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jenn2sec · 5 months ago

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English vers.

Based On My Dreams Series (MAIN LINE):

❝ Healing Trip ❞

start - thursday20022025

couple - bigbang(you decide who) x fem!reader

chapters summary - after your strong resistance against the abuse from your boyfriend's (now ex) family, you were suspended from school for a year, so what will you do during that forced break? of course, take a direct flight to korea to heal! lets see how lucky you will be with bigbang-boys!

note - chaotic, bad words, side characters, this post won't feature bigbang, but read on and make your choice at the end!, funny, quantum multiverse, alcohol

caption section - after reviewing and organizing more ideas for the plot, i decided to officially develop the Based On My Dreams Series into a long-form fanfic (when i say long, i mean it will have a more structured storyline). y/n is in the late twenties and about to enter their thirties, a third-year student majoring in film scriptwriting.

We’re always open to feedback and ideas to make the story better!

[ Before I could make sense of everything, my feet were already standing on his grave. ]

After reviewing the entire script draft for the short film, you sent it to senior H/n. Just thinking about it made you frustrated—why did you have to do his work for him? This was supposed to be his graduation project! Your head felt as hot as a furnace, yet you still had to sit in the library after your morning classes, rushing to finish his “problem.”

“That jerk…” you mumbled, slamming your laptop shut before quickly stacking up your books into a neat pile and dragging yourself out of the library.

Time flew by, and you were already close to completing your second semester of your third year in university. Just one more semester and another year, and you’d finally have that bachelor’s degree in your hands. Lost in your feverish state, you found yourself daydreaming about internships—completely unaware that the so-called "talented" senior you had just cursed was now striding towards you with an air of arrogance.

“Hey, y/n! Come here for a sec.” He waved a hand at you like an impatient boss calling over an employee just to scold them. Just great. You had only insulted him in your head a moment ago, and now he had appeared like a summoned ghost. With a deep sigh, you bit your lip and walked over.

"I really appreciate your help, but you should really reconsider $#%&—" He kept rambling, his words buzzing in your ears like an annoying fly. What was this? Was he actually complaining about a script that he got for free?

You were too stunned to speak. The only reason you put up with this lunatic was because he was your boyfriend’s older brother and the son of the head professor of your department.

Let’s see… He was the son of the department head but was still drowning in over ten failed courses, barely hanging onto his chance to graduate. And ever since you had visited your boyfriend’s house and discovered that both of you were in the same screenwriting major, more than half of his overdue assignments had magically ended up in your lap. Call you stupid if you guys want—at first, you thought dating someone from the same school would be nice. His mother was a well-respected professor, and surely his older brother must be talented too, right? Wrong. And now, your so-called “future brother-in-law” was acting like he was the professor and you were the clueless student, lecturing you in the middle of campus with no regard for your dignity.

"I am sorry, but I’m really exhausted. Can’t you see the fever patch on my foreh—" You weakly protested, carefully choosing your words to avoid bruising his ego, but H/n immediately cut you off, clicking his tongue and placing his hands on his hips.

"Y/n, if you’re going to do something, do it properly. You can’t use being sick as an excuse to hand in a script full of plot holes!"

You froze. Your face went blank, as if someone had just smacked you over the head with a hammer. You could only stare at this shameless man in disbelief.

"Hey, are y—" Just as you were about to snap back, your younger boyfriend suddenly appeared from afar, grinning as he approached. Without hesitation, he hugged you from behind and kissed your cheek.

"What are you two doing out here?"

Seeing your boyfriend felt like spotting a lifeline in the middle of an ocean. You turned around, ready to whine about your suffering, but before you could even speak, the brat jumped back in horror, shoving you away a few steps.

"Wait, you’re sick?! Hey, hey, don’t get me infected! I have an internship next week!" He hurriedly pulled a mask out of his pocket and put it on, while his brother scolded him for overreacting.

And then, just like that, he kept going. Your dear senior resumed his endless criticism of your script, delivering yet another long-winded lecture about character development and scene construction.

A childish boyfriend. A useless, arrogant brother-in-law. And you—sick to the point of collapse, with a very solid pile of books in your hands.

Yes. With a rage-induced fever clouding your mind like a drunken haze, you didn’t hesitate. You hurled the entire stack of books at that senior’s face, then grabbed the thickest one and jabbed it straight at your stupid boyfriend, who is gaping.

"GET THE HELL OUT OF MY SIGHT, YOU BASTARDS!!! ALL OF YOU, OUT! RIGHT NOW! F* OFF YOU MOTHER F******!!!!!!!!"

"That damn bastards….my gosh how can I know I’d break the library window! It’s all their fault! Huhuhu—" You wailed into your phone, sobbing so hard that your eyes were practically swelling shut.

On the other end of the call, your online best friend sighed. "So… what about your ‘future mother-in-law’?"

The mere mention of that woman made you cry even louder. "That witch! She only acted nice because she saw me as her eldest son’s academic lifeline! But the moment I broke their noses today, she went insane and demanded that the school expel me! Huhuhu—!"

Your friend let out a long, tired sigh. "So let me get this straight… You got suspended for a whole year just for assault and property damage? That’s kind of harsh. I’d say one semester at most." You sniffled. "No, no. Before that, I went to the academic office and reported that entire damn family—especially that bastard H/n—for forcing me to do his coursework."

"WHAT?!" Your friend shrieked in shock before bursting into laughter. Meanwhile, you grinned victoriously.

"Serves those assholes right."

You don't mind graduating a year late, you're a pretty good student after all—it's basically a gap year. But that asshole? His record's been erased. And his mom? Suspended for a whole semester. Ha!

"Why do you keep listening to those gay dudes all the time?"

A slipper flew straight toward the speaker—unfortunately, it missed. You've heard this comment enough times to no longer take it to heart, but you still had to put up some kind of resistance. Your older brother kicked your slipper further away—specifically, out onto the porch—before lazily walking over to the fridge to find something to snack on.

Meanwhile, you sat idly on the sofa, listening to your favorite music: K-pop.

It had been a long time since you last had the chance to relax like this. Ever since you got involved with that damn family, even your holidays were spent helping H/n.

So now, being able to unwind felt a bit unfamiliar. You started feeling like you had rested too much—your hands and feet were itching to do something.

"If you're so free, why don't you go out or get a job? Doesn't staying home bore you?" your brother asked, plopping down on the couch with a bag of snacks. He grabbed the remote and switched the TV to some streamer’s YouTube channel.

"HEY!" You grabbed your other slipper and threw it straight at his face—this time, it hit. After a brief scuffle, both of you lazily slumped back onto the couch.

"Getting a part-time job doesn’t sound too bad—"

Suddenly, your phone rang. It was your online best friend calling.

And with just one phone call, your plan to get a job turned into a healing trip abroad.

The room you rented was in an apartment complex located deep within a neighborhood already slated for redevelopment. Despite this, quite a few people still lived here. Most people—including your online best friend—found the place too cramped and bustling, but you actually liked it. Having lived with your parents and brother your whole life, you never had the chance to "coexist" with strangers like this. So even though you felt a bit uneasy, you valued this experience—it was something worth having!

Your online best friend picked you up from the airport and helped you find a short-term rental. (You had decided to stay for an extended period, given that you had an entire year of free time.) After finishing the move-in process, she immediately switched into tour guide mode and took you on an adventure through Seoul.

This was only the second time you two had met in real life—the first being when she visited your country for a trip. Now, it was your turn to visit hers. Twice was more than enough to erase any awkwardness. The two of you went all out, exploring every corner, from delicious street food to fun entertainment spots.

“Lucky for you, you know enough Korean to communicate, right?” she asked, biting into a strawberry tanghulu—the popular sugar-coated fruit snack often seen in TikTok dance videos. You nodded slightly, using your own candy stick to poke at the hardened sugar stuck on your molars before replying.

“Just a little. I’m definitely not fluent enough to compete with the locals.” You joked, recalling how, during your first meeting, she had been too flustered to even speak English properly.

Both of you had made an effort to learn each other’s native languages, but for the most part, you still communicated in English for convenience, occasionally throwing in phrases from the second language. So naturally, she reacted quickly to your teasing:

"야! 놀리지 마!! (Ya! Don’t tease me!!)”

She laughed awkwardly at her own outburst, making both of you burst into laughter. Your attention was then quickly stolen by a brightly lit bar nearby.

“Hey, I didn’t know Aven Star had a branch in Korea,” you remarked.

“Of course they do! They even invite artists over all the time. Wanna go in? Who knows, maybe you’ll run into one of your ‘husbands,’” she teased, nudging your shoulder.

You were about to agree instantly, but one glance at your outfit made you hesitate. “I can’t. I look like a complete mess right now.”

“Excuse me?! Stop acting like a pick-me girl! You look amazing, so get in there and have fun!”

Well, if that damn family knew you were out here vacationing and enjoying yourself, they’d be fuming. Just the thought of it made you relax a little more and confidently step inside.

The moment you entered, your ears were greeted by remixes of old-but-gold US-UK songs, refreshed with an upbeat twist that made them even catchier. The dim, flickering lights were adjusted just right—not harsh on the eyes—but the place was packed. That was typical for this bar. You never went bar-hopping much during your school days, but if you did, Aven Star was always your go-to. It was surreal that your favorite club had somehow followed you across the world, making your healing trip feel even more complete.

You quickly let yourself soak in the atmosphere while waiting for your best friend, who was busy flirting with the bartender (and ordering more drinks for both of you). The tension in your body gradually melted away, your shoulders feeling lighter by the second. It was hard to believe this trip was already working wonders—on just the first day.

Then, out of nowhere, a cold liquid spilled down the back of your neck, soaking your entire back. A sharp shiver ran up your spine, triggering an instant wave of shock and discomfort that shot straight to your brain, making you yelp. Luckily, the bar was noisy enough to drown out your outburst.

Spinning around, you searched for the culprit—and found yourself facing a guy dressed in a breezy, casual outfit. His face was undeniably Korean, but he wasn’t bad-looking at all. In fact, when combined with his overall aura, he looked…pretty cool!

His expression, however, was hilarious. Though the dim lighting made it hard to see clearly, his wide eyes, hand-over-mouth reaction, and panicked mumbling made it obvious he was apologizing and checking if you were okay.

You were in too good of a mood to get mad. You were about to say something, but then you spotted your best friend scanning the crowd for you. With no time to linger, you flashed the guy a quick grin, leaned in slightly, and said a few words before slipping through the dancing crowd to rejoin your friend.

"________"

| If You Choose to Say Something Playful.

| If You Choose to Say Something Reassuring. [comingsoon]

_____

F i x a r a w S o f t e n

thursday20022025

23:46

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to speed things up and because my english isn’t really that good, i decided to use a translation tool to help with the language switch. a bigbangxreader fanfic operating on the quantum multiverse theory, why not?!

every choice you make leads you to a different person, opening up distinct storylines, what do you think?!

hope you all understand and enjoy ♡

#fanfic #english version #x y/n #y/n #kwon ji young #choi seunghyun #kang daesung #bigbang #dong youngbae #bigbang x reader #x reader

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multiplicity-positivity · 11 months ago

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Here’s some positivity for villain introjects who are trying to be better!

Life as an introject can often be messy and complicated. Sorting through emotions, memories, and traits inherited by your source while simultaneously trying to forge your own identity can be a difficult task! While it may be challenging, though, it certainly is not impossible. This post goes out to all the introjects of villain characters who are trying to improve or push for positive growth!

✨ Shoutout to introjects who used to act and behave much like their source but have since started trying to change their ways!

🌱 Shoutout to villain introjects whose lives are filled with apologies, reminders, second chances, mistakes, and determination!

💕 Shoutout to villain introjects whose source memories or exomemories make it challenging for them to strive towards positive change!

✨ Shoutout to introjects whose villainous source has a big impact on who they are today!

🌱 Shoutout to villain introjects who have to make conscious efforts and decisions to choose kindness in their lives!

💕 Shoutout to villain introjects who are trying to improve despite their efforts not being noticed or recognized by others around them!

✨ Shoutout to villain introjects who are tired of being distrusted, disrespected, ignored, or avoided by others because of their source!

🌱 Shoutout to villain introjects who have done the work and are now in a much better place than they were when they first formed!

💕 Shoutout to villain introjects in need of lots of support, advice, resources, and guidance in order to develop or properly work on self-improvement!

✨ Shoutout to villain introjects who reject the standards and expectations of others, and aim to improve themselves because that is truly what they want for their lives!

Friends, being an introject of a villain does not mean that you are destined to follow in the footsteps of your source. Change may not come naturally for you. You may find yourself predisposed towards actions and thoughts that your source had. You may sometimes worry that you literally are your source. But please try to remember that you are so capable of positive growth, even when it’s hard or seems impossible. Your hard work and efforts are not going unnoticed. We see you and we want to recognize the strides you’ve made towards progress!

Please do your best to be gentle and compassionate with yourselves today. Recognize that change is a process, and the goals you are striving for likely won’t be achieved overnight. Know that we’re in your corner rooting for you every step of the way. You’ve got this! You have a very bright future ahead of you, and we’re excited to see where your journey takes you. Thank you so much for reading, and take care!

