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mageofseven · 1 year

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I’m sure you’re sick of these types of requests atp, but after learning you’re also a poly dialuci fan I can’t not request a surprise birth story for them together/combined 😭🙌

Omg I swear y'all either have the worst case of baby fever or just love baby drama 😂

But no worries! Honestly, these are one of my favorite posts to write because I too love this kind of drama hehe~

•▪︎▪︎◇°●♡●°◇▪︎▪︎•

Okay, these two men had zero clue MC could be pregnant.

This triad more or less was in agreement that babies were not something they needed at this time.

I mean, the triad only just hit their 1st year anniversary

Which, coincidentally enough, was the night MC conceived.

Neither of the three knew this because they always used protection with MC, almost to a religious degree.

All it took was one overzealous redhead on script duty with bad handwriting to mess it all up though 😅

Reminder that they use runes on MC as a form of birth control and the men take turns on being the scripter

The first time they could have discovered the pregnancy was when her morning sickness hit her hard.

Problem? It also hit her around the time MC accidentally ate some demon food that wasn't human safe 😅

It was a food MC had never seen before and since she has been in the Devildom for so long and was so used to eating weird food, it had never accord to her to be cautious.

Oh boy was Lucifer upset.

He chastised his girlfriend, but was still the one to hold her hair back as she puked.

Dia just laughed it off, somewhat anxious.

I mean, the food she ate wasn't going to harm her, but it commonly made humans have intense nausea and make them puke for weeks as their body tried to rid itself of the foreign toxin.

Lucifer wanted her to see to a see a doctor, but MC refused.

She loved her boyfriends, but they were so protective that it was exhausting; Lucifer especially so since his protectiveness was also paired with his stubbornness.

Some days it felt like Lucifer would make her see a doctor for a freaking paper cut if she'd let him.

Though also worried about his Queen, the redhead accepted her decision and persuaded Lucifer to do the same.

However, he did remind her that she could change her mind at any time.

She didn't though and honestly, MC will regret that decision every time she thinks back on it.

With the end of her nausea came cravings and a big appetite. The three just assumed that after weeks of not being able to eat much that her body was catching up for lost time.

As her belly grew, MC grew more and more self conscious as well.

She had less 'intimate time' with her boyfriends and would hide her belly under baggy shirts.

Honestly, the woman started getting really depressed about her rapidly changing figure.

The two men were worried about the weight gain too, but only because it upset their girlfriend so greatly.

This was a period of a comforting for this triad. The two men put aside work more and more to comfort their depressed human.

The two men showered her in gifts, took her on more dates outside the house since she became more homebound during this period, and spent so much time trying to cuddle the sadness out of her.

This went on for months till finally, it all came to a conclusion.

MC was having really bad cramps one day. Both men had a meeting they needed to attend, but the pride demon's intuition was raising red flags.

Despite the woman's protests, Lucifer was able to convince their boyfriend to stay home and the two stayed by her side.

Like always, Lucifer wanted to call a doctor immediately. Also like always, MC outright refused...for awhile at least.

Eventually, the pain got so severe that she was gripping one or both men, begging through tears for a doctor, which her boyfriends quickly obliged.

That's when they learned that not only was MC pregnant, but she was actively in labor.

The panic and shock was obvious from Lucifer; I mean, how did this happen?? It made absolutely no sense to this man considering how careful they have been.

Dia, on the other hand, was ecstatic.

I mean yes, the three of them had originally agreed that babies weren't on the agenda for the time being, but the prince mostly just agreed because both of his partners weren't ready for parenthood and he himself was okay with waiting.

The two men got into a small squabble over the prince's reaction, but was interrupted by their girlfriend's scream of pain.

To Lucifer's dismay, Dia sent the doctor away as per MC's request. She didn't want some stranger in the room while she was naked and in the worst pain of her life.

As a compromise though, the doctor was kept on standby else where in case the human needed him.

Each man planted themselves on different sides of MC and held her hands.

Both men gave MC encouragement and comfort, but Dia excelled at it. He was constantly whispering in her ear, peppering well-appreciated kisses on her face, and rubbing her taut belly.

Lucifer did the same, but given that he was the more anxious one, was constantly checking her progress and making sure she was keeping hydrated because obviously hours of screaming and pain can make any person easily dehydrated.

Day turned to night by the time the baby was born; the triad had never been more relieved to hear cries echo through a room before.

However...there was something a bit off about this baby.

When Lucifer brought their new daughter into MC's arms, the human noticed a strange mixture features.

This baby had Diavolo's skin tone, down the same golden markings on her arms as are found on the prince when in his demon form. However, she also had Lucifer's black hair. Her eyes matched her mother's and she had two little golden nubs on her head that will grow into horns in the future.

How...how did this child look like both her boyfriends? Even Lucifer was perplexed.

Luckily, Diavolo had the answer to this.

Some demons experience what is referred to a chimera conception; basically, if a demon has multiple partners within the window of time for conception, the baby can take genetics from more than one father.

In truth, the prince never thought it could occur in a human till now.

Still, the man was excited! His Queen just had a baby. He was a dad now--

Lucifer pulled his boyfriend out into the hallway, telling him that he needs to cool it down.

The pride demon didn't like bringing the mood down for the happy man, but it really needed to be said.

He reminded the prince that before this baby was essentially forced on MC by the universe, she didn't actually want a child; not yet anyway.

Neither man knew quite yet what their girlfriend wanted to do with this baby, whether she wanted to raise it or send it away.

To get excited now was premature and could unintentionally guilt the human into keeping a child she might not want.

This talk deflated the prince and his boyfriend hated that he had to do it.

The pride demon tugged his boyfriend into his arms.

"I'm sorry. I know this is difficult, but we need to keep MC in mind; she's already been through a lot as it is."

Dia nuzzled his face into the other demon neck.

"No, you're right. I...I just got carried away." He pulled back to meet Luce's eyes. "I'll keep myself under control."

"I know you want to be a father. Maybe you will be able to be one; maybe we will with this child. If MC can't handle this now though, we could always have another when she is ready."

Dia leaned in and kissed his boyfriend.

"I know...thank you, my Light."

The two men returned to the room, opening the door just to find MC crying as she stared down at her daughter.

The two men picked up the pace and joined the human at her bedside.

Dia knelt down next to her and wiped a tear from her face with his thumb.

"Don't hate me..." She said softly.

His eyes widen.

"What do you mean, my Queen?"

The woman shook her head and looked away from the prince.

Lucifer sat next to her on the bed and kissed her head.

"Love...just talk to us." He cajoled. "It will be alright, I assure you."

"I-I just...I don't know what to do; I'm so scared."

"Oh my Queen..." Dia joined his partners on the bed and pulled MC in to a hug, careful of the child resting within her arms. "It's okay; it's okay to be scared."

"But what if I can't handle it? What if I don't want..."

Her gaze fell to her daughter and the guilt choked her.

Dia's heart cracked. Lucifer was right.

He leaned into kiss her head.

"If you do not want this child...I will find a safe home for them."

MC's eyes widened as she turned to him.

"But...but you want her...I know you want to be a dad."

Dia lowered his head.

"I love our child...but I love you more." He insisted. "Will not pressure you to keep a child you aren't ready for; especially after the trauma you just went through."

MC shook her head, thick tears spilling down her cheeks.

"I don't know what I want...I'm so confused."

"It's fine; you can be confused." Lucifer told her. "You don't need to decide now."

In accidental unison, both men leaned in and each kissed a side of her head.

Diavolo nodded.

"That's right." He agreed. "Just know we are here for you and will continue to love you no matter your choice."

It took a few days for MC to recover from it all. Originally, her emotions were running hard after the birth and it made an already overwhelming situations worse for her.

As she recovered from it all, the woman started to get so very attached to her daughter.

Before she even told her boyfriends that she wanted to keep her, the men could just sense it from how she looked at her.

The three decided to name their daughter Eris.

#obey me #obey me otome #obey me lucifer #obey me mc #obey me diavolo #obey me dialuci #obey me poly!mc

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queenimmadolla · 1 year

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alright, pennyverse headcanon for ya, remove ya undies before reading unless you don’t mind changing them after. eddie is absolutely feral for you after you have penny (he always wanted you even pre-penny, but it’s really, really bad those first few months), which he thinks is so unfair because you can’t have sex. like medically wise. as much as he wants to rearrange your insides, your insides are still recovering from penny so he’s got to wait, lol. he suffers. he suffers real bad and his cock is almost chaffed from how often he’s got to jerk off. you give him head and handjobs but this man is so horny for you that it’s simply not enough, plus you two have to take care of your new baby. he’s out of control and he knows it but he can’t help it, not when he feels the slightest semblance of control developing only to be ripped away because he caught sight of you holding your tiny little baby to your chest, stroking the short waves—haven’t quite turned into curls yet, Penny still has the newborn perm—and suddenly he’s puffing out his chest and wanting to put another baby in you, doesn’t matter that you just popped her out a couple of days ago. he feels like that every. damn. time. he sees you because you’ve always got penny, of course. it doesn’t just apply to you holding her, you doing anything for penny gets to him. could just be cooing at her while she’s on a mat below you, staring up at you with wide eyes or changing her diaper, eddie just sees you caring for his child (and the fact that you had his baby??? you gave him his baby, made her inside of your womb and kept her safe??? don’t even get him started) and he can’t contain himself. when you finally get cleared to have sex again, you’re in for a wild ride because Eddie’s pent up. he’s gentle at first but when you both realize you won’t break, all bets are off, he’s not holding back and you realize what your doctor meant when she told you most women get pregnant again immediately after having their first child because it’s downright dirty, raw, passionate and Eddie’s insatiable for you. he has penny on a perfect schedule simply because yeah, she’s a little bit of a shit when she’s grumpy from a lack of one but also so he can fuck you while she naps. and she naps a lot. how baby Wayne is conceived three years later and not three months after you start having sex again is unbeknownst to the two of you, just stupid luck because even after having penny, you both forgo condoms and trust your birth control despite it having obviously failed you at some point lmao.

#pennyverse headcanons #giving eddie head(canons)#eddie munson x reader #dad!eddie munson x reader #girl dad!eddie munson #mom!reader #dad!eddie munson x mom!reader #pennyverse #stranger things headcanons #stranger things #eddie munson blurbs #eddie munson #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson smut #eddie munson x afab!reader #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson x black!reader

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thyandrawrites · 2 years

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I was trying to pinpoint Touya's exact age when Endvr gives up on him and accidentally found something interesting

So, there's a four year difference between Fuyumi (born in December) and Natsuo (born in July), plus about a year between Fuyumi and Touya (born in January). So Touya and Natsuo are 5 years apart.

We know that Natsuo was born to dissuade Touya from training in secret. It takes nine months to carry a baby to term, so Touya was still 4 when Enji chose to have another child. It's a pretty tight schedule, isn't it? Quirks manifest at about 4, so that means Touya's training started immediately after his showed up, and ended just as quickly.

But how long did Touya actually get to be the apple of his father's eye?

Natsuo had to be conceived around October to have a birth date in July, so that gives Touya roughly 10 months with his dad's undivided attention.

But if we are to trust the clothing as an oblique hint of the passing of time though the seasons, it's actually less than that. The first time we see Touya protest that Enji's not making time for him anymore, he's wearing a short-sleeved t-shirt and shorts. It's probably summer/late summer. And his words make it sound like Enji's continued neglect is not a new thing, either, but has been going on for a while by then already.

The weather in October in Japan is still mild enough that they could be wearing short sleeves, but I'm inclined to say it's not yet fall at this point in the timeline because we have another sequence of events before Natsuo's conception.

The Todorokis go see a quirk specialist, and they're wearing long sleeves. So are Touya and Fuyumi when they discuss later:

It's light clothes, so my guess is that this is around late September at the earliest/early October

Next up in the timeline, it's summer again (July), Touya is now 5, and Natsuo's born. You can see it on Touya's face that the truth finally sinks in.

His reaction now makes more sense, when you consider that by then, he'd already spent a whole year trying to convince his father to look at him. Despite his diagnosis, despite seeing Rei's belly swell up again, the realization that he won't get his father back never comes. And how can it? Even at five, Touya had already spent longer chasing after his dad than he did in Enji's company. Let that sink in for a moment.

Plus, with the knowledge that all it took was barely six months at the longest for Enji to fully judge Touya's worth and subsequently cast him aside, this other panel makes a lot more sense, too:

Shouto was "already" five because Touya "failed" at delivering on his potential at the ripe age of four.

