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arabellaflynn · 1 year

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The Internet has made it rain

A lot of groceries have been landing on my porch lately. Still, actually.

My roommates are a little confused, and asked me why the internet is mailing me sixteen jars of marinated artichoke hearts? And I had to explain that it's because Amazon is not really set up to let the internet mail me one or two jars of marinated artichoke hearts. They won't drop normal human quantities of perishables from Amazon Fresh on your porch without giving you a delivery window, and they can't book you a delivery window without ruining the "surprise" of getting things off a Wish List, so you can only order off Amazon Pantry, where people shop in bulk when they can't get a ride to Costco.

Ergo, sixteen jars of marinated artichokes. Which I will eventually eat, because I've also taken custody of sixteen boxes of pasta, a dozen cans of chunked tomatoes, and some amount of canned mushrooms and roasted bell peppers. I am generally a tired/lazy cook, and that's about the level of effort I'll go to for dinner.

They also half-seriously jumped to the conclusion that I was doing sex work. Which was not a bad guess; I do figure modeling, so I've spent a fair amount of my life being naked for money. I would happily be selling used shoes and underwear to people who would pay to appreciate them, but I'm not willing to put my real name or physical address on those packages, and PO Boxes are expensive as fuck in all the nearby ZIP codes. Most perverts are perfectly ordinary people who just have a very niche hobby, but you can't really tell when you have one of the bad apples from a few slobbery emails. Reading between the lines, at least one of my roommates has had a bad experience with an ex who wouldn't go away, so that's another reason not to risk it.

Getting back to the groceries, the Wish List says there's still some stuff that hasn't shown up yet, so I was not all that surprised to see more boxes piled up on my porch last week. I was having kind of a bad time, because our shower wall had fallen in and I was the only one home to let the contractors in at 8 in the morning, so I was not exactly firing on all cylinders. I just saw the boxes and went, 'oh yay, someone sent the half-dozen jars of spaghetti sauce, that's dinner taken care of' and stacked them in the corner for a bit, because pasta sauce will keep until I've had a nap.

Reader, it was not pasta sauce.

I have a few Wish Lists in addition to the main one, and the one that had all the groceries on it. One was called Media Production. I don't remember if I've ever posted that one, and I definitely didn't remember it was public, but that one was actually a running tally of stuff I intended to buy in the unlikely event that I ever got grant money. And everything on it eventually fetched up on my front stairs, save one duplicate item. I have no idea if one person sent it all, or if a bunch of you ganged up on me; it arrived in a few boxes, on a couple different days, and Amazon seems to include a separate 'send a thank you' slip for each item, so there's no telling what orders actually went to the warehouse. So far only one of the anony-mice has picked a unique pseudonym, and all of those things came a while ago in another collection of boxes.

But, uh, there's a whole bunch of it, is the point. Rather unexpectedly. Thank you!

Self-Portrait (Logitech BRIO, pixels on panel, 2023).

For the record, the collection was basically a starter kit for content creators. None of it is super pricey, it was just stuff I couldn't justify spending the money on without knowing (rather than hoping) I could get some sort of return on it. The standing mic with a pop filter is a desk model with cardioid pickup, and there's a lapel mic clipped to the bendy arm. Bluetooth earbuds are for monitoring, the SSD is 1TB of storage. I've been toying with the idea of turning blog entries into a podcast, a la Mark Crislip -- it would actually be easy, inasmuch as I generally write them by sitting alone in my room and talking to myself for hours on end until I get something that sounds good, then banging it out on a keyboard before I forget it. I have a gaming headset that cost me about $20 and works fine on Zoom, but does not produce audio of a quality I'd put out for people to feed into their ears for an hour at a time.

The white thing is a digital projector that was intended for a specific project that I'll still probably do at some point, but secretly is also assistive technology. I don't get as much done as I'd like because working on a computer requires me to sit up, and a lot of days, sitting up sucks. Being able to throw the second monitor onto a wall or even the ceiling means I can drag a wireless keyboard over and work from a pile of pillows. That plus the wireless controller means I can pick up streaming or recording let's-plays, which I've been wanting to do for a while, but haven't because sitting in one spot for hours murders my back.

The Logitech BRIO taking the moody mirror selfie is a 4K webcam, and it's on a basic telescoping tripod that I can use for anything that takes a standard 1/4" screw mount. I've been trying to get clips of rehearsals, performances, new props, toying around in the studio, etc., but the quality is generally not great. Laptop cameras are made for office lighting and close-range subjects, and cell phone cameras are pretty good but unfortunately attached to phones, which are both expensive and also the device off of which I am generally playing the music. I've gotten away with the 1K cam for my one dance film so far, mainly because it was intentionally lo-fi -- as in, if the camera I had was too clear, I would have added grain and noise in post-production -- but outside of that people generally enjoy seeing what tf is going on when they watch a clip of someone dancing.

[Side note: The rat cage is just out of shot to the right. Casper has the bottom suite. He had no idea what the hell I was doing shuffling doohickeys around on the floor and balancing a mirror on my knee with one hand and poking a computer with the other. I gave him a chocolate chip for his patience when I was done]

It is all generally portable. The webcam even came with its own bag. The stuff I have to hold is mostly wireless. The clip mic does have a cord; I can either plug it into a smartphone and then re-sync the audio in post, or I can plug it into a small Bluetooth transceiver and cast it to the laptop I'm using to record. It's almost, but not quite, equivalent to having a proper lav/beltpack set up. The receiver for a beltpack carries raw audio and can be plugged into anything, whereas the Bluetooth method needs at least one end of the connection to be smart in a way that a laptop is and most soundboards aren't. "Content creation"-style production is all piped through a computer whether it's edited or live, so it makes little difference to me. And frankly, all the wireless microphone systems I've ever tried to use with a computer are dodgy AF, mostly because the transmitter/WiFi/5G frequencies all smash into each other and come out a patchy mess.

So you can all look forward to more media, I guess? It'll take a bit to ramp up, I didn't expect to be doing any of this so soon, so I need to work on scripts and figure out where and when to record.

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taighsolais · 1 year

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december 15th

trying to objectively take a look at struggles i have re: acceptance & the want to be wanted. i haven't had a long term romantic partner in.. 8 years? i've only had two serious long term relationships in my life - both didn't end exactly well.

i'm bunkered up in the south with a group of friends & even tho it's a group of people who I interact with on the daily (albeit through group chat or social media) - i still question whether i'm wanted or if i fit in. i mean i guess i don't in the sense that i'm not local & just a somewhat regular visitor. everyone seems happy when i'm planning a trip down - but when i'm here i am constantly questioning everything i do & hope that i'm not interfering with everyone else's lives. i struggle to get a word in during conversations - i worry that i'm a burden & people who i see as friends might be helping me out in more of a sympathetic gesture than genuine friendship.. i wonder if they actually want me here. i feel like this is more of a "me" problem then the reality of the situation but it's still a struggle. if my mind bounces between one of ten things every few minutes - this is a constant. i'm staying with is two couples - one married, one engaged. sometimes i catch myself feeling jealous when one of the couples is planning something on their own without me (usually something that i would have no interest in anyway..!) but i also feel guilty when i try to make a plan to do something on my own.

preface: i'm not sure why i see rejection (or - what might actually be indifference) as a challenge. why does that prompt me to want to make it my mission to have someone care about me? on the flip side - why is it when someone shows romantic interest in me is that this feels ominous. impending torment / loss. that i'll inevitably let someone down or hurt them.

there's a guy i've been speaking with (in reality - probably more one sided than not) & so far we've spoken through a hookup app, instagram & last year through his onlyfans. we also spoke briefly through text, specifically audio messages after i "accidentally" butt dialed him once. re: onlyfans, he's an illustrator but also posts pinup style photos and has a bit of a following - but i did unsubscribe when i realized that it was probably a dead end. object permanence & whatnot. he's very handsome - but identifies sexually as pansexual i believe - so more personality driven. something that i recognize in my last two serious partners.

since i've been back i fully planned on not embarrassing myself again - genuinely had no intention of ever reaching out to this person again - but late one night i did shoot him a note. i got a response & i replied - then nothing. i messaged him back two additional times - both jokes - and again nothing. i guess jokes land differently when you're the kind of person someone is looking for. i looked up his twitter (because i can't help myself) & the type of accounts he's interacting with are similar to him - but also me, if maybe a bit younger / more fit. sort of makes me mourn a body i've had, and know i could have if i wasn't in the line of work i am - or more realistically, if i put myself & my health first.

where does the perception of a significant other in my life as a grounding tool come from. why do i see someone who should ultimately be a companion - partner, even - as a sudo savior for a chaotic & unpredictable life. an anchor. a beacon. why do i default to elaborate gestures, reckless & embarrassing displays - usually costly - why do i not know how to interact with people.

i sometimes feel like i act out, spend money or create these irrational scenarios (borderline stalking, joining their gym, sending amazon wish list gifts etc.) because i'm compensating for who i'm not - but could be. non romantically speaking, having someone just around does allow me to work better - or really do anything. it's a weird tug of war between leave me alone & i can't do anything alone. how did i get to this? and what can i do?

i had a great session at the gym tonight - the first time in - i don't even know when. i got my yoga in, a full day from a fitness book from many years ago + stair warmup & cool down. it was great! i feel wonderful. but if i wasn't motivated by a happenstance meetup, would i have gone? will i ever get to a place where being my own goal is enough. i'm not sure, but i would like to think so. what does all of this mean? i'm tired of being alone - and there is no blame to place. i do think an understanding of myself - to identify patterns & understand why i am the way i am would really help me move forward in life - romantically.

afterthought: i've been sharing regularly with therapists, doctors, lawyers that "i don't feel like myself". i haven't for a long time. it's a dysmorphia sort of experience - and i think it started with my transition into film work. it's not sustainable, it consumed my twenties. i know that i need a break & the introduction of boundaries IF i'm even able to maintain some contracts per year. i need the chance to reset & feel like myself. revisit friendships & focus on my health, body, personal style. i want to be me again - and i don't think it's too late. i need to find a way to lock down my finances & find my safe spot - i'd like it to be kissimmee if i can make it happen

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onewaytopromote · 2 years

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in this guide, we will be teaching you how to make money with Clickbank, and you can apply the very same method with any other affiliate network, like Digistore24, JVZOO , Amazon, or whatever affiliate network you may use, all you need is to follow the very same process that is mentioned in this guide, and success should be yours.

The secret source of traffic that we will be using to generate sales is StudAds.com,

StudAds provide high-quality converting traffic, so it is a wonderful source of traffic, especially for affiliate marketing, as with StudAds you can advertise to your affiliate link directly, without the need for you to create a landing page.

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Go to www.Clickbank.com - Create an account , that should be simple and straight forward.- login into your clickbank account- from left menu click on the (Market place) see image

in the next page , select any category from the lest of categories in the left menu.

choose a category that you are familiar with its type.

For example select Art, if you know anything about art, select eduction if you belongs to this sector, select computer if you know anything about computers...etc.

See Image :

In this example I will select the category ( Home & Garden ) After clicking on the category of your choice , you will get list of products which is under that particular category.See image:

In the product list you will be able to see all the details, such as, Name, description, price and how much commission you will get if you generated a sale.next to each product there is a PROMOTE button. click the promote button to any product you wish to market.When you click on PROMOTE button a new popup window will open with the following details See image :

- At this stage you need to put your clickbank affiliate id, which is your clickbank user id, in the account nickname field.

