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bondsmagii · 2 years

Note

Do you genuinely belive that people deserve to be happy no matter what's happening in the world? I just, like, never heard that before. I mean, everyone it's always trying to convince you that you should care about the world more than you care about yourself and It just gets internalized like I genuinely gave up a career as small business owner to focus on enviromental sciences bc I felt so much guilt over not doing something for climate change and everyone like supported that choice

This whole conversation with the anon remembers me of my own little paranoia when I read the poem "you must love the mutilated world" because all I could think about was how easier it was to me (white, middle class, american) to love the world than everyone else. It's crazy how guilt does leak into everyday things. I never even thought about that like it's something bad it was always framed as something you should be doing like you don't have permission to be happy while the whole world suffers (and its something you see all the time in social media too! Like, it's crazy!) Anyway very interesting topic don't know how to digest it tho probably will continue to feel immeasurable waves of useless giref

I do believe that, yes. I don't believe that we should live in denial of the problems in the world, but I see no point in living in misery. it gets nothing done, it isn't productive, and unless we are actively, consciously, and blatantly contributing to the world's problems, a lot of it is stuff we're not to blame for. should we still help? yes. but should we act like we're on the same level as the billionaires and warmongers who are actively causing and profiting from the pain of others? don't be ridiculous.

also, while we're on the subject: Try to Praise the Mutilated World is my all-time favourite poem. I don't lecture people on their own interpretations of art, but I thought I might provide some extra context. the poem's author is a man named Adam Zagajewski, and he was born in 1945 in Lwów, Poland (now Lviv, Ukraine). you might recognise the date as the end of the Second World War, but you might not recognise the town. this town was one of the most hotly contested and affected parts of Europe in the lead-up to, and the aftermath of, the war. so affected were the citizens that the men who helped create the terms "genocide" and "crime against humanity" in a legal sense for the first time were from here (they did this for the purpose of the Nuremberg trials). Zagajewski would have undoubtedly grown up with the horror of war shadowing his every move and haunting the memories of his family. he would have seen the widespread damage and grief, and homes abandoned or left empty in the wake of the countless Jews from the town who were exiled and murdered. he himself also suffered hardships under the communist rule the country was under during his lifetime, including familial exile and censorship. he protested against the government rule and was punished for it, even having to leave his country for long periods of time.

this is a man who a lot of people with your attitude would deem as a person who has "really" suffered, and is a "real" victim. and he says that regardless of what is going on, you must praise this world. you must love it. you must see the beauty in everything, even the "abandoned homesteads of exiles". you must create good times, so you can hold onto them in the tough times and the bad times. the poem is saying that you must see the beauty in the world before you can begin to heal it, because a person mired in guilt and misery is no good for the work of healing. look at the things he tells you to remember and to enjoy when you have them. he mentions "June's long days", "wild strawberries", "drops of rosé wine". the poem tells you to face the reality of the world and hold fast against it; love the world regardless and do what you can. how such a beautiful poem could be used by you to feel such guilt is such a shame. this is a poem written for everyone struggling with the reality of the world, and indeed it became widespread famous after it circulated following 9/11. in a world full of new horror, a horror many people had never experienced before, it was this poem that resonated -- that no matter the horror out there, we must love this world and seize happiness where we can.

this is a prime example of art being for everyone. if you want to use this poem as another way to uselessly beat yourself up, I can't stop you. but I hope you rethink. you seem unhappy living like this, and you seem to understand it's an impossible way to live. you can choose something better. you can try to praise the mutilated world, to go back to the running theme. you can allow yourself small joys and let yourself see the beauty here. you can learn to do what you can and rest knowing that's enough.

#anon #asks

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zackcrazyvalentine · 3 years

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I hope i'm not late for the screenshots thingy!

Here's who i got!

(i got lucky cause Epel and Idia are my faves LMAO)

And for the theme, maybe them reacting to MC cooking them meals from their world? Or maybe them visiting MC's world with them? You choose!

(romantic btw!)

LET'S GET THIS BREAD!!! I'm sorry it took some time to get out

I'll do a half and half~

Let's go!

~ Other Worldly ~

With: Epel Felmier, Idia Shroud, Vil Schoenheit, Jack Howl, and MC

Them reacting to MC cooking food from their world, and visiting MC's world

First off, let me start by saying that a good 3/4 of these characters are super picky(? with their food, Vil and Idia being the most critical (according to what Master Chef events tell us)

Hope you have some super cooking skills and/or premium ingredients at hand! ^^''

Some headcanons didn't come out too romantic orz

🍎 Epel Felmier 🧹

Foreign dishes

Epel noticed the peculiar cooking going on in Ramshackle after visiting one time

While he may be critical of ingredients and overall resulting taste, Felmier is curious to try new things (specially if it's in big portions, unlike Pomefiore's dinners)

He approaches MC shily, asking if he could have a taste of what they were eating at the time

"Sure, no problem! In fact, let me cook some for you fresh!"

Before he could even protest to get them to stop, the Prefect already got to work

He tries to help, but MC shoots him down and tells him to patiently wait

Epel's appetite and curiosity are increasing with every second

Once the food's ready to be savored, he digs right in! And will provide some feedback about what he liked about it, what it reminds him of, and if needed be points out what he thinks it lacked

Eager to try out more of the food MC was accustomed to eating back in their world!

Visiting a far away land

EPEL IS PUMPED!!! FIELD TRIP TO A LAND HE'S NEVER SEEN OR HEAD ABOUT, UNLESS IT'S FROM MC'S MOUTH!!

He's eager to visit all the places his love adores! Make some memories and have a blast discovering the place such a wonderful person comes from

He wants to know how their two worlds differ, how a world without magic unfolds before his eyes

Let's be honest: this boy right here is excited to wreck havoc in supermarket and fast food places' parking lots. Y'all probably woke up at 3am once and decided to go scream and mess around at your nearest McDonald's parking lot

Please show him vine compilations, I'm positive Epel will love to get to know the humor of this world (although he once used a vine reference when talking with a cashier once, thinking it was common knowledge for everyone in MC's world)

Out of the four guys here, Epel is the one most open to improvised plans

Eager to try out any strange fruits and vegetables, interesting snacks and bizarre cookie flavors that catch his eye

"How can your world have such specific flavors? Rosemary garlic jalapeño bread chips? How???"

💀 Idia Shroud 💙

Foreign dishes

MC probably brought some of their homemade food over to Idia's dorm after getting concerned that this boy's diet heavily relies in junk food and sweets, and when he does eat it's a very small portion

So in MC comes and asks Idia if he would like to try some food they prepared, one of their favorite dishes

At first, Idia is very reluctant, saying how he doesn't feel hungry

But the Prefect has a trick under their sleeve: a crestfallen expression with an adorable pout

Seeing them having a meal on their own while occasionally sighing sadly has the flaming haired boy debating what he should do

Then a memory of Ortho's voice resounds in his skull: "Meals are typically shared between people to develop or strengthen a bond. If you want to win [Name]'s heart, you should take them out for dinner."

That and he can't deny the contents of that container in their hands look appetizing

Shroud finally accepts and brings you over to Ignihyde's kitchen to grab a couple of plates

He's hesitant, but takes a nice first bite of food. Chews it carefully as he analyses the taste, texture, consistency

"I've never tasted something like this before. What is it?"

"One of my favorite dishes, [food name]!"

Silence followed, "Huh? I-I'm afraid I have... never heard of it..." He said

"Yeah, Ace and Sebek said the same when I introduced them to it. Makes me believe this is something only seen back in my world."

A nice chat develops and, before they know it, the food's gone and Idia himself ate a nice amount of it

It's in the walk back to his dorm, when they're enveloped in a nice comfortable silence, pinkies entwined, that MC confesses they purposefully did all that out of concern for how much he eats

It ensues some light pushing-and-pulling around and tickling, him saying how that was a tactic well taught out, but also saying how he eats just fine and they shouldn't worry about that. You know, light banter between a loving couple

That dish ends up in Idia's list of favorites. He has asked Mc to bring it with them a couple of times when they hang out together and play games

Visiting a far away land

Frankly, he's curious and very nervous about this trip

MC of course is aware of Idia's dislike of crowds and being out in public, so they prepared a nice and calm trip for him

Visiting the less frequented parts of town, quiet cafés (cat cafés!! because those normally have controlled influx of costumers for the kitties' safety), couple of history museums, supermarkets late at night for snack runs, lots of staying at home to play a plethora of videogames and watch many anime series and movies

He's amazed at the variety of games MC's world has, and is also surprised by how some titles are similar to those he likes to play. Same goes for some anime series

While he appreciates how the Prefect tries to show him what their world and society there is like, he much more prefers their stay at home time

He gets to cuddle with them in their room! Their actual legit room with many memories of their life!

He may not look like it, but Idia likes to snoop around and ask what this or that photo, a toy or poster is about and what memories they hold

Honestly, Shroud came over to his lover's world to know about their life, not so much to learn about the world as a whole

Baby pictures, photo albums, the occasional video of their childhood, diaries and old Valentine's cards, he looks through and reads them all!

He will treasure every bit of information he learns about his partner and their life in this world. Probably takes one of their baby pictures with him back to Twisted Wonderland

👑 Vil Schoenheit 🍎

Foreign dishes

Vil is the hardest to convince to try your food out of this group, no doubt

He does know MC cooks, and knows that some of their dishes are uncommon, but the model has yet to asked them for a taste

It takes one brave "Do you want some?" for the model to finally have a taste of the food

He's very hesitant, you can see it clear in his expression, but it all fades away after the first bite

He will openly state if he likes it or not and why

"Perhaps you have other dishes that suit my fancy better? Come on, I want you to show me more."

He genuinely does want to taste more of those unique dishes

Visiting a far away land

Eager to take a little vacation to a world full of opportunities

I see Vil as someone who would like to visit the most prestigious places (though MC will have to tone it down and remind him they don't have an unlimited amount of money to spend)

Art museums and a couple theatre plays are his go-to, along with nice restaurants, popular cafés, and lovely parks to have a picnic on (he jumps into the idea of attending one of those outdoor cinema projections, those are probably his favorite because he gets to cuddle with his lover under the night sky while a movie plays)

He will want to learn about the history of MC's world and the way society, politics work there

He gets word of the horrible things that happened and the threat of climate change, human rights violations and he will want to take action to protest against it

Okay, but Vil will get along so well with the Prefect's younger siblings and mother/aunts/fem guardian if they have one

Get ready to have him judge favorite makeup products. Prefect better lead him away from the beauty and skincare sections of farmacias and supermarkets

All in all, having Vil over to their world allowed MC to visit many nice fancy-ish places and allowed them to enjoy some simple things they forgot

A wonderful person to have by your side in any world and universe~

🐺 Jack Howl 💛

Foreign dishes

With his fine sense of smell, Jack detected the food MC was preparing for their little date was something unfamiliar

"What's that? Something new?"

Yet MC tries to keep the surprise until the plates are presented and served

Seeing the smile on their face, Jack can't help but think that this dish will taste wonderful due to the love shining on their face

"This is [dish name], one of my favorites back in my world. Haven't seen it offered in the cafeteria, so I decided to try my hand and prepare it for you, Jackie!"

First bite, fluffy tail wagged. He compliments their cooking with a smile before diving in for a couple morsels

Jack isn't too picky, he enjoys food truthfully

I think he will be curious about the story behind the dish and why his love categorizes it as a favorite. Ingredients, techniques, tell him all about it!

I'm sure this boy will be happy to try more of the unique dishes found in a world ways away from his!

Visiting a far away land

A visit to his partner's world, huh? Well, Jack is certainly excited to see what sort of outdoor activities and exploring can be done in this new place!

Dates with Howl in the Prefect's world will consist of visiting natural parks, gardens, forest trails, perhaps do some fishing or bird watching

Jack grew up with snow as a constant. He would like to explore the winter sports scene in this foreign world (if MC lives somewhere with snow/with designated paces on which to practice said sports)

Aside from these outdoor sporty visits, the wolf would like to attend concerts or maybe a local team's game

However, he soon finds out these events aren't suited for his acute hearing (poor baby 😭)

So he's content with spending time inside MC's house, get to know their family a little, look through their family pictures, and have pleasant late afternoon walks in the nearby park

Something as simple as going out for icecream is tremendously pleasant with Jack by your side

(but poor MC if they aren't athletic or into nature because this big puppy will drag them to loooots of nature watching dates asdfg)

-- --

Ngl, this prompt was a little hard to fulfill. I'm well aware this isn't the most romantic, but hope it was enjoyable

Thank you for your request!

and sorry again for taking long

#zask #twisted wonderland #loading screen headcanons #epel felmier #idia shroud #vil schoenheit #jack howl #twst x reader #twisted wonderland headcanons #twst headcanons #twisted wonderland x reader

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schneesisterss · 3 years

Note

Do you have any head cannons for the other Dimitrescu sisters? I loved your takes on Cassandra!

thank you! <3 and Of Course I have headcannons for the other two. (though not as extensive as the ones I have for Cassandra bc you know... brain rot) BUT HERE:

Daniela:

ADD/ADHD representation

stims include, but not limited to: jumping, hard blinking, leg bouncing, word/phrase/noise repetition, and fidgeting with her clothing

and i’m also CONVINCED she gets the zoomies at random times of the day

Alcina, hearing loud and fast footsteps up and down her hallway at 3am: *sigh* “Daniela! Take it outside!”

followed by a loud THUMP and painful groan (she definitely ran into a wall)

hates loud noises but simultaneously has no volume control

especially when she gets excited

Cassandra has to constantly remind her to lower her voice

“AND THEN I TOOK MY KNIFE AND STABBED THE LYCAN IN THE NECK AND IT WAS SO COOL—”

“Dani, i’m standing right here, why are you yelling?”

she loves play-fighting with her sisters

Cassandra is more willing to entertain her than Bela but the both of them like to see their sister happy. so whenever they recognize Daniela getting antsy they’ll wrestle with her a bit

(Cassandra gets way to into it sometimes and makes Bela be the referee lol. Cass always ends up pinning her younger sister with a proud, competitive smile on her face. Bela let’s Dani win, but we don’t tell her that)

has the keenest senses of the three which makes her the best at stalking/killing pray

and since she can hear the best out of all of them, she unintentionally eves drops on conversations

so Daniela, bless her, has all the tea

tactile learner

will just. touch things

“Life hard, Mothers gown soft”

can get trapped in her own head and doesn’t know how to express to her family what’s bothering her

this can make her very reserved at times and she’ll distance herself for days on end

her mother is really the only person who knows how to get her out of that state. Alcina walks up the long flight of stairs to the highest point of her castle. her youngest daughter likes to come here sometimes when she needs the quiet. “Daniela? Are you up here?”