And now, for my favourite detail...

Toga's parents stopped tallying her height after she turned 3. Since quirks manifest at around 4 and they were repulsed by her fascination with blood, it's hinted that they stopped loving her unconditionally after she turned old enough to manifest one. It was so soon after that, in fact, that they didn't even get to mark her next birthday.

But more specifically, they stopped loving her when her quirk turned out to be something they couldn't control.

Sounds familiar yet?

Yep.

Touya and Toga both lost their parents' love shortly after turning four, and both spent the next decade of their life, up to middle school, trying to earn it back by being "a good child," only to ultimately fail at that, too

So... Do we think that Dabi saw those tally marks when he followed Toga to her house...?

Cause I think he did, and that's what prompts him to show her kindness for the first time afterward.

#Bnha #Bnha spoilers #Bnha meta #? Maybe #My post #Todoroki touya #Toga himiko

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caitlynmeow · 7 months

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Modern au

I believe that Alcina did give birth to all of her daughters. She never married or even got close to a man, partners come and go and nothing was solid for a while. Alcina’s maternal instincts kicked in and she decided to take matters into her own hands.

Money is never an issue for her. She is a successful businesswoman and her wine import is flourishing. Unfortunately, this meant that she will always be busy and it might hinder what she is trying to do. Because, despite her being busy, that itch to have a child never really left. And she knows she will not settle for only one child. Two or three children is an ideal number. She doesn’t want more than three, and having only one child would still be lacking.

After a lot of mulling and thinking things through, she decided to conceive her own child. Going to state of the art fertility clinic where there are many sperm donors, and paying a lot of money to have some control on some aspects of her pregnancy (she wants a daughter, not a son), and it worked.

She had Bela, a tiny heathy baby that filled her days with joy. A couple of years later, when her daughter is already walking and talking, she started feeling that same old itch again.

And once again, she went to the same clinic. Once more, she wanted to have another daughter.

After having Cassandra, Alcina got her hands full. Whereas Bela is mild mannered and did things meticulously, Cassandra was a force of nature. Her second daughter is wild and assertive, never pausing to think twice about getting herself in all sorts of trouble.

It was a few months of Cassandra starting preschool that Alcina felt that void again. Her wildcard of a daughter is getting tamed somewhat— school is helping her adjust and follow rules. Somehow, Cassandra’s very capable teacher is making big progress directing her daughter’s destructive energy into more productive things, like art and dance.

She knew that she shouldn’t, having two daughters is already all that Alcina has wished for, but a voice kept nagging at her to go for it one more time. Again, she didn’t feel like having a son. Having daughters is very rewarding and she enjoys every moment she spends with her two daughters.

One more isn’t going to hurt. (Only Cassandra’s pride would take a hit as she won’t be the baby of the family anymore) but it isn’t something that she will get over in due time.

And that’s how Alcina got pregnant for the third time. She knew deep down that this is the last time she tries it. Her every cell knew that having three daughters is what she’s meant to do.

#headcanon #house dimitrescu #daniela dimitrescu #cassandra dimitrescu #bela dimitrescu #alcina demitriscu #resident evil village #resident evil 8 #re8 #babies #like— Alcina is very maternal and she loves being a mom #in a modern au shed easily get her hands on a sperm donor and just get pregnant on her own which she did #three times #and she did #having her daughters is the best thing to happen to her #she knows that the more she has the bigger the responsibility #she could feel it after Cassandra was born as she was looking after a newborn while she has a toddler to chase around #but tjat didn’t deter her from doing the exact same thing again #Cassandra Troublemaker Dimitrescu was happily wrecking havoc when Alcina decided that it’s time to humble her by promoting her to a #big sister status and oh boy did little Cassie hate it #but she adjusted and became very protective of baby Daniela #this is something that only grew with her #because even as they got older #she still loved to tease dani but god help anyone who does anything to her #Cassandra Dimitrescu is the last thing any person woukd see before they meet their maker #wait this got ranty for no reason #all im trying to say is that Alcina birthed all of her daughters

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outerspacedunce · 2 days

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stupid whining about baby making under the cut. literally just me being a very sad and jealous potato.

i want to be a parent.

chances are either me or my partner are infertile or have issues conceiving for some reason because in 11 years, we just haven't despite not using birth control for the majority of it. idk, we're going to look into it very soon while we continue trying.

but today i find out my partner's little sister is pregnant. i want to be happy for her but i am unfortunately very jealous, especially because she is a decade younger than me (I'm almost 32) and it took her? A year? Maybe?

i am jealous and heartbroken because my period is starting. so that's another failed attempt. i feel like i am running out of time to do this one stupid thing i am biologically made to do. and it's an important thing to me. i want a kid. it seems so easy for so many who don't even want it, but i am literally in the best position to have a child, and i can't seem to do it.

i just want to cry about it honestly. i have done all the right things to be in the right place to raise a healthy child and it just feels like it won't happen.

#i made a joke about not havinh to make kids bc other family keeps making them #but that was me just trying not to be sad af at my own failure #anyway its fine #im more upset than i should be #bleh #😞#tw babies #tw pregnancy

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miracleonice87 · 11 months

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Babes how’s London and the crew doing from Secrets? 🥺 I think they are on vacation right now for barzy’s birthday! (Maybe London’s a big sister now too? 🫢)

I was hoping someone would ask!!! 🫶 (note: 18+ due to references to sex)

Mat, London, and reader are living their best lives. despite Mat's season ending earlier than they would've liked, he is simultaneously grateful for the extra time he gets to spend with his girlies. London is turning 3 in August (which chokes Mat up every single time he thinks about it) and will attend a little half-day pre-K school on the island starting in the fall. we all know Mat and reader will totally lose their shit when that happens, but they also realize that their smart, social little girl needs some interaction with humans besides just the two of them and those affiliated with the Isles organization.

and you're absolutely right - reader decides that Mat's golden birthday (26 on the 26th) calls for a luxurious getaway, so she plans a trip for just the two of them to St. Bart's. but, she knows her partner well enough to know that he would never be able to be away from his baby girl for the entirety of his actual birthday, so she arranges for them to leave BC that night after a small, adorable celebration at their summer home with his parents and sister. he lets London choose the cake flavor (funfetti, or "rainbow sparkle" as she calls it), blow out the candles (although he huffs a breath behind her so that she thinks she blew them out all in one breath on her own), and unwrap his gifts (including a Cartier watch from reader), so it's basically her party, but Mat wouldn't have it any other way. (and of course, Liana makes a joke about how this year's celebration was a far cry from the party years ago where she'd gotten him a cake in the shape of a pair of perky tits in a pink bra.)

once the party ends, reader and Mat pack up and say goodbye to London, who is more than thrilled to be spending the next week with Gigi, Papa, and Auntie Li-li, especially because she has also been promised a visit from Uncle Beau and Auntie Emma. even at age 3, she knows she'll be the center of alllll of their attention and will bask in it completely.

and, oh, about that sibling for London... unbeknownst to Mat, he'll receive one last gift from you when you get to St. Bart's: the news that, despite your previous protests that you wanted to wait until the two of you married (which you had both openly discussed as your shared desired next step in your relationship) to try to conceive another baby, much to Mat's dismay, you had recently decided that you couldn't wait any longer and had just gone off birth control. you'd give him the option to wrap it up if he had changed his mind, of course, but if he was still game, you were now, too.

and even though this trip was designed to be for Mat's birthday, he may or may not have a trick of his own up his sleeve... one that involves a reservation for a private dinner on the beach your last night there and a teal blue ring box he shoved inside a side pocket of his toiletry bag, tucked safely inside his locked carry-on suitcase... 👀

#m's concept night #secret universe #mat barzal #mathew barzal

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magicianenthusiast · 10 months

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Theory: Fuyumi was Enji’s first hope for surpassing All Might, not Touya

I’ve got my conspiracy cap on, and I’ve been thinking about this for a few days. Feel free to disagree, this is just a theory, and hopefully I’m clear enough and make sense haha.

In S6, Enji said that Fuyumi was born because Rei thought ‘siblings could support each other’. Enji says that he was willing to train Touya, whilst hoping for a child with a more suitable quirk. And I think that was true, but only after Touya’s quirk manifested. According to the wiki, the age at which quirks manifest varies, but it usually happens before the age of four. It’s never stated what Touya’s quirk manifested, but I think it’s logical to assume that he was at least around three or four. Mostly because I can’t imagine a baby would’ve been particularly good at controlling his quirk, and Rei and Enji would have noticed Touya burning himself a lot sooner.

So taking that into account, it doesn’t make much sense to me that pre-manifestation Touya was Enji’s first hope to surpass All Might. Touya was born prematurely, and although we don’t know how premature, it was enough to leave him markedly smaller than his younger siblings for the majority of his childhood. I also think it’s also possible that being born premature had an effect on his quirk, but that’s just my opinion.

Here's the thing: Enji had gone through a lot of trouble to have a child strong enough to surpass All Might. Despite being a hero, he sought out a wife who not only had the ideal quirk to balance his, but was available for a quirk marriage. Something that is illegal, expensive, and must have held significant risks given that Enji was already the second ranked hero in all of Japan. We know now that in the MHA universe Enji’s position as number two protects him, but it’s still against the law and could have been very damaging to such a new hero, especially one whose personality most people didn’t especially like.

With all that taken into consideration, I find it difficult to believe that Enji looked at his first child – who was born small and weak and premature – and was satisfied that he would surpass All Might. Especially since Touya shared none of Rei’s more obvious features. Like looking at the picture below, without knowing their quirks, I don’t think Touya would be the one Enji would put his dreams of beating All Might onto.

So we come to Fuyumi, who was born the same year as Touya was, with Touya being born January 18th and Fuyumi being born December 6th. Meaning that Fuyumi would have been conceived some time in March, less than two months after Touya was born. There are increased risks associated with getting pregnant so soon after birth, but more than that Rei’s living situation was far from ideal. She’d been literally bought to have a child, and then gone through a premature labour which must have been difficult and stressful. Then she has to contend with caring for a newborn and being pregnant again with a man she didn’t want to marry, all at the age of 22/23 (if we assume she’s the same age as Enji, since the wiki doesn’t give her an age). Personally, I don’t think Rei wanted more children. Honestly I don’t really think she wanted any children, at least with Enji, but was forced to under the terms of her marriage. I definitely don’t think she was the driving force behind having a second child.

But either way Fuyumi is born. She’s born after nine months, and unlike Touya she’s reasonably strong and healthy. Most importantly, she also has a mix of Enji and Rei’s features, in that her white hair is streaked with red. Granted, it’s an uneven mix, but it’s still a mix. After Fuyumi, it’s three more years before Natsuo is born.

(Also, I’ve just noticed this but we don’t have any pictures of baby Touya. The closest we get is the one where ~1 year old Touya crawls over to Enji whilst he’s sitting with Fuyumi. Aside from that, all images of Touya in Enji’s memories are of after he manifests his quirk. Like we don’t see any evidence of Enji sitting with baby Touya, even though he was quite a frail, sickly child. We see baby Natsuo in Rei’s arms, but the only other time we see Enji with one of his kids as babies it’s Shouto. I don’t know, maybe it happened off screen and this is a reach but I just find it interesting to note.)

So here’s my thinking: Enji believed that Fuyumi could be trained to surpass All Might. She was bigger, healthier, and more obviously a mix between him and Rei, whereas Touya was small, frail and looked like Enji. I don’t think Enji was ever a good or involved father to any of his kids, but perhaps he paid a little extra attention to Fuyumi when they were younger. Like, he would pat her on the head or ask how she was doing, whereas Touya – like Natsuo – was more or less ignored.

When Touya’s quirk manifested, this all switched and suddenly it was Fuyumi who Enji ignored, and Touya was the favourite. So Fuyumi was only Enji’s heir for a short while, but I think it explains why she was born so soon after Touya, but there’s a bigger gap between her and Natsuo.

I don’t know, this doesn’t really have any real effect on the story as a whole and I guess it doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme. It just makes more sense to me than Rei wanting to get pregnant with a man who literally bought her less than two months after her first child was born prematurely just because she liked the idea of Touya having siblings. Anyway yeah, I hope my ramblings made sense, it kind of got away from me halfway through lol

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ariel-seagull-wings · 10 months

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BOOK REVIEW:

GHOSTBUSTER' S DAUGHTER - LIFE WITH MY DAD HAROLD RAMIS (VIOLET RAMIS STIEL)

@amalthea9 @professorlehnsherr-almashy @angelixgutz @the-blue-fairie @princesssarisa @themousefromfantasyland @scarletblumburtonofeastlondon @thealmightyemprex @bixiebeet

I got curious about this book for a while after seeing posts of pages, pictures and quotes from it here on Tumblr.

