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#but the events of the expansions all start to take their toll and they start to fall a little bit more with each one
blainesebastian · 2 years
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the benefits of getting stood up (pt2)
words: 2,429 ship: austin butler x reader summary: (part 1 was this request), part 2 is a request from @scrambled-eggs-y : maybe him stopping by the aquarium! Like a date after hours at the aquarium would be so cute!! notes: masterlist on my sidebar, thank you for all the requests everyone :) let me know if you’d like to be added to a general taglist warnings: none tag list: @killerqueenfan, @karamelcoveredolicity, @elizabethrosecresswell, @gigisworldsstuff
One of the things you’ve learned thanks to practice in online dating, you’ve stopped holding your breath for things. You’re attempting not to take anything too seriously, keeping things or people high up on a pedestal. When you start doing that? it’s only that much more disappointing when whatever you want doesn’t go your way. It’s just…easier not to get your hopes up, that way when something good happens you can be pleasantly surprised.
You meant what you said about deleting that app when Nick stood you up at that dive bar a few weeks ago, dragging and dropping that thing right into your trash. Not a big loss, right? It’s something you definitely needed to do. You also wouldn’t blame Austin if you exchanged numbers but then didn’t hear from him—part of you expected that he might have given you the wrong set of digits. Connections feel like they make so much more sense in the heat of the night, after a few drinks, in close proximity in a dingy bar. You don’t hold your breath.
Except Austin texts you and keeps up the momentum of messaging you back, carrying on conversations, asking questions and even exchanging pictures (PG, for now?)—Austin has a dalmatian named Fergus and you have plenty of sea creatures at your job to snap shots of and send along. The texting is nice, the few phone calls you’ve shared enjoyable and promising and the only reason you two haven’t settled on an actual date yet is because both of you are busy.
You feel like he has a valid excuse being a celebrity and all—even though the Elvis film is over, he’s got other obligations, events, parties, interviews that tie him up in ways he sometimes doesn’t expect. You though? While your classes do take a toll every so often, most of the time you get dragged into work to cover shifts when people call off unexpectedly.
You love the aquarium…you just kinda can’t stand some of the people who work there. Another drop in the bucket on how animals are just so much better than humans.
Rounding the corner out of the break room, you make sure you have your ID tag on (it was upside down this morning) and make your way to the jellyfish. There’s this display where you can touch the tops of them and give a little spiel to kids about how touching the top won’t sting you—though they have the same feeling against the pads of your fingers as if you were touching sandpaper, or a cat’s tongue.
“Don’t be mad,” You start, tucking your phone against your shoulder for a moment to roll up your sleeves past your elbows, “But I think I have to cancel tonight.”
“I’m not mad,” Austin assures, his tone warm and like honey against your eardrum, “But I’m thinkin’ I might have to change your contact name to ‘Nick’ in my phone if you’re gonna keep standin’ me up.”
And it’s a joke, you know that, smiling a little as you tip your head back towards the ceiling, “God, please don’t. Not even funny.”
Austin smirks and there’s the sound of traffic behind him, “Sorry, I know—besides, not like I haven’t had to rearrange things on us sometimes.”
“The universe hates us.”
A chuckle, “Definitely not workin’ in our favor lately. Maybe retrograde?”
“Tired of mercury in the microwave,” You joke, pausing against a railing in the aquarium that’s right near where you have to get back to work. You got a few minutes and this is one of your favorite spots. The railing is in front of this expansive glass pane that stretches from one floor to the next in the aquarium—big open water, blue light kissing skin, all matters of sea life swimming in a calm circle.
You take a deep breath.
“I got put on another late shift by someone who takes off pretty much every week,” You shake your head, “And I think I’m comin’ down with something.”
“You don’t take care of yourself,” Austin supplies but it’s not in a condescending way—you can hear the concern in his tone, and honestly? He’s kinda right. You’ve been running yourself into the ground and your body has finally had enough. You’re off this weekend though, you can get some sleep—recharge. Unfortunately that means you won’t exactly be up to any dates though, ugh.
Austin’s gonna lose interest before you even have a chance to show him how great you are.
“I know,” There’s a soft whine there that makes Austin chuckle, “Can’t I find someone else to do that for me?”
“Yeah, I think it’s called a day-spa.”
You crinkle your nose before glancing over at the jellyfish exhibit, “I gotta go talk to kids about jellies. But call me later?”
“You got one fun fact you can leave me with?”
Smiling a little, you purse your lips in thought before, “They have no brain and are 98% water.”
“Huh…just like Nick, right?”
You laugh earnestly and you can tell that was exactly Austin’s intention—can hear him smiling over the phone even though you can’t see him. There’s this ridiculous warmth that settles in your belly when you think about him, butterflies fluttering along your ribcage and sticking with you long after the sensation disappears. You like him—even if you haven’t had a chance to go on an official date. You just hope this doesn’t blow up in your face. With Austin it’s really difficult to do the whole ‘lowkey’ feeling thing and just accept whatever happens.
You guess that’s what it feels like when you’ve got something great to lose.
“See you,” Austin promises and you hum.
“Bye.” Hanging up the call, you take another deep breath and walk towards the jellyfish exhibit—definitely recharged to take on the next few hours.
--
You’re not here until close but it certainly feels like that when you started in the morning and now it’s well into the afternoon, almost night, and you’ve still got an hour left before you’re done. Running a hand through your hair, you finish up a small private tour and dip into the backroom again to get your cup of coffee that’s pretty much saving your life at this point.
Looking up, your boss Jerry is coming towards you with a ‘very important business’ face on. Okay, time to put your foot down—if he asks you to cover another shift, you just have to say no—
“Closing early tonight.”
You blink, “What?”
“I’m gonna have you close early—you’re done in an hour, right?”
You’re not following this train of thought but honestly that’s typical for Jerry. But you nod and take another sip of coffee. “Yeah, what’s going on?”
“Private event, had someone call in and rent out the entire aquarium for the night.” Raising your eyebrows, you let out a slow breath because that must have cost a pretty penny. Though who does that at the last minute? You’ve heard that this place has been used for special charity events, weddings, proms…but a private event with no details other than that?
You push aside asking too many questions—you get to go home early, that’s all that matters.
“Cool, okay.”
“We’ll start clearing guests out in about ten minutes, should be enough time for maintenance to clean and then I’ll get you the info on the private event. Just need you to let them in, give a small tour and call it a night. Apparently they’re bringing in anything they might need, just having security stick around tonight.”
“Don’t need to tell me twice.” You smile, happy enough to let in whoever’s personally responsible for making your night easier.
The breakdown happens just as Jerry entails—the aquarium closes, guests are ushered out, maintenance cleans the floors and wipes down as many surfaces as they can get their hands on in the time allotted, other workers clean up their respective areas, feed animals, and clock out. Grabbing the clipboard in the backroom that Jerry left behind with the private event’s info, you run your thumb along the papers attached and make your way to the front door where security is waiting.
“Okay…” You trail off as one of them opens the door for you, “Mr.—”
You blink at the name on the paper: Austin Butler
“Surprised?”
Your head snaps up to see Austin at the door and then almost do a double-take because, “What—what are you doing here?”
Austin licks his lips, taking a step into the aquarium. He’s dressed in a pair of black jeans with one hole in the knee, a soft white button down that has the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, a black pair of booties to complete the look. You feel entirely frumpy in your jeans and work polo, a little fish on the one collar, nametag and all.
“Figured rentin’ out the aquarium was the only way to get your attention.”
And you laugh because this is so…utterly ridiculous. You’re standing here with a clipboard as the doors to the aquarium close, and it takes you a minute to realize that Austin has a few bags with him that the security guards are going through and—this feels like whiplash.
“You…you rented out an aquarium.” You repeat because you’re not sure what else to say.
“We had a date right?” He asks, smiling down at you, “Told you I wasn’t gonna stand you up.”
Your cheeks splotch bright pink, “I think you’re probably let off the hook when I’m the one who had to cancel,” But you’re…so glad he’s here, utterly touched, almost afraid this is some sort of elaborate dream from taking a cat nap in the breakroom before your shift is over. “We could have…gone on a real date, like had food somewhere or…”
Austin chews on his lower lip, taking a step towards you as the guards disperse to their usual posts. He picks up the bags he carried in, “I brought soup cause you said you weren’t feelin’ well. Some wine,” He shrugs, “And I figured what better place to have our first date in than one that you talk a lot about.”
Smiling softly, you set aside the stupid clipboard because you clearly don’t need that. Despite how many times you have to pick up shifts you didn’t ask for; you do love this place—it’s one of the reasons you’re studying to become a marine biologist anyways. It’s important to you.
Your hand reaches out to gently touch his chest, playing with one of the buttons on his shirt, “You just want a free tour.” You tease.
“I wouldn’t say no to that,” Austin grins, motioning to lead the way.
You so badly want to kiss him right now that it’s overwhelming but…you settle for pushing yourself up on your toes and planting your lips on his cheekbone. Short and sweet, to thank him, and he doesn’t seem to mind.
You guide him towards your favorite part of the aquarium and unpin your nametag to put into your pocket because it feels slightly ridiculous wearing it. There’s a spiral walkway that leads down to the lower level and underneath one of the awnings of the upper floor is a cylinder glass room. Taking a short breath, you walk through, looking over your shoulder at Austin. This is what you want to see—the look on his face.
He's tipping his head to look at the ceiling, the surrounding of water around them, the soft cyan blue waves playing through his hair and against his cheeks. It has to be one of the most beautiful things you’ve seen, a darker blue to his eyes as they eventually land on you. You gesture a bit with your arms out,
“This is my favorite spot.”
Austin hums, walking toward a bench in the center of the cylinder. “I can see why.” He sets down the bags in his hands, sticking them into his pockets. There’s a moment of comfortable silence, fish swimming by, sharks gliding overhead.
“Sharks have electroreceptor organs which means they have uh...cells that detect electric fields.” You have no idea why it’s a kneejerk reaction for you to share this, “They use them to locate prey.”
Austin hums, “Like sonar?”
You crinkle your nose, “Kind of?” Sitting on bench, you begin to unpack the bag, taking out the bottle of wine and the thermos filled with soup, “You really didn’t have to do all this.”
“I know,” He sits down next to you, shrugging his one shoulder, “Don’t thank me too much yet, it’s canned soup thanks to the last-minute decision.”
A soft laugh leaves your lips and you shake your head—doesn’t matter to you, it’s the thought that counts. You hand him the bottle of wine and he pops the cork, pouring a small amount into the plastic cups he brought; the blue water gives the red wine an almost royal purple shade.
“I mean,” You clarify, motioning around them to the aquarium, “I’m impressed but you don’t have to impress me.” And you hope that’s not coming across as ungrateful or that you’re not enjoying this, it’s just…you like Austin, you’ll take him any way that he’s willing to offer.
You can tell, as he looks at you, taking a sip of wine…that your comment is not something he’s considered. Maybe that’s a norm for him, thinking he has to go above and beyond, but you’d enjoy whatever first date as long as it was with him. Even it was something as mundane as take-out and a movie on your couch.
“Or I mean—at least rent out a movie theater next time, or maybe an amusement park?” You grin, teasing, nudging his foot with your own. “This is so minor league.”
Austin laughs, leaning his leg into yours until your ankles are pressed together. “Noted.”
You take a sip of wine and Austin opens up the thermos of soup, steam escaping, and your stomach rumbles at the thought—you can’t remember the last time you’ve eaten. Austin’s right—you need to take care of yourself.
Leaning forward, you press your lips to his, hoping you’re not overstepping. He inches closer, cupping your cheek with his hand, his thumb working along your cheekbone.
Though you suppose, with thoughtful dates like these? You might not have to take care of yourself all the time. Admittedly, it’s nice having someone look after you for a change.
--
Hope you guys enjoyed :) I do not picture writing anything else for this universe, but part two was definitely fun! Can never turn down a good aquarium date!
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Amazonian Whodunnit
Humanity is to blame for the slow death of the rainforest, but we are not equally responsible. The fingerprints of carbon inequality are all over this crime scene
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Every morning, I take my dogs for a walk to the scene of multiple crimes, where I grieve for the victims and consider who is to blame.
The location is the bank of the Xingu River, which is a five-minute stroll from my home. I will post a picture here of this beautiful but brutalised panorama so you can examine for yourself the violence that has been inflicted on the landscape in the nine years since I first visited Altamira.
The first victim, very stark in the foreground, is a dead tree, one of the many millions killed when the reservoir of the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam flooded the river banks, drowning countless plants and other species unable to flee the rising waters.
The second can be seen on the distant hillside on the far side of the river, where there are two broad expanses of cleared land that were cut out of the forest by neighbouring farmers who wanted more space for their cattle to graze.
The third is the sky, shrouded in an acrid haze from the dozen or so fires that were burning around Altamira over the 24 hours before my walk, according to NASA’s satellite imagery.
Fourthly – and most alarming of all – is the river Xingu itself, which has shrunk back to levels not seen in recent memory as a result of a freakishly long, hot dry season. Compared to the peak of the rainy season, the depth of the river has fallen by four or five metres.
The place where I usually swim is now a mud flat. Rocky outcrops have become visible mid-stream, creating dozens of new islands and adding to the challenge of navigation.The impact on other species is immeasurable.
That such horrors would come to pass was all too predictable. Earlier this year, I wrote that the El Niño on top of the climate crisis would create an emergency within an emergency, which Brazil’s authorities needed to prepare for as this would almost certainly mean a severe drought for the Amazon.
But there has been zero preparation. Across the Amazon, fire fighting units have been over-stretched and transport systems disrupted by the severity of the prolonged drought. Meanwhile land grabbers make things worse by starting fires to clear forest, taking advantage of the tinder dry conditions.
