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jazeswhbhaven · 8 days

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We outside with a Bad Boy~ (Satan Attacker Prologue Part II)

P A U S E

if you're seeing this first, check out Part I here ->

If you already checked it out, then let's continueeeee

So we left off on Beel trying to take MC away before shit went down in Satan's office. So here we have Levi trying to guilt trip them into going with him (thanks Levi)

And then we have Mammon who's just trying to have a relaxing spa day (in boiling gold....Mammon...please think about how human bodies and skin work against a temperature so high where gold can be boiled please babes)

So because MC can't make a choice at the moment, all three kings are growling at each other (i'd be melting to be honest because yes fight over me) and then there's something strange? another noise? huh?????

HE WHAT

So we have Satan busting inside his office, slamming the kings into the wall, and doing that ever so famous Akira motorcyle pose to come whisk MC away from the scene.

And idk about ya'll but even though I was having a time watching those three fight over MC, I was rooting for Satan being able to take them away because I mean...presentation. He showed up like the badass he is AND on a motorbike he tinkers and fixes up himself?

handy. hot. fast. amazing hair.

let's motherfucking go bby.

So we begin the chase....and from this screenshot alone, I'm pretty sure he's done something similar before where he's had to run away from them at some point. Probably when they were kids and playing tag.

SO they do come after MC and Satan. Mammon using his gigantic hands and Levi's monster tentacle things that he summons from his coffin. (iirc from his event that monster is called Leviathan and Levi just adopted the name because he doesn't actually have a real name just a number he was given at the devil camps)

So let me get this straight for a moment.

The nobles and other subjects that help in the palace were just getting done fixing up the place and here comes these two crashing and bashing things up again.

I'd be pi s s s s e d as a citizen who just finished fixing up my driveway/house and it gets fucked up again. It reminds me of Gotham city. Like what insurance will cover this? (lmao)

So Beel is also chasing us with his swarm of flies. Satan isn't worried about this nor was he worried about Levi or Mammon, calling them slow for how large they are and himself quick and nimble because of how 'small' he is compared to them.

And it clears because he maneuvers through those skinny-ass alleyways of Gehenna quite easily, and it's unfamiliar stuff for the other kings so ofc they can't really catch Satan on his own stomping grounds.

But full stop before I continue.

Have ya'll noticed that Satan embodies street punk, bad boy could be in a biker gang or part of the yakuza but lives in a quaint European town like Gehenna with Victorian meets Balenciaga (cause of the Gucci/Loui V boots) dressed nobles? Like...I feel Gehenna should have been reminiscent of a place like Cyberpunk 2077 or like that city in Gantz.0 or just anything city wise with lots of rainy days and cyberwave music.

So back to our story because I had to stop and think about some wishful stuff for Satan lmao

SOOO he ended up killing Beel's flies because he knew the exact time that a restaurant throws out their hot boiling pots of water for this weird red corn with teeth that Belial eats a lot (gawd I'd starve in Hell nothing is normal for me to eat lmao)

And he zoom zoom zooms to different part of the city

NOW HERE IS WHERE IT GETS HOT FOR ME

Sometimes I keep forgetting that I like certain elements of Satan. That he has qualities that I thirst for in theory for a partner that I know I don't want irl because the moment they even do it I'd dry up like a desert.

But when Satan does it? Floodgates.

So we're in an alleyway of just an area that looks nothing like the rest of Gehenna (peep the background it looks like a downtown area unless Europe is like that, idk I've never been outside the states with my broke ass, I just recently got my passport like a couple years ago T^T)

And MC is talking loud as per usual, and Satan is like "shhh" lmao

the reason being is because he's trying to make sure that he got away from everyone, and since all they hear are just random citizens in suits walking around, that means the coast is clear for now.

also, he's heated up? oh you know what that means

Okay I take back my prior statement about the background, I couldn't see the transition to the city area MY BAD FOLKS

anyways Satan's got us all pushed up on the wall, MC describing how they haven't seen him in a while so everything is like new, like how they first met, and that he may be smaller than the other kings, but he's larger than MC (lets me know that MC is probably at best 5ft 5 or 5 ft 6)

Also...grabbing MC by the scruff of their neck? HELLO?

Now see...he would of had me right there. I'd be a trembling mess because don't tell me that while we're outside? You need to?

Mean you are horny as fuck right now and you need to take me to pound town? AFTER SAYING ONLY HE CAN TAKE US ANYWHERE FUCHOSUJNCOJOKLSNLJKNFLKJ

Look at the pan out on the first screenshot, I'm crying...his horns make up most of his height and that will always amuse the fuck out of me.

Also MC brought up that his body is hard, like he's made of condensed muscle and I'm like oh you know when people draw on large canvases and shrink it down and the image because sharper?

(I know weird analogy but work with me)

that pink CAWK could reach anywhere as far as I'm concerned

oh I jumped the gun earlier...this is when he says he can take you anywhere lololol

but yeah that would send me to the heavens, i'd be begging for him to fuck me at this point like take me ANYWHERE SATAN like I know you will, because yeah.

^^^ me with that d i c k

ANYWAYS LOLOL I'm so unserious ya'll i'm sorry

But that ends the prologue. I DO plan on summarizing the rest of this story btw but I have to figure out how I want to do it because it's mostly just smut stuff lmao and I have to choose the screenshots carefully cause his dick is out in most of it and tumblr is NO NO with that.

As my closing statement there was a time where MC was just like "I wish there were three of me so I could go with all of them" and I'm just thinking to myself....

Beel would be interested in helping you tackle that, MC...and then Levi would probably be like "Yeah if I hack you into pieces for not coming with me" and Mammon is just like "Three of you? All for me??? :D"

It would be so silly.

but as usual, thank you for stopping by and reading my react rambles. It's always a pleasure and I appreciate you all <3

Stay tuned for more react posts because I'm on a role today~ so you will be bombared.

your lovely admin- \(♡´౪<♡)/

#whb #what in hell is bad #whb satan #whb screenshots #whb attacker stories #whb stories #what in hell is bad satan #i'll never get tired of thirsting over satan lmao you'd swear he's my fave

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drdemonprince · 2 months

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Autistic friend anon here — thank you so much for your answer and the substack post. I was kind of stuck in the “rejection” feeling of “wait but if being autistic isn’t a bad thing then why are you so upset at the idea that YOU might be autistic”. I took it really personally and wasn’t really thinking about how much it sucks when someone acts like they know you better than you do. I’ll have to keep working through that.

I also often get stuck in the idea that “well if someone had just TOLD ME I was queer/trans/autistic then I could have figured it out sooner and life would be better” or whatever. But after many years of being out as queer/trans, I think that isn’t actually true and even if it is, I don’t interact with other possibly queer/trans people by “diagnosing” them with queerness/transness any more. In my head it seemed like autism was different for some reason, but of course it is not.

Anyway, your answer was really thoughtful and diplomatic, while also being very clear about what is bad behavior on my part. It is genuinely going to be a big benefit in my life.

Hey, nice to hear from you again!

I totally feel you. When I told a friend years ago that I thought she might be a BPDer, I was incensed that she ended up not taking that comment well. I meant it in an affirming, pro-Mad-Pride kinda way! I was a BPDer too! if she thought it was bad to be BPD, what did that mean she thought about me?

But I was looking at it the wrong way. I had just hurled a still very stigmatized label in her direction as a response to her complaining about real relational struggles in her life, which felt diminishing and presumptive. Telling various people in my life that I'm pretty sure they're Autistic can have a similar effect, even if they're on board Autism acceptance as an idea.

I used to fixate on the time I lost not realizing I was trans or queer or whatever the fuck I am yet. I had a vision of an older me materializing before me at age 16, specifically on the corn-lined roads I used to bike up and down furiously, and imagined telling myself the Truth of who I was and what I had to do to be happy. I believed that if i had known I was trans younger I would have avoided a lot of upsetting relationships, eating disordered periods, and general angst.

Now. I am pretty damn sure that is not true. It turns out that being trans was not a solution to all my problems, it was just another problem that I had. In the sense that it's a challenge to navigate on this bitch of an earth. if i hadn't chosen to be trans i would have chosen some other shit to do that also would have been a major pain in the ass i'm sure. that too would have been an interesting back story.

I dont think I was ever going to be outgoing and unneurotic and breezily well adjusted. That's not my lot in life. Feeling a little uncomfortable in my body and around other people is as definitional a part of me as my wit or my weird laugh. I can kinda love that about myself now, or at least accept it. nothing and nobody actually could have saved me. its just not that simple. but it's been a pretty interesting life.

i think we tend to impose our self-narratives onto other people when we are not happy or we are harboring deep regrets about having gotten something wrong or missed something in the past. but we cant spare our friends those journeys. they should get to have them. it's interesting and enriching to get things wrong, be in denial, cope in elaborate stupid ways, soul search, change our minds, miss something, find something, never know what's true.

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anhonestdaysworkcomic · 15 days

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TELL US SOMETHING COOL AVOUT MEDIEVAL FARMING PLEASE!!!

GLADLY

ALSO sorry this took so long to answer. Every time I remembered I wanted to reply, I was at work and didn't have my notes in front of me.

SOME THINGS I THINK ARE COOL ABOUT MEDIEVAL FARMING (and/or historical farming because some of these are earlier)

So the Romans are usually credited with bringing the coulter (a sharp knife at the end of a plough) to the Celts, but there's evidence the Celts already had this technology due to 7th century carvings found on a rock in Val Camonica. Pliny also wrote that the Celts in Raetia invented the wheeled plough

Also! Apparently ploughs were usually shared throughout villages and were kept at the church to be rented out accordingly

The Celts also had a harvesting machine as early as the 2nd century!! The Celts called it a messor (and the Romans called it a vallus) but its essentially a cart with "teeth" on it and as it's pulled through a field (by oxen) the grain/corn would be pulled through said teeth and the ear would be torn off the stalk and fall into the cart

Another neat thing I found was how the Celts stored their grain!! They would place the harvested grain in souterrains- which were large holes dug into rock (usually chalk) and then covered and sealed with moist clay and then topped w soil. Apparently as the grain is exposed to the damp walls they germinate and use up all the oxygen while also releasing carbon dioxide which causes the grain to sit in a sort of suspended animation, keeping it preserved.

They also used small, raised granaries as a storage method, but I think the souterrain is cooler. You can also make silage with a souterrain!! (silage is fermented grass to feed your animals as a supplement to Hay)

Also Hay is just dried grass. I always thought it was a grain or something like wheat. But no, it's dried grass. Also you can't harvest hay if it rains. You need like a week of good weather so the hay can dry out before you bundle it and deposit into a barn/hut/loft

I also learned there's different farming. You can do pastoral or arable farming (or some combination of the two.) But pastoral farming is about cultivating animals and arable farming is about growing crops, and what you focused on tended to be dictated by the landscape. Steep areas are hard to grow crops on, so you'd focus on animals (especially ones that do good with unsure footing like sheep and goats.) But if you have nice weather and flatter land then you'd focus on growing crops

I'm planning to place this story in a setting similar to the Alps, and they have a fun tradition where in the spring they migrate their cattle to higher altitudes (the actual alps) so they can graze in high altitude pastures during the summer (there's also a lot of cheese making during this time,) and then during the fall the cows migrate back down to the valley before it gets too cold

Oh, and this is a silly tidbit; but apparently Julius Ceaser thought the Celts regarded chickens as holy and thought that they never ate them. The Celts did eat their chickens (waste not want not and all that.) They also used to host chicken fights

I've learned a lot more than this, but these are the best tidbits

Thank you for asking!! This was my favorite ask to get!!

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integra1127grimmreaper · 3 months

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Never Forgotten (Joel Miller)

Joel Miller Masterlist

Warning: mention of loss/death, depression, angst, fluff

Summary: This story is very dear to me, written in honor of my late mother for the one-year anniversary of her passing (March 30th). Recognizing the same signs of hopelessness in her that he had been through, Joel reaches out a helping hand to get her through it. Inspired by Jessica Andrews' - Never Be Forgotten.

"Jesus, that woman's been here every night for the past week" Joel utters out after noticing her in a far corn of the Tipsy Bison.

"She's havin' a tough month, let her be" Tommy bumps him with his shoulder to head for the bar.

"Drinkin' every night's a tough month?" Joel drawls, staring at her over his shoulder as she throws back shot after shot from the bottle on the table in front of her.

"Leave it alone, Joel..." Tommy warns him, eyes filled with sympathy as he chances a glance over his shoulder.

"She's been neglectin' her duties 'cause she's drunk off her ass everyday" Joel snarls out in disgust.

"No, she ain't" Tommy replies, "Maria gave her some time off."

"To drink?"

"Joel" Tommy scowls at him, "let it be. Let her be."

