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#besides i think ebony supposed to mean very dark skin and ivory very light skin
camphorror · 3 years
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this is not commentary on the thing on its own just a me thing i’m reading this book for class and i’m really enjoying it!! but the author keeps describing characters as like “olive/caramel/ivory/ebony skin” and i just don’t get it it is a pet peeve of mine because olives are green or like brown-green and caramel is orange and ivory and ebony do not look like colours a human can have. i understand the fact people use this in literature but it feels so frustrating because i still don’t understand what it actually means!!!!
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owlways-and-forever · 4 years
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They rented the little beach house - adorably named Shell Cottage - from a young couple who had decided to spend the summer in France. A girls’ beach week seemed like the perfect way to celebrate Padma and Parvati’s birthday, the last of them to turn 25,  and have a carefree week before they were all in their “late twenties” - a true horror.
The house was quaint. A bit small, for the six girls, so they had to squeeze two to a bedroom, but none of them really minded that. Lavender and Parvati, as the only couple there, took the master bedroom, Padma shared with Daphne, and Romilda bunked with Pansy. All in all, it was a pretty cozy arrangement for the group of friends.
On the second day of their trip - and the first full day, having spent the day before driving all across England - the girls got up and immediately headed down to the beach. It was a short walk from the house, so they didn’t worry about bringing lunch with them, deciding they would go back when they were hungry. It was a beautifully sunny day, perfect for sunbathing and swimming.
The girls all lay down their towels in the sand and kicked off their shoes, the other four racing off to the water while Parvati and Lavender sprawled out on their towels. Not a morning person, Lavender cozied up to her girlfriend, joining their hands and nuzzling her nose into Parvati’s shoulder.
“You smell nice,” Lavender mumbled happily as Parvati’s deep, onyx hair tickled her cheek. “Happy birthday, ‘Vati.”
“Thank you, my love,” Parvati grinned in reply, tilting her head to kiss Lavender’s temple. “And thank you for putting this whole trip together. I know it’s not exactly your idea of a birthday celebration, but it suits Padma much more than partying.”
“As long as you’re happy,” she answered, blinking her blue eyes sincerely. “I know how much it means to you to celebrate your birthday with your sister. And besides, we went out clubbing for my birthday. Today is about you and Padma.”
Parvati hummed happily and nestled in further, both girls dozing off lightly. It wasn’t until the other girls returned from the water that the two woke up. They sat in a little circle for a while, catching up on each other’s news and talking about what was going on in the world.
“Padma, you’ve been awfully quiet,” Romilda said, suddenly turning her eyes toward Parvati’s twin. “How are things with Anthony?”
“Everything is fine,” Padma answered warily. She wasn’t particularly comfortable sharing the details of her relationship with anyone, except maybe her sister.
“But how is he?” Romilda pressed, raising her eyebrows to try and make Padma understand the meaning beneath her words. “Satisfactory? I’ve always been so… curious about him.”
“It’s always the quiet boys who have more to be proud of than the jocks, isn’t it?” Lavender commented, waggling her eyebrows as she giggled. “I heard from Lisa Turpin that Anthony ought to be very proud.”
Parvati flashed her girlfriend a look of profound irritation, clearly begging her to shut up. Padma’s cheeks flushed a deep umber as she understood the girls’ meaning. She looked to her sister for help, anything to change the topic of conversation as quickly as possible.
“I think I’d like to go for a dip in the water,” Parvati said, smoothly dividing the group. “Anyone want to come with me?”
Padma nodded immediately, getting to her feet, and Lavender followed suit after another commanding look from Parvati. The three girls dashed through the sand to the cool water, splashing in. Parvati immediately dunked beneath the water, feeling its cool caress on her cheeks, and she didn’t realize how flaming hot her skin had been in the sun.
“Thank you,” Padma said as her sister surfaced again, her inky black hair slicked backward by the water.
“Anytime,” Parvati answered, giving her sister a quick hug. “You’re my twin and my best friend, I’m always on your side. And I’m sure Lavender didn’t hear Lisa Turpin saying anything of the sort. You know how she can be with gossip.”
“Oh no, she definitely did,” Padma shrugged. “She told just about anyone who would listen in 6th form, she was just so pleased with herself for having gotten to third base. She wasn’t wrong about him though.”
Parvati gaped at her sister, whose cheeks were once more bright red. It was a startling confession, the likes of which she had never heard from her sister before.
“But I thought you weren’t…?” Parvati asked, intensely curious even though she was normally so careful not to pry into Padma’s romantic life.
