I didn’t give you the gold medal back in Paris?” I asked, the grinning goalie nodded and I declared “I think you’ve just won it”.

“Por fin!” she smiled shyly “That was something for myself as well, thought I was going to come too…”

That awoke me at once, my smiling eyes founding hers “You did?”

“It’s not everyday your secrete girlfriend pleads you to fuck her in the middle of her office, which is a few meters from my own working grounds, and even less far from her boss office who could fire her for less than that, all of that making her so wet…” Misa longly exhaled as she finished to speak.

“You saying it like that is a lot, it could make me want to beg again.” I bit my lips, gazing hungrily at hers. “I could beg to kiss you somewhere else right now, would you like that? I suggested, my murmur so low it was barely audible.

Misa’s blushing reappeared in the instant. “Si, por favor…" she heaved a sigh, a pleading look flickered in her eyes before she closed them quickly, ashamed of being so needy.

Her confession made me kiss her tenderly. “The begging was mine to make, my sweet Misa.” I said fondly, sending her chuckling and turning frankly crimson.

I heaved myself to my feet, leaving my girlfriend’s arms not without harm, but more than ready to go eat her out. I crouched between the brunette’s leg, unbuttoned and unzipped her chic pants, and slowly took it off. The goalkeeper’s smooth stomach rose up and down jerkily as I pulled her drench thong down her legs, gasping and turned on again myself. Misa sunk in the desk chair, her hips sled at its edge, and I put one of her leg above my shoulder as I leaned my face between her tights. I heard the brunette’s rapping sights when my fingers spread her lips. Her hands fell on my hair as I bend over to take a first run.

The goalkeeper let out soft pleased moans. My tongue circled her clit and her hips wiggled to have me right on spot. “Please” she sighed as I continued to tease her, her pelvis rising again. I took pity on her, my mouth finding and sucking her core and I heard her strangled groans die with the sound of footsteps approaching in the corridor, knocks against the door resounding shortly.

We froze like statues. My lips and nose were already soaked with her wetness, her fingers still buried in my hair as we exchanged a panicked glance. Not making any noises, we turned our heads to see the doorknob bending down but the locked door remaining shut.

Something clicked in my mind, I rose up, my gaze searching the room in dismay. “Our phones! Where’s my phone?!” I muttered in panic. Misa stood up as lightly as she could, put her underwear and pants back on and began to look for it but it was nowhere to be found! Where was the damned thing ?! I’d lost it in the tumult of our frolics. It could be anywhere, on a stool, a self, or had dropped from the desk…

That was it. Ana was going to call me, would hear my phone ring in my locked office, as I would not pick up she would call Misa or Léa, hear the goalie's phone in the same locked room, see the lights on from under the door and figure something was going on. She would find it suspicious, use her spare key to enter and understand the evidence at once.

Misa grabbed my arm, putting my fortunately not so loud vibrating phone in my hand, the screen displaying Ana’s name as I foresaw. I immediately turned it off, told the brunette to do the same and we remained speechless and shaking as we waited a moment for the footstep to die away in the corridor.

“That was so close!” I panted, heart pounding “I’d completely forgotten I got to see her after the shooting!”

Misa glanced at the drying obscene stain on my desk, then at my shiny lips, her dimples pocking on her cheeks and about to burst of laughter, “Madre mia, imagine she had entered! I hope you’re going to shower before seeing her…”

Her words freed her laugh and I joined her, in need to relax after having imagining myself packing this very evening. Ana surely wasn’t pleased by my disappearance. Moreover, I really need to take some time to clean myself. I would have to come up with some good made up excuses for being late and unreachable.

“Misa… I’m so sorry, I really need to go to Ana as soon as possible…” I apologized, serious again.

She shifted uncomfortably, wincing. “I know.” she exhaled deeply and jumped on place, frustrated as hell. “Two hours of gym session and I’ll should be fine!”

My feet took me to her agitated figure. “I feel really bad living you like this! I was dying to… well nothing.” I stammered as she shot me an accusatory look and shuddered.

I wrapped my arms around her neck, closing my eyes, a pang of sadness poking at the thought of being away from her for two entire weeks “Have a good time with your teammates at international camp Sweetie, I’m going to miss you.”

“Thanks, I’ll miss you too Cari” Misa’s nose grazed my cheek before we exchanged a last long and tender kiss.

***

On the evening, I met Angela at a bar terrace, taking a seat with an heavy sight and quickly ordering a drink to the waiter passing by.

“Hey, what a day!” I said to my friend.

Angie took a sip of her cocktail with a worried look. “Oh ! what happened? Hope everything is ok?”

“Well, to start, shooting was awful. I think Léa, the second goalkeeper, found Misa well to her taste. Then, Misa joined me in my office, I was a bit mad at her but she said sweet things and……. we ended up hooking up.” I confessed, Angie smiling and winking in return. “But I forgot I had a meeting with my boss at the same time. Girl, she knocked at the door while we... I let you imagine the state we were in! Thanks god I locked the door! Anyway, after that I rushed to her office, put together some random technical issues during the photoshoot for excuse and she bought it.” I shortly paused, amused by my friend’s shocked face “My boss offered me to become photo director !” I dropped, grinning wide.

“Woaw! Well done Nicky, cheers to that!”

We lifted our glasses. “Yeah this is great ! She said I should start on September. I’ll direct the filming and photo team and work with set designers. She liked my ability to create a global vision of Real Madrid’s visual communication and want me to develop it. Honestly, I’m in heaven even if it means much more work. Pay will be better too!” I said with excitation though I lost my smile quickly and Angela went straight to the point.

“But you don’t know what to do about Misa…?”

“Yeah…” I sighed “I can’t leave my job. But I don’t want Misa to be unhappy.”

“Do you think she’s feeling that bad?”

“I don’t know. I won’t lie to you, It’s hard for me as well. Everyday, I feel like a child trying not to get caught. I just wish we could hang around like everybody else. We’re not doing anything wrong, this is so unfair! I don’t know what to do Angie…”

Angela put her hand on my arm from across the table. “You know, that is exactly what I feared when you told me about your feelings. Hooking up is a thing but falling in love with her… I feared it would made you sad not be allowed to be with her, and it’s happening… But Misa seems a patient person and so are you Nicky. Don’t worry, just wait and enjoy your time with her. You’ll see in a few months what to do.” Angela patted me and giggled lightly “You are already all jealous and protective, the girl had you falling deep! What did Misa say about Léa ?”

“She said it was probably nothing… and that she wanted… me” I melted at the thought.

“That’s very cute! I think you can relax, Misa’s feeling good with you but I also think you should talk to her openly, be honest about what you want. She did her part by saying that, now it’s up to you. You have more to loose than she does so she probably needs to be reassured you really want to be with her.”

Why did all my closest friends had to advise me to talk with the goalkeeper? Unsure of myself, I’d always been bad at doing the taking. But my friend had made a point, Misa was in much more uncertainty than I was, her very presence in my life in contradiction with my professional future at the Real.

My heart tightened at the idea of Misa silently waiting for me to express my feelings in vain, dreading weeks after weeks I would finally chose my job over her… “You’re right Angie. I’ll make it up to her.”

***

During the next days, Angela went back home and I felt a bit lost at being all alone again. The days seemed so longs without Misa at the ciudad. Being in the Australian national team, Hayley wasn’t there either. Though I was relieved I had less work I quickly became bored without my besties to spend the time so I had the idea to contact Sofie’s friends Carmen and Swen.

As promised, Swen took us on a tour of the fancy galleries in the center of Madrid and we ended up in one of Carmen’s cutest address: a hidden vegetalized rooftop bar not far from Lavapies. Cocktails were delicious and they even played a few songs I knew Misa liked. I imagined a romantic evening here with the goalie at her return. Close to my home, the bar would be the perfect place to tell her my feelings. My mind raced on its own at planning the day. First, we would meet somewhere in town and I would tell her I was going to take her to a surprise location. Misa would be excited all the way down here, she would fall for the place when she would enter, and I would confess falling in love with her while sharing a Piña Colada or a strawberry Mojito. My insides swarmed at the thought. Once I had checked with Misa she’d be free on her return, I spend the next working day neglecting my work to plan our reunion with care.

The footballer and I texted every day. During the evenings, we told each other about our respective daily events and often ended by sharing a sweet word or two. We couldn’t call for the goalkeeper was not having her own room and I started acting cheesy, watching for long minutes our selfies together before sleeping. The more time I passed away from her the more I longed to see her and have back our endless chatting stretching in the night as we cuddled.

At least I could see her on TV when I watched the two matches the Seleccion played. Misa was benched as she foresaw but the Spanish team won both games, lifting her spirit. I loved when she told me details from the matches I couldn’t see, or about a really pushing training session she handled well, or when she sent photos of her doing nonsense with her close friends Jenni, Alexia and Laia. Her texts overflowing with passion made me so needy I started to count the days.

***

Two weeks later, it was under a bright and hot sun that I came to wait for the goalie, literally itching to find her again at the Parque del Retiro. July in Madrid was no joke, I was sweating hard in my tank top and short, the strap of my camera digging into my bare shoulder when I walked in the wide alleys, freshening under the shade of the trees. I turned to a smaller shadowy path, stopping to whip the sweat from my forehead and gulp some water before sending to Misa my precise position.

Standing in my fresher spot, I spent the forward minute peering impatiently at the ends of the alley. My heart was drumming in my chest, the prospect of being reunited with my goalie so close. Tired of us being locked up in our apartments, I had taken the risk to meet outside, in a park, on purpose, a symbol to show Misa that I really wished we could be a regular couple. She had accepted without question, clearly pleased by my initiative to be out our homes together at last.

As soon as it appeared, I recognized the tall and sturdy silhouette from afar, her walk unmistakable. She stepped into a patch of sun, her smile wide as she waved to me and she did a small hop before starting to run toward me. My glance stayed locked on her smiling face coming closer and closer until we flung in each other’s arms.

