#samara appreciation time

[thelilylav]

Y'know what? Fuck it (gives u guys a list of poc artists to listen to cause the white ppl on the music side of tumblr have been embarassing me)

List is under the cut, and warning bc I made it very long

Rock:

Los Abuelos De La Nada

Gesu No Kiwami Otobe

Chuck Berry

Ben E. King

Los Prisoneros

Ahmed Fakroun (ok this one's french art rock but in my book it still counts)

Burnout Syndromes (been fucking w them since I got into Haikyuu lmao)

Infinity Song (their hater song genuinely gets me every time LMAO)

People in the Box

N.E.R.D (my god if u don't know them.. idk dude my brother has been obsessed w them for forever so i just was not getting away regardless lol)

Punk/Punk Rock (& other punk subgenres):

Nova Twins (u must listen to them it's just the way it's gotta be guys)

Rina Sawayama (her hatred of Matty Healy is so attractive. i cannot believe i found her two years ago cause i still remember i would not shut up when i first heard her music it was so good)

BABYMETAL (the way their band name just straight up screams at people gets me every time lmaooo)

Indie:

The Younger Lovers

Mashrou Leila

Stella Jang

Shak SYrn (Jenni is on repeat in my room at any given moment)

Steve Lacy (if u listen to more than just Bad Habit u will find an actuall amazing discography)

Jenny Nuo (i have been OBSESSED w her music since like 2021 ish and it is a crime she hasn't blown up more imo)

Nujabes

Hemlocke Springs (oooo i hate that she does not get more love!!! synth pop and alt indie is such a fun niche like!!!)

Lyn Lapid (in my head she's huge but i have recently learned that artists i think r super popular may be unknown to an entire genre of ppl soo)

Megagonefree (found them on ig and omg!! PLS go check them out genuinely)

boa (i am once again shaming u if u don't know them)

Wallice

JAZZ (in all caps bc I fucking LOVE jazz no it's not dead go listen to jazz rn motherfuckers):

Idris Muhammad

Esperanza Spalding

Joanna Wang (ok she does pop and folk music too but idk she felt most appropriate here)

SAMARA JOY (put. some. respect. on. her. name. i would actually go to war for her i am not kidding. also this is in all caps bc MY MOM GOT TO SEE HER LIVE??? AND SHE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHO SHE WAS PLS I WAS SO MAD OMGGG but i've been promised tickets next time so we're good)

Sade (my og one and only)

Funk:

Fadoul

George Clinton (i mean he's just a classic yknow)

Parliament (Give Up the Funk can make me dance like no other i swear)

Stevie Wonder (i mean.. like if we're on the topic of classics anyway then...)

Michael Jackson/The Jackson 5 (moreso his earlier stuff if my memory isn't lying to me.. look it's been a second since i listened to mj IM SORRY i am a busy person ok TT)

R&B:

Valerie June

Maxine Nightingale (if u don't listen to her... how do u have fun? actual question i put her on every time i need to feel happy atp)

Boney. M (technically they're reggae but they also count as R&B so idk.. i'm just putting them here if anyone wants me to move them later i will)

Amahla (Ca Suffit was so good and got me to check out the rest of her music, YOU SHOULD TOO!!)

Mary J Blige (not to judge but like... if u don't know THE queen then idk how to help you tbh)

SZA (wouldn't be a list without her in it tbh. i'm in love w her not even joking abt that)

Kali Uchis (to this day i cannot believe i saw her live i'm truly never getting a better moment than that omggg i have such a big crush on her anyway)

Aupinard (if ever u need to just vibe, this is the man u go to.)

Wejdene (TU PARLES AVEC UNE ANISSA MA MOI J'APPELLE WEJDENE- she's been my day 1 since i was like thirteen i can't even lie)

Annisse (just found out she only has like ~500 listeners on spotify??? apparently i'm one of them tho lmao so yeah go get that number up guys i love her too much for this disrespect)

Sister Sledge

Cheryl Lynn

Reggae:

Daddy Yankee (he's an honourable mention cause i couldn't not lmao)

Skindred (they're a reggae/metal fusion band and i will shut up abt them when i'm dead bc Nobody rewired my brain chemistry!!)

Manu Chao

Toquinho (i was so convinced this man was bossa nova but apparently he is reggae and i need to do some music theory review)

Folk:

Sushi Soucy (oh the things I Deserve to Bleed had me going thru in 2020/2021)

Miriam Makeba (Pata Pata should be enough to get anyone listening to her, just saying)

Lead Belly (do urself a favour and do some research on this man, i'm not kidding even if u don't like folk music u should know abt him- ESPECIALLY if u like Nirvana that'll make sense later trust)

Pop:

Corinne Bailey Rae (she has so much good music that gets ignored bc of Put Your Records On so.. yeah go listen to Black Rainbows she's only gotten better as time goes on lol)

Dru (he is for any person who likes ke$ha. i'm so serious he is early 2000s in a bottle and i love his music ur rlly missing out if u ignore him)

Monique Hasbun (found her recently! she's a Palestinian, Mexican and Salvadorian artist who plays around with Latin pop and does a lot of fusion music. she's dope go listen to her fr)

Mohammad Assaf (he made the Palestine song that's been going around ig a lot, but his other stuff is great as well. he's another Palestinian artist, so once again, go check him out!!)

Pinkpanthress (i LOVE her she's so much fun to just vibe to and idk how anyone couldn't have heard of her atp but then again this is the sight that didn't know who drake was so... sigh. go listen to her if u don't already!!)

Aliyah's Interlude (BROOO if u haven't heard of her actually go listen rn i'm so serious she is so good i can'ttttt ok bye)

Veondre (had a collab w Aliyah on It Girl and is gonna be releasing her own music very soon! she's trans too so go give her some love)

Shalco (wasn't sure whether to put him here or in hip hop, but his stuff is very very good either way)

Ado (she's j-pop but it's a form of pop so into the pop category she goes)

Moon (she's got two songs out rn, Moonlight and Seoul City Drift, and both r going on loop in my head at all times)

Jay Chou (call me a basic bitch idc he's good ok)

Atarashii Gakko! (i wouldn't say they're j-pop, but google did, so i'm just going w it lol)

flowerovlove (just trust me on this one)

El Tio Gamboin (Los Gatitos is such a cute song)

Grace Chang (see note for Jay Chou)

King Gnu (for all my j-pop lovers... come get ur man)

Salsa:

Lalo Rodriguez (included this genre specifically so i could mention him)

Adalberto Santiago

Roberto Roena (he's a classic i can't lie)

Hector Lavoe (i think he might be the most popular one in this genre lol)

City Pop (this is its own genre bc i literally did a presentation in high school abt it and i'll be damned if i don't flex my knowledge now):

Mariya Takeuchi

Miki Matsubara (my QUEEN my everything my-)

Anri

Taeko Onuki (one of my most listened to artists last yr for a Reason)

Kaoru Akimoto

Kingo Hamada

Jun Togawa

Bossa Nova:

Joao Gilberto (ooo he gets me every time i fucking love this man)

Elizeth Cardoso

Johnny Alf (forgot this man the first time around my bad BUT he's called the father of bossa nova for a reason so)

Hip Hop:

Flyana Boss (they're sooooo good i actually can't gush enough i have never felt so girlypop listening to music before go listen to them!! found the duo through ig so yeah if u want go follow them on there too to show support)

Lil Uzi Vert (for any emo lovers, go check out his song Werewolf with Bring Me the Horizon it is SO GOOD)

Samyra (she's slowly curing my body dysmorphia lol)

Yame (there's an accent on the e but idk how to do that on tumblr. anyway my ass loves french rap and before him i was stuck with klub des loosers so he saved my faith in the genre i can't even lie)

Lay Bankz (u cannot be chronically online and not have heard Ick yet, but i'm repping her regardless bc SHE'S SO GOOD)

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie (HEAR ME OUT-)

Kaliii (Area Codes was one of my most listened to songs last year... as it should be tbh)

Miguel (he does R&B too i just first listened to him bc of his collab w J.Cole sooo)

Tyler the Creator (putting him on here just to brag abt getting to see him in concert lmao)

XXXTentacion (he has been mourned and talked abt an insane amount, but he deserves it i'm not even gonna joke on this one. his artistry is insane and he deserves some love if u haven't listened to him yet)

Kendrick Lamar (i mean i've been reblogging stuff abt him enough. Mr. Morale was actually the album that made me start Listening listening to him and i'm honestly glad it was bc that album is still my favourite to this day if i'm being totally honest)

Renaissauce (criminally and i do mean CRIMINALLY underrated)

[gazasparkle]

My tragedy in a minute 😔

How many times does one expect to die while he is alive !!

I am tired of waiting for death because it is the only way to end this nightmare and this genocide.

