#when it comes to exercise its about balance in the right times and the right ways

[undeniablycandycane]

I hate the fatphobia that comes with fat people using wheelchairs, specifically those automated ones at grocery stores, as if they're only made for elderly people. If you aren't visibly Super Obviously Disabled in general you can get some weird looks, but I've noticed if you're fat people assume it's because you're lazy and don't want to exercise and you're "taking up resources."

Well, lady, maybe my back is fucking killing me, and I just want to get through my shopping experience without injuring myself and suffering, and maybe my exercise routine is none of your damn business (of course, you wouldn't have felt the need to ask that if I was skinny)

[xxsycamore]

Ok third one. I'm way too enthusiastic for this sorry💀

Napo + masturbation

what if i told you i have a fic about this in my drafts that is only written up to the actual masturbation part but i kind of scrapped it because i made him too lonely to the part where it looked sad just straight-up lonely and jorking it HAHAH i messed up the vibe and it needs reworking and i hate doing that ! but maybe someday.

Napoleon + masturbation

I'd say Napoleon isn't much of the regular jerking-off type. Although he listens and caters to his body's needs - he sleeps to his heart's content without much care, he cooks his own food whenever he feels like it, eats crepes to his heart's content, takes mind-clearing rides at any time he needs them. He's still getting used to having so much time for himself in his hands. He might find himself rushing to get done with his shower and have a sudden realization like wait, I can rub one out, I'm not hurrying for anywhere.

Would he take things slow and enjoy himself? Probably. I think he has those lazy moods where he'd be all in for edging himself and exploring sexual fantasies, but at the same time, he's also someone who can't sit still for longer periods of time. We know he finds quite a lot of activities to keep himself busy with, from helping with the chores at the mansion (tending to the stables too) to teaching kids at his and Isaac's école, to (probably daily) fencing exercises with Jean, to giving bodyguard gigs at balls. So I think he keeps the balance with being lazy in the mornings, claiming some time to appreciate this luxury that he now has. He's grumpy, being woken up by some resident who nudges his shoulder and then takes five steps back to shield themselves from his kissing habits. They shout something at him and leave, and Napoleon now has to fight the urge of going back to sleep, on his own.

A healthy young man such as him, it won't be surprising if his cock is awake long before sleep releases its grip on his mind... it makes him restless as he turns on his back, clicking his tongue at no one in particular, sleepy jade eyes opening to stare at the ceiling... soon his hand travels south to give his cock a firm tug, groaning at the contact. He releases his hold immediately though, letting it spring back against the skin of his belly. He's too sleepy to jerk off, too horny to go back to sleep. By the way yeah, I think he's in the habit of sleeping naked (there was one event story where MC entered his room while he was asleep and was all like "Why are you naked!" - maybe she refers to just his upper body though?) so it makes it easier for him to have a spontaneous morning jerking off. After a bit he turns on his side again, and the covers are grazing past his rock-hard cock juuust in the right way, so he rolls his hips lazily once, and then twice, and it suddenly becomes a real problem. So he says fuck it and pushes off the covers, loosely wrapping his fist around the head of his cock and fucking into it. He doesn't think of anyone in particular, just a nice warm mouth wrapped around his girth, cheeks hollowed out and tongue held out as he thrusts his hips into the willing warm and soft cavern. It's not long before he's cumming in his hand, letting out a satisfied moan and running the fingers of his other hand through his hair to move it out of his forehead, body temperature high and naked chest heaving. A nice cold shower is going to feel amazing for him afterward. The residents might think he becomes a different person once he's past his grumpy wake-up stage but they don't know the secret behind his content little smile.

He also jerks off after his sparring sessions, when the adrenaline is still racing in his blood and the hormones heighten his libido.

Reading erotica is not beyond him either, though he might have an issue with it being too far from what gets him going, with how modest yet dramatic it sounds. He'd enjoy pornographic material that is both deeply intimate and dirty at the same time.

So how does it change for him after he starts dating you? His sex drive is probably skyrocketing, and you can't be available to take care of his morning erections all the time so of course he still has to deal with it himself once in a while. It becomes more interesting now though, because the risk of someone re-entering his room because "are you STILL sleeping, Napoleon?" becomes a dangerously alluring chance of making you catch him, "accidentally". Though he's not without shame. If he expects you to walk on him, if he has that sort of control, it would be very turning-on for him. If he doesn't - if he's caught red-handed with a pair of your underwear or another item of yours... he's going to be embarrassed about it. Frowning, blushing, the sexy ridge of his eyebrows knit together when he's so obviously worked up by it, yet trying to be nonchalant... you should tease him about it. About not being able to wait until he has you later in the day or about being crazy for your scent, about how he must be wishing for your touch that would be able to get him off so, so much faster...

5/10 "Fine, I was touching myself to the thought of you. Are you just going to stand there and watch how hopeless I am? I didn't think you were so coldhearted. Come here... at least let me breathe the air around you. I'll be over with this before you know it, so... indulge me, won't you?"

-> (ALWAYS OPEN) send me a kink & I’ll give you a headcanon and rating for Napoleon!

🦶foot fetish 🥵breeding kink 🥕pregging 😈dom/sub 🍈breast kink ⛓bondage 🩸period kink 👄marking 🐺predator/prey 🏙public sex 🤗praise kink 👅 cunnilingus 🍌blowjobs (receiving) 🚪getting caught

[darcydarlingdabbles]

Epilogue

Human Hotel Trip ~ Part 7/7 ~ 6.2 k

Hazbin Hotel ₊⁺⋆ Charlastor ₊⁺⋆ EventuallyVERY Explicit

Part 1 ⚜️Part 2 ⚜️ Part 3 ⚜️ Part 4 ⚜️ Part 5 ⚜️ Part 6 ⚜️ Finale

// A few months after the trip to Earth that changed everything, Charlie and Alastor are still working out the kinks of their newly defined relationship. Well, Charlie is. Alastor has his fully figured out. //

⊹❀⊹❀⊹✨⊹❀⊹❀⊹

Charlie Morninstar’s brow furrowed in concentration as she hunched over her desk in the dim back office. 

Her crayon scratched against paper, leaving a hot pink streak over her next lesson plan, her tongue darting out between her black lips. The clock on the wall ticked steadily, the sound echoing in the after-dinner quiet of the Hazbin Hotel. 

“Come on, brain!” Charlie muttered, digging her fingers through her hair, before rolling up her sleeves and flexing her cramping fingers. “These sinners are counting on us to keep them on the path to redemption!” 

Her gaze drifted to the bright mug with its cheerful ‘Oh Deer’ barely readable in the low light—she’d forgot to turn the overheads as it got darker and dark out. Charlie reached for the coffee absently, then winced when the stone-cold liquid hit her lips. 

“Whoops,” she chuckled, how long she’d been fixated on her lesson plan. 

But, as the coffee hit her tongue, Charlie made a soft sound of contentment. It was just right—not too sweet this time, and just the way she liked it.

Alastor had finally figured out the balance between his bitter preference and hers. 

She could picture him now, almost, up in the radio tower that was his private domain. His voice was smooth as silk as he broadcasted to all the denizens of Hell every night. Part of her longed to tune in, to hear his charismatic tones in his element. 

But screams punctuated his shows and made her shudder. 

Charlie sighed, turning back to her papers and plans, thinking it was better that she could pretend he was just playing music up there. 

The blonde picked up her crayon again with renewed determination. She sketched out team-building exercises and self-reflection activities. Tomorrow was another chance to help lost souls find their way—and she wasn’t going to let them down. 

Charlie leaned back after a few hours or so, stretching her arms above her head with a soft groan, when the silence of the room was suddenly broken with the familiar crackle of static. 

“Hey, Al.” She hummed without turning around. A smiled tugged at her lips as she felt his presence looming over her shoulder. 

“My dear, were you expecting me?” Alastor asked playfully, his radio host’s voice bright and gleeful. 

Charlie opened her mouth to say yes, that he always managed to find her before either of them retired for the night—when she caught sight of the clock on the wall. “Uh, no, actually. Isn’t your broadcast still going?”

“Indeed, it is,” Alastor replied smoothly, just as she felt deft fingers smoothing out the mess she’d made of her hair over the last few hours. “A delightfully improvised jazz number is currently serenading our listeners.” 

Eerie green flames sprung up around the ‘Oh Deer’ mug, making her heart skip a beat. But before she could voice her concern, the fire vanished as quickly as they appeared. 

And steam rose in little spirals from the now piping hot coffee. 

“Thank you, Al,” Charlie breathed, touched by the little gesture. 

She reached for the mug as soon as he released her tamed hair. The warmth of the rich coffee spread through her, chasing away some of the weariness that had settled into her bones. 

“My pleasure, darling.” Alastor purred, his fingers curling around her shoulders as she felt a gentle nuzzle against the side of her head—something he would never admit to, but he did all the time. “Though I must tsk tsk at you working so late. What would your father say about such poor time management?”

Charlie rolled her eyes at the teasing lilt in his voice. “Because I have to get these lessons right—souls are at stake here.” 

Alastor chuckled at her ear, sending shivers down the back of her neck. 

In a blink, he was perched primly on her desk, sweeping her papers out of his way with a flash of his shadow tentacles. 

“Now, really my dear,” He said, folding his hands neatly over his knee as he leaned close. “There’s no need to over exert yourself for some lowly sinners.”

“Alastor,” Charlie scowled, but before she could launch into her usual defense of redemption and how every soul was worth saving—when he held up a hand, his perpetual grin widening. 

“Because,” he said in a sing-song voice. “Your fumbling first efforts have succeeded once before, have they not?”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence…I think.” Charlie said as she leaned back slightly from him. 

For some reason, her heart warmed just a bit at even this backhanded compliment. The Radio Demon was rarely straightforward, but she was learning to read between the lines. 

And, in his own twisted way, this was probably Alastor being supportive. 

Charlie nearly jumped as she felt something brush against her legs. She looked down to see Alastor’s shadow pulling up a stool behind her. Before she could react, she felt his microphone staff was pulling her legs out from under her, making her sit back. 

“Come now, take a break.” the demon insisted, his voice a mixture of concern and command. “Even the Princess of Hell needs a rest.” 

Charlie huffed, gripping the stool to sit up a little straighter. Alastor’s smile took on a smug glint as she relented. 

“Alright, Al, why are you trying so hard to get my attention?” she asked with a hint of suspicion. “ I mean, if I didn’t know better I think you were…well..” She trailed off, her cheeks blushing a brighter pink. 

The thing with Alastor, was there was always a thing with Alastor. 

He never outright said what he wanted, and even when he showed up at her room in the middle of the night—sometimes it was just to sleep next to her. 

Other times, he wanted more. And Charlie wanted a lot more. 

In a blink, Alastor vanished from the desk in front of her. She looked around the room for his tell-tale darkness, almost feeling like she should apologize. The only constant in the demon’s behavior was that calling him out on his escapades made them stop cold. 

“Al, wait—” 

Long fingers curled around Charlie’s waist, pulling her back against his chest in a delightfully familiar way. 

Instead of asking, she leaned back into him, relieved when she felt the brush of his cheek against her temple. 

“To speak plainly,” he murmured, his breath warm against her ear. “It is becoming increasingly difficult to capture your attention these days.”

Charlie shivered delicately, wrapping her arms around his and grabbing the sleeves of the Radio Demon’s coat. “If you’re frustrated, we can—” 

“Your little hotel has become quite the attraction for all of Hell’s wretches these days, hasn’t it?”

Wait, was he jealous of the time she spent with the residents? Was that what this was about? 

“Our hotel,” Charlie corrected firmly. “This is our hotel, Al, and we should both be proud—” 

Before she could continue her rant, Alastor vanished again. Charlie turned towards the empty room, only for the dapper demon to re-materialize directly in front of her. 

The blonde was forced to lean back on her elbows, gripping her desk as he invaded her personal space. 

Charlie had to admit that she lost whatever the hell he was saying when he was this close, leaning over her with his hands neatly behind his back. Something about ranting about the constant stream of sinners seeking redemption—while her mind was preoccupied with how her legs had to part to accommodate Alastor’s sudden proximity. 

“…and the cacophony of those pathetic little dance parties that Angel Dust likes to throw is deafening. I must say, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to focus on my own endeavors with all the—” 

Charlie felt a lightbulb click on over her head. 

Alastor’s incessant chatter, his need to be close, his complaints. He was trying to tell her…that he needed her. And he was terrible at it. 

Charlie reached up to slide her hands under the lapels of his scarlet coat, causing the man to stumble mid-sentence. Before he could react, she wrapped her fingers in Alastor’s suspenders and pulled down to his level to press her lips against his. 

The kiss stunned Alastor into silence, just long enough for Charlie to worry that she had indeed misread this situation, when the switch flipped and Alastor melted into the kiss. 

His arms wrapped around her, pulling himself closer as he returned affection with a fervor that took Charlie’s breath away. Alastor’s ears, which had flattened in shock, slowly lifted into a relaxed position. Her fingers carded through the hair below them with a smile. 

“Al,” she murmured, her voice soft and sweet for him. “If you need something…you can just ask me.” 

Alastor’s left ear flicked before his vulnerability was covered with his usual smirk and a flourish. 

“Dear girl, I assure you that I don’t need anything from anyone,” he protested, his voice carrying its usual lilting cadence. “I am entirely self-sufficient, as always.”

Charlie raised a playful eyebrow up at him, glancing at his arms caging her against her desk still. 

Alastor’s grin widened, leaning in closer to get to her ear. 

“However,” he purred. “I came to extend a special invitation. To my Radio Tower, after the broadcast.” 

