#poppy is so silly i love her and jack | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

viilpstick · 1 year ago

Text

꒰͡🎄 ׅchristmas' rosantée event 🕯️ 𝆬 ㅤ⠀͡ㅤ꒱ ׂ

hosted by yours truly; @viilpstick

Hi there guys! i hope you all had are having a great day! Recently, I have came up with the idea of more lore into the Rosantée, so I've decided to make a small event on it, where it will be more explained in the prologue.

With that, i'll be making a silly series of the mystery hidden behind the west wing, as if it was a Twisted Wonderland event !

status: finished

DISCLAIMERS: I won't be able to constantly update, please be patient.

—

Although, this is a Christmas event, it doesn’t involve any religion, specially since in the own Twisted Wonderland it does not have any religious paths by any character even though “implied”

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑’𝐒 𝐒𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐋 𝐑𝐀𝐅𝐅𝐋𝐄 For the beaten curse, the Fearless princess and her enchanted prince, could finally life their lives together without any issue of loving one another.

With that, the joyous moment came! Yet, it went away easily. And so the fearless princess noticed how unpleasant it was to stay in the village with such a cold weather, whenever the winter was close.

But, she wasn’t going to give sadness any satisfaction. The fearless queen and her husband had the brilliant idea. In days of cold weather, they would throw special parties at the castle! Where all the villagers could attend to. To take extra firewood and have delicious meal along side the fearful one.

But with time, the weird tradition of extending gifts with each other also came to be known. So, every winter for that day on, would be a way to show the village the other types of warmth that aren’t just sitting at the fire place.

— ❄️

“The end.”

Adeline closes the book with a pleasant smile on her face, awhile the girls: Fauna, Isabelle and Poppy looked at her with a bright smile on their faces… Lucie gave a tired huff.

“Finally!” She says standing up from the couch. As everyone gives a soft laugh at Lucie’s reaction. Well, except for Isabelle who pouted. “Sevens, I don’t understand why is so important for us to know that. It is just a raffle between Royal Sword Academy and Night Raven College, and girls, let’s be honest. Us, against them? Pftt! We win without a doubt!”

The blonde one holding the book stands up from bed. “Is not just that, Luc.” She playfully rolls her eyes, as Lucie sits in bed again. “As people who have the same ideals as The Fearless princess, we should respect it.”

Isabelle stands up. “Without counting, this raffle is something to commemorate this event made by her. Shouldn’t we consider to at least know where it’s from?”

The answer to both girls were just a annoyed sigh. “Parties should just be parties! No need for reasons.”

“In my kingdom parties can only be with a reason, if not it will be considered to disturb peace.” Fauna comments to her friends. And as she finishes her phrase the little girl with braids: Poppy. Enthusiastically stands up.

“This is so cool! I can’t wait to we talk with the others, like Epel and Rook- OR EVEN JACK. I feel like they all are going to love this raffle.” Awhile Poppy ramble to the girls, Adeline makes her way to the desk to put the boom there. “We can even see if headmage would tell what is in West Wing-“

“-No!” There was a loud noise of someone punching the table with both fists. It was Adeline, who seemed nervous by the thought. Poppy shivers down, remembering to never mention the West Wing close to Adeline. “If the headmage says he doesn’t want no one in there, he meant it. Maybe the magic is so big that they couldn’t even get closer to it!” Adeline says, her angry tone alarms Isabelle who stays quiet. “It’s past midnight, you all should go to your rooms. Now.”

All the girls scared by Adeline’s dementor, nod leaving without further ado. Just muttering good night to Isabelle before closing the door.

Isabelle heads turn to Adeline with a sigh, she opens and closes her mouth. Thinking of what to say to the girl who was clearly nervous.

“Adeline, now be serious. Why you. Literally the most adventurous person I’ve known, don’t try to go in there? If you are scared of the rumors of you. I will like to remind you, that: they are just rumors! Plus, you have Malleus! Literally the most powerful wizard! How’ve come you never—“

“Isabelle.” The friend stops her tracks. Looking to Adeline who seemed hesitante to speak before she bites her lip and… “Good night. Se you tomorrow.”

Knowing it was better not to resist, Isabelle sighs turning her head away from Adeline making her way to the door. “I am in the next door if you need anything, Delih. Goodnight.”

With that she closes the door. Adeline looks behind herself before opening the drawer of her desk, taking pen and paper.

—❄️

“My dearest, Malleus Draconia,

After time and time it’s becoming more hard and difficult to have people away from West Wing. The spell you’ve put on it’s coming off and the more I resist my friends’ urge to go in there with them, the more it seems to alarm them in a way or other.

I am helpless, I can’t help it. I wish you and Lilia-Sama could assist me in the raffle, turning the spell stronger and somehow making people not think about it. I hope to have your understanding in the cause.

—With all my true love, Adeline.

(Ps: When are you going to use cellphones like a normal person, Malleus?)”

—❄️

With a simple spell, the letter arrives Malleus, she awaits for the reply. Awhile deeply thinking into the worse of the scenarios. One moment the Headmage wouldn’t approve her too keep everyone away from the place. Soon, Isabelle or the others would try to go into there… In any moment, she would have her whole being and blood exposed by all the students—

—Someone… Is trying to enter the West wing. She looks down for where it is, noticing a small light that once gets closer to where the curse is. Fades away.

“Shit.”

Adeline whispers running like the wind down to the place. Despair is a word to describe. Mystery is a word to have more meanings than one in their story. How likely, would the situation turn out?

CHAPTERS:

PROLOGUE | this one

CHAPTER 1 | within lies, there are unspoken words

CHAPTER 2 | the same rules, the different reasons

CHAPTER 3 | let the game begins, let the truth be investigated

CHAPTER 4 | be our guest, wait... what was that?

CHAPTER 5 | the silence in a full room

CHAPTER 6 | first game, first revelation

CHAPTER 7 | the twisted ending

moots' taglist :: @mhedusard @midnightmah07 @justm3di0cr3 @shinysparklesapphires

#christmas event 𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ❅#events 𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ✧#ocs 𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ♡#𐙚 twisted wonderland 🗝#𐙚 moots 🤎

11 notes · View notes

bujorulgalben · 3 years ago

Text

THE LITTLE THINGS MUSE QUESTIONNAIRE

favorite tea: ??? she keeps her teabags in the medicine cabinet. if she’s sick, she goes for infusions; especially summer berries and currants.

favorite coffee: turkish coffee. don’t tell her neighbours. she also drinks double espressos, black, with honey. she will not leave bed without at least one.

favorite sweet snack: amandine! almond flavours are a big hit of her, as are rich flavours of fondant and caramel.

favorite savory snack: covrigi. fresh from the town square and covered with poppy seeds.

favorite flower: all of them she has an undeniable soft spot for the national flower - the dog rose - but this hardy, thorny little flower is seldom seen in bouquets. she loves peonies, almond blossom, snowdrops, carnations and tulips.

favorite color(s): purple. she also likes deep red, peach, lilac and pink.

favorite fruit: cherries. she could snack on them all day. she used to have a cherry tree in the garden of an old home in the country, and she’d pick the thing dry every summer to make a sour cherry liqueur; vișinată. her all-time favourite.

favorite vegetable: bell pepper! they’re so versatile and she often has a tupperware box full of stuffed peppers for emergency lunch prep. asides this, she also likes zucchini and eggplant. stop smiling.

favorite season: spring

favorite time of day: dawn. in summer she gets out of bed early to pray, then takes a walk around the nearby lake while it’s still misty. everyone is still asleep, everything is still; at peace. such contentment in that peace. she breathes a deep sigh. cue the 5am animal crossing music.

that actually fits anica to a t what the heck.

favorite kind of weather: spring morning, where the grass is rich with dew and the air is damp. the first of the season’s blossoms peek out to greet the sun first. the sky is clear. it’s crisp, cool, but things will get warmer soon.

love language(s) to give: words of affirmation given a physical form; notes, letters, heart-felt thank you’s. throwing compliments left, right, and centre. small, deliberate touches; like straightening ties and dusting off one’s shoulders. hugs and kisses are for everyone, but this is different. she won’t leave you alone. i hope you don’t get claustrophobic.

love language(s) to receive: people need to start writing letters again. not even love letters (although they in particular are very cute) but even silly notes. anica wants a pen pal. a pen pal that makes her a warm meal every so often and seeks out her company to speak openly. anica pours her heart out with near everything she does, for better or for worse, and to be similarly vulnerable with her is a HUGE plus.

specific niche love language: it’s more about how she delivers her silly, sappy compliments. listen for that sing-song tune, the gentle sway side to side. she wears her best perfume for you.

favorite hobbies: log-keeping, writing drabbles and drafts, knitting, embroidery, dancing, playing macau (a local sort of crazy eights) at the back of smoggy restaurants on her lunch breaks, grooming her cat, floral arrangements, cleaning her icon corner at least twice a day.

favorite book(s): umbra mea, and făt-frumos din lacrimă by mihai eminescu. anica joked(?) once about sleeping with eminescu and her brother attacked her. she also loves amintiri din copilărie by ion creangă, and ciuleandra by liviu rebreanu.

favorite movie(s): romanian new wave is full of dark humour and tense topics and anica is here for it. the death of mr. lazarescu and silent wedding are her favourites. she also really, really enjoyed bad luck banging or loony porn - a hilariously damning mini-essay about romania’s cultural and political history - but funnily enough she never brings up this movie in conversation.

favorite song(s): favourite songs are maria by the mono jacks, tablou by the mono jacks, and nu mai e timp by holograf and angela gheorghiu.

she also works to the beats of subcarpați; a perfect blend of romanian folk and hip hop. she has a guilty pleasure for her europop queens. try to stop her dancing to mr saxobeat.

favorite musician: she will loudly boast the prowess of her opera singers, especially angela. she will call romania “the dark horse of the opera world” when reading rave reviews and praises. asides that, she holds the legacy of george enescu near and dear to her heart, gheorghe zamfir, maria tănase.

favorite animal(s): bears, wolves. both have fierce mothering behaviours. she also likes storks. another maternal reference.

favorite insect: n/a? all i will say is that its a romanian superstition that if a spider descends in front of you, it means that you will receive guests. so she’ll never kill a spider, but i’d hardly say she’s fond.

favorite terrain: steep hills, trodden dirt paths winding through a maze of coniferous woodland. i think i heard that bear just now.

tagged by: stole it lol

tagging: ur mum lol

#i will do ic stuff today i promise pinky swear.#but....consider.#cununi de flori uscate fâşâiesc ✧ hc

3 notes · View notes

titriwrites · 4 years ago

Text

Polaroid Picture -- Chapter Thirteen

A/N: Huh, so what have you all been up to since April? *hides* I’m so sorry for the wait, but here, have a (hopefully) nice surprise on this lovely Sunday evening

Read either here on AO3 or under the cut :) And enjoy!

Chapter 13

Beth drives, humming along to the music on the radio, bobbing her head. It’s a warm day, and with the weekend approaching she’s in a good mood. Well, it’s not only the weather and the lack of traffic on her way – she’s taken the Friday off too in order to have one more day in Suffolk – that makes her happy today. It’s also that she hasn’t seen Diana in a few months, and she’s excited to be invited.

She wasn’t sure, Beth has to admit, about coming. It’s always been a little strange – at least her friends say so – to still be so close to her ex-husband’s family. But they don’t really understand. While they’re all close to their respective in laws, there’s something about knowing your boyfriend’s and later husband’s family almost as good as your own. They’d been so close, Tom, Emma, Sarah, Matt and Beth. There’d been sleepovers and ghost stories long before sex and love stories. And now with her own parents gone, Tom’s family became hers, and they adopted her and Matt with open arms.

It’s not her fault, really, that Tom’s been gone for so long to lose contact.

But she’s not thinking about Tom now. She’s enjoying the scenery, and then she’s going to enjoy the company of Diana, Sarah, Emma and their husbands and children. Beth laughs softly to herself. Jack and Yakov will possibly suffer a lot with all those women chatting and laughing away – though to be fair, there will also be cooking involved, and they’re almost always nice to the boys.

After half an hour longer on the road, Beth parks in the driveway of Diana’s home. It’s gotten even warmer, this Thursday quickly turning out to be lovely enough to spend some of the evening with a walk on the beach. Beth takes a deep breath as she gets out of her car. Goodness, she missed the smell of the seaside.

She’s not even fully reached the front door of the house, bag now in hand, when the door swings open and the shout from Sarah’s five-year-old daughter can be heard.

“Aunty Libby!” she shouts while running full speed ahead, her mother’s laughter behind her. Beth has learned not to cringe at the sound of the once so very familiar nickname. It’s not Violet’s fault her uncle – an uncle she probably doesn’t even know – used to call her the same. She simply couldn’t say ‘Beth’, and Diana, bless her heart, called her Libby once and it stuck with the little girl.

The little girl who’s now reaching Beth, who sweeps her up in her arms and twirls both of them around twice, shouts of joys coming from Violet. “Hello, Poppy.”

She scrunches up her nose. “That’s not my name.”

“Noooo?” Beth lips shape an ‘O’. “Really? Sorry, then I used the wrong flower. How are you, little Lilly?”

The girl in her arms giggles. “That’s not my name, too!”

“What? Just how many flowers are there then? Is it Rose? Or Petunia?”

“You’re silly, Libby.”

“Oh!” Beth pokes the little girl in the tummy, making her giggle. “I know. Hello, lovely Violet.” The smile on her face makes Beth almost cringe with how much it reminds her of Tom. Again, it’s not Violet’s fault. She simply resembles the Hiddleston part of her family a lot.

“Hello, Libby.”

They grin at each other as Beth carries her niece – she officially still is that just as Beth is her aunty, right? – back to Sarah and what Beth assumes is the rest of the family. And just as she thought, Sarah, Emma and Diana all greet the duo by the door. Already it’s a loud bunch, but Beth soaks it up and revels in it. There are hugs and warm words, Beth is putting down her bag, and in the background, she can hear Jack and Yakov presumably in the living-room watching what sounds like a movie.

Violet is still in her arms, she’s a bit heavier than the last time they’ve seen each other, which was probably three or four months ago. But it doesn’t matter, this heaviness. Beth’s so happy to see them all again.

But then she notices it. Emma and Sarah are exchanging glances, seemingly trying to convince the other to do something. Diana is the personified calm. Before Beth can ask about it though, Violet pipes up from her place in Beth’s arms.

“Can I sleep in your room, Aunt Libby?”

“Of course, you can if you want to.” Beth’s room is on the first floor right at the end of the hallway. She used to stay in there when she visited with Tom. It doesn’t look the same anymore, otherwise she wouldn’t be able to sleep there. Depending on how many people are in Diana’s house little Violet does have her own room though, on the ground floor with Sarah and Yakov sleeping in the former office. Maybe the parents were simply tired of it? “But don’t you want to sleep in your own room?”

“Don’t have one.”

“Oh?” Beth feels the mood shift. Emma’s and Sarah’s faces change, and this time there is a small flicker of something like cringing on Diana’s face. Blink and you miss it, though.

“Nah. Tom and Julia sleep there.”

Silence. Beth grins, then blinks. Huh? She’s heard ‘Tom and Julia’, but that can’t be. She’s tried not to even think those names for the last month. And yet, now it seems as Violet’s said them. Beth feels herself freezing.

“What?” It’s her voice filling the silence. Even the living-room seems to be quiet now. Or maybe Beth is just numb and deaf.

Violet’s got her sass from the Hiddlestons too, because she’s rolling her eyes now. “Tom and Julia sleep there,” she repeats. Slowly and a bit louder. Nope. Doesn’t sound better the second time around. Do they maybe know other couples with that name?

“Your…” Beth clears her throat. “Uhm…” She looks around. The adults exchange glances again, this time the sisters seem to send their mum looks that say ‘I told you so’. Beth still doesn’t know what’s going on. “Tom is here?”

***

Turns out, Tom is there. Not currently, and not for the past hours Beth’s been sitting in Diana’s kitchen, trying to decide whether she should just leave before Tom and Julia are back from their walk – so much Diana told her – or whether she can be brave and stay. But an entire long weekend with the two of them? No. Someone will be going to get killed that way. Or maybe both.

“Okay,” she sighs, sipping her tea and shooting a glance Diana’s way, who’s sitting across from her at the other end of the kitchen table. “Tell me again why you did it? And why you’re meddling with this?”

