#to the general population. didn't think it had to be spelled out

[mobiused]

may I ask your most problematic ( in like a fun or more light hearted way unless you wanna just be serious ) opinions on kpop?? I just love reading what you write.

I don't know if I have any problematic opinions... maybe either that I'm a blackjack because I think what 2ne1 is about like how they revolutionized the genre especially in comparison to SNSD and the whole "not being conventionally attractive" thing (and having YG call them ugly to their faces 247) but still being fashion icons, cool as fuck and especially with their Coachella performance, the fact they no longer gaf about the expectations of the industry. This applies doubly to Bom and CL, Bom whose medical conditions affected her appearance and CL who just doesnt care and stopped being underweight because why should she. And blackjacks still love them both and Bom is still an amazing vocalist and CL is a huge fashion icon and I think the fact they're so so inspiring kinda overrides some of the stuff they were made to do in the past that was out of their control anyway. I just remembered this really good article written in wake of 2NE1s appearance at Coachella. It's weirdly pertinent to LOONA too. I think if LOONA stop making content, that'll be the final nail in the coffin to make me completely disengage from k-pop. I really don't think I can support this industry any longer.

[child-of-the-danube]

Agatha All Along in general but especially Agatha and Rio are so fucking special to me and I cannot be normal about this...

We are finally not being queer-baited. Whether they seal it with a kiss or a flashback scene or a happy ending it doesn't matter. We have confirmation that those two women were and still are deeply in love.

It's two mature women. No weird age gap, no mentor-pupil dynamic, no disproportionate power play. I find coming out and setting into your queerness stories incredibly important but it is so refreshing to see a story where the discovery and accepting that you're queer isn't the focal point. They just are who they are and neither them nor the people around them had a big dramatic reaction to it like it's something strange or unexpected. They just ARE and my god is that beautiful to witness ❤️

Their softness, connection and care for eachother is so heartbreaking. Agatha smiling and leaning into Rio when talking about her scar cause Rio already knows, Agatha melting just by having her hair played with, Rio refusing the kiss cause that would be taking advantage of Agatha's weak moment, making sure she knows that Teen isn't her son, Rio regretting what she had to do for centuries. I am losing my mind over here

The whole cast is mature women (well, + Joe haha) which again, refreshing as hell to see. And I love how the focus isn't just completely on Agatha. We get constant glimpses into everyone. Jen saved the day twice already. Alice had her beautiful moment in e4, Teen is basically their spirit guide with his spell book. Adore that lil funky boy Agatha technically kidnapped but whom she very obviously cares for more than she would like to. Lilia is my favourite of this new found coven family. Her and Agatha are the oldest and have seen the most and suffered through so much. I think that's why she softened up to Agatha and vice versa. Beside Teen, Agatha seems to be the softest towards Lilia like when she had her hallucinations and she didn't mock her but reassured her it's ok and Lilia's constant blurting out of prophecies like "Protect Agatha" 😭😭. I could go on for ages about all of their dynamics.

And everything about the production and the actors themselves being SOOO invested into the story and clearly loving what they do.

I don't give a shit about Marvel in general but damn, they got me with this one. Canonically gay witches, Kathryn Hahn and Aubrey Plaza, musical numbers and then they throw in miss icon legend mother Patti Lupone on top of it all. I am in every possible way the target audience

The talk about how witches, monsters and in general creatures feared by the wider population are so very deeply queer coded is for another day but AAAAAAAAAAA I love everything about this show so much I might just explode

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Do we have any information on how the boys learned magic before going to college? Did any of them take lessons in magic as kids? I seem to remember someone mentioning that they were self-taught, but I'm not sure if I just imagined it

Magic lessons are not typically included in general education since the majority of people in Twisted Wonderland's population cannot use magic to begin with. You need to go to special schools like NRC or RSA and/or be extremely privileged or in special circumstances (such as a family member willing and able to teach them) to have access to formal magic education. In most cases, someone's magic can manifest but they may not have the means for materials/lessons nor the talent to be recruited to an elite institution to hone that magic. That would make most people "self-taught". I believe this is the case for characters like Epel, who have implied that they used their magic to beat others up (since he has magic as his "edge") back home for making fun of his looks. This is also the case for Deuce, who was known for summoning cauldrons to take out fellow delinquents. I'm sure there are others I could list, but I can't think of specific instances at the moment.

As for those with formal magic education or training:

Vil is the only one of the main cast that has explicitly stated that he did not have any sort of magical studies prior to NRC.

Royals like Leona (and, by extension, probably Malleus and Kalim, who is related to a royal himself) have had formal magic studies prior to NRC.

This is speculation but Jamil may have also sat in on his lessons or at least been taught some magic for bodyguarding purposes.

Riddle's mom tutored him privately.

Silver and Sebek were mentored in magic and physical combat by Lilia.

Azul studied grimoires and perfected his UM on his own, but his grandma also taught him what she knows.

Idia was already building technomantic robots before NRC, but it's not clear if he was self-taught or formally trained.

This goes into speculation territory, but the twins' parents emphasized teaching them physical self-defense. Given how protective the Tweel parents are implied to be, it is possible that they also taught their sons magical self-defense.

It can be inferred that Rollo's brother didn't have formal magic education due to his youth and/or inability to control his spells; he seemed to just spellcast for fun.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved in our archive

By Christopher Sharp

Doctor Joseph Ambani has warned that the XEC variant of Covid-19, which is currently surging across the UK, has the potential to fuel a tripledemic this winter

A doctor has issued a stark warning that the XEC variant of Covid-19 could bring back the dreaded masks and social distancing, over three years following the end of the last pandemic lockdown. Dr Joseph Ambani warned of "significant potential" for the new strain to trigger a crippling tripledemic this winter, where influenza, RSV, and Covid-19 could simultaneously skyrocket.

The healthcare expert from Glowbar LDN warned about the risks: "Unlike previous variants, XEC's immune-evasive properties could increase the risk of co-infections, posing a serious threat, particularly to individuals whose immunity has already been weakened post-Covid."

He detailed the dangers: "This could lead to not just overlapping infections but more severe illness in vulnerable populations, such as the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions."

Dr Ambani didn't stop there; he also raised the alarm that the XEC variant might push the NHS to its limits and escalate demand for ICUs (intensive care units) while possibly heralding a return to familiar Covid-era restrictions. His words spell out concern: "The strain on the NHS could be severe. With hospital resources already stretched to their limits, a tripledemic could bring services to the brink."

He then highlighted a critical issue: "What is particularly concerning is the increased demand for ICU care, as patients with compounded respiratory illnesses would require more intensive and prolonged treatment," reports the Express.

"This may disrupt not only routine care but also delay elective procedures and non-emergency treatments, creating a ripple effect throughout the healthcare system."

"Mask mandates and social distancing in high-risk settings, such as hospitals, public transport, and care homes, could be reinstated to protect the most vulnerable. Bubbling may once again be considered for at-risk individuals to minimise their exposure to multiple infections."

In light of XEC's threat, Dr Ambani urged government action: "Increased vaccination efforts, especially for flu and Covid, will be essential, and the public may need to renew their commitment to protective measures to prevent overwhelming the system."

Other healthcare experts are raising alarm bells on XEC, with the Manchester Evening News reporting insights from Dr Hellen Wall: "At the moment, it seems to be a bit more flu-like than previous iterations of Covid, with a high temperature, a cough, aching body, headache. Generally, if you've got true flu, you're bed-bound. With Covid, you might actually be quite well."

Dr Wall warned that the XEC variant's similarities to seasonal flu could lead to unintentional transmission, saying: "You might be coughing and having other symptoms, but able to go about your business – and you might be unintentionally spreading it to people who are vulnerable."

He noted that only the most severe cases are detected through hospital testing, and urged eligible individuals to get vaccinated to protect others, stating: "If you've been deemed eligible for these vaccines, it's because we think you're going to be very ill if you get these and end up in hospital."

He added: "It's about keeping that in perspective, you don't want to look back and wish you'd had the jabs."

[esamastation]

Part thirty-five of Shizuroth, aka, the SOLDIER General's Self Saving Shizun.

Ao3 link.

Previous parts: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three, thirty-four

-

Well, Sephiroth seems to be in a better mood than yesterday. Maybe he was just coming down from his… whatever it was that happened in the training room. Angeal still isn't entirely sure. Though the Turks had debriefed him and even showed him a video, it didn't make that much sense. Especially with the blood vomiting. Which Angeal still isn't entirely over, either.

But Sephiroth seems, while still not quite himself, at least cheered up. He'd relaxed in increments during their walk into the woods, and the change of environment - or most likely, leaving the camp and its staring occupants behind - made him a little less closed off.

"This place is so alive," Sephiroth comments, peering up at the leaf canopy above then. "The air is so fresh."

"Mmhmm," Angeal smiles. "A welcome change from Midgar, huh?"