- for the field Tracking ID you can leave it empty.

- Now click on the button Generate Hop Link.

After you click on Generate hop link button you , your affiliate link/hop link will show in the very same page .

See image :

With this we have selected a product to market and we have generated our affiliate link to this product, now what we need to do is to start marketing this products using our affiliate link.

The best way to market affiliate links is though StudAds.com, and here is how we are going to advertise with StudAds.com

Go to: www.StudAds.com

- From the top menu click on (Advertisers Sign up)we will get a from where we can compose our first ad campaign, and here is how we do it.- In the field (Name your campaign )you can put any name you wish, can be (My first ad campaign)a campaign can have more than one ad.- Now in create your ad, in the field name, here also you can use any name to your ad, usually you need to use the product name you are promoting.* in the above example the product I have selected was about woodworking,So I will name my Ad as woodwork.See Image:

- Click on Upload image to upload an image ( can be any image you wish).* But make sure to check (Scale the uploaded image to fit the size).- Fill the headlines and the description lines as you feel fit.* The final 2 fields Display URL and Destination URL.Display URL has no effect it is just for display inside our ad, so it is just a show piece , in this field we can put any URL even a URL that does not exist, we better use a URL that suites our products.Since my product is about woodwork , I will put in the Display URL www.WoodWork.com * The field Destination URL, is what is important, this is the URL where we want to send the visitors to , so here we must put our target website, the website we are marketing the website we want the visitors to go to.in our case we are marketing affiliate products so in the Destination URL we must put our affiliate link/hop link. Then click on continue.See image :

in the next page, you will be asked where you want to show your ads: - No country targeting : Which means your ad will sow in all over the world. This is good option when :* You are selling something cheap and suitable for all countries.* It is also good when you have a low budget, as with this option you can keep your Cost Per Click low. - Specific country : Which means you need to select some countries where your ads will show in, with this option you need to select at least 10 countries, * This option is good if you are selling something expensive, and or something that fits for some countries only. * This option you better have a little big budget as the CPC cost will be higher than the CPC cost when you select No country targeting,

See image :

In the next page, you have to provide the (Minimum CPC Bid) and the (Average Daily Budget) - Minimum CPC Bid , is how much you are ready to pay for each click.of course no one wish to pay more, but putting least amount will not help you, because if the amount you put is below the bidding range, then your ads will not get displayed , which means you will not get any visitors. So what is the use of advertising if you will not get visitors, then what you should do? First and before filling the (Minimum CPC Bid) you must click on the link which is below it, the link which says (View Recommended CPC). See Image :

When you click on (View Recommended CPC) you will get 2 values like this ( $0.08 - $0.5 Suggested ) what does this mean?? This means ( $0.08 - $0.5 Suggested ). Bidding less than $0.08 will not get your ads displayed and you will not get any visitorsand No need to bid more than $0.5. The ideal bid is between the range of ( $0.08 and $0.5 )

See Image :

As you can see in the above image I have chosen the highest end of the suggested bid amount, in my case I twas $0.58 a piece of advice never bid more than the highest end of the suggested and never bid less than that, the highest end is the perfect balance amount to bid. Also as you can see from the image above I have chosen $10 as my average daily budget, which is how much I want to spend daily, here I have chosen $10 but that does not mean I will be Spending $10 every day, it actually means, I may spend $1 I may spend $5 and I may spend $10 but I will never spend more than $10.

Then click on continue. When you click on continue , the next page will show you a preview of your ad and the options you have chosen. See Image :

Nothing much to do here unless you wish to edit something, so click on Continue , to go to the 5th stage.

In the next stage you need to create an account with StudAds.comthe form here is self explained. - Choose a user name- Choose a password- Put your email, your address, phone country ...etc. Then click on Create account. in the next and last stage , you will need to fund your account. - The minimum amount to fund your account with is $25, you can fund with more if you want, by editing amount box, but you can not fund by less than the minimum amount which is $25. - Then you need to choose a payment method : From the Payment Type, click on the dropdown box to choose a payment method. You have 2 payment methods to choose from, they are : Stripe : You can use it if you have any credit card.andwire : which is you need to make a wire transfer from your bank account to their bank account. * The difference between paying with stripe and wire , is that paying with stripe will credit your account instantly, while paying with wire transfer may take a day or 2 before the amount get credited to your StudAds.com account. See Image :

- In either case you need to fill your billing details, which are straight forward. Once you finish filling the amount you want to fund your StudAds with, choosing which payment method you want to use, and filling your billing details, you can click on (Fund Account) button to proceed. - if you Chosen to pay with Stripe, then in the next page you will need to fill your card details and finish the payment, and when you are done Stripe will send you back to your StudAds account and you will find your account has been credited with the amount you have just paid.

- While if you chosen to pay with wire, then in the next page you will see the bank details you need to send the money to , and there will be at the top a reference number, you should keep this reference number. While you are making the bank wire transfer, if there is an option where you can include a message , then you can put in the message your reference number. If there is no place where you can include your reference number you should not worry, no problem just finish the transfer, and when you are done , do the following : Send email to : StudAds.com , you can find their email in their contact page, in your email make sure to mention, the following : - Sender name- Reference number- Amount sent- Your email id/ username at StudAds.com

See Image :

Note: if you are from a country that does not use the USD as its main currency, then you need to go to google.com and do a search to check how much a $25 makes in your currency, and accordingly send that amount.

Well, that is it, once your account is funded then your ads will go live, and they will start getting visitors and clicks, if you are marketing affiliate products then you need to check your clickbank account for any sales made, and if you are marking amazon affiliate products then you need to check your amazon affiliate account for any sales made ... and so on.

Note, from your very same StudAds account, with the very same $25 funding amount, you can create as many ad campaigns as you want. and to create any new ad campaign, from the left menu, from your inside StudAds account, you can click on (Manage campaign) then click on (Create a New Ad campaign) Best of luck!.

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arrowflier · 3 years

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i wish you would write a fic (or two fics? two scenarios?) and where mickey comforts ian & ian comforts mickey. it's loving supportive-husbands hours!

Hi anon! This probably isn't quite what you were after, but they're doing their best. I'll probably do a short one tomorrow for the other way around.

“Look, it’s not that big a deal, man,” Mickey tries, wandering around Ian to grab another beer from the fridge. “So you quit your job, big whoop. You’ll get another one.”

“Yeah?” Ian responds, not looking up from were he’s tracing shapes in the condensation on the counter left by his own beer bottle. “And how am I gonna do that? I told you before, it’s Amazon or grave digging right now. I just burned the bridge with one, and somehow I don’t think dead bodies and dirt is the better choice here.”

He sounds defeated, and it's such a change from the unbridled anger of just hours before that it stops Mickey in his tracks.

"Ian," he says, putting his beer down and moving to stand at his husband's side. "It's gonna be okay." He grips Ian's shoulder tightly, squeezes once.

Ian laughs, but it's tense and humorless. "You don't know that, Mick," he mumbles. "We don't have enough money coming in." He closes his eyes and drops his head into his hands, rubbing over his face and up into his short hair, where they clench.

"Don't worry about the money, man," Mickey tries, but Ian shrugs him off and stands, sending his stool screeching backward on the tile floor.

"I have to worry about the money!" he explodes. "We have bills, Mickey, and Liam needs stuff for school, Franny needs daycare, Lip and Tami need help with the baby--"

He's pacing through the small kitchen, hands waving as he goes through the list of people that depend on him and things that will fall by the wayside of he doesn't find something soon, and Mickey has had enough.

"Fucking stop!" he yells over Ian's continuing diatribe.

And Ian does.

He stares at him with those green fucking eye, wide and panicked. At least they're not empty, Mickey thinks, or wild. He can work with that.

Ian's face drops as they stare each other down. "We gonna fight again?" he asks wearily.

Mickey swallows. He doesn't like that that's where Ian's mind went. They've both been on edge lately, and yeah, they just had a bar brawl, but that just...happened. They were more solid than that. Ian should know it.

He goes for light with his reply. "Nah, man," he says, "rather beat your ass when your head's in the game."

That earns him a hint of a grin, at least. "Yeah?" Ian says ruefully. "Not into hitting your unemployed trophy husband when he's down?"

Mickey snorts, and walks forward to trap Ian against the counter, one arm on either side.

"Shut up, asshole, I'm the trophy and you know it."

He steals a short, barely there kiss, and stays in Ian's space instead of pulling away.

"Let me worry for a while, okay?" he says softly, suddenly serious. "You keep talkin' about all the stuff you need to take care of, but you gotta let me take care of you, too."

Ian opens his mouth, probably to protest, but Mickey doesn't let him.

"I know you don't like givin' up control, man, but come on." Mickey presses closer when Ian's hands land on his hips, the other man's face finally softening. "I told you I got a new gig, right? So it's my turn to provide for a while."

Ian gives in, lips turning up in a soft smile. "That right, Mick?" he asks. "You gonna take care of everyone for me?"

"Fuckin' right I am," Mickey confirms. "And I'm gonna do a damn good job too, just you wait."

Ian spins them by the hips, pushing Mickey back against the counter, then hoists him up to sit on it and steps between his legs. Mickey's hands are tight on his shoulders, and before he can get his bearings, Ian's mouth is on his.

They pull apart a minute later, and Mickey tries not to pant too obviously.

"What was that for?" he asks breathlessly, and Ian just smiles.

"For making me feel better," he answers, kissing him again. "For taking care of me," he whispers when they stop for breath, lips still touching. "For dealing with my family bullshit," he offers next, and Mickey finally puts a hand over his mouth, laughing.

"Alright, alright, I get it; I'm fucking fantastic," he says. "Now shut up and take me upstairs."

He can feel Ian grin against his palm, then he has both arms around his husband's shoulders again, hanging on for dear life as Ian grabs him under the thighs and bolts for the stairs.

Yeah, everything was gonna be fine.

#fic request #daily speedwrite #gallavich #fanfic #mickey milkovich #ian gallagher #supportive husbands #yes I'm at work but I'm avoiding my responsibilities

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equestrianwritingsstuff · 3 years

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I hope you are having a great day.

I wanted to tell you that I love the way you write and how you show the personality of your characters in so few words.

Also if you have time, for the Bad Things Happend Bingo, could I ask for a Soup for the Sick? (Maybe a villain whumpee)

Thank you for the ask! And especially thank you for that lovely message attached to it, it means a lot!

Soup for the sick... here you go, I hope you enjoy! I did, I had lots of fun writing this one.

Personalized Caretaker

@badthingshappenbingo

Warnings: drug abuse mention, feverish whumpee, talk of medications, mean caretaker, delirium, fever, pills (tylenol)

... there may be more so tell me if there is so I can list them.

Civilian wished that she didn't live in the most heavily super-powered city in the world.

Yes world.

Villains and heroes all running around like teenagers, not caring for the lives of innocent civilians... or the heroes were meant to, Civilian started to think that the whole "we will protect you" was all phony propaganda aimed to get the city to fund their organization.

But the daily bombings and increasing death toll was not the issue with the city. It wasn't even the large mass of heroes and villains. It was only one.

One.

Of all the heroic figures and devilish snakes, there was only one that ticked Civilian off.

Villain.

And not because he was the King of Monologues. No, it was because the bastard made Civilian his own personal caretaker.

Was she asked to tend to his very needs? No.

