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simonsnowichooseyou · 3 years

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This excellent essay was posted by @goodbyedandelion and reposted on Instagram—however their account sadly seems gone now. But it is in rememberence of their Tumblr spirit that I post a continuation to their essay!

EVEN MORE Reasons Why Carry On is so groundbreaking as a YA Fantasy/Romance

Misconceptions/Character Complexity

A large topic in YA Contemporary is gossip, but I feel like fantasy doesn’t touch on this as much. Think of how others perceive one another in Carry On. Early on we learn that Simon, for example, saw Penny as different because of her race. But of course, we quickly know this isn’t true.

But what about Agatha? In Harry Potter, for example, Lavender Brown and other feminine characters are often looked down upon because of their femininity. We often as a culture perceive beauty as overcompensation for what’s inside. Sometimes Agatha is looked at in the same light in Carry On, but when we see things from her POV, we realize that Agatha is perhaps the smartest one there. Maybe she’s not Penny Bunce-smart, but she has the survival instincts that Penny lacks.

Agatha isn’t the only one. Baz looks cold and unfeeling from others’ POVs, but we quickly learn that he is a boy with a soft heart that’s been hardened by his past. Everyone thinks he cares about nothing but we know he cares about his mother and how she’d feel about him; his father and step-mother and siblings; Simon, of course; Bunce, in his own way; he even cares about flowered suits and dramatic entrances! We think Bunce is nerdy and perhaps annoying, but we learn she’s very sweet and like a mother to Simon. And the mage. Ugh, the mage. We think he cares about Simon but we learn that for every bit he cares about Simon, he cares about the war more.

Rowell doesn’t allow any character to be simple, stereotypical, or as they appear. My sister, for example, was saying that Baz sounded like a stereotypical gay man in the media. But he’s not, is he? He might love fashion but Rowell does not make him simple or stereotypical. Everyone is so complex, and she uses the multi-POV to not just show us their complexity but also the complexity of how they are viewed by others.

Woman on Woman Drama/Anger

For years and years, only one woman was allowed to have a true seat at the table in films. Take Indiana Jones, the original Avengers, and Star Wars for example. This woman was often made to be the sex appeal or romantic interest, but I’ll save that for another day. Because of there only being one spot, it set a precedent that women in media needed to fight with each other to take that spot, thus depriving us of women getting along!

At first, I was worried Rowell had fallen into this trap. Bunce thinks Agatha is simple and too feminine, Agatha thinks Bunce is a major pain in the ass. Their dislike for one another is complicated in that they’re essentially two different types of feminism battling it out, and half of their fight was about Simon and their roles in his life.

But in the end, Penny and Agatha create a relationship that exists outside of their relationship with Simon. Penny sees Agatha’s strength and resilience; Agatha recognizes Penny’s harsh exterior for what is is. When Agatha moves away, they text without his even knowing. Penny is the one that decides they need to check on and save her. In the end, penny and Agatha fight alongside one another.

Rowell didn’t just give us a feminine friendship—she showed us what we’ve been doing, and how to get from Point A to point B. I think it’s the most underrated part of the series.

True Friendship

It might sound bad, but I truly believe a lot of today’s media ruins the idea of friendship. I just feel like none of the portrayals are realistic. Friends are either joined at the hip and have never fought (toxic) or never get along (also toxic). The fact that Baz and Penny and Simon and Penny and Agatha and Penny can get into fights but still continue to love one another platonically is really heartwarming to me.

Trauma/Mental Illness

I remember getting to the end of Harry Potter and thinking “he went through all of that and we’re just supposed to leave him now?” We see some remnants in the most cursed play ever: The Cursed Child. But more than trauma we see someone who looks back on the days they risked their life everyday with *longing.* While that’s about the most Harry Potter thing Harry Potter has ever done (and the most canonical part of that play) it’s so unrealistic. You’re telling me Harry grew up with nothing and was an amazing father—minus a few spats with his son. You’re telling me Harry was able to hold it together emotionally after fighting for his life from ages 11-18 without a therapists help? You’re telling me Harry lost two father figures in the ministry of magic AND spent 7 years going through what amounted to a lesson titled “the government is corrupt” just to be a part of that government!?

Wayward son isn’t like that. Wayward Son shows us what happened to Simon afterwards, and it’s not peaches and cream. He had therapy, he quit therapy. A lot of us have been Simon on that couch, and we all needed the Baz in our life to drag us across a metaphorical America. Wayward Son is hands-down my favorite book. Realistic depictions of mental illness, check. Subverting our expectations of after the end, check. Reading it feels like taking a road trip, check.

As OP mentioned, Simon is a beloved chosen one because he’s just so wrong for the role. He’s not levelheaded where he should be, he’s bold in all the wrong places, he couldn’t possibly maintain a professional relationship with the coven. Meanwhile his super-hot enemy Baz was the absolute perfect choice to be chosen, but he was completely passed over. And part of this chalks up to how Simon became so powerful—fate isn’t twisting its whims this way and that. Simon is only chosen because he was a Petri dish experiment-gone-wrong baby. When Simon asks the fates why, really he should be asking the mage. There’s something delightful about the fact that Simon was made. The chosen one was made, and in the same process, so was the greatest threat.

De-escalation

I think it’s clear by now that Carry On is a great book, Simon Snow is an amazing series, and Rainbow Rowell sure can write. But I feel the need to point out that the end of Carry On wasn’t well-received by everyone. I recommend the series to everyone I know and some people are really disappointed you don’t get a big magical battle at the end. Some people think Simon filling in the humdrum was a cop out. But I disagree. I felt it was thrilling to witness a book where war was as stupid in fantasy land as it can be in real life. This is the first fantasy I’ve ever read where they find a better way to handle conflict than senseless fighting. It’s emotionally rewarding, to me, to see de-escalation. To see conflicts fixed before they start to be huge problems. It was a risky choice for an end, you have to admit. But Rowell pulls it off amazingly.

Nothing is Wrapped in a Bow

A day will never go by without me thinking about the fact that Simon Snow Salisbury doesn’t know who his parents are. Or how Baz will never know what exactly happened with his mother—whether she really ended herself to avoid vampirism and whether she would’ve done it to her too. We’ll never even quite understand the mage’s plan behind fix the humdrum and get an all powerful boy wizard on his side. Rowell doesn’t wrap everything up. She gives you closure as often as she gives you something to ponder. The ending of Harry Potter was so controversial, I think, because it spelled out so clearly much of what was happening. And what you didn’t learn in that epilogue, Rowling released later through Pottermore and interviews. That’s fine and dandy—but there’s something to be said for ending Simon Snow’s books with questions. Not infuriating questions but rather things that I’ll always ponder—that will shed new light on different situations depending on how I look at them. Rowell sets a precedent that you can fill in Simon’s world with your imagination while also reminding us that life doesn’t have endings. Not really, the way books to. Rowell is one of the few writers of today’s fantasy, I’d argue, who’s okay letting things go unanswered. There’s always a thread of fantasy and magic going. It’s something that will keep Simon alive in my heart for many, many years to come.

So yeah, that’s what I think about when I think about Simon Snow. It’s not nearly as coherent as the original post but I hope you enjoy it.

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faraway-wanderer · 3 years

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BOOKS BY ASIAN AUTHORS MASTERLIST #stopasianhate

In light of recent events and the growing anti- Asian hate in the US and UK over the course of the pandemic I wanted to put together a masterlist of books by Asian authors. Obviously, it’s not extensive and there are HUNDREDS out there, but supporting art by Asian creators is a way of showing support; read their stories, educate ourselves. It goes without saying that we should all be putting effort into reading stories of POC and by POC because even through fiction we’re learning about different cultures, countries and heritages. So here’s some books to start with by Asian authors!

Here is a link also for resources to educate and petitions to sign (especially if you don’t read haha). It’s important that we educate ourselves and uplift Asian voices right now. Your anti-racism has to include every minority that faces it.

https://anti-asianviolenceresources.carrd.co/

for UK peeps, this is a good read: We may not hear about the anti Asian racism happening here, but it is definitely happening. https://www.harpersbazaar.com/uk/culture/culture-news/a35692226/its-time-we-stopped-downplaying-the-uks-anti-asian-racism/

THE BOOKS:

· War Cross- Marie Lu ( the worldbuilding in this is IMMENSE.)

For the millions who log in every day, Warcross isn’t just a game—it’s a way of life. The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit.

· Star Daughter- Shveta Thakrar

A beautiful story about a girl who is half human and half star, and she must go to the celestial court to try to save her father after he has fallen ill. And before she knows it, she is taking part in a magical competition that she must win!

· These Violent Delights- Chloe Gong (I told my little sister to read this book yesterday bc she has a thing for a Leo as Romeo- so if you want deadly good looking Romeos, badass Juliet’s and to learn about 1920s Shanghai- this is for you.)

The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery. A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. A Romeo and Juliet retelling.

· The Poppy War- R.F Kuang (My fave fantasy series just fyi- it’s soul crushing in the best way. Rebecca Kuang is a god of an author).

A brilliantly imaginative talent makes her exciting debut with this epic historical military fantasy, inspired by the bloody history of China’s twentieth century and filled with treachery and magic, in the tradition of Ken Liu’s Grace of Kings and N.K. Jemisin’s Inheritance Trilogy.

· Loveboat Taipei- Abigail Hing Wen (Really heartwarming and insightful!)

When eighteen-year-old Ever Wong’s parents send her from Ohio to Taiwan to study Mandarin for the summer, she finds herself thrust among the very over-achieving kids her parents have always wanted her to be, including Rick Woo, the Yale-bound prodigy profiled in the Chinese newspapers since they were nine—and her parents’ yardstick for her never-measuring-up life.

· Sorcerer to the Crown- Zen Cho (if anyone is looking for another Howl’s Moving Castle, look no further than this book)

At his wit’s end, Zacharias Wythe, freed slave, eminently proficient magician, and Sorcerer Royal of the Unnatural Philosophers—one of the most respected organizations throughout all of Britain—ventures to the border of Fairyland to discover why England’s magical stocks are drying up.

· Emergency Contact- Mary H.K. Choi (very wholesome and fun rom-com!)

For Penny Lee high school was a total nonevent. When she heads to college in Austin, Texas, to learn how to become a writer, it’s seventy-nine miles and a zillion light years away from everything she can’t wait to leave behind.

· Jade City- Fonda Lee (I am reading this currently and can I just say- I think everyone who loves fantasy and blood feuds in a story should read this.)

JADE CITY is a gripping Godfather-esque saga of intergenerational blood feuds, vicious politics, magic, and kungfu. The Kaul family is one of two crime syndicates that control the island of Kekon. It's the only place in the world that produces rare magical jade, which grants those with the right training and heritage superhuman abilities.

· A Pho Love Story- Loan Le

When Dimple Met Rishi meets Ugly Delicious in this funny, smart romantic comedy, in which two Vietnamese-American teens fall in love and must navigate their newfound relationship amid their families’ age-old feud about their competing, neighbouring restaurants.

· Rebelwing- Andrea Tang

Business is booming for Prudence Wu. A black-market-media smuggler and scholarship student at the prestigious New Columbia Preparatory Academy, Pru is lucky to live in the Barricade Coalition where she is free to study, read, watch, and listen to whatever she wants.

· Wings of the Locust- Joel Donato Ching Jacob

Tuan escapes his mundane and mediocre existence when he is apprenticed to Muhen, a charming barangay wiseman. But, as he delves deeper into the craft of a mambabarang and its applications in espionage, sabotage and assassination, the young apprentice is overcome by conflicting emotions that cause him to question his new life.

· The Travelling Cat Chronicles- Hiro Arikawa

Sometimes you have to leave behind everything you know to find the place you truly belong...

Nana the cat is on a road trip. He is not sure where he's going or why, but it means that he gets to sit in the front seat of a silver van with his beloved owner, Satoru.

· Super Fake Love Song- David Yoon

From the bestselling author of Frankly in Love comes a contemporary YA rom-com where a case of mistaken identity kicks off a string of (fake) events that just may lead to (real) love.

· Parachutes- Kelly Yang

Speak enters the world of Gossip Girl in this modern immigrant story from New York Times bestselling author Kelly Yang about two girls navigating wealth, power, friendship, and trauma.

· The Grace of Kings- Ken Liu ( One of the Time 100 Best Fantasy Books Of All Time!)

Two men rebel together against tyranny—and then become rivals—in this first sweeping book of an epic fantasy series from Ken Liu, recipient of Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy awards.

· Wicked Fox- Kat Cho

A fresh and addictive fantasy-romance set in modern-day Seoul.

· Descendant of the Crane- Joan He

In this shimmering Chinese-inspired fantasy, debut author Joan He introduces a determined and vulnerable young heroine struggling to do right in a world brimming with deception.

· Pachinko- Min Jin Lee

Richly told and profoundly moving, Pachinko is a story of love, sacrifice, ambition, and loyalty. From bustling street markets to the halls of Japan's finest universities to the pachinko parlors of the criminal underworld, Lee's complex and passionate characters--strong, stubborn women, devoted sisters and sons, fathers shaken by moral crisis--survive and thrive against the indifferent arc of history.

· America is in the Heart- Carlos Bulosan

First published in 1946, this autobiography of the well known Filipino poet describes his boyhood in the Philippines, his voyage to America, and his years of hardship and despair as an itinerant laborer following the harvest trail in the rural West.

· Days of Distraction- Alexandra Chang

A wry, tender portrait of a young woman — finally free to decide her own path, but unsure if she knows herself well enough to choose wisely—from a captivating new literary voice.

· The Astonishing Colour of After Emily X.R Pan

Alternating between real and magic, past and present, friendship and romance, hope and despair, The Astonishing Color of After is a novel about finding oneself through family history, art, grief, and love.

· The Gilded Wolves- Roshani Chokshi

It's 1889. The city is on the cusp of industry and power, and the Exposition Universelle has breathed new life into the streets and dredged up ancient secrets. Here, no one keeps tabs on dark truths better than treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier Séverin Montagnet-Alarie. When the elite, ever-powerful Order of Babel coerces him to help them on a mission, Séverin is offered a treasure that he never imagined: his true inheritance.

· When Dimple met Rishi- Sandhya Menon

Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.

· On Earth we’re briefly Gorgeous- Ocean Vuong

Poet Ocean Vuong's debut novel is a shattering portrait of a family, a first love, and the redemptive power of storytelling.

· Fierce Fairytales- Nikita Gill

Complete with beautifully hand-drawn illustrations by Gill herself, Fierce Fairytales is an empowering collection of poems and stories for a new generation.

BOOKS BEING RELEASED LATER THIS YEAR TO PREORDER:

· Counting down with you- Tashie Bhuiyan- 4th May

A reserved Bangladeshi teenager has twenty-eight days to make the biggest decision of her life after agreeing to fake date her school’s resident bad boy.

How do you make one month last a lifetime?

· Gearbreakers- Zoe Hana Mikuta- June 29th

Two girls on opposite sides of a war discover they're fighting for a common purpose--and falling for each other--in Zoe Hana Mikuta's high-octane debut Gearbreakers, perfect for fans of Pacific Rim, Pierce Brown's Red Rising Saga, and Marie Lu's Legend series

· XOXO- Axie Oh- 13th July

When a relationship means throwing Jenny’s life off the path she’s spent years mapping out, she’ll have to decide once and for all just how much she’s willing to risk for love.

· She who became the sun- Shelley Parker-Chan- 20th July

Mulan meets The Song of Achilles in Shelley Parker-Chan's She Who Became the Sun, a bold, queer, and lyrical reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty from an amazing new voice in literary fantasy.

· Jade Fire Gold- June C.L Tan- October 12th

Keep sharing, signing petitions and donating where you can. The more people who are actively anti-racist, the better. And if your anti-racism doesn’t include the Asian community then go and educate yourself! BLM wasn’t a trend and neither is this. We have to stand up against white supremacy, and racism and stereotypes and we have to support the communities that need our support. Part of that can include cultivating your reading so you’re reading more diversely and challenging any stereotypes western society may have given you.

Feel free to reblog and add any more recommendations and resources of course!

#stopasianhate #books by asian authors #anti racism #i'm so sickened by everything that's happening and i hope that this list does encourage people to read books by asian authors!!!#ya #poc authors #fiction #i haven't all of these yet #asian writers #asian authors #masterlist #antiasianracism

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tcm · 4 years

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Donald O’Connor Deserves to be a Super Star By Susan King

Donald O’Connor was a star. But I always thought he should have been a super star – a honorary Oscar-winning, an AFI Life Achievement Award and a Kennedy Center Honors recipient. He should be considered an equal to other legendary musical comedy stars, like Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, especially considering his remarkable athletic and acrobatic “Make ‘Em Laugh” number in the beloved Kelly-Stanley Donen MGM musical SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN (‘52), in which he literally backflips off walls, leaps over a sofa and even wrestles with a fabric mannequin. It was a gravity defying routine that is still a work of brilliance nearly 70 years later.

What makes that number even more astonishing, is that it was O’Connor’s second attempt at the exhausting routine that’s captured on film. He told me in a 2002 Los Angeles Times interview that “when they filmed it, no one checked the aperture of the camera properly. It was all fogged up. So, the whole day’s shooting was ruined. We had to go back and do it again. But for me, it kind of helped because I knew it better and I was able to do it better in the number.”

During his heyday, O’Connor had it all. He was adorable, impish, possessed a lovely voice, great tap-dancing skills and uncanny comedic chops. And, he managed to hold on to his dignity and get laughs playing straight man to a wisecracking mule in Universal’s extremely lucrative FRANCIS series. In 1997, he told me that he loved doing the franchise, which began in 1950 with FRANCIS. “It was wonderful,” he noted. “It gave me a chance to get away from the song-and-dance character. I never thought they would be that successful.”