“We’re not, not exactly, but we…” she seemed entirely unable to form the words and share details of her relationship. “I know enough, let’s leave it at that, okay?”
“Of course,” Parvati agreed, casting a sly smile toward her sister.
“I think I might go back to the beach now,” Padma said, looking over her shoulder to the shore and toying with the key shaped necklace she wore.
Romilda and Pansy had gone back to Shell Cottage for lunch, leaving Daphne sitting alone in the sand. She had pulled out a book and seemed perfectly content, but Padma wanted to go and keep her friend company all the same. Parvati nodded as her sister waded through the water until she made it back to the beach and watched as she flopped down on her towel next to Daphne.
Lavender had stayed in shallower water, the sea lapping around her tanned thighs. Her periwinkle lace bathing suit looked so beautiful on her, with her dirty blonde braid cascading over her shoulder. Parvati couldn’t help but smile at the sight, her heartbeat stuttering and uneven because of her. Her own ivory bathing suit was far less decorative and elaborate, but she knew that it was Lavender’s favourite. She always said that the way it contrasted against Parvati’s dark skin was divinely sexy. The thought made Parvati smile.
“What are you grinning about?” Lavender asked, wading further into the sea so she could wrap her arms around Parvati’s shoulders.
“I just keep thinking that I have the most wonderful girlfriend,” Parvati gushed. “And that periwinkle is most definitely her color.”
Lavender hummed happily, placing her hands on Parvati’s cheeks and then moving them backwards so her thumbs grazed along her cheekbones and her fingertips could tangle in long ebony locks. Parvati’s hands grabbed onto Lavender’s waist, tugging her closer and crashing their lips together, hips flush as a heat built between them that had nothing to do with the sun overhead.
“Wanna get out of the sun for a little bit?” Parvati asked, giving her girlfriend a positively salacious look.
“You go,” Lavender replied. “I’ll be there in five minutes.”
“Okay,” Parvati replied, kissing her cheek and swimming back toward the shore.
She walked through the shallows, shaking the water out of her long hair. She made her way to where Padma and Daphne were splayed out in the sand, each one holding a book up to block the sun while they read. They were trading idle remarks as they did so, just light banter about the books they were reading and the day and the beach.
“Hey,” Parvati said, interrupting their little chit chat. “I’m going to go get lunch if you two want to come.”
“Sure,” Daphne shrugged, folding down the corner of her page and closing the book.
Padma stood as well, brushing sand from her warm skin. The three girls made their way back to the house to join Pansy and Romilda, leaving Lavender to enjoy the sea just a little bit longer. They climbed up the hill, through the tall grass that nearly hid the beach from view. Just as they were emerging on the other side, a scream pierced the air, shattering Parvati’s heart into pieces.
“Lavender!” she breathed, immediately turning on her heels and vaulting down the hill back toward the beach.
When her toes touched the hot, coarse sand, she could see Lavender fighting against the waves to get away from the ocean. She seemed to be hyperventilating, fear and panic gripping her.
“Lavender! What happened, what’s wrong?” Parvati asked, reaching out and grabbing her girlfriend by the forearms, tugging her closer and supporting her at the same time.
“I was - and it - I almost - could have - the teeth!” Lavender stammered, her fear blinding her and making her unable to finish a thought.
“You need to slow down,” Parvati said, running her hands soothingly up and down her girlfriend’s arms. “Take a breath and tell me what happened.”
“There was a shark!” Lavender shrieked, practically sobbing.
“That’s preposterous,” Padma answered from behind her sister, and Parvati turned to flash her a glare.
“Are you sure it was a shark?” Parvati asked more delicately.
“Of course I’m sure!” Lavender burst, tears building in her eyes. “It bumped me - sharks do that you know! And then I looked down and I could see it swimming away. It was going to come back, I just know it, and it was going to eat me!”
“You can’t possibly know that,” Padma scoffed, earning her another glare.
“Lav, maybe it just realized you’re not food,” Parvati said, trying to offer some reassurance.
“I thought you said this was a good idea!” Lavender cried. “A vacation - fun and sun and relaxation! But of course not, of course we’ll all get eaten by sharks instead!”
Parvati tried to suppress a giggle, reminding herself that as amusing as it sounded, Lavender’s distress was all too real.
“We can still enjoy our vacation,” she said, reaching up to tuck a strand of Lavender’s hair behind her ear. “It was pretty unlikely that we’d see one shark this week, so I think the odds of seeing another must be very low.”