Diana actually has the nerve to look offended. “I don’t meddle. I simply invited my daughter in law.”

“Ex.”

“Not yet.”

“Diana.”

“Elizabeth.”

Beth opens her mouth to answer, maybe yell a bit, but she can’t go on, because in that moment there are noises at the front door. It’s the first time Diana starts to look a bit panicked and Beth watches with some sort of satisfaction, before her own panic sets in.

She doesn’t want this. She’s never wanted to see Tom – and most of all Julia – again, and now they’re going to walk through the kitchen door in less than 30 seconds. Maybe she can hide, or make a really quick exit through the garden behind the house? Or maybe hide in the garden? Yeah, running and hiding sound like good options now. Beth almost chokes on her tea, setting the mug down with shaking hands.

There’s laughter in the hallway, and the TV in the living-room is switched off. Of course, the family wants to listen in. A bunch of nosy people, the Hiddlestons and their partners.

And then, Beth catches a glimpse of Tom holding hands with his fiancée as they walk past the door, hanging up their jackets. Tom looks wary. Of course, he must have spotted the car in the driveway.

Then he turns his head, and suddenly Beth locks eyes with him. Her heart is beating fast, her mouth goes dry, and she can’t hear anything apart from her own breathing. Tom smiles, then blinks, then frowns, and in the end, he just looks shocked with eyes wide open, lips parted and his Adam’s apple moving as he swallows heavily.

Oh God. Damn, she should have left.

Before she can voice that thought or even think about anything else, Tom is approaching the kitchen with large steps, dragging Julia along with him.

“What—" Beth hears Tom’s fiancée, but there is no answer, because now Tom’s in the kitchen with them, looking from Diana to Beth, Diana and then Beth again.

“What the fuck is going on?” He goes from confused to angry in mere seconds, and although Beth has known him for more than twenty years now, she’s never seen him like that. Mad at her, yes, silent, brooding, disappointed, childish, all of that. But never once angry like this, veins pulsing, voice shaking along with the finger he’s pointing at her now, swallowing hard and going red and sweaty in seconds. “Why are you here?” he hisses. “What are you planning?”

“Tom—”

“No, Mum. I’m not talking to you at the moment.” He’s seething now, and despite the panic that settles in her gut, in her heart and in her brain, Beth hears footsteps approaching from the living-room. To listen in? Or to act quickly in case this goes out of hand? “I want to know what my ex-wife is doing here the same weekend we’re visiting.” He’s addressing Beth once more. “Do you even have any shame? Doesn’t this feel the slightest bit awkward for you?”

That’s it. That’s enough. But before Beth can stand up from the table and take her leave or even open her mouth to defend herself, Diana speaks up.

“I invited her. She didn’t know you’d be here, I haven’t told her. Don’t blame Beth for everything going on in your life, especially not the things going wrong. She’s a guest of mine.”

Beth swallows, and Tom does too. Behind him, Julia pipes up for the first time since they’ve entered the kitchen. “Well, this is lovely.”

“I want her gone,” Tom whispers, mostly to himself.

“Good,” Beth answers. “I want to go.”

“No!” It’s Diana, and she looks like she’s up for a fight to get her will. “I invited Beth over. Get over with it. I want Elizabeth here.”

“You want me to go then?”

Beth huffs. There it is, the childish side. Big, coming from someone who’s not cared about coming or going for the past six years.

“Don’t be stupid, Tom. I want both of you here.” With a glance at Julia, Diana clears her throat. “The three of you, of course. You’re all adults, you’re going to meet on more than this one occasion, I’m sure. If you meant what you said about visiting more often, there’ll be birthdays spent together.”

Beth glances at the couple. Still angry, still confused. This is going to be horrible. Worse than any family gathering she’s ever had to endure.

***

She stays. She’s actually staying in his mum’s house at the same time he’s there with Julia. Tom still can’t quite understand it. She must feel how uncomfortable this is, right?

And what has his mother been thinking inviting Libby... Beth, Beth of course, over? Tom believes his ex-wife when she says she wasn’t involved. She wouldn’t be that vile, and he can feel the awkwardness radiating off of her.

Julia isn’t any help at all, either. Tom almost feels like she’s bathing in this situation. Feeling smug, showing she’s with Tom now. Showing how Libby... Beth isn’t. He should say something. But should he really? Beth can leave too. She should, actually. It’s his mum’s house. He’s got every right to be here.

He sighs. He wanted to sit in his mother’s garden, relax, feel the sun on his face and not think about anything. That didn't work out so well. And yes, that's mostly Julia's fault. And maybe a little bit Beth's as well. Nah, that’s not true, and Tom knows that. But Julia went shopping. For him. And he doesn’t want to assume, but it could be possible that Julia maybe wants to show Beth who’s the boss of him now as well – not that there actually is one, thank you very much.

But yeah, anyway. Julia went shopping, he’s got new clothes – clothes he’s already wearing to make her happy – and then she went for a walk with his family. Well, at least she can’t see Tom’s pain then. He gets up and winces immediately. Damn it all to hell. Slowly, very slowly, he makes his way through the patio door and into the kitchen. Tom simply has to make it to his room, get out of the clothes and think of something to say to Julia. Maybe he could wrinkle it a bit? He glances at the fridge. No, no, she wouldn’t believe him if he said he used ketchup. For what anyway? Maybe he should fry some eggs?

Before Tom can make the – admittingly quite desperate – attempt to ruin his clothes, a voice stops him. He sighs. Of course, Beth didn’t go with them.

“I’m sorry, but how old are you?”

Huh? He looks at her, leaning there against the kitchen door leading into the hall. “Excuse me?”

Libby’s voice is full of laughter, her face looks like it’s almost splitting in two. “You look like a 12-year-old after a massive growth spurt.”

Tom looks down at himself. He knows what Beth means, but he won’t admit it for the life of him. “It’s fashionable now,” he tries to argue, “men wear it like this.” He was assured of it by Julia and the woman in the shop at least. He's not a hundred percent convinced, but what does he know about fashion anyway?

Beth shrugs, the grin still on her face. “Some men do, yes. But you hate short trousers. And you should. They look terrible, not just on you. Why would you wear trousers that are neither long nor really short? They don’t even reach your ankles.” She looks on sheepishly as she finishes. “Sorry, it’s really not my business.”

It’s really not. But Tom’s tired and he doesn’t want to argue with her. Doesn’t even want to agree with her, either. He just needs to make it down the hall, he’s in pain. So, he just shrugs and makes his way past her, wincing when his shoes – also new – make contact with the sore skin on his Achilles tendon.

Tom knows she’s going to say something just by hearing her take a breath. “Tom, you’re in pain.”

He shakes his head. “Nope, I’m not.”

“You’re limping.”

“It’s the way I’m walking.” He doesn’t want to be mean, he really doesn’t. But she’s right, and she’s not supposed to be. She doesn’t know him anymore.

Okay, Tom admits, even if it’s just to himself. Beth doesn’t need to know him to find out he’s in pain. He’s an actor, yes, but not in his private time. Well, not with Beth. Never has been.

She snorts, and Tom rolls his eyes. He’s almost out of the door, though. “That’s totally not the way you’re normally walking.”

He stops, can’t help the thought rushing through his head – and then straight out of his mouth, because apparently his body is betraying him now. “Ah, you’ve been watching me, huh?”

He blushes in time with Beth, and while Tom tries to make his way out of the room – finally – she stutters, “What? No! I haven’t been watching you. I’ve fucking known you for more than 20 years of my life! I... I... oh, fuck off, I haven’t watched you walk. That’s just creepy, Tom. For fuck’s sake.”

Okay, he stops again, making himself wince once more, but this? This is too good. “Yeah, well. That made me believe you,” he smirks. Tom turns, ignoring the death glare shot his way. “Shit.” He’s sure his Achilles tendons are already blistering.

Tom hears the, “Oh, for fuck’s sake”, but he doesn’t even have time to ask what might be wrong with her now, before he’s dragged to the guest bathroom by his arm, wincing and limping all the way, protesting too, because damn it all, this really, really hurts.

“What the heck is wrong with your feet, Tom?” she asks after she’s made him sit on the toilet seat. He looks up at her, almost sheepishly, feeling like a little boy or young man again, who somehow forgot to do the laundry or bring all the items on the shopping list.

“Nothing,” he mumbles, but then laughs out loud at the exasperated look on Beth’s face. “I’ve got blisters, okay?” Seeing her raised brow Tom continues. “I’ve got new shoes, because apparently mine don’t work with the new trousers. But you shouldn’t see the socks in them. So, I didn’t put them on. I’m barefoot in new shoes, and it hurts. Happy now?”

“Oh, Tom.” She laughs at him, but shakes her head, and Tom is torn between feeling incredibly stupid and happy it’s out and he’s not the only one thinking this was a bad idea. Because he knows that laugh. It’s not meant to be mean, actually she’s already thinking of solutions. She can’t really help herself, it’s just the way she is. “I’ll get you some plasters for that. And please, please promise me you get some socks for those shoes.” Tom nods. He’s too stunned to do anything else. “Alternatively, I can just burn those trousers and say it was an accident,” she winks, “it’s not like I can get on Julia’s bad side any more than I already am.”

And with that she’s gone, leaving Tom to sit on that loo, preparing to take off his shoes. Huh. She’s probably right about that. But he’s not sure if he should feel the way he does about it.

***

Beth hasn’t stopped smiling and grinning since yesterday. She also can't stop shaking her head at Tom’s stupidity. He looked like a teenager in puberty. After a massive growth spurt of course, in love with the most popular girl in school – not that she can relate, she's never been that – who makes him wear the ‘cool’ clothes. He’s never been like that, though, not when Beth knew him anyway. Well, she sighs, people change, and Tom certainly did. But they’ve already established that, right? Right.

She looks around the room, her things packed and ready to be taken to the car. The weekend has been nice, as much as it could with people in it, you don’t want to spend your time with. At least she got to see Tom’s family. Anyway, she can't change it now, so why mourn the time she couldn’t spend with them without Julia running around the house. Or the beach. Or the town. Plus, it’s Sunday, she’s going home today, she won't have to see the two of them ever again, if she doesn’t want to. For real, this time.

Beth takes her bag downstairs with her, where Diana, Sarah and Emma are sitting together in the living-room with biscuits and tea. The men are outside at the playground with little Violet, having said goodbye to Beth earlier. As she looks outside the window and into the garden, she can see Julia pacing on the lawn, her phone pressed to her ear. She looks somewhat excited. Good for her, Beth supposes.

But Tom doesn’t. His hands are tight in his hair, gripping it. He’s frustrated, and he’s also trying to say something. He doesn’t, though. Huh. And then Julia hangs up and comes closer. Beth looks away when they start hugging. No need to watch that.

“Beth?”

“Huh?” She looks around the room. Diana and the girls are grinning at her.

“See anything you like?” Diana asks, pointing outside, her head tilted.

“Just checked.” Her cheeks feel hot, Beth just hopes she doesn’t resemble a tomato.

“Yeah,” Emma pipes up, her eyes glancing Tom’s way. Beth won't look. She won't. “They've been out there for quite some time now.”

Beth shrugs. “Well, maybe they’ve got some things to discuss. They do have to leave eventually, right? Go back to Los Angeles. Or New York. Or, wherever. Don’t they have some work to do?”

Now, the three women Beth loves do dearly are looking at her again. “I don’t know,” Sarah answers. “Do they? I haven’t seen my brother in six years, he sure as hell didn’t inform me about his schedule.”

“Sarah,” Diana admonishes, “he’s tried really well these past few days. Violet adores him.”

It’s clear to see Sarah – and Emma as well – wants to add something, but she can’t, because while they talked, Julia and Tom have made their way back into the house. Julia is looking all giddy, almost bouncing on her heels.

“We want to tell you something!”

Tom really, really doesn’t look like he wants to tell them anything, to be honest. And all of the sudden, Beth isn’t sure she wants them to tell anything, either. Maybe she can just leave very quietly?

“Julia,” he tries, “maybe not now?” He glances Beth’s way, and her suspicions are confirmed. A quick exit is out of the question now, though. Maybe she can drown them out? Or maybe make the ground swallow her.

“Especially now! Elizabeth is part of the plan after all.” Well, that just sounds like shit now.

“Nah,” she says. “I’m not sure I’m part of anything to be honest. Also, I really need to get on the road now. Busy week ahead of me. You wouldn’t believe how many women decided to have their babies next week. Pregnant ladies everywhere.” Emma squeezing her fingers and Tom’s wide eyes make Beth stop her rambling. Yeah, she knows, she knows, no need to rub it in, that was bad. So, she presses her lips together and watches the car crash in front of her happening quietly.

“We’ve just been on the phone with Brian and Judy,” Julia starts her explanation, “they’re our publicists by the way, and they thought it’d be a great idea to go with the flow now, so to speak. And we think it’d be great as well! People got so used to seeing us here in the UK. First in Oxford, then London, and now here. It really would be fitting.”

While Beth feels the heat rising in her body, her heart hammering in her chest, her moth going dry and Emma’s fingers gripping tighter, Diana speaks up. “Excuse me, but I think I speak for all of us, when I say that I don’t have any idea what you’re actually talking about.”

“We’re having our wedding in Oxford, of course!” Julia is grinning, Tom is definitely not.

***

Tagging (oops, please let me know if I used the right list, it’s been a while :D) @devikafernando @itsliterallythis @justthelosersblog @avenger-nerd-mom @archy3001 @nuggsmum @majk78 @hakimo2015 @noplacelikehome77 @theheartofpenelope @mrshiddleston-uk @nonsensicalobsessions @messy-insomniac-bookgirl @pipolaki

#polaroid picture #beth + tom #chapter 13 #tom hiddleston fanfiction #real person fanfiction

21 notes · View notes

wolfpawn · 5 years ago

Text

I Hate You, I Love You, Chapter 155

Chapter Summary - Danielle and Tom spend their two weeks by the seaside enjoying themselves and thinking over what they plan for the future.

Previous Chapter

Rating - Mature (some chapters contain smut)

Triggers - references to Tom Hiddleston’s work with the #MeToo Movement. That chapter will be tagged accordingly.

authors Note - I have been working on this for the last 3 years, it is currently 180+ chapters long. This will be updated daily, so long as I can get time to do so, obviously.

tags: @sweetkingdomstarlight-blog @jessibelle-nerdy-mum @nonsensicalobsessions @damalseer @hiddlesbitch1 @winterisakiller @fairlightswiftly @salempoe @wolfsmom1 @black-ninja-blade

Danielle inhaled deeply and stuck her head under the water again, pulling herself through the waves for as long as felt comfortable before taking another deep breath of air and continuing.

Having calculated how far she needed to swim to meet her training requirements the day previous, she checked her watch and made for the shoreline. Pulling herself from the water, she smiled at seeing Tom waiting for her with Mac on the beach.

“Do you need a rest before we start?” He smiled, handing her the pair of shoes she had given to him for after her swim.

“No rest on the day, come on.” She smiled back as she put them. “And remember I have small legs.”

Laughing, Tom turned to head to the road. “And you just did a mile and a half swim.” He added.

“That too.” Danielle laughed as they jogged off, Mac in tow.

“Am I going too fast?” Tom asked as Danielle increased her speed halfway through their run.

“I need to push myself.” She declared as she continued.

Mac trotted happily beside them, elated at the early morning run as the hot days meant he and Bobby were forced to hide in the shade and cool tiled floor of the house. Bobby was still too young to go jogging so he was safely back at the house with Poppy, asleep in his bed.

For seven miles, Tom and Danielle ran a fast enough pace before coming to the carpark they had left the car in beside the beach once more. When they came to a halt, Tom inhaled deeply. “Is the route that uneven on the day?” He asked, referencing the Ironman.

“Not that they have given the maps for, no. But if you are prepared for shitty terrain, then easy terrain will be simple.” Danielle informed him. “Did you talk to your cousins, about your aunt?”

“Yes, Laura will be making more of an effort to get her to settle down with her badgering yet spend time with her, sans Rupert.”

“Good, it's not healthy to be more obsessed with your dog than your children.” She stretched her leg out. “I am going to walk the dogs tomorrow at this time, are you coming?”

“Yep.” Tom smiled loving the idea of an early morning walk. “I can't wait to see what Bobby makes of the water here.”