Was she hired? Paid? No, but she should be getting a salary for the tedious work of stitching wounds and feeding his greedy stomach. The bandage bills were adding up and Civilian's meager wage was completely wiped out from having to buy a pack every day.

She was an inch away from going on a rage and robbing every bank in the city.

No, she wasn't. She just happened to live on 489 Deertree Avenue, where six months ago the murderous villain decided to collapse unconscious on her doorstep to bleed out like it was no problem.

Like it was a leisure, a recreational activity. Probably to him, waking up in a warm bed, doped up on painkillers with the sickening sweet smell of caramel candles burning around him, it was.

But not to Civilian. She had to manually help the injured individual drink water, get dressed, and even use the bathroom.

UGGGHHHH!

The man had millions of henchmen, billions of wannabe minions at his beck and call.

But he just so happened to have a crush on the red door of 489 Deertree Avenue.

But it was a bad case of unrequited love of the highest order, so no hope of a romantic candlelit date at the most expensive restaurant in the most famous city in the world.

Dairy Queen.

The pure hilarity of that fact. Even the Avenger Tower did not hold nearly as many powered or high-tech individuals as the city and the most fanciest restaurant was a chain fastfood restaurant at the corner of main street.

Civilian clenched the towel she was holding. As much as the stupidity of the city got on her nerves, it was very unpatriotic of her to go on and embarrass the area even more.

Civilian was scrubbing the mirror in the bathroom. The walls of the whole room were stained in the most disgusting brown and red from all the grime and blood radiating off a singular person's- not even the owner of the house- body.

Those would never go away unless Civilian paid for someone to come and mega-wash the bathroom. Not that she had any money to invest in such a delightful gift, her bank account was too busy supporting the prescribed pain medications. Like, Civilian was probably on the watchlist for utter bankruptcy and for being a possible candidate for drug addiction.

Who needs two whole containers of opioids and a canteen of valium every three months?

Not a normal civilian washing floors at Walmart, that's for sure.

But then again, Civilian was far from normal. She worked as a personalized savior during her freetime.

Civilian clenched her teeth and took a deep breath in. Her ward hasn't made his grand appearance in over a week. She actually had time to relax, make some popcorn and actually decompress. It was like vacation, peaceful, tranquil and full of serenity, free of any-

Knock, knock, knock.

Civilian's moment of bliss was unceremoniously ended by the all too familiar beat of a fist on wood.

"You have my permission to make out with the door Villain! You don't need to ask anymore!"

Civilian hoped Villain was coherent enough to internalize that as an invitation to bleed on her couch.

Just so she could have one more moment. One more moment of her coveted break.

Cough.

Civilian's head perked up. That was new. She never, ever heard Villain cough in a sickly manner- she never let him get bad enough to get sick, or he didn't permit himself to wait around until infection and fever set in.

She set down the towel, worry settling into her bones like it always did- not that she liked the heart dropping feelings and nauseating pit in her stomach each and everytime Mr. Needy had blood on him. Or everyday that he didn't show up for a bandaid, or a "kiss-it-better".

Yes, the pure humiliation when her delirious patient painfully begged her to kiss his knee better. Like, the puny scrape on his leg was by far the least severe wound on his bloodstained body, but of course, Civilian complied and gave him a little peck on his Olaf bandaid.

Civilian ripped open the door and the scene in front of her chased away those obnoxious memories.

Villain collapsed into her arms, head lolling pathetically against her shoulder. His forehead felt like it was doused with gasoline and then lit by a torch five times over. Civilian's shocked arms involuntarily wrapped around his equally scorching body. Yes, it was not a conscious act. Not in a million years would Civilian muster up the compassion to actually comfort the villain more than the deed of "saving his life" called for.

No, no Civilian hated Villain. Completely and totally loathed each and every cell on his body.

But she dragged him into the house and shut- more like slammed- the door anyways because she couldn't let him die, it would be like murder's sidekick.

Especially since Villain trusted her. Oh how he trusted her. Trusted her to bathe him, to feed him, to give him medicine, but most importantly not to kill him. With all the horrors he committed, a swift knife to the throat would be more than justified. In fact, Civilian would likely be commemorated for such bravery.

Public approval, fame... all a deliciously yummy cake.

Not worth it. Too many calories.

Civilian sunk to the ground and put Villain's upper body in her lap. He nestled into her, pressing his cheek deep into her side with a small, contented smile on his pale face.

"Don't drool on me," Civilian snapped, jostling Villain who woke up. Before he had the chance to get his bearings, Civilian spoke up again, "Are you hurt?"

The villain stared at her for a while before breaking into desperate tears, shaking his head.

What the heck?

"Stop crying or I will punch you," Civilian threatened, but she rubbed Villain's back soothingly.

"Dying," Villain sobbed.

"You are not dying, buddy, you have a cold."

"No, I'm dying," Villain asserted. Civilian rolled her eyes. Did he have to be so dramatic?

"I don't think a cold will kill you. Stop acting like the world is ending now, or I will throw you in the trash."

Villain whimpered and pulled himself closer, still crying.

He really was sick. So sick to the point of being delirously delusional.

"You don't need to be a Disney princess," Civilian said, still rubbing the villain's back. Villain's cries turned into sobs and then into wails.

Okay this was getting out of hand. Civilian stood up and dragged Villain's body over to the couch. She marveled in her strength for a while. When Villain first made his appearance in her otherwise boring life, she was as skinny as a twig. Now? This girl was a freaking hulk, baby.

Okay stop that, Civilian chastised herself, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. She laid Villain on the beige colored couch and rested his wet head against a pillow that was metaphorically marked with his name.

Now that the villain was completely stretched out, Civilian- to her relief- found that he was not bleeding, therefore, she didn't have to waste her precious supply of gauze and bandages tonight.

But he still was very, very sick. His face was a gray mask of pale complexion, his hair snarled and matted in sweat. His lips were tinged blue as unfocused eyes gazed around the room, landing on the TV.

"You want to watch something?" Civilian asked, though the question was more than unnecessary. Villain always watched a movie as he dozed off, warm and comforted by the mound of blankets strewn over him.

But still, like a habit, he nodded weakly each and every time. Civilian smiled, the tiniest of grins, and connected the tablet to the television. When the screen popped up with the classic Amazon Prime Video layout, Civilian asked what movie.

"Boss Baby," Villain mumbled, lips hardly moving.

"You want to watch a movie with baby superheroes? Why don't we watch Toy Story or something?"

Or something a bit more adult-ish.

"Mhm," Villain groaned, eyes slipping shut. "Baby superheroes."

Now it was Civilian's turn to groan, loud and exaggerated. But, still he was her unwelcome guest so she had to please his obnoxiously childish wants.

Like how old was he? Five?

Civilian put in the movie and sat down next to Villain, putting his legs on her lap. She tapped lazily at his jeans as the opening credits showed. Leaning her head back, Civilian allowed her gaze to drift away from the stupid fat-faced animated figures and to Villain.

He was nearly asleep.

Civilian shifted her weight and rested against her arm to watch him. Even sick, she had to admit, the evil and annoying villain was shockingly handsome.

What was she thinking?!

Pushing Villain's feet away, Civilian stood up and aggressively shoved her palm to his forehead. It was buzzing with heat.

"You are paying for the bill," Civilian growled and went to go get some tylenol.

Upon returning to the sickly man's sweaty side, Civilian thrusted the pills into his mouth and washed them down with water. She didn't even give him a chance to wake up fully, the motion was instinctual. He swallowed on reflex.

Next, Civilian cussed herself for this, she cupped his cheek. Villain sunk into her palm, chewing silently, and continued to sleep.

When Villain first visited, Civilian couldn't get over how touch starved the poor guy was. It was to the point of absolute fear of touch. He would shiver before violently flinching away, glaring daggers.

He still didn't allow hugs or a highfive when he was in his right mind- not that Civilian saw him fully conscious ever apart from a couple times.

"Hungry?" Civilian mumbled, more to herself than anyone.

Still, Civilian placed Villain's head back onto the pillow and went into the kitchen to make some soup.

Chicken noodle soup with rice... her specialty. Chicken breast and rich seasoning, even one's dampened taste buds could taste the utter deliciousness of the watery broth.

Then the rice. Sometimes when Villain was on the mend, she would add some wild rice or lentils to the dish. Spooning some basic white rice into the bottom of the bowl, Civilian tapped her foot aimlessly.

The kettle on the stove whistled, Civilian pushed it off the heat and added the seasoning and celery. The savory scent wafted into her nose earning itself a tiny smile from Civilian.

Once the soup was done, she presented it to the still sleeping villain. His mouth hung open, desperate for air that his clogged nostrils couldn't deliver.

Dang. Poor guy was really ill.

Civilian sat next to Villain, so close that she could feel the rise of his chest. She shoved his face upwards. Villain blinked his eyes open and settled his gaze on Civilian's annoyed, but worried, face.

"Ghm," he moaned, rumbled in the back of his throat in a fatigued manner. "Cow hopping."

"Shut up," Civilian scolded and helped Villain to a seating position. He complied, but had no strength left to actually hold the stance.

So Civilian was forced to lay him against her chest and feed him by giving him a big old bear hug. Spoon after spoon went to his mouth until Civilian was just dumping it into his mouth without any natural swallowing reflex.

She took a wet rag and cleaned his face before laying him back onto the couch. Civilian smiled and tenderly touched his eyebrow.

Why did she have to care about him so much?

#bad things happen bingo #villain whumpee #civilian caretaker #villain x civilian #civilian #writing #sick villain #sick whumpee #delirious whumpee

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mimibtsghost7 · 3 years

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Fuck you and all your little brain washed rats sending people hate because you cant take responsibility for your actions!! But go on stay silent like you always do, pretend its nothing of your business, keep being a fetishizing racist delulu like you love to be while pretending to be the best blog on tumblr!!!

NOT like anyone will see this but YOU will so LET’S GOOO!!!~~

TW: mental health and more (if you feel like this can trigger you, pls don’t read this, breathe in and out and listen to this HERE and remember I love you), loads of tea and Mimi NOT being a friendly and kind ghost.

funny enough:

I never pretended of said I was the best blog. But I guess the fact that you say it might be because you heard it frequently? Thanks for thinking so^^

I sent hate to no one and u r the one sending it to me rn ^^ In my whole 4 year journey on Tumblr I received a lot of love but also worse hate that you can imagine. Yes you are saying now you are receiving hate ... funny how it’s bad when It’s addressed to you but when it’s at me and my dear followers it is not. Still, I never told anyone to go hate on you. You were the idiot that tagged my old blog and as soon as my blog was gone pple searched me and found out you were the reason behind this. But as you keep hating on me. Let me tell you I am kind but don’t mistake that for me being a coward.

