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apute11as · 4 months

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Chosen family - Barcelona femeni x teen!reader

Summary: You’ve been keeping a secret for too long and the team start to figure it out and how to help you through it!

Warnings⚠️ Abus3, vi0lence, loss of parents, descriptions of injury, angst, hurt comfort, fluff

Author note: hey guys this is an angsty one, don’t read if you get triggered by any of the themes above! Hope everyone is well, I’ll be posting at lot more soon just getting through exam season right now! But yeah enjoy the story, leave any feedback or requests in the comments 🩷

P.s. My DMs are always open for anything, Woso related or if you just want to talk! Always here for anything xx

~~~~~~~~~~

You tried to push down the worry of your current situation as you got ready for training in your room. You were only 16 years old, due to your mother passing a year ago, you lived with your father in Barcelona.

The team knew about all of this of course, Alexia more than anyone had been especially supportive, knowing how it felt having lost her father when she wasn’t much older than you. She’d become somewhat of a sister to you. Her, alba and Eli becoming the female figures you lacked in your life, always offering advice and help whenever you needed it.

They knew your father wasn’t the most loving and that since your mother’s passing he’d become a cruel depiction of his former self. What they didn’t know was quite how deep that cruelty ran. He had turned to drinking when your mother had died, you regularly came home from training to find him passed out from the alcohol. It had started as pitiful, he’d just cry and you’d hug him and the two of you would comfort each other, but recently his sadness had turned to anger.

He’d always had a temper and was never the nicest but your mother’s warm presence always made his outbursts bearable but now that she was gone he had no one to regulate that anger. At first it started with hurtful words, some aimed at you and some not but in recent times, his anger had turned physical.

The first time he hit you, you’d wanted nothing more than to cry into Alexia’s arms and have her tell you everything was going to be ok. You decided against that, using your better judgment that it would cause a complicated mess that you didn’t want to condemn her to. It had happened twice more since, on Monday he’d shoved you backwards into a wardrobe, causing you to cut your head, something you’d brushed off as tripping and falling which the team seemed to buy. Yesterday he’d grabbed you by the wrists and squeezed until bruises formed, before pushing you into the table where you bashed your ribs.

Now as you observed yourself in the mirror, you could see the dark bruises that had already formed across your stomach and ribs, matching ones adorned your wrists. You pulled your hoodie over your head and slung your bag over your shoulder, wincing slightly as it came back round and hit your side.

Ingrid and Mapi would be here to pick you up soon as they’d starting taking you to training as you’d told them your father picked up earlier shifts at work (also known as day drinking). Your thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door you leaped from your spot in the kitchen and went to open it. You of course, were met with the faces of Mapi and Ingrid who smiled widely at you.

“Hola pequeña!” beamed Mapi

“Hola Mapi” you sighed. What you weren’t expecting was for her to barge through the door.

“Sorry bebita I just need to fill up my water. Someone decided to take a sharp turn whilst I was having a drink.” She explained, gesturing to Ingrid who looked unimpressed at the blonde’s antics.

“Woah what’s all this?” She questioned at the various, empty beer and rum bottles that littered your kitchen.

“Erm my dad had some people over yesterday that’s all” you offered nervously

“Seems like they had quite a party” she said, getting at the sheer quantity of it with a raised eyebrow.

“Haha yeah I don’t know I wasn’t there” you replied

“Wait where were you then?” asked Ingrid, asserting herself into the conversation

“Well… I was at my friend’s house for a bit, then I came home” you offered, unconvincingly.

“Oh ok then, well grown adults really should be clearing up after themselves, we can swing by after and help you if your dad is at work?” Added Mapi

“NO!” You yelled, alarming the pair of them. “Sorry, no thank you he’ll be home later and said he’d sort it but thanks anyways” you said, attempting to save yourself due to the accidental outburst.

“Sure that’s fine…” Mapi replied, sounding unsure

“Ready to go now?” Questioned Ingrid from her new found position in the hallway

“Yep so ready!” You responded

The drive to training was slightly awkward, so you’d ask for some music in an attempt to diffuse the situation (it had little effect).

——

Upon reaching the ground, you hurried out the car and wandered a little ahead, fully aware of the fact that they strolled behind muttering about your odd behaviour. You made it inside with the couple trailing a few paces behind you and were met with the smiling face of Lucy bronze.

“Hey y/n how are you?” She beamed

“Hey Luce I’m good how are you?” You replied, offering her a smile of your own

“Good good, Keira kept pestering me about being late this morning though” she said with a sigh

“You were still in bed when we were leaving in 30 minutes!” Keira insisted with an eye roll.

You chuckled at the couple’s childlike antics as you walked over to your locker and began stripping off your clothing when you heard a sharp intake of breath next to you.

“What?” You questioned the English defender

“What happened to your ribs?” She asked in a hushed voice

“Mierda, I forgot about them. I erm tripped… and fell… into the bed post” you replied, knowing you had to work on your lying.

“It looks quite painful and it’s all around your front and sides, how can you do that from falling?” Asked Lucy, concern lacing her voice

“I just did ok, leave it please!” You demanded with a huff, pulling your jersey over your head.

Lucy didn’t push further, though she did make a mental note to keep an eye on you.

——

When you finally made it outside you were met with the warm Catalonian sun beaming down on your face. You had a mandatory team talk and then Jonatan, as usual asked you to pair up. Without a second thought, alexia gripped your wrists and dragged you to her to partner up. You winced noticeably at the gesture as her firm grip found its self on the new formed bruises from yesterday.

“Estas bien pequeña (are you ok)” she questioned with a concerned expression

“Si Ale estoy bien (I’m ok)” you assured the older girl.

“What’s this on your wrists?” She inquired with a firm tone. “Did I do this?” she was now increasingly concerned.

“No no you didn’t do it it was already there” you replied hurriedly

“What was it from?” She questioned further

“Erm from… the match? I had a tussle with someone she gripped my wrists too hard” you lied

“You’re lying to me bebita I can see it in your eyes” she scolded “but why are you lying I don’t understand” her brow furrowed

“Alexia! Y/N! Stop gossiping and get over here!” Yelled Mapi in a teasing tone, a tone that only she could get away with using towards Alexia due to their close friendship

“ay dios mío Maria we’re coming” replied Alexia and before she could say anything more you’d disappeared, already jogging over to join the group and no doubt, avoid her further questioning.

——

Training ended and you rushed ahead, desperate to get away asap to avoid questioning from the multiple behaviours that had noticed your odd behaviour or the state of your body.

You reached the changing room out of breath (more so from sprinting over there than the actual 2 hour training session you’d just attended). You quickly shoved your stuff into your bag and began to scramble away before your upper arm was grasped.

“Where do you think you’re going” rung the voice of Lucy Bronze

“Home?” You replied as if it were obvious

“I thought Alexia was taking you home?” She questioned

“Oh erm yeah tell her it’s ok I’m gonna take a bus” you offered hoping she’d leave you alone

“Alexia come here” beckoned Lucy, her body shielding you from the exit, as you groaned at the implications of this conversation.

“Que pasa?” Questioned alexia with curiosity

“Y/N says she’s getting the bus home” grasped Lucy

“No she’s coming with me? I’m taking her home” she was confused.

“I think the two of you need to have a chat” suggested the brunette

“Yes I think so too” Alexia responded, her disapproval clear in her voice.

The two of you wandered to her car silently, she kept glancing over at you, almost to check you hadn’t disappeared again. She even opened the car door and watched you get in to ensure your presence.

The drive started in silence yet again, with you picking at the skin on your fingernails, but that was short lived.

“Bebita please answer me truthfully when I ask you this…” Alexia began, her eyes not leaving the road ahead. “What happened to your wrists and ribs? Yes Lucy told me about that before you change the subject again” she finished

“I don’t know what to say Ale” you said, your eyes beginning to gloss over.

“The truth Por favor amor” she insisted, her eyes still not looking at yours.

“My papa, he’s taken up drinking lately, quite heavily and it’s changed him” you started

Alexia knew where this was going but she let you finish, unsure of what to say even when you did.

“He-he gets angry now all the time. He used to be an angry person anyways but Mama always used to calm him down and now she’s gone I just-“ you choked back on tears.

Alexia had pulled the car over and took your hand it hers, squeezing gently as if willing you to continue.

“He would shout at me, come home drunk and just scream” you continued. “It wasn’t physical for a while it was just words, b-but recently…” you trailed off once more, finally meeting Alexia’s eyes that were glossed over and full of sadness. “Recently he started to do other things. He hit me and threw me into things, like in something to take his anger out on” Alexia’s grip lay firmer on your hand as she let you finish. “It’s like he’s a different person lo siento” you spluttered as the tears streamed down your face

“Bebita you have nothing! And I mean nothing to be sorry about. I’m sorry that we didn��t notice sooner” she replied with a maternal warmth in voice.

“It’s ok Ale I was trying to hide it” you added, calming down a little.

“But why pequeña? We could’ve helped you” tears were threatening to fall from her eyes now.

“But all that would happen is I’d end up in care or on my own and I can’t do that Ale, anyone is better than no one at all” you urged.

“You would have had me! You do have me!” She corrected.

“I know Alexia and I love you so much for that but I couldn’t live with you, interrupt your life, how would you girlfriend feel?” You questioned the blonde.

“She would understand bebita you know that really” insisted Alexia.

“What am I going to do” you cried

“Is he home?” She asked

“Who?” You rebounded

“Your papa” Alexia winced at the name that in her opinion, that man was no longer worthy of.

“No he’ll be at the bar for at least a few more hours”

“Bueno, we’re going to go back to your apartment and gather some stuff and then we’re going to drive to my Mami’s okay?”

“Okay” you weren’t overly convinced yet you still went along with the older girl’s plan, praying your father hadn’t decided to make an early departure from the bar.

——

Upon reaching your apartment block, you gave Alexia your keys as she insisted she would go first, keeping a protective arm on your body behind hers. You let out a sigh of relief when you realised your father was still out.

Alexia’s eyes scanned the floor, taking in the broken glass and general mess everywhere, the two of you tread carefully over to your room. The first thing Alexia noticed upon entering was the sheer contrast of your bedroom, to the rest of the house. It was near spotless, with most of your belongings having seemingly vanished.

“I put most of it under my bed or in the wardrobe” you proclaimed, as if you’d just read her mind. “I didn’t want to give him any extra ammo” you half joked, but Alexia didn’t laugh, instead she pulled you into a tight hug, a hug that said more than words ever could.

You pulled away eventually, realising that you were going to have to start doing some packing as every minute that ticked by was time closer to your father coming home. You started by gathering up your football gear, as it was likely your most important possessions, asides from your memory box that you’d made up when your mother had passed. Standing there for a second, you ran your hands over the cold metal of the lid, reminiscing on a time when your family was “perfect” and things were much happier.

Alexia on the other side of your room, was gathering up some clothes for you. On another day, you’d cringe at the fact that your captain was rummaging through your underwear drawer, but today was not that day.

“Almost done bebé?” questioned the midfielder

“So just gathering some last bits” you assured her, before piling a couple of textbooks, your water bottle and your laptop into your bag.

Just as the two of you made your way out of the bedroom, your mind clicked.

“Wait!” you urged

Alexia turned around at rapid speed, a mix of confusion and concern overtaking her. But before she could question you, you reappeared at the door holding a stuffed bear.

“Sorry it’s childish, it’s just something my Abuela gave me when I was younger”

“No no not childish at all, it’s sweet actually” she smiled. “Don’t tell anyone but I’ve still got my childhood teddy bear at the back of my wardrobe” she admitted

“Really?”

“Sí, now vamos cariño” she insisted

——

You loaded your stuff into Alexia’s cupra before walking around to open the passenger seat door, Alexia following suit.

“I’ve text Mami telling her what’s happened and she said you’re more than welcome to stay at hers” offered the captain “if you’d rather stay with me that’s perfectly fine, I have a spare room, you’ll have to share with the Nala though” she chuckled.

“Thank you Alexia, I’m honestly happy either way I’m just so grateful you’ve been so kind” you replied genuinely.

“Don’t thank me chica te amo mucho ok? If you ever need anything or anyone I’m here, remember that.”

“Gracias Ale”

——

The journey to Eli’s was short and once you’d arrived, Alexia made quick work of unloading your minimal bags and carrying them all herself, despite your protests.

She did however hand one to you when the two of you reached the door, just so that she had a spare hand to knock with, which she did.

The door opened and you were surprisingly greeted with the face of Alba, Alexia’s younger sister.

“Hola chica, it’s been a while” she hugged you, albeit lighter than normal (the first indicator that her mother had told her everything).

“I saw you last week Albs” you smiled

“Oh yes… well it’s been a while anyways” she laughed awkwardly

“Hola mija” came Eli’s voice from behind

“Hola Mrs putellas, thank you so much for offering me a room” you smiled and hugged her back.

“I’ve told you call me Eli, and it’s no problem at all. I hope you don’t mind but Alexia told us what happened, you’re welcome to stay as long as you like, you’re basically my daughter already”

She wasn’t wrong, even before your father’s drinking problem, you were here at least once a week for dinner (Alexia and Alba insisting you were their mother’s favourite child, to which she didn’t disagree with).

“Gracias Eli” you smiled at her

——

The four of you sat and ate dinner and discussed what was to happen, ultimately deciding you’d stay with Alexia for a little while as her apartment was closer to the training grounds and it would be easier for her to take you with her everyday. Then it was decided that Eli would file for your adoption, something you knew your father would agree to as just he wasn’t himself anymore. You’d set him up in rehabilitation for his alcoholism and see to it that he gets better.

Despite Alexia’s disapproval, you’d decided not to file a statement and testify against your father, stating that it would cause unnecessary issues and that you’d be far away from him anyways. Eventually, all was agreed and you and Alexia returned home to inform Olga of the plans, which to your slight surprise, she was completely okay with.

Alexia decided that the two of you wouldn’t attend training this week, you had no match anyways due to it being Christmas break so the two of you spent some time together. This helped not only you, but her more than you’d ever know. Ultimately, you decided that you’d tell the team what happened after the break, deciding now to enjoy the holidays with your knew found family.

#woso #woso x reader #woso imagine #espwnt x reader #fcb femeni x reader #alexia putellas x reader #alexia putellas imagine #alexia putellas #lucy bronze #lucy bronze x reader #mapi leon x reader #ingrid engen x reader #barcelona femeni x reader #barcelona femeni #angst with a happy ending #hurt/comfort #I need Christmas asap

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moonstruckme · 6 months

Note

soft sirius x reader pleasee 🙏🙏 either established relationship or fwb/friends to lovers vibes you decide

Thanks for requesting!

modern au

fwb!Sirius x fem!reader ♡ 1.3k words

“You ought to start locking the door,” Sirius calls out as he enters your flat. You tug out one earbud to hear him better. “I could be a serial killer.”

“Right, sure,” you snark lightly, washing dishes double-time. “And you ought to start calling before you come by, but we both have our bad habits.”

“Like you’d pick up if I did.” He saunters into the kitchen, taking in the mess and then pretending not to notice. He leans against the counter beside where you’re working. “I just thought I’d drop in and see if you have a bit of free time.”

“A bit?” you laugh. “Looking for a quickie, Black?” You stack more dishes on the drying rack, jolting forward to steady them when a bowl on the top threatens to tumble. “Sorry, no time. The kitchen’s been a mess for days, I have to clean up before my flatmate gets home from class and murders me.”

“But she seems like such a nice girl,” Sirius muses, taking the precarious bowl and drying it with a towel. “Anyway, doesn’t your flatmate’s last class end at, like, six? It’s hardly three.”

