#then he retired from the marines and became a teacher

[foolishaetherguardian]

As I have said I went to a strange school. We had several old history teachers whose lives could have easily been movies. One grew up the son of a NASA engineer and then became a moon landing denier and the head of our highschool engineering program. One was a 64 year old man who started his career as a police officer and later swat team leader during the height of the Satanic panic. He was a nice guy and despite being ordered to raid this one building once a month he'd delay and try and force his superiors to get evidence of something instead of just "Their satanists" (They weren't. There is no record of anything other than a few fringe christian cults in the area.) They'd eventually get something concrete enough he couldn't stall and because "Evil wizards" and "crazed cultists" were actually a semi realistic fear in the minds of the higher ups the swat team would go in. Except again he was a nice guy and really didn't like railroading okay people into a criminal record because their beliefs were different. So the swat team would roll up. And get out in full gear and wait outside while he walked up to the door and knocked. Then the door would open and they'd go inside and search only the very specific areas allowed under the warrant, because again their team leader really didn't want to be there and really didn't want anything to show up. Then they would pack up and typically leave with nothing more coming of it. Well because this is a relatively small town and we are all inquisitive little highschoolers we ask were the church was. "Oh it turned into XYZ Pharmacy in the 90's." The pharmacy that now provides my Testosterone and is the only compounding pharmacy in our whole town.

I feel like people these days don't really have a handle on how crazy the Satanic Panic was. A lot of cops wholeheartedly believed they were gonna have to arrest evil wizards.

[s0rr3l]

MODERN AU - PART 1

lore under the cut!!!

Lǐyú 🐟

25 years old

Grew up poor, but a hard worker - was in the student council throughout highschool and captain of the debate team; bit of an overachiever

Earned a scholarship to university and became… an accountant

Always had dreams to be a marine biologist or illustrator, but life got in the way and one has to pay the bills

Had no passion for their chosen career, becoming a workaholic and reclusive, plus being piled with extra work due to to being the lowest in the work hierarchy

Started a webcomic series to relieve stress from the job and posted on a whim, unexpectedly got really popular!!!

One time got caught in the rain without an umbrella and ran into an open cafe

Met the the owner @maiden-of-the-waters Beike and worker @marcu-bug Yu, who took one look at their sad, soggy form and immediately (unofficially) adopted them into their cafe

Lǐyú cried (which they’re still embarassed about) from the simple kindness of strangers, and started frequenting the cafe more

With support from the others, quit their accounting job and started posting comics full time, even picking up shifts for the cafe

Noticed by game company, scouted and hired for character design/concept, illustration and storyboarding

Co-workers with @marcu-bug’s monkey (Tao), who works in a different department

Unexpectedly ran into @dunanana Birdie in the cafe, and fainted from shock; has always been a big fan of her music

Did get over their embarassing hero worship after getting to know Birdie, and the gang always teases them about their reaction to their first meeting

Met @szynkaaa Oz while working a shift in the cafe, casually doodled a lil star on her to-go cup based on the accessories on her bag

Becomes roommates with Birdie and Yu after their apartment got flooded

More social and passionate about life; it really was going great! Surrounded by awesome friends and loving their new career; seriously, what could more could they ask for?

That was when fate decided to throw a Monkey their way

Destined One/Yēzi 🥥

24 years old

Star of the martial arts world since he was a child, has won numerous competitions in various fields

Impressive enough to be scouted for minor movie roles but didn’t enjoy the spotlight. Transitioned to stuntwork

Elder monkey is his grandfather and runs a dojo - he joins as a teacher and regularly holds classes for all levels

(the kids all love him, he is their favourite teacher!! Don’t tell him he said this, but he likes teaching the kids too)

Going to inherit the dojo when his grandfather retires, but that seems to be a while yet…

In his youth he was a massive menace, challenging all the dojos/martial arts associations with his own lil’ gang

He’s totally mellowed out now that he’s older, but his friends keep teasing him about his ‘younger days’

ANYWAYS, because of his wild challenges in his youth, he became a local legend and set off a trend for the up-and-coming students of other dojos to start challenging HIM

His friends call him Fruit Punch. And somehow it SPREADS and others start calling him the legendary Fruit Punch

Gods he was so mortified he wore a mask to try and hide, but it just fueled the rumours even more

So he’s always being interrupted and challenged by all these flashy characters and gained a reputation for being a delinquent/vigilante

(since they’re disturbing public areas, Yēzi always drags them off to the police station after the fight)

Grumpy guy

Of course he is, always getting interrupted by a bunch of guys when he just wants a smoothie or shopping for groceries

-

He enters a cafe, ready to order and hears this:

"Ah! Fruit Punch"

*sighs*

its gonna be a long day

Lǐyú and Yēzi 🐟🥥

He loves doodling. Unironically thinks Lǐyú (and Tao) has the coolest job in the world

Yēzi kept the cups that Lǐyú doodled on. Sentimental nerd

Lǐyú did not understand the culture around fighting for the longest time and had some... misunderstandings about it. Had a long sit down with Yēzi to talk about it :)

-

UGH they are both so oblivious

Lǐyú: Yēzi is so cool but a bit scary => actually he's kind of a dork => um wow that was hot- => oh!! What a cute laugh! => hey- shhh shh. Yēzi, I'm not going anywhere.

And it hits them like 'oh. OH'.

Yēzi is So Stupid:

Ugh they called me fruit punch => huh. They're kinda cool I guess => pretty fun to tease => pretty eyes~ => oh no. Why are you crying? I'll do anything, so please, don't turn away from me-

'oh. OH.'

[usagi-has-nightmares]

Usagi's Stupid Ninjago Headcanons Part 1

Because of his powers, Kai doesn't feel cold as much as a normal person would. He'll go outside in the middle of winter in shorts and not even feel chilly. Zane is basically the opposite. He goes around in long sleeves and coats in the summer since he doesn't feel the heat.

Jay is subscribed to every fashion magazine in Ninjago and if someone ticks him off enough, he'll roast their entire wardrobe. He's like Gordon Ramsey if he were a fashion critic.

After she became the Master of Water, Nya started studying marine biology and oceanography. She says being a marine biologist will be her backup career in case she ever decides to retire from being a ninja.

If Lloyd never became the green ninja, he would've gone full goth in the future. He already loves horror films and the occult (at least in my headcanon), so he doesn't think it would be much of a change.

Animals love Zane. It doesn't matter if they're wild animals or domestic pets. They love him. Everyone jokes about him secretly being a Disney princess because of it.

Lou has talked every one of Cole's friends into taking at least one dancing class. Kai learned swing dancing. Nya did jazz. Jay did tap dancing. Zane did ballet. Skylor did belly dancing. Pixal took disco and Lloyd took ballroom dancing. Cole's the only one who refused to take any classes.

Whenever business is slow at the noodle shop, Skylor uses the power of Form to pull pranks on people while disguised as someone else so she won't get in trouble.

Pixal is secretly a huge N-pop stan. She uses Cyrus's credit cards to buy every new piece of merchandise for her favorite idols pretty much as soon as they come out.

After Lloyd got kicked out of Darkley's, Wu basically started homeschooling him. If you think learning math or english from him would be easier than learning spinjitsu from him, you'd be wrong.

Garmadon loves soap operas and he takes shipping the characters from them way too seriously. He has come close to killing someone over it.

Misako had trouble figuring out what she wanted to do with her life before she decided to become an archeologist, so she tried a bunch of different jobs. She's been a teacher, a chemist, a museum curator and a psychologist. She's also banned from 8 different states. Don't ask why.

Dareth is divorced because look at me and tell me that he doesn't give off those vibes.

[drifting-pieces-blog-blog]

Marc Spector: based on a real guy?

I would like to propose Barney "Beryl" Ross (born Dov-Ber Rasofsky) (1909-1967) as a stand-in for possible Marc Spector inspiration or at least a REALLY odd coincidence. The parallels are outstanding.

Born to Eastern European Immigrant parents (From Belarus), he grew up in a tough Chicago neighborhood. 

His father was a Rabbi who looked down on fighting like Boxing and Wrestling. 

When Barney expressed interest and talent in boxing, his father told him to "Let the goyim be the fighters" and that "The trombeniks (yiddish for phony and self aggrandizer), the murderers--We are the scholars." 

Barney studied the Talmud as well and expressed interest in becoming a teacher. 

His father was murdered when someone robbed their family vegetable shop. His mother suffered a mental breakdown and his three younger siblings were sent to an orphanage when Barney was just 14. 

Barney became a thief, a gambler, and worked for Al Capone. He eventually found his money in boxing where it is speculated that Al Copone himself often promoted his shows and bought up the tickets to help him make money. 

He used the money to reunite his family. 

His career took off during the rise of Antisemitism and while Barney rejected his father's teachings and religion, he understood that he was seen as a "scrappy Jew Kid" and he needed to become a representative for his people. 

His walk into the ring song was "My Yiddishe Momma" and he often wore blue and white with the Magen David on his clothes. 

In the ring himself, he became a world champion in three weight divisions. He was never knocked out. 

His last match before he retired he went 15 rounds where he took a severe beating. His couch begged him to call it, but he refused to go down. He was determined to leave the ring on his own feet". He had 72 wins in his career, 22 of which were by K.O. 

