#Also more food for the “Marina is behind all this” theory

[arandomcat1717]

“Side” project? 🤨

#splatoon 3 #splatoon #side order #marina ida #pearl houzuki #idk this could be a throwaway line but with side order so close…. #Also more food for the “Marina is behind all this” theory

[bcacstuff]

The Zanzibar Saga

Disclaimer: Everything is open to interpretation. Opinions, theories or speculations I write are my own, they are not facts I merely try to make sense using logic. Opinions, theories or speculations in the comments belong to the commenters and do not necessarily reflect mine. This also goes for all the Anons quotes, which I posted in italics. I had to take parts of Anons, and could not post all I've received. (Sorry for the ones I left out)

Some advice in advance, put the kettle on and make a good pot of tea or coffee, whatever you prefer. This is going to be a very long post. I tried to be thorough expressing my thoughts during and about this saga and as unbiased as possible. I also want to do as much as possible justice to the many people who sent me their messages.

For people not having the time to read the whole post, I wrote a TLDR/some end conclusions at the end of the post.

Where to start... perhaps at the beginning. Two weeks ago, on a Friday (night my local time) 1st of September stories appear on accounts that were involved in the SS-tour having a boat party. At first on private accounts, which I did not use, but soon they were reposted on public accounts as well. So I reported about what I saw. Some accounts we know were tagged on it so it wasn't that hard to find more footage. A tiktok was posted and later on posted on the SS account as well. Another tiktok occurred later on. Little was I to know about the aftermath of this party.

What enrolled in the following days or week could be best described as a soap worthy masterpiece saga script writers would be envious of. Depending on the agendas of the several fractions in this fandom the most fantastic fiction was written in no time, all mostly based on some tiny snippets of the videos. I was honestly wondering if I was watching another season of Bravo's Below Deck.

But first let me introduce you to the producers, the main cast and the guest stars in this saga. (for the full experience, sound on!)

Besides some nasty messages:

[I shall spare you the ones with more colourfull language and the one that took more that 5 paragraphs to share her angry thoughts with me... 🙄]

...my inbox got flooded with generally one question:

Did you recognize the girl with the white sunglasses sitting next to Marina?

At 0.11 second of the video, you can see a girl with blue bikinis and white sunglasses and Sam is sitting next to and behind her could be his date?

I suddenly noticed a new person on the boat!!!!! She sit next to Sam and Marina. She has a bandana, white sunglasses, blue bikini and some kind of white skirt. Sam is very close to her even when he sit with his back. She lool like a model and I doubt she is from the team.

... and numerous similar ones...

Oh blimey, I thought, he appears to be sitting NEXT TO A WOMAN!!!! 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄 Seriously....????

All about a few tiny snippets in the tiktok videos, blink and you will miss her. But yes, we all know how this fandom is superior in examining videos frame by frame and analyzing it into dept.

The snippets, I'm sure you've seen them, but for the sake of completeness:

Both where he sits with his back towards her, more interested in the sea and as it looks having a conversation with Marina. It does look close, but those seats on the boat are rather large and deep. She appears to have a conversation with Melissa.

And there is one he's seen from the front, watching Joshua dancing as all others did. Joshua is blocking the view on the woman next to Sam.

In another snippet you can see the size of these seats on the boat as well

There's one more snippet she appears in, and seems to be standing alone while the food has apparently arrived, and again look at the size of those seats.

In other parts he's just having conversation with others, here with Marina and her friend Michelle

So far the snippets. I called it a day for that night, it was already quite late and I felt slightly disappointed and appalled by the reactions. Only to come back the next day to feel even more appalled finding a name in my inbox and learning that on another blog, well known for creating fanfic only from a name drop in an inbox as we have seen since the hiatus began, the woman was already declared as the new one, as well as 'she's the one'. Not only on that blog btw. but also in my inbox.

Sam is not going to join Matt because he is with his new date, Sam is so excited about this one. They are already in a romantic place together.

I think Sam has made his best choice. I like her. Sam seemed very happy and excited both on the boat and with his meeting with the fans. Maybe he has finally found the love of his life,

Sam wants everybody to know about her maybe he never thought her name will be out too soon.

And a fair number similar ones. Now I admire all your romantic feelings Anons, but I'm afraid you read too many dime novels or have seen LA a couple of times too much. I often get these Anons telling me I know nothing because social media isn't showing the real life. So it looks to me turning these one frame snippets into a romantic novel DG could use for her last book, is a bit too much for my taste to make all kind of these assumptions on.

🤦‍♀️

What if that is not her at all, those were my thoughts. This woman will just get bombarded with all kind of idiocy, as we could already see how the number of followers on that private account increased. While at the same time other sides quickly created versions of the saga including some horrific names the woman was called fitting a certain agenda.

Haven't we seen this all before a fair number of times? Haven't we been appalled by this before a number of times? Does this fandom never learn anything from the past?

My inbox had questions

For months, no one reveal CM's name, then this girl's name is outed immediately, why?

and

How did we learn bikini woman's name? How did someone first figure out who the woman was?

and

The whole thing is suspicious to me. Who is this or these people who give info to Purv? No way she could be recognized so fast. someone is playing here

To be honest, I was looking for the same answers and had the same suspicious feeling as well. Profiles were searched out on other platforms, her job and a picture from Linkedin was found. Now I do the same when a name gets dropped as well, but to post it already in a fashion that it is all a fact before anything can be confirmed...not so much. And quite honestly, identifying someone from a few snippets where the person is wearing huge white sunglasses and a bandana hiding most of her hair and face.... doesn't gave me a positive confirmation at all.

Now I do not believe in some kind of PR plants or TPTB narratives dropping names in inboxes. Even me and my blog have been accused of being part of his PR team when I merely posted just a pic or video of some events happening, when it didn't fit the agendas of said fractions of the fandom. Now if only they would tell me where to send my bill!

But in all fairness I must say, this summer, or already since OL S7 wrapped, the number of names dropped of totally unknown women who could not be connected to him in any sense, got quite astonishing to me. Yes, in my inbox as well, but I just don't like to put names of women out there just throwing them under the bus, or against a well known wall just to see what sticks. We've seen quite some curious ones, just reminding fake Emily and Cinderella's Hyrox patches and all the innuendos of women being in Miami, NYC, LA, places where many go. I'm not accusing P of mischief or making things up herself, let that be clear. If anything, than I rather think she's the one that has been played on, she turned out to be an easy target. She posts most of the time blindly without any or sloppy research and doesn't question where the information actually comes from if it fits her agenda.

I chose to step away a bit, besides the weather here in the Netherlands was extraordinary for the time of year. All week temperatures in the high twenties, and last weekend even 30+.

My inbox didn't calm down, more messages but now asking me to shed my lights on things, valuing my take on it. My silence didn't go unnoticed it seems. One Anon wrote:

Hi BC I am a little surprised that this time you prefer to be quite and not to tell us about your thoughts on the new date.

While another wrote

I really enjoy your blog, mainly because of you. Whenever something happens in Sam's life, and others present a different perspective, I tend to trust your viewpoint, and more often you are correct. However, this is the first time you haven't posted anything about Sam and the girl in the blue bikini. There are some aspects that don't quite make sense to me, and I was looking forward to you confirming or addressing that. It appears that this time you do agree with Purve and have decided not to post anything.

And

Are you not writing anything about the new SE girl or are you investigating to find out the truth? ☺️

Yes, I was quietly doing my own research, looking for information and here and there discussed some ideas and opinions in private chats. And no I do not agree with everything P wrote.

I also was (and still am not) in the clear whether Susie is the same woman on the boat. Therefore I call Susie, Susie and the woman on the boat SusieOrNotSusie. At the end of the story, it doesn't really matter as it doesn't really change my view on things.

Some Anons were a bit more humorous

If you are on vacation again....come back right now....I repeat it is an emergency. Composition of the alphabet soup: ship, SH, dolphins, music, gin, employees with appropriate clothing, shirtless boss, new secret employee with seductive clothing, CP costume. Solution?

As well as some Anons using their logic writing to me, I had the same questions and misgivings [note some of these are parts of longer messages]

We REALLY need your take on this whole blonde in the blue bikini on the yacht with Sam story. P has already created a relationship with a couple name... again. The shippers are rabid to prove it was staged for PR and nothing else. Tell us your thinking..please! Do you think, based on Sam's patterns and history, that he would bring a date on this trip knowing she would be filmed more than once? So out in the open knowing this fandom would figure out who she is?

Can't really see SH having a date on a boat with his employees and cameras everywhere. Seems too public for him. Too hard to keep her hidden from every camera. P now thinks she's on holiday with SH. Marina tagged a woman in a story over the weekend about the yacht day and that woman follows this Susie on IG. Doesn't look to be a new follow either. Perhaps she's a friend of a friend who was visiting LA and joined Marina and her other two friends?? Just seems so different from Sam's normal MO. Especially since there were multiple TikToks.

Logically, I just cannot believe that SH would have an event for his team on a yacht, let them film what looks like some promo (AN with a gin bottle, for example), and allow his team to post two TikToks that would show a woman with him that he is dating. It also looks like his new manager, Duncan Millership was on the yacht with them. I can't imagine that private Sam (when it comes to dates) would have his new mgr, his work teams, Alex and Marina there with a new date. He knows, surely by now, how different elements of this fandom search through every photo and meeting of him with possible new gfs. I just can't get my logical brain to be okay with him allowing it to be out in the open.

Am I crazy? I just cannot believe that Sam would allow those boat videos and TikToks to be shared everywhere- including on the SS page- if he had a date on the boat. He has had some terrible experiences in the past with how potential dates/gfs were treated. He didn't even follow AM or MC when he was supposed to be dating them, probably to try to protect them or keep it quiet. Would he really do this? It doesn't seem to fit his patterns- especially since Gia. Loads of speculation about how he met the woman, but we don't even know if he knew her or if she was a friend of someone he knew was coming on the boat. It also just feels off to me. Do you think he would share or let others share so many videos with a potential date on the boat? Of course, on the one blog they've apparently known each other and/or hooked up since his visit to Austin. On the other end of the spectrum it's just fake- smoke and mirrors. Just can't see Sam going this public until he's really ready to make a relationship public.

Yes, that was, and still is, my first huge red flag 🚩 as well. I agree, he will not take a date he barely knows (even if people try to make it credible that he knew her for a longer time because of 'likes' 🙄). I don't think he had much time to date and get to know anyone that well that he'd be comfortable to take her on that boat trip with all of his team. We've all seen he worked all the while in Belgium with some visits to NYC for promo and his b-day in Miami with friends, no women involved. On top of that, if you look at the people on that boat, they're part of the SS team or the MPC team (or both), all associated to SS or MPC or GGC some with partners and friends who were invited along.

Marina posted a story of the dolphins, tagging 2 women. Michelle who is a friend of hers she took with her followed already by her and her boss as well. And she tagged Melissa P, who she started to follow after the boat trip, clearly met her first time during the trip. Melissa also followed Marina back a few days later on. However Marina didn't tag SusieOrNotSusie nor followed her! In fact nobody did.

After Marina posted her story tagging Melissa, it wasn't hard to find out that Melissa seems to be the only connection to Susie, following her on IG. She already followed Susie before the boat trip though. This is the only connection that can be made between Susie and anyone on that boat trip as far as I can see.

Now I do not know what the connection between Melissa (and her partner) to Sam, or his business is. I could find out that Melissa seems to be a sales manager at Hyundai. I don't know what the name of her partner is, he could as well be associated somehow to the business team on that boat and how these people were invited on the trip.

Anyway, for me, this boat trip was for team and the business associations. SusieOrNotSusie could easily be a connection to anyone else on that boat. What I did notice from what we can tell from the footage is how the SS (tour) team mostly interacted amongst the ones they know from the team on one side of the boat, while on the other side the rest was mostly placed and interacting. Looks a bit like 2 parties not really knowing each other.

So anyone claiming he must have met Susie in Austin, it doesn't occur they knew her to me. As for nobody following her from that boat trip nor Susie following anybody else from that trip than Melissa she already followed upfront, people claiming Sam told them not to sounds quite contradictory to him having her on that boat with everyone and allowing all the footage, not to mention the ones that are convinced they're a romantic couple for real and want to go public.

And a final thought on connections, I didn't hear or see from anyone, but what to me was quite curious. How is it that from all the people he met in Austin, or on his tour for that matter, or could have picked someone from Raya, how is it that Susie curiously is connected to one more guest on that boat! Now there's a coincidence, no? Or is it not a coincidence??? Did SusieOrNotSusie bring them along like her chaperone? I don't think so...

btw. The Anon mentioning Duncan Millership, I reckon this came from a shippers blog where this was mentioned, together with something Sam said during the private fan con in KC. Which I'm not sure was serious or just a joke. It's about this man with whom Alex seems to be in conversation:

Now firstly I doubt this is Duncan Millership, just search his picture via Google and you find he doesn't look like this man.

Secondly fwiw, Duncan Millership is an old friend of Sam, from even before his OL breakout. he's one of the first followers of Sam.

For the ones that do not know, Katie Rebekah, friend his London time and has been named as one of his first gfs. VickiLawson is his ex SIL, Faye Thomas took his first photographed for his Portfolio.

Meanwhile I was told by a number of people that

Susie Evans ALSO posted from Shutters a few days ago.

and it took a bit of time before this screenshot was shared...

Now, I'm not sure when exactly she posted this story, which as I learned from bts chats, was originally a video (so people saying it's photoshopped or anything, I rule that out).

It is the Beach House Suite at Shutters, as pointed out, the same suite the interview with the tastingalliance was conducted. I have no doubts about that.

The Tasting Alliance interview due out tomorrow was also done at Shutters , wearing the kilt he had on on Sunday .

Yes for the kilt, other shirt though. (where is the interview btw.?)

Sam's interview with the lady from The Tasting Alliance was filmed inside a suite at Shutters on the Beach that costs over $5,000 a night. Looks like that hotel is about 10 mins from Marina del Rey. P is sharing a photo supposedly from Susie Evans' IG inside a suite like that. She claims it's Sam's suite and that SE wouldn't have an expensive suite like that. She also posted late yesterday that SE is back in Austin now. .... Could this Susie E have been there as a friend of a friend, gotten to go into the suite where they were meeting/ working and took a photo of herself there? The photo looks really filtered. It's interesting to me that if you are staying in a suite that nice with a great view that you would take your photo in front of a messy table that doesn't really show the cool place where you are. Why not a video of the whole suite to show what an awesome and gorgeous place to be?

[note the above Anon is part of a longer message of which I took the relevant parts]

Of course the easiest thing is to conclude she was staying there with him in that suite, if that is what your agenda fits. And if you don't question yourself the obvious questions. Like would he conduct an interview in the same suite he was staying with a date? Quite a huge red flag 🚩 for me again. Turning it into some kind of romantic weekend or week sounds a bit reductive for my taste.

The screenshot of Susie seems to have been a video, as I was told, but not from the entire suite. As above Anon points out, why is there such a mess on the table? And for sure the helmet on the table indicated Sam was there, well we already knew because of the interview of course. But tell me if you are staying there, would you put your helmet on the table and bags on the chair, or put it in the hallway f.i. where there is room to leave stuff like that? And it is right when you enter the suite.

The suite was for biz. He has money but not thst kind of money. Shutters has no reason to comp him a suite. It was a set for interview which is often done, not as costly, and biz expense.

I tend to lean towards him driving on the bike to the suite on Sunday, that was hired for an afternoon or day perhaps to conduct the interview and for him to change and get to the event and back. The recent fan pic at Shutters shows him in the shirt (and SS pin) he wore at the event. It also gives merit to what Anon above wrote, being possibly a friend of a friend gotten to go into the Suite to record her video. And as the other Anon above points out, he has money and he does live the luxury live at hotels for what we can see, but he doesn't spill that kind of money on a date. And if he would do so, he better put her into the the Four Seasons Hotel, where he only stays when he's in LA on Starz's account.

