#Since I see y'all talkin about this oN MAIN
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eight.
It had been a couple weeks since Zora and Leon had been a couple, and it was everything they'd hoped for.
Pure bliss.
Breaking the news to their respective circles and mamas might as well have been a marriage proposal, the way everybody was over the moon excited for the two.
Zora finds her way to Leon's job with his favorite food from her job, as well as something for herself.
Following the path to the main entrance, she stops at the check in desk, biting back a laugh at the way the girl looks up at her.
“Mmhm, and who are you here for, pretty girl?” She asks with a smirk on her face.
“Leon Grey.”
“Oh, you're the girlfriend he's been telling us about!”
Zora lets a laugh loose. “He's been talkin’ off heads about me??”
“Mmmhm! He's right, you are absolutely gorgeous!” She compliments, sliding the clipboard her way.
Zora blushes and thanks her, before signing her name on the line and sliding it back. The lady unlocks the steel door, both of them cringing at the loud buzzing sound it makes as it automatically opens up.
“You never get used to that ugly ass sound,” she comments. “Go down the hall and make a right, and you'll find the lounge.”
“Thank you!”
“Anytime.”
Following her directions, she finds him sitting at a table with a couple guys, who start staring at her immediately.
“Yo, who is that?” One of his coworkers asks, making him look behind him. An immediate smile graces his face.
“My girlfriend, Zora.”
“That's your girlfriend??”
“How you pull a thick’n like that, with your lanky ass?”
Leon sucks his teeth and turns back to them. “Where y'all girlfriends at, again?”
The table fell silent, making him nod. And just as he was about to lay into them a little more, a hand finds his shoulder, making him look up.
Zora smiles sweetly, placing the bag on the table. “Hey, baby. I got your favorites.”
“Hey, sweet stuff! Thank you. I wanna introduce you to some knuckleheads.”
“Yeah, caught em starin’ at me when I walked in. Might as well learn some names.” She smiles, making one of them choke on air as Leon chuckles.
“Zora, this is Craig, Darnell and Clyde. Y'all, this is my girlfriend, Zora.”
“We've heard so much about you, dear. It's a pleasure to finally put a name to a face.” Clyde smoothly speaks, reminding her of her uncle, Tommy.
“Yeah, sorry about the staring. Leon wasn't lying when he told us how gorgeous you were.” Darnell says, making her laugh.
“Hey, at least your mouth wasn't open.” Craig adds.
“It's all good, guys. It's nice to meet y'all.”
“Well, let's get out of their hair, y'all. We'll see you later, Leon.” Clyde says, wrangling the other two up from the table.
Zora sits down beside Leon, laughing as he quickly leans in for a kiss, before pulling the knot from the bag.
“How's your day been so far?” He asks.
“It's been good. I talked to my boss today, and she agreed that her son is outta control. Finally.”
“Really? That's great! Wait… he ain't try nothing else, did he?” He asks, before getting too excited.
“No,” she shakes her head, “I told her about the last run in, and she wasn't happy about it. Suspended him for a few weeks in an attempt to make him understand how serious workplace harassment is. She's only giving him one chance and I've got the paperwork already printed up if need be.”
“Is he a mama’s boy like I'm thinking he is?” He asks.
“He's a spoiled brat, yeah.” She nods, making him laugh.
“Well, good. I'm glad you get to have an uninterrupted work schedule for a while, maybe indefinitely. That's ideal, ain't it?”
“You have no idea. I really cannot stand that boy.” She sighs and adjusts her glasses, leaning on his shoulder as he eats.
“You sleepy?” He asks, glancing down at her low lids.
“Maybe a little. I didn't get much sleep last night..”
“How come?”
“Eh, your couch is more comfy than my bed, maybe.” She shrugs, glancing up at him.
Which was code for, “I wanna graduate to sleeping beside you in bed, but I don't wanna be too forward.”
And, of course he knew that's what she meant.
“How about I come over and tuck you in, tonight?” He suggests, feeding her a couple fries.
A small smile creeps its way onto her way before she can stop it. She nods, circling her arm around the one she's leaning on.
“Consider it done.”
“You need extra clothes, too?” She asks with a giggle.
“Hell, you already got my shirts at your crib. I think I'm set!” He responds with a laugh of his own.
“They're so comfy and they smell like you. I'm not sorry.”
“Mm. Maybe I'll just sleep naked, then.” He shrugs.
“Leon,” she smacks his chest with her free hand.
“Look at you, already copin’ a feel.” He continues to tease, laughing at her incredulous expression.
“Anyway, which one of those knuckleheads were you beefin’ with?”
“Craig.”
“I knew it!”
“How?”
“He looks like the type to get into with some– everybody. A hothead like you used to be.”
“You'd be right about that,” he nods. “He's a good kid, he just needs to relax. I just try and look out for him.”
“That's sweet of you.”
“I do what I can.” He smiles.
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“I'm so glad y'all are a couple, cause this glow of yours is out of this world!” Nique squeals, right along with Neoma and Lovita.
Meeting them at Neoma’s place, Zora was finally freely gushing about her new relationship.
“I'm glowing?”
“Like an angel baby!” Lovita says, pinching her cheek.
“I'm so happy, y'all,” she smiles. “It's been so great, getting to know a man who wants more than just sex. Who doesn't wanna control things, cause Leon knows he can't and he doesn't try. We meet in the middle. We actually talk about things! He's got me sharing stories that I haven't shared since they happened, ya know? And, why is he so fine?!” She smacks her thigh for emphasis on the last part, making them laugh.
“Oh, we've seen him! He's so pretty!” Neoma laughs. “We're shocked that y'all haven't jumped each other's bones, with all this kissing and laying up y'all be doing.”
Zora rubs the back of her neck, as it becomes super warm. She, too, was shocked that they haven't found themselves in such a predicament.
“Well, to be fair, I just got fully comfortable in his presence. I guess cuddling on the couch is phase one,” she snorts.
“What's phase two, then?”
“Well, he said he was coming over tonight to tuck me in,” she giggles, “he's so stupid.”
“His long ass in your queen bed is gonna be hilarious!” Lovita cackles, making the rest of them join in at the mental image.
“Take a picture or something, I beg!”
“Right, cause I gotta see it!”
“Y'all are stupid, too!” Zora points at them. “But, I got y'all.”
“Good. Now, don't forget about the barbecue we're throwing this Friday. If Leon's free, you should bring him!”
“Gotcha. What am I on the list for, this time?” She asks.
“Potato salad and some kind of dessert. Neoma said banana pudding, but I don't know about that.”
“What, you don't like it?”
“You know me and nanas got a love/hate relationship,” she shrugs. “But, if that's what you wanna make, I'll still eat some.”
“I'll see if I can find something else, sis. I don't want you to suffer through it.” She assures, to which Lovita blows out a dramatic sigh of relief.
“See? An angel!” She nudges Nique and Neoma, who both roll their eyes while Zora giggles.
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Heading out of her room and down the hall, she opens the door to find Leon with a bouquet of lilies in his hand.
“Hey, beautiful. These are for you.” He smiles, holding them out for her to grab.
“Aw, how pretty! Thank you.” She says, grabbing them from him and pulling him inside her place.
“Anything for you,” he says, kissing her cheek before she rushes into the kitchen to cut and place them inside the new vase she'd bought.
“How was the rest of your day?” She asks, as he makes his way over to her, leaning against her marble counter.
“It was good. I kept getting questions about you and me, cause people are nosy like that,” he chuckles. “I shared my food with the guys, and now they're planning on swinging by the restaurant for more.”
“Linda's dream is to feed hardworking men,” Zora laughs, plucking the flowers until they fall in place like she wants.
“Her dream’s about to come true, too. She won't be able to shake ‘em off, either.” He shakes his head, finally getting to wrap his arms around her waist as she comes to stand in front of him, gazing up.
“Ah, she'll be okay. I missed you,” she admits, welcoming the sweet kiss he placed on her lips.
“I missed you too, sweet stuff. I practically mad-dashed through the six o'clock traffic to get here.”
“Don't be speedin’ for me,” she half-jokes, stuffing her hands into the pockets of his jacket.
“I got here in one piece, mama.” He says, pressing another kiss to her lips, shutting her up.
Moving from the kitchen to her sofa, the pair cuddle up and start their usual movie marathon.
“Oh, before I forget. My sisters are having a barbecue this Friday and you're invited, if you can make it.” She says, playing with the strings on his jacket.
“What time does it start?”
“I wanna say three, but you know colored people and time.” She snorts, making him do the same.
“Boy, don't I. But, okay, it sounds fun. I do have to work, but I'm off at four. I'll head that way afterwards.”
“Great, I'll send you the address later.”
Two movies in, Zora felt her eyes get heavier and heavier and Leon's soothing circles on her back weren't helping her at all.
She fixed her slumped position in his lap and rubbed her dry eyes, hearing his faint chuckle from above her. She turns to look at him, a smirk plastered on his lips.
“You laughin’ at me?”
“Yeah, you fightin’ sleep. It's cute.”
“I didnt wanna be rude and fall asleep on you.”
“I'm not complaining. Plus, you're so tired. We can continue the movie later.”
“If I ain't know no better, I'd think you were trying to put me to sleep anyway.” She tiredly laughs, sitting up.
“That's what I came over for, girl. Come on.” He says, scooping her up in his arms before she can protest.
Carrying her down the hall to her room, he walks in and whistles at her décor. It makes her snicker.
“What is your problem?” She asks, once he plops her down on the queen size bed.
“It's like a love lair in here!” He chuckles, looking around at the many decanters that litter her dresser, as well as the heart-shaped sunset lamp. Not to mention the baby pink satin bedspread she was currently sitting on.
“A love lair,” she laughs again, patting the space beside her. “You're funny.”
“Yeah, you tryna trap me in here, huh?”
“Nah, you can leave if you want. Once you feel how soft these sheets are, you'll change your mind though.”
“See? Tactful.”
“Shut up!” She tosses a pillow at him, which he catches and tosses back on the bed before beginning to come out of his work shirt and his sweats.
Her incredulous expression makes him pause. “I'm not getting naked, for real. I've got shorts on!”
“Jesus,” she mutters, watching him come out of them anyway, catching sight of something else that makes her turn her head altogether.
Wow was all she was thinking.
He smirks, deciding not to mess with her or the rosiness on her cheeks. He’ll let her live it down, this time.
Since she was already dressed down in one of his shirts, that really did fit her like a dress, along with some shorts, she pulls the covers back and climbs in, patting the space beside her.
He climbs in beside her, pulling her on top of him, wrapping one of his long arms around her waist as he stretches out. His feet didn't hang off the bed like Neoma said they would, which still made her giggle.
“What's funny? I wanna giggle, too!” He says.
“Nothing, nothing.” She responds, hooking one of her legs across his lap and tucking her arm underneath his, smiling to herself as his scent surrounds her.
“Come on, what is it?” He asks, as her hushed giggles vibrate against his chest.
“Okay, okay. I wasn't sure how comfortable you'd be in my bed, cause you're so tall. I thought you'd kinda be hangin’ out of it a bit.”
He hums a laugh, hugging her closer to his frame.
“That's a funny visual, I'll admit. But jokes on you, I'm very comfy on these pink silk sheets.” He declares, making her giggle all over again.
“I told you!”
“Yeah, yeah. Go to sleep, giggles.”
“Kay,” she responds, pulling the cover back over them.
“Goodnight, angel face.” He leans down to kiss the crown of her head.
“Goodnight, pretty man.”
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Friday rolls around, and all four Hunts’ are standing in the expansive kitchen of Neoma’s house, pulling lids and foil back from the dishes that were prepared for the day.
Zora decided to make cheesecake stuffed strawberries, which was easy enough and put a smile on Lovita’s face, making her happy.
“They look so good, sis!”
“I know, I can't wait to eat ‘em! I made three pans ‘cause I know how your friends like to snag food and leave nothing for anybody else!”
“Hey now, you leave my greedy friends alone! They reimbursed you for that pan of chicken.”
“Yeah, yeah.” She waves her off, while their mother laughs at the sight.
“A mess is what y'all are.”
“Says the creator of such!” Neoma quips, moving away as Pamela swats at her.
“Zora, is Leon gonna join us for the festivities today?”
“Yeah, he's still at work, so he'll be here later on. Said, he's bringing sodas.”
“Good, we can always use mixers for the liquor!”
“What if he brings like a coke or something?”
“Coke and rum, dummy. Duh!”
“Dummy? Vita, don't make me hurt you in my kitchen.”
“I'm walking away so I won't be privy to the violence.” Zora says, pulling their mother away and shielding her eyes, making Neoma and Lovita laugh.
Soon, the house and the backyard are full of people, both friends and family, indulging in the good food, music and conversations flowing.
Zora had been pulled in every direction, filling the nosies in on her new man, since their mama likes to spread their business like she's the local newspaper.
“He's a sweet man, and he's fine”, is all she really said, keeping the specifics to herself cause it wasn't anybody's business.
“I'm glad you're not still with that loser. What was his name?” One Neoma’s friends, Sarah, asks, making her stomach sour a little.
“Loser.” She responds, as they both fall into a fit of laughter and high-five each other.
“I know that's right! I can't wait to meet the man that swept your fiery ass up!”
“Aw, come on! I'm not that bad!”
“Nah, you don't take no mess, though! Never have.”
“Hey, nobody should!”
“Right, again!”
The sun was high in the sky, warming the partygoers up. And soon, the liquor came out to warm them up the rest of the way.
“Who's green jeep is that, parked down there?” Zora heard someone say, making her whip her head around to look down the car-littered street, watching Leon step out of the driver's side.
Smiling, she excuses herself and heads his way, damn near jumping in his arms as if she didn't just see him.
“Aw, you missed me?” He asks, wrapping his arms around her and swinging her around a bit, making her erupt in those giggles he loves to hear.
“I did! I might've been counting down the minutes til you got here.” She says, tucking her bottom lip in.
“Damn, he towers over girly!” Sarah says, observing them from the porch.
“A tree to climb.” Neoma notes, pulling her drink back up to her lips.
“I missed you too, baby. As soon as it hit four, I dashed outta there.” He chuckles, moving to get the sodas from his passenger seat, following behind her as she leads them back towards the house.
“Ew, stop staring like yall ain't never seen a man before!” She snapped, and only some turned away as the rest continued to openly gawk.
“Hey y'all,” Leon waves to her mama and sisters, hugs going around.
“It's nice to see you again! I'll take these!” Lovita takes the bags from him, rushing into the house.
“Oh lord, she's about to live her bartender dreams up in my kitchen.” Neoma rolls her eyes, following behind her.
“Those two,” Pamela laughs, turning to Leon. “Are you hungry, son?”
“Starving. I smelled the food when I turned on the street!” He jokes, making them laugh.
“Follow me, sweetheart.” She says, leading them both onto the porch and into the house.
Zora introduces him to everybody, as they make their way through the kitchen, piling their plates high with delicious food, and finding a shady corner in the backyard.
Zora watches Leon eat like it's her favorite show, while she sips on her second rum cocktail.
“Y'all's friends are hilarious, by the way.” He says, wiping his mouth with the napkin she handed him.
“They're the worst, I know. Nique should be on her way soon. I know that's your favorite.”
“She's too funny!”