Those blazes cause problems long after the embers are dimmed. Countless studies have shown tree clearance has a local, regional and global warming effect, in addition to weakening the rainfall-generating capacity of the rainforest. Replace the trees with cows, as is the common practice in Altamira and much of the Amazon, and the effect is far worse because the methane burps and farts of the cattle are a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. One of the most shocking reports of the past year was a study showing Brazil’s 220 million cows (almost half of which are in the Amazon) have a bigger climate footprint, when you include their role in deforestation, than all the factories, cars, power plants and 125 million people of Japan.
This brings us to the vitally important question for justice and for solutions: who is to blame?
There are those who would argue that humanity as a whole is responsible for this horrendous year of murderous heat, deadly fires, devastating floods and other global climate calamities, but that is only partly true. Yes, these extremes have undoubtedly been made worse by human burning of fossil fuels. The world is around 1.3C hotter than it was at the start of the industrial revolution. There is growing evidence that this makes El Niño events more likely. Yet despite the ever increasing death toll for all species from this heat, humankind is emitting more warming greenhouse gases than ever.
But “we” are not equally to blame. Not by any means. There is a huge carbon divide between the air-conditioned super-rich, who travel the world in luxury yachts, and the heat-vulnerable poor, who suffer the worst climate consequences even though they are least responsible. A new study by Oxfam and the Stockholm Environment Institute highlights the enormity of this gulf and its consequences.
Continue reading.
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nintendoteuthis · 1 year
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Splatoon Biology Musings Part 23: Lifespan
The rule of thumb for cephalopod lifespans is that they are very short. Most cephalopods are semelparous, which means that they reproduce once in their life, then die. This is in contrast to being iteroparous, where you can reproduce multiple times in your life.
After mating, cephalopods undergo a process called senescence - basically they stop eating and their body starts breaking down. This usually lasts a few weeks to a few months. Even if they don't reproduce, this will start happening anyways after a couple years. Most cephalopods therefore have lifespans ranging from a few months to five years in large species like the giant Pacific octopus.
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But as always in biology, there are exceptions. The larger Pacific striped octopus (bottom right) can reproduce multiple times over its two-year lifespan. Vampire squids (top right) live up to ten years and are iteroparous. Larger oceanic squid species can live up to 15 years. Nautiluses (bottom left) are iteroparous and can live for around 20 years. And we don't know the lifespans of many deep-sea species, but it takes some of them at least five years just to grow to adulthood, and Graneledone boreopacifica females (top left) brood their eggs for over four years.
Inklings and Octolings, on the other hand, can have extremely long lifespans. Craig Cuttlefish and DJ Octavio are both over 120 years old, as both were around during the Great Turf War, 100 years before the events of Splatoon 1. Age has clearly taken its toll on Craig, but he's still kicking! The fact that Craig Cuttlefish is a grandfather and still alive confirms that Inklings do not undergo senescence. It can therefore be reliably inferred that Inklings are iteroparous. We have no reason to think that Octolings are different, especially given DJ Octavio is just as old as Craig is.
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Old, old man.
So this is a result of the human influence from all the Alterna stuff, right? Well I don't think so. The average human lifespan - assuming you're in a developed country, are generally healthy, and don't die of anything else first - is 75-100 years. The oldest verified person, Jeanne Calment, lived to 122 years. Yet Craig Cuttlefish is older than even that - canonically 130 during the events of Octo Expansion - and he's in much better shape than Jeanne was. It's estimated that modern medicine could potentially lead to a 130-year-old person by the end of this century, but I doubt they'll be as spry as Craig is during Splatoon 3. There has to be something else that leads to this extreme lifespan.
But believe it or not, there actually is precedent for this long of a lifespan in cephalopods. That's because we haven't discussed fossil cephalopods. There are a group of ammonites known as heteromorph ammonites - where the normal coiled shell of the ammonite uncoiled and went into some other shape. One of them, Diplomoceras, evolved a shape that looked like a 5-foot-long paperclip.
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This is what it looked like and here's how it grew. Weird thing
It's estimated that DIplomoceras could live to 200 years.
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normanbased · 1 year
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TELL US ABOUT THE AU /nf
OKAY!! So as some base line context — It’s set a few months after Psycho II. Emma Spool doesn’t exist, Lila killed all the people who died in Psycho II (except Dr Raymond who lived). Norman and Mary essentially defended each other from Lila in the final fight and Lila is gunned down by the police.
If anyone wants to send any asks about my AU pls feel free to!! I’d be happy to answer them :]]
Mary and Norman are both injured and end up in the hospital for a little while with minor to moderate injuries. They both make full recoveries and over their stay in the hospital they really start to bond more — You know, bring each other snacks, talk in the middle of the night about deep philosophical life stuff, share fun drama about the hospital staff. Somehow, only after a few weeks, they’re able to laugh about things again.
Once they’re both discharged, Mary doesn’t really have anywhere left to go, so of course she sticks around with Norman. The two of them develop a sort of parent/sibling relationship and while Norman does his best to keep the motel afloat, Mary supports them both with different day jobs.
It’s clearly not working out, though. If the motel had low attendance before, it was even worse now after another stint in the local paper as the ‘Murder Motel’. Money is the lowest it’s ever been and if they can’t come up with a solution soon, Norman might have to foreclose on the business.
Mary is doing her best, but she suddenly has a lot of pressure on her to provide. They consider each other family now, though, so she’s determined to stick it out.
Then one afternoon, a certain Duane Duke’s car breaks down on the side of the highway. Like in Psycho III, he needs some place to stay for a while and takes up a job at the motel. Obviously he notices that the place is struggling, and starts formulating some plans to help out. It’s mostly just so he can get out of there faster, but he also has to admit that he feels a little sorry for the two of them, (not to mention he has a huge crush on Mary).
Duke uses his knowledge of the music industry to help Norman develop the Motel in a sort of event hub for Fairvale — There’s a pretty expansive portion of the grounds that makes a decent field. It’s flat, spacious, and easy to access. There’s enough open land to put on small festivals, music gigs, sporting events, fairs, and outdoor competitions. It’s slow at first, but it starts to make them a LOT of money. Norman isn’t so keen about all the traffic, but it’s better than nothing.
(It does mean that something different is on every other week, so there are lots of events I wanna write about them setting up :]])
There are a few conflicts that run through the general idea of the AU —
Mary doesn’t reciprocate Duke’s crush at first and that causes problems. His immaturity is a big issue for her that takes a while to be resolved. Eventually when she does start to have feelings for him, she feels inadequate. She also worries a lot about Norman, about his isolation, his mental health, and how Duke takes advantage of him at first (which is also resolved later). She is just as protective of Norman as he is of her, and won’t tolerate him being manipulated. She’s also grieving the loss of her own mother and it takes its toll on her.
Norman is very protective of Mary since he essentially sees her as a daughter/sister and he doesn’t want somebody like Duke to hurt her. He’s really on edge about Duke’s behaviour around her, so much so that he hardly even recognises when he’s taking advantage of Norman instead. Norman is also really conflicted about all the different business prospects the Motel is having because the whole process of commercialising the area frightens him. Deep down, he liked the peace and quiet.
Duke generally struggles with his ego, with accepting rejection, but also with accepting help and affection from friends, and expressing his emotions in a healthy, non-destructive way. He wants Mary, and, at first, can’t stand Norman. Eventually though, he and Norman sort of work things out and end up in a more amicable relationship than before. Usually all three of them are around when the Motel becomes successful, but Mary still juggles other work from time to time, which leaves Norman and Duke to hash things out and tentatively improve their friendship.
One image I have in my mind is like, Norman and Duke bonding during a power outage, trying to fix the generator, and eventually giving up and visiting Mary at the diner for some food and some company. They act super nonchalantly about it, but it’s a really big sorta “we actually really care about each other and enjoy each others presence” moment for the three of them.
The biggest conflict is probably when Duke announces he’s made enough money to pursue his rockstar dreams and plans to leave, which just depresses the fuck out of Mary and Norman. Mary has to fight with the decision to stay with Norman and essentially be left behind, or go with Duke and abandon Norman. It’s a lot for her. I still haven’t decided how I want that to all go down. I don’t want Duke to have to give up his dreams, but I want everyone to be happy 😭 hopefully I won’t have to end it on a “they’ll never truly be happy together like this” ending and make them all split up — but also… maybe a natural sort of “time is transient and people move on and memories remain” sort of ending might work well….
OH!! I also want Mary to be aspiring to go to college/university and Norman is VERY supportive because he never even got to go to high school, let alone college. He wants to see his girl succeed!! (I just want him and Duke to be her two guests for her graduation cheering like crazy and making a fool of themselves and embarrassing her while she’s on stage by being so loud but she loves them so much and can’t help but laugh 💖💖💖)
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weatheredfailnot · 1 year
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What has been the greatest test of their friendship with a close companion or ally? Did the relationship survive this? If so, then what helped in repairing that connection? If not, then did they let the friendship go without regret?
(Thanks to @wondernoise, Dove's creator, for her help with this ask~)
This got long, so I have my answer to this under the read more!
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A'loq's greatest test of friendship was with Dove (best friend, fellow Warrior of Light/healer of the foolhardy WOL) and it occurred throughout the post-Stormblood events. In their canon following Stormblood, A'loq goes on his own to assist with the Bozjan war efforts while Dove is left to deal with the post-Stormblood events up until A'loq returns (around the time the Scions begin getting spirited away to the First).
A'loq is very conflict avoidant and would rather avoid revealing his true feelings than communicating, and the same can be said for Dove. Interpersonal communication is hard for them and the main reason they were able to get by in earlier expansions was because they have similar opinions on basically everything.
So you can imagine how well both of them cope when A'loq's linkpearl that connects him with the Scions and by extension Dove, breaks while he's in Bozja. Dove completely loses contact with him entirely and feels abandoned by him. From her perspective, A'loq was playing hero on another battlefield and was ignorant to all of the hardships she had to face alone (which is true to be fair).
In reality, A'loq was thrown headfirst into a war and was barely able to rest between his concerns for Mikoto after being entrusted with her future sight of her own death, questioning his own sense of justice because of Misija (who obtains information about his past ties to the Garlean Empire and takes advantage of his fears in his canon), etc. etc. Bozja was definitely not a good time and the loss of his connection with Dove definitely took a toll on him.
When A'loq and Dove reunite in The Burn, Dove essentially has a nervous breakdown in his direction, raising her voice in front of him for the first time and yelling at him for dropping off the face of Hydaelyn while she's had to deal with the mysterious attacker that's been taking the Scions out one-by-one, and now he has the nerve to come back at his own convenience and ask about what's going on? He could have at least sent a missive, requested a new linkpearl, anything... but he didn't. He left Dove to imagine the worst and to wonder what she would do if she found out that he had taken a bullet to the head in the middle of those episodes that had been taking the Scions from them and died in a distant land far out of her reach.
A'loq is extremely high-strung in the moment. He rarely shows fear, but he finds himself cowering in front of Dove and is completely unable to explain himself as he's being yelled at. When he finally finds his bearings, Dove is already pulling him into a hug and crying into his hair, calling him a selfish, reckless idiot. A'loq hugs back of course, and eventually, Dove manages to calm down and later on, they sit down and discuss what happened from both sides.
But even after their conversation, A'loq has a lot of lingering resentment and doubt that gets carried over into the First. He's actually the last one to reach the First, and seeing how all of the Scions have changed during their years in another world... shakes him to say the least. He starts to feel left behind, wondering if he's grown or learned anything at all during his own journey. He's also forced to switch jobs after he realizes that his bard songs hold little sway over the hearts of those on the First because a bard song's power comes from personal experience and understanding the emotions of the target audience, and A'loq isn't able to fully connect with the hearts of the people of Norvrandt until much later on in the expansion.
He thought he was a good friend until Dove let her anger out on him and the Scions grew up without him. He thought he was a bard who could grant his comrades strength and loved ones rest, but here he was, wandering Norvrandt with a gunblade on his back. Hell- he even began studying astrology again under Urianger because maybe he would stop being a reckless burden on Dove if he could take care of himself on his own.
Shadowbringers is very much A'loq and Dove's "we’re both going through shit and don’t have the resources to be there for the other in a way that’ll change things but know I love you and I want you to be well" expansion. Dove carries the burden of containing the light while A'loq faces his inner darkness (not "Fray" in his canon), and they make it through together. They remain friends and they gradually get better, but it takes time.
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seodon · 5 months
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Streamlining Your Life: Unveiling the Power of Virtual Personal Assistants in London
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thinking about them (Lunakalla)
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Dream SMP Recap (May 18/2021) - The L’Sandburg Deal
A “lore stream” from George takes an unexpected turn, and Foolish finally confronts L’Sandburg, taking up Bad’s offer to meet about a possible sale to end things peacefully.
---
VOD LINKS:
Ponk
Foolish
Georgenotfound
Ranboo
Sapnap
Foolish
Badboyhalo
---
- George starts walking to the prison. Tommy tells him in chat to turn around as he asks why the prison is so big to contain only one person
- Tommy says George told him he wanted to do this today, asking if he still wants to
- George starts following Tommy down the Prime Path and Tommy tells him to take the blood from the path. He says this is real, not a time for primes
- Tommy tells him they need to go get the Nightmare armor from Tubbo and asks how George is feeling. George isn’t feeling well
- Then he tells George no armor, then tells Tubbo to prepare the battle stations
- They run to Snowchester, Tommy says “nukes” in chat
- Tubbo is standing there holding a rosebush. George asks why he’s holding them, but Tommy says there’s no time as Tubbo leads them to the Snowchester vault with Dream’s armor. George takes it
- George looks at the camera and says it’s time to go and kill Dream
- Suddenly, Tommy joins VC and pulls down the green screen to reveal that this wasn’t a lore stream but a meetup, and Jack, Tubbo and Niki are also all there!
The stream immediately ends.