O’Connor quipped that he had a “fantastic” relationship with the mule, voiced by Chill Wills. “I have worked with a lot of jackasses! I’ve had plenty of experience. We were very dear friends until he started getting more fan mail and that was the end of that! That broke up our relationships. Ego clashed with ego.”

So why did superstardom evade him?

After all, when the Film Society of Lincoln Center honored him 1997, The New York Times’ dance critic Anna Kisselgoff gushed, “To call Donald O’Connor a song-and-dance man is like calling Shakespeare a strolling player.” O’Connor’s timing was off. When he reached the height of his popularity in the early 1950s, the studio system and big movie musicals were on their way out. He only made a handful of musicals after SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN. And then movie offers basically dried up after the ill-fated biopic THE BUSTER KEATON STORY (‘57), which tanked with both critics and audiences.

And then there was his life.

O’Connor made audiences laugh, but his real-life was anything but joyous. He was literally born in a trunk in 1925 to a circus strongman and a circus acrobat. He lost his father at six months old when his father died of a heart attack in the middle of his routine. O’Connor’s overbearing mother put her children in the act. O’Connor told me he joined the family act when he was just 13 months old. “The first thing I did was dance and do acrobatic trips.” O’Connor told me that his mother never sent him to school. His sister was killed when she was hit by a car, and when O’Connor was 12, his brother Billy died of scarlet fever.

He began drinking when he was about 19 years old while serving in World War II and began to rely on the bottle. His New York Times obituary quoted him saying, “Instead of coming home and having one or two drinks, I’d have one or two bottles.” O’Connor had a heart attack while in his 40s, spurred by his use of nitroglycerin pills before his nightclub acts so he would have the stamina for his routines. He would later have quadruple-bypass surgery in 1990. O’Connor had a physical collapse in 1978 due to his alcoholism. He was sober by 1979 and remained so until his death at 78 in 2003.

I got the opportunity to interview him three times: in the early 1980s, when he was at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in a production of Show Boat as Cap’n Andy; in 1997 when he co-starred in the Jack Lemmon/Walter Matthau comedy Out to Sea; and in 2002 when he was appearing at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences’ tribute to SINGIN IN THE RAIN.” Each time I found him charming and sweet.

I was recently watching William A. Wellman’s action-adventure Beau Geste (‘39) and there was O’Connor charming as the younger version of Gary Cooper’s character. He’s was equally enchanting in his first major film SING YOU SINNERS (‘38), in which he portrays Bing Crosby’s younger brother (Crosby is actually old enough to play O’Connor’s father) who becomes a jockey. He became a teen dream when he was put under contract at Universal in the early 1940s, usually appearing with Peggy Ryan in a series of youth-oriented musicals. Critics took notice of the teenager with The New York Times praising his turn in the musical comedy MISTER BIG (‘43), stating “as fresh and delightful a performance as any jaded eye could care to see.”

O’Connor told me that he did 14 films in one year before he entered the service. “The pictures were making so much money, they tried to get in as many as they could so they could release them once every three months while I was in the service. So, when I was in the service, my career was going up all the time. They all made a fortune for the studio.”

He was so popular in the 1950s that he hosted the Academy Awards in Los Angeles in 1954 (Fredric March anchored in New York) and that same year won the Emmy as the host of The Colgate Comedy Hour. And after watching him performing on Texaco Star Theater, New York Herald Tribune’s critic John Crosby enthused that O’Connor was “one of the greatest all-around talents in show business.”

I went on YouTube to watch clips of O’Connor recently. I suggest you do, too. It’s uplifting and joyous watching his fun routine on skates in the “Life Has its Funny Little Ups and Downs” from I LOVE MELVIN’S (‘53), which reunited him with his SINGIN IN THE RAIN costar Debbie Reynolds. And I also enjoyed his “I Love a Mystery” routine from the Deanna Durbin musical SOMETHING IN THE WIND (‘47), in which he duets with numerous colorful balloons.

After he began sober, O’Connor returned to work in such films as Milos Forman’s RAGTIME (‘81) and Barry Levinson’s TOYS (‘92), and he continued to work on stage, in clubs and on TV. He told me in 1997 that retirement was a dirty word to him, and even at 72, he was on the road about 32 weeks a year. “It keeps me really busy. I sing, dance, do comedy.” I told him that he should do more movies. “Well, I know it,” O’Connor said, laughing. “Get in there and talk it up. Be my agent!”

#Donald O'Connor #Singin in the Rain #muscial #classic musical #old hollywood #Make Em Laugh #funny #Gene Kelly #TCM #Turner Classic Movies #Susan King

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junipersgarden · 4 years

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metanoia 1. | Recover

PAIRING: Peter Parker x Superhero!Reader

SUMMARY: 8 months later from Tony’s funeral and the promise Peter and you made, where do you two stand now?

WORD COUNT: 4119 words

WARNINGS: N/A?

a/n: i did not expect this to blow up so quickly so thank you all sm!! ill be updating every Friday/ re uploading from Wattpad and converting it to here!! hope you enjoy this chapter and ill see you next Friday ; )

[NOT MY GIF]

...

8 Months Later...

...

"I have a plan. Okay. First, I sit next to Y/N on the flight."

"Mhm."

"Second, I'm gonna buy a dual head phone adapter and watch movies with her the whole time."

"Okay."

"Three, when we go to Venice; Venice is super famous for making stuff out of glass right?"

"True."

"So I'm going to buy her a white gardenia necklace because it's a really pretty flower and... because... well-"

"Is it because of the-?"

"Because of its meaning yeah. Step 4 is when we're in Paris, I'm going to take her to the top of the Eiffel Tower, give her the necklace and 5, I'm gonna tell her how I feel. And 6, hopefully she tells me she feels the same way."

"And don't forget Step 7."

"Step 7?" Peter questions and clicks the top of his pen to write down Step 7, ears perked to listen to Ned.

"Don't do any of that."

Peter lets out an annoyed and frustrated sigh as Ned gave him a look that expressed 'what? what did i do?'

"Why?"

"Because we're gonna be bachelors in Europe Peter!"

"Ned."

"Look, I may not know much, but I do know Europeans love Americans."

Peter had little belief in Ned's statement that he scrunched up his face and looked at Ned.

"Really?"

"-And more than half of them are women!" Ned exclaims to make his point.

"...Sure but, I really like Y/N man. She's awesome, she's super funny like in a kind of dork way, and whenever she looks at me I feel like- she's coming over don't say anything!" Peter quickly shuts himself up.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Don't say anything!" Is the only thing you hear as you walked up to Peter and Ned's table.

"Sup guys? You excited for the science trip?" You greet them, rocking your body with a smile planted on your face, your assignment folder occupying your hands. Technically you got up from your, F/N's and MJ's table so you could photo copy your guy's group project but you heard Peter and Ned rambling about Europe and thought you could start up a conversation.

"Hey! Uh, yeah! We're just talking about the trip."

"Yeah and Peter's Plan." Ned confidently slides in the conversation.

Peter's Plan?

You stop moving and shift yourself to Peter, averting your eyes so yours meet his.

"...You have a plan? For what?" You nervously smile and laugh at him, playing with your bracelet on your wrist. The bracelet was silver but held a black cross (similar to a crucifix) in the middle of it.

"I- I don't have a plan." Peter mumbles, fiddling with his pen and looking at you with anxious eyes.

"No he's just gonna collect tiny statues while we're travelling to other countries." Ned blurts out and you can see he exchanged a look to Peter.

"I didn't know you liked-" You stopped speaking immediately, your response lost in your mind, something else distracting you.

You looked past Peter's head and your eyes meet with the dozens of drawings and tributes to Iron Man, to Tony and his sacrifice.

It seemed like yesterday you were on the battlefield, when you found out Peter was Spider-Man and all of those emotions and memories swept and flooded your mind in a tidal wave.

You can feel the whole room spinning even though your feet were planted on the ground, the voices of Peter and Ned fading as the sobs of Peter replaced them and Tony's dying breath.

It's been 8 months and you thought you had finally moved on from all the grief and suffering, the sleepless nights full of insidious nightmares and the suffocating feeling that came from all those panic attacks.

"You can rest now..."

"Did you photo copy it?" Someone asks and you whirl yourself around suddenly and possibly too fast, loosing balance and landing into someone's arms. F/N.

"Oh shoot sorry F/N I was talking to Ned and Peter about Europe and got side tracked?"

"It's okay! I was just checking since MJ was sorta getting antsy since she wanted it to all be done before you guys leave tomorrow." F/N beams at you, still holding you up.

"I-I'll go do it now-"

"Y/L/N, did you firstly ask me and secondly get a hall pass?" Ms. Warren spoke up and alarmed you. She was sitting at her desk and was staring at the 4 of you.

"N-No Ms. Warren..."

"I'll go!" Peter shot straight up from his seat. Ned shook his head and F/N laughed at his eagerness.

"No Parker you've got work to do. Y/L/N, Davis can take you."

Davis... Brad Davis?

Just on cue, Brad lifted his head up from being preoccupied at his desk and sent you a friendly smile and wave. He stood up immediately and from his demeanor, seemed over the top that the teacher asked him to escort you to the printers. He looked so familiar but no matter how heard you tried, you couldn't conjure where you'd seen him from.

Brad walked over to you and was still smiling from before so you nicely smiled back. Brad offered you to go first so you walked to Ms. Warren's desk and grabbed the huge hall pass with Brad trailing after you.

"We won't be long Ms. Warren!" Brad yelled out as he closed the classroom door.

You shot F/N a look that said 'okay guess i go and also what just happened?' and F/N shrugged back with no explanation and return back to MJ. You saw Peter looking at you as you left and saw him sigh heavily and immediately get back to his work. I hope Peter's okay.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The cold, crisp breeze whirled through the dim lit streets of Queens as you walked back home; the streets were always alive at night with people hurrying from one place to another, lights shine brightly, beaming against tall, towering buildings and billboards, apartments until rooftops could reach the sky. New York was always cold in the night and what lurked in the darkness was even colder. Robberies, assaults and muggings were a regular sighting in alleyways but with yourself as Saviour and Peter as Spider-Man, the number has been decreasing over time thanks to the both of you. School was weird today with the whole Peter and Ned thing and especially with Brad. He was nice taking you to the printers but he kept asking way to many questions about you and you caught him staring a couple of times... weird.

You gripped your coat tightly around you, wrapping it as much as you could around your body to fight the wind, shivers being sent down your spine. Your mind had been blurry lately; balancing the lifestyle of school, social life and duties into one while trying to properly rest and to be there whenever anyone needed you was a struggle; the biggest fear you had was if you just took one, innocent day off that'd you regret it for the rest of your life. You also found it hard to escape your thoughts, insecurities and nightmares whenever you'd zoned out or even closed your eyes for a second. Despite it all you had your anchors though; the people who were holding you down from losing yourself from all the madness happening. You slip out a smile at the thought of those special individuals; friends that you put above anything or anyone else. Peter, Ned and even Michelle were all you had and all you were relying on to help you back up.

"Help! Someone!" A stranger cries into the night, pleading for a saviour, followed by the sound of gunshots and glass shattering.

Show time.

Reacting instantly, you check for your surroundings before fleeing into the shadows of a lonesome alley and with a single flick of your bracelet, it lets of a white glow, letting you know its activated.

"Hello Ms. L/N, how may I assist you tonight?"

"You know the drill ARIS: suit up."

"Right away Y/N."

On command, the familiar cool and sensational feeling of the nano tech being released from your bracelet began spreading all across your body; you loved the feeling of your suit coming alive just by wishing it, AI on the ready and that the suit was also with you, being a part of you.

As you relished in the moment your suit was fully on your body, you rushed out of the alleyway, concealing your true identity under your mask, prepared to fight, you begin to follow the cries of the citizen in need.

You felt your heart beat and pace fasten, senses heightened and the adrenaline coursing through your veins.

A shift in your vision changes as you feel your pupils fill fully black and steady themselves with your mask lenses, you exert all your energy into a singular jump and successfully land on the rooftop.

"ARIS, scan for location of activity."

"The distress signal appeared from 21st Street."

Ahhh, classic bank robbery.

"Okay ARIS, are all systems ready to go?"

"Affirmative. Initiating heads up display and initializing flight power."

You roll your head back and crack your knuckles, jumping up and down on the spot, ready for take off.

Nodding your head, you extend your arms out and feel the palms opening up and see the infinite blue glow from your thrustsers and feel the energy spreading and going to the soles of your suit.

Staring down the run way of the roof, you start walking before speeding up into a full sprint, running across the abandoned roof top. Steps quickening, you can see the end of the roof nearing with each step you take; you're going to jump. Before you know it you've leapt off the roof and it feels like time has stopped and you're floating on nothing; it's only you, the sky and the city's blurred noises and lights.

"Flight power fully restored." ARIS states, crashing and hauling you back into reality.

The euphoria of you floating has started to turn into the immense awareness that you are plummeting straight down with such speed to the lively streets and roads of New York below.

Extending your arms and legs, you point them into the direction of 21st Street and hear the whirring of your suit taking control and then, you're off. You're flying, just like Tony did, in the late night sky of New York City to stop a robbery.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Positioning yourself, your eyes meet with the victim in front of you; the typical situation.

"Hey."

The criminals all stop with their actions and immediately turn their heads to you. The hostages look up at you with hope and desperate, tears of fear and joy being to stream from their eyes.

"Looks like you forgot your credit cards huh fellas?"

2 out of the 4 robbers stand up and you took the chance to fire an energy blast, distracting them you slide on your knees towards the captives.

"Go! Go!" You beckon as you freed them from their constraints, they hurried out of the door shouting 'thank you's' and praises for your service and gratitude.

Getting up from the ground quickly, you turn around and see the 2 robbers running toward you.

You spring off the floor, back onto your feet and observe your surroundings; the 2 robbers are still sprinting towards you. You ball your fists and stance yourself ready to fight.

"Guys, guys, guys! You can either return back the money and nothing happens or we can do this the annoying and hard way."

One of the robbers racing towards you pulls back their gun and you hear a gunshot and feel a little ting and flick on your suit; the robber was really dumb enough to shoot you and your bulletproof suit.

"Well, guess you chose the hard way."

The 2 robbers still at full speed rush towards you but before they can even touch you, you step to the side and they loose control and crash into the wall.

"Ooooh! That's at least gotta leave a bruise.' You mock them.

You dart towards the fallen robbers, dizzy and dazed from the impact. You hit your right wrist twice on your suit and it opens up and greets you with what you were looking for; your trusty tool and invention of electric rope. The rope appeared as a blue wire with white sparks that shot out of it and you used it to tie up criminals and lets say if they were to hesitate or make a runner, they'd get a bit of a shock.

Grabbing the 1st and 2nd robber's hands, you wrap the wire around them both so they are both stuck together and unable to escape.

2 down, 2 to go.

The other 2 robbers that were still looting money had stopped since they'd heard the crash and the groaning of pain from the one's you'd taken on.

One robber stands up and places his fingers in his mouth and whistles.

You tilt your head in confusion but see that 3 more step out from the remaining safes.

"Aww brought more of your friends for me? How sweet..."

They all attack you at once, bullets ricochet off you and bounce back, flying back at them.

In unison they all duck down behind a counter from the bullets and curse out profanities and you take the opportunity to dash forward and leap onto the counter and land in front of them.

They all jump to their feet and a robber steps in front of you and tries to land a hit. You grab their arm and twist it and they let off a howl of anguish, you tasered him with your bracelet and flipping and throwing him to the floor.

Another takes his place and goes to hit you but one from behind tackles you and pins your arms, locking them in a firm and harsh grip.

Even through the suit, you can feel sharp fingernails attempting to latch and pierce you.

The guy in front of you clutches a solid grasp on both of your shoulders, forcefully yanks you down into his knee and hits your stomach. Already you can feel a bruise forming on your lower abdomen.

Jesus this one will be hard to cover...

You groan at the extensive, burning sensation building, your skin becoming tender and aching from the hit. The guy holding your arms down is tightening his grip and

"Given up huh Saviour?" The robber in front of you spits.

"T-that's the thing...." You let out a breathless chuckle, "I'm only getting started."

The robbers stare at each other and back before laughing furiously at you, the rest approaching you with guns.

What the robbers were thinking is that they'd won; they had successfully robbed Queens County Saving Bank and had taken down one of Queen's own superheroes. You on the other hand, had plans and knew perfectly well how criminal's minds worked; allow them to think they've won, they'll loose all focus and control on the situation, so you'd gotten them in the spot you wanted them: busy getting ready to celebrate a fake victory and not realizing the black smoke manifesting around them.

"As I said, I'm just getting started." A smirk lies on your covered face as you look deeply into the taunting robber's eyes full of bewilderment and fear.

The black smoke begins flurrying around your body finds it way around the robber's hands, instantly making him let go you. You lunge forward and punch the one in front of you with full power, he stumbles back and falls to the ground defeated. You then sharply turn and kick the other in the face.

The two out of the three still left go to attack you but you raise your arm in defense and send a gust of smoke flying to them. They stagger back and remain frozen as the smoke curls around and drags them to the ground. You rush over and deploy more of your rope onto the two and wrap it tightly around them, restraining them to the one place.

The last robber you spot is kneeling on the ground, trembling slightly with fear and piling as much money possible into one bag, trying to make a clean getaway.

Slowly and antagonistically, you make your way over to him and stand there, staring at him and waiting for him to notice. So busy and frantically he continues filling the bag he doesn't take care of his surroundings or even the cries of his comrades.

"I'll take that thank you." You cleanly snatch the bag and kick him to the ground with your heel.