I heard there were people saying other team members posted from that location or suite as well. I think that's a myth, I didn't see anybody from the team post from it. I do not think it was some kind of base for the team to stay and from there went for the boat trip. Only Chrissy stayed at a hotel, as she is not living in LA, and I haven't seen her posting from a hotel. So saying so in order to make it look like the hotel Suite was hired for the whole team is false information imo. However it's still credible to me it was hired for the Sunday interview and base from where he went to the event.

Other thoughts I had were, why is this the only screenshot of her in LA? Nothing from the boat, nothing from anything in LA we've seen. Didn't he take her out to diner somewhere? Not a fancy motorbike ride along Abbot Kinney and Venice? Btw. Where is her helmet? Only one helmet on that table! And to this day I haven't seen the white sunnies nor the same bandana in any of her pictures. Older or new ones.

Typically, my attitude is, if you weren't there you don't know what happened and don't get into the hoopla, be open. This time I felt the same, until the fan picture with him at the coffee shop displaying the helmet. He's really been caught the past years in LA by a fan or at least they haven't posted such encounters. This time within 48 hours, a coincidental fan picture with him in sane Shutters clothing with same helmet in the suite picture with the woman, who was the woman on the boat. Sorry too many coincidences to not be a story someone is selling. And as you know there are many stories around. This time, seeing the watchers, the drama creators, the examiners and researchers, all with an agenda, it's becoming more strange than ever. Thoughts?

Coming back to the part I wrote above about how Susie's name came to be known at all in this realm. My inquiries did put me on a trail of an infamous group in this fandom. I do not have the answers on the how, what for or why, and I think I don't want to touch that lid of a pot so full of 'Stranger Things'! 🤐 [for the ones longer in this fandom, this should tell you enough.] Don't sent me any (anon) questions about it, I wont answer, I do not have the answers. I just have my suspicions that I keep in mind and that's enough to me.

About the picture outside Shutters and the fan pic at the coffee shop on Abbey Kinney Blv. I do not think they were 'planted' though. This are not the things I wrote about above. There are bloggers pointing out how the picture outside Shutters is removed and the fan that saw him at the coffee shop is now private. The simple reason for that we can all guess. These people are bothered and even perhaps harassed about their post. We've seen it before, some told us about it, remember how the journalist in Ratingen showed us why she removed his pic? I even noticed how that Friday when the videos of the boat party were posted, some where on Joshua's account. I didn't mention him but his account name was on one of the pics. I caught the dolphin story, and was just in time to get the video of Sam dancing between his team members. A moment later he was private! And now even Melanie has changed her tiktok account name and removed one of the videos. Going by the things I find in my inbox, you can draw your own conclusions from that.

Some other thought that was sent to me

Why hasn't anyone assumed the woman or women were Alex's date? Does one dare ask that question and get hit with body shaming comments? Certainly he was in the suite too.

No Anon, others made that assumption as well. I feel hesitant to post this, yet took this one only to show people who wrote to me thought of this as an option. But let's not forget, the man has 2 young daughters so I feel very reluctant making assumptions like this. And in fact, I don't think so.

TLDR or some end conclusions:

Is Susie the woman on the boat or not? I do not have an answer on that. Many of you wrote to me and I posted these images to compare. Her nose and chin seem different. Opinions are mixed. But it's quite hard (and to me unlikely) to confirm a positive ID on the woman on the boat as her face is hidden for a great deal. And as an Anon pointed out to me, do these women he dates not all look the same...? 🤔

Anyway, it doesn't matter that much as eyes are now peeled on Susie who seems to be Susie and took a video in the suite at Shutters. No other footage, nothing else from this supposed weekend. Only this one screenshot from a video that miraculously reached this fandom #justsaying

Red flags all over, no I don't think he'd take a date he can't have known long, on a boat with his team members and business associates where video's and pictures about the event were happily shared on known accounts. Despite P naming how he took Abby and MM to work events, he learned what the consequences are. He's not always smart, but he isn't that dumb as well.

Conducting an interview and clearly using an hotel suite as base to get to the last announced event in the same suite he's staying with a date is a huge red flag and a big no to me. There are other options how Susie got this video recorded there with his stuff so obviously showing. In no way would he be okay her showing and posting this.

He stayed at AN's house all the time he was in LA, he does so since AN owns this house. Before Sam always stayed at Airbnbs when he was for a longer time in LA, when for shorter times, say a few days, like last year when he came back from LV and went to Mexico a few days later on he stays at Shutters. When he's there on Starz's account, he stays at the Four Seasons. We've seen him doing zoom interviews from Shutters and the Four Season, as well as from airbnb's in the past. When Nic R was there, he posted a picture of the motorbike at a fuel station, which I located and was near to AN's house in the HH. As to why not use that as a base, if you know this house you know it is not the most accessible place in the HH with a huge stairway to the entrance.

Social Media times showed, how he was online most of the usual hours. Though not posting that much, as he's restricted of course because of the strike. Liking and even commenting on posts was no less. Nothing that implicated dating or having someone over for a date.

I doubt we'll see anything more from Susie. Expect the usual innuendo, but I know where to put my money. Just another is/was she or is/was she not soap bubble for this fandom, gotta say a weird one because of the suite screenshot. I do agree with the many people that notice how things do not add up to what we know about SH and his MO. And frankly he's a creature of habits he shows that all the time. But hey, stranger things happen.

For all we've seen now, she was back in Austin quite soon after the weekend and currently in Denver. While we've seen him for a week in LA at least biking around with AN, and last we've seen and heard he's been all week in NYC. So much for the 'happy couple'....

[savannahsdrabbles]

Ocean Song - Part 8

rating: PG 

notes: 1.7k words. A03 link can be found here. Also thank you to @rusty-wayfarer and @starfiretheninja for beta-reading.

Salt.

His head perked up and he inhaled greedily, scent glands tingling as he drank in the thick, sharp scent of ocean air. His senses had alerted him a while ago that they were approaching the shoreline - even before the humans had verbalized their own realizations - but the increasing smell of the water and the deep rumble of churning waves still made his heart beat all the faster. A primal desire deep within his bones yelled louder and louder with each plodding step, urging him to hit the ground running and not stop until he could feel shifting sand between his toes and icy spray on his skin.

He was fairly certain that he could successfully make a break for it at this point – most of the feeling had returned to his limbs, despite Girl not being able to remove the “collar” as planned. She’d stated her intent to do so after she and Boy finished covering their car with branches, hoping to disguise it while they were gone and cover their tracks. Once she’d seemed satisfied, the girl squatted before him and pulled the egg from an unseen place in her pelt.

“There’s only one button on it,” she’d reasoned out loud as she rolled the object in her palm and glanced nervously at his neck. He hadn’t liked her expression – why was she so hesitant now? Just remove it! “When I clicked the controller last time, it seemed to turn the power off. So maybe clicking a second time will make it release?”

She’d been wrong.

The moment her fingers left the surface of the egg, he felt his body begin to shut back down. Thankfully she’d been able to undo the process before his panic could fully set in, but the experience had still left him rattled and wanting to either smash the egg or bury it deep within the earth.

After that plan had failed, she and Boy decided that they would take turns standing behind him and prying at the collar with all of their might. He’d cringed away from their outstretched hands at first, giving small growls of warning when they reached for his throat, but reluctantly relented when Girl mentioned that the sooner they could get it off, the sooner they could get moving. He settled on clenching his teeth and curling his claws tightly into fists as the humans both attempted to jam their fingers into the small gap where skin met collar.

After a few minutes of them tugging and him mentally screaming, Boy gave a sigh and announced that he should be able to get it off using tools from “the Marina”.  Girl had seemed to agree, and the next thing he knew, he’d been scooped back up into Boys’ arms and the trio began their slow journey down the cliffside.

The majority of the long walk had consisted of the two humans quietly talking between themselves while he squirmed anxiously in Boy’s arms; this was better than being held still, but it was still far from what he would consider comfortable. He’d tried to distract himself by listening in to their conversations initially, but gave up after only a few minutes. He’d long prided himself as being the best interpreter in his family, but now he felt like he was only catching a third of what was being said. What in the world were they even going on about, and why did it take so long for each Human to speak? Surely their communications could be much more efficient if they simply focused on vocal inclinations – why waste time sounding out long phrases that could just get lost amongst the waves?

In an effort to keep his mind calm, he took this time to reflect on either Human’s voice; he focused on memorizing their sounds and taking note of how exactly their tones changed as he spoke.

Boy was definitely the louder of the two and seemed to be more aggressive – though not quite in a way that made him fearful; he wasn’t like the Humans from earlier. He simply seemed to dive into his words and actions headfirst, not stopping to consider the potential consequences. This theory was proven correct several times during their walk, when Boy would suddenly take off running and launch himself over piles of leaves and twigs. The turtle clung to the front of his pelt each time, chattering nervously as he was jolted about and nearly dropped on multiple occasions. However, despite the Human’s abrupt movements, he couldn’t help but feel secure in his arms. Being held steady by calloused hands had become a traumatizing part of this whole ordeal, but this was… different. In more ways than one, Boy reminded him of Strong Brother.

Girl, on the other hand, was different; if he had to choose between the two of them, he felt more inclined to trust her. Her calm, caring and sometimes worried manner was comforting. She was clearly strong and could be loud as well – was this just a universal trait in Humans? – but she seemed to be more reserved with her volume. Her hands were also smaller and gentler than Boy’s. Even when she’d been breaking him out of the moving prison, her tone and hands had stayed soft and kind, promising him that everything was going to be okay. She’d kept all of her promises so far – they were out of the terrible place, away from the two “goons” as she referred to them, and were heading towards the ocean.

The longer they walked, the calmer he could feel himself becoming. Even if he could only understand a portion of what was going on, he couldn’t help but feel safe. Still, he felt hungry to know more.

Speaking of hunger.

He curled slightly inwards, arms wrapping around his stomach as a loud grumble echoed from within his body.

“What was that?” Both humans froze in their tracks, heads swiveling around. He stiffened as well- were they being pursued? What was happening?

His stomach gurgled a second time, ignoring his shushing and attempts to stay still and quiet. Two pairs of eyes instantly fell on him.

“Holy crap- was that your stomach?”

He blinked in surprise. Wait – they were startled by him? Did Humans not have hunger sounds?

“Y-yes,” he finally answered in Family Tongue. “Need eat.”

The two teens stared back, blinking. “Um… come again?”

“Food.”

More blinking and glancing between each other.

He sighed tiredly. It had been a long day, and he didn’t know the correct Human Spoken Word translation. Why couldn’t they just understand? He patted his lower plastron with emphasis and spoke again, this time dragging out the sound. “Hungryyyyyy.”

The Humans hesitated, and for a moment he felt like he was going to cry with frustration. Then Girl finally spoke up, patting her own stomach and cocking her head. “It’s probably been a while since he last ate – maybe he’s hungry? Is that it? Are you hungry?”

The turtle bobbed his head in excited relief, patting his plastron again. “Hun-gerr-ee.”

“Right – hungry!” Girl laughed, and he felt his heart skip a beat and clench all at once. Her happy sounds reminded him of Small Brother. It felt like it had been a lifetime since he had last heard the orange speckled turtle laugh. “Well, we should be reaching the marina any minute – there’s usually a couple of shops that are still open at this hour, so I’m sure we can grab something to eat.”

“Speaking of which,” Boy suddenly squatted and sat his passenger on the ground, then stood back up and rolled his shoulders. “Ugh – my back is killing me. No offense dude, but you weigh a heck ton.”

The turtle shuffled his feet on the pine covered ground and cocked his head thoughtfully, considering the words. He wasn’t sure what they meant, but he could tell by the tone that they seemed despairing. After a moment, he nodded and pursed his lips in an imitation of the Human’s expression. “’Fense, Dood.”

Another surprised laugh bubbled out of Girl’s mouth, which she quickly stifled with her hands.

Boy shook his head, but his large grin and shaking shoulders betrayed the laughter that he was holding back. “I’m sorry – that was kind of rude. I was going to say, though, we’re getting close to the marina now so we should probably figure out what the plan is.” He pointed at Girl. “How about you guys stay here while I go rent the boat and grab us something to eat? I can text you or something when I’m ready, and you guys can come meet me at the docks.”

“Sounds good to me,” Girl nodded, then hesitated. She gestured in the direction they had been headed. “Wait –what if someone sees him? I know there’s probably not much of a crowd right now, but there’s bound to be security cameras and at least a couple of people that would freak out. Maybe we should cover him up?”

To the turtle’s horror and fascination, Boy reached down and grabbed the bottom of his pelt, then yanked it over his head to reveal a second layer underneath. Before he had a chance to gawk any further, Boy leaned over and dropped the outer pelt into his lap. “Here – take my hoodie.  It might not totally fit over your shell, but at least it will get you semi-covered.”

He stared down at the material in his lap, still pondering whether or not he should fling it away in disgust, when Boy suddenly turned, pushed through the bushes, and vanished into the night.

“Wait – where he going?” he whined softly. “Why leave?”

Pine needles crunched nearby as Girl joined him on the ground. She crossed her legs, resting her elbows on her knees and chin in hand, then leaned forward as she spoke softly. “I’m not sure how much of that you understood, but Casey is going to go get us a boat, okay? Then he’s going to text me – err, tell me when he’s ready - so that we can go join him at the water.”

“Water.” he repeated, bobbing his head. “Cay-cee go to water?”

Girl grinned, a small huff of air escaping her nose as her cheeks curved upwards. “He is. And speaking of Casey and I, let’s have a talk.”

#tmnt #tmnt 2012 #tmnt fanfiction #savannah drabbles #sea turtles au

[andy-the-8th]

Stars and Stripes and Sea Creatures

Part 8 of Creatures That Defy Logic

Read on AO3

Whit reflects on the summer so far while preparing for the 4th of July, before meeting up with everyone for the fireworks. We meet Sam's sister and her cool college friends. Jess gets to do cool sousaphone things.

There's a Brink! crossover - it's more of a quick cameo.

A/N: I may hate America but I do enjoy a wholesome 4th of July summer scene

Whit was standing in the kitchen, carefully moving cups of red and blue vegan jello and tubs of non-dairy whipped cream from the fridge to the center of the counter. It was 4th of July and he and Sharon were going to be preparing a dessert tray to bring down to the cove to watch the fireworks and band performance with their neighbors. While neither of them were exactly what you'd call patriotic, it was still one of the main social events of the summer as much as it was in any small town. The tourist guide boat was closed for the day, with most of the harbor blocked from usual traffic out of safety concerns - the fireworks were launched from a set of rafts in the middle of the harbor, and naturally the town administration wanted to keep boaters and swimmers away from the explosives. Whit was always glad to have the holiday off each year - in the tourism business, holidays usually just meant more work, more people, and ruder customers.

In the month since Cody left, the Griffins had slowly adapted to a new rhythm in the house. Days came more easily first, with work, social obligations, and day-to-day chores around the house and the boats to keep them busy.

The nights were harder. Any parent would worry enough when their kids first start spending the nights outside the home - at a friend's house, away for a school trip. When your kid is spending 24 hours a day for three months and could be anywhere in the ocean, that worry is justifiably magnified.

Whit didn't tell Sharon about his nightmares - it was rare that they kept anything from each other, but he didn't see it doing any good. They were never very specific (or prophetic, as some might believe) - he could dismiss them as his brain simply de-fragging anxieties of the day. Images and ideas that were innocuous enough by daylight, or to anyone who didn't have a 13 year old at large in the open ocean - sharks, whales, Marianas Trenches, tidal waves, ice bergs, tropical storms - and those were just the worries that everyday science had already confirmed. Worries of safety, security, open ended but ominous.

And then there were social (supernatural?) concerns, which both Sharon and Whit had at times discussed to some extent or another. What was mermaid culture like? Did Cody have more family out there? Were they being welcoming to him? Was there a school? Was he making friends? Would there be any way for him to communicate any of it to them if when he came back? Would their language even have words for it all?

