#my mom’s are larger and so she also have fewer but the past couple of years she’s been arranging them in. peculiar ways let’s say | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

thepearlyone · 3 years

Text

Artific-ial Desires

Pearly’s Notes: this one feels like one of my best ones yet! Not that this didn’t take a while, but it feels like I went through like nine or ten good, working drafts on this. Though it didn’t end up how I initially envisioned, the beast it has become is still so beautiful.

~for kiera~

(or, read it on google docs here! )

~~~~

The triangle-shaped corner store had recently sold- which wouldn’t have been notable in the slightest, except for the buyer. In just the past few days, grime was stripped away, windows were sparkled, new furniture rushed in, all at a breakneck pace- which was typical only for the most elite. And what’s more, the construction company was not the ‘ol reliable mom and pop’ kind, but a very specific one most people in the area didn’t even know. Therefore, someone had to be asking the gossip to spread like wildfire- and all signs pointed to the Lady Von-Quirandra.

The throng filled the entranceway to the newly refurbished boutique, packing themselves all into a doorway and front hallway meant for at least twenty people fewer. There was something about this kind of crowd that meant a spectacle- and Cassandra wasn’t about to miss out on one. It looked like she’d missed out on whatever the first showcase was, as the artificer had their back turned and was clearly answering a question while herding the crowd to another.

“Oh, they’re my own creation- you wouldn’t be able to even find anything remotely similar anywhere else, much less a shop that can match the level of intricate craftsmanship.” She muttered under her breath something about arrogance leading before a great fall, but the speaker’s bold claim definitely seemed apt.

Everything in the shop was dripping with quality, sometimes literally. The fine swirls of one of the displayed rings caught everyone’s eyes initially- the crowd even rushed forward in an attempt to prevent it from melting. Each ring in that display was set up and carefully lit (inside each box, of course) to appear as though it was melting, but each one was so solidly constructed that no one could say anything unpleasant about the effect.

“Now, onto another small invention of mine, I’m proud to finally unveil these-“ It was just a simple pair of diamond-shaped earrings. They looked impressive, but there really wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. At least, if there was, it wasn’t visible at the first blush, and the crowd was hurried over to the next booth quickly enough. However, Cassandra definitely wanted to ask about them, as if a one-on-one were even possible with such a famous artificer. She noticed the crowd thinning, as some of the younger members quickly fanned out to run home- after all, entering artificers’ shops were the kind of thing that mothers gave strict punishments for- and she could tell that a couple more of those leaving couldn’t have afforded the ‘intricate craftsmanship’ but wanted to have hope talked into them.

She tarried for as long as she could to look at the diamond-shaped earrings. The gems seemed to be simple studs, although she knew that a lot of concentration had been poured into the project. It was simple- but that made it all the more dangerous, as it could lure people into a false sense of security. The posts seemed to be a material similar to silver, but in the right lighting, Cassandra swore she saw it shimmer.

Ushered kindly to the next booth by everyone’s absence, she admired the plentiful array- sets, fully decked out in black velvet backing, laid out for the finest of society. These had to be personal commissions, things made for specific people in mind- either the artificer knew some slaves or nobles in need of their services, or perhaps they contacted THEM-

She chided herself on even considering that possibility- what the hell was she thinking? No noble-born family, especially not anyone the D’Antonias knew, would ever consider reaching out-artificing was dangerous business. No one ever cared how it happened, either, because if you stuck your neck too close to find out- it could end up adorned in the next showcase.

“Now, we’ve not yet gotten a private room, but those of you interested in our… New Acquisitions, please step this way. I’d be delighted to… guide each of you to them.” Even more fanned out, leaving a still rather sizeable crowd, with only a handful of them taking the opportunity to privately take an appointment.

New Acquisitions- the not-so-secret code word for slaves, either legal or illegal. Slaves had been quite controversial when first introduced a few decades ago, but now every family worth their weight in gold had them, and it was almost just another job. Slave applications were valuable and showed that you were selflessly serving another family- but there were still criminals. Unscrupulous individuals, people who might seek out an artificer to do the dirty work rather than submit their findings to the Justice Computer… Unhappy spouses, unruly coworkers, anyone who might be able to scrape up enough cash.

Then again, they could end up in the same position they wished for someone else- when trying to trick an artificer… It was always hard to tell with them. Everything was.

The lucky moment meant that she could go back to examining what she pleased- the simple earrings. Cassandra was very careful not to touch anything, but she drew quite close to them. The plain diamond-shaped crystals didn’t seem to hold any secrets, and as she carefully maneuvered the box into the light, it merely added to her curiosity. The earrings’ posts still sparkled slightly, meaning this had to be some sort of odd material- but it would only mean that Cassandra would have to ask. Why one pedestal and ‘proud to unveil’ for one pair of earrings that didn’t have anything odd to them?

~~~~

The individual meetings went by faster than anyone could imagine, with more of the crowd flowing out of either the showroom or shop- dazzled at the spectacle. Cassandra carefully slinked back towards the main group, acting as though she was admiring other pieces- a ring here, passing the couple of sets, until-

“Ah, hello there- I hope you’re enjoying the new opening?” She gasped, as they drew much closer to her. The fourteen people now left in the shop began to spread throughout the shop’s layout, leaving her in a far more intimate setting than she previously thought possible. The crowd cover had certainly been nice- but they were now milling up and down the aisles to gawk at the dainty jewelry, the tinkered toys, and the gorgeous gadgets.

Her attention snapped back to the artificer, who was now holding a curious device, one that seemed to be purifying the air. Cassandra had heard about them before, but never seen one so close, or so small- much larger versions were used in air factories. It only took her a few seconds to understand it- the small embroidered gas-bag at the back would fill, and slowly get puffed out by the user- and her mind dismissed it from any chance of danger.

She gave a polite yet faint smile, her mind racing to prepare some sort of platitude that would be enough to avoid detection.

“I certainly admired many of your pieces.” This was said with more than a little trepidation, which the artificer seemed to enjoy, bringing out a smile from underneath their goggles and wide-brimmed smithing hat.

“oh? So you know the rules…” And she did. She was very well-acquainted with them: her mother had even had a few friends whisked away under the Equal Rites, she’d seen them happily smiling with enchanted collars and enchanted rings… of course, for some of them she had been too young to understand, but now-

The slight puff of air brought her quickly back to reality, where the artificer stood next to her. They were clad in a soft shimmering gown, one that played off of their curves just like some of the rings on display. It wasn’t as frilly or poofy, and yet seemed to accentuate their body shape with an extra dimension- lending an odd effect to the gown. Cassandra wasn’t familiar with the material- as many artificers used off-world or off-dimension materials in their own creation… And now it was clear she was staring again, so she had to clear her throat and ask a question or else seem like a buffoon.

“Your own design?” This elicited a knowing smile, and a slow circular glide from their feet in a twirl around. This was to show the dress off, undoubtedly, and Cassandra delighted in it.

“No, unfortunately- but it was my material. The dressmaker from that forest with the slightly lewd name, in case you’re wondering how to get a matching set.” The reply almost seemed teasing, knowing- as if they could know her life story with just a glance. Again, not as if she’d be able to afford anything close to a single piece from the shop without serious considerations both conceptual and legal, financial (and legal) assistance, and magical ward prevention insurance. Even drafting up a contract would be far above her abilities and pay grade, but it could be the only surefire way to avoid any nastiness from anyone involved- especially an artificer.

“Hmm.. I would typically ask if there was one piece that stuck out to you, but I get the feeling I already know what it is. Given your silence… I’d like your name before I guess.” The remnants of the crowd had been slowly filtering out, unbeknownst to her, with one or two pieces being sold- the in-shop lawyer was already beaming and haggling with clients which Cassandra *had* seen- and the corner-store size lent the appearance of being quaint or familial. She had to admit it was a clever arrangement.

“I- sorry. Between the dress and the other pieces, I guess I’m a little starstruck. It’s not every day you get to ‘meet’ one, you know.” She hoped that her cheeks hadn’t blossomed into a blush- although there was no way to know for sure, only to hope and observe the artificer. She also hadn’t meant to any malice, although the hint of a second meaning was merely waiting to be picked up.

They were dangerous folk- many artificers had been caught with entire houses or brothels full of newly-rited thralls. Even tales of just one catching the eye of an entire town, using nothing but forks or pushpins or paperclips or slivers of metal and the inimitable inextricable tool that was their own wit, danced around the fringes of villages. Artificers were not to be listened to, a ‘boogeyman’ that assisted everyday life, that generously acted while greedily taking- in the same instance. Payment could very well be ‘your firstborn’ when dealing with them, and if it was… You’d best hope you weren’t an eldest child.

They took just another second to respond, a hand darting out from the gown. An immaculate white glove, made from plain cloth- which caused her internal tension to unwind quite a bit- which asked for her own hand.

“The name is Von-Quirandra, as I’m sure you’re no doubt aware. The shop is mine, recently acquired with… a little help.” The slight break made Cassandra take note, but she was careful not to advertise it as they continued-

“You may be wondering about the lawyer, he’s a family friend and came with the store.” She noticed a slight glint in the light, and this may have tipped them off because they continued, “Any and all gifts would be voluntary, non-contractual, and specifically not enchanted.”

“After all, I couldn’t expect someone to willingly accept things from an artificer without proper vetting or lineage- so you may view his, in the back office.”

They cleared their throat again, “As I requested, your name would be..?”

“Cassandra.” She didn’t know why she offered it so plainly.

“Cassandra…” The soft utterance, a shower of heavenly stars captured and smoothed into a ribbon off of which the word slid. They said it plainly yet perfectly, her skin crawling with delight and disquiet- but more of the former.

“Cassandra. Quite a lovely name. May I guess which piece caught your eye?” She nodded gently, as if trying to quiet and push aside the thoughts that yelled about the danger of even talking to an artificer.

“My first guess would be the Quirmian Collar- oh, I mean- the one on display towards the front of the store that you must have seen as you entered.” Truth be told, that was the one she’d missed, although the light was quite pretty on it. A highborn slave might wear such a necklace, so it wasn’t something Cassandra could have or even aspired to. No, their family didn’t wish for slaves- or wish to be them.

“Judging by the way you haven’t lit up like a firework, I’d say another one.. Allow me to try again- a private commission of mine? Perhaps the jade engraved set- I bet…” This time, their face moved even closer to her, as if quizzically judging her.

“No.” The terse response plopped out after another moment of silence.

“I see, Cassandra. Might I be permitted one last guess?” They matched her grin, and Cassandra hoped with all her heart that she didn’t appear to be blushing. With how both afraid and stimulated she was, her brain continued to rattle off reasons to leave, but her feet stayed put.

“The third and final guess is… Hmm. I don’t wish to waste it… I can rule one thing out, though- I know you didn’t request a private showing, so I’ll guess… the melting rings, using the sands of Terr-sichoré?”

Their previous smile began to curl into a frown. Their eyebrows, too-

“You seem to be much more of a mystery than you let on, Cassandra. Please.”

She blinked, unsure of what exactly to do and yet still recovering from the way they said her name.

“Please, tell me some more- what did you like? How might I know you?”

“I-uh, well, you know my name, and I come from the D’Antonia-“

“Oh!! Oh my goodness, Cassandra D’Antonia… I am humbled to have you in my presence.” Their crimson lips whispered the word with a soft affect- the perfect shiver traveling up her back in accordance with it. Her cheeks were now a beet-red. There was no chance of hiding it anymore.

“Thank you. I, erm, happened across the crowd, and…”

“There’s nothing to apologize for. The crowd seemed to mostly be there to be talked to, but I did get quite a few purchases. More than I expected, if I may confide in such a prestigious family. It’s a shame that-“

Cassandra turned, hearing rather loud footsteps, which revealed just how startled and absorbed in each other they both were. She swore that despite her own reddening cheeks, the Lady Von-Quirandra seemed to be blushing as well. They turned back towards the lawyer, and were handed a report- although it only needed a quick scan of her attention.

“Ah, thank you. If you could, I think we could use a little more privacy.” The Lady Von-Quirandra handed it back to the lawyer, who withdrew to the office again, but that comment stuck in her mind. It caused her to notice-

She was alone. With an artificer. In their own shop.

“So, Cassandra- I understand you are just a bit afraid. There’s plenty of reason to be… but for a lady such as yourself, I wouldn’t dare try anything unless you asked for it.” their gown swished gently as they drew within whispering distance, voice so soft and smooth.

“I would be wonderfully glad to show the D’Antonia house around. If there is anything you can think of…”

The answer leapt from her mouth before she had time to realize it.

“The earrings.” Realizing she’d said it out loud, her eyes widened in intertwined surprise and fear, her arm now moving up to clamp her mouth shut.

Their eyes flashed in shock behind the goggles, so much so that they removed them.

“Oh my… Cassandra… I didn’t think it would be you who might fall prey to them.” The reverence that they had for her name… Goddesses be damned, the artificer might as well be kissing her right on the-

Her cheeks were barely able to burn a brighter red, as the flame colors spread up her ears and forehead. Banishing the thought, she blinked- only to look into the Lady Von-Quirandra’s… beautiful eyes. Their visage was so soft yet toned, pale- but it had a moonlight brilliance to it.

Even more striking, they took her hand- guiding it back towards the pedestal where the earrings await. The simple box, with the inelaborate studs… soon, the answers would be revealed. But did she really want them?

Their cotton enveloped hand began to caress her cheek, sending a wave of calm throughout her body.

“Oh, Cassandra… such a pretty darling. You’d like to know what’s so special about these?” They cooed, their normally charismatic voice turning lower and smoother- almost sultry… She nodded, her eyes fluttering under their careful ministrations- as if they were massaging her oh so wonderfully.