#plurality #pluralgang #multiplicity #actuallyplural #system positivity #plural positivity #plural pride #system pride #introjects #fictives #villains #villain fictives

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too-antigonish · 1 year ago

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My Strange but Unified Theory of Exeunt

Last week I talked about the poem Horatio in a post about Morse and fathers and @astridcontramundum asked what I thought it meant in the context of Exeunt. Hopefully she won't be sorry she asked because here's my (as usual) long answer:

Horatio is quoted from twice in Exeunt. The first time, Prof. Fortescue is lecturing to his students at a tutorial and gives us the most famous lines:

Then out spake brave Horatius, The Captain of the Gate: "To every man upon this earth death cometh soon or late. And how can man die better Than facing fearful odds For the ashes of his fathers And the temples of his gods?"

The second time occurs just before Thursday’s has his “turn” in the same spot where Morse will many years later experience his own collapse. He says: ”’How well Horatius kept the bridge in the brave days of old.’ We'd a padre big on that out in the desert. Drumhead service just before Alamein. ‘And how can man die better than facing fearful odds?’ Always stuck with me.”

I think they used those lines to plainly tease the idea that Thursday was going to die. Prior to Exeunt airing, almost everyone thought Thursday would have to die in order to explain Morse’s never mentioning him again in the future. When Fortescue says those lines in the beginning, I think we’re supposed to think that someone—probably Thursday—is going to die heroically. Then Thursday repeats some of the poem—connecting it to his WWII service—just before he has his “spell” and it seems like more foreshadowing.

The thing about the poem though, that most people *don’t* know, is that the big surprise at the end is that Horatio *doesn’t* die. It just looks like he will: Even when his companions have abandoned the bridge because it is on the verge of collapse, Horatius remains. He stays until bridge finally does fail, and then plunges into the river below with the full weight of his armor. It is certain death and both sides stand stunned into silence by his final sacrifice.

But then, both sides find themselves even more surprised when they see the crest of his helmet beginning to rise from the water and he slowly emerges, striding towards the Roman bank. He not only survives, but arrives home to a hero’s welcome and a long life.

All of the usual narrative pieces are in place for us to expect Thursday to make the ultimate sacrifice—to die. For me, Thursday—like Horatio—does sacrifice everything, but the poem was actually foreshadowing his survival, not his death. And for Thursday, his survival is in many ways a far more difficult sacrifice than death would have been. It would have been easier for him in so many ways if he had died in defense of Sam or even fighting Lott. Instead he has to live with the ambiguous and messy aftermath.

Morse could also be Horatio in the sense that he goes to Blenheim Vale facing a high probability of death. What were the chances that the bikers would “come through” for him? That Morse went expecting to be double-crossed and killed by Lott seems much more likely to me. But I do think that Morse, like Horatio, would reason that, “If you’re going to go, then there’s no better way than defending the things that are most important to you,” and so he goes anyway.

He survives too—but unlike Horatio, his heroism will always remain a secret *and* with his realization about Thursday’s guilt and Lott’s revelation about Tomahawk’s identity, it brings perhaps more sorrow than it does victory. And, I would argue that his survival is only temporary or perhaps partial.

The gunshot scene has many possible interpretations, but at its core, my (forever unprovable) theory is that it balances out the survival foreshadowed by Horatio. Horatio was all about the audience assuming that Thursday had to die. But along with that went the assumption that of course Endeavour had to live. This is a prequel after all.

But the gunshot scene said a big, loud, “No. We can kill off Endeavour if we want to and we will.” You can go back and forth until the cows come home about whether or not the scene was simply him contemplating death, actually going through with it, or absolutely, purely symbolic and imaginative. However, I don’t think you can honestly argue that the scene doesn’t somehow connect the concepts of “Endeavour Morse,” “gun,” and “death” to each other. Somehow those concepts have to be included in any interpretation.

So this leads to my weird theory about Exeunt, which is that Russ Lewis heard everyone saying, “Well I don’t know what’s going to happen in the end, but of course we all know that Morse is going to live—so no suspense there. And Thursday, well, he has to die. I mean it’s the only way to explain why we never hear about him later.” And to this, Russ Lewis thought, “Ha! I’m going to do exactly the opposite. Thursday lives and Morse dies!”

Am I right? I will never know. Do I have more thoughts on Exeunt? You really, really don't want to know just how many.

#itv endeavour #endeavour morse #shaun evans #fred thursday #thursday thursday #roger allam #endeavour: exeunt #lays of ancient rome: horatio #kind of weird but i'm pressing the button anyway

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ichiwashername-o · 7 months ago

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What Are Friends For Ch. 26

An Undertale fanfiction.

Written by ichiwashername-o

Summary: Undyne, Sans, Papyrus, and Gaster travel to the past in one last desperate effort to save their timeline.

Rating: Viewer discretion advised. Contains swearing, trauma, and psychological horror

Cast: Undyne, Papyrus, Sans, W.D. Gaster, and others

Chapter 1

AO3

Chapter 26: Final Gambit

There was no time to think.

Undyne charged straight ahead. She didn’t have a plan, but she didn’t need one! All she had to do was stop herself from hurting Papyrus! She’d kick her own ass if she had to!

Or at the very least, stall herself long enough for Sans and everyone else to take care of that kid.

It hadn’t really quite hit her how she was literally going to be fighting herself. It was like in those animes she watched, where the main character was forced to fight an evil twin/clone, usually created by the super evil villain to thwart them! Because what was a better enemy to face than themselves?

And now in the most brain-scrambling twist of fate, she was the future coming to beat some sense into her past-self.

Time travel is BULLSHIT! she thought.

But this was good, she reasoned with herself! All those late weekend nights binge-watching anime shows with Alphys was going to pay off in spades! She was going to exploit every trick and trope at her disposal to keep her past self from making that horrible mistake.

Her first mistake was trusting that stupid talking flower. She and Papyrus needed to have a talk about Flowey when all this was over, but that was for another time.

Right now, she needed to focus. She bull-rushed straight to the passage between Snowdin and Waterfall where, thankfully, it warmed significantly and Undyne was able to shrug the chill off her body. She slowed her mad sprint to a steady jog, waiting in anticipation. This was the only way to get to Snowdin, other than by boat, and she knew she’d run into her past self in mere moments.

She summoned a spear to her side, her claws tapping incessantly on its shaft as she braced herself, waiting for the battle ahead.

–

Sans, Papyrus, and Gaster cautiously approached Snowdin, where everything was dead silent. There was no one around; no patrons loitering outside Grillby’s bar, no neighbors having lively conversations on their front porches, no monster children frolicking in the snow. It was a practical ghost town as all the lights in the surrounding houses had been shut off.

“Seems everyone’s hunkered down already,” Sans observed quietly. They moved out of town, towards their house, where the Papyrus of the past was undoubtedly waiting for the human.

But Sans was torn on what to do. He made a promise to that old lady to protect the human if one should ever emerge from the Ruins, but, well, maybe some promises were meant to be broken. Maybe if he had never made that damn promise to begin with, none of them would even be here right now.

But that was in the past, and now here they were, in the past, trying to undo the one mistake that ruined everything.

Sorry, old lady, but if you knew what this kid was going to do, you’d understand, he thought to himself.

Papyrus turned to study him. “Are you alright, brother?” he asked.

Sans shrugged. “M’fine,” he waved off. “Just . . . thinking about what we need to do.”

“We’re going to stop the human,” he said resolutely. “And we can do that without hurting anyone.”

Even now, he was such an unbearable ball of optimism. But Sans didn’t respond. It wouldn’t do any good to start another argument.

Gaster lingered behind a stride or two, giving the brothers their space, but his movements were labored and slow and his expression was a perpetual grimace. He wasn’t looking well, seeming more and more unstable with every step. And of course, Papyrus noticed that as well.

“And are you ok?” he asked the doctor.

I̺̮ ̉wi̙̯ll̾ͅ ̄̃̄mǎ̙nā̊g̮ͬȇ, he insisted, his voice much more static-y and garbled than before. J̻͖͙ust ̺ạ͈͓ ̦̙lit̳̻t͍̙͈le̦͉̦ ̼͉̦l̻̪̦oṋ̞g͕̦̼ḛr . ̥.̬ ͖̜̪.͍̝̠ ͖͉͍I ͎jus̱̗͔t neẹd to ͚̜h̙o̫̻͕ld͎̫̖ on̺̪ ͕̬a̗̣̹ ̼l͔̤it̪͔tle ̗̩lon͖̗̫g̭er̰.͙̥ I͕͙ ͔̣m̳̪ust̺͉͚ s̹̫͈e̮̯͖e t͖̼ẖ͔̳is̻ t̯h̭̟̯ro̺ug͈h̫.̼̖

Papyrus and Sans exchanged a look. Gaster’s warning still rang in their heads. This journey was a literal death sentence for the doctor, and it showed with every step and wince of pain on his face. It was a miracle he was still here.

“We’ll do this quickly, then,” Papyrus promised, picking up his pace.

N͓̱O,̹̜̓ͬ ̏̄̾WAĬ̦T͇ -͇̑-̈́̅̄ Gaster said suddenly, reaching out to him.

Without warning, vines erupted from the earth, spraying snow everywhere. Papyrus threw an arm across his face as one of the thorny vines wrapped around his arm, yanking him off his feet–

A thunderous roar and whine sounded behind him as a sudden flash of blue light exploded, blinding Papyrus for a moment but releasing him of the vine’s grip. Papyrus fell hard but jumped back on his feet, madly scrambling to make sense of just what happened.

Gaster loomed behind him, his expression fierce and focused, a Gaster Blaster skull hovering at his side as he pointed at something past Papyrus. Papyrus followed his gaze.

There, right in their path, stood Flowey, vines lashing as he grinned, his insane gaze locking with Gaster’s. The little flower let out a delightfully devilish cackle.

“Howdy, Doc!” Flowey said gleefully. “Long time no see!”

Asr͙ỉ̫e͑̏l͍̯͚, Gaster hissed.

Papyrus did a double-take. “Wait, WHAT?!”

Gaster ignored him. Ge̹̘̗ṱ ̥̬out ͎̤o͖͈f̞ͅ ou͕̻͈r͙̝ way͉. This̠ ̥̫̯i̦̙͖s ̤t̠oo̦̹̘ i̤m̪p̫̦͖ortant.

“Aww, is that any way to greet an old pal?” Flowey crooned. The wall of vines waved threateningly behind him. “I just wanted to say hi, that's all!”

Gaster turned to Papyrus and Sans. Y̙̤o̮u ̯t͉wo͖ ̲ͅgo͓,͙̣ ̻̼̭g̖ọ͇ ̥̫ṉ̱o̞̬w.̯ ̼͈ ̬I̫ ̪̩will d̠̜i̪st͖racͅt ̤h̲im̰.̣̮

“No one goes anywhere!” Flowey said, his vines darting forward to strike at the skeletons.

Sans didn’t let himself think. He just grabbed Papyrus, and teleported away.

“Wait, no, NO!” Flowey said, growing angry. “You don’t get to barge in here and ruin all my fun!” But he turned back to Gaster, that manic glee returning. “But I suppose I can have plenty of fun with you, can’t I?!”

Gaster closed his eyes, resigning himself to his fate. Yes. This would do just fine. He will distract Asriel–Flowey. He will buy enough time for Sans and Papyrus to do what needs to be done.

And if this final fight should be the end of him . . . so be it.

He just needed to hold out as long as he could.

He summoned another Blaster, and with a furious whine, a beam of pure energy blasted the wall of thorny vines as they descended upon him like a plague of serpents.

–

Undyne was racing as fast as she could to Snowdin, the Thorny Whip in her hand. She knew what she had to do–Flowey had warned her what would happen, and however much it broke her heart, she knew she had no other option–

Then she stopped dead, coming to a screeching halt. Standing right in front of her, right on the passage to Snowdin–

Was herself!

Undyne gaped, not trusting what she was seeing. “What–what sort of sick trick is this?!”

The Other Undyne was standing ready and braced, a spear in hand. “Look, I know this is gonna sound crazy, but I’m from the future and I’m here to stop you!”

Undyne ground her fangs together, steeling every muscle in her body as she swapped out the whip for her more tried and true weapon, her spear. “If this is some sort of practical joke, it’s not funny!”

“It’s not a joke! Look, if you hurt Papyrus, you’ll turn him into an uncontrollable beast and he’ll kill the human and you are going to ruin his life–!!!”

Undyne had heard enough from the impostor. She didn’t know why she had even bothered to stop, she had a mission and she needed to get to it! She charged forward, screaming with rage and determination and brought her spear crashing down.

“GET OUT OF MY WAY!!!”

The Other Undyne leaped backwards, bringing up her own spears and fending off her attack. She countered Undyne’s attacks with her own ferocity, her yellow eye glinting with the same determination.

They were both fighting for their friend, and they were both going to give it everything they had.

Despite the severity of the situation, Undyne couldn’t help but grin. She had always been dying for a match against a true opponent, someone who matched her skill in every way to push her to the very limits of what she was capable of. And fighting an evil impostor/clone/whatever was the perfect match!

She had done her homework. She had watched countless animes with Alphys and fighting an evil doppelganger was a common trope in those shows. And so she would use every trick and counter she knew of to defeat this evil version of herself and save Papyrus.