As if she'd been summoned, Nique rushed over to the couple, kissing both of their cheeks.
“Hey y'all! Look at y'all all cozy in this corner!” She coos, making Leon laugh and Zora playfully roll her eyes.
“What took you so long to get here?”
“Chile, Ron big stupid ass messed up the paperwork I sent to him. So I had to save the day like always,” she rolls her eyes. “I need a drink.”
“Lovita’s playing bartender in there, better go get you sumn!”
“Oooh, see y'all later!” She squeals, rushing up the back steps.
“I think she made mine a lil heavy handed.” Leon snorts, drinking it anyway.
“Yeah, she gets carried away from time to time.” She says, popping a strawberry into her mouth.
“Did you eat already?” He asks, referring to her half empty plate.
“Yeah, this is actually my second plate.” She responds, digging back in.
“You look beautiful, by the way. I like that dress.” He compliments, making her blush.
“Thank you. It's about the color of that pretty jeep of yours.”
“Ain't that a coincidence,” he teases.
As the evening melted into night, the stars were high in the sky, as well as in the couple’s low lids.
Sharing a few dances to the old school jams that continued to play, as well as a few more drinks, Zora was past tipsy and feeling ways she hadn't in a while.
Her left foot kept absentmindedly finding its way up his leg, making him clear his throat and look over at her, catching her wanton gaze.
“If I didn't know any better,” he looks around them, before leaning in to where only she can hear him, “I'd say you were a little hot and bothered.”
“What are you talking about?” She squints, trying and failing at being coy.
“Zora’s had a couple drinks, and now her foot is creeping up my leg. That's what I'm talking about.” He smirks.
“I can scratch the itch you got, if you want me to.”
She huffs in response, but she never drops her gaze from his face.
Inhermission
@sheabuttahwrites @thegifstories @blackerthings @twistedcharismaaa @ghostfacekill-monger @nahimjustfeelingit-writes @lemmewritesomeish @nayaxwrites @cecereads209 @soufcakmistress @blowmymbackout @chaneajoyyy
#mochaff#miyuhpapayuh#poc writers#blackwriters#black romance#zora x leon#yahya abdul mateen ii fan fiction
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Baizhu watched Rex Lapis ‘die’ and his first instinct when he saw Zhongli was- ‘you seem familiar, I wasn’t told Rex lapis died- time to be PETTY AS FUCK.’ And made them pay 3 million mora for that everlasting incense
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Might Not Make it Home
https://archiveofourown.org/works/32632597/chapters/80949649
North Imaria has been under the merciless rule of the crown for over two decades and it seems the people have finally had enough. Unrest stirs among even the tiniest towns in the frozen mountains. Main streets grow silent as the noble guard rallies. There's enough fuel for the revolutionary fire; someone just needs to light the fuse.
Vizara is a bard, and a damn good one at that. She's played at taverns all across the north, seen the fight grow in her people. Her whole life has been for this. All the sleeping around, the ale and food and coin-all of it is secondary (not that she doesn't enjoy it). She's going to rouse her people into glorious rebellion against the unjust monarchy, and she's going to win. She just doesn't know how difficult it is going to be.
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A young woman in vibrant violet clothes strummed on her lute, tapping her toe in time to the beat of the lively tavern tune. She directed a wink at a bargoer close to her before leaping up onto his table. Carefully avoiding the empty plates, her purple slippers stomped down on the wood with a soft, but audible thump. She sucked in a deep breath and began to sing. The song, “The Pickpocket's Lover”, was well known here, and soon the tavern patrons were singing and clapping along with the music. The woman weaved gracefully between the tables, spinning and dancing as the tune picked up speed. The whip-quick braid in her hair followed her eagerly, drawing curves in the air behind her head when she whirled around to play for the crowd behind her. Cheeks flushed dark with exertion and sweat dripping down her brow, she drew the song to its end. At the far side of the room, she struck the final chord, took a beer from one of the waitresses, and downed half of it in one gulp. The crowd at the tavern, now some forty or fifty people, cheered. The woman raised her mug in the air triumphantly.
"Here's to th' North!" she cried, to even more applause, and then made as if to throw the mug to the ground. The waitress she'd taken the beer from quickly stilled her hand, as if she was expecting it. If she said anything to the bard, nobody could hear it for all the noise. The bard shrugged and took another swig. "'right y'all, I just gotta wet my throat a moment, then I'll be right back with ya." She fired another wink into the crowd as she made towards the kitchen, and if she kicked her lute case (already harboring quite a bit of coin) a little further towards the crowd, none of them seemed to care.
The woman slipped through the door to the kitchen, soon followed by the waitress. At the last glimpse of her violet tunic and teal beads, the crowd turned back to their food and drink. The kitchen door swung shut, and that was the last any of them saw of the bard that night.
~~~~~
Past that kitchen door, the bard nabbed a piece of fresh bread from the cook's hands, to an indignant "hey!" with no real malice behind it. She turned to the waitress with the smile of one who knows she has done something quite wrong, but who does not care. Appropriately, the waitress had a rather unimpressed expression across her face.
"Good show, eh?" The bard said through a mouthful of warm bread. The waitress huffed.
"Quite." The bard went on eating, as if oblivious to the other woman's annoyance.
"I'm thinking about addin’ a few more new songs to my repertoire." she said, "I've been writin’ some pretty songs as of late. 'Specially the ones about the coming revolution." She eyed the waitress at the last sentence with a hint of humor in her voice.
"Give me that!" The waitress ripped the hunk of bread from the bard's hands to another surprised "hey!" from the offended party. "You need to keep quiet about that revolution of yours. The only reason anyone here tolerates your ridiculous ideas is that you bring in good business. Step too far out of line, and we'll all get in more trouble than any of us can deal with."
"The crowd seemed to like me," the bard supplied. "It's strange, how the northerners seem to like the North. Can I please have my bread back?"
"Take this seriously! I know you couldn't care less about the rest of us, but if you get arrested, you won't get any work either!"
"I ain't planning on gettin' arrested, my friend. I'm only planning on gettin' the damn army outta here. And you can plan on gettin' business so long as there's any folk left here. Nobody's gonna care that I think the guard should get fucked. Hell, that's what they all think too."
"I hate you," the waitress growled, wild-eyed.
"Should'a said that 'fore you slept with me," the bard retorted, plucking her bread back from the waitress and promptly turning to walk further into the kitchen.
"Also, stop trying to smash my damned mugs!" the waitress yelled before slamming open the kitchen door open and walking back out into the tavern.
"I think you sang real well t'night, Vizara." the cook put in after a moment.
"Thank you!" Vizara, the bard, answered. "I can always count on you t' give a girl the credit she deserves."
The cook sighed deeply. "I do think you should cut back on the whole--well--the things that Melya was talkin’ about." She leaned over to inspect a simmering pot of stew in lieu of meeting the gaze of the bard.
It was a while before Vizara answered her. "I know. I don't want t' hurt y'all's business, really. I'm just damn tired of the damn monarchy and their damned games. So is everybody else. All they need is a push, and then we can get rid of the guard. Don't you wanna be free of kings? I sure as hell do.
Plus, I'm only here a handful'a times a year. I surely can't bring any real suspicion down here. Hell, Melya was just about the only waitress I recognized when I got here. Not that y'all have many other waitresses."
"Sometimes I think you talk just to hear your own voice," the cook commented. She ladled some of the stew into a bowl and handed it to Vizara. "Take one of the cloaks on the wall by the door and head outside for a bit, ‘kay? I'll talk to Melya,"
"Don't want me 'round anymore, huh?" she joked, pulling a cloak over her thin tunic and bare shoulders. "Really, you're the best, Eviah. The only one around here with any manners,"
Eviah made no reply, simply shooing the bard out the door with a roll of her eyes.
The wind outside was biting cold. It was easy to forget near the fires and warm food of the tavern, but it worked its way through the fabric of the cloak in a matter of moments. Vizara huddled on one of the stairs leading down from the back door, watching for a few moments as her breath turned to mist.
"'bit like a dragon, ain't it?" she murmured to herself. "If only I had a horde of gold to go along with it."
She drew the cloak in closer. "Warm fire'd be good too." She absently cast her gaze around the small, dark alley. There was a bit of snow on the ground, but not enough to cause any trouble to pedestrians and carts, not that the carts could fit into the alley in any case. The overhanging roofs of the tavern and another nearby shop blocked most of the light from the moon, which was probably good, since nobody would've wanted to see the sundry food waste tossed back there. Vizara could hear the quiet rustling of what she presumed was a few rats digging about in the garbage, but far be it from her to take a look. She wrapped her hands around the hot bowl to bring some feeling back into her fingers, a bit numb from both the lute and the cold.
So she sat, eating her stew as the night went on and the comforting bustle of the tavern carried on behind her. After a short while, she set the empty bowl down beside her and took the lute off her back. Soft music began to drift up amongst the scuttling of the rats as she strummed the first few notes to a love song.
“Maybe I’ll play this one next,” she whispered. She leaned back against the door and hummed along to the quiet tune.
Her fingers stilled only a moment later as she heard some odd noise out in the street, past the entrance to the alleyway. The shriek of an animal (or perhaps a child? she couldn't say) echoed off the close walls.
“The hell was that?” She got to her feet, turning her head toward the noise. Again, the same shriek. Certainly the sound of a person now.
Vizara fumbled in the waistband of her pants for a small knife, not much more than a toothpick. She dropped the cloak from her shoulders and slung her lute across her back once more.
With a deep breath, she crept out onto the street, tiny blade in hand. It was dark; few lanterns were ever out at night. The town was small, its people poor. Still, with a cursory glance, she saw the silhouettes of three or four people cast in the light of the brothel across the street. The screams hadn't stopped—they'd just gotten quieter. They'd become yelps, and then wordless protests, and now, just pained whimpering.
She could see now—as she snuck ever closer—the small body of a child held down by the much bigger guards. The blade in her hand felt insufficient, useless. She faltered, slowed almost to a stop. The guards hadn't noticed her. She was quiet and they were occupied with the protesting figure in the dirt beneath them. She could back away into the alley just as easily as she had left it, and nobody would be the wiser. The crowd awaited her back in the tavern. She was much better suited to that kind of work—the rustling up, the inspiring, not the fighting itself. But, hell, who was she if she didn’t practice what she preached? And who was getting hurt in her place if she did nothing?
The glint of silver mail in the low light caught her eye once more. The crest of the royal family glowed gold on the guards' tunics, splashed with mud and blood and violence. Another strangled cry slipped from the child's lips as he was jabbed with the butt end of a spear. She was only a few lengths away from the closest guard. A full body shiver struck Vizara's body, shaking the little knife in her hand.
She started into a run, the movement catching the attention of one of the guards. They shouted to their companions, but the warning came too late. Vizara, much shorter than the guard nearest her, jabbed her knife into his armpit, where she knew was an opening in his armor. He stumbled back with a heavy huff, and the knife was yanked from Vizara's hands. She reached for it again, her left hand up to defend herself from the other two guards. Her fingers brushed the handle, but she couldn't get a good grip on it—she'd sunk the whole blade into his arm. Plus, he and his two companions were getting his wits about him once more. He was going for his spear amongst a slew of curses. It didn't come to that. Vizara heard a monstrous Crack! and then a moment later, her left arm flared up in pain. She fully lost hold of the knife. It didn't matter anymore. Her arm—what happened to her arm? She looked up to the flash of silver as she was struck in the chest with the blunt end of a spear.
She went down with a heavy huff. Her arm throbbed and maybe she couldn’t use her fingers? And her face was in the dirt and her chest ached and she couldn’t see anything for the dark and the terror.
She looked out over her injured arm, bleary and gasping. The child—a young elf, no older than fifteen—still lay prone on the ground, one of the three guards standing above him. Vizara's vision swam as dread descended.
One of the guards kicked her over onto her back and she rolled painfully over her lute. She winced, tried to sit up, but was immediately pushed right back down, slamming her head into the dirt.
"Fuck." she sucked in a breath. "Can—can I at least move the lute? Don't want to break the lute."
The guard who'd kicked her—a woman who Vizara would find attractive in any other situation—grabbed her collar and none-too-gently yanked her into a sitting position. Another guard maneuvered the lute from her back, jostling her hurt arm and eliciting a rather embarrassing whimper from her. She gathered up her wits and forced the stars out of her eyes.
"Ah, thank you." Vizara babbled, forcing a smile. "As a good bard once said 'you can break my bones but not my banjo'."
"You fucking stabbed me!" bellowed the guard she'd stabbed, and swung the body of the lute into her head.
~~~~~~
Vizara awoke with what she at first thought was a bad hangover. She felt groggy, confused, and her head pounded—a situation she'd found herself in many a time before. She moaned in pain and closed her eyes once more, but she found no comfort in sleep, for she had neither pillow nor bed to sleep on. Instead, the surface beneath her was hard, rough, and cold.
Her eyelids were heavy, and as her conscious awareness grew, she forced them open. Bewilderment abounded for a few moments. Where the hell was she?
The room was dark and small. A barred window above her head cast a square of light on the stone floor and glinted off the edge of a tarnished metal bucket. She recognized the trappings of the room—a prison cell for sure, she’d been in more than enough to know—but it took her a few moments to recall the circumstances that had landed her here. She had been all set to perform at the bar the night before; she'd make a bit of coin, flirt with some strangers, and sleep with even more of them. Clearly, something had gone wrong. Such a waste of a good night!
She racked her brain, piecing together all that had happened after her performance: the conversation with Melya and Eviah, the cold alley, and then the sight of the guards kicking a child that had spurred her to action. A grim satisfaction came over her as she remembered stabbing one of the guards in the armpit. At least she'd done some good damage before she'd gone down. Nothing after that came back to her. She must have gotten her ass kicked pretty quick after the stabbing; the pain in her head and her arm could attest to that.
She touched her injured arm, and it didn’t hurt terribly. The ambient light described an ugly bruise. Nothing that wouldn’t heal. And her head ached, but she could deal with that. After all, it wasn’t much worse than her usual hangover. Vizara felt across her chest for any more injuries. There was a pain in her left side when she pressed down on it, but it didn't seem to be too serious. She huffed a sigh of relief and immediately winced when her chest took issue with it. All things considered, she’d gotten off pretty easy.
With a grunt, she stood up. She could make out the shape of a wooden door in the dim. There was a slit under it through which a bit of light trickled. Probably how food was delivered to the prisoners. The thought of other prisoners stuck in Vizara's mind for a second—what had happened to the child? She prayed to any god that would pay her mind that he had gotten away. Although… if there were other prisoners, maybe she could orchestrate an escape. She'd been learning to rouse the masses for years now; surely, she could incite some kind of prison riot or revolution if she had to. But where was her lute? She didn't need that to inspire crowds, but it sure helped.
"If you bastards stole my lute," she murmured to no one. "I'm gonna fuckin' lose it."
She looked around the room, but there were only stone walls and one window and a dingy chamber pot. Nothing practical to help her, and no lute in sight.
Without anything to do and no chance of getting back to sleep, Vizara spent what seemed to be an interminable amount of time pacing about the cell. She found herself shivering in the cold air, but the movement helped. If she didn't find a way to get out of here soon, she could very well be stuck in this hellhole forever. The law of the kingdom wasn't known for its charity.
The light from the small window had significantly brightened and then dimmed again by the time Vizara saw any company. She reckoned it was around sunset when there came the clamor of heavy footsteps outside her cell door. She moved to the back corner of the cell to give herself a bit of space once the guards came in; for they were coming in—the rustle of keys and the sound of voices reached her, dampened by the thick door but still clear enough. There was a soft click, and the door swung open, light from the hallway beyond cascading in. Vizara squinted at the loss of comfortable darkness.
There were three guards, dark in the doorway, just like the night before. She couldn't tell if they were all the same ones, but she vaguely recognized one of the female guards. They were dressed in the customary mail, with the sign of the monarchy across their chests. The longswords at their hip drew Vizara's eyes—she couldn't brute force her way past them, even if she had a weapon of her own.
She allowed two of the guards to approach her and none-too-gently shackle her right arm, hooking the other end of a long chain to a bar in the window. They backed away, now out of her reach, as if she posed any kind of danger to them.
"Vizara Whitecrest," the female guard started.
"Hello, yes, that's me," Vizara said, a fake smile on her lips. "It seems my reputation precedes me."
"I don't care much for pleasantries." she glowered. "I am only here to assess your account and determine an appropriate punishment."
"That's just great." Vizara sat down and put her hands in her lap. "I'm sure you know, I was rather very drunk last night, and quite out of my right mind. Now, I had no intention of attackin' anyone yesterday, but you must understand, certain things are bound to happen when one is that inebriated."
"I didn’t come here for idle chat and excuses." she said. "No proper bard drinks during her performance.”
“Now there’s your problem, sweetheart. I ain’t any kind’a proper bard.”
“You sure as hell didn’t seem drunk when you stabbed Oliver.” The woman harrumphed. “I’ve never seen a drunkard harm a trained guard, let alone one your size.”
Vizara shrugged. “’Spose I got lucky.”
“See, I don’t think you did. You knew just where to aim, and I’m damned if your aim wasn’t perfect.” She considered. “You’ve done this before.”
“I ain’t done nothin’ of the sort.” Vizara insisted, and she could only blame her pounding head when she added “Only time I’ve laid a hand on a guardsman is in bed, and he damn near begged me to hit him.”
The guard’s face screwed up in something halfway between annoyance and fury. Vizara winced, her smile falling. “I don’t mean any offense or nothin’, course! I’m just—"
Patience run out, the guard strode into her space and slammed her into the wall, cutting her off with a sharp gasp. Her left arm pinned Vizara's shoulders to the wall, her right pressing into Vizara’s wounded chest. The bard wheezed in pain, and her mask of nonchalance faded into visible distress.
“We both know you weren’t drunk, you stupid fucking half-elf.” She ground Vizara’s shoulders into the wall. “I’m not here to play games, and I don’t tolerate lies. If you’d like to keep your head, you’ll tell me everything. I want to know if you’ve attacked guardsmen before, and what I can do to make you never attack us again. I want to know about every Northerner who so much as fucking thought about going after the guard. Lie to me once more, and I will make sure you never sing again.”
"I—" Vizara pushed against the guard's adamant armor before she could think better of it. "Fucking—get off me!"
The woman moved in an instant, grasping Vizara's left hand in her armored gauntlet and pinning it against the wall. Vizara couldn’t even tell what was happening until the guard’s dagger was flashing against her throat and she was screaming into it. Her head slammed against the stone wall and she almost didn't feel it when the guard let her drop to the floor.
She took in gasping breaths as her vision returned. She clapped her hand to her neck, now pulsing with blood. Her eyes drifted to the ceiling. Her throat worked painfully, as if trying to swallow back down the lost blood.
“It’s not hard,” the woman said, "all you need to do is sit there and tell the truth.” Then, to someone else, she ordered, “go make sure the windows are boarded for the storm. I can handle her.”
She knelt in front of Vizara and grasped her chin in one metal hand. The bard moaned and tried to turn away, but to no avail. She was weak and reeling from the pain.
The guard turned Vizara's face toward her own. Vizara saw the other two guards had left them, and the door to the cell was closed. She and the guard were alone now and there was no one there to save her from her suffering.
“I’m not afraid to carve out your vocal cords and let you choke on blood until I’m kind enough to let our healer seal you shut. And right now, I’m really considering it for the insolence alone.” Her voice was quiet now. Soft. Almost saccharine sweet with the way she breathed into Vizara’s ear. “You’re lucky I’m nice. This doesn’t have to get any more difficult than you've already made it."
Even bleeding her brain dizzy, Vizara wasn't fooled. She would suffer more tortures before any of these people had finished with her. Not much of anything could save her now from that. But she was hurt. And she was alone. And she was afraid. And she wanted it to be over.
"I'm don't know anyone else," Vizara rasped, tasting copper on her tongue. "I'm on my own. The tavern—they don't pay me or anythin' like that. I'm just there to make some coin and they want more business. 's that simple. 'm not from here, either. Don't know anyone here, 'cept a few folks I'm a bit familiar to. Nobody from my hometown's seen me in months. They're innocent in all this."
All of the sudden, it was very hard to breathe. There was a roaring in her ears.
"Please, I'm beggin' you. Don't hurt them," Vizara felt pinprick tears in the corners of her eyes. "Don't hurt me, neither, please. 'm just a fool of a bard. Wanted t' fight against the kingdom, someway, somehow. And I was stupid. I can’t do anythin’ all on my own. I can hardly defend myself. I ain’t a threat to anyone, ‘specially not the guard. I promise, I didn't want nobody to get hurt, 'least, nobody I cared much about. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t’a done that. I’m so sorry."
The cell and the woman before her became watery, submerged in her own tears. The guard straightened up and Vizara waited for a blow to fall upon her. She waited for a reply. Waited for something. Waiting for anything better than waiting.
Damn near an eternity passed between them in silence, and Vizara finally peeked out of the shelter of her arms. The guard was looking at her, but not. She had cocked her head to one side to listen to something outside of the room. Vizara listened as best she could between the heaving of her chest and the tiny gasps hiccupping from her throat. There was a roar, she thought, like a great waterfall or a stampede of animals. She heard it faint, but even as she listened it came closer as if to suffocate her in the noise. She futilely clapped her free hand to a sensitive half-elf ear. A sense of dread came over her, but also a desperate hope. If this loud, horrible noise was as powerful as it seemed, maybe it could tear her away from here. Maybe it could drag the guard away. Hell, she’d be glad if this thing killed her if it meant escaping the grasp of this merciless woman. A woman who was now standing in the middle of the cell, paying no more attention to Vizara.
Vizara removed her hand from her ear, wincing at the booming, cacophonous sound. She pushed herself to her feet, but as the ground trembled, she fell back upon the floor. She pressed her left ear to the ground and her hand to her right, and she tried to keep the blood from slipping through her fingers. She pulled her legs to her chest and huddled close into herself. The noise was now right on top of her. This is the end of the world, rang clear in Vizara's tangled thoughts.
There was a tremendous crash, and everything shook, and small stones fell on Vizara's prone form.
And after a time, the noise receded into the distance.
And it was deafeningly quiet.
Vizara's ears rang and everything that she was hurt. She curled ever closer as wracking cries filled her chest.
But at the very least, she was alive.
#my writing#ayy first time posting my writing here i think#maybe give it a try owo#its original fiction but i promise the main character doesn't suck#like i will maintain that this isnt my best work by a long shot but i still think its pretty good
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I saw the extended playlist on Stylesupdated’s tumblr. I don’t even have a damn tumble or I’d link you! 40 songs total. Would love to know your thoughts on his other selections! Take care.
Thanks anon!
Baby Driver is a catchy, funky song - it almost sounds more like a Paul Simon solo piece than typical Simon & Garfunkel.
youtube
My daddy was the family bassmanMy mama was an engineerAnd I was born one dark gray mornWith music coming in my ears, in my ears
They call me Baby DriverAnd once upon a pair of wheels I hit the road and I’m goneWhat’s my number? I wonder how your engines feelScoot down the road, what’s my number?I wonder how your engines feel
Shine a light
My daddy was a prominent frogmanMy mama’s in the Naval reserveWhen I was young I carried a gunBut I never got the chance to serve, I did not serve
They call me Baby DriverAnd once upon a pair of wheels I hit the road and I’m goneWhat’s my number? I wonder how your engines feelScoot down the road, what’s my number?I wonder how your engines feel
My daddy got a big promotionMy mama got a raise in payThere’s no one home, we’re all aloneOh, come to my room and play, yes, we can play
I’m not talking about your pigtailsBut I’m talking ‘bout your sex appealI hit the road and I’m goneWhat’s my number? I wonder how your engines-Scoot down the road, what’s my number?I wonder how your engines feel
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Paul Simon
Baby Driver lyrics © Paul Simon Music
I opened the “extended playlist” link from the post you mentioned and all 40 songs are jumbled up (not in the order played on Zane Lowe today.) This being the case, I don’t think this is necessarily the 28th song.
music.apple.com/us/playlist/harry-styles
The 28th song on Harry’s Apple Music list is:
youtube
It’s early in the morningAbout a quarter till threeI’m sittin’ here talkin’ with my babyOver cigarettes and coffee, nowAnd to tell you thatDarling I’ve been so satisfiedHoney since I met youBaby since I met you, ooh
All the places that I’ve been aroundAnd all the good looking girls I’ve metThey just don’t seem to fit inKnowing this particularly sad, yeah
But it seemed so natural, darlingThat you and I are hereJust talking over cigarettes and drinking coffee, ooh now
And whole my heart cries outLove at last I’ve found you, ooh nowAnd honey won’t you let meJust be my whole life around youAnd while I complete, I complete my whole life would be, yeahIf you would take things under considerationAnd walk down this hour with meAnd I would love it, yeah
People I say it’s so early in the morningOh, it’s a quarter till threeWe’re sittin’ here talkin’Over cigarettes and drinking coffee, now, lordAnd I’ll like to show you, wellI’ve known nothing but good old joySince I met you, darlingHoney since I’ve met you, baby yeah
I would love to have another drink of coffee, nowAnd please, darling, help me smoke this one more cigarette, nowI don’t want no cream and sugarCause I’ve got you, now darlingBut just let me enjoyHelp me to enjoyThis good time that we’ll have, babyIt’s so early, so early in the morningSo early, so early in the morningAnd I’ve got youAnd you’ve got meAnd we’ll have each otherAnd we don’t, we don’t want nothing but joy, y'allNothing but joy
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Jerry Butler / Edward Thomas / J Walker
Cigarettes and Coffee lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc
If Cigarettes and Coffee doesn’t fit Louis - doesn’t fit their relationship, I don’t know what does!
Harry really loves timeless music. The Billie Holiday recording of “I’ll Be Seeing You” is from 1944. The 12 songs on his extended playlist all seem very consistent with those he introduced today.
I think the main thing I take away from these songs (other than Harry still being head-over-heels in love with Louis) is how well they hold up. Harry’s songwriting has improved since the 1D days, but even then, many of his songs had a real timeless quality - “If I Could Fly,” “Walking in the Wind,” “Something Great,” “Stockholm Syndrome.” I think by immersing himself in music with “legs” rather than current trends - he also writes music built to stand the test of time.
Cheers anon, thanks so much for pointing me to the extended playlist!
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amped and wired, part two | chapter eight: i was right
I lay down in my bed to await Lars, who was in the next room seeing Mrs. Hamilton off and switching off the light. I had already stripped off my sweatshirt and my jeans in favor of pajama bottoms and I was more than ready to call it a night. The whole entire time she was out getting us dinner, he kept on saying that he wanted to show off a little more of his tennis skills to me when given the chance.
“Well, it's dark and rainy out right now, Lars—not really the best time to be doin' such a thing at the moment,” I told him. “Aside from the aforementioned school, this really isn't the best place to be playin' tennis.”
“Who said we were going to be playing at the school? I didn't say anything about playing at the school.”
“Well, one of us brought it up—I was sure that was a suggestion of sorts.”
“It was not,” he insisted.
“Then why the hell bother mentioning it if there won't be anythin' that'll come of it?” I asked him.
“Because it was something. It was something. Something is far better than nothing. If there was nothing here, I would suggest going down to Syracuse or some place else.”
“Yeah but you didn't.”
“I know.”
“So yeah, like... I just assumed it, though.”
“And I know you did. To make an assumption is to base off of an observation and therefore, seeing as you observed it, you came to an assumption. Albeit an incorrect one, but you made an assumption.”
“And—your point?”
“My point is exactly what you said. All I am doing is pointing out what you pointed out and you are in turn pointing it out to me and therefore I am pointing it out to myself.”
I didn't know what to say to that, so I said: “oh, okay.”
“Okay what?”
“What—you—said?”
“Me? You're the one who assumed it.”
“Well, why didn't you add anything, though? My head wouldn't be spinning right now.”
“Because I didn't think you would assume,” he confessed.
“Lars, I'm a dumb hick from out here in the sticks—I assume bullshit all the time. Yeah, it's gotten me into trouble but ya gotta cut me some slack, though.”
“I'd be more than happy to cut you some slack, Joey—just gimme some fabric for a molding of sorts.”
“Says the guy who won't darn his own socks.”
“I cannot darn my own socks!” he exclaimed.
“Yeah, you also wanna make your own tennis racket, too. There you go—I just hockey punched a huge hole in your logic.”
He giggled at that.
“What's so funny?” I demanded.
“Just the way you said that,” he replied with a hand up by his mouth. “'There ya goo—I jus' hahckey punched a yuge hole in yer lahgic.”
“Oh, right, like you don't 'ave a weird way'a talkin'—I cannot dahn my ohwn sohcks!” I said that with a big old gyration of my head, too.
“I don't talk like that,” he scoffed, “—at least I hope not.”
“Lars, all the times I've listened to you in interviews—just either on TV or by hearsay, you always sound so proper and prim. Like... I could listen to ya talk for hours. And I'm here like 'hey, y'all, how ya did?' Makes me pale in comparison, y'know?”
“Well—if I'm honest... I don't see that as a trait of being a hick, Joey,” he said. “I see that more as a sign of humility, which is a rare feat with lead singers especially. I wouldn't call you a hick as I would a country boy, like... Cliff was like that. You're humble and I like that. I try to be, but sometimes I don't really have a choice, you know? I have to be forthgoing—I have to the leg work because James and Kirk won't do it, or they don't really have all that much to add.”
“Your band wouldn't be where they are now without you,” I told him.
“And I hate to say it but James has a big case of lead singer's disease at the moment. When I was let go, I could feel it coming on. I figured it was only a matter of time and then the next thing I knew, he looked at me dead in the eye and said 'Lars—it's over. Kirk and I are going to have to ask you to leave.'”
“At least you got looked at,” I assured him. “I got a phone call.”
He gaped at me. “Damn.”
“Yeah, you're tellin' me,” I said with another shake of my head. “But Charlie sounded real remorseful, though—like he said, 'Joey, I really don't wanna be doin' this', and I had a feeling what was going on and then he said it. Now that I look at his behavior in Black Orchid, he still does. Like I knew when he offered me a cup of coffee earlier in Black Orchid, he wanted to make things right between me and him. Like that was the start of repair.”
“I think their becoming homeless had something to do with it, too,” he pointed out with a raise of one eyebrow and a tucking of a lock of hair behind his ear. “Like they went through something terrible and it was like a wake up call to not rid of something precious.”
“I have no doubt in my mind that had sump'n to do with it,” I said with a shake of my head. “Not entirely, but it definitely played a big role in it, though, y'know?”
“Absolutely. But at least they learned their lesson, though. On my end, it was like—Cliff was killed and James and Kirk still went ahead with the decision together. What especially hurts is Metallica was all my idea. I was the one who put the wanted ad in the magazine and James was the one who came to me. It's like, 'you're kicking me out of my band?' You should consider yourself lucky, Joey.”
“You're kinda lucky, too, Lars,” I assured him, “—you've got this cozy li'l apartment here takin' care of you. It's filled with ghosts an' my nonsense, and there's only so much I can do, but I'd rather you be here chillin' with me than out in the cold out in Cali, though.”
“You know, come to think of it—I am lucky. Before I came here, I was doing what Scott, Frank, and Charlie are doing at the moment bunking over at Black Orchid. As lovely as Mrs. Hamilton herself is, I came to a limit over there.”
“How exactly are they staying there?” I asked him.
“There's a loft upstairs—not the loft so to speak, where she, Scott, and I were having our moments together. But there's one over the main atrium, though—there's two beds up there and a bathroom, but that's about it. There's not much to do and I think that's what drove me up the wall when I stayed there. It is better than nothing, sure, but I am lucky to have met you when I did, Joey.”
“And I'm gonna tell you this right now, I ain't precious.”
And right as I said that, Mrs. Hamilton stepped back into the apartment with dinner in her hands. Big helpings of that and a couple of trips to the bathroom later, and I was back laying in my own bed with my hands behind my head. I was feeling all warm and silky again, and I just wanted to fall asleep right there. But I promised Lars that I would stay awake until he slid into bed next to me. I had no idea if he would take off his socks or not before he climbed into bed but I was certain he would come in at any given moment.
I lowered my arms to underneath the blankets: the clash of the warmth under the blankets and the cold feeling on my skin made me shiver, even with my hands right on my stomach. But I was feeling full again and I wanted to nurse the feeling.
I rolled over onto my side with my arm over my waist and my hip cocked out. I just relaxed every inch of myself. I nestled my head down into my pillow a bit more to feel every bit of the warmth. In a way, I almost felt like I had fallen asleep at my parents' house after dinner. I made a mental note to call up my mom in the morning to tell her how everything was going.
I could feel myself falling asleep when I caught the sound of the bedroom door swinging open behind me. Silence.
And then—
FLOP.
And it made the bed shake a bit. I opened my eyes to see him laying next to me on his back and his hair fanned out from his head.
“Did you just jump onto the bed?” I asked him in a muffled voice.
“Kind of,” he replied.
I paused for a second.
“I don't think that was 'kind of',” I admitted.
“No, it—it was,” he said.
“You made the bed shake, though.”
“Because I'm fat, that's why.”
“Oh, right, right—” I closed my eyes again because the feeling needed to be nursed some more.
“Mrs. Hamilton told me she's going to be back here tomorrow morning to take us grocery shopping,” he informed me in a single breath. “She doesn't want this place to be without any legitimate morsel food for a second longer.”
“Oh—good,” I muttered with a shifting of my head so I could better breathe. He lay on top of the blankets so I couldn't move too much.
“You look—very relaxed,” he said.
“I am. Before you came in here, I was about ready to fall asleep.”
“But you stayed awake.”
“Yeah. 'Cause—you're kinda like my buddy now, Lars.”
I opened my eyes to see the soft expression on his face.
“And—you kind are like my buddy, too, Joey,” he added. “Here—”
He climbed up and off of the bed, and to the spot right behind me. I didn't want to roll over to see him, but I could hear his clothes rustling. I felt the blankets peel back down at my feet. Within a few seconds, he had turned off the light. I felt him climb into bed next to me with his head down by my feet; meanwhile, I felt his bare feet make their way up towards my pillow, but he kept them away from me.
I sighed through my nose and relaxed again. Within a matter of seconds, I had fallen asleep.
The dream I had was nothing like the one I had had the night before, in that I wasn't laying on an operating table but laying atop a huge pile of bones and ocean waves. I didn't understand it, either, especially since the waves weren't so much as pulling me along as they were keeping me in a singular place upon the ocean. I took one look down at the bones to find that most of them were from animals: there was a cat skull right underneath my right hip. I noticed I was rendered to nothing more than a skinny little sack of bones myself, far skinnier than I was in real life.
My knees were pointed like pyramids and my legs had lost all of the tight lean muscle I had built up in all that time playing hockey and learning to drum. My stomach had caved in all the way down towards my spine: my belly button was stretched out into a long narrow stripe on the skin. My stomach itself meanwhile was in utter agony from hunger. I could see my ribs jutting out from under the skin. I could feel my heart pounding inside of my chest, which was in sheer agony. I couldn't hardly move from the starvation, given it gave me such a deep and profound ache within me. I needed to get off of this makeshift raft, wherever it was headed to there on the ocean.
I shifted my left foot and everything on the left side ached like crazy; I did the same for the right side and the same story there.
I lay my head back down upon the pile of bones and I could feel something upon my face. Moving my eyes down, I noticed I had no nose. My lips had disappeared too, even though I could pucker them with ease. My skin was gone and I was a sack of bones that had lost its skin within a matter of seconds.
I jarred myself awake to the sound of Lars quietly snoring right next to me and the feeling of his foot right within my spot of my heart, hence the pain in my chest. I ran my hand down my bare belly, which was still quite warm with dinner and still very soft and full. I gazed up into the darkness, to the shadows over my face, and then I let my eyes sink closed. I rolled my head over a bit on the pillow when I felt something brush against the side of my neck.
I opened one eye to see her inky black hair lay itself against me. Her full body was round, heavy, and very smooth, but cold with that ghostly chill. I looked over at Nerissa, who lay over me like the succubus she was, and the succubus I let her be.
Her dark eyes gaped at me like a pair of deep black holes. Her dark lips hung over my face. Usually I would let her kiss me and caress me down while I was laying in bed, but then again, Lars was right there next to me. But then again, Lars probably couldn't wake up if I stayed quiet, and she was usually quiet whenever she appeared before me for a little round of ghost lovin'.
I put my hands underneath my head and let her caress my face and the sides of my neck. I watched her float down towards my collar bones and then my chest, and then she reached my stomach. Her kisses felt like the tips of feathers on my skin; I felt her lifting the elastic band of my pajama bottoms for a peek inside. I closed my eyes as she slipped her fingers down inside for a touch.
Even though she was so cold, so cold and icy and grazing my skin with goose pimples, I was still feeling as warm and soft as ever within. I didn't want this feeling to ever go away. Those same goose pimples made their way across the skin on my shaft, which only made it rise more. I couldn't resist the smile on my face and the warm feeling just continuing to spread throughout my body. She caressed me down right there and I felt so relaxed that all I could do was give soft and sweet little groans inside my throat upon each kiss from her lips. I couldn't help but shift my hips a little bit upon the mattress, but then I remembered Lars was right there next to me.
She gave my head a little kiss before she vanished into thin air.
Sometimes all you need in life following a bad dream is a bunch of dinner and then when there's another bad dream, have a succubus to kiss you good night. I sighed through my nose and caressed my belly with both hands. The warm feeling made me weak at the knees. I couldn't hardly stay awake a second longer.
I fell back asleep, that time into a dreamless bout, and I awoke to Lars' feet right up on my chest. His heel pressed right up on my nipple which made me squirm a little bit, and it didn't help matters that he kept shifting his legs about so it felt like he was trying to pinch my nipples with his feet. I did however have my moment with him in that my feet knocked him right square in the crown of the head.
“Another round of getting kicked in the face, Joseph,” he remarked in a broken voice.
“Hey, at least it's just the back of your head this time,” I pointed out with a clearing of my throat. “I feel like you're givin' me a li'l nipple piercing here. A li'l piercing on a cold day.”
He snickered to himself.
“What's so funny?” I demanded; I opened my eyes and looked down at his softened face, hugged by those blankets and that couch pillow. I noticed the bright white glare outside of the window behind my head, which meant it snowed overnight.
“Again, I just like the way you said that,” he said, “I feel like yer givin' me'a li'l nipple piercin' ahn a cold day.”
“You really wanna try your hand at my accent?” I challenged him as I cleared my throat again. “Park the car down on the lawn by Lake Ontario for a bit o' pop.”
“Pahk the cah down ahn the lahn by Lake Ahntariah fer a bit'a pahp.”
“There ya go!”
I was quick to climb out of bed even though I didn't feel like leaving from under those covers, but I remembered Mrs. Hamilton was coming over for me to have some more things to eat there at my place. I wore the same sweatshirt I wore the night before but that time I put on a fresh pair of pants. Once I had laced up my black boots given the snow outside, there was a knock on the door. Lars was kind enough to answer and Mrs. Hamilton stepped inside of the warmth.
“Good morning, boys,” she greeted us with a jovial smile, “a little change of plans: we're gonna do all that later on today—Scott and Charlie are making us breakfast at Black Orchid.”
“Oh, boy!” Lars declared.
“Also, Joey?” she continued.
“Yeah?”
“Scott wanted me to give you this.” She took out something from her black and silver pocket book and handed it to me.
“What is it?”
“Hold out your hand.”
I did and she dropped it inside of my palm. A little black triangle shape with that logo on the back and the Not Man on the front.
“I guess that was the only thing he could salvage from the fire,” she confessed.
“Oh, wow, really?” To which she nodded.
“I would make a pendant out of that thing,” Lars advised me.
“Well, for now, it's going into my pocket. Just so long as I ain't rolling upside down anywhere.”
Mrs. Hamilton drove Lars and me over to the strip joint, where we were met by that fresh aroma of brewed coffee accompanied with—
“WOW, that's a lot of pancakes!” I proclaimed at the stacks upon stacks of light and fluffy pancakes on that table where we played strip chess, all fresh out of the kitchen.
“Isn't it?” Scott called to me from the doorway with a spatula in one hand and a dish towel slung over his shoulder.
“Hey, thank you for that pick, by the way,” I told him.
“It's my pleasure, Joey,” he said with a shrug. “And it's what I can do right now.” He ducked back into the kitchen to help Charlie, and that was when Lars guided me to that one hallway, the one with the dressing room and the stairs up to that loft he told me about. Even as we made our way up those creaky wooden steps, I could hear Frankie singing to himself up there. I always thought Frankie should sing more, either alongside me in Anthrax or with his own thing: he had a nice voice.
I caught the soft smell of laundry soap as he had put down fresh sheets on those two beds. Lars had said there wasn't much to do in there: that wasn't what the big long bookshelf against the wall indicated for me. A shelf full of comic books and actual books themselves. In between the beds stood a nightstand with a heavy brass lamp and a small clock about the size of a golden potato. I gazed straight ahead to the window outside to the snow and the rooftops.
“What the hell's goin' on here?” I asked aloud.
“What he said,” Lars added.
“Kinda makin' ourselves at home here,” said Frankie as he smoothed the blanket on the bed closest to the window. “This place was empty and void when we showed up here so the girls helped us give it some life.”
I turned to Lars.
“I thought you said there was nothing to do here?”
“Yeah, there wasn't,” Frankie continued, nonplussed.
“And apparently I missed the boat,” Lars said in a soft voice.
“Two of us sleep head to toe and then we switch every night.”
“That's rough,” I said.
“Eh, not really. If Danny was here with us, it'd be extra rough because we'd be in gridlock here with the beds. I should also tell you guys—”
“Joey—?” Louise's voice called out to me from downstairs. “Lars?”
“What's up?” I called back.
“Is Frankie up there with the two of you?”
“Yes!” said Lars.
“Okay! Breakfast is almost ready.”
“Alright, we're comin' down,” I assured her, and I returned to Frankie. “What were ya gonna say?”
“Danny's coming here. To Oswego.” I gaped at him.
“When?” asked Lars.
“No idea,” Frankie confessed with a shake of his head. “But I guess he tried to call my house but the line was dead 'cause I got evicted, and then he tried to Charlie and nothing. And then he called my mom, and then I called her because I thought she might be worried about Charlie and me—” And then I remembered I had forgotten to call my own mother, ugh. “—and she told me about it. I called him just a little bit ago and he's coming here soon.”
“What's he doin', goin' by paper plane?” I wondered aloud. “Last time I saw him, he wasn't drivin'.”
“No idea how he's getting here,” he continued, “but he told me it's horrifying down there in the Big Apple, and Mom told me the same thing. She's almost afraid to leave the house.”
“Why?” asked Lars. “What's going on?”
“Remember that weird meaty webby shit we saw on the sidewalks the other night? Apparently it's all over the place now. Every sidewalk, every building, all the way down to Jon and Martha's front step. The neon is, too. It's like the whole city became a living breathing partially brain dead organism overnight.” He then rubbed his hands together. “I dunno 'bout you guys, but I am starving right now!”
#amped and wired#amped and wired fanfic#amped and wired part two#part 2#part two#chapter 8#fanfiction#fanfic#metallica fanfic#anthrax fanfic#anthrax#metallica#joey belladonna#joey belladonna fanfic#lars ulrich#lars ulrich fanfic#scott ian#frank bello#charlie benante#also on ao3#at land's end#at land’s end series#sci fi writing#text
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long drive | graves & miranda | part 1
date: friday, may 22, 2020
summary: two of the hermes siblings wake up at the crack of dawn for a road trip. final destination, myrtle beach. current location: somewhere on i-95 south.
“Hey! Monty! Let’s go!” Graves strolled into Cabin 11, making a beeline for the kitchen. “Loretta’s outside, doors are unlocked. Put your shit in the truck. Vamos, vamos! We got a long drive hermana.” He checked his watch as he dug through the fridge. 4:30. He closed the fridge, scooping up the food he’d gathered and dumping it rather unceremoniously into a bag. He snagged his water bottle from the counter and popped into his room to give it a once-over, making sure he had everything for the weekend.
“Mira!” Graves called, after unloading more supplies into the truck. “We’re already behind schedule, andele.” He decided to forgo nicknames, his tone a little more serious than usual. “My mom’s cookin’ dinner tonight and we are not missin’ that!” Grave picked up his duffel bag and hooked the strap over his shoulder, seconds away from knocking on Miranda’s door.
Miranda opened her bedroom door, shuffling out of it with a few bags in tow. "Okay, okay! Te escuché." She bent down to grab her magic bag, which was currently in its usual black backpack form, and threw it over her shoulder. "Coño, don't remind me about the drive, I'm tired just thinking about it." She headed over towards the front door, pausing to slip on the flip flops she had left there before she finished packing. "Do you need me to bring anything out? Once I get to Loretta, I make zero promises that I'm coming back for you."
Graves shook his head, stepping back so she could pass. He made a shoo-ing motion with his hands in an attempt to usher her out the door. "Nah nah, she's already loaded up. I just need my-" he looked around the room, spotting the item and swiping it off the edge of the couch. "Hat, and now I have it. We're good to go. You're navigator and DJ, you know the drill." He put his hat on, turning it backwards. He gave the cabin one more cursory glance and closed the door behind them. "I hope Roz doesn't set the place on fire while we're gone." Graves hopped in the truck after loading in Miranda's bags and closed the door; he turned the key and the engine roared to life.
Miranda climbed up into the truck, dropped her backpack at her feet, and immediately started getting her phone connected to the stereo system Loretta had. By the time Graves had finally joined her inside of the truck, she had already kicked her now bare feet up on the dash, and had her road trip playlist loaded and ready to go. "Nah, we should be good, I didn't tell her what not to do, so it should be still standing when we get back. I told Mace we were going to be gone, so maybe she'll swing by occasionally and check up on the place." She shrugged, ignoring the small part of her that was in fact worried about leaving her younger sister in charge of the cabin. Once the engine started up, she turned on the radio to let her playlist start, leaning her head back into the seat as they started to drive. The music filled the silence between them as they started getting onto the highway, and the farther they got from camp, the more excitement started to flutter inside of her. "I'm glad we're doing this, Gravy. I didn't realize how badly I wanted to get out of that place."
He took the exit, as instructed by the GPS and looked over at Miranda. "Yeah, me too. I haven't been home since...I got here." It was weird to say out loud; now that he had, Graves' excitement doubled. "I can't wait for you to meet my mom. And Gran! And see the shop. And-" he cut himself off with a laugh. "I'm gettin' ahead of myself. This is gonna be fun as fuck."
Miranda nodded her head as he spoke, a smile appearing on her face at his very obvious excitement. "Yeah, especially since you're such a momma's boy, and all." She teased, choosing to do that instead of thinking about the last time she had gone home herself. She hated thinking about it, but the idea of going on an adventure to meet Graves' mom had her feeling a little on edge about the whole family topic. Regardless, she plastered a smile on her face. "I'm mainly in it for those fishbowls you showed me, but yeah I guess the rest of it is fine too."
"Hey, I have a great mom! Of course I'm a momma's boy. You'll love her too, wait and see." Graves bobbed his head along to the song Miranda had picked. He checked the time. 5:00. He was not awake enough for the drive ahead of them and decided that the first pit stop would be at a Starbucks. His ears perked up at 'fishbowls'. "Oh fuck yeah, Monty, you're gonna love Duffy's. Well- actually you might hate it, it's kind of a dive? But the fishbowls are fuckin' bomb and we can walk there from the house."
"Why the fuck would I hate it? I'm not an elitist or some shit. But I am very okay with being able to just walk down the street whenever I want a drink." Miranda rolled her eyes, shuffling in her seat a bit until she was comfortably situated while half facing her brother, then pulled a blanket out of her backpack and draped it over her legs.
Graves shook his head with a laugh. "We'll have to walk there every day then. It's like a ten minute walk to the main avenue and there's Duffy's and really good pizza and we can get ice cream at Sweetz and- I'm ramblin'. You have to wait and see." He looked over at Miranda as she got comfortable in the passenger seat. "You wanna nap for a bit? I'll wake you up at the next rest stop."
Miranda laughed as well, though hers was laced with exhaustion. "You, ramble? Never, Manito. But, as long as they have black raspberry then I am in for ice cream." She curled up slightly in her seat, and smiled when she heard Graves' offer. "Yeah, I didn't really sleep last night, so that would be awesome." They talked for another few minutes, Miranda's voice slowly getting quieter before her end of the conversation dropped altogether as she fell asleep.
~~~
The rest stop parking lot was packed, considering it wasn't even 9 AM. It took Graves two loops around the place before he found a parking spot. He cursed himself silently for forgetting about the holiday weekend as he turned the car off and gave Miranda's shoulder a shake. "Mont, wake up. We're in New Jersey." When she didn't stir, Graves tried another tactic. He shook her arm again, talking louder this time, "Hey, hermana, levántate! I'll buy you coffee. There's a Starbucks here." As his sister began to wake up, he hopped out of the truck and sent two quick texts: one to his mom, the other to Macey, updating them with the progress of their road trip.
Miranda let out a small groan when she felt her shoulder get shaken, adjusting herself so that she was away from the source of the movement. When it returned, but stronger this time, she let out a louder whine, though it cut off when she heard 'coffee'. It took her a minute to wake up enough to register where they were, then another three to stretch and climb out of the truck to join Graves in the parking lot. "Oh gods, coffee. Yes, please."
Graves stretched his arms over his head and yawned. "Okay, cariña. Let's make this quick, we still have nine hours to go. You grab breakfast, I'll grab the coffee?" He handed her a very wrinkled twenty dollar bill from his pocket then bumped her shoulder with his. "Meet you back here in five?"
Miranda looked down at the money he handed her, then back up at him and raised an eyebrow to silently ask him why this moment was happening. Then she saw the look on his face, and the excitement in his eyes and decided not to say anything, instead pocketing the bill and following him towards the rest stop. "Lo tienes. See you in five." She started to walk, put turned around when she thought of something, but continued to walk backwards. "Iced coffee!" Miranda turned back around and over to the food court. The line made her take a little longer than five minutes, but roughly ten minutes later, she returned to the truck with two breakfast sandwiches in hand.
Graves was sitting in the driver's seat already, door open, his feet hanging out the side. The line for coffee had been much shorter than that for food and he'd beat Miranda back to the truck, taking the opportunity to check his texts. As she walked up to the car, he grabbed her iced coffee and handed it to her, eagerly trading for a sandwich. "Thank gods you're back. I'm starving to death, Mont. You ready to get back on the road?"
Climbing back into the truck, Miranda let out a huff. “I swear to gods, people are idiots. Someone was trying to get a vegan egg sandwich. At a rest stop. Like, where the fuck do they think they are, a gourmet coffee shop?” She rolled her eyes, exchanging food for a coffee and took a long sip. “But si, vamos, get me away from this place.”
He chuckled, waving his sandwich at her, "I assume this is not a vegan egg sandwich then?" Graves unwrapped his sandwich and took a bite before putting on his seat belt and turning the key in the ignition. "'This place' as in the rest stop? Or 'this place' as in New Jersey, armpit of America?" He joked before pulling out of their spot and getting back on the road.
Miranda laughed, returning her feet to the dash as he pulled back onto the highway. "Sorry to disappoint you, I know how much you're dying to have something in common with 'tough guy' Brent." She teased, unwrapping her own sandwich and taking a bite out of it. "I was going to say just the rest stop, but you know what, either one is fine by me at this point."
"Oh my gods, did Macey tell you about that?" Graves asked, indignant. He took another bite of his sandwich. "Brent is cool, and scary. Y'all stop makin' fun of me for bein' intimidated or I'm not talkin' to y'all about anything anymore." His eyes flashed to the GPS and he switched lanes before focusing back on the road. He repeated his earlier statement, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel in time with his words, "Nine hours to go, hermana. Luckily, we'll be out of Jersey in about an hour. "
"No? I was just there after the first night of fight night. Brent just said the same exact thing Macey and I had already said you practically fell over trying to get back to the cabin after that. Though now I will be texting Macey." Miranda took another sip of coffee. "Cool, I'll give you. Scary? Sorry, can't agree there, Gravy." When he switched topics, she decided to ease up, considering he was driving and was honestly in complete control of her not getting lost while wandering around Myrtle Beach. She started the process of connecting her phone back to the stereo to get the music playing again. "That's not bad, Any requests for the DJ?"
“Ah, fight night,” Graves confirmed, finally understanding the moment Miranda was referring to. He took another bite of his sandwich, mumbling, “punched a god” around his mouthful of food. He was thankful Miranda didn’t press the topic; Graves wanted to get to know Brent better. He didn’t really find the older demigod that scary, but he didn’t know him well enough to see the softer side that his sisters always pointed out. And if this guy had punched a god in the face without being vaporized on the spot? Well, Cam definitely wanted to call him a friend. He blinked, registering Miranda’s question a few seconds after she asked. “Hm, somethin’ we call yell along to? Somethin’ that’ll keep me awake until we make our next stop. It’s a long drive, but it’ll be worth it, I swear.”
Miranda nodded. "Alright, I can work with that." She debated offering to drive for a little bit, but her brother was stubborn. Besides, it didn't even matter if she said anything or not, they both knew that they would swap if he needed a quick power nap, so she decided to not bring it up. Tapping her phone a few times, she pulled up a new playlist of songs they could easily jam out to and pressed play, reaching out to turn the stereo up as it started blasting out.
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Lil Texas - Interview with Earmilk - 2013 (Type-up)
Thoughts i’d type up the interview onto an entire post as i figure not everyone might check out the link! However i provided the link so y’all can go check it out anyways/to give creds to my source material for this one! x
Direct Link - https://earmilk.com/2013/06/21/earmilk-interview-lil-texas-exclusive-mix/ -
* EM - Earmilk / LT - Lil Texas *
Ever since I met Sam Barry (aka Lil Texas) circa 2011, I've been vibing off his music like a fiend. Since then he has exploded, opening for cat lover Dillon Francis, fresh off a tour with the hoodie boys themselves, Flosstradamus, and having just dropped his latest EP, Talkin 2 U, released via Donky Pitch at the end of May. And he's got a lot more on the horizon.
His sound is something huge and modern and unclassifiable (what does a "genre" mean now, anyways?). If I had to put my thumb on it, I would call it progressive R&B garage trap-hop. Sam took the time to answer what is my favorite interview I've conducted to date.
Not only did he crack me up with the interview, he also made this exclusive mix for Earmilk. This mix is 45 minutes of sultry bump n' grind progressive R&B garage trap-hop shit and is an essential for any summer party. Give er' a whirl tonight while you and your hombres get ready to go wild for the night. Take a gander at the man, the myth, the minotaur: LiL Texas. Enjoy, cheers!
EM: What are you working on right now that you're most excited about?
LT: Well, the Donky Pitch EP was my main focus for the past 6 months, but right now, the newest M|O|D comp is my biggest focus and that should be out soon on a very dope label. Other than that, I've got some West Coast shows coming soon, big festivals like Camp Bisco and Digital Dreams Festival in Toronto are a big focus. My live show is something I've been focused on upgrading, so be on the lookout for some Lil Tex dancers, some bigger production, and of course fire mixes. Got a few singles that will be dropping and a remix EP of the Donky Pitch release will drop in August with some big names.
EM: What got you into producing and DJing?
LT: I was a bass player forever. I went to Berklee College of Music for jazz performance and business. While there, I discovered computers and producers and fell in love with electronic music. Throwing parties got me into DJing. I used to have a roof deck in Boston that I'd throw ragers at, and from there, I honed my DJ skills. Now I eat, sleep, and breathe that shit.
EM: Where do you find your inspiration?
LT: Internet culture and the culture of the cities I visit and live in. I'm from the south, so I derive a lot of my sound from those southern rap styles and the culture surrounding that. I listen to all types of music, so whatever I may be listening to will inspire me to make a new sound within the context of what's going on in the modern electronic scene. I really enjoy combining genres that you normally wouldn't hear in "trap or club" to make a fresh sound.
EM: Your sound is very progressive and groovy, not like any other shit out there. How did you go about creating this sound?
LT: Man, I just get bored with the formulaic music that is saturating the internet. These producers see that trap is the next cool thing, so they make trap beats. For me that's whack as fuck, if you truly fuck with southern rap and trap styles, then by all means, make that shit, but too many producers are dick riders hopping to the next dick. If you genuinely fuck with something then make it, but don't do it because it's the next cool thing. I'm a sucker for R&B so I try and combine those early 90's sounds into my modern day trap, hip-hop, and club beats to make something fresh and, most importantly, musical.
EM: What's it been like touring with Flosstradamus? Any interesting stories from the road?
LT: The most amazing experience of my life. I learned so much from those dudes, especially about remaining humble no matter what. They're very admirable guys and super loyal to their fans. But hell yeah, it was gnarly for me getting to play 1000+ venues every night. Got to sign autographs (titties) for the first time, and pull some crazy backstage rockstar shit. The good stuff I can't really put in the interview but y'all can use your imagination. I will say this though Vancouver was next level debauchery.
EM: Tell me about the M|O|D Crew. How'd you meet, what do you do, etc.?
LT: We met at college in Boston. We're all just best friends, and we came together because Boston wasn't showing us any love back then so we decided to start our own crew and get bigger than any of them. The past year, we've been grinding non-stop and keep raising the bar between each other and the industry. We love beer, rare ladies, smoking that chron, and dope music. Pretty simple dudes, we're mad friendly so if you see us around don't be shy, we love people, especially the fans.
EM: Biggest celebrity crush?
LT: Lil Debbie is my ultimate BB. If you read this, baby, i'll take you on the best date you've ever had. See, I'm a lover and a romantic, I respect all women so just holler at me Debbie and I'll be there. Iggy Azalea is mad fine too.
EM: What's your guilty pleasure?
LT: Blaring Toni Braxton's first album on CD in my whip.
EM: Favorite TV show?
LT: Game of Thrones and Archer.
EM: Biggest vice?
LT: A rare lady with a nice booty, red lipstick, and dope nails.
EM: What's your dream venue?
LT: Red Rocks and Fabric in London.
EM: Boxers or briefs?
LT: Boxer briefs, player.
EM: Cats or dogs?
LT: Dogs.
#Lil Texas#LilTexas#lil texas#liltexas#texcore#barongfamily#Barong Family#BarongFamily#DonkyPitch#Donky Pitch#Hardcore Music#DJ#EDM#Music#Texas#Texcore#EDC#mastersofhardcore#earmilk
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i'm a newbie to kh but familiar with the general patterns of 2000's-era fandom, and tbh i'm kinda glad I came in at the end of kh when the canon characterizations are more complete than the scraps y'all had to live with... I definitely wouldn't have been able to handle all the "p*do vexen" and "bootlicker saïx" and "10-year-old-with-comically-exaggerated-ADHD demyx" jokes, even if things like "TWILIGHT ISN'T LITERATURE" was funny as hell to middle school me XD
I was kinda late to the KH party myself but I was on deviantArt and YouTube a lot so I still got the main brunt of it. Especially since I did read the Saix Puppy comics and watch Demyx Time. I don't even know when those happened, I just know I was super into them in 2012.
But every fandom had to deal with the flanderization the most back then. The Yu-Gi-Oh! fandom seems to still be reocovering from all that even to this day, mainly with how much Ryou's character is still corrupted, but that might just be since Ryou is hard to grasp due to his limited screen time. But, I've noticed that even in relatively new fandoms nowadays you don't see it as much anymore. Even in the Servamp fandom, which I believe the manga started in 2012, I've noticed lots of fans are young girls and yet, little to no flanderization for any Servamp characters. So I seriously do think fandom as a whole has matured. But of course now there's the modern downsides in fandom like purity culture, but... I don't wanna touch that subject. I'm too afraid.
But ya know what, "Twilight isn't literature" transcends time and all fandoms and probably has the capability to unite us all together, lol. I think I'm lucky that I somehow managed to avoid any P*do Vexen tho. I don't recall ever seeing that but I've heard about it and uuhhh... Yikes™. The worst one to me tho was Demyx. He had a major focus in both those series and like, when you're 12 it's funny cuz ya don't know any better, but like... what was done to Demyx's character was just downright terrible. Especially in the SP comics. I don't wanna get into that topic but... Demyx being characterized as an innocent/idiotic 10 year old with several adults around him being very obviously predatory is like, 100 times more Yikes™ 😬
But like, at the same time there's a level of nostalgia to it all. Like, I wanna go back and rewatch all of Demyx Time after KH3 cuz that thing is still genuienly really funny and dare I say, peak comedy. I still find it hilarious that no one could understand Luxord just cuz of the British accent. And with Served, even to this day I think Larxene revealing that it was her the whole time cuz Marluxia took her boots(I think thats what happened) is so hilarious. And I can still hear Zexion saying "I'm not five, you asshat." in my head! I'm cracking up just thinking about all this!
So like, I think we can all still enjoy it as a nostalgic thing as long as it stays in the past and we know better now. Like, acknowledge the very obvious bad things and just not repeat them in modern fandom.
Did I go off topic again? See, I just, fuckin. Go on these rants. And I don't need to be talkin about this and yet here we are! It's fine, it's fine, it's fine. We're done, no more of this topic. Discussion closed.
#or maybe i just need to learn to shut my mouth#i get way too ranty on this topic and im always worried ill say something bad#it probably doesnt count but im paranoid som im tagging this as#//discourse#ask#oh hey plz dont think you brought up anything bad#im the one that went off#long post
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So lots of people are talkin about it but
I'm not jumping ship at the moment cause tumblr has been my home since 2011, and I've made some wonderful friends and been in great communities. It sucks that tumblr is shooting themselves in the foot so desperately, but I'm gonna stick around. My adult blogs are a side blogs, and I hope if something happens to them it doesn't demolish my main as well.
My main adult hub honestly isn't tumblr, its FurAffinity, and I only followed artists i liked through FA to here, so its not a huge loss personally. Mostly it was convenience seeing art posted here, though I have found some wonderful adult arts here and rebooted them accordingly.
I do have an adult Twitter, but it doesn't separate certain content like I do my two adult blogs, but if anyone is okay with ygo adult art mixed in with furry, hit me up for my adult Twitter url.
I'm gonna sit on this sinking ship all the way down. There's too many good memories and other people I enjoy here to leave. I'll miss the adult stuff, but I'll survive.
If y'all interested I'm also Kudalyn on Twitter as well. And if enough people are migrating to another blogging platform like this one, please let me know so I can move with ya! I don't wanna miss out on good YGO content (and any other things I enjoy lol Twitter really isn't that good for that)
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If you slip up...
Here’s my master list of how to take care of yourself after a b/p, stay strong my lovelies!
1. Physical Damage Control
Teeth -
It's usually a warning sign to have bad teeth as someone less than seventy years old. It's a 'classic' symptom of bulimia and I've heard a lot of (rookies) swear by brushing their teeth. DON'T FUCKIN DO IT MAN. I used to b/p anywhere between three to ten times a day at my worst, but I always kept a handy supply of TUMS or antacids on me. Your teeth become weakened when you b/p in the first place, so the abrasiveness of toothbrush bristles tends to wear down on your enamel. I never brushed my teeth after I would purge, and I've been b/p'ing on and off for about four years now. Like I said - ten times a day at the worst. I went to the dentist last month and they said that my teeth were like, perfect. It was actually shocking. Thank god for chemistry I suppose.
So how does it work? Well, the calcium carbonate (the main ingredient of TUMS) neutralizes the hydrochloric acid (stomach acid) on our teeth like it would in our stomach. It's basically a high school chemistry equation.
CaCO3+ HCl -> CaCl2 + CO2 + H2O.
The symptoms you'll get (after an antacid) is basically just burping up the CO2 lol. It's much more preferable to tooth decay, might I say. OH and if you don't have any antacids on you, baking soda works in the same way. Just put a teaspoon of baking soda into water, swish it around your mouth, and spit it out. It doesn't taste great, but you could probably mix it with a little alcohol-free toothpaste so it tastes more minty. I highly recommend against swallowing baking soda because it will most likely irritate your stomach and make you even more nauseous, and not in an emetic way. (Ana butterflies don't get any stupid ideas it's not gonna work like you think). Swallowing baking soda just makes you kind of uncomfortable, really.
Y'all need to floss too. I sound like I've got a major stick up my ass, because who actually flosses flossing is for old people and l0zers fuck that shit. Nope. Flossing once before you go to bed helps your teeth against yellowing, in my experience. I wouldn’t recommend flossing post-purge as your gums tend to be much more sensitive. ‘Cuz who’s trynna get gingivitis yeah no one.
Sinuses -
Remember that time you (regrettably) b/p’d on rice? And you felt that rice grain up there and took a napkin and blew fuckin snot rice into your napkin, like the sexy beast you are?
Yeah I remember that too.
It’s pretty apparent that stomach acid anywhere besides your stomach is a recipe for havoc. The stomach acid eats away at the mucous membranes in your nose, leading to constant sniffling, loss of smell, and chronic sinus infections. Even if you don't feel irritation in your nose immediately following a b/p, the acid can still lead to damage.
So how do you remedy this?
From my experience, the Neti-Pot saline rinse is the best bet. You can use the one that looks like a tea kettle or the one that's a squeezy bottle - both do the same thing. I have the squeezy bottle and it's really simple to use. You add water up to the fill line
And then you pour the saline packet into the bottle and mix thoroughly (just shake the bottle). Be sure to use FILTERED DRINKING WATER because tap water often contains heavy metals like copper or iron, which isn't good for your nose. Then put the plastic bottle with the saline-water solution into the microwave for approximately 35 seconds, and be careful to make sure it isn't too hot. Make sure it's just slightly warm and then screw the cap on tightly. Lean over a sink and gently squeeze the bottle into one nostril until the water comes out the other. Don't worry, it doesn't provoke the dreaded “oh god there's water in my nose I feel like I'm drowning” feeling. Your sinuses are connected and because the water is warm (like body temperature) it won't come as a shock to your body. Repeat the process on both nostrils until the bottle is done.
I've had actual chunks of food come out of my nose before, and I'm like, “shit, that would have just been hangin out in my nose the entire time?” So it's really important for preventing sinus infections or acid damage to the nasal cavity.
Electrolyte Imbalances -
If I had a dollar for the amount of times I've seen THAT PICTURE of the dead bulimic girl I would be richer than Donald Trump. Yeah, she died from gastric rupture blah blah blah but I always see blogs referencing that picture with the danger of heart failure and death in bulimics.
Despite how frequently I used to purge, I'm not dead yet! Hurray I guess! I used to get serious heart palpitations after a long day of purging, but I could mitigate some of those side effects with proper hydration and electrolyte drinks.
I ain't talkin no purple Gatorade shit either. Gatorade isn't as hydrating as one would think. It's made for athletes who are working out and sweating, and releasing salt through their skin. Gatorade replenishes the sodium and sugar, but if you're not working out/sweating a lot, the extra sodium could cause water retention *panics* The best option for electrolyte-replenishing is coconut water, in my opinion. It's naturally high in potassium, which is the principle electrolyte lost by vomiting. Pedialyte takes a close second for hydration because it's designed to replenish electrolytes, like if you have the flu or something. You can buy Pedialyte over the counter at most (American) pharmacies.
Electrolytes are important in muscle contraction, which includes the heart. This is why many bulimics die from heart attacks
Of course, the best way to get potassium is through potassium-rich foods. Some examples:
Avocado
Acorn squash
Spinach
Sweet potato
Wild-caught salmon
Dried apricots
Pomegranate
Coconut water
White beans
Banana
Source: Dr. Axe
Y'all also gotta be mindful of your magnesium too. Magnesium is lost (most notably) through diarrhea and thus laxative abuse. Here's how to remember the electrolytes:
Potassium is lost through Purging and Magnesium is lost by taking Mega Shits.
I'm laughing bahahah but I shouldn't be because the magnesium thing is no joke.
2. Psychological Damage Control
The Post Purge Freakout-
Quit playin. You know what I’m talkin’ about, that anxiety like fuck fuck fuck what did I just do I’m a worthless human I deserve to-
Stop.
These thoughts seem real, like ground-breaking realizations that affirm your worthlessness and desire to continue hurting yourself with ED behaviors. Diffusing these thoughts feels like the hardest thing to do in the moment, of course, but self-care is one of the most important factors in preventing another episode. I’m not trying to be some over-simplifying, self-righteous therapist who thinks that mindfulness is the only way out ‘it’s all about positive self talk, honey!’ Nah fam, anyone who’s dealt with the vicious cycle of bulimia knows it’s not that fuckin’ easy, and so I’m not trying to sugarcoat the fact that post-b/p self-care can be really goddamn difficult.
The best post-b/p self care I’ve implemented is putting on cozy pajamas (if you’re at home) and just taking a five minute break from what you’re doing to listen to music, draw/write, or go on a short walk. Let yourself feel comfy and secure, like being wrapped in a warm fuzzy blanket. Give yourself just five minutes to collect your feelings, and realize that a past slip-up can’t determine the future. Because that’s all it is - in the past. What’s in the past is done, and no amount of hateful self talk or self-injury will change that. But what you do in the present is what matters. Think about it as a fork in the road -
“Okay, so I just binged and purged, I have urges to hurt myself or compensate for what I just did, but what will happen if I don’t do either of those things?”
Nothing.
You might panic. You might cry. Let the tears come, if you are in a safe place where you feel you can do so. We know that the day might have sucked, but time stops for no one. The next thing you know, it’s the next morning. The sun is shining through your window, you are alive and your body is resilient. BOI IT’S A NEW FUCKIN DAY! YESTERDAY WAS A CAN OF SHIT, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, TODAY DOESN’T HAVE TO BE. The important thing is that you lived through those horrible feelings, and you’ll remember that. You’re stronger, more resilient, and persistent than you think. You don’t even have to be in recovery to apply this. That’s not what I’m getting at. If you’re pursuing a goal, whether it be eating at regular intervals or meeting a certain calorie limit, there are going to be times you might mess up. And good god, it is absolutely okay.
Imagine yourself going to bed the next night, realizing that you had your first binge free, purge free day since you could remember. Knowing that you fought your urge to b/p will help you remember that next time, “hey, I’m stronger than my urges.”
I guess what I’m emphasizing here is self-forgiveness. I know a lot of people’s ED’s are driven by self-hatred and you’re all such beautiful human beings who deserve to love yourself as others love you. Wow. That got really deep real fast. But hey, I’ve been through it all.
~
Yo. I'm gonna add more to this, but only if people are interested in my ED-related writing. I'm actually working on a blog right now but I figured I might as well post some stuff here for feedback. PLEASE comment I would love to hear from you guys. 'Do I write like a sappy self-help book'? 'Is it relatable and/or helpful?' Let me know in a comment or DM what you're feelin about it. Sending hugs!
#recovery#eatingdisorder#eatingdisorders#prorecovery#selfcare#selfhelp#health#fitness#mental#mentalhealth#depression#anorexia#bulimia#ednos#binge eating#purging#thinspo#therapy#psychology#eating#purge#binge#BP
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Always and Forever: Part One
Summary: Jen comes up with a plan to get out of her dangerous home life, and keep an eye on her big brother in the process.
I’m trying to keep this close to canon time-wise and event-wise. Bear with me for historic inaccuracies :) Also keep reading with an American Southern accent for the Turner fam, and canon accent for Peggy.
Characters: Jennifer Turner (reader, OFC), Anthony and Ethan Turner (older brothers of reader, OFCs), unnamed father (OFC), Agent Peggy Carter
Pairings: None this chapter
TW: Implied past physical abuse (no description except that there’s bruising), implied past and current emotional abuse (minimal description), threat of abuse, swearing, mention of slaughtering farm animals (no graphic details), that’s it I think? Let me know if there’s more!
A/N: Sorry for the slow build up, Bucky is coming soon! Single lines between scene changes. Italics indicate thought blurbs.
Anthony stops arguin' with Pa at some point and the next thing I know, he's pullin' me away from Ethan, layin' me on his chest in my bed.
He's strokin' my hair as he whispers calming words into my ear.
"It'll be ok Jenny. I'll go serve while you and Ethan keep savin' money. I'll send any money I get back to y'all, and then when I come home, we can leave and stay up in New York, just like we planned. It'll just take a bit longer maybe than we thought. But we can git it done."
I feel drained. I know he's just saying these things to try and calm me down. I think he believes them. I ain't nearly as optimistic. I'm scared 'cause with Ethan at school and work all the time, and Anthony gone, it'll just be me and Ma and Pa at home by ourselves.
And that is the worst thing I can imagine at this point.
It's been two days since Anthony told the family that he was leaving. I still can't believe it's real. I refuse to accept this as my fate. I know what will happen to me if Anthony leaves and I'm stuck at home by myself all day. Even the thought of it gives me the shivers.
Our farm is a ways out of town, bout a mile back off the main road. We have some livestock, but our claim to fame are the peach trees. There's a little bench out in the middle of the orchard, where I would do my homework and read in the summers.
It's real peaceful, with a breeze rustlin through the leaves. It sounds like a whisper of better times to come. The wind carries hope and ideas for the future on it. I get some of my best thinkin done out there in the trees.
I go out there today to get away from the noise. Pa and Anthony are fighting again, Ethan is gone, and I just can't stand to listen to it anymore. I come out, seeking asylum from the shitstorm inside.
I've got to get out of here. Ethan will be fine, he can move in with his friend at school. But I have to go.
An idea strikes, quick as lightning. I don't have much time, Anthony is going to town today for more check in procedure. But he said he wasn’t leavin til one. I can make it. I rush back to the house almost trippin' over myself in the process.
I slowly ease open the door on the back porch, tryin' not to be noticed. Pa and Anthony are still goin at it in the livin room.
I can make it upstairs if I go through the kitchen.
I'm halfway up the stairs, trying to drown out the voices when I hear my name. I pause, listening quietly....
".... and that little bitch. What the hell am I 'sposed to do with her? She don't work, she don't do shit but piss me off. Hell, at least if you're here, you can keep her occupied so I don't have to look at her ugly mug mopin around the damn house all day."
I feel like I can hear Anthony's muscles tensing, hands clenching into fists. I can feel his fury rollin out the room in waves. When he speaks, his voice is unnaturally quiet for the situation,
"You will not lay a hand on her when I'm gone. She's gonna write to me every week, and if she misses a week I will desert, swim my ass back here, and beat the everlovin shit out of you until she begs me to stop. I don't even want you talkin to her. And if I find out that any harm came to her, I will put you down like the scum dog you are."
My heart lifts hearin his words. But the threat may not be enough to keep my father at bay. Though if I can get my plan to work, it won't be an issue.
I'm able to get my shoes from my room and get back outside, unnoticed. I run over to Anthony’s truck and scramble into the bed of it, hiding under a tarp. No sooner am I buried under the cover than Anthony comes stompin’ out of the house, cigarette dangling out of his mouth. He starts the truck and we jolt off down the lonely dirt road.
It takes about a half hour to get to town, and Anthony parks the car soon after we arrive. I hear his door slam and I wait a few minutes before poppin’ my head up over the edge of the truck bed. I glance around, makin sure its safe to clamber out onto the ground.
Where in the heck is the Army enlistment tent?
I look around, spying the tell-tale green canvas just a ways down Main Street. I approach cautiously, suddenly feeling very nervous. I can feel the intensity of wartime in the air. People are scared, especially those who remember the last war.
I’ve always been real sensitive to the feelings of other things. I’ve known my daddy was an evil man since I was a little girl. I’ve always sensed just how protective my brothers are over me. And whenever Pa killed a pig or even a chicken, I could almost feel its pain in myself.
That’s why I’m scared now. Because the only way for a girl to get in the Army is to be a nurse. But I can’t do that. I can’t be around that much pain and sufferin’ all the time, I’ll explode. But if I can hold on long enough to just get transferred out of here, it’ll be worth it.
I arrive at the tent, slowly looking around, trying to find the nurses station so I can add my name to the list of recruits.
“Are you lost dear?”
A strange female voice speaks, startling me. I whip around and look at her. She is taller than me, with short rich chocolate brown hair. Her red painted lips tilt up a bit at the ends, making her porcelain face feel warm and inviting. Her deep brown eyes bore into mine, making me feel like she’s reading my thoughts, seeing into my soul.
“Are you alright darling?” She speaks again, shaking me out of my stupor.
“Oh, um, yes ma’am,” I stutter, suddenly feeling very small in front of this impressive looking woman. “I’m just tryin to find the uh, um, the nurses station.”
“Really?” She lifts her eye brows in slight disbelief. “Well I can take you there dear not to worry. My name is Peggy Carter.”
Feedback please? Criticism is dope, just keep it gentle cuz I’m new :)
Again, these are blogs who have asked to be tagged or that I think would like this story. Please let me know if you do or don’t want to be tagged!
Tags: @mar-gega @nikisthetrick @drarryfetish @hellkat2 @thatawkwardtinyperson @captain-ameba @kyaracrazy @kit-kat-coffeeworld @itshiddleskittles @bovaria @caplanbuckybarnes @sebbys-girl @jamesoldier
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Twelve Days of Christmas- On the Seventh Day of Christmas-
A/N: In which each day, Kagome gives Inuyasha a gift signed by his Secret Santa in hopes of bringing back his Christmas Spirit.
I got the idea from Hallmark as a prompt. I got the idea from Hallmark as a prompt. Im just using the idea for the story, the only thing I kept the same from the movie is the newspaper, so don’t sue. I do not own Hallmark or Inuyasha and Co. So, enjoy! I’ll post a ficlet a day until December 25th. Enjoy everyone!
So technically, I am a shitty-ass multi-fic author who can’t update on time to save my life. So, he’s chapter eight of my CHRISTMAS fic that is way over due. More to come, because I will finish this fic and my New Years one if it KILLS me. Which it might. Anywho, my main squeezes, this is for you.
@keichanz @inunanna @grapefruitwannabe @mmhinman @purekagome @kagomeforever @akiza-hades-rose @adorableears7
Day Seven December 18, 2016:
—IK—
Miroku glanced at his cousin who sat at her desk with a frown on her face. He guessed it was because Inuyasha -who left in a huff the night before- hadn’t contacted her yet, but he couldn’t be to sure, -after all, women were all crazy-. When Kagome sighed for the umpteenth time, he made his way over to her. Leaning against her desk, with his arms and ankles crossed, he set his violet eyes on her and smiled. “Kags, what’s wrong?”
What once was usually bright brown eyes, were now dull and sad. “Nothing. What’s up?”
“Um, maybe the gloom and doom cloud that’s been looming over you since you got here? Seriously, what has you in such a slump?”
“Nothing. I’m just-”
“Does it have something to do with a silver, haired half-demon with gorgeous eyes and adorable ears?” Miroku grinned when his cousin cracked a smile.
“No, but sounds like you got the hots for him.” This time she grinned.
“I’ll have you know that I am very much attracted to a woman, thank you very much.”
“Attracted to who?” Two sets of eyes flew to the new voice that floated through the office.
“You my dearest.”
Sango rolled her eyes as she kissed him gently. When her gaze landed on Kagome, she frowned. “What’s gotten you in a slump?”
Kagome sighed as she stood. “Ugh, you two are so nosey!” She grabbed her bag and headed for the door, until Sango’s hand caught her wrist.
“Inuyasha’s in a meeting, but he told me to make sure you met him at one o'clock. He wants to share his gift today.” The brunette whispered as she winked.
Smiling, Kagome nodded. “Thank you.”
When she was out of sight, Miroku raised a brow. “What did say to give her a skip in her step? She’s been moping all morning.”
Sango grinned. “She was right. You are nosey.”
Miroku just deadpanned.
—IK—
Kagome looked at her watch. Ten till one. I got a few minutes to spare. She made her way to the coffee shop down the street and wasn’t the least bit surprised to run into her sister. “Kikyou. I thought you were working today?”
“I am.” Her twin turned to wave at a dark haired man at the register. “But look who came back from his trip early.”
“Ah!” Kagome squealed as she hugged the man walking towards them. “I can’t believe you’re home!”
“It’s good to see you too, Kagome.” He hugged her tightly. “I couldn’t stay away much longer. I was having Higurashi withdrawals.” He laughed as he pulled Kikyou in for a hug.
“Oh shuddup.” Kagome grinned. “How’s Souta doing at school?”
Suikotsu ran a hand through his bangs. “Well, he’s gotten his study habits straightened out. I told him procrastinating was a big NO, but he’s twenty-one. All he wants to do is party and talk to girls.”
The twins face-palmed. “Well, at least you took care of it right? You’re practically his big brother, so I hope you brought the hammer down!” Kagome exclaimed as she brought a fist down on her open palm.
Suikotsu laughed as he threw his hands up defensively. “I did. No worries. Him and Mama H are coming up here on the twenty-fourth that morning. Kikyou and I will be picking them up.”
“Okay. Sounds like a plan. Oh! I am so happy you’re back!” She hugged him again, unaware of the golden eyes staring at her from behind.
Hugging her tightly once more, Suikotsu looked up and noticed Inuyasha’s intense stare. He whispered to her as if the half-demon couldn’t hear what he was going to say. “Um, Kags- why is there a silver-haired man, with- are those dog ears?- staring at me as if his intent is to murder me?”
Pulling away from the embrace, her eyes widened, as did her smile, when she waved him over. “Inuyasha! Come meet Suikotsu!”
With a huff, Inuyasha stomped his way over. “Oi. Who is this?”
Kikyou wrapped her arms around Suikotsu’s right arm. “This is my fiancee, Suikotsu Matsuzawa.”
“Doctor Matsuzawa.” Kagome corrected. “He’s a pediatrician. Suikotsu’s been back at our hometown visiting our mother and brother.”
Inuyasha’s ears drooped as he felt slightly ashamed for thinking Kagome had another man in her intimate life -although he had no reason to feel that way, did he?- “I’m Inuyasha Tashio. Nice to meet ya.”
Suikotsu grasped the hand Inuyasha held out to shake. “Oh! You’re the Inuyasha that I heard so much about. Man, I thought Kagome got over y- oomph!” He bent over grabbing his right side as Kikyou elbowed him.
“Sorry, we have to get going. See you tonight, sis. Love you!” Kikyou hauled her man away as she angrily whispered to him.
“Okay, that was weird.”
Kagome just laughed as he enunciated the A in okay. She noticed the red box from his secret santa gifts. “Oh! Is that what I think it is?”
“Yeah. It’s my seventh gift. Look.” The front of the box had a cut out of Santa’s head in red and white stock paper with a large bag of toys and candy canes in the bottom right corner. He removed the lid to hand her the little, red stocking with white fur lining the top. Inuyasha cleared his throat and read the card.
On the Seventh day of Christmas, my Secret Santa gave to thee;
To complete your Christmas with child-like awe,
Take a pic with Santa Clause.
Once a boy, but now a man,
What you can’t do, his magic can.
Merry Christmas, your Secret Santa.
“Looks like we’re heading to the Christmas Village to take a picture with Santa Clause.” Kagome’s brown eyes were shining.
“Looks like it. Shall we?” He held out his arm and she smiled as she looped her arm with his.
“We shall.”
—IK—
“When’s the last time you did something like this?”
Golden eyes glanced idly to his left. “Are we talkin’ about visiting Santa or Christmas related things?”
“Well, either-or, I guess.”
He looked back towards the line of kids waiting to visit the man in red as he pondered. “I took Rin two years ago when Kagura and Sesshomaru had to work. I didn’t visit him, but she did. Does that count?”
“I meant you.”
“Then before my mother passed away.” The moment he said it, was the moment Kagome wished she could take all his pain away and heal his broken heart. W
“Inuyasha, I’m-”
“Would ya like to go ahead?”
Kagome looked down at the bright set of green eyes looking up at them. “Excuse me?”
“I said, would ya like to go ahead of me?” A small fox demon was grinning around a pocky stick hanging out of his mouth. “I saw y'all on the front page of my daddy’s paper. He says that the half-demon is a famous man.”
Inuyasha laughed. “Not famous yet, squirt.”
“I’m Shippou!” He held out a small, sticky paw. Inuyasha reached for it, not even hesitating to touch said sticky hand.
“Inuyasha and this is the lovely Kagome.” Kagome was so caught up in assessing the adorable little boy that she didn’t hear the introduction. “Kagome?”
“Wha-? Oh right. I’m Kagome and you are adorable!” She reached down to shake his hand. “Your parent’s are so lucky!”
Shippou blushed. “Thanks. Go ahead of me, since I’m next.” He moved aside.
“Thank you.” Inuyasha ascended the stairs, but before he made his way next to Santa, he turned. “Excuse me, but ain’t you coming?”
Kagome raised her hands and shook her head. “This is all you.”
“Woman, you know the rule.” He held out a hand for her to take. Sighing, she gave in and ascended the stairs as well.
“Okay, but I’m sitting in his lap.”
Inuyasha laughed. Both adults stood next to the jolly man in red and smiled. “Say Christmas!” The elf laughed as she situated the camera.
“Christmas!” When the shutter clicked, Inuyasha motioned for Shippou. “Come on squirt.”
Shippou looked to his mother, who smiled, and he squealed as he bounced up the steps and onto Santa’s lap. “Take one more.” Kagome said as she leaned in closer and smiled.
“Of course! Say Christmas!” The elf said once more as she clicked the shutter.
—IK—
Inuyasha laughed as they made their way down the street towards his office. “He was talkative! I think he even beats Rin when it comes to talking way to much.”
Kagome joined in the laughter. “He was cute! I think tomorrow’s paper should be the picture of all three of us.” Inuyasha couldn’t agree more. “Well, I better get home. Kikyou and Suikotsu are waiting on me.”
Inuyasha grabbed her by the waist. “Wait-” He whispered. “About last night, I wanted to thank you for coming to the party and-” He was leaning in way to close, but she found she didn’t really mind.
“And what?” Kagome’s heart picked up the pace as she too leaned in.
“That I really enjoy spending my time with you.” He was a mere hair away from her lips.
“Me too.”
He smiled. “Good.” With that, he kissed her again. This time, she didn’t pull away. The kiss was long and gentle, -less hungry than before- and when they pulled away, neither one could stop the smile the blossomed on their faces.
“Goodnight, Kagome.”
Her face flushed at the way he said her name. “G- goodnight, Inuyasha.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow for the eighth gift?”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
He grinned, kissing her forehead. “Good. See ya then.” Inuyasha turned to walk away.
Kagome was internally screaming as she placed two fingers against her kissed lips. Turning, she practically skipped -like a child- all the way home. She couldn’t wait until the next day.
—IK—
As Inuyasha walked in to his office, he let out a loud YES and fisted both of his hands in the air. Sango had been sitting at her desk when he walked by, so naturally, she followed him into his office. “I take it you had a good day?”
Golden eyes widened as he stood up straight, fixing his posture as if nothing had happened. “Yeah, so what?” A faint blush marred his handsome face and was he wearing red lipstick?
“Oh nothing.” Sango grinned, touching her lips twice and made her way back to her desk.
All she could hear was a string of curses and when she looked back, Inuyasha was rubbing his lips furiously, removing the residue of Kagome’s lipstick. He stopped and touched his bottom lip as the blush resurfaced and a goofy smile decorated his face.
Finally. It was Sango’s turn to squeal internally.
—To Be Continued—
Until tomorrow my loves. Check back and see what day eight has in store for our favorite couple!