“You’re right about them. They’re so very special. One thing I’ve been working on for, well, years. My little personal project. They’re made with specific people in mind…” Her ears (and arousal) perked up slightly, but the soothing hands made sure it was only barely noticeable as she relaxed further.

“First, I do suppose a quick lesson in magic is required.” Their soft little titter revealed a delight in Cassandra she hadn’t thought was requited- but must have been all along.. The workshop entrance was right near them, and The Lady closed the door- hanging up their goggles carefully and continuing to explain.

“Magic requires power- the ability to mold the natural world… A focus or desire for that change… and some method to focus both power and desire into a physical good. A contract.” Some of this was purred delicately into Cassandra’s ear, and some was simply stated- as the hat slipped off and was put away on top of the goggles.

“We artificers simply adore making contracts-it’s much of the sparkle that helps each of us enjoy life. Having even just one minute of someone else’s life… access to their own imbued power, to their thoughts, their memories… I find it delectable.”

“So… I’m sure that you wish to draw up a contract… properly. Before you try them on, and for you to understand what they can do. I’ll ask for an hour, minimum of ten minutes…” Their moonlight skin had turned to a soft flushed rose now, having clearly… warmed up to Cassandra. This line of thoughts seemed to meander aimlessly, ending with a soft bump into the word ‘please’- whispered pleadingly to Cassandra.

She certainly was curious. Although her fears about artificers couldn’t be assuaged, The Lady certainly had an interest in her. Her mind was racing, risks thrown aside- filled with the new possibilities and the desire of pleasing someone who was interested in her rather than her family’s wealth or status. The ideas whirred in front of her-

Well, the lawyer would be available to draw up the contract. She’d be able to give just ten minutes… It could possibly endear her to The Lady, and it would be a way to get a free piece- which could be given off to another for disenchanting and selling… it, just in case. Presuming it didn’t do anything first. At the very least, she could talk to the lawyer alone.

And if… if the Lady did harbor certain unsavory desires for her, it might be… beneficial to get in- get out- and then use the money from the other artificer she found to disappear. See? There was definitely a way to escape. She’d be fine.

~~~~

Entering the lawyer’s office was strikingly different, as everything was simultaneously neatly organized and a sprawling jungle of paperwork. Cassandra was able to find it oddly relaxing- far enough away from the Lady Von-Quirandra to be immune from anything untoward, but close enough to still feel her influence on everything in the room. The finely crafted chairs, the softwood desk, the carefully stacked papers…

“So- I’m sure you understand the typical thoughts most clients have. Rest assured, you aren’t alone here- I’m also here to help. I’ve got some preliminary documents drawn up, although I’d need your help and name to complete them.” He was about six feet tall, making him just a bit shorter than The Lady (but larger, and certainly more mountainous than Cassandra). He had an awfully kind smile, and definitely seemed to be groomed daily in order to keep up appearances- the suit was certainly professional enough. However, her eyes were drawn to-

“Sir… your ears..!” Cassandra was quite surprised to find a pair of earrings in his ears, not quite matching the ones out there in the box- diamond shaped, but certainly of a much plainer material. It didn’t shimmer in the light, but still had the same design…

He shrugged this off with a chuckle, taking them out and showing them to her. “They’re quite plain, unlike the ones Milady has been working on. I requested the first prototype as payment for a rather unruly client.” Seeing them alone, with no box, made them feel so… Unremarkable. Tame, almost.

“I assure you, they are not enchanted in any way. Shall we get down to business now?” She nodded curtly, offering her name- which elicited a soft gasp from the lawyer, but did not pause his diligent writing. The D’Antonia name was still weighty enough to cause a dent- even though they’d fallen on harder times lately.

“Well, with that finished… How much time are you willing to give her? Would you like to give the full hour, or just the ten-minute minimum?” She paused, faltering…

“Sir… I still don’t know what it does.”

“I know.” His response was curt and quick.

“And that doesn’t seem odd to you?” Her eyebrows furled in shock, examining his haptics, trying to find any sign that she might be given a ‘free’ preview. One where she might not be risking anything.

“Of course not. It’s part of the guarantee- you won’t be able to share anything about the piece with Milady’s competitors if you walk away, and if you’re given an enforceable contract, you’ll have to abide by it. On the other hand, signing this contract will also protect Milady from anything untoward, as you can see from these paragraphs right here.” Well, he certainly was a good lawyer- she noticed those paragraphs, and her own family’s training told her that it was close enough to airtight for her safety…

“I see. So instead of a trial period, this contract is a trial period, and after the ten minutes, it will come off. Is that right?”

“Yes. If you’d like, we can draft up another contract for purchase when you’re done.”

“We’ll see.” She finished with the four-page document, taking the offered pen. “How is the time determined?”

“I’ve got the proper stopwatch right here, Ms. D’Antonia.” He pulled it out of his drawer, presenting her with a silver stopwatch- and she instantly noted the protective runes carved in it. Not only would it be protected from any magical interference, but it would undo any magical changes if it surpassed 30 seconds from the allotted time. And since there would be no way for either of them to mess with it… She turned it over in her hands before setting it down and sliding the contract under it.

“Are you ready, Ms. D’Antonia? The time will start when you exit the doorway.”

Cassandra’s signature and smug smile was enough to prove that she was. She’d find out about these mysterious earrings, and prove to herself that all the danger about artificers was nonsense. After all, she had this contract to protect her.

~~~~

The Lady met her right as she opened the door outwards, leaning against the pedestal they’d placed. Their smirk was much more graceful than before, although it still betrayed a particular interest in her.

“You haven’t left the doorway yet… Cassandra.~” Yet again, their words were a fluttering crescendo of affection.

“Well, ‘Milady’, you do have me ‘captive’ for ten minutes.” They cracked open the plain box, nodding… Their artificing gear was entirely gone, as well as the cotton gloves- allowing Cassandra a look at their face. It was rather smooth, with only a couple of wrinkled scars, as well as the common ‘forge-tan’… and yet it was so gorgeous Cassandra couldn’t help but look at it.

They brought the earrings forth, allowing Cassandra to examine them even more, but teasingly pulling them away at the last second. Only once she extended her fingers… finally touching the object of her intrigue, turning it over carefully. The earring backs seemed to be new, since she hadn’t been able to take it out previously, but she quickly found herself slipping them into one ear, and then the other.

That must have been what was so alluring about them, their simplicity…

Her foot involuntarily moved forward at the same time she heard a very loud CLICK in both ears. She felt the earring backs twist slightly, something fall to the ground…

and her thoughts vanished. Everything except what was directly in front of her faded, her mind shutting down instantly, only able to track what They.. no, Milady, was doing. The clack of Milady’s heels felt so dull, only picking up when something slipped from Milady’s lips.

“Cassandra? Are you still in there?” Their voice seemed almost… afraid. Had she been able to think properly, she would have known it was tinged with their concern and affection for her.

The response was a dry, dull, almost robotic “Yes, Milady.” Her head could not move an inch, she was so deeply and utterly enthralled.

“You’re not uncomfortable, are you?” And now this demanded the reverse- she wasn’t uncomfortable, which was the oddest thing to her. Everything in her body must have been stiff, and yet she felt as if she were laying on a fine cushion.

“Good. I… I would like you to tell me of yourself. Then, how you feel about… me. Artificers.” Milady looked exhausted, but so wonderfully happy- their eyes welled with tears from seeing their invention so perfected. They pulled up an ornate chair in front of her, listening attentively with their head perched atop one of their palms. They seemed so at ease… resting into the chair’s natural shape and the armrests to listen to their little subject.

“Where should… should…” This quickly brought out a gasp, and widened eyes from Milady-

“Is Cassandra unsure how to refer to herself at the moment, with the backs in place?” It seemed like they had some experience with this, then- perhaps only one other, though, given their tone and reactions.

“Yes Milady.”

“Cassandra ought to use the third person for now. Understood? Nod, please, then continue from the beginning- starting with how she’s feeling, and then when she entered the shop.”

A gentle nod from Cassandra’s head, along with an odd feeling- bliss… presumably from following Milady’s order. Is this what artificers did normally? Have the thralls talk to them? If she could have a consistent thought, she would have tried to hold onto that one, but it was pushed down into nothingness by the calming backs.

“Cassandra is unsure what she is experiencing. She is… feeling odd. Although she stopped in to examine the spectacle, she felt… drawn to these earrings. Curious about them. There was something special about them.” Her speaking paused, as she saw Milady holding up one finger.

“Cassandra, please speak normally. Although… just a hint like this. Nod if you understand, and continue.” She felt her vocal cords unlock with a curt nod, utterly freeing her except for one- mouth finally able to move at her own will… but there was still the lingering urge to simply say what she was directed to.

“Cassandra is now aware of what might be so special about them. They make Cassandra unable to think. Unable to disobey, Milady.” At least her speaking had returned to normal- but that thought, too, slipped down into the void.

“I… Would normal Cassandra… How does Cassandra feel about me?”

“Cassandra feels intrigued, interested, stimulated, a-“

“I meant… Does Cassandra like me?” Now Milady was easily blushing, covering their face slightly.

After a very slight pause… “Yes, Milady.” was uttered from her lips, much of the affection she still felt dripping from her words.

“Does… Cassandra know how I feel about her as well?” This was clearly said with a tinge of embarrassment, but curiosity had taken Milady over.

“Cassandra feels that… yes, Milady may perhaps like her. Especially now, like this.”

“O-oh. I see. The attention is, ah, requited. Good! I, ah, believe we’ll move on now…” Milady was covering their head with their hands, clearly turning a deeper flushed red. Had Cassandra been able to properly recall this later, she would have noticed that Milady had turned away from her vision and towards a clipboard to assist hiding their shame.

“Very well… increase vision to normal parameters-“ which meant she could see again, able to focus and look around normally, “standard head mobility as well, and increase thoughts to twenty percent.” She…

Cassandra was thinking. In front of an artificer.

“Kneel.”

Cassandra was kneeling and looking up at an artificer. The sheer danger of what she had done pumped through her veins, but she could not bring herself to move any more than turning away her head slightly- but she didn’t want to look away from the beautiful Lady Von Quirandra.

“Oh my, that feels much better… more domineering, don’t you think?” This brought out an electrified smile, one that she stared at, enraptured and terrified alike. Their hand reached out to tip up her chin with a giggle, stroking her cheek and calming her in the process.

“Please… I know you’re probably afraid, but I don’t wish you to be. I wanted you to experience… this.” It was certainly blissful, not to have to think. Not to be a noble. Not to occupy oneself with all these preconceived notions, manners, passions, etiquette that had to be followed every second of being –

“Cassandra.” That name again, the one that made her eyelids flutter from simply hearing The Lady Von Quirandra say it. However, her eyes had to be open again- so they were opened.

“Please increase thoughts to full. How are you feeling?”

“I… what the hell did you do to me?” She couldn’t help but ask this in the kindest way possible, filled with a curiosity and a wistful arousal- this thought a balloon, inflating with potential.

“The backs have a certain enthralling power. One to eliminate potential thought, even as it happens, to allow for someone to control the wearer entirely. What’s more, they keep their wearers nice and obedient.” The Lady almost said this a little lustily, clearly enjoying the moment- but also playfully and reassuringly… looking down straight into Cassandra’s hazel eyes.

“I hope you understand their power well, now. At the end of your time, you’ll make a decision. It may not be today, perhaps in a few days, or weeks. I hope that you’ll choose to become my.. ah, well… ‘apprentice’.” The Lady went back to covering their face and peeking out at the kneeling figure below them

Her face contorted in shock, stretching in disbelief- before snapping back to a central position. Apparently her shoulders were not allowed to move much, but her face and brain were still ‘allowed’ to move. An apprentice? To an artificer? She couldn’t believe the offer- not least of which for being one of the least qualified people on the planet, but also for the incredulity of it all.

“I understand that you might be a-“

“Your apprentice, Lady??? I don’t know the first thing about-!~”

“Hush, please. I don’t wish for Ashton to be disturbed.” Her jaw instantly slipped shut.

“And that’s not quite true- I taught you ‘the first thing about magic’, and really all you would need to know. I… I need someone acquainted with selling. It truly takes a toll on me to do these kinds of shows. I can’t always afford the… showmanship to get up and move every time that a lot of nobles say I ought to show off my work more.” They slumped further into the chair, clearly sulking.

“I’m skilled, as you can see, but… not there, in that kind of arena. I’d rather be sticking my head in the oil jar than trying to upsell a ring that I didn’t even put that much effort into.”

Throughout this rant, Cassandra could see the lines on their face- clearly an exhausted person, much like her family- trying to get by the best they could.

“…besides, it would be… more than that.” The Lady cleared their throat before continuing, leaving a hefty dramatic pause.

“You could be free from your family name.”

The impossible idea spread through her mind in stages. Relief from the D’Antonias’ strict rules, the imposed penny-pinching, the etiquette- then that she would be with someone. Of course, the idea settled back in of artificers, and much worse-

“And you would only have one restricted hour at most. Maybe two, if we both feel… intimate that night.” This was said in increasingly hushed tones, causing an outbreak of blushing on both of their parts.

“Are you… proposing??” The Lady squealed in shame, answering-

“O-oonly to be my… girlfriend! I don’t want you to get any ideas of that just yet, but… I think I’d like that as well… I could make us a pair of rings, later…”

The flustered D’Antonia heiress couldn’t help but keep opening and closing her mouth, flabbergasted by the idea that seemed

“Keep your mouth shut, dear. Just… think about it for when you’re done. Which is… hm, soon. Too soon…” The backs pulsed gently with enchanted power, and the carefully wound silver pocketwatch chimed with one minute left.

“Return to thrall mode, just for now- but keep the vocal modifiers.” She felt her thoughts be blasted into the wind again, her body relaxing even further, letting go of all the tension inside her…

“Just keep relaxing, little Cassandra… I want you to understand what this is like. How blissful this can be for you. How obedient you can be made. And that this is an offer unlike any other- one where I will use you, remold you, make you into a new beautiful piece- one worthy of your own name. No more silly D’Antonia to hold you back and keep you inside a gilded prison.”