Joel's brow shoots a high arched brow at him, shrugging then, "fine. Ain't my business anyway."

The subject had been dropped, yet Joel couldn't help but think about her. He didn't really know her that well, they had never really crossed paths, but he remembered seeing her in Maria's group the day they made it to Jackson. She and another woman, almost identical to her had their guns pointed at him but what made him take notice of them; was that neither of them had it pointed on Ellie while the dog cleared them. What further piqued his interest was the soft banter between the two as they rode; the older one tilting her head in his direction and her telling the woman to "fuckoff" as they both softly chuckled. Joel didn't see either of them after that, as he and Ellie had left the next day. Even after that, he had only seen her from a distance, neither of them being on the same patrol group ever.

It was an hour after the conversation that Tommy softly nudges Joel in the side, "fuck! The hell was that for?"

Silently tilting his head toward the door, Tommy directions him to follow and that's when Joel notices her exiting through it. "How the fuck she is still standing up straight after all that?"

"Where the fuck are we going?" Joel grumbles as they step out the bar.

"Wanna make sure she gets home safe" is Tommy's only response.

"Looks fine to me" Joel mutters out scowling in her direction as they follow at a distance.

"She hides it well. But she ain't" Tommy responds, a heavy sigh leaves his lips when she heads into the direction of the graveyard.

"Oh" Joel remarks when the realization hits, "she's in mourning..."

"Yeah" Tommy answers as they watch her standing in front of the entrance, "her mother."

"The woman that was with her the first time we got here?" Joel enquires, remembering the similarities in features between them.

Tommy nods in response, "they were inseparable. Best mother-daughter duo Jackson's ever had, had to be with how they managed to survive on their own till they got here."

"Thought they were sister's" Joel comments, a bit surprised at the news, "the mother still looked young, and they acted more like friends."

"She's 32 and her mother was 50" Tommy remarks, nudging him a bit harder to follow as she leaves the graveyard. "

"Jesus, the mother seemed young to have a daughter her age."

"Look who's talkin'..." Tommy drawls sarcastically, eyes narrowing with a knowing smirk. "Were ya checkin' her out...?"

"Shit", Joel cringes internally, thinking quick on his feet to distract from the truth. "Who? The mother?"

"Quit fuckin' about. Ya damn well know who."

"God, no!" Joel scoffs, "the mother was younger than me for God's sake. I'm far too old for her..."

They pause to watch her enter her home, turning around once it's clear she's safe inside. "Ya both have something in common, reversed... but still similar. Just saying."

"Ya crazy" Joel softly mutters.

Tommy shrugs a sympathetic smile, "do me a favor, if ya see her leave the bar before I do. Keep an eye on her."

Joel's brows furrow in deep thought, exhaling heavily and silently nodding in agreement.

Joel wasn't quite sure why hell he was here and have been for the past week, maybe it was because he made a promise to Tommy or he's doing it because he knows exactly how hard it is to lose the person that was the biggest part of your heart. The heartache of having the parent-child relationship ripped away by death, especially when it had only been the two of them since day one.

He didn't actually have to be here every night; Tommy was always around but tonight Joel was glad he was. Tommy couldn't make it and she seemed extremely bad off as she sat staring at the bottle in front of her in a trance. Joel knows that look, has had that look plastered over his face once long ago.

Joel tenses when she suddenly gets up, grabbing the bottle and heads for the door. "She usually finishes it before leaving... somethin' ain't right."

Joel quietly follows her as usual; keeping a distance once she stops at the graveyard entrance. He patiently waits for her to finish her nightly ritual, but she does something that surprise him then. Taking a long swig of the bottle, she then enters the graveyard instead of heading home.

Joel knew she went in to visit her mother's grave and knowing from personal experience the need to grieve alone; he waits outside to give her privacy. Quite some time had passed as Joel waited for her to finish her visit, mentally asking himself why was even doing it. Maybe it was because somehow, he feels a connection with her with what she was going through? Or maybe, he was growing soft.

Joel's thoughts are suddenly interrupted by the feeling of raindrops begin to fall, looking up to the dark sky; he lets out a heavy sigh as it rains starts pouring. "She'll catch her death in this weather..."

Rolling his shoulders back to mentally prepare for what he was about to find, Joel makes his way into the graveyard to find her.

I'll always see your face The corner of your smile And all the little things that no one will ever know Like it was yesterday Won't ever fade away Goodbye is just a word that I will never say

You will never be forgotten A million days could pass us by But what is time but just a dream Oh, I still feel you here with me You're more than just a memory Oh, you will never be forgotten

It was a bit of struggle through the rain and darkness, but Joel eventually finds her; sprawled out cold over your mother's grave, the alcohol bottle lying empty beside her.

Heart racing in fear; Joel crouches down to check if she's breathing, breathing out a sigh of relief then, "thank God, she's only passed out drunk."

Carefully grasping hold of her; Joel softly groans as his knees and back protests when gently lifting her up in his arms. Making it to the entrance without any incidents; Joel silently scans the empty streets as he ponders what to do with her.

His house was far closers and she needed to be out of these drenched clothes or risk the chance of getting sick.

With that thought in mind, Joel lets out a sigh of defeat and heads in direction of his house.

Successfully making it in the house; Joel contemplates for a second while standing in the living-room with her passed out in his arm, eventually deciding on his bedroom.

Gently placing her on the bed, Joel stares frowning at her unconscious state sprawled across his bed. "Now for the difficult part." He goes to his dresser for a shirt, coming back and begins to gently, yet respectfully strip her of the drenched clothing. Staring with her shirt first, the air exits Joel's like a punch to the gut when he notices the memorial tattoo across her collar bone.

"Shit. Today was the one-year anniversary..."

I can't hold your hand Or look into your eyes And when I talk to you It just echoes in my mind But if hearts are made of dust And if we fell from the stars I look up tonight and know just where you are

You will never be forgotten A million days could pass us by But what is time but just a dream Oh, I still feel you here with me You're more than just a memory Oh, you will never be forgotten

Clutching at her pondering head, she sets up with a heavy groan, "where the hell am I...?" While silently scanning the room she had woken up in, her eyes instantly fall on a familiar coat hanging of a chair. "Joel Miller's?"

She knew that Joel was the person accompanying Tommy while keeping an eye over her during the pass nights but never thought that he would go this far out of his way. The two of them barely knew each other, only having been in proximity to one another once the first time he and Ellie had arrived in Jackson over a year ago. Her mother had field day when noticing the manner the two of them silently side-eyed one another. It didn't matter whether was an attraction or not, as he left the very next day and not long after that, her world came crashing down.

Silent tears pricked at her eyes at the thought of her late mother; she had lost the only thing she had left in this doomed world and now had nothing of meaning to live for.

"These no use in wasting time on matters that can't be changed", she shakes her head to clear it, "might as well go downstairs and face the music."

Like a meek mouse, she makes her way into the living-room; a rush of guilt coursing through her when noticing the blankets and pillows on the couch. Hearing movement in the kitchen she heads towards it, finding Joel in front of the stove; she loudly clears her throat to make her presence know.

"You're awake" a wide-eyed Joel turn around.

"Yeah" she mutters, shyly looking down for a second then back up at him, "thank you."

"Don't mention it" Joel awkwardly responds, clearing his throat then, "coffee?"

"Love some" she faintly smiles, taking a seat at the kitchen counter as Joel pours it.

Both sit in awkward silence for a moment as they sipped at their coffee, finally she breaks the silence. "Sorry for burdening you."

"Couldn't leave ya in the cold rain. Wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I did" Joel replies with a sympathetic smirk.

"Hope you were one when undressing me?" she looks up from the cup with a smirk of her own, softly giggling when Joel blushes at her words.

"I... erm... couldn't let ya catch cold."

"Was only teasing" she chuckles, reaching out and placing a hand over his, "thank you, Joel. I truly appreciate it."

Like a fish out of water, Joel silently frowns at her hand. Retreating her hand in embarrassment, she stares back at her coffee. "You saw the tattoo, so you know..."

"Yeah" Joel murmurs, staring at his own cup, "sorry for ya loss."

"Thank you" she whispers, tears beginning to prick at eyes. "May I ask you something?"

"Sure" Joel responds.

"I..." she takes a second to compose, "I can see that you know the loss of such a relationship..."

Joel doesn't respond, a deep frown across his face when she looks up at him.

"Does it-" she pauses as her voice trembles with silent sobs, tears freely flowing now. "Does it get better with time...?"

Joel remains silent as he continues to stare at her frowning.

Realizing it was a sensitive topic, "I... I'm sorry" she murmurs, getting up to leave but Joel is faster; grabbing hold of her arm, he pulls her into an embrace.

Holding tightly onto her as she sobs into his chest, Joel finally speaks. "Sarah..."

Lifting her head from his chest, she silently stares up at him.

"My daughter... her name was Sarah. And no, it doesn't get any better. There is comfort in knowing that they'll never truly be gone though... not when they'll always live through our memories of 'em."

With a teary smile, she presses her face back into his chest as she poured out her agony. Pressing a gentle kiss into her hair, Joel holds her tightly in his embrace as he gently rocks her back and forth.

And the world just keeps on going It has no way of knowing That you're gone

You will never be forgotten A million days could pass us by But what is time but just a dream Oh, I still feel you here with me You're more than just a memory Oh, you will never be forgotten Forgotten...

#joel miller #joel x oc #the last of us #pedro pascal

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luluwquidprocrow · 7 months

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sometimes a family is three orphans, their adopted daughter, one not-so-sad writer, and two triplets

frank, beatrice the second, the baudelaires, lemony, ernest, implied ernest/lemony

gen

3,598 words

In the grand tradition of all parents, the extended baudelaire family find themselves trying to pull a fast one.

for @asouefanworkevent's woevember day 4, the hotel denouement! some rambling headcanon nonsense half-fic about post-canon family that i had great fun doing. my favorite thing in the whole world is post-canon babybea interacting with her absurd enormous family. i love them all so much.

okay. so bear with me here

so i think most parents/guardians are at one point or another faced with Pulling The Ultimate Fast One on their children. this is related to Your Beloved Pet Died But We’re Telling You We Sent Them To Live On The Farm, but this version, in particular, is infinitely easier and harder. this one is The Switch. The Replacement. The Double. when the intrepid parent or guardian, under the cover of night, goes to the pet store to purchase The Exact Same Animal because the first animal had an untimely death. i will admit, this is the easiest with like, a goldfish, or something else small where you can usually get one that looks very similar.

now, for babybea, it’s a pumpkin.

so babybea (who is twelve at the time this story takes place), at the very end of september, carves a pumpkin, and she goes in with a VISION. she spends a couple hours on this pumpkin, carving an owl. It’s not, yknow, a realistic owl, but she adds a lot of tiny details, lots of lines for the feathers, and she carves a little mouse on the side too, and even gets the side of a tree in there, and the pumpkin carving kit the baudelaires purchased that year came with these little stick lights, to put in the owl eyes after carving, so it has orange eyes!! this is!!!! The neatest thing babybea has ever seen, and she is so thrilled with the results and very proud of this pumpkin. (for the record – violet carves a few pumpkins into a starry night with a moon, klaus carves monstera leaves, and. let’s be real. sunny bites a series of turnips into jack-o-lanterns.) (and then she stabs a couple white pumpkins into bigger jack-o-lanterns, for variety. all of them get different expressions!

sunny, arranging her carved vegetation on the baudelaire porch in order of emotion: perfect.) (no, i don’t know what order of emotion means. But sunny does.)

Then they all pile into violet’s car – pumpkin included!! – and drive almost an hour out of the city to the bildungsroman bed and breakfast. (frank and ernest decided, at this point in their lives, if they were going to commit to anything, it may as well be The Bit.) (it has a local reputation as a place with solid wifi, stellar bread, and great mattresses. The owners are considered minorly eccentric, mostly for the portrait they have in the lobby, of, just one of them.

some impassioned yelp review: okay so the stay was great big recommend PLEASE try the bread but i cannot figure out the story behind the portrait in the lobby????? it's just one one of the owners?????? but I don't understand why bc they're twins and it's just ONE of them?????? and he's wearing this frog-patterned tie in the painting and when you see them like in person. neither of them wear the tie. what's the deal here

the locals are sure it's not an ego thing, bc the owners don't seem to be self-centered or anything like that. In fact, if asked about the painting, both of them will say, “oh, that's a painting of my brother.”

an additional yelp comment: I think. there's THREE of them a third yelp comment: don't be silly, they're definitely twins.)

frank and ernest have a very elaborate series of outdoor autumn decorations, with lots of pumpkins and mini gourds and hay bales over the front steps and corn stalks on all the porch posts, and babybea wants to not only show her uncles her hard work, but also put the pumpkin on their steps where everyone can see it!!