“It’s weird that you know that.” It’s not, really. You know a freakish amount of details about his life, too, but it’s easier to keep up the casualness of this arrangement if you pretend you’re not quite as close as you are. You go into the living room, collecting dirty dishes and talking whilst you walk. “She does, but I have to revise my essay, and if I don’t get this done before I start on that, it won’t be finished before she gets home. I’ll forget, I know it.”

“Hm.” Sirius takes the kettle down from its cabinet, nudging you aside to fill it from the tap. “Why do you have to revise your essay tonight?”

“Because it’s due in three days,” you explain, taking his place at the sink as soon as he’s out of the way to dunk more dishes in the soapy water. “And I have another essay due in four days, so if I don’t work on this one now, I won’t have enough time to finish that one. And besides those, I’ve got my regular work to keep up with.”

Sirius is quiet for half a second, which is unusual enough that you look over to check that he’s still here. He’s giving you a look you know too well, one dark brow and one corner of his mouth quirked up suggestively. “Sounds like you need to blow off some steam,” he says.

You try to scoff, but it comes out a snort. “Oh, fuck off. And quit looking at me.”

You don’t look up from your task this time, a particularly stubborn piece of food requiring your attention, but you can tell Sirius is pouting at you from just his voice. “A cruel demand, and one I can’t abide by. Sorry, gorgeous.”

“Freak.” You continue scrubbing at the dish. Finally, you give in, using your fingernail to attack the crusted-on piece of mystery food and doing your best to ignore the grossness of it. It comes off, but your nail breaks. “Damn it!”

“Hey.” The teasing tone drops from Sirius’ voice. “Take it easy, dollface. You’ve got time.”

It doesn’t feel like you have time. There’s been alarm bells going off in your head since you’d woken up on Monday morning and realized all you had to do this week, and there’s no time for any of it. There’s a dangerous pressure building behind your eyes, but if there’s one thing you definitely don’t have time for, it’s a breakdown. You force a deep breath, trying to calm yourself.

“I know,” you tell Sirius. “Thanks.”

“Maybe you should take a break,” he suggests lightly.

You cut a knowing look his way. “I do not have time for a shag right now, Sirius.”

He grins, showing his teeth. “Not what I was thinking of, but as always, let me know if you change your mind.” You roll your eyes, and his smile drops. “Just, like, an actual break. You seem kind of stressed.”

“I am,” you say, like duh, “but I don’t have time for a break either. I’ll be less stressed when everything is done.” You just have to make it until then.

Sirius goes quiet again, but you don’t bother wondering about it this time. It’s fine if he’s worried about you. You want him to be, a little bit. You want someone to see how hard you’re trying, even if it doesn’t look like your efforts are producing much. You’ll wash the dishes, and your flatmate will still be annoyed you’d let them pile up in the first place. You’ll turn in your essays, and they’ll be just okay enough to pass. You can work all day, from the second you wake up until you fall dead asleep, and sometimes it feels like it’s for nothing. But what’s the alternative? Stop, and watch your barely-together life fall apart completely? No, you just have to get through this week. Just this week, and then you can rest until the next hard week.

You stack the last of the dishes on the drying rack, and your hand has barely left before the three on top slip off. You lunge forward on instinct, like you think you can catch them. You can’t. The crash is loud, but you barely hear it. You bring your hands to your face, cupping your mouth between your palms. Your horrified exhale blows hot air back onto your chin.

“Okay, it’s okay.” Sirius’ voice is soft, as is his touch on your shoulder, encouraging you back from the glass shards. “You’re alright, just be careful, yeah?”

“Fuck,” you say, and you try to laugh, but what comes out is a dry sob. “Oh my god, fuck me.”

“I think we’ve agreed now’s not a good time,” Sirius jokes, taking a dish towel and using it to scrape together the bigger pieces. “Do you have a broom, love?”

You shake yourself out of your stupor. “Yeah. Yeah, I’ll grab it.”

You step over Sirius, and he makes a half-suppressed sound of alarm when you come too close to the glass but takes the dustpan when you hand it to him. You sweep up the glass, going farther than necessary from the site of the damage to ensure no one ends up with an impaled foot later on. Sirius dumps it in the trash.

“Thanks,” you tell him, trying to reorient. “Okay, I need to—”

“Oh, would you look at that,” Sirius cuts you off, going to the stove. “It appears I’ve put the kettle on. Must be habit. Sit and have a cup with me, doll?” You give him a look that says you know what he’s doing, and he shrugs like he doesn’t care. “Just for a few minutes. Please.”

You relent perhaps too easily, picking out mugs for the both of you and accompanying him to the living room. You curl up against the armrest of the couch, and Sirius settles in next to you, his thigh touching your hip. They’re your usual spots, but what’s not as routine is the arm he wraps around your shoulders, drawing you into his side. You sip at your tea as if you don’t notice. The warmth is soothing as it goes down your throat and seeps into your insides. Sirius turns on the TV, and it’s obvious by now that you’ve been lied to, he doesn’t intend to let you go after a few minutes, but you’re losing the will to hold him to it anyway. You let your head lie on his arm as he begins to trace slow, smooth shapes into your shoulder.

And though it feels nice, you say, “I don’t need you to coddle me.”

You feel Sirius shift to look down at you, and you tilt your head to meet his eyes. “But you’ll let me,” he says, “won’t you?”

You don’t know how to answer that. Sirius doesn’t seem to be waiting for one, pressing a casual kiss to your head and then focussing back on the screen, his doodles on your shoulder never faltering. You rest your head on him again, and you suppose that’s answer enough.

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lveclouds · 8 months

Text

↬ pairing/characters: joshua x film major reader, other members may make appearances/be mentioned

↬ genre/aus: heavy fluff, slight angst (finally i know), slight college/university au, established relationship, song au, hurt/comfort

↬ summary: in which joshua just wants his significant other to just be with him, cut off from the world.

↬ rating(s): pg15, nc17 (see warnings)

↬ tw: heavy swearing, slight angst (listen y’all know i can’t not write a bit of angst slkjfjdjf), kinda cheesy and very fluffy, you’ve been warned <3 joshua is an absolute sweetheart wbk, brief mentions of stress (being a uni student is a constant struggle), reader is a bit of a workaholic

↬ wc: 2.9k

↬ note: hello loves! the title of this fic comes from the song ‘disconnected’ by 5sos, which is honestly one of my favorite songs from them (esp after seeing it live in concert recently) even to this day. it’s just so cute and evokes all the emotions in me okay :(( anyways this fic was another spur of the moment idea (are y’all even surprised at this point lmao) and i decided to write for joshua, as i haven’t written anything for him yet (i do have another joshua fic in my drafts rn hehe) also yes this fic will be cheesy, you have been warned <3

joshua eyed the macbook balanced on your lap with utter disdain, wishing he could pry the device from your hands, make you focus on him instead, but he knew his efforts would only be in vain. you had come home from a long day of classes, ranting incessantly about how cruel your professors were for assigning a shit ton of work over the course of three days no less, and he had listened attentively to every word, despite the exhaustation from comeback preparations weighing down on him.

you had given him a quick kiss on the cheek before disappearing into his room to take a quick shower, and had come out fifteen minutes later dressed in loose, black sweatpants and one of his shirts, the latter practically a dress on your small form.

joshua’s heart had squeezed at the sight, for seeing you in his clothes was something he’d never get used to, even after three years of dating. that fluttering feeling quickly dissipated when you plopped down next to him on the living room couch with your macbook in hand.

“you have homework?” he had asked, trying to keeping his voice as casual as possible, and you’d simply let out a noncommittal grunt in response. “my introduction to film studies professor wants a five page analysis on the great gatsby, and it’s due on friday, which means i only have a few days to finish it.”

joshua had bit back a retort, refraining himself from reminding you that it was only monday, for heavens sake, but decided against it. “how long is it going to take you?” your expression had gone soft, and you’d leaned over to press a soft kiss on his cheek. “two or three hours, give or take, i’ll try and finish this paper soon, and then i’m all yours, okay? just give me two or three hours.”

and because joshua knew he couldn’t deny you anything, he’d conceded. so, here he was, trying his absolute hardest to focus on a movie that didn’t really interest him in the first place, silently counting down the hours in his head.

five minutes had turned into ten, ten into fifteen, fifteen into twenty, and so on. time trickled on slowly, and joshua had become utterly convinced that watching paint dry was more entertaining than the movie currently playing on the tv.

he wasn’t even sure what it was about, and nothing about piqued his interest, for all he could think about was you, wearing his t-shirt and balancing that fucking macbook on your lap, eyes practically glued to the screen.

joshua hadn’t really thought of himself as a clingy person, in fact, even the other members thought so, with hoshi pointing out how, ever since he’d started dating you, he’d practically run out of the rehearsal room once the choreographer deemed practice over, eager to get home to you.

you had taken up permanent residence in the dorms, and the members even had one of their managers make a key for you so that you could head straight there in between or after classes to rest. joshua was surprised that management had been okay with it, among all things.

he and the rest of the members had been extremely busy with comeback preparations, and the past few weeks had a whirlwind of activity, with arduous dance practices, album photoshoots, recording sessions in woozi’s personal studio, and so on.

the group finally had a few days off from comeback preparations, and joshua was determined to spend all of them with you, watching those cheesy romance films you loved and maybe spending all day in bed. alas, none of that had actually come true, for you were extremely busy with school, constantly working on assignments or projects, and joshua had spent most nights sleeping alone.

your side of the bed was constantly empty, and joshua knew you were staying up at ungodly hours at night, curled up on the couch, working on another assignment that probably wasn’t due for another few weeks. he wished he could pull you away from work, even for a second, but knowing your stubborn nature, it would take a lot for you to take a break.

joshua tried not to pout like a child who’d just been told they couldn’t have ice cream for breakfast. he was a twenty seven year old man, for fucks sake, and pouting because his girlfriend wouldn’t pay attention to him was not good for his character, and if the members found out, they’d tease him relentlessly for weeks.

“are you almost done?” he found himself saying, mentally patting himself on the back for keeping his voice neutral as possible, “sort of, i finished the introduction and maybe, erm, half of the analysis? i’ve written..two pages so far.” you mumbled, and joshua felt his heart sink into his chest.

“oh.” was all he managed to say, and went back to pretending to watch his movie, resisting the urge to scream in frustration. a long stretch of silence settled between them, and joshua wracked his mind for something to say, anything to break the awkward atmosphere.

another long beat of silence, and then, “are you mad at me?” your voice was impossibly soft, and joshua knew you well enough to note the nervousness laced within your tone. at that, his head whipped towards you, heart aching at the unsure, almost fearful look on your face, tension lining your shoulders.

“no, love, of course not, you’ve done nothing wrong.” he reassured, and nearly sighed in relief when the tension in your shoulders loosened, ever so slightly. “then why did you sound so… upset earlier?” “i did?” you nodded, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt.

“y-yeah, a bit, i don’t think you realized though.” “i’m not upset, darling, just a bit… sad, i guess.” “sad? why? did something happen while you and the guys were preparing for the comeback?” you asked, concern furrowing your brow, and joshua felt a small smile tug at the corners of his mouth.

“no, nothing happened, don’t worry, the guys are fine, just resting from the crazy schedule we’ve had these last few weeks.” “oh, thank god, i thought something happened. then, why are you sad?” joshua hesitated, wondering if you would laugh in his face for admitting that he had felt lonely these past few days because you’d been so focused on work and not him.

stop overthinking everything, you idiot, this is y/n. she’s not going to laugh at you or think you’re pathetic. well, here goes nothing. “this is going to sound pathetic of me, but you’ve been so focused on work these past few days and.. i don’t know, this is the longest break i’ve had during comeback preparations that management has given us in a long time, and i guess i thought we could spend them together. but you were so determined to get your work done, and i didn’t want to bother you.”

joshua tried to keep his voice as cheerful as possible, but the small crack in his voice at the end betrayed him, and he felt color rise to his cheeks in embarrassment. to his relief, you didn’t laugh in his face or call him pathetic.

instead, you were looking at him with guilt written all over your face, dark eyes glinting with unshed tears, and joshua felt as if he’d been punched in the gut. “why didn’t you tell me?” you asked, and you sounded so hurt, so devastated, that he immediately wished he could take his words from earlier back.

“i didn’t want to bother you”, he replied softly, voice ever so gentle, as if he were afraid of scaring you off. “you’re never a bother! i’m the one who shouldn’t be bothering you. you’re an idol for fucks sake, you’re constantly rehearsing and preparing to put out an album and perform on stage for thousands and thousands of people, and i’m just a struggling university student who’s constantly complaining about something trivial like shitty professors-” joshua cut you off by pressing a soft kiss to your mouth.

“i could say the same about you, you’re never a bother to me either. and yes, i do prepare to perform for tons of people, and while it’s a lot different from being a student, you shouldn’t think of yourself that way, it breaks my heart. never think just because you’re a university student, it doesn’t make your worries or stress any less significant or important. and shitty professors isn’t a trivial matter. they can either make or break your overall experience, and i’m sorry that they’ve been throwing all these things at you. but i know you. you can get through it, and if you ever need me, i’ll be here.”

you were a sobbing mess at this point, and joshua gently pried the laptop from your hands and set it on the coffee table. “now come here.” he whispered, opening his arms ever so slightly, and you threw yourself into them, body wracking with uncontrollable sobs, burying your face in the crook of his shoulder.

joshua held you flush against him, wrapping his arms around your body and rubbing comforting circles on your back, murmuring reassuring words under his breath. your soft sobs filled the room, and he swore he felt his heart cleave in two at how utterly shattered you sounded.

after your tears had subsided, joshua pulled back enough to tuck a stray piece of hair behind your ear, caressing your cheek with the pad of his thumb. “i know this is a long shot, but would you be willing to spend the rest of the night with me? that is, no movies, no music, and definitely no five page papers. you can work all you want tomorrow, but i think maybe taking a break will benefit you.”

your shoulders slumped in defeat, and joshua couldn’t help but smile fondly at the exasperated huff you let out as you gazed longingly at your macbook. “fine, but only because i can’t say no to you.” you murmured begrudgingly. joshua let out a soft, amused chuckle, leaning down to press a soft kiss atop your head. “likewise.”

“do you mind if i put your laptop in my room? just so that you’re not distracted by it?” you shook your head. “go ahead, i don’t really want to write that fucking paper right now. my brain is fried.” joshua chuckled, reaching out and ruffling your hair affectionately. “ok, i’ll be back.”

he took the laptop off the table and headed towards his room, humming softly to himself. when he opened the door, jeonghan was sprawled out on his bed, scrolling idly through his phone. he looked up when joshua entered. “i thought you were spending time with y/n. having a lover’s quarrel?” jeonghan asked, the corners of his mouth curving into a mischievous smile, and joshua rolled his eyes, used to the former’s cheekiness.

“very funny. no, we are not having a lover’s quarrel.” jeonghan sighed, shaking his head in mock disappointment. “shame, i thought something interesting was finally happening around here.” joshua snorted. “yeah, like the one time you and dokyeom went live at the same time and you practically begged carats to watch you instead of him?”

jeonghan gave an elegant shrug, unfazed. “it’s not my fault i’m so lovable.” joshua fought the urge to throw a pillow at his friend’s head. “whatever helps you sleep at night.” he grumbled, placing your laptop on his bed before promptly exiting the room, shutting the door gently behind him.

joshua found you right where he left you, curled up on the couch, except now, you were hugging a pillow to your chest, seemingly lost in thought. the sight made his heart ache and warm all the same. he gently kissed the top of your head as he plopped down unceremoniously next to you, wrapping an arm around your shoulders.

“penny for your thoughts?” he teased, which earned him a half-hearted glare. “what are you so lost in thought about, love?” he saw your cheeks heat at the way the endearment slipped easily off his tongue due to years of use, and fought the urge to coo at the sight.

“nothing, just thinking about how i could’ve spent time you with you these past few days, you know, instead of brushing you off and doing work instead.”

