#so this is really encouraging the little isolative avoidant beast in my brain

[terriblelizbians]

considering going to An Event tonight but also i just took my dog out for a walk and could barely make it back home so. maybe not

[peggingtaron]

Belle & Edward

Pairing: Edward x Belle (Edward Scissorhands x Beauty & The Beast crossover)

Summary: Belle, with a dreamy far off look and a nose stuck in a book, is isolated from the common folk that judge her, and dissatisfied with her life in the small suburban town. Upon exploring the old abandoned castle, far off from the town, she discovers a boy with scissors as hands, living his life all these years in the ancient shadows of the castle. A scissor-handed boy named Edward.

•

Word Count: 2.6K

A/N: I started writing this on wattpad when I was 16 so excuse the occasional cringe

Chapter 1 — Little Town

Once upon a time, by a little town, there was a mansion. In that mansion lived an Inventor. The Great Inventor made many odd contraptions, spectacular devices and wonderful gadgets. But none so odd, none so spectacular and none so wonderful than his creation of a man. He gave him inside, a heart, a brain, everything. Well, almost everything...

The Inventor was old, so very old. He died before he got to finish the man he invented. So the man was left by himself with scissors as hands...Incomplete and all alone.

His name was Edward.

Edward had spent years, alone, isolated in the shadows of the deserted castle as dust and cobwebs collected around him. He knew, in his unfinished state that he would spend all his days without anyone's company. Forever in solitude. Forever desolate.

For who could ever learn to love a beast?

><><

This little town was never an exciting place during the morning. In fact, this little town wasn't the least bit exciting at all for Belle. Belle spent her mornings on strolls around the neighbourhood. She did this everyday, perhaps in hopes to spot even the slightest moments of routines to change. But no, this was never the case. Belle would find men coming out their houses at the exact same time, driving their cars out their driveways in a practised, perfect pattern, children playing on their lawn with the exact same games, women keeping up their gardens in the exact same fashion of their neighbours.

In disappointment of the unchanging cycle, Belle would bury her nose behind a book and everything around her would seem to blur. She didn't regard her surroundings as all she would see were the visions of princes and princesses, pirates and sword fights, fairies and mermaids, all brought to life by the words of her books. The more impossible the story, the better.

Belle would find herself so enraptured by the premise of her story, she never regarded the conspicuous whispers of townsfolk as she passed them. Not that it would effect her at all. You would think by Belle living in this town for most her life, her neighbours would think of something else to sneer at. Though, it was only Belle, and with the exact same whispers as the day before.

"Look, there's that strange girl." "Dazed and distracted as always." "That girl's always got her head in the clouds!" "No denying, she's a funny girl that Belle!" "Shame that such a beauty is so odd." "What an odd child."

Not one comment could faze her. Nothing could make her look up from her book.

It was because of this, that she was rather surprised when she found path blocked by a boy. She looked up from her book with a sigh, rather expectant to see what would be in front of her.

"Bonjour, Belle!" The boy flashed a handsome grin at her.

"Hello, Gaston." Belle mumbled.

Belle was often greeted in French since moving to town, from a small French provincial village. She had no idea why this tickled and amused Gaston and her classmates so much. She was after all, immaculate in her English.

Gaston always held a confident demeanour with him, all too proud of his tall, slender, handsome figure. Many girls of Belle's age envied that Gaston favoured her attention, being that she was such an outcast to people of Gaston's supposed calibre. Belle was not at all pleased with the attention she got from Gaston either. Beneath his superficial pearly white smile surfaced a spoiled, egotistical, empty-headed boy much too pretentious to believe that Belle genuinely had no interest in him.

Gaston smiled down at her, grabbing the book from her hands. He smiled at Belle amused as she tried to reach for it, but Gaston being a great deal taller than her held the book high from her.

"Gaston, may I have my book back, please?" Belle mustered a polite expression as much as she could, while she grew concerned when Gaston fumbled through the pages carelessly and left creases of the book's spine.

"What are you reading this time?" Gaston flicked through the pages of the book and squinted at it. "How can you read this? There are no pictures."

"I know." Belle made a grab for the book unsuccessfully. "But why should that mean it's any less wonderful? You see, some people use their imagination."

Gaston gave a momentary judgemental glance at Belle, before tossing the book aside. With a gasp from Belle, the book landed on the lawn beside them, it's pages sprawled amongst the dirt of the grass.

Belle was quick to gather her book and smooth out the crinkled pages and had barely comprehended what Gaston was saying, as she nurtured the book in her arms like a newborn baby.

"Belle, I think it's time I should see you without a book covering your pretty face." Gaston gave a confident stride beside Belle who had continued walking. He put an arm around Belle, which she immediately shrugged off. "Movies are the new books, Belle. I don't suppose you're busy tonight. How 'bout it?"

Belle rummaged her mind for a response to help her escape. To her saviour, Gaston's little brother, Dirk called after him, running towards them.

Dirk arrived, panting and backed away slightly when he saw that Gaston had given him an annoyed glare for interrupting them.

"What? Did I interrupt something?" Dirk glared back at Gaston.

As quickly as she could, Belle briskly began walking her way back home.

"Wait!" Gaston called after her. "What about the movie?"

Belle continued walking and replied over her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Gaston, maybe some other time, I can't. I have to go home and help my father."

Dirk spitted a loud scoff. "Yeah that crazy old man will need all the help he can get!"

Both Gaston and Dirk bursted into a hearty fit of laughter, Gaston giving Dirk a slamming high five. Belle stopped dead in her tracks, turning her heel back to face them, fuming.

"Do not talk about my father that way!" Belle exclaimed furiously.

Gaston choked on his laughter as he attempted to stifle it, clearing his throat and hitting his little brother in the shoulder. "Yeah! Don't talk about her dad that way." He tried to scold, but a smirk was still visible across his face.

"My father is just as sane as anybody else here." Belle asserted. "Just because he's inventive and creative does not mean he's insane, it means he's a genius! He is not crazy!"

At the moment, a piercingly loud squeal of an explosion bursted from afar. Sounds of crumbling crashes and thunderous eruptions echoed across the street, causing Belle, Gaston and Dirk to flinch. Many people had come out of their homes to look at the source of the noise, but their eyes immediately travelled to Belle.

This was unfortunately a regular occurrence, courtesy of her Inventor of a father, Maurice. Belle did not regard the grimacing looks she got from her neighbours or the return of Gaston and Dirk's giggling fit as she immediately ran home, worried for her father.

Belle ran frantically back to her home. She gasped as she saw the door, leading to the basement, seeping out smoke. She quickly opened the door, violently coughing as a suffocating cloud of black smoke puffed into her face. "Papa?" She managed to call out through the smoke.

Belle sprinted down the stairs as she saw her father groan in pain. "Are you alright, Papa?"

"Merde!" He cursed. "I give up!" Maurice kicked onto the device that was bursting out smoke.

Maurice coughed, wheezing through the smoke as Belle helped guide him upstairs, away from it. "Papa, you can't give up now. You always say that." Belle encouraged as she went to fetch him a glass of water.

Maurice sighed. "No. This time I mean it. Series of failures - one right after another...Who am I kidding? No one will ever need my boneheaded contraptions!"

"Don't talk like that!" Belle sat beside him. 

"Well it's true! Just ask everyone else out there." He gestured to their neighbours.

"Papa, you will succeed, you'll become a world renowned inventor and all those who spoke ill of you here will bow down to you." Belle was beaming with a radiating smile that never failed to warm Maurice's heart. The girl's purity was always something for him to lift his spirits after hours of failed work.

Maurice gave a hearty chuckle. "Well, my dear. That's a bit of an exaggeration, but thank you."

Belle's smile eventually began to fade, her eyes softening and Maurice's spirits were soon depreciated. "What's wrong?"

"Papa...do you think I'm odd?" Belle had a quiver of worry in her tone.

"Odd? My Belle?" Maurice thought the idea was absurd. "Who would ever think that?"

"Everyone." Belle exasperated. "And they're right! I don't fit in here - there's no one to talk to - no one that doesn't look at me strangely."

"What about Gaston? He's a looker." Maurice chuckled. Maurice got up, brought out his tool box and began to fumble around with them.

Belle muttered. "Oh yes, he's a looker - but he's also conceited, selfish, rude, vain and — ugh! Let's just say that, that's one friendship best avoided."