When WWII broke out, he joined the Marines. Because of his stardome, they tried to keep him as just a pretty poster face recruit, but he insisted on fighting. 

He was almost court-martialed when his commanding officer called him a Jewish Slur and he punched him out. He was spared because the judge was also jewish. 

Barney was sent to the Pacific Theater and fought at Guadalcanal where he single handedly fought off no less than five armed Japanese soldiers after being shot. He then rescued his fellow soldier by carrying them to safety. He was awarded the Silver Star. 

Despite his complicated relationship with his religion, he was known for bringing his father's religious study books with him to training camp. 

In the war, he made friends with a catholic priest who invited him to Christmas Dinner. Barney could play the pipe organ and he provided music for the soldiers. When asked to play something Jewish, he played "My Yiddishe Momma" that left everyone in tears. 

After his wounds healed, he developed a morphine addiction that he went to rehab for and eventually recovered. He went to schools and campaigned about the dangers of drug abuse. 

He worked hard for the creation of a Jewish State and offered to lead a brigade of Jewish American Veterans. 

The Jewish Community saw him as a hero and with his back story, he fit the bill of superhero status. 

A tragic backstory, rejection of his father's life and teachings, rising up out of the rough streets, becoming a fighter, and eventually a real life war hero and fighter for Jewish Rights. 

(Check out his biography- Barney Ross: The Life of a Jewish Fighter, by Douglas Century and his autobiography No Man Stands Alone.) 

Moench most certainly did not base Marc Spector off of Barney Ross. He didn't set about making the character obviously Jewish at first. It happened naturally for various other reasons. 

But Moench also didn't give Marc his back story. 

That would be Zelenetz. 

Moon Knight Vol 1. Issue #37.  Published 1984

Writer: Alan Zelenetz

Artist: Bo Hampton

Cover Artist: Michael Kaluta 

Now, I've broken this comic down before. HERE. But let's talk about the importance of THIS story. 

You see, after the war, no one wanted to talk about the Holocaust. Most survivors didn't want to talk about what they had been through and most others liked to pretend that nothing happened. 

It wasn't until the 90s that they came up with an actual mandate that it be taught in schools! 

It wasn't until then that it suddenly became apparent that we needed to hear from the survivors and we needed to record the history before the first hand accounts were lost. 

Until this time, the only stories being told were done in comics. 

Early comics used it as a grotesque way to add in horror and action and violence. When the Comic book code of ethics stepped in (big shot guys that put down the law for swears being &#^$% and no sex and violence rating systems), then comic writers found 'creative' ways to use Nazi as the villain and ambiguously talk about their targets without mentioning their actual crimes or the people they targeted. 

THAT would change when Spiegelman's Maus was published in 1980. 

A keen observer will note the date Moon Knight Vol 1 came out. November 1980! 

Now, Marc has fought Neo Nazi before and has even faced antisemitism. He's even gone to Jerusalem. But we have never had Marc connected to the Holocaust or explored his Jewish past before Zelenetz told this story. 

“I grew up on the poor side of Chicago. My father was unconcerned with material things. ‘God loves a poor man.’ He’d say. ‘Poor in goods, rich in spirit.’” 

Sounds familiar, right? 

 And while Marc is an extreme example, we see the conflict with the Rabbi father and the son who wants to fight. 

In this same issue we see Moon Knight rescue a Rabbi and Torah from a burning synagogue that has a Swastika painted on the door. 

Moon Knight hunts down the Nazi punks and makes them hurt. 

In this issue and the next, we see Marc deal with his conflicted past regarding religion, his Rabbi father, and his choice to fight vs his father’s choice to ‘leave it to god’. 

We also find out in this issue that the reason Marc joined the Marines is because of his father’s rejection. 

"To become Moon Knight--A social conscience and moral force. Just, severe, unknowable." 

I won't replay the comic for you guys, as I've already reviewed it (though I've learned a LOT since then and I'm sure I could bring more things to light at this point... Like the fact that to bring Elias back from the dead they write the Hebrew word Emet 'truth' on his forehead. Marlene erases part of the word, leaving behind Met, which is Hebrew for 'To Die' and this sends him back to his death). 

In the ending issue, and last issue of Moon Knight’s first run, we are left with: 

"I may have misjudged my father's saintliness for cowardice and his genius and moral zeal for fanaticism. [...] And isn't moon knight in his own way a moral zealot fighting perhaps for the very same values Marc Spector once rejected?" 

Back to Alan Zelentez. 

Alan only had Moon Knight for a few issues, but he was the first and as far as my limited research has shown me, the only actually Jewish writer to get to work with Moon Knight (I hope I am pleasantly surprised as I get further into things...but I'm not holding my breath). 

Zelenetz fit a LOT of Jewish lore and fun snippets into this comic that only those that have studied Jewish folklore and the culture would easily pick out. 

He was a Junior High School and High school principal at an Orthodox Jewish school in Brooklyn. 

He worked as an editor, script writer, Judica advisor for film and helped get a few other comics started and established. 

Now, is it likely that a Jewish man in Brooklyn heard about the son of a Rabbi from Eastern Europe in Chicago who turned into an amazing boxer and later a Marine war hero? Only Zelenetz knows for sure. 

[holymolyineedtherapy]

Modern!One Piece

(I'm sorry I'm not an artist so no drawings)

Luffy: Lives with his foster mom, Dandan, and his brothers Ace and Sabo. He was put into foster care by Garp when he got a promotion to Police Captain and was unable to be home enough to take care of Luffy. Ace and Sabo are currently in college at Grand Line University (GLU) while Luffy is currently a third year at East Blue High School. Luffy doesn't really have a goal for his future aside from just not following in Garp's foot steps.

Zoro: Lives with his adoptive dad, Mihawk, and adoptive younger sister, Perona. He used to live at a dojo with his best friend, Kuina, but they moved back to Japan to continue her training. He is currently a third year at East Blue High School and is a part of the Kendo club. He met Luffy back in their first year and quickly became best friends. They tend to get into a lot of fights at school. His goal is the same, to become the world's greatest swordsman.

Nami: She lives with her mom, Bellemere and her sister Nojiko. Bellemere is an ex marine and currently works as a farmer for their family orchard. Nojiko goes to GLU while Nami is a third year at EBHS. She works part time after school to help their family with money and help her pay for her own college even though her boss, Arlong, is a total ass and their business deals with momey laundering. She met Zoro and Luffy her first year and got dragged into their group fairly early on. They helped her get out of working with Arlong and got him arrested even though some of his gang got away. Her goal is to become a meteorologist and cartologist.

Usopp: He currently lives in his van, Merry, that was gifted to him.by his best friend Kaya, whose family owns a majority of the car lots on their side of the city. He is a third year at EBHS and met the crew in his second year. He didn't go to school much in his first year so that's why they didn't see him often. Usopp works at one of Kaya's shops after school, detailing cars. He doesn't really have a goal for the future, but he does want to learn more about mechanics.

Sanji: Currently living with his dad, Zeff, and works at the Baratie when not at school. He met the crew in their second year since he was in a different class than them in their first year. He moved in with Zeff, who was a private chef for the Vinsmokes, as a kid. There's a custody battle going on with them and while the courts favor Zeff, the Vinsmokes have the money and connections as they live on the North side of the city. His goal is to open up his own restaurant or take over the Baratie so Zeff can retire.

Chopper: IS STILL A REINDEER, I will not apologize, it's one piece there doesn't need to be an explanation for how a reindeer is like a human. He doesn't meet the crew until they all enter GLU. He graduated high school early due to being super smart and is on track to be a medical student and become a family doctor. He is the youngest in the crew but they all treat him kindly and he becomes the little brother.

Robin: She works as a professor at GLU in the archeology department. She worked in the Alabasat Desert for a while before returning her findings and deciding to become a teacher. She meets the crew at a local pub where she becomes the sort of mom of the group. Her goal is to uncover the mysteries of the world and discover new things still.

Franky: He owns his own mechanic shop but teaches at GLU in his spare time when his brother, Iceburg, is unable to teach his class. He took over the shop from his dad, Tom, and helps mentor Usopp on the weekends. He even gets Usopp a part time job there as a car detailer and gets connected with Kaya to help expand both their businesses. He meets the crew at the pub as well as him and Robin already knew each other. His goal is to expand his company and hopefully fulfill Tom's dream of being a grade A mechanic.

Brook: Owner of said pub!! He started it with his buddy, Calico, and their band often performed there before he went solo and big time. After Calico passed, Brook settled down and took over the pub where he still performs live. The crew made it their new hang out spot and often get Brook to give them free things. He wishes to perform live for the rest of his life and continue to create music.

Jinbe: STILL A FISHMAN FIGHT ME ABOUT IT I LOVE HIM. He is also a marine biologist that has previously worked with Robin. He traveled back to town where he met the crew while they were in high school but had to leave due to work. He returned about two years later and got a job at the aquarium where he let's the crew in for free most times so they can have fun. His goal is to help people understand more about the sea and combine their worlds.

Vivi: A foreign exchange student from Alabasta that the crew met back in high school. She went to school with them for their third year and met Chopper briefly before she had to return home. She is the daughter of the current King of Alabasta though its more of an honorary position. Her goal is to become a true politician and make her country prosper. She still keeps in touch with the crew and they all have matching tattoos from a drunken night out on the town.

