#then just pick marine science

[marrelica]

Med students complaining about zoology and fish being used as examples vs marine science students complaining about humans being used as an example for everything

[nellasbookplanet]

Book recs: black science fiction

As february and black history month nears its end, if you're a reader let's not forget to read and appreciate books by black authors the rest of the year as well! If you're a sci-fi fan like me, perhaps this list can help find some good books to sink your teeth into.

Bleak dystopias, high tech space adventures, alien monsters, alternate dimensions, mash-ups of sci-fi and fantasy - this list features a little bit of everything for genre fiction fans!

For more details on the books, continue under the readmore. Titles marked with * are my personal favorites. And as always, feel free to share your own recs in the notes!

If you want more book recs, check out my masterpost of rec lists!

Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor

Something massive and alien crashes into the ocean off the coast of Nigeria. Three people, a marine biologist, a rapper, and a soldier, find themselves at the center of this presence, attempting to shepherd an alien ambassador as chaos spreads in the city. A strange novel that mixes the supernatural with the alien, shifts between many different POVs, and gives a one of a kind look at a possible first contact.

Nubia: The Awakening (Nubia series) by Omar Epps & Clarence A. Hayes

Young adult. Three teens living in the slums of an enviromentally ravaged New York find that something powerful is awakening within them. They’re all children of refugees of Nubia, a utopian African island nation that sank as the climate worsened, and realize now that their parents have been hiding aspects of their heritage from them. But as they come into their own, someone seeks to use their abilities to his own ends, against their own people.

The Scourge Between Stars by Ness Brown

Novella. After having failed at establishing a new colony, starship Calypso fights to make it back to Earth. Acting captain Jacklyn Albright is already struggling against the threats of interstellar space and impending starvation when the ship throws her a new danger: something is hiding on the ship, picking off her crew one by one in bloody, gruesome ways. A quick, excellent read if you want some good Alien vibes.

Dawn (Xenogenesis trilogy) by Octavia E. Butler*

After a devestating war leaves humanity on the brink of extinction, survivor Lilith finds herself waking up naked and alone in a strange room. She’s been rescued by the Oankali, who have arrived just in time to save the human race. But there’s a price to survival, and it might be humanity itself. Absolutely fucked up I love it I once had to drop the book mid read to stare at the ceiling and exclaim in horror at what was going on. Includes darker examinations of agency and consent, so enter with caution.

Midnight Robber by Nalo Hopkinson*

Utterly unique in world-building, story, and prose, Midnight Robber follows young Tan-Tan and her father, inhabitants of the Carribean-colonized planet of Toussaint. When her father commits a terrible crime, he’s exiled to a parallel version of the same planet, home to strange aliens and other human exiles. Tan-Tan, not wanting to lose her father, follows with him. Trapped on this new planet, he becomes her worst nightmare. Enter this book with caution, as it contains graphic child sexual abuse.

Rosewater (The Wormwood trilogy) by Tade Thompson

In Nigeria lies Rosewater, a city bordering on a strange, alien biodome. Its motives are unknown, but it’s having an undeniable effect on the surrounding life. Kaaro, former criminal and current psychic agent for the government, is one of the people changed by it. When other psychics like him begin getting killed, Kaaro must take it upon himself to find out the truth about the biodome and its intentions.

Do You Dream of Terra-Two? by Temi Oh

Young adult. A century ago, an astronomer discovered a possibly Earth-like planet. Now, a team of veteran astronauts and carefully chosen teenagers are preparing to embark on a twenty-three year trip to get there. But space is dangerous, and the team has no one to rely on but each other if - or when - something goes wrong. An introspective slowburn of a story, this focuses more on character work than action.

The Best of All Possible Worlds by Karen Lord

After the planet Sadira is left uninhabitable, its few survivors are forced to move to a new world. On Cygnus Beta, they work to rebuild their society alongside their distant relatives of the planet, while trying to preserve what remains of their culture. Focused less on hard science or action, The Best of All Possible Worlds is more about culture, romance and the ethics and practicalities of telepathy.

Mirage (Mirage duology) by Somaiya Daud

Young adult. Eighteen-year-old Amani lives on an isolated moon under the oppressive occupation of the Valthek empire. When Amani is abducted, she finds herself someplace wholly unexpected: the royal palace. As it turns out, she's nearly identical to the half-Valthek, and widely hated, princess Maram, who is in need of a body double. If Amani ever wants to make it back home or see her people freed from oppression, she will have to play her role as princess perfectly. While sci-fi, this one more has the vibe of a fantasy.

An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon

Life on the lower decks of the generation ship HSS Matilda is hard for Aster, an outcast even among outcasts, trying to survive in a system not dissimilar to the old antebellum South. The ship’s leaders have imposed harsh restrictions on their darker skinned people, using them as an oppressed work force as they travel toward their supposed Promised Land. But as Aster finds a link between the death of the ship’s sovereign and the suicide of her own mother, she realizes there may be a way off the ship.

Where It Rains in Color by Denise Crittendon

The planet Swazembi is a utopia of color and beauty, the most beautiful of all its citizens being the Rare Indigo. Lileala was just named Rare Indigo, but her strict yet pampered life gets upended when her beautiful skin is struck by a mysterious sickness, leaving it covered in scars and scabs. Meanwhile, voices start to whisper in Lileala's mind, bringing to the surface a past long forgotten involving her entire society.

Eacaping Exodus (Escaping Exodus duology) by Nicky Drayden

Seske is the heir to the leader of a clan living inside a gigantic, spacefaring beast, of which they frequently need to catch a new one to reside in as their presence slowly kills the beast from the inside. While I found the ending rushed with regards to plot and character, the worldbuilding is very fresh and the overall plot of survival and class struggle an interesting one. It’s also sapphic!

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah*

In a near future America, inmates on death row or with life sentences in private prisons can choose to participate in death matches for entertainment. If they survive long enough - a rare case indeed - they regain their freedom. Among these prisoners are Loretta Thurwar and Hamara "Hurricane Staxxx" Stacker, partners behind the scenes and close to the deadline of a possible release - if only they can survive for long enough. As the game continues to be stacked against them and protests mount outside, two women fight for love, freedom, and their own humanity. Chain-Gang All-Stars is bleak and unflinching as well as genuinely hopeful in its portrayal of a dark but all to real possible future.

Parable of the Sower (Earthseed duology) by Octavia E. Butler*

In a bleak future, Lauren Olamina lives with her family in a gated community, one of few still safe places in a time of chaos. When her community falls, Lauren is forced on the run. As she makes her way toward possible safety, she picks up a following of other refugees, and sows the seeds of a new ideology which may one day be the saviour of mankind. Very bleak and scarily realistic, Parable of the Sower will make you both fear for mankind and regain your hope for humanity.

Binti (Binti trilogy) by Nnedi Okorafor

Young adult novella. Binti is the first of the Himba people to be accepted into the prestigious Oomza University, the finest place of higher learning in all the galaxy. But as she embarks on her interstellar journey, the unthinkable happens: her ship is attacked by the terrifying Meduse, an alien race at war with Oomza University.

War Girls (War Girls duology) by Tochi Onyebuchi

In an enviromentally fraught future, the Nigerian civil war has flared back up, utilizing cybernetics and mechs to enhance its soldiers. Two sisters, by bond if not by blood, are separated and end up on differing sides of the struggle. Brutal and dark, with themes of dehumanization of soldiers through cybernetics that turn them into weapons, and the effect and trauma this has on them.

The Space Between Worlds (The Space Between Worlds duology) by Micaiah Johnson

Multiverse travel is finally possible, but there’s a catch: No one can visit a world where their counterpart is still alive. Enter Cara, whose parallel selves happen to be exceptionally good at dying. As such she has a very special job in traveling to these worlds, hoping to keep her position long enough to gain citizenship in the walled-off Wiley City, away from the wastes where she grew up. But her job is dangerous, especially when she gets on the tracks of a secret that threatens the entire multiverse. Really cool worldbuilding and characters, also featuring a sapphic lead!

The Fifth Season (The Broken Eart trilogy) by N.K. Jemisin*

In a world regularly torn apart by natural disasters, a big one finally strikes and society as we know it falls, leaving people floundering to survive in a post apocalyptic world, its secrets and past to be slowly revealed. We get to follow a mother as she races through this world to find and save her missing daughter. While mostly fantasy in genre, this series does have some sci-fi flavor, and is genuinely some of the best books I've ever read, please read them.

The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings*

In an alternate version of our present, the witch hunt never ended. Women are constantly watched and expected to marry young so their husbands can keep an eye on them. When she was fourteen, Josephine's mother disappeared, leveling suspicions at both mother and daughter of possible witchcraft. Now, nearly a decade and a half later, Jo, in trying to finally accept her missing mother as dead, decides to follow up on a set of seemingly nonsensical instructions left in her will. Features a bisexual lead!

The Prey of Gods by Nicky Drayden

South African-set scifi featuring gods ancient and new, robots finding sentience, dik-diks, and a gay teen with mind control abilities. An ancient goddess seeks to return to her true power no matter how many humans she has to sacrifice to get there. A little bit all over the place but very creative and fresh.

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson*

Young adult. Young artist June Costa lives in Palmares Tres, a beautiful, matriarchal city relying heavily on tradition, one of which is the Summer King. The most recent Summer King is Enki, a bold boy and fellow artist. With him at her side, June seeks to finally find fame and recognition through her art, breaking through the generational divide of her home. But growing close to Enki is dangerous, because he, like all Summer Kings, is destined to die.

The Blood Trials (The Blood Gifted duology) by N.E. Davenport

After Ikenna's grandfather is assasinated, she is convinced that only a member of the Praetorian guard, elite soldiers, could’ve killed him. Seeking to uncover his killer, Ikenna enrolls in a dangerous trial to join the Praetorians which only a quarter of applicants survive. For Ikenna, the stakes are even higher, as she's hiding forbidden blood magic which could cost her her life. Mix of fantasy and sci-fi. While I didn’t super vibe with this one, I suspect fans of action packed romantasy will enjoy it.

Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany

1960s classic. Rydra Wong is a space captain, linguist and poet who is set on learning to understand Babel-17, a language which is humanity's only clue at the enemy in an interstaller war. But Babel-17 is more than just a language, and studying it may change Rydra forever.

Pet (Pet duology) by Akwaeke Emezi

Young adult novella. Jam lives in a utopian future that has been freed of monsters and the systems which created and upheld them. But then she meets Pet, a dangerous creature claiming to be hunting a monster still among them, prepared to stop at nothing to find them. While I personally found the word-building in Pet lacking, it deftly handles dark subjects of what makes a human a monster.

Bonus AKA I haven’t read these yet but they seem really cool

Lion's Blood by Steven Barnes

Alternate history in which Africans colonized South America while vikings colonized the North. The vikings sell abducted Celts and Franks as slaves to the South, one of which is eleven-years-old Irish boy Aidan O'Dere, who was just bought by a Southern plantation owner.

The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow

Young adult dystopia. Ellie lives in a future where humanity is under the control of the alien Ilori. All art is forbidden, but Ellie keeps a secret library; when one of her books disappears, she fears discovery and execution. M0Rr1S, born in a lab and raised to be emotionless, finds her library, and though he should deliver her for execution, he finds himself obsessed with human music. Together the two embark on a roadtrip which may save humanity.

Womb City by Tlotlo Tsamaase

Lelah lives in future Botswana, but despite money and fame she finds herself in an unhappy marriage, her body controlled via microchip by her husband. After burying the body of an accidental hit and run, Lelah's life gets worse when the ghost of her victim returns to enact bloody vengeance.

Orleans by Sherri L. Smith

Young adult. Fen de la Guerre, living in a quarantined Gulf Coast left devestated by storms and sickness, is forced on the run with a newborn after her tribe is attacked. Hoping to get the child to safety, Fen seeks to get to the other side of the wall, she teams up with a scientist from the outside the quarantine zone.

Everfair by Nisi Shawl

A neo-victorian alternate history, in which a part of Congo was kept safe from colonisation, becoming Everfair, a safe haven for both the people of Congo and former slaves returning from America. Here they must struggle to keep this home safe for them all.

