#all the bus driver accounts are very good

[five-rivers]

Gambler's Fallacy

AO3

Izuku’s expected path down, face-first into the concrete, halted.  He floated, staring at the retreating sidewalk, uncomprehending.  

“Sorry!” said an unfamiliar voice.  “I hope you don’t mind, I used my quirk on you!  Falling would be bad luck, wouldn’t it?”

“Um,” said Izuku, not sure how to explain that was the point to this very pretty girl with this super cool quirk, oh, no, why was she even talking to him?

She tapped her fingers together, and her quirk let him go.  “Good luck on the exam!” she said, walking away.

“Uh-um, y-yeah,” said Izuku.  

Crap.  Did that interaction count as good luck or bad?  Obviously, Kacchan literally running into him on the way in was bad luck, and tripping was bad luck, but a cute girl rescuing him?  And then Izuku completely humiliating himself by not being able to say thank you?  If only his quirk took other people’s actions into account more, maybe he’d be able to tell.  Especially when he was trying to save up his bad luck by pulling on the negative side of his quirk.  

Speaking of which, he had an entrance exam to get to, and this would be the biggest test of his quirk since the day with the sludge villain.  That day had been awful.  He’d burned through his ‘stored’ luck and then some when All Might rescued him, bit his tongue so hard he wasn’t able to ask the man any questions, and then on the way home, he’d run into the sludge villain again, but this time, it was attacking Kacchan, and he’d had to tip his quirk balance even further into ‘debt’ for the luck to stab the villain in the eye with his pencil.  When he finally got the chance to go home after that, when the heroes (except for All Might) were debating whether to berate him for quirk use, or interrogate him over his ‘clearly fake’ quirk, only constant vigilance kept him from being run over by a car or kidnapped.  

(Luck only took you so far.  Skill and hard work closed the gap.)

But he was far more prepared today!  The last time he’d spent a significant amount of luck all at once was when he met Mr. Yagi, who’d been organizing a community volunteer event to clean up Dagobah beach.  Izuku had… needed a pick-me-up after his quirk registration had been audited again.  He was glad he did.  Mr. Yagi was the sort of guy who was so uncool he sort of rolled over into being cool again, and he worked at Might Tower.  Izuku really liked Mr. Yagi.  Even if he did sometimes look at Izuku as if he were debating saying something life-altering.  

Point being, he had a bunch of luck saved up, and he’d keep saving it all the way until he was taking the exam, leaning on his quirk just enough to make himself moderately unlucky until then.  

It worked pretty well, in his opinion.  The random seating for the written exam and for the practical orientation both put him next to Kacchan, he somehow grabbed the attention of someone confident uptight enough to scold him for muttering in front of a whole auditorium of people, he kept getting hit by doors, the robot bus driver somehow decided to register him as a bush, instead of a human, he tripped getting off the bus, the uptight guy scolded him again, and then–

“Start!” screamed Present Mic, from the announcer’s box.  

Izuku didn’t have to be told twice.

.

Izuku didn’t actually mind having bad luck.  

Not usually.  Not as long as it was only a little bad luck.  After all, what you did with your luck was what dictated your fate.  Plus, most small unlucky events, like spills, tears, and lost items, could be countered with only a little forethought.  Izuku had two of everything that was really important, and carried a mini sewing and stain removal kit with him almost all the time!

But… good luck was freedom.  Good luck made him feel as if he was invincible, as if he was flying, a thousand miles up and only getting higher.  Good luck was amazing.  

Good luck was an almost ideal weapon in his hand the minute he stepped into the fake city, a piece of pipe that was just the right length, the right height, the right width for him to hold onto easily. 

Good luck was catching sight of other students hitting the weak points of robots so clearly he knew he would be able to target them as well.  

Good luck was partially-destroyed but still functional robots practically offering themselves up to him for points.  

Good luck was being able to dodge every attack and stray friendly fire without even trying.  

Good luck was spotting when people were in trouble before they even knew it, and pulling them out of the way.  

Good luck was seeing that nice girl trapped under rubble, and throwing his pipe, spear-like, at the zero-pointer and having it hit something so vital that its progress ground to a stop.  

Good luck was… rapidly running out.  Actually, he’d burned through his saved buffer of bad luck a while ago.  

Oops.  

He didn’t even see the bit of rubble that fell on his head.  

He didn’t see anything until hours later when Recovery Girl woke him up in the infirmary.  

He didn’t even get to talk to the nice girl again.  

But… he thought he’d done well.  He could only hope he’d done well enough.  

.

He had!

.

Izuku checked to make sure he wasn’t leaning on the negative side of his quirk too hard.  A quirk assessment?  A physical quirk assessment?  On the first day?  One with expulsion as a possible consequence?

He was going to die.  

It wasn’t like he’d neglected physical training.  Mr. Yagi had even given him some suggestions for it!  (It turned out that before he’d been a secretary, he’d been a personal trainer… who knew?)  But, naturally, he’d focused on his quirk, and his quirk was anything but physical.  In a class with Kacchan and people with enhancement-type quirks…

Kacchan promptly underlined the point by blasting a baseball hundreds of meters away in the ball toss while shouting “DIE!” at the top of his lungs.

He was really going to die.  

Unless… unless everyone else lost.

He raised his hand.  “Mr. Aizawa, do you mean we can do anything to make our scores better in comparison with our classmates?”

“As long as you don’t injure anyone, yes.”

Well.  He’d learned long ago that good luck for him sometimes meant bad luck for other people.  He… really didn’t want to be expelled.  But could he do that to his new classmates?  Could he sabotage them like that?

.

The answer was, no, he couldn’t.  But he could, apparently, get one of UA’s observation drones to go haywire, catching his baseball at the top of its arc and then zooming off to who-knew-where over a kilometer away at high speed.  

He could also promptly get plowed into by another drone, which had suffered from the same AI malfunction as the first, and have to go to Recovery Girl for the resultant broken arm.  

.

Sometimes, Izuku wondered if his quirk had a mind of its own, and, if so, what was up with its sense of humor.  

No one was expelled.  

.

Izuku stared at the numbered ball in his hand.  He’d decided to take it easy in the luck department today, not leaning on it either way, but, really, this was far too much, just to make things even.  

Next to him, stood Uraraka, who he might finally have a real conversation with.  Across from him, stood Kacchan, who was definitely going to take this opportunity to beat the crap out of him.  

Thank goodness nothing big was riding on this Battle Trial.  Even if All Might kept looking at him like he was going to say something life-altering.  

Actually…  Was All Might related to Mr. Yagi?  No, that was silly.  Just because two people worked in the same place and had similar mannerisms, and the same color of hair, and the same color of eyes, and the same smile, and similar heights, didn’t mean… um…  Hm.  

That was a thought for later.  

For now…

“My quirk is called Gambler’s Fallacy,” said Izuku.  “It lets me manipulate my luck.  I can store up bad things that happen to me, and then use them to make me lucky later, or, if I don’t have any luck stored, I can make myself lucky now, but I have to pay for it later.  I can also make myself unlucky on purpose, and store up the bad things that happen because of that.  But I don’t have anything stored up right now, since I spent it all yesterday, during the quirk assessment.”

“Wow,” said Uraraka, “that sounds really complicated.  So, you could just… make us win?”

“Not exactly.  If winning or losing was based entirely on chance, then, yes, but it isn’t.  This is mostly skill and ability.”  

“Mm,” said Uraraka.  “So we’ll just have to be more skilled!  Anyway, even if you can’t make us win, we’ll know that we didn’t lose just because of dumb luck, right?”

Izuku nodded.  “You’re right!  I, um, I do have a plan.”

“Let’s hear it!”

.

Izuku’s quirk apparently thought winning  was worth breaking an arm (again).  Maybe if he factored in Recovery Girl’s quirk, he could understand that.  

But it still hurt.  

(And Kacchan was still angry.  Izuku wished he’d stop blaming all of his bad luck on him.  Even if it was Izuku, this time.)

.

Getting trampled twice in one day, first by reporters, then by people running away from reporters, was definitely bad luck.  

.

“I tend to say whatever is on my mind,” said Asui– No.  Tsu.  She said to call her Tsu.

“Okay?” said Izuku.  

“Your quirk is very hard to understand.”

“Ah, yeah,” said Izuku, rubbing the back of his neck.  “It is.  I’m really glad quirks grow with you.  If I was able to push my luck then as much as I can now, I probably would have died.”  As it was, he'd gotten into a few bad situations over the years.  Once, while operating with neutral luck, he'd won a contest that was apparently more chance-based than advertised, and the results had been… interesting.

('Interesting' being code for terrifying.)

“Hah!” scoffed Kacchan.  “There’s nothing hard to understand about it!  He just sabotages everyone around him!”

“Like you’re any better,” said Kaminari, as Izuku slouched down in his seat, trying to disappear.  “If you don’t tone things down, all of us will be deaf by the time we graduate!”

“I could make you some earplugs, if you think that would help,” offered Yaoyorozu.  

.

As it turned out, being attacked by a whole league of villains during the first field trip of the school year was so absolutely, unmitigatedly bad that it topped off Izuku’s ‘gauge.’  The last time that had happened, he’d been in elementary school.  

It meant that he danced around the first attacks with ease, and when he did fall through a portal, it deposited him right outside a very clearly labeled maintenance door.  It was locked, but Izuku’s costume didn’t include a utility belt just for aesthetics.  He pulled a set of ‘universal’ keys out of one of the pouches, jammed the first one he grabbed into the lock, and grinned as he heard all the tumblers click home.  

Random chance was his friend today.

He ran up, into a sort of control room.  Several of the screens were blinking, warning that the system had lost connection to the main campus.  He cleared the warnings and swept his eyes over the controls.  There was a set of headphones on one of the monitors, and he put them on.  They’d been sized for someone bigger than him, but that was fine.  There were sounds coming through them, so… There.  He could switch freely between hidden microphones in a number of places, apparently.

More importantly, at the moment, he could control vital aspects of a number of the simulations.  He got to work, draining the shipwreck zone, strategically flaring the fires in the conflagration zone, activating a landslide in the landslide zone, ‘rebuilding’ collapsed houses in the typhoon zone…  Anything he could think of, to damage the chances of villains and let his classmates escape.  

Then, his elbow hit the microphone button, switching what the headphone channel to the central plaza just in time to hear ‘Shigaraki Tomura’ order ‘Nomu’ to kill Mr. Aizawa.  

.

All Might burst through the doors before Izuku could even begin to come up with a plan to escape the frankly horrifying Nomu, and never before had Izuku been so relieved to feel his luck drain away and equalize.  

All Might was here - and that was apparently equal to the villains in the eyes of his quirk.  They’d be safe, now.  They were saved.  

Izuku almost cried.  

Then he really did cry as Nomu and the portal villain actually proved to be a challenge.  If Nomu could hold All Might still, and the portal villain could portal one of All Might’s limbs to Shigaraki Tomura…  Or even if the portal villain could close a portal with something in transit…  

But that didn’t happen.  

Instead, All Might punched Nomu through the roof of the USJ.

Izuku tracked Nomu’s meteoric rise with a sense of wonder.  His quirk was great and all, but he’d never, ever be able to do anything like that.  

The rest of the teachers piled through the hole All Might had made in the side of the USJ, and the portal villain swept himself and Shigaraki Tomura away.  Izuku, finally, let himself relax, loosening his grip on his quirk.  

He… didn't think that anyone had died.  That was as lucky as they could possibly expect to be.

.

The problem with the sports festival was that the positive Izuku’s quirk was only effective for short periods of time.

Could he constantly maintain a low level of good luck, like he could with the bad?  Technically, yes.  He’d been tempted to do just that more than once.  But if he ever lost grip on his quirk while he was carrying around a big luck debt…  Well.  It was better to be owed luck than to owe it.  When not being actively managed, his quirk tended to just equalize.  

Could he save up and then slowly spend his good luck?  Again, technically, yes, but… and this was something Izuku was embarrassed to admit…

He was bad at spending good luck slowly.  In fact, not only did he usually push his good luck to happen faster than it usually would, when he was using that side of his quirk, he tended to overshoot.  By a lot.  Hence incidents like at the end of the entrance practical.  

(He was glad he hadn’t overdrawn his luck at the USJ.  He’d probably have had Nomu fall on him or something.)

If he wanted to do well in the sports festival, he couldn’t do that.  It wouldn’t do him any good to win, say, a relay race, like they’d done for the second event  a couple years ago, and then step on his shoelace and concuss himself before he could do anything for the next event.  

So.  He had to figure out how to either regulate his quirk use better, or how to pass at least one event without using it.  Preferably both.  

.

Izuku kept his quirk in neutral until the minefield.  Who decided that a minefield was a good idea for a school sports festival?  Well…  Plus Ultra, he supposed.  

He had an idea.  

He had an idea he needed to be lucky for.  But he'd only have to be lucky for a minute.  Maybe even less.  

He put his scrap metal shield aside, and started stacking mines.  When he figured he had enough, and had them in more or less the right shape, he picked up his scrap metal and, using it to shield himself, jumped on the mines.  

He went soaring.  It was exhilarating.  It was terrifying.  It was working.  

Kacchan and Todoroki were in sight.  He was gaining on them.  He was–

Getting hit by a bird. 

He tumbled sideways, away from Todoroki and Kacchan.  Barely, he managed to get the shield under him again, before he hit the ground and another mine went off, sending him shooting in the other direction.  He landed back in the path Todoroki and Kacchan had cleared, which was weird if his luck had run out…

It hadn’t run out.  

Then where had the bird…?  Why…?

It didn’t matter.  What mattered was that he wasn’t going to try that again, but he need to get a move on if he wanted to finish this race.  He wrenched his quirk back to neutral, and started running.  

He came in third, and collapsed in the waiting area.  Yeah.  Running.  Being exploded.  Still hard.  

It took a while for everyone else to cross the finish line.  A while during which Izuku wondered why he’d been hit by that bird.  Maybe Kouda…?  No, he was nowhere nearby, and he usually didn’t make his helpers commit suicide runs which… that probably was, unfortunately.  Was his quirk just broken?  He didn’t like the thought of that.  His quirk screwed him over in a lot of ways, but it had never backstabbed him or failed to work.  

But as soon as Midnight announced the results…

Yeah.  

His quirk wasn’t broken.  

(He’d have to burn some incense for that poor bird, though.  Yikes.)

He, in third place, had a headband worth two hundred points for the next event.  Kacchan had one worth two hundred and five.  

Todoroki’s was worth ten million.  

.

Izuku’s calvary team was made up of Uraraka, Tokoyami, and Hatsume, an unfamiliar girl from the support course.  Hatsume was the rider.  Izuku didn’t have any offensive quirk that being rider would let him leverage, Uraraka didn’t want to be in a position where she would have to use her quirk on herself, and Tokoyami and Dark Shadow were strong together.  Hatsume, meanwhile, had all sorts of unbelievable gadgets that she could operate from the rider position.  

Between her and Tokoyami, their ability to collect headbands shouldn’t be bad.  While everyone else went after Todoroki and Kacchan, they should be able to snag smaller point values.  Once they got a comfortable number, they could use Hatsume’s jetpacks and hide out in the air until the clocks ran down.

“I’m impressed,” she said, after Izuku finished explaining the plan.  

“It’s nothing fancy.”

“Not that, third place.  I’m impressed you’re letting someone else take the spotlight.”

“Well,” said Izuku, “I’m… probably not going to be a spotlight hero, honestly.  My quirk isn’t all that fancy.”

“Hm.  Maybe.  I feel like we’ll be surprised.”

And maybe she was right.

The more chaos inherent in a system, the more Izuku’s quirk could do.  The cavalry battle had a lot of chaos.

So, when Izuku flared his quirk to give them just that little edge, trying to keep their points out of Iida’s hands–

Rin’s team and Kamakiri’s team slipped and fell as Honenuki overshot his quirk use, becoming immediately disqualified.  Monoma brushed against Todoroki… while he already was holding Kacchan’s quirk.  The explosion wasn’t the biggest Izuku had ever seen, but it wasn’t small.  Kaminari, startled, shocked Iida, who stumbled, and almost capsized their whole team, letting Kacchan almost grab the ten million point headband, except that Todoroki suddenly caught on fire.  

Izuku shut his quirk off.  He’d used more luck than he intended, but he still has some for later, and for now…

“Take us up, Hatsume!”

“Thought you’d never ask, third place!”

.

When they landed, they hadn’t finished in first place, but they were far from dropping out, which was a true relief.  

The third event was single combat, which, hm.  Yeah.  His odds weren’t good on this.  He was planning on losing a lot of the recreational games between the second and third rounds, but the stakes of those were low, so he wouldn’t get a lot of luck from them.  In a bare concrete ring, one on one, skill against skill, with almost no outside variables…  It was possible for his quirk to make someone trip over their own feet, or get weird muscle spasms, but under these circumstances, it would be expensive.

Well, there was a little interlude even before that, so he was going to go freshen up…

.

Neither Izuku nor his quirk could decide what kind of luck overhearing all that counted as.  First Todoroki trying to have some kind of rivalry heart-to-heart with Kacchan, where he heavily implied he was the result of a eugenics project, and then whatever that was with his father.  Should he report this?  Who would he even report this to?  Who would believe him?  

He was kind of freaking out.  

And Todoroki’s quirk.

“I thought I was the only one who had self sabotage as part of my quirk,” he whispered.  

Actually, he was pretty angry about that.  Edging into fury, really.  It wasn’t like Todoroki was the only one who’d been dealt a bad hand when it came to fathers, but Izuku wasn’t refusing to use his quirk over it, even though his father’s permanent departure had been the inciting incident for his quirk’s first activation.

