#seriously you see those pictures of capybaras where it's like

[dimensionalspades]

I need to make a headcanon about it at some point but the vibe that I have for Vitt is just straight "capybara experiencing the horrors". For the most part he keeps a pretty cool air and exudes confidence but also at the campfire you could just lay on him at any point and he will let you. He is a tactile creature that spent hundreds of years on his own, and he just doesn't mind when someone touches him for any reason.

[whyispickingausernamesohard]

Remember when we were having friends vibe check the mechs? Yeah this was with @astronautjaws​

Note that I do talk to this friend about the mechs a Lot so they did know some stuff (a Jonny ramble had happened literally the night before for example). (Also the Sasha mentioned in Ivy's is Sasha Sienna bc I also ramble about them)

Images descriptions under read more, if there’s a better way to format them please let me know!

[Image ID:

Ten images, each with 1 to 5 pictures of a given Mechanism and comments edited over.

Three pictures of Raphaella la Cognizi, featuring both of her wing styles. Comments read “She looks like a Juliet but she’s wearing all red so imma guess Red Rose? Clone or otherwise. Nice wings tho” “Okay but she does look like a Juliet” “Holy fuck Juliet” “wings and just straight up gay vibes, uh idk much about ships positions so imma go sword girl, now thinking about it her mechanism can be sword wlw”

One picture of Gunpowder Tim. Comments read “Jonny, human disaster and feral bastard, cannibal, tax fraud committee, captain?, gay dads that he killed both of” and a conversation between the person sending, “What’s his mechanism” and the person commenting, “Oh fuck. Uh compass?”

Two pictures of Jonny D’Ville. Comments read “he gives me a Nils vibe so let’s go with that, uh I go with him being a navigator but a badass one cause I feel like he would be looking at a map then turn around and shoot whoever was behind him without flinching, I feel like he’s 5′2″ tho which tbh the shorter you are the closer to satan you are so, that gun be his mech.” Comments from the sender read “You have no idea how much discourse there is over how tall he is” and “He has such short ppl energy but Insists he isn’t short (I think I remember seeing his height somewhere but I don’t remember it)”

Three pictures of Ashes O’Reilly. Comments read “they are the one who paved the way to enbies using random nouns as their names and i love it, tbh I was gonna go with like June as their name but I really think August/Auggie is more their vibe, Fucking shit is that a 5 string bass I love them, Their mech better be that bass, Lieutenant? Like is that a position used on this ship?, In regards to my first point their middle name is definitely Quill”

Two pictures of Nastya Rasputina. Comments read “those blue streaks of hair in the first pic bonus points there, she looks innocent but she’s definitely the kind of person who has a first name that’s minimum 3-4 syllables and she has 5 different middle names, Genevieve or Rebekah for sure (yes I did look at a name generator for this cause I can’t think of words let alone names with more than 3 syllables), I feel like her mech is a ring some jewelry, rank??? Seriously I know nothing of rank”

Five pictures of the Toy Soldier. Comments read “Toy Soldier babey, the child, it will either destroy baby yoda or team up with baby yoda for world domination, its mech I feel like is like the metal lumberjack from wizard of oz where it’s a metal heart that ticks, it has no rank cause nothing can contain The Feral Babey/Child - only chaos, timetraveling babey but wherever it lands everybody just goes ‘aw’ and TS commits crimes.” A conversation between the sender, “Yea basically fuck I talk too much about TS,” and the person commenting, “Oh for sure.” Another comment from the sender is placed over two pictures of the Toy Soldier with its hair down. It reads “These two pics in particular unlock secret emotions in me”

Two pictures of Drumbot Brian. In both pictures he is wearing the bronze face paint. Comments read “gold boi, shiny 10/10, I feel like Leo/Leonardo fits him, it might be the beart/long hair but I feel like he’s friends with the lesbians- like Hozier, mech is that drumstick? Cause you can’t play the accordion and drums at the same time?, cook probs, he’s just smiley all the time - he’s definitely the capybara of the group”

Five pictures of Marius von Raum. In two pictures an ace of hearts card is clearly visible in his hat. Comments read “Zack or Max, he’s the one who has been pulling stupid pranks everywhere like whoopie cushions under every seat, I spy with my little eye an ace in his hat so he’s confirmed canon asexual (would have preferred the ace of spades but I’ll take it), his mech is that card, no one wants to give him a rank cause he came on the ship stealing snacks and never left but he’s good at fighting in battle so he can stay” “K he’s aroace”

Three pictures of Ivy Alexandria. Comments read “[many question marks] Hello??, I may have just found a reason to start listening to the mechs, hey wait is this Sasha or nah, eh might as well go with Sasha cause why not, last pic got a knife so the knife is definitely the mech cause knife, That vest! That style! WTF! I love it!, feels like she’s off reading books while the rest of the crew is out fighting and only joins as a last resort. Plus if/when she joins the fight it’s over in 5 minutes cause gotta go back to reading that book before you’re out of the zone and you lose motivation for reading the book and it sits unfinished on a table (adhd mood but still) also if she occasionally fights while reading the book, just a book in one hand and a sword in another fighting off whoever is in front of her never breaking eye contact with the book”

One black and white picture of Dr. Carmilla. Comments read “her mech is the Spencer’s or hot topic gift card cause piercings, and if you don’t like that answer then I’d say it’s a dried/pressed flower or clover that’s been made into a bookmark cause that vibes, feel like her name is Rain or Millie, I feel like she doesn’t have a position but more of a location and that is the crow’s nest cause if you have a ukulele people are going to ask you to play the TOP cover of Falling in Love With You song over and over again or House Of Gold, and there’s no escaping it when you have your ukulele in hand”

End ID]

[ateanalenn]

The Untamed / MDZS, resources post, stuff I needed as a writer

ORIGINAL POST AT DREAMWIDTH! (and updates will be there too and maybe on tumblr, if I remember)

(this is a copy paste, the formatting might not survive)

(also available on AO3)