Yesterday we went to sleep as usual at nightfall but we did not know what was coming or expect the disaster that would happen to us, as we were bombed and targeted, me and my family directly without warning to evacuate and some of us were injured and we were lucky to stay alive other times 💔

We are now stuck in a very dangerous area and we do not know our fate and how to escape to safety because there is an Israeli sniper targeting everything that passes in front of him, and the smell of blood fills the roads because ambulances are unable to reach us.

So my family and I decided to stay where we are, perhaps it is the best option for us to stay alive.

This scene is not the first or the last.. It has been repeated for a year now..

I ask you to help me so that I can help my family in the northern Gaza Strip so that we can stay safe to support ourselves again.

I hope you share my campaign with all your friends and donate 🔗to save us, with my appreciation and thanks 🇵🇸🫂

🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗🔗

[sky-scribbles]

You know what I really appreciate about Kaidan's character arc? He gets a story about finding self-acceptance and letting himself let go and feel things - but at the same time, he still gets to be an introvert. He still gets to be, in his words, someone who isn't 'the life of the party, who has a lot of friends'.

I mean - in ME1, Kaidan fully admits to a romanced Shepard that he doesn't feel human. When he killed Vyrnnus, he became someone Rahna was afraid of, someone she saw as dangerous... so he holds himself to nigh-impossible standards. 'You never let yourself lose control,' Shepard tells him. He's very, very indirect in a lot of his conversations with Shep, because he's trying so hard not to be too direct, too forward; he's constantly polite and disciplined and professional because he can't be a problem. He can't let anyone see him as unpredictable or dangerous because that's when they start seeing you as terrifying. That's when people you love look at you like you're not human.

But Shepard can encourage him to let himself feel, and show it - 'I might need to loosen up. A little,' he admits, sheepishly - and when you see him again on Horizon, he lets his feelings be open and messy and a Problem. By ME3, he's completely embracing his nature as a biotic, gleefully letting everyone know at the Citadel party that he can Reave now, joining in with the other biotics roasting James in the 'biotics vs strength' argument. He's accepted himself, he knows his friends accept him, and he's letting himself laugh and drink and dance like a complete dork, and he's grown so much, and yet -

And yet, he's still a fundamentally quiet, self-contained person. Maybe I'm just jaded from all the media where introverted characters get told to loosen up, and then they suddenly realise that they do want to be the life of the party now actually. But Kaidan? Kaidan hangs out in the observation deck, perhaps the quietest part of the Normandy - the same place where Samara spent her time, a place where no other characters are present. (Ashley, in comparison, spends a lot of time hanging out in the bar, where there are constantly other characters around). Kaidan's Citadel hangout with Shepard? He doesn't head out onto the Silversun Strip with you like many of the other characters; his ideal evening is cooking a meal for his friend/partner and having a chill time with the two of you. A lot of the conversations you have with him on board ship are quiet, introspective. His hangout place on the Citadel is a quiet Presidium cafe.

It's just... comforting to me. He grows, but he doesn't have to change who he fundamentally is, y'know? ME3 Kaidan is more confident and sociable and (despite everything) happy than ME1 Kaidan, but he's still a guy who's not fond of too much lights or noise or crowds, who's soft-spoken and sensitive, who gets caught up in his own thoughts sometimes. I just really appreciate that.

[whatdoeseverybodywant]

Rebuild & Restore - Social Media Wars 6

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All Falls Down (Prequel)

Series Masterlist

uceyjucey

liked by trinity_fatu, jonathanfatu, and 300,000 others

uceyjucey: @kiyanafatu_ I promise to be the man you deserve. I promise that this time around, things will be different. I will learn from our past and use it to build an even stronger future filled with love, understanding, and joy. I vow to never take you for granted, to always appreciate you, and to show up for you—through the laughter, the tears, and every moment in between. Its just me and you baby (and our kids) K+J 4Ever ❤️

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trinity_fatu: this is so sweet! I'm rooting for yall! 💞

marraaa_ 💞

kiyannafatu_ : i love you so much! K+J 4Ever

kiyanafatu_

liked by marraaa_, trinity_fatu and 130,000 others

kiyanafatu_ Panama was a success! 📸: @ uceyjucey

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uceyjucey: THATS ALL ME RIGHT THERE! YEET! 😍

↪ kiyanafatu_ 😘

trinity_fatu: i bet it was a success 🤭

↪kiyanafatu_ 🤫🤣

kiyanafatu_

liked by marraaa_, trinity_fatu and 100,000 others

kiyanafatu_ 🫢👶🏽

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marraaa_ I told you to stop eating those pumpkin seeds smh! 🤣

TalisuaFatu another grandbaby! 💞

trinity_fatu: @ uceyjucey stay off her OMG! 😳

↪ uceyjucey hell naw! have you seen HER?!

romanreigns: congratulations! always happy to have more lil uces running around 💙

kiyanafatu_ added to their story!

🤭

I strive to be as petty as Samara and Kiyana one day!

the last chapter is in its final stages and will hopefully be up within' the next couple of days! ❤️

🏷️: @christinabae @southerngirl41 @reci1996 @empressdede @harmshake

@theninthwonder @alyyaanna @nbanenefrmdao @raya-hunter01 @msbigredmachine

@paigereeder @amandairene88 @woahthatshitfat @allmyn1ghts @reignsboy19

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@rebelrel0987 @mymyhhxoxo

[everygame]

Special Delivery: Santa’s Christmas Chaos (C64)

Developed/Published by: Dalali Software / Creative Sparks (Thorn EMI Computer Software) Released: 1984 Completed: 05/12/2024 Completion: Got a high score of 8750. I’ll take it!

Writing about old video games for an audience of very few could seem like a thankless task–especially when they’re as awful as Christmas Crackers. But there’s a reason I do it. One, I just love playing games, even if they’re so crap I give up on them in minutes. Two, I just love learning. I love discovery, I love finding out things that are new to me about video games and their history. And sometimes, if I’m lucky, I find out some things that no one has really paid attention to before.

I never thought playing a completely random Christmas cash-in on C64 would bring me anything like that.

Special Delivery: Santa’s Christmas Chaos is a game for C64, Spectrum and Atari 8-Bit released by Dalali Software under Thorn EMI’s “Creative Sparks” imprint. At the time it sank without trace due to, apparently, a lack of marketing. After playing it–and I will get into that–I did my usual investigation into the developer, and was quite prepared to dismiss Dalali as one of the many fly-by-night British game developers of the 1980s–they appeared to be only a going concern between 1984 and 1989 and didn’t have any particularly notable games to their name. They were responsible for ports of Rescue On Fractalus and Lilttle Computer People to Amstrad CPC, but largely seem to have had the bad luck of being most related to 1986’s Biggles game. The weirdest thing about that is that not only did I really like the movie on which it was based (which I’m sure no one else remembers but me) when I was a kid, watching it on telly several times, I’ve actually played the game! It was on Amstrad Action #68’s covertape (along with How To Be A Complete Bastard!) and, as vague as my memories of it are now, I’m sure I played it loads of times. Less than How To Be A Complete Bastard, admittedly.

This led me to dig a little further, and sometimes things just fall into place, because I found an astonishingly in-depth article from Sham Mountebank’s When Were They Now? blog (a new one to me) all about Dalali. I think Mountebank slightly buries the lede however, because digging into the linked articles it seems absolutely remarkable that Dalali is not only in the ranks of the earliest companies to have been founded (or co-founded) by a woman, but very likely the first game company founded by a Palestinian: Hanan Samara.

Hanan Samara, pictured in Computer & Video Games March 1985.

Game companies had been co-founded by women before–most famously Sierra, by Roberta Williams and her husband Ken in 1979–but I think Samara’s story might be unique.  According to an interview with ANTIC The Atari 8-bit Podcast she believes she might have been the first female assembly programmer in the UK, starting out by converting software to work for the Arabic market. Moving to work for Thorn EMI, she’d see a Humpty Dumpty puzzle game–programmed by her future husband(!) Chris James–and be “hooked.”

After coding Jumbo Jet Pilot for Atari 8-Bit for Thorn EMI, it seems that she made the leap to founding Dalali–named for her mother’s maiden name (as her mother said go for it, while her dad said to get a job at IBM...) with another ex-employee, Adrian Wadley.

Something I really appreciate about Samara’s story is that she immediately brought herself to game design, with Dalali’s first game “Jinn Genie”. While this kind of Arabic-theming undoubtedly seems stereotypical today, in an interview with Popular Computing Weekly it is clear that this is an early example of someone trying to represent their culture via the art of video games:

“Jinn Genie is a game that incorporates many of the basic myths and children’s stories of my culture–I am an Arab, a Palestinian, and all the ideas of genies and so on are familiar to me.”

Jinn Genie, on C64.

The most disappointing thing, to me, is that Samara is, at this point, unheralded outside of a blog post, one short podcast, and about… three short articles featuring three pictures that can be found on archive.org! She’s one of the UK’s earliest female programmers, game designers and founders, perhaps the first Palestinian game developer, and she has managed to run Dalali since 1984 because it’s still going–they just stopped making games.

