#i really need to charge my tablet so i can use that instead of my phone or laptop

[steddieas-shegoes]

Drabble idea for the ask thing: Steve works at a tattoo shop and Eddie works at a flower shop, they both get odd looks when they tell people about their job. Bonus: Eddie gets a tattoo of a flower from Steve and that's how they meet.

This is like if you took call me sunshine, send me to space and made it cuter with a flower shop and made Steve the tattoo artist instead. I'm just gonna write the bonus scene because that's a lot to keep 500 words or less and we all know how I go on 😂 Don't @ me over the super sappy ending, someone with spoons please write another 50k of this.

🌷🌼🌻🌷🌼🌻🌷🌼🌻

"You want a wildflower bouquet in the space of your full sleeve?" Steve stared at the fully tattooed man over his glasses, brows raised in disbelief. "I'm not one to judge tattoo choices but you seem to know what you're doing and I'm a bit confused as to how that fits with...anything else on your arm."

Steve had definitely done some wild tattoos. He was actively part of so many bad decisions made by people who would live to regret getting their girlfriend's name on their neck or the face of their best friend on their thigh.

But this one was different in that this guy had clearly meticulously planned out every tattoo on his body, and that was a lot of tattoos, and now he wanted to add...wildflowers. In between skulls and guitars and some metal band logo. Right.

"Yeah and if it's a problem, I can go somewhere else, man. I just heard a lot of good things about you and my flower shop is two doors down, so-"

"Wait. You're Eddie? You're the guy who owns the flower shop." Steve perked up, face relaxing more into a smile.

"The one and only. You been by?" Eddie didn't remember actually seeing Steve before.

He'd been shocked to walk in and see a barely tattooed Steve sitting behind the counter. Assuming he was the secretary, he'd said he was here for an appointment with the guy in charge, and Steve smiled and explained who he was.

"I haven't. But someone brought me a bouquet you made when I first opened and it was beautiful. Managed to keep it alive and thriving for almost two weeks, which is a record for me, and then someone said it was because of the way you take care of them before they're sold and the minerals you use in the water and I'm turning into Robin. Jesus."

Eddie was endeared.

Steve was looking down at his tablet in front of him, a barely visible sketch on it.

"Is that what you've come up with?" Eddie asked as he leaned over the counter to get a closer look.

They could talk about his love of the bouquet Eddie made later.

"Yeah, but. Now that I'm looking at you...I'm not sure it's right," Steve sighed, closing the app and looking back up at Eddie. "I can redesign at no charge and set up another consultation."

"Can I see?"

"Sure."

Steve pulled his tablet out and opened the picture back up.

It was beautiful, actually resembled a bouquet Eddie had done not long ago for his friend Jonathan.

"It's perfect. Can it be done in one long sitting or do we need to break it up?" Eddie smiled at Steve, pulling up the calendar on his phone to make an appointment.

"Uh. Well." Steve cleared his throat. "I guess you could probably handle the pain so all in one is fine with me? It's probably gonna be six hours with breaks every hour. Are you sure this is what you want?"

Eddie looked at the tablet again, tilting his head as he thought back to when he'd made this bouquet.

"Do you know Jonathan Byers?" Eddie asked, not looking away from the picture.

His eyes focused on the coneflower that he'd only been able to use in one bouquet before his part time employee found out they were allergic.

"Yeah...why?"

"He got you that bouquet, right?"

Steve nodded.

Eddie didn't really believe in fate or destiny or whatever type of miracle people tended to wish for. He also didn't believe in soulmates or the perfect partner.

But wildflowers grow anywhere, and sometimes love can too.

#steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #stranger things #drabble #this is technically more than the one sentence thing but ah well #i kept it short still

[roo-bastmoon]

BTS Tutorial: Stationhead & Renaissance

Stationhead is an app that connects to your Apple Music or Spotify account and allows you to stream music in a community so that every person’s streams count toward your artists’ chart. Supposedly this app can rival radio (it’s early days; we will see).

Apple Music and Spotify both work on Stationhead's web player. 

If a host is playing their songs from Apple Music, and you only subscribe to Spotify, the matching track from Spotify will play through your streaming account. In the same way, a host using Spotify to play music will have songs matched for Apple Music listeners. So it's a great cross-platform tool.

It can be kind of fun to know you’re streaming with hundreds if not thousands of other ARMYs, especially when you are targeting milestones for certain songs and you don't want to think too deeply about how to build a playlist... but it’s not necessary if you want to just stream on your own accounts.

You need to listen to at least 30 seconds of a song on Stationhead for it to count toward charts.

Here’s a short tutorial about how to set up a Stationhead account, but in my case, I will search for BTS and Jimin on Station head instead of Stray Kids (sorry, Stray Kids—I think you’re cool but I’m a loyal hoe.)

After you download the app and set up your profile, I recommend you search for the following communities on Stationhead and join them:

JIMINCHARTSPH

JIMINGLOBAL

JIMINRECORD13

When a live streaming party is about to start, you’ll get a little notification on your phone and you can decide to join. Then you listen to streams. To maximize your time in the first 24 hours of a release, maybe have Apple Music play on one laptop, YouTube play on a tablet, and Stationhead or Renaissance app going on your phone (tethered to your Spotify). It’s free and it doesn’t spam you, it just takes a few moments to set up accounts on these apps.

If you’re still not convinced, here’s a review from a music professional that gets into the details:

Similar to Stationhead, Renaissance is an app that connects to your Spotify account. If you follow streaming accounts on twitter, they will sometimes throw streaming parties on Renaissance and it can be fun to join in and gather collective streams to achieve certain goals.

You download Renaissance from the app store, sign in (I use my gmail account and connect to my premium Spotify). Once logged in, you can search for Jimin, and there you’ll see various streaming parties going on. You click to join, it’ll open your Spotify account, and you can play that playlist along with hundreds and sometimes thousands of others.

It's simply a great way to find playlists and help meet benchmarks with the community, but don't feel pressure. It's just nice if you're engaging in streaming battles on Twitter; gets everyone psyched up.

Some people prefer Renaissance because you can be in control of your playlist (when to stop and start, the ability to count your streams), whereas Stationhead is more like radio, where the host is a DJ and they are in charge. Really it just all comes down to what you prefer and if you're part of communities that enjoy group streaming.

After our artists land on the charts, it's important to keep streaming so their songs have longevity and aren't just flash-in-the-pan, one-hit-wonders. Using streaming apps is a great way to let your accounts count for streams, without having to curate and manage playlists all day long. (But remember, 20 streams of a song, then login to a different Spotify account for it it count.)

Stream on, stream on, stream until your streams come true!

DISCLAIMER:

I am a Dope Old Person and have been ARMY since January 2022. So I still have a lot to learn.

I’m making mini-tutorials for people like me who are comfy with technology but totally new to voting, streaming, and buying Kpop stuff.

If you know of better, more up-to-date information, please comment or DM me so I can make sure I’m not spreading misinfo. Please be polite about it, though—we are on the same team!

Feel free to apply whatever you learn here to other BTS members and other artists; I’m Jimin-biased so I am focused on helping Jimin at this moment in time, but I’m OT7 so rest assured I’ll put my shoulder to the wheel for all our members!

#BTS_Tutorials #jimin #park jimin #face by jimin #jikook #stationhead #renaissance #Youtube

[followingthefanfiction]

Infestation in Uranium 1

The choir was leaving practice. Mischa was texting Talia, Noel talked to Ricky about having another movie night, Constance was silent, as was Savannah. Ocean was at the head of the group, walking with her head held high as usual. Mischa scratched his neck. Stupid mosquitos. Ricky also felt the mosquitos. He couldn’t do much about it though, so instead he just listened to Noel talk about some French movie. 

Suddenly, Ocean stopped. “Uh Ocean? We’re almost at my house…”

“Constance. What. Is that?” 

The group looked ahead to see….. Father Markus? As they looked closer they saw it, on the back of his neck was something resembling a cat-sized scorpion. Constance was the first to react. 

“Father Markus? Are you um… ok?” 

The man turned around and the kids jumped back. The elderly man’s movement was too quick. Inhuman. He didn’t look ok either. His eyes were closed, his mouth agape. He appeared to be dead. However, what stood out to the kids, was the blood on his hands and mouth. The kids backed away. That’s when it noticed them. With inhuman speed, Father Markus charged at the children. The choir split up. Mischa, Savannah, and Ricky dodged behind a house while Constance dashed into her house. Ocean and Noel were left to dash across the street. The… creature seemed to forget about them, flying towards a neighbor of Constance’s. They all froze in their spot. Constance opened the door and everyone jumped, Noel using his hand to muffle a scream. 

��I uh. I guess we caught him on a bad day…” 

Everyone dashed into Constance’s house as the street filled with a strange buzzing. They didn’t want to find anything else weird out here. Constance led everyone down to the basement. Ocean was clinging to her. In the dark, a blush could be seen on Constance’s face. When everyone got down there, a brief silence followed after they sat down. Everyone was still processing the strange events. Ricky scratched his neck. The bug bites were making him sore.

“That… was wack. Like a horror movie…” 

Ricky nodded in agreement with Mischa. He didn’t just watch space movies and porn, he also enjoyed horror on occasion. Savannah grabbed his Speech Tablet without needing to be asked. He appreciated that about her.

[ZOMBIE. MOVIE. FEELING.] Said the Ricky through the clunky speech tablet.

“Yes. Zombies. Definitely.” Mischa said, running his hands through his hair and scratching his neck nervously. 

“This can’t be happening! Father Markus can’t move with his cane! He is WAY too slow to charge at us like that! Also! Zombies do NOT exist!!! CORPSES CAN’T COME TO LIFE IT ISN’T POSSIBLE!!!” 

“Well than what WAS that Ocean??” 

Noel stood up from the couch suddenly, he was already having a bad day and wasn't about to deal with Ocean freaking out. Ocean kept pacing as Constance tried her best to calm the frantic teen.

That’s when they heard the screaming outside. Something dawned on all of them in that moment. They really didn't know what that was. However, they realized that whatever it was, it was going to be a problem. Ricky scratched his neck. Mischa was the first to speak.

“We should check outside. It’s quiet, maybe things are.... Less crazy.”

Everyone looked at each other. Sure, it was the right thing to do, but they also had watched horror movies before. 

“Just go upstairs, we can look out window. I’m not stupid.”

After a moments hesitation, Constance agreed. It was the right thing to do. 

#rtc #ride the cyclone #ride the cyclone the musical #ride the cyclone Au #rtc au #mischa bachinski #mischa rtc #ricky potts #ricky rtc #ocean o'connell rosenberg #ocean rtc #constance blackwood #constance rtc #noel gruber #rtc noel #noel rtc #jane doe #jane rtc #Infestation in Uranium

[jasmariswonderland]

Shining Hearts Chapter 10 ~ Metamorphosis

Chapter 1 |  Chapter 2 |  Chapter 3  |  Chapter 4  |  Chapter 5  |

Chapter 6 |  Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 |  Chapter 9

Chapter Summary: After coming together to rescue one of their own, Danica wonders if her team can come together once again to do the unthinkable. 

Word Count: 7939

Warnings For This Chapter: Violence, kidnapping, slight blood and mentions of Vidaria’s less than stellar past.

~~~

The evening had become surprisingly foggy, to the point it was difficult for the girls to make their way through the forest. But Iman explained that this was a tact of fae native to where Vidaria was originally from, a world which itself was cloaked in mists that kept it hidden from the rest of the world. And they had planned accordingly, Yuulan and Taima ventured deeper into the misty forest, with the latter using her unique magic to clear the fog for as long as they could. They also possessed the most skill in physical combat and along with Grim, would confront Vidaria’s assailants head-on if needed.

Iman, Danica, and Ione each went in separate directions so in case they ran into any students or faculty, they could have better deniability about what was really going on. Because of the fog, they tried to stay close and before setting off, the girls had made a visit to Sam’s shop to pick up something that would come in handy for their plans. Back in October, Ione and Taima had learned of a special mirror pendant that could show the wearer anything they wished to see that could be used as a means of communication.

They didn’t want to risk the sound of phones tipping off the mist fae and of course, Sam had multiples of these pendants in stock. Iman purchased one for each of them, including Grim, along with several vials of potions, a panacea tablet, and three daggers, one made of steel and the other two crafted of iron. The latter of these items raised the concern of the normally laid-back shopkeeper.

“I’m not going to ask any questions since I know you five are pretty nice kids who tend to stay outta trouble,” he said. “But what I will say is whatever is going on, please be careful. Don’t go getting involved in something way over your heads!”

Sir, we are about to go on a rescue mission which very likely will involve fighting fae! I think it’s a little too late for those kinds of warnings! T hese were Yuulan’s thoughts, but she didn’t voice them. Instead, she promised Sam that they would be safe and while these purchases seemed suspicious, they planned to use them with only the purest intentions.

“We’ll be fine, Sam! We promise!” Taima grinned. “So don’t worry about us!”

“And don’t forget, charge my personal account for this stuff!” Iman added. “I don’t want my parents to know about this, ‘kay?”