This is all really just headcanons and stuff that I like. I thought about making gangs a huge thing in this au like pirates but idk I like the idea of them just being silly and living life like normal people. I have a lot more ideas so if yall wanna hear them I may do another post in the future.

[loversfms]

[ … ] ❀ you’re not from around here , are you? i figured because you totally just missed safiyah adeyemi walking by. don’t tell me you don’t know who she is ? they kind of look like ayo edebiri and i could be wrong but i think that they might be twenty - nine years old right now. they’ve been living in palmview for the last fifteen years. and i don’t know if anyone has ever told them this before but they kind of remind me of angela moore from boy meets world. if you stick around the town long enough you might catch them in action working at sunny shores high school as an english teacher. you see this town isn’t really that big of a place, some folks like to call them the salubrious of palmview! they took a liking to the name too after a while, go figure. oh crap, they must have heard me yapping. they’re coming this way. i got to warn you though, rumor has it they can pretty stoic at times. i wouldn’t take it too seriously though, from the times i’ve spoken to them they seemed pretty practical to me. we see each other all the time since they live in that two bedroom apartment beside me over in mango bay. i better leave you to it. it was nice meeting you!

STATS:

full name : safiyah adeyemi nickname(s) : saf, safi birthplace : richmond, virginia date of birth : 07 / 01 / 1995 parentage : enofe adeyemi sibling(s) : n / a ! children : dominic adeyemi-lomax relationship status : single gender identity : cis woman ( she/her ) sexual orientation : bisexual faceclaim : ayo edebiri

BACKGROUND: ( tw: mentions of pregnancy )

growing up a in a single parent household as a military brat was not easy for a young safiyah. ending up with just her dad at two months, the phrase "it takes a village" meant a lot to the adeyemi duo.

enofe adeyemi needed a lot of help once safiyah's mother left the picture. he was able to get some time off upon receiving her, and it was spent bonding and learning everything he could about being a single dad. lots of calling his own mom and befriending anyone on base with kids.

safiyah had so many villages growing up, it was almost hard to keep up. moving every two years made it hard for her to develop and keep any friendships. even the ones on base were hard to keep and maintain, because they almost never moved at the same time, or to the same place.

one thing that helps her find peace is books. she would spend evenings reading with her dad or even over the phone with her grandma. it was something her and her dad worked with on frequently. she was learning her letters by age 3, and was able to read the classic site words by age 5.

while her real life was frequently changing, it was easy for her to get lost in the lives of jack and annie from the magic tree house series.

she became a bit of a recluse as she grew older in elementary school and even into middle school. she found herself reading during recess and lunch instead of socializing, because it was easier to just keep up with the worlds she was interested in than to try and make another set of friends that would soon become a distant memory.

it's on her thirteenth birthday that her dad promises he's going to finish his time in the marines. he wants to get them all situated in time for her to start high school. he knows that's when grades start to matter, and while she'd never particularly struggled in school, he could only imagine how hard it would be to try and transfer credits and start life all over during such important years.

he makes good on his promise by the summer of her fourteenth birthday. he's officially retired, and he thinks a beach town is the best place for the two of them to go. she's skeptical at first-- she's not quite sure how to actually settle down. however, once school starts, it doesn't take long for her to knock her own walls over. she couldn't be a recluse forever, and life was going to suck if she was.

she graduates in good standing and heads off to the university of florida where she gets her degree in english & language arts, with a minor in creative writing. in both high school and college, she had fallen in love with all the classics. shakespeare, lord of the flies, the iliad, etc. she also adored writing just about anything. fiction, poetry, short stories... she was the jack of all trades.

she comes back and works different jobs. barista, server, all while she spends some time writing. she doesn't really have a lot to do, and she's kind of enjoying just slowing down and taking things one day at a time.

she does that for a year, while she works on getting her teaching certification. it doesn't take long for her to find a place at sunny shores high school, where she starts the following fall.

safiyah has never been a believer of fate-- not until she's twenty-four with a car that needs work, and who else is the mechanic other than her high school sweetheart-- someone she hadn't seen since she was fifteen.

overwhelmed with a motion, the two fell back into a whirlwind romance. they're not as careful as they should be, and she gets pregnant after just a year reunited. she's scared out of her mind, but with his support and encouragement, she thinks she can really do this.

of course, the confidence comes in waves. with no mother to look up to, and a grandma she spent more time with over the phone than in person, she was really stressing herself out. however, once her son was born, she seemed to understand exactly what everyone was talking about. she just became a mom.

however, being a parent is hard. something her and her baby's dad find out quite soon. it's more taking turns working than an actual relationship. they're attentive to the baby, but not to each other. they find it best to part ways and co-parent as best they can.

still, three years into his life, she questions how she is and what she's doing, never sure if it's the right thing or if it's going to mess him up forever. co-parenting is going well, and their son seems happy, and that's all that matters for now.

PERSONALITY:

a little awkward at first, but opens up pretty quickly

fiercely loyal to those she loves, and will stick up for them if she needs to

currently trying to remember who she is outside of being a mom, now that her son is a little bit older and a little bit more independent.

classic quirky english teacher..... what can i say.....

©

[syweston]

❝ he had always lived in the borderland anyway, somewhere between this world and the other ❞

Nicknames: Sy Weston (professionally), Sy (informal)

Age: 38

Gender identification: Cis male, he/him

Residential area: Bighorn Hills

Occupation: Kendrick Ranches heir, retiring bull rider, & singer/songwriter

Two positive traits: Gritty & resilient

Two negative traits: Headstrong & stubborn

Length of time in Providence Peak: 38 years

Faceclaim: Luke Grimes

Voice/music claim: Bradley Cooper in A Star is Born

a worn stetson hanging from the back of a chair, soulful almond eyes, worn wranglers and dusty boots, a smile that would make you think twice about being mad, a quiet weariness, wasted talent and promise, a heart of steel turning to rust

trigger warnings: war, ptsd, abuse

Born into a vast kingdom that spans much of the midwest, Silas found himself the heir to a throne he discovered he didn’t want as he grew older. The history of Kendrick Ranches goes back into the time of the western expansion, staking claims in Colorado and Montana that eventually spanned south to Texas and as far west as Arizona. There’s even some land in Florida owned and operated under the name. As the second oldest of four children, Silas didn’t think much of the weight of the legendary name would eventually rest so heavily on his shoulders. As a kid he enjoyed ranch life; riding and training horses, roping, herding, and cutting. Most of his time was spent in the company of the ranch hands that kept the massive operation of the multi-million dollar business of cattle and horses going. From the dawn of rodeos kicking up dust in the US, the Kendrick’s had a play in it. Sometimes it was the rodeo stars shining before a crowd under the ranch name, but mostly it was the supply of cattle, bulls, and horses that truly had made them a powerhouse. 

The majority of the income for the ranches comes from the cattle, beef sales. It made the Kendrick’s powerful and put the family next to the movers and shakers through history that shaped the states and even the federal government to some degree. However, in the world of the cowboy, the fame and glory attached to the ranches were the quality of bulls supplied at rodeos along with the competitiveness of the horses in their competitions. A glamor that lured a young Silas from the time he could ride. 

With the majority of his formative years spent in the company of cowboys, rodeo veterans, and ranch hands he picked up much more than skill when it came to the cowboy way. It was also where his love of music had been born. Sitting around a fire or outside of the houses the hands lived in with guitars playing and men crooning at the moon had been his teacher, the encouragement of a passion that had seemed innate. Silas was merely six when he began playing guitar, and by the time he was a teenager he was writing his own songs and singing at festivals and rodeos wherever they traveled to. Everyone would say that he was a natural, that it was something he was born to do, but it wasn’t that easy when he was actually a prince with his destiny already laid out for him. Throughout his entire youth, his father allowed him to cowboy, to rodeo as long as he worked the ranch and learned every bit of how it operated. Silas had a special way with horses, they connected easily, and took to just about anything he did with a grace that his father hadn’t seen in anyone since his grandfather. 

The pressure cooker in the Kendrick household eventually sent Silas flying from the nest the moment he turned 18. He was quick to sign on the dotted line and became a Marine, sent off to bootcamp where he was often made an example of because he was not only stubborn but he was country strong. What he learned quickly was that the military was about breaking someone and then rebuilding, and since that wasn’t easily done with someone like him the entire contract and service was hell on many fronts. Not only was he thrown into a war where he was forced to do unspeakable things, he ended up damning himself for the fact that he was prized there as well. He was a superstar because he could hunt and shoot better than anyone else he’d enlisted with. He could take a beating. He could carry the wounded. He wasn’t fazed by anything. Or so they all thought.

When he returned back to Colorado and to the family ranch Silas was different. Battleworn and traumatized, he threw himself into rodeo and cowboyed harder than he’d ever done before. The music he wrote and sang became darker and the nights became wild and mystical the more whiskey he drank. He’d signed up to ride the baddest bulls on the circuits with no fear of how they could possibly shatter his bones or end his life, and that was when his father realized that Silas had a death wish. That was when he and his family turned against each other. A father worked to save his son and continued to force a way of life on him that Silas didn’t want. There were knock down, drag out fights and warfare within a family rarely seen outside the lines of an opera. 