Undyne screamed, raining down an endless torrent of spears. The Other Undyne dodged nimbly out of the way, bringing up a green shield to block the attacks she couldn’t outmaneuver. She retaliated with a similar volley, ferocious and unending.

The Other Undyne was grinning, too, but there was fear and panic and desperation.

The same fear, panic and desperation that Undyne was feeling right now.

If she didn’t get to Papyrus soon–

She was wasting time here! She had to get around the Other Undyne–

She jumped high into the air, using her spears to catapult herself over the doppleganger. Once her feet touched the ground, she took off running as fast as she could towards Snowdin.

“Oh no you don’t, you BRAT!”

Undyne felt herself lurch to a stop as her soul glowed brightly with green energy freezing herself in place, she spun, scowling furiously at The Other.

“Well, seems the only way to get away from you is to kill you! So let’s make it quick!” Undyne snarled.

That was just fine with the Other Undyne. She just needed to keep stalling.

–

The world blinked back into focus with a flash of blue and a zap of ozone.

Papyrus blinked blearily, trying to get his bearings. They weren’t too far away from their house, it was just over the hill. All he and Sans had to do was exchange a look, give a nod, and begin their approach.

Papyrus . . . really didn’t have much of a plan. Not a solid one. Which probably wasn’t a good idea. He was mostly winging this. But he felt that he’d know what the right thing to do would be when the time came.

“Do you think Gaster’s going to be ok?” he asked suddenly.

Sans was surprised by the question, but he sighed, shaking his head. “No idea,” he admitted. “Flowey’s a real piece of work.” Papyrus frowned at that, and Sans, seeing his dejected expression, gave another sigh and added, “Then again, so’s the doc. He’s . . . strong. And smart. If anyone could put up a fight against Flowy, it’d be him.”

That got Papyrus a little more hopeful. “But how did Flowey even know we were here–”

“Flowey’s got his own influence on the timeline,” Sans reminded him. “So he’s more tuned in to abnormalities than normal monsters. Us popping in here? Yeah, might as well set off a fireball to announce our arrival to him.”

Papyrus winced. “I admit, I didn’t think about that.”

“Nothing to do about it now. Come on, let’s get moving, I’m not about to take any bets on how long the doc can stall him.”

They approached their house, cresting a distant hill and coming to the edge of the surrounding forest. And there, right in plain view, standing and waiting . . .

Was Papyrus.

Him. His past self.

Papyrus froze. Hm. He had no idea how surreal it would be seeing . . . himself. He was stunned for quite a while, just . . . staring. Sans noticed and gave him a soft elbow to jar him from his thoughts.

Papyrus started. “S-sorry. It’s just . . . weird.”

“Tell me about it.” Sans more than sympathised. “But this is good. The kid’s not here yet. We’re early. We can head back into town, cut the kid off.”

Papyrus nodded. Even he knew that it wouldn’t be the best idea to just go waltzing up to his past self and try to explain everything. That’d be way too confusing. Best if they tried to avoid running into themselves.

The exception was Undyne, of course.

They snuck back through the woods, back to town, and began their careful skirt around the perimeter to see if they could spot the human.

It took them longer than they liked. Papyrus thought that the town being so dead and deserted would make things easier. But they must have been really early because the kid was nowhere in town. They were about to head further out of Snowdin, across the bridge, when Sans stopped him.

“Wait,” he whispered, gripping Papyrus’s arm. Papyrus froze, and saw Sans pointing across the way. Papyrus followed his brother’s gaze.

There they were. The human child, clothed in their signature striped shirt, a red bandana tied around their forehead and their hand adorned with a glove. They were hunched down low behind a building, carefully scanning in the direction where the brother’s house was.

“What are they doing?” Papyrus whispered.

“They’re waiting for something,” Sans muttered. A lightbulb went off in his head. Of course, how could he be so stupid? “They’re waiting for you.”

Papyrus’s head snapped in his direction.

“They’re waiting for you to change.”

–

Undyne could feel her pulse pounding in her ears, sweat gleaming off her scales. This evil doppleganger from the future was giving her one hell of a beating, but she never lost sight of her objective.

She needed to get to Papyrus, and she needed to get to him NOW!

She defended every attack sent her way with the green shield, but every moment she could, she strained to break out of the stranglehold of the green magic binding her in place. It couldn’t last forever, both she and her evil clone knew that, but every second she was here was another second Papyrus was closer to danger!

But the second she felt that green energy fade, she knew exactly what she needed to do.

“I doubt you’re gonna listen to me, but dammit, it’s worth a shot!” the evil clone shouted over the roar of battle. “Flowey’s tricking you! He wants you to use the whip on Papyrus! It’ll make him lose control! Don’t make him go through that! Don’t let that stupid flower use you!”

“I’m not about to get brainwashed by an evil clone!” Undyne snarled. “How stupid do you think I am?!”

“Pretty damn stupid, apparently!” Future-Undyne snapped right back.

They clashed, spears flying in every direction. One spear grazed her arm, but she managed to land a solid blow on the clone, sending her reeling, her single yellow eye widening in shock.

Undyne grinned. The blow was hard enough to snap the other’s concentration on her green magic, allowing her to move freely once again.

Undyne did not hesitate. She reached forward, and pinged her evil clone’s soul with green magic, locking her in place.

The Future Undyne, momentarily surprised, took the maneuver in stride, grinning right back at her.

And then Undyne spun right around and sprinted as hard as she could, towards Snowdin, leaving her evil clone in the dust.

She could hear her clone scream in anguish and rage behind her.

She blocked out the sound.

All that mattered was getting to Papyrus.

She needed to save him.

–

Vines lashed wildly through the air, their thorny limbs whistling through the ice-cold air as they seared towards their target. Gaster only blinked before he disappeared from view, apparating mere meters away and out of the vines’ wild swing.

“Hold still!” Flowey seethed. Vines erupted from the earth, serpentining around the doctor’s fragmented form, but he again disappeared from view, evading the attack.

“You are such a filthy CHEATER!”

Y̘͈̹our͓ͅ ̳̲̳fi̭rst̫ m̖i̺sta̠k͍̻̱e ̘w͍͚͕as ass͖̤uming̥̭ I͎ ̹ͅwo̝u͚͇ḽ̪͎d̺ f̱igh̯t ̝̲̙f̤ͅa̜̪̭ir̰̬.̱̩ Gaster said coldly.

Flowey gritted his teeth, redoubling his efforts. More vines came crashing down, more razor-sharp leaves sliced through the air, a hail of bullets pounded the entire field they found themselves in. Gaster responded with a flurry of bone attacks and several of those hellish skulls blasting him away with their powerful breath attacks.

But despite his frustrations, Flowey found himself utterly fascinated by this recent development. The long-forgotten Dr. Gaster, brought back to life?

Well, perhaps life was a generous term. Even now, Flowey could see the glitchy form of the skeleton monster strain with effort, his breaths haggard and labored. Though he remained cool and focused, there was no masking that look of sheer agony that occasionally crept across Gaster’s shattered face.

But why was the doc so intent on stopping him? He must know about his plan with Papyrus, but what caused him to care so much to come back and fight him?

Flowey gleamed. Oh, his plan must work most marvelously if the doc was this determined to stop him!

Which meant that Flowey had to ensure his plan came to fruition by any means necessary.

“Well, this has been most invigorating, the best fight I had in a while,” Flowey crooned. Gaster paused, catching his breath. “Really, way to get the blood pumping! Well, not like I have any of that, hee hee hee! But you know what I mean!”

I͚̮ cann̫̙͓o̦͇̩t̜͔ ̫̪͖l̪et ̭̺̜yo͚u̘ h̪̼̞a̩̙rm͉͖̘ ͈Pa̖̟̼p̞͈̹yru͚s̙͕̳. Gaster said in a low voice. E͈v͈e̲̝̗ṉ ̥you ̘̭̫wi͔ll͚̞̯ c̹̬o̠̮̭m̩e ̖̩to̼̮ ̟regr̦͓͇e͇̭͕t ̥͓̙it͔.

Flowey laughed indignantly. “Because you’re such a paragon of virtue, aren’t you? No, I think I’ll very much like having my own bit of fun! And I’m not letting you stop me!”

Gaster’s hand shot up, pinging Flowey with blue magic, preventing him from escaping. But Flowey anticipated such, hence why he taunted the doc to begin with. Vines appeared behind Gaster and shot right through his body, running him through and tearing him apart.

A static cacophonous scream of pain ripped through the air, but Flowey was already gone.

–

Undyne breached the border of Snowdin, the winter chill hitting her like a frozen slap across the face. It sucked the air right out of her lungs, but she pressed on. Papyrus’s house wasn’t much further–

Suddenly a little yellow flower popped up right in front of her. Flowey! She screeched to a halt before she accidentally ran him over.

The flower looked up at her, panicked and out of breath. “More are here! More came to stop you!”

Undyne blinked. “What?!”

“It’s too hard to explain right now–but you can’t trust anyone you see! It’s a trick! They want to stop you! They want Papyrus to die!”

Undyne clenched her fist. “So, I’m not the only one with an evil clone here, am I?” Flowey’s only response was a miserable nod. She didn’t bother on the how and why of the matter, that wasn’t important. “Then I need to get to him right now!”

“Hurry!” Flowey urged. “I’ll try to stop the evil Papyrus and Sans for as long as I can!”

Undyne balked. Both an evil version of Papyrus and Sans were here, too?! One was a handful on their own, but if both of them were fighting together, they would be a nightmare. “Are you sure?”

“We don’t have a choice, and we don’t have time, now go!” Flowey urged, and Undyne took off without any further encouragement.

Flowey turned, letting a sinister smile creep across his face.

No one was going to ruin this.

He disappeared, taking off to search for the time-traveling skeleton brothers.

–

Papyrus stood at the outskirts of Snowdin, not too far from the entrance of Waterfall, anxiously awaiting for the arrival of the human. It had been so dreadfully, hauntingly silent when he walked through the town. Everyone was inside, behind locked doors and shuttered windows. Everyone who was lucky enough to escape the human’s path of destruction, he thought bitterly to himself.

He steeled himself. The human was coming. And they were going down a very dark and dangerous path. For a moment, he had been conflicted between his duties as a Royal Guard and what was right. But he arrived at a conclusion he could be proud of: he needed to help this human find their way, even if it meant going against the Royal Guard’s orders. The human needed his help and guidance! Who was he to turn them away?

He heard footsteps rapidly approaching behind him, crunching through the snow. He quickly spun around, his eyes lighting up with recognition.

“Undyne–!” he said. His best friend’s arrival was a surprise but not an unwelcome one–

She reared back her fist and cracked him as hard as she could across the face, tears streaming from her singular golden eye.

–

“Something’s wrong.”

Papyrus heard it, too. There was a faint muffled sound of some sort of commotion, too far to make out any details but they could hear voices and what sounded like some sort of fighting.

The kid heard it, too, and they emerged from their hiding space and approached the sound.

Sans gritted his teeth. Did Undyne fail to stop her past self? No time to find out, he wasn’t letting the kid take another step forward.

He reached out his hand, glowing with magic. Papyrus’s own hand snapped out and snatched his wrist, pulling it downwards.

“No!” Papyrus protested in a hoarse whisper.

“Paps, we don’t have time for this!” Sans snarled in frustration. “We talked about this, we have to stop the kid, no matter what!”

“And we can do it without hurting them!” Papyrus insisted. “Watch!”

Papyrus raised his own hand, glowing with blue magic. He targeted the snow covering the roof of a nearby building and with a simple flick of his wrist, the telekinetic magic caused it to come loose, falling to the ground in a cascade of snow right in front of the human.

The human jumped, just barely missing the wall of snow. They glanced around, looking for the cause of the disturbance, but shrugged and tried to trudge through the mound of snow now blocking their path. It was hard work, with snow so loose, but they pushed through with sheer determination.

Papyrus reached out and pinged the next house, causing the snow from that roof to fall right in front of the human once again.

The human stopped. They squinted suspiciously.

Sans couldn’t help but chuckle. “Alright, I gotta admit, that’s pretty funny.”

The stalling wasn’t enough, even Papyrus was aware of that. But how to get the human away from . . . from him?

Suddenly, a vine lashed around his mouth, gagging him. Papyrus let out a muffled scream of surprise before he was dragged away. More vines wrapped around him, binding him in place. Papyrus tried to thrash and wriggle himself free, but could barely budge an inch. The thorns on the vines scratched painfully against his bones, causing him to wince. Sans was similarly trapped, his eyes flashing blue and yellow. He was trying to teleport away, but somehow the vines were preventing him from doing so.

And away they were dragged, away from the human. Papyrus could see them crest the last snow mound and make their final approach.

Papyrus tried to scream. But his muffled voice barely reached his own ears.

Flowey appeared before them, that menacing smile greeting them once more.

“Honestly, I’m flattered!” he giggled. “I’m flattered you traveled all across space and time to stop little ol’ me! Which means just one thing: my plan must be something REALLY special!”

In the distance, a scream broke through the deathly silent air.

–

Undyne watched in horror as her friend’s body twisted and convulsed. She had watched Papyrus transform dozens, if not hundreds of times. But this . . . this was different. More violent. More visceral.