(her uncles also include lemony, of course – I think he did live with the baudelaires for some time after reuniting babybea with them, but has recently moved into ernest's side of the private apartment at the back of the hotel. this was mildly distressing to babybea, who likes everyone she loves under the same roof, but she can't deny that lemony is very happy. and so is ernest. and now she can see all her uncles in the same place whenever she wants!! so the baudelaires tend to spend weekends at the bed and breakfast, because they also miss lemony. and they get to know frank and ernest better, which is very important to them, as people who are important to babybea, and to lemony, and, to the baudelaire's past.) (not to like, detract from the sentiment here, but i do need everyone to know that i imagine ernest spends like, 80% of his working hours just making out with lemony.) (okay maybe not 80%. ernest does legitimately get work done, it’s his hotel too. ………but like, a lot of time.)

AND SO. the baudelaires arrive at the bed and breakfast, and frank and ernest and lemony are very proud of their niece's pumpkin. they take a lot of pictures. (re: my previous post-canon thoughts, frank has actually acquired a phone now, and does text. it is a flip phone.) babybea places it, very gently, on the third front step, and is so pleased. sunny steals two mini gourds while looking ernest dead in the eye. ernest approves.

But october turns out to be unseasonably warm, and babybea’s pumpkin, while lovingly carved but now lacking the support an uncarved pumpkin has to keep itself A Pumpkin, does not take kindly to the weather, and babybea actually becomes very distressed at the smallest signs of rot beginning to form in her pumpkin, when it is only the second week of october. She doesn’t TELL anybody, because there’s not really much you can do about a pumpkin doing what a pumpkin does in warm weather, but she’s very upset. (almost uncharacteristically so. usually she’d say, oh, well that’s how it happens, and rather pleasantly move on, but lately, she’s been kind of. quieter than usual.) And frank, who spends a great deal of time at the front desk, closest to the pumpkins, becomes Concerned.

now, in general, babybea’s family is like, pretty good at being realistic with her. She is of course an optimist, but still Aware of a great deal of the ways of the world, given her family, her upbringing, lemony’s books, her own adventures, everything. You can’t really shield this twelve year old from the ways of the world, even if that way of the world is, a rotting vegetable. All things have their time, and it cannot be stopped. Including seasons, and in-season foods.

However. She put SO MUCH WORK into that pumpkin, and as the week goes by and the pumpkin starts to shrink in on itself, turning all of babybea’s work black from the inside out, those charming little glowstick eyes CAVING IN, and the baudelaire’s weekly weekend visit grows closer and closer, frank has been imagining her devastated reaction when she sees the pumpkin, and decides, He Must Pull The Fast One. he will re-carve the pumpkin, exactly as babybea carved it, replace the pumpkin, and no one will be the wiser. They get a little more time with the pumpkin, presumably at least until halloween, and his niece gets to see her beautiful handiwork as much as she likes. Maybe, you know, there is a little magic in the world after all, to make a pumpkin look so nice.

(also, i think frank has. A shaky relationship with babybea, from his end. She loves him, as much as she loves everyone else in her family, and babybea herself would NEVER rank her uncles in order of how well she knows or admires them, but i, lulu vandelay, putting this together, have no qualms in saying she knows lemony the best, bc she has spent the most time with him, between trying to find him and both of them trying to find the baudelaires and all of them having lived together, and she’s rather deeply attached to him – ernest is very personable, and funny, so he’s easy to get along with – and she and frank both like tiny detail work, so they have things in common, but frank always seems very awkward around her. And he is. It’s bc he’s very nervous around her. Frank doesn’t think he’s good with kids. And he is usually acutely aware that in an ideal world, he isn’t the one she’d be spending her time with, that dewey would be so much better at all of this than he is. A better parent, a better brother, a better everything. Because dewey always was, to frank. but, dewey would probably want frank to do as much as he could for her, and would believe him absolutely capable of doing it, without a doubt. So he wants to be a proper uncle to her and THIS is his opportunity, he thinks. He so desperately wants to do something kind and considerate and important for her, like family is supposed to do for each other.)

the thing about pumpkins, though, is that, for some reason, mid-october, THEY ALL DISAPPEAR. I’m serious, you ever try and find a good pumpkin even like a little over halfway through october? It can be hard.

frank: i need your assistance. ernest: i’ve killed my quota for the month. frank: i – ernest, please. ernest: alright, my apologies. What do you need? frank: a pumpkin. lemony, from the kitchen: jarrahdale or red warty? frank: no, i mean a carving pumpkin.

The three of them take a good, long look at babybea’s pumpkin. Uncle Instincts Have Activated. They, very solemnly, bury the pumpkin in the back garden (lemony is the one who takes one for the team and removes the glowstick eyes from the depths of sad, sad pumpkin). And then embark on a mission. Please imagine the three of them packed into a mint green 1960 chevy corvette. Sunglasses optional. Who’s driving? That is up to you, my friend. Oh, google informs me it is cascade green. Imagine accordingly. (yes, no corvette has ever been made with more than two seats, but isn’t that just funnier? They really are packed in there. Lemony sits in the middle.)

The hunt for the right pumpkin is long. Grueling! Kinda chilly! This is october!! Much comparison is made between potential pumpkins and the pictures they took of babybea’s pumpkin. Snacks are purchased. (lemony, who has recently been introduced to instagram, posts a picture of his pretzel. [ernest is out of focus in the corner, eating a chocolate ice cream cone.] [#pretzel.]

sunbad: what is that lemonysnicket: I have purchased a pretzel sunbad: without me sunbad: you’re dead to me.)

(it was actually not sunny who introduced lemony to instagram, although she was his first follower. It was klaus.) (klaus uses instagram mainly to never post anything ever, just to follow his favorite authors, so he wanted lemony to have an instagram, especially since he just moved out.) (klaus……..my heart………..) (oh, frank bought chex mix. he likes those gross rye bread pieces.)

(don’t get me started on lemony with an instagram……….I think this is a hilarious but also heartwarming thought – this man who has avoided being photographed for years and years and years and YEARS (yes that much repetition was in fact necessary) is at a point in his life here he is not only comfortable of taking pictures of his life, but he is capable of doing it, he’s allowed!! It’s still probably mostly food and it’s so good!!!!!!!! and think of the amount of pictures he keeps just in his phone gallery, too!!! violet’s inventions and klaus’ library displays and sunny’s baking and babybea’s school projects and ernest’s record collection and frank’s breakfast spreads, and nature shots with lemony’s thumb in the corner, AAAAAAAAAAAA) (uh, anyway, these men are on a mission. back to the mission.)

Eventually, they do find a comparable replacement pumpkin! Does it fit in the car? Lemony, by virtue of sitting in the middle, holds the pumpkin.

They return to the bed and breakfast. Between the three of them, many different knives, and all of their photos, frank and ernest and lemony painstakingly recreate babybea’s pumpkin, down to the last, smallest detail. Including the little mouse and the side of the tree and the feathers and everything. (frank does do most of the work, because ernest and lemony very much see that this is important to him, but he doesn’t mind them helping, because, yknow. This is about family, and babybea is their family too.) (frank feels like he owes lemony a lot. for trying to set the record straight about their past. or as straight as one could try and set it, with what all of them did. for their niece. for making ernest happy.) (ernest deserves to be happy, with everything they put each other through. ernest thinks the same for frank, too.)

(ugggggg if you told the three of them when they were so much younger that one day they’d stay up late recreating their niece’s perfect pumpkin masterpiece so she’s not upset about the passage of time………..)

(who’s in charge of the bed and breakfast while all of this is happening??

ernest: mallory, you’re in charge. mallory, a twenty-two year old with a major in hotel management who runs the front desk when ernest and frank can’t: sounds like a plan.

mallory has a deep respect for the denouements. meanwhile –

mallory: so you’re lemony snicket. lemony: i am, yes. mallory: you don’t look like your photo. lemony: that’s my legal representative. he has a stamp.)

meanwhile meanwhile – it is not necessarily about the pumpkin.

For babybea’s part, she already firmly believes that there is some sort of magic in the world. Even at twelve. Especially at twelve!! Look, she knows it wasn’t magic that reunited her with her family, that it was her and lemony’s hard work, but she wound up with SO much more family than she expected, when she first contacted lemony. And like, that is what there’s magic in. this whole group of people who care about her and love her and want to spend time with her. Babybea thinks she has the best family in the whole entire world. (AND SHE’S RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!)

But that is also babybea’s problem right now. She loves her family so much, and she loves having them, and it’s been a couple months but she is still not entirely comfortable with people she loves being so far away from her. Not now! Not when they’re all supposed to be in the same space, like they’re supposed to be!! And some kids at school have teased her, not so much about her puzzle-piece family but that she talks about her uncles so much. She’s just proud of her family and she loves them!! But middle schoolers are like, rude as fuck sometimes, okay. And they don’t even think they’re saying anything wrong, just offhand comments about how much she talks about them. They don’t even know anything about her parents, not really, but babybea starts to feel like, it’s the unspoken throughline in what they’re saying, why doesn’t she ever talk about them? Why only her uncles, her guardians? They’re her family, but –

she feels almost guilty, that she goes through periods where she doesn’t even think of her parents at all, and periods where she can’t stop thinking about what they would look like and what they would be like, and that makes her feel like she doesn’t value the family she DOES have. So it’s not necessarily about the pumpkin starting to rot, what’s making her upset. It’s that, the pumpkin is another thing in a line of things babybea is Thinking about, things that aren’t Going the way she thought they were supposed to go. Her uncle moving out, missing somebody who was supposed to be there, her pumpkin not staying like it’s supposed to, she’s SUPPOSED to love her family but is she loving them right? Is she loving the right people right? Can you miss people you didn’t even know? And babybea has it very set in her head, the things she knows and is supposed to do – this is something she hasn’t quite worked on, but she’ll get to it eventually, she is still twelve – and they keep not happening like that. And now. Something else she worked really, really, really hard on, that isn’t going right either.

So she spends the week a little gloomy about her pumpkin, and worrying the whole ride friday afternoon after school to the bildungsroman bed and breakfast. Violet and klaus and sunny are very aware of babybea’s mood, and try to cheer her up by asking her about what she’ll be for halloween, but babybea’s heart is not super into this conversation. (she has ideas about a big group costume where they’re all different local birds, but now she’s not even sure about that.)

And then! She sees her pumpkin!! Glowy eyes and all!!!!! And, mysteriously, those little spots of rot she’d noticed the week before are gone, and, in fact, it looks a little sharper than it had before? And she didn’t think she’d cut the lid quite like that, but! That’s her pumpkin, exactly where it’s supposed to be!!! And it makes her feel just a little better. That’s good. That’s right. But she still can’t, entirely shake off all her previous feelings, about family. But. right now. Her pumpkin still looks very special.

Later, babybea can’t sleep. So she sneaks out of bed and goes down to the lobby, and sits down on the floor in front of the front desk, and looks at the big painting on the wall, that ernest did of her father.

This, of course, is where frank finds her. (because frank has never been very good at sleeping consistently, even when there’s nothing to worry about now, and he likes to walk through the hotel to make sure it’s secure.)

(ernest would say something very clever, like, aha, with a raised eyebrow, but all frank says is – )

frank: hello, beatrice. beatrice: oh! beatrice: hello, uncle frank. frank: may i sit down? beatrice: yes, please.

They spend a little while looking at the portrait.

beatrice: um – beatrice: does it –

What she wants to ask is, does it look very much like my father, which she then realizes is such a STUPID question if her father was a TRIPLET and she has a mirror image of him right in front of her, who acts like she thinks a father is supposed to act, so, but, it’s not like that doesn’t mean dewey didn’t look like dewey. Just because dewey looked like frank doesn’t mean he only looked like frank. And beatrice forgets, sometimes, that he would’ve just looked just like her uncles. But still!

beatrice: i mean – the painting, is it –

But she thinks it’s such a terrible thing to ask!! But frank knows EXACTLY what she means.

(some time ago, when the hotel had just opened and ernest had just painted the portrait of dewey –

ernest: i wanted it to look like him. And, it’s not like i, don’t know what he looks like. Looked like. I mean – that could just be me or you up there, couldn’t it. It doesn’t look like it’s him. frank: no, it does. frank, knowing exactly what he means and feeling like, he needs to make ernest Not look so abjectly miserable: you don’t look nearly as happy. ernest, in tears, very amused and touched and still terribly upset: wow!

