#moss pot answers

[headspace-hotel]

so, in regards to your recent posts on kane-tucky and usa food industry, do you / how do you keep active hope and not slip in into apathy and "looking out for my own" get out of dodge mentality? im having a hard time articulating this, but what makes you not curl up into a shaking mess in anger resentment and a deep desire for change that likely, if ever, wont happen in our lifetime.... any advice is appreciated

The short answer is "getting out and doing stuff in the real world, educating, volunteering, whatever is within your ability"

I will add that "looking out for your own" is not...bad. Like I don't know precisely what you mean by this phrase, but it's actually very important to come to terms with the fact that your impact is strongest where your feet touch the ground, and you have a responsibility and relationship to the people immediately around you, the place immediately around you.

This has not been a popular opinion of mine in the past, but...you can't and shouldn't care about literally everything on the planet. There is of course huge global disparity with access to resources and aid networks, and the largest communities we belong to are: all of Earth and the whole human species.

However: your level of agency is so low with issues that are happening on the other side of the world from you, compared with issues that are happening in your home town. And we're seeing people just get completely burned out from compassion fatigue without ever doing shit because the global responsibility is pushed on us and the local responsibility is not.

I hated my hometown for a decade. In high school I wanted so badly to leave. It's one of those desolate-feeling towns that's developed enough for a shopping center and big chain retailers but not enough to have a sense of community or a single bookstore. I've never been able to place myself precisely along the urban-rural spectrum because I feel isolated from even isolation: there's nowhere to go that doesn't feel razed by human development, where you can't hear the noise of traffic on roads, but it's all cattle pastures, sprawling storage facilities, auto parts stores, big, empty churches. One wrong turn will put you in a dark valley where there are rotting, derelict trailers on cinder blocks hidden back in the woods, and this place has that same feeling of "nowhere to go."

And I felt paralyzed by everything bad happening around the world and the fact that I was just one person, and I had gotten the horrible impression that the only thing I could do about anything was vote and donate money to links I saw online. The worst lie the internet taught me was that in saving the world, nothing matters except Power, Money, and an unclear third category that involves throwing bricks at cops.

But I touched grass. And the weeds taught me something. Do you see the parking lots, the harsh pavement and gravel and brick? I saw. I was surrounded by this landscape of brutal, totalitarian surfaces, impermeable concrete locking the soil away. But in the cracks in the surfaces, dandelions, purslane, and spurge were thriving.

I observed that the spurge stretched out like a shaggy rug and padded the concrete surfaces. The old leaves of the dandelions, as they withered, caught bits of dirt as it flowed into drainage ditches after rains. Soil was forming, and the sprawling structure of the early weeds seemed specially adapted for the task. In older cracks, more plants moved in; I found a wild ruellia blooming in a paved road, an evening primrose. And in some places, seedling trees.

Have you seen what happens when a sidewalk is left unmaintained for years? It disappears. The roots slowly buckle and break it into pieces, and it vanishes beneath lush leaves and moss. A tree growing in a crack in concrete will slowly pry the slab apart.

This is how my IRL rewilding project got started—just pulling plants from the pavement cracks, raising them in pots. I was surprised and awed at the resilience of the plants. I found little trees in concrete with at least two years' growth on them, that had survived being mowed down multiple times.

The weeds changed my viewpoint on the world forever. Up until that point, certain facts about power and politics and money had seemed like law, but I'd suddenly seen that there was a deeper magic.

The dandelions' survival made it possible for others to survive, which in turn made even more life flourish. They could not demolish and remove the concrete and pavement, but they could overcome it by refusing to be destroyed, because the power to take care of each other is in their nature.

People have made fun of me for telling others to go plant a tree. I think culturally we have this ingrained dismissal of things like that due to the twee, cutesy associations of "tree hugging" environmentalists, except in this instance it's because planting a tree is pointless in light of something something systemic issues, not because climate change isn't real, or...whatever reason people have for finding environmentalists cringe. (That is kinda sus now that I think about it.)

And I'm not saying planting a tree will fix climate change. I'm saying that something in my brain had broken and planting a tree unbroke it.

Go outside. Touch grass. Do the work in the immediate community you belong to, in the place you are in, where you have the best and most impact. We have the power to take care of each other, and that power grows stronger the more we are cared for.

The internet is a good place to share information, but that's fucking it. The real stuff, the stuff you can touch with your hands, the stuff that will heal despair, is out there in the real, touchable world. You need to see and feel what you are doing. Don't just give help—accept it. The power to take care of each other is in our nature, and by nature we can give more when we thrive as a result of others' care.

I hope this helps.

#plants #gardening #dandelions #rewilding #plantarchy

[nixoon-again]

The sun had long since dipped below the horizon, the full moon taking its place in the new night sky as stars twinkled like a blanket of diamonds overhead. The campfire crackles and pops, its flames enough to both cook dinner to fill their bellies before they call it a night and to keep them warm in the slightly chilly air. The calm of the night is accompanied by crickets singing their song in the distance, hiding somewhere among the greens of the forest.

Sonic takes in a deep breath, the scent of the forest's damp moss and decaying leaves bring a sense of tranquillity to him that no city can. He looks into the pot he has skillfully placed over the campfire in a makeshift holder and takes a wooden spoon to stir the chilli cooking inside, its delectable aroma filling the air as it tickles his nostrils and makes his mouth water.

Little feet patter towards him. Sonic doesn't need to look back to know who it is.

A small hand reaches out and gently touches his shoulder.

“Hm?” Is the only acknowledgement Sonic gives to the little fox cub standing behind him, his eyes still on the pot to make sure he gets the chilli perfectly cooked.

“Sonic…?” Tails calls, there's a strange hint of nervousness in his voice that, Sonic thinks, doesn't really go with the peaceful nature of the night. 

Sensing something wrong, the hedgehog looks over his shoulder. Green meets blue but blue doesn't return the gesture. 

Tails is picking the fur on the tip of his namesakes again. He does this a lot, Sonic has learnt. He's no expert himself but the four year old before him has some habits that he thinks no four year olds are supposed to have. Sonic isn't going to dive deep into that yet, some other day maybe but for now he just softly taps the kit's forehead with his knuckles to bring him back to reality.

Tails looks at him. There are tears forming in the corner of his eyes.

He looks scared.

Sonic immediately gets off the log he's been sitting on, the wooden spoon abandoned in the grass as his quills bristle. He grabs Tails by his upper arm and looks over him, wondering if he's hurt.

Tails is quick to shake his head and tell him he's fine. Sonic looks at him dumbfoundedly, his eyes alone asking, “What is it then?”

Tails kicks a stray pebble, scuffs his shoe on the ground.

Sonic has to tap his forehead again to get an answer out of him.

“It's just that… Um, I was wondering, when you…”

Sonic isn't known for his patience, Tails knows that. So before Sonic taps his forehead again, Tails words his worries.

“When will you throw me out?”

The words don't hit him as much as the sincerely behind them does.

Sonic doesn't know what form of shock appears on his face but whatever it is, it makes Tails fumble over his words as he anxiously flaps his hands and tries to explain what he just said, “I-I mean, it's been three months now and you— you've been very nice a-and, I'm— I'm, I've been eating your food and using your supplies a-and no one has kept me for long without—”

Sonic doesn't like the way fat tears roll down his muzzle, he doesn't like the way Tails cuts himself off mid sentence as if he's scared to say more, he doesn't like the way Tails thinks he needs to be abandoned for some reason. Sonic likes Tails; the little guy is smart and keeps up with him without asking him to slow down. Despite not having had a home and being bullied by other kids, he's still more well-mannered than Sonic is. Not to mention, Sonic likes Tails just for the sake of it. No one wants this kit. Sonic does. 

So naturally, Sonic gently wipes away Tails’ tears. He points towards his own chest and then pokes Tails’ with his index finger before signing, “Together.”

Me and you; together.

Then Sonic holds his index finger up with his gloves palm back and draws a few large circles to sign with a promise, “Always.”

They will always be together and Sonic will never leave the little cub before him alone.

Tails will never have to feel alone again. Not when Sonic is here

_____

Sonic is tired.

It's been a long day.

He heaves a sigh when he takes a step closer to Tails’ Mystic Ruins workshop. The lights are on, he's glad to know Tails is here. He found him purely by chance today, he didn't have to run into multiple labs scattered around the world to find him which is good because he's already late. The night has fallen. The moon isn't visible under all the clouds, Sonic can't see a single star.

He thought he'd visit his own.

He ignores the way his hand shakes when he reaches out for the doorknob. It's rather cold tonight. It won't be long before it starts snowing. 

Tails likes playing in the snow.

Maybe they'll make a snowman.

He opens the door and steps inside. His vision gets a little awry for a second as the interior of the live-in workshop spins but that's okay, Sonic closes his eyes and gives himself a minute. It's okay. He's okay. 

He just wants to see Tails.

He steps inside, a little dizzy. He looks around the place in search of familiar golden fur. He doesn't find it right away so he walks in further. Briefly, he wonders if Tails is working late again and if he will have to drag him to his bed and tuck him in again. 

He's not against the idea.

It might be a bit selfish, but for time's sake, he'd like that.

Tails has grown up on him so fast.

He remembers when the little four year old first asked to be tucked in. He was so shy, so unsure, so terrified of asking to be loved.

Sonic loves Tails.

That's his little brother. He raised Tails. He took him in when no one else would — and quite frankly, whoever refused to give the kit a home missed out because Tails is amazing. He's everything and more. His little star, his sunshine. He loves him more than anything in this world.

He frowns.

Sonic doesn't remember the last time he told Tails that.

He doesn't remember the last, “I love you.”

He knows he doesn't say it often. He never felt like it was something that needed to be worded. Not saying it didn't mean Sonic didn't feel it. That's just been the way they go about their lives. There are many unworded things between them, not any less stronger than the ones that have been voiced.

Yet, Sonic feels a strange pang of guilt.

What if Tails doesn't know?

His little brother's self-esteem is always lingering in the negatives. What if he thinks Sonic doesn't love him because Sonic says it like once every two years during his most vulnerable moments? Sonic doesn't like that, Sonic doesn't want Tails to feel unloved because that's just simply not true.

He should've said it more often.

“Sonic?”

The hedgehog smiles at the voice. Tails has found him.

Emerald eyes slowly shift towards him. The fox is wearing a knitted baby blue cardigan, standing on the staircase. His eyes are on Sonic's left hand that rests just above the hedgehog's hip, stained red.

It's really cold, huh?

“H-Hey, bud…” He greets weakly, his smile ever-present.

Tails looks horrified, he gasps, “Sonic.”

Sonic doesn't reply. Not right away. Not when his voice fails him. He didn't come here to worry his little brother, no. He just came here to see him.

He reaches out his free hand towards Tails, takes a step forward but he ends up unable to maintain his balance. 

He sways.

Tails catches him before he falls.

“Sonic!”

The fox bands his arms around the teen’s torso to support him, his breath hitches as he struggles to grasp what he's seeing. A million questions running through his head. How did this happen? Who was Sonic fighting? Why didn't he call him? Why didn't Tails go with him? Why didn't Tails know? Why didn't the hedgehog's communicator record his vitals and ping Tails? Where is Sonic's communicator? What's he doing here? How much blood has he lost? What should Tails do—

Tails feels Sonic's hand cradle the back of his head, the hedgehog removes his bloody hand from his wound to loop it around Tails’ back and pull him in a hug, staining the cardigan before he rests his face on top of Tails’ head, nuzzling in his soft fur.

Tails is so much warmer.

“S-Sonic,” Tails feels the panic slowly bubbling up in his chest, “Sonic, what happened—”

“Shh…” Sonic hushes, “Don't worry about me.”

“Shut up.” Tails lets out a humourless chuckle, “If you don't want me to worry then don't walk in bleeding out like that.”

“Sorry, lil bro.” Sonic mumbles. Then quieter, “Couldn't really control it this time.”

“Sit down, let me check the wou—”

“No…” Sonic slurs. Tails feels his blood run cold when the hedgehog tightens his grip on him, and doesn't let him go, “No. Just… Just let me…”

He didn't come here to be treated. He didn't come all the way here to worry Tails. He knows coming here light-headed from blood loss is going to worry Tails whether or not he wanted to, if he didn't want to worry his little brother then he shouldn't have come.

But he can't help it.

He doesn't want to leave without seeing him one last time.

“Sonic?” Tails calls but the hedgehog remains quiet, still in his hold. So Tails calls again, “Sonic?” 

And he doesn't know why his voice sounds smaller, why he sounds scared. Is he terrified? What of? They get hurt all the time. It comes with their line of work. Sonic has been hurt before, so has Tails and they both recovered. Now isn't any different, is it?

It shouldn't be.

Sonic promised.

Always; he said always. He promised. They're supposed to be together forever. 

Sonic is supposed to be fine, then why is he scared?

The hand on the back of his head slowly slides down, the weight of Sonic's body increases on him.

They tumble to the floor but Sonic wraps his arms around him tightly as soon as they do, not wanting to let go any time soon.

Sonic pulls Tails closer. The kit's chest undoubtedly tainted red by now. Sonic's still glad, at least it's his own blood in the fox and not Tails’. He buries Tails’ face in his chest, he gently pets him and lays a soft kiss on the top of his head. Tails wraps his namesakes around him in return, hugging Sonic like his life depends on it. The younger doesn't like the implications of it all as Sonic starts brushing his fingers through the fur on Tails’ back but Sonic doesn't seem to care.

He's content.

But with only one regret.

“Tails…?”

“Yes, Sonic?”

Sonic wants to say he loves him, more than he can ever imagine. Sonic wants to make up for every time he didn't say it, he wants Tails to know.

His words fail him and he ends up with, “I'm sorry… I promised to go on that trip to Chun-nan with you. I don't think I can anymore.”

“That's okay… We'll go when you're better, won't we? It can wait.”

Sonic just hugs him tighter, “I-I don't think I can, bud.”

His voice cracks and Tails tries to escape his hold to most likely give him a very painful dumbfounded look. 

Tries, because Sonic doesn't let him.

“Why?” Tails asks. The teen feels his tears on his chest, “Why?”

Sonic smiles even though Tails can't see it.

“Hey, now… Don't be sad, okay?”

“No.” Tails shakes his head, “No, stop talking like that you… You promised. You promised.”

He knows that. He has promised Tails so many things. He's afraid he could only fulfil a few.

At least there's one thing he can do before going.

He doesn't say it often so naturally, it takes him longer to find the words, “You know I love you, right?”

“Sonic, please—”

“It's okay. It's gonna be okay.” He hushes him, scratches the back of his ear to calm him down. 

They sit like that for a while. It can't be more than a few minutes but its feels like year pass until Sonic's starts feeling more and more sluggish, until he can't get his fingers to move enough to pet Tails, to brush his soft fur. His hold on his little brother gradually gets weaker. 

With the last of his strength, Sonic separate himself from Tails.

The kit looks up at him, ocean eyes filled with tears.