The changes were different. The spikes running along his back weren’t that long, they weren’t serrated–his tail didn’t have spikes on the end–his horns were different–

What was HAPPENING to him?!

“What have you DONE?!”

That was her voice. Did she say that?!

But no. Behind her was her evil doppleganger, quickly approaching but her steps faltered when she saw the state Papyrus was in.

Undyne could see the horror and pain and regret on her clone’s face. That expression . . . it was unlike anything she had ever seen before.

It was harrowing.

Her clone snarled with rage, turning on her. “Do you see now?! Idiot!!!” She summoned a spear to her side, resolution dominating her features. But still, there was that pain, that regret, that haunting sorrow. “We don’t have a choice now. We have to stop him!”

Undyne shuddered. Another scream erupted from Papyrus as his body continued to change, growing larger and far more monstrous with every passing second. “But Papyrus ca defeat the human–”

“THAT’S NOT PAPYRUS ANYMORE!!!”

Undyne stared. She couldn’t believe it . . . but the proof was right in front of her. That feral gleam in the dragon’s eyes right in front of them . . . there was nothing left of her friend in that thing that now stood before her.

The dragon let out a death rattle as the final changes overcame it. It rose to its full height–far taller than he was supposed to be, far more feral, far more dangerous, far more deadly. And those blazing orange eyes snapped right to them.

Undyne felt her blood freeze.

As fast as a viper, it lunged forward, those terrible jaws gaping wide to snap down on her–

There was a sudden flash of blue and a crack of ozone. Undyne blinked. They now found themselves in the Hotland labs?! She spun around, seeing her (maybe not so evil?) clone by her side and . . . Sans?

Sans was staring up at the both of them. His expression was shocked, understandably so, but Undyne could detect a hint of anger. But it was mostly shock as he glanced back and forth between the two of them.

“Well.” Sans said. “No one told me Undyne had a twin sister.”

The other Undyne began to rattle off at full speed. “SANS! I know this sounds crazy but I’m from the future and I came back in time with Papyrus and you to stop myself from hurting Papyrus–obviously that didn’t work but right now we need to make sure Papyrus doesn’t kill the kid because if he does, he’s going to screw up the timeline forever–!”

Undyne stared at her doppleganger. She didn’t know what to believe. But what she did know was that Flowey lied to her. Or at the very least, horribly manipulated her. And because of that lie, she hurt her very best friend in the worst way.

So now she was very angry.

Sans was still staring at the doppleganger, the shock wearing off and replaced by an unreadable mask.

“Well, that explains the anomalies I just saw . . .” he muttered.

“Oh, Gaster’s here, too, he’s helping us, so don’t kill him,” the other Undyne added quickly.

That proved to be the worst thing to say as both Sans and Undyne froze, stiffening in rage.

“Gaster’s here?” Sans asked. His eyes were completely empty, his voice low and dangerous.

The future Undyne mentally kicked herself. She should have kept that little tidbit to herself–

“He’s the only reason we were able to get here,” she said quickly. “Look, be pissed at him all you want, but we need to get back there and save Papyrus! Now are you going to help me or what?!” Undyne asked furiously.

But both Undyne and Sans knew that Gaster was undoubtedly the cruelest monster to ever live. He was the one responsible for what was happening to Papyrus, after all.

The two of them turned on the future Undyne, spears and bones summoned to their sides. Future-Undyne wanted to scream. Her and her big fat stupid mouth.

“I don’t know what sort of trick you’re pulling but it’s not gonna work!” Undyne snarled.

“You wanna ask him yourself?! Go for it!” Future-Undyne cried. “But we’re wasting time! We have to move!!! NOW!!!”

Undyne and Sans exchanged a look. If Undyne was lying, a lot of monsters were going to be hurt.

But if she was telling the truth, their entire existence could be in jeopardy.

Sans glared up at her. “If you’re lying–”

“You can kick my ass to kingdom come, now let’s GO ALREADY!!!” Undyne said, stomping her foot impatiently.

Sans gripped both Undyne’s hands and teleported away.

–

Flowey dragged Papyrus and Sans away from the imminent battle, feeling them both struggle in his grip. He let out a mad cackle. Their desperation was just so delicious! Perhaps he could indulge their worst fantasies and force them to witness the battle for themselves! Personally, he wanted to see the monstrous Papyrus rip that little brat to bloody shreds!!!

L̥̣EŤ͆͆ ͔̀TḪ̤͌̀̊ͅE̮̼ͮ̓M ̟̰G̭̻͌̓O̠̎!̲̪͒̽!!

Two Gaster Blasters appeared at the brother’s sides, their jaws snapping down on the vines and freeing them from their grasp. Papyrus jumped to his feet and helped Sans to his.

Gaster had come to their rescue! But the doctor was on the brink of turning to dust. His body was barely there as it was glitching in and out of existence like static on a television, his expression one of pain as he struggled to stay present. But underneath all that, his eyes glowed a bright and brilliant blue as through brute determination alone he hung onto existence.

Papyrus gaped. “Gaster–!”

Ḡ̰Oͮ̽ͣͫ͋!̦̬̰͕̾̎̆̚!̓! ̼͔̜͔͙͍̄̆͑͑͗̓N̹͒Ô̳͖͕̖͉̦ͬͪ̓̎͌W!̗͍͕̮!̟͔̭̲̓̏̍̓!͉͙̼̱͎̼ͦ͋͛͗̉ͤ

Sans gripped his hand and tugged him along, leaving Gaster alone to fight Flowey. He tried not to think how this was undoubtedly the last time they’d see Gaster alive.

They had to make this count. They charged forward, towards the battle.

They arrived at the clearing just in time to see the skeletal draconic Papyrus finish his shifting, turning its hellish gaze upon the two Undynes standing before it. It leaped into the air, ready to sink its teeth and claws into the two fish-monsters, before they inexplicably zapped out of existence with a familiar blue spark of magic.

Sans managed to snatch them away at the brink of time.

But they weren’t done yet. They could see the human approach, their eyes lighting up with eager anticipation as they saw the monstrous dragon before them.

And the dragon saw them.

It let out a furious roar, ready to pounce.

“NO!” Papyrus cried. He rushed forward, and using all his strength, he encompassed the dragon with blue magic. The dragon let out a shocked yelp as its body crashed to the ground as if struck with an immense invisible weight. It roared and thrashed viciously, fighting back against Papyrus. Papyrus gritted his teeth, using every ounce of his strength to keep the dragon–himself–pinned.

The human stared back and forth between the two Papyrus-es, one draconic, one humanoid, in complete bafflement.

“Human!” Papyrus called out. The dragon opened its jaws, ready to let out a deadly blast. But Papyrus shifted his focus, forcing the jaws to snap closed. “Y-you cannot fight this! It’s too strong! You will be destroyed!”

The human paused, almost considering it. Then they charged forward, fist raised, ready to engage the dragon. Papyrus winced. No! This wasn’t what he wanted!

“I’m sorry, bro,” Sans said regretfully. “But if the way to stop it is to put you down–”

“No! No one has to get hurt!” Papyrus shouted. He diverted some of his magic to the human, freezing them in place. “We–we just have to exhaust it–him–me!!! He can’t keep it up forever! Just tire him out!”

Sans could have slapped him. Even now, he was so stupidly optimistic.

But he reached out, and used his own magic to pin the dragon down. It again let out a furious roar, but it was strong. Even with the brother’s combined efforts, they could feel the dragon slipping from their control.

It also didn’t help that the human was so determined to fight the dragon themselves and was fighting Papyrus’s control just as fiercely. They managed to break free, and charged forward, swinging their fist and landing a heavy blow against the dragon’s skull.

The dragon’s head snapped to the side from the impact, but didn’t appear the blow itself did much damage. But it enraged the beast and with a surge of incredible strength it broke free of the brother’s control and lashed out with its wicked claws.

Papyrus was at the ready and caught the limb mid-swing, slowing it considerably. The human managed to duck mostly out of the way, the blow glancing off their side and shredding the hem of their shirt. They winced from the impact but it was a miracle they hadn’t been torn to pierces. Gritting their teeth and steeling their resolve, they attacked again.

“Please stop!” Papyrus shouted. “You’re just making it worse!”

Sans was right by his brother’s side, carefully weighing his options. He shouldn’t have been surprised his brother was so steadfastly resolved to fix this whole mess with pacifism. Sans had to find a way to fix this around Papyrus’s impediment. Realistically, if Sans went full-bore like he did when he typically fought the human at the end of the palace corridors, he could take them out. The human’s LV was still relatively low right now. But attacking the human outright would make Papyrus turn on him and he’d try to stop them.

So the best thing he could do was keep the dragon pinned down and let the kid finish him off. It was . . . brutal, and he hated the idea of helping the brat kill his own brother.

But if it saved their timeline, if it ensured their future remained intact, it was the only thing he could do.

“I’m sorry, bro,” Sans said as he focused all his magic on the dragon. It thrashed, its orange eyes wild and wide as it tried to attack, managing a slow and stuttering swipe once in a while, but for the human, it was like shooting a fish in a barrel.

And for that reason, the human was left unsatisfied.

“Don’t help me!” the human shouted.

That got Sans and Papyrus to start. The human barely spoke, and now they were glowering warningly at them.

“I want to fight him! You’re ruining it!”

Sans could have blasted that kid if he could. “Kid, this is a fight you can’t win. This thing is specifically designed to eat little freaks like you.”

“Then let me try!” Then the brat had the audacity to lunge at him! It was enough to cause Sans’ concentration to slip, causing the dragon to finally wrestle itself free of their control. The dragon roared, completely enraged and snapped around, going right for the kill.

Papyrus dove forward, wrapping the kid in his arms and shoving them away just in time. But the jaws snapped down hard around Papyrus, and the skeleton let out a cry of pain. He winced, bracing himself, but he had just managed to grip the dragon’s jaws, preventing them from closing around him completely and snapping him in half.

He then forced the jaws open just enough for him to worm his way out, falling clumsily to the ground. Papyrus cradled his side, wincing in pain.

“Human! Are you alright?!” he called out.

But the human wasn’t paying attention to him. They just charged right forward, fist raised, landing another blow on the distracted beast. It reeled for just a second before twisting around, its tail lashing out to swipe at them.

Papyrus once again used his blue magic to stop the tail dead in its tracks, allowing the human to easily dodge, but they were angry at Papyrus’s interference. Sans regained his footing and summoned a Gaster Blaster and the blast from the skull construct knocked the dragon off its feet.

“Why are you helping me?!”

“Because you can die!”

“I don’t care.”

“Die for GOOD!!!”

That got the kid to stop and stare at him. Papyrus latched onto that moment of hesitation for dear life.

“If I–if that dragon kills you, you won’t be able to come back!” Papyrus warned. “That’s it! No more do-overs! No more resets!”

The human’s eyes went wide. And Papyrus desperately hoped the human sensed his sincerity, or at least his desperation.

The human swallowed, staring down the draconic beast. It was back on its feet, shaking itself off, and ready to attack again.

“Fine. We’ll fight it together.”

“I was hoping you’d just–run away and let it tire itself out!” Papyrus called out feebly.

But the human wasn’t so eager to throw away such an exhilarating fight. Their approach became far more defensive, reacting to incoming attacks instead of bull-rushing straight on. Papyrus didn’t like that approach any better! They still wanted to kill him!

And worst of all, Sans was in on it. His entire focus was on stopping the dragon at every turn, impeding its attacks by freezing it in place. Then the kid could wail on it to their heart’s content.

Papyrus moved to stop them, but more commotion caught his eye behind him. Arriving at the scene was Undyne! Actually, two of them! Along with another Sans!

The human blinked, rubbing their eyes. Papyrus didn’t blame them if they thought they had started seeing double.

“Come on! Take him down!” Undyne cried out, throwing a volley of spears at the dragon. Papyrus couldn’t tell if that was past or future Undyne. He supposed it didn’t quite matter at the moment.

Now everyone was on the dragon, pummeling it with magic attacks. It tried to fight back, tried to bite and claw at anyone that got too close, even tried to blast them with its devastating laser attack, but the two Sans-es worked together to keep it immobile as the Undynes and the human unleashed their full strength against it.

Papyrus watched, horrified. This wasn’t right! This isn’t what he wanted! He didn’t want anyone getting hurt! Not even the dragon!

And then it got worse. Vines whipped into the fray, gripping everyone and pulling them away, even pinning the dragon under a cocoon of thorns. Papyrus turned to see Flowey emerge from the forest.

And in one of his many tendril-like vines he gripped Gaster–or whatever horrific remnants there was left of him.

Papyrus gasped.

“Now, now!” Flowey said in a sickly sweet voice. “I don’t think we should spoil all the human’s fun, should we?”

He dropped Gaster unceremoniously to the ground where he splattered like tar, his form incomprehensible. Papyrus could barely make out his face.

Flowey pulled both Undynes and both Sans-es away, leaving the kid free to approach the dragon. He loosened his grip on the dragon as well, letting it rise to its feet for one final fight.

The dragon had been significantly weakened, but it had more than enough ferocity left in it to cause devastating harm.

And Papyrus saw the future play out before him. He saw flashes of red against the snow. He saw the human’s body torn to pieces. He could hear the tortured, agonized wails of pain and grief.

