#tw malaria

[idontknowreallywhy]

Contents post for Recrudesence & Estera

(Nothing to see here, just to avoid copying all the hyperlinks at the start of each chapter as that is getting cumbersome! Now I can just update this one!)

RECRUDESENCE by @sofasurf

[AO3]

1. The Beginning 2. Focus

3. Realisation 4. The Past

5. Flashes 6. Walking

7. Things Unseen 8. Words

9. Out of Depth 10. Thunderbird

11. Breaking 12. Burning

13. Drastic Measures 14. Coming Back

15. Handle With Care 16. Virgil Struggles

17. John 18. Nightmares&Needles

19. Morning 20. New Alliances

21. Patricia 22. Healing

Prologue - Stars are Only Visible in Darkness

ESTERA by @idontknowreallywhy and @sofasurf

[AO3]

1. Colour 2. Dinosaur

3. Shoes 4. Thunderbird

5. Lesson 6. Safe

7. Gull 8. Deliver

9. Coffee 10. Flight

11. Run 12. Fall

13. Trying 14. Hide

15. Wait 16. Distraction

17. Haunted 18. Falling

19. Calling 20. Thread

21. Consult 22. Assist

23. Jump 24. Drive

25. Cracks 26. Meet

27. Yarn 28. Routine

29. Bez 30. Introduce

31. Stories 32. Trust

33. Questions 33a. Questions epilogue

34. Anniversary 35. Ten

Other snippets in this Universe:

Popcorn

Reading Material

Vogue

[randomfansstuff]

Can't quite believe I'm asking this but, the last few months kind of have been kicking my families ass. Our youngest dog died of cancer a month ago, and yesterday we had to rush our remaining dog Michl to the clinic, because during a regular check up we discovered a fucking incredibly dangerous illness in his blood.

It's slowly destroying his red blood cells, and without treatment he'll die. We got him started on treatment as fast as possible, but jesus christ that shit is expensive.

So, like, spare him a thought today if you can. He's the goodest boy to ever boy and I love him so fucking much. I just want him to be okay.

[prinx-quail]

TW for hella bug bites you guys

But like yaboi straight up went to bed a few days ago and woke up with the mosquitoes calling him Gay. Wtf is this? Like one: Slay. And two??? I'm not even gay??? I'm pan??!!

That or they called me 'Cay' but i choose to believe they can't spell because I have no clue what a Cay is.

Like come on, man. My arms itch like hell ;-;

(traced version for clarity)

Also please ignore the hangman's crease in my neck on god idk why i have an inverse Adam's apple but it dismays me

[tobrodachi]

A’ight, so, as a self-proclaimed expert on the field of epidemiology for infectious and tropical diseases (since I don’t have a title that validates me just yet, it’s a work in progress lmao), this is the skinny of what’s happening with Rabies, take it with a grain of salt since I’m still compiling information and shitposting to organize my thoughts via shouting to the abyss:

1. 4 cases of supposed rabies (confirmatory laboratory pending, it’s new years, and of course the bureaucrats are having a field day). 3 in Oaxaca, southern Mexico; 1 in Nayarit, western mexico. The Nayarit and 1 of the Oaxacan cases are in grave state, 1 death, and the last one without showing any symptoms whatsoever because she’s just built different (actually, just got bit in the hand instead of the head, which is important because! This virus travels through neurons! And it only shows symptoms when it reaches the brain! As if that zombie shit wasn’t scary enough already).

2. The culprit for the Oaxacan cases was a bat that broke into a home. Unknown origin. Vampire bats (AKA Round Motherfucker Supreme) apparently tend to live further up north. However. It also fucking migrates and crashes into other bat colonies like that one uncomfortable cousin. So we still know absolutely jackshit about that.

3. The cases were in this one village, Palo de Lima, located quite literally in the middle of nowhere (or as in this case, Southern Sierra Madre), and that I looked up via geographical and topographical analysis. I found out that they’re so far into the mountains, their roads are made of dirt, and it takes between 4 and 5 hours for any kind of transportation to reach the closest settlement with a working hospital.

4. Bruh.

5. The Nayarit case was a totally unrelated case that occurred a few days before because this one lady let her cat out, bit her, and then died 3 days later. And now her health’s deteriorating, and they sent some samples to the center of the country so that they can identify the presence of Lyssavirus.

6. BRUH.

Should we worry about an outbreak? Probably not, although if the case is confirmed to the wildlife, nothing much can be done about it without altering the ecosystems surrounding them. However, this shit does absolutely show that hey, maybe our government needs to invest more in civil engineering to reach these far-off places faster.

TL;DR: Can we please get a less eventful year? kthxbai

[heterochromicnachos]

I didn’t think it was possible for cars to get uglier but DAMN, MUSK, YOU REALLY DONT LIKE MAKING CARS LOOK NICE DO YA?

Looks like a fucking train car in an anti communist sci fi novel released in the 50s and I mean that in the most derogatory way possible

[hellsitegenetics]

WARNINGS / FAQ / REQUESTS

asks are open! check here before sending :) (updated 8/7/24) consider helping me pay to finish my education!

banned from BLAST for being too sexy

CREATURE WARNING:

this blog posts BEASTIES and ORGANISMS. if you are uncomfortable with seeing any manner of organism (spiders, rodents, fish, etc) please block the tags for that organism before following/browsing. for broad categories: i tag in plurals (insects, bugs, spiders, fish, rodents, parasites, pathogens, plants, trees, etc.) for specific organisms: i tag in singulars (dobsonfly, eurasian harvest mouse, etc.) for disease causing bacteria: i tag the illness it causes (malaria, botulism, etc.) for additional phobias: i tag with the specific phobia ("tw trypophobia", etc.) ADDITIONAL BUG WARNING: this blog posts a LOT of insects, especially moths. FOR SCREENREADER USERS: by the nature of this blog, 99% of my posts will have large sections of unformatted letters, and therefore aren't very screenreader friendly. i apologize. If I ever miss a tag or you'd like to request that I tag something, please send me a message.

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homestuck

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thank you for reading! as a treat, enjoy this Trichosanthes cucumerina, or Snake Gourd flower.

[autumnteawithfriends]

Hazbin Hotel Valkryie Rewrite

Apologies for not including a redesign, I’m still thinking of one for her. But I will share my rewrite for her. Before I begin, here’s some things to keep in mind

—Her name is changed to Valkryie because it’s a actual girl’s name for Salvadorans + why the fuck would you name your only lesbian character vagina in Spanish

—She’s a sinner instead of a angel because I thought she was more interesting as a sinner

—She’s still a moth, I’m just making her look more like one

—She’s still a lesbian, the person she’s in a relationship with has changed instead

Without further ado, let’s begin

(TW: This rewrite contains murder, sexism, misogyny, and mentions of violence towards women)

Her full name is Valkyrie Isabella Flores

She was born on February 18, 1940 in El Salvador

Grew up witnessing the horrific misogyny and violence against women, causing her to despise sexists and men

Valkryie snapped when her mother was killed for simply rejecting a man she had no interest in, so she decided she wouldn’t stand for this treatment any longer

Was essentially a female inverse Jack the Ripper during her days as a serial killer, she killed sexist men in broad daylight and was never caught

She succumbed to malaria at age 42 and died on August 23, 1972

Class 2 Sinner in Hell, her sins are Wrath and Envy

Extremely protective of women, regardless is she knows them or not. Even Mari (OC) gets this treatment even though Valkryie hates her and wants nothing to do with her

Has a crush on Cherri Bomb, which Cherri reciprocates

Was secretly a feminist when alive and is staunchly apparent about it in Hell

Will use any weapon, but prefers knives or spears

And that wraps up Valkryie, feel free to give your thoughts

[historia-vitae-magistras]

i’d never even considered how the civil war would affect alfred during ww1, that’s a really interesting idea. would you mind expanding a bit more if you haven’t already?

fuck yes I can expand on that. TW for historic nastiness.

Okay to prelude— I don't typically do 1:1 state/gov to character but considering the cession of the south into a separate state and the US itself is the Union, my boy is in blue. In this blog's universe there is no schizophrenia or split personality or Doppelgänger or any other representation of the south. It gutted him and he lost feeling in a lot of his usual area and it severely weakened him but he represented the United States and that means union blue. And considering the north really doesn't have all that much moral leverage on the south especially in matters of racism, it's not much of a jump. If you aren't crazy about that, look away now.

