#speaking as a card carrying member this is a very common experience

[phykios]

the thing about nico and percy is that nico was never actually in love with percy, percy was just the first person who made him realize he was gay, and so he thinks percy is it for him. which is just an extremely normal thing to think for new gays

[starwell-tarot]

What are stans of different Ateez members like? A tarot reading ✨

Hello peeps and atinys; I had this idea cross my mind one day, hmm I wonder what fans of a specific idol would be like. Would they take after the idol or be completely different?

I thought it would be a very interesting social experiment to do so I chose Ateez!

I asked three questions per member:

1. What are stans of (member) like in general?

2. What do stans of (member) have in common with each other?

3. What about (member)'s personally attracts his stans to stan him?

From what I've seen, i think they have a chance to at least a little bit accurate 😂 You guys will be the judges! Let me know who you stan and if it is accurate for you or not! It is an experiment after all, let's discuss and get to know each other better! 🖤

Disclaimer: This is for fun purposes only and should be treated as such. Tarot can absolutely be wrong.

TW: mentions of anxiety and insecurities

Hongjoong stans: The rebels

How are Hongjoong stans like (in general) // the high priestess, the emperor R, VI of wands

Hongjoong stans are people who want to carry themselves in the world with pride. They want to showcase/ achieve confidence in who they are and also inspire others to do the same. Their power comes from within, from their self knowledge, from the fact that they know that things in the world cannot stop them from being themselves and living their own truth. They want to be the complete leaders of their own lives and not be afraid to speak up or stand out in a crowd.

What do Hongjoong stans have in common? // II of wands R

Hongjoong stans want to carve out their own path in life. They don't want to follow the norms or give in to what others want out of them when it comes to their life path.

What about Hongjoong's personality attracts Hongjoong stans? // Wheel of fortune, page of wands

Hongjoong stans love how he appears to be so fearless, so unafraid of failure, setbacks, opposition or hardship. One could say Hongjoong 'makes his own luck' with the way he shapes his reality to make the best out of it no matter what happens. All cycles in life can be reformed, rules can be rewritten, perspectives can be changed. Hongjoong strives to reform all those cycles and make this world a better place, and Hongjoong stans are highly thankful of that and want to follow in his lead and do the same.

Hongjoong stans might have prominent fire placements (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius) in their natal chart.

Seonghwa stans: Energetic angels

Also known as the ones who gave me way too many cards

How are Seonghwa stans like (in general) // The Star R

Seonghwa stans are gentle and pure beings. They are optimistic despite the circumstances in society or the hurt they've felt before, and believe in a better world yet to come. Their hopeful persona makes them shine out between their peers as having an almost healing-aura. They can be quite quirky and definitely love helping out people.

What do Seonghwa stans have in common? // VIII of Wands, Knight of Wands

Seonghwa stans are very determined and passionate people. They tend to get really fired up and excited over their likings and tasks, and put a lot of drive into whatever they do. Sometimes they can become quite hyperfocused, even. They might also have a tendency to make impulsive decisions and make it their mission to learn self control throughout their lives.

What about Seonghwa's personality attracts Seonghwa stans? // Death R, King of Pentacles R, III of Swords R

Seonghwa reminds his stans that every single new day is a new beginning. And that new day, can always be turned around to something positive, wether it is a productive day or a day of healing. I get the message that Seonghwa heals people's inner child, actually. His balance of being a responsible, productive adult and a pure hearted boy who loves his Lego and friends, it makes people feel reassured. You can be both, you don't need to kill off parts of yourself to be proper or successful. The inner child is scared they will always be stressed and tired - but Seonghwa reassures them it doesn't have to be that way, he takes them gently by the hand and allows them to play around and get excited again.

I'm not crying you're crying, wHat

Seonghwa stans might have very balanced natal charts in terms of the distribution of the 4 elements, but there is definitely clear mention of Aquarius, Scorpio, Aries, Sagittarius and Leo.

Yunho stans: The ones with tense shoulders

How are Yunho stans like (in general) // The high priestess R

Yunho stans may have a very developed intuition, and they're observant and wise. Their intelligence guides them well in life, and they might also be very introspective, knowing themselves well and being in touch or aware of their thoughts/feelings. That  makes them very grounded and self sufficient, their power comes from within and the connection they have with themselves. They might also have an interest towards mysteries, the occult or spirituality, perhaps they're psychics or witches.

What do Yunho stans have in common? // Knight of pentacles R

Yunho stans are diligent, cautious and responsible. They're the types to really think things through before saying/doing anything, weighting their options carefully so that they don't end up in risky or detrimental situations. However, sometimes when weighting options they discover none of them are actually satisfactory for them, so they often look for loopholes, therefore making them a bit rebellious too even if it looks like they always play by the rules. Also might be prone to procrastination, missing the initial push of going through with something because their minds are racing to find the perfect way to do something.

What about Yunho's personality attracts Yunho stans? // X of pentacles & king of pentacles

They admire Yunho's ability to look spontane and carefree. Perhaps he isn't fully like that on the inside, but on the outside Yunho looks to be such a loving, optimistic person who can be content with life. He gives off the vibe that everything and anything can be handled when the time arises and that there's always a way for things to be okay. That is very comforting to Yunho stans, who might struggle with going with the flow or letting things be out of their control.

Yunho stans might have prominent earth placements in their natal charts (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn).

I'm a Yunho stan and this is hella accurate for me

Yeosang stans: the truth seekers

What are Yeosang stans like (in general) // The Tower R

Yeosang stans are honest and straightforward with their expression. If they don't like something, they express it. Likely to be opinionated (in a good way) and go getters. They are driven and motivated, and even if they might not realize it, very tough and resilient. Even if they are afraid of facing failure, they still persue their goals and desires with genuinity.

What do Yeosang stans have in common? // Ace of Swords R

Yeosang stans might feel confused or anxious very often. They have many ideas, and like I mentioned previously they have a fear of failure and it's making them insecure about the best way to approach things. Both skeptical and curious, Yeosang stans question everything all the time - their own morals, beliefs, society's as well. Finding the answers to all these questions tends to overwhelm them and make them overthink, or stop them from even making a decision at all.

What about Yeosang's personality attracts Yeosang stans? //  IX of Cups

They love how he isn't afraid to voice out his dissatisfaction. Yeosang is known to be quite the truth spitting Queen, and Yeosang stans absolutely adore that. They love his humour and the way he knows his own worth. They probably find him very like-minded to themselves.

Yeosang stans might have prominent Scorpio, Gemini, Aquarius, Libra and Pisces in their natal chart.

San stans: the emotion swimmers

What are San stans like (in general) // IX of Cups R, X of Pentacles

San stans are very emotional beings by nature. They don't care much about material things and probably all the things they do is for the better of their family. (That could also be friends or lovers of course, people close enough to consider your family.) They probably also prefer the indoors and conferable spaces and people. They tend to have a pretty thick protective bubble around themselves and might not open up easily to people. Afraid to get hurt, they want to protect their emotional welfare at all costs.

What do San stans have in common? // The hanged Man

San stans are probably very anxious about the way they are seen by others, and/or have a bad vision of themselves. They've often felt out of place or different in their lives and that has made them very self judgemental or self-condescending.

What about San's personality attracts San stans? // Ace of Cups R

They love how San is an endless overflowing fountain of love. Wether he's offering love outward to his family, friends or fans, or he's offering love to himself through self-love, San is always so loving. He's so comfortable with the feeling and so unafraid of it, it baffles San stans. Love is San's biggest strength, and San stans often need some of that strength. There's a mutual exchange of love and strength and hearts beat a bit happier.

Wow I'm corny

San stans might have predominant water placements (Scorpio, Cancer, Pisces) in their natal charts.

Mingi stans: the badasses

What are Mingi stans like (in general) // Queen of Swords

Mingi stans are quite tough and resilient people. They are fighters, not afraid to get their hands dirty. Independent and self-reliant, they constantly search for more wisdom to help them out in life, too. In some cases, they can even be grumpy cats, but for the most part I would call them realists.

What do Mingi stans have in common? // Knight of Cups

Mingi stans chase after real feelings and real connections. Their feelings and thoughts run very deep and they can't stand being shallow about anything. Due to their intelligence and devotion, their dreams are never too far away. They follow their heart with grace and know how to make decisions that will lead them to live a fulfilling life. They're romantic and charming.

oMg sexy beasts hello

What about Mingi's personality attracts Mingi stans? // The Hanged Man R, IX of Pentacles R, Queen of Pentacles R

Mingi stans appreciate how different Mingi is. He's unique in their eyes, and they love listening to the views he has about the world. It feels eye opening to them. Mingi also just .. melts their hearts. Perhaps Mingi stans usually strive to be in control, tough and pokerface, but they can't do that when it comes to Mingi. Their hearts go badum and they get heart eyes. He warms them up on any cold day.  They want to protect him at all costs and shower him with affection. 

Mingi stans might have a pretty balanced natal chart of air, water and earth.

Wooyoung stans: the loving wild cats

How are Wooyoung stans like (in general) // Judgement

Wooyoung stans are open minded philosophers and fearless explorers. They view life kinda like a journey, of ups and downs which can teach you many important lessons. They could probably write a novel of all the important life lessons they've lived that they keep close to their mind. And they're always open for more, more experiences, more knowledge and adventure. They are also likely to be oriented towards social justice, and be very keen on enforcing good morals and getting rid of closed-mindedness in the world.

What do Wooyoung stans have in common? // King of cups

Wether they are introverted or extroverted, Wooyoung stans actually love spending time with people. If they're not popular and with a lively group of friends, they surely have those few people they love to the moon and back and wouldn't mind spending all day with. Wooyoung stans know how to gracefully receive the gifts of love given to them by their community or close circle, and they're friendly and empathic too, in return. But sometimes, they might wear their heart on their sleeve without realizing.

What about Wooyoung's personality attracts Wooyoung stans? // Strength R

They love his wild and untamed nature. They love how he isn't afraid to show off his true colors all the time. The raw honesty of his personality, wether it's something socially accepted or something seen as weird, is very attractive to Wooyoung stans. They admire it and probably aspire to have such courage of expression, too.

Wooyoung stans might have prominent Scorpio, Pisces, Cancer or Leo in their natal chart.

Jongho stans: The champions

How are Jongho stans like (in general) // Knight of Sowrds R

Jongho stans are absolute warriors. They are headstrong and courageous, their intelligence aiding them greatly in powering through any obstacle and overcoming any challenge. They are oriented towards fighting for justice and love spreading words of encouragement to their peers.

What do Jongho stans have in common? // IX of Pentacles R, Queen of Wands

Jongho stans are honest and genuine. Despite their strong will and courage, they are not reckless or chaotic, they are actually quite calm and down to earth. But they do know when you fire up, and stand their ground. Their confidence and fierceness makes them very charismatic in the eyes of many.

What about Jongho's personality attracts Jongho stans? // II of Pentacles R

They appreciate how Jongho picks his own fights. He puts upmost priority of what and whom is important to him, and zones in on that. He's always concerned with being the best at what he does, (aka in his preferred domain) he doesn't try to be the best at things that don't concern him. He sets his priorities tight. Plus, Jongho stans find him very motivating and empowering. He puts fuel on their fire, puts gas in their tank. To them, he's living proof that nothing is impossible if you have the drive to do it.

Jongho stans have predominant air and fire placements in their natal charts.

I thought this to be so interesting. For most, it turned out the stans were really similar to the idol, but then Mingi and Yunho... LMAO. It's cool there's some ying yang energy in there too!

Thank you for reading and let's discuss!

[mallickshah]

A club council meeting.

Because of the unfortunate events that transpired and were (falsely!!) reported by The Deck, on the morning of September 7 2024, The Club Council found themselves obligated to hold an emergency meeting at their current headquarters, Ace of Club Mallick’s house. This meeting took place in a living room that now resembled more of a formal office than a family living room.All 8 members of the Council were present during this meeting, it went as follow.

✨with the brilliant participation of: @nihtegalc​ (bry) & @hilo--keahi (alex)✨ ✨(great collab, let’s do this again \o/)

The news came as a bit of a shock; but not the kind that would leave him terrified and disoriented. More so of the kind that had him rubbing at his temples and closing his eyes as he leaned back further in the chair he was in. The cushion welcomed him instantly, a recent gift from one of the people he’d helped, it was also gods given since it was halting whatever throbbing in his skull would have begun to pound by now. The present hadn’t been necessary and Mallick hadn’t wanted it when he’d received it but now, he could only think about how much he would have regretted that decision. 

Aside from that, it did help him remind why he had to think about this recent issue with a clear head. Did he have his doubts when it came to the decisions he took, or the ones he’d taken? Of course, how could he not? Everything he did from now on would always fall back on his shoulders and right on the head of every member of his faction. But he had to, because it would help to do so.

It didn’t help that he knew these people like the back of his hands and that was also why he did not want to control them, but rather turn them towards something more beneficial. On their own. So of course, Mallick shouldn’t be surprised by these types of incidents. But why Spades of all factions? Clubs had never shown any signs of wanting a war with them in particular, as far as he’d witnessed growing up, Spades had been a sore point sure--what’s with their respectability and the reputation they held contrasting strongly against Clubs’. But Mallick had always felt this weird agreement with other Clubs that trash talking them was one thing, actually going against them though? Another one they’d been entirely not into for the longest.

This smelled like more than it seemed; especially with the report that some key evidence pointed directly to his involvement. Mallick would love to see what that key evidence was exactly.

For now though, he kept his ears ope to the council members sat in the room were talking about, they were mostly arguing over the next measures to take from what he could gather. They’d already ruled out that Mallick had ordered the attack, if the attack had been done by Clubs at all. Key evidence or not, he’d had no time to plan any attack on anyone. But Mallick had not ruled out that someone in this room might want something bigger than the chair they were sitting in. He hadn’t ruled that out from the moment he’d formed an alliance with them. Mallick let his fingers part as he peeked at them through it, he could use a truth potion right now. Or a spell. 

Something to reveal their cards in a less suspicious way than the one he felt like he’d be forced to take soon enough. His first attempt at quitting them was interrupted by one of the members suddenly voicing out something as ridiculous as, “I’ll bet ya’ they did the whole thing all by themselves to accuse us and cause a war!” 

“Yeah, I mean who would benefit from this? Not us.” Another voice agreed, and out of all seven of them, Mallick had always known those two for being the first to start talking about things that made little to no sense. However, they’d been posted there because of the trust some very highranked Clubs had in them. Mallick had appointed those he trusted beyond measure and he’d made sure to pick out from the rest those who would do the job ‘just as well’ as the ones he’d handpicked. He couldn’t just have a council of members full of only his people, Clubs would not settle for that. 

He wanted to interject right then and counterpoint this, but something told him to sit back and wait for more of them to add more theories. Which made Fallon speak in turn, against these allegations. Mallick wasn’t surprised, even if he forgot sometimes that she did belong to the Spade faction. 

“Why would they attack us now when they’ve always been friendly or neutral?” 

Fair point. They all looked at each other, the ones who had thrown the accusations probably ransacking their empty brains only good for inciting feuds to answer her. But as none came, he heard her take in a sigh, which made him hold back the grin he had on his face. He would have missed this if she hadn’t decided to be part of the whole thing, the way her expression gave away how stupid she thought people ideas were sometimes. Good old Fallon of course went on imperturbed. 

“We’ve been through a water crisis before and they didn’t need our supplies then, why would they need our supplies now?” 

To be fair, Mallick had thought that this was definitely a ploy by someone--Spades specifically? Maybe for a tiny second. He wouldn’t tell her that though, he’d prefer to not get chewed out by her silence, that spoke with more volume most times. But he agreed with her, there was no surprise there. Although recent news about Spade’s Ace could leave room for some reasonable doubts.

Which meant as soon as the other members were beginning to try to find a way to justify their accusations he finally interjected, he didn’t want this wild idea to plant seed and start growing a monstrous infected tree. Plus some of them were now mumbling about Fallon being ex-spade, so of course she would be defending them, and what said she wasn’t actually on their side despite having defected? 

“Enough.” He commanded and they all stopped and turned their eyes on him, Fallon included. Mallick heaved out a soft sigh, “If Fallon was not for Clubs, she would not have helped us for 3 whole years without ever asking for anything more than what was offered to her as a deal. If you cannot trust her, maybe it is you that needs to rethink your role here as a council member.” 

Displeasure lined up some member’s features, but that was now common to see. Plus, how rich of him to say this when he didn’t trust half of them in this room. Mallick cleared his throat and shook his head. He’d already made peace with the fact that some discussions would simply never end up with them seeing eye to eye, it was expected. He’d had years of experience doing this in The Resistance.

“Spades are not our enemies, they’ve never been, end of that topic.” Whether his stance pleased them or not, they needed to move on from this. “Let’s put our brains to better use.”

They needed to focus on a solution, not what another faction wanted out of this, but what this meant for them as a faction. What was done was done, there was no turning the wheels back. Something had been stolen, but more importantly, lives had been lost. Mallick knew what he had to do next. 

“Did we find the stolen shipment anywhere on our territory?” He asked with a calmer tone this time. That was the one that always seemed to get them to take him more seriously, he’d noted that earlier on. 

“No, we’ve sent some people to take a look but so far nothing’s come through.” 

Before Mallick could interject with another inquiry, another member of the council leaned forward on their elbows and added in, “No witnesses either, but some villagers said they heard a whole lot of ruckus on that same day. A lot of groaning and screaming too, another villager said. They live close to an Inn.”

There did exist a mention of no other bodies but the ones of the Spades being found, plus some of the Spades having disappeared. Mallick took his hand off his face, interest piqued as he regarded the member who’d just spoken. 

“And where’s that Inn located?” 

“Close to where the ambush happened, too close to my liking even.”

Mallick also wanted to throw his hands in the air, scream a little, let out some of this frustration. But he couldn’t, not with them in the same room, he also would never find the time to. The image he wanted to upkeep would not let him do such a thing even by himself, because nowadays, by himself he felt as though he had to stay even calmer. 

This meeting had to come to an end, Mallick surveyed the members of the Council, an eyebrow arching expectentantly, “Any last thoughts?” hoping it would be something new and not going back to any of the other points they’d dismissed. It seemed alas, that someone had something else to add.

Hilo who had remained quiet until now, observing the fight without participating, most likely gathering his thoughts without yet voicing them. Said thoughts that Mallick was certain would bring forth a new angle. Hilo had always managed to bring it back to something even more important in every change that occurred in these meetings, right back to the lowrankers. It was his main point of focus after all, so there was no surprise there. If Clubs and Spades went to war, it was them who would likely suffer the worst of it. So when his call for last thoughts came out and he finally made to speak up, Mallick was attentive and he expected the rest of the Council to do the same.

“It’s important we find out who’s behind this, but it’s just as important that we patch things up with the Spade faction, too.” Hilo cast a brief glance towards Fallon, one that spoke of a shared understanding for those existing between two separate worlds. 

“We should approach them with some sign of goodwill. If supplies were stolen or destroyed, we should swallow our pride and offer some. Show them that even if it was Clubs, whoever carried out this attack doesn’t speak for the best of us. And even if it wasn’t, we’re better than rising to the bait.” 