The Splinter in the Sky by Kemi Ashing-Giwa

Space opera. Enitan just wants to live a quiet life in the aftermath of a failed war of conquest, but when her lover is killed and her sister kidnapped, she's forced to leave her plans behind to save her sister.

Honorary mentions AKA these didn't really work for me but maybe you guys will like them: The City We Became (Great Cities duology) by N.K. Jemisin, The Lesson by Cadwell Turnbull, The A.I. Who Loved Me by Alyssa Cole

[satellitespinner]

thinking about private school ellie..

private school!ellie who got a scholarship because she’s just that smart!!!!!!! (def science or art related.)

private school!ellie who somehow finessed her way into the boys uniform??

private school!ellie dorms with dina and private school!reader dorms with abby!

private school!ellie deadass gets so upset when she flunks on an assignment or fails a test. she fr starts shaking and crying…

private school!ellie who sees you in her biology class and falls head over heels. like that song by tears for fears was on REPEAT!!!

private school!ellie who tells dina and jesse about you and cannot stop talking about you..

private school!ellie notices every detail and any small change in your appearance or mood.. y’all ain’t even talk yet.

private school!ellie who pulls a miles morales and talks to you for the first time like this:

you’re walking from your first class to your second, biology. you accidentally bump into this girl who’s walking out as you’re walking in.

you don’t have time to apologize before she’s looking you up and down and saying

“oh my god this is so embarrassing! we’re wearing the same shirt!” you couldn’t help but laugh, it was so unfunny it was funny.

after class this girl definitely went back to her dorm and told dina about the entire interaction….

“god she’s just as bad as you..” dina scoffed as ellie recalled you laughing at her stupid ‘flirt’

private school!ellie who passes you a tiny note asking if you want to be partners for your final project.

she was smart, usually giving the right answers.. why not?

private school!ellie was so anxious during the project, couldn’t even look you in the eye..

private school!ellie who got you guys an A+ on your marine biology project!!

private school!ellie decides to ask you out on an actual date! in her opinion the study dates didn’t count! (all the flirting that she didn’t pick up on..)

private school!ellie is ecstatic when you say yes to her date !

private school!ellie takes you to the beach and you guys watch the stars!

private school!ellie becomes your girlfriend before the second date..

-> sorry this was short :(( not having much inspiration lately 😕

[thesensteawitch]

WHAT CAREER SUITS YOUR SPIRIT?🧚🏻‍♀️✨

Pick A Pile Reading

Left to Right (Pile 1, Pile 2, Pile 3)

Hello, SENSTEA Souls!💕

Aah! Such a long time!!!!!!!! How have you all been? Missed me?���🫶🏻

I have been healing and purging and focusing on other things so I couldn't make time to write for you. But I will be trying to make one post in a week. 🌜

Now without any delay let's get into your reading. You know the drill right? Just pick one pile intuitively and scroll down to read your pile!🫶🏻

Also, if you wish to book a PERSONAL READING with me you can message me directly. And if not, then I am sharing the links to my rate card and booking form.

BOOKING FORM 🌸 RATE CARD

Tip the blog to keep it going! (It's not mandatory but appreciated!🐈‍⬛✨)

...

Here is your reading:

Pile 1

Tarot Cards- The Moon, 8 of Pentacles, The Hanged Man, Knight of Pentacles, Knight of Wands, 7 of Cups

This pile is intense. I heard, “If you dance, I'll dance. If you don't, I'll dance anyway.” You do not care if people do not believe your truth as long as you know that what you know is made known to you by the divine. Your spirit is magical, and hence it's called to explore mystical subjects. If you are someone who is not interested in mysteries or the intensity of your purpose, then I would suggest you choose a different pile because this group follows the calling of their spirit naturally. You're rebellious when it comes to your career. You are supposed to combine your purpose with your career. Anything related to digging deep, mystical, esoteric subjects, tarot, astrology, metaphysics, science, astronomy, diving, writing, art, detective, law, or surgeon is where you fit the best. You may have strong Scorpio placements. Check if you have Scorpio in your 11th house or if your Mars is in Scorpio because I am picking that strongly. Zodiac signs that are coming off strongly are Aries, Scorpio, Sagittarius, and Capricorn.

You require a lot of silence while working. Your path isn't easy; there are immense transformations in your journey. Your spirit continuously seeks to ascend through what you do. There may be times when your finances come to a halt and you need to do a perspective shift to do better. I can see that your body, mind, and spirit must be aligned with your purpose so that you rise to the top. What you're called to do is so powerful that illusions can easily take over. You are a truth seeker, and truth cannot be multiple, so finding it cannot be a race in your case. You need to move at a pace that is neither too fast nor too slow. Your spirit is like that of a magician walking on Earth. To the world, you may seem alluring, but you know what it costs you to follow your purpose. Every loss, death, and transformation that you come across drastically shifts your life. Speak more. Speak the truth. Your words will shock the public in a good way. You're here to open people's eyes to the truth through your work. Express often. Your power and your purpose are not scary; it's divine! You may also hold multiple degrees.

Pile 2

Tarot Cards- Justice, 3 of Pentacles, Queen of Swords, The Chariot, The Emperor

This pile is really intelligent. Anything that allows you to make use of your mind the most is something that will suit your spirit the best. A career where you'll be continuously learning and enhancing your skills. Teaching, medical (dentist I heard in my mind), law, business, accountant, marine officer/captain, and research are what I can think of looking at your cards. Your spirit demands and deserves to be the leader in your field. There will be challenges in your journey, which you will have the courage to overcome if you keep your emotions in balance. Your spirit will make you start from the basics. You are supposed to study a lot to be able to reach the top. You seem to be a multitasker or interested in multiple subjects, but that can bring a lot of chaos into your life. So your spirit is encouraging you to master one subject. If you throw yourself in multiple concepts, you will waver from the truth. Don't let your intellect go against you.

You're supposed to continuously research in your particular field and stand firm on your beliefs, so choose wisely and make sure you enjoy it for the rest of your life. Zodiac signs that I can sense are Gemini, Aquarius, Cancer, Aries, Capricorn, and Libra. In your particular field, you need to find a perfect teacher or organization that suits you and can help you achieve your goals. Learning through all the sources again will not be good for you. Pick one source and commit to it for at least a good amount of time. Your spirit feels at peace when you speak your truth without fearing what others may think of you. It's very important for you to have strong boundaries to do good in your career. Not having boundaries and sharing your business with everyone can do more harm than good to your career. Your brain is like a sponge. It absorbs everything without filtering the information. Rather than stimulating yourself with so much information, pick one path and find your truth. Talk to yourself more than you talk to others. You'll find your answer.

Pile 3

Tarot Cards- Page of Swords, The Star, Nine of Wands, 6 of Swords, 7 of Wands

Oh my God, pile 3, your cards were just not coming out. What are you so afraid of? There are two opposing thoughts going on in your mind when it comes to your career. You want to do something but you're doing something else. Your heart is at another place while your mind is at another. Your spirit wants you to get over this fear of the worst. There's no room for instant gratification when it comes to following your dreams. Believe me, you're not late when it comes to pursuing your dreams. You've definitely struggled in your career or are still struggling. Every day feels like another battle. Stop living like that. A new beginning lies on the other side of closing the door behind you. Be willing to let go of the old ways. So you're afraid of the challenges and the mountains you are supposed to climb to catch your dream? Well, aren't there struggles in what you are currently doing? Believe me, from where I see these challenges will refine your spirit and will take you closer and closer to your dream life.

Follow your heart, sweet soul. Believe me, it's all in your head. You have it in you to pass the tests that will come your way to achieve your dreams. Don't keep drinking poison just because you've gotten accustomed to the taste of it. Your taste buds can compromise, but your body will remember the damage that the poison is doing. Zodiac signs that I am picking up are Gemini, Aquarius, Leo, and Sagittarius. Either you can lead with courage or with fear. The choice is yours! Honestly, nothing is strongly coming off as to what career will suit you the best because right now your energy is guiding you to first free yourself of your own limitations. After that, you can think of what you want to do. But one thing I can say is that you're being called to do something that frees your spirit. There's such a deep desire in you to be someone else and do something else, but somewhere there's a thought that you won't ever reach there, so why even try? My goodness, you really need to talk to someone regarding this or just have a day of silence and be brutally honest to yourself. You are literally going opposite of your destiny, and that's why you don't feel the sense of accomplishment. I hear, “Old friend, why are you so shy? Ain't like you to hold back or hide from the light.”

[xiouahh]

☆ numb

⋆ ࣪. ⭒ ⁎ [name]'s crew .ᐟ

[name].　Business major, 2nd year in teyvat university, the secretary in the student council, gets confessed to almost every week because they're really attractive + the top in the class, prefers to have few friends because most students who ask to be friends has a crush on them and clings to them which makes them uncomfortable, genuinely has never experienced someone to love them for who they are so they'd doubt them. Ayaka.　Business major, 3rd year in teyvat university, you guys met when you were just a freshman and welcomed you and your friends to the university, the mother of the group, the vice president of the student council and her brother is the president, she often helps you with documentary for the student council. Hu Tao.　Biomedical science major, 2nd year in teyvat university, your childhood bestfriend so she's always been with you since. knows the reason why you have problems with love so she comforts you whenever you get a breakdown from it. Lumine.　Information technology major, 3rd year in teyvat university, the 2nd mother of the group, likes someone in Scara's friend group but the others don't know, really good listener and comforter, Ayaka introduced you to her and she was really kind and welcomed you. Venti.　Music major, 3rd year in teyvat university, you guys met at elementary school when he stood up to the people who picked on you and has been your friend since. sometimes a troublemaker and since some of his friends are in the student council they sometimes let him slide. Heizou.　Criminology major, 2nd year in teyvat university, he often hosts game nights to the group and he always adds a mystery game, but he ALWAYS solves them really quickly and gets happy when he does, so the group just lets him be to make him smile I guess. Childe.　Marine biology major, 2nd year in teyvat university, when Heizou hosts game nights he always insists that they go to his dorm because Scara is his roommate and he knows about Scara's crush on you, whenever he notices you're upset he's quick to buy you your comfort food.

masterlist　|　next SYPNOSIS.　You had always been the independent, strong-willed person who didn't need anyone's help. Despite your best efforts, your trauma continues to plague you, making it difficult for you to trust and connect with others. That is, until you meet a young man who is everything you've wanted in a partner. Despite his aloof demeanor, he manages to break your emotional barriers and become a source of healing and support for you. As you learn to trust and open up to him, he becomes the healer of your heart, helping you heal from your trauma.

AUTHOR.　I apologize in advance if some of the majors are wrong !! I don't know anything about college yet but I did some research ! Scara and his friends' profiles will be out in a bit <3 TAGLIST.　 @arlecchino-soon-main @skyoverkill1 @yo0ngleswag @scaraenthusiast1 @skyvella @lloovvv

[mostly-mundane-atla]

Hi! Your blog is awesome. I don't know if I'm allowed to ask non-atla questions, so I hope this is okay. I'm working on a non-avatar ttrpg campaign that takes place both in a (fictional/fantasy) northern tundra region AND during a magical endless winter. The people in it aren't based on any specific culture but, given that they're successfully living in similar environments & have for countless generations, I want to draw as much inspiration & knowledge from real-life circumpolar cultures & native science as much as possible. Do you have any advice or even just fun, underappreciated ideas for winter tundra survival, things someone who grew up in a desert like me wouldn't think of on my own? If you need/want more direction: I'm particularly looking for clothing, shelters, resource gathering-practices for non-food (esp what kinds of resources would be valuable), as well as like, any fun details that evolve naturally in a culture that formed in the tundra that you'd want to see represented. I hope that makes sense ^^; Thanks so much if you decide to answer, have a good day either way <3

[I am SOOO sorry this took so long! Tumblr kept not saving my progress when i tapped "save draft" so i had to rewrite a few of these passages a few different times]

Don't worry about asking, friend, i get cultural questions all the time and i'm happy to share.

Note: my knowledge is almost entirely based on coastal tundra peoples with access to marine mammals. That's not to say it's impossible for people to live farther inland, just that it's not my area of expertise.

