#what is it about the moon that just makes it ten million times more exquisite than all other celestial things

[chaashni]

Perfect

Where a breakup doesn't go easy on you but maybe, it was meant to lead you both back together.

Dancer!reader x Makeup Artist!Bucky.

Warnings: First time writing angst! Feels. Some career oriented people. Some bitterness. Hopeful ending. Bucky wears eyeliner in this, beware.

Divider by @

He always reminded you of the moon. Gnashed piece by piece, suture by suture of imperfections all crumbling in beautiful entropy and coalescing together to form something so beautiful, you couldn't bring yourself to look away.

"Pretty, isn't he?"

One of your fellow dancers swooned and gigglednas her eyes wolfishly follow the curve of Bucky's back, his brown hair toppling to the front of his face as he laughs at something one of the cameramen says. You turned to look at your friend, cringing when you found she was already in her practice outfit- those tights and heels adding to her a definition which your loose cardigan and jeans lacked.

You had to change. Clara also needed to shut up about Bucky and his arms, because you were not having any of it.

You didn't want to hear about him. Specifically, you didn't want to hear people talk about how much they wanted him.

"Rehearsals in ten," you murmured, intercepting her speech about how much she wished Bucky would bend her over some equipment stacked away in your crew trucks, maybe some music box or stage prop- and have his way with her.

The fuck he will.

Bucky's the gentleman. The perfect partner anybody could wish for, who respected you and propelled you forward and played your body like a fine-tuned instrument behind closed doors. He was everything you could dream of and more.

So why were you here then?

Broken up, scarred from the scandalizing truth that love isn't enough. You thought about it when your body ran out of adrenaline, broken pieces of the glass of denial pricking your feet, a sheen of tears glossing over your eyes at how empty you felt without him.

You marched up to your trailer, swinging the door open and climbing in. The tinted windows hid what happened inside from the eyes outside, but from the translucent screen, you could see him.

He was just as pretty. Eyeliner slightly smudged from his waterline to the perfect array of lashes, and to the very last bone, he looked exquisite. And he was looking straight at you.

You blinked, sighing as his face remained trained in the direction of your bus, your clothes crumpled over your travel bag. Rory, the makeup artist who had to quit midway through the shows because of a legal mishap back at home, was talking to him. You gave him one fleeting look before pulling your eyes away from him, a haunting burn in your chest as you moved to the other side, ready to change.

Two years. Two complete revolutions of the earth around the sun, more than seven hundred days. If you had to keep a track of all the places you had been to, all the people you had met and of things you had tried, you would mess up at least once. You travelled, danced, and had fun. You had explored, learnt new stuff, had new experiences, made and broke relations. You had experienced growth first hand, you tasted happiness.

So why were you swaying to this tumultuous onslaught of emotions the moment Bucky was back?

You pulled away your cardigan, replacing it with the crop top and tights. You checked a map of the stadium you were supposed to perform in today, the winter fest which would be attracting a crowd of eighty thousand or so and you had to make sure you didn't mess anything up. Nothing could be more important than this, dancing and performing was your priority. Everyone else could go fuck themselves.

Rehearsals and stage balancing faded into a blurry bokeh of people, heels and flashy clothes, your mind infiltrated by a daunting presence in the form of a man whose soft hands and baby blues comprised your world at some point in time, a man you had lost to both of your professions and careers.

With a million butterflies squirming in your stomach, you sulked your way to the dresssing room, a frown etched on your face and fingers threading through your hair over and over again. You tried to replay tonight's choreography in your head, wishing for once your crew was the background for some musician and not the solo performers. Your emotions were all over the place today and you weren't sure of what you would deliver.

The three makeup artists you had with the crew were all bunched up over your friends, all concentrated on whatever they had to do to make you shine. The only difference today was that in place of Rory, we had Bucky, which meant six feet four of pure muscle in place of a petite young lady. It was surprising watching him work sometimes, the most delicate of brushes and the lightest of strokes of the eyeliner delivered from such huge, veiny hands. It messed with your mind back in those days, invoking corrupted images of what those hands could do.

Much to your chagarin, that was something which hadn't changed over the last two years.

Now that you were here, perched at the edge of a stool, legs crossed and fingers knitted together, an overexcited Clara chattering away next to you, you took your time to analyse Bucky. He hadn't changed much either, except for the line of the lighter shade of brown that hung from his temple and caressed the side of his cheek, falling over his eyes occasionally. He looked fit, maybe a tidbit beefier than the last time you had seen him. Somehow even now, his mere presence was enough to lull the distant cacophony of your brain into a comforting silence.

The snap of fingers in front of your face jolted you out of your little dreamscape, Clara's amused face filling up most of your vision.

"Your turn, babe. Got a call to make."

And with that you were rising up, almost robotically, moving towards the one person you had avoided, much like a deer straying from the rustling of leaves. You take your time walking over to the two people, nodding a hello to the others before you look at Bucky.

He's smiling at you. Softly. You don't dare read more into his expression, a familiar warmth bubbling in your chest. It outshines the pit in your stomach, the warm smile his lips lift into prompting yours into curling upwards. You take a deep breath and settle in the chair, trying very hard to ignore your heart beating out of your chest, your face embarrassingly hot and as your ex bends down to put eyeshadow over your eyes, tracing them out with the eyeliner as Josh works on your hair.

There was a time when those rose pink lips would map your face. Now you just had his hands, working on what he did best, prepping you up for your performance. When it was done you mumbled a 'thank you' at the hair and makeup guys, your throat going dry as you caught the look your ex lover was giving you. It was the same look you had given him when he first arrived in the morning.

A look which could only be described as reverence, like he couldn't believe you were real. Just the way you had felt. Like he couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact that you were there, present, in front of him. Just what you had struggled with all damn day. The corners of Bucky's eyes were also dusted with a vague despair, like it hurt him to be so close to you, but not hold you. Just the way you had been feeling all day and beating yourself up for it.

You had broken up, years back. It was a mutual agreement, but an initiative taken by Bucky. You had promised to remain in touch, but you had deleted him from every aspect of your life the moment you stepped out. Focusing on your career like that was all you ever cared about. Which was partially true but it was aggravated to forget about him. So why did your brain and body feel the need to melt against him, pour out everything and strip yourself bare again for him to love?

“Butterfly,” The soft call of a nickname you hadn’t heard in the last two years, the same voice you loved- love- so much stirred you out of the little stagelight musing you had entrance yourself into. You were backstage, the heavy curtains keeping you from the brain of the lights and the uproar of an excited crowd, your dance group being one of the internet popular groups that pulled in audiences from all around the country.

You had your leg raised on a stool, your six inch pumps lined with straps of pasteable lights, glittery stockings covering up the expanse of your legs. If you didn’t feel like a tumultuous wayward storm of emotions, you would have clicked a few pics and admired how hot you looked. You couldn’t do it today, not when Bucky was here, and he wasn’t yours, and it all felt like a fresh punch in the gut, all over again.

If he kept looking at you like that there was a good chance you would bolt. You had run away from him for so long, tried to hate him and forget about him for so long that you had forgotten about the comfort he exuded, the warmth he radiated. A part of you wanted to run again, just like you had been doing it, because you wouldn’t be able to deal with an imminent realization that you could never stop loving him.

*Don't call me that." Your voice was hoarse, heavier than the times you would yell the lyrics to a song and spin and saunter about the room trying to get moves right.

"Please," you didn't like the vein of desperation journeying under his fragile words, you didn't like how soft his eyes looked under the backstage lights.

"You're on in 10."

And just like that, you pried every fibre of your attention from him to the performance you would be presenting in seconds, to the art he had asked you to pursue over living happily with him.

You marched onstage, the ringing of the crowd and the honeyed twinkle crowning his pupil the only processible information in your brain as you swayed your hips and shoulders, body gliding into forms and heels clicking on the stage in the symphony, and for that once moment you could ignore everything else.

The performance was terrific. The effects, the fires, the jumps. The screams turned to roars as the formations built up, outfits shed and front liners swapped till it was etched forever in the forms of blurry reds and electric blues, your heart still beating out of your chest and ears ringing as you finally exit from the stairs to the side.

Maybe you guys had performed a little too well. Some choreographer turned businessman turned producer reached out to your crew and invited all of you to his rooftop bar for 'a night of fun'. Which meant you were out of your stage ensembles and sliding into another equally restraining one, one pair of heels traded for another. Your feet hurt and there was only so much for fake smiling, so you found yourself dug in a dark corner of the place, your eyes hurting a little from all the flashing lights, body dead tired.

Thank fuck you didn't have any more back-to-back performances and for the next two you were just going to be background dancers.

The drink in your hand blurred as your eyes drooped again, the need for a good night sleep overpowering your friends who were a little too energetic. You hated being the grinch, but sometimes you deserve your time to sulk.

You tossed back the contents of your glass, ordering for another. Maybe that would work to keep you awake for a moment, maybe you would pass out right here after the second drink. Either worked for you.

Wow. Weren't you being a damsel in distress? You didn't know the repercussions of a heartbreak from a lifetime ago struck so hard, but you couldn't be sure. Love and heartbreak just wasn't your craft.

For the moment, the alcohol prompted you to stagger to your feet, directing you towards the dance floor, despite your legs feeling like they had waltzed over a thorn bush. You made your way up, the last beats of some bass track fading against the grinding bodies before it mellowed down. Like some main character moment, the lights changed, the saturation dimming and the beats changed. The opening melodies of some piano track rolled out, your hair moving behind as you bared your neck, your hips moving in a honeyed curve as half of the people on the floor left, the others slipping into some form of couple dancing.

And you were dancing to a lover's track, all alone.

Till you were not.

The tips of Bucky's fingers hovered over your back, his other hand catching yours as he slid in front of you. Your eyes widened but your body melted like butter under his touch, a sense of familiarity washing over you in a way you hadn't felt in a very long time.

Fuck.

"What are you doing here, Bucky?"

He sighed, the shadows of his lashes falling prettily over his cheeks. He had changed out of his too-tight tee shirt to a formal shirt, reminding you of some disney prince as he swayed with you to the tunes of perfect.

"Dancing in the dark, with you between my arms." His deep voice had your heart fluttering, and you wanted to slap him for eliciting such a reaction from you.

"You think that is really going to work?" You asked tiredly, already done with this evening and craving a good night sleep.

"I don't. But I want to try."

"Why?"

"Because two years back was a mistake. Everyday without you was a mistake."

"Took you two years to figure it out?" You seethed, eyes flaring in annoyance at this guy for whom you weren't able to tear your love into shreds.

"You blocked me. Everywhere. You left your job, your apartment, were traveling god knows where. Steve wouldn't open his mouth even if I threatened to knock his teeth in."

"He's a good guy." You glared at him. "And why would you be threatening to knock his teeth in? You were the one to call things off."

"And I have been regretting that every single day ever since. I was scared. Terrified even. I thought the relationship wouldn't go anywhere. Not when we never saw each other."

"We could have figured out a schedule." You pointed out, stepping between his legs as the bridge of the song played.

"And sabotage our careers? Leave the chance to do something we had been dreaming of all our lives?"

He was right. You would have resented him everyday if that relationship had overshadowed your career. You knew this. He knew it too. You had taken up your chance the moment you had gotten out. So why the hell were you having this conversation? Why was Bucky regretting it? Why were you regretting it?

"And then what happened to you?" You asked, somehow gravitating closer to him.