“He's a spaniel, chances are he'll have to be forcibly removed from it.”

Tom laughed at her words. “Most likely, yes.” He placed Mac in the car and tied his harness to the belt clip to keep him safe. “Elle?” Danielle looked at him and smiled. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Taking the time from work to come here, for getting your work and ignoring it rather than cutting into our time with my extended family.”

“I need to balance my home and work life. You matter more to me than that job. I love my job, I really do but between you and it, you win.” She leant up and kissed him.

Tom was taken back, not by the show of affection or even the declaration, though both were bold but the fact that it was outdoors, anyone could see them and she dismissed it all to reassure him that her love for him was more important than being seen by some bottom feeding photographer. “You wouldn't risk your happiness at work for us too much though, would you?”

Danielle's brow furrowed. “How do you mean?”

“Well, if it was us or being a Safety officer?”

“Depends on the circumstances. If I was being forbidden by you to work, then no, I wouldn't allow it. If it was a choice of it and you and it was dragging me from what makes me happy then I'd drop it like it's hot.” She shrugged. “Why?”

“Just asking.” He stated, going to the back seat of the car to get her a towel as she was still damp from her swim before their run.

“I worry with some of your questions sometimes. It always feels like there's more to them.” She commented before taking the towel. “Thank you.”

“I am a normal person who on occasion asks odd questions when I think of them, the same as every other person on the planet.” Tom defended before getting into the driver's seat. Danielle said nothing else before getting in the passenger side. “I am also considering upgrading my car.”

“Is there an upgraded version of free?”

Tom chuckled. “Not that I'm aware.”

“Up to yourself.” Danielle shrugged. “But don't go too mad, this thing already takes up a lot of the driveway, so no stretch Hummer or something similar.”

“Well, that's my plans ruined.” Tom laughed as they headed back to the house as Danielle laughed beside him.

Over the first week, Danielle and Tom spent the most of it in the company of his family, knowing that the following week, they would have the place to themselves.

Danielle spent time with Diana and Emma mostly, but also Sarah on occasion. She insisted that she would mind the Duchess while they went out for tea but the Hiddleston women were disgusted at the mere thought and instead told her that their fathers would mind both girls, that she was to come also.

Tom spent time being an uncle, something he did not get to do with enough regularity in his opinion. With his busy work schedule, he had not been able to invest as much time in being there for his older niece as he wanted but for the week they were on the one house, he ensured that he played with her and spent time getting his younger niece used to his face. In fact, Lucy beamed brightly at her silly faced uncle when he came over and acknowledged her. He also spent time with Jack and Yakov; as again, his busy life meaning he rarely saw them. His sisters he was more often in the company of but that did not indicate that they often met.

Come the end of the first week, the family was saddened to be going their separate ways once more, even with an argument or two, as is natural, the week was incredibly pleasant.

Saying goodbye to the family, Tom and Danielle relished in the fact they had another week to enjoy the seaside.

“Stop bragging.” Emma growled as she hugged Danielle close.

“I didn't say anything.”

“You don't need to, I can see the look on your face.”

“I will be back next week for the wedding.” Danielle promised.

“You don't…”

“I'll be there.” She reiterated. “You want to go to this. Diana and I will spoil Lucy in your absence.”

“Thank you.” Jack smiled, giving her a hug also. “We will see you then.”

“Drive safe.” Tom grinned, joining them.

“And you two better not get up to too much mischief.” Jack joked.

“Damn, they're onto us.” Danielle joked. “No parties.” She held her hand up like she was swearing an oath.

To a chorus of laughs, Danielle and Tom said goodbye to the last of the Hiddleston clan to leave, leaving them to the large home for them and their dogs.

As soon as Emma and Jack's car left the drive, went down the road and out of sight, Tom and Danielle walked back inside. By the time Tom had closed the front door and turned around, Danielle had taken off the open plaid shirt she had been wearing over a string top. “I need to find shorts to wear.” She commented, playfully grinning at Tom. “Or perhaps just my panties and bra.” Tom's eyes widened. “I think I brought those black ones, didn't….oh I'm wearing them.”

“If you are just teasing me…”

“Come upstairs and find out.” She smiled, sashaying her hips as she went up the stairs.

Tom barely locked the front door before rushing up after her, scooping her into his arms when they got to the top of the stairs before carrying her to the bedroom and placing her on the bed, kissing her as he did while leaning over her, her hands going immediately to his ass.

“Elle?”

“No, I'm not getting up.” She groaned, curling into the pillow.

“What about walking the boys?”

Danielle sighed before forcing herself to stretch. “Fine.”

They got ready in relative quiet before grabbing the dogs and getting into the car.

Usually, Tom had no issue with driving but he requested that Danielle do so specifically. It was odd but Danielle had no issue doing so. She noticed Tom seemed somewhat distracted on their journey but said nothing. On their walk, though he spoke on occasion, it was clear Tom was thinking of other things.

They got to the place that both Tom and Danielle swore they would go on a non-training day, on top the cliffs that showed the beautiful white-rocked coastline that made the section of Southern England so iconic, both making comments of the beautiful scenery as they walked.

“These are the places that make you think about life.” Danielle smiled, sighing as she looked at the sun, though still only half way to rising in the clear sky, the water glistening below and the cliffs looking radiantly white.

“And what do you find yourself thinking of it?” Tom inquired.

“Just how happy I am. The weather is good, it's a lovely few days break, this place is so beautiful, I really enjoyed having your family around for a couple of days, work is ticking by well with the new office and we are doing really incredibly, I think anyway, and I can honestly say, overall, I am really happy.” She smiled, looking to Tom to see his reaction.

For his part, Tom felt elated at the analogy of her life and her happiness with him. “So you never regret moving in with me?”

“Well, the toilet seat thing drives me barmy at four in the morning, but no, I don't.” She professed. “What about you, are you happy?”

“More so than I thought possible. Two years ago...Jesus, when I think back…”

“Don't, don't think back, no one wants to think back to that.” Danielle laughed.

“I am so grateful for how things turned out, how we turned out.”

“Do you think if worth it? Your summer of madness?”

“I do now.” He nodded. Tom smiled at her before looking across the water. “I think back two years and also wonder what lies ahead.”

“We all do that. I think back to two years ago. I loved being a paramedic, being able to help people but I love my work more now and the more I do, the more I think of. Say a year from now and how much more I will have learnt, how much more we will have done together.” Danielle's smile was a content one as she thought of perhaps having a similar conversation with Tom in a year's time atop the cliffs again, that would be something to covet in her opinion. “What about you?”

“Something similar.” Tom confessed, startled as to how Danielle had turned the conversation to the future, something he had wanted to discuss with her. “But I hope to see other new things in it too.”

“Such as?”

Tom inhaled deeply and forced himself to say what he had been thinking over for longer than he would care to admit. “Well, given how long Irish people seem to like to have engagements, I hope that perhaps we could be discussing the final requirements for a wedding.”

Danielle frowned, having been listening to Tom's words as she looked out to the ocean as she processed them but on that statement, she turned and faced Tom again, startled to see him at her nervously before getting on one knee with a ring box open in his hand. “What?” her voice shook from what she was seeing.

“Danielle Constance Hughes, would you please consider doing me the immense honour of becoming my wife?”

#i hate you i love you #chapter 155 #tom hiddleston #tom hiddleston fic #wolfpawn

16 notes · View notes

koiyyo · 5 years ago

Note

hnng i want to request a lot of things but i’m scared to but!!! how would the classes play animal crossing and/or their favorite villagers if it wouldn’t be too hard! thank u

hi, mod kiwi here! thanks for the ask, anon- don’t be afraid to ask us whatever!! :)

(also me and irusu r really cool and helped) -mod corn

here we go! animal crossing time!

dr1 cast!

makoto

- plays daily- his favorite villager is probably poppy- his favorite special villager is shrunk- silly axolotl man- got really confused the first time one of his tools broke- almost started crying- invites every animal he meets into his island no matter what- does EVERY favor villagers ask of him - actually likes bunny day and thinks the eggs are adorable

kyoko

- only got it because makoto BEGGED her to get it- her favorite villager is judy she’s hella cute- her favorite special villager is sable - just chilling- tons of purple flowers on her island - doesn’t like peppy villagers, feel like they’re too hyper for her- puts a lot of care into her villagers doe- likes going to a mystery island and just investigating,,, unless it has tarantulas

byakuya

- surprisingly really likes animal crossing- acts like he doesn’t- his favorite villager is raymond… of course- his favorite special villager is tom nook- chased around makoto holding an axe one time- makoto was literally crying- makoto thought that you could actually kill people with axes in animal crossing- byakuya found this amusing

sayaka

- actually enjoys ac a lot- her favorite villager is chrissy, she just has awesome vibes- her favorite special villager is mabel cause she’s,, blue,, - loves taking videos/pictures of villagers singing- tries to hum along,, fails- her islands are always covered in tons of flowers (mostly blue!!)- enjoys inviting people to her island and showing them around

junko

- takes ac too seriously- her favorite villager is definitely audie cause she’s an embodiment of fashion statement- her favorite special villager is sable cause who doesn’t love clothing- harasses mukuro to come to her island anytime she plays- will dig holes everywhere whenever someone visits- her house should be in a magazine it’s so pretty,,- new outfit for everyday of the month- hosts fashion shows religiously with her friends or anyone she can get her hands on

mukuro

- doesn’t really play just sits back and watches junko- plays on her save every now and then doe- favorite villager is vivian since she reminds her of junko- favorite special villager is sable- doesn’t like talking to villagers, feels like they're judging her- if a villager pisses her off she makes plans to kill them- she can’t, so she settles for bonking them until they leave

chihiro

- avid ac fan- favorite villager is sheldon, he can respect the hustle- favorite special villager is isabelle cause she’s precious- cries if he accidentally hurts a villagers feelings- is hella rich- loves decorating around the villagers’ house as best he can- his island is more nature themed,, its just more relaxing- takes tons of scenic pictures, mostly with mondo and taka

mondo

- “i would never play a BABY game”- next thing he knows, he’s up at 3 am whispering how cute the villagers are- favorite villager is tex he’s so chonky (and his taste in fashion is top tier)- favorite special villager is k.k cause Damn He Vibes- will constantly run over his flower and almost throw his console- asks chihiro for advice constantly- “h-how do i get.. good fish..”- quality bonding time- doesn’t tell people he plays but gushes about it in private

taka

- claims he doesn’t have time for it- he actually does,, and plays it any chance he gets- favorite villager is kid cat cause he’s so funky- favorite special villager is blathers since he teaches him a lot- can’t handle lazy villagers, they didn’t do anything wrong he just feels like they will slack off in his uptight town smh- doesn’t really care about designing his town, mostly completing tasks he needs to- likes having red flowers everywhere tho- will cry if he doesn’t get all the fish/insects he needs on time- beats up any visitor that leaves something on the ground

toko

- attempted to buy Doom instead- favorite villager is coco, she’s just so cute/creepy- favorite special villager is jack he vibes- hates interacting with her villagers cause she feels like she’ll mess it up- tried to get byakuya to let her on his island, or for him to visit hers- is very thorough about decorating her island- tries to have a story behind it so it feels more unique- always ugly sobs when her flowers end up gone

jill

- attempted to buy AC instead, she won- favorite villager is lucky, feels like he has serial killer vibes- favorite special villager is jack- runs over any flowers that toko tries to plant- tries to make the island scary themed- if any villager “looks at her wrong” she harasses them daily- leaves them gruesome letters even tho they cant understand

hiro

- doesn’t even know how he got a copy he just does- favorite villager is sherb- favorite special villager is wisp since he likes getting stuff, he likes harvey too- doesn’t bother putting effort into designing his island- only plays while high so he thinks the villagers are kinda scary- “why are they,, staring at me like that,,,”- has never repaid his debt to tom nook

hina

- her brother was the one who introduced her to the series, loves it- favorite villager is ketchup cause shes cute and can swim!!- favorite special villager is gulliver since he’s goofy- loves fishing anytime she can- always plays when she wakes up early in the morning and before bed- anytime she gets something new she acts like a child on christmas- thinks all villagers are cute and got pouty when she couldn’t have them all on her island- can never outrun tarantulas ):

sakura

- loves playing when hina is around- her favorite villager is maddie, reminds her of hina- favorite special villager is daisy mae she’s just really cute- hina helps her decorate her island since she doesn’t care that much- gets sad if she accidentally hits a villager- enjoys playing at night since it’s relaxing- constantly being stung by wasps pls help her

celeste

- favorite villager is portia she’s fancy as hell- favorite special villager is celeste duh- likes taking slow strolls through her museum to see her progress- her house is very victorian-esque- lots of tables with tea around her island- likes designing gothic clothes- anything on her island that can be black is - has a crime scene hidden on her island just for the hell of it

hifumi

- favorite villager is snooty, wants her to step on him- favorite special villager is isabelle- his island is only anime themed- has anime girl “posters” all over his house, and on his clothing- always gets stung by wasps and claims that it’s unfair- no one interacts with him

leon

- didn’t think he’d be into ac- favorite villager is leonardo- favorite special villager is k.k- doesn’t play this game very religiously- his island shows that smh- says he’ll break his console if he gets another sea bass- likes having a relaxing walk while playing to calm him down doe- outfit is just a baseball jersey

komaru

- favorite villager is felicity- favorite special villager is isabelle- likes playing with makoto and toko- her island is very cute, whenever someone tells her this she gets vry flustered- the shine in her eyes gets 10x brighter when she catches a big fish- loves staring at her aquarium- all her clothing is pastel and cute- has every type of tree on her island,, for the vibe

dr2!!

hajime

- enjoys ac- gets confused every 2 seconds doe- one time chiaki make rosie move out of hajime’s island as a prank. he will never forgive her for this- his favorite villager is rosie cuz she’s just adorable,, also vibes with kabuki- his favorite special character is flick. funky chameleon boy- grumbles about how he misses rosie constantly- loves tangy doe,, calls her orange juice

nagito

- loves to play with hajime and chiaki- only villagers that he likes ever move into his island bc of his luck- one time rosie moved into his island. hajime was fucking pissed- his favorite villager is ruby because she was one of his first animals to move into his island- his favorite special character is jack- likes having green flowers everywhere- got every fish he needed too cause of his damn luck

chiaki

- had her hands on it the second the game was released. plays constantly- always has an absurd number of bells and nook miles- her favorite villager is lolly :”)- her favorite special character is blathers bc funny sleepy owl man- has never seen daytime cause she sleeps during the day- even if she’s lazy her island is gucci as hell- invites hajime to her island just to bonk him and leave him to fight wasps

ibuki

- camped outside of gamestop till it opened, screamed when she got her hands on a copy- her favorite animal is definitely bella- favorite special villager is k.k., attends all his concerts, and has all his songs- anytime she makes a mistake she’ll just yell “NO!”- is actually pretty calm playing- will give all the villagers wacky voices, ends up in snort laughter- doesn’t like fishing cause she always pulls the rod in to early- loves having colors EVEYRRYWRHERE

mikan

- favorite villager is fauna- favorite special villager is lable- anytime she gets stung she’s on top of it, has tons of medicine- cries when she does anything wrong- worries if her villagers judge her- sucks at fishing- all of her clothing has at least one (1) bandaid included cause why not- her actual villager has a bandaid on its face for the aesthetic™- loves when she’s sitting on a bench and a villager joins

mahiru

- has so many random photos of nature or villagers- favorite villager is tasha she’s vry cute!!- favorite special villager is pavé since HES flamboyant and good for pictures- her island is very aesthetic- tons of pretty flowers everywhere, and everything place is just aligned perfectly somehow- loves touring others islands, especially hiyoko’s- her outfit has a drawn on camera for the vibe

peko

- avid fan of animal crossing- if you cant interact with real life animals then games >>- favorite villager is all of them (but favors marshal more,, reminds her of fuyuhiko)- favorite special villager is isabelle- has never bullied or hit one (1) of her villagers, cherishes them too much- will send them letters saying how much she loves them from time to time- her island is very pretty and all her villagers are decorated outside- forgets to eat dinner or sleep cause she plays it so much