The Untamed / MDZS, resources post, stuff I needed as a writerApr. 11th, 2020 05:46 pm ateanalennFinding info for this show / how to write about / pitfalls to avoid was a pain :( I guess that's part of having fandom on Tumblr. Since Tumblr's search function only works by selling a kidney and sacrificing a goat, I had to rely on Google. Which, not great. Anyway, useful stuff I found to understand this fandom: • MDZS on Dreamwidth: theuntamed_mdzs (active) mxtx (community focused on all the works by the author Mo Xiang Tong Xiu. Not active, but it's there) theyilingweisect (community sharing fics, meta, discussions. Not active either since jan 2020) • MDZS aka Mo Dao Zu Shi (book) aka Grandmaster of Demobnic Cultivation / The Untamed (drama) (there's also an audio drama, a manhua, a donghua, ...) - the novel's en glish fan translation at Exiled Rebels (complete ) As far as I know, this is the most popular translation, though I would like to know if anyone has another translation that they think fit best. - the drama is streaming on Netflix, Viki, WeTV & Youtube. From what I heard around, Netflix and Youtube are the most accessible, obviously, but Viki has the best subtitles (and a whole lot of annoying pubs though). I think that I heard somewhere that there are fan subtitles made, will update if I find the link again). • About names: • The Untamed: A Primer Basically an overview of what is this drama, a few spoilers (but under arrows to open so less risks to see something you didn't want to see). Useful list of titles for the main charas! (ex: Wei Wuxian:    Young Master Wei    Wei Ying (use of this name denotes “I feel affection for you”)    The Yiling Patriarch (use of this name denotes “I think you are evil”)    A-Xian / Xianxian (use of this name denotes “I am your loving older sister, have some soup”)    Lan Wangji:    Second Young Master Lan    Lan Zhan (use of this name denotes “I feel affection for you”)    Hanguang Jun (use of this name denotes “I respect you, and you are also famously very beautiful”)    Wangji (use of this name denotes “I am your older brother and I wish you’d make a friend”) ) • Another primer tumblr by sonickitty with a few where-do-I-find links • Alexandra Rowland explains What Is The Untamed twitter (with pics) • How Ancient Chinese Names Work - Learn from The Untamed Detailed explanation of what's going on with the names (aka Lan Wangji, Lan Zhan, Hanguang-jun) • Dramatis Personae for Modao Zushi the book dw (another detailed who's who/names list) • Names again, Chinese/Mandarin conventions twitter (aka ex the accents aren't necessary, they're there for pronunciation and some explanation of who would use full name/shortened name) • Infographic: birth name vs courtesy name vs title vs respectful address  twitter • Quick table / honorifics guide tumblr by cleyra • Mo Dao Zu Shi | 魔道祖师 The various adaptions tumblr by gravitydefyingtears • A list of MDZS FanFic Common Misleading tumblr by kazeki • A conversation about linguistic register, Lan Wangji, and I guess Wei Wuxian can come too tumblr (pretty important text to understand how lwj speaks) • Writing Lan Wangji's speech patterns (aka say the most in the least words) and the follow up Lan Wangji moving into the lowest, most vernacular linguistic register to try and get through to Wei Wuxian tumblr by hunxi-huilai • Using "You/I" vs "Title-as-you" tumblr by hunxi-guilai • Sword names tumblr by hunxi-guilai • Honorifics: jun vs zun tumblr by hunxi-guilai • THE spreadsheet: Mo Dao Zu Shi Character Name Chart, recced by flamebyrd (of who uses what for whom) • Misc Info: • 59 slides of awesomeness by chatcolat. Who's who, plot summary, humor. Beware, so full of spoilers you'll cry if you want to keep some mystery, but! concise recap of what happens in the show to keep the timeline in mind. • Everything about those cultivation sects in ‘The Untamed’ Quick who's who of the various sects (Gusu Lan, Lanling Jin, Yunmeng Jiang, Qishan Wen, Qinghe Nie. Protip: first word is basically the location, second is the sect/clan name). • Reference for Modao Zushi Writers: Chinese terms ao3. "This is to provide a reference for writers who are unfamiliar with Chinese literary conventions or terms used in canon." • Resource list dw: Libitina's twitter links for Meta, Linguistics, Costumes, Food, Edits, Art. • Actual drama title vs English drama title twitter • How "Mo Dao Zu Shi" became "Chen Qing Ling" became "The Untamed" tumblr by hunxi-guilai • Very necessary meta about why the novel/extras seems to have so many sex consent issues and how translating to English potentially gives a very different overall feel to the scene (ex: ExR = "you're too much, you're way too much" becomes chiaki_himura's "you're good, you're too good", becomes bigbadredpanda's "you're amazing, you're the best"). Also, Chinese language enables to shorten sentences which makes stuff implied, 's your job to see context clues.) • hunxi guilai's master list of various detailed topics re-Chinese language/customs tumblr • "Wangxian" is such a clever portemanteau tumblr by untamedconnotations • Song Lan didn’t just say that Xiao Xingchen was “nice-looking,” he basically said that Xiao Xingchen was smokin’ hot except like, in two characters and blanketed with literary respectability. tumblr by hunxi-guilai (this is only relevant because xxc IS the most beautiful person, really and needs to be protected at all cost) • The Unclean Realm isn't "unclean" has in dirty/bad, it's most probably to show the difference of way of cultivating vs the other sects tumblr by hunxi-guilai • WuJi, the love song's fan translation tumblr by iarrod • Timeline: • 59 slides of awesomeness by chatcolat. Who's who, plot summary, humor. Beware, so full of spoilers you'll cry if you want to keep some mystery, but! concise recap of what happens in the show to keep the timeline in mind. • A google spreadsheet, via mihanada's GoDC timeline wip (Year/Event/Notes/Ages/...)     • MDZS Timeline, that meta AO3 post on speed by TheWickling. Useful if you want all the details, a bit difficult to navigate/understand when you just landed in the fandom. Still very useful. • And the sequel: On Character's Ages  ao3 "A collection of meta on the possible ages for different  characters in MDZS and what ages they would be during key events in the  timeline." • Modao Zushi, birthdates/timeline dw Dirthdates starting with 0 = wwx's birth year. Succinct & useful. • Maps • Fan made mdzs / untamed worldmap twitter • Places of The Untamed - Where They Are in The Real World • IRL sect locations reddit • Google Map of clan locations in Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation tumblr • Lotus Pier really is one of the most underrated but beautiful places. twitter • Gifsets and images: - Mo Dao Zu Shi / The Untamed drama character guide! deviantart picture = name, who's who in pics. - The Untamed sect sigils - In Which LWJ Gives Not A Single Shit, A Thread #LanWangji #WangXian #cql #TheUntamed SPOILERS for most of the show twitter - The various stages of hairstyles + accessories twitter - SongXiao are in love, got married, are living happily ever after,(FITE ME) twitter by shenweiss - Realizing that wwx is wearing lwj's silk undershirt and the follow up: Qiren's face when he notices xD twitter - gingersnapwolves's Untamed tumblr tag - thewickling's mdzs tumblr tag - hunxi-guilai's cql tumblr tag - compilation of wangxian just being gay and making everyone feel like a third wheel twitter by weiwxngji - wwx swoons a lot and he's gorgeous twitter - Alexandra Rowland explains What Is The Untamed twitter (with pics) - grinding ink requires great patience, often represents that one is willing to wait for another’s feelings twitter - sad compilation of wangxian gazing into each other’s eyes that no one asked for, you’re welcome twitter - This frontal view of Wei Wuxian laying on Lan Wangji’s lap is everything. twitter - Lotus Pier really is one of the most underrated but beautiful places. twitter - Sometimes you see something, a picture, a video, just a snippet of a short moment, and you SEE the love. twitter - CQL’s working title was hot murder husbands twitter (this is amazing) - Lan Wangji just looks a thousand times more intimidating with golden eyes twitter - #TheUntamed’s spinoff webmovie #FatalJourney posters twitter (yessss, nhs, one of my fav) - Don’t you love how exactly 0.5 seconds of this video is Lan Zhan explaining that only spouses are allowed to touch the headband and the rest of the entire 2(!) minutes is a complication of Wei Ying touching it anyways... he said I wanna marry you. twitter • Fic Recs: - DW guest Post: Untamed Fic Starter Pack (a few fics for each subject (ex post canon, juniors centric, ...) - Twitter thread starting with Alexandra Rowland asking for fluffy MDZS/Untamed fic recs. (good new-fandom starter too!) - That twitter thread collecting a list of lady-centric Untamed/MDZS fics Which, good, because as much as I love the fandom, once again women don't exactly come out on top. How many are still alive at the end? I can think of one previously Jin sect lady, but that's it on top of my head, soooo. - Libitina also has posted a lot of mdzs fic recs dw - A "they're students in lockdown and socially distancing" WangXian ficlet tumblr by besanii And bonus: a capybara enjoying a good scritch because I love those dog-sized guinea pigs, seriously, that twitter account is my daily dose of cuteness Also, have some guinea pig on a cutesy bridge PS: I thought that this would be fast because I didn't have that much info to collect at one place, buuuut. It's been 5 hours and it turns out that I did lol.   Still, if you have anything else of potential interest, don't hesitate to leave a comment, please :D

[serene-gale]

Shrouded Journey Part 2: A Tale of Poachers

Previous

The hum of wildlife filled the air of Gridania as night fell upon it, the stars twinkling in the sky as fire lanterns washed the buildings of the city in a warm glow. Serene always liked visiting Gridania. It was always such a nice change of pace and scenery from the bustling and arid Ul’dah, however, as much as she wanted to relax a while and drink in the atmosphere, she had work to do.

‘Mother Miounne’, as she was typically called, was busy pouring drinks for the sizable collection of patrons that had gathered in her tavern, the Duskwight humming softly to herself as she finished up with orders, giving her some breathing room, or so she thought until she spotted a red-clad Roegadyn enter the establishment and jovially wave at her. The woman merely shook her head, chuckling, before picking up a Guild Book.

“Serene Gale, Momodi from the Ul’dahn Branch told me to expect you. You slated yourself for a quest in South Shroud, correct?”

“Heya! Yeah, I did, no details on what it was though, mind if you fill me in?”, Serene gave a quick greeting before getting down to business.

Miounne nodded before flipping through her book, taking a few seconds before coming to the quest in question, “Indeed. The quest in question is to deal with the Keeper of the Moon tribes and their illegal poaching. Apparently they are now calling themselves the Coeurlclaws, and have been practically ravaging the wildlife.”, Miounne explained. She took out a writ and started writing down the basic details of the quest, while Serene cocked an eyebrow in confusion.

“Huh...Albex always told me that for as long as he remembered the Keepers toed the line, but never outright performed illegal poaching for as long as he remembered...I’m assuming this must be a splinter group, I highly doubt the entire community decided to up and forgoe their aggrements with Gridania.”, Serene pondered to herself quietly, her words catching the Elezen’s attention as she handed the Roegadyn her writ.

“Oh, you know Sir Couldair? He did make Thanalan his home I guess after...”, Miounne gave pause, much to Serene’s confusion, “Well back to business. We can’t say for certain if it’s just a small splinter group or not, but considering the circumstances, I’d say your assessment hits the nail on the head. I’m impressed Miss Gale, I took you for one of those brawn before brain types, I’m happy to be wrong on this occassion.”, Miounne smiled, her backhanded compliment doing little to budge Serene smile as she laughed.

“Well my pops always said to train the noggin’ as well as your muscles. Or was it mum? Aaah, I think it was more a family saying, you know?”, Serene laughed jovially, causing Miounne to second guess her opinion on Serene’s intelligence. However before any more could be said, Serene asked another question.

“May I ask something? You know Albex through the Guild yes? Where is he now?”, the Roegadyn asked inquisitively.

“Oh? Albex Couldair? Well last I heard he was tracking a high priority target with a large posse of Guild Adventurers. For all I know they could be anywhere but the last bit of information I received told me that they made way for South Shroud.”, Miounne speculated, tapping her cheek lightly, before smiling.

“Who knows, maybe you will meet up with him. Why do you ask though?”, she asked, to which Serene smiled softly at her.

“Oh curiosity’s sake, it’s been a while since we last talked so I figured I’d ask around to see where he is. Anyways, thank you and goodbye for now, I shouldn’t be more than a few days with a request like this. Bye!”, Serene said, waving in an exaggerated manner as she walked out of the tavern, her words causing the Guild Receptionist some concern.

“A few days? But she was on her own and this quest is for two...”, Miounne expressed her worry before shaking her head, ���I’ll just have to keep the quest posted in the likely event of failure.”, she muttered to herself before scribbling down notes in her book.

Serene wasted no time in pursuit of her quest, setting out for the Southern sector of the Black Shroud posthaste. Figuring using a hired Chocobo to be the best course of option, she coughed up enough gil for a trip to Quarrymill, one of the larger settlements in the South Shroud. The trip was relatively painless, a few errant monsters stood in the way though Serene deftly fended off such feeble threats with a few menacing looking swipes of her Bo-Staff. Eventually the Roegadyn found her way approaching the village’s borders, spotting the large circular wooden gate that was Quarrymill’s entrance. Hopping off the hire Chocobo, Serene led the bird to one of the public feeding pens and let it partake in some food before running back to it’s starting location. Having left around early to mid morning, the sun was cresting it’s peak and afternoon was setting in, Serene figuring that her time was best spent gathering information on these poachers and striking at them at midnight.

And so Serene got to work enquiring, going about the locals first and asking about recent events, before turning the to the Wood Wailers stationed to guard the village and asking them directly about poaching activity in recent days. Hours passed and slowly but surely Serene started to get a picture of the situation. From what she had gleamed from the village gossip, the Poaching group consisted of a good two dozen members at least, easily the size of a typical Keeper tribe, they were an offshoot of a larger tribe, unhappy with the laws regarding poaching and figuring it only logical to take what wasn’t being taken. She further learned that while the poachers certainly had numbers, most incidents involved with them had members display poor teamwork and a heavy reliance on the decisions of the clan matriarch.