Her smell filled my lungs as we hugged tight, the feel of our bodies pressed together the best in the world. Her breathing mixed with the sound of the wind blowing gently in the foliage. When we pulled back, looking into each other’s eyes, we kept smiling fondly, in no need to speak. Misa’s gaze went down to my mouth, hesitant when I wasn’t, unable to resist crashing my lips against the goalkeeper’s. It was the third time I dared to kiss Misa in a public place. My heart danced. My brain slowed down, living the moment with Misa covering my mouth with little kisses like she couldn’t get enough of it.

The goalie buried her face back in my hair. “You’re smelling like my shampoo” was the first thing she said.

“Buenos dias Maria Isabel” I laughed at her missing to say hi again.

Misa rolled her eyes and pompously bowed in front of me “Good afternoon Lady Nicky” she said, failing to take a chic English accent, rolling the « r » of afternoon a very Spanish way. However even as a joke, I couldn’t help but feeling satisfied by Misa Rodriguez bowing to me.

“You may rise Gentlewoman!” I responded as she looked up to me playfully. “And I may have bought your shampoo while you were away…” I added, ashamed.

Misa seemed touched, her mouth did the pout I loved “You missed me so much?”

“Maybe” I reddened, embarrassed to admit being so cheesy. “Come on, we have a photography course waiting!” I said to make diversion and I led my giggling Misa to a more flourishing part of the park.

I spotted a nice lawn where a few birds were pecking at the remains of a cake.

“This is perfect. We’ll go quietly to not scare them away.” I took out my camera, and put the leash around the brunette’s head. “I’ve already done the presets, speed is medium because there is plenty of lights, though it’s getting cloudy…” I glanced at the sky, blue barely visible behind the sheer of white clouds.

“Maybe heat will drop.” Misa said hopefully, frowning as she looked up at the dazzling white sky. Shortly, she glanced back to the camera in my hands. “So, do I need to change the presets?”

“If there is less light, you have to …?” I tested her photography knowledge.

“Diminish speed, no, increase speed… !” She said glancing at me unsurely.

Misa was focusing for once, making my heart melt. “Yes, increase speed, because if shutter speed is too slow, your photo is going to be …?

“Blurry?” her brows half frowned half rose as she watched me expectantly to know if she was right.

“Well done Maria Isabel!”

“Yes!” Misa jigged proudly. She wanted to kiss me but changed her mind because of people sauntering around. “I’ll try to take a photo of the pigeon there.” she advanced and crouched with caution. I watched her putting the camera in front of her face, concentrating as she turned the lens to zoom in. The pigeon was still searching the grass for a few crumbles when a crow landed smoothly, making the other birds fly away, the sounds of the shutter resonating restlessly.

Misa came back to me, watching the camera screen eagerly. “Mira Nicky! look!“

I glanced at a nice shot of the flying crow, its wings spread up and its beak opened. She scrolled back, showing me the other photos.

“Well done Misa, this is good! Exposure is a bit strong, you should diminish diaphragm opening, but good job on the focus, the crow’s sharp!”

“Gracias Nicky!” she smiled wide, gratitude in her eyes mixing with something mischievous. “I’d like more color. Can you correct the presets for me Cari?”

Her ducky demanding expression had me accepting at once and I took back the camera, focusing a moment on the screen to do the changes. “Ok, I think you’ll like it better now…” I went to give the camera back to Misa but the goalkeeper had disappeared.

“Misa?” I called, glancing all around me to see where she had gotten to. “Misa it’s not funny! Where are you, what’s going on ?”

I walked to the grass. More people were spending time on the nearby lawns, making it harder to find the missing goalie. I called her again, confused and wondering what other madness had gotten her.

“¡Bu!” The goalie sprang at me from behind a large tree, making me nearly die of fear and herself of laughter.

“Fucking shit! Mis!” I shout at her, grasping my camera, the goalie laughing out loud.

Still chuckling, Misa tried to take me in her arms but I shoved her away, ashamed of having been pranked that easily. The young women attempted one more time and succeeded at ensnaring me with her arms. I struggled to break free, wrestling against her firm grip, trying to make her fall but her strong feet stay firmly on the ground.

After having fought a moment, I decided she deserved a low blow as well, I put my camera back in its bag “No more photo for you”. Then I started to tickle her along her ribs. I gloated at my girlfriend surprised scream, instantly backing away. I took the opportunity to slam hard into her, the effect of surprise allowing me to unbalanced her and we both landed on the grass, giggling.

I glanced around me, checking if it was safe for us to be that close, I thought it was okey and pulled Misa toward me. The goalkeeper let me took her in my arms, laying her back against me as my mouth found and peck her cheek. After pulling out her phone, Misa took a selfie of us cuddling, exhaled deeply and closed her eyelids. A strong blow of the wind made her hair dance around her head and I moved the strands of hair from across her face when raindrops began to fall.

“Oh no! Mierda!” The goalie exclaimed.

We jumped back to our feet “Fuck! Who know, maybe it’ll stop soon?”

But more rain began to fall and Misa took my arm. “Come on, I know a place where we can shelter in waiting.“

Drops were pouring hard now, and we ran along with the hurrying people thought the alleys of the park. At a time, Misa led us to a narrow desert path, the dense vegetation there couldn’t shield us from the pounding rain.

“Esta alli!” she shouted as we reached a crossroad, her hand was still grasping mine firmly, dragging me along with her to a really tiny empty kiosk. We rushed at it, jumping inside the small but protected space at the end of the path.

We were drenched to the bones, shivering in our short and light cloth in spite of the still relative heat. In the hope of warming me, Misa began to rub my arms but she only spread the water onto my skin and stopped. She turned over to watch the rain fall.

“Madre mia! We chose the only raining day in Madrid to go to a park!“

“It’s really bad luck!” I responded, feeling a bit down, all my romantic plans reduced to nothing if the rain would not ceased. I watched Misa’s silhouette detaching against the rainy horizon and my mood brightened. Nothing could go wrong as long as I was with her.

Feeling playful again, I slowly approached the brunette from behind, and squeezed her waist with a scream to scare the hell out of her.

“Ahhh! No Nicky!” Misa fled from my ready to tickle outstretch hands and I pursued her inside the minuscule kiosk, tears of laughter in my eyes at her panicked air. ”Noooo! Déjame!”

“You seem cold! I just want to warm you!” I joked as I ran after her. I didn’t know Misa was so ticklish and it was really fun to finally have a way to be physically threatening to her.

Eventually, she climbed onto the low wall circling us, arms in front to protect herself from my assaults. “Nicky! Cari! No! Porfi!” she begged, laughing hard.

“Okey! I think you’re warm enough! I’ll stop.” I laughed. “You can climb down I won’t tickle you”.

Misa looked at me doubtfully, arms still stretched out.

I laid out my hands to show my good faith and to help her go down “Sweetie, I promise you I won’t”

A new strong blow of the wind swept us, making the goalie shiver and she trusted my offered hands to help her down, yet on her guard when she landed in front of me.

The rain was still falling hard. With the direction of the wind, it had soaked half the kiosk where we were not. It was a veritable storm now. There was no way we were going to be able to go to the rooftop bar I had in mind, enjoying a cocktail under the setting sun…

Misa’s hands were still in mine, soft and relaxed now that she’d get I wasn’t going to foul her. My fingers gently brushed hers. My glance came back to her face framed by her long wet and wavy hair, her smirk brightening the moody weather. I took in her soft look, her eyelashes and brows where a few drops had clung, the ones pounding on the roof a noteless smoothing music. I felt aligned with everything right now.

It wasn’t going to happen as I planned but I didn’t care. A few things had not happened as I planned since I came to Madrid and I wasn’t complaining about them. Therefore, I was contemplating the beautiful person in front of me, the one that unexpectedly came to my life, when my lips parted to speak the words.

“I love you.”

My heart clang to her brown eyes opening wide, her brows going up with a smile of surprise.

She shut her eyes and I felt the grip of her hands tighten as she exhaled. The goalie led her face closer and opened her eyes again, the gold ring on her nose glinted as she cocked her head to the side, the corners of her mouth twitching when she said “I love you too”.

My heart skipped a beat, or two or three, her big dark eyes losing themselves in mine, shiner than usual.

“Te quiero!” She repeated in her own tongue and her hand fell on the nap of my neck, pulling me into the softest kiss we had shared yet. My eyes prickled as I attached myself to her lips, savoring the taste of her mouth, the smell of her breath, of her sweet and floral perfume melting in the musky scent of the rain. The feel of her body striving to hold me closer made me feel so desperately in love with her it took me a moment to realize I was tugging hard at her wet T-shirt like I was afraid Misa and her love for me would vanish if I ever let her go.

The goalie’s lips left mine to kissed me on the forehead as she hugged me gently. I melted in her cute embraced, overwhelmed.

“I want to be with you Misa” I said my hands still locked on her back. “For real”.

Our body parted to stare at each other, I felt cold without the warmth of her front pressed against me. The goalie’s grin had reappeared but only to fade away shortly. “Mi tambien Cari, but I don’t want you to quite your job for me. It makes you so happy…”

“I’m happy with you” I replied at once but I was feeling we needed to talk more now were where at it. “Look, I’m not saying I’ll quite the Real tomorrow but I won’t loose you for a stupid working contract.”

Misa’s nose twitched again. “Yeah I know.” Then, she went to sit on the low wall behind her, her head falling down. “Nicky, I need to tell you something… Because of clubs rivalry, I had been kind of forced to hide my previous relationships. And when you arrived at the Ciudad and we started hanging together I thought, Increíble! I may have found somebody I can openly be with! Then, you told me about the close… it was like I was bound to go all over again.” My girlfriend lifted her head, guilt in her eyes. “I’m sorry I’d been weird, it’s just hard for me sometimes.”

I crouched in front of her to take her in my arms. “Misa, baby, I’m so sorry…” It broke my heart to be the reason of her deception even when I wasn’t responsible. "I can’t quite right now, you have to give me time.” The goalkeeper bit her lips and sighted again, worry flashing on her pretty face.