“Hello, Mother.” Alcina looks up to see her daughter lounging on a banister high up on the ceiling.

“What are you doing up there, my love?” Daniela rubs the fabric of her dress between her fingers. “Cassandra and Bela were arguing again. I don’t like when Cassandra yells.”

Alcina shakes her head. Those two were always going at it. She’ll speak to Bela about it later. “I haven’t seen you in a few days.” Daniela then grabs a fist full of her dress and tugs at it, blinking hard. “Come down for a moment. Talk to me, baby.”

and Daniela simply rolls herself off the banister and into free fall. Alcina, already prepared, catches her with ease and holds her bridal style against her chest. Daniela runs her hands over the sleeve of her mother’s dress.

Alcina gave her youngest child time to gather her thoughts, knowing it sometimes takes longer for her to be able to understand them herself. Daniela finally spoke up: “It’s been very loud recently. Around the castle. Small things, like footsteps or glasses clicking, they sound so loud in my head.” She covers her ears with her hands. “Even now I can still hear Cassandras voice through the castle, it’s pushing in my ears. My head hurts, Mother.”

Alcina gave her daughter a quick squeeze before setting her down. “Follow me baby, I want to show you something.” Daniela followed her Mother through the twists and turns of the castle until they ended up at a door that was just like all the others. It blended in and maybe that’s why Daniela has never noticed it before. “In here.” her mother guided.

Inside was a small library and lounge room. A fire place tucked in the corner and, of course, a wall a wine next to it. Daniela looked at her Mother questioningly.

“Listen.” her mother said, and Daniela did. She heard... nothing. Nothing outside of the quiet cracking of the fire place. “This room is sound proofed. Come here whenever you feel overwhelmed.” She leaned down to stroke her daughters head. “Just don’t tell your sisters I showed you my secret getaway room.” and with a wink, the tall woman exited the room and shut the door behind her.

The next day Daniela was at breakfast like nothing had changed. She didn’t even mind when Cassandra yelled at a maiden for breaking a plate, it only made her laugh.

(if you get overstimulated you KNOW what i’m talking about)

personal space? never heard of her.

loves to cling to Belas arm and Bela let’s her bc she thinks it’s just. so cute.

will also sometimes just crawl into her mothers lap and fall asleep. then Alcinas like: “well.. i guess i’m not moving for three hours”

Daniela: “if I run an jump at Cassandra, she’ll most certainly catch me.” *takes off in a full blown sprint*

Cassandra: “NO IM HOLDING HOT TEA—” *drops tea to catch Daniela* *proceeds to cuss her younger sister out, all while Dani is wrapped around her like a koala*

(this happens a lot. Dani will just... climb on Cassandra. piggy back rides, getting on her shoulders, wrapping her hands around her neck from behind and letting her feet drag on the floor, etc. Cassandra complains adamantly but never once moves to get her off)

Cassandra: “hey Dani, I dare you too—”

Bela: “Mother said Daniela isn’t allowed to accept dares anymore.”

Daniela: “apparently I have ‘no regard for my personal safety.’”

it takes a lot for Daniela to get genuinely angry, but when she does, it’s.... bad.

Very Very Scary when mad

turns into a completely different person that you Do NOT want to fuck with

dangerous and violent

much more dark and sadistic as compared to her normal personality

came home one night covered in blood and laughing hysterically. it scared the shit out of her sisters bc if they would try and get close, she’d slash at them with her weapon.

(this was one of the only times Bela had seen Cassandra genuinely worried and afraid for their sister)

when Alcina came to see what was wrong, Daniela, still laughing madly, swung at her too. Cassandra quickly shot out her arm and grabbed Belas elbow to stop her from getting involved. Bela whipped around with a growl but Cassandras glare and squeezing nails told her to back down. Mother can handle it.

Insane Laugh™️

thinks it’s funny to intimidate the maidens by showing her fangs and snapping her jaw

she often likes to find Bela when she’s reading a book to convince her to read to her (Bela almost always complies)

that’s it for Daniela. just a hyperactive baby with a murder streak <3 ONTO THE FINAL SISTER

Bela:

Mama’s (and I cannot stress this enough) Girl

needs constant reassurance that’s she’s doing a good job and yes this reassurance can ONLY come from her mother

INSOMNIAC

this girl never sleeps, pls baby you need some rest

she spends the time she should be sleeping reading books or running errands for her mother (whether Alcina asked her to or not)

she has read almost every single book in their giant library

Cassandra doesn’t understand this at all

“Why are you always cooped up in here?” Bela glanced up over the pages of her book at her younger sister. “This is the library Cassandra. Take a wild guess.” her voice was completely level and had no inflection. Cassandra gritted her teeth, “You think your so much better than me.” Bela sighed and closed her book. She didn’t want to do this again. “No. I don’t.” she said seriously. Cassandra eyed her for a moment then looked away, Bela saw the guilt on her face before she turned on her heal. “You’re so boring.”

because she reads so much, she is incredibly smart and just knows facts about random things

Daniela, daydreaming: “I wonder why grass is green.”

Bela, immediately: “the pigment that most grasses produce, Chlorophyll, absorbs almost all blue and red light and reflects green light which is why we see green. so I mean, technically grass is every single color EXCEPT for green.

Dani, confused as fuck: ....

Cass: “Bitch, how do you even know that?”

Bela’s sisters just end up using her as Google

“Hey Bela, how far away is the moon?” “238,900 miles.”

“Hey Bela, how many different climates are there?” “Twelve”

“Hey Bela, what’s the worlds deadliest poison?” “Botulinum... why?” “No reason.” “Dani. WHY?”

“Hey Bela, how much can I sell a human skull on the black market for?” Bela, concerned: “Cassandra why would—” “HOW MUCH?” “Well... are all the teeth still in tact?” “...No.” “Than only about $500.” “FUCK.”

“Hey Bela, I have this weird rash on my back and—” “Daniela. Do not finish that sentence. Go ask Mother.”

she is so quiet

and not just because she doesn’t talk very loud or even much at all. she’s just So. Silent. when she moves

just pops up in random places without anyone hearing her approach

even Daniela can’t hear her coming, which is saying something

Cassandra, minding her own business, drinking blood tea: .....

Bela, suddenly right next to her: “Hey I was wondering if— stop screaming, it’s me— have you seen Mothers lipstick? It’s missing.”

refuses any type of help with anything or else she feels like she failed that task

Never asks for help, Never asks for favors, and Never Ever will burden her Mother with any of her problems. Ever.

(Alcina thinks this is ridiculous. her eldest daughter pushes herself too hard.)

Anxiety™️

sometimes when her anxiety becomes too much she shuts down and becomes very indifferent to things around her. this has caused many fights between herself and Cassandra because Cass will get really fired up when all Bela does is respond with a monotone voice and blank stare.

overthinks literally everything and is a perfectionist

this makes her prone to panic attacks :(

when this happens she shuts herself in her room, not wanting to bother her Mother or sisters

Bela closes her bedroom door behind her and stumbles to her knees. she can’t seem to get air into her lungs no matter how hard she tried. she had failed. Mother asked her to bring her the head of that stupid man-thing, but somehow he knew their weakness.

how could he know? are Cassandra and Daniela ok? where are they? where is Mother?

Belas breathing was shallow and short, her chest burns as she presses her forehead into the ground. She claws the skin of her chest raw, leaving angry, red marks behind, desperately trying to open her lungs.

she stays as quiet as she can, only gasping few and far between. she will not be a burden. she should deal with the consequences of her failure. alone.

a sudden knock on her door makes her scramble backwards on her bottom till her back hits the opposite wall. then Belas worst nightmare, her Mothers voice.

“Bela?! Bela, is that you?” Alcinas words were rushes and worried. the door handle jiggled. “Bela, baby the door is locked, please let me in.” Bela covered her mouth and cried silently while her Mother begged to be let in.

the sound of snapping wood had Belas eyes flying open, her Mother had broken down the door. Bela shrunk into herself. She’s going to be so mad. I’m a failure. the ringing in her ears became so intense she couldn’t hear anything else.

large, soft hands cup her cheeks and a muffled voice through the air: “Bela, my love, you’re alright thank god. Are you hurt anywhere? Let me see.”

Bela pushed weakly at her Mothers arms and said between sobs, “I-I’m sorry, M-Mother.”

Alcina looked at her eldest daughter with confusion, she had no physical wounds, but the look on her face was heartbreaking. “What are you sorry for, my love?” this only made Belas breathing spend up even more, her face red from the lack of oxygen. Alcina quickly pulled her in close.

“Now Bela, listen to the sound of my voice,” she said it gently but just hard enough to grab her daughters attention. “I need you to copy my breath. Do it now, love, listen to me. Do what i’m telling you to.” Alcina took exaggerated breaths and noticed that instantly after her command, Bela had tried to follow, but the smaller girls breath was still choppy and small. Alcina rubbed a thumb across Belas cheek. “You’re doing so well baby. Keep going just like that. Good girl.” a smaller hand was placed on her arm and grabbed at her sleeve. “Good baby, use me to ground yourself. Keep breathing now, you’re doing so good.” Alcina kept whispering soft encouragements and praises until her daughters breathing was back to normal and she was laying limp on her chest.

Alcina moved the hair away from Belas face. “What a good girl, you did so well.” Bela squeezed her eyes shut and pushed into her Mother until her face was hidden. “I’m sorry Mother.” came a muffled apology, though her voice was much more steadier than before. “I failed you, I couldn’t stop the man-thing. He shot at the windows! He knows our weakness, Mother. What are we going to do? Where’s Daniela and Cassandra, are they ok? I should have stopped him for you I’m so sorry I—”

“Quiet.” Bela immediately seals her lips and looks away, already extracting herself from her Mother’s arms. She probably hates her. Alcina simple tugs her back and forces Bela to look in her eyes with a quick tap to the forehead. “Bela, I need you to listen to me very carefully.” Her daughters eyes go wide and she nods. “You have nothing to apologize for. This is not you’re fault and I will not allow you to think that way. Plus, the man-thing won’t bother us any longer, I took care of it.”

“But—” Alcina raises an eyebrow and Bela gives in, nodding hesitantly. “Good girl.” Bela exhales through her nose at the phrase and squeezes her Mother’s sleeve again. They sit like that for a few more moments, calming down.

Bela suddenly shoots up. “Daniela, Cassandra, are they—” “They’re fine my dear, Daniela got a little banged up, but Cassandra was already patching her up before I could even get close. We didn’t know where you were, that’s why I was so worried.” Bela relaxed and again nuzzled her nose into her Mother’s chest, took one more deep breath, then stood. “I’m going to go check on them.”

She steps through the now empty door frame and pauses. She spoke without turning around: “I won’t fail you again, Mother.” and shifts into a cloud of flies and disappears.

(am I projecting again? idk help)

can play the piano

no like you don’t understand, she is so good at piano

this girl has mastered songs by composers like Liszt, Beethoven, and Ravel

she’ll play for hours on end, if she starts a new piece she Will Not get up until she can play it through perfectly

she pretends not to notice Cassandra secretly listening to her play, hidden behind a nearby bookshelf

while her younger sisters always jump head first into a fight, Bela takes a more calculating approach. learning her enemies movements from afar before advancing and ending it in like 3 quick moves.

“Well Bela, if Mother asked you to jump off a bridge, would you?”

Bela, already climbing over the railing: “Hm?”

and there you go for Bela! my sweet child.. please learn self-care.

*ahem* I went overboard again didn’t I? WELP. I regret nothing. Give me more headcannons.

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lupically · 3 years

Text

#C45052 | BENNETT.

genre | fluff

word count | 1753

warning | mention of injury

note | (ignoring the obvious fact that i did not know how to end this) bennett is a good and underrated boy.

you shivered after your fist came in contact with the ice barrier.

your skin was numbed by the sheer cold to a point where the pain of punching a giant fallen icicle would simply subside into the stinging uncomfortable of your freezing skin. the sheer cold of dragonspine was nothing to make fun of, you realized that now, and you should probably not have agreed to travel here with bennett out of all people.

you never believed in superstition. curling a cord three times around the hairdryer would suffocate you, whistling past midnight would get you kidnapped by witches, looking at the clock when it strikes three brings you to alternate dimension—bennett’s terrible, unexplainable, god-awful bad luck.

you did not believe in it. even after seeing the scars that adorned his young skin, you did not believe it was the result of poor luck but only the product of a teenage boy's aggressive clumsiness during an adventure.

yet, after venturing into dragonspine with bennett, as well as razor and klee who have decided to tag along (razor convinced only after finding out klee is also going, not to watch over her for her safety but the cold mountain's livelihood), you found out you were having a change of mind.

it was very likely that you only wanted somebody to blame, though.

you four got separated after bennett slipped from a cliff, bringing you with him when his leg somehow tipped over your ankles and tripped you as well. klee and razor got distracted, it seemed, as you could hear explosions firing during your fall before your shoulder hit the soft surface of bennett‘s torso.

the two did not come down to find you guys, so you two decided to head up the mountains again in hopes to bump into them somehow. but, during an encounter with some whopperflowers, you two were backed into a cornered cave and, lo and behold, a giant and thick icicle fell atop of the spike-sprouting flowers and, conveniently, the only exit to the cave as well.

that was not mentioning all the tiny misfortunes thrown in between, such as falling into lakes, unable to find fire podiums, and slipping off snows.

therefore, no, you do not believe in superstition, but for the sake of being able to direct your anger toward someone else, you spared yourself the strictness and blamed bennett's bad luck.

"hey, look, i'm sure razor and klee will find us somehow!" bennett exclaimed with a smile after walking to your side. "you won't believe me but razor has a very keen sense of smell!"

you rolled your eyes with a huff, feeling annoyed that he still had it in him to look on the positive side. "what's he gonna do, sniff your bad luck and find his way here?"

his brows raised in curiosity. for a second, he genuinely thought about the question, then he laughed loudly and rubbed the back of his neck. "i don't know! but it would be so cool if he can do that, don't you think?"

