#Charter Street Burying Point
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The Salem witch trials were ended by a letter from Massachusetts Governor Sir William Phips on October 12, 1692.
#Salem witch trials#ended#Governor Sir William Phips#12 October 1692#USA#The Salem Witch Trials Memorial by Maggie Smith and James Cutler#Salem#Massachusetts#New England#anniversary#US history#vacation#public art#free admission#Old Burying Point Cemetery#tombstone#landmark#original photography#summer 2018#Charter Street Burying Point
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Salem, MA Travelogue: Day 1 in The Witch City
Salem, MA Travelogue: Day 1 in The Witch City
Fall is almost upon us (although its 90 degrees in Colorado this week), and I’m reminicing on last year’s October trip to Salem.
I spent 2 days in early October in Salem, and everything I had heard about how busy and touristy Salem would be was true. But I went in knowing that there would be long lines and kitchy witchy stuff, so didn’t mind.
Getting There:
Salem and the road to get there is…
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#2021#Bewitched#Cemetery#Charter Street Cemetery#filming location#Ghost Tour#Heritage Trail#Hocus Pocus#MA#Massachusetts#Memorial#Peabody Essex Museum#Proctor&039;s Ledge Memorial#Salem#Salem Witch Trials Memorial#The Burying Point#Witch#Witch City#Witch House#Witch Trials#Witches
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🖋 I am BEGGING for verde she’s my love and my light
saur....ms verbe....
shes my baby girl. i'm going to do it in bullet points bc there is too much to try to condense into a like. talky thing. but the overview is verde is very strong kinda lame ex corpo and had a wild side when she was younger (fuckin every awful nc man and fighting people) and now just wants to stay home and chill the older she gets
send me a 🖊 and a oc and I'll introduce them and give them a backstory reveal
grew up in a very wealthy militech-oriented family, spent her time between their apartment in charter hill and jackie’s place bc their moms were besties (mama gloria was originally from heywood)
started to rly get deep into art and painting when she was 8. Her parents had her enrolled in some pretty intense courses once they saw her passion and talent. she was slated to be a comfortable artist living off considerable fortune and rubbing elbows with all the NC elite.
at the same time as that tho she’s running around with jackie getting into scraps and discovering while she has the hands for creating,,,she also has the hands for beating the shit out of anybody that comes near her.
dad is murdered when she’s like 13, mom passed when she was 19 from complications of A Chronic Illness after they were poisoned. #corpothings. Verde was mostly fine she's got a STRONG constitution. sorta. not rly after she gets the biochip out she’s fucked UP
they lost Everything after That and her and gloria were forced to move to a worn down mold infested apartment in heywood. gloria was left largely bedridden due to the Illness™️ so it came down to verde to support the two of them. Mama welles is like Let me help you where I can but Verde kinda proud so shes like no I can handle our buisiness ty., (she still sends Jackie with food a few times a week)
Which meant abandoning art and doubling down on her street fighting skills because only the latter was bringing in enough money for them to live off of.
Eventually Gloria gets tired of seeing her come home with a busted tooth, eye, etc,,,, pleads with her to take a job with Militech. Or maybe Kang Tao but she still knows people at Militech that may help Verde out a lil bit so. Off Verde goes as soon as she's eligible to work there bc her mom is getting worse and she wants them to be back in at least a clean home. Gloria passes literally the week before she gets their apartment but nobody will come collect her so Pepe and Jackie come to bury her where they can. :(
During the tail end of that she meets Val :) who tries to rob her bc corpo and then when verde is like u just stole my dinner from me shes like well...n verde is like just keep it u seem like u need it. and the rest is history after val shows up to watch her get trounced in a fight and is like wow. kinda pathetic. thats my friend now.
After that shes stuck at Militech bc. loyalty contract. at some point right before Arasaka is reopening she spots a weakness and steals a bunch of schematics and documents from Militech. Uses it to get into Arasaka and away from Militech bc better benefits and a shorter contract and they'll also protect her. + Jenkins has been trying to recruit her. Also breaks up with boyfriend Ramon after he slides deeper into unsavoury Valentino activities. :(
Begins her time at Arasaka and on her own merits and help from Jenkins secures her spot in counter-intel. Meets Landon a couple years later and he charms her. -_-
Everything goes relatively well for her after she breaks up with Landon a couple years later until Jenkins pulls that bullshit. Landon is part of that whole operation to get her and Jenkins tf out of there bc hes a bitter cunt.
Thus begins the main storyline of 77 and all that nonsense.
#after she breaks out and starts to rly shine on the fighting scene in her mid teens viktor takes notice of her. helps get her outfitted so#her career doesn't end in a year. takes her under his wing. eventually shes national champ for a year or two it gets WILD for her like.#shes a mental fighter. only returns to her artist roots after shes free from all corpo and biochip nonsense. peace and love at last 😭#hil.txt#oc: verde#ocstuff
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The Burying Point, Charter Street
Salem, Massachusetts
It may not be as beautiful or architecturally significant as Chestnut Street or Federal Street or even Washington Square. But tiny Charter Street, all of two blocks long, has enough history associated with it to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Charter Street was laid out in 1767 as a town street and ran between the town wharf on the South River at the foot of Market (now Central) Street and a cove in front of what is now Immaculate Conception Church. The portion east of Liberty Street was originally called Vine Street.
The street boasts the city’s oldest cemetery. In 1637 the town voted to set aside a point of land overlooking the South River as a burial ground. The site was probably already being used for that purpose. Historian Sidney Perley suggested that many of the settlers who succumbed in the great sicknesses of 1628 and 1629, including the wife of Gov. John Endicott, had been buried there.
In 1637 John Home was given permission to erect and operate a windmill in the Burying Point, and John Cromwell was later granted the right to graze cattle there. Eventually the riverbank on the southern end of the Burying Point filled with wharves and warehouses.
Additional land was acquired by the town in later years for cemetery expansion. The entrance was moved from Liberty Street to Charter Street when the latter came into existence in 1767.
Some of the more famous internees at the Burying Point are Richard More, a passenger on the original voyage of the Mayflower, and witch trial judges John Hathorne and Bartholomew Gedney. For some inexplicable reason Gedney’s name and that of Salem’s famous architect and woodcarver, Samuel McIntire, who was buried here in 1811, are not listed on the historic plaque at the entrance to the cemetery.
Simon Bradstreet, a Massachusetts governor who lived in Salem, is listed on that marker and his tomb is adorned with a bronze plaque in both Latin and English. Bradstreet’s family however, sold the family tomb in the early 1800s, and the governor’s remains were removed.
Another 17th century stone marks the grave of Nathaniel Mather, brother of the legendary Puritan divine and witchcraft expert Cotton Mather.
Nathaniel Hawthorne frequented the cemetery in his solitary rambles about Salem and used names he found on headstones in some of his writings. The most popular were his ancestor, John Hathorne, and Dr. Swinnerton. The Swinnerton name appears in “The House of the Seven Gables” and the author’s unfinished “Dolliver Romance.”
The cemetery itself is mentioned in Hawthorne’s “Dr. Grimshawe’s Secret,” as is the adjoining gray-shingled house at 53 Charter St. It was there in what is now called the Grimshawe House that Hawthorne met his future wife, Sophia, in 1837. The author had been invited to the Peabody home by the eldest of the three famous Peabody sisters, Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, who would later achieve fame as the mother of the American kindergarten movement.
Another caller at the house on Charter Street, the famed educator Horace Mann, would marry the third Peabody sister, Mary.
At the corner of Charter and Liberty Streets stands the Samuel Pickman house. In the early 1960s, after attending three lectures on Colonial architecture given by expert Abbott Lowell Cumins, Salem resident Elizabeth Reardon discovered this 17th century dwelling under a Victorian mansard roof.
The house may have been built as early as 1664 for Samuel Pickman, and is one of Salem’s oldest buildings. It was acquired in 1964 and partially restored by Historic Salem, Inc. When it became obvious that the building needed major structural work, Historic Salem sold the Pickman house to a private developer, who then completed the restoration. The building is now owned by the Peabody Essex Museum.
One significant piece of the street’s history is no longer extant: the original Salem Hospital complex. In 1874, Salem merchant-philanthropist John Bertram donated $25,000 and a mansion at 31 Charter St. toward the establishment of a hospital for the city. The hospital corporation was subsequently chartered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts with James Curwen as president.
Salem Hospital opened for business on Oct. 1, 1874. The new medical facility occupied the western portion of the building, and the other half was leased to a tenant. The hospital had 12 beds and a medical staff of 13 doctors headed by David Coggin.
The new hospital grew in size and scope over the next decade, adding a maternity ward, an eye clinic, and a training school for nurses. A three-story wing was built onto the rear of the original structure in 1884, and a separate, free-standing maternity ward was added three years later. Gradually the hospital complex was expanded to include eight buildings located on Charter Street, both sides of Derby Street, and on Liberty Street.
Many of those buildings were destroyed or severely damaged during the Salem Fire of 1914. Shortly after the fire, a decision was made to move the facility to a site with more open space for future expansion and less noise and traffic. Salem Hospital remained on Charter Street until 1917, when its new complex on Highland Avenue was finally completed.
#The Burying Point Charter Street#Salem Massachusetts#haunted locations#paranormal#ghost and hauntings#ghost and spirits
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It’s Just Me
Part 1 || Masterlist
Part 2 of Everything’s Gonna Be Okay
Summary- Marinette and the girls devise a plan, forgetting that those almost never work out the way they want them to.
Notes- Slight filler chapter to precede the date part! I’ve already started writing the next chapter so expect it in the next week or so :)
Word Count- 1032
AO3
Begin
Marinette wasn’t oblivious. She could see how different Adrien was acting toward her. Before, Adrien would never pay her no mind than anyone else. She nearly passed out when he had called her his ‘best friend’ and it only had only intensified from there. She didn’t know what caused it.
“Maybe he finally opened his eyes.” Alya suggested. They had gone out for juice with the girls.
“He’s always had a soft spot for you Marinette! You guys would be so cute together!” Rose gushed from Juleka’s side.
“About time something happened with you guys. I was getting tired of all this chasing, no matter how cute you guys are.” Alix said between long sips of her boba.
Juleka mumbled something barely audible about Marinette needing more confidence around him and everyone hummed in agreement.
“You guys don’t understand.” Marinette grumbled. “When he looks at me my brain turns to mush. I wish I could talk to him but I can’t even be around him.”
“I know! Exposure treatment!” Mylène exclaimed. She received a confused look from Marinette so she continued. “You know, spend more time with him so it’s not so scary. You can start off small with group things and work your way to alone time.”
“You can go on a double date with Nino and I!” Alya got the determined look in her eyes that Marinette knew all too well.
“Me and Adrien? On a date? Alya have you gone insane?” Marinette turned to her best friend who sat with a smirk that radiated trouble.
“I’ll call Nino about it tonight. All you have to do is ask Adrien out.” Marinette’s eyes bulged at this.
“Okay now you’ve really lost it! If I can’t even talk to him why would I be able to ask him out?”
The girls around the table laughed at this.
“You’ll figure it out Marinette I believe in you. We’re here to help.” Rose assumed, placing a hand on Marinette.
Marinette smiled softly at his friends before deciding.
“Fine. Let’s brainstorm then.”
——————————————
“Why can’t you just walk up to him and ask him out?” Alix asked as Alya recounted the plan back to them.
In return, she received numerous exasperated expressions.
“Okay okay, my bad.” She said, defensively putting her hands in the air.
In the end, the convoluted plan boiled down to a few main points. Adrien would be leaving fencing with Kagami, Rose and Juleka would cause a distraction to get The Gorilla to help them while Alya pulled Kagami aside to invite her to the movies (Alya always thought the girl could use more friends, sue her if she wanted something out of Marinette’s plight.) When Adrien got to his car, he would see Marinette across the street with Alix. Alix would wave him over and then claim she was running late for something.
Simple.
Still, Alix rolled her eyes as they left. “These things never work.” She mumbled.
————————
The next day everyone was in place for the plan. Adrien would be out any minute now and Marinette was already shaking slightly with nerves.