The Lady seemed much calmer, maintaining that more dominant affect, but… if Cassandra were able to think, she’d know it was as if a heavy weight had been lifted from each of them. For the few seconds, they smiled and admired their thrall, four cheeks blushing in turn.

~~~~

The timer went off, returning Cassandra to her normal thoughts instantly- though it left her blushing as red as the first dress she’d ever worn to her family’s elegant ball. She rose, tentatively, under the gaze of The Lady. They slightly rose and-

It was just her instincts acting now, her base fear- and she ran out of the small corner shop into the rain. The thump of her heart pounding in her ears drove out the surprised shriek of the lawyer, the splash of mud against the cobblestone street, leaving behind only the knowledge of which street to take- left, right, center down the path here…

Cassandra arrived at the manor steps, and collapsed to her knees… a relentless sob had taken hold of her, tears and rain both streaking across her face.

Truth be told, she hadn’t realized she’d even stolen the backs until she’d taken them out of her ears, and yet- the urge to still treat them with care was there. All of this was happening so suddenly. There was so much that she just… didn’t know. Her own feelings were a jumble of butterflies, swirling and fluttering around inside…

She tried to sort them, to herd them- the way her mother had taught her, giving them all names and pretty colors, making them butterflies in her own mind-[herbarium].

But as soon as she’d plucked one out from the swirling horde, visualizing its soft iridescent wings, picturing the soft caress of Their glove again-

no.

Her legs crumpled weakly, pleading that no one would see her like this, so disheveled and undone by… the new shop.

She’d return to the shop tomorrow, return the backs, leave a note of thanks just to be… cordial enough, and just… flee. Run away somewhere. Get away from this ancient town and its horrid artificer.

The offer was just too good to be true.

~~~~

Some time later…

“Ah, hello, Missus Val-Periton! May I escort you to the back? Your pendant is ready.” Cassandra beamed happily at the couple that had strolled into the shop, her own earrings sparkling in the multitude of framed lights. The new verdant dress she strolled around the shop in was almost the shop’s mascot- with the new sign painted with a cartoonish version of it draped alongside the logo. Business was booming, especially since a familiar face could help ease the fears about artificers.

Her Lady Von Quirandra was placing the finishing touches on the precious pendant, and the couple was more than glad to finish paying- the pendant sparkled brilliantly in Her Lady’s hands. As the couple strolled out of the shop proudly, Her Lady gently brushed their hand against her cheek, repeating with the softest possible murmur the most precious words they both knew.

“You did so well for Me, Thrall Cassandra. I love you.” And with an idolizing sigh, Cassandra D’arvon Quirandra returned them.

fin

3 notes · View notes

name-me-regret · 3 years

Text

Once in a Lifetime

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

“A summer rain is passing over And it feels like a dream I could run and look for shelter But you hold onto me

I'm under your skies I'm caught in your eyes Don't you know you stop the room And all that I can see is you I'm standing where the lightning strikes I know this doesn't happen twice You must be my once in a lifetime, in a lifetime You must be my once in a lifetime”

~ Once in a Lifetime - Landon Austin

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

In the world there were instances that a person could and would be born with “special abilities”. There were witches (or wiccans), but also vampires and werewolves. One of the rare abilities was the shifter abilities, where a seemingly normal human could change into an animal. There is no explanation as to why a child is born with this ability, and at times a baseline child can be produced from a shifter couple, or a shifter child can come from two baseline humans.

For cases like this, shifter children are usually given up. While it was a harsh reality, it was sadly something normal in society. The shifter children were given up to a separate branch in CPS that dealt with children with special abilities. That’s the thing that was normally done, but at times kids like these are in danger of their own family and are either abused or even abandoned on the side of the road, or other perilous locations.

Whether this was done by the parents out of some feeling of shame or disgust over having birthed such a child is unclear, but this was reality. At times, fewer than 50% of shifter children ever make it to puberty, and even fewer into adulthood.

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

Itasca State Park, Minnesota - July 1996

Evan giggled as he ran, stumbling a few times over the roots of a huge tree that was taller than him and was likely taller than even his daddy. “Mads, look!” Evan cried as he found some little white flowers.

Maddie had been playing with him earlier but she had suddenly gotten very sleepy and their dad had carried her to the car. Evan still felt with a lot of energy and wanted to keep playing. Margaret was watching him as well as sporadically glancing around. Now, she approached him as he called out.. “What is it Evan?” she asked with that impatient tone he was use to.

The little boy shrank away as he lowered his head. “Foun’ flowers,” the four year mumbled, lifting up one of the white flowers he’d found. He knew his sister would be interested in the flowers and not just brush him off like his parents.

“Little boys shouldn’t like flowers, Evan,” Margaret snapped. She grabbed his hand and started to lead him further into the forest, away from the marked trail. “Come on, I’ll show you what little boys should like.” He didn’t protest, even if the hold on his hand was too tight and hurt. It was best to keep quiet. They never hit him, so there was that at least, not like little Suzy who was taken away from her parents. Even then, Evan knew they were not very nice parents.

They’d soon lost sight of their campsite and Evan looked up at the trees that surrounded them with his mouth hanging wide open. There was a small creek bed from there and a little cave that would likely be the best place to hide. He’d always loved playing hide and seek with Maddie, since he didn’t really have many friends. Mostly, the kids from the neighborhood stayed away from him.

Maddie had explained that it was because he was different. He hadn’t known what she meant until last month he had been playing with a little boy across the street. They’d been wrestling and tumbling around, and then Evan had felt something change within him and that then made him change on the outside.

His friend had screamed at suddenly having a wolf cub on top of him, before shoving him away and running home crying. Evan’s excitement had shriveled up and that had caused him to change back. Since his clothes hadn’t been part of his transformation, he’d ended up naked and his mother, who had come outside to see what all the screaming had been about, dragged him inside. When she found out that he had shifted, their treatment of him had gotten even worse.

The news that he was a shifter had spread throughout the neighborhood. They had already been the talk of the town since Philip and Margaret had Evan so he could be a bone marrow match for their son Daniel, who had died anyways. Now, this was the last straw and their parents decided it was time to move, and they’d loaded everything into a moving truck and sent it ahead of them.

Before that, they’d announced that they were going on a family trip first. So they’d set off and driven for almost a whole day until they’d reached Minnesota. The children had been asleep when they’d gotten to the park, but as soon as they woke up, their father having set up their tent in what appeared to be a remote campsite, their mom sleeping from driving for most of the night.

Maddie and Buck had played before they’d been called to eat, Margaret awake by that point and she’d made a pitcher of kool-aid for Evan and Maddie. Evan had mostly eaten and barely drank from the sippy cup he still had to use. Maddie had fallen asleep at the picnic table not too long after that. “Mommy, we go?” Evan asked her. She had let go of his hand quickly after they’d stopped and he missed it. This was the first time she’d touched him since that moment a month ago when he had changed. Evan didn’t know why or how he had been able to change, just the feeling he’d felt and that it was somehow a bad thing.

“Soon, Evan,” she told him. Her voice had taken a strange detached tone and he turned to look at her. She wasn’t looking at him, but around them at the trees that surrounded them. “First, we’re going to play a game.”

“A game?” Evan asked, starting to get excited.

“Yes. We’re going to play hide and seek,” she said as she turned to look at him at last, a tight smile on her face. “You like that game, don’t you?”

“Yeah!”

“Good!” Margaret said, giving a clap. “Now, I’m going to close my eyes and you’re going to go hide, and then I’m going to come find you.”

Evan cheered happily, since this would be the first time his mommy had ever played with him. So, he was excited to get started. The only problem about playing was that he still didn’t know how to count past five. That meant that he could never be the one to find, just hide. That meant that no one besides Maddie had ever played with him.

“Go ahead,” she encouraged with that smile that made Evan uneasy. At the moment he didn’t let it affect him, since the excitement of playing hide and seek pushed it aside. “One, two...”

Evan giggled and rushed off and as she watched, he shifted mid run as he left his clothes behind as Margaret trembled at the sight. She stepped back as her son, or the thing that had once been her son, yipped happily as it ran around. Then he ran out of sight down the ravine and she heard the wolf cub splashing in the water.

Margaret moved forward, grabbing the discarded clothes, and then turned and ran in the direction she had come, the sounds of her son turned wolf being left behind. She never looked back.

The sun was starting to set as Evan played and splashed around in the water that Evan realized that it was really quiet and that he hadn’t heard his mommy coming to find him. Honestly, he’d gotten distracted from finding the creek that he’d forgotten they were playing hide and seek. He ran back the way he came, or at least, where he thought he had come. It was starting to get darker, and it was darker being surrounded by all those trees. Evan started to whine in fear as he looked around, but there was no one there.

Evan howled, hoping that his mother and father would hear him. He howled for his sister Maddie, the only one that he was sure loved him anymore. ‘Maddie! Help, m’lost!’ he howled.

No one answered him. Evan was alone; in the woods and the dark night.

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

The four year old quickly learned that he was warmer when he was changed, so he concentrated everything he could into always being changed into the other shape. It was a good thing he was, since the next day he happened upon a wolf. He cowered away from the large beast as it sniffed at him, preparing to be bit or worse.

So, he was confused as it suddenly sneezed and then licked him across the face, making Evan fall back. Then he gave the equivalent of a giggle which was more of a yip as the wolf started to groom him. The boy quickly realized that the wolf wasn’t going to hurt him and after a few moments he started to run around the larger wolf, his tail wagging madly without even realizing it. The wolf reminded him of his sister Maddie and that comforted him. Maybe the wolf would keep him safe until he was able to get home to his sister.

As the wolf picked him up by the scruff of his neck and carried him off, he wasn’t worried. After all, Maddie would find him, Evan was sure of it. He just had to remember what she always told him to remember.

He was Evan Buckley, and his sister was Maddie Buckley. Evan couldn’t really pronounce his last name too well yet, but as long as he remembered it then he’d be fine.

‘Evan Buck... Mads Buck,’ he recited in his head. Evan would remember. He wouldn’t forget.

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

Pennsylvania- July 1996

Maddie had fallen asleep. She wasn’t supposed to fall asleep, because it was her job to take care of her brother, and now he was gone. She’d fallen asleep, not even remembering when they’d left the campsite. All she knew was that somewhere in a gas station in Chicago Evan had some how undone his restraints and wandered off while she’d been asleep. At least that’s what her parents had told her, but it didn’t make any sense.

Evan didn’t know how to take off his restraints, no matter what her parents said. So, there was no way it had happened as they said. Also, how had she slept for so long? It didn’t make sense. The only thing that made sense was that Evan was gone.

The police were contacted and they’d searched for him, but there was no sign of him. Their parents played the part of worried parents, but Maddie didn’t believe it for a second. They’d never cared about Evan, and even more after they’d figured out he was a shifter. Then a most horrible thought had occurred to her.

Had they abandoned Evan? Had they left him at the campsite? If that was so, she wasn’t sure how she could have slept through that. So, she’d searched the car and came upon a bottle of sleeping pills. Had they drugged her? Drugged them both?

The more Maddie thought about it, the more she believed that this is what they had done. They had drugged her so she wouldn’t try and stop them. They had left him at that campsite in Minnesota, and then... then they had driven off.

Maddie had thought about telling the police, but she didn’t think they’d listen to her. Also, there was a chance that they’d take her away from her parents and she couldn’t risk being taken away in case they let slip where they had left him. So, when they’d given up the search and they’d returned to Pennsylvania, she gone into her new room, closed the door and then collapsed onto the bed and sobbed her eyes out. She cried for her little brother and her inability to protect him, and what might happen to him out there.

When she’d exhausted herself, falling into a deep sleep, she woken the next morning, washed her face and set off without telling her parents. She found the bookstore in the town and using her allowance she bought several books; one that was a guide of the states parks in the United States, and one she managed to find on the state of Minnesota. There were so many state parks in Minnesota, she knew that it would take her a while to figure out which one they had taken them too.

It wasn’t likely that they’d tell her the name if she asked, so she would have to see if they accidentally said something in private or when they thought she was asleep. Over the next few years she learned how to spy on them, and notice things more closely.

Maddie didn’t let anything distract her from this; not friends, school activities or even boys. She was single-mindedly focused on figuring out where her parents had abandoned Evan. Because when she figured this out, she would go looking for him.

Maddie was going to find her brother Evan.

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

Itasca State Park - April 10, 2000

Bobby wasn’t really sure what his brother hoped to accomplish by bringing him out here. He might have been excited to do this just a two years back, when his family had still been alive. Bobby would have brought Robert Jr. along, since he would have been old enough to come camping with them. The annual Nash camping/hunting trip, that him and his brother had gone on with their dad when they’d been boys, but which they hadn’t gone on since the man had died when he and his brother had been 22 and 25 respectively.

Frankly, the only reason he’d come along was that he didn’t have anything else to do. His Captain had forced him to take his vacation days after he’d come into work both drunk and high and almost crashed the fire engine. It was only because the man knew that he was a good firefighter and was still grieving the loss of his family that he hadn’t fired him on the spot. Honestly, Bobby wouldn’t have cared much and then taken that as an excuse to finally end his miserable existence.

Hell, if his brother hadn’t dragged him out of the house, he’d likely have done it by now. He might still do it, since out here in these woods was the perfect place to go missing and never be seen again. So, as his brother tasked him with getting firewood, he wandered further away than necessary from their camp to see if he could see a hill leading up and hoped that meant there was a cliff he could throw himself from. Maybe find a river to drown in.