Every part of what Silas does for the ranch, for his family, his done with reluctance and bitterness. If it weren’t for them finding the exact thing to hold over his head then he would’ve been long gone, off rotting away somewhere. At least he would be free and not a prisoner to a life he never wanted for himself. The fealty makes him sick. The duty. The honor. The brand. If it wasn’t for what had been burned into his skin then he could’ve likely made it out. If only he hadn’t been the cowboy they’d always dreamed of.

[journeydb]

April 4 2024 Barcelona

Our beautiful sister, Kathi, celebrated her 72nd birthday today. She lives in Greenwood, Maine, close by our sister Fran and her daughter, Autumn and grandson, Maddox. Kathi is the one person in the world with whom I share memories from our childhood, from the time we both could remember. She has always been my best friend and I am eternally grateful for her in my life.

Kathi is only two years younger than me and two years older than our younger sister, Laurie. Our older brother, Frank, was so happy the year that our parents hosted an African American boy from Boston to spend the summer with us at our home in Newport, Vermont. Frank had always been the only boy in the family and having another "brother", which is who Howie became for us that summer, was a great experience for him.

Kathi, Laurie, and I were always very close until Laurie was twelve years old and we lost her to a hit and run driver. A young man ran into her with his car as she was crossing the street to return to the truck where our dad was waiting for her. Her death affected our family for the rest of our lives and our dad never got over seeing his daughter killed in front of his eyes. The driver of the car had just had a fight with his girlfriend and was angry and drove through the red light at the top of the hill. He might never have seen Laurie until it was too late because she saw the red light and thought it was safe to cross. She stepped off the curb and started across the street and it was the last step she ever took.

After having quite a few boyfriends in high school and graduating in the top 5% of her class, Kathi went to college at the University of New Hampshire and met her husband, John, who had already graduated and was in the Merchant Marines.

After Kathi and John got married he shipped out on oil and natural gas tankers for two and three months at a time and she raised their two daughters, Heather and Kristin, almost as a single mother until he would come back for a few months, and then be gone again. She was also working during that time as a second and third grade teacher at a local elementary school in the small town in Maine where they lived. She has always been very close to her girls and they are EXTREMELY lucky to have such a wonderful, loving mother.

When John retired they moved to Greenwood, Maine, and built a beautiful house across the street from Twitchell Pond, a small lake, which the Mainers call a pond. They lived happily there for many years while Kathi worked as a third grade teacher at an elementary school in a smaller nearby town and also as a ski instructor at Sunday River, the ski resort in Bethel, which is right next to Greenwood. We lost John nearly fourteen years ago when he succumbed to pancreatic cancer and died peacefully at their home in Greenwood. John was a big bear of a man who lost so much weight during his illness that he, sadly, looked like a shadow of his former self when he died.

John was our son, Hobie's, favorite uncle and it was a big blow to him, and to Bruce, who was close to John, especially as there were few other men in our family for Bruce to spend time with when we visited them on the east coast every summer.

After John died, Ron, who was one of John's best friends, was very helpful and supportive of Kathi during her time of grief. Ron had a few years before lost his wife, Cookie, who was one of Kathi's best friends, also to cancer, so they had that in common. After a few years Ron became more than a friend and they started dating, and, because EVERYONE in our family loves Ron so much, it was MUCH to our delight.

[wutbju]

James Russell Amspacher, BJU Class of 1960.

Reverend James Russell Amspacher, 90, of Fergus Falls, died Monday, May 27, 2024, at his residence, under the care of Knute Nelson hospice.

James was born October 10, 1933, in Shrewsbury Township, Southeastern Pennsylvania. He received elementary education at many one-room schoolhouses and graduated from Red Lion High School's Industrial Class in 1951. He received further training in the printing industry at York Post Printers; and took additional training, including graduating at Merganthalter Intertype School in New York operation and maintenance. He enjoyed working as a printer in print shops.

He joined the United States Marine Corp (1953-1956) and trained at Paris Island, Great Lakes Naval Training Center and became a pay clerk, serving in Norfolk and Portsmouth, VA before being discharged as a Sergeant.

He graduated from Bob Jones University, Greenville, SC in 1960 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Pre-ministerial studies; continued his educational studies at Faith Theological Seminary in Elkin's Park Philadelphia, PA. While in Philadelphia, he worked with the children at Bethanna Home. He completed seminary training at the Lutheran Brethren Seminary in Fergus Falls, MN in 1963 where he met his future wife and served in the Print shop for the Lutheran Brethren Synod.

On August 31, 1963 he married Virginia Jean Wallin in Minooka, IL and raised four girls, Helen, Miriam, Teresa and Naomi. Through the years, he served the following Lutheran Brethren locations:

Brooklyn, NY;

a 3 point parish in Grand Rapids, Deer River and Big Fork MN;

a 2 point parish in Duluth, MN and Superior, WI;

Great Falls, MT;

a 2 point parish in Maddock and Manfred, ND;

a 2 point parish in Hendricks, MN and Toronto, SD;

North Tonawanda, NY;

Abercrombie, ND;

Aurdal Independent Church in rural Fergus Falls, MN

Chaplin of Sikora Post #1322 and Broen Memorial Home.

He did not ""retire"" from the ministry until he was 85 years of age. He ministered to the public by sharing his faith and love of Jesus through service work with several high school and college wrestling teams and also with Hills/Ames Department Stores. He was a true disciple of Jesus, practicing humility, showing forgiveness and offering God's grace, while sharing Jesus' love. He studied the Bible daily praying unceasingly seeking wisdom and guidance to live and disciple in God's will. He frequently assisted people needing safe passage. He invited people in from the street who were hungry to eat at his family table. Wherever he lived, he mowed lawns for anyone who needed assistance and frequently shared his garden's harvest.""

He was a member and secretary of Kiwanis in each city and the President of Great Falls Miracle Mile Club.

He was known to those who loved him most as ""Jimmy""; ""Dad"", ""Grandpa"" ""Bampa"" and quite frequently as Pastor Jim. He was an artist using many mediums including cakes, candles, ceramics, and oil painted saw blades. He was a wonderful counselor, father and teacher of how to live life most abundantly. He was most concerned that he taught others to seek the Lord and Savior's wisdom and direction rather than relying upon our own or other's wisdom. Many of his friends and parishioners were led to establish or deepen their personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

He was preceded in death by his parents (Edward and Mary); 10 brothers and sisters, Edward Jr., Harry, Mary, Major George, Charles, Anna, Edith, Phillip, Louise, and Frederick; nieces and nephews Dorothy, Dee-Dee Nathan and Sonny.

He is survived by his wife, Virginia; daughters, Helen (Jeff) Hanson, Miriam (Steve) White, Teresa (Terrance O'Brien) Amspacher and Naomi (Brian) Reetz; grandchildren, Jordan (Nicole) Amspacher, Allyson (Trent) Gagner, Jacob (Alaina) White, Noah and Oliver Reetz; great-grandchildren, Abigail, Ryker, and Raina; nieces and nephews, Charles, Steve, Daniel, Catherine, Richard, Nancy, Peter, Suzie, Pamela, George, Wayne, Clarence, Ronald, Glen, Darlene, Tina, Bryan, Timothy, Robin, Linnet and Sondra.

Jim's family would like to extend a sincere thank you to Knute-Nelson Hospice, especially to Chaplain Bai, Lonnie, Casey and Sheena for the loving care they offered to Jim.

A Celebration of Life is planned for 11 a.m., Saturday, July 20, 2024 at Living Faith Church, Fergus Falls, MN, with a luncheon to follow the celebration. Interment will take place at the Fargo National Cemetery in Harwood, ND on July 22, 2024.

[lboogie1906]

Kenneth Howard Norton Sr. (August 9, 1943 – September 18, 2013) was a professional boxer who competed (1967-81) and held the WBC world heavyweight championship in 1978. He is known for his fights with Muhammad Ali, in which he won the first by a split decision, lost the second by a split decision, and lost the final by a controversial unanimous decision. He fought a slugfest with Larry Holmes in 1978, narrowly losing a split decision.

He retired from boxing in 1981 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992.

He was an outstanding athlete at Jacksonville High School in Jacksonville, Illinois. He was selected to the all-state football team on defense as a senior in 1960. His track coach entered him in eight events, and he placed first in seven. As a result, the “Ken Norton Rule”, which limits the participation of an athlete to a maximum of four track and field events, was instituted in Illinois high school sports. After graduating from high school, he went to Northeast Missouri State University on a football scholarship and studied elementary education. In an interview with ESPN Fitness Magazine in 1985, he said that he would have become a teacher or a policeman if he had not taken up boxing.