akane

- “how many things in the game can i eat”- favorite villager is katt cause she’s so INDEPENDENT- favorite special villager is jingle, always makes her excited- has a makeshift restaurant on her island- all her outfits have food somewhere on them- every fruit tree she can get she has, she requires food 24/7- constantly threatens to fight tom nook for putting her in debt

fuyuhiko

- FAV VILLAGER MARSHAL 100%- also pashmina cause she reminds him of natsumi- natsumi was the one who convinced him to get it, showed it to peko- now they play it every night together before bed- yells at villagers anytime they get in his way then apologizes profusely- peko has to help him design his island he just doesn’t get it- takes her on ac dates, they just stargaze or look at their aquariums- likes to talk to the villagers as if they can hear him,, will blush and deny if peko points it out

sonia

- favorite villager is tia because she “looks fancy”- favorite special villager is pavé- has tons of outfits related to disney princesses- her island is very modern looking, prefers stone things than wooden- has tons of fashion shows- everything about her island is clean and aligned- lets gundham visit a lot to check in on her cute villagers- hella rich has that bell cash money

kazuichi

- compliments sonia’s island everyday even if he hasn’t been allowed on it- favorite villager is freya, loves her colors- favorite special villager is harvey cause he vibes- screams anytime he gets a big fish- island lowkey looks like trash but sonia gives him advice amen- is pretty smart about wasps, but lacks iq with anything else like tarantulas- unironically celebrates the villagers’ birthdays- even if he’s feral he likes to take a chill pill and play ac

teruteru

- ew- favorite villager is merengue- favorite special villager is isabelle- tries to flirt with villagers through letters- all the villagers on his island are wamen- tried to buy nude qr codes,, failed- always has an apron on and has a little cafe on his island

imposter

- favorite villager is keaton since he’s funky- favorite special villager is blanca- scoffs anytime they miss an insect or fish- dedicated to ac after they said they wouldn’t be- their island is actually pretty well decorated, they enjoy having flowers everywhere- until they run over them and regret living

hiyoko

- favorite villager is soleil, tiny and cute- favorite special villager is jack- mahiru suggested ac to her and then she got obsessed- always bullies her villagers, its a miracle they haven’t moved out- pitfall seeds buried all over her island for poor, unsuspecting visitors- her island is akin to hell no one wants to visit her- its a shame since its so pretty tho- likes visiting places with mahiru and letting her take photos- enjoys spinning to pretend she’s dancing

gundham

- his favorite villagers are all the hamsters- his favorite special villager is daisy mae- has played since the first game, religious fan of it- never been rude to one of his villagers- takes designing very seriously and it pays off- despite his very colorful island his outfits are pretty dark- walks around sonia’s island a lot and they stargaze sometimes- played it for 24 hours straight once, almost died- goes on to ac forums and starts flame wars with anyone that bullies their villagers (mainly hiyoko)

nekomaru

- plays every now and then, loves it a lot- favorite villager is kevin since he vibes- favorite special villager is jingle, gets him hyped- anytime a villager starts singing he’ll yell “YOU’RE DOING GREAT”- doesn’t know how to decorate,, at all,,- his house is just another storage room to him- is in tons of debt due to tom, would rather buy expensive stuff with his bells- yells when fishing. doesn’t matter if its a big fish or not, he just does- will hype up someone when he goes to their island

dr v3!

shuichi

- kaede convinced him to get it and loves it- favorite villagers are punchy and beau, he just thinks theyre funky- favorite special villager is flick cause he’s laid back- waterfalls all over his island, says its a memorial to the waterfalls of tears he loses every night- visits his friends islands a lot- has tons of blue flowers and hasn’t ruined them once amen- kokichi ruined them once though. he cried- island is very aesthetic since it’s mostly nature themed- cries happy tears when villagers do ANYTHING- cherishes anything his friends gift him- except for kokichi, he sent him a threat and a shirt saying “nerd”

maki

- doesn’t tell a lot of people she plays it, very shy about it- favorite villager is cherry- favorite special villager is celeste- everything on her island is red and pink- even if she’s tough on the inside she loves having a cute island- has a place specifically to sit and watch the stars (mainly for when kaede and/or kaito is with her)- gets overly defensive when people ask why she loves her villagers so much- “I JUST-” sobs “DO”- gets bullied by kokichi for anything she does while playing- resulted in a broken arm and trampled flowers. F

himiko

- only plays at night until tenko convinces her to wake up earlier- favorite villager is bob- favorite special villager is k.k- just likes vibing doesn’t take anything to seriously- tries her best for her outfits to resemble a magician- preforms “magic” shows ( it’s really just her throwing down items and claiming it appeared magically )- tenko and angie drag her all across their islands daily, acts like she doesn’t love it but its the main reason she still plays- anytime she gets something new she just shrugs- doesn’t like zipper and tenko has to assure her it isn’t a murderer tracking her location

kaede

- favorite villager is bianca- favorite special villager is k.k, unironically likes his music- has a piano in every room of her house- pretends to play said pianos for friends that are visiting- rainbow flowers everywhere- except red because she gives those all to maki- convinces people to have fashion shows with her, no actual winners, but they all win in her heart- plays it a lot in her free time, kind of addicted- likes to hum along with singing villagers- everything about her island is just hella cute

rantaro

- “whats an animal crossing”- and ever since that day he’s been a religious fan, amen- favorite villager is chief, likes making “that ain’t it chief” jokes- favorite special villager is k.k, will listen to his music whenever he’s staring off into space- his island is lazily made but still looks so good??- will just stare at butterflies before remembering he should catch them- “what’s the point of an ocean if i can’t sail it bro..”- loves playing at night cause of shooting stars- always wishes for kokichi to stop sending him hate letters

kirumi

- favorite villager is whitney and tia since theyre,, cool n chill- favorite special villager is isabelle- her house and island are 100% CLEAN- has a zen garden behind her house- anytime someone visits her island she offers them tea- treats the villagers like her own family- likes sending them letters with perfect grammar, just pleases her soul- has never gotten stung by a wasp her iq is large- her outfit looks like a maid amen- kokichi always ask her to clean his island, never happened

ryoma

- favorite villager is rasher- favorite special villager is kicks- doesn’t get the appeal of ac- will play it for like 5 minutes tops- enjoys the fishing aspect doe- anytime he visits someones island he will just sit on the shore and stare out into the ocean- thanks god that his villager is the same height as all the animal ones, now he isn’t short (:

korekiyo

- body outlines, blood, and bloody summoning ritual circles everywhere on his island- favorite villager is lucky- favorite special villager is jack and blathers- keeps scary looking fish in his house- said house is dark and probably has an occult book somewhere- curses his villagers in an unknown language whenever they forsake him- every screenshot of a villager he has includes him behind a tree staring menacingly at them- doesn’t invite people to his island, people don’t even wanna come- if he somehow ends up on somebody's island he’ll stalk them- became an urban legend on all the ac forums

angie

- her favorite villager is ankha- favorite special villager is isabelle and jingle- anytime a villager moves in she says “atua has blessed angie with a cute villager!”- likes yellow flowers- her outfit is just a smock with paint on it amen- sends people and villagers letters wishing them good health every. single. day.- likes tagging along with tenko and himiko whenever they do something- loves chasing butterflies

tenko

- was very hyped over the game since everybody else hyped it up- favorite villager is nibbles and cookie they’re just VIBING- favorite special villager is isabelle (screams anytime she is on screen)- will wake up himiko or angie at 3 am to flex the big fish she just got- got rich just to buy them gifts- anytime a guy is in her presence she bonks them with a net- this is the reason she has no male villagers, and no males invited. periadt.- has matching outfits with da girls- grows lots of flowers (mainly to give to her friends amen)- cherishes this game cause it gives her an excuse to spend time with da girls

miu

- favorite villager is olivia - favorite special villager is shrunk- constant sex jokes- her outfit looks like a stripper deadass- harasses people about not knowing how to play when she, herself, does not have a damn clue- almost ruined her console cause she’ll spit out her drink when she gets a big fish- everything she does is feral- never stops running so she doesnt have flowers- kokichi steals any flowers she may have anyway- decorating? whats that? just throw random stuff on ur island

gonta

- his favorite villager is joey cause he’s funny looking and trying his best- his favorite special villager is blathers- island looks pretty natural, just dirt paths every now and then- will hunt down an insect even if he has it already- was sad he had to give up his insects to blathers, then realized... he can catch them again!!- has a garden and always gets excited when butterflies fly around- golden net to show off how much of a pro he is at collecting insects- gets shy anytime someone visits but his islands so cute,,

kaito

- favorite villager is apollo because he’s named after the apollo 11- favorite special villager is harvey, can respect his vibes- likes walking around with maki and shuichi- tries his best to play it but he’s kinda dumb,,- whenever gets something new he loses all his brain cells in excitement- will probably never pay tom nook back. he is clueless about even being in debt.- mostly plays before bed cause he stares at the stars- will send maki pictures of shooting stars even if its 2 am- island is pretty natural since he forgets to decorate it,,

kokichi

- favorite villager is pietro cause he always compares him to people- loves all the mouse villagers- favorite special villager is jack and blanca- all over his island is just. holes and pitfall seeds.- has fallen into the holes plenty of times himself- sends all of his friends letters, which just consist of him making fun of them- tons of carnival things around his island since “ur invited to the circus clown”- his house looks like jail for no reason- clowns others for having poor taste in fashion when he just cosplays a RAT- also has an outfit that looks like a trash can xoxo

kiibo

- favorite villager is ribbot, they’re practically the same- favorite special villager is snowboy and blathers- anytime he reads text its so robotic,, hella funny to whoever's playing with him- everything also confuses him- “what is a .. c+??”- is actually very efficient and paid off his tom nook debts in no time- respects his villagers a lot and will give them gifts- his favorite part is chasing butterflies, usually misses tho- accidentally shot a gift balloon over water, searched for it for over 10 minutes- anytime someone does something he just does a happy emote @ them,,

tsumugi

- favorite villager is tasha she’s a bad bithc- favorite special villager is blanca- has so many different outfits as different anime characters- her island is so well decorated- loves taking aesthetic screenshots with her anime outfits- takes commissions for designing clothing amen- runs an ac instagram just to flex how pretty her things are- actually enjoys the game a lot, especially with other people

i fucking hate tumblr formatting - mod irusu who edited this

22 notes · View notes

hopevalley · 5 years ago

Text

Hi everyone! I hope you’re ready for another Tumblr Special™.

Let’s talk about some stuff that’s been on my mind lately.

I’ve been working on my pet project, When Calls the Heart: Reimagined, and my bud @trash-god has assured me that the current first draft isn’t complete garbage, but the discussion we had eventually led to talking about Mark Humphrey and then character-related stuff and as usual I couldn’t shut up.

Before that, I just wanted to drop the update about Reimagined. I don’t know if that’ll be its actual title or not. It’s hard to title a novelization. On one hand you have the option to title it the same as the show, but it’s not the show, so then you’re kind of stuck feeling like you have to come up with something at least slightly different, but it’s still also technically fanfic, and—

Yeah. There’s also the potential for something like this to really blow up in a big way, at least word-wise, so that makes a title even more important. I’ll definitely be out there barking my wares like a peddler on the street, but like...here on Tumblr and especially on Instagram where there are a ton of fans. Twitter too, probably. Considering I have to type this five billion times across social media to try and garner some attention (and hopefully feedback) for it, I’d rather not be embarrassed by the title, or turn people away from it because they think it’s a regular fanfic and not a novelization of the show.

Which leaves me with very few options.

When Calls the Heart: The Novelization

When Calls the Heart: Reimagined

Some other title with a subtitle of “A When Calls the Heart Novelization”

It sounds simple but it’s not. “The Novelization” makes it sound like it’s following the show super precisely. “Reimagined” makes it sound as if it deviates in a big way. Something else could just be too much to type but at least it implies it’s an interpretation. What if this ends up getting absolutely huge and needs to be split up into parts, though? That makes it more difficult.

I’m getting ahead of myself. I’ve made it about five minutes into the first episode, time-wise, and have four thousand some odd words. It’s not even a complete chapter—more like an introduction and the beginning of the first chapter.

But something I noticed in those first five minutes of the television series is that...everything is so incredibly rushed. The pacing is awful. I think I might have talked about this a bit in my ‘episode write-up’ of the first episode, but even though it works well enough for this series (especially considering its S1 budget and everything) it would all be terrible for a narrative choice.

I mean, sure, the first chapter could start with Elizabeth on her journey thinkin’ ‘bout where she’s going, ruminating on her own hubris, and then BANDITS. Cut out and back in to her arriving in town without much of an explanation or showing how she personally handled the whole bandit thing. Then have Abigail, Cat, and Florence steamroll the heck out of her while the narrative laughs at rich, silly Elizabeth who isn’t afraid of hard work but is scared of a mouse.

But that isn’t what I want. Elizabeth as a character, especially the introductory character we’re going to get to know and love over the course of hundreds of thousands of words (in theory, of course), deserves better than that. The narrative cluster from the TV show served its purpose; it flung us right into the thick of things. Which is fine for TV and less fine for what would essentially be a book.

Again, don’t get me wrong, but I want Elizabeth to be the kind of character we don’t know everything about right away. I don’t want to spill every detail of her life right from the get-go. I don’t want her to come off as too obviously rich, especially in her own narrative. I want her observations and mannerisms and attitude to reflect the fact that she comes from money without stating it outright.

I also feel that Elizabeth as a character lacked a lot of attention in the show that, again, worked okay for a tv show, but would be doing her a disservice in a novel. She needs hobbies, passions, random relateable thoughts, habits, joys (especially the quiet kind), and motivation. Not to be That Person, but she needs a personality. As the main character it would just be completely unforgivable to have hundreds of thousands of words dedicated to a character that is dull to read about. Remember, books don’t give us the visually appealing scenes that the TV show does. Elizabeth’s smile, her hair, her fun outfits and hats... Those things can’t distract a reader from the fact that she isn’t a very well-fleshed out or understood character.

It also can’t distract from an insanely rushed narrative.

Tons of people watch WCtH for Erin’s performance of Elizabeth. They won’t be reading this novelization for that reason, because Elizabeth is not Erin.

(Though of course you can imagine her in the role if you want to and most readers will; it’s just not the kind of thing that can carry a book the way it can a piece of visual media.)

Reimagined is, as of right now, just a slight deviation from what we’re used to. Elizabeth has hobbies, interests. She is a passionate teacher who took the position in Coal Valley for Reasons You’ll Read About.

I really liked aspects of the Elizabeth portrayed in the film by Poppy and in the novel by Janette Oke, and some of those tiny things can and will work their way into this version of the story, too. I’m on board with Elizabeth being a writer, but I’m not on board for that being used as journal exposé writing for Narrative Ease and not to really go all-out in showcasing it as something she’s truly and honestly passionate about. If I want to see a movie that did a great job of showcasing a passionate writer, it’s Anne of Green Gables/Anne of Avonlea. Sure, Anne’s flair for flowery writing and drama was embedded into the voiceover bits and had some narrative function, but it was SO clearly a part of WHO SHE WAS that when you thought about who Anne was, you thought, oh, she’s a teacher for her job but she’s a writer at heart—especially when she learns to write from the heart (instead of what she thinks will make her successful).

I don’t expect Elizabeth to be that type of character (she’s far too sensible), but I need her to have a passion. A person doesn’t just take a teaching post in Nowhere Valley, Canada, in 1910 and not have a good reason for it. What drives her? What motivates her? What makes her happy?

And when it comes to writing...what is it about writing that she likes? Enjoys? What’s the best part of it? The worst? I wanted to like Elizabeth’s writing arc because duh, I’m a writer, but it didn’t spark any joy in me because it was just too flat. If you give me half a chance I’ll tell you all the best parts of writing, and the worst, and the most frustrating, and the most rewarding. I’ll talk about character growth and development. I’ll talk about cadence. I’ll talk about self-indulgence.

Elizabeth’s passion for writing existed for one reason: “she writes in her journal for easy skips in the narrative.”

I think she’ll keep her writing passion in Reimagined, but she’ll have other things that matter to her, too, and hopefully if it’s consistently presented it won’t feel like it’s there just to carry a plotline (only for it to disappear afterward).

