#t: milo 01

[gingerbreadmonsters]

bourbon

or: you know, like the kind you have with tea!

gn!reader, no content warnings, literal actual crack. now look what you’ve done! happy birthday to our wonderful zo - please direct all damages claims to our recently-opened ‘how dare you’ division at @zozo-01 . hope you’re having a gorgeous day - have a slice of colin on me! for those who may not know, i am actually english, so make of that what you will. love to rae for dialect consultation and hotline tag assistance, for the proof if proof were needed that neither the atlantic nor pacific can stand in the way of discord mischief - because we've now tried them both! darlin having an absolute mare in 1600 words or less.

“Darling?”

God, you’ve got to stop going to bed so late. What time is it?

“You up yet?”

Sam’s voice. Mmm. But he’s not here next to you - he sounds like he’s over by the door. Eyes still closed, you wave one arm vaguely in his direction in a feeble attempt to persuade him back into bed with you. “No.”

He laughs, walking over to take your hand, but unfortunately standing his ground when you try to pull him down. Stupid vampire strength.

“Nice try, darling,” he says, and it sounds… weird, somehow. “But we said we’d be round at Milo’s at half eleven, and we’re not about to be late again.”

The more he speaks, the stranger he sounds. What’s wrong with him? There’s definitely something funny about it, but you can’t quite put your finger on it.

“Did you-” Blearily, you crack one eye open to look at him - he looks just the same as ever, handsome even in the darkness of the blackout curtains. “Wait, what did you say?”

Sam rolls his eyes good-naturedly, and the sight is so beautifully familiar that it’s almost enough to make you wonder if you really just didn’t hear him right. Then he opens his mouth, and nope, you were right. There’s something wrong.

“I said, they’re expecting us at Milo’s at half eleven, and it’s almost quarter past ten.” What sort of fucked-up fever dream is this? “Now, are you getting up, or am I carrying you?”

The words don’t come, staring up at him in abject confusion, your mouth just hanging open as you try desperately to make sense of what he’s saying. Why does he sound so - so-

“...Darling?”

-so English?

After a few seconds of bewildered eye contact, he seems to gather that you’re currently incapable of human speech, and lets go of your hand.

“Right then,” he says, and it’s starting to make your head hurt a bit. “I’ll be downstairs when you’re ready, then.”

“Yeah.” You nod, plastering on a cheery smile and hurriedly starting to sit up. “Yeah, I’ll, uh - I’ll just be a minute…”

He disappears out the door and you listen as he goes down the stairs and into the kitchen, before reluctantly dragging yourself out of bed and walking over to the wardrobe. What the hell is he doing?

Your first impulse is to say that it’s a prank, that he’s putting on an accent for fun, to try and mess with your head or something. But that can’t be it - Ash and Milo have dragged him into enough of their truth-or-dare games for you to know firsthand how awful he is at accents, and he’d never be able to keep it up for more than a sentence or two, least of all with a straight face. There’s no magic you’ve ever heard of that could make this happen, and people don’t just wake up talking like a completely different person, do they? So is it on purpose? Does he know what he’s doing?

Unsettled, you finish getting dressed and head into the bathroom to brush your teeth and wash your face. Maybe that will make things a bit more ordinary, right? You’ve just… woken up on the wrong side of bed. You must just be hearing things. Hopefully, when you go downstairs, everything will be back to normal.

“There you are, darling. All alright?”

You’re in the kitchen. Everything is not back to normal.

It doesn’t smell like coffee. Hazily, you let Sam nudge you into a chair at the dining table, numbly accepting the offered glass of water and bowl of - is that Weetabix? God, you haven’t had this stuff in ages. It’s still as cardboard-y as ever, but you’re not really paying attention. Someone’s feeling unusually chatty this morning, it seems, and it’s starting to seriously throw you off now.

“-and he was going on about something Vincent said - have to admit, half of it was in French so I only got the gist, but-”

A pause, while he takes a sip of his Earl Grey. Your head is going to explode.

“But anyway, apparently it all went a bit pear-shaped - he said he’d had to leg it downstairs ‘cause Alexis had caught him nicking gum off her desk, but there’d been a delivery downstairs, right, and-”

“Are you okay?”

He stops, taken slightly aback, and you realise that you’ve said it out loud.

“You just - you-” Hastily, you try to clarify, hands waving awkwardly in front of you as you speak like it’ll help. “Your voice…”

He has the gall to look confused. “What about it?”

“Oh, you know!” you say through a mouthful of Weetabix. “The accent?”

“Yeah, I… I know,” he replies, like you’ve just told him the sky is blue. “I have one.”

“Not that one!”

Sam takes another sip of tea, utterly bemused. “What other one would I have?”

“But you’re not - you’re American!” Frustrated, your spoon clatters against the empty bowl as you dump it in the sink to wash up later, and you cross your arms as you turn to face him across the kitchen. “You’re literally from Mont Blanc!”

“...Yeah?” He seems to be taking the impromptu interrogation in stride now, raising an eyebrow in what he probably thinks is a playful challenge, but to you it’s reading more as wilful ignorance. “What about it?”

You take a deep, calming breath. It… well, it sort of works.

“Sam.”

“Yes?”

Hopefully, the smile you’re putting on looks a lot easier than it feels, like you’re playing along with the joke. “You can stop doing the voice now, I get it.”

He blinks. “The… voice.”

“Yeah.” Your head is starting to ache, ever so slightly. “The whole British thing.”

“British? But I’m not…?” He finishes his tea, setting the mug down on the countertop behind him, head tipping to one side as he looks at you. “What do you mean?”

“You’re American.”

“Yes,” he says, “Which really shouldn’t be news at this point, darling-”

“And you’ve never lived in the UK.” To be honest, you’re mostly just thinking out loud at this point, but he replies all the same.

“Yes.”

“And you’ve never even been to England before.”

“Well, unless you count a stopover in London on the way to France - must have been… ooh, five, six years ago? Oh, it was wonderful, William wanted us to visit some of his old m-”

“So why are you talking like that!” you wail, thoroughly confused and head aching even worse than before. “It’s not - you - you don’t - aarghh!”

Fuck this, fuck this whole stupid game, fuck this trip to Milo’s house for whatever birthday party bullshit he said he’d do - you’re going back to bed. Now. Sam tries to catch your arm as you pass him, stomping back out of the kitchen and clutching your head in your hands, but he catches sight of your too-sharp teeth and clearly thinks better of it. Good. You’d never actually bite him like this, but it’s just what happens with wolves.

He calls out after you, but you don’t hear it - everything’s just a blur of sound that washes over you in a strange, dizzy wave. In the end, you don’t even make it upstairs, throwing yourself down on the loveseat and grumpily hiding under the blanket draped over the back.

It’s pleasantly warm under here, and everything makes sense. It’s all normal. Nobody says weird things, or talks in some weird voice that they’re not supposed to have. It’s quiet, and it’s dark, and everything is back to how it should be.

Absentmindedly, you realise that you’ve shifted through your pyjamas. Never mind. It’s nice like this, curled up on the soft cushion, nose tucked neatly under your tail. Comforting. Safe.

No sound except your quiet breathing, no light except what little bleeds through the softness of the blanket. Nobody here but you.

There’s nothing to worry about.

There’s nothing going on.

It’s all going to be absolutely f-

“Darlin’, you - woah!”

It takes your eyes barely half a second to adjust to the light, clawing the blanket aside with a low snarl at whoever dares to come and annoy you, but-

“Easy, there!” Wait, this isn’t right - you were downstairs a minute ago. How are you back in bed again? And you’re human again - but you didn’t shift back, did you? “Jesus, you damn near took my head off…”

So caught up in your confusion, you barely even realise what's different now.