“I’m not in a rush and I get you.” she answered before rising up to peer at the pouring water. The paths all around us had become muddy. Misa turned back to me, her face sad when she spoke “But what happens next? Do you really know what it takes to be with a professional athlete? If you’re not working for the club, our schedule won’t be aligned anymore. Meaning I will be away almost once a week, all my weekends taken by matches, several weeks out of town for international breaks and competitions, plus the regular working and training obligations you already know…” The young woman took my hands back in hers and asked “Do you think you could be happy in a relationship like that?”

The rain pounding on the roof was easing as Misa’s chest rose up and down, laying the future of our story together in her question. A perplex expression drawn her features as she saw me smiled mildly.

I replied without a doubt “You’re worthing it. I can’t promise you it’s gonna work but I’ll be more than happy to try.” The goalie smiled back and I placed another kiss on her lips. “Te quiero Misa, nothing will compete against that”.

After hearing my words, Misa went back at hugging me tight. Her breathing fastened and her slightly shaking warm and soft voice announced “Rain or not, I’m dying to go home now…”

Dripping from the roof, the rain was back at its full force and wrapped the kiosk in a veil of water. We glanced at the sunken alleys of the park, shivering again. Hand in hand, we jumped thought the curtains of heavy drops, leaving the shelter where we just laid out our hearts for the first time.

✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧

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er-cryptid · 1 year ago

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Peale's Dolphin Classification

Kingdom = Animalia

Phylum = Chordata

Class = Mammalia

Order = Artiodactyla

Infraorder = Cetacea

Family = Delphinidae

Genus = Lagenorhynchus

Species = L. australis

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knights-unwelcommentary · 24 days ago

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This section of Moby Dick imo could be a great format for incorporating song excerpts seamlessly into songfics

This ended, in prolonged solemn tones, like the continual tolling of a bell in a ship that is foundering at sea in a fog- in such tones he commenced reading the following hymn; but changing his manner towards the concluding stanzas, burst forth with a pealing exultation and joy- The ribs and terrors in the whale, Arched over me a dismal gloom, While all God’s sun-lit waves rolled by, And lift me deepening down to doom. I saw the opening maw of hell, With endless pains and sorrows there; Which none but they that feel can tell- Oh, I was plunging to despair. In black distress, I called my God, When I could scarce believe him mine, He bowed his ear to my complaints- No more the whale did me confine. With speed he flew to my relief, As on a radiant dolphin borne; Awful, yet bright, as lightning shone The face of my Deliverer God. My song for ever shall record That terrible, that joyful hour; I give the glory to my God, His all the mercy and the power. Nearly all joined in singing this hymn, which swelled high above the howling of the storm. A brief pause ensued; the preacher slowly turned over the leaves of the Bible, and at last, folding his hand down upon the proper page, said: “Beloved shipmates, clinch the last verse of the first chapter of Jonah- ‘And God had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah.’”

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calvong · 11 months ago

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View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Calvin Ong (@calvinong)

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New Island, Falklands | 19 Dec - cliffs of rowdy Rockhopper Penguins dotted with Black-browed Albatrosses, plus kamikaze Imperial Cormorants on final approach. And heading in on the zodiacs we had the company of 5 playful Peale’s Dolphins. Amazing weather and start to the Falklands landings - next up Stanley later today #falklands #antarctica

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patheticbatman · 1 year ago

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August 2019 Story

I deleted the original, so I'm reposting this. This was almost certainly the last one I drew as a 16 year old, but I might have been 17. Either way, I posted it when I was 18.

Once upon a time, in a splendid palace on the bed of the bluest ocean, lived the Sea King, a wise old merman named Triton with a long flowing white beard. He lived in a magnificent palace, built of gaily coloured coral and seashells, together with his wife Bella-Durmiente and their seven daughters, very beautiful mermaids.

Ondine, the youngest and, in some ways, the loveliest of them all, also had a beautiful voice, and when she sang, the fishes flocked from all over the sea to listen to her. The shells gaped wide, showing their pearls and even the jellyfish stopped to listen. The young mermaid often sang, and each time, she would gaze upwards, seeking the faint sunlight that scarcely managed to filter into the depths.

“When you have reached your eighteenth year,” said her mother when asked, “you will have permission to rise up out of the sea, to sit on the rocks in the moonlight, while the great ships are sailing by; and then you will see both forests and towns.”

In the following year, one of the sisters would be eighteen: but as each was a year younger than the other, the youngest would have to wait six years before her turn came to rise up from the bottom of the ocean, and see the earth as human do. However, each promised to tell the others what she saw on her first visit, and what she thought the most beautiful; for their mother could not tell them enough; there were so many things on which they wanted information. None of them longed so much for her turn to come as the youngest, she who had the longest time to wait, and who was so quiet and thoughtful. Many nights she stood by the open window, looking up through the dark blue water, and watching the fish as they splashed about with their fins and tails. She could see the moon and stars shining faintly; but through the water they looked larger than they do to our eyes. When something like a black cloud passed between her and them, she knew that it was either a whale swimming over her head, or a ship full of human beings, who never imagined that a pretty little mermaid was standing beneath them, holding out her hands towards the keel of their ship.

As soon as the eldest, Coralia, was eighteen, she was allowed to rise to the surface of the ocean. When she came back, she had hundreds of things to talk about; but the most beautiful, Coralia said, was to gaze on a large town nearby, where the lights were twinkling like hundreds of stars; to listen to the sounds of the music, the noise of carriages, and the voices of human beings, and then to hear the merry bells peal out from the church steeples.

In another year the second sister, Cyrena, received permission to rise to the surface of the water, and to swim about where she pleased. She rose just as the sun was setting, and this, she said, was the most beautiful sight of all. The whole sky looked like gold, while violet and rose-colored clouds, which she could not describe, floated over her. She also swam towards the sun; but it sunk into the waves, and the rosy tints faded from the clouds and from the sea.

The third sister, Delfina, was more timid; she remained in the midst of the sea, but she said it was quite as beautiful there as nearer the land. She could see for so many miles around her, and the sky above looked like a bowl of glass. She had seen the ships, but at such a great distance that they looked like seagulls. The dolphins sported in the waves, and the great whales spouted water from their blowholes till it seemed as if a hundred fountains were spraying in every direction.

The fourth sister, Melody, went next. Her birthday occurred in the winter; so when her turn came, she saw what the others had not seen the first time they went up. The sea looked quite green, and large icebergs were floating about, each like a pearl, she said, but larger and loftier than the churches built by men. They were of the most singular shapes, and glittered like diamonds. She had seated herself upon one of the largest, and let the wind play with her long hair, and she remarked that all the ships sailed by rapidly, and steered as far away as they could from the iceberg, as if they were afraid of it. Towards evening, as the sun went down, dark clouds covered the sky, the thunder rolled and the lightning flashed, and the red light glowed on the icebergs as they rocked and tossed on the heaving sea. On all the ships the sails were reefed with fear and trembling, while she sat calmly on the floating iceberg, watching the blue lightning, as it darted its forked flashes into the sea.

The birthday of the fifth sister, Lorelei, followed; she was the boldest of them all, and she swam up a broad river that emptied itself into the sea. On the banks she saw green hills covered with beautiful vines; palaces and castles peeped out from amid the proud trees of the forest; she heard the birds singing, and the rays of the sun were so powerful that she was obliged often to dive down under the water to cool her burning face. In a narrow creek she found a whole troop of little human children, quite naked, and sporting about in the water; she wanted to play with them, but they fled in a great fright; and then a little black animal came to the water; it was a dog, but she did not know that, for she had never before seen one. This animal barked at her so terribly that she became frightened, and rushed back to the open sea. But she said she should never forget the beautiful forest, the green hills, and the pretty little children who could swim in the water, although they had no fish’s tails. (better image version here)

The sixth sister, Nerida, took an obligatory peek above the surface of the water, and grabbed onto some loose rigging hanging off a ship. She did not come back for several weeks, taking a long vacation to the Equator (Her parents said it was okay). She hadn’t felt like swimming, and she was allergic to seahorses, so it was the perfect way to get around. Nerida occasionally went to the surface to watch the dawns (“Much prettier than your sunsets, dear Cyrena!” she later teased.) but mostly stayed underwater, partying day and night with her new friends in the warmer seas. She caught a boat on the way back, immediately being met by Ondine, eager to find out more about land, boats, and most importantly, humans.

And as she waited for the day when she too would be allowed to reach the surface of the sea and meet the unknown world, Ondine spent her time in her wonderful sea garden. The seahorses kept her company, and sometimes a dolphin would come and play. Only the unfriendly starfish never replied when she called. At last, her long-desired birthday arrived. The night before, Ondine could not sleep a wink, until at last day came, and she accidentally fell asleep as morning commenced. In the afternoon, when she finally woke up, her mother called her and, stroking her long hair, slipped a lovely golden bracelet with her mother’s name on it.

“There, now you can go to the surface. My mother gave me this on my eighteenth birthday, and so I will give it to you, and I hope you will give it to yours. You’ll breathe air and see the sky. But remember! It’s not our world! We can only watch it and admire! We’re children of the sea and have no soul, as humans do. Be careful and keep away from them; they can only bring bad luck!” In a second, Ondine had kissed her father and was darting towards the surface of the sea. She swam so fast with flicks of her slender tail, that even the fish could not keep up with her.

Suddenly she popped out of the water. How wonderful! For the first time, she saw the great blue sky, in which as dusk began to fall, the first stars were peeping out and twinkling. The sun, already over the horizon, trailed a golden reflection that gently faded on the heaving waves. High overhead, gulls spotted the little mermaid and greeted her arrival with shrieks of pleasure.

“It’s so lovely!” she exclaimed happily. But another nice surprise was in store for her: a ship was slowly sailing towards the rock on which Ondine was sitting. The sailors dropped anchor and the ship swayed gently in the calm sea. Ondine watched the men go about their work a board, lighting the lanterns for the night. She could clearly hear their voices. They were speaking a language from far away, which she anyway understood because merpeople can speak all tongues.