The first thing that went wrong was when Adrien walked out the door. Rather than leaving with Kagami like everyone thought he would, he walked out alone and seemingly in low spirits.
Alya went to walk up to Kagami before she noticed her to be in the same state. She made eye contact with Marinette and shrugged, confused.
Rose and Juleka had tried to get The Gorilla’s attention but he just grumbled and stayed in the car. They turned to her and mouthed ‘Sorry.’
“Looks like this isn’t going to work, Marinette. I’ll wait until a little later to say I told you so.” Alix said, rubbing her back sympathetically.
As Adrien opened the car door to get in, he saw Marinette. She swore he saw his mood brighten instantly. His eyes lit up and he said something to The Gorilla before closing the door and crossing the street.
Marinette froze and Alix whispered ‘good luck’ before walking off.
“Hey Marinette!” Adrien said excitedly. “What are you doing over here?”
“Oh I- I was uh well I mean Alix and I were waiting for Alya!” She pointed to the brunette girl across the street, who waved. “She was going to ask Kagami to hang out with us but she didn’t look like she was in a good mood.” Marinette half bluffed.
“Oh.” Adrien seemed to dampen a bit. “That’s partly my fault. We had a disagreement a little while ago.”
Marinette felt a surge of sympathy. “Hey do you want to talk about it? I’m here for you too, y’know.” She placed a hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes.
Adrien smiled at the reference she made to their previous conversation. “Thanks Marinette, but maybe another time. I told The Gorilla I’d be quick so I really have to get going. I just wanted to say hi.”
“Wait!” Marinette blurted out. “Nino Alya date? No! I mean Alya invited me and I- ugh.” Marinette buried her face in her hands.
Adrien gently peeled her hands from her face. She peeked out to look at him.
“Hey, take a breath. It’s just me.” He said softly.
Marinette dropped her hands and took a deep breath. “Double date with Alya and Nino?”
“I’d love to.”
Marinette felt her heart swell. She did it. She asked him out. And he said yes!
It was then that she realized Adrien was still holding her hands.
“I’ll see you then, Nettie.” He kissed her knuckles before dropping them and walking to her car.
Marinette stood there, dazed with a lovesick expression. He called her Nettie. Normally she didn’t like nicknames, but the way Adrien said it made her heart melt.
She rubbed her knuckles. He had kissed her hand.
Mylène ran over and wrapped her in a hug. Soon all of her friends joined in.
“That looks like it went well!”
“Nice going Marinette!”
“I knew you had it in you!”
Marinette was on cloud nine.
End notes- Here’s to a chapter 2 I didn’t think I’d write! I normally don’t do multi-chartered fics but here we go. I know I promised Ladrien but unfortunately that’ll have to wait. Depending on how long the next chapter is there will either be 3 or 4. Also I’m doing Marichat May so if you wanna see that check out my account✌️
#adrien and marinette#miraculous marinette#adrien agreste#ladybug and chat noir#marichat#miraculous adrien#miraculous ladybug#miraculous lb#mlb marinette#chat noir#adrienette#ladybug#ladynior#marinette cheng#mlb#mlb fandom#adrien x marinette#cat noir#ladrien#mlb netflix
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It’s a small world after all (Harry potter)
It's a small world after all
Not for the first time since hooking up with potter, Malfoy found himself wondering if the brunette's deep pockets and wonderful vigor under the covers really was worth some of the messed up things he was into.
because really, Draco handled the first few kinks with ease. who didn't like a good paddling now and then? and a nice big enema could be fun and do wonders for your bowels!
But then it started to get odder and odder and what should of been giant red flags were just ignored when they realllly shouldn't of been. Hence why today Draco found himself shrunk down to the size of a shrimpy 8 year old..and dressed like a 1 year old.
He was in black and green light up sneakers, with green socks and then a SHORT pair of black shorts with green trim on the waist and legs,that puffed out from padding Draco was wearing under them, and the shorts had a teddy bear with a green Mohawk on either side.
The t-shirt had the same bear on it, but the T-shirt was green with black trim on the waist, neck and sleeves and had the bear saying 'rock on all my little buddies!' as it was apparently a charter from some local baby show called teddy rocks.
His blond hair had been grown the cut and fashioned into a mushroom cut and all and all he was less the happy.
"Your a git, you know that right?" Draco asked harry as they walked from the parking lot towards the green grass of the park.
"I know I know..but a lovable git who's going to spoil you SO much..as long as your a good boy today." Harry said as now on the green, they headed for the play structures.
"oh why wouldn't I be a good boy? I'm only a 24 year old man the size of a 8 year old and dressed like a 2 year old. why would I be in a mood to cause chaos and torment?" Draco huffed and chuckled, having some veryyyy evil plans.
step one, find a group of preschooler and tell them the truth about saint nick. step two would be tel-
"Right about that. if your a total pain in the ass BRAT, We'll be coming back here tomorrow, with you normal sized and WISHING you had something as mature and cool as that outfit on." Harry said, interrupting Draco's train of thought.
'..DAMN IT!' Draco whined mentally.
"I was never really gonna do anything." Draco lied out loud and Harry just smirked.
"well I suppose it's not a lie if you behave." He said, picking out a picnic table for him to sit at and read, and before taking his book out of the diaper bag he'd brought, he took out a plastic pail and shovel and pointed over to where he wanted Draco to play first: the sandbox.
Draco rolled his eyes but his was not to argue in this case, at least till Harry whistled and got the attention of all the other parents and kids around and waved Draco back over.
before with everyone all distracted, ignoring him he hadn't worried so much about how much his diaper showed/crinkled, but now with all eyes on him..
Draco was red faced and whining as he got over to Harry.
"Now now, none of that. this is what YOU'VE been begging ME for for a month.. no take backies little man. and you almost forgot your paci." Harry said and then clipped a green and black paci to Draco's chest and then popped the nipple in Draco's mouth, kissing red faced boys burning forehead.
"Love you little guy." Harry said and then turned Draco around and with a firm pat or too on the tush sent the blond towards the sandbox.
Naturally the other parents wanted to know what was going on, why was Harry's son in diapers and all that jazz.
Making use of the fact that there were all muggles and a charm to enhance well..his charms, Harry had them buying every line of the bullshit story he was coming up with on the spot.
"So yeah, about month and a half ago I come home and there's my so called big boy who whined to be allowed to stay home without a baby sitter..and he's wearing a homemade diaper made out of towels safety pins and a prayer." Harry was saying. "Little Draco looks up at me and squeaks out 'daddy!' and then the laxatives he'd taken combined with the shock..welll yeah. "
the other parents chuckled and nodded.
"So getting him all cleaned up, we have a talk and he says he misses being treated like a little guy and wanted the full experience..which included this trip to the park..Among a few other things." Harry said.
Draco glared over at Potter and while he couldn't make out what was being said, he was positive 90 percent of it was bullshit. His own reception at the sandbox had not been as fun, with two 5 year olds that at his current size looked semi fordable, blocked his entrance.
"Sorry, ya gotta be potty trained ta get in here." Said the left boy, with dirty blond hair.
"mmmfffh mm fffmmm." Draco protested around his paci.
he knew from experience that removing it on his own was a bigggg nay nay.
"pffft, what are you trying to say diaper boy?" the other kid asked, a brown haired boy who reached and tugged the paci out of Draco's mouth.
"Phleg..I said I AM potty trained!" Draco huffed.
"Right..mister massive pampers and a dummy is potty trained. Blond said, rolling his eyes.
"I-I'm not diapered!" Draco lied. for some reason suddenly it felt super important to get into the sand box. "I-I just have a MASSIVE butt!"
the younger boys exchanged a look, but just because they were young that didn't mean they were stupid.
"Alright dummy boy, we'll give you a chance to prove your claim. drop your shorts." Brown said.
"I..What!?!" Draco yelped, wetting himself a little.
"You heard him. if your NOT a diaper wearing baby then you'll be in undies. So drop your shorts and show us!" the Blond said and then moved in. "or we could take'em ourselfs."
"N-No! wait It's ok! I don't need to play in th-" Draco yelped and turned away to waddle back to Harry when he felt the waistline on his shorts being grabbed by two sets surprisingly strong hands.One pair went to the left and one pair to the right and the poor shorts that had been struggling to maintain the bulk of Draco's diaper ripped wide open.
Now everyone on the playground could see the sesame street print diapers Draco was wearing, and watch as Big bird, cookie monster and others faded from the front.
"Bobby Micheal Landrew!" Roared a blond lady.
Ike James Jone!" Added in a brunette.
the five year olds went from looking happy and high fiving, having been about to torment the diaper baby but then heard their mothers voices.
"run?" Bobby asked.
"Run." Ike agreed and so they did, though were caught in short order.
All of this was a back round blur to Draco as with his nappy on display and the laughs and giggles coming up he could feel his bowels kicking into over drive.
'N-Not here..not now....' Draco thought, seeing people come into focus as he henched over and let out a loud fart.
"Is he going to.." Came a girls voice.
"Bwhahahaha what a loser!"
"gross big baby."
"Poor kid, "
all this and more filled Draco's head and as a large load started to fill the back of his diapers he threw back his head to bawl for daddy, but harry was already there, hugging him.
"Shhh it's ok." Harry coo'ed.
He was still waiting on Draco to finish loading his diaper., be a little more stable before he moved him for for his diaper change.
"I'm pooping my diapie." Draco whimpered and whined, hugging Harry and burying his face in Harry's shoulder.
"well I didn't think you smelled like this all the time." Harry joked and got a small chuckle out of Draco.
"your not funny." Draco said and sniffled and rubbed a eye, looking like any other upset little boy coming around, trying to keep a pouty face but flashing toothy grins instead.
"Well Humor is tricky like that. Ready for me to move you little guy?" Harry asked.
Draco bit his lip and looked over his shoulder at the massive load he'd made, the diaper was sagging big time, and gulped.
"Is it even gonna stay ON till we get back to the car?" Draco asked.
"welll good news and bad news on that front." Harry said, having already figured out what was just dawning on Draco. "Bad news, no it won't hold up till the car. Good news: it'll hold up till we get to the picnic table."
He went quiet to let that sink in and watched Draco's face. confusion played on it at first, then slowly a dawning, ..there we go he figured it out and then a even worse all face red blush took over and Draco yelled.
"YOU ARE -NOT- CHANGING ME IN PUBLIC,ON THAT TABLE! YOUR JUST NOT!" As he yelled and huff, stomping a foot Harry had to bite his touge to keep from laughing.
the other adults and kids didn't have to be that polite so the park filled with the sound of laughter again as Draco glare and huffed, stomping his feet as he screamed at everyone to stop laughing at him.
harry noticed one of Draco's shoelaces had come undone and went to yell out a warning but it was too late. tripping forward Draco showed a amazing amount of agility to turn it into a roll of sorts and ended up sitting on his squishy butt, mouth open and eye twitching.
"I-I shoulda..taken..the blow to the noggin." He whined and conked out from humiliation overload.
Draco woke up and rubbed his eyes, then slowly opened them.
"Man, Ron you would not believe the nightmare i-" Was what Draco was trying to say but as he got his eyes opened he realized he was looking up at the sky..at the park.
which meant that his horrible humiliating nightmare wasn't a nightmare, it had really happened!!!
Looking around he noticed there were a lot of the other parents semi surrounding the table though some of the older kids were there too.
'what are they..' Draco wondered then it dawned on him. 'Of course, they're making a human wall so no one can just walk by and see my junk..'
with that grim reminder Draco sat up some to look down, realizing he had his paci in his mouth.
"Hey sleep head, we're just about done. I was starting to think you were gonna waste the rest of the day in sleepy town." Harry coo'ed.
"mmmffh mmk."Was Draco's witty reply.
with Draco all cleaned up and the two boys who had made him basically mess forced to carry the dirty diaper to the furthest away trash can,It was time for Draco's next diaper.
His junk had been on display for a little longer then he was comfortable with (and that was a clock that only went at micro seconds) and as a breeze blew over the lunch table Draco's little nub twitched once..twice.. then a spurt of pee came out and Harry BARELY ducked out of the way.