Hilo leveled a glance at the worst of the quarrelers then, arms unfolding from his broad chest in a half-shrug. Mallick agreed with a nod, whatever disgruntled thoughts others had, he seemed to catch sight of some expressions turning contrit at the fact that this was not a lie in itself. This had been one of his main talking points many times before, the pride that lay in being a Club and how they had to take it back and make it entirely theirs and no one else should have the right to monopolize it.

“There’s honor in fighting. It’s the way of the Clubs. But there’s no honor in letting someone else pick our battles for us.” As Hilo concluded, Mallick could only lay back one more time and raise his hand towards no goals particularly, a silent applaud for Hilo’s words maybe. 

“I couldn’t agree more, giving back what they think we took or destroyed will be handled then. As to the last point about our honor that Hilo made, I think at least on that one we’ve all always seen eye to eye or am I wrong?” 

The challenge was evident in his tone and he already knew that Hilo and Fallon would not be the one he had to survey, but he was pleased to notice that as usual, when it came to the main objective this Council had been created for, choosing better or worse for themselves by themselves, the consensus would never change. So the nods of approval, even if underlined with other disagreements, was slow, receptive and that was all Mallick needed to put an end to this meeting. 

With a quiet sigh he regarded one of the Council members in charge of communication coming in and going out. 

“Bring forth two messengers and someone else to write down the messages; I’d like to request a meeting with the deck and a scroll of advice sent out to every house in this faction.” 

They gave him a nod and left the room without any further comment, leaving Mallick to softly dismiss the meeting. Farewells were given and once alone, Mallick knew he’d have at best five minutes to rest before he had to keep moving again, that should be enough for him to close his eyes and fill his mind with nothing but a welcomed void. 

[makaojr]

Tips and tricks for travelling in Africa. Ultimate guide

written by Makaojr

April 14, 2019

You’ve finally taken the plunge and booked that ticket for an epic African adventure, you’ve planned a rough itinerary, picked your safari, and soon you’ll be on your way – hooray!

From the incredible natural environment to the rich cultural history, the friendly locals to the vibrant markets, Africa has everything, sometimes all at once. There’s just something about this fascinating continent that pulls you in and keeps you wanting to return over and over again. But there’s no denying that it can also be a daunting place to travel for even the hardiest of explorers!

We recently spent 4 months travelling through southern and central Africa, and we compiled all the things we either learnt along the way (through misfortune or trial and error!), or wish we’d known before we left for you, so you can focus on having the stress-free African adventure of your dreams!

How to speak the language

If you’re worried you’re going to get stuck at the airport in Tanzania forever because you can’t direct your taxi driver in fluent swahili, stay calm.

You’ll be mighty relieved to discover that despite the 1,500-2,000 local languages spoken in Africa, English is actually an official language in many countries (along with German or French in a few countries!).

Don’t miss out by being lazy and relying solely on English though; learn some key phrases. The locals will appreciate it and you’ll have a much richer experience for it – like the time a friendly Malawian fruit stall owner threw in a few extra pieces because we attempted our best Chichewa with him!

What the locals are like

Forget what you’ve seen in the movies; collectively, Africans are some of the friendliest people on the planet. It’s common to be greeted with a huge smile and hello, and most are keen to learn your name, where you’re from and why you’re visiting.

You’ll probably encounter the phrase ‘Mzungu’ being thrown your way – often by locals smiling as they wave out of car windows or pass you on the street. The literal translation from Swahili is ‘person who wanders without purpose’, though these days it’s used to describe any white foreigner. It’s mostly said in a friendly, joking way – so try not to take offence.

It’s also important to remember that Africa as a whole is very religious (Christianity and Islam are widely practiced) and quite conservative so be respectful of this in your speech and dress.

How to avoid border hassles

Unfortunately corrupt border processes are one aspect of African travel that can be seriously frustrating for travellers.

Most of the time you’ll pass with no issue, other times you may have to wait hours for your passport to be processed without explanation, or be asked to pay a corrupt official a bribe. Then there are the touts offering to exchange your money at rates that are totally ridiculous, or trying to sell you anything from bangles to samosas (side note: always buy the samosas, guys).

Thankfully, we managed to make it through eight different border controls with minimal hassle, and you can too, by following these tips:

Be informed: Know your visa requirements before visiting any country in Africa. Get in touch with your local embassy before travelling, or pay a visit to Project Visa for answers to all your visa-related questions.

Be organised: While you can get most visas at the individual points of entry, arranging them ahead of time saves a tonne of hassle (and sometimes, money!) later.

Be money smart: Always carry spare US dollars just in case. If you need to change money on the border, always know the exchange rate before you get there and bargain hard.

Be stubborn – if someone looks like they’re deliberately holding things up to make you pay to “rush it through” firmly (and politely!) ask to have your passport back. If you’re certain that your visa meets all the requirements but you’re being asked to pay more to get it approved, decline and ask to speak to another official.

Above all else: approach the process with a smile and have a laugh. It’s easier that way!

How to travel around

One of the best things about travelling in Africa is no matter where you are or where you want to go, getting from A-to-B is always possible. How you get from A-B however, is another story altogether.

Taxis, tuk tuks, mopeds, rickshaws, you name it… If it has wheels and appears capable of travelling some distance, you can probably travel on it. You might find yourself sitting on a flight or bus, crammed into a local mini bus with 25 other people (and the odd goat or chicken!), or hitching a ride in the back of a pick-up with half a village heading home from the markets.

For the record: travelling by mini-bus is an African rite of passage and we totally recommend embracing the uncomfortable seat and cramped conditions for this insight to how the locals live!

For a journey you can relax into, our tips are:

Always travel by day. Always.

Always wear your seatbelt

Don’t expect to leave or arrive on time – things run on Africa time here!

You may, or may not, get a seat. You may sit in the aisle of the bus for 5 hours with a chicken pecking at your head. Roll with it – it’s all part of the adventure!

For most mini bus journeys, you can negotiate your fare

Never pay a “bag storage fee” on large buses. It’s a scam – your ticket price includes your baggage.

Accommodation

From tailor-made luxury safari tents where you can live like Prince Harry, through to your standard backpacker dorms where snore-proof earplugs are a must – the options of where to lay your head in Africa are many and varied.

Many travellers actually choose to camp their way through Africa (we often did!), because the camping facilities are accessible, safe, full of good amenities, and super cheap. Plus, what better way to make new friends than by sitting round the campfire swapping stories about your day?!

Larger cities have all the usual accommodation options, the further into the countryside you venture, the less options are available. Don’t fear though, you’ll ALWAYS find somewhere to rest up after a hard day’s adventuring!

Things to consider:

Always book accommodation well in advance during peak season (May – October). Places like Namibia are extremely popular, with very limited accommodation in desert areas.

Use guide books, online reviews or local recommendations. Does it get good reviews?!

Does your accommodation have a safe, lockers or locks?

Is there a night watchman/security to make sure you and your belongings are safe overnight?

How to stay healthy

Medication & health: Check with your GP about what vaccinations and medication you’ll need before you depart.

Hot tip: Most countries require Yellow Fever vaccination proof just to enter the country.

We also packed the following to keep us fighting adventure-fit on the road:

Anti malarial medication

Antibiotics

Painkillers

Antihistamine

Iodine tablets

Hydrocortisone cream

Insect repellent: DEET is your new best friend!

* Sadly, though the lakes in Africa look inviting, many are home to a horrible parasite called Bilharzia. We’re not in the business of horror stories, so we’ll leave you to investigate the delights of that one yourself – but you DO NOT want to get it. Always check with locals before taking the plunge.

Water: There’s a pretty common misconception that there’s no clean drinking water in Africa, but we’re here to tell you it is possible to drink water straight from the tap in South Africa, Namibia, and parts of Zambia and Botswana. Head north and you’ll need to be cautious, but carry iodine tablets and you’ll be fine!

Food: All you really need to know is that food in Africa is delicious. It’s also mostly high quality – though perhaps avoid meat in remote areas due to a lack of proper refrigeration.

How to stay safe

We actually felt more safe in African countries than we did in other regions of the world we’ve visited. However, as always it pays to do your research before you go.

Keep the following in mind and you’ll have a stress-free trip!

Leave the flashy jewelry and designer labels at home – they’re not practical, and make you a target instantly.

Wear a money belt OR only take a day’s worth of cash out with you.

When taking money out at an ATM, be aware of your surroundings. If something seems suspicious, move along quickly.

We’re photographers, which means we always travel with big cameras and even bigger lenses. But you’d never know, because they’re safely locked away in our bags till needed. Don’t make yourself a target by waving yours around!

Don’t walk the streets at night by yourself, especially in larger cities or towns. If you’re out late, take a taxi or Uber, every time.

Pickpockets exist here as they do everywhere, so if you’re visiting markets, bazaars, train or bus stations be extra careful.

Going it alone

Africa is a wonderful place to travel solo. If you’re open, you can have wonderfully rich experiences while meeting incredible people. You’ll also find that it’s pretty safe – any dangers that exist for both males and females are pretty the same as anywhere else you’d travel to.

Where possible, follow these tips and you should have no issues:

Be cautious when travelling to remote regions

Don’t travel alone at night

Register your travel plans with your government

Keep in regular contact with members at home

Money matters

Africa isn’t a cheap holiday by any stretch – generally the daily costs for a traveller are much higher than in Asia or even South America.

Budget around $100USD per day per person for transport, accommodation and food. Safaris and adventure activities bump up the cost substantially, so you’ll need to allocate more for those.

There are 54 currencies in Africa, so things can get tricky if you’re travelling to multiple countries. Here are a few tips to handle it all:

Most southern African countries have ATM’s or credit card facilities. If not, it’s best to find a local bank and stock up on currency.

If you have a large amount of currency left over when leaving a country, exchange it at the border with a reputable source. Only in extreme circumstances should you use street vendors

Always hide at least $200 USD somewhere safe in case of emergencies

Credit card fraud is big time in Southern Africa, so be wary. We had our cards skimmed in South Africa and temporarily lost AUD$1500!

Tipping is generally expected, though it varies region to region

Staying scam-free

Our general rule of thumb is “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”; live by this in Africa and you should be okay.

Here’s what to avoid:

People offering a good or service (e.g. tour) for free, including tours, only to charge exorbitantly at the conclusion of the service

Fake products or tickets being sold at inflated prices

Payment for stored baggage on bus rides

Insisting on carrying baggage at airports or bus depots, then demanding a large ‘tip’

Over inflated taxi or bus rides – always agree on a price first!

People posing as refugees, students or orphans begging

Other ‘payments’ at border crossings, including health assessments or for bogus documents

Be mindful of resources

Electricity, or lack of it, is big issue in Africa. Many areas have it, yet over 600 million people still go without. As technology develops so does access, however if you are travelling, please take this into consideration. Switch those lights off and unplug your chargers!

We recommend carrying a worldwide travel adaptor and a solar charging device (not all rest camps will have consistent access to power!).

Same goes for water – Africa is a dry continent, and has long-suffered droughts. Short showers = benefit for all.

[btschooseafic]

Hey you, what’s your dream?

Pairing: platonic!oc x ot7

Details: manager!oc, predebut/idolverse, partial BTS World!verse

Summary: Jimin does his best to get abs worth showing off.

Warnings: This is a fictional story based on real events. The characters presented here are not the same as their real life counterparts. (TW: eating disordered behavior/body image issues/perfectionism) [Masterlist]

Track 13: Jimin’s diet

Body Terror Song-AJJ

“I'm very sorry that you have to have a body

One that will hurt you and be the subject of so much of your fear”

Aviva had somewhat been avoiding Jin since their last conversation—which was difficult, as she was his manager, and they were smack-dab in the middle of a busy training schedule.

Hoseok was currently working with the choreographers to put together a routine to go with their debut song. Aviva hadn’t come to every rehearsal like she used to, busy talking to booking agents, and besides that, not having much (any) experience to do with dancing. Still Hoseok was a friend, and an important group member, so when he asked her to come see what they were working on and give him some feedback, she came.

“This part is on the offbeat, then you turn,” Hoseok explained, demonstrating the move for the other boys. “So, you want to take it from the top?”

Aviva applauded as she entered. “As expected from our dance captain!” She grinned at him, never unimpressed with Hobi’s dance skills. He smiled back at her.

“Don’t overdo it, Avi-yah, his head is big enough already,” Namjoon warned.

“Go hydrate while you have the chance!” Hoseok ordered, pointing off to the side where there was a line of water bottles along the floor. Jimin was already sitting, drinking and stretching. The others moved over to him, chatting as Hoseok sighed.

“What’s wrong, Hobi?” Aviva wondered. Hoseok shrugged.

“It’s going pretty well for our first run, but… there’s just one problem. I can’t help but feel like something’s missing…” He tapped his chin, looking frustrated. “What do you think, Avi?”

Aviva grimaced. “Sorry, I think I’m pretty useless in this situation. I’ve told you before, I don’t know much about dance routines—”

“Yah! Don’t put yourself down like that,” Hoseok said. “You might not be a dancer, but I’ve seen you speaking to the choreographers, watching videos, attending practices and taking notes. You’re our manager, and you’re our friend, your opinion is worth something.”

“Okay…” Sometimes Hoseok made her feel like crying with his emotional words. Half the time she was pretty sure he was doing it on purpose.

After watching the routine, Aviva spoke to Hoseok off to the side again.

“Yeah, I kind of get what you mean. It’s a pretty solid routine, but there’s no…” She made a like explosion movement with her hands. “No spice to make it stand out.”

Hoseok laughed, copying her movement. “Spice! You’re adorable, Aviva.”

“Shut up,” she muttered, feeling her face get hot.

“You know… I think you might have given me an idea though,” he said, leaning down to whisper it in her ear. Her eyes widened.

“Well that’s… daring.”

“Right?” He grinned widely.

“And, I guess, from a numbers standpoint, that would fit our projected demographic well.”

“You mean we’re hot so teenage girls are gonna be into it,” Hoseok translated.

“Teenage girls are one of the most powerful forces I know of,” Aviva said seriously.

“Hey, I’m not gonna argue with that.” Hoseok nodded. “I grew up with an older sister and five girl cousins around my age, and they saved my ass several times in our teenaged years.” He paused. “Come to think of it, they were the reason I got into trouble in the first place, half of the time, but eh, at least they cleaned up after themselves. Anyway…” He cupped his hands over his mouth. “Okay, boys, I have an important announcement to make as your choreographer!” The boys gathered around. “We have a signature dance move for our debut song! It’s… drum roll, please.” Yoongi slapped at Jin’s arm, creating a staccato beat. Jin winced and pouted at him. Hoseok laughed. “The ab reveal! We’re gonna pull up our shirts in the middle of the routine and show them off!”

Namjoon’s eyes widened.

“Are you sure? Pulling up our shirts? That seems… over the top.”

“The top over your head?” Aviva suggested, grinning. Everyone blinked at her. Aviva tilted her head. “Ah, that doesn’t work as well in Korean…”

Namjoon repeated it slowly to himself in English and then rolled his eyes.

“Ah, who are you, Jin-hyung?”

“She’s not as handsome,” Jin said immediately. Then he shrunk back as she looked at him. “Sorry…”

“Joon’s right though, we don’t want to overwhelm our audience,” Hoseok said thoughtfully. “So let’s just have one person do it! More of an impact!” He pointed excitedly at Jimin.

“Why… why are you looking at me…?”

“We’re counting on you, Jimin-ah! The success of our debut song is riding on your abs!” Namjoon said, clapping him on the shoulder and then speeding out of the room, the other boys following suit, as if afraid Hoseok might change his mind and make them all do it again. Aviva frowned.

“You okay, Jiminie? If it’s too much pressure, Hoseok can think of something else.”

Hoseok frowned. “What? I like this idea,” he grumbled. She elbowed him. “Yeah, sure, fine. Leave to me, manager.”

“No, it’s fine,” Jimin said, his smile a lot weaker than his usual shining grin. “I’ll do it. Don’t worry about me, manager-noona.” He left the room quickly. Aviva let out a breath.

“You guys better not pressure him too much. Honestly, it’s like we’ve learned nothing from that whole thing with Kookie…”

Over the next few days, Aviva kept an eye out for Jimin. She made a worrying observation that he didn’t appear to be eating, turning down even Jin’s home cooked meals in favor of diet shakes.

So Aviva sucked up her pride and asked Jin and Taehyung for help.

“I’ve heard it’s unfortunately pretty common in the idol industry, but has Jimin-ah done anything like this before?” Aviva asked Tae as they gathered in her kitchen early in the morning.

Taehyung had been excited to be invited to her apartment, but now seemed nervous. “Ah, noona, you know, I’m not really sure it’s my place to talk about that.”

“Right…” Aviva let out a breath. “Right, that’s true. I should just talk to him about it directly, but I was worried he was going to get embarrassed and not want to talk…”

“That’s a possibility,” Taehyung agreed.

“So, I thought I’d carry out Plan B at the same time as Plan A,” she told him.

“Is that where I come in?” Jin wondered, pointing at himself. Aviva nodded.

“I wanted to ask for your help making a lunchbox for Jimin-ah.”

“A lunchbox!” Taehyung clapped his hands together excitedly.

Jin smiled. “That’s a lovely idea.”

“If you’re comfortable telling me some of his favorite foods, and we can try to keep it as healthy as possible as well,” Aviva thought.

“Right!” Taehyung nodded, his expression turning serious. “I will make a list.”

“I’ll think of some healthy recipes,” Jin added. Aviva smiled.

“Thank you both.”

“Ah, there is something I wanted to talk to you about, Aviva-yah, if you don’t mind,” Jin said. She looked at him, curious. He cleared his throat. “In private, maybe?” Taehyung glanced at him, looking slightly suspicious. Aviva considered for a moment, and then pulled out her wallet.

“This is the company card,” she told Taehyung, giving it to him. “Why don’t you buy some ingredients for us to work with?”

“Yes!” Taehyung flashed his typical victory sign. “Grocery store, here I come!” He rushed out the door.

“Don’t forget your coat… ah, too late.” Aviva shook her head. “That boy.” She turned, seeing Jin smiling at her. “What?”

“Ah, no, I just thought, for all their flirting, mostly you just seem like their mom.”

She blinked. “Really? I thought that was Namjoon-ah, or you, maybe.”

“Me?” Jin tilted his head. “Well, I guess we can all share the burden. It takes a village to raise a child, right?”

“What did you want to talk to me about?” She cut to the chase.

“I wanted to apologize, again, for overstepping, when I was drunk,” he said. She frowned. “I wouldn’t bring it up again, but I know you’ve been avoiding me, so I realized it must have really hurt your feelings.” She ran her hand through her hair.

“I don’t know… It, that wasn’t very professional of me, oppa, sorry.”

“I accept the apology from you as a manager, but from you as a friend… it’s unnecessary. In the matter of friendship, I was in the wrong.”

“You didn’t hurt my feelings,” she said. “You just brought up something… something I’m not ready to think about, and I was worried you might bring it up again if we talked one-on-one.”

“Ah, well, I guess I almost have done that?” Jin smiled sheepishly at her. “I’ll do my best to avoid it from now on.”

“…Okay,” she said. “But, maybe… some day, if I ever feel like I’m ready to talk about it, would you… would you listen to me? Even if it doesn’t make very much sense.”

