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quarkscooljacket · 19 days

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13 books

What’s up readers?! How about a little show and tell? Answer these 13 questions, tag 13 lucky readers and if you’re feeling extra bookish add a shelfie! Let’s Go!

Tagged by @softest-punk

1) The Last book I read:

Foster by Claire Keegan, which is what the movie An Cailín Ciúin was based on. It's only 70 pages (though I listened to the audio, which has a stunning narration) and I think I am in love with Claire Keegan maybe.

The last australian book I read was Witchy (vol 1+2) by Ariel Ries. Really fun comic about young witch Nyneve who is conscripted into the Witch Guards, runs away, and has to figure out her place in the world. Beautiful art!!

2) A book I recommend:

This year I finally read A Safe Girl to Love by Casey Plett, which is a collection of short stories about trans women living in Canada/the US. Every story felt so lived in and alive. It is mostly real-life stuff but there is one story where a woman can speak with her cat and it's done so well. Semi-related stories in that some of the characters know each other/mention each other. A trans classic!!!

3) A book that I couldn’t put down:

Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton. Set in Aotearoa, centred around these two young women who run a guerilla gardening collective. one of them meets a billionaire who wants to give them a bunch of money. Now see the blurb told me it was an eco thriller but the thriller part is very slow burn until ur like JAYSUS SLOW DOWN.

4) A book I’ve read twice (or more):

I re-read the Southern Reach trilogy (Annihilation, Authority & Acceptance) by Jeff VanderMeer at the end of last yr because he accounced the fourth book. I just love them. The kind of spec fic I would love to write tbh.

5) A book on my TBR:

Praiseworthy by Alexis Wright. I bought it because I knew i was quitting my job and I wanted the staff discount and I thought I'd read it in my unemployment phase. Turns out quitting your job because you're horribly treated means that u enter a big extra-depressed phase so I did not have the brain space to read more than the first 25 pages. But i loved those, they just required more energy than I had. I'm gonna paste the blurb here actually because it just sounds fucken rad:

Praiseworthy is an epic set in the north of Australia, told with the richness of language and scale of imagery for which Alexis Wright has become renowned. In a small town dominated by a haze cloud, which heralds both an ecological catastrophe and a gathering of the ancestors, a crazed visionary seeks out donkeys as the solution to the global climate crisis and the economic dependency of the Aboriginal people. His wife seeks solace from his madness in following the dance of butterflies and scouring the internet to find out how she can seek repatriation for her Aboriginal/Chinese family to China. One of their sons, called Aboriginal Sovereignty, is determined to commit suicide. The other, Tommyhawk, wishes his brother dead so that he can pursue his dream of becoming white and powerful. This is a novel which pushes allegory and language to its limits, a cry of outrage against oppression and disadvantage, and a fable for the end of days.

6) A book I’ve put down:

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske. I just simply do not care about rich English people. I had about an hour left of the audiobook, I rly tried to push thru but I just couldn't care enough.

7) A book on my wish list:

I would like to get a physical Irish-English dictionary!

8) A favorite book from childhood:

I did love Enid Blyton's Faraway Tree series which look I'm sure u can tell about me if you know me. And look I still do but my god. The amount of parents and parents buying these for their children at the shop for the love of god get them at the op shop PLEASE.

9) A book you would give to a friend:

Vague ............ well it would be something aus.

10) A book of poetry or lyrics that you own

The last one I bought was Non-Essential Work by Omar Sakr. I think Omar is one of the best writers working today in this godforsaken colony. HIs work is just exquisite and so precise.

11) A nonfiction book you own:

The last one I bought was Orientalism by Edward Said which made me realise how if you don't read anything academic in ten+ years it's very hard to get back into reading (or again, perhaps it is the horrible mental illnesses attacking my brain which mean I find it extremely hard to concentrate on anything!!! wahoo!!!!) so I am taking that one slow.

12) What are you currently reading:

Ghost Cities by Siang Lu which comes out in May. It's very funny and absurd and written just the way I like. It's about a dude who lives in Sydney and works as a Chinese translator, but he actually speaks no Chinese and uses google translate to do his job. He's fired via elaborate prank and then somehow gets the attention of a famous movie director, and is currently being whisked away to one of the ghost city apartment complexes in China to make a movie with him. There's a parallel story about an ancient emperor and I just finished the 30-page poem that his newly-imprisoned eunichs composed. It's exciting!!

13) What are you planning on reading next?

The Orphancorp trilogy (dystopian aus YA) by Marlee Jane Ward, which I have already read and simply adore. Three novellas that imo have perfect pacing and are about "what if capitalism was extra bad". They are deeply queer and anti-capitalist.

Tagging: @tideoftrash @drbuttox @briarrolfe @so-boop-tac-u-lar @hamthezombie @frankenfossil @dragnew @tekaihau @rows-study @nessie-nosebleed @tenderfacemeat @athousandhungrythorns @gamling

#a tag game!!!!!!! i love being tagged in things #tho i often do not do them #i still want to do ones i was tagged in months ago hehe #books

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accidentalspaceexplorer · 1 year

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January Monthly Recap:

My new year is going well (if also very, very busily) and that also means my reading year started off well! I read 23 books, which I gave an average of 4.13/5 stars - I read so many kickass books this month! I loved Ocean’s Echo, caught back up on Saga, absolutely devoured Silver Under Nightfall, and had very surprising feelings about The Stars Undying! I also had a few duds, but isn’t that always life.

Saga, Vol. 4 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples [hereafter referred to as BKV/FS]: 4.25/5, re-read

Saga, Vol. 5 by BKV/FS: 4.75/5, re-read

Kiss Her Once For Me by Alison Cochrun: 2/5

Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell: 5/5

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson: 4.5/5

Sunshine by Robin McKinley: 5/5, re-read

One Dark Window by Rachel Gilig: 4/5

Saga, Vol. 6 by BKV/FS: 4/5, re-read

Saga, Vol. 7 by BKV/FS: 5/5, re-read

Saga, Vol. 8 by BKV/FS: 4/5, re-read

Saga, Vol. 9 by BKV/FS: 4.5/5, re-read

Saga, Vol. 10 by BKV/FS: 4.25/5

Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk: 4.75/5

Baker Thief by Claudie Arseneault: 4/5

Silver Under Nightfall by Rin Chupeco: 5/5

The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden: 4.25/5

Haben by Haben Girma: 3/5

Astrid Parker Doesn’t Fail by Ashley Herring Blake: 4.5/5

Never Judge a Lady By Her Cover by Sarah MacLean: 4/5

The Stars Undying by Emery Robin: 5/5

The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin: 4.25/5

Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory: 2.75/5

Velvet Was The Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia: 2/5, dnf

My goal tracking is under the cut, as always.

23 in 2023: 3

Read 100 books: 23

Translated works: 0

Physical TBR: 0

Top of TBR: 1

Books in Spanish: 0

Read 40% AOC: 26.1%

Discworld books: 0

Series: 3 started vs. 8 caught up on/finished

Storygraph recs: 0

Indigenous authors: 0

#january 2023 #monthly recap #book review

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witchcraftingboop · 11 months

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Would you please recommend mangas?

I'm not gonna lie to you, baby, my tastes are trash. You can call me the garbage man because bish I'm swimming in that shit, scooping it all up and dragging it back to my lil apt-- or maybe the Grinch... oh well!

Anywhoville, here are the mangas I've read physical copies of since this all started back on April 13th:

Fangs by Billy B-something - BL - I like their take on modern vampires. Could do without the crazy dude randomly (coincidentally) escaping from jail

Kaiju Girl Caramelize by someone - Straight, Romcom (wtvr that is in manga genres), takes place in a high school - hilarious and I love it

SpyxFamily also by someone - Idk what genre this is honestly but it's funny and good and I love it

Sleepy Princess In The Demon Castle - I have all 20 volumes because it is just a cute lil fun lil read

So I'm A Spider, So What - Okay, does the mc grind like crazy to level up? Yes but it's also hilarious and a lovely lil isekai about how a high schooler is reborn as a weak bb spider and becomes super op and challenges gods and demon lords ... 10/10, have every volume out rn and love it

Heaven Official's Blessing (light novels) - BL, Danmei - Listen. I love these lil fucks and I love how these are written -> Currently on book 2/5 in my lil shelf, six comes out in Sept I think

Given - BL - It's an okay series. I read it all (that's out), and it is amusing while reading, but ultimately probably won't read again

Fruits Basket - grew up on it, love it

Chobits - unfortunately grew up on it (why do I not remember how sexual this shit was like jfc did that throw me for a Loop lmao)

Savior's Book Cafe Story In Another World - Isekai (of a 30yo, not a teen for once), romance -- I adore this lil series. It's a cozy lil hug in a book

Uzumaki by Junji Ito - Horror - classic, love his art style and story telling, I don't find horror manga or anime scary though so I read it more like comedy tbh

I Want To Eat Your Pancreas - Tragedy(?), Romance(?), set in high school - I went into this expecting and knowing nothing and I enjoyed it a lot

A list of BL I read and enjoyed: I Didn't Mean to Fall in Love, There Are Things I Can't Tell You(💜), Sotus vol 1, Killing Stalking (??? is it BL idk,, it's B), Midnight Rain, The Flower That Seems To Truly Dance, Loved Circus, The Snake Who Loved A Sparrow (look out for anatomy oddities), Sasaki & Miyano, Secret XXX, Therapy Game

The Witch & The Beast

A Silent Voice

Fire Force, omnibus 1 (dunno about later ones cause this is the only series I didn't just buy complete)

My next reads are gonna be the series I just bought, so Demon Slayer, Ouran Host Club (again, childhood fave), Tokyo Ghoul, Tokyo Ghoul Re, & Choujin X.

