#task 2 vocabulary

[just-english-ielts]

Vocabulary for Therapeutic :

Curative

Healing

Medicinal

Remedial

Restorative

Reviving

Rejuvenating

For example: Listening music can be therapeutic/rejuvenating/ reviving as it refreshes our mind .

[nvathuw]

pictures I took using the app Dazz Cam

Rambling below

[everything-english-215]

Mọi từ vựng cần biết để viết IELTS writing task 2 chủ đề: Internet making life more convenient

Tất cả từ vựng IELTS theo chủ đề và ý tưởng để viết IELTS Writing task 2 về chủ đề Internet giúp cuộc sống thuận tiện hơn: Internet making life more convenient Task question 4: To what extent has the internet made life more convenient? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.  IELTS Keywords: paraphrasing 5 ways to paraphrase “Make life…

[literaryvein-reblogs]

How to write genius level characters? :(

One of the most reliable measures of intelligence today is the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale—currently in its 5th edition, with an upcoming edition in the works.

Using the tool/scale, scores are converted into nominal categories designated by certain cutoff boundaries for quick reference:

Measured IQ Range — Category

145-160: Very gifted or highly advanced

130–144: Gifted or very advanced

120–129: Superior

110–119: High average

90–109: Average

80–89: Low average

70–79: Borderline impaired or delayed

55–69: Mildly impaired or delayed

40–54: Moderately impaired or delayed

To write your "genius" character, you may want them within the Gifted to Very Gifted categories.

Note: With reference to this list, Roid (2003) cautioned that “the important concern is to describe the examinee’s skills and abilities in detail, going beyond the label itself”. The primary value of such labels is as a shorthand reference in some psychological reports.

These are the factors measured by the scale, and you ideally should aim for your "genius" character/s to exhibit high levels of:

Fluid Reasoning: Novel problem solving; understanding of relationships that are not culturally bound

Knowledge: Skills and knowledge acquired by formal and informal education

Quantitative Reasoning: Knowledge of mathematical thinking including number concepts, estimation, problem solving, and measurement

Visual-Spatial Processing: Ability to see patterns and relationships and spatial orientation as well as the gestalt among diverse visual stimuli

Working Memory: Cognitive process of temporarily storing and then transforming or sorting information in memory

Or maybe your character doesn't excel in all of these areas but in a specific one, or just a few of these. Maybe they perform within the average or high average in some, but are highly gifted in other areas.

The following may also guide you in writing your genius character, based on research compiled by Dr. J. Renzulli, which can be found in the Mensa Gifted Youth Handbook:

Characteristics of Giftedness

LEARNING CHARACTERISTICS

Has unusually advanced vocabulary for age or grade level

Has quick mastery and recall of factual information

Wants to know what makes things or people tick

Usually sees more or gets more out of a story, film, etc., than others

Reads a great deal on his or her own; usually prefers adult-level books; does not avoid difficult materials

Reasons things out for him- or herself

MOTIVATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS

Becomes easily absorbed with and truly involved in certain topics or problems

Is easily bored with routine tasks

Needs little external motivation to follow through in work that initially excited him or her

Strives toward perfection; is self-critical; is not easily satisfied with his or her own speed and products

Prefers to work independently; requires little direction from teachers

Is interested in many "adult" problems such as religion, politics, sex and race

Stubborn in his or her beliefs

Concerned with right and wrong, good and bad

CREATIVITY CHARACTERISTICS

Constantly asking questions about anything and everything

Often offers unusual, unique or clever responses

Is uninhibited in expressions of opinion

Is a high-risk taker; is adventurous and speculative

Is often concerned with adapting, improving and modifying institutions, objects and systems

Displays a keen sense of humor

Shows emotional sensitivity

Is sensitive to beauty

Is nonconforming; accepts disorder; is not interested in details; is individualistic; does not fear being different

Is unwilling to accept authoritarian pronouncements without critical examination

LEADERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS

Carries responsibility well

Is self-confident with children his or her own age as well as adults

Can express him- or herself well

Adapts readily to new situations

Is sociable and prefers not to be alone

Generally directs the activity in which he or she is involved

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 ⚜ Writing Notes & References

Hope this helps with your writing. Do tag me, or send me a link. I'd love to read your work!

[cleapallea]

Astro observation (Retrograde Planets edition) 

♱Master list

How to find if you have retrograde planets?

Go to astro sites like (___) and (___)

2. There, you can see the simply sign like this: (R) or (Rx)

B. Why do you need to know what retrograde planets you have? 

For self-awareness, dear. Life involves a long life journey and learning. Having retrograde planets makes you powerful, depending on whether you use them in a very good way. It is not exactly as bad, especially if we are going to talk about the relationship between each planet and transit. Being aware of your "weakness" comes with challenges and opportunities for (y)our growth. With that, You will able to see a multifaceted interpretation and perspective especially in life . This is also key to balance your life and correct what is needed to be correct, or at least make it better.

Retrograde Mars Perceived themselves as incompetent, and not strong enough to handle things even that is a small task/s.

Retrograde Venus Think about themselves as being undesirable  and unattractive. They also often feel they don't deserve any kind of relationship, being loved, and to be desired by someone.

Retrograde Mercury Often blame themselves for having inconsistent speech movements whether verbal or not, or have a different vocabulary.   

Retrograde Pluto Afraid to admit  their wrong(they always strive for being right), runs away from their responsibility, and to show they are vulnerable as any human being. Losing identity and freedom is their trauma.

 Retrograde Jupiter Seeing themselves us unlucky person just because of negative events due to their own actions. They often think they don't need to work on something.

 Retrograde Neptune serves as reality check for you. AGAIN, IT IS NOT REALLY BAD AS LIKE WHAT MAJORITY STATED HERE. Having Neptune depends on what signs or planets associated! because you often found yourself hidden, or making some illusions related to that house or zodiac signs. For example neptune in 1st house, you tend to fake your identity just to be accepted by society. More on, it tells you how to break that stigma.

Retrograde Uranus Afraid to show what else they can do and considered themselves as bad at skilling. And they only brings chaos.

Retrograde Saturn In astrology, this is the lord of karma. These people are the lovers of pleasure. They use s°x or ppl to get things and sometimes their body. People who have no control and limitations, wants to why and how; right here as it said doesn't believe in any goods and God. "Their way is only way."

Again, there is no single interpretation what you see right here is based upon my generalized and personalized readings. All rights reserved to @cleapallea

[milliebobbyflay]

Okay so I've spent a while thinking about how to word my actual problem with homestuck 2, and the works that make up post-canon homestuck more broadly. I think a lot of people resort to nitpicking bits of awkward writing or art in some attempt to pinpoint a source to an underlying sort of hollow uncanniness, which is funny because homestuck's supposed golden age of acts 1-5 are themselves FAR more of a tonally inconsistent mess of odd character beats, jokes that don't always land, and janky looking art.