And so it was that Serene’s plan came together. Despite the dangers that came with the Keeper’s exceptional vision, the Roegadyn decided to strike in the dead of the night, while the bulk of their forces were occupied with their poaching. Taking out the clan’s leader would throw the entire hierarchy into disarray, no one individual having the strength to lead the others, and making the sect fall apart.

And so as twilight settled on the treeline of the South Shroud, Serene made her way to the edge of the encampment and lay in wait, using a collection of thick brush off the side of the poacher’s camp for cover. Hours passed with no notable activity on the Keeper’s part, only the occassional patrol served to keep the Martial Artist alert and deathly quiet. Eventually, Serene heard a horn and the hunters of the tribe all began to pack up and leave camp for another night of poaching, this was it.

Waiting a good couple of minutes until all of them seemed to have departed, Serene moved. She had counted 12 heads leave, that meant there was at least 12 left, manageable. As she snuck towards the main encampment, Serene spotted a total of 4 Miqo’te men armed with crude, but efficiently made spears born of the bone of their hunts.

Serene attempted to make her advancement as quiet as possible, making movements that tried to mimic that of a small beast in the wilderness, however the snapping twigs and rustling leaves, while eluding most of the guard, caught the ears of one of the more veteran members of the tribe, who turned and spotted the large Roegadyn sneaking around.

“Oi you! Get that woman!”, the guardsman yelled out loud to his fellow guards and all of them immediately took chase after Serene.

“Shit...”, Serene cursed under her breath and began sprinting. She wouldn’t get another chance at this, if she fled now they would be ready for another sneak attack. The only thing that made sense for Serene was to charge in headfirst.

A pursuit broke out, Serene sprinting at top speed and leaving the guard in her dust, though they weren’t so easily deterred. Eventually, Serene broke through the brush into the clearing of the Miqo’te encampment, in the wake of about 5 to 6 non combatants and the tribe chieftain herself, who was sat upon a large stump which served as her throne. Serene skidded to a halt in the middle of the camp, surprising all around her until the guard finally caught up, a little winded from the chase. The Martial Artist had herself surrounded, much to the amusement of the Chieftess.

“Pffhaha, what’s this? A rat has been chased out of it’s hiding hole. Though by the sheer size of you i guess I should call you a Capybara?”, the Chieftess sneered, to which Serene smirked.

“Well at least your lackeys can see a ‘moving’ target, may need to train them better in the future though. Maybe then you wouldn’t get any pests...also their lack of cardiovascular endurance is worrying.”, Serene jested right back, causing the Chieftess to scowl a little.

“So what do you want here, you giant brute? You don’t seriously believe you’ll get out of this situation you blundered into with witty banter?”

Serene stood up straight and looked to the Keeper Chieftess dead in the eye, “Nah, I don’t have any intention on ‘getting out’ of this situation. No I’m here to put you in your place and knock the daylight out of you so hard your little posse won’t be answering to their precious leader anytime soon. Serene Gale of the Adventurer’s Guild. I’m here to put a stop to your illegal poaching racket.”, Serene pointed at the Chieftain confidently, whom merely smirked and chuckled in response, standing up and sizing up to the Roegadyn, grabbing a gnarled looking axe that sat beside her stump.

“Oh are you? I’d like to see you try that five on one. I’ve always wanted to acquire a giant’s hide, looks like tonight is my lucky night.”, the Chieftess raised her massive waraxe high in the air with one hand before resting it on her shoulder, the lancer guards surrounding Serene all readying their own weapons too. Serene looked around her, smiling to herself before drawing out her own weapon, extending her bo-staff’s length to max with a twist of it’s handle and winking at the Chieftess.

“You betcha.”

Next

[eldritchsurveys]

642.

1. Do you ever doubt the existence of others than you? >> I’ve definitely had moments where I wondered about it, but I can’t really take solipsism all that seriously. 2. On a scale of 1-5, how afraid of the dark are you? >> Assuming 1 is “not at all”, then 1. I wasn’t even afraid of it as a child. The dark was where my stories came to life. 3. The person you would never want to meet? >> *shrug* 4. What is your favorite word? >> I can’t think of one right now. 5. If you were a type of tree, what would you be? >> I’m not sure. Something like a sequoia, maybe.

6. When you looked in the mirror this morning what was the first thing you thought? >> I don’t look in the mirror in the morning, usually. Nothing I do in the morning requires a mirror. I can go for days without bothering to take more than a cursory glance in a mirror. 7. What shirt are you wearing? >> A black one with a Warcraft logo on it. 8. What do you label yourself as? >> It depends on what aspect of my identity I’m being asked to define... and to whom. 9. Bright room or dark room? >> Oh, a dark room, if I had to choose between these two. But a dim room is the most preferable -- a little soft ambient light eases the eyestrain that I would get from looking at a screen in the dark. 10. What were you doing at midnight last night? >> Reading, most likely. 11. Favorite age you’ve been so far? >> --- 12. Who told you they loved you last? >> Sparrow. 13. Your worst enemy? >> --- 14. What is your current desktop picture? >> At the moment, it’s concept artwork from the video game Tyranny. My background changes every ten minutes or so. 15. Do you like someone? >> There are people I like, sure. 16. The last song you listened to? >> According to Last.fm, Don’t You (Forget About Me) by Simple Minds. 17. You can press a button that will make any one person explode. Who would you blow up? >> I mean, what for? That seems like a pointlessly silly thing to do.

18. Who would you really like to just punch in the face? >> --- 19. If anyone could be your slave for a day, who would it be and what would they have to do? >> I have no desire to keep slaves. I sometimes think it’d be nice to have a service boy, though. Just, you know, since we’re on the subject. 20. What is your best physical attribute? (showing said attribute is optional) >> --- 21. If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you look like and what would you do? >> --- 22. Do you have a secret talent? If yes, what is it? >> No. 23. What is one unique thing you’re afraid of? >> Nothing. 24. You can only have one kind of sandwich. Every sandwich ingredient known to humankind is at your disposal. >> Er... 25. You just found $100! How are you going to spend it? >> I’d just hang onto it until I needed it for something. 26. You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere in the world, but you have to leave immediately. Where are you going to go? >> You lost me at “you have to leave immediately”. I’m in my jammies in bed, dude, I’m not going anywhere. 27. An angel appears out of Heaven and offers you a lifetime supply of the alcoholic beverage of your choice. “Be brand-specific” it says. Man! What are you gonna say about that? Even if you don’t drink booze there’s something you can figure out… so what’s it gonna be? >> Oh, Pernod or Lucid Absinthe, without question. 28. You discover a beautiful island upon which you may build your own society. You make the rules. What is the first rule you put into place? >> Okay, I’m a pretty cool dude and all but I do not have the ability to singlehandedly run a society. That is not at all a smart move. Can I just build a summer home on the island or something, like, damn. 29. What is your favorite expletive? >> What isn’t my favourite expletive. 30. Your house is on fire, holy shit! You have just enough time to run in there and grab ONE inanimate object. Don’t worry, your loved ones and pets have already made it out safely. So what’s the one thing you’re going to save from that blazing inferno? >> Yawn. 31. You can erase any horrible experience from your past. What will it be? >> From what I’ve learnt about memory and the way brains are wired, this is probably impossible anyway (or, at least, possible but it will fuck your brain up). But even if it were possible without horrible repercussions, I don’t want it. 32. You got kicked out of the country for being a time-traveling heathen who sleeps with celebrities and has super-powers. But check out this cool shit… you can move to anywhere else in the world! >> Oh no, I’ve been found out-- 33. The Celestial Gates Of Beyond have opened, much to your surprise because you didn’t think such a thing existed. Death appears. As it turns out, Death is actually a pretty cool entity, and happens to be in a fantastic mood. Death offers to return the friend/family-member/person/etc. of your choice to the living world. Who will you bring back? >> I’d really rather not. Death would understand. 34. What was your last dream about? >> Well, by now I don’t remember. 36. Have you ever been admitted to the hospital? >> Little over a dozen times. 37. Have you ever built a snowman? >> No. I never quite got the hang of it. 38. What is the color of your socks? >> I’m not wearing socks. 39. What type of music do you like? >> The audible kind. 40. Do you prefer sunrises or sunsets? >> There’s something about sunrises that I love just a little more than sunsets. I’m not sure what it is yet. But it’s definitely something. 41. What is your favorite milkshake flavor? >> On those rare occasions I feel like drinking a milkshake, I stick to vanilla. Or cookies and cream. 42. What football team do you support? >> — 43. Do you have any scars? >> I have a skillion scars. 44. What do you want to be when you graduate? >> — 45. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? >> Mehhhh. 46. Are you reliable? >> I have the capacity to be. 47. If you could ask your future self one question, what would it be? >> I don’t want to do this. It’s another hypothetical situation that fucks with my perception of time and the universe. 48. Do you hold grudges? >> Not often. 49. If you could breed two animals together to defy the laws of nature, what new animal would you create? >> Ooh, I’d like to know what would happen if you crossbred a capybara and an elephant. I’m so serious. 50. What is the most unusual conversation you’ve ever had? >> I’m not too sure. I used to live in New York – conversations that’d be considered unusual elsewhere are often considered usual ones there. But a lot of the conversations I’ve had with Claire Elliott Fields would probably take all the cakes. I’ve never met anyone else like her in my life. 51. Are you a good liar? >> I have the capacity to be. 52. How long could you go without talking? >> I could go days and days without speaking a single word to anyone except inworlders. I did used to have a lot more nonverbal days due to stress and overload, but nowadays it’s not as likely. I do still prefer to have long stretches of comfortably not speaking, though. Speaking can be very taxing. 53. What has been you worst haircut/style? >> I don’t know. 54. Have you ever baked your own cake? >> No. 55. Can you do any accents other than your own? >> Probably not as accurately as one would like. 56. What do you like on your toast? >> Butter and cinnamon, or butter and jelly. Or butter and peanut butter. Listen, butter has to be involved somewhere, that’s the only rule. 57. What is the last thing you drew a picture of? >> Something in my “things to practice drawing” folder. Probably a face. 58. What would be you dream car? >> --- 59. Do you sing in the shower? Or do anything unusual in the shower? Explain. >> I sing in there sometimes. I don’t think anything I do in the shower is unusual, aside from the fact that I prefer it to be dark/dim and I don’t want to be able to see any surfaces. Also, the shower (the bathroom in general) in this apartment makes me feel claustrophobic, and I guess leaving the door open and freaking out when the shower curtain touches me is unusual... 60. Do you believe in aliens? >> I think aliens are a reasonable possibility. Especially when you let go of the idea that they have to be humanoid. 61. Do you often read your horoscope? >> No. 62. What is your favorite letter of the alphabet? >> V. 63. Which is cooler: dinosaurs or dragons? >> I like dragons. 64. What do you think about babies? >> Most of the time I think they’re amusing, gross, loud, endearing, entertaining, and exhausting. You know. Kind of like their adult counterparts--

[calamitynight]

Yatori week 2018 - Freestyle {Day 7}

@yatori-week-2018

words: 4218

It’s after the battle with heaven, Yato decides that it would be a good idea to celebrate. Things get exciting as gods full of exhaustion start drinking. By accident Hiyori drinks something she shouldn’t have, joining them in their shenanigans.  