(His father abandoning them had, actually, given Izuku a small reserve of good luck that took several days to naturally deplete.  It was something Izuku was perversely grateful for, knowing what his quirk might have done to him otherwise.)

But what could he do?

Except, maybe…  He’d used his fire instinctively, in the cavalry battle.  Maybe if someone could pressure him…

Could Izuku do that?  

No.  Probably not.  Not without a lot of luck. 

… this was going to be painful later.  

.

Of course, he couldn’t beat sense into Todoroki unless he actually made it to the second round of battles.  Making it to the second round of battles seemed… unlikely, at the moment.  His quirk couldn’t protect him from his own stupid decisions, after all.

He was walking towards the edge of the ring, not in control of his body, barely in control of his quirk, which he had turned on as much as he could.  

He tripped.  Over his own feet, as it so happened.

Before Shinsou could react, he was back on his feet and attacking.  Shinsou’s story sounded… sad.  Lonely.  But Izuku had lived the same life!  He’d been called bad luck and a vampire ever since he’d first fully explained his quirk!  He wanted to commiserate!  To comfort!  To empathize!

But, right now, it was time to fight, and he threw Shinsou out of the ring.  

.

Unfortunately, getting out of Shinsou’s grip had come at the cost of his remaining luck.  That meant that if he used any for the fight with Todoroki - a fight he was almost certain to lose anyway - he’d be paying for it later.  

But could he really leave this alone?  Being a hero was risky.  Being a hero while using only half your quirk was worse.  

The match started, and Izuku jumped.  He was lucky, of course.  Todoroki had pretty good control of his ice, but there were, naturally, random peaks and valleys in the less-controlled parts, and Izuku happened to fall into a valley.  He also managed to break off an ice spike on the way down.  

Lacking other weapons, he threw it at Todoroki.  

“You know,” said Izuku, managing to hide from ice behind yet more ice, and acquiring a few more projectiles while he was at it, “if you used your fire to melt these, you wouldn’t have to dodge!”

This actually stopped Todoroki dead in his tracks.  “You–”

“I overheard your conversation with Kacchan!”  Izuku dodged again.  “Do you really think you can be a hero using only half a quirk?  When all the rest of us are trying our–”

He was forced to dodge again.  This went on for some time.  Izuku, barely manage to dodge, Todoroki whipping another, more fragile, glacier at him, Izuku throwing ice and words he barely heard himself back at him.

Izuku, though… He was wearing down.  The temperature was getting to him, and Todoroki had winged him a few times.  

“I won’t do it!” declared Todoroki through gritted teeth.  “I won’t use his quirk!  I’ll show him–”

“It’s not his!  It’s yours!  Use your quirk, Todoroki!  Show me your power!”

Through the ice, Izuku saw orange flare from the tips of Todoroki’s fingers.

The thought crossed Izuku’s mind that suddenly heating up this much cold air might not go very well.  For the very first time in his life, Izuku’s survival instinct decided to do its job and he threw himself out of the ring just in time for Cementoss to raise the blast walls to contain Todoroki’s explosion.

“Uh,” said Midnight a minute later.  “Todoroki, wins?”

Izuku was just as surprised as she was that he hadn’t been turned into a fine paste.  Of course, that could still happen.  He had a massive bout of bad luck coming up.  

Still.  Lying here next to two Pro Heroes, he was probably safe.

.

Izuku tripped going down the stairs leaving the ring.  

“How do you break so many bones going down stairs?” asked Recovery Girl, incredulously.  

Izuku grunted.  Broken bones could be healed.  So could frostbite.  

But, for him at least, the sports festival was over.  He just had to hope he’d made a good impression.

.

(Todoroki joined him in the infirmary an hour later.

“Bakugou is extremely violent,” he said, by way of explanation.

“Yeah, he’s kind of…  Yeah.”

“You’re still friends.”

“Uh,” said Izuku.  “Maybe?”

“What’s your phone number?”

Somehow, Izuku wound up adding Todoroki to the class group chat.)

.

“Who sent your recommendation?” asked Uraraka, over lunch.  

“Native!” said Izuku, vibrating with excitement.  His quirk was kind of boring, visually, and hard to understand, so he hadn’t expected to get any offers at all!

“Native?” asked Uraraka, her face dropping.  “Isn’t he kind of, um.  His whole image is a bit…”

“Appropriative?” filled in Iida.  

“That’s a misconception,” said Izuku.  “He actually is native.  His father is Japanese, obviously, but he’s Ainu, and his mother is from an indigenous North American tribe.  They met at some kind of conference for displaced indigenous peoples, I think?  The documentary was really interesting, but it’s been a while…  I think there was later some kind of controversy with his mother, but I don’t really understand American politics…”

“Oh!” said Uraraka.  “I didn’t know that!  I guess I should try to research, before just assuming things.”

“It’s…  It’s a common misconception,” said Izuku, waving his hands.  “A company he’d investigated for illegal quirk experimentation ran a really nasty smear campaign against him, and, uh, his public persona isn’t really great.”  Which was the polite way to say that he got irritated at reporters (and everyone else) really easily.  “The important thing is, you know now.”

“Mhm!  I guess so!  That’s a really good way to put it.”  She leaned forward.  “I really like your hero name!  It’s super cute!”

“Thanks!” said Izuku, brightly.  “I’ve wanted to use it since I was a little kid!”

.

The ride to Hosu was painfully awkward.  Mainly because every attempt Izuku made to try and start a conversation with Iida fell flatter than a pancake.  

Not that he blamed Iida!  He probably had a lot on his mind, after all.

.

“He-hello, sir!” said Izuku, bowing deeply to Native, who had been leaning up against the front desk of his agency, talking to the secretary.  “I’m Clover!  Y-your intern!  Please take care of me!”

“Hey, hey,” said Native, “there’s really no reason to be like that, it’s irritating.  You need to loosen up a little, kid.”

“Y-yes, sir!”

Native sighed.  “Okay, anyway, you good here, Satsumi?”

“Yes, I think I have all the information,” said the secretary.  

“Great.  So, I guess I can give you the tour and the intern talk.”

Native’s agency wasn’t anything fancy.  A lot of things in it were worn out.  Old.  But, then, after the smear campaign, it was probably hard for him to get sponsorships.

“So, Clover,” said Native, after he had given him a rundown of the temporary dorms and the main common areas, “why did you decide to intern with me?”

“W-well,” said Izuku, “for a couple reasons.  The first is that you’re the only one who requested me, specifically, as opposed to agencies that just have general agreements with UA, so I figured there was probably a reason for that.”

“Uh huh,” said Native, sounding unimpressed, “what else?”

“Well, you also have a strictly mental quirk.  Not a lot of heroes have that, not the ones on UA’s open internship list.  Ragdoll and Mandalay from the Wild Wild Pussycats are the only other ones, and… I’d be worried about being a liability in a rescue situation.”

“Anything else?”

“I don’t think so?  Of course, your record was–”

“Nothing else that might have been in the news?”

“Um.  No?”

Native nodded. “I’m surprised anyone took me up on my offer this year, honestly.”

“Be-because of the smear campaign? I, um, I never believed it.  I remembered your interview when you talked about your parents, so…”

“Ah.  Okay.  That makes sense.  Sorry.  Just had to make sure you weren’t one of those weirdos who try to congratulate me for ‘sticking it’ to an already oppressed group.”  He sighed.  “You’d think we’d have solved at least some of these problems, since we got superpowers, but no, we just came up with even more ways to be awful.”

“O-oh,” said Izuku.  “Sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” said Native, waving off the apology.  “So.  Tell me about your quirk.”

.

Native’s quirk, compared to Izuku’s, was simple.  It affected his perception.  Not his senses themselves, but the way his brain processed the data from those senses.  His eyes and ears weren’t any sharper than a normal person’s, but what he could process about what he could see and hear was.  And he could do it fast.  He could glance at a full page of writing for a second, and know everything that was written on it.  

It wasn’t terribly like Izuku’s quirk, and didn’t affect the outside world, like Izuku’s did, but like Izuku’s, the activation and management of the quirk were all in his head.  Which meant that he could advise Izuku on how to better use it.  

Unfortunately, Native seemed more interested in the stockpile aspect of his quirk.

“So,” said Native, “hypothetically, if something bad happened to you that had nothing to do with luck, would that count?  Like, if someone decided to hit you.”

“Um, not really.  Like, whenever someone throws a punch, there’s a small amount of chance involved in it hitting at all, but that’s, um, negligible, as far as I’ve been able to tell.”

“So you couldn’t bank luck by, say, purposefully getting assigned crappy paperwork?”

“Uh,” said Izuku, “no.  Not unless the paperwork was randomly assigned and I was leaning on the negative side of my quirk to get it.”

“Okay.  And, then, what if you traded the paperwork to someone else, afterwards?”

“I think I…  I’m not sure?  If I’d set the trade up before hand, probably, um, it’d just do whatever would get me the bad paperwork?”

“What if you needed the bad paperwork for some reason?”

“Then I’d have to use good luck, otherwise I wouldn’t get it.”

“What if you needed something bad to happen to you for some reason?  Like, you wanted to break your arm or get sick to get out of a school assignment?”

“Oh, I actually tried… something like that a few times.”  Not to avoid school work, but to avoid bullies.  “It only worked once, and I really regretted it.”

“Got really sick, huh?”

“Yeah,” said Izuku.  

“Okay,” said Native.  “I’ve got to go out on patrol soon, but I’ve asked Satsumi to give you the basic operational rundown.  Pro-tip?  It’s always the secretaries who are really running the show.”

“I-I’ll remember that, sir!”

“Yeah, yeah.  Anyway, enjoy the break, because I already have some training ideas for tomorrow.”

.

“So,” said Native as Izuku ran through his costume checklist.  “The thing is, even though our quirks are pretty different, there are still some similarities in– Hey, are you paying attention?”

“Yes, s-sir!”

“Uh huh.  There are some similarities in how we have to fight because of them.  Both of us have to rely heavily on the environment and respond to changes in it quickly.  Me, because that’s the only advantage I have, you, because even if your quirk gives you the best opening possible, you still have to move to take advantage of it.  So.”  He gestured at the crowded room, packed full of various random items.  “That’s what we’re doing.  Simulating a changeable environment for you to keep track of.  You ready?”

“Yes!”

.

“I’m going to take you out on patrol today,” said Native.

“R-really?”

“I wouldn’t say it if I wasn’t going to.  There’s a limited amount you can learn from sparring and helping Satsumi with the paperwork - The paperwork is really important, though.  If you screw it up enough, it can break you.  Mainly because of insurance problems.  You don’t want insurance problems.  Or Hero Commission problems.  If they decide they don’t like you, they’ll jump on anything they can to get rid of you.”

Izuku made note of this important fact.  

“Anyway, unless I give you permission, or you’re directly attacked, you are not to engage any villains or criminals, got it?  And if I tell you to run, you run.”

“I-I’ve got it!”

“Cool.  So.  Ready to make your debut, Clover?”

“Yes!”

“Great.  Oh, and bring those marbles.  They worked well for you in yesterday’s session.”

.

The first few hours of patrol went more or less the way Izuku expected it to.  There wasn’t a whole lot of crime in Hosu at this time of day.  Native caught an older teenager trying to break into a car, and gave him a warning for a first offense, they were called to a four-year-old’s somewhat awkward and chaotic quirk awakening - which Izuku helped with! - and a welfare check for an older couple who had missed a book club meeting (they were fine, they had just gotten the date wrong).  Otherwise, it was just walking around Hosu, including some really sketchy alleyways, Native pointing out things to keep an eye on and how to spot trouble in specific places.

But, then… things exploded.  

It wasn’t like Izuku was unused to explosions.  He’d gone to school with Kacchan.  But this explosion was bigger, and had a different character than Danny was used to.  It was also, thankfully, further away.  

Still, the middle of a city like this was not a good place for an explosion.  He started forward, towards the source of the sound, but Native caught his arm.  

“Never,” he said, pulling out his phone (a HeroGrade 32!  They weren’t available to the public, yet!), “never run blind into a situation when you can gather info first.”

“But–” 

“There are other heroes with closer routes,” said Native.  “We can be more useful if we know what’s going on first.  Crap.  Looks like a mass villain attack.”  He flipped his phone to face Izuku. A HeroNet video was playing on it.

He caught sight of exposed brain matter and gasped.  “Nomu?”

“You know one of these guys?”

“No,” said Izuku, “but they look just like one of the villains that attacked the USJ!  Maybe they’re relatives?”

“Any weaknesses?”

“No, they were really strong.  All Might had trouble, even.”

“Crap.  Hopefully, these guys don’t have the same kind of quirk.  Come on, now that we know what we’re up against, the faster we get there, the better.”  He started running.  “I want you to work with on-site sidekicks clearing civilians from the area.  You can use your quirk, but if your stockpile runs out, evacuate with the civilians.  If you get cornered, I give you permission to fight, but only if you get cornered.  Otherwise, run, got it?”

“Ye-yes!” said Izuku.  It was easier for him to keep up with Native than he’d thought it would be, but he didn’t quite have the lung capacity to respond with full sentences.

They turned into an alley and– 

Native stopped dead, scanning the area.  

“Uh, Native?” said Izuku.  “Is–?”

Native pulled him to one side as something fell on them from above.  No.  Not something.  Someone.  Someone– Vest, bandaged arms, scarf, swords–

Native, naturally, processed the information much faster than Izuku.  

“Stain!”

Oh. 

Izuku pulled on his quirk instinctively and reached for his belt, grabbing the first thing that came to hand and throwing it at Stain.  The handful of marbles hit the side of Stain’s beaten katana and knocked it aside enough for Native to dodge.  

But Stain had another knife, and it flicked against Native’s stomach, cutting through his suit and drawing blood.  The wound looked shallow, though, so–

Stain licked his knife, and Native stiffened mid-step and started to fall.  Izuku caught him, then pulled him back, out of Stain’s immediate reach.

“I-I can’t move!” said Native, sounding shocked.

“A… sidekick?” said Stain.  

“He’s just-”  Native’s breath caught.  “He’s a student.  An intern.  I’ve only known him for a day.  Don’t–”

“A day is more than long enough for the rot to creep in.  Well, boy, do you stand by this fake, or will you give up his lies?”

“Clover, run!” 

“I-” said Izuku, “I won’t leave you!”  He also wasn’t sure if he’d make it, even if he did run.  Stain was good, as shown by how he’d still managed to stab Native, even though Izuku was using his quirk, and with the way the alley was constructed, they were standing in a corner, the direct path to the street blocked and blinded by buildings.  

“Then you, too, will be culled.”

Izuku jumped back from the lunge, unfortunately sacrificing his phone to deflect the blade.  Hopefully, the text he’d been making behind his back had gone through… he might not be connected to HeroNet, but he did have a network, and he knew at least two of them were in this city.

He hoped this worked.  

Then, faster than could be believed, it did.  Iida came racing around the corner and–

–apparently didn’t notice Izuku and Native fighting for their lives at all, but Izuku was willing to give him a pass, because he was a) there, b) clearly really upset by what happened to his brother, and c) took Stain’s attention off of him and Native.  Whatever.  But he also narrowly missed getting decapitated, and only avoided getting paralyzed by Stain because Izuku had picked up Iida’s helmet and beaned Stain over the back of the head with it.  

“What are you doing here?” demanded Iida.  

This was such a ridiculous question that Izuku didn’t answer it.  He was getting attacked by a serial killer.  That should’ve been obvious.

“Take Native and leave, this is my business.”

“You take Native and leave!” 

Iida could maintain a viable escape speed while carrying Native, unlike Izuku, and then Izuku could also run, no longer having to worry about whether or not he was leaving someone to their death.  Unfortunately, Stain did not wait for Izuku to explain this to Iida.  

What followed could have been a slapstick comedy.  Stain lunged, but put his foot down on a marble, which let Izuku and Iida dodge.  He recovered quickly, however, and swiped at Iida, who he called a fake hero - this was technically correct, as neither Iida nor Izuku had their licenses yet - but the blade was deflected by Iida’s armor, and all the blow accomplished was to knock a piece of Iida’s armor loose.  

(Izuku had to wonder if Iida’s costume manufacturer had skimped on the connective parts of his armor.  Parts of a costume shouldn’t just come off like that, except for capes, for safety reasons.)

But loose metal junk was one of Izuku’s favorite weapons, and when the bracer landed in his hand, he didn’t waste time throwing it at Stain’s face.  Then he pulled out his other favorite weapon.  A telescoping baton.  

He didn’t have it during the USJ, but after the sports festival…  Yeah.  He’d realized he needed something, and Mei had been all too happy to fulfill that need.  Literally too happy.  Powerloader had nixed most of her ideas and given Izuku a standard baton until he could work out potential bugs.  

Anyway.  

He alternated between throwing trash at Stain (the alley had a lot of trash) and trying to smack him with the baton.  Iida, meanwhile, tried to kick his face off.  The only reason they weren’t dead - or paralyzed like Native - was that Stain kept slipping on marbles and getting weapons stuck in the alley walls.  They were not, in any way, winning.  

Then Todoroki arrived like a divine spirit descending from heaven, and froze Stain solid.  

Well.  He didn’t freeze Stain immediately.  There was quite a bit of back and forth, because it turned out that the dodging technique Izuku had lucked into during the sports festival was something Stain could do at will.  And he tried to kill Todoroki too, a few times.  And there was some stabbing involved, but with Todoroki there, they could freeze the blood, and Iida was only paralyzed for a little bit, and all the while everyone was yelling about their personal philosophies, and heroism, and All Might, and–

His point was, after Todoroki showed up, it felt like the fight went really fast.  