"Knew I should of brought the pee guard." Harry chuckled and Draco whined and wiggled.
spotting a stuffie not that far away Draco snagged the stuffed bear and put it over his face to hide.
"Aww it's ok little guy. happens to big babies like you. at least you didn't hit anyone." Harry coo'ed and rubed Draco's tummy.
'not helping!' Draco thought though that was somewhat of a lie.
the tummy rubs felt nice.
With Draco re-diapered and it being somewhat MORE bulky then the las, He was forced to full on toddle like a 1 year old while trying to go anywhere in the park.
This meant he'd take all of 7-10 steps, slowly, arms out for balance and ended up plopping on his butt while the crowd watched and chuckled.
ALSO super not helping was the fact that harry had decided since everyone had seen Draco's diapers, why bother with the spare shorts to cover them up?
when Draco when to polity (Read: Have a fit) over this and demanded cover, Harry had held up a skirt and Draco shut up fast.
After falling on his butt for the 20th time Draco just stayed there, sitting on the grass and arms crossed while Harry and the parents laughed..and the other kids didn't exactly hold back either.
"Awww what's wrong buddy?"
"Done falling on my butt!" Draco huffed and pouted, then pointed to the sand box. "Carry me!"
this, while meant to show everyone Draco wasn't a roll over and Harry was his bitch..instead got MORE laughter as Harry signed.
"Well I suppose." he teased and lifted Draco up and carried him over.
After setting him down in the sandbox and making sure Draco was good, Harry decided to stay with him to make sure that no more bullies came over.
Draco was blushing, fuming and mad, but as he played in the sandbox he felt all of that just drifting away as he lost himself in the fun.
Making sand castles and showing them off to harry he really did feel like a little boy more then once.
Including when anther boy, a 6 year old who had a pull up sticking out of the top of his shorts asked if he could join in.
For the next few hours the pair of not quite potty trained boys took over the sandbox with Harry and the boys dad hitting it off and the only break being for juice boxes and cookies.
The only downside for Harry as Draco made a big baby buddy was while Tyler and his dad were nice, there was a whollle park he had wanted Draco to explore.
Still with Draco in a natural little mode Harry couldn't break himself to break it up and there WAS always tomorrow anyhow.
"Draco buddy, time to go." Harry called as the sky was turning orange in the evening.
Draco naturally, pretended not to hear him and kept playing with the dino's that Tyler had brought to the sandbox.
"Draco Malfoy Potter, I'm speaking to you." Harry said again.
in the sandbox Tyler was trying to get Draco's attention, apparently it going over the kids head Draco was ignoring him on purpose. Tyler's dad was watching in amusement.
"Draco unless you wanna be my little baby girl for the rest of the summer, out of that sand box now." Harry said and fought back a laugh at how Draco froze hearing that and then there was a puff of loose sand going up from a muffled fart.
"Uhhh Tyler it was nice meeting you, I think it's time for me and daddy to go home." Draco said quickly and turned to waddle out of the sand box only to plop back on his butt.
between the girth of it before, multiple wetting and the sand that had ended up in the diaper, Draco was helpless!
"D-Daddy! Help!" Draco whined.
'...that's in, I'm never letting him be big again. too damn cute.' Harry thought and came over, picking Draco up hands under his shoulders and eyes flashing.
Just like that Draco's face scrunched up and his bowels went into over drive as he was there in Harry's arms.
"A-Ah Daddy daddy I'm gonna-" Draco tried to yell out a warning but instead let out a massive loud fart that echoed and then with Tyler and his dad getting a good view, filled his diaper with massive lumps, crying out and gasping as they made their way out.
"You're gonna what?" Harry asked, laughing and pulling the smelly boy in. Draco glared and went to answer but his paci was popped back into his mouth.
"I know what your doing silly. too bad I got to bring any changes with me beyond that first one." Harry lied. "You'll just have to ride home stinky..of do you wanna stop for a happy meal on the way home?" Harry was asking now, heading for the car and bouncing Draco on his hip now.
"...Want nuggets n fries." Draco mewed.
"Good boy~"
The end
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The Biscuits
Part 15 of Days and Nights of Forever
They went to New Zealand, making new life-long friends, and unknowingly starting the next part of their forever.
Rating: NC-17
This directly connects to:
Royal Scandal: Proof of the king and queen of Corea’s utter besottedness with each other
A Royal Twin! Meet the Most Honorable Lady Seo-gyeong
With thanks and love to @collectsfallenstars and @pateetsie for cookie supplies and (a)moral support.
The morning they met Luna and Shin-jae-- well, Koo Seo-gyeong and Kang Hyeon-min--was a beautiful and still winter day.
It was August in Corea. They’d left it in high summer with scorching humidity. But here, they could see their breaths. Tae-eul thought it was too much of a flipside theme that her double lived in a country that wintered when it was Tae-eul’s summer. But she tried not to think about that.
There was already plenty to think of.
They took the scenic route from Christchurch to Wellington, three private compartments discreetly arranged on the train, and then a chartered boat to cross the Cook Strait.
The rugged coastlines of North and South Islands were blanketed in snow. The primitive beauty of those slopes and mountains took Tae-eul’s breath away.
They watched the landscape from the deck on the stern of the boat, with Gon standing behind her, his arms around her waist. He had opened his coat so that she rested against his chest with one less layer between them.
His right hand-- the one with the glove off because he had shaken hands with the captain and accepted the silver tin of Anzac biscuits the captain’s little granddaughter had made for them-- was inside her coat, stroking her left side, firm enough to feel through her cashmere and silk layers.
When his hand started to go higher and lower, she grabbed it and held it against her waist. She felt his torso shake with laughter, and he bent his head to hers and buried his cold nose behind her ear.
He laughed harder when she jumped away from him. She turned in his arms and pushed both hands against his chest. “Let’s go inside before that nose falls off.”
He mimicked her, placing both hands on her shoulder, his right hand nestling in her fur collar.
“Are you alright? How do you feel?”
She nodded, leaning her cheek against his hand. “A little scared but I’m trying not to look too far ahead or make things up that haven't happened yet. We’re just meeting two people who would most certainly be our friends, that’s all.”
He nodded back, accepting what she said, and knowing the truth she hadn’t said.
-----------------------------------------
They’d received an invitation to dine at Government House tomorrow evening, but for the most part, they were truly incognito. They hadn’t opened the house the Royal Court owned here. They were at a hotel. They drove and walked the streets of Wellington just like everyone else.
The Royal Guard were in civilian clothes scattered around them. Gon could see Jangmi stepping aside, fiddling with his phone, and putting it against his ear as a ruse for another 360 degree check around them.
Aside from that, it was easy to believe he and Tae-eul weren’t with escorts at all, just an ordinary couple strolling through the capital. It reminded him of all those times he explored the republic on his own. He glanced at Tae-eul and the slight smile on her face told him she was enjoying it, too.
Tae-eul was still smiling when she saw them in the restaurant. Her smile faltered the tiniest bit and Gon turned his head to find the cause. Koo Seo-gyeong and Kang Hyeon-min were sitting at a window booth of the restaurant where he and Tae-eul were headed to meet them.
They seemed to sense Tae-eul spotting them, because by the time Gon looked, the two were rising to their feet and bowing their heads slightly-- and then they seemed to remember the agreement that they were all meeting as civilians and they raised their heads. Seo-gyeong raised a hand and waved.
He could swear he had seen Tae-eul do that exact same awkward wave.
Tae-eul’s hand squeezed his. Then she pulled him toward the restaurant.
They exchanged polite greetings. He seated Tae-eul first, and she flapped her hands at the other two to sit down, but they waited until Gon had taken his seat. They all smiled at each other, even Kang Hyeon-min. For once, the man didn’t look like he would rather be anywhere else.
Then Gon saw the angle of their overlapping arms and guessed Seo-gyeong was holding Hyeon-min’s hand under the table. That would do it.
Koo Seo-gyeong wore her hair like Tae-eul’s, loose and unstyled. Perhaps because it was winter, so women left their hair down for added warmth, didn’t they? But that hair had the same waves. She wore a long-sleeved simple black sweater dress, and her coat draped over the back of her seat was of a camel color that brought back more memories for Gon.
She was looking at Tae-eul with fascination.
“I don’t want to assume we’re twins, Mama,” Seo-gyeong said. “I certainly don’t want to think you were alone at any point like I was. But we do look so much alike. It’s uncanny.”
Tae-eul nodded, exchanging a look with him and extending her smile for Seo-gyeong to him. They had decided they didn’t want their relationship with Seo-gyeong to stand on more deception than absolutely necessary, so here they were. “I’m quite sure my mom gave birth to me. But this is really unbelievable, yes.”
Seo-gyeong was still looking at them with fascination. “What’s unbelievable is this. I appreciate you coming all the way here. And really, you didn’t need to. I mean, you could easily command me to change my appearance, you know, Pyeha, Mama, and I would have understood. I’m a loyal subject and servant of the crown, and I want you safe.”
Gon shook his head even while his brain wanted him to nod, because yes, of course, Seo-gyeong, raised in a family instead of growing up alone and having to fend for herself, would be just like Tae-eul in her sense of duty.
“We’ll do no such thing,” he said. “We appreciate that you understand the delicacy of the situation. You could still refuse, of course.”
Gon left it at that, giving Seo-gyeong a real opening. He looked at Tae-eul, and she was already looking at him, giving him quiet approval.
The other couple had also exchanged looks. Seo-gyeong said, “Well, I’ve been convinced that this is all for my benefit. I’m gaining another sister and the protection of the Royal Court. It’s no loss for me to pretend to be your twin, Mama.”
“Maybe you could call me by my name? It’s not just pretend,” Tae-eul said. Gon added, “Not pretend. We do have the lab work to back it up. And you gain a brother, too.”
Seo-gyeong made a half-grimace, half-smile Gon also recognized. “Let me wrap my head around that, Pyeha--oppa. Omo. That’s so weird, isn’t it?”
They all laughed, except Kang Hyeon-min, who said in a flat tone, “You haven’t even called me that and this is when you say it. To the king. You’re embarrassing.”
Judging from how Seo-gyeong jerked slightly and then the way Kang Hyeon-min’s face also jerked in momentary pain, Seo-gyeong must have kicked him under the table.
“Mama-- um, Tae-eul, can you tell me more about yourself? Let’s start with your job. You must know everything about me. I’m at a disadvantage.”
Tae-eul said, “Oh no, no, we didn’t look you up like that. We only have your public record. That’s how we knew you had the same face as mine, of course. And I remember-- well-- Gon told me he remembers your name from the recommendations he signed. I worked in violent crimes in my organization, too, like you. And you know it can get dreadfully dull sometimes until you’re trying to solve a murder.”
Seo-gyeong said, “Right? You either help other teams with their cases until you have yours.”
Tae-eul nodded. “And when you do, they’re so much work.”
Seo-gyeong nodded emphatically. “Stakeouts. Chases. Not sleeping to hunt for evidence. Waiting for stuff all the time from forensics and other labs. I don’t miss it.”
Tae-eul was doing the half-grin, half-grimace Seo-gyeong had done earlier. “And don’t get me started on the paperwork. I came across the traitor’s men completely by coincidence in one of my cases and here we are. That’s it, really.”
Gon’s eyes went from one woman to the other, and he noticed Kang Hyeon-min doing the same, his expression unreadable. Gon had read about the likeness of twins’ minds-- not linked, but alike-- and while this was a completely different case because Tae-eul and Seo-gyeong weren’t twins but parallels of each other, they were certainly alike in many ways.
He could tell them apart, of course. Even in this timeline, Tae-eul’s eyes were still more forthright, more dauntless. But if the two women had more differences aside from Seo-gyeong being less reserved than Tae-eul, it would probably show up if they spent more time together, certainly not right now while they were only talking about their very similar jobs.
Seo-gyeong leaned back in her seat, smiling. “Seemed like destiny since it meant you met your husband now.”
Tae-eul met his eyes, all traces of trepidation gone now. Only amusement remained. Destiny was their best friend. They grinned at each other.