"Well, what about Kim? You seemed to get on with her well." Maurice was still engaged in conversation with Belle despite being absorbed in his mechanical work.

"Yes, I do like Kim. But she hangs out with the wrong crowd, is always with her boyfriend who seems just as irritating as Gaston and...she really doesn't seem like she wants to be seen with me."

"Now what makes you say that?"

Belle slouched tiresomely, feeling slightly relieved that she was venting out all her troubles. "Oh mon dieu, Papa, why did we have to move here?"

"Hey, I rather like it here." Maurice said defensively. "It just takes some getting used to."

Belle groaned throwing herself on the sofa. "There must be something more to this small suburban life!"

Maurice tutted. "That's your books talking -- all those stories about far off kingdoms have gotten to your head. There are no princes and castles here, Belle."

Belle raised her eyebrows as she looked out the window and stared at the marvel of a castle-like mansion far off on top of the hill. "I beg to differ, Papa." She muttered almost to herself.

The castle had always intrigued Belle. It was a magnificent view, that was also seen from the window of her bedroom. The very sight of it from her bedroom window would lull her into a dreaming sleep of fantastically impossible worlds. Whether it be a world where teapots and teacups greeted you for morning breakfast, or a world where magic portraits could come to life.

In school, she'd heard the castle was an abandoned one, untouched since an old inventor had passed away there, though there is still some speculation that his ghost haunts the manor. Although this was a ridiculous rumour, the more time she spent in the dreary suburban neighbourhood, the more she hoped something so ridiculous was true - ridiculous was fascinating.

"I'll be right back, Papa. I think I'll go out for another stroll..." She said as she eyed the castle.

><><

Belle was careful to make sure she wasn't seen going off to the mansion. She couldn't imagine the rumours that would circulate after neighbours seeing a strange girl voluntarily wander into the only bizarre place in this perfect town. It puzzled Belle completely, as to how people had never thought of exploring there before - how nobody had a good sense of curiosity to be fascinated with a house that wasn't plain and identical as every other house in the neighbourhood.

Belle creaked open the gates, wincing at the loud yelps the rustiness of the untouched gates made. The path leading up to the castle was eerie with dark trees hanging over, though eerie in a way that fascinated Belle. Belle was boiling in anticipation, as she observed her surroundings.

She stopped in her tracks as she spotted a light pink car parked in the pathway. She observed the track tyres and noticed that they were fresh and someone had just come here. This was only perplexing as Belle could not think of anyone who would dare visit here.

She briskly walked up the path, growing more eager.

Belle widened her eyes as she saw Peg Boggs, dressed in a light pink outfit with her Avon suitcase in hand. Peg was Kim's mother, and was one of the very few people that treated Belle with kindness. Peg was admiring the splendour of the garden in front of the castle, and eventually Belle's eyes drifted towards the garden as well.

Belle felt an ecstatic grin creep across her face from ear to ear as she marvelled at the sight before her. Bright flowers organised in colourful bunches, topiary plants shaped perfectly into animals some of which were imaginative much like the ones in the stories she'd read and beautiful stems of vines framed around the castle. 

Belle felt the fairytales she'd dream about come to life before her.

"Belle?" 

Belle gasped as she snapped out of her marvelling gaze at the sight. Peg was just as surprised to see Belle there as well.

"Mrs. Boggs, hello." Belle smiled.

"Hello. What are you doing here?" Peg greeted her with a warm smile.

"I-I'm...I...Well, I've always wanted to come up here...The castle, it's...it's..."

"It's wonderful, isn't it?" Peg chuckled as she looked back at the view.

Belle's smile returned to its radiant beam. "'Wonderful' is an understatement, it's epic, it's incandiferous, it's...magical."

Belle grew red in the cheeks at her excitement. These sorts of remarks are what labelled her as odd to everyone in her neighbourhood. Belle's smile faltered and her head bowed sheepishly.

Peg chuckled. "There's no need to feel embarrassed, Belle. I find your enthusiasm endearing."

Belle gave a modest grin before returning to her initial confused state. "What are you doing up here, Mrs. Boggs?"

Peg gave a tired sigh, gesturing to her suitcase. "Avon calling. I've had doors slammed in my face all morning, and I'm simply tired of it. I thought it was time that I tried something different, or rather, go somewhere else."

Belle nodded. "Well, this sure is a change of scene." She mused as she looked back through the garden.

Belle's eye was caught by a single red rose, standing out amongst a patch of white flowers. She knelt down to the rose, bringing her nose to it and inhaling it, fluttering with delight at its smell. As she was marvelling at the flower, she felt a strange sensation that she was being watched.

Almost instinctively, her head jerked up to the one of the windows high up on the castle. In a flash of a glimpse she spotted a face staring down at her curiously, though the face disappeared as quickly as she saw it. "There is someone here..." Belle gasped in delight.

"Really?" Peg asked. She began to clutch onto her Avon suitcase and make her way towards the door. Belle wasn't sure why, but she followed Peg. 

"Perhaps I'll join you on this Avon calling." Belle smiled. Her eyes tore away from the window that she fixated on. Little did she know that the face that she saw reappeared at the window, eyeing her in enchantment, as she made her way inside with Peg.

[mdelpin]

The Red Dragon - Chapter 17

AO3 | FF.Net | Tumblr: Ch1 | Ch16

Chapter 17

It was Lyon who had gotten Gray to finally leave the field. Wisely avoiding the Guard headquarters, he’d led them to their shared apartment. Gray had collapsed on their sofa, crying more than he could ever remember doing since his parents’ death. The fear that this was it, the moment where he finally lost everything created a weight on his chest so massive, it felt like it would crush him.

Lyon did his best to soothe him, to let him know that they were brothers and he was still there for him, that he would lend him his strength until Gray felt up to standing on his own once more, but it all sounded so distant. The image of Natsu and the others flying away on that beast wasn’t something he could let go of yet. And just as Lyon had predicted, Gray was horrified by how he’d acted.

He’d been so caught up in himself that he’d refused to acknowledge the fear that had been written all over Natsu’s face or his plea for Gray to forgive him, to understand he couldn’t stay. Even worse, he’d ignored Natsu’s feelings which had been quite clearly broadcast to him through their shared bond.

Natsu had needed to be held, to be comforted, to feel loved by Gray, but that wasn’t what he’d given him at all, and that knowledge was eating away at him. Even now, he was wearing Natsu’s most prized possession around his neck, his smell providing Gray some level of comfort. What did Natsu get from him?

Gray had yelled at him, pushed him away, and refused to listen to anything he had to say. He’d berated him, even questioned his love. Gods, what had he —

“Natsu’s going to be fine, Gray. They’re all going to be fine,” Lyon interrupted his thoughts, continuing to murmur his encouragement, not knowing what else to do for the boy he’d accepted as a brother so many years before.

Gray nodded listlessly, tensing up as he heard loud knocking and Erza yelling at their front door. Lyon left him on the sofa to go deal with her. Gray listened as Lyon tried to stop Erza from coming inside, but the sound of her steps growing closer was testament enough to his failure. He heard the door close softly, and the familiar sound of Lyon’s footsteps returning.

“Where is everyone? Why aren’t you at your posts? Just because Natsu left doesn’t give everyone the right to take off. I have dozens of recruits waiting and no one to train them, “Erza stormed into their living room, coming face to face with the sorry state Gray was in.

Seeing that Gray was in no condition to give her any of the information she needed, she looked back at Lyon, who had just walked into the room, “What’s the matter with him?”

Lyon grabbed the blanket they usually hung over the back of their couch and draped it over Gray, pushing him down slightly to get him to rest. He wasn’t really surprised by the lack of resistance. Once he’d settled his brother down, he grabbed his keys and motioned for Erza to follow. “Let’s talk outside.”

Lyon closed the door quietly behind him and began to walk back to the Village Guard headquarters. “It wasn’t just Natsu that left, although that is what has Gray so upset. They all did, Erza. Sting, Rogue, Gajeel, and Wendy, they left too. They all climbed atop a flaming dragon and took off.”

“I should have realized,” Erza muttered, visibly deflating at his words before peering at him, her eyes widening slowly as she processed the rest of his words.

“Gray saw Natsu’s dragon?” Erza covered her mouth with her hand, but Lyon could still see the distress reflected in her eyes.

“It was a little more than that, I think. By the time Natsu and I got there, the dragon slayers had managed to subdue him but... Yeah, he’s had a rough day,” Lyon sighed, running his fingers through his hair as he tried to think of how to explain.