I am not into insulting others and I don’t care much if you insult me. BUT don’t YOU DARE touch my dear followers. Insulting ain’t hard. Let me try: The only rat here is you hiding in your hole as an anon. I went and compared your writing with this ask and previous hate asks. And it was you~ Good for you~ the sewers smell just like your filthy mouth spilling sh*t left and right. So on brand. However, I know who you are @hobisbeautifulass Hi ^^

Me racist? HAHAHAHAH you truly know NOTHING about me nor my ex-blog’s message. It was a place when you were welcomed no matter your skin color, religion, gender ... proof? well it got deleted thanks to you. but ask around this time and search for who reblogged my posts as they were always the top of the tags (even if I don’t trust how bad you are at research). I supported the BLM movement and still do and will always do but I did so veeery early without anyone telling me. Not for the notes but because of my humanity. I wished my dear followers’ happy holidays no matter their religions. And never cared about those things. Why judge someone on something based on religion or how they were born. As for the LGBTQ+ community, I was always and will always be there for love being love. I talked about mental health and opened venting nights. I helped left and right and when I was receiving hate because of people like you spitting lies about me. What did I do? Did I go online and called people bad? No. I looked back at myself and asked myself if I did anything wrong. I tried to educate myself and apologized sincerely when I had to. I read books and watched documentaries to learn how to become a better human. AND never repeated a mistake twice. You tend to forget that our cultures are different and sometimes you grow up to see some things as normal when they are not. This is not an excuse tho, so I always believed that I was lacking and if someone had something to say against me, there is a chance they are right and just in case I should reflect on myself. But for your case it was pure nonsense. ME? a stalker? how can I stalk when I have social anxiety and at that time couldn’t even leave my room? I am even afraid of taking public transportations and just the other days I was crying from joy when I took a taxi alone. they said I was in Japan stalking Jimin and Jungkook and took a pic when I was NEVER EVER was on that land. You put me on the same list as people who bought info about BTS’ flights to be on the same plane as them? I was stalked before and let me tell you it ain’t cute and fun. I am even scared of the idea of being followed. that’s why I never shared openly my age, country, or anything about me on my blog. that’s why I have no personal social media to this day and that’s why making my ex-blog was some sort of miracle in my life.

Silent? yes I was silent when I received hate and didn’t even vent to my dear followers or pointed fingers. Why? because I thought as my day was hell I shouldn’t make anyone’s day worse. I was worried about my dear followers with mental illnesses being triggered. I tried to take my life so many times I lost count but I still came here and smiled. It was my safe place and you took it away. Yet, I should pity you? You hated on me first for no reason and you know it deep inside but right now you are trying to convince yourself that you are the angel and feel no guilt. Compared to you. I pointed fingers at no one and didn’t name you when my blog was gone. Why? because compared to you, I thought you will not be able to manage the hate and what was done .. I didn’t want you to suffer the same way I did when you are the one who made me suffer the most the past couple of days. But the kind Mimi is someone you will never remember because you dared touch the friends I love and calling them names. I don’t mind people insulting me but don’t you dare touch my people. I know myself best. My dear friends/followers know me best. I thought ... I could leave without this mess but you keep barking in my ask box and it’s annoying. I left this backup account just to talk to my friends and yet you are here to ruin things again? I should stop being kind to the ones who deserve non of it. I ignored you when I had so many followers and you went silent too because you were scared of me. But as soon as I lost my blog because of you, you went, edited and then reblogged that stalker post. How can I be a stalker? do you even know the definition of a stalker? do you even know shame? well .. I don’t think so.. you said it yourself. You are NOT ashamed (and you reblogged that so many time lol).

Death threats? this is no competition but thanks to people like you I have been there and wish no one to be there not even you. The only difference is that you almost killed me for real. You were not the sole reason? Great job walking away from you beloved word: RESPONSIBILITY. And I didn’t get just anon hate, I got literal tagging by people like you, DMs, and people pointing guns at me. That’s why I didn’t mention you. I was worried about the one who took away what I worked for for 4 YEARS. I was more sad and concerned about the ARMY fandom here. Do you know how many rely on my updates? do you know how many people said I helped them? do you know any of that? do you think 200k people were “rats”? Do you think if I did and say wrong thing I will not be questioned by those people. I always told my dear followers: “friends, if I do or say anything wrong or share anything that hurts anyone please tell me. I am willing to learn from everyone.” But what did you know? what did you do? Well .. guess you love notes? As the most notes you ever got and the most attention was when talking about me?

Love how you talk about fetishing when my blog was what people call “family friendly”. I also like BTS. I love them for their music, talent, personalities and the happiness they give me. I also enjoy BTS’ bond and love their interactions. I posted content of all kinds of interactions JM X JK, JK X V, V X JIN, JIN X SG, SG X JH, JH X RM, RM X JM ... If you are calling this fetishing asian men just because I scream over BTS as a fan and love their bonb. Then aren’t you against the idea of being an ARMY? I was a clear OT7 and you were told that you weren’t right:

Then you answered this without even explaining the nonsense about me:

idk .. I am trying to find sense in your nonsense so .. wait wait let me look at the definition of fetishism first.

Fetishism /ˈfɛtɪʃɪz(ə)m/ noun: a form of sexual behavior in which gratification is linked to an abnormal degree to a particular object, activity, part of the body, etc.

Then .. judging from your URL alone hmmm ... cute. I won’t even talk about the SMUT you write that is full of kinks and fetishism. Well I have no problem with fan fiction but the irony you spit is out of this world.

Also, I made money out of mimibtsghost? HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH no lil one. I worked day and night for FREE. At some point when BT21 just came out and there were no products on AMAZON or anywhere but S.Korea, someone reached out to me to offer 20% off or something for my dear followers. When they asked what I wanted I said what about international giveaways for my dear followers. Basically, made gifs, found content, updates, analysis, edits, and so on for free. Again, w-wait .. Aren’t you the one asking for commissions? Well .. It’s not wrong. But again THE irony.

So, I went to see that post you made about me with “PROOF” and it was just another person who was salty as I got them blocked I can’t even recall who they were but oh well. Their arguments according to YOU and many should be taken as FACTS just because they said them? You said HERE that your first comeback was MOST:7 that came in just last year (2020) SO what the hell do YOU know about what happened years before you came when all the proof you pointed at where baseless without any backing?

Let’s see this so wise person you used to delete my blog and what I have done ^^

The gifs: There is a story to this. The first week I came to Tumblr, It was my first time on this site and the first time I share anything. I shared some content and my analysis had a lot of notes for a small creator that started just a week ago. But I made a mistake, I found a gif and posted it while crediting the gif maker. At the time I had NO idea it was wrong. I logged off and after 5 hours I log in and there was a WAR for that ONE gif. The big blog had me blocked and her friend was telling me to take it off. As soon as the person told me I did IMMEDIATELY and apologized againa and again and told them to tell the original gif maker to deblock me as I want to apologize directly and that they can block me after that. They did and I apologized but they just kept insulting me. Of course it was MY mistake and that’s why I apologized. But for them. for a mere gif (yes I say a mere gif because I made so many gifs and they were used on all platforms but I never thought it was necessary to hate that much on someone like they did to me). That blog was big and had big blog mutuals. Thanks to that, I became someone you do NOT become mutuals with but block and never reblog content from. Without any big mutuals. Without any shoutouts. Only my love for BTS, my dear followers’ support and my hard work.. My blog, became bigger and FAST (I got 10k in less than 6 months after I started) and that brought loads of jealousy and thus more rumors. Even if, I apologized and since then made my own gifs. And I made SO many gifsets that I can’t remember how many there were. What I can recall is at some point I made them daily and many times a day.

Ships Jikook? I posted content of ALL the members interactions. I was here at a time where Jikook stans and Taekook stans where always fighting. BUT I posted about both and even made so many posts to encourage loving all the members and all the interactions. I also used the tags solely used for shipping with other big tags to show that BTS’ interactions are all important and their bond is beutiful. That our fandom shouldn’t hate on a member just because they are not part of a ship we like. And wait .. even if I shipped Jikook? I got called ALL those names by someone who ship the members with readers and write sexual scenes? Like, wait ... I am truly confused. Like, write fanfic and do all you want as long as you hurt no one I guess but why am I getting hurt for doing non of it? Like according to you, the person you should be cancelling is yourself?! I am also not into cancel culture like you so hahah whatever.

Posted stalker pics: well wow the story changes each time. Next thing you will hear that I was the one holding a camera for a member in a Vlive lol. Let me teach you about this update thing I was doing. I follow accounts I trust and that’s how we get info circulating fast. I always do reasearch but sometimes mistakes are made. For example when lately people shared pictures of BTS leaving their virtual concerts and schedules. There was a watermark of a news outlet. Normally we trust those but only later we realized that those people stalked BTS. You clearly can’t know it all. But I still didn’t share many pics related to many events (I will not name those as pple can search them even now because some pple never deleted those). And all big accounts shared many pics then deleted later. This happens all the time but it happened like ONCE for me. However, I am called a stalker for that?

When Jonghyun passed away ... I don’t even wanna recall that night as the memories just ... when that happened I posted about it and send my condolescences. that post had over 10k notes and was at the top the tag. Why did I do that? I was devastated. Yes, many were but I will talk about me rn: I was suicidal the days before that and one of the songs that I listened to when I was broken where by him. I has been in the kpop world since 2006. And learned about his group since their debut with ‘Replay’. I was never a stan but I still knew of many groups and listened to all the songs I liked. I was very sad when he was gone and ANGRY mostly. Why is this angel leaving? Why is someone like me still here? Why did I not leave instead of him? How much did he suffer? And in the midst I posted a post from twitter that stated how agencies usually put down pple with mental illiness and hide it in the industry. Yes, that was important but NOT at that time. I shouldn’t have posted that and I realized after 5 min of doing so that it was WRONG. So I deleted it FAST but it kept being reblogged and I kept getting hate and people telling me: “Go kill yourself”... the sad part is that I almost did as my answer was “true ... why am I still here?” I apologized and logged off then to this day won’t forget crying at 3 AM while walking outside next to my dad. I was outside as I couldn’t breathe anymore and the idea of seeing the walls of my room was hell. I cried and cried and the teary eyes that my father looked at me with are something I am ashamed of to this day. To add one more thing while I am spilling the beans. I hate learning about someone dying. My grandma passed away sometime before that and it was so shocking to me. and some people came and told me when I was mourning her: Go follow that bitch of grandmother of yours. And for what? At that moment I didn’t think I would live to see the next year but I went to therapy and took medecine that was hurting and made me shake all day just to turn somewhat sane. No one knew tho ... I smiled all day and cried all night.. Even on the blog I fought no one of the ones who hated me. I just blocked them but even that was an insult to them?

Again, you said no one should defend me. Yet, you were ready to fight whoever touched anyone around you. What about changing your URL to beautifulassirony

Also THE hypocrisy. If you are sorry then why are you answering an ask of someone isulting someone you want to apologize to? Just make a post wher you apologize or ignore it from the start?

One more thing but surely not the last. You said you were good with research which you are NOT. So, let me show you what an OG detective ARMY can do. But first, as I was scrolling I saw some of your “work” (let’s not even talk about those gifs) and I am just giving my point of view here: I hate how you painted Namjoon as this horny-idiotic-make-dog. Like I get it it’s a fanfic or Namjoon as a dad but ... Namjoon is such a smart man who is very respectful and ofc he is a human with needs like many but what the hell is this way of portraying a character? Also a character is not cool, amazing, and a strong woman just because they curse and belittle their partner.

Oh well, only you kept reblogging that as it show 36 reblogs when only 33 as still there when I looked and out of those 13 reblogs are yours? (you might have reblogged it more) but again some people might have liked ... people have different taste ... so ... whatever.

Let’s continue, shall we ^^. You said you were the victim here when I was the one getting robbed right? How can I believe someone who reblogged the post below and was proud calling themselves an abomination or how the Oxford dictionary defines it: a thing that causes disgust or loathing. For once you weren’t wrong.

What can you expect from someone who has the “I am not like others” kinda mentality while stating relatable things that everyone goes through?