"Woo! How about we celebrate" Yato let out happily. 

        They all just won the war against heaven. They were beaten and tattered up, but this truly called for a celebration or at least it did in Yato's eyes. He turned back to look at his friends. Their physics appeared tired as they held on to one another. He hoped they still had some life left in them.

"I think we should hold off the celebration, Yato" Kazuma responded as he held tightly onto Bishamon. "We're all very tired"

"Do what you wish, but I believe I am do for some rest" Bishamon added

"Oh come on! I know you still have some strength in you"

"Nothing you say will make me willingly spend more time around you Yato god"

"I'll treat for the drinks" This caught her attention. "I'll buy all of it, whatever you want!"

"Wow, Yatty sure is ready to party" Kofuku giggled. "I'm in then!"

"Of course you are. Any mention of booze and these guys stupid antics gets you motivated" Diakoku padded Kofuku on the head as he let out a tired sigh. "Can we do all of this at home at least?"

"Yeah, where else?" Yato responded. 

"Seriously, at least plan things out of other people's home"

        They walked away full of endless chatter. Yukine walked slowly behind them and looked back at the human girl that joined him. She smiled at everyone ahead of them, but her eyes screamed out a sight of fatigue. 

"What are you planning on doing, Hiyori?"

"I think some time with them would be nice"

"Shouldn't you be getting home?"

"I'll be fine, I'm in my body, so it's not like i'm risking anything. Besides, it feels like it's been a long time since I've seen them all smiling like this. I want to savior that"

"Yeah, I guess you're right"

It was amazing how Yato managed to get the alcohol so late at night. Everyone around them had gone to sleep hours ago. The streets were completely empty for the night. They all gathered around Kofuku's table as they talked and opened up the drinks. The atmosphere was bright and lively, Hiyori watched in the means to take it all in. The gods that once fought among each other had sat down for drinks. The ones that fought to protect and filled of worried now laughed loudly. With all of the glee surrounding her, she didn't think about what she was doing. She grabbed a hold of a cup that Yato had put down on the table. Since then it has not been touch by anyone, and it was put down in front of her. It was a pretty pink colored drink and smelled of strawberries. After a while she figured the drink was probably meant for her. It was the only one of a bright color. It looked a bit like some sort of juice. As she drunk it, it didn't taste out of the ordinary. She took a good gulp out of it, she didn't notice how thirsty she was before. She didn't think anything of it, not until Kofuku finally noticed.

"Oh my Yoriii, I didn't picture you as a rebel" She said playfully as she covered her mouth. 

"Hm? What do you mean?" 

"Oh nothing, I'm sure you'll find out soon enough"

        With those words Hiyori put the drink down and didn't touch it again. She imagined it to be some sort of juice, but now that she thought about it, she hasn't seen anything but alcohol around. She covered her mouth in shock of what she had just done. Could it be? That drink that tasted fruity and nothing like alcohol, was it really an alcoholic drink? Kofuku also loved to mess with her, she thought. Maybe she's just playing around with her, and maybe she'll be okay. That's what she hoped for anyway. Yato laughed as he spoke to Kofuku and the rest of them. He held his beer up to his lips ready for another drink until he felt a tug on his jacket. He looked down to see Hiyori's small hand gripping at his hem. Her grip appeared somewhat shy and he let out a small blush towards the sentiment.

"What's up, Hiyori?" He asked as normally as he could. He taken by surprise by the look on her face. Something about her just didn't seem like herself.

"Hey Yato! pay attention to me" Hiyori cried out as she clung herself onto an almost drunk god. She hiccuped and her face was flushed. 

"H-Hiyori" he responded, his face turned as red as a tomato. "What are you-" He was pulled by her as he kept pulling away. 

It had only been a matter of minutes before the drink began to hit Hiyori's system. Yato couldn't believe what was going on as he tried to push her off of him. Nothing he did worked, and at the same time he felt himself feeling the drinks take over him too. In a panic he was about to call out for help, but there was no one around. On the other side of the room the same was happening to their dear friend who couldn't do anything with his situation either.

        Kazuma stuttered and was a nervous wreck. Bishamon pulled and tugged on him as she whined. Her jacket was hanging off of her shoulder and her shirt revealed from under it. It was a plain white shirt, nothing most people would get excited about, but the angel, that's what made him blush heavily. Her face was flushed, her cheeks the brightest pink color. Her eyes soft and watery with sign of longing. Her body felt warm underneath his touch, he felt himself falling apart at the scene before him. He as well turned over for help, but as Kofuku laughed and enjoyed herself with their discomfort Yato was too preoccupied to help. Yukine he thought, where had he gone to? Could he be the one to save them from this. From the corner of his eyes he found him walking down the steps. He rubbed his eyes as he seemed to have just woken up. He was tired and beaten, and as Kazuma looked at him, he wished he would have chosen sleep over this as well. Yukine stopped at the entrance of the room and looked with shock and irritation. As Kazuma held his arm out in a way to ask for help, it was soon pulled down by a heavy weight. Bishamon had draped herself over his arm and looked at him with a glare.

"You may not go play with anyone else" She spoke with a pouted face. "Stay with me Kazuma"

He panicked and his face had completely gone red. His mouth was opened as a silent scream came out of it. He was doomed and he knew it. Yato pulled himself form under Hiyori, yet she wrapped her arms around his waist. He grabbed a hold of Yukine's shirt and received a burning glare from him. He let go of him from fear and began to try and explain himself. 

"You gotta help me" He begged. "Something came over Hiyori, now she won't let me go"

"Yaaaaatoooo" Hiyori called out as she held him down. "Don't go..."

"Did you really give her stuff to drink? She's underage Yato!" Yukine said angrily as he threw his foot on his face.

"I didn't do anything, I swear!" he cried underneath Yukine's foot.

Yukine only dug his foot more into him. "I woke up because you guys were making so much noise" He looked over at Kofuku who was giggling to herself and Diakoku who had her in his arms. "To think Kofuku is behaving better than you are" He then looked over at Kazuma, showing a bit of disappointment. "This is ridiculous" he spat as he took his foot off of Yato.

 They turned to look at Kazuma who had let out a high squeal. He appeared to be pinned up against the corner wall. His tie was undone and the top buttons of his shirt were also. He looked as if he was awkward and uncomfortable, his hands raised up to his chest. Bishamon crawled up onto him, his face was a stained red as so where her cheeks.

Yato let out a loud pained scream. "Look away Yukine!" he jumped up to him and covered his eyes. "This isn't anything you should be seeing...Ahhh" He yelled out again. "Stop stinging me!"

"Sorry! I panicked"

"Please, someone help me!" Kazuma yelled out from across the room.

"Kazumaaa" Bishamon spoke against his ear. "You're so warm" She purred as she rubbed herself onto his chest. 

"Vee-veena"

"HA! She's purring like a cat" Yato laughed. "Reminds me of that little story I wrote for you, doesn't it Kazuma" he hiccuped. 

"Is that what you're into Kazu-ma"

"Don't give her ideas Yato...Veena, you're not thinking clearly"

"Will you pet me, Kazuma?" with watered eyes she stared at him, begging.

"Veena..."

"We have those ears at home" her eyes lit up. "Let's go"

Kazuma thought back to the ears he had bought her when they went to Capybara land. She looked so cute in those ears. His face turned into an expression of lust and wonder. He had to shake those crazy thoughts out of his mind. He grabbed a hold of her shoulders and softly shoved her off.

"We can't Veena" it's all he could manage to say as he kept himself together.

"You're quite rough today...I see, that must be what you want"

"Huh-?"

"You may tie me up like in those dirty books" she hiccuped against his chest. Her breast rubbing purposely on his shirt "Those...you hide of me in your closet"

"You found those!? No, you don't understand! Yato..." He turned over to look at Yato and Kofuku who were now laughing and rolling on the floor. 

"Come on, Kazuma there's no need to be shy" Kofuku spoke after a while of not hearing her voice. "Say cheese!" She snapped a shot with her camera phone.

"It's so hot in here" Bishamon took off her coat and began to pull off her tie. "Why do I have all this on?"

"You need to keep that on, Veena"

"But I'm hot!" She whined. "Take it off!" she began to unbutton her shirt.

Kazuma grabbed a hold of her wrist. "I wouldn't do that" letting out a loud sigh, he pulled her close. Her face dug into his neck and her chest was covered by his. "I think you've had a bit too much to drink. How about we rest now?" 

Her eyes were wide open in shock. Somehow she felt as if she had been bested. He shuck as he held her in his arms. His hand that laid on her waist gripped on the back of her shirt. The other softly held her head back. Softly he began to rub on her hair and he dug his face into her neck, down in embarrassment. Bishamon let out a small noise of satisfaction, and then threw herself deeper into his arms.