“Of course,” Jin said, taking her hands in his and squeezing them lightly before letting go. “Now! Please tell me you have a spare apron, because I am too handsome in this shirt to get it messy.”

She snorted. “Ah, yeah, there’s the one I bought for Soonie as a gag gift.” She pulled the frilly pink apron out of a closet and handed it to him.

“Hmmm…” He was blushing slightly.

“Oppa?” She gave him a weird look.

“Ah, it’s nothing. I just thought… she’d probably look cute in this.”

Aviva nodded. “Of course. She looks cute in everything.”

Jin laughed. “Hmm.”

Later that day, Aviva headed to the studio. She could hear Jimin working on his moves in the room down the hall. Then she heard a loud slam and ran forward to find Jimin collapsed on the ground.

“Jimin!” She quickly moved over to him, pulling his head onto his lap. He groaned.

“Ah!” He put a hand on his head, wincing. She ran her fingers through his hair gently, trying to see if she could feel any bumps or cuts. Jimin made a happy little noise, closing his eyes for a moment before jerking out of her arms. “Manager-noona!” He sat up, scouting away from her. “I’m alright. I just got a bit dizzy and it made me mess up the step.”

“Jimin-ah,” she said, trying to catch his eye, though he appeared to be avoiding her gaze. “I know this can be a sensitive topic for some people, but have you eaten today?”

“Hmm, that’s right, it’s about lunch time. Do you think you can hand me my bag? There’s a shake in there.”

“Jimin-ah,” she said again, taking his hands in hers. They were shaking. “I’m worried about you.”

“I’m fine!” Jimin said, his cheerful tone a little forced to her ears. “This diet is really working! I’m starting to get abs! Wanna see?” He started pulling up his shirt. “Here—”

“Yah, pabo!” Taehyung appeared in the doorway.

“Ah.” Aviva smiled slightly. “I thought you might have followed me here.”

“Tae?” Jimin frowned at him. “Who’re you calling pabo?”

“You!” Taehyung said. “I saw you fall over.” Jimin’s face flushed. Tae looked at Aviva.

“Show him what we made for him.”

Jimin looked at Aviva. She opened her bag and held out the lunchbox to him.

“Tae helped make this?” Jimin said doubtfully. “Tae Tae, you know I appreciate your cooking, but—”

“Don’t worry, Jin-hyung and Avi-noona did all of the cooking, I just helped pick out the ingredients,” Taehyung told him. “I know I’m not a very good cook.”

He wilted a little.

“I still appreciated the thought,” Jimin said quietly. “When you’ve tried making food for me in the past…”

“Yeah, but I don’t think Avi-noona appreciated when I set her smoke alarm off,” Tae thought. Jimin squinted at him.

“Tae, you bad boy—”

“It wasn’t too bad,” Aviva interrupted, waving her hands. “Everyone’s safe, so that’s all that matter—”

“You went to noona’s apartment without me?” Jimin pouted at him. Aviva blinked.

“What? That’s what you…?” She sighed.

“Yeah, so? You get to eat her home cooked meal,” Taehyung pointed out. “So you’d better appreciate it.”

“I will.” Jimin turned to her. “I do.”

“Say that after you eat it, maybe?” She suggested.

“Anyway, Jin-hyung was there the whole time, so it’s not like anything could’ve happened,” Taehyung muttered. Jimin grinned, opening the box.

“Yeah, I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that,” Aviva said.

“It looks really good,” Jimin said, staring at the food. “But, my diet…”

“Noona and Jin-hyung specially picked the recipes so that the food was healthy, particularly for a dancer,” Taehyung told him. “Noona printed out scientific articles like she was possessed by Namjoon-hyung or something.”

Jimin snickered, and then his face turned serious.

“You did all that for me?” He asked Aviva. She nodded. “But, I’m trying to help too. I’m trying to be the best I can be, for this group. That’s why everything’s got to be perfect… When it’s perfect, I’ll feel better.”

Aviva sighed, pulling her knees up to her chest, and resting her chin there, staring at her feet. “You sound like Jungkookie, or my sister, or me…” She looked up again, finally catching Jimin’s gaze. “But let me tell you a secret, Jimin-ah. You’re never going to be perfect. There will always be another loose thread you can pick at. If you keep doing that, whatever it is you want to do, will never get done. Sometimes the best you can do, is the best you can do at that moment. Maybe one day you will be better, but that kind of change can’t happen instantaneously.” She smiled. “But what am I telling you that for? You know. You’re one of the hardest working people I know, Jiminie.” Jimin rubbed at his face and then took a deep breath.

“Don’t you make me cry!” He warned her.

“It’s okay if you cry,” Taehyung said. “I’ll hold you if you do.” Jimin made a face.

“…Only if Avi-noona joins.”

“…How about a pat on the head?” She offered instead.

Jimin ate half the lunch, slowly. He apologized for not finishing it all, but Aviva assured him that was okay. He hadn’t been eating, so eating quickly all of a sudden could make him sick.

She and Taehyung stuck around for the rest of Jimin’s practice, Tae doing his best to follow along, Aviva even joining along for a couple moves, making them all laugh as she growled with frustration at not being able to follow the choreography.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day, manager,” Jimin teased her.

“Oh, I know,” she grumbled. “But I would’ve probably died trying.”

“Ah.” Jimin nodded. “I can understand that.”

“Live instead,” Tae suggested, slinging his arms around their shoulders. “It’s more fun to hang out all together. I’ll get lonely alone.”

“Okay, but get off of me,” Jimin said, shoving him. “You’re sweaty.”

“We all are,” Aviva said, wrinkling her nose as she looked down at her business clothes. “Hobi’s gonna yell at me for wrinkling my clothes again.”

Jimin snickered. “Oh yeah, hyung does that to me all the time! You’ve just got to change quickly and hide the clothes before he sees them.”

“Yeah, but I was going to drive you back, so he’ll see me,” Aviva thought, chewing at her lip. Jimin smiled slyly.

“We could stop by your place first, and could can change.”

“Ooh, can we borrow your shower?” Taehyung asked, his smile matching Jimin’s.

Aviva sighed. “Boys, I really don’t think it’s your intention to make me feel unsafe in my own home, hmm?”

They both blinked, and then exchanged a guilty look.

“Not at all!” They said in unison.

“Sorry.” Tae bowed slightly. “I know I’ve been teasing you a bit too much lately. I got overexcited because your reactions are amusing and I enjoy learning new things about you.”

“Alright, alright,” Aviva said. “Just get in the car.” She drove them back to the dorm.

“You practice this late every night?” Taehyung asked, looking up at the dark sky as they moved down the path towards the dorm. “Alone? Amazing!”

Aviva frowned. “Jiminie... are you sleeping enough?”

“I’m fine!” He said. “I’m not tired!”

“That’s not what I—“

“I’ve got to make sacrifices for my abs,” Jimin interrupted.

Taehyung poked at his own stomach.

“Hmmm. I’ll just hope for them in the next life.”

Aviva touched her stomach. “A healthy body looks different for everyone,” she said quietly. Taehyung and Jimin exchanged a thoughtful look.

“I know I said I’d stop teasing, but you do have a nice body, manager-noona,” Tae commented. Jimin shoved him.

“Tae! You can’t just say things like that!”

“What? She’s soft and nice to touch.”

“That’s worse!”

Aviva sighed, rubbing her temples. “Taehyung-ah, I think maybe you mean well, but you’re giving me a headache. Jimin-ah’s right, it’s not appropriate to say things like that.”

Jimin shot Tae a pointed look. “Okay, okay.” Taehyung waved his hand. “I’ll retract my statement.” He made a weird swooping movement as if swallowing back his words. She snorted. He smiled slightly. “There now… don’t be sad, manager. You and Jiminie can both have abs if you really want, but do it in a healthy way, please.”

Jimin blinked. “Tae, you—” He squeaked. “What the fuck was that?”

“Huh?” Tae looked around.

“I just saw someone sneak out of the dorm!” Jimin said, pointing at a far off darting shadow. Aviva squinted.

“It’s too dark, and my eyesight isn’t good enough to see who it is. Maybe it’s just Hoseok sneaking out to party. I know he did that sometimes in the early days of training.”

“Did he?” Jimin’s lips twitched. “Sounds fun.”

When they got inside, Yoongi was sitting on the couch working at his laptop.

He looked up when they entered.

“You’re back late.” He crossed his arms over his chest, giving them a pointed look. “Just what will I tell your mother?” Taehyung laughed as Jimin rolled his eyes.

“….Jin-oppa is the mom?” Aviva guessed.

“Of course.” Yoongi grinned.

Aviva looked around. “Joon isn’t up working with you tonight?”

Yoongi shook his head. “Everyone else is asleep.”

“Alright, boys. Get some sleep. I’ll be back in…” She glanced at her watch and groaned. “We’ve only got a few hours. By the time I drive back home and then I have to clean up, and then go to sleep and then wake up and come back here and—”

Jimin held his finger in front of her mouth.

“Why don’t you stay over?” He suggested. “I promise Tae and I will behave.”

“I will,” Tae seconded. “I don’t want you driving while you’re so tired, noona.”

Her brow furrowed. “Well, I guess you’ve got a point…”

Tae smiled. “Yay! Where are you going to sleep? Cause I like to snuggle—“

“Nope!” Jimin said, slapping him over the back of the head. “You literally just promised you’d behave.” Taehyung whined as Jimin pulled him out of the room. “Let’s go take a shower before bed.”

“Are they showering together?” Aviva wondered. Yoongi shrugged.

“Saves time.”

“…South Korea is surprisingly open-minded about some things,” Aviva thought.

“Maybe,” Yoongi said. “Or maybe it’s just us. Anyway, I’m going to be working for a while longer, so you can use my bed if you want. No cuddling with hormonal teenagers necessary.”

“Cuddling aside, I don’t particularly want to be sleeping in a room with six to seven boys,” she told him. He nodded.

“That’s fair. Neither do I.”

“... Sorry I haven’t found a bigger place for you guys.”

He sighed, brushing his bangs away from his face. “That’s not what I meant, Aviva-yah.”

“Okay...” She chewed at her lip. “Can’t I just sleep out here?” She pointed at the couch.

“You don’t mind me working?” He wondered. She shook her head.

“You don’t mind me snoring?”

He laughed. “I’m used to Joon-ah and Jiminie already.” He stood up, stretching. “I should get you a blanket or something—and do you need something to sleep in?” She hesitated, and then nodded. “You’d better come into the room with me, so you can tell me what’s okay.”

She frowned. “Won’t I wake them?”

He shook his head. “They’ll be dead to the world at this point.”

They walked into the bedroom. Yoongi walked over to the dresser, searching through a drawer. Aviva glanced around at the sleeping boys. Hoseok had his hand on his stomach. Jin was surrounded by a sea of stuffed animals. Jungkook was wrapped in his blankets like a caterpillar. She glanced up at Namjoon, who was sleeping with his laptop open on his chest. She hesitated and then climbed up the ladder, taking the laptop from him. He grunted and rolled over, continuing to snore. Aviva started climbing down the ladder, but fumbled while trying to hold the laptop steady.

She half fell on top of Yoongi.

He sighed, his breath in her ear.

“You’re just as bad as Namjoon-ah, honestly.” He steadied her on her feet and stepped away, shaking his head.

“…Thanks.” She placed Namjoon’s laptop on top of the dresser, careful not to disturb any of Hoseok’s figurines.

“Would these work?” Yoongi held up a pair of basketball shorts and a t-shirt.

She chewed her lip. “The shorts are fine, but the shirt would be a little… tight.”

“I figured.” He glanced her over and then looked away. “Namjoon-ah’s shirts are the biggest, but I can’t tell what of his is clean.”

“It’s fine,” she said. “I can just sleep in my undershirt.”

“…Alright. And there’s an extra blanket in the closet.” He smirked. “I’m not sure you’re tall enough to reach it.” She rolled her eyes.

“You’re barely taller than me.”

“Still counts!”

“You keep telling yourself that,” Jimin said, walking in with a towel wrapped around his waist. He glanced at Aviva and then quickly avoided eye contact, his face turning pink. “Ah… a little privacy please, noona?”

“Of course!” Aviva zipped out of the room, past an equally shirtless Taehyung, who just gave her his patented blank faced look. Yoongi followed her at a slower pace. He walked over to the closet and opened it. Aviva walked up to him. “Are there clean towels in there? I’m thinking maybe I should take a shower too. I tried to dance, so I’m all gross.”

Yoongi glanced her over again.“You look… fine, but I understand the feeling.” He handed her a blue towel with a yellow duck on it. “I haven’t used this since I last washed it, so it’s clean.”

She stared at it. “This is yours?”

“Yeah.” He shot her a challenging look. “So?”

She just grinned. “So, you’re cute.”

“Just… just go shower,” he said, his face flushing. “Go shower and then get some sleep before you have to start your day.”

Aviva felt much better after showering. She could use Hobi’s iron in the morning on her button up, and trousers, she thought it had some kind of gentle clean setting on it. She came back into the living room, wearing her camisole and Yoongi’s shorts, which were a bit tight on her, but not too much so.

Yoongi glanced up at her when she walked in. He froze. She sniffed, glancing at the mug in his hand. “Coffee? Are you not even trying to sleep?”

“I have to finish this, but you…” He frowned. “You’re the one who’s cute…”

She blinked at him. “What?”

“Too cute.” He suddenly pulled off his hoodie and held it out to her. “Wear that and cover up before the maknae line rushes over here drooling.”

“Stop being gross,” she said, pulling the sweater over her head anyway. It was warm. The fabric was worn, but not overly soft, it felt nice against her skin. “But thanks for this.” She snuggled into the sweater further.

“…I made it worse,” he muttered.

She squinted at him. “What’s that?”

“Nothing. Go to sleep. The blanket’s over the back of the couch. I’m going to record your snoring and use it in a track.”

“Use Joonie’s, it’ll have more impact,” she told him. He snorted. She plugged her phone into a charger and then put her glasses down on the side table. “Night, Yoongi.”

“…Night, Aviva.”

[valkyrisffvii]

60 Questions about Mithra

Some background information about Mithra Valkyris

1: What’s your OCs favorite color?

Mithra’s favorite color is most definitely red, specifically dark crimson, the same color as blood. Her 2nd Class SOLDIER uniform sports this color, as do several other outfits that she wears.

2: Where does your OC work?

Mithra used to plunder people’s homes for clients as a part of a thieving ring. She was rewarded for her skills with food, clothing, and a place to stay. Unfortunately, the job ran out of use for her when she reached her late teens. In order to avoid having to sell her body to ensure a stable life, Mithra ran away from that particular part of Midgar and joined SOLDIER, the elite military group. They were reluctant to accept her at first due to the fact that she was female, but her skills in stealth ended up proving quite valuable to Shinra.

3: What’s your OCs favorite food?

Mithra is fond of anything that’s spicy. She can tolerate spicy food better than most of her friends. Mithra also has a very strong sweet tooth, preferring her coffee sweet and having a fondness for anything with chocolate. 

4: Does your OC prefer paper or plastic?

Gil does not come in card form nor paper form, so Mithra carries her gil in a pouch that attaches to her belt, much like others who don’t carry bags.

5: How old is your OC?

Mithra is around 14 when she first finds herself in lower Midgar. She joins SOLDIER at the age of 17 and is promoted to 2nd class at age 19. She is 22 when she gets into her first relationship with Sephiroth.

6: Does your OC have any supernatural powers?

Like other members of SOLDIER, Mithra receives Mako injections which give her enhanced speed, jump height, strength, and other powers. She learns several ice and electric spells to use in combat as a contrast to Genesis’ skills with fire. 

7: Is your OC in a relationship?

Before she joins SOLDIER, Mithra does try to get the attention of several girls her age, with no luck. She believes that she only holds feelings for females until she meets and falls in love with Sephiroth, whom she is afraid to confess her feelings to. Luckily, a slip of Zack’s tongue allows the two of them to confess their feelings to each other. They maintain a loving relationship for many years, and their commitment to each other pushes them to fight against those who threaten them.

8: What are some of your OCs strengths?

Having faced great adversity at a young age, Mithra is no stranger to conflict, and she has no problem with standing up for herself. She’s also very crafty with her words and actions, and she can manipulate anyone into giving in to her wishes, though she’d rather not do this unless she’s dealing with an enemy. Mithra’s stealth skills have made her a valuable asset to SOLDIER; she is a skilled lockpicker and pickpocket, and she can move silently and hide easily due to her short stature and small frame. She’s a patient teacher as well, taking some time out of her days to help infantryman Cloud train so that he can become a SOLDIER.

9: What are some of your OCs weaknesses? 

Having little to no memory of her childhood, Mithra struggles with understanding her identity. During her teenage years, she feels that she’s different from other girls because she does not hold romantic feelings towards men. Luckily, she comes to accept herself fully once she finds her place as a member of SOLDIER, and she comes out as bisexual. Mithra is also somewhat of a hothead, albeit less than that of someone like Genesis. She can get overwhelmed easily and this can result in impulsive decisions, some of which don’t end that well.

10: What is your OCs favorite outfit?

Once she hits the age of 18 and comes out, Mithra feels much more confident in her clothing choices. Like many other young women in Midgar, she likes wearing crop tops, even going so far as to alter her SOLDIER uniforms to fit her style. She hates anything that is tight around the neck, so she removed the turtleneck on the uniform as well. When she’s not in uniform, Mithra normally wears cropped tanks, as she hates sleeves. She also prefers going barefoot over constantly wearing boots.

11: What animal does your OC relate to?

Mithra probably relates most to a fox. She’s sneaky, both in physical prowess and her speech. She’s also quite solitary before she befriends the other SOLDIERS. 

12: Is your OC sexually active?

Mithra has little to no interest in a sexual relationship at first due to some bad experiences with older men on the streets. Even after she gets into a relationship, sex is not high on her list of desires, as she prefers to go on adventures with her S/O rather than have intimate moments. That being said, she does make perverted jokes occasionally… 

13: What is your OCs earliest memory?

Mithra’s earliest memory is waking up on the ground in an alleyway in Midgar. She can recall faint snapshots of her supposed childhood, but there’s nothing solid enough for her to remember vividly. She did remember her age and birthday, as well as how to fight.

14: Does your OC have a cell phone? If so, what kind?

Mithra has a touch screen smartphone like everyone else who works for Shinra. She is in several group chats including one for the six main SOLDIER members as well as SOLDIER Director Lazard, one with herself, Zack, and Cloud Strife, and one with her female friends Tifa Lockhart and Aerith Gainsborough. She often sends her friends “memes”.

15.What makes your OC angry?

Anyone who says that women are weak immediately get disapproval from Mithra, as does anyone who hates members of the LGBTQ+ community. She is also angered by those who threaten or make fun of her friends, especially anyone who antagonizes Sephiroth. The thing that she absolutely cannot stand, however, is being told to “know her place”.

16: When is your OCs favorite time of year?

Mithra loves the summer because she and the others usually get longer vacations. They often go to Costa Del Sol or another exotic location and just enjoy their time together. She is also fond of the winter cold and snow that sometimes falls in Midgar, and she can spend hours sitting at the window watching the snowflakes fall.

17: How long can your OC hold their breath?

Mithra’s SOLDIER abilities include the ability to hold her breath longer than the average person. However, she does have her limits, as seen when she dives into a reservoir lake to search for a piece of materia and gets attacked by mutated Shinra creations, which results in Sephiroth having to save her.