"Got deals. Met people. Worked in pageants and fashion shows."

"I read up on you. You've made quite a name."

"So have you."

He twirled you around, pulling you right back into his arms. The sudden movement made you painfully aware of your heels cutting into your skin, and you winced.

"And now that you are stable, are you thinking we have a way to go back? Cause, fuck. No. We've changed. I don't want you."

Bucky frowned, slowly slithering to a halt before lowering his head till his forehead was hovering over yours.

"You still hate martinis. You still use your left hand to strap your heels in and you still prefer coloured chapstick over lipstick. You sure about it?"

"Don't go all classic rom com on me."

"You still hate rom coms too. And right now you would be cursing the life outta me because we are still dancing. Don't your feet hurt?"

"Why are you dancing with me then?" You looked away from him, not sure if you could carry on this conversation anymore.

"I'm hoping you would allow me to give you a massage. Take care of you."

You seethed. The blood in your veins burned. The entitlement had you tipping your head back in pure ire.

"James Buchanan Barnes you think you can fucking waltz back into my life and I'll let you into my room?" You panted, almost ripping yourself off of him but the arm wound around your waist held you to his chest. "With a half assed explanation for breaking my fucking heart?

"Shhh" Bucky cooed, his eyes sad and still so beautiful. You found yours welling up at the sincere lines of pain and anguish tearing through his irises, wondering if all of this was worth it.

He broke your heart.

"Not like that, Butterfly." You swallowed a lump at the nickname, scoffing halfhearted. "I want to take care of you. Make up for all the shit I have put you through"

"It doesn't happen that way."

"Let me try, then. Please."

And you found yourself giving in. Like sweetened butter, you melted and coursed right down his arms, just the way he wanted you too. If you weren't so tired you'd take a moment to marvel at the ease with which he could convince you, the power he held over you. You found yourself not giving a shit about it. Bucky leaned in, pressing a kiss to your forehead, one which had you purring.

"Thank you."

"Don't get any hopes up," you snapped, the tone meant to deliver a sharp blow but the cracks at the edge of it had your resolve and patience crumpling, the night taking its toll on you. Your instinctive response to melt into Bucky's arms had a part of your brain screaming foul profanities at you, the bandaged, cracked shards of your heart screeching under the forceful binds you had assembled them into.

"You're not going to get to anything. Not that easily." You whispered against his chest, the familiar rumble of his chest thrumming through your head. "I'm not that doe eyed girl anymore. Now get a cab before I cry and look like a mess."

His eyes were beautiful as his tilted your cheek upwards, his lips pressing on yours in a feather light kiss, one leaving you charged and flared at the tips, reaching out for more. He just held your waist, deciding on keeping you close to his chest and you were grateful, the heels too much for you to handle.

"You look perfect tonight."

#perfect #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky barnes one shot #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky x poc!reader #bucky angst #bucky barnes #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes smut #bucky barnes writing #bucky filth #bucky fluff #dom!bucky barnes #dom!bucky #bucky imagine #bucky fic #bucky fanfic #bucky x y/n #bucky barnes x reader smut #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky x you #you x bucky barnes #bucky barnes angst #bucky barnes au #marvel au #marvel #marvel fanfiction #sebastian stan smut #sebastian stan

[ivory-line]

Good Omens Fic Recs

I know a lot of us are cooped up right now and I’ve read so many good fics I thought I’d put a list together!

Reviews of AZ Fell and Co Antiquarian and Unusual Books | NR | 33k | IneffableFangirl_writes

A fun series based on Yelp reviews for the bookshop

Flowers From The Grave Of Our Friendship | E | 50k | WaitingToBeBroken

Crowley is very good at temptation, not so good with what comes afterwards.

Aziraphale knows demons don't love so he is happy to take anything Crowley would give him.

Both of them are too blind to realize the thing they want is right in front of them.

Instructions Not Included | T | 68K | atalan @seaskystone

"They'll leave us alone. For a bit."

One year after the Apocalypse-That-Wasn't, Crowley and Aziraphale have settled into a new routine: keeping an eye on supernatural happenings in the world and preventing Heaven or Hell from interfering too much with humanity. It's not a bad job - despite occasional rains of fish - and if there are some unspoken things they really ought to talk about, well, they have all the time in the world now to get around to that, right?

At least, until the Archangel Raphael turns up on their doorstep looking for help... and it starts to become clear that the world is changing fast, and so are they.

Or: Crowley and Aziraphale start a detective agency. Shenanigans ensue. Slowburn continues. Apparently, there is plot. I have some thoughts about Heaven, Hell, and humanism. There will be stupid jokes and a healthy sprinkling of angst.

a/n: one of my fave post canon fics, the plot is super engaging and i loved raphael

A Kiss Is Just A Kiss | E | 10K | juliet

“The rules are: apart from kissing, you don’t touch me, I don’t touch you. For the next two days.”

constellations | T | 6k | northerntrash

In which Aziraphale tells a story, and Crowley threatens to burn down the house.

a/n: i’ve read this this fic like ten times. funny and tender and very them.

Remembrance of Things Past | T | 18K | fyre

“You didn’t think we would just forget about your misbehaviour, did you, Crawly?” Crowley locked his hands around the steering wheel and slammed his foot down on the accelerator, heart thundering. The bookshop was up ahead. Couple more blocks and he’d be within the protective mantle that covered the place for fifty metres in every direction. “It’s Crowley now,” he said through bone-dry lips. “Oh no, darling,” Lucifer’s malevolence thrummed in Freddie’s voice. “Not anymore.”

Strange Moons series | E | 145K | @racketghost

A 12 part series from WWI to their dinner at the ritz after the swap. Enough pine to build a house. Heartbreaking and hot and I definitely shed a few tears.

AUs

i've found a way (a way to make you smile) | T | 40k | curtaincall @fremulon  

Crowley worked in Sales. He had never intended to work in Sales. It had just sort of happened. One moment, there he’d been, a newly minted university graduate off to change the world, exquisitely useless Philosophy degree in hand, and now here he was, having sauntered vaguely downwards into a Hell that consisted mainly of cold-calling new customers and sucking up to existing ones. AU based on The Office.

with all your delights | E | 61K | weatheredlaw

Crowley laughed. “I thought you’d have realized by now. I am no ordinary king.”

“No,” Aziraphale said. “You certainly are not.”

or: aziraphale is sent as a gift to the southern king to smooth over trade negotiations. they both find themselves in over their heads.

Slow Show | E | 95K | @mia-ugly

In which temptations are accomplished, grand romantic gestures are made, and two ineffable co-stars only take four seasons of an award-winning television program to realize they’re on their own side (at last, at last.)

a/n: i’m sure most of us have read slow show by now but i just have to include it. it broke me into a million little pieces and put me back together again. i don’t think a day has gone by that i haven’t thought about this fic

Golden Handcuffs | E | 70k | seekwill

Far from any city, near the Scottish coast, Tadfield College has a celebrated history, an unrivaled academic reputation, and two departments at war. When the Biology and English departments are forced to share a building, Senior Lecturer and botanist Anthony Crowley finds himself drawn into the orbit of the polite but strange English professor, Dr. Aziraphale Fell. As the new term begins, two academics navigate the politics of both their offices and academia, and try to solve the puzzle of one another.

This definitely isn’t a complete list, just a few of the fics in my bookmarks. I’ll try to make some more lists (I left WIPs off this list but I have a fair few I wanna share) and in the meantime I’ll go ahead and link a few of my own fics and direct you over to @go-events since the rom coms are being posted and they’ve all been fantastic.

If a link is broken or I’ve missed anyone’s @ then feel free to shoot me a message!

#good omens #ineffable husbands #fic recs #good omens fics #good omens fic recs #aziraphale #crowley

[chokememrstark]

Mysterious Beauty // Starker

Words: ~2,6k

Summary: Peter has a huge crush on Tony, there’s no denying that, but Tony doesn’t seem to see it as anything but amusing. When Peter one night witnesses Tony hooking up with a random woman, all while glaring at the boy as though to challenge him, it becomes too much and Peter can’t take it anymore. He decides to teach Tony a lesson, show him that he can’t have every girl he lays eyes on, but things... don’t work out quite as Peter planned them.

Warnings: underage!Peter, cross-dressing/drag, jealousy, Tony is a bit of a dick, public making out,

Notes: Inspired by this art (I can’t find it anywhere else, I apologize) for my sweet @ketlingr  Enjoy, kitten!

[Read on AO3]

From the very first moment, Peter knew that Tony was a playboy and he didn't think it would ever be a problem. And it wasn't at the beginning because he was just a teenager with a crush, right? He had no place being jealous and he was too shy and flustered to do anything but blush and stutter anyway when Tony made a cheeky remark into his direction after catching him staring.

He knew, of course he knew, because Tony was much more aware of his surroundings than one might think. Tony was often flirting with him, but Peter knew it wasn't meant seriously, that he was just teasing him about being so infatuated with him. He had enough girls and women to go to, he could have ten a night if he wanted to and Peter was sure sometimes he did, so all of this was more than fun for him, which was okay. At least Peter told himself that it was.

In reality, despite knowing it wasn't serious or even honest, Peter lived for those moments. For the little smirk on Tony's lips when he caught him staring, for Tony asking 'You like what you see, kid?’, for all the times Tony is just a bit closer than he should be or when he complimented or praised him over little things. It didn't help Peter's crush at all, just made it so much worse, but he needed those things, even if they'd never lead anywhere. They just couldn't.

Tony took Peter with him to a charity event one evening and the boy was practically over the moon that Tony even asked him, but what sounded like a good thing quickly made Peter realize just how dumb he truly was. After an hour and several drinks - only non-alcoholic ones for Peter of course because he was far too young for the hard stuff - he found himself standing at the bar, watching Tony with his arm around a beautiful young woman. His hand rested shamelessly on her ass, her red dress a bright contrast to Tony's black suit and her arms around the man's neck. They were dancing and that alone had Peter close to tears, but then he caught Tony's eyes and felt his throat tighten. It was like Tony looked straight into his soul.

There was no doubt about Tony doing this on purpose, in front of Peter, and it felt like being slapped across the face. The way he looked at Peter needed no explanation and it had the boy blush hard and his eyes water. After what felt like forever, he finally turned around, desperate to get away from this scene. He ignored the confused looks and covered his mouth to stay quiet, to not start sobbing in front of everyone. It was a miracle he actually made it to the exit before the first tears fell. Peter didn't know why Tony had done this, why he would do something he had to know would hurt him, but it was the worst thing Peter had ever experienced.

The following week, Peter didn't return to the tower. Whenever he just thought about it his insides clenched and he tensed up, he couldn't go back. He kept replaying the scene in his head a million times and each time it felt more and more like Tony showing him exactly that he would never get what he wanted so badly. Without using words, Tony gave Peter a clear message.

You can crush on me all you want, but this is what I'm after. Not some teenage boy.

It couldn't be any different, this was the only explanation that made sense. And Tony didn't even ask him why he didn't come anymore, that just fueled his assumption. He was through with Peter, clearly. And trough with his embarrassing teenage crush. He shouldn't have been so hurt by this, but there was no way to stop it.

-----

The party was boring as hell and with each drink he downed, Tony wanted to just leave even more. But of course he couldn't, it never looked good to just leave like that. Sadly, not even the women around were interesting tonight, just bland and boring, not worth the effort of having them, no matter how small it was. Which meant the last distraction he usually had was gone too.