From the way he's looking around them, carefully taking in everything, Sephiroth can't remember much of anything about Wutai either - it's all new to him. Seeing his fascination kind of makes Angeal want to see his take on Mideel. Or, hell, Gongaga. Sephiroth would be very entertained by the local wildlife there, going by his reactions now.

"What is this thing?" Sephiroth asks, holding up what looks like a fistful of long grass. It wiggles in his hold, little legs kicking at the air.

"Razor Weed - I think the locals call it Leg-Cutting Grass," Angeal says, leaning in to watch the spiky beast wiggling in Sephiroth's grip. "They're pretty common and can deflate truck tires."

Sephiroth turns the little monster this way and that while it makes angry noises at him. "I bet. It's it a plant or an animal?"

"Uh. I don't actually know?" Angeal offers and gives him a look. "Someone back at the camp might. All I know is that they're annoying to fight."

Sephiroth hums, considering the weed, testing the blades sticking out of its head. He seems to struggle with something before sighing. "I can't kill it, it's too cute." He sounds almost disappointed. 

"... It's just a monster?" Angeal says, giving him a weird look. "I've seen men almost lose their legs, stepping into these things."

"Sounds like their own fault," Sephiroth says and crouches down to let the angry weed go. "Off you go, little buddy."

The Razor Weed answers by trying to attack him with its grass blades, all but lunging at him. Sephiroth just snorts and flicks it into the forest with his finger. "Cute," he concludes.

Angeal scratches at the back of his head. Though low-level mobs aren't really that big of a deal, still… "We're supposed to be, ah, weeding the monster population here, you know. That includes Razor Weeds."

"It's just a little grass thing," Sephiroth says. "It barely reaches your knee!"

"They're a menace and can cast spells," Angeal points out. "Your usual Infantry troopers can barely -"

"They cast spells?" Sephiroth asks, fascinated, and stands up, looking around interestedly. "I want to see that! Let's go find another."

Oh, boy. Running a hand through his hair, Angeal hurries after him. Well, it's… a novel experience, seeing Sephiroth of all people so excited about something. And of course it would be monsters. Usually Sephiroth is more interested in fighting monsters rather than just observing them, though, but it's still a definite improvement to his mood from yesterday. Even if it's because of weeds.

That changes when they get surrounded by about half a dozen of the little monsters.

"Still cute?" Angeal asks, fending two of them off with the flat of the Buster Sword's blade.

Apparently, yes, going by the glow in Sephiroth's eyes. "Don't kill them yet, I want to see some spells!" The man - the maniac - says, using still sheathed Masamune to push the monsters back.

"You know, as much as I appreciate your scientific curiosity, these things can actually do some damage in bigger groups, you know!" Angeal calls to him.

"Yeah, yeah," Sephiroth answers, flippantly. "So what do we need to do to make them cast spells?"

One of the Razor Weeds answers for him - by casting a Magic Hammer on Sephiroth. Which, Angeal is pretty sure, Sephiroth just lets it happen! Thankfully it's not a physical attack - Magic Hammer hits you in the MP - though, looking at Sephiroth's reaction…

"Oh, you little Qi-stealing bastard," Sephiroth says, and that's that for the Razor Weeds.

"... Uh," Angeal says, while the Razor Weeds fall over, mowed down like so much grass, and Sephiroth stands over them looking very hurt and disappointed. Angeal clears his throat, trying to bite back a smile. "So. What did we learn?"

Sephiroth rubs at his stomach, and gives him a flat look. "Yeah, haha, rub it in," he mutters and then, "Oh, hey, they left the remains behind!"

"... Most things do when you kill them, yes," Angeal agrees and looks at him interestedly. "So, you remember Mako monsters?"

Sephiroth is crouching again, examining the dead Razor Weeds. "Mm?" 

"Monsters that converge around Mako concentrations," Angeal explains, hoisting Buster Sword back to his back. "You… don't remember?"

"Uh. I remember that some things just sort of… disperse instead of leaving anything physical?" Sephiroth asks, sounding rather hopeful. "Is that a thing, or…?"

"It's a thing - Mako monsters. They're attracted to Mako, they are common around reactors and natural Mako pools - so people call them Mako monsters," Angeal explains. "The slums under Midgar are full of them. They're kind of like more physical ghosts, I think."

"... Huh," Sephiroth hums, and pokes at the dead Razor Weeds. "So monsters around here…?"

"Mostly physical," Angeal agrees. "I think there are some natural Mako springs around here, so there might be Mako monsters too… but I haven't seen any personally."

"Hmmm," Sephiroth hums and stands up. "That is fascinating."

"It sure is," Angeal laughs, because it really isn't, not to him, but Sephiroth has always been a bit weird. "Shall we continue? There's many more monsters to see."

"Yes, let's."

"... And get hit by," Angeal adds and looks at Sephiroth. "Actually, are you going to let all of them get a hit in? Because if you are, I'd like to know ahead of time, just in case I need to have a Remedy in hand."

"I'm not going to let myself get hit again," Sephiroth says, primly. "I wouldn't have, if I realised what it was going to do."

"... Okay. Good." Angeal nods. "There are better ways to figure out your opponents' skillsets, anyway. Or you can just let them do their thing but get out of the way before it hits."

"Right, of course, that's something you can do," Sephiroth says, sheepish, and clears his throat. "I knew that."

Angeal gets a Remedy out, just in case.

-

SY, thinking FF7: ... Oh right, turn based combat isn't actually a thing.

[loggiepj]

FORBIDDEN

Summary: In a world divided by humans and witches, Y/n, a normie, finds herself falling for Wanda, a witch who clearly despises humans like her.

Warnings: Angst, Violence, 18+, Eventual Smut

Part 1

It had been years since the world was divided between normal citizens, generally called as the Normies, and humans practicing sorcery and witchcraft, Witches.

The two divisions used to live harmoniously with each other until one normie had enough of how superior other Witches think of their ranks, considering they could literally perform any spell that would make anyone kneel before them.

It started with a simple defiance from the plans set out by one of the witches council leader. But then, the small defiance was followed from one place to another. Deviants was eventually formed, a group of witch hunters sent out to obliterate all witches in the world, creating pure chaos and havoc everywhere.

Peace had only been a foreign word to anyone after that. Knowing that normies' population were far greater than witches, the latter had started to live in hiding for decades, even pretending to be normies every now and then, just to survive.

But not every normie wanted violence, some didn't want to shed any more blood on the streets from unnecessary killings. They knew, witch or not, everyone deserves to live a peaceful life. Thus, the Avengers was formed, set to protect the innocent witches from horrible witch hunters.

That was why Y/n Y/l/n was crouched behind a massive trunk of a Sycamore tree in the deep forest just an hour after the sun had set. With a bow in one hand, she stared at the group of Deviants camping before her. They had a helpless female witch in captive.

One of the hunters crept towards the tied witch who had her mouth gagged to prevent her from using any of her magic. He kneeled before her after he threw a spit on the ground.

"Such a waste of beauty," the man sneered in disgust. "Is this your true form, witch? Or are you hiding your ugly self, huh? Deception, that's what you're good at, eh?"

The witch resisted to be touched as the man cupped her face with a brute force. Y/n couldn't help but feel sorry for the way she was being treated, for any way every witch was treated in the world.

Everyone deserves to live. Witch or not.

That's what Y/n's mother had always told her when she was just a kid. Her parents were kind enough to accept stray witches needing a hiding place from hunters every day and eventually, Y/n learned to be sympathetic towards them. That was why she joined the cause upon reaching young adulthood, the Avengers. Especially when her mentor was also a witch, the kindest one she knew. Or so she thought.

Y/n closed her eyes to shut down the painful memories from the past. She needed to focus on the task at hand.

The witch's cries brought her back to her senses. She wanted to run towards the damsel in distress and punch the air out of the deviant's stomach, but she knew she wouldn't succeed on her mission to save the witch.

Y/n was not a stupid lass. Judging from the muscular forms of the men surrounding the woman, she knew she had no match against them. Right now, all she had was her trusted bow, a few arrows and some wits to help her on her plan.

Y/n's eyes drifted towards the branches above them, where a huge sack of sand was hanging by a rope, aligned perfectly towards the direction of the campfire.

Quiet and adept, Y/n's fingers reached for an arrow from the quiver behind her back, then lined it against her bow. She carefully pulled the bow string along with the nock of the arrow so as not to create any unwanted noise then targeted the arrowhead at the bag of sand.

Heart thudding out loud inside her chest, Y/n closed her eyes once again and took a very deep breath just to calm herself down. She needed good timing, when everyone was close to the fire. Once she opened her eyes, she focused her gaze at the corners of the sack where she's supposed to tear apart.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Hearing the cries and pleas of the witch before her as the man slapped her face, his maniac laughters echoing through the forest, Y/n gritted her teeth as she tried to control her temper.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

"Stop it, Loki needs the witch alive," the other man with a bald head scolded the other, stopping the latter from hurting the witch more.