Clothing

Just about everything you wear is going to come off of a dead animal. This doesn't necessarily need to be the case if your fictional culture has a means of raising hardy livestock for fiber and a history of woven textiles, but even then skin clothes are warm and generally quite hard-wearing and are a good fit for living in these circumstances.

This amount of fur means lice are a perpetual problem. If you want to make that an immersive part of the game, you can work in a mechanic for checking scalps and clothing and bedding for lice.

Bird skins can also be used for clothing and waterfowl specifically has the benefit of water resistance. Fish skin can also be used for similar properties. Animal intestines can be made into a waterproof material if sewn with sinew and soaked before finishing.

On that note i'd recommend making a list of available animals and what qualities and textures their skins and furs have. Even if you don't intend on being incredibly descriptive with clothing, it's something better to have and not need than need and not have. And if you do anything else creative in a similar setting you have your nifty little source to consult.

When it comes to the actual construction of the clothes, you want a loose fit. Trapped air ia a great insulator and you want clothes to be easy to move in. Another benefit for loose-fitting upper body garments in cold weather is you can pull your arms in and keep them by your much warmer core. Not only will this option keep you comfortable, it can also prevent muscle injury or getting frostbite

Mittens can be worn on a string yoke. This doesn't have to be exclusive to children either. Wind can pick up out of nowhere and lost mittens means fingers exposed to arctic cold which can mean gangreen and amputations down the line.

Swimming or running to deliver a message may involve stripping nude, even in cold. Clothes soaked in water or sweat are deadly in the cold.

Clothes may be stored in bags outside when not in use. The low temperatures can kill bugs and bacteria. On a similar note, boots and coats are best to be hung to dry as soon as one is indoors for the day. This may mean it's normal for people to be topless indoors.

Boots should never have holes or tears. Frostbite and resulting gangreen is already bad enough but you especially do not want it on your feet

Shelter

You're going to want dwellings to have as few rooms and windows as possible and small doors. The fewer walls you have, the easier it is for heat to circulate throughout the whole dwelling. You'll probably want one room separating the door and where you sleep. Remember: trapped air is a great insulator.

The culture I've reconnected with is semi-nomadic so the permanent houses are not always occupied and a village can seem abandoned when it's just on its "off season". You can take that or leave it depending on what you're going for.

Even if the dwelling is not a tent, you're probably still going to have poles serving as a supporting frame.

Sod houses are common due to the availability of sod (the grass and the dirt its roots are tangled in). Tents made of warm, waterproof skins (like walrus skin) are also an option.

An easy way to insulate such a dwelling is to build a wall of packed snow around and fill the gaps with loose, airy snow. This traps air the same way down feathers do.

Non-Food Resource Gathering

While I imagine you meant obtaining resources outside of hunting, in a tundra or tundra-like setting, a lot of your resources are going to come from dead animals. Your garments and shelters and bedding are likely to be made of animal skins, with hollow and/or fluffy fur for warmth, or smoked intestine or fish skin, sewn with tiny stitches and soaked to keep everything flush, for waterproof boots and overlayers. Antlers and tusks are good carving materials for things like spoons and closures and slabs for armor and handles and also talismans and smoking pipes and beads and art. Baleen is good for art too, as well as boot soles and smaller sleds and beautiful baskets. Sinew and rawhide are good for thread, ties, and rope. Bones have a near infinite amount of uses from tiny wing bones to make sewing needles to huge whale bones used to build houses.

For the purposes of working this into a roleplaying game, i'd second the recommendation of keeping a list of animals in your universe and their properties, as well as the things that can be gathered from or made of them. A sort of crafting recipe guide would allow all kinds of quests and sidequests.

There are, of course, non-animal resources to gather for non-eating purposes. Soapstone is the traditional material for oil lamps. Grasses can be woven into baskets for any number of purposes, including supports to give the uppers of one's boots more structure. Wood, in the form of slices of tree trunks, can be hollowed out into bowls and small tubs and buckets or, as logs or slats, can make up flooring. Sturdy branches can be used for frames in houses, boats, and drums, and tree resin makes both good glue and antibiotic salve for closed wounds. Sod, also called turf, makes a good building material and moss is exellent insulation in boots. You can make a list of these too, if it helps.

If your fictional culture has a strong tradition of metallurgy, then they'd also mine for metal that can be used for knives. If not, slate is another option that requires significantly less fire. You could even have both and make the metal a status symbol.

Fun Details to Represent

There are so many lovely little things that show up in arctic cultures

First, a gift economy. Where a cash economy relies on a fairly individualistic culture where you work for someone else to earn capital and exchange that capital for goods and services, a more collectivist and interdependent culture natural to the harsh conditions of the tundra tends to result in a gift economy. The currency in a gift economy, to perhaps oversimplify, is favors. Someone does you a good turn, you remember that, and when you're in a position to help, you return the favor. Usually this means basic material things like hospitality and food, but the "gifts" exchanged can also be luck! King Islander boys would often wish hunters setting out at dawn good luck, with a slab of driftwood as a token of that luck, and if the hunters were successful, they'd give the boys who wished them luck a share of their catch. I believe it was Frank Ellana who remenised that this was what the world was like before money.

Another thing that would be nice to include is parenting practices considered fairly gentle to a Euro-American perspective. Physical punishments are traditionally treated as abuse and scolding a child is not only seen as wrong but something an adult ought to be ashamed of. Discipline is instead a series of moral lessons, teaching children why what they did was wrong and using stories as examples of the consequences. Given the amount of stories about the dangers of abusing a spouse or child, i'd say a lot of these lessons were proactive and preventative. Knowing someone will be hurt by it is considered enough of a deterrence to stop bad behaviors. Traditional potty training, for example, is also gentler in comparison; starting at a younger age (about six months) with more emphasis on praise and encouragment than routine. The goal here is to teach the baby to signal when they need to go so they can be taken out of mama's atigi and relieve themself in a hygenic manner instead of holding it until they get permission. Even our take on kissing is based on inhaling instead of pecking with the lips. This kind of gentleness is usually overlooked to instead focus on the badass hunter image or overall "cuteness" so it would be nice for it to be referenced.

Oral histories would be pretty neat too. I think the idea of learning to be a historian of oral histories is an interesting one and i think it has a lot of potential plot hooks for an rpg.

That's all i have for now. Sorry for the delayed response time. Happy gaming, and i'm always up for further discussion if you would like ^-^

[youngcollectedtired]

Levi Ackerman x Best friend!Reader!with Toxic Parent!ModernaotAU

Warnings: toxic parent, parents divorced

Just got into an argument with my parent and I needed to vent so here you guys go 🙂‍↔️ Levi is the best best friend ever and I needed that last week.

Also very much so unedited LOL

Includes : levi, Hange, Erwin

AOT MODERN AU

Your parents had divorced when you were 17. Your sister was 13. Between graduating high school and helping your sister focus on her own studies you didn’t have time to mourn the loss. The loss was of your family, your mother.

 

In college is where you met your best friend, Levi. Erwin and Hange soon followed after.

 

It was two weeks in school. You were buried in quizzes, tests, and essays.

 

The library was full, and you were sitting at a table with four chairs. Your textbooks had taken over the table.

 

A few students had walked in and out of the library and you ignored them.

 

Until a hand slammed on your textbook.

 

You didn’t look up hoping it was a mistake.

 

Then the fingers began drilling as if impatient. Finally, a voice interrupted your thoughts, “um excuse me?”

 

You looked up to come face to face with a girl who resembled that of a typical high school bully.

 

I thought for sure we’d left that behind, you thought to yourself.

 

Choosing kindness you responded, “yes?” With a smile.

 

She began popping her gum, blowing a bubble before she continued, “My friends and I need this table.  There’s only one of you, so get up.”

 

You snorted, unable to take her seriously.

 

Her eyes narrowed, “Did I say something funny?”

 

You shook your head, “No sorry I just had something in my throat. I’m sitting here because the one person tables don’t have enough room for my textbooks.” You attempted to explain despite knowing you could have just said no and ignored her.

 

She stood up fully now, “Well maybe if you weren’t so dumb you wouldn’t need all this space to study.” She rolled her eyes.

 

You weren’t much of a bully and your own insults didn’t come easy. So, all you could do was stutter, “Uh…”

 

A new voice joined the convo. “Maybe if you weren’t a high school bully you abominable flamingo then we can all study in peace. Because you know, it is a study hall.” He spoke from behind you.

 

You turned your head just as the girls gasped. There stood a guy you could recognize from your other classes.

 

Levi something. The girl attempted to speak but shutting her up again he spoke, “You have an entire life to be an idiot. Why not take the day off?”

 

This time you couldn’t help but snorting. You caught it as your hand raised as if you were coughing. The girl glared at you but did walk away.

 

You turned to say thanks, but he was already walking away and towards a table where a blonde guy was sitting and a brown-haired girl. She was wearing glasses and waving dramatically at you.

 

Hesitantly you waved back. Despite the woman grinning and waving Levi didn’t look back.

 

You smiled at the memory. The next day, the girl tried to stop you in the hallway. But the girl who you learned was named Hange swooped in and dragged you away ignoring them.

 

She explained that if you were going to be such a target of bullying it would be smart to stick to them. You were exceptionally grateful. Most of your classes were with all three of them and if not at least one of them.

 

You were interested in becoming a professor and you soon learned they all were too. Erwin loved history. Hange science. Hilariously enough Levi and you both were interested in Literature.

 

Which is how you all ended up where you were now.

 

You and Hange were roommates. Levi lived alone and Erwin with his wife.

 

Petra Erwin’s wife had been out of town on a girl’s trip. So, you and Hange decided to have them over for an easy dinner.

 

Easy for Hange seeing as she loved to clean. You took on the cooking role often.

 

You’d already planned dinner and the beef was marinated ready for you to cook. You were currently picking up your sister as your dad was called into work for a Tech Reserve.

 

He’d be gone for the week.

 

You’d been listening to Ann your sister talk about her latest situation. She’d been laid off from her job with no warnings. It was a simple cleaning job she did 3 times a week. It was easy money and someone you all knew. She’d been working there for 3 years. And now at 19 she needed to start over. With a new resume and a new job. It hadn’t been a week since the message that your dad had pushed her to call every business down the street to see if they were hiring.

 

She currently wanted to work at a cafe, but he said no. Most of his reason based on paranoia alone. You attempted to give suggestions as to why he should let her work where she wanted but to no avail.

 

As you both arrived you parked the car in your driveway, “I’m going to call him, you can go ahead into the house. Hange is here,” you unlocked the car.

 

She turned to you uneasily, “if I can’t convince him, I don’t know that you can. And you know how he gets, why you moved out in the first place.”

 

You shook your head, “it doesn’t matter, I don’t live there anymore. He can't hurt me anymore. Besides, he must see reason.”

 

You both knew that wasn’t the case.

 

He was a great dad, he provided for all your needs and in days where you were short on money. He was there. Days you needed air in your tire, needed to borrow bug spray he was there.

But after the divorce, your father began comparing you to your cheating mother.

 

As a teenager you were still reeling from your own mother’s betrayal not just because she cheated… but also because she abandoned you and your sister. You wished so desperately for an escape. So, the first mention of needing a roommate from Hange you began working hard. Putting your affairs in order and saving money. When you turned 21 with your first teaching position you were out.

 

The first few months were blissful. No more comparing. No more sly comments, no more backhanded compliments. Or ordering around. Or doing things the way only HE wanted.

 

Apart of you felt sorry for leaving your own sister behind, but you had the tiniest inkling she’d be fine. Considering she was the favorite child. No matter how much she or he tried to deny it. It was all in the way he listened to her, or heard her out, didn't interrupt her, and even treated her like an adult. There were no backhanded compliments or talking about her in front of others.

 

Ann shrugged, before taking her bag and jumping out of the car. You watched her walk up to your front door before you opened your phone.

 

There were a few messages from the groupchat. Erwin saying he'd arrived. Hange letting you know she'd taken the meat out of the freezer. Levi texting you and the chat he was on the way with dessert and drink.

 

Knowing you were attempting to distract yourself from your task you opened the phone app. You took a deep breath, sliding to the contact that read 'Dadmight' and hit dial.

 

As he answered, you greeted one another as usual. The formalities were out of the way. Then he asked what was up.