An hour later, something finally sparked Tony's interest for the very first time that night. It was getting late by now and he had managed to get pretty much drunk already, but he couldn't have missed the young woman at the bar even if he had tried.

A beautiful thing, short, light brown locks and porcelain-like skin, a skimpy and yet lovely black dress that ended just above her knees and legs so smooth and slender, the urge to run his hands over her skin was incredibly strong. And heels, God he loved heels and he loved how the thin and soft fabric clung to this perfect little ass. He finally had something to do for the night.

Tony walked over to the bar when his newest distraction took a glass from the barkeeper - long fingers with dark red nails wrapping around it, a golden bangle dangling from her wrist - and then she turned and Tony felt his heart skip a few beats.

Even with the makeup, which was exquisitely done, he had to admit, Tony recognized this face. No one else would, he knew that this masquerade was too good to not fool them, but Tony had looked into those pretty doe eyes for far too often to not recognize them. Those eyes and those lovely perfect lips, now with a hint of red that made them look just the more sinful. There was no way he could be fooled by this, he knew who he was staring at.

Peter…

Tony had no idea what this was about, but he would find out. There had to be a reason behind Peter's looks and Tony begged it was the right one.

He closed the distance between them when Peter leaned back against the bar and crossed his legs, in his hand clearly a champagne flute that he shouldn't have - but then again he easily looked much older and no one would suspect that he was still too young to drink.

“Look at you, gorgeous,” Tony said with his sweetest purr, leaning against the bar next to Peter. “What a lovely sight so late at night.”

~*~

Peter's cheeks flushed a soft shade of pink and he chuckled behind his hand. He didn't even believe he'd come this far, yet along gain the man's attention so fast. But despite his shy and flustered reaction, he wouldn't back away from his plan. It hurt to know that this wouldn't be happening if Tony knew who he was, but he had to do this now.

“You seem to be quite bored, Mr. Stark,” Peter says sweetly, his voice just a bit more feminine so he won't see through his bluff. “Shouldn't you be surrounded by admirers already? There's a lot of options, after all.”

Tony smiled his most generous and warm smile and signaled the barkeeper for another drink. His eyes never left Peter, instead, they wandered down his body slowly.

“I am quite picky, but you definitely caught my attention,” he said, a slight slur in his voice. Peter thanks the heavens for that. “What is your name, darling?”

“I don't think we are there yet,” Peter smiled sweetly and tilted his head. “It's not like you care about names anyway, do you?”

~*~

Tony liked this, but what Peter wanted to achieve with it was still not obvious to him. Did the boy realize he had already seen through his masquerade? Or was this some kind of kink Peter had that Tony didn’t quite grasp in his current state? Then again, Peter was… what? 16? He thought it was 16, at least. Where would the boy get such a kink from?

“It seems like you know me well already,” Tony smirked and grabbed the drink he was handed, emptying halfway before looking back at Peter. If the boy wanted it this way, he would play the game the best he could. “No names then. Just two strangers in the night.”

“What a poetic way of saying it,” Peter smiled and let out a crystal clear laugh behind his hand, unable to hide the blush on his cheeks. God, Tony wanted to eat him, he looked so fucking good. Tony took one of Peter’s pretty hands and pressed a kiss onto the back of it.

“Would you give me the honor of a dance, my mysterious beauty?” Tony asked in the sweetest way possible, knowing full well that he was being the cheesiest he has been in years, but Peter seemed to like it a lot.

“One dance,” Peter said, smiling shakily. “But only one, Mr. Stark. I know where else this will end and that’s not why I’m here tonight.”

“Oh, of course not,” Tony smirked cheekily as he helped Peter up. He wouldn’t need more than one dance, that was more than enough.

When Tony led Peter away from the bar, the lovely sound of heels clicking on the floor, he could barely contain his excitement.

~*~

Peter didn’t want to dance with Tony, but when he asked, he could feel himself become weak. Those eyes… God, why was he so vulnerable to those gorgeous eyes looking at him like that? Tony took his hand and he followed him, fighting hard to not allow his legs to shake. Oh, this was bad, this was so bad. How was he supposed to reject Tony’s advances when he was this close to him? How was he supposed to follow through with his plan of teaching him a lesson?

All question disappeared when Peter suddenly felt Tony’s hand on his hip and was pulled closer, brown eyes looking into his own so close, Peter’s breath actually hitched. He held onto him almost instinctively, swallowing down the lump in his throat. They were alone on the small dance floor and Tony was close enough Peter could smell his cologne, which made his head spin slightly.

“One dance, Mr. Stark,” Peter said quietly, reminding Tony about their deal, but the man didn’t look disappointed at all. He still smiled at him and Peter almost thought he would get out of this and be able to pick his plan up where he dropped it, when Tony’s hand suddenly moved from his hip to his ass.

“One dance is all I need, darling,” he assured him and suddenly they were moving - slow and close, and Peter knew he was completely lost.

~*~

Tony loved how Peter tried to take control in the beginning, but as soon as Tony started moving, all his determination seemed to disappear and he turned almost limb in his arms. Those pretty doe eyes wouldn’t leave his own, filled with amazement and surprise and Tony swore he never saw something so intoxicating. The gorgeous makeup made Peter’s eyes pop extremely, making them look even bigger and more innocent somehow, it was amazing.

“S-Sir, not… not so close,” Peter gasped when Tony pulled him flush against his front and Tony grinned in return. The boy couldn’t escape, so it was time to have some fun.

“Why not, Pete?” He purred and leaned down, pressing a kiss onto the boy’s exposed shoulder. “Isn’t this what you wanted?”

“W-What?” Peter gasped, his eyes widening in shock and his cheeks flushing dark pink. “W-Who’s Peter?”

“No need to act anymore now, baby,” Tony smirked, kissing Peter’s neck and then his jaw. “You look so fucking pretty like this, you have no idea…”

Peter swallowed and clung to Tony almost desperately, not answering. Tony wrapped his arms around Peter’s waist, pulling back enough to bring his lips closer to the boy’s.

“Tell me you want me to keep going, Pete,” Tony groaned, slowly moving his hips against Peter’s, coaxing a quiet gasp. “You like that, don’t you? Like how I can do all this with you in public now because no one knows that it’s you… God, you have no idea how much I wanted to do this…”

“S-Sir…” Peter shot Tony a pleading, utterly desperate glance, his pretty eyes glossy and wet.

“Don’t worry, baby, I’ll take care of you,” Tony promised, tilting the boy’s chin up to drown him in a deep kiss. Peter’s eyes fluttered shut as he sighed, melting in Tony’s arms. It was the most beautiful sight, the most incredible feeling, and Tony did all he could to make this as good for Peter as possible.

It was true that he could do almost anything with him, now that no one knew who he was. How long had he waited for this moment, to run his hands over the boy’s perfect body and to kiss him until he couldn’t breathe anymore? How long had he searched for affairs who reminded him of Peter, until the very last one where Peter’s eyes wouldn’t leave his own and he had messed up so badly by continuing? And now Peter gave him this beautiful gift, this opportunity he couldn’t throw away, not when the boy clearly wanted it so badly.

“I hope you brought some time, Pete,” Tony groaned when he broke their kiss, pressing the boy close against him. “I won’t let you go again anytime soon.”

There was a shuddered moan coming from the boy and after a moment, Tony’s lips turned into a grin. He kissed him again, slower this time and with one hand shamelessly squeezing Peter’s ass in front of the whole party.

“A-All night, sir,” Peter swallowed as soon as he could, his voice trembling and thick and so fucking gorgeous, just like the rest of him.

“Perfect,” Tony growled, grabbing one of the boy’s hands. “I’ll show you what you made me want to do since the day I met you.”

And that’s how Peter ended up in the corridor of some high-class hotel, pressed against the wall and moaning desperately while Tony fucked him, without even bothering to undress him or to hide what he was doing at all. No one knew who Peter was, he just looked like a random girl Tony hooked up with, so even when someone walked in on them - which happened multiple times and always made Tony go harder on the boy - no one got suspicious.

His plan to teach Tony a lesson surely blew up in his face, but Peter felt too good to care about such details. Tony was rough, yes, but he didn’t hurt him badly and despite the sting, Peter loved every second of it. And oh, Tony’s sweet words washed over the boy like nothing else, having him moan and beg for more in a way he didn’t know was possible. It surely turned out to be the best night of Peter’s life.

Not to mention the fact that Tony asked him to come to the lab the next time wearing those heels too. That was pretty much what absolutely killed Peter, both at the invitation to come back and at the request to wear those heels again. When Peter sneaked back into the apartment that night, his heart hammered and everything inside of him felt like it was tingling and burning and it was the absolute best feeling in the whole world.

#starker #peter x tony #tony x peter #tony/peter #ironspider #myfics #this is so random but i had to do it #nff #kinda #revenge backfired #next time you need a better plan pete #cross #dressing #neitherjesus #norsalad

[scifigeneration]

Hubble astronomers assemble wide view of the evolving universe

Astronomers have put together the largest and most comprehensive "history book" of galaxies into one single image, using 16 years' worth of observations from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.

The deep-sky mosaic, created from nearly 7,500 individual exposures, provides a wide portrait of the distant universe, containing 265,000 galaxies that stretch back through 13.3 billion years of time to just 500 million years after the big bang. The faintest and farthest galaxies are just one ten-billionth the brightness of what the human eye can see. The universe's evolutionary history is also chronicled in this one sweeping view. The portrait shows how galaxies change over time, building themselves up to become the giant galaxies seen in the nearby universe.

This ambitious endeavor, called the Hubble Legacy Field, also combines observations taken by several Hubble deep-field surveys, including the eXtreme Deep Field (XDF), the deepest view of the universe. The wavelength range stretches from ultraviolet to near-infrared light, capturing the key features of galaxy assembly over time.

"Now that we have gone wider than in previous surveys, we are harvesting many more distant galaxies in the largest such dataset ever produced by Hubble," said Garth Illingworth of the University of California, Santa Cruz, leader of the team that assembled the image. "This one image contains the full history of the growth of galaxies in the universe, from their time as 'infants' to when they grew into fully fledged 'adults.'"

No image will surpass this one until future space telescopes are launched. "We've put together this mosaic as a tool to be used by us and by other astronomers," Illingworth added. "The expectation is that this survey will lead to an even more coherent, in-depth and greater understanding of the universe's evolution in the coming years."

The image yields a huge catalog of distant galaxies. "Such exquisite high-resolution measurements of the numerous galaxies in this catalog enable a wide swath of extragalactic study," said catalog lead researcher Katherine Whitaker of the University of Connecticut, in Storrs. "Often, these kinds of surveys have yielded unanticipated discoveries which have had the greatest impact on our understanding of galaxy evolution."

Galaxies are the "markers of space," as astronomer Edwin Hubble once described them a century ago. Galaxies allow astronomers to trace the expansion of the universe, offer clues to the underlying physics of the cosmos, show when the chemical elements originated, and enable the conditions that eventually led to the appearance of our solar system and life.

This wider view contains about 30 times as many galaxies as in the previous deep fields. The new portrait, a mosaic of multiple snapshots, covers almost the width of the full Moon. The XDF, which penetrated deeper into space than this wider view, lies in this region, but it covers less than one-tenth of the full Moon's diameter. The Legacy Field also uncovers a zoo of unusual objects. Many of them are the remnants of galactic "train wrecks," a time in the early universe when small, young galaxies collided and merged with other galaxies.