Sonic looks into those eyes for a minute before pressing his forehead onto Tails’.

And at last, he says,

“I love you.”

(Tails doesn't move, he doesn't know how long he holds onto his brother till Amy visits — and when she does, he finds himself unable to cry anymore.)

#sonic the hedgehog #miles tails prower #drabble #happy sunday to marie specially <3 #sorry the writing is wonky though. i am. tired

[faithshouseofchaos]

Cat!stappen part 8.2

Tagged- @moss-on-tmblr @toasttt11 @vivwritesfics @vellicora @venusisnothere @alwayzbeenale @ashy-kit @astraeaworld @badassturtle13 @crashingwavesofeuphoria @ironcowboycopnickel @f1ln4dr3cl16mv33 @charlesf1leclerc @dark-night-sky-99 @dudenhaaa27 @yours-sophia-1988 @lollypop90907 @laura-naruto-fan1998

“I have a plan Daniel, trust me” Max says watching his friend work on the soup for his sick girlfriend.

“Ok Max let’s hear it” Daniel replies placing the lid back on the pot turning to face the Dutchman.

“Look I found this cat a while back he’s at Christian’s place, we swap me out For the cat once testing for the new season beings she’ll never know” Max explains

“You want to swap yourself out for a replacement cat?”

“Yes and I’ve seen this cat okay he looks just like me it’s kinda creepy in a way”

“What do you mean?”

“Here look,” Max says, handing Daniel his phone.

Daniel sighed, taking the phone from Max scrolling through the pictures, noticing that Max was right. The chunky Orange cat did look like him from the fur patterns down to the facial expression.

“Jesus Max, are you sure Jos is your father?”

“Very funny Daniel,” Max says, taking his phone back.

“Are you sure this will work?”

“I’m positive”

Daniel let out a deep sigh and returned his attention to the soup.

“Okay max how fast can Christian get here?”

“He’s already on the way”

Daniel nodded “hand me one of those blows would you max?” He asked.

Daniel made you a bowl of soup “alright Max im gonna take this to y/n you eat I’ll be right back”

Daniel picks up the board containing the bowl of soup and crackers back towards your bedroom. Opening your door and stepping inside he softly pushes the door closed with his foot. Being a werewolf meant he could see well in the dark which was something he was grateful for.

Daniel walked over to his side of the bed setting the try on the bed turning on the bedside lamp. Daniel walked over to your side “baby I brought you food” Danny said brushing a strand of your hair out of your face.

“Hi Danny” you said sitting up in bed

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m really tired, my body hurts and my throat hurts from all the sinus drainage,” you said.

“Oh I’m sorry baby eat your soup I’ll go get you more Ginger ale” Danny said taking your cup and placed a kiss on the top of your head.

“Thank you Danny”

“Your welcome baby” Danny said walking out of your bedroom to refill your cup.

——————

After a while Daniel had dinner cleaned up and you were back in bed asleep. Daniel was watching the latest UFC fight while Max was shifted and laying on the back of the couch stretched out.

Occasionally Daniel would scratch behind Max's ears causing the Dutch cat to purr like a chainsaw starting up. Daniel could get used to this.

By time the UFC fight was over Christian was was here. Daniel and Max answered the door letting Christian inside the house.

“Look Max i don’t wanna know why you asked me to hunt down this cat for you” Christian says.

“Well actually—-“

“I don’t wanna know,” Christian says, holding up a finger.

“And I especially don’t wanna know why you’re hiding out at Daniel’s girlfriend’s house so please keep me out of it” Christian says handing over the cat and heading back to his car.

“What do we do now?”

“Isn’t it obvious let the cat out and let’s see what happens” max says opening the carrier door.

#max verstappen x reader #max verstappen one shot #max verstappen fluff #max verstappen icons #max verstappen fic #max verstappen f1 #max verstappen imagine #max verstappen fanfic #max verstappen #max verstappen x you #max verstappen x reader x daniel ricciardo #cat!max verstappen x reader #daniel ricciardo one shot #daniel ricciardo x reader #daniel ricciardo fanfic #daniel ricciardo fic #daniel ricciardo icons #daniel ricciardo f1 #daniel ricciardo imagine #daniel ricciardo fluff #daniel ricciardo #werewolf!daniel ricciardo x reader

[apocalypticvalraven]

Delicious in Dungeon in The Kitchen

So... I was struck by the thought that I kinda wish some food nerd would go through the Dungeon Meshi dishes and analyze them and sort of give a "this is the real world thing they're making" run down.

And then I realized I'm a food nerd that can do research.

So.

We're gonna try this out, starting with Volume 1. I don't promise that I know everything about cooking. I don't promise I'll always be able to make the thing I'm looking at (I am broke, and I don't have my own kitchen). But I can at least look at a dish and figure out what they're doing and how to replicate it, at least sorta.

Dungeon Meshi Volume 1-- Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom Hot Pot

The two main components of this dish are the Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom.

Walking Mushroom

Looking at the images in the manga, Walking Mushroom seems to just... be a mushroom that can walk around. There are no organs, the interior seems pretty uniform in substance...

Like, literally, that's exactly what sliced mushrooms look like. Senshi cuts the mushroom into ~4" strips (judging by their size next to the small cabbage-like vegetable, and comparing those plants to his hand in the image of him gathering them. I am assuming dwarf hands are roughly the same size as human hands).

There's a variety of edible mushroom that is probably as close as we're going to get to the size of a Walking Mushroom, growing a cap up to 3' wide, but it seems to only grow in termite mounds in a very specific part of the African continent (please forgive my USAmerican, White education leading me to not being able to identify the specific region), so... if you can get that at all, it's probably crazy expensive (as it should be, unless you're literally getting it from the mounds or local markets yourself). Portobello or similar large culinary mushrooms are probably just fine. The Mushroom Feet are literally just mushrooms, so no worries there.

Huge Scorpion

Ok, so... there is a difference between arachnids and crustaceans. As a start, arachnids have book lungs and crustaceans have gills. Arachnid guts are different from crustacean guts, just because of environment. Hell, crustacean limbs grow differently from arachnid limbs.

That said, everything I see in Dungeon Meshi implies that, from a culinary standpoint, Huge Scorpion is a crustacean-

So, really, it's just a big lobster. Take a lobster, cut off its legs, antennae, and the tail fluke, and you're going to see something that looks pretty similar to the huge scorpion in Dungeon Meshi.

Seaweed

Next is seaweed, which... is just a thing, but also kind of an imprecise term, I think. Basically, "seaweed" just refers to any marine algae that is multicellular and macroscopic (big enough to see). Arctic Moss seems to be a real thing which refers to a couple things- the aquatic moss Calliergon giganteum and the terrestrial lichen in the genus of Cladonia, which includes Reindeer Lichen.

Reindeer lichen is edible, in a number of ways, but it's also not seaweed. So we look at Calliergon giganteum. I cannot get an answer as to whether this particular variety of moss is edible. So... fuck it, say Senshi used Reindeer Lichen, at least we know that's edible.

"Star Jelly" is... I don't know. The main result I find when googling it is that it's the sort of general term for various slimes that show up on lawns and other vegetation, etc. Which means it could be anything from amphibian spawning jelly to who the fuck knows what.

However, one thing it could be is a cyanobacteria known as Fat Choy, a commonly used "vegetable" in Chinese Cuisine:

Looks like jelly? Yep. Looks weird enough that you might imagine it comes from a star? Yep. Edible? Yes!

(I mean, maybe don't eat a ton of it, or get it from irreputable sources. At least some Fat Choy contains a toxic amino acid which may or may not have negative health effects, but I'm not a doctor, so all I'm saying is "be aware of this." It's an expensive delicacy, which means that it is a particularly lucrative target for counterfeiters, and China does not have strong, or strongly enforced, food safety laws).

The Hard Stuff

So that leaves "Invertatoes" and "Dried Slime."

Neither of which seem to have a good direct analogue to the real world. Well... sorta.

Invertatoes seems to refer to the plants. The name calls to mind potatoes, and potatoes do indeed grow in the ground and are starchy. It's probably fair to just use any kind of starchy tuber as the "invertatoes." Maybe cassava, since those are large enough that it's at least somewhat believable that "Fantasy Land Cassava" could look like that (although that doesn't fit the "these are normal plants that grow upside down" unless we're being really generous).

The problem is that it's sort of implied that the cabbage-like vegetable seen in the hot pot comes from the same plant, and everything from a potato plant other than the potato itself is toxic. They also don't look like that.

I literally don't know what those cabbage/lettuce-like leafy vegetables are. They're not seaweed, because the two varieties called out definitely don't look like that. They're not, so far as I can tell, the greens of any kind of starchy tuber--

EXCEPT.

So, I was taking one last look at tubers to see if I could find something that seemed to match, and I think Invertatoes could be likened to something similar to chicory. Particularly endives. I never knew endives were related to chicory (ie, "that thing that I'm aware is popular as a coffee substitute in the South, but I don't have much desire to try it, and I wonder if it even has caffeine..."), but, apparently, yeah. Endives are a member of the chicory genus.

So, yeah, lets say that Invertatoes are a sort of fantasy plant similar to the various members of the chicory genus. The trunk can be replicated with chicory root, and the leaves with endives.

That leaves Dried Slime. Dried Slime makes up the noodles in the hot pot, which implies that the noodles are gelatinous, and probably low in gluten. Senshi's explanation of the slime makes me want to think of it as a macro-unicellular lifeform, but... I'm not sure that's accurate.

While it's definitely not an accurate way to describe a jellyfish, I could definitely see a non-biologist describing jellyfish in a way similar to the way Senshi describes the slime. I could also see some fantasy terrestrial jellyfish thing hunting in a similar manner to the slime. Moreover, there are edible varieties of jellyfish, and they're processed in a manner very similar to what Senshi describes for processing slimes. And one way of preparing edible jellyfish is to thinly slice it into noodles.

Hot Pots

I... think this is using a very specifically Japanese sense of "hot pot" (which makes sense), because in Japan, hot pot can refer to a dish called nabemono, while in general, hot pot refers to a particular kind of dining in China where you get a pot full of boiling stock/broth and a bunch of raw ingredients, and you put the stuff you want into the broth at the table. Nabemono is more of "put a bunch of stuff in a pot, and cook it. Serve it boiling." Which is to say, it's soup.

Senshi puts the scorpion meat and mushroom into a pot on its own, and lets it start boiling-

Then, while it's boiling, he goes and finds other ingredients, coming back with the invertatoes and the slime. The two are prepared simply-

Seasoning isn't included in the ingredients, but I can understand this as a choice for presentation. We do see Senshi add something to the broth after tasting it, and I think it's fair to assume it's one of soy sauce, mirin, fish sauce, or similar. I think it's actually really interesting that we see Senshi add seasoning, but we're not told what it is-

Because... that's cooking. You can follow a recipe, but ultimately, you need to taste your cooking and make your own decisions. Senshi lets the soup cook, tastes the broth, decides it needs something, and gives it a bit of time to let the flavors meld before serving it up.

Dungeon Meshi Lobster and Mushroom Hot Pot

So, we're looking at something like this for the "Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom Hot Pot"--

Lobster- ~5 lbs or more (a 1 lb lobster yields about 4 oz of actual meat, which is a single serving), cut into large slices

Portobello- 2 mushrooms large diced, 2 left whole with the caps scored

Reindeer Lichen and Fat Choy- to taste

Chicory Roots- ~1 cup, diced

Endive greens- ~2 cups

Jellyfish, thin sliced- as much as you like

Add lobster and mushrooms to water, and allow to boil. While it comes to a boil, prepare the other ingredients, then add to the water. Let the soup come to a full boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes to an hour (can simmer longer, but this will affect the texture of the ingredients. Longer simmering will result in more melding of flavors, but also degraded solid parts).

Taste the broth. It will likely need salt and acid, which could come in a variety of forms, such as kosher salt and lemon juice, soy sauce and mirin/rice vinegar, oyster/fish sauce, or something else. Go with your gut and your taste buds..

#Dungeon Meshi #Defictionalization #Cooking #Food #Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom Hot Pot #Lobster and Portobello Hot Pot #This actually isn't really my thing due to the mushrooms but hell #Cashapp: $ValravenApocalypse #Paypal.me/Korbl #Ko-fi.com/valravenapocalypse #If this gets 100 notes and people like it I'll do the carnivorous plant fruit tart #Delicious in Dungeon

[fever-project]

Royal Pains of Uncertainty

@breannasfluff’s Finish the Prompt LU style - Angst

In bold is what Breanna wrote for the prompt. The rest is my own writing. I’m used to only writing in past tense so it was a fun challenge to write in present tense. Making Wild be a bit self-deprecating in this for the extra  layer of angst. Also a lot of repetition. And yelling. I am also not used to writing angst. Everyone makes up in the end because I cannot write sad endings for anything.

The crack of an open palm on a face has Wild whipping around. Legend clutches his cheek, already blooming red, and Hyrule lets his hand fall. His fists are balled to his side and his chest heaves. 

The two were in an argument before this that was rapidly growing more heated, but what could have led to this? Hyrule usually comes across as meek compared to the others on the Chain. 

Yet Legend is shrinking into himself, like something the traveler said hurt him more than the slap.

“What happened?” Wild asks as he joins them. What could Legend have done to make Hyrule so upset?

Hyrule opens his mouth to answer before shutting it in an instant. He huffs, clenching his hands even harder as he whips around, stomping off towards the edge of the camp.

“Hey, Hyrule-Link, Wait!” Wild shouts out,but Hyrule ignores him. The traveler sits down against a tree, burying his head in his knees, gripping them tightly.

Wild looks over at Legend, the pained look he had now gone, replaced with a blank stare as his hand lightly grazes his hurt cheek. Legend suddenly straightens up, looking off into the quarter distance. Wild thinks about reaching out to him, but his hand likely would’ve gotten slapped away anyways.

Legend inhales sharply and shakily, softly cupping his own cheek and walking silently towards the center of the camp. He sits down on one of the logs and buries his face in his hands.

Wild was now alone, a few mushrooms in hand. He was just scavenging for them, wanting to make something nice for the three of them. The others had gone out to investigate a nearby dungeon, the three of them staying behind to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. They all promised to make sure that nothing bad would happen between the three of them.

And look at what happened when Wild broke that promise. He’d just tuned the other two out when they started arguing, because it’s not like it would lead to anything big right? Wild was a fool. He knows this well. He’s the greatest fool out of the group, surely.

That didn’t make it so he couldn’t fix the mess he could’ve stopped, however.

Food is the key to heart, as they say, and Wild already has some mushrooms quite literally in his hands, so he should make food with it, like he planned to. He also happens to have some rock salt in his Sheikah Slate. Salt-grilled mushrooms it is then!

Walking over to the cooking pot that was thankfully already set up, Wild gets to work, humming all the while. He notices Legend looking at him over to his left from the nearby log, head slightly upturned and eyes peaking through his fingers. His eyes were red and wet, clearly having been crying. A lot. Crying so quietly that even the moss he was sitting upon couldn’t have heard him. A skill no one should have to master, yet there Legend was. Wild’s heart stung at the sight, so he gave the veteran a little wave and smile to cheer him up, even only slightly, but the veteran immediately hid his face again.