After thinking about how far those sailors must have come from their homeland, for she was near the coast of Denmark, she said out loud, “I’d love to speak to them!” she said to herself. But then she gazed sadly at her tail, her equivalent of legs, and said to herself: “I can never be like them!”

Aboard ship, a strange excitement seemed to seize the crew, and a little later, the sky became a spray of many coloured lights and the crackle of fireworks filled the sky.

“Long live the captain! Hurray for his 18th birthday. Hurray! Hurray . . . many happy returns!”

Astonished at all this, the little mermaid caught sight of the young man in whose honour the display was being held. Tall and dignified, he was smiling happily, and Ondine could not take her eyes off him. She followed his every movement, fascinated by all that was happening.

The party went on, but the sea grew more agitated. Ondine anxiously realized that the men were now in danger: an icy wind was sweeping the waves, the ink black sky was torn by flashes of lightning, then a terrible storm broke suddenly over the helpless ship. In vain Ondine screamed: “Look out! Beware of the sea . . .” But the howling wind carried her words away, and the rising waves swept over the ship. Amidst the sailors’ shouts, masts and sails toppled onto the deck, and with a sinister splintering sound, the ship sank.

By the light of one of the oil lamps Ondine had seen the young captain fall into the water, and she swam to his rescue. But she could not find him in the high waves and, tired out, was about to give up, when suddenly, there he was on the crest of a nearby wave. In an instant, he was swept straight into the mermaid’s arms.

The young man was unconscious and the mermaid held his head above water in the stormy sea, in an effort to save his life. She clung to him for hours trying to fight the tiredness that was overtaking her. The currents swept them far south and then Northeast, taking them past much land at a rapid pace.

Then, as suddenly as it had sprung up, the storm died away. ln a grey dawn over a still angry sea, Ondine realized thankfully that land lay ahead. Aided by the motion of the waves, she pushed the captain’s body onto the shore, beyond the water’s edge. Unable herself to walk, the mermaid sat wringing her hands, her tail lapped by the rippling water, trying to warm the

young captain with her own body. Then the sound of approaching voices startled Ondine and she slipped back into deeper water.

“Come quickly! Quickly!” came a woman’s voice in alarm. “There’s a man here! Look, I think he’s unconscious!” The captain was now in good hands.

“Let’s take him up to the castle!”

“No, no! Better get help . . .” And the first thing the young man saw when he opened his eyes again was the beautiful face of the youngest of a group of three ladies. “Thank you . . . for saving my life . . .” he murmured to the lovely unknown lady.

From the sea Ondine watched the man she had snatched from the waves turn towards the castle, without knowing that a mermaid had saved his life. Slowly swimming out to sea, Ondine felt that there on the beach she had left behind something she could never bring herself to forget.

How wonderful those tremendous hours in the storm had been, as she had battled with the elements. And as she swam for many days towards her father’s palace, her sisters came to meet her, anxious to know what had kept her so long on the surface.

Ondine started to tell her story, but suddenly a lump came to her throat and, bursting into tears, she fled to her room. She stayed there for days, refusing to see anyone or to touch food. She knew that her love for the young captain was without hope, for she was a mermaid and could never marry a human. Only the Witch of the Deeps could help her. But what price would she have to pay? Ondine decided to ask the her.

“Aha! So you want to get rid of your fishy tail, do you? I expect you’d like to have a pair of woman’s legs, isn’t that so?” said the nasty Witch scornfully, from her cave’s entrance. “Be warned!” she went on. “You will suffer horribly, as though knives were being stabbed into your feet with every step you take!”

“It doesn’t matter!” declared Ondine, with tears in her eyes. “As long as I can go back to him!” Jealousy and infatuation burned hot inside the little mermaid, clouding out her senses. “And that’s not all!” exclaimed the Witch. “In exchange for my spell, you must give me your lovely voice. You’ll never be able to utter a word again! If you want to give up early, just jump into the sea, and you will become a mermaid again, albeit a mute one. And don’t forget! If the man you love marries someone else, you will not be able to turn into a mermaid again. In fact, if you even touch the sea after that, you will dissolve into the water like foam on the wave!”

“Alright!” said Ondine heedlessly, eagerly taking the little jar holding the magic potion. The Witch had told Ondine that the young captain was actually a prince of Singapore, and the mermaid swam many leagues, leaving the shores of Denmark to go to her prince’s nation. She pulled herself onto the beach, then drank the magic potion. An agonizing pain made her faint, and when she came to her senses, she could see the face she loved, smiling down at her. The Witch’s magic had worked the spell, for the prince had felt a strange desire to go down to the beach, just as Ondine was arriving. There he had stumbled on her, and recalling how he too had once been washed up on that same shore, gently laid his cloak over the still body, cast up by the waves.

“Don’t be frightened! My name is Prince Jantung!” he said quickly. “You’re quite safe! Where have you come from?” But Ondine was now mute and could not reply, so the young man softly stroked her cheek.

“I’ll take you to the castle and look after you,” he said. In the days that followed, the mermaid started a new life. She wore splendid dresses and often went out on horseback with the prince. One evening, she was invited to a great ball at Court. However, as the Witch had foretold, every movement and each step she took was torture. Ondine bravely put up with her suffering, glad to be allowed to stay near her beloved prince. And though she could not speak to him, he was fond of her and showered kindness on her, to her great joy. Jantung was even teaching Ondine how to read and write, so they could talk, though the going was very slow. However, the young man’s heart really belonged to the unknown lady he had seen as he lay on the shore, though he had never seen her since, for she had returned at once to her own land.

Even when Jantung was in the company of Ondine, fond of her as he was, the unknown lady was always in his thoughts. And the little mermaid, guessing instinctively that she was not his true love, suffered even more.

She often crept out of the castle at night, to weep by the seashore. Often, her mother and her sisters would come up upon the shore to see her, and they would talk using their hands. Every night, she considered returning to the sea, just letting the waves kiss her toes and take her back in as a mermaid. But then treacherous hope, heedless of sensibilities, would draw her back into the castle. Perhaps his heart would change.

Fate, however, had another surprise in store. From the castle one day, a huge ship was sighted sailing into the harbour. Together with Ondine, the prince went down to meet it. And who stepped from the vessel? The unknown lady who had been in the prince’s heart! When Jantung saw her, he rushed to greet her. Ondine felt a painful feeling pierce her heart: she was about to lose the prince forever.

The unknown lady too had never forgotten the prince she had found on the beach while on a diplomatic mission from her country. Soon after, he asked her to marry him. Since she too was in love, she happily said “Yes!” It was diplomatically advantageous, for she was also a human princess, and was named Luklab.

A few days after the wedding, the happy couple were invited for a voyage on the huge ship, which was still in the harbour. Ondine too went on board, and the ship set sail. Night fell, and sick at heart over the loss of the prince, Ondine went on deck. She remembered the Witch’s prophecy, and was now ready to give up her life and dissolve in the sea.

But before she could jump into the water, she heard a cry from the water and dimly saw her sisters, in the darkness. “Ondine! Ondine! It’s us, your sisters! We’ve heard all about what happened! Look! Do you see this dagger? It’s magic! We found it in the vaults! Take it! Kill the prince and his wife before dawn, and you will become a mermaid again!”

They threw it to her, and Ondine caught it by the handle.

As though in a trance, Ondine clasped the knife and entered the cabin where the prince and his bride lay asleep. But as she gazed at the Jantung and Luklab’s sleeping faces, she simply blew Jantung a furtive kiss, before running back on deck. She knew it was not his fault she was in this situation. When dawn broke, she threw the knife into the sea. Then she shot a parting glance at the world she was leaving behind, and jumped far from the boat into the waves, ready to turn into the foam of the sea from whence she had come, and vanish.

However, a moment before Ondine touched the sea, she was saved by the spirits of the air, who have souls like humans do and who guard the innocents of the world.

Rewarding Ondine for her selflessness and responsibility towards her actions, they took the grief and unhealthy infatuation from her heart and made her one of them. Ondine found she could still visit friends and family and fall in love, while helping all the people in the world, a job she truly enjoyed. So she lived happily ever after, doing exactly that.

Little Mermaid Explanation

I drew all the sisters (who all have names names meaning or referencing ‘mermaids/water spirits’) because I love mermaids, and I had so many ideas on how to draw their tails. If you ever want to watch a cool tv show about mermaids with really pretty tails, you should watch H20. I can almost guarantee you’ll enjoy it. Also, I thought it would be funny if you could literally figure out which sister was which by their hair - Coralia has one hair segment (a ponytail) because she’s the first sister, and when we first see Ondine she has 7, two buns, a pony tail coming off one and the ponytail splitting into four for the the other bun.

The first sister, Coralia, was drawn with her back to the audience because I had drawn a similar mermaid months before and wanted draw it again. I didn’t draw much of the parts of the town that were described in her picture, simply because a lot of it was sound related, and Coralia already looked pretty alien in that whole setting.

The second sister, Cyrena, is also facing away, but not for any other reason than me just wanting for her to face the sunset.

Delfina, the third, is the first one I showed her face. She’s hanging out with a dolphin because Delfina means Dolphin in Spanish. I also decided to give cat-like eyes to the mermaids because there’s less light underwater and it would serve better to process it.

Slight side note: The witch’s spell did give Ondine human eyes, but when she was caught by the spirit of the air they changed back because they’d be useful in that line of work. Melody (the name of Ariel’s daughter in the Little Mermaid 2: Return to the Sea), sister number four, doesn’t have her face shown because the only way I could think of staging that scene with her face showing seemed overly dramatic. She’s the sister comforting Ondine in a later picture.

Lorelei’s picture was kind of hard, because I’ve never drawn a dog in that angle. But I used her face as a base for the rest of the sisters, because I think she looked cool. Nerida’s picture was so long I actually had to add on the tail from another paper. The first picture of Ondine I’m not completely proud of, but I had fun anyway. Her second picture, with Jantung (which, by the way, is Malay for heart, which I think is funny because Ondine was supposed to steal his) is much better in my opinion. I had to look up pictures of lifesaving techniques.