Sharon had burned through almost every book in the library about lifestyle tips targeting empty-nester parents. Bohemian and alternative as she may be, she nevertheless was no stranger to research, especially making use of strategies to find natural, healthy solutions to life's problems. And in that search, the best analog she had found to what they were going through was parents of students going away to school for the first time. Many of the concerns were applicable, at least in theory. For the most part, the books helped more than they hurt. Universities out of town generally didn't have a risk of sharks attacking your kid, but there was still advice for parents concerned about safety. Most college kids wouldn't go away and learn a telepathic secret language, but there were still strategies for adapting to your child's social and cultural changes when leaving home for the first time. In fact, the most difficult difference between these hypothetical scenarios and the one they found themselves in was not the existence of merpeople - it was the age of the hypothetical child in question. Sure, trusting your 18 year old to go out into the world and make good choices, knowing you're a phone call away from home, is hard enough. Sending your 13 year old out into the ocean, with no way of knowing where he'll go or how he'll come back, was another matter entirely.

Still, they had each other, and their faith in their son, to get them through it. The Griffins were definitely changed, but as they promised their son and each other, they'd be alright.

Especially considering that this wasn't going to be a permanent change - at the outset, it felt like an eternity before Cody would be coming back. The house felt very large and very empty, and they both felt strangely out of step with the rest of their friends and neighbors, all so genuinely curious about how Cody was doing at this swim training in Australia, always asking how they were doing with him being gone so long. The first few weeks had them feeling very, very lonely, even together.

That was before John Wheatley, of all people, came over one night with a lasagna. He had made it himself, more or less, with Jess's oversight. It had been his late wife's favorite comfort food recipe - Jess had even reminded him to make it vegan, in case that was still Sharon's diet of choice these days. When the big clumsy fisherman had showed up with a big tinfoil tray on their front step, with his small clumsy son right behind him, Sharon had been more than happy to have them in, to insist they stay even though they had only intended to drop it off for them. Whit was surprised at her hospitality more than anything else, given how their last encounter a few weeks before had gone, but followed his wife's lead on how they were navigating their new relationship with the Wheatleys. John and Jess had stayed for the evening, the four of them sharing the lasagna, Jess eventually fitting right in to the conversation with the adults, perhaps sometimes more than his father. It was at first a relief to just socialize with other people who knew the same secrets, but after a while, the Griffins realized they'd grown to genuinely become friends with Big John.

Which was a blessing for several reasons, not the least of which that Whit and Sharon hadn't really realized how close Jess and Cody seemed to have been. Most of Cody's other friends had always been kids from the swim team - friends, like most boys their age, whose connection seemed mostly founded on shared activities. Doubly so as sports players, Cody's other friends had always had a healthy level of competition and rivalry with him and with one another.

Maybe, if there was any truth in what Sharon and Whit heard about Sean Marshall these days, a little less than healthy sometimes.

Jess at their first meeting was a polar opposite of Cody's usual friend group - it definitely had made sense when Cody first introduced them that he was there as a randomly-assigned partner for a science project.  For one, he spoke with them openly and very matter-of-factly, almost more comfortable with adults than he seemed to have been around other kids his age when they saw him at school. He was quite straightforward and polite, if very enthusiastic at the opportunity to talk about anything related to marine biology. He was just as interested in hearing Whit and John discuss boating practices or their experiences at the harbor, or patiently listen to Sharon's various spiritual health and natural healing theories, and would light up with the chance to talk about whatever they were learning.

But the one topic that Jess would light up about more than any other, even more than marine biology or sousaphone, was Cody. Naturally, about him being a merman, but just as often it was about him as a person, from the time they'd spent together since the science project. It was kind of weirdly comforting as parents, to hear one of your kid's peers talk about how kind and respectful they had turned out. It was one thing for a teacher or coach to compliment your child, but other kids don't have the filters or obligations to do so. John hadn't been kidding when he'd said how important Cody was to Jess.

Whit had more than once wondered, somewhat apprehensively, if there was some kind of other double meaning to what John had said on the dock - if Jess maybe liked Cody a bit differently than the other boys.

Not that there was anything wrong with that, he always said to himself. And really he never got that impression from Jess - he was just very earnest, and as far as they could tell didn't really have other friends. And he was 13 - kids were all a little weird around that age. Whit hoped that that wasn't going to be the case, mostly for Jess's sake - if they were such good friends, Jess would probably be completely crushed if he had those feelings, when Cody didn't return them.

Not that there would be anything wrong with that, Whit thought again. It didn't really matter, since it wasn't the case.

Sam had also been coming by the house once in a while, when she was walking home from work at the greenhouses. Whit and Sharon had known her through the swim team forever, before she and Cody were "an item" as Whit liked to jokingly call it. It was a lot to put on a 13 year old girl, having such a secret and not sharing it with anyone but her boyfriend's parents, the weird marina guy, and his nerdy son. Even if it was only an 8th grade relationship, they knew they could trust Sam - she cared enough about Cody that she wouldn't ever want to see anything happen to him.

Over the last few months Sharon had gotten lunch a few times with Lindsey Brathwaite, when they were both free. "Meeting the in-laws" she had joked the first time they went out. Whit had already known Lindsey via the Department of Natural Resources - he was one of the few commercial boaters who always prided himself and his business on following all environmental protection regulations and then some. It was one of the reasons they didn't serve snacks on the boat - no trash or food waste to dirty the water and harm the reefs. Lindsey had a bit of a reputation among the commercial boaters and fishers in the harbor - she was smart and relentless when it came to protecting the environment, and held the respect of most of the town for it. There was a reason Mahone Bay had some of the most beautiful shores, some of the healthiest reefs, all along the coast.

Maybe that's why a mermaid would drop her baby off here, Whit thought with a smile.

On the counter, Sharon had laid out 26 clear plastic wine glasses - a spoonful of whipped cream, then blue jello, then whipped cream, then red jello was to go in each glass, then put them all back in the fridge to keep them fresh for that afternoon. Whit was just finishing up putting them all together - he'd zoned out a bit reflecting on all the changes over the last month.

Sharon came in through the back door, (reusable, biodegradable) grocery bags in hand. "Whit, you done with the parfait?"

"Just finishing, putting them in the fridge now."

"OK, I ran into Lindsey at the farmers market, I invited her to come to the fireworks with us if that's alright"

"Oh sure!" It would be nice to get a chance to talk to Lindsey outside of a work context.

"Her other daughter is in town as well, so we can maybe meet her, if she and Sam will be there too. Not sure if they'll have other plans though."

Whit finished putting all the glasses back in the fridge. "I'm sure we'll be appropriately embarrassing like any teenager's parents are supposed to be." Sharon put the bags on the counter and smiled at him at that. "Did you hear anything from the Wheatleys?"

"I think John is tied up at the boat yard with so much extra traffic in the harbor for the holiday. Jess is playing sousaphone with the school band before the fireworks though!"

Of course he would be. Truly no better event for a sousaphonist than the 4th of July.

"Good for him, I'm sure he'll be excited for that."

"Yep. Can you help with these so we can get ready to go?"

Whit moved to the other side of the counter, helping sort through the groceries, arranging things on platters per Sharon's instructions. They'd be ready well before it was time to head down by the pavilion near the water.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The band finished their latest number, an up-tempo arrangement of "This Land is Your Land," with a cymbal crash and a sustained sousaphone honk. The crowd clapped for the group of 15 or so middle and high schoolers on the big white gazebo that over looked the harbor - some of the spectators on the folding chairs, some on picnic blankets. Anything the band might lack in musical talent - which might be a good bit - they certainly made up for in heart. Standing up in the back corner with his horn, Jess was dressed like the others in red white and blue - in his case, what appeared to be a glittery blazer, covered in stars and stripes. Definitely looked like he made it himself, but it caught the light well enough, and its homemade quality added to the charm. The rest of the band was a wide variety of outfits - a mix of T-shirts and shorts, denim, suits or dresses their parents probably picked - but it all somehow went together.

They'd made their way through "America the Beautiful," "Yankee Doodle," and "My Country Tis of Thee" with varying levels of success. "This Land is Your Land" was the penultimate in the setlist, right before the mayor's comments, then would play "The Star Spangled Banner" for the start of the fireworks.

Sam watched as the mayor got up to the podium, started some bland speech on patriotism or something.

"God doesn't this small town jingoism just make you gag" Jackie snorted from the other end of the blanket. Sam and her sister had met up with Jen and two of Jackie's other friends, Vanessa and Maria, to go down to the fireworks together.

Jackie used to have red hair like Sam and their mom, but had since cut it short and dyed it black when she moved away to school. She looked way more goth than Mahone Bay usually was used to seeing, with her black lipstick and white foundation making her look much paler than usual. She also usually wore black these days, tomboyish outfits of denim, band shirts, and (ethically sourced) leather. Today's outfit was no exception.

"Totally. They always leave out all the terrible shit this country does in speeches like this." Vanessa turned around to face Jackie, gathering her long braids in her hands and back behind her shoulders as she repositioned herself on the blanket. She was doing a political science major, which unsurprisingly had made her usual contempt for the state of the nation even more viscerally infuriated.

Jen reached in the cooler for a lemonade, and passed one down to Sam on the other corner before taking her seat beside her. Jackie and Vanessa continued their cultural critiques in the background.

"Weird we'll be in high school next year!" Jen was looking at the band, a mix from all the different grades. "Let me tell you, high school boys are awhole 'nother story."

"Jen, do you even know any high school boys?"

"I mean technically all the ones in our grade count! But that's beside the point anyway,"

"Hey kids, let me teach you something" Maria spoke up, interrupting Jen's usual interest in discussing boys and gossip at any large social event. Maria dressed a bit more like Jackie, though with more pops of color, choker necklaces, tons of rings. She had also dyed her hair, hot pink streaks over her natural dark brown, contrasting with her olive complexion. Even if it wasn't her style, Sam couldn't deny Maria always looked cool, in that quirky-alternative kind of way. She even had a nose piercing. "Did you ever hear of the Bechdel test?"

"The what?" Sam could tell from Maria's tone that they were about to learn some allegedly-cool college-girl facts of life, like how when Jackie wanted to talk about love languages, or zodiac signs for aligning the spirit of one's womanhood, or unlearning implicit biases.

"The Bechdel test. You apply it to movies to see how feminist they are. Has to have two female characters, they have to have names, they have to talk to each other, and they have to talk about something that isn't a man."

"Mar, that's not a solid test for how feminist something is -"

"I know, I know, the point is that the bar is SO low, makes you really think."

Vanessa nodded back at that, her point made. From a fashion standpoint, Vanessa had really embraced the pan-Africana look in college, dramatic flowy prints on shirts and dresses. Today she wore a long yellow shirt over jeans, the golden color bringing out the highlights in her dark skin. How did all of Jackie's friends manage to grow up so cool and pretty? Sam turned back to Maria, who was finishing her point.

"My point is, can we try to have this picnic blanket pass the Bechdel test for like, 5 minutes?"

Jen blushed and turned away - Sam put her hand on her shoulder. "Thanks for telling us Mar, sorry we're not enlightened yet."

"It's totally cool, just like, now you know" Maria gave them an exaggerated wink and finger guns.  The older girls went back into their previous discussion while Sam turned back to Jen.

"So how are things at the dog washing place?" Jen's summer job was at the Pup'n'Suds that had just opened up - they had their main location way over in LA, but one of their staff had moved over to Mahone Bay sometime last year. Small town and small businesses - made it easy to know things like this, even as a part time high schooler with a summer position.

"Going OK actually! Honestly I always loved the dogs of course, but what a wild company culture. They apparently sponsored some kind of X Games skating team last year?"

Jen and Sam continued off of that, both sharing various stories from work, consciously passing the Bechdel test through the remainder of the mayor's speech, now long past anyone paying attention anymore. Jen someday hoped to be a veterinarian - her interests and Sam's just happened to complement each other like that. Fauna and flora.

The speech finally came to an end, with the mayor turning it over to Mr. Payton and the school band to start the national anthem. Sam saw Jess resolutely stand up straight as they started, as usual executing all 3 honking notes of the sousaphone part with the seriousness of a surgeon.

The band actually played this one pretty well - clearly this was where most of the rehearsal time had gone. On the last "land of the free/home of the brave," Sharon nudged Whit a bit, pointing at the band - in a surprise part of the arrangement, the sousaphone joined in on that final melody.

Jess's face was bright red, cheeks puffed out, every bit of concentration on getting the melody right for the finale. Maybe it was intentional, maybe not, but the sousaphone kind of overpowered the rest of the ensemble by the end of the short phrase.

It got some raised eyebrows but Jess looked so excited and proud when the music closed and the crowd applauded. Sharon managed to get his attention from the crowd to wave - Jess was clearly surprised, but immediately waved back, beaming and still blushed from the performance.

"Well that was a bit unexpected," Lindsey said, laughing a bit, turning back to the picnic table once the band finished. "Never heard quite that much tuba in the national anthem before."

"Sousaphone" Sharon and Whit said together. Their other neighbors at the table, Cynthia and Jack Williams, both chuckled in surprise at that. Sharon and Whit made eye contact with another and smiled, raised eyebrows - both realizing that they unintentionally had exactly matched the way they'd said merMAN semi-regularly just 2 months ago.

Lindsey kind of smiled nervously, surprised at the emphasized correction. "OK, sousaphone. That kid did a good job at least."

"Yeah, that's Jess. He's friends with Cody and Sam actually" Sharon supplied helpfully. "Good kid. Can get a little overenthusiastic, but he's a good friend."

"Oh OK. Sam had mentioned him coming by the greenhouse once, but I'd never met him."

"How is she liking the job?"

The conversation moved easily from there - the rest of the evening unfolded with welcome normalcy - just talking about their kids, work, the fireworks, anything really. Whit relaxed a bit, settling next to Sharon, sharing in the conversation.

They weren't really patriotic, but the holiday was always a good excuse to share time with people away from work. They certainly spent enough time in the house together - they'd needed a chance to decompress and just be adults for a while. He put his arm around his wife as they both looked up at the last blasts of the fireworks. He turned to meet her gaze under the final lights.

"Hey. I love you."

Sharon smiled at him, a bit confused. "I know?"

"Gee thanks, Han Solo."

"Sorry hon. I love you too. Just was surprised - what brought that up?"

"Well I thought we agreed we were going to be the embarrassing teenager parents tonight, as expected."

Jackie, Sam, and the other girls had walked back up to where Lindsey was at the picnic tables, blanket rolled up under one arm. Sam awkwardly waved over at them, saying something to Jackie, who rolled her eyes.

"Ah OK. Love you too Whit."

Yeah, kissing under fireworks definitely counted as an embarrassing-parents move.

END NOTES:

I may hate America but am always down for a wholesome 4th of July scene

"Not that there's anything wrong with that" is indeed a reference to that Seinfeld episode

Sam thinking her sister's friends are pretty is *probably* not anything to read into

might have based Jess's ridiculous red white and blue glitter blazer on something I once made as a kid....might not have

#the thirteenth year #dcom #disney channel original movies #fanfic #4th of july #mermen #mermaid #sousaphone #bechdel test #brink!

[suffering-and-happy-about-it]

WhatsApp? Part 8. (Steve Rogers x reader)

Description: You’ve never been lucky with guys. You just wanted to catch someone’s eye, to be loved. One day, that’s about to turn completely - with one fake, completely imagined number a guy gave you

A/N:  @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory thank you for reblogging! I notice every note and reblog you left me, babez! But I have a seriously hard time responding even to my own gf at the time, bcs I'm in the more depressed mood. Sorry.

Word count: 2 K 

Tagging: @missdictatorme, @songforhema, @mikariell95

Read the rest here: Part One  Part Two  Part three  Part four  Part five  Part Six  Part seven

If you like to have your readings in order :):  H E R E  

The big evening finally came. Every one of you was in the backstage, listening to some stand-up comedian. He truly was hilarious.

It was simple - there was a hall full of people who had bought the tickets in pre-order. All of that money went to a charity. Then they could give more money if they wanted to the lady by the ticket station. After every show, the hall cleared out and people with tickets on the next show sat at the tables, ordered some drinks and waited for it to start. Some shows had twenty minutes, but there were other people, who had five minutes lasting shows as you were.