It’s been fun so far! Elizabeth has been surprisingly nice to write. I won’t lie, though; it’s hard to follow the show enough to make things feel like a novelization while still deviating where it makes sense to. One small example is the conversation that Cat, Abigail, and Florence have with Elizabeth when she gets to town; the TV show didn’t do a bad job with it at all, but when it’s written out exactly the same it feels intensely rushed and out of character/unrealistic. Again, it’s something that got the job done in the TV show, but is nigh unreadable in novel format.

And it’s not the info dumping, either. It’s just the way the characters go about things; it’s not hospitable, it’s not kind, it’s not thoughtful... and we know from later episodes that Abigail is the pinnacle of hospitality and kindness, and Cat isn’t too far behind her! Even Florence isn’t a monster.

So there has been an attempt on my part to twist things slightly, where mayyybe what Florence says that sounds so rude is really just Florence Being Florence (and observing a truth/reality, not always being awful), and where Elizabeth isn’t mocked on top of being doubted, and of course where some concern is shown for her well-being after her stagecoach was robbed and no doubt didn’t show up in town IN THE FIRST PLACE. I mean, how could they NOT know why Elizabeth was late? Being late by a few days or a week was NOTHING back then. It happened ALL THE TIME. (Thanks, weather!)

So yeah! The project is going. I was really getting into writing it last night, and I’d be working on it now, but I’m just too tired to feel useful.

For those wondering about Abigail...she’ll be there. I like the original character and I’ll try to move forward with that person in mind.

But back to the whole thing with Mark and et cetera. It’s really interesting how many WCtH characters got the short end of the stick when it came to character development. They have too many characters for the amount of episodes they get a season, which resulted in like...everyone dating for absurdly long periods of time (that had nothing to do with character-reasons until they felt they had to add that stuff in there to force it to make sense). It wasn’t just Jesse and Clara, either. Obviously Elizabeth and Jack took way too long to get together...and Abigail and Frank dated for literal years and should have had something related to that being..a plot for them. I think it might have been interesting in ways Jesse/Clara can’t be, just because Abigail had a long marriage with Noah and she’s much older than Clara, so she brings all that into a new relationship. Clara’s got different issues and sadnesses to work through.

Obviously it didn’t just result in characters dating for insane lengths of time; it also gave us a lot of just..nothing. This conversation started with Frank, because we were talking about Mark Humphrey, but he’s just one example of a handful. The series focused a LOT more on plot driven stuff than character driven stuff, which makes sense, but look at Frank’s character. He got an arc, and then when it was over, he just kind of became a very backseat background character. We might as well have named him Abigail’s Boyfriend at that point, because he hardly did anything that wasn’t related to Abigail DIRECTLY. He didn’t even really get scenes with Cody, which...c’mon. We deserved those. (The best we got was the Christmas movie where the peddler has his old Bible from prison but that whole thing was...not nearly as good or meaningful as it could have been, and of course IT DIDN’T GO ANYWHERE.)

But then it also happened to Lee, and Jesse, and Clara, and Carson and Faith and—yeah, you get it. I feel like if we had 20 episodes a season this wouldn’t be so bad (each recognizable character could easily get a two part episode plotline), but it’s a symptom of plots > character storytelling. More episodes won’t fix that if they just dump in even more bad plots.

S6 was a large improvement in many areas but they REALLY dropped the ball with Bill overall (easily one of the worst parts of S6 just because he went from being such an involved character to kind of a joke/rag doll that nobody knows how to include in a sensible way) and the children aren’t characters so much as tiny plot devices...that frankly aren’t even particularly interesting.

I’m really looking forward to seeing what they’ll do with S7. I hope it’ll be good! I really want them to get their footing onto solid ground and do the best they’ve ever done. They have something really wonderful and I want to be able to tell people “this series found its way and is worth checking out even if it’s usually not your speed.”

But it’s hard to do that when the characters always end up feeling secondary to the (poorly constructed, not very engaging) plots.

So we’ll see! These are things I can improve upon in Reimagined, but I’d really like the show to do some of that work, too. (Better late than never, right?)

#wcth reimagined #and other shenanigans

3 notes · View notes

trolleytrackstravelers · 7 years ago

Text

- | Sacrificial Lamb | -

A Toontown Rewritten Fanfic

Chapter One: The Devil and the Lamb

When a hole to Toon Hell pops open in Toontown, the Devil himself answers it’s appearance by coming up topside. However, he never anticipated running into a little lamb right off the bat!

A laugh, a honeyed and conceited one, rang out through the roasting hot caverns. "Jackie-boy! Tell me the good word, would'jya?"

It came from none other than Toontown's very own Beelzebub, Old Scratch and, in less formal terms, Satan and the Devil. Lucifer- Beg pardon, Lucy Loo, was reclining back at his well-kept desk, his feet propped on the polished surface. In the fires of Toon Hell that burned behind him, his red-and-yellow vest's vibrant colors fit the land just fine. There was a wicked grin on his chubby face, and as one hand drummed it's fingers against the desktop, the other was gesturing for the other demon to come in with a wry, beckoning finger. Even his tail, slender and sharply tipped, was wagging in a playful manner.

"I really needa pick up the slack, ya know?" Lucy continued, looking off to the side. "Needa kick my butt in'ta gear. Show me what'cha got."

"Mm-hmm~ You got it, boss," replied the other demon. Jack Cheatsley, formerly a cheating, sleazy Toon, had climbed his way up the ladder of the underworld with force and fame. Having landed a job as the Devil's right hand, Jack worked with pride, and a swelled sense of self worth, and it even showed in his grin and stride. The tall man approached the desk, then set a stack of papers he'd been carrying so carefully. With a wink to his name, Lucy took the papers to read over, beginning to frown. "Rumors've been spreading lately, boss. Something about them goin' after a "Slappy Quackintosh" in the Coglands. The Resistance, y'know? All those folks."

After milling over the details that Jack had described, the look on the little devil's face wasn't convinced. "Slappy? Whossat?"

"Oh, I never voted for the joker," Jack hummed, indifferent. "I was always more of a Flippy fella. See, those Toons held an election to figure out who'd take over their little town-"

The throne scooted loudly when Lucy leaned forward, putting a finger to Jack's pursed lips. "Ugh, politics? In THAT sunny-funny trainwreck of a town? Spare me the details, Jack.."

Shades of muddy red painted the ex-Toon's face, and the right-hand demon had to turn his gaze away to avoid showing off his encroaching blush. "Y- You got it, boss.. There's also rumor of some poor little deer taking a slip 'n fall, and now there's a fishing pool that turned all kindsa Gray. Somewhere smack in the center of Toontown."

Now THAT certainly caught Lucy's interest, his eyes brightening and a grin beginning to creep back up his snowy features. "... Is that right?"

"Sure is, boss." Clearing his throat, the slender demon shuffled through the papers for the stockier one, pointing out a picture of a fishing hole somewhere in Toontown Central. The water was Grayed out, and there were a few Toons standing around it, some with curious faces, and others with more worried expressions. "Poor little lady had a ‘nice fall,’ 'n her blood made the water go all Gray. A hole popped open somewhere near your building, too; Reckon it'd be an easy in and out, if you'd wanna go see it yourself."

"Easy in and out?" Lucy mirrored, his goofy glee unable to outweigh the danger in his smile. A brief tilt back in his throne, and he leapt over his desk- To the surprise of Jack, who had to back up in surprise -to begin walking to the gilded double doors of the office. His spectator shoes clicked along the stone and gnarled marble, a traceable sound amid the ceaseless crackle of flame and brimstone. "Sounds good 'ta ME! Those poor schmucks don't know the first THING about closin' up a portal 'ta Hell! Be back in five, Jackie-boy!"

"If you're not?" asked his right-hand man. Jack walked around behind the desk to push in the throne, neaten the stack of papers, and soon after, lean on the back of the cushioned chair. "Same as usual?"

The little devil nodded, halting at the doors to address Jack further. "Same as usual. Just keep the imps outta my office this time, huh? I'm sick 'a comin' back 'ta the place lookin' like a pigsty!"

"You got it, boss," Jack purred back. The doors were shut as the Devil himself left out.

It was time to pay Toontown a visit.

The issue with portals to Toon Hell cropping up was that, true to the demons' discussion, no one really knew how to close them. It was a matter of pulling people aside and looking for those who dabbled in magic, mainly the few wizards and magicians who roamed Toontown. Seldom could anyone find a pious enough Toon so devoted to the Creator, he or she could close up a portal almost permanently, if not for a very, very long time.

Where she sat kneeling, a teal lamb with frivolously curled wool was gazing into the Grayed out fishing hole of Silly Street. Lots of things tended to happen on this street, and it had caught the attention of kindly Poppy Squigglesmile! Lambs weren't too common in Toontown, but Poppy made due, and made her earnings as a resident of Toontown by gardening, with tips from a far-out filly by the name of Sunshine. Poppy's Platoonias could make even the saddest Toons smile again, for how much love and devotion she poured into her plants. A sweet young lady who favored the colors pink and cream, she only had two close friends to her name, that suited her just fine.

But, today, her normal cheerful disposition had been replaced with one of concern. She'd heard the rumors of all things Gray, and many Toons were convinced that the Cogs were trying to do something to their water supply, thanks to the most fretful of Toons trying to come up with an explanation of any kind. Poppy's brow pinched, and her hands stayed planted on the ledge of the fishing pool as she gazed down. What could be down there, now? Perhaps Cog garbage? Loose oil? Or something else? "I know you're hiding something, mister fishing pool," the lamb whispered suspiciously, beginning to lower her face down toward the water. "So don't hide anything from me!"

To her surprise and fright, a Toony-looking hand emerged from the Grayed out waters, in order to lay a finger against her rounded little nose.

"Don't hide nothin', huh?" Lucy began, propping his arms on the edge of the fishing pool with a pompous grin on his face. Poppy leapt back with a bleat, as though she'd just seen a ghost. "Well, here I am!"

"Ah! Y- You are?" she gasped back, her tone quavering back and forth with nerve. She couldn't move, stiff legged and wide-eyed. "How long were you down there, mister?"

"Name's Lucy Loo, lambface! I figure I was down there long enough, if you wanna really get into detail, heh." Turning his eyes away from Poppy, the grin on his face only widened. "Then again, I could show ya any time I wanted, really--!"

The Devil himself squeaked, squeaked LOUDLY, when the lamb fished him out of the water like a dropped doll.

"Well, mister Lucy, the Gray water is dangerous, you know! I tell you what, I'm going to dry you off, and then we can talk!" Poppy smiled, her bubbly self stepping away from the fishing pool and beginning to head down Silly Street. Her hooves clicked and clomped along the sidewalk like a horse's canter. "I'll be quick, I promise!"

"H- HEY! What's the big idea, lady?!" A bright red blush overtook the little devil's face, and he thrashed in the lamb's grip, voice cracking and squeaking. "P- Put me DOWN!!"

"I'll be quick!" she repeated, sliding around a corner on her hooves and charging off for a home that sat on the corner. Lucy's tail flailed behind them like a loose ribbon, and it made it rather hard to whip it about, or even whip her with it.

A dangerous hiss left the pint-size Satan, and he twisted to her arm, close to biting down on her peach fuzz with wickedly serrated teeth. One hard, strong crunch, and he'd be outta here. "Quick my foot! PUT ME-"

"We're here!~ I'll get you a towel!" Poppy loudly announced, opening the door with her foot and walking in. She dropped Lucy on a wide blue couch, and he stared in astonishment, mouth half-open, pointy teeth exposed. The demon quickly shut his trap, and when he frowned, his chompers were normal. The lamb scrambled across a messy floor, and she begun to dig in a closet, tail flicking excitedly. For a moment, Lucy watched her rustle through clothes and junk before looking off to his left.

A moment was taken to look over the disheveled room. She lived here, clearly, for her picture was framed up on the wall, next to a pudgy silver and pink retriever Toon, and a tall and cocksure looking rooster Toon. The room was an amalgam of aesthetics, if not a total mess, from comforting, to glitzy, to.. just there. There was soft music crackling on a radio, and the air reeked of cinnamon. But a question surfaced, when his gaze turned to the body on the wall; Who in the world owned a Cog suit, just to put it on the wall? It didn't even resemble a Cog suit, looking more like the rooster's talons had slashed up the body of a Cog, for the sake of the hunt--

A fluffy white towel was plopped on his head.

".. Gee, thanks," Lucy grumbled, lifting the towel to wipe off his soaked face. "So what's the deal, dame? What's with the snatch 'n go?"

"Oh!" The lamb turned around, and she smiled warmly, the opposite of his scowl. "Well, Gray is dangerous! My name's Poppy Squigglesmile! I live here with my buddies Domino Presto, and Gulliver Featherpow! We all pay rent, make food together, and-"

Poppy bleated softly when Lucy whipped his tail to cover her mouth. The rest of it's length looped around her wrists, and yanked her closer. The lamb nearly toppled. "Nah nah nah, that's not what I asked, missy Popsie. Why'd ya GRAB ME and RUN OFF?"

".. I was worried.. " Poppy admitted sheepishly. She rubbed her wrists together, trying to loosen the grip of the wire-thin tail that was digging into them. "I've never seen a Toon like you before, and I was very worried something happened to you! I'm very sorry, mister Lucy, but it's not in my nature to leave behind someone in need!"

"Listen. You're a sweet girl, I kinda get that from all the lovey-dovey sweetsy stuff, but I'm not 'someone in need,' got it?" The devil air quoted in a sarcastic manner, crossing his legs and reclining back on the couch. When Poppy was released, she gently touched at her wrists, then crossed the room to head for the kitchen. "D'ya have any idea who I am?"

"A new friend, I would hope! I really hope!" she called back warmly. After a moment's rustling about in the little kitchen, she turned the corner, holding a tray of fresh, hot snickerdoodles with mango colored oven mitts. "My friends will be home soon, and I know Domino loves company! I baked, too! Would you care for some--"

Lucy's eyes practically sparkled, and with avaricious hands did he grab hold of three of her cookies, unfeeling of the heat and blissfully unaware of her look of shock. "Snickerdoodles?! Y'know- Maybe I had ya all wrong, Popsie!"

"Oh!! That's good, I think!" The lamb only giggled, as her new guest promptly crammed all three of the cookies he'd grabbed in his grinning mouth. To see someone like her work, baking or otherwise, made her day! "They're hot, be very careful!"

".. Sheesh, ya really don't know who I am.." Lucy sighed through his mouthful.

#sacrificial lamb #dustyfic #toontown rewritten #toontown fanfiction #i hope yall like it!! i know i do!!#long #long post

9 notes · View notes

quiddity-jones · 7 years ago

Note

Look how mean I am: Characters, #1

I know I answered this one already, but let me show you how close it is for all my characters. I can actually stick another order on it. Poor Jack still lands at the bottom though. I’ll probably warm up to him more when I go into the past and write about him a lot more for Chapter Three. He’s honestly a good guy as well...

Most fave:ArchimedesAndeeAdamPoppyJasonHoneyJack

It honestly took me a while to warm up to Honey’s character really. She was so silly on the surface at times she drives me nuts. Then you realise how deep she actually is and how fearlessly she loves and you get more respect for her. I can see why Andee loves her so fiercely.