Wild sighs and turns back to his food. He was a fast cook and this was such a simple dish, so he was almost done already. Looking up and over to where Hyrule is, he was still in the same position, but his head was up and looking away from the camp. Was he crying as well? Quietly as well? Was it a skill well mastered between the two? What had happened between them? Before all of this even? Who was in the wrong and who was in the right? Why did they have to be crying so quietly?

Well, Wild was definitely in the wrong for not paying attention to the other heroes. That was on him. But what in Hylia’s good name are they even fighting about? It was frustrating for him, to not know what was going on between his friends. His crying, heartbroken friends.

But now it was food time.

“Heeeey there Leggy boy,” Wild coos out to his nearby comrade. Said comrade looks up at Wild in confusion, a vague effigy of a smirk on his face. “Wanna have some salty shrooms? That have been grrriiiled?” The oddness of Wild’s current way of speaking makes Legend smirk even more, which was the intended outcome. Sometimes, random is funny. Sometimes.

“Yeah,” Legend answers as his voice cracks, “That’s fine, thanks.”

“No problem friendo,” Wild gives Legend a nice, hot plate of salt-grilled mushrooms. He prepares a plate for himself and a plate for Hyrule. There was a little extra, still in the pot, which was all going down Wild’s throat, obviously.

Holding onto Hyrule’s plate, Wild stands up and calls out to the pouting Link. He knows he was pouting because when the traveler turned around, he was indeed pouting. Hyrule says nothing and does nothing after that. Just blinks blankly at him. With his red, wet eyes.

Wild tries to call out to Hyrule again, taking a few steps towards him, “Heya Rules, you what else rules?” No reaction. “Food! Want some salt-grilled mushrooms? They’re salty~”

Hyrule mumbles something back before looking away. This was going to be harder than he thought.

“Mister traveler,” Wild speaks in a singsongy voice, continuing to walk closer, “it’s eating time~. You need lots of food to grow big and strong~”

More mumbling from Hyrule. A bit louder this time, but Wild still has no idea what he’s saying. Wild groans. He gets even closer.

“I guess you just like acting like a big baby, don’t you?” Wild jokingly scoffs, “And here I thought you were an adult-“

“SHUT UP!” Hyrule screams, whipping his head around. His face is contorted with rage, glaring eyes seething with a rage Wild had never seen from his friend before. Directed at him before. The fury was short lived, Hyrule’s face almost immediately turning into one of regret. But the image was now burned into Wild’s mind, a clear, permanent picture.

Hyrule turns away from him again, the mumbled sorry I’m so sorry he repeats on and on reaching Wild’s ears. But Wild can’t get himself to say anything back. Opening and closing his mouth like a dying fish. A foolish fish that managed to beach himself on a single piece of sand in the middle of the ocean.

Wild’s face was hot. His hands hurt from how tightly he’s clutching what’s supposed to be Hyrule’s plate. Food, food’s the answer to everything. Yes, Wild just needed to make more food. He was the cook of the group. He’s the cook, yes. That’s what’s he good at, cooking, cooking food. The answer to everything. The key to the heart.

Wild walks back to the cooking pot. He sets the plate off to the side and eats his own food, both on his own plate and from the pot. It needs it to be empty after all, if he wanted to make more food. The mushrooms are good, but they were more salty than usual. He can’t see them that well, but that was okay. Food is the key to the heart, and healer of the soul. Wild continues to eat. He’s a quick eater. He’s finished in no time. He’s still hungry.

An angry shout erupted from the left of Wild. Legend throws himself off of the log, and as Wild rubbed his blurry eyes, he could still see the veteran’s furious face as clear as day. But he wasn’t angry at him, no, thankfully no. Legend stomps over to Hyrule, hunched slightly forward, hands clenched into fists. Hyrule shot up, a less angry look on his face, fear and unease filling in for where the rest of the anger would’ve gone.

“You’re a fucking jackass, you know that?” Legend spits at Hyrule, jabbing his finger into the traveler’s chest. Hyrule sputters, anger consuming the fear that had previously held its space.

“You’re the jackass here!” Hyrule shoots back, “You’re the one who started all of this!”

“You know what? Yeah, I did, I know that DAMN WELL!” Legend grips onto Hyrule’s tunic, “At least I wasn’t the one to make Wild CRY! YOU DID!” No, they can’t fight now, Wild didn’t get to make his food, his great food, the key to the soul food. Hyrule’s tearing up, Legend’s tearing up, it’s all Wild’s fault.

No.

No no no.

He can fix things. He was going to fix things.

With a soft, quiet voice, Wild starts to speak, “Al-“ his voice cracks, “Alright you two, break-“ he coughs, “-break it up.”

The two don’t hear him, it seems, as Hyrule begins to snap back. Wild doesn’t want to hear it. He can’t hear his friends be so angry at each and not even know why.

Hyrule shoves Legend away, hard. He stumbles back, surprise quickly being overtaken by even more anger. Hyrule starts to yell, “Well, YOU’RE a DAMNED asshole who-“

“BOTH OF YOU! SHUT! UP!” Wild screams, jumping up and accidentally snapping his wooden plate in half in his rage. It was fine, he had more plates. Sky’s okay with making more plates. Wild had no more patience for these two, however. His throat hurts. Yet he continues, “I am SICK! TIRED! Of the two of you acting like THIS!” The other two flinch in fear, their anger for each gone, albeit temporarily.

Wild was fixing things. Wasn’t he? He had to be, he’s going to fix things.

“Look, I don’t know what bullshit you two were spewing at each other, but can’t you two at least TRY to talk things out like GOSH. DAMN. REASONABLE PEOPLE?!” His throat hurts, his cheeks hurts, he was hurting. But not as much as his friends were hurting. He’s going to fix things.

“This isn’t cute, this isn’t a funny little hoo-ha, people are angry, people are sad, because you two! Who just…can’t be a degree of CALM! Do you understand what I’m saying? Do you?!”

They both nod, but they don’t seem to really understand. Wild is so very frustrated. He hates being so frustrated. He’s going to fix things. He has to.

“Alright, the both of you are going to sit down, right now.” The two shuffle in place, nervously unmoving. Why. Why are they like this? “You two don’t have to sit together, just sit the FUCK DOWN!” Now they rush to their seats, on logs opposite to each other, Legend to his left, Hyrule to his right.

Wild sighs, sitting down and rubbing his temples. He speaks in soft voice like before, so he wouldn’t hurt his throat any further, “I’m sorry for yelling at you two,” he looks at the both of them, who both refuse to look at each other, “And for being rude and mean to the both of you. I shouldn’t have done that, I just-I had felt like I wouldn’t be heard if I didn’t. I was worried someone would get hurt.” Hyrule recoils in on himself, hugging his knees in shame. No, he can’t let them get sad. Food. The key to the heart.

“Alright!” Wild claps his hands, “You pouting mcpout are going to eat your…” Wild looks up at the sky, deeming it to be almost nighttime, “…dinner. Yes, dinner. Leg’, did you finish you dinner?”

“N-no, I haven’t,” Legend responds in a similarly soft voice, “I’ll…I’ll do that now.”

“Good! Now Hyrule,” Wild shoves Hyrule’s plate at him, holding it in place until the traveler finally straightens up and takes it. “Make sure you eat up! And after this, you’ll get to have some cake! Carrot cake! Cake that’s made from carrots.” Wild gives them both a deranged smile as he happily waves his hands as he goes on about carrot cakes. He feels a bit loony right now, loony and tired. He’s not even sure why he suggested carrot cake, but that’s what he’s making now. Carrot cake.

Some Endura carrots, goat butter, cane sugar, and Tabantha wheat. For cake, carrot cake-

“I’m going ducking insane,” Wild groans, running his hands down his face.

“Ducking?” Legend scoffs lightly, a soft smile on his tear-stained face.

“I think I’ve sworn too much today,” Wild shifts into a thinking pose, “Swearing too much can devalue the feelings swearing can bring.”

“Philosophy’s fun,” Hyrule mumbles as he eats.

“Don’t talk with you mouth full huU-ugh, no, I can’t say that,” Wild says as he puts the ingredients into the pot, “I sound too much like a mom.”

“Yeah, you’re not Sky,” Legend teases. They all get a good laugh out of that. A long moment of silence occurs between the three of them after that. It’s not a bad silence, but it’s not really comfortable either. Nevertheless, Wild gets to cooking. He hums the same old tune he’d always hum. He doesn’t remember why this tune was the one he always defaulted to. Was it important to him before, all those years ago? Maybe once this is over, all of this is over, Zelda would tell him. But that was a long way aways from now. Now, he was making cake for his friends. Carrot cake. He wouldn’t be able to eat this cake for a while after this. Or probably any cakes. Or carrots.

“I think I’m starting to dislike c-words,” Wild mumbles aloud, “They’re making me loose my mind.”

“Do you...” Hyrule trails off a bit, plate almost empty now, “Do you want to make something else?”

“Nope. I’m making…this, and then we’re each going to eat a third of it cut into threes, and then you two will talk through you problems. Like adults.” The last word comes out harsher than he intended, but the two didn’t react much, Hyrule continues to eat his food and Legend sits politely, plate clean, awaiting cake.

Wild tries to empty his mind before he does something bad to the food before him.

Wild cheers when the cake is finally done. He makes grabby hands at his fellow heroes’ plates, much to their collective amusement. Legend gives him his plate first, receiving three slices of cake, as promised. Hyrule next, receiving his third of the cake.

“I would’ve given ya one slice at a time, but then I’d probably eat the rest of it,” Wild laughed, scratching the back of his head. Chuckles came from the other two, who then focus on their respective plates of foods. Wild focus on his. His stomach churns as he begrudgingly eats the slices, one by one, slower than he normally would. He still finishes far before the other two.

Wild rests his head on his knees, closing his eyes. The small fire underneath the pot encourages him to sleep. Fire always made him sleepy. But he couldn’t sleep yet, he needed to fix things.

No. He didn’t need to fix things. They had to fix things. The ones who were arguing. Wild can nudge and prod them all he wants, but only they could make things right with each other.

He slows his breath. He relaxes his limbs. He’s wide awake, but his friends don’t know that. To them, Wild’s sleeping soundly. He hears the sounds of wooden utensils cutting through the soft cake, scratching the wooden plate. Sounds of them chewing and swallowing food, of their shoes’ slight movements against the short grass, of the soft breeze that barely moves their hair. A few minutes pass before anyone speaks.

“Legend,” Hyrule speaks up, “I’m…I’m sorry.”

Legend inhales, sharply, before speaking back, “Don’t be. We both know I started this.”

“But still-“ Hyrule pauses after his volume starts to increase, and Wild feels his worried gaze cast upon him. Hyrule lowers his voice, “Still, I went too far. We both know this.”

“You didn’t go far enough,” the words tumbled out of Legend’s, a sharp inhale stopping more from coming out. A few more breaths, and he continues, “I shouldn’t have said you weren’t worthy of a throne.”

A throne? Wild doesn’t move, but he yearns to inch forward, to perk up his ears. But they don’t need him right now, he’s done enough.

“I don’t even know why I asked you that,” Hyrule sighs, “I just suddenly remembered something …and want to ask you about it I guess.”

“…What did you remember?”

“I…there’s something that Impa, my Impa said at the start of my second adventure,” Hyrule takes a deep breath, in and out, “she said her and her family have been ‘waiting for a great king to come’ for generations, to save Princess Zelda.”

“So you feel pressured to be that great king?”

“A bit, a bit yeah. I…know I’ll be a king, eventually. I uh, really like…Zelda.”

“Oh. Ah. Now is not the right time for teasing.”

“I can tell by your face that you really want to,” Hyrule giggles, “but yeah, that’s…why I was concerned about being a king.”

“And you came to me.”

“Well…I figured you’d know more than Wild,” very true, Wild knows nothing about this stuff, “so I wanted to ask you. Because I…trust you.”

A long silence passes between them. Wild wants to speak up, but he can’t. He’ll mess everything up if he does.

“You…” Legend starts, “No, no I shouldn’t say you shouldn’t trust me. That’s not my choice to decide.”

“…I still trust you, you know that?”

“…I trust you too.”

Another long silence. Happier now.

“I’m a prince,” Legend drops out of nowhere. Well it felt like it was out of nowhere, and Hyrule and Wild couldn’t stop themselves from yelling.

“What?!” The two shout in unison, Hyrule yelping at Wild.

“You-you’re awake?!” Legend asks, befuddled.

“Ha ha, yeah, barely,” Wild awkwardly smiles  at the other two, “Bold of you to assume I was asleep. You know I snore.” He only snores sometimes, but that wasn’t important. “Anyways, you’re a prince? How that happen?”

Legend looks over at Wild, then at Hyrule, back and forth a few times before sighing.

“Zelda’s my half sister,” Legend said plainly, “I know the trails, and the tribulations that royalty have to go through. I’ve been through some of those things, but I’m grateful that I don’t have to. I just-“ Legend huffs out a small sob, not quick enough at covering his mouth. Hyrule tries to reach out to him, but Wild stops him. He shakes his head softly, ‘not yet’ his eyes tell the traveler. He nods back, retracting his hand and they both await Legend’s next words with bated breath.

“I don’t want you to go through all that pain. And you know me, I’m snarky, I’m the mean, rude one, I’m not good at sentimentality,” Legend runs his hands through his hair, “That’s why I just-waved you off and got so angry when you kept insisting on being a king. I said a lot of hurtful things I clearly shouldn’t have. I’m sorry Hyrule, I really, really am.”

“It’s okay Legend,” Hyrule smile softly at him, “I forgive you. It’s okay you got angry, I understand why you got angry. I know I shouldn’t have gotten angry.”

“No no, you definitely deserved to be angry Rules-“

“I didn’t deserve to HIT you!” Hyrule shouts, throwing his hands up in the air before running them over his face, “I hit you, you never deserved that.”

To both the surprise of both Hyrule and Wild, Legend starts to laugh maniacally at this.

“Sorry, sorry, I just-it’s fine. Don’t worry about it Rulie,” Legend smiles at Hyrule.

“I think you’re downplaying this a bit,” Wild interrupts, to his own surprise, “Even if you don’t care, Hyrule here definitely does.”

“But it’s fine-“

“I don’t think it’s fine!” Hyrule also interrupts him, “We’re not supposed to hit each other because of things like this! You can say you forgive me or don’t-that’s okay, but don’t tell me not to worry about when you’rethe one who got hurt. You just don’t want me to worry about you!”

Legend looks surprised at this outburst, before laughing yet again. Calmer now, gentler.

“Yeah, you’re right. I don’t want you to worry. I don’t like people having to worry about me, or having to worry about others.”

“Well, that’s too bad,” Hyrule says in such a way that makes the other two laugh. He laughs too, whether or not he understands why doesn’t matter. “Are you feeling okay Legend, does it still hurt?”