Upon hearing the dreaded name, Y/n had enough and stopped herself from breathing for a second before finally letting go of the nock.

Quick as lightning, heaps of sands fell down the group, extinguishing the fire before them. Some of the Deviants managed to catch the offending sand in their eyes, making them lose their vision for a while.

Y/n hurriedly covered half of her face with a bandana, pulled the cork open from the homemade smoke grenade her bestfriend had concocted then silently rolled it through the dirt, heading towards the shrieking group.

"What the hell?!"

"I can't see anything!"

Everywhere was covered with smoke, filling the chilly night with more coughing and grunting. No one even noticed until the smoke has subsided that the witch was gone.

"It's one of the Avengers' doing, I tell you!" The man shouted. "Look for them! They haven't gotten away that far for sure!"

Unbeknownst to the group who had now begun trailing off the other direction, Y/n had stayed with the witch behind the trunk she had been hiding from the start, covering the woman's mouth to prevent her whimpers from getting heard and reveal their hiding place.

When the Deviants' noise was no longer carried by the wind, Y/n hurriedly took a small knife from her makeshift belt and cut through the binds that tied the poor woman's wrists, which had turned red from the tightness.

"Hey, it's okay," Y/n assured her, taking off her bandana. "You're safe now... The Deviants have already left-"

The wind was knocked out of Y/n's system as she was suddenly flipped over on her back by the witch, who quickly straddled her stomach to prevent her from fighting back. The knife was immediately thrown into the air upon the impact, only to fly into the waiting hands of the woman.

The unexpected attack made the cloth around the witch's face to fall off, revealing herself at Y/n whose features remained stunned.

Y/n knew the witch had not even used any spell on her, yet she found herself unable to move and speak. In the depths of her mind, Y/n had never seen someone so ethereal before that she couldn't help but be mesmerized. Casted by the moonlight from the heavens above, the green in the woman's eyes reminded Y/n of her favorite hiding spot, just beyond nurse Pepper's botanical garden back at the Avengers camp.

If it wasn't for the cold feeling of the sharp blade against the skin of her neck, Y/n wouldn't be brought out from her trance.

"Any last words, human?" The witch warned, her voice laced with venom, but Y/n was far too enamored to regard it as something else other than sweet.

"You...," Y/n stuttered, finally finding herself able to talk. "You have the most beautiful pair of eyes I have ever seen."

The woman suddenly froze before her, not expecting such words coming out of the normie's mouth. The witch even forgot how to form words as she loosen her hold around the knife in her hand.

If it wasn't nighttime already, the normie before her would've noticed her blushing. No one was bold enough, even in the face of death, to say those things to the witch before. She had a fair amount of flirting from male witches through time but not single one of them ever complimented any part of her face. Let alone from a woman her age. Much worse, a normie.

Yet, the witch couldn't figure out the sudden churning in her stomach as she met the woman's eyes staring right back at her.

"Wanda! Let Y/n go, sis!" A familiar voice made itself known, followed by footsteps crunching against the dry leaves nearby.

When Y/n inched her neck slightly towards the source, she recognized the figure as Pietro, one of the witches that Y/n's friends from the Avengers had saved a couple of weeks ago. But before Y/n could ask him if he knew the witch sitting on top of her, the witch named Wanda finally let her go and hastily made her way towards the silver haired boy.

Pietro met Wanda halfway as they wrapped their arms around each other in a tight hug. Y/n straightened to a sit as she watched the reunion, listening to tiny sniffles as they hugged even tighter.

Wanda then pulled away after a couple of seconds before breaking the silence. "Where have you been? I've looked everywhere for you... I thought I've lost you."

Y/n's heart ached by the way Wanda's voice was breaking. She could feel her sentiments. She had lost her family too.

Pietro cupped the woman's face as he pressed their foreheads together. "The Avengers saved me, sestra... They're also helping me look for you..." Then he softly chuckled. "I'm actually part of the Avengers now."

What he said made Wanda flinch and step back away from him. "What?"

"I know you won't take it lightly, but I swear they're good people, Wands," Pietro explained, then he gestured towards Y/n as the latter finally managed to stand up, shaking the dirt off from her clothes. "Y/n here is an Avenger too."

Y/n smiled from ear to ear as she stepped towards Wanda, offering her hand for the witch to shake. "Hi, that's me. I'm Y/n, pleasure to meet you-"

Wanda only scoffed as she walked past her, intentionally bumping the latter's shoulder. Y/n wondered if she did something wrong as she massaged the affected body part. For a witch being held captive for god knows how long, she sure was strong.

"Forgive my sister, Y/n... She's... She's not really fond of normies," Pietro said, patting Y/n's shoulder too, making her internally wince from the added pain. "It won't take a lot of time before she'll soften up to us, don't worry... Thank you for saving my sister, Y/n. I owe my life to you."

"No worries, Piet. I'm just glad you're finally reunited with her," Y/n replied. And before Y/n could ask if Pietro's sister was romantically involved with anyone, Pietro had already started running towards Wanda, ensuring that they would head back to the Avengers' camp later that night.

But a smile still spread on Y/n's face as she remembered the beautiful green eyes Wanda had. Unknowingly, she had begun whistling a happy tune as she started to follow where the siblings went.

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[lostbetweenvampiresandmusic]

Changes chapter 9

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The widow sat at her old broken table, sitting on her old wonky chair as she stared out her window. In front of her laid that days newspaper. Today, there had been seven. Seven young men and women gone. Disappeared without a trace. She sighed as she looked through the pages, wondering how this could have happened to her town.

Back in the thirties, in her younger years, the vampires - or some of them at least - had already been there. Threatened by her potential magic, they agreed to keep the hunting to a minimum. Back then, her claiming to be a witch had been a gigantic lie. Sure, she knew certain things - like which crystals could cleanse a room. But, she was - back then, anyway - also a firm beliver of the fact that crystals could be very effevtuve to clenase a room when being thrown at the intruder in question. With no active magic, she had still managed to come to a compromise with the vampires. They could live in town, as long as the inhabitants of the town would stay unharmed. As long as crime rates were being kept under control, and the general population had nothing to worry about.

So, if that was the case fifty years ago, before she began to practice magic, why did it seem to go wrong in this town? Even with five vampires - six now, Jo reminded herself - living here, there never were this many reported cases of people going missing. So who was doing this, and maybe more importantly - why?

Ever since she began to practice, she had put up wards around town to keep the biggest evils out. To keep the lesser evils in - things needed to be balanced, of course. None of these wards had been failing, and yet there seemed to be a spike in evilness around town.

She looked up with a sigh as she heard a knock on her door. She didn't bother getting up. She had seen through the window who it was, and she was in no mood. Instead, she flipped a page in the newspaper - her eye landing on one of the comics. It was an old one of the Addams family. An image of Morticia Addams looking out the window and complimenting the stormy weather outside. Another loud knock echoed through her room as her visitor knocked again. Couldn't he take a hint?

"I know you're in there, Jo!"

"Get back to your coffin!"

"Jo, I found the information you needed."

The widow grumbled as she got up, opening the door. Max stood on the porch, holding a thick file in his hands. He seemed tired, as if he hadn't slept well in days. His eyes seemed black, probably because he had neglected his need to feed in order to find answers. His clothes were wrinkled and had some questionable dirt stains on them. Jo couldn't help but smile, even though she wasn't sure if it was in pity or not. For the first time since Jo knew the vampire, did he look somewhat human. Which was saying something, considering how hard the man tried to come across as a harmless, average middle-aged guy.

"Fine," she sighed, stepping aside. "I will give you the spell needed. But-"

"But what?" Max snapped, causing Jo to chuckle. Vampires, despite their age, could be quite ignorant.

"Magic has a price. You know that. A bottle of vampire blood will do."

"No." Max was started than that. Magic did indeed come with a price, but always at the cost of the caster. Not the one who sold the spell.

"Then no spell." She shrugged with a satisfied smile.

"I could kill you."

"Don't forget," the widow spoke, her tone low with a hint of danger, "that it is my magic that protects this town. That it is my magic that assures your safety by misleading vampire hunters. If you kill me, all of that will be gone."

"We'll be fine."

"You and your boys? Sure, you've had time to perfect your vampiric nature. But how about that girl of yours? Do you think she'll be fine?"

Max sighed. Jo was right. Julie was too new at this. She didn't know everything she needed to know yet. She didn't have the experience. No, a lack of protection and a rise in active hunters in town would most likely prove deadly for her. He took a deep breath, annoyed that the Widow now knew a weak spot for him and relented.

"Half a bottle."

"Three quarters."

"But then I want the spell now."

The widow sighed, before nodding. "Alright Max. But if I don't get what I deserve, I can assure you that there's hell to pay."

"Don't worry."

With those words, Max stood up, greedily taking the spellroll from the widow's hands. He didn't look at her as he left, instead rushing towards his car. He needed to make sure he had everything necessary for the spell to work, and then he had to find the boys.