The point being, god of course it looks like dewey. It couldn’t be anybody but dewey, even if dewey looks like other people. Dewey looks like himself, he looks like his family, he looks like beatrice, around the eyes. And family means lots of things. It means your guardians raising you, and your uncles raising you, and your father’s portrait on the wall and never knowing him at all, and loving so many people and being loved back by them, whether or not it’s Supposed to be a specific way, and sometimes it means missing somebody, sometimes it means missing different people, sometimes it means being sad for something you’re not sure if you should or could miss, sometimes it means not missing anyone at all, sometimes it means your uncle going to live with his definitely boyfriend even if they won’t say the words out loud who’s also your uncle just on the other side of your family and that doesn’t mean anyone’s going anywhere. Sometimes it means your pumpkin rotting, because things change. uh, does this make sense.) (admittedly, i put a lot of things in this.)

frank: yes, it looks very much like him. frank: i think about him a lot. beatrice: ......would he like my pumpkin? frank, without hesitation: absolutely. beatrice: do you like it? frank: i do.

of course babybea already knew that, but it's nice to hear. it's just. nice. it's not, like, everything? just like before. but beatrice is loved by a lot of people, and she loves them, too, and. she feels loved, right here, like she's supposed to, and that's what's Supposed to happen.

beatrice hugs him, and it's not the first time she's hugged frank, but it means more? frank hugs her back.

beatrice: thanks for fixing my pumpkin. frank: i’m sure i don’t know what you mean, beatrice.

beatrice hugs him again, and then goes back upstairs. frank looks a little longer at the portrait, and then goes to bed himself, and doesn't get back up until his alarm goes off.

#asoue #a series of unfortunate events #woevember #tadaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...................#you know what. for as much as i Did In Fact jam in here. bc my thoughts get away from me. i DO think i wrapped it up rather nicely.#the capitals are inconsistent bc i wrote this in googledocs and it just wants to capitalize EVERYTHING. AGAINST MY WILL #i am as stunned as you are that this is frank-centric. but sometimes the words happen.#if you were wondering. yes my parents did in fact Pull This Fast One on me. with. yes. fish.

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nintendroid · 2 months

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Went to mom's a few weekends back and uncovered this gem in the family photo album. What you're seeing here is me and my kid brother posing for a picture in the most extra way imaginable.

My mom had a polaroid instant camera all through our childhood but she rarely used it outside of family functions or special occasions. So when she just popped in on me (the dinosaur) and my brother (shirtless Batman), asking us for a picture, we made it an event. We wasn't just going to pose and smile, oh no, we had to get in costume and tell a brief story.

More interesting than the silly costumes and pose is my childhood bedroom in all it's early 90s glory! Let me give you all a tour of how I was living.

My Sesame Street baby lamp! - Like every preschooler, I loved Sesame Street. By this point I was a little too old for "the streets" according to my peers so I had to give up my fandom. While I moved on, I still kept the lamp as my night light for a brief time.

My Super Nintendo! - Man, was this thing special to me. I saved up my money for an entire year and bought this beast at the local K-Mart that summer. My family and I spent hours playing the pack-in games (Super Mario World, Super Mario All-Stars) and spent many more playing the likes of Donkey Kong Country, Joust, Galaga and Super Mario Kart. I don't talk about the SNES like I should, but it was an integral part of my childhood.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mini Mutants Playset! - This is the reason my mom wanted to take this picture. Me and my brother spent most of our childhood in sibling bloodsport but when something brought us together and made us play nicely, it was a big deal for my parents. TMNT Mini Mutants was apart of the "mini toyline" fad in the the 90s. Inspired by the success of Polly Pocket and Mighty Max, lots of properties made mini figures and awesome, detailed playsets for them to hang out in. I recall having a Spiderman one, a WCW one, but TMNT's was amazing. I got these for my 8th birthday and got HOURS of play out of them. They came equipped with little traps and missile-firing mechanisms and stickers and designs that rivaled the regular-sized playsets.

Dr. Pepper! - Me and my brother had a problem and her name was caffeine. We drank SO MUCH pop as kids its a wonder we didn't have issues with kidney stones or our teeth melting out of our skulls. My parents got to a point where they had to start hiding pop from us. So seeing an empty can of Dr. Pepper laying in the floor gets a big smile from me. I'm happy to report that outside of Stevia-sweetened pop, I'm a sparkling water guy these days. Cane sugar pop is a rare delicacy, but thanks to corn syrup, soda is basically poison now.

Black & White TV! - Couldn't find the exact model for comparison, but it's sort of similar. No cable, no color, not even antenna channels. This bad boy is how we played games most of the time - in glorious black and white with radioactive glow beaming into our faces. Next time I get frustrated about my framerate, input lag or picture quality issues, I'm going to remember where I came from.

Hope you enjoyed this little slice of the 90s. This time in particular was probably one of the happiest and most memorable of my childhood. The cliche is "I wish I could go back" but I enjoy my life now, but I wouldn't mind dropping in and just looking at everything before returning home :)

#tmnt #teenage mutant ninja turtles #dr pepper #nintendo #super nintendo #snes #super mario world #sesame street #nintendroid #nintendroid writes

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icey--stars · 9 months

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Born For Tragedy: Part 20

Series Index

She was tragedy. Nothing except death, fear and pain followed in her wake. When she was young, she was beaten. Now she’s the one doing the beating as an assassin. A mysterious stranger comes to her, paying an absurd amount of money for her to kill Beron Vanserra, and protect the eldest son until the job is done. She stumbles across a story much similar to her own, and knows what must be done.

a/n: this is mostly just an epilogue (and… well… calanmai again)! thank you all for reading and to those that have followed this story since the beginning (or really, just kept reading this story as it was written…) i love you <3 there might be bonus parts in the future, but not any time soon, but keep an eye out for them!

i probably won’t post any new stories any time soon and take some time for myself as life is getting hectic, but requests are still open! they just may be slow!

WARNINGS: SMUT AHEAD! (PRIMAL PLAY, overstim) MINORS DNI 18+ apologies if the primal play is odd- it’s my first time writing it. also, not proofread, so i apologize for any mistakes <3

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

Strangely, life for Valda stayed about the same after that. Eris and her were… tentatively happy. The other High Lords beside an asshole named Rhysand were a lot more pleasant to deal with. However, Kallias seemed extremely unsettled by the fact that it was an assassin helping to rule one of two neighboring courts to Winter.

Valda decided to let the title of High Lady sit for a while longer, however, and instead took up the position of spymaster, both to taunt the Night Court and to get her used to a leadership position. Surprisingly, she was actually really good at what she was doing with the spies, despite it being mostly within the court, and occasionally sending someone to another court to check on some rumor. Even training! But honestly, she should’ve expected that being a spy was basically the exact same as being an assassin besides the planned, paid killing.

Eris seemed incredibly proud as she slowly took on more roles and let her help him with some of the work he was doing for the court. Most of it was boring, however, and either writing letters or making decisions. The fun stuff was when you actually met with someone on the matter. Recently, it’d been lords coming to complain and she’d gotten to snark back like in the Night Court. Not her favorite line of work, but good enough.

Throughout the rest of “summer,” they focused on the Autumn Court and less on other-court relations. Very simple. However, come autumn, it was time to start with trade deals and sadly, invite people to the court for holidays and dinners and balls. The Night Court was not invited, however. Eris had decided that they’d let that one sit for a while before attempting to soothe some sort of relationship between the two courts. The Spring Court was also ignored mostly, seeing as Tamlin denied their invitation to a short dinner. Valda hadn’t been surprised.

She found the autumn holidays much more to her liking however. Harvest and the Autumn Equinox and all the hunting competitions- it was great fun. And there was food. Oh great Mother, so much fresh, delicious corn and bread. Oh, the bread was one of her favorites, especially when paired with some butter and cheese.

Through winter, they relaxed and managed the court through some hardships like a food delivery problem to some of the poorer individuals of the court. Of course, everyone was angry at Eris, as there was so much change and fae always were difficult with change. But, with some light discipline they were set on track.

However, spring came much too fast for Valda’s liking. Calanmai, and the anniversary of Beron’s death and Eris’s rise to power drew near. She was a bit… nervous to say the least.

There were rumors spreading through the Forest House and the entire court. The Maiden.

Her.

Secondly, Eris was acting weird. He seemed apprehensive about something and there were little spikes of happy nervousness when she came into a room or when they cuddled or even when they were having dinner.

She planned to talk to him about it tonight when he got back from training the pups. Well, they weren’t exactly puppies anymore and had grown considerably (Tempus was her favorite because she was the best cuddler out of the three) and were training for tracking and this week they were going to start some basic hunting commands.

But aside from the pups and Eris’s oddness, she was still anxious about Calanmai. Not for the anniversaries or anything, but purely because she didn’t know her job for it. Was she meant to turn into a whimpering mess for her mate in the middle of the forest? Honestly, they need to put some instructions out.

“Eris?” Valda asked one night. She knew Eris was exhausted due to all the work he’d been doing today, but she needed to know with Calanmai only two weeks away.

“Yes?” He asked, his face stuffed into her chest.

“What’s going to happen on Calanmai?” She asked.

Eris didn’t reply for a few long moments but eventually responded. “Nobody is going to force you to be the Maiden if you don’t want to. The Spring Court is the main one where they have to have one.”

“But won’t you…” She hesitated.

“It’ll be fine,” he dismissed. “I’m sure it's not that bad.”

That seems very wrong, considering her memories from the last Calanmai. “But won’t the court want to see proof that we actually are mates?” Valda argued.

“Probably,” Eris admitted, lifting his head now to meet her eyes. “But I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want to, even if it does leave me insane for a night or two.”

Valda winced at the thought. She didn’t want Eris to suffer.

“I just don’t know what to do for it,” She admitted quietly, glancing down and away from Eris’s gaze. “I know it's a sex ritual and all that you told me before but… it’s different being the Maiden, I’m sure.”

Eris hummed in agreement. “Well, from what I remember, the Maiden is obviously dressed down and when time hits, which is when the High Lord declares an official start to Calanmai, the Maiden begins running into the forest. The High Lord is forced to wait, normally getting quite unhinged before the people holding him free him. Then I suppose, it’s a chase.”

Valda hummed. “No winnowing?” She guessed.

“No winnowing, but I doubt anyone would even know. It’d only make the chase more interesting.”

“Oh?” Valda questioned with a little smirk. “And do you like interesting, my lord?”

Eris smirked. “Only if you do, my mate.”

Valda chuckled, shoving his shoulder as he leaned in to try and kiss her cheek. “Stop it,” she chastised.

Eris only got more insistent until he simply dropped dead on her and finally made her arm collapse at the elbow so he could plant his lips across hers with a happy hum.

Valda rolled her eyes, but made sure to participate in the kiss. She turned her head to force Eris away when he tried to nip at her lip. “Uh uh,” she said, tapping his lips. “You need rest , mister. As do I.”

“You wound me,” he said, tightening his grip on her body momentarily. “But really, nobody will force you to be the Maiden, no matter what. I will incinerate them.”

Valda smiled. “I know,” she whispered, pecking his forehead gently as he laid his head back down on her chest. “I’m just nervous.”

“Because you don’t know what to do or some other reason?” Eris asked.

“Well, I know mostly what to do now, don’t I?”

“So what else?” Eris asked, snuggling closer.

“As you might know, I have very limited experience with being submissive, and with the… primal part of it, I’m not sure.”

Eris hummed in acknowledgement, staying silent for a few moments before replying to her. “It’s supposed to be natural. You follow your instincts, that’s all. And honestly, if you want to chase me, I’m not arguing.”

“The court will,” Valda pointed out.

“Fuck them,” Eris said, chuckling. “If my mate wants to fuck me, I am not saying no.”

Valda rolled her eyes, but felt a bolt of heat settle in her abdomen at the words. “I’d like to do it the way that it was intended, Eris. I’m not breaking any traditions yet.”

“So you’re doing it?” Eris suddenly asked.

Valda hummed before sighing. “Yes.”

Eris chuckled. “I’m going to love you so good then,” he said.

Valda smiled at her mate’s words. “You already do,” she pointed out.

Eris remained silent for a few moments. Then, out of the blue: “I’m going to hunt you down and make sure you know you’re mine. I’m going to chase you through that forest because I need you so badly. Because you are my mate. My prey. You’ll try and run away but I’ll catch you and pin you down and then show you just how much I fucking know and own your body.”

Every word sent a rush of heat down Valda’s spine. Holy fuck. Why did that arouse her so much? Honestly. The idea of Eris chasing her alone was enough to make her knees wobble.

Eris had a shit-eating grin on his face when he looked up at Valda. She had a slightly open mouth like she was already panting from running.

“I knew you’d like that,” he whispered. “You like being my prey?”

Valda was speechless. Absolutely flabbergasted by this side of her mate. But she loved it.

Eris supported himself on his forearms, lifting his head to look into her eyes. “Yeah, you do, don’t you? You want to be chased and pinned down just like any prey out here. Except you want your hunter to catch you, don’t you? You want to be pinned down and taken right on the forest floor.”

