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northsoulss · 3 months

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dating you III - alessia russo

(a/n : here’s less’s part of the dating you series! hope u enjoy xoxo)

stolen glances across the field, electrifying touches. love sick stares reserved only for you. sappy smiles and words only in the comfort of your own home, warm embraces that make you feel like you finally found your forever home.

i. surprise bouquets of flowers in a neat bundle on the dining table was alessia’s love languge.

you trudge home, having had a bad day at your office job with your colleagues incessantly nagging you at every turn. you’ve been texting alessia all day, her comforting you whenever she had a break from training. to your surprise, you see her duffle bag at home, not expecting her to be home before you. you look up after taking off your shoes to see a bouquet of flowers on the table, and you swore your heart melted right there. you picked up the bouquet of your favourite flowers, and in between the petals sat a note written in alessia’s handwriting.

“for you. xoxo.” times like these made you glad you are dating her, your mood instantly perking up.

ii. intimate touches that drive you insane are common occurrences whenever you come back home to one another.

“hope you didn’t wait too long my girl.” she comes up from behind you while you sat at the dining table. her hands settle around your shoulders, pressing delicate kisses behind your ears. she smiles against your skin when she feels your skin get hot, your hands tightening around her wrist.

“i will always wait for you lovely.” you reply, your lips reaching hers softly.

iii. being a woman is difficult, and when you were on your period, your emotions were all over the place. creaking open the door, alessia sees you in a lump on the bed with the covers over your head. she sighs, walking slowly towards you and sitting on the bed. your sniffles are now louder, your voice hoarse as you spoke. “what do you want.” alessia prays that you wouldn’t kill her for doing this, but she slowly pulls the covers off, and to her surprise you don’t resist.

your eyes were bloodshot, tear stains on your cheeks, face flushed. her heart breaks for you, leaning down to press a tender kiss to your forehead. “should i do a quick run to the store to get chocolate for you?” she knew you loved chocolate, especially when you were sad. you think, and quickly nod, kissing alessia’s palm as thanks. she smiles and leaves the room, making sure to do a quick turn to look at you once more before leaving for the store.

when she got back, she saw you on the couch, hugging one of the pillows watching your favourite show. “here babe.” she passes you the chocolate and you light up, finally smiling after an entire day of being lumped in the bedroom. she smiles too, happy to see your grin once more.

iv. doing groceries together was always filled with chaos and laughter. attached to the hip with alessia pushing the trolley, she makes a sudden stop when she sees a food she hates with a burning passion. “who would buy that? its so gross.” she cringes as she picks up the can, looking at it in distaste.

“other people like it less.” you say, clearly amused.

“blah, blah, blah, other people like it less-“ she rolls her eyes and says, “yeah i know.” she pitches her voice higher and mocks you, causing you to laugh loudly in the midst of an aisle. you slap her arm and she giggles, placing back the can. you two continue to shop, stopping once to pull her away from the frozen food section when she saw two tubs of ice cream on sale even though you have three at home.

v. you always supported her at games, and being on different teams, you made sure to watch her play no matter what. you were always the loudest to shout in the stadium, wanting to make sure she knows that you’re there. “i love you alessia russo!” you scream, not caring that people were staring at you like you grew a third head. hearing this, alessia’s head snaps around to find your voice, finding you seated next to her mum wearing arsenal colours. her face flushes pink and her grin grows wider, sending a wink your way. she knows that you’re her lucky charm, always doing better when you’re watching.

vi. late night talks on the balcony was your favourite thing to come back to do with her. having similar schedules, she often came back minutes after you put down your things at home. you two would lounge on the balcony, sipping tea and talking about how each other’s days went. it was a simple routine, but it always felt right, basking in her presence in the cool nightly breeze.

vii. sharing music playlists was your love language. you always joke with her that you swore certain songs had to be written about her, only to have her blush and elbow you in the arm. its around mid day when she recieves a text from you. her face lights up when she sees that it’s a link to a playlist you made for her.

“hey baby, i was just thinking about you and these songs came to mind. love you.”

she smiles harder looking through the songs, one in particular catching her eye. “silk chiffon..” she plays it and boy does she fold. it made her feel unbelievably warm, thinking of your concentrated face adding all these songs to the playlist. songs that reminded you of her. she makes sure to get you a bouquet of flowers on the way home just to thank you.

#alessia russo #alessia russo woso #alessia russo fluff #alessia russo x reader #alessia russo lionesses #lionesses x reader #lionesses #aresenal #aresenal women #woso x reader #woso fluff #woso fanfics #lgbtqia #wlw #wlw post #wlw love #katie maccabe #leah williamson #lucy bronze

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airplanned · 11 months

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TotK Mini Fic

Do not read unless you’ve gotten all the memories and done the Tarry Town stuff. For real. Scroll on.

I’m this far into the game, so please don’t tell me more in the comments.

I’ve seen some people write angst, and--y’all--no. This is the BEST.

Maybe it’s Rhondson’s own melancholy, but Link looks down. He is not as excited as a man about to buy a dream home should be. Distractedly, he stares off into the sky behind her as if searching for something, as if thinking really hard.

“So what do you think?” she chirps, trying to put enough excitement for both of them into her sales pitch. (It’s so rude of him to make her do that. Doesn’t he realize that she’s having a hard day, sending her baby off?)

“I already have a…It’s complicated.”

“Look, I’ll give you’re a discount for all your help. This could be your dream home! Completely customizable! And everyone could do with more space!”

He freezes. He blinks rapidly a few times, and she can see the gears turn, see him come back to himself. His face seems to light up as he finally looks her in the eye.

“How much space?”

Link’s house looks like a pagoda. Tall and open. He’s put some ramps on top to give a bad illusion of a slanted roof.

And…well…to each their own. That is the beauty of the Hudson Dream Home: if you can dream it, they can build it.

The first floor is a big square of normal house things. His bedroom tucked behind the stairs, a display of swords that…well, no one knows how he got swords that look untouched by decay, but there they are. A prominent kitchen where he’ll show off that latest fruitcake he’s made for his girl. “We play this game where I try to throw bites into her mouth.”

There are piles of giant glowing scales and what look like shining monster claws. They look like they were neatly sorted at one point, but now there are just too many. What are they? And why does it feel like they sing? For potions, he says. And sometimes he fuses them to weapons.

If anyone notices the tiny study he has tucked away, he gets bashful, rubbing the back of his head and saying that his girl likes quiet when she’s working. If she ever…well, if she…he wanted to have a space ready for her.

“One time she asked if I would still love her if she turned into a wyrm.” Then he laughs.

There are paintings. One of him and the princess and some other people all smooshed together for a group shoot. One of Link and four glowing ghostly figures, all of them smiling.

Then there’s the one of the dragon. It takes up the whole wall and is nearly life sized. Link holds his slate out at arm’s length to catch his beaming face and one, giant, dragon eye framed with gold lashes.

If anyone comments on the dragon, he gets excited and says something like, “Isn’t she pretty?” or “Her face is very soft,” or “Do you see her antlers? Aren’t they neat?”

Honestly, asking about anything Link gets up to just leads to more questions. It’s not worth it.

The second floor is open to the air like a gazebo. Around that, on the roof of the first floor, he’s put flower beds, which he tends with care, frowning over journals and botany books. After a few weeks, the flower bloom, lighting up at night with a blue-white light you can see from Tarry Town. Sometimes they’ll catch him carrying a bouquet. “Bringing them to my girl. I think I can braid them into her hair.”

As he plants his hands on his hips and surveys his construction with pride and hope, he explains, “She takes up a lot of space. I imagine she’ll kind of…spread.” He waves his hands a bit to express that she would presumably leave stuff everywhere.

He seems delighted by the prospect.

“If I can get her to visit, I think she’ll like this. Yeah,” he sighs. “She’ll like this.”

#Zelda #totk #totk sploilers #my fic

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sinner-sunflower · 14 days

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P.2 HH Lucifer-centric AU 6/?

STORY 1, PART 1, PART 2, PART 3, PART 4, PART 5, PART 7, PART 8, PART 9, PART 10, PART 11, PART 12, PART 13, PART 14

Some other happenings while Lucifer was in Heaven.

Reminder: Read story 1 first before starting this series! It adds some context and of course, I think it's a pretty neat prequel

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The demons in the hotel have dispersed just after their King left for Heaven. Most kept themselves busy despite being worried because, really, what can they do except wait?

Charlie said goodbye to the Sins whom were going back to their respective rings. As much as she wants to have them at the hotel with her until her dad comes back, she understands that they can't leave the other rings unattended for too long.

Beelzebub: I really wish I could stay, baby girl. But I'm just call away, okay?

Satan: All of us are, Charlie. If you want, I can have Damien visit and wait with you?

Charlie: That's okay, uncle. I wouldn't want to bother him for something like sitting around and waiting.

Satan: If you're sure, your majesty.

Charlie: I- I'm not- I'm just acting Queen.

Asmodeus: Charlie, you are no less of a Queen as your mother was just because it's not permanent yet. As long as Lucifer is not here, you are our Queen.

Mammon: Heck yeah! By the way, do you want queen shit merch? I bet we would make a ton of money with your face in every tshirt or coffee mug!

Charlie: Haha. No thank you...

Mammon: Your loss! If ya ever change your mind though-

An elbow to his gut cuts Mammon off his never-ending, and in Charlie's honest opinion, poor sales pitch.

Mammon: Fuckin bitch! No woman is as brute as you-

Another hit sends Mammon writhing on the ground that made Charlie channel all her self-control not to laugh in his face.

Belphegor: Do shut up, Mammon. You are embarrassing yourself. If you have any questions regarding your duties, you can ask any of us. Except Mammon.

The Princess (acting Queen!) of Hell is so touched by the support of her aunts and uncles that she almost teared up. If not for Vaggie's eyes that never left her, she would've ugly cried already. She tries not to let her Uncle Mammon's pained shouts of 'f-f-uck you, Bel!' ruin the moment for her.

Leviathan: Call us when your father comes back.

Charlie: Of course! Thank you all again for being here.

Leviathan bends down to give Charlie a bow.

Leviathan: Of course, our Queen.

Giving one last goodbye hugs to each of them, Charlie doesn't notice Alastor with his ears pulled back. Husk does though.

Husk: Boss?

Alastor: Yes, dear Husker?

Husk: Ya alright?

When Alastor doesn't answer, he follows the deer demon's stare in the direction of Charlie and the Sins. Husk knows that meddling with anything Alastor will just get him scolded like all the other times he tried to express concern.

He'll never admit it but he did come to care for the psycho even just a little bit. Is it Stockholm Syndrome? He's not sure.

Regardless, if something was bothering Alastor then he and Nifty would get dragged into it eventually. So tries to reach out, even if his boss don't like it. Egotistical prick.

Husk felt a chill ran down his spine when he catches the Sin of Envy looking directly at their direction. More specifically, at Alastor.

'What the hell?'

He hears Alastor click his tongue then disappear to fuck knows where. And when he turned back to where the Sins were, it looks like they had left.

And so did the Sin of Envy.

Angel: Huskie! I need that drink ya always make me!

Husk only hopes that whatever that was doesn't bite any of them in the ass.

Husk: Yeah yeah, I got it.

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Alastor went straight into his room but someone was already there, sitting in his little dining set up by the bayou.

The static he lets out would've scared any other demon but this one just looked at him in exasperation like he isn't the one trespassing in someone's private bedroom- in his territory!

Alastor: Ľ̷̹͚͚͔͓̥̭͂̃̓̉ë̸̻̳́a̶̱̦̻̱̼̔̚v̶̥̗̜̎̽̈́̂̋͆̊̔e̷̤̝̰̖̞̳̗͒̌͊͜͝!̶͍̯̠̃̔͆̈́

He summons black tentacles to attack the intruder but they stop just a hairs breath away. Alastor wills them, commands them, to strike but they don't move.

Leviathan: Using my own gift to attack me? Come on, Alastor, you know better than that.

Alastor bites his lips so hard, he bleeds.