"the only thing i am thinking about now is getting out of here," you lightly growled under your breath as you glared at the azure-colored icicle.

archons. you could not be trapped in here for any longer. it was cold, the oxygen was probably draining and bennett never stops talking so he sucks the living hell out of the air, and there was no guarantee you two wouldn't be stuck here for the rest of your lives!

worst of all, you snap at people easily, especially when you were angry at them. whether it was misplaced anger or not, having bennett be near you right now could easily cause a misunderstanding with the words you could spill out of you. you would not mean them, but they could still hurt his feelings, and you did not want to hurt his feelings.

bad luck and badly-timed optimism aside, bennett was the single most selfless person you have ever met.

he still had it in his head to reach out for you in mid-air and use his body as a shield during the fall, for archon's sake. you could count with less than half of your fingers the number of people who would do that voluntarily.

blowing air out of your mouth and sucking back in deeply, trying to breathe properly due to the cold climate freezing up your insides, you turned to look at bennett and he tilted his head at your stare.

"what is it?"

"couldn't you do that swirly thing with your fire?"

he widened his eyes. "oh, you mean my vision?"

"if that is what it's called, sure?"

he pursed his lips together then. that would be the easy way out, of course, but he hasn't thought about it because of how much his body was aching from everything that had happened.

he was sure the soreness around his shoulders and back, which came flooding to him like punches after he took your fall for you, would only amplify with the heat. not to mention the other wounds around his body from the additional mishaps and fights.

he had his fair share of accidents and pain before, and his endurance was built up well, but he would prefer not to take it if he didn't have to.

"i... uh..."

his eyes shifted away from the icicle to you. amid his reluctance, he watched the way you winced at the cold. all he did was watch you flinch and shudder, at the cold and the monsters you two continuously alert.

he remembered you weren't supposed to be here, that you were only here because he asked if you wanted to join him on an adventure to dragonspine of all places, that you were only here because disasters loved him too much.

but he had been so happy when you agreed to join him, happy and accepted like he hasn't been in a long time, like having a new friend to play with, like he finally found someone who wasn't afraid of what he could bring.

the least he could do for you was to try and help, he thought, even if it hurts.

"move aside."

he stepped forward, his brows narrowing in concentration. you did as he told you, your hands clutched together before you as you watched the slight redness of heat emerge from his feet. he brought out his weapon as it traveled up his legs to his torso, spreading to his hands, and suddenly—a quick jump in the air, fire burst through his body and covered his blade, and a loud clank could be heard against the icicle.

the icicle was, unfortunately, not broken, but your concentration was diverted to bennett instead of the result of his action.

he was panting heavily, in a way as if he had just run a mile under a mere minute. his back was hunched so he could support himself by leaning against his knees, attempting to catch his breath and ease the numbing pain of conflicting fire with cooled skin. and, most horrifically, the wound on his left forearm has re-opened from the movement and was bleeding.

“well, that–” he huffed with a soft smile, “–that did not work at all!”

“bennett–bandages, let’s get you some bandages.”

you moved over to him quickly and urged him to sit down near the icicle. you knelt next to him, your face falling quicker into despair when you realized none of you bought sufficient supplies for such an injury. everything was in klee’s backpack with her bombs, and razor was the one who offered to hold the bag so klee could move around easier.

bennett wanted to speak up.

watching you fumble with a concerned expression completely contradicted the reason behind him straining himself to use his vision. he did that to soothe you, not to make you worry even more! but, before he could open his mouth to speak, his face pinked with an immeasurable heat—hotter than fire—when he saw that you had proceeded to rip the hem of your shirt apart.

you wrapped the fabric around his forearm, hoping it would stop the bleeding for now, or at least keep him from injuring it even more. unbeknownst to you, bennett had turned his head and shut his eyes tight so the exposed part of your tummy would be out of his plain sight. his hand gently shook, not from the wound but the touch of your much more delicate hands.

“bennett.”

“i–i–i’m not looking, i swear!”

you furrowed your brows and glanced down at yourself. you held back a laugh; you were barely exposed, it was just the side of your waist, that was all. but his politeness was welcomed, nonetheless.

“i am going to lean on you, is that okay?” you asked then, sitting down on the ground and shifting into a position where you were close enough to him to make him flush even more. “you’re warm.”

“i–i think it’s the fire,” he squeaked, his hands curled into awkward fists that he propped on his knees awkwardly. he nodded to himself, feeling his heartbeat increase. "it's the fire... yeah..."

you smiled to yourself. this might be the first time you thought bennett was cute. if only the circumstance was less staggering and unideal.

“thank you for saving me back there,” you muttered. “i could have died if you hadn’t caught me.”

“ah! that! haha!” he blinked to keep his thoughts somewhere other than the proximity. “i have fallen too many times to let a little slip off a cliff end me!”

you didn't respond. the heat radiating off his body was so satisfying that all you could do was drown yourself in the warmth. sensing your silence, bennett snapped himself out of his shy rage and glanced down at you, and he softened significantly when he saw you huddled up next to his side trying to scrape as much of his body heat as possible.

silently (for the first time in a while), and timidly (also for the first time in a while), he moved his arm around your shoulder and brought you closer to his side.

the blush on his cheeks was furious, the shy boy within him jumping up and down in a frenzy, but he still kept you close for the warmth and stayed silent to let you rest.

and he hoped that the next time he goes on an adventure, you would be willing to tag along again.

#genshin x reader #genshin imagines #genshin impact imagines #genshin x you #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact x you #genshin impact #genshin impact bennett #bennett #genshin bennett #bennett imagines #bennett x reader #genshin scenarios #genshin impact scenarios #genshin

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flyinglotus777 · 3 years

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Netflix’s Squid Game

SPOILER ALERT! If you are interested in watching the series, I HIGHLY suggest you do so. This article will be an overall synopsis and my review of the show. For an in-depth analysis of the symbolism of the show and ending, scroll down to the fourth to last paragraph.

The Netflix show, “Squid Game,” written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk is a phenomenal Korean drama centered around our victor, Seong Gi-hun, played by Lee Jung-jae. Contestants were recruited to play in a life or death competition due to their lack of luck, financial knowledge, and influx of impending debt they have accumulated throughout their lives. We first meet Gi-hun as he is down on his luck. Living with his elderly, overworked mother (which in countries outside of the United States is not strange nor uncommon) Gi-hun was a friend to gambling, but that toxic love caused him to be in debt to a gang of (what seemed to be) loan sharks. When luck finally strikes him on the race track, life simultaneously decides to take an excrement on his reality. His debt seekers catch him on his hot streak and involuntarily sign him up to be a participant in the Squid Game.

Similar to many other of the 456 participants, they all shared a common denominator of being in situations it seemed only money could fix. Upon arrival the contestants were asked to voluntarily sign wavers in order to participate in the game, while unknowingly risking their lives, for the opportunity to win 456 billion won (which would be roughly over $3.5 million in US currency). The challenges were mostly based on nostalgic childhood games, both based in the United States and South Korea.

Now I knew due to the explanation in the introduction of episode one that if any player were to lose, they would die. So during the first challenge of red light green light, when players were bulletly penalized for losing I was not surprised. After the game, the players decided to rally together and quit playing. The influence of the cash prize split the decision down the middle, leaving the old man, player 1, to be the final decision. To my surprise he actually chose to decline, freeing all of the players. During the voting, many players screamed at each other as to why they would choose to stay in the hell hole as other players responded that the outside world was not any better if not the same as the harsh environment they were already in. This reality struck many contestants as they returned back to their reality of debt, dependents, and for some bounty hunts, thus resulting in them returning to the game.

During the whole season, I was trying to find the purpose of these games. We knew why the participants felt motivated to play, but I wondered what was the purpose of having them fight for their lives in the first place. When the PlayStation faced soldiers forced the doctor (player 111) to dissect the bodies for organs to sell at the black market, at first I thought that it was what the original game maker wanted which I thought was genius. Soon to learn that it was actually a violation to a code of equality that was placed inside the arena applying to all of those who existed, soldiers and participants alike. Which struck me as odd due to the soldiers being able to tote guns and wear masks based on their own hierarchy and the participants being collectively isolated and given numbers as if it was a remake of the Stanford Prison experiment. Nonetheless many soldiers faced the same fate as the players, and my pondering would meet the solution come the finale.

Let’s discuss players. I only favored Gi-hun because he was the protagonist, but throughout the story he grew on me as his big heart prevailed through the madness. I knew Choo Sang-woo, the embezzling business man and hometown friend of Gi-hun played by Park Hae-soo, was a psychopath when I saw him in a fully filled bathtub with his suit on. Running from the police, in debt or not, that’s just as much of a red flag for serial killer tendencies as sleeping with socks on or having too thin and highly arched eyebrows. The episode that he crossed Ali, the father of one from Pakistan with the missing fingers, made me hate Sang-woo for the rest of the series. I was infuriated and frustrated with Ali for being that naïve to believe that they could escape the round as a duo, but understood his perspective since up until that point Sang-woo was a dependable, trusted ally to Ali. However after that episode I didn’t care who won, I was just ready for Sang-woo to die.

Kang Sae-byeok, the skeptical and beautiful warrior from North Korea played by Jung Ho-yeon, deserves her own paragraph. Along with her beauty, her presence and demeanor was so bad ass. She was thrifty and intelligent, as her talent being pick pocketing. I was waiting for her to just be so bad ass. As the punk disguised to be gangster, Jang Deok-su, pushed her around which seemed to be normal behavior between the two, I was ready for Sae-byeok to twist his arm, send a plunging round house kick to his nuts, and cut his snake tattoo right off of his face. Although her exterior was tough, her heart was made of malleable gold which we got to see as she opened up to her female companion during the marble challenge and sobbed from her loss afterwards. Although she was not the killer bad ass queen I had wanted her to be, I still call her a warrior because of her resiliency throughout life’s and the game’s many obstacles and her drive to provide her younger brother with a better life.

Thankfully Deok-su got what he deserved as Han Mi-nyeo poetically decided to take both of their lives during the glass challenge. “You said we would be together till the end,” she said before diving into her inevitable death with her short lived lover. Mi-nyeo was incredibly annoying as I would often pinch the inside corners of my eyes and scratch my eyebrows when she would appear. However that crazy bitch served justice, and I love her for that.

I was highly disappointed by the demise of the detective Hwang Jun-ho, played by the handsome Wi Ha-joon. I was rooting for detective Jun-ho, as I’m sure we all were, on his pursuit to find his brother. I was not surprised that his brother was Front Man, as I had suspected that his brother must’ve died or been apart of the game making due to his absence in real life and the current game. After discovering his brother was the victor of his year, to me it only made sense that he would be apart of the game enforcement. As we saw from Gi-hun, a normal life is impossible to live after experiencing something so traumatic as a series of death ridden children games. However I was saddened and surprised that detective Jun-ho was unsuccessful in closing down the whole operation. I mean the man was close to performing forced, aristocratic fellatio in the name of serving and protecting the law. I truly thought because he had gotten so far and was so close to exposing the operation that the only choice he had was to be successful. At last he was shot and killed by his own blood, the one he had been looking for; providing us with a cinematic and heart jerking ending to detective Jun-ho.

Lastly lets discuss the old man, player 001 named O Yeong-su, whom I also nicknamed Poppy during the series. Deceivingly innocent and weak, I genuinely liked Yeong-su throughout the game play. I thoroughly enjoyed his relationship with Gi-hun and saw him as a valuable player in most instances. I believe he was one of the main reasons that Gi-hun continued to lead with his heart. Gi-hun claimed that Yeong-su was the reason he returned to the games and later found out that Yeong-su was the reason there were games in the first place. The climatic episode of the marble challenge was when their relationship had been defined as “gganbu” (which is a term for trusted, close friends in Korean, as explained in the series), thus Yeong-su establishing a special place in Gi-hun’s heart. During the challenge, Yeong-su begins to have an episode of what we all assumed to be dementia as the arena they are playing in is designed like his old neighborhood and he abandons the game to take a trip down memory lane. Gi-hun screams in frustration at the old man to play with him only to end up losing in their even and odd game and resulting in deceit, tricking the old man to let him be the victor. Now if I was Gi-hun, I would’ve convinced Yeong-su to let me hold his marbles for safe keeping and let him have a fun time reminiscing on his life while he ran down the clock. Then when it was time, I would’ve turned in all 20 marbles just as Sang-woo did and went about my business. It would’ve only been right for the old man to forfeit as he was already on his death bed, or so we innocently thought. Before I get into the ending, I want to talk about the last match between Sang-woo and Gi-hun.

Finally, the last game to see who would be victorious in a highly anticipated game of Squid between Gi-hun and Sang-woo. It seemed as if it were a battle between good vs evil; Gi-hun representing a more benevolent side as he would often optimistically look to help other competitors and extend the kindness he had been shown versus Sang-woo who represented a more vindictive and ruthless side, determined to hurt anyone in order to receive his highly coveted and long awaited prize in an arena that erased any foundation of morals or ethics as soon as the light turned red. Luck was on Gi-hun’s side as he had the opportunity to play offense. With a cunning mind and a vengeance for Sae-byeok’s death, Gi-hun delivered a can of whoop ass to his opponent. As the saying goes, the good shall always prevail. Perhaps his heart was too pure as Gi-hun halted from crossing the finish line and offered Sang-woo a chance to live, thus forfeiting the prize money. Needless to say, I applauded when Sang-woo committed suicide as it was the only right thing to do in his position.

A year passed by and Gi-hun seemed worse than before. Physically his style was bummy wealthy, a look pioneered by Bill Gates, but mentally he was in shambles. How could you blame him? Gi-hun discovered that the responsible party for these horrendous events was none other than his ggangbu, old man Yeong-su. The biggest, jaw dropping plot twist of the entire series. As they were joined on Christmas Eve and Yeong-su on his death bed, they placed one final bet on an assumed to be drunken, homeless man who sat on the streets as it snowed and waited for help to arrive. Yeong-su explained how he actually wanted to help people and give his money to people who needed it, but wanted to do it in an “entertaining way.” As Gi-hun flared with outrage towards the old man for finding amusement in killing people, the old man rebutted using horse races as an example of people’s amusement. Yeong-su also said he participated in the games because it was more fun to play than to be a spectator, which I had noticed him treating the competition as if it were adult summer camp. I had just assumed since he was old, he didn’t care if he had died or not.

I think most people will think that this show was a metaphor about how money and rich people are evil. However I think it can be seen as commentary on society as a whole, not just the wealthy. Yeong-su says on his death bed that it’s a test of humanity, and asks Gi-hun if he still has faith in humanity after what he has experienced. Although money was the luring motivator to win the game, people still chose to return to the competition to escape their problems. Sure, money was apart of their problems as all of the players (excluding Yeong-su) were in debt, but that was due to choices that they had made. Whether it had been through embezzling, gambling, lack of luck, or financial ignorance, it was the people who had gotten themselves into those situations. Money doesn’t have a personal vendetta against anyone nor does it have an inherent quality of good or evil. Money is a neutral energy used to be exchanged for goods and services. It’s people who designate that energy to their humane or inhumane desires.

