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myhoneststudyblr · 4 years

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every single student in the world has likely procrastinated at some point - i know i definitely have! sometimes i think it can be quite helpful because means that you don't spend every minute of every day studying... but on the other hand, it can become very hard to beat. there are so many advice posts in the community on this topic but i thought that i would share my own tips!

disclaimer: everyone studies differently and these are my personal tips. they may not work for you but they can be a good starting point

What is Procrastination?

i found this little summary of procrastinating on the internet and thought it completely covered everything that i wanted to say on this point:

Procrastination is the habit of delaying an important task, usually by focusing on less urgent, more enjoyable, and easier activities instead. It is different from laziness, which is the unwillingness to act.

Procrastination can restrict your potential and undermine your career. It can also disrupt teamwork, reduce morale, and even lead to depression and job loss. So, it's crucial to take proactive steps to prevent it.

The first step to overcoming procrastination is to recognize that you're doing it. Then, identify the reasons behind your behavior and use appropriate strategies to manage and overcome it.

- How to Stop Procrastinating by Mindtools

so what is learnt from this is that:

procrastination is not being lazy

it is avoiding tasks by doing other easier tasks

it can have negative effects

you need to proactively take steps to avoid it

first, recognise the procrastinating then use strategies to break the cycle

Conventional Tips

these are the basic tips that are some of the most well-known strategies for ending procrastination and can be some of the most important steps!

1. get organised. tidy up your desk to study space because there is nothing worse than having to work in a place that is chaotic and mess. collect the information you need for the task, for example, notes you've made or a textbook.

2. to-do lists are your friend. a lot of people (including me) really struggle with timetables for studying because it can seem really structured and there is no flexibility or real allowance for things that may crop up during the day (your food takes longer to cook, you have to unexpectedly do a task around the house, you get a really bad headache and need to take a break). in my opinion, to-do lists help solve this problem! you can clearly see the tasks that you want to get done for the day but you don't have stressful time constraints. personally, i always use todoist to keep track of everything. to-do lists also make it easier to break tasks down

3. break the task down. one of the biggest cause of procrastination is having a huge task or project ahead of you because it seems really daunting and where on earth are you even going to start? so break it down *completely*. in your to-do list, don't just write ‘german homework’, write down even task that you need to do within it and be specific: for example ‘pg. 11 ex 4a, 4b and 4c’, ‘textbook listening task on pg. 47′ and ‘250-word essay on social media in Germany’. breaking it down makes the tasks seem more attainable and when you’ve done one and you can cross it off your list, it gives you a boost to keep going

4. eliminate distractions. this is a big one. even if you do all of the above, if you are constantly being distracted by things, you aren't going to get much done. try to find a place that is quiet enough that you can focus and you feel comfortable studying in. as well as this you need to think about what to do with your phone as the likelihood is that this will be the most distracting thing. you can simply turn it off, put on do not disturb, leave it in another room or use and app like forest (that last one is what i use and i don't know where i would be without it!)

5. use incentives. finishing a task is an achievement so treat it like one! before you study, decide on something that you will give yourself as a reward for doing it. this may be watching that new episode of your favourite programme or a tasty snack!

6. set timers. don't just launch yourself into a task, because that again can make it seem daunting and feel unending. rather, set a timer for a specific time because you’ll know that you just need to focus for that specific length of time and then you can go take a break and do something nice. for timing your study sessions, you could use the Pomodoro technique

7. allow for breaks (but try to avoid long ones). you are not a machine and as much as it would be great to be able to, you cant study for hours on end without giving your mind a break from focusing. so schedule in break time for yourself, particularly for times that you know your motivation dips, and do something nice. but be very careful that you don't accidentally slip back into procrastinating habits and keep breaks short. unless you are very disciplined it is unlikely that an hour-long break will stay just an hour.

8. know how you study but don’t be afraid to mix it up. everyone studies differently and so there are going to be some study methods that work better for some than others. so try to make sure that you are studying smart and that you aren't wasting your own time cause that can be incredibly unmotivating. HOWEVER, if there is anything that I’ve learnt from online school its that doing the same task all the time, every day is mind-numbingly boring and you just want to do anything else. so try to switch up what you are doing. if you usually just type notes from the textbook, maybe try doing it in a mindmap one week, or on flashcards, maybe do some practise questions to keep your mind engaged.

9. play music. now this one really depends on the person and how you study. some people need absolute silence and that is fine, but others need something to fill the silence or maybe cover up background noise (for example if you live in a busy household). try to pick music however that is not going to distract you - the key tips for this is to pick music without lyrics. this can be classical music, video game music, or general ‘chill’ music (there are so many playlists out there for chill studying music). i personally listen to Francesco Parrino religiously while studying because he does piano covers of pop songs, so i know the songs and enjoy them but there are no lyrics that can distract me

10. stay hydrated, well-rested and not hungry. this is part of eliminating distractions because if you are thirsty, you are going to be thinking about how you want a drink; if you are tired, you are going to be thinking about how tired you are; if you are hungry, you are going to be thinking about what you want for lunch or whatever. make sure you are hydrated, well-rested and not hungry so you can focus solely on your task or work.

Unconventional Tips

these are some slightly more unusual tips that you might not have seen before but that I've nevertheless found very useful!

1. video yourself or do a timelapse. this is something that I’ve only recently done because i saw a tip on this from someone during my quarantine challenge and thought that it would be cool to do. and it really works! i did it twice once when i was typing notes and a second time when i was handwriting notes and it really made me focus on what is as doing because the video put some pressure on me to look like i was properly studying - i could take a 5-minute break in the middle of my work to mess around with my pen, I just had to keep going so it really forces you to do the work. also watching the video when i was done made me really proud cause i had visual proof of how much i completed!

2. accept that some days you are going to get very little done. this may seem a little bit odd to put on a post that is meant to avoid getting nothing done but it’s actually a very important thing to remember. sometimes you need to take days off because otherwise you are going to burnout and some days you are just not going to be in the right mindset for studying because maybe you are exhausted after a big exam, or you have a headache or you feel unwell. you just need to accept it, draw a line under it, take time for yourself, and resolve yourself to work tomorrow once you feel a bit better. there is no shame in taking time to make sure you stay healthy. if you can, try to get your quickest, easiest task done so you have some sense of accomplishment.

3. ‘churn it out and f**k off’. this was my mum’s motto when she was studying and working in academia. and she recently told it to me when i was getting stressed about all the big tasks during online school. i am a perfectionist and i always want to hand in my very best work, put 100% into everything, but honestly that is impossible. some days you just need to get stuff done and if that isn't your very best then it doesn't matter too much because at least you got it done. and once you get it done you can just forget about it.

4. ask a friend or parent to check up on you. when you are studying by yourself it can be hard to motivate yourself because you know that no ones actually going to check whether you made those votes or did the reading, so ask a friend or someone you live with to check whether you've done the work or get them to read essays. you then get an external reason to study or do your tasks because you need to show them something.

5. rephrase how you think of tasks. when you think that ‘you need to do this task’ or ‘you have to get this done’, a lot of the time this causes unneeded stress and anxiety that is not going to help you at all. also it makes it seem like you are being forced to do something and human beings generally don't act great when they are forced to do something. so try to change your language when thinking about task into one that is more forgiving such as ‘i choose to do this project so that i can go meet my friends tomorrow’ and ‘i choose to read this book now because it will help me in the lecture next week’. this is probably the most difficult strategy on this list and it will take a lot of practice (i am certainly still practising it) but in the long term, it can help you change the way in which you view studying for the better.

✨✨✨

i hope this was helpful and that these tips will be useful, and perhaps you've discovered some new ones! if anyone has anything to add please feel free to reply or reblog with the advice <3

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chibicalzones · 3 years

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what the characters of haikyuu smell like pt. 2

featuring: 𝐚𝐨𝐛𝐚 𝐣𝐨𝐡𝐬𝐚𝐢, 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡, and 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐰𝐚

read part one and three!

DISCLAIMER: (just in case) this is my sister’s first impression on some of the boys so don’t take it too seriously!

warnings: touches on gender and sexuality at some parts.

post made by: alex 🍒

— oikawa: peppermint

a worn out gifted kid

“he a realist” B)

understands his own worldly notions but won’t disagree with what you say

agree to disagree kinda person

gives good hugs

spends at least 10mins on his hair... every day

has a specialized shower routine

sleeps on the bus

enjoys analyzing the little thing in life

very tired. all the time.

could go to yale

single, straight, but picky

LIKES POETRY

TOUCH STARVED

“he literally looks like he got broken up with and now he’s trying to compensate by being zen.”

— iwaizumi: glade

smells like the gym after a rally with confetti on the floor

likes to mask thinks with his ambitions and determination

stubborn

anger stems from lack cooperation and team work

hard on himself and wants other people to be better

in it for the team but what he really wants is to win so he looks good on college apps

“i was on a national-winning volleyball team”

A / B student: only tried in subjects he liked but is always the teachers’ pet for that safety blanket

controlling?

definitely listens to mac miller

appreciates every single one of his friends

straight. tries so hard to flirt but he’s just... not good at it

— matsukawa: mojitos

trying his best in life in the most sarcastic way possible

gets a max of 3 hours of sleep

just trying to live through life ya know?

doesn’t necessarily have any goals

doesn’t know what to major in either

a hippie

lives in a van with his friends

probably works at a pet store and only has a fish and turtle at home

a middle child

doesn’t care enough for a relationship

uses they/them pronouns

— aone: cottage cheese

old school, by the book

“he looks like he’s been through a lot like he’s a divorced father with two kids”

everyone is kinda scared of him

looks like that kind of parent that says he doesn’t has a favorite but he actually has a soft spot for the younger one

doesn’t deal with anyones’ bullshit

excuses don’t exist in his life!

lowkey pessimist

makes his teammates drink protein shakes

wants to do what’s best for the team even though he knows nothing will satisfy him

thinks festivities are dumb

was ex champ on his team when he was younger

straight and salty

— kenji: baby powder

is a child, inside and out

very very nice

all honors

has a plan for life but write it in english

really likes history archeology

thinks people’s pasts are interesting

church boy vibes

enjoys kpop girl groups but won’t admit to it

smiles with his mouth closed

daddy’s boy

really enjoys getting his hair played with

likes hugs

IS the little spoon

if you yell at him, he’d cry

or stare into the abyss and cry later when you’re not there

favorite holiday is easter

straight and taken but will eventually become bi

— kanji: dark chocolate with orange zest

an acquired person with acquired taste

fav pokemon is psyduck

has goals that he wants to achieve but he won’t beat himself up for it if he doesn’t reach them

easygoing on himself but not others

wanted to play basketball

dyed his hair to feel more like himself

self sufficient person

in a friend group with girls and guys

bad at picking up signs

oblivious to anything besides sports and things actually concerning him

enjoys teaching

is asexual

— ushijima: swagger all spice

stern

a worn out gifted kid pt. 2

has a bad case of senioritis

determined, makes a strong effort for things to go his own way but more often than not, it does not work out

tough history made him a tough person

tough history being losing his past championship

a lot of girls like him

has all the girls, gays, and theys ;)

used to be a child model for the GAP

attractive kinda not kinda popular kid that people really like

mommas boy

single and pansexual

— semi: axe body spray

still stuck in middle school

“being rude is c00l”

school bully

has an arch nemesis for his position on the team

cuts his own hair

wears oversized hoodies with jeans every day

has taste for older girls but they don’t want him

solid C student

doesn’t give people high fives

harsh

his parents don’t come to his games

single and determined to stay that way

— tendou: dominos pizza place

a social person

in a large friend group but he’s not the main character

eg. he’s not invited to every single hang out

individualistic

“every man for himself!” is his motto

type that goes for a high five and purposely misses

cheats in school

leaves right after the game is over

still tries to play it cool even when the team loses

not actually that socially popular

definitely bi

has a secret admirer but is single

— goshiki: fishcake

a naruto character

a determined fellow

has a brother that always gets the attention and is sassy about it

usually gets what he wants

his favorite holiday is halloween and spends it by watching horror movies

hates dressing formal

is in a really bad friend group

got really mad at his friends and left

if tried to hug him, he’d get flustered and push you away

straight and doesn’t want a relationship

𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬!

— terushima: expresso

atheist

really really really likes going to the mall

would go anywhere you wanna go if he asked you out on a date

like psychology and is good at math

but he’s in CP classes

doesn’t like to be associated with other boys, likes to be his own person

one day, he wants to own a fashion brand or some sort of store

desperately wants to be an entrepreneur

as a kid he really liked gaston from beauty and the beast

bi!!!

people like him but he usually want to go on a few dates to figure out his feelings

[in the tiniest voice] if you’ve made it this far, feel free to interact with us!

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local-starry-catboi · 3 years

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Right or Wrong Challenge

Introduction

I had stumbled upon this challenge after seeing it pinned at the top of the One Piece Amino featured page back in April 2019. It was the first challenge I entered after actually becoming active. I decided to polish this blog a little (aka match the formatting to Tumblr, hope I don't fuck up-), to post it here as well •^•

Decided to pick the imagine-yourself-as-marine-so-which-justice-do-you-follow-for-reasons question the leaders of this challenge set up. On the one hand because it seemed interested, on the other hand because it looked like it might be one of the easier questions to answer for my 🍞 brain. After typing out everything though, I can say that it's actually tougher than it looked like at the first glance to be honest. Especially not deciding what justice and why..

The challenge question set up was

"If you were a marine, whose justice would you follow and why? Or do you have your own sense of justice? If so, explain."

Definition(s) of Justice

Many people define justice by other things, like how they know it, how they feel about it, if it's important or not, what makes a decision just or unjust.

That leads us to a spot where there are a few points to consider. So first off, it makes sense to start by breaking up the meaning of justice using three methods.

First option:

"Justice [noun], coming from the Latin word 'justitia'; refers to just behaviour or treatment, the quality of being fair and reasonable as well as the administration of the law or authority in maintaining this." - Oxford Dictionary.

Second option:

"Justice, at it's base, means 'to be just, fair'. Most commonly however, the meaning of justice is to punish a criminal that has done something wrong in a suitable manner that fits their crime." - One Piece.

Third option:

"[...] Justice will prevail, you say? But of course it will! Whoever wins this war becomes justice!" - Doflamingo during the Paramount War.

So far:

Firstly, to sum up: In the end, the first two definitions go hand-in-hand with each other. The definitions of justice are in some thing close to each other and in some things they are far apart from each other. On the whole this means that even though they both use different words, are the same in the end of the day.

Secondly, hence the Marine is actually the "good" fraction in One Piece whereas the pirates are the actual antagonists, they have to shoulder and act out their role as eyes and sword of the law, judging over those who were unjust towards the law due to criminal activities.

Thirdly, the way Doffy looks at justice is also interesting though, hence he points at the fact that those with the great power usually decide what justice is. This way the stronger fraction also decides what is right and what is wrong. I wanted to put him into this as well because his viewpoint is interesting, too, even though he's not a Marine.

But now let's get back to the topic, shall we~?

Lastly: Moreover, every single one of the forms of justice has its right and a good reason to exist. Why you ask? Because not every living being thinks the same way like another. Even animals seem to possess another sense of righteousness and justice as humans - in addition, they differ from animal to animal as well. The effect of this is that Kuzan's statement he gave to Jaguar D. Sauro back then, that "The thing called 'justice' changes its shape... Depending on where you stand." is true, too. As a result, every form of justice is true - only depending on from which side you look at it.

Despite this freedom of opinion like with this topic, the Marines' general way of justice can be looked at as some sort of 'ridding the world from everything evil existing there".

Types of Justice

Since there are multiple types of justice given in the world of One Piece, lead by the Admirals, the CP9 and other Marines, I'll explain each of them.

Akainu's Absolute Justice:

His motto regarding the Absolute Justice is the "Thorough Justice". He seems to stick to this doctrine as close as possible, yet seemingly does not to mind going against it on the other side, judging by how he reacts to Coby, deserters, pirates and the likens. If Sakazuki comes up with any issues regarding illegal activities, I believe it's better to rethink these choices and to put in at least a bit of benevolence. It's an efficient option to differenciate well between those who can be taken down without major consequences or remorses and those who can "stay".

Lucci's Dark Justice:

Supposedly the CP0's kitty cat can be compared to Batman - to a certain degree at least. He bases his sense of justice on his own personal philosophy of "Neccessary Evil". Thus, he only destroys those who go against the interests of the World Government to defend them ( = the interests). For this, he himself becomes evil to support his ideals. Besides the fact, that he doesn't seem to care much about it, possibly comes from the WG deciding what justice is for him and the other CP agents. Thus, this results in him having his reasons for choosing this type of justice.

Aokiji's Lazy Justice:

The Lazy Justice (before it was the Burning or Fired Up Justice) is the rather laid-back opposite of the Thorough Justice in my eyes. It underlines his lack of interest and relaxed attitude towards many things as long as he doesn't think about a situation worthy enough for him to intervene. This is part of Moral Justice, thus acting according to it when it's needed. It shows well how he doesn't care about much that happens around him besides the complexity of his character. The Lazy Justice could be a sign to point out that it doesn't always need a ruthless man leading the sword of justice, but can also take a more relaxed but equally capable.

Fujitora's Blind Justice:

Besides the Moral or Virtuous Justice type of motto Isshō follows, he sticks to his own ideals instead of the Marine's Absolute Justice doctrine. He acts according to what he thinks to be morally fine like bringing those to justice who act without moral or anything. All this is underlined by the fact that he took his own eyesight to never see the unjustice of corruption done otherwise. This way Fujitora goes as far as taking responsibilites onto himself which other members of the Marine wouldn't have had to take otherwise if they were in his shoes.