“I...suppose that makes sense,” Lavender acquiesced.
“We can’t let this ruin our trip, right?” Parvati prompted again.
Lavender straightened her shoulders and stood up taller, a defiant expression crossing her face. No, she had planned such a lovely week with her friends, and she wouldn’t let a stupid shark ruin that.
“No, we’re going to have a damn good time,” she said, her eyes sparkling with a mischievous twinkle.
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sweetsandsin · 4 years
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What happens when the cards see a Joker in your future?
After losing the only man that made sense in a world of confusion, Forensic Psychologist, Ember's cards align to tell her one thing and one thing only.
Joker is coming and he'll make sure she is too.
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"It's so much darker when a light goes out than it would have been if it had never shone"
- John Steinback.
♤♡The Oxymoron Of Gotham◇♧
In the crippled city of Gotham lay an oxymoron at every corner; Batman, the Dark Knight who lived in the shadows but brought criminals to light, Riddler, the man who claimed to be an enigma but who had already been worked out and last, but never least, was Penguin, the man who provided twentysomething Ember with perhaps the biggest paradox of her life- loss, the word that had stolen the one and only person she had left only to present her with a soul shattering emptiness to fill the holes her Uncle and his brass cane had left behind.
Found amongst the trash in a dirtied t-shirt for warmth, he'd lifted her from the seedy underbelly of her unwanted origins and given her a home. His shaky hand would brush through the tangles in her honey tresses to wipe away the remnants of grime that even years after her escape never seemed to fully leave, each morning would begin with a story of his adventures and the wars he'd always win, the night ended with a brush of his lips on the tip of her nose and the lullaby he'd sing out of tune to will her into sleep:
"Burning Ember,
Named after the flame,
Burning Ember,
That's my pretty girl's name".
It had already been a few months, yet still, she spent every night sat on baby pink bedding with his top hat to her chest and his rhyme in her head. Tears would fall and her heart would break a little more.
It took her a while, but in the end, it was all okay, because she welcomed the pain, he deserved someone to mourn for him, he deserved the ache she felt, afterall how lucky was she to have something that made saying goodbye so hard?
Well, she was very lucky indeed.
A blaring car horn pulled her away from her thoughts, stopping in a hurry to follow the sound, her right ankle rolled to the side causing a jolt of pain to spiral its way up to her knee in a gentle throb. Keeling forward, Ember squeezed her slim fingers around her foot, bent it inwards and pushed it back into her knee-length boot.
Turning her head, her nails traced the brown bags so prudent beneath her lashes in the reflection of the smashed glass window, inhaling sharply at the sight, her soft pink lips released a breath of fog that quickly succumbed to the sombre tone that had long ago wrapped itself around her hometown, she only wished she too could evaporate into the air like the carbon dioxide that filled her lungs. Continuing her walk, a breathy laugh warmed her chest when she limped in a manner that could only be called ironical- Uncle Penguin was still with her even if only in hobble rather than spirit.
Tapping the butt of her cigarette, white-haired Aurora looked over her green-tinted glasses at the bell on the door "That you, Flamey?"
"It's me" she shouted back. Sliding past the many googly-eyed ornaments and baby doll figurines, she waved a hand around the curve of the wall.
"Did you get me what I asked for?" Her fingers clenched and unclenched in impatience till the square box touched her palm.
"I really wish you'd buy condoms yourself" she whisper hissed, mahogany brown eyes lightening as she looked around uncomfortably and rocked on the balls of her feet. It was one thing to know that someone old enough to be her gran had frequent sex, it was another thing to be the person indirectly supporting her aim to bed each and every male in Gotham that took her fancy.
"And I really wish those punks in the pharmacy wouldn't call me a hot mama and spank my ass" taking a puff, she blew out loudly, "I hate having to break their wrists, makes my arthritis play up, but what ya gonna do?" Shuffling the card deck in her other hand, she intricately flicked them so they twirled between her disjointed fingers.
"Aw, no" her shoulders slumped, "Not again, I told you I don't believe in any of this" everytime was the same, she'd drop something off only to get pulled into unproven spirituality that was far off reality even for a place like Gotham.
"And I told you, I don't give a shit" standing, she pushed the opposing woman down by her shoulder."Now shut up and pay attention, you never know when it could come in handy".
Rolling her eyes, her bottom lip jutted out "Yeah" she scoffed, "When pigs fly".
"What was that?" Aurora tugged her glasses off, an icy glare yanking the usual temperature down a few notches.