But with Stain frozen, Izuku felt like he could relax just a little…

… and lose his grip on his quirk, which was very far in the red.  

Claws closed around his torso, and he was swiftly lifted from the alley.  Swiftly enough that his head cracked on the side of one of the buildings and he lost consciousness.  

.

Later, he learned that the nomu (which was apparently a class of being and not a family or personal name) had carried him around, apparently confused, for fifteen minutes before a flight-capable hero named Gran Torino rescued him.

He was, naturally, brought to the hospital, and, equally naturally, was the most injured out of the four people in that alleyway (not counting Stain, who they had really beaten the crap out of, apparently).  

He was relieved to hear that everyone had lived, and the nomu attack had only resulted in a few serious injuries, due to the strong hero presence in Hosu.  

He was significantly less relieved to hear that the police were thinking about charging him with vigilantism.  

.

“What the hell are you talking about?” asked Native, who had evidently overheard the police chief while taking a walk down the hallway.  “Clover had my permission to fight, if he was cornered.  Which he was.  I don’t know about the other two, but legally speaking, my intern is in the clear.” 

Izuku sighed in relief.  He didn’t think he and his mother could afford to go to court. 

“And kid?”

“Y-yes?”

“Stop using your quirk while you’re this beat up.  I know it’s instinctive, but I don’t want you to wind up getting an air embolism or something stupid from the kickback.”

“Oh,” said Izuku.  “Yes, sir.”

.

In preparation for the first term’s final exam, Izuku eased himself back into days where everything was just a little bit awful.  

He tore a hole in his favorite sweater.  He fell off a building during the Rescue Training Race.  Mr. Yagi kept staring at him with that weird expression when he went to volunteer.  He got every question he guessed on wrong on the mock exam.  He let himself get fleeced by Uraraka in small-scale gambling games.  He lost every round of rock-paper-scissors he played.  His mother sneezed and accidentally cut off way too much of his hair while giving him a trim, and Monoma started calling him a sheared sheep.  All Might kept staring at him with that weird expression during heroics lessons.  He lost a lot of in-class fights for silly reasons, like the elastic in his pants giving way, or, in one case, random neutrino interaction with the program controlling a simulation.  

It was good practice for when - not if, when - his quirk decided to screw him over in the middle of a real fight.  

But, maybe, Izuku should have realized that decisions about the final would be made significantly in advance of the final actually happening, and he wouldn’t have kept his quirk going until the last minute.  

Maybe then he wouldn’t have been paired with Kacchan.  Maybe then, they wouldn’t be facing All Might himself.  

Maybe then he wouldn’t be lying on the ground, bleeding, with Kacchan screaming at him to take his ‘stupid bad luck deku self’ and go away.  

In the end, however, Kacchan was the one who stomped away.  Izuku was left to slowly sit up, still feeling stunned.  Part of him couldn’t believe Kacchan still held a grudge over childhood quirk slip ups, especially considering what he had done to Izuku with his quirk.  Part of him… very much could.  

Kacchan was a jerk.  

Although… Izuku probably should have tried to come up with a plan more palatable than ‘run away.’  He’d known that Kacchan would never accept anything less than a perfect victory after the sports festival.

He shook his head, even though that made his ears ring, and pulled a coin out of one of his suit’s pouches.  In theory, this should work.  He had pretty good evidence of this usually working, for less vital things.

He flared his quirk and flipped the coin.  Heads, he’d go with his original plan, and try to escape.  Tails, he’d try to back up Kacchan.    

Heads.  

Well, then.  

.

It turned out that Izuku’s quirk was pretty good for stealth, given a large enough playing field.  

.

Izuku let go of his quirk as soon as he stepped through the gate, pleased to note that he still had some luck left.  Intending to keep it that way, and not spend it trying not to get murdered by Kacchan, he decided to jog back to where the other groups were waiting. 

Judging by the explosions behind him, this was a wise choice.  

He didn’t go back to his usual low grade bad luck until he was home safe, with the knowledge that he would be going to the training camp, and Kacchan wouldn’t be.

.

Except it turned out the students who had failed were going on the trip after all.  Yay.

.

Low grade bad luck was not supposed to include Shigaraki Tomura crashing a shopping trip, and yet.  

At least the ridiculous threat to his life - how had Shigaraki even recognized him?  He’d spent most of the time in the USJ in the maintenance room! - meant that he had a bit of extra luck to lean into, and he was hoping that Mr. Aizawa, or, heck, even All Might had decided this was a good day to shop, too.

But as the conversation wore on, it became obvious that his current quasi-kidnapped state was a direct result of his last kidnapping.  Shigaraki wanted to know “What did you do to my nomu?” and “What did you do to Stain?” and, most importantly, “Why do people pay attention to Stain and not me?” 

Which, in Izuku’s opinion, was a pretty petty thing for a supervillain to worry about, but this supervillain did have a dangerous quirk pointed at Izuku’s throat, so he wasn’t about to say that.  

“W-well,” he said, instead, “Stain is… understandable.  He has goals.  And even if you don’t agree with his goals, they’re pretty clear.  What he wants is… normal.  And the source of his conviction– It’s All Might!  It’s like that for a lot of people.  Even if the way he’s going about fulfilling his goals isn’t something people can accept.  You…  I don’t think anyone understands what you want.  What your, um, ideals are…”

“Ha,” said Shigaraki.  “Ha.”  

Izuku didn’t dare move.  He didn’t dare swallow.  Shigaraki’s middle finger was so close to his throat…

“I get it now,” he said, a horrible smile-like thing on his face.  “It’s all so clear now.  It all makes sense.  It’s so obvious why the hero killer is so irritating.  It’s all because of All Might.”  He laughed again.  “Right?  Right.  That’s the conclusion.  Man.  Of course it was All Might.  It’s always him.  The reason all these idiots can smile– It’s him!  Him, smiling, as if there’s no one he can’t save!”

At this point, Izuku started to tune him out, because it was hard to pay attention to something as trivial as words when you’re actively being strangled.  

And then, right when he was sure he was going to die one way or the other, Uraraka showed up.  

.

“I think I hate that guy,” said Izuku to Uraraka, later.  

“Yeah,” she said.  “Me too.”

.

Well, the training camp was going well.  And by well, Izuku meant he sure was training.  A lot.  

He was also, for some reason, catching a small ball-punching child who had been knocked off a wall by a pervert.  

They really should come up with some method to stop Mineta before he took things too far…  Some of his stunts were getting scary. 

But that was a task for tomorrow!  The task for today was listening to the story of a horrible family tragedy and then passing out.  

But then it turned out that the task for tomorrow was more training, and then–

And then the Test of Courage was crashed by a bunch of villains.  

.

The forest was filled with toxic gasses and fire, and there was a grade schooler somewhere on the mountain, but this was fine!  Totally fine!  Izuku had this handled!  And there were actual adults, trained heroes, who were not paralyzed, here, so, really, this was more like the USJ than the fight with Stain!

… Shockingly, this observation didn’t make him feel better.  

Finding Kouta did make him feel better.  

Encountering Muscular seconds later didn’t.  

Nor did discovering that the villains planned to kidnap Kacchan and Tokoyami.  At least Kacchan was safe back with the other people who’d failed the test.  Tokoyami, not so much.  

He had mixed feelings about the results of throwing the nearest stick at Muscular.  He’d prefer that he not be known as the hero who habitually put out people’s eyes, but if he complained about it, that would mean he survived to complain about it.

He took the opportunity to run.  

.

Izuku would very much like to know why Kacchan was out here and not safely back in the buildings with Vlad King and Mr. Aizawa.  

.

Why was Moonfish here?  Didn't Shigaraki know the reason Moonfish got caught was because he tried to eat his accomplice?

.

There was a shape-shifter involved.  This explained nothing.  

.

Why didn't this guy become a stage magician or something?

.

Izuku managed to catch the right orb and break Kacchan free, but even the best luck in the world couldn't save you from stupidity.  Stupidity in this case being Kacchan immediately shoving Izuku away and getting caught by the villains again. 

So.

Kacchan got kidnapped. 

The villains left.

A tree fell on Izuku.

He was, of course, sent to the hospital.

.

In the hospital, he wondered if Kacchan’s last words to him before he was hauled into that portal were right.  If he was just bad luck.  If he should just stay away.  

If Kacchan's shove had kept *Izuku* from being taken.  

.

They were on a rescue mission, and none of that mattered.  They were going to Kamino Ward.

.

They were hiding behind a wall about a meter high.  It had been much taller a second ago.  

Izuku's quirk was screaming at him.  It had never done that before.  

They could hear All Might and the villain talking, and it was terrible, terrible what he'd done to Ragdoll, but… it filled in so many gaps.  It explained the nomu.  It explained Shigaraki’s hatred of All Might.  It explained why this villain was so powerful.

But.

None of that mattered right now.  What mattered was saving Kacchan. 

.

They were soaring high above the battlefield, and Kirishima held out his hand - the chances were one in a million or less, but– 

Kacchan was with them, and they were running.  

They made it out, made it away, and Izuku kept a tight grip on his quirk, because he wouldn't, couldn't, let any bad luck happen now.  Not when it could spill over onto that battle.  

Then he saw the screen.

Izuku looked at All for One, standing in the ruins of Kamino Ward, standing above All Might, Mr. Yagi, who struggled to stand, to make one more attack, protect one more person, and he knew–

All for One was a person with a lifetime’s worth of good luck.  

He was practically made of luck.  From his quirk, which had to be the best quirk Izuku had ever heard of - the ability to take and give quirks?  Really?  That was a thing? - to having found the right quirks to live for centuries, to surviving that ‘last’ fight with All Might that he’d mentioned, to flying under the hero world’s radar for so long.  He’d won the lottery of life.  

If Izuku ever got luck like that, it’d kill him.

He slowed, stopping behind his classmates and–

And he turned.

And he ran. 

He ran, and cranked his quirk up as high as it would go.  Made himself as lucky as he possibly could.  The luck, not having anywhere else to go, spilled out, touching everyone around him with its glow.  

The small cluster of cancer cells in a man he passed spontaneously died.  

A woman fumbled her phone and sent a text message that would one day radically change her life for the better.

Hospitals nearby recorded a practically unheard of rash of Lazarus Syndrome cases.  

Rubble from the battlefield shifted just enough that a family of four were able to crawl out of the ruins of their living room.

Uraraka's father won the lottery- a fact he wouldn't notice for another week, too worried about his daughter to check his prize.  

Damage in Iida Tensei's spine inexplicably reversed itself.  It was only by a small amount, but even if he'd still never walk, he'd be able to move and feel his legs.

None of the attacks All for One launched hit his target.  Not a single one.

Izuku was a shooting star.  A brilliant light, burning into nothing.  Izuku had never before accumulated so much debt on his quirk.  One way or another, he knew he never would again.  

He ran across fields of rubble that should have sent him sprawling.  He dodged stray attacks from a combatant who might not even register his presence.  He got closer and closer, impossibility unscathed, until he slid between Mr. Yagi and All for One just as Mr. Yagi was caught under the crushed walls of a building.

He bowed, the crown of his head touching broken concrete.  "Please!  Please don't kill him!  I- I- Take my quirk, do anything you want to me, but please don't kill him."

"No!  Young Midoriya!  Get out of here!"

"And why should I take your quirk?" asked All for One, sounding amused.  

"Because- Because my quirk is luck.  I just got across this battlefield, unscathed.  If you take my quirk, you'll never have to worry about- about the kinds of injuries you have again." That was a bit of a guess, but if he had to risk things on a guess, it would be now, with his quirk blazing inside him.  "No one would get lucky enough to even touch you.  Please.  Take it."

Because All for One's quirk had to work one of two ways.  Either it took a quirk as it had been when it first manifested, or it took it as it currently was.  

Izuku's quirk had taken into account his prior luck when it first manifested, and he was building up a massive debt, now.  His quirk was the perfect poison pill.  He just needed All for One to take it.  

"Well," said All for One.  "I don't know about sparing All Might, but I could never refuse a quirk offered up so nicely."

Izuku felt All for One's hand on his head.

What followed was agony, and after that, an aching, hollowness, and the sound of someone crying.  

Was… was Mr. Yagi crying over him?  That was silly.  He wasn't dead, and his plan was going great.  

"Now," said All for One, "All Might-"

A horrid orange light and a deafening crack filled the air, and when Izuku could see again, the top half of All for One's body was gone, and there was a smoking crater a few meters behind the legs.  Everything smelled faintly burnt.

"What," croaked All Might.

"Oh," said Izuku, faintly.  "I always worried something like that would happen to me."

He promptly passed out.  

.

Izuku stared up at the ceiling of his hospital room.  This would be the last time he could blame getting hurt on his quirk.  His quirk, which was well and truly gone, now, along with Ragdoll’s and countless others.  Not that he could’ve gotten it back from All for One if his plan hadn’t worked but…

He was quirkless now.  

Kacchan had always been a jerk, and there were more than a few people in his class that were jerks along with him, really believing that Izuku was giving them bad luck every time they failed a test.  But he’d had a few casual friends in middle school despite that, and except for the teachers who thought he’d been falsifying his quirk, they usually stopped Kacchan before he went too far.  

But he knew how they all talked about quirkless people.  He knew the statistics.  He… hadn’t really been thinking of the consequences when he came up with the plan.  Not that he regretted it!  He didn’t.  But he knew it would be hard to be a hero without a quirk.  

Or would it?  Would living like this be like his quirk was always in neutral?  Or would it be something entirely different?  It already felt like something different.  It felt… weird.  Not being aware of how his luck was going.  Like being blind.  And he knew his luck was just random, now.  Knew that bad luck wouldn’t mean good luck to follow, and good luck didn’t mean bad luck to follow but…  Even thinking that felt alien to him.  

He could have good luck forever.  He could have bad luck forever.  That was statistically unlikely, of course.  Either way, he had no control over it.

“Oh, Izuku!”

“H-hi, Mom,” he said, and let his mother fuss over him.  He wasn’t up for much conversation at the moment, unfortunately.  

Behind her, Mr. Yagi, walked in and quietly shut the door.  

“Um,” said Izuku, “a-am I in trouble?  I mean, I know, I know that I technically killed someone with my quirk, but, uh.  I did do that.  Oh my gosh.  Oh my gosh, you’re here to arrest me, I–”

“Nonsense, Young Izuku!  If anyone tries to charge you for that man accidentally killing himself with his own quirk, I will simply eat them.”

“And that’s if they get through me, first,” said his mother, pleasantly.  

“Oh,” said Izuku.  “So, why…?”

“Two reasons,” said Mr. Yagi.  “First, I wanted to thank you.  I’ve spent my entire career trying to get rid of that man.”

Izuku nodded.  ‘Get rid of’ was pretty ambiguous, here, but Izuku was the last person who could blame him for trying to kill the guy.  

“The other thing I wanted to talk to you about…”  Here, Mr. Yagi got that look on his face.  “I want to talk to you about a quirk called One for All.”

#bnha #fic #my fic

[solace-sylphieee]

For Contents Moving Forward...

The very first post in my tumblr and it ends as my final notice for 时空中的绘旅人 / For All Time / HLR / Lovebrush Chronicles / LBC.

The irony.

But anyway figured I should do here cuz it's going to be quite the long essay from me.

We're now halfway through March, White Day's almost here and so is my 3rd Anniversary Emerald's Wedding Ring Merch.

THAT'S RIGHT

I'm gonna get married with Emerald / Cael and retire for good to enjoy my marri-

...

To hell with that, I really can't bring myself to finish that bs.

But anyway the intention is still there - I am planning to retire from HLR / LBC but before that, I will clear off some of my stuff and I will drop the game as a whole: 1. Retrospring QnAs for the guide account I'm part of: @stshelterpedia 2. Chronological Summary to the game's story (had been requested to do this cuz the event release is now extremely messed up) 3. Claiming all my remaining monthly pack resources

For my followers from Twitter, new and old, I have gone missing from releasing the translation of game news for a long time, and now I feel the need and for the first time, share my thoughts in a very elaborative manner instead.

Sorry for ghosting on you guys for so long and from the bottom of my heart, thank you for all the follows all this while, even with me neglecting the translations here and there.

Although I believe many take me as a source of news translation and no more than that, there are still some who I've build relationship with as well throughout the years.

Now onto my retirement from this game and the translation thereof:

Do take note there's going to be some spoilers too -

Work may have been one of the reasons behind it as I've been way too occupied this year comparatively, but the very main factor would be the fact that I've lost my love and passion for this game.

In all honesty, I've stopped reading the Card Stories since Paradise / Eden and Event Stories since Onmyoji Collab. And for my long-time followers, I'm not sure if it's that obvious, but I have stopped fangirling or make any remarks on the game content for years - which I guess is quite the obvious sign from then on.

I loved HLR / LBC for its plot. I loved how plot is the driving force and priority of the game since the beginning. I loved how everything revolves around the plot, including the charaters to Event Stories and Card Stories.

But alas, all of that are past tense for me.

I may have been biased cuz I stopped reading all the side contents, so it's just the impressions I'm getting from the discussions I have with my friend. But for me after Destiny Corridor (DC) iirc? Fan service becomes the driver in this bus.

DC has its own share of service, but I feel the wrmth from deep down. All the nostalgia and warmth, and that's the peak storytelling before its downwards slope for me.