Homestuck 2 has been written and drawn by very talented and passionate artists from the beginning, I think the actual issue comes down to a mix between the general pitfalls of hiring fans and the particulars of hussie's outsider background and unorthodox writing style.

First is the issue of hiring fans in general; while it can seem like an easy shortcut to finding talented writers already familiar with the voice and story of the original work, you have to be very aware of how fan culture operates. Beyond the obvious pitfalls that fans are unlikely to approach the story from a detached perspective, there is the larger issue that past a certain point fandom becomes essentially self sustaining. Once a fandom has existed for a long enough period, its most avid members have likely spent FAR more time engaging with other fan works than they have with the original art object. Fandom and the art it produces are, in this way, a sort of a folk tradition; artists are imitating and responding to other artists, characters become archetypes through which to explore certain ideas and dynamics, and the values and tastes of the most prolific and influential fan artists become as inseparable from a participants mental image of the character as the original work itself.

For an example, the affected theatrical mannerisms and cruelty Vriska adopts while in her Mindfang persona have become inseparable from the popular view of the character. Despite the fact that it's heavily signposted as a sort of role playing performance from the jump and she's more or less dropped it by the back half of the comic, it was nevertheless how she had acted in the bulk of her scenes around the time the ur-texts of homestuck fandom were being written, and as so an understandable misread of a character became inscribed into the fandom canon, and by extension her characterization in Homestuck 2.

All of this is extrapolated by the sort of unorthdox, building-the-plane-while-flying-it manner in which Hussie's writing style developed.

Based on his commentary, I get the sense that Andrew is an incredibly clever and thoughtful writer who lacks the theory and vocabulary to precisely describe his process. He tends to communicate in sort of abstract metaphors which aim to bridge the gap in explaining the actual conscious process he uses to plot his stories, but the way he talks about technical nuts and bolts writing craft stuff gives me the impression that his approach is largely intuitive, bordering on unconscious. He's a lot better at describing how he writes than what he writes or why.

You can of course piece a lot this together—his approach to art draws from the tradition of videogame spritework, where the visuals exist as a utilitarian vehicle for conveying information first and a work of illustration only inasmuch is needed to serve the greater story. His character writing draws more from a synthesis of literary fiction, sitcom writing, and "making up a guy" style posting humor, where characters are defined more by their life experiences and underlying psychology than by their goals and values, but also seem to have largely been constructed backwards from a starting point of a funny or interesting manner of speaking. Importantly though, I don't get the sense that these were conscious decisions, just that to Hussie they seemed like the logical way to approach these tasks, and I don't really think he could outline them in a way that would actually help a new team of creators grok how to draw and write in a way that feels like homestuck. I also don't think Hussie could actually explain the psychology that undergirds his character writing, I think he was mostly just drawing on his own life experience and imagining how this sort of character might logically speak and act.

As a novelist, and Hussie is one, both your thought processes and the sum total of your worldview and life experience are just as important to your work as the actual conscious decisions you're making, and I think that where there are gaps in understanding, the new writers are filling in the gaps with both a more conventional approach to the creative process and over a decade of accumulated fanon, and I think that's why homestuck 2 never really rises above feeling like a very well-made fanfic to me?

[corvid-language-library]

I see you talk about shadowing as a language learning method. I understand it had something to do with YT videos? Can you tell a bit more about that, how does it work and how did you come up with it?

Hi there!

Shadowing is where you listen to a language and simultaneously attempt to repeat what you hear - mimicking sounds and intonation - even if you don't understand it right away. By mimicking native speakers this way you acquire more native-like pronunciation while also (ideally) absorbing vocabulary and sentence patterns and grammar structures. I think this article explains it a lot better than I probably can!

The recommended way to do this is using audiobooks or podcasts with transcripts, but the reason I started doing this is because I would watch YT videos about useful phrases for daily life or videos about my target grammar, but I'd forget the sentences almost immediately and then have to find the motivation to sit down and rewatch an entire video, sometimes multiple times. "If only there were a way I could listen to the target sentences constantly and just practice parroting them back!" I found myself thinking. "It'd be so much more efficient than looking them up every single time or having to rewatch a whole 20-minute video!"

And then I realised I could literally just use Audacity (free audio recording/editing software!) and record from my laptop speakers myself.

So, I've been going on Youtube, watching various grammar videos and then recording sentences I want to learn from those videos. I record at natural speed first, then at 0.5x playback and then again at 0.75x playback. I then edit it together with two seconds between each recording and a repeat at each speed (plus one final repeat at normal speed). So an audio looks like:

1) Normal speed 2 second break 2) 50% speed 2 second break 3) 75% speed 2 second break 4) Normal speed 2 second break 5) 50% speed 2 second break 6) 75% speed 2 second break 7) Normal speed

Sometimes for shorter sentences, I don't bother to slow the audio down, so I'll just have it repeat 5-6 times at normal speed.

Once I've recorded everything and edited it together, I put the mp3 on my phone. I have a few different playlists (each one around 10-15 minutes in length) - some for specific grammar, some for specific situations (eg shopping, izakaya) - and I usually just stick one on repeat while I'm walking somewhere or doing some kind of menial task that doesn't otherwise engage my brain (doing dishes, ironing, making materials for work etc). And then I do my best to mimic what I'm hearing just behind the speaker (or along with the speaker). Usually the first few times I listen to a track I just try to speak along with the slower versions, or maybe just mimic the specific target structure. As I hear it more and more, eventually I can speak along with the audio word for word and focus more on my intonation.

I've found it helpful so far because it helps me learn sentences while building the muscle memory of how to say certain words/grammar. I can much more easily recall a sentence I've heard on repeat/practiced saying a hundred times than one I've heard in a video once and written down in a notebook somewhere. And if I can recall a sentence, I can substitute words using correct grammar rather than trying to figure out how to say something from scratch (and hopefully choose the correct option on the JLPT when the time comes!)

Hope that answers your question! Feel free to send more 😊

[caramel-maveeato]

ᴀ ᴍɪᴅɴɪɢʜᴛ'ꜱ ᴅᴏꜱᴇ ᴏꜰ ᴄᴀꜰꜰᴇɪɴᴇ ♡˚₊。。。

❧❤ SYNOPSIS: pre-exam stress… (same) ♡ Pairings/Love interest: So Mun x GN!reader ♡ Genre: fluff, hurt/comfort ♡ TW: implications of stress, overworking, anxiety, slight cursing, crying. ♡ word count: 1.3k

Note: All characters originated from “The Uncanny Counter/Amazing Rumor” except for Y/n.

English is not my first language!!! Sorry in advance if I make any grammar and vocabulary mistakes.

Another all-nighter. 

Papers and half-finished cups of coffee cluttered on your desk, too-brightened laptop's screen amplified the urge you have to collapse. 

Studying was never your weakness. Most of the time, you were always able to ace any tests or quizzes perfectly with the proper amount of effort. But recently, all things appeared to be pointing a spear at you and whatever tasks failed miserably when they reached your hands. Everything merely fueled the raw chaos of strain and frustration you put yourself through. 