"Huh? Is it over now?" Yato questioned. "That's so lame" after a couple of seconds he felt a prick on the back of his neck. "Yukine..." His eyes glared at his regalia.

"Sorry, it's just-"

"What?"

Yukine rubbed his head and looked away. "It's so embarrassing, I feel guilty for watching"

"Ohhh" Yato felt a heavy weight jolt him down from his shoulders. "Hiyori!" He had become so distracted he had forgotten about her. He felt a sudden wetness on his shoulder, but couldn't look back to what was causing it.

"Why are you ignoring me?" Hiyori cried out. "Did you forget about me!"

Her eyes were filled with tears that ran down her cheeks. She gasped and hiccuped as she tried to wipe them away. Her cheeks were a strong rosy color, her eyes glossy and breathing shallow. She slid off of him, taking most of his jacket with her. She pulled on it until it was completely off. Yato didn't know how to react, he tried to stay as calm as possible. He slipped out of the sleeves in a means to get away from her. She cuddled onto the jacket, snuggling it tightly against her face. He couldn't tell by the already flushed face of the drunken Hiyori, but it appeared as if she was blushing. It was a muffled sound, but he was certain that she said something underneath her breath. She seemed to have finally calmed down, or so he thought; that was before the crying began once again. She opened up her eyes and looked right back at him. In a panic he scooted away from her, running his back against Yukine's leg. Hiyori proceeded to get on her knees and crawl towards him. He didn't know what to do, as he hugged onto Yukine's leg.

"Hey! let go of me!"

"Help me!" Hiyori stopped and stared at him, then managed to make herself look up. She kept switching her stare between both him and Yukine. "What are you looking at, Hiyori?" he asked calmly.

Hiyori moved her face closer towards his. They were inches away from each other. Yato was afraid to move, he could feel her warm breathing against his skin. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her. Despite his blurry vision he imagined the image of the perfect Hiyori who was before him. Her pupils appeared to move slowly, but it was obvious how she examined him. Hiyori lifted up one of her hands and rested it on his cheek.

"You're cold" she responded so calmly. "And your skin is so soft" she smiled as she pinched at his cheeks. She then ran her hand through his hair. Hiyori held it above his forehead and stared once again. "You have really pretty eyes" She tried to move, but her arm gave out as soon as it shifted. She fell forward and both froze from shock.

The sound of a flashing camera filled the now quiet room. That was before Kofuku's second outburst of laughter in that entire night burst out. Everyone could hear the loud smack against the wall as Yukine's back impacted with it. He stood there with his mouth wide open in shock. He didn't know what to do, he didn't know how to react. He looked down at his leg as Yato still held onto it. Yato's and Hiyori's eyes were both wide opened in disbelief as their lips now touched. Both of them afraid to move, it was a couple seconds before they made themselves pull away. Hiyori dug her face into her hands, as Yato dug his into Yukine's leg. Even as they hid their faces, their blood rushed all the way up to their ears. They turned back to look at each other, their eyes met and glued on, never wavering away. Hiyori went back on her knees and crawls towards him again. In a panic Yato squeezed tightly onto Yukines pants. She looked at him as if nothing had happened. Her eyes glowed in wonder with emotions that he couldn't understands. They stared at each other until she finally lunged herself at him.

"I'll keep you warm Yato" She began tugging at him and he tried to get away from her once again.

"How are you going to keep me warm, if you're about to rip my shirt off! Ahhh!" Yato yelled out in defense. 

Yato began to crawl away from her, but she was behind him with every move. She grabbed a hold of his waist, then down to his legs. He was always certain of her strength, but had she gotten stronger just by having one drink. He moaned out a sound of defeat and threw himself face first on the floor. The weight on his back was more than expected from Hiyori. Then he felt it, the feeling of her young breasts rubbing against him. Panicking he pushed himself up and back into a seating position. She began to tug on him again and he let it be. Giving up, he completely let her rip off his shirt. There was no use in fighting her. She seemed quite happy when it happened as she hugged him once again. 

Hiyori, now with her arms around Yato's neck cried. "I'm so happy you're okay!"

"Of course we're okay..." Yato's eyes soften at her sudden outburst of tears. He found her light weightiness very cute and innocent. He definitely sobered up as he thought back to the terrible events. All the shinki that had passed, all the injured gods. He remembered that it was Hiyori who had patched him up. Yato didn't know what he would have done without her.  "You must have been scared, huh. We were all scared, but we're okay now" he wrapped his arms around her and tighten his hold.

Hiyori's thoughts were short as she began to change the subjects over and over again. She would laugh and then randomly cry. There was no telling with Yato where it was going. Yet he held her when she needed to and played along when she asked.

Yukine sneaked out from behind them and away from the wall. He watched the scene unfold from the open doorway. He saw as the whole room played out like a terrible love fest. Kofuku and Diakoku laughed with each other in one corner, ignoring everyone around them. Bishamon and Kazuma now have fallen asleep in each others arms. Finally there was Yato and Hiyori, he held her tightly against him as she cried. He reassured her of all the terrible things that have passed. Then he began making her laugh with no problem. He let out a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair. He didn't know if it was from frustration or a bit of satisfaction as he let out a smirk. He slowly walked up the stairs light on his feet, figuring it was safe to go back to sleep. The next morning he walked down the steps to the sound of snickering. As he reached down, he walked into Kofuku who had walked out of the dinning area.

"Oh, good morning Yuki"

"Morning"

"I hope you slept well...Sorry if we kept you up last night. That sure was interesting though" She smiled and began to walk away. "Diakoku and I will have breakfast ready soon"

She hummed to herself as she walked towards the kitchen. As Yukine walked into the room, the first sight was Kazuma and Bishamon still sound asleep in the corner. Then as he walked a little further he ran into something. He looked down at a shirtless Yato, Yukine's eyes changed into angered daggers at the sight of him. Yato held tightly on Hiyori from behind and snuggled up to her neck. Hiyori was covered by his jacket and laying her head on his extended arm. Yet as she rolled over it was hard to miss that her jacket had gone missing and her shirt was more unbuttoned than usual. Looking around he found her jacket had been tossed aside, along with the ribbon that goes on her neck. With quick reflexes he kicked Yato on the side.

Yato let out a painful screeched and pushed himself up from the floor. He grabbed hold of his now bruised ribs and turned over towards Yukine "What the hell is your problem!?" he asked confusedly

"Don't give me that, what did you do to Hiyori" He pointed at her, surprised that she didn't wake up. "She was fully clothed when I went to sleep last night. You pervert!"

"What are you talking about? I didn't do anything to her" he turned to look at the flushed face Hiyori. She leaned in closer and snuggled into his leg. It wasn't hard to miss her unbutton shirt as he peaked down at her. A huge realization hit him soon after. "Ah!" He crawled away from her.

"What's with all the noise?" a sleepy sounded Bishamon asked as she pushed herself off of Kazuma's chest. Her face turned bright red as he opened his eyes. "Kazuma..."

"Morning Veena"

"Yato...what time is it?" Hiyori rubbed her eyes as she sat up from the floor. Yato's jacket fell off of her shoulders. "Where is my jacket?" she turned to look at everyone in the room. Her face flushed, yet her memory wasn't clear, she felt as if something had happened last night.

Yato slammed his palms onto the floor and got on his knees. Hiyori looked at him with great confusion.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do anything to you...if I did anything at all...Ahhh! I can't remember a thing" yato cried out.

"What are you talking about?"

As Yato was about to speak he was cut by the voices coming from the kitchen. "Kazu! Bisha! I hear that you're awake, can you come help me with this?" Kofuku called out.

"Very well, we are on our way Lady Kofuku" 

Kazuma and Bishamon both walked out and went into the kitchen. It was a matter of minutes until they heard the pain screams of the calamity god, and the yells of the human girl. Kofuku laughed as she could hear Yato break from all the names Hiyori was yelling out at him. 

"You pervert, what did you do to me!"

"I don't know" Yato cried out. "You're the one that tried to undress me last night!"

"I-" she backed away in shock. "That can't be true"

"Yeah, you ripped up my shirt, and you refused to give me back my jacket"

"There's no way I did that!"

"You guys want to remember what happened last night? I have plenty of photos" Kofuku said as she peaked inside from the kitchen. They all walked in with plates of food and sat down. "I can show you guys my favorites" She seemed excited which filled everyone else with worry. She took out her phone and scrolled through it. "Look Bisha! you were really fun last night"

As Bishamon took her phone, she began to shake and turn hot red. Kazuma looking from over her shoulder froze. Kofuku took her phone back as she had broken the mighty war god and her regalia. They dug their faces onto the table in shame.

"Whoa, what happened between them last night?" Yato leaned in and whispered in Hiyori's ear.

"You two were especially fun" Kofuku stretched her arm out across the table. 

Hiyori jumped up and blushed from shock and embarrassment. As Yato sat frozen in place with eyes wide opened. 

"There's no way..." Hiyori said as she got up and grabbed her things. "I should really get home" she laughed nervously. She turned to Yato who had not moved. Her face turning an even brighter color. "I'm so sorry" she called out as she ran away.

"You alright there Yatty? Hiyori just left and you didn't say a word"

"I kissed Hiyori..." he began to repeat under his breath. "That's awesome!" His face began to blush as he spoke those words. "wait, no, I didn't mean that"

"You're an idiot Yato..." Yukine commented. "I wonder how long it'll be until Hiyori wants to come over again"

"Yeah, that's true" Yato stood up from the table and ran up the stairs. He quickly reappeared again with a shirt on and put his jacket over it as always. 

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to go get Hiyori"

"Are you-" Yato had already ran out the door. "Yato, wait!" Yukine ran after him. 

Kofuku hummed to herself as she took a bite of her food. Bishamon and Kazuma ate in silence. Diakoku finally sat down beside his goddess and sighed.

"Why do you do these things?" He said as he rubbed hard on her head. "It was you who undressed Hiyori, wasn't it?"