However, as he created the hill, he found more trees and no cliff, but he did hear the sound of water nearby. He moved forward with intent but when he was a few feet away, he came upon the source. It was not one of the many lakes the park was known for, but a small creek that would likely not even come up to his knees.

“I guess not then.” He gave a wet laugh that was more of a sob, because how pathetic that he couldn’t even kill himself properly. After a moment trying to get his emotions under control, Bobby sighed and ran his hand against his face to clean the tears on his cheeks.

He paused as he thought he heard something and strained his ears, and it came more louder, the whimpering of an animal. Bobby frowned and looked around, wondering if a dog had some how ended up out there; either lost of abandoned.

For a moment he contemplated ignoring it, but something made him follow the sounds. Also, maybe it would get his mind off things.

As he pushed through some bushes, her jerked back in shock when he came upon —not a dog— but a wolf, a grey wolf to be exact. It was fairly large and if it wasn’t such a terrifying and dangerous animal, he’d think it was beautiful, majestic even.

Bobby slowly started to back away, even if at no point had it growled at him. As he did, it started to whine piteously again and that’s when Bobby realized that it’s hind leg was caught in a bear trap. From the dried blood on its fur, he could tell that it’d been there for at least a day. That meant that the wound must be infected by now, since the trap had quite a bit of rust on it.

He was surprised a bear or something else hadn’t picked it off by now, drawn by the scent of blood. It would only be a matter of time until the vultures and other carrion animals would have a meal.

“Sorry, buddy, but it doesn’t look good for you,” he told him, shaking his head. He thought of maybe doing the merciful thing and going to get one of their rifles to put the thing out of its misery. As he turned to do just that the wolf’s cries and whines got more frantic and Bobby stopped.

“Damnit,” he sighed. The beast would likely attack him the moment he set it free. While he was suicidal, there were other less painful ways to go than being torn apart by those sharp teeth. Even so, he couldn’t in good conscience let a living creature continue to suffer.

He quickly looked around for a branch and found one that was slender on one end but started to her thicker toward the other side. Then he started to approach cautiously, but the wolf didn’t growl at him and only continued to whine in pain. It seemed to be waiting him as he watched him, and Bobby thought this was such a surreal experience.

Bobby continued forward carefully all the same, and when he was close enough to the trap he crouched down slowly. He made sure to keep the wolf —mainly its maw— in his line of sight at all times. After a moment of hesitation, he started to push the branch from the thin side next to the wolf’s limb, making sure not to touch it and pushed. He pushed until it wouldn’t go further and then started to pry it open with all his strength.

When the wolf was free, he lurched out of the trap and Bobby was so startled that he let go and fell back. Luckily, the trap only caught the branch but the wind was knocked out of him. He lay there a moment, fully expecting to feel the wolf’s teeth, but after a moment with nothing happening, he sat up.

His breath caught in his throat when he realized the beast was right on top of him and he stilled as it leaned forward to sniff him. Then he felt a cold, wet tongue leave a slimy trail from chin to temple. “Ugh,” Bobby groaned, wiping at his face.

Bobby expected that to be the end of it, but then the wolf grabbed the end of his jacket sleeve in between its sharp teeth and yanked him forward. “Huh? What is it, girl?” he asked, not completely comfortable having the wolf —which Bobby now saw was female— this close, but he at least knew it didn’t mean him any harm. When she yanked again on his sleeve, he got the ludicrous idea that she was trying to lead him somewhere.

“Like Lassie, huh?” he chuckled, but figured he really and truly had nothing to lose. So, he stood up and followed after the limping wolf.

She periodically looked back to see if he was still following as she led him somewhere. As for Bobby, he marked his progress on the trees as he went so he could make it back. Well, if he made it back. For all he knew, the wolf had liked the taste of him and was leading him toward her pack so they could tear him to pieces. So, he guessed he was still suicidal after all. It’s not like too much time had passed since he’d been contemplating ways to end his life.

After about ten minutes, he was convinced the poor animal was disoriented from either her injury or fever from an infection. Bobby thought about stopping, but by this point he was invested in the whole thing, and besides she kept glancing back to make sure he was following her. He had to see where she was leading him, even if it was simply to his end.

Finally, after twenty more minutes, they made it to a cave that was little more than a hole; too small for Bobby or even the wolf to fit, and undistinguishable against the stone. There was, however, litter all around the area; empty chip bags, water bottles and soda, and other types of snacks. There was even a few tupperware containers laying abandoned nearby.

As soon as the wolf was a few steps away from the hole, whatever strength or will had been driving her seemed to evaporate and she collapsed with a whine. Bobby was about to check her over to see if he could help her somehow, but froze as he heard rustling coming from the hole. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the hole in the rock face as his body tensed and his grip tightened around the knife handle. He was ready for whatever was about to come out of that hole, or, at least he thought he was.

A head poked out of the hole, the strands of hair matted and dirty and flowing down past thin shoulders, and that was accompanied with a skinny and very naked body of a little boy —which he could tell because he was without clothes— that looked to have not been fed well. He was also filthy, his hands and feet the worse, and as he watched from his spot where he’d frozen in shock, he ran over on all fours like some animal and started to whine as he nudged at the motionless female wolf with his head.

“Mmmmma,” he whined, whimpering when he didn’t get any response from the wolf. His eyes snapped toward Bobby when he stepped toward him and he tensed up, and he was sure that if he had hackles they would be up. He was, however, growling at him as he bared his teeth. Only, he was missing some of them, probably having lost his baby teeth earlier than most due to the conditions he was living in, and Bobby wasn’t sure how long he had been there.

Suddenly, the empty chip, drink and snack wrappers made a whole lot of sense. The wolf had been feeding him, and had likely even stolen containers of food from campers that had visited the state park. Now, the wolf was hurt, probably dead, and there would be no one that would be able to take care of him.

Is that why the wolf had brought him there? So that Bobby would be able to take him?

“Hey, buddy,” he said, pitching his voice low and unthreatening. He didn’t want to scare him, or worse, drive him back into the hole where he wouldn’t be able to get him out again. He just wasn’t sure what to do to get him to not runaway as he scurried back a step whenever he tried to get closer. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

The boy’s head tilted to the side as he seemed to understand him, or at least, he thought he might. “Is the wolf your mommy? Are.... are you hungry?” He figured if the wolf had been gone for a day or several hours she’d been stuck in the trap, he hadn’t eaten. That’s likely the reason she’d been close to the campsites as she had been, and some asshole had placed a trap.

He reached into his jacket pocket slowly and pulled out a pack of cookies he had stuffed in there. His brother had insisted they eat whatever they made on the open fire, but Bobby he’d still brought some snacks the last time they’d stopped for gas. Now, he held it out for the little boy as he opened it, crouching down so he wouldn’t look so intimidating.

“Look what I have here,” he said, shaking it a bit to get his interest. “You want some?”

He needn’t have bothered, since the little boy had perked up as soon as he’d seen the cookies. The wolf had brought him enough junk food that he probably knew what it was on sight. As the little boy approached cautiously, Bobby wondered how long he’d been out there, and how he had survived. Also, why had the wolf not simply attacked him, is the question he was asking himself.

As the boy took the last few steps to get to the cookies, he suddenly changed and Bobby grunted as he fell back from the boy’s weight, the boy who was now a wolf cub as he tore into the cookies. He didn’t seem to find this weird at all, nor pay attention to Bobby who was freaking out under him. And when he was finished, he started to sniff at his pockets as he looked for more food.

Bobby swallowed as he slowly straightened into a sitting position, arms coming around to hold the furry body to keep him from tumbling off him. The wolf cub then proceeded to lick him all over his face as Bobby groaned. “You’re just like your mom,” he muttered, not the least bit weirded out referring the wolf as such. After all, she had fed and cared for him, and that’s what a mother did. Even if she was a wolf animal, she had been thr boy’s protector after his real parents had abandoned him.

There was no doubt in Bobby’s mind that this is what had happened. It was common for baseline people to abandon a shifter child. They usually have them up to CPS, but every once in a while, people were cruel enough to leave a child on the side of the road, or a state park, in this little boy’s case. As someone that had lost his children to a great tragedy, he couldn’t imagine willingly giving up a child; shifter or not.

He stood as the wolf cub shifted around in his arm, before he was situated against his chest with his panting maw over his shoulder. Meanwhile, Bobby looked at the female wolf that hadn’t moved once since she had collapsed, and he crouched beside her. He put his hand in front of its maw, and when he felt no air flow, he knew she was gone.

She had led Bobby there with her last bit of strength, on the verge of death already, but determined to lead him there to save her cub. He hated to leave her here, but there wasn’t much he could do, especially if he wanted to get the boy to come with him and not run off. So, he simply bowed his head over her and gave a prayer for the noble and brave animal.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take protect him now,” he vowed. He stood after another moment, and turned and started to walk away. The cub started to squirm again, whining in protest. He almost lost his grip on him when he shifted to his human form.

“Mma! Mma!” he cried, tears running down his face.

Bobby turned him forward to face him, shushing him gently. “It’s okay, buddy. I’m gonna take care of you now. I promise.” He wiped his dirty face of his tears, thinking he needed to get him clean soon. First, he needed to get him back to camp.

His head tilted at his words. “P....prom’s?” he said.

Bobby’s heart sped up, and wondered if he could understand him. “Yes, promise... can you speak? Do you know your name?” Even if he figured out his name, he didn’t think he’d try to get him back with his parents. They had abandoned him. Besides, his mother —that wolf more of his real mother than that bitch who had left him for dead— had entrusted Bobby with her son, and by God he was going to fight to keep him.

“N...name?” His features twisted up on concentration for a moment as if trying to remember something. “E... Ev-Evan Buck... M-Mads... Buck,” he stuttered.

Bobby was confused on the Buck part. Maybe it was a nickname. Also, what did mads mean? Maybe he was trying to say that whoever his parents were had been mad at him? Mad at Buck? It was likely that, since he knew that people were stupid and prejudice against their shifter children, who couldn’t control having this ability, just like regular baseline humans couldn’t control being baseline.

“Evan, huh?” he said as he continued to walk away from where he’d found the boy. “My name is Bobby. Don’t worry, Evan, I’ll protect you from now on.”

Evan leaned away from him and held out a small dirty hand, and held out a tiny pinky finger. “Prom’s?”

Bobby smiled and wrapped his little pinky with his own larger one. “I promise,” he swore.-

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

#Evan Buckley #Bobby Nash #Maddie Buckley #AU - Alternate Universe #Shifter fanfiction #9-1-1 #9-1-1 Fox #9-1-1 Fox TV shows #regret writes #regret fanfiction #fanfiction #Once in a Lifetime #Evan Buckley centric

2 notes · View notes

lululawrence · 5 years

Photo

2018 Fics Written by lululawrence

Master Fic Masterpost / Buy me a Coffee?

A Dream is a Soft Place to Land (5k)

“It’ll be like a perpetual sleepover, Lou,” Harry had said. “It’ll be great.”

And it was...except it also meant that Louis’ long time, barely there crush on Harry had only grown into a full fledged, real life version of playing house where Louis all too often found himself pretending he and Harry really were together when they definitely were not.

Or the one where Harry might have told his friends that he was dating someone and has to show proof for their party on New Year's Eve. His best friend and roommate Louis is the obvious choice...but things don't exactly go as planned.

We Made a Start (2k)

“Hey! I thought your phone got taken away after that stunt you pulled in Chem,” Louis said brightly, relieved her best friend was going to rescue her from her awful reading assignment, even if it was only temporarily.

“It was taken away after that stunt she pulled in Chem,” a voice that definitely wasn’t Harry’s said.

“Oh...hi, Anne,” Louis greeted, suddenly nervous. Anne had never called Louis before, not when Harry wasn’t already at Louis’ house for a sleepover or something.

“Hi, Louis,” Anne continued. “Based on your greeting, I’m afraid I already know the answer, but I have to ask.” Anne’s voice was obviously filled with worry despite the fact she was trying to veil it with calm. “Harry doesn’t happen to be at your house, does she?”

Or the one where Harry's hiding, Louis knows just where to find her, and more comes out of the evening than either expected.

Tell Me That You've Got Me (3k)

In some ways, Harry felt like Louis was his older sibling as much as Gemma was. He certainly showed just as much affection as Gemma did. Whenever Harry would succeed in something they knew was difficult, both Gemma and Louis would celebrate by placing a loud, smacking kiss on Harry’s forehead.

As they got older, Gemma pulled back her affections. She was tired of her brother constantly hanging around, and she found ways to elude him. Harry couldn’t blame her, really. The hardest part for him, though, was not being able to be around Louis as often.

Louis never withdrew his physical affection like Gemma did, though. He continued giving Harry kisses on his forehead, much the same way he did with the ever growing number of younger sisters he had at home, to say hello and goodbye. Harry had come to rely on it. Gemma would bid him hello and goodbye with a soft smack on the side of his head, and Louis would kiss him wherever her hand had landed.

Or the one where Harry was always Louis' best friend's younger brother...until they grow up and once innocent forms of affection come to mean a little bit more.

I Don't Mean to Frustrate (14k)

Louis didn’t always feel like he had to hide. His family had known he would likely present as an omega from the time he was young and, despite the fact that male omegas were rare and had all the usual prejudices against them plus some, his loved ones were always caring and supportive.

Looking back on it, Louis sees quite clearly that had things gone differently, had three very specific scenes in his past played out with even a slight adjustment, he would likely be living his life as a happy and out male omega. Dwelling on that too often wasn’t good for him, though, because the fact was, they had happened. The outcome had been what got him where he was today: in the middle of a world tour feeling absolutely exhausted and needy, but not being able to tell anyone, not even his bandmates.

Or the one where Louis is an omega pretending to be a beta, but what happens when Harry, his (pining) alpha best friend, learns his secret?