“What the fuck is this supposed to mean?”

Neatly printed words wobbled into a mess when your gaze scanned through them, suddenly the language you’ve known by heart sounded like some incomprehensible nonsense, entering this ear and leaving through the other ear. At this point, you didn’t even remember what your last name was; the only thing that repeated itself in your head was how disastrously you were going to fuck this upcoming exam up. 

Pathetic.

You glanced at the clock, your vision blurry at the number it showcased. It wasn’t the weariness that clouded your eyesight, but a layer of fog had ragingly obscured it. 

This isn’t the time to cry, all of these stupid crammings have already dragged you through hell and back. But under the influence of pent-up stress and exhaustion, aggravation kept gushing out from your tired eyes like downpours no matter how hard you fought it back.

No game was played, yet you still felt like a loser, sobbing helplessly at your desk in the dead of night.  

Caught in the whirling tempest of your vulnerabilities, your guards dismantled completely, rendering the abrupt sound of your door open powerless to distract you.

“Love…”

Like a soothing note of a melody or a lifeline thrown into the abyss, you instantly recognized this voice among the piteous snuffles you were unloosing. And the next thing you knew, the owner of that voice had slightly spun your chair around so that you both directly met.

“Mun.” The face of your beloved muddled through your tears, so as a reflex, you forcefully wiped them away to see him clearer: “Sorry, I didn’t mean to act like this… it’s just…”

“Shh, it’s alright, why are you apologizing?” So Mun crouched down in front of you, one hand on your thigh and the other brushed against your tear-stained cheek. His touch approached you like an anchor in the void, solacing the burning trails your tears left behind.

You didn’t know why you apologized either, but it felt like the only right thing to say at the moment. Not wanting to push your already-overwhelmed mind, So Mun ignored a worried sigh he unconsciously let out and enveloped your hand in his, carefully unfolding your anxious grip: “Why didn’t you call me if you’re tired?”

Apart from his extraordinary counter abilities, So Mun must’ve possessed some kind of sixth sense because how on earth did he catch you like this in the middle of the night? But apart from the bitter taste of guilt and shame you drown yourself in, there was no other reason you should be complaining about his presence: “It’s already 2 a.m., and I don’t want to be a burden.”

“Love… what are you talking about?” So Mun’s heart shattered just from the sound of your broken sniffles. His loving gaze carried the weight of shared despair, defining a wordless language that spoke volumes: “You’re never a burden to me. If anything, I should be feeling like a burden for not being able to help you.” 

You shook your head. Half-dried tears once again woke up at their agitation, drenching the tip of your boyfriend’s fingers upon hearing he blamed himself for your breakdown: “No, don’t say that… How are you supposed to—”

“Alright, alright, my bad. I shouldn’t have said that.” So Mun cupped your face, whispering through a reassuring kiss he planted on your lips: “Neither of us is a burden, we’ve got each other, yeah?”

Prompting a reluctant nod from you, his calloused fingertips lovingly consoled the dull, duskened crescents beneath your tired eyes. There wasn’t much he could do, yet he didn’t want to stop trying either: “If so, is there anything I can do for you, sweetheart?”

Silence fell for a split second before you carefully extended your arms, and So Mun spared no time in granting your wish. 

The outer world proceeded at a furious pace. Yet, as soon as you sank into the inviting comfort of his embrace, everything seemed to cease. 

“There we go.” His protective embrace wove a shield that concealed you from exterior chaos, the barrier of defense you constructed for days disintegrated and you surrendered all of the remaining tension, finally handing over the bottled-up exhaustion as you sobbed into his chest: “It’s all good now, baby. I’ve got you.”

Encountered by the familiar strokes on your back, you couldn’t help but press yourself further into the tranquility you’d been missing ever since the weight of responsibilities overgrew, instinctively muttering his name like a prayer song: “So Mun-ah…”

“Yes, I’m here, your So Mun is here.” Every caress of his mended the torn edges of your frayed emotions. You reflexively snuggled up to him while your boyfriend kept kissing your ear and whispering words of comfort, knowing how badly you needed to hear them: “It’s going to be fine, you know you’re doing so great, right? I’m proud of you, baby, so so proud.”

The hug was only broken when you slowly drew away first, otherwise he would’ve had no issue holding you forever. A stain of your tears stood visible on his shirt, bedewing the fabric while simultaneously sprinkling your cheeks with embarrassment: “Sorry, I ruined your shirt.” 

“You’re so silly, stop apologizing.” So Mun pinched your cheek playfully before laying another kiss on your forehead: “Let’s go to sleep, shall we?” 

You know damn well that, aside from the comfort of your boyfriend, sleep is the second most essential thing you need right now. However, work came first; you couldn’t risk blowing this final test which determined whether or not you'd pass the class. The sound of your voice appeared barely louder than a worn-out whistle of the wind, physically and emotionally aching from tremendous overwork: “I can’t. I’m not done studying yet.”

A pout settled on So Mun’s face as worry draped itself over the warm color of his irises. Seeing stress etched lines of anxiety on your face was never a sight of his favor, but he couldn’t bring himself to persuade you to quit since you’ve made it clear how important this exam was to you. Plus, he was endlessly proud of how hard you were working, and he was sure that this profound effort would wonderfully pay off.  

So, with a sigh, your boyfriend patted your head gently: “Just a little bit more, okay? I’ll stay with you.”

You nodded against your boyfriend's hand, grinning. The brilliance of your smile never waned, sending tiny swings into his chest like chaotic ripples on the surface of a pond. And so he gave in to what his heart told him, cradling your face in between his palms once more and peppering delicate kisses all over you. 

Shared touches of laughter penetrated through the eerie shadows of nightfall, and suddenly midnight itself no longer felt cold. 

Finishing the last kiss on your lips, So Mun carefully spun your chair back to the desk, grabbing one of your half-drunk cups that caught his attention: “Coffee at night is a no, but I guess today is an exception for you. I’ll go refill this and be back.”

[Tag List]✿⌦ @slytherinshua (feel free to notify me if you want to be on the tag list)

Dedicated to every So Mun simp out there but explicitly to students because finals are coming and i (we) am dying. WE GOT THIS PEOPLE💪😭!! (also this is like a sorry gift for the angsty fic i know it wasn't that angsty but)

[screemnch]

Yeah, the gay doctors are cool and all, but have you ever thought about

Aglaya Lilich?????

I swear to god she is the most character of all time. She is smart, she is capable, discerning and even sometimes kind and YET!

Everyone must hate her. She can’t do anything right - not for the lack of trying or being incapable - but because that is not her role. She isn’t the hero who saves the town from the plague and she isn’t the solution. The Powers That Be gave her an impossible task and promised to send her to death if she fails, there is probably already a coffin in the capital made just for her and she is still trying.