joshua shushed you, pulling you closer into his side. “it’s okay, i also was a little embarrassed. i mean, i didn’t want to come off as clingy.” that earned him a soft smack on the chest. “you are not clingy.” “tell that to hoshi, he thinks i’m utterly besotted, his words, not mine.”

you glanced up at him, a teasing glint in your eyes. “well, you are, aren’t you?” joshua rolled his eyes half-heartedly. “sure, whatever helps you sleep at night, love.” you scrunched your nose at joshua in mock disgust, and he let out a soft chortle of amusement.

a comfortable silence settled in the air, and you let out a soft sigh of contentment, resting your head on joshua’s shoulder, and he smiled, carding a hand gently through your hair, the strands like silk against his skin. joshua adored moments like these, when it was just you and him, and he could temporarily forget about any and all his worries.

and even if the others teased him for being so besotted, then so be it. after all, joshua was used to their teasing, had been for eight years and counting. you were the first to break the silence, clearing your throat awkwardly. “not to sound like a broken record, but i really do feel guilty for completely ignoring you these past few days. if i had known you had-”

“love,” joshua began, cutting you off gently but firmly, “like i said before, you have nothing to apologize for. your work was important, and i would’ve distracted you.” you let out a small sigh, small shoulders slumping in defeat. “still, you could’ve at least tried to take my laptop away. or something,”

joshua rolled his eyes half-heartedly. “i love you, but we both know that you would likely hiss at me if i did.” color rose to your cheeks. “n-not true.” “sure, love.” you wrinkled your nose at him in mock disgust, and joshua couldn’t help but press a gentle kiss atop your head.

you mumbled something incoherent under your breath, but said nothing further, instead settling back into joshua’s embrace, and he allowed himself a small smile as you let your eyes flutter shut, letting out a small yawn. “tired?” he whispered, carding his hands through your soft hair, and you managed a small nod.

“sleep, then, love. i’ll be here when you wake up.” at that ,color rose to your cheeks, and joshua bit back an amused laugh, knowing you were likely to scold him for it, and leaned back against the soft cushions of the couch, relishing in the comfortable silence that settled around the room.

it was moments like these that joshua treasured the most, when there was nothing but you and him, just enjoying each other’s company. with you, he could let all his worries melt away, forget about concerts and comebacks, and just be himself.

and, as much as you and him loved spending time with the other members, it was often loud and chaotic, and joshua needed the peace and quiet every now and then. he let out a content sigh, and felt exhaustation take over, and soon, his eyes fluttered shut and he entered dreamland, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

a/n: no bc wtf was that ending oh my god anyways this was my first shua fic, and i hope you all liked this regardless of how terrible it is lmao also i started school again :’) if you have also started school, i hope it’s going well <3 ! (i cannot believe i’m a junior in college now wtf) also i turn 21 in like a week so there’s that lsdkfjldjf and since school is starting again, i might not have a ton of time to post fics:(( but i will still try to <3 also seungkwan is back:(( i saw the pics and videos from the concert in japan and my heart is happy:(( also scoups was there :((( i hope he recovers soon and quickly <3 wishing him all the best <3333

tagging: @hong-jisoo , @drmflm, @playmetheclassics, and anyone else who wants to read this <333

#mine #fic: disconnected #joshua hong x reader #hong jisoo x reader #seventeen fluff #seventeen angst

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simplegenius042 · 3 months

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Music Monday

Tagged by @josephseedismyfather

Tagging @socially-awkward-skeleton @shallow-gravy @inafieldofdaisies @strangefable @strafethesesinners @direwombat @derelictheretic @titiagls @wrathfulrook @carlosoliveiraa @adelaidedrubman @thewanderer-000 @henbased @josephslittledeputy @direwombat @g0dspeeed @nightbloodbix @afarcryfrommymain @voidika @ladyoriza @florbelles @vampireninjabunnies-blog @minilev @snake-in-the-garden @softtidesworld @onehornedbeast @cassietrn @chazz-anova @megraen @deputyash @dephellseed @deputy-morgan-malone @skoll-sun-eater @fourlittleseedlings @la-grosse-patate @cloudofbutterflies92 @starsandskies and @i-am-the-balancing-point + anyone else who wants to join in. Here's my taglist.

Three songs for The UnTitledverse, Wings And Horns' original spin off trilogy and Far Cry The Silver Chronicles below the cut.

First is "My Ordinary Life" for the main antagonist of The UnTitledverse, Zachariah the Orchestrator, the "Hand at Fate's Table" and the second-borne Eldritch that is the center point of majority of the multiverse's issues.

youtube

"They tell me that I'm special, I smile and shake my head I'll give them stories to tell friends about the things I said They tell me I'm so humble, I say I'm turning red They let me lie to them and don't feel like they've been misled They give so much to me, I'm losing touch get me? Served on a silver platter, ask for second they just let me

They tell me I'm a god, I'm lost in the fascade Six feet off the ground at all times I think I'm feelin' odd No matter what I make, they never see mistakes Makin' so much bread, I don't care that they're just being fake They tell me they're below me, I act like I'm above The people blend together but I would be lost without their love

Can you heal me? Have I gained too much? When you become untouchable you're unable to touch Is there a real me? Pop the champagne It hurts me just to think and I don't do pain."

Silva may not be aware of it, but she actually has a rivalry with the Voice, or at least her supernatural Third Eye does. Abridged explanation of the Third Eye: some mystical entity commonly tied to the human soul but doesn't necessarily need to be to help its user, usually just retains memories and personality to give some back to the renewed soul upon reincarnating so the variants of the person don't become carbon copies, however instances like Silva and Paul who don't have a soul (due to the circumstances of their "births") they instead only build up their own Third Eye to protect themselves, which gives them back their memories, personality and skills into their next lives deep in their subconscious, so while they don't consciously remember most familiar things they instinctively do and gravitate towards that. The Third Eye also has an OP mode and can enhance the user who is aware and works symbiotically with it in ways humans back in the beginning of the multiverse could do. Paul realized this and gave Silva some subtle lessons (never explicitly saying what it was for) so Silva just thought it was meditation to make her more spiritual with her soul or something and doesn't actually realize until much, much later in her life that she's powerful enough to kill a God if she wanted to. There's a lot more for the Third Eye but I'll explain in a more detailed post.

Anyway, the Voice genuinely hates Silva for constantly foiling its plans in some shape or form, especially by the time of Silva's Hope, as the Voice hasn't exactly made itself look capable of governing one corner of the universe to its extremely cruel and unforgiving superior. And since the Voice is very biased and hypocritical on why "a deputy woman trying to live a normal life is more deserving of torment and needless suffering than the the prophet who killed his daughter for it and the other prophet who gaslit, gatekeeped, manipulated, mansplained, manwhored and manslaughtered his way through life", once Silva becomes aware of the Voice, its on sight. Anyway song below:

youtube

"Kill me again, again and again But I come back knowing so much more Learning all your tricks I'll make you sick Because the truth is...* I'll make you quit."

"Try to stay [first], [have to] stay first** You're still good-good, admit to this Don't fight anymore, it's such a snore One more step, and I'll make it war."

"And I still love the way I "hurt" you."

"It's determination, whoa-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-yeah Whoa-oh-oh-oh, whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-yeah.

I love the way, I love the way I love the way you keep on trying I love the way (I love the way), I love the way (I love the way) I love the way you keep on dying."

(* = Obviously I had to emit Sans name due to that probably not being the Voice's name ** = The Voice is against Silva, and since Frisk is from Undertale, I had to adapt the lyrics here a bit)

A song for the unnamed original trilogy I'm working on, which spins off from the events of Wings And Horns, but focusing on two characters who appeared in it, unnamed but can confirm they're both women, with one being trans. This pair are the first humans to have ever explored the Multiverse, and the trilogy will be following their story in life, navigating the aftermath of the abolishing of the soulmate system, discovering + exploring the Multiverse, and seeking out the Wheel of Reincarnation in the Afterlife, while facing internal and external problems, the most prominent being the Mad Kin of Carnage himself, Discord.

youtube

"I'm born to run, down rocky cliffs Give me grace, bury my sins Shattered glass and black holes Can't hold me back from where I need to go

Whoa-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh

Yellow hills and valleys deep I watch them move under my feet Stranger things, have come and gone To see the world and take the throne

Don't hold back Oh, I won't hold back

I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run I'm gonna spend my time like tomorrow won't come Do whatever I want, like I'm born to run

I wanna see Paris (Hey), I wanna see Tokyo I wanna be careless (Hey), even if I break my bones I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run.

A winding road, where strangers meet To feel the love of a warm drink My body moves, it's speaking loud Don't have to say what I'm thinking now

Don't hold back Oh, I won't hold back

I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run I'm gonna spend my time like tomorrow won't come Do whatever I want, like I'm born to run

I wanna see Paris (Hey), I wanna see Tokyo I wanna be careless (Hey), even if I break my bones I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run.

All these things, I've seen and done I live my life like I'm born to run All these things, I've seen and done I live my life like I'm born to run All these things, I've seen and done (I was born, born, born, born, born to run) I live my life like I'm born to run (I was born, born, born, born, born to run)

I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run I'm gonna spend my time like tomorrow won't come Do whatever I want, like I'm born to run

I wanna see Paris (Hey), I wanna see Tokyo I wanna be careless (Hey), even if I break my bones I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run.

Oh, oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh!"

#music monday #the untitledverse #oc: zachariah the orchestrator #big bad of the untitledverse is jealous of the attention humanity gets #far cry the silver chronicles #far cry 5 #oc: silva omar #fc5 the voice #the voice #hell its not even joseph that silva hates its the fact that joseph represents the voice and that's what her third eye recognises #but since silva isn't aware of the voice's existence #she goes to put this hate that she never held before towards joseph (and justifies the reasoning behind it by pointing at his actions)#wip: wings and horns #original unnamed trilogy #original works #coming up with titles is hard #but i will persevere past this #also funny how this trilogy is the planned end yet chronologically timeline-wise the beginning of the stories (not excluding WAH)

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ms-m-astrologer · 2 months

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Transiting Ceres enters retrograde zone

Timeline (current events in bold)

Thursday, February 29, 07:44 UT - transiting Ceres enters pre-retrograde shadow, 7°29’ Capricorn

Wednesday, May 15, 05:36 UT - transiting Ceres stations retrograde, 21°33’ Capricorn

Monday, August 26, 07:39 UT - transiting Ceres stations direct, 7°29’ Capricorn

Monday, November 11, 22:43 UT - transiting Ceres exits post-retrograde shadow, 21°33’ Capricorn

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Caveat: this may not have much of an impact on you unless Ceres is prominent in your birth chart. She’d have to be in close aspect to the Sun, Moon, &/or an angle (Ascendant, IC, Descendant, MC), possibly with strong Virgo &/or 6th House energy.

Since I have been fighting and losing to the migraines for about the last ten days, here is an excerpt about Ceres Rx from Martin Bulgerin’s web site biopscinst.com:

When the Great Mother Ceres turns retrograde on us, the entire notion of mothering and nurturance is up for grabs in our lives. This goes far beyond "just children", since Ceres describes the ways we give to and receive loving support from others. You're being forced to reconsider what you really care about. Some of our "babies" must be allowed to grow up and fly the coop if our attachments are holding them back. It's also important to recognize whether you are rejecting or filtering out the love others are extending to you during these cycles. Sometimes, the most cruel person in your life is yourself. It's time to reconnect with the web of life and loving.

Some of the problems with any planet moving through Capricorn are related to a belief that the more outward achievements we have, the more loveable that makes us. “If I get the top grades - that promotion - marriage to so-&-so,” like that. Sort of a social-climbing vibe. Integrity shouldn’t be equated with high worldly status.

Another problem happens when we insist on doing things “the way we’ve always done them.” That kind of thinking brought on the US’s “Dust Bowl” in the 1930s - an insistence on using farming techniques that weren’t suitable or sustainable for that climate and environment.

And there’s always the stench of government/corporate control, in this sign.

Procreative sexuality, parenting, children, family - the so-called “traditional family values” with the white straight men in charge. Trying to “keep up with the Joneses” - also makes me think of those appalling “neighborhood covenants” in the US, where (for example) you can’t have a clothesline, or paint your house any color but beige, and so forth.

Child & elder care, nurturing professions - regimentation, following the rules, going up the “proper” chain of command. Sort of a perfunctory, general approach without giving much (if any) thought to individual needs.

Agriculture, growing cycles, food - “agribusiness” coming into focus. Could be some issues with hoarding.

Concern for domesticated animals - not so much just puppies and kitties, but piggies and chickens and cows as well. Concern with the “factory farm” approach, not just the meat “production” (UGH) but the puppy mills, etc.

Most of the aspects Ceres makes will happen with the personal planets and the other Lady Asteroids - therefore most of the work to be done will be on a personal level. “Think globally, act locally.” (The exception is Ceres squaring Chiron, which I’ll discuss in the list of aspects.) As we move through these aspects, we should give progressively longer “leeways” on either side of the dates. Perhaps allow a few days for the first one, and up to a week for the last.

Tuesday, March 12 - Ceres/Capricorn trine Juno Rx/Pisces, 11°21’. Starting off with good intentions, anyway! A lot of mutual caring and concern. “Let’s get through this together.”

Saturday, March 16 - Ceres/Capricorn square Mercury/Aries, 12°27’. First of three - due to Mercury’s retrograde cycle. Be alert for problems with communicating your own needs, and listening to others. Probably not a brand-new problem or situation.

Saturday, March 23 - Ceres/Capricorn sextile Venus/Pisces, 14°08’. Can be a good time to get pregnant, so if that isn’t on your agenda then triple-wrap that thing. Very creative energy. We want to pretty up our homes.

Sunday, March 31 - Ceres/Capricorn square North Node/Aries and South Node/Libra, 16°05’. Problems around taking care of ourselves and our own needs, versus taking care of other people to “keep the peace.” If you habitually deny yourself, it comes back to bite you in the butt.

Saturday, April 6 - Ceres/Capricorn square Sun/Aries, 17°26’. Who’s the boss? We really want to be independent and not bound by familial/tribal expectations.

Tuesday, April 16:

Ceres/Capricorn square Mercury Rx/Aries, 19°11’

Ceres/Capricorn sextile Mars/Pisces, 19°12’

The second Ceres-Mercury square, but this time there’s a helpful sextile to Mars. (Also a fertile sextile, so watch out for that.) We can listen compassionately.

Sunday, April 21 - Ceres/Capricorn square Venus/Aries, 19°52’. If you need a break, ask for one! It’s okay to take some time off. Similarly, the person being taken care of could get a little testy about it.

Wednesday, April 24 - Ceres/Capricorn square Chiron/Aries, 20°22’. First of three. Look for the imbalances between self-care, and how much you take care of others. It isn’t necessarily us being the heroic super-nurturer - sometimes we don’t pull our own weight.

Tuesday, May 7 - Ceres/Capricorn square Mercury/Aries, 21°21’. Third of three. By now we should be expressing our needs in a clear, straightforward way.

Saturday, May 11 - Ceres/Capricorn trine Sun/Taurus, 21°30’. We identify strongly with our familial/tribal role, and we want practical, effective ways to carry out those responsibilities. We can use this to set realistic intentions going into Ceres’ actual retrograde.

#Astrology #Transiting Ceres enters retrograde zone #Ms M astrologer

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roonilwazlibimagines · 2 years

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the bet ch.1 - r.b x female reader

Blurb: reader is known for her strong type a personality and regulus and evan have been making fun of her for it since their first year at hogwarts, and they're still making fun of her for it almost three years out of high school when she shows up to their work place as the new potions maker Word Count: 6.1k A/N: this is the soft launch of my new regulus series - i think there is 9 chapters and they are all written (only the last two aren't edited) so really i could release them all in one go but idk if that is annoying so please tell me whether you want like daily updates or for me to just send it and upload them all - or if you want to read this on wattpad or ao3 this will be uploaded on their as well and the links to my accounts are in the post before this - anyways, let me know your thoughts or if you want to be tagged in upcoming chapters, i hope you like it ! Warnings - regulus and evan are a little misogynistic

Masterlist | ch.2 | ch.3 | ch.4 | ch.5 | ch.6 | ch.7 | ch.8 | ch.9 | ch.10 | FINISHED

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“Oi,” Evan Rosier snickered, nudging his friend with his elbow, “look who the new girl is.” His words caught the attention of the intended friend and Regulus Black lifted his head from his work to see who had got Evan winking in their direction.