Assembling all of the observations was an immense task. The image comprises the collective work of 31 Hubble programs by different teams of astronomers. Hubble has spent more time on this tiny area than on any other region of the sky, totaling more than 250 days, representing nearly three-quarters of a year.

"Our goal was to assemble all 16 years of exposures into a legacy image," explained Dan Magee, of the University of California, Santa Cruz, the team's data processing lead. "Previously, most of these exposures had not been put together in a consistent way that can be used by any researcher. Astronomers can select the data in the Legacy Field they want and work with it immediately, as opposed to having to perform a huge amount of data reduction before conducting scientific analysis."

The image, along with the individual exposures that make up the new view, is available to the worldwide astronomical community through the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes (MAST). MAST, an online database of astronomical data from Hubble and other NASA missions, is located at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland.

The Hubble Space Telescope has come a long way in taking ever deeper "core samples" of the distant universe. After Hubble's launch in 1990, astronomers debated if it was worth spending a chunk of the telescope's time to go on a "fishing expedition" to take a very long exposure of a small, seemingly blank piece of sky. The resulting Hubble Deep Field image in 1995 captured several thousand unseen galaxies in one pointing. The bold effort was a landmark demonstration and a defining proof-of-concept that set the stage for future deep field images. In 2002, Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys went even deeper to uncover 10,000 galaxies in a single snapshot. Astronomers used exposures taken by Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3), installed in 2009, to assemble the eXtreme Deep Field snapshot in 2012. Unlike previous Hubble cameras, the telescope's WFC3 covers a broader wavelength range, from ultraviolet to near-infrared.

This new image mosaic is the first in a series of Hubble Legacy Field images. The team is working on a second set of images, totaling more than 5,200 Hubble exposures, in another area of the sky. In the future, astronomers hope to broaden the multiwavelength range in the legacy images to include longer-wavelength infrared data and high-energy X-ray observations from two other NASA Great Observatories, the Spitzer Space Telescope and Chandra X-ray Observatory.

The vast number of galaxies in the Legacy Field image are also prime targets for future telescopes. "This will really set the stage for NASA's planned Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST)," Illingworth said. "The Legacy Field is a pathfinder for WFIRST, which will capture an image that is 100 times larger than a typical Hubble photo. In just three weeks' worth of observations by WFIRST, astronomers will be able to assemble a field that is much deeper and more than twice as large as the Hubble Legacy Field."

In addition, NASA's upcoming James Webb Space Telescope will allow astronomers to push much deeper into the legacy field to reveal how the infant galaxies actually grew. Webb's infrared coverage will go beyond the limits of Hubble and Spitzer to help astronomers identify the first galaxies in the universe.

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA (European Space Agency). NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, conducts Hubble science operations. STScI is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy in Washington, D.C.

#science #science news #astronomy #NASA #hubble space telescope

[hanalwayssolo]

Somewhere Between The Music and Lyrics: Ch. 1

A/N: I’m terribly off my own schedule, as usual! So. This Prompto one-shot became a monster I did not expect so I’m splitting it into two chapters. Honestly, among the chocobros, Prompto’s the first one that came to mind when I wanted to do a band AU of sorts—because I’ve heard Robbie Daymond sing on one of their LAVA streams and it is glorious. Anyway! Song featured for this first half is Gavin DeGraw’s We Belong Together. 

Tagging pals! @raspberryandechinacea @noboomoon@emmydots @bleucommelhiver @gowithme @hanatsuki89​ @valkyrieofardyn​ @animakupo​ @lazarustrashpit​ @blindedstarlight​ @mp938368 @boo-dangy

(Links in AO3) Alternate Universes in Which You and I Belong Together: Noctis | Gladio | Prompto | Ignis | Nyx | Cor | Ravus | Ardyn

Prompto had been busily sifting through The Lost Boys’ unanswered emails at the back of their tour bus when he hears his song.

Except, it’s not quite his song.

He recognizes the lyrics in an instant—and he of all people would know of course, since he had written those words as a cry for help for his hopelessly romantic soul. But the song that aches through the speakers holds none of Ignis’s electric riffs, the swell of Gladio’s drums, the steady hum of Noctis’s bass, let alone his own vocals. The one he hears is his music stripped to its rawest, the words made vulnerable by a melancholic leak of a lone acoustic guitar and an exquisitely soulful voice.

We belong together  Like the open seas and shores  Wedded by the planet force  We’ve all been spoken for

Prompto scrambles to the front lounge to find Noctis, Gladio, and Ignis huddling by the booth over a laptop set on the table, their eyes glued to the screen in wild wonder.

Curiously, Prompto eyes them—still grinning wide in awe—and asks, “Are you guys hearing what I’m hearing now? Am I dreaming? What is happening?”

Noctis snorts a laugh. He swivels the laptop to face Prompto. “You might want to check this out, my friend.”

Prompto excitedly moves closer. Immediately, he sees the video accompanying the song entitled “we belong together (cover) by my amazingly talented roommate!!!” posted by username MasterPelnaK. He barely even notices how this video has been raking almost five hundred thousand views and likes in the last twenty-four hours as his attention zeroes in on the stranger sitting on a bean bag, equipped with nothing but the guitar and that voice.

What good is a life  With no one to share  The light of the moon  The honour of a swear

Gods. The tone and vibrato is so on point it sends shivers down his spine. But then, Prompto begins to wonder why this person is not even looking directly at the camera. Were they even aware that they were being recorded? It seems all too candid given the angle, as if the camera had just been discreetly set up on a low-lying table. Not to mention the very personal space in the background, too: a well-lit room of white walls, a cozy looking sofa, an impressive shelf of books and vinyl records tucked between potted fiddle leaf figs. Somewhere out of sight, hushed whispers could still be heard. Was this only recorded from a mobile phone?

Anyway, not that any of these things mattered. Prompto has rarely come across other artists covering their songs, and when he does, each one he cherishes dearly. But this one—this one, for heaven’s sake—has moved him the way the winds bend the trees to its will, a tiny flint that sparks a flame. He didn’t realize that the words he had written could be afforded such lyrical heft, that the music he had created had been a delicate and honest confessional that could fit someone else’s voice so beautifully, like finding a piece of a puzzle he never knew he had been missing.

Where have you been all my life?

So Prompto watches it again. And then a couple times more. Noctis, Gladio, and Ignis gather to watch him curiously. Prompto briefly skims through the comments section and is thoroughly relieved to read overwhelmingly positive feedback. He didn’t even mind when he comes across a comment that says “this is even better than the original!” because fuck it, he shares the same sentiment.

And before Prompto could even scroll back up to replay the video, Gladio drags the laptop away from him.

Prompto sneers in protest. “Dude. Not cool at all—”

“What’s not cool is obsessing over a cover of your own fucking song,” Gladio says in jest.

“Hey, it’s a fucking cool cover, okay!” Prompto scoffs and flicks his eyes on the ceiling—almost rolls them, but not quite so. “And please, big guy. I’m not obsessing. I’m too chill to be obsessed, thank you very much.”

“I clearly remember you saying to the crowd earlier how you’re never the ‘chill’ person of sort, and my word. How quickly the tables have turned,” Ignis casually remarks as he takes a sip from his mug of coffee.

Prompto’s mouth falls open. He did say that onstage during their performance back at Leiden Fest. His immediate regret is letting Ignis triumphantly take it against him.

Meanwhile, Noctis lifts a suspicious eyebrow at Ignis. “Iggy, are you sure you’re not drinking tea? ‘Cause you just poured a scalding one right there.”

“I’m impressed—that’s a good one.” Gladio gives Noctis and Ignis a thundering high-five. They burst out in a gale of laughter.

“You guys are enjoying this, huh.” Prompto grabs a pillow and smashes it at Noctis, who only yelps in between fits of laughter. He hurls one at Gladio, too, but the big guy has reflexes of a jungle cat, so he only ends up catching the thing. Ignis, however, Prompto hesitates at the last second when he shoots him a menacing glance. “Okay, I’m not even going to bother attacking you, ‘cause I’m pretty sure you will kill me if you spill that coffee.”

Ignis gives him a smile and a nod, and returns to his drink.

“Also,” Noctis says, “now that I think about it, you’re giving off that same look and vibe the first time you were crushing on Cindy.”

“What? I do not—okay, okay—” Prompto groans, jabbing a finger at Noctis— “that is different. Cindy is our road manager, so I’m choosing not to cross the line. While this…” Prompto pauses and takes a deep breath. “This is also different. A very surreal and magical kind of different.”

“Now I’d say someone’s been bitten by a lovebug.” Ignis leans back on his seat, arms crossed, regarding Prompto with a pleasant smile.

Gladio laughs. “Tell me about it.”

“I can’t believe I’m friends with you guys,” Prompto says in a miserable groan.

But frankly, Prompto is far from miserable having Noctis, Gladio, and Ignis as friends. He considers himself quite fortunate to have found brothers in them, painfully annoying as they may be from time to time. Besides, it was through their music that helped them bond and weather the toughest of their adolescent years: they were no stranger to teenage angst, to riotous episodes of rebellion, to whirlwind romances and crazy ex-lovers, and to the turbulent journey that led them to be the band that they are today. Naming themselves The Lost Boys seemed to be a fitting tribute to the misadventures of their youth: Always lost and never found.

And yet, regardless of their highs and lows, the four of them have always had each other’s back. And that has not changed even now that they are in their thirties.

Perhaps Prompto is being overly sentimental at this point, but that’s just how it is.

Or maybe, he really has been bitten by a lovebug.

“In any case—“ Noctis firmly clasps Prompto’s shoulder— “this amazing cover of your song is breaking the Internet as we speak.”

“Well, yeah.” Prompto shrugs, though he cannot hide it in from his face how pleased he truly is. “Though I do wonder who this MasterPelnaK is.”

“Definitely not the person in the video, that’s for sure,” says Gladio.

“If I may?” Ignis reaches for the laptop from Gladio. “Let’s see here—“ the boys squeeze themselves into the seat so they could also get a look as Ignis hovers around the profile page— “this Pelna Khara happens to be a video game blogger—“

“It’s a vlogger, Iggy—get in with the times,” Prompto corrects cheerfully.

Ignis exhales an exasperated sigh. He returns his attention back on screen. “Apparently, this vlogger streams gameplays and commentaries—“

“Really?” Noctis interrupts out of a sudden rush of excitement. “Do you think he has one for Assassin's Creed—“

Prompto nudges Noctis by the arm. “Dude.”

“Right. Sorry,” Noctis says sheepishly. “Carry on.”

“Anyway.” Ignis is unfazed by the interruption as he goes on: “It appears that this is the first time this Pelna fellow uploaded this sort of material.”

“Oh and look, he’s very popular, too,” Noctis says. “Ten million subscribers? What the fuck—“

“Wouldn’t be surprised now that the video got so many hits overnight,” Gladio notes pensively. “And check it out—“ he points at the bio section— “he lives in the city. Says his hub is somewhere in Downtown Insomnia.”

As if struck by the same spectacular idea, Noctis and Gladio exchange knowing glances. Ignis, of course, is quick to catch on.

It takes a while for Prompto to understand what’s going on, and when he finally does, he shoots them all a dubious gaze. His friends are up to something, and the glint in their eyes could only spell mischief.