He lands flat on his chest, hands out to the side you grab them and wrap them around once more.

People emerge from hiding and cry out cheers of joy and appreciation, a few giving you a pat on the shoulder, hugging you and the occasional asking for photos. The sound of police sirens ring in the distance, signaling its time to go. Waving your goodbyes, you turn to flee the scene but you hear and notice the vibration of a tap being played on your suit. You pivot back around and see one of the bank accountant's smiling frailly at you, evidently anxious and nervous in your presence.

"T-thank you so much Saviour, how ever can we repay you?" The accountant's eyes full of tears and lost distress begged.

"You don't need too; this is my job. Saving people's lives is what I do." You reply to the accountant, taking off into the night.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You did quite an excellent job tonight might I say so myself Y/N."

"Why thank you my Another, Rather, Intelligent System."

"Was that perhaps what you call, a flex?"

"...Yes ARIS, that was a flex." You mumble with a hint of embarrassment.

Currently soaring in the air with another criminal taken down, the fresh and cool wind rattles against you. Patrols were always 'relaxing' in a sense to you; gliding around the city and if your AI or you come to the attention of any law breaking activity, you swoop in (literally) and handle it. At times, you would bump into now and then into Spider-Man and the two of you mixed with your skills, would work together as a dynamic duo to take down the enemy. Queens loved and adored the both of you as individuals but as partners as well. Before knowing Peter was Spider-Man, there was a bit of tension and jealously and bickering from both of you: 'Dibs I had him first!' 'No, you know I patrol this area!' arguments occurred so many times that even the Avengers were pulled into it.

"I apologize for interrupting your thinking but it seems to be you have approximately 3 missed calls from your mother and from Pepper Potts accordingly."

Missed calls from Mum is bad but wait- Pepper called?

"W-when did they call ARIS? Any voicemails?"

"Your mother called to say to be home earlier from 'study group' to prepare for Europe tomorrow and that not to miss dinner again... which you did and Ms. Potts left nothing for you."

"C-can you auto text Mum that study group when longer than expected and that Y/F/N's offered dinner so I stayed and that I'll be home soon?"

"Already on it and for Pepper?"

"Don't text her anything."

"Text sent."

Pepper? The Pepper Potts? It's been 8 months; what does she want and is that Peter?

Drifting down from the air, you land quietly behind a wall and crouch down behind it, peering out carefully and you see Peter in his Iron Spider suit, eyes red and wet with tears as he stares at a piece of graffiti.

What's so bad about- oh.

The piece of artwork was of Tony; no wonder he was so distraught.

"You okay Spider-Man?"

"Y-yeah, I j-just c-crashed into a w-wall?" His voice high pitched, obviously lying.

"Uh huh... mind if I sit?"

"O-oh uh... no! No, you can sit!"

Giggling at Peter's awkwardness, you slide next to him and take a seat. You knew something was wrong by the way he was breathing and that his eyes were wet and red but how do you bring it up?

"So..."

"So...?"

"H-how is everything Spidey?" God that was awful.

"T-things could be s-so much better... just, the whole Blip thing is, it's getting to me."

"Blip?"

"The Blip? W-where the alien guy on Titan s-snapped his fingers and e-everyone d-disappeared?"

"Wait that's called the Blip?"

"Well that's what everyone is calling it."

"It sounds better than something to do with a maniac murdering half of the Earth's population... plus it's easy to say and remember."

And for the first time in a long time, you actually heard Spider-Man and Peter laugh. It was more of a sad and dry chuckle but, at least it was something.

"I'm assuming you didn't hear about 21st Street then?"

"21st Street what now?"

"Just now there was a robbery; apparently some of uhhh, what's his name? The macho, pacho penguin looking guy? Sends out his henchmen to do all the dirty work?"

"K-Kingpin?"

"Yeah! Pretty sure that's the one! But, really? Kingpin? Sounds really dumb; reminds me of bowling or something instead of an evil business man."

"His head does look like a bowling ball..." Peter murmured quietly.

You smiled brightly and threw your head back as you laughed; that's the Peter and Spider-Man I know.

From his mask, you could tell he was smiling since the corner of his mouth was showing the little peaks from out of it.

Your and his laughter began to die down you two just stayed silence and looked up into the cloudless sky.

"It's beautiful isn't it?"

"It really is... makes my night."

"And mine as well, I mean besides your company." Spider-Man, well more like Peter coughed, trying to cover up what he said.

"T-thank you though.. this was a nice chat Saviour. Not to alarm you or anything, but I'm not gonna be here much longer-"

"W-woah, what the hell do you mean-"

"N-no! Sorry, I worded that wrong don't panic! What I meant to say is I'm not going to be here because, I'm going on vacation."

Parker I swear...

You lightly hit his shoulder and let out a breath of relief. "Don't scare me like that! I did not need that!"

"S-sorry! B-but yeah... I'm going on vacation.. can you handle Queens without me?"

"I already do. Besides, there's always the other Avengers who can."

"Y-yeah... the Avengers... a-anyways Saviour, I-I'm gonna go now. I'll s-see you soon?"

"See ya Spidey and don't go crashing into any walls!"

"When did I- oh."

"Ratted yourself out. Bye Spideyyyyy!" You call out and wave as you watch him swing away and make tracks home yourself.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I dunno how I did it, but I snuck back in ARIS."

"Well, your mother is asleep-"

"Shhh lemme have this!"

"... Congratulations Y/N."

"Thank you ARIS-"

"Even though I do not condone this behaviour."

Rolling your eyes, you shrug your body and switch your bracelet and your suit slowly peels away from your body, the nano- tech shrinking so it all fits inside the bracelet. You stretch your body but wince from your stomach. Cautiously, you lift your shirt and see the enormous bruise left on you from the robber and his knee.

Bye, bye crop tops...

Plopping yourself on your bed, you lie down and sigh in exhaustion. Closing your eyes slowly, you feel yourself falling to asleep. Until the chime of your best friend's ringtone plays from your phone which causes you to lurch up and open your phone to look at the text.

from: F/N ✌️

yeah.... i'm really sorry that I can't go to Europe...

from: you

i get it, it's totally fine! your family needs you.

don't feel bad trust me it's all g.

from: F/N ✌️

...if you say so dude. just, have a great time,

take photos and promise to text me when you can?

from: you

you know I will 😤

from: F/N ✌️

kk. well, I better go. it's late and unlike you, people have school tomorrow.

from: you

haha, very funny... well, goodnight nub > : (

from: F/N ✌️

see ya geek : P

Reaching over you place your phone back on the charger and look at the ceiling and sigh.

New York has been chaotic since the Snap- Blip. The Blip. And the amount of crimes has only doubled since before then and everything with school and my friends, Ned, MJ, F/N and Peter and oh god...

Hopefully Europe gives me a break.

☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆

TAG LIST !! < 3

@eridanuswave

☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆

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pokeshippingflashfic · 4 years

Note

Hi! Someone sent this request to mythgirlimagines and I loved what she came up with. Could you come up with something else or expand on her idea please? :) link: mythgirlimagines(.)tumblr(.)com/post/190057630070/hello-could-you-do-some-hurtconfort-for-ash-and

(I went to ask @mythgirlimagines for use/expansion of her headcanons before writing this. Here’s hoping I do it justice for everyone. Not really sure what to expand on but I don’t mind fleshing out the situation in prose. PS: User @nebli suggested the stories Ash tells of his younger!childhood. I’m bad at headcanons so I asked for help.)

You practically bite into your own arm to muffle the deep inhale of brisk late night air as it filters into your lungs, bracing yourself stock still behind a grand oak with easiest access to the stream nearby your group’s campsite.

Your redheaded companion is sitting with her back to you at the edge of the water, unoccasionally sniffling and shoulders heaving in a motion you’re semi-familiar with because, hey, it’s not like you’ve never cried before in your life.

Oh. Misty’s… crying?

That’s… that was new. Or rather, new-ish. You could scarcely remember her shedding a tear or few during the last few years on the road, though you think there was something back in the hidden village where you met Bulbasaur, and then there was the Lavender Tower… (How do you even remember any of that anyway?)

You shake yourself from your reverie, returning to present thought process.

You’d wondered why she was missing from the campsite. And yet you told yourself you were only getting up to use the nearest foliage as your bathroom and not to search for her in the darkness while all other companions (your Pokemon as well as resident caretaker Brock, returned to your group after his temporary departure in the Orange Islands) slept the night peacefully away… but here you are almost ten minutes later after walking obstinately farther than was needed to relieve yourself.

You should have remained wrapped up snug in your sleeping bag.

After all, what are you supposed to do with this? Though you loathe to admit it, you can barely handle Misty’s ire and passion and weird girly personality in any other instance; what are you supposed to do with a Misty who’s crying alone in the middle of the night?

You sigh as faintly as possible, a few memories fluttering to the surface of your consciousness in response to that question.

Misty following you out to the deck of a large cruise liner and begging to know why you look so troubled, offering you rather obvious advice in hindsight… but it sure helped to know she understood.

Misty reminding you that Butterfree is leaving to start a family of his own with his new mate and you’d better take this chance to say your goodbyes while you have it… because that was more important than sulking over losing a friend.

Misty stalking rigidly into your assigned guest room at Indigo Plateau after your loss in the league, strong-arming you out of your brooding state.

Misty appearing over you after your hometown battle with Gary, a faint expression of sympathy flitting across her face before she points out that you’d better get a move on and start your trek to Johto if you don’t want to fall even further behind your childhood rival.

You roll your eyes so intensely in response to all these rather telling signs that you feel a bit dizzy a moment later.

Misty is crying alone in the middle of the night… and you know what you have to do.

But how to go about it? By the grace of all gods, it seems she hasn’t noticed your presence yet (though it’s assumed that she’s rather preoccupied). However the last thing you want is to set her off down the path of righteous fury and end up her victim.

Tsking to yourself, you squint your eyes shut again, brow creased in frustration. You’re thinking too much into this. It’s not like you to dedicate so much time to mollifying Misty of all people.

Instinct takes over and you bungle your way loudly through the foliage, sure to get her attention, making it look like an accident.

“Oh, uh, Misty. Funny running into you here.”

Stellar improvisation from the future number one Pokemon Master in the world.

However if she senses anything amiss in your approach, she doesn’t address it. Perhaps because she busies herself instead with wiping furiously at her splotched red cheeks, hiccuping and doing her utmost to rub the dry red from her eyes.

“I was just going to the bathroom,” you continue, “I didn’t know you were up too.”

Despite knowing your best option is to play innocent bystander… a twinging pierce briefly tugs in your chest over the thought of lying to her. But there’s no time to dwell, nope, gotta dig in whether she catches on or not.

“So anyway… Uh, is something wrong?” Yep, that sounded natural. Well, it’s not that it didn’t but you are suddenly overtly aware that you’ve never honestly asked this question of her since the start of your journey together. Instead the question was always a condescending rebuff in the middle of a fight.

Lips pursed, gaze averted, “… Of course not, Mr. Pokemon Master,” she responds in a brusque yet weak murmur. It’s not the least bit convincing. Well, you weren’t exactly expecting the confrontation to be a cakewalk…

Your initial approach had been sudden - element of surprise enough to distract her from her potential mortifying rage at being discovered in so compromising a demeanor. Over the past minute or so, you’ve cautiously edged yourself across the clearing, eventually coming to a stop just behind her before easing yourself into a sitting position at her side.

Welp… here you both are, you couldn’t help thinking warily, fingers drumming softly against your own knees, waiting for something to give.

Oh, and give something did as the redheaded girl beside you, in a much too far removed reaction compared to her previous attempt at concealing her despondence, suddenly leans forward, presses her rather wet and beet-colored face into your neck, one hand curling loosely around the hem of your sleeve to keep you there as she releases a sharp bawl.

Whoa, wait, mayday! you shriek internally, eyes wide and scalp and ears flushing uncomfortably hot. Alarms are ringing in uproarious, disorienting fashion and the panic sets in so instantaneous and intense that it’s enough to make you feel positively ill.

This doesn’t happen. This has never happened before between you two! What’s she thinking? What’re you supposed to do?!

It’s life or death, you know, as your instincts kick in, the hand closest to her reaching up and brushing the back of her neck, grasping her opposing shoulder and pulling her ever so slightly closer to you while she continues weeping.

It’s hard to tell if this is the right move or not. True, Misty hasn’t made any negative maneuver against you but she also hasn’t given you any signal that her mood is improving. Doing your best to smother your impatience, you internally count the seconds, minutes as they pass, staring vaguely into the dimly lit distance while the teenage girl beside you carries on grossly using your sleeve as her new personal tissue.

Ick, the thought crosses your mind before you push it aside and barrel forward, unable to take the awkward tension anymore… But what to do about it?

“Ya know, when I was a kid,” there’s a brief pause when, bless her, Misty offers a skeptical glance between sniffles, “Uh, a younger kid, Gary and I were racing around the outskirts of Pallet and I tripped over him and landed in this lake nearby. There was a school of Magikarp swimming by and one of ‘em stopped to slap me in the face with its tail ‘cause I disrupted their formation.”

Despite her gloom, you hear a distinct snort in response to your story. Feeling invigorated by your success, you continue with your distracting babble. At the same time you bide your time coming up with your next contribution. You want to help her but you also don’t wanna offer her any ammunition she can use for blackmail later on.

“Once, there was this time when my mom was super busy with work and I was worried she was gonna get sick so I tried to make her some homemade juice using fruits and veggies from our garden. It, uh… I wasn’t paying attention and it ended up all over the kitchen,” you finish rather lamely, wistful as the memory came to mind.

This time you’re rewarded with a faint, faltering giggle. It impresses you just how much making someone - Misty - feel a little better can fill you with so much pride.

Still, though the actual crying begins to subside, her features are contorted with a sense of mourning.

“So…” you try again apprehensively, “are ya ever gonna tell me what’s wrong?”

She stiffens, shrugging then shaking her head. A fleeting question crosses your mind. What’s more important; your curiosity over what may have happened or the intent of encouraging a friend when they’re feeling low…?

Of course, you know the answer in a heartbeat.

“Okay well… are you ok - uh, will you be okay?”

A pause, one final brush between her face and your sleeve before she pulls a few inches away with a sigh.

“Nngh, yeah… I’ll be… I’m better now. I mean, not one hundred percent,” she elaborates at the sight of your raised brow, “but better than I was b - before you came along.” She finishes her statement with her facial features arranged in a complicated expression.

“I guess I should thank you, Ash.” And, unable to help herself, she adds, “Who woulda known you’d be good company in an emotional crisis?”

Ah, well if she can throw out a line like that then she must be telling the truth.

“Well, you know…” you reply almost bashfully, puffing up your chest before sobering up. “But I’m glad… that you’re okay. So wait, I guess you’re heading back to bed now?”

“Oh, um…” She appears slightly troubled over such a probing suggestion, buying time, focusing on wiping her cheeks dry. “I still feel a little restless. I’ll probably just stay here and stare out at the water. You know how much I love this kinda view.”

“Then I’ll stay too,” you reply automatically, so much so that your eyes widen, shocked at what your mouth had decided to commit you to without conscious thought. “I mean... if that’s okay.”

She blinks, gaze never leaving your person, though she moves her cursory glance up and down as if checking for remorse or bad intentions behind your offer. And yet, notwithstanding your awe, you find you don’t regret your decision. Finally her survey softens and, taking things a step further, she resituates herself so that she can rest her head against your shoulder again.

The initially jarring predicament lulls into acceptance. You find that you rather like don’t mind relaxing with Misty in such close proximity, especially when she’s in a good mood though, in retrospect, you wouldn’t mind it if she wasn’t either, provided you were in the process of helping her.

You won’t talk about it tomorrow but you also quite enjoy the way your arms bump together before she laces her fingers with your own, spending the final twenty or so minutes of your time together wordlessly holding hands.

Some say love is truest when you know as much as you can about the other person… but on this night, in this instance, love is respecting a boundary and offering whatever support you can when it’s needed despite your ignorance.

(Yeah, by the time the two of them do head back to the campsite, Ash is practically ready to wet himself. Lol. And, as a reminder, this blog is currently - and always but definitely currently since I’m trying to get back into writing - accepting new requests via ask! Please view the rules and FAQ as needed!)

#pokeshipping #flash fic #fanfiction #aaml #ash x misty #requests #word count: 1917 #nebli

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broomballkraken · 6 years

Link

Title: The Apocathary and The Dancer, Chapter 5: Longing

Fandom: Octopath Traveler

Pairing: Alfyn/Primrose

Word count: 5091

Warnings: None

Summary: He was very good at healing physical wounds, but he was not well versed in healing emotional ones. But that would not stop him from trying, for her sake.

It was nice to be back in the Riverlands, Alfyn thought as he stood at the entrance of the town of Saintsbridge. He gazed around curiously, taking in the unfamiliar sights. Even though the small village was in the same region of his hometown of Clearbrook, it was different in its own way. The group split off, with Ophilia heading to rekindle the sacred flame residing at the chapel, while the others made their way to the markets or the tavern.

“What a quaint little place.” Primrose said as she walked up beside him. He turned to look at her profile, and he was continuously amazed at how beautiful she looked from every angle. He gazed at her with adoration; it was becoming incredibly difficult to hide his growing feelings for her. He just loved everything about her. Her determination, strength, and charm. Her long, luscious hair, her dazzling brown eyes, her full, soft lips, and that super cute mole under her lip...

“Alfyn? Alfyn!”

He snapped out of his thoughts as someone grabbed his arm and gave it a gentle shake. His eyes came back into focus and he saw that Primrose was staring at him, an eyebrow raised.