So. Trench warfare. It's as old as humans bashing each other's heads in. Defensive ditches are an archaeological feature across the applicable world. But it's the American Civil War that might hold the gold medal for largest gap between how technology designed to kill had advanced spectacularly over any innovation that might save lives. I won't say deadliest because you do have the Taiping Rebellion around the same time but a lot of that was sièges and counter sieges and river based naval engagements. But anyway— rifled artillery and direct fire techniques had changed the game and soldiers were driven underground behind parapets and sandbags. Around Petersburg especially. And it's towards the end of the war when the Confederacy is increasingly desperate and hand to hand fighting is getting more common and more brutal. Entire regiments were lost in hand to hand mêlée. And if a soldier didn't die instantly, it was off to a field hospital. Guts ripped open by iron shells, lungs hanging from the tips of bayonets, wounds so infected they glowed, limbs hacked off by a surgeon who hadn't washed his hands in six days and sepsis rot so foul someone can taste it on the air even with the mouth closed. Malaria and typhoid so fucking bad the army cots would literally shake apart from how bad men shivered when the chills aspect of the fever cycle hit. I know it's fashionable right now especially on vintage fashion YouTube to say people in history weren't disgusting but like, I've been in archives for years. Yeah it fucken was. Never was medicine so far behind the ability to kill.

So Alfred's probably died a solid dozen times half of which from shitting himself because he's probably riddled with parasites. He's been shot, stabbed, slashed. Shaken, rattled and absolutely steam rolled. And the final part of his almighty trauma is this is happening just up the river from where he was born in Jamestown. Alfred is on his belly in the earth beneath the feet of the people that bore him and then rejected him, begging his Protestant God and any of his own people listening and the very earth itself to protect him, to keep him alive as shell after shell lands around him.

When every battle is over, the dead rot in piles across the fields and trenches. The famous photos of the Antietam and Gettysburg dead are days old, you can see some of the bodies had been looted. There were so many dead and so many dying that upon its tardy entrance into world war one, the US had a more coherent body management and disposal program than any other of the entente powers. Who had already been at war for nearly four years.

So yeah, in my opinion he got ten steps into a front line trench where the British and especially the French were just causally walking on bodies, he vomited so hard New York felt California rattling around in there and said fuck it. My boy was either off to cleaner pastures like Belleau Wood or the air corps. It was too much too soon and he just couldn't keep it together in those conditions. They knew what bacteria were by WW1 and he was a burgeoning world power. So he probably only went full himbo with dysentery twice in France so it wasn't as bad as his civil war flop era but oof. That smell, the screams, pressing himself into soil that is not his own yet again is too recent and too vulnerable. He can't do it again so soon.

[mamomare]

* TW: This post contains mention of characters who died during pregnancy/childbirth and suicide.

The dawn of a new century brought with it the winds of change. Alfred and his new bride, Anna, forsook the silk trade to move to Henford-on-Bagley to pursue nectar making. The move did not bring the family luck and on her 20th birthday, Anna lost the battle to typhoid and passed. Alone, and on an abandoned farm with almost no funds, Alfred had to work hard to rebuild his home and his family. Eventually, he met the humble Celestina, who was able to give him two heirs before, in 1409, he too was taken from this life. Going into the 1410s, our two main households - the Brookers and the Cliffords- must fight to keep their legacy alive, as there are very few eligble heirs remaining to pass on the family name. Meanwhile, the new families of Shaw and Bigod are blessed with a number of children to carry on the family name. Come 1420, will we still be able to call this the Brooker legacy?

Marriages [4] 1401 - Alfred and Celestina Brooker 1405 - Walter and Colette Clifford 1406 - Philip and Mary Brooker 1409 - Humphrey and Eva Beaufort

Births [10] 1401 - Adelaide Bigod 1403 - Petra Shaw, Leif Brooker 1406 - Adrian Bennet, Jeremiah Bigod, Dorothy Shaw, Marigold Brooker, Wymand Clifford 1407 - Sigrid Clifford 1408 - Wilkin Shaw Deaths [15] 1400 - Edmund Brooker (Dysentery), Fulke Brooker (Influenza), Anne Brooker (Typhoid) 1401 - Emil Bennet (Pneumonia), Solomon Bigod (Dysentery) 1404 - Theobald Brooker (Malaria) 1406 - Fray Bennet (Typhoid), Ricard Shaw (Hypothermia) 1407 - Walter Clifford (Stroke), Marion Brooker (Drowned), Malota Bennet (Diptheria) 1408 - Malyna Clifford (Heart attack), Philip Brooker (Suicide), Mary Brooker (Childbirth) 1409 - Alfred Brooker (Horse injury) * Babies that never were [9]: Aline Brooker, Erika Bennet, Florian Bennet, Edme Bigod, Osric Shaw, Pascal Shaw, Euphemia Brooker, Lothar Brooker, Orvin Brooker Family Tree at 1410

Gameplay

The Brooker Estate (1410)

(Still a work in progress!)

[steadypet101]

CW/TW: Crying, guilt mention, slight angst, and sadness mention if you wish not to read this Igor scenario below. Feel free to past scroll this.

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Igor Scenario #1: Tears from the Heart (This is literally my first writing prompt ever, so please forgive me if it's a little too sad or if the title is dumb)

[Setting: Igor's castle, nighttime]

It was getting late at night, and Eva, Scamper, and Brian were already asleep in their rooms. Igor was about to get dressed and get ready for bed when he stumbled upon his beret on his nightstand. He had completely forgotten all about it a few weeks ago after saving Eva and Malaria. It was a gift from Eva on the night of the Evil Science Fair. He explained that nobody had ever given him a gift before. He really loved his gift. It was really special to him because it came straight from Eva's heart.

Igor kept staring at the beret for a few minutes until he grabbed it, sitting down on the side of his bed, and gently brushes it with his thumb. He looks at it with a small smile on his face. For a few seconds, he never realized how much that gift meant a lot to him. It made his heart swell with joy. Despite almost using Eva as a weapon and for his own gain to get to be someone famous if he were to win at the Evil Science Fair and be the Evil Scientist he ever so wanted to be, he genuinely cares about her. She may not be evil like he wanted her to be from the beginning. He simply loves her just the way she is.

He even apologized to her and admitted his own mistakes, which, in turn, she forgave him.

Still, all that guilt and all of that ambition to be someone he's not overpowered him whenever he kept thinking about it. He tries not to think about it anymore and let go of the past as he is still staring at the beret. He continued to admire his small gift before his smile turned to a small frown, sniffles, breathed shakily, and his eyes began to pour out tears. He sobbed quietly. For the first time for the majority of his life, after all these years, he cried. And he is not ashamed for it this time.

He brings the beret close to his heart and firmly grasps it with his hands as he feels all the guilt crept up back to him. His tears fell upon his face as he weeped and with his eyes closed. He utterly feels guilty about what happened before, but at this moment, it hits him differently. All that goal to be an evil somebody strikes him in the chest and in the heart. All that guilt washed all over him. He has never felt this much sadness and more guilt in his entire life. This is still all new to him after Malaria's freedom and the sunshine had returned. He doesn't want to stop this feeling. He wanted to keep feeling this way. He wanted to cry. He really wanted to let it all out.

All those emotions he had bottled up for the most part of his life back when he used to believe everything about embracing evil, back when he used to be a lab assistant to Dr. Glickenstein, back when he took all of his former master's cruelty, and back when he thought and hoped that he could have a chance to be with the woman (Heidi/Jaclyn who was a shapeshifter and a female Igor all along) of whom he used to have a crush on by winning her heart have been spilled out.

Sobbing still, the hunchback lay down on his bed and turned to his side with the beret in hand. He hugged himself with his arms, curling himself into a ball. Igor has never been more grateful to create and bring Eva into the world. He is also grateful to have a kind and gentle friend like her. She showed him that he doesn't need fame and fortune to make him happy. It's about friends who care about him that counts. He would rather be a good nobody than an evil somebody as that was once said from Eva. He continued to cry his heart out until a couple of minutes later. He cried himself to sleep despite him wearing his casual clothes on still. He didn't notice that. He was exhausted from the crying and his eyes hurt and had a slight headache to care. All of those sadness and guilt have washed away as he is dreaming away. Now that he lets it all out, he feels good. Much better even.

He's not one to show or express his emotions often in front of anybody, but these new emotions do help him to know what it feels like to be a person with a good heart who is not afraid or even ashamed to express his feelings. Even if it means him telling his friends what's going on inside of his mind. Frustrated or sadness. When he does get it all out, Scamper, Brain, and Eva will make sure that he is not alone and is there for him no matter what, like true, loyal friends he could ever wanted. He is so thankful to have friends like them.

--

So, what do y'all think? It may not be my greatest scenario, but I hope it's good.

What got me inspired to write this? I listened to this beautiful song from the Inuyasha soundtrack (duration is 2:40 and no words) below👇

If you listened to it while reading this, hopefully, it will strike you in the heart.