“No way,” Regulus chuckled, seeing the way her eyes squinted and the lines on her face etched into a look of disgust at his friend's action.

Regulus hadn’t seen her since Hogwarts.

She had quite the reputation. Which wasn’t a surprise considering she came from one of the oldest and therefore noblest wizarding families. She was in Slytherin, of course, and in the same year as Regulus and Evan. She was Quidditch Captain, Head Girl, and she was the top of every subject she took, much to Regulus’ annoyance.

“Good to see you again,” Evan smirked as she made her way over to her new desk and Regulus found it odd to hear her actual name fall from his friends’ lips considering all of the nicknames they had been calling her since they were eleven years old.

They never said it to her face, of course. They weren’t cruel. Nor did they ever want to offend the only daughter of one of the most powerful families in the wizarding world. But behind her back, they were pretty ruthless.

It started a couple of months into their first year when all the Slytherins in their year were planning to go to the Black Lake Friday night after dinner. Sure, it was breaking almost every rule Hogwarts possibly had, but there was no more effective way to bond with a bunch of kids your own age than to go see if the legend of the Giant Squid was real.

“Do you want to come with us?” Regulus asked her as Evan explained where everyone was going. She was sitting on one of the tables in the Common Room, doing her homework and she gave them a confused look.

“No.” They were taken aback by her abruptness, but tried not to let it show. “Are you stupid? You’re breaking almost every rule, it’s freezing, and we have a Charms essay due on Monday.”

“It was just a question,” Evan murmured under his breath while Regulus tried to muster up a smile and hope she didn’t hear his idiotic best friend.

“No worries,” Regulus said, “good luck with your essay.” And they walked out of the Common Room. They shared a look as soon as the door shut behind them and they couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

It was Regulus who began shushing Evan, suddenly remembering that it was way past curfew and if the Prefects found them, they’d have detention for the rest of the year.

“She’s uptight, isn’t she?” Evan scoffed as they made their way to the Great Hall.

“Was just trying to be nice,” Regulus said.

“Exactly!” Evan exclaimed. “We didn’t have to invite her, it’s not like anyone else in the year wants her there.”

Regulus thought his friend was being a bit harsh, but really, he couldn’t say he was wrong. She had friends in their year, but Regulus was willing to bet that most of them only stuck around with her for status. To be fair, it was the main reason he and Evan had asked her in the first place. They were sure no one had asked her and they were sure she’d be super grateful to them for inviting her, and maybe, they wouldn’t mind being on her good side.

Obviously they were wrong.

“Wish I could say the same.” She gave them both a sarcastic smile and took her seat opposite Regulus.

The old guy who used to sit in front of Regulus was his and Evan’s favourite coworker. He could barely hear the two friends chatting about anything but work all day, and he was always happy to be included in the joke whenever they decided to have a bit of fun with him.

They had a feeling that she wouldn’t feel the same way.

They were sad to see the old man go, but they couldn’t lie and say they weren’t interested in who was going to replace him.

“Maybe it’ll be some hot chick,” Evan said, swinging around in his chair to face Regulus. Sure, it was a pain for them to be seated with their backs to the other, but at least they were in close proximity.

“What? Like you’d have a chance with a hot chick?” Regulus chuckled, also swinging around in his chair.

“I’d have more of a chance than you,” Evan teased, bringing the end of his quill to his mouth.

Unfortunately, it was not some hot chick.

“What brings you here?” Regulus inquired, raising his eyebrow as she brought out a bunch of stuff to place on her desk. Evan was kicking the back of his chair and he tried to ignore it as she gave them another tight lipped smile.

“A job.”

Evan gave his chair a harsh kick and Regulus smirked.

“There’s our ice queen.” Evan leaned forward to murmur in Regulus’ ear, covering it up with a horrible cough that earned him an eye roll from the girl opposite Regulus.

She earnt that nickname not even a week after the invitation episode.

Evan and Regulus had practically been friends since birth, so it was no surprise that they spent most of their time together, and really, they couldn’t help it that they often got loud when they were together.

“It doesn’t surprise me that neither of you know how a library works considering you haven’t done a minute of work since we got here, but it’s a common rule that you’re quiet.” She seathed, standing over their desk, causing their laughter to die down.

“Excuse me?” Evan said, a dry laugh forming in his throat. It was late at night so it was only them and a few seventh years left at the tables.

“Sorry, I’ll dumb it down for you,” she said sarcasticaly. “Shut up.” Regulus couldn’t help the laugh that spilled out of his mouth and Evan wasn’t much better and soon, their laughter was louder than it originally was.

She scoffed at them and rolled her eyes, before walking back to her desk and collecting her things. She stormed out of the library but before she did, she made an effort to stop by their desk and send them the iciest glare she could muster.

“What’s up her ass?” Evan scoffed once she was out of earshot.

“Did you see that glare she gave us?” Regulus laughed and Evan’s laughter picked up again.

“Might start calling her ice queen, Merlin.” Evan shook his head and leant back in his chair.

The name stuck. Because neither of them really understood why she was so icy. And stuck up. But they knew she was arrogant, and spoiled, and rude, and uptight, and therefore, an ice queen.

If Regulus was being honest, he wasn’t sure how he felt about her coming to work at his dream job.

She had taken Quidditch Captain from him, she beat him at being top of the grade, and she got Head Girl when Regulus didn’t get Head Boy, and now, here she was, sitting across from him at the one thing that kept him going throughout all of that, acting as a constant reminder of all of this.

Regulus knew since he was in his third year that he wanted to be a potions maker. Sure, when he had this in mind, he never pictured he would be sitting at a desk for most of the day, writing new recipes and notes for future potion ideas, but he was enjoying every second of it. And it only got better when his best friend told him that he would be organising the supplies for the same company.

They had been doing this for 2 years now, almost three, and it had been two of the best years of his life. Up Until now.

“So you’re making potions?” Regulus already knew the answer, but he needed to confirm that he would be partnered with her.

“Is that a problem?” She raised an eyebrow at him as she placed her bag next to her desk. She had placed a small plant on the corner of her desk next to her drink bottle, some parchment on the other side along with her quill that would have cost a fortune with the way her name was engraved on the side, as well as a small clock that's tick was already getting on the two boys’ nerves.

“Not at all,” Regulus shrugged, folding his arms across his chest and leaning back in his chair hoping that his demeanour looked like one that confirmed his lie.

Sure, maybe the old guy kept messing up the potions because his eyesight was so bad he would get powdered bicorn horn confused with mint, but he let Regulus take the lead and Regulus had a pretty strong feeling that she wouldn't feel the same.

While maybe she was Head Girl and Regulus wasn’t Head Boy, they had been Prefects together in their fifth and sixth year and she had been his Quidditch Captain for three years, so Regulus was all too familiar with her control issues.

“What are you eating?” She had asked when he pulled out a muffin he had wrapped in a napkin and stuffed into his robe for tonight, specifically.

“A muffin,” he shrugged, pulling the wrapper down and taking a bite. It was their first round as Prefects and Regulus wasn’t sure how he was going to survive another two years of her.

“You can’t do that.” She stopped in the middle of the hallway and folded her arms.

“Who says?” Regulus shrugged his shoulders and took another bite as he stopped in front of her. She scoffed.

“We’re Prefects, we need to set an example.”

“I’m pretty sure students are allowed to eat the muffins the House Elves make for them.” He rolled his eyes.

“Not when dinner is over.”

“It’s a muffin, relax.” Regulus exclaimed, taking the last bite and stuffing the wrapper back into his pocket.

“I can’t believe I have to spend the next two years doing this with you.” She grumbled, hitting him with her shoulder as she pushed past him and kept walking.

“Me neither,” he grumbled, following behind her and pushing down the urge to say something mean to her. It would only lead to a fight and like she said, they’d have to spend the next two years together doing this, there were plenty of future opportunities for fights.

Besides, Regulus would never hear the end of it if his mother ever found out he was mean to the only daughter of one of the most noblest families in the wizarding community.

That night when Evan asked how it went and Regulus recalled the muffin episode Evan laughed and exclaimed exactly where he’d like to shove that muffin and Regulus was glad he at least had Evan to understand the pain of spending that much time with her.

“Why’d you have to get a job here?” Evan queried, and Regulus’ lips tugged upwards at his friend's lack of a filter.

“Well I didn’t know you two would be working here otherwise I wouldn’t have applied.” She sighed, as if this was the worst thing to happen to her.

“And if I knew you were applying here, I would have resigned,” Evan mumbled under his breath with the intention of only Regulus hearing, but her head snapped up at him and he was suddenly on the end of one of her icy glares and Regulus couldn’t help but chuckle.

It wasn’t that they wanted to be mean to her. They were constantly balancing the thin line between being their usual arrogant selves and actually being mean to her.

Their lives would be over if they ever actually offended her and this they were sure of. If she didn’t end it for them, her parents would be right there, ready to finish the job. They had seen it happen in their fifth year.

They only ever heard it from a friend of a friend, but the story went that the Ravenclaw Prefect had asked her out on a date and when she said no, his ego was bruised and he kept pestering her until finally, he got so annoyed that he hexed her. The hex he cast depended on who you asked. Some said it was the twitchy ears hex and some said it was the stickfast hex, but Regulus and Evan had a bet it was the horn tongue hex because she probably sounded just as annoying as a horn when she no doubt repeated ‘no’ over and over again.

But while this was all speculation, it was a fact that after her parents came to Hogwarts to speak to Dumbledore about the incident, no one saw the Ravenclaw Prefect again.

His friends couldn’t contact him and someone else was elected the new Ravenclaw Prefect.

“Evan,” the boss called out, “I need our order for next month.” Evan turned around and got up, his parchment in hand as he brought it over to their boss.

“Good luck,” he murmured to Regulus before walking away and Regulus raised his eyebrows at him in contempt at the situation.

She was watching them, a bored look on her face as she crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her fingers on her forearm, seemingly waiting for what Regulus wasn’t sure.

He looked at her expectantly and she sighed.

“So, what are we doing?” The way the office was set out was that their desks were touching each other, forcing them to face the other. Evan had his own desk that was facing another coworker who dealt with sales meaning his and Regulus’ chairs were back to back. The other coworker wasn’t often in due to the nature of his role and Regulus was feeling a little envious of Evan right now.

On one side of the room were two doors, one that led to the boss’ office and one that led to the safety manager's office. On the other side, was the Potion brewing room, Regulus’ favourite room, and the break room, Regulus’ second favourite room.

It was only a small building, but there weren’t many people to occupy it and really, Regulus couldn’t complain. He was working with his best friend doing the job of his dreams and she was not going to ruin this.

“I know what I’m doing, shouldn’t you know what you’re doing?” He gave her a cheeky grin and she grimaced back

“When I arrived she said Mr Black would tell me what I’d need to do, so I can always go and tell her that you don’t know how to do your job, if that’s what you want?” She gave him an innocent look and Regulus’ grin dropped. He sighed dramatically, swivelling in his chair and tapping the end of his quill on his desk.

“Fine,” he huffed, “I’m working on a potion that can cure general symptoms of sickness. Muggles have a drug for it, but it doesn’t work for all illnesses, but we’re sure we can make it better.”

“So why haven’t you?” She asked, leaning forward so her elbows were resting on her desk. Regulus resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

“Well we think we have all the ingredients right, but as soon as we add billywig sting slime it starts to burn.”

“Just put some wartcap powder in it then.” Regulus wouldn’t admit it, but he was impressed she had thought of that straight away. He didn’t think of it until a week after his potion had burst into flames right in front of him. But then again, there was a reason she was top of their grade, and now he knew it wasn’t because her parents paid the school.

“Yes, but that counteracts the effects of the fluxweed.”

“Oh.” She hummed, trying to think.

“Do you have a list of the ingredients and methods you’ve tried?”

Regulus passed over his parchment and watched as she tried to make out his scribbles that held all of the work he had done in the last three weeks condensed into one page.

She took her time reading over it so Regulus took this chance to go over to the bookshelf behind her and get one of the textbooks to figure out what ingredient he could try next.

“Use vervain infusion instead of fluxweed, it still has the same healing properties, and wartcap powder won’t affect it.”

Standing behind her, Regulus slammed the book shut, put it away, and grabbed the piece of paper out of her hand. He wasn’t sure why. He pretended to read it over, but he already knew she was right.

How could he be so stupid? Of course. Vervain infusion. They learnt that in their second year. This was basic knowledge.

“Well I won’t be able to test it until Friday.” It was Monday. Brewing days were on Friday. If they were exceptionally busy, they could do it on Thursday as well, but they needed time to prepare all of the ingredients, do a risk assessment and get permission from their boss.

“Okay,” she dragged out the last syllable, “now what?”

“Think of your own potion.” He gave her a small smile and she nodded, standing up to grab a book and flick through it for some inspiration.

Regulus spent the rest of the morning filling out the forms for his trial on Friday. A part of him wanted the vervain to work because he had been working on this potion for too long, but another part of him didn’t want her to be right.

How embarrassing. Regulus had been doing this for two years and it barely took her twenty seconds to solve his issue for him, he’d never live it down.

She spent the rest of the morning flicking through her book, occasionally scribbling and occasionally sighing. Regulus couldn’t help but look up every few minutes or so. Mostly out of spite.

She was here, ruining his dream job and she didn’t even know it or even care.

And then there was the ticking from her stupid clock. Regulus wanted to grab it and smash it on the ground, but if he didn’t get suspended for that, he’d be fired and he wasn’t willing to get fired because of her.

“Oi.” He was brought out of his thoughts by a kick to his chair and he swivelled around to face Evan. “Are we going to the game on Saturday?”

“Can’t, it’s my brother's birthday.”

“And since when do you care?”

“My mother’s making him come over for dinner, I don’t know.”

“But it’s the semifinals.”

“I know, but I-” he was cut off by a scoff. “Are you alright there?” He queried, turning his neck to watch her look up from her book.

“I’m fine.” She smiled up at him sweetly and he rolled his eyes as he turned to face his friend and widened his eyes in annoyance.

“We’ll talk on our break,” Evan murmured and they both turned back around to their work.

So Regulus continued filling out the forms and when he was finished, he tried to think of a new potion idea that he could work on after he succeeded with this one.

His last one had been a medical related one as well, one that got rid of a stomach ache, and he was beginning to think that his mind was becoming fuzzy with doing the same thing over again and therefore needed a change.

This was probably the reason she had solved the issue immediately. She had new eyes, Regulus did not.

“What about an anti-acne potion?” She asked and Regulus looked up to make sure she was speaking to him.

“What, like ten second pimple vanisher, or blemish blitzer?”

“Yeah, but they always leave scars,” she argued and Regulus made an effort to keep eye contact with her.

“Well then there’s bubotuber pus and scar diminishing serum.” She huffed and Regulus was glad that he had this over her.

“It’s hard thinking of a new potion,” he said, unsure why he was trying to console her, “sometimes it takes me weeks.” He also wasn’t sure why he let her in on that piece of information, but she turned back to her book and Regulus turned back to his parchment, hoping that she wouldn’t talk to him again.

At twelve on the dot she looked up at him and Regulus could see out of the corner of his eye that she was trying to muster up the courage to say something.

After a few seconds, she did.