Leading to the next point of the wealthy and how they are seen to be evil due to having wealth. Although I do believe that there are some wealthy people who act as villains, money didn’t create the villain inside of them. Those people were going to behave maliciously whether they have money or not. The VIPs, who were spectating the finale of challenges, were tied to a bank devoted to the wealthy and gambled on the competitors who played (and most likely helped subsidize the events). We place judgement on them, but as Yeong-su said, people gamble on horse races. Although people are not animals and by my knowledge I don’t believe most or any horses die during these races, it is still the principle of watching an entity being tortured for amusement, which is not only confined to the wealthy population. When the concept of killing and tormenting living breathing beings for amusement is normalized within society, the lines begin to blur on who is okay to perform and who is not. Take the audience of this show for example, we all watched a show where hundreds of people were mercilessly killed for the desire of winning a cash prize for our own amusement, thus making “Squid Game” the number one show on Netflix at the moment. Although the show is fictional and brilliantly written, this Hunger Games concept is not new. We come in contact again and again with the idea of people who are disadvantaged given an opportunity to better their lives through inhumane means, including risking their own lives or actively sacrificing the life of another, and being spectators on the edge of our seats who can’t seem to look away. It is no different than a Roman gladiator match in a grand colosseum, which in modern day would be a MMA fight at the MGM hotel. We blame it on the rich who are ridiculed for creating these events, but at the end of the day it is the people, rich,poor, and everyone in between, who continue to still go along with it and to some extent desire it. Which makes me question, what does that say about humanity, and do I actually have faith in us? Although Gi-hun went through hell and back, he still remained pure of heart and used his wealth to enhance his life and those around him; proving that wealthy people can still be benevolent and desire righteous good. Similar to Gi-hun, the optimist in me wants to believe that there are still people in this world with good hearts, but I guess we just have to wait until the time comes to see.

Ultimately the show was phenomenal, and definitely sparked a desire inside of me to watch more Korean dramas. I don’t think the show will have a second season. Simply because I think the story line would be better cut off there, thus leaving the audience always wanting more. However if season 2 ever comes out, I’m ready for Gi-hun to take a Liam Neeson approach to ending the Squid Game and hopefully with a beard. Thank you for reading my article. I know it was incredibly lengthy. I have just finished the season after a 2 day binge watch, and have a lot of emotions and thoughts ruminating in my brain. Let me know what you think of the show and what you think of the article. Did anyone else notice the paintings of the games on the walls of the dormitory?

God bless.

#squid game #netflix #review #korean drama #kdrama #series review #web series

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aurora1040 · 3 years

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So I just watched A Thing or Two About Loyalty and... Yeah. Y'all're right. Kate X Robin is forced. It absolutely came out of the blue and Kate is so blind to poor Much.

I feel for Isabella, tho. I mean, yeah, she's awful, but her backstory makes it understandable and much more believable. So I also think Kate and Robin were both wrong about Isabella. Had Robin believed Isabella's reason for lying about who she was when they first met, almost guarunteed all the issies with her wouldnt have happened to begin with. But no. He showed zero compassion or understanding about why she lied about who she was. She was trying to protect herself from an awful abusive husband! That lack of compassion and understanding, despite being a symbol of justice, is precisely what made Isabella believe no man could be teusted and that to survive, she had to play all sides just so she can survive. After all, if no one will fight for you, then why should you show loyalty to them? It seems selfish on the surface, but she was sold off at thirteen to an abusive man and her brother never ever once apologised or regretted it. If you cant trust your own family, who can you trust?

And then there was Meg. Strong, beautiful, intelligent yet frightened young Meg. Isabella thought she and Meg were the same. A woman with good sense to mot trust anyome to make decisions for her, to never allow a man to have that power over her the way Thorton had over Isabella. Of course she saved her. Of course she thought she could take Meg under her wing. It was only natural.

And I think Kate, because of her jealousy, could only see the negatives in Isabella and had no comprehension of the depth of why Isabella had no loyalties. I think if she had known, truly known and genuinely thought of what it actually meant to be sold into an abusive marriage from as young as 13 and the psychological damage it would cause, she wouldnt have seen her as harshly. Her sudden unfounded jealousy certainly didnt help.

In the mean time, I think Robin hood has had enough time to come to terms with the reality and literal nightmare that Isabella was living and trying to run from and he recognized how damaged she was. That she didnt become this way for mothing, unlike the original Sheriff.

Also, Little John? What on earth were you thinking discussing Robims love life with isabella?? That was literally of none of her comcern AND, cherry on the top, I'm convinced he was wrong because Robin has literally mever shown any sort of romantic interest in Kate. Ever. So. He literally caused the unnecessary turn about Isabella took. Look up reaction attatchment disorder and i think You'll see Isabella's face right next to it. So good going John. Usually Much is the big mouth, but not this time. That one's all on you.

With all of the psychoanalysis going for Isabella, its really no wonder she reacted the way she did when Meg became infatuated with Gisborne and tries ro release him. Isabella has been backstabbed so many times, she's learned to never give the benefit of the doubt because every time she did, she paid for it with immense pain of betrayal. So pf course she refuses to hear Meg out and called her a traitor instead.

This brings me back to Gisborne. Meg was the best thing that happened to him (the age gap is disgusting, but regrettably it was all too common back then and thus, sadly, is a ship that even Isabella could see setting sail). Meg knew how to provoke Gisborne into evaluating his life and his decisions and actions in a way that mot even Marian could. Amd unlike Marian, who only placated Gisborne and used him to feed information to Hood, Meg genuinely cared for Gisborne and his well being, no strings attatched. It was the one time Gisborne actually had feelings returned and for him, it really did make him a better man, even if it was only for this singular episode (because lah dee dah, the producers absolutely cared about charachter growth! A clue: No). So I actually truly felt bad for Gisborne. The one time he tries to do good, to do what was right, he again loses his center and reason for being the man he thought he could never be. And that makes me worried for the future episodes. Will he retaliate by becoming more violent than ever as he was after Marian? Or will he finally complete his change to being the man Marian claimed he could be and that Meg could actually see to honor his now dead loved ones? Or will it be a third anti-climatic or even a tragic result?

For the record: I am very anti- KateXRobin. Its just too forced for me to ship (so far).

#rbh #robin hood bbc #bbc #the outlaws

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yourdesertsunflower · 4 years

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Neji is Alive

A recapitulation of the construction of the best and most climatic moment in all of Naruto. That moment. Obviously a one hundred-percent real, not at all fake build up to the one moment every Naruto Fan was waiting for. Truer than true, best of the best. More canon than NaruRamen, here it is my recapitulation of that moment.

Seeing there is no further need to stretch the presentation and, without further ado, let’s get into it...

But before: DISCLAIMER! Please don’t take it personal. I am not that idiot to belive I could do a better manga than Kishimoto. All my respects to him and all of those who think differently. I am just a gen z scribbling nonsense about 2D characters so, yes, I am lame. (believe it!)

After the Neji vs Hinata fight the heiress of the Hyuga’s has a moment of self-reflection about herself and her identity as a part of the most fucked-up clan of Konoha. She had always been subject and victim of the clan’s structure and deemed as unable of fulfilling the roles that she was destined to fill up as a member of the primary branch.

She also understood that it was Neji, her cousin, who had it the worst when it comes to the configuration of the clan and, seeing how much it affected both of them and to limits they were able to reach she can’t hold it back any longer.

She finally is able to voice and externalize all those thought and now there is no turning back. She can’t turn a blind eye on the situation. She can’t longer see herself as the victim, nor wants to be seen as someone weak cause she knows the power she has given she is from the primary branch and is willing to capitalize that privilege in order to turn things around.

Motivated by Naruto’s Ninja way “never run away or give up on your word” she decides that she’ll work as hard as she is able to be a competent leader of the Hyuga Clan and convince people of a change.

However, she knows she can’t do it alone. Despite being born from the primary branch her softness and passiveness had always been an impediment to be a great shinobi. Even though she was, on paper, supposed to be a great kunoichi she had never been one of practice. She knows she’ll need of Neji if she wants to reach her full-potential. ]

Before the finals of the Chunin Exams she tries to talk o him in order to ask for him to train her but obviously Neji, being the bitchy genius he was at the time, doesn’t even listen to her. For obvious reasons, he doesn’t want to know anything of her.

However, this doesn’t demotivate Hinata. If she couldn’t convince Neji through words she’ll have to do it by her actions, after all that was people like Naruto did, so she starts training by herself.

After his match against Naruto and his talk with Hiashi, Neji sees Hinata training and offers her some help. Obviously Hinata accepts it and they start creating their cousin bond. They both quickly realize that they are both victims of the corrupted structure of the Hyuga Clan and that, if they wanted to change something, they needed each other. They would have to work together, not as member of the primary and secondary branch but as one entity, as cousins.

Hence, their bond and care for each other is not due that it was the fricking duty and destiny of one to protect each other but because they genuinely care for each other.

Neji trains Hinata and she becomes way stronger than anyone ever thought her capable of, to the extent than when the war breaks many of the elders of the Hyuga Clan think of her as a competent candidate to lead the clan during battle. All except her father, who still has some skeptisim about her daughter’s capability.

However, this isn’t voice by Hiashi as Hinata declines the role saying that, she not only has a lot to learn but that Neji fits the role much better than her. After all, if he was able to help her all through this years to be the best shinobi out of her capabilities she was sure that he’ll do the same for the rest of the Clan during war.

At war Naruto is attacked and Hinata jumps forward to protect him. However, Neji who is nearby seeing the desperation in his cousin’s eyes and fearing that she’ll do something reckless jumps in between her and Naruto protecting them both.

He does the Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven and deflects all the spikes coming towards him. Or so he thinks. He can’t see it but a he is being attacked in his blind spot. Before the target reached him, Hiashi intercedes and saves Neji of an instant death.

This wouldn’t be only Hiashi’s redemption but also a metaphorical redemption of all the Clan’s primary branch.

As his last words he says sorry to Hinata and thanks her for having taught him as his daughter, the most important lesson he has ever receive. True strength comes from, dedication, care and love. She is the best heiress and daughter the Hyuga Clan and he could ask for and names her the head of the Hyuga Clan.

As his last action he asks Neji to come nearer him and removes him from the curse seal. However Neji says he’ll always be there for Hinata, cause it isn’t the seal that bound them together but their bond as cousins.

Here Hinata would display her growth as character. She isn’t the shy little girl she once was but a fully capable woman that is capable to lead due to her emotional intelligence. Yes, she is sensible and caring but that are the traits that allow her to be the leader her clan is in need. Someone that can understand and be sensible to the emotions but that also has the strength to keep on moving foward.

This would also he Naruto’s ‘aha’ moment. She had said to him during Pain’s Attack to Konoha that she looked up to him but he has never been able to see her in those eyes till know. Even when heartbroken she has the strength to keep on moving, knowing that is what the others need of her. It was truly admirable. But, hadn’t she always been like that? Hinata was always one of those people to put others needs before her, to be there for him whenever she needed. Obviously, she had grown into someone more capable and confident of herself but the core is still the same. She was always the one.

It’s now him who is looking up to her. After all, she had been able to stay true to their share ninja way. She had never ran away of gave up on her word and had done it all holding on to that core values that made her, her. But he isn’t about to be left behind. He wanted to walk alongside her, in their ninja way.

After the war, when things are finally settling down Hinata questions herself if she’ll be able to fit the shoes of the Clan’s Leader and tells Neji that she thinks the he or Hanabi would be much better options for the role. However, Neji gives her his full support and ensures her that he’ll be there to help her as his right hand, not because there is a tradition that say that should be so but because he truly believes in her and is eager to be part of this new era for the Clan.

They finally are able to ban the Hyuga’s Curse Seal. It is removed from all members of the second branch and it is strictly prohibited to be placed upon new borns.

Neji takes the role of Jonin Commander of Konoha and, some years after the war marries Tenten with whom he has a son/daughter named Ren. This name, besides being unisex, means lotus which symbolizes purity, enlightenment, self-regeneration and rebirth (obvious metaphor and a little nod to Hizashi). They are the first child of the second branch no to never be sealed.

Neji lives a long-lasting life as a proud father, beloved husband, supportive cousin, dear friend and trusted leader.

The End.

Okay, so if you reached this point and you are like, I had already seen this post (?) let me explain. I edited a tag of this post in my phone and it went completely blank. So yeah. I got to do it all over again cause obviously I got no back-up. Shit. F for me. But hope you enjoyed it. Kudos!

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ukthxbye · 3 years

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Ooh, a snippet of Everything Has Its Place!!

Yes ooh ok. Well here’s the story synopsis and then a snippet. So from the Swedenlolly story we know that they are engaged. But they had a serious run in and Molly is dealing with some PTSD and depression. There is also a criminal causing issues so that’s the harder bit to do. Hmm what to show. There is a terse conversation between her and Mycroft. Yes or do I do the climatic chapter? Hmm let’s save that in case I actually finish this thing lol. Or could do her and Tom meeting randomly? Yes why not. Mind it’s just a rough bang out of dialogue mostly. I’ll give a long snippet

“So he finally went through with it all eh?"

Molly frowned, narrowing her eyes. “Finally? He and i have only been together a few months. Hardly seems finally"

She laughed nervously as he held her eyes for a moment, his look sympathetic and knowing, more than she ever observed when she was with him.

“Molly he has been in love with you for much longer, well or least he didn’t want you to be with anyone else if he was honest with himself.”

“I’m sorry…”

“When we met I knew, every bit of energy coming off him said it. “

“Really?”

“Trust me. I didn’t fully accept it until after the Watson wedding. That is where I found out how much you still loved him.

She looked down at her hand.

“Yeah maybe i wasn’t honest with you or myself when i said it was a little crush”

“I didn’t say the nicest things when we ended,” he sighed. “that was my pride. I hated losing you but you know over time I realize I never had all of you.

"Tom…"

"No look, it's ok. It really is. I learned so much from it and fixed some parts of me that needed it.

And I am really in love with my fiance. And I'm quite sure you're the same.

We were wishful thinking Molly. We found our real happiness now."

Her heart hurt immediately at those words, one that she had tried to convince Sherlock of the same assertion.

“I don’t mean that in a negative way. We both wanted good things, but we were missing that one piece, that piece that we both found now.

“I don’t know what you have already gone through with him, I can imagine life is not quiet.

“Yeah, “ She half laughed, “We went to Sweden not long ago. That is where we got engaged”

Molly had no desire to convey the details of how it was perfect in a way though chaotic. A lot like them.