18: What kind of underwear does your OC wear?

Cotton. She thinks lace and silk are stupid, not to mention the mess they’d become during one’s menstrual cycle.

19: Does your OC prefer plaid or polka dots?

Mithra isn’t particularly fond of either. 

20: What’s your OCs favorite kind of pizza?

Either Margherita or barbecue chicken. She will judge anyone who thinks pineapple on pizza is good.

21: Who is your OCs best friend?

When she first joined SOLDIER, Mithra felt out of place because she was the only woman. However, Zack Fair, who was on the brink of making 2nd Class at the time, was quick to introduce himself to her and make her feel welcome. She and Zack quickly became close friends, both of them having a sense of humor and outgoing personalities. Through Zack, Mithra met and befriended the elite 1st Class members Genesis Rhapsodos, Angeal Hewley, and Sephiroth. Mithra became close friends with Cloud Strife after she helped him make SOLDIER. Mithra also became close friends with Aerith after helping Zack get closer to her, and Cloud introduced her to his childhood friend Tifa. 

22: Has your OC ever killed someone?

Before joining SOLDIER, Mithra had actually never killed anyone. She had to knock a few people out using her rock sling in order to escape a few fights, but she never murdered anyone in cold blood. After she became a SOLDIER, she’d do regular jobs that sometimes involved killing people, but only because it was her job and not due to personal grudges.

23: What's your OCs biggest secret?

Mithra was groped several times in her teen years by older drunk men, which fueled her dislike of alcohol. She also has a prominent scar behind her right ear that spans vertically from the top of her ear to the upper part of her neck. This scar was given to her by a drunk man who smashed a beer bottle into her head after she refused to sleep with him when she was sixteen. Had she not jerked her head away, the broken bottle would have disfigured her face, maybe even rendered her blind in her right eye.

24: What does your OC smell like?

Mithra doesn’t like perfume, so unlike Sephiroth, she simply smells like powder-fresh deodorant. Her hair can smell badly if she doesn’t wash it daily.

25: What time of year does your OC prefer?

(Same as 16)

26: Is your OC a human or an animal?

Mithra is very much human, albeit somewhat of a superhuman due to Mako injections.

27: What languages does your OC speak?

Mithra only knows the common language spoken by most people on Gaia. She also doesn’t have an apparent accent. 

28: Does your OC like anime?

She’s not really into it itself, but she does like the art style and tries to replicate it in her spare time.

29: Can your OC swim?

Mithra is a surprisingly strong swimmer. Her small frame allows her to move in the water swiftly, and she has strong arms and legs thanks to SOLDIER training. She enjoys swimming whenever she gets the chance, especially during the hot summer months.

30: What does your OC choose to do about the, er, hair down there?

She shaves, but she would never let anyone wax her down there.

31: Does your OC believe in fairies? 

Mithra isn’t overly superstitious, but she believes in ghosts. 

32: Did your OC go to college? What did they major in?

Anything Mithra learned was either a result of an experience (bad or good) or from being in SOLDIER. She did know how to read and write when she woke up, though. Zack introduced Mithra to Angeal, who took her under his wing alongside Zack. Angeal taught her most of the skills she needed in SOLDIER, and Mithra caught on pretty quickly.

33: Are your OCs parents dead? 

Mithra does not know who her parents are or if they abandoned her in that alleyway. She has faint visions of people whom she thinks are her parents, but she isn’t sure if they’re still alive or not. Seeing as no one came looking for her, it’s most likely that she was left to die by her parents, or her parents had died and whoever was caring for her got rid of her. 

34: Is your OC religious?

Mithra does sometimes mention Shiva when she’s surprised, but for the most part she is agnostic.

35: How flexible is your OC?

Mithra is much more flexible than any of the other SOLDIERs. She is great at climbing and has great balance. One of her pastimes is doing parkour in the simulation room with the scene set to rooftops in Midgar. Her past life as a thief gave her the ability to jump fences and squeeze into tight spaces. She also has great grip strength and can hang on for long periods of time without letting go.

36: What turns your OC on?

Mithra loves people who are confident and assertive. She believes that the most “masculine” thing that a man could do is not care about what others think. She likes girls who also don’t care about outside opinions and stand up for themselves. The most attractive trait that a person could have, in her opinion, is undying loyalty. 

37: What was your OCs first word?

As for the first word she uttered as an infant, Mithra has no idea what it was. However, the first thing she said when she woke up was “Huh?”

38: Does your OC have any pets?

While she’s living in the Shinra building in Midgar, Mithra does not have any pets. However, she dreams of getting a dog someday, particularly a husky or a corgi.

39: Who is your OCs biggest enemy?

At first, Mithra’s enemies are the criminals she works with as they try to force her into submission. When she escapes the criminal underworld and joins SOLDIER, her greatest enemy is Professor Hojo. She harbors a strong dislike towards him from the very beginning due to his obsession with using live subjects, and the hatred only grows when she finds out the truth about Sephiroth’s origins. Hojo’s feelings towards her are mutual, and he even goes so far as to torture her for meddling in his work. 

40: What is the craziest thing your OC has done?

The craziest thing Mithra’s done is probably dating the famous, elite Silver General despite his hoards of fangirls, directly contributing to thousands of jealous women all over the Planet. She does not fear them one bit even though they are notorious for fanatically snooping and gossiping about Sephiroth. Then again, the Silver Elite are also terrified of her.

41: What is your OCs motto about life?

“I’m selfish, impatient, and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and, at times, hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.” - Marilyn Monroe

42: Does your OC drink coffee or tea?

Mithra is partial to both, but she prefers green tea and likes her coffee sweet with plenty of cream. She hates iced tea but she loves iced coffee with sweetened condensed milk.

43: Who is your OCs biggest hero?

Probably the three Firsts. Between Genesis’ dramatic personality, Angeal’s devotion to honor, and Sephiroth’s inner warmth, she deeply admires all three of them. However, unlike their fan clubs, who love them for their deeds, appearances, and heroics, she appreciates their personalities and her friendships with them. 

44: What color eyes does your OC have?

Unlike most other SOLDIERs, Mithra does not have the signature “Mako eyes” despite receiving Mako. This makes it easy for her to hide the fact that she’s in SOLDIER. Her eyes remain their natural warm brown, and they appear to have golden reflects in direct sunlight. 

45: Does your OC like reading?

Mithra absolutely hates reading. Part of it is from constantly listening to Genesis recite LOVELESS, and most of it is because she prefers actually doing things rather than reading about other people’s experiences. She has stolen LOVELESS from Genesis multiple times, much to his annoyance (don’t worry, they’re still best friends).

46: Is your OC loyal?

Having been betrayed before, Mithra vows to never betray her friends. She is an incredibly loyal friend and girlfriend. She would never cheat on Sephiroth with anyone, nor would she sell anyone out for her own gain. If she ever accidentally betrays someone, she will do anything to gain forgiveness. 

47: Does your OC tolerate violence?

Unfortunately, Mithra has to tolerate some violence as a member of Shinra’s elite military. She is not overly fond of violence in situations where it’s unnecessary. However, she is more than willing to kill people who have hurt her or her close friends. 

48: What social class is your OC from?

Mithra started out as a thief, a class that no average person would want any association with. She jumped dramatically in social hierarchy when she joined SOLDIER, becoming a high-ranking member of society. When she enlisted, Director Lazard was quick to remind the other members that she deserved respect as the only female. She was even given her own private suite with a full kitchen, bathroom, living room, and bedroom in order to ensure her privacy among all the men in SOLDIER.

49: What country was your OC born in?

Somewhere on the planet of Gaia. It’s not exactly known where Mithra was born, as she was already a teenager when she found herself in Midgar. Her family could have very well either been from Midgar originally or they may have moved from another town. 

50: Does your OC cry easily?

Mithra has taught herself to be strong and stoic in times of hardship and show little emotion. She does not cry easily, but she prefers to work off her anger and sadness by doing target practice. When she meets her friends and eventually gets into a relationship, however, Mithra becomes more open with her feelings and is willing to let her emotions out rather than bearing her burdens. She feels that her friends accept her fully and will be there for her even when she seems weak.

51: What is your OCs favorite genre of music?

Mithra loves instrumental music that she can play while doing things such as cleaning, cooking, or drawing. She also loves songs that she can sing or dance to. She would often sing to herself when she was alone in order to keep herself occupied. 

52: How does your OC feel about insects?

Despite her adventurous personality, Mithra is terrified of cockroaches, slugs, and moths. She likes flies and mosquitoes and the like as much as the next person, and she thinks that bees are cute at a distance. She is extra happy when Sephiroth moves in with her because it means that she doesn’t have to kill any roaches that wander into her apartment. 

53: What is your OCs sexual orientation?

At first, Mithra believes that she is a lesbian, as she only feels attraction to women during her time as a thief. However, everything changes when she joins SOLDIER and she’s exposed to charismatic men such as Zack, Genesis, Angeal, and Sephiroth. She comes out as bisexual at the age of 18, which makes her the only member of SOLDIER to be an open member of the LGBTQ+ community at the time. 

54: Does your OC smoke?

Similarly to her feelings towards alcohol, Mithra loathes tobacco. She was forced to smell it when wandering around the criminal underworld and never got used to it. She also knows that smoking can ruin one’s body and does not want to destroy herself at such a young age.

55: What gender is your OC?

Mithra identifies as a cisgender female. She is mostly feminine, but she enjoys crossdressing in men’s clothes. A particularly amusing instance of this is when she tries on Sephiroth’s coat, which drags behind her like a cape, and the sleeves are several inches too long. Sephiroth does get a good laugh out of this, though.

56: What kind of clothes does your OC wear?

Mithra’s wardrobe consists of crop tops and comfortable pants such as sweatpants or leggings. She hates long sleeves and therefore wears tanks most of the time. When she’s not wearing her SOLDIER combat boots, Mithra is normally either barefoot or sporting sandals. She’s also quite fond of two-pieced dresses, as seen with her choice of fashion for Shinra’s annual banquet. 

57: Would you call your OC adventurous? 

Mithra lives for adventure. During her time as a thief, she would wander around the slums of Midgar with constant interest in the different people living in the city. Her job as a SOLDIER only gave her new opportunities for adventures around Gaia. She has traveled to Costa Del Sol, Banora, and several other small towns. She also travels to several remote areas.

58: Is your OC introverted or extroverted?

Despite seeming more introverted at first due to her solidarity, Mithra is actually very extroverted and loves being around people. Befriending Zack and then the others turned out to be one of the best things that happened to her, as it allowed her to relate to other people and feel a sense of belonging. 

59: What is the first thing that someone would notice about your OC?

Mithra is very short, standing at 5’3”. She looks even shorter when she’s with her fellow SOLDIERs. The only one close to her height is Cloud Strife, and even he is four inches taller than her. She also does not sport blue eyes like other members of SOLDIER, but instead retains her natural brown eyes. 

60: Does your OC enjoy nature?

Even though she’s mostly a city girl, Mithra does enjoy the great outdoors. She goes camping with Zack and Cloud several times and fully enjoys it (partially because she can scare Zack). She does drag her boyfriend with her a few times, much to his displeasure. 

[thecocchamchronicle]

NSFW ALPHABET:

Tags: @footprintsinthesxnd, @obipoelover, @valhallasubstitute, @butgodbeingrichinmercy, @bebbanburgsflame

A- Aftercare (What are they like after the act?)

Alfred tends to be a bit quiet afterwards, but still typically pulls you into an embrace, holding you against his chest. 

B-Body Part (Favorite body part of their body and their partner’s body)

Breasts are the kings favorite body part of a female partner. He is always more than delighted to press his face between them, even taking each of them into his mouth. Alfred loves to watch them them as you ride him, fondly caressing them while you do. 

Alfred’s favorite body part of his own is his chest. It is lean and muscular, which he is quite proud of. In the morning, he loves finding the red lines from you having raked your nails down his chest in the heat of the moment. 

C-Communication (How much do they talk during sex?)

How much Alfred speaks during sex solely depends on the mood. When he does however, it is in the form of dirty talk or teasing. He will whisper in your ear, his voice full of lust.  

D-Dirty Secret (What about their sex life don’t a lot of people know?)

The King has quite the appetite for rougher fornication. He is dominate and incredibly passionate. Sex, at this time, is only meant for producing an heir. Though you find Alfred asking you to join him in his chambers fairly frequently. 

E-Experience (Do they know what they’re doing?)

Alfred has great knowledge of history and religion, but he also knows how to please a woman. Despite what the commoners may think, the king has been with more than one woman. He will admit that he isn’t the most knowledgeable person in the kingdoms when it comes to sex. But the king knows more than enough to pleasure his partner. 

F-Favorite Position

Alfred is a simple man when it comes to sex. So, naturally his favorite position is missionary. Seeing the expressions on your face is a major turn on for him. This position also gives him good leverage to fuck you deeply and passionately, while watching your face contort from pleasure. 

G-Goofy (How serious are they in the bedroom?)

King Alfred tends to stay serious in the bedroom. There have however, been times when the two of you asked a maid to bring a bit too much ale to his chambers. These tipsy sessions were filled with bad coordination, tickling and laughter.

Hair-Grooming habits

Since Alfred is king, he has some tools to help him groom. He keeps things trim, but doesn’t do much more grooming beyond that. 

I-Intimacy (In the moment, are they romantic or rough/dirty?)

The sex between you and Alfred tends to be more rough. Romantic sex usually happens once he’s returned to Winchester or just before battle, if you’ve traveled with him. 

J-Jacking Off (Do they masturbate and how often?)

The King hardly masturbates, he’d rather save his sexual drive for you. Plus, the life of the a king is busy and members of his court could come knocking at his chamber door at any given time. 

K- Kinks (What kinks do they have?)

Alfred has quite the breeding kink. After all, the more heirs he has, the longer his vision of an united England would be carried. He also genuinely enjoys being a father. Your mothering ability has always impressed him. The children can be very rambunctious, but you always ruled with a kind, yet firm hand.  

L-Location (Where do they like to do it?)

Sex with the king most often stays within either of your bedroom chambers. Alfred enjoys a little risk, but having one of his subjects witnessing his love making is not one he cares to take. When you travel with him, he is not opposed to sex in his traveling tent. Though, the two of you try to be conscious of the amount of noise you make in this location. As again, he doesn’t need his army hearing receiving or giving pleasure. 

M-Motivations (Things that make them tick)

Alfred’s motivations will vary depending on the day. Sometimes his only goal is to bring you pleasure. Other days he aims to give you and the family another child. When his days are busy, he finds himself day dreaming of you and the next time he can lay with you. 

N-No (Turn offs and absolutely won’t dos)

The king will not harm you, no matter the circumstances. He may gently grab your throat if things get particularity rough and you request it. Otherwise he will not choke, smack or in any way harm you.

He has also never entertained the idea of sharing you or inviting another person into the mix. You are his wife and he is your husband, through and through. 

O-Oral (Receiving and giving and how skillful they are)

Alfred loves receiving oral, like most men. He always asks that you look him in the eyes as you wrap your lips around his member and bob up and down. To him, this is nearly a perfect sight.

The king also enjoys giving oral. He loves having you wrapped around his finger, (literally and figuratively). Alfred revels in each whimper that escapes your lips. Making you orgasm in this way incredibly intimate to him and he is proud each time he makes you climax with his mouth. 

P-Pace (How fast are they?)

The pace all depends on how he is feeling. If Alfred is in the teasing mood, he will take his sweet time with you. A slow and romantic session usually takes place in either of your chambers. 

Fast sessions tend to take place when you accompany him during his travels. Having sex in his more ornate tent is certainly more risque.   

Q-Quickie (Do they like them?)

The King is usually never opposed to a quick love making session. You find that they occur most often just before he is due to leave Winchester, to manage Uhtred or attend to other kingly duties. 

R-Risk (Do they like to try new things?)

Alfred tends to stay with the tried and true when it comes to sex. However, when you bring a new idea into the bedroom he becomes intrigued. After all, he does want to please his queen.

S- Stamina (How many times can they go and how long does each round last?)

He can go one round and another in the morning if the mood is right. 

Alfred can last quite a while in bed, but sometimes his illness will over come him and will occasionally shorten your love making. Typically the sex can last anywhere from 20-30 minutes total. 

T-Toys (Do they like using toys on themselves or their partner?)

Seeing as sex toys are way beyond his time, Alfred doesn’t have that luxury. However he is more than willing to use his own body to try to please you in more creative ways. 

U-Unfair (How do they tease their partner or do the enjoy being teased themselves?)

The King absolutely loves to tease you. He enjoys delaying your gratification and climax. He’ll caress the most sensitive spots on your body, ever so slightly. You’ve found that his favorite is nipping you with soft kisses while teasing your clit. He will also whisper to you how beautiful he finds you and how he’s going to please you over the next little while.    

V-Volume (Are they loud and what sounds do they make?)

Alfred can be fairly noisy in bed. He most often grunts and moans the closer he gets to climaxing. He tends to make more noise when you vocalize as well. Alfred adores your gasps and moans as the two of you fuck.

W-Wild Card (A random head cannon for the character)

Alfred is a committed lover. There are many beautiful attractive women in the kingdoms, but he has eyes only for you. 

X-XRay (What do they look like down there?)

The king is well endowed, definitely above average in girth and length. You find it to be the perfect shape, as it isn’t too large as to cause you to hurt or be uncomfortable. 

Y-Yearning (What is their sex drive level?)

Alfred has a high sex drive, though that can change when his illness is affecting him most. The majority of the time he is ready to pounce on you at any given moment. Unfortunately as king, he has a very busy schedule. This means sex happens most often in the early morning or late at night, after he has finished with the day’s work.

Z-Zzz (Do they sleep afterwards and if so how quickly afterwards?)

It depends on the time of day. If the two of you have sex in the early morning, he will make himself presentable and continue on with the day’s tasks. Now when sex takes place after dinner, you often spend time talking about the day and his plans for England and your family. After a while, he will kiss you tenderly on the forehead and roll over for a good nights sleep. Occasionally he will leave bed, blow out all candle but one and continue to work in the dim light, reading and writing letters. For a king’s work is never done.

[princesstadashi]

A Post for Newbie Ren Faire Goers!

So, provided this god awful virus doesn’t shut them all down, it’s about ren faire season, at least for me and probably for some other people! And today at work I had this flashback to when I first started regularly going to faire, and man, was I confused about a lot of things--and I realized that maybe this would be a good time for me to make a post for others who are getting ready to visit their first Ren faire, or who are familiar with Ren faires but might still have questions and want to learn more. If you’re ready, let’s dive into this!

What the heck is a mug strap? It may sound random, and you may have never even heard of a mug strap, but this is actually one of the first questions I had about ren faires because it was something so many people were asking me if I had, so let me explain: It is a piece of leather that has two loops (at least one of which can come open), one loop to go around your belt and the other one (for sure the one that comes open) which can go around the handle of a mug or other drinking vessel for ease of carrying it! Which brings me to my second question:

Why are there so many shops selling wooden mugs (and other similar items?) This is because it is very, very important to stay hydrated at faire, especially when the weather is warm outside! A mug is an easy way to hold your drink of choice, and the mug strap mentioned above means you don’t have to carry it in your hands once you’re finished drinking! At least my local Ren faire has drink stations with water and gatorade for season pass holders, and even if yours doesn’t there are always water fountains! Do you need a mug to attend a Ren faire? Definitely not! But they’re pretty darn useful if you plan to go regularly instead of constantly buying bottled drinks, plus they look pretty cool!