~~~

Meanwhile, four male fae dragged their royal captive deeper through the forest, her hands bound in front of her as she was dragged like a dog on a leash. Her voice was under the influence of a powerful silence spell. They made their way to the cliffs, where Vidaria knew there was a checkpoint to a portal that would take them directly across the sea, back to Briar Valley. Her heart was pounding and tears streamed down her face. Unfortunately, for all her crying, she knew no one was able to hear her.

How many times would she have to endure this? How many times did she have to escape them before she would cease being tormented? By her own people no less. Whatever the circumstances that brought her into the possession of the Draconia’s, Vidaria had accepted her fate. All returning her home would do is exacerbate a violent situation long pacified by her consent to marry Malleus, risking further bloodshed between both of their kingdoms. Was freedom truly worth such a thing? 

Her back tingled with a burning sensation that was her instincts telling her to try and flee, before they took her to a place she wouldn’t be able to easily return to. A place where Iman wouldn’t be able to easily find her. Vidaria didn’t know why she was thinking about this, the last time she attempted to use this escape attempt, it had gone horrifically wrong and had decades long ramifications. Still, it was the only thing she could think of. Closing her eyes, she paused and focused all of her energy on her back and felt the sensation burn with more intensity, exactly what she was hoping for. Her captors noticed she had stopped moving and yanked on the rope binding her. 

“Keep moving, your highness!” one of them barked at her. “There’s no one here to help you so make things easy on us, and yourself and just…wha…WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

He turned around and realized why Vidaria had stopped moving when he saw how her body radiated with a golden glow, bright enough to cut through the mists. A second captor quickly planted his foot into her back, roughly knocking the wind out of her lungs and forcing her to her knees. She fell face first to the ground with the golden glow vanishing from her body. 

“Stubborn girl, but clever no doubt!”

“How dare you?! We were told not to harm her!”

“She was summoning her wings, idiot!” The second captor grabbed her by her ponytail, dragging her back to her feet with one hand and taking the robe binding her with the other. “I told you we should have knocked her out!”

“She’s a daughter of the house of Cherith!” said a third captor. “And the only hope for the Land of Mists! Don’t you think the Draconia’s have traumatized her enough?!”

Then what the hell do you call this?! 

Vidaria suddenly felt a surge of anger rushing like fire through her veins. With all the strength she possessed, she shook her body out of her captor’s grasp. And when he used the rope to yank her back into his grasp, she sank her fangs as deep as she could into his arm, piercing through his clothing and tearing into his skin. The sudden taste of blood filled her mouth as he shrieked and released the rope in a moment of agony. She spat into the ground to show her contempt as well as to get the bloody taste out of her mouth. 

“Your highness, please!” The fourth captor tried to plead with her. “We don’t wish to hurt you, we are trying to save you! You and our kingdom from Draconia tyranny!”

“Fuck being nice! We have a job to do!” The second captor had enough of Vidaria’s resistance and was ready to take a more violent route to achieve their goals. “If she won’t accept her fate, we must force it upon her!”

With gloved hands, he whipped out a pair of large iron chains and lashed them at her, his fatal error. Vidaria jumped back and dodged them with ease, but the sight of the chains caused all the blood to rush from her face as she tried to catch her breath. No, she had seen chains like that before, she could never forget them and in an instant, a flood of horrid memories seized her. Nightmares about a similar encounter in a forest not so unlike this one, a nightmare from her childhood that she wished she could forget and bury in the past forever. 

This captor had just signed his death warrant.

She took several steps back and with all the force her body could muster, stamped on the ground, causing the ground to immediately begin to shake. Her captors tried to get closer to her but she stamped the ground again to increase the magnitude of her quaking spell. Such was the force of her magic that the ground beneath them began to crack.

Her voice was still gone but the fire in her eyes told her captors all they needed to know. The earth crumbled and large pieces dropped and crashed along the rocks along the sea. The second captor who had pulled out the iron chains was the first to meet his demise under the crumbling earth and while his comrades were preoccupied trying to save him while trying not to fall themselves, Vidaria sprinted off in the opposite direction. Back into the forest and back towards NRC. 

~~~

Even from their place several meters away, the girls had felt the after-tremors of Vidaria’s earthquake. Yuulan and Taima quickly ducked under bushes and once the ground shaking had passed, Taima pulled out her mirror pendant to get in contact with Iman and the others. 

“Did you feel that?!” She asked. “The Isle of Sages never gets earthquakes!”

“I know, me, Dani and Ione felt it too!” Replied Iman. “That’s Vidi’s magic!”

“Does that mean she’s still in this area?” Yuulan asked. 

“It must mean that, you guys keep searching on your own, we’ll meet up with you soon!”

Just as Iman said this, she saw a bright golden light cut through that heavy fog. Blinking like a beacon, guiding their way. Her heart jumped and she grabbed Ione’s hand, pulling her in the direction of the light as Danica followed them. 

“She’s here! She’s still here!” 

“What a relief!” Ione sighed. 

“Once we find her, we’ll bring her back to Pomefiore,” said Danica. “Vil thinks we’re rehearsing there late so no one will know about this.” 

Vidaria’s light slowly faded and soon vanished all together, but they continued to follow its direction. The sky was quickly getting darker but the fog had begun to dissipate, making it a little easier to see where they were going. A loud rustling sound forced them to stop, followed by voices that sounded nearby. They didn’t recognize the voices, nor understand the language they were speaking, but Iman heard Vidaria name called and quickly ran ahead. 

“Show me Vidi, where is she?” She whispered to the mirror. Immediately she was shown an image of her friend cowering in a bunch of bushes, biting at the rope binding her hands. Iman had a burning feeling that she was nearby and as soon as the thought passed her mind, she heard another rustling sound. 

“I feel like she’s close,” Iman communicated to everyone else through the pendant. “Everyone stay sharp! If she’s really here that means the mist fae are close too!”

Danica and Ione followed Iman and saw as she crouched into the bushes ahead of them. When Iman didn’t emerge right away, they knew what it meant. Ione came a little closer and in the darkness could see two shadows in the bushes. They had found their companion. 

“Oh, thank Sevens!” Iman whispered loudly as she took one of the daggers and cut through the ropes binding her friend. Vidaria smiled but made several wide motions with her mouth. Iman understood and felt around in her pocket before finding the small red panacea tablet and slipped it in her mouth. “Don’t worry, this will bring your voice back!”

Vidaria swallowed the tablet and wasted no words. “They’re still pursuing me! Please tell me you’re not alone!”

“I’m not, the other swans are with me, Yuulan too. We’ll get you outa here so don’t…”

Vidaria quickly shushed her friend, pressing her hand to her mouth for good measure. They were close, she could sense them and from the place where they hid, she and Iman could see two figures coming towards them. Her heart stopped but she gave a silent sigh of relief when she realized it was just Danica and Ione. Iman was about to call them over but Vidaria pressed her hand harder at what she saw next. 

Danica and Ione stayed close to each other, frequently bushing hands against each other so neither would get lost. Ione thought she heard Iman’s voice but before she could act on it, she felt someone tap on her shoulder. 

And the quick squeeze Danica gave her hand told Ione that it wasn’t her. That’s when her eyes immediately locked with Iman’s, seeing through her and Vidaria’s hiding spot. Ione swallowed a gasp and Iman’s eyes silently begged her not to accidentally betray them, and whatever courage she had gained during the training camp, she would need every ounce of it now. 

“Who are you?” Ione asked the fae towering above them, already knowing the answer. Her voice was shaky as she tried to take on an imperious air similar to Iman. “You aren’t a faculty member. What are you doing on school grounds?”

“Greetings, humans,” he said to them. “I am searching for someone and my search has brought me…”

“That doesn’t answer my question!” Ione cut him off. “Who are you? And how did you get past the school gates?”

“I came through the school gates the same way you two did,” he replied, forcing a smile. 

“You came through the gates?” Ione raised her eyebrow, “In spite of the fact that the gates leading into NRC are protected by magic?”

“A magic that only our headmage knows?” Danica added, joining in on the ruse. “We take it Crowley is aware of your presence on campus then?”

“Ah, yes, Dire Crowley!” The fae grinned. “Indeed I am…visiting him. We are old friends.”

“Hmph, well in that case, you have no reason to be wandering the woods like you are.”

“And what about you, humans?” The fae asked slyly. “Are you not doing the same? What are two hapless humans like yourselves doing all alone on a winter evening like this?” He looked around them, noticing how Ione and Danica’s eyes kept shifting to the bushes where their companions hid. “Hmm, I wonder if all alone is really the correct phrase…”

“Uhhh…I…we…ummm” Ione suddenly hesitated as out of the corner of her eye, she saw Iman and Vidaria slowly moving out of their hiding place. She took a deep breath, she only had to continue this charade a few moments longer. “Sir, we are NRC students, we are far from hapless! And unlike you, we actually belong here!”

“But you’re right about it being cold,” said Danica. “We’ll take you to the headmage now if you wish.”

“After all, for someone claiming to be visiting him, you’re pretty far from his office!” 

Ione did not wait for him to reply before boldly grabbed his hand to pull him away from the bushes. The fae humored her and allowed her to lead him further away but his senses remained locked onto the bushes, looking for any hint that something might be amiss. 

“He’s still looking this way,” Iman whispered to Vidaria. “We might have no choice but to bolt.”

“But Sister…”

“It’s four of us and one of him, and Yuulan and Taima are around here too!”

“Yeah! You guys can’t hide here forever!” 

Grim emerged from behind them, scaring them both. His loud tone was more frightening than the fact he had snuck up on them. He would surely give them away if he didn’t lower it. 

“Hush you blasted cat!” Iman hissed. “We’re hiding from Vidaria’s kidnappers! And why isn’t Yuulan with you?!”

“I told you I’m not a cat!”

“GRIM!!”

“I knew you were hiding something from me!” 

They had been discovered. And just like that, the two other fae suddenly emerged, one from the bushes and another from up in the trees. This had been a trap all along. The one following Ione yanked her away from him but Ione, in a fit of boldness, jumped in front of him. He smacked her to the ground but she quickly got back up, summoning her pen. 

“How dare you?!” Ione ran after him. 

“Out of my way, human!” He snapped. 

He gave chase to Iman and Vidaria but they had begun running off in the opposite direction. Grim was lagging behind them and tried to create a diversion by summoning a wall of blue flames. His fiery magic separated the girls from the fae, but also encircled them and prevented further running. They screamed. 

“Ha! Try getting through that?!”  The cat smirked with satisfaction.

“Damnit Grim! We’re trapped!” shouted Vidaria. 

“Yeah, but he mist fae can't get to you now! And…MYRAH?! What the…” 

“Hmph, pathetic.” The fae scoffed when he made the flames vanish with the wave of his hand. The smug look on Grim’s face quickly melted. “Such unrefined magic.”

“And such futile efforts,” as the flames faded, the other two fae appeared and one grabbed Vidaria’s arm. “Playtime is over, your highness! You’re coming with us now!” 

“I think not!” 

With the force of a strong and violent gale, Taima and Yuulan arrived on the scene, ready to defend their friends. Ione and Danica had caught up to them as well and Iman and Vidaria took the opportunity to run back in the direction of the campus. One of the fae gave chase to them but Grim jumped up on his head and began viciously biting at his face. 

“Uh…at least he’s enthusiastic,” Yuulan couldn’t help but giggle at her cat companion’s efforts, even as her heart trembled at the sight of the second fae towering in front of her, Danica and Ione. She took a deep breath and for good measure, pulled out the dagger she had hidden in her jacket pocket. “I don’t know what you want with Vidaria and frankly I don’t even care!” 

“Don’t make her use that! Said Danica. “Cause what happens next will be on you!”

“You wanna take Vidaria, you’ll have to walk over our coffins first!” Added Ione. 

“Damn, Ione, that’s pretty hardcore!” Yuulan grinned. 

“Uhh, I just thought you guys sounded cool and I wanted to sound cool too,”  Ione smiled a little. 

“Silence! We’ve had enough of this!” The second fae pulled out a large magipen of the likes neither had seen before. “As for walking over your coffins, keep standing in our way and there won’t be anything left of you to bury!” 

The girls squeezed hands and Ione and Danica put themselves in front of Yuulan, being the only magic users of the three. With one fae occupied with Grim and the other fighting Yuulan, Ione and Danica, Iman and Vidaria watched from a distance. Vidaria wanted to help them but one look at her very blotted magipen quickly made her forget that idea. She was already very distressed and didn’t want her unstable magic to cause unintended damage. 

They decided that they would try to run back to campus as soon as they could but when they finally decided to make a run for it, the third of the fae tried to block them. Taima immediately came to their aid, grabbing him by the waist. Despite being much taller than her, she was able to quickly drag him to the ground, a useful skill from her martial arts training. He engaged with her but called out to his two comrades. 

“Don’t let Princess Vidaria escape!” Getting back on his feet and glaring down at Taima. “And you! Stay out of our way and you won’t be hurt!”

“Ha! Implying you can hurt me!” 

She cloaked herself in a protective whirlwind that prevented the fae from getting too close to her. As they fought, she held in her hand one of the daggers made of iron. When her shield began to fade, he grabbed her by the hair and she immediately slashed at his arm. He jumped back, grabbing his arm and Taima took advantage of his current state to deliver another kick to his skull, making him fall again. 

“Now, Dani! While they’re all occupied! Use your unique magic!”

Danica closed her eyes and sang out an incantation that, if done correctly, would render the fae unconscious and magicless. 

“Silenced to my whim, enchanted to your ruin. A cursed serenade, my beloved…”

The fae fighting Grim finally managed to pull him off her face, throwing him against a nearby tree and knocking him out. He grabbed Danica by her hair, also throwing her against a tree before she could finish her spell.      

Yuulan screamed and went to pick Grim up and make sure he was alright. Holding his unconscious body and seeing the fae approach Danica while she was struggling to stand enraged her and she quickly got back up. 

“Ione, hold Grim, give him a potion to help him wake up,” she said before taking out her dagger again and calling out to Taima. “Get him!”

At once, they charged him, sinking their daggers into his back. He screeched loudly, loud enough to deafen them, and turned to Yuulan, smacking her against a tree. 

“Feckless, human bitch!” He grabbed her neck with a violent grip that she quickly found impossible to escape. “Your end is here!”

Taima helped Danica up and they tried to help her but the other two fae blocked them. Yuulan tried her best to break free but she quickly found herself becoming lightheaded as she struggled for air. But her eyes were becoming heavy and soon she couldn’t feel anything as her vision went black. 

“MYRAH?! Oh no!” Grim had regained consciousness and gasped at what he saw. “Yuulan! No! He’s going to kill her! Ione, we gotta do something!”

But Ione stood frozen, terrified at what she was seeing. She knew fighting fae would be far from simple but it astonished her how quickly everything was going wrong. Their magic was on a whole different level compared even to the third year students and she briefly wondered if she could ever acquire enough magical skill to be even half as proficient. Looking around her, she saw that Iman and Vidaria were nowhere to be seen and she prayed that they had somehow made it to safety. 

Yuulan…he’s choking…no! He’s going to kill Yuulan! But what can I do? I can’t fight him! I’m not strong enough! No! I’m never strong enough! Worthless weed! Worthless weed! 

“No…”

Ione was weak, she was awkward and her existence in this world had only ever brought others misery or cruel amusement. She was the weakest member of Danica’s VDC team and she had been powerless all of her life. She wasn’t like the others, she wasn’t stylish and she wasn’t cool and she certainly wasn’t strong. And on top of all of that, she was apparently stupid because here she was, watching one of her classmates being choked out and all she was doing was standing there, stupefied and afraid. 

“No!” 

Yuulan is going to die! Worthless weed! Worthless weed! 

She squeezed her eyes shut as they overflowed with frightened, angry tears. No, she couldn’t let this happen. Ione couldn’t be a worthless weed now. 

Worthless weed! Worthless…

“NO!!!”

She screamed, dropping Grim as her entire body felt as if it were ablaze. Something strong and powerful was coursing through her, magical energy unlike any she had ever felt before. It was pulsing and relentless, demanding her to act on it. 

“LEAVE US ALONE!!!”

As she spoke these words, several large roots unearthed themselves, grabbing Yuulan’s assailant and his companions. Yuulan was released and she immediately began gasping for air as Grim gaped at her and Ione. 

“Ione! How are you doing that?!”

“I don’t know!”

“What?! What’s this?!” The fae seemed just as shocked and confused by Ione’s sudden new found sorcery as Ione was summoning it. “Unhand us! Vile roots!”

But the roots would not relent and Ione quickly abandoned her shock at what she had done and began using it to her advantage. She pointed at the fae with murderous intent and more roots answered her call, coiling around them like large snakes. 

“I don’t know how I’m doing this, but it doesn’t matter now!” 

With her fears melted away and her confidence in full bloom, Ione directed the roots around their necks. And with incredible force, the roots dragged the fae screaming and thrashing, squeezing tighter around them. They would soon get a taste of what they had just put Yuulan through. 

“Choke them! Strangle them! See to it that they never try to harm Vidaria again!” Ione spoke to the roots, demanding them to destroy the fae, and giggled as she saw them fall under the influence of her new, spectacular magic. The others watched her with equal parts surprise and awe. “I told you to leave us alone! It’s your own fault for not listening to me!” 

Soon enough, the fae were rendered unconscious and the roots released them, leaving them on the ground lifeless and limp. Grim cautiously threaded over to them, smacking them with his tail to ensure they were not responsive, and grinned when he realized they weren’t. 

“That was awesome!” He shrieked. “So, awesome! Ione! I never knew you had magic like that!”

“N…neither did I…” Ione replied, down from her powerful high and gazing at the result of her magic. “What…how did I…”

“You can contemplate that later!” 

Iman and Vidaria had stayed close to keep the fae away from the campus. Now they reappeared to reunite with their friends. 

“That was amazing!” Vidaria smiled. “Thank you, Ione. Whatever magic you now have at your disposal, in this moment, it was our salvation.”

“Never in my life did I imagine you’d have it in you, Wallflower!” Iman grinned. “And the way you spoke to them! That was so courageous! I told you, you have a lot more to give and for once, you gave a thousand percent to this situation!” 

“Come on, guys!” Danica started heading in the direction of the campus, looking over her shoulder at everyone else. “Let’s get out of here, soon before they regain consciousness. IF they regain consciousness!”

“She’s right,” Taima followed behind her and the others soon followed suit. “Let’s get back to Pomefiore.”