“Anyhow, now you’re up, you’d best be gettin’ dressed,” Sam says over his shoulder, turning to leave. “Milo wants us round in an hour, and unless we want another dressing down from Marie, we probably ought to be there on time for once.”

Before he can get too far, you reach out and grab his hand. You don’t really know why. It just feels right.

He looks down at you with a smile, pleased, if a little confused. “You okay?”

“Hmm?” Shaking your head slightly, you’re just happy to hear him. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

“You were pretty noisy, from what I heard,” he laughs, thumb stroking slowly over the backs of your fingers. “Didn’t know you were a sleeptalker. Havin’ a strange dream or somethin’?”

“I, uh…”

A deep, calming breath. It smells like coffee.

“Yeah, well. Something like that.”

masterlist

this is an original work by @gingerbreadmonsters - please do not repost or misattribute

[argaman01]

Jerusalems in the United States - New York State

I reposted a blog earlier today about how Jewish Voice for Peace had at some point had people recite "Next Year in Al-Quds" instead of "Next Year in Jerusalem" during a Passover seder. Someone then commented that they could have said "Next Year in Jerusalem New York," and in fact, there is a Jerusalem, New York, and it's not very far from me. (I live in Ithaca)

The New York Jerusalem is in Yates County, right on Keuka Lake. (In the map below, it's enclosed by the dotted red line).

From a history of the town published in 1892:

"Jerusalem is practically and substantially the mother of towns in Yates County.  The district, sometimes called township, of Jerusalem, was organized in 1789 as one of the subdivisions of Ontario County, and included with its limits all that is now Milo, Benton and Torrey, as well as its own original territory.  On the erection of Stueben County in 1796, the region or district called Bluff Point, or so much of it as lies south of the south line of township seven, was made a part of the new formation; but in 1814 an act of the Legislature annexed Bluff Point to Jerusalem, and to which it has since belonged.   

"In 1803 the town of Jerusalem was definitely erected, embracing township seven, second range, and so much of township seven, first range, as lay westward of Lake Keuka and lot No. 37.  At or about the same time the other territory that had previously formed a part of the district of Jerusalem was organized into a town and called Vernon, after Snell and finally Benton."

The Public Universal Friend

Portrait of the Public Universal Friend, from 1812, unknown painter. Source: Yates County Historical Society

A famous resident of the town (famous then, not now), was the Public Universal Friend:

"The Public Universal Friend, Jemima WILKINSON, was of course a pioneer of this town, the same as she had been in the locality and settlement on Seneca Lake.  In 1790 she first came to the Genesee country and four years later she established herself permanently in the town of Jerusalem."

The Public Universal Friend was born as Jemima Wilkinson in 1752 to a Quaker family in Rhode Island. Jemima was transformed into the Public Universal Friend after "a night of fevered dreams" on October 10, 1776.

Jemima took on a new identity after the fever. "'Reborn' in their place was the Public Universal Friend, neither male nor female. According to the Friend, Jemima’s soul had passed into heaven, and God had reanimated their body with the spirit of the Friend sent to spread the Quaker gospel. From then on, the Friend began to gather followers and travel as a preacher."

The Friend lived as nonbinary person: "The Public Universal Friend dressed in a way that blended masculinity and femininity, and this drew much attention. Their clothing included a cravat and robe like traditional ministers and clergymen wore, as well as the kind of hat typically worn by Quaker men. They also didn’t wear the traditional bonnet or head covering women were expected to wear. The Public Universal Friend’s gender presentation caused curiosity and anger, and it was a radical challenge to the status quo that the Friend was not willing to be bound by the customs of the community." 

How did the Friend come to settle in Jerusalem, New York? After their transformation, the Friend gathered a following, and they decided to create a settlement in western New York, called Jerusalem.

The Friend's house, where they lived until dying in 1819. (Photo from the National Park Service).

Sources

Yates County, New York, History of the Town of Jerusalem: https://web.archive.org/web/20050125071905/http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ny/county/yates/jerusalem/jeruhistory.htm

New York Public Library, January 13, 2023: https://www.nypl.org/blog/2023/02/16/who-was-public-universal-friend-living-outside-gender-binary-revolutionary-times

Washington Post, January 5, 2020: https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/01/05/long-before-theythem-pronouns-genderless-prophet-drew-hundreds-followers/

National Park Service: https://www.nps.gov/places/the-friend-s-home-jemima-wilkinson-house.htm

Life Story: The Public Universal Friend: https://wams.nyhistory.org/settler-colonialism-and-revolution/settler-colonialism/public-universal-friend/

Jerusalem and the Society of Universal Friends: http://upstatehistorical.org/items/show/75

More information about the Friend

The Public Universal Friend: Jemima Wilkinson and Religious Enthusiasm in Revolutionary America, by Paul B. Moyer (Cornell University Press, 2015).

"'Indescribable Being': Theological Performances of Genderlessness in the Society of the Publick Universal Friend, 1776–1819," by Scott Larson, Early American Studies 12:3 (2014) 576-600. (Special issue: Beyond the Boundaries: Critical Approaches to Sex and Gender in Early America). JSTOR link: https://www.jstor.org/stable/24474871

[dancehallevents]

Boasy Tuesday is a Dancehall Street dance that can be situated in the same category as Uptown Mondays, Mojito Mondays or Sexy Tuesdays. The core ingredients are 12PM $500 JMD Time: 01:00 – 03:30 am Resident DJ: World Team – Boom Boom, Harry Hype, Milo, T&R Ent – DJ Tom

[mint-moon25]

Watch "Jody Watley - Don't You Want Me (Extended Mix) 1987" on YouTube

PRAY - HDG - BANKS - ONLINE

COME - SOONER - MY TOKYO

MALE SCIENTISTS - HAVEN"T

PERFECTED - EVERYTHING -

YET - LEGAL - PERMISSION -

REMAKE - 'PROM - PACT' -

IMPROVING - THEIR -

'PROMPOSALS'

CALLING - 'BRATZ THE MOVIE'

MEREDITH - PRESIDENT -

BULLDOGS - NEW MUSIC DEPT

GIRLS - DIRECTOR - FORGOT -

HER - REAL - NAME - SO ME -

CALLING - HER - MEREDITH -

FORGOT - NAME OF - THEIR -

NY - ITALY - FILM -

DREW SEELY - HEADS - BOYS -

MUSIC - DEPT - ALWAYS BOYS -

GIVING - PROMPOSAL -

RE-START - BETTER - YES -

CHEERLEADERS - GREASE LIVE

SANDY - FORGOT - HER NAME 2

HEAD - OF - CHEERLEADERS -

HEAD - COACH -

ASIAN - GIRL - NOW - HEADS -

HER - PROMPOSAL - FR -

'BRING IT ON: NOW OR NEVER'

I - THINK - EAST LOS ANGELES

HER - DREAM - EXCERPTS -

AS - CHEERLEADERS WITH -

ACROBATICS GYMNACTICS -

THEN - ASKS - GRAHAM - 2 -

THE - PROM -

'DINNER - WITH - HIM' - THEN

WILL TELL HER - THEY DANCE

BUT - NEW - BLK - GUY - HAS A

CRUSH - ON - HER - GRAHAM -

'HE - JUST - STOPPED - BY -

WILL - U DANCE WITH HIM' -

HE - ASKS - HER - 2 - PROM -

BOTH - ASK - GRAHAM - NO -

BIRTHDAY - 4 - MILO - BUT -

HE - TAKES - LA TOYA - TO -

ANOTHER - WAFFLE HOUSE -

WHEN - THEY - SAW - MOVIE -

ANDI - TAKES - ADVERTISING -

IN - HARVARD - INSTEAD -

DOUBLE - MAJOR - BUS -

BUSINESS - ADMINISTRATION

ANDI - HOBBY PHOTOGRAPHY

HARVARD - PHOTO - CLUB -

SHE - ASKS - GRAHAM FOR -

THEY - NEED - MODEL 2 PAY -

HIS EXTRA - $$$ - SUGGESTS -

BOYS - GIRLS - BASKETBALL -

TEACH - HER - 2 - HEAD YES -

GIRLS - BASKETBALL - THUS -

HE - FOUND - HER - IN PHOTO -

CLUB - DO - U STILL - NEED A -

MODEL - AS - ENDING

DISNEY AND GBC - PRESENTS -

'PROM - PROMISE 2'