 

Shakily you spoke, “Dad, I know you’re her parent and you have a right to give her suggestions. But don’t you think Ann should work where she wants to work? I mean at the end of the day, you may help her with her resume, and teach her how to do an interview but wherever she gets accepted she’ll have to do the job on her own. You won’t be able to help her or give suggestions. So she might as well,-“ he cut you off. You instantly could tell he was upset.

 

“No. Hush your mouth,” he began his own spill. You zoned out barely hearing his words. But recognizing a few.

 

Disrespectful. On your own. Relationship. Stay out of it. So many words ran together and just like when you were younger you keep your face blank. Your body moved out autopilot as you opened the car door. The anger in his voice was always the same. However cool night breeze instantly woke you. reminding you of your intentions.

 

“Hello? Did you hear me? I said-“ he began again repeating everything. You listened this time. As he accused you of trying to destroy his relationship with Ann. As he said your tone was disrespectful and how just because you moved out you didn’t get to talk to him that way.

 

“I’m not trying to attack you,” you cut in attempting to diffuse the situation.

 

“Be quiet! I’m not done, don’t interrupt me when I’m talking to you,” you attempted to not zone. Because of this a lump in your throat formed. As you fought to keep from blanking out every little word felt like an arrow hitting your body.

 

He was silent now.

 

“Okay dad, I’ll talk to you later. Bye,” you hung up the phone. Before you could start sobbing.

 

Apart of you angry at his disrespect but also angry at yourself. You didn’t live with him anymore. He couldn’t punish you or burst in your room and demand a conversation. You were on your own. In your own space that you built with Hange.

 

And he still affected you.

 

None of these thoughts helped you. Within in seconds, you started crying. Your tears kept coming without cause. You ripped your glasses off and through blurry eyes you swiped on your phone again and pressed on a new contact.

 

The phone rang and rang and rang. Until finally someone picked up.

 

You heard a familiar but weak voice. "Hello?"

 

"Mom?" You asked albeit a little confused. Your voice was clear but barely.

 

She sniffed clearing her throat, before answering you, "Yes? What's wrong?"

 

You cleared your throat enough to ask, "Are you crying? What's wrong?"

 

She began protesting, "No no I'm okay, what's up?"

 

You shook your head, "No you're crying!" You lost it again the tears spilling over, "we can't both be crying," the tears fell even harder. Your head aching at the sudden onslaught of tears.

 

Your mom sniffled again, "I'm sorry. Me and your aunt just got into it. What's wrong with you?" You could tell she wasn't in her right mind.

 

Still, you answered her question as she had yours, "Dad and I just got into it. But I'll just call you later, okay? Feel better," you mumbled as she agreed and said love you.

 

The conversation ended and you were not feeling any better. In fact, you were feeling worse. You took your glasses to your shirt, attempting to wipe the stain of tears off, before focusing on the cold tears on your face.

 

You didn’t notice a car had parked on your street. Or that Levi was walking towards you.

 

He didn’t seem to see your face, “I got that disgusting wine you like so much,” he raised the bottle as you attempted to wipe your tears. But they kept coming.

 

He stopped as he finally got a look at you.

 

“Are you crying?” He was close now, “Who were you talking to on that phone call?”

 

Phone call? Christ did he hear me? Panic hit you as you started laughing uneasily, “sorry the moon is just so pretty tonight,” you pointed up only to come face to face with clouds that were covering the moon. From the looks of it, the moon had been covered for awhile.

 

Levi’s expression turned deadpanned. As if he were saying, really? 

 

“Sorry,” you wiped the tears that had finally stopping coming, “dad and I just got into it. More like he laid into me,” you rolled your eyes.

 

You turned to your car, grabbing your own backpack from the back seat.

 

As you locked the door and began walking, he was in step with you. “You mean that heated voice was your dad?” His voice soured as if he couldn’t believe it.

 

You sighed, “Yeah. Well just now it was my mom. Before that it was my dad, I don’t think you’ve ever met him yet. He can be a bit of a jerk sometimes,” you turned to him now, “are my eyes red and can you tell I’ve been crying?” You asked hurriedly.

 

He paused. His eyes scanning your face. Before he could answer you assumed he was trying to find an easy way to say yes. Or a funny way knowing him.

 

“I knew it,” you turned your bag attempting to find a tissue, but he stopped you.

 

“No sorry, I was just admiring your beauty.” He spoke as if it were obvious.

 

You paused not expecting his direct words. Or the honesty. Before you could say anything else, he opened the door and walked in.

 

You could feel your cheeks warm but ignoring them you followed him shutting the door. You hung your backpack on the hooks where other purses and bags laid. You slipped your shoes off and your sweatshirt, leaving you in a pair of overalls and a frilly shirt. Sitting on the couch was your sister, Erwin and you assumed Hange was making drinks.

 

Your sister made a beeline for Levi pulling him an unwillingly hug. He humored her. And funny enough only her.

 

“Hey brat,” he pulled away from her.

 

You greeted Hange and Erwin and they smiled.

 

You grabbed the wine from his hand and headed straight for the kitchen. He followed behind you with your sister in tow.

 

She was sitting on the bar stools as you began washing your hands. You could tell she wanted to know how the phone call went.

 

Ann wouldn't be Ann if she didn't just say what was on her mind. And that she did.

 

"So, how'd it go?" She asked before popping a can of soda.

 

You'd already dried your hands and were rinsing out a glass of wine. Hange opened your 'disgusting wine' as Levi dubbed and was already pouring you a glass as you pulled out the beef you marinated just this morning.

 

You rolled your eyes, "How do you think it went?" You were annoyed, "then I tried to call mom and she was crying too! I told her we can't both be crying," you plugged in the rice cooker to prepare for the rice you were about to wash.

 

Ann snickered, "Not you both crying. What was up with her?"

 

You washed the rice in front of her at the sink now. "She said she got into it with her sister. I told her dad and I got into it and then I told her to get some rest. We hung up after that," you poured the rice out as your sister nodded.

 

Hange cut in with a glass of something, "I'm sorry did I just hear you say you got into it with your dad? I thought you left that behind," she leaned against the counter as you turned the stove on, throwing garlic with sesame oil in the pan.

 

You chuckled unamusedly, "Heh, yeah. See I did until he started being unreasonable towards Ann." You gestured now opening the pantry. You pulled the flour free so you could start on the Kimchi pancakes.

 

Erwin now joined all of you in the kitchen as Levi rolled his sleeves up preparing to clean up after you. You were too busy cooking and sipping to notice the small bit of trash you left behind. To Levi this was okay because it gave him something to do with his hands while you cooked for them.

 

Erwin set his beer on the bar pulling himself into the seat next to Anna, "How is he being unreasonable this time?" He asked curiously.

 

It had slipped your mind the last time your father truly got on your nerves you called Erwin. He brought you lunch at the day care you were interning at and listened to your agitated words. You were 19 at the time and your father had taken your car and your phone... all to make a point. You knew this to be the case because a few days later he'd given both items back. Erwin convinced you right then in there to NOT move out at 19 with only your recent check to your name. However, he offered his place as a refuge in case you ever needed it.

 

Thankfully, you had been able to hold out for a few more years.

 

Levi was surprised to hear Erwin's choice of words too. You'd chosen to keep Levi out of this part of your life, due to the fear that he and your father would become enemies. Of course, Levi never knew this.

 

As you remembered this, you came back from your thoughts to Ann explaining the situation. The others listened as she expressed her opinion on the situation. You poured the broccoli into a pan on the back of the stove, readying the sauce so it would steam just right.

 

"Do you want to tell us how the convo went?" Ann asked apart of curious but also cautious... between the two of you she was less likely to talk family business. You however had no qualms in this regard.

 

You mixed the Kimchi into the flour before setting the bowl in front of Ann. She pouted but got to work, as you leaned back and sipped.

 

"Yeah, so you know when I get excited sometimes I yell," you explained first.

 

Hange snickered, "Yell is an understatement. She was telling me about her latest enemies to lovers’ book in the car and I thought I lost my hearing."

 

You blushed deeply, your facial expression showing embarrassment, "Thank you Hange for proving the point that everyone else knows, I'm sure. Moving on," you stirred the broccoli before leaning against a counter again.

 

"So, I'm not sure if I was yelling or if it was my tone."

 

Ann cut in, "your tone can sometimes come across crazy."

 

You ignored her and kept talking, "I basically told him that even though he's Ann's parent he can help her or give her suggestions, but at the end of the day she's going to be the one doing the work. We all know whether you admit it or not you or a lazy person," you paused looking to Ann who was now flipping the first kimchi pancake.

 

"I am."

 

You bit a chuckle, "So I told him wouldn’t it make more sense if you let her work where she wants to work... so then she'll actually want to work and then later she can move up." You took a deep breath pausing for a moment to put the beef on the hot stove.

 

Hange was impatient. "So, what'd he say this time?"

 

You rolled your eyes, "First while I was talking, he told me to shut up and hush up and of course I laughed. Then he went into this spill about how I disrespect him and how I shouldn't talk to him in that tone. He said that just because I've moved out doesn't mean I can ruin his and Ann's relationship and that I needed to stay out of it," you were frustrated now.

 

The cup you were holding had been set down now and you were gripping the counter in anger, "Ugh I mean what makes him think I'm going to want to respect him if he treats me like that. I feel like every time we argue he treats me like dirt. Whether or not that's his intention that's how I feel," you turned to Hange now, "and this whole thing just made me truly realize why I dislike conversation about conflict or telling you how I feel. Any time I talked to him or try to tell him my point of view it turns into him thinking I'm attacking him or trying to take away his 'deserved' respect as a father. And then I shut down as you know Ann and so after the whole conversation and he finally went quiet I was just like, 'okay dad, I'll see you later,' and I just hung up. Then I was crying... not because of what he said or anything but because I was frustrated with myself for allowing him to still get to me." You couldn't look anyone in the eye as your felt your own frustration dissipate.

 

Hange was the first to speak up, "I'm sorry. I understand where you're coming from. Maybe with time he'll see our point of view. I feel like every time you mention him I want to like punch him in the face. Your dad is an interesting person, that's for sure."

 

You covered your mouth in shock before laughing at her statement. You then flipped the beef over in the pan as your laughed turned into a snicker.

 

Levi spoke up next surprising you, "What do you mean you 'shut down?'" His face didn't give away what he was thinking. Apart of you felt grateful worried he would think you were overreacting.

 

You were unsure if you wanted Levi to know this other side of you. The side your father only brought out. Interrupting your thought Ann however replied.

 

"She does this thing where her face goes blank. I feel like it's to protect herself from what he's saying. It's almost like she's disassociating, which is not good by the way. You need a therapist," your sister pointed out as she always did.

 

You couldn't help but snort, "So do you. But at the end of the day dad has taught me something," you leaned against the counter now allowing the chicken to cook on the stove.

 

"What's that?" Erwin curiously asked.

 

You grinned, "Not to marry anyone like him. Ann already knows if my future boyfriend acts anything like our dad, to hit me over the head."

 

Hange snickered, "Has she had to hit you over the head yet?"

 

Somehow knowing you wouldn't answer truthfully Ann chuckled, "I've hit her over the head for a few guys with red flags but none thankfully as bad as Dad."

 

Levi folded his arms, "Who have you dated?"

 

You kept silent, but Ann however did not care for your embarrassment.

 

She began cackling. "Oh you never told them did you?" You covered your face, "It was Chad! Remember him, right?" Ann smirked turning to the others.

 

Erwin began shaking his head, "I had to step in for Chad. That was truly one of your darkest moments (name). Gotta say I was a tiny bit disappointed."

 

You rolled your eyes, "Okay Erwin we get it. I have horrible taste in men."

 

Hange shook her head, "Not just horrible. Chad was like downright disgusting y/n! What did he do? Bat his eyelashes?"

 

You cringed. "What?? Nooo!" You didn't appear to be convincing.

 

Levi sighed. "Chad as in the college dropout Chad? The Chad who got kicked out of school our senior year?" Even he had the ability to look disappointed.

 

You turned away from everyone, "It's not my fault, I took his flirting seriously! I've never been flirt with," you gestured to yourself as if that would help your situation by any means.