And I have to reiterate that everyone MUST hate her. Maria hates her because of Nina and because of the polyhedron, Block hates her because of the manufactured stigma, most npc’s speak about her with either fear or resentment. Even the healers all have a bone to pick with her (including Artemy, depending on how you play). And that’s not to say that she’s blameless or anything - she is still ruthless and unrelenting. She still orders many people to their death and tells a couple of characters to just go and drop dead, but I feel like that’s to be expected of a few other characters as well.

And yet.

She opens up the termitary (if I remember correctly) allowing the few survivors to get help and exposing the Olgimsky’s to judgement from the Kin. She saves Peter from Saburov’s murder plan without hesitation (if I remember correctly - before she even sees the tower’s blueprints). She wants to mend her relationship with the last of her family, even though they’ll never forgive her. And on the final day without fail - she leaves the decision in the player’s hands. If Dankovsky was right and she was trying to destroy the polyhedron simply as a final stab at the Kains, she’d be much more insistent about it, as we know she can be. But she acknowledges her biases and abstains from weighing in on the argument. She is convinced that her decision is correct (unlike Block, who is here to execute and order, not make decisions) yet she lets the player take the lead. I haven’t seen most of patho 2, and I know that she does a few things differently there, but I can assure you it will also make me have a lot of thoughts about her.

She is also perfectly aware of her situation. She is hated by the Powers That Be - both the government and the little kids. No one wants her here, no one trusts her, she is basically sent to die. But still she resolves to try to right the wrongs and help people as much as she can (which is particularly fun because a lot of people like to view Daniil’s story as that predicament). And while I don’t particularly like to talk about romance when analyzing stuff, it’s important to point out that (as far as I know) in both patho classic and patho 2 her themes are quite strongly connected with the concept of love. I’m not familiar enough with that part of the story, but the fact that someone can be in such a dire, desperate situation and still find in themselves the capacity for trust, vulnerability and affection is… Not something I can describe well in my vocabulary.

Honestly can’t wait to look at her dialogue, too bad she’s not part of any faction in particular and probably will be one of the last characters I look at. I should draw her, maybe. Go insane, maybe.

[saintsenara]

Wheel Anon here. I keep thinking about a certain ship. Hear me out. Canonically, Harry cannot tell the difference between Parseltongue and English. They both sound the same to him. When Ron demonstrates how he opened the CoS to retrieve basilisk fangs, Harry cannot understand him. Implying Ron failed to speak Parseltongue so how did he open COS since he got the fangs? Ron/Slytherin(House) is canon? Do we count CoS a separate entity? CoS clocked Ron being fit & decided Ron can have access 😏

the explanations for this, in order from least likely to most likely, are as follows:

1. the way that canon hints that harry's ability to speak parseltongue is because he's a horcrux, rather than him being a true parselmouth, is that he only seems to be able to speak and/or understand parseltongue if a snake [or, at the very least, the image of one] is actually present. he couldn't understand ron because there was no snake nearby. [hermione could have told him otherwise...]

2. ron drowned during the second task and dumbledore covered it up [it would have been his third strike and he didn't fancy azkaban] by creating a fake!ron from the basilisk fang harry stabbed the diary with, who differed from the original only in that his origins gave him access to the chamber.

3. gryffindor/slytherin is - let's be real - canon, which allows us to state with certainty that gryffindor had been added to the access list for the chamber to pet slytherin's basilisk. plus, we all know that the early 2000s fan theory that ron is time-travelling dumbledore is obviously wrong. because ron is time-travelling godric gryffindor.

4. voldemort's locket, during its month-long run of whispering outrageously romantic things into ron's ear, taught him how to sweet talk the entrance of the chamber [and - well - other holes....] into opening. these were vocabulary lessons any fragments of the dark lord's soul had never bothered to waste on harry.

[just-english-ielts]

Vocabulary to show effect:

As a result

Resulting in

Possibly leading to

Which can lead to

Consequently

Therefore

Thus

Hence

So

For this reason

Which will help them as they

For example: Many people have sedentary lifestyle , resulting in obesity and other health related issues.

*Which can result can also be used here in place of resulting.

[study-with-aura]

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

So much reading today! That is one thing about my curriculum that I love yet despise at the same time. It is heavily focused on reading and discussion of the reading. It also gives us questions that our readings don't always answer because we're supposed to research sources. I use Khan Academy for a lot of that to get more information, and usually, that gives me the answer I'm looking for.

But this is even more than 9th grade! I suppose that makes sense since it's now my second year in high school and more is expected at this grade level than before. But sometimes, my brain just wants the right answer to be in front of me and for there to be a right or wrong. But I know the way my curriculum works will prepare me better for university, at least according to my brother today when I was making faces at him because my eyes got tired. I have blue light glasses that I should wear more often, but sometimes, words start to blur either way.

However, I got everything done. I did decide to keep reading a fun book, so I am reading that during the long drive to dance since my brother, who is currently taking me, needs to focus on rush hour traffic anyway. People drive horrendously here!

Tasks Completed:

Algebra 2 - Reviewed linear inequalities

American Literature - copied vocabulary terms + read about the Puritans + read about William Bradford + watched video and read about the Mayflower Compact + read an article with excerpts from Bradford's "Of Plymouth Plantation" + took notes and answered questions + read about 7 critical reading strategies + read Chapters 5-6 of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne + read chapter notes

Spanish 3 - Reviewed numbers 1-100 + completed number spelling practice

Bible 2 - Read 2 Samuel 4-5

Early American History - Read about commerce and technological factors that influenced more voyage into the New World + answered study guide questions + read second part of “Christopher Columbus: Extracts from Journal”

Earth Science with Lab - Read “How Old is the Earth?”

Music Appreciation - Watched a video about the violin + watched a video about the flute + copied major necessary terms from the A section of the music dictionary

Khan Academy - Completed US History Unit 1: Lesson 4 (parts 1-2)

Duolingo - Studied for approximately 30 minutes (Spanish + French + Chinese) + completed daily quests

Piano - Practiced for two hours in one hour split sessions

Reading - Read pages 1-30 of Stateless by Elizabeth Wein

Chores -  None today

Activities of the Day:

Personal Bible Study (1 Corinthians 9)

Ballet

Variations

Journal/Mindfulness

[prettieinpink]

being smart makes u prettier !!

If you’re somebody who’s not an active student rn, you’re on holiday, you want to become more smarter, looking for brain exercises before studying or you just want to be smarter without studying everyday this post is 4 u!!!!

READ!!!!!!! 

This is crazy to me, the amount of people who don’t read is so high. You don’t even have to read a hard-copy book, just reading an article is literally enough to keep your brain exercising. 

Some benefits i’ve noticed with reading consistently are my memory is literally boosted and my vocabulary is better. Though, i’ve only started reading every night like 2 months ago. 

It does not need to be an educational or extensive literature book. Even some random book like an fantasy romance is gonna give you the same benefits. 