This is getting pretty long. So to sum this up. You are now telling others that hate is NOt ok and that they should be ashamed of themselves when you yourself is not ashamed of hating on me?

I am not the type that sends anon hate. I might ignore some barking but the past days you came and bite me hard. I face the ones I have to face without fear. I know I am not the bad guy here and I don’t care much what you think about me. Even BTS got haters. This says a lot. BUT do NOT dare talk badely of my dear friends/followers. You said you do research well? Start by deleting the post below that was originally by ME from your blog ... oh how meticulous you are. From your baseless receipts to your twisted logic. Indeed people on the internet can say anything and it will be FACTS. You painted me as the devil and painted yourself as this researcher? What’s next you receiving a Phd in ‘pity me’ after your MBA in lies and irony? Whatever~

Whaaatever~ Karma will have upcoming talks with you. No need for you to apologize. I never cared about you and you only got attention using me. But I am not here anymore how will you get that blog running now? Are you gonna add me in a fanfic next? No need for you to send me my appearance fee when you do so~ And no need for you to apologize to me just apologize to you conscience if you have any left. As for me @hobisbeautifulass you are just someone I will forget soon anyway~~

And because according to what you said HERE when you described the things you hate about people and I thought that was VERY close to how you treated me. Thus, you might really not stand yourself rn.

Do.Not.Worry. BTS are starting the Love Myself campaign again and just in time for you to jump in (you are good at jumping to conclusions about me so I won’t worry about you). I know you don’t like me or my friends but be sure to love yourself at least ^^

You are a Hobi stan? Then learn from Hobi to share some sunshine not bring the storm. Have a good day~

#Anonymous #hobisbeautifulass #don't mind the typos as I wrote this in one go #just because I am someone who do not punch back when someone hit me do not mean I will stand nicely when you touch my people #anyway~ bye~#mimibtsghost

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theepitomeofamess · 3 years

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hey y'all, i'm working on this project i'm really excited about and i wanted to share some of it.

it's basically just a retelling of Ares mythology (i know that this probably sounds a lot like knock off madeline miller, but just hear me out) focusing on the parts that don't paint him like an angry meathead -- the version of his myth where he's raised by Priapus and taught to dance long before fighting, how he is one of the few male gods to care for his children and respect women, the story of his daughter Alcippe (which, if you don't know it, trigger warning for sexual assault and murder if you look it up), and the idea that his anger stems from depression caused by being hated by his supposed father and ostracized by any god who wanted to stay on Zeus' good side (hello projecting :^D).

Anyway, i wanna share some ideas i have about Ares as a character (in no way trying to be disrespectful to the deity, my apologies if it comes off that way). I've got a long list of ideas under the cut, I'd love to get some feedback (@witch19, you know I'd love your opinion on all this)

so a big concept i want to work with is tattoos. from what i understand, tattoos were a sign of punishment in ancient greece, used to mark slaves and criminals so they could be identified or continually punished. there's a story (link here) of athenians tattooing athena's owl on ancient samians after a defeat, ares decided to take on the same punishment as the men he had helped in the battle. as he grows into himself and his confidence, the tattoo grows with him from athena's pygmy owl to an eagle owl, which became one of his sacred animals in some versions of his mythology. he started getting even more as he started viewing them as a sign of strength rather than punishment, and especially when he learned of emperors tattooing gladiators, who he often helped and identified with

the owl is his first tattoo, but his favorite is a honeycomb over his heart. there are a lot of bees on the comb, with aphrodite being the queen directly over his heart. there's a bee for each of his children, and a drone with a broken wing for Hephaestus (Aphrodite actually gets a matching queen bee on the back of her hand so when she puts her hand over his heart, the bee is still there)

maybe another tattoo is a peacock feather for his mother? maybe it's covering a Lichtenberg figure he got from one of zeus' fits of rage?? maybe idk???

speaking of scars, he gains a scar for every one that's gained by a soldier. it doesn't matter what side the soldier is on, it doesn't matter how minor the wound is, he bleeds with every soldier in every fight he's involved in, feels their pain. armor does nothing to stop it -- it never even gets scuffed.

because it never gets hit and therefore looks brand new, ares doesn't actually like wearing his armor. it gives the impression that he's never been in a fight. he'd rather just wear his tunic.

he's actually much more of a romantic person than a sexual one. he's not asexual (bisexual, actually), he's just a big softy and craves a softer, more genuine connection. that's why he doesn't take as many lovers, why he doesn't have casual sex, and why he takes his time romancing aphrodite. he really enjoys the soft, quiet intimacy.

the first time he met aphrodite, he asked her to dance. no one was dancing except servant girls/nymphs, and they were not on the same page at first. aphrodite thought "dancing" was an innuendo (like what zeus and poseidon have done before), and ares wasn't catching on to the fact that she thought he meant sex. poor boy just wanted to dance, and it took some talking in circles, but he did get his dance. aphrodite loved how fun and innocent it was.

dancing is an outlet for him. he loves it. he spent his whole childhood with priapus dancing, and still enjoys it to no end. this influences his build (where a lot of the gods -- zeus, poseidon, etc. -- are more bulky and lumbering, ares is very lean, limber, and light on his feet)

he keeps a garden. it was part of being raised by priapus in the mortal world -- they grew their own food, and it's a hobby that followed ares into adulthood. besides, growing his own food means that, while he doesn't get as many offerings, he still gets the good stuff. the garden has a beehive that aphrodite loves helping with. all of his children are spoiled with mortal food before they are ever old enough or well known enough to get an offering from the mortal world

he refuses the idea that zeus is his father. he believes the version of the story that he was conceived by hera alone through pure spite and rage -- this is the version that athena tells him, and he tends to believe athena before anyone else.

speaking of, he actually gets along with a lot of the gods. he and athena, though constantly pitted against each other, have a pretty good relationship and she is often a comfort for him. they will often sit together in no man's land after a battle, and she will often comfort him if it was a particularly bloody one. at the end of the day, in her mind, she's his big sister. she actually used to (against zeus' wishes) go visit ares at priapus' home and read him stories.

apollo actually really enjoys hanging out with him -- ares dances to apollo's music and apollo is the one that gives ares his tattoos, a form of art that apollo doesn't get to practice otherwise.

he sees hades a lot more than a lot of people, as he often helps thanatos in escorting killed battalions to the underworld, spending the entire time ensuring them that even if they did not achieve victory, they brought honor to their homes and families. hades doesn't have favorite nephews/neices, but given how ares has been ostracized in a way that hades can find familiar, he empathizes with him quite a bit.

he and hephaestus actually would have been very close if they were allowed to have a childhood together and didn't have mutual jealousy, and actually have some really sweet moments. ares trusts hephaestus wholly with the wellbeing of aphrodite and his children, knowing that he will take care of them in his stead if he needs to.

still working out the kinks on this idea, but the dryad Harmonia is born from the tree that grows from ares' tears for Alcippe. she offers to help him create an entire society of daughters for him, ones that live away from the threat of men. daughters that know well how to protect themselves from those who threaten and attack them. (like i said, i'm still working on this idea, i'm not even sure if the amazons will be included, but i like thinking about the different ways that this could be interpreted/used)

maybe in that same vein of harmonia and the tree, ares crafts eros' bow himself (maybe with some help from hephaestus and his experienced craftsmanship?) from a branch of harmonia's tree? maybe he strings it with his own heartstring, left dangling loose, irreparable after the heartbreak of Alcippe?

okay so clearly i have a lot of ideas regarding this project. any and all writers, mythology lovers, narrative flippers, please let me know of any further interest or ideas about this!

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pleasereadmeok · 3 years

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A Goode Year? Review of 2020

Can’t believe it’s that time again. What a weird year. Despite Covid and Lockdowns we have actually seen quite a lot of Matthew Goode this year - so this is a long post to save for when you are bored of eating over the holidays! I’m not adding links to vids, etc. like previous years because tumblr doesn’t like them anymore [Grr] but all of them are still available and I’ll signpost them.

In January Matthew was finishing filming A Discovery of Witches Season 2 in Turin and we had some glimpses of his leather clad bod in some Teresa Palmer instastories -

...and in Sky’s ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ Excellent sneak peek.

... and Joshua’s uncle Lee gave us a few gorgeous pics ...

In February we saw Matthew and Sophie having fun at the Pre - BAFTA party

[Pics - Dave Benett]��

The rest of that month was all about Leap Year’s 10 year anniversary and we drooled over Declan all over again ....

In March Matthew was finishing filming Silent Night with Keira Knightley when the world changed. We were introduced to ‘social distancing’. We had to keep a full Matthew Goode length away from other people - a handy reference is below to remind you -

[Pic - Ellen Von Unwerth] On the upside the news broke that Matthew would be playing Keira’s husband in Silent Night (as we suspected) and that they had finished filming before lockdown in the UK.

In April Matthew had his 42nd birthday. Check out all of the fabulous birthday tributes posted on here around 3rd April. As a special birthday present Sky released ‘Four Kids and It’ on their cinema channel on the same day with Matthew playing the role of slightly harassed parent David. It was a goode family movie and just what we needed in lockdown.

[Pics - Sky Cinema]

In May we got our first glimpse of Matthew in lockdown when he made a poignant contribution to Bletchley Park’s VE Day celebrations -

[Vid available on Bletchley Park You Tube]

It was perfectly judged - just Matthew filming himself on his phone, in his garden, complete with birdsong.

“This is your finest hour.”

According to James Purefoy and Joe Fattorini Matthew shaved off his hair with the dog clippers in lockdown so he looked a bit different the next time we saw him in June!

Matthew appeared via zoom on ‘Dan Nicholls Really Likes Wine’ show - ‘Drinking the Goode Stuff’. It was great seeing these old friends bantering away and drinking wine. Of course Goode fans immediately campaigned to get Matthew on The Wine Show @ Home and we got our wish a few weeks later when Joe and Matthew had a virtual wine tasting on zoom -

The whole session was hilarious. Matthew was completely adorable and funny as usual. Amongst other things Matthew told us that Sophie had gone off pork (not a euphemism) and we got another peek at his beautiful home with Sophie’s interior design skills on show. This is also still available on The Wine Show @Home You Tube.

June also gave us the new trailer for ‘The King’s Man’. We heard Matthew’s unmistakable voice as the Scots bad guy and there were some tantalising peeks of his character’s mysterious alter ego ‘Shepherd’ -

In July we finally got to see one of Matthew’s Q & A sessions for actors in training at Bow Street Academy in Dublin that he had recorded in May -

Matthew gave frank, funny and very practical advice on auditions, preparation for roles and demonstrated how to be scary with a knife!

August was a bit quiet - we got news that A Discovery of Witches Season 2 would now be aired in January 2021 but a new promo image helped soften the blow of that delay. -

[Pic - Sky]

Kingsman was delayed yet again.... but at least we got some new promo images of Matthew’s character - Captain Maximillian Morton. (Morton? Hmm - someone on here (not me!) spotted the relation to Roxy!]

[Pics - Total Film/Empire]

In September Matthew’s new movie ‘The Duke’ received glowing reviews at the Venice Film Festival and we got confirmation of my speculation that he would play barrister Jeremy Hutchinson.

Tantalisingly goode info about Matthew’s up coming movie Silent Night came from Baz Bamigboye from the Daily Mail as he called it ‘the most astonishing Christmas movie ever made’ - hopefully he meant it in a goode way! We had fun spotting Matthew’s body parts in the pictures accompanying the article ...