“When’s lunch?”

“Twelve,” he said, without taking his eyes off his parchment.

“Do we all have lunch at twelve?”

“Yes.”

“Do we have to go to the breakroom?”

“No.”

She wanted to roll her eyes at him, she wanted to thank him sarcastically for helping her, but she didn’t want to make things worse between them.

It wasn’t that things were bad between her and these two boys specifically, it was that things were bad between her and pretty much everyone.

She had always had trouble making friends and she knew most of that was her fault. If they weren’t too scared to make eye contact with her because of her status, they were annoyed with her because she was stuck up and had an overwhelming type a personality.

And maybe, Evan and Regulus liked to get under her skin and she knew she only gave them exactly what they wanted when she reacted the way she did, but they were adults now, working together in a proper job and she wasn’t going to be the reason this was ruined.

It wasn’t even as if they were mean to her. She was probably meaner to them. They always made sure their comments were just sly enough that hearing them without the tone they used could make them sound nice and she knew this probably had more to do with her last name than it ever did about feelings, but she knew the true intentions behind their words and she knew that they probably spoke horribly of her behind her back. She wasn’t stupid.

Nor did she care. She knew how she came across and she wasn’t trying to make herself pleasant for anyone’s likeness.

She didn’t want to be the first person to move for lunch, but she was starving and she needed to use her hour wisely. It’s scary starting a new job and even if she acted like she was confident coming in this morning, she had spent half an hour this morning debating on whether or not to bring a homemade lunch, or go buy it.

In the end she decided to bring a homemade lunch but was prepared to leave to buy lunch just in case that was what everyone did.

She wasn’t sure what Regulus and Evan were doing, but she knew she did not want to be with them in the breakroom. Alone.

She wasn’t sure if the boss would come in, but she had a strong feeling she wouldn’t. She had only met the safety manager once and she hadn’t made a move for the breakroom either so her chances weren’t looking good.

“Well, I’m going to buy my lunch.”

“Okay,” Regulus responded, still no one making a move for lunch.

“It’s twelve, so I’m going to leave now.” She grabbed her bag and stood up.

“Goodbye.” He heard her sigh, but he still refused to look up from his parchment until he heard the door click. Immediately he sat up and turned to face Evan.

“Cannot believe the ice queen is here, in our place of work, what are the chances?” Regulus was glad Evan was finding the humour in this situation.

“How long do you think she’ll last?” Regulus asked, as they stood up, went into the break room, and got their lunch out of the fridge.

“I don’t know mate, she’s pretty stubborn,” Evan chuckled as he placed his food in the microwave and set the timer. The low hum of the microwave was drowned out by Regulus’ laugh.

It was odd. They barely spoke to her at Hogwarts. They only spoke when they were forced to and probably more Regulus than Evan considering they were both Prefects, but somehow, Regulus and Evan were very involved in her life.

Not literally. She was just that one person that their conversations always drifted back to. It was probably because of her last name. She was practically royalty, or maybe more of a celebrity, so it was easy to detach the person from the body, especially when she acted the way she did.

When she’d sit by herself in the corner of the front row and sit by herself in the Common Room on the weekends, away from the rest of the people in their year who were happy to mingle. When they’d heard her say ‘no’ more times than they’d ever heard her say anything else and when rumours about her seemed to spread like wildfire in the school because it seemed everyone else had the same problem as Regulus and Evan.

It wasn’t to be cruel, it was just funny to them. She was so uptight and rigid and it was easy to get a reaction out of her. Besides, she always fought back just as strongly, so they didn’t see the harm in it.

When she was Head Girl and used to break up their Saturday night parties at 1am Evan would try to send her a glare as icy as hers while Regulus kept trying to get her to join.

“Maybe you’d be a little less stressed if you had some fun.”

“I will get Slughorn if you do not end this within the next half hour.”

And Evan and Regulus would roll their eyes and make some funny faces to the other while she turned her back, but they always ended the party.

“Just ask the Ravenclaw Prefect,” Regulus joked and Evan chuckled as they both rested their backs on the bench.

“I’d still pay a lot of money to know what happened to him.”

“I feel like the only way to know is to receive the same fate as him.”

“I’m surprised they didn’t obliviate our memory of him just to really seal the deal of craziness.” They stood there for a few beats of silence before Evan broke it again. “Oh well, at least she’s hot. She’s gotta be better to stare at than our old mate who left us.” Regulus made a considered movement with his head.

“I guess so.”

“C’mon,” Evan whined, “you don’t think she’s attractive?” Regulus hummed.

“I guess.”

“You guess?” Evan shot him an incredulous look. “She’s a pain but I’d do anything to get just one night with her.” He let out a mix of a moan and a groan that had Regulus giving him a funny look.

“She’d probably make you wash your hands before you ever got to touch her.”

“She’d probably watch me to make sure I cleared them right, but I’d happily do it,” Evan said as the microwave beeped and he took his container out. He mixed it around with his fork while Regulus turned to put his lunch in.

“And you really think she’d even agree to this?” He shut the microwave door and turned back around, the hum of the microwave once more filling the room.

“No way,” he scoffed, his mouth full of food, “but a man can dream.”

“I’m sure you do.” Regulus gave him a grimace and Evan nodded.

“I definitely do,” he confirmed. “I seriously can’t believe you don’t find her attractive, though.”

“I mean, if the offer was there, I guess I’d also take the opportunity to have a night with her.”

“That’s my boy,” Evan chuckled, moving to sit down at the small table, while Regulus stayed leaning against the bench with the microwave on it. “You know what though, I feel like you’d have a pretty good chance. More of a chance than me.” It was hard to take Evan seriously when he was stuffing his mouth with leftovers and so Regulus chuckled.

“What makes you say that?”

“You’re from a pretty noble family, you’re not unattractive and you’re pretty good at getting in girls’ pants,” Evan was pointing his fork at Regulus and Regulus shook his head as both of them recalled just how successful Regulus had been at getting into girls pants both in and out of Hogwarts.

“I don’t know, she’s like a whole other creature, she’s barely human.”

“Don’t doubt yourself Reggie,” Evan tsked, “I bet if you tried hard enough you could get in her pants in a month's time.”

“You bet, do you?” Regulus asked, the corners of his lips tugging into a smirk.

“Yep, I’m even willing to put money on it.”

“How much?”

“A hundred galleons.”

“Is that all? I’m pretty sure she’s going to hex me as soon as I go within five feet of her.”

“Fine, three hundred galleons.”

“Make it five hundred and you have a deal.” Evan shook his head, grateful that while he had a well paying job, he also came from a very well off family where this amount of money wasn’t a big deal to him.

“Really?” Regulus shrugged.

“Why not? Might make sitting across from her interesting.”

“Alright, if you get in her pants in a month's time then I’ll give you five hundred galleons and if you don’t, you give it to me.”

“Last condition,” Regulus said as the microwave beeped and he took his food out and brought it over to sit next to his friend. “Make it three months.” Evan gave him a look. “Come on, you know what she’s like. She’s not going to warm up to me after almost ten years of being the ice queen.” Evan sighed. “And besides, there’s Christmas and New Years in between that and we won’t be at work.”

“I feel like you’re setting me up to lose.”

“And you’re setting me to get my dick bit off, are you in?” Evan chuckled.

“I’m in.”

Regulus put his hand out and Evan reached out to shake it.

“Maybe her coming here wasn’t that bad after all,” Evan smirked, suddenly excited for lunch to be over.

Her break was spent a little differently. She had gone to the park across the street and sat at one of the benches eating the squished sandwich she had hurriedly put together this morning. When she walked in early this morning to meet her boss and some of the first words that left her mouth were, “You’ll be working closely with Regulus Black, I think you would have gone to school with him.” She knew this was going to be a shit show.

She had heard a rumour that Regulus and Evan worked together and she knew they were horrible together, she’d spent seven years of her life learning this.

She knew they didn’t like her and she knew they’d never admit it, but she also knew that she never had time for them and their foolish ways so it never really bothered her.

“He’s the other potions maker here and Evan Rosier looks after our orders and supplies, so at least you have some familiar faces.” She smiled at her boss thankfully as if those two boys would actually help her if she needed it. “So if you have any questions, get them to Regulus, he’ll be there to help you.” Sure, she thought, but she smiled and made her way out to see Evan already looking up at her and nudging Regulus. She knew when she applied that she would be working with someone else, it was marketed as a position in a team, but she never would have imagined who else would be in that team.

She spent the hour at the park, sitting on the bench and watching some of the children play in the park and she didn’t leave until a quarter to one, even if the walk back to the office was barely five minutes.

She didn’t want to spend any more seconds with those two boys than she had to, so when she finally got back to the office and put her bag back down by her desk, she started working again, even if she still had ten minutes left.

Evan and Regulus were still in the break room and she could hear them laughing and chatting, but as soon as her clock turned to one, the laughter stopped and they made their way out quietly of the breakroom and back to their desks.

She didn’t give them the satisfaction of looking up, but after barely a minute of silence, she felt Regulus lean over his desk so his head was closer to hers.

“Thought of any ideas yet?” She couldn’t help but squint her eyes up at him, why did he care?

“Not yet.” Was all she said and Regulus lent back in his chair.

“Well let me know if you need any help,” he said, before bringing out the applications he was working on before lunch.

“Okay,” she said, a hint of unsureness in her tone. They were weird words coming from the boy who just over an hour ago was reluctant to help her. Maybe the boss had spoken to him?

She raised her eyebrows and shook her head before going back to work, but she could feel Regulus’ eyes on her every few minutes. She wanted to scream at him and ask what his problem was, but she didn’t think it would be a good look on her first day.

No more significant exchanges were passed between them and her for the rest of the day. Occasionally Evan would kick the back of Regulus’ chair and they’d turn around and have a conversation. She wanted to roll her eyes and tell them that it seemed nothing had changed since Hogwarts, but she was trying to make a good impression.

Not only did she want to put the past behind them in this very adult job, she also wouldn't put it past the two of them to dob on her like they were school children again, so she was trying to be on her best behaviour.

At three on the dot, Regulus sighed and started packing away his parchment. He had filled out the forms for his trial on Friday and walked over to hand it over to his boss. When he came back, everyone was starting to pack up and so she followed suit.

She put her water bottle, parchment and pen back in her bag and turned around to put her book back on the shelf. When she turned back around, Regulus was standing in front of his desk, packed to go home, and facing her.

She tried to cover the funny look she went to give him by looking down to push her chair in, but she wasn’t sure she had been successful when she looked back up to see Regulus smirking at her.

“Did you think of an idea yet?”

“No,” she said, giving a curt shake of her head.

“That’s okay, like I said, sometimes it takes me weeks. Maybe we’ll get a request during the week anyway, so I wouldn’t stress about it too much.”

“Okay.”

“Are you going home now?”

“Yes,” she said, they were still standing in front of their desks. “Are you?”

“Yeah,” Regulus said, finally making a move to leave the office. Evan had already left which she found odd considering she was sure they were inseparable, but she moved to follow him regardless. “Well, apparate safely,” he said when they got to the door, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

What a strange boy, she thought when he apparated away without giving her a chance to say goodbye. She shook her head and sighed before doing the same.

She wasn’t sure what was going to come out of this job, but she had a feeling that it was going to be nothing less than interesting with those two beside her.

#regulus black #regulus black imagine #regulus black angst #regulus black blurb #marauders #marauders imagine #marauders blurb #marauders angst #harry potter #harry potter imagine #harry potter blurb #harry potter angst #rb #rbi #rba #regulus black series

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karizard-ao3 · 5 months

Note

Instead if the std thing maybe after chasing away all the guys Mikasa starts to get self conscious and things she the problem so when Eren actually asks her out she thinks he joking or will just ghost her like the others. Will hurt her but not something totally unforgivable

Ooh, or maybe after Mikasa steals his perfect body and the plastics, she feels bad and realizes her feelings for him, so she asks him to prom and he accepts, but then Historia, misunderstanding the situation, tells him mikasa only asked him out as a joke to make fun of him, which is maybe something he already did to mikasa?? At Halloween??? Instead of the Aaron Samuels betrayal with Regina, Eren asks her on a date then ditches her? I do NOT want him to make out with another girl in front of her to hurt her because I hate when men are cruel like that and still get the girl, so I'm thinking maybe he proposes a really embarrassing couples costume that she doesn't peg as embarrassing due to being a homeschool kid, so she shows up at the party looking ridiculous and he's wearing something normal and he and his friends laugh at her, which is when she and her friends come up with their plan to knock him down a few pegs.

So then, at Mikasa's party later, thinking that she was giving him a taste of his own medicine thanks to Historia's meddling, he lashes out at her. Tells her no one actually likes her (something he knows all about), that she's fake and a bitch, that he knew she was just kidding about the prom invite. Then he storms off to do whatever he's going to do to turn the school into a jungle on Monday and mikasa, who has chased after him to tell him she was serious, has her confrontation with ymir and Reiner because she skipped Ymir's feminist poetry slam because she was grounded but still threw a party.

#ask me things #my asks #answered asks #eremika #eren jaeger #mikasa ackerman #mean girls au

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shirohige-pirates · 5 months

Text

Birds of a Feather

CisFem Reader x Marco

CW: Violence, blood, language, adult themes and scenes. 18+ only

Summary: Life has not been kind to you. After a string of bad relationships, you're a little jaded and a little depressed in all honestly. The worst day of your life seems to be the turning point, but the roller coaster ride that follows could either throw you soaring free, or have you caged forever?

Tag List: @clumsyraccoon

Chapter 17: Pirated

Wednesday and Thursday passed with all the speed you expected, which is to say they did not go by quickly at all. You were able to find time to meet with Marco for lunch, but it almost seemed cruel to only see him for a few minutes as you both quickly took lunch and hastily made your ways back into work.

A swift kiss against your cheek before the veterinarian was jogging back to the hospital, was better than nothing, but for the first time in a very long time, you lamented your general busyness.

The drive into work and back home were also a point of frustration. You didn’t realize how nice it was to have someone to talk to in the morning, or after work. It wasn’t even like either of you spoke of anything overly important. Marco would talk about work, and so would you. There were no statements of how you missed one another, though there was a kind of unspoken sense of it.

Especially now.

You had most assuredly fallen fast and hard, and the only saving grace was that you had enough experience and sheer tenacity that at least it wasn’t impacting your work. If anything, you were more focused while you were at work, because letting your mind wander made you miss him all that much more. It was just easier to keep your mind on work.

“I think you have a date tonight.” Bon-chan hums, bringing you a coffee after lunch.

You smile. “What gave it away?”

“Well, your smile was brighter and wider Monday and Tuesday, and you said that the vet was giving you a ride to and from work.” He begins. “But yesterday and the day before you didn’t seem quite as cheerful. Not sad though, but certainly focused on your work. Poor Buggy was struggling to keep up with you.” He laments and you snort.

“Today your tempo is steady, and your smile is improved.” He finishes, taking a drink of his coffee before smiling widely. “So you’re going to see your hot doctor tonight.” Bon’s voice has a teasing tone in it as he nearly sings the words.

“I am. The plan is to go to the carnival at the docks.” You explain. “So I was maybe working a little faster than usual this week because I didn’t want to sleep in the office, or work over today.”

“Oh? Are you actually trying to balance some life into your work?” He muses, leaning against the cubicle and leaning in like he does for good gossip.

“My life and work were balanced.” You huff.

“Your life was a feather on the scale compared to your work,” he scoffs. “The only balance that existed was due to the fact that your work was the scale itself.”

“Alright, alright, point made. I was - am - perhaps a bit of a workaholic.” You grumble. “But we do good work, and I like the work I do.” You add, turning away from him and getting back to your work.

“That we do, but I’m happy for you.” He adds.

