#Temporary Tooth Replacement

[posthousedental023]

Arm Yourself Against Cavities: Proven Prevention Practices

Strengthen Your Defence: Effective Strategies to Prevent Cavities

Cavities can sneak up on us, causing discomfort and compromising our dental health. However, by adopting proven prevention practices and understanding common issues like build-up plaque teeth and nerve pain tooth symptoms, you can arm yourself against dental decay. Let's explore practical steps to keep cavities at bay and maintain a healthy smile.

Fortify Your Smile with False Teeth

Missing teeth can impact both your appearance and oral function, but false teeth offer a reliable solution. Whether you opt for plastic teeth or alternative materials, these prosthetic devices can restore your smile's aesthetics and chewing ability. With the expertise of a skilled dentist, you can find the perfect fit for your false teeth, allowing you to confidently showcase your smile once again.

Combat Plaque Build-Up: The Foundation of Dental Health

Preventing cavities begins with effective plaque control. Brush your teeth twice daily with fluoride toothpaste, paying attention to all tooth surfaces and along the gumline. Flossing daily helps remove plaque from between teeth, where cavities often develop. Regular dental check-ups and cleanings are also essential for removing stubborn plaque and detecting any signs of decay early on.

Prepare for Dental Emergencies: Accessing Timely Care

Dental emergencies can occur unexpectedly, causing pain and distress. In Weybridge, an emergency dentist is available to provide prompt care and relief for urgent dental issues. Whether you're experiencing severe toothaches or sudden injuries, knowing where to turn for immediate assistance ensures that you receive the treatment you need to preserve your dental health and well-being.

Safeguard Your Teeth with Night Mouth Guards

Bruxism, or teeth grinding, can lead to enamel wear and nerve pain tooth symptoms over time. Wearing a night mouth guard offers protection against the effects of grinding while you sleep. These custom-fitted guards create a barrier between your upper and lower teeth, reducing the impact of grinding and preventing dental damage. Investing in a night mouth guard ensures that you wake up with a refreshed smile and minimises the risk of dental issues associated with bruxism.

By implementing these proven prevention practices into your dental care routine, you can strengthen your defence against cavities and enjoy a lifetime of healthy smiles. Remember, proactive measures today can prevent dental problems tomorrow.

#Specialist Periodontist #Temporary Tooth Replacement #Nerve Pain Tooth Symptoms #Can I Get Veneers On NHS

[veinorange3]

Locating a Good Dentist Isn't that Easy

Finding a great dentist is simply because difficult as locating yourself a great general physician. Health and fitness is the almost all precious wealth many of us have and dental well-being is a great integral part regarding it. Because the dentist is going to be able to take care of the oral health, you may not just choose anyone hastily. You must guarantee the dentist a person choose has experience, specialist and licensed. Since always, prevent plus prepare is far better than repent and even repair. Consequently , this is advisable that you choose typical (monthly if possible) complete dental check up. Thus the dentist can check for any growing difficulty early and suggest or start probable treatments. He can also guide an individual to a hygienic approach at house towards dental health. cracked tooth syndrome There are various points to consider before an individual select any dentist, however. Firstly, a person should find a new dentist near to be able to you. This can imply your trip to the dentist is fast and hassle-free. Occasionally you may require to visit him or her for several periods. If they are significantly, the distance may possibly discourage you. Additionally, if he is usually near means a person can reach him or her fast in case there is virtually any emergency. Value is one more factor to take into consideration while choosing the dental practitioner. First thing first, check if your dental care expenses are covered inside your health insurance plan or not. If you do, check which dental practitioners from the record of the insurance service are near you. Try to select an individual from them. A lot of companies don't shell out for the costs incurred if the particular dentist isn't coming from their set of associate dentists. Yet , in the event that you don't experience a medical insurance (get one particular immediately! ) or even if the health insurance coverage doesn't cover the particular dental expenses in that case, sadly, you must deal with your bills oneself. Many people take out dentist from their own set of priority just to suffer and regret later. Yes, they have more pressing needs in addition to need to trim back expenses nevertheless dental expenses should be the scapegoat. It is improved to find an inexpensive dentist in your current vicinity. However, avoid fall for the older trap again i. e. don't determine by the price alone. Poor cost often comes as a bundled merchandise with poor support. You truly don't need to go to another dentist to restoration the poor work completed by the former. Please keep within mind that dentists have different specialties. Paediatric, orthodontists and even cosmetic dentists usually are some major specialisations found among dental practitioners. Paediatric can be a child's dentist, cosmetic dental office concentrates on the aesthetics of typically the teeth and orthodontists are general goal dentists. Although till one degree these people all can carry out the identical task but when it gets complicated it is best to be able to hire the services of a dental office, specialised in of which exact field. Check out if the wanted dentist has the particular required licenses plus permits to work plus offer services as a dentist, from regional and medical systems. This data can be easily obtained from the neighborhood association involving the dentists. From the same association, you can likewise verify earlier times track record of the dentist in mind and if any kind of professional charges were brought against him.

#temporary tooth replacement

[4grandpasonly]

🦷You can order such miracles online.

🦷How To Make a Fake Tooth at Home

#instantsmile #losttooth #lost tooth #instant tooth #Instant Smile Temporary Tooth Kit #Instant Smile Temporary Tooth Replacement Kit

[theunaestheticstudyblr]

Some fresh advice for y'all in college to start off the new semester!

Sleep. Sleep will let you function better, be in a better mood, get sick less often, etc

Eat. Fuel your body and mind. Eating helps with your brain fog and focus. Calories are just the energy you are putting into your body and the more you do, the more energy you need.

Find a why for every class. Why are you taking this class? And no just to graduate isn't always a good enough why to keep you motivated. Will you use that physics class? Maybe not, but it can help explain how the world works around you, makes your brain work out, all that stuff.

Take time for you. You are the most important aspect of your life. Great yourself as a priority.

Listen to your body. Please

Take a little time every day to study. Even an hour is a good amount of time. 1% better every day is still better than before.

Don't buy textbooks until after the first week or two of class. You won't need the textbooks for most classes, they just have to say they have a required text book.

Be social. Join a club. Go to events. Be a college student!

Make a schedule. Having a schedule with flexibility built in will make things less stressful in the long run.

Move your body every day if you can. Stretch. Go for a walk. Do yoga. Whatever you like. Taking time to just be present with your body and no distractions or pressures, you can reduce stress and recollect yourself. It's essentially moving meditation when done in depth and without any distractions.

Try out several study methods. Different topics may require different study tools. Flashcards probably won't work for every topic.

Make a budget. Try to save when you can, even if it's $1 every 2 weeks.

You will probably be in a new area. Take time to explore. Find some dive bars. Hiking trails. A cute cafe.

Brush and floss. Teeth are so expensive to fix later on. Take care of them now please. Don't wait for that $10,000 dentist bill for a tooth replacement.

Start hobbies. Let them fall off if they no longer interest you. A lot of times, you have temporary needs that a hobby will fulfill during that time. Your hobbies aren't your identity. And you are fluid. It's ok to change.

Explore your style, interests, food tastes, social structures, etc. This is a time of limbo basically. Have fun and figure yourself out.

Talk to your teachers. You'll probably need reference letters later on. Go to office hours. Ask questions in class. Make sure your teachers know who you are.

#study blog #student #student life #studyblr #productivity #school #study hard #studying #school advice #college studyblr #college student #college life #college #college tips #uni student #university student #uni life #uni #university

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

A poll inspired by my bitterness over dental work:

#teeth #animals #polls #toothless #dentistry

[finn-writes-stuff]

Hiii~ I saw your requests are open for Baldur's gate and I was wondering if you can write a one shot about wyll when tav/reader gets injured...

Thank u so much<3

Reckless

After a risky play in a battle and a temporary death, Wyll takes care of you.

Wyll Ravengard x Reader

Fandom: Baldur's Gate 3

Format: Oneshot

Gender Neutral Reader

Masterlist

Not to go insane about a man on main (Lying) but god I love him so much. The genuine hero archetype is so good and sweet.

No matter how long you had been adventuring, the poisoned sting of a goblin arrow never hurt any less. A lucky shot from an archer up above you, you hissed as it sunk into your shoulder. This had been a long battle, with your enemy calling in unexpected reinforcements, and your whole party was running out of health and energy.

A crackle of magic whipped past you and crashed into the archer's chest. Their rattling yell as they were knocked down let you know they were taken care of, and you were free to turn and grin at your savior, rushing to his aid in return.

Wyll had his own group of goblins he was trading blows with, his rapier clashing against another blade as you reached his side. He was better off health-wise than you were at the moment, but his shot at your attacker had cost him precious time to fend off the group.

"Thanks for the save!" You called gratefully as you dived into your own attack, trying to take out the enemies that seemed worn down.

"I've got you," he called back, ducking away from another blow. "But we need to get that ritual stopped, do you have any way to break the circle?"

Doing your best to run through your options as you danced back from a sword, you grimaced. Everyone was out of spell slots by now, and other resources were too limited to spare on a goblin ritual.

Or maybe not. As you shoved a hand into your bag, your hand fell upon a smoke powder bomb, one you had almost forgotten about.

"Yep! I can do it, Wyll! Just keep me covered," you said, already sprinting towards the ritual circle.

"The Blade provides," he laughed, carving down a goblin trying to slash at your retreat. "Do try to keep close then, love."

"It's on you to keep up," you shot back, relishing in the banter and the adrenaline of the fight. You needed to get close to set this off to maximum effect, with the arrow in your shoulder, you couldn't throw the bomb at a distance with any certainty. You just had to get close enough to toss it and back off before it set off. A piece of cake.

Not quite a piece of cake, you realized as you had to dodge and dive around goblins, hearing your companions slashing and seeing the familiar crackling red energy knock down enemies trying to rush you. But the day that a battle went smoothly would be the day Avernus froze over.

The attackers in your way didn't manage to get any solid hits on you, but they did succeed in slowing you down, enough so that you saw magic rising from the circle, pulling up like walls around the caster in the centre. Shit, if they got this spell off, that would be deadly. You barely took a second to think before diving in, crashing to the ground over the circle with the bomb in your hands.

The bomb that did not take kindly to the hard landing and magical heat around you. This was going to hurt. A lot.

Your last thought before being thrown back by the explosion was that at least the magic walls should contain the blast enough so that it didn't catch the rest of your party.

---

Being revived always hurt like hell. Feeling your heart forcefully start back up and your injuries repair themselves under magical guidance was excruciating when it was done quickly. You came too coughing up blood and was that a tooth? You hoped not, but if it was could the healing magic replace it?

Your thoughts were ended quite quickly by a familiar face dropping into your view as Wyll knelt in front of you, grabbing your face to look you over. His touch was so gentle, even as he turned you back and forth, and his sword callouses ran over your skin.

"Gentle? Yes, I'm trying my best, love," he replied, clueing you into the fact that you'd spoken aloud. Maybe the healing magic hadn't quite finished its work.

But it was hard to complain when he was so close to you like this. Carefully pulling you up to your feet and leaning you into his side as he watched you blearily gain your balance.

"Alright, no, we're not making you walk back to camp like that," he said, steadying you. "Let me carry you? I promise I won't drop you on the way there."

All it took was a nod for him to slip his arm under your knees and behind your back and scoop you up into a bridal carry. His arms were steady and you had the impression this was not the first time he had done this. Perhaps it was a staple of daring rescues in his past.

You giggled at the thought, resting your head against his chest and he looked down at you with concern. "You alright there? I'm a little concerned you got a concussion that hasn't been healed."

"Perfectly fine. But you must answer me honestly. Are you Prince Charming?"

"Alright, I'm quite concerned you got a concussion." He didn't bother to hide his smile though, keeping you steady against his chest. As you let your eyes drift, you heard him say something softer, not the brash and heroic Blade of the Frontiers, but just Wyll. "Don't do that to me again, love. You terrified me."

"It worked, didn't it?"

"I would rather swordfight that whole group at once than see you blow yourself up like that again. I was worried you would shatter yourself too much to be brought back." His pace was steady as he carried you, keeping you from jostling or rocking around too much even on the uneven ground. "Be careful for me?"

"If you'll be careful for me," you murmured back, leaning easier into his chest. It was all too easy to fall asleep in his arms.

#finnwrites #baldur's gate 3 x reader #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 x reader #bg3 #wyll x reader #wyll ravengard x tav #wyll ravengard x reader #wyll ravengard #oneshot #gender neutral reader

[cherrysoojins]

👢 𓂂 ⟢ 💡 ♡

female reader x ateez hongjoong

multi talented! hongjoong x makeup artist! reader

suggestive themes, minors dni, swearing, abuse of power, hongjoong is a model & ceo, reader has very conflicted feelings, kind of enemies to lovers esk, JUST A DRABBLE NO PT. 2

— being a makeup artist for your original company was great. you loved being on the move and meeting new clients everyday. but that came to an end when you met kim hongjoong.

being a makeup artist for multiple different idols, artists, models, meant that you were always on the move. always having another schedule after the one you just completed, packing your supplies and moving into the truck you and your other team of makeup artists you’re working with that day and moving to the next location.

point of the matter is, you’re always on the move.

until you couldn’t be.

you loved your job how it was. you almost always had something to do, you were always busy, and it was refreshing to get home after a long day and rest your tired eyes and wrist feeling accomplished.

but after years of such a schedule, it all shifted the second you met the famous model, kim hongjoong. a versatile and a well sought out man in the modeling world. from modeling for every big name within the fashion industry, to being his own model for his own genderless clothing line and his own ceo– kim hongjoong was a great man.

a great man who you would think wouldn’t fire his makeup artist that had been with him for years at the sight of you, who got the opportunity to fill in for the poor woman since she had just given birth and was looking for a temporary replacement for her two months off, only to get a text from kim hongjoong’s manager saying she has been laid off from her job.

you did get a lengthy message from her, but you and her did figure it out since you also hated the fact she was let off in such a douchey way.

and even more so the fact that kim hongjoong called your own company, persuading them into transferring you into his company, and of course they said yes. it was kim hongjoong who was asking. you and the woman both found a common enemy in kim hongjoong, therefore your guys’ feud didn’t last too long.

however, the days of long hours and constant moving around to different places in seoul, changed. instead of meeting new customers every three hours, you are limited just to kim hongjoong all the time. every hour of the day you were scheduled to work, it was now only to touch up hongjoong’s makeup and prepare him for photoshoots.

the allure you had was something kim hongjoong couldn’t ignore. not only were you pretty, you were good at your job, had a good personality, absolutely loved to do makeup and always gave good results, and did he mention you were pretty? it was only a matter of time before another model or celebrity swept you under their wings, hongjoong had to make sure he did it first. he couldn’t lose a gem like you and he made that very clear every time you were working on him.

with a hand holding a brush, the other resting on his shoulders as the softness of the brush swiped across his lips, flushing them a soft red color, he held his hands on your hips and had a small little smile on his lips. a victory smile for the fact he was able to win the battle of touching you, even though you tried hard to tell him to keep his hands to himself.

“do you ever worry about your image?” you asked him honestly, a frown of slight annoyance on your face, eyes shifting from his lips you were coloring to his eyes that were already staring you down.

“something as simple as being in love with my makeup artist won’t hurt my image.” he told you confidently, shooting you a wide toothed grin that had you rolling your eyes.

love. he threw the word around so carelessly, unashamed about it even though he’s hardly known you for five months. people are all different when it comes to love, so you’re always unsure if the male actually did love you or if he was messing with your feelings. but you were definitely sure he held some sort of romantic feelings for you, a crush, maybe. but love? can a man as great as him really love you? and nonetheless, fall for you that fast?

you, however, didn’t know how you felt towards kim hongjoong. he was one, your boss. two, the man who pulled you was from the job you loved dearly because he wanted you. and three, annoying and maybe a little too confident for his own good.

you had so many different emotions towards him, you could never settle on one. sometimes you really did look up to him– an inclusive man who treats everyone fairly, no matter if they’re below him in fame, money, anything. to him, everyone is just a human who walks this earth with him, and for that, he treats them like such. like humans and not worthless bugs under his feet.

but other times he was annoying. on a rare day off both of you have, he shows up to your house and drags you around seoul, going to small cafes, thrift stores or insanely expensive stores where he buys you an outfit that your eyes linger on for a moment too long despite you telling him to stop. or he brings you back to his workshop and just talks to you while he works on a completely new piece of clothing for his fashion line. in the eyes of others, that sounds like a dream. but in the eyes of you, you had every reason to be slightly annoyed at the man for overworking you because he refused to hire another makeup artist besides you, and then proceeding to make you accompany him even on your days off.

“you sure? you know how your fans are.” you told him, a small smirk perking up on the left side of your lips before you frowned again, pulling away from him and shifting your upper body to the side to search through your makeup bag for your next item, his hands staying firmly on your hips.

“are you insulting them? how mean of you.” he chided, pouting his painted cherry lips but accompanied it with a shrug.

you didn’t respond, grabbing a glitter palette in your hand and leaning back over him, dabbing the glitter onto your hand and gesturing for him to close his eyes, tapping the shimmer onto his eyelids, looking back at the reference photo on the vanity to the side of you two to make sure you were doing alright.

“i like you.” he told you casually, and having heard it more than one million times, you hummed, pressing a little harder on his eye as you patted the glitter onto it. he groaned at the action, pulling his head away and glaring at you, pinching the sides of your hips which made you flinch and pull away.

“i know,” you said softly, reaching an arm to dig around your makeup bag once more.

“and i want to kiss you.” he responded.

“i know.”

“and hold you.”

“i know.”

“and bend you over and fuck you against that vanity.” he gestured lazily with his hand to the vanity your makeup bag was on that you were digging in, eyes slowly turning to look at him.

“um…” you responded differently that time, looking back at him with narrowed eyes. how was he so comfortable saying such things in public?

you’re pretty sure you saw the hairdresser that was a little bit behind him organizing her things give you two a little glance. but you also have to remember, it’s kim hongjoong. if someone says anything about him that’s remotely personal or bad, he can ruin their lives. basically, the man can say whatever he wants because he can ultimately get away with it every time.

hongjoong, being the ever so confident man just smiled and began to stand up, for just a mere moment, he loomed above you. not by much, though. for as confident as he was, he was just a tad bit shorter than the average male– meaning you and him were literally the same height. the only reason he intimidated you was because of how powerful he genuinely is.

“done?” he simply asked with a smile, tilting his head to the side and unzipping the golden vest he was adorned in for the photoshoot, exposing his abs to you entirely to the point where you had to look away.

“yeah,” you said, gulping as you closed your makeup bag. in reality, there was a small amount of eyeshadow you were supposed to do, but you couldn’t find it in yourself to be near this many any longer, despite the aching feeling in your hands from straining them to not reach out and touch his slightly chiseled body.

the man in front of you caught a whiff of it, however. a slight twitch of your hands at your side gave you away. hongjoong leaned down slightly, not even bothering to look around and see if anyone was watching, bringing his mouth to your ear and pressing against it, his hand going around and clenching one of your wrists and bring your hand up to touch his chest.

a sudden gasp escaped from you, trying to jerk back but he wouldn’t let you.

“i’ll get this shoot done quickly, clear this place out,” he whispered to you, letting your hand explore every crook and crevice of his abs, controlling your hand himself. “then i’ll fuck you against this vanity.”

kim hongjoong was a powerful man who took your job that you enjoyed away from you, constantly took up your free time and off days over and over again.

and you would probably let him do it again.

not proofread, no part 2 😝 (unless i suddenly get inspo and the time)

#ateez imagines #ateez drabbles #ateez hongjoong #ateez hongjoong x reader #kim hongjoong x y/n #kim hongjoong #ateez kim hongjoong #ateez wooyoung x reader #ateez seonghwa x reader #ateez seonghwa #ateez yunho #ateez yeosang #ateez san #ateez mingi #ateez wooyoung #ateez jongho #ateez x reader #ateez x you #ateez x female reader #ateez smut #ateez scenarios #ateez fanfic #ateez oneshot #ateez x y/n #ateez #atz hongjoong #kim hongjoong x reader #hongjoong x reader #ateez san x reader #choi san x reader

[aesopsharpmybeloved]

Wounds Of The Past

A week following his and his young lover's little getaway in pursuit of tenderness, Aesop Sharp finds the pain in his leg, the one that he'd been used to for more than ten years now, lessening...

I would be lost without my dear partner in crime co-author and consultant @tea-withjamandbread, as well as Maarty and her unwavering support ❤

Wounds Of The Past (14.3k)

tw: teacher-student relationship, age gap (reader is an adult), sexual themes (mentioned and alluded to), tooth-rotting fluff

It began in a flurry of shards and bright green liquid staining the floor of his classroom.

Aesop Sharp stared at the mess he made morosely - what a waste of a perfectly good phial of Wiggenweld potion. With a small huff, he waved his wand in the air lazily, and both the broken bottle and its previous contents vanished into thin air. 

It was a day like any other for the teacher. Well, a day like any other lately, that is. A mere year ago, his life was drastically different. Alright, maybe not so drastically - just like the previous years, Aesop taught potions at Hogwarts, he regularly got exasperated by the lack of quick wit and good judgement from his many students as well as his employer, he praised rather sporadically, but always truthfully and fairly, he spent time with his friends and colleagues, stayed up long into the night grading essays and pop quizzes, and brewed medical remedies for the Hospital wing. Which is what he was doing right now as well, actually.

And yet, there was one big change, and in Aesop’s eyes (but what’s more, in his heart), the change was so large and significant, the teacher felt like his entire life on this Earth was suddenly all new and exciting, and as spectacular as it was when he was a fresh adult with an idiotic amount of courage and all the doors wide open and inviting. 

His heart burned with love.

That’s what it felt like at least. 

A year ago, he was just beginning to feel the effects of one very special young Ravenclaw’s presence around him, and after many many months, during which Aesop’s heart bled because he knew that she’d never return the feelings he held for her, it turned out he was very wrong. Christmas Eve of 1892 was the first evening they spent not only in one another’s company, but also each other’s arms, lips hungrily chasing their counterparts for yet another, and another, and another scorching kiss. 

The following few months only further proved that this little clandestine romance of theirs was no silly infatuation or some mere temporary absence of sense and reason. Each kiss, each ardent embrace, each and every night spent talking in hushed tones within the comfort of one another’s warmth and the security of their arms, all of it made Aesop feel a sense of belonging he hadn’t experienced in decades. So yes, his heart did indeed burn with love, and it burned with the ferocity of the Fiendfyre spell, making him feel so warm and alive, he still occasionally worried about waking up one morning to find it had all been just one big dream.

And the previous weekend? Well… Aesop wasn’t able to keep a sly little smile off his face when he remembered the weekend… It had been nearly embarrassingly long since he was able to make love to a woman like he made love to his pretty young Ravenclaw. The several one-night sexual encounters he had a few years ago weren’t exactly satisfactory for Aesop in this regard. Of course, he was ever the perfect gentleman and both he and his partner, whatever any of their names was, experienced the pleasure and its sweet culmination during their short encounter. However, this pleasure was always short lived, and Aesop soon found emptiness and coldness replacing the previous passion. While his younger self had no problem changing women with the frequency with which he changed his socks, and grin while doing so, it would appear his current self was no longer interested in empty promises said in the heat of the moment, soon to be replaced by awkward goodbyes and lonely journeys back home. And so he stopped seeking out the comforts and joys of a woman’s arms. Whenever the appetite came, the potions master would simply chase it away with a cold shower, or indulge in the familiar, if lonely, comfort of his hand - no need to drag some poor woman into it and risk accidentally hurting her feelings, he thought.

To be honest, Aesop was sure that this was just how he’ll spend the rest of his life. Pointlessly chasing after the cure for his leg, as well as after students he often presumed positively suicidal, instead of doing the thing his friends and mother implored him to do so very often; Fall in love, be happy. Two goals he presumed to be out of his reach entirely.

But now he was both. And to those who knew him closely, it was, of course, absolutely obvious. And while a part of Aesop was frankly cringing at how transparent the former rather brilliant Auror had become in his joy, the majority of him was so high on this almost new feeling that he often couldn’t find it within himself to care.

How could he, when the memories of the weekend spent with his young sweetheart were this fresh in his memory? 

Hands carefully exploring the other’s heated body, mapping out each new uncovered inch as if it was a wonderful new land, full of various beauties and intricacies, freckles and beauty marks, scars, proofs of a life lived, lips eagerly tasting the other’s skin, gliding in tantalising and hypnotising patterns, ones that left shivers and passion in their wake. Two bodies moving against each other, two hearts beating the same frenzied rhythm, oxygen intimately shared, and moans of pleasure cutting through the silence of the room, only ever occasionally replaced by urgent words of love and desire and accompanied by the deliciously filthy sounds of their union.

Aesop decided that it was the best weekend he had in years. Then again, this was something of his young lover’s habit; making him feel the happiest he’s been in years, that is.

Just the thought of her was able to stop him from continuing to stare at the floor where just short moments prior lay the spilled potion and broken glass. And Aesop suddenly remembered just how he managed to accidentally break the phial.

Having brewed and bottled another large batch of Wiggenweld potion for the hospital wing (which was always in high demand, as students seemed to be positively intent on maiming themselves on their brooms during Quidditch… or during Crossed Wands duels. Or during a simple potions lesson on Germinating potion turned utter catastrophe because someone was too dull to read that they were supposed to add knotgrass dew after they added the dried salamander skins rather than before... Or during a perfectly ordinary dinner at the Great Hall….), he automatically took a few phials in order to put them into his magically enlarged breast pocket. 

It was a simple muscle memory for him - he brewed, he took a few doses for his leg, he had the rest delivered, and by the time he brewed again, he only had one or two phials left on his person, the new potions sliding into the pocket with ease.

Not today.

The first phial did indeed slip in without a problem. The second one, however, made a soft glass clanking noise when he tried to store it away, making him aware his pocket, though much bigger on the inside, had become full. Aesop let go of it before he fully realised it though, and the small bottle slid down his chest and fell to the floor. A slightly cathartic sound of glass breaking penetrated the silence of the dungeons and that was that…

Aesop automatically leaned against the potions station he was just using (the one his sweetheart used too - it was the newest one in the castle, after all, and the most reliable one), the clogs in his head turning. Pushing his hand inside his breast pocket once more, he began pulling out the Wiggenwed potions there. Six, seven, eight! How in Merlin’s name did he have eight potions in his pocket after… goodness, when was it he last refilled it? It surely couldn’t have been after he returned to his rooms on the Sunday a week ago, could it? 

He had returned with his sweetheart in tow, sneaking by the ghosts roaming the castle while its living inhabitants feasted on their supper at the Great Hall, and managed to restrain himself from marking the official end to their little getaway before inadvertently having to return to their day-to-day lives at Hogwarts, unsure of how much time they’ll be allowed to spend together, until he made sure the stash of potions he had on his person was refilled for the following week. 

Aesop shook his head. The idea seemed implausible. He was well aware that he had consumed more than a single vial of Wiggenweld potion in the last week; after all, he kept a supply in the chest at the foot of his bed and habitually took doses in his office. Yet, the thought lingered: had there ever been a time when he used only one of the phials he actively carried with him?

Upon further reflection, he realised that despite his deep scepticism, there was irrefutable evidence that he had consumed less of the potion this week - by at least a third of his usual consumption. And it did make sense, in a way. It had been a good week, on no day did his leg act up and bind him to a seating position because of painful cramps restricting him from standing up, which usually happened every other week.

It was… unthinkable. New and a little unnerving. Despite being all alone in the large classroom, Aesop scoffed - for more than a decade, the thing he wanted the most in the world was for his leg to stop hurting, and now… Well, it was hurting still, but instead of the sharp pain that shot from his knee all the way into his hip, genuinely feeling like the bloody curse was burning into his femur and hip bone, there was this sort of strange dull ache that was more annoying than anything else. Almost like the pain one gets after they’ve been sitting in a strange position for an extended period of time, like the sort of pain one could simply shake off…

Of course, Aesop wasn’t as silly as to attempt to shake his leg, in fear that the movement could potentially bring the worse pain back instead of relieving this more bearable one. Still, his curiosity was more than peaked, and after he made sure a couple of house elves would come to collect the few crates of Wiggenweld potion he brewed, he retired into his chambers.

He occasionally delivered the potions himself - after all, the Hospital wing was very close to his rooms. This fact was especially convenient during his worst days, as Norreen didn’t have to run through half the castle to administer some stronger potions to him. Aesop preferred to leave those in her care, as he couldn't trust himself to resist the stronger, more addictive potions instead of the harmless Wiggenweld. However, these episodes of his happened very, very rarely these days, luckily. 

No, Aesop truly didn’t have the time to hand-deliver the potions himself and chat up Noreen for a bit right now, he needed to look at the notes he had on the experimental pain relieving potion he took during his and his sweetheart’s outing. A part of him knew that he went over those notes a hundred times while he was brewing, and then a hundred more before he tested the first batch on himself. A part of him knew there was no way the potion could be the thing relieving his pain even now, a week after ingestion. It simply wasn’t possible - the first batch he brewed lasted for several hours, but he could very much feel his blasted leg again the next day… Then, during the weekend, he did think it strange it was working even after he woke up, but he had hardly the time to concern himself with his research when he had a very beautiful young woman to enjoy the privacy with.

Right now though… right now he needed to know. He needed to find the answer.  So that he could repeat whatever it was he did that made his leg get better. 

And for the first time, he realised that he no longer wanted to do so for himself - he had lived with that pain for a decade, and, in a way, he very nearly made peace with it. Such could be seen when one took a look at his journals - the past few years, he didn’t go through them nearly as quickly as he used to in the beginning. 

But now… Now the very idea that he could be healthy again, that he’d be able to walk by his beloved’s side, unbothered by an undignified limp, standing tall and proud like he once did, made his heart thump loudly in his chest… If his leg stopped hurting, he’d at least feel a little more deserving of her love. Less guilty about taking the absolutely incredible creature his Ravenclaw was for himself, and himself only… 

The professor unlocked the door of his chambers and stepped inside, the comfort of the space instantly washing over him. These days he was quite tidier than he had been a couple of years ago, and he let the house elves clean his rooms regularly - his shelves, as it turned out, were much more organised and able to contain more things when there weren’t empty liquor bottles haphazardly hidden away in them. Aesop still indulged in a glass or two every now and then, but he made sure not to overindulge too much, and got rid of the empty bottles promptly. After all, he didn’t want the young woman to think she was seeing some drunken bum.

He made quick work of finding his latest notebook even though he had quite a few of them now. Each and every single one was filled from cover to cover, each experiment he conducted well documented, the script with the hypothesis starting off neat and organised, and ending with scrawly, short notes, as he was getting more and more frustrated he wasn’t getting the desired results. The conclusion was once more written neatly, simply explaining that yet another cure idea became an absolute flop. 

However, some of them ended on a hopeful note - in his efforts to discover a cure, Aesop accidentally found a different manner in which the potions could be used. Experimental cure #87 turned out to be quite a brilliant cure for sunstroke, and #114 he brewed regularly, as it helped with Bai’s hay fever every summer. And, of course, then there were the experimental brews that weren’t a cure for his leg, but rather little ideas to at the very least help with the pain somewhat. There was Experimental pain relief potion #12, which he’d occasionally add into his bath, as it helped not only with the pain in his leg, but also in his entire body - very useful after a long evening spent bent over ingredients he was preparing. Then herbal ointment #4, which warmed his leg up considerably, as well as made the scar upon his skin itself less sensitive to touch. Aesop found it curious that the scar on his cheek never really hurt after the skin healed, but he supposed that it was because his leg got the full force of the curse, and his cheek was later struck from recoil. And, of course, there was that one brew that started out as a pain relieving potion, and accidentally ended up being a herbal liquor. Oh well, it worked quite nicely as an aperitivo if nothing else, Aesop shrugged.

The potions master found one of the last pages and peered upon the page. Experimental cure #164 was scratched out and Experimental pain relief potion #17 was written above it instead. In his own script he read the conclusion: ‘Despite its effect being strong enough to remove pain nearly completely for 4 hours, 37 minutes and 21 seconds, it began lessening rather rapidly afterwards. Return to original state occurred in circa 5 hours and 13 minutes following initial ingestion. Not ideal - rare ingredients, prolonged brewing time… However, works for intended purposes.’

It was a shortcoming on his part. Only doing one test, that is. That he could admit. Now he was on unfamiliar ground, and there was no clear way for him to be able to test the brew on another subject, to at the very least be able to say with certainty that repeated administration did indeed prolong the effects of the potion. Blast it. 

Well, he could at least examine the area to see if there were any signs of the potion's effects on his body. And so, Aesop Sharp walked over to the armchair next to his bed, took a seat, and used his wand to turn on the lamp standing beside it. Placing his wand upon the armrest, he began to unfasten his left boot, soon letting the heavy footwear slide from his leg and land on the floor with a thud.

His hands worked methodically, relying on muscle memory completely. He undid the straps of his suspenders from his trousers before unbuttoning them and pushing them down, sliding them just enough to be able to pull his left leg free. His pants were given similar treatment soon, and Aesop grit his teeth momentarily as the soft cotton slid down the sensitive tissue of his scar there. Aesop was glad to have invested into a high quality lock on his chambers, as he most likely looked just as ridiculous as he felt whenever he was examining his leg for any sort of change like he was doing now - literally half naked, the air of his chambers chilling the toes on his bare left foot, not to mention his family jewels on full display while his right leg was still half covered and booted. Best have no uninvited guests while he was this vulnerable.

He moved with his armchair slightly closer to the bed to be able to brace his left foot upon the mattress and examine his bad leg properly. There was some sort of foggy pale patch upon his scarred thigh, and at first the professor thought it was just some silly trick of the lighting until he turned his leg a bit to get rid of the effect and… nothing happened. The patch remained there. Upon closer inspection, it truly was some sort of strange skin discoloration, but it couldn’t have been something normal, like perhaps a pale patch left from a failed tan -  because where on earth would he be tanning in early April? And besides, the pattern was… the pattern was very peculiar indeed. Could it have been the potion’s effect? Surely not, he saw nothing of this sort after the first ingestion, and that was a week before he and his beloved left for their little herb picking excursion.

Besides that, when she undressed him and the two of them explored one another for the first time, he saw no such mark on his leg. The poor limb was like it’s always been, the scar red and angry, its lower part only just becoming less visible because of the thicker hair on his shins. Surely he would’ve noticed! And the second day, too, when he watched her head move between his legs, her mouth so sinfully and deliciously descending upon… Alright, now may not be the most opportune time to dwell on such thoughts, Aesop decided when he felt himself twitch slightly.

Had there been anything on his leg? Aesop couldn’t remember. To be fair, he had way more pressing matters on hand back then, and the lighting conditions weren’t exactly optimal for any sort of medical examination, the sun having nearly descended below the horizon, leaving an ethereal semi-darkness of pink dusk in its wake. 

Now however, he could see it quite clearly. Well, clearly… The pattern’s borders were faint, bleeding into his regular skin colour, and the discoloration had been the most obvious across the scar itself. The scar had still been angry red in many places, along its edges in particular, but where the pale patch was, it was almost like… the scar was paler as well? He used the tip of his finger to prod at the tissue gently, and, most surprisingly, found that it didn’t… Well, it didn’t really feel like anything, actually. His finger then slipped along the scar, over to a place that was much redder, and he hissed upon the stinging pain that followed. How strange...

It seemed the pale pattern was sort of wrapping around the scar somewhat, faint, but very much there, from the top of his injury over at his hip bone, all the way to below the knee. When the potions master squinted his eyes, he was able to tell the pattern apart from the rest of his leg easier. Hm… Aesop racked through his brain - the pattern was… oddly familiar… When had he seen it before? It surely wasn’t a symbol he’d seen among the Ancient runes textbooks, and it was not an alchemy symbol either. 

It was sort of like a swirl, like a part of a vortex. Where in Merlin’s name had he seen it…

Aesop closed his eyes.

Coldness seeping into his clothes, making him feel like it was infused into his very bones. The damp air of the dungeons. Suddenly, ethereal blue glow. A large unfamiliar chamber, with what looked like the reflection of the entire Hogwarts region in dark water. Four large portrait frames. A door with a glowing swirl upon it…

His eyes snapped open again.

No way.

Aesop nearly sprung to his feet, and very nearly tumbled to the ground right away, tripping over his own boot and trousers. He stumbled back over to his desk, threw open one of the drawers, and pillaged inside it until he found that one journal he was looking for, uncaring whether the other contents of the drawer flew left or right. For all he cared at that moment, they could very much just land inside the fireplace and he wouldn’t have cared. Less than a minute later, he was sitting back down, furiously flipping through the pages. Where is it, where is it?!

There!

A few of the pages within the notebook were drastically different from the others. Mainly because they didn’t contain any of his experiments or refined recipes, but rather his thoughts following one positively insane night that took place more than two years ago now… It was not one’s typical journal entry, there was no composition, some sentences weren’t finished, some didn’t even make sense to him anymore - goes to show how disturbed Aesop had been following the night. And who could blame him? Hogwarts was supposed to be one of the safest places in the Wizarding world, the safest place in Britain, and yet, on that horrible night, the fate of the world as they knew it was at stake, and one of Aesop’s colleagues had lost his life…

The wizarding world was full of old wives’ tales of various levels of improbability and insanity. And that night Aesop found himself in the middle of one of them.

Ancient magic, only visible and accessible to a very few, nowadays nearly fabled, individuals. Yet another Hogwarts secret nobody had known about in centuries, and talk of sources of power so immense, they could very much destroy not only the school itself, but possibly the entire country or more, if they were to fall into the wrong hands. And Aesop put himself right into the middle of it the second he responded to Matilda Weasley’s urgent Floo call for aid, blast his lame leg.

The teacher observed the quick sketches and notes he scratched into the pages of his journal with his quill following the night, wanting to get his thoughts onto the paper in effort to perhaps understand them better. Among them was the spiral staircase leading down, which he had never seen before in his life, despite having been this far into the dungeons several times. Nobody really had a reason to roam there much, not even the students attending both Muggle studies and Alchemy classes nearby, as there was nothing of interest, just a few empty barrels and crates… Another one depicted a grand circular room, adorned with intricate details, ones that many a pure-blood family manor could be sorely envious of.

And then - open double doors holding the solemn darkness of caverns within, despite their beautiful appearance. While what Aesop found interesting those two years back was the cave system and the secrets that lurked behind those doors, right now he was more interested in the door itself, as it bore a very interesting symbol on it - the very same one that seemed to have been burned into the skin of his leg.

Aesop let the journal fall from his hands and slide from his right leg down to the floor, leaning back against the cushions of his armchair.

Fucking hell…

He had some sort of ancient magic attached to his leg, to his scar. Now that he knew what it was, one wouldn’t need his intellect to know just when it got there - after all, the memory of his and his sweetheart’s bodies trembling against one another with their first shared climax was very much fresh in his memory, and he adored to come back to it again, and again, and again. Another one of his shortcomings; he didn’t question the powerful surge of the Ravenclaw’s ancient magic wrapping around their very forms that first night, even after it turned out to be the only time it happened. He didn’t question what it might’ve done to him, or to her… Aesop was one lucky bastard that the magic hadn’t been destructive towards either of them… Could it have been? He knew the young woman used her powers during combat, actually even got to see her do so, which left him both impressed and slightly intimidated, but the magic that night, the feelings it filled his chest with… That was far from any sort of violent or combatant magic…

Still, he shouldn’t have perhaps figuratively shrugged his shoulders about it like he did. Now it was quite obvious that there was indeed some sort of effect, and, unlike with potions and spells, where most effects can be traced back to the ingredients in potions’ case, and to pronunciation and hand movements when it came to spells, Aesop very much doubted there was anything they could use to predict the future of this one. Would it get weaker as time passed? Or would it get stronger instead? It could, theoretically, get stronger - after all, Aesop only noticed it today, and was nearly certain it wasn’t there a few days ago… At least not this visible…

The potions master had no idea how it worked, and his chances to find out were minimal at best. His knowledge about ancient magic went only as far as Fig’s notes and his sweetheart’s own knowledge… which honestly wasn’t quite as much as both of them would’ve liked. The so called ‘Keepers’ were as enigmatic as ever, it was almost as if, without the threat of immediate danger, they lost most of their interest in teaching the young woman anymore. She did go to meet them occasionally, but has described the four portraits as being quite slow at lecturing her more on the subject of ancient magic. Like they were afraid the young woman might not use this knowledge for good…

All in all, somehow he doubted the Keepers would be able to find an answer to the question ‘Is it possible to heal something with ancient magic while having sex?’. Still, Aesop chuckled darkly, it’d be fun to see if portraits could faint.

The professor sighed then. He felt a little lost - on one hand, he was sort of ecstatic - his leg had been hurting less, and now that he was sitting down, he very nearly didn’t feel it at all. On the other hand, he… Well, he was rather afraid to allow himself to hope again. Each and every time he did, the disappointment that followed hurt all the more. 

He figured he should tell the young woman too. She had a right to know, considering it was her magic that managed to do something he hadn’t in a decade - long lasting effects. A week wasn’t a lot of time, yes, but it was still much longer than anything else he managed to brew throughout the years…

He needed to speak to her, he needed her to help him make heads or tails of the situation. He could go and find Diana to the Owlery, send a message… but that was entirely too slow. That is, he was too slow, the greater sooty owl herself was faster than lightning. Well, there was only one more way to get the young woman to come to him swiftly… Aesop used his wand to summon one of the heavy blankets he kept in his chambers, and draped it over himself in a way that would make it seem he was merely reclining in his armchair, wrapped up to fight the chill of early spring. When he deemed himself covered sufficiently, and of course after hiding his discarded boot underneath the blanket, he summoned a house elf.

“Please, find (F/N) (L/N), a seventh-year Ravenclaw. Send her to me - tell her it’s urgent that she comes, as there is a… an inconsistency in her NEWT essay…”

With a pop, the elf disapparated and Aesop was once again left alone in his chambers. He gazed into the flames in his hearth thoughtfully. This year truly is turning out to be drastically different from the previous ones, isn’t it… It was not long at all before he heard knocking upon his door. His sweetheart let herself in following his invitation, and immediately came to find him in his bedchamber.

His brain gave out momentarily and his thoughts ceased suddenly when she came into his field of view, looking so casually gorgeous in her crisp white shirt, simple striped tie, and her calf-length black skirt. 

She leaned against the doorframe with a sparkle in her eye, one that made Aesop’s heart throb. “An inconsistency in my essay, you say?” she purred, a smile spreading upon her face, before she began to walk towards him slowly, her hips swaying most invitingly. “I-...” Aesop forgot to speak for a minute, completely mesmerised by her movements. “Actually,” he continued, mouth drier than it was a moment ago, “while I adore the way you’re looking at me right now, it’s not the reason I called you here…”

And with that he pulled the blanket up partially, revealing his bare left leg. “Aesop, you’re not exactly helping in making me think you didn’t invite me here for some tender fun…” she chuckled quietly, and the potions master couldn’t help but feel a little smile forming on his lips as well. However, he only raised his maimed leg upon the bed like he’d done before: “Please come take a look at this…” Cocking her head to the side confusedly, the Ravenclaw walked nearer, soon enough bending onto one knee to look at what he was referring to.

“What is it? Has it worsened?” she asked, sounding concerned. “The other way around actually,” Aesop replied quietly, “take a proper look at the skin colour around it - what do you see?” The girl carefully placed her hand on an unscarred part of his thigh and leaned in closer, furrowing her brows.

Then suddenly, as if a switch was flicked, her eyes widened and mouth dropped open in a way Aesop would’ve almost described as comical in a different situation.

“I-... That’s-... How?!” she stammered, observing the scar and the pale pattern upon it.

“I don’t know,” Aesop replied truthfully, “I only noticed it today.”

Then, however, he saw an expression appear on the girl’s face, one that he didn’t expect. 

Terror.

“Oh no… no, no, no, no, no…” She began shaking her head, one of her hands coming to cover her mouth, and were those tears gathering in her eyes? “What, what is it, dear?” Aesop asked, his own panic rising. “This is bad, oh Merlin…” she only stammered on, having now gotten up and begun backing away somewhat.

“Darling, please,” The professor quickly grabbed at her wrist, gently but firmly, and started pulling her back towards him. She was breathing hard and looking terribly, terribly panicked when he managed to sit her down upon his healthy leg and wrapped his arms around her. Using one hand, he pressed her face against his neck, and used the other to draw deep circles into her back, making gentle shushing noises. He could feel the dampness of her tears on his collar: “Calm yourself my sweet. Tell me what’s wrong, please.”

“Oh, Aesop…” she whimpered miserably, “I’m so, so sorry…” Aesop shushed her some more: “What are you apologising for? It doesn’t hurt, if that’s what’s gotten you worried. In fact, the pain has lessened considerably.” “That’s the thing, Aesop…” she lifted her head up to look at him: “I… before me, there was another woman, one who had my powers…I may have said something here and there about her before...” The professor listened carefully, not rushing her in her speech, merely looking into her eyes and continuing to stroke her back, “Um… Ever since she began school in her fifth year, like me, what she wanted the most was to rid her father of pain from losing his son - her brother… And after years, she was successful in her efforts. She pulled the pain right out of him. A-and for a while, it seemed to be all good… But then one day her colleague went to find her at her family home, and she wasn’t there… But her father was… He was barren of all emotion. Not just of pain, he didn’t have anything in him left! He became a body with no soul!”

Aesop gulped, much too loudly, feeling his own heart speeding up. Bloody hell…

Taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down, as both of them panicking would help absolutely nothing, he forced himself to think about her words while once more closing his arms around her tight. Right… 

“Uh… You said that she was only successful after years, didn’t you?” Aesop asked, his voice quiet and as soothing as possible. He felt the woman in his arms nod her head against his shoulders. “Would you mind telling me how you know that?” His sweetheart took several deep breaths before raising her head again, not meeting his eyes this time: “I found a series of journal entries. This woman, Isidora Morganach, was helping heal people from the plague alongside a few other wizards and muggle doctors alike, but… But while she helped heal the people of their physical illness, she wasn’t able to relieve them of their pain of losing loved ones to the Black death… And so she, I don’t know, she made this spell that extracted pain from people… She’d use her wand, hold it to someone’s chest and pull out what looked like this dark wispy cluster. She’d proceed to breathe it in, and later store it away into containers made of goblin silver… The biggest one being-” “The Final repository.” “Yes.”

“Wait a minute, though-” Aesop said, feeling slightly less panicked. “If she managed to fill that giant thing to the brim with pain-”

“She extracted pain from others. From Hogwarts students, from anyone she could…”

“Then not all of them must’ve turned into soulless beings.”

“I-... What?” Her eyes, red from crying softly, finally met his own. “You heard,” Aesop spoke, feeling more confident, “that thing… it’s the most powerful thing I’ve ever seen, filled to the brim with magic… and it wasn’t even the only one, you said Ranrok got his power from below the Rookwood castle. She must’ve really taken the pain of dozens, perhaps even hundreds - and if each and every one of them subsequently lost all emotion because of it, well, it would have been noticed! It would have been written down. That’s not something people could ignore! Did you… Do you know of anyone else who had their pain extracted by her?” The young woman in his arms thought for a moment before her eyes lit up: “Professor Fitzgerald!”

“Who?”

“She was the Headmistress here when Isidora was a student and later a teacher, as well as one of the Keepers - Isidora took her pain as well!” 

“And did she lose all emotion?”

“I don’t- I don’t know. Her memories only showed the immediate aftermath… I-... I have to ask!” the Ravenclaw was just about to rush away from him, no doubt into the direction of the Map chamber, but Aesop held on tight: “Just wait for a minute, dear. You also mentioned that you actually saw the process too. From, uh, from what I remember, there never came a point during which you pointed your wand at me, and extracted something from within me, did it?”

She thought for a moment: “No… No, there really was no moment like that… Can I… Can I take a look at your leg again?” With a small smile, Aesop finally allowed her to stand up and leave his embrace. She kneeled in front of him again and looked at his leg carefully. “This is… it’s also different,” she murmured as if more to herself than to him, “it’s not the dark wispy thing… and it’s not the red glow I saw Ranrok and his loyalists give off… But there is a glow…” Aesop’s eyebrows furrowed. A glow? He didn’t see any glow… Was she just talking about the fact the pattern was lighter than the rest of his skin, or…?

“I think it’s the blue one, I can’t… I can’t really see it clearly…” she kept on talking, even quieter than before. “Darling, I cannot see any glow…” he replied, still trying to see what she was talking about. “I… Well, you wouldn’t. I think only I can see it. Professor Fig couldn’t see it either…”

“Ah, right. However, you’re saying that it doesn’t look like the magic that this Isidora of yours was wielding when she extracted pain from people, right?”

“Right.” “So there is a chance I won’t be losing my emotions.”

“I… I hope so…”

“And so do I. Why don’t you, uh, why don’t you check up with the former Headmistress - perhaps her portrait will be able to tell you more,” Aesop said finally. His heart had calmed down somewhat, though his head was still reeling a little. His beloved nodded her head frantically. But then she looked at him: “You said it hurt less now, didn’t you?”

“It indeed does,” he confirmed, carefully touching the scarred skin. The Ravenclaw bit into her lip: “Um, we can trust Nurse Blainey, right? I mean, she’s the one who fixed me up after what… what happened in those caverns. Maybe you should, you know, show it to her?”

“Are you sure that’s not a waste of time? You just said you’re the only one who can see the glow.”

“It’s not that much about the glow, Aesop - she’ll be able to give you a diagnosis, or something, anything… We’re in a position where we could use all the information we can get…”

She had a fair point, Aesop thought. But such was the way of Ravenclaws, always believing that knowledge is key. Frankly, he was slightly through with healers running diagnostics on him only to put on that oh so compassionate face and tell him that they can’t do anything for him… But then again, could it be different now? He did trust Noreen to remain discreet at the very least - however, he also didn’t at all doubt that she’ll probe at him until she got as much information about this new… progress… And would she keep her discretion after he told her? Of course, his and the young woman’s relationship wasn’t forbidden, but still…

“Trust me, I too am cringing at the very thought of going to ask the former Headmistress about this, as she’s no doubt going to be very inquisitive… I may actually attempt to ask the other’s to leave, if it comes down to me actually talking about what happened - because I know both you and I know that this happened during… You know… The light vines and all… I think I’m able to talk to her about it, but I think I would die in embarrassment were I to speak to Rackham and Rookwood about such matters… Actually, all three of us would, in most likelihood.” “What about the fourth one?”

“I don’t know - I have a feeling he’ll insist on staying, though I wish he hadn’t.. To, I don’t know, make sure I wasn’t about to go down the same path as Isidora or something…”

Aesop shook his head. As if the young woman before him hadn’t proved her heart was nothing but pure… She proved it, in his own opinion, enough for several lifetimes. He knew of Isidora Morganach’s untimely but unavoidable death at the hands of one of the Keepers, and he knew with all of his heart that his beloved was nothing like this woman, there was not a single power-hungry hair on her head. 

“Run along - the sooner we’re done with these no doubt uncomfortable tasks we’ve got to attend to now, the sooner we’ll hopefully be able to breathe a sigh of relief… And hopefully have a strong cup of good tea. And perhaps a splash of Firewhisky. And biscuits.” Aesop was happy to hear the young woman snort silently. She raised herself up and looked at him: “I… um, I’ll see you at the Hospital wing then?” He gave a nod. And, just like that, he was left by himself once more. However, not before receiving several very lovely kisses, during which it took everything within him not to say ‘Damn that talking piece of canvas hag as well as any silly examination!’ and just have both of them stay in the comfort of his rooms for the time being. 

He sighed and threw the blanket covering his modesty back onto the bed before restoring his clothes the way they’re supposed to be, triple checking whether everything was decent before leaving his rooms to make the short way over to the Hospital wing. And when he did find himself at the very top of the stairs, Aesop had to throw a phial of Wiggenweld back - the pain was better, but it was far from gone, and stairs really weren’t doing it much good at all.

The Hospital wing was as it always had been - bright and airy, sterile but homely. The scent of various healing salves, potions and herbs wafted through the pleasantly cool air, and the sun of late afternoon poured in through the partly open window. To his massive relief, Aesop found that, surprisingly, there were no students currently getting attended to by the school nurse. How curious - Aesop could’ve sworn there would always be at least one half-maimed student here at all occasions.

“Quiet, isn’t it?” Came Noreen’s voice from somewhere behind him, making the poor man flinch ever so slightly. He turned his head to see the young Nurse peering at him from out of her office/bedroom. “Indeed,” he replied coolly, flawlessly masking his bewilderment at her sudden appearance and her startling him, “how so? Didn’t you have a minimum amount of whining teenagers you must have here at all times of day and night?” 

Nurse Blainey sneered lightly: “A third of Crossed Wands is worried about their NEWTs, a third is worried about their OWLs, Mr Brattleby included, and the rest are lost like forest bees on a glade without their organiser, so they daren’t set any matches that get actually dangerous. The most that happens to the lot who still go there to practice is a singed eyebrow, and they don’t really want me to witness that.”

“And Quidditch?” Aesop asked, reaching a hand out to lean a part of his weight on one of the beds.

“Well, we’ve only got Slytherin versus Hufflepuff left, don’t we? I hear Miss Reyes is making sure no member of her ‘Dream Team’ as much as sprains an ankle or pulls a muscle during their practices, so they’re in top shape for the final match, and you know Hufflepuffs - at least a dozen of them who are hoping to become healers are always nearby, just itching to get their practice in was any of the Hufflepuff players become injured. And me - I’ve got some well deserved peace at last. At least I had till you came in.”

Aesop chuckled.

—

As the Ravenclaw entered the Map chamber, a rush of emotions swept through her. Though she visited the room on a semi-regular basis, the frequency wasn't as high as she had initially anticipated it would be. The Keepers' reluctance to hasten their lectures, their occasional absolute absence from their frames, and the poignant memories of Professor Fig that flooded her mind each time she stepped inside all contributed to her subconscious avoidance of joining the four Keepers down here. And besides that, she was a busy woman…

The cold air nipped at her ears as she slowly descended the stairs leading to the spacious chamber below, she was quick to notice all four former professor’s stood within their frames. The atmosphere in the room was very nearly surreal, ethereal, as if time itself had no meaning within, there was no concept of day and night there. However, despite the four sentient portraits there, she always felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end from how unsettling the place was - each time she remembered the people on the wall were not actually there, that they weren’t trapped in those paintings, but had actually been dead and buried for centuries, the silence of the room felt deafening. Despite its lack of foes for her to defeat, no giant spiders, no rampant Dugbogs, the room actually felt scarier than many dark caves and ruined abandoned buildings when the Keepers were absent. Even Inferi would make the place feel less… dead.

She was swiftly pulled out of her macabre thoughts.

“Welcome back, Miss (L/N). It’s been some time since we last made your acquaintance,” spoke professor Rackham, his soft voice reverberating off the intricately patterned walls. The young woman swallowed and made her way across the large map of the Highlands around Hogwarts castle. “My apologies, professors - I was rather busy with my NEWTs and such…” she replied quietly before looking at the portrait of professor Fitzgerald, “Headmistress, may I… may I speak to you for a moment?”

The woman looked mildly surprised to be addressed specifically, but quickly schooled her features into a pleasant expression: “Certainly, Miss. What is it you want to talk about?” The young woman’s eyes nervously flicked around the other three portraits, the people within them regarding her with unabashed curiosity. “Actually,” she spoke, attempting to make her voice as neutral as possible despite the heat rising to her cheeks already, “actually I wondered whether I could talk to you privately…”

The Keepers’ expressions turned even more curious, and they too began looking around at one another. Finally, the Irishwoman cleared her throat: “Of course - after all, if a student wishes to speak with their professor in private, they’re fully entitled to.” Rackham and Rookwood both nodded in the Headmistress’ direction. “I shall check up on San’s tower then, make sure there are no more trespassers,” Rackham announced, slowly moving out of his portrait. “And I shall do the same with Rookwood castle. Still, such a terrible shame what has the good House of Rookwood come to, not to mention the once grand estate…”

Soon it was almost as if the young woman and the Headmistress were entirely alone, until: “I know you’re lingering just beyond the frame, San,” Fitzgerald said, her hands elegantly folded in front of herself. “I merely wonder as to why shouldn’t the rest of us know what you intend to speak to the Headmistress about. It’s not like either of us ever had shown any sort of unreliability, seeing as we protected what could possibly become the biggest weapon in the Wizarding world for centuries. Besides, four people, more experiences, a larger possibility of helping the student should she require it,” came from one of the empty-appearing frames.  The Ravenclaw immediately felt a wave of frustration, as well as more colour rising into her face: “I-it’s something of a private matter, Professor Bakar…”

After a few seconds of pregnant silence, there came a sigh: “Very well. Leaving you two alone…”

Finally, Professor Fitzgerald turned her gaze back at the young woman before her: “It seems we’ve got privacy now - what did you want to talk about, lass?”

Dear Merlin… This was going to be anything but easy.

“Do you remember how Isidora would rid people of their pain?” she asked. At the mention of Isidora’s name, the Headmistress visibly tensed. Nevertheless, she nodded her head. “What actually happened to her father afterwards? I mean - in one of the pensieve memories, after she rids him of his pain, he seems… relieved. Happy, actually. Grateful. But then, in Professor Bakar’s memories, he actually has no more emotions left… He’s like an empty husk of a human… I wanted to know if… Well, if Isidora taking his pain away led to the other emotions leaving as well.”

Niamh stayed quiet for several seconds, clearly considering her answer. Before she could speak however, the young woman added: “In your memories, I saw her take your pain too… You didn’t… You didn’t ever feel like you were losing grasp on your other feelings as well, or?”

“No, no…” the Headmistress replied softly, “no, I can’t say I have. I can understand where you’re coming from, though. After San… After Isidora’s death, we had a lot to deal with. A lot of damage to fix. We had to try and make the caverns as inaccessible as possible, make up a cover story for Isidora’s passing, and, of course, alter some of the students’ memories… It was only after we made sure that Isidora didn’t leave behind anything that could potentially lead any new wielder of ancient magic astray did San inform us of the state he found Isidora’s father in…

“We went to visit him, all of us, and found him quite like you described - an empty husk. Mind, he was alive and, well, he was functioning. He worked on his field in the morning, fed the chickens, took care of the house, cooked for himself, ate, slept… But he did so without a word, without a single emotion. And when we tried to speak to him, well… It was like he did hear us, but our words were like noise and nothing else…

“We… well, we did attempt to.. put the pain back… Percival found the jar of goblin silver Isidora used to store her father’s pain in, that evening she showed us. Only, well…”

The young woman was hanging onto every word, wondering and fearing.

“Well, Professor?”

Headmistress Fitzgerald heaved a long sigh: “He didn’t return to his original state… Instead of regaining his emotions, his personality, there was only one feeling he was able to experience - a blinding rage. Nothing else than anger. Not ten seconds after Percival returned the magic into Mr Morganach’s chest did he try to attack us, blindly and in wild-abandon. In the end the poor man had to be transported to Saint Mungo’s. We thought it appropriate even though he was a muggle, since his malady was a magical one. There was never any improvement, though…”

The Ravenclaw gulped audibly, her hands beginning to tremble slightly. Would this happen to Aesop? Would he… would he eventually lose his emotions, his feelings, his very identity?

“And what about the others… Isidora took many others’ pain, didn't she? Yours too… Did anyone else lose all emotion?” she asked and closed her hands into fist to stop them from shaking.

“No. I have lived for many years after Isidora’s death. That of her father too. She did remove some pain from within me, that of my husband dying… You know, when I first witnessed Isidora removing her father’s pain, I thought it was… kind. To take away such a heavy burden one’s been carrying for so long. But then I got to experience it myself. And at first, it did feel like a relief… but then I found that something felt missing. I didn’t feel any pain caused by my grief, but I also didn’t feel the same warmth and the sort of intensity I did before when I remembered my husband. The same love perhaps… It occurred to me then that… That pain is a horrible thing to feel, but at the same time it’s something that’s needed in order for us to be able to properly feel all of the other emotions as well. And it’s the thing that tells us we truly loved somebody. Without the pain of having lost my husband, I suddenly didn’t quite understand the other emotions I held for him.. And I rather think that it was the same for Isidora’s father, whose pain was such a great part of him, it was connected to all other aspects, and he, in time, became less and less balanced. Not in pain, but not happy either.

“It’s difficult to say what came first; whether it was Isidora’s want to ‘fix’ her father, or whether she was already consumed by her lust for power. As you surely remember, she would-”

“She would inhale the residue magic from the pain she removed…”

“Precisely. With each wisp of that dark power she accepted, she grew hungrier and hungrier for more. So she may have been simply tearing away at her father’s emotions to try and balance them out until nothing remained… or she might’ve taken all of them in one take, only to strengthen herself further… We shall never know. What we do know is that nobody else was stripped of their emotions this much, none of the students, none of the residents of various Hamlets we heard of…”

Looking up at the Headmistress once more, the young woman nodded her head. This was… good news, wasn’t it? That is that nobody else was stripped away of their humanity, of their personality and of their feelings. Perhaps it meant that Aesop too won’t be losing any of his. However, how big part of Aesop was the pain in his leg? And was the difference between physical pain and psychical one so large? Having lost Professor Fig those two years ago, the girl knew that mental pain can easily feel like the bodily one. Worse, actually. And Aesop carried both of them. Would the mental pain become lesser like the physical one did? And if so, just how large a part of Aesop’s sense of identity was it?

Niamh observed the student with deeply curious eyes, soon pulling her out of her thoughts: “Will you allow me a question now as well?”

Raising her eyes, the girl nodded, not quite prepared to speak yet. “Why are you asking all of this? That is, I could understand you asking all of this out of curiosity, being a true Ravenclaw, and that is admirable. However, I have a reason to believe simple curiosity is not the case this time. Why now? What happened?”

Taking a few seconds to gather her thoughts further, the young woman breathed deeply: “Before I answer your question, Professor, I have one more - Isidora would take people’s pain away using her wand. And the pain looked like this dark cluster of magic. Is it at all possible to… replicate this spell accidentally, wandlesly, with no intent on taking anything away, and, uh, without the dark cluster of magic?”

Niamh looked very confused for several seconds, actually opening and closing her mouth a few times as she thought about the answer to the strange question, before finally settling on: “I… I don’t know… Professor Rackham would’ve perhaps been able to answer that, being a wielder of ancient magic himself, but I… Well, logically, when it comes to spells, the same result cannot be achieved by using two vastly different techniques. Not to mention a vastly complicated spell such as this could not be performed accidentally.”

“But that is what happened, professor,” the Ravenclaw finally spoke, no longer able to keep up with this careful figurative dance the two were performing around one another, “I think I accidentally took someone’s pain away…”

“I…” Professor Fitzgerald made a stop, her eyes quickly getting suspicious: “What did you do?”

The young girl swallowed and closed her eyes: “Professor Sharp - he’s one of the teachers who aided in the battle for the Final repository - he was injured some decade ago, by a curse nobody was able to break. It left him with a maimed leg. He’s got a scar that goes from his hip all the way to below the knee of his left leg, in the shape of a lighting strike, and he has a limp…”

“How do you know how his scar looks-”

“Him and I… our relationship’s quite recently moved past the boundaries of teacher and student. We became involved romantically.” 

Niamh Fitzgerald, esteemed former Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Sorcery was left staring with her mouth wide open. The young Ravenclaw would’ve probably thought it hilarious if the situation had been any different than it was. The woman who prepared her a trial so terrifying and terrific, perfected into the most macabre of details, and causing her nightmares for many nights to come, was staring at her like she just sprouted not only a second head, but also a third and fourth one, and all of them were of different animals.

“I… That’s…” Niamh grasped for words.

“It’s not against any of the school rules,” the young woman spoke quickly, “All that is stated is that all extra-curricular relationships between teachers and students must be prevented from interfering with the running of the school and lessons, and in case the relationship is of the romantic status, the student must be of legal age. Which I am.”

Professor Fitzgerald finally closed her mouth, but it was obvious this revelation left her a little shaken. A little part of the student revelled in this knowledge - for once she wasn’t the one left with wide eyes and trying to process what just happened. She, however, didn’t exactly have the time to let the former Headmistress fully process the new information she was given. Even so, though, given the period of time during which the older woman lived, she decided it would be wise to keep her words as proper as possible.

“Last week the two of us… Lay together, as a man and a woman do. And something happened that night - vines of light wrapped around our bodies entirely before slowly disappearing again. That hasn’t happened since. However, today we discovered that my magic had left a mark on him, on the scar on his leg. A paler patch of skin in the shape of the same symbol that’s throughout this very room. And underneath, I could see the traces of ancient magic, the blue glow. His leg had been hurting less than before, but the pain hadn’t fully left. We don’t know what we can expect from this development - which is why I came to you.”

Fitzgerald seemed to finally get her bearings then and cleared her throat: “Well… That’s… quite the news. I… Well, of course it’s good that you came to me, I’ll try to tell you all I know, but I warn you: it may not be enough. After all, Professor Rackham is the one who also bore the ability of ancient magic, and he’s therefore more knowledgeable about it than myself…”

The young woman cringed slightly: “I was aware that it might have been the case. However, given the… nature of the situation, I felt more comfortable discussing it with you, as a woman with a woman.” 

“Naturally,” replied the professor, a small smile actually appearing on her face. 

“I really need to know one thing though - are you certain there’s no risk of the professor losing his emotions, like Isidora’s father?” asked the young woman then, gazing up at the portrait. The former Headmistress sighed: “I of course don’t know that for certain… However, subjectively, I do not think so. After all, you said it yourself that the process was entirely different from that of Isidora - and it seems that instead of ‘taking’, you actually ‘gave’ something.

“Now, I am entering something of an uncharted territory here, but let me just say this: love is one of the strongest, if not the absolutely strongest, ancient magic there is, and intercourse itself can make one more… susceptible to powerful magic. You see, it’s when we are at our most vulnerable, our most open. In our day to day lives, we place a varying level of restraint on ourselves, etiquette tells us to behave and speak a certain way, and it can even go as far as to directly influence the strength of our magic. The more closed off, the more volatile this magic gets. Hence the unfortunate occasional cases of Obscurus. However, when we’re as open as we get during this ultimate act of love, it’s not unheard of for powerful magic to flow freely through our veins, and collide with the magic of our partner. Usually, it only serves to… heighten the sensations.

“Actual accidental magic during such a union is rather rare, but not entirely unheard of. However, it can get quite tricky to find mentions of it, as it is naturally not exactly a topic that is discussed casually, for obvious reasons. I’ll try to aid you to the best of my abilities. I even have an idea about how your situation came to be, but I cannot make any promises that what I’m saying is entirely correct.”

The young woman heaved a sigh of relief: “Anything is good, Professor.”

—

“Alright… now, let me take a look at that.” Noreen said after she’d finished writing down Aesop’s own findings and sent the parchment floating over to her desk, where she could pore over it later. She turned to face the potions master expectantly, raising an eyebrow when he remained right where he was, leaning against one of the beds, unmoving: “Well?”

Aesop scoffed: “What, do you want me to just drop my trousers right now?” The nurse rolled her eyes at the man: “Obviously not. Go behind one of the privacy screens, undress, lay yourself down and wait for me there. You can use the blanket to cover any sensitive areas.”

As Noreen prepared a blank report for her to fill in as she examined the professor’s leg, she had to roll her eyes again. Of course Aesop Sharp limped down the Hospital wing all the way towards the cots furthest from the door. “Make sure the doors are locked,” he called over his shoulder as he disappeared behind the privacy curtain. 

“First he’s ready to drop his trousers right in front of the entrance, now he’d prefer this room to be locked like the bloody Gringotts…” Noreen muttered under her breath. The nurse gave him a few minutes to undress and make himself comfortable on the bed, all the while wondering as to how come there was such sudden progress. 

Noreen Blainey only started as the school nurse five years ago, only a few weeks after she finished with her healer studies, making her the third third newest addition to the Hogwarts staff, as well as the second youngest member of it. Matilda Weasley was rightfully slightly sceptical about accepting Noreen at first.

“I know you were a right hard worker when you still studied here, even by Hufflepuff standards, and I know you retained this quality of yours all the way through Healer school. Your instructors have nothing but good things to say about you.”

“Thank you, Professor.”“However, I am slightly worried as to whether you’ll be able to execute this sort of… authority over the students. I needn't tell you that while you and some others were indeed working hard while here, many others would do nearly anything to get out of class, even if for a quarter an hour. And some of them have quite drastic, though very creative, ideas on how to do so.”

“You needn’t worry, Professor Weasley, I certainly don’t plan on letting anyone who’d wish to skip class off the hook that easily. You know I was never the one to condone these kinds of actions.”

“That I do.”

Noreen was able to wash the Deputy Headmistress’ doubts within half a year.

Known for her strict attitude, students thought twice before pretending to be sick just to get out of writing a pop quiz they didn’t prepare for. However, those who were genuinely sick and/or injured knew that they could always rely on the Nurse to fix them right back up. Noreen also became popular with the Fifth and Seventh years swiftly, due to her open attitude on Wideye potion, and the female population of the castle knew they were always welcome to collect what they needed on their days. 

However, Noreen herself was surprised how the gruff Potions master learned to trust not only her expertise and professional judgement, but also her as a person fairly quickly. To be fair, perhaps she should not have been quite that surprised - after all, those few nights over the past years when she had to rush into his chambers, hauling several potions bundled haphazardly in her own dressing gown, to find the professor in a rather pitiful state, sweating, panting, sometimes screaming in the unholy pain he was in, that all stayed only between them, Noreen never spoke of it with anyone. Such was the physician–patient privilege, of course, but Noreen decided to go a step further, and only ever wrote what transpired during these nights in her records as ‘Night episode - potions administered’. 

She walked around the privacy screen to find the Potions professor lying down on his back on the cot - his coat and jacket deposited on a nearby hanger, so his upper body was only covered by his shirt and waistcoat. His bottom half was indeed covered by the white blanket, save for the teacher’s long left leg. Aesop had his hands folded upon his midsection and was looking straight up into the ceiling. However, before Noreen could as much as sit on a chair next to the bed and begin her examination, someone took hold of the handle on the door and attempted to enter. In vain.

A second passed before there was a knock.

“Unless you’re about to die, please wait outside,” Noreen called coolly, fully prepared to let whoever was out there wait since professor Sharp had such a high preference of privacy. 

“Uh, is Professor Sharp in there?” came a voice from the outside. The Nurse’s eyebrows rose slightly, and she looked at the professor to find him having risen himself up and leaning on his elbows. He gave her a slightly sheepish look: “Let her in.”

What?

Every now and then Noreen Blainey felt like she understood the potions master. And each and every time she was promptly shown she was mistaken. Oh well.

Using her wand, she unlocked the door and stepped out from behind the privacy screen. She knew who it was of course, though not so much because the young woman came around often, but rather because of what transpired around this girl two years prior.

“Miss (L/N). Your teacher is unwell, surely whatever you need can wait,” she attempted to dismiss the girl.

“Aes-” escaped her mouth before she quickly cleared her throat, “P-professor Sharp is unwell?” Noreen blinked in confusion. Before she could say anything else, however, Aesop’s baritone cut through the air: “I’m fine, (F/N). Over here.”

Now Blainey definitely didn’t understand. She briefly considered pinching herself to see whether she wasn’t in some bizarre dream in which the grumpy former Auror who had very few favourites among students, and who preferred spending his free time anywhere but in a company of a student, was inviting one of them to seek him in the Hospital wing, where he was lying half naked on the bed.

That is, she knew the two of them met up every now and then, ever since that escapade in her Fifth year, but she never would’ve thought they’d be quite this close… 

The young woman made her way over to the Professor’s bed, carefully watching the Nurse from out of the corner of her eyes. And as she rounded the privacy screen, a single look was all it took for Noreen.

She never thought she was going to bear witness to such a sight, but here she was - the moment the Ravenclaw entered the former Auror’s field of view, his eyes literally sparkled, and one of his rare smiles spread upon his roguishly handsome face. And the young woman wasn’t able to conceal her own happiness at seeing the older man.

Well, fancy that! Blainey thought as she watched the short silent exchange between the couple of them. Because it was rather obvious the two of them were a lot closer than she would’ve thought. Blast it - she owed 2 Galleons to Hecat now, having bet that the young woman would get together with the Sallow lad. Which was completely logical, seeing as the two of them seemed to be joined at the hip the moment the lass stepped into the bloody castle! Did the DADA Professor know with whom she’d end up instead? She didn’t say... Only said that she ‘very much doubted’ that the girl’s and Sallow’s relationship would ever leave the grounds of a platonic friendship… Blainey was so certain though, the lad stared at her like she was a holy picture for Merlin’s sake. Oh well…

And since the teacher obviously had no qualms about letting the young woman see him in his current state of undress (despite the fact that everything but his bad leg was hidden underneath the blanket), well, that was telling by itself. Noreen only sighed: “Alright. Get to explaining.”

She then finally got to examining the leg. There were several seconds of silence before Aesop spoke, his voice measured and careful: “do we have your discretion, Noreen?” The Nurse raised her eyes to look at the couple. How curious to see the two of them nervous. She wasn’t sure she ever saw the former Auror nervous - despite his limp and the occasional nightly episode, he was always proud, confident, intimidating almost. She was quite glad she wasn’t a student anymore when he came to teach potions, having graduated in the summer before he replaced Professor Sinclair. And yet, now he was looking at her nervously and with a nearly bated breath. The Ravenclaw was as well, and Noreen saw her hands twitching, as if she was focusing all of her energy on not coming closer to grab the Potions master’s hand.

“Well, she’s a grown woman, so she can do whatever the devil she wants. All I care about is whether both sides consent and nobody is forcing anyone into anything…” Noreen raised her voice somewhat at the end of her sentence, looking into the Ravenclaw’s eyes in a clear indication of a question. “I promise, Nurse Blainey, nobody is forcing anyone into anything, and I very much consent to what me and Ae-... what me and professor Sharp have…” Noreen scoffed: “Might as well call him by his name, seeing as you obviously call him that.”

The girl went slightly pink under the nurse’s gaze and used her hand to squeeze at her arm rather awkwardly. “Look, I don’t actually care all that much about how the two of you came to be, and I definitely won’t be running around the school telling people. Though the two of you best work on your stiff upper lips, as one look at the two of you was enough for me to figure you out, and I’m much better at seeing through people’s physical state rather than the emotional one. What I’m more interested in is what happened with the leg and what you have to do with it.”

“Not that easy, Noreen - not even we know exactly what happened,” Aesop said, audibly calmer now that he knew Noreen would keep his and the young woman’s relationship to herself. Speaking of the young woman, she perked up somewhat: “Actually, I was able to find something out… I think that I accidentally imprinted some of the magic I possess on your leg - that much we gathered, obviously. But I found that the ancient magic can be something of an energy source - a different kind of it ’powers’ Hogwarts as well, like the Grand Staircase. It’s the reason all of the places built by the Keepers look the way they do, spotless and like they were built only yesterday,  the ancient magic keeps them that way.”

Both Aesop and Blainey listened carefully. “I think that when the magic attached itself to your leg, well, the curse there latched onto it and started feeding off it rather than your leg itself - which would explain the pain lessening. As to whether this effect will last, whether it will become stronger or weaker - that I don’t know… However, given that the magic present within the Keeper trials and the Map chamber was able to last for at least four hundred years and doesn’t seem to be getting any weaker, I think this effect could potentially last…” 

Chills ran down the Potions master’s spine at his sweetheart’s words.

Blainey of course heard the full extent of what happened those two years ago. She didn’t necessarily understand all of it, but then again she didn’t have to. For her, the main thing was the result - therefore, she returned to examining the professor’s leg: “So you say the pain has lessened. Do you feel it right now as we speak?” Professor Sharp shook his head: “Barely. And even so, it’s more like… the memory of the pain, rather than the pain itself. It feels like it should be there, given it was there for more than a decade now, but instead there’s only a shadow of it.”

“And when you walk?” Blainey continued, carefully prodding at the scar tissue with her fingers, noting that Aesop made a small grimace whenever her fingers ventured onto the redder parts of the scar, but seemed to not feel her touch when she directed it at the lighter areas of it. What was ‘covered’ by the pale patch of skin looked like a completely mundane healed scar, and was gradually turning into the angry red where the pale patch ended.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the young woman shift her weight from one foot to the other slightly uncomfortably, her eyes directed at Noreen’s hands on Aesop’s leg. The nurse rolled her eyes - of course, while Miss (L/N) was one of the more level headed students, not even she was immune to that nasty momentary flare of jealousy of witnessing another woman touching her beloved like so. “Do calm down, Miss, I’ve no intention to touch the professor in any other way than medical.”

Aesop raised his eyebrows and the girl got red in the cheeks once more: “I didn’t-...” “The good Nurse is merely having a laugh, don’t mind her,” the Potions master was quick to answer, in turn making Noreen roll her eyes some more: “What’s  walking like?”

“Walking hurts still, but considerably less so than before… However, it also hurts somewhat differently…” the professor mused out loud.

“That’s to be expected - in continuously insisting not to use your cane and instead just limping around, you have not done yourself any favours. Even should the pain in your leg that was caused by the curse disappear completely, it won’t change the fact you have walked in a way that minimised it for more than a decade, that’s damage done to your muscles, your very posture - it would take some time and a lot of exercise for you to return to normal walking. 

Aesop’s head was once again whirling - normal walking. Bloody hell, Aesop wasn’t sure the term would ever be applicable to him again. Was there truly a chance for him to walk normally once more? Instead of dragging his bad leg behind himself, undignified and weak (though he knew very few saw him that way), the hope of being able to walk straight, proud, his head held high, now loomed over him closer than ever before. And this time it seemed so real. It was a sweet siren’s call for the former Auror, and he was very nearly afraid to reach for it in fear of it turning into naught but dust before his eyes. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to get himself back together if he decided to hope, truly hope, and then lose this hope again.

“What do you propose we do then?” asked the Ravenclaw.

“Well, I’m going to give you a list of exercises, which I implore you, Aesop, to try to do as often as possible, but within some sensible limits. There’s also trying to walk normally, for which another person should be present as well, so that they can correct your posture if need be, and be there for when you inevitably grow tired or the pain becomes too severe, for you to lean against. I presume that’s where you’ll come in quite handy, Miss (L/N),” Noreen listed, and Aesop’s sweetheart nodded her head vehemently. “Just don’t be foolish about it, Aesop. I understand that you must now feel anxious to start walking normally, if at all possible, as soon as you can, but there’s no point in maiming yourself because you tried to hurry up the healing process. Keep reminding yourself that you walked with a limp for over ten years now, you’re not going to prance about like a gazelle within a week. Overdo it, and you’re right back at the beginning.”

It was Aesop’s turn to nod his head.

“Now, this all only applies if whatever it is that makes your leg feel better holds, naturally. Shall it worsen, don’t try to force anything, you’ll only end up hurting yourself more.”

“Will do.”

“Now. How about you try to show us if you even remember how to walk normally?”

Aesop’s eyebrows shot up again momentarily before he dropped his gaze to his partially covered lower body: “may I wear my trousers before I do so?”

And so Nurse Blainey rolled her eyes the third time, now shaking her head as well in exasperation. The young Ravenclaw, however, seemed to be fighting the urge to giggle, perhaps even suggesting Aesop stays in his current state of undress. “Just your drawers for now - I want to see how the muscles in your legs react. I’ll even re-lock the door for you,” the Nurse offered dryly.

“How gracious of you,” replied Aesop in the same manner. Noreen excused herself then to place the report which wrote itself throughout the examination among the others - and then made a stop. After all, this was one that was better hidden, the knowledge of ancient magic carefully kept between the staff (excluding Black). Not to mention the whole bit about a rather clandestine student-professor romance. So, she instead decided to store the parchment in her office/bedroom, hidden away from prying eyes. 

“I’m only leaving for a short moment,” she called over her shoulder, “do try to control yourselves.”

Aesop only rolled his eyes and finally threw the blanket off his person, once more revealing himself to his sweetheart. However, before he could as much as reach for his pants, he made a stop. The young woman stepped closer before lowering herself to her knees before him.

“Darling…” he breathed out, his hand coming up to stroke her cheek as if on its own. She leaned into his touch shortly before dropping her head and dragging her nose over the parts of his scar that weren’t painful to touch. She proceeded to kiss them as well, something Aesop would never have imagined anyone would ever do.

“You know, when I was down there, talking with the former Headmistress,” she whispered, pressing one last kiss to the damaged skin before carefully resting her chin upon his thigh, “she said that every spell is, essentially, a wish. A wizard or a witch can go around waving their wand and shouting incantations, but it’ll be for nothing if they don’t wish to perform the spell, if they don’t wish to levitate or summon this and that. And that night... Although the magic happened by accident, my wish behind it was intentional. I love you deeply... What I wanted more than anything was to alleviate your pain, I wanted you to feel as good as you were making me feel. I truly meant what I said - I would love you under any circumstances, even if you were to limp for the rest of our lives. But I would be happiest if you didn't have to endure that pain. And I think that is the difference between what happened with Isidora Morganach and her father and the two of us… Isidora, she took. But me, I gave you a part of myself. And I want nothing else than to give myself to you in the entirety. If you want me…”

Aesop used all of his strength to pull the girl up from the ground then. He oftentimes thought himself cynical. Cynical, battle-hardened, life-toughened former Auror. This young woman, however, was able to do so few could. Slip by his defences using nothing but her honesty. Her kindness. Her love. And each time it got him hopelessly drunk on the feeling. He pulled her into his lap and chased her lips in a desperate kiss, whispering words of love each time he had to pull back for a breath. And just as she promised to give herself to him entirely, he promised to always strive to prove he was worthy of her, no matter if he was walking or limping.

Several minutes and many tender kisses later, there came a voice from behind the privacy screen.

“Please tell me you managed to put your pants on at least…”

—

“Alright, how is this?” the professor asked, breathing through the discomfort of forcing himself to walk in a way his muscles weren’t used to - normally, that is. He was partially leaning against his beloved, something he hoped would change soon, but his step was quite measured and fluid. There was the occasional lighter step, but other than that, the teacher was fairly certain he was doing a pretty alright job. “You’re doing brilliant, Aesop,” his sweetheart said softly, her smile obvious in her voice.

For the past few weeks, whenever the two of them found the time to be together following a dinner in the Great Hall, instead of immediately retiring into Aesop’s chambers, they shared a short walk around the Hogwarts grounds. They both knew paths nobody frequented after darkness fell, and they used it to their advantage. The potions master felt stronger every day. That is, he never truly felt weak, but his limp undeniably slowed him down. Upon Noreen’s insistence, he used his cane to get around during the day and further worked on regaining his strength. The results were visible already - his colleagues commented on his limp becoming smaller, his face not being as screwed up in pain every time he was faced with stairs. Stairs were still a problem, but each ascent and descent served to motivate Aesop further. 

The pale patch on his leg grew more pronounced, more visible - its pattern was undeniable now, and his scar turned entirely pink from the raw red. He no longer felt the pain of the curse, something he wouldn’t have thought at all possible a mere month ago. He stood taller, prouder. But most of all, he was grateful. Overwhelmingly so. Every single day he woke up, no matter if the sun shone into his bedroom from the other room or cats and dogs were raining outside, each morning he woke up, moved his leg, and realised that he didn’t feel the oh so familiar ache, he couldn’t help but grin like an absolute loon. And on those blessed mornings he woke up with his arms full of his beloved’s deliciously smelling body, he buried his face into her neck, prompting her to giggle at the prickly sensation of his beard on her soft skin.

It would take some more time for him to fully heal, to be able to walk like he had those nearly thirteen years ago, but Aesop was prepared to do whatever it took. After all, he did want his beloved to be able to lean against him for a change.

And, just like her, he wanted to give himself over to her fully.

Entirely.

---

thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed. You can check this story as well as all of my other stories over on AO3 as well ❤

#aesop sharp #professor sharp #hogwarts legacy #fanfiction #reader insert #aesop sharp x reader #aesop sharp x mc #hogwarts legacy fanfic #professor sharp x reader #professor sharp x you #healing #fluff #established relationship

[randomtable]

I've got a request for a random table - d20 fantasy body modifications (tattoos, piercings, etc.) for a character / NPC to have. I'm talking things like elf-ear piercings, horn caps, living tattoos... stuff like that!

1d20 Fantasy Body Modifications

“Fairy Ladder” Piercings - a set of three or more industrial piercings for Elves and other long-eared folks

Claw Enhancements - popular among folks without natural claws, and those who want to strengthen or emphasize their natural claws. Minor transmutations can be used to add claws, and to harden, sharpen, and even re-color or re-shape existing claws.

Tattoo Pets - living tattoos of animals that run and play around the bearer’s skin.

Tooth Alteration - folks with sharp teeth want blunt teeth, folks with blunt teeth want sharp teeth. The decision to have one’s teeth magically altered can be influenced by dietary choices, sexual preferences, medical needs, and aesthetics.

Horn Caps and Cuffs - made of precious metals, sometimes set with stones or connected by lengths of chain.

Portal Gauges - jewelry for stretched earlobe piercings which form a pair of teleportation portals. Passing tiny objects from one side of your head to the other is rarely more than a party trick, but is pretty cool.

Almanac Tattoos - calendars, moon phases, weather, etc, these magical tracking tattoos are popular among mages, farmers, and more.

Tail Tip Piercings, which are all the rage among folks with tails these days.

Horn/Tusk/Antler carvings - tattoo-like carvings on the horns, tusks, or antlers of those who have them. Patterns and images are usually carved in rings.

Gills of Amphibious Breathing - having a pair of gills on one’s neck is both visually striking and incredibly useful for long swims. The transmutation ritual for permanent gills is quite costly, so temporary gills are popular for beach days and pool parties.

Tattoo Gardens - the growth and blooming of these plant images can be attuned to anything from the bearer’s mood, to actual weather and natural surroundings.

Illuminated Hair - why stop at regular hair dye when you could have hair that literally glows in the dark? Illuminated hair potions are applied in a similar manner to regular hair dyes, with similar longevity and similar risks of staining the bathtub if you aren’t careful.

Mithril Earrings - Mithril jewelry doesn’t come cheap, but it is prized for its striking blue-silver appearance and for being lighter weight than most other metals but still extremely durable. It is especially popular for creating large dangly earrings that would otherwise be excessively heavy.

Warding Tattoos - protective sigils can be tattooed in magical inks to ward against just about anything, from general protection to shielding against highly specific curses. Their effectiveness depends both on the potency of the ink and the skill of the tattoo mage who applies them.

Tongue Ring of Tongues - a tongue piercing which grants the wearer the ability to speak any language.

Third Eye - generally cosmetic, although a cunning seer might be able to leverage their third eye for more credibility among less magically-inclined folks.

Warlock’s Brand - sometimes called a “mark of eternal servitude”, their appearance varies depending upon to whom the bearer has sold their soul. Anything goes, really, from always-smoldering singe marks to patches of skin replaced by iridescent crystal.

Hair Snakes - usually all of a person’s hair is polymorphed into snakes, though some might choose to keep most of their hair and only have one to three snakes.

Feather/Scale Patterning - a magical alternative to tattoos for birdfolk, half-dragons, and other feathered or scaled people. Each scale/feather in a chosen area is dyed to create an image or pattern.

Tattoos of Warning - any individual bearing one of these magical tattoos can send a signal to the others who bear an identical mark. The signal is typically a feeling such as warmth or tingling on the location of the tattoo. More complex versions are available that allow the bearers to establish multiple signals represented by different sensations.

#random table #random tables #ttrpg #ttrpg community #foxycipher #ttrpg homebrew #homebrew #ask #request #lol sorry this is late. life. you know. #fantasy #dnd #d&d #dungeons and dragons #dnd homebrew #dnd table #npc #npcs #random npcs #random npc table #people #characters #random character traits #character creation #character randomization #character building

[angelmichelangelo]

hi! um.. so.. could i request a oneshotfic ab 2007!donnie having to deal with being temporary ‘leader’ while leo is away and him having to kinda watch over raph and mikey? maybe he rants ab this to his s/o but if you don’t do x reader fics i completely understand thanks!! :D

finally getting around to this one! thanks for the prompt, amigo! some good ol' 2k7 angst is like. my ultimate jam. hope you enjoy!

x

The dull thrum of the fridge is the only sound that fills their tiny, poky kitchen as he stares endlessly into its barren contents.

There’s a carton of milk that should have been thrown out a while ago. An old Chinese takeout box that probably has stiff, half rotting noodles laying in the bottom. A secret piece of birthday cake wrapped up in foil, wedged way in the back behind a loose collection of babybel’s.

Donnie sighs. He closes the fridge and the kitchen is quickly swamped in darkness.

He turns to look up towards the platform of their pseudo second floor; the colorful light from Mikey’s nightlight spills from beneath his door whilst Raph’s door is closed and darkness and emptiness lurks from behind. 

Donnie stands alone in the kitchen, his gut clenching around nothing. His computer pings and he steels himself for a moment before he moves towards his station.

He always makes sure that the kitchen is stocked for his brothers and his father. He goes out of his way to ensure that Mikey has the cereal he likes, the ones with the overly sugary marshmallow bits in them that are sure to rot his teeth, or that Raph gets his protein bars even if he just snatches them up without saying thank-you. He indulges in his father’s sweet tooth for children’s birthday cake even if it sends his blood pressure into a spin.

Donnie keeps the kitchen stocked, and his own stomach empty because he can’t remember what his own favorite food tastes like.

He doesn’t watch the movies he likes anymore. Mostly because Splinter has taken up his own version of retirement in the form of bad soaps and CW shows every afternoon, but when it’s downtime, Don always lets Mike pick because he enjoys watching the way the smile lines finally etch their way across his face after a long, tedious day. He takes pride in watching the light creep back into his baby blues after they’d clouded over with exhaustion.

Donnie’s box set documentaries grow dust on the shelf but it doesn’t matter because Splinter is happy and Mikey is content and that’s all that matters.

He stops tinkering around for fun and to tickle his own curiosity like he might have done before and now it’s due to necessity.

His blueprints for the jetpacks he used to get giddy over with his brothers are left rolled up beneath his desk and whenever he’s pulling his toolbox out it’s because Raph’s wrecked his bike again somehow or the van needs touching up because more days than not, Mikey’s out working, coming and going from every inch of the city, the tires are worn and Mike’s smile is too, but Donnie knows how to fix that. He should do, shouldn’t he? He misses Leo painfully so. His best friend, always just a bedroom door away, he wakes in the night and finds himself stupidly shuffling towards it before he stops himself, standing in the still quiet of the night, hand hovering over a doorknob to open it to just nothing, there’s a pit gnawing in the bottom of his stomach, and soon, his grief is misplaced and it’s replaced with hurt, because Leo stops calling and he stops writing, and Donnie doesn’t have time to be sad about it, because Mikey comes home in tears one afternoon and he doesn’t stop until Don’s scooped him up and shoved a pint of ice cream in between his hands and wrapped him up onto the couch and there’s a corny rom-com playing on one of the back channels and it makes Don’s eyes grow tired and his head grow fuzzy but he pushes through just to make sure Mike’s face is dry and his smile is still casting a ghostly shadow at the end of it all. And Mike always shares his ice cream with him, even if he’s picked out all the good chunks, because that was just what little brothers were for, but it still doesn’t quell the burning ache Don has, settled deep within his chest, unbudging. He thinks about perhaps talking to Master Splinter about it on a few occasions. When the burning ache grows a little numb. He doesn’t though. Because between Gossip Girl and streams of infomercials, Splinter splits his time to their makeshift dojo, all hunched up and sad looking as he desperately searches for Leo, and Donnie realizes then that he can’t pass along a burden like his.

He’s in charge now – it’s clear to him in the way he stocks the fridge, keeps his remaining siblings safe in the way a mother perhaps would with reminders to be careful and to do dishes, and Donnie didn’t ask for this burden. It is a burden and once he’s felt it’s full crushing weight does it make more sense to him as to why Leo’s run off halfway across the world and refused to come back. 

Raph stumbles home one evening, late, when Don should have been sleeping but he’d been caught up with one particular customer on his phone line that was prickly and rude and he’s got a headache wedged deep behind the back of his brain and there’s shuffling footsteps that Don would recognise through years of crime fighting as help me, I’m hurt footsteps. He whips around to face his brother standing, propped up against the kitchen table, swaying. “Raph,” he says out loud. His voice is thin and raspy. When was the last time he spoke out loud, he wonders. Raph takes a step forward before his entire body seems to follow suit, a little too enthusiastic as he pitches towards him, almost falling before —

“Got ya,” Donnie says with a breath, all of it rushing out of him at once as he braces Raph’s dead weight against him. “C’mon. Here we go.” He’s able to sit Raphael down in one of the kitchen chairs, slumped and heavy, Donnie watches him for a second before he’s rushing out to grab his med kit. Coming back, he’s relieved to see he hasn’t moved much in the few seconds he was gone. He’s holding his side, taking slow shallow breaths that scare Donnie a little bit. He pries away his hand to reveal a fresh, sticky flow of crimson. Donatello’s heart jumps in his chest. “Oh, jesus, Raph,” he hisses. He slaps his hand back over the wound as he starts rummaging around for the right supplies. “What’s the matter with you?” Raph, who hasn’t made a sound the entire time, huffs a weak little laugh. Golden eyes slide around the room, like his situation was finally catching up to him, they finally land on Donnie. “Uh. You want that in alphabetical order?” Donnie doesn’t give him any satisfaction by even reacting. He’s got the alcohol wetting the cotton. He doesn’t even warn him as he yanks his hand away and starts dabbing. Raph hisses, jolting so hard in his seat that the chair scrapes loudly against the floor with a high pitched groan. Donnie shushes him. Last thing he needs is Mikey waking to all this: he’s got an early start tomorrow at the other end of Manhattan. Upon further inspection, the wound isn’t all too bad, mostly superficial. Definitely a stab wound, that was sure. He isn’t gonna ask. But Donnie could fix this. He could. “You need stitches.” He tells him blankly. He’s got a sparing amount of supplies in his box, but thankfully just enough. He doesn’t want to wake April with this nonsense, not at this hour. “Stay still.” Raph, never one to listen, starts shuffling about in his seat, rubbing his feet back and forth against the floor, hands twitchy and restless. He sighs, tiredly, and Donnie glances up towards him. Their eyes meet, and for a second, Donnie thinks that maybe this is the moment it breaks. That maybe Raph will break down and say his sorry’s and maybe Donnie has some to say too. Maybe Mikey will wake up and they’ll find the couch together and they can watch something stupid like 27 Dresses because that’s Mike’s favorite and there’s a whole tub of untouched ice cream in the freezer with all the good bits still in it and—

“Get on with it then,” Raph says gruffly. He looks away. Donnie’s hand’s tremble for a second, but he steadies them for the thread. “Sure,” he says in a small voice. He stitches Raph back up, bit by bit, he pulls him back together, gives him a pretty little bandaid too. He says a short thank you. Grabs a bit of birthday cake from the fridge. And he leaves. Just like that, he’s gone again.

Donnie stands alone in the kitchen. Raph hadn’t even bothered to close the fridge door behind him, a hue of gentle yellow light spilling from it, lighting up the small underground room, Donnie stands in front of it, watching up at the bedroom doors with watery vision. He doesn’t cry, though. Because that isn’t what he’s supposed to do. He’s supposed to keep them fed and happy and healthy and he’s supposed to fix this. That’s always been his job – now just increased ten fold, it’s been left in his hands and he has to do it, otherwise nobody else will. He sighs, closing the fridge door. He slumps back into his chair. There’s the annoyed chatter of someone barking through his headset at him. The headache never really left, just invisible for those few moments, it lets itself be known now with a sharp jab of pain radiating up his skull. This is his job, he tells himself. This is the job he’s meant to do. Stock the fridge. Keep the peace. Stitch the wounds. He hates Leo for leaving it all for him, but what else is he supposed to do. His gut growls at him and his chest goes airy tight, like something there was majorly missing. This is fine, this is his job. He can do this. He sucks in a shaky breath. He doesn’t want to do this.

#thanks again for the prompt! #2k7 b-team always makes me happy. getting this prompt was super fun :3 #ask #fic prompt #tmnt fanfiction #tmnt fanfic #tmnt fic #tmnt 2007 #tmnt 2k7 #tmnt donatello #tmnt raphael #tmnt michalangelo #tmnt leonardo

[idv-sunsxin3]

// How Horropedia & Philocalist(my OC) first met

Note// Canon x OC. In my main blog, I did say I was gonna write it here lol

___

Mm... Another morning, another tomorrow.

The ravenette with the black face mask who just happened to wake up from her idling mode is Philocalist.... Why Philocalist?

As a way to keep her personal name a secret, Vertin named her, after the flower entity's creator dropped off the ravenette when she was still in the state of a flower pot.

Vertin asked Philocalist to escort her and Sonetto to the St. Pavlov Foundation so she gladly served them under her protection.

That's why she is here in this world... to serve Vertin by her creator's orders.

Her creator and Vertin happen to be closed friends despite being "business partners", Philocalist witnessed their conversation herself about how they both grab each other's hands tenderly as a way to say goodbye... her creator planting a gentle kiss on Philocalist's petal before departing through a portal.

Even once arriving at the location and having to wait for the pair to finish what they need to do, the flower one finds herself in the middle of an artist's block, her digital drawing pad resting on her lap with a bright screen on as she is sitting on the stairs of the St. Pavlov Foundation's heaquarters..-

Why does this always happen to people? What did the artist block even do to her? She even planned to write something awhile ago, but writer's block got to her soon after writing only 3 paragraphs of a mystery genre story she came up-

'The only way to wiggle it out is look around... and find an object of focus.' She mentally notes as she sighs, before looking at the design the ceiling and then studying the structure of the hallways.

Ahh.... She cannot help but admit how well designed the floors and the walls look in the establishment. She can only connect the design with only one certain monochromic building that she have saw once in Manhattan...

Having to try and study some digital architecture sketch, she observes the shape and value of the walls, pillars, and the floors lighting before trying to capture them all in one screen with her pen.

In the process, Philocalist wonders if she should sketch the small cameos of Vertin and Sonetto...- wondering if that would make their day.

She then looks up to where Vertin is, her temporary guardian, who seems to be discussing with Sonetto matters about some kind of a letter from a stranger that was found today...she sadly cannot help them as she is not even a local to be familiarized with the maps. Just it’s history.

She then stares off for a bit on where the 2 ladies are who seem to happen to bump into a brunette man with a pretty tall stature- His posture seems to resemble a shrimp.

He is also wearing glasses- wait... those glasses seem familiar. As if she has seen it from one of those movies she watched.

Was it the "X-Ray Monkeyman"???

Philocalist would probably be wrong- but if she has the permission to talk to other arcanists in this organization, maybe she will go and ask the man.

But... oh... dear.

He looks... interesting. A perfect subject to study on that seems too good to be real.

He seems eccentric. His crooked glasses and demeanor. The way he moves his hands as he speaks and moving his mouth to form words- despite that she can only catch like 80% of what he says, being a bit far from the group...

It seems she got saved entirely for now.

Slowly, the digital artist finds herself completing the blank space of the background with the silhouette of her 2 friends, along with the figure of the mysterious man with glasses. Philocalist later happen to learn that he is also known as... "Horropedia", despite that she also got the suspicion that he has a name he doesn't want to be addressed by Vertin for some reason-

Oh, Ms. Tooth Fairy joined in the conversation as well. Interesting.

Philocalist erases a certain space of the background of her drawing before quickly replacing the blank with a cameo of the dentist

But well... The artist will have to go and ask Madam Z about the strange man that Tooth Fairy seems to know him as well- ... Madam Z is the nice lady with glasses who gives her stashes of candies whenever she visits her. Despite that the plant arcanist is in her early 20s, the physicist keeps taking her as a "sweet child of a flower"...

Meanwhile, Horropedia has just finished telling a certain updated story about a Campsite... before sensing someone staring from afar. He glances through Vertin's back to see a lady sitting on the stairs, looking so calm as she switches between glancing at the group and going back to her drawing pad to capture their features...

"Who is that?" Horropedia says as he notices the unfamiliar technological device the stranger is using, "I almost thought I have seen a ghost- but is just a doll.."

"Mm?," Vertin hums before following his gaze to where Philocalist is, "Oh, she is not a doll.. I have her under my wing and kept her as my security escort."

"She is reliable when it comes to security," Sonetto agrees with the Timekeeper's statement.

"...What's her name?" Horropedia hasn't stopped looking at the artist with an unreadable look.

"We call her Philocalist," Vertin simply answers... crossing her arms as she studies Horropedia's strange reaction.

Just after hearing that, Horropedia automatically seems to start walking towards the oblivious ravenette- raising confusion to the other 3 ladies.

"...I can already sense their first embrace." Tooth Fairy calmly says with a smile.

"R-Really?," Sonetto asks in confusion, worried that Horropedia might scare Philocalist away instead.

"Is alright, Sonetto... our girl is strong, and horror-proof." Vertin rassures calmly as she still glances at the pair along.

While Philocalist was having a train of thoughts, she couldn't get the chance to process from hearing footsteps approaching her.

Just as a shadow looms over her, that's when starts to look up while pausing from coloring the certain silhouette of a brunette...

Which happens to have caught her staring.

'Oh... oopsie.' Philocalist mentally panics once making eye-contact with Horropedia by accident before looking everywhere that is not his face, out of habit.

"Is that a drawing of me?" The horror fanatic asks as he merely gives the other a dork grin. "It's weird to stare at people, you know."

From her point of view, he looks intimidating through this angle due to his height--- while she looks like a tiny creature beneath him.

Nonetheless, despite Philocalist feeling this sense to hide away slowly; she manages to stay calm as usual.

"Yes... sorry." She responds, apologizing as she realizes she is drawing a cameo of a stranger- "I wanted to capture the scenery.... the lighting seems perfect. I.. Didn't have the heart to remove you, Ms. Vertin, and Ms. Sonetto from the frame..."

In the digital drawing, it seems like his face is covered with a thick cross line. As if meaning to hide his facial identity respectfully. It strange to see that the figures' face that were passing by in the drawing were also crossed(Philocalist happen to have a picture memory by only one glance if she manages to catch them walking by). Except Vertin and Sonetto, who happen to be the only ones Philocalist knows they are okay with her drawing their faces.

Even after answering him and trying to resume on her drawing, the beautiful stranger just happen to give himself freedom to sit next to the digital artist. He continues to look at what's on her drawing pad. She may not be facing him directly, but she can sense that his eyes are also burning her skull with curiousity-- what a familiar yet overwhelming feeling...;;;

Only a few seconds have passed, but Horropedia decides to chirp once again.

"You even draw the background and added lighting to it! I never expect someone to be this talented- also why is my face crossed out in the drawing like the others except Tooth Fairy, Vertin and Sonetto???" Horropedia blabs as he studies closely at the pad that is now zoom out. Not taking much in mind by the fact Philocalist seems to have her left hand trembling as she uses it to hold the apple pen.

"... Ms. Vertin, Ms. Tooth Fairy, and Ms. Sonetto gave me consent to draw their faces, I don't like giving out strangers' facial identities... Drawing people is like taking photos of them." She politely answers, her voice passive, soft, and quiet. Yet, her face didn't show anxiety, unless the mask is hiding it.

"I don't know anyone here besides the two ladies you talked- and señorita Tooth Fairy. I hope I haven't trespass your privacy." She apologizes once again.

"Oh... No no no! I'm actually alright. I truly understand, I honestly find it fascinating the way you draw people, as if the drawing tells how you see peers and strangers. You even managed to picture them clearly! I think I even recognize some of them just by the clothing and hair...-" Horropedia assures surprisingly before muttering the last part. He then hands out his hand for a handshake. As if meaning to start a proper introduction.

"Actually, I don't mind you drawing my face... I'm Horropedia! You must be "Philocalist", pretty cool name."

"...?" Philocalist blinks before stopping to take a glance at the gloved hand. Before accepting the handshake with her unoccupied hand, "Oh, pleasure to meet you... señor Horropedia."

"Horropedia. " He repeats.

"Señor Horropedia." Philocalist repeats too.

"It's Horropedia....

Just call me that, and I'll be there."

He jokingly replies. Causing Philocalist to suddenly spill a giggle.

"Alright... Horropedia." She obliges with a sweet twinkle in her eyes. Strangely warming Horropedia, he can't help but mirror her eyes too for a bit.

"That’s the spirit." He chirps.

Horropedia's face then quickly morphs into one of realization.

"Oh! If you ever ask how I know your name, is because the "great" Vertin told me,” Horropedia suddenly points out before gesturing at the said grey-haired woman from the background, who seems to be still talking with Sonetto but also watching the pair from the corner of her eyes like a blank eagle. “I was about to ask you if you want to join us.”

Is this... Guardian instincts? Well, thank you Ms. Vertin- Now this guy's knows her and she doesn't know what else to do. (Especially the fact that she barely interacts with guys before since her arrival-).

"Oh, I see now..." The girl with the face mask nods, "I... I guess I have to somehow restore your facial expressions-"

Philocalist was about to finish her sentence until she stops to catch the female pair from her corner of her eyes. Who seem be now approaching them woth a familar woman, Tooth Fairy. This seems to cue that they'realready done with collecting what they need to know.

"-Well, In a different time, of course... and yes, I don’t mind." Philocalist now lowky finishes her phrases as a hint of change. Before waving at the girls once she fully faces then, "Hello... anything new?"

"We took time hearing Mr. Horropedia's story about a campsite called Green Lake... which is suspected to be haunted." Vertin explains, "Ms. Tooth Fairy explained otherwise that it's hard to wipe out the young campers easily, because it was also used as a military site for the Youth Force."

"Oh, so señorita Tooth Fairy came back from the trip?" Philocalist walks in to hug her dear senior, Tooth Fairy, as a way to say welcome back.

In response, Tooth Fairy laughs softly before returning the lovely hug like how a mother embraces a little one. Unknowingly, Horropedia feels a light feeling on his stomach by the sight of the twinkling eyes Philocalist is giving to the woman she is holding.

"I’ve rerouted for a new destination

.. My companion suggested to come back to the Foundation first, so I came back earlier." Tooth Fairy explains to the young girl. Before looking at the others.

"Anything wrong with the original destitation?" Vertin asks.

"It's fine, and safe... However, knowing from the myths and danger in the new route, I learn that there once lived many adolescents, Tooth Fairy replies, "With any luck, I will embrace a harvest of baby teeth."

"...That’s wonderful." Philocalist vaguely seems to be smiling at the said woman with braces gratefully,

"No way... The place you are hearing is-" Vertin starts.

"Yes. The Green Lake Campsite." Tooth Fairy nods.

"But... wasn't it a story? A story made up by Mr. Horropedia?"

"He just made up a part of it... Such as the blody hand underneath the bed and the midnight screaming..." Philocalist points out, who seems to be familiarized with the history as well but feeling sorry as sge notices Sonetto's same scared look she has as the one minutes ago, "The rest is exactly the same as i know... unfortunately."

"But... if it was a training base... It's almost impossible for the Youth Force to be.." Sonetto trembly says.

"It proves that the Green Lake Campsite is out of this world... a place worth visiting, Tooth Fairy calmly says.

"You're 3 minutes and 15 seconds late, Miss Tooth Fairy." Horropedia says, "No worries, I didn't waste my time waiting."

'So señor Horropedia is señorita Tooth Fair's said partner,' Philocalist points out internally.

"We need more people to join us. Angie and Dolf have turned me down, but Vertin and Sonetto haven't walled away yet. I'm trying to win them over- I think I'm almost there. They already seem attracted to the Green Lake campsite, so we are starting off soon!-" Horropedia excitedly takes out his gun with a hopeful smile before looking back at Philocalist, "Oh, and I was about to ask if you want to join us too! The more the merrier."

"Oh..? Ah..." Philocalist wears a tiny skeptical look, looking at Vertin and Sonetto if they even said yes to the invitation. "If Vertin and Sonetto is up for it 100%, of course."

"Attracted?! Pardon me, Jo- ... Mr. Horropedia. We did not plan to go there, and we certainly do not feel any strong attraction to that place!"

Sonetto protests as she trembly comes to hold Philocalist's hand and squeezing it as means of comfort. Who innocently just squeeze her hand back in return after separating from Tooth Fairy.

"Oh? Really? But Vertin and Philocalist seem to be very attracted. Or am I mistaken about the look on their faces?" Horropedia replies as he focuses his gaze on Philocalist after noticing the hand holding for a millisecond.

"Timekeeper..? Philocalist..?" Sonetto quietly asks as she looks back at the 2 ladies. Vertin having a blank look as usual. Philocalist merely playing with Sonetto's fingers wanderlessly in her unoccupied hand, drawing pad clenched firmly in the other.

"I am kind of attracted, indeed." The English lady agrees.

"If Vertin agrees, I'm happy..." Philocalist strangely replies, "The location seems interesting enough for a journal entry... It might give me some inspiration. "

'I once tried to explore a campsite from the Soviet Union era- hope that's not weird.' Philocalist internally thinks.

"See that? I am right." Horropedia says with a victorious grin. Now having his turn to throw big pats on Philocalist's shoulder, who squeaks quietly by it. Yet not flinching away either.

The brunette with glasses seems more happy now...

...Philocalist feels funny.

"I'm glad to see you in an adventuous spirit, Ms Vertin, Philocalist. " Tooth Fairy says with a smile through her braces.

It is decided, then.

"Great! Take your suitcase, pack your clothes, don't forget to bring two novels to kill time." Horropedia advice as he readies his equipment.

Philocalist can only stand there as she takes another glance at her drawing pad.. it's the only thing thay she has with her.

"Now, let's take the hands of our three new partners. Journey on!" The horror fanatic cheers.

Before Horropedia gets to hold hands with Philocalist, Vertin throws a quick glance with her who immediately got the message. Quickly turning herself into a camellia flowerpot that is just standing on the floor. Not sparing the time to notice Horropedia's intentions.

"Philo- huh?" Horropedia turns to look midway. The flower pot as his hand was stretched out midway.

"We tend to bring her along this way to occupy less space." Sonetto replies as she smiles warmly at how adorable Philocalist can be in her flower pot form, now holding her carefully in her hands.

"Ah.. Fascinating." The guy in glasses mutters as he studies the flower that is in the ginger's hold. Starting to grown even more fascinated by the "mysterious" Philocalist.

"Hey? I'm not sure if you can actually hear me in this state but- don't forget to finish drawing my face as we get there." Horropedia pushes teasingly at supposedly Philocalist, before hearing the ring emitted by the plant. As if it's saying "I will..."

'Mm... She is not a doll... but a beautiful flower meant to behold.'

Horropedia thinks without a second thought, wearing a goofy smile at the plant as Sonetto and Vertin are looking weird at him.

This might be the start of these two's fascination towards one another... it can even be deeper than that.

#reverse: 1999 #reverse 1999 #horropedia #r1999 #// oc content

[klaudia2646]

A week and a half of gorgeous colors, then they’re gone and we only have the remains of what was once beautiful green then yellow, red or orange leaves until Spring next year. I’m thankful that it was so beautiful this year, Mother Nature really did a good job. Now the weather will go down progressively and as of tomorrow it’ll be cold and I haven’t gotten my winter clothes out, yikes! I have to do it tomorrow for sure.

This afternoon I went to the dentist, again. A piece of tooth broke off several weeks ago, it’s the very back one on the lower left side. Today he replaced three old filling, put a temporary crown and I have to go in two weeks to get the permanent crown. It hurt. It hurt when he put the anesthesia, it hit a nerve a couple of times and it hurt a bit when he was drilling and my tongue still hurts. Then he said to be careful because it may come out. I told him I hope I don’t swallow it. So now I’m paranoid about it.

After I was done at the dentist and my face completely numb on the left side, I went to Hobby Lobby to get some candles for a cool black candlestick I got for Halloween. And of course I had to get some other stuff. While I was there David called and told me that he was at home. He got a covid booster this morning and it was making him sick, as usual. He asked me to get him a couple of things at Walmart which is across from Hobby Lobby. So my afternoon of going around was cut short. I went home once I was done at Walmart.

Now let’s talk about Walmart. Starting now until after Christmas, I will be avoiding it as much as possible. This is the time of the year with all of the holidays coming, that people get packed in there, are rude and act completely stupid. I’ll be ordering online so they can deliver or I can go and pick up or I can go late in the day. I miss Kroger.

David is feeling a bit better, he’s been taking some Advil which helps bringing down the fever. I am already in bed, I feel really tired. 🥱

#10/26/23 #9:30 pm #65 f mostly cloudy

[thebiscuiteternal]

Okay, the bad news is Mama's definitely gonna have to have the tooth replaced. The good news is the dental surgeon who did her other one can see her Wednesday to put in a temporary while the actual replacement gets made.

[macwantspeace]

Guys! Guys! You won't believe this! You can now get the amazing MyTooth and a Special 20th Anniversary Edition MyPillow [gasp] On Sale!!! "The website features all the patriot favorites, including the Amazing Temporary Tooth tooth replacement kit". "Like most of the products Lindell offers, nearly everything in the MyStore is on sale. It’s a tactic that’s gotten him in trouble before. In 2017, the Better Business Bureau revoked MyPillow’s accreditation because of the product’s never-ending buy-one-get-one-free promotion." feetsnote: Amazon is already hell

#mike lindell #MyTooth #psst Hey Buddy let me show you this

[angiospleen]

🦷01/11/24🦷

Shadowing went pretty great today but I am rly glad it’s over for the week. My feet were KILLING me towards the middle of the day. Kind of concerning being that I was only there three hours but also I just got back from break where I didn’t do much so it’s fair. Plus most of my time was spent simply standing in one place.

I saw a really cool case where a patient had new crowns put in on her front teeth but also had an existing one. The old one was a different color than the new ones so doc decided to cement a new one over that tooth. There was very little tooth material under the crown but doc was able to do a core buildup to strengthen it and cement a temporary crown over. Next visit, the new permanent crown will be back from the lab and cemented as replacement.

Also, something else cool is that doc was able to pinpoint that a patient has sinus issues just by glancing at her X-rays. It was so cool. One sinus cavity was completely clear but the other was really cloudy which is something I didn’t rly notice.

All in all, it was a pretty great day, I learned a lot and my feet are out for the week:)

Slide 2: A magnified picture of tooth enamel from a random book I found at the library

#dental shadowing #predental #stem academia #dentistry #stem #dentist #stem aesthetic #poc dark academia #dark academia #black academia #poc dentists #black dentists #light acadamia aesthetic #academia #dark acadamia aesthetic #light academia #chaotic academia #dental #stem student #chaotic academic aesthetic #predent #biology #bio major #teeth #tooth #tooth models #woc dentists #angio journals

[lamaison]

Bad news is my tooth needs a crown (which I suspected since it felt like the entire back half of my tooth was gone) and my usual dentist doesn’t take my new insurance. Good news is that they were willing to see me anyway and my dentist was able to put in a temporary filling that should last two months until I get new insurance from open enrollment. So at least it’s protected for now. And he said if the filling comes out they’ll replace it for free.

I’m glad I took some pain meds before I went because cleaning the hole out was not fun.