Kizaru's Unclear Justice:

As its name states and how he possess a neutral attitude towards the Absolute Justice, it's somewhat unclear, how to define his type of justice. Except for the fact that it's mercy what he lacks, he doesn't really show a lot of passion or anything to pursue justice most of the time, however. If things restrain him from achieving his goal he only gets slightly annoyed and that's it, unlike Sakazuki for example.

Smokers' Eat Shit Justice:

He follows his own path of justice, unlike the majority of his colleagues do. Out of most of the Marine, he appears to be the most "normal" out of the bunch. Smoker seems to act on some sort of "be nice to me or I'll kill you" codex, like it was shown back during the Alabasta Arc for example. His Eat Shit Justice may be one of the more humane types of justice. After all though you shouldn't get on his bad side then or it surely will be over as soon as it is like with the other types of justice.

Conclusion Time

Now, to the interesting part. Whose justice would I and why?

That's actually a really tough decision. I had to think a lot between three types of justice, yet all of the ones mentioned above have their pros and cons. Eat shit, Lazy and Blind were the ones I couldn't choose between first.

But behold.. In the end I came to my current point: By a high chance I would follow Smoker's ideals of justice - as long as I understood and interpreted it correctly and not completely wrong, of course.

Why I chose his one over the others, you want to know?

The answer is simple. It's partially a thing of good education, I suppose. My landlords (called ✨ parents ✨ by some others) always said I have to be nice to others unless they become rude, there's the point then to just go out of their way. Just a typical thing every little kid hears, one day after another, so nothing special. Over the last few years however (to be exactly back when I came into 5th grade, middle school), I kind of accustomed myself to not always just take diverse comments, rude behaviour and all the likens because not all of the other students of my year were nice. Since then I decided to not take shit from most others who are constantly rude and toxic, especially for no reason. That's the reason why I follow the motto of "Be nice to me and I'm nice to you. Be, constantly, a bitch to me and I'll bitch back so eat shit, you idjit.".

Outroduction

Yee, so that was the blog •3• I surprisingly won with it, although it was the first one I had ever written, I've linked the original post from OPA. Looking back now, it sort of feels like a very lame, plain and boring character analysis and by now, I'd put far more effort into it.

Credits

Treasure Cruise renders on the dividers by KaizokuJotei on DeviantArt, and edited in PicsArt.

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cherripeach · 3 years

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Chapter 2

Little Match Maker

Summary: Your life motto is "I have the power of god and anime on my side, don't mess with me," and you stand by that with your life. No human, magician, or random creature could ever stop your firm belief in it.

However, getting transported to this world that seemed to turn your already bad luck worse was not what you wanted to be in your life story, but you made the most of it.Making friends, enemies, and disasters, you were in your prime in this world, and so you decided to help as many people as you could flourish, at least what you believed to be.

Prologue 3-5: I wanna take a nap

Chapter Summary: Was everyone in this school an evil bratty child or was it just you?

Warnings: jokes about death(I think) and committing crimes and curse words, some sex jokes (but not the bad ones; middle school boys comments and stuff)

Words: 3.4k

Relationships: Pending twst x reader

Two boys-you assumed-were chasing after the cat, and while neither of them seemed to be very athletic, the cat really was not either. The cat kept bumping into its own fire and having to turn away, or trying to blast fire at the two chasing him and almost tripping both himself and the other two boys. The cat did end up getting chased into a corner after almost tripping the two boys, and the smaller of the two raised up a pen or pencil looking object and screamed the words “Off with your head.” The only thing that passed through your mind was that you need to get out of here.

After the boy screamed, a red light appeared from the top of the pen and was soon directed straight toward the cat. The cat horror-struck backed up as far as he could and even climbed a few inches up the wall to move away from the beam of light heading toward it. The beam smacked the cat into the wall and caused him to fall from his position onto his butt and falter in any movement. Once the light cleared, there was an obvious difference in the cat’s appearance. A red and white collar had shown up around his neck, and the cat still dazed to notice it screamed out, “Nughab! The heck is this thing?”

You mumbled out, “Kinky…”

“Law of the Queen of Hearts Number 23: ‘One shall never bring a cat into a festival.’ You being a cat means you’ve broken the rule. I shall have you leave at once,” Here we have another member of the crowd who also thought the creature was a cat, but apparently, this disappointed child also has the numbers of the rules for something memorized, and that threw you off. He straightened himself once he noticed that the cat was caught within the collar and put his pen away in his coat that you just noticed everyone was wearing.

You surveyed yourself to see what you were wearing and realized that it was the same thing, only leading your mind to one conclusion: “This has to be some kind of cult…” you mumbled the phrase so that anyone close by could not question your thought process, but this school and world just happened to get worse and weirder the more you looked around.

“...I'ma burn this collar right up and... ehhh I can’t use my fire!” You caught the rest of the cat’s declaration, and both him and you were in absolute awe for what the collar had apparently accomplished.

“Hmph!” The disappointed child straightened his back even more and tilted his face up toward the ceiling a little, “You won’t be using any magic until I remove the collar. Just like an ordinary cat”.

“Whh-what? I’m not some pet!” The cat was having none of it. He was clawing at the collar on his neck and pulling it as much as he could just sitting in place next to the wall in his time out corner.

“Don’t worry, I’d never keep a pet like you,” the kid really just can’t help himself can he, “I’ll take it off anyway when you get thrown out.” He turned away from the cat and began to walk back to the center of the room where the sus headmaster in the top hat who for a weird second kinda reminded you of Willy Wonka stood and fumed over the past events.

Once the kid began walking, the other male chasing the cat spoke up, “Wow, as wonderful as ever. Any and all magic gets sealed by your Unique Magic, Riddle,” the male even threw his arms out to match his display of amazement only to pull them pack in a second later to place one hand on his chin while the other held his elbow to his chest to allow the male to mutter some words to himself. The taller male then pivoted around and sauntered to follow the smaller male. Both of them held this formal air covered in arrogance, and you wanted nothing to do with either of them.

The end of their conversation must have halted the top hat headmaster because he straightened himself up and glanced at the crowd only pausing his eye movement when they reached you. He kept both of his eyes on you while he strode over to your wall. Your day could apparently get worse.

“You must do something about this! It is your familiar!” the man made hand gestures to point at you in his furry, and you decided that maybe now is the time you should speak up.

“Sir, with all due respect, stop assuming things,” this man was worse than some teenagers and teachers you have met, so you shut him up, “Please tell me when I told you that he was my familiar,” your flicked your hands and continued, “whatever that is, because I am clearly lost.”

“So it’s not yours?” The man put his hand to his chin and closed his eyes either to calm himself down or figure everything out.

“Yep. Never seen it before it asked me to strip” Please let this man listen for once.

“Ah, um You did.” He cleared his throat, “Anyway, let's get it out of the school. We won't turn you into a stew. For I am gracious. Someone help, please.”

Several of the students crowded around the cat until finally two came out holding the cat who was yelling the entire time. He was a little too desperate to just stay in this school.

You broke off from the masked man’s lecture for a second until another voice joined the conversation.

“That’s not different from usual, is it?” You were lost as one of the taller of the five males from earlier spoke up. He was a half furry, but you had no clue what that was called again and you would rather not know.

“What?” The sun graced everyone with its presence, “Did nobody tell him about the ceremony?” His features turned into a sorrowful, sour look from his normal bright and upbeat feature; he even glanced around at all of the others who surrounded the masked male. You noticed that all of them were the five from earlier, not including the tablet.

“If you are going to complain, you should’ve done it yourself.” Another one of the tall gang of the five males spoke up; however, this one was the exact opposite of the half furry. He was incredibly put together and more breathtaking than anyone you have ever been in the same room in. The male must be the ruler of self care, even if he did give you arrogant vibes.

“Hmm. But I don’t really know anything about the guy.” The sun appeared guilty at his statement.

The people which you forgot about broke out into chatter about a man who was named something like ‘Malaus Drakconia’ or something like that, but you had no clue who he actually was or how to actually spell his name. All of the chatter stopped when another male, much smaller than most of the five males, strolled into the room through the double doors.

“I was correct. I thought he might come but ‘Malaus’ really didn't. It seems the invitation "never arrived" again.” The small male shook his head and sighed gently after entering the room.

The males in the middle all exchanged glances before two emerged: the two from before; the ones that were chasing after the cat.

“My deepest apologies. I promise, we didn't intend to exclude you.” The taller male closed his eyes and appeared apologetic.

“His aura makes it hard to approach him,” The shorter male just can’t stop himself.

You just had to butt in because no one was taking this seriously; you walked up from your wall to meet with the group in the middle, “Yo, dude that’s really not right. I mean what has he ever done wrong to ya?” Some teenagers just weren’t for you, and so you apologized to the new face that entered. “Tell the dude he has my condolences or something.”

The short new face just stared through your soul for the next couple of minutes, not blinking, but he finally did cough and twist away from you to face a group of students. “It’s not your fault child, but it is all right.” He took about three steps. “Members of the Diasomnia Dormitory can come with me… I hope this doesn't upset him.”

You in your brilliance decided to cup your mouth and scream out to the male leading the first group out, “Tell the dude that if he needs someone to talk to, I’m freeee! I hope he feels better!”

You even heard a slight chuckle from the group. And slowly all the groups left; most making eye contact with you, but you just carried on trying to think of how expensive the clothes you had one were; you rubbed the sleeve and found out that they were made of a fabric resembling silk.

Crowley, from what you remembered, sauntered up to you once the room was clear and both of you began to conjure in your head and make a conversation about what was going to happen:

“While I normally would have you leave this school, I do not know where you are from. Would you mind stepping up to the mirror to find out. There is no need to worry. The Dark Mirror will send you directly back from whence you came. Enter the Gate, and picture your home clearly in your mind... “ The male pushed you to the mirror again, and you thought of your home for as long as you could. You even heard him mumble words back and forth with the mirror when you were lost in thought.

However, a surprised noise came out of the man’s mouth and your mind buffered to process everything because both Crowley’s and the mirror’s gaze, if you would even call it that, were stuck on you.

“This is the first time this has ever happened since I became headmaster, what should I do?” You held contact with his weird mask eyes for as long as you could before you swerved your gaze to the mirror. “Are you positive that is where you are from? And that you have never heard of Twisted Wonderland, Night Raven College, anything?” He was moving closer to you at an extremely fast rate causing you to discreetly walk back to your wall.

“Yeah, sir, why would I ever lie about that? All of this seems like a weird movie for me.” You just could not believe how little this “headmaster” or whatever believed you.

“Our best option is to go to the Library and do some research. Come and join me.” Headmaster Crowley twirled around making his cloak follow his mystical movements like some fairy or evil villain and started to make his way out of the room.

You just as confused as before followed after him, wondering if anything in this world would ever make sense.

~~~~

After around an hour of scouring through books in the odd library you were in earlier, you and the headmaster both decided to take a break.

“Can you please believe me now?” You slumped in a chair and groaned as loud as you could for as late as it was and even massaged your forehead, just hoping the man would get your point.

“You are correct. There is nothing about your hometown anywhere…” The male halted his speech and glanced back at the books, “There is also a possibility you are from another world.”

“What a nice thing to say to the tired, lost teenager,” and you stopped your speech to turn to him and point at him, “That you are in charge of.” You could not believe this man, and so you deflated while he carried on with his speech.

“Did you have anything on you when you came here?”

You just shook your head and rolled your eyes out of his view.

“Do you have any identification, like a license for a magic car, name on a shoe... You appear to be empty-handed?”

Another shake and a hand placed back on your forehead, and you noticed that he was probably going to go back into one of his speeches when he stood up taller and paused speaking for a second.

“This is concerning…..My graciousness is limitless! I am a model for all educators.We had better be on our way. Let's head to the dormitory. It may be a bit old but there is a certain charm to it.” Apparently, you were going to stay in a dormitory. Always a new surprise with this man.

And you two were off again through the halls and outside to your new stay in this world, but from how terrible the place was on the outside, this was not a luxury resort.

It was a four or more story house accompanied by a broken gate guarding the house, spider webs on all of the molded dead trees, broken shutters, even broken window, and to top it off just an overall haunted vibe to the place. This was where smart, sane people in life would avoid; this was just the trap for those characters in haunted movies, and you were just hoping to find a peaceful place to sleep in it tonight.

Crowley must have caught your staring at the dorm and ushered you inside, “Right, right. Please come inside.”

You can confidently say that the inside of the dorm was incredibly worse than the outside; the streets might be a better option if you took into account all of the health hazards in just this room alone.

Crowley did not seem to agree, “Staying here will at least keep you out of the rain.”

You hoped to interject, “Isn’t there somewhere el-”

“I'm going back to do more research. Make yourselves at home. Don't go wandering around the school! Goodbye!” This man was going to be the death of you or the reason you commit murder.

The lounge area was terrible: almost everything was broken and covered in dust, including the walls, ceiling, and floor. This area was not fit for a person to live in, and even if you tried your best it might never be.

But of course with your luck streak, Crowley saying that it would rain had to come true. “Are you kidding me now!” You threw your hands up in the air and then grabbed your head and tried not to commit arson. “Nothing is ever going to go my way here, will it?”

Thunderstruck.

“At least you are on my side…” You gazed out the cracked window expecting it to break soon.

The thunderstorm caused more problems in your new dorm than it should have. The building would shake, as would the windows, and it allowed more damage than before. However, it appears that you are not alone with a caterwaul screech from behind you.

“Hyyyi! It’s really coming down!” And located on your broken couch was the cat from before. He was apparently a gift from someone, who probably was laughing at you, for you with how often he was popping up.

“What are you doing here?” You probed in an apathetic tone as you both deadpanned and glared at the cat.

“Gyhaha! You've got this stupid look on your face like a spider being attacked by a water gun! I'll have no trouble sneaking back into school. Come on, come on. If you think getting thrown out is gonna make me give up on getting in, you've got another thing coming!” The cat gabbed just as long as the headmaster.

Your day could somehow get worse, “Honestly, I don’t care. Please don’t cause problems or I’ll kick you out.”

“Hmph. You wouldn’t understand, but I’m a genius who is destined to be a great magician! I've been waiting for the Ebony Carriage to come pick me up. But... But...Hmph! The Dark Mirror just doesn't have an eye for this.So that's why I came here on my own. Not letting me in would be a loss for the world, humans just don't get it.” This cat might be annoying, but the sob story does make you pity him a little. That is if he started acting kinder and not like an annoying pretentious kid.

Now that you look at him, he resembled a small child disappointed that they did not get what they wanted, but you had sympathy for him. He never mentioned a family or had anyone who cared about around him. He seemed lonely. He wanted to get into school which honestly you don’t know why anyone would want to go to school, but people had their priorities.

A water droplet hit the cat, “Nyaa! So cold! The roof is leaking!”

Another drop.

“Fgyaa! It keeps coming! My adorable ear fire is gonna go out at this rate!” He pulled down his ears closer to his eyes and met your gaze.

“Fine, fine. I’ll get a bucket..” You uttered going to look around the building and ignored any more retorts the cat came up with.

You exited the living room and entered a hallway with a flight of stairs going up, and the rest of the house mirrored the living room and outside by how disgusting and hazardous it is. There was even a gigantic spider web spreading the top of the hallway, and the wallpaper was coming off and covered in mold.

“This is a great time for the first kill in a horror movie,” in this situation talking to yourself helped calm you down.

That is until three ghosts appear. All of different sizes and heights, and they look incredibly familiar like from a movie or something.

“Hihihihi…. Ihihihihi…We haven't had a guest in so long...I'm itching for some action. Ihihihihi!” Frozen in your spot, you watched as the ghosts chuckled and floated closer to you.

“Um, sorry, but like…. What?” You became more disoriented as the day went on., and this topped the cake.

The cat was not on your wavelength and followed you out of the living room and into the hallway only to freeze at the sight of the three ghosts.

“Gyaaaaaaaa!!!! G-g-g-g-ghoooooooooooootts!!” The cat bawled before he darted to cling onto your cloak.

The shortest ghost found amusement out of the cat’s reaction, “The people living here got scared of us and left…”

So did the largest ghost, “We’ve been looking for more ghost pals. How about you guys?”

“Dudesss, chill down. We are not here to hurt you.” You tried to placate both the ghosts and the cat clinging onto you, but nothing ever went your way.

The cat leaped out from behind you looking as ferocious as a duckling, “Grim, the Great Magician, isn't scared of some ghosts!!!” and blew fire at the wall, “Punahhh ~ ~ ~ nnn!!”

The ghosts were having fun with the cat as the tall one asked “Where are you aiming?” and the largest one ran around the hallway area chanting “Over here, over here!”

Apparently Grim-the cat- was actually taking this seriously or did not like getting teased, “Shoot! Stop disappearing!” He continued to blast fire in all directions, most not even where the ghosts were.

You were not going to put up with his attitude so you made a deal with him wanting him to either shut up or do his job right, “Grim or whatever, either you get a move on and listen to me or I’ll tell the headmaster that you are here so that a red collar can be placed on you again and get you kicked out on the streets.”

“Ughhhh, buttt.. I’m a genius.” Grim ran around the area but paused as another ghost came up behind him. “Bunch of cowards ganging up on us! Fine,” Grim circled around to face you, “tell me where the ghosts are!”

“To your left!” Helping Grim would never be easy, but you somehow made it work.

“I hit it! Alright, let’s get them all outta here!” Like a child, he bounced over the fact that he did something right.

And like a child you could not wait to take a nap.

~~~~~

um like exams such so there was that, but thanks for reading and I hope you have a nice day! Next chapter should be out around Monday or so.. maybe.

#twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twst grim #twst crowley #dire crowley #twst #disney twst #twst x reader

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mertronus · 3 years

Text

Perfect Courage

This has been in my head ever since I first saw the music video for "Perfect" by Ed Sheeran. So, feeling in an extra fluffy mood tonight, I put the video on a loop, stuck my headphones on, and started to write. And this little beauty came out of it.

Summary: Ron and the crew go on a weekend ski trip...will he finally get the chance and find the courage to tell the girl he loves how he feels? (rated G)

Read it on AO3

****

'Cause we were just kids when we fell in love Not knowing what it was I will not give you up this time

Friday

I stepped off the train and pulled my coat tighter around me. Blimey it was cold. But I guess when you’re in the mountains of Switzerland, it’s to be expected.

I made my way through the station until I stepped out into the village and adjusted my rucksack on my shoulder. Looking up I could just make out the slopes that I guessed I would be hurtling down on a pair of wooden sticks the next day. Who’s idea was this anyway?

Right...Hermione’s.

A smile stretched across my face. Not a surprise that I would do something like this simply because Hermione suggested it. Because Hermione organized it. Because it was Hermione’s parents’ property where we would be staying.

Anything with Hermione’s name on it I would immediately sign up for. I would do anything for her.

I started walking down the street towards the cafe we were meant to all meet, thinking about my best friend. I’ve known her almost all my life, been in love with her since - good God at least since we were thirteen. At least, that’s when I cottoned on to the fact that I couldn’t get enough of being around my nagging, know-it-all, nightmare of a best friend.

And yet, I never made a move, I was too scared, too nervous, feeling too unfanciable or too undeserving...I was convinced she would never go for the likes of me. And, more than all of that, I didn’t want to lose her as a best friend. I was resigned to being her friend for the rest of her life if that meant I got to be in it.

Until she started dating that bloody wanker Cormac McLaggen.

He treated her alright - I would have treated her better - and she seemed happy enough, but I was miserable. I couldn’t do it. For a whole year I watched them and dreaded the moment she would ask me to walk her down the aisle to the tosser.

When she finally ditched him before the fall semester started, I made up my mind. There was no life for me if Hermione wasn’t in it - like really in it. And mine. Otherwise it’s absolute torture. But with us attending different universities, and her in super studious mode during the semester, I never got my chance...until now.

So, yeah, while I hate the very thought of skiing, my attendance on this friends weekend adventure with our lot from school definitely has an ulterior motive. This weekend I would make my move. This weekend I would tell her how I feel. This weekend I would finally, finally, tell Hermione Granger how unbelievably in love with her I am.

I found a love for me Oh darling, just dive right in and follow my lead Well, I found a girl, beautiful and sweet Oh, I never knew you were the someone waiting for me

When I reached the cafe, the first thing I noticed through the window was an adorable head of curly brown hair. She looked amazing sitting there all comfortable in her oversized jumper and hat. The waitress was just handing her a steaming cup - likely tea. More specifically Earl Gray tea with half a sugar and just a bit of milk.

Yes, I know how she takes her tea. Don’t judge. I did say we’ve been best friends since we were kids right? Sod off then.

I took a deep breath and opened the door to step in. Courage of a Lion ...our school motto. Am I a lion or not?

“Ron!” she cried, a huge grin on her face. “You’re early!”

“Well, yeah I - OOF!” I caught her mid lunge and wrapped my arms around her waist. My nose involuntarily dipped into her curls and I breathed her in. Her familiar scent warmed me immediately and I knew my ears were likely bright red. She pulled back and looked at me expectantly. Oh, yeah...what was I saying to her? Right...early...I’m early.

“Caught the earlier train so I wouldn’t be late,” I finally explained.

“Well, I’m glad,” she grinned and reached up to ruffle my hair. I fought the urge to close my eyes at the feeling of her fingers running through my locks. “Been so long since we’ve had time together - the two of us.” When I looked into her eyes, I could have sworn I caught a glimpse of something...longing? Love? Blimey I hope so.

She led me over to the table and plopped me down as she began talking a mile a minute. Most of us were starting our final semester at uni in a couple of weeks, but Hermione of course beat us all to the finish line, having graduated a semester early...with honors thank you very much. Did I mention how bloody brilliant she is?

I gazed at her as she filled me in on all I’ve missed recently in her life - the last exams she took, the jobs she’s going for, visiting her parents over the holidays…

“But oh, listen to me drone on and on, what about you Ron? How was your season? Your semester?”

I snapped myself out of my daze and tried to collect my thoughts as best as I could. I told her a bit about how things were going with football, how I scraped by as usual with my usual mediocre grades and recapped my own holidays. Suddenly it hit me that this was likely the only time this weekend we would be alone. If I wanted to talk to her, now was the time.

Now or never. Courage of a Lion.

“I’ve uh...I’ve been thinking a lot too, Mione,” I said softly.

“Don’t think too hard, Ron,” she teased as she took a sip of her tea.

“Yeah har-dee-har-har,” I shook my head but grinned at her. For a moment I forgot what I was saying altogether as the sun made some of her curls look golden dancing around her head. It always caught me off guard how beautiful she is. How much I love her.

Right...focus Weasley. Just say it... ‘Hermione Granger, I love you’...

“Hermione, I..I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about -”

“Harry!”

“No, not of...what?” She jumped up and ran off to throw her arms around our other best friend...the one who always seemed to have the most impeccable timing.

“Hi Hermione,” he said with a grin. He released her and patted my shoulder. “How’re you Ron?”

I stood and smiled, pulling him into a hug. I was really happy to see him, even if I wished he waited another ten minutes or so. “Good, happy to see you mate.”

Behind Harry, Hermione was happily greeting my sister Ginny - who was dating my git of a best mate - and our friend Neville. It wasn’t long before Dean and Seamus came bustling into the little cafe to join us.

“We’re all here!” Hermione exclaimed. “Shall we head up to the cabin?”

It wasn’t long before all of our bodies and bags were piled into a van that Hermione rented for the weekend to get us around. Not a fan of driving the slick roads of the mountains, she asked me to drive. I was a bit disappointed when Neville happily called bagsy and jumped in the passenger seat beside me. I was really hoping to have Hermione beside me for the almost thirty minute drive up the mountain. Instead, I watched as Hermione wound up squeezed in between Dean and Seamus way in the back since Harry and Ginny took the middle two seater.

Gits. All of them were gits.

We drove up the mountain and I tried to keep my focus solely on the road, but it was hard when I kept wanting to glance back in the rearview mirror to catch a particular pair of brown eyes. I caught her eyes a couple of times and she smiled at me...it was as if the smile was only for me.

I really had to focus on the road.

“Ooh I love this song!” Ginny suddenly lunged forward to turn up the radio as Ed Sheeran’s “Sing” was starting up.

“ I don't wanna know If you're getting ahead of the programme…”

I glanced back and laughed at the sight of my friends singing at the top of their lungs.

“I want you to be mine, lady And to hold your body close Take another step into the no-man's land For the longest time, lady…”

I watched Hermione laughing with Dean as they sang and felt a pang of jealousy...until she looked up and caught my eye again and winked. I blushed and looked at the road but when I glanced back up, she was still singing and watching me. A chill ran through my body although the van’s heat was blasting.

We decided to stay in that night and get an early start the next morning. Hermione’s parents had the caretakers stock the fridge and pantry, so the seven of us had a good time pulling out random ingredients and making a hodge-podge of food - paired with the excessive amounts of liquor Seamus procured for us of course.

Everyone started to drop off one by one, and I tried to hang on so I could maybe get a few moments alone with Hermione again, but the last thing I remembered seeing was the girl of my dreams curled up on the armchair before I dozed off myself.

Saturday

Ski lifts are bloody scary!!! It’s bad enough you have all this gear on with your coats and snow pants and boot, then you’re also clipped to these long wooden sodding sticks that are weighing you down, all while sitting precariously on a bench that’s flying through the air.

Who’s idea is this of fun!?!?

“Having fun Ron?” Her arm wrapped around mine and she pulled herself in close as we rode the lift up to the top of the slopes.

I smiled but I’m pretty sure a wince was seen too. “Bit nervous honestly.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t let you fall…” I pulled her in close and nuzzled my nose in her hair. “Not too much anyway.”

Okay, I’ll admit it: skiing is kind of fun. Or rather, skiing with Hermione is fun.

We spent the entire day on the slopes, stopping for an early lunch and mid-afternoon to warm up. Hermione spent most of the day teaching me the ropes and I spent most of the day falling on my arse. Even Neville showed me up - him, Dean and Seamus speeding passed us repeatedly on snowboards.

We finally called it a night and headed into the inn for dinner and drinks. We were a few shots in when someone got the great idea to start up karaoke. I hid myself in the back as much as my tall frame with flaming red hair would allow, but quite enjoyed watching Hermione and Ginny’s rendition of “Lady Marmalade.”

As I sat there watching her laughing and carrying on with my little sister, my mind wandered to many more nights like this...double dates with Harry and Ginny, playdates with all of our kids, family events where Hermione feels really comfortable letting her hair down because she knows she’s with people who love her and have her back.

Well I found a woman, stronger than anyone I know She shares my dreams, I hope that someday I'll share her home I found a love, to carry more than just my secrets To carry love, to carry children of our own

“Hey,” a voice called out to me. I looked up to see Hermione leaning over me. I was so lost in my thoughts, I didn’t even realize that her and Ginny were finished and Dean had taken the stage with Neville and Harry. “Come with me?”

I’ll go anywhere with you. “Yeah...uh sure. Where we going?” I stood and pulled on my coat. It honestly didn’t matter where we were going...as long as it was just the two of us.”

“You’ll see!” She threw her own coat around her and spun around with a laugh as she head out the door. I laughed too because I loved it when she let loose and had a few drinks. She spent so much of her time fussing over books and school and all of the boring adult things that bogged down our lives. Seeing her like this - now spinning in the falling snow trying to catch flakes with her tongue - this is the Hermione I love most. I love all sides of Hermione Granger, but this side...this side is the most beautiful side.

I threw my head back to catch snow on my tongue too, making faces and noises to get her really laughing. I dropped my head to look for her when I felt a distinct splat on my back.

“Oh it’s a snowball fight you want is it?” I called as she ran off towards the road that led up to our cabin. I stooped over and gathered a massive snowball as I commenced chase, her squealing as she ran ahead of me. I aimed and caught her right in her bum.

“Ronald!” She yelled with a laugh. “I’ll get you for that!” She ran toward me with a handful of snow and jumped on my back to stuff it down my back - a favorite torture method of ours when we were kids.

Her laughter echoed in my ears with her so close. I grabbed onto her legs and spun her around on my back to keep her there. “Roooooon!” she yelled. “I’m getting dizzy!” We both toppled into a mound of snow in a fit of giggles. I slid over so I wouldn’t crush her and we lay in the snow in a fit of tipsy hysterics. I looked over to see she had slid away from me in the snow, and was reaching the tips of her fingers to mine smiling. Suddenly she started to giggle again and waving her arms in the snow while moving her legs. I followed suit and after a bit we helped each other up to admire our snow angels.

She hugged my arm and leaned in close. “I want to show you something.”

I took off after her towards our cabin. It was obvious the others weren’t back yet and I thought this could be my chance. Get her in the cabin and get a few minutes alone before the others decided to walk back.

But she ran passed the cabin into the woods behind it.

“Hermione! Where are you going?!”

“Come on!”

We ended up running right into a smaller cabin hidden just a few yards away from the main cabin where we all were staying.

“What’s this?” I asked when we stopped.

“Come on,” she said again, pulling me inside. It was a cozy little one room cabin, a tiny kitchenette in one corner, and a couch and a few chairs around a rug with a stone fireplace. There were stairs leading up to a loft where I could just see a low bed with blankets and pillows just waiting to be crawled into.

“It was an old shed that the caretakers renovated into a separate guest house when there were a lot of people staying in the cabin,” Hermione explained. “When we used to come with the rest of my family, my grandparents stayed out here, to get away from the noise of their kids and grandkids in the cabin.”

“It’s cozy,” I said quietly, looking around. “And quiet.” I caught her eye and smiled. “Hiding out here tonight?”

She blushed but shrugged nonchalantly. “We can...if you want.”

“If you want.”

As if she couldn’t surprise me anymore, she pulled out a small bag with a change of clothes - for both of us.

“Hey! I’ve been looking for this Oxford United shirt! You’ve had it all this time?”

“Remember after Ginny’s birthday party a couple years ago? I was supposed to go home but it was pouring rain and your mum pretty much forbade me to leave.”

I nodded and smiled. “And you came to steal pajamas from me. My Oxford United shirt and,” I pulled a pair of navy blue flannel pajama bottoms out of the bag, “and these.”

She shrugged. “I wore them home and I guess I kept forgetting to give them back. Figured we’d need something to change into - which I’m glad I thought of it since we were literally rolling in the snow!”

We each took opposite corners of the room and turned to give the other privacy to change. As I was changing, I caught sight of something behind the couch. I pulled out a pretty pristine acoustic guitar when I felt Hermione come up behind me.

“My Grandad’s,” she breathed. “He must have left it here.” I sat on the arm of the couch and set it across me, plucking a few strings.

“Bit out of tune but…” I started twisting and tuning the guitar to my liking.

Hermione smiled as she sat in front of me. “I forget you used to play.”

“Still do, sometimes,” I said softly. “I just fiddle around mostly, nothing crazy. I’m no Ed Sheeran or nothin,” I chuckled.

“No,” she sighed. “You’re definitely cuter.” Our eyes locked and I tried to form the words but it was as if I was frozen - trapped in her gaze as I fell mercilessly farther and farther in love with her. “Tea,” she breathed out.

“Huh? What?”

“Tea,” she stood. “I’ll make us both a cup. Two sugars and a bit of cream?”

I smiled and nodded. “Perfect.”

As she kept herself busy in the tiny corner kitchenette, I suddenly had a moment of inspiration and started playing a song I knew, thrilled that I remembered it.

Courage like a Lion, Weasley.

“That sounds familiar,” she said as she set my cup on the small table besides me and sat back in her spot.

“Yeah,” I whispered. She sipped her tea and watched me, her eyes bright and round and locked onto mine. I cleared my throat and started to sing softly.

“We are still kids, but we're so in love Fighting against all odds I know we'll be alright this time Darling, just hold my hand Be my girl, I'll be your man I see my future in your eyes”

Tears started to form in her eyes as she stilled and watched me intently. I knew my voice was likely rubbish, but I didn’t care. When she looked at me that way, I felt as if I could do anything.

“Baby, I'm dancing in the dark, with you between my arms Barefoot on the grass, listening to our favorite song I have faith in what I see Now I know I have met an angel in person And she looks perfect I don't deserve this You look perfect tonight”

When I stopped playing, she set her cup down and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Ron,” she started.

I pushed the guitar aside and slid down off the arm of the couch to sit beside her. My hands cupped her face and her fingers wrapped around my wrists. “Ron,” she said again, this time as if she was pleading with me. I answered her by pulling her face to mine and brushing my lips against hers softly.

I pulled back the tiniest bit and looked at her. “This okay?”

“More than,” she breathed out. At that I captured her lips with mine and vowed to never let her go.

I was lost. Completely and utterly gone. Her lips were as soft as I imagined they’d be and more. They were gentle and yet persistent, shy and yet demanding. I marveled at how she could always be so many things at once.

When we pulled apart, I noticed she was crying again. “You alright Hermione?”

She let out a slow breath and smiled. “Never better.”

“Good, because I believe I made you an offer.”

“And...what offer was th-that?”

“Be my girl, I’ll be your man,” I rubbed my nose against hers. “Cause I most definitely see my future in your eyes.” She giggled and nodded. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

But darling, just kiss me slow, your heart is all I own And in your eyes, you're holding mine Baby, I'm dancing in the dark with you between my arms Barefoot on the grass, listening to our favourite song When you said you looked a mess, I whispered underneath my breath But you heard it, darling, you look perfect tonight

#romione #romione fluff

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savoies · 4 years

Text

Cliches - Carter Hart.

Carter Hart x Reader.

Summary: Carter is the popular guy while Y/N is just the girl who keeps to herself. She starts tutoring him and they rekindle a friendship that they used to have which leads to even more after learning to trust each other again.

Word Count: 2.5k

Warning: maybe a bad word or two and hints of a bad home life.

A/N: Before anyone comes at me, yes this is like a walk to remember but with my ideas and a different take on that. But it does have the aspect of two opposites attracting. I really hope you guys like it.

Carter Hart was the residential popular boy at Lakeview High. Everyone knew him and he tried to know everyone. Carter was big on meeting new people and starting conversations wherever he was. He wasn't popular for being rude, being the football captain, or dating the head cheerleader. Carter was actually popular for being nice. Yes he did have a spot on the football team but he didn't think he was better than anyone else and treated everyone the same.

Y/N was the residential shy girl. She kept to herself and her life motto was the less social interactions the better. Y/N didn't perceive to be rude she just didn't like to put her walls down for people that would just walk away. She felt as though keeping to herself was the best option. She did put her walls down for her best friend but he just walked away after they both went into highschool.

Carter and Y/N had their fair share of interactions throughout highschool. But during their entire childhood they were glued to the hip. Carter was the only person that had seen Y/N be herself yet when they went into highschool that all changed. Carter joined the football team saying that he would still have enough time for his best friend. But after the first week Y/N was by herself and Carter was mostly with his new friends that included football players and cheerleaders.