#sorry its late#i am a horrible author#inukag#inuyasha#kagome#12doc#forgive me for taking forever to update
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FAT
Let me tell y'all a story. When I was only 10 years old, I was diagnosed with Scoliosis, meaning a part of my spine was not straight to a certain degree. And at the time, my puberty hasn't started. My doctor told me that I would have to have regular therapy, but there is no 100% assurance my spine would be straight again. We were just going to try to get the best we could. Along with this, my doctor said that I would be having a hard time because of this. First, if I wanted to get better, I'd have to maintain a certain weight- which is less than average. However, my metabolism would be very slow. So my grandmother, who was always the one bringing me to the doctor since I was a child, questioned this. It would mean I would be eating little to nothing. So we doubled my therapy and did everything I could. Compared to my friends, relatived, and classmates, I ate relatively, A LITTLE. meaning I didn't eat carbs more than a slice of a loaf of bread. At time I wouldn't even eat. But I quickly became fatter and fatter. At the age of 11, I started encountering the rest of the effects my sickness had on me. Including becoming almost overweight. Now, I'm 16. And let me give you a little overview of how I look like. Height: 5'2 Weight: 155 lbs Upper arms: relatively large Upper legs: large (mermaid legs as we call it) Lower legs: like someone got a butt cheek and put it there Stomach: not round, not flat. But it's there. Cheeks: 32A if it were boobs Now, I know 155 lbs is average for my height, but I look like a tall person squished into a ball. So anyway, moving on. I'm 16, whose ex boyfriend is this rather handsome looking young man, 5'8, has abs, and is an athlete not in 1, not in 2, but THREE SPORTS. Me? Well I play 1 sport. Yet WHAT DO I GET? A PUDGY FAT BLOBBY FIGURE THAT IS CAUSED BY AN INCURABLE SICKNESS. I've been told I don't deserve to be an athlete because of my weight. I've been told I don't deserve my boyfriend (at the time) because of my weight. HECK I'VE BEEN FREAKING TOLD I DON'T DESERVE TO LIVE THE WAY I DO, TALK THE WAY I DO, DRESS THE WAY I DO because of my weight. So what did I do? DUHH, TRY TO LOSE WEIGHT. And I've read a hell lot of articles talkin bout how we should learn to love our body because that's what's been given us, and yeah, that's right. But that's not my point. I do love my body, trust me. But my weight's destroyed my life for me, and I'm making the decision to change that. I'm not aiming for a barbie doll body, but atleast be... healthy. Those who are healthy but curvy have the right to stay the way theye are, but not me. So anyway, today I started my first day at the gym. I was wearing my gym attire and on my way up when my family comes. So, like any other person taking a great leap of faith, I'm excited as hell to tell them. And the conversation is as follows: Me: I'm going to the gym to go on a run Brother: Imma time you, betcha you'll last 10 seconds max Father: You're already fat enough you can't do anything. How about lessening on your intake? That'll prolly make a big difference Mother: you can try, hun. At first I didn't allow them to rain on my parade because they been doing it since I was born. So I went and lasted 30 mins on automatic, which meant I started with 1kph to 12 kph IN ONLY 30 MINUTES which is (TAKE NOTE) INSANE for a fucking FAT BEGINNER like me. How'd I last that long, y'all ask? Well (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER) 1. I would be seeing my long distance ex boyfriend in less than half a year-gotta slay when he sees me 2. I'm entering a new school but a lot of people I know transferred there too-introducing new me (v 2.0) 3. There were A LOT of encouraging smiles at the gym (some were prolly sarcastic but yknow-don't rain on my parade) 4. MY BACK CANT TAKE IT ANYMORE I CANT BREATH NORMALLY ANYMORE-health reasons 5. I'm trying to become varsity again-rival school of my former school surprise surprise 6. A grand ball of our entire clan is coming up-which is a big deal when you have extremely judgemental, weight conscious relatives 7. I was offered some modeling projects but I woukd have to lose 20 lbs atleast-lets make 'em proud 8. FOR ME 9. FOR MYSELF 10. FOR I So, fast forward to after the run. I come home and head straight for an ice bath. I get out do my night routine, and go out to the living room with a hella proud smile on my face. Internally: OMFG I JUST FINISHED 1 ROUND OF AN ENTIRE PROFESSIONAL RUN LIKE OMFG And so anyway, too much hurtful words to relay, BASICALLY, I'm just too fat and going to the gym isn't a thing FAT PEOPLE DO (apparently the gym's just full of ALREADY fit people tryna become fitter BECAUSE APPARENTLY THEY WERE PROLLY BORN LIKE THAT *note the sarcasm*) So all 10 reasons, all max motivation went down the drain. The very people who were supposed to be the first to support me and motivate me, were the first to discriminate me and tell me I CAN'T Moral of the story: JUST FUCKING SUPPORT THE PERSON EVEN IF YOU'RE IN COMPLETE DISBELIEF. IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE IN THEM, DON'T DESTROY THEY'RE BELIEF IN THEMSELVES JUST BECAUSE YOU DISAGREE. THAT 1 HURTFUL COMMENT GOES A FUCKING LONG WAY. and so does that 1 "i believe you can do it" Y'all judging a fat person in the gym is just like judging a homeless at a job fair. It's just... plain wrong. If a bitch says she's tryna change, don't judge her. If a player says he's going to settle down, don't judge him. BASICALLY, DON'T JUDGE. Maybe in your view you're the main character of the story and they're some extra who enters and leaves the plot the same, but that's not the case in they're story. Don't be the antagonist. You can either be the antagonist, an extra, or the magic. You can destroy the protagonist, help the protagonist, OR SHUT THE HELL UP. anyway. I started this and this was supposed to be a rant (which extremely is) but after writing all that encouragement, I think I'll do Day 2 tomorrow 😀)
#fat#fat girl#judgement#judge#dont judge me#gym#for you#encouragement#inspiration#rant#personal rant#bully#discrimination#slay#dontgiveup#heart of the matter#millenials
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“How Am I Supposed To Sit On My Fat *ss And Do Nothing If There’s No Tribal Immunity?” - EPISODE 1
i wont say names bc if these get released at the end i know the psycho wont leave me alone but theres a certain someone that never leaves another certain someone alone and theyre actually so annoying and they look like a balding foot and if i have to be in the same tribe with them i will definitely end up fighting them
so...cole walking on day 1? because he didn't want to be in a game with Julia wow. I am shook to the core.
1st off why are there 30 people here! 2nd off why are we all in a chat together! And 3rdly at least someone already took themselves out of the game. I didn't get last!!! I know setting the bar high. I'm very excited to play everyone is super nice and also I think my tribe is great. I got Sam and Liana on my tribe whom I played with during Atlantis. Sam and I were in an alliance but obviously it wasn't super tight...since I voted her off. But I love her dearly and hope we can work together again. Also excited for Liana because I always remember that she was good in challenges and she has already told me she won't want to throw any challenges this time. Haha. I already appreciate her so much. She is so sweet! Carson k is also on my tribe. Carson k is also a sweetheart and I'm sad that I didn't trust him much during Malibu and I hope that it can change here. Hopefully there is a survivor trivia challenge because he is so good with survivor trivia. Everyone else on the tribe seems really cool too as we aren't involved in the drama of the one world chat. Haha we have all of our members still and we are ready to win some challenges! #YouWishYouWereATasi also. Kait is here!!!! Omggggg I'm not ready. She messaged me last night and I was like oh god how do I talk to kait????? Like ugh ahhhh scared. No. Nothing against kait she just scares me! And I feel like she can tell....*gulp* but billy is also here and I love billy too. And Luke!!! Honestly so many amazing people who hopefully won't vote me off. Everyone in the community has been so supportive of me and has really helped relive some of the anxiety I've been having. But queen kait is here so I don't know how long it will last.
what the fuck am i doing
i don't even know if im making a confessional for the right game....like i'm in a 3 survivor games and a big brother game and i've never wanted to kill myself more
i was talkin with kait and i was like "omg i love karen!!" and KAREN ISN'T EVEN ON OUR FUCKING TRIBE. SHE'S DEADASS IN ANOTHER GAME. omg and this ninjohn bitch cracks me tf up
so yeah thats about all i've done bye
tbh! what is going on in this game!!!
The only people that I know and want to work with are Sam G, Dan, Amanda, Billy and Christine tbqh! I don't know anybody on my tribe except Billy so we're gonna be a cute duo. I think the twist is kind of fun, it's gonna make people need to be on their toes 24/7 and not get too comfortable hiding behind tribal wins because they just don't exist. Uh first boot from my tribe? Idk,...maybe me> maybe chrisssa? who knows!
On 3/6/17, at 9:54 PM, veronica [ hoenn host ] wrote:
> how am i supposed to sit on my fat ass and do nothing like nicholas did if theres no tribe immunity >.>
but also i really like the cast in this game and i know its gonna be lit this is like one of my fave survivors already and im in like 4 rn
set my soul on fire pls
YES MA'AM! This is Kelsey Mikaelson, representing BBCAN and Vampire Diaries, checking into Mariana Trench Survivor, is you good? Is you happy? Because I's wants to know, ok. Entering this competition was a quick shock. The tribe I was on is very friendly and we all got along quick and I'm living, I seem to get along well. Obviously, I'm the loud one, but I think that overall, I'm not too much which is good! You know what is too much though? Literally both other tribes OTHER than Tasi. Seeing how crazy they are during the One World makes us seem a lot more mellow which makes me seem a lot more quiet which is absolutely a great factor for my game. Anyways, next twist: triple elimination each week. Girl...I came here for a fresh new game that would be welcoming to newbies. This is literally death. I'm literally dead. *sigh*...Whatever. There are people in my tribe I've clicked with early on. Carson, Liana, Sam, Shea and Seamus have all been rather nice to me. However, one person that I have definitely gotten along with thus far is Lilly. She's so explosive and she's also so logical in everything she tells me, she's a great counterpart to me in this competition. I would say I trust Lilly the most, yes, I would. And going into this first tribal, I'm interested to see how our relationship will translate into gameplay. Hopefully, in a positive way~! Now to the challenge...I want to remain a team player, an innocent virgin, an airhead with nothing but loyalty with everyone. I don't want to manipulate, I want to slay. So, I'm going to put a rather safe score for myself. As long as I'm not on the bottom end of the powers, I'm fine. I just hope that this first tribal doesn't eat me alive...against my gut instinct, I'm not bringing strategy up for these first days. I just hope that people actually come to me like I'm expecting...otherwise, I gotta start making them moves, mama! Wish me the best of luck!
From Canada with Love,
-The ORIGINAL...Kelsey Mikaelson, muah!
I'm so nervous. I feel like knowing that you're going to tribal no matter what makes this all more nerve wracking. I'm trying to feel out who people want to go and what they want to do without making anyone feel like I'm jumping the gun or being too forward. Plus I think Darian is probably gunning for me, since I know he doesn't like me. I really don't wanna be first to go, but I feel like it's too risky to just immediately go after him. I'm hoping someone is inactive or will give us a reason to vote them out so that this first one is an easy one.
http://youtu.be/PTJUoasIy_Y
...moments later
If i learned anything from Rakiura, it's that I need to make a list or something of peoples' point values and possible advantages since people will forget about them come merge and then the person with all the advantages will win the season. :)
I'll call them out!
https://youtu.be/gK_YU4BaKyc
WHAT THE FUCK IS EVEN MY TRIBE
So like this is a weird position to be in. I like everyone on my tribe????? Like how the fuck am I supposed to vote one of these hoes out when I like them? I'm clearly the prettiest, but like I love them all. This is a tragedy because if it was a normal damn game, I would be able to slay with my tribe.
My plan so far is to just be super social and find the majority. I don't know how to play one world because usually the world revolves around me so.
So this season hasn't been that exciting at all so far for our tribe due to Cole's, not surprising, quit. I want to try harder than the last few skype/Tumblr games I've played since I definitely was inactive in the last few. I'm trying to socialize and need to expand my social surroundings since I haven't approached many yet. I have been talking to Luke however but he's terrible at responding. I don't mind if you're busy and can't respond quickly but when you message in the main chat and have the online symbol by your name you might want to respond back to a tribemate. That doesn't bode well for track records.
Things are weird. What do I do. Who do I talk to. Where am I. Okay now that I've gotten that off my chest I just tribes are weird. We aren't even really a tribe. I know we will have to just keep voting people off of our tribe. So what do we do? I have no leads. Except I kinda want a girls alliance so I would prefer a guy out this week just to play it safe. I feel like I could talk to Liana and Sam about this but also nervous. Idk. I'll do something soon but this is a lot to process. I also hope that not too many voting things will affect tribal. I'm not ready for it. That is all. Good day.
Hello!!! Alright so this first week has just been....a mess. Like, y'all really put me in a group with 30 people...with one world in play...I'm gonna go insane. Although it's not entirely a bad thing. I have my Queens Kait and Jenn to keep me sane. I had Cole......for like 2 hours until he left WHICH I'M STILL BITTER ABOUT. I love him so much it's not even funny.
Anyways for the people on my tribe, I absolutely adore Dan so I can definitely see us working together. Sam G. is here as well and WHEW. A Queen. I love her so much. If I had a dream alliance within this tribe it'd probably be Dan, Sam, Kelsey, Lily, Carson and myself. I haven't gotten the chance to talk to Seamus or Liana and trying to start a conversation with Shea is a bit like pulling teeth so far so...yeah, that's how things are looking right about now I'm so scared for this tribal cause I don't know what to expect??? Like I probably should've just went all in for immunity but I didn't cause I didn't wanna go overboard...so much for that huh. Wish me luck for now I guess!
...30 minutes later...
I'm screaming apparently Shea's already brought my name up to people but suddenly changed it to Carson when I started talking to them??? Something smells fishy here and I'm not here for it. I've got my eye on Shea, that's for sure. In all honesty I'd rather target Shea than Carson cause Carson's actually chill while Shea's probably gonna get a little messy along the way which makes me nervous but Dan trusts him for now so I guess I just gotta go with the flow for now...
Hi Ricky! Super excited to be safe this round, just gotta sit here and look cute!
the furrys are on the prowl, yiff yiff. there are quite a few furrys in this game lmao. so basically on my tribe i really like veronica and am teaming with her. shea really likes me and veronica so we r gonna try and work with them. i think i want to vote for sam this round bc like i like everyone else and the noobs in our tribe seem kinda easy to push around so im excited!
My tribe is so BORINGGGGG tbh no one talks in the chat anyways here's an analysis i promised Ricky <3 When something more happens youll get more out of me but literally nothings going on OH I HAVE AN ALLIANCE WITH DAN AND LUKE BUT YOU BUT US ALL ON DIFFERENT TRIBES WHICH IS GROSS The end. heres my analysis of my tribe woo
Andie - Love him we've been friends for a while and he wants to work together so thats cute af
Daisy - Super nice we've talked quite a bit so far. I like her
Darian - He seems super nice to me and we talked a bit but ive heard he's a shitshow and ive been warned so i know to tread lightly
Emma - I'm not gonna like when i saw Emma was on my tribe I was about to beat someones ass because I felt like she hated my guts last time i was around her and it was a rough experience but she like came to me and apologized and shit saying she was having a rough time and idk if that was just to cover her ass for this game or what but im gonna forgive but not forget at this point...or at least until swap/merge lmao
Kait - i fucking love Kait she's super straight to the point which is great when everyone else sugar coats the hell out of everything. We seem to work well in PI so here's to hoping it works out this time and we can be a dynamic duo lolol
Rhea - Last Week in another game she said she didnt like playing with me and my friends...im not really with my close friends in this game so idk if itll be different but like we've played together a ton and i dont think we ever worked together. She's the nicest person in the world but we like never click together so i wouldnt be surprised if she wanted my ass gone
Rob - I dont think we've talked? oops lmfao
Sam R. - Hes so chill. We played Myanmar together and we worked together while also targeting eachother? it was so fucking complicated ahahaha but i love him as a person so i hope we're okay in this game??? idk yet tbh
Steven - We've talked a bit in the past. He's chill but we arent super close. I dont think he'd target me though so thats a plus
Wooo! I guess taking -10,030 points was worth it! I won immunity from the raffle and I also have the 30% advantage! Couldn't be more happy about the outcome of this challenge. I honeslty don't know who to vote for and I sure as hell won't be scrambling. I know it's not me and that's all I care about
i am gad we were safe week 1 thanks to Cole quitting again it's insane that he did that but i am glad it gave us safety this week. I hope i can stay longer because immunity wins aren't relying on everyone to win together so if i am bad they won't think i am a threat..
well! tasi WAS peaceful, until little shea decided to target me ONCE again in a game.
id like to see him try, because i am NOT going premerge. and, if i have anything to say about it, his ass is GRASS!
So, everyone this tribal has said they are voting Carson, which I have no problems with. I feel like the blame is being put on me for this vote which I don't want.
If people flip and I go home, so be it.
Daisy seems to be the first target and I don't want her to leave. I'm going to see if we can get the votes back on Amanda.
.
http://prntscr.com/ehnjlj
So, tonight is making me super nervous and I don't know what to do.... I feel like this twist fucks me and that's not good. I have played sooo many PI seasons that I feel like I am an easy target. Also this one world twist is legit making this game THAT much harder and I honestly don't like this shit. I don't know what the fuck I am going to do, and it sucks so much. I feel like I am a mess and it sucks more so than anything. I just want to make it past this tribal, and I am not sure that I willl.
Whew I need to write a confessional but also I'm watching Survivor! I am really nervous for this vote! Everyone has been so quiet and I haven't talked to that many people. The plan is supposed to be for Carson. Lily, Liana, Dan, Christine, and I were supposed to create an alliance but we haven't. I'm hoping we will later and no one is actually trying to vote me out. Seamus did say 'Christine or Sam' but he meant Carson? Okay sure hopefully he did!
Sooo, this has been a wild round, and im not even gonna get into the cole thing other than to say, I'm glad you and your negative bitch ass is gone, and maybe come for me with more accurate shit next time :))). But since this "lovely" soul quit, I didn't have to go to tribal, and I also beat him AHAHAH. BUT I've been chit-chatting with Gabriel alot and I love Gabriel they are soooo chill tbh. And I also am kinda lucky since I know so many people know this season whew. Okay bye
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