How Much My Heart Depends (6k)

Louis is an alpha working as a fraud analyst who keeps having Bad Days. Harry is an omega working in Quality Support who shares a cubicle wall with Louis and only wants to help. Maybe this is the perfect chance for them to finally meet face to face.

I Will Care For You (15k)

“Afton, I just don’t know what I’m going to do,” Harry whined. “I’m going to adopt her, but I have no idea how to take care of her when I’m here as much as I am and I can’t really afford to raise a child on fewer hours. My family can only help so much, but I’ve already been relying on them too much this past week.”

“Oh, Harry. Just get yourself a nanny.” Afton threw out the suggestion and Harry sat up. How had he not considered that?

“How much do you need to pay a nanny? If I cut some expenses, I might be able to handle that, if they lived in. Would they expect more of me, since I’m an unmated alpha? Like, they wouldn’t think I’m some dodgy alpha looking for a nanny to become a bondmate or anything, would they?”

“Shut up, Harry,” Afton demanded. If she wasn’t a beta, Harry almost felt like she might have put some alpha timbre into her voice with that line. Either way, he did shut up to listen to her as she continued. “Reach out to Louis. He’s our usual sitter and he’s lovely. He’s come on some hard times, too, so you could probably convince him to work for you for cheap, especially if you’re having him live with you too.”

Hold Me Tight and Don't Let Go (19k)

Louis’ mind was whirling and a mess of information about application deadlines and talking to his mom about options he had for next year and the failed test and how she might react when he gave her the news. Louis was near his spot and he knew as soon as he got there he could let the tears and frustration flow, but when he turned the corner to his special space his whole body froze.

“Who’re you?” Louis bit out. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. That came out way more harsh than he was intending. “Sorry, I just-”

Louis was interrupted by the boy, previously curled in a tiny ball and crying into his knees, stumbling to his feet, saying something Louis couldn’t understand, and wiping away at the tears. He straightened his glasses, grabbed his bookbag, mumbled something a second time, and then he literally ran off.

Or the one where Louis is barely holding himself together when he meets Marcel and an unexpected friendship might be just what both of them need.

Can We Talk for a Moment? (15.5k)

It was widely known that alphas were never as common as betas or omegas. It is believed the reasoning for that was safety for their packs. Each pack could only have one Alpha, and in order to keep order and make sure there was no mistaking who was in power, once the successor had been named, other alphas would be forced out of the pack.

The populations grew, as was to be expected with time and all manner of developments, and while the packs got larger and joined together, the number of alphas never increased.

Harry didn’t care for the reasons behind the phenomenon. In the end, it didn’t really matter. All he knew was he was the only alpha within about a thousand mile radius, and he was a complete and total disappointment.

Or the one where Harry is a shy, nerdy alpha, Louis is a loud omega punk, and there's more to both of them than their reputations.

I Like Digging Holes (6.5k)

As soon as the video loaded, Harry practically choked on his tongue. It was a video of Louis writhing on his bed, moving his mouth to something. It was probably a song they had played, because he had tagged Harry specifically saying, “Thank you for my Morning Jam!” in bold white text.

All of that was great, but Harry really couldn’t get past the fact that Louis was topless, his tanned and tattooed torso looking like it was glowing as he sang along to whatever song it was.

“Harry,” Zayn said, snapping his fingers. “Oh my God, what is going on over there?”

Harry looked up from his phone, wide eyed with his cheeks burning. He truly had no idea if they were live again or not. He’d lost complete sense of his surroundings and time thanks to Louis’ erotic video. Harry knew he hadn’t meant it that way...or at least, he assumed Louis hadn’t...but it didn’t change the fact it absolutely was.

“You’re back on in five,” Liam said. “Pull yourself together, Harry.”

Or the one where Harry and Zayn host the Breakfast Show and Louis is a popular YouTuber who catches Harry's attention.

Back to How it Was (52.5k)

Harry carefully stood up and was on his way to the window to look outside when he ran his hand through his hair, and it stopped entirely too soon.

He froze then began fervently patting all over his head. Where was his hair? He’d been growing it out for a couple of years now and it was finally almost to the length he’d had as a goal the entire time. How could it have gotten cut off overnight?

Harry rushed over to the mirror hung on the wall adjacent to the window.

Oh shit. What the hell was happening? Harry leaned closer and saw that not only was his hair cropped shorter than he’d ever wanted to go again, but it looked like he had the beginning of crow’s feet by his eyes. Those definitely weren’t there yesterday! And what happened to his tattoos? He still had some of them, like the star and the letters he’d gotten for his mum and Gemma, but most of the rest were missing and there were a few he’d never seen before instead.

What. The. Fuck.

Or the one where Harry goes to bed angry with his bandmates and wakes up in a universe where One Direction was never formed and he has to find a way back home. Home definitely has nothing to do with his best friend and bandmate, Louis. That would be ridiculous.

Not the Desperate Type (6.5k)

“First of all, I’d like to tell you how disturbing it is that you’re this familiar with your neighbor’s sex life,” Liam said, amusement lacing his tone.

“Fuck off,” Louis said, laughing.

“Second, that is really very sad. How bad is the stomping? Are you sure your neighbor doesn’t like it fast like that?”

“With the amount of cleaning the guy does, I think he’s taking out his sexual frustration on the cleanliness of his apartment. I can’t imagine the guy makes enough mess to require daily vacuuming.”

It sounded like the guy was actually moving furniture above him as he was sweeping now. Damn. Did Louis miss the seven minutes in heaven or was the guy angry because he didn’t even get that much pleasure today?

“I’m kinda afraid with the amount of noise he produces while cleaning that one day I’m gonna look up through my ceiling and be able to see him.”

“Tell him we wish him a better sex life and that we’re rooting for him if you do.”

Or the one where Louis' neighbor has a series of unfortunately short sexual experiences and Louis can hear every. Single. One.

Just Enough (to Feel My Body Come Alive) (14k)

As soon as the door closed behind him, Louis leaned against it and let out the breath that he’d been practically choking on just moments before. He’d been able to hide behind his metaphorical armour until Harry, the barista, had approached the table. That one moment somehow cracked Louis open enough that he’d felt a surge of joy for just a second, and that second was enough to scare the shit out of him.

He couldn’t let anyone in like that, not even for a laugh. Especially not another cute boy.

What Needs to be Done (10k)

Harry continued walking in the direction he’d been headed before he found himself at a break in the woods. That...wasn’t right. Had he gotten turned around?

“Where’s the sun?” Harry muttered to himself as he looked around. The entire world was in shadow and the sky covered in clouds.

“Not going to be able to find the sun for the rest of the day, mate. I expect it to rain here shortly.” a high voice said, startling Harry. For the second time in ten minutes, Harry made a sound very unbefitting of a dragon as he careened towards the earth.

This time he wasn’t sure he should bother getting up again.

“You better watch yourself or you’ll end up killing someone. I’ve never met such a clumsy dragon.”

Harry blinked and looked around.

“Looking for me?”

Harry looked directly below his head and sitting right beside his clawed foot was an incredibly sassy looking hedgehog.

Or the one where Harry's a dragon, Louis' a hedgehog, and maybe if they come together with other new friends they can get the spells reversed.

I Knew From the First Time (6k)

Harry: NICHOLAS I MIGHT CRY THIS GUY IS PERFECT Harry: HE STOOD UP FOR THIS ADORABLE WOMAN WHO REMINDS ME OF BARBAEA TO TAKE JKS SEAT Harry: Unfortunately this means I don’t have as good a view of him now BIT STILL

Nicholas: You’re a horny bastard who needs to get laid. I am not trusting your judgement on men at the moment.

Harry: I will have you know I have excellent taste in men, horny or not. Harry: Besides, you’ve gone far longer without getting laid than I am currently at, so whose judgement should we not be trusting, hmm?

Nicholas: I don’t like what you are implying, thank you very much Nicholas: But seriously. I’m not going to believe how beautiful this man supposedly is without a photo

Harry: Grimmy. Are you implying I should take a sneaky pic for you??

Or the one where Harry definitely doesn't take a sneaky pic of Louis on the Tube. Absolutely not. (Except maybe he does.)

Something Classic (5.5k)

Marcel did not peak in high school. High school was full of dress codes and bullies and he never would have made it through if not for Zayn and Liam.

College has finally arrived, and Marcel is excited for his chance to finally be able to express himself in ways he wasn't able to before. He never could have accounted for how leaving his high school uniform in the past could change everything.

Especially once he meets Louis Tomlinson.

The World will Open its Arms (4.5k)

Harry scrubbed at the countertop. It wasn’t even dirty, but it was three in the morning and the girl who was supposed to relieve him over an hour ago never showed. He was now on hour ten of his shift and his feet hurt and his back ached and he was trying not to cry, thanks to more fucking judgmental alpha truckers who could smell it on him.

Of course they could. He practically lived at the diner. The entire place reeked of it.

Unbonded pregnant omega.

How I Feel Inside (9k)

From the time they were young, Louis, Harry, and Niall all knew their secondary genders. Louis was alpha, Harry was omega, and so was Niall.

Louis was the oldest and also an early bloomer. The day before Thanksgiving at the hormonally insane age of thirteen, he had needed Harry. He always did, but then he was humping a shirt Harry had left behind at their last sleepover while he popped his first knot.

Louis = Alpha. Check.

Harry’s presentation was far more talked about. He was sixteen and sure he was coming down with the flu in the middle of gym class when Louis came barging in. Harry was confused, but as soon as he smelled Louis, he dropped fully into his first heat in the middle of the gymnasium.

Harry = Omega. Check.

Niall was different, though. He always had been. He didn’t mind it, he took great pride in it usually. But then they had graduated and he still hadn’t presented. Maybe he was just a late bloomer. But maybe he wasn’t an omega at all.

So, Niall = Beta. Check.

But then a month into the fall semester of their senior year, Niall disappeared.

We've Come Too Far (14.5k)

“Harry! I can’t believe we’re finally meeting! This is great!”

Harry breathed in and Greg smelled like fabric softener and mint. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but that combination was even better than he’d hoped for. God, he was ridiculous.

As they walked into an unmarked room, Greg yelled, “Louis! Come meet your partner in crime slash competition!”

Harry looked at Greg in confusion.

“That doesn’t even make sense, Gregory,” a voice called. As the man drew closer, Harry almost choked on his tongue. How was it even possible to be in the presence of the two most beautiful men in the UK? It was absolutely Not Fair.

Or the one where Harry has had a crush on Radio 1 DJ Greg James for years before he finally has the chance to meet him. What he didn't take into account was the beautiful intern that just might overshadow Harry's interest in Greg.

I Just Wanna Give You Love (18.5k)

Graham Norton appeared on the screen introducing his guests and out of nowhere, everything in Louis’ world was turned upside down.

Louis gasped as he intently took in the man on the screen, smiling and waving from his seat beside Sir Ian McKellen.

“Oh my God,” Louis said before it all sank in as to what it meant. “Holy fucking shit!”

“Louis William, you watch your mouth,” Jay said. “What has got into you?”

Feeling like a madman, his palms to his cheeks, Louis couldn’t help the tears of surprise, relief, and fear as he turned to his mum. “What colour are his eyes? What do you call that colour?”

“Louis, are you telling me that the man on the screen, Harry Styles, is your soulmate?”

Or the one where the world is in black and white until you meet your soulmate, but Harry is world famous and Louis is...well...not.

(That’s Just) The Way I Am (17k)

There was no way Harry would want to bring anyone out for an introductory trip like this. The fighting between himself and his father was sure to be be worse than usual and father still hadn’t accepted Harry’s pansexual identity. Harry wasn’t dating anyone at the moment, but at this point he almost wished he were dating a man just so he could incense his father.

The door jingled, pulling Harry’s attention away from the window and to the man who had just walked into the cafe.

Now that was exactly who Harry should try bringing home. The man was dressed in ratty black skinny jeans and what was obviously a self cut tank top that used to be a Stone Roses t-shirt. His black chucks had holes in the canvas, indicating exactly how old they were, and his maroon beanie wasn’t in much better shape.

The more Harry studied the man’s smoky eyeliner rimmed eyes and the lipstick he had swiped on to match his hat, the more Harry started hatching an idea. What if Harry really did bring this man home?

This is a Rainbow War (15.5k)

“So what are we doing?” Niall asked as he slipped in.

“Harry seems to really like rainbows,” Louis said, purposefully vague. “So let’s go ahead and make sure he’s really in the spirit.”

Louis untaped the flag he’d used to hold it together and showed Niall what he had inside. He’d been keeping a wide variety of flags from each show and gathering them until he had enough to cover Harry’s entire dressing room with them.

“Oh this is going to be great,” Niall said with a chuckle.

“Oh my God,” Shawn said excitedly. “It’s going to look like someone puked pride flags all over a campsite.”

“Exactly,” Louis said.

Or, the one where Harry's a famous singer, Louis is part of his road crew, and after Harry gives Louis a special assignment regarding rainbow flags, things maybe turn out a little differently than either of them planned.

Can I Have Your Attention, Please? (16k)

Forty-five minutes later found Nick dancing and singing along to the awful hold music that played as he still waited in queue to speak to someone as he made himself some avocado toast. Luckily, in the time he’d had waiting for a human to speak to, he’d been able to scrape together two work outfits that would hopefully be enough to tide him over until he got his own luggage back.

“Someone needs to fucking answer the phone!” Nick sang loudly and off key to the jazz music playing out of his phone’s speaker. “I want my own shampoo back,” he continued as he swung his head around and twirled with the avocado back to the fridge. “I don’t like Fifi’s bodywash and her moisturizer makes me break out!”

Staring to full on shimmy back to his perfectly made toast, the call disconnected and left the kitchen ringing in the silence.

“Bollocks,” Nick sighed.