“But you don’t allow anyone up there?”

“Yes, yes,” Alastor interrupted with a dismissive wave. “But you are not just anyone, and I wish to give you a…private preview of a new record I am working on.” 

Charlie’s expression mixed with curiosity and concern. “It’s not…more screams of tortured sinners, is it?” she asked hesitantly. 

“Far from it, darling.” Alastor laughed, the sound coming out of him like a hum more than a crackle of his usual static. “I promise that you will find it quiet...interesting.” 

Charlie bit her bottom lip. As tempting as the offer was, she couldn’t help but feel just a little bit wary of what he had in store. They had very different definitions of what was interesting...or horrifying. 

Still, the eager glint in Alastor’s crimson eyes was hard to resist. 

“Alright,” she agreed. “I’ll come up after your broadcast.” 

“Splendid!” Alastor clapped his hands together, his face lighting up and his grin stretching impossibly wider. 

Before Charlie could say a word further, the demon leaned back in to steal another kiss. Then, with a wink, he melted back into the shadows. 

“Until later, darling.” he said as his voice fading into echoes as he disappeared, leaving Charlie with only the lingering warmth of his kiss. 

And, to wonder what exactly she had gotten herself into. 

The princess sighed and shook her head, returning to her papers across the desk. 

⊹❀⊹❀⊹✨⊹❀⊹❀⊹

Charlie made her way to the far side of the highest floor of the hotel, but still hesitated at the door to Alastor’s radio tower. His broadcast had just ended, and his smooth voice still danced around in her mind. 

Though he had invited her up to his tower—she hesitated at the door. 

It felt forbidden. Even if they had been close as two people could physically be, there were still things she didn’t know about Alastor. And she certainly didn’t know what he was up to. 

But, after Charlie had hyped herself up, she reached up to to knock on the door to his tower. Only to find it was unlocked. The door creaked open slowly, like a haunted house beckoning her on to the staircase that spiraled up into the dark. 

Just as the Princess reached the bottom step, Alastor materialized before her with his ever-present grin. Comforting and unnerving all at once, but still making her jump. 

“Darling,” he purred, despite the fact that he hand to grab her arm to keep her from stumbling. “Shall we?” 

“Oh, yes!” Charlie said, her tone brightening as he kept her hand. “I still can’t believe you invited me up here, Al.”

“You should indeed consider yourself part of an incredibly exclusive club, as I would eviscerate anyone else who dared come up here.” 

Charlie gave a little awkward laugh. But part of her knew Alastor wasn’t joking. 

They ascended the winding stairs as he kept her hand, Charlie’s anticipation building with each step. Alastor’s radio tower had always been off-limits, a mystery she’d longed to unravel.

As they reached the top, Alastor dramatically swept open the door. “Welcome to my sanctuary, darling.”

 The space was intimate, nothing like the grandiose room she’d imagined. Deep crimson walls were adorned with black accents, creating a cozy atmosphere she hadn’t expected from the Radio Demon.

“It’s... beautiful up here,” she breathed.

A lime green fire crackled in the fireplace, casting an eerie glow that reminded her of the bayou in his hotel room. Another place she’d only rarely seen—Alastor always visited hers. 

Charlie’s gaze was drawn to the wall of windows, offering a breathtaking view of Pentagram City’s deep red night time sky, just before the stars came alive. “I’ve never seen the city like this before.” 

Alastor sidled up behind her silently, but his breath was warm on her neck. “It’s quite the sight, isn’t it? A blend of beauty and chaos.”

She turned to face the demon, and was surprised by the softness in his gaze despite his grin. 

Maybe it was how personal this space was. Having Alastor share a part of himself no one else had ever seen. Charlie softened to him in turn. 

“Thank you for showing me this,” she said softly, reaching for his hand. “I know it means a lot to you.”

“The pleasure is all mine, my dear.” Alastor’s grin widened, a hint of genuine warmth creeping into his expression. “Now, shall we make ourselves comfortable?”

Charlie nodded, still taking in the intimate surroundings. Alastor guided her further into the room, his hand resting lightly on the small of her back.

“Can I offer you a drink, my dear?” Alastor asked, gesturing to a small bottle of deep amber liquid. “My personal favorite whiskey, aged to perfection.”

“Of course,” Charlie smiled, always eager to share more with him. 

As Alastor poured two glasses, Charlie’s attention was drawn to the bookshelves lining one wall. Her eyes widened as she approached, fingers trailing along the spines, wondering what Alastor was reading. 

“Curious kitten, aren’t you?” Alastor chuckled, handing her a glass. 

“Sorry!” The blonde jumped guiltily, feeling her face get pinker. What did he just call her?

“It’s fine darling, I was teasing.” He smirked as he tilted his whisky back to his lips. To Charlie’s rapt attention. 

She cleared her throat, looking back at the bookcase to seize on any distraction. “Is that…a real crocodile skull??”

“An alligator, but, yes, it is indeed real.” Alastor’s grin widened. “A momento from my mortal life.” 

Charlie nodded absently, tilting the glass to her lips—the smokey flavor warmed her throat right down to her core. Alastor was watching her, his expression greedy. 

“Come, my dear. I’d like to show you where the magic happens.” He hummed as he gently steered her towards the expansive broadcast control panel. 

Alastor’s fingers curled over her shoulders, applying enough pressure to seat her at a piano bench before the desk. Her eyes widened as she took in the array of buttons, knobs, and switches all before her. 

“How do you keep track of all this?” Charlie tried to keep her enthusiasm from bubbling right over. This place felt like it should be kept quiet unless he was on air. 

Alastor chuckled, sliding onto the bench beside her. “Practice, decades of it.” 

Charlie couldn’t help but be impressed—the only piece of equipment she recognized was a record player in the corner. Though it was far fancier than any she had seen. 

Though it did remind her of something he said before. 

“So, what was that about a song you wanted to show me?” She turned to him so quickly, her blonde hair swayed behind her. 

“Ah yes, of course! I’m delighted you remembered.”

He reached over, his lengthy arm easily spanning the distance to the record player. With a flourish, he selected a vinyl and set it on the turntable.

As the needle touched down, a sweet melody filled the air. It was soft and lilting, almost like a lullaby—not the kind of music she’d expected from Alastor at all.

Though her brow furrowed as a familiar note was struck. 

Suddenly, recognition dawned on Charlie’s face. “Wait a minute,” she gasped, turning to Alastor with wide eyes. “This is the song you played for me on the last night of our trip to the hotel!”

Alastor’s smile grew impossibly wider, a mix of pride and something else Charlie couldn’t quite place. “Indeed, it is, my clever girl. I’m impressed you remembered—as you were more than half asleep at the time.” 

“How could I forget?” Charlie felt a warmth spread through her chest at his praise, and the memory of cuddling up to him on that balcony. “It was a beautiful.” 

Alastor nodded, his eyes never leaving her face. “It is. However, it is far from complete. Merely a melody, lacking harmony or accompaniment.”

 “Oh? What are you planning to add to it?”

A wicked smirk played across Alastor’s features, sending a shiver down Charlie’s spine. Without breaking eye contact, he elongated his  hand, reaching for the control panel.

“Allow me to demonstrate,” he intoned, his fingers hovering over two sliders. 

Charlie watched, transfixed, as Alastor began to slowly push the controls upward. Her heart raced with anticipation, wondering what new element he was about to introduce to the hauntingly sweet melody.

Soft sounds filtered through the speakers, growing steadily louder. Breathy pants, a low groan, a mumbled word she couldn’t quite make out.

Charlie’s confusion only grew, worried that she was going to hear some tortured screams—when a clear sound cut through the air.

 Her own voice, unmistakable, whining out a name. “Al... Alastor~”

She whipped her head towards the Radio Demon. “Is... is that me on the recording?” she stammered, her voice barely above a whisper. A terrible thought struck her, and she felt her stomach drop. “Were you... were you recording us together?”

Alastor’s grin stretched impossibly wider, his sharp teeth glinting in the soft light. But then he spoke, his voice smooth as silk. “Oh Heavens, no, of course not, my dear.”

Charlie exhaled shakily, relief washing over her. But confusion quickly took its place. “Then what...?”

“This, my darling, is merely an imitation of the sweet sounds you make for me. I’m quite talented at replicating what I’ve heard, you see.” Alastor chuckled, a low, dark sound that sent shivers down Charlie’s spine. “Alas, any discerning ear could tell the difference.”

Charlie’s mind reeled. 

“You…so you recreated my voice, I mean, my sounds…while we were…?”

“Yes.” Alastor’s scarlet eyes glinted with satisfaction. 

Charlie felt her face grow even hotter. It was mortifying to hear herself like this, and yet... a small part of her couldn’t help but feel flattered. The idea that Alastor had paid such close attention, had committed her most intimate sounds to memory...

“I... I suppose it is impressive,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. “In its own way, but, Alastor—” 

“You needn’t worry, my dear, I assure you.” Alastor said as he leaned in, his arm sliding around her back. “I would never dream of sharing such, intimate sounds with anyone else.” 

Charlie’s breath hitched as his pointed fingers deftly untucked her shirt. His touch was cool on the skin of her hip, because her entire body was flush with heat. 

“You promise?” The princess asked softly, biting over her bottom lip. 

“Of course,” Alastor soothed, his fingers drawing circles now over the small of her back. “And, should you ever permit me to record during one of our…encounters. I can assure you no one else who heard it would live to tell the tale.” 

Charlie gaped. 

The idea of being recorded was both terrifying…and secretly thrilling.

Alastor’s knowing smirk told her he was well aware of the effect he was having on her. His fingers traced lazy circles along the base of her spine, and his nose was starting to nudge along her cheek. 

Charlie bit her lower lip, fighting back the impulsive answer she wanted to blurt out. 

Alastor was just waiting, ever so patiently, his lips and teeth grazing her ear with not near enough pressure for her liking. 

Taking a deep, shaky breath, Charlie whispered, “Do you promise? Promise you’ll never share any recordings. Or the imitations?”

 “My dear Charlie, you have my word.” Alastor pulled back slightly, meeting her eyes. His grin softened into something almost gentle. “And as you well know, I always keep my word.”

Charlie bit her lip for a moment longer, feeling a jumble of vulnerability and exhilaration at the idea. 

Until she finally nodded. 

✧✦✧✦⚜️✧✦✧✦

Alastor could not contain his delight when Charlie acquiesced to his request. He surged forward, capturing her lips with his own. 

The darling girl leaned into him at once, as she always did, her arms thrown around his shoulders. Alastor slid his arms around her waist, his shadow tentacles helping ease her into his lap, thrilling at the familiar feeling of her thighs caging his on the bench.��

Charlie shifted closer to him as their lips drag together. Wriggly little thing she was. 

Alastor’s hand slid up along her back, long fingers cradling the back of her skull to keep her still—so he could let his razor-sharp teeth graze her bottom lip. Earning him a delightful gasp from the Princess. 

Reminding the demon to send a tentacle up along the console and set the recording going, greedy to capture every sound. 

He hardly minded when either of them were a tad too enthusiastic with their kisses. He thrilled whenever her fangs met his flesh, but she didn’t enjoy the taste of blood as much as he did. 

Alastor held Charlie where he wanted her as he worked his mouth down the column of her throat.

He popped open the black buttons of her white shirt as he made his way down her collar, knowing that despite her distaste for blood—Charlie loved the marks he left on her. For as long as they lasted. 

Alastor ducked his head to suck a mark into the crook of her pale neck and shoulder, eliciting a quivering moan from Charlie that sent shivers through the Radio Demon. 

Her slender fingers found their way up under his coat, dragging along the line of his suspenders as he worked his lips and teeth over the bones of her collar. Alastor rolled his shoulders back, flicking his wrists to drop the red fabric in a pool behind the bench, without pulling his attention from the task of undressing Charlie. His long fingers made quick work of the rest of her buttons to revel in the white skin beneath. 

Charile was undoing his bowtie and sliding it from his collar as he dragged his nails along her silky torso. 

Alastor had been concerned, preoccupied, that he might hurt her with his sharp claws and sharper teeth—but practice had built his confidence in his ability to touch her softness without hurting her with his pointed edges. 

He drew his fingers down the contours of her body, dragging a single claw up from her belly. With just enough pressure, he sliced the fabric between the cups of her bra. 

And the garment fell away from her body. 

Charlie gasped as cool air hit her skin, pebbling her nipples before his darkening eyes. Just so he could hear the indignant way she said, “Alastor!” 

He hid his smirk by taking her entire breast into his mouth. 

He sucked her tenderly, so she could feel the edge of his teeth grazing her flesh, leaving marks that wouldn’t last until morning. 

“Alastor,” Charlie huffed, making his grin widen over her skin. “You ripped my bra.” 

The demon just chuckled against her chest, clearly more intent on worshiping every inch of her than addressing her transitory concerns. 

Charlie was not mollified. He felt her give an irritated tug at his hair. 

Alastor pulled back with a drag of his tongue. “Yes, love?” He cocked an eyebrow, mischief quirking his lips. “I’ll mend it later.” 

Her breath caught at the endearment, but he distracted her by lavishing his attention on her  breast. 

Alastor flicked his red thumb over her nipple, feeling the way Charlie shivered and goosebumps erupted over her skin. Her hands were back to threading through his hair and ruffling it up. 

His ears flicked with anticipation. 

Charlie was distracting him from her chest with the teasing of her fingers. They had always been, sensitive, but he had never realized  until the princess discovered his weakness for having them petted. 