I hope y'all like this 🩷

[rosemelon82]

鬼吹灯之龙岭迷窟 - Candle in the Tomb: The Lost Caverns - whump list - (cn)

Synopsis:

Hu Ba Yi, Shirley Yang and Wang Pang Zi explore a mysterious tomb in the Shaanxi region. Shirley Yang travels to the Longling Maze Grottos to investigate unusual patterns on fossil fragments. On the way, she crosses paths with Hu Ba Yi who along with Wang Pang Zi have just escaped from the ancient city. The trio become companions in another tomb-raiding adventure. (copied from MDL)

Genre: action, adventure, thriller, supernatural, tomb raider

Main Whumpees:

Hu Ba Yi played by Pan Yue Ming

Wang Kai Xuan (also known as Wang Pangzi or Fatso) played by Jiang Chao

Da Jin Ya played by Marc Ma

Shirley Yang played by Zhang Yu Qi

Other whumpees listed in orange

(I have included female character whump (Shirley Yang) for those who are interested in it, there isn't much though)

TW: DEATH, SPIDERS

MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW

01:

none

02:

Wang Kai Xuan:

18:57 - 20:00 - carsick, throwing up

03:

Wang Kai Xuan:

03:50 - in a storm, thrown off the boat, lowkey drowning

Hu Ba Yi:

03:57 - 08:09 - hits head against the side of the boat, groans in pain, worried for friend, jumps in to save his friend, harpooning a giant creature, stuck holding on to the harpoon which is stuck in the creature, in the air, almost eaten by the creature multiple times, hits the deck hard, groaning, in pain

04:

Da Jin Ya:

19:30 - 28:18 - in a fight, hit multiple times, on the run (comedic), in another fight, hit multiple times, running again, out of breath, asthmatic? idk he uses an inhaler a couple times

Wang Kai Xuan:

19:40 - 28:18 - "stuck" in a bus window, being pulled at, in a fight, pinned in a chokehold, saved by Hu Ba Yi, on the run (comedic), in another fight, choked again

Hu Ba Yi:

19:40 - 28:18 - in a fight, on the run (comedic), in another fight

05:

Da Jin Ya:

23:40 - end of episode - falls into a sinkhole(?), struggling, tumbles down the tunnels, lost

Wang Kai Xuan:

24:00 - end of episode - falls into a sinkhole(?), tumbles down the tunnels, groaning, in pain

Hu Ba Yi:

24:13 - end of episode - jumps into the sinkhole(?), tumbles down the tunnels, groaning, in pain, leaning on Pangzi

06:

Hu Ba Yi:

beginning of episode - coughing, sweating, looking for friend

23:30 - set off an explosion, covered in dirt and dust, coughing

Wang Kai Xuan:

beginning of episode - coughing, sweating, looking for friend

9:40 - 12:00 - bitten by a bat, yelling, running, stuck, panicking and running, almost falls into a hole, saved by friend, kicked into hiding place

23:30 - explosion, covered in dirt and dust, coughing

Da Jin Ya:

21:30 - end of episode - screaming, running, crashes into wall, pulled out by friends, panicked, out of it, slapped x2, crying (comedic), faints, fever, malaria, force fed medicine

07:

Wang Kai Xuan:

14:24 - 16:02 - finds out they have a disease, angry

08:

none

09:

Gu Zhe Shao:

26:11 - vomits golden blood

29:43 - end of episode - arm eaten by carnivorous insects, unknown fate

Gu Zhe Shao's Master (unknown name?):

29:20 - end of episode - half eaten by carnivorous insects, carried to safety by his pupil, unknown fate

10:

Gu Zhe Shao:

beginning of episode - loss of a loved one, grieving, shown with one arm

Gu Zhe Shao's Master (unknown name?):

beginning of episode - TW: DEATH, death

11:

Wang Kai Xuan:

6:12 - 6:44 - beat up, nose bleed, bruises on face, threatened

9:07 - 12:23 - bomb hung around neck, panicked, screaming, faints

18:32 - 25:47 - found trapped in a hanging cage, yelling, surrounded by piranhas, almost bit multiple times, panicked, screaming, dunked in water with piranhas, getting bit, helped out of the cage by friend, relieved, panting

Da Jin Ya:

6:12 - 6:44 - beat up, bruises on face, threatened

9:07 - 12:03 - bomb hung around neck, panicked, screaming

Shirley Yang:

22:07 - 25:47 - jumps onto cage, slips, barely hanging on

12:

TW: SPIDERS

Shirley Yang:

16:18 - end of episode - slips into a hole, tumbling down, groaning, in pain, helped up, fighting off spiders (she is badass), tries to save friend, dragged along the ground, attacked by spiders again, yanked into the air

Wang Kai Xuan:

16:19 - end of episode - slips and falls into a hole, screaming, tumbling down, groaning, in pain, helped up, fighting off spiders, grabbed by spiders, dragged along the ground, saved from being pulled into a spider hole,

Hu Ba Yi:

16:30 - end of episode - pulled into a hole, tumbling down, groaning, coughing, surrounded by spiders, narrowly avoiding spider's attacks, saved by friend, grabbed and yanked by a spider, dragged along the ground, struggling, fighting off spiders again,

Da Jin Ya:

16:25 - end of episode - pulled into a hole, tumbling down, groaning, in pain, steps on a spider egg, panicked, faints, found strung up in spiderwebs, saved

Some random guy:

27:19 - hits a venom sac on spider's leg, sprayed with poison, screaming in pain, half his face burned from poison

13:

Hu Ba Yi:

08:49 - falls, almost stabbed by giant spider multiple times

14:

Da Jin Ya:

5:14 - 17:50 - mercury poisoning, hallucinations, unsteady, breathing hard, sweating, not mentally present, being held up

Shirley Yang:

5:54 - 17:50 - mercury poisoning, sweating, breathing hard, hallucinations,

Hu Ba Yi:

6:34 - 17:50 - mercury poisoning, sweating, blinking hard to stay awake, hallucinations, hazy, unsteady

Wang Kai Xuan:

6:34 - 17:50 - mercury poisoning, blinking hard to stay awake, hazy, unsteady, being held up

15:

TW: MULTIPLE DEATHS OF MA DA DAN'S UNDERLINGS/BROTHERS

Wang Kai Xuan:

29:44 - end of episode - thrown in the air, lands on his arm, screaming, wounds all over, bloody

16:

Hu Ba Yi:

beginning of episode - fighting a spider, struggling, thrown off, dragged, explosion, held up, in pain, exhausted, coughing, speaking very breathily, unsteady, wounds all over

Wang Kai Xuan:

continued from previous episode - wounds all over body, bloody, exhausted, holding up friend

17:

Hu Ba Yi:

14:03 - 29:06 - falls into the pit, falls again, struggling to hang onto the wall, climbing with no clear hand holds, exhausted

18:

TW: DEATH

Li Chun Lai:

beginning of episode - death

Review of drama:

Good action scenes and good whump. No aftercare for those who were looking for it. Very realistic whump and clear exhaustion is seen in the behavior of the characters in the later episodes when they have been going through the tomb for hours. I like the character development for Ma Da Dan, who also got the ending he deserved, after all the trials of the tomb. Luckily, I was able to post this exactly one year after the previous one. I apologize to anyone who was waiting for it, though seeing the amount of interaction on the previous one, not many people were. I will start working on the third season soon, for those looking for it. If I missed anything, please feel free to let me know and any requests for whump lists are welcome. Thanks for sticking through the show and my whump list. Stay tuned for the next ones!

[sockatoothewafflebird]

a year or so ago, i had a weird dream about a bug apocalypse. like an end of the world sort of scenario in which giant bugs take over the world and we humans become the pests. the roles reverse and humans become the inconsequential miniscule dust specks.

and then i decided to write about it. i turned it into a whole story. here's what i've come up with.

tw for lots and lots of bugs. like this whole story is about bugs. if you're icked out by it i don't mind if you ignore this, your comfort matters more than my infodumping

let's start at the beginning.

at first, johnathan just noticed that a few ants in his yard were awfully large, especially considering the species. he noticed a lot of bugs were getting unusually large. and in the summer that year, mosquitoes were a much bigger issue than they ever had been, and deaths from malaria were skyrocketing. not good.

a few months pass. plant produce prices get a lot higher due to pests hurting the industry.

a lot of people get worse and worse bug bites and stings.

johnathan works in a meteorological department lab whatever, and he notices some weird anomalies in the weather. reports it. turns out it's swarms of bugs becoming actual storms big enough to block out the sun.

at first it was just odd. now? it's practically world-ending. a global issue. the seafood industry breaks down because all the crustacean foods like shrimp and crab and lobster become too big to catch, too much to handle. agriculture becomes almost impossible, and diseases spread like wildfire. all in the span of a year.

at this point shit is hitting the fan, but it only gets worse one day. one day, when the earth shakes, the seas change, the sun isn't visible. from the ground comes huge bugs, spiders the size of cars and houses, centipedes that could wrap around skyscrapers. from the sea comes crabs the size of islands and pincers that could dwarf the marianas trench. from the sky descend flies and locusts and wasps and bees all buzzing with a deafening roar. the hives span entire city blocks, the flies swarm and buzz and hum.

all in a day, the roles reverse. humans are the pests now.

collossal arthropods that almost put the burj khalifa to shame. some are friendly, some are violent. all of then are much smarter than they were before, intelligence that rivals ours.