Then he saw her catch Hyeon-min’s eyes and Tae-eul’s grin didn’t quite falter like earlier, but Gon saw the way it turned into a wistful smile. She was truly happy for this Kang Hyeon-min, but she was also understandably sad about him. “I’m thankful for your part in this, Kang sunbaenim.”
“It’s nothing, Mama,” he said, gruff but still respectful.
The food they’d ordered arrived then and they ate, touching on light topics, life in New Zealand, Seo-gyeong’s mother sending packages of Corean things every two weeks, the work in Interpol, Tae-eul studying English and Seo-gyeong giving her tips and promising to send audiobooks she loved, and then just as they were all dunking Anzac biscuits into their teas and coffees, Prime Minister Koo arrived.
She had removed her thick black coat. She wore a black leather jacket, a white pullover, and light gray jeans. And on her feet were modestly-heeled boots. As far from the image of Corea’s prime minister usually was.
And like Gon had done earlier, Koo Seo-ryeong moved her eyes between Tae-eul and Seo-gyeong. Then she sighed, sat down, ordered coffee, and said, “What are you doing here?”
To Kang Hyeon-min.
“Their Majesties are here for my sister. You didn’t need to tag along. My sister’s got enough spine to sit here and have tea with her new family. You’re just cluttering up this table.”
Kang Hyeon-min slurped his coffee loud enough to be heard at the next table and then deliberately looked out the window without answering.
Gon felt Tae-eul rather urgently squeeze his arm several times. So he spoke and redirected Koo Seo-ryeong’s attention to him. “Right. Prime Minister, our people have taken care of the lab results. The Royal Public Affairs Office has also prepared the announcement. Your office will likely be asked for a statement.”
“Ye, Pyeha, my statement is also ready. What do the lab results say?”
“Some copy variations, but probability of full siblingship at 98%.”
Seo-ryeong looked at Tae-eul. “And you’re really sure your mother gave birth to you, Mama?”
“Yes, there were photos and even a video.”
“Just you?”
“Koo Seo-ryeong!” Seo-gyeong said, horrified.
“Yes, just me,” Tae-eul answered, unflappable.
Seo-ryeong turned to Seo-gyeong. “You’re still a foundling and not a lost girl then. Never mind. Now you’re practically royal.”
“I am not. Will you stop?”
Seo-ryeong smiled and sipped her tea. Apparently, she only liked poking Seo-gyeong a little, not with real malice.
But Kang Hyeon-min made a noise and malice returned to the table. Gon felt Tae-eul squeeze his arm again. Seo-ryeong put her teacup down.
“What are you snorting about?”
“Just thinking how ironic this is. You’ve always wanted to be queen but you’re not. And now your sister’s even beaten you without trying. She’s now related to the crown.”
Seo-gyeong elbowed him. “I didn’t beat her in anything of the sort, are you crazy? Unnie, ani!”
Too late. Seo-ryeong had already thrown the Anzac at Kang Hyeon-min’s head. And she grabbed another and threw it, too.
--------------------------------------------------------
Tae-eul leaned against Gon in the car, half-asleep, half immersed in memories.
Every single time she took the bigger half of the popsicle and the few times he forced her to take the smaller one.
The day he’d told her and her dad the story of his family’s bankruptcy. His father’s arrest. His mother’s gambling addiction.
Every single time he had bitten her head off when he was waiting for the results of the police exam.
The days he left and came back from military service.
Every single time he was on her side. In their squad. Against lowlifes. During fights. Or against her dad even, when it mattered and he wasn’t sucking up.
The day he’d told her he loved her and couldn’t let her go, but did so anyway, giving her what she’d asked for, and paving the way for her to keep her memories, didn’t he, because she had been inside the gates when Gon had altered their time.
She couldn’t bear to think what would have happened if she had been outside when the ripple happened.
It was all thanks to Kang Shin-jae, who was in fact Kang Hyeong-min. He was a big part of why she was happy right now, with Gon’s arm around her.
And he had bowed his head in goodbye to her as if he wasn’t. Because he didn’t know. He wasn’t the friend she’d known since she was sixteen. To him, she was the queen, and now the sister of the woman he loved.
She was the sole keeper of those memories now, of that life she’d shared with him.
Seeing Kang Shin-jae in the republic was different. That Kang Shin-jae wasn’t her Kang Shin-jae at all. He had been asleep all this time.
It was Kang Hyeon-min who had been her hyeong-nim in the republic. Kang Hyeon-min who had tearfully wondered if he was where he was supposed to be, who had asked her if he still had her welcome.
Well, he was where he was supposed to be right now. And he was happy. She took a deep breath and blinked away tears.
Gon held her hand and didn’t say anything until they were inside their suite at the hotel. And then he looked at her inquiringly as they finished shedding their winter outerwear, leaving them in their lighter coats.
“I’m fine. I’m good. You? Did it scare you when Seo-ryeong threw that biscuit? And with deadeye accuracy, too. That should teach you not to infuriate her, you know.”
He looked at her, amused, and… something else. He suddenly lifted her up and placed her on the escritoire. It creaked under her and she clung to him and half-pushed, half-pulled him as a lever to try to get off the antique desk, but he blocked her way.
His gaze locked with hers and she knew she wasn’t fooling him for a second. His eyes said he understood. “Did you see the look on her face when Kang Hyeon-min started saying those things?”
Tae-eul laughed. She loved this man. He always knew what she needed. She stroked his arm affectionately. “I thought she was going to throw her tea at him, not the biscuit. Like an angry chaebol mother.”
They laughed together. And then his eyes were going half-lidded, focused on her grin. He kissed her, a soft and gentle press that she returned. He parted from her for a second, still smiling, and then he kissed her again. This time in earnest, the kiss she’d wanted all along.
Because Seo-gyeong, Kang Hyeon-min and Seo-ryeong were on their side.
Because fate seemed to be.
And because this man continued to prove himself worthy of defying fate. In a hundred small ways that made her love him more.
So she smiled and kissed him back, her arm sliding around his neck, his sliding under her jacket, both of them pulling each other closer.
-------------------------------------------------------
When he came out of his office after getting waylaid by phone calls, Tae-Eul was already dressed for their dinner with the governor-general, already buttoned into her camel coat.
She stood by the window, and she had opened it to the crisp winter air. Gon looked at her for a long moment, taking in all the beautiful lines and curves she had from her loose hair to her heels.
Today, they had pretty much just slept in. Yesterday was a day of revelations and it had shaken them more than they’d admit. So they’d slept in, had a quiet day in their suite, and now she was ready for dinner with one of the many world leaders she was bound to meet as queen.
His footfalls made no sound on the thick carpet, so she startled a little when he put his arms around her waist from behind. Then she leaned back against him and sighed, letting her arms rest over his, their fingers interlacing.
“Are you all right?”
She nodded. “I feel like I miss her already. I wish we could spend more time together, but there’s also this fear that we shouldn’t do that. That she belongs here in New Zealand and I belong in the kingdom. Does that make sense?”
He nodded in turn.
She spoke again. “She’s different, but not really. She’s still the same Luna I met. She fetched Lee Lim for me, you know. She took care of my dad. I’m so glad she’s not sick this time.”
Gon saw her swipe at her cheek. So he said, “He’s still exactly the same though. He still looks constipated when he looks at me. And I haven’t done anything to him.”
That made her laugh.
“Your Majesties, the car’s ready.”
Just in time. She turned in his arms to walk to the door but he kept his arms around her, held her close for another second, inhaling her sweet scent, and then kissed her on the forehead. She smiled at him, kissed him on the lips, and then gently pushed him off, straightening her coat.
They walked hand in hand, and he glanced at that froth of black lace at her throat that peeked out of her camel coat. She was lovely, she was amazing, and he could feel his chest just bursting with pride for her.
He wanted to show her off to the world, but that could come later.
The dinner at Government House would be private. It was just the four of them, Dame Patsy Reddy and her husband Sir David Gascoigne. Gon had left her a message to thank her for the invitation and to request this intimate dinner because it would be among the queen’s first. Dame Patsy had returned the call and confirmed that yes, it would be just the four of them, and they wouldn’t even have press at all.
It was simply a warm welcome to the visiting royalty from the queen of New Zealand’s representative.
Gon was glad for Tae-eul’s sake when they arrived without the din of reporters. Dame Patsy and Sir David were waiting at the door to welcome them, and Tae-eul warmly greeted them, offering her hand.
Then she turned to him and he loved that shy and brilliant smile she gave him as she waited for him to translate the rest of the greetings.
“You two are so sweet,” Dame Patsy said. “I’m so glad to meet you in that newlywed look.”
This was simple enough for Tae-eul to understand, and she predictably smiled her shy, closed-mouthed smile with that cute nose scrunch. It made her look about nineteen.
Cute was still in his head and he was still smiling over how adorable she was so it completely gobsmacked him when she was helped out of her coat and he saw her dress.
It was a softly glittering cloud of black lace.
Judging by the expressions of admiration and delight from their hosts, he wasn’t the only one who noticed how beautiful it was. How beautiful she was.
“My dear, how absolutely ravishing, your frock. Look, your husband is speechless.”
Gon heard that but it was another second before it registered. Then he shook himself inwardly and smiled at the GG, offering her his arm, while Sir David escorted Tae-eul.
“You didn’t tell her what I said, Your Majesty?” Dame Patsy asked, giggling now. “Did you hear me at all?”
“Of course I did, Your Excellency.” He turned to Tae-eul. “Dame Patsy said--”
He was about to embellish what the GG had said, just to make her blush, to make her cute again so he could function at this dinner. But his words died in his throat when Tae-eul said in nearly perfect English, “I heard what she said. I was waiting for you to speak. Good for you. You’re too smooth sometimes, is that the word?” Turning to Dame Patsy who was already chuckling, Tae-eul added, “Thank you so much.”
The evening was just a haze to Gon. He took care of Tae-eul, of course, translating when needed, answering her questions, but he had no idea how well he did.
He was used to women wearing the most beautiful dresses. But this was Tae-eul, and he wondered if he’d ever get used to her stunning him with her beauty. The dress was modest, the neckline at the base of her throat, the sleeves to her wrists, the hemline at her knees, but all that lace-- and how well she spoke in a language she’d just begun learning-- short-circuited his brain.
He thought about unsolved math problems throughout the dinner. And if their hosts noticed he was distracted, they were only amused. At least he’d entertained them for the evening, hadn’t he.
Sir David was going to show him something or other in his study, but Dame Patsy vetoed that. “We shouldn’t keep you. Thank you so much for your generosity in spending the evening with two old people, Your Majesties.”
They said goodbyes, Tae-eul inviting them to Corea for the festivals. He couldn’t remember which. He took her coat from the butler and helped her into it himself.
She caught his eyes over her shoulder and blushed then. Oh now, she’d blush?
He wondered if Yeong had seen the dress during the security scans and that was why Yeong had ordered the Royce Phantom as their car for this evening.
Ahh, Yeong.
He bundled Tae-eul into her seat and then took a deep breath of the frigid winter evening. The ride to the hotel was around ten minutes. That was nothing. Only ten minutes.
He got in the car. Tae-eul was looking at him strangely. “What were you doing standing outside for a minute?”
He focused his eyes on her forehead, on the delicate wings of her eyebrows. He just smiled at her as he put on his seatbelt. Then he looked out his window.
He felt her reach for his hand, resting their arms on the car’s infuriatingly huge center console. He took a deep breath. And regretted it because he got a lungful of her fragrance.
He looked at his watch. Only three minutes had passed.
He turned to Tae-eul. She was looking out her window, both hands in her lap. Belatedly, he realized he had disentangled his hand from hers when he looked at his watch.
Gazing at that profile, the city lights swathing the lines and curves of her face in gold and shadow, he saw the queen she would become, had already become: poised, fierce, and brave, always brave. For him, for them, for this life they’d chosen.
“Tae-eulah.”
She turned to him. And she was so beautiful in that moment, in her simple questioning glance, that he wondered what idiot had possessed him to make him think he’d last ten minutes without touching her.