He felt every crippling moment of pain and sorrow he experienced tenfold. He felt it all in that one moment, and he knew that he NEEDED to stop it from happening ever again.

The dragon’s jaws snapped open, a terrible whine building in its throat as its maw glowed a bright and blinding blue. The human hunched over, ready to strike.

Papyrus rushed forward, screaming.

”STOP!!!”

He threw himself in front of the human, his arms stretched out to his sides.

The blast hit him full-force, all that magic searing his entire body like fire. It consumed him in a terrible pain, pain so complete he thought he would rend to dust right then and there.

It was over as fast as it started. Papyrus collapsed to his hands and knees, every bone in his body shaking. But he looked over his shoulder, seeing the human was unharmed.

The human was in shock. Their mouth was dropped open, their eyes wide, their hands hanging limply at their sides.

Papyrus turned back to face the dragon, who had also paused. It let out a low continuous growl, but . . . it wasn’t attacking them.

The skeleton shoved himself to his feet. He forced one foot in front of the other, limping towards the dragon. Every step was agony. Every move took every ounce of his concentration and will.

Everything hurt.

But it was nothing compared to the hurt the dragon–himself–was surely experiencing.

He wasn’t aware of everyone else behind him, who were watching, stunned and frozen in place, waiting with bated breath.

“It’s ok . . .” Papyrus whispered, raising a hand to the dragon.

The dragon flinched away from him, letting out a louder warning growl.

“I know . . . I know,” Papyrus said, stepping closer still. The dragon didn’t move. Those orange eyes were locked firmly on Papyrus, still letting out a steady growl like thunder. “You must be so angry and so scared. I know. I too was hurt. And . . . I did something so very terrible. And whatever hurt you’re feeling now . . . it doesn’t come close to the hurt I felt then.”

Behind him, Undyne winced with guilt.

“None of this should have happened. And I’m so very sorry it did happen. But it can stop. All of this can stop right now. No one has to hurt anyone anymore. Not them. Not you.”

Papyrus was so close now, so close he could reach out and touch the dragon.

He raised his hand. The dragon flinched away from him.

“It’s ok,” Papyrus said softly. “I’m not going to hurt you. And I won’t let them hurt you anymore, either.”

Flowey let out a snarl, ready to show that stupid skeleton just how wrong he was. But two skeletons and two Undynes simultaneously reached out and pinned him down, preventing him from moving a single inch. Both Sans-es and Undynes glared down at him warningly.

Papyrus stepped closer. The dragon pulled back its head, growling louder, so he stopped, and just held his hands in the air before him. He wouldn’t put a hand on the dragon if it did not want to. He could be patient.

And slowly, very slowly, the dragon’s growls softened to a whimper, and then to a whine. The savage and feral gleam in those eyes faded. And Papyrus could see . . . something within.

Familiarity. Recognition. Pain and hurt.

“It’s ok.”

The dragon closed its eyes. Its body began to shake.

“It’s ok. It’s over. It’s all over.”

Its head extended forward, its snout pressing into Papyrus’s hand. Papyrus breathed a sigh of relief and wrapped his arms around its muzzle.

“It’s ok. You’re ok. It’s going to be ok.”

And he stood there for a long time, just holding the poor tortured creature, whispering soft words of assurance to it. And then the dragon’s body sagged, overcome by exhaustion, and it crumpled to the ground. Papyrus followed it down, kneeling before the dragon, still cradling its massive head in its hands.

Its body crackled with orange magic, and at this, Papyrus pulled away. He recognized this magic. The dragon’s body began to shrink and change, the horns and spikes and tail all disappearing as it became smaller and more humanoid. In moments, the dragon reverted back to its proper shape–Papyrus.

The Papyrus that was once a dragon looked up blearily at himself, and a brief look of confusion crossed his face before the exhaustion of the battle and the transformation consumed him and he fell unconscious.

Papyrus eased himself to the ground, making sure he was ok–he hadn’t quite gotten over how surreal this all was, but that wasn’t important. All that mattered was that he was ok–

They all were ok.

He turned back around to see everyone staring at him, all with some mixture of shock, awe, and admiration, though Flowey mostly looked furious. But the human especially was fixated on him. And Papyrus thought he saw tears in the human’s eyes.

There was silence. No one seemed sure what to even say, certainly not Papyrus.

But then the human, of all people, spoke up.

All they said was one word, thick and choked with emotion as tears threatened to spill.

“Why?”

Papyrus simply shrugged. He knew why, but he too was exhausted, barely able to stand after enduring a single blow from the dragon.

“Because . . . because it was right,” he said. “Hurting people–it never does any good, does it? It just . . . hurts people. It only leads to bad things. You know the old phrase, hurt people hurt people. Which sounds . . . silly when you say it like that. But the pain you inflict on someone, it . . . reverberates. Echoes across everyone they come across. I . . . I didn’t want you–anyone–to have that happen to them.”

The human lowered their head. “I just–I needed to know what happened, and I just thought–” They stopped themselves, shaking their head. “I could always fix things if they went wrong.”

“Not everything,” Papyrus muttered. He grinned. “Why do you think we’re here?”

Again, a heavy silence hung around them. Undyne–the Undyne from the future–came to his side and cast healing magic on him to make sure he didn’t collapse into dust.

“That was unbelievably stupid of you,” she said, biting back tears. “But . . . It was also really brave.”

Papyrus just shrugged in response. What else was there to say?

But once he was feeling marginally better, he pushed himself to his feet. There was one other person he had to see to.

Gaster.

The scientist was reduced to a fraction of his former self. He was leaning up against a tree, barely holding himself together. Papyrus came to his side, desperately struggling with what to do. Did he need healing? Would healing magic even work on him?

Seeing Papyrus’s distress, Gaster raised a hand–a hand that was rapidly blinking in and out of existence.

D͚̖͓on't̙̘̗ wor͉r̘͙̜y ̩̳a̼̯boṷ̘t m̗̹e.̭ I͉ṭ͎̳ ͓̥is ̙o̝v̘̝ͅe͍͖̳r.

Papyrus didn’t know what to say, because he knew what the doctor meant. Gaster closed his eyes, sighing with content.

I̩̠̜ c̠a̤n g̬o̲͕̤ ̜̖̹ịn̖̥ pe͖ac̩e̠ now. A͕̬̲nd̤̳̦ now̹͕̝,̮̦ so̗ͅ ̗̝̠must͚ ̱̠y̘͇̠o͓u.̗

“But now what do we do?” Past-Undyne spoke up. “I mean, I don’t know a lot about time travel and stuff, but doesn’t having two of us around cause a paradox or something? That’s bad, right?”

“It’s easy enough to fix, actually,” Sans spoke up. Which Sans was that? It was hard to tell. “All the kid needs to do is RESET. And everything will go back to normal.”

“Normal . . . how?” Future-Undyne asked. “Are we just gonna disappear?”

“I mean, technically yes? Because our future wouldn’t have happened. So we’ll no longer exist.”

“So we’re just gonna blink out of existence?!” Undyne shouted. “I didn’t sign up for that!”

“You blink out of existence every time the kid resets,” Sans reminded her calmly. “That’s time travel for you.”

Undyne stared. “Ugh. Time travel is bullshit. It’s now my least favorite anime trope.”

Papyrus laughed.

The human looked between all of them, including the glowering and fuming Flowey who hadn’t yet tried anything because one Sans was bad enough and now there were two and Flowey knew those trash bags were begging for an excuse to throttle him.

“So . . . I just go back? And it’s like none of this ever happened?” the human clarified.

“Yup. Same as always,” Sans said casually.

“Then no one’s going to remember anything that happened!”

“No one but you, kiddo,” Sans said. “Same as always.”

The human’s gaze went far away. It hit them rather hard that no one was going to remember this, or at least, not fully. Sans might remember bits and pieces, he always seemed to have some sort of awareness of the resets, but never a complete picture.

But if the human wanted to try this again, nothing and no one could stop them.

Which, for the first time in their life, was horrifying.

It didn’t escape them what absolutely insane and absurd lengths the monsters went through to stop them. Which meant that the future in which they succeeded must have been truly awful.

So awful that Sans and Papyrus and Undyne traveled back in time to stop them.

It hit them hard and pierced deep. This gift they had–this power of DETERMINATION–they had been using it so foolishly, so callously, not paying a second’s mind to how badly it was hurting everyone around them.

Because they thought it didn’t matter, they could just do it over–

But that clearly wasn't the case. It was just like Papyrus said, there were echoes. Even if they couldn’t see it now, their actions still hurt them.

The human collapsed to their knees and sobbed. They felt Papyrus kneel down right next to them, and he wrapped his arms around them in a hug and held them tight.

The human decided they didn’t want to hurt anyone else. No more. Not again. Never again.

“I’m sorry . . .” they said. “I’m so sorry . . .”

“I know,” Papyrus said. “But you still have the choice to make it right.”

The human knew that. To them, there wasn’t a choice. So they wasted no more time.

Their soul filled with DETERMINATION.

And they RESET.

#what are friends for #waff #undertale #fan fiction #fanfiction #undyne #papyrus #sans #gaster #wd gaster #flowey #gaster blaster au #gb au

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covna · 11 months ago

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COVNA’s 17th Eco-Innovation Summit: A Milestone for a Greener Future

Imagine a breezy day in Wuxi on August 24, 2024—the perfect setting for a gathering that promises to shape the future. The 17th COVNA Environmental Innovation Salon Summit brought together bright minds and industry leaders at the Buckingham Palace Hotel, marking another chapter in COVNA’s journey toward global excellence.

COVNA has long been a trusted name in the industrial valve sector, providing top-tier pneumatic, solenoid, and electric valves to clients across 120 countries. This summit was not just another event—it was a celebration of the strides we’ve made under China’s 14th Five-Year Plan, a plan that prioritizes sustainability and eco-friendly innovation.

Throughout the day, attendees engaged in lively discussions, exchanged ideas, and explored new avenues for collaboration. The atmosphere was charged with excitement and a shared commitment to making the world a better place, one valve at a time. As COVNA continues to lead the way, our dedication to quality and innovation remains unwavering, ensuring that our products not only meet but exceed the expectations of our global clientele.

So, what’s next for COVNA? With our eyes set on the future, we’re committed to pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the valve industry, all while staying true to our core values of sustainability and innovation. Stay tuned, because with COVNA, the best is yet to come.

youtube

#valve #ball valves #butterfly valve #salon marketing #salon #submit #environment #enviroment salon #protector #manufacture #suppler #Youtube

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scullysexual · 1 year ago

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A Jewel Beneath The Moonlight [Rewrite]

@today-in-fic | ao3

Summary: For Mulder, a wealthy English-bred socialite who’s had everything given to him since birth, the Titanic is shipping him off to a prison, a life he no longer wishes for or wants. For Scully, an Irish stranger from the lower class, it offers a new life, a future she can truly envision in America. What if the universe put them on the same path to achieve those dreams at the cost of life?

Chapter Nine.

Mulder’s head was swimming, his brain couldn’t comprehend the knowledge as he strides towards his room. Scully is quiet beside him yet she still shimmers with rage, with fear and concern.

Her brother is downstairs.

The realisation hits him like a ton of bricks. She should be down there with Charlie making sure he’s okay, not running around with him.

He stops with a sudden halt, Scully crashes into him.

“Mulder…”

“Go downstairs, Scully,” he says, spinning to face her. “Go check on Charlie.”

She’s speechless for a second, maybe she’s only just remembering this as well. He sees that she’s about to turn around, to do as he says, but stops herself, shaking her head.

“He’ll be fine, they’ve probably already started the evacuation process.”

Right, there’s procedure for this kind of thing. Word that they have hit an iceberg gets around quickly, every member of staff will know what’s happened and they’ll know how to get everyone to the top decks safely.

The two of them proceed on with their journey, a steward hastily runs down the corridor, Mulder gives Scully an uneasy look.

Their destination is reached soon enough. There’s no time for manners, no time for knocking on doors and waiting to be let in, they need to be in there now.

It doesn’t surprise him to find it already unlocked and pushes it open. His family, and Krycek, turn to look at him.

“There you are. Hungry? You did miss dinner after all,” Father says, his eyes widen when Scully appears from behind Mulder. “What is she doing here, Fox?”

Mulder dismisses his father. “We don’t have time for all that. The ship hit an iceberg, that’s what I’m here to tell you.”

“Yes, I heard. I didn’t think that was true. Anyway, there’s a matter that I need to discuss with you—”

“It is true,” Mulder says, interrupting. “We were there. We saw it happen.”

“It’s not bad, is it?” asks Phoebe. Mulder hears the genuine concern in her voice.

He looks to Scully, wondering what to say. Scully remains quiet and emotionless beside him.

He turns back to Phoebe, answering as honestly as he can. “We don’t know,” he says. “What we do know is that the lifeboats only have room for a thousand and something people. There’s a lot more than that on board, more than half will die.”

Entirely preoccupied with Phoebe’s expression, how she mulls this information over with what seems to be distress he wonders for a second if he hears his father right.

“Not the better half, at least.”

If Scully’s energy had dulled out during this conversation, it’s cranked right back up to a thousand at the throwaway comment.

“How can you say that?”

Phoebe gasps. “But they said it couldn’t sink!” She wanders from the bed to the vanity, sitting herself down into the chair by it.