He enlisted in the Marines Corps (1963-67). He was a manual morse intercept (MOS 2621), graduating from NCTC Corry Station. During his time with the Corps, he took up boxing, compiling a 24–2 record en route to three all-Marine heavyweight titles. In time, he became the best boxer to ever fight for the Corps and was awarded the North Carolina AAU Golden Gloves, International AAU, and Pan American titles. Following the National AAU finals in 1967, he turned professional

His son, Ken Norton Jr., played football at UCLA and had a long successful career in the NFL. His son Keith Norton was once the weekend sports anchor for KPRC in Houston. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[shanksbaby]

Dracule Mihawk x Reader - Master

spoiler manga!

you had recently joined the crew of Buggy, who became emperor. You were an inexperienced pirate, and even if your bounty was ridiculous, the clown still made you join his crew. You were so happy to be part of a yonko's crew! But the truth is, your main reason wasn't that.

you entered because you knew that Mihawk had also entered Buggy's crew as his subordinate. It's been since you first picked up a sword that people tell you about the strongest swordsman in the world (that's why you were surprised when you read the Cross Guilde news, but this meant that the clown must be even stronger than him !)

you weren't going to challenge him. You nderstand your limits, just wanted to become his student . You'd heard rumors that Mihawk had coached one of the Straw Hat members, so you thought why couldn't he help me in the same way?

unhinged, yes. But you had so much to learn from him, you want to become the strongest swordsman, at this level you can barely challenge a normal marine soldier. And your best friend had already achieved an important position in Blackbeard's fleet.

the problem is, since you'd boarded the ship you haven't had a moment to talk to him. Or rather, you didn't have the courage, you just followed him from afar; pondering how handsome he was and how he looked like a vampire prince.

you've just retired to your cabin, and you're just thinking about taking a nice hot bath when you suddenly feel a blade pointing to your neck. At first you think it's an enemy but then looking closely at the sword you notice that it's Mihawk's.

before you could express your cofusion, the swordsman whispers in your ear

" What do you want from me? I noticed you've been following me for a while"

shit, and you who thought you were also discreet in following him (idiot). You were undecided whether to tell him the truth or lie, on the other hand after this performance of yours you don't think he will ever agree to be your teacher.

but the blade that was pressing more and more to your throat quickly changed your mind. This man seriously would have killed you if he knew you were lying to him

so you told him the reason for your stalking. Mihawk surprisingly accepted; however in order for him to train you you had to at least show him what you could do with a sword. Well, you had to duel him to check your level.

he pulled out a small blade (humiliating, yes), and still defeated you, within ten minutes. But he still decided to take you under his wing, as he saw potential.

spending so many days training with him, not only do you feel you've gotten stronger but you've also developed a crush on that vampy-looking man. Of course, you can't tell him because he'll laugh in your face and goodbye training with him.

and you can't risk that

[writer-in-theory]

bleachers & diner booths — harringrove.

whumptober no. 4 — dead on your feet

summary: steve notices the signs in billy, and wonders how no one’s ever noticed before. prompt: hidden injury pairing: steve harrington/billy hargrove category: hurt/comfort content warnings: language, discussions of injuries, mentions of abuse word count: 2.9k

Before the disappearance of Will Byers, nothing of note ever happened in Hawkins. Pool floors never opened up to swallow a classmate whole, Steve Harrington never had his heart broken by a girl everyone was surprised he’d asked out anyway, and guys from California with an attitude to fill the whole state never moved in. 

But Steve had long since forgotten what the status quo felt like anymore—could barely comprehend waking up for the day not immediately on edge much less worrying about such problems like no longer being the coolest guy in school. It had been a harsh reality the day after the Halloween party, coming to school to see everyone laughing at him rather than at whatever lame jokes he made at the expense of others. Tina had overheard Nancy berating him, apparently, and within hours the entire school knew of King Steve’s fall at the hands of, well, a nerd. It stung, at first, to think that everything he’d spent seventeen years building had crumbled within one night only to be replaced by a guy no one knew before this year, but then he remembered the look on the Holland couple’s faces when they talked about how they never knew what happened to Barb, and how Steve still could hardly look at his backyard pool without wanting to curl into himself and wither away. He remembered Dustin Henderson’s face when Steve showed up at the house to do his hair, and he remembered the feeling of knowing he would die down in those tunnels, reduced down to nothing but a ghost like Barbara Holland.

And well, after nearly dying not once but twice at the hands of beings not of this world, losing a title in a high school he was nearly finished at anyway didn’t seem like quite a big deal anymore.

So he stayed out of Billy Hargrove’s way, stopped trying to fight against him at every turn. He stopped being entertaining to the guy, hoping that would allow himself to coast his way through the last semester of his high school career. 

Steve wasn’t sure if it was because of the cold shoulder or because of the needle Billy’d gotten to the neck months before, but the Californian stopped bugging him. It was like the guy forgot Steve even existed, which should have been relieving but only made Steve watch him closer, like he was waiting for a stray fist to clock him when he was least expecting it. 

Instead of catching a fist, Steve began to actually notice Billy beyond their past fight for a title. Because Steve may not be great at school, but he knew how to read people. He wouldn’t have made it as Robert Harrington’s son for so long if he couldn’t catch onto microexpressions and miniscule changes in body language. He couldn’t have survived as the top dog of Hawkins High if he couldn’t tell someone was spreading rumors about him by just a change in their tone when they spoke to him next. And suddenly having once been King Steve became useful, because not only did he notice Billy but he noticed the things that Billy clearly wanted kept hidden away.

Steve noticed that Billy never started fights. The guy always bore the marks of one—bruises on cheekbones and the occasional split lip, but his fists had stayed clean since that night in November. He noticed that Billy would sleep in class and the teachers never called him out in the way they always jumped on Steve for it, how in fact most teachers seemed to let Billy do whatever he wanted. Even Mr. Carter would, and the retired Marine had never taken shit from any student before, no matter how intimidating. Steve even noticed that Billy never quite looked other guys in the eyes, always glancing down at their noses as though he were scared to. He noticed that Billy got one of those gold honor roll slips that Nancy would keep pressed in a clean manila folder, and the one day Steve tried to avoid the crowded cafeteria he caught Billy sitting outside by the bleachers fucking reading. And not just reading, but he held what looked to be a well-loved book with the word Tolkein written along the spine, a book Steve had seen sitting on Dustin’s desk too. As he watched closer, he noticed the days that were different, too, the days that Billy would sit down gingerly with stiff shoulders, barely fucking breathing at all like even the act of shifting his lungs was painful. He wondered how no one else had noticed it before, how no one else had accumulated the puzzle pieces that Steve held between his fingers.

With every new piece of information Steve gathered, he realized the image he’d been made to believe was Billy Hargrove was nothing more than a fake, a cover meant to hide away the things Billy didn’t want people like Steve to see. 

Steve didn’t know what to do with any of it. He thought about talking to Billy, thought about apologizing for his hand in that night after Joyce mentioned how suspicious it might have seemed that Max was alone with so many guys at night, he even thought about picking a fight just to get his attention. But none of it felt right, and anytime he got close enough to speak those blue eyes would turn on him and Steve’s throat would close up like none of the words he had left were acceptable. 

So he didn’t say anything. He let Billy read alone on the bleachers despite the icy sheen to the metal seats, and he let Billy get away with getting away with everything, and he even let the bruises and limps of mysterious origin continue to accumulate—because nothing of note ever happened in Hawkins, not if it wasn’t Upside Down related. 

Sure, Steve had heard of parents who were violent with their children. He’d heard of it in the same way his dad had once made him cry for nearly getting held back one year, in the way that people around here would say that’s just how things are, sometimes. But he’d never thought he’d see something like this.

This, being Billy Hargrove slumped over those frigid bleachers not holding a book but rather sitting with his arms curled tight around his middle. 

Steve wasn’t sure why he’d shown up at the school so late at night. Maybe it was because being alone in such a large house was too lonely at night, or maybe it was because his usual nightly patrol routes along the edge of the woods were starting to become monotonous. Maybe it was because Steve knew how fucked up his head was after everything he’d seen, and if maybe he could spend one night without carrying around a bat of nails maybe there was hope he could recover. Maybe it was because he’d hoped to sit on those bleachers with a book he borrowed but never intended to read if only to get closer to the guy he longed to understand.

But then there he was, already taking up that same spot with none of the usual confidence. Billy’s shoulders were turned inward, curled around the hands he pressed tightly into his sides. That wasn’t what clued Steve into the fact that something was wrong, though. No, it was rather the fact that Steve was close to him on the bleachers, standing in the narrow aisleway after not being particularly quiet on the metal steps, and Billy hadn’t looked up even once. The guy was usually high-strung, keeping his eyes focused intently on Steve when he entered the same room like he didn’t fully trust Steve not to lash out at him at any second.

“Stare any longer and I’ll start chargin’ by the minute, Harrington,” Billy spoke up, voice rough from either yelling or maybe from some other injury Steve couldn’t see under the moonlight. He remembered the time Tommy had accidentally launched a baseball into his throat when they were practicing, leaving him barely able to speak for a straight week. Billy sounded a little like that now, he thinks.

“You look like shit, Hargrove,” Steve returned before thinking about it because, well, he did. The full moon was the only reason Steve hadn’t tripped on his walk up here, and now it illuminated every feature of Billy’s that got drowned out by California tan in the sunlight. Dark circles under his eyes stuck out harshly in this light, along with the smattering of little white lines indented into skin. It seemed obvious in this light, everything that Steve was sure never could have happened in a place like Hawkins. 

He thought to Mr. Hargrove then, who didn’t seem to fit the image that Steve knew of those kinds of men. They always talked about rude guys, men who drank and cursed and couldn’t help but to take out their anger at the world on their children. Never once had anyone warned him of polite men who charmed even Steve’s mom, who helped carry groceries for the older ladies and who always thanked the police officers when he saw them around town. The entirety of Hawkins had been immediately charmed by Neil Hargrove, which had made it all the more tragic when they then had to learn of Billy—the rude, rebellious, angry son who lashed out at a good parent for no reason.