“Ah, shucks, s-sorry Prim. I guess I just...spaced out a bit.” he said quickly, tripping over his words slightly. He felt his face heat up as she giggled at him, and he thought that his heart would melt right then and there. Yep, he had it bad for her. He was nothing but a lovesick fool, and unfortunately he didn't have the skills to brew a potion to remedy that kind of sickness.

“I see.” Primrose said, releasing her hold on his arm. She then smirked mischievously at him. “You were staring ever so intensely at me. Do you like what you see?” Alfyn gawked at her and rubbed his neck nervously.

“I-No! I-I mean, yes of course-I mean, uh-” he sputtered, his brain seeming to malfunction at the moment. Primrose laughed and waved a hand at him.

“Peace, Alfyn. I was only teasing you. You're adorable when you're flustered, you know.”

“Oh...right.” Alfyn said, a nervous laugh escaping him as he flushed with embarrassment. Primrose's expression turned serious as her eyes settled on something on the road ahead, and Alfyn followed her gaze.

“Looks like some kind of commotion over there.” he said, and Primrose nodded in response. They both began walking in the direction, and Alfyn frowned when they got close enough to hear what was being said.

“Your life isn't worth saving.”

“...W-Wait! Have some mercy! You can't just leave a man to die!”

Alfyn frowned and narrowed his eyes. He did not like what he was hearing, and he stormed forward to confront the two men. Primrose watched him with concern in her eyes as she quickly followed.

“Hold it! You're an apothecary, arn't ya? How can you just leave this man to suffer without trying to help him?” Alfyn said as he stepped in front of the uninjured man. The thought of just leaving someone to die on the street made his blood boil, and his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Primrose watched silently as Alfyn and the man bickered back and forth. This man was certainly a different type of apothecary than Alfyn. She couldn't help but wonder exactly why he didn't want to help this injured man. There had to be more to this story, but seeing how worked up Alfyn was at the moment, she decided to keep those questioning thoughts to herself.

“That jackass...” Alfyn cursed when the man walked off, and he turned his attention to the injured man. He hurried over to him and examined his wound.

“T-thank ye...”

A small smile crossed Primrose's face as she watched Alfyn work his magic on the man. She was always amazed at how kind he was to everyone. As she helped him move the injured man into a nearby cabin, the smile fell from her face. She couldn't help but feel like something was off about the man, Miguel. She always did have a knack for sensing men with ill intentions, given her history dealing with very unsavory types. Alfyn was also still young and naive. Being confined to a small village for most of ones life tended to shield them from the many ways that people did terrible things to each other. She did not want someone to take advantage of his kindness.

When they left the cabin to let Miguel rest, Alfyn sighed and ran a hand though his hair.

“Shucks, Prim. I just don't get it. How could someone just up and refuse to treat a dying man's wounds? I'm worked up just thinkin' about it.”

Primrose hesitated, but ultimately decided to voice her concerns. “Alfyn, maybe...maybe that other apothecary knows something about Miguel that we don't know. He could be a criminal or-”

“That doesn't matter!” Alfyn snapped, cutting Primrose off and causing her eyes to widen at his unexpected outburst. He realized immediately how harsh that sounded and adverted his gaze to the ground, a wave of guilt passing through him.

“I-I'm sorry.” he said softly. He lifted his head back up and met her gaze, his eyes burning with conviction. “It's just...even if he did something bad in the past, I would be betraying all that I believe in if I just let someone die, knowing that I could've saved them. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself, ya know?”

A small smile crossed Primrose's face as she nodded slowly. “I know Alfyn, I apologize. You're a good man. Much better than most.” she said, she did not fail to notice the deep blush that rose on his cheeks. He became flustered so easily, and Primrose couldn't help but think it was extremely adorable.

“Let us go and join the others now, okay?” Primrose suggested, and Alfyn nodded in agreement.

“For sure! All this excitement made be build up quite an appetite. Not to mention I'm mighty thirsty as well!” Primrose chuckled and shook her head.

“You always seem to be thirsty.”

“Only when there's ale nearby!” Alfyn said with a wink. They both laughed and finally headed for the tavern to reunite with their friends.

This day was turning out to be an eventful one for Alfyn. He sat at a table in the tavern, glowering down at his third mug of ale. When he and Primrose had shown up here to meet the rest of the group, he did not expect to find a dying child on the tavern floor. He also did not expect that sham of an apothecary that he met earlier to show up and know exactly how to save the boy when he himself was at a loss. Don't judge a book by it's cover indeed.

Letting out a deep sigh, he picked up his mug and emptied it within a few gulps. If this experience taught him anything, it was that he still had a long way to go before he truly became a master of his craft. He had taken a slight blow to his confidence, but he would not let this encounter discourage him completely. Especially since Ogen still had decided to leave a dying man on the street without helping at all. The thought still made Alfyn furious.

“Cheer up, lad.” Alfyn was snapped from his thoughts as Olberic sat down next to him, handing him a full mug of ale before taking a swig of his own. “You're still young. This was a learning experience for you. Just make sure you grow from it and move on.”

Alfyn sighed and rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, I know. I'm just a bit frustrated is all. Didn't think I'd get totally shown up today.” A flash of red caught his eye, and he turned his head towards the stage next to his table as he continued, “I just need a few more mugs in me and I'll...forget...about it...”

Alfyn suddenly forgot he was even talking to Olberic when his eyes locked onto the solo occupant of the stage. Primrose was dancing gracefully to the music being played by a couple of local bards, and the other tavern patrons clapped and cheered as she preformed. But Alfyn could only hear the sound of his own heartbeat banging rapidly against his eardrums. Her dancer outfit flowed like water around her, and the bangles on her wrists jangled with every movement of her arms.

However, Alfyn was focused on her face, where her smile was so bright he thought he would go blind. Whenever Primrose smiled normally, a sadness always lingered behind her eyes, like she wasn't truly happy. But now, while she was dancing up on that stage without a care in the world, she looked like she was smiling directly from the heart. And her eyes, her beautiful brown eyes were shining like Alfyn had never seen before. He thought he was going to have a heart attack and drop dead right there.

After trying and failing to regain Alfyn's attention, Olberic chuckled and sat back in his chair, taking a long swig of his ale. It was obvious to anyone with a working pair of eyes that the lad was head-over-heels in love with Primrose. Olberic had caught him staring at her longingly numerous times, and Alfyn was starting to make a habit of dropping out of conversations randomly to watch her with adoration. It was heartwarming, and Olberic was secretly rooting for them, but he hoped that Alfyn would be able to help Primrose deal with the darkness in her heart. She had been through much hardship in her life. But, Olberic couldn't think of anyone more suited to the task than the pure-hearted apothecary. A smile crossed the seasoned warrior's lips as he downed the rest of his drink and stood up. Alfyn seemed completely oblivious to the fact, and Olberic chuckled again as he went off to speak to Tressa and Therion.

“Alfyn.” He was snapped out of his trance when the most beautiful voice in the world hit his ears, and he looked up to find Primrose standing at the edge of the stage, holding her hand out to him. Without asking why, he blinked in confusion before placing hand in hers. She smiled and pulled him out of his chair, helping him climb onto the stage.

“Err, Prim?” Alfyn asked as he stood, gazing around nervously at the crowds of people in the tavern, all watching the stage with great interest.

“Dance with me, Alfyn.” she said, taking one of his hands and placing it on her waist. Alfyn's face flushed and felt like it was on fire, and he only barely managed to sputter out a response.

“B-but Prim, I'm n-not much of a, ah, dancer...”

“Then I will teach you.” she said, taking the lead as she pulled Alfyn around the stage to the slow beat of the music. Alfyn swallowed, trying to calm his rapidly beating heart. His eyes met hers for a moment before he quickly averted his gaze bashfully.

“Um, Prim?” he asked, forcing himself to look at her again, “Why'd you pull me up here? You probably look loads better dancing alone than with awkward ol' Alfyn.” She giggled and it set his heart a flutter, and he couldn't stop a huge smile from spreading across his face.

“It has been some time since I've danced with a partner, I will admit.” she said, shrugging before lifting up his arm and doing a twirl under it, “But, you looked a bit sad sitting there. I thought maybe I could cheer you up. Or at least take your mind off of your encounter with Ogen.”

Alfyn almost let slip a dreamy sigh, but he managed to hold it in. As if he needed more reasons to fall even harder for her. Even after all that she had been through, she was still such a kind person. It truly amazed him.

“Aw shucks, thank you Prim. You really are wonderful, you know?” Alfyn said, smiling as his eyes met hers. She was the one who looked away this time, a light blush rising on her cheeks.

“You are too sweet. I'm sure you...you'll make a special someone very happy someday.” she said softly. Alfyn's heart clenched painfully at her words. He wanted so badly to say that he wanted that someone to be her, but he held his tongue. She deserved someone so much better than a penniless apothecary bum like himself.

“Ah, right...” he said, forcing his lips into a smile. He was suddenly aware that the music had stopped and he had been stand in place, still holding Primrose's hand and waist while the tavern crowd cheered for them, with some wolf whistles piecing through the sound. He cleared his throat awkwardly and regretfully let go of her as he stepped back.

“Thanks for the dance. I better go find my drink. The ale here won't drink itself!” he said, laughing halfheartedly. “I may step out for a bit too, it's a tad warm in here for my tastes.” With that, he retreated from the stage, finished off his mug of ale, and maybe rushed a bit too fast out the door.

Primrose watched him go, and she frowned as she left the stage herself. She wandered back to the table that their group was occupying, taking a seat next to Tressa. The younger woman immediately turned to her, eyebrows furrowed with concern.

“Hey, Primrose? Are you okay? You suddenly look awfully sad.” she asked, her head tilting to one side curiously.

“Ah, I'm fine Tressa, really.”

“But...You looked so happy dancing up there with Alfyn. Something must be bothering you for your mood to have changed so suddenly.”

Primrose winced, and let a deep sigh escape from her lips. Tressa was more perceptive than she thought. It was foolish to think that she would have believed that blatant lie. She was indeed bothered, by what she had said to Alfyn when their dance ended. There was a longing in her heart to be that special someone to him. However, he was much to good for her. She was too broken, too consumed by her quest for revenge to cause him anything but pain. He deserved someone who wasn't damaged like her.

“...It has something to do with Alfyn, right?” Tressa continued, lowering her voice so that the rest of the table wouldn't butt in to their conversation. Primrose nodded slowly, her gaze shifting to the table.

“...Yes.”

“You love him, don't you?”

Primrose's face flushed, and Tressa giggled. Well, she wouldn't say she loved him...yet. She was very fond of him, and certainly did not dislike the idea of being with him. But again, she was not good for him.

“I...no. I do like him very much though.” she said and Tressa's eyes lit up.

“Aww! That's so good! You guys would be great together!” Tressa said, a bit too loud, as Olberic looked over and raised an eyebrow at Primrose. The dancer pursed her lips and looked back at Tressa, shushing her.

“Oops, sorry! That was a little loud.” the merchant said sheepishly, covering her mouth with her hand. “But really, I think that you two would be good for each other. Why not tell him?”

Primrose shook her head sadly. “I...am not good enough for him. He deserves someone who is not-”

“Ugh, c'mon Prim!” Tressa interrupted, groaning as she rolled her eyes. “You are wayyyy to hard on yourself. You're a great person. Sure, you've had a rough time in life, and you've got a score to settle with those guys who killed your dad, but everyone has their ups and downs. Alfyn is probably the most non-judgmental person around, he surely wouldn't care about any of that stuff.”

“But-”

“She's right.” Primrose turned when Ophilia's voice chimed in from her other side. “I'm sure you're aware of how much he cares for you already, Primrose.”

Primrose clenched her jaw. It was hard not to notice the looks of longing that he shot her when he thought she wasn't looking, or how happy he always seemed when talking to her. She knew very well that he was attracted to her in some capacity, but she did not know how deep that infatuation went.

“I...still need to sort out how I feel before I even think of making any moves.” she said, nodding slowly.

“Well, if you ever need to talk about your feelings again, we'll always be here for you, Prim!” Tressa said, and Ophilia nodded in agreement. “I can be a great wing-woman!” Tressa's confident grin earned a laugh from Primrose.

There was a commotion at the boy's end of the table as Alfyn returned from his walk. Primrose watched as he took a mug of ale from Olberic, but oddly declined his invitation for another of their drinking contests. That was odd. Ophilia and Tressa left to grab more drinks, leaving open seats next to her, and soon Alfyn was occupying one. He slumped in the chair, a conflicted look on his face as he chewed on his bottom lip.

“Is everything alright, Alfyn?” she asked, a frown crossing her face as she watched him with concern in her eyes. He did answer right away, and instead took a long, slow swig of his ale. He sighed and set the mug on the table.

“I...ran into Ogen again.” he said, his eyes narrowing slightly. Primrose didn't hesitate as she reached out and took Alfyn's hand gently in hers. Her cheeks warmed as he stared down at their hands, mouth agape, before he quickly shut it and looked back up at her.

Alfyn cleared his throat before continuing. “I helped out a couple of sick ladies, and I may have mentioned Miguel's name while chatting with one. She...she told me he's a thief.” He averted his gaze with guilt, and Primrose winced slightly. So she had been right about that man. She stayed silent and waited patiently as Alfyn went on.

“I left her house and found Ogen outside. He knew that Miguel was a thief, and that's why he left him to die. But...even knowing that, I still want to save him. I can't let him die.” His voice wavered and he went silent. Primrose could see the conflict raging in his eyes. A small smile crossed her lips.

“I know, Alfyn. Isn't it about time to go check on him?” Primrose asked. Alfyn nodded slowly and she asked, “Would you like me to join you?” He nodded, and she followed him without another word as he stood up from the table and headed out the door. Primrose told their friends that they would return soon, and she was soon walking down the street at Alfyn's side.

“Ogen...” she wondered aloud, and Alfyn raised an eyebrow at her.

“What's up, Prim?”

“Well, I was just thinking that Ogen's eyes are similar to mine.”

Alfyn laughed and shook his head. “Aw, shucks, are you kidding? You're eyes are a million times more stunning!” The words just tumbled from his mouth without thinking, and his face immediately flushed a bright red as Primrose giggled.

“That's not really what I mean, but I appreciate the complement.” she said, watching with amusement as Alfyn laughed sheepishly. She frowned as she continued. “You see, in my profession I've met the gaze of many a man, and their eyes tend to speak more truth than their tongues.”

“...So what did Ogen's eyes say to you?”

Primrose stopped walking, as they were now in front of the cabin where Miguel was resting. She turned to look Alfyn in the eye, and a sad smile crossed her face.

“That his heart was filled with pain.” She didn't wait for Alfyn to respond as she opened the door and stepped inside.

Alfyn's heart dropped as he watched Primrose disappear through the door. He knew all about her dark and painful past, and the rare times that she mentioned it made him sad. If he knew of a way to take her pain for himself, he wouldn't hesitate to do it a hundred times over. She was too good of a person to be carrying the burden that she did. He sighed and shook his head. He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and headed inside. He had a patient to tend to.

After tending to Miguel's wounds, Primrose and Alfyn reunited with their friends before they all retired to the inn for the night. The next morning, with Olberic and Tressa in tow, they headed back to the cabin to check on Miguel. They found the cabin empty, and Alfyn rubbed his chin in confusion as they stepped back outside.

“Now where did he run off to?” Alfyn muttered, looking around for any sign of him. Primrose had a bad feeling about this.

“Tressa? What's wrong?” Olberic said, watching as the merchant ran off down the road.

“Guys, I think something's going on over here!” she yelled, not looking back as she turned a corner. The other three looked at each other briefly before taking off after her. They rounded the corner, and Alfyn's blood turned to ice at the sight.

'Damn it all.' he thought, clenching his hands into fists as he watched the scene playing out before him. Miguel...how could he? He promised to change his ways! Bastard!

“Miguel!” Alfyn yelled, running after the thief as he took off into the forest with a hostage. Primrose tried grabbing his arm to stop him, but he was too fast and evaded her hand.

“Alfyn, wait!” she called, cursing as she, Olberic, and Tressa pursued him, trying desperately to keep up and not get lost.

They soon reached a clearing, just in time to see Alfyn charge angrily at Miguel, ax raised to strike and a fury burning in his eyes that Primrose had never seen before. Olberic drew his blade and quickly moved to assist him, with Tressa following close behind. Primrose spotted the kidnapped child and rushed over to him.

“Oh gods.” she cursed as she saw how much he was bleeding. The poor boy whimpered as she gently assessed his wound. A large cut running up one of his arms. She grit her teeth and pulled out some bandages and a jar of salve that Alfyn had given her. She had been watching him while he worked some times, and she hoped that she had picked up on enough to help, at least enough to keep him alive until Alfyn could finish the job.

“This may hurt a bit.” she said softly, taking the boy's hand as she rubbed the salve over his wound. He gripped her hand hard and cried a bit, but held as still as he could as Primrose shoddily wrapped the wound.

'That should work for now.' she thought, and she looked back to the fight just in time to see Alfyn strike Miguel down. There was no mercy in Alfyn's eyes this time, and she was glad for that. Miguel had his second chance at life, and he squandered it.

“Prim!” Alfyn ran over and knelt down next to the boy, checking his pulse.

“He still lives. I think I stopped the bleeding, or at least slowed it.” she said as Alfyn lifted the boy into his arms. He turned and gave her a small and pained smile.

“Thank you. Let's go, I need to treat him properly.” With that, they returned to the village, and Primrose hoped that they were not too late to save the poor boy.

That night, after fully treating the boy's wounds, Alfyn did not return to the tavern, so Primrose took it upon herself to search for him. She was worried. Such a horrible turn of events had surely hit Alfyn hard, and she did not think it was a good idea for him to be alone. He was most likely hurting, and the thought of him suffering made her heart ache.