GRAHAM - 2ND YR - HARVARD -

BASKETBALL - SCHOLARSHIP -

HARVARD - UNIVERSITY -

NEW - OFFERING -

COMPUTER - EXAM -

MATCHING - TYPE - TIMED -

AUTO - TABULATED - WITH -

SCORES - CERTAIN - NOS -

2 QUESTIONS -

01) WHY - HARVARD

02) WHAT - DO U - WANT - 2 B

TYPE - 30 MIN

WINNERS - INTERNATIONAL

GRANTS - HOUSING - DAILY

CASH - CARS - FOOD DRINK

CLOTHES - SUPPLIES MORE

ACUPUNCTURE - 4 - BRAIN

2 - HANDLE - SNOW MORE

END - OF - YEAR

MATCHING - TYPE

THEN - 2 QUESTIONS

01) STILL - WANT - HARVARD

02) WHO - U - WANT - 2 B

EVERY YEAR - FULL GRANTS

MASTERS - INCLUDED

ON - THAT -

LA TOYA - ZACH - 'ZOMBIES'

BLK - NEW - MALE - GOT IN

ALL 3 - PERFORMING ARTS

ADD ASIAN CHEERLEADER

MINOR - ACCOUNTING

'PROM - PROMISE 2'

BOTH - COUPLES - MARRY

DIFFERENT - YEARS

INTRODUCING -

HDG - BANKS - ONLINE

AS 3 COUPLES - SEOUL

KOREA - PARIS FRANCE

END - POVERTY - WITH

HDG - BANKS - ONLINE

SPORTS - PROGRAMS

BOYS - GIRLS - THEIR

OWN - TEAMS - ALSO

UNIFORMER - SUPPLIED

WE'RE - SHOWING - THE

WEDDINGS - HONEYMOON

PARENTS - BOTH - OTHER 2

SHOW - UP - THE MALDIVES

BORA BORA HONEYMOONS

SHOWING - ANDI - 1ST BABY

WITH - GRAHAM - A - BOY 2

DISNEY - AND - GBC - ALSO

PRESENTS -

'PROM - PROMISE 2'

DISNEY - CHANNEL

DISNEY+

[tatexbrandt]

@miloadkins​

She looked back and forth between her phone and the man at the cash register. It was the same guy, but for some reason she couldn’t move her feet over there. The Tribeca store was nice and she hated to ruin his day, but it was now or never. Suddenly, Tate took in a deep breath and pounded her feet to walk over to the man.

“You Milo Adkins, sir?” she asked, trying to sound like she was a cop here on official business (though she didn’t have a whiff of authority about her, and she was really rather young). “I need to talk to you in private. Do you have an office we can speak in?” She was shaking. Oh God, why was she shaking? She was so obvious about it, but thankfully her voice had been seemingly even. Right?

[mayabrennan]

Date: Friday, October 16, 2020 | ~6PM

Location: TriBeCa

Status: closed with @miloadkins​

“Excuse me,” she said, walking up to the man who, hopefully, was as harmless as he appeared. If a little disheveled. “Do you have a payphone in here? I didn’t realize my phone had died until after I left work and my sister may call me asking what’s for dinner and... oh, you know, can’t live without our phones in this day and age, right?” She shrugged, a little uneasy. Not because of him, not even due to any danger as they were safely indoors, just because she felt awkward. “Or maybe you have a phone charger behind that desk of yours?” she grinned. 

[ivysloane]

@miloadkins

She stopped at a cafe on her way to TriBeCa... not The Sweet Spot because Peter still worked there, and she didn’t have his work schedule memorized anymore. And she wanted to surprise Milo Adkins so even though the food at TriBeCa was harmless and fine, she wanted to show up on his doorstep with something that wasn’t from his own friend’s hands, but was something new and unique. She’d even bought a candle and paid for them to write his name on it, and a few people turned their heads as if they knew a ‘Milo’ in town. Did he get around?!

She opened the doors to TriBeCa and smiled at Jack, if a little awkwardly, as she made her way to the book section in search of Milo. “Da-duh-duh-duhhhh,” she sang at him as he turned around from putting some books on the shelf like an old, gnarly librarian. “I’ve got something for you, old man. How old are you turning again? Fifty?” Little did she know his friend Forest was in fact fifty. 

Ivy put the cupcake on the counter and pulled out a lighter just for this occasion. She lit the candle and said, “Make a wish!”

[aerynshephard]

@miloadkins

She saw a man splayed on a bench towards the outskirts of the town gathering. She walked up to him, curious and cautious. She had been people watching and taking notes, as anthropology students do at zoos and in social situations, when she began feeling nauseous. She figured she was getting overstimulated and went to take a walk in the opposite direction when she came upon a man. “Sir? Are you alright? Do you need help or anything?” she called out.

[starlitangels]

(Not) The Screams of a Friend

@zozo-01 and I were having a conversation about Blake’s comeuppance so... yeah... this got really long... 4.4k words

—

Sweetheart

Waiting for the elevator to take me up to the Investigator floor first thing in the morning, I was half asleep when the door to the Department building was hurled open and someone rushed in. I reached for my magic instinctively, a phasecloak sitting on the tip of my Threads.

The man was average height, about 5′10″ according to the ruler attached to the inside of the doorframe. Dirty blond curls spilled out from under a grey beanie pulled back far on his head. He had on a purple T-shirt and jeans, and there was a frantic look in his eyes.

I waved off an Enforcer and approached the man. He was looking around wildly. “Sir?” I asked. His attention snapped to me. The aura of a Dreamwalker surrounded him. “Are you alright?”

His eyes drifted down and took in my work badge. My name, picture, and Investigator along with my Department Employee ID number.

He looked about ready to collapse with relief. “You’re an investigator. I need your help,” he said.

“What’s your name?”

“Elliott,” he said. “I’m a Dreamwalker.”

“I noticed.” I beckoned him. “Come upstairs with me, Elliott. We’ll talk on the way.”

Thankfully, the elevator had arrived and the Enforcer I’d waved off was kind enough to hold the door for me. I let Elliott enter first and then ducked in myself. He seemed full of pent-up energy that he didn’t appear to know how to release, and was therefore channelling it into fidgeting.

“How can I help?” I asked as the elevator started to glide up the shaft toward the Investigator floor.

That was the invitation he was, apparently, waiting for; because he turned to me and looked about ready to grab my shoulders to make sure I was paying attention. “CloseKnit,” he said. “You know who they are?”

I thought about that ad Asher had sent Milo after the Inversion. And all the information the other Investigators in the Department had been gathering ever since—and even before. “Fringe hate group. Practically a cult. Don’t like demons. So far we haven’t been able to go after them because they’re all talk and we can’t stop them from that.”

Elliott shook his head so fervently he nearly shook the beanie right off his curls. “They’re not just talk,” he said. The elevator door opened and we stepped out. I gave him a confused look but led him to one of the interview rooms where we brought witnesses. “CloseKnit is—they’re—they’ve—” He couldn’t seem to form his mouth around his thoughts. I got up from the interview table and went to the little refreshment and coffee table in the back of the room. The last thing this guy needed was caffeine, but he needed something to distract him just a little.