 

Hange closed her eyes and softly shook her head. "Okay y/n you're right. We're sorry, although please tell me Chad was the only one," she turned to Ann who didn't appear to be in your favor.

 

Interrupting the stories that were soon to follow you spoke up, "Alright who's hungry?"

 

You were thankful for the short distraction. However, you were not expecting to catch the eyes of Levi. A curious look in his eyes.

Levi didn’t have parents. His mother died when he was young and he never met his father.

 

After that his uncle raised him until he was old enough to do something with his life. His Uncle Kenny was never much of a father.

 

Apart of him wondered what his life would have been like if he had his mother to raise him. Or if Kenny had stuck around to actually raise him properly.

 

Alas he would never know and now that he’s older he wonders if his thoughts and feelings on his parents would have changed.. if they were still alive. He was sure you still loved your parents because he knew just as well as anyone else a simple argument would never change that. However, a part of him began wondering if parent relationships were as black and white as he thought.

 

And how many times have you had to deal with your father in this way. How many times had he not been here to hear what was bothering you and understand what made you cry and why.

 

You approached Levi noticing him now deep in thought. The others had plates and were entertaining one another with a movie. You could hear the familiar Kung Fu Panda 2 intro.

 

"Hey, here's your plate," you whispered setting in front of him.

 

He looked up shock briefly taking over him, "Oh thanks."

 

You nodded watching him for a moment. It appeared he had something to say, so you gave him a moment. Your plate was sitting in front of you, and you took a sip of the 'disgusting' (deliciously sweet) wine.

 

Levi picked up his fork pausing for a second, "So how often do you and your father get in arguments?"

 

You stared at him attempting to gauge his thoughts. Like always he gave nothing away.

 

You shook your head hoping to be as convincing as you could and answered, "Not often."

 

He set his fork down, his eyes staring holes into your own, "Please do not lie to me."

 

You sighed turning away from him as your felt your throat weaken. Of course you had to be emotional.

 

Taking a few seconds, you turned back to him. "These days? Maybe once a month. Being out of the house has made it easier on our relationship. He still has opinions on things which is what we end up arguing over most of time," you rolled your eyes, moving the food on your plate around.

 

Levi nodded slowly, "How long has it been going on?"

 

You closed your eyes at his question... it had been nearly 4 years ago and still you remember every detail as if it was yesterday... maybe I really do need a therapist. Ann would gloat at you agreeing with her words.

 

You opened your eyes to see Levi looking at you with nothing but patience, so you spoke.

 

"Well, I was 17 and anna was 13 when mom left us. She cheated on my dad, they got a divorce and she and left anna and I for a year. She went zero contact, and we had no idea if she was dead or alive, what she was doing, and where she was. During that time, our dad was dealing with the divorce in a not so healthy way. He took it out on us, not super bad but sometimes he would compare me to mom. He said I would turn out just like her and he spent many nights talking to Ann and I about the way mom treated him and about how she had abandoned us. Ann hated mom for a long time because of this. Of course, we did our best to help him... and then he took up drinking. He was never physical, just very cruel with his words. One day... I got tired of him treating us like his therapists and from then on Ann became his favorite child."

 

Your story like past came to an end and you took the first bite of your meal as Levi took in your story. You could see his hands tense and his jaw locked.

 

He bit the inside of his cheek as he looked up now staring you in your eyes, "Y/n what was Erwin talking about? When he said he had to step in."

 

Your eyes flashed in embarrassment, "Oh yeah that. Dad got upset because Ann took up for me over something stupid and he laid into her. I mean he was telling her to shut up and I snapped. I told him he couldn't talk to her like that, how he had the issue with me and not to take it out on her. I was 19 and he took my car away and he shut down my phone," you chuckled at the memory, "and that punishment didn't last but 3 days because I was working full time and he didn't want to have to drive me to work every day. I remember being so pissed off because after all of that... he pouted like a child for days, ignoring me until I apologized." You shook your head, your anger surfacing for a second.

 

"Sometimes he makes me so angry," You whispered as if ashamed, "and there were some days where I hated him so much. I couldn't even look at him and say 'I love you' back.... because I wasn't sure if I did."

 

You felt a hand rest on yours, but you couldn't bear to look at him because the nights previous tears were begging to be shed.

 

For the first time ever, you heard Levi apologize. Not because of something he did... but instead on behalf of your father. You shook your head, "Levi please... Don't apologize for something you haven't done. I'd ask him to apologize but he's too arrogant to think he's at fault. It's just something I'll have to live with," you turned your hand, both of your palms facing one another.

 

He gripped your hand tight. "Well, you won't have to alone, that's for sure." He squeezed your hand in his, the pressure assuring you of his words, "And for the record, I'm more apologizing for the fact I wasn't there." He lifted your hand to his chest as if holding it there would help him more.

 

You rolled your eyes attempting to fight off a smile, "It's not your fault again, I purposefully kept you out of the loop, so the first time you met him would be a neutral conversation for you."

 

"Too late for that." His lips barely lifted into a smirk, "Let's just hope your old man respects you otherwise we'll have a problem."

 

You sighed, shaking your head, "Of course we will."

 

You stood from the bar stool, prepared to put your plate away, but as always Levi took over. Without a word his eyes telling you to stay exactly where you were.

 

Afterall... cleaning was his domain, and you did really like to watch him clean.

 

 

Extra;

*kung fu panda 2 playing in the background*

*Hange, Erwin, and Ann were sitting on the couch halfway paying attention to it*

Hange: Ten bucks they're dating in the morning.

Erwin: Make it 15 and it's a deal.

Ann: Make it 50 and you're both on.

**

Levi: I do really like you but also if we confirm the dating rumors your sister gets some extra cash... which works for us both...

Y/N: Sooo are you doing this for the cash? Or because you like me?

Levi: Like is actually the biggest understatement... I love you.

Y/N: shut uppp

[charliemwrites]

Character File

Name: Rook “Duke” Alistair Aliases: Daisy Dukes, Daisy, Sunshine, Blondie

Age: 26 Gender and pronouns: AFAB using she/they Marital Status: Single Surviving family: biological father (estranged), adoptive mother, adoptive father, brother

Physical description: Standing at 5’9” (175cm) and 135lbs. (61 kilos) Rook stands tall and wiry. Though slighter than her brother, Castle Alistair, she’s still packed with muscle that is carried primarily in her thighs and abdomen. Her hair is strawberry blond, cut into a medium length bob – though it curls quite a bit. She is often seen with several pins and clips in her hair trying to keep it back from her face. Her eyes are green and large, set in a round face that makes her look young for her age. She had braces in her early teens to straighten her teeth.

Identifying/Unusual features:

Light freckles across her nose and forehead

No facial scarring

Tattoos: A daisy behind her right ear A simplified castle outline on her bicep (for her brother) A stylized sun on her left shoulder, crawling across one side of her chest and up her neck Binary for “service” on her forearm

Several burn scars on her hands, wrists, and arms

A birthmark on the bottom of her right foot that few people have ever seen

Special file note: Rook holds the records for most and dumbest injuries on base. Often the smallest and most unexpected incidents have led to a medbay visit. She is often seen with bandages, bruises, scrapes, and scratches. Thankfully, she is a good patient and most of the medical staff enjoy her cheerful demeanor.

Early Childhood:

Rook’s earliest memory is her older brother walking her to preschool. He was sharing an orange with her, carefully peeling off bits of pith for her to munch on.

While he, Helena, and Clancy are technically her cousin, aunt, and uncle respectively, she has always considered them her immediate family. She only met her biological father once when she was twelve and was not impressed.

Her childhood was filled with laughter and love, though she often felt oddly displaced. Helena and Clancy were much older and had never planned on a second child – never mind a girl. And her brother ended up shipping off to college when she was only five. He visited when he could, but she spent a lot of time on her own or unsupervised when she hit eight years old.

She was very close with Helena, the two of them playing the radio loud to sing along while they did chores around the farm. Rook absolutely adored her mother, and to this day dreams of her peach cobbler when she’s away from home. As a result, Rook picked up her love of clothes with interesting prints and bright colors.

Her relationship with Clancy was not strained, but not as easy as with Helena. Of course, he loved his adopted daughter, he just wasn’t sure what to do with her beyond that. Oftentimes, it led to him treating her like Castle, though her flightier and more energetic nature made some of those lessons take differently.

Rook was often praised for being an inquisitive and intelligent child – though some of her teachers found the constant barrage of questions to be disruptive. Somewhat unexpectedly, she excelled in math from an early age, followed quickly by the sciences.

In middle school, the blond farmgirl jokes began. Unlike her brother’s quick temper to defend himself and his family, Rook usually took the route of laughing along with them. (That said, nothing stopped her from pushing a girl down for trying to step on a frog one rainy April day.) This developed into a tendency to hide behind a ditzy persona, which felt safe and easy.

In high school, she took a special liking to physics and engineering. Focused more on schoolwork and helping around the farm, she didn’t date much. (That said, anyone with an interest in her had to debate the merits of her marine brother coming home to meet them.) She much preferred learning to code online and rescuing strays that happened across the farm – much to her parents’ chagrin.

Throughout her life, Castle was her role model. In her childhood, he seemed like a third parent, but as she got older, their relationship developed into a more typical brother-sister bond. Even so, she needed no proud rambles from her parents to look up to him.

So, as her future began to loom, and decisions became necessary, she followed a similar path to him. Rook enrolled in the ROTC program at the same college he attended – though she chose a double major in engineering and computer science that set her down a different road.

Military Career:

Alistair’s early military years in the Air Force are riddled with ups and downs. Intelligent, positive, and respectful, she was well-liked by both superiors and comrades. Quick to finish tasks, solve problems, and aid others. That said, she had something of a disciplinary record for small but repetitive issues. Uniform violations, minor misconduct (forgetting to salute officers or speaking out of turn), and general… regulatory issues.

While not headed for dishonorable discharge, she was dodging demerits and often faced disciplinary action. However, upon finding a major leak in one of their information networks, she came to the attention of one Kate Laswell.

Laswell, impressed with her intelligence and work ethic, found that her military-defying eccentricities were easy to overlook considering her benefit to the military. Alistair was soon transferred under Laswell’s direct purview to aid different missions and teams as a “hacker” and engineer. While Alistair remains something of an oddball, she and Laswell have built a solid working relationship.

(During her employ with a certain Shadow Company during her Air Force days, Alistair earned the callsign “Duke” – a derivation of Daisy Dukes due to Alistair’s appearance and farming background.)

[fishenjoyer1]

I'm just starting to get into marine bio, and I found your blog today and I love it so much!! Do you have any recommendations of where I can learn stuff? (I hunger for fish knowledge)

It's always wonderful when someone else starts getting into marine bio, I'm honored to share resources!

Texts:

I personally learned a lot of what I now know from a series of textbooks I've picked up over the years, here some of my personal favorites!

Biological Oceanography An Introduction by Carol M. Lalli & Timothy R. Parsons: I personally found this textbook wonderful! Written very clearly and easy to understand, and contains summaries at the end of each chapter. Here is my favorite used&new book sellers results for this book. Here is the book on internet archive.

Marine Ecology: Processes, Systems, and Impacts by Michael J. Kaiser, Martin J. Attrill, & Simon Jennings: Covers much of the same things as biological oceanography, but valuable on its own. Here is the link to buy a copy for cheap. Here is the book on internet archive.

Limnology: Lake and River Ecosystems by Robert G. Wetzel: I personally found this the most dull textbook of my life, but, it is written very well. The chapters end with summaries also, which makes it easier to study, and this book is rather well renowned in freshwater studies. Here to buy a copy on my favorite book website. Here to read on internet archive (I'm relatively uncertain that its inaccessible) so Here is a preview on google books. (maybe I'll find the time to scan my copy and put it in a google drive)

The Diversity Of Fishes: Biology, Evolution, and Ecology by Douglas E. Facey, Brian W. Bowen, Bruce B. Collette, & Gene S. Helfman: I adore this textbook, it is easy to read and comprehend, a personal favorite. Not only that, it is wonderful for understanding fish. Here you can buy it (it's a bit pricey, so I recommend just using the internet archive). Here you can find it on internet archive.