“I’ll get more information,” says Krycek, edging away from the wall. “If the ship is about to flood, we best make sure we’re not on it when it happens.” He walks towards the door, brushing against Scully in the process.

“Right, all that aside I want to discuss a certain unwanted gift I received upon entering the room—”

“It’s gone!” Phoebe cries, cutting Bill off. Mulder has no time to jump from the first issue to the second.

“What is?” he asks.

“One of my perfume bottles.”

“Are you sure?” asks Mother.

“Yes, I had six laid out and there’s only five here.” Her head whirls towards Scully’s direction. “You took it,” she accuses.

Mulder turns to look at Scully, dumbstruck over this entire situation. The look on her face tells him that she is as much confused as he is, speechless.

“I…I didn’t take anything!”

“You did when Fox brought you in here to draw that disgusting portrait of you.”

Mulder turns back to his father. In his hands he holds a folded piece of paper. An act of recklessness, a display of rebellion and his father holds the evidence in his hands, just as they wanted.

“I didn’t take your stupid perfume,” argues Scully.

“The note that was left was a nice touch indeed. Now you can keep us both captive and who’s clever idea was it to write that?” asks Bill.

Mulder looks to Scully.

“I thought as much.” Bill heads over to the fireplace, throwing the drawing into the flames. Mulder watches the embers curl the paper. A masterpiece burning to pieces.

“Can somebody search her at least!” Phoebe exclaims.

There was too much to process; the ship might be sinking, his father knows about their tryst and Scully’s just been accused of stealing. His head hurts.

“I’ll get someone to fetch the master-at-arms,” Mother says, running over to the door.

“I haven’t taken anything, Phoebe,” Scully helplessly disputes. Mulder makes eye contact with her and gently shakes his head, it’s a losing battle.

“Turn out your pockets then,” Father instructs just as Mother re-enters, telling them that the master-at-arms was on his way.

Mulder watches as Scully fists her hands into her skirt pockets. Her eyes widen and Mulder’s stomach drops to the floor, knowing what she knows.

Slowly, Scully drags out a vial.

“I told you!” Phoebe screams. “I told you she had it!”

Scully is gobsmacked, shaking her head as she stares at the vial disbelief. “I didn’t put that in there.”

“So you’re saying it just magically appeared there?”

Mulder doesn’t know what to believe. He racks through his memories of earlier. Had there been any point where he’d left her alone? Only when she had gotten undressed but she was in the bedroom then. The bottle she holds in the Sunset Ocean one, the one he put on her wrist. He never gave her the bottle. Did she pocket it when he wasn’t looking? Mulder feels a sense of betrayal run through his body.

“What seems to be the problem then?”

Mulder turns his head to see an older man standing in the doorway.

“There’s been a case of thieving going on,” Father explains. The man looks around the room before his eyes narrow on Scully, completely out of place in her plain peasant clothes.

“This one did it I take it?” the man asks. “Is that what she stole?” He motions to the bottle she still holds in her hands.

“According to my daughter-in-law, yes,” says Bill.

The man swipes the bottle out of Scully’s hands, handing it back to Phoebe.

“They always try,” the man says, taking out a pair of handcuffs and pulling Scully’s arms behind her back.

“They put it in there! That Krycek did when he walked past me.”

The man only laughs. “And the tales that this ship is currently filling up with water are true.” He turns to address Father then. “I’m sorry for your time wasted.” He begins to drag Scully towards the door. “You shan’t be seeing her again after this.”

“I didn’t take it, Mulder, I swear! They put it in there. You know they did!”

Mulder doesn’t know what happened. He didn’t see. He didn’t see her take it earlier and he didn’t see Krycek put anything into his pocket. He didn’t see.

Mulder stares at the floor, flabbergasted at the whole scenario. Father strays over to him, placing a hand upon his shoulder.

“I’m sorry it had to come out this way, Fox,” he says. “The ones we love always hurt us the most. You’re free of her now.”

Mulder says nothing, he just watches as Phoebe places the perfume bottle back in its place, a sly, knowing smile across her face.

This was ridiculous.

The ship was currently filling up with water and all these people can care about is stupid perfume bottles.

It’s typical. Typical rich people and unable to get their priorities straight.

Scully should’ve known better.

And Mulder. He knows she’s didn’t take anything, he was there for Christ’s sake and yet nothing, he did nothing to defend her.

She tries not to be hurt, to change that hurt into understanding maybe he was just as confused as she was.

Or maybe he believed she’d taken the bottle anyway.

Scully adjusts her wrists, the handcuffs cutting into her skin. Fury rushes through her when she eyes Krycek leaning against a door, a smug smile across his face. He knocked into her. He put the bottle in her pocket.

“They finally caught you, did they?”

Scully glares at him as she’s dragged into the office. “You put it in there,” she says to him.

Krycek just cocks his head slightly. “Did I?”

Scully’s pulled into the office. Through a doorway is a bedroom, in much of the same style as all third class accommodation. The office is plain; a desk, a pinboard, a cupboard full of different keys. A place for criminals of the minor offenses to be held until they dock.

Or until they drown, she thinks with morbid thought.

The master-at-arms briefly unlocks the bracelet, tugging Scully’s wrists up as he wraps the chain around a pipe then clips the cuff back around her wrists.

“I didn’t do it,” Scully says again. There’s no fight in her voice, no energy, she just wants someone to listen to her story, that’s all she wants.

But the man just ignores her.

“Now, you just stay nice and snug there, Miss Scully, we’ll sort this out later.”

Scully just rolls her eyes. There’s not going to be a later, does nobody understand that?

“Sir,” says a steward appearing from around the doorframe and out of breath. “There’s an issue in the third class. They need you.”

The master-at-arms eyes Scully with hesitation. She looks aimlessly back, her eyes flicking between the officer and Krycek.

“I can stay with her,” Krycek says. Scully looks away, annoyance flooding through her at the thought of Krycek being the person she’s about to spend her last hours with.

“I’ll be right back,” the master-at-arms says before he’s following the steward out of the office.

With one last attempt, Scully sighs, “I didn’t do it.”

The boy sits down at the desk, his feet immediately propped up and a gleefully smile across his face. He’s enjoying every second of this.

“I know,” he says. “But they all believe you did- The Mulders, the officer. Mulder,” he adds with a bite.

A twinge of pain pangs in Scully’s chests. No matter what excuses she came up for Mulder, the truth was clear; he didn’t believe her, and having it be spoken aloud just solidifies it for her.

Scully stares out of the porthole, not that she can see anything but her own reflection. A tornado of emotions spin within her. She’s about to die, handcuffed to a pipe, on a ship she never asked to be on, being accused of a crime she didn’t commit.

She could kill Charlie for his stupid ideas.

Charlie…She wonders where he is. Did he feel the collision? Is he heading towards top deck?

That steward had said there’d been an issue. Is Charlie apart of that issue?

Worry for her brother joins the already busy tornado of emotions.

“That picture…” Krycek says, and God, could he just shut up so she can die in peace, please? “I see what Mulder sees in you now. Shame such a body’s going to be wasted.”

His eyes rake her body, like he can see through her clothing. It makes Scully’s body go cold. Scully doesn’t bother hiding her disgust; she hates him; his stupid face, his stupid grin, his stupid mouth always having something to say.

But then what he’s just said hits her. Her disgust melting away for a second, she turns to him.

“You believe the ship is going to sink?”

He shrugs. “You and Mulder seem to.”

“That’s because it is. In about an hour or so. Half the people with it.”

“Guess I should go upstairs then.” He’s gets up from the chair. “I hope Mulder’s not too sad without you.” And he’s out the door before Scully can call him back to free her. It’s no use, it’s what these people wanted after all, her away from Mulder- it’s just an added bonus that she dies.

With one last hopeless shake of the handcuffs, Scully allows her head to fall against the pipe, preparing herself for her fate.

Mulder’s head is buzzing, absorbing everything that’s happened in the last hour. Had it really been an hour since he was running about the ship with Scully? It seems ages ago. Time seems to have stopped existing on here, days turning into years, minutes turning into hours. Is there going to be a moment where it all rushes together and there’s no time at all?

They make their way down the staircase. The main reception is flooded with almost all passengers from first class. Much to Mulder’s bewilderment the band still plays and people still drink and carry on as if their lives weren’t in any danger.

“How long’s this going to last for?” one woman asks a steward clearly trying to hurry past and has no time for anyone’s stupid questions.

“Not long. Just a precaution,” the steward says before he’s hurrying along through the crowds.

“It’s the English and doing everything by the book,” Bill scorns, shaking his head.

“Go back to the rooms and turn the heaters on,” Mother says to her maids. “You know how cold those rooms get.”

Mulder watches with disgust as the maids do as their told and head back to the rooms.

Congratulations, Mother, you may have just killed them.

“And bring Tuppence her toy!” Phoebe shouts up to them.

In response to her name, the dog yaps happily. Mulder stares at it.

“You know, they don’t let dogs on the lifeboats? They take up too much space.”

Phoebe looks at him, mouth agape.

“Don’t be cruel, Fox,” Father scolds.

Phoebe hugs Tuppence closer to her body. “She’s tiny. If we have to get on a lifeboat, she can sit on my knee.”

Mulder just shrugs a whatever and turns away to watch the other side of the room.

“I don’t think anyone knows what the hell’s going on around here,” he hears Monica say.

Through the window, Mulder spies a gathering of people, an officer talking to them as they start preparations to lower the lifeboats.

“Come on,” he says, turning back to his family. “They’re starting to lower the boats.”

Mulder leads the way to outside, joining the formation of people. Around him he hears shouts of Women and children first! He watches as people begin boarding the boats; some calm, warming themselves with the knowledge that they’ll be back on the ship in no time, some children cry as their torn away from their fathers and one wife tries to drag her husband with her only to be pulled harshly apart by one of the crewmen in the lifeboat.

There’s a sense of urgency that doesn’t go unnoticed by Mulder. Flares go off around him as boats begin their decent to the water. He knows what others don’t; the lifeboats aren’t returning, this is it.

He thinks about Scully, alone, wherever she is. Would the crewman go back for her, he wonders or does she not matter anymore? He thinks about Charlie frantically searching the decks for his sister. If Mulder could find him, maybe he could tell him what happened and Charlie could go and find her. Mulder’s eyes dart around the deck, searching for the red-headed boy but people meld together, they all look like Charlie and then they don’t. It’s too busy and chaotic to try to find one person. No, if he wants Scully rescued he’d have to do it himself.

Preparations for the next boat begin underway and Mulder pulls Phoebe forward, a sudden need to get her and his mother on a lifeboat. He knows it has less to do with their safety and more to do with finding Scully.

“Right, come on now,” the officer instructs. Monica is the first to board, urging the less certain to join her.

Mulder nudges Phoebe forward.

“I don’t want to,” she says, her hand wrapping tighter around Mulder’s arm.

“You need to,” Mulder tells her, pushing her forward. Phoebe, however, fights back, stays rooted to her spot.

“No. I want to go back to my room.” She spins to face Mulder. “Take me back!” she demands.

Mulder can only laugh- at her stupidity, at her arrogance, she was once so much smarter than this and now he can only laugh.

“There’s going to be no room to go back to soon. You need to get on the boat, Phoebe.”

Still, Phoebe just looks at him like he’s spoken another language, staring back at him stupidly.

“No room to go back to?”

He tries not to let his annoyance seep through. Tries to be as gentle as he can with her, at least for this last time, then he never has to see her again.

“Phoebe, the ship will sink. Look around you, look at the urgency. They don’t have time for you to decide whether you’re getting on the boat or not. There’s not enough lifeboats to do that with, you either get on one now or you don’t and you drown. They are your options.”

It’s a shock to the system for someone to speak to her so directly, to tell her the truth as gruesome or as hurtful as it may be and as she tries to process this information, she just looks constipated.

“Will the lifeboats be seated according to class?”

Mulder looks away from Phoebe to glare at his mother. He says nothing, just allows the anger to wash through his body. He turns back to Phoebe.

“Please, Phoebe,” he pleads. For Scully’s life, “Just get on the boat.”

Phoebe nods, turning back to the lifeboat. Mulder taps the officer.

“Let her keep the dog,” he says. The officer is about to argue, his mouth opens but is closing as quickly. He nods.

“Teena will take Tuppence,” says Monica, reaching out her hand to Phoebe to help her in. “I’ll help you.”

Mulder watches as Phoebe and more people after her is loaded onto the boat and the boat begins to be lowered down before he’s turning away, his destination in mind.

“Where are you going?” he hears his father call from behind him. A hand reaches out. “Fox? Fox!”

Immediately, Mulder shrugs it off. “Get off me!” he says, spinning to face the man he calls his father.

Bill looks at him shocked, before recovering, that cold demeanour returning.

“Where are you going?” His father asks again. Mulder says nothing, allowing his silence to be his answer.

“You’re going to her, aren’t you?” Bill asks and still Mulder says nothing. Bill laughs. “She stole from your wife and still you’re choosing her. I didn’t realise I’d raised a stupid little boy.”

His fists clenching, mind swilling, Mulder shouts, “She didn’t steal anything!” A few people nearby turn towards them. Mulder ignores them. Bill, however, was never blessed with that ability and looks around at the faces self-consciously.