I finally got to listen the audiobook, in a site that provided it for free that downloaded it from Audible.

The story of how the conception of this book happened is interesting: the author, Violet Ramis Stiel, initially tought of writing a collaborative book about parenting with her father, Harold, when he was still alive and she had just become the parent of two children.

They intended it to be a project where they would compare and contrast their perspectives on parenthood and share those perspectives with the public.

Sadly, Harold Ramis got ill and passed away in 2014, before getting a chance to write a paragraph of the provisionally titled We're All Gonna Die, Now Go To Sleep.

During the period of mourning, while corresponding with friends and fans of her father's work online, Violet mentioned the idea of the book about parenting.

And people encouraged her to write the book, even tough her father passed away and it did turn into something different than originally intended.

So, this book, published in 2018, was the result. After sharing a letter she wrote right after Harold's passing as a way to proccess her grief and briefly introducing her father's birth date and place and who his parents were, she goes to what she calls her beggining, telling about the peculiar romance and eventual marriage of her parents, Harold and Anne Plotkin, in 1967, soon after they graduated college, and his change of jobs from psychiatric hospital caregiver, to farmer for a week, to taxi driver, to freelance journalist, before his joining of the Second City and National Lampoon Radio Hour troupes, where he really discovered his vocation for audiovisual arts and comedy while his wife developed her talent for painting.

In 1977, Harold and Anne decide to have a baby, with Anne specially seeing this as an adventure to go with the flow, and in that same year, Violet was conceived and born, and because Anne had a complicated childhood and also suffered from post partum depression in a time that it wasn't really understood, Harold became Violet's primary parent, feeding her, bathing her, nursing her when she got sick, and joining her in her naps.

Besides this inversion of roles, other aspects that made the family unconventional was that they were very open in talking to little Violet about things like sex and drugs (wich both members of the couple consumed alongside their friends from artistic circles), traveled a lot, and had a deal where each one could have relationships with other people, as long as the other returned home.

From 1978 forward, after his work on television in the first two seasons of SCTV, we get information about Harold Ramis slowly getting experience in filmaking, enjoying the success of Animal House, wich he wrote with Doug Kenney, despite the fact that he got frustrated when John Landis acted controling as a director and didn't cast him in one of the roles, the complicated production of his directorial debute, Caddyshack, to later have a more narratively consistent success with National Lampoon's Vacation, writing and acting in an important role in Stripes and writing and acting in his most famous work, Ghostbusters.

After this period of slowly getting success in the movie industry, there comes the production of his next film as a director, Club Paradise, which os overall fun backstage (him once getting arrested by the Jamaican Police for posession of marijuana not withstanding), is not a box ofice hit.

It was around this time that Harold had an affair with director Amy Heckerling, when both were still married to their respective spouses, which got her pregnant with his second child, Molly, and for a variety of reasons, he regretfully distanced himself from that child until years later, when a DNA test revealed that she wasn't biologically related to her mother's then husband, and eventually she decided to contact Harold, becoming close to him and, specially, Violet.

This complicated development is told divided in three chapters.

By the late 1980s, Harold works in the more luke warm received Ghostbusters II, divorces from Anne, falls in love with production assistant Erica Mann and eventually proposes and gets married to her.

Violet's custody is shared between Harold and Anne, which is a challenge because each household has a different aproach in raising her: whereas Anne keeps being free spirited and letting her loose, at Harold and Erica's house there are more extricted rules, to which Violet reacts by becoming more gloomy and rebelious. To add more complications, she is bullied at school, and her mother starts to date a man who turns out to be a pedophile and sexually abuses Violet, who, despite constantly blaming herself in her mind, eventually gets the courage to denounce him to her parents, with her father acting specially protective and suportive.

The 1990s start, and in paralell to Harold's success as a director with the acclaim of Groundhog Day, his personal life still gets in turmoil, with his backstage fight with Bill Murray, Violet still acting in a rebellious and gloomy way that even involves a fascination with the gangster life style, and a night where he and his two young songs get hold at gunpoint by two robbers at their home in Los Angeles.

At 16, Violet gets pregnant for the first time, and after repressing herself in secrecy, she shares her plight with her family, who support her when she decides to get an abortion.

Is after this moment that her unstable fase starts to go away, and she starts to open herself to dialogue and retakes a loving relationship with her family.

The later half of the 1990s come, and Violet graduate in college with honors, while Harold presents another directorial critical and comercial success with Analize This. Her father comes clean to her about having another child that he was distant from during a trip they make together.

Come the 2000s, and with it, a lukearm reception to Harold's remake of Beddazled, the family proccessing the trauma of 09/11/2001, Violet figuring out her career ambitions until deciding to become a Social Worker, and having two kids of her own.

Harold continues to work, with his movie The Ice Harvest receiving mixed reactions, while as an actor, he is complimented for his performances in Orange County and Knocked Up.

Violet parts ways with the father of her first two children and eventually finds a new love who becomes her now husband.

Harold works in Year One, the biblical satire that he hopes to be his next important movie. Unfortunally, lack of rewritings due a writers strike coinciding with the production and the studio changing the movie's rating rom R to PG 13 harm the quality of the movie, and when it comes out, is a financial and critical failure.

Harold has to deal with a period of depression, from which he slowly comes out with the help of his friends and family.

Until it returns, heavier, alternating with glimpses of calm and hope, when he suffers an infection that slowly turns into the brain disease that would take away his strength to walk, his ability to hear and talk, and kill him.

We follow the narration of his agonizing, the grief of his family, and end with a full circle, as Violet returns to the memory of the conception of the book, and writes a new leather to her father in the afterlife.

I already enjoy biographies, calling them "a more (at least appearance wise) respectfull gossip magazine".

And yes, there are elements that feel like reading a gossip, while other times it feels like a book of funny anedoctes, a novel, a film history book, a series of philosophical diaries, and the guide to parenting that it was originally imagined to be.

I was surprised and chocked at some moments, laughed at others, and specially was in the verge of tears as the book was coming to an end, knowing that it was based in real life and so we were coming to Violet's loss of her father, but still wishing for a happy ending, like watching a tragic play where you know the ending will be sad, but still hopes that the characters will end happily ever after.

Trough this sharing of their life together, the story of Violet and her father Harold explores a lot of themes: artistic and sociopolitical influences, the art of filmaking, fame, consumerism, gender roles, family dinamics, friendship, faith and spirituality, grief and trauma and the eventual peace we can slowly find when focusing on the good moments we had with our loved ones when they were alive, rather than just on the fact that they are phisically gone.

I'm glad that she decided to share that complex, but not complicated story, and I got to listen to it, and be touched by it.

Highly recomend it, specially for people who are enthusiasts about film history.

#violet ramis stiel #harold ramis #ghostbuster's daughter #book review #tw abuse mention

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thatforgottenbasilisk · 4 months

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fireworks (and their ashes)

CHAPTER 2

(AO3)

A woman stumbles loudly down the stairs to the Archives.

Jon involuntarily knew that she was coming long before she entered the building, which is quite a thing to get used to, but at least he can try to meet her at the bottom of the stairs rather than force her to try to communicate to someone that she needs to make a Statement.

The haggard-looking woman has the bar along the stairwell in a white-knuckled grip as she limps her way down. There's no elevator to the Archives, unfortunately, and Jon's not in much of a position to help her, either. He leans heavily on his cane and holds out his less-scarred hand for support once she gets close enough to reach it. She smiles at him in thanks, and nearly tries to talk before seemingly remembering the clean white bandages that are wrapped around her throat.

When they do, eventually, get to Jon's office, the woman tries to communicate using a few haphazard signs, and then finally resorting to pulling out her phone and beginning to type. Jon holds up a single hand, unobtrusively enough that it takes her a moment to notice it, and she stops typing and looks up at him.

"Are you here to make a Statement?" Jon asks, and the woman nods slightly before wincing. The wound must be quite recent, then, considering that even that small movement causes that much pain.

Jon digs through his desk drawers for a moment, having nearly forgotten which drawer the empty Statement forms were stored in, but he eventually finds them and puts one in front of her, along with a pen. Then, he pulls out another file that he's supposed to be doing follow-up on- though he's only doing work at all so the woman can make her Statement in peace without him staring creepily at her the entire time- and sets about doing a bit of background research on his computer. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees her begin to fill out the form.

Statement of Eleanor Greene, regarding the man who tried to kill her. Statement given and recorded 6th March, 2018. Audio recording by Jonathan Sims, Head Archivist of the Magnus Institute, London. Statement begins.

I thank God every day for my daughter.

She's a miracle baby, because she somehow managed to be conceived despite multiple forms of birth control, but I don't love her any less for it. I won't pretend it wasn't difficult to raise her alone, but we've managed, and she is quite possibly the best thing that's happened to me. I've thanked God for her for years, because I'd never known just how fulfilling it would be to become a parent.

Recently, I also began to thank Him for leading me to name her Sasha. I don't think I would still be alive if I'd named her anything else.

It was only a week ago that I nearly died, and just two days since I was released from the hospital. It seems so strange to me now, to be in my own house with this injury, almost like I'd been imagining that going back home would magically reverse this and fix me entirely. That's not how this works, though, I know that, but it still feels so odd, odder still to live in my own house and know, truly, that there are demons that walk this Earth with the rest of us.

How else would I describe them? The scarred man and the devil woman whispering in his ear, both of them demons, or else vengeful angels here for the rapture- but I highly doubt there was anything holy about them.

The scariest thing, despite everything else that they did, despite everything else that I'm going to be telling you, is that neither of them looked anything out of the ordinary. The man had long-ish hair, just past his shoulders, I'd say, while the woman had hers buzzed short. They wore casual street clothes. The only truly distinctive parts of either of their appearances was the intricate-looking tattoo that could just barely be seen on the man's wrist, poking out of the sleeve of his coat, but I wouldn't have looked at either of them twice under normal circumstances.

The man was smoking a cigarette while leaning against a wall, somewhat ahead of where I was walking. The woman was leaning against the same wall, either already having finished her cigarette or not having smoked one at all, and neither of them were talking. The woman was watching me as I approached to pass, and the man was only looking at his cigarette. I didn't blame him; he looked tired. He looked like he needed it.

This whole thing only started because I decided to be bothered by something he did. He flicked the butt of his cigarette onto the pavement just in front of me, though it did not hit me. I could have just kept walking, and the whole thing wouldn't have happened. Instead, I stopped short, and glared at him while he was fishing in his pockets and paying me no mind at all.

"Excuse me," I'd said, in a rather nasty tone of voice, I admit, "I would rather not step on your filthy litter, thank you."

He looked up at me, and then gave me a strangely evaluating look before glancing over at the woman. She'd been watching with a mean little smirk on her face, like she knew that something was going to happen and she couldn't wait to get involved. Finally, he said to the woman, seeming entirely as though he was ignoring me completely, "No strings, right?"

The woman smiled, and echoed, "No strings."

Everything escalated very quickly after that. One moment, I was standing on the pavement, glaring at a rude man in an interaction I was under the vague impression I'd forget by time I made it home that evening, and the next I was flat on my back on that same pavement, his hands curled around my throat while the woman kneeled down next to me and just watched.

"Oh, look at her, she's terrified already and you haven't even done anything! You're doing wonderfully." She said in a saccharine voice, like that of a primary school teacher encouraging a slower pupil in basic arithmetic. As she spoke, the hands around my throat seemed to burn, like it wasn't enough that he was choking me to death, he just had to start burning me too.

"Shut up and be useful, will you?" The man growled in response, and the woman simply laughed, in a way that was only reminiscent of the crackle of a particularly large bonfire. It could have been welcoming, in the right circumstances, but now was only dangerous. It suited her in a way that warmth and invitation did not.

This is when my memory starts to get a bit blurry. He wasn't quite cutting off my air flow, but it was hard enough to breathe that I could feel myself beginning to black out. I knew I was going to die, then and there, on a populated street- there should have been people around, why didn't there seem to be any in the moment?- tinged with the slightly sweet smell of burning flesh.

"Oh, but I am, don't you see it? Rage is so easy, you don't need control yet so long as you can get yourself in a fury at the drop of a hat. You're too slow now, not angry enough. Think of... hmm. I don't know, think of whatever the hell reason you had for getting up again." She encouraged, though her tone slowly grew more dismissive as she went on, like whatever they were united in, whatever she was educating him in, they'd had very different reasons for joining. Whatever the hell reason he had seemed to be good enough for him, though, because I could swear I felt my skin start to crack from the heat.