Jantung is dressed and designed to look a lot like this anime character I like, named Hak. He’s from Yona of the Dawn (Akatsuki no Yona), and he’s a fun guy. Jantung isn’t much like him actually; Hak is closer to being the Ondine in this story than being Jantung.

I didn’t really change this story, just smoothed over some explanations over why Ondine couldn’t talk to the Prince and took out a lot of extraneous detail. Trust me, Hans Christian Anderson can go on and on, and that’s something coming from me.

I didn’t draw the Sea Witch because I didn’t think to until I had finished my last planned picture, and I didn’t really want to.

Luklab means mysterious in Thai, which I chose because we don’t ever find out much about her.

Ondine is a reference to a water nymph who got what the little mermaid wanted. The real kicker was that she actually wanted to stay a water nymph, so it’s sort of ironic.

Ondine’s third picture was drawn to sort of mirror Ariel’s famous ‘Part of Your World’ pose, and to also show Jantung being found.

In Ondine’s crying picture, she’s wearing different clothes to show the effort she’s put into trying to be human. It also shows that she was the avoiding the water in hopes that Jantung changes his mind, as she sat just far away enough from the wave to not get hit but close enough that Melody wouldn’t be uncomfortable. Melody is in the picture because I didn’t get to draw her tail for her picture.

In the last picture, Ondine is smiling because no matter how helpless she had felt before, the moment she saw there was another option she was happy.

The Prince is Asian because I felt that with the Little Mermaid’s castle being set near the coast of Denmark, she may have a vague idea of the human writing structures there. However, with a different alphabet and symbols from halfway across the world, there would be no way she’d pick up reading and writing quickly, thus canceling that avenue of non-verbal communication. Heck, she may not even be comfortable with using a writing utensil! And sign language beyond mostly fingerspelling (at least in the Western world) wasn’t really used until the 1800s. So, Ondine wouldn’t be able to communicate her true identity and reason to be with the Prince in such a short amount of time. Not unless he started asking some very specific questions. If only she had a crab to whisper in his ear….

Original post here

#the little mermaid #wac #wac repost

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bates--boy · 2 years ago

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With winter overstaying its welcome so close to spring, of course, the citizens of Karlstad will take advantage of the rare good days with clear skies and mildly warm winds, families and friends bustling about. Lines winding out of cafés and down the block, shoppers skipping in and out of stores, arms heavy with bags, kids piling into arcades and university students taking refuge in fast food joints. The animal conservatory was no exception.

Peter missed working in the aquarium terribly. It wasn't just being in the spotlight while performing graceful stunts and choreography in the air and water with his aquatic partners, drinking in the raucous applause from thr crowd. It was the contagious and delightful laughter of the children, the awe they held when Peter showed them the underside of the manta ray, or taught them the gestation period of bottlenose dolphins while pointing out the very pregnant bellies, or practically doing public relations for the great white sharks; it still amused him to remember how big their eyes got when they learn that cows, even vending machines, killed more people than sharks.

And though he'd never purport himself to be the likes of the great Steve Irwin, it was wonderful that he has someone to pass down his love of marine life to. Some would say that maybe it's too soon to do so when his someone has yet to learn how to use the toilet or hasn't even fully formed knees yet, but it's good to start early.

And today was a perfect day to start early, with Peter kneeling next to the touch pool. "Sadie, honey, look!" He said to the infant he held in his arm in a precarious angle so she could look into the pool. It did not matter that the child was half-asleep, or that she was currently thinking about the soft warmth of her mother's breasts and the delicious milk they held (despite having already eaten), Peter pointed and oohed and aahed.

"This is a starfish!" Peter cooed to Sadaf. "And that right there is an eel! And over there is a manta ray! Don't scare it, though, don't want you to get Irwined!" Tasteless and half-factual quip aside, this was an almost perfect outing, just the two of them, Peter pretending that Sadaf understood what he was sharing with her, Sadaf being her adorable self. Almost perfect, because he wished he could give her the full experience. Families surrounded them, kids reaching in the pool to rub and pat the oceanic creatures, to brush their fingers along the aquatic plants and squeal at the touch. There was too much of a dropping risk to hold Sadaf close to the pool's surface and maneuver her hand to touch any of the creatures.

"Hm..." Peter hummed, a thought coming to him. He readjusted Sadaf in his arm, lulling her into a false sense of naptime as he dipped his unoccupied fingers into the pool. He held in a gasp at the brisk coolness of the liquid, how enlivening it was. He touched his fingers to Sadaf's hand, coating her tiny fist in thr cold water.

Her drooping eyelids popped open, her head jerking straight. Peter smiled down at the child, his heart swelling at the awe and spark in her eyes.

Until her sparse brows knitted together, a deep line furrowing in her forehead; her eyes squeezed shut, and her toothless mouth opening and letting loose a peal of despairing, anguishing, and horrified cries.

"Awww, Sadaf, no!" Peter chuckled. He reached inside her bag to pull out a baby wipe, setting to work on wiping her hand clean and warming it. "Oh, honey, I'm sorry!"

#droid noodles ( writing )#sadaf #hetalia #peter wtf that water's cold as hell

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moyer15 · 2 years ago

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I posted 109 times in 2022

That's 109 more posts than 2021!

1 post created (1%)

108 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@goldpauladeen

@mausspacearchive

@moyer15

@fireworksdraco

@zyxwk

I tagged 109 of my posts in 2022

#0 - 46 posts

#reblog - 108 posts

#september 4th 2022 - 45 posts

#september - 45 posts

#4th - 45 posts

#photo - 34 posts

#text - 17 posts

#gif - 15 posts

#gifs - 6 posts

#audio - 3 posts

Longest Tag: 42 characters

#peale's dolphin (lagenorhynchus australis)

My Top Posts in 2022:

Life Is Good turned 8 today!

1 note - Posted November 1, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review

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inatungulates · 1 year ago

Photo

Peale’s dolphin “Lagenorhynchus” australis

Observed by josh_vandermeulen, CC BY-NC-ND

#Lagenorhynchus australis #Peale's dolphin #Cetacea #Delphinidae #cetacean #dolphin #South America #Chile #Atlantic Ocean #Strait of Magellan

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namu-the-orca · 3 years ago

Photo

A little Peale’s dolphin sketch before bed. Because why not.

#I hope you'll find him ap-peale-ing #studies #Peale's dolphin #Lagenorhynchus australia #Peale #dolphin #lagenorhynchus #australis #digital art #sketches

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eda11y · 6 years ago

Photo

Peale's Dolphin by creedont

#IFTTT #500px #peale's dolphin #lagenorynchus australis #black-chinned dolphin #dolphin #mammal #marine #aq

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lasersquid · 2 years ago

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The greatest player...

[A woman wearing a Khaganian military uniform in subdued red emerges from a building onto a busy, hot, crowded street. The burgeoning jungle threatens to reclaim everything. She pauses in the street, and removes a glass eye to polish the humidity from it. Pedestrian traffic parts around her. Through the eye, sigils are visible on a door, a coruscating shower of brilliance. one is shaped like a hambone.]

...in the Great Game...

[a star chart lies atop a sheaf of papers on a coffee-ringed table. outside the window, the morning sun flickers. a breeze rustles the papers, revealing scraps of a dossier. the words intercepted, unknown, survivors, faction, and counterpart are visible]

...doesn't play by the rules...

[a cruiser, docked in a port, explodes in spectacular fashion, immolating the buildings nearby. several men scream in agony and foreign tongues. the pressure wave roars outward with a hellish, pink-accented fury]

...offers no quarter...

[a child in nightclothes holds a lantern covering their face as they creep in terror down a stone basement staircase. the walls drip a viscous liquid. A woman's joyous peals of laughter overshadows the growing thrum.]

...and plays every side...

[a dash of cassowaries burst out of a forest onto a lush savannah plain. they race to a small creek, and pause to drink. one looks up, as if startled by some imperceptible sign. it takes off at a dead sprint. towards the desert. the dash hurries to catch up. the sun beats down under a clear sky.]

...against the middle...

Ice T: Man, hold up. Are you tellin' me this whole story is about that damn-

Narrator: Don't you dare ruin this for them, T.

T: It doesn't make sense! How's a-

N: One more word, T. Say one more word and by God I will personally put you back in that bear.

Ice T: Man [an exasperated sigh] Whatever man. Just-this better be good is all I'm saying.

N: Doing our best here, mister 'renowned for his exacting cinematic and storytelling standards'. [a dolphin clicks excitedly] Not now, Jones.

[Jones clicks disappointedly]

[clears throat] ...and the middle...

[a red table in a dimly lit room, a key rests on a hook by the door. seven typewriters are arranged in a circle around the table. one at a time, they each begin to chatter away. no one is visible

...against itself.

[voices: an older, very En*lish man] Your instructions are clear! I want-

[a woman's lustrous and accented contralto]: -Him

[a man, distinctly Chinese] -Off

[a child of the American South]: -The

[in unison: -Board!

[Title Card: Frilliam and Thwoop Present: Of Moth And Men: A Fallen London story.

[a poorly-kept yet well-maintained home, electric lamps vie with firelight to cast shadows across the tables groaning with papers adorned with sketches and figures.

a moth alights on one of many mostly full and entirely neglected coffee cups. this particular cup is shorter than the others, and has the word Hasbro inscribed upon it. a morin khuur begins to play the opening chords of 'Dr. Feelgood' as the image fades]

#fallen london #into the thwoopiverse #hasbro #of moth and men

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kuroosweakness · 4 years ago

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more single dad!kuroo | sumi and her stuffed animals + special bath + talks about her lost tooth + school troubles + dinner

“what’s tim doing here?”

the green sea turtle plush lays on his back, having stared at the ceiling for the past hour. 5-year-old sumi comes running through her dad’s room’s door with her hair flopping against her back with every step.