Personally I don't mind fan services, but for me it feels like Event Story has become more and more irrelevant to Main Story, unlike in the past. Card Story is there to build some background story, but since it's more fan servicey now, it's just a stalemate story with barely any development.

At least that's what I feel and my impressions here and there.

Some may wanna ask: "But isn't Empire series the most Main Story relevant Event Story?"

Yeah, it should be, cuz it's almost the deadline (iirc supposedly by 4th year) that Empire Chapter will begin for Main Story and the final route of it marks the end of Season 1.

But the latest one I've read - Tidal-Disruption, Admiral Star / Prefect Luminance side specifically, actually disappointed me a whole lot.

Chosen is written brilliantly to make us fear Maker more, but in juxtaposition Star / Luminance had a great start but a meh ending.

I find that the appeal behind Star / Luminance is that he is interested in MC for how strong she is emotionally and wants to break her, believing she will also be his greatest and most perfect creation cuz his other 'collections' can't withstand his 'molding'. All the revelations is nice and all, then suddenly he becomes so infatuated with MC he accepts his name as Alkaid (THAT DUDE HAS BEEN DENYING AND REJECTING OF SO STRONGLY SINCE HIS APPEARANCE) and play family with MC, imprisoning her and the story went like husband going back home to a lovely wife waiting for him treting his wounds.

I just

??????

DUDE WHERE DID YOUR COLDNESS, INDIFFERENCE WENT?

WHY DID YOU BECOME SO LOVE LORNED?????

I believed he had been better than that but he made my inner Asian Parent Disappointment surge up and I can only shake my head at the end when he decided to just let MC go.

Others let go cuz they are interested to see how far she can go, cuz she's not a threat at all, cuz she's a great piece for their plans, or cuz of their own twisted obssession; but for him it feels like a bad attempt in making him more romanceable.

End of ranting for now else it's gonna be for eternity.

Stories aside, what prompted me to ultimately announce my retirement as a whole is the moment I realise I hadn't logged into the game for 2 days (my birb brain had thought it's only 1 day).

That's right, 2 days and I didn't feel any urgency or frustrations for missing out on the resources. This is as of today, 10 March 2024:

While on the other hand I feel like choking myself for missing my morning grind for another game.

With such comparison, I figure it's high time I check this off with a notice for everyone.

It has been a long journey and I enjoyed the companion of this game that also bring many new encounters for me.

But it is also time for me to bid the game adieu.

Feel free to unfollow me on my Twt if you're not interested in seeing me anymore.

Moving forward, I might begin some other translation project for games I took interest in (time to see if 世界之外 Beyond The World's grip be that strong on me) and I will also share a more elaborative train of thoughts here too.

Thanks for reading all the way here, my DMs in Twt are open for chats, and feel free to interact with me. I will be more than happy to share my thoughts with you too :)

#时空中的绘旅人 #for all time #lovebrush chronicles #lbc #時空の絵旅人 #translation #otome game

[acidmatze]

I’ll be there for you (Yes, like the Friends theme) Chapter 5

Summary: After being in a coma for two years Vash wakes up, not being able to remember Anything that has happened since he was “a teenager”. How is he gonna adapt to living in a world so strange and unfamilliar? (vaguely TriStamp timeline post ep 12) By finally leaving the hospital and entering his Rehab arc Warnings: None this time Word count: 4.4k Chapters: 1 2 3 4

How did this week pass by so fast?

Vash feels like it was basically yesterday that he woke up to this strange world.

And now he's already standing outside, Karina next to him, waiting for the van that's supposed to bring him to the rehab place.

He's bringing several bags with him. Two of them filled with the new clothes he got the other day.

It is still somewhat dark outside, the suns barely grazing the horizon so its also really cold. Vash can see his breath when breathing out.

He's wearing his new jacket. It's black with red arrows going zig zag from the top left to the bottom right.

One small bag is full of his electronics stuff.

Last Friday Karina suddenly brought him a phone as well.

And another one is filled with hygiene stuff like shower gel and shampoo and towels and lotion to put on his scars when they ache and of course toothbrush and toothpaste and other necessities.

His new meds are in there as well.

On Thursday Dr. Nichols did a whole battery of tests with him.

Among other things testing his working memory and attention.

He then concluded that Vash has ADHD, whatever that was. From what Vash gathered it has to do with his focus and emotional regulation and such.

Vash also spend a lot of time filling out official-looking papers to get an ID and everything sorted out. And a bank account.

„Its so cold... I hope that van is coming soon.“ Karina complains while rubbing her arms.

„Its gonna get hot soon enough, just wait.“

„I'd rather not Wait.“

Other cars are approaching and picking people up or letting people out near constantly. Seems like Mondays are very busy for hospitals.

An ambulance rushes past, sirens blaring.

„I'm gonna call the place if no one's here in 5 minutes!“ Karina declares.

Then a small white minivan drives up to the two and stops.

It would look suspicious if it wasn't for the sticker on the car with a flock of pigeons flying on it, reading „Dove's Wings bus service, car 12“

The driver lets the window down.

„Hey, are you Vash?“

„Yup, that's me.“

The engine stops and the driver gets out to open the trunk.

„I'm Marcel. Put your bags in here. Before I drive you to the dorm I have to stop by the gas station real quick, hope you don't mind.“

„That's fine...“

It's a bit cumbersome to haul the heavy bags into the trunk with only one hand.

Luckily Marcel realises this quickly and helps.

He's a short rather gruff-looking guy with a light buzzcut and pale skin. Vash easily towers over him.

Which is still a really weird experience.

After all, the majority of his Lived Experience Vash was shorter than others.

Even as a teenager everyone else was much taller than him. When did he hit such a giant growth spurt?

Vash climbs into the van next to Marcel.

Karina waves at Vash.

„I will call you in the afternoon when my shift is over, okay? And I will definitely visit you on the weekend. You can't get rid of me.“

Vash chuckles weakly and also waves at his new friend.

„Girlfriend?“

Vash whips around.

„Huh? What-? No! Just a.. a regular friend.“

„Cool, cool.“

Marcel starts the motor and off they go.

Then he turns the radio on.

Vash has no idea about music much, even though Karina did her best to introduce him to as many bands as she could. He does vaguely recognise the singer as someone Karina likes.

Its a nice unoffending voice with nice unoffending guitar. Nothing that Vash would listen to in his free time though.

Then Marcel lights up a cigarette and offers the cigarette pack to Vash.

„Do you smoke?“ „Uh.. no, thanks.“

„Good for you. Don't start. Its a waste of money. How old are you?“

„153.“

Marcel barks out a laugh.

„Good joke!“

„28 then.“

„Seriously? You don't look a day over 19 or something. You got a serious case of baby face, my guy.“

„Yeah... I've heard that quite often.“ Vash lies.

He hasn't heard it at all but feels like this is the appropriate response.

They are driving through what seems to be the oldest dictrict of the city.

It seems to be emulating ancient 17th century central european architecture but Vash can't say how accurate it is.

Shops on the ground floor, apartments on top all crammed next to each other.

And so many people outside already, even though it is still early in the day.

„It's not winter yet so school and work still start at 6, so most of the work can be crammed in before it gets hot.“ Marcel explains, as if he can read Vash's thoughts.

„And in winter?“

„Eh... 7-8ish. No mid-day break either but instead everyone can go home earlier overall. Allegedly on Earth seasons actually meant something in many cultures but here it only tells you when the suns will rise and set. Except for fall. If it rains then it rains in fall.“

Rain.

Vash only has seen rain once so far in his life.

He was so excited he immediately ran outside and Brad dragged him back inside the ship and scolded him for getting the floor muddy.

It rained hard for maybe half an hour and then it was over. Within an hour the sand was back to its usual dry and hot state and everything carried on as if it hadn't rained at all.

What Vash had witnessed relatively often though were dry thunderstorms.

Now the scenery is changing.

The road gets broader and now has two lanes in each direction. The buildings become more modern and brighter, to deflect the suns.

Then they turn right into a smaller street again, probably now entering a more residential area.

The buildings that previously were all at least three to four stories tall are now getting smaller and less dense. Small shops line the road here and there.

Apartment buildings turn into row houses and then slowly into small family homes.

They pass a small park and Vash stares at the large lusciously green trees.

Then more houses. Kids waiting at a bus stop.

It's so weird to see a place like this. So full of life. Full of people doing their thing.

Not hanging by a thread.

They enter a slightly wider road again and a little later Marcel stops at the gas station.

„I'll be back in a minute. You want some snacks? I can get you some.“

„Uh... some chocolate bars? But no white chocolate or coconut.“

Marcel lets out a small grunt in acknowledgement.

„Alright. You get the kiddie chocolate.“

The van door slams shut.

Kiddie chocolate...

Vash watches Marcel while he recharges the car's battery. Its weird that „gas station“ is a word that's still so widely used even though almost no vehicle on this planet uses gas.

Its most likely a leftover from Earth English.

Vash watches the scene outside.

Some more kids and teens, probably on their way to school.

People on bicycles. Many many cars.

It is still so weird to Vash to see this many people in one place. He can't imagine the scope of the entire city.

What little distance they have covered so far already feels incredibly large to him.

Do the people who live here even know how harsh the desert is? Being here is so incredibly different from the ship.

Vash can barely believe he's still on the same planet.

Has Nai ever been in a city as well? Where even is he now? And will Vash ever see him again?

Well, he probably already has but can't remember.

But before he has the time to ponder about this more, Marcel returns.

He dumps a few chocolate bars in Vash's lap.

„Sorry they only had coconut and white chocolate.“

For the fraction of a second Vash is inclined to believe the man but before he can embarrass himself he realises it's a joke.

„Guess I have to puke all over the van then.“

„If you clean it, be my guest.“

The ride continues in silence, except for the radio.

Vash opens the packaging of the chocolate and starts eating.

He didn't eat anything at the hospital this morning, he was way too nervous.

Its nougat, the chocolate.

Which is good because Vash really likes that. He opens the second bar and basically shoves it in his mouth with one go.

Marcel lets out a snort but doesn't say anything.

„I haven't eaten anything yet.“

„I'm not judging. Just laughing. You don't behave like an adult.“

There it is.

Vash almost shrinks into his seat.

Then how is an adult supposed to to behave? He hasn't figured that out yet.

He was about to open the third bar but lets it drop back into his lap instead. Suddenly he doesn't feel hungry anymore.

There's no way he's gonna fit in anywhere like this.

But it's not like he can help it, dammit!

Some part of him is still 15 and it will probably take a long time until that changes.

„Hey kiddo, why are you crying?“

Huh?

Vash pulls out a tissue from his pocket and blows his nose.

„I don't like being told that I don't behave like an adult. I know I don't. I can't change this.“

Marcel nods.

„I wasn't making fun of you, you know? If I would then i would have the wrong job. I drive people around who can't get into this van without help. Who can't fasten their seatbelt. Whose pants i have to pull up before they get in cuz they don't know how to use their belts after going to the bathroom. Who don't even realise when they need to go to the bathroom so sometimes they pee their pants during the ride. I also drive people around who don't talk. Who talk too much. Who talk a whole lot but not very well. Who say the same word over and over. I'm not judging anyone. My ego isn't blown up like that.“

„Will I meet them?“

„Eventually I suppose. But you're mentally ill so you live in a different section of the grounds. You'll meet them at work then. I also drive people like you around. Plenty.“

Vash can't imagine people like this. Luckily soon he wont have to use his imagination anymore but will experience it in real life.

They are back in a residential area. Small apartments and houses everywhere.

„We're there in a second. Look here's the convenience store. You wont have to walk far to get there. Just down this road. There's a bus stop. That line will take you directly to the old town, where we started out. Maybe not the most exciting part of the city but there are many nice small shops and cafés. And the biggest cinema in the city is there as well, in case you like movies. I think your group will go there from time to time.“

They make another right turn and Vash recognises this street from the photos.

They have indeed arrived.

Marcel parks under a tree in front of a wide two story tall red brick building.

There is a dark-skinned woman with glasses and long black hair waiting outside.

Vash and Marcel get out the van and Marcel shakes the woman's hand.

„Morning Nancy.“

„Good morning Marcel. I see you brought our new resident?“

„Yeah, that's Vash. Vash, that's Nancy.“ Nancy walks towards Vash and eagerly shakes his hand as well.

„Hi, I'm Nancy. I'm the leader of the group you will live in. Everyone will be so happy to meet you. Two weeks ago half of the group moved out into a different dorm and since then it has been way too quiet. Let me help you with your bags.“

The bags, that Marcel unloaded in the meantime.

He nods at Nancy.

„Well then. You got everything under control here. I'll go then and pick up the daycare patients.“

Nancy turns to Vash and basically beams at him.

„Let's take your bags inside first so I can show you your room and then we have to return to this building for a bit to do all the administrative stuff. Do you have any issues with walking?“ „Nah, just my left arm that's not doing so hot.“

„Great! I mean, that you can walk. Not that you lost your arm. Cuz we will have to walk a bit to your dorm. It's further down the road and then we turn left.“

They pass two other buildings, one to the left and one to the right.

The one on the left looks a bit like a school but smaller than what Vash had seen previously. But it has a schoolyard and a small playground and all.

The building to the right looks rather plain with chipped beige walls and a flat roof. The windows are just a tad bigger than the air conditioning unit on the wall.

„Villa Marigold“ says a blue sign outside.

„That doesn't look like a Villa...“ Vash mumbles and Nancy starts laughing.

„Well, we can't exactly call it Hut either, right? It will get renovated soon though.“

Hopefully it will get some bigger windows then. And a new coat of paint.

Another similar building is standing next to the „Villa“ but this one Does have a more colourful appearance. Its painted in a light blue colour and someone drew a flock of doves over the entrance.

They make a left turn just when Vash has spotted something looking suspiciously like a greenhouse far down the street.

„Wait! Is that a greenhouse?“

He points at it.

„Oh? Yeah it is. Good eye! We don't have time to go and look at it now but since you're gonna live here now you can go and look at it whenever you to from later on. You could also work there if you want. Do you like plants?“

Does he likes plants? „I... I have no idea. But I've never seen a greenhouse or.. many plants at all. So I'm just curious.“

„That's fine. Its good to be curious about things. Keeps your brain sharp.“

Sadly Vash feels his brain is as dull as a 6 hours math lesson.

Or the edge of a paper tissue. Depending on what meaning of „dull“ you have in mind.

The dorm they now enter is three stories tall and has a slightly sloped roof, unlike the majority of the other buildings which all have flat roofs.

It is painted slightly off-white and the paint looks new as well.

The stairway looks old and made of dark wood. Their steps echo slightly.

Nancy opens a yellow heavy-looking door.

„Fire-proof doors“ she explains „Your room will also have one. Almost all doors in the dorms are like this so get used to having to push a little harder.“

They are now standing in a large hallway with windows to the yard outside to the right light grey carpet and the walls are painted in a very light peach colour.

Paintings that look very much like the people living here painted them are everywhere on the walls.

Around the door that seems to be leading to the kitchen is a flower mural.

„Okay your room is number 105 so we go left.“

The room doors look like they are made of light wood but since they are supposedly fire-proof that can't be true.

They are probably painted to look like wood or something, Vash muses.

There's a little nook with armchairs and a very cozy-looking couch as well.

Vash hears two girls' voices from the staircase on the other end of the hallway, leading upstairs to the third floor.

„Have you seen Joe during assembly? He looked like he was about to fall asleep again.“

„Yeah I tried waking him up for breakfast earlier but he didn't wanted to open the door. I told him on Saturday not to drink so much when we went to club but of course he didn't listen.“

„Sounds like a killer hangover.“

„Totally. Anyway, we should hurry and get the kitchen cleaned up before someone complains again.“

They walk in the opposite direction as Nancy and Vash.

Nancy stops in front of room 105.

„Okay this is your room.“

She digs in her pocket and pulls out a small key which she then hands to Vash.

„And this is your key to the room. You will also later be given a key for the front door downstairs but our director hands those out, not us. Not every resident has one mind you. We got some troublemakers we can't just let come and go as they please. But don't worry about that.“

Vash opens the door.

He doesn't know what he expected his room to look like but certainly not like this.

Probably more like a hospital room?

This room is fairly large but mostly empty except for a desk with an office chair, an armchair made out of bast, a closet, a large mirror, a bed and a nighstand.

The floor is laminate made to look like wood in a similar shade as the door.

The curtains look rather heavy and have an old-fashioned plaid pattern on them.

The walls are white but not clinical-looking and overall the room is open and bright.

There's a door, probably leading to the bathroom.

Vash puts all of his bags down next to the bed and walks around the room once.

Yes, the door does indeed lead to a small-ish bathroom.

„I know this looks rather dull and empty. You can get your own furniture and rugs and put anything on the wall that you like but if it has to be hung on a nail then ask us first. Though I would advise you to wait a month or two with playing interior designer.

So we can determine how long you will be staying in this room. Would be annoying if you had to move just when you got cozy in here and then find out you can't fit all your furniture in the new room.“

Then they leave for the admin building.

But on the way down Nancy runs into a colleague who informs her that the person they want to talk to is actually right now in This building in the office section so they walk back up.

„Well I guess I show you the admin building at another time.“

They go back up the stairs but this time turn right in the hallway.

A guy with spiky red hair is mopping the staircase at the end.

In contrast to the one they just walked up this one is much newer and almost looks like its made of something like rubber?

Vash can't tell what material it is but it has some big anti-slip nubs on the steps.

Nancy taps the guy on the shoulder who takes his headphones off.