the bugs can bathe in the sun, and they strike fear in the humans that are reduced to the dirt.

in the shadows, scientists find ways to genetically modify a human fetus with traits of arthropods. hundreds of children with the traits of arachnids or crustaceans or myriapods or insects. and one child with them all.

a boy named micah that can speak with the arthropods as if they were his brothers, a boy that can leave pheromone trains and grow insect wings and a scorpion tail and coconut crab pincers. a boy with everything.

the story follows wren, a no-nonsense college student with a special interest in bugs; johnathan, a scientist with a really freaky mysterious past; and micah, the boy that could probably save the world if he wanted to. they all find themselves lost in a huge city infested with huge bugs; mainly flies, smaller centipedes, the occasional bee or beetle. all bigger than they can reasonably overpower, but they somehow live anyway.

their main goal once they meet each other? get out of the city. find one of the refuges. and just.. don't get got by a bug.

i don't have any real name for this, other than maybe the swarm. in the dream i had that inspired this, some guy comes home to see his wife and daughter dead, killed by a swarm of violent bloodthirsty flies. his whole house is taken over by them and while he runs away, he shouts, "IT BELONGS TO THE SWARM NOW!" so that's where i get the phrase "the swarm" from. i can't come uo with any other name for the story. any suggestions/ideas are welcome.

please ask questions and say stuff about this! i think this is probably my favorite story in the briefcase full of weird concepts i've come up with and i'd love to talk more about it if anyone wants to hear more.

[a-mag-a-day]

Date: December 3rd, 2022

Episode of the day: MAG 45 Blood Bag

"ARCHIVIST: Statement ends.

Can’t stand mosquitoes. Horrible things. Any solution to the issue of malaria that doesn’t concentrate on wiping them out is not one that I have much time for."

MAG 45 transcript

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TW's can be found in the transcripts

Asks and submissions are open for episode 45! Send your reactions, insights, memes, art, etc., Regarding today's listen or tag this blog in your post.

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[cerubean]

hiii i was wondering if you have any plans to get back to the myers, i miss them! no pressure if not haha hope you have a good day

hey! i've been tossing around the idea of at least posting the posts i already have edited and ready that have been sitting in my drafts for months (it's quite a bit).

i think i'll try to come up with a schedule to queue them since i've already got a lot of gameplays going on i don't want it to be too confusing

also the reason why i stopped posting them (tw death + spoilers (? kinda)

death had been following devan for a long time in my gameplay. if im not mistaken his death counter is up to 4(?)

he got meningitis

he got malaria

he died of laughter

and lastly he died in a plane crash(??) or it might've been a car accident idk lmao

this most recent time was of a heart attack

(in conclusion, adeepindigo's mods are wild, but really good for spicing up your gameplay)

and so i decided to just let him go when he died the 5th time, and it made me really sad! i never thought i'd get emotional over a sim's death but it felt so weird not having him around to be a goofball, so i stopped playing them for a while.

i recently started playing with violet again now that she graduated from hs (and college but that's much farther ahead) and i've been having fun! im determined to make it to the 2nd generation bc i've only done it once before!!

anyways yeah that's why i took a break, thanks if you read this far!

[legends-of-time]

The Journey of Living at Downton

Chapter 49: August 1925

Masterlist

TW: depictions and discussions of suicide. In no way am I an expert in this matter. I tried to write it the best I could.

——

Emma quietly hums as she rocks and pats the baby in her arms after the early morning feed. Her son gurgles up at Emma as she cradles him in her arms. Emma beams at him, unable to take her eyes off him, eager to watch every action of the month-old baby.

Thankfully Patrick Owen Branson's birth had gone smoothly. After recovering from the shock of labour starting, Tom had quickly snapped into action and called for help to assist Emma up the stairs from the servant area. Thomas had swiftly appeared and the two of them got Emma up the stairs and into the car that still sat outside. After that, the birth happened quickly with Emma having the urge to push soon after they arrived at the Hospital.

Sybbie had turned 5 just over a few weeks later and happily carried around her Auntie Emma and Uncle Tom's new baby with her father anxiously following her, worried about her dropping him. Ivy has taken the role of older sister very seriously when it comes to Patrick while Michael has very little interest in his little sibling as he can't play with him so he happily runs after Teo, Robert's new puppy from Violet.

Mary is still down after what had happened at the races and with Henry. Despite her insistence that she is fine, Emma can see that she has withdrawn slightly and is not laughing as much though holding baby Patrick does bring out warm smiles from her.

Edith is also feeling a mixture of emotions. She had quietly confessed to Emma that Bertie had proposed when they had been up in London but she has not said yes yet as she hasn't confessed to him who Marigold really is. Emma hopes she'll tell him soon as she really doesn't want another Mary and Matthew situation when Matthew proposed the first time.

Rosamund has also come to stay, apparently because of a cold though Emma has her suspicions that she's hear because of Edith. Not that Emma would complain, she likes Rosamund and Edith is quite close with her aunt so it only makes sense she would have her support.

Not everyone is down in the dumps. Mr Molesley had done well in his exam and has been offered a teaching position at the local School where he'll be doing a couple of lessons a week. Whereas Mrs Patmore's new house in Houghton-Le-Skerne, a little to the north of Downton, on the border with County Durham, has already received its first guests in its function as a bed and breakfast.

——

"A house of ill repute." Emma splutters, trying not to laugh but horrendously failing.

Mary sniggers. "That's what Anna said. Of course we all feel sorry for her."

The two look at each other, trying to keep a straight face before they both splutter with laughter again as they cross the Great Hall to enter the Drawing room.

Mary had told her what Anna had told her. Sargent Willis had come round (again) to inform Mrs Patmore that her first guest had not been as respectable as she first thought. A Mr Ian McKidd and a Mrs Dorris had decided to use Mrs Patmore's bed and breakfast as a little hideaway as they ran from Mrs Dorrit's husband who's suing Mr. McKidd for damages related to adultery leading to Mrs Patmore's bed and breakfast gaining the label of a site of a house of ill repute.

Emma sniggers out a laugh as she recalls Anna's hilarious description of a shocked Mrs Patmore. Oh dear, of all the people it should happen to, it had to be the naïve and innocent cook.

Emma stops Mary at the door to the Drawing room. "Now, I know you can't help yourself, but we need to be sombre for Edith's sake, alright?"

Bertie's cousin, Peter Pelham, 6th Marquess of Hexham, had died from malaria while travelling in Tangiers late last month. This only just puts another level of strain on Bertie's proposal to Edith no doubt.

Mary rolls her eyes and huffs, "Who cares? He probably won't have a job now, my romance might not be the only one to come to an untimely end."

"Exactly what I mean, keep your gleefulness to yourself." Emma retorts as they enter the room.

——

They all have assembled ahead of dinner with the addition of Isobel. The only one missing is Edith. The mood is rather subdued.

"Poor Mr Pelham. First that terrible day at the race track, and then to hear his cousin's died." Cora says.

"It does seem very hard." Isobel agrees.

Edith walks in. Robert and Billy rise to stand next to Tom who already stands next to the settee that Emma sits on along with Cora and Mary.

"Did you get hold of him?" Emma asks her, concerned.

"Yes. He's coming tomorrow, on the first leg of his trip to Tangiers. I've asked him here." Edith replies as she moves to stand in front of them all.

"Good." Cora agrees.

"How is he?" Billy asks, concerned.

"Sad." Edith sighs. "He loved his cousin, and it was all so quick. The trouble is they've already buried him. Bertie's not sure what to do."

"Well, that's ordinary in hot countries. It won't mean any disrespect." Isobel reassures her.

"No. But should they leave him there?"

"Surely that decision is down to the new Marquess, not to Bertie?" Mary asks, her tone isn't kind, more irritated.

"Well, that's the thing. He is the new Marquess. Bertie."

There's an astonished silence after Edith's announcement as they take in the news. Emma watches in concern as Mary's face morphs from smugness to annoyed disbelief.

"Bertie Pelham is now the Marquess of Hexham?" Robert asks in a tone of utter disbelief though not out of unkindness, more shock.

"Yes."

"Nonsense. He's having you on. He'd have told you if he was the heir." Mary remarks, almost ready to laugh at the whole situation.

But Edith remains serious and cool. "He did tell me. But his cousin was in his thirties, and they all knew the girl he was going to marry."

"But that's absurd! If Bertie's a marquess, then Edith–"

"Edith would outrank us all. Yes. That's right." Robert says, interrupting Mary and starting to laugh at the whole situation.

Rosamund and Isobel join in his laugh, but Cora and Mary, like Emma, don't, though she knows Cora's reasons are more like Emma's than Mary's.

"Was he a close relation?" Emma cuts in, still surprised as well as concerned. If Edith was unsure about accepting Bertie because of Marigold, what'll this do to the situation?

"Second cousin, once removed. Nobody thought it was possible he would ever inherit. Least of all Bertie." Edith replies.

"Well, he seemed like a nice young man to me." Isobel remarks.