Methods for Fish Biology by Stephen Midway, Caleb Hasler, and Prosanta Chakrabarty: A bit dense and hard to read, but it's a wonderful text on understanding how to do research, and how a lot of farming and understanding of fish is done. Here to buy it. Here to read it on internet archive

All the other textbooks I own are about marine mammals, so I'll recommend them if asked, but you seem more interested in fish and aquatic environments.

Audio:

I personally struggle to listen to informational audio and podcasts, so this section is a bit threadbare

The Marine Mammal Science podcoast by The Society for Marine Mammalogy here

Marine Biology in 5 minutes podcast here

Oceanlovers podcast here

The Deep-Sea Podcast here

Video:

I have some great recommendations I'm a personal fan of here!

I personally really enjoy Natural World Facts, he has some wonderful playlists and documentaries on the deep sea, different environments, animals, and ecosystems there.

MBARI (the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) Has wonderful videos with their discoveries and research,

The Nautilus live, which does frequent live streams as they're exploring the ocean with ROVs and a running commentary from the staff!

The octopus lady does some good work, I haven't watched the most of her but she's relatively fun to put in the background to just generally learn about things marine

I also enjoy the work of AVNJ Fish Biologist, who does a lot less serious scientific videos, but he also has a video series on ichthyology I'm fond of so, check that out here!

Other:

when doing fish of the day, some sources have continually come back again and again, I'll list these off first.

Wikipedia: I personally find the wikipedia is a good resource, but it never gives the full picture when your trying to learn. Do not base your knowledge only on wikipedia, i recommend trying to read through some of the sources that wikipedia has listed on a topic, and if you are new to a subject I suggest trying to find introductory textbook before plunging in head first. I find that wikipedia is wonderful at convincing you that you know what its talking about, as it's very easy to just read without knowing the definition for a small handful of words. But, you will quickly come to realize at some point or another that you understood less than you think. As much as it is a wonderful tool, don't use it exclusive well learning

WoRMS- World Registrar of Marine Species has basic info and distinguishes between species, along with some good research, I'd recommend checking them out!

Fishbase! contains good information on most fish

.gov websites, and websites that align with governments across the world can be trusted for fish purposes mostly, the NOAA is a great resource for learning and searching info on animals, as is the Monterey Bay Aquarium

If you're looking to find a scientific paper, I recommend searching on google scholar, as it will show you which you can access the pdf of without paying.

And, if your looking to come into contact with papers you just cant seem to find the pdf of, I would recommend Scihub other than scihub, you can also look for any number of things locked behind a paywall with this niffty website I found ! A lot of resources there.

That's everything I can think of! Have a good time learning ! :)

[levirgil420]

It terrified me (Ryusui Nanami x GN reader fluff)

Request: Nope

Pairing: Ryusui Nanami x GN reader fluff

Synopsys: Being sick because you overworked yourself is not what you had in mind for today but it brings something very nice too with a certain captain.

Tw: angsty, bit of hust comfort, talk about being sick but nothing bad

Note: My phone died during my holiday and I bought a notebook to write this so I know that it's not the best. I hope you will like it :) I love Dr. Stone and the new season was amazing, can't wait for the next one !!

Ryusui never felt fear, he was the greediest man alive ! Why does he need to feel fear ? Even during the petrification, he was not afraid for his futur. But he met you and he fall hard. When Senku and the other "woke" him up and his eyes met yours...Ryusui knew he desires you.

Before the petrification, you were a student in marine biology and you were friend with Senku, Taiju and Yuzuhira. After your depetrification, you tried your best to help everyone with your science and knowledge. But you missed studying what you love so when the decision to build a ship was made, you were more than thrilled to start the constuction. You too, when Ryusui was depetrified, find him attractive rapidly after your eyes contact.

With his passion for sailling and yours for marine biology, the txo of you bounded quickly and in between your stories in the sea and helping Senku with the ship, everyone notice the simple flirt with each other.

You liked Ryusui and was not a surprise when you realized it. Maybe he was the greediest man but he was kind (especially with Suika), always wanted to help and Ryusui was determided thanks to his desire for everythings (plus he was handsome which didn't help your crush on him).

But builiding the ship was more important so you put mind and body literally on it to distract yourself. You redoubled your efforts and worked even harder when the sonar was ready to be used making you forget sometimes to eat or sleep. Senku was a little bit concerned for your health: being sick in the Stone World was not easy even with the sulfa drug. After a sort of little talk and a lot of apology from you, things became normal again. However, a few weeks later, you started again, neglejecting your health with too much work. Your skin your skin looked paler and paler and your eyebags became more visible. Ryusui was worried sick for you and was always here asking you if you were okay but you always brushed it off by saying thats it's just a cold, that it wil pass and to not worry about you.

Somedays later, you were with Taiju and Suika picking up plants and fruits, you knew it was not a good idea with your blurry vision and your tiredness but like always, you wanted to help. The sun was high and you felt weird

Suika: Are you okay Y/n ? You seem a bit lost...

Y/n: Yeah don't worry, I'm fin-

Suddenly a light headed feeling came over you and your vision worsened.

Suika: Y/n ?

Y/n: Don't worry, I just need a break, the heat's not helping.

Your head began to hurt really badly and the dizzy feeling wouldn't go away. Suika was worried now and before she could call Taiju, you fainted. Taiju, who heard the sound of your fall, ran over your uncunscious body and tried to "woke you up".

Taiju: Y/n ! Y/N !!

*in the Ishigami village*

Taiju: SENKUU !!

Everyone in the village turned their heads when they heard the panicked scream of their friend. Taiju were carrying you bridal style ,with Suika who were crying not far behind and ran quickly toward his geen haired friend. Senku was with the others Wise Commanders talking about all their unfinished tasks when Taiju arrived in front of them in a hurry with you in his arms, still uncunscious. Every eyes widened seeing in what state you were and quickly went over him.

Gen: What happened ?

Taiju: I don't know! They were with Suika and then they were on the floor unresponsive !

Suika arrived with Kohaku and after taking breathes to calm herself, she began telling what happened with a little bit more details.

Senku: Bring them to the laboratory. Now.

All of your friends followed Taiju toward the labo where he laid you on the bed and left you with Senku's science.

However, one person didn't follow, Ryusui couldn't move or speak, allof his body was shaking and his mind was blank. The only thing he could see was you, unresponsive and unconscious in the arms of Taiju...A shiver rolled down his spine and he knex: Ryusui never felt fear until now. The tought of loosing you terrified him and he hated it...He was so lost in his mind that he didn't feel Francois's presence and Suika taking his hand until she squeezd it.

Suika: Don't worry, the will be fine...They said in themsleves.

Francois: I have to agree with Miss Suika. Y/n is strong and it's not that that will stop them to follow their dream of navigation.

It gave him a little bit of hope and Ryusui squeezed back Suika's embrace and nodded to his chef.

Ryusui: Yeah, thank you.

Suika gave him a kind smile before she let him go to the lab with the others

Chrome: So it's not like Ruru's illness ? Because if it is, we need to give them the medecine.

Senku: No need. They just have an high fever because they overworked themselves. Y/n need to rest , take more care of their health and stop overso everything idiot.

Kohaku: So they will be fine ?

Senku: Didn't you listen Lioness ? Yes they're going to be fine.

Kohaku: I'm not a lioness !!

Gen: Okay, maybe we need to leave dear Y/n rest but leaving them alone might be not a great idea...What if their condition worsens ? Someone need to be with them.

Every person in the room knew what Gen was doing and decided to play along.

Chrome: Yeah good idea but with Senku we need to do some...science stuffs.

Chrome's acting was not the best and they all knew that. So they all gave one by one arguments and reasons to why they can't watch you to cover it.

Gen: And you dear Ryusui ? You're the only one who is not occupied. You could be with Y/n !

Everyone nodded their heads before hurrying out, leaving Ryusui and you alone without him saying anything. He was not dumb, knowing the mentalist, Gen saw right through him and knew about the desire he has for you. Ryusui sighed with a smilebefore entering more in the lab to take care of you the best he can.

*Night time*

Your eyes fluttered open, trying to adjust to the small light of a candle. You tried to get yourself into a sitting position but stopped quickly and laid down again immediately because of a terrible headache. You let out a grunt of pain before bringing your hand on your forehead.

Ryusui: Y/n ! You're finally awake ! How are you feeling ? Do you need anything?

You didn't know at first that Ryusui was there with you, to lost to even know were you where...Closing you eyes again, you turn your head to face him and open them to see a soft but worried smile on his face.

Y/n: What happened? Why I am in the lab ?

Ryusui: Well, you overworked yourself to the point of sickness and exhaustion so when you were with Taiju and Suika picking up plants, you fainted and Taiju took you here.

You let the information sunk in your head,making a note to yourself to thanks Taiju and Suika tomorrow.

Y/n: And why are you here ? Not that I don't appreciate it ! But Senku or maybe Chrome would have been the one I expect when I wake up sick.

Ryusui: You're doubting my medecine skills ?!

Y/n: You're a sailor !!

Ryusui: And ??

The captain made a false hurt expression to be dramatic, making you chuckle. You let out another grunt of pain because of your laugh which alerted Ryusui who quickly replaced the cold clothes on your forehead and neck that fell when you "sit up". Your checks which were already red because of your fever, reddened more because of (or thanks to) the proximity between the two of you.

His touches were gentle but you noticed that his hands were shaking slightly. Your eyes widened a little when you saw, right after, the worried frown on his face. You never saw him this scared,not even in the storm. He was always so confident (and greedy) that being the reason of his fear made you feel a bit guilty. A weird yet comfortable silence was in the room before you took Ryusui's hand to stop him.

Y/n: What's going on? I can tell that you're not okay.

Ryusui didn't respond immediately and a more saddened expression came on his handsome eyes. He was struggling to find the right answer and in the same time to maybe express his feelings for you. With this misadventure, the blond haired man knew that he needed to tell you before it's too late.

Ryusui: I...I was terrified. When I saw you unconscious in the arms of our friend my heart skipped a beat and not a good one. You were not moving, only your chest was and it seemed like you were on the verge of death. I couldn't move, fear overtook my body when everyone went to the lab to help Senku. I thought that we were loosing you, that I was loosing you and it terrified me...

Y/n: You didn't loose me Ryusui, I'm here and alive. Okay I'm not in my best shape but I'm not dead.

To accentuate your point, you out his hand on your (rapid) beating heart. You were now blushing hard and when he looked at you, you saw a faint redness on his checks making him more beautiful and less sad.

Ryusui: There also something else I need to tell you. It's maybe not the right time but it's very important.

You nodded your head for him to continue.

Ryusui: I love you Y/n, a lot. The thought of living without you scare me but not saying my desire for you before it's to late is scarier ! I love you since the first eye contact and days after days my desire grew.

All of your face was deep crimson red now, thanks to his confession, with a happy and soft smile on your lips. Squeezing his hand which was still on your heart, Ryusui looked at with hope squeezing your hand back.

Y/n: I...I desire you too Ryusui, since the first day and forever.

Your shaky confession made his eyes widened but a big smile appeared on his lips. Ryusui laughed of relief with his iconic laugh making you joining him with your own soft laugh to not hurt your throat or head again, still feeling sick.

The comfortable silence made you yawn so you slowly closed your eyes feeling rather tired.

Ryusui: When everything will be over. I will like take you on a date.

You smiled for yourself, still with you closed eyes.

Y/n: Yeah, I will like that if you do.

It was his turn to smile

Ryusui: I want to kiss you

You were already fast asleep when he said it so with a found look, Ryusui softly kissed your hand (still locked with his), listening to each breath you take, comforting himself that you're alive and now his.

*the next morning*

Everyone were relieved to see you in a better shape than yesterday and this time, Senku made it clear that you are not leaving your bed for 3 days even if you told him that you were ready to help again.

_____________________________________________

Thank you again for reading this fic ! I hope that you liked it !

Sorry for my grammar errors

English is not my first language:)

[ilovecoelacanths]

This is a story about a book that changed my life.

It's also about how amazing libraries and authors and people who care about sharing cool things with curious kids are. Also, fish (especially fish). It's kind of different than what I usually post but it's been bouncing around in my head basically since I started this blog so here you go, I hope you like it. This is the reason I love coelacanths so much, and why I think everyone should know about how amazing they are.