Jo watched as she saw the vampire leave. She closed the door with an exhausted sigh, locking it behind her. "One of these days," she mumbled, "I'll learn how to let the sun shine at night. Arrogant bastard."

As Max arrived at his house, the gates as white as ever, he was greeted by a very enthusiastic Thorn. The dog happily wagged its tale as Max got out of his car, following him inside the house. The house was almost exactly as Max had left it, safe for the rabbit carcasses lying on the tiled kitchen floor.

"I am sorry I forgot to put your food out," Max spoke to the dog, patting its head. "I'm glad to see you still gave your hunting instinct in tact."

Thorn looked at Max, almost grinning. With a sigh, the vampire sat down at the kitchen table, opening the file he'd taken from the COL office. It was a blank dossier, no name or credentials mentioned anywhere. But, as he flipped through the pages, it was painfully obvious that these were notes and observations made by a doctor or a doctors assistant.

Max had a hard time believing what he was reading. The fight he had witnessed was one of many. His assumption that Julie had been in one of those fights had been right. Except, she hadn't been in just one fight. If the file was right, it was over two dozen fights in just four weeks. The fights weren't there for no reason, he realised as he read further through the notes. By putting the patients - as the writer of the file called them - up against each other in a showcase, the company could charge viewers money. They could allow the viewers to make bets and cash in on that. These fights practically funded their research and experiments.

Max stood up, grabbing a bottle of blood from the fridge. He poured some into a cup, warming it up in the microwave. Warm blood was so much better than cold, but keeping it cold caused the blood to be good for a longer period of time. The microwave beeped, and Max took his cup out of the machine. He took a sip when the front door was thrown open, David running in followed by the other boys.

"We need your help!" David looked at Max, stepping aside so Dwayne could walk into the kitchen. In his arms laid Julie, unconscious, bleeding from her eyes, nose, and mouth. Her whole body was shaking.

"Lay her down on the floor." Max said quickly, taking his jacket off and folding it up so she wouldn't hit her head on the tiles. He quickly checked her over, noticing her heartbeat was raised and her temperature was spiking - a rare feat for a vampire.

"What happened?"

He checked her eyes, noticing they responded immediately to the kitchen light in front of them. It was quiet for a moment, none of the boys responding, until Marko finally spoke up.

"It happened after we fed. She was starving and didn't want to feed from the people we picked, and-"

"You forced her, and this happened. Alright, Paul, give me three bottles of AB negative from the fridge."

"What is wrong with her?"

"My guess is that she's allergic to the blood you fed her." Max said, taking one of the warmed bottles Paul handed him. He gently opened Julie's mouth, pouring some in. It took a moment, but then she swallowed. Carefully, Max gave her some more until she opened her eyes, looking up in confusion.

"Ssh, you're alright, dear," Max pushed her back down so she wouldn't sit up yet. "Just lay down for a bit, catch your breath, alright?"

Julie nodded slowly, slightly confused. She remembered being out with the boys, feeling a little off already. Her head was a little clouded, her nose stuffed - as if she was human again and dealing with an oncoming cold. She had been hungrier than usual, and David and Dwayne both agreed that if she didn't feed immediately, she'd be a danger to the town. So, reluctantly, she went along, being forced to feed. The blood and tasted off, a biter, tingling taste in the back of her throat. The more she drank, the worse she began to feel. The second she had drained the body, she fell to the ground, tears running over her cheeks as she threw up most of the blood she'd just consumed. After that, it only got worse. Her nose bleeding heavily, her eyes beginning to leak blood instead of tears, blood running out of her mouth... and then she didn't remember a thing, except for waking up on this cold floor.

Slowly, she sat up, shoving herself backwards over the floor until her back hit the kitchen cabinet. She pulled her legs up, taking some deep breaths.

"Here," Dwayne handed her a bottle of blood, a bright yellow straw floating in the liquid. The previous one had already been empty. She gratefully took it, slowly sipping on the straw. She gave Max a questioning look, wondering if he knew why this happened.

"My best guess is," said Max, " thst you're allergic to a certain blood type."

Julie stopped drinking, realisation dawning upon her. Was this why some people smelt off? Whas this why the boys told her she was unusually picky when it came to feeding? And if she was already feeling off and unable to smell clearly, then obviously she would miss the smell of wrongness.

"It's not that common, but it happens sometimes. Especially when one gets changed in unnatural forced circumstances."

"Isn't any change unnatural?" Paul asked, as he jumped to sit on the kitchen counter.

"Vampires are supernatural, not unnatural. We're as much a part of the food chain as any other creature. However, if you force someone into this in a way that doesn't fit - so instead of biting them or giving them blood, you let the change become a very elongated clinical process - a situation like this may occur."

"Why?"

"Overexposure to a certain blood type," Max said before shutting up. There was a problem. A big one. Julie was allergic to the blood type that was used to change her. The spell the widow had given him demanded the caster to mix the blood used to change the vampire with the blood of the sire to be. This process, if Julie still wanted to go through with this, was going to be incredibly painful. Max sighed, not certain if he was willing to do this to her, even if she was willing. Hadn't she been through enough?

Next chapter >

[thethirdromana]

I was gonna ask you some stuff about Quincey and the aftermath of the Civil War, but that wasn't really near the 1890s so idk if it's relevant.

Also similar to Mina maybe supporting eugenics I would imagine Seward probably engages in a lot of pseudosciences

But more interestingly, what do you think Dracula's politics would be? He's pretty removed from human society by being a vampire and his home in Transylvania is pretty remote, but he was still a nobleman there and he was moving to England, which he planned to conquer. I'm curious where he'd fall, when pretending to be and working with (?) humans in Romanian politics (if you feel like researching it) and English politics. Another cool layer to this is if you subscribe to the popular theory that he's really Vlad the Impaler. What would a warlord from the mid-1400s think of the politics 400 or so years later? That's barely even thinking about him being a vampire.

Also, what would Renfield's politics be like?

Quincey and the aftermath of the Civil War is a fascinating question that I will definitely leave for someone who knows more US history than I do.

Dracula, on the other hand... first of all, the relevant set of politics is Hungarian, not Romanian. Transylvania was part of Austria-Hungary in the 1890s. There's actually an interesting story here, in that vampire myth was originally associated primarily with Hungary. Then Bram Stoker set Dracula in Transylvania, which became part of Romania in 1920, and Romania ended up inheriting vampire myths in the process. Which has generally done the Romanian tourist industry no harm at all. (Though when I was in Bucharest last weekend, my lovely tour guide, Andrea, was clearly a bit annoyed by people asking about it).

Anyway, we have a decent sense of what Dracula's politics are, because he spells them out on May 8: he's proud to be part of a fighting, conquering race, he values "warlike days", he disdains peasants, and he generally holds that might makes right.

Given his pride in "beating the Turk on his own ground", I think we can assume that he didn't approve of Austria-Hungary's neutrality in the Russo-Turkish War in 1877-8.

In some ways he fits into contemporary society. He is a boyar, one of the highest rank of feudal nobility, who retained a great deal of power in 1890s Austria-Hungary. Where in the UK the growth of industry made the middle classes wealthier, in Austria-Hungary that wealth often went straight back to the nobility. Just six percent of the population had the right to vote in general elections, compared with 18% in the UK (meanwhile New Zealand had universal suffrage from 1893).

But Dracula is still a product of an earlier time. He wants to increase his power through conquest, not through modernising his estate or being appointed to the board of directors of a bank. And while Austria-Hungary did grow through conquest (occupying Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1878, for instance), it wasn't at nearly the same scale as other contemporary empires - for example, Austria-Hungary didn't take part in the Scramble for Africa.

Honestly, it makes perfect sense that Dracula would want to come to Britain. If he wanted conquest, carried out with indifference to cruelty, he would have got on extremely well with Cecil Rhodes. To an extent this is what the story of Dracula is about: what if foreigners came to Britain and did to us what we do to them? The War of the Worlds, published at the same time, asks essentially the same question but with aliens.

(This is the bit where someone comes along and says yes, but don't forget that Bram Stoker was Irish. Which is true, but he was also a supporter of the British Empire.)

As for Renfield, most of what we learn about his politics comes from October 1. He's from high society and is a member of the Windham Club. He celebrates the roles Quincey, Van Helsing and Arthur play "by nationality, by heredity, or by the possession of natural gifts" - in other words, he seems to be open to people advancing themselves through meritocracy, but also through hereditary rights. To me, this reads as conservative, but not reactionary.

One thing that does strike me is that his point about Texas - celebrating its admittance to the Union - relates to history that was 50 years old at that point (Unless I'm misunderstanding the reference?). Renfield is 59 during the events of Dracula. Is the implication here that he's stuck in the past? We don't know how long he's been institutionalised, but since his memories of Arthur's father relate to youthful drinking games, it could be 30 years or more. He may be disconnected from contemporary politics - and given how much the world changed in the late 19th century, that could make for quite a shock if he'd ever had the chance to learn more.

