#the twist is IMPECCABLE

[silverserpent]

THIS IS SO FUCKING GOOD FICTION

Read this. Even if you hate eggs and perky diet blogs. Read through Wednesday at the very least. My bet is if you get to Wednesday, you’ll want to read the rest. 

[egophiliac]

ten minutes into the trip and already Leona's elaborate get-out-of-work-free plan has gone wildly off the rails. off to a great start!

[jangmi-latte]

he can show you his tiddies, he can wear see-through linens on any part of the body but great seven forbid he shows his neck.

it's the rook arm syndrome again but with his neck i just KNOW this man's weak spot is his neck and to think even his overblot design has his neck covered YOU CAN NOT tell me otherwise he'd like to be kissed there.

the only time he showed his neck was during halloween but that was when he was mostly around diasomnia and the mc.

edit: nvm he heard me with that dorm groovy.

[fountainpenguin]

Obsessed with the size difference between Hadley and Dale. Both in terms of height and weight. Hadley being only 4' 10' makes her husband look like a giant next to her.

lanky x stocky 💕💕

Have this sketch I did of them.

SKLDFJSLDFJSLKDFJSD I know, right?? Dimmadome x Leadly family genes, my beloved... They are plotting to open another business front that is definitely unrelated to the Dimmadome State Sport of money laundering.

They have such fun silhouettes and you captured that so well; thank you for this gift. They look soft... <3

[pybun]

THE DETAILS MAAAAAAAN 😭😭😭

[rabioa]

The urge to pull crewel in by his tie (much to his dismay bc wtf ifs an expensive tie that you're wrinkling) is strong. Like come here bitch. Let me shower you with affectioj

[clarrolx]

I finished chapter 8 and the twist at the end akfbskf

It's probably hilarious only to me lmao!

I don't want to give spoilers but on many levels, RIP mc lmao!

[witchmd13]

still on episode 9 of hercai and the plot is getting more insane than a soap opera on its 20th season but it's so entertaining and the characters are so perfectly written. truly one of the best turkish dramas I've ever seen hands down. maybe better than asi.

[i-want-to-be-spaghettified]

Time to swap out stressed scientist that’s lacking in the sanity and sleep departments for the author with too many stories in her head and a hobby of killing off loved characters for fun and debating philosophy at 3am running on too much coffee and too little sleep

[snowthornes]

Will be back in a minute, Thurl's entire backstory has chucked me straight into the Washing Machine of Emotions again

[whoa-where-did-the-pancakes-go]

Has anybody ever heard of this

[thelegolashairappreciationclub]

Maedhros: *pulls up to barad eithel riding one of these.*

Fingolfin:... I know you gave ours back but... you dont need to resort to stealing beasts from the enemy. I can provide you a horse.

Maedhros: no, it works for The Brand (TM).

Fingolfin: *deadpan* The brand of extremely reckless and dangerous fools?

Fingon: *sprinting from around the corner* I W A N T O N E I M M E D I A T E L Y.

Maedhros: yes, exactly.

I've recently seen a video about hypothetical carnivorous horses, and I was just thinking- What if horses in Angband weren't normal, docile herbivores? What if they were twisted, corrupted things, all too-sharp teeth peeled back in an almost cruel grin? Melkor bent all sorts of creatures to his will, breaking and reshaping them into whatever malicious war ustensils he wanted. That's how Orcs came into being; the aftermath of prolonged torment, mutilation and corruption of Elves. It's implied that's what happened to many other beings. So why wouldn't he do that to horses as well? Surely, having a mount that bites and tears through the flesh of the enemies, a mount that grows thirsty at the sight of blood, is more useful -and admittedly more aesthetically pleasing- to a Dark Lord.

Anyway, here are some amazing works included in the video I saw:

[ferdieinceladoncity]

time of the angles/flesh and stone is SO fucking GOOD save for the last five or so minutes where I want to get as physically far away from the scenes unfolding on my laptop as possible. Amy I understand you are traumatised but please

[lilyprettyremy]

The 'It Girl' Nighttime Routine:

Every chic woman knows that a captivating day starts the night before. This routine is all about luxurious self-care – because waking up as the most poised, radiant version of yourself is a lifestyle. Ready to transform your evening into an elegant ritual? Let’s step into your new, elevated bedtime routine.