#replies #One of those meme things #paper-lioness

10 notes · View notes

elboyo-blog · 7 years ago

Text

About Youtube Rewind

Right so… youtube rewind 2017 is out. Everyone’s favourite end of year tradition, showcasing all the trends people were talking about, and all the topics and creators on the site that cultivated the community around to make youtube stand ou…

I should stop. This is all bullshit as I am aware you all know, yourtube rewind is, was and always will be throwaway ‘look at us we’re unique!’ shite, but this years was especially aggravating. It really boiled down a reality that has been creeping up on us for a while. Youtube rewind 2017 just shows that youtube doesn’t want to be youtube. Of course that could be seen that last year, for example the whole Dwayne Johnson at the start but I believe that can be justified with the fact that Dwayne has a channel just for himself, what isn’t justifiable from last year at least is the fucking talk show hosts like trevor noah and Seth ‘cumstain’ myers. This only gets worse and worse with this years entry however. But I’m getting ahead of myself, lets just break it down (tl;dr at the bottom)

overview (This will be the most chronological so watching along helps)

Right so off the fucking bat the vid starts with a Stephen Colbert(Not a youtuber) talking to Lele Pons (A viner and Instagram star who flocked to youtube where that ship sank) and some girl beside (I think she’s popular but I don’t know her), we then see some random girl run into the room and start the cue to ‘Despacito’ which I can see why it is there at least, as it sprung to the highest viewed it can have justification. It then cuts to some people dancing and switching shots locations and people (one of which is that one DJ marshmallow or whatever who, again, isn’t a youtuber). It stops at KSI (Who I’ll get too) using a fidget spinner (which ill also get too) with some some vloggers/IG stars beside him (probably). Oh, hey Rhett and Link. We then get showcased to a slime playground of sorts. I have no fucking clue if this was a trend at all. The only thing I can link this too is all the ‘homemade slime’ tutorials I always hear about. The only thing I really got was ‘Wow! Muselk is thicc’ but other than that the whole thing I think was pointless. Then, for some reason, they put rinestones on their faces? Again, was this a trend? Like, was there a whole underground rinestone craze that slipped under people’s noses? Like most things though, I doubt if it was a trend it even started on youtube. Anyway, they do the dua lipa thing, go to Africa, uuuuuuuugehiehehiihesfiefbfrbeube, do dance crazes during said ‘uuuuuuuugehiehehiihesfiefbfrbeube’ that didn’t originate on youtube and HEY! The eclipse was a thing right? EventhoughthatprimarilyhappenedintheUSthereforealienatinganyrelatabilitythatyoutubewasgoingfor buuuuuut I digress. They do do one thing right which is the whole meme graveyard idea (fitting, I know) parodying the video for the worst tayloer swift yet (nothing beats love story fight me) oooooooh but then the DAB! They hit that DAB! Into yet another ‘uuuuuuuugehiehehiihesfiefbfrbeube’. Oh cool poopy’s there. Don’t know who that other person is but maybe it’s a new character in the poppy lore or maybe its just a person I don’t know or maybe recognise. The whole hurricane Harvey thing they pull next is insulting to the point ill reserve a whole section to it. Skipping that we go to a roof party with the DJ and the fidget spinner, a perfect almagimation of all that isn’t youtube based trends, seriously the dj could maybe be related as he uses youtube as an outlet for his music but fidget spinners were a physical thing! It was a brand! Literally this year’s version of silly bandz! Yes Susan, include this! Very youtube, much wow! Fuck off. Anyway, we see the party is home to the biggest twats of youtube, team 10 and the pauly boys (Note: that’s a nice band name). with them on the roof are stars that again, didn’t start on youtube. Most of them are viners and/or IG stars with like one or two from fine bros React (I shit you not if you look in the back there’s the old guy from elder’s react). We cut to more slime bois (hey Tomska). When they cut back, (yes holy shit it is the guy form elders react! Jfc) and they do their sick moves like the floss, a move YouTube claims to have homebrewed as well (come on guys, Katy Perry tried to claim it first). Hey, look its every 14y/o girls wet dream. More slime boyos. I think KEEM screams the floor is lava but… that trend was an IG trend wasn’t it or like the last vine trend, but it got Ol’ Yellered, like, just because Fine Bros do a youtubers react to it doesn’t make it a YouTube thing! Jeez louis. Big Shaq’s there, that’s neat. Some filler dancing and cuts when they cut back to the graveyard reinforcing that is it a graveyard for dead memes which I have problem with, because that would insinuate that ‘All Star’ died this year. No, it didn’t, and as long as Steve Harwell is still on God’s green earth no it won’t, yes its popularity has dulled but it was actually a meme that just faded away, cropping up every once in a while, its survival is different to similar trends like ‘We Are Number One’ which can make people I know physically wince when heard. All star didn’t die, it’ll be back if it even left in the first place. More vloggers and traditionally attractive people flash by as a whole recap happen of the torment thrusted upon me. The last live action sketch is Lele and her friend greet the non-youtuber rounding out the production. The credits are actually the best part of this however as we see different pseudo-animators (think more odd1s out, less Psychicpebbles), such as Extra Credits, Tabbes, Jaidenanimation, Odd1sout, Rebecca Parham, ItsAlexClark and Simon’s cat. Though their subject matter is just as pander-y shite as the whole vid you can see the effort in their animation and it’s nice to see that youtube finally removed the dildo it has been shoving up most youtube animator’s asses for the last 3-5 years (but by ‘removed’ I really mean they just slapped a sign on it that says ‘here at YouTube, we love our animators!’ and pretend they solved the problem.

Dead fucking memes/(hate to use the phrase but) irrelevancy

The Dab, fidget spinners, shooting stars with more probably but it was hard to see during my stroke, point is, YouTube is out of touch and has zero self-awareness when it comes to memes and trends

I know the word sounds pretentious as hell but seriously, here’s a my honest-to-god reaction of who I saw on screen

· Not a youtuber

· Don’t know

· Despactio guy 1

· Don’t know *3

· Despacito guy 2: electric boogaloo

· Don’t know *2

· Dj boi

· Vannos

· Don’t Know *4 Ft. Lincoln

· Don’t know *3

· Quick flashes of the great unknown

· KSI and his favourite toy (not counting NetNobody’s dick)

· Don’t know *6 (Empire was better)

· Another 3 I don’t know but there is that one guy who screams a lot, think his names guacamole or something

· @rhettandlink and another guy, classic trio

· Don’t know*2

· Don’t know*slime

· Don’t know* rhinestone

· Hey, its @a-kind-ale-war

· Africa – Toto

· Slo mo guys among the dead meme cosmos

· Otherwise, you guessed it, no clue

· Don’t know * field

· Don’t know any of the eclipse crew

· @caseyneistat

· God’ wrath in the form of comets coming to smite us as failed creations

· YouTube Is Shutting Down My Channel and I'm Not Sure What To Do

· His beautiful bastards (nameless in my lack of knowledge)

· 6 zombies that died in obscurity, nameless and unknown, ‘tis a shame

· Why I left Smosh

· The cosmos of people I don’t know

· KSI’s brother

· Poppy

· A DC lawsuit

· Mooooooooorrrrrreeeeee spaaaaaaccceeeee

· A youtube circle jerk of self-righteousness (more on that later)

· People holding hands

· The shitty vine family

· Team 10 bitch who the hell are flipping you

· The other one

· Shitty IG ‘Comedy’ Squad

· Black guys and backpack kid (Note: another good band name, though it needs tweaking)

· @thetomska getting face fucked

· Victims of the great slime massacre (slime control now!)

· Old guy from react

· Don’t know*roof party

· Every teenage girls wet dream/gay ship

· Daniel Keem saying floor is lava

· Lava victims

· A very cold rapper

· Don’t know but has a sword

· More zombie boys

· A cluster of people 2012

· Forehead in the back again (sorry jack)

· @markiplier

· Why I gave the pope Undertale

· A finale of people I don’t know being absorbed by the cosmos

· Neato mosquito animators

As you can see a good majority of the stars I doubt much people know, probably only chosen for the brand friendliness which begs the question…

Exclusions/double standards

A lot of people were excluded from this year’s rewind, which isn’t a surprise in the slightest. This issue was brought up last year as well, but with this year it showcases some hypocrisy with possible reasons to exclude folks. Firstly, KSI, he had the whole beef with NetNobody (the greatest Minecraft youtuber there is) but Netnobody was excluded, it couldn’t be numbers or presence as before retiring, Adam had about 11 million subs, maybe he declined, like most sane people would, or maybe because he neither pulls the views or the family friendly influence that he used to. Its safe to assume Ricegum and IDubbbz got rejected by choice, again sanity, or because of their beef, which is again hypocritical of the site as KSI was allowed on fine and Keem along with the Paul brothers aren’t the angels of Youtube either. Again, it seems YouTube is really trying to push this family friendly goofball persona which is perfect for the weird kids and the cool kids which is true but is only really surface level in the rewind and the reality isn’t really shown otherwise. Also fuck that Nazi racist Pewdiepie amirite ladies?

Hurricane Harvey debacle

I believe this is honestly the most insulting aspect of the rewind. Though it had good intentions it just highlights YouTube’s utter ignorance. Not to pull a PJW but this is dictionary definition virtue signalling. Youtube makes themselves out to be all together, yes youtube, you are the most influential platforms of our generation, cat videos and make-up vlogs can save the world! In all seriousness though this is one of the most botched poorly executed thing I’ve ever seen, and I’m counting HWNDU. For one thing the tone and flow is horrible, the segment is frankenstiened into the middle of the video and puts a halt on the relatively well paced video, and is followed by a radical hip and swaggity dance party yeah! As if the whole was a task by the team and when they were down with it they thought; “right, that’s over with. Back to the fun and cool stuff yeah!” if they kept the pace by putting the thing just before the credits as to highlight the message at the end and while everyone’s lifted by the message they’re treated to the credits and the talents of the wonderful animators. However, that would only make the segment flow correctly as, in my opinion, it comes off as quite nepotistic to big creators. A method they could’ve done is before they filmed or edited anything they could’ve announced to fans and viewers to send in webcam clips and videos of them holding hands in unity or saying unity, showing a UNITY between fans and creators. That said this brings me to my conclusion;

Conclusion

Youtube doesn’t want to be youtube, it wants to be a family and advertiser friendly site for all to come, it wants to be seen as a beacon for ALL internet trends and ideas and it wants to be seen as a user and creator friendly platform. But youtube isn’t this, and youtube hates that. This year has seen the worst year in the sites history for user treatment and contact showing double standards with actual users and companies such as talk show hosts, with things like the adpocolypse rumoured trending tab rigging and trending tab blacklists. Along with this is the, as I said, nepostistic outlook on creators, with youtube success being less and less consistency based and more and more luck based on one video blowing up and staying that way, and trending (along with youtube in general), should facilitate a rise in creators and ideas instead of promoting channels who already have 5-6 million subs and censoring a lot of voice directly or indirectly. With no other options for video site (realistically, nobody uses vimeo or dailymotion and fucking rip vidme) youtube’s current state is more dire than ever and their push for a false identity within an identity crisis for the site is very obvious. This alongside their cowardice and compliance with controversy like in the nazi Pewds situation is showing to be really damaging.

Tl;dr: get a fucking backbone youtube and stop pretending to be something that you’re not.

#youtube #youtuberewind #idubbbz #rant

6 notes · View notes

imagineclaireandjamie · 8 years ago

Text

Our Story

Read the other chapters here.

December 24, 2008

Everything is made a miracle by the fact of their togetherness. The banalities—something spiritual.

Like:

The way Jamie does their laundry. How his diligence for clean, crisp folds never extends to removing the drier sheets, tangled amongst the clothes. Claire is forever finding them in the armpits of her sweaters, or in the rolled cuffs of her jeans when she dresses in the morning. A waft of detergent—and of her husband—as a white sheet drifts down, brushing her calf like a beloved’s hand. (Familiar; intimate.)

And the way Claire knows terms like methylprednisolone, but cannot win a single game of Scrabble. Rainy days spent brooding over the board, Jamie trying to coax Triple Word scores from her Z’s and Q’s and X’s. “I reckon it’d be quixotic to think the weather will clear for a picnic?” he asks (hints), peeking at her tiles.

More miracles, then: the way her eyes light up. The kisses she will give him for this small act of kindness. Quixotic written by her lapping tongue, and poppies left to bloom on his neck. (They will make the neighbors blush.)

Their home, too, is another miracle, with its wainscoting and butter-leather and Persian rugs. No longer must they suffer the grimy box of their mid-20’s, or the lonely echoes of their own respective homes. Boston and Scotland have been shed like old skins, or if not shed, then at least peeled to the thinnest films.

Instead there is this house and Jamie’s footsteps in the study, and the pour of Claire’s nightly glass of milk. North Carolina lies just beyond the windows, a wild glory whose trees lean close, listening. (Even the universe has grown green-bright with envy, wants to be a part of Jamie and Claire’s love.)

And just last week, they installed heated floors and called a plumber to insulate the pipes. So now: socks peeled off with glee, breakfasts of mouths that taste like sleep and last night’s Colgate. The coffee is brewed too long and the pancakes are left on the griddle, and they burn (and burn and burn).

Miracles, all.

But even so, there is one miracle that has not come. Their hope for it—the fervency, the sheer constancy of the thing—is shadowed by a fear similar to Claire’s wedding-day stomach. Lying side by side in bed, they worry:

What if it never happens? What if it does?

(A baby.)

“We’re so old,” Claire jokes one afternoon, a few weeks into 40. She is walking the tight-rope of Jamie’s spine, trying to usher his stiffness to the surface and away. She remembers her splintered, little-girl feet—dancing in 1973—as she tip-toes up and down, up and down her husband’s back.

Though this ground is more uneven than her childhood porch, she prefers it. No sneaky shards to puncture her once-tender skin. Jamie’s are deltoids here and his trapezius there—a special comfort in her favorite pearl of his vertebrae. She hunts for it, feels its safe rub against her sole, and holds back a sigh. (Suddenly, this seems like the most precious gift, and she wishes, more than ever, that she could offer her own back to two tiny, wobbling feet.)

“Aye, we’re fossils.”

“You could dig us up and brush the dust off,” Claire says, and so Jamie reaches back, swipes his index finger along her shin and licks it. “What would you do if you found my bones? You’re just walking along one day, kilt swinging, and you trip right over my fibula?”

“I’d build a home out of you,” Jamie says immediately. “I’d sleep on yer pelvis.”

“Awfully uncomfortable, pelvises. You’d have more back problems than you do now.”

“But that’s what yer fibulas are for, see. I’d save them for a cane and fuse ‘em together. I think it’d be nice. Always having you to lean on.” Jamie groans when she tuns around; Claire’s heels digging in and scooping out his pain. “But that’s assuming you die before I do, Sassenach. Maybe I’ll be the one who starts to go first.”

“I bloody well hope not. That’d be unbearable.”

“But no’ impossible. Me, wearing diapers at age 70...D’ye think you could ye wipe my arse, and still love me afterwards?”

“Darling, I can’t imagine a higher honor than wiping your ‘arse’ for you.”

She is smiling—but only just—as she steps down to lay herself across his body, to shield the life of him.

“And what about you? Will you still love me when I’m blind? I’ll have to get glasses—those big, alien things that make people look like startled bugs or arctic explorers. Like Murdina wears.”

“You’d look verra cute as a spectacled, startled bug, Sassenach.”

“But not an arctic explorer?”

“I’d prefer you as a wee crawlie inside my shirt.”

Claire snorts (a vestige of her mother there, in that unchecked happiness), then adds, “And my memory! Sheesh. A few years, and that’ll be shot straight to hell. Might even forget your name one day. Jack Fraser? Jay Fraser? ‘Ringo Starr, is that you?’ It’ll all be very embarrassing, so please just play along and pretend it’s endearing.”

“Dinna be silly,” Jamie says. “There’s no forgetting me or you.”

(A shame his body is so stiff. More feeling in his back, and he would sense the creep of a premonitory chill. See a far-off but certain future where he must pause, think slowly, in order to make a wife out of the woman next to him. A stranger to him, suddenly, until she reintroduces herself. Jamie, it’s me, it’s me.)

“I suppose you’re right,” she says. “We’re rather stuck with each other, aren’t we?”

Jamie hears the unspoken longing in her words, and he feels it too, somewhere deep in his chest. Let it be this way forever. (Together, beyond death, inside a pair of slanted amber eyes.)

“I meant my vows when I said them, Sassenach. ‘In diapers and dementia…’”

“Oh, is that how it goes?”

“Aye, the Catholics have always said it so.”

“Have I told you that I’m so glad to be stuck with you again? You. Ringo. My two-times-over husband.”

Jamie laughs, rolling over beneath her so that they’re side by side, face to face. Elbows propping heads; Claire’s right leg, straddling. She moves closer, extending her hips—oh, to live there in that cocoon of bone!—and the last of Jamie’s tension loosens, his body freed.

“So nice ye had to do it twice?”

“Better than nice,” she whispers. “Perfect.”

(No matter what, he will always remember this. How two is so much greater than one.)

But while Jamie and Claire joke about their ages, they both know that time is running out. Their baby, they realize, would be a different miracle from all the others—would eclipse even those babies born from more youthful, hospitable insides. And though they have not sat down and spoken plainly as they once did (I want to have a baby), their needing rings throughout the house, spells itself out on the Scrabble board. A baby. Let’s have a baby.

There is an added sense of responsibility to their lovemaking now, which is no less passionate but simply filled with extra care. As if the baby teeters on some fragile precipice, and needs only their encouragement to find its will to live.

