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howaminotinthestrokesyet · 3 years

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Behind The Album: OK Computer

The third studio album from Radiohead was released in May 1997 by Parlophone Records. This would mark the first album that Nigel Godrich worked on as their producer. The band would self produce the entire album themselves, which they have done on every record since. In 1995, Brian Eno asked the band to contribute a song to a charity compilation for War Child entitled Help. They were scheduled to do the recording in only a day, which led to the track, “Lucky.” Godrich would say of the recording. “Those things are the most inspiring, when you do stuff really fast and there's nothing to lose. We left feeling fairly euphoric. So after establishing a bit of a rapport work-wise, I was sort of hoping I would be involved with the next album." This track would form the foundation of what would become OK Computer. In early 1996, the group took a break from touring because they found it a bit too stressful. Thoughts now turned to a new record with the mindset of distancing themselves from anything similar to The Bends. Drummer Phillip Selway would say, “There was an awful lot of soul-searching [on The Bends]. To do that again on another album would be excruciatingly boring.” The label gave the band a rather good sized budget for recording equipment for the new release. A number of producers were considered for the album, but they kept coming back to Godrich as an advisor on equipment. Eventually, the band hired him as the producer. Ed O’Brien said of the album, “Everyone said, 'You'll sell six or seven million if you bring out The Bends Pt 2,' and we're like, 'We'll kick against that and do the opposite'."

In early 1996, Radiohead began proper recording of the LP at Canned Applause Studios in Oxfordshire, England. Issues immediately came up as the band had difficulty staying focused on one song all the way to completion. Selway would talk about this later, “We're jumping from song to song, and when we started to run out of ideas, we'd move on to a new song ... The stupid thing was that we were nearly finished when we'd move on, because so much work had gone into them." Although the members of the group were considered equals, the voice of Thom Yorke always represented the loudest one in terms of musical direction. Godrich would talk about his role within the group in an interview. They “need to have another person outside their unit, especially when they're all playing together, to say when the take goes well ... I take up slack when people aren't taking responsibility—the term producing a record means taking responsibility for the record ... It's my job to ensure that they get the ideas across." His permanent role on each Radiohead album would lead to the producer being called the sixth member of Radiohead. After only recording four songs, the band left the Canned Applause Studio for a variety of reasons Including the fact that the studio had no bathrooms or dining rooms. They decided to take a break from recording in order to support Alanis Morissette on tour, which gave them a chance to try some of their new tracks live. Around the same time, Director Baz Luhrmann asked the band to contribute a song to his film, Romeo and Juliet. “Exit Music for a Film” would be played as the credits rolled during the movie, but they did not give Luhrmann permission to place the track on the movie soundtrack. Yorke would later observe that this song became very important to the album. It “was the first performance we'd ever recorded where every note of it made my head spin—something I was proud of, something I could turn up really, really loud and not wince at any moment."

In September 1996, the band began recording again at a mansion in Bath, England owned by actress Jane Seymour. Jonny Greenwood would say the environment represented a much more pleasant change for the group. It “was less like a laboratory experiment, which is what being in a studio is usually like, and more about a group of people making their first record together." One quality that the band enjoyed during the sessions came in the fact that they took full advantage of the natural environment of the mansion. “Exit Music for a Film” utilized some natural reverb courtesy of a stone stairwell. They recorded Let Down” in an empty ballroom at 3 o’clock in the morning. The group worked at its own pace as Ed O’Brien observed later. “The biggest pressure was actually completing [the recording]. We weren't given any deadlines and we had complete freedom to do what we wanted. We were delaying it because we were a bit frightened of actually finishing stuff." A majority of the album would be recorded live with no overdubs because Yorke hated them. The band completed the rest of the album at the studio in Saint Catherine’s towards the end of 1996. In January 1997, the strings for the album were recorded, then they spent the next two months mastering and mixing the album. Actually, the mixing of the album only took a couple of days. Nigel Godrich would later comment, “I feel like I get too into it. I start fiddling with things and I fuck it up ... I generally take about half a day to do a mix. If it's any longer than that, you lose it. The hardest thing is trying to stay fresh, to stay objective."

Several artists would influence what would become the finished product of OK Computer. First and foremost came the 1970 album Bitches Brew by jazz great, Miles Davis. Thom Yorke would tell Q what he saw in that recording that made up his vision for this album. “It was building something up and watching it fall apart, that's the beauty of it. It was at the core of what we were trying to do with OK Computer." Other artists that helped to inspire the record included Elvis Costello, REM, PJ Harvey, the Beatles, Can, and composer Ennio Morricone. Jonny Greenwood would describe OK Computer as an attempt to recreate the sound on all these great records, but they missed the mark. The band would expand their instrumentation for this album to include electric piano, Mellotron, cello and other strings, glockenspiel and electronic effects. Spin would say this about the release, “A DIY electronica album made with guitars." The lyrics to the album focused on themes much more conceptual when contrasted with The Bends. Yorke would sing about a wide variety of topics including transportation, technology, insanity, death, globalism, capitalism, and more. The singer would say, “On this album, the outside world became all there was ... I'm just taking Polaroids of things around me moving too fast." He also took inspiration for some of the lyrics from a selection of books including Noam Chomsky, Eric Hobsbawm's The Age of Extremes, Will Hutton's The State We're In, Jonathan Coe's What a Carve Up! and Philip K. Dick's VALIS. Despite the abstract nature of the lyrics on the record, many critics have looked upon OK Computer as a concept album. They argue that there exists a singular theme running throughout the record, but the band has consistently denied any attempt at making such a release. Jonny Greenwood commented, “I think one album title and one computer voice do not make a concept album. That's a bit of a red herring." They did pay particularly close attention to the order of the tracklist taking almost two weeks to complete it.

The album opens with “Airbag,” which highlights the drumming of Phillip Selway. The track had been inspired by the work of DJ Shadow. The band would later admit that they represented novices in this attempt to base a song on DJ Shadow due to their lack of time with programming. Yorke had actually read an article in a magazine entitled “An Airbag Saved My Life.” Another book that helped to create the basis for the song lyrics emerged in the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Yorke had always been obsessed with the idea that any time you get into a car you could possibly die at any second. The second track “Paranoid Android” stands out as one of the longest tracks in the band's entire catalog. Two songs inspired it from classic rock, “Happiness Is a Warm Gun” by the Beatles and “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen. The lyrics are meant to reference the alien from Douglas Adams’s A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Yorke got the idea after watching a woman lose her mind after a drink spilled on her at a bar in Los Angeles. “Subterranean Homesick Alien” referenced “Subterranean Homesick Blues” by Bob Dylan. The lyrics are meant to refer a person who is abducted by aliens, then returns home to realize his life is in no way any different. The beginnings of the theme for this track actually began for the singer in private school when he had an assignment to recreate a British literary movement called Martian poetry. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare inspired the lyrics to “Exit Music for a Film.” This should come as no surprise as the band had specifically created the song for a remake film. Yorke would use it as a chance to simply recap the entire narrative in the song because Zeffirelli’s version of the film greatly affected him at the age of 13. “I cried my eyes out, because I couldn't understand why, the morning after they shagged, they didn't just run away. It's a song for two people who should run away before all the bad stuff starts.” The singer had tried to replicate Johnny Cash’s Live at Folsom Prison as he sang along to his acoustic guitar. “Let Down” represented an attempt by the band to recreate the sound made famous by Phil Spector and his wall of sound. Yorke would later comment that the lyrics are “about that feeling that you get when you're in transit but you're not in control of it—you just go past thousands of places and thousands of people and you're completely removed from it.” The singer would look upon such lyrics as perfect symbolism for Generation X, which had strongly influenced the direction of it. “Karma Police” contains two major sections that alternate between piano and guitar, which originally came from “Sexy Sadie” by the Beatles. The title of the song was an inside joke between the band during the previous tour. If something bad happened to someone, they would say that the karma police were going to get them. The short Interlude “Fitter, Happier” became something that the Radiohead frontman wrote in 10 minutes while on a break. The voice came from the Macintosh Simpletext software application. He would later describe the words as a “checklist for slogans from the 1990s.”

“Electioneering” turned out to be one of the band’s heaviest rock oriented songs probably ever with lyrics that were inspired by the Poll Tax Riots. Another source of inspiration came in the book Manufacturing Consent by Noah Chomsky. “Climbing Up the Walls” has been described by Melody Maker as “monumental chaos.” The track was arranged by Johnny Greenwood for 16 instruments based on composer Krzysztof Penderecki's “Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima.” No Surprises” would be initially inspired by “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” by the Beach Boys, but they really wanted to replicate the mood of “What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong or the soul music of Marvin Gaye. Yorke would say the song’s narrator is “someone who's trying hard to keep it together but can't.” The track that started it all “Lucky” was actually inspired by the Bosnian War. Yorke wanted to illustrate the actual terror of that conflict on the charity album, Help. Another theme that he drew upon emerged in his own anxiety about transportation. Critics have likened the guitar on the song to 1970’s Pink Floyd. The final track on the album “The Tourist” was specifically arranged by Jonny Greenwood to create a bit of space on the LP. The lyrics originated from Yorke witnessing tourists in France trying to see as many sites as possible. The title of the album came from the 1978 radio series based on The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy when character Zaphod Beeblebrox says, “Okay, computer, I want full manual control now." They had first heard the line while listening to the series on the bus for their tour in 1996. Yorke would say this about the title later. It “refers to embracing the future, it refers to being terrified of the future, of our future, of everyone else's. It's to do with standing in a room where all these appliances are going off and all these machines and computers and so on ... and the sound it makes." The artwork would be created by both Yorke and Stanley Donwood using a computer. The Radiohead singer would observe this about the art, “It's quite sad, and quite funny as well. All the artwork and so on ... It was all the things that I hadn't said in the songs."

Leading up to the release of the album, the band got very little support from Capitol Records because they did not have too much faith in the commercial potential of it. Much of the pessimism came in the fact that the record did not have any singles to put on the radio. Ed O’Brien would call it the “lack of a Van Halen factor.” The singles that were released from OK Computer included “Paranoid Android,” “Karma Police,” and “Lucky.” All of the singles charted in the top 10 in the UK, while they also did very well making the top 20 on the US charts. Their official website was created in order to promote the record, as well as some non-traditional promotional techniques by the record label. One such idea came in their decision to take out full-page ads in popular British newspapers and magazines with only the lyrics to “Fitter, Happier.” Another promotion sent out floppy disks to people in the press, which included many Radiohead screensavers. Upon its official release, OK Computer would debut at number one on the UK charts, while in the US the record made it to number 21. Please note that this was the highest American debut for the band. By September 2000, the release had sold 4.5 million copies worldwide.

Critics loved the album across the board. Writer Tim Footman would comment, “Not since 1967, with the release of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, had so many major critics agreed immediately, not only on an album's merits, but on its long-term significance, and its ability to encapsulate a particular point in history." Many critics saw it as a very important album. Mojo wrote in their review, “Others may end up selling more, but in 20 years' time I'm betting OK Computer will be seen as the key record of 1997, the one to take rock forward instead of artfully revamping images and song-structures from an earlier era.” The New Yorker would congratulate the band on taking many more risks artistically then their contemporaries like Oasis. “Throughout the album, contrasts of mood and style are extreme ... This band has pulled off one of the great art-pop balancing acts in the history of rock." Most of the reviews that were slightly mixed seemed to focus on the fact that when compared with The Bends, this record did not contain as many catchy songs. The release would go on to win the Grammy for Best Alternative Album, but did not win Album of the Year. The praise for the album seemed to inundate the band a little too much. Also, Radiohead did not agree with the universal assessment that they had made the greatest progressive or art rock record since Dark Side of the Moon. Thom Yorke would say, “We write pop songs ... there was no intention of it being 'art'. It's a reflection of all the disparate things we were listening to when we recorded it."

The legacy of the album came to be represented in a variety of ways. First, the release of OK Computer coincided with the election of Tony Blair. Some writers have pointed to the pessimism on the record as a sign of things to come. Stephen Hayden would write, “Radiohead appeared to be ahead of the curve, forecasting the paranoia, media-driven insanity, and omnipresent sense of impending doom that's subsequently come to characterise everyday life in the 21st century." Second, the arrival of this album directly coincided with the decline of Britpop. The Oasis album Be Here Now did not attain the commercial or critical success that What’s the Story Morning Glory had received in 1995. Third, OK Computer directly influenced a new generation of artists including bands like Bloc Party and TV on the Radio. The album has landed on many lists over the subsequent years as one of the best releases of the decade and all time. Yet, not all retrospective reviews have been kind to OK Computer as it has also landed on some lists as one of the most overrated records of all time. A New Musical Express column criticized the release as the exact point when Radiohead stopped being good, but instead started to become important.

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sonicringbond · 3 years

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Sonic Ring Bond: the Journey - Scene 23

And with a lengthy little scene, we have moved away from the exposition for now. Or at least most of it. Rosy still has some exposition to give every scene just due to the story structure, but we actually have things getting started started again in this scene so i hope everyone enjoys...

~The biggest thing I love about adventuring is all the new people I meet and all of the wonderful places that I see. Sometimes though the people I meet need help, or just want a favor in exchange for a service. Tee-hee~♥ This time the people I met are little meaner though.

~To people who rely on Rings, they are irreplaceable. They do so much, and we rely on them so much. I don’t even think I really thought about it until I ended up in these strange lands with that little planet watching me every day. When I first discovered that most people here didn’t trust Rings it was so unnatural. Yet to them it was perfectly normal. Or so I thought until I met the Engineers.

~They were the first people here who actually used Rings like I was used to, but when Rings are treated as bad, they have to keep it a secret. It makes Ring Thieves even worse than they are back home. Stealing Rings is so hurtful, even helping a Ring Thief will get you hurt. I’ll have to talk Gill into changing his way of life when I finally catch up with him.

~Fortunately, though I was afraid that knowing Gill would have lost me an opportunity to catch up with Zooey, the cloud sailors were very understanding. They just didn’t trust me, or Draw, so they sent us out on a little quest to prove that we were trustworthy.

~Hmph! I think it’s ridiculous since they saw the photo with me and Zooey both in it. It should be obvious. But Gill did steal Rings from them, so it makes sense to help them gather Rings. I’m kind of excited too as I haven’t had a Ring gathering job in what feels like forever! Hee-hee! It’s what I used to do back home so it’s a nice little reminder of who I am. Which is fortunate too under the circumstances.~

An airship that was barely more than a deck, cabins, and a hold wrapped around a metal balloon and further wrapped in sails, rigging, propellers, and wings soared across the jagged terrain. The mountains were unusual in that they almost appeared like domino tiles that had fallen on top of each other. The geography resulted in the top side of the mountains being covered as far as the eye could see in lush grasslands where sheep roamed, and Rings spun about on their axes arranged in any number of patterns. Despite being high enough for clouds to drift across the meadows the temperature was warm and balmy. From the deck railing Rosy watched the scenery passing by below with a huge and excited smile.

“Ooh~! It’s so perfect! There are so many places to run, and so many Rings too! I bet there are all sorts of interesting things to find down below the cliffs too!”

“You’re awfully excited considering they’re making you do their work,” Draw looked at Rosy wryly before a smirk adorned his face. With a shrug he closed his eyes and turned away. “But I guess I shouldn’t be surprised when dealing with a weirdo girl like you.”

“How many times do I have to tell you stop calling me names!”

Rosy complained and Draw snickered before Rosy stuck her tongue out in retaliation. It earned them both a good laugh, but Rosy felt it would be rude not answer the implied question from her koala companion. Wiping a tear from her eye she explained her excitement.

“Believe it or not, but this is what I did back home,” Rosy demonstrated vaguely drawing a doodle in the air with a finger. “My job was to collect Rings and I went all over the place doing it. Me and my best friend. Ooh~ I haven’t seen Tails in forever and I miss him so much. I really hope he’s okay.”

“I’m surprised you haven’t forgotten him with how long you’ve been searching. It seems like something you’d forget.”

Hopping off the railing, Rosy sat down on the deck beside Draw and pulled her knees to her chin. It made her look very small, even next to the younger and smaller koala.

As Draw continued to clean his bow, he looked at Rosy wondering if she was upset about something. The mischievous grin she wore hidden behind her knees told him otherwise and he leaned in closer as she motioned to him with a wave of her hand.

“Well that’s the thing,” Rosy whispered excitedly, her wagging tail thudding against the deck giving away her enthusiasm. “I’ve noticed that the things I’m most likely to forget are things that aren’t associated with what I normally do. I think that’s why it’s so important for everyone to have the defined roles that they do. It helps you stay you, I think. But adventuring is what I do, and what my friends do too so most of those memories are just kind of fuzzy now, but I can still remember them. That’s why I’m not worried about helping the Engineers out.”

“I get it,” Draw contemplated as he absently rubbed down his bow. “They aren’t trying to have you repay the stolen Rings, they’re trying to use how everyone always forgets things to make you loyal to them.”

“That’s what I was thinking too,” Rosy beamed as Draw had caught on. “But I know it won’t work on either of us. First and foremost, I know that the Rings will always remember. Secondly, they think we’re dumb because we’re kids.”

“Well you’re certainly a weirdo girl,” Draw countered Rosy’s attempts to build up their confidence. She puffed up her cheeks at him and he simply flashed her another playful smirk. He did not prompt her to go off topic however and stayed quiet.

“But they shouldn’t look down on us like that. I know you’ll be fine too because practicing to hunt golems is what you do, and I’ll be fine because I’m going to be doing what I always do. They won’t beat us so easily, and we’ll still help them and get to hear more about where Zooey is.”

~I felt like my belief was spot on. Why wouldn’t it be? This strange land may steal people’s memories, but I’ve been doing my best to pay attention and protect my precious memories as best as I could. I had gotten Draw involved too so it was important that I protect his memories too. The thing is though, I wasn’t prepared for how bored I was going to be. And after it looked so exciting too.

~Overlooking one of the best views I ever saw of the wide openness of the world was a weird little tower that was as much a part of an old ruin as it was something that looked like it grew out of it. It was like a smashed together building built from a windmill, a water tower, a lighthouse, and a giant boiler chimney. There were pipes everywhere and covered almost as much as the ivy and other plants that covered the stone brick building. But there was nothing else of interest.

~A kitchen, bedrooms, and a lookout post. Even the weird little arch that served as the airship port was just quaint. The old guy who worked at what they called an Engineer’s waystation was nice enough too, but he laid down a very strict rule about never going further out than he could see. And so, by the afternoon of my second day there, I was so bored and turned desperately to Draw to help me chase away the boredom.~

“It’s your fault for collecting the Rings so fast,” Draw remarked dismissively as he fired off a practice shot into a target he carved into the side of an old tree within the outer wall of the ruin that held the waystation.

“I know, but I get so excited!” Rosy whined. “It really is like back home. Rings show up in random places and patterns every day and I just can’t help myself. It’s so much fun but being limited on where I can run makes it so boring. I know they don’t trust me, but it’s still unfair.”

“And why do you think I can change their minds?” Draw asked as he fired off another arrow.

“I don’t,” Rosy admitted as she clasped her hands behind her back and began swaying her body back and forth. “I was just hoping you could help me chase off my boredom for a little bit.”

“Why do I have a bad feeling about this?” Draw asked as he eyed Rosy wearily.

Her cheeks puffing up, Rosy energetically defended herself. “It isn’t anything bad! Really! I just want to practice my fortune telling. I may consult the cards every morning, but I know so many other ways of reading fortunes too. Like I can do a really simple one right here and now. All I need is for you to show me you hand.

“And if I say I don’t want to?” Draw challenged.

“Don’t be like that!” Rosy fussed and snagged Draw’s hand in both of hers.

“Why do you care about my future anyway?” Draw pressed as he yanked his hand away, not noticing that Rosy drew her thumbs along his palm as he did. “Or do you think I can’t beat your golem–?”

Draw stopped short as he noticed Rosy’s mischievous grin had returned and he frowned in disgust and fear. “What did you just do?”

“Nothing,” Rosy swayed playfully, teasing the poor koala. “Just read your fortune is all~♥”

“What! That easily?”

“I’m really good at it,” Rosy laughed as she shook a playful finger at the bewildered Draw.

“No way! What did you learn!”

“Well…,” Rosy started enthusiastically, but she seemed a bit perplexed and looked down at her thumbs. Draw swallowed loudly afraid something bad lay in store for him, but Rosy dismissed it as she reached into one of the shoulder puffs of her leotard. “It’s kind of confusing so I’m going to ask my cards to help clarify for me.”

Without missing a beat, Rosy flopped onto the ground, her legs forming a “W” like shape in front of her as she withdrew the small waterproof container. Carefully extracting her tarot cards Rosy split the deck and paused a moment before shuffling. Giggling, she lay the two halves on the ground in front of her. “I better give them a Ring first. I don’t want them getting worn out. They’re my oldest friends you know.”

Draw gave Rosy a doubting look, but she ignored him and cheerily pushed a Ring into her cards. With a twinkle of golden motes of light, the Ring vanished as quickly as it had appeared from Rosy’s person. Her cards seemed no different, but it was obvious that they still looked brand new. Testing the snap of the cards Rosy smiled wider as she began to shuffle them.

It was a mundane action, but a sudden breeze blew one or two free and Rosy gasped in apologetic surprise.

“Ah! I’m sorry!”

Scrambling to catch the errant cards, Rosy looked like a child chasing butterflies and Draw hung his head and sighed. The sudden urgency in Rosy’s voice as she spoke to him again though caused him concern as he looked back up at her.