Samara’s story isn’t mine to tell, so I hope that institutions like GDC, The Video Game History Foundation or The Strong can find out more and champion her. Figures such as Muriel Tramis have gone from overlooked to winning the Legion of Honour, and if I can help get the word out about Hanan Samara, just a little bit, I’ll feel I’ve done my part.

But I know what you’re asking now.

“But how good is Special Delivery: Santa’s Christmas Chaos???”

So let's return to regular programming. First, I’m going to note that I believe I have played the wrong version of this. When it came to games, Samara was an Atari 8-bit coder, and it is absolutely transparent that Special Delivery is based entirely on Jinn Genie–both feature a flying section, a climbing section, and a section with floors and ladders. It does feel like I should have played the Atari 8-bit version to experience the most representative version, as I did with playing the C64 version of Pirates, let’s say.

(It’s worth mentioning here also that the ANTIC podcast–recorded seven years ago now–even notes that the version of Jinn Genie that Samara coded, for the Atari 8-bit, seems to be lost, although Samara does say that she has a copy of it somewhere. Aforementioned institutions could probably help with that too. What that largely means, though, is that the Atari 8-bit version of Special Delivery is the closest you can get to playing the original Jinn Genie.)

To be fair, the C64 version seems pretty close to the original (the ZX Spectrum port is… not).

As I’ve said previously, my expectations for a Chrimbo cash-in have been low, and no matter how much this is sort of a reskin of a previous game, that it’s got an idea and an actual design exceeds anything I’ve expected. At first glance you might go “well, isn’t this just Santa Claus again?” (or even Santa’s Sleigh Ride.) But it’s honestly much more–even if it is still a bit weird.

In Special Delivery, you’re first flying across the screen in Santa’s (somewhat confusingly drawn) sleigh, collecting presents that… angels are dropping. Which implies that this is in fact the historical Saint Nicolas, or maybe I’m just overthinking it. You’re trying to collect a target number of presents, but you lose them if you crash into clouds (odd) or accidentally collect a demonic present dropped by a devil (who appear rarely, but look very much like angels, annoyingly.) Losing presents won’t kill you, but Santa has a set amount of hours in the night, and you lose an hour if you get struck by the lightning that occasionally appears from the strangely firm clouds.

If you collect enough presents, you get to land on a big house to put presents under the tree. First this requires you climb down the chimney, which in this situation is: huge, full of ladders, and lit so flames keep climbing the ladders that you have to dodge. Once you’ve done that, you’re actually in the house, where you have to Solid Snake your way to the tree, drop off the present, grab the front door key, and then leave through the front door, while the residents run wildly from one room to the next, seemingly out of their nut with either excitement for Christmas or hatred for Santa. Get hit by a flame or grabbed by a resident and you’ll lose an hour.

Interestingly, if you don’t collect enough presents, you don’t get to go into any big houses, but you do get to drop presents down the chimney of some wee houses. You only really pick up big points for going into big houses, which raises the concerning idea that Santa only gives a fuck about you if you’re rich enough to live in a big house.

But to be fair, the people in big houses seem absolutely determined to not get pressies, keeping their fires roaring and attacking Santa on sight, so perhaps he just likes the challenge. “I hope Santa doesn’t show up” they’re saying, “we’ve got all the stuff we need in this big house. We don’t need wooden toys or whatever the historic Saint Nick would be handing out, he should give those to the poor people in the wee houses.”

More fool them, I checked Wikipedia and he was dropping off bags of gold coins through people’s windows. (Admittedly to stop them being sold into prostitution.)

Anyway. Even before I knew the exciting context for Special Delivery, I was struck by how… weirdly ok it was! Maybe it’s just how bad the other Santa-em-ups have been (well, I guess I didn’t hate Merry Xmas Santa) but the different sections largely make sense together, undoubtedly because it’s based on Jinn Genie. The main problem really is that it just doesn’t control very well. Flying the sleigh is stiff, and when you’re actually controlling Santa himself, he reacts very slowly to your input, meaning you have to time presses based on the lag, and I probably lost most of my lives in the chimneys as a result–it might be better on the Atari 8-Bit, so more fool me.

Special Delivery is not really the kind of thing that’s going to hold your attention for very long, but it does actually manage to be playable and feels properly festive. I’ll celebrate that.

Will I ever play it again? I was surprised to see a non-zero number of people say online that playing this is a bit of a Christmas tradition. Well, I don’t think I will be taking it up, but I do fancy playing Jinn Genie at some point now--maybe once that Atari 8-bit version is found!

Final Thought: In my research I was surprised to discover not only had I played a Dalai Software game before, I’d also played a Creative Sparks game, similarly loads of times: Danger Mouse In Double Trouble. Strangely, it has the same multi-game design as this (and I guess, a lot of the computer games of the era) but suffered a lot more for them not having any meaningful connection and mostly being rubbish. Even as a child I remember enjoying just the jungle level and suffering through the rest to get through that. The things you’ll do when you’ve got nothing else as a child.

Every Game I’ve Finished 14>24 is OUT NOW! You can pick it up in paperback, kindle, or epub/pdf. You can also support Every Game I’ve Finished on ko-fi! You can pick up digital copies of exp., a zine featuring all-exclusive writing at my shop, or join as a supporter at just $1 a month and get articles like this a week early.

[thollandsgirl2013]

𝐍𝐨 𝐊𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬

Parings → Dad! Tom Holland x Mum! Reader

Warnings → none

Summary → Your son, Theo doesn't like it when his dad kisses you. He thinks it's gross.

You were in the kitchen, making lunch, when Tom sneaked up behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you close. You smiled, feeling the warmth of his embrace as he pressed a soft kiss to your cheek.

“Mmm, what was that for?” You asked, leaning into him.

“Just because,” Tom whispered, turning your head gently and capturing your lips in a sweet kiss. Before you could deepen it, you heard a loud groan from the living room.

“Ewww! Mummy! Daddy! Stop that!” Theo whined, his little voice filled with disgust.

You both turned to see your five-year-old son, Theo, standing there with his hands dramatically covering his eyes. His toy cars, now forgotten, lay scattered around him as he peeked through his fingers, making sure you weren’t kissing anymore. “That’s gross! No more kissing!”

Tom laughed, pulling away slightly but still keeping his arm around your waist. “What’s wrong, mate? It’s just a kiss.”

Theo shook his head, his face scrunched up. “Mummy is mine, not yours, Daddy!”

“Oh, is that so?” Tom teased, raising an eyebrow. He leaned in again and gave you another quick kiss, this time on your forehead, knowing full well it would drive Theo crazy.

“Daddyyyyyy!” Theo wailed, covering his eyes again. “You’re not listening!”

But while Theo whined, Samara, your three-year-old daughter, was sitting on the floor nearby, clapping her little hands and giggling. “Yay! Kissy, kissy!” She cheered, her face lighting up with joy. “Again, Daddy!”

Tom grinned, clearly enjoying the split reactions of his kids. “See? At least Sammy appreciates me.”

Samara continued to clap and giggle, her laughter contagious. “More kissy! Daddy woves Mama!” She chanted.

Theo, still covering his eyes, groaned even louder. “Nooooo! No more kissing! It’s gross! Mummy is mine! You can’t kiss her, Daddy!”

You couldn’t help but laugh, reaching down to scoop Theo into your arms. “Oh, my baby boy,” you said, kissing his cheek. “You’ll always be my baby, but Daddy can give me kisses too, okay?”

Theo squirmed in your arms, wiping off your kiss with the back of his hand. “Only my kisses, Mummy. Daddy’s kisses are yucky.”

Tom feigned offense, placing a hand over his heart. “Yucky? Well, guess I’ll have to kiss Mummy more just to prove you wrong.” He leaned in, pretending to go for another kiss.

Theo shrieked, covering his face once again. “Nooo! Cooties!”

Samara was now practically bouncing in place, clapping her hands even harder. “Yayy!”

You laughed, pulling Theo closer to calm him down, while Tom scooped up Samara, spinning her around as she giggled in delight.

“Well, I guess Samara and I are on the same team,” Tom said, kissing her forehead. “Right, Sammy?”

“Yeah, daddy!” Samara cheered, her tiny arms wrapping around Tom’s neck.

Theo, still not having it, pointed a finger at Tom. “No kissing Mummy, Daddy! Or I’ll… I’ll tell Grandma!”

Tom gasped dramatically, pretending to be scared. “Oh no, not Grandma! Anything but that!”

You shook your head, still smiling. “Alright, no more kisses in front of Theo,” you said, winking at Tom.

But as soon as Theo turned around to go back to his toys, Tom leaned in and quickly kissed you on the lips again. Theo spun back, his face scrunched up in exaggerated frustration.

“Daddyyyyy!”