[Pic Daily Mail]

Production on A Discovery of Witches season 3 started under strict Covid rules and Matthew was seen filming for ADOW Season 3 in Bristol -

[Anthony Ward]

October was a very goode month!

It kicked off with The Wine Show Season 3 teaser -

Matthew ‘sub-section’ Goode joined in with the ADOW cast Q & A. He was a funny and engaging as ever including an unforgettable impression of a ‘wafter’ and a hasty exit at the end!

We had the official ‘first look’ trailer for season 2 of A Discovery of Witches -

[pic - my edit]

The Wine Show season 3 landed on Amazon Prime in the UK and it is SO goode even tho’ there is less Matthew than usual due to filming clashes with ADOW. Matthew was still his adorably goofy self and gave us the usual interesting fashion choices and jokes.

[My Edit]

October also brought us a new tie in cover for Shadow of Night -

[Pic - Deborah Harkness Twitter]

And as if that wasn’t enough excitement for October we got the official news that there will be another Downton Abbey movie - starting to film in March 2021. Hopefully we will see more of him in this one!

[Pic - Carnival]

Matthew usually keeps his charity projects private but in November we saw him donating his ADOW ‘wedding day’ boots to be auctioned for the Small Steps Project ....

...complete with on mud from the set. Some lucky person is probably stroking that suede as I write this!

[Pics - Small Steps project]

Matthew also recorded some charming contributions to the #SaveJenny campaign. He evicted the dog from her favourite chair by the radiator in the kitchen and sat there to read the opening chapter of Wind in the Willows -

and later ‘The Night before Christmas’ poem complete with music!

You can still see these contributions and most importantly DONATE - links are listed below -

December has been all about A Discovery of Witches season 2 - with a stunning second trailer and plenty of teasers and pictures from Sky and Bad Wolf - there are too many to include but here’s a few -

[Pics my edit / sky/badwolf]

So what of next year? So many goode things to look forward to. I’ll do ‘Goode Things coming in 2021′ a bit earlier next year because January is gonna be BUSY for Goode fans!

Thank you SO MUCH for making time to read this blog. And a big thank you to Goode fans who create content to share with others on here and on matthew-goode.net. We really appreciate the effort that everyone puts in to sharing the Goode Stuff.

Lastly I have to thank Matthew Goode who patiently tolerates the fan nonsense while he tries to pretend that he doesn’t actually have any fans anyway!

Cheers Matthew!

#matthew goode #matthewgoode #a discovery of witches #adow #the wine show #downton abbey #the duke #silent night #Kingsman

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parker-bucky · 4 years

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The Blindfold (part 1)

(Spencer Reid x female!reader)

Summary: Spencer doesn’t like blindfolds, but you’re ready to change that.

Warnings: Smut (beginning only) penetrative sex, light choking, fluff then angst, then more fluff, see A/N for more info on what’s to come !!

Word count: 1.2 K

A/N: hey everyone !! I just watched the episode with Maeve and I couldn’t get this out of my head. Part two should be out in the next couple of days, I’m thinking sunday. Part two will be mostly smut with a little bit of angst and fluff tossed in there, I hope you guys like it !! Also, go ahead and comment on this post if you want to be added to a tag list for part two !!

Part two

Masterlist

“Fuck,” Spencer whispers into your ear, his voice mixing with your moans. You put your legs around his waist, intensifying the pleasure. His thrusts speed up, the sound of skin slapping against skin filling the room.

“I-I’m gonna cum,” your scratch at his back as one hand reaches down to your clit, the other grabbing your throat. He squeezes, your airways constricting. Your back arches and you moan, grabbing at his wrist.

His teeth tug at your ear, biting and sucking. “Cum for me baby,” moaning out, your walls tighten around him. You barley register his cum filling you as you see white, gripping at his hair and pulling.

His thrusts slow as you come down from your highs, panting. He releases your throat, running his hand down to your chest. A kiss lands on your forehead and you sigh, wrapping your arms around his neck. Finally he pulls out, his cum dripping onto the sheets below you. You groan at the feeling, leaning up to kiss Spencer’s cheek.

He puts his arms around you and lays down, your head on his chest. He plays with your hair as you draw circles on his chest. “Do you want to go for a walk in the park after work tomorrow?” You nod, pressing kisses into his chest.

It’s silent for a few more minutes, the sound of the air conditioner and Spencer’s breathing filling your ears. He continues to stroke your hair, curling it around his finger. You feel your eyes start to close and you give in to the darkness growing behind your eyelids.

☆ ⌒ ★ ⌒ ☆ ⌒ ★ ⌒ ☆ ⌒ ★ ⌒ ☆

The park wasn’t busy on a gloomy Monday afternoon, only a runner and a daycare taking a trip to the park seen passing by. The clouds covered the sun, and a chill was in the air. You held Spencer’s hand and walked in comfortable silence, listening to birds tweet and kids laughing.

You looked up at him, his curly hair blowing in the wind. His brown eyes have a twinkle in them, a small smile on his face. You rest your head on his shoulder for a moment, leaning over and kissing his throat. He squeezes your hand, placing a kiss on your forehead.

“Are you ready to go home?” You mumble a reply about being cold, pressing closer to him. He wraps his suit jacket around you, putting his arm around your shoulder. You snuggle closer and head home, the clouds darkening.

Soon enough, it started to pour rain. You run home laughing, slipping and falling into puddles more than once. You open the door to the apartment, soaking wet. Water drips from your clothes, a cold settling in your bones.

He watches as you start to pull your clothes off, making a pile on the floor. “Baby, take your clothes off, you’re going to get sick.” He starts unbuttoning his shirt, tossing it in the corner. You head to the bedroom, putting on shorts and Spencer’s Washington DC hoodie. He comes in and changes as well, only putting on sweats.

“How else are we supposed to warm up?” You giggle, wrapping your arms around your portable heater. You sit and think for a moment, the thing on your mind not disappearing. You let go and give him a kiss, heading to the kitchen to make some tea.

Spencer sits down on the couch, picking up the book he was reading. You wait for the water to warm up and think about how to start the conversation. You walk up to him with two mugs in your hand, sitting down next to him.

“Hey Spence, can I talk to you about something?” He looks up from his book, marking his page and setting it on the coffee table.

“Yeah of course, what do you want to talk about?” You take his hand and squeeze it lightly.

“I want to talk about sex.” He gives you a puzzled look, letting you speak. “We’ve done everything I’ve wanted to try, but what about you?”

“Are you sure? I don’t want you to be uncomfortable,” he fidgets in his seat, bouncing his leg up and down.

“What do you like baby, I want to please you too.” He looks at the floor, licking his lips before he speaks.

“I um, I want to be....dominated?” He looks up at you with a questionable look in his eyes. “If you don’t want to it’s okay really, I-“

“No that sounds...really sexy to be honest.” A goofy smile grows on his face, but you can tell he’s nervous. “Is there anything else baby? What if I...blindfold you? Maybe I could-” Suddenly his whole demeanor changes, shoulders tense and fear growing in his eyes. “It’s okay baby, we don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“No I-I want to, I just- I don’t know how to say this,” you wait patiently for him to continue, giving him time to collect himself. “I don’t exactly have the best experiences with blindfolds.”

“Well, why don’t we change that?” He closes his eyes, resting his head in his hands. You reach over and grip his shoulder, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “What’s wrong baby?”

“Maeve said the same thing,” your eyes soften. “She-well, I told her about this thing that happened in high school, I had a crush on this girl, and she gave me a note that said she’d meet me after school if I wore a blindfold. I was really excited to see her, so I went. She led me behind the field house and she took my shirt off. I could hear people laughing, almost all of the senior class was there. Maeve told me that when we would finally meet, she’d make blindfolds fun again,” he rubbed his hands on his sweats, his palms sweaty.

“I’m sorry sweetheart, we don’t have to if you’re not ready.” He looks up at you, wiping his eye with his sleeve.

“No I-I want to. I need this,” he rings his hands together, sniffling. “When should we do this?”

“How about Friday night? After work,” he nods and leans in, kissing you. It’s slow, passionate, full of love. You rest your forehead on his, reaching out to put your arms around him. You lay down on the couch, pulling him into your chest. One of your hands plays with his hair as the other rubs his back. You fall asleep in each other’s embrace, dreaming of the night to come.

☆ ⌒ ★ ⌒ ☆ ⌒ ★ ⌒ ☆ ⌒ ★ ⌒ ☆

The week drags on, your anticipation growing. On Wednesday the amazon package came, it’s continents more meaningful then you ever thought it’d be. Finally, Friday has come.

You wish Morgan goodbye and take Spencer’s hand, leading him to the car. You drive home in comfortable silence, excited for what’s to come. Opening the door to the apartment, Spencer steps in first, walking slowly. Once the door is closed and locked, all hell breaks loose.

The kiss is sloppy, all tongue and teeth meshing together as one. You push him into the bedroom and onto the bed, and Spencer starts to undress. “Leave your clothes on.” He obliges, his hands leaving his shirt. You pull the blindfold out from the nightstand. It’s soft and black, the fabric hanging loosely in your hands.

“Are you ready baby boy?”

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headfulloffantasies · 3 years

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WonderTrev Secret Santa

For @pennywaltzy Happy Holidays!

Sometimes- A WonderTrev fic. Rated PG

Sometimes, Diana dreamed that Steve didn’t die.

Sometimes

Sometimes, Diana dreamed that Steve didn’t die. Some nights, she saw the plane explode in a flash of orange against the black night sky. And when the smoke cleared, a white parachute drifted through the air. Diana ran across the landing strip, her boots pounding the asphalt. Steve’s knees buckled as he hit the pavement. Diana caught him, held him tight against her chest. It felt like crashing into the sun. His warm body, still alive, brough tears to her eyes. She vowed to never let go.

Steve’s arms wrapped around her. He said something into her ear. But like before, she couldn’t hear through the muffled ringing.

“I thought I lost you,” she whispered. She ran a hand through his soft hair, pressing him even closer to her. His hands ran up and down her back, soothing the ache of loss.

They left the battlefield. They walked hand and hand away from a war finally won. They saved the world, and the promise of tomorrow was their reward.

Diana hated that dream. She woke with tears staining her pillow. Sometimes she put on her armor at night and went out looking for crime just so she wouldn’t have to face that dream. Eventually, she learned to live with the dream. She stopped putting on the armor.

Diana told her story to very few people. The legend of Wonder Woman became a myth, and then a fable. Just a story soldiers remembered hearing in the trenches. Sometimes though, Diana got lonely.

Bruce Wayne gifted her the photo of Steve, Samir, Charlie, and Chief. Diana sat down and sent him an email. “Thank you for bringing him back to me. Will you meet me for coffee? I’m ready to tell you my story.”

They met at Diana’s apartment. She set two mugs of earl grey tea on the coffee table. Bruce fidgeted on her couch, clearly unsure how to start this conversation. Diana sat next to him and began. “I was not born in the world of men…”

Sometimes, when she had told people she’d lost her only love, people would say “Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.”

Bruce said nothing. He sat in his brooding silence when she finished talking. Diana’s tea had made had gone cold. Bruce finally lifted his eyes. They were blue like Steve’s, but icy where Steve’s had always been warm. Bruce took Diana’s hand in his.

“Steve sounds like a very special person. Thank you for sharing. People like us seem to carry far too much pain.”

“People like us?” Diana raised an eyebrow.

Bruce didn’t respond. He gathered his coat and left.