It made Steve’s fists curl tightly now, seeing just how easily they’d been tricked. Because even now Billy’s knuckles were clean despite the clear pain in his abdomen and the fresh split in his temple Steve knew would become another one of those faint little lines. 

“Real charmer, you are,” Billy huffed, the exhalation clearly aggravating something by the sharp hiss he let out. “Would you at least close your mouth then? Don’t need you drooling over me too.”

“You’re such an ass.” This was supposed to go better. There were so many words Steve had thought of before, ways to befriend Billy Hargrove without pressing on that deep-set anger in him yet still Steve found himself getting frustrated. 

Maybe it was easier to be frustrated by the attitude than to think about the dark bruises that stuck out against Billy’s moonlit face.

And God did Steve never understand Billy’s temperament more than he did in that startling realization.

“You’re hurt,” Steve pointed out, finally moving from where he was standing in the aisle. He moved, slowly at first as though Billy might be frightened off before remembering that the change in behavior might make the situation worse. He moved to the bleacher in front of Billy, swinging around so his feet were in between Billy’s, hands lifted awkwardly in the air until finally settling them to his own lap.

“You should see the other guy,” Billy told him, trying for a trademark Cheshire grin but the split in his lower lip inhibited the motion considerably.

“I know, Billy,” Steve tried, sucking in his breath and trying to force out all of the confidence he’d saved up over the weeks for this moment. “I know what’s happening to you.”

Steve watched as Billy’s expression turned into a snarl, blue eyes widening only a fraction before they squinted in a scowl. “You don’t know shit, Harrington.”

“I know that wasn’t a fight, not a two-sided one anyway.” Steve gestured with one hand weakly at the spot Billy was still clutching tightly. “I know you want everyone to think it was a fight, maybe to help your reputation or whatever. Or maybe you just think no one would believe you.”

“Watch it, pretty boy, or your pretty little face’ll hurt for it.”

“Go ahead man, if you think it would help,” Steve shrugged, “I’ve had so many concussions in the past year I think I could take one more.”

“You’re a sick fuck, Harrington, asking to get the shit beat outta you,” Billy tried again, though some of that anger was already beginning to leak out and away. 

“Look with those busted-up ribs of yours, I don’t think any beating you try to give me would be all that great.”

“My ribs are fine.”

“Your fingers grip your shirt tighter when you breathe in. I’ve had broken ribs before, man, it felt like my lungs were full of glass for weeks,” Steve explained, “I have some bandages in my trunk, you really should wrap them up.”

“Why the fuck do you have bandages in your trunk?”

For when the Upside Down inevitably opens up again. For when another friend gets hurt on his watch and for when he gets stuck trying to make sure five kids didn’t get killed. For when he feels a little useless on the team, unable to contribute to theories and plans but definitely able to fight and protect.

“For emergencies.”

“I don’t need your pity just ‘cause you think you know somethin’.”

“Sure,” Steve answered simply, fighting the urge to look away from the guy who confused him so much. He didn’t want to see the guy who beat him so badly Joyce took him to the hospital to get checked over on the verge of tears, he didn’t want to see the guy who threatened Lucas trying to hide injuries that someone who was supposed to love him bestowed upon him. He didn’t want to see it, but he also knew there was no working out whatever fucking problem they had with each other if he refused to see it, so Steve looked. He stared at the scars and he stared at the shine in Billy’s eyes and he forced himself to notice, because he was sure no one else had even tried to notice before. 

“Yeah, sure, man. No pity here,” Steve reiterated, hoping keeping as calm as possible was the right move. He wanted to do right by this guy, by this person that clearly no one else had even bothered to consider as anything more than just a lost cause before now. “You wanna grab a bite? There’s a diner off of Oak that’s open 24 hours.”

“You—what?” Steve couldn’t help but smile a little at finally catching Billy Hargrove off-guard. He watched as shock and confusion took over Billy’s expression, as he actually tilted his head to the side a little to consider Steve. “You want...to get food?”

“Why not? I mean, we could sit here freezing our asses off on these bleachers while you dodge all the questions you’re not ready for, or we could go sit in a warm diner with some decent burgers instead.”

Billy just stared at him. It was almost uncomfortable, going from dodged glances to such a piercing stare like he was trying to see down to the worst of Steve’s intentions. He probably was, because why else would Steve invite him out if it wasn’t some kind of trick?

“No games, man. It’s just a burger and maybe a truce.”

“A truce. You waving the white flag already?”

“I don’t remember ever starting the fight in the first place,” Steve countered, though hoped the smile let Billy know he wasn’t actually angry. “But hey, we’re a couple months from graduating and I’m over the bullshit. I think you could use a better friend than Hagan and I need to have some friends my age before I lose my shit.”

Billy nodded along slowly, considering. His teeth worked at the split in his lip so intensely that Steve feared it would break open and bleed again, and didn’t say anything for so long Steve nearly stood and left before Billy actually considered throwing a punch. The chill had frozen over the skin on his face so badly that he knew just how terribly a punch from Hargrove would sting right now. 

But a punch never came, and neither did that anger that Steve was used to receiving. Instead, Billy shrugged, wincing against the jolt in his ribs, and stood. “Sure, pretty boy, we can grab some burgers but you’re buying.”

“You gonna let me wrap those ribs?” Steve tried as they walked down the bleachers together, laughing at the indignant look that spread over Billy’s face.

“Don’t push it, Harrington.”

Billy still allowed him to press the bandages into his hands, though, and even laughed when Steve admitted that he had no idea how to help him anyway. And though Steve didn’t get the chance to confront Billy about everything he’d noticed, he still thought tonight was a win. Because somehow, Steve Harrington and Billy Hargrove ended up pressed into a diner booth together, laughing over french fries and stories of past trouble. Other people watched with terror and unease, knowing the two boys had fought more times than any other set of teenagers in town, but all Steve could do was smile brightly at the guy across from him, the guy he was sure he hadn’t actually gotten to meet until that night.

And Steve saw hope, that maybe, someday, he and Billy Hargrove could understand each other in a way no one else in Hawkins could even begin to.

[cryptid-jack]

Your Elijah Shepard looks really good! Can you talk a bit about him? Is he a biotic? Does he use armor over his robotic arm during missions for extra protection? How did he lose one arm (was it a choice to replace his organic arm or was he injured)?

Ahhh, thank you so much for asking @lawfulgeek ! Here’s a little more about him >:3c

Elijah ‘Lije’ Shepard was born and raised on Mindoir with his twin brother, Victor, and the majority of their extended family. He had a pretty happy childhood, if a bit dull, which lead to him and his brother getting into quite a lot of trouble growing up (though not so much as they SHOULD have) until they were both sent away to BaAT to train their biotic abilities. BaAT was hard on every kid that had to attend, but they had it a little easier than the rest since the boys at least had each other. They didn’t connect much with the other kids and mostly kept to themselves right up til the day one of the older students killed their teacher, Vyrnnus.

[more under the cut]

With the program shutting down shortly thereafter, Elijah and Victor were sent back home to Mindoir and remained there until the colony was attacked. Elijah was the sole survivor, losing everyone, even his twin, in the massacre that followed. After he was rescued by a passing alliance ship, Elijah was sent back to earth and his sole surviving relative, his great-grandmother who insisted he call her Nonna.

Despite having never actually met her before, his nonna took him in no questions asked and took care of him as best she could considering he was a deeply traumatized 16 year old biotic and she was a 112 year old woman living off her pension in Milan, Italy. She taught Elijah to cook so he’d always be able to feed himself, even after she was gone, and also passed on her evening espresso habit. She quickly became Elijah’s entire world and even in the years to come when his entire life got turned upside down, he loved her dearly and she won’t hear a word spoken against him, no matter what war crimes people say he commits.

When he turned 18 he joined the marines, not wanting to be a burden on his nonna and also hoping the Alliance would give him the opportunity to strike back at the people that had killed his family back on Mindoir.

He gets his first real chance on Elysium during the Skyllian Blitz where he earned himself the title ‘War Hero’ for rescuing the colonists and holding the invading forces at bay until reinforcements arrive. He lost his left arm in the process but he didn’t let that keep him from service despite being granted the option to retire when he was awarded the Star of Terra. Instead he gots himself outfitted with a top of the line prosthetic and threw himself right back into the fight where he landed under the command of Major Kyle during the raid on Torfan two years later. After not only surviving the batarian’s attack on Mindoir, but Elysium as well, Elijah’s desire for vengeance and the closure he believed it would bring him drove him to erase the pirates from the face of the moon despite the heavy costs to his own squadron.

In the end, the blood letting did little to fill the gaping hole at the heart of him and earned him the moniker ‘Butcher of Torfan’. The optics of their once vaunted hero becoming a war criminal were bad enough that the Alliance pushed him out of the limelight of standard service and into the Corsairs. After all, however morally questionable Elijah’s actions were on Torfan, he had a particular talent for violence the brass were reluctant to waste it saddling him with a dishonorable discharge. Doing the Alliance’s dirty work suited Elijah just fine and gave him plenty of opportunities to hunt pirates as humanity pushed deeper into the Terminus systems to settle new worlds with the Corsairs as their vanguard.