As ever, I'm not a historian, and other people should feel free to offer corrections.

[dabblingreturns]

I was thinking about the locked tomb today( as usual) and i was thinking about a beautiful peice of fan art I can no longer find of Wake with a Ta Moko tatto.

It gorgeous, I love it. And I will add it to this post when I find it....but I also think it's wrong....

I don't think the ta moko tradition would have survived in Blood of Eden... one or two of the original billionairs might have had Te Moko tattoos on thier faces, but Blood of Eden came from the global elite so that tradition wouldn't have enough traction....also Blood of Eden hid out among other population and super cool face tattoos would have been too much of a give away that they were other.

But I do think that the Ta Moko tradition did survive, ( though changed) in the nine houses. I fact, I think it's one of the first things we see in gideon the ninth....I think the ninth's skull masks were directly inspired by Te moko tattoos....

Here is my batshit theory*: Anastasia was in the second generation after resurection, and was Maori according to Taz muir. She probably didn't have Ta moko tattos....but her parents might have gotten them, pre-resurectio. So little Anastasia could have grown up with an odd love of bones and a very natural love of people who had elaborate face design. The context of those designs would have been lost, but the ink would remain. So when creating her own house, Anastasia might have pulled from the idea of ta moko to create the first skull makeup. This way, she took something beautiful but this no meaning that she loved, and she gave it meaning. And that tradition stayed because the ninth is isolated. And they kepted a peice of pre resurection culture alive

*Disclamer: I am a white American who can never fully understand the culture significance of these traditions....and the only reason I feel comfortable making this speculation is that im talking about a sci fi novel set 1000 years after everyone simultaneously lost thier historical context.

*edit. I originally spelled this "Te moko" because i am very dislexic, but a kind person pointed out that I spelled it wrong. Im sorry for any feeling that my have caused (i do care very much, but sometimes i mess up) I have edited the post to a more correct spelling. Wikipedia spells it "Tā moko" but I don't know how to get the special - on top of the a"

[sergeantsporks]

You ever wonder what might've happened had the Day of Unity succeeded?

Well, in that hypothetical scenario, I'm going to make a couple of assumptions. 1) that King never found/freed the Collector, and 2) that Belos went through the portal.

Best case scenario, obviously the Hexsquad didn't get killed. Maybe Belos realized the portal was running out of juice, and decided to scoot on through rather than taking the time to kill them, or they jumped out that window behind them and flew to safety. Worst case, he killed them, but we're just not going to assume that, because that makes things boring!

HOPEFULLY they'd realize that getting rid of the sigil would stop the draining spell, and Hunter would join Eda in the one-armed club. Either that, or they escape Belos, only to watch him die in their arms. Hooray!

On Eda's end, hopefully she'd have the wherewithal to realize that she can stop the draining spell the same way Raine stopped it for her-- arm-destruction. I think she'd try a fire glyph first, to see if just destroying what's on the surface would do it, but honestly, I'm assuming if they were that easy to get off, joining a coven wouldn't be such a big deal. So, ideally, she has the energy to transform into her harpy form and start ripping arms off. Lilith would obviously be the easiest, and she could save her sister even if she COULDN'T turn into her harpy form. Probably she'd save the rest of the CATs. Most of the Isles' adult population is toast, though. And those she does save are out of commission for a bit on account of not having a limb-removal curse that makes ripping off arms a bloodless, painless affair.

As far as large-scale thoughts go: the Isles will be fine. We know that no one at Hexside, at least, had a sigil. It's possible none of the children at the other schools were branded either, but for sure not the Hexsidians. Presumably most toddlers and babies wouldn't have a sigil on them. That to say: there would be a massive decline in the Isles population, but there are enough witches at Hexside/any surviving toddlers and babies that there would be a pretty big generational gap, but the witch population WOULD recover. Witches would not forever be wiped out on the Isles. Most of the survivors would likely move into a smaller area to stay close, so a lot of the cities on the Isles would go to ruin, but witchkind would survive.

That being said, we know how well management of Hexside went without the adults, so hopefully, someone would overthrow Boscha pretty quickly, the CATs/whatever other surviving adults would take the reins, or without Kiki, Boscha wouldn't be as bad of a ruler. Regardless, things would SUCK. All of these kids would have just lost their parents, heck, they'll have lost pretty much all of their family, except for the ones that have siblings/cousins under the typical sigil age (the Blights are pretty lucky in that regard). Some of them would have watched teachers or family die in front of them. Maybe a few of them got desperate enough to try arm-chopping. At large, though, the majority of the Isle's population would now be orphaned babies to teens.

On the plus side, the door wouldn't be destroyed, so hypothetically, any titan's blood could reopen it. I'm not sure if King's blood would be enough to open it at this age, but if it was, then at least they could travel back and forth. First order of business would be killing Belos before he figured out that there's still a very small, VERY vulnerable population of witch kids left on the Isles. Hopefully, they could get aid from the human realm in rebuilding. I'm sure there's some people out there that would be okay with moving to the Isles and being parents to some displaced witch kiddos. Luz could reunite with Camila. And she'd live forever with the guilt that she "helped Belos meet the Collector" and would forever feel responsible for the deaths of all those people! Hooray!

If they couldn't get the door open, well, sucks. I think the CATs would be VERY busy. And, uh. They'd have to do something about all those bodies, which. Would not be pleasant. Absolute horror show. All in all, ack!!!! Terrible!!!

[rielzero]

POV: The adventuring party meets up yearly after the epilogue to talk about their lives.

Loki Wren: So, I realized I really liked rats, and decided to raise them by hand because I thought they were cute- Even if they live short lives, I had to think: What else could befriending those critters bring? Loki Wren: Eventually, after selectively breeding the critters, I've gotten all sorts of quirky results, healthy of course. Its important to improve the lives of the offspring. They are my friends!

Loki Wren: To improve my communication skills and to tame them better, I asked Halsin to teach me a few things- I basicially don't go a day without casting speak with animals.

Loki Wren: Then, one of my nests developed a few prodigy rats, very obedient little pets. They're kind of my children. Started teaching them how to gather information. They're cute tiny spies. Very smart, very adorable.

Loki Wren: Had to neuter a lot of my babies though- You know- Things can get out of hand, one of my favorite sons tried to breed with sewer rats, and I didn't want to upset Astarion again with my obsession over these critters.. Early on he was not very happy with my research.

Loki Wren: My precious boy was angry with me first- but then understood it as if I had given him a new great holy mission: To befriend the sewer Colonies and establish an alliance with them through education.

Loki Wren: [starts laughing, there's a giggle at the end] And now I... [wheezes] Have an army of rats at my full disposal, with emissaries of rats training and teaching each other.. Convinced I am god. They developed an entire culture surrounding me.

Astarion: From ratboy, to ratfather, to Locke- then Loki Wren. And then Ratgod. Who would've thought. [chuckles] And now all in Baldur's Gate adore the critters.

Loki Wren: Anyway, the city is now psyched about pet rats and less eager to kill the sewer rats. My ''divine'' protection. [manical laughter] Of course, they do have territorial disputes. Helps keeping the population at bay.

Loki Wren: I love my rats..

Astarion: Sometimes I wonder if you are a genius or just really enthusiastic about your little hobbies.. Then I realize you are both. Always both.

Loki Wren: So what's everyone else been up to?

Shadowheart: Uh, I learned how to swim. Properly this time.

Karlach: The usual, fighting off fiends. [yawns] I would love to pet some rats though!! Wyll: I hunted a few bounties in Avernus... Nothing out of the ordinary. Seldazr: Published another book, I think Volo's jealous of my success. He's been trying to claim my glass eye is the cause. Not much else?

Gale: I've been trying and failing at modifying a scrying spell... Elminster has been dodging my letters. Lae'zel: Could you overthrow another city with the rats? They're pretty much soldiers already. I'm disappointed you haven't tried yet. Minthara: ..I would like to know as well. I think they'd do well in the underdark. Enough space. They could potentially and easily adapt to the ecosystem in a few generations, reigning terror on the denizens and cultivating with their religion into a functioning society. We've seen it happen many times before..

Loki Wren: ..How do you think the Bhaalists were driven out? They work better as spies.

Halsin: Okay- Thank Silvanus. I was worried you were conscripting them.. From what I've seen in the city itself, life thrives better with less conflict and more equity.

Loki Wren: I AM NOT SENDING MY BABIES TO WAR!!!

Astarion: [sips his drink] Of course not, Darling. Of course not.

Loki Wren: This is why we did not invite Jaheira for our repeated reunions, next thing you know she's ruining everything with her paranoia....

Meanwhile back in Baldur's gate

Jaheira: [holds up a pet rat that has no fur] Who's my little Minsc baby- who's my little baby boy??? Yes you are. You are. [scritches the rat]

Rion: Ugh.. Jord: :(

[whateven333]

A mature bonkai reunion how would you approach it after or during legacies?