Carter tried talking to Y/N, ok maybe not having a full blown conversation but sending a simple hello her way. But every time he tried she would walk the other way. She didn't want to deal with him. If he had ignored her all of freshman year, she could ignore a simple hello. As she walked to her english class she took a seat towards the middle where she could blend in. There was about ten minutes before class started so she buried her head in a book to avoid conversation. What brought back her attention though was Carter walking in with his friends laughing loudly. Y/N looked up and they made eye contact for a second. She smiled at him shyly and put her book away as the teacher walked in.

Carter was failing english badly. If he didn't show up to class everyday he probably would've had a better grade than now. He needed to raise it up to play football or his spot would be given to someone else who had better grades. If he let it go down one bit more, then his whole football journey was over. Now he didn't want that and his teacher had talked to him about getting a tutor. Now Carter knew that getting a tutor probably meant that he would get stuck with some dude that only cared about homework. That is why he groaned at the idea but if it was supposed to help him so he was supposed to say yes right.

As class ended Carter headed up to the teachers desk as you packed up your stuff. You noticed that they were talking so you decided to pack up a bit quicker to leave and give them privacy. But as soon as you were gonna walk out the door your teacher called you.

“Y/N could you come here for a second please.” you put a smile on your face and headed back inside. “Mr. Hart here is in desperate need of an english tutor and I would like you to help him.” Those were the last words both of you guys wanted your teacher to say. Both of you interrupted them with banter.

“Why me, there're so many people in the class.” you said.

“Yeah i don't think that is gonna work out.” Carter said. It was like he was reading your mind.

“Well that's the only solution and there will be no further discussion exchange numbers and start as soon as possible.” your teacher said and pushed you out of their classroom. Little did Carter know that you never had the guts to erase his number.

“Here plug in your phone and i'll text you when i'm free.” Carter said, handing you his phone. Glad to know that he didnt save your phone number. You were kind of hurt but it didn't really matter right. It's not like you were going to call him.

“Look Y/N, i'm sorr--.” before he could end his sentence and go on giving an apology you stopped him because right now you didnt want Carter’s pity. “I'm just helping you pass, I'm not trying to reconcile.” you said as you headed to the last place you wanted to go, home.

Today was the day that you were going to have your first tutoring session with Carter. You weren't too thrilled to say the least. But anything to get you out of your house for a bit. It was after school and you headed to the library to wait for Carter. You sat down at the table and waited for Carter. You thought maybe he would arrive in twenty minutes but after forty minutes of waiting you were getting irritated. He didn't even have the audacity of sending you a text that he was gonna be late. After one hour of waiting you decided that he had wasted enough of your time and you decided to pack up. That's when Carter came rushing in.

“Oh gosh Y/N, i know i'm sorry for making you wait but Coach decided to have an emergency meeting, i'm so sorry. Im here now.” Carter said exasperated.

“You could've at least sent a text.” you suggested.

“Coach doesnt let us use our phones.” Carter said hopeful that maybe you would stay cause he really didn't want to mess this up on the first day. You decided that he seemed like he was being honest so you shrugged your backpack off and took out the textbooks. After the next two hours of him studying his butt off, you decided it was time to wrap it up.

“Same time tomorrow and don't be late.” you said walking out into the now dark sky.

The next day Carter asked you to meet him in a cafe. You weren't sure why but you decided that a nice warm drink didn't sound too bad. So you headed over there after school and set up everything. After everything was laid out you thought it was the perfect time to order a drink before Carter got there. You ordered your usual hot beverage and were about to pay when Carter came up from behind you and told the barista “Oh and one cappuccino, thanks” he said, handing her his card. “Thanks you didn't have to do that.” Y/N smiled shyly at Carter. Maybe tutoring him wasn't going to be too bad.

“No problem, now where did we leave off on yesterday?”Carter said, actually sounding like he was excited to learn. After both of you guys got your drinks, there was less studying involved and more talking. Carter started talking to you about football and you liked how his eyes lit up when he talked about the subject. About one hour of just talking you decided that it was time to get back to studying before it got too late. Before leaving the cafe, Y/N pulled out her favorite book out of her backpack. “Here I thought you might enjoy this, it's one of my favorites.”

“Thanks, I'll let you know when I finish it. Carter said, grabbing the book from the girl and their hands slightly brushing.

A few days later you were in bed ready to go to sleep when your phone started ringing. You thought it was probably a unknown number so you let it ring, but after four rings and no signs of hanging up you decided to pick up.

“Hello” you said, sleepiness evident in your voice.

“Did I wake you up, sorry, I just wanted to let you know that I finished the book.” Carter's giddy voice was heard on the other side of the phone. His voice though had no sleep evident in it whatsoever.

“Look Carter, I don't want to sound rude but why couldn't you just wait till tomorrow to tell me, it's 12am?’ you asked him questionaly. The truth one he couldn't sleep all night, thinking about how finally things with you guys could be fixed. And he just wanted to hear your voice.

“It was a really good book and i had to tell you, i'll see you tomorrow then.” he said hanging up the phone knowing that it was a bad time to call you but glad that you picked up. He took it as a sign that maybe your friendship could be restored.

The next day you headed to school and stopped at your locker to drop some stuff off. When you were pulling stuff out of your backpack. Carter approached from behind you. “Heres your book back” Carter spoke up.

“Shit Carter, you scared me.” you said as your notebook fell to the ground.

“Sorry, just wondering if we were gonna meet up later.” Carter cluelessly asked.

“Well yeah, that's basically the agreement.” Y/N stated, kind of annoyed because he knew that they were supposed to meet mostly everyday due to the teachers orders.

She got to the cafe where she sat at the same table as last time. As she waited for Carter she took everything out . The bell above the door rang signaling the arrival of someone, and it was Carter. They exchanged their hellos and got to tutoring. After what seemed like forever of studying, Carter decided to bring up a question that seemed to be bothering him all day. “So do you have a problem tutoring me or what, cause let me just say i'm not the biggest fan of this either.”

“What do you think Carter, that I think this is a fun way to spend my time, tutoring you.” giving the word you a deeper meaning. Carter was confused on what she meant.

“You really don't remember, you pretended I didn't exist.” the girl said, feeling more vulnerable than ever.

“ You are the one who's always mad at me, you stopped talking to me, freshman year.” Carter told her, saying it in a way saying it was her fault.

"Really, on the first day of school you didn't see me down the hallway and then turn the other way.” Y/N said pleadingly. At this point it seemed that they were competing seeing who could say it in the most hurtful way possible.

“I didn't know what to say.” Carter said looking down.

“ How about hey Y/N, how's it going?” she said spitting it out a bit more harshly than she meant to. She couldn't take this right now, so she packed up her bag and headed out the door. Carter didn't really process what was going on until the ding above the door signaled that she really had left.

When you got home you heard the sound of yelling, crying, and the shattering of glass. You decided that the best option right now was just to lock yourself in your room and with your thoughts. You went to sleep listening to music and the next day you got ready for school.

As you were at your locker Carter appeared again. He saw the way that you looked tired and drained and even though you weren't on the best terms decided to ask you how you felt. “Hey, you ok?” he asked concerned.

“No offense but I really don't want to talk about my personal life with my ex best friend.” you looked at him and shrugged your shoulders. Carter understood so he wasn't mad about it.

“No tutoring today right? I'll see you in a couple days then.” he said waving goodbye. Even though you didn't really appreciate tutoring Carter you didn't really want to go home so you were kind of bummed out that there wasn't tutoring today.

Two days later there you were at the same table with the same stuff laid out in front of you. Again waiting for Carter. He walked in and took a seat. “Before we start I just wanted to make sure that you're ok.” he said, looking concerned.

A slight blush appeared on your cheeks because even though he asked you the same question two days ago he was still concerned. “Like I said before, I don't really want to talk to my ex best friend about this.”

“Well then don't think about me as your ex best friend, think about me as your therapist.” you laughed but when he didn't laugh back you knew that he was serious. “Oh you're being serious.

“Yeah I am, now tell me what's wrong.” he said, getting all serious but it didn't last long because both of you burst out laughing. You liked this, just being able to laugh with him again. Like everything was back to normal. But everything wasn’t back to normal and it probably wouldn't but in the end you were having a good time.

After that day you tutoring Carter had become less of a task and more of something that you enjoyed. It had become less stressful and you actually felt like you guys had a good chance of repairing your friendship. Maybe even having the possibility of bringing it back to how it was before. Now that's the way you felt, but you weren't sure how Carter felt. Maybe for him this was just tutoring.

Now Carter saw that maybe he was slowly breaking down your walls again. He was slowly seeing the person you were in middle school again. He liked that. But he thought that maybe you just thought that this was something you felt obligated to do and nothing else.

The next day at school Carter was talking to his friends against their lockers. You were walking towards your locker when you heard the topic of conversation. Now you weren't trying to be all up in their business and invade their privacy but it seemed like they were talking about you.

“Oh look it's your little girlfriend, you're not gonna say hi.” one of the cheerleaders said in a snarky voice. All his “friends” around him laughed at the girl's comment.

Carter thought that maybe if he went along with it, they would stop. “She isn't my type anyways, you know that all she is to me is my tutor so I can pass English and still be on the football team.”

After Carter said that you knew that you should've said no to tutoring him and just told the teacher that you were too busy. “Im so stupid, i should’ve let him fail so he could see what its like to lose something just how I lost my best friend” you told youself as you wiped a tear with your sweater sleeve.

Well now you could tell that it seemed Carter didn't feel the same about your friendship finally getting a bit better or becoming reconciled. But deep down Carter knew that everytime he saw you his face would light up and that he was slowly falling hard for you. Yet he couldn't let his friends know because he knew that if they did find out they would just tease you and he didn't want that because you didn't deserve it.

taglist: @hartsyhart (thanks for all the help kan), @patty-cake-nolan (thanks for helping me with the title), @mitch-slap (thanks for all the support always), @summerko8, @barrettshayton, @leafsxhockeywrxtes, @segsation, & @idkwhyimhere19.

#carter hart #cahtah haht #philly flyers #philadelphia flyers #hockey boys #hockey #hockey imagine #nhl imagine #i poured my heart into this #hope you guys like it #ari writes #longest one yet #hope i dont bore yall with this

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kryetara · 4 years

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IRA J. DUNHAM HEROIN.

following on from my first post regarding ira and vices (link), the time has come for me to dive into his addiction to the class a drug heroin. clearly a difficult subject matter, so drug abuse content warnings apply going forward, including also issues of sexuality and mental health.

0 1 . BEGINNING. right from his initial formative years, it’s clear that ira is the sort of person that struggles with confidence and self-image. something that is, generally speaking, natural to his personality, but partially driven into him by a childhood that was less than exceptional ; first and foremostly, his distaste for self coming largely from a difficult relationship with an emotionally unavailable father figure. andrew duhnam is a quiet man that says very little, rarely showing emotion and finding it extremely difficult even to appease his wife and daughter, let alone a son he finds it impossible to communicate with ; his own lack of confidence as a husband and father finding it’s way to infecting ira all the same with his own manifestations of it, teaching him over time to bottle things up as oppose to letting them out, to keep a tight lid on your emotions and don’t let them spew. his mother siobhan’s firm bond with her daughter samantha, the eldest of the two and the most favourable in and outside of school, causes her unrest when attempting to figure out her son due to her need to compare them ; especially amplified by andrew’s near non-existence in the family. as ira grows and discovers in his teenage years that he has an attraction to men, he is further driven into himself like a hermit crab ---- too embarrassed even before at the prospect of being a poor son, now doubly so at the idea of him being even more a deviation to their normal. a typical middle-to-lower-class family in northern english suburbs in the 90s, this was just after the conservative government under prime minister margaret thatcher passed section 28 of the local government act ; banning local authorities from ‘promoting homosexuality’ and prohibiting the funding of educational materials and subjects that were perceived to support it ---- meaning students like ira couldn’t discuss their changing feelings and wouldn’t receive any help understanding it.

0 2 . THE NEED FOR DISTANCE. having made it to an age where he could consider leaving home for university, a family life that had now become one of almost total avoidance of each other ; andrew spent more evenings holed up in the working men’s club than he did even looking in his son’s direction ; ira felt an impending frustration to escape, and to put up walls between himself and his difficult life at home, additionally in the midst of his parents bordering on divorce. having not divulged his attraction to men to anyone beside one of his friends, of who rejected his attempt at an advance, ira decided he would disappear to a university three hours down to the south of england in the bustling expanse that is london city ------ wishing he could study history, but at the bequest of his mother ( pleased, at-least, that he was going to study ), studying law and finance. the transition from being trapped by absent authorities in his household, to being met with such consuming freedom, was overwhelming for him to say the least, and ira spent a long time hiding most often in his room in the standard student accommodation ; but as he began to make friends on his course and in his lodgings, with this came the inevitable hedonism of teenage life. exclusive to ira however was a need to match his peers and to yet go even further, perhaps driven by his feelings of frustration for being locked so tightly in his shell, labelling ira to become something of an ‘enabler’ ; constantly pushing others to keep drinking more, and, eventually, taking more, even beyond the point of it being bad for their well-being ( a total self projection --- if he saw someone drinking or taking excessive amounts of substances, he felt it was suitable for him to do it too ). ira’s relationship with drugs begins with smoking weed, but his fascination for people involved in drug dealings opened him to a very different world than what he was used to. to spite his sheltered life, and in need of something that cut out the constant feeling of inadequacy, ira adopted a ‘try anything’ motto ; that no drug could escape his use, even if it was just once. in all actuality, ira ended up doing just weed, mdma, lsd, and on various occasions cocaine. but it was a brush one night, accompanying a friend to somewhere he didn’t know for a party, that people were injecting themselves there ; and from what he could see, the results were quite enviable. this drug is heroin. the year, at this time, is 2008.

0 3 . DISGUISING REALITY. heroin, also known as smack, skag, and gear ( most common nicknames ira has used for it in the past, though not the only ones, as he liked to refer to it often as his ‘girlfriend’ ), is a drug usually in white-brown to brown powder form, that is made from morphine, and extracted from opium poppies. the unrivalled intensity of it’s effects were for ira an immediate success in his efforts to remove himself from life around him ; to cut out those feelings of self-distaste. the euphoria it presented him with was unparalleled, unmatched by any other drug, any drink, any feeling ; to not enhance reality around him or to distort it, but to simply make him uncaring of it ; it was always going to be a recipe for disaster. ira began by smoking it, inhaling the fumes when burnt on foil, but soon was introduced to injecting it, of which the hit is much faster and more intense. initially cautious and denying injecting heroin at first, but warming to the prospect over time, as friends he made that also enjoyed the drug demonstrated it’s tidal wave effects. when he took heroin, he found that his anxieties and pains in life were numbed so effectively, that by the time he came around, he’d enjoyed life far too much a few hours before, when these feelings melted into nothing. it was immediately apparent to ira that life with those thoughts cut out was a much more preferable existence. heroin’s addictive quality is also simultaneously it’s most destructive, and it is the feeling of numbness that ira craves the most deeply ; that illustrious mind wipe, that ocean of dopamine. so thus a chase is born, and ira spends the next 6 years of his life on and off this extremely dangerous drug. it’s likely also that ira becomes so quickly hooked on it as a result of his peers about him using it, and his need to blend into the background and ‘fit in’ amongst others, to be unnoticeable, also fuelled his first few uses of it, and the beginning of injecting it ; the drug however eventually demonstrating to him that his life wasn’t just bearable, but enjoyable, when using it.

0 4 . DRUGS OR ME. ira first attends a rehabilitation clinic, of which was nhs funded, at age 24 in 2010, not too long after leaving university. this is persuaded of him by his older sister, of who discovered ira’s intravenous drug use after coming to visit him one day out the blue. he remains in rehab for the space of a month, able to kick the withdrawal cycle, but this pattern doesn’t stick, and ira would then revisit rehab innumerable times from this point forward. this being the first year that ira’s family find out about his drug abuse, sam and his mother siobhan attempt to try and help him as best they can, offering him a place in their homes, but most instances such as this are declined, likely as a result of ira’s shame for his actions, and for lying about passing his second two years in university. his father andrew still remains passive and largely uncontactable, again, much to siobhan’s downfall, and this burden then appears to lie most heavily with sam ; perhaps maternally, wishing in some way to protect her younger brother. ira, however, still struggling to admit that he feels unconnected to his family and feels as though he doesn’t belong with them, allows this to underline his actions, and more often than not ignores them, leaves texts unanswered, dodges phonecalls, unwilling to try. this allows the void between them to grow, and in the space where his absence lives, the anxiety and pain felt by his mother and sister spreads like a vine ; frustration on all ends ; ira, for his guilt and his displacement, sam for her inability to help and for ira’s self-imposed distance, and siobhan for her helplessness and pain for her son’s addiction. as time progresses and ira found his supply of money wearing thin, he would often pick up communications again, largely with his mother ; asking for some pennies here, some pounds there ; always with different stories. siobhan, though aware of where her money was likely going, found it impossible to say no to him, happy enough he was speaking to her and that she could hear his voice, and sent it over without question ; though the moment sam found out, this, to the largest extent, stopped. relations began to deteriorate even further as ira and sam would often have heated arguments over the phone, and it was clear that life was soon to reach a crescendo. this came in the form of ira visiting for a weekend, and stealing things of value from sam’s home, with the intent to sell them or trade them for drugs. once this act was discovered, and sam accused him, she cut him out of her life completely, and firmly advised siobhan to do the same. this happens in 2013. as it stands ira has still not spoken to sam since this point, of which up to now has been 7 years.