Kofuku thought back to a couple of hours ago. She remembered holding a sleepy Hiyori in her arms. She remembered her crying out about how uncomfortable she felt. Kofuku began to dress her down, to help her with the heat she was feeling. She had moved her from across the room and laid her down beside Yato. Taking his jacket she draped it on her like a blanket and she wished her a goodnight. 

Kofuku smiled at the memory. "You seem to always know everything, Diakoku. I think it's fun playing these games with my dear friends" she giggled.

"Well it looks like you broke those two" He pointed over at the only ones remaining in their home. "And now things are probably going to become complicated with those three"

"I don't think so"

"Oh yeah? and why not?"

"Well people always say that you become more honest when you drink" She winked over at her regalia. "I'm sure good things will happen to Yatty and Hiyori...Yuki too...They just need to be more honest with each other"

"Are you like some evil mastermind or something?"

"Haha, nope" she leaned over with food on her chopsticks and fed Diakoku. "Just like playing match maker, that's all"

[recentanimenews]

Bookshelf Briefs 10/22/20

Arifureta: I Heart Isekai, Vol. 3 | By Misaki Mori, based on the novel by Ryo Shirakome | Seven Seas – This is keeping up a fast pace, not lingering too long on any one part of the novels that it’s making fun of. Everyone manages to be that much more over-the-top than they are in the source—though admittedly Kaori goes above and beyond in this regard—and the art also has little cute “we are angry” faces for everyone that look cute and scary at the same time. More to the point, despite all the gags, the I Heart Isekai series actually manages to keep the found-family bits that are also the best reason to read the main series, and its character attacks never feel malicious (again, Kaori comes close, but then she does in the main series as well.) A lot of fun. – Sean Gaffney

Dr. STONE, Vol. 13 | By Riichiro Inagaki and Boichi | Viz Media – A lot of Dr. Stone is taking inventions that you would expect could not remotely be done in a pre-industrial age and doing them anyway due to Senku’s knowledge… though he’s helped along greatly by his dad, who we see passing away long in the past in a flashback here but who also manages to get Senku some gold and platinum to work with. They are also helped out by Kohaku’s awesome strength and agility, though I will admit I could have done without the “does not know how to be feminine” stuff. That said, it’s hard to top the absolute highlight of the book, which is Suika driving what is essentially a tank, BLIND, off a ship and into Senku’s hands. She’s still the best thing in this. – Sean Gaffney

Hatsu*Haru, Vol. 12 | By Shizuki Fujisawa | Yen Press – The damp squib that is Tarou and Kagura wraps up fast here, which is good, because the rest of the book is all over Misaki and Ayumi. Her parents have discovered their relationship, and since Misaki is a very serious boy, he decides to stop seeing her till he can get her dad’s approval, because of course he is one of THOSE dads. As for Ayumi, she still has trouble with the normal emotions of love that come naturally to the rest of the cast. The result is, as it has been since it became, several volumes back, the best relationship in the series. Which is good, as the series ends next time, and we will no doubt be moving back to Kai and Riko—I smell a sudden transfer to another part of the country coming. – Sean Gaffney

The Ideal Sponger Life, Vol. 6 | By Tsunehiko Watanabe and Neko Hinotsuki | Seven Seas – We are starting to see Zenjiro beginning to act on his own a bit more, though he’s still got someone there next to him to do the actual work. It is hard, after all, despite many isekais to the contrary, to fully immerse yourself in a new world with all-new customs. More to the point, his child with Aura may not be unique when it comes to magical affinities. And there’s a new princess in town, from the equivalent of Scandinavia, and no one seems to know what to make of her—indeed, she makes a point to divide her role as a captain from her role as a princess. More to the point, it means we get another badass woman in this book that seems to be far more interested in its politics than in any sponging. – Sean Gaffney

Laid-Back Camp, Vol. 9 | By Afro | Yen Press – If there’s one issue I have with this series it’s the artwork, particularly the character art, as I frequently find that I have trouble telling many of the characters apart. Once I get past that, this is exactly what the previous eight volumes have been: lots of relaxed camping, great scenery, and cute girls. There’s not really any hint of yuri here, but there’s also not really any hint of boys, so Rin/Nadeshiko fans should be pleased anyway. We get the birthday party from last time, which is… not as big a secret as expected. We get capybaras! There’s hot springs, there’s sunrises, and there’s Rin going off to do her own thing half the time, like the introvert with a wanderlust that she is. Does this end when they graduate? – Sean Gaffney

Murcielago, Vol. 15 | By Yoshimurakana | Yen Press – I missed reviewing 14 somehow, and thus the end of the sewer monster story. That said, though, what with Kuroko decidedly NOT having ridiculous sex at the start of this book, I have to wonder: is Murcielago getting toned down? Certainly the violence is present and correct, though this is the start of an arc, so it’s not quite as over-the-top as before. This sees another old villain returning, but we haven’t yet met Comedy Writer in this series—they seem to get people to do silly stunts, and ‘retired’ after one stunt ends up with dead people. Kuroko is her usual goofy self here, but as I noted, she seems a bit more… placid than usual? Her detective skills are also excellent here. Still great if you don’t mind gore. – Sean Gaffney

My Dress-Up Darling, Vol. 2 | By Shinichi Fukuda| Square Enix Manga – Despite the explicit content tag (and the occasional naughty shot, like the inside front cover), this reads far more as a series for fans of nice high school romance than anything else. Gojo is pushing himself far too hard, because he’s genuinely creating something for someone else but also as he feels that after this one event he’ll lose it all forever. He’s desperately socially awkward, and it’s rather sweet that Kitagawa gets so upset she’s in tears at the thought of him driving himself this hard. The cosplay is a big success, and there’s some nice costuming tips here as well. By the end of the volume, she seems to be realizing she’s falling for him… so it is, of course, the perfect time to introduce another rival. Cliffhanger! – Sean Gaffney

Our Teachers Are Dating!, Vol. 1 | By Pikachi Ohi | Seven Seas – If you want your yuri with a side order of adorable, this is the manga for you. One is the science teacher, the other teaches gym, and they’re both cute cute cute. To the point that there is minimal conflict—and honestly you don’t want any. The other teachers? Love the two of them together. The administration? Fine with it. The other students? They’re over the moon, of course. Most of the book is seeing two relatively shy people grow closer and closer in their dating till they’re ready to take the next step, which we see towards the end of the book. The students bribe them with pictures of the other. The closest we get to any strife is one being mistaken for a student (she’s short and cute). This was super-fluffy. – Sean Gaffney

Skip Beat!, Vol. 44 | By Yoshiki Nakamura | VIZ Media – It’s probably cheesy to say, but each new volume of Skip Beat! really is like checking in with old friends. In this case, it’s a pair of old friends who still haven’t managed to communicate their feelings to the other. This time they’re thwarted by Ren’s assumption that Kyoko has fallen back in love with Sho and by a tabloid article about Ren kissing an older actress. I truly wish each volume was about thrice as long, but alas, we don’t yet see what Ren does with the information that Kyoko is upset about the article more than his assumptions about her and Sho. I love this series and I don’t want it to end and I know that Ren and Kyoko getting together will mean that end is coming, but a little crumb of genuine progress would make me so happy. Maybe next time, which won’t be ’til March! – Michelle Smith

The Saint’s Magic Power Is Omnipotent, Vol. 1 | By Yuka Tachibana and Yasuyuki Syuri | Seven Seas – I haven’t read much in the way of light novels, but this one sounded interesting, so I gave it a go. Perhaps I should’ve started with a traditional isekai series in order to better appreciate how this one differs, as I initially found it quite slow going. Sei Takanashi, office lady, is summoned to another world as one of two potential Saints who will help quell an outbreak of monsters. After the prince chooses the younger candidate, Sei is free to pursue her interests, eventually discovering she’s very good at making potions, enchanting objects, and performing healing magic. Towards the end, with Sei reluctantly accepting that she is the Saint after all (unable to refrain from healing a seriously injured knight), the story picked up a bit, and I’m interested to see where it will go from here. A bit more action would be nice! – Michelle Smith

By: Michelle Smith

[life-in-every-limb]

Would you believe until last year I had never spent a night in Kentucky?  I’ve driven through it on the way to points North, unsurprisingly, but somehow went almost 50 years without vacationing in a state I can drive to in an hour.

We remedied that last October during Fall Break, a modern invention that did exist when I was a youngster.  It’s a great time to travel and we had an entire week off from school.

First we went to Mammoth Cave.  That’s the longest known cave system in the WORLD, y’all.  And it’s a National Park, which means it’s inexpensive to visit.  And you could easily spend days there.

We stayed in nearby Cave City, which is mostly known as the city near Mammoth Cave, or at least that’s the way it looked from the exit where our hotel was located–a strip of hotels and fast food and touristy things.  But we are adventurers and we found the REAL town and explored it.

Look at that sweet little main street! We walked up and down looking in windows (everything was closed for the evening, sadly) and seeing what there was to see.

I didn’t get any pictures but one of the charming things–and to William and Lorelei’s delight–several of the shops had cats in residence, hanging out in the window displays.

At one end of town we found a park with a little Civil War history, and also a tiny IGA at which to buy snacks for our room.

Of course we didn’t come for Cave City; we came for the CAVE, and we spent two days exploring, which included walking around the grounds, taking in the museum exhibits, and going on cave tours.

Here’s some of what we saw above ground.

The railroad cars are part of the very interesting history of the cave, its discovery, and early tourism.  Would you believe that part of the cave was used as a tuberculosis hospital for a time in the belief that the air would be good for the lungs?

Look, y’all! A graveyard! I find them everywhere I go!

When you visit Mammoth Cave, you should plan ahead, unlike us, and book guided tours in advance.  Some of them were unavailable to us because we did not do that.  Also be aware that some of the tours are quite strenuous, with lots of climbing.  But don’t worry, even with those caveats we found plenty to see.

We went on two cave tours, the first one being to see the first cave to be rediscovered in more-or-less modern times.  Native Americans were using it over 5,000 years ago, and we were able to see some extremely well-preserved artifacts.