There were even people from the Marina present, those who were voted to take the check from Tony Stark himself as well. And they looked like they had a hella good time.

"I will sit next to you, would you mind?" - Deena said, already sitting down. You scooped a bit further to make some place for her ass. Then the both of you turned your heads to look at the guy performing. You both laughed. There was some singers, some bands, some other Charity workers - there was basically everyone. You even got a bit too excited when you saw Pepper freaking Potts sitting at the table in the back of the hall next to Happy Hogan.

Through the whole evening, you texted with Steve. You told him every of your itsy bitsy feelings and he was so kind that he has listened to you all the time. Meanwhile, girls have done your make-up and your hair, so you looked like a real lady coming straight from the forties.

May's hair was the hardest do make - she had a long, strong hair and she has a hell lot of them, which made it almost impossible to do. Yet she was now standing behind you on her high heels, looking definitely breathtaking.

Y/N: Never realizes that there will be so many people out here! I'm getting pretty nervous, handsome.

Steve: Do not freak out. It is going to be completely fine. We are here out with Bucky and Sam, pouring down some drinks. We are looking forward to your performance, girls. We truly do.

Y/N: Yeah, looking forward to seeing me killing somebody else?

Steve: Stop it. You will be great. And you will not convince me otherwise. And I will be there to see all of it.

That made you smile. Steve was the mental and emotional support to you every step you made and every breath you took, just like in that The Police song. When you felt insecure about you looking fat, Steve reminded you of how blown away he was just with the way you looked in that costume. When you thought that your make-up and your hair is too much, Steve texted back that you'll be beautiful to him no matter how much you'll put on.

He truly was trying to make every one of your little insecurities go away and he was doing a great job.

"He's somewhere out here tonight?" - Deena asked all of a sudden. She and Val took some really sultry sapphic photos before that and you were sure that they'll be used when you'll recap your whole year on the office Christmas party. They both looked sexy as hell, Deena even went so far she had shortened her skirt and wear her super push-up bra to make her cleavage more visible.

"Not at the moment, but he'll be. Yeah." - You nodded with a shy smile of a nervous girl. It was so strange, knowing that Steve will be there, checking out each of your moves with his bros.

You never showed him your face, but daily life pics became a next step between for the two of you. When you were at work, you took a simple headless selfie in the bathroom mirror, at lunch you photographed your food and you also sent him a photo of you in your PJ, doing a routine movie watching with some popcorn and Coke.

Steve, on the other hand, was a serious piece of cake. You drooled and you didn't even realize that your mouth was wet all over from your own saliva.

To say that Steve was buffed as fuck was a serious understatement. He was ripped like a Greek god. Maybe even they were nothing on his body. His usual daily selfie was a mirror one with him having a white, usually sweaty t-shirt and grey work out sweats. There was usually a bottle of water included. Sometimes he snapped a quick picture of him getting ready. Once you even felt your heart-stopping because of the sight of his collar bones and shoulders in a work out tank top.

At that moment, you were ready to call yourself some good ol' ambulance, because your eyes were drowning at that sight. He was a guy with a naturally sweet nature, so huge and ripped and yet somehow he hadn't found a girlfriend to be with. You couldn't comprehend.

Before meeting him on WhatsApp, you didn't believe in fucking miracles - but here he was and he seemed to be into you. You were hella out of your mind.

Yep. You had gotten off because of those pictures. Once or twice. But that was not your fault at all. You were a woman, someone who had their specific needs. That's just how it was. And Steve seriously was someone who even Val found seriously attractive.

Girls from the office were obsessed all over you two - sometimes, Deena and Suzie sang that you're in love and you answered that you're not. Which obviously became a really dramatic I won't say I'm in love from Hercules. But yeah. Just to be honest, you were all over the fucking place bevause of him. Which happened never ever before. And you haven't even met that man at the time. It was really fucking weird. It felt like his face isn't important to you - you knew him. That's what mattered.

"Do you think you'll be able to see him? Like a sixth sense? It would be as exciting as the end of the Titanic." - Deena sighed dreamily. You frowned at that.

"If you think that the death of basically 60% of the passengers was exciting... You do you I guess." - You answered with a strange expression on your face. 

“Hey. You have that sexy hunk just waiting for every word you want to write to him and not each of us has the opportunity to have that. Some of us just develop a simple crush on Leo DiCaprio. Did you even see that little angelic baby in that movie? Jeez.” - Deena giggled. When she started, she was deadly serious, but in the end, she was laughing. 

But she was totally clear about her crush on Leo. She even had a collection of t-shirts with Leos face on it. But she was all truthful - not everyone finds someone like you found Steve. All it took was a couple of coincidences and there you were.

“But it's nice. Men like that remind you that gentlemen are not a dead thing yet, even now.” - She leaned her shoulder into yours, smiling all happily. - “But I am a bit jealous about all of that, not gonna lie.” 

Your head slowly bobbed and you leaned your forehead into khaki green cap masterly pinned into her hair with some pinnets. She was looking all good. 

And she was right per se. Steve was truly something the others could be only possibly jealous of. And you should be really, really glad for him

And your gratefulness was the thing that made you all nervous about him being present while you do a total asshat in front of anybody else. 

The time flew past you without you barely noticing. There were two other performers in the line in front of your office, and at the next moment, May was gripping your elbow and lead you to the moral hooray before you actually went to the stage. She was probably the best motivational speaker you ever heard, those men and women with courses were nothing on May Parker.

“Okay ladies, I am sincerely proud of you for not being afraid and actually doing all of this. I can't even express how happy I am that I found so many amazing women to do something like that with me. You're all looking flawless, pretty and lovely and I know we will nail the choreography because we worked hard almost every evening for the past few months, we will nail it. And now stand up and let's kick the others their asses!” - May yelled cheerfully. Every one of you clapped, those who had the need to express themselves louder, those cheerfully blew a whistle for May. 

You feel a little confident - nothing too much harsh, nothing too big, but at least you felt positive about yourself when you took your chair and walked onto the stage.

---

“Can you feel the tension in the air? Something's coming.” - Sam nudged Bucky's side with his elbow. Bucky just gave him an ice-cold look and took his another beer from Sam's palm. 

Steve made Sam take the tickets from the lady sitting behind the counter with all highschool girl nervousness - he was able to almost kill Sam when he joked about leaving the tickets on the counter. He was super nervous, super curious, almost not able to keep the feelings contained inside. 

Their small group walked into one of the back tables with a clear view - you tried to take the best places which will be basically on the distance of a stretched arm. It was also close to the bar, which was some great news for Sam. 

“Just jokin', Mr. Grumpy. I'm kinda curious about that girl. You plan on showing us or you will keep a secret?” - Sam sat on the other side of Bucky, taking a strong swing of his beer. 

“Probably a secret. It would not be fair for you to know her face before she knows mine.” - Steve giggled and crawled deeper into his hood. He was worse than Natasha when she was on her missions, just tried to keep his identity in secret, but that was extremely hard because of how enormous he was. 

“Like if birdbrain knew what intimacy or privacy is.” - Bucky said with an ironic tone of voice which made Sam frown as hell again. 

“Well excuse me, but I know today's world more than you two will ever have the chance to. Don't try to make me angry, 'cause you can lose your biggest guide just like dat.” - Sam said with all serious face, but every one of them knew that he's shitting them. 

Y/N: Okay, it's here. Wish me luck, cross your fingers, do whatever the hell you want, but enjoy it.

A text came just short second before all the lights turned down and Steve curiously wiggled on his chair with an expression of a small child. And at that moment, a serious load of ladies in forties female formal clothes came out of the curtains with chairs in their hands. And even tho he couldn't see the shirt you had under your uniform, at that moment, he exactly knew which one of them is you.

#Steve Rogers #steve rogers x y/n #steve rogers x reader #mcu #captain america #bucky barnes #winter soldier #sam wilson #the falcon #steve rogers imagine

[archivist-bones]

❝ cause we live in a house of mirrors / we see our fears and everything ❞

𝖖 𝖚 𝖔 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

“To abstain from politics is, in itself, a political attitude.” - Simone de Beauvoir, Prime of Life

“All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” - Abraham Lincoln

“The presence of evil was something to be first recognized, then dealt with, survived, outwitted, triumphed over.” - Toni Morrison, Sula

“Take your foot out of the graveyard, they are busy being dead.” - Anne Sexton, A Curse Against Elegies

“There is a stubbornness about me that never can bare to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me.” - Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

“I can, with one squinted eye, take it all as a blessing.” - Flannery O’Connor, The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O’Connor

“And perhaps there is a limit to the grieving that the human heart can do. As when one adds salt to a tumbler of water, there comes a point where simply no more will be absorbed.” - Sarah Waters, The Little Stranger

𝖇 𝖆 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈

NAME:  Amelia Susan Bones NICKNAMES:  Amy, chicken little [ Edgar, Gideon ], bossy Bones, bubala [ sweetie, dear, used by Amelia’s maternal grandparents ], little Susie [ used by her paternal grandparents ]. AGE: 23 BIRTHDAY:  December 28th, 1957 GENDER: Cisfemale PRONOUNS:  She/her

𝖋 𝖆 𝖒 𝖎 𝖑 𝖞

MOTHER:  Esther Bones née Levy [ 52, muggleborn ] FATHER:  Edwin Bones [ 54, pureblood ] SIBLINGS:  Edgar Bones, Gideon Bones [ deceased ]

𝖕 𝖍 𝖞 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈 𝖆 𝖑 𝖆𝖙𝖙𝖗𝖎𝖇𝖚𝖙𝖊𝖘

FACE CLAIM:  Maude Apatow BUILD:  Amelia is 5′4 and slender, moving into a “waif-like” territory. HAIR:  Long, pin straight without any intervention. Amelia either pulls it back in a bun for work or curls it to have loose waves. HAIR COLOR: Brunette EYE COLOR:  Brown SKIN COLOR:  Caucasian DOMINANT HAND:  Right-handed ANOMALIES: A deep scar on Amelia’s left knee from childhood. She had been riding her bike, hit some rocks, and fell off. Gideon had to carry her all the way home as she sobbed. SCENT:  Rose and bergamot perfume. Freshly pressed laundry. ACCENT:  Normal English accent for a girl from Devon, England but Amelia has a rich vocabulary. Sometimes making her sound a little snobby, especially when she’s trying to explain something to you. ALLERGIES: Nickel jewelry, discovered when she was twelve and got a severe rash from a necklace she’d gotten on a shopping trip with her mother. DISORDERS:  Amelia has always been a little anxious and worrisome but after Gideon’s death it has been a lot worse. She’s suffering from a lot of grief, depression, making her much more reckless and less likely to think through the repercussions of her actions. FASHION:  Neat and bookish but stylish all the same. Feminine blouses, thick sweaters over collared shirts, pencil skirts and low heels with stockings. Looking professional helps Amelia feel more confident and prepared to face the day. When she’s at home or working on something, she’ll dress more comfortably, in jeans and t-shirts. NERVOUS TICS:  When Amelia is nervous, embarrassed, or afraid she’s in trouble, she hates looking people in the eye. Embarrassed by her own emotions and fearful that she might have disappointed someone. She also will compulsively push her hair behind her ear, over and over, if it’s down and she’s feeling nervous. QUIRKS:  Do not leave your muggle pens unattended with Amelia, the only thing she would never feel guilty about taking. She’s liable to chew on them when she’s studying or working [you won’t want them back ].

𝖑 𝖎 𝖋 𝖊 𝖘 𝖙 𝖞 𝖑 𝖊

RESIDES:  Moving between London and Ottery St. Catchpole BORN:  Ottery St. Catchpole, Devon, England RAISED: Born and raised in good ole Ottery PETS:  A 2½ year old male ragamuffin cat named Humphrey

CAREER: Archivist, Department of Magical Law Enforcement EXPERIENCE:  Amelia’s father worked for the ministry and would often take his tiny daughter along with him while her brothers stayed home with their mother. Edwin Bones is a man very interested in politics himself so it was natural for daddy’s little girl to pick up on that as well. Amelia was well known at the ministry before even getting a position there, volunteering in her father’s department during summer breaks. EMPLOYER: Ministry of Magic

POLITICAL AFFILIATION:  Amelia is aligned with the Order. The Bones children were raised to be forward-thinking and accepting of others. Amelia might seem a little uptight but she’s open-minded and empathetic. She believes in advocating for fair treatment of all people and social services for the less fortunate. BELIEFS:  Amelia is a feminist and would probably be considered a democratic socialist. Her mother’s family are Jewish. Amelia considers it ethnically a part of her identity but is not religious. MISDEMEANORS: None FELONIES:  None DRUGS: No SMOKES: No [ yes, she’s a goody goody ] ALCOHOL:  Occasionally Amelia enjoys firewhisky or a pint on a night out but she is a notorious light weight. DIET: Amelia eats well most days but has a real sweet tooth and prefers desserts over everything. She’s notorious for forgetting to eat or knowingly skipping lunch when she’s distracted or obsessively working on something. She also doesn’t eat when she’s anxious or feeling depressed.

LANGUAGES:  English, German, French, Hebrew

PHOBIAS:  Failure, pain, grief, torture HOBBIES:  Biking, reading, embroidery [ though she’s not very good at it ] TRAITS: { + }:  Empathetic, steadfast, analytical, perspicacious, ambitious { - }:  Headstrong, overbearing, critical, obsessive, anxious

𝖋 𝖆 𝖛 𝖔 𝖗 𝖎 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

LOCATION:  The garden in her childhood home, the archives of the ministry. At Hogwarts, Amelia’s favorite places were the library or McGonagall’s classroom when it was empty. SPORTS TEAM:  Holyhead Harpies GAME:  A girl in her year at Hogwarts introduced Amelia to Clue one snowy night in her second year, it quickly became a favorite. MUSIC: The Clash and David Bowie [ Joe Strummer is the only man for her ] MOVIES: Funny Girl FOOD: Sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream. BEVERAGE:  Espresso, specifically a cortado. Amelia would never turn down a nice butterbeer either. COLOR: Blue

𝖒 𝖆 𝖌 𝖎 𝖈

ALUMNI HOUSE:  Ravenclaw WAND (length, flexibility, wood, & core):  10½”, willow wood, unicorn hair, quite flexible AMORTENTIA: Espresso, mother’s perfume, toffee, fresh parchment, challah bread PATRONUS:  Magpie BOGGART:  Dead loved ones, Lord Voldemort

𝖈 𝖍 𝖆 𝖗 𝖆 𝖈 𝖙 𝖊 𝖗

MORAL ALIGNMENT: Lawful Good MBTI:  INFJ MBTI ROLE: The Advocate ENNEAGRAM:  Type 1 ENNEAGRAM ROLE: The Perfectionist TEMPERAMENT:  Melancholic WESTERN ZODIAC:  Capricorn CHINESE ZODIAC:  Rooster PRIMAL SIGN:  Bee TAROT CARD: Justice, The High Priestess, Queen of Wands TV TROPES:  Beware the Nice Ones, Action Girl, Reasonable Authority Figure, Academic Alpha Bitch, Wise Beyond Their Years, Go-Getter Girl, Lawful Good SONGS:  

Au Revoir Simone - Stay Golden » I’m feeling better every day / And emptiness still leaves a space

Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins - You Are What You Love » The heart attacks I’m convinced I have / Every morning upon waking

The Big Moon - Your Light » I wanna speak but I’m wondering how / And I wonder since when was my voice a foreign object in my mouth

Beabadoobee - If You Want To » Experience is nothing compared to / The nights I’m always up so late

Kacey Musgraves - Good Ol’ Boys Club » Never been too good at just goin’ along / Guess I’ve always kind of been for the underdog

Marina - Can’t Pin Me Down » Do you think I’m stuck-up / ‘Cause I’m always picking fights

Joy Williams - Speaking A Dead Language » And somewhere in all the talking / The meaning faded out

IDEOLOGIES:

Amelia always hated using in quills in school, much preferring muggle pens. When twenty pages deep in a paper about the applications of the veritaserum when you have no interest in potions, saving time is key.