“Ever since I’ve known him, Gray has kept people at a distance, it took him years to warm up to me, but with Natsu, it’s always been different. I think having him leave was bad enough, but to have it be on a dragon that was just like the one that destroyed his village...it was too much for Gray to handle.”

“It was kind of Natsu to leave Gray his scarf, he must have realized how his absence would affect him,” Erza’s voice was full of pride at Natsu’s actions.

Lyon nodded but remained silent. He hated to lie to Erza about Natsu and Gray, but until he heard from Gray that it was okay to tell people about their relationship, he would honor their request for privacy.

Erza squeezed Lyon’s shoulder gently even as she avoided his eyes, “You should return to him, at a time like this, it’s important to have family nearby. Don’t worry about work for today, I’ll run some basic drills with the recruits and put a basic schedule together for those that remain. Those five won’t be easy to replace, but I suppose we’ll have to make do with the new recruits.”

“I’m sorry, I know this must be hard for you as well,” Lyon commented, remembering the dragon slayers were her childhood friends. Erza waved his concern away in a way that was meant to show the matter held no importance to her but instead only managed to scream of her vulnerability.

“I have to go,” Erza remarked abruptly, appearing uncomfortable with Lyon’s attention. She started to walk away, but after managing only a few steps she stopped, and without turning called out, “I’ll be back to check on the two of you later, I’ll bring some food.”

Satisfied with her words, she walked off in the direction of their headquarters.

Watching her retreating figure, Lyon realized that perhaps Gray might not be the only one who was going to need him. Lyon vowed to watch out for Erza as well.

O-o

Three months later

No matter the weather, Gray never left his house without first wrapping Natsu’s scarf around his neck, even though his scent had faded away after the first few days. The warmth it provided was a constant reminder of Natsu and his promise that he would return.

In the time since the dragon slayers had left, Gray’s stripping habit had miraculously disappeared. His anxiety became so great he felt nothing but cold all the time.

The days dragged on, each one seeming longer than the one before it. Gray’s life was an endless blur of getting up, going to work, forcing food into his body, and going to sleep. Wash, rinse, repeat.

Night times were the worst. For the first few weeks after the dragon slayers left, he’d been plagued with nightmares of Deliora. He’d awaken only to find Lyon standing over his bed staring down at him, his forehead furrowed in concern.

Eventually, his nightmares gave way to frequent dreams of Natsu as his heart tried to give him what he yearned for, and those were almost more painful because the moment he woke he would experience the despair of finding himself alone once more.

About the only thing he was thankful for was that Erza had asked Lyon to take over the training of the magical recruits, thus limiting Juvia’s attempts to get Gray’s attention to his off-hours. If she could catch him, that was.

He’d disappear as soon as his shifts were over, which no one, except maybe Juvia, gave him a hard time about as this had been his usual custom. Gray would trudge over to the field where they used to spend so much of their time.

At first, it had been hard for him not to associate it with the dragon that had taken his friends away, but he and Natsu had made way too many memories there for him to let go of it without a fight.

He settled comfortably on the spot where he used to watch Natsu sleep and wondered when if ever he was going to see his mate again.

I will always come for you when you need me...

Gray could still hear those words echoing in his head, except now, instead of bringing him comfort as Natsu had intended, they felt like a slap to the face. The truth was he needed Natsu right now, but the dragon slayer was nowhere to be found.

He focused on their bond, trying desperately to glean any information he could from it but like every other day, all Gray felt was a distant hum, and it made him wonder, if the worst happened, would he even know?

He shook his head in an attempt to dispel his gloomy thoughts and tried to remember Natsu the ways he loved him best — with a challenge in his eyes and an annoyingly confident grin at the ready or soft and flustered as they kissed.

Gray closed his eyes, letting himself pretend he was only waiting for Natsu to wake from one of his naps. He imagined him blinking awake slowly as he used to, his eyes sleepy, but his smile radiant. Gray felt his heart flutter in his chest at the sight, but when he opened his eyes, there was nothing but the empty field.

Natsu, when are you coming home?

“That’s enough of that,” Lyon’s voice brought him back to the present and noticing his brother’s outstretched hand. Gray grabbed it and let himself be pulled up.

Gray examined Lyon’s face, searching for any hint of disapproval, but Lyon only rolled his eyes at him.

“Let’s go do something,” Lyon suggested calmly, “How about we go to the lake? We haven’t done that in a while.”

Gray nodded and followed his brother. They remained quiet for a few minutes, but Gray could feel Lyon struggling with something. He wasn’t surprised when his brother stopped just before the village.

“Things will get better, Gray, but you have to help them along. You’ve been keeping yourself isolated all this time, Nat-,” Lyon thought better of what he’d been about to say, “well, he wouldn’t like to see you like this. He promised you he will return, and that is exactly what the stubborn bastard will do.”

Gray managed a chuckle, even as his brain screamed But when? But the small sound seemed to reassure Lyon that Gray was at least considering his words.

“I know you’re right. Natsu would absolutely kick my ass if he saw me pining over him, but I can’t help it,” Gray was surprised to hear himself confiding in Lyon, “I miss him, Lyon. My whole body misses him, it’s this ache inside me that nothing can quiet.”

“Uhm, that’s a little too much information,” Lyon replied, looking uncomfortable.

“No! That hasn’t happened yet!” Gray was quick to assure him, his cheeks burning as he realized what Lyon thought he’d said and he tried to explain his feelings better, “Natsu and I have this sort of spiritual connection, uhm, it’s like with him gone half of me is missing.”

“Then you have to keep this half strong for when it reunites with…,” to his credit Lyon was trying to be comforting, but he was utterly at a loss, and it showed. He stopped himself before he made a fool of himself, “I have no fucking clue what I’m saying, but just try to snap out of it a little? Cause I miss you too.”

“I —,” Gray had never stopped to consider how his actions might affect anyone else. Once again, he felt a bit childish, and he promised himself he would try to do better, “I’ll try.”

Lyon beamed at his reply, and they headed home to change into swim trunks and grab some supplies. They were discussing some of the newer guard members on their way to the lake when they happened upon Erza sitting by the shore, her expression unguarded for the first time they could remember.

They glanced at each other briefly and with a shrug approached her, sitting on either side of her. Erza snapped out of her reverie, looking surprised to see them but giving no indication that she was bothered by their presence.

“Come to swim?” she asked them, wiping away at her face although they hadn’t noticed any tears.

“Are you okay?” Lyon asked, and the care Gray heard in his voice made him wish he hadn’t just agreed to be more social. He was well aware of how Lyon felt about Erza, and he was beginning to worry that Lyon was using him as an excuse to not make a move on the girl he loved.

“Yes, of course,” Erza waved his concern away, looking off into the distance at the rippling waters of the lake, “I’ve always loved it here, it’s so peaceful.”

She turned to look at Gray, her eyes lingering on the scarf that was never absent from his neck. She rewarded him with a sympathetic smile, “It also brings back memories of when we all used to come here to play. Sting and Natsu would always start these ridiculous splash wars until they managed to get everyone drenched and then it was a free for all,” Erza wiped at her eyes again, “My mother would be so upset when I got home.”

Gray tensed up at the mention of Natsu’s name, but he managed to calm himself down by remembering when he and Natsu had played much the same way. It still hurt, but at least it was a memory he held dear.

“How come you lived at the orphanage with the others if your mom was around?” Gray asked curiously, having always been puzzled by that fact.

“I didn’t live in the orphanage. My mother and I lived with Anna,” Erza explained, her cheeks blazing for a reason Gray didn’t understand, “When my mom left I stayed with Anna until I got my own place.”

“Sometimes it feels like everyone I care about leaves me behind,” Erza sighed once again causing Gray to stare at Lyon pointedly, but to his frustration, his brother seemed determined not to make a move.

“Would it be alright if Juvia joined you?”

The three friends looked up to find Juvia standing behind them looking uncertain, an umbrella clutched in her arms as always, and before Gray or Lyon could say anything, Erza answered for them, gesturing for Juvia to join them. “Of course, we were just talking about old friends.”

Juvia immediately took a seat next to Gray, who tried his best to be polite even though he felt uncomfortable in her presence, “You must enjoy coming here.”

“Yes, Juvia always feels untroubled around her element,” she peeked at Gray shyly, “Juvia wonders why Gray-sama always wears a scarf, even when it’s hot out?”