Start writing whatever 

This goes in pair with reading, but writing is literally the best brain exercise ever. Even if its journaling or some stupid short story, it all counts plus its really fun

One you begin writing, your mind just becomes less cluttered and you’re just less stressed. And its a perfect creative outlet for those who arent as artsy 

Focus meditations

Before literally any task, whether its deep or shallow work but its still exerts your mental energy, do a focus meditation

Helped me become 10x productive and its so much easier to get into the flow of work 

So important if you're an student or studying anything!!!

Download elevate!!

Its available on IOS but idk about androids 

Basically it's an app where you can do three mental exercises each day, and it keeps track of your progress and gives you highlights after each session 

It helps with mental maths, communication, eloquence and general writing!

Learning how to think on your own

It's crazy to me how much people rely on the internet. You do not need to scroll pinterest each time for outfit inspiration, searching up writing prompts each time you write or even ask the internet for personal advice

OR

When people are bored, so instead of just being bored they decide to consume a whole lot of content that is not nourishing the mind 

Its definitely okay to do, but not always

So take a step back, and ask yourself, ‘could I really survive a day of doing tasks without once using any source of the internet?’ ‘is this media allowing my mind to flourish? Or is it killing it?’

Thinking by yourself is now such a valuable skill, if you don't have it, DEVELOP IT. 

Randomly research everything

If u get curious about something don’t just let it float in your head, taking up mental space

Instead research it! Even the little things like an random flower, how are playgrounds manufactured, the history of beds or the most expensive pencil ever.

conservations are so easy 4 me now because i know a lot of random stuff that the usual person doesn't care about! It makes it so easy for you to stand out too

[lordkryze]

Imparo l’italiano d.2

I haven't checked if I did the task correctly (feel free to correct me), but today I had practice with negative sentences. I don't have much vocabulary yet, and all the words are pretty random, but I'm trying my best.

I’ve been anxious lately (wish I could say for no reason) and studying helps a lot.

[bakerstreetdoctor]

I remember when I was having Business English lessons 2 years ago (at C1 level), and sometimes our textbook would have like short articles we were supposed to read with the task of finding vocabulary we didn't know, and I couldn't do it, because I knew them all. It takes serious books like... Les Mis or Ragnhild Hatton's work to actually challenge my English.

(I just had to look up indolent)

[fandom-geek17]

Destined For More - Chapter 2

Neteyam x Omatikaya!Reader

Synopsis: Being a close family friend of the Sully's, and Kiri's best friend, it was hard to be around Neteyam and not fall in love with him. Supressing those feelings were even harder, especially when his parents start pressuring him about finding a mate...

Rating: E MINORS DNI🔞🔞

Tags: Friends to lovers! Eventual smut! Semi public smut! P in V smut, Reader has a name, no use of Y/N

Vocabulary: Marui (tent, pod), skxawng (moron), paskalin (sweet berry, term of endearment), syulang (flower)

Ages: Neteyam (21), reader (20), Kiri (20), Lo'ak (19), Tuk (13)

Can also be read on AO3

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3

Tagging: @suinhee @riatesullironalite @luvteyams @criticallybella @oceanstar19 @wiseheartzombie

Creating new beads seemed to have become your new favorite pastime. It was easy, time consuming and kept you from overthinking. Feeling like a robot, your hand repeated the practiced movements of carving out a small piece of wood before hollowing it and smoothing the edges. All the finished beads were tossed into a pile at your feet to be painted later. Over and over again. Think, carve, hollow, think, toss, repeat.

But the monotonous task could only distract you so much. The feelings of hurt and betrayal still lingered. Feelings that felt both deserved and unwarranted at the same time. How was that even possible? Every time Neteyam’s name came up in any conversation, your heart sank and you retreated to a corner for some mindless task. Mo’at didn’t directly question when you left Kiri and the others to deal with patients completely, only watching you with a pensive look. It’s not like you didn’t contribute. You had gathered more supplies and made more medicine than Mo’at could use up in an entire year. You just didn’t want anyone coming in for help to become the victim of your bad mood.

Deep down, you knew that it wasn’t fair to be angry with Neteyam. This wasn’t his choice. He couldn’t control his duty to find a mate anymore than he could control his feelings for you. Or rather, lack of feelings. Maybe you were more mad at yourself for letting this one-sided crush go on for as long as it did. Mad that you let yourself dream about him to the point that you fell in love when you shouldn’t have. Now you had to deal with the consequences.

In a way, maybe it was a good thing that he was to find a mate… Maybe then you could finally move on. Seeing him with someone else, happy and content would undoubtedly be the final stab to your heart. If you moved on too, it would be easier. If Neteyam was to court someone, maybe you should too. You were of age, after all. But your parents had never pressed the issue and you had never brought it up. You had been too busy drooling over your best friend’s brother in secret.

Though the thought of courting anyone right now hurt. It wouldn’t be fair to them or to you. Why court someone when your feelings laid elsewhere?

So, the best thing you could do was probably to give yourself the space you needed to process everything and hopefully come out on top in time for his wedding ceremony. Wedding ceremony… Ugh! The very thought made you sick. But there was no way you could avoid going, you were too close to his family.

“What’s up, Emmy?” Lo’ak’s voice broke you out of your thoughts. He stepped into your family’s marui, looking around with a smirk. “Are you trying to break a world record for the most beads made in one day?”

You snorted, but didn’t answer, didn’t even look up. He couldn’t see the dried tears on your cheeks! Lo’ak and sensitivity did not mix, he’d just be all awkward about it.

“You skxawng” Kiri admonished, stepping into the tent after her brother, Spider following close behind. She gave her brother a smack across the back of his head, making him yelp in pain.

“Ow!” he cried, rubbing the area. “What was that for?”

“For being you” Kiri responded firmly and sat down next to you, careful to not disturb the ever-growing pile of beads. “How are you feeling today?” she asked you.

You dared a small glance at your best friend. Her eyes were full of understanding. Even though you hadn’t explicitly told your best friend what was bothering you, Kiri seemed to sense everything concerning you, just like she could sense almost everything else. “I’m fine” you lied immediately.

Kiri cocked her head to the side, without a doubt taking in your tear-stricken face. She then turned to her brother and Spider. “Give us a moment.” Lo’ak grumbled something under his breath, but Spider gave you a look that could only be described as sympathetic before dragging Lo’ak out of the marui. Kiri turned back towards you. She tucked a couple of braids behind your ear in a soothing gesture she had undoubtedly picked up from her mother. “I know something is bothering you. But I don’t want to pressure you into talking about it until you’re ready.”

A small sniff escaped you. You sneaked a small peek at Kiri, hoping for anything but pity on her face. But there was mostly understanding. “Thank you, Kiri” you murmured.

Your best friend wrapped her arms around you, placing your head on her shoulder. You let out a long breath, closing your eyes. Even though you enjoyed, and really needed, the comfort, in a way it felt weird to accept comfort from her, given that it was her brother you were secretly brooding over. Not that you felt like Kiri would make such a huge deal over you being in love with her brother, per say. She was a very understanding person. The weird part was you having kept your feelings a secret for so long that it almost felt like a betrayal.