After that, the next batch'll likely be: Bofuri, Arifureta, & Overlord (all isekai - or in Bofuri's case video game life). Which I can recommend watching in the anime forms as well.

But yeah those are pretty much all the series I like that I can name off the top of my hear rn. There are definitely quite a bunch I'm forgetting, but I cannot be bothered because this lil answer has already gone on for a long time and been interrupted 4+ times by my Boss' after hours inquiries into his own goddamn schedule I'm going to beat this man with a sandal

But yeah that's it, anon, pillage through my wares as you please!

#boop's asks #manga reccs #bl and romance are my comfort reads obviously #I go through phases of reading just one primary genre at a time #rn we're shifting gear to more sienen stuff I think

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nordleuchten · 1 year

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24 Days of La Fayette – Day 16: François-Louis Teissèdre de Fleury

Today’s aide-de-camp is François-Louis Teissèdre de Fleury, Marquis de Fleury and son of François Teisseydre de Fleury. He was born in 1749 and first served in the French army as a volunteer from 1768 onwards. In 1772 he was made sous-aide-major in the Rouergue Regiment.

While La Fayette and his group of fellow travelers are certainly among the most famous foreign personal in the continental army, their idea was by no means novel. There were several groups of Frenchman that tried one way or another to join the War in America (and for one reason or another). Fleury was part of such a group - and he was one of the, comparatively speaking, few successful ones.

He was made a Captain of Enginers by the Continental Congress on May 22, 1777 and was awarded 50 Dollar for his travelling expenses. William Heath wrote to George Washington on April 26, 1777:

The Three appear to be Officers of Abilities—They inform me that Mr Dean promised them that their Expences should be born to Philadelphia &c.—I must confess I scarcely know what to do with them, & wish Direction, I have advanced to Col. Conway, as advance pay 150 Dollars to enable him to proceed to Philadelphia—And to Capt. Lewis Fleury 50 Dollars—The latter is engaged as a Capt. Engineer.

“To George Washington from Major General William Heath, 26 April 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 9, 28 March 1777 – 10 June 1777, ed. Philander D. Chase. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1999, pp. 277–280.] (12/16/2022)

He was initially assigned to a corps of rifleman but soon got promoted and re-assigned after he fought with distinction at the Battle of Brandywine, where his horse was shot from under him. A Boston newspaper wrote on December 4, 1777:

The Chevalier du Plessis, who is one of General Knox’s Family, had three Balls thro’ his Hat. Young Fleuri’s Horse was killed under him. He shew’d so much Bravery, and was so useful in rallying the Troops, that the Congress have made him a Present of another.

“Extract from a Boston Newspaper, [after 4 December 1777],” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of Benjamin Franklin, vol. 25, October 1, 1777, through February 28, 1778, ed. William B. Willcox. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1986, pp. 244–245.] (12/16/2022)

Fleury also participated in the Battle of Germantown, where, in classical La Fayette-fashion, he was wounded in the leg. The General Orders from October 3, 1777 read as follows:

Lewis Fleury Esqr. is appointed Brigade Major to The Count Pulaski, Brigadier General of the Light Dragoons, and is to be respected as such.

“General Orders, 3 October 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 11, 19 August 1777 – 25 October 1777, ed. Philander D. Chase and Edward G. Lengel. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 2001, pp. 372–375.] (12/16/2022)

Fleury was ordered to defend Fort Mifflin on November 4, 1777, where he would be engaged in the attack on Fort Mifflin on November 15 of the same year. Fleury was again wounded but even more important, he kept a very detailed journal and his entries from October 15-19 were often cited to illustrate the events surrounding the attack.

Concerning his wounds (and his personal value) Colonel Samuel Smith wrote to George Washington on November 16, 1777:

Major Fleury is hurt but not very much. he is a Treasure that ought not to be lost.

To George Washington from Lieutenant Colonel Samuel Smith, 16 November 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 12, 26 October 1777 – 25 December 1777, ed. Frank E. Grizzard, Jr. and David R. Hoth. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 2002, pp. 281–282.] (12/16/2022)

La Fayette became aware of Fleury’s brave conduct and wrote to Henry Laurens on November 18, 1777:

You heard as soon almost as myself of all the interesting niews on the Delaware. The gallant defense of our forts deserves praisespraise and her daughter emulation arethe necessary attendants of an army. I am told that Major Fleury and Captain du Plessis have done theyr duty. It is a pleasant enjoyement for my mind, when some frenchmen behave a la francoise, and I can assure you that everyone who in the defense of our noble cause will show himself worthy of his country shall be mentionned in the most high terms to the king, ministry, and my friends of France when I’l be back in my natal air.

Idzerda Stanley J. et al., editors, Lafayette in the Age of the American Revolution: Selected Letters and Papers, 1776–1790, Volume 1, December 7, 1776–March 30, 1778, Cornell University Press, 1977, pp. 151-153.

George Washington had recommended Fleury and as a result of this recommendation, Fleury was commissioned a Lieutenant Colonel on November 26. La Fayette was very much in Fleury’s favour, and he wrote again to Henry Laurens on November 29, 1777:

The bearer of my letter is Mr. de Fleury who was in Fort Miflin, and as he is reccommanded by his excellency I have nothing more to say but that I am very sensible of his good conduct. (…) Mr. de Fleury receives just now the commission of lieutenant colonel, I think he wo’nt go to day to Congress, and I send this letter by one other occasion (…)

Fleury was also recommended by Colonel Henry Leonard Philip, Baron d’Arendt, the commander of Fort Mifflin. Arendt wrote to Alexander Hamilton on October 26, 1777:

Col. Smith who is well acquainted with this place, its defence, and my Intentions respecting them, will make every necessary arrangement in my absence to maintain harmony between himself and Colo. [John] Green—I must do him the justice to say that he is a good Officer and I wish America a great many of the same cast. I must render the same justice likewise to Maj. Fleury who is very brave and active.

Notes of “To George Washington from Brigadier General David Forman, 26 October 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 12, 26 October 1777 – 25 December 1777, ed. Frank E. Grizzard, Jr. and David R. Hoth. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 2002, pp. 13–16.] (12/16/2022)

George Washington also had something to say about this quarrel between his soldiers. He wrote to James Mitchell Varnum on November 4, 1777:

I thank you for your endeavours to restore confidence between the Comodore & Smith—I find something of the same kind existing between Smith and Monsr Fleury, who I consider as a very valuable Officer. How strange it is that Men, engaged in the same Important Service, should be eternally bickering, instead of giving mutual aid. Officers cannot act upon proper principles who suffer trifles to interpose to create distrust, & jealousy (…)

“From George Washington to Brigadier General James Mitchell Varnum, 4 November 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 12, 26 October 1777 – 25 December 1777, ed. Frank E. Grizzard, Jr. and David R. Hoth. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 2002, pp. 128–129.] (12/16/2022)

I do not praise you often, but in this case I will – well said, Sir!

There was no division in the army at the present that Fleury could assume command of and he was therefor appointed sub-inspector under the Baron von Steuben. The General Orders from April 27, 1778 read:

Lieutt Coll Fleury is to act as Sub-Inspector and will attend the Baron Stuben ’till Circumstances shall admit of assigning him a Division of the Army—Each Sub-Inspector is to be attended daily by an Orderly-Serjeant drawn by turns from the Brigades of his own Inspection that the necessary orders may be communicated without delay.

“General Orders, 27 April 1778,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 14, 1 March 1778 – 30 April 1778, ed. David R. Hoth. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2004, pp. 657–658.] (12/126/2022)

La Fayette, in the meantime, was lobbying for Fleury and other French officers – apparently to a degree or in a way that he later was unwilling to admit. The following passage was removed by the Marquis from a letter to George Washington from January 20, 1778:

I am told that Mullens is to be lieutenant colonel, if it is so, as that the same commission was done for Mssrs. de Fleury and du Plessis who are on every respect so much out of the line of Mullens who being by his birth of the lowest rank, and not so long ago a private soldier, I hope that those gentlemen are to be at least brigadier generals.