“Of course not, I’m fine-“

“But are you reeeeaaallllyy fine?” Wild dramatically learns over to Legend, who snickers before playfully shoving Wild away.

“Yes, I’m fine, really. It doesn’t even sting anymore. Hyrule’s not that strong.”

“H-hey!” Hyrule’s cheeks turn pink as he pouts. They all laugh.

The tense atmosphere that was here before was now long gone. Things were back to the happy way they were before, with a few more lessons learned.

The stars smile at them as Wild pulls them all into a group hug.

#legend of zelda #linked universe #lu wild #lu hyrule #lu legend #lu triple threat #lu fanfiction #lu ftp #idk how to do angst. did I get it right? #I probably messed up the tense a few times in here. I noticed at least one that I fixed when I posted this on here lol #typically I don’t really care for leg being siblings with fable but I felt like it would fit pretty good for this #over three thousand words heck yeah

[ms0milk]

no cw so self indulgent, farmhand nanami showed up from nowhere like he was made in a lab to bewitch you <1k

He would look better on horseback this morning, cantering through fog falling cold from the mountains. Nanami is a handsome rider and he’s strong enough to do it well. His hips roll like they should in a saddle and his hair was always meant to be mussed by a breeze. Reins fit nicely in his golden hands. Regal might be a word you use as you bundle up in your doorway, watching the man emerge from a quickly-overgrowing gate at dawn. A word you might use if Nanami was actually on horseback and not leading your horse on foot, clearly mired with bramble thorns from waist to boot.

He’s wearing your hat. Nanami draws it low to hide his face and your sweet horse nips at his hand as they walk together; their gaits are both heavy with sleep. He’s never once looked disheveled but this morning his clothes hang quite well over his jeans where he’s usually so careful to tuck them in and in all he embodies the farmhand’s equivalent for wearing odd shoes to carry groceries inside.

A canvas coat that is clearly much too small on his broad shoulders, is thrown over a dress shirt– possibly two– you’ve never seen before and he couldn’t even manage to button one closed. His undershirt glows obnoxiously underneath as it hugs the shapes of his firm body. It’s a blessing to watch, a thought you will keep to yourself, and you open your door a bit wider in invitation.

“Early ride?”

He peers out under his brim at the sound of a voice and tips the hat off his head with a quickness when he sees you. He tightens his sleepy posture. Your pretty cream gelding is returned to his stall for breakfast before Nanami answers your question.

The only thing between the back stalls and your front door is moss. The earth this farm belongs to is wet with life. A thousand horseshoes have flatted the walkway like pressed powder and still the dandelions grow, pollen falls, petals fall, rain falls, snow falls freezes and melts and still your stables are warm and your dusty clearings grow grasses. You tighten your shawl around your shoulders. The morning fields are all mist and the sun can’t be bothered to warm you.

If you surprised him, it doesn’t show. Dewed pebbles crunch under Nanami’s boots as he crosses the clearing to reach you, you standing chilly in your sleepshirt with coffee brewing in the kitchen. You’d like to know why he’s wearing half the bramble patch as pants.

“M’sorry miss,” he rasps like he hasn’t spoken yet today and a quick twitch of his brows is the only thing that hints at embarrassment. Man of few words. English doesn’t seem to be his first language but he won’t tell anyone a thing about himself past what you all can observe. He works well, he works quietly. The animals love him and he doesn’t mind a bit of dirt. Nanami showed up in town a few months ago and the old boss hired him outright when she saw him in a full suit at sunday market. Horndog. She knew how good he’d look in chaps.

“Excuse my thieving” he murmurs this time to keep his voice soft and hangs your hat on the horn beside your door.

“Don’t call me miss, Mr. Nanami.”

“Excuse that too.”

Your hat hugged him too tight and his hair suffers for it, blond bits stuck flat to his head like a teenager with bedhead. He has to hang his head low to look at you for how much taller he is and you haven’t decided whether his dedication to eye contact is chivalry or flirtation. He’ll look through you to the bone with those sharp brown eyes, even if you’ve only just whistled good morning. Something inside him can’t help but call you miss.

“I’d love to hear this story,” you yawn slightly and gesture to his outfit, “I put a pot on.”

Nanami’s head tilts so slightly as he considers all the ways he might decline such an imposing offer but when you bump the door open a touch and bitter, bread, and jam roll out into the morning air you know you’ve got him. After all, what cowboy can resist coffee?

farmhand nanami tag <3

#farmhand nanami ˚⊹♡ #tbc dudes bc i need him to fuck me #nanami x reader

[quirkle2]

more zombie au :] (1.2k words)

The odor of rot has joined the damp growth of life from pots. Even if some things die off without human aid, there are always stronger elements that thrive in their absence.

The aisles are overgrown. Ritsu brushes past the vines as gently as he can, wooden floor groaning under his worn soles. There’s a gap of empty space in the middle of each aisle that he slots through, eyes roaming the shelves of largely useless things. Stronger stems snag onto his backpack and he tugs distractedly while perusing the labeled pots along the tables.

The barn is quaint, and Ritsu thinks he would love to stay. Moss eats at the boards under his feet and bugs swarm around him in the hot air incessantly, but it’s peaceful and there’s a constant sprinkle of sound to his ears that have grown so used to silence. Whoever owned this place beforehand put up a few wind chimes indoors—they must’ve always had the front entrance open for customers.

It’s a quiet little homemade garden center, or something similar, on the side of the highway. It’s an overgrown property with something dead in the backyard that Ritsu refuses to acknowledge or let Shigeo near. The shingles and boards in the roof have been replaced with polyethylene sheets—a barn-turned-greenhouse, uprooted from the hay and cattle it likely used to house and settled back into the Earth to be a paradise for plants.

There’s a large branch hanging through a hole poked into the plastic overhead. It sways with the wind and the chimes that follow, and Ritsu whistles with the leadless melody and gives it a direction while he studies old seed packets.

They didn’t stop here for any particular reason—a garden center doesn’t have much for apocalypse survivors, but Shigeo has always liked overgrown things. He’d always enjoyed taking care of their mother’s plants back home, and then Reigen’s at the office. His brother likes the humidity of greenhouses and the smell of soil and dirt and must.

He sees the top of Shigeo’s head over the aisles, across the barn. He walks past a shovel hanging on the wall and yelps out a grunt when it clangs to the floor behind him. Ritsu shakes his head and smiles, running his fingers along faded price tags.

The feeling of greenhouses has always had this… wet fullness, to Ritsu.

When he breathes in it’s like he can taste the life that breathes out and it feels like a conversation, a question and an answer, both of which he’s not sure how to articulate. The leaves wave to him and he waves back, the once-active sprinklers pepper his skin with dots, with compliments, with proclamations they are eager to share. The vines weave between fencing just to reach him, just to talk.

He understands why Shigeo likes it, and why he’d always asked to accompany their mother on trips to get new seeds. Ritsu hadn’t really understood, then, how pretty it could be, how full it could feel.

Shigeo had always been right about loving the little things. Ritsu wishes he’d seen that sooner.

His brother ambles down the aisle ahead of him and he listens to the quiet patter of his sloppy footwork, moving around a table of seed trays. His whistles carry across the barn, sort of aimless in their own right instead of leading the wind and the chimes somewhere worthwhile, but the sounds soak into the overhead plastic nicely, so he keeps going.

He pulls back a layering of vines and leaves to scan the contents of another shelf, and then he notices Shigeo stop in his peripherals. His dirty shoes stay planted in the corner of his vision, leaves burying the toes, and Ritsu looks away from the products.

He means to say something, to ask him what’s up even if saying things to Shigeo very rarely results in productivity, but he stops when he realizes his brother’s head is… tilted.

He’s looking at him with as much inquisitiveness as his dulled down awareness can muster, pale eyes flickering across Ritsu’s face like he’s working out some puzzle. He instinctively stops whistling, brain lagging behind on this new info of this new behavior, and the sound fizzles out into a little huff of air that leaves the greenhouse feeling oddly empty.

Shigeo studies him for a moment longer, blinking slowly, and then he straightens his head out as Ritsu stares back. His brother’s gaze lingers there on his mouth, like he’s still confused, like he still expects something to happen.

Ritsu blinks once, twice. The wind chimes call as wind pokes at his greasy spikes, as it prods at the ends of his jacket and fills the silence with a different flavor of itself. The interest in the zombie’s eyes fades a little, gaze straying to the vines around them.

Very tentatively, Ritsu wets his lips and blows. The whistle grabs his brother’s attention immediately, and he’s suddenly tilting his head like a curious dog.

He can’t help the laugh that spills out and makes the whistle a mess of exhales. His shoulders shake a little and he hurries to keep the tune steady and consistent; a few seconds pass and Shigeo tilts his head the other way, exhausted eyes big and more alert than they’ve been in days.

Ritsu experiments, and ventures around with the sound—goes lower and higher and watches his brother twist his head back and forth like he’s trying to understand calculus. There’s something very innocent about it, about the look in his eyes that reminds him of when they were kids and their father would show them magic tricks.

It’s muted by the ever-present fog there in his pupils, but Ritsu thinks he sees a spark of that life in them, of that curiosity born from a mind that knows little. He gives him a simple sensation, a simple experience, and his brother is eating it all up like he’s four again, like he’s new and everything is colorful and unknown and big.

Ritsu watches Shigeo tilt his head back and forth, watches the rusty gears behind his window panes move. He changes tactics, because some sad part of him tells him to, and whistles Shigeo’s favorite song instead.

He remembers the name, but he doesn’t need the name because when he thinks of the tune he thinks of his brother, and that’s all that matters. It’s happy, because Shigeo likes happy music. It’s chipper and yet it meanders, like it’s willingly getting lost, like it’s wandering where it wants to and it’ll eventually find its roots again. It’s happy the whole time. The whole adventure.

Shigeo stops tilting his head, and the gears behind his eyes churn a little bit faster. His gaze clings to Ritsu’s and his brother makes actual eye contact, sinks his own being into Ritsu’s head when he’s least prepared for it. The recognition in his gaze has his soul souring.

He keeps whistling. He doesn’t want to stop, because Shigeo feels like Shigeo right now, and he doesn’t want that to stop.

His brother stares. Ritsu’s grief tints the music.

#qkwrites #zombie au #mp100 ritsu #ritsu kageyama #shigeo kageyama #mp100 shigeo #mp100 mob #every time i think about this au too long i am filled with despair #last line of this . damn i was cookin #ritsu's grief tints Everything he does in this world #he's fucking haunted by it and it's awful bc it's not like he can just.not think abt it #bc the source of his grief is Shigeo. and shigeo still breathes and walks and reacts to things ritsu does like he's alive #and he Is alive. he's very much alive #but there is a lot missing. and ritsu Feels the absence every fucking second #it's like walking into a house that used to have another person in it. and all the familiar sounds ur used to will never be made again #it's very empty and stagnant and the things that Do stay are Different #and it changes a lot. one minute ritsu will be having an okay day—best mood u could possibly have in an apocalypse anyway #and then he looks over and shigeo is doing smth that he used to do Before but it's wrong and a little bit to the left #and without the life in it #pure muscle memory on shigeo's part #and suddenly ritsu's mood drops So fast and he's so Exhausted from these mood swings he keeps having #u know that thing that goes like .uhhhh grief doesn't fade life just gets bigger around it. or smth #yeah ritsu's life isn't rly getting bigger. he is not moving away from the grief bc the source of it keeps staring him in the face

[onenicebugperday]

Hello! I have a garden snail that had lots of babies and was hoping for some advice please! :) I want to make their enclosure as comfy as possible for them but I don't know how. Do they prefer dark environments? Hidey holes? What kind of substrate is best? Etc. Thank you!

(I'm in Southern California)

Congrats on your snabies! Firstly I would not take any substrate or decor for the tank from outside unless you want a lot of hitchhiker creatures in your snail tank. If you do, you'll want to bake it first.

A standard 10 (or larger) gallon aquarium with a mesh lid works great, but you'll want to modify the lid to cover most of the mesh to keep the inside humid. I just bought a squeeze tube of silicone and attached some plastic sheeting inside the lid to cover about 75% of the mesh.

Substrate can be any sort of animal-safe soil-like substrate - so soils meant for bioactive reptile and amphibian enclosures or for isopods. Repti-soil, Creature Soil, organic potting mix, etc. I personally have my snails in with my millipedes, and use a combination of eco earth and Josh's Frogs milli mix - can't recommend milli mix enough! Josh's Frogs ABG mix or isopod substrate would also be appropriate.

No matter which soil you choose, it should be 4-5 inches deep both to hold humidity and for burrowing. 10 quarts will fill a 10 gallon aquarium to the proper depth.

As for decor, I would avoid rocks since snails WILL climb the glass and other decor and probably will fall off from time to time. Rocks can shatter their shells. I would stick to wood - any aquarium safe wood is fine. Cork bark, mopani, spider wood, etc. I'd also recommend some dry/dead reptile-type sphagnum moss to keep up humidity and for nibbling, and some kind of leaf litter - I buy bags of dry/brown live oak leaves on amazon for pretty cheap. My snails don't seem to hide in holes or crevices much - when they're not active, they mostly hang out on the lid or the top glass of the tank.

You do not need lighting or heating unless your house gets particularly cold in the winter - they may be less active if it's too cold. You can put a low watt reptile heating pad on the side of the tank to keep the temp up around 70+ if need be. They are primarily active at night, so if you want to see what they're up to, a small light that doesn't give off heat near the tank would be okay.

Most important is humidity. Get all of the substrate and moss damp as you put it into the tank with distilled water. I use a reptile mister bottle and buy gallons of distilled water at the grocery store. They last a long time so not a big investment. You'll also have to mist the whole enclosure probably daily, maybe twice daily. It should be moist and humid but not sopping wet. Don't let the substrate dry out entirely. Occasionally you may have to stick your finger into the soil to make sure it's staying damp under the surface.

And finally, snails need calcium for their shells! I occasionally dust the top of the substrate with powdered reptile calcium, or you can throw a cuttlebone in there for them to nibble on.

Here's a list of safe/not safe foods for snails.

If you ever have more questions about setup that I didn't answer here, feel free to IM me! Happy to share creature keeping tips.

#bug keeping #snail keeping #snail #garden snail #i-am-pamcakes

[alaspice]

𝐒𝐨𝐥 𝟎𝟐

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: Xavier Thorpe x Fem Reader

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲:  You knew these people two years ago, but can you fall back into the way things used to be?

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: will be listed when they apply

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 2.3k

a/n this starts pre-canon in the school year before Wednesday shows up, This is big time Slow Burn, strap in.

Prev   Next 

From the corner of your dorm room to the closet-like room back home, all potions breweries smelled the same. Nevermore was no different. The potions classroom smelled deep and earthy, like walking through a moss covered forest. The air was smokey from the open flames, and tasted powerful from the sheer amount of relics and ingredients present. It was comforting. 