In regards to mature BK during legacies I'm unsure, I've never watched legacies but I know that Bonnie never appears in that show but Kai appears on it and the general opinion seems to be that he was ooc in it

I think something that would have avoided him being ooc in that show, might have been to have him paired in scenes with Bonnie, (but just to clarify I would never actually want Bonnie/ Kat to be anywhere near any of those writers, this is just hypothetically speaking)

I feel that he seemed most true to his character and he had more interesting reactions/ interactions when his character was paired with Bonnie.

I tried looking up Kai's storyline on legacies...but I just didn't really know what any of that was or who other characters were meant to really be except for like Jo's grown up twins and Alaric ? - freakin Alaric man ...anyways

I was so confused, I thought Kai was left chained up in Karaoke Hell prison world or whatever but for some reason in legacies theres all these other random people that were students? Being punished? Alaric sent them there? I think I'm misremembering what I read 😭

I'm sorry for the legacies rant, but since I didn't even watch anywhere close to all of TVD I'm even more confused about what's supposed to be going on with Legacies 😭😭

So im gonna have to leave legacies stuff out of this but for mature BK -after the events of TVD but ignoring the part where they randomly sent Bonnie off to Africa:

I'm thinking we have Kai in his Karaoke prison world, he's all bitter and angry and half-dessicated.

We have Bonnie, who on the outside seems to be doing good, maybe she's found some distant Bennett relatives, so she moves to where they are, it's a quiet town, there's a local witch community who her relatives introduced her to, she keeps in touch with the gang from Mystic Falls from time to time, all seems to be going well, but maybe too well ?

Maybe she's a little bored ? For the majority of her life she's been in the centre of so much mayhem, whether she wanted to be or not. She knows she deserves peace, she deserves to rest. It just seems like she doesn't know how though. She probably wouldn't describe herself as a thrill-seeker, yet she finds herself drawn to other people's problems -the witchy kind of problems that require witchy solutions... and maybe siphon solutions.

She doesn't know many siphoners, to her annoyance, they seem pretty rare and she wouldn't feel right forcing just any of them to do her bidding. Except, she knows one siphoner who she wouldn't feel guilty about ensnaring to join her cause.

And so, she gets him out (we all got that one prisoner we keep locked away in an alternate dimension, guys chill).

And our boy Kai is as vengeful as ever, he will obviously not make this easy for her and Bonnie knows this, so she takes some necessary precautions -a spell to ensure that he is bound to her in some way, but he is still a pretty powerful coven leader (nvm the fact that coven's population is very small now) so the spell comes with some stipulations -she is in turn bound to him.

The spell ensures they're not able to hurt each other past a certain degree, so cue a ton of psychological warfare on both sides as they both try and out-manipulate the other (it turns into a power play sort of situation *wink wink*).

Kinky shenanigans.

I'm done.

(Hi Anon ! I feel there's a chance I may have misunderstood the ask 😖 I'm sorry <3, also I probably went off topic but when do I not lol, Uni has me stressed asf so my brains a little...ugh, so I'm sorry for the delay in response, also this was probs vague as hell -I wanted to come up with something more but this was all I could produce I'm afraid 😭 I hope you don't mind, thank you so much for the ask 💖)

[billygoat26]

I've been seeing a lot about KOSA on here

Don't get me wrong, I don't support it.

So I'll just say this; if any of you have read Fahrenheit 451 then you know what I'm gonna be talking about. (Censorship. It's- it's censorship.)

Basically, if you haven't read it, the book is about a time somewhere in the future where all books get burned, the only "stories" are little comics but it's just images... no words at all, and television has become the new "family." If you get caught with books, your house gets burnt down, the books burned as well.

BUT. Instead of trying to summarize the entire story, let me just show you parts of Beatty's speech.

"The fact is we didn't get along well until photography came into its own. Then--motion pictures in the early twentieth century. Radio. Television. Things began to have mass."

"And because they had mass, they became simpler," said Beatty. "Once, books appealed to a few people, here, there, everywhere. They could afford to be different. The world was roomy. But then the world got full of eyes and elbows and mouths. Double, triple, quadruple population. Films and radios, magazines, books levelled down to a sort of paste pudding norm, do you follow me?"

"Picture it. Nineteenth-century man with his horses, dogs, carts, slow motion. Then, in the twentieth century, speed up your camera. Books cut shorter. Condensations, Digests. Tabloids. Everything boils down to the gag, the snap ending."

"Classics cut to fit fifteen-minute radio shows, then cut again to fill a two-minute book column, winding up at last as a ten- or twelve-line dictionary resume. I exaggerate, of course. The dictionaries were for reference."

"Out of the nursery into the college and back to the nursery; there's your intellectual pattern for the past five centuries or more."

"Politics? One column, two sentences, a headline! Then, in mid-air, all vanishes! Whirl man's mind around about so fast under the pumping hands of publishers, exploiters, broadcasters, that the centrifuge flings off all unnecessary, time-wasting thought!"

"School is shortened, discipline relaxed, philosophies, histories, languages dropped, English and spelling gradually neglected, finally almost completely ignored. Life is immediate, the job counts, pleasure lies all about after work. Why learn anything save pressing buttons, pulling switches, fitting nuts and bolts?"

"The zipper displaces the button and a man lacks just that much time to think while dressing at dawn, a philosophical hour, and thus a melancholy hour."

"More sports for everyone, group spirit, fun, and you don't have to think, eh? Organize and organize and super organize super-super sports. More cartoons in books. More pictures. The mind drinks less and less."

"Now let's take up the minorities in our civilization, shall we? Bigger the population, the more minorities. Don't step on the toes of the dog-lovers, the cat-lovers, doctors, lawyers, merchants, chiefs, Mormons, Baptists, Unitarians, second-generation Chinese, Swedes, Italians, Germans, Texans, Brooklynites, Irishmen, people from Oregon or Mexico."

"Authors, full of evil thoughts, lock up your typewriters. They did. Magazines became a nice blend of vanilla tapioca. Books, so the damned snobbish critics said, were dishwater."

"We must all be alike. Not everyone born free and equal, as the Constitution says, but everyone made equal. Each man the image of every other; then all are happy, for there are no mountains to make them cower, to judge themselves against."

"A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it."

"...there was no longer need of firemen for the old purposes. They were given the new job, as custodians of our peace of mind, the focus of our understandable and rightful dread of being inferior; official censors, judges, and executors."

"Colored people don't like Little Black Sambo. Burn it. White people don't feel good about Uncle Tom's Cabin. Burn it. Someone's written a book on tobacco and cancer of the lungs? The cigarette people are weeping? Burn the book."

"You can't build a house without nails and wood. If you don't want a house built, hide the nails and wood. If you don't want a man unhappy politically, don't give him two sides to a question to worry him; give him one. Better yet, give him none. Let him forget there is such a thing as war."

(Source of the quotes: beatty-speech-to-montag-excerpt.pdf (wordpress.com))

(Page numbers for physical copy: 51 - 60)

I hope you get the point- we're heading down a daaaangerous path and chances are, this is- or at least is very damn close to- our future. If you want to have a good education (or your kids to have a good education), then take into consideration the things you either vote for or support, etc.

[purplesurveys]

1898

Do you ever wonder how Atheist people raise their kids? I do. There's admittedly some envy in there somewhere lol, but it's mostly intrigue about what the dynamics at home must be like. I live in an overwhelmingly Christian population where every single aspect of life is influenced by religion; so considering I've identified myself as atheist in a place where it's virtually nonexistent, it's something I find myself thinking about once in a while.

If you’re atheist, would you raise you kids believing in God or not? Absolutely not. They can explore, ask questions, even pick a faith to go by if they want to; but I will not be the first one to tell them anything about gods.

How long does it usually take you to finish answering a survey? Usually anywhere from 40 minutes to one hour, depending on the length or how fast I can think of my answers.

Do you spell it gray or grey? Gray.

If you make surveys, how do you decide about its title? I don't make them. I'm terrible at coming up with questions.

When are you going back to school? I don't need to; I graduated four years ago.

If you don’t go to school anymore, what do you do? I work in public relations; agency side.

Do you care about other people’s status messages? Like on Facebook? Sure. It's always nice to know what people are up to, the new places they've been traveling to or the life goals they've been reaching. The only theme I don't particularly like encountering are warfreak posts? like when they still subtweet (idk the equivalent term on Facebook haha). Come on sis we're in our mid 20s.

Do you like reading self help books? No.

What is your opinion on sex change? Your body, your choice. Glad to see there's been more opportunities to let this happen for those who need it.

Do you think that this will take away the essence of gay pride? ...What?

What do you do when you tell a really bad joke? I let it eat me up anywhere between 3 to 7 days, lol.

If you’re still a virgin, how important is your virginity to you? Not much, it's never mattered to me. I gave it up when I was 18 and never thought twice about it before or after.