- Later, Sapnap and Karl hang out with Drista for a bit
- Bad hangs out with Sapnap and Karl (in VC) in L’Sandburg. Sam comes over and accuses Bad of smacking his butt
- Bad and Karl talk some more before Karl eventually leaves the call and Foolish arrives in L’Sandburg. It’s time to do some lore to decide the fate of L’Sandburg!
- Foolish orders Bad to tear down the walls and Bad says he wants to sell L’Sandburg to Foolish. Soon, though, Sam comes over to interrupt. As the warden, Sam is here to oversee the conflict.
- Foolish tells Sam to put Bad in prison for taking his land, but Sam reminds Foolish that Bad is one of the guards. He was just coming over to tell Bad he’s on duty tonight
- Bad shows Sam L’Sandburg, and Sam likes it. Karl interrupts in VC. Bad explains to Sam the extent of L’Sandburg’s territory and Corpse Husband joins the call to apologize that he can’t make the lore stream
- Foolish tells Sam he built the obsidian walls to restrict their expansion, but Sam says by doing so, Foolish sanctified L’Sandburg’s status as a separate territory, and Sam is the keeper of law on the server. He believes that L’Sandburg is independent
- They push Foolish out of L’Sandburg territory and Bad explains to Sam and Foolish that he wants to sell the toll gate but keep the L’Sandburg tower
- Foolish offers a stack of leather and a stack of bamboo, but Bad doesn’t accept the offer. Sam considers buying it -- he’s making a bank and needs a steady form of income for it
- Sam offers Bad seven diamond blocks. After much bargaining, Foolish offers seven diamond blocks and steak. Sam offers steak for free, then Foolish increases to eight blocks, then ten. 
- Sam backs down, and Bad asks Foolish what he would do if he bought L’Sandburg. Foolish would tear it down
- Sam would have to enforce the tollgate, but he says he can divvy up his time between the prison and watching L’Sandburg. Bad would rather take Sam’s offer, and Sam says he wants to make it much bigger -- all the way to block limit
- Foolish protests. Bad asks Foolish to reimburse him materials and they accuse Foolish of vandalizing signs. 
- Bad says he’d be willing to accept Foolish’s offer of ten blocks if Bad owns the tower. Foolish says the tower belongs to Foolish and not Bad, and Bad disagrees and rejects the offer. Sam says the toll will be a diamond block now
- Foolish walks around the wall and Sam attacks him, saying he bypassed the toll
- Bad makes his offer again. If he owns the tower, he would get all vertical space included in the chunk, and he wants nothing less than full ownership
- Sam positions himself as a neutral third party. Foolish shows Sam the books. If Bad owns the tower, he would put a toll on the chunk of land
- Bad is concerned that since Foolish would own the land outside his tower, Foolish might box him in. Foolish agrees that he wouldn’t disrupt Bad’s line of sight from the tower and Bad gets a buffer zone
- They agree on the deal and Bad gets the ten diamond blocks, Bad confirming L’Sandburg is a country. Bad gives Sam his “cut” of five diamond blocks
- Foolish asks what Bad means, his “cut.” Sam was supposed to be a third party! Sam says good day and leaves Bad and Foolish to start taking down the walls, Foolish unhappy
- Sam whispers to Bad:
DON’T BACK DOWN ON THIS YOU WANTED TO DO IT. REMEMBER QUACKITY SAID THIS WAS A GOOD THING FOR BUSINESS.
- Bad agrees with Sam and continues to work. He’s pleased. Every nation has to start somewhere, and he now has what he wanted the most: acknowledgement as a sovereign entity
- Bad wants there to be no hard feelings, so he gives Foolish the five remaining diamond blocks he has as payment and apologizes for everything. He explains that on that one day, when he was standing on that one spot...he realized he just really wanted it
- The problem, he goes on, is that you can’t just “pick up a spot” and carry it to “a chest in a secret location.” Now he has it!
- Foolish asks what happens when somebody else decides that they too can claim it. Bad says when that day comes, they can fight together as neighbors! L’Sandburg is like an embassy
Foolish: “Wait wait wait a second -- am I talking to former Eggboyhalo or is this a slightly different Badboyhalo?”
Bad: “No, this is past the Egg arc.”
- Just then, Bad gets a message from Skeppy. He’s confused that Skeppy is messaging him that Foolish took him prisoner and won’t release him until he gives up L’Sandburg. Bad demands Foolish explain, and Foolish lets slip that there was a plan to kidnap Skeppy
- Foolish tries to explain that it was just backup in case Bad had an evil plan up his sleeve. Bad shouts at Foolish, asking where Skeppy is
Foolish: “I should tell you something...Skeppy said he was getting tired of living with you.”
Bad: “...”
Foolish: “He said he needed a break, so I was gonna offer him a vacation.”
Bad: “...You take that back.”
- Until Foolish returns Skeppy to Bad, Bad declares war. Foolish doesn’t know where Skeppy is, as it was an unmarked location. Bad is horrified and immediately goes searching all over for him
- Foolish reminds Bad that Bad tried to kidnap Finley, but Bad says he gave Finley back safe and sound
- Bad gets another message from Skeppy saying he’s cold and hungry. Foolish says it’s just a prank, and he has Tall Mama instead. Bad goes to leave
- Foolish asks if they’ll still be able to be friendly neighbors
Bad: “I hope so, Foolish...”
- As a token of friendship, Foolish hands Bad the decorative button from the now-torn-down L’Sandburg tollgate
- Bad heads back through the Nether, looking down from the bridge into the lava and calling for Skeppy. He walks down the Prime Path, saying he was sorry for going off and making L’Sandburg
Bad: “I know things didn’t go the best with the whole Egg thing, but come on...”
- He makes it to the mansion and sees the poster of the shark with its butt out. It’s the ransom note
- He searches through the mansion. L’Sandburg was supposed to be a place where he and Skeppy could hang out together...
He keeps calling for Skeppy but there’s no answer, and the screen cuts to black.
---
Afterwards, Bad does a brief lore QnA:
- L’Sandburg canonically takes place after the final Egg stream, which Bad says is going to have “a doozy of an ending,” and he “doesn’t want to make you guys too sad.” 
- All the L’Sandburg lore was on the fly. Nothing (except for Skeppy getting kidnapped) was planned, it’s all unscripted and fun
- People will either love or hate the next Egg lore stream. It’s going to be crazy
- There is one more stream that will wrap up the Egg lore and “set everything in motion.” 
- He says you do not want to miss it. Bad will announce the date before it’s time
- A dono asks, if the Egg lore is setting stuff up, is it taking a break and coming back later?
“Coming back later? You’ll see. It’s gonna be interesting. You’ll see.”
---
Upcoming Events:
- The final Egg lore stream
- Foolish’s date
- Quackity’s business opening
- Quackity’s next lore stream
- Tales From the SMP: “Space Race”
- Ponk’s lore stream
- Dream’s lore video
- Sapnap’s possible lore stream
- Awesamdude lore stream
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starshipsofstarlord · 3 years
Text
𝑅𝑂𝑃𝐸𝑆 𝑂𝐹 𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑅𝐷𝑈𝑆𝑇
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Summary: Kaz had faced two of his fears - almost watching you die and going against his touch aversion. And now he has to deal with the consequences that not only burden him, but also yourself
Pairing: Kaz Brekker x reader
Warnings: mentions of death, mentions of violence, touch aversion,
Word Count: 3255
Masterlist Link
The night, it’s integrity toiled with you, as you say at the camp, with Inej planning on abandoning you all, and Jesper missing that bleating goat. It made you wonder of what direction that you should pursue going in, as you ogled up at the glittered sky, the sequinned stars glinting mischievously back at you. You were nothing other than a speck in the world, as they were in the laminated skyline, the Saints and dark generals were the ones that whisked you down such demeaning paths. The crows were to scurry from their brash threats and existences, the journey of catching the sun summoner had been all for nought.
Not a kruge had been earned in your name, the small bump of adventure had inevitably ended up as being a waste of both resources and time. And now the task of returning through the dreary and life threatening fold lay at your feet; such a plain that was created from pure evil was nerve wrecking. You’d never be considered as one of the goods that served the gods, but you were nowhere close to the Darkling’s maleficence. Had he not only taken hostage of a symbol to all geisha, but your veins were adeptly black, and the toxic venom was spreading with each hour that sourly passed. None of your fellow murder knew of the state that was combusting you; you had saved Kaz, with no regrets of doing so. That dagger had landed in Aleksander’s shoulder, and he had spread his shadowing cloud over to you, tormenting you with the image of complete destruction.
You were lucky to have escaped from his entrapment, Kaz had saved you, whisking your from the overbearing plough of suffering, even grabbing you with his glove covered hands, pressuring himself to do such an act to keep you alive. Though, you didn’t know how much longer you would remain so, and that was why you were gazing up at the constellations; hoping that you’d end up in their blazing glorification. Perhaps you’d survive, nothing was known of your current condition. Or you’d be cursed, turned grisha or something significantly worse. One thing that you’d learned on this gruelling mission was that anything was possible, even Kaz had made a step in his discomfort to rescue you, hauling you away from your inevitable doom by the arm, and stepping into the shrouding darkness. If it had not been for him, then you’d surely have composed into a defiled corpse, ripped apart by the darkness that Aleksander exhibited, and had enhanced through ancient looms that had been integrated onto absorbable parchment.
“I see that you’re less tense; does this mean that you are no longer mad at me?” His voice rang in your ears, prompting you to grind your teeth together as though you were mashing up crystals of salt. Eternally, you were grateful for the risk he had taken to ensure that you would not meet whichever saint you believed in once you travelled through the ropes of pitch and certain demise. You refused to give him the source of satisfaction of giving him your undivided attention; most feared him enough to comply and give him all the attentiveness he demanded as he struck his cane upon a surface, however, unlike those commoners, there was nothing about Kaz Brekker that struck fear in you. He were merely a man, whilst albeit had done some unforgivable things, had suffered same as everyone else, but terribly more so. “I’ll take your silence as a no then, should I?”
In turn, you crossed the folding origami of your arms over the expanse of your chest, and continued to ogle your pupils up towards the passageway of luminescence that hung like a chain in the velvet sky, causing Dirty Hands himself as he had been known, to release a heartfelt huff of frustration. It had taken quite the toll on him to oppose his own serious paranoia, and yet here you were, ignoring him after the cold events. Gulping, you couldn’t help but have annoyance seed in you as he continued to hover his presence beside you, he was using the tactic on purpose, full well knowing that it would eventually have you splintering until you cracked. You’d always had a soft spot for Kaz since the day you had met him; he was so brutally concurred with the ways of making a victim squeal like a sow giving birth, yet there continued to be an innocence within him, of which he hid from most. It was quite the contrast, as were his child like eyes that bore into you like his wish was to make you frail from poised embarrassment until you disappeared into a fine speck on the shoulder of his coat.
That was an irrational thought though, Kaz Brekker simply wanted to know, and not for the first time, why you disposed of reciprocated speech, and chose to pretend to be deaf to his consolation that he was attempting to reprimand with you. “Because if you remain to be angered with me saving your life, then, I would like to know. I’m not going to scoundrel around your presence all evening, we’re going to have to start moving sooner rather than later if we ever hope to get upon the route that I have planned. As useful as your combat is, and irreplaceable as I may think you are at times, I will allow you to go on your own path as you wish. You aren’t the only one that wants to part from the crows; Inej also has intentions to. If this is also because of the sun summoner, then they are freely your beliefs, though I certainly think you have the strength to strive towards something controversially more.” Inej leaving - that was news to you, and thus you finally surrendered, turning to him with spite written upon features, and commenced in supervising his lean form with integral eyes.
“To where do you have plans to go Kaz?” In turn, the volume of your sound increased, as you marked him as your target of choice. “And you’re right, I am pissed that you decided to save me rather than prioritising your own life; if anything were to happen to you, I’m not sure how I’d handle it. I have an inkling of a feeling that I wouldn’t even be able to. That’s because if you weren’t here I’d probably go crazy and envelop myself in a spiralling madness of which I’d be averted onto a path of nothingness. You are the one that has gifted me with a purpose, and time and time again you continue to preserve my life and I’m not sure I can cope with that. Just knowing that you are willing to throw yourself in the eye of danger to ensure that I do not meet my eventual end that is coming anyway. And worst of all, you faced off against that no good, dirty grisha, murderous General. Do you have any idea of what he would have done to you if he were to explicitly, and cruelly as are his routines, contort your body into the whim of his Darkling abilities.”
“I have an idea or two.” He admitted, toying with the fingers of his gloves, relieved to not see what lay beneath the leather. He stared at you in the face, feeling sickened from the sight of the creases that promoted your frown that was directed thoroughly towards him. It wasn’t a good feeling to be on the other end of your diverging glare, it was making him conflicted with the perishing of his emotions. A part of him was laughing inside that he was intimidated by someone, a woman no less, the other was rather impressed with your ample stubbornness. Now that was one thing that the two of you had in common; you both stood like stone, shadowing behind your beliefs or there lack of, as though Medusa had fixed the pair of you with her grey glazed glare, and forced you to be the way that you were. “And it was in fact you who decided to save my life first, I was merely returning the favour.” He now took it as his shift to allow his eyes to travel up into the beyond, the highlights that flawed his irises being triggered by the ambience that strobed in the frustrated sky, that was getting more antsy by each second that passed.
“I saved your life because I care about you, not because I value your skills and require them. That is a vast difference that separated us from being merely a single detail in a rope of stars. We’re separate in thought, and consolably close in real time and space, that fate has chosen us to be. We were both close to death in that second, he could have tarnished us both if that were his main priority, and we should be thankful that he realised that we were not lying when the admittance of not knowing of Alina Starkoff’s whereabouts fell off our tongues like misconducted liquor.” Your voice cracked, thinking about Kaz dead was the last thing that you wanted to obscure your mind, however it was the only thing that was roaming around the space like a moth darting around in a light fixture, having fallen captive to its own instinctive nature to fly too close to the example of fire. “Never, and I mean this Kaz, step in the path of death that narrows in my sights; I’d rather it be me than you of whom takes a fall into such a never ending abyss. You’re the face of this operation, and I am merely a killer that you decided to take under your wing whence times got too tough for either of us to cope alone.”