“… Thanks Bon-chan, I appreciate that.” You say, glancing over your shoulder and giving him a gentle smile as he starts to walk away with a wink.

“Ah, I do have one more small parcel of wisdom for you, before I leave you in peace, little love bird.” He says, twirling on his toes and coming back to you.

“And what would that be, Bon-bon?” You hum, turning toward him entirely.

“Just because your car’s fixed, it doesn’t mean you cannot carpool into work, non?” With a single raised eyebrow he walks away and leaves you to your thoughts.

Thoughts that don’t leave you alone for the rest of your shift.

You’d never moved too quickly in a relationship before. If you were being honest, you really never moved at all in a relationship before. It was half the reason things didn’t work out between you and Kid, or at the very least it was half the reason that most of your arguments started. You liked your space, your quiet, and your privacy.

Moving in with someone, or having them move in with you - an option that wasn’t even an option with Kid because his place was perfect by his standards - just seemed to risk everything. Time apart was important, having things you could do, and wanted to do on your own, was healthy.

Admittedly, you generally liked doing things on your own so much that you didn’t really do anything with someone else. You and Kid hooked up. Sure you saw a couple movies together, but his hands spent more time between your thighs than his eyes spent on the screen. Your other dalliances weren’t people who had plans on staying on the island in the first place, never mind staying within the same city.

Everyone at arm’s length.

It was less about trust, and more about safety. Kid had a devil fruit, but he didn’t care to - or didn’t need to - hide it. Marco had one, and while he admitted to having one, he hadn’t said what it was, or what it could do, so it was possible that it was safer for him to avoid drawing attention to himself.

Between the tattoo and the brothers and the shipping experience, and his ties with Ivankov, no matter the steps between him and Ivan, it wasn’t a stretch to assume he was on the government’s radar to some degree. You were pretty sure you knew the insignia, pretty sure you knew who Pops was.

If an Emperor and his sons were willing to settle down on a small island in the North Blue and stop causing trouble after Roger, then well, it was probably better for the World Government to leave them be. Assisting with Heun was probably as close to helping Ivan’s “company” as they could risk.

It was an uneasy sort of balance. The Government couldn’t shake the remains of the Emperors and pirates too hard, or they’d band together and lash out. The pirates couldn’t shake the Government too hard on their own, or they’d get flooded by Admirals, or worse, get the island they were on flattened.

Pirates protecting islands by behaving.

The amusing, if not twisted, idea brought a smile to your lips before you shoved your quickly spiraling thoughts aside and focused on your work. Once you were done for the day, it was a short drive home, a quick shower and a change of clothes.

Nothing too fancy, warmth was the focus of the outfit over much else. Once the sun went down it was going to get cold quickly, and you didn’t want to wear, or deal with, a heavy coat. A thin faux turtle neck with a knit sweater over top should be good enough. A pair of gloves in case your hands got too cold, thick socks and some nice hiking boots. A thick pair of leggings and a wool skirt gave the whole ensemble a cute vibe to go with the warmth, and the boots meant you wouldn’t get blisters walking all over the place.

A little snack, a little makeup, a little bit of nervousness and a cup of tea to help with that.

Headlights in the driveway let you know Marco had arrived, and when you opened the door to greet him, you nearly shut it in his face. You do close it a bit, looking away for a second before you open it back up. Marco’s just standing on your porch with a knowing smile.

He’s in a cream colored turtleneck with a dark wool blazer over it. A beige and gold scarf loose around his neck finishes off the look, and that’s before you even notice the dark pants and loafers.

“I did well.” He says evenly, leaning down and giving you a light kiss on the cheek. “So did you.”

Pressing your lips together you give him a smile. “Thank… thank you.” You clear your throat. “Did you… I mean, are we heading there right away?”

“That’s the plan.” He muses, glancing into your house for a second before you step outside and close the door. “If I go in there now, we might not make it to the carnival at all tonight.”

You have to admit that’s not the worst thing you’ve ever heard, but you remember his words from last weekend. How much he enjoyed getting out and about with you, and decided not to say anything - teasingly or otherwise.

Marco opens the car door for you, an easy grin playing on his lips.

“I’m getting the full date experience, hm?” You muse, sitting in the passenger seat and making sure you were all settled in.

“As often as you can stand to let me provide it.” He replies, closing the door for you before walking over to the driver’s side and getting in.

“You are just determined to spoil me rotten.” You playfully complain.

“Considering that box of condoms I saw on your counter,” he begins, and you turn and look out your window to avoid whatever look he might be giving you. “I’d say you’re trying to spoil me, yoi.”

#Birds of a Feather #Marco x reader #x reader #reader insert #marco the phoenix #marco the pinepple #modern au

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the-delta-quadrant · 10 months

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ok, so what the actual fuck?

so at this point i'm very certain i have cptsd, and for a bit over 2 years i've been desperately looking for therapy on the nhs due to lots of struggles. i got a bpd diagnosis from the community mental health team in the process but they discharged me without actually giving me any therapy. so all i had left was those 6 session iapt talking therapy bullshit things. i was rejected from some services after mentioning i was diagnosed with bpd, saying it's too severe for them to deal with, so i was stuck with nothing as the cmht wouldn't have me back either. blablabla, i got an autism and adhd diagnosis too and was actually advised to not tell the iapt people about my bpd diagnosis (you know a service is fucked when you have to lie). i actually did one of those 6 sessions things and of course it did fuck all because my problem is way too big and they weren't autism friendly like at all.

anyway, fast forward to may, for a few months i've known that all my problems are most likely cptsd. my partner and i will be moving soon so i thought i'll try the iapt services one last time (there are multiple to choose from) and i'll just be upfront about anything. if they reject me they reject me, but if they say they can help, why not fucking try.

so in may i referred myself to a service called vita minds via online referral form. i explicitly stated that this was about cptsd. i also told them i'm autistic and adhd. i had to fill out some questionnaires for anxiety, depression and ptsd. nowhere in the referral form did i get anything telling me they can't deal with this. (this was a different service than the ones rejecting me for bpd.)

a few days later, on a friday, i got a text asking me to book an assessment. i did. i was meant to have it the monday after.

i got a phone call that monday from the assessor. they asked me stuff about my referral and had me confirm that this is about cptsd as well as me being autistic and adhd. they explicitly told me that they can help with that, but that my assessment would have to be another day. i thought, cool. maybe they can actually help.

the assessor had me fill out those questionnaires again.

then i had the actual assessment on thursday. as usual i was told this would be recorded. nothing new. this was the same person i spoke to on monday and the same person who looked at my referral so i assumed that they knew what this was about. i thought this assessment would be to determine my main struggles DUE TO CPTSD. (who wouldn't? i already told them twice.) i was told i would hear back from them about therapy within 30 days.

about a week later i got an email saying that i've been put on a waiting list for therapy for "depression and anxiety", when that's not what i fucking told them. i mean yeah it's part of it, but it's so much bigger. i felt deceived. i felt lied to. i felt not taken seriously. i told them about my cptsd and they boiled it down to depression and anxiety. i'd rather they just told me they couldn't deal with me than basically have me believe that they could. it's cruel to mess with desperate people like that.

i sent an email back saying basically that, as well as addressing misinformation about me being on antidepressants (i was asked if i was ever on psych meds, i was very explicit that i was an antidepressants in 2018 for 6 months only, but not currently). heard nothing for a while.

until now.

i got an email back with a document addressing the issue. they're now saying i'm making it up because they listened to the recording of my assessment and because on that day, i never explicitly said the words "i have cptsd", it's all my fault. DESPITE it having been in my referral. DESPITE me having told the assessor three days prior on the phone.

but conveniently, that first phone call was never recorded, which in hindsight seems fucking deliberate because look how they're twisting it now. look how they're blaming me for their shit communication.

never during the actual assessment was i asked to confirm the reason for my referral again, and i didn't think i had to do it a third time. they should already have it in their system.

but no, apparently me being deceived and not being communicated with properly is now my fault. me being told "we can help with cptsd" OFF THE RECORD and believing it is my fault.

this is shitty communication all over and just lies. i mean especially knowing i'm autistic they should have been more fucking explicit.

anyway, if you have anything beyond mild to moderate depression or anxiety, avoid vita minds at all costs.

#disabled #disability #trauma #ableism #saneism #traumatised #cptsd #ptsd #complex trauma #complex ptsd #complex post traumatic stress disorder #mental health #mental illness #mentally ill #mental healthcare

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newstfionline · 4 months

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Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Biden’s support of Israel could come at a cost to U.S. foreign policy (Washington Post) When President Biden cautioned Israel this week that it was losing international support due to the war in Gaza, he could just as well have been warning that his own administration also has a lot to lose. There is acknowledgment within Biden’s administration that his unwavering support for Israel’s right to destroy Hamas could impose a price on the president’s standing at home and abroad. “Diplomatic cost can be an intangible thing,” a senior administration official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters. “On balance, you want countries to look favorably on the United States, to be willing to support it, to want to cooperate.” But “when public opinion in so many countries is hostile, it makes it harder to win support on issues we care about.” “On this issue, the United States stands pretty much alone, and has for a very long time,” said Ivo Daalder, president of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and a former U.S. ambassador to NATO. Since the early 1970s, the United States has vetoed dozens of resolutions deemed critical of Israel.

The border debate goes on (NYT) The debate over border security in Congress is ultimately about whether the United States should accept much more immigration than federal law allows. To many Democratic politicians and immigration activists, the answer is yes. They believe that the U.S. has a humanitarian responsibility to admit millions of migrants who live in countries that are poorer or beset by turmoil. These immigration proponents believe that the proposals in Congress to toughen border security are cruel and xenophobic, needlessly turning away people who are eager to contribute to American society. To many Republican politicians—and most voters, polls suggest—the porous southern border is an urgent problem. Since President Biden took office, the number of people apprehended at the border (a proxy for flows of illegal immigration) has risen more than fourfold compared with the average level in the 2010s. The data suggest that thousands of people are entering the country illegally each day. This surge has created chaos in parts of southern Texas and Arizona and has strained resources as far away as Chicago, Denver and New York.

Storm claims more lives in Argentina and Uruguay, bringing death toll to 16 (Reuters) The death toll from a severe electrical storm that struck Argentina over the weekend has risen to 16 people in Argentina and the neighboring country of Uruguay. Uruguay’s meteorological agency said two people were killed as strong wind gusts swept in from the southeast early Sunday morning. Thirteen others died on Saturday in the town of Bahia Blanca after a wall collapsed during the storm. The storm’s powerful winds also downed trees and lamp posts across the capital, Buenos Aires.

After Weeks of Warnings, Iceland Volcano Erupts in Plumes of Fire (NYT) A volcano in southwestern Iceland began erupting Monday with lava fountains reaching up to 330 feet and the glow visible miles away in the center of the capital, Reykjavik. The location of the fissure poses a risk to the nearby Svartsengi geothermal power plant and to the town of Grindavík, which was evacuated last month because of heightened seismic activity. “We are looking at a worst-case scenario,” said Thorvaldur Thordarson, a volcanologist in Iceland. “The eruption appears big, and only about two kilometers from major infrastructure.” Thousands of earthquakes had been detected in Iceland since late October, according to the Icelandic Meteorological Office. In November, with homes and roads being damaged, the authorities declared a state of emergency and evacuated Grindavík, a town of more than 3,000 people near the volcano.

A gloomy mood hangs over Ukraine’s soldiers as war with Russia grinds on (AP) A gloomy mood hangs over Ukraine’s soldiers nearly two years after Russia invaded their country. Despite a disappointing counteroffensive this summer and signs of wavering financial support from allies, Ukrainian soldiers say they remain fiercely determined to win. But as winter approaches, they worry that Russia is better equipped for battle and are frustrated about being on the defensive again in a grueling war. Some doubt the judgment of their leaders. Discontent among Ukrainian soldiers—once extremely rare and expressed only in private—is now more common and out in the open. Russia controls about one-fifth of Ukraine, when Crimea is included.

Hong Kong trial of media mogul (Washington Post) On Monday, Hong Kong’s highest profile trial since the 2020 crackdown began. It’s the government’s case against media mogul Jimmy Lai, founder of Apple Daily, the independent newspaper that has now been shut down. Lai is charged under the 2020 national security law imposed by Beijing with “colluding with foreign forces.” Authorities will use the prosecution to paint a narrative of the 2019 protests as a U.S.-directed plot aimed at destabilizing China, instead of the grass-roots-organized demonstrations they were, lawyers and analysts familiar with the case say. Lai’s son, Sebastien, says his father's case is being turned into a political show for Beijing to show how aggressively it will punish dissenters. Independent media outlets in Hong Kong have mostly shut down, and a few people who haven't been arrested have moved abroad.

Taiwan's chip superstardom (BBC) When 23-year-old Shih Chin-tay boarded a plane for the United States in the summer of 1969, he was flying to a different world. He grew up in a fishing village surrounded by sugarcane fields. He had attended university in Taiwan's capital Taipei, then a city of dusty streets and grey apartment buildings where people rarely owned cars. Now he was off to Princeton University. The US had just put a man on the Moon and the Boeing 747 in the skies. Its economy was larger than those of the Soviet Union, Japan, Germany and France combined. "When I landed, I was shocked," Dr Shih, now 77, says. "I thought to myself: Taiwan is so poor, I must do something to try and help make it better off." And he did. Dr Shih and a group of young, ambitious engineers transformed an island that exported sugar and t-shirts into an electronics powerhouse. Today's Taipei is rich and hip. High-speed trains zip passengers along the west coast of the island at 350km/h (218mph). Much of that is down to a tiny device no larger than a fingernail. The silicon semiconductor—wafer-thin and best-known now as a chip—sits at the heart of every technology we use, from iPhones to airplanes. The world produces more than a trillion chips a year. Taiwan now makes more than half the chips that power our lives. Its biggest manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), is the ninth-most valuable business in the world.

Israel’s Allies Urge Restraint as Netanyahu Vows ‘Fight to the End’ (NYT) The Israeli military bombarded dozens of sites in the Gaza Strip over the weekend as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to keep fighting in the territory, even as anguish over the Israeli military’s accidental killings of three hostages raised new questions about how his government is prosecuting the war. The military said on Sunday that it had struck 200 locations in Gaza over the previous 24 hours amid a mounting outcry over the civilian toll there and calls for restraint by three of Israel’s most important allies. Mr. Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel’s military would “fight to the end.” He began a government meeting in Tel Aviv by reading from a letter that he said came from families of Israeli soldiers killed fighting in Gaza. “You have a mandate to fight,” Mr. Netanyahu read in Hebrew, according to a statement from his office. “You do not have a mandate to stop in the middle.”

Pope Francis condemns killing of two women sheltering at Gaza church (Washington Post) Pope Francis condemned the killing of two women sheltering at a church in the Gaza Strip, appealing on Sunday for an end to the war. A sniper from the Israel Defense Forces shot the women “without warning” and “in cold blood” Saturday, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, an ecclesiastical office for the Latin Catholics in the region, said in a statement earlier. They were sheltering at the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, where the majority of Christian families in Gaza have taken refuge during the war, it said. Naming the women as Nahida Khalil Anton and her daughter Samar Kamal Anton, Francis said that there were “no terrorists” at the Catholic parish and that it is hosting families, nuns and those who are sick or have disabilities. “Some are saying, ‘This is terrorism and war.’ Yes, it is war. It is terrorism,” Francis said after a prayer with pilgrims gathered at St. Peter’s Square.

More Than 100 Members of This Gaza Clan Have Been Killed in War (NYT) People whispered that Nasser al-Astal had come undone, dazed by grief. Weeks after the Israeli airstrike that he said had crashed into his family’s home, his words came in loud, quivering spurts, darting frantically from memory to memory, from loss to loss—his wife, two of their sons and four of their daughters, all dead. And many more. All of their names were there in black and white on a list of 6,747 Palestinians who Gaza health officials said had been killed by Israeli attacks in the first 19 days of the war. No. 14: his wife, Marwa al-Astal, 48. No. 84: their granddaughter, 1, also named Marwa. The first 88 people on the list were all from the extended al-Astal family. The next 72 were Hassounas. The next 65 al-Najjars. The next 60 al-Masrys. The next 49 al-Kurds. Such numbers capture the magnitude of Gaza’s loss like little else: family trees dismembered, whole branches of them obliterated.