If you have lost it already, do you regret it? No.

Do you believe in marriage? Why or why not? I believe in it, I don't believe it's a life requirement.

Do you like having a huge group of friends or would you rather have few close friends? Few close friends. The older I get, the more I enjoy my own company. That said I only let very few people in my circle now.

Do you have any goals for this summer? If so, what are they? Summer's over, but I didn't set goals. I did travel abroad, which wasn't something I specifically set out to do but was still nice to have done.

Or do you plan on getting a summer job? Or do you already have one? I've had a job the last four years.

If so, where do you work and what do you do? I work in a PR agency, doing PR work for consumer brands. Some of them you definitely know about and consume; some of them more up-and-coming and aptly needing the help.

Do you watch the TV show Skins? If so, who’s your favorite character? Never watched it.

And which generation do you prefer? Or do you equally love both?

Do you know someone who still typpe thiszz wayy? No.

Would you take a break after graduating from high school (like, postpone going to college for a year or so)? I didn't do that. Where I'm from, a gap year is just for the super rich who have safety nets no matter what they do or pursue, so...ew. Most need to fight to live.

Do you feel tired after stretching? No, it feels nice.

Can you get a strike at bowling? Only on Wii Sports, haha.

Do you use Facebook? If so, what is your favorite application there? Yes, but apps stopped being trendy there yearsssss ago.

It seems like everyone’s addicted to Twitter these days - are you? I fucking hate Twitter. I keep it to stay updated and to read translations for all BTS releases, but I stay the fuck out of any conversation. Everyone's always dragging, cancelling, bullying, shaming, discriminating someone else these days on there.

[childlikegoblinqueen]

Writing Notes: Sweet Child O' Mine: Scarytales ETC

Last chapter there was a Grimwalker Scarytale and a little more background about Osran's family.

I was super nervous about writing this chapter for a few reasons.

First, I am a huge fan of mythology, folklore, fairytales etc. I wasn't sure it would work, or if I could get the feel of it down in universe.

Second, people seemed into the idea and I felt a lot of pressure, but folks seemed into it!

For more info, the text of the scarytale, and the identity of the character who gave the "gift" in the flashback from Hunter and Willow's engagement party below.

For reference: In a previous chapter it was suggested that the "Grimwalker" books currently available (those Hunter read while hiding out at Hexside etc. were ripe with half truths, misinterpretations or just bad information all together. In fairytales, we often can get an idea of how folks saw various populations through the way they are regarded in story.

So, for the scarytale, it didn't have to be clear if this was an edit or the original version. It gives a general sense as to how grimwalkers had been portrayed on the Boiling Isles. It was not good. There's also a nod to how basilisks might have been seen as well.

Lilith also lets Hunter and Willow know, in addition to Osran being from an influential family (one he connects with the oracle in the scarytale) he had a distant relative in the castle that spied for him and likely tipped him off that Hunter was a grimwalker.

The only other character who has "fingers" on their head.

In the flashback where Hunter and Willow receive the "gift" of a decapitated snake on their engagement party, there is a card with a message written in blood. And that message is:

"Regards, Kikimora."

LEGENDS OF GRIMWALKERS

Fifth Edition Stories Collected and Edited by Head Witch G’Mork with Foreword by Flora D’Splora.

TALE IX

Oracle of Lovoed

Once two witch brothers traveled through a forest. They were returning from a war and looking to make their fortune on the Boiling Isles. The older brother was tall and handsome and beloved by all the witches and demons who set eyes upon him. The younger brother was serious and stern, but what he lacked in charm, he made up for in shrewdness.  

The brothers followed a strange path to a clearing where they happened upon a castle surrounded by cobblestone streets.

Oracles by trade, the brothers set up shop and were immediately approached by royal guards and brought to the castle for a feast with the King and his two children.

The prince was attractive and jovial. He had an affinity for potion magic and dazzled the elder brother with tales of his deeds. The princess was an appealing young witch, but her sullen expression soured the meal. Her half lidded eyes turned away from her father and his guests, while dozens of blood red roses bloomed in her hair. She had plucked one from her long black braid, and held it to her nose as if drinking in its scent, while she cradled its stem in her delicate fingers.

After the meal, the King dismissed his children and turned to the brothers.

“What do you think of the prince and princess?” The King asked.

“The prince is lovely” Blushed the elder brother dreamily.

“And my daughter?” Asked the king quite seriously. “I expect honesty.” He added, giving a pointed look towards the younger brother.

”She would be comelier,  if her expression was cheerier.” answered the younger.

The King nodded. “I would like your help. We are in need of an Oracle and none of the witches or demons in my fiefdom are known for such magic. It seems that my daughter is under an enchantment. Every night she goes to bed, at a sound hour,  but in the morning she emerges from her quarters exhausted. Her slippers are covered in dirt, and her hair is a nest of those Titan-damned flowers.”

The younger son drew a spell circle as his eyes fell into a vision. He Saw the young princess in a locked garden in embrace with a mysterious figure with eyes that glowed eyes as red as the roses in her hair. When he told the king what he saw, his majesty’s mood became volatile. 

“It was as I have suspected!!” He shouted.  “The princess has been seduced by a grimwalker.”

The brothers had heard of such monsters, with their intense eyes and their penchant for trickery, created as replacements for the dead.

“For too long I have permitted noble families to keep these creatures as servants in substitution for their children who had perished in service to the Kingdom – but no more.” 

That night the King ordered all the grimwalkers in the kingdom be drawn out to the courtyard and slaughtered, their galdorstone hearts added to the treasury. The brothers were lauded as heroes and the princess was sent to bed hoping that to be the end of the matter.

But the next morning the princess once again emerged from her room, walking in a daze, her slippers covered in dirt and her hair a tangle of roses. 

“Your vision has failed!” The king told the young Oracle. “I will give you two more chances to prove your skills. And as insurance I will lock your brother in the dungeon!”

Once again, the Oracle looked into the eyes of the princess and he Saw another vision of the same sinister figure, this time it held the princess an intimate embrace, the creature’s eyes bled with lust as it placed its lips upon hers. 

When the King heard what had been Seen, he fumed and demanded all families who had kept these creatures’s properties seized until the monster with a hold on his daughter was captured. That night the King ordered guards to stand outside the princess’s door and window. 

But the guards were foolish and took tea from the princess that had been enchanted with sleeping nettles. In the morning the princess emerged from her quarters once more, shoes even dirtier, eyes heavier, thorny roses in her hair. 

Now the King was furious. He threw the guards out to die in the boiling rain where they melted away. He turned to the young Oracle. “This is your last chance!  Find out how to release my daughter from this enchantment or you and your brother will suffer the same fate as the guards!”

The Oracle looked into the eyes of the princess once more.  Now not only did he See this creature, its eyes glowing bright, its breath upon her neck. But now he Heard them making plans to escape together. But he could not See the path to the location of their tryst. 

“Sire, if I may.” Said the younger brother. “I have a plan to entrap this creature, I require a potion of wakefulness, a small band of your finest soldiers and a basilisk skin cloak.

“I will give you what you ask for, but your failure will seal your doom.”

As an extra precaution, The king ordered the princess’s windows bricked shut. This time the young Oracle himself sat guard. The princess wished him goodnight and offered him a tea blend which he knew was enchanted. The Oracle drank it for show and immediately as the door closed he drank the potion of wakefulness.

At the stroke of midnight the princess emerged from her room, moving in stilted motions, as if under a mind control spell. The Oracle pretended to sleep as she slipped past and when he was in the clear, altered the King’s soldiers to follow him quietly. The Oracle trailed the princess to an old walled garden as she drew three spell circles summoning vines from all around. She scaled the vines and when she had made it over, the Oracle and guards did the same.

The Oracle ordered the guards to trap the princess and demanded she that call for her lover. She screamed and with the basilisk skin cloak, the Oracle shifted into the form of the princess. When the grimwalker arrived to claim its prize,  the guards captured it, casting a netting spell over its writhing form.  

The Oracle proudly presented the monster to the King as it spewed lies of affection for the princess and false grief for the loss of its kin. Its eyes leaked and when that did no good, it lunched forward, gnashing its terrible teeth,  taking ten guards to restrain its monstrous form. 

As guards prepared the grimwalker for execution as the princess begged for its life, so deep into its spell that she had lost all dignity.

“Do not be fooled, pet.” The King soothed her.  “This creature feels no love.  It mimics life. Everything it says is a trick.”

“You have done well”, he told the young Oracle.  “As a reward, your brother will marry my son the prince and inherit half of my kingdom. And you will have my daughter’s hand in marriage.” 

But the young Oracle was not satisfied.

“Your daughter has no claim to the crown. No power. She has consorted with a monster. And my brother will become a ruler? I did all the work! ”

The King shook his head. “You do not have the bearing of a King, but you are cunning enough to challenge me. What is it you want?” 