Alastor: Y̷̥͐͑͝ó̸̗̇̾ṷ̴̧̟̺̀̅̕ ̴̧̡͕̈͜ṁ̷̱̰̞̰a̴̟̟͔͋̊͌ͅy̶̠͝ ̷̘̤̬̼͛̿̊̉ǒ̵̩̉̅w̴̩̍͑̕n̴̨̪͇̿̕ͅ ̸̧̤͈̀͋͠m̵̨͑ͅy̴̦̻͔̐͒͐̉ ̵͍̱̩̐s̷̯͂̄͂ò̴̖̺̩u̵͍̣̱̯̾̂͛l̶̻̭͖̾̾̊ ̸͖̱̍͝b̷͚̳͗̔̄͝u̸͖͊̒t̶̩͑̈́̊ ̸͖͋t̴̙̔͂h̷̬̻̫̮̓͗a̵̘̋͂̏͘ẗ̴͉̍̇͜ͅ ̸͍͒͑d̸͚̥̬̣̋̉̊o̸̭̖̯̳͌e̶̻̗͍͉̓̔͑s̴̨̥̙̈́͂ ̷̧̓n̴̢̘͓͉͂̆o̵̰͕͚͌ͅt̵͍̘̄́ ̵̧̪͔̋̓͂͐g̷̹̻̹͊̀í̵̧̨̝v̵̛̛͓̞̮̿̊ͅé̸͇͇̑͒ ̴̭̱̝̞̿ẏ̴̠͚̐̐o̵̧̓͑ų̴̻̾͆ ̶̻͍̲̃t̸͕̗͖͛̌͠h̷̩͈̗̀ẻ̷͇̈́͘͘ ̵̮̝͍͆͑̚ŗ̷͇̻̖̓̂i̵̱̦̻̩͋͛g̷̻͛̃͂͘h̶̛̼̤͙̘̒̏̕t̶͓͔̮̔̊͛͛ ̶͙̑t̵̼̣͚̐̒̅ͅǒ̴̾͘͠ͅ ̴̞̏̓̊͝d̸̡̈́͜ó̸̢͎͓̉ ̴̗̥̮̳̈́̆ằ̵̲̖̜͑̇ṩ̸̡̇͠ ̴̦̮͔͊̑̋͑y̶̤̳̹̔o̶̺̍͋u̸͎̎̅͒͘ ̶͓̫͖̪̎̓͐͝p̵̥͑̓̌͑͜l̵͓͔̻̇̑e̴̺̐͋̂̃a̴̫͇̭̥̔̔š̶̞̝ḛ̸̃̊͂͘.̷̥̰̮̆͑́͝

Leviathan merely rolls his eyes and barely even flinches from the ear-piercing sounds the radio demon is emmitting.

Leviathan: Relax. I'm not here to make you do anything. But I won't stand this disrepect.

Alastor: H̸̭͈͕̾̌ơ̸̮̖̫͉̐͒̏ẇ̷̛̱̙͌̕ͅ ̶̖͕̲͖̏͌̓d̵̛͉̭̈́́̊a̵̬͇͎̽̅̐r̷̪̣͗̐͑e̶͚̯̠͇̋̎̑͝ ̷͍̫͎̒y̵̹͆̀̅̐ô̷̡̭̣̥̎̍ú̷͔̂́ ̵̡̺̯̓t̷̞̾ą̷̮̻̔̈l̴͇̲̅͌̎͛ḱ̵̡̭̜ ̷͉͂͝ơ̶̞͓͕͗͋͜f̸̮̮̻̰̂͝ ̸̡̭̏͐͆͠d̷͇̟͙̖̈̊ī̷͚̩s̸͚̰̙̝̍̔̀r̵̰̐̉e̵̲̳̜̿͐s̷̯̳̦͈̏͐̚͘p̵̜̆e̴̡͖͕̅̈́c̷̼͓͒t̴͇́̈́ ̴̮̳̗͗͛w̷̨̟͙̳̍͒h̷̡̡̗̼̏͋̄e̷̗̓̈̽n̵͔̥͛ͅ ̶̤̉̋̆y̸̪̤̬͙̿͐͝ǫ̶͓̊͝u̷͚̭̳͎̔̓͑-̶̛̗̀̌̕

The aquatic demon snaps his fingers and suddenly, Alastor feels his power leave him. He has not felt tis weak since he was human.

Leviathan: I think I'm a pretty lenient master, Alastor. I gifted you a fraction of my power and let you kill your way up. I don't even meddle in your affairs and yet you still disrespect me? I asked of you one thing since the day you came crawling to me for power: protect the Morningstars. And frankly, right now you're not doing a good enough job.

Alastor: I do not know what you expected from a mere sinner. Plus, I don't seem to recall you doing much better on that front, your Sinfulness.

Leviathan had to let out a laugh. He could admit, the demon says some pretty hilarious things sometimes. It's even cuter when he know Alastor means it.

Leviathan: Ha! You really are a cocky demon. Talking to a Sin like that? Did your darling mother not teach you anything about respecting those who are clearly above you?

Alastor: Only those who deserve it. Like Lucifer.

Alastor still can't get any semblance of strength to pull himself off the ground. He really hates having these rare meet-ups with his master.

The embodiment of Envy stands and the next second, Alastor is being pulled up by his hair, making him look directly at the Sin. He had been averting his eyes for as soon as he felt a shift in the air but the sudden contact forces him come face-to-face with the real eldritch horror.

Leviathan: Let's get one thing straight, deer. I don't care about you, but somehow you made Lucifer do. And I would do anything for Lucifer and his happiness.

The radio demon can feel the tentacles caressing his face and he wants to recoil in disgust.

Leviathan: So, the moment I find out you're just using him for your personal gain, I won't hesitate to eat you over and over and over again. You'll never know a day without pain.

Despite the threat, he can't help the words that comes out of his mouth.

Alastor: But I am.

And if he dies today, he hopes Lucifer won't be too sad.

Leviathan: What did you just say?

Rosie always did say he had a mouth that can rival Susan. Honestly, Alastor has never felt so offended.

Alastor: Did you not hear me, master? I am using him for my personal gain. But not in the way one might think. I'm using him for my happiness and... I hope one day he will come to use me for his.

His answer must have been enough because he's suddenly let go and he can feel his powers flowing back into inside him.

'Right where they belong.'

He brushes himself off like nothing happened. Looking around, it appears that nothing was damaged after the Sin's power-play.

Leviathan: I expect you to report back to me regarding any happenings with the Morningstars and the hotel.

Opening a portal to a purple sky and raging waters, Leviathan gives Alastor one last warning.

Leviathan: Don't disappoint me.

Tsk. He really hates politics.

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Sorry for the little Alastor dialogue! But!!! Leviathan??

Color me surprised.

I am not calling him Frederick even tho I know officially, he's called Frederick von eldritch.

You telling me that youre one of the most powerful demons in Hell and you name yourself Frederick??

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trivialbob · 2 years

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I had fun at the air expo today. It’s pretty neat (and loud) being near some of the planes as they taxied towards the runway. This is a B-17G bomber. The propellers actually are spinning very fast, but my phone makes them look like they are hardly turning.

The dark, shiny blue paint on this F4JU Corsair is very attractive. The folding wings seems unbelievably complex to me.

Besides many planes and helicopters there was interesting airport machinery on display. I asked one of the firefighters from the main MSP airport about the Miami-Dade Airport fire truck I saw recently. He said it had been brought to the airport to show the fire department, like a sales pitch. I think it was made somewhere in the Midwest and stopped by Minneapolis on its delivery route.

The snow removal machines are incredible. They have two diesel engines. There’s a 500 HP one in back to drive the vehicle and an 800 HP one in the middle to operate the snow blower apparatus.

I understand why I couldn’t operate any of the planes (not a pilot) nor any of the large machinery (could hurt someone) but can you believe they wouldn’t even let me try out this little red tug? This harmless little machine was used to tow this A1D Skyraider to a parking area after it’s flight.

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marketingprofitmedia · 11 months

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The Power of Content Marketing in Affiliate Promotion

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and let’s not forget the visual enchantments! Weave a tapestry of captivating visuals to complement your words. From stunning images that evoke emotions to mesmerizing videos that bring your message to life, the visual realm is a treasure trove of engagement. Embrace it, my friend, and watch as your audience’s eyes light up in delight.

Now, let’s sprinkle those affiliate links strategically, like magical artifacts hidden in plain sight. Seamlessly incorporate them within your content, offering natural recommendations that seamlessly blend with your valuable insights. Remember, subtlety is the key. Your audience must feel like they’ve stumbled upon a hidden gem, rather than being bombarded by shameless sales pitches.

So, my fellow magician of words, armed with the knowledge of your audience’s desires, the power of keywords, the allure of visuals, and the subtlety of affiliate links, you are now equipped to create content that enchants, educates, and converts. Unleash your creativity, embrace your inner wordsmith, and let the magic of compelling content cast its spell on your affiliate promotions. Get ready to watch your conversions soar and your audience clamor for more of your enchanting words!

III. Leveraging Different Content Formats for Affiliate Promotion

Where creativity knows no bounds and the possibilities are as limitless as the stars in the sky. Brace yourself, my imaginative companion, for we are about to embark on an adventure through various content formats that will elevate your affiliate promotion to new heights.

First, let’s unravel the secrets of the written word. Blog posts and articles, the timeless champions of content marketing, have the power to captivate, inform, and persuade. Craft your words like a master storyteller, drawing your audience into a world where they can’t resist devouring your every sentence. With strategic placement of affiliate links, your written content becomes a gateway to affiliate conversions, hidden within the treasure trove of valuable information you provide.

But let us not stop there, for the realm of video beckons. Videos, the dynamic and engaging storytellers of the digital realm, have become a force to be reckoned with. Grab your audience’s attention with captivating visuals, charming animations, and charismatic on-screen presence. Whether it’s product reviews, tutorials, or entertaining skits, videos allow you to showcase affiliate products in a way that leaves your audience craving more. And don’t forget to sprinkle those affiliate links in the video description or strategically within the video itself, like hidden treasures waiting to be discovered.

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but the sweet sound of podcasts fills the air, captivating the hearts of those who crave knowledge on the go. Dive into the world of audio enchantment, where your voice becomes a soothing melody, lulling your audience into a state of pure engagement. Share valuable insights, conduct interviews with industry experts, and weave in affiliate promotions with finesse. With each episode, you create a loyal following who eagerly awaits your every word, ready to explore the affiliate products and services you recommend.

And who can forget the vibrant realm of social media? The scrolls of Facebook, the tweets of Twitter, and the captivating images of Instagram hold immense power. Harness the magic of social platforms to share bite-sized snippets of content that spark curiosity and ignite the desire to click on your affiliate links. Craft witty captions, create eye-catching graphics, and let your content go viral, spreading your affiliate promotions like wildfire across the digital landscape.

So, my creative comrade, armed with the knowledge of these diverse content formats, you have the ability to cast your affiliate promotions far and wide. Choose the format that resonates with your audience, embrace your inner artist, and let your content take on a life of its own. Unleash the power of written words, mesmerizing videos, captivating podcasts, and shareable social media content. Let your creativity be the guide that leads your audience straight to the treasures hidden within your affiliate links. It’s time to embark on a quest through the vast universe of content formats and watch as your affiliate promotions thrive like never before!

IV. Building an Engaged Audience through Content Marketing

Prepare yourself, my charismatic companion, for we are about to embark on a journey to unlock the secrets of building an audience that hangs onto your every word, eagerly awaiting your affiliate promotions.

First and foremost, let’s talk about consistency, the magical ingredient that keeps your audience spellbound. Like a well-practiced magician, you must deliver content on a regular basis, keeping the flames of engagement alive. Whether it’s weekly blog posts, monthly podcasts, or daily social media updates, consistency creates anticipation and establishes you as a reliable source of valuable content. Your audience will eagerly return for more, ready to devour every piece of content you conjure up.

But let us not forget the power of social media, the modern-day marketplace of ideas and connections. Cast your spell on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and watch as your audience grows. Engage in conversations, respond to comments, and sprinkle your content across the social landscape. Share captivating snippets, thought-provoking questions, and sneak peeks of your upcoming content. With each interaction, you forge stronger bonds and establish yourself as an influential figure in your niche.

Ah, the magic of email marketing, where you hold the key to their inbox. Build an army of loyal subscribers, eager to receive your newsletters, updates, and exclusive content. Provide value with each email, delivering insights, tips, and personalized recommendations. But be careful, my friend, for their trust is fragile. Treat their inbox as sacred ground, respecting their time and delivering content that genuinely enriches their lives. And within those emails, discreetly weave in your affiliate promotions, like a secret treasure shared only with those who have chosen to walk this path with you.

In the realm of influence, collaborations hold immense power. Seek out fellow wizards of content, influential figures in your niche who resonate with your audience. Join forces in a magical alliance, co-creating content, and amplifying each other’s reach. With their support and endorsement, your audience will perceive you as a trusted authority, and your affiliate promotions will hold even greater weight.