Tom laughed, pulling you closer. “Sorry, buddy, but I can’t help it. Your mummy’s just too kissable.”

As Theo continued to protest, and Samara cheered for more kisses, you couldn’t help but chuckle at your chaotic little family.

°:. *₊ ° . ° .• °:. *₊ ° . ° .•

[callsign-rogueone]

letters from samara - g.t.

Garrick Tavis x reader (Angel!) part of my Valentine’s Day celly! 💕 words: 1.0k 🏷: FOURTH WING AND IRON FLAME SPOILERS, part of my Garrick and Angel series, so read that first for context! no other warnings, just kinda soft and sad.

Someone drops a thick envelope onto the table in front of you. “From Samara. They said it was important.”

Samara. Brennan had told you that’s where Garrick and Xaden are. Your hands shake as you open the seal, but you relax at the familiar slant of Garrick’s handwriting. 

My angel,

I will start with what I know you’re most worried about: I am alive, I am safe, and so is X. He’s brooding in the corner of the room right now -- he’s not taking it well being apart from Vi, but command has allowed them visits every two weeks for Tairn and Sgaeyl’s sakes. 

We both miss you more than words can describe. I wish I could have said goodbye before we left, or that we could have taken you with us, but X wouldn’t hear arguments from anyone. I have never seen him that serious about anything before. 

I’m so sorry, angel. For all of it, everything. You didn’t deserve to be put through any of that, and I know how deeply it hurt you. It was terrifying to see you that way, so drained and cold. I can’t imagine what it felt like. 

Promise me you’ll take care of yourself, my love. You are the most kindhearted person I’ve ever known, and I love that about you, but you have to think of your own needs as well. You deserve peace and rest, especially now. Sleep in as long as you want, make time for your meditation. I’m sure the gardens would appreciate your attention as well; I swear you could make roses grow in dry sand as long as you smiled at them every day. 

I couldn’t bear to burn anything of yours, knowing that your heart still beats. I kept the things I thought to be most important to you and took them here with me. I will return them to you as soon as I can, but they are a comfort to me now — my room here feels like it did at Basgiath, with little touches of you scattered around. I keep watching the door, thinking that any moment you’ll come knocking to walk to class with me, or if I reach across the bed in the morning, you’ll be beside me again. I don’t know when I’ll see you next, but I know in my heart that I will. There is nothing and no-one that could keep me from you. 

Yours always,

G

On the sheet below, another.

Until I can lay by your side and tell you about my days, I’ll keep writing to you about them instead.

Being here feels like being a fresh cadet all over again, but different -- bottom of the food chain, getting the shifts nobody wants, but at least we don’t have to constantly prove our strength like we did in our first year at Basgiath, and we already have our dragons. 

One of Chradh’s relatives is here, which is cool. I think they’re cousins? They look damn near identical. I walked up to the wrong one on the flight line the other day -- thankfully the guy has a better sense of humor than Chradh, but I’m never making that mistake again.

Every rider here seemed to know exactly who we were when we arrived. Some of them have been more subtle with their distaste for us than others, but nobody’s been dumb enough to try anything -- probably because we look like we can fight, and because Sgaeyl is fucking terrifying, even more so now that she’s separated from Tairn. 

I just got off a 12-hour patrol shift, and I’m exhausted, but it’s hard to sleep without you here. I don’t think we’ve ever been apart this long in our lives. Being without either of you has never even felt like a possibility before; it’s always been us three together through the good and the bad. Someday it’ll be like that again, I know it will.

Brennan is the best mender I have ever known. If you choose, he can help you strengthen your ability, but please don’t push yourself too far. I need you to be in one piece when I get back. 

There are three more sheets underneath, one in Xaden’s rough script and two more from Garrick, the last dated four days ago -- likely the day he’d sent it. 

You realize what an incredible risk it was to write to you at all. It wouldn’t take a genius to put together that X is Xaden, that you’re hiding in Aretia, that you’d faked your death, or rather that your friends had faked it for you. How many hands did these pages pass through to reach you? How many others out there are on your side? 

You bring a hand up to cover your yawn, realizing how tired you are. The sun has gone down, a small mage light the only thing illuminating the corner of the study that you occupy. It’s likely nearing midnight.

“The letters and the books will still be there in the morning,” Tab says gently. “Sleep. You’ve had a long day.”

You look down at the torn piece of fabric you’ve been staring at for the last four hours. It has not yet sewn itself back together, no matter how hard you concentrated or “cleared your mind”, how gently you touched it. You’d even asked it nicely, but it did not dignify you with a response.

You set the letters aside for a moment, stacking up the books that you’d found in the house’s library about mending and placing them in a neat pile in the corner of the table you’ve been sitting at every evening for the last week. You fold the black cotton into quarters, setting it atop the pile -- you’ll try again tomorrow.

You can’t help but smile as you tuck the letters back into the envelope, brushing your fingers over the wax seal.

Garrick is right, this is the longest you’ve ever been apart, but as you gaze out the window into the starry sky, holding the letters he’d written you, the distance between you doesn’t seem that far.

[ozzgin]

I also had a Yandere Eyeless Jack meets Y/N as an entity/spirit is very similar to Sadako the ring girl. However, more playful and dangerous. Y/N is different from Sadako or Samara. Y/N wants to play a dreadful games with EJ.

So I did start writing this with Sadako in mind, although I ended up with a more generic kind of reader whose background isn’t very clear. I found the lack of details to be more interesting, since it’s up to you to decide what kind of devilish entity this reader is. It’s also heavily focused on their encounter rather than overall headcanons.

Yandere! Eyeless Jack x Haunting! Reader

Featuring Eyeless Jack and a ghoulish reader that just found a new favorite target. Warning: mentions of violence and death

[Horror Masterlist]

Well, this is awkward. The hooded creature stands before the bed, scalpel in hand, unsure how to proceed. After a moment of consideration he nonchalantly stuffs the blade back into his pocket, clicking his tongue in annoyance. Judging by the stagnant blood that has pooled into the lower half of the body, he’d say the man has been dead for several days. A waste of his evening. Who could’ve gotten here before him? Burglars? He quickly scans the surroundings for clues, but nothing seems amiss.

Just as he ponders on the possible scenarios, a faint knock can be heard from the window. He crawls over and abruptly pulls the curtains, hoping to surprise whoever is on the other side. Pitch black. Now that he thinks about it, isn’t this an attic bedroom? Who could even casually jump over three floors? Besides him, obviously. Jack opens the window and peeks down, but no ladder can be discerned through the murk.

“Wrong guess.” He snaps back and hovers a hand over his pocket, ready to draw his weapon. He can’t quite place the whisper he just heard. A jagged, interrupted voice, like a broken record, echoing in the distance and yet as clear as if it blew right upon his ears. He stares into the darkness before sneaking out of the room. Detective work wasn’t on his list tonight, but alas, he might as well find his new source of fresh organs. Whoever is playing these games better enjoy it while it lasts.

You can sense his frustration and smile to yourself. The previous one was so quick to go. You hoped you could drag it on for longer, but humans have frail hearts. You glance at the decaying carcass and muse over the sunken face with its features distorted in terror. Was it too much? No matter, this one is different. He seems more of a creature than a mortal. Will it make a difference? Oh, you can’t wait to test it yourself. As you stalk his figure in the hallway, you stretch out your fingers and sink your claws into the wallpaper.

Without looking back, Jack plunges his scalpel in the same spot. Your hand remains in place, merely visible fog surrounding the shining piece of metal. For the first time, the creature can see you. You gaze into his endless, cloudy sockets and nod, attempting a greeting gesture. You then switch your focus to your hand and he follows. “That’s…not very useful, is it?” You state plainly. An invisible frown darkens his expression and he pulls out the blade. Statistically speaking, encountering a ghost was the least likely situation. His reaction was by all definitions rational and he does not appreciate your mockery.

Yet tangled up in his anger lies something else. Throbbing, twisting and turning, the vague beginnings of intrigue gnaw at his chest in anticipation. He’s found a rival, or maybe a playmate. Curiosity binds him in place. If it’s amusement you want, he might just provide you with it. Although he won’t make it easy for you. And if he wins, he expects a prize in return. You’ve caught his interest and he will not be leaving empty handed. Can you tell?

A shiver runs down your spine. The smile occupying your face has now widened into a full, harrowing grin. “It’s a deal”, you murmur. The hunter and the hunted. Except no one can tell who plays the roles.

[tearsaura]

Holding the enemy in my arms // Garrick Tavis x reader

A/N: Based on this request. I hope you like it. I didn't want to take to long on getting this out

Word count: 1.5k

Warnings: Iron Flame spoilers, angst, death

Picture is from pinterest: kateslibb

Garrick Tavis has cried twice in his life.

~Basgiath War College, 12 hours ago~

He quickly found her in an abandoned hall, grabbed her by the shoulder, his arm pressing her by the neck to the wall behind them and holding a dagger to her throat with the other.