“tim’s gonna stay with you today,” she informs kuroo and makes grabby hands at the turtle. naturally, kuroo plucks the plush off the mattress and places him in her hands.

“oh? why with me?” an amused smile creeps onto his face. it’s always her and her stuffed animals. but oh, he can’t deny he doesn’t hearing all of the drama between her stuffed animals. apparently, the imagination of a 5-year-old is endless.

sumi takes a good long look at tim and his green flippers. she scrunched up her face and makes a pouty face. “tim’s tired of the other mean animals and wants to gonna stay with you today,” she tells him, as if it’s the most obvious thing ever. “you’re not gonna be mean to him?”

“course not,” kuroo huffs. he sits down on the carpet floor and sumi follows. “tim and i are great friends, right tim?”

not to his surprise, tim doesn’t reply. sumi nods and places the turtle on her dad’s lap. “okay. tim’s staying with you today.”

“mmm...” kuroo arches an eyebrow at her as she suddenly pulls out her dolphin plushie ...from under the bed? “daphne’s gonna stay with me too? wow, am i popular,” he teases.

daphne, the blue dolphin, joins tim on kuroo’s lap. “she’s gonna stay with you too because the other animals are being mean.”

“i see,” kuroo slowly nods and rests his chin on the palm of his hand. “who’s being mean to them? and why?”

“the dinos! because they’re-” she points at the plushie on her dad’s lap. “-ocean animals so the others don’t like them.”

“c’mere,” kuroo waves at her to come closer and she does. she plops herself right on her dad’s lap. her mischievous smile proves that she’s aware of squishing tim and daphne. “we’re gonna haveta wash your hair today,” he tells her while combing her hair with his fingers.

“ooh, special bubbles?”

he laughs. “no, not with special bubbles. gotta save water, baby....for sea turtles and dolphins like tim and daphne.”

after bunching her hair into a small ponytail, kuroo sits back and lets her do a 360. “all done~”

before she bounces out of his room, he calls out, “sumi, wait-”

sumi turns around and looks at her dad questioningly.

“you can’t-” kuroo gets up and brushes his pants, picking up tim and daphne from the floor right after. “-just let the dinos be mean to tim and daphne.”

“i’m not,” she says. “i’m gonna teach them a good lesson right now.”

before kuroo can say something, her eyes darken like the way they always do when she’s about to tell her dad something interesting.

“do you know what they said to daphne once?”

kuroo places the plushies on his bed and walks over to her. “what did they say?”

sumi looks down at the floor and follows her dad out the door and to the kitchen. “they made fun of her because her smile”

kuroo nods along, opens the top fridge door, and bends down to ruffle his daughter’s hair. “what happened afterwards?”

sumi’s shoulders slump and her chest grows heavy. “she cried and they laughed. it-” she picks at her lips. “ because she lost her tooth and now her smile look funny”

a small thud distracts her from her train of thought. kuroo says a small “oops” and picks up the jar lid that fell on the floor. he places the lid back on the counter and croutches down at sumi’s eye level.

his eyebrows draw together; his eyes scans over her face for any signs he may recognize. “now, now” he rubs his palms against her shoulders soothingly. “they have no business making fun of daphne for something as natural as losing a tooth.”

he knows his words aren’t much help, but he truly doesn’t know what else can make her feel better. kuroo’s glad she can’t tell how much her crying hurts him too.

“besides, her smile does not look funny. i think she looks beautiful, and my opinion matters, doesn’t it? since has daddy been wrong?” he gives her a small smile in hopes that it’s a contagious one.

she stifles a laugh and roughly wipes her eyes on her sleeve. “you got milk chocolate and dark chocolate mixed up!”

he smiles and rolls his eyes. “well excuse me. they look like the same-”

“nuh uh!...” she giggles. “at least you didn’t get white chocolate mixed up!”

“it’ll be troubling if i did,” he laughs. his face softens at her. after a few more shoulders rubs, he asks, “is daphne feeling better about her smile now...?”

she sniffles, inhales, and breaks into a sob. kuroo’s eyes widen as she presses her head against his chest. and suddenly, his grey shirt is her next tissue.

“but no one else lost tooth” she chokes. it doesn’t take long for her teary eyes to release teardrop after teardrop. she hates this, hates being weak, hates how she looks with big, red, and puffy eyes. but at least she’s crying in front of her dad and not those boys at school...daddy wouldn’t laugh at her, ever. “it’s only me with big hole in smile”

she pulls back and shows him the gap between her front tooth as if her dad doesn’t already know. “sumi-”

“it looks dumb.” she frowns and tightens her hug around kuroo’s neck. “so so so dumb”

kuroo continues rubbing and patting her back like the way he used to when she was younger, and couldn’t sleep at set times. “you know,” kuroo gently begins. “those mean people will lose their teeth later and they’ll have gaps in between their teeth too. plus, the tooth fairy wouldn’t give them money because she never awards mean people.”

sumi sniffles and presses her eyes against her dad’s shirt to soak up leftover tears.

“so not only did they lose a tooth, but they also don’t get money and have no right to be making fun of you.” kuroo slowly pulls back and examines his daughter’s tear-stained, red, scrunched up face. “after a quick face wash, you’ll be as good as new”

sumi doesn’t reply and climbs on her dad’s back for a piggy back ride to the bathroom.

he lifts her up and tightens his hold on her small thighs. as he starts walking, he sees her feet dangling by his side and wonders, where did her other sock go? he sighs and shakes his head with a tired smile, not another missing sock...

“sumi, i’m sure i’ve already told you this, but another tooth will grow back. an even stronger, better tooth!”

the bathroom lights flick open and kuroo steps onto the tiled floors, setting his daughter on the counter and holding onto her thighs to prevent her falling off.

he catches his reflection in the mirror and stifles a laugh. the neck area of his shirt is soaked with tears and snot.

“daddy?”

he looks up at her and her bunched up fists. “hm?”

“can i take a special bubbles bath?” she points at the bathtub and puts on her best set of puppy eyes. naturally, kuroo’s weak heart makes him nod ‘yes’ before he can process what she asked.

“really? yay~” she inches closer to the edge of the counter and-

“woah woah woah,” he sets her down and lets her climb into the tub. sumi sets her clothes aside and sits patiently in the tub, waiting for her dad to turn the water on.

“the water’s cold at first, remember?” he teasingly pinches her cheek, thankful that she mind is no longer on her fallen tooth. maybe he should have a talk with her kindergarten teacher-

“dad?”

he looks up and wonders where the -dy went.

“the water’s warm enough now!” she gives the water a few kicks and cups and handful before throwing it up and laughing. sumi treads across the water and grabs the colorful bath bomb she picked out at the store a while ago.

kuroo turns the water off and she eagerly throws the bath bomb in. “...why’s it not melting? :((”

with a quick look at the floating ball, kuroo chuckles and picks it right out the water. “there’s plastic wrapping around it, baby.”

sumi’s mouth forms a small ‘o’ and watches her dad peal the wrapping away. “throw it in!” she tells him.

he does just as she says and the two watches small bubbles form around the blue-turning water.