I grabbed a granola bar and handed it to him. He took it without even realizing or paying attention and then peeled the wrapper open. “Start from the beginning, Elliott. How is CloseKnit not just talk?”

“I’m not from Dahlia,” he said. “My partner and I were in town on a sightseeing vacation and we saw their flyer. My partner is unempowered, but knows about me—about magic.” He adjusted his beanie and then took a bite of the granola bar. “We went to one of their meetings last night. I was just... confused and dumbfounded that a group like that could even exist.

“After the meeting, we were pulled aside into an office. A guy named Blake spoke to us. Dreamwalker too. He—he muted my powers and put me and my partner to sleep. There’s a long story behind what he wants from my partner that I don’t have time for, right now, but he’s holding them hostage. They made some deal with him to get me out—but I knew too much and so Blake wanted to have my memory modified. They—

“They have a demon captive in their basement! An Incubus named Scorpius. He said they lured him in under false pretenses and then warded their building so he couldn’t rift out. They’re keeping him half-starved and forcing him to do memory modifications in exchange for energy.” I blinked slowly, surprised, scribbling things down as fast as I could in my notebook, but the notes were a bit sporadic and Elliott was talking fast. “Scorpius saw an opportunity with me and blocked my memory for a few hours instead of changing it completely in order for me to get out of there. I promised him I’d get help from the Department to bring down that ward and get him out. In exchange, he’s trying to keep my partner safe while Blake has them.”

I took a deep breath. “Alright. That’s a lot,” I said. “Um... it’s going to be hard to put together a case without hard evidence, but—”

“I believe him,” a voice said. I jolted and turned. Dammit, I thought. Forgot to close the door again.

—

Blake’s Listener

I fidgeted with my badge’s lanyard. “I believe him,” I repeated. The Investigator stared at me. “Blake is my childhood friend. He disappeared off the face of the planet for a couple months recently, and reappeared in my life talking about CloseKnit. He took me to that meeting last night.” I turned my gaze to the Dreamwalker. “He pointed you out. You and your partner.” I swallowed. “If you say he has your partner hostage and a demon captive in the basement... I believe you.”

Tears welled up in my eyes. I didn’t want to believe him. Blake and I had always been so close. But... he was different now. He wasn’t who I remembered anymore. And I couldn’t just let this slide. I recognized this Dreamwalker. Remembered Blake pointing him out and seeming frustrated.

The Investigator blinked owlishly in my direction. “Blake is your friend?” they asked.

I nodded. “This Dreamwalker’s words and my knowledge of Blake as a person give us probable cause,” I said. “Don’t need a warrant. And if the situation is as dire as it sounds, we should probably get a team of Enforcers assembled sooner rather than later.”

The Investigator took a deep breath and sighed, as though trying to steady themself. “If I don’t, you’re both going to go off and do something rash, aren’t you?”

The Dreamwalker’s eyes—violet under the incandescent light—drifted toward the window. I knew that look. “I make no promises,” I said. The way the Dreamwalker blinked and cast his gaze to his toes told both me and the Investigator that I was speaking for both me and this dirty blond Dreamwalker.

After a pause during which the Investigator took in both me and the Dreamwalker, they sighed. “Good thing I’ve never minded bending rules,” they muttered. “Okay. Let me call the Enforcement office downstairs. I’ll ask Tyrone to gather a group of the more competent officers and we’ll… crash CloseKnit’s party, I guess.”

The Dreamwalker looked about ready to cry. “Thank you.”

The Investigator got up from the interview table and crossed to stand in front of me in the doorway. I moved to step aside, but they followed my movement. “Keep an eye on him,” they said. “He’s not from Dahlia. I don’t know how much I trust his impulse control.”

I shrugged and nodded. They passed me. I stepped into the interview room, shut the door behind me, and sat next to him at the table, rather than across as Investigators did. “What’s your name?” I asked.

“Elliott.”

I gave him my name in return and stuck a hand out. He shook it. “So, you’re a Dreamwalker too. Like Blake.” He nodded. I probed his aura just a bit. “You’re a more powerful one than he is. Is that how you got away?”

He shook his head. “N-no. It’s complicated.”

“We’ve got time. Tell me.”

He did. I listened with a slack jaw and wide eyes as he relayed his story. Coming to Dahlia at the behest of a Deathwalker. Finding CloseKnit as the counterpoint to some building drove in Death. Going to the meeting. Blake muting Elliott’s powers, knocking him and his partner out. The nightmare. The unknown deal Elliott’s unempowered partner made with Blake. The Incubus. Elliott’s deal with him.

I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. “Blake… God, what have you done?” I whispered when Elliott was done.

“So,” Elliott said awkwardly. “You said Blake is your friend.”

I nodded. “We grew up together.” I slumped back in my seat. “He came to my house last night after the meeting. I thought… I thought he was… I don’t know. He dropped off the face of the planet for months. I kept trying to reach out to him and he always ignored me. And then he came back into my life a few days ago and last night… after the meeting… we promised to be there for each other like we used to be…” I sighed. “He helped me get to sleep after my insomnia kicked back in. Like he used to when we were younger.” I shook my head. “I wanted to believe he was still the man I knew growing up. But… nothing you said surprised me about him. He’s changed. And not for the better.”

The door opened back up. The same Investigator as before stood there, looking fierce and determined. Their Stealth aura was hard to detect but if I concentrated hard enough I could feel how warm it was burning. “Come on,” they said, beckoning to Elliott. “We’re leaving.”

I jumped up from the table. “Let me come too,” I said.

They shook their head. “You’re neither an Investigator, nor an Enforcer. I can’t let you—”

“Please,” I said. “Blake’s my friend. Maybe I… maybe I can talk him out of all this. Convince him to drop the ward and surrender willingly.”

The Stealth narrowed their eyes at me thoughtfully. “That will be our second-to-last resort,” they decided. “You can come—but stay in the car until I say, got it?”

I nodded.

“Let’s go. Both of you.”

I followed the Investigator down into the garage where all the cruisers were kept. Elliott and I climbed into the backseat of a big black SUV that the Investigator indicated. They slid gracefully into the driver’s seat and turned over the engine.

Elliott was picking at his nails nervously. I offered him my hand. He grabbed it and held it tight. “Hey,” I said softly. “It’s going to be okay. I know your partner’s in there—and in… unspecified danger. But we’re going to get them out of this. All of us, got it?” He nodded, swallowing thickly. “Someone I care about is in there too. But… if it comes down to it, I won’t have to be as delicate as your situation.”

That almost made him crack a smile. Almost.

The drive through the city was remarkably slow and I wanted to complain, but what more was there to be done?

Eventually, we pulled up to the CloseKnit building. The same one I’d been in last night—lured in by the man who’d once been my best friend. I took a deep breath, staring at it through the tinted back windows of the SUV.

The Investigator undid their seatbelt. “Stay here,” they ordered, getting out of the car.

I glanced at Elliott, biting my lip. “I’ll try to get your partner out safely,” I said.

“Wait, what—” He didn’t get to finish the question as I undid my own seatbelt and leapt from the car. The Stealth tried to grab me, but I dodged and ran inside.

“Blake!” I shouted as the door swung shut behind me. “Blake!” I ran through the hallways to the open hall where the presentation was. “Blake!”

“Hey,” that familiar voice said behind me. Edged with malice. “What are you doing here?”

I whirled around. Blake was leaning against the door frame with his arms folded. “I came to try to talk to you,” I said.

“Try?”

“Blake. I know what you’ve done,” I said. Those tears that had been threatening to spill over finally did. A blaze of heat dropping down my face and cooling off by the time it reached my jaw.