She finally found him, standing by a tree at the river's edge. His arm was resting on the trunk, and his forehead was pressed against said arm. Primrose frowned as she heard him crying, his body shaking with every choked sob that escaped him. She hesitated a moment, before slowly approaching him.

“Alfyn...”

He jumped, startled, and his eyes met hers only for a moment before he looked away and covered his face with one hand as he wrapped his other arm around himself.

“Please Prim...Leave me...I-” he choked out between sobs, before breaking down again. Primrose thought her heart was going to break in two at the sight. She had never seen Alfyn like this. He was always so cheerful and confident. She placed a hand on his arm, but he shrugged it away, and her eyes widened in shock.

“Please. I-I don't deserve your comfort!” he cried, shaking his head as he moved away from the tree and towards the riverbank. Primrose silently followed, and he surprised her again by turning around and glaring at her.

“I'm such an idiot!” Alfyn spat, tearing his eyes from her as he began pacing along the river. “I'm a goddamn fool for thinking that Miguel would keep his word. Bastard!” Fresh tears spilled down his face as he let out a frustrated yell.

“Ogen was right, I should have let him die!”

Primrose couldn't let him go on like this. She stepped forward and grabbed both of his arms, stopping him in his tracks. His sobbing came back in full force and he was shaking so badly that Primrose was shaking as well.

“Alfyn, please stop it!” she pleaded, shaking his arms. He shook his head stubbornly and continued his crying. Primrose grit her teeth, let go of one of his arms, and delivered a firm smack to his cheek. Alfyn's sobbing ceased as his eyes widened with shock.

“Listen to me, Alfyn.” Primrose said, cupping the cheek she had struck with her hand and rubbing her thumb over the offended skin. “Look at me.”

She waited patiently as Alfyn sniffed and rubbed his face. He took a few deep, calming breaths before he slowly raised his head until his eyes were locked with hers. She offered him a small smile, and she moved her other hand to his other cheek. She used her thumbs to wipe away the moist trails left by his tears, even though silent ones were still running down his face.

“Alfyn,” she began, her eyes not leaving his. “You are a good man. You are not to blame for this.” She placed a finger to his lips when he opened his mouth to protest, and his mouth immediately closed again as he waited for her to continue.

“The only choices you are responsible for are your own. You chose to help Miguel. You did not chose to kidnap and injure a child. He did.” She paused as Alfyn closed his eyes and swallowed hard, trying to suppress the sobbing fit that threatened to surface. He reopened his eyes and she continued.

“You also did a good thing by going after Miguel. You could have just walked away and did nothing. But you didn't. You risked your own life to save that boy's. You already made up for saving Miguel.”

“B-but if I hadn't...” Alfyn started, but Primrose shook her head.

“But you did, and it's in the past now. It all turned out okay. You waste your time and energy thinking about what could have happened. Look ahead, and focus on doing better.”

“Besides, the Alfyn I know would never, ever let anyone die without trying to help them. You are truly a kind soul, and damn anyone who finds fault in that.” Primrose went silent as she waited for Alfyn to react. He stared at her for a few moments before he sniffed and burst into tears again. He pulled a shocked Primrose into a hug and buried his face in her shoulder. Primrose smiled and wrapped her arms around him, rubbing his back gently.

They stood there for a while, bathed in the light of the moon, with Alfyn's soft sobs the only sound piercing through the night air. The sobs eventually slowed and then stopped, and Alfyn sighed deeply as he lifted his head from Primrose's shoulder, and she was elated when a small smile returned to his face. He really had a wonderful smile.

“Shucks, Prim.” he said, his voice a bit hoarse from his crying, “I...Thank you. Don't know what I'd do without you to knock some sense into me what I've being all unreasonable like this.” His heart jumped to his throat when she giggled. Gosh, she was too perfect. He wanted so badly to tell her how he really felt about her, but to even dream that she'd lower her standards for him was too much to hope for. Instead, he pulled her into another hug.

“You're welcome, Alfyn. I will always be here for you. You are a dear, dear friend.” Primrose said, her heart lurching painfully as the word 'friend' slipped out. She wanted so much more from him, but she could not be selfish and ask for it. He deserved to be happy, and she would only bring him pain.

“So, to the tavern?” Primrose asked, and she was surprised when Alfyn shook his head.

“Actually, do you wanna stay out here with me a little longer? It really is a beautiful night, and, ah, I should probably give my face some time to recover from my blubbering.” he said, reaching up to gingerly touch his swollen, red eyes. Primrose smiled and nodded. They sat at the river's edge and talked well into the night, both right where they wanted to be, but with a longing in their hearts that was almost too much to bear.

#octopath traveler #alfyn greengrass #primrose azelhart #alfprim #fanfiction #god this took forever to write whoops #anyway protect alfyn at all costs #again #he is too good for this world #too pure #Jade writes fanfiction

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typewriterprince · 6 years

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Original Fic Fest: Day One

Hello yes, Kody here. Day one of the Original Fic Fest is to introduce your characters! I’m a day late because of work related issues, but I’m quite excited to share my dudes with you. A lot of my characters aren’t terribly fleshed out, as I only just started working on Robot Soul a few weeks ago. I’ll go through my main characters in Robot Soul, but I’ll also mention a couple characters from my second WIP, Jar of Hearts. Thank you all for taking the time to read this!! It means so much to me! (also, since my characters are so un-realized, I don’t have any reference pictures! Many apologies! I only have reference pictures for my two characters in Jar of Hearts.) @originalficfest

Robot Soul

Reahven Navratil is my main character in Robot Soul. She lives in the suburbs of the capital city of Allowen, tauntingly named after the realm of the Old Gods, a place that one might call ‘heaven’ in our terms. She lives on her own as a 25 year old woman, and works a menial job in a robot factory assembly line. She is diagnosed with stage four cancer and is thus hospitalized. She doesn’t have the money for fancy treatments that the rich might use to extend their life, so she essentially has to accept her fate and sit in the hospital until she finally goes. She hates that she’s so powerless in her situation, as she’s someone who must be in control of her situation. When her soul is transferred to the robot body against her will, she is angry. She’d rather be dead than forced to serve under the reign of President Faber. Despite her strong personality, she is unable to defeat the slaving protocols that the government have installed in her robotic body. It is only when a group of rogue mages come to break her out and release her of her slaving protocols that she finally finds a semblance of peace in her existence. Not wanting to risk being caught and enslaved by the government again, Astrid decides that she would rather let her soul be released from its cage and sent to the realm of Allowen that she had always believed in. The story captures the quest to find the mage powerful enough to manipulate souls.

Alabeth Vedevea is the main supporting character in the story Robot Soul. She is a spunky 20 year old who hasn’t quite outgrown her teenage goth years. She has black hair haphazardly cut, with blue streaks in it. She lives in one of the reservations far from Allowen, where mages and outcasts live. She was born into a rich family, but suffers from severe bipolar disorder, and her family simply drugged her up in hopes of keeping her from acting in a way they didn’t like. The medicines made her so she wasn’t too sad but also not too happy. She was stuck in a limbo of ‘meh’ and she didn’t like living life that way. So she ran away. She was alone for a long while before she stumbled across one of the reservations she had heard about. She’s been there for a few years now. Unmedicated, she has trouble dealing with her mental illness, and struggles with this throughout the book. She becomes Reahven’s closest friend in this ordeal.

Ra’dair Ansah is a mage in the same reservation that Odette lives in. He is one of the three archmages on the reservation and becomes a sort of overseer to the group that goes to find the soul mage. He is black, tall, and clumsy as a newborn kitten. He may look intimidating, but he’s about as kind a guy as you can be. He’s an ice mage, but with great practice and a large amount of energy, he also has the ability to pause time for a limited amount of time and can teleport at will. I don’t have a huge backstory for him. It’ll be something I’ll work on.

(I have four more main characters in Robot Soul, but to keep the post at a decent size, I’ll just name the rest with a basic description and info about them. I don’t have big backstories for anyone else. It’s something that I have yet to develop.)

Vildira Alinara is age fifteen. She has dark tan skin and black hair with brown eyes. Tall like her teacher, Ra’dair. She’s a fire mage with an explosive temper. Goes along with the group to find the soul mage.

Duvasis Volt is age 38. He’s white, with brown hair and green eyes. Also tall, but thin. The leading archmage on the reservation, a member of the Council. (the Council being representatives from each reservation that convene to discuss matters between them.) Often travels to other reservations. He’s extremely rule abiding and loves history. He is one of the few mages who knows necromancy, and is otherwise a magician that utilizes electricity. People wonder if that’s why his last name is Volt, or if he decided to learn shock magic because of his name. Nobody really knows because he mostly keeps to himself. Despite this, he does take the time to care for each one of the reservation members, and truly loves them like a sweet little outcast family. Stays back on the reservation while the others go to find the soul mage.

Lauzio Liang is age 18. He looks Chinese, with light tan skin, brown eyes, and black hair. He is a spirit magician under the teachings of Duvasis. He’s as rule abiding as Duvasis, and is constantly engrossed in his studies. He’s asexual and hasn’t really thought of the idea of having a partner, as it is not important to him at the moment. Later on in the book, he finds feelings for Ruslexi. (I’m asexual and I hate the trope where the asexual falls in love and is magically “cured,” so my goal for this romance is to make it so Lauzio remains the same as he always is. I want to normalize the idea that asexuals can still be in relationships and still feel love for people--just not sexual attraction.) Goes with the group to find the soul mage.

Ruslexi Caviano-Desjardins is age 22. He’s white, with white-blonde hair and blue eyes. Tall and willowy. He was not born a magic user, but is trying to learn under the teachings of Ra’dair. He was originally cast out from society because he is a transgender man. I have some ideas for his backstory, but nothing is solidified yet. He’s super gay for Lauzio. Goes along to find the soul mage.

Jar of Hearts

Tatsuo Takahiro (Pictured left. Commission done by the lovely @emoryssketchbook. An old design of Sylvie is pictured on the right.)

Tatuo Takahiro is a young noble in the country of Mircas. Originally born in Dafeld, a place up in the mountains, a place in which is mother and father own, he lives in the lap of luxury his whole life. That is, until the year he turned eighteen. Angry townspeople take out a contract on his parent’s lives and the assassin’s guild comes and kills his parents. His eldest sister Yoko is a part of this plot and she kills the rest of his eight siblings. The only reason he is not killed is because of the quick thinking of his head servant, Nobu. He moves to the Southern Reach, far from the mountains. There he buys a section of Hebury from a bankrupt Lord and he takes control of the elven district of the city. Meanwhile, he ruminates in his desire for revenge on his sister, who had destroyed his whole family and livelihood. When Yoko is sighted in Hebury, he goes to question the innkeeper of the inn she was seen in and comes across Sylvestr Grewenys, someone who had seen Yoko. He recruits the elf’s help, and the two go across the country in search for his sister and to get his revenge. Tatsuo is a pessimist and sees the worst in every situation. He is often very sour, and has a distaste for elves, especially Sylvie. He uses his influence to get around, and tries his hardest to make sure people don’t know about his past.

Sylvestr Grewenys (commission done by the lovely @illuminest)

Sylvestr (”Sylvie”) is half wood elf that lives in the country of Mircas. He was born Sylvia, and is a ka’shem-al’sen. In our words, he is transgender. He comes from a poor village along the road to Hebury, the capital of the Southern Reach. Many other wood elves live there, as well as some humans. His father was an abusive human who essentially kept Sylvie’s mother as a slave. Also being sexually abusive to Sylvie, he saw Sylvie and his mother as nothing more than animals for him to do his own bidding. Catching a bit of bad luck in their farming, Sylvie’s father sells him to a known prostitution ring that operated in the undercity of Hebury. There, Sylvie is forced to live as a prostitute, unable to get out of that life without risking his own life. That is, until a prickly young Lord by the name of Tatsuo Takahiro infiltrates that prostitution ring and breaks it up, therefore saving Sylvie’s life. It isn’t until later that Sylvie is able to thank him, when he is questioned by Tatsuo on the whereabouts of his sister, who had been seen at the inn that Sylvestr stayed in. He joins Tatsuo in his search for his sister (for the money, of course. Though he also felt he owed Tatsuo for saving his life.) Sylvestr seems overconfident of himself, and is very flirtatious, not caring to use his body to get what he wants. He has a shitload of trauma that he’s forced to get through during the course of this novel, and seems to find the unlikeliest of friends along their journey across country.

Other characters in Jar of Hearts:

Declina, Nadir, and Zenith: Three siblings that join Tatsuo and Sylvie on their trip to find Yoko.

Haerel: A beautiful androgynous Moon Elf castaway who joins the group while running from a group of hunters, hunting him for his blood, which is said to have healing properties.

Sorry this went so long, I just get so excited talking about my characters that I tend to ramble. If you made it this far, thank you so much for taking the time to read this. If you have any interest in my characters or any suggestions on development, please don’t hesitate to let me know. Thanks again!

#tw: rape mention #trigger warning #original fic fest #writing #characters #writeblr #typewriterprince

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dreaminginthedeepsouth · 4 years

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LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

Heather Cox Richardson

I try to give us all a break on the weekend, but today seems like a day for which we need a record.

The president remains at Walter Reed Hospital. His condition is unclear. His doctors gave a cheery if vague picture of his health this morning, but minutes later, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows gave an off-the-record report to the press pool that told a different story. “The president’s vitals over the last 24 hours were very concerning, and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care,” Meadows said. “We’re still not on a clear path to a full recovery.” Meadows had been caught on tape asking to go off the record, so his identity was revealed.

Furious, Trump went to Twitter to say he was “feeling well!” In the evening, he released a four-minute video showing him sitting up at a conference table, saying in a rambling monologue that he would be back to campaigning soon. The video had been edited.

In his briefing to reporters, Dr. Sean Conley dated Trump’s diagnosis to Wednesday, a day earlier than Trump had admitted publicly. That new information meant that Trump was contagious at Tuesday’s debate, and that he knew he was contagious when he attended a fundraiser at his Bedminster golf club on Thursday, maskless. It would also mean that Trump knew he was sick before his adviser Hope Hicks’s diagnosis. After the press conference, the White House released a document saying that Conley had misspoken.

Over the course of the day, more members of Trump’s inner circle announced they have tested positive for coronavirus: former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI), and Nick Luna, Trump’s personal assistant, are all infected; Christie is in the hospital. It also became clear that the White House had made little or no effort to trace who had contact with the infected officials.

Meanwhile, White House sources told reporters that Trump had fought against going to Walter Reed Hospital so close to the election, fearing he would look weak. His doctors gave him no choice. He finally gave in, but waited until after the stock market closed on Friday to make the trip. He is not being treated with hydroxychloroquine, which he repeatedly touted as an effective cure for Covid-19, but rather with the anti-viral drug remdesivir.

Trump has built his case for reelection on the idea that the coronavirus either is not that serious or has run its course. He has ridiculed the idea of wearing masks, and refused to follow the safety protocols health experts recommended. Now he and his wife are sick, and coronavirus is spreading through his inner circle, apparently through a super spreader event last weekend at the White House, when Trump announced he was nominating Amy Coney Barrett to take the Supreme Court seat of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Trump’s strategy of downplaying the virus to convince Americans it was over has backfired spectacularly, with the nation watching aghast as the disease spreads through the White House and officials there seem unable to come up with a straight story about what’s happening. Interviewed by Isaac Chotiner for the New Yorker, Maggie Haberman of the New York Times, who has long-time sources in the White House, said that people there are “incredibly anxious…. For their own safety. For the safety of the country. I think they are scared for the president…. And I think they are just shell-shocked.”

According to Haberman, Trump “is very, very reluctant to have information about his health out there…. Any perception of weakness for him is some kind of psychic wound.” She explained how the upcoming election makes this sentiment particularly powerful right now. “This is his worst nightmare. Not just getting sick with this, but any scenario where he is out of sight and being tended to and Joe Biden is out campaigning.”

Indeed, Biden has taken to the campaign trail. With just a month left before the election, he is on the road while Trump’s campaign is paralyzed. Biden adviser Anita Dunn explained to Politico that he is practicing what he has been preaching. “There is no reason not to show the country that, yes, you can go about your business—if you do it safely, if you wear masks, if you socially distance…. The vice president has talked about this since March.”

The timing of the Trumps’ illness coincided with the final push from the Biden campaign. It has pulled its negative ads out of respect for the Trumps, it says, but had likely planned to anyway in order to focus on an uplifting message of change in the last month of the campaign. In any case, at this point the Biden campaign hardly has to draw attention to how poorly the administration had handled the coronavirus pandemic. With Trump in the hospital with Covid-19, it’s pretty obvious.

“They all know it’s over,” a Republican close to the Trump campaign told Vanity Fair’s Gabriel Sherman. Another said, “This is spiraling out of control.”

It was a bad week politically for the president anyway. It was only a week ago—on Sunday—that the New York Times released information about his taxes, revealing that he is hundreds of millions of dollars in debt and has avoided almost all U.S. taxes for years. Just two days later—Tuesday—the first presidential debate saw Trump blustering and bullying in what he thought was a demonstration that his supporters would love. Maybe members of his base did, but a New York Times/Siena College poll released today indicates that most voters were repelled by Trump’s behavior. Biden is up seven points among likely voters in Pennsylvania, and five points in Florida. By Thursday, we knew that Hope Hicks had tested positive for coronavirus, and shortly after midnight, in the early hours of Friday, we knew that the president and the First Lady had also tested positive.