What is “the cast”? The people hired by the Ren faire to play characters, you’ll usually see them walking around in the streets (or “lanes”) and performing in shows and events!

What the heck is “garb”? To put it in very simplified terms, it’s the old-timey clothes or “costumes” that you’ll see people wearing :)

(More below the cut!)

Is garb or any sort of costume necessary? No, absolutely not! Plenty of people go in regular clothes! But it is fun to get dressed up :) And you don’t have to have a full costume straight off--that stuff is expensive, so it’s okay if you need to build it up over time if you want to do that--all that matters is that you’re having fun and getting into the spirit of things! Back to not dressing up: Again, it is totally fine if you want to wear regular street clothes, and a lot of the cast will probably have fun asking about your “outlandish outfit” and any modern devices that you have with you! HOWEVER. I hate that I have to say this, but I do: if you don’t choose to wear garb, don’t be a dick to the people who are wearing it. Usually everyone is very chill, and of course some of the cast members will be wearing costumes that are meant to be very showy. But especially with regards to fellow guests: don’t treat them as part of the “spectacle” or like they’re animals in a zoo: basically just don’t stare, don’t treat them like they’re weird for dressing up no matter their age, and remember that they’re just people wanting to have a good time like you, they just want to look totally badass doing it!

So is it not okay to talk to people about their costumes or to ask them for pictures? Please, as long as you’re being polite, feel free to ask--many people like me feel like the reward of all the work we put into our garb is compliments and people asking for pictures! But use common courtesy: if someone seems uncomfortable with you talking to them, just leave them be. And always ask before taking a picture! You might see some photographers taking candid shots, but most of those people are professionals and have gotten permission to be doing that. General rule of thumb is just treat people like you would want to be treated!

I see a lot of people being very flirty/touchy feely/etc. with each other, am I allowed to do that? So here’s the thing about Ren Faires: especially the cast, we tend to all be very open with each other and let loose a bit in a safe space. And a lot of stuff like that that you’ll be seeing is between people who already know each other and are comfortable with each other, even if we might not be acting like that if we’re in character. Now does that mean no flirting is allowed? Totally not! But just like in any other social setting, use common sense: see if the other person is comfortable with it, and if not respect that and back off. Simple as that. Also please keep especially in mind with the cast that this is a paying job for them so while they have a lot more freedom than a regular customer service job, it is still in a way customer service, so they can’t be super rude to you if you’re making them uncomfortable. But also keep in mind that there is security and no one is afraid to call security on you if you’re being inappropriate with anyone, and they will escort you out.

Is that sword (or other weapon) really sharp? At least in my experience, no--for safety reasons, most weapons are blunted--they’re still heavy so they can absolutely do damage as a bludgeon, but everyone tries to avoid more injuries than necessary. 

Can I hold that sword (or insert any other cool looking prop)? ASK. Dear God, ASK before you touch anything that someone else is carrying! I don’t mean to freak you out, but most of this stuff is VERY expensive and quite possibly damageable, no matter how sturdy it looks! Also if you start fucking around and injure someone else? There could be liability on the owner of the thing you were fucking around with. Some people will be chill about letting you handle their props, but if not, just be polite and thank them for their answer and move on! I’ve seen too many things be damaged/lost that were irreplaceable because people didn’t use common courtesy so I feel very strongly about this!

Do I have to use old fashioned speech? No, but it’s fun! And there are some pretty fun terms that are used to replace modern terms that don’t have a equivalent in the Renaissance! A few of my favorites: “The Book of Faces” = Facebook; “Please God 13″ = PG 13 (usually used to let you know if the content of a show will be slightly more mature); “Master or the Cards”/”Lady Visa”/”New World Express” = various names for common credit and debit cards!

Speaking of credit cards! There are a lot of vendors who take credit cards, but not all of them do, and sometimes reception can be REALLY spotty out in the faire grounds, so I’d say bringing about $40 per person (if you’re planning to eat lunch and dinner there) in cash is always a safe bet. Some faire grounds will have an ATM, but the line can get pretty long, and who really wants to pay ATM fees? Also tipping is how a lot of performers get to keep performing their craft! So having a couple ones to put in the basket at the end of a show if you choose to see a show is always a nice idea!

What about drinking alcohol, is that a thing? Yes, most Ren faires won’t let you bring your own, but most of the faires I’ve been to have plenty for sale! Just another general rule of courtesy: please do not treat this like a frat party, and try to avoid getting completely wasted and being a dick. Believe me. There’s a difference between being buzzed and having a good time and that. I have seen it too many times to count. It isn’t funny. There are usually children around you, and this is a public space. We all see you, and we’re all silently judging you. Please know your limits and drink responsibly!

I’ve worn cosplay before, is that okay to wear to Ren Faires? Cosplay is totally encouraged, especially if it works with the time period and/or it’s a character that is a time traveler! Hell, most of my “garb” is made up of cosplay! But please keep in mind: this is not a convention. There will be very, VERY limited places to sit. There will be very limited cover from the elements. You will most likely be walking on dirt roads with rocks and, if it has rained at all, you may be walking in several inches of mud. And the walk back to the car in the parking lot is a LOT longer than you think. So only wear something that you will be comfortable wearing for eight+ hours without being able to sit down for long/without having to remove parts of, and also something that can stand to get dirty and being out in the elements! (I have seen SO MANY floor length satin dresses that get dragged in the mud and it makes me physically cringe thinking about trying to get those mud stains out!) ALSO. COMFY SHOES. DEAR GOD. Invest in inserts if you can, just wear the comfiest fucking shoes you can find, your feet will thank you later!

Last of all: Don’t be afraid to ask question, and don’t be afraid to join in! Ask the cast and shop owners what the most fun things to do are if you aren’t sure what to do--sometimes they can point you in the way of really fun experiences that you wouldn’t even know about otherwise! If the Ren faire offers maps, definitely worth the investment, they’ll help you keep track of where you are (believe me, it’s super easy to get turned around!) as well as telling you where/when fun events and shows will be! Combining the two: one of my favorite parts of my local faire is Pub Sing, which is listed on the map but I might not have gone to without friends bringing me the first time and I LOVE it now. It’s basically a bunch of us sitting on wooden benches while one of the cast members leads singing of pub songs, and audience participation of new verses to the songs, lymericks, and toasts are fully welcome, and there’s even a big circle dance anyone can participate in and it’s always a great time, I try to never miss a single pub sing if I can help it!

So--yes, this probably got way too long, but hopefully this helps answer any questions that anyone might have had! Please feel free to comment if you have any other questions!

[keywestlou]

Ho Ho Yogi Bear

DAY 11…..Greece the First Time

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Key West Lou

Ho ho Yogi Bear! I am having a terrific time!

Donkeys have become a part of my life all of a sudden. First in Navaro when I discovered horse meat and donkey meat were sold in butcher shops for human consumption. Donkey was viewed to horse meat as veal is to cattle meat. Now donkeys in Santorini.

Before I made the trip, many told me to be sure to ride the donkeys up and down the hill. The hill that in reality is a mountain of lava.

I saw the donkeys yesterday for the first time. I was taking a walk along the other road. The road that runs between the cave hotel apartments and lesser accommodations. Actually the other side of the road is where the working people of Santorini live. Much like Stock Island is to Key West.

All of a sudden, I came upon eight donkeys on the side of the road. All saddled up and ready to go. What beautiful animals! I am a horse lover of sorts. The horses that race at Saratoga. Especially up close. Magnificent beasts. So too were these donkeys. Beautiful shiny coats. Ears standing straight up. Big bright eyes. Muscular legs. Very muscular.

These donkeys carry people up and down the side of a nearby lava mountain. On a path running along the side. Along a five foot wide path has been constructed 2,000 feet plus long. It consists of 500 plus steps. The steps of varying widths. A short 3 foot wall on the ocean side.

The ride did not appeal to me. I did not wish to be an ass on an ass. I was fearful of either the donkey or me or both of us falling over the wall. I raised that issue with the man in charge of the donkeys. I think I insulted him. He told me very firmly that no donkey or person had ever even fallen off the path into the ocean.

The path was made of dirt and rocks.

I had Nikos give me a ride in his car down the mountain.

The volcano sitting out in the water is like a magnet. It draws me to it. I have decided to visit the volcano in the next few days. I want to look into the opening and its depths. I want to view the smoke and sulfur and whatever else my eyes can see.

The volcano is not too high. Most of it sunk into the sea. So I should be able to walk to the top.

There is an added attraction. There are springs periodically spraying water and smoke. Baths from the emissions are available on site. I want to bathe in these waters. Supposedly healthful, I will be doing it merely for the experience.

Santorini is the largest of the several islands which were born 3,500 years ago when the volcano had its major eruption. It is big. How large, I am not sure. Larger than Key West I do know.

The whole island has a mere 13,000 permanent residents. Compared to Key West which has 19,000.

Santorini is the name of the whole island. There are several villages and towns located on the island. I am staying in Oia, one of those towns. People are nice here. Just as in Key West.

Sociable, helpful.

I spoke of beauty parlor proprietor Catherine Risvani yesterday. Catherine owns the only beauty shop in Oia. One to a town, I guess. Called Hair & Soul. It is a beautifully done small place. Two chairs, two sinks, a manicure station and a counter. Two lovely ladies working for her.  Catherine gave me a manicure this week.

Catherine is lovely in appearance. A typical Grecian beauty. Tall, thin and blond. Hair swept up and somehow tied in back. Interestingly, I have yet to find a Grecian woman who wears her hair down. Catherine also has high cheek bones. Another trait of Grecian women.

The bill for the manicure was 20 euros. About $28 american money. I was out of euros. I asked Catherine if she took credit cards. No. So I took out one of my $100 bills and told her to hold it while I went to the ATM machine for euros. She would not take the $100. Strangers though we were, she trusted me. In a tourist town. Typical of the Greeks here.

Which brings me to Nikos and Maria. Proprietors of my cave accommodation. Nikos and Maria are around 60. Own the Filotera Cave Houses aka Filotera Villas. A superior accommodation. Consistent with historical Santorini.

They and their son Adonis work their asses off. They have staff, but work along with staff from very early morning to late at night.

When I first arrived and met Maria, she was in a dress and apron. Smiling always. She does not speak English. I no Greek. Yet we have had several conversations. Each of us has spoken our native tongue. We understood each other!

I figured after first meeting Maria that she was the typical Mama Mia. A dress and apron. Always cooking and cleaning. Always watching the grandchildren.

Was I wrong!

The next time I saw Maria she was in peddle pushers and a tee shirt. Directing the employees.

Nice people these two.

It was Maria’s birthday the day I arrived. She sent a piece of birthday cake to my rooms. Nikos picked me up at the airport. Nikos drives me where ever I have to go. And picks me up. Their caves are lovely and clean. Very clean. Take a look at them. www.filoteravillas.gr, www.filoteravillas.com and www.santorini.com/hotels/filoteravillas. These sites will give you a flavor of cave living. They will surprise you!

The second day here, their son Adonis showed up with a bottle of wine. He said it was from his father’s vineyards. A special brew. Please enjoy it. I did, the next day. A cross between a white and red. A distinctive special taste.

Yes, Nikos and Maria besides owning the cave villas also own a vineyard and wine producing facility on Santorini. They ship world wide.

Nikos and Maria live across that street I mentioned earlier. In a small apartment less accommodating than the caves. In November, it gets cold on Santorini. They move to their home on the other side of the island. When it gets colder, they move to their home in Athens. During the winter months, they generally take a one to two month trip to the Caribbean or South Pacific.

It gets better.

Santorini and the Greek isles are not the United States. Many amenities we are accustomed to do not exist or are not provided. Like my clothes getting washed and ironed.

I was warned before I embarked on this odyssey that such would be the case. I came prepared. Purchased shirts and shorts at Orvis. That special material that is light, easy to wash and dry. Generally requiring little or no ironing.

I wash my own clothes. For real. Easy. In the bathroom sink. Drop some dish washing fluid on the clothes. A bit of water. Wash with my hands. Then shake dry.

The clothes still need hanging. Dryers are not common place on the island. Could not hang the clothes in front of my cave accommodation. It would not look right nor would it be proper.

There are clothes lines across the street at the cheaper accommodation. I hung my first washing there to dry. When I returned that evening, Maria came out to greet me. She insisted on ironing my clothes. My savior in disguise!

If you ever plan to come to Santorini, stay with Nikos and Maria. You cannot do better. Their telephone number is 003022860 71110. Fax number 003022860 71555. E-mail Filotera@otent.gr.

Enough for today.

There is much still to share.

This afternoon I am going to a beach somewhere on this island. Where I am guaranteed seeing bare breasted women. And, if I am lucky, some bare assed ones.

Enjoy your day!

As I have said in the past, vaccine distribution to Monroe County and Key West is not good. We seem to be forgotten. It appears political pull helps in getting enough vaccine to take care of an area.

Monroe County and Key West seem to be lacking in that regard.

I am happy for the person in Pensacola who was reported to have had excellent service. Not the case here. And none of us are doing anything wrong!

This morning’s Citizens’ Voice had two interesting comments re vaccine distribution/availability.

“Citizens of Monroe County should be outraged that the Medical Center at Ocean Reef, a private club, was allowed to administer 4,000 vaccines that were not available to the public, only to club members. This represents over 85 percent of the vaccine provided  Monroe County.”

“Now I know why after five tries I am unable to get an appointment for the vaccine: politics trumps health.”

Eugene Robinson is one one of the Washington Post’s finest columnists. He also has a touch of Key West in him. Every year, he and his wife spend one month in Key West. Normally January. They were not here in January. Probably the virus.

Robinson’s Washington Post column this morning is titled “To Rebuild the Grand Old Party, First Tear It Down.”

A passage from the column: “Before a sane, responsible political party can rise like a phoenix from the ashes of today’s dangerously unhinged GOP, there must be ashes to rise from. The nation is going to have to destroy the Republican Party to save it.”

Biden has been impressive so far. As he will continue to be. I have faith in the man.

He is moving fast. The  stimulus package, foreign matters, vaccine, etc.

It is very true that you cannot please all of the people all of the time.

Biden spoke before the National Prayer Breakfast. Called out white supremacy and domestic terrorism. And a multitude of other things.

Brian Burch is the President of CatholicVote. After the Breakfast, Burch slammed him for backing abortion and transgenderism. I do not know if Biden mentioned either during his talk. I suspect not.

One old, the other relatively new. Burch forgets that Biden, as with any President, represents all the people and not just one segment.

John Kennedy had a similar problem. Directed primarily at his Catholic faith. His response simple and understandable: “Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s and to God that which is God’s.”

Christopher Plummer died. An outstanding actor. His age at death 91. Did not pass away under normal circumstances. He fell and struck his head. The blow to his head resulted in his death.

One of Plummer’s most famous roles was that he performed in The Sound of Music.

His movies many. However, Plummer most enjoyed his Shakespearean performances. He considered himself a Shakespearean actor rather than a movie one. His famous Shakespearean parts were his performances in Hamlet, Macbeth, Richard III, and as Mark Anthony.

He won his first and only Oscar at age 82. He also was rewarded with 2 Tony and 2 Emmy Awards.

John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men was published this day in 1937.

Steinbeck had a marked influence on my young life. My parents had purchased several volumes of Steinbeck’s works. For their enjoyment, not mine.

I was about 10. The books attracted me.

I would sit in a huge easy chair in the living room. A thick red dictionary at my side.

The first work I read was Of Mice and Men. Obviously I did not understand everything. One thing the book did however was to increase my vocabulary and expose me to a world I did not know. Some of which I was happy not to have experienced.

Over a period of time, I also read The Grapes of Wrath and several other Steinbeck works whose names at the moment I cannot recall.

Looking back, the reading I did probably was not uncommon. There were no television or cell phones in those days. Yes, there was radio. However radio did not particularly turn me on except for baseball.

Enjoy you day!

  Ho Ho Yogi Bear was originally published on Key West Lou

[ingek73]

Meghan Markle: The Unofficial Patron Saint of Daughters With Toxic Fathers

DADDY DEAREST

Daughters dealing with difficult fathers are connecting online and cheering Meghan Markle on, as her father Thomas Markle uses interviews to try to emotionally blackmail her.

Mandy Velez

Assistant Managing Editor

Published Feb. 04, 2020 4:42AM ET

OPINION

Thomas Markle was recently on the British television show Good Morning Britain, complaining about his favorite subject, estranged daughter Meghan, and how unfairly treated by her and Prince Harry he feels.

“You do acknowledge that doing interviews will not make it easier?” anchor Susanna Reid asked Markle.

“There is no other way to reach them,” he responded, the “them” being his daughter who does not want to talk to him and his son-in-law. In other words, she’s “no contact,” which means quite literally no longer making contact or accepting contact with a loved one. It’s a move that is well-known in the world of toxic relationships.

Not many people understand why a child would cut a parent off, least of all, it seems, Piers Morgan, Reid’s co-presenter and Meghan Markle’s U.K. media agitator-in-chief. Glazing over his colleague’s questioning, he chimed in and attempted to garner empathy for Markle, asserting that Meghan and Harry cut Thomas off for missing the wedding because “they just didn’t believe your health problems were so bad you couldn’t fly.”

This weekend, Sun Online reported that Meghan and Harry don’t want Meghan’s mom, Doria Ragland, to become Thomas’ “pawn” after he revealed he had written to Doria to ask if she could help reconnect him with Meghan.

What a mess—and a triggering mess for me and many other women.

After the Good Morning Britain interview, I immediately logged onto Facebook and made my way to the group I’m in for daughters of narcissistic or toxic fathers. It’s a place of refuge when I’m feeling uneasy or tasked with dealing with my own father’s hurtful behavior.

It’s a place where thousands of women or women-identifying people from around the world, from teenaged to middle-aged and older, can openly ask for advice or just vent about the troubled relationships they have with their parent. Other members lend their support or advice in the comments, which can range from heart emojis to YouTube videos and educational articles. When I got there, there was already a thread about Markle’s comments. The comments ranged from rage to disgust to hurt for Meghan.

I do not know the reality of the situation between Thomas and Meghan, I admit that—but in how he has treated Meghan publicly I feel a strong personal echo of what it is to be a child targeted in such a way by their parent. I am far from alone.

Markle’s attacks against his daughter have gone on for a while, at least publicly since he pulled out of her 2018 wedding to Prince Harry. And, lately, it seems they’ve been a lot more frequent. In the same week he spoke with Piers Morgan—adding that he did not believe she was subject to racism as a royal in the media—he accused his daughter of “cheapening” the royal family and a week later threatened her with weekly interviews until she loved him again. The group has followed it all.

We’re familiar with the tactics of our abusive fathers that mimic Markle’s, whether we are in contact with them or not. We know the feeling of having someone who is supposed to love you the most respect your boundaries the least, and use emotionally manipulative tactics as Markle has (like when he says he misses his grandchild or asks for money) to get you to have a relationship with them again.