I remembered last night, when I heard Zeke talking about demons being evil as a common belief across mythologies. I remembered knocking my knee into Blake’s and hissing, “Blake, this is nuts!” under my breath.

I shook my head, hard. “Let them go,” I said.

“Who?”

I ground my teeth. “Don’t play dumb with me, Blake. I’m not stupid. Elliott’s partner and that Incubus. Let them go!”

He took a step back like I’d slapped him. “How did you—”

“It doesn’t matter how I know. The fact is, I do know, and I’m pissed about it. What has been going on with you recently? Why—what made you think any of this was okay?!” I demanded, storming over to him and standing toe-to-toe. “You were my best friend and yet you’re pulling crap like this? Kidnapping a demon? Holding a human hostage?! Blake! Pull your head out of your ass and—”

Blake fell over, eyes rolling back in his head. I jolted. My attempt to catch him failed. I wasn’t fast enough. He collapsed to the floor like a stack of pancakes in an earthquake.

Elliott was standing not too far behind, one hand extended. “How’s it feel to be forced into your own worst nightmare, you prick?” he growled.

“Elliott,” I warned. “Try not to get in legal trouble, here.”

“Says the person who just disobeyed direct orders from an Investigator.”

“Pot calling the kettle black—but touché.” I knelt in front of Blake, inspecting the back of his head for a goose-egg. “You’re going in, aren’t you?” I didn’t look at Elliott as I asked. I couldn’t help the fact that the limp man in front of me was my best friend and I still cared about him—even if the things he’d done were despicable.

“To his dream? Obviously.”

I inhaled deeply and finally looked up to meet his eyes. “Bring me in with you. I’m not on his side here. Please.”

Violet eyes stared down at me. “Okay,” he said. He raised a hand again—and paused. “Wait. You said you were at the meeting. With Blake. That he pointed me out.”

I nodded. “You and your partner, I assume.”

“Did he send you home on your own?”

I leaned away from him. “He did… how did you know that?”

Elliott’s eyes widened. “When he knocked me and my partner out—we woke up in, like, the basement or something. And I heard him, through the door, saying that you seemed to be buying the ‘innocent old friend’ routine, but not biting on CloseKnit’s values. He said he wanted your powers on their side and he was going to keep trying.”

My jaw dropped again. Then I scoffed. “I shouldn’t be surprised that he was lying to me. About everything. Yet, somehow, I am.” I clenched my jaw. “Let’s go into his dream. Both of us. I have some words for him.”

“Choice ones?”

“Strong. And choice, yes.”

Elliott sat beside me so he wouldn’t fall over when we went under. “This is going to suck.”

“Sure. But he has it coming.”

Elliott snorted bitterly—

And his magic dragged us both into the Dreamscape.

—

The labyrinth that spread out before us was dark and twisted. Elliott sighed. “Shoulda known he’d have complex defenses. Most Dreamwalkers do,” he remarked.

“Yeah. But he’s not a Defensive Dream Designer. I know him. He made this maze himself, and he doesn’t know the complexities of building one of these from work experience. Sure he took a couple labyrinth classes, but real maze design theory? He doesn’t have a clue.”

“You seem confident.”

“I know him. Not as well as I imagined, I guess, but unless he reached Labyrinth Black in the couple months he dropped off the face of the planet, I think I know him well enough to navigate this labyrinth. Still the little thing about trying to find his grain-of-sand dreamscape but—”

“Leave that to me.”

I held a hand out for him. “Let’s not get separated.”

He took my hand. “Good idea.”

“I’m gonna keep my left hand on the wall. As long as we do that, we should be pretty safe.”

“Unless he’s trapped the walls.”

“Well, then I guess that will be your problem. Come on.”

We plunged into the maze. Twisted corridors of dark brick spiraled around us. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from getting nauseated. Elliott squeezed my hand. “I am a Defensive Dream Designer,” he said. “I’m used to this.”

“Do you usually navigate your mazes?”

“At least once, yes, before the client approves it.”

“Great,” I said.

“So… what are your powers? Why does Blake want them badly enough to barge back into your life playing the innocent old friend? I wasn’t paying attention to your aura before and in here, I can’t really sense anything.”

I took a deep breath. “I, uh, I’m a—”

Wham! Something flew out of the wall and slammed into my gut. I would have been thrown back, but Elliott’s hand in mine kept me from going too far. Though he staggered a few steps after me. I managed to land on my feet and look at what hit me.

A sword the size of a door went shooting back into the bricks. I coughed and straightened up. “Okay. Noted. Trapped walls. Let’s move fast.”

Elliott and I broke into a run, hanging on to each other’s hands and yanking one way or another as we took corners at random, skipping obvious dead-ends when we saw them. The whooshing of weapons—mostly massive anime swords that appeared to be made of the same dark brick as the walls—followed us the whole way.

“Left!” Elliot exclaimed before we reached a crossroads. I pulled him left—and he pulled me to a stop. “Here.” He bent down. In a crack in the bricks, a single grain of sand was wedged into the stone. Elliott held my hand tighter and touched it.

I gagged as his magic pulled us into Blake’s dreamscape.

—

“Not so fun on the other side of the torture, is it?” Elliott snarled, storming up to where Blake was bound in burning chains on the ground.

Blake’s eyes—that unnaturally bright teal—bored into me. “What are you doing here—with him?” he choked out.

“Don’t get self-righteous with me,” I spat. “You and I both know our friendship was me genuinely caring about you as a person, and you using me for my powers. You have no right to get self-righteous with me.”

Elliott’s hand twisted and Blake cried out in pain as the flames around the chains went from gold and red to blue and white.

I couldn't help but swallow with widened eyes. Blake and I grew up together. Survived high school together. Went to parties but sat just with each other in quiet corners so we could talk about whatever came to mind. My best friend growing up.

But I didn’t recognize the malice in his voice when he asked what I was doing back at the CloseKnit building. I didn’t recognize the fury in his eyes when he’d just looked at me. That agonized cry was his, the appearance was his, but the person inside was someone else entirely. Someone cold, hard, and cruel.

“Elliott, stop,” I said softly. Elliott’s eyes met mine.

“Why?”

“Because I need him to hear what I’m about to say to him.” I wiped the tears from my face. “By all means keep him chained and let them stay on fire—but I need him to hear me.”

Elliott regarded my words thoughtfully, but relented. The blue and white flames died back down to gold and red.

I knelt in front of Blake. Cupped his chin in my hand to make sure he was looking at me. “Times change, Blake. You know it just as well as I do. People change with time too. You said so yourself: if you look back on who you were a few years ago and you’re still the exact same, that’s not good.” I swallowed thickly. “But you? You were never the person I thought you were. I thought you were a good friend. My best friend. A good man. I was wrong. And that’s on me. But what you’re doing now—kidnapping people? Holding a demon captive in your basement or whatever? That’s all on you. Pretending to be my best friend to use me for my powers is on you. I loved you like family. Hell, I still do. But I can’t anymore. Not when you’ve become something worse than you ever were to begin with. The cruel man looking at me now…” I shook my head. “He’s not someone I want to know. You promised we’d be big parts of each other’s lives again. But now I hope we’re not.” I tightened my grip on his jaw, clenched my own jaw, then stood up, releasing his face. “You made one too many mistakes, and now you lost me. Whatever you wanted from me and my powers, I’ll never give it to you. Lose my number, my address—hell, lose my damn name. I won’t be part of your life anymore. Stay out of mine.”

I stepped back and turned away from him.

“Do whatever you want, Elliott,” I said, stepping away. “I won’t stop you. But I can’t watch.”

Elliott met my eyes and I saw something I didn’t expect to see. Sympathy. He nodded.