“Romantic i am sure” he sighed." Sure that man does nothing in halves. But I have to know, I need to be assured that he truly makes you happy Molly. I cannot tell by your look right now, it is so different, the blonde the clothes, I don’t think you changed for him, it seems more like you realized yourself… but I want to be sure”

She smirked “the clothes are part of a disguise in a sense. It threw off the tabloids for a bit and…”

Well she doesn't need to share too much.

“ and i had help with the look. I guess I changed for him in a way but I have grown accustomed to it.”

“Are you happy?”

She swallowed any doubts and focused her thoughts on Sherlock, his smile, his laugh and his arms wrapped around her at night, clinging to her like a raft in his darker moments. And that ring, more than just a pretty babble, a sign of his growth and the depth of his affection in its hidden meanings. Little secrets between them that to be honest have always been a part of their friendship. The quiet privacy they both find a way to protect.

She looks up at Tom and genuinely let her heart’s feelings burst forth on her face.

“Your face answers it,” “He makes you deeply happy and I am glad of it.My life would have been much too boring for you”

“Oh that’s unfair. I would have been very happy with you”

“No Molly you would not. Oh perhaps part of you would have. But you gotta accept there is a part of you that is built for this new life with him. No, quiet life is appealing to you in parts but there is the thrill seeker and a person who seeks a different path in you. That part I knew I could never match when I let you go.”

#Ukthxbye answers #sherlolly

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script-a-world · 5 years

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Hi! I've been debating writing a story set in a snowy realm, but there's a bit if a problem: I've never actually seen snow in person. Does it crunch or slush when you step in it? Does it smell? Does it accumulate quickly or slowly, or does that depend on the intensity of the storm? If anyone could answer these and maybe add bits of their own experience with snow, I'd really appreciate it!

Saphira: ASMR for snow can help with that! But as someone who grew up on a wet little loin-cloth of NY, let me tell you about my experience with snow.

There are two main types of snow when it falls. There is the damp, heavy snow, and there is light powdery snow. The damp and heavy comes down harsher (think blizzards and hefty fall) but they are better for building. Snowmen and igloos in the yard, crisp angels... Perfect snowballs. Round and firm and smooth. The light and powdery snow usually comes down in flurries first, and when it comes down hard, it looks like rain in slow motion. Powered snow is more Hollywood snow- looks lovely but can't be used for much else.

Now snow does more to the ground than cover it. Unless you had a particularly heavy snow, you're not really going to get the "oh wow a foot of snow in every direction!" For about every inch of rain, you get what, a quarter inch of snow? Less than that? Normally what we would get is barely more than a 'dusting', what we called up to an inch for a standard snow. (This varies dramatically for different environments. I would research areas like the New England Area or Northern Canada for different experiences.) With a dusting you could really see how the rest of the ground reacts to the cold temperatures.

Feral: A lot of people, though not all, can "smell snow" before it falls. To me it's crisp, a little bit ozone-y. Mental Floss has an article about the actual science behind it.

How fast snow accumulates is going to depend on the type (heavy snowflakes versus the powdery stuff versus what I usually get which is essentially raining not-quite-hail ice crystals) and the amount of fall as well as how cold it's been. If it hasn't been consistently below freezing, the ground might be too warm at first for the snow to begin piling up immediately.

Saphira: Yes, a lake might freeze over, but it's usually just at the edges. Puddles and little bits of standing water are what really freeze. You know the bits of water that gather at a curb? All thin ice, often "black ice" that is hard to see. Everyone from ages 3-70 steps on them to make them crack. I dunno. We just do. Icicles? Everywhere. Anywhere water could run off of (a roof, the bumper of a car, parts of a fence) they hang like tassels. In heavier snows they are thick and bold, or if it was a steep surface. They are longer before they are thicker. Anyone from 3-70 breaks them off. They're just so break-off-able. Sometimes they're just the right size for a pretend cigar. If you find a BIG one, you will challenge your friends to a dual. Unspoken rules. Also the grass freezes over. Any grass that is exposed will get dew like normal, that freezes almost immediately. Grass is crunchy.

After the plows have been through, all the snow that was on the street will be piled up on the sidewalk or next to it. There will be fewer places to park. They will be these giant banks of ashen snow. They're tall and gross. There will be smaller ones on corners, especially at street lights. People will trample small, narrow paths over the banks to allow people to get over them easier. These also happen at bus stops, or anywhere that people jaywalk often.Then the slush comes. Slush is the aftermath. Slush is the melt, and the dirt, and the decay of snow. It gets in your boots and splashes like rain water and spite. I hate slush. It's gross, it's ugly, and it seeps out of piles of Plow-snow. In a place with a lot of soil, the slush gets soaked up by the soil. The places where it's all pavement and drains? Slush is snow-swamp. Slush is everything we hate about the Everglades, but cold.

Finding the right scent for snow is hard, but it's very similar to rain. It's as if the rain-scent had a cleansed ghost. I only smell it before the snow, because after that the dust of the street-plows kinda kills the serenity of it. As far as sound, only the top of the snow crunches. It happens when some of the snow freezes after being on the ground. Anything beneath that (if you have heavy snow) is a fwhoop. That is the sound of your boot sinking into the abyss. Now you're standing knee-high in snow, with your pants soaking up the water that melts from your body heat. This is why snow-suits were invented. You look derpy but you are invincible to snow's evils.

I don't like snow. It's cold and now matter how much comes down, I still have to go to work.

Constablewrites: It doesn't necessarily have to be that cold when it's snowing. It's the wind, man. It cuts right through all your warm layers and makes your face hurt. I'll regularly look at the forecast and say, "Oh it's 40F it's not that's cold" and then I'll step outside and the wind hits me and oh god why. Insulating layers under your clothes are the key, but then you can get uncomfortable warm inside, especially when you're somewhere with a lot of people. Winter sweatiness is the worst.

You know intellectually that ice is slippery, but the first time you actually slip there's that moment of primal terror as you really understand what it's like. Walking on ice must be done very carefully. Penguins have the right idea: put all your weight straight down. There's an art to waddling.

Snow is like a houseguest. For the first few days it's quite pleasant, but once you're on the second month or so you start hating everything and everyone. But that might just be me.

Tex: Crunching and slushing depend on the type of snow, as well as things like the time of day, how long since last snowfall, and your location (Arctic Circle - snow on top of perpetual snow, Midwest US or Central Europe - snow can melt and then fall some more). It accumulates quickly in winter storms, and slowly during snow flurries and other instances of calm to no winds.

The wikis for snow and classifications of snow are a good primer on the topic. Liftopia and Thought.Co each have their own basic guides on different types of snow, though this is mostly from the perspective of snow sports such as skiing and snowboarding.

Some places are uniquely suited to lots of snow (ScienceDaily), while others are not - snow is as much a product of geological formations and as it is latitude. Snow melting and then refreezing is what gives it that "crunch" when you break through the top layer, and is usually caused by exposure to sunlight + refreezing (from nighttime temperature drops, wind, more snow, etc).

The wind and cold will absolutely do damage to your face if you leave it unprotected - you can get ice burns and windburns, if not outright frostbite. Usually slathering on some thick cream on your face will help, since the moisture will keep your skin hydrated, which reduces the chance that high winds + snow will shred your face. I've gotten both ice burn and windburn, and the feeling of your face heating back up once you're inside can be incredibly painful. (Does that stop me from going outside without a hat? Usually not.)

The walking thing. It, ah- you don't actually have to waddle and hunch yourself over. I'm still not quite sure how that idea became popular - the reason why a lot of people fall over is from a combination of things: putting weight on your heels when walking, wearing the wrong shoes, having the wrong posture (that hunching over thing, conversely also leaning back too far such as puffing your chest out and throwing your shoulders back), and going too fast. I walk straight up - even with a backpack that's often heavier than a small child - and the only times I've ever fallen over are when I've misjudged how icy the ground is, or the evenness of the ground under the snow. The trick is mostly your foot movements; don't roll your feet, try to keep the weight evenly distributed in your feet, and if necessary balance a little bit on the balls of your feet in the cases of uneven terrain so you don't immediately fall flat on your face. If it's windy, tug your hat/hood over your face more (or hold it close to your face, I've done that a lot), curve your shoulders a little bit inward, and duck your head so you can see where your feet are.

There's a genuinely wide variety of snow weather, and I've experienced most types - from the nor'easter of 2003 (1 2 ; my family had to climb through the window to dig out the front door, and had gusts of -60F/-51C - still went to school with only a small delay for the snowplows to clear the roads), to barely Cold TM but lots of freezing rain and black ice, and to slush that sometimes freezes in patches and sometimes doesn't do anything but sit there and make you miserable with its existence.

Depending on where it snows, though, there are... different reactions, and it's not always because of how used to it a region is - I've personally seen panic everywhere from places that regularly get a meter of snow every winter (from locals that are several generations into living there) to places where clouds are rare, much less precipitation of any kind, so infrastructure capabilities don't always have much to do with it with people's ability to cope with weather. Places that regularly get snow just... kind of force you to adjust or convince you to move to climates with gentler winters. People that are used to it and don't panic tend to keep themselves stocked with necessities - rolling blackouts are frequently a thing, as are breaking waterlines from neighbors that neglect to set their faucets on drip despite often getting notices from the city before inclement weather.

I've compiled a mountain of links (in a google doc) from both imgur and YouTube for you to sift through, with the pertinent ones marked with a star.

Lurelay: Snow can be incredibly heavy too, even the light and powdery kind. I have seen whole buildings collapse under the weight of it and sometimes it can grow meters tall on the roof. If the weather gets warmer you will see tiny streams of molten snow drip down the edges of the roof but the snow on top seems to still be intact. Fire- and policemen frequently have to step in and help to push down the snow. Sometimes our rivers freeze, although it has to be extremely cold for that to happen (around -10 to -15 degrees Celsius). The river will still flow underneath and fish can survive in the depths, but the top will either be completely frozen or broken in huge ice floes that float down with it. Lakes and other still waters usually freeze more quickly.

Snow will make seeing at night easier because it reflects light. There's also an element of quietness that comes with it, because snow absorbs a lot of sound.

Miri: Snow’s reflective quality is the part that causes me the most trouble. Part of my walk to work goes through a field area that can be a flat area of undisturbed snow at times, which means it’s just white everywhere. Snow blindness is a thing. I’ve had panic attacks in the middle of it looking around because it suddenly feels endless because your vision is just swimming with reflected light and everything in every direction is just white. Plus, you have no way of knowing if it’s snow all the way down, or if the bottom layer is ice and you’re going to lose your footing. It also makes it really important to have good curtains because it can make it feel bright as day in the middle of the night with all the light coming in the windows at night. Sometimes that’s how we notice it’s been snowing.

#pylons #snow #climate #Anonymous

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fairycosmos · 5 years

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I'm the birthday anon and like. Part of it is that I have been getting professional mental health help for over a year now, and I'm on anti depressants but nothing has been getting better, only worse consistently. I have a lot of trauma and recently something happened that brought it all back and it's taken me 10 years to deal with the previous trauma and even the idea that I will have to wait another 10 when I'm not over the first round? Yikes. I just feel like my destiny is to end it all.

hey! it's really good to hear that you have been getting professional help, even if it's not working the way you thought it would. just the fact that you took that step in the first place is really wonderful. you should honestly be proud of that. look, nothing is set in stone. you're not destined to kill yourself, you're not destined for anything in particular apart from the simple act of being alive. that's the only thing fate had in store for you. you recognize that you have a lot of trauma, and that obviously can have a very adverse impact on the brain, which means it can't be trusted in its vulnerable state. you 'feeling like' you're destined to end it doesn't mean you are, doesn't mean it's the truth or that there's no hope, it means your brain is overwhelmed with trying to handle everything and so your perception/emotional climate is corrupted. but that's not a permanent state of being, not a reason to end the only life you're ever going to get, you know? it sounds like the most cliche and empty thing in the world, but the bottom line is that your brain is simply trying to convince you of things that aren't true as a coping mechanism, an unhealthy one at that.is there any identifiable reason why you feel like professional help isn't working as much as you think it should? really take some time to think about it. look at where you were a year ago, where you are now, and make a note of any changes or differences in lifestyle. do you think you need to change your meds, or open up more in counseling, or change therapists/doctors, or engage in more intensive exercises? if so, bring it up to your doctor. let them know you need more support, that you're not okay. it's alright to do that. in fact, they encourage it. the thing about treating mental illness is that it's often a sort of trial and error thing. there may not come a time when you're constantly happy 24/7, and that's fine cause that's not the goal. but there will be a period in your life in which you learn to deal with the trauma and the episodes in a healthy way, and that's what's going to make it hurt less in the long run. you don't have get to a point where you're able to act as if the trauma didn't happen, because it did. but you will get to a point where you can live happily despite it. it's rare to get treatment right the first time, especially when you're a teenager, because your state of mind is always changing and there's still a lot of natural progression left for you to experience. but you can and will find a balance, if you work honestly with the professionals in your life. reaching out is hard, and choosing to put any energy you have into working on your mental health instead of tearing yourself down is harder, but it's so fuckin possible and thats why i'm pushing it. i know it seems like i don't get it, but i do. at least to an extent. i understand the degree of hopelessness that you're feeling, how completely soul crushing and discouraging it is. how just being in your own head is utterly exhausting. and i recognize that fact while simultaneously believing that there is still a way forward for you, because there is. i don't know what happened or why you're traumatized, and i won't pretend to. that pain is yours. but your adult brain is going to handle it all very differently, especially if you're regularly seeing a professional. the next ten years, regardless of everything, will not be like the previous ten years. you're not stuck in endless repetitive patterns, you're not trapped. the future is daunting but it also doesn't exist yet, you genuinely can not predict it and you don't have to waste your time doing so. all you can truly focus on is the present day, and working on what you can to to make it a little more bearable. that alone is good enough. that is where the change we talked about before happens. you're not going to regret sticking around, man. i promise. please do what you can to keep yourself safe.i still stand by what i said, how i believe a massive subconscious part of you wants to hang on, how you don't want to do something irreversible over short term (in the grand scheme of things) hurdles, how just the fact that you're here and trying means you're succeeding. it's all true, from an objective standpoint, and maybe you can't believe it at the moment cause the negative thoughts/emotions are preventing you from doing so, but i genuinely think that eventually you will see it. even if it's just a glimpse, a small realization. where youre at right now isn't where you'll always be. there's no magic solution or string of words that will instantly make everything feel perfectly okay, but there is this: you're still here, regardless of the emotional distress, and you have made it through some of the hardest times you'll ever have to face. you didn't make it for nothing. you're in the process of just beginning to find your stride. it's a very slow and gradual thing. but one day, sooner than you think, you are going to look up and be quietly glad that you are alive. your future self is going to thank you, don't doubt it for a second. like i said before, i believe in you a lot and i'm extremely sorry that you've been through so much. peace will find you, in small waves. it's not as impossible as you think. in fact, it's guaranteed. hit me up if you need a friend or someone to talk to. i'll be here. stay safe.