“It belongs to a friend, one I would like to see return soon,” Gray responded, deciding not to bother correcting her on the way she referred to him, knowing from experience it was pointless. Erza grabbed his hand and squeezed it.

“We all would. They may be reckless fools, but we have to trust they’ll be okay, it’s all we can do. Besides, my mother is with them,” Erza reminded him.

Erza went on to tell them stories about growing up with Sting, Rogue, Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy and Gray found it reassuring to know he wasn’t alone in his vigil, that Erza was waiting just as he was. Lyon finally made his move, slowly placing his arm around Erza’s shoulders, somehow managing not to freak out when she rested her head on his shoulder.

O-o

Six months since Natsu left...

Deliora had not been sighted for some time, and this made everyone uneasy. Atlas was sure the hellfire dragon was up to something, but Igneel didn’t seem to care, more concerned with trying to find an end to the war to worry about anything else.

Acnologia and the other renegades, on the other hand, had been even more active than usual and although most of their kills had belonged to the opposition, no one rejoiced at their deaths.

It hadn’t been that long ago that dragons had numbered in the tens of thousands, but in the course of the long drawn out war, their numbers had dwindled drastically until it was now believed there were not more than a thousand left and more than half of those resided in the cave hidden inside the mountain.

Since it was common knowledge that Igneel was one of Acnologia’s targets, it had been decided that he should remain at headquarters for his own safety. With Igneel protected by so many dragons, it made Natsu wonder why he was even there in the first place, but seeing how stressed Atlas was all the time it made him glad to at least be able to help him out somewhat.

This relative freedom was both a blessing and a curse. It did allow Natsu to keep track of his friends and when possible, spend more time with them, but it also put him in Belserion’s sights, and his father’s advisor had no trouble finding things to keep Natsu occupied. Some were extremely dangerous, and Natsu could only assume Igneel was blissfully ignorant of those missions. Others, however, were mind-numbingly boring.

The worst of these was when Belserion would parade him around the cave, showing him the areas where all the different dragon races lived, making a point of introducing him to every dragon they came across as Igneel’s son.

About the only good thing Natsu could say about these excursions was that it was amazing to see so many different types of dragons living together in one lair, but it was also mildly irritating to have every dragon immediately treating him with deference.

The dragon slayers, however, were still not permitted in the dragons living areas. Wendy was the only exception due to her young age and her importance as a healer. She was allowed to stay with Grandine in her quarters, and Natsu saw her regularly as they were both training to improve their healing magic with Grandine and Atlas.

He had decided to try to boost his healing magic in the hopes it might let him revert any of the physical changes that Atlas had hinted at. It was an ability he’d always had, but it had never been anywhere near as powerful as his dragon magic, and it usually took a lot of out him when he used it on others. He’d begun working on mastering more complex spells and increasing his endurance. Figuring even if it didn’t help him with his problem it could at the very least take some of the pressure off the other healers.

Metalicana, who was about as old as Igneel, had not suffered as much injury at Acnologia’s hands as Weisslogia and Skiadrum who were significantly younger. He was often out leading attacks with Gajeel riding on his back belting out orders, and Natsu was often called upon to be a part of these missions.

Rogue and Skiadrum were part of the Shadow Dragon unit. They acted as escorts and intelligence gatherers, their shadow magic allowing them to often hide in plain sight. They were currently tasked with finding out Deliora’s location so that Igneel might attempt to propose a temporary truce once again.

Weisslogia had been injured the worst out of all their dragons, having sacrificed himself to protect his mate Skiadrum from Acnologia’s attack. He could no longer fly for long distances, so he spent most of the time roaming around the headquarters, trying to find ways he could be of use.

Natsu had been paired with Sting, Gajeel, and Rogue at one time or another, but it was usually Sting who was assigned to him. They had managed to recover some of their closeness, especially considering he was the only one of Natsu’s friends that had any idea of what was happening to him.

Out of all the duties he was given, Natsu enjoyed acting as a lookout the best. It was peaceful for the most part. He could sit alone with his thoughts, away from the din of the massive cave.

Natsu flew to the top of their mountain hideout and looked around, extending all his senses to try to detect any oncoming threat. Not finding any he gazed up at the night sky and the stars that twinkled down at him.

As always, the color reminded him of Gray’s eyes, and it made him feel closer to his mate than anything else in this new environment. Somewhere in Talos, Gray might be looking at the same sky and thinking of him. He smiled at the thought, and even though it caused him some pain, it was a pain he welcomed.

Atlas was convinced the best way to keep his dragon instincts from taking over his mind was to strengthen it, so while Natsu sat and patiently continued to watch for any signs of enemy dragons he worked on his meditation exercises.

If he couldn’t change into a human while he was here the next best thing he could do was to become more aware of his mind. Recognize his thoughts and feelings so that he could continue to remain as much Natsu as possible. In this way, he hoped to be able to recognize the onset of his dragon instincts and isolate them. It was the best defense he had at the moment, and he hoped it would allow him to stop himself from losing control again.

Natsu had been involved in more fights than he could count by this point, his kill count had quickly risen, causing him to be in a constant battle against his instincts. About the only good thing to be said was that he had not enjoyed any of them like he had the wood dragon, which gave him hope that his attempts over the last three months were having some effect.

Before he could get started, he needed to relax his mind and body, so he spent about thirty minutes each evening breathing profoundly and reminding himself of all the things that made him want to remain human.

His first thoughts were always of Gray, for most of all he wanted to stay human for him, but he also thought of Anna and Erza and even the other dragon slayers. Once he had achieved a sort of calm state, he would begin to meditate, a process that made him hyper-aware of his mind and body.

Sometimes Sting would sneak out and join him for a while, eager to get away from the hostility he experienced daily. This allowed Natsu to focus better as Sting would keep an eye out for him. They rarely saw other dragons at night, with talks of a potential truce in the works no one wanted to be the one to destroy an opportunity at peace.

That night proved different, to his surprise Sting, Atlas, Belserion, and Weisslogia all came up to see him.

Natsu immediately came out of his meditative state to look at them worriedly, “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, we’re going for a ride,” Sting said emphasizing we and grinning in a way that Natsu hadn’t seen in a few months.

“What are you up to?” Natsu asked not knowing how to respond to Sting’s obvious glee.

Instead of answering Atlas growled, “We need to do some scouting and Sting volunteered to be your rider, Weisslogia will act as a lookout tonight.”

“Okay, but where are we going?”

“Don’t worry about it, let’s go,” Atlas and Belserion took off, and Natsu let Sting get atop him before following his uncle.

Natsu didn’t understand what was going on, but it was obvious that both Sting and Atlas were excited about it, although Belserion maintained his usual impassive stare. Natsu tried to be patient, fighting off the agitation he felt, knowing the others would tell him soon enough.

“I think we’re far enough,” Atlas announced before landing atop a sizeable snow-covered mountain many miles away from their headquarters.

Sting got off Natsu and was positively brimming with excitement as he asked Natsu to change back into his human form. Natsu peered at Atlas who only nodded. He gawked at the two of them nervously until Atlas nudged him with his head.

“We don’t have all night,” Belserion reminded him, and Natsu nodded, closing his eyes slowly and calling to his magic. When nothing happened, his heart began to race in panic. Was it already too late?

“Calm down, I can hear your heart beating from over here,” Atlas snapped, looking bored, “you’re just scared because it’s the first time you’ve done it since we left and now you’re worried you might not be able to. Do the centering thing you’ve been practicing and try again.”

Natsu did as he was told, breathing deeply and focusing on his sense of self before once again calling to his magic. This time he could feel some resistance, but he was able to overpower it, and he soon found himself back in his human form.

Sting immediately hug tackled him to the ground, “I’m so happy to see you!”

Natsu could only grin in response, laying still and looking at the sky in relief.

He’d done it!

Natsu did a quick examination of the parts of his body he could observe but couldn’t detect any visible changes. He peered at the others, but none of them were looking at him strangely, and he was filled with a profound sense of relief. He was still okay!

“First things first, Deliora has finally shown himself, he has requested a meeting. It is to take place in exactly one week,” Atlas informed Natsu, barely giving his transformation any importance as he launched into what he wanted to discuss with his nephew.

“He wants both Igneel and I there, claims I’m the only one he trusts. He didn’t ask for you, which makes me think he hasn’t heard about your presence yet. I would like to use that to our advantage.”