I stepped away, just a few paces deeper into the jagged, broken landscape Elliott had forced Blake into. Blake’s screams echoed off the rock. I couldn’t stop myself from wincing and grimacing at the sound. The child in me screamed that my friend was being hurt—and I needed to go help. But the bitter, angry adult snapped back that he’d never truly been my friend. Our friendship had meant the world to me, and nothing to him.

Then he started screaming my name.

I felt hot tears stream down my face as I fell to my knees. No, no, I insisted to myself. Those are not the screams of a friend.

I closed my eyes and buried my face in my hands. My heart needed to get on the same page as my head—as the part of me that now knew that Blake was little more than a bastard who just wanted me for my powers.

My name. Over and over. Screaming at the top of his lungs. Pleading with me.

Pleading for me.

Almost like he was begging me to come save him.

I clenched my jaw, half tempted to put my hands over my ears to block him out better.

I whirled back around and stormed over to where Elliott and Blake were. I stood beside Elliott with my arms folded and glared down at Blake. Just watching. Cold and detached. As he writhed on the ground. I looked at Elliott. “What has he done to your partner?”

“Bring up trauma I’ve spent years trying to help them heal from,” Elliott ground out. “Tortured me in front of them.”

I blinked. “Let me guess: you’re the… protector type?”

He nodded, never once breaking eye contact with Blake. “My partner means everything to me and I’d turn the world inside out to keep them safe. I failed against this bastard once. Never again.”

I hummed agreement. “Your partner must be very lucky to have you.”

“I’m the one who’s lucky to have them.”

Blake kept screaming.

—

Sunshine

The door to the basement burst open and several people rushed in. I vaguely recognized the symbol for the Department Elliott talked about emblazoned on their clothing.

Directly in front of me, a person appeared out of thin air. A Stealth, like Elliott had told me to pretend to be, if I remembered right. They knelt in front of me. “Hey. Are you okay?”

I nodded.

They turned and looked at the other people who’d come in with them. “Unempowered. Get them out.”

“Wait—” I reached out, not touching anyone, but indicating a pause. “There—there’s a demon here. He took my boyfriend’s memories. I need him to give them back!”

The Stealth leveled me with a curious look. “Your boyfriend Elliott the Dreamwalker?”

My heart went cold. “Yes.”

“He’s the one who came to us. He remembers everything,” they said. “The demon didn’t take his memories. He told us that.”

Relief flooded through me. “Where is he?”

The Stealth looked irritated. “In the building somewhere. He ran after Blake’s friend when they took off inside after I told them both to stay in the car.”

“I have to find him.”

“Hold your horses, sunshine,” they said sarcastically. I flinched. I loved it when Elliott called me that, but after Blake had used the name so sharply, it stung to hear someone else use it. “You’re unempowered. Informed, yes, but unempowered. You’re going to get out of this building with my fellow officers, and we are going to bring Elliott to you, okay? We can’t have an unempowered civilian running around with us. It’s too dangerous.”

“But—”

“That’s an order,” they said sharply.

I took a deep breath. “Fine,” I ground out.

—

Sweetheart

“I… will admit I don’t know what to do here,” I said, standing over the three sleeping figures. Two propped against the wall and Blake sprawled out carelessly on the ground. Arthur shrugged.

“We can just drag ‘em all into the cars. Wait till they wake up.”

“What do you think is going on in the dreamscape?”

“Don’t know. Don’t think I want to. That blond one feels powerful, and he has a grudge. I can’t imagine it’s pretty.”

I grunted agreement. “You’re probably right.”

“C’mon. Let’s get ‘em all loaded up,” Art said.

I nodded. “I’ll put Elliott, his partner, and Blake’s friend in my SUV. Wanna put Blake in the back of the cruiser, cuffed?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Good thing physical distance means nothing in the dreamscape,” I grumbled, hauling Elliott up onto my shoulder in a fireman’s carry. “I imagine he’s got a lot to vent on this guy.”

Arthur laughed. “Yeah. Glad I’m not in there with them.”

“Me too.”

[ilajue]

I (totoyotata) posted 7,359 times in 2021

74 posts created (1%)

7285 posts reblogged (99%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 98.4 posts.

I added 118 tags in 2021

#long post - 43 posts

#save - 17 posts

#milo pvnkie core - 15 posts

#gay ptide - 10 posts

#ib failing art - 8 posts

#and all at once summer collapses into fall - 7 posts

#ila.txt - 7 posts

#god bles america i guess - 4 posts

#will never get enough of this guy - 4 posts

#eeby deeby - 3 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#just exploded 😀 and replaced 😀 because its cheaper than flying machinery back and reparing it plus the garbage becomes the enemys problem

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

GIRL WHAT IS THISS HSDFKDSF

21 notes • Posted 2021-10-21 19:54:29 GMT

#4

Did you just draw that based on my dumb joke??

yes, for both shits and giggles

22 notes • Posted 2021-05-14 00:15:47 GMT

#3

obsessed with the way markiplier is the only celebrity that tumblr let's post

like nobody relevant has been on tumblr for years but mark 28 million subscribers iplier is just allowed to pop in and meme every once and a while

24 notes • Posted 2021-03-30 15:29:59 GMT

#2

i am about to become violent

55 notes • Posted 2021-06-05 12:12:54 GMT

#1

ponk :)

29993 notes • Posted 2021-09-24 01:30:25 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review

TUMBLR REVIEW SUCK MY DICK IVE BEEN TRYING TO GET MY MAINS REVIEW FOR LIKE AN HOUR AND IT TOOK 2 SECONDS TO GET THIS ONE I ALREADY KNEW WHAT MY TOP POST WAS IVE MADE LIKE 2 POSTS AND ONE OF THEM HAS 30K NOTES WHILE THE OTHER HAVE 3 I DIDNT NEED SOMEONE TO TELL ME IVE MADE 1% ORIGINAL POSTS ON THIS ACCOUNT WTF DO YOU THINK THE POINT OF HAVING SIDEBLOGS IS IM GOING TO KILL THAT LITTLE T SHAPED BITCH IT BETTER BE RUNNING BECAUSE IM ON MY WAY I SWEAR TO GOD MF BETTER BE BOOKING IT BETTER BE LEAVING THE COUNTRY BECAUSE IM ON THE ROAD AS WE SPEAK IM TEXTING AND DRIVING BITCH I DONT CARE IM CRAZY IF THIS IS HOW I GO THEN SO BE IT

[murphylawed-blog]

                  ❛     ------     there’s   a   loose   grate   up   over   here   to   the   left .               i’ve   been   here   before .     ❜               @electriiiclove.