Alastor would only allow her to stroke him like a contented house cat—forgetting his ministrations and the sounds he was trying to pull her. His own moan was muffled in the valley of her breasts. His forehead pressed against her rabbiting heart. 

So…distracting. 

With a rumbling growl, Alastor lifted Charlie up by the hips, depositing her back on his broadcast desk. As he sent the bench seat tumbling with his heel.

The rest of her clothing vanished with a flash of his shadows. He’d shred them in his impatience otherwise—and he caused a delightful little yelp from his Princess. 

Alastor locked eyes with Charlie as his fingers curl around her milky thighs and push her legs apart. Smirking from ear to ear as he ducked his head to drag his tongue through her slick folds. 

Sweet thing that she was, practically trilling under his mouth. 

Her fingers scrabble over his head, before finally grabbing onto his branching antlers. Alastor’s answering moan reverberated against her pussy, causing her hips to cant to his tongue again. 

“Al, what…” His ears turn towards her, but he refuses to give up his treat just yet—until she insisted with a tug on his ear. “The controls, I don’t wanna, lay on them and—” 

Alastor growled, promptly shrouding the machinery in a dark shadow. 

“Darling,” he chided, his voice smooth despite the slick coating his lips. “Quite rude to interrupt a man while he’s eating.” 

“You did not just—” Charlie’s entire face was consumed with the most brilliant shade of red. 

“I did.” Alastor smirked, shamelessy, before returning to his meal. 

The blonde is a trembling mess beneath his tongue. Her hips jerked up against him, because she just couldn’t stay still the closer and closer she got to the edge. 

His antlers were growing under her grip. Wildly now. 

Alastor didn’t lift his head from sucking on her clit as he summoned his shadows. The tendrils wrapped around her hands, giving something safer to hold on to as his hands held her open. And still. 

Charlie’s musical pleas filled his ears, begging so sweetly for him, because she was so close. 

Without pulling away from her, Alastor conjured another tentacle to squirm its way up between them. Charlie’s hips bucked desperatly as the tip of the shadow found her entrance, fucking into her fast and shallow as he worked her clit. 

Charlie arched off of Alastor’s desk with a cry as she came. 

The way she said his name had him shuddering above her, fingers clawing into the wood either side of her hips. 

His lips curled into a satisfied smile as he pulled away from her clit, knowing the little numb was sensitive with her release, but his shadow tentacle continued to work her, drawing out every last shiver and whine of pleasure. 

Until Charlie fell limp against his desk. 

Alastor hummed as he leaned over the Princess, pressing tender kisses to her temple and along her cheek. Her heart was pounding against his chest. 

The demon smirked against her lips. 

Charlie gave a little whine into his mouth, reaching for him like her limbs were drenched in molasses. 

Alastor ducked to her hand to meet her touch. His lips and teeth skimmed her palm, her wrist, letting her trail idle fingers over him as her body calmed. 

When she tugged at his blood red shirt, he hesitated for only a moment, before pulling it off. 

Scars littered the Radio Demon’s torso. The most prominent of which the Princess had seen that first night they were together. The slash across from an angel’s blade, still tinged gold from his brush with the divine. 

Charlie’s eyes were heavy-lidded with desire, to his continuing relief, and she bit into her black bottom lip. 

“Again?” she whispered, her voice just loud enough to be heard. 

“Again.” Alastor’s grin swelled with his ego. 

He loved it when she asked for more. When she surrendered her self so completely to his touch…to the pleasure he gave her. 

Alastor pulled his tentacles back, and flipped Charlie onto her stomach, caging her in with his arms as he pressed his chest against her back. 

“Al…” Charlie started a protest, only to give a squeak of surprise as he conjured another tentacle. “…fuck.”

He purred, pushing her hair aside to expose the nape of her neck. “Yes, darling, that is indeed the idea.” He leaned down to press a soft kiss to the bite he’d left earlier, just as the second tentacle joined the first—plunged deep inside her. 

Charlie grabbed for his wrist and clinging to him as the two tentacles worked along her inner walls. She mewled beneath him, her hips bucking back, and her ass rutting against the straining fabric of his pants. 

Alastor was achingly hard. But he held back, because he wanted to swallow every sweet mewling cry she gave. His clenched teeth pressed against her neck as she squirmed so enticingly beneath him as she neared another peak. 

He panted against Charlie’s ear as her legs trembled until her hips stuttered and faltered. Rewarding Alastor with her most exquisite sound yet—her pleasure, dripping down her thighs onto the floor in front of his desk. 

“Good girl,” Alastor crooned a litany of praises into Charlie’s neck. 

✧✦✧✦⚜️✧✦✧✦

The console’s red light blinked in time with Alastor’s pounding heart, recording every sound and sigh that escaped Charlie’s lips as he heled her close. 

He kept his arms around her, his chest pressed to his back, her  head nestled into the crook of his shoulder. It took longer each time for Charlie to recover. But he was happy to wait—getting her like this, just for him, was as satisfying to the demon as getting off himself. 

Charlie panted softly, her golden hair spilled over him like a waterfall, tickling under his chin with every gentle stirring. 

He tasted salt on her cheek when he kissed it. And her pulse fluttered under his lips. 

As Alastor let her doze against him, he couldn’t help but trace his fingers over her hips, her waist, rounding her breasts, and carefully avoiding her delicate core as she recovered. Marveling at how she responded to even his feather light touches. And lingering kisses when she turned her head to him and demanded them. 

The demon tilted his head back with a smirk. “Another?”

Charlie shuddered delicately in his arms, pulling a chuckle from the man’s chest. 

“Is that a yes?” 

“Al,” Charlie whined, her movements even more sluggish as she tugged at his hair. “You’re…you’re gonna wear me out before you even fuck me.” She lamented so prettily, he almost gave in then and there. 

But Alastor kept his grin as he dragged his fingers over her thighs. “Sweetheart,” he drawled. “ You know that outcome will suit my fancy just as well.” 

The Princess whined throatily in protest.

She wriggled in his hold, squirming until Alastor had to help her turn in his arms and settle back on his lap. 

Charlie looked absolutely, deliciously wrecked. Her makeup smudged and her eyes dilated with want and her hair a mess as she threw her arms around his shoulders. 

“Alastor,” she began plaintively, her voice low and desperate as her lips nudged insistently at his chin and along his jaw. 

“Yes, darling?” He responded with a teasing lilt, even as his hands slid down the curve of her back. 

“Please?” The Princess begged, and Alastor shuddered. He so loved it when she begged so prettily. 

“Please…what, my dear?” He grinned his widest grin. “I’m afraid you’ll have to be more specific in your request.”

Charlie let out a groan so exasperatedly that Alastor nearly broke and laughed at the sound of pure frustration. 

The Princess gripped to his shoulders, and he tilted his head as she turned around and glanced at the blinking ‘Record’ button on his console. 

Alastor cocked his eyebrows up as he waited. 

“Al…” Her voice was just above a whisper, her hand cupping his cheek as heat erupted across hers. “Take me back to bed and fuck me, please.” 

⊹❀⊹❀⊹✨⊹❀⊹❀⊹

Alastor’s smile was instant and predatory—like he was going to ravage her right there all over again. And Charlie’s heart fluttered in her ears, unsure of which she wanted more. 

“As you wish.” 

His arms wound tighter around her, and they were swallowed up in his deep shadows. Charlie gasped as she felt cool air on her skin, and the soft satin of her bed on her back.

The Princess pushed herself up on her weak arms, searching for him in her dark bedroom, the only light coming from the black sky outside, littered with scarlet stars. 

“Al…” She hummed as her eyes adjusted, and she finally caught sight of him. 

Alastor’s clothes had been left behind. And Charlie had another moment to just admire the tantalizing sight that was usually concealed under so many layers of fine clothes. The slim contours of his torso, his grayish skin littered with marks she wanted to memorize with her fingers and lips, if he’d ever allow it. 

Though, right now, she’d be happy to just get her mouth on his straining cock. He never allowed that. 

“Had your fill of staring, darling?”

Charlie’s gaze snapped back to the dark-red sclera and scarlet irises above his wickedly gleaming teeth. 

“Never,” she decided, already reaching for him, pulling him down on top of her. 

Her fingers curled into his hair at once, her body cradling his, eager to have him impossibly closer. Inside her. She needed Alastor like she needed to breathe. 

And seemed to finally have sympathy for her plight. 

He kissed her just as desperately, groaning against her when the length of his cock raked against her soaking folds. 

“Al….” Charlie arched her back off the bed, ready to plead with him one more time, but it seemed even Alastor had enough teasing at last. 

Finally, he slid inside her with a shuddering groan, and Charlie curled her legs around him to feel every inch. Alastor’s long fingers sunk into the bed on either side of her head. As her fingers tangled in his hair. 

Though he’d worked her into damn near a frenzy, she couldn’t bring herself to rush Alastor now. His movements were deliberate, each thrust sending waves of pleasure cousing through her tingling nerves. 

Charlie clung to him as they moved together. His eyes were so bright red they were glowing in the dark as she felt the sweat beading on his brow and the tension in every muscle as he held himself back—savoring every moment. 

Just as she was reveling that she could hold the Radio Demon so close. Not the demon, but the man underneath it all, who let his smile slip as he kissed her with ragged breaths. 

His hips stuttered, every movement more desperate and wild as her hands found his ears again—only to feel the familiar weight of a tentacle slithering between them. 

The shadowy appendage didn’t just find her clit. It thrummed against her frazzled bundle of nerves, drawing pleasure from her one last time. Coaxing her to giving in one last time. 

Her head fell back into the pillows as Alastor found his release with her name on his tongue. 

After, might just be Charlie’s favorite part. A pile of limbs just panting in each other’s arms, a mess of sweat and sweetness that she craved. 

When it felt like Alastor was at his most sincere. 

He fell back onto the disheveled pillows, his arm draped over his eyes, his chest rising and falling slower and slower. And hardened his smile finally faded to nothing but softness. 

Charlie inched her way back to him, curling into his side. “Will you…stay with me tonight?” She asked faintly, drawing her finger under his chin and over his skin. He sometimes left before dawn or right after she fell asleep. 

Either way, she missed him at once. 

Alastor lifted his hand, his red eyes fixed on the canopy of the bed. “Of course I will…for as long as you’ll have me.” 

Charlie beamed like the sun had risen at the witching hour. 

“Better get comfortable.” She said as she pillowed into Alastor’s chest. “Because I’ll always have you.” 

Alastor chuckled, and she could hear the smile return to his voice as he murmured. “Yes, my dear.” 

⚜️ Thanks for Reading ⚜️

[ronearoundblindly]

New Parent Panic (Ari's POV)

Ari Levinson x reader--best friends-to-lovers (now engaged w/a baby)

a Bedrock and Blueprints tale (see previous or series)

Summary: Little Rachel gets sick for the first time on a day that's not-quite convenient for her parents...

Warnings for eh...self-pity? dudeliness? sorta idiot Ari but he's relatable? very very fleeting mentions of sex. Mostly this is a web of hurt/comfort, much like its counterpart perspective. WC 2.5k 😣 This got out of hand... *You'll be surprised to learn that since I posted (technically this morning), I continue to not know much about babies, so yup, it's fiction.

He felt like crud yesterday, but he never said anything.

The cast only came off of his leg three weeks ago, and between getting back to work, taking physical therapy, and having a newborn at home, Ari is run fucking ragged.

He doesn't say anything though because you are just as worn down. You're in this together. He can manage.

Despite his best efforts, he got shit sleep last night. His thigh aches when the weather is colder, and the burning strain in his atrophied muscles won't let up since he diligently repeats his PT exercises whenever he can all day long.

He has no more sick leave--or at least, it seemed useless to take it when all he had was minor chills and a headache--so he leaves in the morning for the construction site where he is grounded. Until the strength in his legs is evened out again, he'll only work on the ground, but that's not resting. He actually moves around more than if he was climbing or balancing up on unfinished floors.

Ari focuses on not limping slightly when he's home around you, but he knows you can tell his recovery isn't done yet.

So yesterday he felt pretty rough, and whatever it was ruined his sleep, but he did all he promised he would do around the house before going to work and returned right after the shift ended.

He even strategically holds the house keys so they will make zero jingling noises, in case Rachel is asleep and not to be woken.

Ari can tell immediately that his girl is, of course, not asleep at all.

"Why's she crying?" he says, changing his bearings over from an intense day of helping the rather large project crew.

"Because she hates me."

He's pretty sure that's not true so walks over, not bothering to take off his shoes, saves time if he swings by the bedroom. He can do a lot more if he removes his stiff work layers and washes some grime off. He wouldn't say no to beer either...

If he's going to do a lap around the house, he may as well grab whatever helps you.

He asks if Rachel needs medicine, but it's not been enough time for another dose.

"Hungry?" He means both the baby and you, but before he can specify, you practically bite his head off.

No, I don't think you've starved our fucking child for your amusement, but I think you might be hangry...

"Calm down," Ari tries to soothe instead. "I'm just trying to help."

It clearly doesn't come out as soothing.

"Well then fucking help me," you cry, and he can tell now that it is crying.

As soon as he's dressed down a little, he'll do anything and everything you want, but either way, he'll have to take a minute to be ready, now or later. Now just seems easier because then you can pass Rachel off to him for good.

He simply has to use the bathroom.

Turns out so do you, and you've needed to for a long time.

Ari offers to let you go first. He figures he can set her in the basinet for the whopping minute it will take him to change clothes.

You say no. You already have her.

"Fine," he sighs, beelining for the bedroom, ready to strip and flip his body like an actor offstage. "I'll be right back."

"Take. Your. Time."