“What are you talking about?” Natsu wasn’t sure what was going on, but his dragon instincts were going into overdrive at the mere mention of Deliora, immediately hissing curses at the dragon that had dared hurt his mate.

With a growing sense of dismay, Natsu realized that even in this form, his instincts were just as loud. That was new. He tried not to worry too much about it as they had always been vocal when it came to the concept of his mate.

Atlas regarded him with an irritated expression, “Look, I don’t trust Deliora, the only reason to want the two of us there is to try to ambush us and get rid of the last of the royals. He believes if Igneel and I fall, there will be no one left to stop him from trying to take over what’s left of the dragons.”

Sting and Natsu both studied Atlas with interest. There was something in his words that nagged at Natsu, but he promptly ignored it. He wasn’t interested in any of the politics, he was just there to keep his family safe and get back to his mate as quickly as possible, “So why would Deliora say he trusts you?”

Belserion interceded, “He doesn’t, this is clearly a trap, but if we can take Deliora out that might go a long way towards reaching our goal of ending the war. Igneel means well, but the time for diplomatic gestures is over. There are too few dragons left for us to be playing these games.”

Atlas nodded in agreement, “Natsu, Belserion and I have been talking it over, we feel the best course of action is for both of you to follow us to the meeting place. If Deliora’s intentions are treacherous, then the two of you can provide backup and help us take him out. If by some miracle he is sincere you can hold back, and he’ll be none the wiser. But you must remember, once he smells you, he’ll know who you are. Which brings us to something else we wanted to talk to you about.”

“Me?” Natsu gaped, not really understanding why they needed him to be involved in all of this.

“Yes, you. You are a royal, Natsu. One of the few left, which means certain responsibilities are expected of you regardless of whether you want them or not,” Belserion replied sternly, peering down at him with a somber expression.

“Igneel and Atlas have their own tasks they must accomplish so this one must fall to you. It does carry the added benefit that you can do it while in your human form, which Atlas has mentioned would be beneficial to you.”

Natsu didn’t know how to respond to Belserion’s words. The idea that he would be able to remain in his human form even if only for short periods could only help him retain his humanity! When he realized that Belserion was waiting on him, he nodded at him to continue.

“Even if we manage to end the animosity between the dragons, we’ll still have the threat of the renegades to contend with. We’ll need to scout for a safe place to relocate the remaining dragons that will be difficult for the renegades to follow. Preferably an unpopulated island of some sort, with some natural barriers to protect it and abundant food sources nearby. This might be the only way we can save the dragons from extinction. When possible, you will come with me while Sting and Weisslogia take over your lookout duties.”

“Once we’ve found an appropriate location, we will need to start moving dragons there, and then we’ll have to start our own war. The dragons that are capable of performing Atlas’ counterspell will need to stay behind and hunt the remaining renegades down and remove their magic.”

“Did you finish your spell?” Natsu knew that Atlas had been working day and night on his counterspell, but he hadn’t heard of a significant breakthrough.

Atlas shook his head, “Not yet, but I think I’m close.”

“If we think Deliora is truly up to something,” Sting spoke up, “Shouldn’t you get more dragons involved?”

“Enough creatures have met an untimely death because of Deliora, we’d rather not add any more to that list. He is a problem the red dragons created, it’s up to us to rectify our mistake.”

“I understand that, but all due respect, the red dragons are some of the strongest dragons we have fighting on our side. If any of you are severely injured, it will be a huge loss to our forces. Shouldn’t you at least have a backup plan that includes the rest of us? If this turns out to be the thing that turns the tide, it might be good for morale to include others in your plan.”

Belserion closed his eyes and remained quiet for a few minutes, his forehead furrowing as he considered Sting’s words, “I suppose it wouldn’t be a bad idea to protect our territory… I’ll give it some thought.”

Atlas and Belserion continued to talk amongst themselves and Sting took the opportunity to glance over at Natsu who kept looking at his body in amazement.

“So, how do you feel?”

“Relieved, I guess. Part of me had been worried I couldn’t do it any longer.”

“Not gonna lie, I was worried too,” Sting admitted, and when he noticed Natsu continue to examine his body intently he tried to reassure him, “You don’t look any different, I mean I can’t see any areas Gray might be privy to but —”

Natsu’s face instantly turned bright red at Sting’s comment, and his friend couldn’t contain himself from dissolving into giggles before turning serious again as he noticed some of the scars that hadn’t been there when they’d arrived all those months earlier. “You have a lot more scars now. Can you heal them with what you’ve learned?”

Natsu shook his head, “They’re not so bad.”

“I know, I have some too, I’d just prefer to have no visible reminder of our time here.”

“Are you sorry you came?’

“I don’t know, I’d rather be home, even if Erza is as scary as her mother,” Sting laughed, but it was hollow, and even as Natsu joined in he couldn’t help but worry.

The first snowball caught Natsu by surprise, but he melted it quickly enough and proceeded to pummel Sting with snowball after snowball, giving him no chance to make new ones. “You forget, I was trained by an ice mage!”

And for once thinking of Gray didn’t hurt, he smiled, remembering Gray harping on him about how to make a perfect snowball and he used that knowledge to nefarious effect. He chased after Sting who finally sat down in exhaustion and cried uncle. Natsu joined him biting his lip as he debated whether to ask him what he had been weighing on his mind.

“Hey, Sting?”

“Hmm?”

“What’s going on with you and Rogue?” He’d been trying to get the nerve up to ask for a while, for as much as he loved hanging around with Sting, Natsu found it incredibly strange that he seemed to be spending so little time with Rogue. He was counting on Sting feeling more comfortable talking to him in his human guise.

But no matter how much Natu pushed, Sting refused to answer him. Although the frustrated look on his face was answer enough, and they remained in uncomfortable silence until the red dragons told them it was time to go back. Natsu made a note to try to talk to Rogue when he got the chance.

O-o

A week later...

Atlas waited for Belserion to give him a confident nod before setting off with Igneel to the agreed meeting spot.

“So what do you think he’s going to pull, ambush?” Atlas asked curious of Igneel’s thoughts.

It had been a while since his brother had left their headquarters, and Atlas could tell he was happy to be outside once more. He looked almost too relaxed, considering where they were headed.

“Must you always be so suspicious?” Igneel complained, “We’re all tired of this, I imagine Deliora is no different, he did call this meeting after all.”

Atlas snorted but didn’t say anything more, it had been too long since he’d been able to do anything with Igneel and there was no point in worrying about what lay ahead of them. Things had already been set in motion, and all he could do now was to protect Igneel as he’d always done and trust that the contingency plans he and Belserion had put in place would be enough to counteract Deliora’s treachery.

“What did Natsu say when you told him of the scouting missions?” Igneel asked, that effort needed to remain secret and should not be discussed within the walls of their headquarters.

“He was pleased, he had some trouble transforming at first, but he was able to do it. He and Belserion have gone out twice now,” Atlas commented, “I’m just glad we were able to come up with a small way to help him.”

Igneel nodded, looking around at his surroundings as they flew, smelling the edges of the territory they had claimed as theirs.

“I, for one, will be glad to return home when all this is over. This land is beautiful, but it doesn’t compare to the lake and mountains that surround Talos.”

Atlas silently agreed, he had become attached to their home, there wasn’t a day that he didn’t miss his room, full of his scrolls, magical items, and ingredients that were hard to come by in this area. He extended his senses as far out as he could manage, searching for Deliora’s familiar scent, knowing he should be able to smell it by now.

He began to make it out a few miles later, and by the way Igneel stiffened next to him knew his brother had sensed it as well. Atlas continued his search, chuckling to himself when he detected additional smells. So it was an ambush as he’d expected. Deliora was nothing if not predictable.

O-o

Natsu waited impatiently for Belserion to finish discussing their plans with Irene. Atlas and Igneel had left for their meeting some five minutes earlier, and Natsu didn’t like them being so far ahead.

Five minutes was an incredibly long time in a fight, he’d learned that very quickly. Most battles were over much faster than that, even if the aftereffects could last for a lifetime. So far he’d been lucky, he’d bled a lot and had suffered some wounds but none that could be considered life-threatening.

Sting, Rogue, and Gajeel were standing silently around him, each placing a hand on him as they waited for the operation to begin.

“It’s gonna be fine guys, Atlas and Igneel are both strong, and with Belserion and I there to back them up we should all be just fine,” Natsu growled softly, not liking the worried expressions on their faces.