“What we wanted to ask you” Kiri began, stroking your hair. “Is if you wanted to join us later after dinner. Me, Lo’ak and Spider were thinking about going to the far side of the mountains, doing some exploring, just have some fun.”

You sighed… You could use the distraction, but the thought of faking happiness around other people was physically exhausting. “I don’t know, Kiri…”

“I won’t force you, I promise. But you could use the time outside, doing something else than foraging.”

“I’ll think about it” you answered.

And think about it, you did. Over and over again until your head spun around. Pulled between wanting to do something fun and productive to distract yourself and staying home to escape reality. You liked your friends, loved them even, but you had never been good at feigning happiness or the want to go out all the time. Solitude had always been you preferred escape. Being around large crowds and being social for so long could be draining. Even more so when you weren’t feeling well…

By the time dinner started, you had all but decided to decline their offer to hang out. Normally you would have said yes without thinking, but today was just not a good day. Kiri was carefully eyeing you from across the group. But meeting her eyes turned out to be an almost impossible task as she sat next to Neteyam. He was watching you too, his golden orbs flicking between you and his dinner.

Squaring your shoulders, you turned to your parents, trying to keep up with and engage with their conversation. But all you really wanted to do was run away to the safety of your marui. Your father was saying something about fishing, about how the fish had started to migrate. You listened to him babble on without much interest.

When the clan started to disperse, Kiri gave you a hopeful smile. But all you could do was to shake your head slightly and follow your parents towards your home. She gave you a nod in return before following her own family.

But when you reached your family’s marui, you instinctively stopped. “Are you not coming, paskalin?” your mother asked, a crease in her forehead. Of course, they had noticed your behavior. And you had told them in broad strokes what was going on. Told your mother, at least. But you hadn’t told them that it was Neteyam you were crying over. If your parents knew, then it was only a matter of time before Jake and Neytiri knew. And then Neteyam would know and that would be a disaster. The looks of pity, or worse disgust, when he would have to reject you were not something you wanted to experience.

“I will soon” you promised. “I just want to go for a quick walk.”

Your mother nodded and followed your father inside. Turning around, you walked away from the pods towards a quieter part of the village. Birds were singing in the trees when you arrived. The wind breezed through the trees. It was so peaceful, and helped to clear your spiraling mind.

But the peace and quiet didn’t last for long. A group of young men busted through the clearing, talking loudly, laughing, slapping each other on the backs. You recognized most of them as young warriors around your age. They hadn’t noticed you standing under a tree, too preoccupied with their conversation. A small smile played on your lips as you watched them. You wanted to have fun like that, if you could just get out of your own stupid head…

Though the smile vanished when you saw the object of your distress laughing among the men. Your heart constricted when Neteyam noticed you, his laugh faltering slightly. You turned your head away, blinking furiously to not let any emotion escape. His friend whispered something to him, but he just gave them a smile, clapping him on the back.

The group walked ahead, but Neteyam stayed behind, approaching you with a small smile. “Hey” he said, reaching out a hand to touch your shoulder. His touch was all warm, calming the storm inside you. Despite knowing better, you leaned into the touch and suddenly, his arms were around you. The hug was everything you needed, calming every nervous thought inside your head. The voice telling you to back off only got quieter and quieter. How was it possible that he could cause you so much turmoil and calmness at the same time?

“What was that for?” you asked quietly when he stepped back.

Neteyam shrugged. “You haven’t been yourself lately, and you looked really sad so I thought you could use a hug…”

“I haven’t been myself?” you questioned, looking down at your feet as you crossed your arms. The pity in his voice was maddening. You hated being pitied.

“Not really, no.” His voice sounded more nervous now. “You’re usually so happy. Did something happen?”

“No.” You cleared your throat. A clear lie, but he couldn’t know that. “Nothing’s happened.”

He sighed, placing his hand on your shoulder. His hand slowly travelled up your shoulder to the base of your neck, leaving a trail of fire. “I have to meet the guys, but I was hoping we could have a moment to talk soon.”

Your eyes carefully met his. He looked so hopeful it almost made you want to hope. “Talk about what?” you asked carefully.

He took a small step closer you, forcing you to crane your neck to keep looking at him. The air suddenly seemed thick, your breathing deepening. “About everything that’s going on. My parents are practically nagging me with a new name every day…”

Suddenly, your sadness turned to anger. Did he really consider this such an issue? Having women throw themselves at his feet? Having the entire clan gossiping about the fact that the son of the olo’eyktan was ready for a mate? Oh, all the gossip you had heard both inside the healer’s tent and outside. The warrior talking about how women constantly approached Neteyam, young women talking about how they had begged their parents to be able to put themselves forward as a match. That last one really made you scoff. As if anyone had the right to decide whether or not their daughter could court or not.

No. No, you would not be his shoulder to cry on. Not like this. “Is it really that hard to have women throwing themselves at you?”

Neteyam seemed taken aback by your new, suddenly harsh tone. He took his hand off your shoulder. “It is when there’s only one I’m interested in and she doesn’t notice.”

You scoffed. “So why are you talking to me instead of her?” You started to walk backwards. “I promise you, Neteyam, I’m fine. Nothing’s happened to me. You have your friends to meet up with, and I have mine. I’m supposed to meet Kiri and the others. And I encourage you to find the woman of your desires and let her know you how you feel.”

“You know, I might just do that” Neteyam called after you as you walked away, a slight edge to his voice.

No more of this. No more of this self-pitying, self-consciousness and moping about. You were going to meet your friends and have a damn good time!

XXX

Neteyam had been so confused these past few weeks. It had been three weeks since his parents first brought up the prospect of him finding a mate. When they first did, his thoughts had immediately travelled to you. How could they not? You were everything, and he was like an insect drawn to your light. You were so kind and attentive, so beautiful with your braided hair, your tall body with voluptuous hips and breasts that were covered with the most intricate pieces of clothing. He sometimes felt a bit guilty for thinking of his sister’s best friend in that way. But the mind had a mind of its own, especially when in love.

He would have fallen for you regardless, but your closeness to Kiri definitely helped. Growing up together, he quickly learned how dedicated you were to your healing skills, and interest in medicine. How kind you were to others, even when the large crowds in the healing tent visibly exhausted you. He loved how you put so much care and effort into everything you did.

When Jake and Neytiri had brought up a mate, he had told them that he understood that the time had come but that he wanted to do the searching himself, and not have people pressure him or any clan member into any rash decisions. Of course, that hadn’t stopped them from bringing up a new girl every day, hoping Neteyam would catch an interest. But he had no interest in them, only you.

And it hurt that every time he had tried to approach you, you had pulled away, suddenly busy with anything other than him.