“I am not bound to make any promises, especially when you speak of accepting death so gracefully. And to answer your prior question, we are returning to Ketterdam, and I- i um-“ he fidgeted, his jaw contained to clench and release in a rhythm as he attempted to get the words out. “I need you to come with me on this, trust me, I have a plan, one that does not involve you dying. There will be no funerals that parallel this task ahead of us, if anything happens, you are my priority.” The heart felt ropes of words interlocked, much like the passage of beaming stars that made a blanket in the material of the sky; they shon stirringly in the abyss of the above, daring to deter you as its source of focus, causing you to freeze up as Kaz spoke his difficult to say words. “And when we get the one million kruge, that is when I will allow you to go out on your own, then you will have the expenses to protect yourself, and disappear if we cannot manage to end this eternal wrath that the grisha and hierarchy establish through the existence of the fold, they turn the tides of where whomever can go, and if they are gone, you shall have the freedom to venture to the place that your heart most desires, you’d no longer have to be trapped by my side similarly to my cane.”
“Everything that you are saying is tipping my head upside down; that I out of everyone, am your priority and that you are to set me free like a bird that has been trapped in a cage? Perhaps, this is a situation that it seems not you have enquired to think of, but I do not want to leave your side, even if I can. If I so much as wanted to, I’d have taken the chance to wrangle free in the midst of the journey from Ketterdam to these exasperating lands that want us to be persecuted for this job that we have taken underneath our midnight wings, though if you hadn’t noticed, I remain here. And whilst I wouldn’t have been peripherally if you weren’t to have saved me from my possible annihilation, I still have no intentions of abandoning you in any way, although that resolutes from you openly willing to take the risk of your own life in order to preserve my own. Never, and I compensate that with defiance, do that again.” You swiped your finger towards him, watching as the crease between his brows stiffened and grew deeper like a crescent that exhibited itself in the lawns of time, he poised his head back at your jurisdiction, clearly offended by your selfless demand.
“I cannot make that promise, there are little to no things that I have connective nurturing for; money and wealth stomp on nearly anything, but to me your life is priceless, even if your opinions do not retrograde the same reflection of worth.” His palm was shaky beneath its armour of leather as he went to reach for your hand, it took him a minute or so until he paid the dues of contact, but he faced his greatest fear, and denied avoiding contact. The prospect of Kaz touching anyone, let alone it being you, stirred a strange sensation through your body, as though you were being electrocuted via a storm, more specifically, a bolt of lightning that shot down from the angry clouds, shooting adrenaline and a high pulse through every limb of your form. “Do not mistake me for not having care towards Inej and Jesper, but without you I’d lose the path of succeeding through all my personal struggles, because you are the one thing that reminds me to continue to fight all of the harms in the world that wish to prosecute us, as though we are rodents that climb out from the sewers and run through the streets, poisoning them. There is a strong suit that wraps around me, stubbornly suffocating my interests, so that I have an avoidance of ever allowing anything to proceed to happen to you - get that through that steel skull of yours, you are smart and strong and my number one mine of gold for me to protect.”
“Kaz…” it felt like a forbidden sentence slipping off your tongue, simply by saying his name. You gave his hand a squeeze, noticing how he stiffened for a moment, and then relaxed a second later, getting used to the notion of silent amorist exchange; his blue eyes scalped every inch of your face, staring at the skin that compressed against your bone structure, the twinkle of the stars illuminating each distinctive feature that condoned your image. “I don’t know what I should say it’s - it is like we have been risking everything for nothing. And I am no gold mine, I cannot get us all that kruge, and I sure as hell can’t beat against the most powerful grisha known to man. I may be strong, but I am not strong enough. I may be smart, but certainly not smart enough. Overall, to everyone I am missing something, and it makes me wonder what else you see in me rather than an opportunist that can bring men to their knees in a second by sweeping beneath them, ready to swipe anything of value that they carry within the income of their pockets.” Drifting on their own accord, your eyes diverted once more to gaze up into the magnificent scenery that stroke above; each star was different within its placement, as well as how much it glowed under the pressure of insistent staring. It was as truly beautiful sight, and as you accorded your eyes to focus on the chord of light, Kaz’s eyes remained tuned upon your perseverance.
“The fact is you could bring any man, including myself,“ he gulped for a moment, feeling just how cheesy his words were as they spewed out, before he continued. Each word he spoke with giving you a new light that you saw Kaz under, he was not just a ruthless killer that likened to getting his hands dirty on a job, he was human like everyone else, many people seemed to forget that. But he had never appeared more humane as he did in the second with you, his hand clasped foreignly in the clasp of your own, and his eyes void of all intent, they were pure and for a second juridical with the haven of content. He wasn’t envisioning good, he was allowing himself to see what was right in front of him. “To their knees.” He finished his sentence, only to go on and elongate the mercenary like talk that he often had a problem with discussing. Though now could be the last moments that he could open up in such a way; it was uncertain how the turn of planned events would turn out, sailing through the fold was a danger all in itself, a toiling threat that was pushing you all forwards with a stern hand on each of your backs. “And you don’t even have to lift a finger to do so, every emotion you make me emit makes me possess a vigil weakness that I try to keep hidden, but in order to get the last of my strength through it, I acquire to get this off my chest before we venture to our next route. I care deeply for you, when I’m around you it feels like I am beneath water, the liquid gurgling in my lungs like sickening liquor. I have never felt this way, not have I ever had a desire to be monitored by these virtual sources, but they’re here, as are we.”
Taking a sturdy breath, you raised Kaz’s gloved hand and aligned it with your lips, gently pressing a kiss to the material that separated your skin. “You will not lose me Brekker, I’m not going anywhere. We’ve gotten this far, and that’s impressive all on its own. The trip back to Ketterdam cannot be as difficult as our journey here, we endured betrayal from that oaf that helped us cross the border, we got in and out of the Little Palace unscathed, and escaped the General on another account. I’d say that’s quite impressive, and behind every ploy you have been the grand mastermind. So let’s go home, and we can pick this up from there. ‘Tis a shame though, the stars don’t quite shine as bright back there, but we’ll have each other, and that is enough to brighten and guide me through the nights.” His lips stretched at the sides, depositing an appearance of relived thought. There had merely not been much of a fight between you on the situation, if he were to have pried any further about your safety he was sure there’d have been, but things had settled before they reached that stage. The primary battle though was to be against one of the most powerful grisha to walk the earth, of whom was keeping the Sun Summoner hostage. But as you had supposed, things would work themselves out. “I’m going to check on Inej, I won’t be a second.” He remembered the smile on your face as you trekked off, it was a notion to which he analysed that you were one of the few people who were kind to him. Once you were out of his vision, he looked up at the stars. There may have been no saints resting up there, but it sure was a peaceful view.
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gisellelx · 3 years
Text
Like a Raisin in the Sun
Saint Tropez, France
June 28, 2021
Despite all the trouble it caused them, all of their family liked the sun. Even Jasper, whose ruthlessly military affinity for the dark had taken decades to overcome, lay stretched out on a chaise, his eyes closed, with Alice curled up on his chest. Emmett and Rosalie were curled up on another set of chaises, Rosalie’s head on Emmett’s shoulder, his fingers stroking absently through her hair.
The estate they’d rented had a private beach, of course, and two large pools, and the main house itself was large enough that they couldn’t always hear from one side to the other. Small mercies after the beginning of the pandemic, when the nine of them had somehow managed to cram into their five bedroom cottage in Toulouse. Here at the coast, they all had plenty of room to be apart.
That turned out not to matter much, however. Except for a handful of times of day, when one couple or another would peel off into one of the suites so expansive they were large apartments unto themselves, they were together. Four pairs of chaise lounges feet from the water’s edge. Nine players around the Monopoly board Rosalie and Jasper had designed which was much more punishing and required a buy-in of two thousand euro from anyone who wanted to play to fund the “bank.” Seven in the audience around the Steinway, as Edward and Renesmee worked through the entirety of the four-handed Dolly Suite.
The water made an arrhythmic whoosh as it met sand over and over. Sometimes two waves came almost together, huge and frothy; other times it was the more gentle swish of a small, barely there swell of ocean. It was strange, beautiful, percussion-only symphony, and Edward could almost hear a melody over it, feeling his fingers begin to itch with the desire to compose.
Only one set of chaises sat empty, and as he gazed toward the horizon, he could see them: bright flashes of light between the two-foot swells. They were much farther out than would be safe for humans, having allowed the undertow to take them probably an eighth of a mile out to sea, to a sandbar where the waves crashed prematurely before building up again to come ashore. Between the waves, they stood only waist deep in water, the sun glinting off their shoulders and backs, sending shimmering rainbows across the dark sapphire of the waves.
Carlisle dove through a wave, emerging with hair dripping down his back. He ran a hand through it as he laughed and took a few strokes through the water to be closer to Esme, whose definitely-designed-to-scandalize-the-adult-children string bikini left more of her skin exposed than her husband's long swim trunks did his. Once together, a few steps further out took them both into deeper ocean where they treaded water, having a conversation Edward could not overhear.
So intent was he watching, he barely felt he hand on his shoulder as the chaise beside him became occupied, its regular owner having returned from retrieving a new book from the house. His wife settled in next to him, immediately following his gaze out to the distant sandbar. Together they listened to Esme’s giggling shriek as Carlisle picked her up and threw her full on into a large wave, followed immediately by Carlisle’s deep laughter as Esme recovered her footing and immediately picked him up and did the same. They slapped each other’s shoulders playfully, wiping water out of their eyes and shaking it out of their hair.
“They’re having so much fun out there,” Bella commented quietly.
Edward nodded, saying nothing. After several minutes more, his wife poked him in the side, making him chuckle.
“Sometimes I’d like to have your gift,” his wife said. “Know what you’re thinking.”
He laughed. “That makes two of us.”
It was their private joke, how Bella was his one silent mind. From time to time, she let him in, but it was difficult and she didn’t do it often. So he had scaled the uneasy cliff of learning to ask her to voice her thoughts, and to be more forthcoming about his own.
“I forget so often how young they are,” he answered, his voice quiet. “They should just be at the beach, splashing each other.”
“And then coming in and having mojitos,” Bella added.
Edward stared back out over the water.
“He would be just out of his M-1 year,” he muttered.
Bella laughed. “Carlisle? He’d be a rising M-3 at a minimum. You think he somehow didn’t finish college at least a year early?”
He laughed. “True.”
Bella leaned into him. “And she’d be the rising star architect at the boutique firm. Nobody can believe she has so little experience because her designs are so good.”
Edward slipped an arm over his wife’s bare shoulders. “How did they meet?”
“Mmmm.” Bella’s gaze returned to the ocean. “She designed the art museum and he went to a gala. He’d be looking at the Cezanne. And she would come up from behind him and start telling him about it.”
“Yeah and then he would compliment the architecture of the building and make her blush.”
Bella laughed. “A coincidence, or does he know who she is?”
“He knows who she is. He’s hitting on her.”
They both smiled.
“Does it work?”
Edward nodded. “She lets him buy her a glass of wine from the cash bar. And it’s generic and not very good so he offers to take her to a real wine bar after the event. And they sneak out of it a little early. He orders something way too fancy for his budget and he’s just going to put it on his credit card but—”
“—Esme sees straight through him and gets the check.”
Laughing again, Edward nodded. They both fell silent for a moment, the only sounds the breeze, the birds, and the gentle whoosh of the Mediterranean.
“How long do they wait to do it,” his wife asks mischievously.
Edward threw his hands over his eyes. “Bella!” When he opened them, he saw his wife, one eyebrow cocked, and when they spoke, it was as one:
“Third date.”
They dissolved into laughter.
“His place or hers?” This was Edward.
“His. It’s a mess. He wasn’t expecting to invite her home. His sheets aren’t clean, either.” Carlisle, for his master command of anywhere between two and ten people’s laundry, somehow almost always managed to forget the sheets even with an inhuman memory. Bella’s invocation of one of her father in-law’s few marital imperfections made Edward laugh.
“She doesn’t care,” he added.
Bella shook her head. “She’s kinda charmed, really.”
“They move in together very quickly.”
“But they don’t get married for a long time.”
Edward nodded. “Until he’s in residency.”
His wife smiled. Then she mischievously leaned into his side, putting her lips at his ear and whispered, “They pull the goalie before the wedding.”
This made Edward laugh, but it rang true. In this world of events his mother would be thirty, and worried. They would both want to get started as soon as they were sure of their commitment, and neither of them had ever been much for suffering other people’s opinions about what might be proper. He listened, smiling, as his wife went on.
“They find out the day before and everyone is gushing at the reception about how sappy in love they look. It’s not until she starts showing that they tell everyone why they were so gooey that day.”
Edward smiled shyly, sitting up, dragging his toe in the white sand.
“Boy or girl?”
“Girl,” Bella answered immediately. When he cocked his head and frowned, she smirked and added, “There is no alternate universe in which you are not Rose’s little brother.”
At this, Edward guffawed. But it was true, he knew. When he saw them, in their minds, the shadow-dream family his parents both had, he was always the youngest. Sometimes there were three children, the oldest a boy whom each of them imagined differently—Carlisle imagining caramel hair and brown eyes, and Esme imagining a softened version of Charles, usually, but sometimes a boy with Carlisle’s hair, and blue eyes the exact hue of which she didn’t know and Carlisle didn’t remember. He would have been twenty years younger than Edward, chronologically, yet somehow in all their imaginations he was the oldest—the lost child, the child she ran for, the only person in their family who had ever died.