Convent-made delicacies, a Christmas favorite, help monks and nuns win fans and pay the bills (AP) It’s the fortnight before Christmas and all through the world’s Catholic convents, nuns and monks are extra busy preparing the traditional delicacies they sell to a loyal fan base even in rapidly secularizing countries. For many monastic communities, especially those devoted to contemplative life and with vows of poverty, producing cookies, fruitcakes, even beer for sale is the only means to keep the lights on. But it’s also an enticing way to strengthen their ties with lay people who flock to their doors—and in some cases their websites—in the holiday season. “Our kitchen is a witness to God’s love to those outside,” said Sister Abigail, one of the 10 cloistered nuns of the Perpetual Adorers of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Mexico City. “We are in the Lord’s presence, and we’re always thinking that it will make someone happy, the person who will eat this, or they will gift it and someone will receive it with joy,” added the sister, whose convent makes sweets, eggnog and its bestseller, tamales.

On the YouVersion Bible app, Americans looked for hope, not arguments, in 2023 (Religion News Service) Bobby Gruenewald might know more about how Americans read the Bible than anyone else in the country. For the past 15 years, Gruenewald, an online entrepreneur turned pastor, has run the popular YouVersion Bible app—a free application that has been downloaded more than 700 million times in the U.S. and around the world. When people log on to the app, they don’t generally want to know what the Bible thinks about politics or hot-button social issues, said Gruenewald. Instead, they are usually looking for some reassurance that things are going to be alright. That search for hope is reflected in a list of the top 10 verses that users searched for in 2023. The No. 1 verse for the third year running was Isaiah 41:10, which begins, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God,” in the New International Version. Other popular searches included familiar verses like John 3:16, Jeremiah 29:11—which speaks of God having plans to prosper his people—and Philippians 4:6, which reads, “Do not be anxious about anything.”

#headlines #news

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charcherry-weekly · 5 months

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Charcherry Weekly - Issue 176

Hello everyone, Mage of Light Nick Card here. The holidays are approaching fast, the news is approaching faster!

On sunday night, the caroling band of jinglorian pilgrims arrived in New Charcherry town! With their traditional songs hanging on the wind, they brought in the traditional hugelarge redistro tree, which is now erected in its usual spot in the center of charcherry square.

In other news, Santa's backup Coleman has begun performing both chair duty and workshop duty, with the aid of a number of magical duplicates. However, someone still needs to be vetted and approved to take up the redistro route itself. A certain reader suggested that a certain alternate version of a certain someone could possibly be assigned to the job for the sake of punishment/penance, but there is doubt on this candidate being fit for the job, due to their history, and their prime version's inability to care for a child properly. Proper vetting would be needed before any decisions are to be made on the matter, especially since they have not been seen since being brought into custody of a certain powerful figure.

On monday, Digidestined Rogue of Heart Charles began scouting for a potential campsite to camp with their digimon companion. What he found was almost difficult to believe. Embedded in the sheer rock cliffside of Mt. Phoenix was a train station! Reportedly it appeared as if it belonged to the london underground train system, despite being very far away from such a place. The North Charcherry station was closed that day, but a website, and later a contact handle was found for more information. It was decided that a party would investigate it further on thursday, to be sure of its nature and safety rating.

On Wednesday, Prince of Time Aeons Edgeworth reportedly wrote a letter to santa, wishing for Mage of Life Blaze to be returned for the holiday season. This letter promptly disappeared from the mail system, apparently by a divine act. Aeons claims that 12 hours after the incident, they had heard the voice of Arceus tell them "December 24th". This is unable to be confirmed, but they are adamant about this claim. I can only hope that it's true and not just a cruel prank.

On the same day, multiple region champion Brae Emit disembarked for the Paldea region once again, to participate in an exchange student program to send her to the Unova region. This appears to match up with the recent release of the Indigo Disc DLC on the same day. She has been keeping in contact with the group during this time.

On Thursday, Maid of Void Skitis decided to scout ahead and catch a train from North Charcherry station. She wound up locating Stratford station, which had been largely iced over due to a potentially specialized dungeon core. After sending a series of messages to the group, a party was formed to begin the investigation in earnest. Included in this party was Charles, Heir of Time Thoren Emit, their sister Prince of Time Flux Emit, bounty hunter Samus Kitten, and half-dialga BLAZE. They traveled multiple lines in order to get to Stratford, witnessing numerous types of trains and visiting a handful of stations, all strewn across the void, only stabilized by documentation. Unfortunately, much of the station names are a blur to me and I'd have to check the maps and lists to see the routes that the party took. At one point, the party had to be pried out of a locked up train, after something blew up on it. The driver, who reportedly looked very much like a human version of Skitis, managed to get the party out of there with minimal injury. Eventually the party made it to the perilous maze of Stratford station, surrounded by ice and water. They made their way to the DLR platforms and after almost getting ran over (key word almost), they continued onwards, to the source of the frost. Skitis was located with a number of unconscious staff members. upon rejoining the party, Skitis used a void technique to contain any collateral damage from the move that BLAZE performed on the dungeon core. They wound up using Roar of Time, obliterating the core from that time. It can only be assumed that the core is now very far away from where it once was, as a result of the twisted timespace structure of the furthest ring. It is unknown if the core is intact or not however. BLAZE did wind up growing a sizable spike from their back as a result. With the core's removal, focus was placed on assisting the staff members with recovery. Hot food, hot drinks, and warm clothing was distributed, and a direct service line was set up to get the party back to North Charcherry. Upon arriving back at the home station, the party met up with PKMN breeder HAZEL, and Hotel refugee Jezo, having arrived from two different distant dimensional train routes. There are plans to formalize a walkable route to North Charcherry station, as it is currently far away from all known roads. Desertian President Katyleen Kitten has also been put in contact with those in charge of the railroad, though it remains to be seen what will happen next, especially knowing that voidco also uses these train routes for their own purposes too. The direct line is as follows: Brookford - Charcherry North - Tattenham - Stratford Reportedly, a train arrives once per hour, all day long.

As the week has continued on, the chao club has been taking care of their chao babies, but have voiced concern about the lack of available chao-native fruit beyond circle fruit. Flux Emit has managed to request Stardew Valley Ancient fruit from denizen Euphrosyne, wanting to offer various fruits to her chao, Jubi. I do wonder what an ancient fruit is supposed to taste like and what it would take to grow one. Your dear newsletter writer has never played stardew valley, so this fruit is largely unknown to me. Reportedly, Page of Darkness Dylan has not only obtained a chao (named Shortstop), but is trying way too hard to make them evil. There are even reports that he ordered a shipment of dark fruit, though it is unknown where exactly it was sourced from. Meanwhile, former US president Chaos Barack Obama has sent out a militarized group to Plit, in order to seek out a variety of chao-native fruits in the kingdom of Penderland, for his beloved chao, Chabo. I do wonder what sorts of pokeberries most chao would be interested in, as those tend to be a lot easier to come by.

This week’s known market stands in Desertia Town:

Artisanal jinglorian toy stand

Katie’s potion stand (Not available to plitlanders due to regulations, available to all others however)

shinyjiggly pokesnacks stand (ran by Rufus)

Clothing Store - Shinobi shozoku (50 gp) - Gambeson (1 gp) - Speed sheath (10 gp) - Outfit, Courtier’s (30 gp)

That does it for this week. Its hard to work on both a game and a comic at the same time. At least things are less depressing than last week. https://letssosl.boards.net/thread/411/charcherry-weekly-issue-176

#charcherry weekly #sbarg2.5dungeoncrashers #sbargv2 #pokemon #dungeons and dragons

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healthstyle101 · 6 months

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Maya Kowalski describes seeing mother for the last time before suicide: ‘Unbelievably cruel’

Child Medical Abuse Case Witness Testifies in Court Maya Kowalski, a key figure in a child medical abuse case in Florida, took the stand on Monday to share her experience. This case eventually led to her mother's tragic suicide and inspired the Netflix documentary "Take Care of Maya." When Maya was just 10 years old in 2016, she was admitted to Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital (JHAC) in St. Petersburg due to severe pain caused by a rare medical condition known as complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). Hospital staff became suspicious of her parents, thinking they were engaged in "medical abuse." As a result, the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) intervened, separating Maya from her parents while she received medical care. Maya expressed her deep disappointment with the limited time she was allowed to spend with her family after hearing such distressing news. She testified in a Sarasota County courtroom, saying, "It was actually so unbelievably cruel, the amount of time they allocated for me to spend with my family after hearing such awful news." Tragedy Strikes Maya's mother, Beata Kowalski, faced immense anguish due to the allegations of medical abuse and her separation from her daughter. This anguish ultimately led her to take her own life in January 2016. Maya recalled the last words her mother said to her the day before her death, "I love you, and I'll see you tomorrow." Regrettably, Maya never saw her mother again. Maya also described her younger brother's struggles as they both dealt with her illness, which was deeply emotional for her. "Take Care of Maya" Documentary The Netflix documentary "Take Care of Maya" chronicles the Kowalski family's ordeal, delving into the challenges Maya and her mother, Beata, faced while dealing with CRPS. This rare and poorly understood condition causes severe pain throughout the body due to nervous system dysfunction. Maya experienced painful episodes in her limbs and skin lesions during her illness. Additionally, her feet would turn inward during CRPS episodes, a common reflex for patients with this condition. Legal Battle Maya's father took legal action against JHAC and the medical staff involved in his daughter's treatment in 2018. He alleged that the hospital wrongly accused Beata of medical abuse and failed to provide appropriate care for his daughter, causing his family significant emotional distress. Despite Beata's efforts to advocate for Maya's diagnosis and treatment, hospital staff suspected her of medical abuse when she insisted on ketamine to alleviate her daughter's pain. The hospital's stance on this matter remains unchanged, as a Sarasota County court concluded that the staff had reasonable cause to suspect abuse. Hospital's Response Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital has emphasized its commitment to patient safety and privacy. It follows federal privacy laws that limit information disclosure concerning specific cases. The hospital's primary responsibility is the well-being of the children in its care, and it is legally obligated to report any signs of possible abuse or neglect to the Florida Department of Children and Families. Maya's Ordeal Maya alleged that during her time in the custody of child protective services, she was placed in an isolated room for 48 hours. In this room, she was left unattended with a commode that was positioned too far from the bed, making it difficult for her to use the bathroom without assistance. Nearly five years after the Kowalski family's lawsuit was filed, and seven years since Maya's initial admission to JHAC, both sides are now presenting their cases in court. Read the full article

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lilartifex · 7 months

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Ink and Fictober 2023 Day #4: "Do you even know what this means?"

Inktober Prompt #4: Dodge

Rating: G

Warnings: None

Fandom: Original Work

Character/s: Bunch o' random superhero + villain OCs made solely for this story.

Additional Tags: Superheroes, Villains, OCs, Attempt at Humor, Comedy, Based on a Tumblr Post (which I now cannot find :') )

Summary: Everyone just has one of those days. You know, those days where everything just gets weirder and weirder and your luck gets worse and worse. In this case, it means a trio of villains-who-aren't-really-villains and a pair of superheroes whose Corporate office decides they want to try out a new strategy. This goes about as well as most Corporate plans when the head honchos have never actually had their feet on the ground.

Quick Note: This is probably the closest thing to crack-writing that I’ve ever written. I have six assignments due over about four weeks. Let me have my goofy story. :3

___

People become villains for all kinds of reasons.

Sometimes it’s for monetary gain. Sometimes it’s to stick it to the man. But sometimes, it’s because of a deep-rooted trauma through years of mistreatment, scorn or abuse at the hands of a cruel world that deserves to burn for eternity for what it has done.

And then sometimes it’s just because it’s fun. And a way to cause chaos when nothing seems to be going right for you, so you’re out to make it everyone else’s problem.

That was mostly what motivated Miss Behave. The city called her a villain. She preferred the term vigilante.

See, most people, if they had superpowers at all, just had these basic little quirks that made everyday life a tiny bit easier. Maybe they could carry twenty shopping bags at a time. Maybe they could run at fifty kilometres per hour and were efficient at daily coffee runs. Maybe they had just enough telepathic strength to stop their hot tea from spilling onto the person beside them and avoid the awkward apologies and social interaction that followed.

Miss Behave didn’t have that. Instead, she was cursed with continuous bad luck, which could only be curbed by redirecting it onto someone else. In school or at work that wasn’t too bad. She could make her lazy coworker deal with all the worst customers, or make her least-favourite teachers’ technology throw a fit all day.

But when she got to university, she found it hard to redirect her powers onto anyone. Her fellow classmates were suffering the same way she was, her lecturers were actually really decent people, and she didn’t have the heart to torture her already-stressed-out coworkers who were, more often than not, in the same boat as her.

So, she decided to redirect it onto people who made the world a crummier place by donning a costume and skipping along buildings on her nights off. It wasn’t her fault that she just so happened to accidentally do it to a few local superheroes who had now convinced the media that she was a menace. They just got in the way and then had their super-suits turn bright pink in the wash. They should’ve been more careful.

Now though, Miss Behave was certain that she mustn’t have been using her powers enough because tonight she and her little team were facing two new superheroes whom they’d never seen before. And on a Monday night, too.

“GEEZ! Freaky, watch where you throw that thing!” screeched her teammate, Brain Freeze.

Their other teammate, The Freak (AKA, “Freaky”) launched another brick at his assailant. “Oi! Do you have any idea how hard it is to control Gorilla arms?” he shouted back. “These things weigh a tonne!”

Miss Behave rolled her eyes.

Freaky could shapeshift, which, in itself was a pretty unusual ability. But when it was coupled with the fact that he could only shapeshift parts of his body and had pretty poor balance even without it, there’s little wonder he was kicked out of the Hero Program. Meanwhile, Brain Freeze could, well, freeze stuff. A pretty minor power, until he sneezed. And considering his almost constant allergies, life wasn’t exactly easy for him either.

The two heroes they were facing were a mentor-sidekick duo dressed in matching reds, oranges and yellows. Brain Freeze and Freaky were doing battle with the mentor, a tall guy called ‘Sunflare’. Miss Behave was facing off on her own against the sidekick, a brunette called Redflame. The names were kind of a giveaway to their powers, but she hadn’t actually seen either of them use them yet. The fight so far had been completely physical. And, other than the heroes’ initial introductions, strangely silent.

Miss Behave glanced up and noticed a small awning above them. It was weighed down with water that had accumulated during the afternoon showers, creating a dip right above where Redflame was standing. Redflame. Water.

Miss Behave shrugged. Easy enough.

She knocked the hero on her backside and concentrated, squishing her face into what Freaky called her ‘About To Mess Crap Up’ face. There was a nasty tearing sound and the awning above Redflame tore open, as if it had been waiting for a while and chosen this moment to inconveniently give way. Which it pretty much had.

Miss Behave grinned as Redflame glanced up sharply, realising the danger she was in. Then she raised a hand and the water just - stopped. It floated above her in mid-air like some sort of freakish bubble.

Redflame froze, realising what she’d done. “Oh, heck.”

Miss Behave recognised that voice. And those powers. “Wait a minute,” she cried in disbelief, “That you under there, Wavelet?”

Redflame hesitated. “Uh… no?”

Miss Behave was only vaguely aware of her teammates’ shouts as they were hurtled out of the way by a wave of water behind her. She was too busy staring at her nemesis in absolute bewilderment.

“It is!” she gawked. “What the Hell? So he must be -”

“Riptide,” came a deep, sour voice behind her. She whirled around, fist flying, but the older hero caught her wrist easily. Now that she was much closer, Miss Behave wondered why on Earth none of them had recognised the pair before. They were two of the most prominent heroes in the city and the only ones she and her teammates fought regularly. True, they were both dressed in completely opposite aesthetics and had different names, but still.