Create an Atmosphere: Begin by setting a serene mood. Dim the lights, light a sophisticated candle (think notes of sandalwood or bergamot), and play a calming jazz playlist. This is your time to unwind and transition into a world of serenity.

Sophisticated Cleansing: Start with a cleansing oil to melt away makeup and daily grime. Rinse it off, then follow with a gentle, hydrating cleanser. This double cleanse is like a reset button, leaving your skin ready for its nighttime restoration.

The Hydration Layer: Pat on a luxurious serum – hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, or a skin-renewing elixir. Then, apply a rich night cream. Imagine each layer as a silk robe for your skin, nurturing and hydrating it while you sleep.

Elevated Facial Massage: Use a jade roller or gua sha to massage in your serum. Not only is this relaxing, but it boosts circulation and helps define your natural contours. It’s a moment of quiet elegance – a way to remind yourself of your own grace.

Silk Essentials: Swap your pillowcase for silk. It’s gentle on your skin and hair, reducing friction while you sleep. A chic woman wakes up with smooth skin and effortless hair – because beauty is in the details.

Hair Ritual: Before bed, brush your hair and apply a touch of light hair oil to the ends. Twist it into a low bun or a loose braid for natural waves. It’s a simple yet sophisticated way to keep your hair looking polished in the morning.

The Nightcap: Pour yourself a cup of herbal tea – chamomile, peppermint, or lavender. Sip slowly, feeling the warmth relax your body. A classy woman indulges in these small, soothing rituals to unwind and replenish.

Outfit Planning: Select tomorrow's outfit with intention. Choose pieces that make you feel confident and chic, whether it’s a tailored blazer or that perfect little black dress. Lay everything out: jewelry, shoes, and bag – so your morning flows seamlessly.

Screen Detox: Put your phone on “Do Not Disturb” mode at least 30 minutes before bed. In this quiet time, you’re choosing presence and grace over endless scrolling.

Read Something Timeless: Replace your screen with a classic book or an inspiring magazine. This is how chic women nurture their minds and escape into elegance before drifting off.

Visualize Tomorrow: As you close your eyes, picture yourself waking up refreshed, glowing, and composed. See yourself moving through the day with grace and poise. You’re setting the stage for a day where everything aligns effortlessly.

This is more than a nighttime routine; it’s a ritual of self-respect and refinement. Wake up to your fullest potential, feeling radiant, empowered, and impeccably put-together. Sweet dreams, darling – tomorrow, the world is your runway.

[linyve]

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Title: Coraline Author: Neil Gaiman Genre: Children’s books, Fantasy Publisher: HarperTrophy Publishing date: First published July 2, 2002 ISBN: 9780060575915 Synopsis: In Neil Gaiman’s dark and mesmerizing tale, Coraline’s exploration of her immense old house leads her to discover a hidden door, revealing an alternate universe beyond her imagination. In this distorted-mirror world, she finds…

[kirisredriot]

This is one of the best things I’ve read about Lilia and Malleus

ᴀʟᴡᴀʏꜱ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ

❝ always there to warm you in the winter.... always there with shelter from the rain... always there to catch you when you're falling... always there to stand you up again... family...❞ — Lady & the Tramp 2

notes: i see chapter 7 part 4 did things to our puny little minds. part of @briarvalleyarchives "anthems of old" event. a short story about lilia, malleus and whom they've lost.

warnings: character death, major chapter 7 spoilers

The winter after the beloved princess had passed was a cruel and solemn one. The snowflakes would travel through the cold air of Briar Valley as they had done so many times in the years prior and hit the ground, melting into the ones that had come before; a fate that was all too familiar to the residents of the small nation. The war had left its scars upon the lands. Beasts had run rampant in the villages; destroying homes that had been carefully built with love and dedication. The caves in the mountains were stripped of their glamour, the crystals that had reflected the sunlight that would, despite all odds, break through the cracks, were stolen by beasts unfamiliar to the once peaceful home of the fae.

Because some beasts were not as easy to handle as the demon beasts that came from the mountains to wreak havoc in the settlements. No one knew that better than the fearsome General Vanrouge. From the moment Lady Mallenoa had entered her eternal slumber; with no amount of love able to wake her once more, it was as though winter never ended. Memories of times gone by would flash through his mind; the way they had played in the snow as children and the young princess would never go easy on him; using her magic to turn the previously innocent game into a battlefield of snowballs that left Lilia no room to fight back. It took centuries for him to be able to hold a candle to her power.