“We know,” Rogue replied, “and we’ll also be there to help if you need it. I guess we’re just all hoping this will be it.”

Sting and Gajeel grunted their assent. “We’ll be right behind the territory line, Runt, remember that. You don’t have to be a hero on this one.”

Natsu nodded only half-listening to their words. He was antsy, having had a bad dream the night before and he urged Belserion to hurry up in his mind, knowing better than to utter the words out loud.

After what felt like an eternity, Belserion finally motioned him to follow. Natsu bolted out of the cave opening without even a word of goodbye to his friends. And just like that, they were off. They remained quiet even as they flew faster than usual, both of them wanting to get close enough to see if they were needed.

A few minutes after they passed their territory line they smelled it, there were many more scents than the three they had been hoping for, and without even a word between them, both dragons added an extra burst of speed. Their worst fears had come to pass.

O-o

The wind shifted and with it came a smell that froze Atlas’ blood, the last time he had been up against this particular foe he’d almost lost his brother.

Atlas glared at the hellfire dragon he had once considered a friend, “Just when I think you couldn’t be any dumber you go and do something like this…”

Deliora gave no indication he’d heard Atlas, his gaze falling greedily on Igneel, the dragon who had humiliated him and then banished him from his home. Except that hadn’t really been their home, Desierto had been their home, and Igneel had moved them all away from it to go on some fool’s errand.

The red dragons were mighty and powerful. They should never have gotten involved in this pointless conflict, and if Deliora had had his way they never would have, but here they were, and he’d be damned if he didn’t come out on top this time.

He would make Igneel pay for his sins and make Atlas watch as his precious brother was killed in front of him. Not by him, of course, he had worked extra hard and sacrificed countless of his own dragons to make this happen. And as he watched his current ally move away from where he had been hiding and into the open, Deliora couldn’t help but rejoice at the looks of dismay on both Atlas an Igneel’s faces.

“Well, well, well, I can’t believe you were right, “Acnologia smiled easily, the hunger in his eyes unmistakable, “the last two remaining royals right here for the reaping. I am going to enjoy tearing you apart limb from limb.”

`

Acnologia’s wink was sickening, and as he changed into his dragon form, Atlas prepared to fight. He could only thank the stars that they had anticipated something going wrong.

A/N: Posting a day early cause I’m going to a con tomorrow! Enjoy!

[essentialise]

How To Focus Your Concentration and Attention to Get Deep Work Done

Here are my musings on how we can focus our concentration and attention to get deep work done and have more time and energy to live a fulfilling life. With extracts from ‘Deep Work’.

“The Deep Work Hypothesis: The ability to perform deep work is becoming increasingly rare at exactly the same time it is becoming increasingly valuable in our economy. As a consequence, the few who cultivate this skill, and then make it the core of their working life, will thrive.

  DEEP WORK VS. SHALLOW WORK

“Deep Work: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate.

Deep work is necessary to wring every last drop of value out of your current intellectual capacity. We now know from decades of research in both psychology and neuroscience that the state of mental strain that accompanies deep work is also necessary to improve your abilities.”

Deep work. Distraction-free concentration. Stretches your cognitive capabilities to their limit. Creates new value. Improves your skill. And the products of this type of work are hard to replicate. Let’s compare it to its opposite:

“Shallow Work: Noncognitively demanding, logistical-style tasks, often performed while distracted. These efforts tend to not create much new value in the world and are easy to replicate.

In an age of network tools, in other words, knowledge workers increasingly replace deep work with the shallow alternative—constantly sending and receiving e-mail messages like human network routers, with frequent breaks for quick hits of distraction.”

How much time are you spending as a human network router—constantly sending emails and otherwise distracting yourself with every new little push notification and text message and attention-paper-cutting distraction imaginable?

  DEEP WORK = A WORKOUT FOR YOUR NEURONS

“To understand the role of myelin in improvement, keep in mind that skills, be they intellectual or physical, eventually reduce down to brain circuits. This new science of performance argues that you get better at a skill as you develop more myelin around the relevant neurons, allowing the corresponding circuit to fire more effortlessly and effectively. To be great at something is to be well myelinated.

This understanding is important because it provides a neurological foundation for why deliberate practice works. By focusing intensely on a specific skill, you’re forcing the specific relevant circuit to fire, again and again, in isolation. This repetitive use of a specific circuit triggers cells called oligodendrocytes to begin wrapping layers of myelin around the neurons in the circuits—effectively cementing the skill. The reason, therefore, why it’s important to focus intensely on the task at hand while avoiding distraction is because this is the only way to isolate the relevant neural circuit enough to trigger useful myelination.”

“To be great at something is to be well myelinated.”

Myelin.

This is the secret sauce to greatness you can learn about in Dan Coyle’s Talent Code.

He recalls a story about LeBron James and how he deliberately practised developing his inside game with Hakeem Olajuwon. He slowed everything down, intensely focused on certain moves like he was a 7th grader picking something up for the first time.

It’s IMPOSSIBLE to imagine LeBron kinda sorta showing up, munching on an Oreo while dribbling with the other hand, stopping to respond to his latest text then going back to passively dribbling the ball. He’s INTENSELY FOCUSED.

Likewise, of course, WE are not going to create anything of value when our attention is fragmented by the latest push notification or email or whatever. We. Must. FOCUS!!!

Remember: Deep work = distraction-free concentration that stretches your cognitive capabilities to their limit while improving your skill and creating new value that is hard to replicate.

  ATTENTION RESIDUE

“The problem this research identifies with this work strategy is that when you switch from some Task A to another Task B, your attention doesn’t immediately follow—a residue of your attention remains stuck thinking about the original task. … ‘People experiencing attention residue after switching tasks are likely to demonstrate poor performance on that next task,’ and the more intense the residue, the worse the performance.

The concept of attention residue helps explain why the intensity formula is true and therefore explains Grant’s productivity. By working on a single hard task for a long time without switching, Grant minimizes the negative impact of attention residue from his obligations, allowing him to maximize performance on this one task.”

Attention residue. This is a really cool and Big Idea.

So, at this stage, most of us are pretty aware that multi-tasking is simply not possible. Although we can rapidly shift from one thing to another (diminishing our performance in both tasks!), we can’t do two things at once.

Let’s assume we get that and strive to focus on one thing at a time. Research shows that we STILL run into sub-optimal attention issues as we move from one meeting/project to another. A part of our attention is still focused on the last project. There’s a “residue” from it that diminishes our capacity to fully focus.

As Cal Newport’s book advises: “To produce at your peak level you need to work for extended periods with full concentration on a single task free from distraction. Put another way, the type of work that optimizes performance is deep work.”

Here’s to cleaning up the residue on our attention! (One key way? Create time blocks!!)

  THE FOUR RULES OF DEEP WORK

“Rule #1: Work Deeply Rule #2: Embrace Boredom Rule #3: Quit Social Media Rule #4: Drain the Shallows”

After establishing the *why* Deep Work is important, it’s important we move into the all-important practical HOW. Here are the four rules.

Rule #1: Work Deeply. It’s not enough to have the intention to work more deeply. We need to systematically install new routines and rituals to create new habits that will lead to more and more deep work. This is a hallmark of great humans.

Rule #2: Embrace Boredom. For some reason these days, the MOMENT we have a lull in our lives—whether that’s a few minutes before a friend arrives for lunch or in line at the grocery store or whatever—most of us immediately grab our smartphone and compulsively check out whatever we think we need to see right.this.second. We have about a hundredth of a second of tolerance for boredom.

If we want to create the capacity for more deep work, then feeding that beast is NOT a good idea.

It is important that rather than immediately flail around in the shallow end of the distraction pool, we need to EMBRACE BOREDOM. Use those moments to think or breathe deeply. Anything other than our habitual, addictive, impulsive, attention paper-cutting behaviors.

Rule #3: Quit Social Media. If there’s a poster child for shallow living, it’s social media. A logical

analysis is the fact that just because there’s a little benefit to things

like social media (e.g., staying connected to old friends, etc.), doesn’t mean it’s actually worth the time we give it.

If we REALLY want to live deeply—working and loving—we can do better than fritter away our time on social media. The bold among us shall quit it! I’ve never really engaged on the personal side of Facebook and, via the exercises in the book, got even more clarity that, if I’m committed to my deep work, it’s time for my social media time to be nearly eliminated. FUN! (You?!)