I couldn't die, not then. I still had my daughter, she still needed me! She needed me!

I still don't know how I managed to do it. The doctors all said my voice box is damaged beyond repair, that whatever fire I had around my throat would've burned away my speech capabilities after less than thirty seconds, but I swear it had been minutes since he'd started this torture. No matter what the truth is, though, I still barely breathed out her name, a desperate plea for my Sasha.

The name must have meant something to him, because his grip suddenly became slack, just enough for me to get a good lungful of air. I had to think quickly, because his momentary mercy wouldn't have been forever, I could tell that right away, so I kicked at him as much as I could while he was still distracted.

I don't know how I managed to escape. The woman looked like she was going to give chase, but then she looked back at the man and started laughing at him, calling him "sentimental" and "weak," and I took that as my chance to run.

Nobody seemed to be around, even though I knew there had been people nearby when I was walking. Perhaps they'd all run when they saw the man attacking me? Not unlikely, especially since there's no way I wasn't burned. There's no way the man was human, anyway; it would've been smarter to keep out of the way of those demons.

I don't know how long it was before I found someone who could help. Long enough that I had to put my hands around my throat to staunch the bleeding, long enough to notice the sole of my shoe- the one I'd used to kick at my assailant- had melted and begun to burn my foot. Someone did help in the end, though- the first passersby I saw, in fact, he called an ambulance and helped make sure I got to the hospital safely.

Like I told you earlier, my voice box is damaged to such a degree that most doctors said I'd never speak again. Even the more optimistic of them told me I'd never sound the same. I'll have scars the rest of my life.

I've been learning sign language, but it's slow going. I only know about three signs so far, but Sasha's been learning along with me. I think... I think things will get better, at least. I won't be stuck like this.

I just thought that you'd be interested in hearing- well, reading- about it. An encounter with a real demon.

Statement ends.

Jon records the Statement long after Ms. Greene leaves, meaning that he's alone with his thoughts on what this Statement means.

It has to be Tim, right? Tim and Jude, still terrorizing random Londoners, though to what end? What does "no strings" mean? Do they have a deal, an arrangement of some kind? Jude teaches Tim how to properly be an Avatar of the Desolation, for... what? Out of the goodness of her own heart? The chance to slowly try to indoctrinate him into the Cult of the Lightless Flame? Some other ulterior motive? He highly doubts that there would really be no strings attached to that sort of arrangement, especially with Jude Perry involved.

Tim's escalating. He's grown more personal in his attempted murders, going from blowing up a building to choking out somebody's mother. What happened in the time between December and last week that would've escalated things this much?

Jon sighs, and leans back in his chair. He rubs at his eyes, hoping that some kind of revelation will make itself clear to him, but nothing does.

#tma #tma fic #my writing #fireworks (and their ashes)#fireworks (and their ashes) fic

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dva-0n-l1ne · 1 year

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Riamu started seeing another idol recently—quite the popular male idol from another agency, in fact. It's been a few months, but she can't help but notice little things about him. His hand lingering over her middle for just a little too long at times, little jokes about how he wanted such a large family someday, and more recently, how he never pulls out despite knowing the risk they're both taking.

It's clear he's fixated on seeing her pregnant with his child. How does she confront him? Will she tell him off? Or maybe, perhaps use that little tidbit of information to her advantage?

“Ngh...”

Riamu has never been more smitten with a man before. She knew from the moment she saw him, she wanted to be with him. It was as if love at first sight! And the feelings seemed mutual. They quickly started dating. Spending all their time with each other.

It only took a few months for Riamu to see a change in him. He suddenly spoke of children, and having a large family. Every time he held her, his hands moved over her stomach. Making her imagine what it would be like to carry his children. When they had sex, he fucked her like he fully intended to get her pregnant. Never pulling out. Always cumming inside her. He always seemed a bit disappointed over the fact she was on birth control.

His actions only fueled Riamu’s want for children. Even she started to get disappointed when she didn’t fall pregnant. Having to choose between her career as an idol and her desire to have children with him. Finally, her desire for a family out weighted being an idol. She stopped her birth control, wanting to surprise him the next time they had sex. It took about a week for her to start ovulating again, and thats when she jumped him. Riding his cock eagerly, she grinned and leaned close to him, whispering,

“I’m no longer on birth control... I want you to cum in me. Lets have that big family you wanted.~”

That seemed to snap something in him, he flipped them over, held on her hips tightly, he pounded in her harder than he ever had before. He had Riamu crying out with each thrust. Begging him to cum inside her. Now he really was fucking her with the intent to get her pregnant. Now there was nothing stopping her from conceiving.

They went at it every day. Each time he poured his seed deep inside her. Filling her womb. She had long moved in with him, in preparations to have a baby with him.

Finally, she did get that positive pregnancy test. Counting back the days, it seemed she really did get pregnant the first night off her birth control. He grew even more obsessed with her stomach. Rubbing his hands on it. Kissing it. When she grew bigger, he often rested his head on her stomach, listening to the baby. Riamu had to step down as an idol, but she didn’t mind. She was thrilled about the baby and becoming a mother. They were due to get married soon too. He had every intention of having that large family with her.

#The loveable idol: Riamu

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ivfcenterinindore · 8 months

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IVF and Beyond: Exploring Alternative Fertility Treatments

In recent years, infertility has become a major issue for couples who want to start or expand their families. While In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) is often the go-to solution in these cases, there are other fertility treatments available that can help couples conceive. This blog post will explore some of the alternative fertility treatments and how they differ from IVF.

Also Read: Gynaecologist in Indore

The first type of treatment we’ll look at is Intrauterine Insemination (IUI). IUI involves inserting sperm directly into a woman’s uterus using a catheter. The goal is to increase the number of healthy sperm that reach her egg and improve chances for conception without having to use drugs or surgery as with IVF treatment cycles. It's usually done when semen analysis reveals low numbers or poor motility in male partners but it can also be used if female partners have cervical mucus issues preventing natural fertilization from occurring during intercourse.

IUI tends to be less expensive than IVF because it requires fewer medications and tests, making it an attractive option for those looking for cost savings while still hoping to get pregnant naturally without undergoing more invasive procedures such as embryo transfers. Additionally, IUI does not require any surgical procedure like egg retrieval which makes this method much safer than traditional methods involving hormone injections or surgeries required by many assisted reproductive technologies today.

Another alternative fertility treatment worth exploring is Natural Cycle Embryo Transfer (NCET). NCET allows doctors and patients alike greater control over timing since no additional medication beyond what you would take naturally during your cycle is needed here – meaning there won't be any risk associated with taking too much hormone therapy before transferring embryos back into the uterus after ovulation occurs on its own accord rather than being induced artificially through drug administration like most other ARTs do today including classic IVFs offered IVF centre in Indore, where even single women & LGBTQ community members seeking parenthood find reliable solutions backed up by latest technology & experienced professionals.

Lastly, another popular form of ART besides traditional ones mentioned above includes Gestational Surrogacy wherein intended parents enlist services provided by third-party individuals willing to carry babies created via either donated eggs/sperm along with a surrogate womb till birth takes place thus helping them build a family despite facing medical challenges related infertility problems etc. This particular arrangement may sound complex initially but once all parties involved understand the legal implications associated with the process & full extent of privacy rights protected throughout the duration of pregnancy things.

#Gynaecologist in Indore

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sexandloveforlife · 2 years

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Can a Condom Cause Pregnancy?

Those who use condoms probably have concerns. There are many inquiries, such as: Is it possible to become pregnant while using a condom that is intact? And: Is condom use appropriate during oral sex? Yes, that is quite sexy. It's crucial to get those questions addressed because the more you understand about condom usage, the more likely it is that you will use them properly.

You might believe that condoms are the best defense against all STDs, the dependable goalie stopping every sperm trying to conceive you. However, while being among the best barriers to protection available, they aren't always efficient. When used properly, condoms can be an important part of your protection. And now is a good moment to mention that if you have a vagina and are having intercourse with someone who has a penis, nothing can completely protect you against STIs and pregnancy. (Except, of course, for avoiding engaging in sexual activity, which is pointless if you really must engage in such activity.)

According to fertility expert and reproductive endocrinologist Brian A. Levine, M.D., who serves as the New York practice director for the Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine, "condoms are the number one reason I get phone calls from pals in the middle of the night." Put it down to the operational risks of being an ob-gyn with board certification. Here, he and other medical professionals assist us in correcting the most frequent condom usage errors, in the hopes that you won't make them again.

You make the error of assuming that using condoms is the most effective method of contraception. Despite their many advantages, Dr. Levine admits that condoms are not a perfect method of birth control. According to prior research on contraception, when used correctly, external condoms—which cover the penis—are 98 percent effective at preventing pregnancy. By the way, "perfect use" in this context refers to consistently and appropriately utilizing condoms (which will be covered in more detail shortly). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the failure rate of external condoms increases to about 18 percent with typical use (such as when you put it on incorrectly, don't use it the entire time, or don't use it every time). Accordingly, 18 out of 100 people who use these condoms with usual use will become pregnant in a given year, compared to just 2 out of 100 who use them perfectly. Prior study on contraception shows that internal condoms, which are placed inside the vagina, had a failure rate of 21% with ordinary use and 5% with perfect use.

Dr. Levine advises using condoms in addition to another method of birth control, such as the pill or an IUD, for more comprehensive coverage if you don't want a baby right away. Because even if a condom doesn't break, you can still become pregnant using one.

Mistake: Because you've been using condoms, you don't get tested for STIs. Condoms can help prevent STIs, but they are not 100% effective. They provide the greatest defense against STIs like gonorrhea, chlamydia, hepatitis A and B, and HIV, but they aren't always effective barriers. The explanation: Since condoms don't completely cover the pubic region, some STIs can still be contracted through skin-to-skin contact (such as through semen or vaginal secretions).

This does not imply that you should throw in the towel and stop using condoms. Using condoms when having intercourse with someone who has a penis remains our best line of defense against STIs. Just remember that it's crucial to stay on top of routine STI testing and to keep a look out for any new symptoms (since many infections can be totally symptomless).

You reuse a condom, a mistake. You would assume that this goes without saying, but the CDC previously sent a tweet reminding people not to wash or reuse condoms. According to Alyssa Dweck, M.D., a gynecologist in Westchester, New York, it occurs and is not recommended. She says, "This is not a good habit to get into.

According to Dr. Dweck, "A used condom cannot be deemed reliable when it comes to pregnancy and STD prevention." Condoms should only be used once throughout each sex act (that means if you switch from vaginal sex to anal, you need a fresh condom). Visit CondomFinder.org to find out where you may get free condoms in your region if access or cost are concerns.

You use a condom that doesn't fit well, which is a mistake. Condoms and sperm come in a variety of sizes and forms. According to Dr. Levine, using a condom will not provide you with the benefits of contraception if it is not properly fitted. This is significant because a condom that is too wide or too tight could be too easy to remove. Fit is something of a problem when the goal is to build a barrier robust enough to withstand ejaculate. Therefore, speak up if you and your partner are ready to use a condom that is obviously the wrong size. Yes, it can be awkward to have the talk, but your safety comes first. You should hopefully feel at ease speaking with everyone who has access to your body. If not, look through these advice on how to discuss being tested with a partner; many of them also apply in this instance.

You make the error of using a condom that has been stashed in a wallet. Grab a fresh one and discard the old one. Although moving can sound convenient (hey, you want to be ready, right? ), this isn't the safest location for anything with such a crucial duty. According to Dr. Levine, the condom loses its protective effect when someone sits on it frequently and heats it up.

Mistake: You fail to look for tears in the condom's wrapper and inside of the condom. We understand that you don't want to ruin the moment by closely inspecting your condom. While it's not necessary to spend ten minutes looking for rips in the packaging, you should check the condom's wrapper and actual condom to ensure it's not damaged.

You use a condom that has expired. You might as well glance at the condom's expiration date while you're already inspecting the packaging. According to Dr. Dweck, "the expiration date is there for a reason." Some condoms include spermicide or other substances that degrade over time and cause them to perform less effectively. You can expect that a condom that has expired won't be as secure or efficient as one that hasn't.