He pushed the button to turn the car’s electrochromatic privacy glass opaque.
---------------------------------------------------
Tae-eul looked from Gon to the glass and back.
“Why did you do that? Now Yeong and Jangmi will think we’re doing unspeakable things here.”
Gon laughed. “We can speak it. They can’t hear us. Come here.”
“No.”
“What do you mean, no?”
“We’re in the car!”
“I want to kiss you.”
She inhaled sharply. She was still trying to catch her breath from those words, said in that voice, when his hands were there, pulling at her seatbelt for more give, and then pulling her close, and then his lips were on hers.
He thoroughly caressed her lips with his for several breathless moments. He nibbled on her bottom lip next, teasing it with his tongue, and then went back to that drugging lips on lips friction that sent her nerves on fire, before nipping her lower lip again and drawing it into his mouth, suckling gently, tasting and stroking it with his tongue.
When he finally, finally touched his tongue to hers, she heard herself groan, and she couldn’t help the soft moan that followed when he gently delved and twirled his tongue with hers. His hand was on her ribcage, his thumb caressing the curve of her breast, the other hand cupping her cheek with his fingers in her hair.
Her arm was trapped between them on the console, so she only had one hand free, but she couldn’t do much but cling to his wrist as he moved his mouth to her cheek, then her neck and the shell of her ear, where he paused to kiss and nip, making her shudder as sparks rushed from that spot on her ear and straight to her core.
“Neo-neun wan-byuk-hae. Saranghae.”
She sighed. She was just about to reach for him with both hands so she could kiss him again when the car stopped.
Gon kissed her briskly, reached a hand to her waist to release her seatbelt, removed his, and then he was out his door and opening hers. She felt the strands of hair he’d loosened from her chignon flutter back and forth against her neck as he led them from the car to the hotel lobby and then across it to their semi-private lift.
The liftman bowed and pushed the button to their suite. Tae-eul hid her heated face against Gon’s arm. She poked his side when she felt him laugh.
In contrast to the dignified but still slightly mad rush through the lobby, they walked slowly to their door, saying good night to In-yeong and Ho-Pil standing in the hall.
Once they were inside, she kicked off her heels and removed her coat. Then she fished for a biscuit from the tin on the console. Gon stood there watching her, unmoving.
As if she couldn’t feel her blood heating her neck and cheeks almost unbearably hot, she bit into the cookie and said, “What?”
He said in English, “You are absolutely ravishing.”
She looked like she was going to imitate her earlier bravado, but it lasted only two seconds. She looked down and said, “Oh stop it. You don’t think this was too much? Chung-cha said queens only wore two fabrics in the evenings, lace or silk. Or both.”
He removed his coat, put his arm around her, and led her to the sofa, planting his lips on her temple and not letting go even as they dropped onto the cushions, hip to hip. He took the biscuit from her and finished it in one mouthful.
“You can wear whatever you want. Since when can you tease in English?”
She laughed. “I had Seung-ah’s help. We just thought up scenarios and she helped me with the words I wanted to say.”
He dropped his head on the sofa’s back. “You’ll be the death of me one day.”
“Good. Because you always, always make me feel like I’m dying.”
Maybe it was because of his kiss. Maybe because she was still tingling from that kiss. Maybe it was the way he exposed his delicious jawline and neck to her just then. She didn’t care. She hitched the skirt of her dress high on her thighs so she could do what she wanted to do, which was straddle her husband.
It was comical how fast he put his head back upright when he felt her settle on his knees. His arms went around her back, supporting her, always protective that way. She smiled and threaded her fingers through his soft hair.
She ghosted her lips over his nose, his cheek, his ear, doing what he’d done in the car and nipping him there. She felt him shiver and she loved it, almost as much as the feel of his hands traveling up her back, leaving a trail of delicious heat through her layers of silk and lace.
She felt her dress loosen when he found the hidden zip and pulled it down.
She leaned forward and relished the heavenly feel of settling against the solid warmth of his chest, and then--she didn’t know who closed the remaining distance-- they were kissing each other, tongue tips touching and teasing. He growled as he sucked her tongue into his mouth and she shuddered as that sucking and that growl set off sensation everywhere.
If she thought a previous kiss was good, he always, always made it better.
She had straddled his lap to initiate things, but now she was happy to be kissed senseless, just clinging to him as he kissed her like it was their first time, parting from her lips and then going back in at a slightly different angle, again and again, until she’d had enough of it and she placed both hands against his neck so she could kiss him properly.
He tasted-- they both tasted--like the butter and coconut in the Anzac biscuits they kept eating here. It was delicious. But then it was always delicious between them. He smiled against her lips, letting her take control.
And then he was moving his hands, gently but insistently pulling her dress over her shoulder and down her arms. It got stuck at her elbows, and they laughed a bit while she showed him the hidden zippers at her wrists.
They both stood so she could shimmy out of her dress and he got rid of his suit jacket and trousers. And then she pushed him back down on the sofa and followed him there, her knees back on either side of him. She was in her silk slip, and he hitched it higher up her hips and pulled her closer against him.
Her breath caught when her core connected with his arousal, only his and her underwear between them. He gave a soft thrust and she returned it, settling and rubbing against him and giving a soft, drawn out sigh of pleasure.
Her fingers shook as she unknotted his bowtie and discarded it behind the sofa.
“Ahh, Tae-eulah.” He growled this against her neck as he grabbed her hips and rocked her against him. She gasped and nearly tore one of his shirt buttons off. She finished them and he shrugged off his shirt and then pulled her slip over her head in one smooth movement.
One would think they’d been apart for weeks instead of a few hours, the way they both relished being skin to skin. She shivered at the sensation of his chest against hers and smiled at how he looked at her with dark eyes, his lips kiss-swollen, and his chest rising and falling, breathing hard.
And then he was bowing his head to sip at her lips, and then making her writhe and moan with open-mouthed, nibbling kisses on her neck. He pushed her back a little in his arms and she clung to his neck and gasped as he leaned forward and took first one nipple in his mouth and then the other, suckling tenderly for long, long moments.
Electric pleasure was both shooting down to her core and ricocheting outward from there because he was also gently rocking against her.
His arms were the only thing keeping her anchored, serving as her back rest with her leaning back on his lap, and this was a tiny, nebulous thought that nonetheless added to the thrill and pleasure running through her.
She pulled him up for a kiss and he pulled her back upright against him. She said something incoherent, her fingers pushing down his boxers and gently pulling him out. He groaned against her mouth.
“Gon--”
She didn’t know what she wanted-- she was a little desperate at that point. But he understood. He reached between them and used his thumb to push her panties aside. And yes, yes, that was it, and she almost sobbed with relief when he pushed inside her.
He buried himself to the hilt and she crumpled against him, only staying upright because her arms were around his shoulders. She gasped when he lifted her up--the drag and heat of it making her boneless-- and slammed her back down.
Somehow, some way, her knees functioned again and she whimpered against Gon’s neck when she used her knees to lever herself up and discovered an angle that hit a particularly delicious spot every time she came down.
Gon was cradling her with arms loose around her waist, letting her move as she pleased, whispering and groaning praise against her ear. Until he reached a point where he stopped praising.
“Go faster now, Tae-eul.”
She leaned back, “Oh?” She rolled her hips and they both groaned.
“If you won’t do it, I will.”
She laughed at the slightly disheveled and unhinged look in his face.
In the middle of that laugh, he rammed her hips up into hers, making her gasp. And just like that, her knees almost turned to water again because she was close.
Gon kept at it and she clung to his neck and met his thrusts.
“Gon, harder.”
At her whispered command, he growled and reversed their positions, gently but efficiently placing her on her back and ramming into her, one of his arms sliding away from her waist to brace his elbow on one side of her head. The other held her close as he continued with his relentless pace, and she could only hang on, her legs cradling his hips, ankles locking behind him.
He kept their eyes locked as he made love to her, except when he lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers, and when she closed her eyes when the pleasure became blinding and unbearable and she cried out softly as her orgasm rolled through her.
It was intense. Waves upon waves of white hot pleasure, her neck straining and the top of her head pressing onto the sofa, her mouth open in a soundless scream.
“God, Tae-eul,” Gon groaned against her, and he was thrusting erratically with his own climax. She hugged him and cradled his head with her hands, whispering, “Saranghae,” as they stayed joined even as they both finished.
She sighed and kissed his hair. He turned his head and kissed her cheek, and then they were both laughing softly, fondly.
“What was that you said?”
“I don’t remember.”
“Something about making you feel like dying?”
“Shut up.”
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This is for everyone who are still reading and still can’t move on from TKEM. Drop me a line. :)
You can look up Elie Saab cocktail dresses for the inspiration for Tae-eul’s dress.
You can also look up the Rolls-Royce Phantom to see what the car is like. What, I like cars, and they serve fictional purposes.
The continuation of the Corean Awards Night coming up next.
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My Favorite Place to Visit in the U.S.
I’m feeling nostalgic for this place (I had a trip planned for two weeks ago that obviously needed to be cancelled) and wanted to share my thoughts and some photos. This is my favorite place ever to visit, and I do it at least once every year. The place I’m talking about is Salem, Massachusetts. There are too many reasons to even name why this place is so amazing, but I’m going to try my best in this post. 1. It may be a huge tourist spot, but the history of this city is something truly incredible and definitely something to be explored. There are so many museums, walking tours, historical buildings and landmarks to be found everywhere you look. You have the Witch House, the House of Seven Gables, Ropes Mansion, the Hawthorne Hotel (my favorite place to stay) and so much more! I love heading over to Gallows Hill and feeling the hair on the back of my neck stand up. The Old Burying Point Cemetery on Charter Street is a must see. No matter what you choose to visit, you won’t be disappointed. 2. The shopping. Two words: Essex Street. This quaint cobblestone Street is lined with restaurants and shops. Get tarot cards read, buy some crystals or sage, beautiful jewelry or your Witch City sweatshirts and T shirts. There’s so much to see and shop. Turn off Essex and you’ll find many other stores, one of my personal favorites being Hauswitch. It’s aesthetically pleasing, has awesome, unique products, and is the store of your queer feminist dreams. I know it is mine. 3. The food. Everyone’s gotta eat on weekend trip or a vacation, right? Salem has so many wonderful restaurants, there’s definitely something for everyone. You can go to historic Turner’s for excellent seafood, or BeerWorks for good beer and all-American food, but my personal faves are Howling Wolf Taqueria and Longboard’s. Howling Wolf has THE BIGGEST, most delicious burritos I’ve ever had in my LIFE. I like the Good Wolf burrito. Their drinks are amazing as well. Longboard’s has bar food and good drinks, but whenever I go I MUST get their tater tots with chives and bistro sauce. They’re just so amazing, I dream about eating them. 4. You can walk everywhere. It’s great. With so much to see, you can walk down to Pickering Wharf and the water, or stroll down the quaint streets to look at the beautiful historic homes and mansions on Chestnut Street and more. It’s just so quaint and picturesque, has that old New England charm, and it’s just really magical and bewitching, wherever you go. I just love Salem so much and I can’t even truly express it. It’s just a #vibe, my happy place, and everyone is so friendly. It feels like home. If you get the chance to visit, you definitely should.
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The Burying Point, aka Charter Street Cemetery.
Salem, Mass.
Est. 1637.
Including those laid to rest here at Richard More, the only passenger of the Mayflower with a documented gravesite, Simon Bradstreet, the last governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony, and John Hathorne, a judge in the Salem Witch Trials and ancestor of Nathaniel Hawthorne.
The oldest gravestone dates to 1673, because prior to that year, gravemarkers were wooden and have since deteriorated.
Adjacent to the cemetery is a memorial to the women and men executed in the Salem Witch Trials. These unfortunate souls were not given Christian burials. Each is represented with a stone jutting from a rock wall with their names, death, and date of execution memorialized.
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ET’s exclusive excerpt of The Tyrant’s Tomb by Rick Riordan (1/2)
Chapter 1
There is no food here
Meg ate all the Swedish fish
Please get off my hearse
I believe in returning dead bodies.