We have been lied to, gaslit, trash-talked, and guilt-tripped by either the toxic parent or by those around us who just don’t get it. Like Meghan, many of us have been told we’re the wrong ones for protecting ourselves or to just get over the pain they may have caused us, because they love us, and isn’t that enough? We are asked: why are we trying to hurt them? And if that doesn’t make us come “back,” we will be sure to regret it. And also, if we don’t, they may die—and their death will be our fault.

“He’s making very public what should be a private conversation. At the end of the day, when boundaries are being violated, it can definitely qualify as abusive. It’s a bad lesson on how to be a parent”

Dr. Ramani Durvasula, a clinical psychologist and author of works about toxic behavior including Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Surviving a Relationship With a Narcissist, told The Daily Beast that while she can’t diagnose Markle without knowing him, his actions line up with attributes of toxic behavior.

“He’s making very public what should be a private conversation,” she said. “At the end of the day, when boundaries are being violated, it can definitely qualify as abusive. It’s a bad lesson on how to be a parent.”

It is likely the reason that myself, and others in the group, feel the pain so deeply as we watch this all play out. It’s like we’re watching our own lives on a much larger scale. The same week I watched the Piers Morgan interview, my own dad texted me from a fourth new number in an attempt to reach me, despite me asking him for some space.

I’m not the only one. One woman from the group echoed what many replied in the comments of stories on the Markles: that he reminds her of her own father.

“I get anxious when reading or hearing the degrading things he says about Meghan and Harry. It’s all too familiar,” she told The Daily Beast. She explained her own father behaves in ways that are degrading or disrespectful of boundaries, and allegedly threatens her when things don’t go his way.

Another says her experiences make her empathetic toward Meghan: “I understand how hard it is to deal with a situation like this. I grew up with a man just like him.”

The Markle relationship is one that triggers us, but also helps us feel seen. Daughters of fathers with narcissistic traits struggle with issues like anxiety and depression at a rate higher than our peers without a toxic parent in the picture, due to both the abuse and the silence that comes from the shame associated with the subject.

Dr. Stephanie Kriesberg, Pys. D., who has experience studying and counseling victims of narcissistic parent and child relationships, called the daughters who carry this burden “a secret society.”

“[Toxic fathers] can look very different in public than they do in private. Plus, our society doesn’t endorse the idea that we can be critical of our parents,” said Dr. Kriesberg. She didn’t want to comment on Meghan, specifically, but made a broader point: “Society doesn’t expect a woman who says, ‘I’m not inviting my father to my wedding.’”

The result? Daughters of toxic fathers like me grasp at any chance to feel like someone gets it. The situation between Meghan and her dad has triggered us, but at the same time, made us feel so much less alone. Though all fathers who exhibit narcissistic or toxic traits have different styles of abuse—from the silent treatment to threats—Dr. Kriesberg says the common thread among their daughters is rejection. And those of us who experience it find healing and validation in each other, and though she may not know it, Meghan.

A week ago, in a Meghan Markle thread, everything came to a head when a group member officially dubbed her our patron saint: The Patron Saint of Daughters of Toxic Men.

The more Markle chooses to speak ill of his daughter, the more I empathize with her. This, in turn, helps me empathize with myself. The toxicity in the language Markle uses toward his daughter has made me see that abusive family dynamics, whether they stem from mental illness or not, does not discriminate. It’s not the fault of the victim of such abuse in parent-child situations; it’s simply the luck of the draw. Sometimes, the person who draws such a card is a princess.

Meghan is not perfect and neither am I. No human being is. There may well be some very valid criticism of her behavior, of how she and Harry have managed their royal lives, and how they have exited from their royal duties.

“We want to feel our experiences and our choices to protect ourselves are valid. Without saying a word, Meghan gives us that”

But watching her face the onslaught of slights from her father is painful for those of us tied to this special kind of parental emotional abuse, who are desperate to find others who understand. We want to feel our experiences and our choices to protect ourselves are valid. Without saying a word, Meghan gives us that.

She didn’t choose to be a very public image of what family toxicity looks like and I’m not 100 percent sure that is how she views the situation—Lord knows she already wants to shed elements of the royal role she has.

But as long as her father lashes out, I will continue to cheer Meghan Markle on, as will many other daughters. With her as an example, we will grow the strength to deal with our own fathers and whatever fallout that decision may bring. We will discuss the interviews that trigger us and relate to the behaviors we find familiar. And, for once, we will not feel alone.

[gildedhq]

THE SOCIETY WELCOMES YOU.

When the last of the invitations have been sent out, thick envelopes sealed in red wax and stamped with an emblem that means so many things so as to mean nothing at all, there is only the air of careful expectation. For many, this is the chance that they’ve all been waiting for, the history of their families drummed up for them since childhood onward; for others, it is an invitation to a strange and unknown world, one that is beyond their wildest imaginations and could eat them alive if they aren’t careful. Whatever the case, their lives will never be the same ever again.

THE SOCIETY IN ROME.

SETTING: Rome, Italy // pre-22nd of April 2020 

One by one, they gather unto Rome, that ever-eternal city that has been the cradle of their society ever since the beginning. It receives them fully, wholeheartedly, and the city opens up before them in a way that it doesn’t for anyone else, as if eager to welcome her children back home. Both members and initiates are allowed special access to places of history, privileged loci of authority that seem to speak of a brighter and better age, where they occupied the halls of power in a more visible position. It is these monuments and these artefacts and these buildings that impresses upon them the legacy which they are heirs to today, the duty they must carry if they are to do justice by their birthright: they are the torchbearers and the luminaries of their age. Power and wealth has been given to them for their enjoyment and perusal, yes, but noblesse oblige compels them to use this power for the greater good—for why else would they be blessed with such privilege? They are the beautiful and the chosen, equipped with authority and the right to rule and the adulation of the masses, and this is the time to mark what is theirs.

THE EVENTS.

A mass at St. Peter’s Basilica: For all those faithful (or professing to be faithful), a mass at St. Peter’s Basilica has been offered, with the Pope himself reportedly to give indulgences to any who seek it immediately afterwards. Let it not be said that the society has forgotten its roots, its special relationship with the Church, and the soft power that the institution still wields.

Exclusive tour of the Vatican Museums: After the mass, the members and initiates of the society are invited for a privileged tour of the Vatican Museums. Members and initiates alike can spend any number of hours inside, free to come and go as they please, with the Museums closed for a whole day (supposedly for “maintenance”) just for their own leisure.

Fine dining at Pierluigi: Pierluigi has transformed from trattoria to tourist spot, claiming world leaders and celebrities as its clientele. Serving fresh fish caught daily at the nearby comune of Ostia, this trattoria offers several seafood-based plates that is sure to be the talk of any who taste its fine maritime delights—and the society has managed to capture a permanent reservation for any member or initiate who wish to experience one of Rome’s best restaurants.

A tour of Rome underground: Above ground, the capital of the world is a majestic many-splendored thing, awash in the glory of the dawn; below ground, it is a mysterious, snaking, sly thing. Swaddled in darkness, there are labyrinthine crypts that can prove one’s end if one is not careful, each turn seeming like the other, the rows of bones in crypts almost haunting. There is the Capuchin Crypt, the Roman Catacombs, and the San Clemente Basilica—all of which can be freely explored with a competent and knowledgeable guide should any daring member or initiate wish to do so.

THE NEW MOON GATHERING.

SETTING: Palazzo della Fraternita // 22nd of April 2020

Here, at last, the culmination of their stay in the eternal city, the reason for their moot in Rome in the first place. The events prior have only been a taste of the vast control that the society could offer them, and now the curtains have been drawn. All masks are off. The tables have been set and all that’s needed is for them to find their place in the tableau. The dawning of the day comes like any other, but it would be wholly a lie to say that this day hasn’t been anticipated. For most of the initiates, this marks their first entry into the society, a journey that will hopefully take them from their middling rank of today to established archons that wield power with the full authority of the society.

Yet for all its love of tradition, the society itself seems to be on a precipice. Never before have they welcomed a batch of initiates this large, and the presence of new money is an unwelcome change for some who wish to keep the identity of the society static and unchanging. The Grand Archon sits on his throne, unmoved and unmoving, as if blind to the whispers and recent developments of the society itself. He is barely even there: a wisp of a shadow of a memory. Blink, and it is as if he disappears. Yet it it is through his machinations that the society has somewhat democratised, he the sole reason for the mass influx of new initiates. There is the feeling of something inevitable, but who knows what?

Through it all: the clinking of wine glasses, the twinkle of crystal chandeliers, the soft lull of piano music in the air. There is the air of civility and sophistication that abounds in the air, forced smiles and laughter like bells resounding in the rooms of the palazzo. All dressed up as they are, it is as if there is nothing wrong with them—a common habit of the privileged, one that has chosen to bare its venomous fangs for this special day. 

THE TIMELINE OF EVENTS.

An introduction of the society: The day kicks off with the society gathering in the Palazzo della Fraternita. It is meant to be a quiet event that would take up most of their time up until their luncheon, allowing initiates and members alike to get to know each other a little better in quiet conversation. Some of them might already know each other from before—after all, the society is populated by a cast whose last names are familiar with one another—but there are some whose claim to both power and wealth are evergreen and new, a fact which seems to bring a scowl to some of the society’s more established members. Elsewhere, there are cards and board games, decks made from when rococo was still in vogue and even older, and the chessboard pieces are crafted as crystal and hewn with precious gems, as if every display of wealth and power is to be ostentatious as possible, never once letting a single one of them forget the privilege that the society offers its members. 

Luncheon at La Pergola: Come lunchtime, the society is ushered towards atop a towering hotel. The society’s luncheon gives them a privileged place upon which to gaze at the whole of Rome and the Vatican, offered up to them like the oysters that now decorate their fine china plate. They are served course upon course of sumptuous meals, each plate upstaging the last, and offering every sort of cuisine that the mind can imagine—though, of course, there is a certain tendency towards Italian food, a proud emblem of the eternal city’s nourishment of the society seemingly materialising on their plates.

A showing of Mozart’s Don Giovanni: After their luncheon at La Pergola, they are led towards an exclusive showing of Don Giovanni at the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, blocked out just for them, with endless champagne and scrumptious hors d’ouvres served on scintillating silver plates during the intermission.

Dinner at the Palazzo: The day ends where it begins. The society congregates once more to the Palazzo to cap off their whole day. Yet another sumptuous feast is provided; but the restrictions on decorum and etiquette are eased somewhat. Conversation flows just as easily as wine from the vintage bottles sourced from the nearby vineyards. 

OOC NOTE.

And that officially starts the first event for GILDEDHQ! Just to recap: all members and initiates have been invited to Rome for the 22nd of April, 2020. However, as the society understandably realises that most members will probably be arriving a few days before the actual day itself, it has deigned to organise a very many number of things with which your muse can participate in to pass the time as they wait for the 22nd of April to come. These events are not mandatory, but they should serve as easy starting-off points for starters and the like should you wish to plot out your characters meeting before the Gathering itself. Of course, you are not limited to these events should you so wish to set up a starter in some other place.

The New Moon Gathering itself takes the course of one day. Members and initiates alike are expected to come to the Palazzo della Fraternita to mingle with one another and “formally” acquaint themselves with one another—even if they already know each other before! This is one of the intricate rituals of the society, passed down since time immemorial, and there’s nothing the society loves more than tradition. The schedule is tightly packed and there are almost no opportunities to diverge from the list of events as dictated by the society. Theoretically speaking, your muse can diverge from the event—walk out of Don Giovanni, for example, or disappear completely after the luncheon—but this will have quite significant repercussions for your character and will need admin approval beforehand.

You are encouraged, but not required, to post starters, photosets of your muse, and anything at all related to the event with the tag gilded:new moon. Please only write starters set up until the 22nd of April, as there will be a second part to this event.

————— THIS EVENT WILL RUN FOR ONE WEEK FROM  [ 22ND OF APRIL 4PM GMT / 12NN EASTERN ]  TO  [ 29TH OF APRIL 4PM GMT / 12NN EASTERN ]

[kurtty-drabbles]

Ocean au (Pool of Blood 7)

N/A: OK, HERE WE GO.

@djinmer4 @dannybagpipesarecalling @bamfoftheundead @everykurt

The skyscrapers of New Gotham are timeless and Columbina doesn´t have the imagination to try to see how the city would be with a different architecture, maybe, because New Gotham´s aesthetic works so well in the point is almost iconic. At the moment, Columbina is looking at the city below her.

Wayne´s enterprise's building seems something out of the '50s and refuses to change, sure, they make technologies, sure their workers aren´t just white men, but, still when Columbina is hunched down in the bench of the window (empty office) the woman is left with her thoughts until she hears the lunatic laugh.

Nightcreeper teleports on the next window, still wearing the same thong only an anime would. And Columbina does not seems to mind his insane presence. A rarity.

"Are you stalking me?" she asked now hovering through the air. Nightcreeper flashes one of those smiles and again it does little to frighten Columbina.

"No, not today, I was passing by and saw a little kitten floating here..." and Columbina got more insane answers proving that the man is not sane, at least not now.

"Ok, then, I suppose.  Do you ever felt fear?" she asked now peering into his golden eyes. Nightcreeper seems to be pondering about this question and she wonders if Ryder is one to admit he feels fear like everyone else or pretends he´s fearless.

"Sometimes. Why? Does my cat burglar fears dogs?"

"Your jokes are terrible, Creepy, but, yes...I´d fear. I´ll have to do a mission, of the sort, and I not sure I can pull it off" and now Nightcreeper looks serious at her, for once, and is incredibly disjointing.

"Are you going to steal something?"

"Yes"

"Can I stop you?"

"Can you be less you?"

"No, I think not. But...what will you steal?"

"A Pool of Blood!"

And Nightcreeper ogles at her for a moment until his smile is back. "What a kinky girl!" he replies and it remotes Columbina to one of Ryder´s episodes where Ryder uncover the truth about an oil owner and why he missed the important meeting in New Gotham...he was having an affair with his secretary.

"Why kinky?"

"Why anyone would steal a Pool of Blood? You sure got guts, Katzchen... I like this it does things to my blood"

"See? now your jokes are getting a tad bit better. Creepy...do you think I can do it?"

"Nope. But if you want to take me to the Red room I´m all yours" and Columbina almost blushes because the Red room is a club for BSDM and she wonders if Ryder is a member there. Maybe smiling at that gives the wrong idea as Creepy seems more than happy to suppose she´s ready for this.

"You know what? Let´s do a bet, Creepy, if I manage to steal the pool...you take me to a nice date, be creative and not pervert, and if I lose...I take you to the Red room and beat you up with my whip"

And she now is full smiles as the lunatic takes the bet, after all, in the end, Creepy is the one who will win here.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

"Meggan, I want to show you something" Kokoro calls her sister-in-law and has a small stone in her hand and Meggan having know enough about Kryptonian´s history thanks to Brian is surprised by not reconize the stone on Kokoro´s hand.

"What´s this?" she asked having a feeling what this may be.

"You know I have connections with the Foundation. We made a deal a few years ago and this stone is me charging some favours...this stone will help us to capture the Pool of Blood safely..." she shows the stone but refuses to let go. "You trust Columbina, right? Would you extend this trust to her sister?"

"I won´t say I distrust her. I´ll say I know Columbina more...if you want a more poignant opinion on Polaris, maybe, White Witch would be better to give you one...Polaris and the Green Witch are sorting having a fling and the Green Witch is her apprentice"

"I ...shall call Wanda then...look, this stone is important, let´s say that, and I need to know that Polaris won´t run away with the stone"

"I doubt of that, but if she does, what would happen?"

"Magneto´s secret daughter would be even more powerful than she already is!"

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Wanda is using tarot and is not surprised when her phone rings and is Kokoro on the phone, to put nicely, Wanda and Kokoro don´t have a relationship at all, before the whole heist all those women have in common was JLX and only that and now...Kokoro has Wanda´s cellphone. Life isn´t funny?

"Hello, Kokoro, the cards told me you would call me, what I can do to you?"

"Cards? Ok nevermind, look, is Polaris is there with you" Wanda look at Polaris and the Green Witch flirt not so subtle and frowns at this question. "she just fly away now. Why?"

"I think I have a solution for our plan...but, look, just tell me, do you truly trust Polaris?"

"As much I can trust myself"

"Then...please, hear me out and don´t make many questions about but I have something that can help us...do you know about the stones of Pheonix?"

"I´m listening"

________________________________________________________________________________________

Dr Bright is more than happy to see Ryder (who may not share the same sentiment) as he explains the situation. To put in laymen terms, a Pool of Blood was located in Jump City and has crafted a pocket dimension for itself and the Foundation along with some side help will take the Pool out of the Jump City.

Ryder nods and makes the one billion dollar question. "Why am I here? The Foundation makes very clear in the past how much they dislike reporters...if I can´t report what I see here..." Dr Bright laughs, and for once, is not a happy one.

"Ryder, let´s make a bet? if after you saw here you still want to make the article and share to the people...no one will stop you and you´ll have to deal with the consequences...Got it?"

And Ryder agrees.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

The ladies arrive in the pocket dimension as Sparrow predicted("it wants us in" Sparrow mutters to Felicia who stands closer of Sparrow now) and the Foundation is there as well, however, the ladies are shocked to see Kurt Ryder there as well.

Kokoro is not having a great time and demands an explanation for why Ryder is there. And Dr Bright explains Ryder is his assistant for this mission and surely this was not the entire truth, but, everyone has things to do in regards the Pool of Blood who is near and growing.

Ryder noticed Columbina who seems amused and nervous at the same time. Then his eyes widen as he noticed... "Wait, those are Kitty´s pets?! Why are they here? Where is Kitty?"

And for a moment, Kokoro smiles, Wanda rolls her eyes, Felicia and Sparrow are not seeing this, Polaris does not care, Meggan is trying to make sure no one dies and Gwen is snickering here. Columbina plays along.

"Kitty, the brave soul she is...let her friends here" she points at Cosmo and Jupiter "out on this mission"

"What? Why?" and Ryder was ready to accuse Kitty of not being a good pet owner or maybe saying Columbina stole her pets when Jupiter´s mouth opens and the horror of space is visible to Ryder who drops on the floor.

Cosmo uses telekinesis and to take a gem and quickly the horror a flergen hide is once again hidden.

"As I told you, Kitty is really brave to let her friends here" Columbina explains and Ryder nods.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Cosmo goes to Wanda still lifting the gem and now speaks (Ryder is mind blow by this) "Be careful, Wanda, this gem is different from the last one" and the woman nods and now Columbina, Polaris and Wanda are going near of the Pool.

Ryder watches in amusement, in fear and everything his mind can come up as the 3 ladies are doing such dangerous task. Ryder asks Sparrow (both know each other identities at this point) what´s going on.

"Ryder, is ok, trust us. And right now...we´ll do something really complex...we´ll talk to the Pool of Blood"

___________________________________________________________________________________________

The Pool of Blood is sentiment enough. The Pool of Blood, however, belittle humans just like any other eldritch abomination and Columbina has experience in talking with those creatures (not all of them are like Jupiter and Cosmo)

"Hello, Pool of Blood, do you have a minute? we just want to talk"

The blood in this pool gentle hits the shore and formed a message. "I have all the time in the world, little human, unlike you, but speak, and I´m listening"

Columbina gulps and the two women nod to make sure Columbina must carry on. "We would like to offer you a deal?"