Claire has taken multiple tests, all negative, over the past several months. Each time she throws a stick into the waste bin, she feels their chances slipping through her fingers, joining the pile of Q-Tips, wrappers, and tissues soaked in her frustration. She wads up toilet paper shrouds and covers the oval screens, pretending there was no test, no probability lost with the pronouncement of that one thin line.

This time is different though; Claire knows it. It is after Christmas Eve mass, 11:30PM, and she is pacing in the bathroom. Claire has been waiting all day for her courage, to be able to lock the door, hold a seventh stick, and see if her instincts have any kicking, doughy legs. She retrieves the pink box from the cupboard and sits on the toilet. Holds her breath until black sparks are in her eyes.

Tonight, she thinks, is a night for miracles.

#;mod liv #our story au #im stuck in the worst writing slump pls send help

223 notes · View notes

alice-in-every-land-blog · 8 years ago

Text

Strangers

In which Alice meets a mysterious brunette the last night of Pride and finds out some of Kiara’s dirty little secrets.

Trigger Warnings: Mention of drug and alcohol use, talk of cheating, a lot of gay.

Alice was sipping on a drink in her hands, slightly tipsy as she grinned and looked around the crowd. People kept asking if she was waiting for someone, and though she assured them she wasn't, it was clear the blonde was at least on the lookout for one person in particular. But Alice hadn't seen Kiara yet. Not tonight. So as she got another quick refill at the bar, she looked for someone that might be around Kiara's age. After all, she'd been young enough not to have an ID, right? Spying a brunette that looked far more baby-faced than Alice's warrior princess, she flagged her down with a quick tap on her shoulder. "Excuse me. Sorry. Don't mean to be rude- I just was wondering - have you seen a girl around with short pixie hair? Looks like a goddess and walks with the confidence of one too?"

Zella was out with the squad (literal squad, the cheerleading squad that is.) It was her turn to go back for drinks and she was hammered--not to mention high as a kite on some little tab Poppy had procured for them. She was floating on her way to the bar when some freckly bitch got in her way. At the description, Zella pulled her head back a little and snorted. "Uh. No. What kind of description is that?"

Alice gave a simple shrug. "An apt one, if I do say so myself. I don't know - you look to be about her age. Do you know someone named Kiara?"

Kiara. This bitch had just described Kiara as if she was some kind of manic pixie dream girl out of a romance novel. Oh, did Zella have news for her. Her eyebrows shot up at once. "Why do you wanna find her?" she asked, batting those eyelashes innocently. She was just nosy more than anything else, she didn't care, but the girl's response would determine how Zella answered.

Alice’s face lit up when recognition blossomed clear on this girl's.

"Oh,well- I just, I met her the other night, at the bonfire. We had a lovely time. She's excellent company. I've texted, but I was hoping to run into her a bit more organically again. Like the first time. At the bonfire," she clarified, though immediately felt silly for doing so. Blushing, Alice shook her head. "It's silly. I was just curious if she was about, is all."

Ah, well, that was--boring. Friendly little Kiara. She was just as annoying as her cousin, making friends everywhere she went. "She's not here, sorry to burst your bubble. Don't you know? She's underage," Zella scoffed.

Alice rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Like that's stopped so many rowdy teens from sneaking their way into a party." Alice eyed the girl up as if to suggest she had probably done the same. "She's seventeen, isn't she? Not too far." The blonde looked down at her drink, twirling the straw a bit. "Besides, she seems very mature. Been through a lot, I think. It's in the eyes."

"Oh, yeah, real mature," Zella said with another snort. She twisted the straw around in her drink, eyeing this girl up and down. It was all in the eyes, and this girl had this ridiculous doe-eyed, innocent look. Oh, Zella was sure Kiara was eating that right up. "Like getting into fights at school and getting shitfaced at every party she goes to. Less mature, more sloppy."

Alice’s face screwed up at the girl's tone, and then even further at her words. "Fights? Wh- I'm sorry, what do you mean? Who is it she's meant to be fighting?"

"She's not meant to be fighting any one. But she got in a real scrap with some girl just a couple of months ago. I don't know the story behind it but she got her face absolutely fucked. If you ask me, it would probably be that mouth on her. Always talking before she thinks." Zella clucked her tongue and shook her head, like she was't the exact same way.

Alice gasped, a bit horrified, to be honest. "Oh my goodness. Poor thing... I couldn't even tell. I wonder what could have possibly started something like that. Did the other girl say something? Do something? Did they not get along?" She couldn't see Kiara just starting a fight out of thin air, even if it were just with her words. "I've got quite a mouth myself but goodness, I've never gotten my face bashed in for it." She had been thrown into a special version of hell because of it, though. "I feel like there's more to the story. Kiara just seems so... nice."

"Yeah, it's always the real fucked up ones that act real nice, but actually aren't. I feel bad for her girlfriend or whatever. She's got her hands full with that out." Zella scoffed again and shook her head,though she hid a little smirk into the straw of her drink.

Alice paled, face falling with the word 'girlfriend.' "She has a girlfriend? Like, a right proper one?" Kiara hadn't mentioned that. She definitely hadn't mentioned that. But, Alice sucked in a deep breath and shook her head. "They've probably got an open relationship, yeah? I've heard of those. A bit surprising for someone so young, but... b-but admired. I like openness."

She was making excuses for a near complete stranger, but she couldn't help it.

Wow. This girl was either desperate or someone had made her seriously delusional at some point at her life. Kiara attracted crazy, though, so it made sense. Callie was like boring as shit. No wonder Kiara had already cheated on her (probably.) Man, this was juicy. "Uh, no, pretty sure they're not. Kiara is like in love with love or whatever. One of those real romantic types. Got a history of cheating,though." With me, Zella added primly to herself.

"There's nothing wrong with loving love." Alice was quick to jump on the defensive, but even she couldn't help running a hand through her hair as she looked around, feeling her heart sink. "Just as long as it doesn't define you or ruin relationships... And as long as you don't cheat." Was this Kiara really a cheater? Of course. It made sense. Alice couldn't have just met a nice, magnetic, beautiful, actually gay girl who seemed to be actually interested in her. She wasn't that lucky. She never was.

"I'm sorry, what did you say your name is?" She hadn't, Alice knew that, but she needed to know who was giving this information exactly.

Zella looked the girl up and down once more. "Oh, my name is Jenny. Jenny Foxworth. It's lovely to meet you. I'm so sorry to break the news to you. This is a small town, I forget that not everyone knows everyone."

Alice repeated the name back, "Jenny," as though it was this stranger's name she was trying to grasp and not what she'd just said about Kiara. "I'm Alice. It's... Ah, it's lovely to meet you as well. And there's no need to apologize, nothing's ruined." Had there even been anything to ruin in the first place? The feeling in her stomach would suggest so. "I'm new, so... I'm sorry, um- You know Kiara how?"

"We go to school together. Small school. News travels really fast there." Zella put on another pout. "Do you want me to buy you a drink to make up for it? I feel real awful. Truly."

Alice laughed nervously, tucking her hair behind her ear. "No, you've no need to do a thing like that. Besides, I don't want you to go about feeling bad for anything. There's nothing that's your fault, after all, and I'm fine. Really." She insisted, toothy grin and all, though it faltered slightly at the edges.

What ugly teeth. Zella imagined what it'd be like to kiss her--all teeth and no lip. Still, Zella smiled. Her freckles looked like confetti underneath the neon flashing lights, through her drug haze. "No, really, I insist. I was on my way to get a refill anyhow. It's the least I can do."

Alice gave a solemn nod, giving in. "Alright, then. I suppose that would be okay." She wanted to add Just don't go making me feel all jittery only to turn out to be a fake, too. But instead she just smiled,letting this girl lead the way.

Zella smiled wide. "Great! And--I'm gonna preface this by saying I am decidedly not taken. Also, open relationships sound practically ideal. Are you in one?" She tugged her over to the bar and flagged the bartender down. "I'll have a shot of tequila. And, whatever the lady would like."

Alice blinked at the way all this information was being thrown at her at once. She couldn't help but blush even though now a tiny voice chastised her for it. Fool me once, and all that. "Am I...? No, no. I'm not. But I've always found the idea... I don't know. Nice. All love, no jealousy or fighting..." Alice hated fighting if she could avoid it. Turning to the bartender, she balked for a moment. "Ah... I'll just have another Jack and Coke, if you don't mind." She set her empty glass on the table.

Zella was making this girl blush--that was cute, in a pathetic kind of way. Zella really hoped that Kiara liked this girl. She was so--simple. So easily manipulated. Zella was not normally very good at the whole manipulation thing. That was more Ana's style, but damn, this girl made it so easy. It was actually kind of fun. "Jack and Coke. Now, that's a classy drink. I like it. Not many girls order something like that."

Alice wanted to say that Kiara ordered drinks like that. That it was part of how they met - getting a drink. But she didn't say that. Instead, she smiled and gave a shrug. "I'm sticking to simple tonight. Looking to get pissed and have a good time, you know? Although, you're being very direct. Straight with the shots. I like it," she smiled.

"Direct is my middle name," Zella said with a smile. "Two tequila shots." The bartender brought them over complete with a lime and salt. Zella licked her hand, keeping eye contact with the girl--whose name she still hadn't got, before putting her hand in the salt. "To open relationships?" Zella asked, batting her eyelashes as she raised her glass.

Alice had a protest ready on her lips before watching the girl's tongue dart out of her own to lick her hand. She blinked,and picked up her own tequila shot. Alice had to admit, she liked it better when Kiara had toasted to pride and love and her freckles. But now the thought came peppered with doubts. So she smiled. "Yeah. To open relationships."

Zella raised her eyebrows but she smiled and passed the salt to Alice. "You've taken a tequila shot properly before,yeah? It's real easy if you haven't."

Alice blinked and gave a little "Oh!" setting down her glass. "Right. Right. Sorry." She'd been distracted. By the licking. And thinking of Kiara. Licking the back of her own hand, she poured the salt on it too and picked up her shot again. "It's been a while,sorry. Cheers, yeah?"

"Cheers," Zella clinked their glasses before knocking hers back. "No need to apologize, by the way--" she paused,she would've said the girl's name but she didn't know it. "What was you're name again? I'm so sorry, you asked for mine but I didn't get yours! That's horribly rude of me."

Alice clinked her glass against the other girl's, then knocked her shot back with a grimace before moving on to licking the salt and sticking the lime in her mouth. After a gasp, she laughed, flushed from the warmth of the alcohol, and waved a hand. "Oh, I think it might've gotten drowned out by the music, it's fine love. Alice. My name is Alice."

Whoops. Forgot her name. It was a boring name anyways. Alice. "Well, would you like to dance, then, Alice?"

Alice wiped the back of her arm over her lips and laughed as she nodded. "Yeah- Yeah, I would. I'd like that."

"Wonderful," Zella said with a grin like a Cheshire cat. She held her hand out for the other girl and pulled her along towards the dance floor. When they got to a good spot she turned and put her hand on the girl's waist. It was very soft. Her freckles were looking like confetti again. Zella moved closer so their hips brushed.

Alice slipped her hand into Zella's hesitantly. Another girl, another Pride event, another hand to hold. Was this girl hiding secrets? Alice was suddenly weary of who to trust. But she tried not to think about it. She would confront Kiara about it all later. Right now, she was just going to let this cute girl pull her into dancing. Smiling, she let the music define her rhythm and mirrored the girl's movements, brushing her hips against hers in return. It was no twirling Kiara, or snuggling by a bonfire, but it was a bit tingly in a different way.

After a minute or so, Zella took another step closer, her head tilting slightly to the side, eyes flicking down to Alice's lips and back up. Her body was zinging with that adrenaline she got when she was doing something bad. She rubbed their pelvises together slightly harder, her hand sliding down from Alice's waist to her ass, though she didn't grip it, merely rested it there, quirking an eyebrow.

Alice found everything to be moving so fast suddenly. Their bodies moving in tune, Zella's hand on her rear, and the way she was looking at Alice... It made breathing a bit more difficult. With Kiara, it had been all toothy grins and blushes and glitter exploding with butterflies. But this... this was warm blood and heart-thumping and the bass vibrating her limbs. Except... she didn't know if she wanted to kiss this girl. She still felt weird, though the alcohol was helping. Alice placed a hand on the brunette's waist as well, pretending it was more to steady herself even as she met the other's eyes, her own brows raising in response.

This had to be Alice's idea. That was what Ana's voice was whispering the back of her mind. And that was alright with her. She already had ensnared her, just needed to close the trap. "You're freckles, they’re--lovely. I can see why Kiara was taken." Kiara's freckles were nicer, a quiet part of Zella's brain whispered. She didn't listen to it. Just smiled and squeezed, just lightly, at Alice's ass.

Alice blushed, at first, a nervous giggle rising to her lips as her freckles were once again complimented by a cute girl. A girl who was very obviously hitting on her. Still, bringing up Kiara didn't help. Ironically, she had the same thought - that Kiara's freckles, particularly the splash of them she'd made from her drink that got her to laugh - were much prettier. She still didn't know what to believe about Kiara, but for right now, this girl - Jenny - she was fondling Alice and complimenting her and... shouldn't that make Alice want to kiss her? She swayed forward slightly, and stuttered out a quiet "You've got very lovely eyes. I feel like- like... there's a lot behind them."

Zella laughed a little at that. "Oh? Well, you did say it was all in the eyes,didn't you?" she purred quietly, flicking them down and then back up again. "Yours are--bright, like sunshine." Look, Zella was no poet.

Alice huffed another laugh, flushing again. "Yeah? Now that's a new one. Sunshine eyes. I'll have to remember it."

"Bright and clear," Zella said, inching her lips closer. She could feel Alice's breath on her tongue, the tequila sharp and sweet. Just how Zella liked it.

Alice doubted somehow that her eyes were clear. Bright, maybe, but clear? They felt hazed over with alcohol and the closeness of her body against the brunette’s; the way their lips stood just inches apart.

She warred with herself. She’d snogged the hell out of Kiara that night at the bonfire. Had really, really liked her. And thought it was mutual. But if what this girl said was true, and Kiara had a girlfriend, she stood no chance anyway. Especially if they were in love and committed and not open at all. This girl… well, she was into open relationships. No harm, right? At least, it’s what Alice told herself as she took in a deep breath and closed the gap between them, kissing the other girl firmly and winding her free hand up into her hair as she did so. Jesus, did she hope she wasn’t getting shit screwed up.

Hook, line, and sinker.

Zella smiled against Alice’s lips, but it was a grin, feral in its nature. But that was always Zella, wasn’t it? Wild and dangerous. She shouldn’t be doing this, but it just made her stomach bubble and her toes curl in her shoes. She’d kissed Kiara for the first time the same way, while she’d been in a relationship. It wasn’t something they should’ve been doing. It never was.

That’s how Zella liked it, though. Her scalp tingled as the girl wound her fingers through it. She wanted her to tug, but this girl seemed soft. She wasn’t like Kiara. She wasn’t going to bite back. Still, Zella’s hand curled around her hip. They weren’t moving anymore, both of them focused on the kiss. Her hand moved up her back to pull her closer. She poked her tongue out of her mouth, running it along the seam of Alice’s lips, tasting the tequila there.

Alice couldn’t believe she was kissing another girl for the second time in less than a week. She had been having a hard time wrapping her head around the fact that she’d kissed one girl, and now this? If she weren’t so absorbed in the moment, with alcohol running through her veins and warming her from the inside out, she might think more on the confusing nature of this entire night.

But as it stood, she was absorbed into the kiss. Just like before, she thought about how soft a girl’s lips were and how smooth the skin; how different it was to tug gently on long strands of hair rather than try to get a grip on boy-short locks. Kissing this girl, Jenny, was different from kissing Kiara in few ways. They were both soft, but Kiara had been tentative and unsure and they gave each other the push and pull closer - a mutual hesitation met with mutual encouragement.

She shouldn’t be thinking about Kiara right now. So instead, Alice focused on how kissing this brunette felt like little sparks in her stomach and not being able to breathe properly. Jenny’s tongue running across her lips caused them to open easily, and her tongue darted out to tease at the other girl’s as well as she deepened the kiss. Kiara had tasted like the fruity concoction they’d both shared. This girl tasted like salt and lime and tequila, just like Alice was sure she did as well.