It weighed so heavily on them. All they had lost, all the things they had won in their stead. They had been so weary a week ago in the morning, when they’d met the rest of the family on the tarmac in Castres. A pandemic year was taking its toll on them both.
The couple who splashed in the waves seemed too young to have experienced all the loss they had. They looked so unburdened, chasing the waves, laughing at each other, catching the sun. As they watched, Esme put Carlisle on her shoulders and he fought until they both fell backward and went under.
Bella squeezed his hand. “Which ones do you think are happier? The imaginary ones or the real ones?”
Edward pressed his lips together. He could see them, in his mind’s eye: the beautiful couple settling comfortably into middle age, the doctor coaching his daughter’s basketball team, the architect leading the pine car derby for her son’s scout troop.
But he could see this couple, too. The joy on their faces as they hugged each of their six children. The way their skin had glowed in the light of absolutely unnecessary birthday candles, a “1”, a “2”, and a “0” on a cake only Renesmee could eat, and in all likelihood wouldn’t. The night before, when they’d watched In the Heights, his daughter fighting sleep as she leaned on her grandfather’s shoulder. How contented Carlisle had looked as he nudged her awake, knowing she considered herself far too old to be carried to bed.
They were old and young. Happy and sad. Yin and yang, like the ancient forces: equal parts the hard amidst the easy, the pain amidst the joy.
“The real ones,” he said, and was rewarded with another squeeze of his hand as his wife smiled.
“I think so, too,” she said.
In the distance, they both watched as Carlisle and Esme disappeared again under the waves.
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niqhtlord01 · 3 years
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Humans are weird: Insurgency Part 1
Planet: Sepher III Status: Conquered Industrial Capacity: Limited - Reconstruction in progress Agriculture Capacity: Limited - Reconstruction in progress Orbital Capacity: 5 orbital platforms - 2 require minor repair, 1 requires extensive repair and overhaul Population:  753,682 Humans                        35,321 Mentas                        125,873 Menta Colonists enroute. Military: 0 Human                    175,946 Menta Soldiers                2,653 Naval Personnel                3 Moltak Destroyers Leadership: Military Governor Galvin Zecks                        Sub Commander Cobal Oft ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 2743 Formal Occupation +1 To: High Council of Menta From: Military Governor Galvin Zecks To my honored leaders I bid you well, I wish to once more thank you for your confirmation of my stewardship of our latest conquest from the humans. Already I have put to work the remaining population of humans that did not flee at rebuilding this planet and preparing it for the coming colonists. Within a few months of their arrival I will have turned this war torn world into the lynch pin for our future conquests in neighboring sectors.
I have just seen off the remaining military forces which left to continue the campaign. I have no doubt their victories will resound through the hallowed halls of the seven suns for ages to come.
May the eyes of the seven watchers gaze upon your deeds. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 2743 Formal Occupation +1 To: Military Governor Galvin Zecks From: Cobal Oft
Per your instructions the remaining humans in the surrounding area have been put to work rebuilding the capital and space port.
Our initial strikes on both locations was deep and the damage is extensive. It will be some time before they are operational again.
In the mean time I have had our ground forces establish their base around the capital building. They have begun work on fortifications along with several barracks and depot buildings have already been constructed.
From here we have been able to launch extensive patrols around the surrounding area.
I have also dispatched several dozen garrison forces to occupy other cities and smaller towns. Once the capital is secure we can go about setting up additional garrisons. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 2743 Formal Occupation +66 To: Cobal Oft From: Military Governor Galvin Zecks The first batch of colonists should be arriving within the next few days.
Finally we can get this dirt ball feeling like a proper Menta world. It will be refreshing to see the streets filled with our people instead of these dirty human rabbles.
To that end I want you to establish exclusion zones around the start port and capital. Expel all humans within and remove them to the outer quarters of the city. The use of lethal force is prohibited at this time for such implementation, much to my displeasure. We can not have our new colonists thinking this world is savage and unhospitable and if word gets out of executions or deaths among the human work force it could reflect badly and dissuade others from coming.
If such methods are required in certain cases make sure that they are properly contained.
After the humans have been relocated establish checkpoints at each of the entrances to the star port and capital. No human is to be allowed in unless with proper authorization. papers.   It's time to remind the humans of their new place on Sepher III. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Year 2743 Formal Occupation +153 To: Military Governor Galvin Zecks From: Cobal Oft
Security of capital has been officially handed over to the Sepher police force. They're a bunch of green jackribs if you ask me but at this point there's no need for military units to be acting like this is a live combat theater.
In the mean time I am dispersing the remaining forces to the regional capitals now that they're finished. All twelve should have substantial reinforcements to support local enforcement which has become a problem since humans fled major cities to minor towns.
Speaking of troop deployments, I heard a rumor that we are about to lose a majority of our standing occupation forces. Can you confirm? If this is true then it might shake up our redeployment considerably. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 2743 Formal Occupation +153   To: Cobal Oft   From: Military Governor Galvin Zecks You heard correctly, but in the future I would encourage you to dissuade yourself from gossip. The war with the humans is taking a larger toll than first projected. Reinforcements are being called up from all of Menta space and shipped to Vergo Prime and since Sepher III has been classified as pacified the military leadership has decided such a large force is no longer required.
We can expect transport ships to be in system within the next few days to collect roughly a third of our ground forces. Have the finest soldiers ready on the landing pad before then. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 2743 Formal Occupation +247   To: Cobal Oft   From: Military Governor Galvin Zecks I am hearing disturbing reports from one of our mining camps at Golden Peaks. Some sort of violence against one of our guards by a human prisoner.
This came at a rather embarrassing time as I was meeting with several industrialists from the home world about their expansion to our world.
I was able to downplay the event as nothing serious but I want it under control now.
Dispatch several squads and make some examples of the human laborers there. Then go have a word with the mines foreman and express my displeasure with his lack of control.
Be enthusiastic when it comes to telling him how disappointed I am. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 2743 Formal Occupation +262   To: Cobal Oft     From: Military Governor Galvin Zecks I feel my previous message may have been unclear in what I wanted done with the mining base at Golden Peaks.
To be clear, I wanted the soldiers to publicly execute one or two human agitators and then beat several dozen more including the foreman.
What I did not want to happen was the destruction of the entire mining operation!
My office is still getting reports of damages and loss of life after the explosives went off.
Consider yourself fortunate that the industrialists had already left or I would have your head on a platter.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 2743 Formal Occupation +263   To: Military Governor Galvin Zecks From: Cobal Oft
I have had my men combing the area and we believe we have pieced together what happened.
Several squads arrived just as you requested two days prior and began the process of making examples.
The day before the explosion one of the soldiers executed a human female from the camp and displayed her body at the main mine entrance as a warning.
Later that night a series of explosives went off destroying not only the mining facility but the stationed squads as well.
We believe the humans were able to get their hands on some of the mining charges and wired them to detonate.
Officially I have been stating that the incident was a result of human negligence with improper storage of explosives and the cover story is working. The only problem is the final body count does not add up. It's true because of the blast several more bodies may be buried in the mines, but security footage shows several dozen human workers fleeing the mine before the explosion went off.
I have three teams combing through the surrounding area searching for them.
They will be recaptured and made an example of.
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janaeekook · 3 years
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Incapable iii. || {myg}
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pairing: assassin!yoongi x reader
word count: 2.5k
warnings: - mafia - depressive thoughts - alcohol
a/n: so sorry this chapter took so long I rewrote it so many times, I hope you enjoy
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series masterlist
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iii.
The week after Win's death was a blur, it didn't feel real no matter how many times you tried to convince yourself. Convince yourself it wasn't your fault, but it was hard there had been nothing from your new supposed enemy, NCT. It was now 7 o'clock Friday night and you hadn't left your bed, Jungkook had tried his best to cheer you up. You were great full for it, for his kind words of reassurance but even then; Nothing seemed to help, to fill the hole, so you lay there, as your room darkened with the day. You felt gross, dirty, his blood still staining your hands you rolled from your bed forcing yourself to change your clothes— to pretend, at least, that you're alright.
Pretend; You'd guessed you'd done that a lot recently, it became second nature. You didn't want the others to see how truly weak and wounded you were— the emotionally scaring toll that last weeks events had put on you.
Downstairs, Yoongi walked out of the gym, a towel drapped around his neck. The black dri-fit shirt hugged his toned chest and biceps nicely. As he reached the stairs he saw everyone gathered getting ready to go out.
"What's going on?" Yoongi asked with mild confusion.
"We're meeting with SKZ for a trade." Namjoon stated.
"And you didn't think to tell me?" He questioned, everyone's eyes finding another's as they glanced around.
"You're staying and watching y/n." Namjoon stated bluntly before turning to lead the others out the door.
"Why me?" Namjoon stopped and glanced back to Yoongi as the others continued out the door, "Tae's here."
"He's on monitors, suck it up Yoongi, you've delt with worse." Yoongi just rolled his eyes, trudging up the steps, he found your door was cracked open.
His hand raised, ready to knock, but through the crack he saw you. Your bare back facing him as you pulled on an oversized top. He couldn't seem to pull his eyes away from your exposed state no matter how much he wanted to. He watched until you brought your hands to the waistband of your pajama shorts, finally forcing his eyes away not wanting to invade your privacy and see anything more he wasn't meant to.
He could feel his heart pounding insanely in his chest, shaking his head he finally knocked lightly on the wood.
"One minute!" Your voice squeaked in surprise, you quickly pulled on a fresh pair of shorts and hurried to the door. You were surprised to see Yoongi standing at your door, "h-hey, what's up?"
"Uh, Your brother pinned me with watching you." He informed you, his eyes quickly and subtly flicking over your form.
You chuckled, "No need to treat me like a burden."
"Whatever," he looked over you again, only this time you noticed, "What are you doing?"
"I was thinking about watching a movie." You informed him, he pushed past you going deeper into your room, "What are you doing?"
"We're watching a movie aren't we?" You gave him a weird look.
"I guess you can join, I'm going to get water, you want anything?" You asked him, he shook his head as he looked around your room.
You sighed, leaving the room, you stalked down the hall and to the kitchen mindlessly. One might say you were lost in a daze, though in reality it was the sleep deprivation creeping up on you, looming behind your eyes. You hadn't slept beyond three hours the last few nights, not wanting to close your eyes, for fear of the lifeless face of your friend haunting you again.
A chill ran through your body at the thought, grabbing a bottled water from the fridge. You twisted the cap off gulping down a sip in an attempt to swallow the rising lump in your throat. It'd been hard for you to eat, the smell of his blood, thick and irony, it was burned in your nose.
You went back up the steps your footfalls on the polished stone, was all that could be heard. The trance that enraptured your mind however, was quickly broken when you stepped into your bedroom again.
Yoongi was facing you, his features of stone remained stoic but his eyes held amusement. In his hand he held a hot pink object, your face mirroring the shade in embarrassment.
"Tch, frustrated are we?" He joked, pressing the button, a quite vibration emitting from it.
You hurried quickly to him grabbing it and throwing it back in the drawer it belonged, "Min Yoongi you should know better than to go through peoples things." You scolded.
"I can't help my curiosity."
"Just go." You said, the flames in your cheeks never wavering as you pushed him to your door.
"You sure you don't want help?" Yoongi asked as he back up while you pushed him.
"What?!" You asked in horror, stopping to look into his eyes, was he seriously-
"I can hold it for you," his eyes glistened playfully, "While we watch a movie."
You swallowed hard, trying your best to keep your cheeks from blazing any hotter. You quickly and hastily pushed him towards the door.
"You are so crude Min Yoongi." Informing him as you pushed him out into the hall, he gave you a shit eating grin, "I'll be just fine on my own."
The second you shut the door in his face you took in a breath, your heart was pounding in your chest. Thoughts racking through your brain, why had you pushed him out? You like him don't you?
But you guessed it wasn't that simple, your thoughts knew how complicated it would become getting involved with Yoongi. No matter how much your body begged to fall into his tempting grasp you had to restrain. Because the theory of him was what attracted you and so many others, not the cold exterior and troubled heart.
Min Yoongi was complicated, to say the least.
But he was human— the flutter he felt in his chest when you became flustered by merely his words. It confused him not knowing why you filled him with such warmth. But he pushed his thoughts away like any time before.
The next afternoon was somber, quiet, as if no one wanted to speak. You were clad in a black dress and flats, the boys in their suits. They all watched you descend the steps for the first time in what felt like ages. You were burying Win today, finally putting his body to rest, a step of 'moving forward and mourning' they'd said though it just broke you more. But you had to pretend, you couldnt let the others see you as weak. You weren't weak.
"You ok?" Your brother asked, and you could only nod to reassure him. For you knew if you tried to speak you would break down, You were greatful he didn't push for a more sufficient answer to the question. 
The car ride was rather short, a feeling of dread lingering in your heart. You looked out the window of the car upon the lawn, stones where so many others loved ones names were carved in their remembrance. You tried desperately not to cry, to let out a sob and let the boys around you know you were breaking-- shattering in fact. It shouldn't have been him it should've been you, you wanted it to be you; to know that your bestfriends death wasn't on your hands. Maybe it was selfish, but the aching in your heart was begging for the roles to be reversed.
"-Y/n?" You hadn't even realized Jungkook had opened the door for you, his voice bringing you back to reality. Aware again, that you in fact were the one with breath in your lungs. You didn't say anything just stepped out of the car, and followed the others to the site. It was beautiful, a top a grassy hill that looked out over a large expanse of trees, You knew he would've loved it. 
Everyone stood around the grave where the casket was to be lowered. No one spoke, not a word, just stood and looked at the sleek wood that encased Win, or his body rather. The man that stood next to it a bible on hand began to speak, and your eyes drifted to the grey stone.