Your assigned brewing stand was against the side wall, a large window overlooking the quad by your side. Marcella, your partner, sat next to you. She was flipping through the new text books that had been passed out, examining the title chapters and occasionally stopping to examine a picture. 

You liked Marcella. At dinner, you had learned much about her. Marcella had been going to Nevermore for two years with her twin brother, Ajax. She was seventeen, liked the color red, and absolutely hated country music. Her favorite food was Kimchi-jjigae, she was from urban Oregon, and she loved scented candles. Macella liked to laugh at your dumb jokes and could carry a conversation like it weighed nothing. 

“The hell is conocybe pileus and why do I have to juice it?” Marcella was now hunched over the book, her face scrunched in question. She was reading the ingredient list for the assigned potion of today; a potion of clarity. A simple brew that shouldn’t take more than a few minutes. You had made it before for when some of the pills would cloud your mother’s mind. You had also learned, thanks to Leto, that it was a great way to help clear out a hangover. 

“It’s the top of a type of mushroom.” you answered Marcella, sliding on your heat preventative gloves. “You just kinda squeeze it until the mushroom juice comes out.” you mimed it, tightly balling your hands into a fist.

She chuckled, whispering  “mushroom juice” under her breath, eyes still glued to the page. “We also need to grab some alchemists paste, han fibers and shreiker’s blood.” 

“I can start grinding the lotus root.” Marcella got up and walked to the storage closet. 

Even through the chunky leather of your heat resistance gloves, you were able to peel the skin off of the delicate bulb and began grinding them in the provided mortar and pestle. Adding the first one to the cauldron full of spring water, you began to peel the second.

Marcella hummed slightly as she placed the rest of the ingredients on the table. She picked up the final lotus root, watching you struggle slightly. 

“Why are you wearing gloves?” through your periphery, you saw her pause before dropping the plant like it burned her “These aren’t dangerous for us, right?”

You chuckled, throwing the root down in the mortar and pestle. “No. I’m wearing them because it's still summer.” You began grinding down 

“What?” pure confusion laced her voice 

“It’s because the sun is still so close to earth.” you scraped the edges of the bowl before going back for a second pass. 

“I’m not following.” You dumped the second batch into the cauldron. 

“I get my powers from the sun.” You picked up the final root and began peeling “Whenever it is closer to the earth, they get stronger. Because it’s when the sun is the closest, summer is the worst season. It makes it a little harder to control, so I wear the gloves as a precaution, especially when making potions.” 

Marcella nodded, watching your hands move. 

“For example..” you began grinding again “accidentally cooking the lotus root would turn this into a potion of confusion.” You swiped the edges of the mortar “And, if we boil the shreiker’s blood too early, it would become more of a paste than a liquid.” Into the cauldron it went. 

Looking into the large pot, you stirred the mixture until clear. Marcella had begun to squeeze the liquid from the mushroom caps. 

“Doesn’t it get annoying, wearing the gloves and everything?” 

“I mean… kinda.” you reached for the alchemy paste “It definitely gets old, having to constantly think about it.” you put the white goo into the mortar and took just a pinch of han fibers “But I’ve never known anything different.” you started to grind the two together

“I get that” she put the vial of the mushroom juice into the potion “It’s like me with my snakes. Yeah, wearing a hat all the time can be kind of a pain, but it’s just a part of life, ya know.” she stirred. “Besides, I would hate to stone someone.”

“What’s it like to be stoned?” the second you said it, you knew you probably shouldn’t have. To your relief, Marcella didn’t seem to mind. 

“It’s weird.” Marcella reached for the sheiker’s blood “It’s like a blind panic when it happens, and then you wake up a day later still panicking.” She carefully put a few drops into the cauldron. “You’re stiff for like a week afterwards and your mouth tastes like dust.”

You hummed in contemplation, still grinding the mixture. By now, the white paste had turned a dull pink from the han fibers. 

“That doesn’t sound fun.” you reached for the spoon

“It’s not, but what are you gonna do?” she shrugged, and put the spoon in your outstretched hand. 

You scooped the goo into the spoon and dipped it into the clear liquid. Taking a quick glance at the text, you spun it clockwise and read the incantation from the book. Pulling out the spoon, the now glowing liquid bubbled more intensely before instantly calming to a clear, blue liquid. Grabbing a ladle from the station drawer, you spooned it into a vial. 

“A potion of clarity.” you handed the bottle your partner to write on. In the short time you had known her, you had already realized Marcella had better handwriting than you. After bottling the rest of the potion, you and Marcella cleaned your station until the bell to change classes. Unlike a regular school bell, it was deep in tone, and reminded you of a giant grandfather clock. 

The halls of Nevermore were not as crowded as you remembered them. Maybe it was because you were older, but everything seemed a little smaller. The pillars were not as looming and the thought of going through the quad was not as daunting. Still, you planned to just go back to your room during your lunch period. 

Walking along, a glimpse of color caught your eye amongst the gray of the stone; you stopped to examine. On one singular tile was a small landscape. Leaning closer you lifted up your sunglasses to peer at the art. 

You always wore the tinted shades to cover the constant glow of your yellow eyes; the only physical trait of your father passed down. You blinked rapidly at the sudden invasion of light unflitered as your eyes adjusted. 

The bright greens of the field and the blue of the sky stood out against the graying stone. It was so incredibly detailed. You could make out a bird in the sky, the shadow of a deer in the background woods, and even a beetle on a closer blade of grass. It was enchanting 

“Do you like it?” You jumped, whipping around to see Xavier Thorpe watching you closely. You were sure you looked like a deer in the headlight, and you felt like a child caught stealing desert. Chuckling at your reaction, Xavier extended his hand, fingers flexing at his artwork.

“Watch.”

As you stared at the painting, you could see the tall grass start to move as if bowing in the wind. You could hear the buzz of bees and the chirping of the bird you had spotted. A small smile graced your lips at the scene. You could almost smell the sweetness of the morning dew that lingered on the grass

“I did that at the end of term last year.” he pulled his hand back, and the paint lost its life.

“It’s beautiful.” you looked up at the boy 

“Thanks.” he smiled, eyes remaining forwards. You didn’t know what to say, and you didn’t think he did either. 

Xavier was different from when you had last known him. He had grown quite a bit taller, and finally fit into his lanky arms. His hair was much longer than his previous undercut, and his cheekbones had only gotten sharper. While you had seen him at the funeral, the difference was much more drastic up close. The Xavier you had known two years ago would have never painted the bricks at Nevermore. Back then, he was a stickler for rules, full of anxiety of what his actions would do against his father’s reputation. Even from this short encounter, you saw how differently he carried himself; he wasn’t so tense.

You were sure you were different as well. You had definitely gotten taller in the last two years and had filled out a bit as well. You were sure he remembered you just as well as you remembered him, but you just didn’t know how to word it. How would you? “Hi, I’ve been gone for two years, let's just be friends again”? “I know the last time you saw me was when my mom died, but let's just pretend that didn’t happen”?  No. 

So, you were stuck looking at the painting for an uncomfortable amount of time. 

“How have you been, (Y/N)?” he was the first one to speak 

“I’ve been okay. It’s nice to be back at Nevermore.” You looked over at him to see Xavier already watching you. He quickly averted his eyes back forward. “You?” 

“I’m alright.” 

You scuffed your boot against the floor. 

“Would you like to come sit with us?” his words were rushed as he spoke, the usual coolness of his voice replaced with nerves. 

“Huh?” 

“At lunch.” he quickly added “it’s pretty much everyone from” he paused “before you uh, ya know…” he trailed off.” he was so painfully trying not to bring the funeral up and your two year absence.

“That would be nice.” 

The table the group occupied was in a different corner of the cafeteria than the one you sat at the previous night with Marcella. At it sat all of your old friends: Kent, Yoko, Divina, Rowan, and plus two new people. Xavier explained on the way. 

The first was a gorgon boy. His name was Ajax and he was Marella’s twin brother; who wasn’t there because she had a different lunch period. He was goofy and obviously unaware of it. It was fun. The second was another siren, a girl named Bianca. She had only come to Nevermore two years ago, so you never met her before. She was gorgeous with her full lips and siren eyes. 

Bianca emitted authority to the point where it made shrink into yourself a little as you sat down. Still, she smiled with shining teeth and held out her hand to you. 

“You must be (Y/N). Everyone’s told me so much about you.” You took her manicured hand into your gloved one and shook. You didn’t hold on for too long. Even through the gloves, one could still feel the heat, especially now from your racing neveres.

“It’s nice to meet you.” she nodded, as if your reaction had garnered her approval. 

Somewhat expecting Xavier to sit at the open spot by your side, he walked around and slid in next to Bianca. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she leaned into his side.

Oh. 

It didn’t take a genius to put it together that they were thing. You felt the need to look away, an awful heat rising towards your face. You didn’t even know why you cared, but you did. You wished for anyone to talk so you would have a reason to think of something else. 

“How are you, babe.”

Oh thank god. It was Yoko who spoke. She looked over at you through her circled framed glasses and tapped her nails against the wooden table top.

“I’m okay enough. I missed you guys.” a chorus of “me too” filled the table Now just ignoring Bianca and Xavier, you fell into conversation. “What’s new with everyone. I was really bad at staying in touch.” 

It wasn’t a lie. You had been rather bad at keeping a regular correspondence with everyone while taking care of your mother. You had basically missed two years of everyone’s lives. 

Yoko’s permanent fangs had finally grown in. Kent had gone to Australia for a whole summer. Rowan’s telekinesis had gotten stronger to where he could move small buildings. Divina had charmed her way onto a filming set and had been an extra in a music video. It was somewhat overwhelming to hear all you had missed. 

After the initial tension of time was gone, it was easy to fall back into the way things were before. Making dumb expressions at Yoko for laughs, lovingly poking fun at Kent with everyone, swapping your food with Divina’s, casually debating with Xavier over random topics. Ajax had fit right in by making dumb yet funny jokes and contributing to the debates. Even Bianca had seemed to have carved a spot for herself, making small quips at Kent and adding her own opinions into the conversation. You had jumped in your seat when the bell had rang, not even thinking ten minutes had gone by, let alone 40. 

Standing up, you slung your school bag over your shoulder, and waited for everyone to be ready. Having your next class with Rowan, the pair of you walked off, laughing at Kent as he tripped over his shoe. A calming warmth washed over you as you and Rowan walked through the semi crowded halls. Everything was just like before; a small piece of the past could still live on.  

I made this an x reader but the only physical description is your eyes bc of your lineage (child of helios). I imagine them like Leto’s eyes from Lore Olympus. 

Let me know if you want on the tag list

Taglist: @crosshairs773fp​ , @i-bitch-you-bitch , @gengen64​ ,  @mariaelizabeth21-blog1​, @l4venderia​

#wednesday #netflix wednesday #xavier thorpe #xavier thorpe x reader #x reader #netflix #fanfic #the addams family #lets see if I stay consistent #wednesday addams #enid sinclair #potions #ajax petropolus #yoko tanaka #bianca barclay #nevermore academy #nevermore #wednesday series #pre-canon #xavier thorpe fanfic #slow burn #writing

[direjoon]

SYZYGY [2]

✩ pairing: alpha namjoon x chubby fem!omega reader

✩ genre: wonderous , soulmates , strangers to "friends" to lovers , fluff , romance🔞 , life lessons , slice-of-life , brief angsty situations , happy ending

✩ word count: 4.9k

✩ chapter warnings: cussing , cover art does not depict fmc features, mention and feeling of throwing up but no throw up !

✩ summary: Namjoon would say that he truly lives the normal life. As an alpha, he works the job he wants, he goes out when he has time, and he has never received a single late-fee on payments. He's living the mundane life- until an unknown omega literally drops into his life. Where did she come from? Why him?

✩ cover: me

ch.1, ch.2 ...

Namjoon

“This fish must have a really good hiding spot, I haven’t been able to find it since yesterday.” Y/N kneels in front of his nightstand where a small decorative bowl of water and plants sit in a bed of rocks. 

Namjoon has been trying to work all morning. (Trying to answer all of Y/N’s questions while he also listens to the track over and over again while trying to make edits on it while Y/N is lingering around his desk like a lost puppy.)

“There’s no fish, it’s just a moss ball.” 

“A ball of moss? I guess that’s a pet, just like a potted plant would be. Why did you decide to get one?”

“They’re cute.” Namjoon gives a genuine answer and a shrug. 

“Very cute.” She agrees with a whisper almost too quiet for him to hear with one un-covered ear. 

The room quiets down for a moment of familiar peace, only for Y/N to flop back onto Namjoon’s bed with a heavy sigh. This change in his routine isn’t annoying or unwanted, but the sudden change is proving to be harder to get used to than he thought it’d be. He really can’t risk taking a last-minute day off of this project, and even then he always has projects. He can’t be mad people like his work, so- 

“Do you want me to see if one of my friends would take you out to do something today?” He turns to ask, meeting an excited looking Y/N whose head pops up immediately at the prospect. Her scent sweetens beautifully- he’ll definitely have to make her happy or excited more often. 

Jimin is easy to convince, especially when Namjoon tells him he’ll pay him for a day’s worth of work. He doesn’t even have to pay the kid to skip work for a day, but he thought it’d only be right- especially since Y/N can take his card, allowing them both to just have a budget for the day. 

The only catch- he didn’t tell Jimin what he’d be doing. 

“Wait, she’s that omega from last night!” Jimin is more excited than anything at first, probably hoping Namjoon has been lying about how lonely he’s been. 

“Her name is Y/N-” She gives an excited wave to Jimin, “and you are going to take her out and do something with her today.” 

“Something?” 

“Anything she desires or you see fit, because I can’t put off work and she doesn’t want to be inside right now.” Namjoon tries to explain as simply as possible. 

“Wait..” Jimin can’t help but let out an awkward laugh, obviously not fully understanding the situation. “I’m sorry, could I get a proper introduction from her instead of you talking about her like she’s a dog.” Jimin’s quip sounds light-hearted but it smacks Namjoon in the face. 

“I’m Y/N, I’m Namjoon’s gifted omega from The Goddess.” She gives him another small wave. “I’m excited to meet one of Namjoon’s friends. What was your name again?” 

Jimin gives an annoyed look to Namjoon. He knows that look all too well. Namjoon is avoidant and focused only on his life, especially during work hours. He doesn’t like to multitask, and will always focus on his work over anything else. 

“You have an omega gifted from The Goddess, a literal gift for you, and-” 

Namjoon must be looking at him in a certain way to get Jimin to stop talking. He knows how awful he looks, and he definitely isn’t proud of it, but he really couldn’t put off work for anything. He barely got time to visit his parents when his grandmother passed away- this definitely wouldn’t be reason enough. He’s helpless and hopeless in the same moment, a shell of what an alpha should be. The least he could give her is an experience with an alpha that is pleasant and soft until he has time to focus on her. 

“I’m Jimin, it’s nice to meet you Y/N.” Jimin coolly shifts his attention to Y/N with his memorable smile. “Are you hungry? Should we get some food first?” 