#anon #tw suicide #:(( hope ur ok

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dreamsofanenigma · 5 years

Text

C H . 2 - Errand Girl.

Week 2, Friday, 11am. Location: Strangerville.

Stepping out into a dreaded heatwave that seemed to wrap around her like a sticky blanket had Holly urging to take an hour long shower. Granted, Strangerville wasn't the complete dust bowl she envisioned, the town harbored a certain charm that would leave a lasting impression, but to someone like Holly who was used to a cooler climate including four seasons, it was awful. Cactus' seemed to line every street as she added in a little extra for the taxi driver due to such a long trip and made her way into town. She used her hand to block out the melting rays, kicking herself for forgetting her sunglasses, and scanned the area. She swallowed thickly, her parched throat like sandpaper against the torrid air, and finally spotted what she came for.

The sun shines even more brightly here, or is it just my eyes?! What a huge contrast to Forgotten Hollow, I really wish I'd come better prepared.

On the way she passed a bar with several Sims milling around and dancing inside, and made a mental note to stop there for a drink when she finished shopping. After standing in line for what felt like hours and finally leaving the store she noticed that the general atmosphere in the town is clearly off. She couldn't place it, but everyone appeared to be walking on eggshells and sneaking glances when she passed. It also didn't help that she kept seeing Military personnel everywhere she turned. Holly tried to ignore the feeling that she’s stepping into some unknown land as she ventured inside the red bricked building. All conversations ceased, glasses no longer clinked, and the music abruptly shut off upon her arrival.

The customers had completely stopped whatever they were doing and spared a glance at Holly, who thought they probably don't get a lot of visitors on this side of town. Dust particles circled in the air as time came to a standstill. Thankfully everyone resumed their activities the second she took a seat. Alien stickers and various souvenirs lined the back of the bar, coupled with eccentric paintings lining the walls.

"You stayin' long?" The bartender asked curiously, intrigued by the newcomer.

"Uh, no. Just running some errands." Holly smiled politely, she barely remembered ordering that fruity drink, all she could think of at the moment was the cool liquid soothing her throat.

"Good. You know, you're free to do what you want, obviously, but I'd advise you to think twice about moving here." The bartender said in a low voice. Why did she care if anyone heard them? Were the houses built improperly?

"Why do you say that?"

"Now, what's this talk about moving in?" A man in uniform said approaching the bar and effectively cutting their small talk short.

"Same old same old, just grilling our newbie here. She's from the city," The bartender lied, looking sheepish at Holly, who was in fact from Brindleton Bay. “The usual, Brenden?"

"You know it!" He made a finger gun hand gesture before grinning cheekily. Holly began to noticed that this Brenden guy was a bit obnoxious, like he's just a little too happy.

Holly, almost forgetting the other Sims were still here, had downed the drink and was instead enjoying the steady rhythm of some new country beat thumping from the jukebox. Her gaze landed on a painting on the opposite wall, it took her a minute to realize it was moving, almost in time with the clock attached. It was hypnotizing in a way, Holly begin to feel calm just by looking at it.

Or it maybe it was caused by the chilled beverage running through her veins.

"I believe that picture was here before any of us," Said a voice above all the other senseless chatter. Holly turned to see another man dressed in army attire, though he appeared to be of a lower rank than Brenden. "But that's only a legend."

"Legends have to start somewhere." For the first time since arriving in Strangerville, she can feel the corners of her mouth lifting into a genuine smile, which he returned and extended his hand in greeting.

"Easton."

"Holly." She took a seat on the stool across from him. The bar was loaded with characters she'd never dreamed to see elsewhere. The different hair colors, clothes, and personalities clashed with her previous view of a simple life while residing in Strangerville.

"Ask for her number already, East, don't be scared!" Brenden said through laughter, nudging his friend. He'd had a few drinks too many and Holly was more than ready to go.

"I'll never double date with you again." Easton retorted, humoring him. Brenden was a good man who does whatever he can to keep the community and SimNation safe, but everyone has their weakness.

"Hey, I'll remember that on Monday." Brenden gave another chuckle before leaving them alone and starting on his fourth beer, Easton made sure to ask one of his co-workers to escort him home later.

A blonde woman in a white tank top and orange skirt suddenly sauntered in, she looked like one of those rich housewives who have nothing better to do than argue Holly saw a couple times on TV. It wasn't until the woman ordered a round for the group sitting next to them and introduced herself that Holly realized who she is.

"Nancy, good to see you." Easton and Nancy shared a look, Holly figured there was history between them but didn’t want to push her luck. Everyone knew the Landgraabs owned most of SimNation, and to get on their bad side is a huge mistake.

"So tell me, Holly, what brings you here? Not any conspiracies, I hope." Nancy inquired jokingly, but Holly's interest was piqued. "I just mean with all the incidents recently -"

"Actually, Holly and I were just leaving. Weren't we?" Easton shot her a pleading glance, he was thankful the rest of his comrades were too engrossed in conversation to notice.

"Yeah, he promised to show me the Library. I wanted to know more about the history of the place." Holly added with a nod, she hoped it didn't come off as too rude. Nancy took the hint while giving them a tight lipped smile, ever the cultured that one, and said her goodbyes.

Once outside Easton grabbed her hand, leading her towards the back of the building and well out of earshot. He couldn't believe Nancy would be so careless. Besides, there was no way she had any idea what actually happened that day, let alone in the Lab.

"Easton, what's going on?"

"I'm sorry, but if you go around asking questions... just promise me you won't go around asking people about any weird things you may hear. This place has its name for a reason."

"Why should I promise anything? I met you thirty minutes ago."

"Because you're a pretty famous upcoming model and I'd hate to see you in over your head, or your career ruined." Which is the truth, however, he actually did want to ask her out. Neither option could happen if she some how found herself 'detained', or worse.

"Easton, please help me understand what's going on. You're not making a lot of sense. Yeah, I've seen a few oddballs and heard a lot about conspiracies lately, but what is with all the secrecy?"

"It isn't that simple, Holly, I wish it was.” Easton took a deep breath before letting it out in one solid woosh. Should he tell her and risk losing his job? To a stranger, no less? It isn’t like he knew much about her, just a couple Simstagram photos and such he ran across on the weekends he has off to surf the web. But was it really worth telling her about the Lab? He honestly didn’t want to see someone innocent getting hurt because they stuck their nose into a situation far beyond them at the wrong time.

“There's an abandon Lab on the other side of town. One that may contain something dangerous... I don't know exactly when it started and I can't offer details, but please, stay away from that place. The weird plants growing around the Lab, they have spores that can cause some kind of infection. I’m not sure what it is and I've only seen the effects of it happen once, to a scientist that was part of a research group funded by a government organization. But after the accident they hauled him away so fast I never got a good look. We were not, and are not, to talk about it."

Holly could not believe what she was hearing. Why would the Military need to hide something potentially dangerous from civilians? And why plants? What were those scientists doing in the first place? Why couldn't this just be a normal day of shopping? Why did she have to move in with fucking Vampires?!

Okay... calm down, Holly. Remember what your mom used to say when things became too stressful and you couldn't think straight. Keep a positive outlook. Don't let the little things overwhelm you, just focus on the important bits and the puzzle pieces will eventually fit to become a bigger picture.

"Then come with me."

"What? Holly I told you -"

"Yes, you did," Holly boldly took his hand, hoping she knew what the hell she was getting herself into. "But maybe it's time to shed some light on why this is happening, and possibly go on a little adventure of our own?"

Easton mulled it over, what if they did play investigator for a while? What could it hurt? His superiors didn't have to know and he was at least ninety percent sure they wouldn't find anything except some old news clippings and discarded ramen cups, provided they even made it into the Lab without authorization. Not that he’s going to mention any of this to her.

"We'll need to be careful, but I think I know the right Sims to get in touch with," Holly was surprised she managed to convince him. She started to agree with his method just as his friends called to him from across the parking lot. "Hey, I'll text you later."

"How? I didn't give you my number." Holly said when he jogged off towards their direction, his friends were excited about going to a party later that night.

"Don't worry, I have connections!"

Holly sighed and shook her head, intent on heading for the Library. May as well do some quick research while she's here. After an eventful day like this, it was nice to take some R&R. That was until Easton met her on the sidewalk a few minutes later, jogging backwards with a goofy grin on his face.

"Yeah, I lied; I actually do need your number."

#ts4 strangervile #strangerville #ts4 #sims 4 #sims 4 story #storytelling #Holly Davis #Vlad Straud #Victoria Straud #vampires #mystery #desert of the void #I think we've established that Holly is either naive about these things or very brave #probably both #I can't wait until you guys meet Easton #he's actually cute and decent #which I wasn't expecting lol

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bubble-tea-bunny · 6 years

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marianas or the moon

[barry allen x reader]

author’s note: i always thought kissing booth fics were kinda cute, figured i could try my hand at it. hope y’all enjoyyy

word count: 2,036

Barry Allen is a nervous wreck 90% of the time, and 80% of that time it’s because of you.

He already doesn’t know the first thing about interacting with people. Not in a way that doesn’t embarrass himself or leave him a stuttering mess. Just the other day, someone sat next to him in criminology, shook his hand and gave him their name. And Barry had smiled because that’s the easy part but instead of giving his own name he’d said the same one back. Then he’d gone pale realizing what he did and the classmate had just laughed, calling it a coincidence, and now Barry’s convinced that whenever he sees this Sam in class or around campus, he’ll need to pretend his name is Sam too. Because correcting the mistake is much too difficult. Oh no. He’d already committed to it.

But when he first met you, he’d given you the right name the first time. Thankfully. And it’s odd that he had because all that was flittering through his mind as he introduced himself was how pretty you were. He’d bumped into you when walking to his next class. The force of the impact knocked your notebooks out of your arm and he’d apologized profusely as he helped you pick them up. You’d smiled reassuringly and told him it was okay. And then he looked at you, really looked at you, and he was hardly paying any mind as he said his name, getting it right by sheer luck because your eyes were like the soft oscillation of a hypnotist’s pocket watch—entirely mesmerizing, and at the sight of them, he thinks he’d do anything you asked him to.

You still have that effect on him, and Barry’s certain that it will last in perpetuity. He wonders if you can tell, if you can spot the way his own eyes seem to get glossy when he watches you, transfixed, entranced, equal parts by his own will and yet not by his own will at all. It’s like a superpower (and at first he did genuinely wonder if you had persuasion). With one glance you have someone wrapped around your finger—Barry, in this particular example. But there’s still a part of him that would do whatever you wanted, even if he wasn’t under your supposed powers of persuasion. (You don’t actually have persuasion, he knows that now. You’re just you. And maybe that’s the strongest superpower of all.)

As such, it might be safe to say that a majority of his life after having met you has been spent in a state of hypnosis. You’re his best friend, and he sees you often. It’s strange that it came to that because you’re practically his opposite. He’s all flustered dork and you’re… well, you’re just not that. When it comes to interacting with strangers, other students on campus or customers at the local coffee bar also waiting for their drinks, you do the majority of the talking, easily carrying on light conversation like it’s your job. It seems to be a feature that emanates from you, like there’s a sign above your head, numerous light bulbs forming an arrow as if to let others know you’re friendly and open to talk, if they wanted to. And almost always, they do. They gravitate towards you. You always try to pull him into the conversations. You’re sweet like that, never wanting him to feel left out, and you figure maybe it’ll be good practice for his people skills. Because you know most are too slow for him but you’re there to close that gap, giving him guidance, gentle nudges in the right direction.

One time while at his apartment, preoccupied with a game on your phone while Barry sat at his computer, you’d asked if he found you too slow for him. He glanced at you but you hadn’t once looked up from the screen and he already knows that no, he doesn’t think that. You have no problems keeping up. If anything—

“I think it’s me who should be asking if I’m too slow for you,” he says, smiling slightly.

And it’s true. At least Barry thinks so. Whenever he’s around you he can’t help but feel inadequate, especially when you interact with others. He wishes he could do it as well as you could. He wishes he could do it at all.

You smile too and slide your eyes up to him. “You could never be.”

There’s an unspoken agreement in those four words that the two of you are moving at the exact same pace.

His feelings for you have always been lying beneath the surface of his heart, ever present but always ignored. Barry fears it would jeopardize your friendship if you knew and he can’t bear the thought of losing his best friend. So he just doesn’t say anything. And it goes fine. When he trips over his words or feels his hands get clammy whenever you just seem to look at him a certain way, all soft eyes and warm smile, you never take it as anything more than him simply being his usual awkward self, even if the truth is that he’s acting that way because he likes you. A lot. But the day you’re holding a flyer, at the top of which reads Kissing Booth (complete with a red kiss next to it), those feelings start straining against the wall of his heart, prepared to burst, to bare themselves to you.

“Meredith asked if I would work the booth, at least for a couple of hours,” you explain, still looking down at the piece of paper. But then you look at him. “What do you think?”

Barry thinks it’s a bad idea. Maybe that’s a given, considering his crush on you and all. It’d be weird to say no, though, since you don’t know about his crush. The voice in the back of his head tells him that this is it, then—this is the moment he tells you that he likes you and he’d much rather you don’t work the kissing booth because he wants you to himself. But he doesn’t listen, and instead he smiles and says you should do whatever it is you feel like doing. You decide to volunteer and he really should’ve expected that because you always want to help, ever so helpful [Name], but he still can’t quite control the way he deflates when he hears it. He smiles and nods and hopes it distracts you enough that you don’t see his shoulders sag.

The fair had started a few hours ago, right as the sun dipped down below the horizon, but Barry hadn’t shown up until your shift at the kissing booth. He’d walked with you to the park at the center of campus, dropped you off at your area. You smiled up at him and asked if he’d be okay, if he’d just be heading back to his apartment. You don’t ask it to be judgmental, and he knows that. You know how he is in crowds like this, how for him, talking to people is like being thrust into the wild. And sure, he’s picked up some stuff from you about how to go about it, but it’s akin to only being half-fluent in a language. People will talk and Barry will understand vaguely, but formulating responses would take too long, mind scrambling for what to say.