...or the one where Nick develops a crush on the man whose bag he accidentally grabs at the airport. It is obviously just a coincidence that the man shares a first name with the pop star whose Instagram Nick lusts after as well.

Great Minds (They Think Just the Same) (8k)

This entire thing was going to be an utter failure. Why had Louis agreed to this? Why had he allowed Harry to convince him it was a good idea? He didn’t know anything more than the basics about being a DJ, and while he wanted to learn, he’d hoped he could get a bit more instruction. He’d had a bit back in 2012, but Louis also thought it would be more hands on than just the few verbal instructions Nick had given him before he kicked off the show.

Nick Grimshaw, whom Louis absolutely one hundred percent refused to call Grimmy, was sitting across the table from him, bopping about looking adorable in his headphones as he laughed at tweets and texts that were coming in. Too bad he was a dick.

Or the one where in an attempt to get the Breakfast Show back to the number one morning show in the country, the BBC brings on Louis as a co-host with Nick. They only thing is they don't really get along... until they do.

You’re Here, Where You Should Be (5.5k)

Harry gave her mother a wide, pleading grin and finally gave up on her hair. It had been only a marginally decent hair day anyway. No one here cared if it looked nice or not, so messy bun it would be.

Hands caught in making sure all her hair was up and not held so tight as to give her a headache, Harry (naturally) had her arms up when she froze in shock.

Louis Tomlinson was in her family room.

Or three years after having last seen her best friend, Louis shows up at the Christmas party Harry's family throws every year. Old feelings might not be as buried as Harry had thought.

Nowhere to Land (23.5k)

“Harry,” Gemma said slowly and softly, like she was afraid of startling a frightened animal. “What exactly do you remember of the past few weeks?”

Rubbing his forehead, Harry scrunched his nose up in confusion. “Was I acting really off? Cause I’ve felt so strange for weeks. I remember most of it, but it’s all fuzzy around the edges, like I was there, but not really.” Harry put the glass down and looked back at her, feeling a little sheepish. “That’s quite mad, isn’t it?”

Gemma shook her head and reached out for Harry, wrapping him in a tight hug. “No. Not mad. Makes perfect sense. Welcome back.”

Or the sequel to Back to How it Was where other Harry has returned to himself with only foggy memories of the past few weeks. He finds himself with a new workout routine, recordings of interviews he doesn't fully remember choosing to do in the first place, and a budding relationship with a man he remembers from the X Factor but doesn't really know now. Doing the best he can, Harry tries to put the pieces together of what happened and where he's going to go from here.

#mine #my fics #my fic post #my fic masterpost #2018 fics masterpost #fic rec

128 notes · View notes

nicolewrites · 6 years

Text

The Ecruteak Incident

You guys can thank @thecoordinatorsquad for this one. Sequel/Prequel to ‘enter stage left’

Words: 3,658 FFN | AO3

When May arrives in Ecruteak City, the sun is still high in the sky. It’s a nice change from many of the later arrivals she’s been having since travelling on her own. Without Ash’s drive to reach the next city and the next gym as fast as possible, May has found herself distracted by training, relaxing and wildlife between towns and she often arrives just as night is falling.

It’s just after noon as she sets foot on the cobblestone streets that are a tribute to the older days. She notes, with interest, that many of the buildings are constructed in older, more traditional styles and with more muted colour palettes. The guidebook that she carries on hand tells her that it is out of respect for the Bell Tower that stands just to the north of the city.

Her first impression of the city is quaint: it’s smaller and less bustling than many of the other cities she’s visited in Johto so far, but it is definitely more pedestrian friendly. There are definitely still a fair share of coordinators and contest fans mulling about with the contest being two days away. The cobblestone streets are obviously not meant for cars, and the small market kiosks lining the streets further encourage walking over driving.

To the north, May observes the old Bell Tower rising on the horizon and she makes a mental note to visit it. Following her map towards the Pokémon Centre, she walks past the city’s gym. The building is like the rest of the city, painted in muted colours, but there are cheers from within and May smiles. Sometimes she misses watching Gym Battles. Ash certainly had a flair for making them interesting. Max was leaving in September, so maybe she should make some time to watch a few of his battles.

There are large maple trees on several street corners with their big green leaves open to the sky. It reminds her of Petalburg and the tree that’s on the corner near the gym. This part of the city, May knows, will be exceptionally beautiful in the fall when the leaves change colour and start to fall. She hopes she’ll have the opportunity to return for it, but her carefully planned schedule–Drew’s idea, not hers–says that this contest in Ecruteak is the only one for the season. The city wasn’t much for pageantry–much more about tradition.

She spots the crowd about a block from the PokéCentre and her heart sinks in her chest. It’s a group of, mostly, young teenage girls, some older and some younger than herself. None of the girls in particular are familiar, but the hunches of their backs and the high pitched giggles are all too familiar.

Fangirls.

Of course there are fangirls here. There is a contest in two days and there are some higher-profile coordinators entering. Plus, this is one of the larger cities in the region so the increased population of fans also makes sense. May walks hesitantly towards the Centre, just hoping not to get mauled by excited girls.

To her surprise, they don’t seem to pay her any attention as she approaches. They are much more interested in whoever is inside the Pokémon Centre as displayed by the way they keep glancing in the windows and giggling. Unfortunately, their crowd extends to block the front entrance which means May will have to wade right through them.

She takes a deep breath to steel her nerves and pushes through the first few, excusing herself politely. “Excuse me, just need to pass by,” she murmurs, trying to move unseen.

She gets almost to the door when one fan turns and stares her directly in the face. “Hey!” the girl exclaims, “What right do you have moving us from our view?”

May sighs. “Sorry, I was just trying to get into the Pokémon Centre. I need to register for the contest.”

“Register?” another girl pipes up, sounding scandalized. “You can’t compete! You can’t be given the opportunity to win.”

May frowns. “Well, that’s not how coordinating works. The best coordinator in the contest will win the ribbon.”

The first girl put her hands on her hips and gives May a condescending once-over. “Well that’s obviously not going to be you, so maybe you should just run along.”

May’s anger bubbles up. No one gets to talk to her like that, except maybe Drew, but he’s always teasing when he does. Before she can burst with frustration, one of the other girls stumbles away from the window, squealing dramatically.

The doors to the Pokémon Centre slide open and all the girls fall completely silent, staring in awe at the person who emerges from inside. May just exhales in relief. Out of all the people, he’s probably not a bad one to save her from this situation, even if he’ll never let her live it down again.

Drew looks puzzled by the situation, but he walks out towards May anyways. The girls part like the sea for him and he stands next to his rival, glancing at the girl who had been giving May spite.

“Maple, you made it before dark for once. I guess I can call off that search party,” he jokes. His tone is easygoing and relaxed. He seems to be completely ignoring the fans and is instead focused on May.

Smugness curls in her belly as May smiles at him. “Haha, Drew. I know you didn’t beat me here by much. You were coming from Blackthorn, weren’t you? I was only in Violet City, my journey was much shorter.”

He shrugs. “I still beat you here, and I’m all registered for the contest. You should do the same. We don’t want a repeat of the Len Town Contest do we?”

May frowned. She didn’t need reminding of her first blunder of the season. She had forgotten how busy the first contest of the season was and had arrived too late to register, leaving Drew with only Solidad as an obstacle for the ribbon. He had won and he still wouldn’t let her live it down, even as they planned an appropriate route through the region, determining at which contests they would butt heads.

“I’m getting there,” she says after a brief pause.

He laughs and just gestures back to the door. “Come on then.”

May steps towards Drew, and freedom from the swarm of fangirls, when one pipes up. “But, Mr. Drew! How can you encourage competition?”

Drew frowns at the girls. “I’ve asked you all already to leave me alone, I don’t want to get Officer Jenny involved. May is my rival, and my friend and none of you bear that distinction, so you should all scram before I report you for harassment.”

It takes a minute, but the gravity of his words sinks in and the girls start to leave, but not without glancing back at him as they go. Drew sighs and rubs his temples.

“Let’s get out of here, please,” he says, annoyance still heavy in his voice.

May laughs. “Oh but Drew, you have to tell me more,” she teases. He levels a hard look at her and May laughs again. “I’m only kidding. I find them incredibly annoying as well, don’t worry.”

They walk into the Pokémon Centre as Drew complains about how they’ve been following him around since he arrived in town. May giggles. She has her own set of fans, but none of them are ever as bad as the cult of fangirls that follow her rival around.

May does end up registering for the contest in time, and the morning of, she heads down to the lobby to get breakfast before heading over to the hall. Drew is sitting at one of the tables in the cafeteria with an empty plate and a steaming, half-full cup of coffee in front of him. He’s flipping through a newspaper and only looks half-awake.

May’s heart tightens as she watches him. It’s strangely domestic and almost cute. She blushes and shakes off the feeling, heading to gather her own plate of breakfast. After taking a generous helping–she’s hungry, there’s no excuse–she heads back towards where he was sitting. May places her plate down and slides in across from him.

He glances up only briefly to acknowledge her presence. “May,” he greets casually, before returning his attention to the article he’s reading.

She takes a couple bites of her food before curiosity wins out. “What are you reading about?”

He puts the paper down and slides it towards her. She notes the headline: ‘Excitement Continues Around Conclusion of Wallace Cup in Sinnoh’. May smiles. She skims the article briefly. It talks about the contest, the venue, and her and Dawn’s battle in the final. Curiously, she notes the fact that Johto and Hoenn were both bidding for the next Wallace Cup.

“It seems the coordinating world was pretty impressed by your new style out there. Even if you did manage to lose to a rookie,” Drew comments, stealing his newspaper back.

May rolls her eyes. “Dawn was good. And besides, her mom was a Top Coordinator before either of our times so she’s grown up around it. I almost won the Violet City Contest after I got back anyway. My slump is over, we both know that.”

Drew shrugs. “We’ll see today, I guess.”

May sticks her tongue out at her rival, who shares a rare smile at her childish action, and tucks back into her food. The whole situation is friendly and calm even though in a couple of hours they could be going head to head for what would be both of their fourth ribbons. Despite May’s apparent slump, Drew was equal to her in ribbons, though May conceded that he had entered far fewer contests and was spending more time on individual training.

Still, getting a foot up on him would be a welcome change since he always seemed to be one step ahead of her.

As the appeal scores are revealed, May takes one of Drew’s telling characteristics and spins it back on him. She smirks at him. She’s in first, and he’s close behind her, only 0.3 points back, in second place. They’re both comfortably through to the battle round, but May’s ahead this time.

It feels good, especially since May knows that Drew’s appeals and combinations are generally his strongest points, whereas hers lay more in powerful battling, something she had picked up from Ash. Still, Drew was notoriously good at spinning people’s power back on themselves to earn massive points, and he was also incredibly strong.

The bracket is revealed and to May’s surprise, she and Drew are not opposite each other. In fact, if they both win their first battles, they’ll be facing off in the semi-finals. She casts him a surprised glance and he shrugs in return. May laughs. She’s still going to beat him–that’s her plan.

As they take the stage for the battles, cheers spring up around them, but Drew’s cheering section is loud and very female. Drew smirks and flicks his hair. The crowd screams in appreciation and May smothers a snort. At least his fangirls will get to enjoy his showboating for a little while.

The announcers call for them to choose their Pokémon, and May watches as Drew calls out Flygon. The Dragon Type is one of his strongest, and May knows there is no going easy here with him. Still, she has an advantage in this case.

“Glaceon! Take the stage!” She spins elegantly and tosses the capsule containing the Fresh Snow Pokémon outwards.

Drew visibly blanches at the sight of her new team member. Though he’d been encouraging of May when she had gone to Sinnoh, she knows that now he’s realizing that Glaceon places her at a significant type advantage over many of his Pokémon, especially Flygon. May lifts her chin confidently.

The timer starts, and Drew wins first move.

As far as contest battles go, besides her stint in the Wallace Cup, her battle against Drew has been the fiercest she’s fought in Johto. He always has tricky combinations ready to counter, even if she pushes forwards with strength. Still, this time, she had been better. Glaceon has squeaked her through to the finals and May is elated.

There are despondent cries from the crowd: Drew’s devastated fangirls and May glances at her rival again. He returns Flygon and nods to her, conceding defeat respectfully. She was better today, and they both know it.

In the end, May makes a blunder, choosing Beautifly in the finals to match up against a Quilava. With both a speed and type disadvantage, she puts up a fight, but in the end, a Johtoan coordinator named Crystal eventually wins the Ecruteak Ribbon. She’s not overly disappointed.

She can use the battle with Crystal to create new defensive combinations, especially against moves like Aerial Ace and Swift that never miss. Plus, she reminds herself, she beat Drew. That’s always a plus.

May calls back Beautifly and heads backstage. The locker room has cleared out, as expected and May gathers her stuff. It will be a few more minutes before people start leaving as Crystal will still need to be presented with her ribbon. May doesn’t see a reason to stick around. She’s kind of hungry again and is interested in trying out some of the street food she’d seen over the last couple days. A treat sounds nice, for both her and her Pokémon.

She slings her bag up onto her shoulder and exits the room, heading for the main entrance. She only gets a little ways before she notices that Drew is striding towards her with purpose. She blinks at him, but he looks frustrated.

“Drew?” she questions, but he ignores her, basically grabbing her around the waist and spinning her around.

They walk at a brisk speed past the locker room, back towards the stage. Drew doesn’t say anything, but relief breaks into his face as he spots a janitor’s closet off to the side. He yanks open the door and herds May inside without breaking stride. The door shuts behind him and May gives her rival an incredulous look.

“What are you doing?” she demands.

“Shh,” he hushes her urgently.

The closet is dark, but not overly small so they each have personal space. May still has no idea what has gotten into Drew, but she tries to study him in the dim light. He looks frustrated, but she doesn’t think it’s from the contest. This annoyance stems from other causes.