Ari turns around, unamused, biting his tongue and taking a breath before, as calmly as he can possibly manage, he says, "Kid, just tell me what you want me to do, and I'll do it."

His aching body, too-cold in some spots, too-warm in others, makes him twitchy. He can't stand still and he has to take the weight off his bad leg.

You don't answer. You just walk off to the kitchen

"I swear, woman..."

Ari does everything too fast.

He knocks down a few hangers in the closet grabbing a sweatshirt from the shelf. Toiletries do a half pike in the dip of the sink when he replaces the bottle of mouthwash. He uses the last of the toilet paper rolls but is a little scared to stay any longer before relieving you.

He's about to warn you to replace it, but you're on the phone, relaying Rach's fever and very few specific symptoms beyond that, other than constant crying.

He won't interrupt you in the middle of a conversation with your back turned to him, so he decides this is his chance to get a beer out and open, within arms reach once you're done and he can take over.

The call ends.

Rachel is shrieking now, and it's difficult to hear over the wailing.

He figures you have to relay a rundown of what she's eaten and when she can have meds again, so he won't yell over the din much and asks what he needs to do.

Easy, right?

Wrong.

He barely gets the baby balanced in his arms when there's a short break in the flailing yell.

You run out. He assumes you're making a break for the bathroom, but no, you go out--like out-out--of the house. He can't move fast enough to follow, and Rachel resumes crying within seconds of the front door shutting.

Ari hasn't locked the car yet (the beep could wake a precariously sleeping kiddo so he waits to see if it's safe), so he makes it to the living room window in time to see the van shift slightly with your weight inside.

He can't see you though. You aren't in the front seats.

"Well, lil' general," he mutters to a baby that not only cannot understand him but also cannot hear him over the noise she's making, "we have our orders."

He won't take the screaming child outside; that's rude to the nice neighbors. He gathered enough info from your phone call to know Rach probably needs fed again, and by the time that's done, it'll be meds--for him and the baby. He waits to take anything for his leg until close to bed, so it's effective, maybe allowing him a few decent hours a night.

He wets a washcloth and grabs a bottle.

Ari bounces. He wiggles. He shimmies. He groans when a momentary stab of pain races up his thigh. He is so fucking sick of being in pain. He hated being trapped in bed. He hated being trapped in a cast. He hates not being at 100%. He loathes using the pain as an excuse for not doing his part at home.

So he has mentioned it as little as humanly possible.

Finally, he arranges himself on the couch with that donut pillow thing to cradle Rachel's head while she eats, and Ari slaps the cool cloth on his own forehead, leaning his neck back at an awkward angle. He doesn't really care; this is about the best he's felt all day.

He isn't sure whether he expected you to come in by now or not. He can't blame you for wanting space, just any amount of it at all really, but it's cold outside. The car won't stay comfortable for long.

Rachel has, eh, sorta stopped crying by the time the bottle is empty. She kicks her chubby legs out and stares at Ari with huge eyes, snorting with each exhale. He does the suction thingy to clear her nose, just like you taught him, and then it's Daddy-Daughter drug time.

Diaper change is next, and then because Ari happened to put on his favorite navy blue sweatshirt, he pulls out Rachel's navy blue onesie. Sue him. It's cute to match his kid.

Her big eyes get heavier and heavier, so Ari takes his chance to go check on you before Rach is even fully asleep.

He slips his shoes back on without tying them.

He's happy the first words out of your mouth once he opens the car door aren't an apology. Goodness knows when he needs a minute, he needs a minute. There's nothing wrong with that.

Ari wishes it weren't his fault though.

"Is she okay?" you ask with a watery voice.

He rubs across your back, your body curling in on itself even more. Those hard plastic, all-weather mats must be murder on your bare feet and shins.

"Took a few ounces of a bottle and went down in her bunk."

He plans the best way to lift you with his weakened stance, adjusting you like a sad rag doll before hauling you into the house.

Honestly, he's looked forward to holding you all day. He thought maybe you'd share a hug when he got home or cuddle on the couch for a bit, but none of that happened obviously.

Instead, he sinks down in the front hall, keeping you on his lap while he kicks his boots over to the mat.

He kisses your temple.

Your forehead is sweaty but chilled from outside. He has no clue if you're sick, too, but if it's whatever he had yesterday, he knows it won't last very long.

One thing he knows for sure: he had no way of knowing this was how your day went.

"How many times I gotta tell ya to call me?" he whispers. The longer his skin is pressed to yours, the more he's convinced. "You know, you're warm, too."

You ignore yourself again, asking if he took Rachel's temperature.

He cradles you while explaining what he did, squeezing you tighter once there's nothing left but to focus on you, which you do in the absolutely worst way.

"I'm a bad mom," you breathe.

"What?" He smacks his head on the wall behind him. "What are you talking about?"

Not fucking today, kid. Don't do this.

"Bullshit," he seethes, his gut knotting at the thought of you wallowing in those thoughts, alone in the empty, cold car. "Don't you ever say that again."

Your evading his attempts to wrangle you into facing him.

"I shouldn't have--"

"Stop," he bites out.

"--you were--"

"Stop it."

"But I'm the one who wanted this, Ari!"

That's not fair and you know it. His heart is breaking open with yours.

"Me," you continue, choked by misplaced guilt. "I wanted kids. This whole time. I bitched about how Joanna's done--"

He fucking hates the idea of you comparing yourself to Joanna.

"--and I thought I could just...and I suck at it. Rach even likes you better!"

You're full-on blubbering now, and he won't say it, but you're adorably pathetic like this. His breaking heart swells a little.

"No, kid," he adds. "She was exhausted. I only got here at the right time."

"It's 'cause you're comfy and you smell good--"

Well, I do use my bathroom time wisely...

"--and she loves you."

You say that like it's a bad thing?? Ari snorts out a laugh at your lip quiver.

"She loves you, too. You're her mom." He tucks you in closer, stroking his hands over your restless form. "I love you. So much. So, so much."

Ari searches for your hand and the sapphire ring he put on it until he can spin the band gently on your finger. He knows you deserve a wedding, sooner rather than later, but he doesn't want to be in pain standing up with you in front of friends and family. He doesn't want to limp during your first dance. He certainly doesn't want to need painkillers to take you to bed that night (or any night really).

That's his guilt.

Yes, you were very pregnant when he fell and broke his leg. Yes, there would have been almost no way to have sex with his cast on, or properly maneuver you for any other positions and activities. Yes, you needed plenty of time to heal after giving birth. But come on!

If he had control of his body, or his muscle mass back, or less self-consciousness and disappointment, he would love nothing more than to be all over you--last night, this morning, when he walked in the door, in the kitchen, out in the car, or right here on the fucking floor.

Ari knows those are selfish thoughts. You need his comfort and words more than you need to feel like an object. Rachel--or, he guesses, a baby in general--makes everyone feel like they're just playing a roll, like they're there for one purpose only.

"Can I tell you a secret?" Ari rumbles near your ear. "You're my favorite."

You slump into his chest until your forehead braces his throat. You fit him so perfectly.

"Almost not fair, really. You've got a decade of brownie points, and she's managed to make me buy more pads for her than I've had to for y--"

You pinch at his side harshly, biting back a smile. He deserved that pinch. He earned that smile.

"Oh! And you can control your bladder for a whole day, which is downright impressive wh--hey now--" the assault on his ribs has him jumping around the floor "I'm just...being...honest," he chuckles.

"You're a jerk is what you are, old man."

He grabs both your arms and pins them together in front of him.

"Yeah, but I'm your jerk. Your old man, kid. I'm yours, okay? You are not alone here. You don't have to know how to do everything by yourself." He lowers his voice as well as his face to yours. "And you mean just as much to me as that little girl in there. You hear me?"

You only nod, so he gently knocks his forehead to yours.

"Please be okay. I could never do this without you. Any of it..."

You're settled in bed, watered, fed, and cleaned, but Ari notices Rachel starting to fuss again.

When he sweeps the thermometer over her head and ear, the reading says her temp has actually gone down slightly. He'll take that win.

He lets out a silent cheer and holds his hand up.

"High five?"

Those huge eyes just blink at him.

"No? It's fine. We'll work on that."

He lefts her out of the basinet and tries one more bottle, turning on the TV but getting lost watching his daughter's tiniest movements instead. While he's burping her, he runs through his PT routine, twice, since his mobility gets a little better once his meds kick in.

Lil' General is out cold almost instantly over his shoulder.

Ari grabs another wet cloth for your forehead before putting everyone to sleep.

He bounces his way closer to you in the bed. He wiggles and shimmies until you're resting against his chest. He smiles when he realizes you don't feel overly warm anymore, pulling the blanket higher, letting the static of Rach's white-noise machine take him under.

He felt like crud yesterday. Today, he helped his ladies feel better and goes to bed happy, holding you.

[Main Masterlist; Bedrock and Blueprints Masterlist; Ko-Fi]

@supraveng @1950schick @patzammit @whiskeytangofoxtrot555 @yiiiikesmish @ashesofblackroses @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory @brandycranby @buckysprettybaby @ellethespaceunicorn @late-to-the-party-81 @rogersbarber

[psychelis-new]

pick a pile: "The Light Within"

take a breath and choose the photo/number that calls you the most to read words of wisdom and guidance from your fire/light within. we all have a passionate, burning side, we all have a light inside of us, so with this reading I'd like to focus on the message it has for you. Thank you @faerytreealtars for somehow inspiring this reading.

don’t take the reading too seriously. only take what resonates with you and leave the rest. if you're not called by any pile, let this reading slid as it may not hold messages for you. if you're called by more than one, there may be messages in each of those piles. remember that is a general reading and some things may not resonate with you. energies can change and readings are based on present ones (as you read); you're always in charge of your life.

(photos found on unsplash)

- ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ -

1 2 3 - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ -

pile 1 (you may be called by pile 3 as well)

"is the flame off or on?". Pile 1, you may feel drained atm. It feels like there's only a little hope/passion left inside of you, but at times you can't even see it that well. It may take you a certain effort to reach it and go on. You don't have to overdo stuff. Even things you're passionate about (despite atm I feel you're feeling really low and kinda losing hopes on everything). Take a break, give yourself a break. You probably feel drained because you've been healing something, maybe your emotions, or overthinking... it could even be stuff from your childhood (you're closing a cycle very likely, an ego-death). Your inner light wants you to stop for a minute and come back to yourself. To gain strenght to go forward, to focus on what is important for real and what you can control. It's time to make a change, to guide yourself towards a new beginning. It's time to give your heart what it wants, or at least try with all you have: you cannot fail if you give your all like a burning fire. No matter how it'll go. But first, collect your firey energy. Take a breath before start running. Use some kindness to yourself.

extra message: listen to your intuition, let it guide you (trust yourself) -if your body/mind tell you to stop, follow them.

song: obsessed | mariah carey

- ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ -

pile 2

"it's all in your hands". You probably have a lot of fire in your chart or you come off as a fiery person. Birds/eagles may be a sign or symbol for you. You're probably also "preying" over something (or someone uh), I feel the same energy of predators ready to go hunting. It's either this, as in you're trying to get somewhere/reach any goal of yours and putting in work, or you're sometimes still blocked by emotions (especially anger, I feel). Maybe even little blockages or annoyances on your path can cause a huge reaction in you? Well, an overreaction, more likely. And you can't very much control it, which honestly isn't that bad: to keep all this energy locked in would end up being pretty much self distructive for you (so if it happens to you, find outlets for it: go running, exercise, dance... move your body in any way you like. Burn the energy, do not let it burn you). The light within wants you to balance a little more its energy. Try to realize where your triggers hide, why any little discordance with your plan causes you all this troubles (it's probably related to a lack of self confidence or perfectionism issues), how did it originate and how does it feel in your body (so you can focus more on that part when letting go of the energy). Things are fine, try to put them in the right perspective and give them the right importance in your life.

extra message: stay balanced, right now things may seem a bit too much so find your self-center again

song: take you to hell | ava max

- ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ - ’ -

pile 3 (you may be called by pile 1 as well)

It's time to stop for a moment. Things are falling into place, but you need to give them time to. "You're impatient, darling". Take time to enjoy, to ponder, to clear your mind, and even to take a nap here and there... Gain strenght in this moment. You can't see it but things are changing (and generally they change the most when we can't see them doing it), so let this change flow within you, don't block it by overstressing or overthinking. You are allowed to change as well, to take time to adapt to the new you (you seem very changed!). Don't rush things, don't rush for an answer or a sign.. sometimes it's a matter of simply staying there and wait or meditate over it. Follow your guts, whatever they're telling you. Follow your guts and keep doing you. Keep healing (maybe trust issues or anxiety in general). Results will come. At this moment, the fire within you wants you to take a time out from it. To let it burn still inside, but with a gentle flame, not an excessive one. A flame that burns forever without consuming much energy or anything. A flame that is patient and doesn't need to burn things down to reach to a goal. A gentle flame that burns little by little and grows little by little too, waiting for the right time to explode (if necessary). A smart and observing flame. Keep it quiet. Do not lose sight of it in the dark and don't be scared of losing it (if you dim it) or whatever you want.

extra messages (you got 2): stop and breathe, you don't have to do all at once, take some time off, enjoy + you can change who you were, don't let the past stop you, learn from it

song: black swan | bts

[huckleberrykai]

okay HEAR ME OUT BEFORE U SAY ANYTHING OKIE?

meeting soobin at the gym

ITS NOT THAT REALISTIC BC HE HATES WORKING OUT AND STUFF BUT HEAR ME OUT

meeting him at the gym and seeing him train with taehyun but every so often he’s whining about wanting to go home and laying on the floor so dramatically saying he’s so tired. THAT IS. until he sees you walk in <3 perfect girl of his dreams and next thing you know terry’s in shock :O hyung i didnt know you could move like that AND ITS ALL BC HE WANTS TO IMPRESS YOU 😭😭😭😭

OH PLEASE THIS IS SO DUYGSKECN

sooby who gets DRAGGED to the gym by taehyun - something about him never getting out or training properly blah blah. soobin doesn't care, he's just praying the time flies so he can leave and get back to finishing his jjk marathon. and ur so right LOL he's absolutely sprawled on the floor and being dramatic jdsnkl

"but taehyunnnn my muscles are so sore.. please let me go homeee~"

then someone pops into his eyeliner above him~ "excuse me, are you okay? i need to use the machine behind you."