It seems like a simple courtesy, doesn’t it? A warrior dies, you should do what you can to get their body back to their people for funerary rites. Maybe I’m old-fashioned. I am over four thousand years old. But I find it rude not to properly dispose of corpses.
Achilles during the Trojan War, for instance. Total pig. He chariot-dragged the body of the Trojan champion Hector around the walls of the city for days. Finally I convinced Zeus to pressure the big bully into returning Hector’s body to his parents so he could have a decent burial. I mean, come on. Have a little respect for the people you slaughter.
Then there was Oliver Cromwell’s corpse. I wasn’t a fan of the man, but please. First, the English bury him with honors. Then they decide they hate him, so they dig him up and “execute” his body. Then his head falls off the pike where it’s been impaled for decades and gets passed around from collector to collector for almost three centuries like a disgusting souvenir snow globe. Finally, in 1960, I whispered in the ears of some influential people, Enough, already. I am the god Apollo, and I order you to bury that thing. You’re grossing me out.
When it came to Jason Grace, my fallen friend and half bropppther, I wasn’t going to leave anything to chance. I would personally escort his coffin to Camp Jupiter and see him off with full honors.
That turned out to be a good call. What with the ghouls attacking us and everything.
Sunset turned San Francisco Bay into a cauldron of molten copper as our private plane landed at Oakland Airport. I say our private plane. The chartered trip was actually a parting gift from our friend Piper McLean and her movie star father. (Everyone should have at least one friend with a movie star parent.)
Waiting for us beside the runway was another surprise the McLeans must have arranged: a gleaming black hearse. Meg McCaffrey and I stretched our legs on the tarmac while the ground crew somberly removed Jason’s coffin from the Cessna’s storage bay. The polished mahogany box seemed to glow in the evening light. Its brass fixtures glinted red. I hated how beautiful it was. Death shouldn’t be beautiful.
The crew loaded it into the hearse, then transferred our luggage to the backseat. We didn’t have much: Meg’s back- pack and mine (courtesy of Marco’s Military Madness), my bow and quiver and ukulele, and a couple of sketchbooks and a poster-board diorama we’d inherited from Jason.
I signed some paperwork, accepted the flight crew’s condolences, then shook hands with a nice undertaker who handed me the keys to the hearse and walked away.
I stared at the keys, then at Meg McCaffrey, who was chewing the head off a Swedish fish. The plane had been stocked with half a dozen tins of the squishy red candy. Not anymore. Meg had single-handedly brought the Swedish sh ecosystem to the brink of collapse.
“I’m supposed to drive?” I wondered. “Is this a rental hearse?”
Meg shrugged. During our flight, she’d insisted on sprawling on the Cessna’s sofa, so her dark pageboy haircut was flattened against the side of her head. One rhinestone-studded point of her cat-eye glasses poked through her hair like a disco shark n.
The rest of her out t was equally disreputable: floppy red high-tops, threadbare yellow leggings, and the well-loved knee-length green frock she’d gotten from Percy Jackson’s mother. By well-loved, I mean the frock had been through so many battles, washed and mended so many times, it looked less like a piece of clothing and more like a deflated hot-air balloon. Around Meg’s waist was the pièce de résistance: her multi-pocketed gardening belt, because children of Demeter never leave home without one.
“I don’t have a driver’s license,” she said, as if I needed a reminder that my life was presently being controlled by a twelve-year-old. “I call shotgun.”
“Calling shotgun” didn’t seem appropriate for a hearse. Nevertheless, Meg skipped to the passenger’s side and climbed in. I got behind the wheel. Soon we were out of the airport and cruising north on I-880 in our rented black grief-mobile.
Ah, the Bay Area . . . I’d spent some happy times here. The vast misshapen geographic bowl was jam-packed with interesting people and places. I loved the green-and-golden hills, the fog-swept coastline, the glowing lacework of bridges and the crazy zigzag of neighborhoods shouldered up against one another like subway passengers at rush hour.
Back in the 1950s, I played with Dizzy Gillespie at Bop City in the Fillmore. During the Summer of Love, I hosted an impromptu jam session in Golden Gate Park with the Grateful Dead. (Lovely bunch of guys, but did they really need those fteen-minute-long solos?) In the 1980s, I hung out in Oakland with Stan Burrell—otherwise known as MC Hammer—as he pioneered pop rap. I can’t claim credit for Stan’s music, but I did advise him on his fashion choices. Those gold lamé parachute pants? My idea. You’re welcome, fashionistas.
Most of the Bay Area brought back good memories. But as I drove, I couldn’t help glancing to the northwest—toward Marin County and the dark peak of Mount Tamalpais. We gods knew the place as Mount Othrys, seat of the Titans. Even though our ancient enemies had been cast down, their palace destroyed, I could still feel the evil pull of the place—like a magnet trying to extract the iron from my now-mortal blood.
I did my best to shake the feeling. We had other problems to deal with. Besides, we were going to Camp Jupiter—friendly territory on this side of the bay. I had Meg for backup. I was driving a hearse. What could possibly go wrong?
The Nimitz Freeway snaked through the East Bay flatlands, past warehouses and docklands, strip malls and rows of dilapidated bungalows. To our right rose downtown Oakland, its small cluster of high-rises facing off against its cooler neighbor San Francisco across the Bay as if to proclaim We are Oakland! We exist, too!
Meg reclined in her seat, propped her red high-tops up on the dashboard, and cracked open her window.
“I like this place,” she decided.
“We just got here,” I said. “What is it you like? The abandoned warehouses? That sign for Bo’s Chicken ’N’ Waffles?”
“Nature.”
“Concrete counts as nature?”
“There’s trees, too. Plants flowering. Moisture in the air. The eucalyptus smells good. It’s not like . . .”
She didn’t need to finish her sentence. Our time in Southern California had been marked by scorching temperatures, extreme drought, and raging wild res—all thanks to the magical Burning Maze controlled by Caligula and his hate-crazed sorceress bestie, Medea. The Bay Area wasn’t experiencing any of those problems. Not at the moment, anyway.
We’d killed Medea. We’d extinguished the Burning Maze. We’d freed the Erythraean Sibyl and brought relief to the mortals and withering nature spirits of Southern California.
But Caligula was still very much alive. He and his co- emperors in the Triumvirate were still intent on controlling all means of prophecy, taking over the world, and writing the future in their own sadistic image. Right now, Caligula’s fleet of evil luxury yachts was making its way toward San Francisco to attack Camp Jupiter. I could only imagine what sort of hellish destruction the emperor would rain down on Oakland and Bo’s Chicken ’N’ Waffles.
Even if we somehow managed to defeat the Triumvirate, there was still that greatest Oracle, Delphi, under the control of my old nemesis Python. How I could defeat him in my present form as a sixteen-year-old weakling, I had no idea.
But, hey. Except for that, everything was fine. The eucalyptus smelled nice.
Traf c slowed at the I-580 interchange. Apparently, California drivers didn’t follow that custom of yielding to hearses out of respect. Perhaps they gured at least one of our passengers was already dead, so we weren’t in a hurry.
Meg toyed with her window controls, raising and lower- ing the glass. Reeee. Reeee. Reeee.
“You know how to get to Camp Jupiter?” she asked.
“Of course.”
“ ’Cause you said that about Camp Half-Blood.”
“We got there! Eventually.”
“Frozen and half-dead.”
“Look, the entrance to camp is right over there.” I waved vaguely at the Oakland Hills. “There’s a secret passage in the Caldecott Tunnel or something.”
“Or something?”
“Well, I haven’t actually ever driven to Camp Jupiter,” I admitted. “Usually I descend from the heavens in my glorious sun chariot. But I know the Caldecott Tunnel is the main entrance. There’s probably a sign. Perhaps a Demigods Only lane.”
Meg peered at me over the top of her glasses. “You’re the dumbest god ever.” She raised her window with a final Reeee. SHLOOMP!—a sound that reminded me uncomfortably of a guillotine blade.
We turned west onto Highway 24. The congestion eased as the hills loomed closer. The elevated lanes soared past neighborhoods of winding streets and tall conifers, white stucco houses clinging to the sides of grassy ravines.
A road sign promised CALDECOTT TUNNEL ENTRANCE, 2 MI. That should have comforted me. Soon, we’d pass through the borders of Camp Jupiter into a heavily guarded, magically camouflaged valley where an entire Roman legion could shield me from my worries, at least for a while.
Why, then, were the hairs on the back of my neck quivering like sea worms?
Something was wrong. It dawned on me that the uneas- iness I’d felt since we landed might not be the distant threat of Caligula, or the old Titan base on Mount Tamalpais, but something more immediate . . . something malevolent, and getting closer.
I glanced in the rearview mirror. Through the back window’s gauzy curtains, I saw nothing but traffic. But then, in the polished surface of Jason’s coffin lid, I caught the reflection of movement from a dark shape outside—as if a human-size object had just own past the side of the hearse.
“Oh. Meg?” I tried to keep my voice even. “Do you see anything unusual behind us?”
“Unusual like what?”
THUMP.
The hearse lurched as if we’d been hitched to a trailer full of scrap metal. Above my head, two foot-shaped impressions appeared in the upholstered ceiling.
“Something just landed on the roof,” Meg deduced.
“Thank you, Sherlock McCaffrey! Can you get it off?”
“Me? How?”
That was an annoyingly fair question. Meg could turn the rings on her middle fingers into wicked gold swords, but if she summoned them in close quarters, like the interior of the hearse, she a) wouldn’t have room to wield them, and b) might end up impaling me and/or herself.
CREAK. CREAK. The footprint impressions deepened as the thing adjusted its weight like a surfer on a board. It must have been immensely heavy to sink into the metal roof.
A whimper bubbled in my throat. My hands trembled on the steering wheel. I yearned for my bow and quiver in the backseat, but I couldn’t have used them. DWSPW, driving while shooting projectile weapons, is a big no-no, kids.
“Maybe you can open the window,” I said to Meg. “Lean out and tell it to go away.”
“Um, no.” (Gods, she was stubborn.) “What if you try to shake it off?”
Before I could explain that this was a terrible idea while traveling fifty miles an hour on a highway, I heard a sound like a pop-top aluminum can opening—the crisp pneumatic hiss of air through metal. A claw punctured the ceiling—a grimy white talon the size of a drill bit. Then another. And another. And another, until the upholstery was studded with ten pointy white spikes—just the right number for two very large hands.
“Meg?” I yelped. “Could you—?”
I don’t know how I might have finished that sentence. Protect me? Kill that thing? Check in the back to see if I have any spare undies?
I was rudely interrupted by the creature ripping open our roof like we were a birthday present.
Staring down at me through the ragged hole was a withered, ghoulish humanoid, its blue-black hide glistening like the skin of a house y, its eyes filmy white orbs, its bared teeth dripping saliva. Around its torso uttered a loincloth of greasy black feathers. The smell coming off it was more putrid than any dumpster—and believe me, I’d fallen into a few.
“FOOD!” it howled.
“Kill it!” I yelled at Meg.
“Swerve!” she countered.
One of the many annoying things about being incarcerated in my puny mortal body: I was Meg McCaffrey’s servant. I was bound to obey her direct commands. So when she yelled “swerve,” I yanked the steering wheel hard to the right. The hearse handled beautifully. It careened across three lanes of traffic, barreled straight through the guardrail, and plummeted into the canyon below.
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Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne and Tituba were brought before local magistrates in Salem Village, March 1, 1692, beginning what would become known as the Salem witch trials.
#arrested#1 March 1692#court#anniversary#US history#Salem#Massachusetts#New England#architecture#cityscape#travel#USA#The Salem Witch Trials Memorial by Maggie Smith and James Cutler#Old Burying Point Cemetery#original photography#vacation#summer 2018#landmark#tourist attraction#Charter Street Burying Point#tree#lawn#nature#public art#Sarah Good#Sarah Osborne#Tituba
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Puerto Rico from somebody on the ground, UPDATES
I've had many people in the US ask me how they can help, and I'll be honest that I haven't had the time to sit down and properly think about it (doesn't help that I have access to information on the internet for approx 15 minutes every day), but now I'm going to throw this out there. It's going to be long.