[falling-rain]

tagged by @knjferat tyy 💕

name: redacted

nicknames: no nicknames bc my name is short already

gender: female but gay and confused

star sign: libra :) idk what that means abt myself ngl but a couple of my friends are vaguely into astrology and they Confuse me

current time: 01:01 in the morning :) we love quarantine sleep schedules

favorite artists: my music taste is so mixed up atm sorry

song stuck in my head: lauv - modern lonliness

last movie i saw: half of star trek 2009 last night at 4am

last thing i googled: hollow knight silksong

other blogs: a Lot but i forget i have them so they're mainly inactive

do i get asks: not rly ,, send asks :)

reason for url: magnus archive shfjd

following: uhh a lot (2519)

avg sleep: not enough but also too much

lucky number: 8 !

currently wearing: my gfs t shirt and pj pants

dream job: sthg maths related !

dream trip: hong kong :)

fav food: im fake chinese bc it's pasta atm

instruments: piano and flute 😔✊

fav song: at the moment it's milo - pigeon pit

tagging: @eliasfuckers @partiallygreen @melanie-king @bunnibo @7sharks

[downspiral]

01. Nickname: raz, razald, razington, waz 02. Real name:  [redacted in transgender] 03. Zodiac:  leo, year of the tiger 04. Height:  5′11  05. What time is it:  3:02 pm but i’ve been awake since 7pm yesterday,  06. Favourite musicians / groups:  the national, NIN, placebo, imogen heap, bon iver, fka twigs, massive attack, f+atm, milo, los campesinos!, more than i can count rly 07. Favourite sports team:  i have never watched a sport, in my life 08. Other  blogs: lots, they’re all viewable here! they’re mostly anime shit tho. plus i have an art account and various sideblogs on main 09. Do I get asks?  I DO if i reblog memes etc and i love it. and sometimes i will get completely unprompted love out of nowhere and it makes me scream and throw my tea  10. How many blogs do I follow?  70... i’m picky abt my dash aksjadkgja i’m a cultivator 11. Any tumblr crushes: so many... basically all of my mutuals tho tbh  12. Lucky number: 7, 3  13. What am I wearing right now:  loose black t shirt tunic thing and black zippy trousers 14. Dream vacation:  i’d like to visit hong kong someday and go back 2 new york too cuz i went there for a week once and it was sooo good. also scotland 15. Dream car:  i can’t drive and i doubt i ever will tbh i know nothing abt cars.  16. Favourite food:  cheung fun (gooey rice noodle sheets filled with meat or prawns and stuff) or basically any dim sum food lol. also fatty raw salmon 17. Drink of choice:  ideally mohitos but if they don’t have cocktails then a standard vodka coke 18. Languages:  english, v basic polish, i’m learning mandarin but i have low expectations 19. Instruments:  i played piano for like six years but it never really clicked with me lol  20. Celebrity crushes:  gong li... anthony head. mylene jampanoi. oscar isaac obvs  21. Random fact:  i actually met the cast of tvd when i was like 12 at a meet and greet askjgakgn. they kind of sucked but nina high fived me

Tagged by:  i stole it from lia because i am a dirty THIEF Tagging:   i tag YOU if you wanna DO it 

[internetreputationcost-blog]

Online reputation management Strategies

Online reputation management refers to the influencing and also controlling of an individual's or team's online reputation. Initially a public relationships term, the development of the internet and also social networks, together with reputation administration firms, have made search engine result a core component of an individual's or group's online reputation. Online reputation management, in some cases abbreviated as ORM, concentrates on the management of product as well as service search website outcomes.

online reputation management focuses on the monitoring of product and solution search engine result within the digital space. A range of digital markets and also on the internet areas like e-Bay, Amazon and also Alibaba have ORM systems constructed in, as well as making use of reliable control nodes these can minimize the danger as well as shield systems from possible misuses and also misuses by destructive nodes in decentralized overlay networks.

The most popular controls for off-line credibility administration consist of social duty, media exposure, news release in print media as well as sponsorship among relevant devices. Track record is a social construct based upon the point of view other individuals hold about an individual or point. Before the internet was established, consumers wishing to find out about a business had few choices.

A firm's online reputation relied on personal experience. [] A business expanded and broadened based on the market's assumption of the brand. Public connections was created to manage the picture and build the credibility of a company or person. [] The concept was initially produced to broaden public connections beyond media connections.

Originally, public relations included published media, events and also networking campaigns. In 1998, Google was started. The appeal of the net presented brand-new advertising and marketing and also branding chances. Where when reporters were the main resource of media web content, blog sites, review sites as well as social networks offered a voice to customers despite credentials.

ORM consists of standard reputation techniques of public relations however likewise concentrates on developing a lasting credibility technique that corresponds across all web-based channels and systems. ORM includes search engine reputation management which is developed to counter adverse search results and also boost positive material. Some services have actually adopted dishonest ways to wrongly boost their track records.

Online Reputation Management - Sayles ...

Reputation administration (sometimes referred to as rep administration or ORM) is the practice of trying to shape public assumption of a person or organization by influencing info concerning that entity, primarily online. What demands this shaping of understandings being the role of consumers in any organisation as well as the cognisance of just how much if disregarded these assumptions may damage a company's performance any time of the year, a threat no entrepreneur or business exec can manage.

A significant part of reputation administration entails reducing unfavorable search outcomes, while highlighting positive ones. For organisations, online reputation monitoring usually includes an attempt to bridge the space in between just how a firm regards itself and also just how others watch it. A fast-growing self-control and corporate need, credibility administration is extensively recognized as an important intangible possession which can be among one of the most essential resources of one-upmanship in a fiercely competitive market, and with firms continuously under boosted examination from business neighborhood, regulatory authorities, and also company governance guard dogs great reputation monitoring methods remain to aid companies deal with this scrutiny.

Excellent track record management practices are likewise vital in assisting any type of entity manage personnel confidence as a control device on public understandings which if weakened and also overlooked can be costly, which in the future may cripple employee confidence, a threat no company would certainly attempt check out as staff morale is one of one of the most crucial motorists of firm efficiency.

Online Reputation Management Company ...

A class activity lawsuit was submitted by the law office Beasley Allen against Taco Bell. The suit was willingly withdrawn with Beasley Allen mentioning that "From the beginning of this situation, we specified that if Taco Bell would make sure adjustments pertaining to disclosure as well as marketing of its 'seasoned beef' item, the instance could be dismissed." Taco Bell reacted to the instance being taken out by releasing a track record administration project entitled "Would certainly it eliminate you to claim you're sorry?" that ran ads in different information outlets in print and online, which tried to accentuate the volunteer withdrawal of the instance.

Some of the methods used by track record administration companies consist of: Improving the tagging and also seo of company-published products, such as white papers and favorable consumer endorsements in order to push down adverse content. Publishing original, positive sites and also social media accounts, with the objective of exceeding negative results in a search.

Submitting lawful take-down demands if someone believes they have been reviled. Obtaining states of business or person on third-party sites that rate highly on Google. Creating fake, positive reviews of the private or service to counteract negative ones. Using spambots and denial-of-service strikes to compel websites with damaging web content off the internet totally. [] Astroturfing third-party websites by creating confidential accounts that produce positive evaluations or lash out versus negative ones.

Eliminating on the internet cup shots. Proactively reacting to public criticism originating from current modifications. Eliminating or subduing images that are embarrassing or break copyright. Speaking to Wikipedia editors to get rid of supposedly wrong information from the Wikipedia pages of companies they stand for. The technique of track record monitoring increases numerous moral concerns. It is widely disagreed upon where the line for disclosure, astroturfing, and also censorship ought to be attracted.

The direct exposure of underhanded online reputation monitoring can itself be risky to the credibility of a firm that tries it. Some companies technique moral kinds of track record monitoring. Google considers there to be nothing naturally wrong with reputation management, and also also introduced a toolset in 2011 for users to check their on-line identification and request the removal of undesirable content.

For instance, they might avoid individuals that dedicated violent criminal offenses who are wanting to push information regarding their criminal offenses lower on search engine result. In 2010 a research study showed that Naymz, one of the first Internet 2.0 solutions to provide energies for Online Reputation Management (ORM), had actually created a method to examine the online track record of its participants (RepScore) that was instead very easy to deceive.

Since December 2017, Naymz was closed down. In 2015, the online merchant Amazon.com taken legal action against 1,114 people who were paid to publish fake luxury testimonials for products. These reviews were created utilizing an internet site for Macrotasking, Fiverr. com. Several various other business use phony Yelp and also Facebook evaluations, and one journalist collected first-class testimonials for an organisation that does not exist, from social media sites accounts that have likewise provided extremely positive testimonials to "a chiropractor in Arizona, a beauty parlor in London, a limousine firm in North Carolina, a real estate agent in Texas, as well as a locksmith professional in Florida, among other distant organisations".