‘How could you do this?’ Garrick had never shed a tear in front of anyone else before. He hadn't even cried at his parents’ execution, not wanting to give Generals the satisfaction. But right now? Pressing her to the wall, the women whom he loved so dearly, who he had pictured a life with? Getting married, having kids, and living at each other’s side? She looked so much like the y/n he knew, if it wasn't for the bloodshed eyes, she looked just like the girl he fell in love with.

‘You wouldn't understand.’ she gasped, her hands grabbing desperately at his arm. ‘Try me. You had me thinking you were dead. You had your Dragon thinking that you were dead, your friends! Was it worth betraying all of us? Ruining what we had? Answer!’ he shouted. The next moment, his back hit the opposite wall, knocking the air out of his lung and she had disappeared.

~Basgiath War Collage, 6 Months ago~

‘Gods your stance is terrible how did you survive your first year?’ Garrick laughed as he watched her take position. ‘I survived just fine.’ she grinned at him. ‘Well, this won’t last you for long let me show you How you're supposed to do it.’ he said, standing behind her and repositioning her arms. ‘Why Thank you, section leader. Or shall I start calling you Lieutenant?’ ‘Stop teasing, concentrate.’ He tsked, pressing a quick kiss on her temple. ‘Thank you for helping me.’ she whispered in that gentle tone of hers, making Garrick weak in the knees. ‘Of course, my love. You don't have to thank me I am doing this for selfish reasons: I need you to survive what's coming.’ he said, unaware that he was, in fact, holding the enemy in his arms.

‘Can't you be stationed here? I'll miss you.’ she complained. ‘I wish I could stay with you, my love. But you know I can't. I'll write to you all the time I promise. Maybe we'll be able to smuggle out occasionally when Xaden comes to visit.’ ‘Or we could get our dragons to fall for each other and become mates? Then we'd be able to visit each other to! We still have time-‘ ‘I appreciate your effort, but you know this doesn't work that way.’ he replied and Y/N turned around in his arms, putting hers around his neck. ‘Just promise me we'll figure this out.’ she whispered, looking at him through her lashes. ‘We will. I promise.’ he whispered back and interlocked his lips with hers.

~Riorson House, Aretia, four months ago~

Garrick ran through the corridors of the Riorson house, frantically searching for her y/h/c standing out in the massive groups of cadets that stood around all the place, with no success. His frantic search came to a halt when he spotted her friends. She'd have to be here. There was no way she wouldn't have come. Was she okay? Did she survive?

With big steps he approached them, his heart falling when he saw she wasn't among them. ‘Violet? Have you seen y/n?’ he asked the younger Girl, who just shook her head, the worry in her eyes matching Garrick’s. ‘No, I- I'm sorry we didn't see her. She was nowhere to be found.’ she replied. ‘We searched all over.’ If his heart hadn't given out before, it sure did when he heard those words.

Samara is here Chardh echoed in his head and Garrick made haste to get outside, up to where the Dragons stood. Chardh stood next to Samara, whom had her head low to the ground. She cannot get to her.

~Basgiath War Collage, 13 hours ago~

‘According to Barlowes Memories, he planted lures all over the college and up the path to the vale.’ Aetos started explaining. ‘How could he have done it by himself?’ Someone chimed in. ‘He didn't.’ Dain began, hesitating. ‘Which leads me to the next point: He- he had help from Y/L/N. I don't know for how long she has been turned into a venin or where she is right now. We presumed her for dead. I saw where Barlowe put most of the lure boxes but not all of them. And we can't figure out where Y/L/N has put them without finding her...’

Garrick blended the rest of it out. He suddenly felt dizzy, his vision turning black, and his hands started shaking. That couldn't be. She'd never do that. ‘Garrick?’ he turned to his best friend, who looked at him with his usual expressionless stare. Bodhi on the other hand had it written all over his face how sorry he felt.

He ignored their stares, tracking back all the times he shared with her. Was she a venin when he first told her that he loved her, when he helped her train, when they shared their first kiss together? Or was she turned when half of the college left for Aretia? Or was that the reason why she hadn't come at all? How come no one ever noticed her eyes where red? Once the briefing was over, he was the first who left the room, beginning his hunt.

~Basgiath War College, Present~

Garrick shook his head, focusing on the task at his hands, his mission clear: buy time, to get the wards back up. There were a dozen wyvern flying directly towards him and Chradh. There were no other Cadets or Riders near him: leaving him at a clear disadvantage. He threw a dagger towards the first venin, missing the target by mere inches, the metal falling.

‘You should forfeit Rider. Maybe then we will spare your life.’ they said, a disturbing grin spreading across their face. Chradh continued to breath fire, without no luck, and attacked the wyvern at its neck. Just as Garrick stood up on Cradh's back, ready to start another attack. Before he could do anything, a dagger came flying, piercing the Venins, falling off. In mere seconds, the other Venins followed. The Lieutenant turned his head to see the source of the flying dagger, his eyes widening. ‘Are you okay?’ y/n asked, flying closer to him. Chardh growled, ready to attack her but Garrick quickly interfered.

End her. She betrayed you. She betrayed Samara. She betrayed all of us. She will be our downfall.

‘How is it possible that Samara assumed you were dead?’ ‘You clearly don't know enough about Venins. My magic helped me build shields strong enough that she could've never find or get to me.’ ‘Why did you kill them?’ ‘Really? You want to discuss this now? I will explain to you everything once we're done.’ she stated to him and turned then to Chardh.  ‘The lure boxes I put out are very weak but all near the hall.’ And with that, she left them, closely missing the weapon one of the venin had throwed at her.

Garrick couldn't keep the grin off his face. She is helping them. She is fighting against her own to help them. He was overwhelmed with a new burst of energy and ready to take on the venin that came flying directly towards him. He didn't see the other one coming, one hand raised and pulling on of the daggers from Garrick towards him, then aiming it at Garrick. Before he could retrieve another dagger, a dark figure passed by him, taking the dagger at the chest, and plummeting to the ground. Garrick only saw the familiar y/h/c hair, and sped down after her, his heart falling even deeper.

Once Chardh caught up with her, he grabed her carefully by her body and lowered them to the ground, putting her down as gently as possible. Garrick quickly got off, sliding to the girl, grabbing her by the upper body, positioning her head on his lap. She was still breathing, and Garrick held his hand on her chest, desperately trying to put pressure on her wound, tears streaming down his face.

‘How could you do that? We could've gotten you back.’ ‘This is war. I had to do what had to be done. There's no cure.’ she replied. Her breath becoming shallower with every second. The other venins layed around, all dead. They must've raised the wards.

Call for Brennan! Call for Brennan!!

On it.

‘You'll get over me. I promise you. You'll meet someone that doesn't cause you the pain I caused. They're going to make you happy. I promise you'll be fine.’ y/n said, cradling his cheek with a shaking hand giving him a smile. Garrick shook his head violently. ‘You can't cry over me. I am not worth crying over.’ ‘Noone is going to make me happier than you did. I love you and I don't take anything you have done for granted. I could never. None of us do. You can't leave me now that I have you back, please I love you.’ ‘I will watch over you, I promise. I love you too.’ she said, her eyes going blank, as she took her final breath.

As the Cadets and Riders were celebrating inside, there was no sound to be heard outside, other than Garrick’s painful roar, triggering the same one from Chradh.

[redfountainpostin]

CW/TW: brief and vague talk of physical disability and loss of pregnancy

I think queen Samara insisted for Sky to attend Red Fountain. Of course Sky begged to go, but although Erendor in his face acts like he did it as a favor to HIM, that he did as SKY asked so Sky should be grateful ("When I agreed to send you to military academy what was the one thing I told you?!") he actually did it because Samara talked some sense into him. There was not been a king in Eraklyon from their dynasty that did not attend Red Fountain. Generally, *all* the male children that come from the king receive their education there, unless they are sent away to study religious science, which is extremely rare and reserved for third or fourth spare, or those (not the oldest, though) who are suffering from a physical handicap so severe they would not be able to handle a battlefield in a traditional manner. In this case, it wouldn't matter if they are a tech wizz like Timmy that could prove invaluable to Eraklyoni military- it is all about appearances. Erendor was about to break this tradition because the sons of harpy that terrorist organization that was after Sky was, well, after Sky. Getting a clear hit at Erendor would be perfect, but they would happily settle at the second best (two of Sky's tasters have died in service before he turned 11) because the royal couple cannot have more children. It is unknown within whom of the two the "fault" lies, but the fact remains that Queen Samara never had another child after him- there are rumors that she was pregnant for a short while and suffered a loss after a bio terror attack, but as most of attacks on the royal family, the one around that time has also been kept closely under wraps. Anyways, when she heard the plan all hell broke loose and they fought for hours, during which she called him a coward among other things, and asked if he wanted his son to be mocked as the only military illiterate ruler in Eraklyoni history. Eventually, he caved in, and of course, Brandon going with him was not even discussed, it was just a given. In general, I imagine Sky's mom to be a very cold woman, but she always showed Brandon more respect and grace than the king did. Erendor doesn't have much appreciation for Brandon's service, honestly he's mostly annoyed that his position is necessary and gives the boy a cold shoulder because of it (yay bully the child Erendor there you go) but Samara feels that the boy is most likely to die young protecting her child and as such deserves some sort of due respect. Even as she's the one actively putting him in that situation, she's grateful. It's messed up. Samara, pushing tiny Brandon as a meat shield in front of her son: thank you so so much- stay put- yes there you go, thank youuuuuuuuuuu

[hum-tittle]

So, Rocky Horror Picture Show is one of my favorite movies. And I am currently obsessed with Mass Effect. This is what I think the Squadmates' opinions would be if Shepard put it on for everyone to watch it (many it would be their first time seeing it).