“Yes! Whatever’s your favorite is fine.” She meets him at the door, turning only to give Namjoon a soft smile that he doesn’t deserve. “I’m going with Jimin, I’m letting you know per our rules.” She can’t contain her excitement while looking at him, her heavenly sweet scent pooling out to make his heart ache and clench uncomfortably at the realization that she’ll be gone without him- happy and experiencing new things. He steps forward  to meet her as she finishes putting on her new shoes. 

“Here, use my card for whatever you do today.” He slips the card to Jimin to keep in his wallet, then looks back down to her. “Be careful please.” He looks at her with intent then to Jimin with a trusting nod. 

“I will. I’ll make sure to stay with Jimin.” She knows what to say to comfort him despite just having met. What should he do? How should he meet her halfway right now?

He instinctively reaches out for her hand, she lets him have it with no question. With her hand he wraps her around his own wrist, directing himself towards her neck. She understands his gesture immediately, bringing him up to rub his scent into the soft skin of her neck- her jaw, her cheek. 

“Thank you, Namjoon.” She whispers up at him, awe glittering in her eyes. All he can do to keep himself calm is not open his damn mouth, giving her a small smile and nod. It felt right, that’s all that matters. It’s not a big deal that he just scented an omega for the first time. 

-

With everything moving very fast in his book, Namjoon has finally decided to do some long awaited research. 

It’s quite easy to find blog posts and ‘asks’ on sites that are trying to reach out to others that share the same experience of ‘being gifted’. He reads through all of them, trying to understand why it all feels like it’s absolutely meant to be, instead of feeling forced and strange in unpleasant ways. 

‘I was gifted an alpha, one that I think is far too perfect for me- what do I do?’ 

Many hit far too close to home, and he takes even more time rereading those and their replies. 

‘I was gifted an omega and know of no one else, personally, that has had the same experience. I understand we connect just as I would with any omega that was to be my mate, but why is it so overwhelming and intense emotionally. It feels like I’ve known them forever.’

He scrolls through the replies, stopping to take all the information he can find into consideration. He starts with the top commenter, a reply that has over 5k thumbs up. 

‘Sadly, The Goddess and her ways are not scientifically researched and we cannot run tests on anything associated with Her. But, please know you’re not alone when you describe your experience. I have taught gender studies for the past 15 years and have gotten a question similar to this a few times- as well as read many writings containing interviews of mates containing a gift, doctors who have come into contact with those in the mated pairs, and even random users on social media such as you. I will always tell them the same thing. Do what feels right. Our second genders will always want to protect and claim when we find the one for us, that is no difference in this case. And even more special in these instances, you are to be a perfect match, making your scents and chemistry far more heavy and attracted to one another. I always recommend lots of communication and time to be put into these pairs, as your gift is learning so, so much and you now have a sort of responsibility to them. Our second genders make caring and dedication an easier adjustment, but these could go against your once beliefs, so I would say just make sure to take things at a pace that, again, feels right. Forcing space or uncomfortable time in between what is supposed to be a literal gift from The Goddess hurts you and your mate. Please read further if you are still confused, I’ll add some recommendations down below when I’ve compiled a list!’

Before he scrolls through the list of reading recommendations, he checks the replies to that specific comment. If there is someone talking about different instances, he can find some that want to talk about their experience under that post. He’s lucky, and finds a variety. Some say they waited until their partner’s rute or heat, while those gifted with a beta waited until their own mating cycles. That would give him time, he thinks. Others said the pull towards their partner was far too strong, making them immediately obsessed with each other in ways that they’ve never experienced before. 

As he scrolls and scrolls his phone ringing stuns him out of his focus. Seokjin is calling, which means-

“Yeah, hyung.” 

“Why did I just learn from Jimin that you have a gifted omega? Why the fuck didn’t you tell me.”

“It’s been…stressful trying to adjust.” A moment of silence has Namjoon checking the phone screen to see if his hyung hung up on him. Yep, he’s still on the line. And yes, he will be getting an earful. 

“You have your fated mate and you’re stressed? You- What are you doing having your omega spend time with another alpha while you’re at home working?”

“She wants to explore and try new things and I’m always holed up in here, hyung.” Namjoon says with more irritation than he wants to admit is adding up. “I can’t risk losing my job.”

“You are the company’s top producer, they could cut you some slack and give you time off while you deal with life-changing events.”

“No, no they won’t. I’m stuck in a contract that makes it impossible to have a sudden time-off. Everything I plan is at least 5 months in advance.”

“I’m going to tell you something right now that will pertain to multiple things in your life, maybe even all of them. Okay?” 

“Okay.” Namjoon sighs into the phone, staring at his computer where five emails just sent today are waiting for his response. 

“You’re talented and successful in ways that many could only dream of, but if it’s not working at this company, you need to try something else. If you need time to adjust to something and your work is heavily against you progressing in life, then you need to try something else. If you’re not happy, try something else. You understand?” 

It takes him by surprise every time Seokjin gets all fatherly on him. He’s never offered the same to Seokjin, but he also knows that his hyung would never want advice from a sour, work-obsessed, plan-crazy kid that doesn’t know how to have serious romantic relationships or even healthy relationships with anything in life. 

“I understand.” 

“Whatever you need help with, just let me know. Send over your contract and I’ll read it  over by this weekend. And Namjoon?”

“Yeah?” 

“Do you like her?” 

The question catches him off guard. Of course he does, she’s perfect. 

“Yes.”

“Act like it. Talk to her about more than just mundane life things, ask her questions, learn everything you can about her and please, dear Goddess, allow her to know you.”

“Yes, hyung.”

-

Jimin

“What is this place?” Y/N’s hands and nose are plastered to the passenger side window, looking out at the large rides and glittering lights that can be seen even in the afternoon. 

“My favorite place, an amusement park.” 

“What a fitting name, I’m very amused.” 

Jimin can’t help but be absolutely floored by the comment. She’s too precious, far more precious than him- and that says a lot. He parks in the large, annoying lot of the park and looks over to her to gauge if this is something she actually wants to do. 

“Good, because we’ll eat here and then ride some rides, sound good?” 

“Yes, please.” She immediately unbuckles and pops her door open to begin the long walk to the gates. 

After paying for two day passes and starting another journey to Jimin’s favorite food stall, he watches as Y/N takes in everything as if she’s going to be reciting every last ballon color spotted to Namjoon once we’re done. 

“So, this is your favorite place?” She suddenly looks to him to ask. 

“Uh, yeah, I came here a lot growing up and I still like getting my favorite snack and riding a couple rides like once a month.” He answers honestly. 

“How fun!” She again turns to continue eyeing whatever as they walk. Jimin is far too curious to keep quiet about their living arrangements, and how exactly Namjoon is coping with everything. He goes to ask, when Y/N gasps and meets a kid about seven feet in front of them and points at the ice cream cone in his hand. The swirls of the cone are a pastel blue that perfectly compliment the obvious vanilla white of the rest of the ice cream. The top of the cone is already lapped at, but it really does look good. 

“Where did you get that?” She asks, looking between the boy and their parent that holds their hand.

“‘Patty’s’, it’s just around the corner, big blue sign.” Their parent answers with a smile before continuing on with her small child also smiling up at Y/N.

“I really want to try that.” She turns to Jimin, more so asking than suggesting. How could anyone say no to her?

“You’re in luck, that’s where we were heading anyways.” Jimin sing-songs, leading the way to the small establishment. “Let’s eat first though, so we don’t get sick.” 

Jimin orders for them, Y/N content on sitting at their table to save the spot and look out the large windows at all the passersby. He doesn’t wait long, happily tapping away at his crossed arms as he leans against one of the walls. He brings the tray filled with goodies to the table, Y/N beaming up at him and then to the tray he's holding. 

"Wow, they all look so good. What is everything?"

"I think you'll find that Joon-hyung and I have similar taste- greasy, fattening, yummy foods. This is a corn dog, the least exciting. It's like a little kid's favorite food, easily palatable. These are spicy, sweet dipped chicken strips. Literally the perfect food- seasoned fries on the side. And the best for last, strawberry shortcake funnel cakes."

She eyes the food hungrily, trying to decide what to taste first. The look on her face is pure expecting excitement- he doesn’t understand how his hyung could pass up the chance to see her try new things again and again and again. She has a fresh new outlook on everything, and is excited to do everything. Even he can understand why she was gifted to him- but, would it even matter if he's too scared to allow himself to see the way she does? 

"Go ahead, try in the order I suggested. We'll half-sies everything so we don't get too full."

It's extremely easy for them both to finish. Y/N eats well and makes everything look like it tastes better than it does. He's happy to have someone that enjoys his favorites as well. After promising her an ice cream after their fun, they head off to their next destination. 

"Okay, now we walk to digest a bit and then, we ride."

"Eee! How exciting! What are they like?" She asks, looking up at the tall roller coaster nearest to them.

"Thrilling, scary, exciting. There are smaller ones and then, of course, the big ones. We'll start small just in case you don't like the adrenaline."

"Okay!"

-

Namjoon

It's already seven in the evening and Namjoon is actually done with his work early. He can't help but immediately hate his empty apartment, deciding to keep himself busy by preparing a late dinner. A large pan of pasta later, Namjoon gets tired of waiting and instead just calls Jimin. Luckily, his friend picks up immediately.

“Where are you guys at?” Namjoon asks, trying to hide his concern. 

“She won’t get off the damn swings hyung. We left the amusement park and, because I forgot to get her the ice cream I promised, we stopped at a small ice cream shop just for her to find a children’s park. I’ve been watching her swing for the past 15 minutes.” 

“Just tell her it’s late.”

“Again, she’s not a dog or a child, she just wants to have fun, I can’t say no to her.” Jimin explains.

‘I feel sick.’ Namjoon suddenly hears being yelled in the distance. 

“Shit, I think she’s gonna be sick, I gotta go.”

“No, don’t hang up-” The line clicks to show it’s disconnected. ‘Fuck’ he mumbles to himself before grabbing his keys and an extra jacket before leaving as quickly as possible. 

He doesn’t know where they are, but he can guess. Leaving the amusement park, there are about 15 dessert shops in the vicinity, and only one ice cream shop is close enough to a playground to be the right one. He finds Jimin’s car parked in front of the shop he guessed correctly, quickly unbuckling and bringing along his jacket to head to the park. 

“You’re going to be fine, just bend forward, put your head as close to your knees as you can. Oh- I smell hyung.” He hears them before he spots them, but quickly makes his way towards the voice to find Y/N sitting on the swing, now stationary and leaning forwards as far as possible. He quickly closes their distance, just about ignoring Jimin to kneel in front of Y/N. 

“Hey, how are you feeling?” He asks as softly as possible, his instincts kicking in to assess her in ways that don’t even make sense in this situation. He’s holding onto her ankles and squeezing up her calves as if she hurt her legs, inspecting. Then he feels her arms, immediately putting the jacket around her as she is cold to the touch. 

“Mm-okay.” She mumbles to him, “I jus’ need a second.”

“Okay.” He stands, a glare pointed at Jimin without thinking twice about who he needs to point his anger and adrenaline towards. Jimin immediately puts his hands up. 

“Do not get scary alpha on me after I did what you told me to do. I made sure she didn’t get sick earlier, this time around she was just too fast for me to keep up with her.” He defends himself, causing Namjoon to calm down just the slightest. He gets a grip on himself, knowing he shouldn’t be mad at Jimin. He helped him and unknowingly showed him that he shouldn’t have let Y/N do this without him. He let her have fun and allowed her to try new things. He’s extremely thankful- he just needs to get a tighter grip onto his alpha. 

“I’m sorry. And thank you for spending time with her while I was busy. I will- I’m trying to change my work situation, so-”

“Well that’s good- just, just open up to her about things, yeah? And let some of this alpha out once in a while to fucking cool it a little.”

“Yeah, okay.” He will admit, he didn’t even think about how he’d act the second he got there. But he didn’t think he’d immediately point fingers and push some kind of blame onto the person he asked for help. “You can head home. I’m sorry I didn’t call earlier.” 

Namjoon sticks out his hand to wait for Jimin to plop his credit card into his hand. Jimin does so with a sad smirk, obviously thinking his hyung would forget something so crucial in the moment. 

“It’s okay. She’s sweet and she sees things differently, it was nice to feel excited about things again.” Jimin gives him a smile and a pronounced clap on his shoulder as he walks past Namjoon and in the direction of his car. “Can you get home safe?” He points a finger to Y/N. 

“Yeah don’t worry. Text me when you get home.”

“Same to you.”

Namjoon waits for Jimin to get to his car before turning back to Y/N, finding her in the exact same position. He again kneels in front of her, assessing her scrunched up face. He relies only on his instincts, letting his alpha take over more than he’s ever allowed. 

“Come here, I’ll carry you.” 

“What if I throw up on you?” Namjoon rolls his eyes with a smile, his alpha yearning to touch and soothe after their time apart. 

“I don’t care about throw up, I care about getting you home to be warm and safe. Plus, I have medicine at home to help your stomach.”

“Goddess it hurts.” Namjoon can’t help but be endeared by her in this state, soft and needy. 

“Come on.” He urges again, standing up to offer both of his hands to her. She looks up and immediately holds onto him, standing and putting the jacket on with a shivering sound. 

“Now, hold on tight.” It’s the only warning he gives before bending down and hoisting her up by the thighs. She gives a small noise but immediately seems to understand and wraps her legs around his hips and her arms around his neck. Her face digs into his neck without a second thought, causing Namjoon to stutter his steps. He corrects himself and heads for the car, happy to have her around him and snuggling into his warm skin. 

He misses the warmth immediately upon setting her into the passenger seat, and buckling her in so she doesn’t have to move a muscle. The ride is silent, allowing Y/N to rest and warm up with the heater on. Again, he hurries to her side of the car upon their arrival to the apartment. He picks her up again, this time she’s prepared and snuggling into him with comfortability- his neck immediately opens for her as if she’s always been there to carve a space for herself. On their way up to the apartment, his alpha is calmed down enough to talk more comfortably. 

“Did you have fun today?” He asks into her shoulder. 

“Mmhmm.” Her hum is felt in his skin, shooting down his spine to slather goosebumps onto his skin. 

“That’s good.” He breathes out. 

It’s silent again until he’s unlocking the apartment door with one hand holding onto her. She’s clinging onto him just as much as he is to her, so it’s easy enough. He shuts and locks the door, only letting Y/N down once they’re back in his bedroom. He sets her onto the bed. 

“Wait, I have outside clothes on.” She worries.

“Don’t worry, let me grab some medicine, stay there.” 

Though he promises to only return with medicine, he stops in the bathroom, starting up a warm bath and setting a towel out onto the counter before proceeding back to his room. 

“Here, you can just chew it, and then you can have a warm bath to help with the ache and to warm you up, yeah?”

“That sounds so good, Namjoon, thank you.” She takes the pink tablet from his hand, immediately popping it in and chewing it before heading for the bathroom. He clings onto the way she says his name, wishing briefly that he didn’t keep things casual for now- Goddess he wants to hear her call him her alpha once again.