Here’s the mouth of the cave, seen from above before we went in and then from below as we climbed the stairs back up.

It was VERY big and VERY dark in there.  Our guide turned off all the lights so we could see what real dark looks like.  Answer:  like nothing.  Wave your hand in front of your face and you will see NOTHING.  Then he lit one match and it was cool to see how our eyes adjusted to see the entire room with just that tiny amount of light.

He also showed us where saltpeter was mined in the cave during the war of 1812.  Due to conditions in the cave, the site doesn’t look as though it was abandoned 200 years ago but remains well-preserved.  Here is a picture from this area of the cave.

This was an easy hike just to get a feel for the cave.  The next day we did a more picturesque and much harder hike.  It was kind of bizarre to enter a cave through a door into a hill.

This cave had more of the formations you’d expect to see if you’ve been in “touristy” caves like Ruby Falls.

Whenever we left a cave we had to go through a process of washing the bottoms of our shoes to prevent the spread of white nose syndrome, which has killed a large portion of the bat population.

There is much more of Mammoth Cave to see, and I would love to go back there someday.

Our vacation was a two-part affair, with some days planned and some left open.  At our motel we found a brochure for a nearby attraction, and we decided to visit Kentucky Down Under on our way to Louisville.

This was a good choice.  The kids are STILL talking about this place.

Kentucky Down Under is a zoo, but an unusual one.  It’s family-owned, for one thing, and if it’s not obvious from the title, there is a focus on animals from Australia.  But there are other animals here as well, including Great Pyrenees dogs who serve as protectors and roam freely throughout the zoo.

This was the first animal we saw, just after we left the gift shop.  William was thrilled, because crocodilians are one of his favorite groups of animals.  After we spent some time with him, we hopped into the golf car we’d rented and began to explore.

We got yelled at by talking birds and surreptitiously petted a coati.  Here they are, along with some other animals we saw.

Next we arrived at the more interactive part of the zoo.  We listened to a talk by one of the keepers, and then those of us who wanted to (William) got to pet a snake.

Much more to my liking, we were able to pet some draft horses in their beautiful pasture.  Kentucky is almost as pretty as Tennessee, y’all.

Then we got to watch some sheep-herding in action!

And finally, the piece de resistance, the part that William is still talking about months later–we got to pet kangaroos! (Also a terrifying emu and some capybaras!)

Seriously, y’all, did you SEE that emu?  Anyway, it was a wonderful experience and I highly recommend this zoo.

Oh, and I almost forgot to include that this zoo has its own cave, Mammoth Onyx Cave, which as far as they know is not linked to the Mammoth Cave system.  It’s not lighted so you get to wear actual head lamps and it was a really pretty cave–with the price of the tour included in zoo admission.

We’d had quite the busy day already as we headed to Louisville, where we were meeting friends and upgrading our lodgings quite a bit by staying in a bed and breakfast called The Inn at Woodhaven.  The four of us stayed in the attic.  Take a look at this place!  These were taken in our attic.

Here are some of the common areas.

And here are some taken outside.

On our first day in Louisville, we went to another zoo!  We have decided in the past year that we will make it a point to go to the zoo every time we are in a city that has one, since that’s something we all enjoy.

Now, it would be hard to compete with the peak experience of petting kangaroos! But we did enjoy the Louisville Zoo.  Here are pictures of some of our adventures.

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Louisville seems like an exciting city with a lot of fun places to check out.  Besides the zoo, we also visited downtown to see the Cathedral of the Assumption and to get a bite to eat.

We didn’t get to spend as much time looking around the Cathedral as we would normally because they were practicing for a wedding and we didn’t want to disturb them.  Here are some pictures of the nifty area of restaurants where we found a place to eat, just around the corner.

I’m telling you about the Kentucky trip a little bit out of order because I want to save the best for last, as it were.  So now I’m going to share about the Lincoln day trip we took.  Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky, so we visited the site of his birthplace and of his boyhood home, as well as a little town with monuments and a museum.

Here are some photos from the home site, which includes a museum and a super-fancy monument that I’ll bet you never knew existed!

Three miles down the road lies Hodgenville, Kentucky, with its town center dedicated to Lincoln, and housing a very special museum.

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The museum is in a storefront on the square.  The downstairs has several re-creations of scenes from Lincoln’s life.  The place is a delightful jumble of all kinds of artifacts.

Upstairs there is an entire room of art inspired by Lincoln because the town has been hosting an art contest annually for many years and now there is an amazing array of truly creative pictures.  Here are two of my favorites.

I like this one for its Christian symbolism.

This one is amazing.  I don’t know whether you can tell but it’s actually made up of other images of things that were important in Lincoln’s life!

Finally, we made a stop at Lincoln’s boyhood home a short distance away, which would have been the first home he remembered.  There is no museum there, but here are some pictures of the fields where he worked and played.

We loved the Lincoln portion of our trip and could not believe we had been living so close to this important piece of history for so long without visiting.

Now, finally, I am going to tell you about the other planned event of our trip, the whole reason we came to Louisville at precisely this time of year, the annual Louisville Jack O’Lantern Spectacular.  Y’all, it was indeed spectacular.  I could not stop taking pictures, the best of which I will share below.

There was a jack o’lantern to symbolize each of the 50 states

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as well as ones commemorating people who had died,

showcasing current events and famous people,

and representing films, pop culture, literature, and fictional characters.

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And there were all kinds of more typically carved pumpkins as well.

We wandered slowly on a trail through the woodsy park marveling at all the wonders we were seeing.  It was a lot to take in and a perfect way to spend an autumn evening.

So that was our trip to Kentucky, and this was a LONG post.  We squeezed a lot of fun into fall break last year, but there is still more to see and do in Louisville, and I wouldn’t mind spending another weekend in that attic!

Fall Break in Kentucky Would you believe until last year I had never spent a night in Kentucky?  I've driven through it on the way to points North, unsurprisingly, but somehow went almost 50 years without vacationing in a state I can drive to in an hour.

[thedragonsteaparty]

After my fleeting romance with a sickly rock dove named Ryouta, who I met through Hatoful Boyfriend (ending at his sickly demise), I decided to try my luck with a different species, a human. Can you imagine such a thing? The scandal has made things difficult to say the least. I, Papa Squatts, moved into a cul-de-sac with my awesome daughter Amanda where I met lots of other single dads that also live there, very convenient and very exciting. I quickly narrowed down my favourites: Robert (the bad dad), Joseph (the good dad) and Craig (the fit dad – fit as in ooh lala you so handsome and gym 24 hours a day fit. Even my mum said she fancied this one – until she saw the baby strapped to his chest – so you know he’s good).

I went on a couple of dates with all of them, sparking lovely little moments like this one:

Just to clarify we were looking for a toy capybara, not a real one

And this one…

It’s OK, we just did some whittling, I made a toothpick

And this…

Him to the DJ, not to me. It’s true though, Radiohead are amazing but very depressing

Joseph ended up winning me over, mainly because of his wife to be honest, she’s a dick and while I was on my date with Robert she tags along and flirts with everything male in the bar so I felt like Joseph needed to be saved from this 2-dimensional Jezebel.

Yep… Totally my intention

That’s how our relationship may have started (well that and making brownies, that was fun although I did kinda want real brownies afterwards…) but on our second date I was overcome with how sweet he was. We did some dad dancing to spice up the empty dance floor at the youth club dance, finishing off with the move from Dirty Dancing, and then he showed me a surprise Margaritaville he’d set up in the church office just for me where we sat in deck chairs, sipped margaritas and chatted about things. It was so lovely. Here’s a little photo album of our best moments… JOSEPH STORY LINE SPOILERS

    No one was on the dance floor, our dad eyes connected… We needed to get this party started

I got Amanda to safety

Which dance move to impress with first? (I chose the Lawnmower)

Hell yeah

OMG this is adorable, we talked about this before and he remembered, this man is so sweet…

Date 3… Hell yeah

Indeed

Me deciding what to yell at the ocean, I chose option 2

HELL YES!!!! WOOOOOOOO

After this, my dear readers, we made tender (though censored) love down in the cabin of his yacht (you don’t see anything, it’s all dark screen, very PG). I thought everything was going brilliantly, he’d broken up with Mary… Everything was awesome… Until it wasn’t.

Maybe you noticed how some of those pictures had tear stains and ice cream smudges all over them, hold on to your hats because here comes the emotional epilogue…

Wait, what?

No!

NOOOO!!!!

You arsehole, you’re worse than your bitchy wife, I can’t believe this, I gave you everything! I didn’t go on my third date with Robert for you!!! You absolute twat!

I couldn’t believe it, what had I done wrong? Could it be that our last date only getting ranked as a ‘B’ meant that things didn’t work out? I was so heartbroken and upset, I can’t believe Joseph would do that to me after all we’d been through. I sat and ate some ice cream alone for a while then Amanda came up and made me feel better. Instead of ending up with a boyfriend I got the World’s Best Dad Achievement.

Her face doesn’t look sincere but she totally was, she’s just embarassed

Amanda is so great, and I’m not just saying that because she made me feel better at the end of the game (Aha! Yes, t’was a game this whole time!) She radiates cool and your relationship is something akin to Rory and Lorelei in Gilmore Girls (if Lorelei was a man) so there’s loads of playful banter between you but also parental responsibilities that, as a single father, you try to handle as best as you can.

In case you hadn’t guessed after that emotional rollercoaster, this is my of course Dream Daddy, a dad dating simulator game but don’t let that kinda creepy description put you off, this game is amazing. I haven’t laughed so much while playing a game (well I’ve laughed at games but not with them, this one is a laugh with game) since I played Portal. It is so well written and genuinely funny. Long term Tea Party readers might be thinking I’m a little biased because I’m a big Game Grumps fan (they created it) but honestly it’s nothing to do with that, it’s just a really good game. The premise is that you move into a dad-populated cul-de-sac with your daughter Amanda, You then meet all the dads that live conveniently close to you in the cul-de-sac and make friends, they add you on Dadbook (a cross between Tinder and Facebook I guess) and through that you can choose who to go on a date with. It sounds kind of weird and lame but trust me, it’s great.