Oh...what kind of deal can you offer me?"

And Columbina hopes this works as everyone else is hoping the same too.

[birdlingstarot]

Hiii, is it okay to ask for a reading? If so I would like to know about past my life. Your readings seem very interesting. Thanks You btw –rosie

Hello  🌻 rosie!

A little birdie told me this ����

What represents you in the past life? Tiferet; Heart - Beauty

You were an empathetic and nurturing person in your previous life. Always looking out for those around you. You had wondered about why the world works the way it does. Why do people harm each other? Questions along that line of understanding are probably some questions that you often had thought about, even in your current life.

You had a self-sacrificing nature and go above and beyond to help those around you. Due to this kind nature of yours, people are attracted to you, especially those that are in need of help. However, some had taken advantage of you multiple times.

However, instead of outwardly being hateful towards them, you instead remained kind towards them, regardless of how you felt internally and kept turning a blind eyes to the harm they had caused you and/or the people around them.

I had a strong feeling that you might had had libra or pisces within your natal chart in your past life. This could had been brought forth into your current life as well.

I had a feeling that you could had been born in Rome, the ancient Rome, or Egypt. Places with beautiful stone structures.

You were a member in a religion in your past life and you might be a Christian in your current life. 

I felt that you had a cold outward appearance. 

In addition, you had suffered from mild to moderate anxiety towards people which could had been brought forth into your current life as well. 

I had a feeling that you were very paranoid in your later years in your previous life due to certain experiences that you had.

Why were you paranoid in your past life? The Hermit

There were two situations in fact that made you paranoid.

Firstly, you might had experiences with backstabbers that really affected you badly in your previous life. You had wanted to speak up about them when those situations had happened but were silenced and you had seen the disappointment and dislike from others when that had happened. I see it happening within a church, therefore likely you had experienced a problem and were silenced within your religious group. It was with someone within the same group.

This had caused you to not speak up for yourself after and just took the blunt of things.

Secondly, you had went on mental journeys with people to help them through depression but there were some that did not achieve a happy ending. You seen them regress themselves into a shell of emptiness while you feel helpless within that situation which had caused you to feel guilt. 

Ultimately, you kept shouldering blame and guilt from situations that you were not guilty for. You are not responsible for anyone’s happiness but your own. You are not obliged to help anyone but yourself. 

However, being unable to shrugged the negative feelings, you had bottled them up overtime and you had regressed more into yourself as time passes.

This led you to being very vary of what people think of you and might be paranoid that people around you are talking about you, or even worse, talking bad about you.

This could be one of the things you worry about thoroughly in your current life. You hold people’s opinion about you higher than necessary. Please remember that one person’s opinion of you isn’t you, it is just a side of you. You are not completely or not not completely what people say you are, if you get what I mean. Understand that you have different sides of yourself and accept that, both the pretty and the scary. Low self-confidence is one of the issues that you are having issues with in your current life.

In addition, this had led to you looking down on yourself, deeming yourself as a lowly person. (which is not the case, excuse me miss)

What situation were you in that made you paranoid? 

9 of Pentacles, The Moon and The Tower in reverse

Both situations that were mentioned above had kept happening in cycles. You were always on the roller coaster that you saw and felt immense hope that things were getting better, only to be crushed.

It eventually felt that whenever any situations gets better and near the happy ending were just an illusion, leading you to think of the worse of every situation.

With the Tower in reverse, you felt that everything were just going to crash down. However, you had forgotten that for every good and bad situation, there are things to be learnt. This had caused stagnation within your growth and how to help others. 

This could had been carried forward into your current life. Please remember that if fa situation keeps repeating itself, there are merely things that you had yet to learn completely.

Judging by the looks of things, you likely had yet to master how to build your boundaries, stand your ground and self-confidence.

What had you not learnt in your previous life that had been carried forward into your current life? Naked before the Stars

You had yet to learnt to be transparent with yourself and others. You have a tendency to place what people desire as your own desire in your past life and is something that you had done in your current life as well.

Is what you say truly what you feel? 

Why are you convincing yourself that you want that?

In addition, you had a desire to achieve a certain ideal you have of yourself. Why so? There are no such thing as perfect, only perfect imperfections. You kept pushing yourself down as you compare yourself to this ideal that you not only did not accept your flaws, you do not even see your beauty.

To be comfortable in your own skin is a foreign concept to you. Now, it begs the question - Who are you?

If you were to see the same ‘ugliness’ that you feel you have in someone else, how would you treat them? Are you treating yourself the same way?

One misstep people always make in bettering themselves into the ‘ideal’ version they have is that they ignore or talk themselves down regarding their flaws. Instead, flaws should be accepted. Only when accepted, you can truly see both sides of the coin regarding the flaw and have a clear understanding on how to tackle the issue that they have with themselves.

You have confidence issues, in regards of both inside and outside. We hope you’ll be able to improve on your self-confidence because you deserve it. Always know that there will be people who will love the different sides of you. We were not born to satisfy everyone. Go for what you truly want and we wish you all the best.

Any advice? 

Karmic Relationships - Orion energy. Polarity. Soul growth. Conflict.

Your current life is closely intertwined with your past life. You are more affected by your past life than others in your current life. In fact, there might even be situations that you felt a sense of jamais vu which is a feeling or experience that you recognize yet feel so unfamiliar with.

In fact, Orion is closely related to Starseed. You might be one of them, which is something you might like to look up.

One issue you might deal with is that due to the conflict being so closely personal to you, you might reflectively start second guessing and assuming things, taking things personally. This is common but is something to work on. To not close off your heart and to understand the situation from different views. 

Conflicts are the hardest to overcome but is the one that you grow most from. Always remember that bad situations is not completely bad as you would gain something valuable in return, it is just something that you might not have noticed.

Double Mission - Lightworker Starseed. Serve the world by being you.

You are hiding your true self away from the world or even yourself. However, we are telling you that this is not it. You might have an ideal that you feel you need to achieve due to reasons that is important to you. 

However, you might be surprised at how much better your life could become just by being the true you. Please do not forget that just as infectious as negativity, positivity is just the same.

You feel different from others and you try to change yourself to fit into this version of the world you have. This card, however, tells that, ‘No, that is not your path.’

You are meant to light up the world with who you are. To shine the unique shine and shimmer that you possess. This is achieve by doing what you truly want, what you truly like. You likes and your mission in this world is allied. So, don’t doubt it.

Please shine that unique light of yours, we would love to see that.

Overall, you are a beautiful soul that is currently feeling lost. You are empathetic and wishes to help people, even at the expense of yourself. However, you seek validation from others and have a tendency to bottle your guilt, even from situations that you should not be feeling guilt. You have to learn to let go of negativity, especially towards yourself. Learn to trust yourself and gain confidence. (and shine bright like a diamond deh dehh)

We hope this had helped you,  🌻 rosie!

For now, the little birdie shall return home 🏡 ~ Ring our doorbell whenever!

Rest well 💤 ~

[strategemme]

I THINK WITH MY HEART AND I MOVE WITH MY HEAD

EMMELINE VANCE: Character Task No. 1

𝖖 𝖚 𝖔 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

The lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves. I don't trust society to protect us, I have no intention of placing my fate in the hands of men whose only qualification is that they managed to con a block of people to vote for them. They used to say that if Man was meant to fly, he’d have wings. But he did fly. He discovered he had to. There are things that have to be done and you do them and you never talk about them. You don't try to justify them. They can't be justified. You just do them. Then you forget it. Due to personal reasons, I will be performing vigilante justice. 

𝖇 𝖆 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈

NAME: Emmeline L. Vance; there isn’t a soul (presently) alive that knows what the “L” stands for. NICKNAMES: Em; other abbreviations of her name are generally acceptable as long as you don’t try to call her Emmie.  AGE: 22 BIRTHDAY: August 27, 1957 GENDER: Female PRONOUNS: She/Her

𝖋 𝖆 𝖒 𝖎 𝖑 𝖞

MOTHER: Florence Vance neé Chevalier ( 50 ) { born in France, moved to England after marrying Devon } // muggle  FATHER: Col. Devon Vance ( 57 ) { recently retired from the British Army } // muggle  SIBLINGS: Anthony Vance ( 28 ) { named after a dear friend of Devon’s that was killed during the Second World War } // muggle 

𝖕 𝖍 𝖞 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈 𝖆 𝖑 𝖆𝖙𝖙𝖗𝖎𝖇𝖚𝖙𝖊𝖘

FACE CLAIM: Demet Özdemir BUILD: Average height, athletic HAIR: Long, worn in waves on nights requiring effort and otherwise tossed into a bun   HAIR COLOR: Brunette EYE COLOR: Brown SKIN COLOR: Tan DOMINANT HAND: Right { she’s pitiful when it comes to her left hand }  ANOMALIES: (1) Scar across her left palm from making a blood-pact as a ten year old; it’s so faded now that you can only catch a gleam of silver in the bright sun. (2) Various small burns across her hands and forearms from healing poultices gone askew. SCENT: Vanilla and cedar wood; she’s worn the same perfume since her Hogwarts  ACCENT: Standard English  ALLERGIES: Cats  DISORDERS: Insomnia; she’s always attributed it to a general pace of “too much to do and too little time,” but there are nights when all she wants to do is collapse into her bed yet finds herself condemned to staring at the ceiling; many people make the mistake of believing that she doesn’t need sleep to operate, but her history of errors speaks otherwise.  FASHION: She spends far more time in lime green robes than she cares for, and thus compensates with a wardrobe full of neutral colors. She still feels more comfortable in muggle attire than wizarding robes, and thus is seen frequently in various combinations of jeans, blouses, and boots.  NERVOUS TICS: After years of having her tics evaluated and erased, Emmeline has largely eradicated any tells of nervousness. Old habits die hard, however, and with the stress of the war mounting, she’s falling back into drumming her index and middle finger on any solid surface capable of absorbing her anxiety. As she’s assumed a leadership position, she’s also taken up the habit of pacing while waiting for her teams of tier three operatives to return.  QUIRKS: (1) With the current travel restrictions, Emmeline has fallen back into driving. She learned during one of her summers away from Hogwarts, and her trusty Vauxhall Viva has carried her across Britain and back several times over. (2) When approach Diagon Alley for pleasure, Emmeline prefers to enter through the Leaky Cauldron. There’s something symbolic about crossing from Muggle to Wizarding London. (3) If Emmeline starts something, she has to finish. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, she cannot abandon a task already underway. It is one of the reasons she spends so long planning: planning necessitates time and distance while action must be immediate. 

𝖑 𝖎 𝖋 𝖊 𝖘 𝖙 𝖞 𝖑 𝖊

RESIDES: Puddlemere, England { London has always been home, and her work at St. Mungo’s frequently brings her into the city. But as war rears its head, Emmeline has opted for more strategic ground. The community of Puddlemere is welcoming to muggleborns, and her proximity to other Order members offers safety that could never be found in city streets. } BORN: London, England  RAISED: Too many places to count, though Emmeline isn’t partial to declaring military barracks as her hometown. Jokingly, she’ll say that Hogwarts was the most permanent home she had while growing up. More seriously, she’ll consider herself a Londoner.  PETS: A tawny owl named Machiavelli, though she considers him more of a useful friend than a pet.  CAREER: Healer { additionally, a vigilante; she offers free... how shall we say.. r e t r i b u t i o n to muggleborn and half-blood families that need a little extra muscle, be it of the offensive or defensive sort. } EXPERIENCE: In the medical field, Emmeline has specialized in accident and emergency, though it seems every Witch or Wizard only deems medical care necessary in such cases. Outside St. Mungo’s, she has frequented several underground dueling clubs to keep her skills sharp.  EMPLOYER: St. Mungo’s POLITICAL AFFILIATION: The Order of the Phoenix  BELIEFS: The the Wizarding community is in desperate need of some muggle influence (preventative medicine, to start, but automobiles, microwaves, and telephones would be a wonderful addition). The motivation of purebloods to eradicate such influence only keeps the community from advancing and reaching full potential, and the mounting war is representative of the collision between the old world and the new. (That said, she’s strongly of the belief that no one should have to die while seeking out inclusivity.)  MISDEMEANORS: Nothing that has found its way onto her record.  FELONIES: Being a muggleborn is starting to damn well feel like one.  DRUGS: Never. As much as Emmeline has a tendency to lock herself within her mind, she has yet to seek out drugs as a key.  SMOKES: Unfortunately. She knows she shouldn’t, but nicotine is often the only thing capable of taking the edge off and stimulating her focus at the same time. It’s a necessary evil, and her pocket is rarely without a pack  ALCOHOL: A taste for scotch runs in the family, and it’s often one of the most expensive items on her list of expenses for the month. She refuses to touch it while in the process of acting, but it plays a large role in her planning stages.  DIET: Emmeline never managed to find the time to take up cooking, and as such, she depends on local takeout.  LANGUAGES: English, French  PHOBIAS: Deep water { she adores swimming, but will never go so deep that her toes can’t graze the bottom } ; failure { a common fear, but many years passed where she refused to speak up in class because her fear of being wrong was greater than her confidence in being right; now those days have passed and she’s perhaps too passionately outspoken, but if she isn’t complete convinced of something, the words will never pass her lips } ; death { she’s grazed the reaper more times than she can count, either in her own life or accompanying the paths of others. still, she can’t imagine what it would be like to see her own funeral. she acts with certainty and confidence, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t fear what is on the other side of that bright green flash. } HOBBIES: Reading, board games or cards, camping, pick-up games of very, very, very amateur Quidditch  TRAITS: I never dreamed about success; I worked for it.  { + }: Hardworking, clever, frequently compassionate (but...) { - }: Occasionally apathetic, subconsciously manipulative, righteous 

𝖋 𝖆 𝖛 𝖔 𝖗 𝖎 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

LOCATION: Diagon Alley; it is the place where she first felt that her magic was a blessing rather than a curse, and it continues to instill that childlike hope in her whenever she visits. It’s one of the few bright places remaining.  SPORTS TEAM: Puddlemere United, naturally. She’s only recently moved to Puddlemere, but she has a long history of training Mediwitches and Mediwizards during Puddlemere’s practices and matches, and as such has brushed shoulders with the team just enough to be emotionally invested in their success.  GAME: Chess (of either the muggle or wizarding variety)  MUSIC: She knows the correct answer to this is anything orchestral, yet Goodbye Yellowbrick Road is the most frequently-played record in her flat.  MOVIES: The Godfather, Patton, Saturday Night Fever FOOD: Her mother’s Beef Wellington. She’s yet to find its rival.  BEVERAGE: Scotch, Earl Grey COLOR: Light green (but certainly not lime, damn those robes) 

𝖒 𝖆 𝖌 𝖎 𝖈

ALUMNI HOUSE: Ravenclaw  WAND (length, flexibility, wood, & core): 11.25in, sturdy, redwood, dragon heartstring AMORTENTIA: Leather, incense, cotton  PATRONUS: Hawk  BOGGART: The visage of the first patient that died due to her negligence. It isn’t an exact replica from her memories, but one that is in the process of decomposing. It’s propped up in a bed like the ones populating St. Mungo’s. 

𝖈 𝖍 𝖆 𝖗 𝖆 𝖈 𝖙 𝖊 𝖗

MORAL ALIGNMENT: Neutral good  MBTI: ENTJ MBTI ROLE: Analyst ENNEAGRAM: Type 8  ENNEAGRAM ROLE: The Achiever  TEMPERAMENT: Choleric WESTERN ZODIAC: Virgo  CHINESE ZODIAC: Rooster PRIMAL SIGN: Corgi TAROT CARD: The Chariot TV TROPES: Lady of War, Female Empowerment Song, Historical In-Joke, Showing Up Chauvinists  SONGS: Tongues -- Joywave // History Has Its Eyes on You -- Christopher Jackson // Come With Me Now -- KONGOS // Vindicated -- Dashboard Confessional // Baba O’Riley -- The Who // Vienna -- Billy Joel // Machine -- MisterWives // Kill Your Heroes -- AWOLNATION // Sabotage -- Beastie Boys 

𝖎 𝖉 𝖊 𝖔 𝖑 𝖔 𝖌 𝖎 𝖊 𝖘

Muggle influence will do more good for the wizarding world than it ever will harm

Encourages second chances but condemns those that require a third 

People should expect to get out of the world what they put in (no more, no less) 

Violence should be a last resort, but damn if it isn’t a definitive one

Those that are neutral in a time of oppression have chosen the side of the oppressor 

Sugar has no right to be in coffee or tea 

History repeats itself; if you can’t find a parallel within the pages of history books, the situation simply hasn’t developed thoroughly enough yet 

Cheap scotch is worse than sewer water 

[darkmindsthinktwistedthoughts]

Echo pt6

Warning: This is a little dark. There is blood, death, Strong Language and yeah … please read with caution. **Still not sure what direction this is taking so I should add a warning for Author with no plot **

Masterlist

—

Echo part 6

A heavily adorned cold hand touched her arm and as if by magic it was like someone had reconnected her mind to her body allowing her to once more move. Kit looked at the hand noting the different sized ornate rings and followed the length of the arm to its owner.

Long flowing blonde hair perfectly styled and accented with crystal droplets that just seemed to add a mysterious lustre to it. Blue eyes that looked as clear as ocean water were observing her as much as she was them. There was something off though. Kit couldn’t place it exactly which irritated her but it really did feel like she wasn’t looking at reality as it should be. Something hurt much more in the back of her mind than before. It was only then that she had noticed that the whole-body experience she had had in the past week or so where she had felt like her very bones were vibrating had more or less subsided. The only conscious pain she had was in her own head.

It made no sense to think otherwise but logic dictated that it might have had something to do with being where ever she was now. Breaking eye contact Kit looked around the room her eyes finding the window and noting that the scenery outside was nothing like she remembered from where she had been. Not only that but it appeared to be a different time zone.

“I couldn’t believe it when they told me but seeing you here now… I thank the Graces for bringing my child back to me.” The words spoken by the Queen were executed flawlessly like an Oscar-winning actress.

“You say that but I have no clue as to who you are.” Kit replied quickly turning back to look at the other woman. For a brief moment, it looked as if a shadow had passed over the Queen’s eyes.

“Is that any way to speak to your mother?” For a second Kit though she saw something shift in the Queen’s face. It was like something was showing through a crack in a veneer. Her expression changed so quickly before returning to that unnerving crocodile smile that it was almost easy to believe it to be a trick of the light. Curious to see if it would happen again and also with no real reason not to keep stating the obvious truth Kit continued to press on.

“I wouldn’t know I’ve never had one.” Kit shrugged watching for any signs that the Queen was going to do something.

“I would call you out on your insolence for talking to me in such a manner but I understand that you might take some time to adjust and that you know nothing of your origins.” The ocean blue eyes seemed to grow darker as if the depths of them were deepening. The smile on her face was so forced it was almost a painful grimace and the rings glinted in the sunlight as her fingers twitched. “Fine then let us start at the beginning. I am Queen of this land that makes you a Princess.” The Queen stood there beginning her explanations.

“Princess? You cannot be serious.” Kit caught herself before her laugh could progress past the initial snigger. Whatever was happening here it was clear that everything she knew was about to get a lot more complicated. If this was a lie or a dream it was a very convincing one.