„Hey Paul, is Mr. Friesen in his office right now?“

„Uh... Yeah but he's in a meeting.“

The guy, Paul, nods at Vash.

„Are you new?“

„Yeah I just... I just moved in.“ „Cool, cool. Don't mind the ghost.“

Vash winces.

„A ghost??“

Paul shrugs.

„I dunno I haven't seen it either but a few guys upstairs say they have seen one here. Like, they wanted to talk to a counselor and it looked like someone was in the office cuz they saw a shadow in the glass but when they got closer it vanished. I think it's rubbish but figured I should warn you.“

Nancy chuckles.

„I don't believe it one bit. You know how they are upstairs. Sometimes they get bored and cook up some Scary Stories to tell the younger peeps.“

Seems like some really funny people are living here.

Maybe Vash wont stand out that much after all.

They continue walking.

„Okay if Mr. Friesen is not available right now then I will show you the rest of the dorm.“

The next hallway is overall darker than the one Vash's room is in. Obviously, because this one doesn't have any windows but doors to each side, most likely leading to the other people's rooms.

There's a ping pong table standing right in the middle of the hallway.

That seems a bit stupid and dangerous to Vash but also very funny.

One door is open and Vash can look right into someone's room.

To prevent the door from slamming shut a stool was put in front of it.

The person who probably belongs to this room is sitting in a beanbag in front of a TV and plays a video game.

Loud music is blasting out into the hallway.

„Are you just allowed to do that?“ Vash asks.

„Do what?“ „Play loud music with the door open.“ he clarifies.

„Sure. It's not like people are sleeping right now. At least, they shouldn't be. This is group 2. You are in group 1 and upstairs is group 3. This is a mixed use building so on the ground floor is the daycare. Daycare means they live off grounds and are brought here every morning and get picked up in the evening. The majority of them are seniors or people otherwise not able to work in the workshop. Usually we don't run into each other a lot.“

They walk past the kitchen.

„We cook our own lunch here. Each group has a kitchen and two people are doing the cooking together. They also plan the grocery shopping which we are doing.. actually right now. That's why no one's in there. Each Monday we take the big van and drive down to the store to get most of the things needed for the entire week. Sometimes we also do this on Fridays again cuz we also cook together on the weekends. At least when enough people stay here over the weekend. The majority of the time though almost everyone leaves to go to their parents or visit friends. You are also free to do that of course.“

There is yet another staircase at the end of this hallway that they take upstairs to look at group 3 as well.

Nothing much is different here except that they have a foosball table in the hallway. There is also a big room with huge windows and the wall to the hallway is glass as well.

Nancy explains that this is the assembly room but sometimes they also do other therapy things in there. Another room up here that the other groups don't have is the computer room. Everyone is free to use the computers if they don't have their own.

And back downstairs they go.

Mr. Friesen got done with his meeting in the meantime so now it's time for even more paperwork.

Meeting Mr. Friesen and getting all the paperwork done took an hour and now Vash's head is swimming.

He wishes he would get a break now but unfortunately the day is just beginning.

The weekly schedule he has in his hand says that before lunch he will meet his psychologist. After lunch his physical therapist. Later in the evening there's a nordic walking group but Vash has no idea what that is. There's a note telling him that's outside though.

He walks next to Nancy who is taking him back to his room.

„Saverem, huh? I was told you can't remember your family name. Did you remember or...?“ „Mom's family name. Well, not literally Mom but.. kind of... I don't know who my actual mom is.“

„Well, now it's also your name. So now you're her son for real.“

Her son for real...

He can't dwell on that because as they pass the kitchen someone from in there is shouting: „Hey! New guy! Come here for a bit!“

Nancy grabs Vash's arm and drags him into the kitchen.

„Well, well, well that's a great opportunity to meet the rest of the group! Hello everyone, this is Vash! Say Hi to Vash.“ „Hi Vash.“ the small group of four people parrots.

„Uh... hi...“

Four people, two girls and two guys are staring at him like he's an endangered animal.

„What happened to your arm???“ one of the girls suddenly yells. Shes short and round and has big glasses and pigtails and doesn't actually look to be much older than 18.

„Chelsea! You don't randomly ask people what happened to their arms!“ an equally short but very skinny boy says in a hushed but urgent tone. He looks just as young.

Vash lets out a weak unsure chuckle.

„Shark got me.“

„A what?“ Chelsea is still pointing at him „You're a liar! There are no sharks on No Man's Land!“

A tall man with nerdy glasses and very short dark hair speaks up.

„We usually call that one a Joke. Forgive her, she just says whatever is in her head. Which is a whole lot so you might want to invest in earplugs. I'm Steven, I'm the current group president. And those two are Melvin“ -the young guy with glasses who is still shushing Chelsea- „and Anna.“ He points at a girl who looks like the exact opposite of Chelsea.

Nancy nods at the group and seems very happy about the developments.

„I see you're talking to each other just fine. Maybe Vash can help you with the lunch prep? How is everything going anyways?“

„We are almost done cutting the vegetables and honestly there isn't much to do then. I'm gonna put the steaks in a pan in an hour or so, Melvin takes care of the rice. Yeah.. that's basically it.“ Steven answers.

„I uh... I have to go to my appointment soon..“ Vash reminds Nancy.

„Oh yeah I almost forgot about that. You do that. I see you all for lunch!“

#trigun #trigun fanfiction #my writing #trigun stampede

[lunarsilkscreen]

The Problem with Fame (and money)

Have you ever been in a position where you were famous, and didn't know it? (BEFORE IT GOES TO MY HEAD.)

Imagine all of a sudden, a lot of theoretical dollars get sent to your YouTube bank account.

<aside>Theoretical Dollars is a South Park '08 reference, before YouTube and social media paid their users for good content, you could suddenly get famous. And people just assumed that meant you had $$. Despite being flat broke, and just having a lot of "Likes".

Even today, especially with the "Got paid by Musk on X" jokes; laymem assume that online persona's make *bank*. Who paid them? You?</aside>

That wasn't really an aside this time, it's kinda important.

Even today, you could have like 40k karma on Reddit, and all of a sudden; people think you can do whatever. You can pay for everything! Make everybody's troubles go away.

This gets even more problematic with the fact that people who can make a profit off of other people's fame (your tabloids, your TMZ, your X personalities who *do* make money from outrage content.)

And people who don't know they're famous get hurt for it. Or sometimes benefit from others starstuck-ness without knowing it.

Despite *only* having 40k reddit karma myself, I've had to tell people that no, I'm not internet famous. Not even Reddit Famous. I deleted my account because of old friends who thought I was a walking ATM machine (as opposed to atmospheric or "at the moment")

No bruh.

My own mother constantly asks for handouts. I can't call her a bad mother; but the only thing she sees me as is what she can get for free: bus driver, cigarettes, pocket change, and free home repair.

Despite only having enough to live off of.

And none of these people *fully* understand how money actually works, or how a paycheck works. Which is really sad for anybody above the age of 25. (And sometimes younger.)

If you need a couple thousand a month to make food and bills; you should understand its the *same* f* concept for anybody else you know. And despite being able to do math; they refuse to do that; think like a rational adult, that every person has monetary needs that need to be met. And just keep seeing people as a way to get their next fix. (That is; free stuff, not necessarily free drugs)

"I'm not looking to adopt a 30+ year old at the moment. You need to grow the duck up."

I've literally been harassed by people that I know for not spending money on them; and spending money to start a business. They see the *new* things they don't have.

Even if it just trinkets and collectibles from when you were young. (No I know why, they see graded Beta Magic Cards on pawn stars and they think *every single MTG card is $$*) f*ing commodification.

I seriously don't understand people's thoughts processes.

Well actually. I do.

See, Melin Shoot seems to be mediocritcally known in certain circles. (That's me, I'm Melin; everybody thinks its a stage name.that I use professionally. DESPITE ONLY EVER HAVING BEEN ENLISTED MILITARY PROFESSIONALLY FOR A DECADE.)

And I didn't know that. Cuz nobody told me. Even today people think their own weird thoughts. Like *how much money I must've made for showing up on somebody else's stream*

It sounds like I'm fluffing up my own fame. I'm talking about being a minor character, a very minor character, everywhere... And people *think* I have more pull than I do.

I don't. I absolutely don't.

And yet for some reason; there's this strange way people act around me. As if I *was* somebody famous.

If you can be harassed for being mildly associated with Fame. And people can make money off of you without you making any money for the same: I cannot imagine how awful it must be for those who are *actually* famous.

$*. Imagine being famous for giving the president a blowjob and then just not being able to get a regular job after that ...

[builtlikeastickofcelery]

I BROKE. TIME TO INFODUMP

FIRSTLY: this is mostly based off of 2012 with some rise influence.

In this au splinter is absent for most of their early lives due to him believing his kids would be safer without the foot targeting him (i promise there’s a plot to this but for now its gonna be silly). And since theres gonna be a plot thats about it ! Oh also they met april at 11 yrs old I think and Casey just a little bit before the story starts

ANWAY HAVE SOME BULLET POINTS

Casey tries to do their own facial piercings

The piercings almost always get infected

They have to go to donnie for help

April wears her iconic hat to hide her dark roots (shes not a real ginger!!)

Leo is technically the second-oldest they just have a complex

the turtles steal most of their food

April goes to a bouldering gym and can scale buildings

Casey plays roller derby

donnie is the oldest despite the fact that they’re all 15

None of them could cook until the age of 12

They all play dnd passionately

donnie is the oldest because he said he scientifically proved (lied) it and everyone else called dibs on who would be next oldest (raph and Leo agreed to tie)

now take some character blurb thingies that go by age

April: april is 16 and has a driver’s license (could technically be a junior in hs but she’s not), shes very cool and accidentally went ginger at some point then just decided she liked it?? No one knows. They go to a lot LOT of concerts and also rock climbs and she loves women. Also a drummer in a band called smth that i will figure out later. Definitely takes a lot of responsibility for the wellbeing of the turtles due to their situation but like subtly. they for sure got their own issues but chooses to ignore em a lot of the time. Only child (lameee)

Donnie: hes 15 and pretends hes biologically the oldest (he is not they’re all the same age). he made all the blueprints for the lair once it was decided it was too small. hes very good at stealing stuff which is how he gets most of his materials, learned how to hack into ATMS a while ago but thinks it’s morally wrong (only used in desperate measures). Doesn’t mind not being the leader since he knows his claims of being the oldest are total bs but definitely adopted an oldest child mentality. Keeps a lot of problems a secret from his “younger” brothers and mostly talks to april about it. Extremely silly. Main doctor but also very squeamish specifically about bones (not broken bones, just the concept). Purple everything. He has access to every one of his sibling’s internet accounts he just doesn’t tell them about it. Also the main cook, since he would try and read whatever books they could find in dumpsters, especially when they were kids. Shares leo’s space interests less because of a show and more because of science stuff. Didn’t like Casey at first but they got close super fast later on. He is the best thief out of all of them (shhhh).

Casey: also 15, in april’s grade. Knows april from Spanish tutoring despite the fact they’re latine (haha if im violently whiteified my little guys have to be too) very into punk subculture and roller derby and also engineering/mechanics (I’m very excited to show off his vigilante equipment). Constantly does dumb shit for no apparent reason. Very much similar to 2012 casey (says “thats so metal dudes” anytime anything horrifying/dangerous happens). They also have had weird unspoken tension with everyone completely by accident and cant stop falling off of buildings. They have zero fighting skills or training but somehow haven’t died yet. Missing one tooth, top of the mouth next to his right canine (replaced with a glow-in-the-dark plastic one don’t ask them how it stays in).

Leo: 15, self-proclaimed second oldest and leader. (they have a complex probably) they’re only the leader because [HAHAHAHA PLOT AND BACKSTORY] and everyone else just stuck with it. They try very very hard to be silly and goofy but are also constantly anxious, not specifically about their siblings but like in general. Very very hesitant, prefers stealth (and stupid jokes) to direct confrontation. very close with raph since they’re “twins” (all of them are the same age). Intense sci-fi/space obsession, they’ve watched every single episode of their world’s equivalent to Star Trek (and all the movies) and also had a huge nonfiction phase which is still ongoing, fueled by stolen textbooks and endless internet videos . They also write fanfiction (secretly and make fun of other people who do to throw off their siblings it doesn’t work at all). They are so so lame and i love them so much.

Raph: 15, also second oldest, very very overprotective but like low-key about it. Super close with april and leo. Does all the confrontation and has accidentally been confused to be the leader of the team (CONSTANTLY ends up in hostage situations to the point it’s almost funny). ALLERGIC to Feelings he will Die if he has to talk about things so he mostly vents by tearing up his room and then feeling bad abt it. Made donnie help him find leo’s fanfics and then swore him to secrecy forever. Very distrustful, secretly super artsy, weirdly obsessed with messing with ppls hair (probably because he is surrounded by bald ppl). Also secretly a fashion icon, he has a disguise specifically so he can go to the mall with april and look at clothes for fun. He is physically the strongest out of everyone and has a really bad habit of using himself as their meat shield. Accidentally very very silly dude.

Mikey: 15 the Absolute Youngest by request. He is objectively the best fighter but is constantly being sidetracked by his siblings taking hits/taking out enemies for him (look theyre all just Like That). Really really smart when in a crisis, but for some reason not in a low pressure situation. She tries to cook but ultimately prefers baking. He’s also good at building things, so he usually hangs out with donnie in his workshop and made a lot of the lair’s furniture though he somehow can’t build anything from ikea. Also knows about leo’s fanfic career and accepted a bribe of a hubcap chandelier (?) to not tell anyone. Leo never made him a chandelier but at this point she has completely forgotten about it. Is secretly a beta reader for the fics and pretends she doesn’t know leo, except for when he describes very very distinct details of their home as suggestions for a room or something. Will continue to do this until leo either has a nervous breakdown or realizes it’s him. 

PLEASE ASK ME MORE ABOUT HTESE GUYS IM BEGGING YOU AUGHGHGGH

#tmnt #tmnt au #casey vs. gravity #duskys au #duskys evening post #THEY ARE SO MY LITTLE GUYS #theyre mostly based off of 2012 #with a little tiny bit of rise mixed it #so I will tag this as 2012 just so that ppl who are interested in their dynamic shifted a bit to the left will see it #tmnt 2012 #i think I can also call this #casey jones infinite rizz au #<- im so sorry #night Night now babygirls!!!

[leqclerc]

I'm so sorry bestie i just really need to rant rn. Like ferrari is literally fucking Charles over race after race and he always takes it with so much grace and kindness, never blaming the team, always holding himself accountable and he gets absolutely nothing in return. Like literally nothing. That video on b*notto talking to him makes me so unreasonably angry like stop wagging your finger at him, he has every right to be furious at you and the whole clown show so don't act like he is being unreasonable or anything. Like how can they throw away win after win??!? I just don't get it. You have a driver who is clearly cut out to race for a wdc and you don't prioritise him??? Am I supposed to believe that sainz is anywhere near his level??? They had no issue picking Charles over Seb (or at least they did imo and like I kinda get it) so why are they having such a hard time with it now??? And like Charles is stupidly loyal to this team and he wants to win here, with them, but how many more times will they let him down before he realises that huh maybe ferrari kinda sucks??? And like I want him to go on a rampage. I know that he'd never talk badly about them but I wanna hear him drag the team through mud, to tell everyone they suck and that he is disappointed and mad and saying that "the next race will be better" is not enough. I wanna see him destroy sainz at every given chance and race for himself and just go absolutely insane. I wanna see him enter his reputation era. I want to see ferrari on its knees begging him to stay and for forgiveness. I wanna see ferrari clearly treat him as a number one driver. Like I don't see him leaving and even if he did, where he'd go? But I want ferrari to make a fucking effort lol. Anyways, sorry for using your ask box for this and thank you for listening to my rant💖💖

No, you're so right, thank you for sending this in ❤️

Because they're essentially showing that trust, patience and loyalty isn't worth very much and when it comes down it it's every man for himself. Which is a part of racing, sure, but I don't think drivers are used to their own teams being their biggest rival/obstacle.

You make such a good point here, I keep thinking the same myself. Like, if I speak on it I'll probably get blasted, but it's so true and the attitude shift is so noticeable. The pit wall was very comfortable using team orders with Seb and Charles whenever they were near each other on track (which happened frequently since they were evenly matched on pace). Even when they weren't going for the win (in Australia 2019 they finished like 4th and 5th so) and the car wasn't consistently quick enough to be a title contender.

Now though? They literally dragged their feet for ages, costing Charles time, energy, and tyre life. Then they essentially chicken out of committing to a decision and just pit the teammate. They come out behind each other and the situation repeats itself. Again they're slow to respond, hesitant, but Charles eventually is let past to create a gap. And that all comes tumbling down under one safety car pit stop window. They say things but don't exactly enforce them very well - during the safety car period Sainz was told his priority is to defend from the guys behind and to let Charles create a gap in front, so the intention might've been there, but the execution? ...

Idk, a part of me thinks maybe he was antsy to get his "firsts" and by extension the team was too, but now that it's happened, where do they go from here? I don't think it'll change anything, at least not in a good way. Now you've essentially taught one driver that it's okay to disobey orders if it benefits him. Also the fact that both times Charles slipped completely out of podium contention, just left out there like a sitting duck...fuck, it was grotesque.

Imo B*notto was always a poor leader, always comfortable with throwing his drivers under the bus instead of reflecting on his own behaviour and attitude. People started warming to him this year and last year when things started improving for Ferrari, but on days like this he still shows his true colours. Berating Charles, saying he shouldn't be disappointed? What, because "there's always next year"? Farcical.