0 5 . THE RAT RACE. addiction, no matter what to, is difficult to kick. in the present day ira has been clean and sober for an impressive 5 years ; but the thoughts are often still the same, the reflexes are still the same, that gut feeling, that need, still lingering on. ( he’s simply gotten better at ignoring it. ) in ira’s house on a pine bookshelf by his tv is a small wooden box full of the chips he managed to keep from rehab, small tokens that he found himself unable to dispose of, a trophy of sorts. but just the same, tucked under his bed, is an old star wars lunchbox that he picked up at a charity shop, of which contains a spoon, cotton, a lighter, foil, an old leather belt, and a tin case with various needles. sometimes taken out, sometimes simply looked at, unopened ---- sometimes taken apart with waning intent, then put together and away again. ira manages to keep a lid on himself for enough time to last him until the deal is made with kel mehmeti, and now suddenly entrenched in a world themed by the very thing he has spent such time trying to avoid ; there may well be a 6th chapter to this meta soon.

#this took literally days #i am .. proud #i literally expect not a single soul to look at this bc i apparently love vomiting paragraphs out of nowhere #but im STILL PROUD #. 𝐢𝐜 . ❛ metas & headcanons. ❜#tw drugs #tw drug abuse #tw addiction #ii. characterization. / metas.

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camillemontespan · 4 years

Text

otp asks [drake x camille]

Thanks for tagging me @argylemnwrites

Big thanks to the amazing @mskaneko for drawing up these questions AND for making this edit of Drake x Camille for me which makes me feel all warm and fuzzy!

****************************

1. What other couple would your OTP get along with?

Leo and Olivia, hands down. Drake and Olivia have a weird friendship founded on Instagram trolling, insults and their annual hug. But Drake knows that Olivia is the most loyal person he has and she adores his daughters.

2. Do either of them have secrets even the other doesn’t know?

Drake will sneak a cigarette when he’s stressed out. He hides the evidence with cologne and breath mints.

Camille will sneak a cigarette when she’s stressed out. She hides the evidence with perfume and breath mints.

3. Who is the one that sees the big picture, while the other focus on the small details?

Drake sees the big picture while Camille focuses on the small details.

4. Who does stuff on impulse?

Camille does on occasion but she is learning to kerb it.

5. What is their favourite holiday?

Drake loves 4th July because it means he can buy all the fireworks and get his daughters all excited for the festivities. His dad was a huge 4th July fan so Drake wants to carry it on - especially since his kids are more American than Cordonian.

Camille loves Christmas and goes overboard with decorating. It’s the one time their house isn’t all neat and organised - when Christmas rolls around, all rules go out the window.

6. What is their favourite board game?

Drake likes card games such as Cards Against Humanity. He loves inappropriate humour and seeing how far he can take it.

Camille likes Game of Life :)

7. Who would go out of their way to do something silly to make their partner laugh?

Drake. He turned into a goofball when he married Camille. She makes him feel at ease and he doesn’t care about looking silly.

8. Favorite canon moment of them?

Oooh... I love it when Drake beats up Tariq. Like any time he shouts ‘Get your hands off of her!’ I sploosh.

Or it has to be in Lythikos in the snow and they hold hands ‘for safety.’ That made me smile.

9. Least favorite canon moment of them?

Drake deciding he loves the idea of his kid becoming the heir of the kingdom and his whole personality was destroyed in one fell swoop.

10. Who is the competitive one?

Drake is. Camille will be like ‘it’s just a game!’ and he’s like ‘Camille, I swear to God, I need to beat Leo at Mortal Kombat, I refuse to let that smug bastard win again!’

11. Who likes to go on drives to nowhere in particular

Drake. He loves driving through the hills of Cordonia and just feeling like a weight is lifted off his shoulders.

12. Who sings along with the radio?

Camille will sing to cheesy 90s when she is driving. Drake will want to open the door and throw himself out onto the road.

But when Drake is driving his kids to school, he will sing his heart out to make them laugh.

13. Who would accidentally set the kitchen on fire while cooking?

Well, at Christmas, Camille did forget about the turkey while having a 2 minute quickie with Drake..

14. Who is more seductive when they are drunk?

Camille is.

But Drake does a seductive dance when he’s had one too many. Think body rolls. Camille loves it. Drake swears he doesn’t have a seductive dance.

15. Who wakes the other up in the middle of the night to tell them a cool dream they had?

Neither.

16. Who asks weird questions in the middle of the night?

Drake will if he can’t sleep and just wants to talk to his wife.

17. Who likes to walk around the house naked and who tells the other to go put some clothes on?

I can’t imagine a head canon where Drake and Camille would want the other to put some clothes on. Sorry, not registering.

18. Who is always ready to have sex at any time, at any place?

Both of them, Drake more so. Say the word and he is ready.

19. Who likes to surprise the other with a lot of small random gifts?

They’re not that materialistic, instead preferring to leave little notes and things.

20. Where did they take their first picture together?

On a night out with the gang, wasted on tequila shots.

21. Who knows the most useless facts?

Drake. He knows everything.

22. Who is more likely to forget their own birthday?

Neither, but Drake doesn’t like his birthday. The only time he really enjoyed his birthday was when Camille surprised him with a little baby grow with a marshmallow embroidered on the pocket as a ‘you’re going to be a daddy’ gift. He cried.

23. Which bad habit of their partner do they find the most annoying?

Drake leaves his towel on the floor after a shower, like most men.

Camille tidies up after him but then that means he can’t find any of his stuff. This is annoying for him.

24. Who is the better driver ?

Drake. To quote Ross from Friends, he is not getting in ‘the death seat’ when Camille is driving.

25. Who is more likely to admit they are wrong in an argument ?

Both. Drake has had to learn to do it. But when they admit it, they sit down and talk calmly.

26. What is something that reminds them of one another?

Coconut shampoo and Chanel perfume reminds Drake of Camille.

Whiskey reminds Camille of Drake.

27. Would they get matching couple tattoos? If yes, what it would be?

No they wouldn’t but Camille does have ‘DW’ tattooed inside her thigh after a drunken brunch with Maxwell.

28.Who sleeps wrapped up in a cocoon of covers?

Neither.

29. Who would win in a pillow fight?

Drake would. He takes no prisoners.

30. Who likes to take photos of the other when they’re not looking

Camille. She loves photography and tries to take photos of those little moments that she wants to remember forever.

31.Where would they go to get away from everyone else and just be alone?

Honestly? Texas. It’s the one place where they can pretend they are normal. Days are longer and lazier. Sunsets by the lake. Laughing. Kissing. Happiness.

32. If they got to pick what one another wears for a day, what would one another wear?

Drake loves it when Camille dresses down. She usually dresses so elegantly but he prefers it when she wears her ripped jeans, Converse and a white t-shirt.

Camille likes it when Drake wears a henley shirt, jeans and boots. A slightly more elevated version of his usual look (oh my god, I sound like Tan from Queer Eye. PRINTED SHIRTS!)

44. What do they love most about each other?

Drake loves how big Camille’s heart is. She puts everyone first and cares about everyone she knows.

Camille loves how far Drake has come. She says he is the strongest person she knows.

Bonus: 3 random HC about your OTP

Their favourite thing to do is to sit out on their terrace with a glass of whiskey and a glass of wine and just talk. They never run out of things to talk about.

Their mottos are: ‘Husband and father first, Duke second,’ ‘Wife and mother first, Duchess second.’ It helps them remember what actually matters in life.

They are best friends. Enough said.

***********************

Not sure who’s done these but taggin’ those who might like to: @emichelle @loveellamae @jovialyouthmusic @moonlightgem7 @pug-bitch @katedrakeohd @fromthedeskofpaisleybleakmore

Taggin’ those who like Cake: @ibldw-main @dcbbw @sirbeepsalot @saivilo @marshmallowsaremyfavorite @rainbowsinthestorm @notoriouscs

#drake x camille

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dew-line · 4 years

Text

So, here goes...

I have been asked to comment on Sweden’s handling of the Corona Virus/Covid-19 pandemic and why Sweden has opted to go a different way from the rest of Europe and our immediate neighbors and, frankly, most of the countries in the world that have experienced an outbreak of the virus.

Let me first begin by saying that this is written by someone who is not an epidemiologist, nor in no way even remotely associated with any medical profession. This is my interpretation and shall in no way what so ever be taken at a weight even slightly near the official information of the Swedish government or Folkhälsoinstitutet (the “peoples health institute” is the direct translation) the government organization that is responsible for handling the current crisis. Official information is available HERE (in English).

As I write this (April 11, 7p.m) the current statistics are as follows: Confirmed number of infected in Sweden: 10 151 Confirmed deaths: 887 People currently in intensive care: 774 Source: Folkhälsomyndigheten (updated April 11, 14.02) In case anyone is interested in the total spread of contamination and of deaths over the country I will add a picture at the end of this post. Now, let’s get on to the topic proper.

Early on in the decision was made to fokus on protecting the risk groups in the Swedish society – meaning that protecting the elderly and the sick was the number one focus on the plan to battle the virus. People above the age of 70 were told to self isolate and only go out to get the essentials. Everyone were encouraged to not visit the elderly in order to keep the risk of infecting them as low as possible. At the same time everyone that showed even the slightest symptoms: sniffles, a headache, a sore throat – where told to go into self isolation until they had been free of symptoms for at least two days. We were encouraged to help each other in those situations, friends and family doing some shopping and delivering groceries and essentials, or just doing online shopping. At the same time the government issued a decree that all higher education – meaning High school and university – education that is not mandatory, should be conducted as distance education. However, schools in year 1 to 9 were still to be open as usual (and still are). The reason for keeping the schools open for the younger children is that 1, children are not a primary carrier of the virus and 2, as a mean to make sure that essential functions in society will have staff – primarily the health care sector. If the schools close down then the parents will have to stay at home in order to care for them.

Where Sweden has differed from the rest of the world in the most obvious way is that we have not gone into a full lockdown mode. We are still, if we feel healthy and don’t have any symtoms, encouraged to go out and to meet friends, go to restaurants and the like – one of the reasons is that we need to have a slow, semi controlled spread in society in order to create a herd immunity – the people that are currently moving around are primarily those that are not in the risk groups – they will, if they catch the virus, get a mild infection – or, as in my case, a semi mild infection, but they will not need to visit the hospital or get medical treatment other than which you can get from online consultations. This is important to slow down, but not to stop, the spread of the virus in society at large. If we completely stop the spread the risk is that it will come back again, and at force, as soon as the quarantine is lifted – it is better, according to the Swedish authorities, to allow the infection to spread at a slow pace and create a wider immunity whilst keeping the groups that are at risk of needing intensive care or facing death if infected as safe as possible.

Many companies have started different work from home programs letting their employees do just that, it seems to work well. The company that run the public transport has a campaign out now that states that “if you are not an essential worker, please don’t travel with us right now”. People are complying. We are still out and about, we take walks, we visit friends – sometimes even go out for a beer. But in general it is, as expected, much more sombre. We stay at home – because we do not want to risk to get infected or accidentally spreading it to someone we love or care about – or someone we don’t know.

Other actions that have been taken is that there is a limit on the size of groups of people that can gather. It started out at a 500 person limit, which has now been lowered to 50 people. We are no longer allowed to order alcohol at bars, it is only table service allowed, and the tables must be “well spaced”. Right now the authorities are out and checking that restaurants follow the guidelines. If they don’t they will be forced to close. In general I would say that people do follow the guidelines. We are generally fairly well behaved like that. The Germans of the north, we are. We have trust in the machine – which is the reason why the person that is in the lime light during this trying time is not the King nor the prime minister, but rather a middle level management bureaucrat: Anders Tegnell – the chief Epidemiologist at Folkhälsoinstitutet.

The reason for this trust in the machine depends on many things I’d say. We have historically had a large state with a fairly large control system – the unofficial motto of the Social Democrat party has been “trust in the state, we will make it right”. Another aspect is that we have not really been in a war since 1809 (we don’t count the Norwegian campaign of 1814 because: Norway). We have not needed the consolidating power of a church or a sovereign to help us through trying times, and times of national crisis – as so many countries experienced during the 20th century. Sweden came through the wars unscathed, for good and for bad. And it has made us into a people of secular individualist with a strong belief in a all knowing state. Silly paradoxes we are.

So, now to the important stuff: has this tactic worked. Yes and no, I am sad to say. The goal of keeping the number of cases that need intensive care and hospitalization down as to not over crowd the hospitals have worked. There is still ample room at the intensive care units around the country. The staff are working like madmen and they deserve all the recognition that they get for their hard work. Unfortunately the authorities did not quite count on the virus getting such a grip on the treatment homes for the elderly as it has. There has been a fairly wide spread of the disease in nursing homes across the country, leading to a large number of deaths. Also, the information about the disease in languages other than Swedish were slow to get spread leading to an unusually large representation of hospitalizations and deaths of people with other ethnical backgrounds; especially the Syrian/Assyrian-Swedish population and the Somali-Swedish population have been hard struck – many of the cases being linked to large weddings and funerals that occurred just before the pandemic started. The availability of information has been bettered since then, but naturally that is of very little comfort when loved ones are getting sick and dying.

Another tragedy is that is not limited to Sweden alone is that the people that are most sensitive to this disease are the elderly – and don’t think that I am putting anyone infront of another, but I have to say a particular part of this tragedy is that with our elder our history die – we have seen a large number of holocaust survivors pass the last days and weeks here in Sweden, and I am sure that we are not the only country where this has happened, and with them the voice of a horrible past die forever. We must be aware that this tragedy does not just strike us personally, when a loved one dies – but also as a human collective when the voices of the past slip away from us.

We are in a time now where it is more important than ever to remember.

As promised: a map. The left column is number of infected, the right column is reported deaths. Oh, and I should mention that we do not have mandatory testing for corona virus in Sweden. The decision was taken early on to only test the ones that were in need of hospitalization. So the number of infected are much likely higher.

If you have any questions, please send them to me and I will try to answer them, but please remember: I know nothing, really.

Update: I got a question about the age of the people that have died in Covid-19 in Sweden to date, and I did a quick search and found the following numbers on the official website (in Swedish): 1-9 yo: 0 10-19 yo: 0 20-29 yo: 3 30-39 yo: 2 40-49 yo: 4 50-59 yo: 34 60-69 yo: 64 70-79 yo: 228 80-89 yo: 362 90+: 190

Here is a picture of the live update page linked above with a quick English translation of the key items in case you want to check the page out for yourself.

#the dew line #corona virus #coronavirus #corona #covid #covid-19 #remember #sweden

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authorlmfletcher · 4 years

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Miraculous Valentines Stories: Day 9

Cupid (AKA The Black Cat Takes Charge)

Read all our Valentine’s Stories from the prompts provided by @wearemiraculous here: Ao3 or FFnet

______________________________________

Plagg couldn't take it anymore. He was going to lose his mind. This kid needed to get a grip already. If he had to listen to one more moping sighfest about the lack of development in the love department, Plaggwas going to lose his mind.

Adrien flopped on the bed face first with a pathetic sounding moan, leaving Plagg rolling his eyes.

There really was only so much a kwami could take. Especially since he knew that the kid's love interest really did love him back, but the stupid rules of Miraculous magic made it physically impossible to share any of that kind of information. This called for more cheese. Lots more cheese.

Gulping down camembert in a fashion that others might consider unhealthy, Plagg wiped his mouth with the back of his hand as he contemplated what exactly he should do with the kid.

Adrien shifted, flopping onto his back and lying starfish style on the bed.

"Why does there have to be another guy, Plagg? Why can't she just love me?"

Suppressing the groan that threatened to escape, Plagg shoved more cheese into his cheeks and simply made some non-committal grunts. Cheese was easy to love. It never loved someone else instead or thought you were annoying.

"Lots of other cheese in the fridge," Plagg quipped, cramming another chunk in.

"Ya, but Ladybug is like Camembert. She is my favourite." Blinking, Plagg paused in the ravenous devouring of his cheese collection. The kid was using cheese to describe Ladybug? Crap, this was worse than he thought.

Swallowing one last piece for confidence, Plagg landed softly on the pillow beside Adrien's head.

"Listen, kid. Love is overrated.”

“What do you know about love know anyway?” Adrien huffed, throwing his arm over his eyes. For a moment, Plagg considered biting the hand that now rested near him. How frustrating could one kid be? His eons of existence suddenly weighed heavy on him. Definitely too old for this crap. Eternity was easy. Moody, lovesick teenagers were impossible.

“Hey, SugarCube.”

He knew she’d show up sooner or later. She always did when he visited in the middle of the night, lounging on the balcony chair beneath the stars. And just like always, her disapproving glare filled him with joy.

“I said not to call me that. What are you doing here?”

“Too much drama. That kid is dragging me down with all his pouting. Can’t you get your Ladybug to do something already?”

Tikki’s sigh in response wasn’t quiet.

“We can’t do that, Plagg. You know that. They can’t know each other’s identity.”

As much as he loved Tikki, Plagg vehemently disagreed. Especially with Adrien. This was getting out of hand and this kid needed SOMEONE to love him. A frustrated rumble threatened under his usually aloof attitude.

“That’s dumb,” he growled, making Tikki roll her eyes in exasperation.

“Just go back to Chat Noir. Let things happen as they are supposed to.”

He didn’t want to let things happen as they were supposed to. He wanted to make that kid happy. Maybe, just maybe, he needed to take matters into his own paws. Plagg’s stomach rolled.

This called for more cheese.

It took rest of the night, but finally he found matching pictures of Marinette and Ladybug, leaving them open side by side on the computer screen, in the exact same angle. Surely the stance, the pigtails, the gleam in the exact same coloured eyes would tweak something. Anything. But the kid just clicked the pictures shut without a blink.