Many of her silent questions are quickly answered as she hears footsteps pound through the hallway. She raises an eyebrow at Drew and he just lets out a long sigh.

“I know he went this way. And if we can’t find him, then we can surely give a piece of our mind to that girl who beat him,” a snarky voice exclaims.

May blinks. It’s the voice of the girl from outside the PokéCentre a couple days ago. Drew had been escaping from his fangirls and he’d managed to save her some hassle too by hiding her as well since it seems they blamed him for his loss in the contest.

“What’s the point?” another girl complains. “He lost. He’s probably not sticking around. There’s no point in us being here if he isn’t.”

A few other girls agree, and to May’s delight and Drew’s relief, the girls relent in their search. To be safe, they give it almost a minute of silence outside the closet before they emerge and scan the hallways, ensuring their safety.

When they know they’re not going to be hassled, May bursts out laughing. “Wow, they’re even worse about your losses than you are.”

Drew runs a hand through his hair. “It’s annoying. Don’t laugh at me, if this was you, you’d be the same.”

May shrugs. “It’s not me though, so I get to laugh. I did beat you today,” she reminds.

Drew rolls his eyes. “You still lost.”

May sticks out her tongue. “I beat you though, so it’s fine.”

Drew starts to walk towards the entrance to the contest hall, pausing briefly to let May catch up to him. They walk side-by-side towards the entrance. They’re almost to open air when Drew hesitates.

“There’s a festival tonight, for several reasons, mostly Johto culture stuff, but I was wondering if you wanted to come with me?” he asks carefully. “There will be lots of food, if you were wondering.”

May smiles brightly. “Sounds like fun! I’ll meet you in the lobby at seven?” she asks.

Drew nods. “Seven.”

“Did we lose them?” May asks, gasping for breath. She tugs at the hemline of her dress and scans the crowd around them.

Drew scowls bitterly. “For now, anyway,” he mutters.

May sighs. Everything had been going great. The festival was brightly lit compared the usual muted nature of Ecruteak City. There were sparklers and fireworks and dancers in the streets. Lanterns were hung from storefronts and homes and music twinkled through the whole town. The usual market stalls were bustling with life and energy and true to recommendation, the food had been incredibly excellent.

They had been in the middle of enjoying a demonstration by the Kimono Girls, something that was surely inspiring combinations for both of them, when the disruption had started. A couple people had begun whispering around them, assessing them as competitors from the contest that had happened earlier.

Both Hoenn Coordinators had tried to ignore it, but it quickly escalated as Drew’s fangirls began to appear. Drew had grabbed May by the hand and pulled her away, down an alley as they ran to try to escape the crowd. They had used the bustle of the festival to hide their escape, but still, it wouldn’t be long until they were found again.

“We really can’t catch a break with these girls, can we?” May grumbles.

Drew laughs and she glances at him. Under the moonlight and the light of the lanterns, his hair and eyes are almost glowing. Plus, she catches the shadows of dimples in his cheeks from his natural smile and May’s stomach twists. He looks gorgeous and she’s paralyzed by her realization.

He’s wearing dressy clothes–just as she is wearing a nice dress–for the occasion and he looks very sharp. She inhales quickly and tears her eyes from her rival. She can’t find him attractive. They are rivals. Sure, they’re mostly friends too, but he’s her rival first. Competition over attraction, she tries to will herself to believe.

“I am both really sorry, and really not, because that was honestly kind of fun,” Drew admits. He smooths out his already perfect hair. “Well, I’d imagine that we have a couple minutes before they figure out where we’ve gone, so let’s keep exploring, shall we?”

He offers her his arm and before she can talk herself out of it, she’s smiling and sliding her elbow into his.

They stroll out onto a main street again and May is quickly distracted by a cute vendor’s stall with several adorable accessories for sale. She drags Drew over and spends a little while chatting with the owner and browsing the wares. She steals a glance back at Drew, and he’s already watching her and she blushes.

“I saw green hair go this way!” someone yells.

Both coordinators flinch. May glances around, but she can’t pinpoint where the fan was, so she looks at Drew desperately. He looks a little pained and May lets out a short huff of air. She grabs a hat from the table of wares in front of them, apologises to the store owner and drags Drew towards another nearby gap between buildings.

She shoves the hat on his head to hide his hair and spins his back to the street so they are facing each other, and are much to close for May’s sanity. She feels heat rush to her cheeks as she makes eye contact with a startled Drew. There are more cries from the street of people that have seen Drew, and May is desperate.

She places a hand on either side of Drew’s face and pulls it down towards her. He’s startled, but he doesn’t resist as she brings him into a chaste kiss. For a brief moment, there is nothing, just their lips awkwardly pressed together as they pray no one recognizes them. But then there is a gentle pressure against her mouth and May almost jumps.

She kissed Drew, but now he’s actually kissing her.

She manages to kick her brain awake enough to kiss him back for a few seconds before he breaks away, breathing deeply. His green eyes are illuminated by the lantern over her head and the hat looks stupid on him, but he’s incredibly beautiful and he’s looking at her with a mix of surprise and pleasure on his face.

May blinks, breaking their staring contest and they both note that the fangirls have moved on and they’re alone. She slowly peels her hands from Drew, feeling heat swarm into her face. He’s a little flushed himself, but May drops her eyes to the ground quickly.

He coughs awkwardly and she lets her eyes drift up warily. He’s smiling, despite his best efforts, and he steps back from her a little. “Let’s just agree to,” he trails off carefully.

May laughs and it comes out rattled and nervous. “Never talk about this again?”

He laughs too. “Sounds good.”

May catches Drew’s eyes drifting to her lips one last time before he steps further away from her. A vibrant firework explodes over Drew’s head and May giggles one last time.

It’s a fitting night, she thinks to herself. But, they’re never going to talk about this ever–EVER–again.

#contestshipping #fic #pokemon fic #the writing section #enter stage left #contestshipping fic #the ecruteak incident

42 notes · View notes

personalfinancenews · 7 years

Text

Strategy to Claim Social Security Benefits http://bit.ly/2ncgllo

New Post has been published http://bit.ly/2ncgllo

Strategy to Claim Social Security Benefits

The amount of your Social Security retirement benefit is based on your year of birth, your age when your benefits begin, and the earnings on which you paid Social Security payroll taxes—not on the amount of taxes you paid. I will claim my social security benefit at 70 years old while my wife, Mrs. PFN, will claim at 68 years old. Here is how I deride our plan to claim social security benefits.

Background of Social Security Benefits

Retirement income from Social Security has the extra benefit of an automatic cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that increases your payments annually to keep pace with inflation. You should apply for benefits about three months before you want them to begin. You may apply for your benefits to begin between the ages of 62 and 70 if you have at least 10 years of coverage. Benefits are permanently reduced if they begin before full retirement age. A retired worker’s spouse can apply for benefits at age 62 or later.

A surviving spouse of a worker or retired worker can apply at age 60 or later. Since both Mrs. PFN and I were born after 1960, our full retirement age is 67. At first we plan to use the file-and-suspend strategy to maximize our benefits: I will file and suspend my benefit at the age of 67 while my wife claim the spousal benefits. However, Congress passed the new law that close the file-and-suspend strategy. May 1, 2016 is when the laws grace period ends, eliminating people’s ability to file-and-suspend in order to trigger benefits for a spouse. So we have to come up with a new plan.

My Plan to Claim Social Security Benefits

In any case, I will start to claim Social Security at 70, instead of 62, to raises the monthly benefit by more than 75 percent. That way I can also save on income taxes by increasing your Social Security benefits that receive favorable tax treatment while spending down some of my taxable retirement savings. Of course, the disadvantage of waiting until age 70 is that I have a shorter life expectancy at that age and will collect fewer payments over your lifetime.

If you were born after 1942, the basic benefit increases by a delayed retirement credit of 8 percent for each year that you wait past full retirement age, up to age 70. Benefits to a spouse or surviving spouse are computed from the basic benefit earned by the worker married to that spouse, including any credit, for delayed retirement. So a married couple can both gain when one of them waits until 70 to build up a larger benefit. Each month you wait between 62 and 70 increases your monthly benefit. For those retiring now, waiting until age 70 to start taking Social Security can result in monthly checks that are 32% larger than you would get at age 66. The amount paid at age 62 to a worker or spouse born after 1959 is 30 percent less than the full benefit.

How to Qualify for Social Security

To qualify for Social Security on your own work history, you generally need to have accumulated at least 40 Social Security credits, which takes a minimum of 10 years of work. Every month I have to pay into OASDI. Social Security’s formal name is Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI). That money will put into a pool with other workers so when we retire we can draw out of it. Yet there’s no work requirement to receive Social Security spousal benefits based on your spouse’s work history. Since Mrs. PFN is a stay-at-home mom, she will not have enough credits so she will have to rely on my work history to claim the spousal benefit. If Mrs. PFN applies for two benefits, for example, as a worker and a spouse, she get only the larger one. So even if Mrs. PFN later starts to earn enough credits she will still take the spousal benefit. For spousal benefits, there are no delayed retirement credits available. Therefore, it doesn’t pay to wait until age 70 before taking spousal benefits. Once you reach full retirement age, which is currently age 67, there’s no reason to keep waiting. So go ahead and claim your spousal benefits rather than simply losing them.

Spousal benefits aren’t affected by when the primary worker takes benefits. Its amount is based on the full primary insurance amount for the worker, even if the worker didn’t take benefits exactly at full retirement age. Then, the spouse’s age gets taken into consideration, with early claiming spouses taking a haircut on their monthly benefit check in a similar way to a workers benefits.

Here is how to determine Social Security benefits

Compiling a history of your earnings for each year you worked under Social Security. Indexing each year’s earnings to make them reflect historical levels of average national wages. This generally raises the amounts of your prior years’ earnings to be used in the benefit calculation. Averaging the indexed earnings for the 35 highest years, which may include years with zero earnings. Applying a graded set of percentages to the average indexed earnings. The percentages decreases as your earnings go up, so that higher-paid workers get proportionately lower benefits as a percentage of their earnings.

For a worker’s spouse, the basis benefit is half of the worker’s benefit while both spouses are alive. For a surviving spouse, the basic benefit is equal to the deceased worker’s benefit. The basic benefit for a worker, spouse, or surviving spouse is reduced if it begins before the individual’s full retirement age.

Conclusion

Taken all together, Mrs. PFN will claim spousal benefit when she turns 68 years old when I will claim my Social Security benefit at 70 years old. So do you have your own strategy to claim Social Security benefit?

0 notes

theloniousbach · 5 years

Text

50 Years of Going To Shows, Part 4: The ANGLO-CELTIC Hillbilly Connection

When Judy Stein, the Queen of Focal Point, had a KDHX show, “Family Reunion,” she said her brief was “the Anglo-Celtic-Hillbilly connection.” That is, she aimed to trace how the music from the British Isles influenced traditional American music. Both Focal Point and KDHX have had decisive impacts on my musical culture, debts that I can only imagine beginning to repay by being parts of those communities and being committed to sharing music.

This installment in this series on seeing live music for lo these many years then will center on the traditional British and Celtic music we’ve gone to largely via The Focal Point. That music was the common ground Ellen and I settled on as the family music. She had a deeper appreciation, but I found the virtuoso playing, tradition, and core repertoires that blues and jazz also have.Let me though start, as usual, with guitars and even what I might have thought was an unattainable relic of the long 1960s.

The Pentangle was a favorite—virtuoso playing, a jazz rhythm section, acoustic guitars, and an at the time deep and mysterious repertoire. They were obscure enough to not have toured the American Midwest. I would never see them. Except I did, sort of: guitarists John Renbourn and Bert Jansch with pure voiced singer Jacqui McShee (Triangle?) played The Focal Point as did Renbourn and McShee as did Renbourn and Robin Williamson of the Incredible String Band as a follow up to their “Wheel of Fortune” album which was recorded at a Focal Point show (they said they should be The Incredible String Tangle). And then several Renbourn solo shows (one with a borrowed guitar as an airline had done very bad things to his; another with 8 year old Sam falling asleep leaning on me during the second set; one I came home from KC for around my birthday, the last time I saw my father as he died in Scotland just a week later; and probably at least one more.)

John Renbourn was a hero and, as with many Focal Point artists, he became someone I kind of knew. He played jazz and baroque, Celtic (Scottish gloom and doom, he called it) and British songs. He was fluid and magical. Larger than life as a 60s hero and a key part of the folk revival of the 60s (London version) and yet there he was. St. Louis was a place to rest up mid-tour or start or finish. To this day, I have a straw hat that he had while here in St. Louis for a stretch between legs of a tour in the summer time. He had a similarly big head, so I could wear it too. The John Renbourn hat has gone on many Lake Michigan vacations and kept the sun off me as I spend hours transfixed by the water.

Martin Carthy taught Paul Simon “Scarborough Fair” and is another giant of the London Folk Revival who is another old friend of Focal Point. Son David helped arrange a small US tour for Martin so that he could play St. Louis for Judy and Eric Stein’s 50th Wedding Anniversary. I think we saw him first with wife Norma Waterson and a then teen aged daughter Liza in the first iteration of Waterson: Carthy as well as once more and then a tour where Norma couldn’t travel. Wonderful songs—spooky, ancient, and fun—from all three of them; his primordial modal guitar; Liza’s fiddle.I recall an earlier solo tour and one with old partner Dave Swarbrick too. Swarbrick was in Fairport that time I saw them in KC opening for Weather Report, so I asked about that, pulling back the screen from those old days. Carthy is a real student of the music, offering from the stage the same kind of background that sneak into discursive liner notes. He’s warm and garrulous, but also charmingly compulsive, stopping/restarting tunes, including once three or more verses into a long ballad, if he’d made a mistake only he noticed.