It was around this time that preparations for the Canadian expedition were made – an expedition under La Fayette’s command that never came into fruition and probably was never really intended to do so. It was here that Fleury was appointed aide-de-camp to La Fayette. Horatio Gates wrote to our Marquis on January 24, 1778:

Congress having thought proper and in compliance with the wishes of this Board, from a Conviction of your Ardent Desire to signalize yourself in the Service of these States, to appoint you to the Command of an Expedition meditated against Montreal it is the Wish of the Board that you would immediately repair to Albany, taking with you Lt. Colo. de Fleury, and such other gallant French officers as you think will be serviceable in an Enterprise in that Quarter. (…)

La Fayette in his turn wrote to Henry Laurens on February 4 and on February 7, 1778 respectively to inform him of the proceedings. He also used the opportunity to get a word for Fleury in and to gossip a bit about the same.

There is Lieutenant Colonel Fleury who not only out of my esteem and affection for him but even by a particular reccommandation of the board of war is destinated to follow me to Canada. I schould have desired of Congress every thing or employement which I could have believed more convenient to his wishes, had I not expected to see him before-you know he was upon my list. He desires to be at the head of an independent troop with the rank of Colonel. I do’nt know which will be the intentions of Congress but every thing which can please Mr. de Fleury not only as a frenchman but as a good officer, and as being Mr. de Fleury will be very agreable to me. (…) I have showed to Colonel Fleury the first lines of my letter, in order to let him know my giving willingly the reccommandation he asks for you. You know that gentleman's merit and that Duplessis and himself were made lieutenant colonels as reward of fine actions.

You have seen Mr. de Fleury. I fancy entre nous that he will not be satisfied in so high pretensions. He is very unhappy that Mr. Duer is no more in Congress because he is his intimate friend and confident-that will perhaps surprise you.’ Mr. de Fleury is entre nous a fine officer but rather too ambitious. When I say such things I beg you to burn the letters.

Henry Laurens replied on February 7, 1778 and his wording at the end especially is quite interesting given La Fayette’s previous letter.

I had the honour this Morning of receiving your Commands by the hands of Lt. Colo. Fleury. This Gentleman notwithstanding the aid of some able advocates in Congress has failed in his pursuit of a Colonel's Commission. You will wonder less, when you learn that the preceeding day I had strove very arduously as second to a warm recommendation from a favorite General, Gates, on behalf of Monsr. Failly, for the same Rank, without effect. The arguments adduced by Gentlemen who have opposed these measures, are strong & obvious. “We are reforming & reducing the Number of Officers in our Army, let us wait the event, & see how our own Native Officers are to be disposed of”-& besides, there is a plan in embrio for abolishing the Class of Colonel in our Army, while the Enemy have none of that Rank in the Field. Some difficulty attended obtaining leave for Monsr. Fleury to follow Your Excellency, Congress were at first of opinion he might be more usefully employed against the shipping in Delaware & formed a Resolve very flattering & tempting to induce him-but his perseverence in petitioning to be sent to Canada, prevailed. Monsr. Fleury strongly hopes Your Excellency will encourage him to raise & give him the Command of a distinct Corps of Canadians. I am persuaded you will adopt all such measures as shall promise advantage to the Service & there is no ground to doubt of your doing every reasonable & proper thing for the gratification & honour of [a] Gentleman of whom Your Excellency speaks & writes so favorably.

With the failure of the expedition, Fleury once again longed for an independent command and La Fayette wrote to Charles Lee in June of 1778:

One of the best young french officers in America Mr. de Fleury wishes much to be annexed to the Rifle Corps and is desired by Clel. Morgan.

Idzerda Stanley J. et al., editors, Lafayette in the Age of the American Revolution: Selected Letters and Papers, 1776–1790, Volume 2, April 10, 1778–March 20, 1780, Cornell University Press, 1978, pp. 62-64.

In the end, Fleury was given command of a light infantry battalion on June 15, 1779. The General Orders for that day read as follows:

The sixteen companies of Light-Infantry drafted from the three divisions on this ground are to be divided into four battalions and commanded by the following officers;

4. companies from the Virginia line by Major Posey.

4—ditto from the Pennsylvania line by Lt Colo. Hay.

4—ditto two from each of the aforesaid lines by Lieutenant Colonel Fleury.

“General Orders, 15 June 1779,” Founders Online, National Archives,[Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 21, 1 June–31 July 1779, ed. William M. Ferraro. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2012, p. 176.] (12/16/2022)

He led his battalion into the attack of Stony Point on July 16, 1779. His conduct was, by all accounts, heroic and George Washington wrote on September 30, 1779:

Colo. Fleury who I expect will have the honour of presenting this lettr. to you, and who acted an important & honourable part in the event, will give you the particulars of the assault & reduction at Stony Point (…) He led one of the columns – struck the colours of the garrison with his own hands – and in all respects behaved with intrepidity & intelligence which marks his conduct upon all occasions.

His actions were indeed so gallant that Congress awarded him a silver medal on July 26, 1779. This is indeed quite remarkable since he was the only foreign officer thus honoured. No other foreign officer, not even La Fayette, received such a silver medal during the Revolutionary War.

Fleury obtained a leave of absence from Congress in September of 1779 and left America on November 16. La Fayette was at this time in France as well and was eager to receive a first-hand account from Fleury with respect to political as well as to military matters. Although still in possession of his American commission, Fleury re-entered the French army and was made a Major of the Saintonge Regiment in March of 1780 (this might interest you @acrossthewavesoftime.) A few months later, in July of 1780, he joined General Rochambeau’s expeditionary force. Fleury was one of the French soldiers at the Battle of Yorktown. He left America for good in January of 1783 and sailed from Boston to France. It was only at this point, that he resigned his American commission. In France, he joined the Pondichéry Regiment and was named its Colonel. He was elevated to a maréshal de camp in 1791 and fought in the battle of Mons on April 28-30, 1792. During the retreat, he was wounded for the third time. While his previous injuries were all relative mild, this one appears to have been rather serious. He resigned from the army not long after.

Not much is known about Fleury’s later life, and I have seen drastically different accounts of the time of his death. While some editors of (La Fayette’s) letters/papers have put the date of his death around 1814, it is far more likely that he died in 1799. Fleury never married and there are no known children of his.

François Louis Teisseydre, Marquis de Fleury’s legacy is the De Fleury Medal that is granted to outstanding members of the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

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librarydate · 1 year

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First Weekly Reading Update of the year!

Jan 1-5 I read Cheeky Brat Vol 1 & 2 and I also read The Girl in the tower. All three books were bangers and a perfect way to start the year!

Cheeky Brat Vol 1+2: Started my year with a reread of a manga series I was in love with as a high schooler, 10+ years ago! Also known as Namaikizakari, this is a series that I was reading on going around the time it began serializing and so it was a nostalgic experience to re read the first few chapters of this series! I cannot believe we finally have the physical copies now ( I mean took them 10+ years but I’m still happy to be here!) There are a lot things that I don’t agree with in this series, however it was still fun to go back to Yuki and Naruse after all these years!

The Girl in the Tower: I cannot believe how good this book was? Usually middle books in trilogies can be a hit or miss for me but this was amazing! I am in LOVE with Vasya and this world! I cannot believe how entertained I was reading this instalment of the series and I am picking up the last book right now! Perfect novel to start the year with!

Currently Reading: The Winter of the Witch

#books #bookblr #little #the winternight trilogy #the girl in the tower #cheeky brat #namaikizakari #mangablr #litblr #my post #reading #the bear and the nightingale #the winter of the witch #katherine arden #book aesthetic

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itsclydebitches · 1 year

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I posted 1,791 times in 2022

358 posts created (20%)

1,433 posts reblogged (80%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@thequietestlilbucket

@gorgeousgalatea

@combefaerie

@kateinator

@ninjathrowingstork

I tagged 1,603 of my posts in 2022

Only 10% of my posts had no tags

#our flag means death - 259 posts

#ofmd - 255 posts

#rwby - 220 posts

#mymetas - 203 posts

#rwde - 177 posts

#videos - 127 posts

#fic things - 62 posts

#comics - 60 posts

#ted lasso - 54 posts

#gaming - 45 posts

Longest Tag: 108 characters

#and that's not even getting into woman being more active in history (including wars!) than we tend to assume

My Top Posts in 2022:

In honor of the Netflix show coming out soon and my enthusiastic re-read, I’d like to gift tumblr with some of my favorite Dream panels from The Absolute Sandman Vol. 1.

We’ve got:

Local Personification Gets Bread Thrown At Him By Badass, Older Sister. More at 11:00.

“Mm hmm this is my listening face. Go on, tell me why I shouldn’t kill you.”

See the full post

811 notes - Posted July 20, 2022

Post-canon universe where Mary ends up becoming a tattoo artist.

It starts when Ed winds up visiting the Bonnet household. Maybe he went there after Stede’s “death” only to learn that the Gentleman Pirate is out looking for him. Maybe this is post-reunion and they’ve just popped by to check on the kids. Whatever the reason, Ed ends up hitting it off with Mary and is particularly enamored with her art studio because holy shit you did the lighthouse painting!

He needs a version of that on his body. Now.