“We both know it was Krycek who put it in there.”

Bill just smiles. “Yes, it was. Of course, not that that matters. Who are they going to believe? A wealthy first class man or a whore from third class?”

Immediately after the words are uttered spit is flying out of Mulder’s mouth and onto Bill’s face, just as Scully caught him.

His father’s face swivels up in disgust as he wipes the saliva from his cheek.

“You two are a pair, aren’t you?”

“And we’re still better than you.”

With that, Mulder takes off, not sparring any more thoughts for his father. His only concern now was Scully, of finding her and freeing her and apologising over and over again for being such an idiot.

#the x-files #the x files #txf fic #xfiles fanfiction #a jewel beneath the moonlight rewrite #titanic au #scullysexualwrites

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tudip123 · 14 days ago

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Navigating Healthcare Challenges: How AI Lights the Path

Healthcare is a complex maze, often fraught with challenges that can impact patient outcomes, accessibility, and efficiency. From managing vast amounts of data to ensuring timely and accurate diagnoses, the healthcare industry faces numerous hurdles. However, amidst these healthcare challenges, there shines a beacon of hope: artificial intelligence (AI).

Let’s delve into how AI is transforming healthcare, offering solutions to some of its most pressing issues.

Diagnosing Diseases with Precision:

One of the significant healthcare challenges is the timely and accurate diagnosis of diseases. AI-powered diagnostic tools are revolutionizing this process by analyzing medical images, lab results, and patient data with remarkable precision. For instance, AI algorithms can detect abnormalities in medical scans like X-rays and MRIs, aiding radiologists in identifying conditions such as cancer or fractures more efficiently. By augmenting human expertise, AI helps reduce diagnostic errors and ensures patients receive the right treatment promptly.

Personalized Treatment Plans:

Every individual is unique, and so are their healthcare needs. AI algorithms analyze vast datasets, including patient history, genetic information, and treatment outcomes, to develop personalized treatment plans. These plans consider factors such as genetic predispositions, lifestyle choices, and previous responses to medication, offering tailored interventions that maximize effectiveness and minimize side effects. By embracing personalized medicine, healthcare providers can optimize patient care and improve long-term outcomes.

Enhancing Healthcare Accessibility:

Access to quality healthcare remains a challenge for many, especially in underserved communities and remote areas. AI-powered telemedicine platforms bridge this gap by enabling remote consultations, diagnosis, and monitoring. Patients can connect with healthcare professionals via smartphones or computers, receiving timely advice and care without the need for in-person visits. Furthermore, AI-driven chatbots and virtual assistants provide immediate support, answering queries, scheduling appointments, and offering health-related guidance around the clock.

Predictive Analytics for Preventive Care:

Prevention is often said to be better than cure, and AI is making significant strides in predictive analytics for preventive healthcare. By analyzing patient data and identifying patterns, AI algorithms can predict the likelihood of developing certain conditions or complications. Healthcare providers can then intervene proactively, offering preventive measures and lifestyle recommendations to mitigate risks. From managing chronic diseases to promoting overall wellness, predictive analytics empower individuals to take charge of their health and make informed decisions.

Streamlining Administrative Tasks:

In addition to clinical challenges, healthcare organizations grapple with administrative burdens that consume time and resources. AI-driven solutions automate routine tasks such as appointment scheduling, medical billing, and inventory management, reducing administrative overhead and enhancing operational efficiency. By freeing up healthcare professionals to focus on patient care, AI streamlines workflows and improves the overall healthcare experience for both providers and patients alike.

Conclusion:

The journey towards overcoming healthcare challenges is ongoing, but with the power of artificial intelligence, we’re paving a path towards a healthier future. From precision diagnostics to personalized treatment plans and enhanced accessibility, AI is revolutionizing healthcare in ways previously unimaginable. By harnessing the potential of AI-driven solutions, we can navigate the complexities of healthcare more effectively, ensuring better outcomes and brighter tomorrows for all.

In this ever-evolving landscape, the fusion of healthcare and AI continues to inspire innovation, driving us towards a world where quality healthcare is not just a privilege but a fundamental right.

Click the link below to learn more about the blog Navigating Healthcare Challenges:

#AIinHealthcare #healthtech #Healthcare #futureofmedicine

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dinarit · 3 months ago

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Digital Currency Revolution: Is the Iraqi Dinar at Risk?

The global financial landscape is changing rapidly, and one of the most significant transformations we’re witnessing is the rise of digital currencies. Central banks around the world are embracing the concept of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), and Iraq is no exception.

As the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) embarks on its journey towards digitalization, many are left wondering: Is the traditional Iraqi dinar (IQD) at risk of becoming obsolete, or is it simply on the cusp of a rebranding? With Iraq taking steps to modernize its financial system, what does this mean for investors in the Iraqi dinar?

Let’s find out the reality about this evolving situation and what it could mean for the future of Iraq’s currency.

Rise of CBDCs and Digital Payments

The global adoption of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) is rapidly accelerating, with many countries already moving forward with pilot projects and plans to fully integrate digital versions of their national currencies. CBDCs are digital forms of fiat currency issued and controlled by central banks, designed to provide a more secure, efficient, and transparent alternative to traditional cash. These digital currencies have the potential to enhance financial inclusion, improve the speed and cost of cross-border payments, and help central banks better manage the money supply.

For countries like Iraq, which is working to overcome many challenges related to cash-based transactions and economic instability, the introduction of a digital currency seems like a natural next step. The Central Bank of Iraq is not sitting on the sidelines. It is already in the process of planning and implementing its version of a digital dinar to bring the Iraqi financial system into the 21st century.

Iraq’s Readiness for a Digital Shift

Iraq's readiness to embrace a digital currency depends on several factors, including its infrastructure, policy, and broader financial goals. While significant progress has been made in recent years, there are still notable challenges to overcome.

Progress in Digital Banking Services: Iraq has made strides in digital banking with major state-owned banks, such as Rafidain Bank, Al-Rasheed Bank, and the Trade Bank of Iraq, rolling out online banking services, mobile apps, and digital wallets. These developments are essential for building the foundation for a future digital currency.

International Support for Technological and Regulatory Frameworks: International partners like the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are helping Iraq establish the necessary regulatory and technological frameworks. Their support is crucial for ensuring a smooth transition to digital financial services.

Challenges Facing Digital Currency Adoption: Despite these advances, significant hurdles remain. Only about 30% of Iraqi adults currently hold bank accounts, and access to the internet, especially in rural areas, remains limited. These challenges must be addressed for a successful digital currency rollout.

Central Bank of Iraq's Role in Addressing Challenges: The Central Bank of Iraq has acknowledged these issues and is actively working to improve the infrastructure needed for a digital currency. However, much of this work is still in its early stages, and significant progress will be required to bridge these gaps.

Surge in Digital Payments: A Positive Sign: One encouraging development is the rapid increase in digital payments across Iraq. In 2023, digital payments surged from 2.6 trillion IQD to 7.6 trillion IQD by late 2024. This sharp increase in digital payments reflects the growing adoption of digital financial services and makes the idea of a digital dinar more feasible.

Looking Ahead: As Iraq moves forward, the introduction of a digital dinar will likely serve as a cornerstone of efforts to modernize the financial system and improve economic transparency. The success of this initiative will depend on how well the country addresses infrastructure and policy challenges in the coming years.

Could IQD Become Obsolete or Rebranded?

This brings us to one of the most pressing questions for investors: Could the traditional Iraqi dinar become obsolete or entirely replaced by its digital counterpart?

The short answer is no, the IQD will not simply disappear. The CBI’s digital currency initiative is not aimed at replacing the physical dinar, but rather at modernizing how it’s used. The digital dinar will hold the same legal value as the physical currency and will be convertible to and from cash at the same value.

That said, the shift to digital currency will likely lead to the rebranding of the IQD in a sense. Rather than the paper currency being the primary form of currency in Iraq, the digital dinar will become the dominant form of currency used for day-to-day transactions, particularly for businesses and government services. The digital dinar will be accessible through digital wallets and authorized apps, making transactions faster and more secure.

While the traditional dinar will continue to circulate for the time being, the move towards a digital currency represents a rebranding of Iraq’s currency system. The physical dinar could eventually be phased out as digital adoption becomes widespread. However, this process will be gradual, and for the foreseeable future, the Iraqi dinar will coexist in both digital and physical forms.

Balancing Traditional and Digital Monetary Systems

The transition to a digital currency in Iraq will be a gradual process, with both digital and traditional currencies coexisting for a period of time. The Central Bank of Iraq recognizes the importance of maintaining this balance as it works to modernize the financial system.

A Gradual Transition: During this transition, the focus will be on educating the public, expanding access to banking services, and ensuring that individuals are comfortable with digital transactions. This phased approach will help Iraq’s citizens adapt to digital payments without disrupting their day-to-day lives. Paper currency will remain in circulation, allowing those who are not yet ready to fully embrace digital payments to continue using physical dinars.

Decreasing Reliance on Physical Cash: Over time, as more people gain access to banking services and trust in digital currency grows, reliance on physical cash is likely to decrease. This shift will not happen overnight but will be a gradual transition that reflects the changing financial landscape of the country.

Efficiency Gains for Businesses: For businesses, the transition to digital payments offers significant advantages. Digital transactions are faster and more secure, reducing the risk of fraud and enhancing overall efficiency. This shift also allows the Central Bank to monitor and control the money supply more effectively, providing better tools for managing inflation and maintaining economic stability.

Reducing the Influence of the Informal Economy: One of the key benefits of introducing a digital dinar is its potential to reduce parallel or black market trading, which has historically undermined the stability of the Iraqi dinar. By unifying exchange rates and bringing more people into the formal financial system, Iraq can weaken the influence of the informal economy. This, in turn, could enhance the country’s monetary policy efforts and promote greater financial stability.

What This Means for Dinar Investors

So, what does this all mean for investors holding Iraqi dinars? While the introduction of a digital currency may seem like a significant change, it’s important to view the digital dinar as a positive development rather than a risk to existing investments.

Increased Stability: The introduction of a digital currency can bring greater stability to the dinar by reducing the influence of black market trading and improving transparency in financial transactions. This could make the currency more resilient and less susceptible to speculative fluctuations.

Modernization Boost: Iraq’s commitment to a digital dinar signals its desire to modernize its economy and financial system. This could attract foreign investment and improve Iraq’s financial integration into the global economy, providing a foundation for long-term growth and currency stability.

Liquidity Improvements: Digital currency systems often offer better liquidity than traditional systems. The digital dinar could streamline currency exchanges, making it easier for investors to convert their IQD holdings into other currencies or assets.

Transition Risks: As with any major financial transition, there may be some uncertainty in the short term. However, these risks are not unique to Iraq; they are a part of the digital currency evolution that many countries are going through. By staying informed and monitoring the situation, investors can manage their exposure to these risks.

Final Word

Iraq’s move towards a digital currency is a transformative step that positions the country to be more in line with global financial trends. While the Iraqi dinar itself is not at risk of becoming obsolete, the digital shift does represent a rebranding of Iraq’s monetary system. For investors, this shift presents both opportunities and considerations. The digital dinar will likely improve the currency’s stability, enhance transparency, and help Iraq modernize its economy.

As Iraq works through the challenges of this transition, you must keep an eye on the situation and be patient, but the overall outlook remains positive.

Investors who understand the long-term potential of the Iraqi dinar and the evolving financial landscape will be well-positioned to understand and adopt the changes ahead.

Source: IQDBUY

#Digital Iraqi Dinar #Digital Dinar #Iraqi Dinar revaluation #risky Iraqi Dinar investment

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ljamberfantasy · 4 months ago

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The Elf Who Would Become A Dragon

CHAPTER 20 – For Reason and Passion

When the tea was finished, and the wind stirred restlessly through the bushes, the apprentices stood and exchanged farewells. Celaena hugged Iolas and then Saphienne before she took their empty cups, and she departed to the teahouse with a promise to see them next morning.

Iolas walked with Saphienne toward her house, lengthening his stride to keep up with her as she floated through the groves. “You’re in a good mood.”

“I am.” She smiled brightly and twirled toward him, walking backwards. “We’re going to be wizards! Isn’t that a reason to be happy?”

The older child returned her smile. “Watch yourself! Today was only the first day.”

“But it was a good first day, and there’ll be more. A lot more.”

His smile broadened into a grin. “Yes. Today was a good first day, and there probably will be more– no, you’re right: there will be more, for sure.”

Saphienne gave him a bow as she faced forward again, repressing the urge to skip ahead through the trees. Her thoughts raced along without her. A few moment later, she fell back in step with him. “Iolas,” she said, “can I ask you a question?”

“Just ask.”

“Why do you want to be a wizard?”

He examined her with friendly suspicion. “Why do you want to know?”

“He asked me — our master. He said he’d make his decision based on my answer. I was wondering what you and Celaena told him.”

Iolas chuckled. “I could tell you what I told him, or I could tell you the real reason.”

Saphienne stopped walking. “You lied to him?”

“I didn’t lie. I just said it in a way he could read into… so he could think whatever he wanted to think about me.” He shrugged. “Knowing your audience, right? And if you don’t know your audience… sometimes, you need to keep your doors open for them.”