Amelia very much believes in the old adage, you can sleep when you’re dead. Not really a night owl or a morning person, she’s caught somewhere in between where she basically shirks sleep until it overtakes her.

Amelia would take a cup of coffee over tea any day.

Amelia is wholly convinced that David Bowie is a wizard, don’t fight her on this. She’s got a theory.

Amelia hopes that the Order can make a difference but is concerned that they will be overpowered. She wholeheartedly believes that it is better to do something than stand aside and do nothing. This viewpoint extends to her interest in ministry politics.

#❝ i’m feeling better every day ❞ — about #dulcetask

[ohmyohpioneer]

queliot fic: that leaving wasn’t easing

Summary: He thinks one thing they should tell you about getting better - about making your brain work in some semblance of The Right Way - is that things start to matter.

(Or, Quentin is handling Eliot's absence the best he can, which, frankly, isn't as well as he'd hoped.)

a/n: Damn it’s been a hot minute since I’ve written anything (looking at you @sweetestinthegale and @wedlakeserenities  - you she-devils). But...how could I not? Fic title from 715 CR∑∑KS. I posted it over on AO3, too, so choose your own adventure.

queliot fic: that leaving wasn’t easing

He thinks one thing they should tell you about getting better - about making your brain work in some semblance of The Right Way - is that things start to matter.

Technically, Quentin supposes, that’s the entire mental wellness pitch: Make Things Matter. Make food taste again. Make taking a shower worthwhile. Make people bright and real and kind again.

It’s just that happiness never mattered to him - magic did.

And somewhere between then and forty incarnations of himself, it’s gotten flipped on its head and magic is a fucking cancer and happiness is the only mystical force that is important and imaginary and unattainable.

When happiness didn’t matter, life didn’t matter the way it does now, no one mattered the way they do now. And Eliot’s absence is as conspicuous as ever and he matters.

---

Julia is there with her long fingers and her cigarettes.

He sees them, how they could have been. Smoking and making rough-edged jokes at his father’s funeral, would have actually been at the funeral. Heads bowed at the cemetery, knees knocking as they sit crowded on the threadbare plaid sofa in his dad’s living room, eating lukewarm casserole after it’s all over, when people stay too long in your house and bestow useless benedictions like sorry and you’re in our prayers .

He wonders if that would be better than this. Wonders who those two people are and if they would know joy - or grief - in the same way this Julia, this Quentin do. Wonders if Julia would even be here if it weren’t for the tumult of magical chaos they can’t or won’t - half the time he’s genuinely not sure which it is - be extricated from.

Recently he’s taken to falling into this thought exercise - maybe it’s a defense mechanism, fucked if he knows: Take one person out of the scene, watch it bend, watch the world crack and splinter, watch yourself change. Adjust. What’s the scene now? Do you say the same words? Do you ache the same ways?

Maybe the more he practices the better he’ll get at absence.

Anyway, it’s an easier game to play than putting Eliot into every scene - into places that he almost always belongs, but isn’t.

He’d be shit at his dad’s funeral. What the fuck does Eliot know about fathers anyway?

This is one of those times Quentin doesn’t let Teddy linger long in his conscious - self-preservation being the running theory on that one. But he’d try. For Quentin he’d try, and Eliot trying is infinity better than anyone else acting in effortless grace.

Maybe he’d hold his hand - they’d probably be fucking freezing like they always are, were - pull out a flask and grouse about how tacky and pointless it all was. Garish and excessive deification of death, his mouth would say around a sharp swallow of bourbon.

But that’s the truth of funerals. You die and then there is a funeral. One, the other. People exist in the world and then they don’t. People stop being and then they have funerals.

People stop being and never have funerals. It doesn’t mean they’re not dead.

Eliot hasn’t had a funeral and he’s dead and Quentin is tired.

---

The book finds him late on a particularly trying afternoon spent with The Monster.

It’s got a plastic dust cover, a Dewey Decimal Number (129) on its spine, and when it crinkles open there’s a pocket with a slip inside that says it was last taken out from Warner Library Serving Tarrytown, New York in 1945. Almost certainly stolen.

Despite the distinctly 70s book jacket, it’s very old. Quentin would venture to say too old to be shelved with, well, most of modern literature, and when he pages to the center, the spell is right there.

“What’s that?” The Monster is standing over his shoulder.

“Oh, uh,” he shuts the book and lies, “Just some old poetry - dulce et decorum est bullshit.”

“Boring.”

He doesn’t put the book back on Marina’s shelf, instead tucks it neatly under his pillow.

---

Wine had been his first choice because, well, when it comes down to it, it takes a lot less work than magic - and also why the fuck not.

But he soon finds that wine poisons him in ways that burn from the inside, that crowd anguish and sorrow into the back of his throat, behind his eyes, grief sublimating from where he’s obscured it behind one foot forward, one breath in, one breath out.

Would all this have gone differently if Eliot had said yes to him, chosen him?

Or a much more toxic thought - the one he has far more often: would all this have gone differently if he hadn’t said a word to Eliot? Kept it tucked deep somewhere instead of breaking whatever fragile balance they had lived in since- since the moment they met?

It’s his fault - the burden he’d placed on Eliot, the shame and regret that suffocate him at the worst of times, throb at the better. You break, you break, you break .

---

It is disconcertingly easy to locate the pyxis.

Having met gods, and finding them to be, on average, capricious and narcissistic assholes, he doesn’t place a whole lot of credence in the idea of Fate. But the hand he is slowly being dealt is feeling more and more like it is one that is meant to be played. He wouldn’t bet on the universe being kind, but maybe this one time it’s being just.

It had been Julia’s idea for this particular field trip with The Monster. Explore the antiquities of The Met for clues as to what the gods have taken, while the Scooby Gang tracks down any answers that might point to killing the unkillable.

It feels suspiciously like window shopping - The Monster stopping, crossing Eliot’s - Eliot’s - elegant arms, tilting its head and frowning before ultimately deciding, no, this just wasn’t the piece of Mycenaean earthenware he was looking for today.

Quentin eyes the small jar on display amongst the other Fifth Century Greek art. Small, clay sides curving out gently. Figures silhouetted on white. Moirai , according to the plaque.

“Do you like that one?” Fucking Quentin swore he was going to put a bell around The Monster’s neck.

“Huh?”

The Monster shifts the - Jesus Christ - canopic jar cradled in the bend of his elbow, and points to the pyxis, “That jar? You were looking at it for a very long time.”

“You can’t,” Quentin feels his hands hover in a frenzy over the goddamn ancient artifact that is at present being held like a bottle of eight dollar wine, “You can’t just take that. That’s- that doesn’t belong to you.”

“No. It belonged to Ahmose the First. He is dead. He does not need it now,” The Monster agrees cheerfully. “Look! It has a bird on it.”

He uses his thumb to tilt back the falcon-headed lid in a jaunty motion.

Quentin is pretty certain he is having a heart attack. When did he even get to the Egyptian wing?

“I will get you the jar, Quentin,” he assures him, and Quentin would argue but there is only so much fight left in him at this juncture, especially when The Monster’s voice is soft and he hears his name from Eliot’s - Eliot’s - lips. “Julia has told me about the custom of gift-giving. You have brought me on this ‘field trip,’ I want to express my gratitude.”

Before he can attempt a protest - even a perfunctory one - The Monster has smashed the glass of the display and alarms are blaring.

“Though,” The Monster reaches easily into the case of priceless pottery, “I do not understand why you want this one.”

He points to the figure of a woman in divine vestments, “Atropos is a bitch.”

---

Quentin’s intimately familiar with the overwhelming press of not belonging and it’s fucking ironic - or something, he was never clear on when things were ironic and when they just sucked - he doesn’t know how to claw through the collapsing of losing the place you belong.

Eliot was his belonging and he knew it, he knew it, because in those dreary, somnambulant weeks following Eliot’s rejection, when Quentin wasn’t his choice, he’d had dreams about the White Lady. Sitting in the brush on the forest floor, he’d wait in darkness and aim and hit her right at her heart, and a wish, no, his wish, to forget . Again and again, nights on end, she would tell him: sadness will find you , and his world would begin to cave - Eliot seeping out of the lonely places he never could fill, washing from the warm places that they’d built on mosaic tiles, Eliot leaving .

A cold sweat would jolt him to waking and he’d press his palms to his eyes to keep Eliot in, to not forget.

When you destroy the place you belong, you’re nowhere.

---

“Penny Lane” has been playing on loop for the past hour - The Monster seems to have figured out how to operate Marina’s turntable - and Quentin regretfully commits himself to a life that will never again include Magical Mystery Tour as he lies awake in bed.

Whatever hesitations have been holding him back the past few days have eroded and what’s left is raw and rough and ready. He just needs a minute to breathe, just five fucking minutes of quiet .

The book and pyxis are there - faithfully or threateningly remains to be seen - by his side. Nighttime is the best, he’d decided slouched over Lucky Charms one morning, with all in the apartment sleeping and the magical reserves at their fullest - his aching at its most acute.

One breath in, one breath out.

What should have shocked him, but came to him as a massive, crushing relief, was how easy it was. Sequences of simple movements that grew more fluid as he built a rhythm - just five minutes, just five minutes, just five minutes.

Rending his shade from his body, hurt like a motherfucker, as it turned out.

Agonizing seconds stretched to goddamn eons as he pulled each of the gossamer strings that tethered all of him together, the pulsing light dimmer than he thought it should be, like it’d been tarnished or worn too thin. And then -

Quiet.

Methodically, he removes the lid, places his shade gently in the stolen jar, and fits the top back on, setting it carefully on his nightstand beside an old pair of his glasses and half a stick of used lip balm.

Being okay was a mental and emotional state he knew so intrinsically he would never achieve, that it never occurred to him to think about being above emotion. Lying back down, Quentin folds his hands across his stomach and doesn’t forget but doesn’t feel as he watches a solitary moth land on the ceiling above him.

---

 He sees it happen, the moment she recognizes the luminescent jar for what it is, when all parts assemble themselves and create the skeleton of story she wishes she weren’t reading.

Julia.

Any signs that she had been about to tumble through his door into his - previously - locked room had slipped by him as he’d traced a route through his mind, where he’d been dispassionately sorting through catalogs of thoughts and emotions he knew he shouldn’t and couldn’t be trusted with.

“ Quentin .”

He works on analyzing her wide eyes, the crease at the space between them, comparing it against the extensive library of Julia faces he has, and lands shakily on: heartbroken.

Tears are surely not a good thing, and she has those, too, brightening her eyes and making them glassy as she stumbles over a discarded jacket and slumps to the mattress. The lid on the clay jar rattles under her shakey command, or lack of. Long fingers, Julia, her slender fingers brush back the hair on his face, the strands caught on his eyelashes, then reaches into the vessel and gently - even by his standards - takes the weakly glowing shade in her cupped palm.

“Do you think,” he asks as she readies herself, “We could find Revolver ?”

Startled. He reads startled in the lines digging into her forehead. “What?”

“It’s a better album than Magical Mystery Tour. ”

No warning is provided as she pushes his shade into his chest and he feels like he is breaking - breakee instead of breaker - ripping apart all over again, aftershocks off grief and anger echoing to his fingers, his ears, spaces in him he didn’t know could experience anguish.

“Fuck,” he hates himself, everything so deeply. Hates the shame he felt at the relief of nothing , hates feeling anything again. Hates the exploding outward at losing Eliot in an infinite loop. Hates breathing, hates being, hates absence, hates funerals, hates belonging, belonging to someone who doesn’t belong to him, someone who is gone.

“You’re okay, you’re okay,” Julia has him held tight before he’s even aware he’s a whole - broken, shattered - person again.

He’s so tired and he cries.

---

A dull throb pounds a pattern at the inside of his skull and he vaguely realizes he was asleep and that he hadn’t dreamt at all.

Cross-legged on the foot of the bed, Julia is flipping through the spell book, frown stretching her exhausted features further. Shit, he can’t do anything right. She looks up, that Goddess determination she had long before she was a deity.

“Fuck, Quentin,” so defeated, “What the hell were you thinking?”

There are words that fit, probably, that would make it through his dry mouth, but he can’t recall any and he’d have to stack so many against one another and let it tower over them and his bones ache too much for that.

“I really don’t want to argue about this,” she continues because what is she supposed to do with her endlessly, constantly, continually fucked up best friend. Par for the fucking course, Coldwater. “But do you have any idea how fucking stupid that was?”

Self-destructive doesn’t mean he’s not self-aware, “I know, I know. I get it, Julia. I fucking get it.” Of course he knows. Of course, of course .

He’s not who he was - who fucking ever is after the melee of wading through the catastrophe of existing - he’s not that Quentin with no power, no voice, no will to be fucking brave. Because that’s all anything worthwhile is - life, magic, happiness, belonging - the outermost limits of bravery. He knows.

“Look,” he could sleep another four timelines, “Jules. I’m sorry. I had-I had to do something .”

She runs a finger outline of the women on the pyxis, head bent, bowed, he shakes the feeling of funeral . “Yeah,” is all she says.

He wets his lips, cracked. “It was quiet.”

“Um, it was quiet for just a, just a little bit and,” an invisible hand holds his throat, making the words that need to bubble up and out hard to come, “and I just, I miss him?” it’s not a question, “And I love him.”

The plainness of it startles him. “And I couldn’t take looking at his face anymore. It was just a minute of quiet, Jules,” desperate for her to understand, to sympathize, fuck, to make it better. “That’s it.”

Rising to her knees, she surrounds him, soft eyes, soft palms at his jaw, “We need you here, Quentin. We need your heart - fully intact. We’ll figure this out. I promise.”

Promises that can’t be kept aren’t made to be made, he wants to say, but instead says, “Okay.”

---

The next day is Iris and stones that bleed - because obviously - and Alice and too much, too much, after all that Quiet.

Then suddenly: it’s peaches and plums, peaches and plums, peaches and plums .

Hope isn’t a fragment of bravery he allows himself to hold, not usually. But as he lays in bed and idly runs his finger over the smooth clay silhouette of the woman spinning a long, nearly endless thread, he paints a mosaic that stretches out to the edges of his consciousness.

Peaches and plums.

#queliot #queliot ff #the magicians #the magicians ff #quentin coldwater #eliot waugh #julia wicker #fic #quentin and i both have a lot of feelings #and make poor life choices #but i like to think we're lovable scamps anyway #it has seriously been THREE YEARS since i wrote fic

[oofmilk]

The Splatoon 2 Music Theory

Buckle up because this theory’s a long one.

We know from the Sunken Scrolls that Marina heard Calamari Inkantation, said “This changes everything!” and left the Octarians. Why does this matter? You’ll see.

We also know from this piece of lore that Calamari Inkantation has the ability to bring Octarians out of their hypnosis.

What if Octarian music has a frequency in it that hypnotizes the Octarians? This means that the Inklings’ and Octarians’ music fight back and forth for free will.

If you listen to Deadf1sh’s music sample that Nintendo posted versus all of the music made by the other inklings (minus Off the Hook, but we’ll touch on that in a minute), you can notice that it’s almost hypnotic, and it sounds different than the other artists’ music.

We know from a Sunken Scroll in the first game that the Octarians and the Inklings used to be friends, so that means they must have shared music. After the Great Turf War, the Inklings took the “better” half of their music, and the Octarians took the “worse” half. This leads to the music we hear from the Squid Sisters versus Deadf1sh. This means that the Inklings took the “happy” sounds and the Octarians took the “sad” sounds.

If the Octarians and the Inklings combined their two halves, they would get the music that they had so many years ago.

And which band just so happens to have an Inkling and an Octoling in it? Off the Hook.

Marina brings the Octarian elements and sounds (minus the hypnosis frequency) to the music she and Pearl create, making the balance that has been lost for centuries. In their music, you can hear that Marina seems to sing the more upbeat parts, and Pearl raps the more serious parts.