But remember, my enchanting companion, building an engaged audience is not a one-sided affair. Listen to their whispers, their comments, and their desires. Engage in conversations, ask for their input, and let their voices shape the direction of your content. Show them that their opinions matter, and they will reward you with unwavering loyalty.

So, armed with the power of consistency, the enchantment of social media, the art of email marketing, and the strength of collaborations, you have the ability to build an audience that hangs onto your every word. Nurture those connections, embrace their feedback, and let your content become a beacon of light in their digital journey. As your audience grows in size and engagement, your affiliate promotions will thrive, and the treasures of conversions will flow abundantly. It’s time to embark on this captivating adventure of audience-building through content marketing and watch as your influence takes flight like a magical phoenix.

V. Tracking and Analyzing Content Performance for Optimal Results

Where the mystical realm of data intertwines with the enchanting world of content marketing. Prepare yourself, my analytical ally, for we are about to embark on a journey to unlock the secrets of tracking and analyzing content performance for optimal results.

First and foremost, let us embrace the power of web analytics. Like a crystal ball, web analytics tools provide you with valuable insights into the performance of your content. Dive deep into the numbers, my friend, and discover which pieces of content resonate the most with your audience. Track metrics like page views, bounce rates, and time on page to understand how your audience engages with your content. Unearth the gems hidden within your analytics and use them to guide your future content creation endeavors.

But do not stop there, for the realm of social media analytics awaits. Platforms like Facebook Insights, Twitter Analytics, and Instagram Insights hold the keys to understanding how your content performs in the social landscape. Discover which posts generate the most engagement, which hashtags strike a chord with your audience, and which content formats elicit the most shares and likes. Armed with this knowledge, you can optimize your content strategy and create content that sparks conversations and ignites virality.

Now, my analytical ally, let us venture into the world of click-through rates and conversion tracking. Set up tracking pixels, my friend, and unlock the power of measuring the effectiveness of your affiliate promotions. Track the clicks, the conversions, and the revenue generated from your carefully placed affiliate links. Understand which pieces of content drive the most conversions and which promotions resonate the strongest with your audience. With this knowledge, you can fine-tune your approach, optimizing your content to maximize your affiliate earnings.

But the journey doesn’t end there, my data-driven companion. A/B testing beckons, offering a path to uncover the hidden secrets of content optimization. Create variations of your content, tweak headlines, experiment with different calls to action, and test different layouts. Measure the performance of each variation, and let the data guide you towards the most effective content strategies. Embrace the power of experimentation and let the results guide your content creation process.

And remember, my analytical ally, to always keep your goals in sight. Establish clear objectives for your content marketing efforts and align your tracking and analysis with those goals. Whether it’s increasing conversions, boosting engagement, or expanding your reach, let the data be your guiding star, illuminating the path to success.

So, armed with the power of web analytics, social media insights, click-through rates, conversion tracking, and A/B testing, you have the ability to uncover the hidden treasures within your content performance. Embrace the data, let it be your guide, and watch as your content marketing efforts soar to new heights. With each iteration, each optimization, and each measurement, you will unlock the secret formula for optimal results. It’s time to embark on this data-driven adventure and let the magic of tracking and analyzing elevate your content marketing to new dimensions of success.

Conclusion:

We reach the grand finale of our magical journey through the power of content marketing in affiliate promotion. It’s time to gather the strands of wisdom we’ve unraveled and bask in the glow of our newfound knowledge.

Content marketing, dear reader, is the spellbinding art of captivating your audience, building trust, and delivering value. It’s about forging connections, establishing yourself as an authority, and guiding your audience through a captivating narrative. By infusing your content with humor, wit, and a sprinkle of personality, you create an experience that leaves your audience yearning for more.

Throughout our adventure, we explored the many facets of content marketing. We dived into understanding its essence, the importance of creating compelling content, leveraging various formats, building an engaged audience, and tracking and analyzing performance. Each aspect revealed its own magical secrets, empowering us to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of affiliate promotion.

But remember, dear reader, that true mastery lies in the delicate balance between content and promotion. As content marketers, we have the power to captivate, educate, and inspire. We create a world where our audience finds solace, enlightenment, and solutions to their deepest desires. And within this world, we strategically place affiliate promotions, like hidden treasures waiting to be discovered.

As you embark on your own content marketing journey, armed with the insights and strategies we’ve uncovered, remember to stay true to your audience. Understand their needs, empathize with their struggles, and deliver content that resonates with their souls. Infuse your content with your unique voice, for it is your greatest asset in a sea of digital noise.

And in the realm of affiliate promotion, let authenticity be your guiding principle. Promote products and services that you genuinely believe in, for your audience will sense the sincerity behind your recommendations. Be transparent, disclose your affiliations, and let trust be the cornerstone of your relationships.

With every piece of content you create, let it be a masterpiece, an enchanting work of art that leaves a lasting impression. Measure your success not just in clicks and conversions, but in the impact you make on the lives of your audience. Nurture your audience, engage with them, and continue to refine your craft.

So, dear reader, as we bid farewell to this enchanting journey, I leave you with a final thought: The power of content marketing in affiliate promotion is a force that can transform dreams into reality. Embrace it, wield it with wisdom, and let your content be the catalyst that sparks a magical connection between your audience and the products or services you promote. Now, go forth, my fellow magician of words, and weave your own tale of success in the realm of content marketing and affiliate promotion.

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Affiliate Disclaimer :

Some of the links in this article may be affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission at NO ADDITIONAL cost to you if you decide to purchase something. While we receive affiliate compensation for reviews / promotions on this article, we always offer honest opinions, users experiences and real views related to the product or service itself. Our goal is to help readers make the best purchasing decisions, however, the testimonies and opinions expressed are ours only. As always you should do your own thoughts to verify any claims, results and stats before making any kind of purchase. Clicking links or purchasing products recommended in this article may generate income for this product from affiliate commissions and you should assume we are compensated for any purchases you make. We review products and services you might find interesting. If you purchase them, we might get a share of the commission from the sale from our partners. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended.

Source : The Power of Content Marketing in Affiliate Promotion

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mcknightpritchard58 · 1 year

Text

Website Profit Formula Review - Scam Or Best Online Lesson?

I've written an article on the steps to create a video, make an effort to search for it and skim it. Okay, 4k video downloader key 've done that and have shot several videos as they are "in the can" once they say. This eBook has everything that Bly's eBook has, etc. 4k video downloader crack 2021 have also made a scaled down version in which targeted specifically at authors wishing to make their own book trailers (TM) (book trailers (TM) is a trademarked term by Circle of Seven Productions). No bonus video, and any one of the extensive marketing ideas and techniques are removed that are not relevant to book novelists. That scaled down eBook is $14.99, and has pretty much everything in Bly's eBook except information and facts on using certain online upload tools and equipment. Plus, the scaled down author's version can be affiliate marketed without the author's pitch page, right the the counter. No one wants regarding right about things, nevertheless the way this works is pretty neat have. You can even save general health right now to later nail them when you're to confront them if you believe that have got been cheating on you. So, how would you go planning create this and getting familiar with it improve you after you have downloaded it? You will find that when the phone is booted up, it will store all the things from call logs, texts, picture and 4k Video Downloader messages, GPS and other things that currently have mentioned. You create net based account and can view each one of these things whenever you so desire. There are some nice features about this as effectively. A screen lets you view a live streaming visual. This screen can be moved from left to right down or up or should you desire not show at all, it with no regard for shown as a full projection screen. In advertising and marketing circles microsoft xbox been talk about a awesome that just been designed. I belong a good internet marketing inner circle so Experienced to evaluate the product since some bold claims appeared to be made. What we have found is the fact that many sufferers do not use their computers that much any for a longer period. They use their smartphone. When they do this, they have admission to from GPS all of the way to email and regular telephone use. Therefore, when you may go about and download really slowly . directly of their phone, you will be qualified for view what locations include gone search up plus several other things. It is very important to locate a game copy review appealing DVD copy review therefore hear the people are saying about the programs. Tactics to go about finding one of the most model is search Google and find 5 or 6 that you really like. A person have know the models you've got an interest in, you can begin to look for some customer reviews about the merchandise. This will an individual to go away from the sales pitch rhetoric and focus on some empirical evidence. Because have determined the program you will download need to keep benefit in your thoughts. For a game copy review, individual they are genuine. Are going to not desire to read many of company generated testimonials to find out that the download you get a is not what you want.

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bald-tales · 2 years

Text

Beware of number 1313 Maple Street

By Titan

(One of my earlier stories from the days when I first got into shaved heads)

Terry hated his job. The money was crap, so were the conditions. Mind you it was all his own doing. He’d given notice at his last job because of a difference of opinion with the boss. The boss was coming on to him even though Terry wasn’t the slightest bit interested. So the old geezer was making his life tough. Terry knew he didn’t have to put up with it - so he left and here he was trying to flog subscriptions to a men’s health magazine door to door. “I’ll give this shit up!” he said out loud when he pressed the door-bell of a neat red-brick terrace home. He hadn’t sold one subscription yet and he’d been at it for two weeks. The only good thing was the magazine had some hot looking stud’s in it. “Oh well! One last go them I’m finished!” he said as he tried the bell again. He could hear someone come to door. As it opened Terry’s mouth dropped. Here in front of him was this Adonis, with only a towel around his waist.

“Well! What can I do for you young man?” “Ah! Err…. Hello Sir…..I’m selling……men’s ah…….magazine……” Terry could hardly focus on what he was saying. He hoped the customer hadn’t seen him lick his lips. Talk about a tall drink of water! The guy stood over 6 feet with bulging pecs and muscles on every part of exposed skin. What was stranger too was the guy’s head was covered in shaving lather, thickly spread over his entire cranium.

“Oh! Sorry. I suppose I look a sight.” when he saw the kid staring at his head. “ I just stepped out of the shower, and thought a shave was in order.” “Yeah! Well, sorry to get you at a bad time. Maybe I should come back at another time when…….” “No! It’s fine, I’ll only be a minute. Come on in!” the lathered customer said almost pulling Terry through the door. “Take a seat in the lounge over there, I’ll just get cleaned up and be right with you. My names Alex by the way, what’s yours?” “Terry sir.” He wasn’t sure why he added a sir as Alex looked close in age. “Well Terry Sir, what are you selling?” Alex yelled from a distant room. Terry felt like saying ‘himself’ for a moment, “An introductory magazine subscription to Male Health Monthly.” “Sounds interesting Terry. Do you think it’s a good magazine for men.?” “Well to be honest I haven’t read it yet, but the photo layouts are very impressive.” Terry replied loudly feeling odd the guy was taking so long. Surely he wasn’t shaving his head! “Have you sold many subscriptions?” “A few!” Terry lied. “Sounds like you’re good a convincing people to buy your magazine. I know door to door can be hard. I would have thought a good looking guy such as yourself would feature in the magazine rather than trying to flog them.”

Terry turned a bright red at the pass Alex made. He knew he was easy on the eye. At five feet ten inches his tan was set off by his honey-blond hair, which he wore long.

At 22 he knew many a gay man’s head was turned when he entered the local clubs with his athletic frame. A little more small talk was exchanged when finally the muscled stud re-entered the lounge now fully clothed and minus the lather.

“Sorry about that; so what can I get you to drink?” Alex asked with a friendly smile. “Water’s fine thanks.” replied Terry looking closely at the shinning scalp that Alex had just shaved. “Nonsense! How about a beer - I’m having one and I hate to drink alone.” “Yeah! Ah why not.? Thanks Alex.” As Alex went into the kitchen he called back, “So give me your sales pitch.” Terry began to explain the deal again feeling odd he was talking to someone in another room. It was getting late and Terry felt he’d had enough beer. He was on his 3rd, and starting to feel light-headed. He still hadn’t sold Alex a subscription but the break from door-to-door had been welcome. “I think it was time I got going!” He heard himself say, even though he’d like to stay and screw that perfect bubble butt. “But you haven’t sold me a subscription yet!” “Oh! You don’t have to buy a sub…scr…tion…. Oh! I feel funn…y…..my..head….I thinnk I’m goin.. to…b..sick….” “Must have been that beer. Here let me help you to the bathroom.”