Mistake: Incorrect condom application. An external condom's rolled edge need to be facing away from the penis on the outside. If you're not applying it properly, the condom won't effortlessly unfurl itself down the penis; it will struggle to do so. If you do, don't feel guilty about it! Even if it was simple to put a condom on a banana in sex-ed (or if you never had the chance to attempt that fantastic activity, you've probably seen how simple it looks in movies), that isn't always true in real life. According to Dr. Levine, "I have yet to find somebody who has a penis that resembles a banana."

So, whether you're placing the condom on a penis or a sex toy, it's important to pay special attention to any indications of difficulty. When this occurs, "people try to force it down," explains Dr. Levine. However, a condom that resists is a clue that something is wrong, so you should take it off and obtain a new one (yes, really; if the condom you tried to use touched someone's genitalia, you should throw it away).

Internal condoms do, of course, have unique characteristics. The thick inner ring with a closed end and the thin outer ring should be distinguished from one another, according to the CDC. The substantial ring, which holds the condom in place inside the vagina, is inserted. The slender ring encircles the vaginal opening and remains outside of the body. In order to prevent the penis or sex object from slipping between the condom and vaginal walls during sex, it is best to guide it inside the condom opening.

Error: You play "only the tip" without any defense. Just a hint, foreplay is riskiest when a condom isn't being worn. Here's why it's not a good idea to do this. First off, while it's unlikely, it is technically still possible to become pregnant via this method. Pre-cum may not contain sperm, although it is theoretically conceivable for pre-cum to contain some live sperm that is hanging out in the urethra. If you're solely using condoms to prevent pregnancy, each penis that penetrates your vagina should have a rubber on it (you can learn more about it here). Period. And remember that condoms can only prevent you from STIs when they are on (this applies to oral sex as well! ), regardless of whether you are using another type of birth control. And certainly, STIs can be spread by "just the tip."

You make the error of neglecting to pinch the condom's tip. External condoms include a small reservoir tip at the top that is designed to collect sperm. Sperm may really seep out of the condom base if you skip this step. According to Dr. Levine, pressure after [ejaculation] can cause sperm to seep out the sides.

Error: You double up on condoms for "extra" protection. One condom is more than enough to help you cover your safe-sex bases, so there is no need to use two, according to Dr. Levine, as the friction of two against each other would just increase the likelihood that one of them will break.

Error: You utilize non-latex condoms rather than latex ones. The CDC advises against using these "natural" condoms if at all possible since they are more porous than latex condoms and less effective against STIs. "They don't offer the same protection against diseases," says Dr. Levine.

Error: You don't replace condoms often enough. You should change your condom when switching from anal to vaginal sex because you don't want to introduce bacteria from the rectum into the vagina. Another crucial time to change your condom is when your partner has already ejaculated like in phim sex hd but you're both down for round two because even if their penis doesn't become fully flaccid, there's a chance that any softening before you start again could allow semen to slip out.

Error: You cuddle your spouse after an orgasm while they are still inside you. As we previously mentioned, sperm can leak from the base of a condom—especially if your partner stays inside you for too long. "As nice as it would be to have a cuddle session, realize that if you do so without withdrawing first, that condom is going to fall off the penis," says Dr. Levine. If that happens, the sperm may potentially enter your vagina, which sort of defeats the purpose of wearing one. pornsexzone.com

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nikola-stefan · 2 years

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Tale of Tales, Book I, Episode 1: The Third Night (Prophecy)

To nameless bards and storytellers whose words have been my guideposts.

No tree, it is said, can grow to heaven unless its roots reach the darkest depths. C. G. Jung, “Aion”

( welcome ⟸ previous ⟹ next )

Opening Notes

There are many mythical beings in this book that are unknown in English and most other languages. It was a great endeavor to make them all conceivable. A good example is dragon, as there are three types: the fiery dragon is a huge reptile with wings, a being that carries a fire inside him, as known in English. But, there is also a human form that is his descendant and ascendant, a human with great power, usually called dragonkin, some of which can even shapeshift into a dragon-like form and fly. The third form is the spirit dragon, the most unusual and most powerful of them all – this invisible essence willingly resides only in a special human, called a zduhač, who is unable to control it, and it is the only being that is able to confront ala, the ancient beast that brings havoc upon men; when ala strikes, the spirit dragon leaves its transient vessel, the body of the zduhač, to fight its archenemy in the sky. The reader should not be confused when any of these three forms of dragon (fiery dragon, dragonkin, or spirit dragon) are referred to simply as: dragon. In general, all mythical beings are explained through tales or dialogues before or after they first appear.

On spelling: When a double-sign is used up above the letter in the folklore-spelling of names and titles, like zduhač mentioned above, a reader need to imagine “h” after that character and read these two letters as a single hard voice they become. Therefore, Miloš is Milosh, Baš Čelik is pronounced as Bash Chelik, and Žarko reads as Zharko (similar beginning as French gendarme or the voice “s” in measure). In contrast, a single line above the letter, like in Perunović, means the softer version of the same voice, like the “ch” in chirping of birds, or the soft opening sound of ciao in Italian, pronounced with tongue touching the front teeth.

On strange namings: The men of Morlak call themselves Morlaks, though most outlanders would likely call them Morlakians. This chronicle tries its best to respect the locals’ ways.

Prologue: The Third Night

The woman beside the stream was visibly worried. Her old, wrinkled face, worn beyond her years, looked weary as she pulled a few pebbles from the bottom of the stream and tossed them into her wooden trough. Despite doing everything in her power, the young, cared-for woman who had recently given birth was not getting any better. Though the red thread tied around the newborn’s hand had seemengly helped the baby, the red wool she had tucked behind the ear of the young woman had not helped her recover. And nothing else she had tried had helped the new mother either. Not the garlic hung at the door, nor the stones taken from flowing water, brimming with spirits, which she had each day tossed into the trough after washing the mother’s and newborn’s clothes. Nor had it helped that, from the time she had given birth, neither the mother nor the child had left the house. Not even that the worried father, at the old woman’s insistence, had refused to carry embers from the hearth to rekindle a fire for the nearest neighbour, who had just returned to his lot after being away on trade for several days; no, during those first, perilous days, when various demons lurked before the house, waiting for any opportunity to prey on the mother and newborn, the living fire must not be taken out of the home’s heart.

“At least everything seems all right with the child now,” she thought. Many of the protective measures she had carried out had been for the sake of the child, and at least these had shown some success. The woman glanced up at the sky for a moment; evening was approaching and she would have to hurry to bring the freshly washed garments of the two unprotected souls back home before darkness set in. She shivered briefly at the very thought of what might happen if the swaddling cloths were to be left outside overnight… No, they had already been through enough misfortune.

“Tonight is the third night,” thought the woman as she hastened toward the house. “Everything ought to be resolved tonight, for better or worse.” Earlier she had already set out the table inside, with bread, cheese, honey, and even a glass of wine against which she had leaned a silver coin. The offerings were, therefore, ready. As soon as she entered the house, the old woman dressed the child in the father’s white shirt and then woke up the mother, who was hovering between dream and reality, still in the grip of the fever that had not left her. Tonight, even this tormented woman, especially this woman, had to stay awake. The future of her newborn child might very well depend on it.

***

The mother twitched restlessly. She had fallen asleep! Suddenly she opened her eyes in a panic and took in the scene in front of her – beside the cradle, roughly hewn out of a large chunk of wood, stood three women wearing long white flowing dresses. The Fates! Oh Gods! The triad was already here?! How could she have fallen asleep, how could she have let herself, before their arrival?! The three strikingly similar women were poised one next to the other, staring down at the cradle from which the child – or was it just the mother’s imagination – returned their gaze with wide-open eyes, completely calmly and quietly. Despite the similarity in the women, the mother had a sense that they were in fact different ages. She wanted to say something to them, to excuse herself, but the guests behaved as if she wasn’t even there. And just then, the one who appeared the oldest spoke.

To lose everything, and remain apart, darkness always round her, darkness in her heart! The oldest woman uttered these words with a note of pure malice in her voice, continuing to gaze down directly at the child.

The mother burst out in muffled sobbing with a cry, “No, no, no…” In that terrible instant she was certain that she, because of her negligence, was solely guilty for such a fate. Her child had not been safeguarded through a third night! After a significant lull, the oldest woman turned away from the child, and the middle one began to speak.

To wander the world, without peace or cheer, shadow ever pursuing, and escape nowhere! The voice of the second woman was like the first – perhaps less malevolent, but equally ruthless. The mother was now openly weeping, her heart pierced by these sudden arrows of despair. “No, nooo!” she screamed, but the three women in white continued to disregard her. Just as she herself failed to notice neither the aged hand of the woman wiping her hot face with a wet cloth, nor the worried faces around her. The young mother’s ravings were disturbing to the caring old woman and the man who stood off to the side, unsure of what he should do. In the meantime, in the same place, which now seemed as if it belonged to another world, the second woman also turned away from the child in the cradle.

Then the youngest and most beautiful of the three women spoke up; her voice echoed with a certain care and gentleness that was lacking from the similar, yet distantly cold voices of the elder two. As opposed to them, this youngest woman addressed the child directly, and her words resounded like a lullaby; and truly, the child fell asleep without a sound just as the woman voiced her final words.

Young girl, endure, evil takes its toll, through it all you will emerge with naught, yet pure in soul. And though shadow may threaten all that you hold dear, it cannot possess you, nor the beauty that you bear… At the end of your dark journey you still will feel the light; out of shadows, a whole empire, kingdom beyond sight.

Having uttered these final words, the third woman also turned away, and thee three departed without a single step.

***

The young mother was now raving incoherently, losing herself often, again and again, and to the old caregiver woman it was becoming clear that perhaps, by the will of those who decide our miserable fates, which we struggle against, this tormented soul might not make it through the night. “No… thank you… my thanks… Senka!* Senka… beauty… evil! Evil threatens!” Then there followed a string of disconnected words which neither the old woman nor the worried husband could make sense of. Unfortunately, these words were also her last. As the final fragments foundered from her tongue, her spirit gave way, leaving the newborn child to the mercy of the cruel fate bestowed upon her, and the father to struggle on alone in the world. She had passed, as it had been fated so, and from fate one cannot escape…

With tears brimming in his eyes, which he managed to control only with great effort, the father broke the deathly silence that had seized this home: “My love, go in peace. I shall care for our Senka more than for myself.” The aged woman turned to him with surprise, “But the godfather, he has yet to choose a name…,” and then she fell silent. The man’s look said it all. “The child will be called Senka. That was her mother’s dying wish.”

(*In traditional folklore, the female name Senka has the same meaning as the word shadow, and remains in usage, though infrequently, as a name today.)

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tonystarkstan · 5 years

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I understand the argument that Tony having Morgan right after the Snap seems out of character... except I never once thought that Tony and Pepper were like, “So, half the universe is gone and I just lost the kid who was basically a son to me... better get started on a replacement.” I’ve always assumed that Pepper was either already pregnant when they had that conversation in IW but didn’t know it, or Morgan was an accident baby (for lack of a better term) who was conceived, but not necessarily intended, right after the Snap.

That seems a lot more in-character to me. I bet a lot of mixed feelings came with finding out Pepper was pregnant. I bet there was a clash of joy and devastation and “this can’t happen” mixed with “this has to happen.” I’m sure it was an extremely conflicting time for Tony especially.

And then Morgan came and she was what helped Tony pull himself out of that pit of grief and despair, whether he wanted to or not. Because he had to step up and take care of his daughter, even in the face of his grief.

#lmao i was talking to kat about this the other day #there has been SO much talk about how ooc tony having morgan is #and like #i mean first of all i think that a major part of tony’s arc has ALWAYS been about becoming a father #so there’s that #kat and i sort of mapped it all out bc apparently im only good at meta if its with her #but idk it’s so strange to me #like of COURSE tony wouldnt just be like ‘I WANT KIDS’ right after losing one #i may be misunderstanding the posts #but i mean there’s so many???#and it’s up to anyone’s interpretation #but this is how i’ve always interpreted it #because any other way WOULD feel wrong and ooc and make me feel disappointed in tony’s character #but babies are conceived despite birth control all the time #tony stark #morgan stark #avengers #marvel #avengers endgame #no one better send me hate or talk to me rudely #this is my opinion and interpretation

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pochipop · 2 years

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＃ GENSHIN IMPACT !! ♡ — WHEN THE WIND LEADS YOU HOME (KAZUHA X SNAKE-HYBRID!READER).