I mean, this is - or rather was, worst case scenario - a year where they are championship contenders. The driver that got himself into a position of being a title contender on merit was Charles. But I guess they don't give much of a fuck about the WDC for him if they still have this "oh well, it doesn't really matter which of the drivers wins 😊❤️" attitude. It's extremely disappointing and really quite baffling to see them going about it like this, consistently failing to do right by Charles, who is, by all metrics, their championship hope. It's not like they don't have a history of pulling team orders. Now they're tip toeing around it even when one has the pace and the other evidently does not. Even when there's a title on the line. What's changed? 🤔

#replies #maybe-we-are-we-were-fireproof #like sorry but how can you say seb and charles got too competitive between themselves and it started being a problem but then allow this #make it make sense???? #like idk maybe they didn't want him to feel left out and wanted to get those firsts but what now? is the wdc even salvageable at this point #do they even fucking care? probably not #.long post

[zevranunderstander]

hot take of the day: if a christian person is really obnoxious about how something someone else does is "a sin" or tells an obviously non-religious person that what they are doing is "a sin" in a condemning way they do not even understand the first fundamental thing about their own religion and it's sooooooooooooo exhausting to watch??

and im sorry like. even "woke" preachers who are like "this is not a sin" and "under those circumstances that is not a sin" idk man i never studied theology, but in christianity like. almost every fucking thing you do is a sin. it's so weird to me to watch "fundamentalist" christians point at a gay person and go "being gay is a sin so you go to hell!", dude, everything you do where you don't act exactly like jesus christ is a sin? like, bragging about how your child got a good grade in school because you want to rub it into another mom's face is a sin. not giving up your seat for a pregnant lady on the bus bc you had a shitty day is a sin. being impatient with a bad driver on the road is a sin. making jokes about how much you hate your wife? very very much a sin. the whole fucking point of the concept of christianity is that everyone sins all of the time because they are human. like?

and that doesn't even account for the fact that there is a complex debate about homosexuality in the bible among theological people and it also doesnt account for the fact that the idea of understanding what 'sin' is is meant for christians to teach them how *they* should live their lives and is not a dumb buzzword for them to throw at the heads of people who could not fucking care less lmaooo

#myposts #sorry about the weirdly protestant post but like. i really really can't with conservative christians #bc most of them wouldn't find the fundamentals in their 'fundamentalist' christianity if i fucking knocked their teeth out with them #i have so many more thoughts on this but i will be quiet now ghjdgsdhas #but like christians saying 'you are commiting a sin' to a non-christian person to me is like saying #'actually theres gelantine in gummy worms so theyre not vegetarian' to someone whos.... not vegetarian #but this scenario takes place in a universe where like almost everything is made out of meat #and you say it while actively eating meat yourself unaware of the irony #thats btw also what the 'cast the first stone if you are free of sin' line is about ghasdgjsag

[worldofthechateau]

The Members of the Society of the Supernatural

I think it's about time I shined a spotlight on the Society itself. Let's get into the twenty-two founding members of this little group.

Mary Anne Eason

Eight years old, Mary Anne is a lot like a sassy Dora the Explorer– she loves adventures and helping people out, but if she thinks you're an idiot you will know. She carries around a giant backpack full of supplies. Her parents are apathetic towards her and don't really care what she does as long as she tells them where she's going.

Mary Anne's magical specialty is runes.

Jenny Garrand

Mary Anne's best friend, Jenny is an eight-year-old biracial girl who is a bit shy and nervous, but loves nature and going on hikes with Mary Anne. She loves learning about plants and animals.

Jenny's magical specialty is plant magic.

Fortescue

Fortescue was originally made to be a servant for the Terwilligers (the family who built the Chateau, if you're new here), a clay humanoid clay statue given life and a soul via magic. Take the Doodle God icon for "golem" and you've got Fortescue. He's very multi-talented but struggles to find an identity outside of serving others ( a lot like Pearl from Steven Universe in this regard).

Fortescue's magical specialty is utility spells.

Odelia Garrand

Odelia is Jenny's white mother, known for being stoic and serious at all times, to the point of comedy. She works from home as an office manager. She loves gardening, especially with her daughter.

Odelia's magical specialty is potions and alchemy.

Arthur Garrand

Arthur is Jenny's black father who works as a forensic accountant. He's got a keen eye for detail and has a massive heart, but he's a bit... strange. He says a lot of things that technically make sense but definitely wouldn't be the first thing you thought of... which may be why he's so good at his job.

Arthur's magical specialty is empathic magic.

Tamela Huxtable

Tamela is a goth teen with a very strained relationship with her family, especially her extremely bigoted father (even if she wasn't a lesbian, she'd probably hate him for being an asshole). When she discovers magic, she throws herself into its study, quickly becoming one of the most magically powerful members of the Society.

Tamela's magical specialty is shadow magic, although she's also really good at teleportation.

Lyall Fisher

He used to work as a cop, but getting fired for not engaging in corruption has soured his view of the profession. This is a gay disaster running on caffeine and spite and is out of fucks to give. He believes in doing the right thing even if the world is against you.

Lyall's magical specialty is fire magic.

Amelia Huddleston

Speaking of people with zero fucks to give, Amelia never had any to begin with. This 75yo spinster is a wild child and a magical experimenter, and also the group's driver due to having bought a school bus for shits and giggles. She painted it blue, so they call it the Big Blue Bus, or 3B. She's also a great cook, even if her dishes can get a bit experimental.

Amelia's magical specialty is cloth-based magic that she herself discovered.

Ulysses Trengrove

Ulysses is an intimidating man who definitely gives off the impression that he's killed somebody in the past, especially since he created and stocked the Chateau's armory with a crap ton of knives. However, he has a soft spot for kids and is a great babysitter.

Ulysses' magical specialty is ice magic.

Imogen Knaggs

Imogen works as a nurse, and although she's excellent at bedside manners, she can be rather caustic when off the clock. She does care, it's just she can only be nice for so many hours.

Imogen's magical specialty is, of course, healing magic.

Xavier Cross

Xavier is a craftsman and a carpenter who likes to build his own furniture and stuff, as well as help his neighbors with fixing things. He can often get distracted by non-important things and is really possessive of his tools.

Xavier's magical specialty is transmutation.

Hannah Black

Hannah is her high school's valedictorian, and she's very good at chemistry and science in general. Magic is not her strong suit, which frustrates her greatly. However, she's excellent at finding non-magical solutions to magical problems.

Hannah's magical specialty is shapeshifting.

Ivor Thornton

Ivor is a passionate historian who can almost always be found reading a book, be it physical or on his tablet. He's also surprisingly into video games.

Ivor's magical specialty is divination.

Christine Wyatt

If there was ever a member of the Society that represented "Chaotic Good" it would be Christine. She's a kleptomaniac but channels that toward stealing things for people who can't afford what they need. She sees the potential in everyone.

Christine's magical specialty is teleportation and portals.

Lester Blakeslee

Lester is the group's financial backer, being the son of the wealthiest man in the county. He's very self-aware and wants to help people with his wealth whenever he can.

Lester's magical specialty is wind magic.

Laila Pressley

Laila is a wiz with machines, and acts as the team's mechanic. She's practical, and most of her magic reflects that– it's down and dirty but gets the job done.

Laila's magical specialty is earth magic.

Sully Moss

Sully is a man with Down's Syndrome and a massive heart of gold, but he's also built like a fridge and acts as the team's muscle. Hurt the people he cares about, and you'll regret it.

Sully's magical specialty is enhancement magic.

Roxanna Dane

With all of her charisma, Roxanna is the face of the Society of the Supernatural. She always knows a guy who knows a guy. Many people like her for her kindness and honesty.

Roxanna's magical specialty is water magic.

Spike Davies

Spike is a scrappy little guy who always has a plan for everything. He spends most of his time focusing on making preparations for the weirdest things that could happen.

Spike's magical specialty is light magic.

Sydney Kirk

An enby who loves making gadgets. They're a lot like Alec Hardison from Leverage in terms of personality and gaming buddies with Ivor.

Sydney's magical specialty is enchantments.

Devon Quickley

Devon is a guy who loves living off the land. He's very respectful of nature and loves being in it. He gets antsy when inside for too long.

Devon's magical specialty is a mix of earth and plant magic.

Bubba

Bubba is a pitbull-greyhound mix and a very good boy. He can't really cast magic due to being, ya know, a dog.

#the chateau #original characters #my characters #worldbuilding

[helenandlarrytravels]

January 30th, Havana to Santi Spiritus

Up for breakfast, Gracie did do a great job of providing a variety at breakfast. Hopped on our coach bus that will be our means of transportation for the next two weeks, Adrian is our driver. As we travel through the country side, Jackson fills us in on the history of Cuba, from the revolt against the Spanish , 1868, to more 20th century what happened after 1959 when the 

Americans left. The mass exodus of Cubans to the US in the early 1980’s as well as 1994. There are presently 3 million Cubans living in countries other than Cuban, and many of these people send money back to their relatives in Cuba. Ever since Russia has removed their financial support of Cuba, both the government and people in Cuba rely on this financial support from relatives abroad. Presently local people welcome Euros, and Canadian dollars, they deposit it in banks and us a debit card tied to this account to purchase hard to get food and household goods. Families are given food stamp books that entitle them to 28 staple food items if they are available. That is why foreign currency is welcome because they can use it to supplement the food stamp foods. We have been given anywhere from 80 - 1.05 pesos equivalent for our Canadian dollars. 

As we drive I noticed so many horses with Odense carts being driven by locals, some as taxis, others transporting palm leaves, bags of grain and fruit. Fencing for the fields consist of trees, I don’t know what kind, planted a foot apart and then a wire or two strung across.

Arrived in Santa Clara and stopped at Los Caneyes a hotel/restaurant that is very nature conscious and lots of birds, chickens and stray roofed buildings. Buffet lunch all you can eat. Cubans love meat, so Larry is in piggy heaven.

Bit of trivia… National tree, Royal Palm tree, national bird, Tokororo, white, red and blue and the national flower is the Butterfly lily.

Our fellow travellers are seasoned travels and been to everywhere we have been plus more places as well. The gentleman from Paris has been on more than 10 G Adventure tours. Interesting that every one of them is single. 

Arrive in Sancti Spiritus and go tour our hotel a beautiful old Casa, actually more of a mansion that has been converted into a hotel, Hotel del Rijo.

Took a walk around the town, many beautiful old mansions and the town square is so clean and welcoming. Walked down to the River, Rio Yayabo it is chocked full off water hyacinths are far as the eye can see. Next on the the local church when we see a statue of the patron saint of Cuba, la Virgen de la Cardad. This blue church dates back to the 1700’s. 

At 7:30 we meet for dinner and walk to a local restaurant and have spaghetti Cuban style and my limonada came with a fluorescent ice cube that changed colours. Meal total was < 1400 pesos and that included a 20% tip.

Off to bed, the room is beautiful, beds comfortable and it is quiet. A really pleasant night.

[goandeuropetravel]

Tips and Guide: Saving Money while Traveling Europe

The country guides for each individual destination contain more detailed information on how to save costs, but here are some basic suggestions:

Picnic - There are numerous little stores on this continent where you can buy prepared sandwiches or the ingredients to build your own. Purchase some food, enjoy it outside while observing the city and its inhabitants. It's both more fun and less expensive to eat this way.

Eat inexpensively and locally - Don't like picnics? Eat at neighborhood Maoz, Wok to Walks, sandwich shops, pizza joints, and outdoor street sellers. You can sample the local food for a lot less money by avoiding restaurants and dining at a lot of the neighborhood "grab n' go" establishments.

Stay with a local - because it can be expensive to stay in hostels. Use Couchsurfing to connect with locals who will let you stay with them for free if you don't have any friends you can stay with. It's a terrific opportunity to cut costs on lodging and get to know a local who can offer guidance and insider knowledge.

Camp in a garden – Campspace, which allows you to pitch a tent in someone's lawn for free or a little price, is a really good camping service that is specific to Europe (around 10-20 EUR). The services and amenities that each garden owner provides are listed in their profiles. Additionally, if you have a tent, many nations, like Sweden, permit wild camping, which can save you a ton of money.

Take the bus – You can travel across the continent on the cheap with low-cost bus operators like Flixbus. Although it isn't glamorous, you really can't complain when tickets start at just 5 EUR!

Get a Rail Pass – I have saved hundreds of dollars thanks to Eurail Passes. They are a terrific deal if you are traveling over long distances and through numerous nations.

Take the free city tours – One of the best things about Europe is that all of the big cities offer free walking tours. They can be a terrific way to see the city's sights, learn about its past, and become oriented without having to spend any money. Only remember to give your guide a tip at the end!

Plan accordingly – Plan your route through Europe to prevent going backwards. Planning ahead is important because transportation can be very expensive (and time). Travel straight or in a loop.

Fly cheap – Try to reserve flights early if you know where you're going and a train won't do. Many of the budget airlines in Europe, such as Ryanair or Wizz, frequently offer round-trip rates for as little as 5 EUR.

Drink less – Beers costing five euros add up. Decide when to party and attend happy hours. You can find inexpensive beverages at hostel bars or at the grocery store. Your bank account will be completely wiped out if you party your way across the continent.

Get a city tourist card – Many regional tourism offices offer a tourism card that can be used at all of their restaurants, tours, and attractions. This card entitles you access free admission and significant discounts to all of the city's tours and attractions, as well as free local public transportation (a major benefit) and special offers at a select number of restaurants and retail centers. They make huge financial savings. Invest in one of these cards if you intend to do a lot of sightseeing.

Rideshare – If your schedule is open, you can pay a nominal charge through the ridesharing service BlaBlaCar to catch rides with locals between cities (or nations). Similar to Airbnb but for transportation. In addition to making significant financial savings by using this service in Switzerland, I also made interesting new friends and gained insight into the way of life there. It's completely safe and drivers are certified, albeit occasionally rides don't arrive (which is why you need to be flexible).

Bring a water bottle – Bring a reusable water bottle so you may save money and lessen your usage of plastic since tap water is safe to drink throughout much of Europe. I usually use LifeStraw bottles since they have built-in filters that guarantee your water is always pure and safe.

Learn more about tips and guides while traveling in Europe

#tips #travel #saving #europe #guide

[modestoddest-blog]

Working Holiday Visa

It’s taken about 15 days and pending. 

1. Submitted Visa application, https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas (445 NZD = 394.27 SGD)

2. Waited for the reply as following: University Cert, X ray Cert. 

3. Went ahead with X ray Certification by a panel radiologist assigned by NZ (Paragon, 69.55 SGD)

4. Awaiting the reply from my case officer and [email protected] (They do not reply, Submit your university certification. Paragon RADLINK Radio will help you submit it to New Zealand directly)

5. Managed Banks, Credit Cards and Cleared loans! (Cancel before before leaving, good to have a youtrip card too! Later you will settle the IRD / Tax, Bank account for Jobs)

6. Purchase a sim card prior trip so there’s still connection with Ruthie (AUS) and Jason (NZ)

7. Sorted out accommodation upon arrival. 

8. Australia Visa, Traveller declaration for NZ

9. Insurance - Annual done with FWD via shop back -90$ + MBA! ($256.65 SGD)

10. Phone number, Home, Work, Bank. Travel Itinerary. 27 Sep 2022.

11. get a hop card prior to arriving nz (Online, Cheaper!) and sim travel

12. $10 for a simple number with 2degree

13. Visa, Passport, Driver license, Home bank statement / proof of address  for appointment with bank - This requires applying online with number and calling anz to book appointment (Usually 1 - 2 weeks) 

14. Apply for IRD after Bank gives you a IRD number to register for (must do this as priority it takes almost 1.5 weeks now ( as at 10oct) 

15. Accomms - Trademe, Facebook (Weekly rent, Northshore if you have a car, till jan 2023 all transportations are 50% but buses do cancel and esp try not to do bus at night alone) Northshore = better scenery must be home early, CBD = Grafton, Mount Eden, Grey Lynn etc easy transport

16. Car - Trademe ( Good old Suzuki and Toyota, Suzuki’s got a pretty cute van, If you road trip a lot might be good to buy a larger convertible one like Rafa’s)

17. Connected in cg! Sunday and CG (Every fortnight tues at ami home) 

18. BJJ gym (Weekly 45$) Work in exchange

19. Work interviews with agencies / recruitment drives 

20. Bank - Apply online then wait for appointment. Get card, get pay now transfer account and bring cash to have a transaction and get Bank statement printed for IRD at the counter.  Tips: go to smaller branches for faster appointment and call into ANZ hotline (Rotorua / Taupo); pray for favour with all things in nz.

21. IRD - Step 1: Get a IRD number first  https://myir.ird.govt.nz/tools/_/

at, Enter your New Zealand bank account number - key in everything on Bank statement from point 20. Take a photo of Bank statement immediately! You’ll need to upload that in the portal. 

Step 2: Wait to Register IRD with your new IRD number (Remember to check for IRD tax too before leaving

I use google chrome cos I had troubles with safari and IRD site (13 Oct) 

22. https://whatsmyworth.co.nz/salary-survey/?func=5&loc=0

23. After IRD, address and mobile. you’re pretty much set.  - after settling for 4 months -  24. Find accommodations thru CANZ, Facebook or words of mouth. No harm being friendly, everyone loves to talk here. 

25. Travel now and then, when not working. It is okay to ask for offs, or to pace work. Don’t bring Singapore culture here. Start like a baby. 

26. But wise as a serpent, and realise what people are doing. draw boundaries or laugh about it so they realise you know too, you’re wise too. Pray for NZ. 