"And getting nicer by the minute." Rosamund quips mischievously causing her and Isobel to let out another giggle. They're having such fun over this.

"With a real love of Brancaster." Tom adds.

"Golly gum drops! What a turn-up!" Robert says gleefully.

The door opens to emit Mr Carson.

Cora takes the cue. "That's dinner." She rises to her feet. "If we're not too distracted to eat."

Isobel, Rosamund, Billy, Robert and Edith walk out first. Cora, Emma, Tom and Mary hang back.

"So we'll all bow and curtsy to Edith. You'll enjoy that, Mary." Tom quips at the disgruntled sister.

"Hardly." Mary scoffs dismissively. "And if Bertie is Lord Hexham, which I still don't believe, he won't want to marry her now."

"Careful, or people will think you're jealous, dear. We don't want that." Cora says gravely as they all file out past Mr Carson.

Emma can't but feel this'll end badly.

——

They're at their after-dinner coffee in the drawing room. Only Robert has gone to bed early again. Cora, Rosamund, Isobel and Edith sit chatting together, laughing. Emma overhears mention of poor Mrs Patmore's situation but she is absorbed in her own private conversation with Tom, Billy and Mary.

"I had a call from Henry earlier." Tom remarks.

Mary looks startled but asks softly, "Henry? Why didn't you say?"

"He's saying it now." Emma says.

"How is he?" Mary asks anxiously.

"Mourning Charlie Rogers. Missing you." Tom answers.

"You're not to ask him to come here." Mary warns him sternly.

"Suppose he just turns up?" Billy remarks, trying and failing to be subtle about it. Emma narrows her eyes at her friend.

"Don't encourage him, Billy. None of you should. I mean it. We'd be wretched long term." Mary declares.

"And you're not wretched now?" Billy asks.

Mary sighs and moves away.

"She's right about one thing, you can't encourage him." Emma says to the two men next to her.

"But you see how sad she's been." Tom argues. "I think Henry needs to come."

"I don't know..."

"Oh, come on Emma." Billy scoffs. "She just needs to see him, to realise maybe she shouldn't have ended things with him."

Emma grimaces. "I just know it'll end badly."

"How?" Her husband questions.

"This is Mary we're talking about. She doesn't like her hand being forced and asking Henry to come will rile her up further than she is already with the Bertie situation." Emma explains her thinking. "She needs to come round to it in her own time."

"You don't know that." Billy says.

Emma rather thinks she does.

——

The next morning, Emma sits on one of the red settees across from Rosamund, who's flicking through a magazine, while Robert is writing at his desk, cradling Patrick in her arms as he has a quiet snooze.

They had received good news the day before, Daisy passed every paper she had taken with high marks. Emma remembers the little girl (one she had always found quite irritating) and is amazed to see her progress.

Cora comes in. "Where is everybody?"

"Mary and Tom are agenting, Billy's at work and Edith's gone to meet Bertie's train." Emma replies as Cora moves to sit next to her, reaching over to softly stroke Patrick's cheek. "I've just come back from being outside with the children. Apparently there was some important bug excavation needing to be done in the grounds."

This causes the adults to all chuckle.

Rosamund is the first to sober up. "Are we going to talk about it? Are we really going to sit by and let this young man's family and future be put at risk from a scandal we are hiding from him?"

"I don't think she has to tell everybody, but I agree. She must tell him. Then it's his choice." Cora answers.

"I agree." Emma declares. "This is the sort of thing you really should not keep secret from your spouse."

"Isn't it up to Edith?" Robert argues.

"From what I've learnt, we really shouldn't leave it up to your daughters." Emma retorts.

Robert looks affronted at this and goes to reply but Rosamund cuts him off, "Robert is scared of Edith loosing a marriage worthy of the name because after Tony Gillingham had gone, he thought none of his daughters would make a marriage worthy of the name. Now there's a chance of one, and he can't bring himself to give it up!"

"You haven't got children. You don't understand these things." Robert retorts dismissively.

"No. I haven't had children, Robert, as you so kindly remind me, but I hope I do have a sense of decency." Rosamund cries angrily.

"How long are you planning to stay? Your cold must have cleared by now." Robert counters. Christ, the two are like children.

"Don't fight. Nothing's going to get better by you two falling out." Cora says in a sharp whisper as the door to the Library opens emitting Edith and Bertie, who walk in through the Small Library. The others rise to greet them.

Cora approaches them first. "Hello, Mr Pelham. I mean..."

"I'm going to stay Mr Pelham until the service." Bertie says, saving her the embarrassment. "But I wish you'd call me Bertie, anyway."

"Of course, hello Bertie." Emma greets warmly. "I don't believe you've met Patrick?"

"Er no." He accepts the baby, rocking him slightly and looking softly down at Patrick, who's just woken, staring at the unknown person in wonder.

"What sort of service will it be?" Robert asks.

"Not a funeral. I've decided not to disturb him." Bertie says, sounding almost choked up. Emma smiles softly as her son reaches and clasps Bertie's finger in a tight grip as if to comfort him. "I'll fetch his things and settle his debts and have a service at home to say goodbye."

"That sounds like a very good plan." Cora says.

"I hope you'll allow me to come." Edith says.

"I want you to come." Bertie says simultaneously warm and desperate.

"You remember my sister?" Robert indicates to Rosamund.

Emma takes Patrick from him so he can greet Edith's aunt properly.

Bertie walks towards the woman. "Of course. Lady Rosamund."

"This must be a strange and unsettling time for you." Rosamund says sympathetically.

"I'll say. My mother's cock-a-hoop," Bertie remarks, "but she doesn't appreciate that I was devoted to Cousin Peter."

"I'm sure she does." Cora assures him.

"Not really. Most people didn't get the point of him. He was... so delicate. But he was as kind to me as any man has ever been."

"Then how pleased he'd be to know that you're his heir." Emma says softly.

"That's so nice of you." Bertie's voice cracks as he begins crying in earnest. Edith puts a comforting hand on his arm. "Goodness. I'm afraid you've made me blub."

"Let me take you upstairs to unpack. Luncheon's not for half an hour." Edith tells him. They walk past the others and out by the other door.

Rosamund, deeply moved, turns to Robert. "And that's the man you want to trick into marriage?"

Robert lets out a huff. "I'm going for a walk." He walks out the other way.

"I agree." Cora says. "But Robert thinks Edith's had so little luck in her life."

"He can't be serious!" Emma scoffs. "Doesn't he know that she'll never be happy with such a secret dangling over her?"

"Exactly. We all know she's making a mistake." Rosamund says.

——

Bertie is more together by the time they all sit down for luncheon, attended by Mr Carson, Thomas, Mr Molesley and Andy. Isobel has joined them and Mary and Tom have returned from their agenting while Billy is still at work though had called earlier to see how Bertie is to which Emma could only tell him that he's in a bad way over his cousin.

"What was it about Tangiers that your cousin enjoyed so much?" Isobel asks Bertie as he sits next to her.

"Who knows?" Bertie replies. "He used to talk of going down to the beach and watching the young fishermen bring in the nets. How the setting sun would make the scene magical until everything was suddenly plunged into darkness."

"Goodness. How... lyrical."

"He was lyrical. He was an artist. In his heart, anyway." Bertie says with a small soft smile.

Emma grins. "I like the sound of him."

"I don't think this family can boast much in the way of artists. Although we did have an aunt who was quite good at macramé." Robert quips. Everyone chuckles politely.

Mary, however, doesn't and speaks up, after having stared at Bertie the whole time with an odd look on her face that's been unnerving Emma, "So, are you here to settle things with Edith before you leave?"

This startles everyone. Everyone either gives shocked looks or frowns in Mary's direction for her being so indelicate. Emma is in the latter category.

"Mary, please." Cora reprimands, astonished.

This doesn't deter Bertie. "I hope so. I hope we can get things settled, but I mustn't jump the gun." He gives Edith a hopeful smile.

"So, Bertie, you mentioned your mother, but what other family do you have?" Emma asks, happy to deter the conversation.

"That's it. My father's dead, obviously, there are no siblings. It's just me and Mother." Bertie answers.

"You were joking when you said she was cock-a-hoop, but she must feel a certain pride." Cora says.

"I wasn't joking," Bertie dissuades, "but judge for yourselves when you meet her."

"You talk as if we should be scared of her." Tom remarks.

"She makes Mr Squeers look like Florence Nightingale." Bertie quips. Everyone chuckles a little awkwardly. Edith looks rather alarmed. Oh, dear.

——

Later in the day, they're all gathered in the Library for tea and a puppet show. Tom and Bertie sit behind the booth and operate the puppets, one of whom is a Punch character who is whacking another character, a Policeman, with a slapstick. Billy, Mary, Emma and Edith as well as Ivy, Michael, Sybbie, George and Marigold sit lined up on low stools in front of the booth to watch the show. Nanny Jean is in the background while the other Nanny, Margaret, is in the Nursery with Patrick as he naps. Robert, Cora and Rosamund are watching from the red settees.