Alex almost picked Terry up and proceeded to help him to the back of the small house, as Terry was finding it increasingly harder to walk. Little did he know the beers he’d just consumed had muscle relaxants in them.Terry could hardly believe how quickly he’d become ill. He hardly noticed the oversized chair that Alex helped him into. “Now let me just get you comfortable.” Alex said. Terry could feel straps around his legs then his arms. Something was now keeping his head from wobbling. “Now boy. Before I buy your magazine, I think you could do something for me!” “Wh….?” Terry could hear himself try to say. He noticed he didn’t feel sick anymore but he felt sluggish as if drunk. But he’d only had 3 beers. “I saw you staring at my head, when I‘d finished shaving it before. Ever wondered what you’d look like without a hair on that head of your’s, well now your going to find out.” “But….you can’t…..Nooo….” “Yes my boy, I can. You should be more careful who you accept drinks from.” Alex said guessing by the look on the kid’s face he was trying to work out what had happened, unaware that his drinks had been spiked with a muscle relaxant. As Terry sat there contemplating his fate Alex began to remove his clothes, and once totally nude put on a short Barber’s tunic that exposed his thick cock and oversized balls. Suddenly, Terry felt something at the back of his head. Shit! It was scissors. He could feel them closing in on his hair then a lightness as the hair fell away. “Nooo!…..” He tried to say but found it hard to find his voice. “Yes! You need a haircut if you are to make any impression. That hair is crying out for some shortening, and I’m just the man to do it.” Alex explained as he cut away all the long, blond locks Terry had been growing for so long. Seeing the fear in the kid’s eyes was a bonus for Alex. “Great! Now keep looking ahead. That’s just the look I was hoping you’d exhibit.” Alex was referring to the small camera that was fixed directly in front of the chair, which turned out to be an actual barber’s chair. Alex was the ‘Master-Barber’ in an on-line group that bought copies of actual forced haircuts from him. The room Terry was in was a transformed bedroom, now looking like a small Barbershop with all the fittings. Tears were rolling down Terry’s face. He didn’t know what this guy had planned for him until he heard the loud buzzing of a motor. As the vibrating teeth came closer to his head, Terry knew he was going to loose his hair. The warmth of the blades met his skin and proceeded to strip the hair around his left ear. Unable to move he could only imagine what was happening. The drone of the heavy-duty clippers continued, now on the right side before attacking the hair at the back. Suddenly he felt the machine cut a path straight down the middle of his head. Alex turned the chair towards the side where there was a mirror in front of him. Terry could see the damage. Stubble on the sides of his head and now the same stubble where the clippers had just been. Turning the chair back towards the camera, Alex continued to remove the remaining thick hair.

Terry was shocked by everything but for some reason he found his cock starting to get hard, especially when he felt warm, lather on his head.

“This is my favourite part.” Alex said as he started to go over the scalp with a straight-razor. Terry could feel the blade as it slowing removed the remaining hair on his head. At first there was slight resistance then nothing as the gleaming blade slid gently over the hairless areas. Alex expertly shaved the entire scalp, re-lathering the head a second time and going over the head one more time, ensuring the blade moved slowly through the thick, white lather. Pink skin slowly emerged as the lather and final stubble was removed. The newly shaved head was just the right shape. “You certainly look great with this look”. Alex said as he finished. He wanted this video to be his best yet. This kid could be just what he was looking for; a permanent haircut slave. It looked like he was enjoying the shaving by the look of his crotch. Turning the chair back towards the mirror he let the look sink in for Terry. Staring at the glistening scalp, Terry couldn’t get over how different he looked. The pink skin on the newly shaved areas were a stark contrast to the tanned skin on his face. “A much better look for you boy! Now to make that dome shine.” Alex said while lowering the back of the chair. Terry, still unable to move could only look at the ceiling wondering what his captor was doing. Suddenly he felt something on his head. It felt warm, then some more liquid, that now started to drip onto his forehead. “AH! Yeah! Alex cried out as he shot his load over the kids lowered head.” Terry felt the head of Alex’s cock rubbing his virgin scalp. Shit! He couldn’t believe the guy was coming all over his head. Alex continued to rub his fully erect 9 inch cock all over the newly shaved areas. Terry could feel the skin starting to sting as Alex used his hands to massage the spunk into his head. “Yeah boy! Best moisturiser for bald heads. Keeps the skin from ageing.” Alex said dreamily as he rubbed over the entire surface marvelling at how smooth the head was. This result could only happen from the use of a straight razor. Despite the stinging, Terry had to admit he loved the feeling of Alex’s big hands gliding over his head. He never knew the scalp had so many erroneous zones. Now he did as he felt the stickiness beneath Alex’s massaging hands. “Yes Terry! You’re going to be one excellent slave, and just think; no more trying to flog that magazine!” Alex said, seeing the fear in Terry’s eyes replaced by pleasure.

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hollowsart · 2 years

Photo

Spam of the ton & Friends

Info under cut cuz I have many thoughts:

Voice Box: Addisons have a special organ called a “Voice Box“ that is essentially their vocal chords. It differs a bit from more “natural“ vocal chords, it is most obvious in how they speak, almost coming off as though it were a speaker. Should one gets sick or be born “defective” the speech will sound “glitched“ and “corrupt“ with static garbling happening now and again. Uniquely, the voice box lets Addisons control their voices much more precisely than natural vocal chords, they can adjust their voices to fit any sort of sales pitch or style they need, but the voice that emits from them is personalized to the Addison themself. They cannot change that, though some have tried out of curiosity or to attempt playful mockery of another.

Heterochromia: Much like in our world, heterochromia isn’t too common, but it’s not something unheard of. However, unlike our world, Darkners have white pupils to help bring in more light from their eternally dark surroundings. This is quite beneficial, and the light produced from the neon signs and screens and such is a special kind of light that does them no harm should they look at it.

(I’m trying to google things but nothing is coming up about this so like.. just...... imagination?? magic?? let’s go with that for the eyes thing, I just think this is neat ok--)

Body: Addisons look an awful lot like mannequins. The default shape of their forms is quite standard, but can vary in shape and size, though not nearly as drastically as Spamton. Spamton’s case is uncommon, as is the opposite of that being if an Addison were to be quite tall rather than small/short. Where the similarities lie, the differences between them and actual mannequins is just as clear to tell. Addisons have moveable mouth parts and some joins that resemble a ball-jointed doll, however, their bodies are more “fleshy“ and warm than that of a cloth or plastic mannequin. Their bodies are made of both natural and “unnatural“ materials. The “unnatural“ materials we will call “mechatronics“ are mostly interior to their bodies and is more in tune with how they can move and speak rather than... well... some other things... that are more “fleshy“.

Additonally: Their bodies are very warm, touching them would feel like touching the screen of a CRT TV. You can feel a gentle static buzz. Their bodies are always some type of fun solid color, never are they ever white. White is.. well, it’s what is under their vibrant “casing“. The white body under the color is what helps them to reflect and almost glow like the neon signs they can produce with dark magic. Without their “casing“ they cannot “glow“ like they normally would, they cannot produce neon signs either, instead, they can only sadly reflect light, kind of like the moon to the sun. As well.. their bodies feel like silicon to the touch, texture-wise. One could almost liken them to a nutcracker if a nutcracker were exceptionally pose-able and flexible.

Fun Fact: They do not have bellybuttons, what looks to be one is nothing more than a simple indentation like what you would find on actual mannequins.

#my art #deltarune #spamton #deltarune spamton #spamton g spamton #deltarune addisons #addisons #phone art #phone doodle #headcanon #deltarune headcanon #sure I guess #-just casually jots down some headcanons from others and slaps them all together into this because I love them so much---

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betweenlands · 3 years

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ok I'll bite. What's a mythrodak

claps my hands together like i'm making a sales pitch. mythrodak. mythrodak is a youtuber! wow big surprise. let's try that one again.

mythrodak is an mcyter who does really interesting stuff, and is best known for his prison escapes -- that is, he takes a look at minecraft prisons (think Pandora's Vault from the DSMP, among others) and goes "oh i am So gonna break out of here." and then he does! usually while cool music plays in the background and alongside some flashy editing.

he also has lore. wild lore. okay it's not actually that wild compared to, say, the hermits, but i have emotions about this guy and his bird okay? okay.

anyway here's a playlist i made; the playlist description has a couple different options for skipping through parts of the series if you only want that clean, clean editing.

please watch mythrodak i just think he's neat

#mythro is like. somewhere between joehills and etho in terms of energy? except he's eighteen #so like. a cryptid but in the most bizarre way possible. and i love him #ask #orig #yt #mrdtv #shadeswift99

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colossal-fallout · 3 years

Text

Mercy ☄

Fem reader X Erwin Smith

Warnings ⚠️

NSFW. 18+ only. Smut. Slight daddy kink and slight degradation.

Tagging: @clovertitan & @jour-de-printemps I know someone is on my veteran tag list, but I've lost it. Please submit it again via the ask box.

You weren't sure exactly what you were doing.

It was as if you were on autopilot; your mind a haze as your heated, desperate body took over - possessed by the succubus demon residing deep within your soul. So much pent up sexual frustration has broken the barrier between your common sense and sheer hysteria. You'd been touch starved for weeks. Your lover far too busy at all times for such interactions. Especially this month with the upcoming expedition. You craved his touch, the firm yet gentle grasping of your flesh and how oh - so - attentive he was to your needs. How he's mapped your body, knowing every single week spot you have an exploiting them with a venomous greed; one nip from his fangs injects you with his own poison, paralysing you with lust.

Yet here you were, tears almost forming in your eyes from how hungry you were for him. For your lover. Who, as you approach the study, is just now behind that solid oak door.

And God, you could go on forever about how magical is cock is. So large and fat, built for nothing but giving pleasure and releasing his own pressures out from his large, testosterone filled sacks. Ones built for impregnation and nothing else. As soon as that large dick pushed its way into you for the first time, you were hooked. The sweetest dose of Heroine known to mankind as his shape dragged against your walls so perfectly, each push of his hips is like a small orgasm within themselves.

And yet... here you were almost a month without him. Your trembling fist ready to alert him of your presence outside of his office. Your thighs squeeze together as your warm, dripping cunt begs to be touched. Your panties stick to you uncomfortably, the thick liquid of your arousal slowly seeping through the cloth as you tap the door with your knuckles.

You don't know if you could take rejection. If he turns you down, you're not sure what you'll do. Scream? Cry? It was anyone's guess. All you know is you don't think you'll survive another night without his knowing invasions of your body.

"Enter."

Even just his low, rumbled voice sends vibrations through the air and between your legs as your breath hitches and you hurriedly enter inside the room.

His head snaps up from his paperwork - as if sensing who it was before locking his orbs onto your form; his thick brows raising in surprise.

"Your name, I wasn't expecting to see you tonight."

Your mouth opens, yet your reply is a choked silence. Asphyxiation entwined your throat as your once well constructed sale's pitch of your body turns to mush at the sight of his large form, the authoritative aura flowing off him and rolling across the room.

You silently close the door, not yet giving up as you approach him, your eyes already watering, begging him for mercy.

He waits patiently, sensing something was obviously wrong.

You crumble. Your plan in smouldering ruins as you slam both hands onto his desk.

"Erwin. I know you're busy. But please... God I need you. Take me. I'm begging you."

He blinks in perplexion for a moment, before his face rests into a smirk. A low chuckle vibrating his broad chest.

"You're that desperate, are you?"

The tone of his voice is a little cold. Cruel even. His own spark of lust igniting behind his ocean blues at the sight of you squirming so needing before him.

Sitting back in his chair, his large legs splay open, the hand that was free from his quill patting his thigh.

"Come. Let daddy make it all better."

Your elation at his words couldn't be hidden as you whimper almost pathetically; scurrying around and straddling his leg, his arm snaking around your lower back and gripping your hip.

"Go right ahead. Use me." He instructs as he refocused on his work.

You didn't care - you were just glad to have something of him; your hands grabbing his leather jacket as you immediately begin to rock your hips against his thigh. The warmth of him seeping up through your material and onto your twitching pussy as you grind, already panting like a bitch in heat. His thick, solid thigh feels so damn good against you, the muscle definition could be felt with easy through the cloth.

Your pleasure builds up pretty quick, your heated face burying into his chest as you whine, knuckles tightening and your breath hitches as his free arm absent mindedly begins to assist your movements.

"Oh, Erwin... Erwin..." you whisper as you glance down and see the buldge in his trousers growing bigger and bigger, snaking down his other thigh.

It's becoming increasingly harder to focus on his work; instead, opting to sit back and enjoy the view of you humping him like a pathetic little dog. Feeling a little pang of mercy, his fingers begin to unbutton your shirt at a painfully slow pace, your entire body aflame and begging to feel his touch.