~~~

Danica brewed some of the herbal tea Violetta had given her and offered it to Vidaria. She drank it slowly, breathing deeply in and out as her mind and body left survivor mode and she realized that she was truly out of danger. Soon enough, the blots on her green magestone faded, and they would all be safe.

“I’m sorry, everyone,” she said. “Forgive me for putting you all in such a harrowing situation. It was bad enough that Iman had to endure that over winter break. But you all, no one should have to go through what I’ve gone through.”

“You’re talking about this like this was your fault,” replied Taima. “From what Iman told us, you’ve been dealing with terrorists from your homeland for years.”

“It’s my fault for trying to come back to Ramshackle on my own,” Vidaria shook her head. “I went back to Diasomnia with no trouble, but Malleus…he…we got in a quarrel with Lilia because I gave my VDC passes to Silver and not him. Malleus also wasn’t too keen on me being in the VDC either so this just made him even more upset and in a fit of frustration, I ran out of the dorm and wasn’t even thinking! I just wanted to get out of there! I wasn’t thinking, I wasn’t thinking at all!”

“Vidi…” Iman could see the tears coming and she placed her arm around her friend. It was all too much for Vidaria and she quickly buried her face in Iman’s chest, weeping as Iman stroked her hair. “It’s alright, Vidi, everything’s alright. You’re safe now.”

“No! I’m not! This is only going to continue until I marry him!” she looked up at her friend with glittering eyes. “And who knows? This may even continue well until our coronation! I’ll never be safe! Never!”

“Vidaria,” Ione spoke up. “Why would those fae not want you to marry Malleus Draconia? I thought he was crazy-powerful. Wouldn’t it be good for your kingdom too to have a…”

“Ione, hush!” Iman hissed, not wanting to see her friend further distressed. But Vidaria gazed at Ione with sympathy.

“It’s a very long story, but the short version is this: a long time ago, our kingdoms were at war. But once they came to a stalemate, it was decided that the eldest princess of one of the kingdoms would marry the eldest prince of the other, thus uniting them. And that prince and princess are…”

“You and Malleus…” Danica sighed. “Yes, we understand now.”

“But there are some in my kingdom who don’t want peace, they think they can still defeat the Draconias and so every few months, they try to take me as leverage to end the current ceasefire. I have to be under constant guard because of it! I can never be alone, I can never travel without escorts, I can never be normal!”

“So that’s why Lilia wanted the Diasomnia students to stay here,” Taima said. “To protect Vidaria.”

“It gets so tiring!” Vidaria cried. “For as long as I can remember, I’ve been trapped in this arrangement with Malleus, unable to do anything about it lest more blood be shed between our nations! I wanted to join the VDC because I thought it would be fun and maybe, just maybe, I could have the experience of a normal girl! But I couldn’t even have that without them targeting me! It’s a nightmare I’ll never wake from and what’s worse, there’s another person I want to marry, and guess what? It’s not Malleus Draconia!”

“WHAT?!” Iman gazed at her friend with shock. “Vidi! You never told me…”

“What is there to tell? It doesn’t matter anyway! He’s a human for one, and whatever my feelings are on the matter, I have to marry Malleus to keep the peace between the fae nations! The fact that I’m in love with another counts for nothing!”

“But what about Malleus?” Yuulan asked. “It might be possible that Malleus loves someone else too. Couldn’t your two kingdoms come to some kind of understanding that doesn’t involve a marriage of state?”

“I don’t know what is in Malleus’ heart,” said Vidaria. “But he is not in mine, and sadly, this situation is past the negotiation point. I will be the next queen of Briar Valley, and I am powerless to change that.”

“Powerless…”

Danica had been listening to Vidaria’s lament but had little to say, instead, she listened and began to wonder for what reason did Sidonie hate her so much. Vidaria was in a remarkable situation that she probably did not ask for and she couldn’t help but feel sympathetic. And her profession of feeling powerless made Danica further wonder if they were really so different after all.

“You’ve gone through so much,” she went on. “But the fact that you are still here is a testament to your strength, Vidaira. You’re far from powerless.”

“I wish I could believe that,” Vidaria sniffed. “I gave up believing I was strong a long time ago. What I am is stubborn. I don't want to die. I still wish to live even when it’s very painful. That’s not strength.”

“Yes it is!” Taima said. “Cause it means you haven’t been broken yet! It means you can’t be broken!”

“For once, I agree with Taima,” Iman nodded, giving Vidaria another hug. “Vidi, you are one of the strongest beings I’ve ever known, person or fae. And you can’t let those bastards take that from you.”

“We shouldn’t let anyone take that from us,” Danica sighed. “You aren’t powerless Vidaria, none of us are. We all worked together to help you. And Ione realized her UM, we aren’t powerless.”

“My UM?” Ione looked up at Danica. “UM? You mean…my…my…unique…”

“It’s the only thing that it could be,” Danica replied with a little smile. “Congratulations, Ione. You’ve found your unique magic!”

“WHAT?!” Ione’s jaw dropped, looking at her magipen and then at her companions. “My unique magic?! Really?! I…I…”

“Yeah!” Iman grinned. “Way to go, Wallflower! You’re already ahead of more than half of the freshman!”

“And even some of the sophomores,” Vidaria smiled in spite of herself. “I haven’t discovered my unique magic yet either.”

“I can’t believe it!” In an excited fit of frenzy, Ione began jumping up and down saying it over and over again. “My unique magic! My unique magic!”

The others congratulated Ione and for the first time since they began the VDC training camp weeks ago, Danica could see true camaraderie between her teammates. They had come together to help Vidaria, set aside their differences, and now they were truly getting along. Even with all that happened that day between her and Vil, she couldn’t help but feel a giddy sense of joy. And at that moment, she was feeling extremely bold.

“We can come together when we need to,” she said. “And when we do, we can do incredible things.”

“We are all pretty incredible. Aren’t we?” Taima smiled. “All of us, even Iman!”

“What’s THAT supposed to mean?!” Iman asked, laughing.

“But we should all be as incredible as we can possibly be,” Danica continued, with a little sigh. “And we shouldn’t have to hold back how incredible we are, not for anything, or…anyone.”

“Hmmm?” Taima noticed the look in her friends’ eyes and her interest was piqued. “What do you mean, Dani?”

“I’m done hiding, no more hiding!” With new confidence, she stood up and called for everyone’s attention. “Guys, there is something important I need to tell you all. It’s about our performance for the VDC.”

“We’re listening, Danica,” said Ione.

“First, I want to apologize to Iman. She was right when she implied I wrote our song because of Vil-san. I did, and the lyrics reflected how I felt about him at the time.”

“No need to apologize, Danica,” Iman smiled. “It’s been two years now, I’m sure your feelings have matured. Now that you’re older and you know him personally.”

“ Were, not are,” Danica hung her head with sadness. “What my feelings were. But after today, after several weeks, I don’t know if I can honestly say I still have those feelings anymore.”

“Vil-san has been pretty hard on you,” Taima said. “And half of the time, he’s mean to you for things that aren’t even your fault. I feel like if he knew how deeply you cared for him, he would try to be nicer.”

“Weather he would or not is no longer relevant,” shaking her head. “Whatever you guys think of Sidonie, she has been my biggest support in Pomefiore. Forcing her off the team was the final straw for me. I can’t abide by his wishes anymore in good conscious.”

“What were his wishes?” Iman asked.

Danica hesitated, she felt her heart beginning to race as she thought about how to answer her. She was standing at a crossroads now, and very close to a point she would not be able to return from. The river’s current was flowing fast and unrelenting, and what she said next could very well determine whether she would find her way to safety, or drown altogether.

You cannot fight the current, cherie. And you cannot fight what you truly know in your heart to be right.