“Draw, we have to go.”

“Eh! What!” Draw stepped back surprised, but Rosy’s face was desperate with seriousness. Still, he needed clarification as she hurried to put her cards away. “But if we leave… I mean won’t they never help us find your friend if we go now.”

“They probably won’t,” Rosy conceded, but did not linger as she offered Draw her back so she might carry him piggyback. “But I know seeing them and how protective they are that Zooey is safe. I want to see her. Really, I do. But… but right now, someone else needs our help and we have to hurry before it’s too late!”

“How did come up with that?” Draw guffawed at the absurdity of what Rosy claimed.

“The cards told me!”

Rosy’s claim baffled Draw even more and he gave her a doubting look and began to mouth a response but Rosy cut him off with a stern look as she forewent an explanation. “I know you don’t believe me, no one ever does at first, but my cards never lie to me. And right now, someone needs our help more than Zooey, so we have to go.”

“Well… If you… argh! Fine!”

With a shout Draw gave in and soon found himself whisked away at speeds he could not comprehend across the meadowed mountain sides.

Scene 23 · CLEARED A Tiny Voice, to be continued

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And with that, Rosy is chasing after trouble yet again. Draw seemed to have mellowed out this scene, but hopefully not jarringly so. I definitely need to get some excitability into him again. But we’ll leave that for the future.

Thank you for reading everyone! i hope you enjoyed!

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Special Thanks to Cutegirlmayra Story by @JoshTarwater/SonicFanJ Inspiring Song – What Makes the Sky Blue – Tsutomu Narita – Granblu Fantasy Original Soundtrack: Promise

Fair Use Disclaimer

Sonic the Hedgehog and all affiliated characters and logos are the express property and Copyright© of SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS used without permission under Title 17 U.S.C Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 in which allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. “Fair use” is use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be considered copyright infringement. The Sonic Ring Bond: The Journey alternate universe (AU) consumer written work of fiction is a non-profit transformative work primarily for personal use and can and will be taken down without warning or prior notice at the request of the copyright holder(s) should it not be recognized under “fair use”.

*Sonic Ring Bond logo created by DEE Art – twitter.com/daryliscute.

Sonic Ring Bond AU and Sonic Ring Bond: The Journey are the creation of Joshua David Tarwater/ynymbus/sonicfanj/@Joshtarwater and is to be, including all contents herein considered for all legal purposes the property of the Sonic the Hedgehog intellectual property (IP) and copyright owners, SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS. All story contributors via prompt, suggestion, written scene, art, and all and every other contribution acknowledge that all contributed material is forfeit for legal purposes to SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS upon official request from SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS.

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic fan fiction #sonic au #sonic au series #sonic ring bond #the journey #classic amy #amy rose #rosy the rascal #au amy #amy redesign #sonic oc #patch #draw the koala

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chaoticneutralwriter · 4 years

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Second Act: Temperance

Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city. -- Proverbs 16.32 NIV

guardian demon!Jimin x reader

genre: supernatural, angst, romance, comedy, fluff, slice-of-life

word count: 11.8k

Related works: see Masterlist under guardian demon! Jimin

Continuation of Twice Fallen

Warnings: violence, strong language, and slight body horror

A/N: WOW THIS. TOOK. FOREVER. I’m gonna real with yall, this took a lot of re-writes. Heed the warnings please, and also if you haven’t read Twice Fallen or anything before that, please do because we’re getting back into business. Thank you for all your patience! T^T <3

Tags as per requested! @cherryjiminiee @kokobaekkie @breathebangtan @itsadoozie @thatshylatinagirl @chiminieboi @azulamakesmeblank @sectumsemptae

When you’re a supernatural being who was born in either heaven or hell, no one tells you what happens after you die. It’s almost unanimously agreed upon by both parties (probably one and few very rare things they can agree on), that your existence simply ceases to exist. At least, those with no significance to their names — Satan for example, in the case that they’re ever killed, will not perish but be reborn again, for they are absolute, meant to be a vital part to the balance of the universe. After all, there cannot be light without darkness.

Then there are the optimists, those who whisper and gossip about how one can have their names engraved amongst the stars or brimstone if they manage to accomplish a great deed that’s worth being remembered in their lifetime. Jimin doesn’t remember there being actual proof of that so he counted himself as a skeptic amongst many others because when it comes down to it, they are expendable beings, pawns to those above them. Maybe that’s where those rumours were born; from the underlying fear of every angel or demon alike being forgotten after meeting their unfortunate demise. Once you’re gone from this life, there is no second chance.

Which is why it’s strange to Jimin that he is very much acutely aware of himself and his stream of conscious when he most definitely shouldn’t be, not after taking a sip of holy water no less. But here he was, still thinking and forming thoughts. He tries to make sense of it all, and it takes him a while because it’s like his mind is muddy, groggy as if he had just roused from a very deep slumber only, it feels like he’s still dreaming. There’s a certain weightlessness about him, like he’s floating underwater, neither sinking to its depths nor rising to the surface but simply being held, suspended with nowhere to go.

He can’t see anything as far as he could tell, what with not even knowing whether his eyes are shut or not but there is nothing else — no sound, no smell, and nothing beneath his fingers to touch. It’s almost serene, Jimin would go as far as to say he wouldn’t mind staying like this but something in him tells him no, he shouldn’t. It continues to gnaw at him until pieces of what seem like distant memories start to appear before him; a face, the sounds of voices, the smell of lavender….

Jimin concentrates, trying hard to grasp at these strands that seem to slip away but in doing so he begins to feel other things, like slowly, his senses are coming back to him. The first thing he notices is that he’s cold. There’s an icy chill in the air that seems to have settled itself deep into his bones and had made every joint in his body stiff to move, even his fingers. Stubbornly, Jimin tries to move them, feeling like he had to summon some herculean strength to be able to do so and still, managing to just make them twitch. In that brief moment however, the pads brush against something beneath them.

Is that…grass?

There’s a growing metallic taste in his mouth, it makes him swallow reflexively but it only triggers a burning sensation in his throat.

Jimin can feel the soil beneath where he lies now, when only moments ago he swore he was — no, he should be…

Lying on the marble floor.

The burning gets worse now, rapidly spreading across his body until like a bolt of electricity, it comes rushing to him all at once.

The basilica.

The prayer.

The chalice.

And then the blinding pain.

A loud, choked gasp escapes past Jimin’s lips; his first real breath in what seems like an eternity and he greedily continues to take in lungfuls despite the burning. He doesn’t know where he is anymore, only that there is no longer grass beneath him and that he probably looks like a dying fish out of water (he certainly feels like one). It doesn’t even feel like he’s completely in control of his body yet either because he has no feeling in any of his limbs so all he could do is lay there and regain his breathing, managing them down to shaky pants. His vision is blurry like he’s seeing through foggy glass and at times it wavers until he sees double, making him feel nauseous. Jimin blinks, desperately trying to have them focus. As they do, he begins to make out shapes and colours until they all come together to create a clearer image.

Gold trimmings, towering columns, high dome ceilings….

He’s back in the basilica.

Jimin doesn’t know whether to be thankful of that or not.

He continues to lay there for a while longer, mind still numb and in hopes of regaining some strength to attempt to move himself. He starts off small; first his fingers, then his hands, and eventually once he gets most of his feelings back in his limbs, he tries to sit up. Of course, that was too optimistic on Jimin’s part because as soon as he puts on any amount of force, his muscles scream out in protest, causing him to moan out in pain. He’s forced to remain immobile for another while longer, waiting for the millions of needle like pinpricks to subside. When they do, he tries again. It’s a slow, agonizing process but through sheer stubbornness and gritted teeth, Jimin successfully rolls himself over until he rests on his side.

He’s out of breath again, a sheen of sweat forming along his brows that even resting his forehead against the marble floor is not cooling enough. After a few more moments, Jimin forces himself to move, determined to drag himself to the clear panel wall in front of him, even if it means crawling there. From there, at least he knows he’ll have a better chance at righting himself up if he has something to lean against. It takes another excruciating amount of effort, a lot of grunting and hissing before with overwhelming relief, his fingers touch the panel and he’s making that last stretch to hauling himself up until he’s slouched haphazardly against the thick glass.

Ignoring the ache in his limbs, Jimin lets his eyes slip shut, leaning his head back if only to take a moment to finally assess his situation and let things sink in.

First and foremost, he’s alive. Everything insanely hurts and he feels on the verge of death still, but somehow even after all of that he’s still in one piece. Or at least, he thinks so…

Tiredly, he peels open his eyes to do a quick sweep of what he can see; two legs even if it feels like he doesn’t have them, a torso, arms, hands, all ten fingers, a head…

Jimin’s head thumps as he goes back to resting it against the glass and he hisses, wincing in regret. Yup definitely there, and probably shouldn’t have done that.

His eyes drift to take in his surroundings. The basilica is still empty and as quiet as ever, void of any signs of life with nothing but the reliefs of angels and saints as his company. This makes Jimin’s brows furrow in confusion; just how long has he been out for? A minute? An hour? Days or maybe even longer? He doesn’t have any sense of time at all right now, and it slowly stirs up a panic in his gut. Frantically, he searches for a window, a doorway, anything that will help him determine the time of day but as he does, Jimin starts to recognize the faces carved into the niches of these pillars, recalling how he could’ve sworn he’d seen them on his way into the building so there was no way they should be here, all the way at the apse —

Belatedly, he pieces together the fact that it’s him who’s not where he thought he was. So caught up with trying not to pass out for the second time, Jimin had failed to realize that he had woken up in another part of the basilica and with no recollection of how he got there. His head lolls, eyes trailing up the length of thick glass before straying past the barrier until they meet the sorrowful marble face of Mary, cradling the body of her dead son on her lap.

The Pieta.

Jimin’s mouth twitches and if it didn’t hurt so much, he would’ve actually laughed.

Like rubbing salt onto a wound, how unbelievable.

He disregards the obvious jab for more pressing matters, like how when he finally finds some form of light streaming into the basilica across the way from him, it had turned out to be the same pale blue glow of the moon as when he had first arrived. Frustration threatens to boil over him as Jimin clenches his jaw, inhaling deeply in an attempt to collect himself. Regardless, if it was a minute, an hour, or even a day, it is still way too long for his liking.

Swallowing thickly, Jimin tries to summon the energy to reach out to his powers in order to apparate but like with everything else, he struggles in finding that pull in his drastically weakened state. It doesn’t help that every time he tries, the pounding in his head worsens until he’s dizzy all over again. He’s almost begging with himself at this point, overwhelmed with the need to find that familiar tug, his only way out, shutting his eyes to push aside the exhaustion that he wants to succumb to so badly. Finally, with every ounce of strength he can muster, Jimin feels it, so faint that it’s almost not there that the moment it’s within reach, he grabs onto it desperately, holding on with only the thought of ‘home’ left to guide him.

Your forced smile drops from your face, a heavy sigh leaving you as soon as the customer walks away from your register. You don’t know how many times you’ve done it since you started your shift but it’s become more like a coping mechanism to keep yourself from completely losing it than you simply being tired. You’re about three days away from hopping on a plane with your friend to see BTS and live out your best life, if only for a short while but instead of being jittery with excitement, you’re an absolute ball of anxiety. And thanks to that, it gets in the way of every little thing. You don’t know how many times you’ve tried to pack your things, only to unpack them, second guess yourself and then end up back with what you started it in the first place; no toiletries, half of your travel essentials and a haphazard pile of clothes with no coherent outfits put together.

It makes for the remaining shifts you had to do more draining than they usually are, your mind not focusing on the menial tasks you’re supposed to be doing and instead, choosing to race with a million different thoughts a minute — all of which are worries that centre around the concert. Your friend and fellow concert buddy had messaged you earlier that day asking you about the finer details that you too would love to know about the trip, unintentionally adding fuel to your mounting anxiety. You don’t blame her of course, because it’s a very valid thing to worry about but you feel awful that the only thing you could do was apologize and reassure her that you would let her know as soon as possible.

But above all else, your worries come to a head when you think about one specific guardian demon.

Jimin has yet to reply to any of your text messages, not even the ones that don’t necessarily ask him of his whereabouts. You’re someone who respects and understand the meaning of space, hell you’re even guilty of not speaking to close friends for insanely long periods of times too because everyone’s got lives to live but even you at least still receive and reply to random check-ins when you can.

Jimin didn’t even leave you on read, and you would’ve been completely fine if he had.

At least then you would know he’s doing okay.

The sigh comes out again before you can stop it; you really need to just...lie down and not think for an hour or two. By the time you clock out, you’re more than relieved to be leaving if only to save yourself the embarrassment of not functioning as a proper human being in public. As you approach the front entrance however, you catch sight of the heavy overcast skies and the light drizzle beginning to fall. You groan to yourself — you had expected the forecast to call for rain, but it was just your luck that it would start as soon as you finish work. Which was why in your lack of better judgement, you didn’t bring an umbrella.

Commuting was going to be a bitch.

Not wanting to stall in case the rain picks up, you suck it up and hurriedly make your way to the bus stop, glad for at least having the shelter to shield you if only for a bit. Much to your dismay however, the rain comes down heavier by the time you get off at your stop and when you finally burst through your door, it had turned into a full on torrential rainstorm. You huff, trying to catch your breath from having to sprint so suddenly before reaching down to fling off your now soaked shoes. You also immediately remove your equally soaked socks with a grimace, hating the wet squelch they make as you leave them hanging off the wire shoe rack; you’ll toss them into the laundry along with the rest of the clothes on your back once you’ve changed.

You head to the kitchen first, intending to store your overpriced bagel and ice coffee you decided to run and get during your lunch but never ended up eating more than a few bites because of how long it took for your order to be made. You go to flick on the lights, the house much darker than it is at three in the afternoon thanks to the ominous clouds and downpour outside (you think you hear the faint rumbling of thunder now too). You hear the click of the switch but to your surprise, the kitchen remains just as dark. You blink, perplexed and in disbelief.

Huh…

Your fingers flick the switch a couple of more times, eyes darting to the lights above to confirm that yup, they don’t work — is the storm that bad that there’s a power outage? The blinking digital clock of the microwave says otherwise, its indication telling you that there had probably been a power surge but by all means, you should still have electricity right now. Maybe it’s a blown bulb then?

Ugh. You’ll deal with it later. Right now, you want to get out of your t-shirt and jeans that’s slowly drying but sticking uncomfortably to your skin. You check the other lights as you make your way to your room, curious to see if any of them work (they don’t) and as you approach your door, you catch the scent of something, something that oddly smells like….burnt wood?

You continue sniffing, mind doubtful because the scent comes and goes so in the end, you’re not sure if it’s there or you’re simply imagining it. Shaking your head, you push open the door and as soon as you do, you freeze. You feel your eyes widen as they zero in on an unmoving mass lying a few feet across your doorway. You can’t discern what it is, it being half hidden behind the foot of your bed that juts out and the lack of good lighting but all you do know is that it’s big and most definitely shouldn’t be in your room. You shakily reach for your phone, grasping it tightly into your hand, mind racing for explanations — is it a large animal? How did it get in? Or worse, are you looking at a person?! Are they dead or alive? Did you unknowingly walk into your own home while it was in the middle of being burglarized?!

The never-ending questions quickly begin to make the panic rise within and you fight to keep your breathing calm, unheard. You’re deep in your flight or fight mode and right now, it’s telling you you need to get the hell out of here while this…thing is still unaware of your presence. Just when you move to shift your weight, fully intending on backing away and bolting the hell out of your front door like a bat out of hell, a flash of lightening streaks across the sky outside, illuminating your room briefly. You flinch but quickly stop all movements at what you had just seen.

It was only for a second but it was enough. If you were to look back on this moment, you would’ve thought just how fortunate the timing of it all was, how if it hadn’t been for the storm and the lightening, you would’ve just left without looking back.

But right now, you feel your heart cracking alongside the resounding thunder that followed.

It’s…It’s not— It can’t be, you think but already you know what you saw; you recognize his lithe figure anywhere. Your breath comes out so shallowly you think you’re barely breathing, numbly stumbling forward despite your body gripped in an ice cold fear. You almost don’t want to go any closer because of what you might find.

You don’t want your last memories of him to be of his corpse.

When you’re about a foot away from his body, you muster every nerve in you to bring your phone up, knuckles white from clenching them so hard, fumbling until you’re able to turn on the flash. The sudden flooding of light blinds you momentarily but as your eyes readjust, a gasp loudly tears itself from your lips.

Jimin is motionless before you, head lolled to one side with eyes shut as if he was merely asleep, only you don’t see the steady rise and fall of his chest no matter how much you searched. Legs feeling weak, you drop down to kneel beside him, eyes trembling as you take in his profile. His skin is sickly in colour, pale as a ghost against the harsh light of your phone, lacking in any of the warm honey tone that makes him seem to glow from the inside. It comes off almost translucent, dark spidery veins snaking along his jaw, neck and, from the dip in his stained shirt, his collarbones, appearing so much more prominent that they look like cracks in fine porcelain, ready to break at the slightest touch. You see the bruising under his eyes, traveling down his cheek which are ruddy with remnants of what looked like ink stains, much like the ones on his shirt.

“J-Jimin….” Your voice breaks, his name coming out in a quiet whimper. He doesn’t respond and you feel so lost and so helpless; not understanding why or how this could happen to him but more so, what you can do to save him.

You reach out a shaky hand, fingers clasping at his shoulder to give him a shake, “Jimin, hey… p-please….this— this isn’t….”

No response still.

Your throat tightens before you can get any more words out. Desperately swallowing past the lump, you try hard not to let it overwhelm you as your hand trails to his neck, hoping, praying to find a pulse there, however faint it may be.

Just as your fingers press into the delicate skin, you see a flash of amber and suddenly your wrist is being clamped down by an iron grip, sharp nails digging into your skin and twisting it in a painful angle that has the breath knocked out of you in a startled yelp. Crimson eyes bore into your own, the shock of seeing slitted pupils that stare at you with such an intensity, you can’t help but shrink back. The irises glow, shifting like flickering flames made even more vibrant against the black that’s taken over where the white of the sclera should be, a dark endless abyss that threatens to swallow you whole. It sends every nerve in your body on edge, telling you that you need to run from this threat but you fight against the instinct because though the grip on your wrist is bruising, you feel the faint tremors behind it — he’s hurt and vulnerable, but most of all, he’s scared.

“Jimin…” You call softly, watching as those crimson orbs flicker with recognition before the hostile edge fades away and the grip on your wrist is released.

“….Y/N…” He breathes tiredly, utterly exhausted. His voice comes out so much hoarser, throat raw as if he’d been screaming nonstop but the sound alone is enough to have tears well up in your eyes. You can only find it in you to nod in affirmation, not trusting yourself to speak lest you wanted to end up breaking down. You sniffle and when you regain your composure, your eyes immediately focus on him and now that he’s conscious, you’re finally able to see the extent of his injuries. The sight makes your eyes widen, sharply inhaling until you swear you stop breathing altogether.

Whereas one half of his face was marred by unnatural dark fissures and bruised, ghostly skin, the other half barely had any left. The skin looks as if it had been torn away, starting from the highest point of his cheek, grazing just below his eye, all the way down past one side of his nose and lips and ending at the base of his throat. Though the ragged edges of the wound look irritated, in other places they look burnt in a way flesh is not supposed to be, like paper that has been caught on fire instead. Beneath it all….

You swallow with a shudder, bile rising in your throat. You’re not sure what it is that you’re seeing, even in the brightness of your phone’s flashlight, dropped and forgotten on the floor beside you. The wound still looks to be fresh, dyed in such a deep shade of red that it almost appears black and more tar-like than it does blood. You’re shaking as if you had been doused by cold water, not being able to comprehend the severity of it, the sheer size of the abrasion alone made it just look like one, big gaping hole.

Just…Just what on earth could have done this to him?

It felt like an eternity before your eyes dare to meet Jimin’s but when they do, you’re startled to find that he had been watching you the entire time through half lidded eyes, the light of his crimson irises now nothing more than that of a dying candle. Without thinking, you’re reaching out to him, not knowing whether to comfort, aid or simply anchor him down somehow, afraid that at any moment he’ll just vanish and there’s nothing you can do about it.

To your shock, icy fingers brush against your palms, making goosebumps erupt along your arm before they wound around your wrist again, this time in a loose hold to halt your movements. The touch is gentle, apologetic in the way he caresses the sore tendon with feather-like strokes for something you yourself had completely forgotten about, so trivial compared to what Jimin had gone through.

“Don’t…” He whispers, straining from the effort alone. He’s trying so hard to keep himself awake and it only makes you more anxious, leaning closer to him, even if it sounds like he wanted you to stay away.

“W-What happened….” You manage to choke out, eyes frantically searching his for answers. “I-I don’t…I don’t understand….I—Why—“ Your voice cracks, pitching with hysteria. “Please Jimin, tell me — tell me what to do please! Wh— Where’s Jungkook?! Tell me how to find him! He can—”

“No…!” Jimin’s harsh tone cuts you off, followed by a pained groan. Alarmed, you see him try to push himself up on his elbows and immediately your arm shoots out to steady him. “I-I just…need to r-rest…”

His voice trails off before suddenly his body falls back, completely going limp. The vehement protest dies on your tongue as you rush to catch him instead.

Your cries of his name go unheard, lost to the pattering of the heavy rainfall outside with the storm showing no signs of stopping.

Consciousness creeps back into the demon with the sounds of his steadily beating heart — a shock really, because Jimin was sure that apparating such a great distance in the weakened state he was in would be the final push he needed in order to finally kick the bucket.

His lids feel heavy, head pounding in tandem with his heart but somehow not as bad before, allowing him to peel open his eyes to vaguely make out the texture of your plain white ceiling. In spite of his body still feeling sluggish, Jimin is lying comfortably, aware of the plush pillow under his head, the soft mattress and cotton sheets he’s nestled in, a welcome change from constantly waking up on the floor. He takes a moment to relish in the warmth and the scent of you, mind still much too foggy to think of trying to sit up and so he lays there, lamenting on the events that seemed like they took place during the last few weeks rather than a mere few days.

When Jimin had arrived to your place, he had been so disoriented with himself that he didn’t even know where he had ended up, wondering whether he had successfully teleported himself back to the same country you were in, let alone your room. What he did know however, was that he had indefinitely depleted whatever remains of his powers he was able to summon completely, leaving him even more vulnerable and exposed than when he had first awoken but all he could do was fall back into unconsciousness again.

Which was why the sight of you had been so overwhelming for him, a sigh of relief from all the uncertainties and fears that had manifested itself in his subconscious for the next time he would open his eyes (if he opens his eyes). But all of it was short-lived as he had watched the colour drain from your face, body tensing and eyes widening in horror —

At him.

He didn’t need to ask why, already seeing the red of his irises that had glowed so vibrantly that he could see them reflected in your own glossy ones.

An unavoidable side effect, one that he should’ve anticipated but had simply slipped his mind because….Well, he wasn’t thinking at all at the moment. So he doesn’t hold anything against you for reacting the way you did — he just wished that it still stopped the pang of hurt that had shot through his chest when you did. A grimace pulls at his lips at the memory; he wanted so badly to turn away and hide himself, not wanting you to see him like that ever but he had had no strength and so what’s done is done. His jaw clench, mentally cursing himself for being so careless and now he loathes, dreads the thought of facing you.

A faint rustling pulls Jimin out of his self-deprecating thoughts and he turns slightly to the noise, eyes landing on the very being who haunts his every waking thought.

You’re asleep in a chair that’s been pulled up beside him, head resting on top of your folded arm that’s placed on the remaining bed space. Already, Jimin can tell that you’re going to wake up with a sore back, wondering how it’s possible that you can even sleep in such an uncomfortable position but when his gaze drifts to your face, he begins to doubt any fitful sleep you may have had. Your brows are furrowed like all of your troubles have followed you to your dreams and your breathing too quick that Jimin thinks you will wake at any moment. Loose strands of hair fall messily across your cheek, the tendrils nearly obscuring his view of you yet look so soft that his fingers twitch to brush them away. He’s surprised that they do, as if they have a mind of its own but even more so when he finally feels a weight placed atop of his hand.

Your fingers are curled around his own, so much warmer against his cooler skin that he fears yours will eventually turn clammy if you continue to hold on. He should pull away but your touch is a comfort he didn’t know he needed and he can’t help but to linger a little longer, tentatively sliding his hand until his palm meets yours, traitorous thoughts wondering how your hand would compare against his. At the last second however, the movement disturbs you and you rouse from your sleep with a startled flinch, like you had not meant to have fallen asleep in the first place.

Jimin stills, not wanting to frighten you any further as you blearily regain your composure, one hand coming up to rub at your eyes tiredly before they automatically drift to meet his own.

A soft gasp falls from your lips, nearly leaping to your feet as your eyes wide in surprise at seeing Jimin awake in front of you. He stares at you in an almost cautious manner, the burning crimson glow no longer present and instead his irises are back to soft brown hues. More importantly though, the wound marring half of his face had healed completely, leaving not even a trace of a scar behind. To your shock, the tear had mended itself slowly over the course of the two days you were tending to Jimin. You didn’t understand at first but you had worked it to being something relating to his demonic powers. Either way, you were glad to see because it meant that he was recovering, you not knowing where to even begin helping an injured demon.

He’s still much paler than you would like him to be, but him being awake is more than enough for you. It makes you hope that this isn’t a lucid dream you’ve created out of wishful thinking. So before you can stop yourself, you reach a hand out uncertainly until they cup against the smooth apples of his cheek and like a heavy weight being lifted from your shoulder, you sigh out, relieved.

“Hi…” You whisper, so quietly you think he might not have heard it.

Jimin blinks slowly, a myriad of emotions flitting through his eyes before he rasps back, “…Hey…”

A watery smile breaks out across your lips along with a shaky laugh and you fight the tears that threaten to spill over. Jimin catches on before you can try to hide them, brows furrowing before he strains to sit upright.

“Hey, don’t push yourself already…” You reprimand, hand moving to his shoulder to steady him.

“It’s fine…I’m fine…” He assures but you’re not entirely convinced, catching him wincing even as he manages to lean back against your wall. The sheets slip off his torso then, exposing toned abdominals and lean muscles in all its glory. Your cheeks heat, having completely forgotten that you had removed his shirt in order to assess any underlying injuries along with the fact that the luxurious chiffon material had been completely ruined. Your suspicions were confirmed when you saw how his arms and torso were littered with dark bruises and gave you a better look at his hands which had been stained black, as if dipped in ink, from the tips of his fingers to his forearm. Now, you’re glad to see that they too, for the most part, have disappeared. But injuries aside, what had also caught your attention was a tattoo, etched so delicately into the skin on the left side of his built chest.

You’re not as surprised to find that it’s of a circled pentagram, tilted on an axis with unrecognizable ruins inscribed at each point of the star. Within the negative spaces were images of what you think was a crescent moon, smaller pentagrams and other symbols that remind you oddly of Wicca ones overlapping within the star, the ink fading in and out in certain places. It makes you wonder if at some point, they had been more prominent.

“My eyes are up here you know.”

Your eyes snap up to his, not even realizing you had been giving him a once-over but in spite it being all out of pure worry for his health, you still feel like you were caught eyeing him lasciviously by the way his lips curl ever so slightly. You bite your lip, averting your gaze self-consciously, heart thundering and squeezing with a flurry of mixed emotions.

“That’s not— I wasn’t…”

Your hand retracts from his, choosing to curl them closely on your lap and almost immediately Jimin regrets his thoughtless comment.

“Sorry, that was — that was very tasteless of me….” He says while scowling at himself and lowering his head, almost shamefaced. “I’m sure all of this was a big shock to you…”

You perk up, the tone in his voice catching your attention by how subdued it sounded. While yes, you did agree that the events leading up to this point had completely blindsided you and put you in a situation where you’ve never been more afraid in your life but not for the reasons Jimin thinks.

You don’t miss the implications he had behind his words, and you bristle at the audacity of his assumptions.

“Well, yeah.” You say, voice sour and shaking from restrained agitation. “After not seeing or hearing from you for days, I wasn’t exactly expecting you to show up in my room, unconscious and dying on my floor. Just what — “ You stop yourself then, noticing your rising volume and take in a deep breath, calming down enough to ask the one burning question that had been plaguing your mind, almost pleadingly, “What happened Jimin?”

His dark eyes flit to yours momentarily before they avoid them, a hand coming up to run through his now raven locks. The strands were a little damp at the ends, remnants of times where he had broken out into cold sweats while he was unconscious and then heating up so suddenly like he was running a fever. It had happened so often that you had kept a cold towel by the bedside, pressing it to his burning skin in hopes of alleviating the discomfort. You don’t think you had slept those nights.

“…Just had a bad run in with things cherub — completely my fault, but nothing to worry about.” Jimin sighs out, licking dry lips. His answer is vague and clipped, less than satisfactory for you and it’s all the more obvious that he’s done it to avoid the subject altogether when he immediately follows with, “How long have I been out for?”

Your mouth opens, words of resentment ready at the tip of your tongue but then something in you makes you pause. You hesitate as self-doubting thoughts begin to brew, clashing with your worries yet not wanting to come off as overbearing. You hate pushing someone for answers when they clearly don’t want to talk about it, the feeling mutual with yourself, coupled with the fact that Jimin is also someone who’s very capable of handling himself (you’ve witnessed it firsthand multiple times). It does nothing but add to your current dilemma. You’re chewing on your bottom lip when you feel eyes on you and you realize you haven’t responded to Jimin’s question. He waits patiently, face carefully neutral but the fatigue still evident on his features makes you exhale in a heavy sigh, deciding to let it slide for now and hope that he would come around eventually.

“Two days.” You supply, watching as he takes in the news before he blinks in realization.

“If I’m right, then you’re leaving tomorrow for the concert.”

You mirror his expression — the concert. That had been the last thing on your mind ever since he came back.

“..Oh, yeah…I—I guess so.”

“I’ll send your flight details and tickets to you, along with your hotel.”

The nonchalance in which he says that unnerves you a little, making your gut constrict the same way it would when you get a bad feeling about something. It doesn’t sit right with you that Jimin, who’s barely been awake for an hour, is still so adamant on seeing your trip through when here you are, actually toying with the idea that maybe….

“…Maybe I shouldn’t go…”

It comes out small, timid but Jimin’s eyes are upon you almost as soon as you uttered the words.

“What are you talking about?” He asks incredulously. “You can’t seriously be talking about giving up seeing BTS right now, are you?”

“I— Well, yes I might actually? I mean, you’re in no condition to move, much less travel. It’s too risky for the both of us.”

Jimin pauses before he laughs, a short, breathy sound as he cocks his head at you. “Is that what you’re worried about? Oh cherub, you’re so sweet.”

You sputter, cheeks flushed and ready with an indignant reply when you see Jimin’s expression morphs into something softer, a sort of fond smile ghosting over his full lips as he continues, “As much as I appreciate your concerns, you don’t need to worry — I can assure you that, as with any demon, I heal fast. This was just one of the worser encounters I’ve had in a while.”

Your apprehension must still show on your face because the next thing you know, he reaches over and gives you a pinch on one of your cheek, sending your heart tumbling over itself. The gesture is quick but it leaves you effectively stunned in your seat.

“I’ll be fine by the time we need to go, so don’t say something you know you’ll regret. Now stop pouting and get to packing your bags already.”

When you pull yourself together, you find yourself incapable of resisting any longer, the butterflies in your stomach overrunning all sense of logic in you. With a stubbornness of a fifty year old man who doesn’t want to admit he’s wrong, you muster up just about the only thing you can get out from your quickly short-circuiting mind.

“….Jerk.”

With the help of Jimin’s nagging, you manage to pack decently enough so that you’ll survive away from home for the weekend. It was a process, filled with a lot of bickering yet strangely, it had been a welcoming distraction to you rather than an annoyance — an attempt at returning to some semblance of normalcy between the two of you from a rather scary event. Of course, you still wanted to know why Jimin had shown up so injured, but his growing liveliness had you believe that perhaps it’s not as a big of a deal as you make it to be, or at the very least, it muted the anxiety in you for the time being.

You busy yourself well into the evening but when you had returned from the bathroom after packing most of your toiletries however, you find to your dismay that Jimin had left with only a simple text message attached to two plane tickets, flight details and hotel check-ins.

“Sorry to have left without telling you, but I figured I should probably leave you to finishing up on packing and not risk getting caught by your roommate, unless that’s what you want to imply ;)

(You almost threw your phone out the window and k-word him yourself).

Don’t worry, I’m not going off to do something dangerous again — just wanted to stretch my legs is all. Anyways, I’ve attached your plane tickets, hotels and flight details with this message. It’s an early morning flight, so you should rest while you can since well, it must’ve been a rough two nights for you.

(Damn straight, you huff but your chest involuntarily squeezes anyways).

I promise I’ll see you at the terminal tomorrow okay?

Sweet dreams and… thanks.”

With that, you throw yourself face first into your pillow, letting out an anguished screech because what the fuck.

You hate this, hate how much of an effect he has on you but more so, hate how you know that, even if you try to resist, he’ll somehow still linger. If not as thoughts in your mind, then as the scent in your sheets.

His composure breaks like a rubber band pulled too taught the moment he’s away from your place. Jimin deflates, shoulders sagging and he rolls his neck uncomfortably, trying to loosen the muscles that are still too stiff for his liking. He hadn’t exactly lied to you about demons being really fast at healing from any injuries they might’ve sustained, but he didn’t exactly disclose one rather important detail.

Undergoing this ‘guardian angel’ process had seem to stunt his demonic powers, that much was obvious. Though the injuries he had were quite serious, demons like him would have recovered at least fifty percent of their powers within the time he had been resting (or unconscious).

He feels like he’s stuck at about twenty-five.

There’s an imbalance within him that he’s acutely aware of and it makes him feel uneasy. It’s like he’s still a demon and yet not at the same time, which seems impossible to even fathom but it’s the only way he can describe it.

Regardless, he doesn’t like it. Not one bit.

Jimin grunts, abruptly pulled away from his brooding thoughts by a force colliding into his side. His eyes narrow instinctively from the disturbance as they zero in on the culprit, meeting a pair of startled hazel ones.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry!” The young woman hastily gasps, holding up her hands in a placating manner. Jimin’s scowl falters momentarily, taking in her face and vaguely he thinks he recognizes her from somewhere. Was it the cafe he always visits? Or at a bar somewhere?

Ah, wait. It was at the department store you work at. She’s your co-worker, Emilyn, Emmy…. Whatever her name was, the one who he swears he had enthralled into working double time for you some weeks ago.

He dismisses her with a roll of his eyes, not sparing a second glance back as he takes off again because he really cannot be bothered. He intends on heading to a place where he can drown himself in some good whiskey and then maybe, maybe he’ll be in a better mood to figure this shit out. With all that he’s been through, he thinks he damn well deserves to treat himself to something nice.

Once he reaches the upscale bar, Jimin all but collapses into the bar chair, half slumping over the black marble counter, head in his hands. He’s thankful that the bartender wordlessly places a glass of whiskey by him but Jimin had secretly wished he had just given him the entire bottle. Still, he supposes beggars can’t be choosers at this point and he takes the half-filled glass and downs it in one go.

“Satan you’re alive!”

The glass slams down a lot harder in his mounting agitation, causing micro cracks to splinter up along the sides but that doesn’t stop the younger demon from straight up gawking at him like he came back with two extra heads and horns. Jimin glares at Jungkook with a look that could kill, eyes a muted red and aura so dark that the small crystal chandelier above them flickers briefly. Still, Jungkook remains relatively unfazed, leaning back if only to regard Jimin properly.

“Or I should say ‘barely’, you look like absolute shit.”

“You have exactly five seconds to give a good reason for being here before I discorporate you to fine ash and send you back in a mason jar.”

“I’m here to celebrate your survival of course! That’s something to be happy about, yes?” The younger demon demonstrates by waving down the bartender who responds back by presenting him with a tall glass of beer. He grabs it in toast, grin so cheeky it borderlines mocking as he says,”To you brother, the first of our kind to survive the holy baptism!”

Jungkook’s much too cheery demeanour is darkening Jimin’s already foul mood, jaw clenching and nostrils flaring as he exhales. It’s obvious now that Jungkook is well aware of the state Jimin is in, otherwise Jungkook wouldn’t even be as cocky as he is now. A blow to his ego, but one where he would have to swallow his pride because as painful as it is, Jimin needs answers and Jungkook is the only one who would have anything remotely helpful at this point.

“Cut the bullshit; this is hardly celebratory when I feel like I’ve already got one foot through death’s door.”

Jungkook sips leisurely at his drink before he places the glass gently down with a satisfying smack of his lips. “That’s something you should expect when you had to do the things you did. Like I said, the process was never meant for demons because of the extreme amount of holy magic that’s involved — a sure death sentence to any who dares attempt it so for you to come back and relatively in one piece?” He pauses to whistle, genuinely impressed, “That is no small feat brother and for that, you have my exponential amount of respect.”

“But I still have my demonic powers. It’s weak but it’s still there and I’ve done everything you said so shouldn’t that make me a guardian angel already?”

“Well, you are,” Jungkook’s shoulders come up, dragging the last syllable out in a dramatic stall before he directs Jimin with a wry smile, already bracing himself as he takes in a breath before saying, “after you go through the trials.”

A beat passes.

And then an explosion of glass breaks the silence, causing the bartender to flinch from where they stood serving another patron at the other end, some nearby heads jerk to the noise but almost immediately turn away at the mere sight of Jimin alone.

The demon is absolutely fuming.

“There’s more?!” Jimin is up on his feet, towering over the younger as he roars, eyes burning. “And you didn’t bother to tell me, why?!”

“I didn’t think you would survive!”

Jungkook frantically holds up his hands, shrinking back in his seat and for the first time since they’ve sat down, a little frightened at the sheer wrath his senior exudes. The raven haired demon grits his teeth, lips pulled back into a frustrated snarl before he falls back into his seat again, head falling into his hands as they dig into his hair. He’s not sure if he can take much more of this mentally or physically, that one burst of rage alone had left him feeling more drained than anything. Maybe this is why no demon had attempted to transition back into a guardian angel before, aside from facing an imminent death — there were way too many hidden clauses.

“What other possible thing do I have to do to get a bloody badge of honour in the angels scout; sacrifice a lamb?”

“Oh you know, just your usual run of the mill trials to prove your will and faith to Him.” Jungkook supplies unhelpfully.

  “Have I not proven my will and faith already.” Jimin growls in contempt, a low and vicious sound past clenched teeth. His knuckles bleed white from how hard he has them curled.

“Might want to watch your temper brother, it won’t do you any good if you wish to complete these tests.” A pointed glare directed at the younger has him flinching back, hands shooting up again in defence. “Sorry! But you know how Heaven is like — they’re big on the whole trials and tribulations thing. They don’t just want anyone joining their ranks.”

Jimin lets out a long, slow breath, trying to ease away the tension in his body only to no avail. He feels the incoming headache, can already feel how much worse it’s going to get from here on out, but he’s come this far and to quit now would not only be a waste, but a betrayal to his cause. So swallowing thickly, Jimin resigns.

“What do I have to do then?”

Jimin hates the pitying gaze Jungkook shoots, albeit briefly. He knows that the younger doesn’t understand why he’s putting himself through all this but that’s not what matters; as long as Jungkook can provide him with the answers he needs, Jimin doesn’t have to explain himself. As though sensing his resolve, Jungkook gives one last meaningful look before he sighs.

“Seven Acts.” He says, pauses, and then corrects. “Or I should say six, seeing as your stunt with poppet was, quite literally, your saving grace. Regardless, you must complete the others in redemption for all the things you’ve ever done only for yourself.”

“How comforting.” The reply is dripping with sarcasm.

It felt like an added weight has dropped onto his shoulders and all Jimin could do was accept it, shutting his eyes as it bears down on him. His hand instinctively reaches for his glass of whiskey but stops halfway once he realizes all that remains of it is bits of broken shards and lets it fall uselessly to his lap.

“It is the final task you must complete, and only then will Heaven acknowledge you.” Jungkook takes the time to slide his half empty beer towards Jimin though the older demon doesn’t reach for it. “It’s crucial, but even more so now because of what you are so be warned that if you give them any reason at all, the slightest slip up, they will show you no mercy.”

There’s no way that Jimin can refute that statement, even if Jungkook hadn’t said it outright. Still, the reality of it leaves him feeling a little numb, and so he remains quiet in his seat, lost in rampant thoughts. Jungkook watches his long time friend for a while longer, an amalgamation of his own emotions running through him as he takes in Jimin’s much more pallor face, the darkness that’s beginning to form under his eyes and the lethargy of his movements. A part of him doesn’t like seeing Jimin in such a way, a duller version of the person he used to know, such a strong and capable demon reduced to this.

And all for you.

A heavy sigh leaves Jungkook, the only response he can give because in truth, it doesn’t matter what he thinks. Jimin has made his choice, had taken one step down the road where Jungkook had strayed and can no longer follow. In a sense of finality, he rises from his seat, preparing to take his leave.

“And this, I’m afraid, is where we must part ways. The path you have chosen to take is one where you must go on alone, bear your own cross. There is nothing more I can do for you here, brother.” He strides, stopping beside Jimin to rest a hand on his shoulder. “This might be the last time we’ll see each other. I would wish you well but….” He shrugs, almost too indifferently. “I’m not quite sure what will become of you.”

When he gets no response, Jungkook chews his lip before he gives one big pat and adds, “Hey, on the bright side though, you’re already one act down so what’s six more? Maybe if you live through this all, I might have to prostrate myself to you.”

Jimin finally can’t help but to softly chuckle, gazing up at Jungkook with a hint of fondness and no offence taken. “…Thank you, Ezazel.”

The younger demon cringes, shooting back a half glare.

“….It’s Ezzor now.”

Jungkook hates to see him like this, doesn’t completely understand why he would do this but another part of him, deep down, hopes that for all it’s worth, Jimin won’t end up regretting any of it.

Jimin sits for a while longer, his thoughts tumultuous as he nurses a new glass of whiskey. The bitterness of the alcohol intermingles with the shit storm that he’s found himself in. It was a lot to process, way more than what he had signed up for but through it all, he’s boiled it down to two things.

One, he was royally fucked.

Not only did he have to take a sip of holy water but now he has to essentially complete seven good deeds? That’s like asking an angel to commit murder on an innocent. It’s a whole load of bullshit if anyone asks him. But Jungkook was right — he shouldn’t even be surprised at this point anymore. As much as he loathes it, he has no choice but to play by their rules now if he wants to become a guardian angel.

Which brings him to the second, and most concerning thing for him; will he be able to continue his duty as your guardian effectively? On top of a new set of hurdles, Jimin has to deal with the dramatic reduction of his powers. Simple things, such as teleportation, used to be a second nature thing to him but now, they leave him with an uncomfortable strain on his body, like sore muscles after a long workout the next day. If things like that puts a strain on him now, he wonders, quite morbidly, what would happen if he attempted something that would require even the slightest bit more power?

Perhaps your worries aren’t so unwarranted after all, but that still doesn’t mean he’ll admit to it. He’ll just have to be more careful and cautious.

Eventually, Jimin leaves the dim bar, stepping out into the night with the mind to wander a little more aimlessly because there’s only so much downing three bottles of whiskey can do for him before he gets tired (and quite frankly, bored). Shoving his hands into his jean pockets, he takes off in a direction, not caring where the street will lead him. The saying goes that there is no rest for the wicked but at times like this, Jimin really wishes he has the ability to sleep… Or at least, knock out from over drinking.

The blaring horn of a passing taxi pulls him from his thoughts, shoulders tensing briefly before Jimin blinks in realization. His walk has taken him to the busier and livelier part of the city, an array of people still out in the generously mild weather, some walking along the strip to enjoy the sights while others take advantage of the many sidewalk patios the restaurants have to offer. Neon signs and large street lamps litter the streets, providing well lit pathways and adding to the effervescent atmosphere, enough to draw out even the naturally reclusive.

Across the busy intersection were much more high end boutiques and fine dining establishments. The one his eyes settle on is a restaurant, a lot more sleek and modern compared to the mostly hybrid bars and restaurant lining his side of the street with not one, but two levels of patio seating; one on the sidewalk and another above that had a glass panel stairway leading to it, all bordered off with frosted glass and black metal railing. It’s lit prettily with large paper lanterns in oblong, curvy shapes, displaced in-between two to three tables. The patrons occupying said tables appeared to be dressed more sophisticated from what Jimin can see and it automatically makes him assume that the place was meant for those who want to enjoy some fine dining.

But the decor and luxurious appeal wasn’t what had caught his attention, as his eyes drift upwards and he spies a familiar face, just peeking over the railing in the signature all-black server uniform.

It’s Elaine…. Or Emelie…

Fuck, whatever her name was.

It was your co-worker, the one who he had enthralled a week ago before he left for his business trip. It was odd finding her there of all places, but then Jimin recalls having bumped into her earlier in the evening and connects the dots that this was probably where she was heading off to; a second job. Without thinking any more on it, he brushes it aside, continuing his stroll in an attempts to get some peace of mind.

The night was long, but even longer when you’re working as a server and your shift often run way into the early morning hours of the next day. One can argue that the tips make it worthwhile but sometimes even a hardy tip won’t make up for it all.

Especially when it’s coming from a literal human dirt bag.

It was just her luck to be stuck with a table full of frat boys, only they’re extra snobby and entitled because they’re mooching off of their parents’ money. Granted, it’s not the first time she’s dealt with these sorts of people (it practically came with the job description) and working in this line of customer service, everyone’s developed thick skin to help them through it.

Emily’s no different, having worked this job for as long as she had, only it begins to grind on her nerves when the guests are persistent with their advances.

“So when are you gonna tell me there’s a secret menu that includes you on it?”

Things like those were usually followed up with a greasy smile that sent her skin crawling. It was one of the many things that she wished she didn’t have to hear throughout the night but the sad part is it wasn’t the worst. And when she sees one of the managers step up to politely inform the table that they needed to pay their bill as the restaurant was beginning to close, she knew that this night can, and probably will, get ugly.

So by the time she clocks out, Emily is more than a little on edge. She leaves the building, headphones in and a stride like a woman on a mission — get the fuck home without having to bust out the pepper spray hidden in her bag.

She rounds the corner from the side exit of the restaurant, coming out onto the street. She makes it about a block before she spots him.

“Hey server girl.”

He breaks away from his group of friends, striding up to her from where he had his car parked beside the curb and blows out a stream of smoke from the vape pen he has in his hand. Emily cringes at the strong smell of artificial blueberry invading her nose. Instinctively she takes a step back to put distance between her and him, her shoulders taut with tension and stance already defensive. The asshole from before doesn’t take notice and continues talking anyways.

“Me and a few buds gonna hit up a club just nearby, why don’t you come along and maybe earn a few more extra tips.”

She hates the way he says that; the insinuation that she’s willing to put out for some few extra dollars, made even worse by the fact that she’s working a second job only because she needed to make ends meet.   “Sorry but no thanks.” Emily grits out, eyes narrowed and without giving another time of day, she begins to walk around him, only to be back up once again from him side stepping to block her way.

“Hey, hey what’s your problem? I’m offering to show you a good time, there’s no need to be so difficult.”

She’s starting to feel like a cornered prey as every time he comes in too close for comfort, she takes a few more steps back. Subtly, Emily’s hand that is clutching her bag slowly begins to sneak into it, hands searching desperately to feel the familiar weight of the small cylinder can. She doesn’t have half the mind to care what other shitty things that spew from this guy’s mouth, more so focused on trying to find an opening and make a run for it.

“And I said no as an answer. No one is being difficult here.”

Her stomach churns unpleasantly as panic rises within her the longer her hand comes up short. She swears she always leaves the can inside her bag at all times so where is it?!

The man’s face in front of her slowly morphs into an annoyed scowl, clearly frustrated with her rejection because knowing him, he’s always gotten what he wanted.

“Listen I’m being nice here and I don’t just invite anyone to hang out with me.” He puffs up a little, prideful in the way he says all of this as if she’ll be impressed and change her mind. “If it’s money, I can pay you however much you want, probably way more than what you earned tonight anyways.”

Vision red, Emily finally lets her temper get the best of her even though provoking someone who can easily overpower her may not be the best course of action but she’s had had enough. “I don’t care about how much money you have, just leave me alone!”

Her rising voice catches the attention of all the wrong people as she sees his other three friends begin to make their way over one by one, no doubt coming to back him up. She’s breaking out into a cold sweat now, every muscle in her body tense but then finally, finally, her frantic fingers grasp at cool metal and as she goes to pull it out —

“Hey assholes, can you piss off out the way.”

For a situation that was about a hair away from becoming a crime scene, Emily didn’t imagine that it would all come to a screeching halt by the sound of a smooth dulcet voice, rising above the chaos. And neither did said group of assholes as all eyes turn to the new arrival. She takes the chance to as well, out of sheer curiosity of who this well-timed interruption could be and when she sees, she’s absolutely floored.

The man was gorgeous.

The sparse lighting coming from the scattered street lamps did nothing to deter from his beauty — flawless skin, sharp jaw, dark raven hair pushed back off his forehead with loose strands falling over and giving a clear view of hooded obsidian eyes, staring unimpressively at the group. He’s dressed so plainly compared to the guys harassing her; dark jeans and a black v-neck t-shirt, the ends tucked in to show off a belt buckle and accentuate his cinched waist. They might not admit it aloud but Emily could swear that everyone is entranced by this newcomer, something about his aura is so otherworldly and yet so commanding, like he’s got everyone wrapped around his fingers and all he had to do was blink.

Something that asshole #1 here picks up on, and immediately does not like.

He turns away from Emily momentarily, face stoney as he steps up to this handsome stranger who, despite the Chelsea boots he’s wearing, is much shorter than he was. She can almost see him gloat at the fact.

“Hey man, why don’t you mind your own fucking business yeah?”

Oh trust me, he would, Jimin thinks, rolling his eyes so hard they ache. He had walked about three blocks down before deciding to make his lap back up or else he would’ve ended up on the other side of town. In that time, he’s cooled off and mulled over ways on how he’s supposed to go about completing the task he’s been thrusted with, wondering if they need to involve you in any way or the scale of it like, what qualifies as an act? And how will he know he’s done one?

He thinks he would’ve gone on forever until he drove himself crazy had he not heard a piercing indignant shout coming from across the street he was on. His eyes wander over to the noise, a little perturbed at the disruption and finds what he can only describe as a pack of wolves cornering a lamb. Jimin had shook his head, completely indifferent because what’s new and was about to walk away when he catches sight of the girl. Almost immediately, he can feel the headache as he groans.

For fuck’s sake.

It just had to be her because what use is she if she’s dead. And so here he was, back at square one.

“I’m in a bad mood, and I don’t think you want to ruin that Gucci jacket of yours. So why don’t you go fuck off to some two-star club and stick your cock into a soda machine.”

The man’s nostrils flare, anger twisting at his features as he stalks up and grabs a fistful of Jimin’s shirt, yanking him by the front as he tilts his head down, snarling.

“You think you’re about to do something here, you fucking twink? Cuz I’ll make you suck your own cock if you don’t fuck off.”

He feels his friends coming round to form a semi-circle behind the man, trying to further intimidate Jimin and Emily helplessly watches on, scared because even though she’s grateful that he had drawn their attention away from her, she by no means wanted it to be at the expense of his own safety. The hand in her bag shifts from the pepper spray bottle to her mobile phone, ready to speed dial 911. But when her eyes draw up to Jimin’s face, he was the picture perfect of calm and collected, unfazed by the threat that had just been spat at him.

In fact, he seemed more bothered by the hand that’s clutching his shirt. She sees him raising his arm, places his own hand on top of the other man’s and then in an even tone, she hears him say, “Well now, I gotta fuck you up.”

There was a yell but it didn’t come from the ethereal man and then in the next second, Emily had to scamper back when three bodies go hurdling to the ground. Her gaze immediately whips up to Jimin and is shocked to find that he’s got the other man pinned down, one arm locked behind his back in a kneeling position with his face pressed uncomfortably in the pavement. She can’t keep her mouth from falling open, gawking at this bizarre scene in front of her.

“Why’d you have to go and ruin everyone’s fucking night with your dumb cunt mouth?” Jimin laments aloud, sounding exasperated as his head is already beginning to pound and putting him in a worser mood than before (if that was even possible). He ignores the writhing and muffled cursing coming from beneath him as he grips the other man’s wrist, holding him in place with little to no effort. He feels the delicate tendons beneath his fingers and the prominent bone just begging to be cracked.

It’d be so easy.

Unconsciously, his grip begins to tighten and the increasing pressure draws out a strangled yell from the man, his pleas coming out in a garbled mess but all that does is tempt Jimin even more. Maybe this is the pick-me-up he needed tonight; the satisfaction of breaking a few limbs, the thought of it already sends a sadistic shiver running through him. What better way to test his limits now than on this low-life. All he needed to do was to squeeze just enough here —

Then he feels eyes on him, making him glance up briefly and they meet her’s — wide and trembling with fright.

Oh shit.

He’d completely forgotten about her and the moment of clarity makes him hesitate, feeling like he’s the deer caught in the headlights. A beat passes with them just staring at each other before Jimin finally pulls away from the haze of madness that overcame him, loosening his hold on the man enough for him to break free, scurrying away like the cockroach he is. The rest of his friends begin to come to from having the wind knocked out of them, limping away with their tails between their legs as they all push each other out of the way to clamber into their expensive sports car.

They speed off, blowing through a red light as Jimin straightens, running a hand through his hair tiredly. He looks over at Emily who’s remained frozen in place throughout the entire thing, phone clasped in her hand and still very much on edge.

“Why don’t you do all of us a fucking favour and take a damn Uber.” Jimin gruffly says before he lumbers away without another word more.

After a minute, he faintly hears a shout of thanks behind him.

It gives him pause, bristling before he continues on. Once again, he’s left to his own thoughts and slightly irritated again that all he wanted to do now was find a place where he can hide and be unbothered for the rest of the night. Your place naturally comes into mind but he thinks it’s not appropriate to show himself, especially not when he still feels… less than put together.

As he considers his options, something begins to creep up inside of him — something that numbs him, starting from the bottom of his feet and traveling up until he struggles to keep pace, forcing him to stop as he doubles over. He’s suddenly short of breath, vision blurring but it peaks once it reaches his head, transforming into a searing pain.

Jimin lets out a sharp cry, hand shooting to his head as if to hold it from being split open, teeth gritting and eyes screwed shut as it wracks through him. There’s a ringing in his ear that nearly deafens him along with a burning sensation along his shoulders but as quickly as it had come, it vanishes, leaving him gasping in the middle of the street.

It takes a moment for Jimin to pull himself out of his daze, beads of sweat rolling down his neck before he inhales deeply and composes himself back on shaky legs.

Well, he thinks, taking a few more deep breaths and then slowly, starts on walking again. If that wasn’t a sign that he did something right, then he doesn’t know what is.

Guess that means two down, five fucking more to go.

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theaurorfileshq · 3 years

Photo

L U C A C A R O / A U R O R S E R G E A N T

AGE: Forty

BADGE NUMBER: S62K91

BLOODSTATUS: Halfblood (No-Maj Born Father)

GENDER/PRONOUNS: Agender, They/Them

IDENTIFYING FEATURES: Bleached hair, various severing charm scars covering majority of body, stiff right pinkie and ring finger, numerous tattoos including: pair of dice with heart shaped snake eyes tattooed on neck, red rose with ‘jenny’ banner tattooed on left side of chest, skeleton virgin mary tattoo on right forearm, octopus tattooed on left hand.

STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSES:

(+): Low-Grade Metamorphmagus, Combat Magic, Charismatic

(-): Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Impulsive, Arrogant, Cynical

BACKGROUND:

TW: Mentions of Torture

Before you ask them- no, “Lucky” wasn’t given to them as a nickname as a way to be ironic, although it seems pretty fucking ironic now. Lucky had instead been given to them as an infant, before they even had the concept of just what “Luck” was and why anyone would think they had enough of it to be named so. Just why it had been given to them, had more so to do with the nature of their birth. Born several weeks premature, Luca spent the first month of their life under constant surveillance by mediwixes at the hospital their mother gave birth to them in. The nickname would originate from their father, and quickly spread throughout their family, and stick with them into adulthood.

When Lucky turned seven their name took on a whole new meaning when it was discovered they’d inherited their father’s metamorphmagus ability. Much like their father though, their ability wouldn’t be a particularly strong one. They were able to do small cosmetic changes in appearances, such as coloring their hair, making their eyes blue instead of their usual nearly black hue. It was a parlor trick more than anything, nothing to the degree that a “high-grade” metamorphmagus could do, but they enjoyed every bit of it regardless, even if they couldn’t hold a morph any longer than an hour without getting a headache.

As a child, and as an adult even, Lucky was very much a rebellious youth, trouble often found them in some shape or form, until the point they learned how to talk themself out of it most of the time. This rang true when it came to their time at Ilvermorny, when the headmistress was no stranger to them, but somehow detention would be. They were a precocious child, but with a sharp wit and certain charm about them that they learned to use to their advantage. Despite the many various trips to the headmistress’s office though, they did do well and even succeed to some degree in their academics. Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprisingly, transfigurations would not be their best subject, but rather the rough and tumble world of DADA. They were an adventure seeker first and foremost, and DADA provided them an outlet to explore the darker and more dangerous corners of the world. They’d known as a child that being an auror was something they wanted to be, but that dream was cemented for them as they learned more about the career path of those that spent their daily life constantly in motion and fighting off every manner of evil in the world.

When graduation came and went, they quickly joined the Salem Auror Academy. It would be in the academy’s halls where their strength in combat magic was finely tuned and developed, transforming them from the short and scrawny kid who could handle a wand well in a fight, and closer to the rapid fire and quick reflex dueler they are today. With their strong duelling skills, a position in one of MACUSA’s four auror squads could have been a goal well attainable for someone of Lucky’s caliber. Instead, their sharp tongue and habit for finding trouble would finally catch up to them, and instead of being cherry-picked by a squad chief after graduation, Lucky found themself applying to division after division until finally New York answered their call.

Although working in the division, initially as a beat-auror in New York City, didn’t exactly fulfill their dreams of one day being a squad auror, they learned how to better play the bureaucratic game of not pissing the wrong people off to get what they wanted. In their ten years on the NY Division, they would slowly rise from a low level recruit to finally a corporal, and began specializing in cases on organized crime in the New York City area. That would be where Lucky would finally find their niche within the division, and began to develop a reputation for an auror that could be relied on to take on the heavier undercover jobs, and cases that most aurors with families would shy away from. The dangerous cases were always the most fun for Lucky though, loving the rush of working along side some of the city’s most notorious criminals and finding a way to outsmart the lot of them. And for a couple years that was precisely what they did, jumping into undercover job after undercover job, until finally the case of the Starosta crime family fell on their desk.

The Starostas were a well known wixen crime organization in the city by that point, holding a monopoly on the wixen narcotics trade. It was the case that’d make their career if they were able to pull it off, plenty of aurors before them had tried to take down the infamous family, and while some were able to take down small pawns in the organization, no one had managed to infiltrate the higher circles. Which was precisely what they planned to do. Their partner on the case was a longtime friend of their’s, a fellow corporal by the name of Violet Wade. They and Vi had been working cases together since they were recruits, well matched in wit and their inability to take things too seriously until they were in a heat of a case. If anyone was going to manage to take down an important player out of the Starosta family it would be them and Vi.

When they first dived into the case, they focused on a Starosta grandson, someone they both felt they could easily manipulate and bend to their will in order to lure in a bigger fish. And for a time, it felt like they just may actually succeed in their goal. Nico Starosta was an easy target, and one that craved attention from others, which both Lucky and Vi were more than willing to help feed into. Two months into their case, they managed to become a part of Nico Starosta’s inner circle, a small group of wixes the young man would take with him every where he went. Eventually them and Vi began finding themselves being brought into Starosta hang-outs, and rubbing elbows with some of the family’s most prominent members. When they were finally introduced to one of Nico’s uncles, a high-ranking figure in the Starosta crime syndicate, they thought they’d finally found their fish to fry. And that as long as they kept playing their cards right, they’d get enough to put at least one major Starosta behind bars.

Just where they went wrong, and when they were found out still haunts Lucky to this day. Wherever they made their error though, it was three months into their investigation, and achingly close to finally building up a strong enough case on one of the Starosta sons, when suddenly the rug was pulled out from underneath them. Nico had told them he needed both them and Vi to pick up a shipment for him, which by that point wasn’t uncharacteristic of the grandson, who skirted any of his “family duties” by giving them to Vi and Lucky to handle. It was when they entered the warehouse though, and saw it was completely abandoned did they realize they’d been discovered.

The wandfire erupted soon afterward, and ended even sooner with Vi falling victim to a killing curse by their side, and them so distracted by their partner’s fall that they were unable to fend off the incoming binding spell. Laying on the cold concrete floor of that warehouse, bound up and laying next to Vi’s lifeless form, they waited for their own killing curse to come-

it never did though.

That was when they learned that death could be a blessing when living could be so much worse. Instead of killing both aurors the Starostas had discovered were living within their circle, they chose to only kill one of them, and let Lucky serve as the cautionary tale as to what would happen if anyone tried to take down the Starostas again. They spent what they would later learn was two months, but felt more like two lifetimes, in a small basement of a building they can still only guess was a home of one of the Starostas lackeys. What happened during those two months they still bare the scars (both physical and psychological) to this day.

After over two months, the Starostas either felt they’d made their message clear, or simply grew bored with Lucky, and eventually deposited them on the front steps to the NY auror division, a mangled and broken thing, and a clear warning as to the crime family’s true capabilities. As Lucky remained hospitalized, the division tried to build up a case at the very least against those who had tortured the auror, but with a mind scrambled both by magic and months worth of solitary confinement in a dark basement, Lucky had nothing to give them. And so the case would eventually find itself on the cold case files floor, where it remains to this day.

After a month in a hospital, and another three getting re-acclimated to life again, Lucky tried to go back to the NY Division. Which deep down they knew was a mistake, but perhaps it was some part of them that thought if they made some effort to return to their old life, they could find themself again. Because whoever this new person was they’d become in their months both during and after their imprisonment wasn’t someone they liked. They’d become a paranoid and frightened thing, someone who was a ghost of their former self. And so they tried to force themself to be the old Lucky again. They pushed their metamorphmagus abilities to their breaking point, morphing away the marks the Starostas had carved into their skin. They did not want to serve as their cautionary tale, as the crime family’s walking billboard displaying their cruel message for all too see.

But even as morphed into their former self, which involved them relying heavily on headache tonics to get through an entire work day keeping on a morph, they still learned their face had become too synonymous with the events of only a couple months prior. Even then, the office that’d once been their home, and the faces of their coworkers that’d once been their family, now brought with them only a new source of pain.

And so the decision was made, that if they wanted to find any semblance of peace for themself and be able to move on from an event that’d scar them for life, they would have to go somewhere else- start fresh, and find some way to be able to live their life in their new skin that would always bare the marks of violence on it. They found this new life in the form of an open position on the California Auror Division.

Leaving New York behind, and its numerous reminders of a life that’d been ripped from them, was an easy task. With New York behind them, they were finally able to figure out and come to better appreciate this new version of themself. Instead of suffering through days filled with migraines caused from having to keep on a morph, they lived the majority of their day in their new skin. Some of the worst marks left by the Starostas they cover up with a new wealth of tattoos to accompany those they’d already had before. Their hair, they decide, to bleach with a beauty potion, something they used to do as a teenager and missed the look of. They learned the new ticks and triggers they now had, as they began working within the California division, and even buck up the courage to see a therapist routinely.

Before they knew it, life became livable again. It was not an easy thing to do, but with enough hard work and paying better attention to themself than they normally had before, they were able to no longer wince every time they looked in the mirror, or have to divert their gaze completely when they changed or showered. They still morphed when it felt necessary, such as when they had to interview witnesses, so to make themself less noticeable, or during the occasional (or not so occasional) hook-up, just for their own comfort.

Somehow in all of this they managed to impress the right person somewhere, and without even trying, they are offered the position they’d dreamed of since they were a child- that of a squad auror with MACUSA’s Pacific Squad. Time seemed to shift back into its usual pace at that point. Things became scarily normal again, sure their face would never make things completely normal. Even after working on the Pacific Squad for now five years, they still have to deal with the occasional stare or question they’d much rather not answer. But now instead of blowing them off, or getting irritated when someone asks about their scars, they rattle off a story that’s clearly not true, such as they lost a fight with a weedwacker, or fucked Edward Scissorhands, and move on from there.

They’re forty now, which is both scary and oddly comforting all at the same time. The small chapter of their life that marked them forever is behind them, although they continue to battle with the psychological trauma it left them with. Over ten years have passed since them and Vi first walked into that warehouse, and while a piece of them will always be there, they’ve learned to live with what pieces remain and live what they’d consider a pretty decent life for themself regardless.

#auror #written by shannon #lucky caro

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fuwafuwamedb · 4 years

Text

Dodging Death Pt 2 (CasGil, Hakuno, Cu Chulainn)

Previously: 1

____

There’s always been something disconcerting about awakening from a nap.

The first thing realized is that one is conscious. There’s this sudden come to, this sudden awareness. One doesn’t sense anything quite yet. One doesn’t necessarily think about anything yet. There’s just… life. Anything could happen in this small span of time when the mind is clicking on. The sheer fact that one was vulnerable for so long comes to a person.

At least, it came to him anyway.

Gilgamesh, the great mage and king of Uruk, came to with this same realm of consciousness occurring.

His mind slowly came into function once more. His body suddenly began to realize that it was alive and needing to begin the process of moving.

There was a comforting feeling beneath his body. He must have fallen asleep upon a series of cushions for how comfortable he was. Every fiber of his being was relaxed for once. It felt like his whole person had been bathed and dried. He could feel the sunlight, pouring down on him as he lay lazily in it. He must have been under his furs in his bed.

Gods, but the feeling of being freshly clean and sunbathing in such splendor.

Sex was alive and wild. It delighted the senses, but it was exhausting. This, right here, was another form of pleasure. It was the pleasure of the self. He rolled happily, stretching his limbs and listening to the soft, odd sound escape him.

Nevermind what sounds he made.

Exhaustion was a powerful force and made people hear strange things. This was one of those times.

It must have been early for his palace.

The sounds of the breeze were even quiet today. It was rather surprising, although he could hear people speaking not too terribly far from him. The conversation seemed to be related to…

He frowned at the conversation.

“A sixth victim has appeared last night in what police are calling an ‘isolated incident.’ The victim was wandering out late last night when they were gunned down by the perpetrator while attempting to return home from a shift at the local flower shop. The man’s coworker had this to say.”

“Yeah,” another voice spoke up. “Fuyuki is a safe and wonderful city and all that, but this kind of shit- ah, fuck, I’m not supposed to cuss on televise- oh. Right. Ah, yeah. Anyway, After this kind of… thing. Yeah, I’m SAYING IT!”

“He’s being- nevermind,” a woman spoke up. “We’re just a bit shook up. This whole situation is absurd! We’re not feeling safe with whoever this is running around loose and the police aren’t doing anything-”

The original speaker spoke up again.

“Citizens, much like this married couple, are feeling the same sense of unease. Police are urging citizens to remain indoors after dark, remain in contact with friends and loved ones, and they advise against any illegal activity.”

“Illegal activity? Geez!”

A woman, much louder than the others, spoke up. “Cu, turn that shit off.”

“Sorry, sorry!” the voice from before was speaking, the male speaking up again. “I just wanted to see Rinny and I on TV. Can you believe they called us a married couple?”

“Yes,” the woman replied.

The man- Cu- laughed. “God, but Hakuno! This is great!”

“A serial killer is great?”

“…Okay, maybe I should have preceeded that with, ‘other than the fucking psychopath roamin’ the streets,’ but Hakuno! Look at this! Rin’s on television!”

“She’s rather pissed with you about it.”

“Ah, she’ll get over it. I’ve been posting all over her social media and mine about how dazzling she looked. Hold on.”

“Well, stop boasting about how dazzling and pretty your girlfriend is and grab me a hairtie, will ya?”

“Yeah, yeah!”

The sound of footsteps were approaching, making Gilgamesh open his eyes. The moment he did, he squawked.

Nothing was the same.

This wasn’t his bedchamber. These weren’t his furs on him. This room, with furniture that clearly was carved by some person, was lackluster. And the strange torches!

There were torches on in a room with a mirror and a large basin! What the hell was that thing?

The door nearby opened, a blue haired man looking in at him a moment before Gilgamesh found himself screaming- or rather- yowling. His body tumbled from the bed, hitting the wood floors with a loud thump.

“HAKUNO!” The blue haired man yelled loudly. “YOUR CAT IS UP!”

“GORGEOUS!?!”

There was the sound of soft thunder coming their direction. He looked up to see a woman slipping around the blue haired man. Her fabric clad feet slipping along the floors a bit as she came to a screeching halt only to drop to her knees. The thud of her knees hitting the floor made him wince.

The sheer amount of pain that must have-

His body was lifted, held just under his front legs as he was once more reminded of his current state of being.

Cat.

“I thought you were going to sleep forever! Goodness, I took you to the vet twice! Dr. Kotomine kept recommending neutering!”

He could feel his blood drain.

Was he-

The moment he squirmed, he could hear the man nearby laughing.

“Geez, Hakuno. Don’t immasculate your man. The poor lad’s been sleepin’ for three days. Let him breathe before you scare him about things that didn’t happen.”

The fool was right.

Gods, but he was never so glad to hear he was safe.

The woman holding him looked at him carefully, setting him on the floor and helping him onto his paws.

“I’m guessing you need some exercise and to use the restroom,” she told him. “I got you a litter box and some food earlier this week.”

“Right, bathroom.”

The man headed over to what seemed to be a bathroom, ignoring the torches and the mirrors in order to grab something.

He tossed the small circle at Hakuno, making him leap.

He just…

Had to catch it.

It was instinctive. The little thing dared to fly towards the woman who seemed so tired. Without thinking, he caught the thing and held it in his mouth.

Please let these two never know of my humanity, Gilgamesh prayed.

The woman before him simply glowed.

“Hot damn. I need to get him some cat toys,” Cu told them, pausing a moment before he slammed the door shut. “Hold on, I’m going to use the toilet.”

The toilet is in there?

Gilgamesh frowned, padding his way across the floor only to feel his catch stolen.

The woman tied her hair back, flashing him a gentle smile before she urged him towards the box of gray sand.

“Here you are, Gorgeous.”

This box is filled with the smell of overly crushed flowers and death. Why on earth do I need this thing?

She pawed at the sand with her hand a moment, looking like she was trying to educate a young boy on an important life task.

For the life of him, he didn’t get it.

“You go to the bathroom here,” she told him.

Bathroom… that was the room the other was in… with the-

She thought that he was going to use this sand to shit?!

Were the gods mocking him?!

That had to be it. The gods were having a great laugh at the king of Uruk’s expense, changing him to this form and watching him choose his own downward spiral. Although this place beat the experience of cats in his homelands by a large amount, it still lacked a great deal of things.

First and foremost, since things were quite complicated and he had no quick solution to anything: he needed food.

He strolled with as much dignity as he could muster from this bedchamber, glancing around at this building with a thinly veiled interest.

There were strange tiny pulleys that seemed to be near each entrance. Other than that, the walls were quite plain and without anything of note. A few bookshelves of texts showed books about people and history. It would be quite interesting to investigate such things later. The fabrics seemed quite tight over whatever tablets they held. Perhaps they weren’t tablets in the common sense, but fabrics?

They were a strange fabric, truly.

He sniffed at them, smelling strangeness.

To be continued, he thought, carrying on.

A tapestry caught his great attention, portraying a young boy learning how to eat from an elder. It seemed they were stressing a name on a container, showing the name several times over. The happy family seemed to make it seem like the name mattered for the sake of joy.

Is this how merchants sell their wares?

How would anyone know the true value without first seeing the product themselves? That seemed rather odd.

He sat on his rump for a moment, watching the tapestry flow with new colors and images.

A group of young boys were playing with something together. They seemed to be twiddling their thumbs upon a board between them. Someone had placed one of these enchanted tapestries upon it, showing strange, inhuman things on the screen.

He yelped at the sight of a large beast, hissing and spitting at the tapestry as he took cover under the table.

“Gorgeous? You alright?”

Hakuno came out, glancing between him and the television. “Ah, you don’t like dinosaurs, huh? They’re extinct anyway.”

She pressed something on the tapestry, making it go black.

Magician!

He sighed, moving forth from his place of retreat. His body leaped onto the table, his eyes on her until something met his senses.

His senses were noting meat.

Glorious meats, a bounty of them lined the plate alongside precious golden eggs. Their fluffiness, and their great size, filled his vision, making his stomach rumble and his mouth salivate.

A king was a man who required great meals and bountiful choices. He could hear Hakuno speaking to her companion, but he paid them no mind for now. His attention was now on food and he was devouring it all. Bite after bite, the heavenly taste filled his body with the strength to carry on. He found himself near tears, tasting such celestial splendor.

“Oh.”

He looked up, finishing off the eggs as he heard Hakuno speak.

The woman laughed a little, glancing to her companion. “Cu, it looks like he ate your eggs.”

“Ah, better for him than me anyway. Rin’d kill me if I skipped out on her cooking,” the man said, moving forward and scratching at one of his ears. “You want real food, not that cat food shit, don’t ya, G?”

“G?” Hakuno raised a brow at him.

“Hakuno, he’s a guy cat. G sounds better.”

He agreed. He let that be known with his purring.

“See? There ya go. G’s with me on this.”

The man leaned in, motioning for Hakuno to leave.

“Alright, G, listen here. This woman? She saved your ass from being run over and becoming flatter than paperwork.”

She’d what?

“She also has stayed up for days waiting for you to wake up. She got all kinds of worried when you fell asleep like that. I got her to make food, but you’ve gotta take care of her, especially right now with a lunatic out there trying to kill people.”

“Cu, don’t you have to-“

“Hold on, Hakuno!” Cu waved his hand. “I’m telling the man of this house what he needs to know.”

Indeed he was.

Gilgamesh moved a bit closer to Cu, waiting for the man to continue. The man meanwhile was motioning for Hakuno to leave again, refusing to continue until she sighed and went to the other chamber.

Meanwhile, Gil waited. The woman had suffered lack of sleep for him and was in danger. What else did he need to know?

“Hakuno’s never had a house guest,” Cu told him. “She doesn’t let men live with her and she’s never been intimate, so do us both a favor and look out for her. We don’t want any unsavory men getting close to her. You can feel free to piss in their shoes or whatever if you see any.”

Gods, the vulgarity of such a thought…

“One more thing.”

He waited.

Cu glanced towards where the woman had gone, “…Hakuno’s pretty great. You won’t find a smarter woman, except my Rin, but Rin can be a pain. She’s very obsessed with gems.”

Sounds like Ishtar.

He’d stick with Hakuno.

Truly, he would anyway. Hakuno seemed to possess magic, albeit weak and under great restriction. If he could return to his human body, then he could break open those circuits and allow her to have that mana flowing through her veins.

The trickles he felt now, combined with that giving and open nature of hers, intrigued him.

“Do your best to guard the queen of this palace,” Cu told him, giving a bow. “She’s in your hands.”

Quite the showman, but he could appreciate a man of character. Gilgamesh bowed his head in return.

“Holy shit. Hakuno! G bowed for me!”

“Okay, Cu Chulainn, but isn’t Rin waiting for you to get my notes to her?”

The man paled, grabbing a bag nearby and a strange tablet from the table.

“That’s what I thought,” Hakuno sighed, earning a side hug from the man before he was booking it for the door.

“Bow to your cat,” Cu told her, pausing in the doorway. “He bows back! It’s great!”

Mongrels truly were mongrels, Gilgamesh thought with a sigh.

His sigh was in time with Hakuno’s own, his eyes drifting to hers only to see the woman grab a small stick from nearby and cast her magic upon the tapestry again.

“I swear, he loves Rin, but he does get sidetracked.”

He had no bearing on this thinking, therefore he paid it no heed. Instead, Gilgamesh hopped down from the table and continued his perusal of the house.

The kitchens were strange and filled with reflective surfaces that didn’t quite work as mirrors. The bathrooms, two for some reason, possessed toilets.

They weren’t quite like his, with a running stream in them, but there was a lever…

The water swirled in the basin, making his eyes widen.

Astounding!

This paltry home with its meager adornments was the home of a true visionary. Toilets with waters that didn’t run underneath one’s bottom until they wished for it. He looked in the kitchen once again and found the woman turning on a stream of water.

Miniature aqueducts were near here?! How did she get water inside her home and on tap like that?! What’s more, the tapestry of merchants fascinated him too.

“G?” Hakuno looked over at him. “Do you want to rest a while longer on my lap? I’m going to watch some TV for a bit before working on my studies.”

TV?

He watched, amazed, as the woman carried him back to the lounge area, settling onto her quite unique fusion between a set of cushions and a chair. The woman permitted him to watch her tapestry- no- her TV.

Look at him, learning her strange culture so quickly.

Gilgamesh gazed upon the plays happening on the screen, astounded by the manners to which the people of this land had managed to capture their actors upon the tapestry. Were they trapped there until their play finished?

He was also quite interested in the marketing done by their merchants. To think, an intermission could boast of goods from certain people…

The Uruk merchants could acquire greater notoriety by having the traveling actors and performers advertise of Uruk’s greatness.

This required tablets.

This information needed to be saved onto stone.

“You must have slept all your fatigue away,” Hakuno murmured to him, stroking along his person. He could feel himself rumbling in contentment. His body growing weary at the feel of those hands working their way through his fur.

She was pure bliss.

Had she been Ereshkigal herself, he would have leaped for his death. Not that he despised the goddess, but her latest actions left a bit to be desired.

He moved closer to Hakuno’s face, pausing at her chest.

This… This he remembered.

This was the drenched celestial being that had saved him before. Her gentle voice had called to him when he had thought himself the victim of those screeching beasts. She’d taken him to be treated by that foul beast of a man and then nestled him safely right here.

She’d allowed him to be safe in her bosom.

He owed this woman a great debt.

Thinking about it, Uruk had not gained any magicians in a long time. They weren’t in dire need of one, true, but having an extra magician on hand, especially one like this…

Yes, he would simply claim the woman to be his magician.

He yawned, finding the woman casting another spell to turn off the TV. She pulled a rather thick fabric over the two of them and snuggled him closer to her.

“We can take an hour nap,” she told him. “Then I need to study. I have a test tomorrow.”

I shall watch you prepare for your apprentice examination with great interest, Gilgamesh thought, licking the woman and finding her cooing to him gently.

She would make a wonderful new Uruk citizen.

#drabble #drabbles

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hollenka99 · 4 years

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Okay but if you don't think Siobhan Maria Jackson didn't dust herself off after grieving, you've got another thing coming.

Like yes, obviously she took Jameson's death hard. Dude was her husband for 22 years and she'd known him since she was 18. Not to mention she lost her brother a month before becoming a widow. There was a period where she took the 'be there for the kids first and foremost' philosophy a little too far and the kids had to say "Uh Ma? Listen we're all hurting but maybe you should grieve without thinking about us for a while."

So she grieves. Then she comes out the other side ready to get down to business.

She sees her eldest son graduate college, something no-one in her family has ever done. She gets Thaddaeus House for the Disadvantaged built and personally helps out when and where she can once it's open. Her 2nd and 3rd sons get accepted into the high profile colleges they wanted. She couldn’t be prouder of them.

Even in the late 30s, once her father is dead from advanced age and she is living in Ireland again, she gets shit done. As loving and kind of a man as Jacob O'Hara was, those traits don't leave his daughter much in the way of monetary inheritance. Siobhan has to support her little girl somehow. Even the money Jameson left her shouldn't be something to live off of, in her opinion. So she gets any qualifications needed at the time to be hired as a music teacher. By the time Nora is settling into life as a woman with a husband and young family of her own, a point where Siobhan knows she's capable of going on without her mother down the street, it is the early-to-mid 1950s.

She returns to California to finish what she started. Thaddaeus House isn't quite as needed as it was when first built yet it's an important and necessary establishment nonetheless. She ordered a place to learn ASL to be added before she left for Ireland in '37. Now she's planning to include somewhere on site to receive basic qualifications, enough to get a job but with as little expenditure on the students' parts as possible. Actually, let's merge the ASL area into the school. No, hang on, we should have enough donations to put the school on it's own dedicated site. We'll provide cheap scheduled transportation between the two sites. That's great.

She likely campaigned to make ASL a mandatory subject in schools nationwide. Yes, obviously French and Spanish are fantastic for students who plan to travel when they're older. But what about those wanting to stay closer to home? There are plenty of Americans who rely on sign to communicate. So teach them an equally important language that they may need more than a European one.

Since the TLoJJ-verse is based on the real world, she probably wasn't able to make it a reality. But could you imagine her looking some authority in the eye and saying "I don't care for this whole nonsense with the Soviets. Never mind whether our ideologies are better than theirs. Let's focus on creating a fairer society. If we manage to improve the lives of the type of citizens who need it most right now, don't you think that will show the Reds who's the greater nation?"

The government twisted the arms of her two youngest sons when they were barely adults. They took part in a war that was far bigger than either of them. Damn right she’s going to try twisting the government’s arm to progress on issues bigger than the USSR being communist.

Either way, she'd probably work together with some of her children to build a centre for teaching and promoting the use of ASL. First in Los Angeles then, if that proved successful, New York and other potential major cities.

Speaking of fighting for better equality, I feel she would do what she could in the fight for civil and gay rights. Well, Anthony, she doesn't know if she's quite up for marching in large crowds now that she's in her 70s but she'll try to help things on a more local level. And no, Oliver, she is a bit conflicted on homosexual couples vs being told her whole life it should be a man and a woman only. However, she doesn't see why having emotions that do nothing to cause harm to others should be punishable by law. Is there anything she can do to help?

Throughout her life, Siobhan composes music. She wrote the melody that people immediately associate with the Jolly Gentleman. The music from Carving for Beginners is her own. Music is her creative outlet the same way writing had been for Jameson. She even sets something up at Thaddaeus House to encourage people to take up playing an instrument if they want.

Oliver visits her one day and discovers the pile of compositions, some complete, others that have been works in progress for varying amounts of time. He convinces her to compile them into an album. She agrees so long as the ones with more personal reasons for creation are left out. If they really want those ones out in the world for public consumption, they'll have to wait until after she's dead. She doesn't want to live with the knowledge someone could casually listen to something she created as a way of coping during the most despairing points of her life.

It's Pearl's death in 1973 that makes Siobhan consider slowing down slightly. 85 by now, she could certainly leave her children and grandchildren to carry on her efforts. She could travel to foreign lands and see what they have to offer. But nope, that's not Siobhan Jackson. She'll cut back on some things that require more physical effort, sure. But spending time at Thaddeus House gives her people to chat with when her friends and family are busy living their own lives.

In later life, I'm sure she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren and even great-grandchildren. Not to mention dogs. She has always been partial to Dalmatians. Maybe some piano playing and garden maintaining too. I love the thought of her becoming this figure in the community, this old woman who has done more than a few things with her life and tries to keep going within reason.

She reaches 90 and yeah, maybe she's not as active as she wants to be but she still goes out and does what she can. Her memory is starting to go now, it's getting more evident as the months and years roll by. When nearing 95, she gets asked if she's aiming for the big 100. She usually chuckles and say "Well we'll see, won't we."

She turns 96 in July 1984 and two months later, she's gone. When she sees Jameson again, she tells him she tried her best to fulfil his last wishes. He just laughs like it's obvious before replying along the lines of "Angel, you did more far more than try. Thank you."

And that's the contrast between them. Jameson left early, his ideas of how to give back to a world that allowed him financial security came too late for him. But Siobhan was given more than enough time. She had 52 years more than him to get it done.

She could have stopped in the ‘30s. She could have said "It's done. I fulfilled my promise to him. It's standing and functional and that's what he wanted." But she doesn't.

In the ‘50s or early ‘60s, she could have said "To try change the education system is a monumental task that one 70 year old Irish immigrant couldn't successfully lead." And maybe she was somewhat right about that. She sure as hell gave it her best shot though. Without her, people in the 21st century would have less opportunities to learn ASL. Just because you can’t complete a marathon doesn’t mean the distance you managed is redundant.

Siobhan lived a goddamn full life. Part of her life’s work might have been fulfilling her husband’s last wish. But to focus on that or just see her as simply Jameson’s widow is to erase so much of what she did with her life. She was a composer, talented pianist, supportive mother, someone willing to fight and speak up about the things she cared about, a woman who came to America aged 16 with the hope of finding better prospects there than Limerick offered then did so several ways over.

In short, I stan an Irish queen. I hated myself for making her wait 52 years to be with her other half. But she didn’t waste those five decades. She killed it. Now she can look back on it all and be proud. Like she deserves to be.

Just... Siobhan.

#the life of jameson jackson #tlojj #tlojj spoilers #siobhan jackson

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anhed-nia · 6 years

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BLOGTOBER 10/23 & 10/25/2018: HALLOWEEN (2007) & HALLOWEEN II (2009)

By the time Rob Zombie made the bold move of remaking John Carpenter’s name-making classic HALLOWEEN, the horror rock-star’s directorial career had already proved to be incredibly divisive. His 2003 film debut, HOUSE OF 1,000 CORPSES drew a cult from among diehard fans of his music, but was largely panned by critics who identified it as a ramshackle, self-indulgent disaster. The movie was little more than a Frankensteining-together of Zombie’s favorite things, but he managed to follow it up swiftly with 2005′s semi-sequel, THE DEVIL’S REJECTS. With this project, he appropriated three of the principle characters from his cartoony, ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW-like first feature, and reimagined them as the redneck antiheroes of a story that plays like a cross between THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE and THE WILD BUNCH. While DEVIL’S REJECTS showed major improvements in terms of drive and focus, it still felt unsettled. It is an emotionally confused movie that has trouble deciding whether its tale is more tragic for the innocent victims of its psychopathic protagonists, or more triumphant, for the Rejects’ anti-establishment swagger and charisma. Rob Zombie displays a refined aesthetic sense, and seems sincere in his storytelling, but he didn’t have much time to let these things ferment into a more potent cinematic brew before he stepped up to bat again with his controversial remake of the beloved HALLOWEEN in 2007.

Reviled even by the likes of John Carpenter himself, Zombie’s dour, ponderous retelling of the archetypal slasher story was baffling to critics and genre buffs alike. Loaded up with clunky psychoanalysis that flies in the face of Carpenter’s original intention--Michael Myers is PURE NO-REASON EVIL, FULL STOP--this iteration of HALLOWEEN worked for few people besides Zombie’s hardcore stans. In spite of that very large and general problem, the writer-director was back again in 2009 with a sequel to his own remake. With HALLOWEEN II, he took two major creative risks: Bringing the ubiquitous Sheri Moon Zombie back even though her character died early in the first film, and centering the narrative on Laurie Strode’s psychological recovery, or lack thereof, from her original ordeal. It is easy to see how this setup would draw more complex and ambivalent responses. Mrs. Zombie’s appearance as the ghost of Myers’ mother, whose character is plagued by a lot of Jungian nonsense, was identified fairly as ludicrous by many viewers. On the other hand, Scout Taylor-Compton’s return as Laurie Strode takes a character who was little more than a cardboard cutout in the first film, and turns her into a convincing mass of trauma who undergoes a profound transformation over the course of this sequel. As with THE DEVIL’S REJECTS, HALLOWEEN II suggests that even while Rob Zombie can be an incredibly frustrating filmmaker, he still seems to be on to something. Even in my most stuck-up moments, when his smug use of slow motion and arias of unshocking cuss words make me want to forget everything I just watched, his movies nag at me in a way that I have a hard time describing. I’m just now starting to formulate an understanding of why.

Often, I find myself asking: Who is Rob Zombie? First and foremost, he is a professional nerd. His music, art, videos, and feature films are strung together by his scholarship in all things genre, whether he’s invoking Tobe Hooper’s snuff-like realism, or the innocent sitcom pleasures of the Munsters. Zombie is vastly erudite about horror, and really anything remotely culty. This is actually to the detriment of HOUSE OF 1,000 CORPSES, which is so bloated with pop culture references that it almost chokes out the movie’s dubious originality. But while he has that irritating nerdy compulsion to competitively show off what he knows, he doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who buys and bags comics without even cracking them open. Rob Zombie is clearly, legitimately passionate; it’s heartwarming, and enough to make you want to root for him even when you don’t totally love what he’s doing. His craftsmanship is on point, too, as a multimedia artist whose talent has been abundantly evident since the early band flyer days. It comes as no surprise that he attended Parsons School of Design, and he occasionally shows his hand as an amateur film historian with a love for golden age Hollywood. So, whatever he wants you to think about his hellbilly stage presence, he’s clearly no hick, and no basement-dwelling dweeb either. He’s an educated artist with a background in New York City’s brainy ‘80s noise rock scene. It’s because of this that I find the worshipful attitude his films take toward their sociopathic murderers to be, well...kind of annoying. Why am I supposed to think it’s so cool, as the movies’ punk rock tone suggests, that the Firefly family tortures random bystanders to death for no apparent reason? Why doesn’t Rob Zombie know how tired the whole “scary clown” thing is, and has been for a long time already, even when it’s someone as magical as Sid Haig under the greasepaint? Why do I feel like Zombie’s interest in pimps and ho’s is deeper than just exploitation pastiche, which makes it potentially worse than if it were just a shallow affectation? The thought of this Massachusetts-born college boy fantasizing obsessively about being so crude and violent and salt-of-the-earth is kind of lame. So, instead of just, you know, being a hater as usual, I looked it up--and discovered that Rob Zombie’s roots are actually in the fairway. As Wikipedia aggregates from various interviews:

While raising their sons, Rob's parents worked in a carnival, but they chose to leave after a riot broke out and tents were set on fire. Zombie recalled the experience in an interview, stating, "Everybody's pulling out guns, and you could hear guns going off. I remember this one guy we knew, he was telling us where to go, and some guy just ran up to him and hit him in the face with a hammer – just busted his face wide open. My parents packed up real quick, and we took off."

Suddenly, it all started to make sense. Sure, the costumed popstar isn’t an undead cross between Jerry Lee Lewis and Charles Starkweather in real life, but he isn’t a complete poseur either. It isn’t immediately clear, from underneath his mountain of collectory movie references, that he is, more or less, writing what he knows. He isn’t just emulating his cultural heroes, he’s mythologizing his own childhood.

In view of this, the key to Rob Zombie’s movies is not an awareness of horror history and semiology; it’s actually all about outlaw culture. So, back to 2007′s deeply flawed HALLOWEEN. It’s a heavily bro-y movie, in its outsidery way, that breaks up the Dr. Loomis-Michael Myers-Laurie Strode love triangle, and focuses almost entirely on building a Myers biography. The fascinatingly sullen Daeg Neergaard Faerch plays young Michael, a fatherless boy on the verge of snapping from the relentless torment coming at him from all directions: his slutty sister, school bullies who fixate on his stripper mom (Sheri Moon Zombie), and his mother’s latest violent, depraved boyfriend. Michael follows the serial killer script perfectly, graduating rapidly from torturing animals to brutalizing other kids to annihilating his sister, her boyfriend, and his mother’s beau one Halloween night when his sibling chooses sex over taking her little brother trick-or-treating. He soon finds himself installed in a mental institution where he moves on to slaughtering the staff. Dr. Loomis (Malcolm McDowell) spends years evaluating the boy, though he is ultimately stymied by Michael’s profound lack of humanity. As Michael increasingly retreats behind the folksy homemade masks he spends all day crafting, the opportunistic Loomis gives up on him, instead committing his energy to a money-making true crime/pop psychology book about Myers. Flashing forward, we find the hulking adult Michael Myers (played by the 6′8″ wrestler Tyler Mane) getting ready to bust out of the asylum and wage war on his home town of Haddonfield. There we finally meet teen dream Laurie Strode, a spunky babysitter with a gaggle of gal pals who are perfect grist for the slasher mill. In the final leg of the film, Myers carves his way through Laurie’s social circle, in an apparent attempt to reunite with his sister: Laurie herself. Sheriff Brackett (Brad Dourif) reveals that when Michael’s despairing mother committed suicide years ago, he took her infant daughter and had her adopted out anonymously to insulate her from her family’s tragic history. Laurie, for her part, is unaware of anything other than her need to survive, which she only barely accomplishes.

Naturally, Laurie’s story is the weakest part of a movie that is otherwise so focused on male experience. That is, the experience of needing a father, the ambivalent and ambiguous craving for maternal intimacy, the trauma of having your masculinity impugned by your (fag-obsessed) peers, and perhaps even the undermining influence of academia and capitalism on a man’s natural-born strength and worth. When the newly-freed Michael Myers storms through a truck stop to begin his pilgrimage to Haddonfield, and Rob Zombie chooses to accompany this scene with Rush’s regal outlaw anthem “Tom Sawyer”, it tells you everything you need to know about this take on HALLOWEEN. Like the rampaging Firefly family in DEVIL’S REJECTS, Michael is certainly evil, but he also represents something essential about the formation of and reinforcement of one’s individuality in the face of castrating societal norms--something the carnies among whom Rob Zombie grew up would have found very relatable.

It’s worth noting here that, while the sexuality of the women in Michael’s life plays a role in his distorted development, he is not reacting to their sexuality in and of itself. Michael Myers is not driven by the kind of covetousness that we associate with the archetypal slasher, who gives sexually frustrated male viewers a vicarious thrill by punishing sluts and teases. Michael’s problem is that his mother and sister’s sexuality contributes to his isolation. His classmates use his mother’s profession against him, and that profession keeps her from being able to tuck him in at night. Similarly, Michael doesn’t get to enjoy Halloween with his family and the other neighborhood kids, because his sister is too busy getting laid. Michael is abandoned, even while he still has a home to return to, an outsider even in his own house.

This leads me to an important point about why the portion of the movie that is devoted to Laurie's struggle is so ineffective. It is a flaw in the film, but a virtue of the director: Normal, attractive teenagers are not Rob Zombie’s people. He doesn’t even participate in traditional slasher movie misogyny, he’s so far away from thinking about them. His movies are full of badass women who are fully possessed of their sexuality, and who wield it like a weapon against hypocrites and assholes, and this is always shone in a heroic light. Moreover, he delights in casting women of all shapes and ages, often assigning them immense personal power, as in LORDS OF SALEM, an enormously satisfying movie about society’s original persecuted outcasts: witches. Rob Zombie is deeply committed to outsiders, and his definition of them isn’t limited to banal lawbreaking--he also rejects conventional beauty and our cultural obsession with youth. His films are populated by all manner of human beings, and the farther away they are from looking like model material, the more likely it is that they’re meant to be the heroes. On that note, whatever you think of his movies, you have to acknowledge that they are almost never dehumanizing. Zombie is an accomplished actor’s director who gets a full spectrum of emotion out of his performers, and who excels at creating a feeling of camaraderie within his ensemble casts. It is this surprising sweetness, and compassion even for the victims of the villains he lionizes, that makes HALLOWEEN II so peculiarly effective.

If 2007′s HALLOWEEN was a remake on which Rob Zombie couldn’t resist draping some of his personal hangups, HALLOWEEN II is almost a completely original and separate entity from what one thinks of as the franchise started by John Carpenter. In it, Michael Myers is presumed dead but his body is missing--and indeed, his character is missing for much of the movie. We find a disturbed, scarred-up Laurie Strode living with her surviving friend Annie, and Annie’s father, Sheriff Bracket. Laurie is dealing, poorly, with a heavy dose of PTSD. Along with nightmares and flashbacks, she also has trouble just being nice to people, or accepting affection. Annie and her father’s attempts to be charitable with their adoptive family member are no match for Laurie’s increasing surliness and mistrust of the world. Once a good-natured and optimistic young woman, her appearance becomes vagrant-like (curiously similar to Rob Zombie’s own casual look), her attitude is more and more nihilistic, and she develops a drinking problem. I’ve always wanted to see a movie with a slasher-like narrative foundation, but that focuses on aftermath and recovery, and recent gimmicky efforts like FINAL GIRL and LAST GIRL STANDING did absolutely nothing for me. HALLOWEEN II--at least, the superbly-acted Strode part of it--is the movie I’ve been asking for.

The other part of the movie is also interesting--or more specifically, it’s as ballsy as it is flawed. The movie gets off on kind of a bad foot when a title card quotes an obscure psychology text book called The Subconscious Psychosis of Dreams:

WHITE HORSE - instinct, purity, and the drive of the physical body to release powerful and emotional forces, like rage with ensuing chaos and destruction.

This is the excuse we have for the fact that the ghost of Deborah Myers arrives with a white horse to compel her son to find his sister Laurie Strode, aka Angel Myers, to reunite their family, presumably in the afterlife. Deborah Myers is kind of a spectral cross between Glenda the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West, at once welcoming and sinister, drifting in and out of Michael’s consciousness in the company of a sort of ghost of his childhood (Chase White Vaneck, who is no Daeg Faerch honestly). It might be easy to dismiss this anomaly as an expression of Michael’s mental illness, and his desire to experience an idealized version of his youth in which his mother still looks after him--except that later in the movie, during the final standoff, Laurie is shown to be physically affected by these spirits. Maybe the implication is that she and Michael suffer the same psychological ailments, but for them to share such specific hallucinations without speaking is borderline supernatural in and of itself. So, while Sheri Moon Zombie does her best with her impressive force of personality and compelling physical presence, it’s hard to say what this part of the movie serves. When I first saw the film, I was completely outraged by this, not only because it made no sense to me, but because it felt like a cheap ripoff of Sarah Palmer’s similar prophetic visions of a white horse in Twin Peaks. That was all I managed to make of it.

Today, I still don’t love it, but I have more trouble faulting Rob Zombie for trying to make HALLOWEEN his own, something more than a remake. He also does this by truly letting go of the Shape. The famous William Shatner mask was blown in half by Laurie at the end of the 2007 HALLOWEEN, and scarcely makes much of an appearance in this movie. Michael Myers is a disheveled drifter, literally haunted by his past, whose only real aim is to find a place to belong. It’s sort of funny, in retrospect: When John Carpenter made the first HALLOWEEN, he-by-way-of-Dr. Loomis declared Michael an empty shell of a person, someone who was simply born evil, as reflected by the empty-eyed mask he wears. For some reason, though, a whole legacy of directors just couldn’t resist trying to explain Myers away. The original HALLOWEEN II then says, “Well...what if Michael Myers is on a rampage because LAURIE STRODE IS HIS SISTER? What’s that you say? Why is that a reason to rampage? Ummmm...” And then HALLOWEEN 4 sees him pursuing other young female relations of his, and then in subsequent movies there’s an accursed rune, and druids, and immortality rites, and by the time you get to HALLOWEEN 6 you have this absurd stone soup of bad ideas. It’s a miracle that this franchise became such a thing. Rob Zombie makes the same fundamental mistake, but at least he tries it in the simplest possible way, asserting plainly that Nurture, not Nature, made Michael into a killer. Now, terminally lonely, he’s like a clown waking up in his trailer to find that the carnival left without him. Exiled from mainstream society, he seeks out what remains of his family, who, due to his own violent actions, has grown up more like him than he may have imagined.

I’m not saying I think this was the best thing to do with HALLOWEEN 2. Personally, what I crave in horror movies is something that is farther beyond explanation than this--something that gesturally resembles my life experience, but that plunges past the veil of mundanity into a deeper, darker world of primordial fears and urges, addressing things that unsettle me because I cannot rationalize them. For me, horror is definitionally incomprehensible, and Rob Zombie’s HALLOWEEN diptych is fundamentally sane. But, I think what I’ve discovered is that these movies are not proper horror movies, in spite of their relentless sadistic violence. They are outlaw fables, with more DNA in common with something like EASY RIDER, than with FRIDAY THE 13TH. It’s funny to watch myself coming to a compassionate understanding of these movies that are themselves about outsiders and rejects who are specifically deprived of understanding. My goal in all this was not so much to convince people of the value of these movies, which one might reject on any number of reasonable counts, but to explain to myself why I keep coming back to them. It isn’t to condescendingly heckle them, and it isn’t just because they’re often handsome-looking, or because they’re so emotionally authentic even when the narrative is less than compelling. It must be because, even when I’ve found him challenging, I can’t help seeing Rob Zombie as a person with vision, someone who heroically eschews common consensus on taste and sense-making--the consensus even among horror fans and his own cinematic heroes--in order to say what makes sense to him personally. Finally, he has begun to make sense to me, too.

#rob zombie #halloween #2007 #halloween ii #2009 #blogtober #remake #John Carpenter #sheri moon zombie #michael myers #laurie strode #scout taylor-compton #brad dourif #malcolm mcdowell #tyler mane #the shape #horror #slasher #outlaw culture

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loseweighttoday · 4 years

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14 Legit Ways of Making Money Online From Home I Start Earning Money From Home Easy And Big

Making some extra side hustle cash doesn't even have to be that complicated. As someone who's been immersed within the field of online income generation for nearly 20 years now, I can tell you that it takes some work. However, there are several clear paths forward. At the top of the day, it all boils right down to what your goals are and just what proportion you are looking to automate your income.

Guide Towards Making Money Online From Home

Could you create an additional $200 per month? Sure. How about an additional $1000 per month? How would that change your life? To most, it might make a monumental difference. But what if we were talking thousands more per month or maybe tens of thousands more? How would that alter the trajectory of your life? Clearly, you'll make money on the web . you only need to decide what proportion of some time it's worth.

While we all have some overtime , it often doesn't desire it. But it also doesn't take an excessive amount of effort to form some extra dough on the side. We're not talking about millions upon millions here -- we're mostly talking about doing small, bite-sized projects to get some fast cash. And counting on your skill set, you'll easily make a couple of hundred dollars or maybe a couple of extra thousand per month.

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Finding work as a virtual assistant are often easily done through sites like Upwork, Indeed.com and Remote.co. Search the prevailing posted jobs and make bids. you will need effective communication skills and fluency in English and popular web and business software applications.

Related: Learn the 4 Principles That Helped This Virtual Company Become one among the simplest Cultures in America

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Related: 8 Places to Sell Stuff Fast once you actually need the cash

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While cryptocurrency remains relatively new, it'll ultimately become the quality . Bitcoin and Etherium could be the first cryptocurrency platforms today, but the US Dollar will eventually become the Digital Dollar by leveraging the blockchain. you'll cash in of the present boom in cryptocurrency by trading it through platforms like eToro and Kraken, amongst many others.

Related: Start Earning Now.

4. Online tutoring Websites like Skooli, Tutor Me and Tutor.com provide resources for getting into the web tutoring space. While you do not got to use a platform like these, they supply a lower friction entry point into the market. you'll also look for online tutoring gigs on a spread of other sites like Upwork, Freelancer and lots of more.

What sorts of things are you able to tutor online? you'll easily tutor a topic like math or science, while also teaching a language if you're bilingual. you'll also tutor musical instruments just like the guitar or piano, along side a slew of other topics .

Related: To Rapidly Enhance Your Business, Stop Selling and begin Teaching

5. Sell services on Fiverr Fiverr has grown significantly since its inception. Today, it is a vast marketplace where you'll sell almost any service under the sun. this is often great if you are looking to form money online as a digital nomad or maybe while sitting reception on your laptop while in your pajamas.

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Related: the way to Use Online Platforms To Earn Money Now

6. Build sales funnels. Every successful business has an automatic sales funnel. Yet, numerous businesses are completely unaware of the facility of an efficient funnel. Sales funnels provide automation within the sales process. they assist you build a relationship together with your audience and develop a bond with the buyer . There are many tools you'll use to create a sales funnel, but the world's most successful businesses often create custom-coded funnels.

Expert sales funnels often start with a free offer, also called the lead magnet. By delivering value within the lead magnet, you're creating trust with the buyer . within the next step, you'd usually find what's called a self-liquidating offer or a visit wire. These are deals that are hard to pass up, often for $7 to $47. The front-end offer is typically found beyond that along side one-time offers to assist boost the lifetime value of the customer and therefore the average cart value.

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Related: what's a Sales Funnel? The Guide to putting together an automatic Selling Machine

7. Hire out your home. Another way you'll make money reception is to truly hire out your home. Air BnB has carved a large industry out of vacation rentals. While the market did exist before Air BnB's arrival, it's certainly grown by leaps and bounds since its arrival on the scene.

In 2017, Air BnB purchased luxury vacation rental provider, Luxury Retreats, and other consolidations within the marketplace have happened with leading sites like Invited Home's acquisition of PPG rentals and Seasoned Dreams' platforms, and Expedia's $3.9 billion acquisition of another vacation rental giant, HomeAway. The market is booming and therefore the time is ripe for entry, regardless of how big or small your home or condo could be .

Related: Need To Have A passive Income On Auto-Pilot? Learn The Tricks

8. Launch an ecommerce site. Ecommerce is booming. While Amazon takes the lion's share, consumers are buying by the droves once they can scoop great offers. In fact, a number of the leading online marketers like Neil Patel, Frank Kern, Dean Graziosi, David Sharpe, John Reese and lots of others, are using free-plus-shipping ecommerce and book funnels to form small fortunes. This comes back to the implementation of sales funnels within an ecommerce environment. In fact, much of what people believe traditional ecommerce stores taking months or maybe years to create and costing alittle fortune simply isn't true.

Related: How Can Ecommerce Owners Use the newest Trends to Their Benefit? 5 Entrepreneurs Advise.

9. Start a blog. Blogs are quite possibly one among the simplest ways to earn a passive income, even while traveling the planet . While starting a blog could be simple you'll got to put within the work and therefore the effort so as to reap the advantages . Plant the seeds now to enjoy the harvest later.

Best Easy Ways of Generating Revenues Today

However, once that blog gets going, generating an income and scaling out your business is simple . Simply produce more content and line up more offers. As your blog grows in popularity, you'll even be ready to attract top talent willing to write down for you merely in exchange for one very powerful link back to their own websites.

Related: the way to Start a Blog and Make Money Online

10. Build a side hustle business. There are many ideas for lucrative side hustle businesses that you simply could easily start from the comfort of your house . While starting them is straightforward , actually fixing the work to plug and grow those businesses may be a bit tougher . The hard part is seeing them through.

While you'll launch a daily business selling someone else's products, you'll also invent your own product. While businesses supported inventions might sound more complex to make , they are doing present attractive investment opportunities as depicted on popular shows like Shark Tank.

Related: What sort of Side Hustle do you have to Try? (Infographic)

11. Create webinars I've become hooked in to the webinar medium for selling. Building out automated webinars is one among the foremost useful skills you'll possibly have, like entrepreneur Jason Fladlien, who's done of $100 million in sales through webinars by only selling other people's products and not his own.

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Related: Start Making Out For Your Own Daily Expenses Right From Your Home

12. Social media management. Social media management may be a good way to get an income from home. Considering the expansion of social media, businesses are clamoring to seek out their way ahead of prospects. However, most businesses haven't got a clue about how they will increase their exposure. That’s where you are available .

Building a social media management business might take some effort and time, but it's well worthwhile . you'll charge a large monthly fee for every business to assist manage their social media, allowing you to earn a full-time income doing this gig.

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13. Affiliate marketing Affiliate marketing presents a really low friction entry into selling products online. While you are doing need some sort of audience to sell these products or services to, you'll make a big amount of cash from home while doing it. Some products or services have very high earnings per click. meaning , if you play your cards right, you'll easily make an outsized profit on conversions by driving traffic to specific offers as long as you target the proper interests.

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Related: The Only Guide You Need To Start off Your Money Making Journey Now

14. Create online courses. One of my absolute favorite ways to form extra cash from house is to make online courses. Now, this does take an upfront investment of your time . But, as the other passive income generating activity, you are doing the work once and obtain paid repeatedly for it.

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delicatemindsofconsciousnes-blog · 7 years

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Whats your Life Path Number?

Your life path number typically describes the kind of person you are at birth and the traits you carry through out your life time. To find your life path number add your birth month + birth day + year of birth, then once you get the total, add all the number within the sum, together. For example my birthday is 05-17-1994, so i add 5+17+1994 which equals 2016, once i add all the numbers in 2016 i get a life path number of 9. Below are the meanings to each particular life path number. Im very stoked to see everyones numbers, and does these numbers accurately describe you? Mines surely does!

Life Path 1 (10/1, 19/1) The Life Path 1 suggests that you entered this plane with skills allowing you to become a leader type rather easily. Your nature is charged with individualistic desires, a demand for independence, and the need for personal attainment. Many of our military generals, corporate leaders, and political leaders are men and women having the Life Path 1. When you display positive 1 traits your mind is capable of significant creative inspiration, and it possesses the enthusiasm and drive to accomplish a great deal. You are very good at getting the ball rolling; initiating new projects is your forte. You are at your best when confronted with obstacles and challenges, as you combat these with strength and daring. This is both the physical and inner varieties of strength. With this strength comes utter determination and the capability to lead. As a natural leader you have a flair for taking charge of any situation. You have a tendency to do this, even if, at times, it is not appropriate for you to do so.Highly original, you may have talents as an inventor or innovator of some sort. In any work that you choose, your independent attitude can show through. You have very strong personal needs and desires, and you feel it is always necessary to follow your own convictions. You tire of routine and highly detailed tasks rather quickly.You are ambitious and assertive in promoting yourself. Although you may hide the fact for social reasons, you can be self-centered and demand to have your way in many circumstances. That said, for the most part, you are considered very good company, friendly, good-natured, and a wonderful conversationalist. People like you and are drawn to you. It is a good thing they are, because you are very sensitive to disapproval and you don't handle it very well.There are several ways that the negative side of the 1 can show up. The 1 always has the potential for greatness as a leader, but they may fail as a follower. Unfortunately, sometimes you have to follow for a while before you are allowed to lead and this can be a difficult time. When the 1 Life Path person is not fully developed and expressing the negative side of this number, the demeanor may appear very dependent rather than independent, particularly in the early years. If you are expressing this negative trait of the number 1, you are likely to be very dissatisfied with your circumstances, and long for self-sufficiency. This might be defined as the weak or dependent side of the negative 1 Life Path. On the strong side of this negative curve, the 1 energy can become too self-serving, selfish and egotistical. Avoid being too bossy and demanding.

Life Path 2 (11/2, 20/2)

The Life Path 2 suggests that you entered this plane with a spiritual quality in your makeup allowing you to be one of the peacemakers in society. Your strengths come from an ability to listen and absorb. You are a fixer, a mediator, and a very diplomatic type of person using persuasive skills rather than forcefulness to make your way in the world. When you embrace and exhibit the strenghth of your spiritual side, you are intuitive, avant-garde, idealistic, and visionary. These extremes make you interesting with much to offer society. You have the potential to be a deep-thinker, and no doubt interested in understanding many of life's mysteries and more intriguing facets.

Life Path 3 (3, 12/3, 21,/3)The Life Path 3 indicates that you entered this plane with a strong sense of creativity and with wonderful communication skills. Achievement for you most likely comes through engaging your ingenious expression. A truly gifted 3 possesses the most exceptional innovative skills, normally in the verbal realm, writing, speaking, acting, or similar endeavors. Here we are apt to find the entertainers of the world, bright, effervescent, sparkling people with very optimistic attitudes. The bright side of this path stresses harmony, beauty and pleasures; of sharing your inventive talents with the world. Capturing your capability in creative self-expression is the highest level of attainment for this life path.

Life Path 4 (4, 13/4, 22/4, 31/4)

The Life Path 4 suggests that you entered this plane with a natural genius for planning, fixing, building, and somehow, with practical application and cerebral excellence, making things work. You are one of the most trustworthy, practical, and down-to-earth of individuals; the cornerstone members of society. Indeed, as a Life Path 4, you are a builder of society. The cream of the crop in this Life Path can be a master builder in society. if you are among these highly talented people, you have an idealistic nature which is grounded in practical terms, allowing you to conceive grandiose, far-reaching schemes and carry them through to the end. If you desire and are willing to work for it, you can achieve enormous success, prestige, and fame. Obviously, everyone with a 4 Life Path does not become famous.

Life Path 5 (5, 14/5, 23/5, 32/5)

The Life Path 5 suggests that you entered this plane with a highly progressive mindset, with the attitude and skills to make the world a better place. The key word for your Life Path is freedom. In the pursuit of freedom, you are naturally versatile, adventurous, and advanced in your thinking. You are one of those people who is always striving to find answers to the many questions that life poses. The byword for the positive Life Path 5 is constant change and improvement. You want to be totally unrestrained, as this is the number most often associated with the productive use of freedom.

You may be one of the most compassionate of people as the 5 is surely the most freedom-loving and compassionate Life Path. Your love of freedom extends to humanity at large, and concern for your fellow man, his freedom and his welfare, may be foremost in your mind. A great Life Path 5 American President, Abraham Lincoln, issued the Emancipation Proclamation, and ended slavery in America. As the ultimate progressive thinker type, your potential in government, the law, and other positions of authority is unlimited.

Life Path 6 (6, 15/6, 24/6, 33/6)

The Life Path 6 suggests that you entered this plane with tools to become the ultimate nurturer, and a beacon for truth, justice, righteousness, and domesticity. Your paternal, or maternal, as the case may be, instincts with a 6 Life Path exceed all others by a considerable margin. Whether in the home or in the work place, you are the predominant caretaker and family head. While the 6 may assume significant responsibilities in the community, the life revolves around the immediate home and family, for this is the most domestic of numbers. Conservative principles and convictions are deeply ingrained and define your character.

You are idealistic and must feel useful to be happy. The main contribution you make is that of advice, service, and ever present support. You are a humanitarian of the first order. It is your role to serve others, and you start in the home environment. You are very human and realistic about life, and you feel that the most important thing in your life is the home, the family and the friends.

Life Path 7 (7, 16/7, 25/7, 34/7)

The Life Path 7 suggests that you entered this plane with a gift for investigation, analysis, and keen observation. You are a thinker of the first order. You evaluate situations very quickly, and with amazing accuracy. As a result, you are thorough and complete in your work, the perfectionist who expects everyone else to meet a high standard of performance, too.

A Life Path 7 person is a peaceful and affectionate soul. But you guard your connection to people carefully. It's easy for you to detect deception and recognize insincere people, and you avoid them. You aren't one to have a wide circle of friends, but once you accept someone as a friend, it's for life. It's as if you must get to know someone a lot better before you allow the wall surrounding you to be penetrated. Chances are you are a very charming and refined individual with great poise and a quick wit. Nonetheless, there is an exclusiveness about you. You probably aren't a very social person. Your reserve is often taken to be aloofness, but actually, it's not that at all. It is merely a cover up for your basic feeling of insecurity. There's no rush, It takes time for you to warm up to new friends. Clubs and organizations hold little interest for you; you are not a joiner.

Life Path 8 (8, 17/8, 26/8, 35/8)

The Life Path 8 suggests that you entered this plane armed to lead, direct, organize and govern. You are very ambitious and goal-oriented. You will want to use your ambitions, your organizational ability, and your efficient approach to carve a satisfying niche for yourself. If you are a positive 8 you are endowed with tremendous potential for conceiving far-reaching schemes and ideas, and also possessing the tenacity and independence to follow them through to completion. In short, you were born to be an executive.

You know how to manage yourself and your environment. Your ability to judge the character and potential of the people around you is an asset used to your advantage. A large part of your success in life comes from how hard you work.

Life Path 9 (9, 18/9, 27/9, 36/9)

The Life Path 9 suggests that you entered this plane with an abundance of dramatic feelings coupled with a strong sense of compassion and generosity. The key to the nature of a Life Path number 9 person is found in their humanitarian attitude. Even the very average of those with life path 9 possess extremely compassionate tendencies.

Relationships can be difficult for you because it is hard to strike a balance that will work effectively. If your partner is one sharing your giving attitudes, the relationship will be happy and lasting. On the other hand, if you choose a partner whose focus is on material issues, problems will arise quickly.

You tend to be quite sensitive, as you see the world with much feeling. The number 9's very deep understanding of life is sometimes manifested in the artistic and literary fields. If drama and acting is not your forte, it will surely be an area of great interest and potential. Likewise, you may be able to express your deep emotional feelings through painting, writing, music, or other art forms.

The purpose of life for those with a 9 life path is often of a philosophical nature. Judges, spiritual leaders, healers and educators frequently have much 9 energy. The number is less inclined to the competitive business environment and may find this a struggle.

#life path #lifestyle #life #numerology #character #personality traits #you #universal #its real #currently reading #books #learning #consciousness #awareness #era: the awakening #spiritual #spilled thoughts #spilled words

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lecho · 7 years

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Shaka Zulu – African King and Conqueror (1787 – 1828)

Shaka was a great Zulu king and conqueror. He lived in an area of south-east Africa between the Drakensberg and the Indian Ocean, a region populated by many independent Nguni chiefdoms. During his brief reign more than a hundred chiefdoms were brought together in a Zulu kingdom which survived not only the death of its founder but later military defeat and calculated attempts to break it up.

Shaka was a son of Senzangakhona, ruler of an insignificant small chiefdom, the Zulu. His mother was Nandi, the daughter of a Langeni chief. Information about Shaka's early years is gleaned entirely from oral sources. It is claimed that Shaka was born into Senzangakhona's household but that the couple were not yet married according to traditional custom. A more credible account is that the relationship between Nandi and Senzangakhona was illicit, and that Shaka was born in Langeni territory at the Nguga homestead of Nandi's uncle. Shaka's name is said to stem from Senzangakhona's claim that Nandi was not pregnant but was suffering from an intestinal condition caused by the iShaka beetle. Despite his attempts to deny paternity, Senzangakhona eventually installed Nandi as his third wife. Shaka thus spent his earliest years at his father's esiKlebeni homestead near present Babanango, in the hallowed locality known as the EmaKhosini or Burial-place of the Kings, where Senzangakhona's forebears, the descendants of Zulu (Nkosinkulu), had been chiefs for generations. The relationship of Senzangakhona and Nandi seems to have been unhappy and ended in the chieftain driving Nandi from his court.

Nandi and her son sought sanctuary in the Mhlathuze Valley of the Langeni people. Here, growing up as a fatherless child, Shaka seems to have been the victim of humiliation and cruel treatment by the Langeni boys. At that time there were two strong rival Nguni groups, the Mthethwa led by the paramount chief Dingiswayo, and the Ndwandwe under the ferocious Zwide. Later, probably at the time of the Great Famine, known as the Madlantule (c.1802), Shaka was taken to the Mthethwa people, where shelter was found in the home of Nandi's aunt. He thus grew up in the court of Dingiswayo, who welcomed them with friendliness. Shaka, however, suffered much from the bullying and teasing of the Mthethwa boys, too, who resented his claims to chiefly descent.

As he grew to manhood, Shaka began to discover new talents and faculties. Outwardly, he was tall and powerfully built, and his skill and daring gave him a natural mastery over the youths in his age group; inwardly, he was developing a thirst for power. Probably when he was about twenty-three years old, he was drafted into one of the Mthethwa regiments where he found a satisfaction he had never known before. With the impi in the iziCwe regiment, he had the companionship he had previously lacked, while the battlefield provided a stadium in which he could demonstrate his talents and courage. His outstanding deeds of courage attracted the attention of his overlord and, rising rapidly in Dingiswayo's army, he became one of his foremost commanders. At this time, Shaka was given the name Nodumehlezi (the one who when seated causes the earth to rumble). While in the Mthethwa army Shaka became engrossed in problems of strategy and battle tactics, and Dingiswayo contributed much toward Shaka's later accomplishments in war. Militarism was thereafter to be a way of life for him, and one that he was to inflict on thousands of others.

Shaka usurps the Zulu Chiefdom

On the death of Shaka's father (c. 1816), Dingiswayo lent his young protégé the military support necessary to oust and assassinate his senior brother Sigujana, and make himself chieftain of the Zulu, although he remained a vassal of Dingiswayo. But, as Dingiswayo's favourite, he seems to have been granted an unusual amount of freedom to carve out a bigger principality for himself by conquering and assimilating his neighbours, including the Buthelezi clan and the Langeni of his boyhood days.

Dingiswayo's death According to the diary of Henry Francis Fynn, Dingiswayo's death (c.1818) was the result of Shaka's treachery, though firm testimony of this is lacking. However, it is known that when Dingiswayo fought his last battle, Shaka did not arrive at the scene until after his overlord's capture. He thus retained his forces intact. Zwide later murdered Dingiswayo, and, when the leaderless Mthethwa state collapsed, Shaka immediately assumed leadership and began conquering surrounding chiefdoms himself, adding their forces to his own and building up a new kingdom.

The defeat of the Ndwandwe

Zwide decided to smash his new rival. After a first expedition had been defeated by the superior control and strategies of the Zulu at Gqokoli Hill, Zwide, in April 1818, sent all his army into Zululand. This time Shaka wore out the invaders by pretending he was retreating and drawing Zwide's forces deep into his own territory; then, when he had successfully exhausted the invaders, he flung his own regiments on them and defeated them conclusively at the Mhlathuze river. This defeat shattered the Ndwandwe state. Part of the main Ndwandwe force under Shoshangane, together with the Jere under Zwangendaba, the Maseko under Ngwane, and the Msene led by Nxaba, fled northwards. The survivors of the main Ndwandwe force settled for a time on the upper Pongola River. In 1826, under Zwide's successor, Sikhunyane, they again fought the Zulu, but were totally routed. The majority then submitted to Shaka. He was able to recruit additional warriors from these sources and proceeded to train them in his own methods of close combat.

Shaka's supremacy

By then, Shaka had no major rival in the area of present day KwaZulu/Natal. During his brief reign, which lasted only ten years after his final defeat of the Ndwandwe, his regiments continuously went on campaign, steadily extending their assaults further afield as the areas near at hand were stripped of their cattle. If a chiefdom resisted, it was conquered and either destroyed or, like the Thembu and Chunu, driven off as landless refugees. When chiefdom submitted, he left local administration in the hands of the reigning chief or another member of the traditional ruling family appointed by himself.

The Zulu Military System

Once in power Shaka began reorganizing the forces of his people in accordance with ideas he had developed as a warrior in Dingiswayo's army. The assegai. He had seen that the traditional type of spear, a long-handled assegai thrown from a distance, was no good for the regulated fighting in close formation he had in mind. A group of warriors who held on to their assegais instead of hurling them, and who moved right up to the enemy behind the shelter of a barrier of shields would have its opponents at its mercy and would be able to accomplish complete victory. Having proved the advantages of the new tactics, Shaka armed his warriors with short-handled stabbing spears and trained them to move up to their opponents in close formation with their body-length cowhide shields forming an almost impenetrable barrier to anything thrown at them.

The formation most generally used was crescent-shaped. A number of regiments extending several ranks deep formed a dense body known as the chest (isifuba), while on each side a regiment moved forward forming the horns. As the horns curved inward around the enemy, the main body would advance killing all those who could not break through the encompassing lines. Discipline. By means of much drilling and discipline, Shaka built up his forces, which soon became the terror of the land. Shaka prohibited the wearing of sandals, toughened his warriors' feet by making them run barefoot over rough thorny ground and in so doing secured their greater mobility. His war cry was `Victory or death!' and he kept his impi on continuous military campaigns until he thought they had earned the right to wear the headring ( isicoco) of manhood. Then they were formally dissolved and allowed to marry. The male amabutho. The young men were taken away to be enrolled alongside others from all sections of the kingdom in an appropriate amabutho, or age-regiment. This produced a sense of common identity amongst them. Each of these amabutho had its own name and was lodged at one of the royal households, which became military communities as well as retaining their traditional functions. Each military settlement had a herd of royal cattle assigned to it, from which the young men were supplied with meat. The hides of the cattle were used to provide the shields of the warriors and an attempt was made to select cattle with distinctive skin colouring for each amabutho. The female amabutho. Numbers of the young women of the kingdom were assembled at the military settlements. Officially, they were wards of the king. They were organized in female equivalents of the male amabutho and took part in ceremonial dancing and displays. When one of the male amabutho was given permission to marry, a female amabutho would be broken up and the women given out as brides to the warriors. Until such time, however, sexual intercourse between members of the male and female age regiments was forbidden. Transgressions were punished by death.

The royal women. Each settlement contained a section of royal women headed by a formidable woman, usually one of Shaka's aunts. Shaka, however, dreaded producing a legitimate heir. He never married and women found pregnant by him were put to death. His households were thus not dominated by wives but by stern senior women of the royal family. In the king's absence, administrative authority was wielded jointly by the female ruler of the settlement and by an induna who was usually a favourite of the king. The military system thus helped develop a strong sense of identity in the kingdom as a whole. The traditional leaders of the subject chiefdoms still held local administrative authority, and on the dissolution of the amabutho the young men would return to live in their community of origin. Thus, the sense of identity of these subject chiefdoms was not entirely lost, but remained an important element in the later politics of the Zulu kingdom.

The military indunas or captains, as trusted favourites of the king, received many cattle from him and were able to build up large personal followings. These developments resulted in the evolution of powerful figures in later reigns with strong local power bases that they had been able to build up because of royal appointments and favours.

KwaBulawayo

Shaka's first capital was on the banks of the Mhodi, a small tributary of the Mkhumbane River in the Babanango district. He named his great place KwaBulawayo (`at the place of the murder'). As his kingdom grew, he built a far bigger KwaBulawayo, a royal household of about 1,400 huts, in the Mhlathuze valley, some 27 km from the present town of Eshowe. Economic and social changes. The development of the military system caused major economic and social changes. That so much youth was concentrated at the royal barracks resulted in a massive transfer of economic potential to a centralized state. However, the cattle wealth of the whole community throughout the kingdom was greatly improved; even though most of the herds were owned by the king and his chiefs and indunas, all shared in the pride roused by the magnificence of the royal herds as well as the pride of belonging to the unequalled military power of Zulu.

Effects of Shaka's wars. His wars were accompanied by great slaughter and caused many migrations. Their effects were felt even far north of the Zambezi River. Because they feared Shaka, leaders like Zwangendaba, Mzilikazi, and Shoshangane moved northwards far into the central African interior and in their turn sowed war and destruction before developing their own kingdoms. Some estimate that during his reign Shaka caused the death of more than a million people. Shaka's wars between 1818 and 1828 contributed to a series of forced migrations known in various parts of southern Africa as the Mfecane, Difaqane, Lifaqane, or Fetcani. Groups of refugees from Shaka's assaults, first Hlubi and Ngwane clans, later followed by the Mantatees and the Matabele of Mzilikazi, crossed the Drakensberg to the west, smashing chiefdoms in their path. Famine and chaos followed the wholesale extermination of populations and the destruction of herds and crops between the Limpopo and the Gariep River. Old chiefdoms vanished and new ones were created.

The white traders of Port Natal

By the time the first white traders arrived at Port Natal in 1824, Shaka was in control of a centralized monarchy, which spanned the entire eastern coastal belt from the Pongola River in the north to the lands beyond the Tugela in the south. That year, Henry Francis Fynn and Francis Farewell visited Shaka. In 1825, when Lieutenant James King paid him a visit, Shaka sent a goodwill delegation to Major J Cloete, Cape government representative at Port Elizabeth. Shaka accorded the white traders most favoured treatment, ceded them land, and permitted them to build a settlement at Port Natal. He was curious about their technological developments, was anxious to learn much more about warfare, and he was especially interested in the culture they represented. Moreover, he was alert to the advantages that their trade might bring to him. In 1826, in order to be closer and more accessible to the settlers at Port Natal, Shaka built a large military barracks at Dukuza, (‘the place where one gets lost'). It was 80 km further south of his previous royal residence kwaBulawayo, on the site of the present day town of Stanger. During his lifetime, there were no conflicts between the whites and the Zulus, as Shaka did not want to precipitate clashes with the military forces of the Cape colonial government. H F Fynn, who knew him well, found him intelligent and often amiable, and mentioned occasions that leave no doubt that Shaka was capable of generosity.