Eventually, however, he was called back to standard service aboard the Alliance’s fancy new frigate, the Normandy, to serve as Admiral Anderson’s XO. He’s not entirely sure why they chose HIM of all people for the job, but the fact that not just the Butcher of Torfan, but one of the Council’s own Spectres are both on board for the Normandy’s first ever mission is one helluva red flag…

Needless to say, shit rapidly goes off the rails but despite how ruthless he is, something about serving on the Normandy brings back some of the gentleness Elijah thought he’d left buried on Mindoir as a boy. Well, not towards everyone, of course, but at least for the crew of weirdos and aliens he’s found himself in command of as they work together to stop Saren and then the reapers. Anyone that gets in his way or threatens his people, of course, will find Commander Elijah Shepard anything BUT gentle.

Edit: whoops forgot to answer one thing! No, he doesn’t usually wear armor over his arm (though he can) as it’s not only extremely durable, but also capable of generating its own independent mass effect shield, same as a standard hard suit. Also it has not only his Omni-tool built in, but a rather terrifying telescoping blade.

[mel0ns]

General post-pt. 5 La Squadra headcanons

old man La Squadra anyone? is this turning into an everybody lives au? You bet your bottom it is

tw: mentions of ptsd and physical injuries ;; also spoilers

- after all those years Risotto is the sole assassin left working for New Passione

- he wagered for enough money for his men to completely retire but he has the hardest time blending into normal society so he continues to do high-valued target assassinations for Don Giovanna (for much better pay)

- After all the injuries he sustained, Prosciutto moved to the countryside

- he likes the peacefulness of it but still visits everyone in the city, however, he has to drive there, he has ptsd and can no longer ride on trains 

- Formaggio in some way still works for New Passione, though now he is solely an intel gatherer and does it more as a favor than a steady job

- he became somewhat of a homebody

- the only one who reconnected with his biological family after everything was over

- speaking of intel gatherers, Illuso also does occasional intel gathering for New Passione, again more as a favor than a steady gig 

- he travels a lot, around Italy and Europe in general, gets restless very easily

- has nightmares about Purple Haze

- the younger crowd of La Squadra stuck together: Melone, Ghiaccio and Pesci all went back to university

- Pesci moved to the countryside with Prosciutto and travels to the city for school

- he decided to study marine biology and hopes to get at least a masters degree

- Ghiaccio couldn’t take up sports again due to his spinal injuries (from his fight with Mista and Giorno) but he’s taken a liking to other hobbies like coding and painting

- he’s studying sports medicine with a minor in sports management :)

- after the snake venom went into his system, it damaged some of his motor skills so Melone now often stutters when he speaks

- he only has partial function of his legs and uses crutches/a wheelchair 

- he went back to university to actually get a degree in human genetics

- Sorbet and Gelato got married :,3c

- they decided to adopt a child and buy a nice house by the shore

- Sorbet is the pta dad, he goes to every school event, game, parent/teacher night, he supports his kid in all their endeavors 

- Gelato got to take up more personal hobbies, like cooking, yoga, watching all the shitty reality tv he wants (he’s literally become the suburban stay at home parent™️)

- they host a family dinner at least once a week and invite the whole squad over (most of the time everyone comes, unless one of them is traveling *coughs* Illuso *coughs*)

[taito-division]

Relationship: Family - Fleuret Oshiro

Aimée Oshiro (51 years old) - Fleuret's mother, who hails from Paris, France. She works as a Languages teacher and an interpreter, teaching students and adults how to speak French. She met her husband, Fleuret's father, while she was working in Japan. After several months of dating, they became engaged and eventually married, bearing three children. She is currently overseas in America, working as an interpreter.

Miwa Oshiro (50 years old) - Fleuret's father, who hails from Japan. In his youth, he served in the Marines for a number of years before an injury forced him to retire. A proud, stern man, he expects discipline and dedication from all of his children. Despite his habit of being a hardass, he truly loves his family.

Noémie Oshiro (20 years old) - Fleuret's younger sister by four years. Unlike her older sister or younger brother, she is fairly shy, keeping to herself most of the time. Despite that, she gets very spirited when talking about something she likes. She is currently attending university on a scholarship due to her skill at tennis.

Akio Oshiro (17 years old) - Fleuret's younger brother. He is currently in his third year of high school. Like his older sister, he takes his heritage very seriously, and as a result, is studying hard to attend university to become a historian.

Rio Mason Busujima (28 years old) - Fleuret's boyfriend, former Marine, and member of Yokohama's MAD TRIGGER CREW. She was introduced to Fleuret by her father, who had served in the Marines alongside Rio. The two care for each other very much, though Fleuret really wishes he'd leave Yokohama and MTC to join her in Taitō. They are both fairly shy in public, saving their tender moments for when they are in private.

[welcometomy20s]

February 7, 2021

This is Part two of the introduction of Nijisanji. I have written for an audience who has just gotten to know vtubers through hololive and wants to explore more. This part cover all of Nijisanji members who has debuted in the year 2019.

2019 Part 1 (Jan-Apr)

Warabeda Meiji - Another eleven year old, but likes FF14 and K-On! So frequently described as an 11 year old third season. But she is genuinely cute! And a really good singer, so much so that her K-On cover gets banned for being too close!

Gundou Mirei - Actually a teacher, but definitely a ditzy and lazy one, that is incredibly sexual to an uncomfortable degree, you know, a fan favorite, including of mine. Watch her 3D streams and you will be amazed. Has a ship with Shoichi as mentioned before, even though she’s a self-professed bisexual. It’s odd but, you know, it works!

Yuzuki Roa - Kind of innocent devil like Towa, but more like a kid than an older sister. Really like Belmond. Was friends with Chitose, a retired member, and got a costume based on her a bit, and maybe is retiring herself, considering she hasn't uploaded for quite a few months now. Well, whatever. She’s cute and innocent.  

Onomachi Haruka - Another of the rare, truly seiso people in the team, but can go wild if the vibe goes that way. Lost and found a llama in minecraft once.

Seto Miyako - Kind of a quiet girl who might be psychopathic... you know the type. Her true tendencies pop up during gaming. Also tweets a lot... make sense.

Kataribe Tsumugu - Basically retired, but her concept was so shocking that it took Naruse Naru’s return of old design to push her into the bottom of the list.

Otogibara Era - She’s a Cinderella if she has gone completely out the window. People routinely separate the original Cinderella side as Era, and her true side as Gibara.

God, how do I describe her. Gibara is just great. Her adult comments are something to behold, let’s say she gels with Tamaki very well. She returns to monke often, and does other types of screams too... seriously look at her gacha stream and witness Gibara in her full glory. Also incredibly lazy and definitely cannot live by herself.

But as you have guessed it, she is an incredible singer. (It might be the case that incredible singing is associated with madness) Had knockout hit with her 3D stream, trending number one on twitter and 30,000 US dollars in superchats!

Lize Helesta - Queen of Shizuoka, I mean Heleste kingdom. Usually behaves like an empress, but as with most royalty has a real competitive spirit, so she knows how to badmouth when she needs to. So, she’s a really stingy person as well... not really fitting for a royalty, but you do know some people that act like that.

She’s a strange person. Look at asphalt or a handstand in order to sleep. Friends with Ange, who was a childhood friend, even with an age difference. Also does radio stuff with Lulu as well. Reveres Mito, wonder why. Again, incredible 3D debut.

Ange Katrina - Nice low-middle voice with a smooth upper body, and surprisingly small but that got fixed as 3D started. Think she’s cute, but blushes when people agree. Just a cool gal who I enjoy very much... her streams, I mean.

Inui Toko - She’s a cerberus, and now works at a cafe. A little bit out there, but definitely a tsukkomi. Usually does little gaming outside Minecraft, so mostly talks and sings. A unique laugh and loves Ensemble Stars. Hangs out with red and blue people, like Lize, Ange, Roa, Ayame, Suisei and so on. Actually is boing boing, Ange felt betrayed.

And as mentioned above, a great singer, and can play many instruments as well!

Saegusa Akina - High tension singer, who is quite sickly and is terrible with girls. But he got better as time went on and the ship with his gen mate Manami started to sail. Actually he hangs around with many girls... maybe it’s just Manami?

Arizona Manami - Ito Life’s daughter... so you know what she looks like. Calls herself the queen of sensitivity, and yes she does very suggestive streams... but she’s pretty innocent and childish... so she’s kind of like Melody in a way. Has a very fond-looking relationship with Akina as mentioned above.

Suzuhara Lulu - Just your typical art student. She’s a rich girl, so she knows very little about the outside world. Definitely has stamina of a thousand horses, famously played 11 hours of Dark Souls, then straight onto 10 hours of Ring Fit, and never got phased. Seriously, she never gets phased. She rode the freaking snake without a problem! Apparently really beautiful in real life, really has large expressions.

There’s a rumor going around that she’s actually some kind of an eldritch god... and I don’t know where that comes from at all. Look at her, she’s such a sweet gal, look at her dancing and singing... she’s a true idol, that’s what she is... (don’t hurt me.)

Yukishiro Mahiro - First-year high-schooler. Good variety of content. Her personality is of a rude kouhai. One viewer described her as a bad-tempered chihuahua. Really likes Kanae, which is okay, I guess. There’s not much more than that.