When I was little, I loved going to the library. My little brother and I would pick out way too many books and the librarians always had to come over to override the 30 book limit at the checkout stand (they pretty much knew us on sight and were ready to override it as soon as we started heading over to check out). After we finished getting our library books, our mom also let us look through the free pile that was in the foyer on the way out. It was mostly old library books that the librarians just needed to clean out, but there were a lot of books that people brought when they cleaned out their personal collections too (especially teachers, and there were a bunch of books with old school library stamps inside). The free pile didn't usually have a lot of things that interested me, but one day when I was poking through it I found a book called Fossil Fish Found Alive: Discovering the Coelacanth, by Sally M. Walker.

I loved it. I had never even heard of coelacanths before, but this book fascinated me. It told the story of an incredible animal, long thought to be extinct, that had somehow survived for millions of years! It was nothing like any fish I had ever learned about before. I already had a casual interest in marine biology that I can thank PBS Kids and Wild Kratts for (particularly their episode on sperm whales and giant squid, I loved that episode), but this book took it to a new level. I wanted to be a marine biologist so I could learn more about coelacanths.

Like a lot of things when you're 7, that was a phase. Unlike a lot of phases, this one I came back to. After taking a break from my dreams of being a marine biologist to experience the hell that is middle school, one day I pulled a book off my shelf. I hadn't read it in a while. When I picked it up again, I remembered how incredible this animal was, and how much it had inspired me when I was younger, and those thoughts of becoming a marine biologist started to return. I'm in college now studying marine science, and I brought the book with me to school, where it sits next to two other science books that have inspired me (My Friends the Wild Chimpanzees by Jane Goodall and The Sea Around Us by Rachel Carson).

Earlier this year, I was thinking about how much this one book had changed my life and I wondered if I could find Ms. Walker and thank her. I knew she had many other science books for younger audiences, and even another book about coelacanths, so I was sure she had a website of some kind, and I was right. So I found her contact page and wrote her an email explaining the impact her book had had on my life, and thanking her for it. And to my surprise, she responded! She was very kind and we sent a few emails back and forth. She gave me some excellent advice and even told me about some of the people she contacted while researching her book, including Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer herself, the person who rediscovered the coelacanth when it was thought to be extinct! I'll never forget how she took the time to respond to me and how encouraging she was.

But Ms. Walker isn't the only one I have to thank for pointing me toward the path I'm on right now. If I hadn't already loved reading, if I hadn't seen any show or video to make me interested in marine biology, if the library didn't have a pile of books for anyone to take home, if I had lost that book during one of our many moves as a kid, I don't know what I'd be doing right now. There were a lot of things that happened to make it so that I found this book, but I'm glad for every single one of them. They led to me learning about an incredible animal and changed the course of my life. And now, I love coelacanths.

[saintbleeding]

i got this funny impression the first time i listened to tma

i mean i got several, which resulted in acute confusion between 91-111 when i realised that gerry, michael shelley, and mike crew were three distinct people (i’d somehow conflated son-of-the-bookshop-lady and lightning-guy, then the two michaels)

but the one that really stuck out to me upon completion the first time was i’d picked up the idea that peter was evan’s dad, and it was such a confident belief that i was actually quite shocked when i realised that it wasn’t actually canonically the case. and my brain kind of didn’t give it up, and i realised that it could actually be possible? like, would it be a bit unusual for someone to give a statement and not mention a child and their other parent? yeah, potentially. would it be weird for peter lukas to be so disaffected by the fact that he fathered a son who died young that, if it didn’t relate to his compelled narrative, he wouldn’t mention it? less weird.

i wouldn’t put it past peter to add little bits of isolation to his life wherever possible--and it sounds pretty on brand of him to tepidly develop a relationship with someone, have a kid, and then pop into the kid’s life just enough that his absence is felt. but what if it kind of backfired? what if the kid really ended up missing his father, and wondering what he was doing with all those months at sea? what if that was, for example, the thing that got the kid into marine biology, then science, then when he went away to uni the kid realised he really liked having friends? what if he knew enough about his family, his father’s family, that he knew he wanted to be an antidote to whatever his relatives were doing to the world, and he therefore tried every day never to let anyone he met feel isolated? what if he and naomi got chatting not just because they were mutually intrigued, but because evan refused to leave anyone forsaken?

i’m not suggesting peter would do something to ensure the death of his own kid. i am suggesting i’d believe that he wouldn’t do a great deal to stop such a thing happening. i am suggesting he’d probably consider an absence like that rather an impressive offering to his god. I am suggesting he may not mention his own son without a--literally--compelling reason to do so.

[ryusuisloveinterest]

That’s illogical! Senku Ishigami x Reader

Hello girlypops! I wanted to write again so this is what I came up with. It’s a little long but I hope you enjoy. This is technically in Dr Stone 4d science but it doesn’t really have anything to do with the story. Anyway I hope you like it! Also, friendly reminder that requests are open!

Thats’s illogical! Senku x reader

It’s late at night when Senku finally leaves the lab. He’s exhausted, and he doesn’t think he has the energy to drive home. As he’s walking towards his car, he notices the coffee shop across from the lab. They can’t still be open, right? Despite for some caffeine, he walks over to the café.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You finish sweeping the lobby of the coffee shop. Sighing you look at the time. “One minute left until closing.” You stretch as you go to the back to put up the broom. As you take a quick breather you hear the bell to the door. Are you serious? You go back to the front and put on a fake smile. “Welcome in! Is there anything I can help you with tonight?” As you look at the customer, you immediately know who it is. There’s no way…it can’t really be… “Oh thanks. You’re not about to close right? I can leave if you need-“ “I’m Senku Ishigami…” Senku’s eyebrow raises. “What?” You fast instantly turns red. “No! I mean y-you’re Senku Ishigami… im just, it doesn’t matter….h-how can I help you??” Senku stares at you awkwardly, but tells you his order anyway. He tries to hand you some cash but you tell him it’s on the house. “I-I already counted the till for tonight anyway…” He simply shrugs and sits in a booth, waiting for his drink. Your mind blanks as you try to remember how to make the drink. You’re so scared about your idol being right behind you that you mess up once or twice. “H-here you go…” Senku gets up and grabs it from you, telling you his thanks. He heads towards the door when you call out to him. “Y-you can stay! I-if you want!” He turns back. “But aren’t you closed?” You blush a little more, “yeah but…it’s ok if you wanna stay a little longer…” This causes Senku to blush. He doesn’t know why, but your shyness makes his heartbeat a little faster. “Sure, why not? I still have a few papers I can work on.” He takes a seat back in the booth and pulls out some work. You softly smile and begin cleaning the blenders, happy you he can be here longer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So, are you a scientist too?” Senku questions after 20 minutes of silence. You weren’t expecting him to strike a conversation, but you nod anyway. “I guess you could say that, but I don’t focus on chemistry and things along those lines. I’m more into biology, especially in marine life.” Senku smiles at your statement. “Interesting. I havent met a lot of marine biologist.” You blush a little more, happy that he acknowledged you as a real biologist. “Y’know we’re doing something with marine life in the lab.” You chuckle. “I read your paper about it. Using squid ink and turning it to fuel.” “So, you really are a fan?” He teases. Embarrassed, you turn away and finish putting away the remaining food. “C-can I show you something..?” Senku finishes the remainder of his drink and nods. “Sure, why not?” You go to the back and bring back a chunky sketchbook. You sit next to him and show him all the notes and pictures of marine animals and ecosystems. Each little page was full of color and writing. Senku smiles and giggles. “This looks really good! You know your stuff huh?” You smile. “Can I tell you my opinion on your paper?” He nods. “It’s all I wanna hear.” You talk with him for what feels like forever, first it was about the paper, then about each others day, then about anything else that came to each of your minds. After a while, you hear you phone ring. “Crap! I didn’t realize it was this late!” Quickly picking up everything you and Senku walk out together. “Well, that was fun. You’re nice to hang out with. What’s your name by the way?” “(Y/n). (Y/n) (L/n)!” “Well, I hope to see you around Dr. (Y/n).” As he walks, you call him one last time. “I-if you want, you can borrow this.” You hand him your sketchbook. He smiles even wider. “Thanks (y/n). I’ll be sure to bring it back!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, Senku sits in his lab chair, flipping through the sketchbook you lent him. He smiles at the little comments and doodles you made, laughing slightly at the random, goofy facts here and there. “Senku, did you get my email about- what’re you reading?” Xeno pops in, looking at the sketchbook. “Oh, they’re notes about marine life.” Xeno looks through the sketchbook, noticing the handwriting and drawings. “This looks like (y/n)’s book.” Xeno points out. Senku shoots him a confused look. “You know (y/n)??” Xeno laughs. “Yeah, I met her at a science competition, she was the winner with her study on stingrays.” Senku doesn’t know how to respond, he just scoffs and continues flipping through the book. This makes xeno laugh again. “What? You’re mad because I know her? Or are you being possessive?” Senku chuckles. “That’s illogical! Why would I care who she talks to?  Besides it’s not like I’m her boyfriend or anything!” This peaks Xeno’s interest. “But do you want to be?” Senku’s face reddens. “T-that’s even more illogical! I just met her yesterday! It doesn’t make any sense, being in a relationship doesn’t make any sense!” He looks down at the book again, trying to hide his red face. This makes Xeno laugh even more as he walks out. “If it matters Senku, she loves to go to the aquarium, and I heard there’s gonna be an exhibit on octopi this weekend, if you’re interested.” Xeno leaves, leaving senku alone. “Tch, like I care…” He goes to his latest experiment trying to focus. But, he can’t shake your smile out of his head. “Ugh! If she wants to see the exhibit then why not? It’s not like I’m doing it cause I wanna spend time with her, it’s just so I can learn more! It’ll help my research too!” Senku claims to himself. Xeno watches Senku walk out flustered, hearing everything he just said. “Heh, whatever you say Senku…”

[berie-kat]

Lore (part 2/2)!

Ale Story

Flying out of his mother , being named after his mother's favorite beverage, and having a strong spirit, Ale was born. He grew up on the seas with his parents who were captains of a pirate ship.

He lived an adventurous life on the sea. Seeing new places and exploring the unknown sea banks, Ale grew a great love for the ocean and its inhabitants. He grew with a crew that taught him everything and learned self defense.

He never learned to fight with swords because he never grew to enjoy the dark sides of being in a pirate crew. He instead enjoyed learning of life in the waters and helping keep the ship clean. Being good parents they accepted Ales' decisions and allowed him to live a peaceful life of no blood and gave him notebooks and pens to write and began learning his love for the ocean.

Ale soon learned to also enjoy mechanics and started to collect scraps to make all kinds of things. Creating fins for sea creatures that lost one. Helping ecosystems grow, he grew to want to help the waters in any shape and form.

At the age of 16 something happened that changed his life. It started after they were ambushed by other pirates in the middle of the night. He was on deck with his parents when someone yelled at the ship coming towards them.

His parents shouted to him to go into his quarters to wait out the attack. Before he could go they were already under attack. Ale was scared in the middle of the chaos and looked all around.

He then saw his mother being knocked down and an enemy above him. In sheer desperation to save his mother he ran and tackled the enemy down. He tried to hold the man down but he was overpowered,he looked to his mother but she was already on her feet fighting another. She yelled for him and told him to not give up.

When his enemy stood above him, and held a sword out. Ale kicked him in the shin and grabbed the sword away from the man. With shaking hands he stood up and held the sword pointed at the other.

The man was angry and got up and charged at Ale. They both were in the struggle trying to grab the sword.

In the end Ale won the struggle and in a panic he stabbed the man in the chest. He was in shock at what he did and stared at the other who was shocked as well, before falling to the floor. Ale fell as well and pushed himself away from the man crying. In agony the Man pulled out the sword from his chest and threw it at Ale. He finally collapsed onto the ground staring at Ale blankly.

Ale only could stare back in tears. He repeated apology after apology to this man he never met, but just killed. Before the other passed he said the words it's his fault, never closing his eyes he kept on staring at Ale even after death. All Ale could do was stare back, not being able to move. Not hearing the yells for him.