Kim Seung-Win
April 23rd 1993-March 13th 2020
'The journey doesn't end here;'
"Today, we're here to put a friend to rest, to send his soul home-" The reverend started, but you zoned out, eyes locked on the grass at your feet. You felt numb, How could this be real? Win was supposed to survive to live and be loved, and have an impact everyone he met. Silent tears fell from your eyes, due to both frustration and sorrow. Namjoon noticed from where he stood next to you and pulled you into a hug, holding your head to his chest as your tears soaked his jacket.
"I invite you all forward to put a handful of dirt over casket, you may take this time to say any final words." You let go of Namjoon wiping your cheeks with your hands.
We all moved in a line grabbing a handful of the dirt and taking turns circling to the grave, doing our part. Some taking longer than others to say things aloud or in their heads, everyone who he worked with were left with a positive imprint in their lives due to him. When it was your turn, You looked down to the dirt in your hand before holding your hand over the grave and letting it trickle from your grasp.
"I'm sorry." You whispered, fresh tears brimming your eyes. You turned back to the others, standing next to Yoongi as you watched everyone else. You felt Yoongi's hand brush yours experimentally, before he finally laced your fingers with his. You looked to your hand in his then to his face his eyes those of sympathy and support. Though affection wasn't his strong suit, he wanted you to know he was there. You gave him a weak smile in return
"I give the words said here today, to Seungwin, in hopes they will help his soul move forward. Friends, Death seems cold and dark but it is not extinguishing the light of life. It is putting out the lamp because the dawn has come, and Seungwin lived fully to his dawn."
The final words resonated with you, stuck to your heart. He lived a full life, it may have seemed to be cut short but he was everything anyone could have wished to be. He was great, It should've been me. Your mind invaded with the negative thoughts again a shaky sigh passing your lips as you willed yourself not to cry again, watching the grave workers put the remaining dirt in the grave. The others had started to walk back to the car.
"Y/n, come on." Your brother beckoned quietly, but you shook your head.
"Not yet."
"I'll stay with her." Yoongi's voice sounded from somewhere behind you, You couldn't see it but Namjoon nodded before pressing a feather light kiss to your temple. He was worried, you could feel it radiating off of him, he already had a lot on his plate, the last thing he needed was an emotionally unstable sister.
"Stop blaming yourself," Jen, you went to speak but she waved her hand, "I know you, Y/n, and I know that look." 
You looked around finding Yoongi sitting on a bench a few feet away. You turned your attention back to Jen, and you felt the urge to cry again.
"I'm sorry, Jen." Your lip quivered, and tears began to stain your cheeks again.
"There's nothing to be sorry for." With that she reached into the bag that was on her shoulder pulling out a bottle of liquor, "You can only have some if you promise not to cry." You wiped your cheeks quickly.
"I solemly swear!"  
You hiccupped lightly as you sat on the grass next to Win's freshly made grave, Jen was fully laying down and the empty bottle of alcohol was between the two of you. Chuckling as you thought back to your 20th birthday when Win mixed you all his favorite drinks, you were so hung over the next morning.
"Do you remember my 20th birthday?" 
"When you threw up on Win after he got you shit faced? How could I forget?" Jen slurred her words.
"Or when he flipped the table because he was losing in monopoly." You brought up the game nights you'd all have when you were younger.
"Alright you two lets get back home." Yoongi said going to help you up, the sun was setting and he wanted to at least get to the car before it was dark. He helped Jen up next and then guided the two light weight girls to the car.
The whole car ride home Yoongi listened to you and Jen reminisce over your memories of Win. Though even drunk your voice sounded weak and broken as you talked over the good times and Yoongi took notice, him being the only sober one in the car. The wall you'd been keeping up to hide your emotions was crumbling away now that you were drunk, vulnerable.
When Yoongi pulled up Jeonghan was waiting at the doors, ready to take Jen to her room. Jeonghan chuckled lightly as Yoongi told him what happened, before ultimately thanking him for bringing them both home safe. When Jen and Jeonghan walked away Yoongi turned back around to find you sitting down on the gravel drive way.
"Whatcha' doing?" Yoongi asked with a hint of amusement in his tone, though it made a deep pout form on your lips.
"I can’t walk."
"Why not?"
"I'm sad." Your voice broke.
"Ok, You think you can get on my back?" Yoongi asked quietly, you nodded, and so he carried you. 
"I miss him." You whispered, which happened to be right in his ear,
"I know."
When he reached your room he set you down on the bed, then going to slip your shoes off your feet. When he looked back to your face though, he saw a tear fall from your eye.
"Its all my fault." You spoke suddenly taking him off guard.
"Hm?"
"Win is dead because of me." You chocked out, "I-I should have saved him." Silent sobs now shook your small frame.
"Y/n, None of what happened was your fault, there was no way to know."
"He blames me- It sh-should've been m-me" You managed to get out as more sobs fell past your lips. You couldn't control it anymore nor hold it in, something and Yoongi's chest ached with each strangled sob you tried to keep quiet in your throat. He picked you up lightly to make room for himself on your bed and he pulled you close to his chest.
"Shhh, No one blames you, Y/n. We cant go back, we can't change what happened, its destined to fate. You don't need to blame yourself anymore."
Not another word was spoke that night, Yoongi held you as you cried yourself into a deep sleep. He stroked your head, as your breathing became less labored with your sobs. His heart ached part of him hated to think that you felt all alone, and made him want to hold you tighter. But the other part wondered, since when did he care?
Taglist;
@agustdiv1ne , @hwaddict , @ahgasearmyfan , @gee-nee , @janeelizabeth1216 , @elliegrace1999tvd , @sunnynxy , @boba-king-iroh , @deathkat657
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Forgiving is hard.....
Every time I contemplate on all the heartbreaking episodes & events that i had to endure these past few months, I couldn’t help but to be filled with rage and/or great sorrow. Lately, it has kind of taken a toll on me. I often find it so difficult for me to fully focus & achieve khusyu’ in my ibadah or any task I do in general. As hard as I try to eliminate external distractions when I’m at something, my past always finds its way back to me. I start to be reminded of how hurt i was, and all the familiar faces that caused that hurt. Anger will peek in and just like that, I lose focus.
Now being distracted isn’t my main concern. It’s the fact that by losing focus when i’m in the middle of doing something, be it ibadah or work, I would end up not entirely satisfied of the outcome once it’s done- this bothers me a whole lot. Imagine how much better everything would turn out if I gave my 100%. Until I discover how to get rid of everything that’s bugging me, I don’t think I’ll ever be at peace. The question here is, why can’t I? Why is it so hard to get over everything? Then it occurred me last night that maybe, just maybe, the reason why I can’t let go of my past is because I’m withholding one of the most essential thing that is needed to move on- forgiveness.
In my effort to start fresh, I realised how I still get all emotional and mad each time I think of the ones who broke me. So I ask myself, if I still feel this way then have I really forgiven them? Hm, I don’t think so. But then, why not?
Although Allah has given us the right to refuse from forgiving someone, I’m pretty sure He does not encourage it. As difficult as it is to forgive, holding back forgiveness is way more tormenting and painful. It haunts you. In my idealism, I used to think that if I don’t forgive someone, i have done my revenge. They will not be able to live in peace because regardless of whether they have asked for an apology or not, i’d still consider it as ‘unsettled business’. But hey who am I kidding, because eventually, this mentality corrupts the heart. And a heart which is corrupted will never be at peace- including mine.
Oh come on, It’s islamic new year. If not now, can there be a better time? You see, forgiving does not only benefit the person at fault, but it’s equally as important & necessary for the forgiver as well. You should forgive others not only because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace. After all the crap they got you through, even if they never bothered to say sorry, forgive them. Again not because they deserve it, but you are way better than that. Because you are worthy with the quality of being forgiving. It takes the same amount of energy to forgive as well as to not forgive. There’s a certain kind of humility required to be the adult here. Not forgiving, as convenient as we ‘assume’ it is, just indicates the amount of pride and arrogance we have in us. Since when is life a battle of ego? Remember the story of Adam and Iblis Laknatullah? Ego was the exact reason why Iblis was taken out of jannah.
We are all children of Adam. We make mistakes. At some point of our lives, we have also wronged someone. We might have caused them hurt. With or without intentions, knowingly and unknowingly. It is certainly natural to mess up here and there. Yes right now you are torn. Yes you are shattered to pieces and broke to the bones. That person may have betrayed us, slandered us, or simply been a pain in the ass. But how can you be so sure you’ve never left anyone feeling the same way before? And because of that, we all owe each other forgiveness. If we hope to be forgiven, why is it so hard to do the same to people? Why are we withholding something which we are clearly not the rightful owner of in the first place?
Forgiveness, dear readers, it’s is not our forte. It’s not something we humans are experts of. For goodness sake, we are not God. Even Allah is Al-Ghaffur- The Most Forgiving. He forgives and He loves to forgive. It’s one of his beautiful attributes. A Godly one. Now since Allah is All-Forgiving, if the person at fault commits sincere tawbah (repentance), it is most likely for Him to forgive the person. But us humans? We on the the other hand, are different. We tend to come up with so many excuses and have the cheek to not forgive a fellow human being who breathe, eat, sleep and make mistakes just like us. Do we think that if we do not forgive them, we can refuse them jannah? Are we for real? Don’t compare who hurt who more, or ‘my pain is bigger than your pain’. If you look at it that way, you will never be able to forgive. We are not the bosses of others. I don’t owe you, you don’t owe me. Honey, who are we to punish people? If Allah can forgive people, why should we punish them more than they deserve to be punished?
It warms my heart every single time I recall on how forgiving our prophet Muhammad SAW was. Do you remember how he was once rejected by the people of Ta’if? When he arrived to Ta’if, he was pelted with rocks and stones until he bled awfully. His whole body was covered with blood and his sandals were clogged to his feet. Things got so ugly that Jibril was sent down to usher the angels in charge of the mountains to look after this matter. The angel greeted Rasulullah and said;
“Oh Prophet of Allah! I am at your service. If you wish, I can cause the mountains overlooking this town on both sides to collide with each other, so that all the people therein would be crushed to death, or you may suggest any other punishment for them.”
I bet you can guess what the prophet did next. 
Yes, he forgave them instead. Allah. He was A PROPHET. A Nabi! He could simply ask Allah to destroy the people of Ta’if. But not only he forgave them, he also prayed for them. He prayed for his enemies. No grudges. No nothing. MashaAllah, such humility. Muhammad SAW raised his hands towards the heavens and said “…So long as You are not angry with me, I do not care. Your favour is of a more expansive relief to me.”
Allahuakbar
Here’s another story. Once during the time of the prophet SAW, a man was said to be given glad tidings of Jannah. A sahabah heard this news and due to curiosity, he observed that man’s activities for 3 days from the moment he wakes up, to the time he goes to bed. However he did not find anything that made the man stand out from the rest of the sahabah who seemed to be doing more good deeds. So one day, he gave up and decided to ask the man directly. The man revealed a truly virtuous act that he never forgets to do every night. He said “Every night, before I go to sleep, I forgive whoever has wronged me. I remove any bad feelings towards anyone from my heart.”
How beautiful is that?
I learnt that one way to be more forgiving is by reading more seerah of the prophets. How they dealt with people, particularly who hated them and had harm inflicted on them. They were so gentle towards others and they showed that it is absolutely possible to forgive with hikmah; to become strong, without being hard, and remain soft, without being weak. Personally, the more I read about the prophets, the more I feel so little. As if I have no right at all to NOT forgive people, despite how they were towards me before.
Again,
Forgive others not solely because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace
It’s a win-win situation, for both parties. Not only that, it is also an investment for our Aakhirah. Our “jannah access cards”. Give yourself a chance to be happy again. Get rid of all that intention of wanting to torment a fellow human being by not forgiving them. It’s liberating and life changing, you know. Set them free, while setting yourself free. Pray for them. Ask Allah to guide them and make them happy. I noticed that by making du’a for those who have hurt us, we will find that their happiness can also be our happiness too. Tell me how can we not be happy seeing our prayers being granted?
And to every single soul that I have wronged, if by any chance you’re reading this, I sincerely beg for your apology. Please make du’a for me. Also know that I have forgiven you and I wish you nothing but the best for both your dunya and aakhirah. May Allah grant you contentment and peace, and may he soften our hearts to continue forgiving.
I deserve peace. You deserve peace.
So may peace be upon us all, inshaAllah.
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dogtoling · 3 years
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Headcannon timeline final part.
Prior to 2nd Zapfish raid: after hearing Calimari Inkantation, many Octolings are free from the brainwashing effect of the goggles. Many successfully reach the surface, among them a a young engineer prodigy from the Flooder Design Team, Marina Ida. Many that stayed, even under the goggles, feel discontent with oppressive Octarian life. Among them is a soldier known now as Agent 8. Eventually, her craving to experience the surface gets the better of her, and she leaves.
Octo expansion: Once on the surface, she runs into Cuttlefish and Agent 3. 8 and 3 erupt into a fierce battle. Due to the weapon 3 uses being identical to the one used by them later on, I head cannon this may be a replica used in turf wars because of the much slower rate of fire. Why is unknown, it might be that her usual gun is being repaired. Regardless, before the fight could be concluded, the 3 of them are attacked by soldiers sent by the Kamabo Co. they are subdued before they notice their presence.
These soldiers are the product of Commandar Tartar, the same AI created by the Professor to stop the next worthy species from creating Humanity’s mistakes. Unfortunately, the incredibly Vague phrasing and the fact the being the only intelligent anything for 10000 years was starting to take a toll on their sanity meant things didn’t turn out that way. Tartar was disgusted with the Inklings materialistic, capitalistic culture (I headcannon this is why he shows a clear bias towards Octarians), and this was what drove him to concoct his own DNA to replace the new life on earth with, contained within a teal-colored sludge. This sludge, unfortunately, has the unfortunate side effect of effectively turning the any cephaling infected with it into zombies; they are clearly brainwashed, they have unnaturally green skin and perpetually teal tentacles, they have no pulse, and their eyes go completely black except for their iris, which turned a shade of teal. This is a process Tartar calls “sanitization”.