“Guys—” Prompto starts as calmly as he could, hands raised in an almost surrender— “whatever you guys are thinking, we don’t need to do this—”

“We don’t need to—but you do,” Gladio claps Prompto’s back. “We got ya, my guy.”

“And before you all intend to push through with this,” Ignis says, “would anyone be so kind as to ask Cindy if we can change our course and make a quick pitstop. And let Iris know, too, since… well. She’s our handler, after all.”

Gladio rises out of the booth. “On it,” he says as he makes his way to the driver’s seat.

“And allow me to send a message to this fella,” Noctis adds promptly, already typing away in front of the laptop.

Prompto sinks helplessly to the seat beside Noctis. “Why are we all friends again?” he says loudly, and the meaningful response he receives is the sound of their amused laughter.

 “I want that video deleted right now.”

Pelna winces at the sharpness of your words. Crowe, on the other hand, looks like she is ready to give you everything the world has to offer. In the years you have spent sharing a flat with them, this must be the first time you have ever seen them this apologetic. Which is only fair because this is the first time they have done something quite outrageous to upset you. Yes, sure—Crowe and Pelna might think you’re overreacting right now, but you’re no video blogger or Internet celebrity like the both of them are, so that’s entirely beside the point. As they sit side by side cowering on the couch and you standing over them—hands on waist, jaws clenched, eyes seething in fury—it’s as if they have committed a crime against all of humanity that cannot be forgiven.

Except the casualty of the said crime is you, and only you.

“Look, you have every right to be mad at me for my negligence—” Pelna nervously raises a hand, trying to look at you dead in the eye but flinches as if you are burning bright like the sun— “but I fucking swear, it wasn’t me who uploaded the thing! Okay, I admit—I’ve been tempted to record you for some time now ‘cause in case you don’t know this yet, you’re a really good singer. But trust me on this! I really have no idea how that video got out, I promise!”

“And it’s certainly not me who recorded you!” Crowe adds in their defense. “My alibi may not be perfect but I was already drunk that time! And even if I’m sober, I wouldn’t dare barge in Pelna’s room and tinker with his toys. Gods know what I’d find in there—”

“Only the good stuff, my dude,” Pelna says, suddenly pleased with himself. “Nothing but the good stuff—”

“How about we focus on the issue at hand, yes?” You pace back and forth, and in dire resignation, you finally flop on the armchair next to the couch. Fucking hell. It’s too early in the morning to have a head-splitting migraine. You wish this had been from a hangover or some other sickness, but it’s insane how this is all caused by seeing a video of yourself on the fucking Internet with no recollection of recording it at all. Sleuthing to find out the events that unfolded the night of Pelna’s birthday only seemed to make throbbing in your head even worse. As far as you could remember, most of the folks had been severely battered—which was why you had the guts to pull out your guitar and sing the blues away as everyone dozed off in their drunken stupor. But in your tight-knit circle of friends, if there’s anyone who could impressively hold their liquor the same way they could hold a knife, it could only be...

“Wait a fucking second.” Crowe narrow her eyes at Pelna, and then at you. She fishes out the phone in her pocket and hurriedly dials a number. With her phone on loudspeaker, the line rings once, twice, thrice. And then, a voice.

“What’s up, Crowe—”

“Nyx.” Crowe’s tone is already accusing that you didn’t even bother butting in. “You’re the one who uploaded the video on Pelna’s channel, weren’t you?”

A suspicious pause. Then, Nyx laughs. “Maybe.”

Pelna grabs the phone from Crowe. “I swear I will kill you when I see you, man! How dare you dishonour me—” as a knee-jerk reaction to his response, you kick Pelna in the shin that he yelps when he says— “and how dare you dishonour our friend!”

On the other line, Nyx is still laughing. “Wait, on a scale of one to ten, how angry is —”

“Not the fucking point!” Pelna snaps back. “How did you even manage to get into my account, you piece of beautiful shit?”

“Well, maybe next time you should make sure you always logout, alright?”

“Well, fuck you.”

“Thanks, but no thanks.” Nyx says breezily. Even in a phone call, his voice never fails to carry his air of arrogance. “But hey, kidding aside. You all said that we should help each other in living to the best of our potential, right? And our friend right there with you, Pelna—yes, you, I know you’re listening, too—do you even realize how fucking talented you are? You have been serenading us all our life, and this is the least I could do to share how proud I am to have a gifted friend like you. I’m sorry if it’s a jackass move, but I know if I asked for your permission, that thing would never see the light of day.”

The four of you bask in a sudden uneasy silence. You should not have been touched by Nyx’s words, but here you are, almost moved into tears. Despite his occasional display of pride and vanity, Nyx is one of the kindest human beings you have ever had the pleasure to meet. He may not seem like it, but he’s the very definition of a jerk with a heart of gold. You just hope he could completely forego being the jerk and stick with his golden heart instead.

This time, you take the phone from Pelna and say, “Treat the three of us for dinner for the next two weeks, and I’ll decide if I should forgive you.”

“Consider it done. I’m a man of my word,” Nyx says, and the sound of his relief is evident in his voice. “Now... am I out of trouble?”

“Certainly not, you dickhead. Later.”

You drop from the call and hand the phone back to Crowe. The two of them gape at you as if you have finally turned out to be the monster they have always known you to be.

“Wow. You really did that,” Crowe says, looking very impressed. “You actually shut Nyx up and made him agree to pay for two weeks worth of dinner. Aren’t you a delight.”

You manage a small smile. Pelna heaves one loud sigh of relief. “Now that we’ve finally cleared things up, are you sure you want me to take the video down? You’re really getting a lot of hype from my channel, I mean we’re close to half a million views! And—“

The shrieking sound of the doorbell cuts your conversation in an abrupt halt.

“Wait, I’ll get that,” Crowe gets up and rushes toward the door.

“So? Whaddaya say?” Pelna urges fervently. He is still invested on persuading you, and you can see it in his kind eyes. “It’s one video, I know… but you gotta believe us, you really are a fucking talent—”

“Pel, it’s not that. It’s...” You get on your feet, circling around the coffee table, as if it would help you articulate all the reasons behind your sense of trepidation. Honestly, you appreciate having Pelna and Crowe as friends for their selfless outpour of love and support for your craft. But how can you explain to them that sometimes, your own music terrifies you? Is there any logical explanation behind being scared of your own voice? So here you are, standing in front of Pelna, falling extremely inadequate to gather the words out of your mouth. Instead, you say, “I’m… just worried. What if The Lost Boys had seen it? And what if they’d hate me for it?”

Pelna offers you a weird, strained look. “Well, about that—”

“I don’t think there should be anything to worry about. We love it!”

The bell-like bounce of the voice that spoke clearly does not belong to Pelna nor Crowe, nor does it fit in the ordinariness of the space of your shared apartment.

You turn—hesitantly, too carefully—to see three of The Lost Boys standing by the doorway with Crowe. And standing in front of you is their frontman, Prompto, smilingly extending his hand to reach yours.

  This horribly sunny day is getting stranger and stranger, and it’s not even noon yet.

Pleasantries have been made—and a little bit of internally slapping yourself in the face to make sure this is all happening—and now, it has all come to this. Leaning from the bar counter, you watch as the four infuriatingly beautiful men of The Lost Boys struggle to squeeze themselves in the poor thing you all call a sofa. Across from them is Crowe, sitting cross-legged on the coffee table, analyzing each of them from head to toe with the sole purpose of intimidating the shit out them. Which is no surprise, of course; Crowe rarely gets star-struck in the presence of famous people, and even if she does, she hides it effortlessly well. Meanwhile, Pelna is playing a staring game with the band’s drummer—and frighteningly the tallest and largest in the group—that you cannot help but wonder if Pelna has some sort of a death wish that he needs to get fulfilled right this instant.

“So, let me get this straight—” Crowe says, crossing her arms— “and I hope you don’t mind if we’re being cautious ‘cause, well, we don’t want our roommate to get dragged into something sketchy, but… you came all the way down here to this shabby neighbourhood after you saw the cover of your song, and now you want to collaborate on a song? Is that it?”

Prompto is the one who willingly answers with a vigorous nod. He seems unfazed with Crowe’s intention of scaring them off. He glances your way before he says, “And there’s no need to worry about the contract and all that legal stuff, ‘cause we’ll have that arranged. Right, Ignis?”

“Indeed,” says Ignis. “I know this arrangement seems completely out of sorts, seeing as we came here on such a short notice, but I can assure you that we offer nothing but the best of intentions.”

“Really?” you say as you move from behind the counter to sit together with Crowe. “But you’re all men. And you know what’s more dangerous than men? Celebrity men.” No one said a word. A moment’s silence lingers as you study each of their faces, and then: “So how do I make sure that I could trust you with… this? That this isn’t some publicity stunt you’re trying to pull—”

“It’s not like that at all,” Prompto says firmly. “And if you have any doubts with your safety, well, I’m sorry if our friend Gladio looks so menacing for our image—”

“Seriously?” Gladio scoffs, turning to Prompto. “You really hurt my feelings.”

You try to stifle your laughter. Somehow, now that you look closely at the four of them, they remind you of Nyx, Libertus, and Pelna.

And suddenly, you feel bad for putting them in a hot seat like this.

As The Lost Boys begin to discuss amongst themselves with what you assume to be a stream of their inside jokes, Pelna sidles up to you while Crowe loops her arm around yours. Whispering, she says, “I think you should do it.”

Pelna discreetly adds, “And if they ever get you into trouble, Nyx is a lawyer so he should have your back. I already texted him and he’s ready to keep an eye out for you.”

You let out a rueful sigh. You have to admit, it’s hard to stay mad at Crowe and Pelna and Nyx when this is the way they exhibit their unwavering friendship: with a flourish of genuine love and steadfast support.

Empowered by your friends’ confidence, you clear your throat and you turn your attention to the four men sitting in front of you. You fix your eyes at Prompto, and you ask, “So. When do we start this thing?” 

#final fantasy xv #ffxv #ffxv fanfiction #fanfic #prompto argentum #older!prompto argentum #prompto x reader #older!prompto x reader #my writing

[longlivekookie]

Jade, The Stone Of Heaven Comes From Hell

The name says all of it. I even have written this article due to the fact you have a right to realize the story at the back of jade as opposed to the tale approximately jade itself. The story I will let you know does stand in stark comparison to what you typically listen and study approximately and associated with jade. My tale is set what hardly all of us is telling you because it's simpler, extra best and perhaps additionally safer to jot down about jade in sparkling phrases than to put in writing about the invisible layer of jade mine employees' blood and misery, corruption and unlawful gains really worth billions of USD, with which uncooked jade and merchandise made of the 'Stones Of Heaven' are lined with. But this is exactly what this text is about.

Let's test the poverty and distress in the back of the stage on which emerald green jade surrounded by means of glitzy diamonds or in shape of wonderfully carved larger or smaller pieces of paintings is taking centre and sold or auctioned off for tens and loads of hundreds and from time to time tens of millions of USD. The gap among riches beyond creativeness in the front of this level and the inconceivable poverty and distress at the back of the level couldn't be any wider.

Burma the beautiful usa I am privileged to name domestic on account that more than 25 years is the source of the worlds' maximum treasured and quite admired jade Custom Made Jewellery. The cost of the in Burma in 2014 by myself produced and exported amount of jade is estimated to have been somewhere among USD 30 and 38 billion. Yes, this is not a writing blunders it's far billions, now not millions.

What is jade, who is shopping for these massive quantities of jade and why?