Firstly, you need to understand the situation. Our infrastructure is destroyed. We have no power, in fact, the 4% of San Juan that managed to get electricity back lost it again. Last I read only 45% of the island had clean water services. This isn't just a lack of food and water. In case you hadn't heard, we're also approximately $72 billion in debt, and this hurricane is estimated to have cost over $30 billion in damages.
You can send all the food and bottled water you want, and by all means please continue to do so because we are short on those, but there's also a huge distribution problem. Many supermarkets have not been able to open again because of structural damage. People are making lines for hours to be able to get into the few that are operational again. Gas stations? 80% were supposed to open again by Tuesday, September 26, yet people are still making literally 8+ hour lines (this is not an exaggeration) in the HOPES that they will be allowed to get some fuel. Many banks are only dispensing cash, which is vital because the vast majority of establishments can only accept cash at the moment, and the lines for the atms also can take hours. People have 5am to 7pm to be able to do all these things in one day because of curfew. Some hospitals are running out of diesel already, meaning that their back up generators are shutting down, so all those patients are being transferred to government hospitals that were already understaffed and understocked BEFORE Maria.
To recap, in San Juan, where conditions are better, people are wholly dependent on cash to buy basic necessities, people have no power, in many cases no water, no communication with the outside world or the rest of Puerto Rico, no gasoline to get around, barely any places to get food, and entire hospitals are being evacuated. Literal boatloads of supplies are sitting in ports because the government can't distribute them, and some ships are just sitting there with their cargo.
It's much worse outside of San Juan. Entire towns have no working gas stations, no hospitals, no running water, and no operational supermarkets (on top of no power or communication). Maria destroyed the vast majority of our crops. Many of these towns were also hit the hardest by the hurricane and saw thousands of families completely lose their homes. Now back to the distribution problem: you can send tons of food and articles of basic necessity, but if the government is having a hard time distributing them in the metropolitan area, it's literally downright impossible to get them to some of these towns.
But what about the aid that has already been sent? Not enough. We need more resources, personnel, money, everything. Many of the rescue personnel and federal authorities already here came weeks ago because of Irma's devastation in other Caribbean islands and can't focus entirely on the disaster in Puerto Rico. Like I said earlier, distribution and mobilization is one of the key problems. I go around San Juan and don't see any of the people that came to help. Entire towns elsewhere in the island have not seen a single paramedic, soldier, or FEMA worker. The only places I've seen them are in the hotels they're staying at, so there's clearly a massive problem with mobilization.
American politicians? I've seen some pay lip service to the plight of Puerto Rico, but not a single package or proposal. Local officials had to beg Congress to notice what was happening. President Trump was kind enough to give $1 million of his vast fortune to efforts in Houston (notice the sarcasm), yet he hasn't offered a single penny to efforts to rebuild Puerto Rico. He thought that criticizing NFL players exercising their right of free speech was more important.
OCTOBER 6TH UPDATE
I’ve been struggling with this update for a while because it’s almost been a week since the last and, well, a lot has both happened and not happened.
So Trump’s visit. It was what we were all expecting, despite the tiny flicker of hope that he would suddenly see the light and mobilize to help us. Trump held a press conference that didn’t allow any local reporters to ask questions, just the approved group that had travelled with him, because in true facist fashion Trump wanted to control the narrative and not face any hard hitting questions. He was taken to a wealthy area, where he visited one family and then was taken to a wealthy church for some basket paper towel games. He minimized our suffering and devastation by saying this wasn’t a disaster like Katrina (nevermind that the 3 Star General in the island has already compared the situation to Katrina and says this is worse than anything he has ever seen), praised the federal response, took a picture with a bunch of sell out local politicians, and then boarded his plane one hour before schedule to take off.
Trump came almost two weeks after Maria destroyed us. He was scheduled to be here for 5 hours and spent 4. Of those four hours, he spent 17 minutes talking to local officials about what we needed and the status of the situation. 17 minutes. He also just made fun of us in a press conference by imitating the Puerto Rican accent on camera and then outright laughing, but hey, he already told the island to go fuck itself and get over ourselves ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
This piece explains how FEMA is already trying to bury updates about Puerto Rico and make people think they/Trump are doing a spectacular job
Moving on……
Things where I’m staying are getting better. My brother’s apartment has electricity again because he lives next to many hotels currently housing feds as well as the airport. The supermarket next door is open and has mostly non-perishable foods, lines to get in are about 1 to 1.5 hours. There’s also a few fast food joints open nearby. Overall, things are pretty good where I live, but at this point that means having water + electricity and access to some food. That’s what’s considered the good life right now in Puerto Rico, and it’s a luxury available to less than 10% of the island, two and a half weeks after the hurricane. Do NOT let the media fool you. Whatever pictures and videos you see of people going back to their normal lives is extremely misleading and likely taken in wealthy areas of San Juan. We’re still going through a humanitarian crisis, and millions are still in dire circumstances that have not changed since the hurricane hit.
The federal response continues to be underwhelming. They’ve been air dropping aid to cut off towns, but the pictures I’ve seen of this aid are often zip lock bags with one pack of cookies, one can of sausages, one Mots and a granola bar. These are the so called “care packages.”
I was watching a local news show and they interviewed the woman in charge of the reserves in the island (90% of which are Puerto Ricans that were already here btw). She outright admitted that the federal response has been slow and they’re not satisfied with what they’ve been doing, but that they’re working to do better. The show was Jay Fonseca’s October 5th 10pm program, in case anybody wants to hunt down the clip. I believe her, but I don’t have much faith in her superiors acting quickly.
Statistics time:
- That death toll of 16 people is utter garbage. The same day that Trump went on about our measly 16 people death toll, the official number was updated to 34. A few days after we finally got information from towns in the western side of the island and they reported at least 200 deaths just in that zone. Many hospitals are still processing their numbers, and people continue to bury loved ones in backyards.
- About 90% of the island is still without power, those with electricity are for the most part in the wealthier pockets of the metropolitan area. Even those areas still suffer from power outages that can last up to days at a time.
- About half the island still without water.
- Most of the hospitals are running, but many depend on generators that run on diesel and we still have a diesel crisis. Some are barely functional, as in doctors are performing surgeries with iPhone flashlights.
- The big international airport is running 24 hours now and there’s less hysteria, but people are being told to get there four hours early and many still get their flights cancelled at the last minute. Some airlines are capping their prices at low prices under $100, but I don’t think that’s going to last for much longer. Cruise ships have started charging again to get people out.
- As of October 3rd FEMA had yet to authorize full disaster help, which Texas got 10 days after Harvey
Fundraisers to donate to:
ComPRometidos - In my opinion the best big fundraiser to donate to, they’re doing a lot of work to also rebuild infrastructure and help long term recovery
Jane Stern Dorado Community - Helps a local library in Dorado that is also acting as a relief center, this fund is run by a friend of mine I trust immensely.
CMU Student’s Humanitarian Mission - Also run by somebody I know and trust, she’s using connections to charter a private jet that takes supplies to the island and brings back elderly/people in need of hospital care to the states.
General Reminders:
- Please, PLEASE call your Congresspeople, ask for the Jones Act to be removed, ask for debt relief so that we don’t have to prioritize paying back Wall Street, FOR GOD’S SAKE SEND MORE HELP TO REBUILD OUR INFRASTRUCTURE ASAP
- Petition to remove Jones Act
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Samuel Pickman House
Salem, Massachusetts
Samuel Pickman House is on the corner of Charter and Liberty Street, directly next to the Witch Memorial and the Old Burying Point Cemetery. The Pickman House was built in 1664 and is one of Salem’s earliest original structures. Owned by the Peabody Essex Museum, it too contains a dark, fatal history according to legend. One story tells of a husband and wife who lived in this house with their 7 year old daughter. The demons were believed to have caused the husband to go insane, chaining his daughter up in the attic, torturing and starving the child. He then tied his wife to a tree outside and killed her by pouring boiling hot wax over her body, leaving her to die a slow painful death. He then fled.
People take photos of the house claiming it is still inhibited by a demonic force and the ghost of the young girl who is sometimes seen looking out the attic window. Paranormal anomalies are the result of photographs showing what looks to be the girl looking out the window while people look in. Orbs and other odd lights are captured on film.
#Samuel Pickman House#ghost and hauntings#paranormal#ghost and spirits#ghost photo#haunted locations#myhauntedsalem#haunted salem#salem massachusetts
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Old burial point in Salem. Established in 1637, the Old Burying Point Cemetery, also known as the Charter Street Cemetery, is the oldest cemetery in Salem, Massachusetts. It is one of eight historic cemeteries in Salem and is a stop on the Salem Heritage Trail. The cemetery contains 700 headstones and 17 box tombs dating back to the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Most of the headstones are made out of slate but some are also made out of sandstone, schist and marble. The cemetery was never paved and still has dirt paths that weave in between the various plots. Burials prior to 1673 were marked with wooden grave markers, often called Coffin Posts or Coffin Rails, which have since deteriorated and no longer exist. In 1673, the oldest existing gravestone in the cemetery, the Cromwell stone, was placed when Doraty Cromwell passed away on September 27, 1673 at the age of 67. (at Old Burial Point Salem Ma) https://www.instagram.com/p/CV1PcoLFPhY/?utm_medium=tumblr
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Saturday, August 14, 2021
Census shows US is diversifying
(AP) The U.S. became more diverse and more urban over the past decade, and the non-Hispanic white population dropped for the first time on record, the Census Bureau said Thursday as it released a trove of demographic data that will be used to redraw the nation’s political maps. The figures show continued migration to the South and West at the expense of counties in the Midwest and Northeast. The share of the non-Hispanic white population fell from 63.7% in 2010 to 57.8% in 2020, the lowest on record. White people continue to be the most prevalent racial or ethnic group, though that changed in California, where Hispanics became the largest racial or ethnic group, growing to 39.4% from 37.6% over the decade, while the share of white people dropped from 40.1% to 34.7%. “The U.S. population is much more multiracial and much more racially and ethnically diverse than what we have measured in the past,” said Nicholas Jones, a Census Bureau official. The share of children in the U.S. declined because of falling birth rates, while the share of adults grew, driven by aging baby boomers. Adults over age 18 made up more than three-quarters of the population in 2020, or 258.3 million people, an increase of more than 10% from 2010.
Migrants find themselves stranded abroad by new US policy
(AP) Shortly after crossing the border in south Texas with her 5-year-old daughter, Karla Leiva of Honduras found herself on a chartered U.S. government flight, learning midair that she was headed to the provincial capital of Villahermosa in southern Mexico. Authorities there put her on a bus to Mexico’s southern border and on Thursday she sat on the patio of a migrant shelter in a remote Guatemalan border town. Her swift expulsion through three countries was part of a highly unusual partnership between the governments of the United States and Mexico that the Biden administration hopes will deter migrants from returning to the U.S. border. The U.S. government has intermittently flown Mexicans deep into Mexico for years to discourage repeat attempts, but flights that began last week from Brownsville, Texas, to Villahermosa and Tapachula, near the Guatemalan border, appear to be the first time that Central Americans have been flown to Mexico.
Britain’s first mass shooting in more than a decade leaves 5 dead, plus suspected gunman
(Washington Post) A 22-year-old gunman who posted YouTube videos filled with despair and self-loathing is suspected of killing five people, including his mother and a 3-year-old girl, in the first mass shooting in Britain in more than a decade, police said. Thursday night’s shooting rampage in the seaside city of Plymouth, in southwest England, stunned the country, which has some of the toughest gun laws in the world. Police confirmed that the suspect, identified as Jake Davison, held a license for the gun used. There was no immediate, clear motive, police said.