2019 Part 2 (May-Aug)

Ex Albio - A hero from a different world. Originally portrayed as a rude snarky figure, much like Kazuma without charm or luck but with perseverance. Got his fame through his noob Minecraft experience, as with Minecraft servers, they are ripe with collab opportunities, so he started to collab especially with Ars Almal, which he thinks as a mentor... and so they both talk in high register. Eventually became a couple.

Has a thing where he questions something and immediately denies it, which is quite funny. Eventually got a dark alter version due to the imagination tournament I talked about earlier, which brings the fact that he can’t fight until tragedy occurs.

Levi Elipha - Actually only six years old, and apparently dense, like physically dense. Great singer and good physique, does some English songs as well.

Nui Sociere - A 25-year old witch, but more like a NEET with an addiction to horse racing. Very much like Megumi in terms of magic abilities, but capable of melee.

Kind of sounds like Doraemon when she screams... usually plays JRPG... and well, just look at her. Damn... well, least you have something to look forward to.

Hayama Marin - Hayame is Hayame. She’s just a little kid with a pure mind. Yeah.

Hayato Kagami - CEO of a toy company, so called that. Polite and diligent, but like a CEO of a toy company, completely becomes a boy when getting a bit excited.

Actually is a great singer, maybe a trained singer as well. As a good example of rich getting richer, fans have a tendency to throw red superchat, a typical stream might hit 10K USD, even though there’s nothing particular going on.

Yorumi Rena - Idol magician, but no actual proof of her magic abilities. Plays APEX a lot. Very much an outgoing person with lots of collab from everyone. Hakase calls her mama. Sleep promptly at midnight, except when ARK was involved.

Also makes 8-bit art proficiently, does all her loading screen. A bit of a lewd mind.

Hakase Fuyuki - HIgh school girl who likes to experiment, but it’s obvious none of it ever works. Tries to ship Yorumi and Kagami, and calls him papa. Just absolutely in her own world and everyone is just privy to it... also incredibly bad at gaming.

Mayuzumi Kai - A white hacker. Very cool, but has a thing for comedy, almost to the level of Joe Riikichi, but laughs very little himself. Make sense, since he lost his parents at an early age and lived in the system, therefore is a night streamer. Very good with kids as a result, and very kind and polite as well.

Ars Almal - A mage who specializes in lightning. Started out by apologizing, gets bullied for her round face, usually by Shiina. Cute voice with toxic words with a knack for pranks and taunts. Actually is quite boing boing. Good at Minecraft construction, but get rough and dirty under the wheel, as in Mario Kart. Became a kitsune, and then immediately got compared to Fubuki... much like Fubuki in a sense.

Aiba Uiha - Another idol who is a bit out there, has a tendency to be clingy. Also has a large physique... kind of a denatured Lulu is what I’m getting at. Sisters with Ara Chae, incredibly bad eyesight, apparently. I can see that, actually.

Eli Conifer - A flower fairy and maid with a unique phrasing. Likes to immerse herself in games, very knowledgeable, especially with teas, and also handy at housework, and superb at drawing and singing. Ryushen and Rion think she’s a badass, and they might not be entirely wrong on that aspect, actually.

Kokoro Amaiya - Dragonborn, I think. But there’s no dragon anymore. Has that mumble-speak that people really don’t like. She’s very much kid-like in a sense, uh, so get put into the loli category much like her fellow peer. Incredibly weak.

Ratna Petit - Adventurer with an independent streak. Does games and ASMR, tries to be grown up during collabs, but retreats into a kid in solo streams. Got the infamous random deletion of the account that Kiara famously got.

Nijisanji ID Gen 1

Taka Radjiman - Another CEO, this time a food CEO. Usually streams games, but much like other CEOs here, a pretty good singer as well. Obviously a good cook as well.

ZEA Cornelia - She’s an automata. ZEA is short for Z-type Executive Automation. Likes to sing, and sung many songs including La Vien en Rose by IZONE! I really like her, her streams are bit odd and ZEA can carry a stream like no another.

Hana Macchia - A design student, much like Lulu. Likes drawing as you expect, also like gaming as well. Does some barista stuff as well, a kind of the ambassador of Nijisanji ID, since her father is American and her mother is Japanese, and she lives in Indonesia.

Papa Macchia appears on stream from time to time, and apparently was the progenitor of Hana’s gaming prestige as he played Doom and Half-Life. She’s on the cute side of things, but blushes when she gets called that. Also cries in horror, but screams in excitement... just overall a well-rounded in strangeness. I really like her.

2019 Part 3 (Sep-Dec)

Sukoya Kana - Incredibly smart, but also has an otaku and perverted side. Likes acting, as you might have guessed and bad at housework. Has a quiet voice, but gets savage when a game is involved. Pretty good at english as well. Does a radio show as well.

Oh, yeah, likes to throw up. It’s a thing. Also plays drums. She’s pretty cool.

Shellin Burgundy - Before Kanata did her PPT intro, Shellin was the first one. Professes himself to be a detective, but little lightheaded for that. Good narration voice, though, which means he’s a good singer as well. I kind of like him. He’s good.

Hayase Sou - An outdoorsy girl who likes cosplay and road biking. Kind of talks like she’s middle age, but she acts pretty young. And of course she likes shotas.

Fumi - It took over a year for her to debut. She’s a hikikomori gundam otaku and a goddess. A bit airheaded and pretty bad at gaming, and since she is 67, gets called grandma infrequently. She’s fun to watch. Has a ship with Nagao.

Hoshikawa Sara - Half Japanese and half English. Definitely a cool and tough, ready to take whatever sex jokes and insults you throw at her. Hangs out with Mahiro a lot, or with male members like Yumeoi, Ebio, Shellion or Kanda. Has a wide voice range, with a wide personality as well. There’s a sense of healing to her, honestly.

Obviously gets fangirled by many, including Matsuri, whose frequently red superchats her much to her confusion and relative embarrassment.

Yamagami Karuta - She’s a tengou in training, since she is filled with desires, mostly to connect with people. This is real, apparently. Has a ship with a staff member...

Matsukai Mao - Smartest devil... no, she’s an airhead like the rest of them. Apparently she can spit out crude oil... which is pretty useless. Definitely an unlucky, miserable person who needs to be protected at all times, and she relishes that like the devil she is.

Hangs around with Luis a lot in real life, apparently. Also plays APEX and stuff.

Emma August - Demon Lord that was thrown in an uprising, living with Morinaka Kazaki, and got a new house in February of last year. An alcoholic and a masochist, who gets berated by Kazaki of all people. Definitely not a loli, that’s for sure.

Luis Cammy - An expert thief, which excites Shellin very much. Seen as the leader of the gen, but found out to be much of a kid as the gen mates, especially around Shellin. They are a couple now, apparently. Oh yeah, she did an Outlast stream with a cat outfit and invited Shellin because she was scared? Now there's a loli version of her... yikes.

Fuwa Minato - A host, but a teetotaler, because of health problems... yet drinks Monster energy like it’s no business. A bit out there, as Nijisanji people are. A bit of a trickster, a bad boy if you will... right there with being good at games as well. He’s pretty cool.

Shirayuki Tomoe - When I first saw her, she felt like one of those people in mahjong tournaments. Well, she’s a queen of the night, so night-time streamer, although she has daytime streams as well. Strong drinker. Talks about SM, but also effortlessly friendly and a lovely person. I think she’s attractive, but I can see why people call her cute. She hates bugs, loves cute things, odd thoughts... feels like an aunt to me.

Very bad at reading kanji, not that she’s good at anything else. Likes to practice, hence preserved her way in the Mario Kart tournament. Does talk and ASMR streams with a third of her viewers being women. Likes Mirei, makes sense. Oh, she’s a nudist.

And don’t forget the relationship between Kana and her. Purported to be the most real of the ships of any vtubers. I believe it’s called Crossick. I don’t know too much.

Gwelu Os Gar - Presenter for the elf kingdom, hired as a presenter, since Nijisanji got so big and there’s only so many Kakeru around. Unfortunately seen as boring, and transitioned into kind of a Maimoto character.

Already married, I don’t know why that’s significant but there you go. Oh, and an actual dad! That is pretty significant. Although Setsuna also has a child, and had to retire to take care of the little baby. Teaches math to others, so that’s cool.

Mashiro - Recent high school graduate. He’s a boy. Yes, he has heels and boobs, but he’s a boy. And yes, he is a bit out there, stealing candies from the office.

Naraka - Another oni, and a loli-baba. Obviously a fan of the fellow oni, Mikoto... which has a queen kid relationship. And yes, her chest is smaller than Mashiro... sad.

Kurusu Natsume - 19-year old college student who likes music and sheep. Very smart and very normal. Has an ASMR test stream, which was pretty fun.

Nijisanji ID 2nd Gen

Rai Galliel - An interdimensional policeman. Likes cheese, but hate porridge due to only eating one for four months. Likes baking, pretty cool personality, if a bit straight edge.

Amicia Michella - A freelance illustrator, so the drawing is superb. Like sleep but also sports. Also penguins. Likes to play horror games pretty calmly. Raises two dogs, well one of them passed away late last year. Sang a 10cm cover?

Miyu Ottavia - A business student, and likes otters and is optimistic. Mostly plays RPG and online multiplayers. Tries to be cool, but look at her! She’s very cute.

Riksa Dhirendra - A 24-year-old freelancer and works as an editor and translator. Looks mean, but is actually a very decent gut. He is pretty competitive. Plays RPG.