Valda couldn’t fucking breathe. Why did she never let Eris be dominant before? It was so hot. So hot she could barely breathe and make coherent thoughts.

“Yeah, that’s exactly what you want,” Eris said, smirking above me. He pressed a chaste kiss to my lips before laying back down. “Rest, my prey. When Calanmai comes, I will give you exactly what you want.”

——

Valda was buzzing with energy. She stood underneath a tree wearing a lot less than she usually preferred (in fact, she was wearing a skirt; how terrifying). She wore a black bra that had lace that went down to her belly button with that knee-length black skirt. That still didn’t stop her from being armed, but as she saw Eris slide his shirt off and head to the raised podium nearby, her breath was stolen.

Cauldron, he’d been relentless in his teasing. At every opportunity, he called her “my prey” or “little deer” or something like that and it just set alight a flame between her thighs.

“Welcome, once again, to Calanmai,” Eris said loudly, catching everyone’s attention. “Fire Night at its finest. Let the flames be set alight!”

All around her, fires were sparked and lit up the area around them. There would be no faelights– only the true source of light in this world: fire.

Two of Eris’s brothers, Hue and Kuhn, came up to the podium then and put an arm around each of the High Lord’s to restrain him. The moon rose higher into the sky and Valda felt the magic hum in the air. Tonight was the one night of the year that fae from all Courts could cross borders without consequence. She already saw some people that stood out from the rest.

Valda began to pant in anticipation. Soon, they would release the “Maiden” and then soon thereafter, the hunt and eventual capture would begin. It was overwhelming in the best of ways.

She didn’t bother to look at who, but someone finally yelled “Release the Maiden!”

Valda didn’t waste a beat and began sprinting into the forest. The skirt certainly wasn’t the best to wear for this, but Eris had managed to convince her since it gave him more “access.”

She leapt over a log with ease, however, and continued bolting. She had a plan to make this chase last as long as possible. It’d only make the inevitable catch more exciting. Valda turned toward the Spring Court border, not planning on passing over it, but simply planning to mix her scent up and then winnow once her mate was released.

Too soon, she felt the excitement and energy on her mate’s side of the bond skyrocket. The High Lord had been released and the court awaited the inevitable capture to celebrate Fire Night. Valda didn’t waste a beat in winnowing to the edge of the camp and began running in the opposite direction she’d taken off in at first.

Eris would know she’d winnowed since she couldn’t mix her scent with the Spring Court’s flowers, but he’d still need time to track her. Even if the mate bond they shared was almost like a living beacon. Eris’s emotions were getting slightly weaker as he moved farther away.

Valda began running north blindly now, hopping over logs and circling around trees (even climbing some briefly) before continuing her sprint. By now, she was panting heavily. But her body felt alight with anticipation. She could feel Eris getting closer again. He was coming for her. And she was his little deer.

She ran now, not bothering to disturb her trail anymore as she fell into a blind, instinctual run. Like she really was the prey, falling to her instincts of fear. But it wasn’t fear driving her but lust. Oh, she could feel him near and she needed him. But he had to catch her first.

Eris had been adamant on telling her that he’d capture her on his own two feet. Not shifting into the maddening, terrifying creature of the High Lord or even winnowing. Eris was determined, and she could feel it.

Valda kept running, skirting around a pond that reflected the moon’s light. But then a shadow leaped for her from above and she screeched in surprise.

She was pinned on her stomach, arms behind her back as something panted into her ear.

“Got you, my little deer,” Eris whispered into her ear.

Valda moaned openly, closing her eyes.

“You tried to trick me, didn’t you?” He continued. “You tried to throw me off but it never worked because you’re mine.”

She could suddenly feel her clothing being ripped off however possible. Valda was bare under her mate and she couldn’t be happier.

Eris reached down between her legs and swiped through the wetness gathering there. “Oh, wet aren’t you, little deer? Do I need to clean this up before I take what’s mine?”

Valda could barely think. She hasn’t felt this turned on in centuries.

“Come on, tell your hunter. Perhaps I’ll be kind enough to give you some mercy.”

“Please,” Valda got out. “Please. Clean- clean it up.”

She knew Eris was smirking from where he was. In seconds, she was twisted around and shoved up against a tree where Eris lifted both her thighs onto his shoulders and began to lick her cunt like a male starved. Valda could not control her noises. Nor could she stop herself from barrelling into release only a minute later.

Eris only continued, however, and forced her body into an overwhelming overstimulation. Her mind was fuzz and her body couldn’t decide whether it wanted more or wanted Eris away from licking her clit.

When Eris finally did pull away, it was when she was steadily building toward a second orgasm. His face was a mess but he looked so dirty and it turned her on even more. Was that even possible at this point? Apparently.

“My poor prey,” Eris purred, leaning up to press lips to hers. “So helpless.”

Valda whimpered, closing her eyes. “Please,” she begged, arching her back under Eris.

“Please, what?” Eris growled, grabbing her chin to force her to meet his eyes.

“I need- I need you inside,” she begged.

Her mate smirked and then tore his pants and thrust inside of her hard.

It was fucking perfect. Everything was so much but it was so perfect. Valda couldn’t even begin to make words, but she distantly felt her orgasm building more and more.

Then it snapped and pleasure tore through her as she screamed, shouting Eris’s name as he only seemed to continue thrusting inside of her with more vigor.

“You’re going to stay there like a good girl until I’m done,” Eris growled.

Valda’s eyes rolled back into her skull as she gave herself over fully to Eris and the pleasure.

It felt like centuries passed when Eris finally growled into her ear and came inside of her. She quickly followed him over the edge at the heat flooding her belly, moaning obscenely. The heat wasn’t the only thing however- there was magic completely filling the air. The magic was thick and she knew that it would be felt across the Autumn Court, signaling the Maiden had been caught and that the celebration could properly begin.

When she came to, she was sore as fuck and Eris was gently sliding out, kissing her cheeks gently.

“Fuck,” she groaned, feeling a root digging into her back. She still felt aroused, despite being so sore. It must’ve been the magic, but she was going to need a little break after that.

“You alright, my love?” Eris asked, gently helping her sit up.

Valda leaned onto his shoulder as he moved beside her. “Mostly,” she chuckled. “I’m sore as fuck. Who knew that fucking on the floor of a forest was so bad for your back?”

Eris laughed. “It’s alright, I’ll take care of you.” A warm hand slid down her back to where the root had been digging in, and gently massaged the area. She sighed in relief at the immediate relaxation and pain relief.

“Want to go back to the Forest House?” Eris asked. “We can take a warm bath.”

Valda groaned. “That sounds extremely appealing right now.”

Eris smiled and suddenly, they were in the bathroom. Eris held her up when she stumbled at the suddenness of standing. “I’ve got you,” he promised.

Valda nodded, closing her eyes as Eris leaned down to put an arm under her knees and lift her up to his chest. She heard the unmistakable sound of water pouring from a faucet right after. Eris probably used his magic. He walked to sit down on the edge of the bathtub, kissing her forehead.

“I’ve got you,” he repeated.

She hummed, smiling. “I love you,” she whispered, kissing his cheek softly.

He seemed to beam at that little movement. “I love you too,” he replied. “Mate.”

“Mate,” Valda agreed. “My mate.”

Eris chuckled. “Come on, let’s clean up,” he said, standing and turning to gently set her down into a tub of warm water while he stepped in himself to settle behind her, hugging her from behind.

Eris began to gently clean them both up, rubbing shampoo and conditioner into her hair and washing her body from any dirt stains. He also used that time to use his heavenly fire magic to massage the sore parts of her body. (well, besides one.)

“You’re too good to me,” Valda whispered as he helped her rinse her hair.

“I’m giving you exactly what you deserve, Val. Love and care.”

Valda chuckled. “Funny, I probably wouldn’t have ever imagined myself like this when I first came to the Forest House.”

“Ah, yes. Adira Void. The spunky servant who didn’t bow her head.”

“Now Valda Callahan- hopefully one day, Vanserra. Mate to the High Lord of Autumn.”

Eris chuckled. “I will keep that hopefully in mind, my love.”

Valda grinned. “I know you will.”

“I would do it right now, but I lack the proper materials and the ability to kneel before you,” Eris chuckled.

“I’ll be expecting it then,” she chuckled.

“You won’t expect the timing at all,” Eris replied ominously.

——

Eris was kneeling. Kneeling. The sun was going down, turning a bright orange and beautiful red. Nearby, Lady Merle was gasping while Hue and Kuhn looked at each other in combined surprise.

“Valda Callahan,” Eris began, reaching back to his pocket as he stared up at her. A ring box came up in his palm and he opened it gracefully. “Would you do me the honor of marrying me? Of becoming my High Lady? For the rest of eternity?”

Valda couldn’t contain her smile as she looked down at the ring. It was perfect. Rose gold colored leaves went around each other and then held a beautiful circular bright forest-green jewel– an emerald, if she had to guess.

“Of course,” she answered. “Of course, my love. I would spend all of eternity with you regardless.”

Eris smiled and plucked the ring from the box and Valda offered out her left hand.

Eris carefully slid the ring onto her finger, kissing it and then standing up to kiss her lips properly.

He even dipped her and Valda laughed as they broke apart. “You are so dramatic,” she teased, lifting her hand to examine the jewel. “Emerald, right?”

“Emerald,” he confirmed. “Its meaning is much more appealing than a diamond.”

“What is the meaning?” She asked, ignoring the others around them for the time being.

“Eternal love, peace, hope and new beginnings. I thought it fit well with our pasts.”

Valda grinned. “You’re too perfect.”

Lady Merle’s happy squeal interrupted them as she rushed over. “Eris! I wasn’t expecting this! Why didn’t you tell me?! I could’ve helped-”

“Mother, mother, I was planning on telling you. Right now.”

Merle groaned as she turned toward me. “Welcome to the family, daughter. Eris chose well, with you. You will make a powerful leader and partner for him.”

Valda smiled. “Thank you, Merle,” she replied.

Hue came over and clapped Eris on the shoulder. “You know, I don’t think you’ll be half bad as a sister. As long as I don’t get on your bad side, I’ll stay alive.”

Valda scoffed. “The only family I might kill is my old one.”

Eris smiled and pulled her into his side. “Let me join you,” he said. “Your brother in particular.”

“What did your brother do?” Merle questioned.

“Uhm…” Valda hesitated. “My late father, brother and mother might’ve hit me a lot before I left Hewn City?”

Rage filled Merle’s gaze. “Eris, you’re sending a letter to Rhysand for me,” she said sternly. “Setting up a meeting between my new daughter’s old family and me. Just me.”

Eris swallowed nervously. “Something tells me I don’t want to make that meeting.”

“I’m coming,” Valda volunteered. “It can be a girls’ night,” she said, grinning at Merle.

Merle grinned back evilly. “Girls’ night. Yes, I think that’s a good idea.”

“Alright murderous people,” Kuhn said, placating from beside his mother, “relax. We’ve got a wedding to plan first. And a High Lady ceremony.”

“Yes, indeed we do,” Eris said, smiling and sending warmth down the bond.

Valda scoffed. “Fine. Murder after,” she offered.

Everyone laughed and Valda felt joy unlike any other filling her chest.

This was her family now. Her mate. Her life. Her court. She was at home. And always would be. She was no longer that tragedy of before with her Masters’ words bearing down on her and her brother’s words echoing in her ears. She was no longer born for tragedy. No longer an assassin. But a part of a family.

For the first time in a while, she thought the words “How beautiful” without being sarcastic.

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

TAGLIST (see post for getting added)

@bunnymallowo, @officiallyunofficialperson, @margssstuff, @rebloggiest-reblogger, @inpraizeof, @graciereads, @eos-princess, @imma-too-many-fandoms, @mali22, @sassybluebird, @bubybubsters,

#eris x oc #eris vanserra #eris acotar #acotar #acotar fanfiction #acotar fanfic #original character #oc #mywriting #acotar smut #smut

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seaofghouls · 4 months

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Iplier Falls

Authors Note:

Hello hello and welcome back! ( Or if you’re here for the first time, I’m glad you chose to check this fic out! Welcome! ) Never thought you’d see a rewrite of Gravity Falls x Iplier Inc in 2024, huh? The ALTRVerse comic has given me the motivation to get back into Markiplier Lore and hence I’m here!

This is the prologue and hence it's just a test to see how people react to it. If people react well, I'll put the story up on AO3 and make more chapters!

Some things to note about this fic:

It’s an X Reader and the reader is indeed the District Attorney from Who Killed Markiplier! ( So, obviously, WKM spoilers ahead! )

This is a Dark x Reader specifically.

This fic is in the second person and the reader is gender neutral!

Genderfluid Dark is canon in this fic, so I’ll be using He/She/They for Dark.

In Space With Markiplier will also be incorporated, so spoilers for that as well.