“it’s blue...it’s red...it’s purple!” she cheers and throws her arms above her head. kuroo smiles in acknowledgment at the fact that she knows her colors well.

~~~

“daddy?”

there goes the -dy. thank goodness it’s back. “yes, baby?”

she pokes at his arm that’s drying her off with a towel. “can i get more plushie?”

“no more dinos though...”

“course not! i want-” she taps her lips in thought and squeals when her dad’s cold hands comes in contact with her warm skin. “-i want more sea plushie”

“how about a shark? sharks constantly lose and grow more teeth”

“but sharks are mean”

kuroo slips her shirt over her head. “not all of them,” he says. “a lot of sharks can be nice and we could name him or her-”

“what about ‘smark’?” sumi suggests.

kuroo snorts. “’smark’? not sure if that’s a name or even a word, sumi...but if you’d like, then sure.”

“daddy?”

“yes?” he gives her hair some final ruffles and grabs a nearby comb.

“you used to call me punkin”

“...mm, and what about it, punkin?”

“the kids look at me funny and laughed when you called me punkin”

“did they?” kuroo sighs. “god, why are the kids in your kindergarten class so mean”

“i don’t know,” she quietly replies. “they’re just like the dinos!”

he frowns. “screw the dinos”

sumi holds her belly as she laughs. “screw the mean boys and girls too”

after a few final hair brushes, kuroo pats her head and grins. “my beautiful girl~”

“pumpkin,” she corrects him.

kuroo pulls back in surprise and slowly sets her back on the floor. “’my beautiful pumpkin’ sounds like i’m talking to the orange vegetable,” he chuckles. “i thought you didn’t like it when i-”

“i do like it. and pumpkins.” she bounces out of the bathroom and jumps onto couch, like the way she always does after baths. “daddy would you be sad if tim and daphne not sleep with you today?”

“i would be more than heartbroken,” kuroo jokes from the bathroom. he flicks the light switch off and pads over to the couch she’s sitting on. her mischievous smile grows with every step closer.

“then i guess you have to be heartbrochon”

kuroo dramatically gasps as he sits down next to her. “and you’re completely fine with me being heartbroken? just when i thought you loved me-”

“i do! but i love tim and daphne more so they need to sleep with me today.”

kuroo tries to hide his face of betrayal at the fact that he’s not first place in her heart, not second, but third–after two stuffed animals.

“so....” she crawls closer to him to display her irresistible puppy eyes again. “can i have a shark plushie?”

“just so your shark plushie can take my place in your heart?” kuroo teases and leans forward to grab the tv remote. “i’d be fourth place-”

“no you won’t! my list goes-” she looks deep in thought as she counts her fingers. “teddy, daphne, buddy, tim, fried rice, you”

kuroo’s mouth gapes open as he slumps against the couch. “i come after fried rice?” he laughs. “even though i’m the one who makes it for you?”

she laughs with him. her laugh matches his well–both loud, genuine, and more like a cackle. “fine, you come before fried rice.”

but not before your four other stuffed animals? he shakes his head in amusement. “i guess you’ll have to go to teddy, buddy, tim, and daphne to cook you dinner and tuck you in bed today~”

he shrugs his shoulders in defeat and walks over to the kitchen. “it’s all too bad that i’ll have to enjoy my grilled mackerel all alone~”

“daddy! you know how much buddy likes fish!” she grabs her polar bear off of the couch and marches after her dad.

“he has great taste,” kuroo replies back. sumi glares at her dad and clings onto his leg as he washes the rice.

“i’ll put you in first place if you buy me ‘smark’“ she playfully says.

“ah...bribing won’t work on me, baby”

sumi huffs, releases her hold, clasps his sweatpants instead. “but you already number one on my list”

“mm,” he hums back, unconvinced. conversations like these and teasing her are his favorite. he finds great joy in getting her riled up in little topics that might not matter to others, but means the world to him.

“uh huh! you are!” she follows him to the fridge and widens her eyes at the sight of a popsicle. “can i have that?”

“save it for dessert,” he replies back.

“mm” she groans and walks over to pick up her polar bear that she accidentally dropped on the carpet. clink and clanks of pots and pans ring through the air as kuroo searches for the right pan.

“daddy? can i bring smark to school?”

“as long as if you don’t lose him,” he replies.

sumi’s face stretches into a wide grin. “does that mean you’ll get him for me? :)”

kuroo lets out a long sigh. “yea, i probably will”

sumi bounces over to her dad again and beams. “you’re the best”

“yeah yeah” he laughs. “i was in like sixth place a few minutes ago”

“you always at number one,” she tells him as she goes on her tip toes to try to place her polar bear on the kitchen counter. she fails and buddy falls on her head.

“have i?”

sumi picks buddy up again and runs to her room. kuroo turns around at the lack of her voice and she suddenly runs back with her dinos.

“trash!”

kuroo’s eyes widen. “oh no no no, don’t throw your toys away”

“but they’re bad toys :(“

kuroo thinks about this for a second. “you gotta teach them to not be mean, give them a second chance, maybe they’ll become nice dinos”

sizzling sounds come from the pan and sumi smiles at the smell of fish. but quickly frowns again at her dinos.

“i guess,” she mumbles and runs back to her room. it doesn’t take long for her to run back out with teddy and buddy in her arms, her teddy bear and loose bear.

“i said you always been number one,” she tells her dad while scratching the side of her hair. “ask why”

“so you put me after fried rice to make fun of me?” kuroo teases.

“no? that was my list of ‘stuff i love’ not ‘people i love’ “

kuroo ponders this for a moment and reaches up for the little bottles of spice.

“so i’m on your ‘stuff i love’ and ‘people i love’ list? i’m a stuff and a person?” he chuckles.

“you’re number one on my ‘people i love’ list,” she says. sumi crinkles her nose at the smell of string spices. “and the only one”

“... i’m the only one? what about your friends? teacher? tim? buddy?”

“buddy’s a bear!” she exclaims like it’s the most obvious thing ever. “not person. and teddy’s my best friend, but he’s a bear too”

“mm... so no human friends?”

“nope, maybe you”

“maybe?” he laughs. “are we not friends?”

“you’re daddy! not friend”

“i can be friend and daddy at the same time!”

“but you can’t be daddy and fried rice at the same time”

kuroo stifles a laugh at her unexpected response. “that’s correct. do you ... does no one ....” kuroo bites his lip. how should he approach this topic?

“who do you sit next to during school?”

“amara and thomas”

her response is quick, so she must know them well, right? sumi picks at the fluff of her polar bear and goes to sit on the carpet right outside the kitchen tiles.

“do they not talk to you?”

“sometimes,” she replies. she’s much more interested in why she suddenly sees a blue mark on her polar bear then the discussion with her dad right now. “buddy’s turning blue :(“

“...?”

“look!”

but kuroo doesn’t have the time to look away from the pan so he nods. “mm, we’ll give him a wash”

“okay”

“who else do you talk to during school?”

“mrs. chen” she frowns at the blue spot on her polar bear and checks to see if teddy has one too.

“anyone else?”

whew, teddy doesn’t have one. “sometimes amara”

with a click, kuroo turns the stove off and slides the mackerel on a white dish. “anyone else...?”

“no”

“ah... do you wish you have more people to talk to?”

“no, i talk to you all the time!”

“right, you tell me everything,” he beams. he brings a spoon to his mouth to taste the sauce.

“daddy why can’t guys make babies”

kuroo’s eyes widen as he splutters out the sauce. “...well, it’s just the way mother nature works”

“so you didn’t make me?”

kuroo avoids eye contact and rubs his neck sheepishly. “well..... it’s complicated and not something you should worry about”

“mrs. chen said i look like you, and she called me pretty. does that make you pretty?”

“...” conversations with a five year old can be quite amusing ... “it’s up to you,” he laughs. “do you think i’m pretty?”

“i guess”

he laughs even harder at her dry response and quickly turns the conversation topic back around. “is school fun for you?”

“i guess”

“...” ah, there goes the painful short responses. “what do you guys do everyday-“

“daddy why do guys have to stand up when they use the bathroom-“

“remember buddy’s blue spot?” kuroo quickly butts in.

sumi’s eyes diverts back to her polar bear. “:(( buddy’s turning colors!”

kuroo lets out a long, heavy, and tired sigh. it’s been a long day for him as a parent and now he learns that his daughter doesn’t have any friends her age?

“buddy will be fine,” he reassures her and carries white dishes to the small dining table. sumi places a long kiss on buddy’s nose.

“daddy if you weren’t so tall i’d kiss you on the nose too”

before kuroo can say something, sumi changes the topic once again. “smark will be friends with tim and daphne.”

“mm”

“mrs. chen said that you’re really tall”

“...”

“she told ms. loren that you’re the most handsome dad”

“......”

“ms. loren whispered something about being my future mommy and it was really weird”

kuroo chokes on his spit and walks back into the kitchen quietly. “i-“

“i don’t want ms. loren to be my mommy”

“oh you won’t have to worry about that,” he nervously chuckles. his daughter sure has a lot to say...he makes a mental note to avoid eye contact with ms. loren the next time he drops her off.

“daddy do you like tim and daphne or do you pretend to?”

kuroo frowns as he cuts up some cucumbers. “why wouldn’t i like them? i like the way they make you happy”

“i think amara only pretend to like me”

kuroo makes another mental note to consider transferring her to a new school. after a final slice, he puts the diced up cucumbers onto a small plate and grabs nearby spices.

“maybe amara isn’t meant to be friends with you. sometimes, peoples’ personalities just don’t match up.”

sumi sighs and slumps her shoulders. “i wish you can go to school with me instead of work”

“i wish i can too” he laughs. “punkin, dinner’s ready. wash up”

“ooh” sumi quickly sits up and dashes over to the kitchen sink step stool. “but you said you wouldn’t cook for me...?”

“i can’t leave ya hungry,” he tells her. “besides, i’m your friend”

“and my daddy,” she quips back. she turns on the sink and scrubs her hands with soap. “but not fried rice.”

“mm, i’m not fried rice,” kuroo restates with a smile. “...do you like going to school?”

“it’s fun sometimes, so. i guess.” sumi steps off of her step stool and happily bounces over to the dinner table.

~~~

the night concludes with them eating dinner, kuroo asking more questions about school and buddy’s blue spot, sumi happily eating popsicle for dessert

#i just realized that sumi has a really short attention span #and a big vocabulary for a five year old #she got her smarts frm her dad B)#it's the way i did nothing this whole afternoon except write this ....#but hey it's kinda cute :)#kuroo tetsurou #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu drabbles #haikyuu imagines #dad!haikyuu #dad!kuroo #kuroo fluff #kuroo scenarios #kuroo x reader #lia drabbles #lia misses kuroo

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dwollsadventures · 3 years ago

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The second part of a request from TheLOAD from... a while back. The initial one was the Nix/Nokk/Knucker piece. This one took me a little longer for a few reasons. Mostly school reasons. And writer's block reasons, which is why this is taking the place of the monthly preview. And because, for research, I had to re-read the entirety of Drakon by Daniel Ogden for information. For those not used to my pedantry, this is not an "in-canon" family tree of the Greek dragons, such as you might see in those huge Greek mythology family tree pictures that are on the internet (I've got a few in my favorites from waaaaayyyy back as well). Rather, this is a way of showing how the concept of the dragon came about throughout time and how other beings are related through those branching lines. Of course this is presented as a lot more neat than it probably should be. If it were truly accurate it would have interconnected lines all over the place and obscure the little lizards. Before we talk about what's on the tree let's talk about what's not on it. Though Odgen talks about every (and I mean every) slightly Draconic being in Greek and Roman mythology, I've opted to include a trimmed down version. Because some, like Medusa and Lamia, I personally do not consider dragons proper, and others like the goddess Keto are relatively obscure and probably only exist to explain the existence of a related being (like the ketea). Creatures like Chimera and Typhoeus are included because, while not usually serpentine or draconic, they are in effect dragons; horrible, vaguely reptilian monsters slain by a hero. Not every individual dragon is depicted, only the ones I thought pertinent to include. (warning: LONG)

To start with, a drakon is a snake. The Greeks used the word to refer to both huge monsters and mundane snakes. Drakon itself is derived from the word dérkomai and is believed to literally mean, "the one who sees". The hypnotizing power attributed to snakes is present in drakons, traditionally given the job of the sleepless guardian of treasure. Going back even further, we see that the drakon comes from two disparate cultural perceptions of snake, each of which is still present in its classical form.