Diana wished sometimes she’d never left Themescara. The only people in the world who might understand her were barred from her. She could never return. But sometimes, she imagined what she might say to her mother. Diana could feel the sun-warm grass beneath her bare feet. She imagined sitting in the glade where she’d learned to ride horses. Her mother would sit across from her. They’d share a drink of wine.

Diana would lift her face to her mother and say, “I found a man worthy of the Amazons. The man Steve Trevor, who defended us on the beach.”

The imagined Hippolyta raised an eyebrow. “I recall his name, Diana. It’s not every century a man finds his way to our island.”

“Yes, mother,” Diana hid a smile. “If I told you I loved him, what would you say?”

Hippolyta also smiled. “So long as you are happy, I am happy for you.”

Diana swallowed hard. “I lost him.”

“Not all things that are lost are finished,” Hippolyta said.

Diana snapped from her daydream. Her mother had never said that before in her mind. Diana’s heart raced. Where had that thought come from?

Not all things that are lost are finished.

What did it mean? Diana was sure the thought had not come from herself.

The next day Diana sat at her desk in her office. She typed up her proposal for the museum’s newest exhibition, attaching her notes on the rarity of the Greek artifacts included in the display. She leaned back in her chair and rubbed at her temples. She’d had the dream again last night and hadn’t been able to go back to sleep after.

Diana’s email pinged. She looked up, expecting something from her supervisor. The message had no subject line. She checked the sender. No sender listed. Diana frowned. She really shouldn’t open anything like this. She deleted the message, hoping no other spam would make it into her inbox. Another ping immediately drew her attention. The subject line of the new email read “READ ME, DIANA”.

There was still no sender. Diana chewed her lip. She clicked the message. It had only one line.

“Not all things that are lost are finished.”

A chill ran down Diana’s spine.

Another message popped up. Diana clicked it. She lurched back in her chair.

It was a photo of Steve Trevor. He wore a grey sweatshirt and glowered at the camera. The sight of him in colour stole Diana’s breath. This couldn’t possibly be real. Someone had photoshopped the image, surely. Diana frantically searched the message for the sender. No sender, but the subject line read “FIND ME”.

Diana’s pulse raced. Steve’s face swam in front of her eyes. Diana forced herself to her feet. A thousand memories crashed over her like a wave. Steve’s smile, his blue eyes, his hands clasped around hers, the snow falling between them. Diana could hear the music in the chilly square.

Diana couldn’t stand still anymore. She paced back in forth in front of her desk. Tears ached in her throat, but she forced them down. This couldn’t be real. Diana needed proof. She leaned over the desk and tapped frantically at the computer. There was one person she knew who would help without asking questions. Bruce Wayne.

She forwarded the photo of Steve along with a quick plea. “Can you verify this photo is real and find the source?”

Diana went back to her pacing while she waited. Her breaths came in ragged gasps. If Steve was alive-. She forced her thoughts elsewhere. She had to find whoever had sent the picture. Diana sat at her desk again. She stared at Steve’s face glaring back. His thick eyebrows pulled harshly over his eyes. Diana traced a finger over the crease in his forehead. The only photo she had of him was too faded and grainy to make out much of his neutral expression. She’d never forgotten how deeply he conveyed his emotions; but she hadn’t seen it in so many decades.

At last, Bruce replied to her request. Diana slammed her hand on the mouse to open his response.

“The photo is real. Unable to track the sender. Do you need backup?”

A sob clogged in Diana’s throat. Steve. Steve alive. How? How could this happen?

The sharp ring of Diana’s cellphone startled her out of her thoughts. “Hello.”

“Do you have any clues as to who did this?” Bruce’s low growl grounded Diana in her seat.

“No,” she admitted. “All I have is the picture.”

“I’ve also been receiving disturbing messages,” Bruce said.

Diana sucked in a breath. “Do you have any leads?”

“One,” Bruce did not elaborate.

Diana resisted rolling her eyes. Bruce remained as difficult to talk to as ever. “I would be grateful for any assistance you may have,” she said.

Bruce paused. Diana waited; the tempests of Bruce’s moods not new to her. “The messages I’ve had were not, let’s say, traditional.”

“How do you mean?”

“Dreams,” Bruce said curtly. “I’ve been having dreams of someone I thought to be dead. She might not be.”

Diana stilled. “I’ve also had dreams.”

“I’ll meet you in an hour.”

Diana went home. Bruce rang her door bell exactly one hour from when he hung up the phone. Diana welcomed him into her apartment.

Bruce glanced around the airy penthouse suite. He stuck his hands in his crisp suit pockets. “You have good taste.”

“We both know you’re not here to compliment my décor,” Diana closed the door. “Please sit,” she gestured to the couch. Bruce perched on the edge of the cushion. Diana noted he’d placed himself where he could see all the windows and doors. She didn’t comment.

Diana sat across from Bruce. “Tell me about your dreams.”

Bruce frowned. “They’ve been chaotic. I only ever dream of the night my parents died. Now, I’m having vivid recollections of Justice League missions. I thought maybe someone was trying to gather intel on the League.”

Diana noted the dark circles under Bruce’s blue eyes. “You haven’t been sleeping, have you?”

Bruce shook his head. “It seemed irresponsible to give her an in.”

“Her?” Diana raised a quizzical eyebrow. “You know who’s doing this to us?”

“Maybe. I have a suspicion.”

“Who is she?” Diana asked.

Something flickered across Bruce’s face too quickly for Diana to recognise. “Her name is Ace. I knew her when she was a child. It seems she’s grown up. And grown even more powerful.”

“How do you mean?” Diana pressed.

Bruce straightened his spine. Diana was beginning to recognise his stiff posture as a form of armor he gathered around himself. “Ace is psychic. When I met her, she was sick. Her powers overflowed, wrapping people in vivid hallucinations. I thought she had died in my arms.”

“Did you kill her?” Diana didn’t want to say it.

“No,” Bruce said. His sharp gaze reprimanded Diana for even asking.

She folded her arms over her chest. “If this girl can warp people’s minds, how do we know any of what’s going on is real?”

“We don’t,” Bruce pinned her with another look. “But are you willing to risk it?”

“Yes,” Diana replied immediately. Anything for Steve. The bubble of hope that had grown in her chest expanded. She didn’t dare nurture it. If all this was only a trick, she didn’t know how she’d react. She couldn’t lose Steve a second time.

“What do you propose?”

Bruce shrugged. “It’s probably easiest to go to sleep and wait for Ace to contact us.”

A knot of anxiety squeezed in Diana’s stomach. “Yes, I suppose,” she conceded.

Diana set Bruce up in her spare bedroom. The bed hadn’t seen any guests in quite some time. Bruce protested that he could sleep on the couch, but Diana refused.

“Hospitality is a virtue among my people.”

Diana left Bruce to try to fall asleep in her fresh sheets. She went to her own room and closed the door.

She laid down on top of her covers and closed her eyes. In the dark of her own thoughts, Diana thought of Steve. She recalled the smoke of their little camp in the European wilderness. Steve’s coat dropped around her shoulders. Charlie sang a soldier’s song of longing to go home. Diana watched out of the corner of her eye as Steve curled up and fell asleep on the ground. His face softened in repose. Diana longed to lay next to him, to drape his arm over her shoulder and to burrow into his side. She missed him dearly. What would she give for a chance to get him back?

Diana rolled over. Her alarm clock told her she’d been laying there for an hour. She sighed. She obviously wasn’t going to fall asleep. Diana levered herself up and went to check on Bruce.

She tapped softly at the door. There was no answer. She pushed the door open. Bruce lay half curled around a pillow; his fingers gone lax in their grip on the sheets. He’d thrown his jacket over the chair in the corner. Diana crossed over to the chair and settled herself down to wait until Bruce woke. His body had relaxed in sleep, but his jaw clenched and his brow furrowed. It did not look peaceful.

Bruce woke with a jerk. He made a snuffling sound like an adorable puppy. Diana hid her smile behind her hand. Bruce sat up. His hair stood up in spikes on one side of his head. He scrubbed the sleep from his eyes and finally noticed Diana.

“How long were you there?” He asked, his voice rough.

Diana shrugged. “A few minutes only. I could not sleep.”

Bruce nodded. He slid off the bed and straightened his collar. “I got a location.”

Diana’s head snapped up. “Really?” She rose from her seat.

Bruce nodded. He slicked his hair back, all business again. “Ace showed me the facility she’s being held at.”

“And Steve?” Diana pressed.

Bruce frowned. “I think so. The details are fading. We should move.”

“You have your suit?” Diana asked.

Bruce smirked. “Always.”

Diana ran to change.

Bruce was waiting at the door when she came out in her armor. His face hid behind the black cowl. He cut an imposing figure with his cape trailing the floor and the horns on his head stabbing towards the ceiling. He reached for the door knob. “The Batplane is on its way. We’ll have to go to the roof.”

“Not that way,” Diana strode to the balcony and threw open the glass doors. She braced a foot against the balcony rail and turned back to Bruce. She extended a hand. “Are you coming?”

Bruce took her hand. She tugged him into her side and wrapped an arm around his waist. Diana lifted her head, calculating the distance to the roof. She bent her knees and jumped. They rocketed into the air. They launched up over the roof. For one second, they were suspended over the city, the sunset spreading golden below. Then they dropped. Diana adjusted her grip on Bruce to compensate his weight. She took the force of their landing with a jolt through her bones.

Bruce scrambled out of her grip. “A little warning would have been nice,” he grumbled.

The roar of an engine alerted them of the Batplane before it appeared at the edge of the roof. Bruce strode over to the tiny aircraft. Diana approached the cramped cockpit dubiously.

“I can fly behind you,” she offered, noting the single seat.

“No,” Bruce answered. “We have to make a plan as we fly. Ace said there wasn’t much time left.”

“Fine,” Diana climbed into the craft. She squeezed her knees behind the pilot’s chair. Bruce leaped in and flicked a dozen blinking switches on the controls in front of him. The canopy descended and sealed with a hiss. Diana wriggled her shoulders, trying to relieve the pressure of something digging into her spine.

“Tell me what Ace said,” Diana demanded as the plane roared to life and surged towards the horizon.

Bruce kept his eyes on his instruments. “They’re in a facility underground. Someone’s been running tests on them. Experimenting.”

Diana’s stomach dropped. Images of a faceless scientist hurting Steve ran through her mind. She clenched her fists to keep her hands from shaking.

Diana finally asked the question that had burned in her chest for hours. “Did you ask Ace about Steve?”

Bruce nodded. “She said he’s been there the longest. But not awake? She thinks he was in some kind of suspension until recently.”

Diana held back a growl. “What’s the plan?”

Bruce glanced back at her. “There are other prisoners there as well. The priority should be getting them out.”

“Agreed.”

Bruce passed a radio back to Diana. “We’ll have to split up. Do you think you can make a loud distraction?”

Diana managed a savage smile. “I can do that.”

The bunker in the snowy woods crouched against the side of the mountain like a soldier defending its stance. Diana marched straight up to the solid iron doors. Her shield hung loose in her grasp. Her sword trailing the ground left a slice through the newly fallen snow. She approached with her shoulders back and head high. Diana didn’t bother yelling for attention. She drew back her leg and slammed her heel against the door. The metal buckled. Diana kicked again. The hinges groaned. One more attack and the doors crumpled in on themselves.

The tunnel leading down into the earth yawned black and abandoned. But Diana could hear the sound of running feet and shouting. Too late, an alarm shrieked overhead.