Eventually he frees your breasts, his large, broad shoulders hunching over as he takes one into his warm mouth - your head throwing back as his wet muscle flicks your nub, sucking and nipping, your rhythm picking up and stuttering.

He removes his mouth, a string of saliva connecting his mouth to you for a moment as he sits back, holding your wrists and pulling your hands onto one of his leather leg straps of his uniform.

"I said use me."

You nod, holding onto the strap like a cruelly place rein on a steed as you use it as leverage to rock harder, his leg slowly raising and lowering you up and down as he watches with a clouded amusement.

"Ah, Erwin... I'm close..." you whine. "P-please, touch me again. Please..."

"You want me that bad, darling?" He sighs, thumbing your nipple.

"Yes!"

Your need for him reaches a critical breaking point.

Without another word, he grabs your hips and lifts you onto the desk with ease - pushing papers onto the floor as if he hadn't just spent all day carefully and meticulously keeping them neat and ordered. His large hand pushes you onto your back and before you could blink, he's pulling off your trousers and soaked panties off your legs - your pussy gleaming, overjoyed he's seeing to your needs.

Taking his two fingers, he slips them into your beckoning entrence, his mouth enclosing onto your clitoris, immediately sucking and assaulting it with his tongue.

Your hands grab at his perfect blonde strands, your climax immediate at his touch. It felt like you were swelling; larger and larger before you imploded.

You weren't sure what left your mouth, but it was something loud - swirling colours and sensations embraced your entirety, your body leaving this world for a few moments as your insides squeeze your lovers digits, filling his palm with a small puddle of your water.

An animalistic growl leaves his vocal chords at the sight of you; a total mess coming undone upon his desk. His tongue rolls over his lip in starvation as he removes himself, fiddling with his trousers and freeing his huge cock.

The smell of his precum snaps your hated attention - you could cry with elation that he was about to push his amazing dick into you.

"Good girl." He mutters as he presses his swollen head against you. "Nice and wet for me."

It's a tight fit as he slowly pushes into you. Your back bends and your mouth hangs into a silent scream as your insides slowly take him, ingesting him like some snake slowly digesting its large prey.

He's not even halfway in as he grunts, fingertips harshly digging into your thighs, head lowering with the overwhelming sensation of you pulling him in.

"You always look so pretty. But you look so much better with me splitting you open like this."

Every single spot within you is being hit, stretched and stimulated as that mystical dick finally is fully in you, pulling and pushing against your internal ridges. The desk begins to clank against the uneven flagstone flooring, but his grunts is all you care to focus on as his hips collide with yours again and again.

"So tight. So perfect, darling. I would never turn you down. All... ah~ all you had to do was ask... I'll gladly see to your needs, my love."

You whimper in response - it's all you can do as his shape pulls and pushes you, dragging along your walls perfectly as usual.

His name leaves your mouth as your eyes roll, the gratifying waves of your second climax faster approaching.

"Where do you want me to finish, darling?" He leans over, sliding his tongue into your mouth for a moment, catching your lips in a tender kiss. "I won't last long this time. You feel too good and it's been too long."

"F-fill me up, Erwin." Your eyes match your pleading tone as he nods, nuzzling into your neck, his tall form covering you with ease.

His pace quickens, hands now on either side of your head as he begins to groan, your orgasm hitting you just as hard as the first - sucking him in deeper. Your walls squeeze so tightly, he's clamped into place, his loud, gruff groan music to your ears as his thick, hot cum collides with your cervix, the huge unloading of Erwin Smith filling you so much so, you're leaking with his mess within moments.

You feel lighter, as if you were floating as you made your way back to your shared quaters, the sweet promise of more later tonight already having you a giddy mess. You were glad you didn't bump into anyone on the way back; your hair a mess and a mark already appearing on your neck. You weren't even sure when he did that.

Once again, you were well and truly fucked into oblivion, your insides sore from his size but already looking forward to later tonight...

#snk #attack on titan #snk imagines #snk season 4 #snk fandom #attack on titan x you #snk headcanons #snk smut #erwin smith #erwin x you #attack on titan erwin #erwin smith smut #snk erwin #erwin x y/n #erwin smut #erwin x fem #snk x reader #aot smut

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bokunoheroanalysisforthefuture · 3 years

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Last chapter of this volume! Can’t believe we’re already through four volumes, and we’re not even done with the second full arc yet. I mean, later arcs are gonna be even longer, but like. Yeah.

[No. 35 - Battle On, Challengers!]

We move on to the next match - Kaminari versus Shiozaki! I’m actually kind of marveled that they were able to thaw out that entire glacier in any sort of timely manner. That’s quirks for you!

Present Mic announces Shiozaki as class 1b’s assassin, and also reveals that he apparently either doesn’t know the full quote for ‘every rose has its thorns’ or started to say it, only to realize she didn’t have roses and scrambled to compensate. Kaminari, meanwhile, gets announced as a ‘sparking, killing boy.’ Really kind of morbid on this round, huh?

Shiozaki turns around to object to Present Mic’s descriptor as an ‘assassin’, stating that she’s merely come this far seeking victory. Present Mic apologises, and Kaminari just kind of watches while admiring her. He takes notes of her eyes, and then thinks about how strong she is. He then sort of counters his previous admiration of strength by asking himself if he really has to hit someone so pretty with a full discharge, then concludes his ‘battle plan’ by determining that he’ll ask her out once all this is over.

Present Mic starts the match while Shiozaki is still focused on talking to Mic - which means she’s facing away from Kaminari. Which is kind of a dick move on Mic’s part, but eh, I guess ‘heroes have to be ready for anything,’ yarda yarda etcetera.

Kaminari asks Shiozaki if she wants to grab something to eat when they’re done there, and that he’s happy to console her if she wants. She turns to stare at him in confusion, just in time to see him charging up his whole body with his quirk. Kaminari makes a quip about this match probably being over in an instant - and then we cut to the immediate aftermath, where Present Mic comments on how it’s already over while Kaminari wheys out in the grasp of Shiozaki’s vines. Shiozaki was both able to create a shield against the electricity and yank Kaminari into the air and away from her, thus causing him to short-circuit.

One on patrol, Mount Lady comments on Shiozaki being a promising one, and another plant user. Kamui Woods amits he wishes he could’ve seen her up close, but that they need to get back to work.

Back in the stadium, Midnight announces Shiozaki moving on to the second round. Shiozaki is relieved to have no wasted the opportunity bestowed upon her, and the narrative finally gives us an informational blurb on her quirk.

...A strange ending note there, but sure. Some of the crowd - or possibly Izuku? Since he’s sinking into a muttering fest right after - comments on the ‘match’ and the participants. Shiozaki’s ability to use her quirk is something else, between building walls, binding enemies… Kaminari’s quirk was no use against her. She countered him well. He might’ve had a chance if he could maneuver better, but he panicked and short-circuited after one attack.

Ochako hears muttering besides her and is a bit alarmed, looking over to see Izuku in the middle of an analysis fugue. Izuku mutters about thinking Kaminari’s quirk would be stronger, but Shiozaki got fourth in the entrance exam, and she’s the real deal. The vine moves are similar to Kamui Wood’s binding attacks, and binding types are always strong, to the point where you almost never see someone break out. It’s pretty much impossible to dodge all the vine attacks, so the only counter is to rip them apart with brute strength - ah, but to prevent that, they tend to go for the hands first.

(...and I just NOW realized that this specific commentary about binding-type quirks and the counter being brute strength is literally something that comes into play when Best Jeanist binds Gigantomachia with those steel cables during the Jakku arc. Holy shit, I don’t think Hori intended it, but what a callback. Or it’s just good worldbuilding, which would also be neat!)

Ochako eventually cuts into Izuku’s muttering - startling him in the process - by commenting on how his match just ended, but he’s already thinking ahead strategy-wise. Izuku denies it, saying that it’s just a hobby of his, and that they finally have a chance to see the quirks of people outside their class in action. He then eagerly shows her his open notebook, stating that he has everything she’d need to know about class A in there - even her ‘zero gravity’.

Me, staring down the people who have the class unaware of the contents of Izuku’s notebooks when writing suspected traitor fics:

Anyways! Ochako is kind of impressed despite herself, stating that she thought Izuku was amazing from the day they met, but this sports festival has brought him to a whole other level. Izuku is confused by the complement, but there’s no time to ask, since Present Mic is announcing the participants of the next battle: Tenya versus Hatsume.

Some of the students are chattering about how the match is going to go, with one asking what is that - which seems to be referring to the support items Tenya is wearing? Midnight comments on it as well, noting that they’re forbidden for hero course students, and that a special request has to be put in for those things beforehand. Tenya admits he forgot, seeing as Aoyama was wearing that belt of his. Midnight reminds him that Aoyama applied for an exception.

Tenya apologies, stating that he’d been touched by Hatsuma’s sense of sportsmanship. Although she’s a member of the support course, she came to him and said that if they’re to be seen as equals, then they should fight on equal footing. She gave those items to him; her earnest spirit… he could never look down on it. That was his thinking.

Midnight apparently is now all for this, calling Tenya naive. Mic says that it’s good enough for him, and Aizawa says that if both parties are fine with it, he supposes it can be allowed… right? Izuku, up in the stands, is looking concerned, wondering if Hatsume is really the type to offer that. Hatsume, of course, is chuckling as she flips down a microphone right as the match starts.

Mei immediately starts going into her spiel, commenting on Tenya’s speed - much to the confusion of both Mic and Tenya. She then points out how Tenya’s legs should feel lighter than usual, and that that’s what one can expect with her custom leg parts, which keep up with their user’s speed! However, dodging is no problem for her with her hydraulic attachment bars! Which she deploys just before Tenya reaches her, causing him to trip over one of the bars and flail.

Mei checks for where the support companies were seated, her quirk zeroing in on the faces she’s looking for - which, to her pleasure, are eating her words up.

Tenya catches himself and spins on his heels, wondering what she’s going. Hatsume complements it, noting how her auto-balancer makes those sorts of tight movements possible. Meanwhile, up in the announcement booth, Mic and Aizawa are both so put out, with Aizawa facepalming and calling her a born saleswoman.

The game of tag, along with a completely play-by-play sales pitch, goes on for another ten minutes. Eventually, however, Hatsume steps over the line, sweating but proud of managing to get through everything she wants to show off. Midnight states that Tenya’s moving on to the second round, while Tenya is just in despair at the deception.

Ah, the face of someone with zero shame. Hatsume gives a completely insincere apology for using Tenya, which Tenya replies to by stating his extreme dislike of her.

Izuku is also a bit dismayed as he notes that Tenya is just too serious, so it wasn’t hard for her to get him to play her game, and that at least she’s honest about her under-handed methods to get what she wants. Ochako herself is looking a bit down as she gets up, quietly noting to Izuku that she should get to the prep room. Izuku notes that she left her still-full drink behind, glancing back to her in concern as she walks away.

As other matches run in the background, we shift over to prep room two, which Tenya is just entering. Ochako, already waiting in there, tells him good which, which startles him out of his funk as he recognizes her. Of course, the first thing he notes is her furrowed brows, which Ochako admits is probably from her being a bit nervous, and how it’s probably showing on her face. Tenya remembers her match is against Katsuki, and Ochako admits that she’s really scared. But, seeing Tenya out there, she…

Well, before she can finish her thought, Izuku bursts into the room. Ochako is confused, since he should be out there watching the other matches. Tenya to the side asks about the story behind the support girl. Izuku ignores the latter, telling Ochako that another two matches are already over, and now Kirishima and some class 1b guy are duking it out. Mina managed to damage Aoyama’s belt, he panicked, and she knocked him out with an uppercut to the chin. Then Tokoyami won his match in a flash - he didn’t give Momo the time to use the objects she made… he’s one of the strongest guys here in a one-on-one. Ochako realizes this means her match is up soon, her heart pounding in her chest.

Tenya can’t imagine that Katsuki would give it his explosive all against a female opponent, but Izuku cuts in, staring very firmly that Katsuki will. Everyone is competing here with the dream of becoming number one. No one’s holding back - Katsuki least of all. However, Ochako’s already helped Izuku so much, so he thought he might return the favor…

He really just stores his notebooks anywhere he can. What a legend. He offers the notebook, stating that Ochako needs a counter-strategy against Katsuki - one that uses her quirk. He came up with it on the fly, but it might work! Tenya is relief, stating how fortunate Ochako is. Ochako thanks Izuku, but says that it’s okay. Both Izuku and Tenya are startled by the reply.