8 awakes in a station in the Deep Sea Metro, owned by Kamabo, run by Tartar, with no memories. The events of Octo Expansion take place. This also takes place at the same time as the 2nd zapfish raid.
DEAR COD ABOVE, that was a lot! I swear I did not mean for this much to be written! If you are able, what do you make of these?
(6) Right, that all sounded pretty solid. I don't have much to add because I keep my perception of canon happenings in the world very vague on purpose because it's ultimately not something I can decide. My biggest question REALLY (or wonder, rather) is how the hell the Octarian domes are structured in a way that apparently there is a very strict society yet hundreds of people can just... leave. Like do they leave through the kettles? Where do the kettles CONNECT? (likely random domes, but come on, NO ONE is guarding those???) Yeah....
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Text
The Take Down | Part Three
Pairing: Mob!Tom Holland x Detective Reader
Summary: NYC has a new drug lord determined to wipe out any and all competition in order to grow his empire. You're going undercover to stop him.
Warnings: Mentions of prostitution and drugs.
Notes: All proof read but it’s been a long day so fingers crossed I haven’t missed anything obvious. The suit I’ve been picturing him in for this chapter is the grey one he wore to the Audi Polo Challenge event back in 2018, serious mob!tom vibes plus he’s just a full on snacc in it.
Enjoy! :)
Catch up here: Part One  |  Part Two
Part Three - 1700 Words
It was a risky decision but there wasn’t anyone I could trust more than a fellow cop. Especially one who knew what I was going through. "Zoey", as she was going by, had been under for 9 months. She was working to take down a prostitution ring. Like me, that meant immersing herself into the world. Dealing with the lowest of the low and having to contribute to the revenue to stay relevant. I knew from chatter on the streets that she was currently working out of a speakeasy in lower Manhattan. It was notorious for hosting an exclusive set of clientele and for books cleaner than a legitimate business’. We'd never been able to tie them down for any of the shady dealings rumoured to take place within its walls. If my conversation went well, then Zoey and I would be running two operations that could finally close its doors.
Staring up at the block of apartments the third floor window was open, curtains fluttering in the wind. It had just gone 7 am. Tate had cornered me earlier in the night and without a word had handed me a rucksack containing everything I needed to sell. I’d stashed it in the apartment, taking only what I needed with me to do a sweep of my new territory then set about following Zoey home from the bar. At this point I was running on fumes.
It didn’t take long for the first commuters of the morning to leave. No-one in this area knew their neighbours. No-one wanted too, so it gave me the opportunity to slip into the stairwell past a young waitress without getting a second glance. Reaching the apartment door I assessed the best way to approach her, deciding to knock and stay out of sight. It took a second before I caught soft footsteps approaching. There was a slight hesitation at the door before it cracked open. I made sure to step into view slowly.
“Hello, Zoey.”
She leaned out of the doorway, scanning the hall before stepping back. “You better come in.”
She waved to the loveseat at the window and I took a tentative seat. Her apartment appeared refreshingly tidy, but on closer inspection it was due to the lack of any personal items. There were no magazines on the coffee table. No favourite mug set next to the coffee machine. It wasn’t far off what my own must look like.
Detouring to the fridge Zoey removed two bottles of beer before joining me. I took her in as she got settled, feet tucked under her. She hadn’t got around to removing her nights make-up yet, hair still tight in dark plaits that hung to her waist.
She broke the silence first. “You look like shit.”
“I’ve been worse,” I reminded her. “You look like you’re doing well.” I watched her laugh humourlessly before taking a deep sip of her drink.
Her fingers started toying with the end of a braid. “Yeah, I’ve been having a great time.”
“That’s not what I meant,” I started to protest but she shook her head with a small smile.
“I know. It’s just been tough” Letting her braid drop she finally made eye contact with me. “I take it you’re not here to tell me I can come home.” There was no glimmer of hope in her eyes, she already knew the answer. I put my untouched bottle onto the coffee table and clasped my hands to chase away the chill it had left.
“I’m under too. I need your help.”
“I feel like I’m going to need something stronger.” Waving at me to start my story she moved to dig around in her kitchenette cupboards for a clean glass and a bottle of whiskey. I ran through what had happened, who I was after and laid out my proposition to her.
“I want to use your girls to help sell the extra supply. I’ll still be working independently each night to keep pushing to my regulars and-” Zoey was shaking her head before I could finish the sentence.
“Y/N, I’m running a brothel out of the club. I can’t be a mistress and a drug mule. It’s bad enough I can’t protect the girls when I’m stuck behind the bar all night. I can’t be keeping my eye on any users too.”
“How many girls would you let in on the deal?” I questioned, trying to work things out.
Her lips pursed as she stared into her already half empty glass. “There’s maybe five that I could trust to do it discreetly.”
“What if I agree to play security? With five girls I can make the target. If we up the price, to one more suitable for their type of clients, then I can use the profit to pay off a dealer and keep my streets covered leaving me free. The rest will be split between the girls.”
“You’d give them the profit?” Her brows had risen in surprise.
“Of course. I’m not looking to advertise that I’m making more than the required amount. Not yet anyway.” She downed what was left in her glass and held out a hand.
“You’ve got a deal, as long as you understand that if this starts to affect my investigation then I’m out and you’re on your own.”
“Understood.” I returned her handshake.
****
The first few nights of our new agreement had gone smoothly, if slowly. The girls took to selling easily in between their other activities. The issue had been convincing the men to buy, most had other sources already, but by the end of their allotted time they’d usually been won round by one of the girls. As promised I watched them every night, ensuring no-one harassed them while they worked their way around the room. The club had security guards to ensure only men on the guest list got in and break up any fights between them. They never stepped in for the girls.
Seated at the end of the bar I alternated between watching the entrance and keeping tabs on them. The main room held maybe 100 people and was already full twenty minutes after opening. The smooth gloss top of the bar ran from beside the stairwell door to the opposite wall. The back shelving was pristine glass, the upper shelves backed with mirrors while the bottom had soft looking purple velvet which matched the plush walls of the VIP area at the opposite end of the room. Instead of an obnoxiously loud DJ, soft jazz was filtered in from the ceiling speakers. Loud enough to block out conversations but not enough to disrupt them. Dimmed crystal sconces lined the walls, one over each of the eight booth seats, casting the room in a warm hazy light. With it being a Friday night every seat was taken up by a businessman of some description. All were completely indistinguishable in the sea of navy and black suits.
Zoey caught my eye across the bar; minutely tipping her head towards the VIP area that had slowly filled up. I watched one of the girls coyly drag one of the occupants out through the adjacent door that led behind the scenes. The bar was situated on the basement level of a convenience store and the restricted area extended well under the neighbouring two buildings allowing plenty of private spaces out of earshot. I threw Zoey a questioning look and she rolled her eyes before moving a hand to subtly rub her side. I snapped my eyes back to the VIP’s. It took a second for me to pick out who she was referring to as they stood just behind the curtain fringing the area. His face was shadowed as he stood stock still watching over the men around him. I’d first placed him as a newbie, unsure what his place was after being dragged along after work, suit not as expensive as the others as it was cut wrong and too bulky around the body. I’d got it wrong. I clenched my hand to stop it shaking. It wasn’t a tailoring error. It was to help conceal a weapon. I cursed myself.
I made to do a sweep of the room, get closer to properly assess him but Zoey shook her head. She was right; it was too dangerous with the club this full. I was completely off my game. I took a steadying breath and tried to focus.
As I watched, a new man entered and took a seat at the booth’s edge, hand instantly waving to get the attention of a server. My stomach tightened as I recognised him. Sam Arnold, looking as sleek and kept as he had during our first encounter relaxed into the seat and started chatting to the fellow VIP’s. I ran over the faces of his companions. Each one was nondescript. I couldn’t tell if they were associates from his business or from Hollands. My jaw clenched as I bit back my rising frustration.
I barely had time to dwell on how I’d managed to let so much slip past me before the entrance opened again. My breath caught as a figure entered donned in a long duster coat, the collar up around their face. With his head down all I could see was dark curls. A hush started, trailing around the room like smoke until everyone had stopped talking to appraise the newcomer. I tried to tell myself he wouldn’t be that brazen. He wouldn’t be caught in a public place when his weekly death toll had reached double figures.
They stopped at the VIP entrance. Shrugging his jacket off to reveal a light grey suit, he hung it over the back of the last vacant seat. I didn’t dare blink. The build, the height, those curls. My brain refused to process that he could be here. He turned then, unbuttoning his suit jacket leisurely and taking in the expanse of the room. Holland was here. My heart beat double time, my fingers itched to reach for a gun I didn’t have. He was here in my sights and I’d have to sit and do nothing.
---------
Taglist:
@spideylovin
@lukesbabylon
Part Four now up!
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codylabs · 4 years
Text
My Top 10 Ships
I’m not a very romantic sort of guy, I’m not real forgiving to departures from canon, I get easily annoyed at inconsistencies, and I don’t watch much television and movies, so in order for me to ship something, it has to be a GOOD ship. I default toward rejecting ships, so to impress ME, it must be built on logic, and evidence, it’s gotta be something I can suspend my disbelief far enough to accept. And it’s gotta have story behind it, something deep, some hefty emotional weight; if it doesn’t tickle this man’s cold reptilian heart with strong beats and excellent writing, it goes straight to the trash. I absoLUTELY will not stand for any of these weird little cute, pretty, pandering, trashy crack ships that everybody seems to be clumsily throwing characters into. Most ships are trash ships. They are not good ships.
You think your ship is good? You like your ship?
You ship it?
No you don’t.
Get out of here.
You will listen to me. I will tell you. Look at me. I’m the Captain now.
Here are the 10 good ships.
10. The Rocinante, The Expanse
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A resoundingly excellent ship. Unlike most ships you see out there, this thing was actually designed with realistic space combat in mind. It’s got 6 computer-controlled gatling turrets covering every angle, it accelerates in whatever direction it’s pointing, its bridge is right in the center to put as much armor as possible between enemies and crew, overall a much better-designed vehicle than most everything you see about.
That being said, I didn’t have much connection to this ship. Its crew weren’t really interesting, the aesthetic was kinda bleak, and I basically stopped watching after the phazon showed up. And the Rocinante itself has pretty poor redundancy. Enemy bullets can literally just pass through it (as is realistic for a ship this size) so how about multiple main engines huh? Absolutely tragic oversight. And its interior looks too much like an Apple product. How are you supposed to work on it? Where are the wires and pipes??? The handholds?????
9. Ares IV M.A.V., The Martian
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Almost more of a symbol than a ship. A symbol of freedom, of escape. A beautiful symbol. This is what Mark Watney spends the whole movie trying to reach, with an entire world backing him up, and an entire world trying to stop him. It’s the goal of the movie, and it just looks so beautiful when he finally reaches it and sees it sitting there in the middle of the desert, ass down, nose up; a tall, proud symbol. This ship has a special significance for me because the author of the original book really did his research on the scientific requirements and details of a Mars Ascent Vehicle, and it was actually inspired by the E.R.V. in another book, ‘A Case For Mars’, which I read when I was younger. “Makes its own methane-oxygen fuel on-site by using nuclear power to break down CO2 in the atmosphere and combining it with stored hydrogen, don’t you know.” I say as I adjust my spectacles and puff my pipe.
The M.A.V. in the movie does have a few issues, such as hallway and rooms running straight up through where the fuel tanks ought to be (instead of a lift/ladder on the exterior) and a rugged, industrial aesthetic that looks too heavy and cumbersome for a ship of its type. (And you’re seriously telling me he couldn’t have used the capsule’s RCS to literally bypass the movie’s entire climax? WHY NOT? The book never mentioned him having to drain the monopropellant!!!) But I’ll let that slide. Great movie.
8. Biggest Boy, The Greatship
(I don’t know the ship name so I had to make up a name. You know what, I think it’s actually just called the Greatship.)
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So it’s a starship the size of Jupiter, empty, unmanned, perfectly mysterious, that comes gliding into the galaxy a couple million years into humanity’s future. Where did it come from? Who made it and how? Good questions. It’s powered by matter-antimatter annihilation reactions from within planet-sized internal tanks, and its engines use hydrogen and fusion exhaust as reaction mass, and its hull is made of hyperfiber, a super-strong fictional material with a 4-dimensional lattice structure, able to weather impacts by spreading them out over various dimensions where the impact occurred in a different place.
I hope that after the first few entries, you didn’t get the impression that I am somehow against futuristic, far-out, impossible technologies. Quite the opposite! I love me some hyperdrive and anti-gravity and A.I. and stuff. However! Ships must be well-designed for the technology available, and must take no creative liberties except those explicitly allowed by the difference in the setting. The laws of physics don’t disappear when the magic crystals come out, the magic crystals are merely a different tool to combat them. Engineering will always exist, should start with the tools and work outward, form follows function. Star Wars ships, for instance, are trash because they don’t mount their repulsorlift arrays consistently, they’re not aerodynamic, and their engines aren’t aligned around their center of masses.
So I like the Great Ship. Although the story is pretty far-fetched, and a lot of crazy, out-there scifi events transpire deep in the ship’s depths, the book always strictly kept its own rules in mind, and never broke those rules, no matter how outlandishly crazy things got. Thanks for comprehending something so incomprehensible, Robert Reed. You inspired me miles in my own work.
7. The Ghost, The Sea Wolf
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The story may be fiction, but the Ghost was as real as ghosts can be.
Jack London did his research. No, not research, he LIVED this. The Ghost is a seal-hunting schooner much like one that he served aboard during his rollercoaster of a life, and he captured every detail of its operation, of its requirements, of its mechanics, and of the incredible toll it took on the people that lived such a life. The boat is made to feel as oppressive and claustrophobic as a prison, as if it were an extension of the monster that commanded it, directly in contrast to the expansive beauty of the sea around them. My goodness, what a beautiful book. What a moving, interesting, challenging book, with such a story! This book is one of the climaxes of fiction, and one of the inspirations for Shifting Sands, if I remember correctly. I would recommend this book to anybody. Beautiful.