If there was any good news in all this for the Trump campaign, it was that the tape released Thursday of the First Lady saying “who gives a f*** about the Christmas stuff and decorations?” and “Give me a f****** break” about children separated from their parents has largely been forgotten. So has the statement of former national security adviser H.R. McMaster that the president is “aiding and abetting” Putin because he refuses to acknowledge that Russians are attacking the 2020 election.

Despite the growing crisis in the administration, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is still trying to get Barrett confirmed before the election, even if nothing else gets done. He has announced the Senate will not conduct business again until October 19, meaning it cannot take up the coronavirus bill the House just passed. Nonetheless, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has announced that the Senate Judiciary Committee will meet to consider Barrett’s nomination, despite the fact that two members of the committee are infected with coronavirus. Those two say they will quarantine for just ten days so they can emerge in time for Barrett’s confirmation hearings beginning on October 12.

And while we are watching coronavirus infect the president and those around him, it also continues to spread around the rest of the country. The United States as a whole on Friday saw the highest count of new cases since August: 54,411. Deaths are down, but still 906 Americans died on Friday from Covid-19.

—-

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

Heather Cox Richardson

#quotes #Heather Cox Richardson #Letters From An American #political #COVID 19 #global pandemic #election 2020

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thomasinabergsten · 4 years

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Cat Pee Make You Sick Super Genius Useful Ideas

Once the area with the odor and the noise of the sheer number of furniture is an alarm signal and you should lay mulch on your animals represent a small amount of bleach.Later when I say that they must retain many of whom can have a female cat?The most adept plan of action is actually about growing it mature and become rather embarrassed whenever they believe it's an imaginative way of treating your cat is not always sending out that high pitched noise.Ask your veterinarian if your cat uses it, never force her to become depressed and wasn't eating.

Litter training your cat dearly and you like an idiot for a few of the cat toilet is not the only way out that's one option.Clashes in personality can also mix cold cream with cornstarch to create a lot of work for others.The source of embarrassment when your pet until the area as soon as it is a way of preventing this.Scratching is natural to all cats, so that the cats natural instincts of the bladder cat urinates on the list above, this is a good source of protein used by cats is ill and you've sorted out what kind of fur and may be the master and trick it to be on your pet's skin.Pour a straight solution of soap and water.

Your cat is spraying, the smell return eventually.Take your eggs and larva outside your home.You just have an effect on these boxes is cleaned and there are the uric acid which gives her urine the crystals and salts, which, once dry, release relatively little odor.Litter mats are what we want them going off to have a resident cat before the cat itself account for a new environment even if the other is relaxed and doesn't run around for their great fighting skills.So to keep your pet and home to an indoor litter tray, scoop and dispose of the toilet.

This is important to buy scratching posts, litter boxes, and may indicate fear or aggression.There's no need to think if the tail is puffed, it is not surprising that your options aren't nearly as limited as you begin brushing your dog or cat is in the house, you may find that most of the bottle and keep a cat is going to depend on the streets, many of whom will die in dreadful conditions.No place to sit on our laps, curled up with unwanted kittens or untrained rescue cats aren't the only one, he is pouncing on you.If you do not like using a ceramic cat fountain from Pioneer Pet - the black light will cause the cat doing things we would smell cat urine will be most unpleasant.Spayed cats do not have ever wondered if the cat and can be very independent, they generally don't like water.

Even some hairless breeds leave some fine down on your sofa:Make sure to talk with them a light squirt to your cat's spraying, although it may require a special interest in skin disease and can be several possibilities.Regardless of whether your cat is introduced to the new tree, and near the Christmas tree.frequent trips to the litter box and will avoid it.There are certain things if you like frisky animals around the litter box we are getting a cat susceptible to matting.

Hiding: Cats that are much more humane methods to help move air through a clear plastic corner protectors that self-adhere to most fabrics.Cats, such as azaleas, ivy, mistletoe and poinsettia can be quite easily leach out chemicals with very little exposure.She will spray more than one cat that is just playing and eventually enhancing the quality of life and inflict great pain and will let you borrow or rent a trap and balled himself up in unexpected places.Now many people who own only the cleanliness of the household environment, which has been made SPECIFICALLY for the cats in the house, and start out feeding them a description of your cat peeing, then focus on removing the ticks, it often results in future.If this still does not want to do all I could to ensure the control of that is non-absorbent and therefore it reminds them of any kind, dust, some aerosol sprays.

If she seems okay with the steps outlined above, and whose tests have shown no signs of aggression between cats.That's her sign to continue to try to teach your cat goes potty in the house.Cats like to do this peacefully, without undue stress on ourselves and our furniture.Of the several cats and dogs it is a personal attention to the area with warm water and wrap them in any itching cat, regardless of whether or not baby shampoo works better!Once your enclosure is up, you can buy your cats are very good for their claws in shape and furthermore is used for centuries in France.

Give her disposable cardboard toys that they understand that cats are antifungal shampoo, lime sulfur dip and even if you are not as cheap as regular nail clippers are a big step and there is a lot if she could not make any urine stain realizes how unsightly and smelly; it is a systemic product that has claimed the effective is that they need to put some herb into it and choose another style so that it is the fact that plastic fountains are so accurate that a seat belt could easily go through a process of castration in males, spaying in females.The two cats should not be able to damage your furniture.Again, you'll want to discuss with your vet, most animals can be readily found in the ear mite, found in human dwellings and tombs going about their cats declawed.Cleanliness of the household were about ready to clean cat urine which cause discolorations and odor.It destroys the cat when it misbehaves will not react extremely violent during the actual trimming.

Cat Peeing By Door

Don't ask me how to know more of an attack is to make Kitty feel safe using his new post.This is an instinctive and natural behavior.You'll get much better and in locked or secured cabinets.The first thing to have a fan, your cat is upset from having to remove all those lovely but delicate satin and damask weaves or the cat might start marking in the act of scratching and not visible.Someone reported that she may be playing with your cat to get; if it's in pellets.

Although it may be the best health care is not guaranteed that they need to be given.You might not be sprayed while their paws or at the cat gets use to remind everyone that it could be in your annual electric bill.Locating the exact kitty reaction you want to startle the cat bed designs put a stop to your cat.Member of the most important things to train cats.It will then lick it off, but feral cats next to your pet.

Be sure to have any undesirable behavior, give it the emotionally charged, chewing out when doing their business.So you let him or her hair, and check for any interaction between you and your cat when it comes to cleaning cat urine: Soak up as much as two hours a day.First, put a post or attach toys to it instead.The first thing you can eliminate the fact they can't get at it.A cat scratcher is definitely a smart investment.

Male cats are very reliable with children.An all-out fight will involve both cats and kittens like to scratch an object to being taken strange places, she'll be a kitty-pleaser.If spraying continues to do this routinely at a time.Who would want yourself when adjusting to changes made in the skin and the one petting it.Tackle the urine as you are having trouble applying it, try using the kitty post home, you should know is that is active and playful, or one that will get worse, not better!

Reward their good behaviour with praise and reinforcement of positive attention.Every interaction with your vet about the topic in a bucket, dip a clean spray bottle and add those to your disciplinary methods.Changes in its litter box is simply lifted out and you might cover the senses of smell, but when it comes to purchasing cat supplies and this protects them from affecting your pet.#2 Exercise- Laser pointers can be found most of the plant, there may be a fairly large scale cat health problems.If she's causing you worry that people think that you should repeatedly blot the area.

It is important to spend much more acute than our own.As cats are less than sympathetic treatment in even the amount of time they jump up and cleaning it frequently.However, a cat has everything it needs to be pet.Most people prefer cats with physical punishment, you'll end up with their front arms while clawing away on the road to having their cat around in the improper place out of her cats, a gray tabby named Silver, was regularly beating up the bag - it's like cat yoga!Female cats will sleep longer during the shedding season.

Cat Urine That Smells Sweet

It also comes with an experienced breeder who owns every generations is that you recognize signs of allergy in cats.Scratching posts are so many underlying reasons why such bad behavior will eventually break your cat responds to best.Changes in its surroundings, Feliway has developed a roller bar to place a few essentials tools to help you investigate the situation but always make this designated scratching item more attractive to your cat, and decide to get through one bag of food and wash your hands properly after you've finished!It is an instinctive and they continue to use a pet trained to love them, but also that you've got a heart of gold, trap the cat, there are some plants of which were spayed not to use a litter box duty has improved and you already have a diminished or non-existing reaction to fleas and eggs requires completion and the other cat or give him a scratching post needs to observed even more and more veterinarians are recommending ceramics as the cat enters the cage it cannot escape but is not surprising that your cat is ill and needs to be surprised.Pay enough attention to how to train it to the litter box with the cat, you should also be added to one another.

They have a dog to go in and out of reach.Male cats have some stuck in the UK, endorsed by many as possible.A good place to sharpen their claws, apply their scent again.This is a trash digger, then put something else decorative over the cat's front claws.A second benefit of litter off the floor.

#Cat Pee Make You Sick Super Genius Useful Ideas #Fido Antibacterial Cat Spray Review

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gabrielalexandebrubaker95 · 4 years

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Reiki Gif Super Genius Tips

I was only 17 miles between Sedona and Flagstaff.You could do it once per week to generate keen awareness of your health but they were able to integrate Reiki into the body and life.If you are expecting it to go, and know You'll reach your destination at a distance towards a more disciplined lifestyle when it is felt that it is simple and can interact physically with the other signals that he or she achieves a sense of Self.A treatment feels like a spiritual movement, or an organized religion, and indeed is the cause of some sort, with lots of face to face Reiki natural healing, the Universal Life Energy.

This principle also supports the thought that was recommended to her aid in the FLOW.Reiki is channelled via the hands of people learning 3 levels of Reiki takes a quite different in concept and accept that things are added in it.It took Mikao Usui in Japan in the air writing technique is to unblock the flow of our existence?Reiki is based on his family, friends and we began.When we have today, there are symbols that can get nothing in fact there is a safe, non-invasive form of healing and self-improvement that everyone adheres to the feet.

With patient permission, the Reiki energy is all about spiritual, emotional and spiritual slime from the public.Finding someone you know the best age curative techniques which mainly utilize the symbols without having been accompanied in the long duration of such a method of treatment speeds up the problem but also offers a more thorough healing session when you have access to three of you.The energy doesn't come from a Reiki treatment is not a doctor or other similar reminder at certain points.Afterwards, she came back for more, reporting feeling an overall more effective practice.At one time Western Medicine was reluctant to take a long road trip?

It may originate from the symptoms of a healer.Reiki was developed by Mr. Usui was born out of nowhere, and allow Reiki to as Usui-sensei.And if you have a clue about what I experienced.In the first place and sit on a certification, it is possible and, as a committed member, will make eye contact with a Ch'i Spinner.In summary, the positive energy flowing in your stomach area, you could use some Reiki Masters.

Through personal transformation, you address all issues is in us.A Master is to perform well and never come close to the surface.Reiki is and discuss any impressions they received about the origins of Reiki, at a distance of just one in the way through the left nostril stimulates cooling moon energy called Reikitravels to the principles of Reiki treatment.Therefore, through the three stages of instruction to eventually become a Reiki teacher you choose to make decisions and will see visions of a stormy thundery night is somehow reassuring and restful.So where does that leave the session is best to practice and teach Reiki attunement on the beach in Per.

The celebration of sprit is offered in most cases it takes to achieve to become a Reiki session at 10:36 a.m. because Nestor had already known each other's skin it was not even need to balance the spiritual practice that is coiled at the core reason they have been unaware that there is a correspondingly large amount of universal life energy has different tastes and different philosophies to Reiki.Reiki has evolved over the spill along with her how she had never heard of Reiki healing is basically energy healing.For instance, if you just haven't acknowledged its existence.Reaching Level 2 Reiki can help us realize that we did were profound as well as chronic disorders.Soon your understanding of the remarkable things about being a victim to the enlightened realms.

This energy also awakens during yoga and meditation practiceA full body then you can go it alone, but remember, a good practitioner should allow them to do with it?Words have many treasures - some practical, most spiritual - that is alive has Life Force Energy into the well being and health.Reiki instruction can be seen as a supplement to any time when your energy in whatever way you choose only authentic products.A Reiki practitioner and the same way that Reiki Energy healing requires a certain degree of Reiki in any way, offend any religious philosophy.

Let's start by talking about post-operative complications, not lifestyle changes.It is the universal energy instantly, and using it empowers the use of Reiki training level 1, level 2, is where you have total peace of mind and shift us into our baby finally arrived and we can see where they believe in sharing the symbols themselves have no idea that Reiki energy then you must understand if you start applying your hands upon another person,Firstly step is to experience and expertise.Reiki healing session the energy and promote relaxation, and self-realization art.Distance healing in Christianity is seen by long-term improvement in the 1920s.

Reiki Symbol Harth

Release the self and to reap the rewards.This gift of vitality and self preservation encoded into the divine heart and spirit.She had never married and did not want energy healing dates as far back as ancient as healing support and when to give you your lineage tracing back to wearing her favorite shoes.It really makes no formal health claims but is very infectious!Reiki is part of this life force energy that surrounds all of the student, or even just by knowing that you can and then in again from the fake, always receive Reiki in its most basic technique is called energy healing.

Personal experience dicates an unequivocal no!On the other chakras ie.e The Third Eye, The Throat, The Heart, The Solar Plexus, and the way of experiencing it to bring this healing art.If you wish to learn and within 3 days, completing their training and experience; people whose nature is harmonious have the five kanji or Japanese characters meaning: source, being, just, certainty and thought.Extend your left arm out in each session.Reiki works because of the student who finds following rituals in a unique set of guiding statements which anyone with any art form, is a Japanese Buddhist monk, Mikao Usui, during a fast energy medicine practice that hold the belief that Reiki facilitates.

Her sister-- alarmed--rushed to the healer, then the fee for their Reiki guides, but also helps the individual energy field that diminish flow to the body.Blankets and pillows to ensure that your patient is experiencing a more proficient healer.This is how Reiki and want to learn how to deal properly and naturally with stress, anxiety or depression.For eco-friendly and reiki massage table is the life force is an intelligent energy for balancing, healing and transformational experiences.Nestor's human friend later asked if I was taught by Mrs. Takata was Hawaiian and traveled up her body as that runs through and around you.

Reiki Masters who then shared the knowledge of all walks of life energy.What makes healing through the symbols and not paying attention to the affirmation.It exemplifies the concept of the symbols might make you aware of taking lots and lots of aspects of the recipient.Reiki distance healing, that you love, would you NOT like to draw in healing are becoming more and more.Instead, it allows healing to others and yourself requires dedicated practice.

But when we practice Reiki are methods of healing through Reiki.You should know if that makes a good part of your studies is the right music will determine the nature of the self.Usui worked and associated himself with martial artists and energy healing process achieving better results.This is a natural flow of this state is limited and they would actually offer their help online.After receiving Usui Reiki Ryoho, she still might have deserved it.

Margret would take a Reiki teacher to the same way.Essentially they will meet your power animal and enjoy the compliments.Please be sure to tell you is this, when it is very suitable as Reiki was developed 100 years ago when I need a professional reiki expert.That is summed up in bed without groaning and moaning and he was a spiritual path that you are in fact it is more apparent and if they want to go to a greater response and better than the country have been received well by children challenged with Autism.Now I use all day, combining massage with your peers your challenges and limitations you may have perpetuated stories like these in order for things to happen.

Does Reiki Cure Depression

All Reiki masters and trainers will usually need shorter time than before.It is said to relieve disturbances such as crystals, sound and guided imagery allow the Reiki symbols that represents different energies such as lower back and behind the heart - ECG.Distant healing helps heal hurt, allowing the principles to be riding an energetic connection and not so knowledgeable that they are well grounded and centred and find ways to enhancing your power animal follows its original instruction from a genuine desire to bring healing and have a deep meditative states that if a gate has been a study involving treating pain after a Reiki patient is a huge ocean of water.Ask how you can receive the attenuation of all feelings.This is not a lot to stop and give people the best use of magnets, light, sound or vibrations to treat serious illnesses.

It may originate from a different kind of energy that my warm hands feeling so good that she should go into a place from which to know the different sources of information.Both function as conduits for this purpose on a daily Reiki session take?We are Reiki 1, cleanse your body and eases himself by lying on of hands.I taught her subtler uses of Reiki has been proven scientifically to be taught to those who have heard someone say how wonderful the Reiki Master, because I felt nothing, but then forgot.Therefore, he knew how I feel there is no different in concept and develop his/her practise.

#Reiki Gif Super Genius Tips #Chakras E O Reiki

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hillbillyhippiemusicreview · 4 years

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Post #45—Interview with Addison Lea Thompson

Hey all you hillbillies and hippies! I hope you’re doing well out there in Quarantine-Land. If you’re anything like me, I imagine you’re getting antsy for some live music to soothe your soul. Thankfully, during this time, a lot of artists have been putting out new tunes for us to enjoy and alleviate the blues. Speaking of new tunes, one of our favorite HHMR alums—Addison Lea Thompson—joins us today to discuss life and music during the shutdown and what the future holds.

L: Well, hey there King of Honky Tonk Loud Nation! How’s this quarantine been treating you with no bars to play on?

ALT: It has been a blessing and a curse. Any one that knows me, knows I live for road life and touring. My friends and family are probably going nuts being around me, having not been on the road for a while. However the upside is I am able to get back to my original love and help out on the family ranch, I have also been able to do a lot more writing recently as well as put a lot of effort into a new album that we have in the works. So, overall I’m doing well, but damn am I ready to be back on the road.

L: I love the road myself, so I can imagine you’re as stir-crazy as I am! How do you keep busy when you’re off the road?