What I know in my heart to be right…yes…what I know to be right…

“I…I’m not sure I can explain this in words,” she said at last. “I think it’s better if I just show you, and then you guys can decide if you agree with me.”

~~~

Thankfully, Farron was still awake and was more than happy to let Danica into his studio so she could retrieve what she was looking for and make quick alterations.

“Farron, before you return to your room, do you mind coming into the ballroom with me? I want you to be there when I show this to the others, but I also want to ask you something afterward.”

“Oh? Is it something you can’t ask me right now?” He asked as he removed the last few pins.

“No, but you’ll understand when we go to the ballroom.”

Farron thought this odd, but cheerfully agreed and took Danica’s hand as they walked back to the ballroom where Yuulan, Grim, and her four remaining teammates were waiting for her. Immediately, Iman gasped as her eyes took in the stunning black stage outfit Danica was wearing. Taima squealed with delight, reaching out to touch the black feathers adorning the bodice, and Vidaria and Ione also made their approval very clear.

“Such a beautiful dress,” said Vidaria. “Elegant and sleek, I love it!”

“Me too!” added Ione. “I’m not sure I would be able to wear something like that, but it suits you very well, Danica!”

“See? Why can’t we wear something like this for the VDC?” Iman asked. “I love this a thousand times more than what we’re currently wearing!”

“Farron is an amazing tailor, no doubt!” Vidaria agreed, “But I feel like that is more suited to our style. Our song, maybe not, but if we were…”

“That’s the point!” Danica cut her off.

“Originally, Danica had a whole different song in mind for the VDC,” Farron said, smoothing out the fabric of her skirt. “And together, we designed this outfit to match.”

“Well okay then!” Iman nodded. “Why couldn’t we do that song?”

Danica sighed, her face suddenly becoming warm with a mix of embarrassment and fear.

“For that song, Taima and I also created choreography to go along with it. I showed some of it to Vil-san and he hated it. Well, hate might be too strong a word but he certainly disapproved. He said it was too sexy and he didn’t want me being provocative on stage.”

“Seriously?! So that’s why we’re stuck with what we have now?! Because Vil-san was afraid of OTHERS slut-shaming us?! What you’re wearing is not even all that racy!”

“It’s more flirtatious than provocative!” added Vidaria. “But flirtatious doesn’t always mean trashy!”

“He didn’t even want us to be flirtatious!” Danica sighed. “He compared this situation to the black and white swan and how I needed to remain a white one. He said we should all be sweet and graceful white swans instead of alluring and bold black swans. He’s worried if we…no…if I were too provocative, public perception of me would vilify me as a black swan forever. And I would never be able to break from that role or be anything else.”

“Oh, Cygnet…”

This was the first time Farron was hearing any of this. While it initially surprised him when Vil told him to design a whole new outfit for Danica, he had no idea how deeply this all ran. In her eyes, he saw sadness and the inner conflict of someone creative being forced to be something they weren’t. A conflict he knew all too well. He softly placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her while the others listened. But Iman let out a loud scoff.

“Merciful sands, I thought we as a society had progressed past such ideas!” she said.

“What do you mean?” Danica asked.

“Where I’m from, the only people who have such backward ideas about girls are bitter old men way past their glory days!” she went on. “I’ve heard some of the things Vil has said about gender, so I thought he’d be above such ideas too!”

“It does seem a tad unfair,” Ione admitted. “Even though I like our song and costumes, it seems a little hypocritical considering the boys definitely look appealing when they perform together.”

“It IS unfair!” Taima added. “And it IS hypocritical! No one is gonna bat an eye at what our boys do! Hell, no one bats an eye at what other boy groups do on stage either, and sometimes they can get very raunchy!”

“But sevens forbid we wanna be a little coquettish,” Vidaria rolled her eyes. “Humans never cease to amuse me with their stupidity sometimes. Why should we have to tailor ourselves based on what stupid people think?!”

“YES! RIGHT ON THE NOSE!” Danica jumped. “That’s EXACTLY what I’ve been thinking since we’ve begun this training camp! I knew from the beginning what I wanted for us! I trust Vil-san, I listen to him for the most part, but this never sat right with me! You know, in ballet, the white and black swans are usually danced by the SAME woman! Why should I have to be one or the other?!”

“You SHOULDN’T have to!” Iman replied. “That’s the point! Why can’t we be a little sexy too?”

“None of you have a say over what you’re doing, what you’re singing, or even what you’re wearing!” Yuulan shook her head. “If you ask me, that is true powerlessness.”

“Well, I’m sick of it! I’ve done everything Vil-san has asked of me, but he still doesn’t see how hard I’m working! He doesn’t understand! And even if…” Danica stopped herself to bite back a few tears. “Even if my feelings were recuperated, it wouldn’t matter because in the end, the black swan is the villainous foil to the white one. And only a white swan is worthy of the love of a prince.”

“I don’t believe that,” Taima said. “And if you ask me, Vil-san has been far from princely! You clearly care about him and yet he can’t even trust you to give the performance you want! You deserve better than this, Dani!”

“The more you all talk, the more I’m inclined to think we should change our VDC performance to be more like what we ALL really want!” Iman replied.

“There is just one issue,” Danica sighed. “We have literally eleven days before the VDC and if learning new lyrics and choreography weren’t enough…” She turned to Farron who was looking at her with concern. “We wouldn’t be the only ones who would have to work together on this. So sadly, I don’t think…”

“I’m going to stop you right there, Cygnet,” Farron said, taking her hand. “Let me tell you something that Vil said to me during my freshman year. He told me, when something calls to you, you can never forget it. No matter how hard you try, you will be compelled to answer that call sooner or later,” he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.  “You are an amazing performer, you have a clear vision of what you need to do to win the VDC. Vil means well but this time, he’s clearly in the wrong and I can’t ignore how unfair he’s been to you. I will help you in whatever way I can.”

“But Farron…”

“All my work for the film research club is finished for the time being and anything that comes up, I can just give it to the other freshman.”

“And I’ll help him!” Yuulan stood up. “My sewing skills still need work, but Farron has been helping me improve so it’s only right I help him now!”

“Thank you, Yuulan,” Farron smiled. “See, Cygnet? Yuulan and I will create new outfits for your black swan quintet. Outfits that will be just as gorgeous as yours!”

“Black Swan Quintet…” Danica murmured, smiling to herself. Yes, a fitting name, she couldn’t have thought of a better name herself. “Yes, Black Swan Quintet! That’s what we’ll be from now on!”

“So…does this mean what I think it means?” Ione asked.

“Yes, Ione,” Danica grinned, her power had returned at last. “We are changing our performance! We aren’t even going to tell Vil-san about it! He will find out the day of and by then it will be too late to turn back! We’re still going to win the VDC, but we’re going to win on my own terms! In my own way!”

~~~

It was easy to convince Vil that they had spent the rest of the evening rehearsing and he said nothing when they returned to Ramshackle later than usual, too preoccupied with his own thoughts to really give any extra to what was quickly happening right under his nose. Much later that night, when it was time to return to their rooms for bed, Danica called for her teammates to come to her room where she played Guilty Kiss for them for the first time. If they were eager about changing their performance before, they were ecstatic now after hearing the fun and catchy electro beat and profound lyrics.

Danica decided that she would change the lyrics slightly to better highlight her current dissatisfaction with Vil, and how in spite of everything, she still cared for him. The new version of this song would be titled: Guilty Heart.

The following morning, after the boys left for rehearsal and they were alone, Danica showed off some of the dance moves she and Taima had come up with for the song and Iman was especially excited about them. Vidaria and Ione on the other hand were warier but Danica assured them that she would tailor their performance to suit each of them and that they would mostly have to focus on singing.

“I believe Iman, Taima and I are the best dancers in our group anyway,” she had told them. “So I think we will have the most intense choreography and what I give you guys to do will still be lovely but not as involved.”

After weeks of dancing and learning to dance, it was surprisingly easy for everyone to shift to the new choreography Danica made for them. And there was something to be said about how their new enthusiasm made learning their new performance all the easier. For the first time in weeks, Danica was beginning to truly feel confident again in what she was doing.

Meanwhile, Farron and Yuulan worked on the new costumes. It was easier to do this since Farron’s studio was off limits to most other students and Vil was out of the dorm most of the day except for rehearsal with the NRC Tribe. And when Vil was around, they simply placed their work back in the closet away from sight, going right back to their work the second he was gone.

“Such a shame though,” Farron said to Danica one day during a fitting for Vidaria’s costume. “I do like the white costumes I made. Even if you guys don’t end up using them.”

“Honestly, I like them too,” Danica admitted. “I just don’t like what they’ve come to represent. But maybe once this is all over and done with, we can find a use for them. Maybe for next year’s VDC if we decide on a sweeter performance concept.” She giggled. “Wouldn’t that be rather ironic?”

“I think as long as it’s something you actually want, it shouldn’t matter what your concept is.” Yuulan said. “Who cares if it’s ironic?”

“You’re right, Yuulan,” Vidaria smiled, looking at herself in the full mirror, admiring her costume. “But I really love this dress, and I hope…” quietly. “I hope he likes how I look too.”

“Oh?” Danica looked up at her. “Who? You don’t mean Malleus-sama do you?”

“I don’t,” Vidaria winked. “But that’s a secret only for me!”

The hardest part of this transition was that they were still expected to continue practicing their original performance. Since Vil still had no idea of what was going on, and Danica did not want him to get any ideas, they still devoted time to perfecting Our Happily Ever After. So even if they practiced Guilty Heart for two hours, they still devoted at least the same amount of time to Our Happily Ever After . This was especially important since Vil would soon be giving them one final evaluation before the VDC and a lot was riding on this one.