The lawsuit had comparable language and also the defendant accepted the injunction by the plaintiff, which enabled the reputation monitoring firm to issue takedown notices to Google, Yelp, Leagle, Ripoff Report, different news sites, and other internet sites. " 9 Online Reputation Management Services Business owners can Attain on their own". Fetched 11 May 2016.

Singh, Munindar (2000 ). " A social mechanism of credibility administration in digital neighborhoods" (PDF). Cooperative Details Representatives IV-The Future of Info Brokers in Cyberspace. Lecture Notes in Computer Scientific Research. 1860. Springer. pp. 154165. CiteSeerX. doi:10.1007/ 978-3-540-45012-2_15. ISBN 978-3-540-67703-1. Mudhakar Srivatsa; Li Xiong; Ling Liu (2005 ). (PDF). WWW '05 Proceedings of the 14th global seminar on Web.

Hall, R. 1992. The Strategic Evaluation of Intangible Resources. Strateg. Handle. J. 13( 2) 135 (What's in a Name? Track Record Structure and also Business Approach, Fombrun, Charles; Shanley, Mark, Academy of Management Journal; Jun 1990; 33, 2; ABI/INFORM Worldwide, pp239 240.) S. Jai, Shankar (June 1, 1999). "Credibility is everything". New Straits Times (Malaysia).

( 2001 ). "Online reputation administration: the brand-new face of company public relations?". Public Relations Evaluation. 27 (3 ): 247261. doi:10.1016/ S0363-8111( 01 )00085-6. John Tozzi (April 30, 2008). " Do Reputation Management Services Work?". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved August 3, 2012. Bilton, Nick (April 4, 2011). " The Expanding Company of Online Reputation Management". The New York City Times. Gotten June 12, 2012.

" Study: ebay.com vendors pc gaming the track record system?". CNET. Recovered July 14, 2012. " What is credibility administration? - Interpretation from WhatIs.com". WhatIs.com. Gotten 2015-12-01. Sepandar D. Kamvar; Mario T. Schlosser; Hector Garcia-Molina. (PDF). WWW '03 Proceedings of the 12th global meeting on Internet. doi:10.1145/ 775152.775242. Milo, Moryt (2013-05-17). " Terrific Companies Lean Onward, Respond Rapid".

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Online reputation Management ...

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Online Reputation Management (ORM ...

There are a great deal of misunderstandings regarding online reputation management. Some people assume it's just social networks surveillance, while others believe it has something to do with public connections, and also still others essentially have no suggestion just how it can impact company and sales. In this overview, I'm mosting likely to describe the role of online reputation management in today's business and media landscape.

Simply a couple of years earlier, the web was very various. Business were not appealing customers but just marketing to a passive target market; people can not reveal their voice in a powerful means, and the total interaction landscape was really "leading down." The situation has significantly altered. Today, web sites are no more fixed brochures.

And regular communications on socials media are vital to any kind of company success. Regardless of the size of your company, they (prospects, clients, clientsanyone as well as, possibly, everyone) are speaking about you. They are tweeting regarding your most recent item, leaving a discuss your blog site, publishing a Facebook update concerning their client experience, as well as a lot more.

[blogoficialprs]

Nota #01

Transcurría la noche del viernes 5 de Abril

Y al pasar la media noche, una fiesta comenzaba a darse en la torre abandonada del predio sur. Los hermanos Wittelsbach, Robert y Holly ofrecieron una fiesta de bienvenida, una vez más, como si en Irlanda no hubiera ocurrido nada. La noche nos ofreció algo maravilloso, los comensales no dudaron en sacar sus trapitos al sol y en varias oportunidades la fiesta se puso algo tensa.

Al llegar, se ofrecían shoots de bienvenida, algo de música para entrar en ambiente y se desarrollaba una votación para bailes sensuales. Pero cuando parecía que nada iba a ocurrir la cosa se puso intensa con las provocaciones de Thyrone hacía Robert. ¿Qué quien es Thyrone  Lombard? Apareció de la nada y es la pareja de Miss Ainhoa. ¿Ahora se explica por qué las provocaciones a Robert? Al Thyrone llamar “Flor” a Robert ya que este último escogió “verdad” en vez de reto en nuestro tradicional juego “V o R”.

Robert (incitado por Thyrone) se retracta y al final escoge reto. Charlotte De Avis, lo reta a besar a la Miss Ainhoa, pero el beso debía ser entre sus pechos. El joven Wittelsbach alardea el reto frente al novio de la srta Smith y deposita un beso, sin preocupación alguna, en el lugar que se le habían indicado.

“Ahí tienes a tu Flor” alardeó una vez más Robert, a lo que claramente Thyrone no responde bien, se le abalanza, intenta pegarle, aún sabiendo que el anfitrión es el rubio. Aquí aparece Holly interponiéndose para defender a su hermano y soltar un “sino te gusta ahí tienes la puerta” Ainhoa no emitía palabra, solo observó hasta que su amiga suelta un “ya sabemos que aún no superas a mi hermano” ¿Con estas amigas, para que enemigas? La ira de Thyrone parecía incrementar pero Ainhoa por fin abre la boca para aclarar el panorama: “fue algo qué pasó hace tiempo” dando por echo que es algo superado pero, nadie se tragó el cuento... ¿Tu si? Además, Ainhoa ¿ya le platicaste a Thy sobre Andreu? ¿Y sobre Sebas? ¿o Pierce? también Arienne ¿no?.

Las cosas no cesaron ahí para Robert, porque el joven Jonathan Nguyen,  le pregunta directamente si es que Poebe ya le aburrió, ¿por que anda tan pendiente de su novia Katherine Winchester? Si alguien no se me había ocurrido era la señorita Kathe para andar con Robert, pregúnteme sobre Malorie, pero Kathe... sería algo de un rato.  Hasta ahora Poebe no emite ningún comentario sobre las múltiples infidelidades de Robert. “Ella lo sabe, pero ahí sigue” palabras de la señorita Malorie Wingberg. Si bien no descartamos ninguna posibilidad, estamos seguros que la lista de cuernos es larga Poebe...

Retomando a Lorie, esta confiesa abiertamente que tiene ganas de madrear a una de las “chinitas” pero no sabe a quien, por descarte se nombró a Naeun Gottsched pero aún no estamos seguros. ¿Será Naeun? A mi se me hubiera ocurrido Charlotte pero misteriosamente estos dos se han alejado con Joseph ¿por qué? Giana Nguyen, nos sorprendió al decir que el joven  Milo Bouvie nunca la pudo satisfacer de verdad. Tal vez Darel  Lescenski se está ocupando de eso ahora.

Y Darel, sabrá uno si es que ya superó las falsas esperanzas que le dio Alana cuando volvió a PRS... quien prometió volver soltera y resulta que están mejor que nunca con el joven Romanov. Pero no todo está perdido, la anfitriona Wittelsbach le hizo una declaración de amor la cual Darel ignoró... tristemente Holly no es correspondida, ya que Darel declaró que no está enamorado de nadie.

Algo que si nos dio curiosidad y esto si es noticia fresca, ¿Aldric Vacile y Sophie? (Sophie who?) Nos agrada esta pareja, creemos que darán de que hablar. A quien no le agrada la idea es a Charlotte, se comenta que estuvo llorando por los rincones.

Nada más interesante ocurrió, solo algunos besuqueos, apretones de paquete, besos lésbicos, apoyadas entre hermanos, capturas de chats, etc. Actos irrelevantes de la noche.

¡Gracias por leernos!,

Saludos, The honest gentleman.

Créditos y agradecimientos especiales para:

Fuente: xOdd Fotografía: Esmeralda Nota: