Elizabeth having growing pains in her tatas once she gets pregnant with Tristan and trying not to complain while out with the sins but heaving a little and crossing her arms to hold herself.

Diane: Hmm? What's wrong Princess?

Meliodas: You know you don't have to call her that anymore right? And besides, she's not even a princess anymor-

Diane: SHUUUUSSSSSHHHH Captain, her bestie is talking. What's wrong?

Elizabeth: I-It's nothing, j-just some pain.

Diane: Oh, is he kicking already?

Elizabeth: No. Well, yes, but that's, uhhh, not really what it is.

Diane: Hmm? Then wha-

King: Here you go, princess, this tea should help with the growing pains, and don't worry, its completely safe for the baby.

Elizabeth: Oh!? Uh, thank you King, how did you-

King: Ha, you've been distracted by it since you got here, I read hearts remember?

Elizabeth: Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't want to bother anyone.

King: It's not a bother! I remember how hard growing pains could be, so don't even worry.

Meliodas: Oof, was it this bad with Diane?

Diane: Actually, no, mine stayed pretty much the same size. And when they did grow it wasn't that bad.

King: No, Diane was perfectly fine. I'm talking about me.

Meliodas: ... Huh?

Ban: *Whips his head around so fast his neck makes a crack noise that echoes like a gunshot* HUH!?

King: Yeah, when I first grew those damn things it was so painful it basically decided my gender for me, haha.

Elaine: Oh please, you were still undecided even while growing them, you only stuck with your choice after you met Diane. You're terrible with making decisions, you take forever, Sin of Sloth indeed.

King: Hey! I didn't see you choosing yours either! Not even after you met Ban! So what's up with that!?

Elaine: I was taking my time so I could be sure, you were just lazy.

King: HOW DARE-

Ban & Meliodas:

And that was how they found out about the Fairy Gender not existing until they want it to.

Later~

Gowther: So what happens if one never decides to stick with one? Do they get one selected randomly?

King: Oh God no, no they just have both.

Gowther: Both?

King: Or neither. Whichever they choose.

Gowther: Fascinating.

King: Yeah, Helbram had both, and Fairy King Gloxinia decided to forgo it. Ha, getting stuck with only One gender, that's funny Gowther, your humor has gotten way better.

Elizabeth: That's how it is for humans.

King: ... Huh?

Elizabeth: We just have the one we're born with. That's all we really get. From what I remember, trying to change it doesn't really end well, I think that's what got me killed once.

King, horrified: Oh my God.

Elizabeth: Yeah, burning at the stake sucked.

For An Eternity - Zhongli

Author's Notes: I really shouldn't be allowed to listen to "Lover's Oath" while writing Genshin fics. I suppose you could say this fic kind of goes with my Halfdan fic, Unfulfilled Aspirations, since this one also has reader as heir to the Khaenr'ian throne. Similarly, this fic is also angsty and as a heads up there is no comfort. I wrote this while feeling kind of bummed out so thats probably why it is the way it is. But now I feel kind of bad for Zhongli... Anyway, reader is gender-neutral as per usual. Also Zhongli is referred to as Morax in this fic due to timeline. I hope you enjoy!

Type: Romance implied/gender-neutral reader/ reader is Khaenr'ian angst(no comfort)

Word Count: 929

Morax had certainly had his suspicions about Khaenr’iah beckoning him forth for a meeting. They wanted a contract, and he figured he knew exactly what form of one they wanted.

Unsurprisingly, the king had confirmed the archon’s suspicions when the very first thing he’d done was introduce him to his child. You.

Morax had no intention to marry a child of a foreign land whom he would outlive by centuries, but you had certainly done your job without even intending to. 

It had become beyond obvious that you hadn’t known of your father’s intentions when you’d discovered them. You’d been beyond frustrated and had apologized on your father’s behalf immediately.

You had been cautious, that was certain. But you’d soon moved past that. You’d turned out to be charming in a simple and sweet way that had easily won over the archon, even with his careful defenses. Morax almost wanted to be ashamed that you’d charmed him quite so easily.

It was then that Morax had discovered he wasn’t just charmed by you. He was also quite curious about you. A young human who was frustrated by the machinations of royalty and who was seemingly unafraid of an archon that was known for slaying many during the war.

But you didn’t let that fact stop you in your little chats with the archon. Satisfying yourself with treating him kindly and showing him around your country, even as you pushed against your father’s wishes.

Morax had befriended you and had actually continued visiting you after your initial time together. It served to pacify your father and keep him from insisting on more marriage meetings with new and progressively worse suitors while also providing Morax with much-needed friendship.

He’d lost many during the war, and the other archons were busy taking care of their own nations. He’d been alone for quite some time, with only the Yaksha and other Adepti to keep him company since Guizhong had passed and Marchiosis had dwindled. 

Though he was close to both the Yaksha and the others, he could not truly count them as friends. Not when they kept their distance and viewed him as more of a king than a friend.

And you were in a similar position. You were friends with one of your knights, the Twilight Sword, named Dainsleif. But there were rules there, and you could only be so close. You were, similarly, without a close companion due to the constraints of your position.

Perhaps that's why Morax had allowed himself to get so close to you.

You were endearing, chatting happily with him and reminding him of the joys of life. He hadn’t realized how burdened he’d felt from the numerous losses he’d gone through till he’d met you. You, with your smiling face and boundless help.

But then it had happened. Instead of smiling, you were frowning one day.

You’d learned of your father’s plans for the so-called field tillers. An assault on Celestia itself, a challenge to their power. You were beyond horrified and had confided your fears in Morax, asking for his advice on how to convince your father not to go through with his plans.

But your fears came too late. Because it wasn’t long after that when Celestia beckoned. Khaenr’iah was to be destroyed for its impertinence. 

It was then that Morax had first stood against Celestia. He’d not complained about the Archon War or anything else they’d had a hand in. But this he could not stand for. Not when you could be hurt. He’d lost enough, and he was done. He wasn’t losing you too.

And that was how one of his many contracts had been formed. A deal. 

He would face Khaenr’iah and assist in their destruction. He would lead the other archons to battle and bear the weight of this sin. But only if Celestia vowed not to hurt you.

You, who were innocent. You, who had saved him. You, who’d once more shown him how beautiful the world was. You, for whom he would destroy a nation. You, for whom he would raze a country. You, whom he loved.

They had agreed, so he did as requested despite the ire it brought him. He had now truly seen the darkness of this world. 

Before, he’d killed largely in self-defense and to protect. But now, he killed simply to destroy.

And destroy he did. He wasn’t sure if the fires that blazed across the once lush lands of Khaenr’iah would ever dissipate.

And Khaenr’ians weren’t the only losses. Makoto, the electro archon and twin sister of Ei, died. She too, had been one of his friends. Someone he could have saved, but failed to protect.

Rukhadevata also disappeared at that same time, seemingly lost to the desert that bordered her lush forest.

But, as cruel as it was of him to think it, neither of those was the loss that injured him the most. No. That was you.

You, who had not been killed by Celestia but had died in the collapse of the palace while trying to escape. You, whom he’d only found after life had left your usually bright eyes. You, whom he would mourn for an eternity.

Losing Guizhong, the love of his life, had been a tragedy he’d thought he could never endure. Losing you, the second love of his life, who was equal to Guizhong in his heart, was something he knew he would never recover from.

On that day, he signed his second contract with Celestia. To never speak of the events of that day.

NAME. Ramses Runihura ( Apep ) AGE & BIRTH DATE. 3000+ & Unknown GENDER & PRONOUNS. Male & He/Him SPECIES. Rift OCCUPATION. Unemployed FACE CLAIM. Mena Massoud

BIOGRAPHY

( tw: death, murder, natural disasters ) To speak his name was to invoke chaos, misery, and strife. How much safer the ancient ones believed themselves to be as they whispered well earned titles instead through hushed tones. Lord of Chaos, World Encircler, Soul Eater. The monikers shifted in waves along the loose sands of time, each more devastating and horrifying than the last, yet veracious all the same. The mythos painted him in dashing colors as various reptilians throughout history, but always returned to the most shrewd and ineffable of all: the great serpent.

Apep, or Apophis as his mother once named him, cannot recall the moment of his creation, woven somewhere in the primordial threads of existence shortly after his brother’s rise as architect of all… Or so the endless droves of mortal supporters would eventually claim. The sun god who fashioned himself an entire universe purely for his own worship, how pretentious and it allotted far more credit than Ra deserved on even his best day. Amun and Horus were both absorbed into the overrated caricature at some point, disregarded for their contributions which eventually blended into credit undue for this golden god. Still the blind fanaticism continued and his brother’s ego grew with every passing century, solidifying Ra’s undeserved role as King of The Gods.

Where the citizens of antiquity adored and fawned over the sun god and his intolerable pharaohs, Apep’s impressive abilities were shunned and dreaded. Unlike his brother and fellow deities, no one worshipped at the god of chaos and darkness’ altar. They did not even deign him worthy enough to construct a shrine in his honor. Instead the world sprung fear and hatred of the one who directly contrasted their beloved patron of light. Solar eclipses, devastating natural disasters, and terrible storms were linked to his name. Not without merit of course, but Apep believed it justified for those who so blindly trusted the gods to care. If anything, he should have been praised for not cowering behind sanctimony and false benevolence.

Distaste and distrust turned humanity bitter. They made a yearly ritual of banishing his presence from their lands in which priests would build effigies of Apep thought to contain all of the evil and darkness in Egypt. The symbolism might have been considered flattering were they not burning the representation to protect against malevolence for another year, nor housing a secondary figure which was taken into the temple before being beaten, crushed, smeared with mud, and burned. From therein they narrated stories about Ra’s numerous and overblown victories whilst reciting useless spells which did absolutely nothing to quell Apep’s thirst for cataclysm. Even the dead were thought to require protection from his brutality in the underworld lest he swallow them whole, so they were often buried with spells that could ward him off.

How astonishingly naïve. Darkness, like its sister death, could not be subdued by mere carvings and prayers.

None saw purpose through the god of destruction’s perspective, not even those who shared in his divinity. Too often whilst attempting to challenge his brother did he find himself in combat with the other celestial beings protecting Ra–– who, frankly, didn’t deserve their loyalty. Every night as the sun travelled across the sky, human text claimed that Apep’s roar would fill the air and he launched his persistent attack. Ironically, more often than not he discovered himself across from Set, a youthful harbinger of chaos whose true nature could only be subdued for as long as he remained beneath Ra’s forceful thumb. The deities rested on opposing ends of the spectrum, where Set harnessed his true disposition and relied upon morality, Apep remained a force for pandemonium and could not be reasoned with.

It was written that Apep’s movements often resulted in earthquakes, and his numerous battles with Set were thought to have created the origin of thunderstorms. How deliciously poetic and twisted, until Set inevitably became corrupted by his very nature and no longer wished to serve Ra in his army against Apep. Just as the great serpent predicted, none were immune to their own penchant for carnage and his fellow chaos lord plunged into the darkness alongside him. The pair considered themselves to have a… mutual understanding of sorts from then on. Loathed by the people of Egypt and the world, cast out in the sacred texts and admonished for simply adhering to what they were. What they had always been.

Yet mankind were weak, dispensable, and quite unimpressive in the grand scheme of the cosmos. Their opinions meant little when the greatest enemy, Ra, still held the lofty throne and continued to exist as a pain point. Unfortunately, such fixation on the King of The Gods undeniably led to Apep’s downfall and became his undoing. The trap was admittedly laid quite carefully, and were he not so arrogant as to assume his brother’s moral obligation then perhaps he might have been able to avoid its snare. Caught by his brother and thrown unceremoniously into the veil between worlds without method to escape or wield his power, the god of darkness lingered in the clutches of oblivion.

From inside of this schism he began to plot, turning over any opportunities with the sort of cunning only found in the most cold-blooded of snakes. Despite no longer acting as the devourer of souls within the underworld, he still maintained a bond and audience alongside Hades. Another pantheon, another overlooked pillar of divinity, the pair had long since bonded over the villainous mantles bestowed upon them in direct contrast to their louder, brighter siblings. The lord of death began to whisper words of chaos and destruction from the Grecian realm, it was decided then that direct vengeance against Ra could be placed aside while there were other ways to infiltrate humanity. If anything, it provided ample room for his brother’s difficulties to grow. Ra could weaken himself in time as Apep punctured holes in the world.

Thus he whispered back instructions for a being of his own creation and the method through which it could be done. Hades, as all loyal companions do, began to spread the word of such power throughout the Greek world and soon enough the mischief spread into additional pantheons. Some were repulsed by the notion of this new being, but far too many were taken with its purpose and possibility. They deemed them cubi, humans turned immortal and cursed with the ability to devour souls. Unknowingly fashioned in Apep’s own likeness, of course.

As the first fledgling incubi and succubi began to wander the world, consuming souls and magic, causing ruination in their wake, the primordial god bided his time. He witnessed their numbers grow and then dwindle in harmony with the empires of mankind, but in truth felt nothing towards their existence at first. They were simply a means to an end, a method in which he could enact chaos from within this unholy confinement. Eventually they began to die out entirely, bitten by those infernal shapeshifters and reduced to a pitiful count.

No matter, the dawning of a new age came and with its arrival stemmed the unanticipated crack in an already delicate prison. The veil seemingly tore and eons of patience finally paid off; Apep discovered freedom in the hastiness of his escape. Noticeably weakened from three millenniums spent housed in the limbo between divinity and the mortal plane, he pressed forward into the human world with every intention of regaining his former glory and strengthening what little army of immortal demons were left. The cubi meant nothing to him whilst trapped, but now that he actively rejoined the playing field? Well, they might just be his ultimate tool in destruction.

Everything he did now would culminate in the pursuit of the intentions Apep had possessed since birth… Ensure the crumbling of Ra’s empire and plunge the universe into unending darkness.

PERSONALITY

+ ambitious, independent, cunning - narcissistic, wicked, merciless

PLAYED BY MARTY. PST. She/Her.

8 Pansexual Books Everyone Should Read This Pride Month

I think the pansexual flag is probably my favourite of all of the Pride flags. It’s just so warm and happy! Pansexuality is the sexual attraction to people regardless of gender. As you may have guessed, the stripes on the flag represent attraction to those who identify as female (pink), those who identify as male (blue) and those who identify as non-binary (yellow). It differs from bisexuality in that bisexuals are typically not attracted to all genders whereas pansexuals are. Books that feature pansexual main characters aren’t very common but I’m hoping that will change over the coming years as more well-known faces are opening up about their pansexuality -Miley Cyrus, Cara Delevingne and Janelle Monae have all come out as pansexual- and as understanding of it increases. Pan writers, we need your voices! -Love, Alex x

1. Once & Future by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy.

When Ari releases an old magic sword, she discovers that she is apparently the latest reincarnation of King Arthur. Together with wizard Merlin, who is aging backwards, she must embark on a quest to overthrow an oppressive government. Without a doubt, one of the most unique takes on the King Arthur legend you’ll ever read, this is an action-packed queer space romp with a wonderful cast of characters.

2. Soft on Soft by Mina Waheed.

June is a successful online make-up guru with thousands of loyal fans but in real life, her walls are the highest to climb. Enter sunshine-personified Selena. June is pansexual, Selena is demisexual, both are plus sized and this sugary sapphic romance is perfect for anyone who loves a fluffy burst of cuteness. Low on angst, high on acceptance and loveliness.

3. Seven Ways We Lie by Riley Redgate.

When rumours of a student-teacher affair start to surface at Paloma High School, it turns out everyone has secrets and seven unlikely friends are about to come together amidst the drama. Lucas is the pansexual character and he’s so incredibly likeable. There is also an ace character and lots of cultural diversity, so pick it up if you’re looking for a great character-driven inclusive YA contemporary.

4. The Library Of The Unwritten by A. J. Hackwith.

Claire is Head Librarian at The Library of the Unwritten, a place in Hell where all of the unfinished books go but when a Hero escapes from his story, she must get him back but it triggers a terrifying power struggle between Heaven and Hell. Claire is openly pansexual and there are references to multiple other characters being queer. It’s a unique supernatural fantasy adventure that true book lovers will lap up.

5. Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler.

When a young girl loses her memory after a horrifying attempted murder, she realises that she doesn’t want for normal human needs because she is in fact an Ina -a genetically modified vampire. Sexuality as we know it is not really present in Fledgling due to the complex relationships between humans and Ina. The book challenges the rigidity of sexualities as we know them but pansexuality is the closest word that we have to describing it. This is a very unique strange sci-fi novel that has so much to say about human life.

6. Miss Meteor by Tehlor Kay Mejia and Anna-Marie McLemore.

No girl who looks like Lita or Chicky has ever won the Miss Meteor pageant so the ex-best friends decide to team up and smash the long-held standards of the pageant. Chicky is an androgynous pansexual and there is a lot in this book that deals with questioning and self-acceptance but it’s done in a light-hearted manner. It’s a fun, three-dimensional, magical realism story with wonderful characters.

7. Verona Comics by Jennifer Dugan.

Jubilee and Ridley’s parents are rival comic book store owners but when the two teens meet at a convention, they can’t help but fall for each other. Jubilee is pan and Ridley is bi and there is some discussion about the differences between the two, as well as Jubilee questioning whether she’s allowed to identify as queer because she has only dated guys. It’s a Romeo and Juliet retelling, so there is a lot of darkness, depiction of mental health issues and suicidal ideation.

8. The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers.

When Rosemary joins the crew of the Wayfarer ship, she doesn’t expect much other than the chance to explore space a little but the madcap diverse crew offer so much more. It’s never explicitly stated but if you understand what pansexuality is, then you’ll recognise it in Sissix and potentially in Jenks too in his romance with Lovey. This is a wonderfully quirky, funny, character-driven sci-fi series that celebrates diversity and acceptance through a thoroughly loveable cast. 

Katherine “Kate” Brooks → Danielle Panabaker → Human

→ Basic Information

Age: 31

Gender: Female

Sexuality: Straight

Birthday: September 29th

Zodiac Sign: Libra

Religion: Agnostic (Lapsed Protestant)

→ Her Personality Kate Brooks is a thorough woman. She loves to double and triple check her records and takes great care with the bodies she handles. Her compassionate and caring side comes out when she’s working, Kate truly cares about how these people are finally laid to rest and what she can do to help families get closure. As somewhat of a black sheep, Kate takes pride in her job and that she found a job she loved despite her family’s doubt of her.

Though she is the baby of the family, Kate tends to shy away from the spotlight. A result of having two attention seekers for siblings. She finds life is easier when you step away from drama and let your work speak for you. Though she can be socially awkward and trip over her words during presentations, she is strong enough to speak her opinions. She can seem uptight upon initial meetings, but slowly shows the geeky and wondrous side of herself. Despite loving science and the medical field, Kate is open to the world of things she doesn’t know and becomes giddy about it. She got into science to discover the magic of the world and discover the secrets it holds.

→ Her Personal Facts

Occupation: Medical Examiner for Chicago Police Department

Scars: Long cut on her forearm from a car accident in college

Tattoos: None

Two Likes: Serial the podcast and Salt Water Taffy

Two Dislikes: Liquid Cheese and Neil DeGrasse Tyson

Two Fears: A fast, incurable illness and Bees (allergy)

Two Hobbies: Mineralogy and Taking recreation photos at famous Chicago movie filming sites

Three Positive Traits: Open Minded, Logical, Excited

Three Negative Traits: Shy, Transparent, Aloof

→ Her Connections

Parent Names:

Richard Brooks (Father): Kate was never really close to her father. She was his repentance to her mother and everyone in the family knew it. He does give very generous Christmas presents however, as a thank you for not dragging up trouble.

Georgette Brooks (Mother): Georgette never quite knew how to deal with Kate. She was the apology gift to Georgette, which brought up anger and resentment over her father cheating. Kate was handed off to the nanny while her mother went about her business.

Sibling Names:

James Brooks (Brother): Kate absolutely can’t stand her brother. He’s dramatic and self involved and a toxic person in general. She moved away from the East Coast, after he ruined her previous relationship by dating and destroying her boyfriend’s older brother. He’s 7 years older than her, yet acts like the baby of the family. Kate hasn’t told James where she moved, and he’s never asked.

Ingrid King nee Brooks (Sister): Ingrid has always been more of a distant relative, rather than a close sister. Kate is about 10 years younger than her sister and they didn’t really grow up with each other. Ingrid is nice enough, but Kate doesn’t feel really close to her.

Children Names:

None

Romantic Connections:

Ezra Adams (Ex-Boyfriend): Ezra broke up with her after a particularly bad break up between James and Ezra’s older brother. He claimed that his family needed a clean break so he could heal. Kate had just received a job offer in Chicago and was going to ask Ezra to move with her. She’s gotten over her ex, but doesn’t want her family anywhere near a new one.

Ryan Clerigh (Crush): Kate has always thought Ryan was cute, but it wasn’t until they started talking that she really developed a crush on him. He’s smart and sweet and actually interested in what her interests are. She’s working out a way to ask him out soon, though she wishes he’d make the first move.

Platonic Connections:

Jev Cipriano (Friend/Co-worker): She and Jev are the closest of her colleagues. He’s her age and funny, and they’ve evolved from work friends to going out at night friends. He is the major culprit when it comes to the strange and unexplained at the office, however. She thought it might be incompetence for a week or so, but she knows how smart he actually is and it just doesn’t line up.

Judson Clerigh (Friend): Judson always came into the office to have lunch with Jev. She was friendly with him in passing, but they didn’t really get to know each other until Judson brought her lunch too. They slowly became friends, which turned into Jev and Judson asking her to come out with them for drinks, and eventually meeting Ryan. However, she’s seen Judson go in and out of rooms at the Medical Examiner’s office, and he’s been added to the theory journal.

Adelaide “Addie” Blanchett (Coworker): It’s been nice having another woman closer to her age in the lab lately. They’ll grab brunch every so often and Kate is enjoying having a female friend to talk to.

Churchill Darling (Acquaintance): He seems to steal the show whenever he’s out for drinks with Jev and Kate. He is incredibly entertaining, but a part of her feels like his big, bright personality is hiding something.

Monty Wilders (Acquaintances): She met Monty when Addie invited her to brunch. He seems nice enough and it’s evident how much he adores Adelaide.

Darren Shaw (Co-worker): Shaw is a detective who often came in to see Jev and Addie. They all seem to know each other well, and Darren occasionally comes out for drinks with the group.

Douglas Gish (Police Supervisor): Kate has spoken to Douglas about the work being done by Jev. She expressed her concerns, but was more or less blown off. She wonders why this is all of a sudden being accepted.

Winston Abioye (Coworker): Winston is one of the detectives that Kate works with. He has always been friendly to her, but she has heard quite a few negative things about him.

Greta Bow (Friend): Greta and Kate work in the same department and have really become good friends. She thinks Greta is really sweet and has enjoyed going out outside of work together.

Bess Bonnaire (Friend):Bess and Kate hit it off from the first time they met when Bess had to visit the ME’s office. They soon started meeting up outside of work and have been friends since.  

Eli Kohen (Coworker): Eli has told her that he prefers when she handles his evidence because of the frequent “accidents” and poor treatment of it by the other MEs. She has a feeling he’s talking about Jev, but hasn’t asked any further questions.

Hostile Connections:

Vincent Kane (Uncomfortable): Vincent seems to steer clear of Kate whenever he comes out with drinking with them. She doesn’t know why he dislikes her so much, but she’s starting to be hurt by it.

Simon Brodeur (Neighbor): Simon lives on the other side of her townhome and keeps opposite hours of hers. When she’s trying to sleep, he’s up playing some horribly sad song, or bumping around in a different way. She can’t wait to move out when her lease is up.

Angel Landyn (Dislike): Angel has hit on Kate frequently. She told him to stop, but he only left her alone after she had brought it up accidentally to Church and Patch.

Molly Bennett (Former Coworker): When Molly explained she was leaving and why she was leaving, it sent up a lot of red flags. Kate mulled it over, and finally got up the courage to ask if she felt safe and if she really wanted to leave. Molly took it the wrong way and stomped out of the room.

Breha Kaur (Reporter): Breha often pushes Kate for a scoop, especially causes of death. She doesn’t enjoy being harrassed and finds it aggravating.

Pets:

None.

→ History The Brooks family was well known in the Hamptons with a daughter and a son.  They were everything a good rich WASP family should be: from old money, excellent hosts, upstanding members of the community, with brilliant beautiful children. However lurking behind the pristinely white outside of their family lurked tension. Ingrid struggled terribly in school, while James was looking like he’d be a disappointment in another way. Richard strayed and started up a year long affair which was brought to Georgette’s attention via a blackmail letter. They fought and struggled, all silently of course, before Richard agreed to another baby 7 years after their last. There entered Katherine, in all her pre-mee and hole in her heart glory. She needed to stay in the hospital for months after her birth, and when she came home all the shiny newness of her wore off. James began acting out for attention and Ingrid needed to be chauffeured to tutoring and equestrian and ballet. She was left with a nanny while her parents avoided the symbol of their broken marriage. She was smart and sweet, though painfully shy and easily forgotten in the hullabaloo of the eldest Brooks siblings.

As she grew, and they began leaving the house, Kate became her mother’s only project. She was in everything from orchestra, to diving and robotics. She excelled in her scientific endeavors and her parents pushed harder for her to succeed in school. Ingrid went to college and got a MRS degree. James came back with a boyfriend, much to her parents' chagrin, and Kate faded back into the sidelines. She graduated valedictorian and got her undergrad at Cornell, before going to Med school. She tried in vain to ignore her family, especially once she’d graduated, but they always seemed to find her. She settled in Boston, and there came James with his life ruining ways. He got into a relationship with her boyfriend’s brother, only to psychologically torture and then dump him. Ezra dumped her afterwards, which was perfect timing for her move to Chicago.

Once Kate got to Chicago, she began working as an ME. She always had an awkward bedside manner, and always enjoyed going to the morgue. A well paying spot opened up and she took it gladly. Every Brooks was horrified at the prospect of working with the dead, and swore they wouldn’t be visiting. This was wonderful news to Kate and another plus to the coroners office. She has started to venture out of her apartment in the last year and check out all the unique things there are to do there. One summer day she did the same routine as Ferris Bueller and found a new hobby in discovering Chicago filming spots.

→ The Present Kate has been working at the Medical Examiner’s office for a couple of years now and the small things she had brushed off as an inexperienced ME have piled up into a large, annoying unexplained phenomenon. It centers primarily around the other ME, Jev, and the old crime scene tech, Addie. Bodies disappearing, but always having an explanation later on, non-police being brought in to help with bodies, and more. She’s tried casually bringing it up to Jev and even went as far as the supervisor one time. He thanked her for her concern and then it went nowhere. Kate is determined to figure out what is going on and even has a journal full of theories she works on.

She has also been working up the nerve to ask Ryan Cleirigh out. Jev introduced her to him and his friend Judson almost a year ago, and they have slowly formed a friendship. She’s almost gotten up the nerve to ask him out a few times, but wasn’t sure he’d reciprocate. Only recently did Jev let her know she should go for it, and that Ryan was just bad at talking to people. Kate has a plan to ask him to a Terminator movie festival happening, but hopes he asks her out first.

Hi guys, meet my KNY OC ♥ Kind of afraid to post this here but I wanna post here again too. Information below: Name: Mayu - 満 (ma) meaning "full" and 夕 (yu) meaning "evening”

Akimitsu - 昭 (aki) meaning "bright, luminous" and 光 (mitsu) meaning "light Age: 15 Gender: Girl Height: 157 cm | Almost 5'2" Weight: 50.53 kg Race: Human Affiliation: None Breath Style: None Seiyuu: Takahashi Rie Personnality: Positive: Caring - Faithful - Hard Working - Organized - Reliable - Compassionate Negative: Compulsive - Sensitive - Moody - Resentful - A nervous wreck # Mayu tends to get extra nervous or stressed when she hears really loud noises. # Mayu's hobby is preparing tea. Since she's an expert in herbology, she knows the properties of plants and can prepare teas suiting people's needs. Backstory: Mayu lost both of her parents and only has two older brothers left, an elder and a younger one. Her mother passed away in her youth from an incurable disease and her father did not too long before she turned 11, dying from complications of a common cold. Suffering both her parents' loss from illnesses is what pushed Mayu to become a healer. She has a vast knowledge in medicinal herbs (kampo herbs are some of them) and will accept to heal any Demon Slayer who needs it. She's worked for the Pillars in a few occasions in the past when them or a great number of Demons Slayers where injured. She has learned to respect Shinobu's great medical expertise as she became her apprentice in this area and has learned a lot directly from her. The idea of becoming a Demon Slayer did cross her mind but she's aware of her frail body and knows she's not fit to be one. She wouldn't be able to become a tsuguko even if she wanted. Mayu is absolutely distrustful of demons, like most people. At 13, she was horrified to discover a childhood friend of hers and her younger borther had turned into a demon. Despite being scared, she hid him with her younger brother so he wouldn't get killed. One evening, after having been on a walk to find herbs, she came back home only to discover her brother injured and his arm partly eaten by her friend. He pleaded saying that he was starving and "that's what friends are for". Since he knew he knew people would eventually find out about him, he went for the kill. Despite her physical disadvantage, Mayu killed her demon friend to defend her brother and herself. She had to amputate her brother's arm after this and still holds a lot of guilt for what happened to him, pushing her to work harder than before. A doctor came and finished the job properly and made sure her brother would be okay. Her older brother who was out of town for work only came back days later and was horrifed. The event led him to believe that Mayu is absolutely clueless about everything and shouldn't be given any responsibility. This led Mayu to become extremely careful about everything she did, to the point of obsession. Because of her experience, Mayu cannot trust Nezuko, even when confronted with the fact she obviously doesn't want to eat humans and even protect them. She's convinced Nezuko will eventually crack and turn against her brother and will be absolutely confused with her beliefs when time passes and Nezuko still hasn't eaten anything. Relationships ☾ Kamado Tanjirou | Love Interest - [work in progress] ☾ Kamado Nezuko | Future sister-in-law - [work in progress] ☾ Akimitsu Kurohai (黒灰 meaning "black" and "ash") | Elder brother - A  Tsuchinoto Demon Slayer manipulating the Breath of Flames. Due to their parents dying, Kurohai is responsible for his younger siblings and tends to be a bit controling. His relationship with Mayu is pretty conflicted. He cannot forgive her for living their younger brother at home alone with a demon, resulting in him losing his arm. Kurohai has the same king of mindset as their father about women's places in society, but in an even more mysoginistic way. Kurohai doesn't the stand the fact some women actually made it among the Pillars. As for Mayu, he's actively trying to find her a party for her to marry. He doesn't take her medical knowledge seriously and thinks she'd be more useful having children. Really deep down, Kurohai knows Mayu wasn't responsible for what happened and that he was also to blame. He projects all of his insecurities onto her because of it, but also because Mayu was their mother's favorite child, something he had trouble coping with because their mother rarely gave him attention. Despite his harsh behavior, he’d put his life on the line for her in a heartbeat, without a shred of doubt. ☾ Akimitsu Kaen (火炎 meaning "blaze/flame") | Younger brother - Kaen is close with Mayu. One would think their incident would've had an impact on their relationship, but not. It was difficult in the beginning but he quickly made peace with her because there was simply "nothing to forgive". It was a mistake they had both done and taking their demon friend had been his idea. They're really close to each other. Nowadays, Kaen is a member of the Kakushi, the cleanup brigade of the Demon Slayer Corps and can only assist in simple tasks. ☾ Akimitsu Kōsa (黄砂 meaning "yellow" and "sand", together "golden sand/dust") | Mother (dead) -  Mayu cannot remember her mother a lot. Kōsa was very ill and frail and passed away when Mayu was only six years old. This was really traumatic to her and little brother who forgot a lot of their memories from this period in time. Despite her incomplete memories of her, Mayu remembers her mother as a kind and loving woman who could get along with almost anybody. They were very close before the tragic outcome. Kōsa always encouraged her to do the right thing and to not let others decide what she should be or do for her. ☾ Akimitsu Dangai (断崖 meaning "disconnect" and "cliff", together "cliff/precipice)) | Father (dead) - Mayu had a good connection with her father. She remember him as a loving but also strict man. He was affectionate with his children but did not hesitate to put his foot down if he thought they were going astray from the path they has decided for them. Dangan did not want Mayu to become a doctor, simply to get a good husband and become a housewife and mother and they often argued about it. But Dangai only desired it thinking it would be the best for her to live a good life, she loved his children, including Mayu, with all his heart. When his wife passed away, he lost heart for a while but still worked hard to provide for them. He eventually passed away from the complications of a common cold, due to working too hard. Mayu inherited this hardworking side of him, to the point of repeating the cycle. She often overworks herself, to the regret of those around her. ☾ Kocho Shinobu | Mentor and Friend - Mayu came into contact with Shinobu after her elder brother became a Demon Slayer. She noticed her medical knowledge but saw that she had only been able to learn so little, because of the little ressources they had on the subject. Shinobu offered Mayu to become her apprentice. She also asked her later if she'd be interested in becoming her Tsuguko, which Mayu declined, knowing fully she didn't have what it takes to be a Pillar, less a Demon Slayer. Mayu respects Shinobu a lot and admires her greatly. They also develop a close bond along the way, seeing each other as friends. ☾ Tomioka Giyuu | Friend - Mayu has a really weird friendship with Giyu. Ultimately, they don't interact with each other a lot but the two of them are not that talkative to begin with. But it's because of that that they see each other as one of the only people they can get along with : because they don't waste their time talking to say absolutely nothing. She also respects his skills a lot and wished her older brother would take an example on him and the other Pillars instead of slacking or bragging about how he could become a Pillar immediatly if he wanted it. ☾ Mizuhana (Rengoku) Otoha (Friend’s OC) | Cousin - [work in progress] ☾ Homura Satoshi  (Friend’s OC) | Friend- [work in progress]

The dark and malevolent forces of the Cthulhu Mythos mostly ignore humankind. But these entities are also shrewd opportunists. Many of them see humans as a resource to be harvested, corrupted or enlisted for their dark plots. Humanity, with all its noble aspirations, has many flaws. Greed, lust, envy, hatred and fear are ripe fruits for these forces to exploit. Division and separation makes the humans easier to control. While the best of humankind fights for just laws and civilization, those who cling to power and privilege stand ready to quash protections for those who need them most. In the shadows of human injustice lurk loathsome, inhuman entities. As investigators square off against the worst aspects of mankind, they also find themselves entangled with the parasitic powers of the Mythos.

Welcome to An Inner Darkness, from Golden Goblin Press. 

This is collection of Classic 1920’s era scenarios of 7th edition the Call of Cthulhu Roleplaying Game (published by Chaosium, Inc) with several goals in mind. We hope to present well researched, historically accurate and challenging adventures, with a slightly darker, harsher and more brutal tone than our fans might be used to. For Golden Goblin Press, this will be a more mature book, one focused on adult themes, designed to spark deep conversations among your players for years to come.  

These scenarios will of course feature the malignant taint of the Cthulhu Mythos, but at the forefront of each will be one or more examples of social injustice, societal corruption, and mankind’s inhumanity to man. The 1920’s was a period of great social upheaval in America, when the borders between classes, races, and genders were changed. In this time of social upheaval and chaos, eldritch forces found fertile ground to exploit us. Mankind is never so vulnerable than when we are divided from within.

When this Lousy War is Over, by Brian M. Sammons – Arkham, Massachusetts, 1923. At the local chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars association, men who fought in the “war to end all wars” gather together, seeking a bit of solace from those who’ve shared similar experiences. Many are wounded in body, in mind, and in spirit. Many suffer from horrifying nightmares, violent outbursts, disfiguring injuries, or alcoholism, but their pain and struggles are mostly ignored by society. They are reminded that the war is over, and told to just “get over it” by a public who finds it all too easy to judge. Then, chapter members start to mysteriously die in violent and terrible ways, with clues pointing to the occult, possibly involving a member of the association no less! Can the investigators find those responsible and stop them, before it’s too late?

They Are From Away, by Charles Gerard - Bangor, Maine, 1923. Maine has become a major battleground for the Ku Klux Klan. Protestant nativists have grown fearful about the recent influx of Catholic Immigrants, mostly Irish and French-Canadians. This provides the KKK with fertile ground for spreading their message of hate, division, and violence. Enter Eugene Farnsworth, a charismatic former stage magician, hypnotist and filmmaker, now known as King Kleagle, the head KKK recruiter for Maine. He hosts “wholesome” public events while spearheading an aggressive recruitment drive, making alliances with area politicians and heads of industry. Meanwhile, macabre, inexplicable and unnatural events begin to occur, aimed at humiliating and terrorizing the area’s Catholic citizens. Investigators must discover if there is a link between the two, and find a way to stop it if they can.

Fire Without Light, by Helen Gould - Tulsa, Oklahoma, 1922. Less than a year has passed since the Tulsa Race Massacre, when the wealthiest black community in the United States was destroyed and hundreds of innocent people were murdered by rampaging white mobs. Though most of the 10,000 black residents left Tulsa, some remained to rebuild their devastated community. Now tensions are on the rise once again. A new pastor and his wife have arrived, preaching hate and violence to the white population. Their congregation is growing at an alarming rate, and violence is spilling out from their church and into the streets. Strangely, even families and friends of the same race are turning against each other. Something very wrong is going on here. Investigators must tread carefully to discover just who - or what - is fanning the flames, pushing the citizens of Tulsa towards another wave of catastrophic violence.  

A Fresh Coat Of White Paint, by Jeff Moeller - Los Angeles, California, 1931. Early in the Great Depression, the U.S. institutes its first mass deportation policy, supported by a cross-section of interests such as racist nationalists, eugenicists, paternalistic "charities", and labor unions "looking out for their own." This leads to a roundup of thousands of ethnically Mexican families, many of them U.S. citizens, carried out federal employees, local police, various "charities", and outright vigilante groups. The deportees were (sometimes) given summary hearings, detained in makeshift conditions, and then loaded onto trains. On the outskirts of Los Angeles, one such "charity" is refurbishing an old prison to "give the unfortunates somewhere to stay." However, this long abandoned facility has a dark past, which is quickly becoming a horrible, otherworldly nightmare for those interred there. Can the investigators get to the bottom of things in time to save the prisoners?  

A Family Way, by Oscar Rios – New York, New York, 1925. The investigators must come to the aid of a dear friend, a student at Columbia University. She’s found herself "in trouble" after what should have been a harmless girls' night out. Her group ended up drinking and dancing with the wrong sort of fellas, the kind willing to slip them a mickey and take what they wanted from their unconscious victims. Now the girls need help, as the authorities won't act, or even take their stories seriously. These men have deep pockets, powerful allies, and dark secrets. When the men return with offers of marriage and gifts of strange, pale gold jewelry, it becomes clear they aren't the sort to take no for an answer. There aren’t many options for girls in their “condition”, and one of the few happens to be illegal. But your friend just wants this nightmare to be over, if such a thing is still even possible.  

Dreams of Silk, by Christopher Smith Adair (Stretch Goal bonus scenario) – Pennsylvania, 1922. The cosmetics industry is growing fast, as the public’s obsession with youth and beauty grows. As profits soar and businesses expand workers at such companies suffer due to lax regulations and poor conditions. At Hempstead Cosmetics, located in Brights Mill, Pennsylvania, a state infamous among labor advocates, conditions are especially bad. Local government turns a blind eye to protect their economic boom, ignoring any indiscretions or complaints against chemist and owner Mervyn Hempstead. Consumers marvel at their newest skin cream, promising to give a complexion as smooth as dreams of silk, and the youthful glow of Imelda Hempstead, Mervyn’s wife and chief model.  Meanwhile, his employee’s bodies and minds deteriorate and their complaints of rashes and troubled sleep are ignored.  But things are much worse than anyone can possibly imagine, as they are drawn into a web of literal nightmares as unspeakable horrors from beyond our reality are tied to Hempstead Cosmetics' “miraculous” secret ingredients.

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FULL NAME: Bastion Walker

ALIAS: Howl Doe

BODY TYPE: Tall, toned and lean. Slightly greyish pallor to the skin.

HAIR/EYES: Black hair with a slight wave. Scruffy. Inhuman silver/white eyes, or grey eyes.

AGE: 127

BIRTH DATE: October 29th, 1894

POWERS: Transformation: Into his human self, or a very large black dog. Guides the dead, but may also banish them. His bite/howl dispels evil and most curses or possession. May physically come into contact with the ghosts. Regenerative abilities, abnormal speed and strength, heightened sense of smell, etc.

GENDER: He/Him

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Bisexual

OCCUPATION: Churchyard Grim / Drifter.

SKILLS: Fighting, Gunmanship (outdated), Lock Picking and Mechanics, Cooking, Gardening, Singing

TRAITS: Protective, vengeful, loyal, brave, mischievous, curious, provocative / flippant 

IN SUMMARY

Bastion woke in his own shallow grave ten years after his younger brother murdered him, only to be betrayed yet again when he stumbled into his brother’s house, confused and missing memories. Silas sold him out to the very cult he murdered Bastion for trying to get him out of it.

The next twenty-seven years were spent as a science experiment. Until, with the help of his nephew, Bastion escaped and took his revenge on his brother, and the cult who spent the last decades tormenting him. His memories were gone, but not his anger. He named himself ‘Howl’.

His nephew’s line watches over the grave were Howl sleeps, and know to wake him should the Fisher King society come back -- or if they need an immortal guard dog.

TIMELINE

October 29th, 1894 --------- Birth

Bastion Walker was born after twenty hours of labor. His mother Charity refused to hold him, let alone look at him. Her first words about him were ‘Take him away.’

December 2nd, 1897 --------------- Silas

Silas Walker was born. Sickly and needy, Charity Walker still loved the child immediately, and refused to believe he might pass on before he could grow up. Bastion was no allowed near him.

December 10th, 1897 ------------------ The Bargain

Silas was dying, and Charity made a deal with the bright, dead thing asleep under the town of Werifesteria. Take her first born, take whatever it wanted -- just let her loved son live. It agreed.

February 4th, 1904 ----------- First Sight

Bastion and Silas befriend Father Baring’s adopted daughters, Grace, and Hazel.

April 1st, 1911 -------------- Absent Now in All Ways

Norman Walker, Bastion and Silas’ father passes away after a long period of sickness.

June 14th, 1917 ---------------- Not To Be

Bastion admits to Grace Baring he fancies her and asks if she wouldn’t mind too much if he spoke to her father about courting her. She says yes.

June 15th, 1917 ---------------- The Draft

Bastion is drafted into World War One, then called The Great War.

January 27th, 1919 ------------------- Shellshock

Finally home, Bastion is suffering from shellshock. The only survivor of the men drafted from his hometown, and only of only three in his platoon to live. He’s whole, physically, but struggling. For the first time in his life, his mother is paying him attention, and care. She begins to bring him tea to calm his nerves. Bastion also discovers that while he was gone, his younger brother became engaged to Grace Baring.

November 14th, 1921 ------------ Missing

Two days before her wedding, Grace Baring wanders into the woods with her sister. Neither are ever seen again.

November 30th, 1921 --------------- The Widening Gyre

It’s clear now, that Grace and Hazel are gone. And Silas has begun to rave, and lost all control. Fir the first time, Bastion hears about the ‘angel’ under the town, and the Fisher King society, the cult that his brother has been indoctrinated by. And he is horrified.

The horror only grows when he goes to their mother for aid and learns Charity is part of it too -- and, not only that, but that while he’d been away in the War, his brother had grown sickly. And now, after two years spent poisoning Bastion, Silas is finally healthy enough to claim his birth right, and carry the angel with him, to live for ever.

Bastion runs. But not away. he runs for his brother, to try and get him out of this mad house before the insanity in their mother takes a firmer root inside him.

And when he tries to force her brother out of town... Silas murders him.

With the help of his mother, they bury Bastion in a shallow grave just within the boundary of the woods. And for five years, there he sleeps.

November 30th, 1931 ------------ Oddfellows Cemetery

A new church sprung up, and with it, a churchyard where the dead were to be interred. Bastion suddenly gasps in his first breath in five years, and claws his way out of the dirt. His eyes are silver now, not gray, his teeth much sharper. And everything is so much. He staggers home -- and thinks he’s managed to reconcile with his brother. it’s not to be. In a terror, expecting vengeance, Silas contacts the Fisher King Society while Bastion sleeps.

When Bastion wakes, he’s somewhere deep underground, in the dark. For the next twenty seven years, he would be little more than a science experiment. His body would be taken apart in more ways, and more times than he could count. And every year that passed saw him loosing more of who he’d been before.

July 13th, 1958 -------------- Thunder and Lightning

A massive electrical storm takes out the power in Werifesteria. Benjamin Walker, Silas’s son, had discovered the ugly truths of the Fisher King Society, and his uncle. What he never expected was that unleashing Howl would unleash all his rage. In a night of bloodshed, Howl killed the Fisher King society -- and his younger brother, for all the hell they’d visited upon him.

Shortly thereafter, he found his old grave, and fell back into a sleep like death. Benjamin, and later his children woke him only a few times, though he often ranged far afield to escort souls to their final rest.

Community Gift Prompts!

Every year, the Cap-Iron Man community gets a bunch of fic and art prompts for their Holiday Exchange.  You don’t have to be a community member to fill these, and there is no commitment level here, so they’re a great way for people to dip their toes in the water.

More importantly, though, they are fucking awesome!  Last year, I went through and pulled out my faves, and I’ve been dancing in my seat waiting to see what we have this year, and it’s that time!!!  There were 290 prompts this year, for fic and art; here are my faves [with my reactions and additions to them in brackets].  THESE ARE JUST MY FAVES THERE ARE A LOT MORE REALLY GREAT PROMPTS I DID NOT PULL OUT!!!  GO READ THE LIST!

616:

(Early canon) Tony stops by the mansion the morning of Christmas Eve expecting it to be empty, and is confused to find Steve there. Tony slowly realizes that Steve has nobody to spend the holidays with, and he can't have that, can he?  

Hydra!Cap has a Christmas present for Tony  [This has the potential to be amazingly good angst.  Say what you will about Hydra!Cap, it was a productive premise for darkfic.]

Capwolf trying and failing to sit on Tony's lap like a lapdog.  [Okay, prompter, whoever you are, you are awesome!]

Avengers visit a planet with multiple moons and capwolf makes a comeback.  [Okay, clearly I’m a sucker for capwolf anyway, but honestly think of the comedic potential here.  “Cap, didn’t you *just* transform back?” “There are THREE MOONS, Ton-aOOO!”]

What would be real!Steve's reaction to Tony's monologue about always going to listen to Steve Rogers now? 

not an AU - but Steve and Tony swordfighting for some reason.  [I’m imagining Young Justice-esque hijinks, here.  Specifically, the all-Avengers production of Romeo and Juliet.  There are doublets!]

(Mobile users, there’s a read-more!)

1872:

I just want AAAAALLLLLLLL the sheriff Steve half-cajoling, half-carrying sad drunk Tony (or too drunk to be sad Tony, since that's what he's aiming for) to bed and what happens next -- does Steve take off Tony's shoes and pet Tony's hair and make him drink water and stuff? Does Tony drunkenly kiss him? Does Steve give in to the temptation to lie down beside him and then fall asleep? Does Tony wake up horrified thinking that more happened than actually did and Steve shouldn't sully himself like that? Do ALL those things happen over months/years of Steve pouring Tony into bed? 

3490:

Natasha builds Steve the bike of his dreams and Steve paints the Natasha he dreams about a lot.  [BIKE PORN!!!]

Avengers Academy:

Considering Peggy, Bucky, and Dum-Dum showed up on campus, it was only a matter of time before Howard appeared. Tony's been dreading it, but he thought he was prepared. He isn't—especially since everyone's so excited to meet Howard or be reunited with him, albeit an older version of him. 

Tony accidentally sciences himself to an alternate dimension where Steve is the king of the New York crime scene. Steve has the resources to help Tony get back, but he's not going to give them - or tech genius Tony - up that easily. 

Avengers Assemble:

Steve and Tony pretend to be a couple as they join Clint and Natasha on a cruise, under the impression that they're on another undercover mission (re: s2e5 "Beneath the Surface"). [What intrigues me here is the implication that it’s *not* a mission, which means Steve and Tony are just lumbering around trying to solve a problem that doesn’t exist while Clint and Natasha laugh endlessly.  For the record, I 100% approve of this.]

Iron Man:  Armored Adventures:

Steve gets a fake doll baby in parenting class (one of the ones that fake pees and screams at all hours). Tony is offended by how shoddy the programming is and decides to fix it. Things to not go to plan. 

Marvel Noir:

Steve has always admired Tony Stark, but then Tony goes missing and Steve thinks he saw something that might help find him. Unfortunately no one, or almost no one, is willing to listen to a skinny artist from Brooklyn, so Steve has to take things into his own hands. 

While investigating a lost city (Roanoke?) Tony discovers the body of a Union soldier frozen during the US Civil War. When Steve wakes up, he finds out that not only are all his friends long dead, but the whole world at war again, and the man who found him needs his help. 

MCU:

Young Tony Stark goes on a Christmas adventure to bring back Captain America for his dad. Along the way he meets Santa, visits the future, and eats too many cookies. 

Body dysphoria fic involving Steve dealing with his body image issues and feeling like he’s always gonna be that scrawny kid from Brooklyn and the body that the serum gave him isn’t really his. He confesses his insecurities to tony one night when they’re just chatting at night and Tony's completely stunned. So basically lots of hurt/comfort, and bonus pining and get together if you'd like? 

Steve keeps getting distracted by the sight of Tony in glasses, and once they get together Tony likes to use it to his advantage. 

[NSFW] fuck or die or sex pollen after civil war [AFTER civil war??  *intrigued*]

Ultimates:

Tony is a "high-priced companion" hired by Fury to show a newly-unfrozen Captain America around the city. In which Tony's an escort, Steve doesn't pick up on that, and they have very different ideas on how the evening's going to progress. 

[NSFW] I'm just sayin', another variation on 'Ults Steve gets the repression fucked RIGHT out of him by Tony' never, EVER gets old. [Too fuckin’ right, prompter!]

Any (any universe, non-AU):

Loki makes it snow vanilla ice cream for Christmas, Steve gets covered, Tony breaks out the hot fudge. 

Steve, being an old-timey soldier from before current gender norms, knits.  

[NSFW] Merman!Tony fucks Steve, then lets Steve return the favor 

[NSFW] optional non-con/dub-con - Tony is left out for public use, Steve takes his turn [You know what would be great?  If Tony was pilloried or blindfolded or something, and couldn’t see who was using him.  Steve takes the opportunity because he figures Tony will never know, but Tony guesses who it is in an instant!]

[NSFW] cockwarming cockwarming cockwarming 

In any universe where Tony kept Iron Man as a secret identity (or an AU of one where he didn't, I guess), he and Steve swap bodies due to [insert plot device here]. You could have them switch while Tony's in the suit and have Steve trying to preserve Iron Man's secret identity while in his body, or have them switch while he's NOT in the suit and have Steve trying to fill Tony Stark's shoes instead, but either way Tony's sure to be freaking out about it, and whichever identity Steve doesn't know he's swapped with won't be able to make an appearance... does Steve figure it out? Does Tony spill the beans accidentally -- or maybe on purpose because he thinks Steve finding out is inevitable? Is it before or after they switch back? Do they make out? (Yes please!) Is THAT before or after they switch back? XDD 

Civilian Tony is oblivious that he's attracted the affections of supervillain Steve Rogers. 

this image

[NSFW] Steve tied up with a vibrator up his ass while Tony watches him. Multiple orgasms. Humiliation, consensual, dubcon, etc. or anything else! 

 AU:

Regency genderbend:  Steve and Tony are women in 1814, and they're part of a team of behind-the-scenes lady-heroes who are working to prevent Napoleon from escaping Elba (along with other good deeds).  They're also deeply in love, but in the repressed atmosphere of the Regency era, can they express that love?  This prompt welcomes art (the COSTUMES!), age differences, pre-slash, explicit sex, and/or manners kink.  [COSTUMES.  MANNERS KINK.  AGE DIFFERENCE.  Guys, what if someone wrote this as a BULLET POINTS AU???  @sineala​ ]

Captain of the Guard!Steve purchases aging concubine!Tony in order to spare him an unpleasant fate. [I think my favorite thing about this AU is the possibility that the two have been friends for years while Guard!Steve, uh, guards, and Steve thinks he’s doing Tony a favor by buying out his contract.  Meanwhile, Tony feels betrayed because he thought Steve was ~different~ and maybe simultaneously feels hurt when Steve doesn’t immediately have sex with him!]

Steve is a lab mouse they tested the super soldier serum on. Iron Man is called on to protect the lab Steve is in, but the bad guy turns Steve human. [*YELLS INCOHERENTLY*]

Tony has a major crush on Captain America despite not knowing who he is beneath the mask. He gets turned into a cat and the only way to turn back is for someone he loves to love him as he is. He obviously doesn't have a chance with Cap. After wandering the streets, he gets taken in by an ordinary guy named Steve, who turns out to be pretty great, maybe even his chance at breaking the curse.   [I think we all know there was a 0% chance of this not making my favorites list!]

Steve and Tony... but they're Ents.  [Steve is Treebeard; Tony’s a bonsai.]

Crossover:  

Identity Porn+Multiverse. Two Steve's from different universes get into a fight over which of their crushes is better: Tony Stark or Iron Man

Ults/616/3490:   [NSFW] The Tonys and Natasha have some fun together. Ult and 616 Steves are aware, and jealous/annoyed and not with their Tonys yet. 3490 Steve is totally on board and knows he'll hear all the details later.  [*explodes in glee*]

Elyon Durwell, née Samos ❖ 30 ❖ Human ❖ Cook ❖ Living in Abdera ❖ FC: Celina Sinden ❖ OPEN

+ UTP

- UTP

Biography:

For as long as she can remember, Elyon has dreamed of the finer things in life. Unfortunately, due to her low start in life, achieving that dream seemed almost impossible. The closest she could get to the finer things was finding a job in the palace kitchens as a cook. She had learned a great many recipes from her mother, and she put them to good use, working her way up to becoming one of the favourite chefs of the royal family. She was treated well, and the Addinells were all kind to her, but she was still just a servant. There was nothing that could change what she was, although there was someone who could change the way she felt about herself. When Elyon was introduced to Radley Durwell by his brother, she met a man who treated her like a queen. He was only a humble hunter, but he made a decent living and Elyon knew he could provide for her. She allowed herself to be swept off her feet and married Radley, hoping to live in wedded bliss. But there are some things that love just can’t overcome.

Elyon still wanted more out of life and started spending their money on frivolous things like expensive clothes and jewellery, so she could feel like she was living the high life. Her being wasteful with money led to many arguments with her husband, and it was around the same time that King Elric announced his engagement. When Elyon discovered that the king was marrying Roslin, one of the palace maids that she worked with, she was seething with jealousy that someone of even lower status than her was going to be queen. According to some of the rumours she heard, Roslin had been having an affair with Elric for years and Elyon came to the conclusion that she had slept her way to the top. She and her husband were both invited to the royal wedding, but the two of them had a vicious argument the night before about how much Elyon had spent on her outfit for the wedding, and Radley had refused to come. If only he had attended, then Elyon would not have made the biggest mistake of her life. For it was at the royal wedding that she met Cain Silver. He was a visiting lord from Zagoré, and was very charming and flirtatious. Under the influence of far too much alcohol, Elyon bitterly remembered that Roslin had become queen by sleeping with someone of a higher status, so why couldn’t she become nobility by doing the same? All thoughts of her husband out of her mind, Elyon fell into bed with the handsome warlock. When she awoke the next morning, she was horrified by what she had done and fled before Cain could wake up. She wanted to tell Radley what had happened, but her husband was so sweet and apologetic over their argument that she couldn’t bring herself to confess, and instead she made up with him. With things between her and Radley back on track, Elyon decided to forget the whole affair with Cain. But one small thing stopped her from forgetting her mistake.

Discovering that she was pregnant was the happiest, and yet most horrifying moment in Elyon’s life. She had slept with both Cain and Radley in a short space of time and thus had no idea who the father of her baby was. She couldn’t confess to her affair in case the baby was Radley’s, but she also couldn’t keep the affair a secret and pretend the child was her husband’s if it was not. If Cain was her baby’s true father, then as the child of a human and a warlock, if her baby was a girl then she would be human and thus she could keep her secret. However, if she had a son, then the boy would be a warlock and would eventually start to show his magic. The best case scenario was that the baby was definitely her husband’s child, but with no way of being able to tell the parentage for sure, Elyon consulted a soothsayer to learn whether her baby would be a boy or a girl, as she had decided that knowing which it was would determine if she would confess to her infidelity or not. Of course, whether the baby was a boy or a girl, either Radley or Cain could be the father, but since Elyon could not decide whether to admit to the affair or not, choosing based on the baby’s gender seemed like the safest bet. If it was a girl, then whether Cain or Radley was the father, she could keep her affair a secret. However, if it was a boy, then she would have to face up to the responsibility of what she had done, in case her son turned out be a warlock. She was told that she would be having a daughter, and it was only then that Elyon told her husband about her pregnancy, believing her secret to be safe. However, nine months later, Elyon gave birth to a son.

There was nothing she could do now. Radley believed the child to be his. There was a fifty/fifty chance that her husband was the father of her son, but Elyon couldn’t help but think of Cain. Now that she’d had a boy, if Henry started to show any magical abilities then it would confirm that Cain was his father. But Elyon still didn’t dare to tell her husband about her affair. What if she admitted to it and Radley left her, thinking Henry was not his son, and then Henry never showed any magical powers because Radley was his true father after all? All she could do was play the waiting game. It has been four years, and Henry has shown no sign of any magical ability. Since most warlocks first start to develop their magic at the age of five, Elyon has been praying that her son does not have any magical abilities and that he is truly Radley’s boy.

Connections:

Radley Durwell - Husband. Elyon loves her husband, but thinks that she rushed into their marriage. She has always dreamed of bigger and better things, but she allowed Radley to sweep her off her feet. She tried to live the high life through lavish spending, but that just made her argue with her husband. She sincerely regrets cheating on Radley and prays every day for her son to never show any magical powers, since she is desperate for him to be Radley’s child.

Kian Durwell - Brother-in-Law. Kian was the one who introduced Elyon to her husband, and she loves him for it. Even though she is never going to live the life of a grand lady while married to Radley, her affair made her realise just how lucky she is to have a husband who loves her so much.

Cain Silver - Former Lover. It was never Elyon’s intention to cheat on her husband, but Cain was so seductive that she couldn’t help herself. She regretted it the next morning and hurried home to Radley before Cain woke up. Her guilt made her act like the best wife in the world, but when she discovered she was pregnant, Elyon was horrified. The only thing that can prove who her son’s father is depends on whether Henry displays any magical abilities or not. She is terrified that her son will start to show magical powers, proving that Cain is his father, when all she wants is for Henry to be her husband’s son.

Name: David Charles Haller

Alias: Legion

Age: 25

Gender: Male

Sexual Orientation: Pansexual

Powers: Telekinesis, Pyrokinesis, Telepathy

Key Traits: protective, irascible, emotional, erratic

Affiliation: Undecided

Date Enrolled: August 11th, 1985

Room number: 21D

Extracurriculars: None

What do you want to get out of this school: “To be in control, to be stronger, to not be a danger to the people I care about…”

Known Family: Amy Haller (sister/adoptive sister), Jefferey Haller (uncle/adoptive father - deceased), Amanda Haller (aunt/adoptive mother)

Relations: Charles Xavier (biological father), Gabrielle Haller (biological mother), Sydney Barrett (friend/girlfriend), Lenny Busker (friend/Shadow King’s main disguise within David’s Mind), Melanie Bird (past mentor), Ptonomy Wallace (acquaintance), Cary/Kerry Loudermilk (acquaintances).

Personality Type: INFP, Chaotic Good

Origin Story:

tw: drug mention, alcohol, attempted suicide

David is the twenty five year old son of Gabrielle Haller and Charles Xavier. He is completely unaware of the identities of either of his parents and for his entire life he had believed that Jeffery and Amanda Haller were his parents. In reality, they were his aunt and uncle who had been asked by his mother when David was just a few months old to look after him while she recovered from the death of her recent husband. Gabrielle ended up falling off the grid, and was never heard from again and so Jeffery and Amanda adopted the boy as their own.

In his early childhood, David had lived out in the country with his mother, father and older sister Amy. Most days he could be found laughing and running through the grass with his sister. Unbeknownst to David, he would create both human and animal friends to travel along with him and his sister on their adventures. To everyone around him, David was just a child with a vast imagination and to the young boy - it was his reality. Little did any of them know the powers and darkness that lurked within him.

As David became older, the voices and hallucinations became more frequent. His parents didn’t know how to react at first, so they didn’t. Instead they did their best to continue on as though everything was normal. However; nights would soon be spent up with David when he couldn’t get to sleep because of a bad nightmare and on more than one occasion they had stop everything to comfort him when the voices got to be too loud that all he could do was sit there with his hands to his head and cry.

It wouldn’t be until David was seventeen that his family finally addressed what was going on with him - or at least what they thought it was. After a night of binge drinking, the seventeen year old found himself in the back of a police car and was brought down to the station where he was made to wait for his parents. Upon their arrival, the officer who had brought David in had recommended the boy be given a psychiatric evaluation.

David would eventually be diagnosed with schizophrenia and would be given medication to help treat it and for a little while, it seemed to work. Little did he know that it had nothing to do with the medication. A year would pass before the voices came back in full force; but with his family, his doctor and his girlfriend all believing he was okay - David hadn’t wanted to tell them that he was bad again - and so he started to self medicate.

For a while; no one even knew what David was up to. That was until his girlfriend walked in on him and a friend high on a new drug called vapor. Refusing to give up the drugs, David’s relationships with everyone around him would start crumble until the only one who was left was Lenny, who only encouraged his bad habits.

With guilt consuming him and the voices inside his head growing louder with each passing moment he spent alone, David attempted to hang himself. However; the next morning he woke up and the only sign that what he had done was real were the burn marks on his neck. His sister Amy would drop by later on that day and upon seeing the burns on his neck, would beg him to seek help.

David would go on to spend six years of his life in a mental facility called Clockworks, where he would be treated for Schizophrenia. He would have his good days and his bad days, the bad obviously outweighing the good but somehow it was easier to be there than it ever had been outside. After a while, even Lenny had managed to find her way into Clockworks, and the facility became like a second home to David, one in which he was able to find friends and even love.

However; after a situation arose at Clockworks, David was brought in for questioning and was nearly killed by the men who believed he was far too dangerous and uncontrollable after he attacked several of the guards. Luckily for David, he was rescued by a group of people and brought to a place called Summerland; where he was told that he wasn’t mentally ill, but a mutant.

David would stay at Summerland for a few weeks, where he would attempt to train with Melanie Bird and several other mutants. However; after discovering the same men that tried to kill him had taken his sister captive, David would become very emotional. Unable to think rationally, he allows one of the other mutants to convince him to leave. He is completely unaware that the mutant; better known as The Shadow King, is inside his head and planning to take control of his mind upon arriving at the facility. It isn’t until David finds himself in the passenger seat of his own body and is forced to watch the mutant kill everyone that gets in his way that he discovers what is actually going on.

Horrified at what happened and how it has made him feel, David brings his sister to their childhood home and after making sure she is safe, he runs away before anyone that may remain from D3 or his friends from Summerland can find him. It would be months before David finally found a place to settle down; that place: Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.

Movie: 

Wonder Woman -  Before she was Wonder Woman she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained warrior. When a pilot crashes and tells of conflict in the outside world, she leaves home to fight a war to end all wars, discovering her full powers and true destiny.

Books:

Whether it’s the mythology, fantasy, or the fact she’s a strong female warrior that draws you to Wonder Woman, here is a variety of books you may want to grab while you wait for the movie’s release date. 

Graceling by Kristen Cashore -  In a world where some people are born with extreme and often-feared skills called Graces, Katsa struggles for redemption from her own horrifying Grace, and teams up with another young fighter to save their land from a corrupt king. 

Ody-C. Volume 1, Off to far Ithicaa by Matt Fraction -  A gender swapped, science fiction retelling of Homer's Odyssey follows Odyssia and her crew of warriors on their travels home following a century long war.

Prophecy by Ellen Oh -  A demon slayer, the only female warrior in the King's army, must battle demon soldiers, an evil shaman, and the Demon Lord to find the lost ruby of the Dragon King's prophecy and save her kingdom.

Rat Queens Volume 1, Sass and Sorcery by Kurtis J. Wiebe - The Rat Queens, a group of four adventurers consisting of an elven mage, a dwarven fighter, a human cleric, and a smidgen thief, must defend themselves against assassins when they are sent on a quest that turns out to be a trap. Although far more humorous in tone this series has the strong female warriors and encounters with gods like Wonder Woman.

The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier - Diana Morgan is a statuesque young professor at Oxford who believes that Amazons actually existed, with good reason: her grandmother claimed to be one. When Diana gets an offer from a mysterious man who claims he has proof of the Amazons’ existence, she takes off for North Africa and a hidden underground temple that boasts an inscription written in the Amazon language.

The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women across the Ancient World  by Adrienne Mayor -  Presents a history of the Amazons, combining classical myth and art, nomad traditions, and scientific archaeology to reveal surprising details and original insights about the fabled race of warrior women. 

Top Ten Movies You Couldn’t Make Today: 1990's Edition

As John Q's exploration of movies from the 1980s which deserve the Fahrenheit 451 treatment was so popular, we locked him in a dark room with a Netflix account and his weekly allowance of absinthe until he made another glorious slice of borderline-illegal viral content. The kids love lists, and we need the clicks! Thanks John, hope your time in rehab goes well. Here are 10 movies from the 90's that would never be made in our modern, progressive utopia.

10. The Lion King (1994)

As an allegory for mass Third World immigration and the consequent environmental degradation, cultural subversion, tyrannical Marxism, and ultimately population replacement, the film hits way too close to home. It also reinforces gender expectations via the patriarchal right of succession and is, in its portrayal of both the hyenas and Rafiki the mandrill, undoubtedly racist. Despite the setting in Africa, the source material is Shakespearean, and as a Dead White Male, this is strictly forbidden. What, Alice Walker isn’t good enough for you bigots?

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9. Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)

An all-(white) male ensemble cast? Oh honey, you’re dreaming! Not today, not ever again (unless it’s gay porn, to borrow the joke from Zack and Miri). As an added “bonus,” the film is decidedly anti-egalitarian in orientation, and is replete with a number of homophobic slurs. Deeply troubling stuff, here, folks.

8. Man of the House (1995)

Easily one of the most culturally appropriative scenes of all time takes place about mid-way through the film in the Boy Scouts-equivalent meeting where the entirely white (possibly minus one ethnically-ambiguous pair) male cast is wearing all manner of headdresses and war paint imitating Amerindians. To add insult to injury, the father-son duos are in a circle and are practicing a kind of “Native American” initiation rite by way of introduction, called the “Naming Ceremony.” I want to unpack how problematic this scene is further, but “I can’t even.”

7. Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)

The entire premise of the film is built on the decision of a man so desperate to spend time with his children that he enlists his fabulous brother to turn him into a nanny named Mrs. Doubtfire. The problem is that the humor of the film derives almost exclusively from the Robin Williams’s gender-bending and the absurdity of it all, thus, the humor must come at the expense of the Other; Williams’s character’s son completely freaks out after seeing Doubtfire/his dad urinating while standing: “He’s a she, she’s a he, she’s a he-she!” The children quickly turn against Doubtfire. Not very open-minded if you ask me. As Nico Lang wrote for The Daily Dot:

If Mrs. Doubtfire’s casual transphobia is a product of its era, so is its comedy… Mrs. Doubtfire also debuted the exact same month as The Crying Game, another AMPAS favorite that relied on the inherent titillation of transgender bodies…A culture that continues to laugh at “men in dresses” will continue to invalidate the struggles that actual transgender people go through every day, both in and out of the workplace. If our comedy is stuck in the ’90s, our treatment of LGBT people will be, too…What plays well in 1992 reads very differently today. Mrs. Doubtfire was a product of the gender politics of its era, a cultural panic about divorce and men’s declining roles in the home, as well as a deep insecurity about masculinity…Sally Field’s “Mean Mom” is the real threat. Because she wears the pants in the family, Williams’ character has to prove his worth by wearing a dress.

Commenter Gegenny on Reddit’s “r/asktransgender” forum doesn’t necessarily see the film as transphobic so much as nakedly misogynistic, declaring:

It is less transphobic so much as misogynistic. Man is willing to endure the most humiliating thing possible to see his kids, so naturally that means posing as a woman. The aspects of that humiliation are then played for laughs.

The reactions to the film are mixed; some consider it to be transphobic, others, as the quote above exemplifies, consider it “just” misogynistic, and still others say that it is transvestite-phobic. Whichever (or all of the above) the film is, it is definitely hurtful and hateful and should never have been made. As a final note, one could definitely read the “drive-by fruiting” as having homophobic undertones. A very problematic film any way you slice it.

6. Kindergarten Cop (1990)

More transphobia here. One of the most appalling scenes in all of cinema is when young Joseph, at only 27 months old says, seemingly innocently enough, “Boys have a penis and girls have a vagina!” After being triggered by this shocking ignorance of gender as a social construct when I re-watched the film for the purposes of this article, I was literally shaking. What were they teaching kids in school back then?

5. Aladdin (1992)

According to The Washington Post, 90% of the lines in the movie go to male characters. For Christine-Marie Liwag Dixon: Nearly a decade after slave Leia appeared in Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi, Princess Jasmine faced similar circumstances in Aladdin. The depiction was no less creepy and no less sexualized, but is made worse by the fact that Aladdin is supposed to be a kid’s movie…To see Jasmine forced into subservience by the evil Jafar is nauseating. It’s not really surprising that Jafar treats women badly, but this scene goes a little too far for comfort in a children’s film, especially after Jasmine uses her feminine wiles to distract Jafar before Aladdin saves the day. Watching the sham seduction take place is gross, but is even more disturbing when you remember how many kids watched this scene without understanding just how messed up it is.

Furthermore, the film shows Arabic society (and Islam by extension given the source material) in a bad light as intractably patriarchal—this is extremely problematic as we all know that anything less than the deification of brown folks is racism, and anything less than hosannas to the heavens for Islam is “Islamophobic,” for it is well-established that Islam is enriching, empowering, peaceful, and tolerant.

(Let us not even get into how even the lyrics to the intro song were considered too racist, and were changed. Tsch, maybe we had 9/11 coming after all -Ed.)

4. Starship Troopers (1997)

Despite director Paul Verhoeven’s attempt to satirize the source material, Robert Heinlein’s novel is just too strong and the satire falls flat, instead making fascism look way too appealing. In fact, the entire future society was only made possible by the reclamation of Western civilization from the near-abyss of “democracy”; one may choose to remain a civilian with all attendant rights and privileges, but no vote and no ability to stand for public office and certain other professions, or one may earn the franchise through military service for the Federation at the potential cost of their lives. Furthermore, the protagonist of the novel, Juan Rico, is Filipino, whereas Verhoeven intentionally “white-washed” Rico and his friends and family for the film to highlight the overt “Nazism” of Heinlein’s creation. The problem is that, beyond betraying Heinlein’s point that race was largely irrelevant in the Federation (its military predicated exclusively on merit), the actors are all extremely good-looking, and their attractiveness only makes saving humanity from the Bugs while exercising their civic duty that much more, well, attractive.

3. Hocus Pocus (1993)

From the hook noses to the child sacrifices, the anti-Semitic overtones in this film are extremely problematic. In the opening scene, the local white populace comes with pitchforks to execute the three witches for stealing their children and using them in their rituals, which evokes uncomfortable images of an Eastern European pogrom. For context, Ron Unz explains:

It appears that a considerable number of Ashkenazi Jews traditionally regarded Christian blood as having powerful magical properties and considered it a very valuable component of certain important ritual observances at particular religious holidays. Obviously, obtaining such blood in large amounts was fraught with considerable risk, which greatly enhanced its monetary value, and the trade in the vials of this commodity seems to have been widely practiced.

Additionally, according to Sheikh Khaled Al-Mughrabi, the Jews were killed by the Nazis because they were kidnapping Christian children to use their blood to make matzah.

2. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)

The 90s were probably our most transphobic decade. Elena Nicolaou writes:

Trans women in ‘90s comedies like Ace Ventura were often law-breakers who deliberately hid their trans identities, as Meredith Talusan points out in a Buzzfeed article. Consequently, “the exposure of these women becomes synonymous with ‘catching’ them; there’s no meaningful difference made between finding out a woman is trans and discovering that she’s a criminal.”

When Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey) finds out that he’s kissed a man dressed as a woman, who also happens to be the villain, he has what Nicolaou describes as “an outrageously transphobic reaction.” He vomits in the shower and sets his clothes on fire. R. Kurt Osenlund recaps:

At the time of this movie’s release, Ace’s revelation was played entirely for laughs, but seen today, it’s basically horrifying. “Finkle is Einhorn!” Ace declares to himself. “Einhorn is a man!” With that, Ace, remembering that Einhorn pinned him on her desk and gave him sloppy kisses, goes into a violent burst of queer panic, purging in the toilet, loading his mouth with toothpaste, taking a plunger to his face, purging some more, burning his clothes, and finally crying naked in the shower, all to the tune of Boy George’s “The Crying Game.” Spying the pre-op trans woman the next day, Ace, still loading his mouth with chewing gum as a disinfectant, notes that “the gun” that was “digging into [his] hip” during the pair’s make-out session was in fact a penis, and he shudders madly at the thought.

The next day, as Nicolaou recaps, “He stages a big sex ‘reveal’ in which he pulls down the character’s pants.” In a thoroughly humiliating transphobic vaudeville show, returning to Osenlund:

Einhorn stands there on display, until, thanks to a tip-off from Marino, Ace grabs his culprit and spins her around, revealing the vivid bulge of a dick and balls that Einhorn had tucked back. Just then, “The Crying Game” picks back up on the soundtrack, and all the males on site begin spitting and cleaning out their mouths, as they too have all locked lips with a woman packing a cock. There is no redemption for Einhorn. She’s knocked into the water and left humiliated all over again—a pathetic loser who deserves to suffer not just for kidnapping, but for the gross crimes of mental instability, sexual deviance, and anatomical otherness.

If one thing is certain, it is that trans people should be above any and all reproach, even if they are sociopathic criminals. Which leads me to my final film:

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1. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

As perhaps the mother of all transphobic films, the portrayal of transgendereds in The Silence of the Lambs as lethality incarnate probably set the LGBTQI+’s agenda to invert heteronormativity-as-deviant back a good decade. As author Mey wrote for Autostraddle:

Perhaps the most famous instance of a trans woman being used to scare audiences is The Silence of the Lambs. When we see serial killer Buffalo Bill in their most famous scene, it is meant to be one of the most jarring and disturbing moments of the film. We see someone who is presented to us as a man tucking their penis between their legs, wearing a wig made from a woman’s scalp, swaying and dancing to music. Growing up, I remember many times hearing that this was one of the strangest and creepiest scenes in modern film. This action of putting on makeup and a wig, tucking and trying to look as beautiful and feminine as you can is something that a lot of us trans women can relate to. It’s something that a lot of us trans women have done. And here it is being presented as the epitome of horror.

Mey is right—the perfectly benign activity of murdering women in order to skin and scalp them and literally “wear” them is presented here as deviant and horrific.

It’s something a lot of us trans-womyn have done.

from Republic Standard | Conservative Thought & Culture Magazine https://ift.tt/2OmWXzs via IFTTT

Essay 3

When one thinks of horror films, many things come to mind; blood, gore, murders, things jumping out at you and so on. We enjoy movies like that because we can go to the theater, watch the movie and be scared of it, relish in the fear and then walk right out like nothing happened. As Stephen King said in “Why We Crave Horror Movies”, “We also go to re-establish our feelings of essential normality.” However, when we look into a movie like “Silence of the Lambs”, those fears are different. This movie shows us that the darkness inside of us is real. There are people in the real world who want to kill and hurt others, and sometimes there is no walking away as if nothing happened. This movie also addresses the gender culture in America, and even though the movie came out in 1991, it is still relevant almost 30 years later.

“Silence of the Lambs” is about a young, female FBI trainee named Clarice. She is trying to solve the case of a serial killer who is going around kidnapping young women and killing them. Her boss sends her to meet the famed Hannibal Lecter, the cannibal, to hopefully learn some insight about this other serial killer, Buffalo Bill. At a passing glance it seems as though the only threats to Clarice are Hannibal and Buffalo Bill. Yet, when you look deeper, her boss and Hannibal’s doctor are a danger to her as well.

The entire film is a representation of the uncanny. The entire time we know a lot of unnerving information about the men in the film. Initially, Hannibal and Buffalo Bill are the obvious dangers to Clarice. Buffalo Bill is out killing women, just like Clarice, and Hannibal is the cannibal who is locked away, yet he is seemingly still quite dangerous. These two initially represent the uncanny in this film. They are the unknown. No one knows who Buffalo Bill actually is or how to stop him, or what he is doing to these women until later in the film. And Hannibal represents “everything that was meant to remain a secret and hidden but has come into the open,” (Freud 132.) Clarice and the viewers know who Hannibal is and what he has done, making him all the more terrifying. Eventually Buffalo Bill comes to represent the uncanny as well when we discover that he was killing all the women to take their skin and wear it so that he could become a woman himself. His secret is out for everyone to know, which again makes him more terrifying as well. “The uncanny is something familiar that has been repressed and then reappears,” (Freud 152). Many people know deep down that people like this are real and that this could happen to them. They could be the next victim of a Buffalo Bill or a Hannibal Lecter. Or as a woman, they could be the next victim of a Jack Crawford or Hannibal Lecter’s doctor. This movie brought the reality into light, creating something they would walk out of the theaters remembering. The These two are the dark and dangerous men who want to physically harm this woman. In reality, many women feel endangered by men like these. These guys are the ones who give us the uneasy pit in our stomach. They give us the feeling of dread and angst. They are why we are on alert and armed when we walk alone in the parking garage at night. These are the guys we do everything we can to avoid.  

On the other side is Clarice’s boss and Hannibal’s doctor, the men you see and interact with everyday. These men are the ones most women have to deal with and spend time with. The guys who are a little sleazy, but seem harmless, for the most part. These men represent the hidden danger for Clarice in the film and how she has to fight tooth and nail against everyone to achieve what she wants. These two are supposed to be in protective and supportive positions and should be looking out for Clarice. However, they seem to do the opposite. FBI agent Jack Crawford, Clarice’s boss, seems to not want her to grow and learn and eventually become an FBI agent. He holds her back and even puts her into dangerous situations. Crawford initially sent Clarice to meet with Hannibal because she was pretty and he thought that would make Hannibal talk to her more, rather than sending her because he thought she was a good agent and could actually get information out of him because of her skills. After some time, he gives her a proposal to give to Lecter to get information out of him, but does not tell her that it is not a real proposal. Then, Lecter’s doctor, who is supposed to be protecting people from Lecter, tells him that the proposal Clarice presents is a lie, thus putting Clarice in a bad position with Hannibal. Clarice had spent a lot of time sitting across Hannibal’s cell talking to him, fearing him, learning from and about him. She built a real relationship with him and gained his trust and this situation destroyed all of that. These two represent the patriarchal male who seems to not want a woman to be successful. Crawford did not actually trust or respect Clarice enough to tell her the truth about why she was there or about the information she was giving Hannibal. Yet, Crawford never realized that Clarice got so much out of Lecter because she was actually good at what she did. She played Hannibal’s games and went along with his processes, which many people would not have, giving he was a murder and cannibal. She worked him in a way that he would actually give her information. Lecter’s doctor did not respect Clarice either. He saw her as another young, pretty face who knew nothing about what she was doing. When he told Hannibal about the proposal he threatened Clarice’s career and destroyed all that she had built with Lecter. Again, keeping her from growing and becoming successful, which meant solving the case of a serial killer, thus continuing to endanger women. Eventually Clarice figures out who Buffalo Bill actually is and where to find him. When she tells Agent Crawford he tells her that they already discovered who he was and that they were on their way to get him. Turns out, Crawford was wrong and Clarice was right. She went to Buffalo Bills house, and went in, expecting backup to arrive shortly. However, Crawford had the wrong guy and ends up in a different house, leaving Clarice to face Buffalo Bill alone. Once again, men in power left a woman in danger and she had to protect herself.

Clarice is a “New Woman”. She is a true feminist. Clarice clawed and fought every moment to become an FBI agent and save the lives of women at the same time. She never gave up when the men in power cut her down and pushed against her. Instead she found a way around the road blocks every time. Being a woman, she was isolated in a man’s world in the FBI and she proved to better than every man trying to keep her from succeeding, (Buzwell). She embodies the powerful woman that is growing today. Women still fight for freedoms and rights all over the world. They are kept from showing skin, voting, and even having basic human rights in some countries. Clarice demonstrated that no matter what is against you, you can overcome it as long as you do not give in.

There is an evolution of Clarice throughout this movie. She grows from a timid young woman into a powerful and smart and strong woman. She used what her boss gave her to solve the case that he could not. She fought against the doctor who only tried to trick hurt and place roadblocks in her way. She found a way to get information out of Hannibal Lecter, without letting him get to her. And she found Buffalo Bill and saved the life of a woman in his hands. She never let these men get in her way, whether they were blatantly dangerous or endangered her in other ways. She became a true and strong woman.

When this movie came out in 1991, many people were horrified by it. A serial killer who killed women and used their skins to make himself a woman and Hannibal Lecter, one of the most terrifying killers seen on screen. Many people at the time had never seen anything like this, or thought about something as dark and disturbing as this movie. It displayed the clear, murders and insanity. Also the hidden, the true power of someone in a cell and the power of a doctor with bad intentions. This movie showed what most people wanted to avoid and never think about. The truth behind us all.

Works Cited

Freud, Sigmund. (2003). The Uncanny. London: Penguin Books.

King, Stephen. (1981). “Why We Crave Horror Movies.”

Buzwell, Greg. (2017). “Daughters of Decadence: The New Woman in the Victorian Fin de Siècle.”

The Strange Secret History Of Hair Removal Will Blow Your Mind

From Rome to Peaky Blinders, the 21st century has blessed our Netflix accounts as well as an array of period dramas praised for their attention to historical detail. But somewhere in the midst of Elizabeth I's apparently approaching-fleek eyebrows and complex 18th-century sex workers as soon as full-on Brazilians, the details profit a tiny uncertain While it's real that people have been shaving, waxing, sugaring, and tweezing concerning and off past the start of time, practices  and preferences  have varied wildly from generation to generation and across the globe. Ahead, discover some of the weird and fabulous things our ancestors got taking place to behind it came to their hair... Cropped Cavewomen Though its fair to publicize that body fuzz is a feminist issue in 2017, hair removal began after that equality in the midst of the sexes. Archaeological evidence suggests that both female and male yet to be humans shaved their heads and facial hair to avoid frostbite from water becoming trapped and deadened adjoining the skin. This was pre-archives and ably back the invention of the wax strip, even even if, so the main hair-removal method was a razor made from clam bombs, animal teeth, and aching flints. And we thought teetotal shaving was bad. Pharaohs' Facial Hair Ancient Egyptians were invincible fans of full-body hair removal, as they believed it was a signifier of hygiene and cleanliness  and we still use some of the methods they pioneered today, including waxing and sugaring. Archaeologists even discovered a razor to the side of extra toiletries in the tomb of Queen Hetepheres. (Fortunately, we've ditched the less tempting methods, also the in the future depilatory concoctions of arsenic and quicklime described in Victoria Sherrow's Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural History.) But for the female "kings" of the period, sporting a tie-as regards false beard was common for woman pharaohs subsequently than Khentkawes I and her successor, Hatshepsut. Ancient Greek Unibrows The trend of hair removal continued into Europe, where Ancient Greek women were traditional to cut off their pubic hair. A full bush was considered "uncivilized," Sherrow writes, and the artists of the era did not show-court lawsuit signs of pubic hair going a propos the subject of for the subject of statues portraying women. Above the waist, even though, hair was altogether in  especially the prized unibrow  and women used powdered minerals or soot to darken and intensify their brows. Meanwhile, in Rome, some women were actually fashioning court warfare brows made of fur, as Michael Sims describes in Adam's Navel: A Natural and Cultural History of the Human Form  when both Ovid and Petronius referring to the practice in their writings. For the female "kings" of , sporting a tie-concerning disloyal beard was common for woman pharaohs. Medieval Foreheads By the Middle Ages, the attitude toward all body hair had taken a resolved U-position. The edicts of the Catholic Church intended women were supposed to grow out their hair as a display of femininity but save it totally concealed past in public. As Paul B. Newman writes in Daily Life in the Middle Ages, plentiful and well-liked women of the 14th century started plucking the hair from their foreheads in order to lift the front of their hairlines, creating the magic of a well along forehead and an elongated perspective. When the blaze-haired Elizabeth I came to faculty in 1533, she revolutionized the brow game in England. Many of her subjects chose to dye their hair and brows same shades of strawberry blonde, as soon as some using a corrosive mixture of rhubarb juice and oil of vitriol (now called sulfuric acid) to lighten theirs. Ouch. 17th-Century Sex Workers Trends of all sorts come and go, and by the 17th century, women were loving a bit of put it on hair the length of there. In 1714, Alexander Smith wrote in A Complete History of the Lives and Robberies of the Most Notorious Highwaymen nearly "the hairy circle of prostitutes Merkin." For those who are uncharacteristic, a merkin is a wig placed regarding the vagina to replace natural pubic hair that's been removed, which was common practice together in the company of sex workers who didn't nonattendance to catch pubic lice  and plus those who had something to hide sedated there, in the days past penicillin. Victorian Virgins During the 18th and 19th centuries, women were anew customary to display as tiny retrieve sexuality as attainable, and that included showing no body hair under long sleeves and even longer skirts. One Victorian doctor, William Acton, was even quoted as maxim, "The majority of women (happily for them) are not enormously much scared as soon as sexual feeling of any nice." Clearly, he had never watched The L Word. There's a the complete ably-known, very long-standing rumor that John Ruskin, England's leading art critic of the epoch, left his five-year marriage unconsummated as he fainted in report to his wedding night in 1848, allegedly at the sight of his auxiliary wife's pubic hair. While much-disputed, the fable can't be ruled out  and the silence vis--vis female body hair probably did leave some Victorian virgins utterly horrified. The shortage of nylon during , accumulate behind the shorter skirts in fashion, even led ladies to shave their legs and paint almost a sham seam to recreate the see of stockings. 20th-Century Baldness Begins The position of the 20th century brought in a auxiliary age of hair removal. The first women's branded razor, the Milady Dcollet, hit the suspend sky, and an plan ad for depilatory powder, published in a 1915 issue of Harper's Bazaar, advised "the removal of awful hair," rebuke would-be flappers that "Summer Dress and Modern Dancing" could after that them to flash too much underarm hair. By the time World War II began, women were shaving regularly, as accurately as plucking their eyebrows to profit those unconditional '30s pencil-skinny arches. The shortage of nylon during the stroke, quantity along between the shorter skirts in fashion, even led ladies to shave their legs and paint in report to a play in seam to recreate the look of stockings. Mid-Century Mixed Messages Things started to acquire a small more complicated in the 1960s, as soon as the first advanced wax strips hit the push, and Raquel Welch's iconic portrayal of a olden cavewoman wearing nothing but a bikini made from the skin and hide of a deer sent many women admin to cut off hair from roughly everywhere. The fuzz-forgive swimsuit trend continued until the 1970s as the first "attach" electrolysis was qualified, and some women jumped at the inadvertent to be hairless from head-to-toe. But at the related time, the '60s and '70s were plus the decades of comprehensible worship and a full bush  in 1972, The Joy of Sex brought illustrations of a distinctly unshaven girl's genitalia into approaching all residence. A Bald Brave New World? The near of the 20th century was a frosty become olden for body hair: Fashion trends then than '80s Daisy Dukes and '90s micro-minis intended there was just no room for body hair. In the 21st century, Brazilian waxes hit the truthful world and the small screen: Who can forget the infamous Carrie-gets-a-wax scene from Sex and the City, or the times that Jennifer Love Hewitt devoted a chapter in her wedding album to all matters of vajazzling? It wasn't just our hair beside there that we started to invest in; the brow industry once more tripled in value from 2011 to 2016. But the well along of body hair might not be every one roughly how to profit rid of it: Amber Rose's call to #bringbackthebush, for example, has inspired a entire quantity Instagram doings, even though even Emma Watson has unmovable the thumbs-happening to luxury pubic-hair grooming products. Big brows are pro and bolder than ever, and challenging icons later dissenter Harnaam Kaur are breaking the length of gender stereotypes each and every one hours of hours of day. Perhaps the most game-changing body hair trend of 2018 won't be how much fuzz women have, but the forgive to further anything the hell we lack, wherever we deficiency. Read the full article