If Vil could be satisfied with their performance, then it was likely he might let Danica off the hook for a little while and not be as involved in their progress. Making their ruse easier to pull off. And that evaluation came a few days later when Vil gathered the girls in the Pomefiore ballroom to see their progress. They were fully dressed in their white costumes and in spite of practicing two very different songs at the same time, they were determined to pass their final evaluation. And Danica was determined that after today, she would never sing Our Happily Ever After ever again .

~~~

#twisted wonderland #twst fic #twst writing #twisted wonderland oc #twst oc #shining hearts ~ melodies and melancholy #things i write #IONE GETS HER UM IN THIS CHAPTER!!! <3 <3 <3

[morfanerina]

Spirit Games

Chapter 2/?

AO3

Prev - Next

The setup was reasonably creepy for the purpose. Leo had found some candles and matches while Donnie and Raph arranged the space so all the turtles could be seated in the middle of the room with the board in the center. Mikey had some crayons and found some paper sheets mostly blank. They had considered using the tablet but Donnie had feared them breaking the one piece of technology their dad got them to help their studies. Not when he doesn’t have materials to fix it yet.

The way out was cleared of everything in case they needed to escape (Raph’s demand) and a couple of spoons (Mikey’s suggestion “as spoons are silverware and silver is bad against monsters so it can protect us!”) were in between Raph and Leo.

Leo took charge. “Donnie will be the one writing the stuff, I’ll ask the questions and-"

Mikey interrupted “No fair, I wanna ask the questions!”

“Nope, I called it first!” Leo stuck his tongue out.

“The rules only suggest one ‘medium’ at a time, Leo isn’t the only one able to make the questions,” Donnie stated. The softshell was squinting, adjusting his glasses and then trying to find the best place to put the candle so he could see what he was writing and the board.

Seeing the incoming bickering Raph piped up “Leo can start and then later you can ask your questions, ‘k Mikey?” seeing his brothers frown at each other he feared they would complain but instead they nodded at the suggestion. The snapper then added nervously. “Are you sure we should be doing this guys?”

“Raph, big bro, even if ghosts did exist, Dad gave us the game,” Leo pointed out, looking annoyed. “You think Dad is going to give us something dangerous?” There was a beat of silence as the four turtles remembered the weapons fiasco that resulted in Splinter confiscating said weapons for a day. And then returning them to their place, easily accessible to mischievous hands.

None decided to point that out.

“I’m convinced, the faster we start the faster I can return to my reading,” Donnie sat down on a pillow, the rest following the example.

Leo and Mikey immediately put a finger each on the planchette and looked expectantly at Raph.

“... fine.” the snapper reluctantly put the tip of one finger, not really wanting to touch it more than necessary.

Clearing his throat, the slider awkwardly started. “Is anyone there?”

Nothing happened. Leo looked at Donnie, who shrugged. “This says to turn clockwise to ‘start it up’ then to try again.”

They glided the planchette clockwise, asked the question again and waited a couple of minutes.

“Well this is expectedly disappointing,” the softshell drawled but before he could put the paper down, the planchette quickly slid to ‘yes’. The three turtles at the board looked surprised.

“Huh. Er. Hi,” Leo greeted, unsure how to continue. He wasn’t expecting any of his brothers to actually force it to move. Mikey was almost vibrating in place with excitement while Raph paled. “So. What’s your name?”

The planchette moved to the center and then slowly spelled out the name Andy. Leo glanced at Donnie in confusion and continued asking questions, from the supposed spirit’s age to silly questions. Mikey occasionally piped up with questions about some hobbies or events. Eventually, the planchette went to goodbye.

“That was. An experience.” Donnie said, wondering who of the three had created a ‘ghost’. By Leo’s face, the whole thing was unexpected and he was the most skeptic after himself. Raph had panicked and struggled to not throw the wooden piece away the whole time so probably not him. Mikey then. “Well, I think it’s time to finish,”

“No!” Mikey shouted, eyes practically sparkling. “I wanna speak again. Maybe it will be a super old, wise one next! Or Lou Jitsu himself!”

“There’s some time left until bedtime,” Leo threw in, though he was mostly curious to see why the planchette moved this time and if he could catch it.

“... Very well,” Donnie acquiesced, curious for the same reason.

Raph seemed uncomfortable “Raph thinks Raph will stay out this time guys. Raph will just. Stay here. Not touching.” He shivered. The whole time he had the creeps even if he had partially relaxed partway, it was still a ghost talking! A dead person! How were his brothers fine with this?

Mikey and Leo settled down again.

“Is anyone there?” the planchette went immediately to ‘yes’ “What’s your name?”

They waited. Leo shivered as a cold feeling made his way down his shell, a heavy feeling curling in his chest. Raph shifted, looking to the side with an anxious look “Does it look darker to you guys?...” he whispered.

The planchette moved but didn’t stop anywhere.

“Guys? What’s happening?” Mikey’s voice trembled, a pit on his stomach as the wooden piece moved in an infinity symbol pattern.

Leo looked stunned and was silent so Donnie said “You are probably moving the planchette around. Just take your hand off.”

“Didn’t the rules say to never take the hands off without saying goodbye?” Raph asked, eyeing the closest candle as it flickered.

“Scoff, as if that would make a difference,” Donnie grabbed Mikey’s arm, stilling him and taking off his hand from the wooden piece. The box turtle gave a surprised whine as the pattern didn’t even falter and Leo looked at them in shocked horror. 

“Right. Right. Goodbye!” Leo said, and he was going to move the wooden piece to the right place when Raph startled as the candle’s flame flickered and tried to grab at the silverware, accidentally pushing the slider to his side and making him let go.

The candles went out.

“DADDY!” Mikey shrieked. In seconds the rat mutant appeared and turned on the lights to see Mikey clinging to Donnie, Leo sprawled on his side and Raph looking terrified and clutching a spoon for dear life.

“What is going on here?” he asked. He took a step inside and blinked as he stepped on a wooden piece. He picked up the planchette and squinted at his sons as they recovered from their scare. The youngest turtle started bawling and crying out for him though so answers would have to wait until he calmed him. And also calmed the oldest that looked seconds away from passing out.

Donnie eventually explained and after ordering everyone but Leo to get ready for bed he sat down next to his unusually silent middle child. “This prank went too far Blue.” 

The turtle rubbed his plastron, still feeling the heaviness on his chest. “... I didn’t do it…”

“You were the last one touching this thing.” Splinter waved the wooden item.

“But I didn’t…”

“I will have to ground you for this. You scared your brothers too much this time.” The rat looked at the board. “I should get rid of this too.” He turned his attention back to his son and stopped what he was going to say when he saw the confusion and fear on his face.

“It wasn’t me…” the turtle mumbled “I wasn’t. I thought it was Mikey .”

“Blue…”

“It wasn’t me.”

Splinter studied the turtle in front of him, trying to understand why he was being so insistent. The slider had a knack to talk his way around punishments but this wasn’t his usual spiel.

“You are forbidden to read your comics for the next 8 days.”

The rat’s certainty in his punishment faltered at the lack of any complaints from his son, who only hid his face between his knees.

“... Go get ready to bed Blue,” he ordered and helped Leo stand up. 

His son quickly got out of the room and Splinter followed silently as he went right to his room, probably to pout about getting caught in his little prank. He would have to explain the prankster’s punishment tomorrow to his brothers.

Before that though, he had to prepare himself to receive two scared turtle tots on his chair for the night.

#rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #fic #rottmnt fic #morf's fic ideas #I'm trying to remember to put this to tumblr and I'm always forgetting rip me #turtle tots

[loosestitchescomic]

Love the comic!! I was wondering if you have any tips for people who want to get into digital art? What program do you use?

Hope you have a good day :D

oOF so that's hard cause it's been kind of a really long journey and a lot of the stuff I've picked up has been from watching youtube, looking stuff up, and only recently a few classes here and there. So I don't have any TIPS but I CAN walk you through my digital art journey, if you will. (also if you don't wanna read this all: I use Clip Studio Paint Pro, and a Wacom Intuos Pro)

SO. my first tablet was a cheap, tiny square thing that cost 30 dollars and connected to my labtop via a usb cable. It only lasted a few years. It was a Huion drawing tablet, don't know what kind but a brief search shows they're still selling tables for around 30-50 dollars and they look WAY better than the one I started with. so if you wanna start digital drawing but don't wanna buy a super expensive tablet at first in case you don't like it, I'd suggest Huion.

NEXT I used a free digital art program called Fire Alpaca for a while, and since I was new to digital art I didn't really need all the fancy brushes and options that expensive digital art programs had because I just needed to familiarize myself with the basics first.

After a while I wanted an upgrade, but adobe products are super expensive and slowed down my cheap broken laptop. Eventually I ended up finding Clip Studio Paint Pro, which I bought for like 40 dollars (I think it's 50 dollars now) and has been my faithful companion ever since. It helps that it's made specifically for digital illustration/manga creation too, since I like making comics.

somewhere along the line my Huion tablet started sporadically cutting out and losing pen pressure so I asked my mom for a better one, since I'd proven that I was serious about digital art, and I ended up getting a Wacom Intuous Pro for christmas (also a tablet without a screen, I've found from using others ipads that I kind of hate screen tablets haha)

WHICH SURPRISED ME cause I thought they were WAYY too expensive. That's the tablet I still use today but I wouldn't suggest buying it, the charging port broke multiple times and after the warranty expired there wasn't much I could do about it, so I had to switch to using the wireless option and charging the battery via a different battery charger I bought on amazon and the whole thing was very annoying and BAD, I made do cause I can't afford a new tablet but the charging port breaking is kind of a big fucking deal :/ \

anyway thank you for your interest and giving me the chance ot ramble haha

AH SORRY I THOUGHT I POSTED THIS THE DAY I GOT IT. My bad i saved it as a draft instead haha.

#loose asks #not comic #long post

[tinyspringtrap]

ugh I’m still upset about this stupid fucking drawing tablet

rant incoming. gets personal. life shit. its not really about the drawing tablet.

I hate this stupid fucking thing so much. I’ve never before in my life had something give me an actual, genuine meltdown, but this tablet??

every time I try to open this thing and give it a chance it just pisses me off - half because of the tablet itself and half because... I pretty explicitly said I didn’t want a drawing tablet, and then I got one anyways :/

and it’s not even one I would pick out - it’s fucking horrendously overcomplicated, has too many fucking buttons on it for a drawing surface, it comes with a bunch of random pieces that I cannot figure out what the hell they’re supposed to do - AND. AND. the charging cord. plugs into the right hand side of the tablet. where I would be drawing. who the fuck designed this piece of shit? I would never willingly buy this thing. I don’t NEED ~*professional grade*~ I just need something that functions and isn’t stupidly overcomplicated.

It’s not a very good gift if the person explicitly says they don’t want it. Idk. call me ungrateful or w/e if you want but the tablet combined with the fact I also got a coffee maker (????) just kinda. further made me feel like people don’t really care a lot about what I wanted. 

it’s... not a new feeling. and I don’t get it, because pretty much everything on the wishlist I sent was cheap and/or something I would have gotten real use or joy out of. I don’t think I got a single thing that I actually... enjoyed, in any capacity, from my mom or grandparents. meanwhile I bought things that catered to what they enjoyed - they might not have /needed/ any of it, but they were all things based on what they enjoy and/or wanted. like it’s just.

it’s like they went out of their way to get me things I explicitly said i didn’t want. like it would have genuinely been easier to just. buy a small handful of the plushtoys i wanted - it would have made me a lot happier too. I don’t need or like expensive gifts.

I think it really says a lot when my narcissistic aunt who I can barely stand to be around because she’s fucking terrible got me a better, more thought out gift that fit with the kind of things I actually wanted.

You know what she got me? a 20$ mug with a cat and a funny saying on it. and that was a far more enjoyable gift to open then half the things I actually received from my mom and grandparents. 

I’ve asked now for so many years in a row to NOT get pajama pants because I literally have too many and I keep getting them anyways. shirts would be nice, some pajama shorts/capris for summer would be super useful and appreciated because I literally have like 1, maybe 2, pajama bottoms for summer

sometimes I wonder why they even tell me to send them a list anymore, it’s not like they buy anything I would actually enjoy having. and it’s not like it’s 100% stuffed animals or anything either?? like I have underwear in there that i like, that would be cool and rad and helpful to receive. I have mugs and kitchenware that I like - I have shirts that come in my size, I have bras that come in my size in there.

but i keep getting things that I have never shown interest in or have outright verbalized disinterest in.

and like. I expected that from my grandparents. it’s been pretty clear for a while now who the favourite grandchild is. it’s no secret that my grandpa hates my biological father with a burning passion and its pretty obviously effected his view on me my entire life.

but idk, it just kinda hurt in a whole new way to have my mom be so clearly dismissive of my wants too. 

you’d think i’d be tougher after being emotionally and psychologically abused for more than half my life by a shitty excuse for a stepfather but here we are.

really wish he would have just beat me more instead of fucking with my emotional and psychological wellbeing. at least if he just beat the shit out of me more I might not be as deeply convinced I was undeserving of love and incapable of trusting people to have genuine good intentions when it comes to wanting to know me.

also if he’d beat me more often I might’ve been able to get someone to actually help me maybe instead of being laughed at by a guidance counsellor for opening up about the incredible levels of abuse because ‘hitting your children occasionally isn’t abuse’ 

anyways. listen. listen it is such a small fuckign thing, it’s such a small thing but receiving one of the items on my list just once would make me so happy. it would make me feel heard. it would make me feel like my wishes mattered and i was deserving of the things i want. it would make me feel like ppl cared about what i want when i have been told for so many years that they dont. 

I hate that my mental health is so ruined. I hate that I will never get over any of the shit i was told time and time again as a child about how i dont deserve things and im subhuman and dont matter. i wish i could juist function mentally like a normal person who hasn’t been abused god i wish i could i really do.

but this shit sticks with you, forever. I’m never going to get over it im never going to be able to escape it all i can do is try my best to deal with it. i shouldnt fucking have to. i shouldnt have to fucking suffer for the rest of my life because someone decided to emotionally and psychologically destroy a child but i do.

#sassy says #personal bullshit #long post #personal shit #mentions of child abuse #the tablet is the catalyst for way too much thinking about how my wishes and desires have never mattered to people who it should matter to #//sigh// #venting #its one of those days lads. #its just one of those days #just needed to scream into the void a little #i wonder if he's dead yet i really wanna piss on his grave whenever he gets one #idk its less about the tablet and more about the blatant disregard for my wishes concerning it #im genuinely never going to use this thing. #its not something i would buy of my own volition #its literally everything i hate