“Call me if you need anything.” He says instead, turning to the bed to strip off the blanket he sat her on, making sure it was his own blanket when setting her down. He finds another blanket in his closet, replacing it and grabbing Y/N’s top blanket to throw in the dryer. He then stops at the kitchen, putting water into his electric water heater. He grabs one coffee mug, setting a tea bag into the cup and turning to his cooked dinner to put it away into tupperware for the next day. 

Once the tea is done, he brings the hot mug into his room to sit on her side of the bed. He sets out that same pair of sleep shirts he cleaned for her earlier that day and grabs another random shirt for her to slip on. He changes his own clothes, paying attention to the sound of a draining tub. Perfect timing. He turns to meet Y/N, her perfectly sweet scent, and her very bare arms and legs. He didn’t exactly think about that. 

“I’m sorry, go ahead and get changed, I’ll be in the living room.” He says without a second thought, heading out and plopping down onto the couch with a sigh. He’ll plan that better next time to make sure she’s as comfortable as possible. It doesn’t take long before she’s calling him in and he hurries to grab the blanket he warmed for her. 

“Here, so you can be even warmer.”  Y/N holds onto the blanket like he’s gifted her  something far more magnificent. Nothing he does will ever deserve this response, but he soaks it up anyways. 

“Thank you.”

“And there’s warm tea on your nightstand. Do you want anything else? Do you want something light to eat?”

“No. No this is perfect. I’m already feeling better thanks to you. But-” She looks down at the blanket she’s holding, seeming to figure out how to ask something. Namjoon waits, wanting her to take her time with whatever she needs. 

“Could I hug you? Is that something you wouldn’t be ready for?” Namjoon finds the question precious in timing. He had just suggested she cling to him earlier, allowing her to find comfort in him. He also appreciates her taking his feelings into consideration anyways. He can’t say he’s been obvious in his wants anyways- it’s been a constant push and pull in this short time, wanting to give in and not just to make sure he’s pure in all his feelings. 

Without answering verbally, Namjoon allows his alpha to take what he wants now that he has the consent from Y/N. He pulls her in with both of his arms, warm blanket squished between them and adding to the warmth that blooms in his chest. 

“I missed you.” She mumbles a sigh into his chest. 

“I missed you too.” He responds honestly. His sappy feelings and the come down from letting his alpha have more of a role in their relationship has him wanting to be more honest than ever. He can also thank Seokjin for that.

“Can I suggest another rule?” Namjoon asks, the two still clinging to each other. 

“Mmhmn.”

“Please let me know when you want something from me. I’m not used to being intimate in- anyway really. This is new to me, but I want to work to be better for you and to learn as much as I can. So, just let me know if there’s something I can do for you.”

Y/N pulls back to stare up at Namjoon with her arms still securely on his waist. Her soft features and emotional eyes search him for something he can’t figure out. 

“I appreciate everything you give me. I know that giving yourself to someone is hard in any case. You’re still a good alpha no matter what. I feel safe with you, and I want to learn everything about you. I just want us both to be comfortable- so please let me know if you need something from me as well. It’s 100/100, not 50/50.” 

Namjoon can’t help but bring his hand up to cup Y/N’s cheek, her eyes still glittering up at him. A soft smile pulls at her lips that draws Namjoon’s attention immediately. If he was far more reckless, or far more comfortable taking without devotion, Namjoon would kiss her there and then. But, he’d never think about giving her less than she deserves. Only by accident will he, and only before this moment will he. 

“You’re so pretty…and you’re far too good for me.” he whispers as his thumb caresses the skin of her cheek in gentle circles. She goes to open her mouth, probably to counter his statement. He speaks first. “I’ll learn to be good for you. I promise.” The statement has Y/N inhaling a shaky breath and keeps her silent for far longer than Namjoon realizes.  If he could, he'd sit and take in her lovely scent all night and all day, relishing in the feeling of happy omega and the fact that he's the one that did that. But, he knows it's already late and he has kept her from sleep for too long.

“Let’s get you to bed.” 

Despite the day and their confessions, their night is the same as the one before. Namjoon can’t let one day with fresh promises be this turning point that just allows him to be rewarded the gift that is Y/N in full. He must earn her in ways that he still needs to prove to her and himself. They will get there. They will get to a point where both Namjoon and Y/N take and give with practiced passion and love. Because that’s what she deserves.

#bts au #bts fic #namjoon au #bts x fem!reader #bts x reader #bts x y/n #bts x you #namjoon x reader #alpha namjoon #bts abo #bts omegaverse au

[pawbeanies]

this is a formal request to tell us all about your isopods they r black _ yellow spotted!!!??? what's their enclosure like?? how long have you had them? do any have names? the masses must know...

fool you hath opened the isopod lore gates. woe be upon you.

JFJSJDKS NO BUT HI HI HI grabbing you hi hihi hihi hi hi hi fhank you for asking ... the Bug Lore isn't really that interesting but !!

(i realized i was rambling abt bugs. readmore be upon ye

they r little black and yellow spotted fuckers (scientific name) and they live in a little terrarium made out of a coffee pot!! like if you can imagine those coffee pots that come with drip coffee machines but full of dirt and moss and bugs. i haven't had them for too long like?? maybe a week but they are already so important to me and i love them and check in on them every day

since i've only had them for a little bit though they're still shy and i haven't had the chance to name them all fksjfkd but there are roughly like. ten of them... once they get used to me and i can see them all i will give them silly names. as of right now theres like one big one i am calling bok choy bc it likes it i guess but also i have only fed them bok choy (i like to regrow it from cuttings but w/ bok choy it will like Bolt (start growing flowers) so you have to pinch off the flowers and ive been feeding those+little leaves to them) so i think that's like. a moot point like we dont name all babies milk because thats the first thing they eat and they like it? i will revisit names later but they're probably going to all be veggie themed

but also i got them at likw. like ok so i wasn't expecting to be a Bug Father i went to an antique/vintage fest for my state But they also had artists and stuff there and there was a guy who made terrariums and like. i love plants (i have 3 plants living in the office i work at alone but i have More at home) and ive always wanted to build terrariums but i never got into it bc they seem so much more like Labor Intensive BUT this guy had like. cool terrariums and i was like "hey can i get that coffee pot one" because i 1. love coffee so much and 2. love plants and he was like "oh btw theres isopods in there. heres a care sheet and just like drop a piece of carrot in there once a week" and like. i was not sure if i was ready for fatherhood but like he was a local artist guy (support local artist guys!!!) and also i was w/ my friends and didnt want to hold us up bc i would've agonized over it for a while so i was like Yeah Thats Ok :) (but like in a way that would make anyone be like "r u sure?") so i ended up going home w a coffee pot full of dirt and bugs on like. a funny impulse purchase type thing. i barely even got any fun vintage things aside from like tje worlds scratchiest sweater but i Did get bugs and also we went out for pho afterwards which is like. best weekend ever really (i am lame)

ne way here is a video of one of my guys and a big fickass thing of bok choy bc i went on abt bugs and vegetables and vintage things without actually answering ur questions i think. woe bugs be upon ye

#asks..?!?!?! #wurmpus #bites u thank u for asking ... #but also fjsnfjJFJSKD my hobbies r Talking too Much and Sharing Facts #boys will have 1 (one) weekend where they go outside and they come back home with Bugs #terrarium guy was also selling millipedes supposedly but like. where was he keeping them. i will never know #bc like we didnt see any space on his tabel where millipedes Could be. unless he had like a container full of them undee the table

[wilcze-kudly]

More snippets from the weilin roadtrip fic im working on lol

- um, Bolin... is the rice supposed to be doing that?- Wei's voice made Bolin snap his head upwards. One glance at the rice was enough to tell that it was NOT supposed to be doing that. - Oh, oh, crap, nope!- he rushed to the pot, reaching to grab at it. His hands sizzled as he pressed his hands to the heated metal. - OW OW OW OW OWWW! - He howled, the pain so intense he had to take a couple steps away and spin in a circle. Tears sprung to his eyes. He waved his hands in the air, a futile attempt at ridding himself of the searing agony slicing through his palms. - Fuck. - through the blur of tears, Bolin saw Wei use metalbending to safely lift the pot off the fire. - Are you ok? Here, let me see... -Bolin shook his head, holding his hands to his chest. Appearing in Bolin's field of vision, Wei reached out. - Nononono!- whining like the wounded animal he was at the moment, Bolin hid his hands as best he could. - Don't! It hurts!- - hey... it's ok... breathe. You're winding yourself up, dummy.- Wei gently wrapped his deft hands around Bolin's wrists. He pulled them away from Bolin's curled-in form, looking down at his scarlet, swollen palms. -Damn. I know it looks bad, but you'll live. Sit down. - Like a trained dog, Bolin plopped onto the ground. Kneeling next to him, Wei grabbed some tea towels, dipping them in what water was left in the jug. - Stay still for me, okay?- he gingerly wrapped the makeshift compress around Bolin's hands. -There we go... - Bolin whimpered again and Wei shushed him in a cooing, soothing tone. His voice was so soft now. Like the crackling of the fireplace and the babbling of the brook. Unlike anything Bolin had ever heard before. Wei looked up at Bolin. The faintest freckles teased along his cheeks and nose, a hundred kisses from the blazing sun. His eyes- a glimpse of what the meadow surrounding them could've been if spared from the drought. He'd always thought Wei's eyes were sharp, sharper than a dagger wrapped in luxurious, green silk. But now, as Wei carefully searched Bolin's face for traces of pain or discomfort, there was none of that. All Bolin could remember was the warm summer nights when he and Mako slept on a soft bed of moss in the city's park, surrounded by sweetsmelling honeysuckle vines and blackberry bushes, sagging under the lavish weight of their glistening ebony bounty. The best sleep Bolin'd had in his entire time on the streets. Moring had brought shy rays of sunlight and the sweet tartness of berry juice on his tongue. - Let those sit for a couple minutes, okay? - Wei smoothed his thumbs (soft, unmarred by the work that had carved itself into Bolin's) along Bolin's wrists. Just below the aching burns. Pursed lips, furrowed eyebrows, expectant. Awaiting an answer. - o... okay...- Bolin chirped, strangely dazzled. The damp, cool material was soothing upon his hands. It filled his head, balled up and snuffing out hazy thoughts with its blissful relief. The ache was gone. Wei smiled, patting Bolin's shoulder as he stood up and walked away to check on the thoughly ruined rice.

#all gays are bad at cooking you know this #weilin #wei x bolin #bolin x wei #wei beifong #bolin #legend of korra #tlok #the legend of korra #avatar #avatar the legend of korra #atlok

[battlemageserioth]

Serioth's Orb of Transcription

Logs of the 10th of Azure.

[The Orb has been activated.]

S: This is Council member Serioth. I am currently investigating Council member Werill's suspicious activity. Recently, I have seen him use the Council Meeting Room's mana reserve to cast an encrypted spell of Open Way. I also have reasons to believe that he is linked to a memory eating entity that has been afflicting me recently. Because of that, I suspect Werill of treason against the Council, and will track his spell back to the gate. I plan on using this Orb as proof, and give my consent to have my words be subjected to a spell of Reveal Intent. Everything I will see there shall be described to the best of my abilities. As for the gate, it seems to be concealed. It appears as an ordinary wall, in the Upper Gardens of the Council's Tower. I will now cast the spell.

Wrtyening dpcny,

Piehirg ueoa memory,

Lll aheit vesirn rluy,

Aetve rhiio tsath to me.

[Sounds of grinding stones.]

It works. The wall has opened, and reveals a dimly lit corridor. There are torches on the walls, on each side. I can't see the end of it. I'm going to enter.

[Serioth walking on stone.]

There is moss in the ground and on the walls. The iron of the torches is rusting. I suspect that this place is older than Werill's membership in the Council. He might not be alone. I can also see a door. It is made of wood, and it is rotting. I'm preparing a spell, just in case, and openning it...

It's an office, it seems. This place is cleaner than the corridor. There are candles on the desk, and some letters. ...they're either encrypted, or written in a language I don't know. I will leave them here, and take them once I'll get out. I can also see an ink pot. I need to try something.

[Sound of a flame being lit up.]

As I feared, this is arcane ink. Werill has been making unbreakable pacts. They don't seem to be here, since the ink on the letters is mundane. Too bad. I would have burned them if I could. Oh well. I must press on, I don't know how much time I have, and there's another door. Maybe I'll find more evidence.

What the...

[Serioth carefully stepping into the room.]

The difference in size between this place and the office is jarring. There are huge collumns going up, higher than I can see. There's a bridge in front of me, and below, on both sides.

...oh.

Those are... Some form of stasis sigils. Hundreds of them, probably more. I can see the runes glowing the dark, each circle illuminating... Something. They look like silvery spiders, with runes across their main body. They have eight, extremely long limbs, six of them staying behind the creatures, and two extended forward, like hooks. I'm afraid that those are memetophage, like the one afflicting me. There are more than I bel-

W: Fancy seeing you here.

S: Werill! Stay back!

[Mana sizzling.]

W: Jeez, old crow, no need to get angry. You're the one intruding, you know.

S: Don't play dumb. What is the meaning of this? Answer!

W: This? Well, this is my... Latest project. Do you like it? The one on your neck's just a prototype, but it's been doing wonders. You've been a lot more agreeable lately. A real ray of sunshine.

S: We haven't talked in the last few days.

W: Oh. Are you sure?

S: ...it doesn't matter. I've got more than enough proof to get you out of the Council. This is prohibited research, and a major project done in the City of Towers without the Council's approval! And I'll stop you myself if I must.

W: [Sigh.] Do you even have a plan? Do you think you can just rush in and destroy everything, like you usually do? Please. The whole place will collapse if you try. Then you'll be targeted by the City's defense system. I wonder how long you'd last. Or maybe you plan on just killing me. Cutting off the snake's head. Except that wouldn't do it. You know there's no way I could have done this alone. So you need the information I have. Just wanted to clarify that, in case you were about to do something... Stupid.

S: What you said is true. But I'll get the rest of the Council on this case and... What is that ?

[Paper shuffling.]

W: The reason why you won't. When they latch on to an host, those little beauties put them in a transe. They become half aware of their surroundings and easily... Convinced. I must admit, you're resillent. Very resilient. You even tried to negociate. But you signed, in the end.

S: Signed what?!

W: An arcane contract. If you ever tell anyone about what you saw here, or about anything incriminating that involves me, you will then leave the Council, leave your grimoire behind, and never go back to the City of Towers. Terribly sorry about that.

S: What..?

W: Yyyyyyeah. You might want to consider your options carefully. You could try to stop me, of course, but that would cost you your seat at the Council.

S: You're a fool if you think I won't do what I must, regardless of the cost.

W: Except you won't be able to do what you must without your job. And you've been around long enough to know that there are way bigger threats than this.

S: I have the power to do things myself. I'm a battle mage.