RUSHES to sit up because an actual angel just hovered over him trying to get to the treadmill behind him. "o-oh! i'm so sorry! i'll get out of your way!"

and when you smile and thank him, he's convinced he's just seen the prettiest smile in existence. he shuffles across the floor to allow you access to the treadmill and just... watches you. until taehyun yells at him to join him with the weights.

"oh hey taehyun!" you'd pant, mid-run. since you're both in there all the time you became gym friends! and soobin is immediately all >:(

"hi Y/N! i see you met my friend soobin already, we're gonna head over to the weights ☺️"

soobin is just like.. challenge accepted. taehyun is STRESSED when he sees soob running over to the weights that are directly in your eye line and tries to pick one up that is WAYYYY over what he can handle. it's almost endearing the way he tries so hard, and taehyun for one is proud of all of his sudden motivation 😌

its so obvious to you how hard he's trying, and how his eyes are glued to you whenever he accomplishes something, ears flaming red. when you decide to move off the treadmill to something else, you need some help so you ask taehyun to spot you as he usually does and- "oh i can help you Y/N!"

"soobin you've never even done that how the hell are you gonna help her?"

he's so embarrassed 😭 but it's okay because you thank him anyway and smile apologetically before letting taehyun help you. you watch him do all sorts of exercises with a pained expression and you can't help but laugh a little and send him encouraging comments - even when he tries to squat and loses his balance, landing flat on his butt.

when you leave, soobin is so sad - especially since taehyun wants to stay a little bit and they came together :( you politely bid them goodbye and soobin immediately starts complaining that he never told him his 'gym friend' was so beautiful hdjksl he just daydreams about you while laying on the floor tired until it's time to grab his bags and leave.

when they do though, soobin notices a little note stuck to his waterbottle~

soobin,

taehyun never said he had such a cute friend, i'm glad he dragged you along today. come back tomorrow and i could teach you how to squat without falling over this time >_<

p.s. i saw you staring at me the whole time~ text me and we can get coffee if you're interested :) xxxx - xxxx

-Y/N

he just about feels his heart beating out of his chest.. was it from you or from all the exercise? he'd have to find out :3

THIS BASICALLY TURNED INTO A DRABBLE LOL SORRY I GOT CARRIED AWAY MOON THIS IDEA IS SO CUTE I'M SO OBSESSED OOO UR BRAIN

[shinystarfishmoon]

letter to you by your heigher self

Hi everyone welcome back to my new pac💗

I initially thought of making this about your grey side but thought my reading lately were getting too much into improving yourself and grey side.. I mean what about self love?so here We are ☺️

Also I am posting this pac Just 2 days before my College stats.. so it will take a while for other pac to come 😶‍🌫️

You can choose from the above animation of Jennie left to right . Take deep breaths and choose the plie.. ✨✨

if you like this reading follow and reblog for more such reading 💗

Non of this animation are mine . I found them on printrest

Plie 1

Welcome to your reading plie no 1 🐥

Cards: queen of coins, the fool, 5 of cups, 8of wands ,king of Wands , the world ,4 of cups

Letter ��

Hi sweetheart

I am your heigher self talking to you,.. I have so much to say but will start with compliments that I want to give you ... My dear your are such a good leader, it's admirable how you are really good at not only seeing how things benefits you but also considering about how they can benefit others . Your Practical approach towards the goals you have for future is admirable. But you need to understand that working is not only way that you are gonna grow sometimes you need to be having fun and enjoying your life because we may think that is not the last time that we are going to have fun or we there will be another times that we could have fun but I think that you need to start to live in the present I love that your working for your future but honey you need need to go out and need to have fun you need to be like a fool who loves life and is adventurous don't let don't play let the curiosity of a child that you have inside your heart die. You have came so far and when you look behind you will see that you have given given up so much for the things and the goals that you have for yourself at the end of the day you are making it work out but you need to know that balance is the key for healthy life and you may sometimes feel trapped because of the the overload of the work that you are doing I know you love work and you are practical about it but you need to go out and have fun touch some grass, and not always be on the laptop working . Do not feel that you are onworthy of all the things are the blessings coming your way because you have done the work you are doing the work and you are putting the effort that it needs to manifest your dreams and they are going to come true.. you need to exercise or at least to yoga or stretch your body wake up early because the bad habits of staying up all night and and not doing exercise are not good for yourself in your health so drop that bad habits girlll . Love yourself have self-care days . 💌💗

Messages: You are always loved and supported

Thats all that I have for you plie 1💗

Welcome to plie 2😺

Cards: judgment, chalices, the express, the hanged man (in reversed) 2 of coins king of wands, strength

Letters 💌

Hello there.. you have come so far facing all the hurdles on your way and you are still afraid what are you afraid about? The thing in the past happened with you they were not something small you went through that and you still fine . What makes you think that the obstacles in future will terrify you or you are not going to make through them ? You need to love yourself to find someone who truly loves you it's not only about romantic relationships that you will be having in the future but it's also about the friendship that you are going to make , if you are not loving yourself enough you are not secure enough in yourself that will project in you manifesting people who are insecure and in you manifesting the same experience that you did in the past. You need to heal yourself and fill up your own Cup before you even start to look for love or friendship in others you need to be your friend and your lover first to find that in another people .Its not just about being loved but it's also about being able to love yourself. You need to be kind to yourself you need to say good things about yourself you need to say the things that you want to hear from your love from your friends why do you need other people to compliment you you can compliment yourself it's not crazy many people do compliment themselves and its not crazy you are not crazy!!. You are scared of changes but you still know that changes are important for you you know that changes are important for you and your still afraid of them your afraid of change is because you don't know what it brings with them you don't you are afraid of the unknown you don't have to be afraid of the changes girl it can be very beautiful why always think about the worst . focus on the good things that can happen with changes. You need to balance your life you need to find balance between being extra giving and saving it for yourself saving doesn't mean that you are being greedy doesn't mean that you are selfish no. Think about yourself before you think about others it's fine it's not selfish you this is you just balancing your life because you are a person who will think about others before you think about yourself and I really want you to think about yourself first . I want you to put yourself first and . All this will require a lot of strength and courage and I know that you have that in yourself I know you can do this I know you have that courage and strength to handle changes . Change is not always bad.

Messages

You are worthy or being loved, love yourself first, balance,change is good,

Thats all I have for you plie 2

Hello plie 3

Cards: king of swords, queen of swords,9 of cups, Queen of wands, the emperor, 4 of swords , Queen of cups

Hi There ...so much I want to say to you right now lets get to the most imp thing first.. Stop letting people walk all over you !!!! Stand up for yoursel . if people think that it is rude of you to stand up for yourself let them think that you are rude but you need to stand up for yourself and not let people that are rude that are hurting you emotionally get away with that you need to be bluntly honest and if it's hurting someone's feelings that is none of your business they should not be rude to you when you are being so kind to them speak for yourself . You have work so hard and achieved many of you goals and you should be celebrating do not let people who are not kind to you ruin your celebrations because you have works so hard for all that you have achieved do not let them walk all over you because you deserve to be appreciated and you deserve to be successful. Successful Peoples speak up for themselves stand for themselves and do not take anybody is crap . You are really creative person who has lot of ideas and lot of things that they want to do in their life but for you to even start something you need to stand up for yourself you need to speak for yourself because without that you cannot even interact with people. In future you are going to be at many leadership roles and that's why you need this quality to make your life easier it's always nights to be a little bit rude when you are bluntly honest then to lie and be nice. We get aware of the things and the people around p around you because not all people are nice summer bluntly manipulative and not nice rude you need to have the ability to see through people's intention. And the last thing that I want to tell you is that you are doing so much and its working for you attend of they everything will be worth it but you also need to rest yourself heel yourself and do some kinds of like activities that help you dress or therapy to you it can be anything just get back into your hobbies rest for a while rest is very important. ✨💌

Messages:

Speak up.! Be honest

That's all that I have for you plie 3 💗

Thank you so much for reading 🐥🐥

[bluestjayy]

fic authors self rec! when you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. spread the self-love~<333333

I'm not going to tell you how long this sat in my inbox because I completely missed its existence - but I have seen it now!

And you know what, I have had a really hard time loving my own creations lately, so maybe it's time I exercise some hecking self love through the medium of some self-promo.

So here's my favourite five fics I've written (in no particular order):

won't be pretty, won't be sweet

Rating: Explicit

Chapters: 10/14

Word Count: 62,910

Summary:

"Oh. I'm sorry," Hands clasped before him, Fruit bows his head. Because that's what you’re supposed to do for an older Omega. You show respect. It scrapes against Pete’s nerves like sandpaper though, and he almost reaches out to pull Fruit back to standing and insist he never do that again, but he pops back up all on his own. "I thought you were– I've never smelt any Omega like–" Fruit's stuttering halts abruptly, and he bows again. "Forgive me, Kaan."

The boy hurries into the bathroom, cheeks bright pink, and Pete redirects his gaze to the wall opposite. He focuses on doing his job. On protecting. On searching for danger.

He does not think about how Fruit had mistaken him for an Alpha. Because Omegas don't smell like how Pete smells.

He does not think about the title that haunts him through his every waking moment. Kaan Pete.

I obviously had to put Kaan Pete on here. This is one of a few fics that I have been working on for well over a year. It initially started as a small idea, an older omega 'past their prime' and a young cocky alpha that wants them anyway and then it exploded into a whole AU. I love this fic for a lot of reasons, but mostly because I got to put my own spin on a lot of aspects of Omegaverse tropes and build a bit of evolutionary lore around why things are the way they are. Also, for anyone who doesn't already know, this fic is part of a much wider verse that covers multiple pairings from KinnPorsche, so even when this fic ends, I will still be writing for it!

take a hit and close your eyes (I know what you fantasize about)

Rating: Explicit

Chapters: 2/3

Word Count: 18,690

Summary:

The box means nothing.

And yet, it means everything. Representing the last remaining obstacle between Kim and his deepest desires. Dramatic or not, it’s the only way to frame it in Kim’s mind. A means to an end. A tool. A key that fits the lock currently strapped around Kim’s insides. Kim has been waiting so long for the right moment to take this step, because as much as he doesn’t buy into society’s twisted view on how one should measure the milestones in their life, this feels like something he will never be able to come back from. Things will not be the same once he goes through with this.

A stupid little box containing the makings of Kim's future. All that power in something so small.

Another long fic I continue to be obsessed with. This one was a gift as part of a winter exchange I ran in a discord server and the prompt involved the idea of the sex pollen trope and of course because I'm me, I immediately turned this into a character study. This is one of my favourite fics because of how I get to pick apart Kim and his issues with vulnerability, intimacy, and how he approaches those things with Chay. He's a person who wants so deeply to show every layer of his psyche to Porchay but doesn't know how to do that, so of course he goes to the most insane solution - aphrodisiacs! This fic I feel is a really nice balance of silly, angst, and smutty, but I'll let you judge that!

I've lost control and I don't want it back

Rating: Mature

Chapters: 1/1

Word Count: 13,938

Summary:

Pete and what he needs is at the bottom of the priority list. Vegas will always be at the top, and by proxy, Vegas’s little brother will come immediately afterwards. So Pete doesn’t voice how anxious it makes him to be banished to the sofa on the other side of the room where he can still see Vegas but his view of the window isn’t as clear and he’s a little too far away from the only exit. He doesn’t intervene when Macau climbs all over Vegas even if he can see how the man goes pale and winces, how his muscles tense like he might try to squirm away.

Pete doesn’t protest when he’s regularly and unsubtly shooed from the room so the brothers can spend time together alone.

He doesn’t say a damn thing even if he wants to. Even if he’s realising that he’s not entirely sure who he is anymore when he’s not in Vegas’s direct eyeline.

Another VegasPete fic! This one might be one of my favourite VP works I have ever worked on. I am a sucker for exploring the post cannon relationship between Vegas and Pete, and how they get from A to B. There's still so much for them to come to terms with about themselves and each other and it's such a crunchy topic to get into. So that's what this fic was, a whole 14k words of Pete figuring out who Vegas is, and who he himself even is and how that's something Vegas can love. Just a lot of angst and a hopeful ending for them both!

even diamonds here don't shine

Rating: Mature

Chapters: 1/1

Word Count: 7,759

Summary:

Chay is about to ask someone what’s going on when two policemen step through the door. Min suddenly reappears, rushing right to them and talking hurriedly and… and she’s pointing right at Chay. “Officers,” Chay bows his head in polite greeting, but doesn’t let his eyes leave the pair of them. He tries to stand tall, the way Big has been teaching him to do, to not look intimidated. But he knows his fingers are twisting together in front of him as he asks, “Is there something wrong?” The men look at each other. The one on the left, slightly taller, and who’s chest reads Port, frowns down at Chay sternly. “We’ve been made aware you’re in possession of a credit card that isn’t yours.”