He hadn’t realized he had been picked up and moved to somewhere else. All he could see were those eyes staring at him in hatred.

After that Ale refused to speak of the event, and hated eye contact ever since. He began to hate being on the ship and barely left his quarters. After a year he told his parents he wanted to leave the ship, and that he wasn’t happy there.

They accepted his decision and helped him to move to land. He decided to move to London and continue to study marine bio engineering . He felt safer to study there than on that ship so he began to deep dive and found more interesting studies of mythical sea creatures that he wished to study more and create new machines.

One day, when he was found out for studying rogue science subjects and was being chased. He met a man that introduced him to a society, a place where he could be surrounded by people like him that loved science and hoped to create new ideas.

Still he was very indecisive at joining because he didn’t know if he could handle so many people and all those people staring and wanting to talk to him. Jekyll, hearing of his struggle, decided to give him something to help.

Feeling a heavy metal dropped onto him. He looked up to see Jekyll gave him a Scuba Helmet. Jekyll told him that this could help him. No one could stare him in the eyes and he didn’t have to stare back. He felt safe in the helmet and thanked Jekyll for the gift.

He soon joined the society with his helmet and his confident personality back. Growing taller and stronger from working and building in a community he loved, Ale became a loved person in the society. All those who would need help Ale landed a hand.

He’s not great at reading rooms or understanding people’s feelings, but he’s loved even for his unusual personality.

I love him so much, such a smart dumb man <3

Thank you for reading this, Im not a writer so if it’s not perfect I apologize Im trying my best :)

Hopefully I can post more of them if you guys like to see more of them.

Kay bye!!

[chromatic-lamina]

chapter 1081 spoilers—okay, angst is fun and all but...

Shachi literally means orca in Japanese. Ikkaku means narwhal. They can dive deep (Narwhals, deeper than most submarines go, I think) and survive. Penguins are pretty good underwater for a while (though I don't know about depth). The ocean is the home of sea urchins and sea angels (Uni and Clione). And have we forgotten how hardcore Penguin and Shachi went here?:

And do you think that Jean Bart looks a little fishman here? ( A little Namur-like).

Now, I don't know about snow geese, but we'll give Hakugan some magical properties. So while it is heartbreaking that the Polar Tang

will no longer sail the seas (and, yeah, the boys had had it forever, but this is the sub's own Going Merry moment, perhaps), I think we should believe Bepo here:

where he urges Law to have faith in the hardiness of his North Blue crew in the depths of the ocean. His concern is more with Law (but we know he'll be okay):

Bepo urges Law not to die, but the Hearts will continue to overcome. I don't know that they'll be captured either, but they must've almost escaped because Jean Bart was on land, right? In chapter 1064:

But look at this instruction (also from 1064):

where Law urges Penguin and Shachi into the water. The Hearts are fine, but I understand the angst (it's glorious, isn't it?!). I think Law's worried, obviously, but I also think he picked his crew and mode of transport for a reason beyond just remaining hidden.

But, the Polar Tang:

the Victoria Punk

the Jewelry Margerhita?

Although, the Wiki says they don't know what happened to it after Bonney was captured by Blackbeard way back when, but in Egghead Jinbei does ask her:

where her ship and crew is. She states that her ship (which might be the Jewelry Margherita) was eaten by the monsters (controlled by Lilith, right?) outside of Egghead, and that she came alone.

The wiki says: (according to Vivre Card - One Piece Visual Dictionary (Card #0511), Information about Bonney is revealed), that:

Bonney seems to prioritize her own safety over her crew's as she managed to escape Marine detainment but chose not to rescue her subordinates.

That's stark contrast to Law, and we've mostly seen her operate alone, but I'm not gonna believe the Vivre cards just yet.

Also, Kid's obviously alive if Law is and if their losses were similar in wording and visuals. I think Kid's crew have saved him, if not Shanks' crew.

BUT, once Law recovers, he'll not be sequestered in a cell for ten years before he becomes relevant again (poor Kid. Damn!).

As @purplehairedwonder pointed out, the Polar Tang was carrying Law's poneglyph copies, and I bet that the crew is carrying them. Hope so. He'd be wise enough to have them waterproofed. BUT it makes more narrative sense to have them destroyed.

Now, someone was talking about how a Klabautermann is only seen when a ship is doomed (this wikipedia article supports it, but that's as far as my sources go) and therefore they didn't include images/stories/prompts about it for the Polar Tang. I can't remember who it was! Ahh, well it seems that the Klabautermann of various ships have been very busy lately.

Kuzan, too. Kuzan is cool (haha). I'm glad we saw him. And the dialogue with the Blackbeard pirates and Kuzan. OH, I almost forgot, this angst:

where Blackbeard taunts Law with the fact (yes, fact!) that there are a hundred pirates on Pirate Island still without their hearts, due to Law, and BB would be thrilled to punish Law for the fact, can't help but stir the whump-writer's heart (I'm sorry, Law).

AND, Koby and Law were in cahoots in some way, I'm sure of it (probably be disproven). Something similar to Luffy and Smoker at Alabasta, perhaps? Anyway.

Side note, do you think that Chopper used Caesar Clown's science and ego to help produce the rumble-ball like power-up he gave Bepo? If so, I wonder if this will come to play in the future when Caesar and Judge enter the fray again, if they do.

[danwhobrowses]

One Piece Chapter 1113 - Initial Thoughts

It is time

One Piece is back again and the big announcement is almost underway. The Gorosei are circling though, much of the Straw Hats are cornered, will the revelation turn the tide?

Let's find out

Spoilers for the Chapter, Support the Official Release too!

A chess-themed colour spread this time; Robin playing chess with the crew as chess pieces

Contrary to the message the King should not be the attacking piece but other than that I did find it funny that Usopp is a Bishop with a bow and arrow, this cleric does harm!

Also lil Chopper pawns!

Picking up where we left off, Markus Mars has been stopped in awe of a sight in Punk Records

The remains of Vegapunk's humungous brain, as big or maybe even bigger than a giant, kept in a pod and still working even after his death

Mars does wonder if this is more Vegapunk's true self, which I guess if it has his brain it's probably the main part that's biologically living

People around the world brace themselves though

Syrup Village! Kaya, Merry and the old Usopp Pirates get a cameo

Despite her wealth being enough for Kuro to plan a murder/retirement spree, they do not have a Video Den Den Mushi

Though it seems like it's more size than price, and Kaya is already keen to hear what Vegapunk is saying, given his role in the medical field

Also lil' Merry details on the Den Den Mushi

The Marines are monitoring it too

Laboon and Crocus cameo!

And we even get to go to Baldimore, birthplace of Vegapunk

Some dialogue from the group that found Franky during the separation too

'I heard he's turned himself into a ship now' XD because of the bounty poster, and the bad timeline SBS image maybe, though I still think we could in the future get a Sunny mecha

Also got Chopper's bird and medic island listening in

The tribespeople even know about Vegapunk, they call him a 'king of modern science'

Even despite the Garp and SWORD attack, some pirates from Fullalead are listening in - some still wanna fight each other though

Mars tries to stamp out the Den Den Mushi, but it's of course a fake! It shatters to reveal just another regular Den Den Mushi

Fooled again motherfucker!

Vegapunk does introductions once more but now everyone wants him to get on with it XD

For the most part the more obscure world shots seem somewhat familiar, I couldn't tell what the rainy place was but it could be Water 7, the other one looked a bit familiar, the Longarm place looks like to have Brook's old talent agents too

But this campfire one, a child is hushed back to sleep by their likely mother, they're in tipi tents, what's interesting is the other person there, almost like Oda's pulling something sneaky

Through their collective telepathy, Mars announces his failure, it was a decoy so they have no leads

They wonder what Vegapunk intends to say, fearing that he'll carry on what Clover started before he was silenced

Back to Sanji and he hears a woman's scream

Bonney is being targeted by V. Nusjuro, Franky standing between them but Sanji demands to be the white knight

He jumps off the sword to kick him in the jaw

By comparison V. Nusjuro is pretty damn huge

His body sets on fire - fitting to his Yokai lore - but then the horse's head comes out to bite Sanji

Lots of crackling of bones, I wonder if his Healing Factor is still a thing

As Oimo and Kashii tackle V. Nusjuro (about the same size as them), Vegapunk's broadcast begins, admitting to committing two grave sins

Bonney turns into a giant with her fruit to attack V. Nusjuro, who has returned to his hybrid form

Vegapunk's broadcast admits that he is likely to be executed, and that this broadcast would start when his heart has stopped

Sabaody reacts first, realising that this means Vegapunk is dead

Duval has trouble processing this, since the news said that he was a hostage for the Straw Hats

Caesar's also mad, he and Judge went through that whole cover story alliance for nothing, so now they can promptly fuck off

And Morgans is angry because Vegapunk is giving BIG NEWS without him like it's not in his name

Interestingly, Vegapunk is quick to state that his killers should not be portrayed as 'evil' - because they're looking pretty damn evil to me

It seems maybe this is because he expects Luffy to have been pinned as to blame for his death, though it could be scanlations saying 'him'

Saturn faces off with the Labophase group, demanding they move away

Saturn and Robin however recognize one another, Robin from his voice back in Ohara and Saturn by her image

Seems Saturn blames Akainu directly for Robin's escape, I mean he did blow up the hostage ship but still, there were more marines out there

He goes to attack Robin, so all the other Straw Hats go into protection mode

Brook cuts a few limbs, but worryingly Chopper blocked some with his Guard Point - those limbs are poisonous remember? Though it's impressive that he could suppress a claw that could go straight through Kuma

Nami also remembers that she can use Zeus to block attacks

Mars is still on recon, but his senses can't pick up any 'telepathic waves' - wonder if that's a Haki feat or something relative to the Gorosei's shared thoughts?

York is also having trouble figuring out where the Stella would've put it, since her position as a Celestial Dragon is on the line

Vegapunk's about to deliver his mission statement, which is putting the Gorosei into a panic

Mars considers blowing up the entire place, but Saturn and Warcury are weighing it against the possible losses; men, equipment, and any chance of recreating the Mother Flame

Wait. What?

"Our World...is going to sink into the ocean!"

Well you can't deny it: Global Warming is Real.

It's not just Water Seven and Aqua Laguna then, it's all going to sink, there's a lot of thematic consequences to that when you think about it.

Did the World Government ostracize the Fish-Men because of this? Knowing that they would inherit the world? Does this have any connection to Devil Fruits and why the Ocean really saps their strength? Did the ancient kingdom like Old Wano sink to the bottom of the sea?

It begets a lot of questions, in true Oda fashion.

The rest of the chapter was a lot more jam-packed than the last, even without Luffy. The carried tension of the announcement is followed by Saturn and V. Nusjuro's confrontations with the crew, giants and Bonney. As expected, Sanji took on V. Nusjuro, the hit didn't seem to do much in the long term as expected, though I kinda wish Franky also got a hit in but the extent of his own injuries is worth wondering.

I'm glad the Labophase crew are stepping up against Saturn, at least until the expected arrival of Zoro and Jinbe, but it does show their furthered growth versus Enies Lobby if they can successfully repel Saturn from Robin - her injury being validated by this scene, though I still wish we saw a flashback of the Straw Hats vs Seraphim and them uncovering York as the traitor.

Still it's bad PR from the Straw Hats either way, they're likely to be accused of killing Vegapunk, who was last deemed their hostage by the fake news machine (is Morgans still going to Egghead? I mean with Vivi with him we continue to tease a reunion), and while Punk Records still has a chance to live on this is definitely going to be something each crewmate will have to re-evaluate given the bigger picture. Still, that can come after getting off the island; Edison and the Sleeping Giant are still at play after all, Stussy still needs to release the barrier, it's looking more likely that we might finish up around 1120.

Still there has to be more to the announcement, if Vegapunk was waiting for a video display it means that there are visuals to corroborate his revelation - I wonder if the Gorosei are more open to this reveal coming out than what they expected with the Ancient Kingdom reveal they destroyed Ohara for? Like did Vegapunk dupe the WG into Buster Calling Egghead over a reveal they didn't care much for? He mentioned two grave sins too so there seems to be much more to his announcement than just the opening statement.