At school, he dared to hide in Marinette’s little bag where she kept Tikki. The look on Pigtail’s face was priceless when she opened the bag and found both kwamis. Tikki glared dangerously - knowing he was up to something, but he just yawned and stretched without a care in the world.

“Plagg,” Marinette hissed, “why aren’t you with Chat Noir?”

He shrugged.

“He’s nearby. I’m just spending time with SugarCube.”

Tikki’s groaned in frustration while Marinette paled.

“Don’t listen to him, Marinette. Plagg is trying to cause-”

A loud crash in the distance snapped Marinette’s head up. Tikki’s glare intensified.

“Go to Chat Noir. NOW.”

He stuck out his tongue at her before rushing back to Adrien, who didn’t look overly thrilled.

“Where were you?” he growled, throwing out his fist to call his transformation. Plagg just shrugged.

“Hanging out with Ladybug,” Plagg drawled, enjoying the look of surprise on the kid’s face before getting sucked into the ring. That would leave some questions for later.

Maybe he should have taken a tally of all the different kinds of glares he was getting in a single day, Plagg mused while Adrien rambled on about how important it was the kwami stay hidden. When finally the kid sank onto the couch in a flop and the glare turned to a soft plea, he knew it was showtime.

“Why were you with Ladybug anyway?”

A casual, nonchalant shrug.

“She smells nice. And SugarCube loves when I come for snuggles, even if she likes to glare at me first.” Adrien’s eyes narrowed.

“So you know who she is?”

Another shrug.

“Yep.”

A long pause as the kid considered.

“Can you tell me?”

“Sure. Ladybug is M- blech .” Stupid magical bubbles. With a growl, he flew to the computer desk, clicking the mouse with vigour to pull up a picture of Marinette but, in typical black cat bad luck fashion, the computer froze.

“Nope. I can’t tell you, apparently.”

Being Cupid was stupid. Plagg's new motto felt appropriate as Adrien missed yet another clue. If Plagg didn't know better, he would swear the kid was actively trying not to see them. It wasn’t that the kid was dense or oblivious. Blindness is real, especially when there’s a heart involved.

Gross.

It was a good thing he needed cheese to recharge and not wine because at this rate, he would die from alcohol poisoning with the amount of bolstering he needed as he attempted to somehow get through to the kid.

Every time Marinette talked to him, Plagg poked Adrien’s chest from inside the pocket. Every time an akuma alert went off, Plagg asked about Pigtails and where she went. Every time Adrien moped about another rejection from Ladybug, Plagg “accidentally” sent Marinette a text with the word “hi.” Casually leaving pictures of Marinette open on the computer.

He even went so far as to whine incessantly about needing cheese bread until Adrien finally gave in and visited the bakery to get some. Marinette blushed behind the counter as she prepped the order.

“What is your problem, Plagg?” the kid asked as Plagg shoved the freshly baked amazingness into his mouth. “You have never been this annoying before.”

“Trying to be Cupid here, kid.” The kid looked puzzled.

“What?”

“I’m trying to help your love life.”

Adrien blinked in surprise, staring blankly at Plagg.

“By begging me for cheese bread?” Plagg nodded, gulping down another chunk. Pigtails’ family sure knew how to make great bread - this stuff was delicious.

“Why?”

Plagg stopped chewing long enough to make sure he looked Adrien right in the eye.

“Your friend smells nice. And SugarCube likes it when I visit.”

Another blink. Plagg groaned and gave up, stuffing the rest of the bread down his throat.

Time to step it up to the next level.

Plagg’s eyes followed the kid around his room as he prepared for school, chatting away about something to do with Ladybug. He always chatted away about something to do with Ladybug.

Tikki would likely kill him, but it was time to do something drastic.

The moment the door of the car opened at school, Plagg made a noise to draw Adrien’s attention before making a beeline for the locker room. Unable to call after him, the kid jogged behind, trying to find out where Plagg was going. Plagg waited just out of view from the rest of the kids until Adrien stepped into the room.

Glaring eyes connected with his, making Plagg grin before phasing through the door to Marinette’s locker and finding somewhere to lounge until Pigtails arrived.

“What are you DOING?” Adrien growled from the other side of the metal. “Get out of there!”

“Nope. I like Pigtails. She smells nice.”

A loud thump on the door made him jump a little.

“Come on Plagg. What if Marinette sees you?”

That was the point.

Sounds of shuffling in the locker room got quieter before a loud ring of the morning bell. Pigtails and her habit of being late. Feet smacking against the tiled floor echoed through the now-empty room. Plagg wondered if Adrien had left or was waiting still.

The locker door flung open, revealing Marinette’s flustered face. When she saw Plagg, her mouth made a perfect little “o” shape before she gasped out his name.

“Hey Pigtails. Morning.” He took his time stretching and yawning.

“What are you-?” Her voice was cut off by the sudden and surprising appearance of Adrien beside her, making Marinette jump and screech in response. It was so incredibly hard not to laugh at the expressions on both their faces.

Plagg struggled to keep his typically haughty attitude as Marinette floundered in an attempt to prevent Adrien from looking into her locker and Adrien tried to keep her from noticing the kwami on her shelf. These two needed to be their dork selves together.

As if by divine destiny, both their phones vibrated loudly with an akuma alert. Adrien’s eyes darted to Plagg in a panic, unsure exactly what he was going to do in order to get transformed. Plagg was enjoying this far too much, leaning farther back into his lounge to wait.

“Go Marinette. Get somewhere safe.” The kid even started pushing Marinette towards the exit. She just eyed him nervously, glancing over her shoulder at the still-opened locker door. It looked like maybe Adrien would actually get the girl out the main locker room so it was time for action.

“Tikki!” Plagg shouted. Definitely going to be a fun way to die at least. “Pigtails needs you.”

That made the kid freeze in surprise, a wide-eyed gape as he stared at Marinette in a brand-new light.

“Milady?” he breathed, making her stumbled backwards in surprise.

“Chat?!”

Tikki flew out of her hiding spot in the little bag, buzzing angrily in his direction with her brilliant blue eyes practically shooting daggers.

Plagg grinned.

Mission accomplished.

________________________

READ THIS STORY:

Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22507936/chapters/54087523

FFnet: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13490619/9/Love-Bug-A-Series-of-Miraculous-Love-Stories

#miraculous ladybug #ml fanfic #miraculous fanfic #plagg #mlvalentines2k20 #plagg plays cupid

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blackpoliglota · 4 years

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⚜️Laissez les bons temps rouler⚜️

I just love this photo. In the words of my cousin Toosie: “It’s SO New Orleans!” Haha, but in all seriousness, if I had to choose one photo to describe my hometown It’d be this one above. In all the cities I’ve traveled to, I have yet to come across a place where you hear live music on every other street corner. Yeah some cities may have blocks and blocks of houses painted in bright, lively colors... and some cities may even have their own unique cuisine to offer! But no city – and I mean NO CITY – comes alive with music and dance like New Orleans!

This quarantine period has me seriously missing my city, making me WISH I took the chance to fly from Madrid back home before we hit beaucoup case numbers! I mean, I was missing it before... but now? MY LORDT!!!

As a means of quelling my yearning for Nola (”New Orleans, LA” for short), I’ve decided to dedicate this post to some terms and phrases influenced by (mainly) French that we still use today – New Orleans slang, if you will.

“Beaucoup”

I don’t know if any of you caught my usage of this word earlier in the post (it’s bolded and italicized), but this word is an actual French word for “much” / “many”. We always use it in a negative context to express an overwhelming amount of something, and it’s always placed in front of the the noun it’s describing, as in French.

Ex. “Stop bothering me boy; you know I got beaucoup things to do!”

“Banquette”

This is a diminutive of the French word “banc”, which means “bench”. However, somehow throughout the history of language exchange it came to mean “sidewalk”. In fact, my mom, her parents and her siblings used to use this word all of the time.

Ex. “Stay on the front yard, and don’t go past the banquette.”

“Bayou”

Coming from the Choctaw word “bayuk”, this word has transitioned into Louisiana French (also known as Louisiana Creole) as the bolded and italicized word you see above. It refers to a slow-moving body of water found in swamps.

“Bébé”

This is the French word for “baby”. Now we don’t go around spelling “baby” like it’s French counterpart, but I wrote it like this because this is how we pronounce the word. When pronounced like this, it’s more often than not used as a term of endearment for everybody – and I mean EVERYBODY. Doesn’t matter your age, gender, life experience; when you come down here get used to being called bébé, because that’s the only thing we’ll call you by. But no worries! That just means we actually like you!

“Cajun”

Having been derived from the word “Acadien” (French demonym), this term was once used to name the French Acadians who escaped British rule in Canada by emigrating to mainly Southwest Louisiana; now we use use it to refer to the descendants of those people. We also use this term in tandem with food, music and other cultural aspects that came from the Acadians and their descendants.

Ex. “How do you expect me to survive without my cajun spices!? I can’t eat anything unless I have my spices!”

“Do-do / Dodo”

***Pronounced like “DOUGH-DOUGH”

Some of you may remember this word from my Stromae post! This term is derived from the French verb “dormir” or “to sleep”, but is also used as a verb to mean “sleep”. I first learned of this word from a lullaby my mom would sing to all of her children, and even her grandchildren. My older brother used to say it to my nieces when they were infants:

Ex. “Okay y’all, time to go do-do.”

“Fais do-do”

Yet another word from the Stromae post! It actually means “go to sleep”, but it’s transitioned to Louisiana Creole to refer to a (usually) Southern Louisiana Saturday night dancing event for adults, an event during which children were supposed to be asleep.

“Lagniappe”

Derived from the Spanish “la ñapa” (”a little extra of something”), this is a Louisiana Creole term that shares the meaning with its predecessor. Fun fact: a middle school Louisiana history textbook of mine would have lagniappes off to side of some pages in each chapter that displayed some extra information related to that chapter’s theme.

“Laissez les bons temps rouler!”

Aaaah the title of this post. This is our city’s motto that can be heard at literally any event, whether it be a neighborhood second-line, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, a Saints football game, etc. It means “ʼLet the good times roll”.

“Let me learn you something–”

This is an older saying – therefore not heard as much these days – that my mom, her siblings, parents, etc. would say to each other whenever they needed to address/clarify something in an assertive manner. Due to the combination of this phrasing being more associated with something that’d come out of the mouth of a Black person and it not being the standard way of signaling that something needs to be addressed, it’s considered “bad English”... which it isn’t since there’s no such thing as “bad English”, but I’ll get into this on another post. ANYWAY, I included this expression because I came across it’s French counterpart in one of my French textbooks about a year ago: “apprendre quelque chose à quelqu’un”, which literally means “to learn something to someone”! To those who may be confused on how to interpret the meaning of this expression: the standard version is “Let me tell you something–”. I’ve yet to find anything on the internet to properly connect the English expression in bold and the French expression, but I find it hard to believe that the English expression would not have resulted from language contact, like several words in this list thus far.

Ex. A: “I can’t BELIEVE you told them something that was supposed to stay between us!”

B: “Let me learn you something: I’m not a blabber-mouth like a certain person, so whoever told your little secret is clearly someone who was eavesdropping.”

“Making groceries”

This is a Cajun English expression that was directly translated from the French phrase “faire l’épicerie”.

Ex. “I have to make groceries, so I’ll be out for a little while.”

“Mardi Gras”

Y’all should know what this is already... but if you don’t!

Literally meaning “Fat Tuesday”, Mardi Gras is carnaval season for us Louisianians. It always occurs on the Tuesday before the Lent season begins, which is on Ash Wednesday, hence the name Fat TUESDAY. Now as far as the FAT part goes: “carnaval” means “to flesh, farewell”. The purpose of carnaval is for practicing Christians to eat as much of the food they’d give up for Lent as possible, this food being meat or “flesh”. So it’s during Mardi Gras season when we break out all of the flavorful, fattening Louisiana dishes, especially our very own King Cake!

Fun Fact: this picture was from my birthday last year, which was on Mardi Gras Day, so naturally I had a King Cake for my birthday!

“Nainain” & “Parrain”

This isn’t as much of a trend anymore, but when my mom and her siblings were growing up they would call their godmother and godfather “nainain” and ”parrain” respectively. These two French terms are the direct translations of their English counterparts.

“Praline”

The name for this sweet treat made out of pure diabetes – yet still irresistible – comes from the Frenchman who created this sugary goodness, a Monsieur César, duc de Chioseul, or better-known as Le Maréchal du Plessis-Praslin.

According to Wikipedia there are 3 types of pralines??? Which I didn’t know was a thing. What I also didn’t know was a thing was that the praline mixture is more commonly used to fill chocolates out here in Europe... we just straight up eat pralines as they are in Louisiana, haha!

“Vieux Carré”

And last but not least! This is French for “Old Square”, the name that refers to the most exciting part of New Orleans: The French Quarter. Yes peeps, this is where you can find the famous(ly overrated) Bourbon Street, wedding second-lines, Café du Monde, po-boys, etc. Fun Fact: the exit sign we have i the city that directs us straight to the French Quarter is still called the “Vieux Carré” Exit!

Congratulations for reaching the end of this crazy-long post! I wasn’t expecting it to get this long... but I’m not upset! If anything, this post did its job: help quell my yearning for my city. Hopefully you can take away some new knowledge about my city and my heritage; I had a lot of fun making this post!! There are loads more of terms, names, etc. that I could have added to this post, but I figured I should just cap it at where we’re at. As always, if there are any questions, feel free to send me asks! Sources are under the cut, so click “Keep Reading” below if you’d like to learn more about Nola. Cheers!

Brass Band Photo: https://unsplash.com/photos/sEoR_ea8KoE

King Cake Photo: Mine!

Praline Photo: https://bernardscandy.com/product/original-pralines/

Louisiana Terms and Definitions:

http://www.experienceneworleans.com/glossary.html

https://www.crt.state.la.us/tourism/pressroom/almanac/glossary-of-louisiana-terms/index

https://www.wordreference.com

https://www.google.com

“Carnaval” Term Folk Etymology: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/carnaval

“Praline” Term Etymology and History: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Praline

#French #Français #Vocabulary #Vocabulaire #Grammar #Grammaire #Colloquialisms #Black Linguist #NOLA in the house #⚜️⚜️⚜️#Langblr #Studyblr #Original Post

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jeannereames · 5 years

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Hello, Dr. Reames! I love your work (and am very excited to read your novels very soon!). I am thinking of doing a phd (not history or classics, but maybe sort of related to Alexander) but I'm scared that I'm not going to have the motivation to go through with the whole thing... Do you ever lose motivation and get discouraged when researching/writing and how do you deal with it? I know that this is completely unrelated to Alexander/ancient history so feel free to ignore it☺

Hi, there! This reply is going to be in 3 parts. First, about my own motivation…

I think everybody (even Alexander!) has periods of feeling discouraged. It’s part of being human. This is especially true when something you put days, weeks, or sometimes *years* of effort into doesn’t work out, or isn’t well-received, or comes back with “revise and resubmit.” Ha.

So, real life recent example: About a year and a half ago, I finished an article that took me (literally) 5 years to research and write, because it combined research into two different areas, only one of which is my research area. It took a huge amount of reading, and I’d even presented it at a couple of conferences, where I received good feedback. It was supposed to be published in conference proceedings, but that fell through (not my part of it, the entire publication didn’t happen because the editor quit). So I had to shop it around to journals. It went out to three readers, and all three returned it with “Revise (substantially) and resubmit,” + large *additional* bibliography (mostly not in English) in the area not my field. Two of the readers thought my chief point was valid, but needed more support. (The third just flat disagreed with me, but it’s academia; that happens.) But that was after it had been presented 3xs already, and revised after each.

OTOH, I was pretty discouraged. But OTOH, the suggestions and reading lists were helpful. These are blind reviews, so it wasn’t personal. And the entire point of peer review is to help a book or article improve. Lord knows, nobody wants to put out something that will get you laughed at. But after all the time I’d already spent on it, it was still really discouraging as I’d thought it in pretty good shape.

Almost everybody in academia is going to have an article or three turned down, or a book refused, etc. And after a while, it can be really hard to keep trying. And it’s not just in academia.

Do you know how long it took me to sell Dancing with the Lion? 15 years! I got my first serious query from an agent in 1996. (The first words of the novel were written in December of 1988–that’s how old it is.) That agent eventually decided it wasn’t for her. I’ve had a couple others since…same thing. I’ve sent out probably around 500 queries to agents or publishers. In fact, I’d put the book AWAY and started a completely different trilogy (which I’m in the middle of now), because I figured it would only sell later.

Then I happened to read comments about Madeline Miller’s A Song for Achilles written by an English professor and new acquisitions editor at Riptide. She liked it, but there were a couple of things she really didn’t like. And they were the very ways (I thought) my novel was different. So I emailed her. She asked for sample chapters, then the whole thing, and finally, Riptide offered me a contract. They’re not a major press, they’re a Romance publisher primarily, but they were willing to take a chance on my coming-of-age historical, so I grabbed the opportunity. Now the book is out (well, the first half is), and it’s getting pretty decent reviews.

So persistence can pay off.

That said, if someone else had told me that story 10 years ago, I’d have snorted and said (in my mind), “Maybe it did for you. Maybe I’m just a bad writer and I’ll never succeed.” I’d also just been through a divorce and was having trouble selling my house in the housing bust, etc., etc. So a lot of things in my life were pear-shaped at the time, and that can make it really hard to keep trudging.

The “Dark Night of the Soul” is a real thing, and we all go through it.

The only way I get through it, myself, is to remember things in the past that went well, times I succeeded. Plus, I’m just a really stubborn SOB. Ha.