Freed from the restrictions that limited most chiefs, Shaka acted as an undisputed, almighty ruler. A cruel tyrant, he had men executed with a nod of his head. The loyalties of his people were severely strained as the frequent cruelties of their great king increased steadily. The climax came with the death of his mother Nandi in October 1827, huge numbers were put to death during the mourning ceremonies because they showed insufficient grief; and his armies were sent out to force the surrounding chiefdoms to grieve. Taking advantage of the absence of his armies, on 22 September 1828, his bodyguard Mbopha, and his half-brothers Dingane and Mhlangana, stabbed Shaka near his military barracks at Dukuza. As the great King Shaka's life ebbed away, he called out to his brother Dingane: “Hey brother! You kill me, thinking you will rule, but the swallows will do that.” He meant the white people, because they made their houses of mud, like the swallows. This was too much for his assailants and they leapt upon him, stabbing. According to members of his family, Shaka's last words were: “Are you stabbing me, kings of the earth? You will come to an end through killing one another.”

Hastily they buried his body in a grain-pit nearby. Having died without an heir, Dingane succeeded him, but Shaka's prophecy haunted him and ever after that, he was wary of white people. Under Shaka's successors, Dingane, Mpande, and Cetshwayo the Zulu monarchy profoundly influenced the course of South African history.

#Shaka Zulu #black history month #African King

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paulckrueger · 6 years

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How to make $100,000 a year

Learning how to make $100,000 is a common goal for many entrepreneurs — and why wouldn’t it be?

Here’s a list of things you can get with $100,000:

An actual jetpack

Country legend Willie Nelson to perform at your birthday party

A private island off the coast of Ontario, Canada

There are many ways you can get to earning six figures a year. The two most common ways are:

Getting a job that pays six figures a year

Starting a side hustle and scaling it so you’re eventually making six figures a year

However, it’s not going to be easy. Building out a side gig so that it helps you earn six figures a year is going to take time, a few sacrifices, and sweat equity. So does up-leveling your full-time job. But what’s below is a system that has been followed by thousands of our students successfully.

BUT WAIT! Before you start building six figures …

Repeat it with me: The biggest barrier in the way of a Rich Life is debt.

The biggest barrier in the way of a Rich Life is debt.

The biggest — you get the picture.

Before you even think about systems and tactics to scale your earnings to six figures, you need to get out of debt.

Once you do, and you begin to earn more, you’ll find that paying off any regular debts you might have is actually empowering instead of debilitating.

“I’m surprised at how my relationship with debt has changed,” says Bonnie Gillespie, author of Self-Management for Actors. “I see student loans and credit card bills as investments others made in me and my ability to be good for the money they fronted me. When I write checks to pay these bills, in my mind they’re thank-you notes to those early investors. I know not everyone has the same relationship with debt that I do.”

You can start to actually frame your debt as an investment rather than just something you owe.

“What has surprised me about being consistently in six figures is how much FREEDOM I feel in being able to take a machete to my debt,” Bonnie says. “Writing checks for five figures to MasterCard every month to just hobble that debt feels massively empowering in ways I wasn’t aware would free me.”

If you’re in debt now and you want to take steps to get out of it, be sure to check out Ramit’s video on the topic below.

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How to earn six figures a year

A while back, we spoke with two millionaires about how they made their riches.

Longtime IWT readers shouldn’t be too surprised to learn that they didn’t earn their millions through weird MLM schemes or buying lottery tickets, but through the powerful combination of saving / investing and starting a business on the side.

We regularly receive THOUSANDS of emails from people who have made six or seven-plus figures and if you asked me to break down how they did it in pie chart form, it might look something like this.

For this article, we talked to a number of people who scaled their income to six figures and more. We found that their strategy was no different — albeit with a few idiosyncrasies.

Step 1: Set up your Tripod of Stability

Step 2: Earn more money in your career

Step 3: Find a side hustle

Step 4: Get your first client

Step 5: Charge the perfect price

Step 6: Invest in yourself

Let’s get started.

Step 1: Set up your Tripod of Stability

When you have a goal as ambitious as “I want to earn a six-figure income,” it’s easy to lose sight of the really important things in your life.

I’m talking about the basics: food, water, shelter, etc.

This is the “Tripod of Stability” — all of the foundational, big aspects of your life that you keep ultra-stable so you can take risks in other areas.

“I’m a proponent of part of the Tripod of Stability,” says Naveen Dittakavi, founder of NextVacay.com. “If you have a day job, you need to ensure that it’s stable. You have to carve an ability to work on your side hustle while doing great work at your day job.”

He continues, “I lived at home for six years. My parents were really cool and helped me get by while I built out my business.”

Naveen recently scaled his hustle so that he’ll be taking away roughly $1 million this year (so you know he knows his stuff).

By taking care of your big things — your home, car, relationships, food — you’ll be able to take risks in areas like your side business. As Ramit says, when you have your bases covered, you’re not really taking risks at all.

Your Tripod of Stability doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re free of sacrifices though. If you want to devote yourself to making six figures a year, you’re going to have to change some of your habits and beliefs.

“I sacrificed a lot to build my business,” Naveen recalls. “After all, living at home with your parents for six years means you’re going to be single for six years — BUT it gave me what I wanted out of my life.”

Action step: Identify your Tripod of Stability

Write down the three main “legs” of your Tripod of Stability. These are the things that, if they remain constant, would allow you to weather dramatic changes in other areas in your life. It could be things like:

Your home

Your car

Your job

Your wife/husband

Your savings account

Once you know what makes up your Tripod of Stability, you can make sure you have those areas secure so you can start taking risks in areas like starting a side hustle.

Step 2: Earn more money at your day job

If you’re looking to build a six-figure income on freelancing with your side hustle alone, you can skip this step.

If having a job is one of the legs for your Tripod of Stability, though, you’re going to want to maximize your salary as much as possible.

Why? The more you earn, the closer you’ll get to your first six-figure year. There’s no better way to do that than to negotiate your salary.

Check out this chart that shows how much a $5,000 increase in salary can add up over the years:

Not only is it a BIG win, but it also sets you squarely on the road to earning more after just one conversation with your boss.

And the first step to do this is actually straightforward — but many people still forget it: Do good work.

“First and foremost, you have to deliver great results,” says IWT reader and six-figure earner Enoch Ko. “Without results, no amount of networking or relationship building can get you [to six figures]. That said, you have to build good relationships at work along with delivering great results.”

“Results and relationships go hand-in-hand,” he continues. “Once I had proven myself to be a Top Performer, higher salary was just a matter of time — having regular salary discussions with my managers and skip-level managers, working out timing with the corporate planning cycles, etc.”

Once you prove yourself to be an invaluable asset to your company, begin to build two of the most important tools at your disposal: your network and your observations. Enoch made such an impact he eventually moved on to another role that he was referred to by … his current manager.

“It was through building good, trusting relationships through delivering great results that helped,” he says.

One thing that can have a HUGE impact on salary negotiations is showing you can add even more value in the future.

A great way to do this is simply by asking questions of your manager:

What’s something that you would like to improve within the company — and how can I help?

What traits do you value the most in a new hire?

How can I help with your most important goal this quarter?

Not only will this show that you have initiative but it also gives you insight into exactly the kind of talking points that will grand slam your salary negotiation.

Action step: Prepare for your salary negotiation

Check out our resources all about how to prepare for your salary negotiations. A few great places to start:

The Ultimate Guide to Getting a Raise and Boosting Your Salary. The definitive guide on how to ask for the raise you deserve.

How to use Natural Networking to connect with anyone — including the exact email scripts. If you think networking is sleazy or scammy, it’s because you’re doing it wrong, or worse – you’re pre-emptively shooting it down out of fear.

Master Class: Negotiating Salary. Ramit Sethi and Susan Su walk you through the exact tactics, scripts, and systems you should use when negotiating your salary.

You should also prepare one of IWT’s favorite interviewing tactics: The Briefcase Technique.

This is perfect for interviews, salary negotiations, client proposals, whatever! The best part: 90% of the work is already done before you even walk into negotiations.

Here’s how it works:

First, you’re going to leverage the information you’ve gleaned from observing the company and write up a 1-5 page document describing the areas of the company where you can add value.

Then, you’re going to bring the proposal with you when you negotiate your salary. When the question of compensation inevitably arises, you’re going to pull out this document and outline exactly how you’re going to solve the challenges of the company.

Hiring manager: So what’s your price range?

You: Actually, before we discuss compensation, I’d love to show you something I put together.

And then you literally pull out your proposal document detailing the pain points of the company and EXACTLY how you can help them.

This shows the company how you’re the person who’s going to add value in those areas, making you an incredibly valuable employee they’ll want to pay more to keep around.

Ramit discusses The Briefcase Technique in depth in this two-minute video. Check it out below.

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BONUS: If you want more information on how to earn your Dream Job, check out our resources below to help you out.

How to find your Dream Job. A comprehensive resource on all things related to finding a career you’ll love.

How to stand out to hiring managers. Learn the exact system to use to help you look like the obvious choice to companies.

How to use Natural Networking to connect with anyone. Networking doesn’t have to be a pain. It can actually be really fun.

Step 3: Find a side hustle idea

This is the number one barrier holding people back from creating their side hustle.

After all, you’re looking for something that’s profitable and that you’re passionate about.

And the Venn diagram between those two things often seems like two separate circles.

Luckily, you already have profitable skills already. That’s what Christina Nicholson of Media Maven realized when she left her job after years of experience as a television news reporter and started working for a PR agency.

“Like many people, I didn’t have a great boss,” Christina recalls, “and more attention was paid to the hours I was sitting in front of my desk in the office instead of the quality of work I was executing.”

That all changed when one day a client came in to pay his retainer and Christina discovered that it was more than what she made in one month.

“That’s when I realized I could do all the work AND keep all the money,” she says. “I didn’t need to work for someone who caused me unnecessary stress. I didn’t need to get vacation approved or be on the receiving end of an attitude when I needed to leave the office early because I had a sick child.”

She continues, “I could also do other things, like host local and national TV segments on a freelance basis.”

So she began to build out Media Maven, her hustle to help other businesses get a handle on their PR. “After starting my business,” she recalls, “I saw what was possible and it motivated me, even more, to learn more about entrepreneurship and take things to the next level.”

That’s not the only way you can find a profitable freelancing idea either. There are actually four questions you can ask yourself right now to find an idea you can leverage for your hustle:

What do you already pay for? We already pay people to do a lot of different things. Can you turn one of those things into your own online business? Examples: Clean your home, walk your pet, cook you meals, etc.

What skills do you have? Now, what do you know — and know well? These are the skills you have that you’re great at — and people want to pay you to teach them. Examples: Fluency in a foreign language, programming knowledge, cooking skills, etc.

What do your friends say you’re great at? Not only can this question be a nice little ego boost — but it can also be incredibly revealing. Examples: Workout routines, relationship advice, great fashion sense, etc.

What do you do on a Saturday morning? What do you do on a Saturday morning before everyone else is awake? This can be incredibly revealing to what you’re passionate about and what you like to spend your time on. Examples: Browsing fashion websites, working on your car, reading fitness subreddits, etc.

Find an answer to those questions and I promise you you’ll find a great freelancing idea.

Action step: Find a profitable idea

Spend about 10-20 minutes now writing down five answers for each of the four questions above. Once you’re done, congratulations — you now have 20 potential business ideas that you can grow into a flourishing side hustle.

For now, just choose one business idea. It’s okay, you can always change it later. For now, we’re going to just try one out and try to find a client with it.

Step 4: Get your first client

In order to start earning money, you need to find the people who will give you money for your ideas.

But the question is … how? Where do you find these people?

Naveen’s tactic? Offering mouthwatering value.

“I was really involved in a lot of entrepreneurial aspirational groups,” he explains. “So entrepreneurs would hang out there and I would find ways I could add value. I wasn’t trying to pitch or close deals. I would just say that I had a computer science degree and, ‘I can help you clarify your vision and understand what it takes to build it out.’”

“I’ve always been helpful,” Naveen continues. “I started to find that being helpful to other people builds trust and will result in sales. I was in a position where there was limited talent to execute tech projects and there wasn’t a lot of people to help aspiring entrepreneurs.”

By doing this, Naveen did two very important things when it comes to finding clients:

He went to where the clients lived. By going to exactly where his target market hung out, he was able to build a network of potential clients and people he could help.

He offered amazing value. Naveen recognized an opportunity to show his potential clients that he was the man to help them. This value-add helped him gain his first few clients.

You can do the same thing.

Ask yourself:

Who is my client?

Where do they go when they want to look for a solution to their problems?

Where are they ALREADY looking for solutions to their problems?

How can you connect them to your service?

At this point, you’re also going to want to niche down your market in order to really tailor your services and draw in customers. So think about who’s an example of a client who might want to buy your product.

A few questions to jump-start your research:

How old are they?

Where do they live?

What are their interests?

How much do they make?

What books do they read?

Using this information, find out what your clients need by going to the places they go.

For example:

Want to pitch to moms that blog about children? Go to The Mom Blogs and start with the ones under “Popular Blogs.”

Looking for physical or massage therapists within 50 miles of your house? Yelp should get you started easily.

If you want to do large dog grooming and sitting, well there’s probably a local pet store or dog park near you where owners are all congregating just waiting for you to offer them a solution.

Here are a few suggestions of some other great sites freelancers can use to find business online:

Writers: MediaBistro.com, Upwork.com, FreelanceWritingGigs.com

Illustrators/designers: 99designs.com, Designs.net

Programmers: Toptal.com, SmashingMagazine.com

Once you find a potential client, you’re going to want to reach out to them and pitch your services.

Action step: Find a client and email them (with scripts)

Find your client using the information I’ve outlined above. Let’s say you are a video editor looking to pick up some side work. Here’s a handy script you could use (just replace the “video editor”–specific stuff with your skill):

CLIENT’S NAME,

I saw your post on X and visited your website. I noticed that you’ve recently started using videos too.

I’ve been doing video editing for three years and I’d like to offer to help you edit your videos and get them optimized for the web.

That would make them look more professional and load faster, which is important for your readers. And you’d free up time that you could use to create new content.

We can discuss the details, of course, but first I wanted to see if this is something you might be interested in.

If so, would it be okay if I sent you a few ideas on how to help?

Best,

Joe Example

A few takeaways:

There is zero fat in the pitch. Every word counts and is needed to help really sell the benefits of working with you.

Don’t mention payment. There’s nothing that will kill a potential client’s interest in you more than pushing prices on them before they’re ready.

Stress the benefits. This email shows the client why it would be in their best interest to buy from you in the third paragraph.

Once you get a client using this email, congrats! You just secured your first client — but it doesn’t end there. You need to actually do the work for them, and that means continually adding value.

“Being super aware of how you can help people and how they perceive you and recognizing that money will come if you’re valued by your audience helps most,” Naveen explains.

Step 5: Find out the true cost of earning six figures a year

You need to make at least $100,000 a year if you want a six-figure income. That means making at least:

$8,333.33 a month, or

$2,083.33 a week, or

$416.66 each workday, or

$52 an hour.

That’s simple back-of-the-napkin math. What isn’t obvious though are the hidden costs — the expenses you don’t take into account when you’re deciding how much you want to make.

“When I started out, I just took $100,000 and divided it up into an hourly wage so it came to about $52 an hour,” recalls Naveen. “That was dumb though. I didn’t even think about health insurance, retirement, vacation, or anything else.”

When you’re setting out to make six figures a year, you need to keep in mind what that actually means. Once you do that, you can set a proper goal for how much you want to make a year.

So before you jump into any system to make six figures, take into account any and all expenses you might have in a year, including:

Utility bills (internet, water, electricity, etc.)

Rent

Car/home payments

Food/groceries

Any living expense should be accounted for. Also make sure you account for your salary if you have a day job.

Once you do this, you’ll be able to get a sense of what earning six figures truly means, and you can begin to charge your clients what you want.

Action step: Charge what you’re worth

Now it’s time to do some back-of-the-napkin math to figure out exactly how much you want to charge to make six figures.

Don’t worry, it’s pretty simple. Take your expenses that you calculated above and add it to $100,000. Subtract your yearly salary and voila! You have roughly how much you should be earning per year through your side hustle.

You don’t have to go crazy with this. A ballpark number is just fine when you’re starting out.

If you really want to get into the weeds, you can even take into account state and federal taxes as well.

And while there are no set rules for rates, there are actually a few methods you can use to find one that works for you.

Drop Three Zeros Method

Simply take your ideal (read: realistic) salary, drop three zeros from it, and voila, you have your hourly rate!

For example, say you’d really like to earn at least $40,000. Just take the three zeros from the end and you now have your rate: $40/hour.

Double your “resentment number”

I love this one because it’s both really interesting and effective. Ask yourself: What’s the lowest rate you’ll work for that’ll leave you resentful of your work?

Say you’ll work for $15/hour at the VERY LEAST. Just double that number, so now you’ll earn $30/hour.

Do what the next guy does

This method is incredibly simple: Go to Google and search for the average hourly rate for whatever service you’re providing. You’ll get a good sense of where to start when you’re charging your clients.

The best part is after you start charging your clients, you can start to take on more or less work until you earn the amount you want.

For example, after you earn your first $1,000, it’s incredibly easy to start dialing your prices up and charge even more money from your clients.

Start “tuning” your rates after your first few clients. Were you making $30/hour? Start charging $40 or even $50. There’s no hard and set rule for how much you should charge. Just start tuning until you find a rate you’re happy with.

Step 6: Invest in your finances AND yourself

Investments can take all shapes and forms. Let’s walk through three areas where you can start to invest when it comes to building out your six-figure life.

Investment #1: Personal finance

This is IWT’s bread and butter and an area where we have extensive resources.

It’s also a very important leg anyone should have on their Tripod of Stability.

The easiest way to get started ensuring your personal finances are in order is by automating your finances.

This is Ramit’s system of sending your paycheck where it needs to go each month (utilities, rent, cell phone bill, etc.) so you don’t have to worry about it.

“Being financially conservative, I have also automated my cash flow so that I automatically have savings and investments,” Enoch says. “I enjoy not having to think about savings and investments. I enjoy being able to spend money without worrying whether I’d have enough cash to pay for the highly cyclical quarterly gas bill or bimonthly electricity bill when they come.”

“Automation is incredibly important,” Naveen says. “At the time I was drawing a wage from my day job, it was helpful to put my trust in a system that made sense and would work out in the end. At the time, I was putting cash away in my ING Direct account and my sub-savings accounts. I was able to see that number increase and I saw it worked really well.”

Automating your finances only takes one to two hours at the most, but once you set it up, you don’t have to worry about it again.

AND it’ll save you thousands of dollars over your lifetime.

Here is a 12-minute video of Ramit explaining the exact process below.

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Investment #2: Your side hustle

You’re going to reach a point in your side hustle where you’re going to have to put back some money into it if you want to grow.

That could take the form of hiring employees, buying a website domain, or getting a mentor / coach as was Christina’s case.

“It sounds cliche, but working smarter instead of working harder is how I reached six figures,” Christina explains. “How do you work smarter? You surround yourself with people who are smarter than you and have already achieved what you’re working for.”

So she hired a business coach and found someone to help her build out her business.

“I really did my homework,” she says. “I hired someone with a team of people, all of which were successful entrepreneurs earning at least multiple six figures, many of their clients were earning at least multiple six figures, and the coaching team had a very high retention rate, which told me they must do something right!”

That’s just one example though. You can find many ways to put money back into your business to help it grow.

BONUS: If you’re ready to take the next step, be sure to sign up for the 6-Figure Consulting wait list. This is our premier course on finding high-value clients, scaling our business, and building a model that generates 10x more revenue.

One great way to invest is to seek out mentorship or purchase a product or a book — which brings us to …

Investment #3: Yourself

Possibly the best investment that you can make is putting money in developing yourself both career-wise and on a personal level.

“My biggest investment is self-care,” Bonnie says. “The first thing on the calendar each month is Pilates, pole fitness, massages, day spa visits, couples therapy, quick getaways to Desert Hot Springs, and so on. If I’m not my best self, I’ve got nothing to bring my clients. It’s just stupid important, as investments go.”

LOVE IT.

This is exactly in line with Ramit’s abundance mentality. Who cares if this seems like a luxury? Who cares if people might scoff at the idea of getting a massage? What matters is that YOU want it and that YOU are willing to work for it.

The best way to get started is to begin investing in yourself.

Now, one thing that you will find very common with people who have not taken the time to invest in themselves and learn how this stuff works, is they will create what’s called levels of abstraction.

Rather than just going directly to what they want, they will create all these different levels of abstraction — like making a Facebook page or a blog — that make them feel good, but that actually don’t require them to do the hard work.

So, they’ll spend six, nine, twelve months doing something frustrating and then give up because they never spent time buying a couple good books or buying a course.

That’s why we want to offer you a proven system that’s helped thousands of students earn tens of thousands of dollars a month — for FREE:

The official handbook to 6-figure freelancing with zero experience

You’ll discover:

The three fears you MUST overcome if you want to make it as a 6-figure freelancer

How to become a highly sought-after expert (Hint: It has nothing to do with credentials or degrees)

How to figure out if an idea is profitable before investing time and effort

The six parts to an email pitch that clients can’t refuse

The Briefcase Technique that’ll make potential clients choose you over anyone else

And much more!

Enter your name and email below to get the free handbook.

How to make $100,000 a year is a post from: I Will Teach You To Be Rich.

from Surety Bond Brokers? Business https://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/blog/how-many-of-you-make-over-100000-year/

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