W: Oh, old crow, you know nothing of power. Magic isn't power. Not really. Not when basically anyone can shoot fireballs out of their hands or turn into smoke. True power is the power you hold over the people who can do that. True power is the power to have them work together to achieve your goals. Tell me, what would you do, to keep doing your job without the Council's support? Where would you get the mana potions? The location of the Council's ennemies? The equipment to cast siege-tier battle spells? Without the Council, you're just another brute, Serioth. A brute without purpose, without a Council to serve. A scared child, giving his life to what he thinks is the institution who can solve every problem in the world. A child who believes that if he does everything it demands, he will be able to sleep at night without smelling the ashes of his home.

A child with a lot of enemies. A brute who is all alone, hated by almost any wizard worth their salt.

[Werill chuckling.]

W: Oh, you did not like the sound of that, did you?

S: ...out of my way, Werill. I'm going to report this to the Council, and burn this place to the ground myself.

W: [Sigh.] How dissapointing. Oh well.

[Werill taking something out of his pocket, and placing his hand over his amulet.]

[A metallic object, falling somewhere.]

[A magic shield activating.]

W: Wakey wakey...

S: Wh- No!

ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᛟᚠ ᚠᛚᚨᛗᛖ!

[Fire crackling.]

W: Burn as many as you like, little mage. There's thousands of them here. Maybe millions. I lost count, and they breed quickly, when they're not restrained. They'll keep coming as long as they sense magic in you.

[Sound of an explosion.]

S: Why aren't they coming after you then?! Stay right here! Answer me you bastard!

W: Why would I bother?

You won't remember the answer, once they're done with you.

___________________________________

<—

#wizardcouncil #wizardposting #unreality #serioth's journal

[witch-hazels-musings]

Hey Hazel!! Can I get a divine reading with kazuha? I have a Wine aroma with symbols anchor and star!!

aroma: wine (romantic) | symbols: ladder (travel), anchor (stable love life), star (protection)

:: kazuha x gn reader | sfw - fluff | tasseography event | combined request

There was a chill in the air when you woke. The damp earth clung to the tent like moss clings to the side of rock. You stretched, frowning at the way your feet pushed out from under the blanket and immediately curled into yourself to maintain the fleeting warmth. 

“Kazuuu-” you wined, sleepy eyes searching for his figure in the pink of the rising sun. Light slipped in through the crack of your tent, a sign he had already left. Groaning, you buried your face in the wool blanket and bunched up kimono under your head. It smelled like him but that made sense. 

When you didn’t hear any movement, and you could no longer wait in the tent for an answer, you lifted yourself from the ground but made sure to bring your blanket along. It may have been warming outside but your skin refused to accept it just yet. 

Stepping out of your tent, you breathed in the freshness of the country side. The rich scent of the trees, the aroma of the dirt and grass below you. It held the scent of rain but you didn’t recall it storming the night before. 

“Kazuah?” you called into the openness of your campsite. There should have been a few other members of your traveling party but you saw no one. It made you nervous but the sight of a crackling fire and a bowling pot resting above it reassured you that you weren’t alone. You wandered, listened to the few other tents that were left standing, noting the ones that had already been taken down and were securely fastened to the owners packs. I’ll never be that on top of it, you chuckled to yourself as you moved to warm your hands by the fire. 

“Oh, so you’ve finally awakened.” Kazuha’s voice was so distinct. Even in the darkness with countless voices talking to you, his would always stand out the most. 

“Hey there,” you extended your hand toward him, pulled him against you and wrapped the blanket around his frame. He rested his head against yours while the two of you breathed each other in. “You’re up early.” 

“Yes. There were several tasks to attend to on the road ahead, did we wake you?” 

“No, I didn’t even know you were gone.” you laughed, “I blame you for making it so easy for me to sleep outside now.” 

“Though there are some trials, the beauty of wandering is the connection to nature.” 

“Well, right now, I’d really like to feel the connection of a plush bed. Ugh, and so would my back.” Wincing, you arched your back, not realizing it pushed against him. The action caused him to sigh and leave a lingering kiss against your cheek. 

“There should a town along the way. With the catch this morning, we should have enough to sell at the market.” 

“Excellent. I’m sure I can find some other odds and ends to do while I’m there. Might be able to reduce the price if the inn owners are willing to bargain.” 

“Splendid idea.” 

“Always resourceful.” With a kiss on his cheek, you slipped away from him even though the loss of his warmth made you displeased. “So, what’s for breakfast.” Opening the lid, you were hit by a wall of steam before realizing what it was. “Oh, gracious soup, you will follow me to the ends of Teyvat.” 

Kazuha chuckled and placed his hand on your back, “We can eat in a moment. There’s something I’d like for you to see.” 

“Lead the way, wanderer.” You followed after Kazuha, blanket tightly coiled around you, legs wobbly on the uneven terrain. You didn’t expect to have to crawl so soon after you woke up but there wasn’t much you could do when climbing over the roots of a rather large tree. “K-Kazu, how much - ugh - longer?” 

“Nearly there,” he replied, many, many paces ahead of you. Frustrated, but determined, you kept it up until you reached the tip top of the excursion. Your heart was pounding, your chest and lungs straining against the climb. You were tempted to collapse on the ground but Kazuha helped keep you upright. The comfort of his hand pushing against your torso to keep you steady and not let you fall over the edge. 

He didn’t say anything, didn’t move, he just gazed out over the landscape and when you turned to see what was so important for him to show you, the air already so hard to catch in your lungs, faded away. 

Giant trees reached toward the blue sky, dense brush, waterfalls and crisp rivers cut across the earth. Pools that sparkled in the light or lay hidden beneath the treetops made you wonder what secrets they held. In the shadows you saw something float through the thicket, tempting, calling for you to go after it. 

It was beautiful, rich. Like nothing you’d ever seen before and from the hill you stood on, underneath a grand and ancient tree, you knew everything that led up to this moment was worth it. 

“... wow.” 

“Welcome to Sumeru.” 

all works & ideas created by Hazel, recreations, reposts not allowed even with credit provided

#witch hazels event #hazels event - tasseography #tasseography event #genshin impact #genshin impact X reader #genshin impact musings #kazuha genshin impact #kazuha #genshin kazuha #kazuha x reader

[worldsbelow]

Prologue - A Clan Below

Sound echoed readily through her new camp. The murmurs of conversation carried from the warrior’s den all the way to the small nook Rubblestar had reserved as her own, the sound of a cat entering or exiting was accompanied by a cacophony of small stones bouncing into the main chamber. It was more intimate in a way. She always knew when her clanmates arrived and departed, and every night she would drift off to the muffled sounds of their voices. 

It may be a little too intimate. Rubblestar thought to herself. Quite a few times she had to pretend to turn a deaf ear to the sniffling of a clanmate to allow them privacy to mourn, and every late night trip to the dirtplace came with the quiet guilt that it might wake the kits. Yet it was theirs, and for now, when morale teetered on the unsteady legs of a newborn fawn, that was victory enough.

Today she had set out with the goal of making her den as homely as she could. A task she doubted even Starclan could achieve, with the stalactites that loomed over her like an earthen maw, and the stone floor that grew as cold as the air in leafbare. The pelts they could salvage from refugee surface prey were given to the nursery and cleric’s den (though Rubblestar could tell it pained her warriors not to take any of their own), and while finding moss belowground was possible, spread between all of her clanmates, her nest wasn’t nearly as soft as it was in their old camp.

“If this is a test of faith, it’s a cruel one.” She groused. Her voice bounced around the cavernous space, but if Starclan had any answer, they chose not to give it.

“Despite what nursery stories may make you believe, few things are, Rubblestar.” 

Rubblestar jumped at the new voice. Low and gruff in tone, Leopardstripe sounded like he had a perpetual issue with the world. If she had only met him in these past few moons, she would be convinced that was most certainly the case. She turned to face him, offering a polite dip of her head.

“Leopardstripe. Can I help you?”

At first, the only response she got was a loud sniff from the tom, then a flick of his tail, and finally a shrug.

“Unless you can sprout some dock plants here and now, no. I came to check on you.”

“Well, I’m alive and breathing.” She forced a grin. Leopardstripe merely twitched his whiskers at the reply. 

“No coughing? No trouble breathing? Taking the journey to the old Startree was a risky move at best.”

“No, and no. I promise if I was doing either of those I’d come see you.”

She could tell her answer didn’t entirely relax him. The cleric stared at her for a long moment before slowly nodding.

“And where’s Pythonshell gotten off to? I haven’t checked him out either.”

Rubblestar shrugged lightly, wracking her brain for the last time she had seen her mate that day. 

“I think he said he was taking a patrol to the borders with Shortdrift and Frostysnow.”

“Well, those two are back, and he isn’t. You sure he went with them?” 

A tinge of worry shot through her body. Rubblestar’s tail flicked behind her as she peered towards the entrance. 

“Yes- Yes! He told me that’s where he was going… I’ll go find him.”

Without waiting for reply, she stepped around her cleric and began trotting down the slope into camp proper.

In the weak evening light, surrounded by motes of ash that fell like snow, her clan wound down for the night. Brownstream fidgeted with his new cooking pot, carefully hooking one of the strange fish that lived in the nearby underground streams into the broth. Trembledusk and Shortdrift looked on, in the process of sharing tongues. On the other side of the clearing, the squeals of Roarkit preceded her barreling out from the nursery, Sandstripe hot on her tail. The pair raced past her, nearly knocking over Brownstream in the process. Rubblestar trotted over, nudging the warming pot back into position. 

“It’s good that they’re able to play.” She murmured in lieu of a greeting. 

“I would rather them play elsewhere.” Brownstream grouched, after peering into the pot, then looking up at her, he raised a brow. “Looking for Pythonshell?”

“How’d you know?”

“He’s been building a nest in the warrior’s den all afternoon and you haven’t come to yell at him about it yet.” The tom replied calmly, hooking a pawful of some dried herb or another into the pot. Rubblestar was shocked, it felt as if her paws had fused into the ground as she stared at her warrior.

“He.. What?”

“Mhm. Said something about wanting to keep us company until the den fills out more.”

“He didn’t bring it up with me.” She mumbled, the heat of embarrassment beginning to spread under her pelt. How didn’t she know? And why would Pythonshell not tell her first? She would have approved of the request in a heartbeat!

“You can go dispute it with him yourself. I’m not a mediator.” Seemingly done with the conversation, Brownstream returned to stirring the pot with a long stick they had salvaged.

Rubblestar hovered for a moment longer, then padded off towards the warrior’s den, swallowing the hurt she felt as best she could.

Dawnclan’s new warrior’s den was a cave similar to her own. Larger on the inside, and Shortdrift had already begun the process of piling sticks and bits of bracken around the outside to make it seem more earthy. Rubblestar paused in the entry, shuffling her paws against the stone floor as the shape of her mate flitted about inside the den.

“Python?”

The tom stopped immediately, turning to look at her with guilt written across his face. 

“Rubblestar- I. I can explain.”

“Brownstream already did.” She muttered, and though she tried her best to force a smile, it felt as if something had dug its claws into her very heart. “It’s nice you want to keep our clanmates company. Just.. Let me know before you move next time, alright?”

Pythonshell slowly nodded, relief crossing his features. “Of.. Of course. I’ll see you at dinner, Rubblestar.”

“See you at dinner, Python.”

Rubblestar padded away from the den swallowing a wail. Had she done something wrong? Was the den not cozy enough? Was all the fretting she was doing over the clan relocating getting to Pythonshell? She wished Rosycloud were still here to help them talk things out. But Rosycloud was gone, as was most of their clan, their territory, and even the tree they used to talk with Starclan.

In the clearing, what was left of her clan gathered around Brownstream’s pot. Even Roarkit and Blazekit had stopped their games, watching the kitchen head cook with rapt attention. Though it still felt like there were thorns in her chest. Rubblestar slipped into the crowd and prayed that the warm greetings her clanmates gave her would be enough to soothe the pain for now.

#clangen #dawnclan #warrior cats #rubblestar #brownstream #starting this arc with marital disputes <3

[basil-from-omori]

you said you wanted people to ask you about plants soooo

whats your favorite plant/flower? and maybe some of the symbolism behind it?

AHHHH THANK U!!!!!! my fav flower is smth I think about a lot. my current fav, tho, is probably amaryllis (pronounced like am-uh-RILL-is btw). I WISH I had one, but the temps where I live are so high, it wouldn’t do great cuz they like average temps (in growth) and low 40s (in dormancy). for lighting it needs darkness (in dormancy) and medium light in growth. it’s a BEAUUUUUTIFUL winter or spring bloomer….n it almost looks like a lily. blooms in clusters and it has different colors + species.

they often symbolize stuff involving strength, ie pride/determination, which is something I LOVE in plant symbolism. OH YEAH AND “AMARYLLIS” IS A GREEK NAME AND IT MEANS “TO SPARKLE”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

hold on here’s a pic of one I got online

the leafs remind me of daffodil leafs almost hehe,,,

OK ALSO my fave plant (specifically houseplants tho) is smth kinda hard to answer. I like butterfly palms (always wanted one but never got one), chinese evergreen (I have one Yas), avocado trees (i messed mine up when I tried growing my own), prayer plants (I have one…I always do tho), and rubber plants (I also have one). I used to always wish I had a butterfly palm and I never ended up getting one. here’s what they look like

i know they usually have rather positive connotations stemming from Ancient Rome and Greece? but I’m not too sure on symbolism outside of flowers.

one of the prettiest houseplants that is very easy to take care of is pothos. they usually live from 5-10 years. they’re pretty resilient! they love bright indirect light. And get this: they can literally rapidly adapt to their environment, their cell functions can change just from their conditions and everything. they are simple to manage— every time you water them, you should let the soil dry out first (so every 1-2 weeks or so). you don’t need to mist it either. they’re also beautiful, so I would rly recommend this if you are chronically ill, disabled, elderly, very depressed, have executive dysfunction, etc etc.

another resilient and pretty plant is a peace lily. they come in a couple different colors. I know someone who’s had the same HUGE peace lily pot for like 15 years. I’d recommend this if you’ve just started liking plants and are currently obsessed with them, because it loves humidity and to ALWAYS have moist soil. if it’s not wet, the tips of the leaves tend to turn brown which is bad. to help with humidity, I recommend sphagnum moss on the soil. they love misting.

if you want a plant that you can walk past and mist if you wanna, but can’t bring urself to water it directly v often? I recommend something like a spider plant. They’re pretty interesting and you’ve probably seen one before. they like to be misted very often, but they only need to be directly watered after the soils dried. it’s like pothos care but for executive dysfunction.

my fav plant as far as symbolism goes? probably daffodils and hyacinth, mainly for its themes of forgiveness. if you didn’t know, that’s why I usually draw daffodils w/ basil when I get the chance. also: something something white egret orchid something something.

ANYWAYS THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION :3 SORRU FOR THE RANTING

#plants #houseplants #plant posting #watch as the annoying white boy goes on a lengthy rant abt plants that made him stop crying and think abt plants or whatever