27. Great country very blessed! 

  For now.. To be updated, this is my way of working around it but be creative with it

To find out more, follow me on @modestoddest (Instagram) 

Notes: 

-heater in shower, in bed room/ mattress 

-many ways around “expensive” nz -hangers

If these help you, tag me on insta! @modestoddest :) 

#workholiday newzealand #singapore #newzealand #singaporean #photographer #nature #travel #adventure

[mobilehwyads]

[trawexonline]

Tour Management Software

Tour Management Software-Trawex

What is Tour Management Software?

Since the world has become a global village, the tour business has become a lucrative and fast-growing industry. Like any other business, the tour business requires proper management to ensure the investors get the required returns on their capital.

Tour Operators are organizations that specialize in the manufacture of tour packages. A good Tour management software is Innovative and has great highlights to help your Travel Agency accomplish great deals.

It is the tour management software which helps in managing the activities which come in use in the booking and managing details of customers. With the help of tour management software, travel agencies can easily handle the flow of requests and much more.

Trawex specially designed tour management software that takes care of all business needs of travel agencies with its incredible and 100% user-friendly features.

It is a complete travel management software for managing your tour and travel business efficiently and in a user-friendly manner.

This Software designed with utmost accuracy proves to be an end-to-end solution for all business-related needs of tour operators.

Our Tour management software will help you to grow your business faster in an easy and effective manner by providing an online booking facility. Our tour management software can improve the client’s travel processes & reduce their operational costs.

Trawex provides complete tour management software that has everything you require to build your booking website to manage your customers more efficiently.

It is very easy to use and amazing default design. It allows to add your tours & activities and begin accepting bookings.

This type of platform is used by all those who are on the road, from the band, their team, and families, the tour manager, the production crew, all the way to the bus and truck drivers.

For crew support, users include the travel agent, day-to-day manager, business manager, agent, and record label marketing and promotion teams.

Fulfil Your Needs with All-In-One Tour Management Solution from Trawex

Trawex tour management software authorizes the admin and travel partner to track the air, hotel car reservations and manages them fruitfully. Our system will help you replace your existing system.

Our tour management system designed by our developers is accurate, reliable so that you can maintain uniformity if you have several setups across the globe.

It is so designed that the travel partner makes reservations himself after getting the information like product, price, promotion, etc. Travelers get the overview of all the reservation carried out by the system.

Your tour manager can search for the required data faster than your existing system, get customer records easily and generate reports as required.

With Trawex tour management system, online travel agents can get additional travel reporting module, financial management module, and online integrated e-commerce module.

Our product is designed and developed for large OTA to small-to-medium-sized as well as large tour operators having complex business and is offered as local server solution or hosted applications.

Our tour management software that helps you to manage your inventory and groups travel create a package also improves your services ordering, manage accounts and will achieve full awareness into your travel business.

Our tour management software also helps in managing the activities which come in use in the booking and managing details of customers.

Trawex introduces a comprehensive online Tour Management Software developed to enhance your area's marketability. Your members will benefit from an online system with the capability of displaying and selling their services.

Our tour management software can offer you another prosperous revenue generating opportunity. This will give you another revenue source which can be put into marketing your destination.

Trawex provides tour management software with a state-of-the-art, validated reservation system that makes it easy to sell flexible seamless source, efficient service, and efficient management.

Our management system for tour operators is a total solution that supports local and remote product inventory, offering powerful and flexible product development, allowing dynamic pricing and packaging combined with seamless, award-winning online booking.

It will handle back-office functionalities, bookings, CRM and accounting. As in all this tour management software will increase your online booking quickly and efficiently.

Our Tour Operator Management Software that lets you control your inventory and travel groups, provides a bundle that also enhances the ordering of your services, manages accounts, and gives you full awareness of your travel business.

Now grow and enhance your business with this multipurpose tour management software. This online travel management software has a great opportunity with its unique features for all travel owners to empower their business.

Travel Agencies also manage updates of real-time booking status with our travel software. Our travel management software allows you to manage an entire travel business by automating many back office related tasks and functions with its ultimate features.

It is the perfect web-based software specially created for tour and travel companies that lets you get rid of manual tasks in your daily job.

Trawex plays a major role in the growing travel business. By getting advanced solutions from their travel technology partners, travel companies are now enhancing the customer experience.

Modernization with the help of specialized travel technology boosts the operational performance of travel companies. Although Trawex exists in the travel industry, a company with a proven track record could help you improve your business in more than one way.

We specialize in the field of technology offer most advanced travel agency software solutions for travel agencies of all sizes and budgets. Based on their business requirements, we provide an appropriate travel technology solution for all travel companies.

We provide the worldwide travel industry with an online booking platform for B2B & B2C.Our B2B/B2C booking engine is a one-stop solution for travel companies whose target segments are end-users.

This helps the customer to book online travel deals directly without other tour operators or travel agents being involved. Our booking engine offers tour packages, easy and simple reservations and safest payment options for both B2B & B2C.

We provide travel agencies with personalized tour management software to connect with various inventory vendors as all top GDS integrations, millions of hotels and tour packages like car rentals, which in turn serves almost all services related to travel.

Trawex offers Tour Management System is a Software Application that offers a unique and comprehensive solution for simplifying high-volume business processes.

We offer clients a unique custom design and development program. We offer an array of web-based tools that make the challenge of managing business travel easier.

The system supports a wide range of user-customizable features like hotel accommodation, flight booking, & car booking, travel packages, and travel insurance.

An advanced web-based travel management system to give you the flexibility to ensure hassle-free travel business. A simple, on-demand and Search Engine friendly solution.

This Tour operator software technology module is being used in some travel companies to light up their opportunities on increasing productivity, sales and also extends the range of travel products in a simple and fast way.

Trawex allows the end-to-end XML API integration solutions with multiple suppliers and builds the best travel booking system for both B2B / B2C business through the XML connectivity.

Trawex is an easy-to-use business travel management tool. It is perfectly suited for booking and handling business travel.

The online booking system is simpler to use than most customer sites and, unlike traditional corporate travel agencies, there are no hidden fees. Our cutting-edge technologies were specifically designed to motivate Tour Management Software.

Trawex offers the most relevant market insights and detailed information that rapidly adapts to changing market dynamics at the enterprise level.

Our Tour Management Software gives you the ability to handle hotels, fares, holiday packages, tours & events, car rentals, and transfers.

We offer full assistance throughout the system cycle, from marketing to services to personnel and accounting. Our System is fully customizable to meet your needs and help manage your sales, bookings, tours, itineraries and monitor real-time progress.

Trawex is a leading Travel Software provider for Travel management companies all over the world. We provide end-to-end travel management solutions for travel agents.

Travel is an integral part of doing business for most companies and needs to be well managed to ensure that the costs associated bring the best value to the organization itself.

The growth of Travel Management Companies (TMCs) introduces the core skills of experience, efficiency, and understanding of business travel.

Build your business around ultimate performance to drive business growth with the most comprehensive all-in-one travel booking and management software across all customer needs and interactions.

Tourist management is the monitoring of all activities related to the tourism and hospitality industries. Tour Management Software is a dynamic website for tourism companies. It's dynamic and responsive web design.

It is also referred to as travel technology solutions for agencies and tour operations. The tourism management system allows users of the system access to all details, such as locations, events, etc.

The main aim is to help tourism companies manage customers and hotels, etc. The system can also be used for both business and professional excursions.

Tour Management Software may also include corporations, associations and public authorities that offer tourism services to potential travelers. Trawex has created one of the best software for travel agencies.

It provides world-class tour operator technology that is an e-commerce travel platform that enables the online distribution of flights, packages, hotels, transfers, etc.

Our tour management software allows the admin and the travel partner to monitor and manage the air, hotel and car reservations successfully.

Our tour management software allows the admin and the travel partner to monitor and manage the air, hotel and car reservations successfully.

Trawex offers a complete online tour management software designed to improve marketability in your region. Your members will benefit from an online system capable of displaying and selling their services.

Our tour management software will give you another opportunity for efficient revenue generation. This will give you another source of revenue that can be put into the marketing of your destination.

The tour operator software helps you to quickly and efficiently grow your business through an online reservation facility. Our CRM software that enhances our customer service, builds your customer interaction and increases your business sales growth.

Tour operators are organizations, who specialize in the manufacture of tour packages, offering you a chance to learn about the increased productivity, sales and the range of travel products simply and quickly.

A good tour management software is creative and has great features in support of your tour operator. It is the tour operator management software that helps to manage the activities used in the booking and management of customer details.

Trawex Software authorizes the Executive and Travel Partner to track and manage hotel and car reservations successfully. Our system will assist you in replacing your current system.

Our developer-designed tour management software is accurate and reliable so you can maintain consistency when you have several systems worldwide. Passengers get a description of the entire system reservation.

We offer full assistance throughout the system cycle, from marketing to services to personnel and accounting. Trawex is a comprehensive tour operator software program designed to automate and organize all travel management aspects, improve efficiency, communication between travelers and suppliers, manage packages, and save time.

We offer the best tour booking software and provide robust tracking, reporting, and operational analysis through a superior back-end tour system.

Over a number of years in the travel industry, we have provided tour operator software solutions based on our industry-leading, off-the-shelf and extensible system to tour providers similar to you.

Our cutting-edge technologies were specifically designed to motivate the System. Trawex offers the most relevant market insights and detailed information that rapidly adapts to changing market dynamics at the enterprise level.

We are developing our innovative tour operator software to meet the needs of specialized travel brands, making it easy to use, scalable and delivering true value. It also handles back-office functionalities, bookings, CRM and accounting.

As in all this tour operator software will increase your online travel booking system quickly and efficiently. Tourist management is the monitoring of all activities related to the tourism and hospitality industries.

Tour Management Software is a dynamic website for tourism companies. It's a dynamic and responsive web design. It is also referred to as travel technology solutions for agencies and tour operations.

The tourism management system allows users of the system access to all details, such as locations, events, etc. The main aim is to help tourism companies manage customers and hotels, etc.

The system can also be used for both business and professional excursions. Tour Management System may also include corporations, associations and public authorities that offer tourism services to potential travelers.

Trawex has the experience and expertise to support the company's business travel needs. We are the leading business travel management software provider of international and domestic travel fares, vacation packages, hotels, airlines, transfers, and sightseeing.

Trawex is committed to providing better services and cutting-edge technologies to create an excellent interactive experience, implement and manage travel strategies for your organization.

Our travel ERP is an appropriate system that will helps travel agencies across the globe to manage their tasks smoothly. It is used to market improved travel management and expense solutions.

We ensure that we take a good look at your requirements to provide you with the customized online travel portals solutions to you. The online travel portal enables travel agents, tour operators, and web portals, consolidators to sell, manage and collaborate with their B2C clients and B2B partners and suppliers.

This software caters to the needs of Inbound Tour operators and the Outbound Tour operators, Destination management companies, corporate travel companies, travel agencies, and Online Travel Agencies.

WHY TOUR MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE IS IMPORTANT?

Automation of all the activities of the business and the details of the customers and other stakeholders will ensure the smooth running of the Tour business.

Since this business requires the operator to communicate with agents around the world for bookings, reservations, and other issues, there is a need for a system that can enable meet all these tasks. That's why tour management software is essential for tourists.

Trawex has developed one of the best tour management software. It offers world-class tour operator management software that is an e-commerce travel platform enabling online flight distribution packages, hotels, transfers, etc.

You can customize your tour software by integrating it with different APIs and payment gateway. With the integration of flight, hotel, car APIs, your customers themselves tailor their travel plans and different bookings of flights, hotels, and transfers.

Our software for tour management allows the admin and travel partner to track and manage flights, hotels, car bookings fruitfully.

It is so designed that the travel partner makes reservations himself after getting the information such as product, price, promotion, etc.

Travelers get an overview of all the reservations made by the system. With our tour management software, online travel agents can obtain an additional travel reporting module, a financial management module and an integrated online e-commerce module.

Trawex provides you customized services that are able to enhance your business. It is basically designed and developed by our expertise uses the latest technology tools and techniques for ensuring maximum business profits.

Our product is designed for large OTAs with small to medium sizes as well as large tour operators with complex business and is offered as a local server solution or hosted applications.

Our tour management software also allows the clients to manage their bookings online and even make their payments. By using our tour management software, customers can book international and domestic travel products using any device at any time.

You can integrate with multiple GDSs and third-party suppliers XML/API for flights, car rentals, hotels, holiday packages to your online booking engine to sell multiple products under one roof.

Our user-friendly and responsive online tour operator management software enhances your customers' booking experience. Our reliable tour management software lets you do all you want to do with your business, streamlines processes, cuts costs and keeps up the customer’s satisfaction.

This tour management software fulfils all of a travel business ' basic requirements, it can be used by anyone who is even strongly associated with the tour and travel industry.

Benefits of Tour Management Software for Travel Business:

• Booking Management: Booking features enable the user to get direct online bookings from their customers. Our Tour Management

• Software offers easy integration with a booking engine to help make reservations.

• Itinerary Creation: Tour Management Software enables the user to gather more information for the trip, make reservations, and flight bookings among other solutions.

• Point of Sale and payment processing: Point of sale feature enables the user to sell to customers and take cash payments. Tour Management Software offers support for payments worldwide with built-in payments and payment gateways such as Stripe, PayPal and chases payments among others.

• Customer Database and CRM: With Tour Management Software, the user can securely keep track of the customer information with an inbuilt CRM. The user can gather and store customer details which can enable them to meet their needs more effectively.

• Reports: Tour Operator Management Software offers fully customizable reports to help the user run their business more effectively.

• Customer Review: The user can increase the customers, and drive more sales with Tour management Software customer reviews and feedback.

• Agent Management: Tour Operator Software helps the travel agency to manage their daily activities more effectively and collaborate with other agents worldwide.

• Finances and Accounting: complete management of your receivable and payable.

• Track business performance with insightful reports: profitability of consumers and travel agents, the profitability of tour/package, availability reports, performance reports of suppliers.

Our Tour Management Software features include:

Packages: Our flexible package section allows you to create fixed, tailored and property packages.

Accommodations Availability & Reservations: This module allows visitors to view and book available properties and rooms online. The properties maintain their own pricing and inventory levels and can edit descriptions and other information at any time through the simple-to-use member administration module.

Attractions: Attractions and entertainment venues can sell tickets, manage inventory and promote facilities to potential online visitors.

Dining: Restaurants can showcase menus and pricing in real time. Coupons, gift certificates and specials can be viewed and purchased online. Visitors can directly book reservations online.

Tour Operator: Our user-friendly Tour Operator section allows Tour Operator to easily create, display and sell their tours online.

Our Tour Management Software is the cutting-edge web-based travel software package that supports a wide range of management and distribution aspects of your travel business.

Deployed with the innovative Software as a Service model, Tour Operator can be launched quickly and easily. Our secure cloud hosting services simplify your IT requirements and reduce operational costs.

We allow travel agents, tour providers, accommodation owners, car rentals, cruises and charter travel providers to market their products online and get more bookings instantly.

For more details, Pls visit our website:

#Tour Management Software #Tour Booking System #Tour Website

[thetravellingvagrant]

Day 4: In Which I Embroil Myself In A Bus Station Mosh-Pit

My bus to Faro was due to depart from Lisbon at 9am, this morning. That may sound like a fairly relaxed time to make it to a bus station for, though given the slightly-north-of-half-an-hour travel time and my resolution to be places I needed to be in a decent enough time not to have to run-walk anywhere on this trip, saw me, the previous night, tearfully setting my alarm for 7:30am.

Fortunately, though, some very thoughtful drivers outside my hostel had opted to start beeping their horns at around quarter to seven and simply refused to stop, no matter what I or anyone else did or said, so that was cool. It was like I beat my alarm. 1-0 to me alarm. I win. I also felt like my brain had been hollowed out with an ice cream scoop, but a win is a win.

So there I was, up in reasonably okay time, my belongings pre-packed and my sandwiches for the trip pre-made, the night before. All I had to do was put my bag on my shoulders and leave, after putting my pants on, also.

My carefully laid plans, however, hadn't taken into account waking up and feeling like I had been rolled down the side of a hill made entirely of night-sweat. I really wanted a shower. I looked at the clock. I just about had time, if I rushed. And so I did. Or I tried. I wasn't quite functional enough to rush and so “rushing” very quickly became “disassociating while staring at the shower nozzle for a full ten minutes”, which I'll be honest, did put me rather behind schedule, but at least I no longer had swamp-ass.

I left the apartment a little late, squeaking, both with cleanliness and because that's the noise my bones make when crushed under the weight of my big bag and headed to the bus station. My journey there was of no note whatsoever, other than it being very straightforward and, mostly, fairly comfortable. As I say, Lisbon's infrastructure is really quite good and I don't care how much like Alan Partridge with all the humour removed that makes me sound.

Even the best thought out infrastructure, however, is of little match for the whirling maelstrom of absolute fucking chaos that is Flixbus – who you may remember from last year, just dumped me in the wrong fucking country, in the middle of the night on a journey I undertook with them, last year.

The Flixbus buses arrived at the station with literally zero rhyme and even less reason. They would pull in over three – or occasionally – four fairly disparate columns of stances, with each column having space for three – or occasionally – four different buses to stop. The buses were incredibly frequent and clearly were pulling up without order or schedule or, to be honest, particularly clear signage as to their destinations. What this meant, practically, was that each time a bus pulled in, which, again, was all the time, the entire throng of Flix-Punters, which must have tallied, at points, in the region of 200 people, would lurch, as one, from lane to lane, from stance to stance, in order to check and – usually – be disappointed that the freshly arrived bus wasn't theirs. It was chaotic and claustrophobic and stressful and – worst of all - had been made a necessity by Flixbus' ramshackle scheduling. It was also very smelly.