[bugznews]

Dear Journal, Friday, April 19, 2024

I am officially having a sneeze attack. I think that it is my allergies going haywire again. It is so early in springtime that you would think that I wouldn't be struggling with them this soon. It is going to be a rough season for me. I mean I know that I have them year around but this is plain out crazy.

I did something cool. I got Hulu added to my Disney+ application. Now I can watch even more shows. Plus, my mom can watch the shows that I don't like. It is a win-win situation. They even have the Pikachu movie that I never got to see.

I know that it is still important for me to do this blog. Because I want to be there for all of you. No matter how bad my back hurts. Even though I am at the end of my rope with it. But there is nothing that I can do until I see my physical therapist.

I am not sure what I am going to do today. It is too cold for a bath. My mom can't drive anywhere because she just came off working for five days. So we can't go anywhere. That means I will be in the land of boredom for the rest of the day. This never is a good place for me to be with my mental health.

I did do something to help keep me healthy. I charged up my smart watch and started tracking everything again. It did not work on my old phone but now it is working just fine. But my old phone was really old. So that might have been part of the problem. Plus, it can tell me when I have messages. That is nice so I don't have to look at my phone a zillion times a day.

I think today it is important for me to get my meditation done and just rest. My back is acting up and I can't move as much as I would like to. I would love to be able to clean up the house right about now. I will admit that it is a mess at the moment. But I know at the same time my health is more important than a messy house. I am what is important not whether my house is up to snuff. I understand all of those individuals who struggle to do simple tasks during the day.

Whether it is because of physical or mental challenges. For me, it is a little bit of both. I also understand what feels like when you succeed in something. Just getting this blog done makes me feel like I accomplish something each day. Sorry, my acid reflux is going off. That is what I get for drinking coffee. But it was so cold this morning that I had no choice.

I am also trying to focus more on my mental health. Mainly by doing mediation on Serenity. I don't know what I would do without it. But I am sure if you need to you could write your mediation if you wanted to.

After this, I am just going to play video games along with meditation in the background. This is how I do mediation because I can't keep my hands still any other way. I have severe ADHD that gets in the way. I always have to be doing something with my hands. I can't even sit still during church. Instead, I take my tablet to play on.

I wish you could see my cat she is lying on my mom's lap. It is probably the cutest thing ever. I am just going to leave those two alone. Besides I have this blog to finish for the day. I believe that the lord gives us struggles that help us become more like him. He doesn't do this because he is mean but because he loves us. So I know that my struggle with my back won't last forever.

But for right now there is a lesson that I need to learn to make me more like him. I am just a diamond in the rough and he is slowly polishing off all the dirt. He is doing the same thing with you. In the future, you will not even recognize yourself. And if you believe in a high power the same thing happens.

I just wanted to share some thoughts with you. This helps me with the many hours of being stuck in the recliner. Sorry, the landlord was knocking on the front door. So I had to get the laptop off of my legs. Get out of the recliner. Then stand up. Talk about a lot of work. For just one slip of paper. I could have so lived without having to get up.

The worst part is that I pulled the muscle in my back once again. My mom is exploring a new Hulu application. She is having so much fun. I just want to laugh out loud at what she is doing. I am sorry that I didn't really tie this to mental health. But I felt the need to share this part of my life with all of you. I wanted you to know that I am just like you.

Now if no one else interrupts me everything will get done. Then I can just rest the rest of the day. I just want to feel up the whole page on my computer first. I don't like leaving things undone. That is just not my style at all. I work hard on anything that I put my mind to doing.

Even if everyone stops doing it. Now my mom is distracting me. Oh god everyone hid she found the show called MASH. Now I won't see her the rest of the day. Peace and quiet is finally here. Now maybe I can actually concentrate on my blog and video games. Did I mention that Hulu has no commercials? Maybe she will surface in time for dinner. I am currently watching my favorite Law and Order show. I like the one with Jack McCoy. He is awesome. Now I am a little worried about my mom. She has definitely found a new obsession. Oh dear, what have I done? I hope you all find something that helps you relax. I would love to hear from you. Just please leave a comment on my blog. Have a great day.

#mental health awareness

[sarah-dipitous]

Hellsite Nostalgia Tour 2023 Day 335

Our Father, Who Aren’t In Heaven/The Haunting of Villa Diodati

“Our Father, Who Aren’t In Heaven”

Plot Description: a revelation from the demon tablet sends Dean, Sam, and Castiel on a search mission in hell, where they have a surprising reunion

Would I Survive the First Five Minutes??: probably not. I just don’t think I could keep up my customer service persona after god killed every one of my coworkers

This is Sam’s first relationship in like…seven? years? Let him make some mistakes

Please tell me…why would you send Cas to get Donatello?

“Do you have the power of god?” Donny, you’re asking the wrong questions. Do they have the power of anime on their side??

Donny has the only rational reactions to Team Free Will’s shenanigans

I have a sad feeling that Donatello is not long for this world after they used him to find Chuck’s weak spot and Chuck decided to use him like a bluetooth speaker

Oh! He was spared for now!

I can’t believe they’re even remotely addressing the whole Adam thing

Why does hell look so much better this season than any other season?

ROWENAAAAAAAAAAA!!! She’s in charge of hell now??? I love this for her. She’s a vision and an absolutely terrifying ruler. I’m so happy for her

Thank you Roro for telling Destiel to fix their relationship

I’m weirdly glad Michael and Adam have each other. It might become a problem, but for now they can commiserate together

Dean being supportive of Sam and Eileen 🥰

Oh, if Michael and Lilith team up though…THAT could be interesting and fun

Aw man! He just vaporized her…these arch angels and their daddy issues. He just wants Chuck to come see him instead of being fetched to go see Chuck

Castiel has such a terrible habit of playing with fire and archangels

Dean’s so mad that Michael lets Adam be his own person much of the time

Cas…why?? Oh. To force Michael to see the truth about Chuck

Oh…oh, Michael “I’m not even the only Michael” he was so loyal and so betrayed

Dammit, the whole case Eileen was following was just Chuck

THEY HAVE TO GO BACK TO PURGATORY FOR AN INGREDIENT FOR THE SPELL TO SEAL CHUCK AWAY?! And of course it’s Cas and Dean who have to go…this show, I swear

I hope Adam gets to ride Michael’s coattails into heaven eventually. I want him to live a decently long life, and I don’t want to see Michael get killed this season because I really need this to be good for Adam

“The Haunting of Villa Diodati”

Plot Description: Lake Geneva. 1816. Lord Byron and the Shelleys plot a night of telling ghost stories. But as the Doctor and friends arrive, the Villa proves to have ghostly presences all its own

Didn’t the Doctor mention Mary Shelley at the end of last episode?? I’m glad they’re following through (i really said ‘we probably won’t get that episode’ silly me)

Graham…how can you mix up Mary Shelley and Jane Austen??

I don’t know how the Doctor really expected a bunch of artistic minds in their late teens to mid twenties to be acting on a stormy night in a gigantic house

(I’m curious if anyone’s gonna get too excited and slip that they’ve met Lord Byron’s now infant daughter in her future (Ada Lovelace))

The gossip going around this room as they dance, damn

The Doctor is playing fast and loose with the rules SHE laid down

Spider creatures. It had to be spider creatures…

People are being incredibly sus

I’m not saying you CAN’T have a character reveal (somewhat abruptly) that they’re harboring crush, but maybe don’t do it if there should have been build up because the crush is on your show’s protagonist. I dunno, just a thought

Oh Ryan!! Trying to impress Mary with his poor piano skills ❤️ she IS charmed by it, so there’s that

Not spider, skeletal hand

Byron..you should not have literal skeletons in your closet

I love the friendship between Yaz and Ryan. It’s so purely platonic

This house IS evil, and it’s turning against everyone in it

I love the Doctor shooting down Byron’s flirtations at every turn

Not to try to preemptively connect too many dots, but what if this figure Percy’s been seeing and now everyone sees is the lone cyberman the Doctor is supposed to steer clear of?

Oh my god I was RIGHT?!

Oh that’s so smart to use the lone cyberman in conjunction with the author of Frankenstein

Oh it’s not FULL full cyberman yet

The skeleton?? Is the skeleton part of this still? No, the cyberman is after Percy…well, can’t win them all

Why does Percy have magical powers?? Why would the cyberium give him non-cyberman-esque powers??

See, we’re rounding out the second season with these four and we’re just now getting our first “one death creates a ripple effect that means you won’t be born” episode?!

Having Mary (honestly, it was only a matter of time before we got a Mary on this show) confront and sympathize with the cyberman was a nice touch

Get wrecked, Byron. I’m glad Miss Claremont is no longer in love with him

#hellsite nostalgia tour 2023

[eristic-kaleidoscope]

HyperextENDing | E.N.D. | Trial 5-5 | RE: Jae-min, Akito, Adrik

"First of all, you're not killing any of those three right now,"

END just glares at Jae-min from across the bullpen, apparently taking the threat a lot more seriously than Akito himself is.

"I may not be able to stop the sisters from executing a killer, but I can still hold my own in a fight if I have to, and I'm not letting you murder someone because you're too damn impatient to find out if you're right. And that goes for everyone else, too--if you start throwing fists or whatever, I'm stepping in. Shit's already tense enough as is, we don't need a lot more of that.

If it turns out it is him? Then go hog wild, I don't give a shit. Just keep your ass sat down until we're sure."

She bounces her leg, checking her tablet with one hand as the other rests on the bump in the coat she's wearing for a moment, as if she's trying to double check the positioning. This is all so confusing, and she hates it. Why couldn't the problem be as simple as a mechanical issue? If an engine starts having errors, she can simply follow the parts that aren't firing quickly and figure out what needs to be done. This is all so much more complicated, and it's very outside her wheelhouse. 

"Even if the taser only has one charge, the charger was with it too, yeah."

To prove her point, END brings the charging cord out of her pocket to show it off as well.

"I dunno a reason for the pillow to have been burned by the taser aside as possibly a test yeah, as Erik A suggested. Either way--Any idea of how long it takes for this thing to charge, Erik A? An also already showed off the spot where she was tased, unless you have some other reason to think of checking An, who I assume is the 'certain someone else' unless you're being cagey for some reason.... I dunno. They're not a huge brick shithouse of a person like Jae-min, they're gonna go down pretty effectively, if I had to guess.

As for the thermos.... I would like to point out, that it's not the first time we've seen it, either. Maybe not everyone did, but-- It was left in the 'A' office once that floor was opened up. Not only that, but I know that that wasn't just something stolen from Akito's apartment as a clue because Byrne was able to identify it as belonging to Akito. That investigation is also what led to it being dented, so sorry for that. I will say, when we left it there, it was missing when we came back. I assumed that Akito's group came back for it, but I guess one of our hosts could've swiped it then--but the point is, it was at least already in play as it were, before this whole frame job."

She rubs at her face a bit, thinking things over. It feels like they're spinning their wheels at this point, making no progress. Akito, no it's Erisu, no back to Akito, no back to Erisu.....

"I guess with Jae-min's vouching, I could be more inclined to think that Erisu was Az-8, sure. I'm still not one hundred percent sold, because I do have to wonder a few things-- If Az-8's mother ran from the program, taking the time to get rid of anything that could be used to follow her easily.... Why would she let her child still be easily recognized as Az-8? It's not like hair color is a hard thing to change, and while Erika names are a dime a dozen these days, why would she keep it instead of changing it when running away? There's also the receipt that was mentioned, for hair dye and eye drops to make your hair blonde and eyes green. So I guess what I really want to know there is what possible reason would you have to keep that up in a fucked up experiment where people are dying?"

Dimly, she's aware there's the distinct possibility that it's a false item, and Akito doesn't use them, but she's not going to voice that and give him an out. 

"To Jae-min's point as well--ultimately, while I do think we need to take this chance to figure out as much as we can, at the end of the day someone murdered Erisu. An was taken out with a taser, and I don't think it was Calluna--she could tase Erisu remotely if she'd been watching, as was said, and beyond that could have just gotten AION to intervene if need be. On top of that, if she did do it and got found out, by her own experiment rules she'd be killed, and I don't think she's dumb enough to risk that when they're so close to what they need.

So that leaves someone else, who had access to the red floor. And bud, you're still looking pretty guilty, since as far as I can tell, no one has any evidence that can point to a single other person involved in this. Sure, it'd be a tight window for you to go from the library, to the red floor, to Erisu, back to the library.... But that only assumes you started in the library in the first place. I'm not really sure I buy that you were there? If you're investigating this whole thing, and that alarm wakes us all up at six am, you're just going back to looking at files? And then just take pictures of them, when the place wasn't locked off, so you could just show Adrik later in person?

But Calluna wasn't watching cameras, so someone else was. If you did, and you saw the start of the fight, then it just means you had to grab the curtain, find something that could feasibly prove your innocence, such as pictures that conveniently put you on either side of the murder, and then run out to get Erisu. Erisu wasn't killed in the lobby, there was a clear amount of time between her assault on An and her ending by the elevator doors.

Also, I don't really get your logic--you wanna say that this morning's events spooked them into making this false flag operation, but like.... That's really not a lot of time to do it. So either they would've had to have planned to kill their own sibling from a while ago, which An is clearly adamantly against, or else this caught them off guard." 

END drums her fingers along the top of her ruined podium. She doesn't like sitting still, so this is a fine excuse--

"Calluna, An, mind if I get up to come and check that tablet of his for those pictures? If someone else wants to check they can too, I guess, but I wanna see them for my own eyes instead of relying on just a testimony from his partner."

Calluna gives a nod to that! "

"You may for that purpose, though anyone else who feels the need to leave their spot to check would require their own permission."

END nods in return, and steps from around her podium to go and check Akito's tablet--or phone, as the case actually is. She gives a few glances to it, before heading back to her own spot. The whole time, she is carefully watching all three of the people in that section of the circle for any signs of danger.

"Okay, so Akito does have pictures of files on his phone, and they are marked for 12 PM and 12:30 PM, respectively. However, they're of Kaguya's satellite and facial research, and our host's collab efforts on the VR tech... Absolutely neither of which is remotely new information, so I can't imagine why he'd save them to share with Adrik, when especially Kaguya's stuff was openly discussed a while back. Do with that what you will, I guess."