You had told him that whoever he chose would surely make a great tsahík. You would make a great tsahík. You had everything required. The only thing missing was a belief in yourself and your connection to Eywa. One time, years ago, you had said that you felt like your connection to the great mother was lackluster. Neteyam couldn’t believe that even if he wanted to. Someone with your connection to the earth had to have a deep connection to Eywa. How else would you know so intuitively how to turn plants into medicine and always knew what to do for the people unless Eywa guided your hand. You only needed some guidance to learn how to interpret the signs.

He knew you liked him, but did you like him? The signs had been so mixed over the years. Sometimes you treated him like one in the group, a friend like any other. And then there was that day in the tent when Neteyam could swear the tension between you was electric. There had been several of those over the years, coming closer and closer together. Like that one time he had danced with you at the night of his friend’s wedding ceremony. Your movement had been flawless, for once so carefree. You had both been a bit drunk, dancing so close, smiling, twirling. He had felt brave then, letting his hands roam up and down your waist. Just when he was about to kiss you, you had excused yourself and then he hadn’t seen you for two days.

After you ran away angrily today, he had no choice but to follow his friends. It was what he had intended to do anyways, but maybe not with such a knot in his stomach. For weeks he had been trying to get a minute alone with you to finally find the courage to express his feelings, but you had avoided him as if he was riddled with disease. It’s not like he expected you to put yourself forward in a desperate manner he had witnessed from others, but a part of him had hoped for some kind of hint. Maybe you staying away was his hint. But if you truly did not feel anything for him, then why would you react with such anger and clear jealousy?

He should just ask you… Then he would get a true answer. He just hoped things would not get too weird if you rejected him… You had told him to find the one he wanted and show her, so he would show you.

He spent some time with the warriors, goofing around, competing at archery, talking shit. It was nice to have some time off from his duties, time to feel like a normal young adult. Usually, Lo’ak was the one who always got to have fun. Of course, the topic of his coming courtship came up. The guys loved talking about how Neteyam would leave a string of broken hearts behind him for them to heal. He couldn’t help but cringe at that. He didn’t really want them to take advantage of their disappointment.

He had already had to reject a couple of offers put forward by either the women themselves or by their parents. Their clear disappointment always stung, and he felt like a jerk. But he also couldn’t lie to himself and commit to anyone before knowing how you felt about him.

On his way back, he was met with a sight that was equally funny and exasperating. Lo’ak, Kiri, Spider standing by the riverside, covered from head to toe in mud.

“What have you guys been up to?” he asked, eyeing his siblings and friend up and down as they washed themselves somewhat clean.

“We were climbing and we all slipped on some mud” Kiri explained calmly, helping Spider to scrub some dirt from his locs.

“Bro, it was epic you should have seen it!” Lo’ak laughed. “Emmy fell first head on and we all thought she hurt herself but she did this crazy flip to catch herself and fell in the mud!”

Neteyam could feel his stomach constrict in worry. She wasn’t here with the rest of them! What if she did hurt herself? But before he could ask, Spider opened his mouth. “Kiri and I dove after her but by the time we made it down, she was just sitting in the mud laughing so hard and we all just kind of got into a mud fight.”

This didn’t really help his beating heart calm down. Where was she? “So why isn’t she with you guys?” Neteyam asked urgently, his eyes flitting between the others.

“Relax, bro” Lo’ak rolled his eyes in a way that made Neteyam want to strangle him just a little bit.

“She’s upstream” Kiri explained, pointing towards a cluster of trees. “She kinda got the worst of the mud so we gave her some privacy to clean up.” Without answering, Neteyam started to march towards where Kiri pointed. “Hey! Privacy applies to you to, Neteyam!”

Ignoring his sister partially, Neteyam moved on. Yes, privacy applied to him in the sense that he couldn’t just barge in on you if you were in some state of undress, but he also didn’t trust Lo’ak to judge whether you were injured in some way.

“Emreyìte?” he called, but no answer came. So he walked a bit more, looking for you in the distance.

Just when he was considering diving into the water to look for you, he spotted something cruising on the surface. There you were, floating in the water, ears below the surface, smiling a bit to yourself, eyes closed. It was the happiest he had seen you for weeks, well since he told you about his parents’ wishes. The fact that you had been sulking since then gave him some twisted sense of hope. But it wasn’t the smile on your face that made him blush. It was the sight of your breasts bobbing in the water. Your chest covering was nowhere to be found. When your arms moved in the water, it created ripples that caused your breasts to move with the current. Your nipples were pebbled in the cool night air, your tanhì glowing in intricate patterns. Beautiful, you were absolutely beautiful. Your words from earlier came flooding back, and he should look away, but Neteyam found himself unable to.

A twig snapped beneath his feet and your head immediately turned towards the sound. A shriek escaped your mouth at the sight of him.

“Neteyam?” you questioned, immediately sinking deeper into the water, covering yourself with your arms. “What are you doing here?”

It took a few seconds before Neteyam even realized you were talking to him, his mind too busy conjuring images of what he could do to let you know how he felt like you suggested. “Shit” he cursed, turning around to give you some sense of privacy. “I’m sorry! I just wanted to check on you, I head you fell down a cliff.”

You snorted behind him. “That’s the overstatement of the year. I’m fine, just filthy.” There was an edge to your voice that he didn’t like. Although, he couldn’t really blame you for being annoyed with him, he did just walk in on you bathing. But the edge in your voice also did other things to him. It was wrong, but his loincloth was getting tighter and tighter when all he could do imagining bending you over a rock, wanting to watch the water droplets run down your plush ass before burying himself in you completely. Again, it took him a second to realize that you were speaking. “My chest covering is lying by the grass, could you grab it for me? I think it’s too ruined to wear again but I need something on the way home.”

Careful to not look at you without permission, he fetched the covering, handing it over without looking. He could hear you emerging from the water. You mumbled a thanks, taking it from him.

“Are you sure that you’re not hurt?” Neteyam asked. When it came to you, he would never stop worrying. He could feel his heart beating in his chest, but whether it was from your half-naked proximity or him worrying about your wellbeing, he wasn’t sure.

“Yes” you sighed. “Don’t worry about me, it was a short fall.” The rustle of you putting your piece of clothing continued for a few seconds before he felt your hand on his shoulder. “You can turn around now.” Your touch was warm, and he wanted more, so much more. When he turned around, he couldn’t even be bothered to hide his erection. There wouldn’t really be anywhere to hide it, anyways. Instead, he took a small, tentative step forward, taking one of your braids between his fingers, enjoying the silky feeling. “I know they’re still dirty…”

“No” Neteyam whispered, his throat dry, voice thick with desire. Seeing you like this, wet, glowing tanhì, a sweet blush spreading across your cheeks, seemed to have destroyed the last of his willpower. “They’re beautiful. You’re so beautiful.”

His hand moved from your braid to your jaw, cupping it. He looked into your eyes, finding a mix of emotions there. Nervousness, anticipation, but most of all longing. So much longing. His eyes flitted between your eyes and lips. Slowly, he leaned in. It felt like eternity, but when your lips eventually touched, a dam broke.