Ashley- She would say she doesn’t like it but it gives her an ✨awakening✨

Cortez- He appreciates it and likes it but isn’t a super fan. He did go to midnight showing, when he was younger.

Edi- She loves it. I think EDI would be a musical girly in general.

Garrus- He’s just kind of confused by it. He supports Shepard liking it but Hot Pootie gets stuck in his head all the time.

Grunt- He doesn’t get it but likes the vibes and violence. He would do the timewarp at parties with Shepard

Jack- She’s already seen it, she even thought about getting the Boss tattoo.

Jacob- He doesn’t really like it and is mildly concern that Shepard likes it

James- He’s an ally himbo so he loves RHPS. He’s trying to convince everyone to do a group costume next halloween, mostly because he wants an excuse to wear his gold shorts (that he already owns).

Javik- He is surprised how much he actually likes it.

Joker-He enjoys it but his favorite thing now it to put on Hot Pootie in the bridge anytime Garrus comes in to get the song stuck in his head, again.

Kaiden- He's similar to Cortez, he appreciates how RHPS helped the queer community 200 years ago but he's not a fan. He did go to the midnight showing once, in costume and learned to never again.

Kasumi- She loves a good time, and that's what RHPS is.

Legion- Understands why humans and other organics enjoy it but movies aren't super appealing to Geth.

Liara- She doesn’t get it and doesn’t like that she doesn’t get it. She ends up doing the research into the nuances of RHPS and the references. She then watches it again with her new understanding and becomes slightly obsessed with it.

Miranda- She likes it until she starts comparing the fact that she built Shepard and she becomes a bit uncomfortable.She becomes extremely uncomfortable when the others points out the similarities.

Mordin- He’s contacting his old Theater group to see if they can do a production of it.

Samara- She understands why others may like it, but it is not her cup of tea

Tali- She thinks it is fantastic! Touch-A-Touch-A-Touch-A-Touch Me is her favorite song

Thane- He loves that Shepard loves it.

Traynor- Surprisingly she's never seen it before. She really likes it and is debating buying a corset.

Wrex- He thinks it's funny. His favorite part is when they eat ✨️dinner✨️

Zaeed- He played Rocky at midnight showing one summer. It holds a special place in his heart.

[linovadraws]

Quick little drawing for A Long Time Dead by Samara Breger, a book which I just finished and adored beyond all reason. I want to do real art for it, but for now I can't get Poppy discovering blood champagne out of my brain. Poppy Cavendish appreciation life. Character of characters.

[luniellar]

Breathe Me (Garrick Tavis X OC/Reader) - Chapter 3 - The Empyrean Series Fanfiction

When Xaden Riorson and Garrick Tavis arrive at Samara, they are forced to prove themselves all over again. When Xaden heads off to see Violet at Basgiath since their dragons are mated, Garrick finds himself alone in this unfamiliar area trying to get his name established navigating fights and ambushes. He owed his life to the man.

One particular night when Xaden leaves for Basgiath, Garrick finds himself with a new company. One who starts turning his world upside down and giving him something, that isn't just the Xaden and rebellion, to fight for. ______________________________________

All rights to Rebecca Yarros for her original work and original characters. My scenes and characters are my own. ______________________________________

Contains: Fourth Wing/Iron Flame Spoilers Warnings: Language

Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3

Read on AO3 | Wattpad

Lei Aukai

“Wake, now.” 

When I opened my eyes my senses were clouded in anxiousness. I clutched my heart trying to dull the feeling. Cosheirm was seeing something. 

“What’s wrong?” 

I haven’t woke up with this kind of feeling since the last time when - 

Cosheirm cut in. She was always good about protecting me. She was stopping me before my thoughts could wander off to eternal sadness.

“I was flying by the south clearing of Samara when I noticed another brown. It looks like Chradh has been circling the area for a while.” 

I pulled up my hair in my high ponytail and dressed in my gear within seconds. “Do you see anyone else?”

“Yes, from the looks of it, Sgyael will be arriving.”

Garrick must have called Xaden as well. I sheath my blade behind me. “I’ll meet you outside, Coshe.”

✦ ✦ ✦

I ran outside, moving as fast as I could to get to the dragon rendezvous point. Only the dim moonlight lit up the area outside. The field around me blurred as I felt the electric blue energy course through my veins allowing me to jump from one area to the next. The cool air filled my lungs and when I reached the clearing, I saw a familiar figure. His massive height alone was all I needed to know who that was.

A gust of wind blew around us as Chradh landed near him. If looks could kill…Chradh was menacing. Deep gashes and scars from fallen dragons who dared to share Chradh’s presence in the sky were visible from this far distance. Steam blew out of its nostrils as it looked around the field before locking eyes with mine. The crimson-red eyes watched me curiously. 

Garrick turned and I politely waved over to him who looked just as surprised. Gods, did I just do that? He started to walk towards me and he paused for a second to look up at the sky. Another gust of wind blew behind me. 

“Coshe,” I mentally greeted. I watched as Garrick moved his way over to me. His posture was tall and strong as his long legs glided over the ground. The thick dark curls on his head bounced on his head with each step. 

“Lei? What are you doing here?” He asked once he knew I was within listening distance. 

“Uh,” I started not sure how to answer the question. “I, uh, had a hard time sleeping when I heard Coshe.” It was kind of true.

Coshe grunted behind me. It was her form of rolling her eyes at me. “Coshe saw Chradh circling a particular area and got curious. It could be dangerous. Let me fly with you.” 

A huge grin appeared on Garrick’s face revealing his perfect smile. Chradh stepped forward tilting its head at me. My heart skipped a beat. “I appreciate the concern, but Xaden is already on his way. I think we got it covered.”

“An extra pair of wings won’t hurt right?” I added. Garrick shook his head. Was I being too pushy? I think I remembered Iris saying something about how guys don’t like girls who are too pushy? 

“This could be dangerous, Lei.” My name sounded so special in his voice. He stepped closer to me and he was within arms reach. His gaze moved up to my head and moved across my face down to my… lips. My mouth parted. “I’ll find you in the morning.”

“I’m not five, Garrick,” I replied. “I’ve handled dangerous things before. I won’t get in your way.”

His eyebrows furrowed. “This is not the kind of danger you think. There are some secrets I’m not allowed to tell-” 

“About venins?” I cut him off and his mouth dropped open like I froze time. He blinked back at me with his eyes open. I trust my gut with this one because this sick feeling has been stirring in my gut since the moment I woke up. I was told that the majority of the people in the Continent didn’t know about venins, but it looks like I was wrong. 

“I tried to keep it away from you,” Coshe admitted. 

“You know I always appreciate you,” I replied. 

“Did you just say-” Garrick asked when he finally found his voice again. 

“Yes, I know about venins. So let me fly with you and Xaden.” 

“How did you-” Garrick started to say and frowned, glancing back at Chradh. “Chradh wants us in the air right now. Xaden is close. Are you sure you want to do this?”

I smiled and turned to Coshe. “Come on, the last one in the sky is a loser.” I heard thuds as Garrick’s footsteps hit the ground and he made his way to Chradh. 

Once I mount Coshe, she springs into the air, her wing pulling in strong gusts of wind. To my surprise, Chradh is right behind us as we stabilize in the sky. Half a second later, Garrick is flying beside me keeping up with Coshe’s pace. 

I raise my right hand, pointing my pointer and thumb toward him, making an uppercase L above my forehead. As Coshe thrusts her wings and propels us forward past Chradh, I swear I heard his deep laughter echo in the sky.

Garrick Tavis

After a short flight, I see Xaden and Sgaeyl in the air with us. When my flying speed slows down, Coshe and Sgaeyl follow, repositioning their location diagonally behind Chradh. I can sense that Chradh is trying to locate the runes again. 

“Anything?” I ask after a moment of circling. 

”Yes, the rune is weaker now, but it’s still there.” Chradh replies. “I don’t sense the venin.”