Ochako states how amazing Izuku is, and how he does amazing stuff all the time. During the cavalry battle, she thought the easiest strategy woul be to team up with friends. But when she thinks about it, she was just putting her faith in Izuku. That’s why Tenya said ‘I challenge you’ and all that, which left her feeling a little embarrassed about herself.

She pushes herself to her feet, moving past them to get to her match as she says thanks, but no thanks. Everyone here is fighting for their futures, so doesn’t that make them all rivals? That’s why she’ll see him in the finals!

Ochako, sweetie…

Kirishima and Tetsutetsu knock each other out at the same time. Present Mic comments on the mirror image quirk matchup, and how the winner is… neither! They have a tie, since both are down. Midnight clarifies that in the event of a tie, they’ll determine the winner after the two recover, probably with an arm wrestling match or the like. The crowds comment on how they’re equal in strength, and how that was great though. They kind of hotbloodedness would be a great morale boost, and how they’re desirable as sidekicks.

Shouto watches on as the final two contestants of the first round enter the arena. Tsuyu states her worries about the match, and Jirou addson how she doesn’t want to watch it. Izuku quietly hopes for Ochako to do her best.

And so the final match is announced: Ochako versus Katsuki.

And with that, volume four is done! I’ll be getting up the character sheet first, and then digging into the bonus material. Hopefully y’all enjoy!

#chapter 35 #sports festival arc #readthrough #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #midoriya izuku #Iida Tenya #uraraka ochako #kayama nemuri #aizawa shouta #yamada hizashi #Hatsume Mei #Kaminari Denki #shiozaki ibara #not related to this post or anything #but happy birthday tenya #what a good bean #he gets so betrayed in this chapter

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orangepanic · 2 years

Text

It's that kind of week and it's only Wednesday so here are a bunch of random snippets of my favorite characters drinking.

June slammed her glass upside down on the bar to a smattering of jeers and applause. The shochu burned down her throat.

“Six,” she spat. The room wobbled slightly.

Mongke leveled his gaze at her. He picked up his own glass and drained it without a word. The man didn’t even flinch. It was like he was drinking water. For all she knew it was like water to him. Mongke was smart, he wasn’t a drunkard, but the Rough Rhinos weren’t exactly known for their moderation, either.

“Six,” he said with a smile.

---

Iroh shrugged. “You’re the one making it everybody’s problem. If it bothers you that much, just go home already. There’s no need for you to stick around and try to compete when you’ve clearly lost the game.”

Asami picked up her cocktail and threw it in his face.

---

“Two…” He looked at Mako. “What were you drinking?”

“Tequila.”

“Tequilas,” Iroh repeated. He shifted his enormous coat a little, as if hot. Up close he looked flushed.

“That’s… an interesting choice,” Mako said. “I’ve never seen you out of uniform.”

“Don’t be petty,” Iroh said. “It’s not my fault you dress like Lin."

---

Tahno kicked out at the pigeon rat again. It fluttered and squeaked as it skittered away, then fixed a baleful eye on the brown paper bag in his hand. Stupid fucking thing probably thought it was food. Tahno took another swig of gin, more out of spite than anything else. His eyes watered. Take that, you goddamned vulture.

---

Bolin took a big swig of his beer. “It’s about her?”

Iroh nodded. “Completely.” He picked up his own drink, a large glass of mango juice, and took a careful sip. “At least, in my opinion. The ring is your sales pitch. Your offering. It’s like buying a woman flowers, or any kind of gift. The goal is to get her something that makes her happy, that shows that you understand her and know what she wants. If you can do that, it shows your ability to discern and meet her needs in other ways, and therefore demonstrates your worth as a long-term partner.”

Bolin felt a sudden tightness in his throat. That… that sounded a lot like some kind of test.

---

“Commander Ano,” Cuzon nodded, not getting up. “If you’re going to kill me, tell me now so I can stop drinking this swill.” He gestured to his drink. “I’d forgotten how bad it is. I won’t waste it, but if I’m dead I suppose it doesn’t matter.”

Yonemura didn’t answer as her stomach clenched. She hadn’t realized how hard it would be, seeing him again. She pulled out the chair across from him and sat down. “I could have you hanged.”

Cuzon smiled. “And yet, you sat.” He took a sip of his drink and grimaced. “I assume that means you have something to say to me first?”

---

That night, General Iroh did something he hadn’t done in a very, very long time. He got completely and utterly drunk.

Shortly after dinner he had allowed himself a small glass of brandy in his quarters to steady his nerves. The interaction with Raiko and the fight with the Avatar had bothered him more than he wanted to show, and he had made a point of recruiting bright and perceptive men to his command. The small glass, proving ineffective, had turned into a second, which had turned into a third, larger glass. After that he lost count.

---

“Havin’?” growled the man behind the bar. Unlike the Huan look-alike at the chit counter, this man would have been at home in some of the rougher earthbending rumbles Bumi had seen in the east.

Lin slapped a note on the counter. “Gin.”

“Gin an’ what?”

“Gin and a glass to pour it in.”

The man nodded, then looked to Bumi. “You?”

He scanned the bottles before his eyes settled on one at the top. “Sozin’s, neat.”

The bartender’s eyebrows twitched slightly, but he said nothing. He pulled the bottle down and got to work.

---

“White tea, and Americano with an extra shot!” Korra called. Iroh jumped up from his typical corner and trotted over to the counter.

“Thanks, Korra,” he said with a smile. He smiled a lot these days. He grabbed the cups and hurried back, then scooted in next to Asami. She gave him a kiss and took her coffee. He wrapped an arm around her back, then put his tea down to open a fat book. Korra just caught the title. A History of Anthropological Theory. Good for him. It still sounded boring.

---

Viper took a sip of his drink. He liked bourbon, the older the better. Korra couldn’t stand the stuff, but then again, she was still learning. There were so many things the waterbender had taught her over the past few months. Maybe one day she’d learn to like bourbon, too.

They were sitting at the small table in his office at headquarters. It had been laid with a white table cloth. In the center was a single red rose in a glass of water. Viper had often asked her to join him for an occasional drink, but something about tonight felt different.

---

“Hey,” Kuvira called to the bartender. “I need eight glasses of your best scotch.” She pulled one hand out of her pocket and slammed a pile of coins and crumpled bills on the counter, presumably her winnings from earlier. Then she glanced at Iroh, her muddy green eyes boring into him with an intensity he hadn’t thought possible. She was so close he could smell her, a kind of rich, earthy scent that reminded him of walks in the forest. “Make that nine,” Kuvira said.

“Oh! I don’t... didn’t mean to—” Iroh stumbled, caught completely off-guard, but she cut him off.

“You walked away without your winnings, fire boy,” she said. “I pay my debts.” The bartender scooped the pile of money into his apron and replaced it with nine glasses filled with a deep golden liquid. Kuvira pushed one towards Iroh, and at the same time he felt a strong hand slide high up his thigh underneath the bar.

---

Mako scanned the offerings. It was the typical assortment of beer, wine, and liquor, though he was unsurprised to see that most of it was rather high-end. An unfamiliar bottle caught his eye. It was bright green, and filled with what he imagined was some kind of dark liquor.

“What on earth is Queen’s Lightning?” he asked, squinting as he read the label.

“Hoo boy, that’ll knock your socks off. It’s basically grain alcohol. Made from some kind of prairie grass down south. The bride and groom requested it special. I think it’s some kind of joke between them.”

Korra raised an eyebrow. Mako shrugged. What the hell.

“Two please,” Korra said. The bartender nodded, pouring two generous tumblers over ice. Korra took them, then handed one to Mako. “Bottoms up,” she said.

He eyed the dark liquor suspiciously. Up close, it looked more like engine oil than anything he should be drinking. He hoped this wasn’t Asami’s idea of a joke. “Bottoms up.”

---

Asami knocked back the first shot. The brandy still burned, but not as badly as it had before. Then she went to refill her glass. Mako made a kind of chuffing noise. “You two are holding her hair later,” he grumbled. “I’m officially staying out of this.”

Well, they usually had each other’s backs, at any rate. Asami poured her third penalty shot. By the fourth, she hardly tasted it.

Slowly she considered the board. It was a little blurry around the edges now, but no matter. She hadn’t been lying. Asami had the general’s shiny black tiles right where she wanted them. Surely she did.

She met General Iroh’s eyes. He had very pretty eyes, the color of passion fruit, framed by thick lashes. She’d never really thought of a man’s eyes as pretty before, but there you had it. One of his dark eyebrows twitched, almost imperceptibly, in a signal clearly meant just for her. It felt like a dare. Without breaking her gaze, Asami hopped her own wheel tile over a full five of his pieces. Then she tipped the bottle of brandy at Iroh and smiled.

“Drink up.”

#pointless post #fanfic #otps get wrecked

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zindabadzine · 2 years

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if that makes sense: knowing nazia

by nooresahar / instalment 001 of her column ‘if that makes sense’ (!!!)

I first encountered Nazia Hassan’s music when, after spending a winter in Pakistan as a young teenager bashfully clapping along to songs at wedding celebrations that I didn’t know the words to, I was determined to brush up on my knowledge of Desi music. Relatives provided me with a list of some popular songs, and one of them was Hassan’s ‘Aankhein Milaney Waaley’, whose playful lyrics and fun tune made it a favourite of mine. Over the years, my knowledge of Nazia’s life and music became only slightly less rudimentary; upon discovering some of her music on Spotify, I realised that she had mostly made music with her brother Zoheb. My dad filled me in on the popularity of her music in the 1980s, the tragedy of her early death, and the fact that he once saw her on a train in London and got her autograph. This was not much to go on, and when I began to be a bigger fan of her music in the last year, I decided to find out more about her. Interviews, documentaries, articles and music videos of which she was the subject revealed a musical career that was more revolutionary that I had originally realised, and a personality which was more discreet than I had expected.

The story of Nazia Hassan’s career, one that triggered a musical revolution in South Asia, began when she was scouted by actor-director Feroz Khan who wanted her to audition for a standalone pop song, which he was hoping would accompany his upcoming film Qurbani (1980). The film and music industries in South Asia have almost always existed in a symbiotic relationship: to this day, ‘filmi’ music makes up 72% of the music sales market in India. Back when Qurbani was released, aside from some folk or classical music, filmi music reigned over the industry uncontested.

Aap jaisa koi meri zindagi mein aaye / Toh baat ban jaaye

Khan was unwittingly orchestrating the creation of a new genre, set to dominate the industry. He had enlisted producer and composer Biddu, who had achieved success outside of India by becoming one of the first disco producers of the 1970s (you might recognise his work from the song ‘Kung Fu Fighting’, which he produced). Despite being a young and relatively inexperienced singer, Nazia’s talent impressed Biddu, and she was enlisted to sing the pop song ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ (‘Someone Like You’).

To the modern listener, ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ is a fun, disco-inspired song with a simple enough sentiment:

Aap jaisa koi meri zindagi mein aaye / Toh baat ban jaaye

(If someone like you were to enter my life / Then it would be amazing)

But for a listener in 1980, the song was refreshingly original; new in style, pitch, and sound. ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ helped Qurbani reach blockbuster status, and the song went Platinum in seven months, a record for the Indian music industry at the time. The song made Hassan, aged just fifteen at the time, the youngest ever recipient for the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer, and today it is a cult classic.

The earliest recorded video of Hassan was taken around this time. It is hard to believe that the girl in this grainy black-and-white video is going to dominate the music industry for the next decade. She comes across as a polite, slightly shy teenager, wide-eyed with her hair parted into two neat braids. She often looks down or at the interviewer intently, but giggles nervously at any slightly uncomfortable question. When the interviewer compliments her grace, Hassan sticks her tongue between her teeth and covers her face in embarrassment.

You could be forgiven for mistakenly thinking her unambitious; when asked if she would like to have training in dancing and singing to polish her skills, Hassan shrugs and smiles: “I don’t know. Um… Right now- right now I haven’t [had any training]. And right now I have school, so I don’t have that much time to… maybe after school or college I’ll learn, but not right now.” When asked if she has had offers to act in films, Hassan says yes. When asked if she has accepted these roles, Hassan says no.

Nazia and Zoheb Hassan seemed the perfect artists for this generation.