In the subsequent I will give you a totally brief description of jade. Jade comes in  types namely jadeite and nephrite. Since they are composed of different minerals and chemical substances we are able to in reality speak of  one-of-a-kind gem stones. The first, jadeite, is much less not unusual, a great deal tougher (from 6.Five to typically 8 and on occasion even nine on the Mohs scale that ranges from 1 to 10) and manufactured from aluminium, sodium silicate and chromium, the latter being the agent for green colour.

Jadeite exists in 6 natural colorings. The most essential of those colors is green that tiers from emerald green and apple green to spinach green and black green. The maximum luxurious and in demand green is imperial green (the suitable name is emerald inexperienced), for it become the colour of preference of Chinese empresses and emperors. The different colors wherein jadeite seems are pink, lavender, yellow, white, and close to black, each one in several variations from mild to dark. Characteristic for jadeite is amongst others, the extreme or even colours, honey-like transparency, translucency, watery lustre and the even texture. All of this money owed for the truth that jadeite is a whole lot extra precious for that reason greater admired, in the end, extra steeply-priced than nephrite and used for most of the higher priced jade jewellery.

Nephrite is with most effective 6 to six.5 on the Mohs scale a great deal softer than jadeite and in all other characteristics of lesser exceptional than jadeite. But make no mistake it's miles though very precious; most effective in direct comparison with jadeite it takes 2d location.

The solutions to the questions, "who is shopping for these massive quantities of jade and why" I will give you right now. The one buying those big amounts of jade is China the sector's biggest jade market. And here is why. Since millennia jade (in Chinese language 'yu') is integral a part of the Chinese subculture and plays an immensely important position in the lives of Chinese regardless of age, gender, career, rank, elegance, financial and social reputation, and so forth. The cause for this is that for the Chinese jade, which has Confucius called the 'Stone of Heaven', is a good deal greater than 'just' a monetary funding, piece of beautiful jewellery and/or a wonderfully carved decorative element. What makes jade for the Chinese so exquisite desirable is its immaterial price. For them jade is a symbol for the whole thing appropriate in lifestyles together with desirable good fortune, wealth, health, energy, nobility, achievement, perfection, purity and, consider it or now not, immortality. Superstitiousness is deeply rooted within the Chinese people's nature. For this reason, jade is for Chinese the most treasured of all gem stones and possessing as lots as possible of it in the maximum excellent possible is everyone's aim. This blended with the growing profits of the big and hastily increasing Chinese center elegance creates an ever-developing demand and makes China no longer only Burma's top patron for unfinished jade but the international's largest jade marketplace that seems to be insatiable. Every 12 months billions of USD well worth of jade is exported from Burma to China. How plenty it surely is all however nobody knows because it's miles an open secret that a great deal (maximum?) of the jade and the exceptional of it is smuggled and bought to China through a most effective, mafia-like business enterprise led and controlled with an iron fist through drug lords, highest ranking individuals of the Burmese military and the Burmese government and their cronies, what, do not fool yourself, is likewise proper for the brand new Burmese authorities that has formally taken over the reins from the antique army-sponsored 'civil' authorities in April 2016 after a landslide victory of the October 2015 elections by using the NLD (National League Of Democracy) underneath the leadership of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Just to present you one instance that stands for many comparable cases and could provide you with an idea what numbers we are simply talking right here with appreciate to jade enterprise. According to the London-based watchdog agency Global Witness (an worldwide enterprise devoted to investigating and exposing corruption and enhancing transparency in natural resources industries), retired Senior General Than Shwe and his own family made extra than USD 220 million in jade income in 2013 and 2014.

As mentioned in advance, Burma is the supply of virtually all (it is stated minimal seventy five in step with cent) of the worlds' supply of most treasured and exceedingly sought after jadeite. Where precisely is that this jade mined?

In Burma jade is mined in the jade-rich Mountains of the Kachin State within the northernmost a part of the usa. The centre of jade mining is Hpakant. It is placed 220 miles/350 kilometres north of Mandalay, in 'jade land' the most important jade mining area within the international comprising of large jade mines consisting of Maden Yang, Maw Mau Bum and Hpakant, Tawmao, Hweka and Mamon in addition to smaller jade mines which include Ginsi Haw, Tang Gau and Ginsi Seng Ra.

The digging for jade does of direction additionally have irreversible and catastrophic environmental results. The formerly lushest millennia-antique rainforest with an unrivalled multitude of variety in plant life and fauna that has included this area till a few 30 years in the past has fallen sufferer to the jade mining frenzy and what is left is a panorama that strongly resembles the floor of the moon and makes the residing for the population/populace of this region almost not possible. And the worst of it's miles that the mining place is developing almost with the aid of the day. Huge bulldozers are shifting like the tentacles of a massive octopus into the surrounding areas and destroying the herbal environment. The mining agencies simply take the additional land they need with out paying whatever in exchange to the rightful proprietors. This is referred to as 'land grabbing' and something pretty not unusual in Burma; the wealthy and effective simply take, blanketed by way of other powerful humans, what they need.

[mitchbattros]

Astronomers have put together the largest and most comprehensive "history book" of galaxies into one single image, using 16 years' worth of observations from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.

The deep-sky mosaic, created from nearly 7,500 individual exposures, provides a wide portrait of the distant universe, containing 265,000 galaxies that stretch back through 13.3 billion years of time to just 500 million years after the big bang. The faintest and farthest galaxies are just one ten-billionth the brightness of what the human eye can see. The universe's evolutionary history is also chronicled in this one sweeping view. The portrait shows how galaxies change over time, building themselves up to become the giant galaxies seen in the nearby universe. This ambitious endeavor, called the Hubble Legacy Field, also combines observations taken by several Hubble deep-field surveys, including the eXtreme Deep Field (XDF), the deepest view of the universe. The wavelength range stretches from ultraviolet to near-infrared light, capturing the key features of galaxy assembly over time. "Now that we have gone wider than in previous surveys, we are harvesting many more distant galaxies in the largest such dataset ever produced by Hubble," said Garth Illingworth of the University of California, Santa Cruz, leader of the team that assembled the image. "This one image contains the full history of the growth of galaxies in the universe, from their time as 'infants' to when they grew into fully fledged 'adults.'" No image will surpass this one until future space telescopes are launched. "We've put together this mosaic as a tool to be used by us and by other astronomers," Illingworth added. "The expectation is that this survey will lead to an even more coherent, in-depth and greater understanding of the universe's evolution in the coming years." The image yields a huge catalog of distant galaxies. "Such exquisite high-resolution measurements of the numerous galaxies in this catalog enable a wide swath of extragalactic study," said catalog lead researcher Katherine Whitaker of the University of Connecticut, in Storrs. "Often, these kinds of surveys have yielded unanticipated discoveries which have had the greatest impact on our understanding of galaxy evolution." Galaxies are the "markers of space," as astronomer Edwin Hubble once described them a century ago. Galaxies allow astronomers to trace the expansion of the universe, offer clues to the underlying physics of the cosmos, show when the chemical elements originated, and enable the conditions that eventually led to the appearance of our solar system and life. This wider view contains about 30 times as many galaxies as in the previous deep fields. The new portrait, a mosaic of multiple snapshots, covers almost the width of the full Moon. The XDF, which penetrated deeper into space than this wider view, lies in this region, but it covers less than one-tenth of the full Moon's diameter. The Legacy Field also uncovers a zoo of unusual objects. Many of them are the remnants of galactic "train wrecks," a time in the early universe when small, young galaxies collided and merged with other galaxies. Assembling all of the observations was an immense task. The image comprises the collective work of 31 Hubble programs by different teams of astronomers. Hubble has spent more time on this tiny area than on any other region of the sky, totaling more than 250 days, representing nearly three-quarters of a year. "Our goal was to assemble all 16 years of exposures into a legacy image," explained Dan Magee, of the University of California, Santa Cruz, the team's data processing lead. "Previously, most of these exposures had not been put together in a consistent way that can be used by any researcher. Astronomers can select the data in the Legacy Field they want and work with it immediately, as opposed to having to perform a huge amount of data reduction before conducting scientific analysis." The image, along with the individual exposures that make up the new view, is available to the worldwide astronomical community through the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes (MAST). MAST, an online database of astronomical data from Hubble and other NASA missions, is located at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland. The Hubble Space Telescope has come a long way in taking ever deeper "core samples" of the distant universe. After Hubble's launch in 1990, astronomers debated if it was worth spending a chunk of the telescope's time to go on a "fishing expedition" to take a very long exposure of a small, seemingly blank piece of sky. The resulting Hubble Deep Field image in 1995 captured several thousand unseen galaxies in one pointing. The bold effort was a landmark demonstration and a defining proof-of-concept that set the stage for future deep field images. In 2002, Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys went even deeper to uncover 10,000 galaxies in a single snapshot. Astronomers used exposures taken by Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3), installed in 2009, to assemble the eXtreme Deep Field snapshot in 2012. Unlike previous Hubble cameras, the telescope's WFC3 covers a broader wavelength range, from ultraviolet to near-infrared. This new image mosaic is the first in a series of Hubble Legacy Field images. The team is working on a second set of images, totaling more than 5,200 Hubble exposures, in another area of the sky. In the future, astronomers hope to broaden the multiwavelength range in the legacy images to include longer-wavelength infrared data and high-energy X-ray observations from two other NASA Great Observatories, the Spitzer Space Telescope and Chandra X-ray Observatory. The vast number of galaxies in the Legacy Field image are also prime targets for future telescopes. "This will really set the stage for NASA's planned Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST)," Illingworth said. "The Legacy Field is a pathfinder for WFIRST, which will capture an image that is 100 times larger than a typical Hubble photo. In just three weeks' worth of observations by WFIRST, astronomers will be able to assemble a field that is much deeper and more than twice as large as the Hubble Legacy Field." In addition, NASA's upcoming James Webb Space Telescope will allow astronomers to push much deeper into the legacy field to reveal how the infant galaxies actually grew. Webb's infrared coverage will go beyond the limits of Hubble and Spitzer to help astronomers identify the first galaxies in the universe. The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA (European Space Agency). NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, conducts Hubble science operations. STScI is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy in Washington, D.C. Read the full article

[listentothismaguro]

Artist to listen: Watsky

I doubt that many of you recognize George Watsky by his name, but there is a good chance you have already seen him around on the internet. If you are subscribed to the YouTube channel Epic Rap Battles of History, then let me tell you that Watsky was featured in 3 of their videos, incarnating William Shakespeare, Edgar Allan Poe and the 4th Doctor of Doctor Who; if you used to watch YouTube’s viral videos back in 2011, then you probably know him for being the author of the viral video Pale Kid Raps Fast, where he raps fast as hell; or perhaps you know him because you are great fans of the duo twenty one pilots (Josh Dun was featured on the song Midnight Heart); or you might know him for any other reason. Or not. But anyway, this post was made for those who have never heard of him, or have but never had the curiosity to know more about him. 