And Mary is like, I’m sorry, Mr. Blackbeard sir, but the human body is a slightly different canvas from what I’m used to and I’ve never—

But Ed is already waving her off. You think pirates know what the fuck they’re doing either? Nah. You get a buddy sloshed on rum, promise him it’s gonna look great, tattoo something on his ass, and then keep out of reach when he first sees it in a shaving mirror. It looks like shit. Of course it does! But then you do it to someone else and it looks a little less shitty. Then again and again until hey, that’s some talent right there! So go to town. Can’t look any worse than what Izzy first put on his back.

By this point Ed has hopped up onto a table and pulled a kit seemingly out of nowhere. He’s also got his shirt off—this is fine—and Mary has to admit, some of his tats really are awful. Not all of them! But enough that she can precisely pick out where some drunk sailor was trying out a needle for the first time. And yeah, she could easily justify this through fear, telling herself that it’s not like she can say no to the intimidating, legendary Blackbeard. Dating Stede or not, the guy could slash her throat in an instant. Actually, dating Stede is a mark against any mental stability.

The reality though is that it isn’t fear that convinces her. Mary just looks at the spots of crappy ink and thinks, Fuck. I could do better than that.

So she does.

Mary might not know tattooing yet, but she’s got an eye for art and she picks up the mechanics quickly. At her request Alma brings in a bottle of something far nicer than rum—casting an interested look towards the pirate that reminds Mary, with a trickle of worry, that she always was her father’s daughter—and they spend a surprisingly pleasant afternoon with Mary experimenting and Ed commenting on her paintings. Is that flower a vagina, Mary? Yes it is, god, no one else gets that!

Mary tattoos a lighthouse onto Ed’s arm, entwining it with one of his tentacles. It’s nothing fancy, but Ed leaves the Bonnet household pleased as fucking punch.

Which means, of course, that a few months later Stede shows back up (in a terrible disguise) begging her to give him his own lighthouse on the opposite arm.

Stede Bonnet, are you really asking for the symbol of our now defunct marriage after you left me, came back, came out as gay, and then had the gall to fall in love with the most dangerous pirate on the seven seas?

…Yes?

Yeah, alright, fine. Get on the table.

Mary has been practicing since she last saw Ed, discovering that she loves the permanence of tattooing—putting her art on a moving canvas; a part of someone’s very identity, not just their home. Though it’s hardly considered good form in their community, she even managed to find a tutor after promising Doug that she wouldn’t fall in love with this one. Or if she does, she’s not going to throw him over for the new guy. You should really talk to Stede’s friend Lucius, Doug. He has fantastic ideas about the whole thing.

Stede tells Mary all about their lighthouse fuckery while she works and she finds that this story is a damn bit more romantic than their awkward wedding vows. In the end, this lighthouse is far more detailed than Ed’s, with steadier lines and a bit of shading, and Mary can’t help but think that it fits their personalities quite well. Stede is so happy he forgets himself and plants an exuberant kiss on Mary’s cheek. She just laughs.

From there other members of The Revenge show up when it’s safe for them to sneak into town, all of them wanting ink from a member of their Captain’s family. Their family, now. After she’s given Jim a pair of crossed knives and Oluwande a small orange tree on his back; Frenchie a recreation of his lute and the Swede the notes of his favorite song, word starts to spread to other crews. Wherever The Revenge goes they show off their ink. Even when they don’t, Mary’s developing a style that’s noticeable in any tavern or seedy alleyway—far nicer work than what anyone else has got.

The first time an unknown pirate shows up on their doorstep in the dead of night, Mary very nearly stabs him with one of the knives Jim gifted her. She whisper-yells at the poor bastard about manners and coming during business hours, really, what is wrong with you? After a sheepish apology, she brews an obscene amount of coffee and inks a child’s portrait onto the man’s arm. It’s by far the most challenging tat she’s done to date and somewhere around 4:00am, bleary-eyed and energized, Mary thinks that she’ll never want to do anything else again.

More pirates come after that. Doug worries. Mary reassures. As a compromise, she starts taking clients while her widow group meets. The presences of nine or so women who have nothing to lose—alongside Evelyn glaring from the corner—is more than enough to keep even the toughest ruffian in line.

Which isn’t to say that every client is a good experience. Oh no. Mary learns and more importantly, she listens, figuring out which pirates have beef with an ally of The Revenge, or who would sooner sell out their own than part with a single coin. On the truly worrisome visitors, the ones who do nothing to endear themselves during the long session or any of the repeat visits, Mary adds a small flower to their designs. Just her signature, she assures them, but everyone on The Revenge knows that it’s a message: don’t trust this one, watch your back.

Most though are surprisingly pleasant to spend time with. Sweethearts just dealing with a fair bit of trauma, as her ex-husband might say. When they thank her and try to press purses into her hand, Mary just shakes her head. It’s not like she needs the money. Instead, she draws out promises that they’ll do right by The Revenge and its co-captains, should they ever cross paths. When her family visits, Mary hears many tales about the crews that unexpectedly assisted during a tough raid, offered a good deal on supplies, bought them all drinks when they came into port.

Mary is the laughingstock of the town. She’s the woman whose husband ran out on her to become a criminal and then didn’t even have the decency to stay away, instead dying in a thoroughly tactless fashion. She’s the woman who gave up a lucrative painting career to instead take up a lowlife’s art form—if it could even be called such—with all manner of scoundrels calling on her. She’ll end badly, wait and see.

Mary is beloved by the pirate community. She’s the darling of Blackbeard and the Gentleman Pirate, more than capable of holding her own with both. She’s the woman whose ink you want etched into your skin—always safe to visit, always compassionate, and unspeakably talented. She’ll go far, wait and see.

Of course, it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. Mary teaches Louis how to draw and makes Alma promise that she’ll finish her education before following her father to sea; she takes Doug to bed each night and with his encouragement visits Evelyn many afternoons. She’s happy.

Shockingly, so is everyone else. Mary isn’t entirely sure what to make of the waspish man who shows up on her doorstep one afternoon, but he’s easily recognizable based on Stede and Ed’s descriptions. Israel Hands has just three tattoos: the ace of spades to mark his time in the Navy, the swallow for a well-traveled pirate, and a lopsided cross on his cheek that Mary almost asks about, before thinking better of it.

He wants a fourth tattoo. A lighthouse on the back of his neck.

It’s been a long time since Mary first started tattooing. It’s not that she forgot about her previous lighthouses, of course not, but any additional meaning doesn’t register as she works up a design to show Izzy. After all, he’s a sailor. A pirate. Most of them want something to connect them to the sea and there are only so many objects that do that.

The placement is a bit odd though. Mary warns him that he’ll have to keep his hair short for the tattoo to show, shaving the fine hairs regularly. Izzy just grunts and mutters for her to get to it. Mary doesn’t realize the significance of him allowing her to hold a razor to his neck, in his blind-spot no less. At this point, she’s considered an extension of the only two allowed to do the same.

This lighthouse is perfect. After years of work Mary is easily able to navigate the muscles in Izzy’s neck; the thin scar that—she shivers—is just a little too close to his jugular. Mary knows how to make her art catch the eye when Izzy stands tall and how to keep it from looking absurd whenever he twists his head. She doesn’t know this man well, but Mary senses that this piece should be meticulous and detailed, not a single line out of place. So she pours everything into the image, holding Izzy steady with a grip he doesn’t flinch from.

It's only months later, when the family comes back to visit, that Mary realizes what she’s helped accomplish. Izzy stands between his two captains and from the back she sees that all the lighthouses are balanced, like the top of a nautical star.

See the full post

880 notes - Posted May 29, 2022

Okay, so as the canon recedes from memory and fandom jokes take hold — la de da the world turns — I’ve seen an influx of takes that have steadily moved away from “Izzy’s tragic because this whole debacle is technically his fault (going after Stede’s hostages)” and “Izzy is sympathetic in part because he’s so bad at villain-ing” straight into serious claims of, “Wow, Izzy is just totally incompetent, huh?”

No, no, no, Izzy is terrifyingly competent.

We as a fandom need to remember our meta roots; one of the very first things ever acknowledged in the community: this is a character who has suddenly been thrust into a new genre.

For me, it’s basically the storytelling version of the “Who would win, Goku or Saitama?” question. The answer has nothing to do with power, skill, or competence and everything to do with what would be funny, because Saitama exists in a universe where, unless it’s more entertaining for him to lose, he automatically wins — always, forever, it’s the default state. That doesn’t make Goku, a guy with the power of the gods in his own universe, incompetent by any stretch of the imagination. It just means he’s suddenly been hog-tied by the rules of a new reality.

Izzy is the Goku to Stede’s Saitama.

Izzy scopes out Stede’s marooned crew (because he didn’t remember to have someone steer the boat), buys the hostages he lost, and homoerotically skillfully cuts up his shirt with hard-earned sword skills. Stede wins when Pete throws a rock.

Izzy corners Stede in the duel before he’s even realized they’ve started, hits him across the face, disarms him, and skewers him to the mast by successfully stabbing him. Stede wins because the handle of Izzy’s sword broke and there’s supposedly nothing important on the left side of the body.

Izzy is a complete asshole about chores because in his ‘real world’ a lack of munitions, or barnacles on the ship’s side, leads to death. Or at least lost raids (which they also need to afford basic supplies). Stede exists in the world where you can walk off stab wounds, find an oasis of oranges at your assassin’s church, and row straight to your lost crew without a need for anything like supplies, rest, or a map.

Pre-Stede Izzy successfully intimidates Fang, gets him to obey his commands ( “Fang!” *hiss*), and Fang admits that complaining about the abuse wouldn’t do any good. Post-Stede Fang, Lucius, Pete, Wee John, etc. can’t be intimidated because they know that here, such threats are meaningless.

Izzy manages to wrangle together Calico Jack, Spanish Jackie, and the British — three very different parties with beef against each other and him — all in an effort to get Stede executed. Stede survives because Ed pulls out a trump card that we learned about [checks notes] right now.

Stede beats Izzy again and again and again because Stede is working under the rules of the Romantic Comedy. Is it funny if Stede were to win a duel through absurd means? Yes? Then that’s what happens. Would Izzy winning here interfere with the romance between Ed and Stede? Yes? Then that can’t happen. It’s as simple as that. Unless we circle away from the stages of Epiphany (Stede’s talk with Mary) and Resolution (heading back to Ed for the presumed reunion) and Izzy becomes a more serious Obstacle to their love, everything he attempts is doomed from the get-go. Even if he were to be written as a more serious threat to the romance, the comedy inevitably obliterates any real chance he’d have. Unless OFMD doesn’t just pull lightly from other genres as it has in season one, but takes a hard turn into something new... Izzy is fighting a losing battle. He’s Goku powering up to fucking super saiyan and then being understandably confused when Stede manages to trip over his own feet, starting a Loony Toon-esque domino fall that somehow ends with Izzy K.O.’ed. How did this happen? Fuck if he knows. The logic he’s worked under all his life says it’s impossible and yet... here he lies.

Honestly, I ramble because competence is SUCH an important part of Izzy’s character. Competence is what’s allowed him to survive into his 50′s (unless he’s really 16 lol), help build the Blackbeard legend, and gain the kind of respect that has the crew (initially) jumping at his command. Izzy knows that he’s competent. His entire, prickly personality is built on being competent, particularly when competence is used as a defense mechanism. (No need to grapple with feelings when he can just kill someone.) More importantly, he knows that, under ordinary circumstances, not being competent gets you killed. He’s watching Ed trade in protective leather for lace shirts, fill up on marmalade, turn sword training into a flirting session, admire model ships instead of formulating plans — all these things that should, according to the rules Izzy has spent his entire life living by, get them all killed. We know Stede wouldn’t survive a day in the world of “real” pirates, where Izzy originally hails from. Izzy knows it too. We know Stede survives anyway because this is a rom-com and he’s the lead. But Izzy doesn’t know what genre he’s in; certainly not that the genre has changed — and fuck, if the rules of the universe changed once before, who’s to say they won’t suddenly change again? What if he wakes up one day on a frilly ship, with a useless crew, a domesticated Blackbeard, and the world is a horrifying mess of cruelty and violence again? They’d be screwed. He’s running around bitching about plans, munitions, ship speed, killing pets, formal duels, and yes, avoiding “namby-pamby” soft things because dammit of course those things matter. They always have. Yes everyone needs specific duties because otherwise the ship falls apart and they all die. What do you mean the ship isn’t falling apart while everyone eats marmalade and has gay sex? That’s not possible.

Imagine you were a crazy competent member of society according to current social norms. Maybe you’re highly educated, have a six-figure job, are meeting all the expectations for a family, you’re considered conventionally attractive, you eat well, go to the gym every day, have impressive hobbies, give to charity on the regular, maintain a thriving friend group — in every way that your peers might judge your worth within this specific social circle, you are killing it. Then you wake up one random morning and, as Badminton puts it, you’ve entered Backwards Land. People suddenly laugh at your well-balanced lunch because pff, what do you mean you’re not just eating a bucket of candy like the rest of us? Certain public displays that would have been unthinkable 24 hours ago are suddenly occurring on every street corner. You walk in to a promotion meeting with a detailed report on why your work of the last 30 years is worth recognition. The new hire suggests they have a face-paint party instead of running the company and your boss is like, “Well damn if that isn’t the best suggestion anyone’s ever given me. You’re promoted!”

What?

Izzy is fascinating in part because he’s a HYPER-COMPETENT individual who took to his toxic, violent, homophobic, highly repressed society like a duck to water, only to find one day that the rules of the universe had changed (for the better) but whoops, nothing he’s good at suddenly has a foothold anymore. You’re an expert at running a ship? Ships are just a backdrop to romance and it doesn’t matter if there’s, you know, ammunition, or whatever. Supplies — like oranges — only matter if they’re forwarding relationships. You’re an expert swordsman? Yeah, good luck winning a rigged fight where literally anything goes provided it’s funny enough (and you, as a tightly-strung rule follower, are not funny). Your entire identity is built around intimidating and executing people? The queer polycule thinks your threats are hilarious and if you strand people on a desert island their lighthouse captain will just row to them in a single scene; the guy tossed overboard will just climb into the walls and sustain himself on paper or something. You’re Alice in Wonderland except you don’t remember falling down the hole. The fact that Lucius’ cut off finger is used for a moment of (wonderfully gross) humor and he’s totally fine when he wakes up, whereas Izzy’s severed toe is more straightforwardly horrific and requires a cane, just highlight that they’re living in different genres. For Lucius, a severed finger is a moment of comedy (Dutch fuckery) and romance (Pete whittling him a replacement). For Izzy, a severed toe is a moment of devotion to a toxic relationship (eating it on Blackbeard’s command) and a #SeriousInjury that he literally can’t walk off. Izzy’s got the worst of both worlds at the moment: governed by his original, gritty genre and unable to circumvent or reap the rewards of the rom-com.

Which only leaves the question of whether Izzy will remain the tragic figure — but still very humorous for the viewer — who is either killed or permanently exiled due to his inability to adapt? Or will he grudgingly (oh so grudgingly) turn himself over to this new set of rules? I’m personally hoping for the latter BUT with moments here and there where the gritty drama bleeds into the rom-com; moments where things suddenly do become legitimately perilous and Izzy’s honed skills once again become necessary for survival. Like Ed who moves from the poetry-loving Edward into the murderous Kraken, Izzy has the potential to move between and/or straddle genres in some pretty entertaining ways.

930 notes - Posted May 8, 2022

Season 2 concept where Stede gets up to some pirate shenanigans while trying to hunt down The Revenge, resulting in a number of WANTED posters for The Gentleman Pirate. Ed is losing his mind over the sketch of a disheveled, bearded Stede. Izzy is furiously trying to tear it out of his hands (he’s too short). Frenchie is openly sobbing that his captain is alright and apparently doing impressive pirate-y things, good for him. Meanwhile, Jim:

“That fucker is worth 700 doubloons?!? I was only 50! Oh, we’re finding him alright and I’ll show him exactly how someone earns a fucking price on their head — !”

933 notes - Posted May 12, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

How fucking funny would it be if post-reunion, after everyone has settled down on The Revenge and accepted their weird found family, Izzy still pulled out the “I’m resigning, Ed!” speech every few months, like a kid marching down the end of their driveway to “run away forever, I’m definitely leaving this time, Dad!” Because he’s a supremely repressed gremlin of a man who doesn’t know how to receive validation unless he’s made a dramatic production of it via this intricate ritual. So everyone just accepts that on occasion Izzy will throw a hissy fit, passive aggressively pack up the dinghy, and Ed’s gotta go down there all, “Nooo, mate, we totally need you, don’t leave, what the fuck am I gonna do without my fearsome First Mate?🙄” Really laying it on thick so Izzy can soak up enough Toxically Approved Praise to survive another couple of weeks. Meanwhile, the crew is just watching this sad production, exchanging knowing glances. They’ve TRIED to be nice to Izzy—the whole mutiny thing was so last year, dude!—but outside of The Ritual he will straight up bite off anyone’s head who so much as tries to smile at him.

“Oh, you think I’ve got a flight or bite response? Mr. Hands earned his last name for a reason, laddie,” Buttons says while staring pointedly at Lucius’ finger. That’s obviously bullshit, but Buttons likes fucking with them on occasion. It’s great fun.

Stede’s place in The Ritual varies depending on everyone’s mood. Usually, he treats it like another fuckery production, making a big ta-do about how if Izzy really insists on leaving them—and wouldn't that be terrible? Simply terrible... right, everyone?—then he must take plenty of supplies with him and a bottle of the good brandy and this warm coat because it can get quite chilly at night, don’t you know? This allows Izzy to fly into a very cathartic rage about real pirates vs. gentry twats, leading to him oh so magnanimously deciding to stick around, if only to continue saving Ed from this dithering fool. Sometimes though Izzy has legit pissed Stede off, just like in the old days, and the crew has to run damage control to keep another duel from starting, Izzy having entirely forgotten his desire to leave under the allure of skewering Stede. That too is cathartic, but Ed tends to get tetchy when Stede stabs or is stabbed by anyone other than him.

Every once in a while Izzy will dig his heels in and actually launch the dinghy, heading towards… nothing, because we’re nowhere near land, you idiot, are we really doing this today? So the crew has got to drop everything else they’ve got going on and just… follow him. Izzy spends a couple hours angrily trying to out-row a top of the line ship while the others watch from the deck, occasionally yelling out corrections to his form: “Keep your shoulders steady—you’ll get farther away if you improve your posture.” “I know that!” They let him wear himself out and then tow him in for dinner.

One time Lucius and Pete are ~distracted~ while on the night watch and Izzy is actually able to slip away unnoticed. He's so pissed about it that he leaves in a true huff, that anger taking him all the way to the Republic. Two days later Buttons gets a seagull from Spanish Jackie basically saying that their wayward First Mate is stinking up her bar, you’d better pick him up before I kill a bitch. Ed and Stede arrive like fussy dads whose darling sent the playdate into turmoil; come along, Israel, that’s enough fun for one weekend.

Sometimes Jim is already hiding in the dinghy when Izzy tries to “escape” and the two of them spend a day talking shit, The Revenge floating nearby. Sometimes other pirates will find Izzy in random places and sternly steer him back towards the ship: “Do your parents Captains know you’re out here?” Once Izzy made the mistake of loading his get-away bag with half the strawberries put aside for a new cake and Roach very nearly took a limb in vengeance. Frenchie has a couple tunes that he only plays during The Ritual, to set the mood and all. Lucius has immortalized a number of the attempts in sketch form and slips them underneath Izzy’s door when he’s sure he’s not there to retaliate.

Years later, when all the crew have a lot more gray in their hair, Izzy flips them off and starts packing his things, same old, same old. Ed sidles up to Pete on the quarterdeck, sighing down at the display.

“Can you believe he’s still doing this?” he asks, shaking his head. “I thought he got it out of his system back on the Queen Anne.”

“Remember that time the rope broke and he lost us that dinghy?”

“Ha! I was ready to flog the bastard.”

And that’s how the crew learns that yes, Black Pete really did serve under Blackbeard holy shit.

1,206 notes - Posted May 7, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #I'm seeing other folks do this #and I didn't want to be left out lol

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measuringbliss · 1 year

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Thanks @dance2xrevolution <3

I always love to see you around.

favorite time of year: Halloween actually! It's fun to see the decoration and stuff, watch tons of horror movies, dress up, etc. I also love summer nights (when not trying to sleep), and when it's very sunny but there's also wind so the sky is beautiful but the wind helps tame the heat.

comfort food: fajitas, fried chicken, risotto, curry, soup... if I love it, it's comforting!

favorite dessert: concorde chocolate cake, île flottante, chocolate mousse

things you collect: at one point I was collecting the Umineko manga collection because I was in my Umineko era, but there were 21 omnibusses at 25-30 euros the omnibus if you were lucky. eventually decided it was much more handy (and cheaper) to have them digitally instead.

See the issue?

If you're curious, my physical collection comprises of the first two Episodes, Legend of the Golden Witch and Turn of the Golden Witch. Then digitally (through Kobo), I've got the third Episode (Banquet, vol. 5&6), Vol. 10 (first vol. of Episode 5, End), the sixth Episode (Dawn, vol. 13-15) and the eight and final Episode (Twilight, vol. 19-21). My reasoning was that I wanted to go chronological, but I was already not fond of Banquet (though with distance I can appreciate its chaotic approach), then I think Alliance mostly sucks. End is great but I never re-read it, Dawn is great too, Requiem (Episode 7) was perfect when I read it in VN but I never felt the need to read the manga, and Twilight is a good Episode and most importantly, the manga version actually adds stuff for the better!

So I've got 13/21 volumes.

I also collected a few Spider-Man comic books. I'm not a big collector in general but I *would* have an entire room dedicated to Virtue's Last Reward if I could and wanted to.

Hi baby

favorite drinks: Cherry Coke, Milk + Strawberry Syrup

favorite musician/band: CAPSULE (Japanese electro) is regularly something I come back to, but nowadays I'm much less fixated on specific bands. I had a Jamiroquai phase but I was so into it that nowadays I pretty much can't stand it.

Now if we're talking *composers*, I'd say Masafumi Takada and Shinji Hosoe are mainstays.

last song listened to: Owner of a Lonely Heart by Yes

last movie watched: A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge! Very gay, enjoyed it much more than the first one.

last series watched: I recently finished She-Hulk, absolutely loved it. I'm also rewatching Glee.

Also this wasn't asked but video games are an important component of my life so I very recently finished Metroid Dread and loved its challenge. Also going through Picross S, it's great but literally lead me to stay up all night hahaha

currently watching: DS9 (less than a season per year lmao), Merli: Sapere Aude (love triangles, bisexual protagonist, philosophy...), Spider-Man 1994 (almost finished with S1 and very impressed), Brideshead Revisited (I think I stalled it).

current obsession: Glee, in a way. Bears. Buffy still? Kind of. I mean I just bought a magazine about it.

dream place to visit: Nothing! I'm pretty content with where I went. I think I realized that no place will ever be as charming as you could dream of. I'm very happy with where I am right now, where I was last year, and I don't feel the place to go anywhere specific.

places you wanna go back to: Austria, where I was last year. I miss my city very dearly. I also enjoy the south of France in small doses. I'd like to go back to Saint Emilion because it's very charming.

something you want: nothing again! I feel pretty content in an achievable category of things. I don't think I let myself want anything I can't have.

but also I really want Adderall (or Ritalin, whatever).

project working on: Another fantranslation (ugh), the Glee Rewatch project (link on my pinned masterpost!), maybe a fanfic, maybe video essays... mostly I just finished an exhausting week so I'm. sleeping. or trying to.

I'm tagging anyone who sees this post and wants to participate!

#asks #not an ask but it's similar enough #umineko #virtue's last reward #i'm absolutely willing to send drm-free versions of the Umineko ebooks I have

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crowcryptid · 2 years

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PROJECT HALO NOVEL REFRESH. SPEEDRUN EDITION.

THE GOAL: LISTEN/READ *EVERY HALO NOVEL IN ORDER IN A SOMEWHAT TIMELY MANNER

*Some may be skipped due to reasons™️.

THE “WHY?”: I HAVE THE MEMORY OF A SINGLE-CELL ORGANISM AND NEED REMINDERS. BUT I KNOW I WILL NEVER GET THROUGH IT ALL UNLESS I MAKE IT A CHALLENGE FOR MYSELF TO DO IT AS FAST AS I CAN.

SINCE THERE IS SOME CONFUSION: THIS IS A RE-READ. I HAVE ALREADY GONE THROUGH THE BOOKS BUT ITS BEEN MANY YEARS FOR SOME AND I FORGOT A LOT :]

-THE LIST-

1. The Fall of Reach. Current status: DONE. Started on 9/19/2022. Finished 9/30/2022. Format: audiobook. Thoughts: the pronunciation here is all over the place. The narrator pronounces mjolnir like “muh-joel-near”. K. He pronounces the W in sword. 117 is pronounced as one seventeen. Grr. HUD is pronounced as H U D instead of just saying HUD. Also Linda has a weird accent but that can be forgiven. ✅

2. The Flood. Current status: Skip due to recent-ish re-read and other reasons™️ ❌

3. First Strike. Current status: DONE. Started on 10/18/2022. Finished 10/26/2022. Format: e-book. Thoughts: Engineers :] Cortana :] Johnson :] ✅

4. Ghosts of Onyx. Current status: DONE. Started on 10/26/2022. Finished 11/1/2022. Format: e-book. Thoughts: sad and fucked up, you already know how it is. ✅

5. Contact Harvest. Current status: DONE. Started on 11/2/2022. Format: e-book. Thoughts: If Huragok have a million fans I am one of them. If Huragok have ten fans I am one of them. If Huragok have no fans, that means I am no longer on the earth. If the World is against Huragok, I am against the World. I love Huragok till my last breath. Also Johnson fucks but we all knew that. ✅

6. The Cole Protocol. Current status: in progress. Started on 11/8/2022.. Re-started on 1/12/2023 because I took a break. Format: audiobook. Thoughts:

7. Evolutions vol 1 and 2, but has different versions. Idk which version the audiobook is so *shrug*. Current status: not started.

8. Forerunner trilogy. Current status: not started.

9. Kilo-5 trilogy. Current status: possible skip, undecided. ⚠️

10. Broken circle. Current status: not started.

11. New Blood. Current status: not started.

12. Hunters in the Dark. Current status: not started.

13. Last Light. Current status: not started.

14. Fractures, which contains Saint’s Testimony and Shadow of Intent. Current status: not started.

15. Smoke and Shadow. Current status: not started.

16. Envoy. Current status: skip due very recent re-read. ❌

17. Retribution. Current status: not started.

18. Legacy of Onyx. Current status: skip due to very recent re-read. ❌

19. Bad Blood. Current status: skip due to very recent re-read. ❌

20. Renegades. Current status: not started.

21. Silent Storm: Current status: not started.

22. Oblivion. Current status: not started.

23. Battle Born. Current status: not started.

24. Meridian Divide. Current status: not started.

25. Shadows of Reach: skip due to recency and also I will die if I think about the word lechatelierite too much.

26. Point of Light. Current status: would have skipped due to recency but I want to hear mr spark narrate :)

27. Divine Wind. Current status: maybe skip due to recency. Undecided. ❌

28. Rubicon Protocol. Current status. Skip due to recency. ❌

#I will be updating the post as I go along. Don’t worry no spam. Just editing it.#Might add a couple thoughts to each entry as I go. don’t expect much because me and words do not get along #If I missed any let me know lol #temp pinned post if any fellow weirdos would like to check in on the progress #i am going to get a good grade in whatever this is.#or else.#idk if I will use this tag but here I’m making it #PROJECT HALO NOVEL REFRESH. SPEEDRUN EDITION.#halo

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deliriousdisquisitions · 1 year

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18.04.2023. Update on April 2023 tbr:

So I've decided to remove Kafka on the Shore from this list and add Pride and Prejudice instead. Manly bc 1) I really need to sit down and read Kafka to analyse l the themes/metaphors/literary theories it invokes. I previously went into this blind but it became quickly apparent on reading a couple of chapters that this wouldn't pass as a casual read that I could pull off in between other things. I've since read up on it a little for context, and as the author suggests, I probably will need to read this more than once to puzzle out all the clues he's scattered throughout the narrative. So I'm putting this off for another day. 2) Instead, I'm revisiting P&P, which I haven't read again since high school. Now that I've pretty much going through the entire Austen catalogue, I thought it was time to re-read just so everything comes back full circle. With this, I can consider myself done with Austen's works and move on to other authors on my list. I will read Lady Susan and Love and Friendship someday, but for now, I'm just focusing on her major novels for my classic/literary canon tbr list.

I'm very proud of myself for completing the Odyssey. I wanted to jump right into Iliad and Aeneid right after but I don't have a copy. I've been looking for an edition of Iliad that works for me. With the Odyssey I tried the Robert Fagles edition and while that wasn't necessarily bad (it had its quirks, I got used to it after a while and it didn't bother me while reading) but I would like to try out anther edition just to compare the translation styles. My library has a Fitzgerald edition but unfortunately it's not available till next month so I'll have to push my reading till then. The Aeneid, sadly, is also unavailable. If I'm desperate I might order a copy once I done with the Iliad.

Currently, I'm slowly making my way through Blade of the Immortal (I'm on vol 6). It is slow going because I'm extremely lazy, and right now, I would rather listen to an audiobook while doing my chores. But I'm hoping to finish at least vol 10 by the end of the month. I'm also waiting for Happy Place by Emily Henry which comes out next week. I'll finish that in one sitting you don't know how long I've been waiting for it! Also waiting for Alice Oseman's Loveless, the audiobook is available next week. And lastly, will try to squeeze in Kaikeyi by the end of the month, I've been meaning to read it for a while.

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arwainian · 1 year

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Reading this week (final week of 2022!)

holiday week with Plenty of travel and variable reading habits. it pleases me a lot that the new year starts on a sunday just so like, the weeks will be all night like that when doing weekly recaps like this. i'm a few hours out from midnight where i'm writing this right now, but a happy new years to my friends and mutuals in earlier timezones who have already made it to 2023. here's hoping its a good one and i read many amazing things in the new year

Started and Finished:

Ruin of a Rake: A Cure by Cat Sebastian

in this year's collection of Holiday Epilogues from the author! Sebastian (re)releases a collection of epilogues/vignettes for her various books every year around this time, most of them previously published but still fun to read. out of the collection this was the one i felt interested the most in reading bc of it's cool premise: its not actually an epilogue, but instead a short story "written by" one of the heros of her romances, where he inserts himself and hs boyfriend as the main couple of a vampire story. WHAT a premise, and it was good. (also, i imagine its kinda mortifying for Courtenay to read that his Julian wrote his [Courtney's] pov for this)

recently published comics handed to me by my dad:

Nightwing (2016-) #99 Batman/Superman: World's Finest (2021-) #10

the comics my dad knows to pass along to me when he's finished with them. i am just loving World's Finest, but i found this recent issue pretty hard to follow visually (though there Was some super cool stuff like when Superman dragged Batman and Robin across Gotham mid-sentence)

Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins, Vol. III written by Jody Houser, illustrated by Olivia Samson & J.P. Massa

worked for me better than vol. 1 but not as good as 2, also getting this out of the library (on libby) was a crazy hassle bc there was something wrong with kindle downloading an individual issue from vol 2 instead of (literally any) of volume 3

a LOAD of Fire Emblem: Three Houses fanfic (all authors listed by ao3 handle):

a fool's dance by ohroses Summer by shenyun5000 Lament by grayimperia like a house on fire by acronymed my fellow passerine by Schistosity Moonrise by Schistosity halcyon days by 0shadow_panther0 The Red Pen by Pardra no archive warnings apply by rime

i have been Playing fire emblem three houses and that means diving into the ao3 tag a bit looking for the good shit. this is what i've read this past week (i'm almost certain there's stuff from previous weeks that i forgot to record) and i patently refuse to talk about every single on of them

Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey

okay. i need to check out more McCaffrey sci fi/fantasy, this was great and gentle while still exciting and new. also an amazing read for a plane ride

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

believe the hype about this book and go read it. it's fantastic. i could gush about it forever. the GENDER DYNAMICS AT PLAY in this book. wow it feels so well thought out, and also Zhu is such a clever protagonist. at several points i started like... grinning in distress? like as "WOW that is such a clever plan from Zhu and also. horrific. what a move"

"Toward a Trans History of Abortion" by Jules Gill-Peterson on her substack

this has been sitting open in my phone internet browser tabs for a little bit and i'm so glad i got around to reading it today! Gill-Peterson seems like a great source for me looking into trans history research, and I loved her insight in this as something that she's beginning to look into for conenctions and history

almost right by unchosenone on ao3

reread this one bc i saw a post recommending based-in-comics-batfam-fic, and in all honestly my family is on the precipice of a bit of reckoning right now, so reading this felt... Apt

Started and Ongoing:

Teen Titans: The Silver Age Omnibus, Vol. 1

my dad got this Behemoth for himself this year and i am happily reaping the rewards of his splurge. i love the og 60s titans so much they are my CHILDREN. super goofy and cute and i look forward to reading more once i am back home and not travelling and thus able to sit down with this 800 page tome of comic (in... 1ish week)

The City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty

another rec from my dad. i read the first chapter today and it's intriguing! i'll probably save reading more of it for flight heavy days coming up

AND THAT CLOSES OUT 2022 for reading! (barring if i read any more fanfic before going to sleep tonight and don't feel the urge to come and add it here) GOODNIGHT

#cal reading log #cal reads comics #arwainian princessoid decrees #bookblr

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honeyhenry · 3 years

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A Tiny Valentine

A/N: Another little instalment of the Tiny!AU that I have been writing this month! I hope you all had a lovely valentines or galentines or palentines! Now onto my favourite little family! Please feel free to request some more about this AU or my Syverson AU because both are helping me through this month! 🥰

Warnings: none! just some sweet fluff!

Read Tiny here!

Read Tiny Vol. 2 here!

You’re awoken by the squeaks of a fussy baby, opening your eyes in time to see your husband shush the child cradled in his right arm ever so tenderly. Henry catches you looking from where you laid in the bed and grins, making his way towards you with Will in tow.

“Good morning, and Happy Valentine’s day, Mummy” his deep voice giving you butterflies still after all this time as he leans in to kiss you, 5 week old Will pressed between your chests, a warm safe haven for him as his parents shared their love on the cosy Sunday morning. Sitting up, you cradle Henry’s face in your hand, whispering a treasured valentine sentiment back, before turning your attention to your second, yet no less important valentine.

“Hello baby boy, good morning! Are you wishing me a happy Valentine’s too?”

Will now weighs in at an impressive 2.3kg, and hasn’t left your or Henry’s side in the past month. His tiny frame fits so perfectly into the crook of Henry’s forearm which is much larger than the precious child it helps to support. Somehow he’s managed to fit Will into a new, slightly-too-big onesie decorated with a large heart detailing the words “I Love my Mummy” inside of it.

“Yes, I have fed, burped, dressed, undressed, changed, re-dressed, and soothed him since 6am. He likes his early mornings but we did have a small poo-splosion. It’s been dealt with, and we’ve had a chat, haven't we Will?” Henry addresses the question to his son, who pays him no mind, other than to clench his little fist, making you laugh.

“Here, I’ll take him. I want cuddles from my littlest Valentine.”

“Oh I see how it is...maybe I’ll have to return everything I got you and only give you the gifts from Will.”