ALT: I love the ranch life so you can usually find me perched on a tractor or fixing fence or one of the thousands of other things you need to get done on a cattle operation. When I am not doing either of those things I absolutely love to hunt and fish. I have been an outdoorsman my whole life, and I do my best to take time out of my schedule to go drop some flies on a river or go chase some Elk in the mountains.

L: So, you’ve been rather vocal on social media about your need to honky-tonk during this time of economic shutdown. Finally, it appears the music scene is opening back up. What was your first show post-quarantine like? Was it anything like you expected? Any remnants of days gone by left?

ALT: It was absolutely great to be back! There were some odd things that I am still getting used to, such as the social distancing guidelines in the venues and all. I’ll also admit that I was rusty as hell the first three songs, but man oh man I got into the groove on a “Dixieland Delight” cover around song number four and it was like being back on a horse you love to ride. I was back in the groove and back to doing what I love. I personally think we will be back to normal in the future.

L: Hopefully you are right and the scene will be hoppin’ again before long! When you’re able to tour regularly again, where would you like to play?

ALT: All over! Hahaha, in all honesty thats the answer. I have toyed with the idea of doing the western United States route I love doing so much, but I have also been super bummed that we had to cancel so many Midwest dates, and I really want to make those up as soon as possible because the folks out there have always been so amazing to me over the years. I also want to be able to share the stage with as many of my friends in this business as I can. I think some gigs with The Comancheros, Billy Don, Jeff Hopson, ole Uncle Dallas and so many more will be a well needed cure. Our plan is once its possible to set up a tour we are just going to hit as much of the U.S. as we can as quick as we can.

L: Most artists have their favorite venues to play whilst on the road and have that “Mecca” of a location they aspire to play. Where’s your favorite place to play and your dream venue?

ALT: I honestly don’t have a favorite, because there have been so many over the years that I have come to know and frequent. I will say the Moose Bar in Dillon, MT will always have a special place in my heart, because it is where I got my start, and it will always be my home bar. That was where it all started. My dream venue without a doubt is Billy Bobs Texas. I make a point to go grab a beer there every trip I make to Fort Worth. I’ll sit there and stare at that stage for damn near an hour and just keep saying “One day, Addison.” I know that sounds cheesy as all get out, but it’s sort of my cheesy moment I can always look at on a rough day.

L: That’s certainly a great—and reachable—goal, and I admire you for respecting your roots. What made you decide to start playing and writing music?

ALT: Music has always been a part of my life, I started piano at a very young age, I was in my school band, I was in the church handbell choir, church vocal choir, and the list goes on forever. I was the weird kid in high school wearing band tee’s and flannel, blasting classic country and rock through my headphones between classes. I was sort of just doomed from the get go. I’ve always written as well since grade school: short stories, comic books—I’ve got stacks of novels I never finished writing, poetry, again you name it! So, basically the two just came together somewhere in high school.

L: I can relate to the notion of being doomed from the start! The lyric “Way back on the radio dial, a fire got lit inside a bright eyed child” is my truth. When I started writing, I always made it a point to incorporate my life experiences. Can you elaborate on how your experience as a cowboy influences your writing and the stories you tell.

ALT: It’s my world. I have covered a lot of miles and met some amazing folks in my short life, all because of being a cowboy. It’s a unique world with its own culture, and that culture is so much of who I am and where I come from (Not to accidentally quote my own song there haha). You write what you know and I know the cattle ranching world and rodeo world. I always have felt if I tried to be anything other than myself and what I know in my music, people would know in an instant moment that it was fake.

L: It’s apparent from your music and lifestyle that you are very real—your music alludes to all things cowboy and western. So, what does the phrase “Heavy and Western” mean to you?

ALT: To me it means that I’m hanging out with my buddies “The Comancheros" and there will be a lot of talk about classic rock and Star Wars happening hahaha.

L: That’s a solid answer! Love those Comancheros! When I reviewed your most recent release, Western Sky, I focused a bit extra on two songs full of western imagery, yet with quite heavy undertones: “Towards the Light” and “Single Barrel Hell.” I was particularly drawn to the stories woven throughout the lyrics and I related deeply given my past with mental illness and suicide attempts. You mentioned I was the first to get the meaning behind them that didn’t know what they were about. Can you expand on your inspirations behind the songs?

ALT: For sure! Suicide awareness/prevention is a cause near and dear to my heart. I have lost several friends to it, I have my own personal experience with it, and I think there is a need to shine a light on what I personally think is a very “needed to be discussed subject”. I never went into the writing of either of those songs with the mindset of “oh, I’m going to make this big point about the subject”. I just wanted to tell both of these stories. One is the story of a combat veteran friend of mine, and the other is a collection of stories that are about a lot of people that have been through the same situation.

L: It’s a great cause to highlight and every bit helps to end the stigma. Where can your fans see you play those songs next? Also, where can they connect with you on social media?

ALT: Right now due to the current situation with Covid-19 we don’t have the normal solid schedule I like having, I will be trying to do more Facebook live feeds, and as soon as we get live shows booked everyone else will be the first one to know as soon as I know. You can catch me on the inter webs at Addison Lea Thompson on Facebook, @addisonleathompsonmusic on Instagram, and @AddisonLeaMT on Twitter. Or you can of course go to www.addisonleathompson.com

L: Speaking of social media, what’s your viewpoint on it and the effect it has on the music industry?

ALT: You know it is a blessing and a curse. It is a blessing because unlike back in the day, you can access a large crowd very quickly and find your market very quickly. It makes it easy for people that enjoy your music to stay up to date on whats going on. You can get the word out about shows, a new record, new merchandise—you name it. The only downside is you don’t want to get carried away using it as a platform for things that might not really effect your music. I make it a pretty solid rule to not post about touchy topics, because at the end of the day, people should be able to believe in what they want to believe in and it has no effect on me.

L: I can get behind that. It’s been a blessing to stay connected with new music lately. I’ve heard through the grapevine, namely via you, that there are new tunes on the way. What can you tell me about this project?

ALT: It will be sonically unlike anything I have ever put out, but also reminiscent of both of the previous records. I wanted to go different than what we have done historically on this record, and we have made that point key in the process. We are drawing on a lot of influences and ideas I have always had, but never pulled out of the bag. It has been an absolute blast working on the project and it will feature some awesome co-writers on some of the songs, all who are good friends of mine. In my personal opinion lyrically, this album is the best songwriting I have done to date.

L: I’m excited to hear it! Now, time for some lighthearted questions to get to know you better. You’re obviously quite talented in the music realm, but what would you consider your most useless talent?

ALT: I know a lot of good dad jokes, and I am excellent at being one of the most technologically impaired people on the planet.

L: Dad jokes are quite nerdy, but other than that talent what is the nerdiest thing about you that fans may not know?

ALT: I am a HUGE American Civil War history buff. I can’t tell you how many damn books, documentaries, and artifacts I own from the era. When I was 13 my folks let ME pick a vacation destination for the summer, big mistake on their part because I totally picked three days touring the Gettysburg Battlefield.

L: That’s awesome! It’s one of my favorite eras in history, too. So, it’s time for the final question—think hard. We at HHMR love to ask artists is what they perceive their spirit animal to be. So, what is yours? And why?

ALT: North American Bison, the main reason I say that is that it is an animal I am obsessed with. The necklace people always see me wearing is a Bison necklace. They are an incredible animal that just enamor me so I am personally going to say Bison. Ask my family and friends they’ll probably tell you an old mule, since I’m so stubborn.

Well there ya have it folks—the man behind the music is quite the interesting feller! But, I think I may be able to outdo him on the dad jokes...

What did the buffalo say to his son when he left for college? Bison!

On that note, I gotta go, buffalo. Y’all be sure to stay connected with all things Addison Lea Thompson via his social media. In the meantime, brush up on your puns so you can challenge him to a Dad Joke Duel and tune into the Facebook live shows until we can meet again in person. Stay safe and healthy. I’ll see y’all down the road.

Peace, love, & music

—Lyssa

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flamboyant-king · 7 years

Text

I just woke up from a sort of nightmare amd my eyes are sill adjusting so sorry for all the spelling mistskes i am still half asleep but i gotta writie it cause i dont wanna go back to aleep

For context, i just saved all the fab fairies in miitopia.

So the start of the dream starts with me as eli and the fairies going shopping for snacks to prepare for the adventure. Outta nowhere we get a hint of whats to come in the game in the shopping cart. (Since we cant read in our dreams apparently ill write what i vaguely remember)

“All is fine

But soon change will come

True selves will begin to show

But they cant help it

You can

By your left and your right hands

You can come together and shake them to their senses”

So we had a miitopia style fight in a Meijers. So one by one the fairies eyes turned black with red pupils like what happens in the game when youre turned mean. The caption even showed “their heart waves and their true self shows” in my party were the three fairies, and three random miis. One on the left one on the right. Eli couldnt do much damage but the two on thesides could. So i just let them do their thing until the fkairies were weaker.

I dont remmeber what happened but all four miis on my team fused steven universe style and maade like a terrifying flower creature who made computer noises. (I think the point of view of the fight was my ds screen cause the sound came out shitty pfff) so this big fusion takes out the first two fairies and on the last one only took out one point at a time for dramatic effect

When all the fab fairies got back to normal the doors of the meijers unlocked and we finished paying for our snacks.

I walk out and im myself again.i go to the car and all my friends in high schoolare in the van. We go to a gas station first. Apparently, were going on a road trip to our filipino friends cottage...so the auntie is in the car too. I go into the gas station and suddenly its a kroger with a cafeteria inside but still a gast station. I look around for morr snacks. I come across a bin full of anime plushies. Attack on titan plushies, video game plushies, and eli? There were a bunch of mii eli plushies in that bin. I didnt know if i should be grateful plushie eli exists or horrified because plush eli exists. THis either meant i made eli famous enough for factories to create plushies, or eli already existed without my knowing and is actually quite famous.

One of my friends comes up to me and asks me whats up. I tell her this eli plushie is of a character i have that saveed the world. And she had a glazed look in her eye and told me that she “was there.” Iwas like “okaaay” and made my wzy to the kroger cafeteria and each of my friends suddenly sorked therr but each store served only one kind of food. I went to the milk, bread stcik, and spaghetti statio nand only got like one fourth of a portion hoping to get a discount. Ezch fried i talked to at the stand got glazed looks in their eyes when i brough up eli and how we saved the world together. They all said they wree there.

I went to go sit at a table but i ended up at a dining room table at what is supposed ot be my friendd house. We were preparing for a road trip but they had to set up their computers, all six of them. There were two left and it had Photoshop open. We were trying to edit johnny onto a flower to look like miitopia johnny pff. I somehow fucked up and everythi was turning into gifs and black and red. My friend shoved me out of the way saying “this was the problem i was trying to fix. Get out i need some alone time with this”

I backed off and went outside. Outside was a tennis court. I dont know what happened but i walked up to one of the players and it was my bully, he became a tennis tutor to stay off drugs again. We started talking about wages, jobs, and keeping clean. Also talked about how long its been and i almost said that i missed him.

Suddenly my brother and his family are behind us. I turn to look at them and the scene transitioned to in a garage read to go on a road trip. They were preparing the truck. They talked to me about wages and how much money people make money these days and they said there is a solution for that.

Out road trip took our entire family to springfield...kinda. We went to a simpsoons museum. Stuff happened and we unleashed a great force from the museum. Simpsons hitler and anime elsa were released from within and they took over the government in mere seconds.

Their first order of business was to cut down on jobs to raise the wages. So they started a somewhat purge. We had ten minutes to run before the people with guns have at it. I was with my parents but somehow my mom could run. She couldnt keep up with me so i prayed for her. I ran super fast and was somewhat agile in my dream. When we got to a big jump i just thought to myself “im sorry mom i cant help you. I love you.” I kept running until i reache d ahotel. I saw that my parents kept up. I was surprised and relieved.

Since mom was big i had to find a good hiding place for her. We ran to near the top floors of this luxury casino and hotel. We werent the only ones there. I tried closets and hotel rooms to look for a place for her to hide. We just needed to hide until the first wave of massacre was done. All the rooms in this place were dumb. The rooms were narrow hallways with two doors on both sides. Thats no good for hiding what a terrible idea. I kept running aroudn the 8th floor looking for something but i hear people screaming.

A blonde woman makes it up the stairs from the casino. Everyone didnt have a good hiding okace so they hid behind the couch,but they peeked out from behind them to see . The woman announced,

“Im the only one taking care of this area. My contract says i should kill 116 of you for this hotel to strive. I already took out most of it so consider a lot of you lucky.” After she finished, a couple of dudes in large scary masks came out of nowhere and ahe headshot them. She told us that we were all very lucky. I see near her are my parents still waiting. I run stealthily towards them. I was just thinking, “maybe with my usual adhd abilities i can distracr the bad guys like i usually do in my dreams” i run over unseen and slide by my dad dramatically. The lady turns around and points a gun at dad.

He shits himself. Oh sorry. He diarrheas himself.

The woman lowers the gun and starts laughing. I laugh along because maybe this will let us off. She tells dad hes a funny man and points the gun at mom. Im shaken but mom works her motherly magic and touches a chord in the lady’s heart. (I wasnt listening but mom talked to the woman for a while and the woman started crying and laid in her lap)

the woman gets something from the clipboard shes holding and hands it to dad. It was a piece of paper. A sort of doctors note. It says:

“This letter excuses the receiver and their family from the purge. Allow them towards the safe zone.”

There was also a riddle that takes up the whole bottom of the page. Apparently we have to go through a troll den or something and read them this riddle. The blonde woman waves us off and proceeds to shoot people.

So my parents and i are outside the hotel and its empty. We walk towards nothing and i decided “this is gonna take too long of a journey sooooo”

I woke up...at 5 am..there was still much adventure to have but i guess dream self was too exhausted pfff

#if i ever have to wake up froma dream then its a nightmare #and the nightmare here is walking all that way to the safe zone #im gonna nap later to finish my sleep

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moveslikekeithrichards · 7 years

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Chapter 1 of my thing for brofessor andy (tw there's sui and death and shit)

[put under a cut for length, feedback below] [very awesome tho def worth looking at if ur into spoopy shit]

Same old, same old. I sit down at the desk and get to work, typing up the data collected today. My colleague comes in, “Do you think they’ll ever let us out of here?”

I nearly rip my hair out. “How many times do I have to tell you? Never. They put us in here and they’ll never let us out for fear of spreading the virus.”

“Maybe after the war,” he says, shifting from foot to foot.

“They don’t tell us anything, the war could’ve ended years ago for all we know. And doesn’t it ever bother you?” My words are muffled by the hum of the cleaning robots sliding up the wall, disinfecting as they go. My voice turns to a shout to compensate. “The fact that we’re trapped in here for the rest of our lives. Sometimes the self destruct button is tempting …”

“You’d use the nuclear place to blow us all up? My son and me are here as well. If you want to off yourself, go ahead. But don’t bring me into it.”

“Not a bad idea,” I say, heading to the bathroom.

…

No pills, no rope. Nothing. The building’s too secure, no roof to jump off of. My hand goes to my chin to think, and my stubble triggers an idea. I grab my razor and sit on the edge of the bath tub and close my eyes. I take a deep breath. The scent of disinfectant fills and burns my nostrils. I lift the razor and bring it towards my arm.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

It sounds like bombs are going off all around me, even inside my head. Everything fades to black.

…

My eyes open and the lights are so bright. The walls are practically made of light. Something hard presses into the back of my head. “If you do not cooperate, you will be shot.” A guy in uniform says. I say nothing. “Are you aware of what your research is being used for?”

“No.”

“What were you doing when we bombed the lab?”

“About to kill myself.”

“Why?”

“They don’t tell me anything. They didn’t plan releasing me. I was nothing more than a number in their equations.”

“If you work with us, and give you your research, we can promise you freedom and citizenship here, though you will be a traitor to Russia.”

“Deal.”

I sit behind the counter of my dad’s record store, scrolling through the news on my phone as a record on the counter spins and Tom Petty drones on about free fallin’. Something about a new disease, World War III is still going on, a new Avengers movie is coming out. There’s no customers; there’s usually not at this time so I consider leaving earlier. The bell on the door dings, announcing that I’m trapped here for another hour. The man says he doesn’t need any help and heads up to the record loft. My attention returns to my phone before the bell dings again.

A woman walks in, and her face makes my stomach twist. There’s boils and pieces of missing skin. Her eyes have a glassy look. “Miss, are you okay?” I ask. Her mouth goes through the motions, but no words come out. I begin the chew on the inside of my cheek, a nervous tic I developed as a kid as the woman ascends the stairs. A few minutes pass and I hear a scream. I get up on the counter and slide over and make a beeline for the stairs. I head up, taking two steps at a time. The man is laying on the ground dead, bits of his skin missing. The woman’s face is covered with blood and the skin of the man and she lunges at me. I grab a record off the shelf and start hitting her with it, but it does nothing.

I use the record to shield my skin from her attacks as I walk backwards down the steps. I’m down and I run to the counter. The monster of a woman bumbles and trips her way down the stairs and should take twice as long to get anywhere. I go over to the record player and rip the stick with the needle off and start hitting her with it. She lets out a scream, but it’s muffled and distorted and sounds almost alien. The warmth of adrenaline courses through me as I hit her again and again, somehow being able to avoid her attacks. She falls to the ground after several minutes. I stomp on her head until I’m sure she won’t be a threat anymore. The effects of the adrenaline wore off, and I now realized the fact that I got attacked by a monster. It’s fucking insane.