“It is your birth right. Honestly, I wonder what kind of a land you grew up in to become such a…” The Queen trailed off her harsh tone evaporating as the light seemed to return to her blue eyes. “Anyway. About thirty cycles have passed since you were last by my side. You were only a baby at the time so you cannot possibly understand the level of betrayal that surrounded your disappearance at the time.”

“Betrayal?” Kit raised her eyebrows. She had naturally been told some from her father when she visited him but there was nothing in what he said that made it sound like the Queen had been the one to be victimised.

If Kit had been on guard before she was a lot warier thanks to the Queen’s phrasing. There are always two sides to a story, three if you want to get pedantic about it. Yours, theirs and the truth. Sometimes you needed to see or hear all three before you could know for sure but she remembered the sincere look in her father’s eyes as he told her about things. He hadn’t been lying to her. When he said he was worried or scared it had been the truth. It might take a bit more time to figure out how much blame could be placed and where in this situation but it wasn’t going to happen right this second.  

“Such an ugly topic of conversation. I would rather not discuss such things right now. Right now, we should be celebrating. The long-awaited return of the lost Princess.” The Queen practically sang her words as she began animatedly walking around the room. Once more it struck Kit as a performance. Something to show a crowd but there was no one here except for Kit. “We should have a feast – no a ball. And invite everyone from across the unified lands to gather. You will need a dress and someone simply must do something with your hair and make-up of course.” The Queen had taken some strands of Kit’s hair in her hand and let it fall through her fingers as she continued to assess her like she was nothing more than an object. “I’m not convinced there will be enough time to do anything more than that to make you presentable to the world but that can wait till later.”

The Queen’s expression was that of a judgemental frown and it did nothing but make Kit bristle. She had had years of her life without a mother where she had been reminded time and again that she was in a lot of respects not very girly or ladylike. None of that had ever mattered to her. She had never wanted to change and was happy enough in her own skin. And yet here was someone, her mother no less, that was wanting to change every aspect as if she wasn’t good enough.

“Wait a minute! I’ve just got here and you are telling me I’m your daughter. Not just that but a Princess by default. I can ignore the passively insulting my appearance but don’t you think it’s a little crazy to just decide to throw a huge celebration on a whim?” Kit took a step backwards removing her person from the touchy-feely hands pawing at her.

“I am the Queen. My whim is the law of this land and you child would do well to remember such and hold your tongue.” It was not so much a warning as an order.

“Sorry never been very good at that.” Kit obstinately replied refusing to back down in the face of a bully.

“Then learn. Someone will be with you shortly for a fitting.” The Queen elegantly glided out of the room leaving a chill in the air as she went.

---

The staff in the castle were moving around with hushed whispers as they gossiped about the new arrival. Some of the older members of staff had more of a drawn-out worried pallor to their faces than the younger ones.

A white figure cut through the rooms of the castle as it wandered around gleaning information as it went. They knew the room, that the Queen had visited. They had even found out about the grand display that was being planned and laughed at the show of audaciousness given the situation.

Cards had been dealt, the die cast and all the pieces were in play. And now out of nowhere a wild card. One that could tip the scale and provide a certain level of uncertainty to the playing field. They had not seen much more than a glimpse of the returning offspring but from what they were hearing they were very entertaining. Who would have the backbone to stand against the Queen? No one in seven lands had survived to tell that tale.

“Such a curious little creature.”

---

The roadside diner was like stepping foot into a time warp. Old vending machines and metal signs decorated it with what now could be called a retro, vintage vibe. The tables and booths still seemed to be upholstered with the same serviceable fabric as when the place first opened.

Col looked around the place almost expecting to see his younger self at one of the tables with a small Kit and her father. A waitress came out of the swing doors at the back carrying a plate loaded with pancakes the size of hubcaps and a jug of syrup. He felt his stomach grumble as he remembered he hadn’t eaten anything yet. His eyes followed the staff member hungrily until she had placed the dish on a table with a figure, he knew all too well.

“Thorn.”

The man turned at the sound of his name the cutlery in his hand chinking lightly on the side of his plate as he did so. He was the same man he remembered from the barbeques in the summers of time past. One guy in a stream of many that knew Kit and tagged along to gatherings. He had wondered if there had been something more romantic between them but he later figured out he had nothing to be concerned over. Thorn’s hair was shorter and pushed back these days. His suit was a more expensive brand but still off the rack. Fine lines now etched his face telling of the passage of time and the stress of promotion.

“Col. It’s been a while. How’s it going?” Thorn smiled and turned back to his stack of fluffy pancakes.

“Logistical shit storm would be putting it mildly.” Col slipped into the booth seating by the window and watched the other man pour syrup over the melting butter as if he were trying to drown it. “Are you going to tell me a bit more about my missing freelancer or are you expecting me to continue to field questions in the dark?”

“I told you everything I know already.” Thorn shrugged stuffing a loaded forkful into his mouth not making eye contact.

“Dammit Thorn what you told me amounted to nothing and you know it.” Col was irritated with the off-hand reaction. He had been slowly going out of his mind with worry and here was someone who claimed to be a friend of hers who apparently didn’t have the same common decency to be worked up at all. To make it worse he knew it was him that had sent those files.

“Yes, I do but I can’t change the facts.” Thorn looked out of the window for a moment before turning to face Col head-on. The emotions he was not showing physically were clear as crystal in those green eyes. “How much did Kit tell you before she left?”

“Nothing. I did call her father out of curtesy for an old friend but…” Col felt his anger at the other man dissipate when he realised, he was not so indifferent to the situation. Feeling a little uncomfortable to have the tables turned on him now in the cross-examination he brought his hand up to his neck and ran his fingers over his collar imagining it to be more of a noose than starched cotton.

“You didn’t tell him she’s missing?” Thorn paused in shovelling his syrup loaded breakfast into his mouth and quirked his brow at his companion.

“I don’t think that’s the kind of thing you tell people over the phone.” Col dropped his hand from his neck and motioned for the waitress so he could order coffee. She gave him a smile in acknowledgement as she finished serving some customers at the bar.

“Be with you in a minute Hun.”

“You were part of it, weren’t you? The Original investigation.” Thorn waited for the exchange to finish before he continued. He knew the contents of those files he had sent. The list of names of attending officers and all the dead ends that had been found. The evidence collected that generated more questions than it ever answered.

“You know I was.  I was still a rookie back then not much more than a greenhorn in these parts.” Col grumbled. The memories of that time had been a mixed bag. He had been happy about the transfer. A chance to set up roots in a new place and get out into the world and make a difference in it. But he also remembered all the strange things. The bodies, the lifeless expressions… the movements in the dark.

“How well do you remember it?”

“I still have nightmares if that’s what you’re asking.”

---

Everything was happening so fast. True to their word the Queen seemed to have set into motion preparations for a grand celebration and with that a small army that also felt as if it was part circus paraded in and out of the bedroom Kit had been occupying.

They had been poked, measured, constricted, contorted and preened into someone completely unrecognisable. Her hair shone like spun gold, her skin was flawless porcelain and her figure that was now bound in a corset dipped and curved more than ever.

She was completely exhausted and wanted nothing more than to get the hell out of this shapewear. After almost shoving the last person out of the room she pulled her hair to the side of her neck and began to unlace the ribbons. It was then with almost perfectly laughable timing that a knock came to the door. Kit sighed as it seemed her release from the steel boned prison was going to have to wait and she covered herself with a robe before answering the visitor.

“Hello, Little One.”

---

[creepingsharia]

Georgia: Exposing The Ugly Truth Happening Inside Mosques

Imam: “there has not been another 911 such attack in America because Islam is winning and at this point another large scale attack would set their movement back 25 years.”

Taking Sun Tzu’s words to heart, a research project was launched to learn what was happening in my community.  A good friend, Dave Gaubatz, who has gone into 300+ mosques across America and over 150 internationally came into town to investigate and report on what he observed from within a couple mosques in the area.  His research is very detailed, with a defined pattern of analysis as shown in the report below.

What he found was not surprising, but it was hoped it wasn’t as bad as his report shows.  Please read and share this report across your community and send Dave a request to investigate your mosque by emailing him here:  davegaubatz@gmail.com [NOTE: The report below was notarized for legal validation and sworn by Dave Gaubatz for accuracy in reporting]

Report is shown below & in PDF form here:

Final-sworn-affidavit-Savannah-1

...

Islamic Center of Savannah, Georgia

A:  Mosque location (neighborhood, strip mall, typical identifiable mosque structure, or Islamic Center) Keep in mind a mosque is defined as a place for Muslims to gather for prayer and strategic planning.  The place can be in the basement of a house, a garage, a room in a university, a small building structure or a mega structure) The IC of Savannah is an Islamic Center which is typical for a Sunni mosque.  The term Islamic Center is not typical for identifying Shia mosques.  They do not use this term.

B:  Number of members:  350 plus

C:  Sunni/Shia/Sufi:   This is a Sunni Wahhabi/Salafist mosque that primarily use the Hanbali Islamic school of thought.  There are four Sunni schools of thought. 1.  Hanafi 2. Maliki 3. Shafi’I 4. Hanbali.   Most counter-terrorism professionals agree the Hanbali school of thought is the most dangerous.  ISIS, Al Qaeda and other Sunni terrorist organizations follow the Hanbali school of thought.

D:  Material in mosque (such as Fiqh Us Sunnah, Riyadh Ul Salheen, Sahih Muslim, Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Sahih Bukkari, Reliance of the Traveler, Maududi or Qutb material, etc…)  Fiqh US Sunnah, Riyadh Ul Salheen, Sahih Muslim and Sahih Bukkari were located in the prayer room available to all worshippers.  These manuals describe in detail for Muslims to carry out physical (fighting) Jihad,  Child marriages (authorized), Slavery (authorized),  the beating of women (authorized),  killing of non-Muslims and even Muslims  who are not Sharia compliant, informing Muslims to never take as friends Christians and Jews, killing of Apostates  of Islam (authorized  anywhere in the world), and  the describing the objective of Islam which is to establish an Islamic Ummah (nation)  worldwide and under Sharia law.  The objective can and must be established by warfare as needed.  Many other violent topics are discussed in the manuals.  Much of the material in the mosques is in Arabic.   For those Muslims who do not read Arabic they are encouraged to go online and read the materials in English which are readily available.         

E:  Conversations with worshippers:   Dave Gaubatz spoke with Islamic leaders and worshippers.   Sunni/Salafist is the predominant ideology of this mosque that the Imam tries to instill.  Copies of the Quran and two Islamic books were provided to Dave Gaubatz.  Halaco Market in Fairfax, VA, was mentioned as a source for Sunni /Salafist/Wahhabi material.  I have personally visited this Islamic market/bookstore on at least 25 occasions.   Very violent and dangerous materials are at this business.

F:  Sharia decorum in mosques (example: prayer rug/carpet) No Black Flag of jihad was observed.  The prayer rug did have the required lines on the rug for the ‘forming of the lines’.  The Wudu (cleansing of the body) was in the mosque.  The women were in a separate side away from the men.   There was a throne type seat in the front area of the prayer room.

G:  Any affiliation with CAIR, IIIT, MSA, ISNA, etc.  Brochures from IIIT and CAIR were observed.  CAIR does have an affiliation with this mosque.

H:  Sharia compliance of Islamic leaders:   The Imam and Islamic leaders Dave G. observed were Sharia compliant.

I:  How are women/children treated:  The women are not allowed contact with the men.  They are completely isolated from the men.  Children were observed in the men’s and women’s side of the prayer room.

J:  Mosque etiquette (forming of line during prayer, selling of material in mosque, etc..). The Imam paid close attention to the forming of the line before the prayer.  It is against Sharia law to openly sell materials in a mosque prayer room.  No sales were observed.

K:  Imam lecture (mention of Sharia, Jihad Qital, Punishment in the grave, Fiqh, etc…)  Sharia compliance was mentioned throughout the lecture.  Punishment in the Grave was also mentioned several times.

L:  Invited guests (out of town Islamic leaders, CAIR, etc.)  There was an Islamic leader from Chicago who was invited by the Imam to speak.  He was raising money for an Islamic school based in Chicago to prepare students to be Islamic scholars in America.  He stated thus far the program has graduated 50 students.  The program is for a period of 6 years.   

M:  Sharia compliance of non-Islamic leaders:  Many of the worshippers were not Sharia compliant in their dress, but were complaint enough to be in the mosque.  20 plus men were 100% compliant and these are the ones likely to be involved in future violence toward innocent people and/or involved in acts of terrorism against our country.

N:  Business cards shared (internet sites, businesses, emails, etc…)  Business   cards were provided to Dave Gaubatz.  These can be used for future coordination/operations if deemed feasible.

O:  Confirmed Islamic terrorists have/had not visited mosque:  No known terrorist information has been made public pertaining to any visiting the Savannah mosque, but Muslims travelling from one mosque to another is quite common. 

P:  Active duty military at mosque:  One U.S. marine and One U.S. Army member attended the mosque (males).

Q:  U.S. Govt. Civilians and/or politicians at mosque:  U.S. government stickers (passes) were observed on a few vehicles in the mosque parking lot.

R:  Local, State, Federal Law Enforcement presence:  Local city police officer conducting security.

S:  Is local govt. liberal or conservative:  Savannah govt. is predominately liberal

T:  Are U.S. military bases within 50 miles:  there are U.S. military installations within 50 miles of the mosque.

U:  Are Islamic businesses within 15 miles:   Yes, an Islamic market        and various small businesses (some medical)

V:  Is state liberal or conservative:  Georgia is a conservative state, but liberalism is increasing especially in the larger cities.

W:  Local media liberal or conservative:  Media in local area is considered liberal.

X:  Interfaith programs:  There is public information the mosque leadership are involved in interfaith activity with Christian and Jewish people/leaders.

Y:  How does mosque compare to mosques in U.S. with confirmed terrorist ties such as Dar Al Hijra mosque in Fairfax, VA):  Dave Gaubatz and his team of CT researchers have spent in excess of two weeks at Dar Al Hijra mosque in Virginia.  911 terrorists had visited the mosque.  The IC of Savannah is on the same scale as Dar Al Hijrah.  This would be a mosque that Islamic terrorists and their supporters who are travelling would feel comfortable attending.  They would be welcome at this mosque.  The Imam is Pakistani and is working to insure all aspects of Sharia are observed.

Z:  GUT feeling of qualified researcher (Very Important) This area is rated very high.  An explanation and analogy is required.   Every human and animal have internal systems fight or flight sensors that alert them to potential dangers.  This is how we survive.  Over years and years of life experiences our minds are able to fine tune this protective system.  Police officers use this safety mechanism each and every day to evaluate hundreds of potential danger signals in order to know how to respond in order to save their lives and the lives of innocent people.  In a shoot or don’t shoot situation officers sometimes have a few seconds or less to evaluate situations to best respond.  This is when their life experiences kick in and numerous things race through their mind when they are deciding to shoot (kill) or not shoot (not kill).

When evaluating the potential danger of an Islamic mosque Dave Gaubatz does the same thing as one of the 26 indicators to determine danger.  He bases over 35 years of travelling and working in Islamic based countries, visiting hundreds upon hundreds of mosques, interacting with good and bad people of the Islamic ideology, interviewing dozens of confirmed Muslim terrorists, their supporters, and reviewing thousands upon thousands of pages of their books and manuals, and in operating in dangers gang infested areas within America and in combat zones in Iraq.  Based on these experiences within a matter of minutes or less he is able to kick in his survival skills upon entering a mosque. His experiences have led him to accurately analyze and reason that all mosques are homes to potential danger, but at varying degrees.  When he worked gangs and narcotics in numerous major American cities there was little doubt a gang infested neighborhood posed likely dangers, again there were various levels of dangers based on other aspects of his experiences.  The same is true using the ITAC system.  A GUT feeling combined with 25 other important factors triggers an evaluation for danger. 

Evaluation Rating: Dangerous, Very Dangerous, or Extremely Dangerous

Final Evaluation of Statesboro, Georgia Mosque:  Dangerous, but final evaluation pending.

Final Evaluation of Masjid Jihad, Savannah, Georgia:  Dangerous, but final evaluation pending

Final Evaluation of the Islamic Center of Savannah, Georgia: Extremely Dangerous (on a scale of 1-10 this mosque would be rated 9)

Imam is Pakistani

Sunni with a strong form of Salafist/Wahhabi influence

Analysis:  It is the determination of Dave Gaubatz that the IC of Savannah is the home for Islamic terrorists and their supporters and is used as a training base and regional HQ for developing the strategy for meeting the well-established and very open goal of forming an Islamic caliphate in America (and world) and under strict Sharia law.  The Islamic leaders will use two forms of Jihad defined as the ‘pen and tongue’ before they will use the violent form of the ‘sword’.  The pen form of Jihad are the writings of Muslims to alter non-Muslims into accepting and believing Islam is a religion, is peaceful, and is the solution to all of the worlds problems.  This form of Jihad also includes the use of the media.  The tongue form of Jihad is of course verbal communication through Interfaith programs, open mosques for non-Muslims, and most dangerously the infiltration of the Islamic ideology into our public schools to brainwash American children into accepting Islam as the answer to all personal and worldly problems.  It is the belief of Islamic scholars that American children are the future of America and the majority of their Dawa (education and spread of Islam) is directed toward them.  Islamic terrorist groups have literature sent to American schools and libraries which are very colorful to influence their young minds.

The last form of Jihad is the use of the sword which is Jihad Qital (physical).  Islamic leaders have informed Dave Gaubatz during his various undercover operations that right now in America they (Islam and its leaders) are winning and their strategy of an Islamic caliphate in America is on pace to succeed with limited violence. 

One Imam informed Gaubatz, “there has not been another 911 such attack in America because Islam is winning and at this point another large scale attack would set their movement back 25 years.  When a large scale attack is required to further subdue Americans it will then be carried out.  The plans are already in place.  The Islamic leaders know there will be small scale terrorist attacks such as with Fort Hood, Texas, the Boston Bombings and others that will put fear into the hearts of the American people and its government.  Islamic leaders realize the liberal leaders and politicians will label these attacks as ‘Lone Wolf” attacks and disassociate them from mainstream Islam”.

It is important for readers to understand that there is no such thing as a ‘Lone Wolf’ terrorist attack.  Muslim terrorists who conduct small scale attacks are doing so in the name of Islam, Allah, and to please their Prophet Mohammed.  The attacks are carried out because their Islamic training has taught them the sure way to reach Allah and Paradise is to fight for the goal of an Islamic caliphate. Jihad Qital is one such way to achieve this goal.

RECOMMENDATION:  Provide this report to the public in a mass distribution campaign.  Then and only then will America’s senior law enforcement and politicians do the job they have sworn an oath to do (protect America and our children). Do not be fearful of personal attacks or frivolous lawsuits or the name calling (Islamaphobe, haters, racists) that will without a doubt come about.  The protection of America, our Constitution and our children should and must be the ultimate goal of all Americans. 

“Our American military and law enforcement officers have died by the thousands to protect our Country, Constitution, and Children (3 C’s).   They do not run from the enemy and American citizens must never run from the enemy, especially inside our great country.  To do so will result in an automatic defeat”.  Dave Gaubatz