This one (according to stats) is my most popular fic on my whole page, and I am so glad people love whumped characters as much as I do. I love this fic so much. I love hurting characters and then making them better after and that was the whole point of this fic. I also got to explore a little bit of a darker side of Kim, in the sense that, I think Kim can be an inherently violent and dark person, just because of the environment he was raised in, but I don't think he likes or wants to be that person. And Chay doesn't want him to be that either. So it's really fascinating to play with Kim who defaults to that mindset when his loved ones are threatened because that's who he has been taught to be, he has been taught that's the best way to keep people safe, and on the other side there's Chay enjoying being protected but hating the fact Kim has to resort to this mindset - like a cornered animal, and yeah it's just so crunchy and chewy and they're so nuanced as characters!

painting stars on our hearts

Rating: Teen

Chapters: 1/1

Word Count: 2,588

Series Link

Summary:

Historically, Raon does not do well with rules. They’re constricting, rigid, and in his experience, unnecessarily stunting. Rules are the reason he had found himself high-tailing it from the only home he’d ever known with Hachi squealing deliriously in the passenger side of his stolen ship, and a pocket full of currency he wasn’t even sure he’d be able to use where he was headed. Because rules have followed Raon wherever he has gone in life, from the moment he entered the world. “Don’t touch that!”

I may be cheating with this final one a bit. Because in actuality it's the whole series that I'm promoting.

This is my Wuju Bakery series. And it's one of the fics I'm most proudest of because it's really given me a chance to flex my imagination when it comes to lore and world building. This whole series started the day we had a couple of pictures leaked of Jeff and Barcode in their costumes filming, and shortly after my imagination went crazy. There's I believe 5 fics in this series in total already, with at least 3 more planned. I know none of what I've written will become cannon, but at this point since we don't HAVE cannon, I am calling it my version of the show!

And that's it. Sorry for the really long post, I hope you enjoy some of these fics if you haven't read them before, or if you have, enjoy them again. I'm working really hard on now just the wips on my account but also some really long form AUs that have been in progress since KP was actively airing so! Hopefully I can share all those soon!

[fistfuloftarenths]

isn't it a marvel

Pairing: Rugan x AFAB!Tav Rating: G Wordcount: 1400 Genre: Self-indulgence Summary: Tav, Rugan, and Olly after the end of the world has been averted, sitting in a tavern in Waterdeep. Tav causes minor trouble, as is her wont. AO3 link here

Faerun never stayed saved. Not for her, not for anyone. Not even Elminster. On this fine spring afternoon, however, it seemed to have slowed its hurtling towards certain destruction to a near-halt. Tav had some hours to idle away, and meant to make the most of her reprieve. 

The tavern reminded her of the Singing Lute, back in the Gate. Small, cantilevered over the water, and crawling with bards. None of them were familiar to Tav, and yet the conversations she could overhear were the same as ever - someone had a new lute, someone else had finally brought down the hammered dulcimer they’d been talking about for weeks, someone owed someone else money and didn’t have it, someone had a new hat, and - bards being bards -  there was that one table who were convinced of their own natural superiority, and were talking too loud and flinging themselves about in dramatic poses.

Tav and her companions were tucked in a corner, their backs comfortable against the sea wall. Their choice of table is habitual now, much like the way she always checks for other exits. A trellis covered with vines shelters them from the sun and lines of sight, and Rugan has a shield up, just in case. Her chair was tipped back, one booted foot on the railing to keep her balance, and she was quietly running through fingerpicking exercises on her new lute. Yesterday Gale had reinforced it with magic, while Tav paced around his room in an excess of nervous energy. Just because her wizard friend was a genius didn’t mean he understood the importance of tuning, or resonance, and Tav had had to stop herself flinching every time a spell took and sank into the marquetry. 

His calculations had been right, and Tav was delighted with the results. The instrument ought to survive the indignities of the road with aplomb. Tucked away in a pouch she also had a fingerpick ring for the first knuckle of her thumb. This was enchanted to amplify the volume of her lute, but Rugan had taken one look at it and approved of it as a way to take someone’s eye out. 

He was sitting next to her, talking to Olly over a pint of something bitter. Her Zhent looked much the same as he did when she met him. Less blood. His hair wasn’t as grey as it should be, and he’d stopped complaining about his knees a couple of winters ago. Tav had her suspicions about this, but she was reluctant to look a gift Zhent in the mouth, not when she wanted it to keep kissing her for decades yet. In her opinion the gods owed her for that whole tadpole business - still owe her, really. Turned out that getting out of the world-saving business was harder than she’d thought.

Olly looked well, crow-black pulled back in a glossy ponytail and no longer hiding behind his fringe. She wasn’t entirely sure what he did these days, and hadn’t asked, since what she doesn’t know can’t be winkled out of her with magic or torture or both. Regardless, smiles were coming easily on his face, and he was carrying at least two items that were positively seething with enchantment. Whoever he was running with now was much better for him than the Gate crew ever was. Present company excluded.

Tav seized upon a lull in the conversation. “I learned a new one,” she said to Olly, and strummed a little louder so the tune would carry over to him. Rugan, recognising it, sighed heavily. Tav ignored him. “Comes from Moonshae, or so they told me.”

“They're far from staid after a raid,

These men of Zhentil Keep.

They kill off all the women,

For they much prefer the sheep.

The men don't eat their ill-got treat.

Not one of them's a glutton.

So isn't it a marvel

That they always smell of mutton?

Olly laughed. “They used to call us sheepfuckers at home. Busted some heads about it as a boy. Or tried to.” 

“Met a man from Ashabenford who claimed goats were a better lay than sheep,” Rugan added. “Said they were friskier.” As with most of Rugan’s stories, it was impossible to tell if he was lying. It seemed plausible, and yet -

He hadn’t taken the song with that much equanimity when Tav had first learned it, so much so that Tav had taken perverse delight in whistling the melody at odd times and places and waiting until the scowl lowered itself onto his face. Things had come to a head over Tav's extended digression about whether it would be ethical for Rugan to eat mutton stew. They had been very late starting on the road the following morning. 

Unfortunately, Tav’s lapse into fond memories was interrupted. Someone from one of the closer tables had come over, and was looking uncomfortably at her. 

“Excuse me,” said the interlocutor, a young human girl in peacock velvet and a scarlet feather in her cap, “but you might want to be careful where you play that. The Black Network has eyes and blades everywhere.” 

“Do you mean to say there might be Zhentarim here? Listening to me?” Tav asked, all wide-eyed innocence and absolutely not looking anywhere near the man next to her.

“Davil Starsong’s played on that very stage,” said the girl pointing, where the hammered dulcimer was being drowned out by the table of posturing assholes. A pity, because Tav would have liked to hear it. It’s not the sort of instrument she came across often on the road.

“Hmmm,” said Tav, noncommittally, and strummed through the first few bars again.  The girl looked pleadingly at Rugan, being the oldest and presumably the wisest of their little group. 

“Shouldn’t think she’s got much to fear from the Zhents, lass,” he rumbled, and slid a hand onto Tav’s thigh. Tav relented - the girl didn’t know, and the warning was kindly meant.

“I’ll keep it in mind,” she said. “But while you’re here - who are that group over there? With the purple hat and the moustache? The loud ones?”

“Them,” said the girl, screwing up her face with disgust. “That’s Arlon. His aunt’s a guildmaster, and his uncle married up, and they’ve got a lock on half the good parties.” 

Tav nodded. There was good money to be made there, and if they liked you they’d ask for you again. Most of the time the kitchen staff would feed you leftovers, too, and damn if the rich didn’t eat well. If you could get your foot in the door. If.

“He’s not even that good,” continued the girl. “Says he likes Volo, because everyone knows them and it’s easy.”

Tav shot bolt up right anyway, outraged. “Volo’s not even a bard,” she spat, and Rugan chuckled into his beer.

“Exactly!” said the girl. “He’s a -”

“Lying hack of a wizard,” finished Tav, vengefully. She glared at Arlon. “Something should be done.” Rugan’s hand tightened on the inside of her thigh. Careful.

“Er,” the girl said, somewhat doubtfully. Her eyes flicker across to Olly, who grinned back at her. Gods, he’s grown up.

“I’m not going to burn down your local,” Tav said. “Just…dampen the noise. Promise.”

“Really?” The girl’s eyes shone.

“You can’t,” said Tav. “I can, and I’m leaving town tomorrow. Consider it a thank you for the warning.” 

“Oh. All right.”

“You should go sit down. Don’t want to be near me when it happens.” 

Tav tapped a soft rhythm onto the body of her lute, summoning water, and dropped it onto Arlon and his clique. Shrieks of outrage and surprise echoed across the bay, and then most of the bar was laughing, and laughing hard. Water’s heavier than people think, but Tav has judged it nicely; they’re drenched to the skin and will have to sadly squelch all their way home, but no one is physically injured. Gods, they look ridiculous, careful coiffeuses turned to lank rat’s tails on their necks. Even Arlon’s moustache is drooping. They barely manage to flounce as they leave.

“Nice work,” said Rugan, into her ear, in that tone, in that voice. Deliberately, Tav guesses; he knows the effect that has on her. He slid his hand further up her thigh, and Tav shot him a sideways glare. Damn him.  Damn her susceptibility to him.

Emboldened, the hammered dulcimer player launched into a frottole, and began to sing. 

[princeescaluswords]

There is a willful blindness in fandom spaces when it comes to the idea of community, that somehow if we all simply respected everyone's right to whatever interpretation other people choose to make, we would all be happy and at peace and enjoy whatever our particular fandom community is centered around.

If only it were so, but that can't happen. We can make fun of "the discourse," but the concept of 'community' -- which we tout so highly -- was built around the reality that different people have to be able to resolve their differences. Discourse, before it received the connotation as being pointless bickering, was about a community working out its differences through reasonable and respectful argument. Because there would be arguments whenever two people existed in proximity to each other; there has to be on any topic when there are multiple perspectives.

Because do you know what you get if everyone respects your interpretations of a fictional entity? You get the asshole from the 9-1-1 fandom who messaged Lou Ferrigno Jr. and wished him a fate similar to Liam Payne's. Tommy, Lou's character from 9-1-1, has been interpreted as a 'sexual predator' because he made some mild innuendo with Buck at what people (who -- strangely enough -- ship Buck with someone else) think was an inappropriate time.

There is literally nothing on the screen to justify that interpretation. It's not presented that way. It's not embraced by the writers, the actors, and the majority of the non-fandom audience. And if you point out that this 'interpretation' is extreme, insincere, and perhaps offensive to some people, you get the perennial 'live-and-let-live' arguments.

The pursuit of truth, even in terms of fictional characters, is important, not because the fictional characters can get hurt or should be regarded as somehow real, because we need the discourse, the ability to argue about what happened or didn't happen, even in fictional narratives, like we need to eat a balanced diet, get sufficient exercise, and engage in leisure activities to be fully actualized human beings. People who can't tell a legitimate interpretation from an illegitimate interpretation are susceptible to all sorts of rhetorical manipulation. Just look at the presidential election.

[taikavaras-grimoire]

Scavenger Hunt Divination Set

New witch looking for divination tools? Broke witch unsure what to do? Old witch wanting something fun to do?

Look no further! In this post I am showing you how to make divination cards through a scavenger hunt!

All you will need are scissors and glue and access to trash. Maybe a pen.

Let's start with some notes:

1. In this post I talk about making a deck, but in this same way you can also collect a trinket/bone throwing set. It's the way I collected mine, but now want to try it out on a divination deck. 2. Don't look up "inspiration" pictures on the internet, that's not what we are doing here. We are here to dig through the trash, so setting expectations is just not what we want. 3. Don't look up "what symbolizes X" or "Y symbolism", this is an exercise to get to know yourself, your gut, your own expression and connections. What someone sees as symbol of something, might not be the same for you. 4. You will not make this deck in one day, it's a scavenger hunt, things will come to you at different times. This will teach you to keep your eye out for connections. 5. The deck will change as you go on. You will start with a baseline list, but trust me, that will change as you go. You will notice that some parts just don't fit for you or that you need to add something. This deck is not set on stone, and neither are you, so let it change along with you.

----Baseline----

First things first, we need to make a list of things we want. Simple things to start growing our deck.

I will make a list of examples to get you started. In the list might be things that are quite similar to each other, this is just to give options and to show there are many ways to show something. Pick what feels relevant to you, leave out anything that is not fitting, add anything you feel like you want in your deck. Personalise. Make it yours. This is also just a base line, your list can change as you get going and get an idea of what you need. Work on it as you go.

Love (romantic/platonic/friendship) Money / Success Home Health Family / Close circle of people Mother figure / Father figure / Sibling / Supporter / Child Work School / Studying / Learning / Lessons Obstacle Path / Journey / Travel Change / Beginning / End Growth Dream / Hope / Goal Warning / Keep an eye on Hobbies / Art / Music / Magic Hidden / Missing piece Key / Lock

Connection - Detachment Balance - Unbalance Stability - Instability Strength - Weakness Open path - Closed path Clear - Unclear Towards - Away from Negativity - Positivity Calm - Chaos Reward - Punishment Give - Take Danger - Safety

Some things can be presented by a card being upside down to mean the opposite, but if you shuffle your cards too controlled (like I do) that wont work, so I have chosen to list both options, choose what route fits you.

----Card Bases----

What do we make the cards on?

You could get a playing card deck from a second-hand shop if you feel like it, or if you or someone you know have weird worthless "collection" cards laying around you could use those. Paint sample cards from hardware stores are also good material to use. But some of those options might need money, so lets dig out some trash. Cereal boxes, or anything similar, are great for this. Depending on what size you want, you can measure and cut the cardboard to size, or trace with something like your bankcard or id.