But discouragement is normal, and there will be points in everybody’s life where not just one or two things are going wrong, but it seems as if EVERYthing is going wrong and you’re just a total failure. You have to believe it’ll get better.

Now, part #2, about motivation to complete a degree. It’s a bit like the AA motto: one day at a time. Or really, one semester at a time. One hurdle at a time. When I first got to Penn State, the long, long road ahead made me freak out a little, but Gene Borza (my advisor) told me to take it in bites. And to remember that other people had made it through; I could, as well.

Also, don’t let yourself get thrown by “Imposter’s Syndrome.” This is the feeling that you don’t belong somewhere: in grad school, in a PhD program, in a department (or really, ANY arena). You’re not as good as the others. Minorities, women, and first-generation college students are those most likely to suffer imposter’s syndrome, but it can hit others too, such as the children of academics (I’ll never measure up to mom/dad), etc.

Last, part #3, and this may seem an odd coda to all the above rah-rah cheerleading. But as a (now former) graduate program chair, I would be terribly remiss if I didn’t put out a warning.

Not only is the field of humanities in trouble right now, in the US and Canada, and elsewhere, too, but the entire university system is changing. This latter is especially true in the US, but I hear rumblings from other places. Partly, this owes to the rise of online education. But even more, it’s what I call the “Wal-martization” of the university, where tenure-track lines are being replaced by a bunch of part-time instructors who have to teach 6 classes just to make enough to EAT. “Adjunct” professors, even those with PhDs, are paid a pittance. It’s absolutely immoral and ridiculous.

Universities are turning into profit more than education, with a degree seen as “job training” instead of learning to think critically and exploring Big Questions, which are increasingly viewed as a waste of time. Administration levels are increasingly bloated with deans, assistant deans, supervisory boards, etc. They’re (mostly) not teaching, but their paycheques are high. Tenured faculty positions are being eliminated. Colleges and unis realized that they could turn over a lot of (especially intro and survey) courses to part-time instructors for a *fraction* of what they paid tenured and tenure-track faculty, but still reap high tuition.

When I was finishing up in the ‘90s, I was teaching as an adjunct while writing my dissertation, then for a bit after, as was expected for “teaching experience” before being hired. The phenomenon of the “Visiting Assistant Professor” (or VAP) was *starting* to gain traction, but was still usually just a year or two until these people would find a tenure-track position (VAP is not tenure-track). But now, I know people who’ve been VAPping for YEARS. And some just give up. Also, adjuncting like what I was doing has gone from “teaching experience for a real job” into “the only lane for employment” for a lot of PhD (and some MA) graduates. Especially women PhDs get caught in that trap.

These are the realities of where we are right now.

And THE MOST USELESS DEGREE ON THE PLANET is a PhD in the humanities. I say that as one who holds it. With a few exceptions, a humanities PhD prepares you for pretty much one job: being a professor. And those jobs are winking out of existence with frightening speed. This is a change that has accelerated over the last 10 years, and especially over the last 5. We’re turning out PhDs with no available positions. Museum studies, Classics, archaeology, philosophy are in even worse shape. SOME history PhDs are more popular. This year, H-Net has a bunch of Latin American positions open, for instance.

An MA in history (or related) is still useful. There are certain jobs that like them, ranging from state jobs like the Park Service to the FBI and CIA.

But a PhD? Think loooooong and hard before investing that time and money. This is not a matter of *you* not being able to do the work to get one. It’s a matter of the university system as we’ve known it crumbling away under our very feet. I have no idea what the American university will look like in 10 years. And once you have a PhD, it educates you out of most other jobs.

So that’s the unfortunate bad news. And I’d be a very irresponsible advisor if I didn’t tell you the truth. IME, people who really want a PhD will ignore me and go after it anyway. But at least you’ll go in with your eyes open.

#encouragement #dealing with discouragement #imposter's syndrome #academia #PhD track #Adjunct Hell #Think twice (and then a third time) about getting a PhD these days #Humanities tenure track jobs are drying up #asks

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triggeringthehealing · 6 years

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alpha meet (ch1)

Teen Wolf || Stiles/Derek || E || ~2k || AO3

Summary: Born a werefox with a magical spark that gives him the ability of a full fox transformation, Stiles’s life is decidedly not simple. Now that he’s in college though, it’s bound to be easier, right? There’s less prejudice, fewer reasons to feel like he’s so different from everyone else... and he gets to spend time figuring out all the aspects of people, supernatural or not. Now if he only remembered that proper spelling, capitalization of words, and the right alphabet matter when he’s texting.

Tags/warnings: ABO dynamics, pack dynamics, fraternities, college AU A/N (content): Alpha/Beta/Omega - pack status, alpha/omega - biological disposition. A/N (personal): Look, once upon a time @bleep0bleep tweeted a thing and my brain latched on. Ever since then I’ve been in a muddy puddle of Alphas, alphas and then some Greek alphabet alphas. Since today is “Previously Unpublished WiP” day at @wipweek , I figured it was about time I set this one free. Or well, the first part of it, at least. *hides*

-=-=-

It's not until college and the courses on gender, sexuality, pack hierarchy, and disposition that Stiles learns more about who he is. The information that he had before, as he was growing up, never really sated his curiosity about it. Not that college gives him all the answers, but it's more than he found out before—from school, from his family and friends, from the research online that sometimes ended up more confusing than helpful.

The world has changed since shapeshifters became known. He can't imagine living in secrecy, hiding that he's different than the average human. Even though he's never been too open about his own ability to shift into a fox—even with shapeshifting being normal, full animal transformation is still rare enough to raise eyebrows—it's at least something he knows he can mention, something that isn't going to shun him from the rest of the world.

Being upfront about being a were is not the norm, not yet, and since the magic that's involved doesn't carry a scent, it's not something that can be discovered without either an accident or a deliberate reveal from the person.

In his hometown, it wasn't easy to keep his ability hidden. Beacon Hills is small, everyone knows everyone. Since his Mom was a werefox, people knew that Stiles was likely to be one too, even though his Dad doesn't have the genes. Stiles knows, he asked his Babcia when he was little, and that was how he found out that on top of his shifting ability, he also had a spark of a different kind of magic. The kind that, had he not been a were, would've probably led him down the path of Druids and spells. As it is, he has a few extra features, as he likes to say—like handling mountain ash that's normally something shifters can't touch.

But his best friend Scott is a werewolf—bitten by a rogue Alpha passing through the territory when they were sixteen—and his girlfriend Kira is a kitsune. Deaton, Scott's old boss from the vet clinic he used to work at is a Druid, the very one who helped Stiles reign in his spark when it messed with Stiles's shift for a while.

Even so, Stiles didn't shift fully until his Mom got sick just before he finished middle school. He later found out that it was the spark he inherited from his dad's side that allowed him to transform into an actual fox. At the time, Stiles did everything on instinct—when he was told about his mom's illness, he spent days in his fox form for the first time ever, refusing to change until she begged him to. Her own ability to change was impeded by her illness, a rare strain of a virus that attacked the were part of a brain, one that to Stiles's dad's relief was not contagious—Stiles couldn't even begin to think what would've happened had his dad lost both of them back then. As it was, after Claudia passed away, Stiles and John found it hard to cope—Stiles spent long periods of time as a fox and curled up on a pile of her old clothes, John became way too close to his bottle of whiskey.

They got through it eventually, with the help of Scott and his mom Melissa, who eventually grew closer to John and is now about to officially become Stiles's step-mom.

Scott and Stiles ended up in the same college, both of them wanting to stay close to home since their parents were the only family left nearby—Stiles's grandparents retired and moved back to Poland, Scott's father never bothered returning after Melissa kicked him out years ago and her own family was living in Florida.

It's during the first year of classes that Stiles dives deep into studying the various aspects of people, along with the history of them all. He learns about the bigotry that still exists but nowhere near as strong as it used to, all discrimination based on inherent traits of a person banned and punishable by law. With were packs being less secretive about their existence, there are a lot fewer hidden sides to dynamics between people, along with a lot fewer feral Omegas like the one who bit Scott roaming the world.

As much as pack status tends to be kept under wraps to outsiders, so does a person's disposition and sexuality. Stiles is of the opinion that unless it matters to his relationship with someone else, there's no need to wave whatever flag it is he should be carrying.

Scott's a were, but outside of their small social circle, he hasn't told anyone other than his first girlfriend, Allison. It was only by luck that the anti-discrimination laws were passed by then because Allison was an Argent, the future leader of a family of hunters who—before weres became a regular part of society—used to hunt magical creatures, good or bad. She ended up being the one to change the family's credo to we protect those who cannot protect themselves. Stiles approved, the new motto a lot less terrifying than their old one which was so easily twisted into unprovoked attacks against anyone who wasn't strictly human. As if humans were never dangerous to others—a few members of Allison's family were proof of the opposite—and having the ability to shift into a wolf, any other animal, or have abilities that were considered supernatural somehow made one inherently a threat.

Growing up, he watched as the world kept changing towards inclusion on several levels, not only when it came to shapeshifters and magic, but also when it came to sexualities, gender, wealth, skin color... anything that once upon a time used to be a reason to marginalize some people and elevate others. By the time Stiles left for college, there was still residual bigotry in the world, but at least in educational areas that sort of discrimination was rare.

It's something that Stiles takes comfort in because he knows how lucky he is to be able to be in college in the first place. Had he been born a few decades earlier, he would've likely been mated the moment he graduated high school, if he'd even be able to do that. He presented as an omega early, in freshman year. The first heat was the wake-up call that his dad needed to sober up and get back on the straight and narrow, back to being a father instead of a mourning husband. For a fleeting moment, Stiles worried that his dad's lack of experience with shifters would mean that he'd fall into old traditions, that he would get bad advice and Stiles would end up in the care of a pack and not allowed to work for the goals he'd had. But instead, John embraced Stiles's eagerness to go into law enforcement and supported him in any way he could.

Here, in college, no one besides Scott—who's on track to step into Deaton's shoes at the vet clinic when he graduates—knows that Stiles is a werefox. Since there's no scent to give it away, he hasn't felt the need to share that information. Unlike werewolves who are still guided by the pull of the moon and need to work on their control once a month, as a fox Stiles has the freedom to choose when he shifts. The same way that he doesn't have to share the fact that he's an omega unless it's relevant to the relationship he's in.

Which he didn’t need to so far, since he's never been in one. Sure, he kissed people, he lost his virginity—not that it was that big a deal to him—in his senior year and had sex a handful of times since. There was never a need to tell anyone about his disposition though because he hasn't thought about the future with anyone. The only exception was a long-standing crush on Lydia—a banshee whom he had an ongoing rivalry with academically and who was now a good friend from across the country, since she was working on conquering the world all the way from MIT. He's never had feelings for anyone that would make him want to try for a steady relationship for anyone else.

Well, maybe one person. Not that he thinks he stands a chance.

From the orientation week onwards, Stiles has been making friends outside of his usual small circle, which was now reduced to only Scott, what with his dad being back home and Lydia on the east coast. He didn't dive right into rush week when he came here, but he still managed to meet people in his classes and in the dorms. That's how he started looking more into fraternities on campus and why he's considering joining one now that spring rush is coming up.

"Come on, Stiles, at least come to the meet," Danny tells him as they walk from the class they have together.

"Look, I don't know," Stiles says, knowing that it's obvious that he's stalling. "I'm not sure if frats are my thing."

"Well, what better way to find out than to check one out?"

Danny's dimples tend to be disarming and Stiles is no exception to that effect. So he shrugs and nods.

"You can bring Scott or anyone else you can think of who isn't already in either Alpha Xi or any other frat," Danny tells him like he hasn't already won the argument. "The meet is on Friday, we'll be in the house over on Willow, you know the one, right?"

"You mean the biggest one on Greek Row?" Stiles asks, grinning. "No, I absolutely do not know the house, not like I've been dragged to it several times last semester for parties or anything."

Danny chuckles.

"Just making sure," he tells Stiles and nudges his side. "Can't ever be completely sure if people have the mental capacity to remember things."

"Oh I remember," Stiles replies, still grinning.

Not only has he never been one for drinking much, not after dealing with his dad's alcohol abuse in the past and also seeing what it did to Scott's family, but the Alpha Xi parties were memorable for several reasons. One of them is walking down the hallway right next to Stiles, dimples still in full force like he remembers exactly what Stiles does. The night they spent together at one of the parties was a good one, even if they never managed to repeat it, not once Danny met Ethan, his current and probably forever partner.

"Right, so, Friday. I'll see you then," Danny says as they come to the front door where they usually part ways. "And seriously, bring friends."

"Oh yeah, will do, the whole one of them," Stiles snorts.

He's not friendless, he's just not really sure who would be up for a pre-rush party like this. Most of the people he's become close to are not freshmen or they're already in frats or sororities after the initial autumn rush. Back then it almost felt like he and Scott were the only holdouts who didn't bother with that aspect of college life.

In the end, he only thinks of one person to ask to tag along and he sends the text message before he can overthink and talk himself out of it.

this weekend is an alpha meet up, do u wanna meet my friends?

#sterek #sterek fic #wipweek #wip week #eternalsterek #bleep0bleep

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tricksheart · 4 years

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The iPersonic (Career) test!

DREAMY IDEALISTS Dreamy Idealists are very cautious and therefore often appear shy and reserved to others. They share their rich emotional life and their passionate convictions with very few people. But one would be very much mistaken to judge them to be cool and reserved. They have a pronounced inner system of values and clear, honorable principles for which they are willing to sacrifice a great deal.

Joan of Arc or Sir Galahad would have been good examples of this personality type. Dreamy Idealists are always at great pains to improve the world. They can be very considerate towards others and do a lot to support them and stand up for them. They are interested in their fellow beings, attentive and generous towards them. Once their enthusiasm for an issue or person is aroused, they can become tireless fighters.

As a Dreamy Idealist you are one of the introverted personality types. Therefore you prefer a quiet work environment where you can intensively deal with your responsibilities and are not disturbed by too many people and repeated distractions. You need a lot of time to dwell on your thoughts, to put them into words, and let your ideas take shape.

You are grateful for a certain measure of order and structure because they secure the time to achieve this so you can deal with one task after the other and not have to juggle a number of responsibilities at once - you don’t like that because it is important to you to deal with things thoroughly. Your capability to concentrate is unusually great and very often you become engrossed in something and forget everything around you - even to eat and drink.

Nevertheless, because you are very adaptable, congenial and interested in harmony and cooperation, you enjoy working together with others. A neighborhood that requires the ability to assert yourself and where direct confrontations are the order of the day is not your optimal environment. In order to permit you to fully develop your ability you need an environment that is as stress free as possible. If you can’t get that you soon suffer, because you take critique and negative feedback very personally.

You enjoy the opportunity for exchanges with other people you value and whose capabilities you respect but in this case remember the motto: Better less than more; better a few “hand picked” colleagues who truly move on your wavelength. It is best when you share the same high ideals and important objectives and together can fight for the same good cause because then you are truly in your element. If that is not the case, you do better by largely working by yourself because you belong to the personality types who can do that very well and don’t necessarily have to depend on others in order to come up with good results.

Send “👨‍👩‍👧‍👦” for one of my muse’s memories with their parents ( anon asked cat!dad Katsuya )

Really? A memory about his real father that’s obsessed with cats? The majority of the people in Japan know him more as the famous Katsuya Suou that’s mentioned in the media from time to time. Akira’s not too familiar with him for the most part. Strained relationship but it’s because the noodle boy hadn’t really met the man until after the events of his year away in the city. There’s not a lot to tell besides the usual, ‘what do you mean you used the code-name of Joker? Don’t you know know how serious that is to be named that???’. And being part of the police. That too. But there’s a still fresh memory in Akira’s mind that brings both a smile and a little bit of regret.

“So I went over to his apartment to spend some ‘quality time’ with my real father, as mom put it. Although, I wasn’t so sure that was a good idea though because I was so nervous. I mean I didn’t know this guy. He could had turned to be like Akechi or someone worse. I was still traumatized by the whole ‘there was a hit on me inside of a police station’ no matter how much of a brave face I put on in mementos. That shit fucked me up. There were times that I felt withdrawn after that. So, I had every right to be a little nervous and a little untrusting to whomever I had met.

Morgana decided to tag along because they were worried about me for some odd reason. Maybe the cat knew I was nervous or that Morgana wanted some fancy sushi from the corner restaurant but anyway. Meeting Mr. media cop himself was what you expect it to be. Glaring face, glasses that almost were a shade darker than Shido’s, folding arms. You know, the typical tough person who doesn’t smile at all. To say I was ready to makes jokes and be comfortable with a person like that would be when it snowed in hell. It just wasn’t going to happen.

But as soon as Morgana popped out of my school bag, the funniest thing happened. He just went and had a sneezing fit! Call my sense of humor odd but it was the most funniest thing ever! I never seen someone sneeze that many times in my life. Turns out that he was allergic to cats and had to take some allergy medicine. I feel a little bad but at least that broke the tension in the room. I mean, I trust him a little more than I used to. Also, he dresses up Morgana like his own persona Helios sometimes and it’s really hilarious. Now when Morgana tells me to go to bed, I tell them that I’ll just bring him over to dad’s apartment. That makes them keep quiet. Haha”.

Send “👨‍👩‍👧‍👦” for one of my muse’s memories with their parents ( ryuji asked this )

Figures Ryuji would want to know about his childhood. It wasn’t much since Akira didn’t really want to talk about his past too much. There was just too many sad memories that hurt to be brought up. Plus, telling things that might be considered annoying or not worth anyone’s time was also weighing on his mind. Didn’t want to be a pain in the ass to others. Nope, don’t want that.