So aside from my wonderful whirlwind romance with Joseph what else is great about this game? Well, considering everything is described to you in text and you don’t really see any animation other than characters’ facial features and stances changing, or the shower of hearts and aubergine emojis that appear when you do something that another dad likes (seriously), it’s surprisingly easy to picture what is happening and get immersed in the story. I can almost imagine this game coming out as a book. The jokes are great and all the characters are likeable, except some of the kids, I even actually kind of like Mary, Joseph’s bitchy wife (ashamed as I am to admit this I literally just got the ‘Mary and Joseph’ thing as I was typing this. Eurgh. And their kids’ names are all variations of Chris… As in Christ… Euuurrrghhh.) She has a dark sense of humour which I kind of like and I think she’d be fun on a night out.

Your daughter Amanda is a brilliant character too. Her personality really comes through and the voice actress for her deserves a medal or something because a lot of that is thanks to her – she manages to bring Amanda to life with minimal voice acting, but it adds so much. I want to be friends with Amanda, she’s awesome. We had some great times through the bad and the good, including some surprisingly sweet, sincere advice from your own character to your daughter having a tough time.

This resonated a lot with me because my mum told me almost exactly the same thing once when I was having a teenage friend drama. Kind of feel bad for giving Papa that face now to deliver those nice lines.

Seriously, your relationship with your daughter is incredible

So to cap off this amazing game, Joseph had to get one last jab in didn’t he… Arse. If he thinks I’m going to pursue him in my next playthrough then he is 100% wrong, that ship has sailed Joseph (or yacht, like the yacht we hung out on that one time… Where you said you *sniff* liked me… And we… *sobs uncontrollably*). Maybe Robert will have me back in my next game…

Seriously. fuck this guy

Dragons’ Tea Party’s Quest to Find Virtual Love Continues After my fleeting romance with a sickly rock dove named Ryouta, who I met through Hatoful Boyfriend…

[life-in-every-limb]

Would you believe until last year I had never spent a night in Kentucky?  I’ve driven through it on the way to points North, unsurprisingly, but somehow went almost 50 years without vacationing in a state I can drive to in an hour.

We remedied that last October during Fall Break, a modern invention that did exist when I was a youngster.  It’s a great time to travel and we had an entire week off from school.

First we went to Mammoth Cave.  That’s the longest known cave system in the WORLD, y’all.  And it’s a National Park, which means it’s inexpensive to visit.  And you could easily spend days there.

We stayed in nearby Cave City, which is mostly known as the city near Mammoth Cave, or at least that’s the way it looked from the exit where our hotel was located–a strip of hotels and fast food and touristy things.  But we are adventurers and we found the REAL town and explored it.

Look at that sweet little main street! We walked up and down looking in windows (everything was closed for the evening, sadly) and seeing what there was to see.

I didn’t get any pictures but one of the charming things–and to William and Lorelei’s delight–several of the shops had cats in residence, hanging out in the window displays.

At one end of town we found a park with a little Civil War history, and also a tiny IGA at which to buy snacks for our room.

Of course we didn’t come for Cave City; we came for the CAVE, and we spent two days exploring, which included walking around the grounds, taking in the museum exhibits, and going on cave tours.

Here’s some of what we saw above ground.

The railroad cars are part of the very interesting history of the cave, its discovery, and early tourism.  Would you believe that part of the cave was used as a tuberculosis hospital for a time in the belief that the air would be good for the lungs?

Look, y’all! A graveyard! I find them everywhere I go!

When you visit Mammoth Cave, you should plan ahead, unlike us, and book guided tours in advance.  Some of them were unavailable to us because we did not do that.  Also be aware that some of the tours are quite strenuous, with lots of climbing.  But don’t worry, even with those caveats we found plenty to see.

We went on two cave tours, the first one being to see the first cave to be rediscovered in more-or-less modern times.  Native Americans were using it over 5,000 years ago, and we were able to see some extremely well-preserved artifacts.

Here’s the mouth of the cave, seen from above before we went in and then from below as we climbed the stairs back up.

It was VERY big and VERY dark in there.  Our guide turned off all the lights so we could see what real dark looks like.  Answer:  like nothing.  Wave your hand in front of your face and you will see NOTHING.  Then he lit one match and it was cool to see how our eyes adjusted to see the entire room with just that tiny amount of light.

He also showed us where saltpeter was mined in the cave during the war of 1812.  Due to conditions in the cave, the site doesn’t look as though it was abandoned 200 years ago but remains well-preserved.  Here is a picture from this area of the cave.

This was an easy hike just to get a feel for the cave.  The next day we did a more picturesque and much harder hike.  It was kind of bizarre to enter a cave through a door into a hill.

This cave had more of the formations you’d expect to see if you’ve been in “touristy” caves like Ruby Falls.

Whenever we left a cave we had to go through a process of washing the bottoms of our shoes to prevent the spread of white nose syndrome, which has killed a large portion of the bat population.

There is much more of Mammoth Cave to see, and I would love to go back there someday.

Our vacation was a two-part affair, with some days planned and some left open.  At our motel we found a brochure for a nearby attraction, and we decided to visit Kentucky Down Under on our way to Louisville.

This was a good choice.  The kids are STILL talking about this place.

Kentucky Down Under is a zoo, but an unusual one.  It’s family-owned, for one thing, and if it’s not obvious from the title, there is a focus on animals from Australia.  But there are other animals here as well, including Great Pyrenees dogs who serve as protectors and roam freely throughout the zoo.

This was the first animal we saw, just after we left the gift shop.  William was thrilled, because crocodilians are one of his favorite groups of animals.  After we spent some time with him, we hopped into the golf car we’d rented and began to explore.

We got yelled at by talking birds and surreptitiously petted a coati.  Here they are, along with some other animals we saw.

Next we arrived at the more interactive part of the zoo.  We listened to a talk by one of the keepers, and then those of us who wanted to (William) got to pet a snake.

Much more to my liking, we were able to pet some draft horses in their beautiful pasture.  Kentucky is almost as pretty as Tennessee, y’all.

Then we got to watch some sheep-herding in action!

And finally, the piece de resistance, the part that William is still talking about months later–we got to pet kangaroos! (Also a terrifying emu and some capybaras!)

Seriously, y’all, did you SEE that emu?  Anyway, it was a wonderful experience and I highly recommend this zoo.

Oh, and I almost forgot to include that this zoo has its own cave, Mammoth Onyx Cave, which as far as they know is not linked to the Mammoth Cave system.  It’s not lighted so you get to wear actual head lamps and it was a really pretty cave–with the price of the tour included in zoo admission.

We’d had quite the busy day already as we headed to Louisville, where we were meeting friends and upgrading our lodgings quite a bit by staying in a bed and breakfast called The Inn at Woodhaven.  The four of us stayed in the attic.  Take a look at this place!  These were taken in our attic.

Here are some of the common areas.

And here are some taken outside.

On our first day in Louisville, we went to another zoo!  We have decided in the past year that we will make it a point to go to the zoo every time we are in a city that has one, since that’s something we all enjoy.

Now, it would be hard to compete with the peak experience of petting kangaroos! But we did enjoy the Louisville Zoo.  Here are pictures of some of our adventures.

Louisville seems like an exciting city with a lot of fun places to check out.  Besides the zoo, we also visited downtown to see the Cathedral of the Assumption and to get a bite to eat.

We didn’t get to spend as much time looking around the Cathedral as we would normally because they were practicing for a wedding and we didn’t want to disturb them.  Here are some pictures of the nifty area of restaurants where we found a place to eat, just around the corner.

I’m telling you about the Kentucky trip a little bit out of order because I want to save the best for last, as it were.  So now I’m going to share about the Lincoln day trip we took.  Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky, so we visited the site of his birthplace and of his boyhood home, as well as a little town with monuments and a museum.

Here are some photos from the home site, which includes a museum and a super-fancy monument that I’ll bet you never knew existed!

Three miles down the road lies Hodgenville, Kentucky, with its town center dedicated to Lincoln, and housing a very special museum.

The museum is in a storefront on the square.  The downstairs has several re-creations of scenes from Lincoln’s life.  The place is a delightful jumble of all kinds of artifacts.

Upstairs there is an entire room of art inspired by Lincoln because the town has been hosting an art contest annually for many years and now there is an amazing array of truly creative pictures.  Here are two of my favorites.

I like this one for its Christian symbolism.

This one is amazing.  I don’t know whether you can tell but it’s actually made up of other images of things that were important in Lincoln’s life!

Finally, we made a stop at Lincoln’s boyhood home a short distance away, which would have been the first home he remembered.  There is no museum there, but here are some pictures of the fields where he worked and played.

We loved the Lincoln portion of our trip and could not believe we had been living so close to this important piece of history for so long without visiting.

Now, finally, I am going to tell you about the other planned event of our trip, the whole reason we came to Louisville at precisely this time of year, the annual Louisville Jack O’Lantern Spectacular.  Y’all, it was indeed spectacular.  I could not stop taking pictures, the best of which I will share below.

There was a jack o’lantern to symbolize each of the 50 states

as well as ones commemorating people who had died,

showcasing current events and famous people,

and representing films, pop culture, literature, and fictional characters.

And there were all kinds of more typically carved pumpkins as well.

We wandered slowly on a trail through the woodsy park marveling at all the wonders we were seeing.  It was a lot to take in and a perfect way to spend an autumn evening.

So that was our trip to Kentucky, and this was a LONG post.  We squeezed a lot of fun into fall break last year, but there is still more to see and do in Louisville, and I wouldn’t mind spending another weekend in that attic!

Filed under: family, Vacations Tagged: Abraham Lincoln, autumn, cathedral, Fall, Halloween, history, Hodgenville, Inn at Woodhaven, jack o'lantern, Jack O'Lantern Spectacular, kentucky, Louisville, Mammoth Cave, museum, October, pumpkin, travel, vacation