6. Ferbnessa, Phineas and Ferb
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Okay, so I hope we can all agree that Vanessa is nothing but bad news. But that being said, Ferb knows exactly the relationship he wants, and by golly, he goes for it. Most male characters would stutter or get nervous or lose confidence around their crush, especially if that crush is about a hundred miles out of their league or if they already had another boyfriend, but Ferb? No. Not my man Ferb. He’s slighly too much of a legend to fall for such childish pitfalls. He doesn’t posture, he doesn’t creep or flirt or try to sabotage the other men in her life, he doesn’t even speak a word, he just maintains his blank expression, cranks his own already-inhuman levels of confidence and competence up through the roof to borderline olympian levels, and continues being himself. These rare moments of Ferbly passion are some of the few open windows we get into the grandiose machinations of his mysterious mind, and he uses it to bring out the best in Vanessa as well. And in the future episode, set years down the line, wouldn’t you know it, they’re a pair.
All joking aside though, this whole ship is basically comedy. It’s a super small part of the show, it’s only in like 5 episodes, it’s a running gag, it’s hilarious. It’s great. And it fits right into the tone and the feel of the show, because P&F’s entire world really is a comedy about going for it and living your dreams. So this is just the best thing ever. It’s been about a decade since then, and I still burst out laughing at how much of a pristine picture of ideal masculinity Ferb is. Become like Ferb, boys, and you will become men.
Legendary.
Eat your heart out, Dipper.
3. Shunk, Voltron
(I don’t know the ship name so I had to make up a name)
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Huge props to the voltron team for making a female alien character (even a romantic interest) with NO BOOBS. Do you have ANY idea how sick and tired I am of artists throwing a big ol’ pair of balonkadongs onto lobsters and snakes when almost everything in the real world besides folks and cows have either 0 or 8+ of them? Everything’s gotta be traditionally sexy and recognizably-feminine and GREAT now you just canonized all the porn! Disgusteg
but now look at Shay. She’s a rock person. She’s got silicon-based biology, she probably weighs 500 lbs and bleeds sand. She’s got enormous hands and weird knees and no nose and lumps everywhere, AND YET STILL the show plays all the tropes 100% straight with her being a fair young maiden and a sweet princess. And it works because Hunk is just this great guy who’s exactly as sweet and caring, and he’s not the most attractive of the Paladins either, so he probably lives his life looking past appearances. He doesn’t care that she’s an alien rock, he cares about her as a person, and she obviously worships him right back. Even though Shay is shown in season 1 and then never again until season 7, Hunk still avoids alternative romantic entanglements, citing ‘a rock I know’, and it just adds to his persona as this infinitely loyal teddy bear. I tip my hat to this, the single ship I know that’s 0% sexy and 100% wholesome.
And Hunk is the best Paladin. He’s just the greatest. I revere him. I salute him as he walks past. This man among men. Look at this guy. I don’t even care about any of the other ships in Voltron (I mean, the Castle of Lions is okay, but it’s outriggers are kinda spindly) but Hunk and Shay deserve each other.
4. Wendip, Gravity Falls
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So Dipper’s 12/13, and Wendy’s 15. That’s a pretty giant age difference. Maybe you fans have fooled yourselves into thinking it’s not, but it is. She knows it. He knows it. His sister knows it. Your mom knows it. So halfway through the show, when he finally got around to confessing his feelings to her, she told him no. Sure they’re still friends, sure they like each other, and sure they have a lot of chemistry and they still have a movie night every Friday, but at the end of the day, he’s a smelly little midget who has to go back to California at the end of the Summer, and she’s a older girl with approximately zero romantic feelings for him. So the notion that it could work out is pretty obvious to everyone, and especially to him, pretty much hopeless. And he really did handle it all pretty poorly and immaturely too, he objectified her and stalked her and simped up a storm and sabotaged her boyfriend, so perhaps he deserved what he got. Perhaps it’s better this way.
And yet.
And yet Wendy never really got a happy ending in the show. And Dipper never got a conclusive romance either. So after everything, it’s easy to think about it how he thinks about it, by wondering how things could have been, if everything were just so slightly different, if she’d said yes or if they united again. She wishes she could be younger, he wishes he could be older. She’s more dominant, he’s more recessive. She has a lot of serious issues in her life, and could really seriously use a driven, heroic, intelligent friend to help her out, give her purpose, and steer her right. And Lord knows he could use somebody with street smarts and actual muscles to have his back now and again. They complement each other perfectly. They make up for each others’ weaknesses. They’re everything they ever wanted from another, and if you do the math, their children would be actual literal supersoldiers.
Or at least that’s the way a lot of people see it. There’s been immeasurable mountains of fanfiction and fanart from people who are just so sad that in a show full of happy endings and dreams coming true and old regrets being resolved and children growing up, that one ending would never be happy, one dream would never come to pass, one regret would stick with you forever, one child would never grow up. Maybe if you extrapolate out the story they’d end up together? Or maybe they’d find other, better partners? Maybe romance isn’t all that important in the grand scheme of things, and this is the best ending there could have been? Perhaps, perhaps not. But in any case, there’s a lot of very rich storytelling potential for the untold journey before them, and for the paths that could have been.
Stop drawing fetish art of Wendy, you insufferable heathen actual donkeys.
3. Kataang, Avatar: The Last Airbender
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Now HERE’S a serious relationship. Not just a romantic ship, (though it is that,) not just some cutesy, funny thing or some ship-war fodder, (though it is cute and funny and did spawn a ship-war,) not just a matter of certainty and destiny, (though it is certain and was destined,) this is a real, TANGIBLE relationship, that these characters built together over a solid year of on-screen adventuring and fighting. They’ve helped each other through trauma, they’ve been there for each other in their darkest moments, they learned martial-arts together, they’ve fought back-to back against grown men, they’ve worked front-to-front sawing through steel girders, they’ve saved each other’s lives, he once ACTUALLY DIED and she brought him BACK. They end up respecting each other, and valuing each other in the intimate way that only true friends do.
And they’re shown working through all their imperfections and mistakes too. Aang sometimes oversteps boundaries and says stupid stuff because he’s a kid, and Katara sometimes scolds him and controls him because she’s motherly and orderly, they get jealous of each other, but none of those things drive them apart, and they deal with them, and they conquer them, and they keep a very legitimate and multi-faceted friendship going, and that’s the key to it all. The fact that this friendship becomes romance is just proof that it was a friendship of quality.
I think people tend to overlook or forget this ship because the last few episodes of the show found them in a pretty dark place, needing to deal with matters of life and death and justice in very different ways, and unlike all their other issues, we don’t really get to see them reconciling these differences before the story ends, which kind of leaves a sour taste between them. And Katara goes on a couple missions with Zuko around the same time, so now half of all people want Zutara, when in actuality, Zutara is a trash ship, which is a true science fact.
2. Serenity, Firefly
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Only reason this ship isn’t #1 is because it isn’t constructed using a proper aerospace philosophy; it’s made of bulky machinery and steel beams and chunky plates, it looks more like an ocean vessel from the inside, and is WAY too big for its 6-12 person crew and light cargo capacity. Plus it doesn’t have any room for fuel and its got no wheels on its landing legs and no downward-facing windows and its reactor is just too dang SMOL and its engines are attached too flimsily. This all wouldn’t be too much of an issue if they were going for a far-future aesthetic, but if you’re trying to do something grounded and semi-contemporary, you need to lose some weight girl, I’m sorry.
But by gosh does it make up for it in heart. The entire inside of this ship was mapped out and made on set, with so many homely little decorations and touches to make every room feel like the person who inhabits it, sterile professional blue for the doc’s medbay, warm happy red for Kaylee’s engine room, all-serious-business-but-also-plastic-dinos for Wash’s cockpit... It hit me hard when this baby it crashed in the movie, and it felt almost real when River pretended to mind-meld with it. This ship has more soul in one buffer panel than most shows have in the entire cast, enough to make it seem like its own character, even in a show crowded with charming characters. I love this ship intimately, even if I would have built it differently.
1. Colonial Vessel 46.18′\, Gravity Falls
(I don’t know the ship name so I had to make up a name)
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You didn’t think I’d leave out this one, did you? After all the fanfiction I’ve written? This is basically my ship at this point. Anyway, enough about me; the vessel beneath Crash Site Omega really is the quintessential alien ship; its perfectly cliche flying-saucer design taps into all the audience’s pre-existing fanciful notions and imaginings and disbelief-suspension, meanwhile its presentation isn’t cliche or fanciful in the slightest. 
There’s not much to say about it from a technical standpoint, besides personal musings: it would need anti-gravity to stay airborne without thrusters, it would need a FTL drive to cross the distances it did, its drones would need to be made of some kind of semi-liquid to move like they do... But these sort of out-of-the-box, never-before-seen, world-expanding brain-knocks are exactly what makes this ship special. It’s an alien ship, built with technology unknown to people, forged from materials that people don’t possess, and inhabited by beings we will never meet. For all we know, this ship could be perfectly sound from an engineering standpoint, and no engineer in the audience could claim to prove it otherwise, because unlike something like the T.A.R.D.I.S., they never try and fail to explain it away with science buzzwords or canonize its details or show off some fancy glowy reactor. This ancient husk is left as a yawning pit in reason, and that’s beautiful.
Moreover, this ship is an amazingly powerful narrative tool, and a mind-blowing surprise to drop in as a setpiece during the show’s final episodes. This ship embodies everything that made the show’s mysteries special: the evidence presented so early and so consistently, the creativity in creature design, action, and worldbuilding, the yawning depths of unknowable lore, and most of all the burning, unquenched desire to know more... The imprint this ship made in the cliffs over the town has been hanging over the characters’ heads the entire series, and its hull was below their feet from day one, so when they finally revealed it, and explored it, it felt invigorating. Rewarding. This ship, and the glorious feelings and thoughts it represents, have inspired to no end, and haven’t ended yet.
Honorable mentions:
Westley and Buttercup, The Princess Bride
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Ooooh man I tell you what, it was really hard trimming this down to 10 for the list, and this one just barely didn’t make the cut, and that mainly because I have a sweet spot for animation and for warrior women, and this sweetness ain’t animated, and this damsel is as distressed as they get. And they don’t have a whole lot of chemistry? I don’t know how to measure that, but I feel like there was a lot of friendship stated that was never shown? Is it sacrilege to say that about True Love? I guess I’ve never exactly had True Love, so what do I know?
The entire plot centers around his devotion to her, and her love for him, and the lengths they go to for one another. He studies fencing and wrestling and wits and tactics for years on a pirate ship as he tried to return to her, and she refused the advances and the offers of an actual prince for as long as she could, even though she thought him dead, and was ready to kill herself when she knew him to be alive and not to be hers. And just such excellent action and characters and humor and story in the entire book surrounding it. Possibly an even better movie, somehow. Happy happy happy happy. They don’t make movies like this no more, why is that? Sad.
Endurance, Interstellar
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Actually a pretty realistic design, all considering. They nailed the aesthetic, and the cinematography, and the feel.
It does lose points though, firstly because the shuttlecraft require a booster stage to make it into orbit when leaving Earth, but for the rest of the movie, whenever they’re landing on planets with similar gravity and atmosphere, they can just fly away like it’s no big deal, which is a big inconsistency, both with real life, and more importantly with itself. And how did an under-equipped and struggling space program put this thing in orbit in the first place, anyway? And why don’t their ships land on their asses like proper rockets? And why not tell the crew members the full plan before leaving? See, it’s little things like that, little inconsistencies made for the sake of fitting with story beats and simplifying it for the audience’s sake, that sours this ship for me. I don’t mind creative liberties, but actual plot holes? This thing has a few plot holes, and plot holes are absolutely yucky. So although most of this ship is very yummy, the yucky parts make it all yucky.
Yucky.
Plus its heavy cargo shuttles are about the least-aerodynamic things imaginable, and that’s also yucky, and there’s porcelain tiles in the stasis bay, like what?
Couldashouldawoulda been yummy.
The Hermes, The Martian
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This ship. This friggin’ ship.
A beautiful ship. A well-conceived ship. A mathematically sound and engineered ship. It had so many many good ideas behind it. So much math went into calculating its thrust and orbital dynamics for this movie, so much work went into making it fit a contemporary space aesthetic, the panels, the heat sinks, the tanks, so much PRESENTATION I could KISS IT HMWA, but taken as a whole, engineering-wise, the whole ship falls flat on its face, because it just doesn’t fit together. It doesn’t make sense. Look at all those countless modules along its length. What do they do? They don’t do anything! It’s a quarter mile long, and it’s built for only 6 people? It’s meant to carry a lander? Where does the lander dock? Why are the useful airlocks so far off the center of gravity? Why does it have a cockpit? Why is the forward airlock so looooong? Why is the entire ship so loooooong? Why is the ring spinning so slowly? It’s not hard math to figure out how fast it needs to spin! You’re telling me you did ORBITAL DYNAMICS but not the SINGLE physics 101 equation needed to figure out how fast the ring needs to spin??
Btw, let’s talk about that rotating section in the middle! Think about the rotating section! That rotating section means that the front and the back of the ship aren’t actually connected! There’s just a pair of ring-shaped slip-slidey bearings bridging the ship’s middle, slip-slidey bearings that electricity, computer signals, and water and air pipes can’t cross. Why did they design it that way?? In the book the entire ship spun, which makes so much more sense! Why does it have solar panels when it has a reactor canonically capable of 40 times their output? Why are the fuel tanks so small? Why is it always facing prograde even when canonically burning retrograde? Why? WHY? BLRRRRGGGGGRGGGRGGG
In Conclusion, Ships Are Neat
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