"Take that! And that!" Tom as Punch, in a weird, high-pitched voice cries.

"Ow!" Bertie cries as the Policeman.

"Punch is terribly fierce. I don't think he's a good model for marriage in later life." Mary remarks.

"Or relations with the law." Robert says with a chuckle.

"Take that! And that! And that!" Tom says as Punch, still dealing out blows.

"Ouch, you rascal!" Bertie's Policeman retorts.

"And that's the way to do it!" Tom makes Punch bow, and the show is over. Everyone claps and laughs.

"Very good!" Billy compliments.

"Whoo, Daddy!" Ivy cheers.

Emma laughs. To think that she herself had watched a couple of Punch and Judy shows when she was a child, over 80 years in the future, and here her children are, in the past, watching a similar show. Funny how life works and things last.

Emma then hears Mr Carson clear his throat. "Er, Mr Talbot."

Wait what?

Emma turns around just as Mary does, both in surprise and alarm. There Henry Talbot is, trailing after the butler as they both come through the Small Library.

Cora rises to greet their guest. "Hello, Mr Talbot. Mary never told me you were coming."

"I didn't know he was." Comes Mary's reply.

Neither did Emma. She gives a sharp look to both Tom and Billy, who both avoid her gaze.

Henry stays near the exit, unsure of his welcome. Mary hasn't got up from her seat. "Well, the thing is, I was driving down from Durham and I suddenly realised I'd almost be passing the gates."

How convenient...

"What were you doing in Durham?" Rosamund asks, still seated and Robert walks up to Henry.

"Oh, I was doing various car things."

"We haven't seen you since that awful day at Brooklands. I hope you're coping with it all." Robert says.

"Well, one doesn't have much choice."

Mary approaches Tom and Billy with Emma trailing after her. "Did you two know about this?" She hisses in an accusing undertone.

"I might have said that if he was coming from Durham, then he'd be driving quite close." Tom says casually.

"Don't think I'm amused! I dislike my hand being forced." Mary retorts.

"Which is exactly what I told them." Emma quips.

"No one's forcing anything." Billy argues.

"Now you're here, I hope you'll stay the night at least." Cora says to Henry, drawing their attention back to the wider conversation.

"Mary?" Henry prompts hopefully.

"Perhaps Mr Talbot is in a hurry to get home?" Mary replies coolly.

"No, no I'm not."

"It's settled then. Carson, will you please tell Mrs Hughes? And ask someone to unpack for Mr Talbot." Cora instructs. Mr Carson sketches a bow and leaves.

Emma in the meantime helps Billy and Edith as they direct the children to Nanny. It's clearly best that they evacuate the area.

"I'm afraid you've missed tea." Robert says.

"Oh, don't worry about that." Henry dismisses.

"I won't." Mary retorts, forcing a cold smile. Mary sits down on one of the red settees, pretending to be interested in a magazine.

While Henry approaches Bertie, Emma turns to Tom. "Pretty sure you and Billy have allowed Henry to make a bad miscalculation." She says as she watches how Mary is still pretending to read her magazine, but she's so nervous and upset that she opens and closes her hands convulsively, which is something they rarely see.

"Don't say that." Tom murmurs.

——

Mary comes walking up the staircase, followed by Tom and Emma.

"This is so precisely not the way to win me over!" Mary snaps.

"Mary, will you just get off your high horse?" Tom retorts as they come to a stop on the landing.

Emma winces that. She'd made the executive decision not to say anything, not wanting Mary's anger to be misplaced towards her, Emma who hadn't done anything.

Mary turns back to him angrily. "Why are you interfering?"

"Because I love you and I want you to be happy."

"Well, you've got a bloody odd way of showing it!" Mary hisses.

"Well, I take it this is me you're fighting about?" Emma turns to see Henry catching up with them.

"Yes, it is. And you can dig yourself out. Because I've had enough." Emma huffs. "With all of you."

Mary scoffs as Emma and Tom walk away, leaving her and Henry alone.

"I told you this wouldn't work." Emma murmurs to her husband.

"You're not helping!" Tom huffs.

——

Robert stands chatting to Bertie near the fireplace in the Drawing room after dinner. "How are you getting to Tangiers? Is there a boat that sails direct?"

"Actually, I'm flying. For the first bit, anyway." Bertie tells him.

Emma perks up in interest at that from where she sits in one of the chairs next to them.

"What?" Robert exclaims incredulously.

Bertie chuckles. "I know. It does seem rather daring."

"And impressive." Emma grins. She knows travel by air in this time is still rather new compared to her time.

"I do not envy you." Rosamund comments from where she sits in an armchair opposite.

"I don't know. Now the commercial airlines are starting to operate, I dare say we'll all be flying hither and thither before too long." Robert remarks.

"I rather doubt that." Rosamund says with a laugh.

Emma watches this all amusedly. "Well, I do. It's quicker and more efficient. People will want that."

On the other side of the room, Billy and Mary are having a conversation of their own. It clearly doesn't end well as Mary's then marching to the door in a huff. Henry walks out after her. Emma watches after them, worried.

——

Emma is giving Patrick the morning feed in the Nursery the next morning. The children are out with the Nannies so Emma has the room to herself for a short while.

Emma is just burping him when the quiet is disrupted by Tom angrily storming in. "I can't believe her!"

Emma helps Patrick do one last belch before pleasing him back in his cot and turns to her husband, "Tom? What's happened?"

"It's Mary. She forced Edith to tell Bertie about Marigold and now he's stormed off." Tom explains, trying to calm down but still breathing heavily out of anger.

Emma's jaw drops. "What?! Why?!"

"Henry's gone. It's all my fault, I should've stopped them from announcing it."

"Announcing what?"

"Edith has said yes to Bertie." Tom explains.

Well, that explains it all.

Emma sighs, coming over to stroke his upper arms. "It's not your fault. This is Mary we're talking about. Edith is happy, she isn't, so she's decided to be horrible."

"I know but I knew, I knew she was suspicious of Marigold. And I invited Henry over. I should've handled it better." Tom grumbles.

Emma presses her lips together, knowing any comments right now will not be helpful.

——

It's gotten worse, Bertie has now asked to be taken to the station. At the front door, a car stands ready with Andy in attendance. Emma stands with Robert and Tom as they wait for Bertie to get in, but he's walked a little way off into the park with Edith.

Tom checks his wristwatch and sighs. "He'll miss his train."

"Let him miss it. He can catch the next one." Robert remarks. "What happened?"

"Apparently, Mary forced Edith to tell him about Marigold." Emma tells him.

"I wouldn't say forced." Tom argues.

Emma rolls her eyes. "It sounds like it to me."

"How did Mary find out?" Robert questions.

"Mary is not stupid." Tom replies.

"No. And she's not always kind, either. Was it really a mistake?"

"What difference does it make?"

They carry on watching Edith and Bertie. Emma wishes it was the opposite but she doesn't blame Bertie for being upset for not being told about Marigold. It isn't long before Bertie touches his hat and moves away, leaving Edith behind.

——

Mary sits in the Estate Agent's office, waiting for Tom to start their day's work. Emma walks in with a face like a thundercloud.

Mary frowns when she sees her. "Where's Tom?"

"Trying to clean up the mess you made, but don't worry, he's failed. Bertie has left for the train, and now Edith won't be the next Marchioness of Hexham." Emma replies hotly.

Mary shrugs calmly. "Well, that's not what I wanted."

Emma narrows her eyes and scoffs. "Isn't it?"

"I still can't believe she'd never told him. How was I to know that?" Mary responds, cool as a cucumber.

"Don't play the innocent with me." Emma warns her. "You should know better."

"I didn't mean it—"

"Don't lie!" Emma shouts at her. "Not to me! You can't stop ruining things! For Edith, for yourself! God, you're a literal child who sees their sibling has a shiny new toy. You'd pull in the sky if you could! Anything to make you feel less frightened and alone!"

"You saw Henry when he was here, high-handed, bullying, unapologetic. Am I expected to lower myself to his level and be grateful I'm allowed to do so? Tom and Billy brought him here. Why are you not yelling at them?" Mary retorts, no longer acting cool and working herself up into quite a passion now.

"Trust me, they've already had a telling off but only because they really should've known what you're like. I mean, just listen to yourself. 'Lower yourself to his level'. You're not a princess in The Prisoner of Zenda!" Emma cries in disbelief.

"I thought you of all people would understand me but you're just like the rest of them." Mary snaps.

"The amount of times I've stood by you, defended you but you've taken it too far!" Emma yells again. "You ruined Edith's life today! How many lives are you going to wreck just to smother your own misery?"

"I refuse to listen!" Mary says furiously, getting up from her chair.

She tries to leave but Emma doesn't move out of her way. Instead, she stares directly into Mary's eyes and calmly states, "You're a coward, Mary. Like all bullies, you're a coward." She marches out having hopefully given Mary a lot to think about.