The Oracle lifted his chin and spoke the words that rested deep within his belly.

“I want influence! I want wealth! I want to be the most powerful Oracle that ever lived!”

The King considered this. 

“Then I offer you a place as my advisor, an estate with many servants, ten galdorstones, and this grimwalker’s body.” 

“I do not need a monster as a servant, let alone one that will betray me and make off with my wife!” The Oracle scoffed, already imagining his wedding night with the princess.

“ I will tell you a secret.” said the King , “Drain dry the blood from this creature and keep a vial of it’s life force around your neck. With its magic, your visions will surpass any oracles that have come before. You and your descendants will  See beyond any witches that have come before. You gain influence, wealth and prosper in all the realms for as long as the magic is potent.”

And with that, the Oracle ran a sword straight the heart of the creature. As it bled out, its body returned to wood and stone. The princess let out a harrowing shriek thus freeing the her enchantment. 

The Oracle married her and they lived ever after.

Footnotes:

To this day, It is thought to this day that the blood of a Grimwalker is especially valuable to oracles, enhancing their visions, and increasing their power tenfold. This story is attributed as the origin of that belief. 

[candie-bar]

Headcannon post because yes

I just feel like it. I would like to share my takes. Spread information. Keep in mind Half my reasoning for anything is thinking it, going "yep that's funny" and incorporating it into my worldview.

-First off, the world itself. After the whole Black Mesa Incident, they basically got put into a big "sandbox" type world to live in. There's basically two types of NPC's in the world: "Filler" NPCs (Think the entire US Millitary. They have no purpose other than to shoot and die.) Filler NPCs exist to make the world feel more populated or serve a very specific, simple purpose, and generally can't be interacted with. The other type of NPC is interactable NPCs. These are AI more similar to the cast, and have more personality. These are the NPCs that have the ability to become more aware, if the oppritunity arises. They're few and far in between, but have a tendancy to flock to each other. I like to think that the Science Team aren't the only "Interactables," Like there's Joshua obviously but I'll get more on the others later.

-The whole player thing basically works the same as it does for Kris Deltarune but more subtle. That was unintentional. I explained it to my friend and they went "Oh so like Kris Deltarune?" and I went oh. At least Gordon didn't really notice it until after everything was over. He just thought it was the whole traumatic situation thing. Haha now whenever he dissociatates from PTSD he also has to worry about if it's a sequel starting. fun :)

-I've seen the headcannons about Benry being experimented on by Black Mesa, and while those do make for good stories, I raise to you that he grew up on a cow farm with the rest of his family (Chronicles of Benry go Brrr), and just thought it would be really funny if he went to work at the morally bankrupt science facility. Like really funny.

-Since we're on Benry's family topic, I personally find it hilarious to think that they're also non-humans. I just think it's funny. The few fics I've found that mention Emmet and Moola (spelling contested) make them human and that's funny too imo, but I want to go with this so. And I'm basing thiss off of my own interactions with my sibling, but I think "Forzen and Benry being siblings in the middle of an insanely petty argument" is also funny. Like if I was mad at my sibling and someone asked me what my relationship with them was I'd absolutely go something along the lines of "Well we Were friends :/" and also shoot them. I think Emmet's the oldest, with Benry having diagnosable middle child syndrome, and then Forzen's the youngest.

-The deal with Tommy is that he was kinda spawned in by the G-man in the early days of the game, but G-man had to go do something in another program for a bit so he left him home alone because it would be quick but Oops! Time progresses weird and it's been six years! So yes, Tommy technically is an orphan and uses this fact to his advantage to avoid explaining that his dad is a time god/that he's not human while also not lying.

-Tommy and Benry grew up in the same area and were childhood friends :) They both also had special intrests on legal things, but Tommy went the OSHA route and Benry knows everything about every legal paperwork ever. They'd be lawyer hell if they went that route but they didn't want to.

-So after the ResCas, The Science Team crashed at Gordon's place for a night. And they never really left. Joshua was delighted that he not only got a dog, but said dog was large enough to ride on. The neighborhood was already chaotic, they don't mind the additions. I keep imagining Joshua coming home with a family tree assignment and it just. does not make sense.

-At first, Tommy and Benry try to hide the fact that he's back but eventually they get found out and Benry gets slowly reintegrated back into the Team. He technically lives on his mom's dairy farm for a good while but spends a lot of time at the house.

-Speaking things into existance is real! If someone says something, it is true and fact. The exception is if it would be funnier if it was false (IE, Bubby lying about what his job actually is, see below). However, the universe will always take the "easiest" route to make it true while keeping in mind previous statements. This is why Joshua exists, yet there is no trace of an other parent, as it was deemed easier to make one child with uncertain origins as opposed to two people. It doesn't always have to make sense, but it is very real. This works better for some than others. Gordon refuses to acknowledge this facet of life.

-Bubby just. continually lies about what job he gets after the rescas. Technically, nobody needs a job but yknow, it's something to do. Nobody knows what he actually does all day. However, Coomer gets a job at a university, and Gordon's a substitute teacher there for a bit before becoming a twitch streamer. He subsitutes for Coomer's class Once and tells stories about him. None of his students beleive him. Nobody knows what Tommy does, but in a different flavor from nobody knows what Bubby does. Benry has a podcast where he "reviews Video Games" (does whatever he wants for about 30 minuites and breaks the game a la let's game it out). Darnold also opens his own options shop!

-Alyx Vance started babysitting Joshua in her teens on recommendation from Eli (He and Gordon are work friends) and never stopped. She was babysitting when the ResCas happened and knew about it from her father. Luckilly, he made it out alive too, just took a different route than the Science Team. She and Gordon are very good friends, but Gordon is a chaos person magnet and she likes to harass him in the same way that really close friends continually bully each other. Alyx met Benry one time and they both instinctually knew it was in their best intrests to team up to harass Gordon. He regrets introducing the two.

-I've mentioned there being other ppl in the neighborhood and so now I'm going to talk about them. I really like to imagine the other notable neighbors being Chell, Gladdos and Wheatley from portal in one house, and Stanley and the Narrator from The Stanley Parable in another. Like, Portal happens in actual half-life so why not also have it happening here (I do think there are a few slight differences tho cuz this is just my take on how those events would play out in a universe like this), and TSP has pretty similar themes imo.

-The deal with Tommy is that he was kinda spawned in by the G-man in the early days of the game, but G-man had to go do something in another program for a bit so he left him home alone because it would be quick but Oops! Time progresses weird and it's been six years! So yes, Tommy technically is an orphan and uses this fact to his advantage to avoid explaining that his dad is a time god/that he's not human while also not lying.

-Tommy and Benry grew up in the same area and were childhood friends :) They both also had special intrests on legal things, but Tommy went the OSHA route and Benry knows everything about every legal paperwork ever. They'd be lawyer hell if they went that route but they didn't want to.

-Benry ran away once because yknow. Edgy preteen years. And met Gordon for a bit. Cut to a few years later and "Oh it's that guy again! Neato!" and remembers perfectly whereas Gordon just. Does not. at all.

-Subnote: My take on Portal but the AI is Even More Aware is mostly the same, as it is very silly goofy game. However, I'd think Gladdos is more of a virus infecting technology across the lab instead of being made intentionally, wheatley was made to stop her as in the original games but they both just see each other and bluescreen and that's how they realize that reality is a video game so portal 2 is just dealing with the chaos of these two ai that have realized they do indeed have controll outside of the technology and figuring all that out. They just kind of follow Chell home and she has to live like this now. I also think it would be funny if Gladdos stole one of Chell's old TTS voices that she used to use to communicate.

-They say if you pass by one of the houses late at night on tuesdays specifically, you will hear Stanley and The Narrator arguing about whether or not to put up a painting of a shrimp in the living room. This is the only time anyone has ever heard Stanley speak.

-Anyways I think that HOA meetings would be sheer chaos. It is the only time Benry is allowed in the kitchen. He, Gladdos, and The Narrator are all trying to casually kill each other. Glass pie. Cyanide in the cookies. Deadly neurotoxin in the punch. Everyone else steers clear of the baked goods table. Nobody's demands make any sense and nothing ever changes.

-everyone in the neighborhood knows that the Science Team has robbed a bank. Several banks, in fact. Nobody cares. They might as well be the government as far as they're concerned.

-The reason Benry and Bubby are never allowed in the kitchen is because once they almost set the whole place on fire and made radioactive brownies. Dr. Coomer ate them afterwards.

-Benry drinks shampoo but supposedly hates conditioner. Yes he says that last part specifically to irritate Gordon.

-Occasionally, Darnold has everyone taste-test potions he made. It always ends in chaos.

-Physical board games are banned after The Incident, except for one night a year dubbed "fuckopoly night" where they play all of them at the same time. The winner gets all of the coins that have been accumulated in the swear jar (which gordon originally set up as a way to get his son to swear less but just kind of. expanded to a household thing.)