It would become clear, however, that Hassan did not need extra training or an acting role to secure her position as a cultural icon. Just a year after the release of ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’, Biddu, Hassan, and her younger brother Zoheb would team up to make an album: Disco Deewane. Released on the singer’s 16th birthday in 1981, it was the first pop album to come out of South Asia, and was welcomed with open arms by the younger generation. A growing middle class in India with more disposable income to spend on music, combined with emergent diasporas established in various countries around the world, had meant South Asians were experiencing an increased exposure to ‘Western’ artists and music genres such as disco or pop. Still interested, however, in maintaining their own cultural roots, Nazia and Zoheb Hassan seemed the perfect artists for this generation; the debut album charted in fourteen countries worldwide and became the best-selling Asian pop record to date. In India, it sold 100,000 records within a day of its release in Mumbai alone, going Platinum in just three weeks, and Double-Platinum soon after. It experienced success among the South Asian diaspora in Canada, the UK, the US, and the West Indies. It was the first South Asian pop album to top charts in Brazil, as well as becoming a hit in Russia, South Africa, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Latin America.

Nazia and Zoheb, a now famous duo, were thus embarking on their innovative musical career. They worked on several film soundtracks together, but their non-soundtrack albums were just as, if not more, successful. In 1984, they released another album titled Young Tarang — my own personal favourite. My feelings for this album are, I imagine, quite similar to those of the diaspora kids who identified with Hassan’s music 30 years ago. The simplicity and accessibility of the lyrics, the fusion of cultures taking place in both the production and sound of the songs, and their overall catchiness and whimsicality, combine to make the album an easy favourite. The ten tracks make up a strong and cohesive body of work, ranging from buoyant tracks like ‘Pyaar ka Jadoo’ (‘The Magic of Love’) or ‘Dum Dum Dee Dee’, to more aching ballads like ‘Chehra’ (‘Visage’). At the time of its release, it was yet another rousing success for Nazia and Zoheb, further cementing their position as the first pop stars of South Asia and selling over 40 million copies worldwide. The Hassan siblings also decided to release music videos alongside the album; as the first South Asian album to do so, it proved to be yet another trailblazing move.

My feelings for this album are, I imagine, quite similar to those of the diaspora kids who identified with Hassan’s music 30 years ago.

The music videos are simple, with shots and effects that seem now to be marks of an amateur production, but they are indicative of the leap that Nazia and Zoheb were taking. Of the seven music videos, some of them are uneventful: for their song ‘Dosti’ (‘Friendship’), Nazia and Zoheb skip down a street in matching white outfits, singing about the value of friendship. For her song ‘Sunn’ (‘Listen’), a soft slow ballad, Nazia picks her way through a field in a yellow shalwar kameez, presumably looking for her lover as she sings:

Sunn, mere Mehboob sunn / Mere saanson se sun / Mere geeton ki dhun / Tu hai kahan

(Listen, my love, listen / You can hear it in the breaths that I take / The melody of my songs / Where are you?)

Other videos are more elaborate, such as the one that accompanied ‘Aankhein Milaney Waalein’ (‘The one who meets my eye’), probably Hassan’s most enduring music video. In it, she wears a pink, puffy dress as she slowly travels down a staircase, holding a masquerade mask to her eyes as she looks down at a crowd of faces, a spotlight on one man as she entreats:

Ankhein milaanay waalay / dil ko churaanei waalay / mujkho bhulaana nahin

(“The one who meets my eye / The one who steals my heart / Do not forget me”).

The camera moves to a close up shot of her face as she croons the famous bridge:

Mein jawaan / Mein haseen / Mere pas kya nahin?

(“I’m young / I’m beautiful / What don’t I possess?”)

After a series of daydreams, wherein Nazia sits down to dinner with the object of her affection, or dances around the room slowly with him, the video ends with her carrying a bouquet of flowers from an unknown sender back upstairs alone, the camera panning to the abandoned mask for the final frame.

Young Tarang was marked by a flurry of innovative activity, as seen in the creation of those music videos and the world tour that followed the album, which served to strengthen the duo’s fanbase. In the interviews I found from the following years, the latter half of the 1980s, Nazia had reached peak stardom, and it feels as though the interviewers are speaking on the behalf of a public who is anxious to get to know her. Though older and more comfortable, Hassan is hardly any more revealing than she was in her first television appearance. When asked in a 1988 interview about where she is nowadays, she replies, “Well, right now, I’m in this programme.” The interviewer presses her to answer properly: “When you’re not here, where are you?” Nazia smiles and concedes; she is in London, studying Law. In truth, Hassan was spending many busy years dividing her time between London, where she was studying, and Pakistan, where she would use the summers to work on her music. Such endeavours were still proving fruitful; Nazia and Zoheb released their fourth album, Hotline, in 1987. By the end of 1980s, however, it was apparent that Hassan was interested in taking her career in a new direction.

Nazia had reached peak stardom, and it feels as though the interviewers are speaking on the behalf of a public who is anxious to get to know her.

In 1992, after the release of their final album Camera Camera, Nazia announced that she was leaving music - for good. She had become increasingly interested in social activism, and was involved in organisations such as Voice of Women and the National Youth Organisation in Pakistan. She helped in the introduction of mobile clinics in Lyari Town, which made medicine more accessible, and turned her attention towards helping young people and women in the underprivileged areas of her hometown, Karachi. Her educational pursuits also progressed, and in 1994 she moved to New York, where she became a political analyst for the UN.

Five years later, Hassan would return to television screens with a short interview. It became clear to me as I watched it that in a handful of years, she had experienced numerous life-altering events. Further research revealed that she had had a secret struggle with cancer in 1994, followed by a marriage organised by her family in 1995. Though it would not be apparent to them or the public for some years, the marriage was a miserable match for Hassan. In 1997, she had happily welcomed the birth of her baby boy, but soon after found out that the cancer had returned.

In the interview, when asked about her feelings about her past music career, Nazia is positive: “Zoheb and I… we were very lucky, we worked very hard with our music, but at the same time, you know, I think the kind of reaction we got, and the kind of appreciation we got, it’s very rare.” She hints, though, that navigating the industry as two teenagers unaware of contracts, copyrights and royalties was not all plain sailing. The interviewer asks if this means they got badly ripped off. “Oh, yeah, by everyone,” Nazia laughs.

She seems surprised that she has retained relevance in pop culture, surprised that when she gave up music her and her brother weren’t able to just “fade into the background”. There was, in fact, a staggering response from the public when they were made aware that Nazia was suffering from cancer. Ultimately, despite her proclivity to privacy, she is grateful to have received such an outpouring of love: “I’m a firm believer in God, [...] And I’m telling you, I mean it sounds cliche to say, but it is the prayers that help. [...] The outpouring of prayers that I’ve had, are really what’s saved me [...] I can’t thank people enough.”

The interviewer asks if they got badly ripped off. “Oh, yeah, by everyone,” Nazia laughs.

When asked about the future, Hassan says she is intent on enjoying the present. “I think you can worry too much about the future — worry too much about dying, worry too much about… you know, what if the disease gets worse and blah blah blah and all of that. But I think what’s important to do is to be as positive as you can be, and […] I cherish every day.” She talks about her love for her family, and her face lights up when mentioning her son, “a two-year-old monster”. She is sitting her bar exams, she wants to go back to school, she is toying with the idea of a new album. The new album, in fact, is something that people ask her about every day, “Eventually, you know, we might do something. But at the moment my main [...] goal, if you like, is just really to get better…I want to fight this battle first, and then go on and do other things.”

It would be her last interview. Just a year later, on the 13th August 2000, months after seeking a divorce from her husband, Nazia Hassan succumbed to cancer, aged just 35. In the years following her demise, it was Zoheb who would reveal that there were many aspects of Nazia’s life that she did not make apparent to her closest family, let alone the public. This included social work she was doing, which she informed her brother of when she was dying, to make sure it would be continued after her death. But there were also many personal struggles that the singer decided to face alone. These ranged from navigating a male-dominated industry as a young woman, to the stresses of an unhappy marriage, to the struggles of battling serious illness.

The fun, light-hearted imagery and sound of her music is thus difficult to reconcile with the knowledge that this deeply private individual led a complex and fraught personal life. Over twenty years after her demise, Nazia is known for the music she released which for many became the soundtrack to the 1980s, and the pathway she created for countless South Asian artists to explore new genres and establish themselves as musicians independent of the film industry. She is remembered for her activism, which revealed a gentle character concerned for the plight of others. Yet, even with all that I now know about her, when I think of Nazia Hassan some of the first images that resurface are those music videos from Young Tarang. Skipping arm-in-arm with her brother, picking her way through a field and singing about love, sitting alone in that pink, puffy dress and asking the all-important question: she is young, she is beautiful. What does she not possess?

#nooresahar #if that makes sense #columns

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morgana-ren · 4 years

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Come Down to the Black Sea (II)

Here’s the second part to this fic! In case you’re not caught up, here’s the first! (Part One)

There’s a sickly sweet sense of satisfaction that tugs his blistering lips into a sharp grin when you inevitably return. You couldn’t stay away from the ocean even after your traumatic encounter with him. The pull is too strong, and while any normal person would stay far, far away from the shoreline after learning what stalks beyond the edge of the sand, you’re not any normal person, are you?

Oh no, you’re much too brave for that. Or maybe much too foolish.

The next time he sees you, he has to admit, you look different than what he’d gotten used to. Maybe a little less aloof. Maybe a little more vigilant. Perhaps even a hint of visible bitterness that his presence taints your peaceful metaphorical sanctum. Your thinly pulled sneer and cautious glances hint at something akin to spite and he’s unsure if the snub intrigues or enrages him further.

You keep your distance at first, sitting far back on the concrete curb only a few meters from the tarmac of the dimly lit parking lot. You look out, squirming uncomfortably as you stare long to the ocean as if you're trying to relax but failing miserably. The souring experience with the sea creature has poisoned any semblance of tranquility you found before, and your resentful vigilance is written plainly on your features. Even as your muscles pull taut from the tension you’re holding in, the skin beneath your eyes still crinkles as you occasionally search out in the distance for the telltale sign of silvery hair or leering crimson eyes beneath the murky waves.

He lets you have your comfort days, keeping himself hidden well in the shadowed waters as you regain your footing and attempt to trust the thought of the ocean and her creatures again. As he predicts, every moonrise, you move slightly closer to the sea. Only slightly, but it's more than most of your kind would do given the circumstances.

He's curious if you believe he's moved on by now. After all, he's been a good boy. He hasn't drowned any swimmers in weeks, and more boats have made it to dock than usually do when he’s skulking the depths.

Humans expect most other creatures to react to their presence being known in one way; fear. In all of your novels, movies, all of your self indulgent garbage, the creatures flee in the face of the mighty human race or face ultimate destruction. Your hubris blinds you. He's not going anywhere. Not until he's gotten what he came for.

Not long after you return to the beach and his impatience reaches an insurmountable peak. He pops his flaxen head up to the surface and studies you until you inevitably realize you’re not alone. Your initial reaction is one he expects, and that’s fear. Your secondary reaction however? That one is the one that grates at him. Irritation. You’re irritated at him.

You don't flee from your spot like he thought you might, but you visibly tense up for a moment. Once your rationality takes over once more, he swears you shake your fucking head at him as you tear your eyes away from his general direction. The unmitigated gall of some humans. He cannot deny that it sparks his interest, though.

He stays the night with his gaze fixed on you; a gaze you don't return. In fact, you actively keep it pulled away for the duration of your stay. It irks him more than it ought to. Are you trying to pretend he isn’t real?

How dare you ignore him. You didn't even know he existed until recently and you think you can go back to pretending you don't know? Is your arrogance so overwhelming that you'll turn a blind eye to him over petty hurt feelings?

Okay, maybe he tried to drown you, but if you had just returned his call, it never had to be this way. You would be dead and he would be miles down the coast, wreaking havoc on some new stretch of land. Instead, he's stuck here in a battle of stubbornness with some human idiot because you couldn't just die like you were supposed to.

What makes you so goddamn special?

Well to hell with that and to hell with you. You’re nothing. Just another ordinary human girl, and he'll drag you to the trenches if it's the last thing he does. He swears it.

That night and every night after, he allows you to see him. His eyes might as well be the lighthouse to his location, and if that wasn't enough, you can always make out the silver mop of hair somewhere in the distance. He calls to you and he knows you can feel it. He sees you jerk instinctively towards the ocean, having to consciously keep yourself rooted to the ground, but you always manage to resist somehow.

It infuriates him, rage building deep in his gut as he sees trickles of light from the sun climb over the horizon and paint the sky with yellows and lavenders as a harbinger of the daylight, and thus the end of his time with you. He watches the rising tide erase your footsteps every morning only to be replaced the following evening, inching ever closer to his territory.

'Patience' He reminds himself.