So, I’ll start by introducing him. George Watsky is a rapper, poet and writer born on 15th September 1986 in San Francisco, California (USA), alongside with his twin brother: Simon. Watsky has been interested on music since he was very young. In fact,is first hip-hop song, Nosy Clowns, was created back in 2002, when he was in high-school (it is now available on his SoundCloud). But George only started to draw attention as a poet (more specifically as a slam-poetry artist), after winning the Youth Speaks Grand Slam Final, in 2006, and being featured on the 6th season of Russel Simmons Presents Def Poetry (HBO), in 2007. After this success, Watsky started his musical career, creating the jazz hip-hop band Invisible Inc. with two friends (Max Miller-Loran and Daniel Riera). On 1st July 2007, the trio released the album Invisible Inc., which actually didn’t get much success. Actually, so far, the album is still goes unnoticed, except maybe the single Mr. Nice Guy. After this brief project, Watsky decides to go on with his career, but this time as a solo artist. Invisible Inc. reunited again in 2016 to record an Anti-Trump song for Watsky’s album x Infinity: Pink Lemonade. There are rumors that there will be a second album in 2017 or 2018.

On 1st November 2009, Watsky released his first solo album: Watsky. This album has two singles: Fuck an Emcee Name and The Girl Next Door. The album ended up on 7th place on the hip-hop category on iTunes. In January 2011, Watsky released his viral video, Pale Kid Raps Fast, on Youtube. Today, the video is non-listed, but it has over 20 million views. Because of this video, Watsky ended up being a guest of The Ellen Show twice! In the same year, he was considered the Big Sound of 2011, alongside with Mac Miller, Kreayshawn and Skrillex. But between these four, Watsky was the less-successful. 2012 was a busy year for Watsky. On 1st February he released a collaboration album with Kush Mody: Watsky & Mody. The album had four singles: Ghost Party, Mrs. Robinson, Kick Monday (In the Nutsack) and Man of Constant Sorrow; on 11th July he released the mixtape Nothing Like the First Time, which has nine singles; and a bit more than a month later, on 1st August, he released a second mixtape, A New Kind of Sexy, which has six singles. But Watsky only started to be closely as popular as he is now after releasing his second solo album - Cardboard Castles - on 12th March 2013. The singles are Strong as an Oak, Moral of the Story and Hey, Asshole. This album reached the 1st place on hip-hop albums on iTunes. 17 months later, he released his third solo album, All You Can Do, with Whoa, Whoa, Whoa, Ink Don’t Bleed, Right Now and All You Can Do as singles. Whoa, Whoa, Whoa is his most popular track so far, with 12 million views on YouTube (I’m not counting with Pale Kid Raps Fast, which wasn’t even on an album. It was just a viral video) After finishing the tour of his third album, Watsky decides to have a break in music. In 2015, he is only seen as a featured artists on the singles Nobody and Never Afraid, by Spose and MC Lars, respectively. The hiatus ended when, on 27th April 2016, he uploaded a video on his YouTube channel announcing the release of his book How to Ruin Everything, release that would happen on 14th July of the same year. At the time, there were rumors that a 4th solo album would be released soon. Those rumors intensified when, on 1st July 2016, Watsky released his song Stick to Your Guns. The fourth album, which would be called x Infinity, was confirmed on 8th July 2016, after the releasing of the single Tiny Glowing Screens, Pt.3. The album was released on 19th August 2016, with Stick to Your Guns, Tiny Glowing Screens Pt.3, Midnight Heart and Talking to Myself as singles. This album hit the 33rd place on Billboard 200, being the first time at all to be included on the list, and the 4th place on iTunes in the category of hip-hop. Watsky later promised that he would make a music video for every track of the album. He’s been doing so. The last one to be released was Lovely Thing Suite Part 2: Knots, on 17th May 2017. I also want to underline the fact that Watsky was featured on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s mixtape The Hamilton Mixtape, with the song An Open Letter, featuring the beatboxer Shockwave, and the release of his “secret album”, Plane 651, as a secret message on the x Infinity track Don’t Be Nice, leading to the site www.kisswatskysgluteusmaximus.com.

Now, my opinion about the artist: He is really good and talented. Actually, my favourite rapper. I discovered him through the YouTube channel Epic Rap Battles of HIstory. The first songs I listened to were Wounded Healer, Bet Against Me and Stupidass. Time passed, and I found myself listening to more and more Watsky. Today, there are very few of his songs I don’t really like. A thing I love about this rapper it’s his diversity. He has songs about politics (Stick to Your Guns and Pink Lemonade), about philosophy matters, specially death (Wounded Healer, Talking to Myself, the three parts of Tiny Glowing Screens and the four parts of Lovely Thing Suite), motivational songs (Never Let it Die, D.A.N.C.E. and Midnight Heart), or songs that make us laugh (IDGAF, Ugly Faces, Exquisite Corpse and Pauly Shore Saw My Penis). I think that all this diversity shows Watsky’s personality somehow, because his lyrics are very personal. You can go from his problem with seizures to his thoughts about the irrelevance of the human race compared to the universe to his narcissism. Actually, to prove how personal are his lyrics: His book, How to Ruin Everything, talk about many funny stories (or just deep thoughts, but it’s mostly funny stories) about his past. A lot of those stories were referenced, even if just briefly, on many of his songs, like Wounded Healer, Women, Women, Women, Fireworks, etc..., way before the book was released, like the night he spent in prision, or the first time he got drunk, in Europe. Other thing I admire on Watsky is the fact that he is tireless! Since 2006, he performed slam-poetry on more than 150 universities; he released a total of 53 music videos, participating as a guest in other four (Paul Hollens, Spose and MC Lars (and other 8 for the new album are confirmed); he released five solo albums (if you include his “secret” album Plane 651); an album with Invisible Inc.; a collab album with Kush Mody; two mixtapes; many awards for his slam-poetry, specially between 2006 and 2008; he participated in more than 300 shows of slam-poetry and music, being almost impossible to give you an exact number; he published a book; and he co-founded Steel Wool Media alongside with Brad Simpson. Tireless! Respect!

So, the artist to listen is George Watsky. Wanna give him a shot? I advice you to start with Dent in the Moon, Sloppy Seconds, Talking to Myself and Midnight Heart first! I’ll leave you with some quotes of Watsky’s songs and poems.

“I can’t really tell if I’m a good person or if I’m faking really well” - Ten Fingers “Because you know what’s awesome? World peace. And you know what else is awesome? Catapults.” - Letter to my 16 Year Old Self “There are 7 billion 46 million people on the planet and I have the audacity to think I matter!” - Tiny Glowing Screens, Pt.2 “I thought this was a party, but all my friends are leaving and I still wanna play” “Although the thought of paradise is very nice, in my heart I know I don’t believe in magic so I’m thinking death is like an eternal TV static” - Lovely Thing Suite: Conversations “I thought I was an atheist until I realised I’m a God” - Whoa, Whoa, Whoa “I’m not Jesus Chist, but I can turn water into Kool-Aid.” - Drunk Text Message to God

#Watsky #music #artist to follow #hip hop

[sunsetwatchrepair1]

A Good Watch Deserves More Than D.I.Y.

Watches are a status symbol when wearing certain expensive makes but beware the fakes! These are usually easy enough to spot as a good genuine mechanical watch should have an almost smooth second hand movement.

The fakes generally tick forward every second where the genuine makes click three hundred and sixty times a minute. Even so, beware the skilled salesman who may have a genuine one which no doubt he has stolen off some poor holiday maker and with a clever deft movement can switch to the fake as you are counting the money.

In USA on holiday a few years ago I got the price down on a supposedly genuine three thousand dollar watch to three thousand Rupees which works out at about five dollars and still the cheeky boy felt he had made a killing.

The safe way to buy genuine watch is perhaps to buy one of the better makes skeleton models. These have a glass back or front which reveals all the working parts. As a rule of thumb the more parts there are to a watch the better the quality. Top of the range watches that cost many thousands of pounds can have up to one thousand and more separate parts.

Watchmaking began in earnest in the early eighteenth century but it wasn't really until after the First World War that people began wearing wrist watches and even then it was mostly women as men thought them rather effeminate and preferred the pocket or fob watch.

The Swiss have pretty well cornered the market on the high priced watches although they have also mastered the branding and selling of tens of millions of cheap ones as well. The Cuckoo clock makers now produce exquisite masterpieces for which there seems to be no end of demand for.

Explorers are the lucky recipients of some of these watches as there is much free advertising if your make is for instance worn by the first man on the moon or become a world champion bike or car driver.

There is an area of Switzerland not too far from Lausanne on Lake Geneva where clocks and top class watches have been made for a couple of hundred years and some of the very best and most expensive have a policy to sponsor expeditions which they know are going to get much publicity. When the watch stops working it's time to look for some watch repair specialists and what you do not want to do is fiddle with it yourself unless you are fully trained in the art of repairing watches.

Some high-end watches take craftsmen over a year to make and dismantling it yourself to get at the root of the problem is definitely not a good idea. If a watch has twelve hundred parts you just know that when you put it all back together one tiny screw or spring is going to be left on the workbench and you are going to be scratching your head.

Sunset

Watch Repair in Los Angeles

offers a full range of professional

jewelry repair services in Los Angeles

. Receive your free watch &jewelry repair estimate today.

#Watch Repair Stores in Los Angeles

[tipsoctopus]

£4.58m per goal: Extent of Man United's transfer blunder revealed in Marcus Rashford comparison

In a modern footballing world which is becoming defined by obscene financial investments, the need for numerical validation has never been more pertinent. The exponential rise in access to an abundance of statistical data – ranging from something as fundamental as appearances to something as futile as expected goals – has not been manufactured to justify the decision-making of the super-rich, but it’s inadvertently taken on that responsibility anyway.

When a new signing is touted, especially attackers commanding hefty transfer fees, the gaze of journalists, pundits and supporters is naturally drawn towards the number of goals and assists they have provided down the years. It’s an impulse reaction which has been embedded into the stream of consciousness amongst almost all footballing spectators.

So, when reports emerged detailing Manchester United’s devious plot to hijack Manchester City’s seemingly inevitable deal to secure Alexis Sanchez’s services last January, it was commonplace to find astonished supporters double-taking the words they digested as if they were actively refusing to allow their elation to spill overboard.

And why not go a bit delirious with Sanchez-contracted fever? The Chile international had scored 80 goals and provided 45 assists during his career in north London, many of them solo efforts of individual genius, some mazy dribbles which bamboozled entire defensive units and others exquisite long-range thunderbolts which arrowed into the desired corner with laser-like precision.

Anticipation was eventually replaced with glittery-eyed awe when Sanchez announced himself onto the scene in a moment of cinematic elegance while perched on a seat in front of a piano, tapping the keys to ‘glory glory Man United’ in what promised to be a watershed moment in Manchester. United not only believed they had deprived their noisy neighbour and chief title rival of an incredibly gifted player, they considered this as an act of revenge for Carlos Tevez’s infamous and unforgivable decision to swap red for blue almost ten years before.

With an unrivalled statistical record in Premier League football few would have questioned the decision to offer Sanchez a £350,000 per week contract. This was, after all, a known goal and assist getter with rich experience at every level of the game. What could possibly go wrong?

As the 30-year-old prepares to return to north London on Sunday ahead of a vital encounter in the race for the top-four, the extent of his subsequent demise can be revealed through, that’s right, congratulations, you guessed it: statistical information. Read below to claim your prize…

It’s what the people want and need. Don’t hate the player, hate the game.

Watch the video below to find out what Jesse Lingard is like off the pitch in the latest Match Of The Bae with Emma Conybeare…

United supporters are acutely aware of Sanchez’s tepid form and statistical return to boot, but the full extent of the colossal flop’s financial burden is only revealed when his salary is crunched together with a few key numbers.