His arms were around you in an instant, your hands sinking into the hair at the nape of his neck. The water droplets on your body were cold, but your body was scorching as it pressed against his. His erection pressed into your stomach, creating a delicious friction that made him groan into the kiss. His lips moved over yours, possessive and demanding. You whimpered into the kiss, pulling him closer. Neteyam’s tongue ran over your bottom lip, and you immediately allowed him entrance. He had been with other women in the clan, but none that made him feel this electric.

Your tongues battled for dominance before Neteyam detached himself from you. He relished in your disappointed groan that turned into a moan when he started trailing kisses down your jaw and neck. Every inch of your skin would be covered in his kisses. Your skin was just as soft as he remembered from all the stolen touches over the years.

His hands roamed from your back, up your waist to grasp at your breast through the soiled covering. He could already feel your nipple hardening under his touch, making him bite down on your skin, eliciting a loud whimper from you.

“If this is already ruined” Neteyam started, running his finger over the cloth, straight over your nipple. “Are you still very fond of it?”

“Not really” you answered, a slight furrow between your brows.

“Good” Neteyam answered, grasping at the fabric and ripping it like it was nothing. Your audible gasp was swallowed by his mouth as he latched onto you, using the opportunity to plunge his tongue into your mouth. Your muffled gasp turned into a moan as he played with your nipples, rolling it between his finger.

Eywa, he was rock hard, pushing up against you stomach. He needed everything you’d give him. Years of yearning and fantasizing made him feel reckless, even more so at the realization that you, the real you, couldn’t even compare to his fantasies.

Taking hold of your waist, Neteyam backed up against a nearby tree, sitting down and pulling you into his lap. This was better, this was so much better! Your entire weight resting on his dick, you squirming for friction, whimpering with each movement of your hips. He couldn’t help but lick a stripe up your breast. Judging by your reaction, it was his best idea yet. So, he continued, alternating between licking, sucking and nipping with some expertise. He had been with other women, but none better with you, they couldn’t even compare. He was only grateful for the experience now, so he knew how to please you now. Of course everyone was different, but at least he had a baseline to work off of and adjust by your reactions.

Your mouth had moved from his, pressing kisses to his cheek, jaw and down the column of his neck. Hesitant at first, but then more assertive, bolder. Your tongue licked at his pulse point, making him crane his neck with a groan, giving you better access. Your hands played with his braids for a moment before trailing over his shoulders and upper back. You exploring his body and surely sucking a hickey onto his neck was how he wanted to spend the rest of his life. Or maybe inside you. Yeah, definitely inside you, but he wouldn’t pressure you for that right now.

Instead, he trailed his finger along the hem of your loincloth. Your mouth broke from his neck, looking into his eyes. Fuck you were so beautiful, swollen lips, blown pupils, glowing tanhì, small water droplets decorating your skin. An inch of his finger travelled inside your loincloth, but he stopped there, searching your eyes for consent.

When you nodded with a small smile, he swiftly untied your loincloth, slipping his fingers inside. Warm, wet heat engulfed his fingers instantly, you were absolutely drenched. “Fuck, this all for me?” he breathed, dragging his finger up your slit.

A shiver coarsed through you as you nodded eagerly. Neteyam smirked at your reaction, his finger stopping to circle your clit. As he massaged the small button, your moans grew louder. Sure, the stream offered some soundproofing, but there was no way the other wouldn’t be able to hear the obvious sounds of pleasure coming from you.

“Shh…” Neteyam cooed, burying his nose between your breasts. “We don’t want the others to hear.”

You jerked your head, nodding, throwing your head back in quiet ecstasy. Neteyam pressed kisses all over your breasts as his fingers dipped lower, seeking more of your glorious heat. Gently, he pressed a finger inside you and his entire body shivered with arousal. So warm, so wet, your deep breaths and whimpers filling his ear, your sweet, earthy scent invading his senses. This was heaven, he was sure, there was nothing better than this. He had been drawn to you like a magnet most of his life, and there was no way he was ever going to let you go now.

He moved his finger in and out of you, pressing against that sweet spongy spot. Your hips jerked in rhythm with his hand, seeking the friction with desperation. His mouth sought yours, drowning your moans with his kisses. Your hands clawed at his shoulders, pressing as close to his body as possible. The palm of his hand pressed against your clit, making you cry out. He pressed his mouth against yours even harder, pressing his tongue into your mouth. You were close, he could feel it in the way you clamped down on him. He angled his hand against you just a little to reach better, and your body shivered.

“That’s it, syulang” Neteyam murmured against your mouth, feeling you pulse. “Come for me!”

He could feel you tumble over the edge, contracting around his finger, body shaking, cries swallowed by his mouth. You were so warm against him, pressing down on his erection. Warm liquid gushed from you, coating his hand. So perfect, you were so perfect! You looked at him with such warm softness it made his insides melt. This was how he always wanted to spend his time, coaxing your pleasure, being on the receiving end of your warm gaze.

When the aftershocks wore off, your hand carefully reached for his groin, but before you could reach, he put his hand over yours to stop the movement. “Not now, syulang” he whispered, pressing a kiss to your nose. “The others will wonder where we are…”

“Are you sure?” you asked, pressing your forehead against his.

Neteyam couldn’t help but smile at you, always so caring, even if you didn’t realize it. “I’m sure.” He gently pushed at your hip. “Come on, let’s go.”

XXX

Being the skilled crafter that you were, you quickly used some vine to make the destroyed chest covering appear whole enough for you to sneak past the others, fighting the blush spreading across your face and neck. Kiri’s eyes followed you like a bird of prey. Lo’ak and Spider seemed clueless like always.

You barely slept that night, your mind going over every small detail of what happened. It was a bit confusing going from feeling so sad about Neteyam to feeling on cloud nine. He had been so attentive, so caring, making you orgasm with such expertise. A part of you felt elated, like you finally had confirmation of everything you had always hoped he’d feel for you. But the louder part of your brain advised caution. Before you let your heart do a 180, you had to speak to him, first thing in the morning.

So, you tossed and turned a little bit more before swinging your legs off the hammock at first light. The village had barely come to life yet, buy you knew Neteyam would be awake. He was always the first one to awake.

The thoughts swirled in your head. What did he think of this entire thing? Was this a confirmation of his feelings, or were you just one more of the women he’d spent time with over the years to find some stress relief?

Thankfully, you reached the Sully’s marui before you could overthink again. Voices could be heard from the inside and you immediately recognized one of them as Neytiri.

“Nulan is an excellent hunter and has a fine relationship with Eywa” Neytiri said, and you could hear the smile in her voice.

“She’s a good choice, son” Jake said from behind the tent flap.

Suddenly it felt like someone had filled your entire body with rocks and lava. Everything felt so heavy, so painful, betrayal seeping through your entire system. What the fuck?