——

"Christ, I can't– she– urggghhh!" Emma cries, unable to form proper sentences with how angry and frustrated she is. She paces her and Tom's room while her husband sits on the bench at the end of their bed.

"I'm glad you talked to her. I might've throttled her." Tom remarks.

"Don't put yourself down, I was quite close to it myself." Emma huffs. "What are we going to do?"

"I know a way we can sort this. At least partly." Tom tells her.

"How?"

"Violet."

Emma frowns. "Tom, she's somewhere in France. We have no way of contacting her."

"Well, actually. I do." Tom admits.

"Heh?"

He goes to the tallboy in the corner of their room, opens a drawer and pulls out a letter. "She wrote to me. I received it shortly after she'd gone."

He hands it to Emma and she takes it, reading it to see Violet genuinely had written to Tom, detailing where to contact her if need be. Emma grins.

"Why you're smiling?" Tom questions, slightly amused.

"It's funny. She clearly trusts you and to think how to her you were this odd foreigner to her once." Emma remarks.

"'Suppose. But we need to do this quickly." Tom says.

"The nannies usually take the children outside soon. What if we abscond ours and have a trip to the Village. What do you say Mr Branson?" Emma smirks at him.

Tom returns her smirk. "Why Mrs Branson, how clever you are."

——

Emma and Tom are walking through the Village, Emma walks next to Tom as he pushes along Patrick's pram with a letter in hand to drop off at the Post Office. Ivy and Michael are running about just ahead when Miss Baxter, who was rushing past, comes to a sudden stop.

The lady's maid is panting heavily with wide panicked eyes. "Mrs Branson, Emma, you need to come quickly."

"What's happened?" Emma questions, worried for the woman. Ivy and Michael have stopped up ahead, watching them curiously.

"It's Thomas."

That's all Emma needs to hear before her stomach drops to the centre of the Earth.

She looks to Tom, who nods. "Go."

Emma flashes him a thankful smile before turning and beginning to run back to the house with Miss Baxter.

"Mama?" She hears Ivy call.

Not wanting her daughter to panic, Emma smiles calmly over her shoulder, slowing slightly. "Mama just forgotten something sweetheart."

Ivy accepts this and begins tugging Michael along with her to carry on playing.

——

(A/N: This is the suicide part.)

Emma and Miss Baxter hurry through the empty downstairs passage, looking for Thomas. They look in the Servants' Hall, the Boot room – empty. Emma ignores all the odd looks they're getting from the other servants as she has only one thing in mind.

They move on to the stairs, barging past a surprised maid, Lucy, and enter the men's corridor. Andy is just exiting his room, pulling on his tailcoat, when they turn the corner.

"Does Mrs Hughes know you're on the men's side?" He says rather sternly to Miss Baxter before startling when seeing Emma. "Er, Mrs Branson—"

"Where is he?" Emma demands.

"Wha—"

"Mr Barrow. Where is he?"

"Er, he was going in for a bath."

Emma sees all colour leave Miss Baxter's face and she knows that her face has done the same thing.

"Oh, my God." Miss Baxter gasps. "Come with us!"

They rush past him, around a corner and to the door of the bathroom. Andy follows, alarmed.

"Hello!" Emma bangs on the door, Miss Baxter joins her. "Thomas! Are you in there?!" She tries the door handle, but the door is locked or bolted. She rattles it desperately. "Will you open this door?!"

"Get back!" Andy instructs.

Emma and Miss Baxter move back, the former has her hands in her hair, pulling in distress while the latter has her hands clapped to her mouth.

Andy aims a kick at the door, then another one. The second kick tears the bolt off the door frame, and the door bursts open. They rush in.

In the red-tiled room, Thomas has filled the bathtub with water and got into it, still wearing his undershirt and trousers. He's lying in it with his eyes closed, pale and lifeless. The water has a reddish tinge, and there's blood spatter on the sides of the tub, on his arms and on his chest.

"Oh, my God!" Andy gasps, horrified.

Emma goes into nursing mode, running towards him and surveying the damage before she starts tearing her underskirt into ribbons for makeshift bandages.

Miss Baxter turns to Andy. "Fetch Mrs Hughes. Send Anna for the doctor, but tell no one else what you've seen."

Andy runs out and Miss Baxter joins Emma by the bath.

——

Emma and Miss Baxter have lifted Thomas' arms out of the bathtub and bandaged his wrists as best they can with the materials they have and are now cleaning him up, softly dabbing his face and arms with wet towels. In the meantime, Thomas had moved his head slightly but very weakly, which is a relief to see.

Both of them look up in alarm when footsteps are heard and the door opens. But relax when they realise it's only Andy and Mrs Hughes.

Mrs Hughes stands in the doorway for a moment, shocked at the sight, but then recovers quickly, closing the door for privacy. "Anna's gone for Doctor Clarkson."

"Good, we've bandaged his arms for now but we need help in getting him out, changing him out of his wet clothes and get him into bed." Emma tells them.

"I hope he won't mind if we undress him." Miss Baxter says.

"He's past minding if we put him in a shy and threw coconuts." Mrs Hughes remarks. "Now, you two take his feet and Andy and I will take an arm each."

They move to do as she said. Mrs Hughes and Andy each take Thomas under one arm while Emma and Miss Baxter move to the end of the tub.

"Has anyone told Lord Grantham?" Emma asks.

"Mr Carson's seeing to that."

"Right. Here goes." Andy says.

They start pulling Thomas out of the tub. He opens his eyes a fraction and groans. Emma winces at that, her nurse façade falling slightly.

They pause before having a go again.

——

Thomas groans awake.

"Thomas? Thomas?" Emma calls worriedly. They'd been able to get Thomas into his room and change him before Dr Clarkson's arrival. The doctor had been able to treat him without needing to take him to Hospital.

Mr Carson had suggested the idea of telling everyone that Thomas is ill with influenza rather than what had happened. He doesn't want any more people than those who already do to know what happened. Emma agrees with it. As far as she is aware, suicide is a crime in England right now and will be until the latter half of the century. There's the worry that, because Thomas did not succeed, he risks being imprisoned or taken to the asylum. Though for Mr Carson, it's the additional huge scandal for the family.

Robert and Mr Carson have also oh so graciously allowed Thomas to stay for the time being, to take needing to find a job off his mind, which they should have done or something similar at least in the first place.

Emma watches from where she sits at the edge of the bed as Thomas slowly blinks his eyes open. He frowns when he sees Emma, looking slowly over Dr Clarkson, Miss Baxter and Mrs Hughes, who stand behind her before it dawns on him. He suddenly pales.

"I—" His mouth is dry so Emma brings water to his lips to which he takes a sip.

"Mr Barrow, I was able to stitch you up, though Mrs Branson provided superb aid prior to my arrival, so you will not need to go to Hospital." Dr Clarkson kindly but professionally tells him.

"Thank you, Dr Clarkson." Thomas mournfully replies, refusing to look up at anyone.

"And now you're awake and there's nothing else, I will leave you in the diligent care of Mrs Branson and your colleagues." Dr Clarkson adds.

"I'll take you to the door, Dr Clarkson." Mrs Hughes says. The two of them leave.

Miss Baxter lingers for a bit longer, flashing a small, pitying smile in Thomas' direction. "I glad to you're looking better." She says softly before leaving.

As soon as she's left, Thomas pulls a face. "I don't want her pity." Normally that would come out as a grumble but instead, he says it faintly almost like a ghost.

"She's cares for you so you're going to get it whether you like it or not." Emma quips softly.

"Why did you stop me?" He suddenly asks. He fiddles with his bandages to which Emma gently slaps his hands away.

"What? Other than the fact you're my friend and I don't want you to die?" Emma retorts, trying to keep it light.

"Well, you haven't been acting like my friend recently." Thomas retorts.

Emma's face drops. "Yeah, I know I haven't and I'm sorry but I'm my defence, you can be a real bastard sometimes."

"Yeah, I know." Thomas mumbles but this time there's a slight quirk at the corner of his mouth which isn't much but it's something.

(A/N: End of the main part of TW)

——

Emma continues to stay with him for the rest of the day before Miss Baxter takes over and Emma goes to join the others for dinner, at which she learns they'd also been informed of what had happened.

Edith isn't there and has actually gone up to London. After Emma had left Tom, Edith had asked him if he could drive with her to the Station so he could take the car back to Downton. Apparently, the kids had a lot of fun in the spontaneous car ride.

The next day is largely the same though Anna and Miss Baxter take turns in relieving Emma and helping to look after Thomas. At one point in the day, Mary brings both Ivy and George up to visit with oranges to make him feel better. He's still weak and pale but a tad better on what he was yesterday, physically anyway.

Come Friday, Emma sits in the Library with Tom on her break from looking after Thomas/just generally keeping him company. They're on their own as Rosamund, Cora and Robert are getting ready for their tea at Mrs Pamtore's B & B. Rosamund had suggested it, to make a little news story out of it to help with Mrs Patmore regaining the bookings she lost due to the place being deemed a 'house if ill repute'. Emma's glad that's being sorted at least.