Sure enough, one evening as the moon pulls over the sky, you're situated yourself once again on the rocks where you first met, albeit further back than he'd like. You learn from your mistakes, it seems. Unfortunate. For him at least.

He cautiously swims to the edge of your makeshift perch, hoisting himself up slightly out of the water once more and resting his head on his crossed wrist as he blinks his large red eyes up at you. You still refuse to return the favor, despite the fact he knows that you’re aware of him based on the way you pull your body further into itself when he makes his appearance. The silence lasts for several minutes before he opts to speak, growing weary of being ignored.

"I knew you'd be back."

You don't even so much as nod.

"It's rude to ignore someone. Where are your manners?"

Despite his persistence, you refuse him the attention he craves. Something wells in the pit of his stomach that feels a bit too much like the humiliating sting of rejection, and he doesn't like that one bit. He doesn't like being ignored.

He brings his arm back and spreads his webbed fingers, letting the water pool around the center of his palm before slapping his hand in your direction. Stark cold sea water drenches the entirety of your front and he watches in amusement as your skin pimples and you recoil, frozen in shock for several seconds. He can't help but chuckle when you begin to screech, angrily wiping your face and yanking at your doused clothing that slaps against your skin with each movement. Try to ignore that.

"What the FUCK!"

"Don't ignore me, brat."

Your face contorts and soon you're hissing and sputtering, unable to formulate words in your fit of pure rage. A smug little grin plays on his mouth as he rests his head in his palm, watching as you fail miserably to find some venom to spit back in his face.

"Are you kidding me? You tried to fucking drown me and you’re pissed I’m ignoring you?"

He shrugs, huffing out his cracked lips like you're the biggest drama queen on the planet. "You're still breathing, aren't you?"

"I wonder if I'll get a special price when I sell you to a fucking sushi restaurant!"

The smile fades from his face and he scrapes a talon against the rock. Apparently dark humor is only funny if it’s not being aimed at him. "I'd like to see you try, human."

You two glare each other down for a moment before you sigh and tear your attentions from him to his dismay. "Just go away. Whatever you are, I don't care. Just leave me in peace."

"You know my name." He spits through gritted teeth, instinctively rising a little higher in defense.

"Yeah, I also said I don't care. Go away, fish."

You are so fucking lucky he can't reach you.

"No." His answer is simple and deliberate, trying to keep the urge to slither onto the rock and dig his nails into your yielding human flesh at bay. Land is your territory, and he rather enjoys the home field advantage.

"Why? You have an entire ocean to go be a dick in. Why do you have to bother me?"

He ponders your words for a moment before settling on a less than sufficient answer. You aren’t sure what you expected.

"Because I can. It could all be over if you'd just quit being stubborn and get in the damn water."

"Asking me politely to kill myself, huh? That's a neat strategy."

"I've heard your kind say drowning is very peaceful. Probably better than any other way you'll die."

"Nice sales pitch, bud. Still no takers."

You sit in uncomfortable silence for a few more moments, and he decides that this is going nowhere. Obviously the shock of meeting a sea dwelling humanoid has worn off and isn’t working to his advantage any longer. He's going to have to try another route.

He heaves himself up to sit directly on the edge of the crag itself while keeping the bottom of his tail below, steady flicking back and forth in a rhythmic fashion. Shaking the water from his hair, he slicks it back out of his face and runs his fingers through the length, brushing the tresses back behind his fins. He’s allowing you an up close and personal look at something most humans will never get to see. No matter how angry at him you are, he knows you can’t resist the urge to look.

As expected, your curiosity is a bit too much for you to overcome. While you do initially move to scoot away, it’s quickly replaced with a particularly intense look, clearly marveling at the differences in your physiology versus his own.

His torso is human enough, albeit with an unusually iridescent sheen to it, until you get to the rounds of his hips. That's where thick, black scales accumulate and eventually lead into a sleek, muscular looking tail. The fins on the side of his head twitch slightly as he massages his scalp, and you wonder if it's how he hears things or if it's just a natural reaction to the stimulation. His nails are sharp but he seems to be acutely aware of their placement, avoiding harming himself at all while your cuts are still healing up under a rather gratuitously thick blood tacked bandage from when he grabbed you during your previous meeting.

His hair isn't blonde, it's literally silver. It frames his pallid face in shaggy waves that reach lazily down below his shoulders and somehow glows with unnatural shine that haloes his head in the moonlight even when sopping wet. While his eyes are that of a predator, they're oddly mesmerizing; a deep, luminescent scarlet that contrasts his pale skin beautifully. You're willing to bet that's a technique developed by his kind to disarm and lure prey, though one of his victims or perhaps another sea dweller must have tried to gouge it out, since one of his eyes has a jagged, pale scar stretching from his thin eyebrow to the chapped, baggy flesh underneath.

Life in the sea must be just as treacherous as land, as puffy, pink scars crisscross the expanse of his skin, some rounding from the front of his chest all the way around to his back. There's prominent marks around his gills as well. Small, repeated nicks just under the column of his neck. It’s a rather peculiar pattern, but he seems unbothered by them, and most look fully healed. Apparently he's become more cautious- or perhaps more skilled- with age.

How old is he anyway? He looks about your age, but it's rough to tell between the dried patches of flesh that litter his face. Even from beneath them though, you can tell he's oddly alluring; it somehow adds to his unique attraction. He's even got a little beauty mark adjacent to a jagged scar that runs through his chapped lips.

He’s like something out of the story books you read or the tales you were told as a child. The beautiful creature that haunts the darkness, another pretty mask death facades in. His appearance bodes nothing but an omen of ill will, yet you can’t bring yourself to run from him no matter how much your inner child shrieks at the danger.

Fairy tales aren’t real, and according to the rest of the world, he shouldn’t and doesn’t exist, and yet here he sits right in front of you as if it's the most natural thing in the world. Decades of fantasy stories with tales of nefarious monsters pretending to be something they aren’t just to entice the clueless protagonist into their ultimate demise should have somewhat prepared you for this moment, but you’re too enthralled with the flick of his tail and self indulgent thoughts of being special to really adhere to the rules of self preservation set forth by predecessors ignorant to his existence.

You're so lost in observing him and every oddity that his body offers up to your gluttonous mortal eyes that it almost causes you to jump when he speaks again, turning to face you with eyes crinkling in mocking amusement.

"Huh, you're staring. How rude of you. Unless it's for a different reason, that is."

"What? Wait- no!" You shake your head adamantly even as a telling darkness creeps up your neck and across your cheeks.

"Humans are bad liars." He grins, tongue poking out from beneath his sharp canines. "It's okay. You can come down and get a closer look if you'd like."

"Ha-ha. Nice fuckin' try."

"Suit yourself." He clicks his tongue and turns his attention from you, languidly stirring the water where his scaled appendage swishes just beneath the surface.

You eye it, far too curious to resist leaning your head forward slightly to get a better look at it in the cloudy water. “It looks… slimy.”

He balks at your rude admission and it’s apparent you’ve insulted his pride. For a moment, it seems like he wants to admonish you for your careless affront to his form, but he seems to think better of it. Instead, he remains quiet for a moment, trying to think of something tactful to say.

"Well, it's not. Think...." He pauses, filing through his knowledge of human creatures for a decent comparison. "A snake. They might look slimy to someone ignorant, but they're soft and smooth."

"Not if you rub them the wrong way."

"Obviously. That's why you don't do that, idiot."

"What about your-" You gesture vaguely before pointing at the scales that dot his arms and chest. "-Those."

"Are you stupid or something? It's the exact same thing." He runs a clawed finger up his own arm and then clenches his hand. "Smooth."

"Huh."

"If you'll come down here, you can feel it for yourself."

"Give it up, tailbait."

His wet hand reaches upward and scratches lightly around the scars that mar his neck. He didn't actually expect it to work, but he's irritated nonetheless. This shouldn’t be this much trouble, and he shouldn’t be putting this much effort into anything. Why does he even bother?

"Fine then."

Despite his tantrum, he knows you're tempted. He can tell by the way you keep eyeing him. You're presented with a once in a lifetime opportunity, and it’s not in your nature to pass it up. Granted said opportunity is a loaded spring trap, but still, it's rough for you to even pretend you’re not interested.

Although, to be fair, the same can be said about him. He never really talks to humans beyond the regular ‘Oh god, what are you, please help me, let me go, I don't want to die like this’ nonsense your kind spouts off when you realize what's happening. This is his first actual conversation with one of your kind. He’s not happy about the circumstances surrounding it, but he’ll take advantage of it while he has the chance.

"What about you? When your skin isn't wet, what does it feel like?"

You pause at the question, unsure of what really to say. You drag your own fingers across your arm, trying to find a way to describe it. "Uh... Fleshy? Sort of squishy? It can be soft or rough depending on where you touch. Maybe a little hairy depending on who?"

He stares blankly and you realize that's probably not the best description, but what the fuck does he want you to say? It’s such a weird thing to describe. You’ve never even really thought about it before.

You reach your arm forward to let him touch for himself, but immediately yank it back when you realize what a dumb fuck move that is. He must realize it too, because he's cackling loudly as you cradle your offending arm and look at him as if he’s the one in the wrong. He could have easily yanked you forward and taken you under if you had gone through with giving him the chance.

"You're a fuckin' dick."

"I didn't do anything. It's not my fault you're an idiot."

"Shut up." You knead your teeth into your lip, scanning him over again. "What about your magic?"

"Magic? What are you? A child?"

"What do you want me to call it, then?"

"Do you call it magic when one of your kind uses a harpoon gun?"

"No, because it's not."

"Then why would what I do be considered 'magic?"

"A harpoon gun is human technology. What you do isn't. At least as far as I know. You weren’t like… made in a lab, were you?"

He gives a grunt and scratches at his neck again. "Typical human. A tiger has claws it uses to defend itself and catch prey that come naturally to it and not to you, but do you consider it magic? Well mine is no different. We evolve different from your kind, but we're not any sort of mythical. Just because we're not known to you doesn't mean we're some sort of wild outlier. Humans aren’t the end-all-be-all of intelligent life."

You consider his point, nodding after a few moments. "You're right. My bad. It's just... it's new to me. I'm just trying to understand. Is it rude to think of you as mythic? I don’t mean for it to be, it’s just-"

He huffs angrily before you can finish, scowling again. "We adapt to our environment, same as you. Typical human arrogance. You all think you’re so intelligent and so learned. If you haven't heard of it, it must not exist, right? The mighty human race, epitome of knowledge despite knowing nothing at all!”

You break up his tirade before he starts going off, raising your hands defensively to disarm him. "Fair enough! I didn't mean to offend you or imply something offensive. Sorry! I’m still learning."

He says nothing, but the rage building within him begins to deteriorate. At least you're smart enough to recognize you're stupid.

Another stark silence, the sound of waves crashing and wind blowing is all that passes between you. A gale brings in a new bout of smells; salt and slight sulfur, the same scent that’s comforted you throughout the entirety of your life. You inhale deeply, relishing in the peculiar sense of nostalgia the sea offers you, even knowing the danger you're literally facing.

The sounds of the waves pushing and pulling with the tides relaxes you, lulling you into a sense of contentment. Leaves rustling and waters bristling on the surface. The sand stuck between your toes. The breeze in your hair. The call of the ocean.

You can't see the look of peace that overtakes his features, but he can feel it too. Eyes closed, a rare look of tranquility settling across his face as he turns from you and faces the horizon and the open water.

The wind eventually dies down and you break the unspoken moment of serenity between you. You make the choice to speak.

"Why do you hate us so much?"

His eyes snap open and you are made instantly aware of your folly.

Wrong choice.

"I'm not surprised.” He hisses, shoving away from the rock with a look of disgust that tells you that you’ve made an egregious error. “Typical human. You know nothing."

With a flick of his tail and another splash of water directed your way, he's gone, submerged beneath the water with nothing but a ripple headed off into the sea from beneath the waves. Even several minutes later when you bring yourself to peer over the edge, you can't see the silvery glow of his hair or the deep crimson of his eyes.

He's really gone.

It doesn't bring you the comfort it should.

You sit on the edge for a few moments, even rolling the dice on dangling your feet in but nothing slippery attaches itself to your ankle or threatens to drag you below. Orange tinges the horizon and birds begin to chirp, you realize it's time to go home. You don't feel the peace of mind you usually do as you begin the long trek home.

Taglist: @dubliinwaltz, @lemonzoey

#Shigaraki Tomura #shigaraki x reader #BNHA #Shigaraki #Siren!Shigaraki #I got told I'm not tagging these with the right tags to reach the x reader audience so if you have any advice lemme know

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