Everyone thinks the reason the squids diss Pearl is because of the way she looks, but it’s because Off the Hook is bringing the “sad” music back. The squids are angry and confused because they’ve never heard the sad music before.

If you notice during the Splatoon 2 final boss battle, Bomb Rush Blush seems to have a negative connotation behind it. When Marie arrives and starts singing Tide Goes Out, it is very uplifting and directly contradicts Bomb Rush Blush. We know that Bomb Rush Blush is Callie’s single, but when she announces the song in-game, she calls it “our hit single”, implying that she collaborated on the song with DJ Octavio. And that’s because she did.

Octavio took the song and put the Octarian sounds into it, basically re-vamping the song to fit him and the new Callie.

Now we’re going to pull some details from the octo expansion.

In Inkling culture, everything is “fresh”. The clothes, food, the weapons, and the music. Hence the Squid Sister’s catchphrase “Stay fresh!” On the other hand, Octarian culture is full of things that are “sanitized”. We know from the octo expansion that sanitization is BAD. The Octarian music is full of the “bad” sounds, so that inspired the idea of sanitization in the first place.

So basically, “fresh” came from the good half, “sanitized” came from the bad half.

Only when the two halves are brought together will the cephalopods’ society be able to join together again.

I hope y’all like this theory because @oceankasko and I spent a long time yelling about this.

#This might not be one cohesive thought but MAN #Just think about it!!! #Splatoon #Splatoon 2 #Pearl (Splatoon) #Marina (Splatoon) #Off the Hook #Squid Sisters #Callie (Splatoon) #Marie (Splatoon) #Bomb Rush Blush #Tide Goes Out #Calamari Inkantation #DJ Octavio #Sunken Scrolls #octarians #octolings #inklings #Deadf1sh #Nintendo #Great Turf War #but that’s JUST a theory #A MUSIC THEORY

[pendragonfics]

Crackers, Wine, and Good Company

Paring: Natasha Romanov/Reader

Tags: female reader, bisexuality, new years eve, kissing.

Summary: A shy scientist who works with Bruce Banner falls hard for Natasha Romanov. Natasha Romanov, bad-ass Avenger and kick-ass agent, also falls for the other woman. Sick of them not doing a thing about it, the team does something about it.

Word Count: 1,991

Current Date: 2017-12-31

The best part of working in a lab, was not the fact that you could work also on your own scientific things. Well, it’s a great fact, and you did that, quite often. But no. The best part of working in a lab was that you could do your job, and not talk to anyone else. In your high school yearbook, you’d been voted most likely to live alone (as a joke), and best introvert (for real). It was a miracle that you’d even been selected from the graduating class to work alongside the Avengers themselves, but still, it happened, and as a scientist, and as a very shy person, it was amazing.

You worked alongside Dr Banner, and Dr Cho, and on the odd occasion when she breezed into town, Thor’s ex-girlfriend Dr Foster. But three people who talked to you were enough for your quota, and you did your best to keep to yourself and do the best work to aid the Avengers in their quest to better humanity.

That was until you saw Natasha Romanov.

You’d seen girls before, oh boy, yes, you’ve seen girls before. Girls with perfect hair and rude tendencies. Girls with long legs and sarcastic comebacks. Girls flirting the bi-curious line and running back to boys after a kiss. But when you saw the ex-Agent, your eyes grew wide, pulse grew fast, and you turned heel and walked the way she was not. In that zero point zero two second lapse, you saw how incredibly gorgeous she was. Hair so straight, could give a paper cut. Smile so perfect, it could kill a man. Eyes that could probably do that too.

You ran back off to your lab, the results for Mr. Stark still in hand, and heart racing faster than ever before in your life. If she was the Black Widow, then, well, you’d be a caterpillar. Prey. Your experience of dating girls in your life made you practically vowed off love, and as a woman whose heart went to men and women, that meant something. Being publicly dumped and humiliated one too many times did that.

But Dr Banner caught on to it.

“Tony said he didn’t get the atom-based Vibranium blaster theory paper last month,” He said, pushing a scuffed pink mug of terrible coffee toward you. “And the report on the improved arrows for Barton yesterday.” You cup the mug in your hands, unable to look at your co-worker and friend. “I thought I gave them to you to pass on.”

You mumble something, and then, realising it was too inaudible, say, “I got distracted. Sorry.”

Bruce pulls up a stool beside you. “Distracted? You’re the best scientist I have here – you helped me calculate the differentiation between the X-Gene and that of an Inhuman.” He places a hand near your own, and says, “Is everything okay?”

You nod. “Y-yeah. Just…I don’t want to be a runner anymore. If that’s okay with you.”

He cracks a smile. “Sure, ________. You don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with, I’m not a monster,” he chuckles, and taking a sip of his mug, pats you softly on the shoulder. “I got results back from the forensics, and you wouldn’t believe what the alien material found has traces of…”

---

Natasha Romanov was not an idiot. She also was not the brilliant scientist who worked with Banner, who she was curiously intrigued about. Every time she saw her (h/c) hair tied back to satisfy the lab rules, her bright (e/c) eyes behind the safety goggles, Nat wanted to ask her to coffee. It had been a while since she found herself falling for a woman, not since her childhood friend Marina. But when she saw her fleeing every time they locked gaze, Natasha decided to ask about it. She was a former agent, a former assassin, and if she could not have a chance at the person who made her heart go pitter-patter, then it was not worth it.

While training, she asked Clint. He said he didn’t know a thing about her, and then after she finished him off with a roundhouse kick and pinned him down with his arms behind him, gave up and said to try asking Tony for more information, since he was the guy who hired people.

So, she did. But when Nat rounded the corner to Tony’s suite, she was met with the sight of him and his fiancé Pepper in a compromising position. She turned heel, and decided to ask Steve instead…only to remember he’d taken Bucky and himself to someplace in the wilderness to escape the fireworks and whole shebang with New Years Eve. She understood. PTSD was a bitch.

Tired of walking around the facility like a moron, Nat decided to take the fight to where the source was – she was no Sherlock Holmes, but she was smart. If her mystery girl was a scientist, worked with Dr Banner, and wore one of those insufferable yet adorable lab coats, she’d be in the science wing of the facility. She met gaze with Bruce rounding the corner, and stopped him from going any further.

“Hey,” she said.

He nodded. “Hi.”

Nat chewed the inside of her cheek. “I heard you have a lab assistant.” She muttered, scuffing the sole of her boots upon the floor. “Came to welcome her.”

Bruce raised an eyebrow. “________’s been here for almost two months, Natasha…” he scoured her face for evidence of any ulterior motive, and found he couldn’t read her. “and since when do you just drop into the labs?”

She shook her head, hating the fact that two years ago she had a fling with the guy, and still had to work with him even though it was most certainly over. “Ugh. Never mind.” She turned heel, and walked off, the echo of her heeled-boots clip-clopping away.

---

Bruce rounded on you after he talked to Natasha, interrupting your mid-afternoon meditation. You’d almost finished, but he pressed pause on your phone. Now you’d have to start all over again. Opening your eyes, you were met with the familiar head of curls, and an unfamiliar look on his face that looked like he knew something you didn’t know. Well, he was in his late forties, he defiantly did know some things you didn’t know.

“I know why you didn’t deliver those files to Tony,” he said, sitting before you on the floor. He wasn’t barefooted, like you, his shoes were on your yoga mat. You winced internally. “You have a crush.”

Your eyes grew wide. “What? How? No. No!” you gave it all away just like that, and to prove it, your face grew red. You hung your head. “Dr Banner, I’m – I tried to be professional, but I’m just not good around people, and Mr. Stark’s office is all the way around the other –,”

He chuckled. “I know you’re shy, ________, but Natasha is only human too.”

If it were possible, your face grew even redder, and hotter. “Please, please don’t tell her.”

Bruce frowned. “Tell her? Geez, I’m trying to help you here, not be cruel.” He places a hand in yours, and says, “She all but told me she likes you too, ________. Caught her walking in here, and she gave it all away.”

You look up. “She’s just so pretty, I can’t even get words to come out when I see her,” you tell him. “I’m twenty-nine, not nine, and this isn’t Elementary school and she isn’t one of the girls in grade ten who outed me for being bi.” You blurt out. “I’m an adult! I should be better at this!”

Bruce nods. “If it’s any consolation, I too am terrible at relationship stuff. I didn’t get a real chance with Betty until after I became the Hulk. Sometimes it takes a while for people to get to the right place.” He consoles you, and withdrawing his hand, goes to stand. “I mean, not everyone is a Tony.”

You laugh at that, but really, you’re just sad that it isn’t true.

---

Natasha is a very, very intelligent woman. She can calculate where a man will be by his gait, even if she’s outside a building. She can shoot a gun with her foot. She can also, apparently, be lured not by the evils of her past, but a co-worker, and that is where she is right now. A very smart woman, stuck outside the facility on a balcony, wearing less clothes than what one requires for the middle of winter.

She watches as Clint walks away through the glass of the door. She calculates how much force it would take to kick down the door, but does not attempt it. It’s the Avengers facility, everything is reinforced. Nat huffs, and turns to see the view from the balcony.

“Oh – hi. Hey.” Her eyes turn to the person who spoke. It’s ________. Her hair is loose, and she’s wearing clothes ill-suited to the outdoors. Her face is red, like every other time it is that Nat sees ________, except, this time, it’s so cold out that it does not quite show. “I would have thought the person to come rescue me from out here wouldn’t end up being locked out too.”

Nat raises an eyebrow. “You got locked out? Barton?”

________ shakes her head, rubbing her arms for warmth. “No, Dr Banner. Said he left data out here for our experiment…I’m an idiot.”

Nat harrumphs. “I’m an idiot too. Clint said he parked the Quinjet on stealth-mode, and couldn’t remember where.”

________ laughs at that. It’s a small laugh, like a chuckle, but to Nat, it’s the most beautiful thing she’s heard, and she has also heard people pardon her for her terrible past before becoming an Avenger. But then ________’s laugh ends, and instead, she speaks with a solemn tone, “I – I’m sorry for running away from you every time I saw you.” She apologises, voice small. “I’m not that great at people skills, and, new people, and you’re really pretty –,” she claps a hand over her mouth, and groans, “sorry…”

Nat smiles. “Well, I think you’re really pretty.”

The door opens, and stepping through, Wanda Maximoff holds a platter of assorted nibble foods. Literally stepping through the metal of the door, Vision holds a bottle of sparkling juice in one hand, and champagne in the other. They place the items on the table, and Nat and ________ watch in silence, amazed that all it took was that confession to get someone to come out. But then, instead of letting them go, Vision pulls out a couple of heated blankets, and glasses, and takes his leave.

“Hey!” ________ cries out, seeing those two locking the door behind them. “What –,”

The watch on Nat’s wrist read four digits. 23:58.

“________, I don’t know about you, but I have no New Years Eve plans, got given a whole lot of food, a warm blanket, and are hanging out with a cute girl,” Nat says, sitting at the table, looking out over the expansive grounds of the Avengers facility, the beautiful forest, “I’m staying out here.”

________’s eyes widen. “It’s new years’?”

Nat laughs at that, and tugs the wrist of the scientist who had earned a place in her heart. “Yeah, it is. C’mon, sit, let’s eat crackers and drink wine and watch terrible fireworks.” ________ yields, and sitting beside Nat, they share a blanket, and both nurse a glass of bubbles. “Have anyone in mind for a new year’s kiss?”

The loud bang! of a firework hisses to life, spraying the stars above with patterns of golden and red lights. ________’s breath hitches, amazed at the sight, and turning to Nat, cradling her face with her hand, she says, “I think I do.”

Nat believes the year ahead will be the greatest. ________ knows it will be.

#natasha romanoff #Natasha Romonova #natasha romanov #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanov x reader #black widow x reader #avengers x reader #marvel fanfic #marvel x reader #chaotic--lovely #pendragonfics #f/f #Female reader

[aion-rsa]

20 Best Animal Crossing Villagers Ever

https://ift.tt/3tcfFyF

The legendary Animal Crossing franchise is deserving of its iconic status for many reasons, but it’s hard to deny that part of the series’ longevity can be traced back to the memorable personalities of its villagers.

In a franchise seemingly devoid of many traditional gameplay hooks, the thrill of inviting that one villager you’ve been looking for to your Animal Crossing home regularly ranks high among the best moments in gaming. Anyone who has spent any time with these games will waste no time telling you about their favorite villagers and the way they’ll always remember the time they spent with them.

There’s no way you’ll be able to convince those fans that anyone but their favorite villagers are the best villagers in Animal Crossing, we humbly suggest these 20 icons rank high among the greatest neighbors in franchise history.

20. Ribbot

While often described as one of the few “non-animal” creatures in this series, this longtime Animal Crossing villager challenges society’s expectations by blurring the arbitrary line between frog and robot. 

You may be worried by Ribbot’s decision to never carry an umbrella when it rains much like his frog companions, but the character’s rally cry of “Never rest, never rust” tells you what you need to know about his resiliency. When robots take over our world, we can only hope they have the heart and grace of Ribbot.

19. Mira

With her “big sister” personality, futuristic vibes, and recent insistence on calling everyone “cottontail,” the mysterious Mira has been stealing our hearts since she arrived in Animal Crossing: New Leaf.

Much like Cotton Eye Joe, nobody really knows where Mira comes from or where she’ll go. However, her thought bubble cry of “I want a futuristic space full of futuristic furniture!” will echo through eternity.

18. Lobo

Somewhere between Ernest Hemmingway and the grouchy old guy you lived next to growing up is Lobo: the outdoor-loving wolf with a heart of…well, certainly not gold

I don’t know what it is about this cranky purple wolf that speaks so loudly to my soul, but since Animal Crossing’s earliest days, he’s one of the wolves that I want in my village and by my side.

17. Knox

Maybe it’s because I suffer from a rare case of chicken blindness, but when I look at Knox, I don’t see a chicken; I see a noble knight. 

This “Man of La Mancha’s” adventuring days may be behind him, but Knox’s ability to get medieval on the Animal Crossing series has been appreciated ever since he made his debut in Animal Crossing: City Folk

16. Lionel

Lionel’s passing resemblance to Colonel Sanders of KFC fame earns him some bonus points (as does his gentlemanly demeanor), but when I think of Lionel, I think of class.

After all, Lionel upgraded his tasteful Victorian home in Animal Crossing: New Leaf to a skyscraper penthouse in New Horizons. He’s a lion that isn’t afraid to keep up with the times, and for that, he is our cultural superior in every conceivable way.

15. Chief

With his famous saying “Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better” and his rally cry of “harrumph,” it’s easy to assume that Chief is just the jerk that his cranky personality seems to suggest he is. 

Yet, Chief’s thrift store decor in New Horizons suggests that Chief is actually an ‘80s dance movie protagonist with the fire of the streets in his soul just waiting to burn down the stuffy world he was born into. 

14. Marina

Some Octopuses use their eight tentacles to take eight times more than they’ll ever need and squeeze the world. Others use them to warm society with a slightly tight and surprisingly squishy embrace. 

Marina is an example of the latter. This ode to joy has been brightening up Animal Crossing village since their debut in New Leaf, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

13. Beau

Beau is an enigma. He’s a lazy villager whose famous sayings include the line “You snooze, you lose.” Is this a defeated deer on the verge of a breakdown over the paths not walked?

No, as it turns out, Beau is just a naturalist whose charming personality and looks have made it easy for him to embrace a simpler lifestyle. He also owns some truly fantastic sweaters.

12. Lucha

Coming off the top rope like the Macho Man on a vengeance quest against the dastardly Hulk Hogan is Lucha: the mysterious masked wrestler who has graced many a lucky Animal Crossing players’ villages.

We don’t know much about the bird behind the mask, but Lucha’s warm personality suggests that wrestling is just his work and he does it for pay. When it’s over, he’d just as soon go on his way.

11. Raymond

It’s tempting to hate Raymond after his explosion in popularity in New Horizons, but since I suspect that Raymond is fuelled by the cries of “haters,” I’ll counter his strategy by welcoming him into the ranks of Animal Crossing’s best villagers.