This story will follow the Gravity Falls story, but there’ll be added story for episodes revolving around the Pines family specifically.

This story contains things like profanity, blood, near death experiences, talk of mortality/death, and angst!

Tag List: @a-frozen-bag-of-corn @crazy-obsessed-enby @lunariasilver ( Not sure if any of you remember this series, but I figured I’d keep up the tag list! )

Without further adieu, I hope you enjoy it!

—-------------------------------------------------------

“What has he done to you?”

They looked so familiar. Like a far away dream.

“Captain, you can’t possibly listen to this monster! You can’t trust him!” Mark yelled.

“My little monster, I beg of you. Open your eyes. He takes away all that you love.” She begged.

That name.. It was like a puzzle piece. Everything snapped back into place in an instant. You weren’t a captain! You went to school for law, not to be the captain of a spaceship.

“.. Damien?” You whispered.

“Ugh, you’re just impossible!” Mark snapped, “How am I supposed to make the perfect story if all you do is mess it up!”

You couldn’t help but tense up at the sudden change in tone. That was right, this wasn’t your trusted second in command. This was a man long gone, a man permanently warped by the manor.

He twirled his cane in a clean and swift motion, aiming it towards you.

“I’ll just have to make sure you don’t remember any of this.” He threatened.

Dark intercepted Mark’s attempt with his sword, pushing Mark back a few feet.

“Not on my watch. Never again.”

Mark simply laughed, “The hero always wins. It’s the only way the story can go.”

Dark simply grit their teeth in response, slashing the sword against Mark’s chest. Although it barely grazed, it was enough to catch him off guard.

You watched as the two went head to head, being able to do nothing to stop either side. Even if you were willing to get in the way of the two, you had no weapon or no powers to do anything.

Actor sputtered as Dark tore open a gash across his chest. His blood was red, but not the usual type of red. Bright red, instead of crimson. Actor was caught off guard for just a second until he scrambled back, unsheathing his cane.

You’re sorry. Unsheathing his cane? That was insane! What was even more insane was the fact that the bottom of the cane was a dark red double sided axe. Dark seemed just as caught off guard as you were, as Mark obtained a window to slash her in the chest.

“Dark!” You called out.

He only spared a moment to look your way, with a look in their eyes signaling that they were alright before attacking Mark once again. SImilar to Mark, her blood was an inky black. Something inspired Dark to go full force, you weren’t sure if it was you or the entire revenge pledge.

He pierced Mark in the heart with their sword as Mark sputtered, that sickly red spilling out of his chest. He didn’t say anything after that, only heavy and labored breathing being heard from the previously lively body.

“We best be going. The Snake never stays dead for long.” Dark said.

You didn’t say anything as she opened a portal similar to the ones you’d seen as the captain of The Invincible. Except, it looked a bit like the Noir universe. A combination of black, white, and grey. You simply followed him inside the portal. What other choice did you have? Stay in this void until Mark’s body inevitably rose from the dead? The old Homo Necrosis didn’t sound like a fun route to go down.

Which led you to where you are now. A sleepy town named Gravity Falls. Dark had said that the laws of the town would cover up the tracks of you two, making it harder for Mark to find you again. You still had quite a few strong words for Dark, considering he trapped you in a mirror for decades, but that was the thing. It had been decades. You didn’t know what else to do other than follow them. Mark was obviously a no-go.

“Please, call me Dark.” He had said, “Damien and Celine are both.. Long dead. I have an apartment set up in the town, we can stay there until we know how to deal with The Snake properly.”

“Okay.” You said, “In that case, call me Captain. The person I used to be died in that house.”

She simply nodded, “As you wish.”

The two of you had been wandering around the town when you spotted a hiring sign for a tourist attraction.

“We could work here.” You said, “We need some way of paying rent, right?”

Dark hummed in thought, “It couldn’t hurt, I suppose.”

You strolled into the attraction with Dark following close behind. You spotted an older man shuffling money while standing at the cash register. He was probably the owner, right?

“Excuse me, are you the owner?” You asked.

He nodded, “What’s it to ya? You’re not the government, are you?”

“No, no, nothing like that.” You said. A little like that, but you weren’t going to tell him that.

“My friend and I heard you were hiring.”

“Great! You’re hired. Call me Mr. Pines.” He said, “You start tomorrow.”

“We’ll be there!” You smiled, as you walked back outside to talk to Dark in semi private.

“Have you learned nothing from your district attorney days?” He teased, “Truly, though, that man was a bit too eager.”

“Hey, it’s a job, isn’t it?” You shrugged, “Times have changed.”

“That they have.” She nodded, “Would you like to get some champagne? As a little celebration.”

“Really? Just like we used to? Even after everything that’s happened?” You raised an eyebrow.

“Especially after everything that’s happened.” Dark said.

You simply smiled in response as the two of you walked down the road to a nearby bar. You weren’t sure if he had said anything else to you, you were too consumed in your own thoughts. This seemed too easy, after everything that had happened.

You were a district attorney. One that got shot at a party held by Mark himself. You didn’t blame William. Mark set everything up. A bitter man who fell victim to insanity. You had considered resenting Dark for what they did, but at the same time..

You knew deep down that this was a best scenario, as shitty as it was. You wouldn’t have survived. Of course Damien would pick his sister over you, even if you were close. You would’ve done the same. You did die, after all. Your time was up.

Mark just couldn’t let you stay dead, could he? Pulling you into his games, forcing you to be his partner, his love interest. That was the thing. Dark had tried to reach you so many times, but you never remembered. Until now. What was different? Was the space adventure a finale of sorts? Was Mark’s grasp on you finally slipping? You didn’t know.

“... Captain..”

“Captain.”

“Captain!”

You snapped back into reality, as Dark held you by the shoulders, attempting to ground you.

“Are you alright?” She asked, eyebrows knitted together.

“Yeah.. Yeah, I’m okay.” You sighed, “Just.. thinking.”

“Yeah? About what?” They raised an eyebrow.

“He.. He really did take away everything from us. What’s the point of it all?” You asked.

He didn’t respond at first, hugging you tightly.

“Making sure that bastard stays dead.”

#markiplier #markiplier egos #who killed markiplier #wkm #actor mark #wkm district attorney #darkiplier #darkiplier x reader #one sided relationship #one sided actor mark x reader #gravity falls au #wkm gravity falls au #x reader #gender neutral reader #da reader #markiplier egos x reader #markiplier x reader #prologue

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al-hekima-madara-blog · 2 years

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Lord Indra, the natural hero who never was

or why Sasuke and Madara always shine despite the whole plot in their disadvantages.

Hero : a mythological or legendary figure often of divine descent endowed with great strength or ability. b : an illustrious warrior. c : a person admired for achievements and noble qualities. d : one who shows great courage.

Going out of my MGA writing retreat cave for a sec and share with you some of my researches...I don't have great knowledges of vedic texts and Indian culture but to what I read so far (correct me if I'm wrong) Indra is the King of the devas and Heaven. In similar fashion, Zeus king of other gods in Greek mythology. Indra controls storm, rain, and uses thunderbolt as one of his most deadly weapon. He is both the archetype of the mighty warrior, the slayer of great evil (asuras) and also the life-giver. Because you know, rain fertilises earth (if you get the metaphor 💦... 👀). One of his most famous story is how he destroys Vritra the monstrous snake/dragon, also called an asura, who was responsible for holding back waters and created drought. And by doing this, Indra slain the archaic forces blocking the creation of new lives.

As a Naruto fan, I get now the inspiration for Otsutsuki Indra. Sasuke's preference for raiton and kirin, Madara as a god of war and user of storm release, the symbol behind Sasuke killing Oroshimaru in his white snake shape, susanoo although a japanese god is still god of storm killing an other massive snake...

It's kind of funny because Indra is, based on the Vedas tradition, the allegory of the perfect hero. He comes alone, strong-willed, powerful, and slays any obstacles to the natural cycle of life, and by doing so he saves humanity from chaos. And it's precisely what is despise in the Narutoverse about the characters assimilated to him, namely Uchiha clan and Indra Otsutsuki. Indra opposing his unfair father is bad. The Uchiha clan defending themselves against oppression is devilish, Sasuke seeking revenge is detestable, Madara looking for a world purged of evil is absolutely hideous.

There is as well many shinto inspirations but I'm mostly reading here the story in a Vedic perceptive and you'll notice something else about the asura's. It's not a single god but a group of demons always confronting the devas. They are seen in a negative light, the anti-gods, the power-seekers ect... And it kind of makes sense with Naruto who can't progress on his own. He needs to be constantly help and surrounded by people. He is also notoriously possessed by a powerful demon who manifest himself in the beginning of the story when Naruto is corned to anger. Notice also that the only way to control this demonic force is either the sharingan assimilated to shinto spiritual strength or Mokuton from the Senju being assimilated with Buddhism spiritual strength.

So now you get where I'm going... isn't weird that mostly Narutoverse is respecting mythologies and adapt them to its own storyline. For instance the sannin legend, Kaguyahime story. But for Indra and Asura it's a total reverse of values. Intentionally, the good is bad and the bad is good.

Yeah but the plot Al Hekima, don't forget the plot ! I know, I know... If your main character is a boy possessed by a demon, befriends with 9 others demons and it's apparently normal, it will end up this way.

Maybe I'm not objective after all but even before going deeper into analysing the Narutoverse, Indra and the Uchiha clan being seen as cursed and evil by nature, the people who went astray and needed to be beaten into submission, always left me unsettled. Literally, I couldn't comprehend what was wrong with them which justify so much hate. And in opposite Naruto being possessed by a demon is blatantly black magic. His father is never questioned about doing it to his son, neither Hiruzen to the young Kushina, or Hashirama to his wife (in this case they may have both agree). I know it's just fiction, but art doesn't come out of the blue. It's ingrained in the artist's set of value, cultures, emotion ect... And the author stressed in interviews that he wanted to bring positive value to his younger audience. I'm just questioning sometimes what are actually those values? For the Uchihas the idea was to forgive, to not fall into hate, and move on. But forgive without justice? Putting the pressure of moving on solely on the victim and never put the perpetuator in a difficult position? Never ask any apology or reform from the aggressor? The victim needs to forgive with no assurance that it won't happened again. Believe it, right? and eventually the victim needs to help the system who harmed him to keep going... Anyway I'm rambling at this point but that's always my major philosophical disagreement with Kishimoto.

#Sharing with you some of my researches while writing my fic #madara golden age #it was suppose to be a short post but apparently I can't do that lol #and also those researchs explain why it's so easy to rewrite Madara/Sasuke as heroes because they ARE #Madara #Sasuke #Indra #Asura #Indra in vedic texts #Naruto #Sasuke's popularity almost overshining Naruto is logic #Even Naruto is obsessed with the true hero of the story

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maverick-werewolf · 7 months

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Folklore Fact - Hjúki and Bil / The Man in the Moon / the Bilwis / Jack and Jill

Something different this month - a general folklore fact, rather than a werewolf or vampire fact! It's been a while since I did one of these, so I figured it's high time I toss another one out there.

Ever heard of the Man in the Moon? Of course you have. But have you ever heard of a "bilwis?" What about "Hjúki and Bil?" How about Jack and Jill? And how are all these things actually connected?

Once upon a time, I was playing a video game called Titan Quest with my brother. We ran into a strange creature labeled a Demon that was called a "bilwis." Since the game is based heavily in real-world myth, I decided to look it up. It wouldn't be the first time I encountered an obscure piece of mythology from a video game, that's for sure (the game Age of Mythology helped me get into researching mythology at all, as a child; it's still one of my favorite games).

So first, I looked up a bilwis. A bilwis can be demonic or human and is associated with corn, which would align with what I found in the game, too. They are said to have "flying" hair, are sometimes wrapped in linen, and wear triangular hats. They often appear as whirlwinds to steal grain during harvests. Then I went, wait a minute... that sounds just like Blowhard in the game Spyro the Dragon (also one of my favorite games)!

Blowhard is a bilwis! This is OG Blowhard, by the way, not from the remasters. But you should play Spyro sometime. Fantastic games. The remasters are good, too.

Anyway, that fascinated me, because I love learning things like that. But I also found something else... I found a legend called Hjúki and Bil, which was quite the rabbit-hole. Some sources claim the bilwis is related to Bil, which is how I was led here. The bilwis is sometimes said to be a female entity (but it can also be male) and was, at one time, associated with witches - and Bil is interpreted variably to be a kenning for woman, as well as a witch. The connection between Bil and the bilwis only happened in much later time periods, however - so let's go back to the original story of Hjúki and Bil.