Snake Goddess - One of the native precursors of the Greeks were the Minoans. They had more in common with their Egyptian and Near Eastern neighbors than the Italians and Balkans. From what little we can gather of their culture, it appears the snake was a symbol of the goddess. Whether or not it was any goddess in particular is unknown. This theme survives into ancient Greece, however. Athena often uses snakes as agents when acting with mortals, Hera uses them as well (the twin serpents who attempted to strangle Heracles and the Hydra), and Medea had a chariot pulled by snakes. Earth goddesses in particular are heavily associated with them. Python was a direct product of Gaia, and the snake was a divine symbol of Demeter, who also had a rad snake chariot. Even in mortal women, their dynamic with snakes and dragons is nurturing. Several heroines sing to snakes as their masculine counterparts steal the treasure they guard, fulfilling a nurturing role in comparison to the destructive masculine one. Here the snake is a guardian, a creature of the earth and everything beneath it, including gold and the dead. These dragons are usually not slain, but pacified by the presence of a woman. In addition, the beard is an originally Greek symbol associated with snakes, particularly those connected to the gods. This was quite possibly a signifier of their supernatural status above mundane serpents. The goddess depicted above isn't any one in particular, though her dress does pull from a statue of Athena holding a curled python.

Drakaina - One way in which the snake goddess has survived is in the drakaina. This word is simply the feminine form of drakon, but also encompasses the numerous beings characterized by having the upper body of a woman and the lower body of a drakon. Numerous beings in Greek mythology fit this theme, but the one I've focused on is the Scythian drakaina, a woman who intercepts Heracles during one of his labors and kidnaps some cows. She offers to return the cattle in exchange for a night of intercourse. And then Herc is off and we're told the three sons of that union go on to become kings of great renown in Scythia. Some authors interpret this as a Greek adaptation of a Scythian myth, with one of the key pieces of evidence being that the drakaina's name is Hora, meaning "Seasons". Regardless of whether or not this is a goddess, it is a story where the snake-woman is neither killed nor stolen from, instead given the prestige of being the founder of a line of kings.

PIE Chaos Serpent - From the Proto-Indo-Europeans up North, we get the dragon we're all more familiar with. Serpents of this breed, such as Apep, Tiamat, and Jormungand, are all enormous, destructive creatures allied with darkness and the unforgiving seas. They represent the primordial chaos from what order sprang out of, and often have a hand in trying to return the world to that way. One of the primary themes associated with them is the dragon slayer: a god or hero who fights a dragon to save something, be it a land or treasure or an Ethiopian princess.

Typhoeus - This guy, though significantly more humanoid and giant-like than any others, is the clearest example of a PIE chaos serpent in Greece. It does not get more typical than a giant snake (like) monster fighting a storm god. Typhoeus probably sprung from traditions where he was more serpentine, but gradually added other aspects. Such as his own storm god qualities. In Greece, gods associated with the winds are always given wings, save for Zeus. The two's battle is reflective of a battle between the terrible whirlwinds and lightning strikes and the calmer, helpful rain showers that enable humanity to survive.

And then we get to the drakon proper. Taking elements from both sides of the tree, the archetypal Greek drakon is an enormous, often monstrous serpent associated with both the underground and the waters in some way. They are agents of gods, most often goddesses, sent to battle heroes or guard priceless treasures. Sometimes they're killed, sometimes they're merely lulled to sleep by a helpful maiden. Rather than breathing fire (which everything from mechanical bulls to horses to giants do), they possess venoms and rows of sharp teeth. Mention of their terrible gazes is often made. This drakon has both a beard and a casque-like crown, common elements in drakon descriptions from Greece. Its face is much less serpentine, being modeled after a clay illustration of the Colchian dragon. This gives is a suitably monstrous look, as if it were being pealed from layers of mud.

Chimera - Despite its odd appearance, the chimera fits the pattern of a dragon terrorizing a countryside and being slain by a plucky hero. The chimera may in fact be the originator of the classical Saint George imagery, where the saint is depicted as towering over a crawling, pitiful dragon. A 3rd century mosaic from Imperial Rome may have started this trend. What makes her (because despite her mane the Chimera is a female) stand apart from all the rest is the sheer strangeness of her form compared to others. Especially the little goat that comes out of her back, like a rider. Which I had to cut for spacing reasons :(

Hydra - Another classical Greek dragon is the multi-headed hydra, who has given its name to a whole genre of creatures with more heads than they ought to have. In addition to having the attributes of a typical Greek drakon, the Hydra has two traits seen in Mesopotamian monsters as well. The first is the amount of heads. Having many heads is not as common in Greece as it is in the Near East, where the idea of an eleven-headed sea serpent pops up numerous times across several different cultures. The second is that the hydra, in its earliest mentioning by Hesiod, is said to have been raised by Hera specifically to combat Heracles. This same tactic is done by a few Mesopotamian gods. In their realm of influence, monsters are pawns of the gods, who send them out to do their bidding on Earth while they lounge in Heaven. Our Hydra may have been a later influence from Greece's neighbors to the East. Also, had to add in the crab that Hera also sends in to help the hydra. If this were a spec bio piece, I would make it a species of crab that evolved to clean the hydra of parasites.

Cetus - Sea monsters such as these are perhaps the furthest from the traditional Greek drakon, while still remaining core parts of the mythology. In form cetoi range from exaggerations of real whales and sharks to dog-headed serpents with frilly fins and ears. Or even animal-headed fish. Because they live underwater, they almost always function as tools of divine vengeance. Kinda hard to steal treasure underwater. Heavy metal tends to sink. While cetus was originally a word for any sea monster, it would eventually become the root of the scientific term cetacean: whales and dolphins.

But the tree doesn't end there. See, even after the culture we recognize as the Ancient Greeks and Romans faded, their dragons still lived on. Medieval Europe, with its glorification of Greco-Roman texts, derived many of their folk beliefs from their predecessors. Or, the people who they liked to imagine were there predecessors.

Draco - The Romans adopted the Greek drakon whole-clothe, like a lot of stuff. The only noteworthy original dragon to come out of the pre-Fall Roman era was the Dacian Draco. The Dacians used the image of a dragon as a standard during war-time, represented as a serpent with the head of a dog. When conquered, the Romans adopted this, possibly beginning the Western tradition of associating dragons with military power and identity. The dog-headed serpent would also survive to the modern period, showing up in descriptions of Balkan lamya.

Indian Drakon - Here begins a tradition in Greek and Roman literature that claimed that foreign parts were full of large, dangerous, and more interesting fauna than the mundane peninsula they were all stuck on. This is a common theme of humanity in general, where everyone you're not familiar with is teeming with exciting and ancient life. Just look at cryptozoology. India in particular was a favorite of Greek tall tales, being far away for journeys to be rare, but also rich and full of exotic animals. Philostratus populated India with three types of drakons: the lowly marsh, the silver hill, and the dazzling golden mountain drakons. They were typical in every respect, having enormous sizes, red crowns, beards, and guarding treasure beneath the earth. An interesting addition was that they were the mortal enemies of elephants. Being the largest land-animal (in real life), they made perfect prey for these humongous serpents. Feeding on them was fraught with peril, however, as the struggle between reptile and mammal could result in the death of either party, or both. To symbolize the foreignness of the drakon, I drew it as a sort of hybrid between the drakon and the Hindu naga.

Pliny's Drakon - This drakon is otherwise the same as the Indian, but is the start of another theme. As time went on, philosophers began taking more grounded looks at fantastical animals. While also perpetuating even more outrageous falsehoods. None was more popular than Pliny the Elder, hence the name. He believed that, while foreign drakons might be real, they were much more similar to the snakes of Greece than the monsters of legend. He scoffed at the crowns and hair they were adorned with. His Natural History was the first of many instances where the fantastical elements of the dragon were toned down to seem more palatable to a scientifically minded audience. It also introduced an interest into the life history of the dragons, treating them as real animals with lives beyond the myths. Our dragon up top evolved to resemble pythons, rather than the other way around to what probably happened in real life, where pythons were exaggerated to become dragons.

Then, we get two foreign influences, which would come to shape the modern definition of the European dragon. Christianity's influence cannot be understated here. As Jonathan Evans states in Medieval Folklore, the dragon came to be confused with several other desert animals. In Jewish and early Christian belief, desert animals were themselves demonic, living in inhospitable regions devoid of human life. Later, texts like Revelations would specifically denote dragons as heralds of evil, and even harbingers of Armageddon itself. This is in contrast to the morally neutral Leviathan. In the medieval era, dragons were beings of evil, without a doubt. Bestiaries were full of on the nose fables about how the natural lives of dragons. Like how they could not stand the breath of a panther (a symbol of Jesus Christ). Or how they could not catch birds that nested in the Peridexion tree (the tree being the church and the birds being Christians, who are safe from the devil so long as they do not stray from the arms of God). This is represented by a typical medieval devil, being brightly colorful and made in mockery of God's creations, aka a weird hybrid with a snake coming out of his butt. Then, the Germanic dragon. This is seen especially in Northern and Western Europe. The Germanic dragon is otherwise similar to the Greek, except that it began as a character of evil. Lindworms and other serpents are almost always antagonists, and there is no heroine who saves them from their fate of death. They also had a stronger connection to treasure. Greek dragons guarded treasure as a job, but the very existence of Germanic dragons is tied with their golden hoards. In addition, in Greek myths, getting transformed into an animal is usually the end of one's story. With the Germanic dragon, it's merely the beginning. Transformed dragons act as antagonists and moral lessons wrapped in one; a lesson to all to not be greedy. Germanic dragons, represented by the lindworm, reinforced their role as antagonists and agents of selfish evil.

Which finally brings us to the medieval dragon. In a way, this creature is a mix of everything above. The dragon is an animal and demon in one, simultaneously a figure of evil who spoils the land around them and a living being with its own life and needs. The medieval era also introduces the origin of dragons, showing them as having nests and young, not simply coming into existence out of the earth or sea like before. They also developed some less reptilian traits, like wings and hair. This was probably because of artistic traditions among the monks who wrote bestiaries rather than popular legend, which continued to conflate them with snakes and lizards and even crocodiles. This particular line of the tree would develop a life of its own, spreading far and wide across Europe and eventually reaching beyond the seas. Our modern conceptions of dragons are a whole 'nother story.

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