Now the snow was stained with the blood of his enemies. At the time, the general had never taken a moment to think about whether the Silver Owls he had slain had a family waiting for them at home as well. They had taken his, so they were undeserving of theirs. General Vanrouge had been consumed by the rage and bitterness in his heart, destroying all who dared stand in his path, for his heart now belonged to battle. This way, he wouldn't have to mourn the past.

He remembered vividly, always, the day they laid her to rest. It seemed as though the whole kingdom was present to say their goodbyes to her. Each citizen who attended the burial was dressed in black for this day, illuminated in the dead of night only by the candles they held as the princess was carried in a casket to her final resting place. The queen had placed a single rose on the ground that to Lilia seemed as though it had swallowed her. Lilia had walked up to the grave later when everyone had left. He thought of the egg still rested and protected within the chambers of the castle. "I promise, for as long as I live, no harm shall come to it. And not a day will go by....that I don't miss your smile", his voice cracked as the tears started streaming down his face. The seasons would go by and yet the cold never passed. Not when the sun would rise on the next day, not when it had risen a hundred years later.

General Vanrouge remembered how she had taught him to play stringed instruments, something he found boring and pointless as a child. Princess Mallenoa always had such a soothing voice. He remembered how she'd sit next to her egg with Prince Levan and sing a soft song to the unborn child. Now Lilia's heart sang without a sound; a quiet melody of grief and unrest. Her funeral was the last time he had allowed himself to cry. The numbness in his heart when he'd open his eyes in the morning didn't fade for decades, centuries even. These were lifespans in the eyes of a child of man; and they seemed to have forgotten all about the devastation they had brought to Briar Valley just a few hundred years later. But a soldier's heart never forgets. It never forgives. That was what Lilia thought at the time. Pain had made him heartless and his heart had been locked away for he feared the pain it held more than any foe on the battlefield. He only hoped, wherever she was now, that she had found peace.

How many times had he wished to feel again? To wake up in the morning and hear her pounding on his door, angry about something. It had annoyed him at the time. But she had been alive.

Yes, the seasons had gone by, yet eternal winter resided in the hearts of the people. But nothing stopped another day. Nothing stopped the inevitable; that the general's heart would thaw one day and spring would arrive in Briar Valley.

It was a miracle. At this point, the egg was more of a reminder of a future that would never be. A memory. Something to make one realize that the royal family would die with Queen Maleficia; the future of the kingdom as uncertain as it had been since the day the war ended. And who would blame anyone? It had been centuries.

But Malleus was spring.

He was the reason General Vanrouge shed a tear once more. One of relief and of love he thought he no longer had inside him. He had smiled when he first saw the little dragon fae with his eggshell on his small face. A smile he was sure the princess would have teased him for. After all, wasn't it him who had always said that he hated children? Who had refused to hold her egg when she had offered it to him? Yet in that moment, he couldn't help to do so. He had picked the little prince up and looked at the queen with the brightest smile she had seen on him in centuries. Tears were streaming down his face as the small fae was just looking up at him with awe and curiosity in his eyes. People say that when someone passes, in a way they are still with you. Lilia had always thought that this was bullshit, he had been far too bitter to notice. But in that moment, he realized that Mallenoa was all around him. He held her legacy in his arms. "She saved us once again, didn't she?", he had whispered quietly, wiping the tears from his face.

The little prince grew up healthy and not one bit less of a fire hazard than his mother had been. He grew up unaware of the bloodshed that had stained his beloved homeland when his egg had come into existence. Unaware of what his parents had sacrificed, of what Lilia had sacrificed, so that he could live and grow. But he had often wondered what it would be like if his parents were still around. Sometimes Malleus would sneak out of the castle, quietly observing the people in the village at the foot of the mountain in awe. He saw little children, not much older than him, protesting under tears because they didn't want to go clothes shopping for their uncle's 900th birthday as they were dragged by their parents' hand and promised their favorite candy if they would go along without making a fuss. He witnessed a mother explaining to her toddler what a bird was. He watched and listened as a father read his son a story on a bench by the fountain. Lilia had read him lots of stories before. But Malleus had always wondered what his father's voice would have sounded like doing this.