He tells you he thinks he’ll stick around for a bit, to look at what else is here. Your smile widens as you say okay and tell him to keep an eye out for anything you might like to check out, for when your shift is over. And then Meredith is calling you to the now vacant stool, and with one comforting pat to Barry’s arm, you make your way over. As he walks away, he glances once over his shoulder to where you are and sees the sign: $5 Kisses. Complete with hearts.

Wandering around the fair and taking in the sights is interesting enough. There’s plenty here, and he’s making notes of where to take you. He’s not really following any path, just wandering around aimlessly. At least that’s what he tells himself. Because before he knows it, the kissing booth is back in his sights. He stands there for a few minutes, hands tucked into his jacket pockets as he thinks. There’s a line and jealousy bubbles in his chest and he knows nothing more confidently than the way he feels about you, yet his feet seem frozen to the spot. Doubt holds him back as he wonders what you’d think when he reached the front of the line and your best friend sat down. If you didn’t like him back, the climate of your friendship would change forever. Well, if you did like him back, it’d still change, but at least it would change for the better. Either way things would be different. And in the boldest move he thinks he’ll ever make on this green earth, he gets in line. It’s a risk he’s willing to take.

The jar of five dollar bills is filling up nicely. At the end of the night, Meredith will be counting it all and donating it. She’s standing several feet away, stopping some people and asking if they’d be interested in going to the kissing booth, because “It’s for a good cause!” You glance over at her between kisses, as the current person stands and the next person takes a seat. This time, you look back over to see Barry across from you. Your eyes widen and your heart starts beating faster because words don’t need to be said. The context you two find yourselves in speaks for itself. Which is nice, since for once, you can’t seem to find words.

“Hey, [Name],” Barry greets quietly, shyly.

“Hey, Barry,” you greet in a similar hushed tone. Your cheeks are warm and you wonder if he can hear your heart beating hard.

There’s a few seconds of silence and Barry is getting increasingly worried. Had he made a mistake? His hands are wrenching in his lap and he wants to leave. He’d made a fool of himself. Of course he had. You never thought of him like this and now he’s gone and fucked it all and—

You lean forward and set your soft lips on his.

—and he thinks he’s died and gone to heaven. Sure, he might’ve imagined what the moment might be like. But it doesn’t compare to the real deal at all. The real deal is better. And he knows these sorts of booths are only meant for an innocent peck but he finds himself deepening it. You don’t protest. It’s only when there are grumbles from the others waiting in line that you force yourself to pull away first. Barry’s eyes are still closed and he’s already missing your lips. When he opens his eyes and looks at you, you’re smiling a little, cheeks flushed and beautiful, and you look over at Meredith, who’s already watching the two of you with a small smile on her face.

“I’m gonna have to end things a bit early, if that’s okay,” you say.

Meredith’s smile widens as she nods and walks over, presumably to take your place. She shoos you away. “All right. Go.” You’re quick to stand and Barry follows after you. You grab his hand to lead him away, but before you’re too far out of hearing range, Meredith speaks up again—“It’s about time!”

You can’t help but giggle as you look back at her for a second, but then your attention is all on Barry. It’s not entirely certain where the two of you might head from here. You just pull him along and he follows. Are you going to his apartment? The café down the street? Anywhere to get away from the hustle and bustle of the park, if anything. Barry decides it doesn’t matter where you’re both going. He’d be perfectly fine if it were to the end of the horizon or the rings of Saturn. He just cares that you’re there too.

#barry allen x reader #barry allen imagine #justice league imagine #the flash x reader #the flash imagine #ezra miller x reader #ezra miller imagine #barry allen #justice league #the flash #ezra miller #DC comics #dc comics imagine #bubble-tea-bunny

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lids-flutter-open · 6 years

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writing bloggin ignore if u want

so after listening to a ton of rpg live play podcasts the thing i think i’ve taken away from it is that the dynamics between characters and character choice and motivation cannot be underestimated ever at all and that you can set up a plot but your characters have to take you thru it and you can’t force them to make certain choices, and i think this is gonna rlly help w my titus reno story--

in making jenny and reno come alive and be equally like, legible for me like titus, i rlly wanted like to figure out how and why they were all originally hanging out and what they want and what their longterm goals are. initially i conceptualized jenny as this sort of punk hermione who is chaotic good and breaks the rules for the sake of justice and benevolence etc but i couldn’t figure out how jenny would get like that or develop those principles in the context of the medical compound and i also didnt find that like, a compelling character arc. BUT i have a new idea where jenny is like, this drug dealer turned accidental but passionate prophet and it has just tied my whole thing together in a way that i hope is gonna help me actually get this stuff on paper+ it also provides a GREAT underlying dramatic arc and a good rationale for the dynamic of titus and reno to work as a couple the way i want it to

so: in this future world, everyone, human and mutant laborer alike, has this parasitic worm living in them that’s impossible to kill which makes people infertile, causes nerve damage, and finally eats your brain, some fifteen years after your initial infection. Because the worms lay thousands of eggs in all kinds of water supplies, most people are infected within a few years of birth, except some hastily quarantined human children. Super secret scientists know the worm is an alien and this fact has only recently been released, but it doesn’t make much noise because at this point there are multiple global crises threatening civilization--climate change that has flooded cities and made agriculture on industrial scales impossible in many areas, total breakdown of all democratic governments, and now almost universal infertility. Pig-human mutants, who had been raised as laborers in dangerous lines of work, continue to be produced even as human mothers fail to concieve; these piggos are taken to be tested on, and each year as more die others are brought in. The scientists are working on trying to find something to kill the parasite that everyone on earth has.

Jenny’s roommate in the medical compound realizes, through an accident, that the worms release hallucinogenic chemicals when you eat potassium fertilizer. She starts tripping and then begins dealing potassium fertilizer (to which she has restricted access as a specially authorized gardener). When she becomes too sick to continue, Jenny takes over. The position of dealer affords piggos status and power, and Jenny even deals to nurses, without telling them what the substance is. But gradually as time goes on she begins to be curious about the visions everyone has on this drug--because they’re all the same.

When people take the fertilizer and ingest it and the worms release hallucinogens, people see pretty much all the same thing. they see alien landscapes and waterfalls and a sky with two moons and a distant red sun. It drips and spasms and is intermingled with other kinds of LSD type visions, but in general people see the same thing over and over. Jenny becomes convinced that the visions are a link to the world the alien worm came from, and she starts making all her clients draw their visions in an attempt to catalogue them. At the same time, the visions start to shift, and people start to see weird humanoid aliens, and increasingly, start to see visions of strange vines growing into what look like large organic structures. When, shortly afterward, the doctors announce they have cloned an alien humanoid from DNA left in the asteroid /ship? that hit Earth and brought the worm, and are using this clone to create antibodies to the worm, Jenny realizes that the alien is one of the humanoids from her visions, and becomes determined to figure out a way to contact the aliens.

Reno is one of Jenny’s clients. He is hooked on the hallucinogen because he likes her sense of purpose but also he likes to escape and draw his visions and feel that there is something in the world besides the limited medical compound and the adolescent power struggles that surround him. He also has a little crush on Titus, who as Jenny’s bff is a supplier for a lot of the dorms and who is, while not very well liked, and not part of any male friend group, semi- respected based on his activities.

Reno keeps borrowing things to pay Jenny with, and his roommate/dorm head Rustler gives him an ultimatum--pay it all back with the fertilizer hallucinogen, or fight Rustler in a public match to settle the debt. It isn’t mean spirited but it’s like an adolescent maintenance of the status quo thing. Reno determines to get the drug and pay people back.

When Jenny notices some of her stash is gone, she stakes out the shed she keeps it in overnight and she and Titus ambush Reno and threaten him with: knives, blackmail, the suggestion they could alter his medical records to make him look sicker than he is and have him removed to the late-term infirmary, etc etc. Titus sees Reno is genuinely scared and that he also is really miserable to find himself on Jenny and Titus’s bad side, and feels a little proud and excited and drunk with power, and is like, “ok, we don’t have to do all that, but you do need to either work with us and act as a supplier or just tell Rustler you have to fight him and we’ll supply hallucinogens to whoever wins.” reno does this partly bc he wants to impress titus. after he wins the match he asks titus to be his boyfriend, which surprises jenny and titus. when titus realizes reno has a crush on him he is also stoked, proud, flattered etc... though he is initially motivated primarily by lust, self interest and self preservation, and his romantic feelings only really emerge later.

sorry for this long ass post but im so glad to like work all this out and establish the ways that my characters’ personalities work--

#titus and reno #writing #long post #text #sci fi

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bluesakura007 · 3 years

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What She Had to Do - Chapter 6: The Photographs - Khan Noonien Singh x OC

Summary: Now that Zinalya’s plan has succeeded and Khan has been awoken and escaped from his prison facility, all that’s left for her to do is to give him a few items from his past that she’s uncovered.

Warning: None, just fluff.~

A small feeling of a returning conscious state crept into Zinalya without her being able to actually register this return. The very first thing that she became consciously aware of, even though she still predominantly felt like she was sleeping, was the rather dim lighting in wherever she was - so much so that it was almost pitch black - and then it was the soft textures enveloping a large majority of her body.

Still not entirely awake and opening her lips ever so slightly in initial confusion, she craned her head around to this same ever so slight degree so as to try to find more details about her surroundings, stopping still again when her somewhat unfocused vision landed on the sight of another figure with her in the bed she seemed to be lying in. A taller, male figure whose face she managed to make out in the dim light of the room.

"Khan." She managed to smile slightly at this recognition of the figure in front of her, taking a few seconds to turn the rest of her body to fully face him.

"Do you remember what happened to you?" There it came once again: the deep, resounding voice which could only belong to him.

"I can remember shoving you away because I saw someone running at you and getting caught in the neck with the hypo she was holding, and I think that’s it."

"It was an anaesthetic dose intended to be used on me, so that they could return me back to my tube with as little extra required effort as they could achieve." Said Khan. "How do you feel?"

"Drained, but other than that I’m okay. Although my head does hurt a little." She nodded her head as further confirmation of her feeling predominantly alright.

"The friend of yours from the communicator sent a medical team to meet with us as soon as we were beamed away to safety. They treated your head injury while you were still sedated, and they gave you a reversal agent to counteract that sedation. The woman who did it to you claimed that you would remain asleep for several days without that intervention."

"I take it they wanted to use that kind of dosage strength because your biology makes it harder for normal anaesthetics to work on you?" Asked Zinalya.

"That’s correct."

"How long was I out...?"

"Only eight and a half hours: it’s currently half past eleven at night in in the Earth standard time of the facility’s location." The Augment replied.

"So... we’re out now? We made it to Iadras’ ship?" She asked another question to clarify as to whether what she’d been presuming for the last few moments was correct, noticing the faint humming sound of warp speed travel in the background of their conversation with her face beginning to light up.

He gave a nod of his own head. "We did - captain Mirehl told me that we’re on our way to the planet you and him chose for us to flee to."

"Ceti Alpha V." She said. "It was discovered a little while ago by Starfleet, but it doesn’t have any local intelligent life, no one’s staked a claim to it and it's kinda distant from Federation territory, and I thought its terrain and climates looked suitable enough. Apparently it's only four days away."

Khan fell silent in non-verbal reflection. He'd initially thought of this woman with him as another enemy and an unquestioning pawn of Alex Marcus along with her crewmates back during the incident that caused them to meet, sitting alone in his glass cell, and she'd gone and proven this initial viewpoint of his very, very wrong by doing so much for him.

She overcame the odds in her way to rescue him from his perpetual sleep within his cryotube - whose more accurate title he thought could be his icy coffin - and she'd successfully engineered the rescue of his seventy-two friends and comrades, in addition, who were currently sitting in one of this Trill ship's cargo bays, still in their own tubes until they reached their destination. She'd proven that his reciprocated feelings for her weren't born from lies and ulterior motives she had in store for him. "You really have done everything, haven't you...?" He said quietly.

"What?" Asked Zinalya, not fully hearing this.

"You did all this - you've carried out a rescue scheme, secured the safety of my crew, and selected a suitable world to be our new home - so that we could live in peace together. You've gone above and beyond for us." Khan replied. Of all the non-enhanced humans he'd met, this one had shown herself to be, if he was being honest with himself, the most incredible. There was only one other non-Augment woman in his life he could think of apart from Zinalya who he'd found to be frankly brilliant.

"It wasn't all me. I did have help from Iadras, remember?" She smiled slightly more widely this time and lifted up her right hand to jokingly point upwards towards the ceiling, in indication of the fact that it was this Trill captain who'd agreed to use his ship as their getaway car to Ceti Alpha V.

"He did also tell me about his plan to mask the warp trail of this ship with a magneton pulse. It’s quite impressive." Iadras has divulged to him how he and his crew had a few days off for some shore leave of their own to use for carrying out this transport to the chosen planet, and how if anyone asked what they were doing away from Trill they’d say they were just checking on the cargo from some of their previous deliveries.

"Yeah. I met him about a year ago when his crew made a delivery to Starfleet Headquarters one day. He has been pretty helpful in all this."

"It was still born from your desire to get me out, however; it was your idea which set my escape into motion." He responded, before a brief pause set in. "The more I learn about you, the more convinced I am that I don’t deserve you."

"Don’t say that kind of stuff, Khan - what you don’t deserve is for you and the others to just be kept there forever without even being awake, stored next to each other in a warehouse like human-sized frozen meat." Her tone was mostly the soft kind of reassurance, but in the second half of her sentence it became somewhat more firm at the thought of what she was talking about. She’d been able to prevent it from going on any longer after the last two years, but the thought still irritated her. "But now we can have the peaceful life you do deserve, that you’ve always deserved, far away from anyone who’d want to lock you or me away or hurt us. It’s over." Just saying these two last words provided her with a small wave of relief at the fact that they were true.

He nodded his head once again, realising that she was right. "It is."

"I’m the same age as you now, too: I turned twenty-seven yesterday." She told him with a grin.

"I’m sorry I was forced to miss your birthday, Zinalya." Answered Khan, his voice having an undertone of humour but mostly expressing genuine goodwill towards her. "Did you take the time to celebrate it with your family?"

"I did; it was good to see them all again before I left this morning to come and get you." Zin was still smiling as she gave this answer, but it turned poignant as it then mostly vanished from her face, leaving only a look of uncertainty behind. "But I’m going to be honest with you here: now that the stage of actually getting you out and us managing to make it away from Earth without anybody tailing us is done, I don’t what we do now. I mean I know it was my choice, and I wouldn’t go back and change that, but I’ve basically left behind everything I know, and... that kinda terrifies me."