Rule #4: Drain the Shallows. The Shallows is the name of a book written capturing the essence of superficial living. (Written by a guy in retreat doing deep work, btw.) As we cultivate deep work, we need to systematically drain the shallow from our lives.

One of my big tips here? SCHEDULE EVERY MINUTE OF EVERY DAY. Not to drive yourself crazy, but to bring more mindfulness to your day.

We want to create big old time blocks (remember: The ONE Thing guys call this the #1 power tool of time management). Then, of course, be flexible as things evolve during the day but bring yourself back to your commitment to using your time consciously as you drain the shallows!

8 Steps to Deep Work and Becoming More Productive

ROUTINES TO RITUALIZE DEEP WORK

“That brings me to the motivating idea behind the strategies that follow: The key to developing a deep work habit is to move beyond good intentions and add routines and rituals to your working life designed to minimize the amount of your limited willpower necessary to transition into and maintain a state of unbroken concentration. If you suddenly decide, for example, in the middle of a distracted afternoon spent Web browsing, to switch your attention to a cognitively demanding task, you’ll draw heavily from your finite willpower to wrest your attention away from the online shininess. Such attempts will therefore frequently fail. On the other hand, if you deployed smart routines and rituals—perhaps a set time and quiet location used for your deep tasks each afternoon—you’d require much less willpower to start and keep going. In the long run, you’d, therefore, succeed with these deep efforts far more often.”

This is Rule #1 of how: We need to create routines and rituals to consistently rock it. Cal presents four different “depth philosophies” and gives examples of each—encouraging us to figure out which approach is optimal for us and go out and rock it. Super quick look:

Monastic Philosophy: Think of a monk in a monastery—removed from the little distractions of normal life. You’re essentially unplugged from the matrix and focused. It’s (obviously) not for everybody but an extraordinarily productive approach if you can pull it off. (This is basically me in my hermit-mode.)

Bimodal Philosophy: In this mode, you alternate between a monastic approach and a normally engaged mode. Cal shares the story of Carl Jung who alternated between a very engaged therapy practice/social life in Zurich and a totally removed monk-mode in his retreat house for writing.

Rhythmic Philosophy: The basic idea here is captured in Jerry Seinfeld’s “chain method” habit of writing a joke every day. In this mode, we’re less attached to a particular schedule and committed to having a “rhythm” of consistently creating—were, like, Seinfeld, we don’t want to break the chain of successful showing up and completing our daily deep work.

Journalistic Philosophy: In this mode, like a journalist who’s ready to write on deadline whenever the situation arises, you fit deep work into your schedule whenever you can. This is Cal’s main approach.

Obviously, check out the book for more. For now, know that we need to find our own philosophy.

Monastic/Bimodal/Rhythmic/Journalistic: Which one of those resonates the most for you?

  DISCIPLINE #1: FOCUS ON THE WILDLY IMPORTANT

“As the authors of The 4 Disciplines of Execution explain, ‘The more you try to do, the less you actually accomplish.’ They elaborate that execution should be aimed at a small number of ‘wildly important goals.’ This simplicity will help focus an organization’s energy to a sufficient intensity to ignite real results.

For an individual focused on deep work, the implication is that you should identify a small number of ambitious outcomes to pursue with your deep work hours. The general exhortation to ‘spend more time working deeply’ doesn’t spark a lot of enthusiasm. In a 2014 column titled, ‘The Art of Focus,’ David Brooks endorsed this approach of letting ambitious goals drive focused behaviour, explaining: ‘If you want to win the war for attention, don’t try to say ‘no’ to the trivial distractions you find on the information smorgasbord; try to say ‘yes’ to the subject that arouses a terrifying longing, and let the terrifying longing crowd out everything else.’”

Remember: It’s a HECK of a lot easier to say “No!” to shallow distractions when you have a REALLY BIG YES!

So, what WILDLY important thing fires you up?

Seriously. Let’s slow down and capture this.

What’s the #1 (challenging but feasible!) thing you’d most like to achieve over the next 6-12 months that would have a wildly awesome positive impact on your life?

My #1 WILDLY IMPORTANT goal = Write it down!

Fantastic. Here’s to going deep and prioritizing our lives around that #1—crowding out the distractions in the process.

  “SHUT-DOWN COMPLETE!”

“At the end of the workday, shut down your consideration of work issues until the next morning —no after-dinner e-mail check, no mental replays of conversations, and no scheming about how you’ll handle an upcoming challenge; shut down work thinking completely. If you need more time, then extend your workday, but once you shut down, your mind must be left free. … Decades of work from multiple different subfields within psychology all point toward the conclusion that regularly resting your brain improves the quality of your deep work. When you work, work hard. When you’re done, be done. Your average e-mail response time might suffer some, but you’ll more than make up for this with the sheer volume of truly important work produced during the day by your refreshed ability to dive deeper than your exhausted peers.” “When you work, work hard. When you’re done, be done.”

As Steven Kotler has said, although being in flow is incredibly rewarding in terms of creativity, productivity, learning and pure enjoyment, it’s also REALLY EXPENSIVE.

Dan Coyle echoed this as well. He retold a story about how he once wrote a piece on the world’s fastest men. He said when these guys weren’t racing they barely moved—they were professional nappers!

It takes a ton of energy to perform at a high level. And that demands a deep level of recovery. One GREAT way to do that is to have a hard stop at the end of every day. Cal makes a strong case for why this is so important and walks us through his personal end of the day ritual in which he basically does one final check of email to make sure he’s handled anything that’s urgent, looks over what was left undone and plans some time the next day to complete it then, as he turns off his computer for the night, he says to himself, “Shut-down complete!”

LOVE that. I do something similar. With my digital sunset, I turn off the computer and return it to its not-gonna-see-you-till-tomorrow home, appreciate all that’s been done, look ahead to the next day, clean up my desk so it’s in a ready-state for tomorrow morning and #done. Time to recover. I may need to add: “Houston. We’re shutting down. 3. 2. 1. Shut-down, complete.”

How about you?

Ready to start shutting down completely and giving that big, awesome brain of yours a chance to rest and recover?

  THE DEEP LIFE

“The deep life, of course, is not for everybody. It requires hard work and drastic changes to your habits. For many, there’s a comfort in the artificial busyness of rapid e-mail messaging and social media posturing, while the deep life demands that you leave much of that behind. There’s also an uneasiness that surrounds any effort to produce the best things you’re possible of producing, as this forces you to confront the possibility that your best is not (yet) that good. It’s safer to comment on our culture than to step into the Rooseveltian ring and attempt to wrestle it into something better.”

The deep life.

Are you ready to take the plunge?

Here’s to diving into the deep end as we optimise, actualise and give our greatest gifts in greatest service to the world!

Feeling enlightened? Download my ebook for free, for a limited time only at: 80 Ways To Find Your Purpose

The post How To Focus Your Concentration and Attention to Get Deep Work Done appeared first on Life Coach Preston | Business Coach Preston | Essentialise.

source https://www.essentialise.co.uk/deep-work-focus-productivity/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=deep-work-focus-productivity

[operationrainfall]

Title Metroid: Samus Returns Developer MercurySteam Entertainment, Nintendo Publisher Nintendo Release Date September 15th, 2017 Genre Adventure, Platformer Platform Nintendo 3DS Age Rating E for Everyone – Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence, Mild Suggestive Themes Official Website

It’s a little hard to believe that it’s been 13 years since we got a proper Metroid game. The last traditional adventure in the series was 2004’s Metroid: Zero Mission, itself a sort of prequel and remake of the original NES game. Since that time, the series became more experimental, and flirted with the 3D first person shooting found in the Prime series as well as the incredibly divisive Other M. And that’s not to mention the unmentionable Federation Force, a game I still maintain doesn’t belong in the series. With Samus Returns, we got not only a return to form, but also the second intensive remake in the series. While I had played some of Metroid II: Return of Samus, the handheld adventure Samus Returns is based on, it frustrated me with several archaic design choices and hardware limitations. With Samus Returns, the experience is totally reimagined, with streamlined new mechanics as well as revamped and totally new boss encounters. The question is, does Samus Returns herald a new beginning for everyone’s favorite bounty huntress? Or should Samus curl up in a Morph Ball and power bomb the series into oblivion?