You’re about to reply that he needn’t worry, that his Valentines will come later tonight, but your jaw drops as Henry pulls a few bags onto the bed, alongside the most gorgeous bouquet of flowers that must be 10 times the size of Will, and have cost him half the earth.

“Henry!” you gasp, careful to hold Will securely as you shuffle up the bed to see the gifts he has presented to you.

“A couple of the gifts were supposed to be given just before you gave birth but I wanted to wait until now, so you’d still get them on Valentine’s Day.”

You look at him with utter adoration, tears almost spilling over and you manage to hold it together until-

“Oh no, Henry” you cry out, immediately setting a pit of uncertainty in Henry’s stomach.

“What? Is something wrong? Is Will okay? Is it the flowers?”

You sigh and let a few tears slip out, cuddling Will close, looking down at his sweet innocent face, not wanting to meet Henry’s gaze. It doesn’t do much good, as Will truly is his daddy’s double.

“I- I didn’t get you anything. I completely forgot, I’m so sorry” you whisper, wishing you could turn back the clock and remember to at least put some of his favourite chocolates or cologne in the shopping cart when you last went out. “Like, not even a card. I’m a rubbish wife.”

“Well that’s just ridiculous. I could’ve sympathised with you until that point but I’m afraid you’re completely wrong. On all counts.” He moves up closer to you on the bed, resting a large hand on your knee while using his other hand to gesture his points.

“First of all, you are not a rubbish wife. I don’t ever want to hear you say that again. You are perfect and I really hope that these gifts will be worthy of you wearing them or eating them or just having them exist around you. They cost money, but money doesn’t light a flame compared to what you got me for all my birthdays, valentine’s days and Christmases combined.”

He keeps one hand on your knee, with the other now moving over to hold Will’s whole hand with just the tip of his finger. Wrapping his palm around the familiar pointer finger, you hear the tiniest sigh from your son’s body, feeling utterly relaxed in your arms and holding Henry’s hand.

“But he’s 5 weeks old-”

“He wasn’t even meant to be born until the end of this month, and I would've told you the same thing as I’m telling you now if that was still the case. You grew him and nurtured him and now we get to know him and love him every single day. I can never thank you enough for the gift of our child.”

Resting his forehead to yours, you sit there in that moment, soaking it up in the hopes to carry the weight of the emotions for days and weeks to come. Upon the gift opening, with Henry explaining each gift while Will lay in his arms, you realised that you truly had been spoiled rotten by your boys. Will had “bought” you a framed picture of the constellations in the sky at the exact time and place he was born, as well as a year’s supply of your favourite breastfeeding cookies sitting in a large crate out in the kitchen.

Henry had truly outdone himself, assuring you that the flowers were from him “but Will helped with his floral expertise, obviously.” He had waited to give you the last gift deliberately - a long, smooth rectangular box wrapped very delicately. Opening it, you see a note inside, setting the box down as you read aloud.

“January is represented by the garnet stone. Derived from the word “seed”, this fruitful gem keeps the wearer safe. And May is represented by the emerald to mean “rebirth”...and gives the wearer foresight and good fortune...what does that....oh Henry!”

You lift the box and remove the protective paper to reveal the most beautiful necklace you’ve ever seen. There are small diamonds detailing it and allowing it to glint in the light, alongside a small cut of garnet and emerald woven together in parts.

“Happy Valentine’s darling. It’s mine and Junior’s birthstones. Had to send it back when he came early to swap February for January. And more can be added...whenever they need be.”

You knew the tears would start again, and before they can mark tracks on your cheeks, you leap onto Henry to kiss him with passion, careful not to knock Will in the process.

“You are the most loving, thoughtful, wonderful person in the whole world. It’s beautiful and so personal...and I know it couldn’t possibly compare, but how about some Valentine’s pancakes? We can show Will how to properly celebrate.”

The three of you head to the kitchen soon after, cooking up a storm and dancing to the love songs playing on the radio. You even have the opportunity to feed Will again while Henry expertly flips the pancakes in the pan. He plates them up, drizzles them with your favourite topping, and feeds you while you feed Will.

One thing your son will never have to question, is the love that his parents have for each other.

taglist: @ohmygoodie @michelehansel @la-cey @palaiasaurus64 @sassy-pelican

request / feedback etc. here!

#henry cavill x reader #henry cavill writing #henry cavill #cavillary #henry cavill x you #it's tiny will cavill's world we are all just living in it #dad!henry #dad!henry cavill #henry cavill fluff

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nearer-than-the-eye · 3 years

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I'm sending this out of sudden but I just read your xxxholic rou meta and it left me wondering if I got it all wrong. Even if watanuki hadn't wished to see yuko again, he'd still become the shopkeeper, grow up and die like a normal human? His inmortality comes from his wish, or from his own nature? Sorry if this sounds dumb

edit: i said vol. 18 instead of 19 lmao, fixed now

original post

nah I think you raise a good question! So good, in fact, that this answer is basically a short essay lmao. My meta focused primarly on watanuki’s confinement, because that IS a result of his nature as a blip in the universe or whatever, and I‘m pretty sure I had been mistaken about the cause of that. He didn’t choose confinement, he had confine himself in order not to cause harm, just like Syaoran does not choose to keep traveling, he’s similarly forced to do so.

Whether or not his immortality/unnaturally long life came from his wish to see Yuuko again or from his confinement to the shop is, I think, ambiguous, though whether or not CLAMP did that on purpose or it’s just not great writing is up for debate lol. At the end of volume 19 Watanuki says that he no longer has to “hide” in the shop anymore and can re-enter the world, and that seems to be a result of the amount of time that has past since the events of the main series. He also expresses that he will probably never see the same Yuuko again, but he doesn’t want to forget her and will continue being shopkeeper. IDK if that means his desire to not forget her is making him live past his normal life span now (kind of a wack way to represent grief, CLAMP) but we don’t know what happens when he re-enters the world so he very well could begin to age from this point on. It’s almost like CLAMP should finish the series!

It’s also worth noting that there are actually two wishes at play here: Watanuki’s wish to see Yuuko again and Yuuko’s wish that Watanuki continue to exist. I wonder if Yuuko’s wish is partially what’s fueling his immortality, and if we’re in a repeat of what happened w her and Clow: she was frozen in time bc Clow wanted her to stay alive, Watanuki gets frozen in time because Yuuko wanted him to stay alive. That seems EXCEPTIONALLY DARK, especially since Yuuko understood her existence was an aberration. Alternatively, since it seems like the reason Watanuki can re-enter the world is because of the time that has passed (time he could not have had as a normal human), maybe Yuuko’s wish kept him alive SO THAT he could re-enter the world and “exist” as a normal human. Perhaps that would grant Yuuko’s wish, and he would begin to age again. (BUT AGAIN WE DON’T KNOW THAT BECAUSE IT’S UNRESOLVED, THANKS CLAMP.)

It ALSO seems like CLAMP maybe wants to retcon volume 19, because Rei appears to take place while Doumeki Shizuka is still alive (Himawari doesn’t have perfect lookalikes for descendants, as far as we know) and CLAMP is doing SOMETHING with Yuuko in volume 4 of rei, though god knows what. So that may give us some more info eventually too, if CLAMP ever finishes the damn thing.

The fact that this is still so ambiguous is, I think, emblematic of CLAMP’s tendency to get carried away with their insane plot bullshit and lose out on making sure the emotional narrative is cohesive and clear. The Tsubasa ending, in my opinion, feels a lot more conclusive, even though it has 10 times the plot bullshit of xxxHolic. Fai and Kurogane are together and a cohesive unit, Syaoran and Sakura know how much they mean to each other. Syaoran’s need to keep moving makes the ending bittersweet, but we know where everybody stands with everybody else and HOW we got to that point emotionally.

xxxHolic obfuscating the reason Watanuki is staying in the shop and immortal does its emotional arcs no good: has Watanuki thrown away his lessons of connection with others to chase after the chance of seeing Yuuko again, or is he making the best of a bad situation and using his confinement as an opportunity to also wait for Yuuko? He seems to have plenty of connections in Rou, and his relationships have matured and deepened with every character we see (he and Himawari tell each other “I love you” as dear friends, he’s on even footing with the Jorougumo and Ame-Warashi, dear friends with Kohane, and his relationship with Doumeki is still complicated but in different, adult ways). But he’s still choosing to take on Yuuko’s mannerisms and role because he misses her and mourns her.

The reason for his confinement and immortality is the lens the rest of Rou is filtered through, and when that reason is up for debate, the lens we view Rou through is up for debate. I don’t think that adds to the series, and I think the ambiguity specifically hurts Rou (one of the most interesting arcs of the series!). CLAMP’s decisions and/or bad writing that resulted in this ambiguity can’t be fixed, even if the stuff I talked about gets answers down the line, and that’s a damn shame. This fucking mini essay I’ve written here really shouldn’t have needed to exist if CLAMP had just done their job right.

#anon i hope this gets to you!#xxxholic #xxxholic rou #xxxholic rei #xxxholic meta #anon #blogging on my blog #yeah i got a LOT of thoughts about how CLAMP undermines themselves

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