#END #chapter5 #trial5 #submission

[bestbuyozau]

Top Gear Picks Backpacking Gear Reviews & Tutorial

Whether you might be watching 4th of July fireworks, or camping out by the lake, these cool gadgets for camping have extra pockets than you’ll ever want, and table room for even more. If you love toasted sandwiches and tenting, then you'll love this cast iron sandwich maker. You’re going to really feel like you just sat down at the bar if you order up a hot sandwich. Fire is one of the most necessary tools for survival, and the flexibility to start out a fireplace on short notice can generally imply life or demise.

Keep ‘em wrapped up together, and safely packed away from kiddies palms with this polycotton roll up 5 piece utensil set. Complete with a 12cm campfire knife, a sturdy oak spatula, fork, and spoon, and stainless steel grater, this set has all of your tenting meals coated. If you’ve ever skilled condensation inside your tent, you’ll know it could put a damper in your sleep. The repair is a tent fan to keep your tent breezy instead of stifling and scorching.

When we hit the trail, that is the equipment we feature in our packs. Unlike the CleverHiker Gear Guide, the place we highlight a broad range of outstanding decisions, this web page is where we discuss our personal favorites www.bestbuyoz.com.au. Of course, you can add far more to this record, relying on what you intend to be cooking and how many people you’re cooking for. If you’re after simplicity, simply look for an excellent tenting cooking set that comes with every little thing you’ll need. A liner in your sleeping bag provides further comfort and warmth in much the identical way your bedsheets do. Not only will a liner help to extend the quality of your slumber, nevertheless it additionally plays an important part within the yucky enterprise of keeping your sleeping bag clean.

These helpful little multi-tools are full of every thing you may need in your journey, all neatly packaged in a compact and foldable device that is sufficiently small to fit in your pocket. Including instruments similar to a knife, small saw, screwdriver, bottle or can opener, scissors, cutlery, and even pliers, these sorts of tools can be an absolute lifesaver out on the highway. If you’ve ever packed towels to go in a suitcase, you know the way much space they take up. So we determined it wasn’t a good idea to hold five ordinary bathtub towels on our travels. A battery isn’t precisely low cost camping tools, so the worth was a major consider our selection.

The complete system breaks down to five super simple to clean parts that neatly retailer away inside themselves. One of the best outcomes of this new regular we're all living has been the possibility to rediscover nature. Where I would sometimes be filling in my calendar with journeys to new cities and good dinners around New York City, I've now been backcountry tenting and climbing to new watering holes. I've all the time liked nature and being surrounded by greenery, however I never actually knew the extent of this outdoor person who was someplace inside myself .

This five-pound charging machine is nice for weekend warriors. The Yeti 200x holds 187 watt-hours of power to rapidly juice up your telephone, laptop, tablet, digicam, and different gadgets. And identical to all that tech, the Yeti has a rechargeable battery. Power up at home in four hours or in the area with a appropriate photo voltaic panel.

If the climate is good, you'll have the ability to take away the rainfly and let the no-see-um mesh maintain pesky insects at bay. We also love the overhead Light Pockets, which use a light-diffusing fabric to create a delicate glow at night time. With a high record worth, this 2-person tent is clearly not aimed at the common camper. But for serious adventurers who want a tent they'll hand around in for days when climate will get tough, the Hubba Tour 2 is value each penny. The intensive array of cool tenting gear that’s out there now, more than 30 years later, would have blown our minds. Wet socks are good for preserving toes heat in moist weather, and are additionally great to wear on cool nights when you’re tenting.

[lasclsilicon]

Outlook for mac 2019 download

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Was having an issue with a Google account that seemed to be an Outlook issue. Never wrote a review before today though. Every email platform has its plusses and minuses, for me Outlook has always worked better than other options. Have used Outlook forever on various platforms. So, Microsoft, if you would just fix this issue that only exists in the macOS app store version of Outlook, I'd love to increase your rating to 5 stars. It really is unfortunate to read important emails later than I otherwise would because I don't see that there are unread emails in my inbox until opening an app window. I've verified that this is not an issue with my settings, by double, triple, and quadruple checking that badge notifications are turned on.

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But on the macOS app store version, even though I have my settings configured to give Outlook max notification priviledges and badge notifications are turned on, badges don't update until I open the app - then all of the sudden I'll see the red circle letting me know that I have 6 unread emails. When I used Outlook downloaded directly from Microsoft's website, and on my iPad and iOS Outlook apps, notification badges work perfectly well. For some reason, notification badges (the little red circle that pops up on the apps icon when there are unread emails) doesn't work in the macOS App Store version. There is one issue, however, that makes me rank it four stars instead of five. I would absolutely recommend this app to anyone who asked.

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I use it to manage multiple email accounts, and it's wealth of features and integration with other Microsoft 365 software keep me using it. Outlook is an absolute powerhouse of an email client. By installing the app, you agree to these terms and conditions. See “License Agreement” link under Information.

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Please refer to the Microsoft Software License Terms for Microsoft Office. Data provided through the use of this store and this app may be accessible to Microsoft or the third-party app publisher, as applicable, and transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States or any other country where Microsoft or the app publisher and their affiliates or service providers maintain facilities. This app is provided by either Microsoft or a third-party app publisher and is subject to a separate privacy statement and terms and conditions. You can manage your subscriptions in your App Store account settings. Microsoft 365 annual subscriptions purchased from the app will be charged to your App Store account and will automatically renew within 24 hours prior to the end of the current subscription period unless auto-renewal is disabled beforehand.

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Unlock the full Microsoft Office experience with a qualifying Microsoft 365 subscription for your phone, tablet, PC, and Mac. Please visit: for information on Licensing Terms. Microsoft 365 is a cloud-based subscription service that brings together premium versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneDrive, with the best tools for the way people work today.

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Outlook for Mac works with Microsoft 365, (including Hotmail and MSN), Gmail, Yahoo Mail, iCloud, IMAP, and POP accounts.Ī qualifying Microsoft 365 subscription is required for this app.

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Set your meetings to always be Teams meetings and give some time back to everyone setting them to start a few minutes early or end early.

Make most of your time, plan meetings, check availability, track RSVPs, and share your calendar.

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[pugpugpusheen]

the past few days have been very hard parenting wise. i'm trying to teach little niece to take care of herself, meaning not neglecting to brush her teeth, brush her hair, take a shower when she needs to, and most importantly eat. my sister and i have told her that for her to get access to her tablet she must brush her teeth, brush her hair, and eat breakfast before i give it to her. it's taken away from her before i go to bed. so far she has been doing good, but a few nights ago she got mad and said that she's only doing them to get the timer taken off her ps4 account (she has a timer set for an hour and 30 minutes of play time). i told her that this wouldn't have had to happen had she been taking care of herself.

for context she is 8, about to be 9 on july 1st. she doesn't understand natural consequences it seems and, a habit from her father, tries to blame everybody BUT herself for what happens to her. my sister and i have been trying to break her of that habit and give her more responsibility in doing things for herself.

even though my sister is her biological mother this has mostly fallen on me as sister is at work and suffers from chronic back pain so i tend to handle child rearing with older kids and little niece. think of it as she is the good mom and i am the bad, making sure they do their chores bad mom.

anyway today was hard. little niece wasn't hungry when she came out so i decided to give some leeway and told her that i would set a timer for an hour and half and when that timer goes off she has to eat. she replied back that i should've been doing that in the first place. i took this to mean that she's learned nothing about eating when she needs to eat and instead expects me and sister to prompt her when to eat and if we don't she'll just not eat. it frustrated me to know that she's not learning. four hours go by where she's on her tablet and now she's trying to get her tablet to charge, but the tablet is messing up and none of our chargers will work on it unless it's flat. i tell her that she needs to take a break from the tablet to let it charge. she fights back that she wants to keep using it. i message my sister and sister agrees she needs a break. so i tell her that her mom said she needs a break. she tries to fight back, but there's really nothing she can say and instead goes off to our room to watch tv. she hasn't eaten since breakfast, which was four hours ago, so when she comes back and asks what youtube account she uses i ask her what has she not done. she says eaten. i ask her if she should do that and she asks if i can make her ramen. sister has been wanting her to eat less ramen so i suggest chef boyrdee or chicken nuggets. she says she doesn't want those. older niece happened to be making pancakes so i tell her that if older niece is feeling really nice she could ask her to make her pancakes. older niece agrees and gives her a pancake.

things are going good until i take the kids to walmart and five below. at walmart i let little niece choose a pair of slides because her other ones were too small for her and i know she loves wearing slides. we leave and on the way to five below and i tell them that older niece and nephew can pick one thing from five below. little niece asks why can't she get something and i tell her because i bought her slides. this annoys her so much that she spent the whole car trip complaining about not being able to get something and even making comments that she didn't even need slides. it was so bad that older niece told her she was being ungrateful. we reach five below and as we step out of the car she's still complaining and i lost my cool and snapped, "why aren't you thankful i got you slides?!" this caused her to start crying so i tell the older two to go inside the store while i stay out with little niece. i tell her that she's not getting anything at five below because i bought her slides. why is she not thankful i got her slides. i let her cry and try to calm down before i tell her to tell me what upset up. she tells me that i yelled at her. i told her i didn't. she said it sounded like i did. i tell her that i didn't mean to sound like i was yelling, but i was just very frustrated with her not being thankful i got her slides. she says she wanted to get something at the store because she has nothing to play with at home (this is a BIG LIE. she has plushies, the ps4, and can watch tv in our room). again, i tell her i bought her something already so she's not getting anything here. she then says that she was going to use the money she earned from doing chores to buy something.

how we do chore payouts. every two weeks when sister gets paid the kids get paid for their two weeks worth of chores. little niece did one (1) chore out of the previous two weeks so she earned a dollar.

i explained to her how chore payout worked because she thought because she did two chores this week she would get two dollars. i told her she would get those two dollars next time sister gets paid, but for now she has one dollar.

little niece seemed much calmer now so i hugged her, apologized for scaring her, and told her my intentions are never to scare her. we found a slinky for a dollar so she got that.

i was hot, thirsty (i bought a peach tea), and had a growing headache by the time we left.

thankfully after we got home and onwards things have been calm and none of the kids fought me on doing their chores. i took some ibuprofen and took a shower, which helped my headache a lot. little niece has been chitchatting with me and just

parenting is HARD. you have to make sure these kids are becoming responsible and caring. but the hard times make the moments where they're being silly or just wanting to chat with you worth it. i'm not a biological mother, but i wouldn't trade this for the world.

this post grew to be very long and it's mostly about my frustrations with little niece, but she's a sweet kid when she wants to be. she's just the wild child of the three.

#personal post #parenting

[dinesenkronborg73]

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About two years ago, in the midst of all the rumors that Google was on the verge of releasing its Google Phone, the world's biggest Internet company why don't we down by releasing instead an OS for mobile cellphones. It's called Android. And since then, phones that employ Android as their OS have been well-coveted. The HTC Tattoo is often a GPRS and Wi-Fi enabled handset, allowing the users to access the Web based. Through GPRS, you require to take the support of network companies in order to access the Internet. On the other hand, Wi-Fi facilitates you to obtain unlimited access of Internet at the Wi-Fi covered places. Websites can be surfed on its browser that supports HTML text. Nhl 20 Free Crack , MMS, Email and IM end up being the messaging features of this nice device in which to stay in touch with sweetheart. Through Bluetooth connectivity you can transfer info to other compatible devices wirelessly. Moreover, this device can link with other gadget through USB data cable via USB connector. The Android has a free of charge app for just about anything, including real-time translation with voice recognition. Granted, most of folks will organic this involving an application, free or not, it's still there if anyone needed in order to it. I know I find myself creating an online business more and more from my BlackBerry. I check out scores of games, look at stock quotes, check email, look up store locations, etc. Everyone is moving to some more mobile platform to lift information on the fly. This is not new news, however the Apple iPhone has an awesome way simultaneously the "actual internet" as opposed to the watered down version internet sites we get now. It's a matter of the before lots of phones, hopefully BlackBerry, may have the websites the way they should be viewed. I realize I'd prefer to look at sites online as well I view them from my PC and I would personally spend somewhat more time within the web from my phone, essentially could view sites because of this. Nhl 20 PC Game is coming to more phones in the not to distant future and element more time on the online market place. Again, another free Android app that does precisely what its name says. This app even allows you to view predictions for previous days (so you can check your own home horoscope was accurate or not). When you are into this form of thing, which I'm not, this can be your best option. All I can say could this be app functions well and appears great. As much as the content goes- you be the judge! This handset is famous for its smart looks. As well as physical size of 112 X 56.2X 10.35 mm and weighs around 135 grams. Found on 3.2 inches of TFT LCD display screen with HVGA resolution count of 320 X 480. It comes inside addition to accelerometer sensor to facilitate auto rotate function. The trackball navigation is definitely an added advantage. In addition to Shop Savvy another great shopping application is by a company called Most widely played Download. They developed an absolutely free Android application called My Coupons, as well as tremendously raised for the a person savors is an excellent saving money when each shopping. Nhl 20 Setup makes it possible which will get coupons for shopping and also helps discover free meal deals in any given group. Cashiers can scan barcodes that been released on the display is great screen relating to your phone a person have option to print it from the local home computer and the idea the way most coupons are being used. For the money saving conscious consumer and eater this unquestionably among really free Android applications. Is that convenient and super awesome, or turning out to be just plain creepy that Google possesses the potential to poke and pry into every aspect of your life-time? Is it just an Android tablet or does it look world domination?