“What did you tell him?”

“A half-truth.” He gestured for her to catch up. “You remember I said my father was hurt? I told Al– I told our master that, the day I saw the priest heal my father, I realised I needed to know magic if I wanted to matter. That I knew I could spend all my years enjoying myself, writing beautiful things, but none of it would really make a difference in the end. So, never mind what I’d prefer to do with my time: I have to think about the future.”

Saphienne nodded. “What’s the full truth?”

“It’s not about me mattering… it’s about mattering to other people.”

“How do you mean?”

Iolas stopped walking then, and stared up at the branches. “We might live forever. You know that, right? Actually forever. Not all elves will — and it’s tragic to think about it, to know that someone could have lived forevermore, had they not gotten sick, or been hurt, and had it all cut short. Felled, senselessly.”

Saphienne waited beside him.

“I’d just really started to think about this when my father was injured. I’m not ashamed to admit how scared I was. I was afraid to lose him.” He had a strange smile on his face, as though he were both disturbed by the memory, but also relieved. “Then, just like that, my father was made whole. He was well again. Everything was suddenly going to be fine.”

He looked down at her. “I can’t really describe what that meant to me. To go from an ordinary day, to panic, to the horror of it all? And then for someone to whisper a prayer, wave their hands, and make everything better?” He shook his head. “If it wasn’t for that priest…”

“You don’t believe, though.”

“No. How can I? Why would the gods promise us immortality with one hand, only to threaten to take it away with the other? Either they’re cruel, or they’re not all-powerful, and either way… mindless worship really would be a lie.” He shook his head. “But the magic is real. And you don’t need to believe to use it, if you become a wizard.”

“So you can matter to people?”

“I want to make the same sort of difference to someone else.” He blushed, but his flush was very slight. “I want what I do to matter as much as what that priest did. I want to help people like just that, or in a similar way. And I want to help as many people as I can.”

He meant every word. Saphienne felt quite small next to him, and not just because the boy was taller.

“What about you?” Iolas gave her a smile. “Want to learn the secrets of the world?”

She shook her head. “I want to understand what makes us who we are. Makes anyone anything. I haven’t really figured it all out.”

He raised his eyebrows. “You don’t need magic to understand people.”

“You don’t need magic to matter to people.” She shrugged. “It just seems the most promising way, doesn’t it?”

Iolas conceded the point, and they resumed walking together.

* * *

As they arrived at the grove where Saphienne’s family home was found, Iolas gave her a bright smile. “I’ve been here before. We don’t live that far apart.”

“The village is only a few miles across,” she answered. “None of us live far apart.”

“Compared to Celaena.” He gestured back the way they had walked. “She lives on the western side, among the old growth. Not far from our master, actually, though within the village.”

“You’ve been to her house?”

He shook his head. “She just mentioned it in passing. She was surprised I lived out here. Does Faylar live in the same part of the village as she does?”

Saphienne didn’t know. “I’ve never been to his home.”

“She made a comparison in passing.” He went quiet as they walked up the slight incline toward the ridge where Saphienne’s family home was rooted. “Though… well, can I ask a personal question?”

“Personal? Ask what you want — I’ll think about answering.”

Iolas slowed his pace. “Are any of your family wizards? Or sorcerers?”

She hesitated. “…I don’t know. I’m not close to my father’s family. And I don’t know about anyone from my mother’s side. I don’t think so. Why?”

He paused, and mulled over what to say next. “If I share a thought with you,” he asked, “will you keep it between us? Can you keep it to yourself?”

Saphienne squinted at him. “If you like.”

“Celaena’s father is a wizard.” He looked around, made sure no one else was walking among the trees. “And she said Faylar has a relative who’s a wizard, too.”

“His aunt,” she confirmed. “That’s not a secret. She’s supposedly a better wizard than our master, but wizards aren’t allowed to teach family members.”

“I had wondered — whether I was the only one who didn’t have family who was already…”

“Why would it matter?” Saphienne asked. “Either you have the talent, or you don’t.”

“They stopped talking.” He shifted uneasily. “They haven’t talked since Faylar was rejected from apprenticeship. She started spending time with me instead. And the way they were to us on the first night…” Conflicted, he shook his head. “I’m probably reading into things. I told you, I can be stupid.”

Saphienne didn’t quite understand his concern, but she did think about Faylar. “It’s probably not what you imagine. I can see why she’d want to get to know her fellow apprentice, and she didn’t know about me until today. As for Faylar… he might be keeping his distance. He was friendly, when he thought I’d been rejected, but when he realised he was the only one refused, he almost ran away from me.”

Iolas was visibly relieved to hear it. “My thanks. Celaena has a temper, and can be petty when she’s annoyed, so I didn’t really think she was like that–”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. Cold-blooded? Selfish? Only caring about wizardry?” He seemed morose. “I feel like a bad friend now, for wondering such things.”

“Wondering what?” She gave him a devious smile. “I didn’t hear anything.”

Slowly, Iolas smiled back. “Doesn’t change that I thought it. But thank you.” He made a show of looking around, and stretched his legs as he did. “So, which house is yours?”

Saphienne let the subject drop, and she turned to point to the top of the ridge. “It’s that one over– oh no.”

Dressed in heavy clothes, with a knitted bag slung over her shoulder, Saphienne’s mother had just emerged from the front door.

“Something wrong?” Iolas glanced between Saphienne and her distant mother. “Is that someone you don’t–”

“She’s my mother.” Saphienne sighed, and then grabbed Iolas by his sleeve. “Come on. We should hide.”

“What?” He went along with her as she strode toward thick bushes that grew around her neighbour’s home. “Why are we hiding from your mother?”

“I don’t want her to meet you.”

Iolas pulled his arm away, but he kept following her. He stared at her as they slipped behind the hanging branches into the dimmer, more open space beyond. “Saphienne,” he said quietly, “can I give you some advice?”

“I don’t need advice about family.”

“Not that.” He crouched down for comfort. “You might want to stop and consider what people will read into your words, when you say something like that. Someone might think, for example, that you’re ashamed or embarrassed to be in their company, if you don’t want to introduce them to your family.”

Saphienne froze. She blinked, and then again, and then a third time.

Silently, she knelt down next to Iolas. “That’s not it. That’s not it at all.”

He studied her face. “I thought so. But only wizards can read minds. Everyone else looks for clues about how the other person feels, what they think… and everyone reads between the lines. If you want people to feel welcome, you need to be careful what you show them, and what it implies you think about them.”

“I’m not embarrassed about you. Or Faylar.”

“I believe you. And that’s not the point.” He relented. “I’m not upset, I’m just trying to be direct, like you said you wanted.”

Saphienne bowed her head. “I’m sorry. Thank you.”

He peered out of the bush toward her house. “…What’s she doing, anyway?”

Moving closer to him, she followed his gaze. Her mother was rocking back and forth on the doorstep, eyes closed, her hands clenched tightly by her sides. As they watched, she finally took a quick, heavy step away from the door, followed by another, like she was fighting against a howling wind to make her way into the grove.

Saphienne’s mother managed about thirty paces, then turned and ran back to the door, scrambling into the house as though fleeing from a thunderstorm.

“…I don’t know.” Saphienne looked away from him. “She… doesn’t go out much.”

Iolas inhaled deeply. “I see. That must be hard, for you.”

“Not really, she just sits around all day–”

“I meant how she makes you feel. Embarrassed.”

Saphienne turned toward him so sharply that she nearly wrenched her neck. “Embarrassed? By her? I’m not embarrassed by my mother!”

Taken aback, he said nothing as she jumped up and pushed her way through the foliage, and he went after her with his mouth downturned.

“I’m not embarrassed by her.” Saphienne’s voice was no louder than before, but it darkened as she glared up at her family home. “I’m…”

“Saphienne, I–”

“You want to know how I feel?” She spun around, venom in her eyes. “I can’t stand her. She’s the second-worst person in the village. Third worst, when my father’s visiting. Nobody else knows her like I do. Nobody else should have to know her. It’s a good thing that she doesn’t go out much.”

He held up his hands. “Sorry! Please, calm down.”

She looked away, and her hand went inside her robe, to firmly clasp the pouch in her inner pocket.

Saphienne shut her eyes; her breaths felt tight in her chest.

Iolas kept quiet, unsure what to say.

“…I’m sorry.” She willed herself to mean it. “I should have said, ‘I don’t want you to meet her.’ But that could be read the same way, couldn’t it?” She returned to his uncertain gaze, and her eyes were cold emeralds. “And I know I’m acting like a child. I don’t mean to behave like this. She just… brings out the worst in me. Which makes me ashamed.”

“…And a little frightening…” He managed a weak smile. “Sorry, Saphienne. I didn’t mean to prick your skin.”

“You did nothing wrong.” She shook her head. “My mother’s just bad for people. I nearly shouted at Faylar when she met him, and… now I’ve shouted at you.”

Iolas looked over her shoulder, to the family home that very clearly wasn’t her home, not in any meaningful sense. He weighed up what to say; he seemed uncomfortable, but then resigned himself to whatever he thought about with a short sigh. “How about you meet me down here, tomorrow? So I don’t risk running into your mother.”

“You don’t have to–”

“Say yes. Just say yes.”

“…Yes. Thank you.”

Recovering his poise, he inclined his head. “Right, then. And don’t worry: you’re not alone in selective deafness. I’ll forget everything you said.”

“You can remember,” she managed, slouching as the anger drained away. “Just, please don’t hold it against me.”

“I wouldn’t. You must have your reasons.” He held up his hand. “Which I don’t want to know! Knowing you don’t get along with your mother is enough — and explains a lot, when I think about it.”

Saphienne wondered what he meant, but then and there was neither the time nor the place to ask. Instead, she gave him a formal bow. “Thank you, Iolas.”

“Don’t worry about it.” He bowed in return. “And… let’s not allow this to make things awkward. I’ll be here tomorrow, and we’ll carry on like before. That suit you?”

“Yes. I’d like that.”

“Good.” He took a deep breath, then blew it out slowly, and managed a firmer smile by the time he was done. “You don’t measure out your life by halves, do you, Saphienne?”

The expression made her think. “I don’t know that one. It’s an idiom? I’ve never read it before.”

“It means you throw yourself into things, wholeheartedly.”

“Oh.” She blushed as she thought about it. “I suppose so. For better or worse.”

Iolas grinned. “It gets easier. Trust me on that.”

She glanced up at him, puzzled, but he was already moving away.

“Good day, Saphienne; we had an interesting time.”

“Good day, Iolas.”

She watched him retreat toward the rest of the village, lonelier than before, but not so lonely as she had once been.

* * *

Her mother was in the kitchen, opening a bottle of wine. Saphienne watched as she poured herself a large glass, and saw the shaking in her hands.

“Saphienne!” Her mother finally noticed her. “I didn’t hear you come home – aren’t you meant to be having lessons with Gaeleath?”

“I’m going to see him once I change. I had my first lessons in wizardry today.” She glowered. “Not that you’d remember.”

“I thought that was–”

“Another day. Always another day.” She walked away, and started up the stairs.

“Saphienne?” Her mother called after her, worried. “Saphienne, my darling, I’m sorry, I just need you to–”

But Saphienne had already shut the door to her bedroom, and she covered her long ears with her robes as she stripped them off, taking her time so she wouldn’t have to listen.

* * *

By the time Saphienne emerged from her bedroom, her mother had climbed the stairs and gone into her own, and the eerie glow of the fascinator shone around the edge of her shut door. That suited Saphienne just fine, and she left without saying anything, making excellent time as she went through the forest to Gaeleath’s tent pavilion.

While Gaeleath was there, they weren’t hard at work when she arrived. Much to her surprise, the sculptor was pacing around three blocks of sandstone that they had brought in from outside, half-formed works that had been surrendered to the elements when they moved on to other projects.

“Saphienne!” They were pleased to see her. “Good timing. Your opinion, please.”

Gaeleath had never asked her opinion of their work before. Closing the tent flap, Saphienne walked up beside them, looking over the unfinished pieces. “What about?”

“Which should I complete?”

She glanced between the three. They were all large, broader and taller than an adult elf, and Gaeleath had roughly shaped them with song before cutting away the excess using hammer and chisel. None of the would-be statutes were particularly easy to interpret. “They look alike to me.”

“Oh, come now,” the artist waved at her, “don’t pretend ignorance. What does your heart say about them?”

Saphienne studied them again. The one closest to her seemed like it might be the beginnings of a tree, and the next suggested a sitting figure. The last was perhaps two figures, arms entwined, caught in motion. “Why are you suddenly finishing one?”

“For the solstice festival.” Gaeleath sounded tense. “I really should have something ready by the time everyone visits — showing my work was one of the reasons I decided to come here.”

“Solstice festival?” She frowned, the phrase stirring a memory.

Gaeleath grinned. “Being held by the village. Perhaps you don’t remember? As celebrated in the eastern woodlands, the festival rotates through five villages, of which your fine village is the easternmost. You would have been– what age are you now? Fourteen? So you would have been nine, last time it was held here.”

Saphienne stared at the inscrutable shapes… and the shadow of the past swept over the glittering sandstone.

End of Chapter 20

Chapter 21 on 11th March 2025.

Two new chapters every week, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

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