As always, be careful with the scissors.

Make more than you have on your list, that way its easy to add more when needed or change things up.

You can either write the things you have chosen on the cards, or just keep the list on you (physical or digital).

----Let the Hunt begin----

Start finding. Start looking. Newspapers, advertisements, pamphlets, old wall calendars, magazines, receipts, old notebooks, anything.

You wont find everything right away, that's the point! Newspapers and magazines change with the seasons and you might come across something just walking on the street!

When you find something, cut it to size and glue it on your card base.

And these are fully YOUR cards, so feel free to write on the card the meaning. Human memory is fickle. This is your deck. Do what suits you, do what helps you.

Trouble seeing what fits? Consider taking a postcard or something, and cut in the middle the shape of your card. This helps you frame specific areas and to see better what would fit.

Don't focus on what looks "good", focus on what makes you think about the intended meaning of the card. This is also when you might come across something that makes you think of possible card meanings that you don't have om your list - add them. You might find unintended treasures on a scavenger hunt!

There you have it. Go forth, craft freely and play around. Feel free to tag me to any creations (or message me pictures of them!) because I would just love to see what all of you come up with.

Happy hunting!

[chunkymamatam]

Do you have magic in your twst dr? What is class like? :D

I didn't think so at first but then I remembered I do witchcraft here and I was like "Hold on what if I.. Do what I do in my original reality. Will it physically manifest itself??" It did lmfao

Anyway lol Classes aren't too hard but I catch on really quickly in a learning environment. NRC is actually relatively accommodating you just gotta tell them what's going on and what you need. Obviously it might not be the same in your DR and it also varies from teacher to teacher.

We have our regular core classes that we also have a version of in this reality

English (Its called something different this is just for simplicities sake)

No magic required

Consists of refresher lessons for grammar, broadening your vocabulary, and improving sentence structure. We do a lot of reading analysis of classic texts, new age novels, and everything in between. It's a really well rounded curriculum as of right now. I really enjoy picking apart stories though.

We also have done research into the creator of these stories and were tasked at picking out where the writers personal views would really be showcased in text as well as how accurately they portrayed other view points/groups of people apart from their own vs if they had demonized/stereotyped said certain views/groups of people. There was more to it but yeah, it really was a full analysis.

For me personally this is a really easy class. They also allow you to do what you need to do if you have a disability that affects your reading and comprehension. You just have to let they know that's what you're doing/the accommodations you need (a space outside the possibly noisy environment of the class, audio books, etc). It's really a matter of communication.

Difficulty?: 2/5

Magic History/ World History

No magic required

Consists of the history of magic, where it comes from, why only some people can use it, and blot(eventually lol). Basically everything magic except actually doing it. And I quote,

"how can you properly respect the power you hold if you know nothing about it? Besides Mr. Trappola that is what your spell casting class is for"

We also learn the stories of the seven and the countries that are in Wonderland. There are obviously differences from our version of the stories. There's actually a lot of racial history involved as well but not in the way that we know it(obviously). Actually I explained to the Diasomnia and Octanivelle guys what our racism looks like and they thought that shit was so stupid. Back on track tho, It more so has to do with the different species rather than skin color.

Of course there's in fighting and discrimination but the most prevalent problems come from the fighting of different species (beast men, merfolk, humans, etc). We touch up on all of that in this class.

Again keep in mind this is probably gonna be different for your DR. For me this was another really easy class but that could be because I had to teach myself history classes all throughout my schooling and find history really interesting lmfao

Same deal with the accommodations for any disabilities

difficulty: 1/5

Physical Education/Broom riding lessons (Yes. This is a core class that you have to take in my DR)

Magic required some if not most times

Now in the beginning I had my own little thing I would do cuz we didn't know I could actually use magic. I would just walk/run a few laps around the track and field if we needed magic that day (Broom riding and spell drive). This also double as a health class. We learn the benefits of certain exercises, what a balanced diet looks like and how to maintain our health. It wasn't focused on weight so that was really nice for me personally. It focused on having a nice balance of healthy and unhealthy choices. But in a not shamy more scientific way.

Idk I liked it tho. Now when we figured out I could use magic, coach Vargas was like "Great now you have a lot of catching up to do, lets start with..." and I had to do so much work lmfao. It started with actually being able to get the damn broom off the ground and my balance. After that it was really just trying to get me passed my fear of heights and speed adjustments. There's also managing magic consumption but like its fine. Unfortunately I haven't gotten to play Spell Drive yet. One day lol

No as for accommodations, I can't sweat and Vargas was actually really cool with me having to take frequent breaks so I don't have a seizure/heat stroke.

I was like "Hey so I have seizures and I don't sweat. Overheating is a big trigger so is it cool if I just step to the side when I need to?"

And all he said was "Yeah I don't care if you do that, just please don't die on my field please" LMFAO

Difficulty: 3/5

That's all I really have the energy to type down rn just tell me if you want more explanations of my classes.

[susievanderlip]

Master the Basics of Balance with This Easy Guide for Seniors

As we age, balance and mobility often become more challenging. Whether it’s due to muscle weakness, joint stiffness, or simply the natural decline in physical function that comes with time, maintaining stability and preventing falls is a crucial part of senior health. Enhancing your equilibrium is a straightforward, but frequently disregarded, strategy to continue living existence to the maximum. Thankfully, there is a useful and simple-to-use tool made especially for elderly people who wish to restore and preserve their balance: Learn the Fundamentals of Balance with This Simple Senior Guide. This book is an invitation for seniors to take control of their physical health and well-being, not merely a guidance. It provides a range of exercises, advice, and resources that can be incorporated into everyday life to reduce the risk of falls, enhance posture, and increase strength. It is written in an easy-to-read style. This book offers a thorough answer to balance problems and more, regardless of your level of fitness experience.

Let’s take a closer look at why this book is the go-to resource for seniors who want to maintain or improve their balance.

Understanding the Importance of Balance Before diving into the specifics of the book, it’s important to understand why balance is so vital for seniors. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1 in 4 older adults experiences a fall every year, and falls are the leading cause of injury among seniors. The fear of falling can also affect one’s confidence and lead to a decline in physical activity, which only exacerbates the problem. Improving balance isn’t just about preventing falls; it’s also about ensuring that seniors can continue to engage in daily activities with confidence. Whether it’s walking around the house, picking up groceries, gardening, or going for a leisurely walk outside, having good balance means maintaining your independence and living a more vibrant life.

Why Master the Basics of Balance with This Easy Guide for Seniors? In this easy-to-follow guide, the author addresses the specific balance challenges that seniors face and offers practical, actionable advice. Unlike other fitness books that may be too advanced or not tailored for older adults, this guide is designed to meet seniors where they are. It recognizes that balance exercises need to be simple, safe, and effective for those with varying levels of mobility and physical condition.

Here’s a closer look at what makes this book unique:

Practical Balance Exercises for Every Level One of the standout features of Master the Basics of Balance is its comprehensive exercise program. The book offers a variety of exercises that range from beginner-friendly movements to slightly more advanced routines, ensuring that everyone—from those who are just starting to work on their balance to those who are already active—can benefit. Exercises are categorized by difficulty level, with clear instructions on how to perform them safely. The book includes visual aids, step-by-step breakdowns, and tips for improving each movement. Whether you're looking to practice standing on one leg, work on your posture, or increase your walking stability, this guide has you covered.

Focus on Safety Safety is paramount when it comes to balance training for seniors. Falls during exercises are a legitimate concern, which is why this book emphasizes the importance of taking the right precautions. The author provides practical advice on how to create a safe environment for exercise, such as removing obstacles from your workout area, using sturdy furniture for support, and wearing proper footwear. Additionally, the guide offers guidance on how to listen to your body, recognize your limits, and avoid pushing yourself too hard—key elements of ensuring that your balance exercises are both effective and safe.

Integrating Balance into Daily Life While exercising for balance is incredibly beneficial, it's not the only way to improve stability. Master the Basics of Balance takes a holistic approach by teaching seniors how to integrate balance-building practices into their daily lives. From how you stand up from a chair to how you walk around your home, the book highlights simple strategies for improving balance through everyday activities. The book encourages seniors to pay attention to their posture, to practice mindful movement, and to focus on their core strength throughout the day. These tips are all designed to make balance training a natural part of your life, not something that feels like a separate workout.

Targeting Core Strength The core is often referred to as the "center" of balance. Strengthening the muscles of the abdomen, lower back, and pelvis is essential for improving overall stability. This book includes exercises that target these core muscles in a safe and effective way. By strengthening your core, you can improve your posture, reduce the risk of falls, and enhance your ability to perform everyday tasks with ease. The book also breaks down the connection between core strength and balance in easy-to-understand terms, making it accessible for seniors who might be new to fitness terminology.

A Focus on Mind-Body Connection Balance is not just a physical skill; it's also a mental one. Seniors often struggle with balance because they lose some of the mind-body awareness that younger individuals may take for granted. In Master the Basics of Balance, the author emphasizes exercises that engage both the body and the mind. By practicing mindfulness while balancing, seniors can develop better body awareness and increase their overall stability. The book also incorporates breathing techniques and relaxation practices to help seniors reduce stress and improve focus—both of which play a significant role in maintaining balance. These mind-body exercises help seniors feel more connected to their movements, leading to greater confidence and stability.

Progressive Approach to Improvement One of the best things about Master the Basics of Balance is its progressive approach. The book encourages seniors to start with simple exercises and gradually build strength and stability over time. This progression allows individuals to safely challenge themselves, increasing the difficulty of the exercises as they grow stronger and more confident in their balance. This incremental approach helps prevent injury while promoting steady, sustainable improvements in both strength and balance.

Motivational and Encouraging Tone Another key feature that sets this book apart is the author’s supportive and encouraging tone. Aging can sometimes feel discouraging, especially when it comes to physical health. But Master the Basics of Balance is filled with positive reinforcement and motivating language. The book empowers seniors by focusing on what they can do, rather than what they can’t, which boosts confidence and inspires them to stay consistent with their exercises. In addition, the book provides real-life stories and testimonials from seniors who have successfully improved their balance through the exercises and techniques in the guide. These success stories are not only motivating but also show readers that it is possible to regain or maintain balance at any age.

Building a Personalized Balance Routine Every senior is different, and the author recognizes that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work when it comes to balance exercises. Master the Basics of Balance helps readers build a personalized routine that works for their specific needs and goals. The book offers guidance on how to assess your current level of balance and then tailor your exercises to fit your personal situation. This customization helps ensure that seniors are working at an appropriate intensity, which maximizes both safety and effectiveness. Whether you want to improve balance for walking, reduce the risk of falls, or simply feel more confident moving around your home, this book provides the tools to build a routine that suits your lifestyle.

How to Get the Most Out of This Book To get the most benefit from Master the Basics of Balance with This Easy Guide for Seniors, it’s important to approach the exercises with consistency and patience. Here are a few tips to help you get started: Start Slow: If you're new to balance exercises, start with the simplest movements and gradually progress as your strength and confidence grow. Make It a Habit: Try to incorporate balance exercises into your daily routine. Even just 10-15 minutes a day can make a significant difference over time. Use Support if Needed: If you need extra stability while performing exercises, don’t hesitate to use a chair, wall, or sturdy furniture for support. Focus on Posture: Pay attention to your posture throughout the day. Proper alignment can make a big difference in preventing falls. Celebrate Progress: As you notice improvements in your balance and mobility, take time to acknowledge your progress. Small victories lead to big results.

Conclusion: Take Control of Your Balance Today Learn the Fundamentals of Balance with More than just a fitness manual, this Easy Guide for Seniors provides a road map for seniors who wish to take charge of their health, avoid falls, and live more comfortably and confidently. With hands-on activities, safety advice, and a comprehensive approach, this guide provides all you need to enhance your balance and lead a more active, self-sufficient existence. This book is the ideal companion on your path to improved health, regardless of whether you're having trouble keeping your balance or simply wish to stay stable as you get older. Why wait, then? Get your book now and begin learning the fundamentals of balance; you'll be glad you did.

My book is on Amazon at www.tinyurl.com/buy-Balanceforseniors I have a page on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61561383281792 My website is www.vanderlip.com

[ivankahasbeentreatedsounfairly]

The New York Times

 The Editorial Board

American voters have made the choice to return Donald Trump to the White House, setting the nation on a precarious course that no one can fully foresee.

The founders of this country recognized the possibility that voters might someday elect an authoritarian leader and wrote safeguards into the Constitution, including powers granted to two other branches of government designed to be a check on a president who would bend and break laws to serve his own ends. And they enacted a set of rights — most crucially the First Amendment — for citizens to assemble, speak and protest against the words and actions of their leader.

Over the next four years, Americans must be cleareyed about the threat to the nation and its laws that will come from its 47th president and be prepared to exercise their rights in defense of the country and the people, laws, institutions and values that have kept it strong.

It can’t be ignored that millions of Americans voted for a candidate even some of his closest supporters acknowledge to be deeply flawed — convinced that he was more likely to change and fix what they regarded as the nation’s urgent problems: high prices, an infusion of immigrants, a porous southern border and economic policies that have flowed unequally through society. Some cast their votes out of a profound dissatisfaction with the status quo, politics or the state of American institutions more broadly.