In this case, Marcus Rashford, a hungry, promising, relatively unproven but ultimately superior talent – on current form – has been used to compare how the club are distributing their resources to two players at opposite ends of their footballing careers.

By the time the fixture kicks off on Sunday, Sanchez will have earned just shy of 59 weeks’ wages at United, which equates to a staggering £23.9m; Rashford, by contrast, has earned just £2.65m. I use the word just incredibly loosely. It’s unlikely that the 20-year-old needs to think twice about buying literally anything but, in the context of the modern economic climate, he’s earning a pretty modest salary for a player of his ability.

But the damning indictments which illuminate the extent of United’s financial leakage lie within how much each player has taken home per minute played and how much each goal has set the club back.

Since Sanchez signed on January 22nd, Rashford has scored 14 goals in all competitions, nine more than the £350k per week player has managed during the same period. Dividing Rashford’s earnings by his goal scoring return shows that each goal has cost the club roughly £189k; Sanchez’s goal scoring exploits, on the other hand, have set the club back £4.58 million a pop.

Nobody could have envisaged the scale of the catastrophe which has unfolded for the club, but what Ed Woodward, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and the rest of United’s bigwigs can do is to learn a fundamental lesson: the inflated model is broken beyond repair and a solution needs to be found.

That solution may well lie within the implementation of a more organic system of internal promotion. Rashford is firmly within the formative stages of his career. Exuberant, lightning-quick and innately talented, he is a wonderkid with one of the highest ceilings in the game and, if United can produce just a couple of talents every season who are anything close to his level, the need to offer such unfathomable wages will likely diminish.

This simply cannot go on. Sanchez provides a particularly unique and complex hero-to-zero tale but, regardless of the reasons behind his failure at Old Trafford, his spell proves that a line has been crossed and it is time for a re-think in how clubs approach the transfer market.

You’ll win nothing with kids, but you might save enough money to establish a small football club on the moon by favouring youth over experience.

from FootballFanCast.com https://ift.tt/2VNvQ4l via IFTTT from Blogger https://ift.tt/2UsELYK via IFTTT

#FootballFanCast.com

[clusterassets]

New world news from Time: What America Must Do Now, After North Korea’s Summit with South Korea

We are witnessing a new chapter in the long, contentious post–World War II history of the Korean Peninsula, and President Donald Trump deserves a significant measure of credit. Whether by plan or happy circumstance, the combination of his aggressive military posturing (“fire and fury”), sharply edged name-calling (“little rocket man”) and pressure on China to enforce extant United Nations sanctions has helped bring both South Korea and North Korea further along the path to meaningful dialog than we have seen before. The two nations have now declared their intent to work together to remove nuclear arms from the peninsula and formally end the Korean War.

This moment of diplomatic rapprochement was helped by three other crucial factors. Kim Jong Un has rapidly consolidated a viable nuclear weapons program that, in his mind, opens the door to negotiate a way to finally enter the club of recognized nuclear states — and makes negotiations overall more advantageous for him. The fortuitous timing of the Olympic games provided a kind of psychological “firebreak” in the superheated rhetoric at the end of last year. And while often overlooked, South Korean President Moon Jae-In has shown consistent willingness to negotiate — a sound strategy when the alternative would be millions of Koreans dead on both sides of the demilitarized zone.

Will this work? Shall there be champagne and Nobel Prizes for all my friends? While I would assess the far most probable outcome as being a successful long-term negotiated solution, there is a smaller but significant possibility that we return to pre-Olympic levels of tension and an even smaller chance of a “wheels come off the car” war on the peninsula. The world is at a vastly better moment than six months ago. But sadly, the fundamentals are still dangerous.

In the interim, America should spend less time focusing exclusively on North Korea and more time listening to the South Koreans. We tend to see Kim in a single dimension — a semi-crazy dude with a really bad haircut. They understand him in three dimensions and have a clear-eyed view of the dystopian kingdom over which he rules with cruelty and harsh despotism.

This expansive and inclusive mindset should also extend to getting more nations involved in our discussions with Kim. Despite a natural tendency to want to get all the credit if we can solve this, we need to get China to the table with us. A minimum of four-party talks (U.S., North Korea, South Korea and China) will be required to get this deal done. And bringing Japan and Russia to the table for six-party talks is not a bad idea. This cannot be a U.S.-North Korea confrontation.

To that end, while President Trump will bring a lifetime of negotiating skill to the table, he needs professional backup on this one. The stakes are just too high. Our professional diplomats and military team have to fully engage. Selecting Admiral Harry Harris, the outgoing commander of U.S. Pacific Command, as the new U.S. Ambassador to South Korea — instead of to Australia, as had been the plan — is a superb choice. I know him well and would bet on his talent and touch to be an enormous force for good here. (It is a bit of a bummer for the Ambassador personally that he must give up Shiraz for Soju, but such is life.)

When looking at our own interests, we need to decide what North Korean weapons plan we are willing to accept. Despite much happy-feeling talk from Pyongyang, it seems highly unlikely Kim will give up all his nuclear weapons. While I believe we should accept a limited arsenal, with an inspection regime and a diminution of the ballistic missiles to deliver them, if we are not going to do so (which President Trump has said already), we should be prepared to walk away from the table.

That said, we do not need to rush away. We will need to be patient. We will not have a few more handshakes and photo-ops and then all part as friends. Kim will more than likely continue to operate from the playbook of his father and grandfather before him: get the West excited about peace, extract concessions, then either walk away or hide the remnants of the program. If “yes” truly means zero nuclear weapons on the peninsula, getting there will probably require a multi-year negotiation and an even longer period of dismantlement, verification and inspections — perhaps lasting five to ten years.

All the while, we should hope for the best, but plan for the worst. Solving this with soft power and diplomacy is the objective, but we better be ready to “fight tonight” if necessary. This is no time to reduce U.S.–South Korean training and exercises. We need close military coordination with other Pacific allies, including notably Japan and Australia. NATO needs to remain firm and prepared to engage. We have detailed military plans (so-called “contingency plans” and “operational plans”) that need to be validated and resourced.

Whatever our red lines, though, we need to commit to them and see real action from North Korea before we reduce sanctions. Whichever way this goes, there will be an ever higher premium on intelligence and surveillance. This means more aggressive cyber penetration (working closely with South Korea), new exquisite satellite surveillance capabilities and pooling intelligence with our regional allies and possibly even with China (the latter obviously in highly compartmented ways). This is not Ronald Reagan’s “trust but verify,” given the North Korean record of grabbing the football just as we are about to kick it — or the champagne glasses just before we are about to cheers to peace. A better approach would be “verify, then start to trust.”

April 28, 2018 at 01:25AM ClusterAssets Inc., https://ClusterAssets.wordpress.com

#Time #world #news #ClusterAssets #ClusterAsset #Cluster Asset Inc. #ClusterAssets Inc.

[omnipop-mag-blog]

http://time.com/5258118/north-korea-south-summit-donald-trump-nuclear-talks/

We are witnessing a new chapter in the long, contentious post–World War II history of the Korean Peninsula, and President Donald Trump deserves a significant measure of credit. Whether by plan or happy circumstance, the combination of his aggressive military posturing (“fire and fury”), sharply edged name-calling (“little rocket man”) and pressure on China to enforce extant United Nations sanctions has helped bring both South Korea and North Korea further along the path to meaningful dialog than we have seen before. The two nations have now declared their intent to work together to remove nuclear arms from the peninsula and formally end the Korean War.

This moment of diplomatic rapprochement was helped by three other crucial factors. Kim Jong Un has rapidly consolidated a viable nuclear weapons program that, in his mind, opens the door to negotiate a way to finally enter the club of recognized nuclear states — and makes negotiations overall more advantageous for him. The fortuitous timing of the Olympic games provided a kind of psychological “firebreak” in the superheated rhetoric at the end of last year. And while often overlooked, South Korean President Moon Jae-In has shown consistent willingness to negotiate — a sound strategy when the alternative would be millions of Koreans dead on both sides of the demilitarized zone.

Will this work? Shall there be champagne and Nobel Prizes for all my friends? While I would assess the far most probable outcome as being a successful long-term negotiated solution, there is a smaller but significant possibility that we return to pre-Olympic levels of tension and an even smaller chance of a “wheels come off the car” war on the peninsula. The world is at a vastly better moment than six months ago. But sadly, the fundamentals are still dangerous.

In the interim, America should spend less time focusing exclusively on North Korea and more time listening to the South Koreans. We tend to see Kim in a single dimension — a semi-crazy dude with a really bad haircut. They understand him in three dimensions and have a clear-eyed view of the dystopian kingdom over which he rules with cruelty and harsh despotism.

This expansive and inclusive mindset should also extend to getting more nations involved in our discussions with Kim. Despite a natural tendency to want to get all the credit if we can solve this, we need to get China to the table with us. A minimum of four-party talks (U.S., North Korea, South Korea and China) will be required to get this deal done. And bringing Japan and Russia to the table for six-party talks is not a bad idea. This cannot be a U.S.-North Korea confrontation.

To that end, while President Trump will bring a lifetime of negotiating skill to the table, he needs professional backup on this one. The stakes are just too high. Our professional diplomats and military team have to fully engage. Selecting Admiral Harry Harris, the outgoing commander of U.S. Pacific Command, as the new U.S. Ambassador to South Korea — instead of to Australia, as had been the plan — is a superb choice. I know him well and would bet on his talent and touch to be an enormous force for good here. (It is a bit of a bummer for the Ambassador personally that he must give up Shiraz for Soju, but such is life.)

When looking at our own interests, we need to decide what North Korean weapons plan we are willing to accept. Despite much happy-feeling talk from Pyongyang, it seems highly unlikely Kim will give up all his nuclear weapons. While I believe we should accept a limited arsenal, with an inspection regime and a diminution of the ballistic missiles to deliver them, if we are not going to do so (which President Trump has said already), we should be prepared to walk away from the table.

That said, we do not need to rush away. We will need to be patient. We will not have a few more handshakes and photo-ops and then all part as friends. Kim will more than likely continue to operate from the playbook of his father and grandfather before him: get the West excited about peace, extract concessions, then either walk away or hide the remnants of the program. If “yes” truly means zero nuclear weapons on the peninsula, getting there will probably require a multi-year negotiation and an even longer period of dismantlement, verification and inspections — perhaps lasting five to ten years.

All the while, we should hope for the best, but plan for the worst. Solving this with soft power and diplomacy is the objective, but we better be ready to “fight tonight” if necessary. This is no time to reduce U.S.–South Korean training and exercises. We need close military coordination with other Pacific allies, including notably Japan and Australia. NATO needs to remain firm and prepared to engage. We have detailed military plans (so-called “contingency plans” and “operational plans”) that need to be validated and resourced.

Whatever our red lines, though, we need to commit to them and see real action from North Korea before we reduce sanctions. Whichever way this goes, there will be an ever higher premium on intelligence and surveillance. This means more aggressive cyber penetration (working closely with South Korea), new exquisite satellite surveillance capabilities and pooling intelligence with our regional allies and possibly even with China (the latter obviously in highly compartmented ways). This is not Ronald Reagan’s “trust but verify,” given the North Korean record of grabbing the football just as we are about to kick it — or the champagne glasses just before we are about to cheers to peace. A better approach would be “verify, then start to trust.”

The post New world news from Time: What America Must Do Now, After North Korea’s Summit with South Korea appeared first on OMNI POP MAG.

#IFTTT #WordPress