The tale of Hjúki and Bil comes from Norse mythology. Their names are said to mean "the one returning to health" and "instant," respectively, though scholars apparently can't entirely confirm that first one. They are brother and sister, a pair of children who follow the moon across the heavens. We know about them because of - you guessed it - Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda. There are a lot of theories around these two, but they were said to have been a pair of children, both carrying a pole on their shoulders (the pole was called Simul) and held a pail called Sæg between them. But the children were taken by Mani (the moon) from the earth, to follow the moon forever in the heavens, and "can be seen from the earth."

It is possible that Hjúki and Bil represented the waning and waxing of the moon - or they may have even represented the craters on the moon. Scholars argue about it a lot, but many of them present compelling arguments that Hjúki and Bil were the craters, which were interpreted as children with a water pail between them on a stick.

Similar modern folklore from the same regions sees the Man in the Moon as a man with a pole, often carrying wood (or else stealing it and stuck in the moon as punishment), and sometimes with a woman with a bushel. This lends more credence to the idea of Hjúki and Bil being connected to the moon - and people in the moon.

There is another connection - one with Jack and Jill, the famous nursery rhyme...

You may have already noticed some similarities to the story of Hjúki and Bil and Jack and Jill - even their names sound similar! Both stories are about two children, one boy and one girl, who fetch a pail of water.

For those of you who need refreshing on the rhyme...

Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after. Up Jack got and home did trot as fast as he could caper. He went to bed to mind his head with vinegar and brown paper.

The origins of many elements of folklore, mythology, nursery rhymes, fairytales, and all their kind are always mysterious and fascinating. It's entirely possible that Hjúki and Bil are directly related to Jack and Jill, and that the latter is a retelling of the original Norse tale - and that the story of Jack and Jill fetching the pail represents the waning and waxing of the moon or the craters on the moon that we can see easily from Earth.

That covers a decent overview! There is of course a lot to all these things, as you might imagine, but I chose this time to focus on informing you about the existence of Hjúki and Bil and the bilwis at all, rather than getting deep into the debate and "conversation" around all these matters.

Until next time, and have a wonderful November (and happy Thanksgiving)!

( If you like my blog, be sure to follow me here and elsewhere for more folklore and fiction, including books, especially on werewolves! You can also sign up for my free newsletter for monthly werewolf/vampire/folklore facts, as well as free fiction and nonfiction book previews.

Free Newsletter — maverickwerewolf.com (personal site + book shop) — Patreon — Wulfgard — Werewolf Fact Masterlist — Twitter — Vampire Fact Masterlist — Amazon Author page )

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bearhugsandshrugs · 4 months

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It's high time that I express my sincerest gratitudes for your writings not just for myself but for my partner too. Your work did not just spark joy for a little gremlin day to day but helped her discover and expand ways of intimacy that the corn industry ruined for her and made her uneasy. How did we get here? Heck if I know, but I'll never turn back. So thank you!!!

Okay but this made me tear up. I’m gonna be real and personal for a minute under the cut.

I’ve received this feedback before and it is incredibly humbling and beautiful, and I am so, so amazed that my work impacts someone that way.

When I write about sex I want to write about authentic (not necessarily realistic) but also hot experiences. I’ve gone out of my comfort zone a lot on this as well: Months ago I would have never written a male POV of smut, now I delight in it. I’ve started to write in smaller gestures and playfulness, laughs, awkwardness and all these things that happen when making out and making love.

And honestly it’s been empowering for me too. I didn’t always have the best or healthiest emotional relationships so I’ve often clung to sex as something I knew I was “good at”. But I wasn’t. Not for me, at least.

I rarely communicated my desires, or even if something felt off. I wouldn’t seek what I needed because I was concerned I would upset the other person with that. I consistently put myself last.

I’m not saying writing smut fixed that for me, but I am reflecting a lot on how I see intimacy and trust and what it would take for me to feel more comfortable.

In a different context I am also rethinking how healthy relationships could look like. Can a couple be interesting and tell a great story even if they are secure with each other? Even if they are both ride or die for each other? Like: I am actively expanding my own perception of what could be for me just by writing / reading about it.

So I feel very deeply about all of this and wanted to let you know, kind anon, that I very much am on a similar journey. Maybe even behind you, still catching up. I appreciate you so much for sharing this with me.

If you want to write again, I’m giving you the sun emoji because this brightened my day. ☀️

#☀️ asks #anon asks #personal #my writing

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midnight197 · 6 months

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Undertale Yellow Spoilers!

I just got something in my Mind.

I'm replaying Undertale Yellow after I finished my first Parcifist-Run and now knowing the Story, I gotta think about what Dalv is saying.

He said something happend on a particular day. And he says "We're looking similar to THEM."

I first thought he ment his Friend he's waiting for. But now I wonder, if he ment the Human that attacked the Monster in Snowdin.

I'm wondering, if he was the Friend of Kanako that got attacked by said Human. It never was said, that her Friend died on that day. Just got very hurt.

I wonder if on that day, he rather would hide in the Ruins to stay away from further harm. Kanako would have come regulary to bring him some corn (which she most likely got from Starlos Farm) but when she fell down, she stopped coming.

#Mid rambling #Undertale #Undertale Yellow #This makes so much sense now actually!

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ariel-seagull-wings · 9 months

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ANPU AND BATA

@themousefromfantasyland @the-blue-fairie @the-gentile-folklorist @adarkrainbow @tamisdava2 @princesssarisa @softlytowardthesun @grimoireoffolkloreandfairytales @professorlehnsherr-almashy

(The tale of Anpu and Bata, found in an Ancient Egyptian papyrus manuscript, is more than three thousand years old, and is regarded as the oldest story that has come down to us in writing. It may well have been an ancient tradition even then. One of the most interesting things about it is that elements found in tales all over the world ever since are contained in it. The first part has a parallel in the Biblical story of Joseph and the Wife of Potiphar. The core of the story – the life-token indicating death and the ‘separable soul’ – occurs in over eight hundred versions in Europe alone, and the reciters are unlikely to know that they are part of a line of transmission from the Nineteenth Dynasty of Pharaonic Egypt. The story is sometimes found, conflated with all or much of the Perseus and Andromeda myth, associated with the exploits of a dragon-slayer, which is encountered in almost every country in the world. The crumbling papyrus roll, in the British Museum, contains a message from the original scribe, a threat to those who might abuse it, which is similar to those found on Eastern manuscripts even today: ‘Excellently finished in peace for the Ka of the scribe of the Treasury Kagabu, of the Treasury of Pharaoh. And for the Scribe Hora, and the Scribe Meramapt. Written by the Scribe Anena, the owner of this roll. He who speaks against this scroll, may Tahui smite him!’ It was the custom of Eastern kings, when pleased with a story related to them, to order it to be written down and placed in the treasury.)

Once there lived in Egypt two brothers, and they loved each other greatly. The elder had a beautiful young wife, and a fine pair of oxen for the fields. His name was Anpu, and his younger brother’s name was Bata. This young man did everything for his brother, followed him and the oxen to the fields, waited upon him like a servant, harvested the corn, tended the animals. He worked for him day and night; for his brother, in his eyes, had no equal in all the land of Egypt. Now when the time for ploughing the land arrived, the elder brother said to Bata:

‘Come with the seeds tomorrow early to the fields, for we must begin sowing, because the Nile flood has retreated from the earth and the day is propitious.’ Anpu having gone on ahead, it was left for Bata to bring the seed, so he went to the door of the house, and said to his sister-in-law, Anpu’s beautiful young wife:

‘Let me have the corn from the bin, for my brother and I need it today.’

The woman replied:

‘Come in and get it yourself, for I am busy doing my hair and I cannot drop my pins and ribbons and get the corn.’

So he went in, and helped himself to as much corn as he could carry, for he wanted to start the day of planting well, as the day was propitious. Seeing him carrying such a load, the wife of his brother said:

‘You are strong and good-looking, indeed. I had not noticed that you were so presentable before. Come, stay with me a little while here before you go to the fields, for you will both be away all day, and I shall be lonely. Give me something to remember when I am alone.’ Bata recoiled at the woman’s words, and his face darkened with rage. He said:

‘You are like a mother to me, for are you not my respected brother’s wife? I will forget what you have just spoken. Do you forget it, also.’ And he went away to the fields, trying to erase her suggestion from his mind, for she was his brother’s wife, and though beautiful, now appeared evil in his eyes. All day they laboured in the fields, and at evening Anpu and Bata returned home. They expected to find food ready as usual, when they came to the house. But there was no fire, no light, no smell of cooking. Bata went to the stable to attend to the animals, and Anpu went in to see what was the matter with his wife. She was lying huddled under the quilt, crying as if she were in pain. ‘What is the matter with you?’ he asked. ‘Has anyone been here in my absence to upset you like this?’ ‘The only one here in your absence was your wretched brother!’

She cried.

‘Ask him what is the matter with me!’ ‘But what are you saying? Has he laid hands upon you?’ Shouted the enraged husband. ‘Yes,’ she replied, ‘I was here doing my hair when he came in for the seeds, and he said to me “Be with me a while before I go to the fields and my brother will never know” and he violated me. Oh, I cannot look at you for shame, my husband!’ So Anpu sharpened his knife, and stood outside the stable ready to kill his brother as soon as he came to join him for the evening meal. All unaware of this, the younger brother went about his tasks in the stable, when suddenly his favourite cow spoke to him:

‘Beware, Bata, your brother has sharpened his knife and is waiting to kill you behind the door. Run, do not go back to the house, or you will die.’ The young man looked out of the stable and saw his brother standing strangely still, with his knife in his hand. Fearing that he could never explain the true state of affairs to his brother, he made a hole in the mud wall of the barn and fled as fast as his feet would carry him. But the elder brother heard him running, and chased after him. The light of murder was in his eyes. So, in great fear, Bata called out:

‘Oh Great Ra Harakhiti, Mighty Lord, You are He who divides the Evil from the Good! Save me!’

And Ra answered his prayer. A mighty river sprang up between the two brothers, a river that Anpu could not cross, even if he had had a boat, for it was full of crocodiles. The elder brother was furious that he could not reach Bata to kill him, and cursed him from the other bank. But Bata called out in a loud voice to him:

‘O my brother, do not think ill of me. I cannot prove to you that I did nothing wrong, but my cow warned me, and I fled from you in fear. Why did you come to kill me before you asked me if I had done what you believed I did?’

And his brother said:

‘Tell me yourself, then, what truly happened?’

Bata answered:

‘I went to the bin to get the seed myself, for your wife told me she was doing her hair and did not wish to leave her toilette to attend to me. Then, after I had helped myself, she said I looked strong and handsome, and tempted me to stay with her for a short while, saying that you would not know. You see how the truth has been changed.’ ‘Will you swear the oath by Ra Harakhiti that what you have said is true?’

Cried the elder brother.

‘By Ra Harakhiti I swear that it is true.’

Said the younger brother, and he took his knife, and cut a piece of his flesh, and threw it into the water, and the crocodiles ate it. Then theelder brother was satisfied, and he wept for Bata and cursed his wife. He knew that he could not reach his brother, because of the crocodiles, and he stood there, putting away his knife. ‘Now we know that you have done a bad thing, trying to kill me, will you now do a good thing for me?’

Said Bata. Anpu said he would, so his brother told him,

‘I am going away to the valley of the acacia. So you go to your house, and look to your cattle. Now this is what you can do for me; my soul shall be drawn out, and put into the flower of the acacia. When the acacia is cut down, as it will be, put the flower in a glass of cold water, for my soul shall be in it. When someone gives you a glass of beer in your hand, and it is agitating in the glass, then do not stay, but go and find the flower, even if you search for seven years, and put it in the water. Farewell.’ Then the youth stopped speaking these strange things, and went to the valley of the acacia. His brother turned away and went back to his house, and he was angered against his wife, so he killed her in the heat of his wrath. Then he threw his knife away, and looked after his cattle and his fields himself, sorrowing for his brother. A long time after this had happened, the younger brother was living in the valley of the acacia. He had drawn out his soul, and it lived in the topmost flower of the acacia tree. He had built himself a small house in which he lived, and it was full of good things. One day, walking in the valley, he met the Nine Gods, who were going forth to look upon the whole land of Egypt. The Nine Gods were talking with each other when Bata came upon them, and they said to him, ‘O Bata, Bull of the Nine Gods, why are you walking alone? Your brother has slain his wife, and all is level between you. His transgression is forgiven.’ Then, as Bata knelt before them, Ra Harakhiti said to Khnumu:

‘So that he will not be forever alone, make a woman for Bata, a mate for his loneliness.’