#. synopsis! — at birth, you were smuggled away from your small village at the dying request of your mother. thought to be a bad omen, a sign of divine retribution, you were cast from your birthplace in liyue and placed inside the cart of an unsuspecting merchant just passing through. you were raised by the people of mondstadt, —by the winds of freedom and the overlooking anemo archon. your life has been pleasant, despite its rough beginning. . . yet a single truth remains unchanging: you're cursed. a quarter of your dna is sullied by that of a snake's. your left canine is replaced by a sharp fang that secretes venom at will, while the other remains dry and human. scales line the length of your stomach, and you're sensitive to smell and taste, leaving you with minimal diet options. the worst part of it, however, is that there are only two ways to break the curse. you'll either have to kill the one who placed it on you or reach a soothing state of emotional bliss powerful enough to break away from its chains. lisa once advised you that true love might do the trick. . . convinced that your self-described flaws leave the second option unattainable, you set sail with kazuha and beidou on the crux in search of anyone who can help lead you to answers. a year passes before you realize it. little do you know, you're much closer to closure than you ever could have recognized .

#. characters! — kazuha .

#. warnings! — angst, depictions of abuse, misogynistic themes .

#. word count! — 8.2k .

#. alt accounts! — @ddollipop (nsfw) @yyolkchi (reblog/spam) .

#. others! — navigation & masterlist .

A young woman stands below a rumbling sky, her frail arms curled protectively around her swollen belly. The baby in her womb will never know a mother’s gaze. . . Pain is sure to befall the forsaken child of a village outsider. She steels herself for the worst when a rough hand grasps at her shoulder. Tears glaze her eyes as droplets of rain begin to fall from the clouds. The sky seems to be crying for her, mourning the joy she once held so close.

“How could you do this?” Her father demands.

She’s heard this far too many times now. She knows, she knows, she knows, and she’ll know on her deathbed in time.

“A child conceived out of wedlock is shameful enough,” he says, “but a child fertilized by an outsider? How twisted. How sinful.”

The young woman wants to scoff at his condemnation. He of all people should not be looking down on anyone at all. He has no shame in feeding his own flesh and blood to the wolves. He has no shame in dooming his own grandchild to a life of suffering. And yet, she ponders, he has the will, even now, to believe that he’s above her. In spite of it all, she says nothing, lest the punishment be worse than death itself. Her father is a cruel man, hiding behind a mask, —a facade. The people of his village may think him to be good and righteous, but his path is stained with the blood of many, including that of his very own family.

He cares not for the will or wellness of others. He seeks control and power. As long as both are to be afforded to him, he will sell his only child up the river and throw her baby to the monsters that lurk in the forest without batting an eye. He proved as much when he sealed his fate, offering his allegiance to wicked, powerful spirits for the hefty price of his soul.

“The both of you will pay with your lives for what you’ve done,” her father says, grip tightening on her shoulder.

It hurts, and he can tell as much by the grimace on his daughter’s face. She takes what she can in stride, but his nails pinch at her skin and his hold whispers the same sickly tune as the sword sheathed at his hip.

The end is near.

She knows it so well that she can feel it in the very marrow of her bones, and when the baby inside her kicks, she fears her child has come to realize it as well. Her end will be her child's beginning, —but she knows nothing good will come of the life inside her that she's carefully nourished for months on end.

"Your child will live like a snake in the grass for your sins."

And so it was.

She gave birth that very night to a child sullied by the touch of a serpent. Along the torso, the baby was left with ghosting scales lining from lower chest to lower stomach. All those present were horrified, —and her father said it was divine punishment for fornicating with someone outside of the village. His blood ties with evil spirits beg to differ. His daughter lay devastated, body aching from the ordeal. Any hope she'd secretly held for survival was snuffed away. . . Every limb was limp, all her strength sedated, each blink of her eyes bringing her closer to eternal darkness.

A young man just a few years her senior held her baby close to his chest. His lips ghost the back of her hand, —and when he steps out into the storm with her child in his arms, he knows he may never return.

You're here again, —wherever here is. Your body feels heavy, like it's made of pure lead, and you struggle to breathe as your mind reels from this complete and utter lack of control. There's a very distinct scent in the air, and somehow you know it all too well, like the back of your hand, and yet you can't ever seem to place it. Somewhere off in the distance, thunder resounds from the heavens. It's so loud that you can't help but wonder if some egotistical God is flexing power for the sake of it, just to watch regular people fall to their knees and beg for mercy. You steel yourself for the chills, and moments later, they creep up your arms and down your spine like little spiders, spindly legs making your body hair stand on end.

"How could you?" A man's gruff, enraged voice demands.

It's so loud that it makes your ears ring, but in the same breath, it sounds so far away. It always happens like this.

"How could you?" The man repeats, louder this time; meaner and angrier. "How could you do this?"

You can feel yourself bristle with every word he speaks. No matter how many times you've heard this same scene play out, it never gets easier. Each time it feels existential; like it'll never end, like you'll never forget the sound of his voice. Upon your wake it's always gritty, a long-lost memory that doesn't even seem to be your own. But right now, in the midst of it all, you wish you could drown yourself in the rainfall.

"I'm sorry," a woman says.

She sounds like she's been crying. Her words are laced with desperation, —yet there's a hollowness to them that haunts you. Her voice almost sounds like it's coming from inside you, like she's found refuge in the cavern of your chest or the pit of your stomach. You want to reach for her somehow, but your body still won't move. Something heavy is holding you in place, and try as you might, your eyes won't open. Or, if they are open already, the dark void around you would never let you know it.

"You bring shame upon this village!"

The man's condemnation is louder than even the thunder that seems to howl in disapproval.

"Please," she begs, choking on a sob, "please father! Have mercy!"

A stomach churning sound cracks through the black air. The girl weeps. Your heart splinters at the mere idea of what's happening beyond the boundary that seems to exist between your plane of consciousness and the place this scene is happening in. Selfishly, you're glad you don't have to bear direct witness to it.

"I am not your father!" The man grits through his teeth.

You feel a calloused hand grab at your face, four fingers on one cheek and a thumb on the other. It pulls on your head, straining the column of your neck. A plea for your life bubbles up, but your lips stay sealed as if you've forgotten how to spread them apart.

"You filthy wretch."

The hand slips down, now gripping at your throat. It squeezes with malice, but you still can't move, —can't scream for help or even attempt to fight back. You're powerless. Your air supply is ruined, running lower by the second, and try as you might you cannot will your mouth to move.

"Y/n," a voice calls from the depths of the darkness.

It's male, —but it's a different person. This one is soft and delicate, like a guardian angel. You know it from somewhere.

"Y/n," it repeats as the hand on your throat squeezes tighter, threatening to force the head off your body.

In contrast, another hand grips at your shoulder, shaking you gently. It seems to be willing you in an opposite direction, sinking you into the darkness and away from your assailant. Your body begins to tingle, as if it had been numb the whole time and you simply had to wait it out, —wait for your muscles to remember their jobs again.

"Y/n."

Your eyes open and your body shoots forward. Anxiety pulses through every vein like a lightning; setting your insides ablaze. The pant to your breathing tapers off after a moment or two, and you force yourself to glance around.

This is a room on the bottom deck of the Crux, —the room you share with Kazuha. It's tight and cramped, but it serves its purpose well enough. A shaky breath slips between your now-parted lips. You curl your fingers just to make sure the option's there.

"That same nightmare again?" Kazuha asks, —but he doesn't seem irritated or annoyed.

He never does.

Maybe he's too caring for his own good, but he's never complained about you. In fact, it's rare to hear him complain at all. He's a young man of many words, but seldom are they negative. Instead, he prefers to offer prose to the most mundane things; wearing his rose-colored heart on his sleeves as they ripple in the wind.

Unable to find your voice, you nod in confirmation. You swallow the sob that creeps up your throat.

"You're safe," he assures you, moving a few strands of hair out of your eyes. "There's no reason to be afraid now. The seas are still, the sky is clear, and I won't let anyone hurt you."

You don't realize you're crying until he swipes a gentle thumb below each of your eyes, doing away with the teardrops you've shed.

"I bit my lip," you murmur, nearly gagging on the metallic taste of blood that finally begins to register on your tongue.

It's overwhelming.

This has happened so many times before, but it never gets easier. It always hurts the same.

Kazuha shuffles to the other side of the room, rummaging through a collection of his things. He pulls a small, brown baggy from the pile, fiddles with the string until it loosens, then pulls the little sack open and removes a cloth from inside. He returns to you, pulling the material away to reveal a handful of bright red petals. You're not certain what plant they're from.

"Thoma gave these to me," he explains in a soft voice, "they have medicinal properties. Many people in Inazuma and Liyue use them to numb the pain of wounds."

You let him pull your lip down. The closeness feels intimate, —but there's always been an unmistakable wall between yourself and Kazuha. Maybe it's all in your head, but you can't shake it. You can't shake the foundation of your relationship. You wouldn't dare.

He avoids the single fang that hangs in your mouth with ease, placing one of the petals against the wound. You wince at the initial contact, but within a handful of seconds, you feel the pain lessen and lessen until it tempers off to a distant sting.

"Do you. . . Want to talk about it?" Kazuha asks gently, leaving all the room in the world for you to turn his request away.

He just wants you to know that the option is there if you'd like to take him up on it. It's always there.

You reach up, and he takes the hint, removing his own hand so you can hold the petal there yourself.

"I'm sorry for waking you up," you apologize, averting your gaze somewhere else, —but nowhere in particular.

"That's not quite what I meant," he jokes, giving you a sympathetic smile.

"I know," you reply, "but I am. I just wanted to make sure you knew."

"You don't have to be sorry," he answers, hand pulling toward your own.

He stops himself just before his digits ghost against your skin, fingers curling back like he'd been burned by something unseen. Kazuha takes his hand away.

"I know," you repeat, biting back a smile as to not agitate the wound on your lip. "You always say that."

"And you always apologize," he counters playfully.

And he always does this, sending your heart into a whirlwind of emotion. As long as you're cursed, you know this gap will always exist. . . As long as this fang sits in your mouth, slitting through your lips and tongue, there will be distance between the two of you that affection can't seal. As long as you can taste his essence from the scent of dandelions and spring winds, cracks will always remain that desire can't repair. As long as these scales thread along your body, —these open wounds will never truly heal, and old scars will never be left to rest.

There will never be a well enough to leave alone.

"I just wish everything were different sometimes," you admit.

"I don't want to be selfish, but sometimes, I get lost thinking about what everything feels like to everyone else. People who are normal."

"That's not selfish," Kazuha replies. "I think everyone wonders what the world is like through the eyes of others."

"I don't want to scare people anymore," you say, voice catching in your throat. "And I'm tired of hurting myself. I'm sick of having nightmares and turning down food because it'll overload all my senses. I want to eat whatever Xiangling makes us when we dock in Liyue Harbor. I just want to be like everyone else, and I don't want to have to kill anyone else to do it," you ramble, pressing down on the petal far too hard.

Kazuha reaches up, grasping at your fingers. You pause, embarrassed by your sudden expression of frustration. He guides you to a softer touch.

"Let yourself feel," he says softly. "Your body isn't meant to house all your emotions until it bursts. Send some of these feelings off with the tide when they wear you down; send the others up to the stars and hope for a granted wish. Lay them on me, let me shoulder some of it for you when it gets heavy. But don't let them choke you."

You swallow, gaze falling to your hands.

"You've got a busy day ahead of you," he mumbles, "and the sun won't rise for another hour or two. You should get some more sleep. Lay back and I'll tell you a story."

"How's the meal?" Xiangling smiles, her eyes squinting into little crescent shapes. "I did my best to make the flavors a bit more subtle so everyone could enjoy it! I know I'm a bit heavy handed though, so I hope I went easy enough for you especially, y/n."

You return her smile, feeling grateful for her efforts. Oftentimes, you joke that the worst part about your curse is your lack of ability to enjoy most foods, —but this is absolutely divine. It's tempered enough to not upset your extremely delicate senses of smell and taste, but not subtle enough to be flavorless. You can taste the layers from the broth, to the veggies, to the small bits of perfectly cooked protein thrown in here and there. Everyone at the table seems to be enjoying themselves, and you're thankful that you haven't ruined this meal for anyone else.

"It's delicious! Thank you again, Xiangling!" You tell her, and she lights up like Yoimiya's fireworks bursting through the night sky in Inazuma.

This was really needed after the rough start to your morning.

"It's great," Beidou nods in agreement, "probably the best food any of us have had since we last saw you."

Though the Captain laughs, it's painfully true. You're used to eating the same foods by now, but even you've grown tired of grilled fish. . .