Whatever drove this decision among these voters, however, all Americans should now be wary of an incoming Trump administration that is likely to put a top priority on amassing unchecked power and punishing its perceived enemies, both of which Mr. Trump has repeatedly vowed to do. All Americans, regardless of their party or politics, should insist that the fundamental pillars of the nation’s democracy — including constitutional checks and balances, fair-minded federal prosecutors and judges, an impartial election system and basic civil rights — be preserved against an assault that he has already begun and has said he would continue.

At this point, there can be no illusions about who Donald Trump is and how he intends to govern. He showed us in his first term and in the years after he left office that he has no respect for the law, let alone the values, norms and traditions of democracy. As he takes charge of the world’s most powerful state, he is transparently motivated only by the pursuit of power and the preservation of the cult of personality he has built around himself. These stark assessments are striking in part because they are held not just by his critics but also by those who served most closely with him.

We are a nation that has always emerged from a crucible with its ideals intact and often toughened and sharpened. The institutions of our government, hardened by nearly 250 years of disputation, turmoil, assassinations and wars, held firm when Mr. Trump assailed them four years ago. And Americans know how to counter Mr. Trump’s worst instincts — actions that were unjust, immoral or illegal — because they did so, over and over, during his first administration. Civil servants, members of Congress, members of his own party and people he appointed to high office often stood in the way of the former president’s plans, and other institutions of our society, including the free press and independent law enforcement agencies, held him accountable to the public.

Mr. Trump and his movement have all but taken over the Republican Party. Yet it is also important to remember that Mr. Trump can’t run for another term. From the day he enters the White House, he will be, in effect, a lame-duck president. The Constitution limits him to two terms. Congress has the power — and for some ambitious Republicans, perhaps the political incentive — to set a course away from Mr. Trump’s antidemocratic agenda, if it chooses to pursue it.

Governors and legislatures across the nation have spent months shoring up their state laws and Constitutions to protect civil rights and liberties, including access to reproductive and gender-affirming health care. Even states that voted overwhelmingly for Mr. Trump, including Kentucky, Ohio and Kansas, have rejected the most extreme positions on abortion. Other institutions of American civil society will play a crucial role in challenging the Trump administration in the courts, in our communities and in the protests that are sure to return.

The rest of the world, too, has no illusions about the leader who will soon again represent the United States on the world stage. The countries of the NATO alliance were shocked, during the first Trump administration, by his willingness to undermine that long and valuable partnership. But European nations, defying Mr. Trump’s predictions, not only came together with the United States in the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but also expanded their ranks right up to Russia’s border.

For the Democratic Party, rear-guard action as the political opposition will not be enough. The party must also take a hard look at why it lost the election. It took too long to recognize that President Biden was not capable of running for a second term. It took too long to recognize that large swaths of their progressive agenda were alienating voters, including some of the most loyal supporters of their party. And Democrats have struggled for three elections now to settle on a persuasive message that resonates with Americans from both parties who have lost faith in the system — which pushed skeptical voters toward the more obviously disruptive figure, even though a large majority of Americans acknowledge his serious faults. If the Democrats are to effectively oppose Mr. Trump, it must be not just through resisting his worst impulses but also by offering a vision of what they would do to improve the lives of all Americans and respond to anxieties that people have about the direction of the country and how they would change it.

The test for members of this new Congress will begin soon after they take their oath. The president-elect has promised to surround himself in his second term with enablers prepared to pledge loyalty to him, who will be willing to do whatever he commands. But a president needs the Senate to approve many of those appointments. Senators can stop the most extreme or unqualified candidates from taking cabinet positions like defense secretary and attorney general, as well as seats on the Supreme Court and the federal bench. They can act to keep clearly unfit candidates from holding any powerful position. The Senate did that in 2020, when it blocked Mr. Trump’s attempts to seat unqualified people on the board of the Federal Reserve, and the chamber should not hesitate to do so again.

Perhaps the most important responsibility lies with all of those who will serve in a second Trump administration. Those he appoints as attorney general, as secretary of defense and to other top leadership roles should expect that he may ask them to carry out illegal acts or violate their oaths to the Constitution on his behalf, as he did in his first term. We urge them to recognize that whatever pledge of loyalty he may demand, their first loyalty is to their country. Standing up to Mr. Trump is possible, and it is the duty of every American public servant when appropriate.

But the final responsibility for ensuring the continuity of America’s enduring values lies with its voters. Those who supported Mr. Trump in this election should closely observe his conduct in office to see if it matches their hopes and expectations, and if it does not, they should make their disappointment known and cast votes in the 2026 midterms and in 2028 to put the country back on course. Those who opposed him should not hesitate to raise alarms when he abuses his power, and if he attempts to use government power to retaliate against critics, the world will be watching.

Benjamin Franklin famously admonished the American people that the nation was “a republic, if you can keep it.” Mr. Trump’s election poses a grave threat to that republic, but he will not determine the long-term fate of American democracy. That outcome remains in the hands of the American people. It is the work of the next four years.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/06/opinion/trump-wins.html

[earl-of-221b]

Hi! I love your writing, so i wanted to ask you for writing advice, if its okay with you. I regularly see writers say stuff like "the story just went there" "the character took over" or things in that vein which basically mean that they let the story flow. I have never felt that. My story doesnt flow, it goes specifically where i want it to go. My characters feel what i feel, they say what i would say. Which is to say that i'm having trouble separating me and the character, but in a bad way. How should i go about fixing this issue?

Hi, hope this reply doesn't come too late! I can share my thoughts on this below, but you have your own writing style, and you know what you want best from your work!

'Going with the flow'

I understand both instances when writing. I frequently feel "the story just went there" or that even "the character took over" and write what comes flowing. This happened to me in most of my earlier pieces of writing, but less often now that I - at least compared to before - have a better grasp on the kinds of stories I want to tell, including what themes, subtext, and dialogue I want to show. I think that letting the story flow was easier for me when writing things where I didn't have a clear goal in mind, or a set ending, and that's why things are able to meander. What's really happening is that we're making it up very fast as we go, according to what we think characters will say or do.

'Directing the story'

While letting the story just flow is a great exercise and it's good to write anything to progress a story, I think I see much more value in the other way. My ongoing fics right now (Noblesse and Ruroni Kenshin) are all products of extensive planning. This is because I had a clear narrative in mind I wanted to tell, even a pace to the story where major reveals need to be unveiled before going onto the next part. My more recent chapters have a beginning, middle and end (Strangers), or try to balance multiple povs with equal weight (12 Knight). Some may find this writing style too prescriptive, but it's that prescriptiveness that lets me direct exactly where I want to go and what I want to say. Each chapter must progress either the plot (things are Happening) or character (characters must change or learn something new). Or both! Every scene break must have a point, convey something useful to the reader.

What type of work are you trying to do?

Drabbles and oneshots - shorter works - lend themselves more easily to going with the flow. I find longer chaptered works do need some level of planning and forethought in order to be well-structured. What I mean to say is that both writing styles have their merits, and it's fine to favour one or the other. You may also find you adapt writing styles according to what you are writing - an introspective character piece in someone's head - or something thick with plot.

Examples

Time when going with the flow was helpful.

When I wrote ch 1 of Pair of Strangers (I have a feeling you're on the Noblesse side of things, but let me know!) I did not have clear ending in sight. So most of chapter 1 is actually 'go with the flow,' with only a vague plot (find the missing nobles) and character goals (Franken and Rai are able to understand each other). It was only until ch 3, once I had mapped out the rest of the story, that I could begin really driving the story. So going with the flow certainly helped start things off, towards directing a long story.

Time when directing the story improved on going with the flow

In ch 12, the final scene just came flowing out of me, but the key points are entirely different from the version that was posted. In fact, all the major choices in the final scene were changed. For example, both Franken and Elena are hit by the foreman. I changed this to ensure Franken shoves Elena, thus saving her from the foreman. This is more consequential because it tells us something about Franken - he chooses to save Elena, despite what happened in earlier chapters.

In the go-with-the-flow draft, Rai frees Franken and then commands him to leave Elena and save the child. Upon review, why would Franken even hesitate to save the child over Elena? And why should Rai make this decision? This occurs right after their 'argument,' where Franken's faith in Rai is at his lowest. So I changed the choice. The choice in the final version is between the Alderman -- and the child. Now Franken has a huge stake to go and kill the Alderman -- a choice he previously would have no issue making. Fix the root of the problem, do preventative action, instead of going for the short-term, sentimental choice.

But he reacts differently, he goes to save the victim. Moreover, it's Franken that makes this choice. He isn't commanded by Rai. Rai doesn't successfully command Franken in the final scene of ch 12. This is to show the consequences of their 'argument' the scene before. They're all split second decisions - Franken makes every single one to show how things have changed.

That he, at his heart, loves and cares for fellow humans. But Rai...has lost his trust.

All of this was much weaker when I just went with what first flowed out on the page. Now the chapter reinforces the main themes and demonstrates the characters new headspace.

Happy writing

"Which is to say that i'm having trouble separating me and the character."

I hope to lighten your mind on this one, because we are all writing from our own experiences, unique points of view, likes and dislikes. All the characters you write are ultimately voiced by you, the writer. It's the great illusion that writers do - to give life to these characters, as though they are speaking themselves. But don't worry so much if it sounds like you. Why should that be a flaw? It probably sounds like you because you are behind the Wizard of Oz contraption seeing all the bits and bobs behind the scenes. When we read other people's work, we are quite happy to suspend our own disbelief. You don't have any trouble separating you and the character, the character can only be because of you.

I hope this helps you enjoy your writing and not feel afraid to experiment and write bad stuff to get to the good stuff. Happy writing.

[digitalpunitvithlani]

Best Menopause Supplements for Weight Loss

Effective Weight Management During Menopause: The Role of Supplements and Lifestyle Changes

IntroductionMenopause is a natural phase in every woman's life, but it can bring about significant changes, particularly in weight management. During this time, hormonal shifts make it more challenging to maintain or lose weight. Managing weight gain during menopause is essential for overall health and well-being, helping women stay active and confident as they transition through this phase.

Understanding Menopause and Weight GainMenopause triggers hormonal changes, particularly a drop in estrogen levels, which affects metabolism and body composition. As metabolism slows, women may notice increased fat around the abdomen and difficulty losing weight, even with healthy eating and exercise habits. Additionally, these changes can lead to muscle loss, making it harder to burn calories efficiently. Weight gain during menopause is a common struggle, but understanding the factors behind it can help women find effective solutions.

The Role of Supplements in Weight ManagementSupplements can play an important role in supporting weight loss during menopause. The right supplements can help balance hormones, boost metabolism, and improve energy levels. It’s crucial to choose supplements that are specifically designed for menopause, as they target the unique challenges women face during this stage. Supplements can provide additional support where diet and exercise alone may fall short, promoting better weight management and overall health.

Key Ingredients to Look for in Menopause Supplements

When choosing menopause supplements, it’s important to focus on ingredients that have been shown to support weight loss. Key ingredients include:

Calcium and Vitamin D: These help maintain bone health and reduce the risk of osteoporosis, which becomes a concern during menopause.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids: These healthy fats help reduce inflammation, support heart health, and can aid in weight loss by regulating metabolism.

Green Tea Extract: Known for its fat-burning properties, green tea extract boosts metabolism and helps burn calories more effectively.

Black Cohosh: This herbal extract is often used to balance hormones and reduce menopause symptoms like hot flashes, which can also impact weight.

Magnesium: Magnesium helps regulate blood sugar and insulin levels, making it easier to control cravings and manage weight.

Top Menopause Supplements Offered by Sonia Marie NutritionSonia Marie Nutrition offers a range of menopause supplements that are designed to support women during this phase of life. Each supplement is formulated with specific ingredients to help balance hormones and promote weight loss. Women who have used these supplements report feeling more energized, experiencing fewer menopause symptoms, and achieving better control over their weight.

Personalised Solutions for Individual NeedsOne size does not fit all, especially when it comes to managing weight during menopause. Sonia Marie Nutrition tailors supplement recommendations based on individual health profiles, ensuring that each woman gets the support she needs. Personalised nutrition plans take into account specific symptoms, lifestyle, and health goals, making the journey to better health more manageable and effective. Sonia offers consultations to create a customized plan for each client, addressing their unique needs.

Additional Lifestyle Tips for Weight ManagementIn addition to using menopause supplements, making lifestyle changes can greatly enhance weight management efforts. Focus on a balanced diet rich in whole foods, fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats. Regular exercise, such as strength training and cardio, can boost metabolism and support muscle retention. Stress management techniques, like mindfulness and yoga, can also help control emotional eating and reduce weight gain triggered by hormonal changes.

Booking a Consultation with Sonia Marie NutritionBooking a free 15-minute consultation with Sonia Marie Nutrition is easy. During the consultation, you’ll receive personalized advice on managing weight during menopause, tailored supplement recommendations, and guidance on making lifestyle changes. Sonia offers support to women in the USA, Canada, Australia, and beyond, making it convenient for clients around the world to access her expertise.

Frequently Asked QuestionsMany women have concerns about the safety and effectiveness of menopause supplements. Sonia Marie Nutrition provides clear guidance on how to use these supplements safely and effectively. Common questions include whether the supplements are natural, how long they take to work, and how they should be combined with diet and exercise. For any additional queries, Sonia Marie Nutrition is available to provide answers and support.

Conclusion Managing weight during menopause can be challenging, but with the right supplements and personalised support, it becomes much more achievable. Sonia Marie Nutrition offers high-quality menopause supplements and expert guidance to help women regain control over their weight and feel their best. Explore the options available and take the first step toward a healthier, balanced lifestyle. Book online consultation with Sonia Marie Nutrition today. Whether you're in the USA, Canada, or Australia, contact us directly at (818)-864-6540 to get started on your journey to better health.