I look down and see a structure that looks like an old wooden abandoned building out on a small clearing from this distance. Although the clearing was small, it was enough for three dragons to land. I throw a hand gesture in the air to signal Xaden and Lei that we will be landing here. I hold on tight as Chradh dives down effortlessly and lands on the clearing field. A few seconds later I hear two other dragons land.

Across the clearing is a larger version of the same old wooden building. From a closer distance, I could see that the windows were boarded up with planks. There was a small entrance located on the side of the building. 

Xaden walked up from behind me inspecting the structure with narrowed eyes. I glanced behind to make sure Lei was okay. I didn’t know why I was so worried when it came to Lei. Maybe it was because I was always used to new riders at Basgiath either barfing or tripping after dragon flights. Lei stood up from where she was sitting on Coshe’s rough back. I watched as she crouched down, buckling her legs like springs. I took a step forward when I saw her jump off, but she landed so gracefully. 

“What’s her deal?” Xaden asked. 

“I don’t know,” I replied as I turned back to face the structure when I saw her walking towards us. “I met her on the flight field.”

“Do you trust her?” 

I was about to reply, but Lei walked up behind us. Of course, I trusted Xaden with everything, but I didn’t know if her knowledge about venin was my secret to tell. I cleared my throat as her sweet vanilla scent filled the space around us. I don’t think I could ever get used to that. 

“Alright, you guys can keep watch for me while I check inside,” Lei said as she stepped on the other empty side beside me. 

I looked over at her. “What? No, you stand watch with Xaden. I’m familiar with runes.”

She looked up at me, meeting my eyes. “You guys are new to the Samara outpost and by seniority alone, you both fall under my supervision right now.” Lei glanced over to Xaden. “I never had anyone fall under my supervision and I am not going to make today my first.” 

“Garrick and I will stand patrol,” Xaden said and walked over to the empty clearing behind the building. His shadows thrived in this environment and there was no way either of us was going to fall tonight. But, he didn’t argue back.

“But-” 

Lei reached her hand over her back and pulled out her sword from her back in one clean motion. “No buts. Help me by watching my back,” she smiled and started making her way over to the door. I knew she was skilled and more than capable. But, I wanted to hold her back. I didn’t like the thought of her going in there by herself.

I know Chradh said no venins, but we didn’t know what the runes were. I looked behind me and saw Lei wave her hands over the door followed by a soft thud as the door creaked open.

“Look forward,” Chradh reminded me from the sky. “You must focus on your duties so she can do hers.” All three dragons were circling the skies. 

I clenched my jaw and looked ahead. My eyes carefully examined every inch of the forested areas. I didn’t see any movement. Everything was still. As my eyes rescanned the fields, my mind couldn’t place why the rune's presence weakened by the time we arrived.

It wasn’t like the rune was moved to a different location or hidden underground. According to Chradh, the rune was always located in this abandoned building. Then, there was also the venin presence. Was the venin here to monitor the rune? But if the rune was important to be monitored, why would the venin not have a patrol set up? Nothing was adding up.

Unless the rune was worthless from the start. A meaningless rune designed to create a strong presence to attract whoever was nearby. It only needed to hold the presence until it attracted the prey. No . I turned around and started running. This was a trap.

A scream pierced my ears, the sound shattering the stillness. My heart raced as I ran as fast as I could to the wooden building. I felt the same uneasiness in my chest from earlier, stirring in my chest. That was the venin and I knew I was moving closer to it. 

When I got to the doorway, a cloaked figure was holding a body in the air by the throat. Lei’s hands were clenched around her neck, grabbing a hold of the cloaked figure’s wrists. Her feet kicked in the air desperately as the figure lifted her higher. 

“Lei!” I screamed as I reached for my iron dagger and ran at the cloaked figure at full speed. Winding up my arms, I was ready to drive the dagger when the figure turned to me, his brown eyes were rimmed with red with protruding veins glaring back at me. He smiled as he effortlessly moved Lei’s body where I was planning to drive the dagger.

No. 

I immediately dropped the dagger and my hand grazed off to the side. The cloaked venin grinned as he kicked my ribs, knocking me off to the side. The force was nothing like I felt before. My back hit the wall and I gasped for air. My vision blurred for a second as my eyes fixed on Lei's body hovering with her hands dangling. I blinked slowly trying to stay conscious. A loud thud rang in my ears. When I opened my eyes again, Lei’s body was now lying next to mine. 

“So pathetic,” the venin’s voice rang out. Something about the voice was familiar. “This is so fucking easy.” 

I looked up to see a glint of a blade in the venin’s hand. He pulled his arms for the final strike and I pushed off the floor reaching for a dagger strapped to my side. Everything was in slow motion as his blade came down. No, I was too slow. 

The darkness surrounded me. I couldn’t see anything. No Lei. No Venin. Did I die? I didn’t feel the blade and my ribs were still bruised. It would suck if this pain was going to be persistent on my way to see Malek.

“I didn’t expect you to be here, Riorson .” 

I blinked again and the familiar moonlit space came into my vision. I looked across from me as Lei was lying there with her eyes closed. Xaden had covered us with his shadows.

“You’re shadow-wielding skills are like what they say. It’s truly exceptional.” 

Why did this voice bother me so much? I looked up and I caught a glimpse of his blond hair with his hood down. What the fuck. 

“What the fuck do you want, Pratt?” Xaden replied. 

“I was just trying to teach Tavis here a lesson. I was hoping little Lei would join him. She was always so fucking predictable. But you… I didn’t expect you to be here.”

Silence filled the air again as I watched Pratt step over Lei’s body to Xaden. “We are waiting for you. If you give me a name drop when you decide to stop by, I won’t kill Tavis.”

What the fuck was going on between Xaden and Pratt? I pressed my palm against the floor and slowly propped myself up. I stared toward the doorway where Pratt’s cloak was covering Xaden’s body. The floor felt like it was shaking as I dragged myself over to Lei, taking her hand into mine. I wrapped my finger around her wrist and confirmed her pulse. 

Thank the gods.  

“I will never choose to join you,” Xaden replied. 

Pratt continued to walk forward, passing Xaden. “I have no interest in killing you, Riorson. You might want to get Lei to a healer soon though.” He turned around and his eyes shifted from Xaden to me. “I choked her pretty well.” 

My free hand clenched into a tight fist. “You fucking pussy,” I spat out. Fuck, I tasted iron in my mouth. 

“I will see you guys around,” Pratt chimed back cheerfully. “Next time, I will crush you with my hands Tavis. Oh and Riorson, think through my offer again. It still stands. Your best friend will get to keep his head.” 

Pratt turned around and walked off his black cloak dragging behind him. 

[whatdoeseverybodywant]

Rebuild & Restore - Chapter 3

I do NOT give permission for my work to be translated or reposted on here or any other site, even if you give me credit. DO NOT REPOST MY FICS

Reblogs, comments, likes, and feedback ALWAYS appreciated ❤ 

All OC Characters belong to me

Series Masterlist

Melvania furrowed her eyebrows as there was a knock on her front door. She looked at the clock that hung on the wall just above the entryway to her kitchen and set her coffee mug down on the counter as she saw it was just after 7 am. 

“Josh?” She asked her baby brother as she opened the door, shocked to see him at her house so early. “What are you doing here?” 

“We need to talk.” He said gruffly. “Can I come in?” Mel nodded and opened the door wider for him to enter her home. 

“Is everything okay?” She asked as she followed him into the living room and sat down on the couch across from the chair he had sat in. 

“No, not really. It’s about yesterday. With Kiyana.” Mel scoffed and rolled her eyes. 

“I should have known.” She muttered, sitting back and folding her arms. “Lemme guess, princess couldn’t handle hearing the truth so she sent you here to set me straight?” She scoffed again. “She is a whore and I'm not apologizing for saying it Joshua.” 

“That’s the mother of my kids Mel, whether you like it or not, you will not say no shit like that again while my kids are around.Yes, Kiyana fucked Joe.” Josh paused and clenched his fist together, he was still having a hard time dealing with that. “But I had an affair first, aight. I fucked up my marriage not Kiyana.” Mel rolled her eyes at his little speech. 

“To be completely honest baby bro, I could care less. She hurt you and that’s all I care about.” 

“You don’t have to like her, I mean you never did. But what you will do is respect the mother of your nephews.” Josh said as he stood up from her couch and walked out of his sister's house without saying another word to her. 

Next stop, Kiyana’s house..

“Boys!” Kiyana yelled from the bottom of the steps. “What's taking so long!” She rolled her eyes as all she got back were giggles in response. She playfully glared over at Kairo when he started to giggle in his pack’n’play. “And what so funny?” She teased picking him up just as there was a knock on her front door.  

“Dada!” Kairo squealed, reaching his arms out for Joshua as Kiyana opened the door. 

“What are you doing here?” He handed her the flowers in his hand and took Kairo from here. “Who are these for?” She rolled her eyes at the look he gave her. 

“Who else would they be for? Open it.” She eyed the box warily and opened it, shocked to see it was red roses with the letter K in  white roses. “You like it?” 

Kiyana nodded, “Yes, thank you.” 

“You welcome ba-” He paused and stopped himself. “You’re welcome Kiyana. I’m sorry for letting Mel run her mouth yesterday and not stopping her.”  Kiyana said nothing and set the flowers down on the console table. 

“What are you doing here?” She asked again and Josh sighed. 

“I wanted to take my family to breakfast.” Kiyana nodded and bit her lip.

“Ok, The boys are already dressed. We were going out with my mom, but I guess they can go with you.” She walked into the living room and Josh followed her, shutting the front door behind him. 

“No, Key. Not just me and the boys, you too.”  Kiyana arched an eyebrow and shook her head. 

“No, that’s not a good idea. We’re div-” 

“Divorced, I know.” He cut her off. “You don’t gotta say that shit every time we see each other.” 

“We’re not family anymore Joshua. You and your family made that perfectly clear yesterday.” Josh set Kairo down in his pack n play and walked closer to Kiyana, who stepped back.  

“I’m sorry Key. I was in my feelings yesterday and I apologize. So please, can we take our sons to breakfast?” 

 To Samara 👯‍♀️: Need to get this nigga head checked out… From Samara 👯‍♀️: Who? Lol what happened To Samara 👯‍♀️: Joshua, he showed up this morning w/ flowers and apologizing for Mel.  From Samara 👯‍♀️: …. Girl  To Samara 👯‍♀️: And now we’re at breakfast bc he wanted to take his ‘family’ out.  To Samara 👯‍♀️: Oh and he played our song on the way to breakfast and kept looking at me out the corner of his eyes  From Samara 👯‍♀️: not beauty by dru hill, lmao too little to late josh smh

“Who you texting?” Josh asked and Kiyana furrowed her eyebrows. 

“Samara.” He nodded, surprised that she actually answered him. He took a sip of his orange juice and watched as she cut up Kaiden’s waffle for him. 

“Joe’s back in Pensacola.” He blurted out and Kiyana paused her cutting and looked up at him. 

“Okay..” She trailed off with a shrug. “Why are you telling me.?” Why in the hell is he bringing up Joe? She thought and then swallowed hard as she remembered the text message she received last night. 

“Cause we had a deal, Kiyana.” Kiyana tilted her head at Josh. She then looked at he kids and noticed that they were busy on their I-PADS (yes, they’re I-PAD kids… don’t judge her) 

“Josh, we're divorced. I can talk to whoever I want to.”  Josh scoffed and shook his head, 

“I don’t want him around my sons, Kiyana.” She sighed and rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on. 

“I do not and will not talk to him. Joshua. Me and Joe have nothing to talk about, okay?” She said, just to get him to shut the hell up. Pleased with her answer, Josh let out a sigh of relief and sent a smile her way. 

“Thank you” Kiyana didn’t say anything back to him, she just sighed and looked out the window, wishing she was anywhere but at that diner. 

A.N/ Kiyana will forever love Joshua, he was her first everything. She did file for divorce first but no matter what she will always be inlove with him.

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[darkpoisonouslove]

Hi I discovered your tumblr not too long ago and I have enjoyed your work very much especially the valtor x Griffin and erendor x samara fanfiction , I wondered if you could please write something for stella's parents radius and luna if you want to of course , I was rewatching season 5 and was thinking of some post divorce angst with some unresolved sexual tension and since you have already covered the winx characters parents before I thought I would ask you if you are okay with that

Hope you enjoy your summer and have a good night or day depending on where you are

Hi, anon!

I am thrilled to hear you enjoy my Griffin x Valtor stuff because they are my OTP and I am mentally unwell about them so I just can't shut up about them! I am also very happy that I've gotten someone else into Erendor x Samara since that was such a mind experiment for me. I disliked them both severely (but especially Erendor) and yet, I wanted to see what I could do with them... That got out of hand and now I'm stuck with them haunting the insides of my mind as well so hearing someone else appreciates my madness is encouraging!

I will give it a try! I cannot say how long it will take me to get this done, however, since I have some time-sensitive fanfics that I need to work on first and then there's always the fact that inspiration and motivation can be tricky and not always work as we want them to. But I hope I'll be able to write something since Radius and Luna are intriguing! I'm thinking something set post 3x19 after Stella saves him from Cassandra (but definitely keeping the season 5 scenes in mind).

[stormikins]

Mass Effect Trilogy Tag

tagged by @nowandthane thank you!! Warning I ramble a bit in this lol

I am a fan since: 2017, I got it for Christmas in 2016 so I always just say '17

Favorite Game of the series: By virtue of simply replaying it the most, three. I really love the combat in it so I've played it near thirty times? But all time fave would have to 1 because of the aesthetic, tone, and story. There's something about first discovering a world which is what me1 is about.

MShep or Femshep? Gotta go with Femshep. I have played both, its just hard to capture the male shepard image I have in my head in the character creator so Femshep it is.

Earthborn, Colonist, or Spacer: earthborn! My main Shepard Jenn is earthborn so that's what I'm going with. Though, I have numerous Shepard's are various background combinations. I have feelings about each background trust me

Biotics or tech: Both! Though I really do love biotics, you can do some cool stuff with them, setting up and detonating both biotic and tech explosions.

Paragon or Renegade: I have to repeat what nowandthane said, paragon choices, renegade dialogue.

Favorite Class: Sentinel. I love the versatility of the class, but I do have an affection for Infiltrator because that's what got me through me2 on insanity.

Favorite Companion: Tali. By story value, Javik. He's like one of the most important characters

Least Favorite Companion: Javik, throw your attitude out the airlock. IM JOKING! (he has every reason to be like he is. I love him very much) Liara is my answer though only because I don't like some of the story choices the devs did with her. (ex: why does she have Shepard's armor in a display case when i didn't even romance her??? I can't mention this at all??)

My squad selection: For Jenn's playthrough: Wrex/Tali in me1. Garrus/Mordin/Miranda generally in me2. Thane and Miranda/Samara for the collector base. Kaidan/Javik/James in me3. Of course, I mix it up based on story aspects and the difficulty settings. But me3 is pretty fixed bc I always play on insanity.

Favorite in-game Romance: Tali and Garrus. I'm a sucker for awkward, wet cat of a man like Garrus is. But Tali's romance man.... her parting line to Shepard during the beam run "I have a home" makes me insane actually

Other pairings I like: Obligatory Nihlus/Shepard/Kal (and the duos within in this throuple) mention here. Other than that, Joker/Miranda and Joker/James, Ashley/Garrus, and Shepard/Wrex, I could list a whole lot so I'll keep it to those ships lol

Favorite NPC: Nihlus and Kal'Reegar for sure. Victus and of course Niftu Cal our favorite biotic god.

Favorite Antagonist: Saren. He's the best one that we get in all three games (Harby could have been number one if they did anything with him in three but that's a rant for another time lmao)

Favorite Mission: Haestrom/Tali's Loyalty mission because that's when I get to see Kal <3 and blow up a colossus with the Cain. Also, the Collector Ship mission I have to mention because it's frankly the only mission besides the two previously stated where I've loaded up the save to play it on insanity when I'm bored. It's fun. Of course, this is with the Infiltrator.

Favorite Loyalty Mission: Tali for numerous reasons. Kal mention here. But I love the insight into Quarian culture we get. Also we see that fire in her when she's talking to the Board which I always appreciate. Along with her dialogue at the end, "I got better, Shepard. I got you." and then on the ship afterwards, "I don't think life is about what we deserve." I love her so much.

Favorite DLC: Leviathan. Only because of the horror aspect.

Control, Sythesis, or Destroy? Destroy. I have so many issues with the ending and that's the least worst option in my opinion so. (I too ignore that it wipes out the Geth and Edi fuck that)

Favorite Weapon: The M-90 Cain or the M-99 Saber aka the "Big Iron". Lancer in three was my favorite weapon before I found the Saber. Special mention to my bud the Mattock, I have been convinced of its glory. I do not think the Harrier is better anymore lol which my brother would be happy to hear

Favorite Place: me1 Citadel my BELOVED.

A quote I like Quotes I Like: The ENTIRETY of Sovereign's dialogue on Virmire GOD ITS SO GOOD!!!! / "Stand in the ashes of a trillion dead souls and ask the ghosts if honor matters. The silence is your answer." / "Does this unit have a soul?" / "Just followed your example, Shepard. Yell loud enough and eventually someone will come over to see what all the fuss is about." / "I won't let fear compromise who I am." / "I MADE A MISTAKE!" / "Help me out here, Shepard. The line between friend and foe is getting a little blurry from where I stand." / There are so many great quotes in these games I could go on and on but I'll stop myself

No pressure tags: @spacebunshep @jtownnn