"The flavor is soft, but in a balanced way," Kazuha notes, "—I'd like another bowl, if it's not too much trouble."

"No trouble at all!" Xiangling jumps a bit as your friend requests seconds of her cooking. "I'm so glad you like it enough to ask for more! That means I'm doing something right!"

Beidou chuckles, lifting her own bowl up as well, saying: "I could go for some more! How about you guys?"

The entire crew shouts out in agreement, and you giggle to yourself. They may not be "proper" by the standards of many, but they're like family to you. After all the time you've spent voyaging with them, it's impossible to think of them as anything less. It's been over a year now since Beidou welcomed you aboard her ship, accepting you as a member of her crew. To this day, you can still recall the way the tension melted like ice under harsh summer rays the moment Beidou stifled their worries with her assurance that you were to be trusted. They took her word like starving peasants to a free meal, —with joy and very little hesitation.

When they caught wind of your differences, they accepted you. . . Their questions never felt mocking or degrading, simply curious and asked with interest, never with malice. The adjustment to the open seas was hardly an easy one to make, and you'd often yearn for Mondstadt, the place where your heart ran free amongst cobble streets and laughter. But it was a choice you made for yourself, the very first of its kind to turn your life around so drastically, and you haven’t looked back since. You return home to visit every now and again, always greeted warmly by those that raised you as their own, but they know why you ventured off and why you cannot return until your heart has settled.

Though Mondstadt is where your roots are sewn to the earth, you were born in Liyue, according to the man you've always seen as your father. A gentle and caring soul, William was a traveling merchant who ventured out to Liyue many years ago expecting to return with vegetables from a small, obsolete village far removed from the major city and harbor. Instead, he got much more than he bargained for, and somewhere along the line, you wound up in the back of his wagon. The rest is history by now, you suppose.

He raised you as his own, helped you through the trying times you had growing up, especially as someone cursed with the DNA of a snake. William did all he could for you, no matter the cost, and never left you in the dark. He was there to soothe the ache of your wounds when your fang would puncture something it wasn't supposed to. He was there to try a million different recipes, searching for ones that wouldn't overwhelm you. He was there to tell you that it was okay to be different, —that it wasn't your choice to be born like this, and even if it were, you'd still be worthy of respect.

"How about you, y/n? Would you like some more?" Xiangling asks.

"No," you shake your head, "I'm full, but thank you! I really appreciate everything you've done for my friends and I."

"Don't mention it!" The vibrant girl replies.

You sit with the crew for the rest of brunch, laughing at the silly jokes they make, adding comments when the timing feels right. When everyone has had their fill, you venture off, agreeing to meet up with everyone else by sundown when the Crux will set sail again.

"Mind if I join you?" Kazuha asks, a soft smile playing on his lips.

"I don't mind at all," you answer, "in fact. . . I'm glad, actually. I don't like to be alone in Liyue. The people here are lovely, don't get me wrong, but. . ."

"I understand," Kazuha says, "don't worry."

You relax. He's a calm person by nature, and it's soothing. It has been ever since the first day you met him.

"Actually, the reason I asked to tag along with you was to ask how you're doing now that we've found a solid clue," he explains. "I can only imagine that such strong feelings must be overwhelming to a degree. If you'd like, I'll hear any of your worries."

Your heart sings. He does this every time, —sweeping in like some sort of fairytale prince. And the worst part of it all is that you've fallen for him, as cliche as you know it to be.

"It does feel. . . Strange," you acknowledge, seeing no reason to lie. "I mean, I lived so much of my life being so unaware of everything, and sometimes, I wish I could be that person again, you know? I was happy then, and I didn't feel it was necessary to know where I really came from. I've lived with my curse since birth as well, so it's not like I think about it every second of every day. It's normal to me."

You glance over at Kazuha to find him listening intently, just as he always does.

"I miss the feeling of being indifferent to it all sometimes. Of course, I'd like to be rid of it, —but if what Lisa said is true, the only way to do that is to kill the person who put the curse on me, and I don't know if I'd ever be able to do that."

"Wasn't there another option?" Kazuha quips.

"Technically," you acknowledge, "but she also said love might be the only way to reach that kind of emotional serenity, and I. . . Doubt that I’m cut out for that.”

Then again, Lisa is the hopeless romantic type.

"Who knows," Kazuha says, "the closer you get to closure, you might feel differently."

"Maybe," you shrug, "if this actually goes anywhere noteworthy."

Having reached the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, you part ways with your dear friend who sets off to purchase a few items from Bubu Pharmacy to keep on hand aboard the Crux while you chat with someone very important. If anyone will know anything about strange rumors in Liyue, it's likely to be him.

"Hi, Mr Zhongli," you greet him politely, "—thank you for taking the time to meet with me."

The laugh that follows is deep and dismissive in a way that soothes your nerves. He may be an intimidating presence, someone who commands respect with his aura, but Zhongli is kind and helpful above all else.

"It's nice to see you again," he smiles warmly. "When you mentioned you were from Mondstadt that last time we met, I assumed it would be quite a while before you ventured back to Liyue."

"Ah, well, Mondstadt will always feel like home, but for now, I'm still traveling with Beidou and her crew. I join them in whatever journeys they take," you explain.

"Still searching for someone, I presume?" Zhongli inquires.

You nod.

"That's why I'm here, actually," you seize the opportunity to transition into your main topic, "recently, a crew member heard some kids talking about a man that supposedly lives somewhere in Liyue. He made his way to the harbor with a high fever, muttering something about a serpent child years ago. . ."

"And you think he may have been talking about you?" Zhongli asks.

Your face falls for a moment, but you can't say you're surprised. He's known for his intelligence around here, as well as his connections, so it's no wonder he caught on, and even more so, that he caught sight of your fang somewhere along the line. Not that you go out of your way to hide it by any means, either.

"What clued you in?" You question out of nothing more than plain curiosity.

"I noticed you had peculiar dietary restrictions last we met," he explains, "and now that we're speaking and sitting so closely, I can see one of your teeth seems to be a bit. . . Unusual, for a human."

He chooses his words carefully. You offer him a coy smile to let him know he hasn't upset you with his observation.

"As for your request, I do believe I can be of some help," he notes. "A man I've done business with on several occasions has always had strange rumors surrounding him. Though I find idle gossip a tedious endeavor, it was impossible not to hear slivers of chatter from time to time. That being said, I think the man you're searching for is Tao, —a retired ore expert who still does odd jobs for those that seek him out."

"Tao," you repeat, "do you know where I can find him?"

"He and his wife still reside in Liyue. Give me just a moment to fetch some paper and I'll write directions down for you," Zhongli says.

"Thank you!" You say, excitement seeping into your words.

As promised, Zhongli writes exact directions down for you, and you set off with Kazuha at your side, barely able to suppress your anticipation. He loves seeing you like this, he really does, but on the off chance this man knows nothing and the rumors are simply skewed versions of reality, he knows the fallout won't be pretty. Still, he can't bring himself to ask you to weigh your expectations appropriately. The fact that he can see right through you would likely be embarrassing enough.

"According to Zhongli, it should be just up here," Kazuha says.

You nod. With a shaky hand, you knock on the door of a quaint little house. When it opens, you're met with a beautiful woman who gives you a gentle smile that soothes your anxieties. Kazuha stands at your side.

"Hello," she greets, "what can I do for you?"

"Um, I'm sorry to bother you without notice, but does Tao live here?" You inquire.

Before she can reply, a man steps into view. He looks kind at first glance, though a scar runs from his temple to his lower cheek on the left side of his face.

"That'd be me," he says, "how can I—"

He pauses, eyes widening when he gets a good look at your face. It seems that he knows you, recognizes you as a long lost friend, despite having never made your acquaintance.

"Daddy?" A small voice says.

A little girl, no more than eight, grabs at the leg of his pants.

"Who are they?"

Tao blinks, seemingly snapping himself out of his daze.

"Just some friends, sweetheart," he tells her, "why don't you go help mommy prepare some tea for our guests, okay?"

The girl nods quickly, swapping the cloth of her father's pants for the bottom of her mother's casual dress. When they've slipped out of sight, Tao turns to you once more.

"You look so much like your mother," he tells you as tears gather in his eyes.

"You can tell who I am?" You question.

"I'd know you anywhere," he says, "I held you when you were first born."

Kazuha thinks he should hold your hand, offer you some emotional support as all of this washes over you. He stops himself just short of your fingers, thinking he hasn't the right to do so.

"Please, come inside," Tao ushers the both of you in, "make yourselves at home."

You sit with him at a table in the kitchen as his wife and daughter prepare tea on the opposite side. With pleasantries out of the way, you tell him your name, given to you by the only man you've ever known to be your father. It likely isn’t by blood, but he cared for you in your youth in a way no other man did, and he always returned to Mondstadt for you.

"Your father's name," Tao says, "what is it?"

"William," you reply, "he's a—"

"Traveling merchant," Tao finishes for you with a gentle smile on his face.

"You've met him?" Your eyes widen.

"I haven't seen him in many years by now, but he was always a kind young man. Never sought to scam anyone out of their Mora, —always honest with his business, even in hard times," he replies.

Kazuha stands up from the table, approaching Tao's wife. He asks her to dilute his cup of tea with water when she pours it, to which she nods and seems to be happy to oblige.

"He's still as honest as ever, especially when it comes to Mora," you say. "He knows what it's like to go without, but he made sure I never did. Even when he had to leave for a while, he never left me empty handed. I've lived happily, despite the. . ." You trail off.

How much did he know, exactly?

Tao nods like he understands where you were going with everything.

You clear your throat.

"If you don't mind me asking, could you. . . Tell me about myself? Whatever you know, it would mean the world to me," you request.

He couldn't possibly say no.

. . .

The storm rages on outside a filthy little hut that looks as if it could be torn apart in the wind. Tao kneels next to a weakened woman, her newborn held close to his chest as she struggles to breathe. The birth has taken a massive toll on her already ailing body, —and he knew it was only a matter of time before she passed on. She was a few years his junior, and he'd grown up with her. His feelings for her were hidden deep inside, and there they would stay. In the wake of her pregnancy, her father, the village leader, had not taken kindly to the news. Though Tao was privy only to the knowledge he could see on her skin, the bruises, welts, and scabbed over cuts, he knew more than enough to be disgusted. He pulls his gaze away from marks on her neck that clearly take the shape of fingers.

To be pregnant with a child out of wedlock was one thing, and in the eyes of the village leader, it was sinful enough on its own. But for said child to be the offspring of a village outsider was wholly detestable in his eyes, and his daughter would not fail to suffer the consequences of her actions if he had any say in the matter.

And he always did.

"Tao," she whispers to him, —voice strained and soft.

Her head is swimming, body aching, mind somewhere far away already. She knows her fate, has long since accepted it, and has but one wish left to beg for.

"Take my baby away," she pleads, eyelids drooping even as tears slide down her temples to seep into her hair.

Tao knows that if he does, he must leave now. There will be no time to do so later. Her father will return shortly, and if he is to get his hands on the child, the end will not be met without bloodshed.

"Please," she reaches out with her last shreds of strength, "please. . . Make sure my baby is safe."

A choice has to be made. He wants to save the both of them, —take them somewhere far away and meet their every wish and whim. She may not be in love with him, but his heart beats for her either way. His heart beats for the baby in his arms that he did not father, though he wishes he did.

He takes her hand in his, swallowing the sobs that threaten to erupt from deep inside his caving chest. The world as he's always known it is shattering to bits before his very eyes, and there's nothing he can do to stop it. When she goes limp, he sheds no more than a tear or two. The time for crying has long since passed. Now is the time for action.

He places a kiss on the back of her hand, but vows to take his feelings to the grave. When he stands, the weight of the world seems to shove at his shoulders, as if daring him to lie down beside her and die.

But he can't. Not when she used her dying breath to beg for the life of her newborn child.

The villagers are in a panic. Word of the baby born with serpent scales has spread like wildfire, even in this treacherous weather. They fear divine retribution. This is the first of many bad omens, they say. Tao sneaks himself into the surrounding forest, the cursed child pressed to his chest. There are no whines, no cries, no noises at all, but the child is undoubtedly alive. Alive and beautiful, resembling the mother to a T.

Tao travels through the trees until he catches sight of a familiar covered wagon. He knows the young man that travels in it, —not well, but enough to think him a good person. Desperation claws at Tao's chest, pulling him in a million different directions. He can't return to the village he's called home for as long as he's been alive. He'll surely be killed at worst, or outcasted officially and left in the same position he's in now at best.