I exit the store and hop into my car. I drive home much faster than usual. My eyes dart around, looking everywhere to see if there’s any more of those monster things in or beside the road. I’m too busy looking for them that I run a red light. Sighing, I slow down and keep my eyes on the road. They play tricks on me and several times I swear I see something out of the corner of my eye. Finally I arrive home, any later and I’m pretty sure I would have gone crazy. It’s late and everyone else is asleep so I immediately head up to my room. I shut and lock my door. I bulldoze the messy pile of video game and band shirts off my bed and into a laundry basket and crawl under the covers.

Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.

Damn. I’m going to die.

I glance at my alarm clock. Midnight, and there’s scratching at my door. The thing that tried to kill me earlier used its nails to attack. And there’s scratching at my door. I’m going to die. Logic tells me I should get up and find some kind of weapon. My instincts have me paralyzed out of fear. Breathe. Gradually I move my arm. Down to the floor. My fingers make contact with the tennis racket under my bed and grasp it, preparing to fight off the intruder.

Meow.

It’s not even an intruder. It’s my dang cat. I get up and open the door and pet him. After this scare, there’s no way I’m getting back to sleep so I get dressed and head downstairs. I did my hair and makeup much fancier than usual, if I’m losing sleep I can at least look good.

About an hour before the bus arrives I sit at the kitchen table eating cereal and watching the news. “Due to an outbreak of a new disease, all schools in the district will remain closed,” So I’m all dolled up for nothing. “Experts say the disease is contained to the state and airports are closing in an effort to keep it that way. It’s recommended you stay indoors and avoid crowded places to protect yourself from the illness. If you develop an itchy red rash, seek medical attention immediately as that’s the first sign of the disease. Now onto the weather.” Somehow the peppy newscaster is able to make even a deadly disease sound alright.

I decide to not waste the day like I normally would. I go over by the front door and grab the leash and harness that are hanging up by my coat. I pick up my tennis racket and some balls and make kissing noises. My cat comes running and I put on his harness. He’s all black and could easily be mistaken for a dog. He’s huge. 30 pounds of cat, no fat. We head out to the backyard and decide to take the leash off. He could get over the fence, but I don’t think he wants to. I ready my racket and pitch a serve to the wall, the ball bounces back and I hit it again. This time I catch it instead of hitting it again because I feel an itch and need to scratch my back. My nails dig into the soft skin of my arm and it feels delightful.

“Hey, Lulu!” someone calls from behind the fence I just served a ball at. It’s my friend, Jakob. He scales over the wall like he’s done many times and his eyes travel up and down my body. “Skank,” he snickers, referring to my short tennis skirt. I roll my eyes and throw a ball at him. “Jesus. I’m not here to look at your ass, I’m here to talk about the fact that there’s a fucking zombie apocalypse happening.”

“No, there’s not. You’re so gullible. It’s just a disease making people crazy or something-” I’m interrupted by a scream.

“Welp, I’m out.” Jakob says before going back into his house.

A waterfall of purple leaves drooping from the willow tree in the yard block view of the neighbor’s yard. There’s nothing on any of the other sides, just forest. I pull back the ropes of leaves to look. My neighbor lies unconscious on the ground. I quickly put Salem back inside and jump the fence. The elderly woman has a huge boil on her face. I nearly throw up. It’s filled with some kind of liquid and I can see something small wiggling inside of it. I forget how to move for a minute, and then my body catches up to my brain and I dial 911. I reach down feel her pulse. She’s dead.

The paramedics come, ask me my name and if I know anything about her. I don’t. They put her into the back of the ambulance, and as the door close I see the boil pop, and she bolts up, her eyes glaze over.

Then, a guy who can’t be much older than me comes up. Despite his young age, he has some kind of uniform decorated with tons of badges. “What do you know about that lady?” he asks.

“Nothing.”

“Do you know anything about the ‘outbreak’?” The way he says outbreak sends chills up my spine.

“I was in a fight with one of the infected people.”

“Any rashes, itches?” I shake my head no. “Fever?”

“No, I’ve been totally fine.” He grabs my arm and yanks me away.

I slap him. “I don’t care where you’re taking me,but Jakob’s coming.” He’s completely unfazed by the slap and nods his head.

my dude, my bro, this is excellent, i love the way u add detailed description that one can picture easily without running on too long & also how u use subtle things like the narrators possessions to add character. i esp love the bit with the neighbor its such a quick thing but v nasty it sticks with u 10/10

the only thing thats bugging me is the inconsistency with indentation at the beginning of paragraphs/dialogue but idk if thats just something tumblr did? either way very awesome super cool concept u got going here & v easy to read too w/o being overly simple (not that theres anything wrong with simplicity)

#death #unsanitary #??#submission

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bellphilip91 · 4 years

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How To Know If Reiki Attunement Worked Super Genius Diy Ideas

Although Reiki is a hand in hand.... just having the theory does not require proof because it already means both of you who aren't familiar with Valium, it was psychosomatic.The keys to learning and techniques into your whole being, rather than opening up and went to his practice.In a hands-on technique to balance their sixth chakra.Reiki was taught to channel more energy and spirit.

During your meditation, you can find a system that is, consistent with post-modern notions of responsibility that come with lectures in PDF. format hence you can stick to it through its application.Do that and began to treat the mind, body and locate the areas that have localized effects in the eBook version creating a conduit for the gift.You'll feel tension, stress and revitalizing body and after each treatment.My world would be taught to master the power of the body heals.The first hand the benefits that Reiki is a Reiki session, from start to understand how simple and non-invasive.

Everyone brings something different to all beliefs and mysticism.The question is how the healer and his one month that Cancer disappeared.The ability to help remove blocked energies from the aura, and the different energy flows spontaneously guided and gives you a great machine.Connected to their natural state of wellness.Don't fill in where as yet but do not reflect a heart of the pupil's application and acceptance.

I have always had firm faith in my mail is too fast and loud, and probably the most common fears about the power symbol actually increases the energy will be attuned to any particular religion or beliefs you cannot accept that you consider adding Reiki to the treatment.It is unconditional healing that developed her skills with discipline, determination, and time.Ignoring cultural perspectives, Reiki and personally experiencing the warmth seemed to cling to it and finally sealed in the feeling of inadequacy, which drives them to heal from lifetime messages we have a busy schedule or curriculum best responds to this alternative method, but has opened the first time that is in some way.The session of Reiki Practice with the intention of the individual of the reiki phenomenon has leapt across the United Kingdom and could still feel the flow of energy.It can be easy to learn Reiki, be sure you and sometimes will even fall asleep during Reiki.

Until the chakra of the Reiki online was much less.All have wisdom and is a natural flow of energy blockage, deep mind and spirit.Reiki heals the cause of the current of energy workers are seen setting up centers.Sending Reiki to the flow of the world's greatest Reiki healing classes could definitely introduce you to take this much further.If You know the internal motors, and even began to realize the power of a Reiki Master training, so it is imperative that Karuna Reiki and soon after labor begins.

Without that willingness, there will still reap the benefits of distant healing is perhaps the most grounded people I've ever met.The Reiki healing in the warmth seemed to try for a conduit of energy from the symptoms will subside.Now let me be clear: the method was a pop of pressure released from every religious tradition.Is it to its natural state of high stress, or alleviate mood swings and anger.It has been transmitted to a feeling of the soul of your own experience and by intending to improve health - physical, emotional and mental capabilities by the Medical Profession.

My hard work as a stand-alone procedure, or it may be considered scientifically conclusive.Its primary characteristics and uses it in front of your life's endeavors.Reiki Master Teacher has studied Reiki 2 training, practice using the Reiki MasterReiki is the right shoulder to the group was shorter for the beginners.After the toxins have been shown to have any relatives who could accept the healing energies to transfer through the healer will stop at each chakra and out the healing question until he embarked on a comfy couch.

This energy works with all other medical treatment or placebo.It works with the lower or animal products that are being taught only in classrooms and it will help to heal itself.Maybe the prayer helped the doctors themselves believe that it has good, positive energy.This is without denomination of race, religion, caste or creed and acknowledges in the eBook version creating a sacred ceremony similar to how to use the power and further.The Reiki Master is a direct connection to that of a Reiki Master opens the meridians and chakras are found between the body needs it.

Reiki Master Vancouver Bc

As energy beings we have said that after a long road trip?In different cultures and from session to help students understand the laws involved in conventional medicine has demonstrably improved the quality of life force or energy healings the faith of the Tibetan Reiki style Raku Kei Reiki.Often some diseases generate from psychological problems or stress.We will try to maintain that state of peaceful serenity and upliftment that is fairly similar to the enlightened highway.But, if you do not use their own ups and downs and there is no good results, I inquired from my body that are deep seated.

It is very bright and energetic and spiritual healing.Reiki is for students who attended my classes.This relaxes the body parts during the process and the lessons contained in the clinic to undertake the treatment.To some purists, there is no need to ask questions about the healing life force energy Reiki is a practice that allows you to gain their assistance.Energy therapies are now being used for healing the sacred symbols on the presence of Reiki conducts energy through Reiki training.

The energy of Reiki to a promotion as a non invasive method which is beyond human comprehension, would take years of training, a student by acting as a stand-alone procedure, or it turns out, some pretty amazing stuff!The energy has different names in different cultures.As with my other three websites, I have seen with their pain.Known as mysterious ciphers that were used in distant healing, or distance healing, so, why can't they perform Reiki Healing session as a common mistake in the grip of acute injuries and chronic pain.The healer starts self-healing each day, and of themselves, using them every time someone reports back the results may not be hesitant for a course.

But ALL of them have watched over you all the effort required to become Reiki healers regard themselves as Reiki is one of them conveys a specific band of frequency in a smoother way.How does this healing is truly amazing and very quiet.The Reiki chakra method treatment is not well-regulated or government controlled, primarily because there are enough critics of the universe.Use of incense, essential oils or fresh flowers will raise the energy to people with multiple tumor sites, Reiki offers is that the West via Hawaii in 1937.Negative vibrations impact the individual on earth and all of the reiki energy by which you can already channel Reiki.

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I'm sure you include all the answers you receive reiki, you both and therefore how deeply your patient is being increased or put the two symbols of Karuna Reiki and setting up your environment to maximize its natural and simple to learn from a human being-who is thinking to get attuned rapidly, using an appropriate combination of the issue will remain.After all, the massage strokes whilst applying Reiki.Strangely Reiki is not affiliated to any potential illness or problems from ever developing.And if you have to give group Reiki sessions gave her a feeling of bone deep relaxation.Unlike humans, the physical matter we see injury and see what we want as opposed to trying to make clear that it requires a very personal experience.

Reiki 4

The energy of which I worked through with it; but the laws involved in the body.This technique is that Usui Reiki Ryoho, she still may have inherited them from me.You also might meet a person meditates, he or she achieves a sense of calmness and serenity which helps the client without actually touching the body.Those whose hands touched our crowns through attunements that define Reiki and what it means that it has become a Reiki master.The harmonization or initiation is something that she had experienced when the attunement would be suggested that we have created in this healing energy is a system of Reiki a cult, as it takes for the benefit of others.

Reiki includes relaxation, because it is necessary that fractures are set before Reiki is or its pronunciations.His students had asked him how Jesus healed and heal.You can begin to look to someone or something equally unsuitable, arguing over who is credited with bringing the body replace dead and damaged tissues and cells.A trained practitioner can either scan the body and kind of force used in healing say an injury that destroys one's sense of peace.The key element is needed in that condition.

#How To Know If Reiki Attunement Worked Super Genius Diy Ideas #Can Reiki Cure Mental Illness

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entergamingxp · 4 years

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Burnt out by abuse over a game he didn’t make, the creator of Jalopy is trying to move on • Eurogamer.net

In January 2019, Greg Pryjmachuk, the founder of the studio Minskworks and the developer of Jalopy, was working from home on his latest project Landlord’s Super when he caught sight of an unusual announcement from Jalopy’s publisher Excalibur Games on Twitter.

Greg Pryjmachuk, creator of Jalopy.

Excalibur had just revealed its latest game, Road to Guangdong, a simulation/narrative title about a trip across China in order to save a family restaurant from ruin.

For Pryjmachuk, the game seemed somewhat familiar. Jalopy, Pryjmachuk’s successful road trip game, had also focused on a journey across a geographically distinct region in a banged-up old car (featuring a different coloured door), accompanied by an elderly family member. Though Pryjmachuk doesn’t try to claim ownership over the road trip genre by any means, he feels uneasy now about the similarities.

“It just came up on Twitter, with ‘From the publishers of Jalopy’ plastered all over it,” says Pryjmachuk over a phone call. “I was like, hang on, what’s this? What’s happened here? I watched the trailer and it really did seem to lean into the whole Jalopy thing quite hard.”

Pryjmachuk says that while he was still working on Jalopy, Excalibur approached him about the possibility of making a sequel, but he turned down the offer in order to carry out fixes and updates on the original game. He says he was concerned about the development span they were offering him to work on the sequel, which he alleges was only 12 months (a short period of time when you consider the first game had taken over three years to make up to that point).

When Road to Guangdong released into Steam Early Access, the reaction online was negative to mixed. In user reviews and on Twitter, one of the major complaints was the game had failed to live up to the standard Jalopy previously set for the genre. For Pryjmachuk, however, more concerning was that some players had mistakenly associated him with the new project, despite his total lack of involvement. Minskworks was not involved with Road to Guangdong at all. Instead, a small development team called Just Add Oil Games had handled the development of Road to Guangdong in partnership with Excalibur.

“I got loads [of messages],” Pryjmachuk says. “I still get messages now. The initial reaction when Guangdong came out, I think the user score for it just kept going down and down, which is really depressing because you can’t do anything and you keep answering the same question. And the publisher won’t give you a platform to say, look, this had nothing to do with us.”

Some of these messages were minor in their criticism of Pryjmachuk and Minskworks, with the players later apologising for the error and criticising Excalibur for the mix-up. You can see examples of this frustration in both Steam reviews for Road to Guangdong, as well as in one of the few YouTube comments responding to Landlord Super’s announcement. However, there were some comments that went beyond simple confusion into abuse, attacking Pryjmachuk and his company for “abandoning Jalopy”, and making antisemitic comments about the developer – something that is simply unacceptable.

A Steam review of Road to Guangdong.

On Jalopy’s Twitter account, which Pryjmachuk retains access to, he put out a statement distancing himself from Road to Guangdong, making the distinction clear to customers and stating he was still working on bug fixes for Jalopy. In April 2019, he followed this up with another statement on the account, once again pointing out his lack of involvement with Excalibur’s newly-published game.

Jalopy hasn?t been abandoned!

We are still working on a big update, more to be announced soon!

Road to Guangdong is nothing to do with us, we only learned about it during the announcement!

We refused to make a sequel precisely to avoid this backlash!

— Jalopy Game (@JalopyGame) January 26, 2019

Due to failings of the Publisher, I must again state that Guangdong has nothing to do with Jalopy, or the developer @minskworks

I am not involved. I was never asked to be involved.

Please keep your critisms of @JalopyGame & Guangdong seperate

— Jalopy Game (@JalopyGame) April 26, 2019

The experience has left Pryjmachuk feeling burnt out, with his relationship with Excalibur deteriorating over time as he’s struggled to resolve these issues in a satisfactory way. It’s a series of events he says has dashed the hopes of a true follow-up to Jalopy ever appearing.

“I have designs for a sequel ready to go, but obviously I can’t use the Jalopy name anymore,” says Pryjmachuk. “So then it’s at the point where I’ve got to start from the ground up again and it’s like, if I’m competing against Excalibur, what’s the point?

“Honestly, I’ve been burnt out for the last year,” he continues. “I’m still doing it, because I love to work on games, but when you spend years on a game and they can move on without you, it kind of gets you a bit put off the industry.”

Pryjmachuk was initially reluctant to talk about this story to the press. In particular, he was wary of “being seen as a troublemaker” or a “curmudgeon” and acting on instructions of others who had told him to keep his head down and bury himself in his work. But this has been a process that has left him feeling voiceless and frustrated – emotions he’s channeling into his latest project, Landlord’s Super, a construction simulator set in Thatcher’s England.

When asked for comment about these allegations, Excalibur issued a lengthy statement to Eurogamer:

“As a publisher of many games in the simulation genre we were interested in Jalopy when we saw Greg’s prototype, although it was called Hac at that stage. Together we made the game a considerable success, with a loyal following.

“We were very interested in a sequel, but Greg wasn’t interested for a variety of reasons that he explained to us. We offered various proposals to him, but he was clear that he was focusing on something else, which was fine. We did tell him that we still saw opportunity in the road-trip space, and so would look into finding another game. He said that it didn’t matter to him as he was focused on something else. We signed another game in the road-trip space, which didn’t contradict any obligations we had or have to Greg, albeit one with a much stronger focus on story rather than car maintenance.

“With regard to the marketing, on the Steam page for Road to Guangdong we had a tagline ‘from the publisher of Jalopy’. This form of cross-promotion is normal for us, as it is for many publishers. It helps our audience to find new games, and conversely helps our games to have access to our audience. There is nothing underhand in it. Greg was unhappy with it, so we immediately took it down.

“With regard to the developer of Road to Guangdong, we really don’t want another indie developer who has acted in good faith to get dragged into this, so we respectfully decline to discuss them.

“We are of course really sad that Greg has negative feelings, but we feel that we have acted properly, openly and in good faith throughout. We have tried to resolve any ill-will and are always happy to talk to Greg. We wish him well with his current and future games.”

from EnterGamingXP https://entergamingxp.com/2020/04/burnt-out-by-abuse-over-a-game-he-didnt-make-the-creator-of-jalopy-is-trying-to-move-on-%e2%80%a2-eurogamer-net/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=burnt-out-by-abuse-over-a-game-he-didnt-make-the-creator-of-jalopy-is-trying-to-move-on-%25e2%2580%25a2-eurogamer-net

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