Emma is startled out of her musings when Andy comes striding into the room.

Tom looks up from his newspaper. "Andy?"

"The Dowager called, Sir. She's returned to the Dowager House and is now making her way to Downton." He hurriedly informs them, a tad out of breath.

Both Emma and Tom's heads snap towards each other at a speed that really should've snapped their heads off.

"That was quick." Emma remarks. "You should go go to the door, Andy. Don't want her in a mood if there's no footman to greet her."

Andy nods and darts out of the room.

Violet's car comes up the drive to the house and halts at the front door. Andy comes out to meet it and opens the rear door for Violet to get out. Tom and Emma come hurrying out of the house to greet her.

"I can't believe you came!" Tom remarks in greeting.

"You made it sound so urgent." Violet retorts.

"Even so, we really appreciate it. Thank you." Emma says. They start moving towards the entrance together. "Was everything all right when you got home?"

"Well no, not really. Spratt has gone away." Violet complains, pulling them to a stop.

Okay, odd.

"Did you tell him you were coming back?" Tom questions.

"A good butler should not need to be told." Emma almost laughs at that but decides not to interrupt Violet as she continues with, "Now, where are they? My broken-hearted granddaughters?"

"It's just Mary. Edith's gone up to London. We didn't know when we wrote." Emma tells her as they continue walking towards the house.

"All the better." Violet says. "Oh, and after that's been sorted, I would rather like to meet Patrick."

Emma smiles at that. "Of course."

——

Thankfully, Mary is not mad at Tom or Emma for summoning Violet though in doing so has appears to have worked as Mary is much happier, ready to make peace with Edith as well as having sent a telegram to Henry to come as soon as he can today. If Mary wants him then Emma's happy for her.

By the time of his arrival, Billy has arrived home from work and stands anxiously with Emma, Tom and Mary in the Library as Henry walks in through the Small Library. The atmosphere is not exactly pleasantly relaxed here. Mary is extremely nervous, Henry looks confused and reserved, Tom is cautiously optimistic but not overly optimistic while Billy is reserved but hopeful. To be honest, Emma just feels exhausted and is just wishing for the sweet release of this being over.

"Well. That's it. We'll leave you to it." Tom announces.

Emma and Billy begin to follow him just as Tom moves to leave, but Henry's voice stops them.

"You don't have to go."

"Believe me, we do." Emma remarks.

"Exactly. We've been part of this courtship for quite long enough. It's for you to manage from here." Billy adds.

And they walk out and close the door behind them. Billy and Tom begin walking towards the stairs, crossing the Great Hall but Emma doesn't, slowing down her steps.

Billy's the one who catches what she's doing first. "Emma?"

"Wouldn't be weird for me to impatiently wait outside the door until I find out whether there'll be a wedding or not?" Emma tries to say it conversationally but instead, it's awkward and she's cringing.

The two men share a grin and Tom turns to her and says, "Weird but we won't stop you." And they both leave, chuckling.

Emma rolls her eyes and plonks herself on the closest chair by the door.

A short time later Mr Carson emerges from the door that leads to the servants' quarters at the corner of the Hall and moves to the door leading to the Library. He startles but recovers quite efficiently when he spots Emma.

"Mrs Branson?"

"Er, don't mind me, Mr Carson. You just get on with your work." Emma says, trying to not act like she's just been caught red-handed spying. Well, not spying but something close to that.

The butler looks at her baffled but does just that. Emma doesn't see what happens but she can tell he's startled at what he sees and then very quietly and discreetly moves back out of the room and closes the door again.

"I take it by you're expression it's good news?" Emma asks, grinning at the almost scandalised look on the man's face. She lets out a few quiet sniggers.

Just then, Mr Molesley arrives with tea on a tray.

Mr Carson outs up a hand to stop the footman when he reaches them. "Uh, give it a moment, Mr Molesley. Better give it a moment."

He gives Mr Molesley a very significant look, which Mr Molesley answers with a soundless "Ooooh!" when the penny drops.

To be honest this sends Emma from quietly sniggering to full-out laughter.

——

"What is it with men Mary is marrying making both you and Billy their best men?" Emma remarks as Tom shrugs on his mourning coat while Emma does his tie.

It's Saturday 22nd of August 1925 and it's the day Lady Mary Crawley and Mr Henry Talbot get married. Apparently, the two aren't hanging about. The last time he was here, Henry had brought a marriage licence nod conveniently, his uncle is a bishop which means they're able to marry at the earliest convenience which is this Saturday.

They're a little late getting ready and are moving at double the speed than they would've done if they hadn't gotten, er um, busy this morning.

Tom laughs. "It is strange that both of us will have been the best man at both if her weddings."

"Funnier things have happened," Emma remarks as she steps away from him and turns to her dresser to slip on her earrings and pull on her gloves. "Did you know Mr Carson had Henry have breakfast in bed so that there would be no chance of either Henry or Mary catching a glimpse of one another?"

"This is Mr Carson we're talking about. He wouldn't take any chances with Mary's happiness." Tom chuckles, as he places the flowers in his lapel and Emma hands him his hat.

Emma steps back to look at him but not before stroking his lapels to make sure there are no creases. "There. You're all set and now you really must go."

Tom flashes her a grin and gives her a quick peck before he leaves the room to meet with Henry and Billy and make their way to the Church.

——

Emma had arrived in time to watch Anna do Mary's hair and put the finishing touches to Mary's wedding dress along with Cora and Rosamund. It's an altogether less romantic, more modern affair than at her wedding with Matthew, but still very elegant, because come on, it's Mary.

The door opens. Edith comes in, still in her travelling clothes. She looks unsure and reserved.

"What? I don't believe it! Why didn't you say to expect you?" Cora exclaims in surprise as she, Rosamund and Emma all rise from their seats.

"Because I wasn't sure until I got on the train." Edith replies.

"How are you feeling?"

"Fine. Can you not ask me that for the rest of the day?"

Mary turns to Emma, Cora and Rosamund. "Could you leave us for a moment?"

"Of course." Her mother says.

Emma, Cora, Rosamund and Anna move towards the door. Anna opens it for the ladies. Cora pauses at Edith's side to stroke her arm encouragingly.

Emma gives her a warm smile. "I'll see to the children."

"We'll wait for you downstairs." Rosamund adds before they all finally leave. Hopefully, there'll be no blood to mop up or a body to hide.

——

Thankfully neither is true and they all arrive at the Church in one piece. The wedding goes swimmingly and they all soon find themselves emerging from the Church after the newly married Mr Henry Talbot and Lady Mary Talbot to applause and people showering the newly married couple with flower petals. They pause to kiss, to more cheering, then move on.

There's a horse-drawn carriage that Mary and Henry take their seat in before it moves off towards the Abbey.

"Better than ours do you think?" Tom asks after they finish waving it off.

"Nah, no wedding will beat ours, I'm certain." She flashes him a warm loving grin to which he kisses her. They pull apart and Emma adds, "Now, only one more Crawley sister to sought out."

Tom sighs. "Hopefully that won't take long."

Emma looks over to see Edith standing in the churchyard, watching Ivy, Marigold, Michael, Sybbie and George with a loving look on her face. The children are running and laughing and playing tag around Sybil's large stone tomb.

Emma rather thinks it'll all turn out fine in the end. With any luck.

——

A/N: Can't believe I started this story just over two years ago and now I'm here with only one more TV episode to go and then it'll be the movies!!! Where does the time go?

Some facts that I thought might be useful:

Tallboy = tall cabinet

'Punch and Judy' is a traditional British puppet show played from a booth, featuring Mr. Punch and his wife Judy as the main characters. Punch is a clownish creature, a jester and a trickster and most of the comedy comes from the other characters falling victim to Punch's slapstick. Punch speaks in a trademark squawky voice, which is traditionally achieved by the performer speaking through a squazzle, but with less discerning audiences like here, any silly voice alteration will do.

Although suicide itself is no longer a criminal act, under section 2 of the Suicide Act 1961 it remains a criminal offence for a third party to assist or encourage another to commit suicide.

Please leave comments on how you're enjoying this story and what you think.

[nonmalenonparentalfigure]

i fear three things in this world

social situations

mold

catching rabies/malaria/the bubonic plague

and i have good reasons for each

social anxiety and/or probable autism

mold can kill you when eaten and when you see it the mycelium (fungus roots essentially) are already spread throughout the food (this fear was made more extreme when i watched half of a documentary about mushrooms)

all three of the illnesses above can be caught, once you see rabies symptoms you're too far gone, malaria is a bit more far fetched as i live in ohio which doesn't have that but my kindergarten teacher (awesome guy) had us watch a video on malaria (i think it was to spread awareness for a fundraiser) and the plague, well, there are some places in the southwest us where the fleas on rodents can carry the plague