My particular bus hadn't pulled in by the time the confirmation email had told me to be at the station.

“It's probably fine...” I reasoned, a modicum of anxiety just beginning to creep into the peripheries of my mind. “...I might just check the tracking info, to be sure.”

I did. It was broken. Brilliant. What it did say, however, was “on schedule”, which is why, at 9am – the point at which I was supposed to be departing – with no sign whatsoever of the bus I was supposed to be departing on, I began to worry.

“This is so chaotic, I've probably missed it pulling in on some other, esoteric stance and it's gone without me and I have genuinely no opportunity to check if that's true and I should buy another ticket or just wait here in case it's running late, or – oh, never mind, there it is.”

It turned out I had bested the disorder of Flixbus by simply bumbling around in vaguely the right place and keeping my eyes open. That's two for two on victories. God, I'm strong.

The bus journey itself was reasonably pleasant, if I'm honest. I wouldn't describe it as comfortable, but no one ate any oranges on it and when the person in front of me did recline their seat directly into my knees, they turned around, apologised and returned their seat to the upright position, so that was nice. The only thing that marred the experience, to be honest, was the presence of a full-on Portugese Karen, who kept bumping my seat as she walked past it on the way to complain to the driver about something or nothing, no fooling, five times in the first hour. Also her husband was playing videos on his phone and wouldn't wear headphones. Pricks.

Soon though, I was Algarving it up and found myself spat out into some arid patch of industrial waste ground which Flix somehow imagined constituted a bus-stop, which it didn't.

It was just after 12:30pm when I arrived into Faro. My airbnb host, Nelson had set the – frankly ludicrous – check in time for his apartment at 4. I found myself, then, with multiple hours to kill, though, sadly, not enough energy or constitution in my back and shoulder muscles to do anything with it. My bag had somehow gotten heavier than it had been this morning. I didn't fancy lugging it around in the head for three and a half hours, and so, I just sorta...sat.

First, I sat in a nice park, which smelled a bit of piss and ate my lunch

Yummy...

Then, I dawdled off to the nearby Faro Pier, which was basically just a rope bridge and which smelled a bit of raw sewage, and listened to my podcast for an hour

Pictured: The untameable majesty of the ocean

Then I ambled up to the approximate location of the apartment in the misguided hope that I would be able to kill the rest of the time in a nearby cafe. As it turned out, all the listed cafes in the area were either closed, permanently shut down or seemingly had never existed, and so I found myself in the local Burger King with an hour and a half to spare. I ordered a portion of Chilli Cheese Bites and a milkshake and, after waiting – standing – for genuinely twenty minutes to get these two incredibly simple and quick to make items, I was allowed to slope off to a quiet table, at which I sat, nursing my quote-unquote food incredibly slowly,

Pictured: The Untameable majesty of late-stage capitalism.

listening to the remainder of my podcast, the world worryingly swaying to-and-fro each and every time I closed my eyes (fatigue? Or something more sinister? I genuinely still don't know! Stay tuned to find out!) for an hour and a bit, before making the five or so minute walk to the apartment.

Gaining entry to the apartment was all automated; the door to the flat itself being opened remotely by some special remote-door-opening gadget of Nelson's whom, to this very day, I still haven't met – although to be honest I am fine with that. This gave the whole experience a bit of an impersonal, sterile feel, not aided in the slightest by Nelson having left out a selection of teas and coffees for my please, but still expecting me to pay fifty cents for each one I used. Your house is literally next door to a supermarket - what possible incentive do I have to use your teabags at an overinflated price? You haven't thought this through, Nelson. Regardless, I was now staying in a genuinely comfortable four room guest house, which I had entirely to myself, so it was fine. I wasn't even that annoyed. It was fine.

After a brief trip to the next-door supermarket which I genuinely do not remember, though seemingly resulted in my purchasing what had to be the least palatable crisps I have ever eaten – yes, worse than the feta ones from Montenegro; these smelled like blue cheese and tasted like sick – I returned home, for a very big sleep. I did not leave the apartment for the rest of the night and to be honest, no force on this earth, not even a house-fire could have persuaded me to do otherwise.

#travelling #vagrant #travel #photography #lisbon #portugal #faro #bus #flixbus #terrible

[sagevalleymusings]

Do Not Give Away Personal Information

Hopefully folks see this even though I'm a very small blog, but I have an important safety PSA for the zoomers on tumblr. Story time (Names and Locations have been changed for privacy).

Yesterday, I was waiting for the bus. There was a fashionable young man sitting on the bench with me. It wound up being kind of a long and boring wait, and so inevitably, this young man and I started making small talk. We found out we had a bit of a six degrees of separation connection - we were both doing events at the same venue, though on different days. We got into it a little bit more, and he explained that he got this venue spot through his dad, then gave me his dad's first name.

So that's personal information number one and number two: his dad's first name is Lincoln and he's associated with the Crowe Community Center.

We were chatting more, about the weather this time, and he mentioned how much more he liked the weather than in North Dakota. This stranger, unprompted, gave me three pieces of personal information. I would like to defend myself a little bit by saying that initially when I Googled "Lincoln Crowe Community Center" it was because I wondered if I knew who this was. After all, I was doing an event there too, so maybe our connection was a little closer than I thought. However, it became immediately apparent that this young man's zoomer inclination to not safeguard his information combined with his parents' boomer inclination to overshare meant that almost immediately I had a massive amount of personal information at my disposal. The "young man" I met isn't a man at all - he's a minor. His name is Gus Johnson and he goes to school and West Side High School, which is a little bit odd, considering he lives at 45 East Brewer Ave, on the other side of town. But turns out his dad Lincoln Johnson and mom Rebecca Johnson are fundamentalists - in fact, Lincoln was a minister at Living Promise, which is a tiny evangelical church he founded that was running out of someone's basement for a while. They were so fundamentalist in fact that they pulled their four kids (Gus, Jeremy, Abigail, and Saul) out of school, but couldn't manage it with schedules and finances for very long, and so sent them to West Side instead of East Side (probably because East Side was too liberal, but that's an extrapolation on my part). I found the social media pages of every single one of his immediate family, his parents' jobs, the city where he grew up, the high school his dad went to, his date of birth and year in school, along with several important life events, all within about 20 minutes. At some point I started to get morbidly curious, and just kept kicking over rocks, and then out scurried a bunch of driver's licenses and library cards as fast as they could. I want to emphasize again that I had a fifteen minute conversation with a random child at a bus stop, and that child revealed enough information that I was able to get his home address and the address of his school, and where his dad works, along with 6 separate social media accounts, without any tools beyond searching publicly available information. Most people are good people. I'm not going to do anything nefarious with this information, and probably won't even remember the details tomorrow. The problem is that the kind of person who would do something nefarious would have been even friendlier than I was, making up lies and asking prompting questions until the kid had given up even more private information than he did. Do. Not. Give. Strangers. Private. Information. And if you are going to say something personal and private, don't make it worse by saying more than one. Knowing his dad's name and home state wouldn't have pulled up the right Lincoln. Knowing his dad's name and association with the community center would have pulled up the right guy, but then I would have had to spend extra time confirming that it was him. And most of the time, people aren't going to take the extra step. Knowing his dad's name and association with the community center, and that he was from North Dakota, meant that the very first search result I got (a bio from the center) meant I knew in five seconds that I'd found the right Lincoln Johnson.

#psa #protect your private information #zoomers please read #do zoomers call themselves zoomers? #anyone under the age of 25 please read #do not give private information to strangers

[fullserviceportland]

PDXblackout Resource Guide

Yet Another Resource Guide 2023 AUGUST 22 - 14:44 PST ...in no particular

Department of Human Services SNAP is going to be very key in getting the most out of this guide. You will need to apply for it if you haven't already, and make sure that you're in communication with DHS to keep your benefits active. The golden ticket we will be looking at is the benefits verification letter. You're going to need that.

Google Drive / Photos Create a Google account. Access http://drive.google.com and http://photos.google.com to bring up these tools I'm telling you about. Take pictures with your phone of any documents you possess which will be important in this undertaking. This includes and is not limited to a driver's license or state issued ID, social security card, birth certificate, Portland Rescue Mission ID, SNAP Benefits Verification Letter, meeting sheets, this method may not be for you, but consider it, since it worked and is working for me.

Oregon Health Plan If you see me with some nice headphones, it's because I pursued getting my insurance to pay for them. Flex funds are really useful, I'm still learning about them, I've seen people get an array of help from this one resource. OHP pays for my nicotine products, my medication, my doctor visits, my dental visits and no telling what else. Get. The. Free. Insurance.

Billie Olegard Dental Clinic I had a pretty severe dental issue and thought I was losing my teeth. In two appointments this dental clinic that is right next to the outpatient classes totally took care of it, didn't cost me anything out of pocket except my time and acceptance. It's still a dentist's office. Kelly the dental hygienist is awesome.

8x8 Richard Harris Building Laptops can be checked out from the case manager office. Supported housing is the basis of our programs, the Mentor Program and the 8x8 Community Program. My case manager and the other case managers have been pivotal in my success. We are able to receive mail. A form was filled out for me that guaranteed I had been homeless and I was able to go get my state ID made with just my birth certificate for free, I got that at the 8x8. If you have a supported housing apartment, use it.

Central City Concern Recovery Center Stephanie and Anthony have teamed up to do some really awesome stuff for me. It's really important to learn how to show up for our schedules on time, reducing tardiness is part of reintegrating back into a standard level of society.

NARCAN Nasal spray NARCAN is available for free through Old Town Clinic and other agencies. Normally it takes about four of them to work, so if you're going to use them, use a lot of them! The NARCAN training video is on YouTube. Watch it several times if you plan to use NARCAN. It's important to follow all the instructions!

Blanchet House Free meals, hygiene items, peer support.

Portland Rescue Mission Free meals, socks, but most importantly they will make an ID card for you on the spot even in the middle of the night. I got mine while I was still using and I've still got it to this day. It will have your picture and name on it. Not many questions asked. It meant a lot to me and I was able to pick up prescriptions with it. You will need this specific ID when you receive services from PRM.

Union Gospel Mission I stayed at UGM's LifeChange program for a total of about two weeks. I didn't stay, but I've stayed tied in with those guys and they're on my side. They also offer free food services throughout the week.

St. Andre Free food, fill out a form get a food box, Father Tom prayed with me when my grandmother was passing away, genuine people, good coffee.

TRIMET Requires ID, SNAP benefits letter. Take the required documents to the TRIMET office at Pioneer Square and ask for an Honored Citizen pass. They will take your picture and probably give you the rest of the month for free. You can ride all the bus lines, the MAX and the streetcar with this pass. It is absolutely essential if you're starting completely over like I have.

Transitional Projects Showers, mail services, laundry, and to me the most important aspect was that they made me an ID specific to TPI services. I haven't been to TPI since I got clean, but they did matter in my addiction. They also offer a locker service but I never really used it.

RentWell Online class usually takes 6 to 8 weeks, I was done with the coursework in 4 days. They help you get and keep housing and teach you about tenant law! Now I have a RentWell case manager.

Community Volunteer Corps Take advantage of the opportunity to participate in CVC. It is my opinion that the point of CVC is to leave for work sober, be productive and give back, then come back, together, still sober. Work together, make it fun, and be on time. The reference letters are different for everyone. Don't cheat the system.

Employment Access Center The EAC is providing services to me for the next two years according to Will, my EAC worker. They've helped people get shoes, clothing, cell phones, bills paid, and more. My first day with them they helped me get signed up on iMatch through Oregon Works and although I have a different resume prepared, we created a new one, too. We're going to be working on cover letters and figuring out what my goals are and actually achieving them.

Nike BIKETOWN Access for All The Nike bikes are still free at the time of writing this. Just upload your benefits verification letter to their Access for All page and fill it out, creating an account, all that goodness.

Multnomah County Library, Kenton and Hollywood Locations https://multcolib.org/services The library offers a tech lending program that at the time of writing this just sent me a laptop and a mobile hotspot. It takes a while to get the equipment, but you can apply for free. Do you have a library card? It's crucial. I got mine made, originally, with my Portland Rescue Mission ID card! Free printing services are offered, which I used to print off the standard readings for Brothas and Get Your Fix. I've also used it to print off stuff I wanted to read like free stuff listings on Craigslist, song lyrics, and education information.

William Temple House Their food bank is still a huge asset for me, and if you've never had them then on Tuesday morning, if you're first, they'll give you a total of twenty five dollars in vouchers to their thrift store, but the most important service I've received from WTH has been from Emily, where she signed me up using their address for a year long HOP card pass. You've gotta have a HOP card with the Honored Citizen.

MHACBO While pursuing a certification, I found the oral health training and other online classes. I accomplished something by doing this, and earned a continuing education credit.

TextNow When I first got here all I had was a phone that I wasn't the original owner of, and it couldn't get service. Thanks to Wi-Fi and TextNow, I was able to send text messages, make phones, and have a phone number for free. There are advertisements built in.

211 I've called 211 several times especially recently, they provide me with an operator who's entire job is based around helping people get in touch with the resources they need.

Old Town Clinic Get a primary care physician, get nicotine replacement, be honest about your medical conditions. I always double check with my case manager if I'm going to miss something, but he always tells me that medical appointments are a solid reason to miss check-in.

Social Security Administration There was totally some police type activity when I went up there, but everything went fine overall. It was a little stressful, they asked me to take my shoes off, but it didn't cost me anything and I made it out without confrontation. They gave me a piece of paper that day which would let me get a job, and my social security card was in the mail about a week later.

Right 2 Dream 2 This is a homeless shelter beside the Yellow Line MAX at the Moda Center. The table there and the fridge there sometimes contains food. I stayed there the night before I went to Hooper. The higher ups there like recovery, feel free to check the fridge.

Cash App Functions as a bank account, easy to transfer funds, free debit card.

Chime Functions as a bank account, free debit card.

Alano Club of Portland Recovery meetings every single day without regular exception. 909 NW 24th Avenue

Sunshine Division My first day at the 8x8, Michael went and got me a food box from Sunshine Division. At the time of writing this, I went and got one today, too. Good solid consistent resource. You're not going to feed an army with a food box from Sunshine Division, but it's worthwhile.

Affordable Connectivity Plan Government assistance for individuals that qualify, that provides us with free phones and phone service. Free phones and service can be obtained from Assurance Wireless, Excess Telecom, and Cricket Wireless.

CCC ROC Clothing closet, ask a mentor or case manager about it.

Salvation Army on Killingsworth Awesome food bank, has a clothing closet too.

DoorDash At the time of writing this, DoorDash is my only employer. I was so excited when my background check came back fine. It took a while to get accepted, but I've been able to pay for things by delivering DoorDash orders. I've used my personal Trek bicycle, Lime scooters, Spin scooters, and mostly the Nike BIKETOWN bikes to deliver orders.

Home Forward Housing vouchers are a thing out there, so when the wait list opens up, apply. Sometimes they bump people up on the wait list based on their situations.

Alcoholics / Narcotics Anonymous There's a hotline we can call for all the different areas. Going to meetings, working the steps, living a life in recovery, has been the cornerstone of keeping me clean. I have a couple different apps on my phone, but there's one each of AA and NA that helps me find meetings based on criteria and location.

Nicotine Gum I smoked as many cigarettes as I could when I first got here. I still smoke, but I smoke a lot less than I did. Nicotine products have been a huge part of that, and OHP pays for it.

Bombas Free socks.

BottleDrop Whether your coping strategy is to take a sober friend with you, wearing headphones, or something else, have a serious and well enforced plan in effect if you plan to turn in cans and bottles in Portland. There's people smoking fentanyl everywhere, people trying to sell drugs, people walking around naked, it's insanity. I've walked out of the line and left my cans a couple times or more. Also if you aren't careful they will make your room stink. Anyways, Rite Aid and Whole Foods accept cans, and the BottleDrop at Delta Park is my personal favorite, but the one at 122nd has a machine that counts them for us, we just pour them out on a conveyor belt and it's kind of cool to watch. It isn't pretty, but this is how I paid for a lot of stuff while I've been here.

DMV2U Input your identifying information and become able to set DMV appointments.

Lynn on the 7th floor She's been giving me free tobacco since I got here. This could end at anytime and she would be at no fault, she is an angel for doing this and you are not guaranteed anything. At the time of writing this the free tobacco and papers hours are 1100 to 2000, or 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., please do not harass her, but she will help you.

Dollar Tree Affordable food, locations are convenient, sells can openers although they break, sells batteries, accepts food stamps, sells ramen noodles.

Goodwill Bins Buy electronics and other goods by the pound. Grab bags of hygiene supplies for around ten dollars a bag. Easily get a hundred bucks worth of hygiene stuff for ten bucks.

Straightway Services Located on Vancouver way, food bank service on Wednesdays.

Project 529 Register your bicycle with pictures and serial number and description, get a certificate of registration. Check the serial number of bicycles to see if they are reported stolen within the system.

SOLVE I signed up to be an event leader for Stop Oregon Litter and Vandalism when I first got here and the date snuck up on me, then I had to actually go do the event. We didn't do it again after that but we had a great time and the event was a success. It's part of my resume now.

Elevate HIM

Nonprofit organization that helps prevent suicide in men by equipping them with proper clothing starting with a suit!

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