A History of Henry

For those who don't know my series: Not Too Young for True Love, Henry is Emma's toy stuffed duckling. I was reading a chapter of The Chicken Reform to make sure I kept to my own canon for a part of Crushing Ice, and this plot bunny hopped in and wouldn't leave (despite vigorous prodding!)

This started as a little piece on Charming's rescue of Henry from the moat as mentioned in The Chicken Reform, but as often happens, ended up quite something different once it made it to the page.

I absolutely adore Papa Charming, so this is for him. Hopefully he would approve.

Wherever possible, it is our parents that choose our name because that is their right.

It is their responsibility, to choose one that fits; however, it must be conceded that the name must come before both, the recipient's character is formed and the path they will walk in life becomes known. So it often follows, that despite the best intentions, many names simply don't sit well on those on whom they are bestowed.

Such is life.

Now and again the name that may initially appear to be incongruous to its recipient and their situation in society, ends up attached to exactly the right individual.

There was a legend in the Enchanted Forest, many men would say 'old wives' tale', that pixies often took entertainment from meddling in the affairs of humans. They are said to be particularly meddlesome in the matter of pregnant women if they should happen upon one; which was quite rare.  There was just something about tinkering with the babe's future they found utterly irresistible.

Once upon a time a woman who was not yet aware that she was with child, was foraging for mushrooms in a grove far from her home. She was quite especially surprised at the number to be had, since the variety was not known to grow in large groups. She could not have known, but perhaps she should have guessed, that these had not occurred naturally.

These mushrooms were a particular favourite of the woodland pixies and this was their grove. They had set wards about their crop and two pixies were immediately drawn to the site as soon as her knife had cut the first stalk. Her transgression was forgiven due to the pixies' discernment of her gravid state and their desire to play merry with the babe to be born. They waited for her to turn her attention to her harvesting and, when she wasn't looking, one of the pixies blew softly on the mushrooms she had already placed in her wicker basket. She left with her treasures and the mushrooms made a good meal for herself and her husband.

The pixie-meddled mushrooms had no affect on the man, indeed, he would never know the supernatural  tinge to what he had consumed. Neither did his wife. The wisp of magic had been intended for the child; hence it passed from the mother to the babe while the parents continued in their lives in complete ignorance.

In due course, the babe was born. The name given to her was, Evangelina; a name that may at first have seemed a tad fanciful for one so lowly born. But while in the grip of a fever that had taken hold as she laboured long to deliver her child, Evangelina's mother swore she kept hearing a name whispered in her ear.  She would never know the whisper had come from the pixie magic that lay in her babe's blood. The whisper carried a name; Evangelina, and as the child was born fair, with freakishly white hair and whimsical silver eyes so pale they looked like ice, the mother decided the name was fitting.

Her mother had built somewhat of a reputation as a maker of toys. They were  in the shape of the animals and the birds of the forest, and crafted from eclectic patchworks of intricately sewn materials. It was an occupation she had taken up shortly after discovering she was carrying Evangelina. Being much loved and doted upon by her tinker husband, when he took to the road for his bi-annual excursions required by his trade, he would look for unusual fabrics, both rich satins and brocades, and rough hemp and linens, to bring home to his industrious wife.

When Evangelina reached the age of 7, she was put to work with her mother. It was discovered she had a gift for needlework that surpassed even her talented mother. Her tiny fingers were sure and swift, never dropping a stitch or tearing the fabric. When observed at her work, the animal she was crafting would appear the same haphazard conglomeration of patterns and weaves as those her mother made. But just as she was adding the final stitches, Evangelina would be seen to whisper in the ear of her creation, and the simple toy would somehow take on a subtle change. It was not something that could be seen. Not for lack of trying by her mystified parents who had spent many an hour intently looking over Evangelina's creations. They could never actually find anything. It was something that a person felt whenever the toy was in their hands; a feeling of warmth and contentment.

Naturally, the toys were bought and passed onto young babes and children, and their parents noticed that even the most fretfully difficult child, calmed. They slept deeper and were less prone to fitful awakenings. Always the child would turn out to be sweet natured.

Evangelina was most diligent in the matter of overseeing each purchase of her wares.  She insisted in the choosing of which was best suited to the intended recipient. It was often the case that she would snatch a toy from the customer's hand, cuddling it to her chest and stating clearly, "No. Not this one."  Then she would fix her curiously iridescent ice eyes on the customer, never the child if it was present; and the customer would begin to bristle at such a disrespectful and intense perusal by a market urchin. Then Evangelina would pick up a toy and stroke its head and whisper in its ear, before holding it out to the customer with the words, 'It must be this unicorn,' (or this bear or this otter - or whichever creature toy she chose). 'No other will do.'

Her angelic face and determined expression swayed many a soul, but it was always the rapt way in which the child received into their adoring embrace  the toy that Evangelina had insisted upon, that sealed the customer's satisfaction.  Her mother had initially tried to dissuade her daughter from bullying the customers in such a fashion, but always Evangelina would have her way.

Not once did her mother ask how she knew to match which toy with each child. Perhaps way down deep in a corner of her heart into which she didn't care to look, her  mother was afraid of the answer. Worried if she analysed too deeply or pushed too hard, the unnatural facility would abandon her daughter.

And Evangelina made a lot of money for her parents.

All magic has a price. Evangelina paid for hers with isolation. She was pretty but she had an oddness about her that was off putting to the practical and unimaginative residents of the small village in which she lived. Her only friends were the ones she crafted.

As she grew older and more aware that her special way with her patchwork animals was not usual, Evangelina struggled to explain how she was able to imbue each of her works with its own sliver of magical essence. All she could articulate was that she could see the animal that was waiting to be formed from within the piles of neatly cut fabric squares. Her hand would unerringly pluck exactly the pieces she needed, whereas her mother had to try many different combinations and placings before settling on what she  would make.  Then just as she made the final stitch, Evangelina would whisper 'Hello' into it's ear and felt it warm slightly. The sensation passed in a heartbeat, but that heartbeat was hers and it beat its magic into the toy.

Time passed in which the reputation of the amazing and exquisite works of the mother and daughter grew and began to spread.

Then one day in Evangelina's twelfth year of age, a king paused to peruse the offerings of their stall. He traveled without pomp and ceremony; intent on finding a gift which he might take home to his True Love, for they had only recently learned they were to welcome a babe of their own.

He had the kindest and most expressive of sapphire eyes presented above a wide and genuine smile.  It was not clear if Evangelina recognised the status of the man for he was king of a neighboring land. It was, however, apparent that something in him captured her attention as none other had, for she dragged her chair to the front of the stall and jumped up onto it. Without a word she put her small palms against the king's cheeks and pressed her nose to his.

Her mother was horrified at such forward behaviour and apologised profusely. The king, though surprised at the young girl's antics, waved away the mother's concern and began to chuckle.

"T'is no worry. Will she tell my fortune or steal my purse?" The king asked, taking great pains not to blink as Evangelina's eyes bore into his.

"She would never steal, Your Majesty. She is given to peculiar turns, but always she is harmless," her mother assured.

Before the king could respond, Evangelina let go her hold upon the Royal face and, still standing on her chair, she turned to the riot of stuffed toys on her stall counter and picked up a yellow duckling.  After whispering in the duckling's ear she presented it to the king. Her face was very serious.

"Henry's been waiting for her. No other will do," Came Evangelina's pronouncement, her tone sure. When the king accepted the toy, the girl added, "Her magic will make the memories strong. "

The king's mouth dropped open in surprise before he chewed thoughtfully on his bottom lip. "Well, now. Henry, you say?" He asked, pinching the duckling's bill between his thumb and forefinger.

"Yes. Henry for her. Pretty yellow Henry for the little blonde babe," Evangelina confirmed, nodding vigorously. "They will be great friends."

The king laughed heartily, for he and Queen Snow had yet to use the charm that would predict the gender of the babe. He booped Evangelina's nose. "A little soon to be sure." He grinned conspiratorially, "But between you, me and Henry, I hope we do have a girl."

Evangelina smiled brightly and for a moment the king thought he saw a silver shimmer in the girl's eyes. "Pretty blonde girl for pretty yellow Henry."

The king was a kind man with a soft heart for children.  He'd had a fancy to buy something to match Snow's eyes, perhaps as a good luck charm towards the babe's having the same colour, but he could not look into Evangelina's earnest eyes and turn down the yellow duckling.

"I'll tell you what. I'll buy Henry, but only if you will make me something truly special in a particular shade of green. I'll even send you the material. Do we have a deal?" The king asked. He tucked Henry under his arm and held out his hand for the girl to shake and seal the bargain.

This offer set her  mother to calculating, but before she could suggest the price her daughter was shaking her head. "Henry is special. He will give them to her." Taking the king's proffered hand in both of hers and squeezing reassuringly, she added, "Until she is old enough to understand, they will comfort her."

The king cast a confused look towards the girl's mother, but saw she was just as uncertain as he. "Who will comfort her? Of whom do you speak?" He was beginning to think that the toy could be dangerous.

"Those who came before. The ones who would have loved her." Evangelina replied, her tone indicating that she thought it was obvious. She tilted her head to the side and observed his furrowed brow, then she pulled Henry from his grasp.

"He carries their love." She pointed to a patch of gold brocade. "Grandmother Eva's first ballgown." She pointed to a patch of pale yellow satin. "Grandfather Leo's favorite cravat, given to him  by his daughter." She pointed to a patch of ancient looking lace that had yellowed with age. "Grandmother Ruth's wedding dress. So many memories and lots of love. Henry carries them all. You see?"

The king could not get his voice to work, so he just nodded. His deep blue eyes glistened as he touched the lace of his mother's wedding dress. He may have been skeptical that these articles had found their way to Evangelina's talented fingers, but he felt the connection as he stroked the roughened lace. The dress had been sold for a debt many, many years ago, so he had never seen it, but he felt suffused with love as he touched it. However things had turned out, his parents had married from a deep romantic attachment. It was no difficulty at all to know that Snow would treasure what this link to both their pasts would give to their child.

Evangelina was right; no other of the stuffed toys would do and no other would be needed.

His fingers trembled slightly as he took the toy into his possession. Knowing it for the miracle that it was, he was not going to question it. "Thank you. Thank you. This is  . . .this is  . . . truly amazing." Tears fell as he cradled the toy.

The asked sum was paid, although the king argued it was not nearly enough for the gift it was giving his family. Evangelina's mother was shrewd and she asked that he spread the word and provide Royal endorsement for their wares to supplement the price. The king gladly agreed.

When the gorgeous blonde baby princess arrived some months later, she was tucked in her crib with Henry clasped in her chubby arms. As she slept peacefully with a soft smile, her adoring Mama and Papa liked to think how proud their own parents would be of their beautiful grand-daughter.

And if they thought they saw a soft glow emanating from Henry's historic patches and heard whispers that may have sounded like the voices of their beloved parents, well, perhaps it was not all in their imagination.