This point she’d just made reminded the Augment of the same feelings he’d experienced back in 1996, when he and his friends boarded the soon to be launched SS Botany Bay and were in the process of putting themselves into their cryosleep. "I understand." He gave this reply after a few moments of this second silent reflection. "But the both of us are in this newfound situation together, which means that we can both help each other with finding out what we do next."

"I guess you’re right." Said Zinalya. Over the last thirty seconds or so, it seemed that they both had things to learn from each other. And then she felt mildly surprised, like earlier when he’d done the same thing back in the facility, as Khan moved closer towards her in the bed and, without warning, put his arms around her torso, initiating a hug. Now that she was this close to him, she could see that there were a couple of cuts and bruises here and there on his face, most likely from the fighting he had to do to get them out of Sierra-Lambda 3.

"If you wish for me to stop, please just tell me and I’ll do so." His voice became more quiet now that they were this close together, and she responded by putting her own arms around him as well, fractionally more slowly due to the remaining after effects of the sedative.

"I don’t think I will, if that’s okay." She said back warmly, a slightly joking edge to her voice showing up, after which they continued to lie there for another few blissfully long seconds. They could take forever now if they wanted to.

"I’ll always keep you safe." Khan whispered in her ear - the woman he was holding in his arms was the only one towards whom he’d ever felt this new kind of necessary need to protect her. She was cherished by him just as much as vice versa. After then moving his head above hers, to which she gladly nestled hers into his chest, he said two words in the form of another whisper, this one being even more quiet: "Thank you."

A realisation was suddenly beginning to dawn on Zinalya for the next couple of seconds. Specifically, this realisation was of the fact that she still had something which she wanted to show to him. "Hold on, I almost forgot: I’ve got a little something for you."

She retracted herself from him for a moment so that she could go over to her edge of the bed and lean over it, in order to reach for something currently located underneath, but as she carried out this leaning stage, she had to grip on to this edge of the bed tightly, because she felt like her head was beginning to spin from the inside out.

"Captain Mirehl’s doctor said to me that you should avoid strenuous activity to recover your energy." Said the man with the jet black hair in concern for her.

"I’m almost done." With her still growingly dizzy head dangling upside down, she was reaching around under the bed, through a spare bedsheet that had been wrapped up tightly to contain the item she was looking for. "Last year, a few months before I met Iadras, I asked Scotty and Pavel to help me out with a little favour." She finally managed to reach this item, which was a collection of three photographs that she held in her hands as she sat upright in the bed, looking back at the man with her. "It took a while because of how long ago the 20th century is now, but we did some digging to see if we could still find some photos of your mum after all this time, and we found these ones." As she spoke, he sat upright in the bed as well, and there was a sense of wonder in his eyes as she handed these three pictures over to him. "I know it’s not really that many, but I’d decided that I wanted to give you something to remember the early years by if I did see you again someday."

Khan looked through these pictures that were now in his hands. All three of them were of his mother, Sarina Kaur, the above-mentioned sole other non-Augment woman in his life who even came close to being as brilliant in his eyes as Zin.

He guessed that the first was rather early on before the beginning his existence, as, unlike the other two, it was in black and white, having most likely been taken in the mid to late 1960s. This black and white one was a group photo of her and her laboratory colleagues, based on the fact that a large majority of them were wearing long white lab coats, and they all stood in practical businesslike positions in a long line, smiling at the camera. For the second photograph underneath this, the fact that it was in colour suggested that the 1970s were drawing nearer when it was taken. It was of Sarina and her boyfriend who Khan had also told Zinalya about, Noonien Prasad, sitting close to each other on a grassy hill during what was probably the Summer or the Spring based on the brightness and warmth of the sunlight in the photo. They weren’t looking at the camera, and instead appeared to be laughing together at something out of the shot. Based on how healthy Noonien looked in this picture, it was obviously taken before he began to succumb to the cancer that killed him in the Autumn of 1969. And then there was the third and final photograph, the latest to be taken compared to the other two. Specifically, he deduced that it must’ve been taken in 1970. This particular photo was of Sarina sitting in a beige armchair, presumably in her apartment, with her then-elderly border collie Cinder sitting on the floor next to her legs and with a certain light-skinned newborn baby boy being held in a little white blanket in her arms.

She was beaming brightly into the camera, and the fact that she was closer to it than in the other two photographs allowed for the best look at her long, dark brown hair which mostly went down the first half of her back but was partially draped over her shoulders, and at her warm and soulful light brown eyes.

While looking through these three photos he’d just been given of his mother, Khan was smiling himself without even realising it. There were a couple of moments where his teeth were showing through this smile, causing Zinalya to think to herself that he had a slightly goofy but nonetheless handsome one and that she was happy for getting to see another of these rare moments where he wasn’t upholding his tough killing machine exterior. "Are you okay?" She asked when she saw the look in his eyes, which, to be specific, was a look of multiple emotions: a relieved happiness at gaining this closure of having the pictures to remember his early life and origins by, a feeling of being lost in memories, and a sadness that these happy days of his life were so short.

Before her death when he was four years old, which then catapulted him into the series of events which led him to being turned into an Augment and ultimately meeting Zinalya in this current century, Khan’s mother would often call him her beautiful boy, and her unconditional benevolence and love caused him to sometimes think, back during this period when he was a toddler, that she was made of the sunlight itself.

As he’d told Zin during his ongoing court trial two years prior, he may have been originally conceived for Sarina’s scientific research into singular-parent reproduction, the reason behind the difference in his skin tone and accent, but this had done nothing to prevent her from providing him with the love of a caring parent. (He’s still given the photos after Undeniable’s happy ending as well, after the story’s finished once they’ve gone down to Ceti Alpha V’s surface.)

Khan looked back up again from the pictures and at Zinalya, predominantly at the tingly stinging feeling in the back of his eyes. It had taken several years, which had contained living on the streets, kidnap and becoming a science experiment, sorrow at the death of his closest friend, disputes with his more ruthlessly anti-human Augment brothers and sisters and the manipulation which triggered Into Darkness’ events, but he’d finally made it to the goal he’d been striving for for most of those years: a chance for him and his companions to live their lives somewhere with no worries. No more persecution.

And the fact that he and the half Trill-half human woman who’d made this possible and who he’d discovered that he adored could initiate their relationship in peace made it even more fulfilling.

"I’m alright." He smiled softly at her. "You just seem to be incapable of running out of ways to pleasantly surprise me."

#khan noonien singh #khan #khanbatch #khan x oc #star trek into darkness #into darkness #stid #star trek #star trek aos #into darkness khan #khan singh #khan noonien singh x oc #benedict cumberbatch

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Hoping to Shape the Conversation at Davos

Several members of the Global Shapers Community answered questions from The New York Times. Their responses have been edited and condensed.

Tariq Al Olaimy, Bahrain

Co-founder and managing director, 3BL Associates With some of the mixed perceptions about Davos, what are your expectations of the conference? I will be attending as part of an inspiring delegation of young people from the Global Shapers Community, which is an initiative of the World Economic Forum. I look forward to connecting and working with those who are leading at the front lines of their communities in the fight against climate change, who are restoring nature, who are helping to drive equitable societies, and who are committed to creating a more caring and inclusive world. What do you hope to accomplish at Davos? The most important part of the Global Shapers Community is the word “community.” At a time when our generation faces ecological, economic and values crises, some of the most vital “technologies” in navigating the path ahead are not necessarily artificial intelligence, blockchain or robotics — they are empathy, collaboration and justice. I hope, as a community, we can be a constant reminder of that, as this year’s annual meeting in Davos seeks to redefine what truly matters as a measure of success for governments and corporations.

Neel Tamhane, Bangladesh

Solar project lead, Space10 With some of the mixed perceptions about Davos, what are your expectations of the conference? There has been a fair bit of criticism of Davos in the past, questioning whether the world’s elite has the courage to take necessary action in terms of climate change. For the 50th anniversary, the World Economic Forum has launched a new manifesto that is looking to hold companies accountable and nudge them to be more responsible, which I believe is crucial when we now have around 10 years to drastically reshape our societies to become more circular and self-sustaining. In my eyes, it’s actually quite simple: We only have one planet, so business as usual is no longer an option. Our current model is clearly not going according to plan. Luckily, circular societies and circular business models would not only make us less vulnerable to the very scary consequences of the climate emergency but also create new opportunities for jobs and economic growth. After all, the pioneers of today will be the market leaders of tomorrow. That makes me hopeful. What do you hope to accomplish at Davos? With the COP25 summit, formally known as the Conference of Parties, concluding at last month’s U.N. Climate Talks, there is a clear pressing need for countries to set more ambitious targets to scale up renewable energy. I personally look forward to meeting world leaders and sparking discussions on how we enable a global clean energy transition. We have never been better equipped to take on the challenges we face, and we could create much more democratic, decentralized and decarbonized energy systems for the future while lifting up to a billion people out of energy poverty in the process. If the future can be bright, why would we choose differently? This is a question I would like to discuss with world leaders.

Holly Syrett, the Netherlands

Project manager at the Sustainable Apparel Coalition With some of the mixed perceptions about Davos, what are your expectations of the conference? I think it’s interesting and important to bring together different representatives to discuss shaping new economies, and I am proud to represent the youth and future generations. I look forward to meeting fellow Global Shapers and hope to meet women in power, to learn about barriers they have had to overcome and best practices to accelerate empowerment for future leaders. What do you hope to accomplish at Davos? I will represent the Shaping Fashion project and show how young people in 45 cities around the world have come together to share knowledge and tools, run collective action campaigns and change personal behaviors to revolutionize the fashion industry. Besides shifting consumer sentiment, the $2 trillion industry needs drastic change and I will be calling for multi-stakeholder collaboration to measure, improve and transparently communicate environmental and social sustainability of fashion. Transparency is something I feel very strongly about. It is our right to be able to choose companies and products that meet our values and we need information that is complete, comparable and trustworthy to do so. The industry and legislators need to empower us to make these decisions. It’s what can truly accelerate the sustainable fashion revolution.

Shruthi Vijayakumar, New Zealand

Facilitator and strategist and co-founder of Emerge Institute With some of the mixed perceptions about Davos, what are your expectations of the conference? Davos may have the reputation of being a space where business and political leaders come together to sign deals, and perhaps forward their own short-term interests. However, there is no doubt that the decisions made today will affect our environment for centuries to come. I wish to be a voice for future generations and young people, who will be the most impacted by these decisions. I seek to have empathetic and courageous conversations with those in power, and to advocate for a long-term, values-based lens in decision making. What do you hope to accomplish at Davos? Davos also brings together phenomenal leaders across sectors, and I believe they have a genuine desire to improve the world. One could call it idealistic, but I very much resonate with Margaret Mead’s notion “never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” I look forward to exchanging ideas, and forging relationships with those also committed to restoring the health of our planet, and fostering the self transformation of individuals with the intention that this will support greater collective action and impact.

Wanjuhi Njoroge, Kenya

Founder of People Planet Africa With some of the mixed perceptions about Davos, what are your expectations of the conference? The Davos 2020 meeting comes at the onset of a new, vital decade, and 2020 is also the year that countries are required to renew their commitments with even greater ambitions. I hope this meeting will coerce world leaders to take action, especially in reducing emissions by 7.6 percent in 2020 and every other year! I hope the world will look back at this meeting in 10 years as one among many that jolted world leaders to take action. What do you hope to accomplish at Davos? Deliberately leaving no one behind is the only way we will achieve the sustainable development goals by 2030. Over 70 percent of Africans still reside in rural areas and continue to be alienated from development. We must urgently listen to concerns from those on the streets and from deep in the rural interiors — whose voices are rarely heard or examined — with the primary aim to design and redesign and implement relevant action points with measurable outputs. As such, the question on my mind as I head to Davos is how to marry social innovation with technological innovation to achieve a cohesive and sustainable world!

Sophia Hamblin Wang, Australia

Chief operations officer of Mineral Carbonation International With some of the mixed perceptions about Davos, what are your expectations of the conference? In Davos, I’ll be rubbing shoulders with many chief executives and heads of state who will no doubt acknowledge the importance of tackling climate change. However, those watching may view these words as lip service to the sustainability and stakeholder capitalism narrative. While my country is experiencing the worst bush fire season on record, globally climate change is set to cause increasing harm in the coming decades. Now is the time to find innovative solutions for urgent climate action. In Davos, I will be representing progress toward these solutions, seeking to convince business leaders that utilizing carbon emissions can in fact ease the pressure on the bottom line. At Mineral Carbonation International, we have developed a technology platform that transforms carbon dioxide into building materials like cement and plasterboard. This is a long-term, safe storage solution that has the potential to lock away billions of metric tons of emissions from industry or captured from the atmosphere. What do you hope to accomplish at Davos? This year, we have the opportunity to spark real climate change action in many areas. I hope to demonstrate that carbon dioxide is a resource that can help, not hinder the planet. If I can convince business leaders that decarbonizing is profitable, this will encourage desperately needed climate action, contribute to our Paris Climate Change targets and provide hope for humanity.

Robyn Seetal, Canada

Co-chair of the Global Shapers Climate & Environment Steering Committee; sustainability strategist and facilitator With some of the mixed perceptions about Davos, what are your expectations of the conference? Davos is often viewed as an elitist and exclusive event. Even if this is true, it also serves as an opportunity for impact — thought leaders and experts take the stage to influence our world’s decision makers and their agendas. The theme this year, “Stakeholders for a Cohesive and Sustainable World,” spotlights this point at the onset of a critical decade: It is our last chance to limit global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius and safeguard our future. My expectation and hope are that whenever plans are being made about the future — onstage or offstage — reducing emissions must be at the core of these plans. I expect our world leaders to be bold in their decision making and actions. We need them now more than ever to lead from a place of empathy to serve those most impacted by their decisions including vulnerable coastal communities, minority groups and the young people of our world. What do you hope to accomplish at Davos? I hope to use this opportunity to support the voices and messages raised by young people around the world. We must listen to the scientists — we are not running out of time, we are now out of time and we need ambitious, deliberate, action. I urge world leaders to take the following actions in true partnership with local Indigenous communities. • Make the policy changes needed to meet the Paris Agreement, as we must reduce global emissions by at least 7 percent every year until 2030 to safeguard our planet. • Support the protection of at least 30 percent of our planet by 2030 and invest in nature-based solutions and biodiversity. • Recognize young people and nature as primary and core stakeholders and authentically incorporate their interests and voices into decisions and actions that will impact them. Read the full article

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