“A memory huh? ‘Kay. I think I have a happy one when I was a kid”. There’s a pause. A thing that made him nostalgic? Well, Akira could tell the time where him and his mom went to a pet shop. Simple yes, and not something one would normally share but it was the best thing he could come up with at such a short notice. The thing was that Akira liked to analyze the situation and think about the best answer. There were times that pressure made him cave in and did stupid things like kicking the desert palace mechanisms

“Back when I was three or so, I can’t remember for shit back then since you know, being three years old. Sometimes I think I made it up to compensate for the lack of happy memories but Maya, my mother, took me to the local pet shop in my hometown, Sumaru City”. He looks to Ryuji to see if the blonde was doing okay with the story so far but he’s surprise to see the other just listening very closely to his story. Wait, was that a piece of paper and pen? Was he writing this down? How embarrassing! It wasn’t notebook worthy that’s for sure. Maybe it was best to finish the story than focus on the questionable habits of a certain Ryuji Sakamoto for today.

“So she brings me to the back end of the store, or wanted me to go because that’s where all the dogs and cats were. Maybe she thought I was either of those type of people. You know, like those who choose the most popular choice. Most kids would choose a dog or a cat because it’s the norm. But I wasn’t the normal kid, not by any means. Just like I am now. I guess I haven’t changed from the person who marches on to his own beat huh? Hahahahahahaha”. Akira sheepishly looks over, wondering if Ryuji was freak out by his odd sense of humor or the fact that he hasn’t really changed that much since then. Time to quickly say the next part. Akira was already saying too much then he wanted to let on.

“So my mom couldn’t find me since I sneaked off and was at the middle of the store checking out the rabbits. I don’t know why they drew me in but they are were so fluffy and they kind of reminded me of myself, especially the ones with the black fur coat. It almost matched my hair! So how could I not choose them over the others? They can’t compare to be completely honest. Maybe I liked them because mom also liked them a lot??? She even had a key-chain shaped like a rabbit named Mr. BUN-BUN that she let me play with sometimes.

I didn’t get to have a bunny as a pet though. My ‘father’ thought it was too irresponsible for me to have a pet let alone a rabbit. How he found out that we went to the pet shop in the first place still strikes me as odd because both mom and I hadn’t seen him in days. I repeat, DAYS. Sometimes I wonder if he said no on purpose……Anyways, not to make that sad at the end but that day I felt a certain kindness to those animals that don’t get enough love because they get looked over for the more popular pet. I wish Morgana was a rabbit instead of a cat. Hahahahaha. Nah. I wouldn’t change what he was. Maybe we can put some bunny ears on him or something next time. You game? Heh”.

BIRTHDAY SYMBOLS - (02/26/2000)

AMETHYST - THE GEM OF PEACE AND TRANQUILITY.

Amethyst is a part of royal gem collections all over the world, from ancient Egypt to the British crown jewels. For some time, true amethyst was valued equally with the diamond. The name amethyst derives from the ancient Greek word amethustos, meaning sober. It was said that an amethyst could instill a sober and serious mind. Amethyst was known as a gem that would bring forth the highest, purest aspirations of human kind. Chastity, sobriety, and control over one’s thoughts were all attributes heightened by wearing the stone. Amethysts are recommended to those who deal with stress a lot, such as people with an excessive work ethic who are unable to enjoy relaxation.

VIOLET.

Violet is a delicate flower that appears at the end of February. It may come in shades of blue, mauve, or even yellow or cream. Violet denotes faithful love, humility and modesty. In the Victorian era, giving someone violets suggested “I’ll always be true”. Dreaming of violets means that luck is coming your way, and that your future spouse will be younger than you. Violet is known as the state flower of Illinois, Wisconsin, New Jersey, and Rhode Island, and the official flower of Greece. It is also given on the 50th wedding anniversary.

PISCES.

Pisces people are devoted, compassionate, imaginative, adaptable, sensitive, kind, selfless and sympathetic. You tend to keep a low profile compared to other zodiac signs. You have a quiet disposition, yet on the inside you experience extremes of emotions, both good and bad. You have the talent of understanding people’s motivations where they might not be obvious to other people. You also have incredible strength of character. You will always stand up and/ or work hard for what you believe in, especially if loved ones are involved. You are the most sensitive of all the zodiac signs.

THE DRAGON.

A symbol of Strength. You are lucky, passionate, flexible, eccentric, original, confident, imaginative, artistic, spiritual, and charismatic. You have a strong personality and will. You follow your own unique path in life and always speak your mind. You are honest and direct with everyone, romantic with your lovers, and confident in your abilities. You put all of your effort into anything you put your mind to, and you are a powerful force- never giving up on anything as you know there is always a solution to every problem. You are happiest when you have a good cause to focus on. You are full of energy and your charisma is inspiring. Famous Dragons: Nicolas Cage, Colin Farrell, Vanessa Hudgens, Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock.

WOLF.

You are compassionate, spiritual, intuitive, generous, mysterious, artistic, gentle, adaptable, sympathetic, and deeply emotional. Your path in life revolves around love- to receive it, and to give it. You hate the thought of others suffering or in pain, because of your deep compassion. You take on the responsibility of teaching others to be compassionate as well. As a teacher, you have the ability to know when to stand back and let others figure out their own paths of life. You are very self aware- you eliminate things that may cause harm to people.

PINE TREE.

The tree of peace. You are poised, active, natural, friendly, practical, compassionate, and trustworthy. You are a health conscious person, and do everything in moderation. You are always doing something to move towards progress and success. You are aware of what you need emotionally, physically, and spiritually, to be happy. You crave harmony and peace and as such, with your compassionate nature, you love to help other people too. You have an active imagination and you enjoy writing.

TOP THREE INTELLIGENCES FOR YOUR MUSE

MUSICAL: [5] You like the rhythm and sound of language. You like poems, songs, and jingles. You enjoy humming or singing along with music. You probably remember things well when they are associated with music or rhythm. Try to incorporate sounds into your lessons, such as using a familiar tune, song, or rap beat to teach spelling rules, or to remember words in a series for a test.

SELF: [4.43] You have a very good sense of self. You like to spend time by yourself and think things over. You will often take in information from another person, mull it over by yourself, and come back to that person later to discuss it. You like working on projects on your own. You often prefer to learn by trial and error. Effective techniques to enhance your learning include keeping a journal and giving yourself time to reflect on new ideas and information.

SPATIAL: [4.14] You remember things visually, including exact sizes and shapes of objects. You like posters, charts, and graphics. You like any kind of visual clues. You enjoy drawing. Effective techniques of enhancing your learning using your spatial intelligence include creating and/or using pictures, maps, diagrams, and graphs as you learn things.

#long post: tw #reworking my old hc's from my old blog and making them shorter because the tag dump ones were so long to read;;#[ we call them TRICKSTERS. HEADCANON ]

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sorenmarie87 · 6 years

Text

In The Middle of The Ride (3/?)

Word Count - 2,181

Warnings - Death, Mentions of cancer, first kiss, first attempt at trying to write a funeral. All grammar mistakes are my own - so if something seems off, please let me know. Also if you read this and want to see where the story goes, send me an ask and I’ll tag you :)

Tagging - @lovetusk @dragongirl420 @mirajanefairytailmage

Ten minutes later Ryuichi came down dressed in her favorite pair of sporty sweat pants given to her by Cordelia and a light blue long sleeve shirt to match. Her mom had finally changed from her club clothes and her dad was in the same thing. Lucy’s house wasn’t a big deal, they usually ate there every other week and vice versa. The car ride was quiet but they made it there without any mishaps. Lucy had been sitting outside when they had arrived.

Lucy must have been angry with her parents because she was dressed in all black and wore a shirt both of them had bought that said “Off duty ninja” on the front. Next to her was Lucas. He was his usual laid back self, and he was trying in vain to calm down his little sister.

“Hey Luce!” Ryuichi yelled from the car as she got out and watched Lucy race towards her.

“Grandpa is going to rip us a new one when we get in there,” Lucy said somberly.

“That bad huh?” Ryuichi asked hesitantly.

“Yeah I wasn’t in there to hear most of it but he blames our mom’s for being wild children…etcetera.”

“Well let’s face the music shall we?” Ryuichi asked as the three of them walked towards the door. She could already hear her grandfather scolding the adults.

“Look here,” he said while stomping his foot in frustration,” if you’d punish your children once in awhile instead of taking pity on them, I’m sure they’d behave better than a group of wild animals.”

“Do we really have to go in there?” Lucy asked with her voice raising her voice to a higher octave, one that the younger girl rarely heard.

“Sadly yes we do,” Ryuichi said breathlessly while opening the door. The dining room had never been changed. The others had already taken their seats and began eating. Lucas pointed out the two empty chairs beside him. Before they moved an inch, both girls looked at each other and then took their seats. A plate of food was placed in front of each of them. While they were eating both Ryuichi and Lucy would look over at each other and silently mock their grandfather.

“You know my motto,” their grandfather said then coughed very heavily,” if you spare them punishment, they’ll be spoiled beyond belief.”

“Or if you want to get biblical,” Lucas whispered to Ryuichi and Lucy,” Spare the rod, spoil the child!”

Both girls giggled at what Lucas said but all of the adults gave them dirty looks. They quietly finished eating and everyone had noticed someone was coughing up a lung. Ryuichi had noticed the rag their grandfather had been using to cover up his mouth was reddened. He wasn’t just coughing up phlegm he had been coughing blood. Her eyes got wide as both Lucas and Lucy gave her a weird look. She looked at them and mouthed ‘He’s sick…. grandpa’s very sick!’ Before they understood what she was talking about, he had collapsed onto the floor. His rag fell beside Ryuichi and she picked it up.

“Someone please call a doctor,” Leilani cried out hysterically.

“Dad just called the hospital,” Lucy said while comforting her mother.

After waiting for the ambulance the adults followed and left the three at home. While waiting for them to return, they cleared the table and did up the dishes. They separated the jobs up to Ryuichi washed, Lucas dried and Lucy put them up. A half hour passed, the telephone rang and all three rushed to answer it.

“You may want to sit down for this,” Elizabeth said from the other side of the phone while Ryuichi sat down and missed the chair.

“Mom what’s wrong?” Ryuichi asked sitting down on the chair as the two walked up behind her.

“This is very difficult for me to say,” Elizabeth paused and took a breath,” but Grandpa just passed away."

“How?” Ryuichi asked while finding her voice.

“You have to understand, Grandpa was suffering for a while now. He had stomach cancer,” She replied while sniffing.

“When do you think the funeral will be?” Ryu asked wiping a tear from her face.

“Not sure but Luke and Leilani want us to stay with them tonight. So we’ll be home later,” She said one last time before hanging up the phone. Ryuichi placed the phone back down and glanced around the room.

“What’d your mom say?” Lucy asked as they went into the living room.

“Grandpa died…”Ryuichi sniffled, trying to hold back her tears. “He was suffering for a while.. "

“Oh…”Lucy and Lucas said in unison. Lucy walked away but Lucas was looking away from Ryuichi. They would admit it readily that all three of them loved their grandfather, and his passing away would change everything.

A couple days after, both Ryuichi and Lucy’s parents were planning the funeral. Word spread around the high school and Mr. Parker and the rest of the students started a collection for the funeral. ‘I have to get out of this house, I’m going to go crazy if I’m in here one more minute I swear!’ she thought while pacing in the foyer. Her eyes darted around to check if her parents were roaming the halls but all four of them were still upstairs. Ryuichi quickly thought to herself before taking off through the front door. Lucy didn’t hear anything from downstairs because she had music blaring from her room.

The walk for Ryuichi was long and silent. For now, she needed a mellow and calming place to think and her cousin’s house was not the greatest place to be with the entire funeral-planning going on. Ryuichi rubbed her arms as she walked with no clear destination in mind.

Ryuichi kept walking until she felt a twinge of pain that came from her feet. Her eyes wandered around the park before she noticed a stone bridge just a couple steps away. She brushed back her hair with both hands and sat on the ledge of the bridge. Before she stood up on the ledge, a memory of her grandfather flashed into her mind.

“Grandpa what kind of bird is that?” A young version of Ryuichi asked very curiously.

“That’s a crane Ryu,” her grandpa responded while she walked on the bridge. He gave her a smile before placing her on his shoulders.

“Grandpa…you’re the greatest,” She said as they walked back to her house. She silently thought to herself. Ryuichi paced on the ledge of the medium sized bridge.

“Ryuichi don’t do it!” A voice yelled from the side,” Don’t jump!” She quickly turned around which made her stumble forwards. Before she fell, a male’s arm quickly pulled her off the bridge before she fell into the water. Her balance was thrown off, so she had fallen on top of her rescuer. His crystal blue eyes met her light green eyes and Ryuichi smiled at him.

“You weren’t going to jump were you?” Will asked as they both sat up.

“I don’t think me jumping into a pond would solve anything,” Ryuichi replied while she placed her arms around knees. She held back her tears as long as she could, but gave up as soon as they trickled down her face. Will had given her a sympathetic smile and placed his right arm around her shoulders.

“Listen Ryu,” Will started to say as she laid her head on his shoulder,” If you ever need anything, don’t be afraid to ask. You’re such a great person and I don’t want to see you hurt.”

“At least someone cares,” Ryuichi sighed then glanced down at ground.

“A lot of people do care about you Ms. Ryuichi… may be even someone like me cares about you,” He was looking straight into Ryuichi’s eyes as they leaned closer together. She could feel his breathe on her cheek as his lips met hers.

“Well isn’t this precious!” A female voice called from the other side of the bridge. The two jumped apart as Lucy moved closer.

“Who’s that?” Will asked with a slight blush on his face.

“My cousin,” Ryuichi replied while biting her lower lip then shaking her head.

“Kodak moment!” She cried out while tackling the two sitting on the ground.

All three of them chatted until it began sprinkling. In the same instant, Ryuichi and Lucy stood up then started dancing around the bridge. Will sat still while watching the two girls in admiration. ‘Even when she doesn’t try, she still amazes me.’ Both girls continued skipping around the bridge and then watched the sun set. They said their goodbyes to Will, and Ryuichi smiled to herself. Will had unknowingly cheered her up and given Ryuichi her first kiss.

“So that’s Will?” Lucy asked while Ryuichi was dazed.

Ryuichi blushed before answering her cousin,” Yeah that’s Will.”

Lucy pulled the younger girl into a headlock but gave her a noogie instead. She tried in vain to wiggle out but it was no use. On the way home, the rain calmed down and a huge rainbow appeared. Every night since her grandpa had died, Ryuichi kept having flashbacks from when she was younger.

The next morning was difficult for the whole family. Both Ryuichi and Lucy wore black dress shirts, black peasant skirts and black sandals. Lucy pulled her hair into two buns and Ryuichi braided her hair and let it sway with the wind. All the adults were patiently waiting for everyone to get ready. At the same time the three teenagers came down the stairs.

“Are you guys ready?” Leilani asked with her voice barely audible.

“Yeah,” the three answered in unison.

The ride to the funeral was so quiet. Ryuichi, Lucas, and Lucy sat in the back seat trying to keep their emotions under control. Many people had turned out for the funeral. Ryuichi had noticed Maddie and Cordelia out of the corner of her eye. Both girls gave her a hug and offered their sympathy.

“The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want. Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose. Near restful waters he leads me, to revive my drooping spirit. He guides me along the right path; he is true to his name. If I should walk in the valley of darkness no evil would I fear. You are there with your crook and your staff; With these you give me comfort. You have prepared a banquet for me in the sight of my foes. My head you have anointed with oil; my cup is overflowing. Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me all the days of my life. In the Lord's own house shall I dwell forever and ever.”

After the prayer was said many people placed flowers on the gravesite. Lucas and Lucy sat by the grave and gave their personal goodbyes in Hawaiian. Ryuichi stood at his grave in silence. Before tears could start falling, she had noticed something moving in the graveyard. ‘Either this is one messed up dream or I’m having a very bad morning.’ When the person moved in closer, she recognized him in an instant.

“Thought I’d find you here,” Will said while kneeling down to the grave. He placed half of the yellow roses on his grave and handed the rest to Ryuichi.

“Thanks for the flowers Will,” Ryuichi said while sniffling.

“It’s no problem,” Will replied,” besides no one should be by themselves, especially if they’re depressed.”

“How-?” She started to asked but stopped. Will pulled her in for a brief hug.

“You always go off by yourself whenever something is bugging you. I had a friend like you when I lived in London. I haven’t seen her in thirteen years though,” He said while looking at her.

“I used to live in London before we moved,” she added while they walked around the graveyard,” I really miss it.”

“Hey Ryuichi, maybe when your suspension is up…do you think we could spend some time together?”

“I think something can be arranged,” she replied with a slight grin on her face. Ryuichi held out her hand and Will accepted it. A weird feeling had overcome Ryuichi and she started worrying. Her parents had been calling for her but Ryuichi hadn’t been paying attention.

“Ryuichi Anastasia Madison…”She heard her father yell out,” if you don’t hurry up, I will make your punishment twice as long and you’ll never see the light of day again!”

“Sorry to cut this short Will,” Ryuichi said while walking away,” maybe we’ll see each other later.” When they returned home, Ryuichi sat down on the couch to think. She could hear her parents discussing something important in the kitchen.

“Jack, are you sure we should send her back?” Her mother asked while pouring a cup of coffee.

“Elizabeth…I’m sure nothing else will happen between those girls,” Jack replied while stifling a yawn.

“Okay, she goes back on Thursday then,” she replied while picking up her cup of coffee,” but Jack, hun you need sleep.”

#ITMOTR #Original Story #Original Characters

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