Somewhere between a business cat and a fashion cat, Raymond would devour Wall Street’s Gordon Gekko in the same way that so many cats before him have devoured so many geckos before them.

10. Zucker

As a fan of the Japanese snack “Takoyaki” from which Zucker’s original Japanese name (Takoya) and elements of the character’s look are derived, I suppose you could say that I’m a bit biased in my admiration for one of Animal Crossing’s few octopus villagers.

However, it’s really the way that Zucker’s entire demeanor flies in the face of the fact that takoyaki consists of fried dough balls stuffed with minced octopus meat that leaves me no choice to respect this king of villagers.

9. Whitney

Whitney may come across as a snooty villager with a better than you attitude, but maybe you should consider the possibility that your real problem with Whitney is that she’s a class act with style to burn.

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As a wolf firmly against the idea of crying wolf, it’s clear that Whitney doesn’t play and very likely dropped out of school because of recess. 

8. Fauna

Look, I’m not saying Fauna ranks this high on this list because she’s a deer who calls everyone “dearie,” but I’m also not going to insult your intelligence by sitting here and pretending that didn’t factor into this decision.

Mostly, though, it’s Fauna’s warm vibes, retro decor, and undeniably cute design that helps her stand out from some truly considerable competition.

7. Beardo

While we’re all more than a little tired of people who base their personalities on their facial hair, we’d probably all be a little more willing to put up with it if their facial hair was nearly as excellent as Beardo’s.

This ladies’ man bear doesn’t actually have a proper beard, but his mutton chops, mustache, and tweed jacket strike a figure that makes it easier than ever to overlook his smug personality and lack of namesake facial hair and just appreciate everything he is.

6. Chevre

In case you couldn’t tell from her bright big eyes that have caused lifelong enemies to end their conflicts, Chevre is a dreamer in the body of a goat.

Chevre is the kind of villager you’d do anything for. While she’d probably never ask you to do anything more than live your best life, I’d have no problem answering a 3 a.m. call from Chevre to meet her in Manhattan and help her steal some diamonds as easily as she stole our hearts. 

5. Merengue

Lots of villagers make it to this prestigious list (some would say the most prestigious list) for lots of reasons, but in the case of Merengue, the reasons are almost all based on her iconic looks.

As the best “food” villager in Animal Crossing history, Merengue embraces her looks by baking up a storm whenever you visit her cafe-themed home. She’s the friend we all want in our lives if for no other reason than she’s always got a sweet roll to spare. 

4. Stitches

Do I have questions about how Stitches (an apparently stuffed animal who regularly takes residency in Animal Crossing’s villages) actually came to life and gained sentience? No, I don’t, because I don’t question the good things in my life.

Stitches is one of the most visually iconic characters in Animal Crossing history as well as one of the characters that still has an element of mystery to them despite the fact that they’ve been in every AC game.

3. Marshal

This squirrel without a cause has long been one of the most desirable villagers in Animal Crossing history. Somewhere behind those “I don’t care eyes” is the insistence of millions of players everywhere who scream into the night their assurances that he does care because they care.

Marshal is one of the coolest characters in AC history as well as one of the characters that made players realize there are certain villagers they want more than any other.

2. Bob

A popular theory suggests that Bob was actually the first Animal Crossing villager the series’ developers ever created. If that is the case, then I have to commend them for having the courage to continue to create despite achieving near perfection.

Bob has long been one of the internet’s favorite Animal Crossing villagers, and the fact that so many elements of his personality seem to cater to the internet’s love for memes hardly makes his iconic status a surprise. He’s a legend that’s legacy has surpassed even his in-game attributes.

1. Lucky

If the best Animal Crossing villagers are defined by the ways they let their personality shine through relatively simple mechanics, then Lucky has to be considered one of the very best Animal Crossing villagers ever at the very least.

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This decidedly unlikely dog who is presumably covered in bandages due to various injuries embraced his new look by adopting a horror theme that makes him a favorite among genre fans everywhere. Any island would be lucky to count this legendary dog among its residents. 

The post 20 Best Animal Crossing Villagers Ever appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3wTrGLw

#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

[spuriusbrocoli]

6 13 22 23 28 35-39 47 52 53 59 63 74 80 91 95 :P

6. What’s your lucky number?

69 ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

(I don’t have one. 四 ig bc I’m morbid)

13. What talents do you have?

I think I’m a damn good academic writer, tbth. Kind of seriously considering doing some kind of side-job YouTube linguist thing after I graduate and have more than $0.00 to my name. And hey, if there’s enough of a market, that’d be a cool thing to do as a side-job with more traditional academia!

22. Have you ever got in trouble with the law?

Not yet…

23. Have you ever met any celebrities?

Nope! Closest I’ve come is former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick.

28. What type of music do you like?

Lots.

Usually alt and indie rock, with some indie pop and folk. New Wave and 80s dancepop. Also, some top 40 pop.

Lots of electronicas, too. House, nu-Disco, ambient, indie-tronica, whatever-the-hell-genre The Knife is. Some more experimental rock a la Xiu Xiu and noisecore.

Also trying to get into more cabaret-esque stuff. Big fan of Amanda Palmer. Plus some… neo-Baroque, ig? Idk what to call Patrick Wolf and Owen Pallet.

Teeny-tiny bit of R&B and hip hop. Janelle Monae, Shamir, Lupe Fiasco, Kanye, OutKast. Just kind of the giant must-hears, y’know?

Also, did I mention that my musical tastes are gay as hell? Bc they are g a y a s h e l l . ANOHNI/Antony and the Johnsons, Björk, Scissor Sisters, Hercules and Love Affair, Marina and the Diamonds… Just a ton of gay shit.

35. Have you ever tried archery?

Yes! I was very bad at it.

36. Favorite clean word?

“Have”? Bc it can be a function word and a lexical word.

Okay lemme explain that: So in linguistics, we tend to carve up vocabulary into lexical vocabulary (words that “have meaning”, i.e. name something in the real word) and functional vocabulary (words that act more as glue for a sentence to connect its lexical words).

“Have” is interesting bc it can have meanings in both contexts.

(1) shows “have” used as a lexical verb, where it means “own” or “possess”. And you readers at home could conceivably imagine a synonym for it in this context.

(1) They have a cat.

Compare that to (2) where the “possession” meaning is conveyed in “had” (admittedly an inflected version of the same lexical verb), but “have” itself can’t be given a synonym so easily. You maybe could, but it would really just be a case of using a semantically-similar structure than a true lexical synonym. To even define “have” in the context of (2), you would need to convey information about the cat-ownership wrt time, which isn’t really a definition.

(2) They have had a cat.

See how different those are? That is the difference between lexical and functional vocabulary and why “have” (and these examples) are some of my favorite ways to explain it.

I’ve also as of late become really interested in the word “table”. Now, I work in a restaurant where “table” can mean “a piece of furniture customers eat at” or “a table of customers”. That in and of itself isn’t weird, you get polysemy like that all the time. What’s interesting to me is the way they can be used to mean ostensibly different things in rapid contexts.

So in (3), there’s an example of the first definition. Not weird at all.

(3) I need to clean the table.

Obviously, this is an inanimate object which I am cleaning and not a group of people sitting at a table. And in (4), it’s quite obvious that I mean the second meaning, i.e. a group of people (formerly) sitting at a table. No one would reasonably interpret (4) out of context to think the table was a mimic that left to go find sustenance elsewhere.

(4) The table left.

But what’s interesting to me is how I can embed the two meanings with the same ostensible referent in a discourse. Hell, in a single sentence!

(5) When a table1 leaves, I have to clean it1 .

(The subscripts with the same numerals indicate coreference–i.e., that “it”refers back to “table”.)

I have the intuition that “it” absolutely means the table. I also have the intuition that in the first clause, “table” refers to a group of people sitting at a table while in the second “it” refers to the inanimate object itself. True, this is across a clausal boundary, but it should still be weird that two different meanings of a polysemous word are called not only in the same discourse, but to refer to the same real-world referent.

And maybe there is some pragmatic theory I’m simply ignorant of that explains this. And I wouldn’t at all be surprised if there were experimental work on this with semantic priming studies or somesuch (and if there isn’t this is me 100% calling dibs I will fite you). But it’s an interesting sentence that makes me question how we as linguists think about the lexicon.

So yeah. That’s why you don’t ask linguists language questions.

37. Favorite swear word?

“Fuckass”. Nice and simple.

38. What’s the longest you’ve ever gone without sleep?

A little under three straight days. I had an absolutely nasty case of poison ivy at the end of the fifth grade. I also have no self-control and needed to stay up so I wouldn’t scratch. I had brief bouts of rest, but didn’t enter a REM cycle for almost 72 hours. Crashed for like 12 when I finally did.

When I got back to school, everyone said I looked like shit, too.

39. Do you have any scars?

A bunch of small ones. An itty-bitty scar that my former section-leader’s dad gave me when I had my appendectomy. A small circle from when I got my hand slammed in a car door by accident. A bunch of internal scars in my ears from a whole ton of various surgeries as a youngin’. And then various minor cuts and burns and scrapes that left noticeable scar tissue behind. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

47. What is your most expensive piece of clothing?

$200 coat I bought my freshman year of college. I also have a $100+ tie that is my most expensive article of clothing by size. They are both very nice.

52. Favorite food?

One of the three: penne alla bettola, spaghetti alla carbonara, or strozzapretti. That’s a spicy cream and tomato sauce with vodka; spaghetti with pancetta and egg; and a cream-and-meat sauce respectively. I like my Italian decadence.

53. Favorite foreign food?

I imagine this ask prompt was originally a Brit bc holy hell is that a Brit thing to say. I’m also not gonna count the above bc I was raised on Italy. Gonna go with takoyaki or shu mai. I’ve also never had a bad dish with lamb from the Islamic world tho.

59. Do you suck or bite lollipops?

Suck until they’re weak and inferior to me, then crush them between my teeth.

63. Biggest Fear?

Sea monsters.

74. Are you ticklish?

Yes. And a kicker, so that’s not an invitation.

80. How many piercings do you have?

Four rn bc two of the holes sealed up.

I got an industrial in each ear done at a very nice (and expensive) place in Northampton. Except while the one in my left ear was still healing, the bar itself broke. I had to go to work, so I couldn’t get anything in the holes for over 12 hours, by which point it had already sealed.

EDIT: I forgot the two boring lobe piercings, lol.

91. Do you like your own name?

Well enough, ig? I prefer Jordan and Conrad as names, but I’ve already bequeathed the latter to the dog, so… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

95. What are your weaknesses?

Executive dysfunctioning, especially as it applies to task-completion and time-management.

#ask prompt answered #itlimoc #never ask linguists linguistics questions #linguistics #language #pragmatics #semantics #grammatical co-reference #polysemy #polysemous words #@lingblr pls read and giv me notes my family is dying

[capsunm]

How Not to Fall into the Pit of Procrastination

by Jessica Tipton, CAPS Student Manager of Writing

I don’t know about you, but I always start the semester off with lofty goals. I’ll do all my homework on time. I’ll do every reading I’m assigned. I’ll go to every class, even if I’m not feeling great. But, most of all, my goal is to not procrastinate.

So instead of doing the homework I’ve already been assigned these first weeks of classes, I’m writing a blog post for CAPS.

Oops?

I guess I really need these three strategies that I found on the Psychology Today website, don’t I? And who knows—maybe you’ll find them useful, too!

1) If-Then Statements

Heidi Grant Halvorson, Ph.D., recommends if-then statements because our brains like cause-and-effect. We like patterns and building relationships between things, even if those relationships are arbitrary (I mean, really, what does the word “dog” actually have to do with the animal?). The idea here is to create a trigger for your good habits.

Whenever X happens, you do Y.

To beat procrastination, you could use this strategy in a couple of ways.

For example, you could simply schedule your homework – or workout – or laundry time. Whenever the clock hits 2pm on Mondays, you do your reading for English 120. Whenever the clock hits noon on Saturdays, you do your laundry. Be specific, rather than vague or broad, so it’s easier for your brain to associate the trigger with the action.

Source

Another example would be for you to create a playlist for yourself. Every time you hear a particular song on that playlist, you have to do a particular action—whenever “Uptown Funk” plays, you spend 10 minutes studying for your calculus exam, or whenever “Shake It Off” plays, you do 25 crunches. If you assign different actions for different songs in the same playlist, you even add variety (which our brains also really like).

Just be creative with it! All you have to do is remember the cause-and-effect rule, whenever X happens, you do Y.

2) Avoid Temptation Rather than Testing Willpower

David DiSalvo, a science writer, breaks down a study performed by Michael Inzlicht and Marina Milyavskaya. The researchers found that students who faced more temptations struggled more in maintaining their willpower—and thus achieving their goals. The students who faced fewer temptations made more progress.

Interesting relationship, isn’t it?

Source

You may have heard of the spoon theory—the idea that you start each day off with only so many spoons (meaning willpower) and as you give spoons away (exert willpower), you eventually run out (and give in to temptation). If you don’t have to exert the willpower you’re less likely to run out, and tada! Progress.

This strategy is a little tougher than the if-then statements, but it may be more effective if you can stick to it. First, you need to identify your temptations—your phone? Social media? Friends? Food? TV? Etc. Figure out what it is, and how to step away from it. You can physically remove yourself from your phone or the television, for example. You can use various apps to block specific websites, or go so far as to turn off the wifi or router.

I’ve even heard of someone literally freezing their credit cards to prevent dangerous spending.

3) Burn or Burn

Similarly extreme to freezing your credit cards is this hardcore strategy recommended by Nir Eyal, an MBA and “behavioral design” blogger.

He recommends pulling out cash—he personally uses a 100-dollar bill—and taping it to the day of your choice when you have to do the thing that you have to do. And then you place a lighter near that calendar. When that day comes up, you have a choice: do the thing, or burn the bill (though CAPS does not support the illegal destruction of government property). An alternative would be to make yourself donate the money to a charity or cause that you don’t support (there may even be an app for this).

The idea behind this method is that you create a choice for yourself: do a thing you may find distasteful but which will be progress toward your goal, or do a thing you really don’t want to do. Eyal says that he hasn’t missed a single day using this method, so it may work for you if you have some hardcore change to make.

Bonus: CAPS as a Resource

Because a shameless plug can’t hurt, right?

We’re here to support you in any way that we can, and even have a particular service that may help you avoid the pit of procrastination. Our Learning Strategies team can assist you with a variety of things, but some of their most popular and useful services including helping you with time management and prioritizing your tasks. Come to drop-in or make an individual appointment on the third floor of Zimmerman between 9am and 5pm!

Our tutors can also help you structure the assignment you’re working on to make it feel less overwhelming, whether that be a 10-page research paper or preparing for a chemistry exam. We even have a couple of other blog posts about beating procrastination here on the blog. We’re here to help!

Visit our website at caps.unm.edu or call as at [phone] for more information.

Jessica is about to graduate with a BA in Communication and a BA in German—and she’s been working on beating her procrastination habits about as long as she’s been in school.

Sources: 1) Halvorson, H. G. (2016, June 9th).  The science of success: The if-then solution.  Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/201101/the-science-success-the-if-then-solution 2) DiSalvo, D. (2017, January 2nd). Here's why your resolutions can't rely on willpower alone. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/neuronarrative/201701/heres-why-your-resolutions-cant-rely-willpower-alone 3) Eyal, N. (2016, January 14th). This is how to make yourself do what you need to do. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/automatic-you/201601/is-how-make-yourself-do-what-you-need-do

#procrastination #resolutions #goals #will power #college #university #UNM #writing #motivation

[rvfas]

                                          one day you'll leave this world behind                                               so live a life you will remember...