The adventure begins with a brief recap of the events of the original Metroid, presented with beautiful hand drawn art. Mother Brain may have been put down, but the threat presented by the Metroids still looms large, so Samus is sent by the Federation to SR388 in order to wipe them all out. That’s all the backstory you get, and really all you need for motivation. The series has always lived or died on atmosphere, combat and exploration, and all are on plentiful display here. The game will give you little hints and nudges in the right direction, but you will mostly have to rely on your own wits to find your way through, with some small provisos. One are the Metroid altars. When you first find them, you will be notified of a certain number of Metroids you need to hunt down to lower the purple miasma and provide a route to a new area. You can also return to altars after defeating at least one Metroid to plug in their DNA and reveal the location of any nearby Metroids.

Go on Samus, just roll into the statue’s gullet to get your new Aeion ability… Totally trustworthy.

The other feature that helps simplify things falls under the auspices of the brand new Aeion abilities. These work like any other upgrade, and must be first found in order to use them. There is a nice variety, ranging from tactical to combat, but the very first you get makes exploration a bit easier. This is the Scan Pulse, and it sends out a sonar pulse that reveals a bit of the map around you, as well as revealing hidden destructible blocks in your immediate vicinity. While I was worried this would make exploration too easy, I still got lost plenty of times. The Scan Pulse only serves to light your path, it doesn’t show you the way forward. Furthermore, since all Aeion abilities rely on a special meter, you won’t always have enough juice to activate them. Having said that, the Scan Pulse was always my go to ability, and the other Aeion abilities I only used when I was absolutely forced to (usually for puzzle solving).

Besides the Aeion abilities, there are a number of other improvements and changes to the experience. First, and perhaps most enjoyable, is the new counter attack. By timing it just right, and waiting til an enemy is about to connect with you, you can uppercut foes with your gauntleted fist, stunning them and allowing you a moment to unleash a torrent of firepower. I admit I was initially worried about MercurySteam handling the development of the game (Lords of Shadow: Mirror of Fate was fun, though it wasn’t really the Castlevania I love), but they have more than proven their skill to me in Samus Returns. The counter could have been one note or overpowered, but I found it nuanced and fun. I appreciated you could activate it a little early and still make it work, but also liked that it wouldn’t help you much when multiple enemies swarmed you at once. Best of all, it can make boss fights a little easier, but doesn’t remove the challenge. Another nifty new feature is the free aiming. By holding the L button, you can aim your cannon in any direction, allowing Samus to snipe pesky foes with ease. Though it does occasionally become a chore to hold the L button, especially when the game requires you to also hold the R button to select missiles, overall I had few complaints.

These guys aren’t so tough if you counter their attacks!

While the game isn’t what I would call linear, it does offer a distinct flow. You get to a new area, are told how many Metroids to hunt, find them as well as requisite suit upgrades, kill the Metroids, then return to the altar to reveal the way forward. The one nice thing is you won’t be able to get to a new area without finding the upgrades you need to progress. So if you’re worried about getting stuck, don’t be. I feared I had missed the Grapple Beam in Area 2, and thought I needed it to get anywhere in Area 3. As it turned out, I already had the upgrades required, and was able to find an alternate route using my nifty Spider Ball. Making things a bit easier is the return of Save Pedestals. You’ll note I didn’t say Save Room, since in Samus Returns, these are found out in the open. Further differentiating them, these Save areas don’t fully heal you or replenish your ammo. Instead, you’ll find separate terminals to charge your energy, ammo and Aeion meter. Though it would have been nice to have these all in one terminal, their separation does add a bit more challenge, and encourages you to get better at countering foes, since doing so successfully rewards you with more health and ammo. Lastly, this game takes a page from Castlevania’s playbook, and offers Warp Pedestals. These make backtracking much less of a hassle, and I hope they show up in future 2D Metroid games.

More Samus on Page 2 ->

Perhaps most exciting are the high octane boss fights in the game. You’ll be hunting some 40 Metroids, and while it’s true you’ll face many of the same type, ranging from the basic Alpha to Gamma to Zeta and Omega, the game keeps finding ways to spice these battles up. For one thing, the layout of the arena keeps you on your toes. Sometimes you might fight in a room with lots of floor, others you might be isolated on a rocky island over a pit of lava, being assaulted by angry Metroids. It also goes without saying that each type of Metroid has its own pattern of attacks, though they keep them exciting since the same variety of Metroid might have elemental variants with unique skills. Hot blooded Metroids tend to light the floor on fire while electrical Metroids surround themselves with a field of dangerous energy before charging. It’s good not to get too cocky after getting used to battling them, since even the smallest Metroid can wipe you out if given half a chance. You’ll need to be fast, precise and counter at the right time to guarantee success, and even then, you’re almost certain to take some damage in the bargain. And that’s just talking about the standard Metroids. There are other boss fights I won’t spoil, suffice to say they are some of the most challenging I’ve faced in the series.

Visually, the game is stunning, and makes great use of the 3DS’ strengths. There’s a ton of detail in every environment, from mechanical ruins with fiery traps to ominous caverns full of purple poison, and much more. Likewise, the enemies in the game are delightfully animated, and each looks different and has a distinct attack pattern. While there are some color swaps, this didn’t bother me overmuch, since a new color meant a more powerful variant, and I appreciated that visual cue. Most impressive were the bosses themselves, all monstrous, hungry beasts. If that wasn’t enough, the cutscenes that occur when you counter a boss are all a delight, as each reveals Samus’ character without her having to speak one word. On the sound side of things, I had a bit of a mixed impression. I know this is a remake, so I should expect old songs to get reused. But my complaint is many of the songs I recognized I believe were from Super Metroid. Though that’s probably the best entry in the series, I wanted Samus Returns to have it’s own unique sound, not riff off the best tunes from the rest of the series. That said, using songs from Metroid II wasn’t really an option, since they have not aged well, and Samus Returns does a good job of making the environment of SR388 come to life. Even if the sound invokes less isolation and dread than the music from Super Metroid, it still does a good job of immersing the player. I won’t, however, complain about the sound effects. From the hum of Samus’ blaster to the screech of enraged Metroids, the sound effects truly make the game universe come alive.

Be a dear and tell me where those pesky Metroids are.

There’s a lot I loved about Samus Returns, but it wouldn’t be fair not to mention those areas I felt that the game missed the mark somewhat. The first instance of frustration happened during a chase sequence, where failure to move quickly results in instant death. This portion required you to turn into a morph ball, and sprint and grapple your way forward as a massive grinder tries to get closer and pulp you. My problem was, the game kept resetting my weapon to Beam attack when I died instead of Grappling Beam, which meant I had to spend precious, frantic seconds using the stylus to select it while avoiding instant death. If I could have just paused the game to equip the Grappling Beam instead, this wouldn’t have been an issue. Another annoyance happened when I got super missiles. Missiles can only be fired while holding the R button, but super missiles also require you to touch the icon using your stylus. As a righty, I can’t easily hold R and also hold the stylus to select the super missiles from the menu. I was basically forced to hold R and use my thumb to get super missiles to work, which is risky and imprecise during battles. If the game would only allow you to customize the controls, even if it’s just switching which button does what, this wouldn’t have been an issue.

The Spider Ball is an absolute joy, and makes traversing environments a blast.

My other complaint regards amiibo. As one of those not fortunate enough to secure the new Samus and baby Metroid 2 pack, it also meant I wasn’t getting the full game experience. I don’t mind having amiibo unlock content, but when it’s content integral to the experience, such as unlocking new modes and galleries, there should at least be some alternate method to acquire such features. It’s a slap in the face to fans of the Metroid series who want to experience the full game, but can’t because features were stupidly tied to non essential amiibo. At the very least, if Nintendo intends to continue this practice, they should offer special editions which come bundled with all the requisite amiibo. Gamers are more than willing to pay for such novelties, they just need the opportunity to do so.

Do yourself a favor and don’t take a swim in that…

Even though it stumbled a little, overall I was quite pleased with Metroid: Samus Returns. I managed to beat it in just over 12 hours with 62% map completion, and only got seriously stuck a handful of times. Not only was this remake gorgeous, but it offers a fantastic return to form for the long running series. If you’re a fan of the series, or are just looking for an excuse to jump on board, you can’t go wrong for only $39.99. Best of all, if the ending is any indication, this might not be the last remake of a 2D Metroid we can look forward to! Here’s hoping Samus is around for many years to come, annihilating alien scum and looking great while doing it.

[easyreview cat1title=”Overall” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4.0″]

Review Copy Purchased by Author

REVIEW: Metroid: Samus Returns Title Metroid: Samus Returns