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[dragonbleps]

I think I will get my jammies on, wash my face, brush me teeth, finish the dishes, then make me some Peppermint tea that I bought today and watch some videos uwu

Maybe I will bring my laptop upstairs to watch in bed so I can lay down when im tired

#missy rambles #i really need to charge my tablet so i can use that instead of my phone or laptop

[immersed-in-mischief]

Prince Charming (Loki x Female Reader)- Part 2

I was too excited to wait any longer before posting part 2! This part is pretty long but it didn’t feel right to split it anywhere. Over 3k words! 

Summary: Things with Chaos begin to develop pretty quickly now that Loki his preoccupied with is new girl.

Warnings: none, just fluff 

 "Nice of you to join us, Sleeping Beauty!”

10 minutes late. Chaos had certainly accepted the challenge, alright. The sun was already peeking through the building outside your window when the two of you called it a night. Could it still be calling it a night when it wasn’t night anymore though? You had lost track of time in the shower replaying the conversation over again. The lack of hot water quickly brought you back to reality and you grabbed the closest outfit you could reach and threw your hair up in a bun as you raced to the conference room. You noticed Loki giving you a confused stare from across the table. He pretended to pay attention while typing a message out to you from his tablet.

L.Laufeyson: You’re staring off into space and grinning like a mad man. Stop it. It makes you look creepy.

You rolled your eyes and stuck your tongue out at him when Rogers turned his back to face the screen.

Who are you calling creepy? I know you only pay attention to the parts about hostile takedowns. Maybe I just really enjoy 7am mission briefings. You don’t know me as well as you think you do Mischief!

When Tony shared a look between you and Loki from his end of the table, you both put the tablets down and made a better attempt to pay attention. You tried to quietly hide your yawn. Maybe you could sneak in a nap later since you hadn’t actually gotten a wink of sleep.

Over the next few weeks, you not only talked to Chaos every night you weren’t away for a mission, the two of you had begun to exchange a few messages throughout the day as well when you both weren’t busy with work. Since you weren’t really hanging out with Loki much anymore, it was a welcomed distraction. You had come across him on his phone on several occasions with his book carelessly discarded somewhere nearby. He always seemed to get frustrated with you when you interrupted his reading so this girl must really be special to him. One afternoon, you swore you heard him sigh after putting his phone away. It felt like a punch to the gut. If he even noticed that you hadn’t had one of your movie nights or dinners together in nearly a month, it didn’t seem to bother him. It just gave you more excuses to return the flirtatious advances from Chaos. You couldn’t say that you were really fighting it all that hard though. It may have started out as a distraction, but it felt really good to feel wanted by someone again. Being head over heels for your best friend, coworker, and pretty much roommate makes dating kind of difficult.

With Rogers away on a mission, you cut training a few minutes short to hurry back to your room. A huge grin slowly spread to see the light in the corner of your tablet flashing. Even though it was hard, you resisted the huge to check the message and made yourself shower and change first. Once you were changed into your pajamas for the night, you curled up on the corner of the sofa in your room and slid the screen on.

Dove, I know you won’t see this until late this evening, but I didn’t want to wait another second to tell you that I truly missed our talks the last several nights while I was away. I’m anxiously counting down the minutes until you arrive home from work. You’ve quickly become my favorite part of my day

This guy knew exactly what to say to make you swoon. Part of you was glad he couldn’t see how often he made you blush. You noticed the message was sent just before you returned to your room and Chaos was still logged in.

What if you didn’t have to wait until late this evening?

The fact that he was immediately responding made you smile. Although it was foolish to believe the guy would be staring at the computer waiting for you, it still gave you butterflies when he was so eager to talk to you.

I’d say that’s the best news I’ve heard all day. Not that I’m not excited to see you online, but don’t you still have a few hours of work left, darling?

Grabbing a blanket off the back of the couch, you snuggled up on the couch with the charger for your tablet placed within reach.

Boss is out of town, so I cut out early today. Curling up at home to watch the rain while talking to my favorite person sounded better anyways 😉

Your secret is safe with me. Rainy afternoons curled up with a good book is on my list of favorite things, though speaking with you might have recently taken a higher position on said list. Would it be too forward of me to say that I would rather spend a rainy afternoon like this by your side instead of speaking through an electronic device?

There it goes again. You feel the heat on your cheeks as you bite your lip to control the grin on your face.

Were you really on a business trip or were you just spending time thinking of things to say to make me blush? Not that I’m complaining really. To answer your question, no it wouldn’t be too forward. I was thinking the same just now actually…

You always know how to make me laugh. Unfortunately, I’m not that smooth. I truly was away for business. I can’t help but wonder now how often I cause a blush to form on your cheeks. Maybe that will be my new mission, though it would not be a fruitful endeavor without seeing it in person. I’m sure it’s adorable

Not that smooth? I beg to differ! The number of times you make me absolutely swoon tells a different story. In order to keep my dignity, I won’t disclose what that number actually is at the moment. Let’s just say you must read classical literature and Shakespeare on a regular basis because it shows. Enough of my blushing and swooning! So, Chaos, if we were to be face to face on a rainy afternoon like this, how would we spend it? Not that I am assessing your dating skills or anything… or am I?

The fact that I make you blush and swoon often is quite flattering actually. I was raised somewhat old-fashioned I guess you could say. I was taught that a woman should be treated as a princess and that anything less is disrespectful. I guess you could thank my mother for that. If I’m being completely transparent, you tend to cause me to “blush and swoon” quite often as well, Dove. The feelings you stir within me make it nearly impossible to not let a smile grace my lips at the very thought of you…

Now that I’m sure I have a blush once again residing on your cheeks, I believe you inquired about my dating skills in a not-so-subtle way… Given the honor to have you accompany me on a date on a rainy afternoon such as this, I would say that a visit to a secondhand bookstore would be in order. I of course have a few around the city I like to frequent already. I would enjoy the opportunity to discover what books captured your attention and compare our favorites. Once we had found a few treasures and picked out at least one for the other to enjoy, we would find a place to sit and converse, just like we do here already. A quiet corner of a coffee shop would be a preferred place of mine. It would give us the chance to people watch as well. We could even make up stories about their lives and what we thought their day had entailed. If you didn’t feel it to be too intimate for such a date, I wouldn’t be opposed to finding a quiet place to curl up together to watch the rain and sit and read together.

I admit that I’m now quite curious, Darling. How does my answer fair in your assessment that you may or may not be performing on my ability to court?

You reread his answer a few times before you remembered that you now needed to write back. How could you be so flustered over….words? Now seemed like a good time to run to the kitchen for a snack. Something told you that you had already decided exactly how you wished to spend your evening.

As you made yourself a hot tea and let yourself imagine what a date like that with him would be like, you looked up to see Nat and Wanda standing there staring at you.

“I’m sorry. What did you say?”

They shared a look before turning back to you.

“Nat, I think our girl just literally floated into the room. She also hasn’t stopped smiling for days now. Could it possibly have anything to do with this mystery guy that you keep dashing away to talk to on your tablet possibly?”

Wanda and Nat laughed as they stood and waited for their answer. Nat was even more forward.

“It’s no secret. You charge that tablet nearly three times a day now. When are you just going to meet him already? You obviously are already completely smitten with each other. It’s written all over your face and if he is making you look like this all of the time, he must be pretty dreamy.”

You willed the kettle to heat up faster to escape this conversation.

“I don’t know. Maybe we will meet up at some point, but things are pretty great right now. What if we meet in person and there is no chemistry?”

Nat came and put a hand on either cheek, holding your head in her hands.

“Sweetie, if this guy was enough to help you forget that you are madly in love with your best friend, then there is zero chance that you two lack chemistry.”

They both laughed at the shocked look on your face. Wanda patted you on the shoulder and whispered as she walked by.

“Yeah, we know about that too. You don’t hide the way you stare at him very well. The only person who can’t see your feelings is Loki.”

Squeezing the bridge of your nose out of frustration, you whispered under your breath.

“Are there no secrets in this building?!”

Wanda seemed to get an idea and turned back around before leaving the kitchen.

“The costume party! That’s how you can meet him in person! Invite him to Tony’s costume party next week. If you don’t feel it in person, you will be in disguise anyways since it’s a masquerade ball! It’s perfect! Your own little fairy tale!”

Just as Nat got excited as well, you put a stop to it.

“Absolutely not! That is so cliché even for you two! Plus, I’m not meeting him for the first time in the lion’s den. That’s just cruel. Get over it. I am not inviting him to Tony’s party, end of discussion.”

“Inviting who?”

Your head whipped around to see Loki standing at the edge of the kitchen. His wet hair formed soft curls against his shoulders and left damp spots on the tight t-shirt that hugged him in all the right places. The sweatpants that hug low on his hips didn’t help stop your breath from quickening. You felt frozen under his gaze.

“Who are you not inviting, Bug?”

Before you could answer, Nat spoke up.

“Her new Boy Toy…”

You shot a warning glare to her before turning back to Loki in time to catch the smirk form on his lips.

“Boy Toy? Is that who has been stealing you away from me? Well then, sit by me tonight for movie night and you can tell me why exactly he is not being invited to Tony’s party.”

“I uh… I can’t tonight.”

He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at you.

“Come on Ladybug. I haven’t seen you in days and we both know we haven’t had a movie night in ages. Don’t you love me anymore?”

You unsuccessfully hid the squeak that escaped at his question. The pout he gave you told you that he was joking and not actually acknowledging the fact that you had been head over heels for him for way longer than should be allowed. Just as you tried to come up with anything at all to say, Wanda covered for you.

“She has a date with the Boy Toy.”

He seemed to accept that answer.

“Fine. But I expect you to attend the next one, Bug. Better not keep the Boy Toy waiting now.”

As he turned to head into the living room, the kettle started to whistle, and you let out a sigh of relief. When you finished making your tea and grabbing enough snacks to not have to leave your room anymore tonight, you turned to face them one more time.

“You two better help me find a damn good costume… I can’t believe I’m going to do this.”

They giggled and high fived as you shook your head. On the way back to your room, your mind drifted back to Loki. It was time to move on. At the mention of you dating someone, there was zero trace of jealously or emotion in his face. He didn’t see you like that and he never would. You had a guy that showed genuine interest in you and freely let you know as well. There was no wondering if Chaos wanted something more with you than a casual chat online. Meeting a stranger in person couldn’t be any safer than in a high security tower surrounded by the Avengers.

You took a sip of your tea and smiled at the flashing light on the tablet on the couch beside you.

I hope your silence isn’t an indication of a poor assessment…

Sorry! No not at all! I just stepped away for a minute to get something to eat. Although it is fun to make you sweat it out a little…

To say I’m relieved is an understatement, Dove. I thought maybe I had made you uncomfortable earlier.

Quite the opposite actually. It sounds like the perfect date to be honest. I’m quite the cuddler when given the chance. In fact, I’m curled up with a blanket and a hot tea as we speak…

Then I shall be jealous of said blanket and mug since they get to cuddle with you instead of me… Since we appear to both have the same thoughts as to what constitutes the perfect date, does that mean you find my skills adequate?

I suppose… 😊

So, Chaos, if you’ve already put thought into the two of us on a date, does that mean that you might want more than just exchanging messages online?... now I’m the one worried about being too forward!

 As the bubbles appeared and you waited for a response, you started to regret being so blunt with your questioning.

Darling, I’ve wanted that longer than I care to admit, so no you are not being too forward. I’ve thought about breaching the subject of meeting you in person for some time but could never gather the courage to do so. I’ve honestly never had a connection with someone truly as strong as I feel with you. Is a face-to-face meeting something you might want as well?

Absolutely. I’ve been nervous to bring it up too. I didn’t want to assume that the connection was mutual and end up embarrassing myself. I’ve made the mistake in the past of letting my heart get involved to find out too late that those feelings were not returned. It’s not something I wish to go through more than once.

Dove, I can assure you that is not the case with me. I assure you that any feelings you may have developed are returned tenfold. I have never seen your face or heard your voice, yet you have my heart… Does this mean I will soon get the opportunity to see the effects of this blushing and swooning you speak of with my own eyes?

That is really good to hear and I guess I need to start hiding such effects now… So … there is a reason for my line of questioning actually…

Oh? It that so? Please continue…

I’ve actually been given an invitation to a party at Stark Tower next weekend being hosted by the Avengers. Since we did meet in an Avengers chat room, it seems kind of poetic that we meet up at an event hosted by them.

It really is poetic isn’t it? I’m aware of the event you speak of though I hadn’t planned on attending. I would be willing to reconsider however if I knew that you were in attendance as well. Is it a masquerade ball in fact, is it not?

Yes, everyone attending is expected to be in costume. If I was not only in attendance, but there as your date, would it be enough to help you reconsider?...

More than enough, My Love.

Well, it’s a date then 😊

It would be my honor, Dove. There is still one matter to discuss. If we are both in costume, how exactly will I know when I’ve found you?

Would it be too cliché to attend as Cinderella and Prince Charming? It is a ball after all.

Not at all. In fact, I find it to be quite a romantic gesture to meet my princess for the first time dressed as her Prince Charming. You deserve to have your fairy tale moment, Darling.

So, it’s settled then. Next Saturday. Do you need me to get you put on the guest list?

That won’t be necessary. You aren’t the only one with connections, Love.

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