God, she was an awful nemesis. Even the fact that he had disarmed both her teammates and now had her in his iron grip couldn’t shake off her surprise.

“Why?” she managed, staring at him with wide eyes. “I just… WHY?”

“New strategy from the High Ups,” said Redflame - Wavelet - before her mentor could chime in. She’d always been talkative, even for a superhero. “They got it in their heads that we should give rebranding a go. Try and make ourselves out to be the opposite of what we actually are.”

“... Okay, I can see that,” said Miss Behave slowly, “But why?” At this point, she figured that the more she kept them talking, the more chance there was of her teammates getting their act together and getting her out of this mess. Also, she did genuinely want to know what was going on.

“To confuse our enemies,” said Wavelet monotonously, as if she was repeating memorised lines from a script.

Miss Behave had no idea what to say to that. But she had to keep talking, so she said the only thing she could think of, “Er… good for you guys, I guess?”

“‘Good for you guys’?” Riptide burst out. “Do you even know what this means?”

Mis Behave was taken aback by the normally calm hero’s outburst. “Um…”

“It means,” exclaimed Riptide with the air of someone who’d been waiting all day to complain, “That people expect me to set things on fire. With my WATER powers.”

Before she could reply, there was a shout from the street down below.

“Sunflare!” cried a shrill voice. “Sunflare, help! Brain Freeze’s blasts trapped my car in ice!” Miss Behave had a vague recollection of one of her friend’s stray blasts landing down there somewhere. “You need to get rid of it! My taxes pay your wages, you know!”

“AND WHAT THE HELL D’YOU EXPECT ME TO DO ABOUT IT?” roared Riptide. “THAW IT OUT SLOWLY WITH LUKEWARM WATER?”

Miss Behave gawked at him.

“He’s… having a day,” explained Wavelet apologetically.

“Right - Wave - uh - Redflame,” growled Riptide, hastily correcting himself, “You deal with this one. I’ll sort out… that.” He spun Miss Behave around and disappeared over the building, sliding down what she assumed must be a PVC pipe.

And that left Miss Behave and Wavelet staring at eachother.

“So…” Miss Behave began awkwardly. “Bad day at the office?”

Wavelet glared at her. “Oh come on! As if you don’t already know!”

Miss Behave blinked. “What?”

“You!” Wavelet flapped her hand at her. “You and your little… Bad Luck powers. You did this to us last time, didn’t you? Cursed us with your… thing.”

“Me? I didn’t do this.” Miss Behave’s day was just getting weirder and weirder. What the heck were they putting in superheroes’ diets these days? Unfiltered drugs or something? “Why would I curse you for something you did on - when was our last battle?”

“Wednesday.”

“Wednesday! Seriously.” Miss Behave shook her head. “You two are annoying, but you’re not THAT annoying.”

Wavelet stared at her. “But I - we thought all this was happening because of you!” she cried helplessly. “And we figured we were sent out to fight you because you’d used your powers or something to manipulate the Patrol Roster so you could gloat at us about your dastardly evil plans for the city and then world domination!”

“... You’ve really overthought this, haven’t you?”

“A little bit, yeah.”

Miss Behave sighed and shrugged apologetically. “Yeah, sorry my dude, but that just happens. Corporate be like that sometimes.”

The sidekick stared at her for a moment longer. “You mean we could’ve just pulled a sickie and let someone else fall for the ‘swapping personas’ thing?”

“Yep.”

“Ughhhhhhhhh,” Wavelet moaned dramatically. She glanced down at her mentor, who was still trying to explain to a Karen that no, he could not thaw out an entire car with lukewarm water in under five minutes, and yes, the Superhero Initiative would be sure to cover all costs for the damages.

Miss Behave took the opportunity to glance over her shoulder, where her teammates were starting to get to their feet with a lot of grumbling and groaning. They had a lecture tomorrow, Miss Behave realised, and she hadn’t done the readings.

“You know,” Wavelet said hesitantly, “I think it’s safe to say we’re all just done with today. If I take him-” She jerked a thumb at her mentor below “-home, will you three call it an early night too?”

“Yeah,” said Miss Behave, thinking of her readings, “We will. We’re kinda done too.”

“M’kay, good.” Wavelet hesitated. “But don’t think we’ll let you off next time,” she added quickly. “This is just a one-time thing. Next time we’re back to fighting and there won’t be any breaks. We’re gonna actually arrest you.”

“Sure you will,” yawned Miss Behave absently. “Like you have every other time.”

Wavelet scrunched her nose but didn’t reply. With a last weary wave, she summoned a small stream of water from the air around her and slid down to collect her mentor.

Brain Freeze and Freaky finally managed to pull themselves to their feet and made their way over to Miss Behave. They had clearly heard everything. And they were arguing, as usual.

“I’m just saying,” said Brain Freeze as they approached, “That it wouldn’t be too bad a strategy. Nobody would be able to keep track of their powers and guess their weaknesses until they actually saw them in action. No point in giving away vital information in the very word people use to identify you, is there?”

“It would only last until people started seeing their powers in action,” Freaky reminded him. “Then it wouldn’t matter what they were called. Everyone would know it’s the opposite.”

“They could change their names and appearances regularly,” reasoned Brain Freeze.

“Yeah, but the branding, Brain, think about the branding,” argued Freaky. “How would anyone franchise them if they did that?”

“C’mon guys,” Miss Behave moaned. “I’ve had enough tonight. And I’ve got readings to do. Let’s just go home.”

༝ ˚ ｡⟡ ｡ ˚ ༝

Down below, Wavelet had convinced Riptide that they were done for the night and that the Initiative probably wouldn’t mind if they called in and said their new ‘strategy’ was a bust. She’d reassured him that the villains had managed to escape tonight, although it might be a while before they tried anything again.

He’d managed to calm the Karen down enough for the pair of them to slip off, but as they were about to go Wavelet caught the sound of voices drifting down from the rooftop above. She paused to listen.

“Yeah, I’m done too,” came The Freak’s voice. “Pizza at my place?”

“I’m just saying, it’s not a half-bad plan!” That was Brain Freeze. “Better than how I got MY name, anyway.”

A snort. “Brain, you chugged an entire Macca’s slushie and then got a two-minute brain freeze.” Miss Behave. Wavelet’s ears perked up. “If that isn’t deserving of a name, I don’t know what is.”

“I hate you guys.”

Wavelet listened as their footsteps slowly moved away, before turning to catch up with her mentor.

As she fell into step with him, she had to duck her head to hide her grin.

#fictober23 #writing #creative writing #writing challenge #inktober #inktober23 #inktober2023 #fictober #fictober event #oc #superhero #villain #attempted comedy

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breakingarrows · 10 months

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Cibele - Autobiographical Games, Auteurs, Voyeurism, and the Relevancy of Art

Released: Monday, November 2, 2015 Developed by: Star Maid Games

Isn’t all art autobiographical? To a certain extent, yes. Compared to painting, music, and film, games are rarer, however, at being read as the expression of a specific individual. Painting, drawing, sculpting and the like might be the “purest” form as there is usually only the one artist bringing about the creation of the work. The less hands the more “pure” a creation is viewed as. Music making is an expression of a singular or group of artists, but is touched by many hands. The artist plays the instrument, sings the lyrics. Often the writing is a collaborative process, sometimes ghostwritten entirely by someone else. There are producers who help in the process, the audio mixer at the time of recording, and the editor among others. A final, published work is not the product of a single person but can largely be credited and viewed as the spirit of one (or more). Film has even more collaborators and even larger numbers of hands touching a work before its “final” form. It can also be re-edited, remastered, and reproduced long after those original hands have finished their work.

It was in film that the “auteur” theory began, where a singular person, namely the director, of a film is credited as the authorial voice behind the film as a whole. This theory crossed over into video games, a medium desperately attempting to emulate film, where a singular person is credited as the authorial voice behind a game. One way that games have mirrored films is that in the big budget space the amount of people contributing to a project has exponentially increased. For film, just compare the credits to Rambo III (whose credits occupy 321 lines of an excel sheet), then the highest budgeted film of the time, to Avengers: Endgame (4221 excel lines), the most prominent of the big budget blockbusters. Rockstar North at the time of Grand Theft Auto III’s release in 2001 credited 185 developers. In 2008 with the release of Grand Theft Auto IV there were 1,334 developers credited. Most recently, with Red Dead Redemption II in 2018 there were 4,130 developers credited. As we have learned, there are likely many more whose hands touched these games but whose names were withheld from the official credits due to a cruel policy, something that sadly can also be a mirror of film. Can Red Dead Redemption II have a singular authorial voice behind it when over 4,000 people all had a hand in its creation? I certainly don’t think so. It is due to this exponential inflation of development sizes and the reliance on outsourcing development for high budget projects that a game like Death Stranding can get a lot of attention for being the work of over 1,400 people, but largely credited to the singular voice of Writer, Director, and Designer: Hideo Kojima.

Much like his previous work in Metal Gear Solid, conversations between characters were not always exposition or character history, but instead just someone explaining to Sam Porter Bridges (the player stand-in) a movie or the history of some niche topic, things that could easily be read as something Kojima simply found interesting and decided to put into the game. Except, in the early games of Metal Gear Solid these conversations are mainly optional ones summoned via codec calls, whose dialogue was mainly written by Tomokazu Fukushima, not Kojima. Not that this somehow discredits Kojima’s contributions, but it does lessen the belief that ALL of the Hideo Kojima branded games were the result of his singular creative vision dominating development, and explains their lack of presence in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, which Fukushima did not work on. Death Stranding remains an oddity of its time as no other game with its budget could be so easily attributed to a singular person’s vision. Instead of looking to apply auteur theory in the big budget space, which can lead to regrets such as Tom Bissell’s profile of Cliff Blezinski for The New Yorker in 2008, it can be much more easily applied to the independent development space of games, where smaller teams, sometimes even consisting of only one person, create games that are frequently an essence of their spirit being shared with others.

Cibele, released in November of 2015, is a creation of many but carries the voice and spirit of one person: Nina Freeman. This is not just because she is the writer and designer and actor amongst a team of 25 people, but the game is explicitly autobiographical and an adaptation of a period of her own life. It relays the story of young, emotionally immature love, found between two people who met and mainly communicated through the online space of playing an MMO. Freeman’s expression here is one of tender care for its player. The game is a sharing of a personal experience as a way of comforting those who have gone through the same thing by letting them know they are not alone in their pain. Playing the game consists of browsing the PC desktop of Freeman the character, littered with snippets and photos from Freeman the person’s life. This usage of real images extends to the interstitial scenes in which Freeman the person plays Freeman the character in a live action video, or better known in the gaming space, as FMV (full-motion video). The most “gamey” aspect of Cibele is when you play the in-fiction MMO Valtameri. It’s very simple to play, you simply click on screen to move your character there and click on enemies for the character to auto-attack, eventually summoning a larger boss enemy character to defeat ending the play session. During this playtime you will listen to Freeman talk to Blake as their online friendship eventually stumbles into the beginnings of a relationship before the fateful in-person meetup and cold feet abrupt breakup.

The inclusion of Freeman’s presumably real life photos and text lends a voyeuristic touch to the way you interact within the game. You as the player are supposedly re-enacting any typical evening spent in front of the character’s computer, but because it is full of actual photos, not renders or artistic interpretations of real life, it feels more like we’re getting an intimate view of this person, both the character and the creator behind her. As time passes in-game by months the relationship between herself and Blake becomes more explicit. Photos you can view that were taken and/or sent to Blake as shows of affection become more revealing, to a surprising extent given they are actual photos of a person. Not that this aspect is any different in lots of other games. How many times have we, as the player, gone through another person’s personal items in a video game and read their diary or emails? The main difference here is that these are photos of someone we know is real, half-naked, and meant to be viewed only by her lover. She even has a brief text exchange with someone else while playing Valtameri who claims a former love of hers shared with him explicit photos originally sent for his eyes only, an unfortunate outcome all too common in young relationships. Are we, as the player, any better for snooping around her desktop and viewing her undressed? Despite its inclusion in the game meaning my viewing was intentional, it still feels wrong. It does make me question my comfort in digging into others' private lives in other games, even if they’re purely fictional.

Some of the text you can read are archives of old blog posts Freeman made, an online persona maintained through sporadic updates sharing details of her life. The way she organizes her files, the different information she reveals depending on who the recipient is, all are different ways we get to form a picture of what we imagine the “real” Freeman is. The game itself lends insight into the real Freeman’s life and mind, a representation of a specific time of her life, though obviously viewed through a lens of something to be played by anyone willing to buy it, and as an artifact of memory, and only one person’s at that. It’s incomplete, just like the image of Freeman conjured by Blake’s mind. It could be that finally viewing the “real” Freeman and not just the one presented in voice conversations and explicit photos was overwhelming for Blake, who took the easy way out of claiming he doesn’t, in fact, love her and that he has to go (but they’ll talk later). However, having been there myself, it was most likely just emotional immaturity that led to this sad end.

I see pieces of myself in multiple characters in Cibele. The jealous friend in the DMs, the awkward conversations of compliments and unknown feelings, baiting for any statement, or picture, to make myself feel better. Post-high school and early 20’s are a weird and lonely time, and trying to reason with someone in the midst of their emotions during this time seems to never lead anywhere. I was a lonely boy looking for connections online, though instead of an MMO it was Tumblr that was my outlet. I met my wife on Tumblr, though our relationship had stop and starts and teary breakups and getting back together make outs that could easily fit into the same emotional feeling Cibele evokes. This feeling, this sharing of a personal experience and emotion, is what I always find valuable in art and artistic expression, or just any expression. Through the sharing and receiving of emotions, memories, stories, and images, we can become better people and more whole.

There have been some recent conversations about the intent and purpose of art and whether it is still relevant. On the podcast Eggplant: The Secret Lives of Games episode 109: Answering Your Questions without a Guest the cast reads the question, “In your Day of the Dev episode Paolo posed the question why would one not be making games that actively try to make the world a better place. More specifically in regards to climate change. Pressure of being part of one of the last generations with the possibility to take action affects many parts of our lives, how we make games, and what games we play. Whether that is not flying to conventions, playing cozy games to distract ourselves, the insane ethical implications of producing hardware and much more. I would love to hear the cast pick up this question, explore how it influences their play, and what, if any, consequences it has for themselves.” Similarly this topic is discussed in the YouTuber Art is Everything’s video from March 2022 titled, “Is Art Still Relevant?”

With the question of whether or not game creators should be working to change the minds of the ones in charge and bring about new policies, it is greatly overestimating the responsibility of the individual compared to that of the government. Not that I want to discourage or dissuade someone from attempting to do so, but the presumption that others should do the same I think grossly mischaracterizes the difference in power between the two subjects. For the question of “is art still relevant” I answer with a deafening YES. So long as people find comfort and fulfillment in the creation of something, anything, and so long as others find a work or expression affecting, art will remain relevant and meaningful. This is why I agree with Grace, who, writing about the visual novel The Earth Is A Better Person Than Me, ends her piece saying, “If we believe that words can obscure, we have to also believe they can reveal. It helps that The Earth Is A Better Person Than Me is not strictly autobiographical or even “real.” It doesn’t have ambitions to open minds or free hearts. It wants to feel, to explore, to touch. That simplicity is what makes it so powerful. It can’t do everything, but a moment, it revealed something to me. In a sense, that’s all I can ask art, and words, to do.” I find the same is true with Cibele, which is also the complete opposite of the visual novel in that it is intensely autobiographical, to the point that the usual snooping we do instinctively and automatically in so many games feels invasive and wrong. It also reminded me of a lonely time of my life, the good that came from it, and that I’m not alone, and I find that works such as this will remain relevant so long as we live.

#cibele #pc #writing #criticism #nina freeman

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