Diana strode down the tunnel. Just as the smooth floor evened out, a dozen armed guards rounded the corner. Diana leaped. She slammed into the oncoming assailants. They didn’t stand a chance. Diana cut through them with her lasso and shield. Once they were all down, she looked around. The grey concrete hallway she found herself in branched to the left and right. To the left she heard more shouting and stomping feet. To the right, then. Away from the security’s hub, where Bruce was slowly making his own covert progress.

Diana took her time, moving at a sedate pace. Any time a new batch of guards caught up, she disarmed and dispatched them quickly. She was aware of the blinking cameras in the corners following her every move. She did not care. Calculated fury filled Diana as she marched through the base.

Losing Steve before had given the same battle clarity. But this was different. The incident with Ares had been fire. This was cold as ice. Steve was here. Nothing else mattered.

Diana descended down a flight of stairs to a white door marked “Labs”. Diana shoved the door open.

The smell of disinfectant hit her nose. She found a room of sterile white chambers. Diana drew nearer, a humming sense of urgency finally breaking through her cold exterior. Each chamber resembled a cell with a white bunk and a glass wall separating it from the rest of the lab. Figures moved in each chamber.

Diana drew level with the first cell. A woman pressed against the glass. She wore the same grey sweatshirt and pants as Steve in the photo. Her stringy hair fell across her eyes. Those same eyes widened at Diana’s approach.

“Wonder Woman?” The woman gasped. “Are you here to save us?”

“Yes,” Diana nodded. She drew back her shield and slammed it into the glass. The woman ducked with a yelp. The shield ricocheted off the glass, the vibration jarring Diana’s arm all the way to the shoulder. The glass didn’t so much as crack.

Diana stared in disbelief.

“They knew you’d come,” the woman whispered.

“Who are you?” Diana demanded.

“Tara.” The woman sniffed miserably. “I’ve been here for ages. Doctor Leslie talks about you all the time. She hates you. She designed the cages to be impenetrable.”

“We’ll see about that,” Diana studied the locking mechanism on the cell door. It looked like a simple key card lock. Diana brought her sword down on the lock. It

Tara stepped out on shaking legs. “Thank you.”

“I’m searching for someone,” Diana said. “His name is Steve Trevor.”

Tara nodded. “He’s here. Doctor Leslie came and took him away when the alarms started.”

Diana didn’t know whether to be afraid or relieved.

She released the rest of the prisoners. They told her the same thing: they knew of Steve, but hadn’t spoken to him. They’d all been experimented on, but the head scientist, Doctor Leslie, seemed to hate Steve more than the others.

Diana pointed Tara and the others towards the exit. “Head that way. Keep out of sight.”

The prisoners scurried away. Diana hefted her sword and kept going. Somewhere here, Steve was wandering around. She’d find him.

“Diana,” the radio Bruce had given her crackled to life. “I’m in the main security office. I have control of the building.”

Diana pulled the radio from her belt. “Where is Doctor Leslie?”

“Keep heading forwards. She’s holed up in lab 237. I’ll meet you there.”

Diana’s heart pounded in time with her boots as she ran down the hallway. The numbers on the lab doors streaked by. She skidded to a halt outside lab 237.

The door hung open. Diana unsheathed her sword. The lights were off in the room. Computers whined at the numerous desks. Strings of numbers ran over the screens, casting flickering patterns of light on the walls. Diana edged forward. At the head of the room, a woman bent over a desk, pressing keys on the computer.

“Stay there,” Diana ordered.

The woman’s head jerked up. Her hair escaped her bun in wild curls and her glasses sat askew on her face.

“Doctor Leslie?” Diana asked. She took another step closer.

The doctor adjusted her glasses. “My, you are a specimen, aren’t you?”

Diana ignored the jibe. “Where is Steve Trevor?”

“Dead.”

The world fell like a bolder on Diana’s shoulders. The air punched from her lungs. She flew across the room and grabbed a handful of Doctor Leslie’s lab coat. “You’re lying,” Diana growled.

Doctor Leslie seemed unaffected by the fact that her feet no longer touched the ground. Her face twisted with rage.

“Do you remember Doctor Poison?” Doctor Leslie hissed. “She taught me everything I know. And she had a special hatred for you. Together we found your precious Steve Trevor after the war. She put him on ice. She refused to bring him out to play. But after her death, how could I not avenge my dear teacher?” She chuckled. “He was such a lovely specimen. I’ll cherish his last moments forever.”

A stripe of panic ran down Diana’s spine. “No.”

“Yes,” Doctor Leslie cackled. “Dead! I killed Steve Trevor! How does it feel?”

Diana’s grip on the woman’s collar tightened. Doctor Leslie gasped for breath. Cold chilled Diana to the bone. She’d let the men responsible for Steve’s death live once before. Not this time. She’d raze the base to the ground.

“Diana?”

Diana knew that voice. Her fingers went lax. Doctor Leslie collapsed onto the floor. Diana hardly noticed. She turned.

“Steve?”

He stood in the doorway. His chest rose and fell with harsh breaths. Diana stood still as the statue of Zeus as Steve came closer. He held his hands out to the sides as if approaching a startled animal. His blue eyes were deeper than she remembered. Diana took the last step separating them.

She reached out for his face with a shaking hand. She pulled her fingers away just an inch from his skin. “I don’t want this to be a dream,” she said.

“Diana, I’m here,” Steve assured her. His pleading eyes begged her to believe him. “I’m not leaving you again.”

Diana crushed him to her chest. He still smelled the same. Apples and musk underneath the disinfectant of this place. Diana curled her fingers in the short hairs at the back of his neck. His cheek pressed to hers.

“I’m here,” Steve murmured. “I’m not going anywhere.”

There was a scrambling noise as Doctor Leslie hauled herself from the floor and made her break for the door. Diana’s hand went to her lasso. Before she could snap the magic rope around the doctor’s ankle, Doctor Leslie ran straight into a shadow standing in the doorway.

Batman glared down at the doctor. She cowered.

Diana turned back to Steve, ignoring Bruce snapping cuffs on the doctor’s hands.

Diana wrapped Steve in her arms again. “I was so scared I lost you again,” she admitted.

“Give me that magic lasso,” Steve demanded. Diana unraveled it into his hands.

Steve wrapped the cord around his wrist like he had those ages ago in London. The magic glowed gold on his skin. “I am never leaving your side again.”

Diana didn’t know how long she and Steve stayed there wrapped in each other’s arms. At last, Bruce cleared his throat. Diana pulled back from Steve enough to crane her head at Bruce.

“Did you find Ace?” Diana asked.

“Yes.” A young woman with short black hair peeked out from behind Bruce’s shoulder. Her grey eyes danced with mirth.

“I knew you’d hear me,” Ace said. “Steve won’t shut up about you. I knew if you loved him half as much as he loves you, you’d come for him.”

Steve’s cheeks flushed. Diana laughed at his blush. She dropped her hand to grasp Steve’s fingers. “Let’s go home.”

#wondertrev #wondertrevsecretsanta #wonder woman #steve trevor #secret santa exchange 2020 #diana prince #bruce wayne #batman #justice league compliant #fanfic #fanfiction #wonder woman 2017 #ace

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stitchlesswitch · 4 years

Text

Crystal Shopping 101

As a bitch whos bought way too many fucking crystals I have a lot of opinions on the CORRECT way to sell them in physical stores so let’s get started

The only correct way to sell crystals in physical stores is:

Provide small baskets/trays so I don’t have to carry them in my hand.

Have them in bowls (separated by type obviously) on a large flat surface tall enough so that I don’t have to constantly crouch forward

Stop putting them on the goddamn floor bitch my knees

Stopping putting goddamn price stickers on them I don’t want to scrape that shit off my crystals

Each tray should have like a hundred tiny pieces of square paper that have the following information:

Name of crystal

Spiritual meaning of crystal

Price (a price range if necessary)

This way, I take a paper with each crystal I plan to buy, and none of us have to ask um, what’s this? How much is this? I fucking hate that. It’s your store. It looks unprofessional and unprepared if you’re like uhhhh idk the name and price of the crystal ur buying hold on

Fucking itemize our receipts bitch If I’m gonna spend $100 I want a list of each type of crystal I bought

My favorite ways to purchase crystals (In order from greatest to least)

Gem shows: highest quality, best price, you find extremely rare pieces you can’t get elsewhere, you cut out the middle man, you get to leave with your crystals, knowledgable salespeople, havent personally witnessed them price gouging—they know the market value of what they’re selling.

Etsy. ThrowinStones is a personal favorite, I’ll look through my Etsy and Instagram and eventually compile a list of all my favorite Etsy stores. I avoid all the pains of physical shopping (carrying, stickers, not knowing item/price, bending over, etc). Help out a small business. You can compare quality and price, use reviews to know what you’re in for. It’s honestly touching when I find shops you can tell put their heart and soul into their work.

Physical crystal shops. Great atmosphere and experience, especially if you come across a crystal shop while traveling and you can associate it with that place. However I’ve seen a lot of physical store owners over price their crystals. I wouldn’t recommend this route if you’re getting started, you’ll end up paying more than is necessary. Wait till you become familiar with market value so you know if you’re getting ripped off or not. Follow crystal sellers on Instagram and it’ll happen quicker than you think.

All equally tied; great places, all very good:

Homegoods. I’ve seen them sell amethyst geodes, agate bookends, large quartz clusters. I’ve even got large chunks of calcite and flourite from them. I’ve gotten all of my largest pieces from them honestly for an average of around ~$15-~$20. Because they’re not in the crystal business they tend to sell them for less than youd see on the crystal market.

Consignment shops/antique stores/thrift stores. If you’re a collector, never turn down an opportunity to look in these stores, you’ll never know what you’ll find. And I can gurantee you they’re selling it for significantly less than it’s worth. It helps that half the time they can’t even name the type of crystal it is.

Gift shops for state/federal parks/reserves. Again, they’re not in the crystal game, so I’ve been able to get extremely high quality quartz for two dollars that the crystal market would have absolutely inflated the price. Highly recommend for beginners and people who travel for hiking. Don’t ever overpay for quartz it’s just not necessary.

Websites. I’ve came across websites that don’t have Etsys that I really like, though they tend to be more expensive. One good example is Uncommon Rocks. I’ll make a list later. Not a bad way to shop, just pricier than Etsy typically.

I’ve heard great things about:

Sedona, Arizona. Apparently crystal mother land. Never been, but it’s to crystal collectors as vegas is to gamblers.

Tucson Gem Show in Arizona. This is where the sellers go to get their supplies. Days long, miles long event. Hardcore. Not for amateur or novice. If people tell you they buy/go there know that they mean fuckin business.

Ways I would NEVER recommend shopping for crystals:

Instagram live sales. That’s some rich people shit and I fucking hate it. Let me sit here for hours while you go through hundred of items individually one by one waiting to get to the one I want just so I can lose out because my internet lagged. High quality but frankly over priced imo. I leave that shit for the bougie collectors.

Amazon. Never bought a crystal from there, never will. Etsy always beats it.

Wish. It’s tempting, I know, but just trust me. DONT.

Ebay. Eh, I’ve made purchases here for some carvings that are mass produced from China but it’s just not my favorite way to shop.

Someone remind me to reblog this with lists of my favorite Etsy/online sellers please

#crystal #crystals #crystal witch #crystal collection #crystal collector #crystal shopping

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