Italy may have seen Europe’s hottest day ever
(NBC News) Europe may just have seen its hottest day ever. A temperature of almost 120 degrees Fahrenheit was reported in Sicily on Wednesday and, if verified, would be a record for the continent. The 48.8 degrees Celsius (119.84 Fahrenheit) temperature was recorded by Sicily’s agriculture-meteorological information service, SIAS, at the Syracuse station on the island’s southeast. The hottest verified temperature on the continent is 48 degrees Celsius, or 118.4 degrees Fahrenheit, in Greece on July 10, 1977. The high temperature reading came as a heatwave is baking parts of the Mediterranean and contributing to massive wildfires that have killed dozens of people.
Turkey combats Black Sea floods, death toll rises to 27
(Reuters) Emergency workers battled to relieve flood-hit areas of Turkey’s Black Sea region on Friday, as the death toll rose to 27 in the second natural disaster to strike the country this month. The floods, among the worst Turkey has experienced, brought chaos to northern provinces just as authorities were declaring wildfires that raged through southern coastal regions for two weeks had been brought under control. Torrents of water tossed dozens of cars and heaps of debris along streets, with bridges destroyed, roads closed and electricity cut to hundreds of villages.
Troops Rush In
(Independent UK, CNN, ABC News) U.S. troops in Afghanistan kept the Taliban at bay for two decades. It was America’s longest war. In the 1990s, the Taliban captured Kandahar, Afghanistan’s second-largest city, after claiming the country as an Islamic state. They were forced out when U.S. troops invaded in 2001. On Thursday, Taliban fighters again took back that strategic southern city. Kandahar is the birthplace of their fundamentalist Islamic movement, and the 12th provincial capital out of the country’s 34 that the militants have seized in their week-long campaign. The initial U.S. projection for when the country’s capital of Kabul might fall under Taliban control was six to twelve months. A recent military analysis said Kabul could be isolated and captured in 30 to 90 days, but that timeline appears to be accelerating. There are also credible reports that the militants are executing Afghan troops who’ve surrendered. Taliban leaders have denied the accusations, but last month CNN obtained a video showing 22 unarmed members of an Afghan Special Forces unit being executed while trying to surrender. The Taliban now controls two-thirds of the country. The rapidly deteriorating security situation prompted a decision to send 3,000 troops back in to help evacuate personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. The Pentagon said one Army and two Marine infantry battalions will enter Afghanistan within the next two days to assist at the Kabul airport with the partial evacuation. The embassy has a staff of 4,000, including 1,400 Americans. Great Britain will also send 600 troops into the country to help support British nationals as they leave. As Western powers line up to leave, it’s difficult to overstate the tragedy of a situation where thousands have been killed, millions have become refugees, and trillions of dollars in resources have been burned only for Afghanistan to end up where it started 20 years ago.
Afghanistan’s rapid collapse is part of a long, slow U.S. defeat
(Washington Post) The collapse seems so sudden. In the space of a few blistering summer months, Taliban forces have swept across much of Afghanistan. But the writing has been on the wall for a long time. As my colleague Craig Whitlock has revealed with his award-winning reporting on a cache of internal U.S. government documents scrutinizing the failures of the American war-making and nation-building efforts in Afghanistan, successive U.S. administrations recognized that the Taliban were not going to be easily vanquished, that the Afghan state was weak and riddled with corruption, and that muddling through without a coherent strategy was still preferable to admitting defeat. “The interviews and documents, many of them previously unpublished, show how the administrations of Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump hid the truth for two decades,” Whitlock explained. “They were slowly losing a war that Americans once overwhelmingly supported. Instead, political and military leaders chose to bury their mistakes and let the war drift.”
“The turning point came at the end of 2005, beginning of 2006 when we finally woke up to the fact that there was an insurgency that could actually make us fail,” one administration official later told government interviewers. “Everything was turning the wrong way at the end of 2005.” Almost a decade later, at the end of 2014, Obama attempted to hail the end of the American military mission in the country after years of counterinsurgency, declaring in a statement that “the longest war in American history is coming to a responsible conclusion.” But U.S. officials knew that there was little end in sight and the Obama administration, Whitlock reported, “conjured up an illusion.” Then came Trump, who loudly called for an end to costly U.S. military entanglements abroad. But he authorized an intensification of aerial bombing campaigns against Islamist militant targets that, according to one study, saw Afghan civilian casualties increase by about 330 percent. Biden, a veteran of the Obama years, now owns his own moment in Afghanistan’s tumultuous history, a tragedy many years in the making.
Australia capital’s lockdown until no more virus
(AP) Australia’s capital Canberra will remain locked down until there are no more COVID-19 infections in the city, a government leader said on Friday. The Australian Capital Territory, which comprises Canberra and two villages, locked down for a week after a man tested positive on Thursday.
Processed foods
(Food Dive) A new study published in JAMA found that 67 percent of U.S. children and teens’ diets come from ultra-processed foods, up 5.6 percentage points compared to the levels seen in 1999. Most of the increase came from ready-to-eat meals, which rose from 2.2 percent of daily calories to 11.2 percent of calories. Interestingly, consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages like soda actually took a pretty considerable dip, falling from 10.8 percent of calories in 1999 to 5.3 percent in 2018.
A stranger helped a Jamaican athlete get to his Olympic race. He won gold.
(Washington Post) As a star hurdler, Jamaica’s Hansle Parchment is familiar with overcoming barriers. But he was unprepared for a different kind of obstacle: getting lost in Tokyo on the day of his Olympic race, and rapidly running out of time to get there. The 31-year-old athlete posted a video this weekend on Instagram explaining how panic turned to hope after he met a “good Samaritan,” a volunteer working at the Games, who ultimately gave him money to take a taxi to the correct venue—where he won a gold medal in the men’s 110-meter hurdles on Aug. 5. Parchment, with gold medal in hand, went to find the stranger who had gone out of her way to help him—to thank her for helping him when he needed it the most. Parchment found Trijana Stojkovic, who was volunteering at the Olympics, telling her, “You were instrumental in me getting to the final that day.” He showed her his gold medal. “Really, you got this?!” she replied. Jamaica’s Ministry of Tourism has since invited Stojkovic to the island. Jamaican officials branded Stojkovic a good Samaritan and said an “official invitation” from the minister of tourism had been extended for her to visit.
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Why is the Castellammare di Stabia Marina the Best Choice if you Desire to Sail and Discover the Gulf of Naples?
Probably still little known internationally, the city of Castellammare di Stabia and its marina are becoming increasingly popular as locations for boaters wishing to navigate the Campania archipelago and/or the Amalfi Coast.
This is due to its strategic geographical position to the Gulf of Naples and also to its proximity to some world-famous tourist sites such as Pompeii.
CONTACT US FOR YOUR CHARTER FROM CASTELLAMMARE DI STABIA
Where is this marina located? How to reach it?
The city of Castellammare di Stabia and its marina are located south of the city of Naples in southern Italy. It overlooks the Tyrrhenian Sea and is set on the coastal stretch of the Gulf of Naples, between the volcano Vesuvius and the Sorrento peninsula.
This southern Italian town can be easily reached either by car or train or by air. By car, it is necessary to take the highway towards Naples – Reggio Calabria. By train, again from Naples, it takes the Naples – Gragnano line and gets off at the Castellammare di Stabia stop.
However, the most comfortable mode is the plane. It is indeed possible to land at Naples Capodichino International Airport, located a few kilometers from both Naples and Castellammare di Stabia, and then reach the marina by taxi in a few minutes.
What services does Castellammare di Stabia offer to its customers?
Marina di Stabia tourist port is one of the best equipped and organized in the entire Neapolitan archipelago. It boasts 871 berths for boats up to 100 meters in length and depths on the quay up to 6 meters deep.
The quay is equipped with columns for the supply of electricity from 16 to 400 Amps and free Wi-Fi while mooring assistance is guaranteed 24 hours a day.
Among its services, Marina di Stabia is equipped with a restaurant, a launderette, a gym, and a play area for children as well as a convenient secure car park with 1,000 spaces complete with luggage trolleys.
At customers’ request, the marina provides transfers to and from Capodichino airport or to the Naples central railway station.
Why choose Castellammare di Stabia as a starting point?
In our opinion, Marina di Stabia is an ideal port for those boaters who, in addition to enjoying the sea and the famous places that overlook it, do not want to miss the nearby archaeological areas of Pompeii and Herculaneum or the fabulous gulf panorama seen from the top of Vesuvius or Mount Faito, both reachable in a few minutes by means of a suggestive funicular or an organized trip with off-road vehicles.
VIEW ALL THE BOATS BASED IN CASTELLAMMARE DI STABIA
What places and attractions can you visit nearby?
Pompeii
This famous archaeological excavation site is located a short distance from the city of Castellammare di Stabia and can be reached in a few minutes by taxi from the tourist port.
Famous throughout the world, these are the archaeological excavations of two entire cities from the Roman era which in the year 79 AD were completely buried by the eruption of a volcano.
Today it is instead a majestic open-air museum that every year gives new discoveries and that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Vesuvius
Vesuvius is one of the active Italian and European volcanoes. Due to its proximity to the population that lives and inhabits its slopes, it is also considered one of the volcanoes with the highest risk and therefore is constantly monitored.
The entire area, now part of the Vesuvius National Park, is nevertheless safe enough to be traveled by trekking lovers along its 11 paths for a total length of 54 kilometers.
The most coveted of these trails is certainly the one that leads up to the “Gran Cono”, the summit of the volcano, to experience the unique experience of walking along the crater of an active volcano.
Mount Faito
For all the inhabitants of the Sorrento peninsula, the mountain has only one name, Faito. This mountain, about 1400 meters high, is the highest point of the Lattari Mountains and marks the beginning of the Sorrento peninsula. It is a very popular destination especially in summer when it represents an escape from the hot and sultry days of the Italian summer.
The easiest way to reach the summit is to take the funicular that leaves from the station of Castellammare di Stabia.
What beauties can you reach by sailing from Castellammare di Stabia?
Sorrento
Sorrento is much more than a seaside resort. This town is the beating heart of the peninsula that bears his name and ideally is the gateway to the Amalfi Coast.
In addition to a historic center full of streets teeming with life, between bars, restaurants, and shops, Sorrento is full of historic villas that can be visited such as Villa Comunale, a unique beauty mansion characterized by a 5-star panorama.
The famous “Deep Valley of the Mills” is also worth a visit. It is a bed of a river now disappeared that once reached the sea where a mill was built for grinding wheat. The business continued until the early 1900s and then interrupted. The result is that dense vegetation has taken over the area, almost completely covering the traces of the activities that took place there (there was also a sawmill, a tuff quarry, and several caves used as cisterns for collecting rainwater). All in the historic center of Sorrento.
Capri
Capri has always been associated with glamorous and elite tourism even though it owes its fortunes to cruise tourism and day trips by tourists arriving from Naples and other coastal cities.
As for the things to do, one cannot fail to start with the magnificent Blue cave. An authentic wonder that can be visited with special boats.
Having a stop in its famous square is almost an obligation. You don’t need to stay long, just the time for a coffee is enough to savor the authentic life and the panorama of this beautiful town.
With 589 meters above sea level, Monte Solaro is instead the highest peak on the island. The easiest and most comfortable way to get to the top is the chairlift located in Vittoria square in Anacapri. From here you can enjoy a unique view that embraces the two gulfs of Naples and Salerno, the island of Ischia, and the legendary Faraglioni.
The latter is precisely the icon of Capri in the world. Do not miss the opportunity to circumnavigate them with your boat!
Amalfi Coast
This coast stretch is probably one of the most famous in the world. It is located along that promontory that extends towards the Tyrrhenian Sea and which is characterized by steep cliffs, cobalt blue sea and some world-famous towns.
If you’re wondering what is the reason for such fame, well it’s difficult to put into words. The place’s atmosphere, its landscapes, and its millenary history, combined with exceptional typical cuisine, can only give you an idea of what awaits you.
What better way to visit it than with a boat trip?
Just mentioning the main villages to which a visit is a must such as Sorrento, Amalfi, Positano, Furore, and Vietri Sul Mare. It is then worth climbing to the top of Ravello to enjoy a breathtaking view.
Contact now YBH Charter Brokers:
You can contact us by sending an email at [email protected] or by phone, calling +39 33436 00997, available also on WhatsApp for both calls and texting.
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