The prince spent most of his days alone in the castle. Lilia still had work to do and his grandmother was busy ruling an entire country as he would come to do one day as well. So as soon as Malleus had learnt to read, he would spend his time in the library, curiously exploring stories from a world beyond the castle walls; hoping that he would one day spread his wings to set off and see it for himself. Lots of the stories contained themes of family but few of the families looked quite like his. There was always a mother, a father and at least one child. Malleus would take the books and show it to his guardian, asking Lilia what his father was like and whether he would have taken him fishing like the farmer did with his son in the picture book. There was a flash of pain on Lilia's expression that Malleus had never noticed back then. "I'm sure he would have", the older fae had answered. The stories Malleus heard about his own parents were always short and vague. But Lilia had told him that they were exceptional people who would be proud of him if they could see him now.

Malleus had always wondered what having a father was like. He would get his answer when Lilia took a small human into his custody. Malleus was curious about the baby, always sneaking out to visit the cottage in the forest to see what his guardian was up to. At first he was pouting because Lilia was now giving most of his attention to someone else. But with time he had grown to care for the little child of man. Lilia seemed much happier now. Time had healed his wounds despite the scars of battle and loss never truly fading. He would arrive at the castle to do a task the queen had assigned to him and the prince would greet him to ask about how Silver was doing. Malleus was happy that Silver got to grew up with a father. He never fathomed that both of them could lose him.

The world was simple back then. It was just the castle, Malleus, his grandmother, Lilia and the little human he was raising and that Malleus would often play with or read to when Lilia had work to do at the palace. He couldn't ever have imagined going to Night Raven College and finding the world had changed so much from the one he read about in books. Or that his third year would mark his last with Lilia. That he would see Silver cry and grieve like this.

The world outside of Briar Valley was one he had always longed to see and that brought him many curious, but happy memories. He had learnt about the Halloween traditions of other nations and celebrated the holiday together with them. He had cooked a meal for the first time and the person he had served it to had enjoyed it. He had seen other countries and took part in their culture.

Even Lilia still found the school to be a place for new experiences. He had met a friend on this strange invention called the "Internet" and treasured that friendship despite never having met this friend in person. This online friend would often talk to Lilia in the chat, casually mentioning how he had obtained the newest addition of his favorite manga or played a game with his brother. Lilia would hesitate for a moment, recalling memories that seemed so long ago to him now.

"I had a sister... once."

He deleted the words before he had sent them. No need to bother Gloomurai with a sob story from his life that happened centuries ago. Little did he know that the stranger on the other side of the screen understood all about the struggle of losing a sibling.

Yes, Night Raven College was full of new beginnings for Malleus and his family. But it was the way of the world that nothing could truly last forever, tragic and unfair as it was. Nothing stops another day. Not even a sleeping curse or an overblot dragon. The spell laid waste to Sage's Island, and although the damage was way less than it could have been, the aftermath of it could still be seen everywhere one looked. Malleus felt ashamed of what he had done and Lilia was reminded of scenes from the war long ago.

But everyone joined together to help and rebuild what had been destroyed. Night Raven College and Royal Sword Academy. Fairies and Humans.

"Seems as though we avoided the worst case, huh?", Lilia mused as he noticed Queen Maleficia, the dragon fairy who had raised him since he was a baby, standing next to him. The queen nodded and noted what a bureaucratical nightmare this whole ordeal would be despite all.

Lilia looked at the scene that was unfolding before his eyes. The fae who had come to the island to break through the spell and fight against Malleus's overblot were now helping the locals rebuild their houses with magic. The students would hand out meals to everyone who helped. The citizens were already planting new seeds in place of the trees and fields that had been destroyed. They would one day grow into an idyllic image of a peaceful home. Just as Malleus and Silver had grown into formidable people. The young prince had fallen further than he ever did before, but now the old general was certain that he could stand on his own feet at last. Both of his sons could. And the bat fae was glad that he could depart knowing this much.

"It seems the children of man truly know no rest when it comes to progress", the queen remarked, looking at the humans who fixed the fields beside the village and the fae soldiers who were assisting them.

"It appears so"

"What are they planting?"

Lilia looked at the rising sun, remembering the faith that Princess Mallenoa once had; that mankind and fae would one day live in peace and help each other grow. He had called it foolish at the time, mocking his sister's words by calling them a fever dream. Yet this was just another way in which she had changed his world, just as the little prince he raised had been. There was a smile on his face as he thought about how this day might just mark the beginning of the future the princess had envisioned.

"Hope."