And Khnumu made a wife for him. She was more beautiful than any woman had ever been before. The seven Hathors came to see her when she was created, and they said of one accord:

‘She will die a sharp death, though the essence of every god is in her!’ All the day Bata hunted and in the evening he came back and placed all his spoils at his wife’s feet, for he loved her very much. He said to her one day:

‘Now, I must warn you, never go too near the sea, for if it should seize you, and want to carry you away, I cannot save you, for my soul is in the flower at the top of the acacia, and I have no power, other than in that flower.’ When she heard his secret she smiled, and thought about it much. Next day she went to walk beside the sea, and the sea saw her, and began to cast its waves up towards her. She took to her heels and, being frightened by the passion of the sea, ran away from it. She entered her house, and the sea called to the acacia: ‘I want to have that woman, I wish that I could take her!’ Then the acacia brought a curl from her hair which the woman had cut off while sitting under the tree, and dropped it into the water. The sea carried it to the place where the fullers washed the clothes of the Pharaoh. One of the washermen who was standing on the sand picked up the curl of hair, and it smelt so sweet that it almost took his senses away. He put it into the clothing which was being taken to the Pharaoh, and when Pharaoh smelt it he was enraptured. Where did this rare and wonderful scent come from?’

Cried Pharaoh.

‘Bring the wise men, so that they too may smell it and tell me.’ The wise men came, with their signs and portents, and told the Pharaoh:

‘The scent comes from the curl from the hair of a daughter of Ra Harakhiti; the essence of every god is in her. Send messengers to the borders of the sea, and in the valley of the acacia she will be found.’ So the Pharaoh sent many men to the valley of the acacia, and they tried to take the wife of Bata, but he killed them all. None of these men returned to the Pharaoh, and so he sent more, this time men on horseback and strong soldiers, to bring her to him. Bata had to let her go, but they did not kill him. He remained behind, under the acacia, feeling very distressed. Somehow, from his mind he tried to send a message to his brother, reminding him of what he had said to Anpu across the river of the crocodiles, the last time that he had seen him. The beautiful woman pleased the Pharaoh very much, and he gave her everything in his power. ‘Pharaoh,’ said she, after he had presented her with gold and jewels and rarest rings, ‘send men to cut down the acacia, for my husband’s soul is in the topmost flower, and I would that he were dead.’

So the men went and chopped the tree in the valley so that the topmost flower, in which was the soul of Bata, fell to the ground, and he, too, fell dead. At that very moment, someone handed Anpu, the elder brother, a glass of beer, and the liquid became agitated as he was about to drink it. He remembered what his brother had told him, all that long time ago. He got his stick and his sandals, his clothes for travelling, and set off. He travelled all day and all night, and arrived at the valley of the acacia. Then he saw that the tree had been cut down, and saw the body of his brother lying dead. He wept bitterly, and looked everywhere for the flower which contained the soul of his brother. But he could not find it. He lay down to sleep under the tree, and said to himself:

‘Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow I will seek it; for I will spend all the days of my life, if necessary, to find the flower.’ Next day he did not find it, but he discovered, in a crack in the earth, a seed. He put the seed in a glass of water, and it sprouted. It was soon the flower containing his brother’s soul. Within a few minutes the body of Bata shuddered under the cloth which covered it, and soon he was standing well and strong before Anpu. They embraced each other joyfully, and sat talking together for many hours. Then Bata said to his brother:

‘I am to become a great bull, by favour of the gods, and you are to get on my back. By the time the sun has risen thrice I shall be in the place where my wife makes a fool of the Pharaoh. And, when I am before the Pharaoh, you shall be taken to him, and he will give you gold and silver, and good things in return. I will be thought of by all as a great marvel, and you will return to our old village home a rich man.’

Before Anpu’s eyes he turned into a huge bull. So, the elder brother got onto his back, and within three days they were before the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh had never before seen such a fine creature, in all dominions of the Upper and the Lower Nile, so he gave many presents to the elder brother, and took Bata in his bull form to the royal stables to be looked after in great style. The gigantic bull was so tame that it was often garlanded with flowers by the royal ladies. One day when his wife, now a Princess by command of the Pharaoh, came near to him,the bull said in his human voice:

‘I am alive, and now the gods have in their wisdom caused me to be in this marvellous bull’s body.’ She was greatly affrighted, and wondered how she could get rid of her husband yet again. So she went to the Pharaoh and said:

‘My lord, I will never be happy unless I have for my illness the liver of that creature, which I am sure is fit for nothing else but to be eaten!’ So at once the Pharaoh gave orders for the animal to be slaughtered, and said:

‘Let the liver be given to the Princess, so that she will soon be well again.’ A tremendous feast was planned, and the bull was to be sacrificed to the gods. As he was being slaughtered, the bull shook two drops of blood from his shoulder wound onto the walls of the royal palace. The blood dripped from each side of the gigantic door, and where the blood soaked into the ground two Persea trees grew. They grew and grew, each day taller, and each of them was perfect in every way. A courtier went to tell the Pharaoh:

‘Lo, there are two giant trees growing, one on each side of the great door of the palace, these are propitious signs, oh Pharaoh!’

And there was much rejoicing because of these trees, and many people made offerings to them, because of their miraculous growth from the bull’s blood. The ladies of the court went out, and placed garlands of flowers around the trees, and prayed to them. When his wife came, Bata said to her from the trees, in his own voice, which she knew so well:

‘Deceitful woman, I am Bata, who you have thrice betrayed. First you went to the Pharaoh, then you had my soul-tree cut down, then you had the ox slain. Now I am in the strength of these trees. I shall never die!’ So the Princess went to the Pharaoh and said:

‘As you love me, will you do me a small favour? I do not like the sight of those two grotesque Persea trees, one on each side of the great door of the palace. Do you please give orders that they be cut down, for they grow even uglier every day, and one day they will bring the palace down, I am sure!’ The Pharaoh, besotted with his love for her, consented, and the next day woodcutters were chopping with might and main at the beautiful Persea trees. The Princess was standing not far away, looking at this activity, rejoicing in her heart, when a tiny chip of wood flew into her mouth. She was so startled that she swallowed it. The trees were at that moment completely cut down, and fell outside the Palace gates. When nine months had passed, a son was born to the Princess, and there was rejoicing all through the land, for the Pharaoh thought that the child was his son. As the months went by, the Pharaoh loved the baby even more, and raised him to be the royal son of Kush, heir of all the lands of the Upper and Lower Nile. Not many days after that, the Pharaoh died. Then the Prince, the heir of the lands, said: ‘Let all my nobles come before me, that I may tell them all that has happened to me.’ They came, and he told them everything. His elder brother was brought from the village, to be made a minister at his court. Then they brought his wife, and they judged her and she received her punishment. He was thirty years King of Egypt, and so endeared himself to the people that his brother took his place when he died.

#folklore #folk tales #mythology #egypt #literature #fantasy #idries shah

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happyinjection · 1 year

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♠️♥️High Card Short Story 3 “Welcome Back, Leo-sama” (2/3)♦️♣️

By the gates of the prestigious Rummy College, Finn stood waiting. Upon seeing Finn, the creases on Leo's forehead took a dive as deep as canyons.

Original: https://twitter.com/highcard_pj/status/1534796149604818944?s=20

Author: https://twitter.com/poipheno

Artist: https://twitter.com/ebimoji3

RAIKA, despite its classic appearance, was equipped with a navigation system, so I was able to reached the destination of Rummy College, which Leo attended, without much hassle. From afar, I could see its majestic gates.

I parked my RAIKA right across the street. As I got off and leaned against the car hood, my eyes met those of a security guard.

Rummy College was an infamous school which everyone knew at least by name. It seemed that all the studious rich kids went there. Jii-chan had told me to be on by best behavior, but since I was not entering the school grounds, it probably shouldn't have mattered.

Nibbling on the ketchup-flavored corn snacks that I bought on the way, I stared at the stylish school building made out of stone. Before I knew it, the number of security guards present had increased to two.

Apparently, they thought I was a suspicious guy or something.

“Gimme a break. I ain't gonna be here if I had a choice—”

But then I saw Leo behind the gates. He was wearing a uniform which looked similar to a tuxedo. A white shirt adorned with frills and a striped vest. I felt cramped from the sight alone.

When Leo noticed my presence, the creases between his eyebrows took a dive as deep as canyons. It was irritating, so I wrinkled my own brows in return.

Suddenly, a man who appeared to be a teacher called out to Leo from where he was by the gates.

“Gyaha, what's up with that face?”

Leo's expression when he talked to his teacher was so cheerful that I could hardly imagine how he normally was like. Truly an honor student. After exchanging a few words, he proceeded to cross the street.

“Yo. I've been waiting since forever.”

“I don't recall asking for you, though.”

“I'm just filling in. What's up with that face from before, Leo? What kind of innocent young master acts like you?”

“Shut up. A brute like you wouldn't understand the importance of keeping up appearances. That aside, why did they send you to pick me up? At least send Chris.”

“Huuh? Fine, get off the car. You’re going home by foot then.”

“No, you are leaving the keys here and walking home.”

“You don’t even have a license!”

“I can drive. You too only recently got a license, so don’t get cocky. Good grief, leave it to that idiot Chris to recommend people for joining the team without checking if they have a license...”

“But I already have my license now, stop whining.”

“Even utter trash like you could get a job at Pinochle and became a car dealer. Just try scraping even one car, I’ll see to it you get fired right away.”

Once the subject of firing came to play, I immediately lost ground. I desperately need the money.

“Hmph. I guess you finally understand your position. Go on, hurry up and open that door.”

After a moment had passed without him making the slightest movement to get in the car, it dawned on me that he was waiting for me to open the door for him.

“Don’t fuck with me! Open that door yourself!”

While directing his coldest gaze at me, Leo childishly made the gesture of slitting his own thin neck using his index finger.

“Damn, how troublesome! Fine, here you go! Just hop in already!”

♠️♥️♦️♣️

I brought RAIKA down the road running along the canal. Leo was watching my every move, it gave me the feeling of being in driving school and made me uncomfortable.

“By the way, just a wild guess, but I thought everyone who attend Rummy College are supposed to stay within school grounds.”

“It is a dormitory, but I am a special case in which I am allowed to go out. Afterall, I have a job at the branch office.”

“Whoa. As expected from the Pinochle heir. But since the rest of them can’t leave school, how do you find time to hang out with your pals?”

“We don’t.”

“Huh? When I was in junior high, I used to hang out with my friends all night long. Every time, Lindsey would get furious at me.”

Lindsey was the director of Sunfields Orphanage, the place where I grew up. Whenever Lindsey had other business to attend to, I often help out taking care of the children, but sometimes we got a bit too wild and ended up coming home late.

All of a sudden Leo went very quiet.

Being the heir to the Pinochle Corporation, it was no wonder that even the students at Rummy College would get intimidated by him. On top of that, his personality itself was more twisted than a squeezed up rag.

I had suspected that it was impossible for him to have any, but when I found out that he really had no friends, I felt a little sorry.

While thinking about what I could do, I ignored the directions given by the navigation system and left the main road, turning onto a small alley.

“Oi, you’re going the wrong way.”

Leo raised his voice. I turned off the navigation system.

“This is a shortcut.”

“We’re not in a hurry! Why do we have to go this fast in such a narrow space!”

“Whether I wanna speed up here or anywhere, that’s for me to decide!”

Soon we returned to the main road. And then, once he had begun, as though a switch had been flipped, it set off a chain of complaints on the slightest details of how I drive.

“Oi, did you read the instructions properly?”

“Turn here! Wait a moment!”

“Maintain your distance!”

“Don’t get too close! Stop right here!”

“Step on the brakes gently!”

“Stop! Stop right now! A bird just perched down on the hood!”

“Hey! When changing lanes, you should—”

“Screw that, shut your endless blabbering! I am the one driving, so let me handle it!”

Annoyance reaching its peak, I entered the parking lot of the first store that caught my eye. It appeared to be a hamburger joint.

“Oi, what do you think you’re doing.”

“Let me take a little detour. I’m starving.”

“Don’t eat in the car!”

“Like I care! It’s Chris’ car!”

“If that’s the case, it should be alright... or not. I don’t have time to mess around. I have work to do.”

“Ah~ fine, fine. Enough talking already.”

I left the parking lot without looking back.

“What’s with that attitude towards work. Do you think you can call yourself a Pinochle employee like that? No, to call yourself one is pushing it--”

Just as Chris had said, the nagging hell showed no sign of stopping.

♠️♥️♦️♣️

TL notes: I’m in no way a professional translator so if you find any mistakes, please do not hesitate to inform me right away. I love the High Card gang and I found it very unfortunate that while it is meant to be a multimedia project, I can’t seem to find the translated versions of any materials (beside the anime) anywhere (if this is against copyright, I will take it down). Hopefully this small TL would help international viewers gain better understanding of HC universe and characters. The author of these SS himself said that he hoped fans would have their “so that’s what it is!” moments when they watch the anime after reading his short stories. So with that in mind, let’s enjoy High Card together~

#highcard #high card #short story #hcss #finn oldman #leo constantine pinochle #translation

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