INTRODUCING

( tommy martinez, cis male, he / him ) was that RAFAEL ‘RAFA’ JIMÉNEZ coming out of the marina ? the TWENTY-SEVEN YEAR OLD is currently a NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER / GARDEN NURSURY EMPLOYEE who is LIVING IN town. despite their TRANSIENT TENDENCIES, they’re also pretty AMIABLE. i heard THE NIGHTS BY AVICII is on a constant loop in their head. ( ollie, they/them, 22, est )

THE HIGHLIGHTS

         a nomadic nature photographer and blogger who crisscrosses the united states in his car, often living out of it for months on end ; occasionally he settles in a town for a few months if it proves of some interest to him, grand haven is one of such towns ; a great love of plants was instilled in him by his grandmother and father and he currently works in the greenhouse a few miles outside town ( a common temporary profession he often picks up in the summers he settles more permanently ) ; a laidback and down to earth individual who has a way of making everyone feel like a friend ; intent on living a life he will remember — life is short, live it to the FULLEST.

THE STORY

— rafa was born in venezuela, unplanned but not unwanted — at least by his father. he was raised in caracas mostly by his grandmother, his father around when possible though it was difficult at times considering his position at the central university of venezuela. they were decently well off, and rafa certainly had no shortage of love given to him. absent mothers do not always mean absent family. and it was in these times that his love of plants first began, with his grandmother’s greenhouse and the sprawling caracas botanical garden that she’d once help tend to.

— they stayed until he was nine, when he and his father left for reasons he could not wholly grasp ( the election of hugo chávez, the 2002 venezuelan coup d’état attempt ) ; all rafa knew what they moved and life changed drastically. they ended up in austin as his father was lucky enough to land a teaching position at the university of texas - austin as a botany professor. it was a difficult transition for rafa ( even then he’d been laidback and an adaptable child ), but a new country and a largely unfamiliar language proved to be a lot. it was then that his resilience began to shape, slowly forming himself the mold he needed to.

— life steadied after that, the climbing of a latter from immigrants to citizens, slowly building a new life in austin. he attended school, graduated high school as salutatorian.  he had saved and saved and saved from his own small jobs to buy his first real camera when he was sixteen, and soon he was taking photos of everything  — self teaching the theories of light and shadow and contrast and framing. the art teacher at his high school took notice of his talents and taught him some basics. and he continued to quietly pursue the art in extracurriculars and electives carefully shoved in between his other required classes. after graduation, he enrolled at the university of austin studying marketing, photography, and public relations. that was close enough to rafa’s passion ( it was something tangentially to do with his love of photography anyway ), but theoretically a steady enough job market. he managed to sneak in a few botany classes as well, though he tried to keep quite the fact that the professor was occasionally his father.

— upon graduation, an internship with dell in their austin office turned into a full time position. and that was life for a long time. pretty good as far as job stability went. he didn’t mind his job but it hardly was his dream either. so rafa resigned himself to the capitalist life of mediocrity.

( death & car accident cw )

— however, a little over two years into working for dell in their pr department ( and not really loving it ) everything changed. for better in some ways, for worse in others. it’s a drunk hit and run that leaves his father fatally wounded. he passes away from his injuries in the ambulance.

( end cw )

— rafa’s once steady world had been turned upside down once again. he and his father had had their differences, sure, but they had been close, the only family he’d had especially after the earlier passing of his grandmother. and it took this shock and this loss to realize this so-so path he was following no longer was appealing — his father had been all about opportunities, not just financially but for living an overall better life ; and he had told him as much every time rafa came over for dinner and had only mundane things to say about work. he hadn’t seen much of the world, hadn’t done much, and it all crashed down on him as he stood at his father’s grave wondering what the hell he was going to do. life was short, uncertain, with an unpredictable end and he may as well embrace that.

— he decided what he was going to do was quit his job he wasn’t truly happy in and take his father’s car and just drive. some endings are simply beginnings, and this was very much an opportunity. what was meant to be one summer to help deal with his grief stretched into half a year, a year, two years... and then he wasn’t stopping. grief undeniably changes people, but rafa was hellbent on it not changing him for the worse ( good, bad — the truth is most things simply just are ). and somewhere between snapping photos, honing his craft, talking to people from all corners, rafa had found his place in simply not being anywhere. so this continued on, growing into a life, a love, a haphazard self-career of photography and traveling and being a nomad. he sold their house back in austin ( his last physical tie ), began to blog, to share his point of view with the world through photos and words and video.

— low budget and simple changes to his father’s suv turned it into a microcamper : a place to sleep, a tiny fridge, a water brick, storage for what little he owned. it was a setup and process refined with time. he stayed a few months in some places, often falling back on his other love of plants, working in local nurseys and greenhouses — learning the beauty of plants sprouting from seeds, life but in a different form. things simply shifted into perspective. for years, this settled into a gentle ebb and flow, travelling where he wished or travelling to where there was work to be found.

— grand haven was only supposed to be another few day pit stop in his unpredictable and never-ending journey, a stop for taking photos and also to get that rattling noise in his car taken care of, but something about the town charmed him. maybe it was the friendliness of the people, maybe it was the lake knocking right at its doorstep, maybe it simply was a feeling that he should stay ; whatever it was, rafa didn’t end up driving out of town. it wouldn’t be the first time he settled for a little while in his nomadic times — there had been a few others where he spent summers in towns that had a certain pull to them, a beauty he wanted to capture in his lens.

— he eventually moved into a two bedroom apartment ( a sublet with a roommate — wanted connection !! ) the decision to at least spend the summer in grand haven. so he is “living in” town, but it’s still temporary, y’know ?? that was back near the mid-may and this was partially informed by a chance run-in at the local cafe where he was bemoaning the condition of one of their plants and happened to fall into conversation with the local greenhouse owner. they were looking for workers for the summer, and given rafa’s patchwork of experience, extensive knowledge of nursey plants, and friendly personality, he was practically hired on the spot. that was near the beginning of may, and now... well he’s just vibing and taking things as they come.

MISC

— timeline wise, rafa is coming up on three years of living on the road.

— he works at a greenhouse about three miles north of town center. if i can name it i’m gunna call it zehr’s. ( approximately the location of bosche’s irl, just a lil closer to town and also a real nursery and not a shrubbery )

— his ( shared ) apartment, even though small by the building standards, feels like a mansion to him after the small space of his car. he hasn’t added much in way of decoration to his own room ( after all, he has plans to move on eventually and he doesn’t believe in buying what you don’t absolutely need ). so it’s a simple and minimalistic place : a small bed in the corner he made out of pallet boards and he put the mattress from his car on top of, salvaged table and chairs he rescued from the curb on garbage day. his main décor is ( surprise ) plants. on every counterspace, the floor, hanging in the bathroom — technically they’re not necessities, but to rafa they are. they add life to the place.

— it probably comes as no surprise that rafa doesn’t own all that much : just the necessities and not much more. he leaves light footprints wherever he goes and not much else.

— he wouldn’t consider himself a chef, but rafa is decent at cooking, especially at simple but tasty fare. he’s efficient and eats rather healthy food, produce often purchased from farmers markets he passes. he isn’t exactly a vegetarian, but he doesn’t consume very much meat mostly because during his travels meat was too difficult to keep in his small fridge and cook with his camp stove. out of habit, he still stays away from most meat products even when he is a little more settled in an apartment with a stove, but he won’t turn down food with meat if others make it and don’t expect others to omit meat just because of him. he doesn’t want to be a hassle, especially if he’s staying in a friend’s home. also chicken broth in soups... it just hits different than vegetable broth.

— he often rides his bike places. a bike isn’t something he keeps during his full nomadic, living out of a car stretches as it’s too inconvenient to keep and store, but when he settles down, he often purchases ( or borrows ) a decent used bike from someone. it is then returned or sold again when he leaves the town months later. so it’s no uncommon to see him biking to work with his backpack with lunch and his camera or down to the shore. he doesn’t drive unless it’s too far — also helps cut down on unnecessary gas costs.

— rafa loves adventure. he loves being in nature and above most things, he loves not having a plan. framework is good ( you still want to be safe ) but as far as what fills in the spaces in between, the better the experience and the memories, in his opinion. he isn’t one to push or force people into something they truly don’t want to do, but that isn’t the same as encouraging people to leave their comfort zone which is something he likes to do.

— he is big on sustainable living and being environmentally conscious, but he also recognizes that the life he leads... it wasn’t just because he wanted to leave a small footprint. it was many different factors and he also realizes it’s very unpractical for most of the world. but that being said, he often encourages smaller changes in others, and much of his photography is environmentally focused on plants and nature and often on the effects of humanity on nature.

— as mentioned above, his photography focuses a lot on the natural beauty of the world and the blur between nature and manmade things. he loves to photograph abandoned building and crumbling infrastructure half-taken back by nature. he’s also a talented plant photographer ( probably no surprise there ). he’s not much for photographing people, though sometimes he’ll take casual shots just on his phone or his smaller camera. his blog is somewhat of a diary, often mostly photos with descriptions and updates on his life. he also has a youtube channel, but less of a youtuber style and more to share his own videos of nature and such — aesthetic video shorts. occasionally his face shows up in the videos, but usually not ; the natural beauty ought to speak for itself. his big break was being featured in outside magazine when he was twenty-six. since then his blog and youtube channel have gained more traction and he received more freelance work than before.

— his sources of income are sporadic. the jobs at greenhouses he picks up in summers, the income from his photography, the small amount of savings he amassed before turning his back on conventional jobs, and of course his father’s life insurance policy ( while hardly a king’s ransom —a few hundred thousand— is certainly enough especially with his lifestyle ). he has also shot photo ads for jeep, mazda, and subaru. he gets by because his expenses aren’t particularly high, especially when he’s living out of his car. somewhere he knows that this isn’t something he can do forever, but he can’t imagine doing anything else. perhaps in that way, he’s stubborn.

— he has definitely listened to hollow coves’ wanderlust ep a million times while driving...

— rafa isn’t tech stupid. he needs to know his stuff for his photography, to maintain his blog, and to edit his photos, and owns an android smartphone and a laptop. however, he isn’t big on tech as a source of entertainment ( eg. watching movies, using social media outside instagram to post some photos, etc ). he likes to read a lot ( that’s what he’ll do if the weather is real bad ), but otherwise you can probably find him out and about with his camera by the lake, on trails, and everywhere outside his shifts at the greenhouse. he also has a guitar that he can play — doesn’t sing nearly as much, but his voice isn’t bad.

— venezuelan spanish is his first language. though he’d begun learning english at a young age, it wasn’t until their move to texas that he was forced into fluency in order to survive. he remains bilingual to date.

— i did take plenty of inspiration from nathaniel wise who is a photographer who has lived out of his suv for two years and counting while traveling across the united states. you can see a video of his old set up that i imagine very similar to rafa’s here. his vlogs are also sprinkled with aesthetic, artsy nature shots and non-narrated stretches that are the inspiration for rafa’s videos as well.

— tommy martinez is not straight and therefore no muse with his face ever should be either.  rafa is bi and has known since he was quite young. he doesn’t view it as a huge part of his identity tbh — it’s just a simple fact as straight forward as that.

PERSONALITY

— if rafa was a plant, he’d probably be a dandelion — incredibly resilient, insanely adaptable, considered pretty by some and just downright annoying to others, springing up anywhere and everywhere ( even where he shouldn’t ). he rolls with the punches, takes mistakes as things to learn from, often is a rather positive person, and doesn’t let much get under his skin. his approach to much of life is with an incredibly down to earth and practical attitude : it takes that kind of personality to successfully live out of a car for years and to be perfectly content doing it. that laidback and adaptable attitude doesn’t make him much of a planner, however, often down for anything at least once and preferring to “wing it” and assuming that no matter what happens, he’ll be able to figure some way out of it without too much hardship. this has been true for the most part, though there have been a few sticky situations — but nothing drastic enough to change rafa’s attitude.

— he has no shortage of friendliness and often radiates enthusiastic, open energy. he has an uncanny way of making everyone feel like his friend, even just after a short conversation — and it’s genuine, not a manipulative ploy. in that manner, he has no shortage of connections and friends scattered all over which has helped him in his travels immensely. often, he’s an open book, not because he trusts everyone, but because he doesn’t have much to hide. his secrets are mundane and harmless ; his life is unconventional and he’s willing to share it through stories, through photos, through videos, through his blog which probably gets a little too sporadically undated. people are often drawn to him : a fun and laidback but mysterious figure that adventure just seems to radiate off of.

— commitments are something rafa struggles immensely with. that probably is no surprise for a man who has so little tying him to one place. that isn’t to say he’s inconsiderate : he likes to punctual, if he says he’ll do something he’ll do it — his reluctance to long term commitments doesn’t equate to unreliability. but his roots are not buried deep, they are shallow and spread far and wide. romantic relationships especially prove difficult and therefore are something he hasn’t sought out for a long time. he doesn’t like to lead people on and is ( what he thinks is ) always clear in his intentions. but sometimes things happen, sometimes people think they can change you, think that this time they can make you stay. ( it’s not that you’re not enough, he’d say, it’s just that i’m not meant to stay ). but mostly, he tries to avoid romantic endeavors. it’s not that he’s afraid of love ; he’s afraid of being stuck.

— his friendships are incredibly strong, though, and he often keeps in touch with people he’s met all over. postcards here, random texts here, showing up at people’s doors nine months later... rafa is a free spirit and it shows, and his friends are people who understand that — who let it happen and aren’t intent on trying to tie him down. he hates feeling trapped and when he does, that’s when he leaves. people have tried the you’re getting older, you should more serious life choices talk on him ; so far no one’s been successful.

— yet rafa often feels like he’s yearning for something, but exactly what remains to be seen. perhaps that’s why he’s never truly settled down, cross-crossing the americas over and over and over again in hopes that maybe someday he’ll simply chance upon whatever he’s looking for. whether he roams so much because he lacks reasons to stay or because something continues to call him on — he tries not to dwell too hard on it. he wouldn’t say he’s lost, though, simply unsure of where he’s headed but as someone who breathes the ‘journey not the destination’ mantra, he’s perfectly content in that.

APPEARANCE

— 6′2″ 185 lbs ( 1.88 m 84 kg ), a modestly athletic build. rafa is a physical person between all the biking and hiking he does and the work in the greenhouse.

— light brown skin, often quite tanned, dark black curly hair that falls to the nape of his neck when unbound ( often tied back into a ponytail/bun, especially when he’s working in the greenhouse ; other times left loose to to it’s own thing ). often looks a little scruffy when it comes to facial hair, occasionally semi-clean shaven when he remembers --- sporting a fair amount of scruff more likely than not.

— needs glasses for distance but often is wearing contacts save for when he’s in his apartment / relaxing for the night.

— mannerisms : relaxed, relaxed, relaxed. rafa is rarely tense and presents an image of ease even when he truly isn’t. there’s sometimes perpetually friendly about his face and demeanor even when it’s in his neutral facial expression and it’s no surprise he’s someone people approach for questions and conversation frequently. quick to smile and laugh. surprisingly not jittery when he sits : incredibly steady — sometimes referred to as a reassuring presence.

— style : simple, earthy, a nearly completely thrifted wardrobe. he doesn’t own too much in way of clothes. simple t-shirts, slim cut pants that are still easy to move in, plenty of athletic shorts, a modest collection of flannels. his clothes trend towards the earth tones : browns, yellows, muted reds, and forest greens —  natural looking things. semi-battered sneakers or boots if it’s cold / rainy.

— jewelry : corded twine or leather bracelets and necklaces if he wears anything at all. rarely metals.

— tattoos : a simple black line art design of a twisting vine around his left bicep ( a discounted tattoo from a friend who was still apprenticed at a shop ).

— scars : nothing super prominent, plenty of small marks from various minor life incidents.

— PINTEREST BOARD

CONNECTIONS

         ngl, rafa’s backstory definitely lends itself to more chem-based present day connections. he has been like.... cross-crossing the united states for almost three years if you wanted to brainstorm maybe a former connection in a different city though !! otherwise the world is our oyster. let’s talk things out !!

TAKEN CONNECTIONS

OOC

hello everyone !! i’m ollie ( 22, est, they / them ). rafa is super super new, but he’s been living in my head for a little while now and i hope you love him as much as i do !!

#grh.intro #( letsss goooo ✌️😎 )