"Uh" she blushed, pulling a face. It seemed feigning innocence was her only real option here, "I said, I can't wait" biting her tongue to hide her laugh, she looked to the side.
"Better have been what you said" she warned under her breath, finger waggling at her. "You ain't too old for me to put you over my knee, yanno?" Not that she ever would, of course, the girl was the apple of her eye, but she didn't half wind her up some days.
Drumming her hands on the table, Ember looked on in awe at the speed the cards moved from one hand to another, the flick of the shuffle ending pierced her ears in warning that Aurora's favourite three-card set up would soon be upon them.
"King'a diamonds, ya know what that means?"
"No" she smiled kindly, "But I know you're going to tell me".
Ignoring her jibe, she rolled her sleeves up so the tattooed snake on her right arm led beside it. "Means you're going to meet a man who does a dangerous job, maybe a nice officer?" She hoped. "But uh" she scratched behind her ear, "Could also mean you meet a man who'll run circles round ya, someone worth being scared of". Swiping her hand as if wiping away her words, she chuckled a hoarse laugh "But isn't that just about every man here?"
She wasn't wrong there. Humming quietly, she gazed over at the cards, only then noticing the pale hue to her powdered skin. Frowning, she placed a hand over hers "Is, is everything alright?"
"It's the nine'a spades" downing her tumbler of whiskey, she shook her head, "But that can't be correct, can it?" She looked up sorrowfully.
Even though Ember wasn't exactly one to indulge in the fantasy, she'd never seen Aurora look so shaken and that particular in a blue moon occurrence made her tremble too. "What does it mean?" Her eyes widened in curiosity.
"It means death, next to this card it could be taken to just mean really bad news, but it's the worst card you can get" her fingers itched for a smoke, her throat was dry and she knew if nicotine didn't reach her lips in the next few seconds she'd get all shaky again. Lighting one up, she leant back and sighed, "That's the stuff".
"Well, what is the next card?"
"Ace'a clubs, uh means you shall have protection from a powerful man?" Her words were spoken slow, confused, almost careful. "That's uh great, I suppose, also means that the death card is the death of an enemy, so all is tickety boo". Poor girl had already been through so much, she didn't want to see her go through more.
"So what you're saying is" she paused, hands spread on the table, "That you're not going to spend the next few weeks losing sleep worrying about me?" It happened before, a bad card spread and all she ever got was a million and one phone calls and a grouchy woman to deal with every Saturday, she didn't think she'd survive going through it again.
"That's what I'm saying, sweet cheeks" kicking her legs up, she pulled a hand over her facial features. "Now, did I ever tell you about floppy Jim?"
"Do I want to know?"
"Course ya do, but I'm feeling nice soo I'll spare you the details, just remember, always have a cucumber spare in the fridge, when the age goes up, the dick don't" she cackled loudly, hand smacking her thigh.
Wretching, Ember hit her forehead "I think I'm going to vomit".
♤♡◇♧
Snow White was the fairest of them all and what a prize it was to have skin the colour of snow and lips as red as a rose. White was purity and anything darker was nothing but corrupted skin.
In laymen terms, Ember being brown had always been a sin when she didn't look it and it would forever be a crime if she did.
Work was hard to come by for a Forensic Psychologist who fit into the crowd until she opened her mouth and out came a hint of back home. With each tell-tale sign of her culture came the stereotypes ground from the ashes of her ancestors; awful looks of sympathy for being a South Asian woman who must've been oppressed by masculinity simply because she was born in a place where the sun spent the majority of its time. Afterall, everyone loved a good tan unless it was permanent. Her personal favourite had to be that there was just something 'exotic' about her begging to be released, the typical 'polite in the streets, freak in the sheets' assumption that glued to her form holding her up to socially-expected standards depicting quiet women as individuals with a crazy side that had yet to be seen.
Race wasn't an issue if you were running in it, race was an issue when you got lost in the crowd of the media's definition of majority.
For years she'd calmed herself with lies that placed her in a position of blame; she hadn't worked hard enough, she wasn't ready, she was too young, but what it all really came down to was that she wasn't white enough to be noticed, couldn't pass for ebony, couldn't pass for ivory either and that meant she would forever remain where she was, an immovable object with no chance of ever moving forward.
But then like young Charlie and his golden ticket, she got her chance, a way forward if she picked the dark path, a way out if she went within the depths of no return.
Into cell 666.
Would really appreciate your thoughts!
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