Getting to Liyue will be a treacherous journey, and two grown men won't fit in the wagon. In the end, Tao does what he must. He places the forsaken baby, born of so-called sin and cursed with the scales of a serpent, into the back of the stationary wagon. The young merchant, William, Tao believes his name to be, sleeps soundly in the front, resting as he waits the storm out.

"Please," he whispers to the strangely silent baby, "be safe."

Tao then moves onward, seeking Liyue out by foot. The rain has soaked him through and through, but he moves onward, no matter the cost. By the time he manages to get there some three odd nights later, running on empty with a high fever burning his body up, all his mumblings about a serpent child and a poor young woman's corpse are chalked up to the sickness driving him a bit mad. The rumors plague him in Liyue Harbor, but he stays there despite it all. . . Work is available, and it leaves him with the opportunity to make something of himself in the world outside the village.

The covered wagon sets off when the rain subsides.

It's Mondstadt bound.

. . .

Kazuha swaps the teacups you're each given. You don't notice, —too enthralled by Tao's retelling to care. His wife doesn't seem shocked by the admissions, leaving you to believe she already knew of his past and had been willing to accept him not in spite of it, but as a part of him.

"You. . . You were the one who left me in the wagon?"

He looks almost ashamed as his gaze draws downward. Tao nods solemnly.

"If things had been different, I'd have raised you as my own," he clarifies, "but back then, I. . ."

"No," you shake your head, "it's okay. I'm glad you chose to do for yourself as well, and I'm glad you've gone on to live happily. My life has been peaceful, I'm proud to hail from Mondstadt, and I. . . I'm proud to be my mother's child, even if I never had the chance to meet her."

"When you were born, the timing was wrong. I didn't really know how to take care of myself, nonetheless a baby, and with your condition I didn't really know how to help. You had. . . Scales on your body, and you were so quiet that it scared me half to death," Tao admits.

"I still have the scales," you quip, attempting to make light of it.

But Kazuha notices that sad edge to your voice. He knows you wish they were gone, and if he could take them away, he would. Not because he thinks you’d be any more or less worthy of his affections without them, but because he knows the heartache they’ve caused for you. He can't help but think he isn't quite capable of that, though. Not now, maybe not ever.

"Definitely not as quiet anymore, though."

Tao gives you a small laugh. He's little more than a stranger to you, but it feels like you've known him for a lifetime. Just speaking with him has opened up new doors for you, —has given you information about your past that you once thought to be long since lost to time.

"I'm glad," he says. "I've thought a lot about what I would say to you if I ever saw you again. I just never expected it to actually happen."

You smile.

"About the leader of the village, —my mother's father," you begin, unable to call that man your grandfather, "do you. . . Know if he's still alive? If there's any way I could find him?"

You can't kill him, and a part of you already knows that. Even if he did leave your mother to perish, even if he put this terrible curse on you. . . It's hard to imagine yourself taking the life of another living, breathing person. Still, you'd like to meet him, if only to show him that the forsaken child he was ready to throw to the wolves became someone so much more impressive than he ever could have dreamed.

"I'm afraid I can't say," Tao replies.

"That night was the last time I ever saw him, or anyone else from the village, for that matter. I haven't heard anything about them, but I do know the homes there have long since crumbled. Sometimes adventurers take shelter in whatever's left of it all, but that's about as much use as anyone can get from it."

"Nothing was left behind?" Kazuha asks. "No journals, letters, belongings?"

"Not that I know of," Tao answers, "and certainly nothing that could point anyone in the direction of their whereabouts."

"We could still go, if you'd like," Kazuha says to you.

"That's alright. I don't think I'd want to see whatever's left," you answer.

He nods, keen on respecting your wishes. This journey is about you, after all.

The conversation goes on for hours, never lolling. You and Kazuha share stories of being out on the open seas, and when Tao learns he's from Inazuma, he asks many questions out of sheer curiosity. You learn about the life of the man who saved you, and he learns about yours. It's edging on late evening by the time Kazuha notes that you should be returning soon, as the Crux will be departing after sunset.

Tao hugs you goodbye, and it feels comforting in the same way your father's hugs have always been. He asks that you visit him again sometime soon, —and his wife promises to do her best to accommodate your sensitive senses so you can have dinner with them in the future. His daughter waves goodbye to the both of you, but hugs Kazuha's side before scampering back to her mom.

"I think someone likes you," you giggle, nudging his arm.

A blush tints his cheeks.

"Ah, you think so?" He replies.

I know so, you think to yourself. And that makes two of us.

You slept on it; turned all of it over in your head, —processed the good, the bad, and the ugly. That night, you weren't plagued by the same nightmare. Your mind was at ease. Kazuha was happy to see it, happy to feel the way your longing had all but tapered off into nothingness.

With nowhere else to turn, you accepted everything for what it has always been. Nothing will bring your mother back. There's very little chance you'll ever stumble across her father, —so whatever anger dwells within you against him, you do as Kazuha suggested and you let the tide take it out to sea, swallowing it whole. Maybe you'll never be like everyone else. . . Maybe these scales will always dwell on your body, maybe you'll forever be stuck biting little puncture wounds into your mouth every now and again. Maybe you'll never know what it's like to dine and drink as everyone else does.

And that sucks, —but it's nothing you can't handle. You've done it your whole life, after all.

Above all else, you have family and friends, people that love and care for you. Your father, biological or not, will still be there to greet you when you return home. The citizens of Mondstadt will welcome you with open arms, just as they always do. Cursed or not, you have Beidou and her crew who would seemingly go to the ends of Teyvat for you, just as you would for them. You have Kazuha, who never misses a beat in loving you, no matter the kind of love it is. Maybe one day you'll gather up the courage to tell him you've fallen for him, —and if you're lucky, he just might reciprocate. But if things simply stay as they are for now, that will be just fine.

You're alone in Liyue, and for the first time, it doesn't feel quite so scary. The air is crisp and clean along this rocky slope, and the sun has barely begun to slink its way out of the sky. The colors up above shift, dusty pink into pale yellow, and you trail your fingers along the ground. Green blades of grass offer you comfort, though you're not sure you need it right now. This feeling of security and hope. . . It's all new, and the intensity brews inside you, bubbling up with an intoxicating twinge of peace. Internal peace. For once, you're not chasing after something. Being here, alone, under a slowly setting sun with a soft breeze passing through is enough. There's likely nowhere else to turn, but it feels elating, —like you've been waiting for this moment your entire life.

Well, you ponder, I guess maybe I have. . .

And now that it's here, there's no existential feeling of grief. You've feared this end since the beginning of it all, scared that being left with only a single option would drive you to the darkest places one could ever go. But you don't feel like you're drowning. Instead, as you suck in a deep breath, letting the air expand your lungs until a little ache lingers, you feel at ease.

"Y/n?" A familiar voice calls out to you from behind.

It's Kazuha, and you recognize that pang of worry on his tongue. You glance back at him, offering up a lax smile. He seems to soften at the sight of it.

"Come sit," you offer, patting the ground beside you.

He does.

"Are you alright?" Comes the question you knew was little more than right around the corner.

"Yeah," you nod, gaze trailing back up the sky.

Little wispy clouds move along at their own pace, giving the illusion that time has somehow slowed down.

"I'm. . ."

It dawns on you that you don't really have the vocabulary to describe it, —although you're sure Kazuha would have the perfect word for it if you could manage to explain yourself well enough. The thought makes you giggle.

"I don't know what's funny, but I'm relieved to see you happy," he says, and it's so earnest that your heart skips a little beat.

"I'm relieved to be happy," you admit. "I didn't think I'd feel like this. I expected something more devastating, something I'd curl up into a ball and cry over or whatever. But now that everything's at its end, and there's probably nowhere else to turn, I feel weirdly calm. Like it's all okay, even if it's not."

Kazuha nods.

"I can sense that your heart has settled," he answers. "And there's no desperate edge to your voice anymore. It used to linger on anything you'd say, —and I recognized it because it lingers on my own sometimes as well. You've been in search of yourself for as long as I've known you, but this. . . Feels like meeting you as the person you've always yearned to be for the first time, and I'm honored to make your acquaintance."

When you look into his eyes, there's no longer any deep seated worry. It's soft and calm, like the tune he hums absentmindedly aboard the Crux.

"Kazuha," you say, attempting to bite back a smile, but it spreads across your face in spite of that, "I think I—"

"Wait," he halts you, bringing his face closer to your own.

Your heart begins to hammer away in your chest, pounding like a drum. Your face drops at the suddenness.

"Y/n, smile again," he requests, and you force your lips curve up at the ends.

"With teeth," he elaborates, an urgent undertone simmering below the simple words as a hand cups your cheek.

You follow his instructions.

He stares at you, and though you cast your gaze away, you can't bring yourself to feel judged or even embarrassed. Kazuha's hand slides from your cheek to the curve of your neck.

"Your fang," he breaks into a grin, "it's gone."

A small gasp escapes you as your tongue darts to the spot where your single snake fang has always been. You've cut your tongue on it more times than you can count, —but now, it slides gently over a much smoother, less dangerous canine. A human tooth to match the one on the other side of your mouth.

"It's gone," you breathe out, "it's gone."

You turn away from him and he removes his hand. Your brain barely processes the loss of his warmth amongst the intense feelings that swim throughout your mind, body, and soul. You can hardly believe it, but the reality blossoms again and again each time your tongue nudges at the spot where your fang has always been up until this very moment.

Breathing in deeply, you notice that you can smell mingling scents being carried by the breeze that's swooped in from your homeland of Mondstadt. The scent of sweet flowers. . . It's not overwhelming at all; —just a sugary accent to the fresh air, and you can't taste it on your tongue. Even when you try, swirling spit across your taste buds just to catch a trace of something, there's nothing to latch onto. It's dull, but you can't bring yourself to mourn the loss.

Your heart blooms when you steal a quick peek at the skin under your shirt, only to find that all the risen, ghosting scales have disappeared without a trace. For the very first time, you're seeing your body how you've always envisioned it; —human, and nothing less than such. For the very first time, you feel like your skin is really, truly your own. It's not been sullied by a man you never wish to meet, a man who took your mother away from you before you ever had the chance to meet her gaze. This body has not been touched by his curses, hasn't been marked by his ill will for you. Tears prick at your eyes before you can register them.

"I don't understand," you say, but a smile still pulls across your face. "I certainly didn't kill anyone."

Kazuha laughs, light and airy. It feels like sunshine on your skin.

"That wasn't the only way to break the curse, remember?" He reminds you.

Right. . . Lisa said the curse could likely be broken one of two ways. Murder or emotional bliss.

"True love might do the trick, sweetheart!"

"I don't understand," you admit. "I always thought the love would have to be reciprocated before. . ."

"No one ever said the love had to come from the outside," Kazuha says. "Over the months we've spent together, I've seen you grow. Not into a different person, —but into who you were always meant to be. It may not be my place to say this, so forgive me if I'm crossing a line, but I truly believe that nobody broke your curse for you."

For someone so infinitely earnest, it's hard to believe this is the most sincere you've ever seen him.

"You think I. . ." You trail off, eyes drifting to your own hand as it rests amongst the grass.

"I know you did," Kazuha corrects. "You broke your own curse. You did it all by yourself because you're strong, and you should recognize that. Give yourself credit. Let that reality wash over you like the evening tide, —drown yourself in it. You held the key to your own fate, and you chose how to use it. There's nothing more precious than life itself, and you've taken yours back. Never let yourself forget how much you've overcome."

He's right. He's so painfully right.

"I broke my own curse," you whisper, still reeling from the shock of it.

You want to shout it from the mountaintops, —show your family and friends from both Mondstadt and Liyue alike. You want to eat all the foods you never had the chance to try, see the look on Xiangling's face when you tell her you're more than happy to volunteer to be her taste tester now that strong scents and tastes don't overwhelm you completely. You want to tell Tao that you've rid yourself of any and all forsaken titles put upon you unfairly at birth. You want to thank all the people who've helped you reach this point, from the man who aided in your escape, to the only real father you've ever known, to Beidou, her crew, and especially Kazuha, who never failed to reach for you when you fell behind.

And you'll do all of that. All of it and more, —because there's a lifetime of living waiting for you. There's hope out on the horizon. For now though, you sit along this rocky slope in Liyue. You're not alone, though it would have been okay if you were. A new day looms just around the corner. You're free from the curse that's plagued you all your life. The sky rings out in a chorus of color.

Kazuha inches his hand closer, closer. . .

You take it.

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