It’d been awhile since Zella had hooked up with anyone at the club. The whole building shook with the music, drowning out her thoughts, turning her brain to putty, which was exactly how Zella liked it. She didn’t like to think, she liked to act.

And what better way to get revenge than kiss the girl that the girl you were trying to get revenge on had kissed?

The truth of it all would take a while to come out, but that was alright with Zella. She didn’t mind playing with this girl in the meantime, like a cat with a spool of yarn. Her tongue was soft and her mouth was hot and she tasted sharp, even though her curves were soft. Zella nipped at her lip and slid the hand on her waist farther down to grab gently at her ass again.

It was odd. Not necessarily in a bad way, it was just- strange, how Alice wasn’t the one taking the lead this time. Rather, Jenny was the one biting at her bottom lip, and the blonde sighed as she tugged at the strands of ebony in her fingers a bit more, kissing the girl a tad more fiercely.

It helped to drown out her thoughts and suddenly it was like the only things inhabiting Alice were the music, the warmth, and this small brunette. And though Alice had experienced someone gripping at her arse before, it definitely hadn’t been with the slender fingers of a female. It was different, but nice different. The kind that whispered into her mind how much nicer it would feel if those same fingers slid their way up the skirt of Alice’s dress.

Was this moving too fast? Okay, maybe this was moving too fast. Just like Alice’s heartbeat. But she loved it, that rush. She liked the way her body vibrated with the bass and how she was forgetting other people were around. She moved to take Jenny’s face in both hands and kissed her breathless, becoming more fervent and passionate. God, how long had it been since she’d been snogged and fondled? Sure, Kiara and her had snogged plenty the night of the bonfire, but that had been a chaste, almost innocent sort of snogging.

This felt nothing like innocent.

When Alice deepened the kiss, at first, Zella was surprised. This girl had that wild-eyed innocence about her that said she’d never fucked or been fucked. But, she didn’t kiss like that. She kissed like she wanted more, more. Zella was happy to oblige, opening her mouth, sucking Alice’s tongue like it was the lime they’d both just had.

They made out for a few more minutes, until the song ended. There were hands in hair and hands twisting in the fabric of clothes. Zella pushed back as much as Alice pushed forwards, fighting to stay in control of the kiss. The blood in her veins singed.

She hadn’t expected this, when she’d decided this little plan. (Still didn’t know what the outcome of the plan was, she’d just thought of it about fifteen minutes ago.) But, she wasn’t going to complain. It would be short lived. Kiara would eventually find out, Alice would eventually find out. Zella was content to cross that bridge when she came to it.

The kiss broke with a pop at the end of the song. Zella brushed her nose against the other girl’s breathing harshly. “Would you like to move this somewhere more private?” She tilted her head to nip at Alice’s lip again.

When the kiss broke, Alice was still fumbling in a haze. She almost didn’t hear Zella’s whisper as the song transitioned into a new beat, and in fact, a part of her wanted to pretend like she hadn’t at all. But she did. She heard the suggestive question and she even shivered a bit when the girl nipped at her bottom lip once more.

It had been so long since she’d felt like this, and it wasn’t exactly as though it had led down the best road with the last - and only - person she’d slept with. Taking a deep breath and swallowing thickly, Alice laughed a bit as she flushed, embarrassed. “A-Actually, I… I’m enjoying the dancing. I hope that’s alright.”

Oh, so maybe she wasn’t what Zella had imagined, what that kiss had told her. The disappointment flashed across her face--as fast and sharp as lightning. She had never been good at hiding her emotions the way her sister was, the way her mother was. Instead she used those emotions to her advantage. But, right now, she was not supposed to be herself, she was supposed to be Jenny. L O L.

So, Zella reluctantly let go of Alice’s ass and moved her hand up her spine so it hovered around the middle of her back. She tilted her head and smiled that sharp smile again.

“Of course, dancing is perfectly fine.” Though, she couldn’t quite make her words as honey sweet as they’d been before.

Alice smiled and let out a low breath of relief. Pressing her forehead against the other girl’s, they moved back into dancing with the beat. The haze of desire drifting away now that the kiss had broken, Alice spent the rest of the night fighting both the urge to get it back as well as thoughts of Kiara invading her head.

Eventually, the brunette left her and Alice went back to Edelweiss with another girl’s number, and a lot of questions.

#bdrppride #oneshot #zella #kiara #zlice

3 notes · View notes

bizprofben · 5 years ago

Text

Paradise, California

Paradise, California, reduced to ash in deadly wildfire, was everything its name implies: charming, friendly and historic. Two of my best friends lived in Paradise since 1965, nestled in a valley between the Sierra Nevada and Coastal mountain ranges.

Here is a published article by the Associated Press.

By MARTHA MENDOZA - Associated Press

Friday, November 16th 2018, 09:56 am EDT

PARADISE, Calif. (AP) — There's a sweet legend about this town: On a blazing summer day in the 1850s, a lumber mill crew with wagon and ox took a break under a grove of tall evergreens. The air was cool, the pine needles fragrant. "Boys," said the team boss, "this is paradise."

Thus, more than 170 years ago, Paradise was born. From the start, it was enriched with gold mined from nearby hills and lumber harvested from the forests. Over generations, thousands lived and loved here; they built homes and businesses, schools and houses of worship, parks and museums that proudly honored Paradise's place in American history.

In a matter of hours last week, it all disappeared.

Nearly 9,000 homes. Hundreds of shops and other buildings. The Safeway supermarket. The hardware store. The Dolly-O-Donuts & Gifts, where locals started their day with a blueberry fritter and a quick bit of gossip.

This town of 27,000 literally went up in smoke in the deadliest, most destructive wildfire in California history. The death toll, for now, is 63, but many more are missing. And memories are all that's left for many of the survivors.

Driving past the smoldering ruins of downtown, Patrick Knuthson, a 49-year-old, fourth-generation local, struggled to make sense of what he was seeing. He pointed out places that once were, and were no more: a saloon-style pub, his favorite Mexican restaurant, a classic California motel, the pawn shop, a real estate office, a liquor store, the thrift center and auto repair shop, the remodeled Jack in the Box burger outlet, entire trailer parks.

At the ruined Gold Nugget Museum, the ground was crunchy and hot, a few birds chirped nearby, and a half dozen soot-covered deer stood eerily still under a blackened tree.

Paradise was a town where families put down roots, and visitors opted to stay. Children could bike to the park, go fishing in the town pond, shoot bows and arrows at the nearby archery range. As they got older, they'd kayak in the canyons or hike in the forests after school.

"We could tell the kids to go outside and play, and be back when the street lights come on," said Kaitlin Norton, whose uncle is still missing. She does not know if her home still stands.

Like all places, Paradise had problems. There were issues with addiction and poverty, but residents felt safe. And while prices were rising, it was still affordable for many in a state where housing costs have soared.

"You would never miss a meal here," said Terry Prill, 63, who often sought lunch and dinner at community churches. "The people are good people. They don't look down at you."

The pace was relaxed. Neighbors waved to each other in the morning, shouting hello as they headed off to work on tree-lined, winding streets and cul-de-sacs. Families kept tidy gardens and planted vegetables, trading their bounty up and down the block.

Louise Branch, 93, says Paradise was a lovely place to retire. "It's a slow town, really. People have yards and dogs," she said. "I especially liked it in the fall when the trees are full of color."

Parks burst with bright orange California poppies and wildflowers in the spring, and soften with light snow in the winter. At 2,500 feet, on a ridge that rises above deep canyons carved by the Feather River and Butte Creek, Paradise offers cool respite from hot, dry weather in the valleys below.

Spanning the creek was the Honey Run Covered Bridge, built in 1886. It was put on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988 and was the only covered bridge in America with three unequal sections. It, too, is gone.

Glenn Harrington raised two sons in Paradise. He found it so picturesque he started the Visions of Paradise page on Facebook; image after image chronicles the town's history and spirit, its seasonal colors and its many festivals.

Each spring there were Gold Nugget Days, marking the discovery of a 54-pound lump in 1859. The Donkey Derby in nearby Old Magalia would get silly, as locals recreated how miners heaved the famous chunk of gold into town. The highlight was a parade of homemade floats.

"My daughter's going out for the Gold Nugget Queen this year," said Krystin Harvey, whose mobile home burned down. "Well, it's been going for 100 years, but we don't know — there's no town now."

In the fall they'd celebrate Johnny Appleseed days, gathering at the recreation center for a crafts fair and games. This is when Paradisians would feast on more than 1,000 pies baked with fruit from Noble Orchards, a nearly century-old farm on Paradise Ridge where trees were heavy with cherries, nectarines, pluots and 17 varieties of apples.

"Paradise is everything the name implies," said Tom Hurst, 67, who grew up there and raised horses at his 7-acre Outlaw's Roost ranch. He has relatives in the local cemetery dating back to the early 1900s, and he refuses to talk about the town in the past tense. In fact, some buildings still stand, among them the town hall, the 750-seat performing arts center, the Feather River Hospital, its newer sections damaged but intact.

"Don't use the word 'was,' use the word 'is,' because we ain't done, we're just getting restarted," Hurst said.

And yet, there's so much to mourn.

A month ago, the Paradise Symphony was rehearsing for the local "Nutcracker" ballet, and kids were pulling out their skates as the outdoor ice rink was set to open for the winter. The Paradise Post reported that fifth graders were building cardboard arcade games, and warned of backyard bats with rabies.

Now, crews search for live power lines and gas leaks. Rescue teams continue to pull human remains from cars and homes. Fire crews tamp out smoking piles, and a heavy layer of gray-brown haze hangs over the town.

The toxic, smoky air is a visceral reminder of what's missing in this place where the skies were so blue by day, and dark by night.

"The most cherished thing for me about Paradise were the summer nights my mother and I would sit out on the porch under the clear, starry night," said Harold Taylor, who moved to Paradise eight years ago, caring for his mother until she died.

Patrick Knuthson said visitors always were amazed by the glittering stars and the meteor showers, brilliant streaks of light that shot across the summer skies.

"We used to tell people all the time, 'We made sure to turn all of them on for you,' " he said. "It's going to take a long time to get that back."

___

Associated Press journalists Jocelyn Gecker contributed from San Francisco and Gillian Flaccus contributed from Paradise.

___

0 notes

skelffricat · 6 years ago

Text

Practising

Practicing? Practice your practise? I’ve just been for dinner with my mum, which was nice. I fortunately cycled between torrential downpours (they’re still going on, in June...). I wanted to go to my dad’s cousin’s daughter’s mate’s book launch, but, when I excitedly put it into my phone calendar a couple of weeks ago, I forgot I had a job. I forgot I’d be late, so late that she’d left, driving herself back to Dublin. My mum got me a book of her poetry, the one she was launching. She forgot to get her to sign it. It’s hard to remember these things.... She also got a lovely bottle of red, from her. (WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK? I JUST HAD TO RESTART A NEW RECORD COS IT WAS JUMPING LIKE BILLY-OH. BUT IT’S NEW!!!) My mother was sat at the bus-stop when I arrived, across the road. She said, I messaged you. I told you it was too late. But my bus isn’t coming, for ages. I said, I just jumped on my bike, and cycled. I didn’t want to read her messages, cos I kinda knew I was too late. If I had driven, she moped, I could’ve dropped her home. If I’d driven, I said, I’d still be all wet (got soaked at work... and I wanted to change, anyway) if I’d driven, I’d have been circling, looking for a parking space, getting angry... So... shall we eat? We went to the Other Place- just next door to the book shop where the launch had been. Handy! I don’t think I’d been to the Other Place since 1994, when I first discovered that I was now adult enough to drink coffee. We had been tripping all night. They had free refills. We took the piss out of their free refills, and fair play, they didn’t complain. They let us sit there and drink 18 refills. Am I remembering that correctly? Did I cement my new acceptance of the evil adult coffee drink by drinking one refill for every year of my life? Perhaps. My memory tells me that we went to the docks to watch the sunrise, too. It seems different colours on different sides of the bridges. Different bridges, then. Did the Lagan still smell? Was it still full of bicycles and shopping trolleys? This record is still jumping, even though I blew the needle. It’s new. Oh WHY? You can BYOB in the Other Place. I’m still pleasantly full. It’s good, to hang out with your ma. My ma is great. Nothing lasts forever. I should appreciate everything. Especially the generous and kindly folk who appreciate me. She got a bus home, too. She hates taxis. I quite like to indulge in them, when I’m feeling flush. But I’m not flush now. I paid for a wedding (for all three children and me!) in Scotland. Well. I have savings, but they’re for the summer. The summer is nearly here, and I’m excited. I’m not going abroad, but we will have the craic. Oh we will. In England, and Ireland, and Scotland. Oh, I’ve just remembered my practising title. We had a couch surfer on Monday, lovely Mexican fella. You end up chatting about Brexit, inevitably, with couch surfers (actually, we ended up talking about it in Dublin, too, back at my dad’s cousin’s 81st birthday party, when we learnt about the book launch. It’s hard to explain how one sick one is, of Brexit chat. It’s hard to explain how powerless one feels. How, yes, I vote, but then I switch off the news and just hope something happens. Or doesn’t happen, perhaps. Can we have our ball back? We’re going home for dinner now, then can we just leave everything as it was? Or perhaps we should have a united Ireland? Oh, I think the DUP are accidentally making a United Ireland happen? Oh, well, actually, that might be grand. I like BBC radio and the NHS but they seem to be fucking them right up anyway and their news is lies and oh- hang on- we can’t have gay marriage or abortions? Oh wait, aye, a united Ireland IS a good idea!) We showed the Mexican fella the fleg at the bottom of the street (something to do with poppies and the war) saying, that’s a Proddy fleg, this is a Proddy area. Only it isn’t, really any more, cos it’s full of Asian people, and African people, and there’s a Muslim family, and, shh, jaysus, you wouldn’t think it, CATHOLIC people. Only, well, not really. Not practising Catholics. Then I thought about what a strange phrase that was, cos it implied that the only ones who are actually real Catholics can’t even do it properly either- they’re just practising. There aren’t any experts, or anything. No champions. Just some who went to their schools by mistake, and stuff. A lot of ex-Catholics (oh how I’d love to be ex-communicated! Yet my desire to be ex-communicated is silly, cos it implies there was some truth in my baptism etc, some actual entrapment of my soul. My desire to be freed would suggest that I do feel actually trapped, trapped by shackles that I don’t believe exist. I mean, if you found out a relative had christened your child, you shouldn’t care, should you? You should just think, oh, that’s nice, a comfort to her, as she doesn’t want to go to her heaven without him. But instead you feel a burning searing RAGE and want to burn down some churches {not necessarily chapels; the Catholic habit of calling church chapel is simply incorrect- a chapel is a church within another building. This has always annoyed me}. It has left its mark. That church has Got To You. GRRR.) Hours after the Mexican left, the new flegs were in place. (Was it him?!) There seem to be less than last year. I don’t have one on my lamp-post, so I almost didn’t notice. Shiny new Union Jacks and Northern Irish flags for the street, but none for me. I feel weirdly left out. Or perhaps priveleged. Who knows. They never seemed to mind that I had a child (the eldest, too- she went FIRST) in a Catholic school uniform. Perhaps they had checked me out. (Do they do that?) I have forever confused folk, that way. Going to a Catholic school but living in a Protestant area. If people hear you grew up in the Cregagh, they assume you’re a Protestant. I also feel a bit put out that I didn’t see them do it. They did it on the 12th June last year (6 days earlier!) at 12pm, by my house (I thought it was a twelfth thing) in matching grey tracksuits, like urban camouflage. I liked to imagine they were all wearing union jack underwear. Let me point out that this is the only time I have imagined men in union jack underwear. In fact, it is the only time I have ever imagined ANYONE, in ANY sort of underwear. I think. Hmmm. It’s pouring again, and it’s dark, and the record has jumped its way to its end. I’m going to Body and Soul Festival tomorrow. I’ve pretty much packed. I have to work, before I pick folk up and GOOOO. But I’ve the morning, to throw the stuff in the car, and buy booze, (drinking tonight was practising :P ) and more strepsils and ibuprofen and all that jazz..... It’ll all work out fine, I hope (I’m totes SKINT!)

#practice #practising #excommunication #halfajaffa

0 notes