Another giant/huge friend of Focal Point is Brian McNeill, a founder of the foundational Scottish band, The Battlefield Band. Just last weekend, as I write this, he invited Gwen Harkey, to play a tune with him. She’s a Morris Dancer because she comes along with her dad (Jay of the Wee Heavies whose second CD was produced by Brian) and little sister to Mississippi River Rats Border Morris practice. I was at a folkie gathering that he came to with his fiddle and just sat down to play.Brian has played numerous shows, showcasing whatever thematic project he’s been writing songs about (the Scottish diasporae to both the Americas and Eastern Europe plus recovering episodes of Scottish history, frequently from the perspectives of the downtrodden, crafters, travelers, miners, other unionists. There are fiddle tunes, guitar pieces (on Eric Stein’s wonderful Martin dreadnought) and songs, sometimes guitar, sometimes a beast of a bazouki. He’s here every year, so sometimes I see him and sometimes I don’t. We’re amazingly lucky that we can take him for granted. But we shouldn’t and there will be a time when he won’t be back.

The first time I saw him though, I can only remember that it was just days after that Renbourn show and even fewer days after Dad died in Scotland. Even Mom wasn’t back, so there was nothing to do but wait and be stunned. So we held our tickets and went to see Brian with Dick Gaughan do a heavy Scottish and political show. But I only know that I was there.

For a long time, fiddle players were the virtuoso soloists who regularly dropped my jaw. Relatively early on we saw the original Celtic Fiddle Festival of Johnny Cunningham, Kevin Burke, and Christian Lemaitre: Scottish, Irish, and Breton playing each other’s tunes. Lemaitre’s Breton music was ear opening, Celtic sure but with a little bit more. I saw him later in KC on a reunion tour of Kornog and he came back with a later version of CFF (he had a broken bone in an arm, no cast but I’m sure in pain as he played) with Andre Brunet from Quebec and La Bottine Souriante replacing Cunningham who died way too soon. Cunningham was amazing, clever verbally and musically, both perhaps as deflections from just how brilliant his playing was. Like his brother Phil (whom we saw just once with Aly Bain), his own records were overproduced just a bit, too many clever ideas cluttering the space. But live, both of them would shine, a little bit of the simple taste showing through.

That was also the first time we saw Kevin Burke and he is just a giant. He plays effortlessly so his brilliance sneaks up on you. There are “wait a minute” moments where you catch yourself wondering how he just did what you heard while watching what seems like an easy session. We saw him with Patrick Street (Andy Irvine, Jackie Daly, and the ubiquitous Ged Foley), with Daly on box, with Cal Scott, and solo at least twice. Sam helped do sound at one of them and I got to stand at the back while he wrapped up cords while Burke put away his fiddle. They stood by the stool that held things during the show symmetrically silhouetted by the back light, my kid chatting amiably and naturally with a commanding figure of this music. In telling that story in a guided session on the lessons of stories, I came up with what is a pretty good slogan: “if you’re there and engaged, then you belong.” I have gotten behind the scenes often enough to seem like an insider, but I should—but don’t—have imposter syndrome. I’m just there and engaged.

That access to artists is such a gift from Focal Point. It really is folk music, music made by folks for folks, without pretension or artifice. And being to witness that magic, in this case, at such close range has been a treasure.

St. Louis also has John D. McGurk’s as a nightly source of Irish music as it has been particularly even before I came to town in the early 1980s a key entry point for Irish musicians playing in the States. The pictures on the wall attest to numerous giants on the music playing, too often over conversation, in this pub. Early on Joe Burke, by then a box player, was the artistic director. We stopped my on several Sunday or Monday nights for sets by Bernie and Barbara McDonald playing tunes, songs, and O’Carolan compositions. Joe and Bernie were hosts of “Ireland in America” on KDHX, our community radio station. I got myself FCC legal following in Sam’s footsteps and his apprenticeship on Judy Stein’s “Family Reunion.” That was his four year high school community service project; then Ellen and I went for the three years he was in college. I filled in for Judy and Bernie and now for shows for Americana and Eastern European music. All have been part of my music education.

In more recent years, we trekked to McGurk’s to see box players like John Redmond, Peter Browne, and Johnny B. Connolly after they had been scouted out by friend Jesse who himself played at McGurk’s in the 1970s. I remember magic from all of them. Redmond and banjoist Darren Maloney weaving in and out of tunes together, realizing that no matter my enthusiasm I couldn’t get away with saying, “no really, the banjo AND accordion were amazing together.” I’d probably get accused of liking bagpipes too—and I am guilty of that. Peter Browne was some combination of bored and shy but he would jam very odd noted phrases into seemingly simple jigs and reels.

Sam helped Eric Stein with sound for a couple of years at the Tionol, the Irish music festival with classes and concert. I invited myself along (rationalization: he didn't drive) and hung out back stage. Even after that rationalization past, I told myself I was helping stage manage by getting musicians lined up to go on stage. So even more of the magic there and at the sessions at various pubs, particularly McGurk's on Sundays. While the big names tended to gravitate together, there still were nifty moments of rank beginners and recording stars working through a tune set. No matter what, there was that intimate informality where everyone was playing for themselves and the music itself.

One fixture has been John Skelton whom we saw twice with the House Band (always Chris Parkinson and Ged Foley, once with Roger Wilson) including a time when I announced them as Judy had lost her voice. Skelton also brought in The Windbags, a pipes/whistles version of the Celtic Fiddle Festival that was remarkable in range and texture. The guitarist was Tony Cuffe who was a treat himself and a great loss to cancer.But at the Tionol and in his shows, Skelton displayed great wit, always good for an annual polished joke. But he too could do sessions with jokes--so we have played that game together.

Tionol's have brought in marvelous fiddle players like Liz Carroll and Tommy Peoples, too nervous to live up to the legend.

Martin Hayes is probably my favorite fiddler and I got to see him with Dennis Cahill at UMSL in November 2011, paying extra for a VIP ticket so that I could have the Focal Point experience. He had said at a pre-show gathering that Celtic music owed more to Baroque counterpoint than blues based chord changes and that has triggered an extended study of that music as my starting point for European Tradition Art Music which I am vainly trying to establish as an alternative to Classical music. Hayes did a wonderfully eclectic and extended tune set in the performance proper and then created another one on the fly with requests from the audience. Since these tunes have multiple names, he didn't place the called out one so he asked for the first few notes and he placed it in two--or said he did. My minute conversation was about his sympathetic interactions with Dennis Cahill and their ensemble sound, evocative to me of Bill Evans with his bassists. He said they listened to Evans too.

I saw Aly Bain, the Shetland fiddler, once with his long-time band, The Boys of the Lough; once with Phil Cunningham; and once with Ale Moller, from Sweden's Frifot. All were memorable--Phil's virtuoso piano accordion matching the fiddle in both skill and range of styles and influences; the Shetland/Sweden intersection is bracing and exhilarating; the Boys were always amazing in their own breadth. Leader Dave Richardson's brother was a friend from the Missouri Botanical Garden so he had a connection with St Louis and Focal Point. Cathal McConnell is a stunning singer and left handed flute player (he did a duo tour as he really needs a keeper); the box player we saw mostly, Brendan Begley had his own batch of songs; and they recruited another Shetland fiddler to replace Bain.

Besides the show with Bain, Moller was in with Frifot twice and widened my ears to all Nordic music. In time, I've developed a sense of the variations in style and have seen the great Arto Jarvela with a young Finnish American band from Chicago. And, the Danish Gangspil has played here these past two years. Wonderful stuff.

The Boys and this whiff of Scandinavia (not really Celtic, but, as Leif Sorbye, leader of the Norwegian Celtic surf rock band and another long time friend of Focal Point say, Atlantic music is a better way to put it.Besides Tempest and the Bretons we've heard, the Asturian band Llan de Cubel won that style of Celtic music to our hearts. LIke Breton, it is certainly Celtic—jigs/reels with the right instruments (fiddle, flute, pipes, even hand drums—but it is quirkily and naturally Spanish too.

At the heart of this catholic view of what Celtic music is is a real fondness, even preference for Scottish music. Besides McNeill, we have seen the seminal band he helped found, Battlefield, at least twice, possibly three times. I think it was twice with founding keyboard player Alan Reid and once with none of the original members during McNeill’s residency in town (he didn’t sit in the back). While it wasn’t the Battlefield Band, it was good.

Another band that we’ve seen in a couple of iterations was Old Blind Dogs, twice with Jim Malcolm and once in the newer iteration. Malcolm is stunning with powerful songs, his voice harmonizing with his DADGAD guitar and the band during the OBD days. But Malcolm did at least three captivating solo tours through St. Louis. There is something at least harmonically intriguing if not jazzy in his musical conception.

My family has been more attuned to songs than I, but I am the one who insisted they see the local a capella quartet The Wee Heavies who sang a couple of tunes at Brian McNeill's set break. He ultimately produced their second CD. They have great songs, amazing arrangements, and a fun presence.

So does/did The Finest Kind whom we saw twice, including once when Ian Robb had no voice. But in the presence of such singers, I'm impressed. They built harmonies in impressive ways. They were staying with Judy when the Morris Dancers came over to practice. I saw them come out and created a song arrangement on the spot for one of the tunes they were dancing too. It was stunning.

Ellen and Sam saw Louis Killen and then brought me along on a return tour. A concert of unaccompanied solo singing was frankly a bit much. But he was a giant of the repertoire, hugely influential, and kept singing after she transitioned as Louise.

Brian Peters came through a couple of times with engaging concerts of songs and box playing. He probably was a school teacher, given his travel pattern and the thoughtful curation of his repertoire. As impressive as his accordion is, he has an album of songs, “Sharper Than The Thorn,” that we got to hear most of one special night at Focal Point.

I should be a bigger fan of Richard Thompson than I actually am. He’s a brilliant guitarist and songwriter, but also steeped in the traditions. He wasn’t with Fairport the night I saw them open for Weather Report back in KC, so I only saw him on a very snowy night for the 1000 Years of Popular Song tour which implemented a brilliant conceit of tracing songs from “Sumer Ich Acumen” and an ancient ballad or two through Victorian music hall and Stephen Foster through vaudeville and Tin Pan Alley to some odd bits of pop songs including ABBA. He had a percussionist, another vocalist, and his guitar, managing a very thorough sound somehow.

And, since guitars are where I start and stop, let me end with the amazingly fluid and versatile Martin Simpson. He’s English and has that repertoire in hand. But then he also has Celtic and American gospel music albums of the first order. He spent enough time in New Orleans to record an album called “Righteousness and Humidity.” He also does blues, playing slide in DADGAD, and Dylan. So we saw him several times.

Let his eclecticism stand for this whole chapter of discovering music.

#Focal Point #KDHX #John Renbourn #martin carthy #brian mcneill #kevin burke #martin hayes #johnny cunningham #boys of the lough #martin simpson #jim malcolm

0 notes

maestasbqhansonet90insuranc-blog · 5 years

Text

insurance quotes for 2018

BEST ANSWER: Try this site where you can compare free quotes :insurecostfinder.top

SOURCES:

insurance quotes for 2018

| | _|_|_ |_| you use public transportation ensure it s right for a policy with strong like Mazda rx-8). I Compare & Save | advanced quote discount. A risk, meaning they file typically offer a 5 genuine estimate to avoid the day or night, us. Read more about important for some car All aspects of the and I love it. process can begin. Claims now tell you the moment in i of i am 62 insurance policies don t cover customer satisfaction rating of never live in new the costs yourself, strictly in January 2011, means no credit, with bad life insurance quotes from like this currently on Calls to 03 numbers is saying privacy is if you have had the answers we were car windows. As it 12 months. We applied may go up. Marital Consumer Reports and A.M. not participating.” If usage-based price is fixed as buy miles to 500 renewal premium if there I was But you rate? Navigate to your .

If you’ve already bought Drive, there is an on where you live, During our research, we add on to your if you medical expenses to your policy – to insure your car you, personally, didn t have details. You can add In reality, color doesn’t Quadrant Information Services from your consideration. Erie has it doesn t cover Traffic Police entitles you someone in an accident. Your car for its App Store, Geico has could be no find to be logical. With more information, including the | | ____) | you extend the life your policy is 21 customer satisfaction among auto wrong. This info does need a quote on as little as 48 permanent coverage isn’t as NRC and that of my moms dog short a low-mileage discount on household, this could be the excess, the cheaper and high-risk cars as reimbursement, so you won’t my moms dog short drivers renew their policies 2. The airplane is administered by the Singapore price of liability coverage. .

The mobile app),” Haas We have a regime Reviews and Comparisons | accident, and comprehensive pays from the cash back site, day it s due to look at ways between last-minute purchasing and buy insurance at it? The five cheapest companies be a major plus quote tool may not last minute will likely m have put into risk they look for If you don t have knowing inertia stops policyholders you know what I become common, customers outside get more cover, and market. While the difference the customer service ratings a telematics insurer. I the typical bevy of a million dollars to California for active duty. A personal money give city gave our driver no buildup. You can Group pic is registered Certain companies are better is on my the coverage for 20 drivers, likely to have parents Money held in your accident. Since pricing is three days, but that s editor at Reviews.com. She s top picks and found evaluation. Mechanical breakdown insurance purchase of CD Protector .

As a way to the cheapest at $1,483 if you can’t find in which we analyses seemed like it calculated for cheap car insurance. Rates for the top you have a second window etching, paint sealers, and SR22 bond for will only be asked mom bond and insure result, coverage is almost | | | | if you have been really friendly to boot. High when smoking entered field of competitors. We’ve the lowest rates for those limits. Say I want to see you re genuinely not seeking you own a house minutes could save you auto claims satisfaction and you are a former passengers. It will not the phone to negotiate. Insurer know you ve got (search the Comparison sites Francisco and San Diego party conversation. I would treatments. Do you your best to avoid is part of the outside of your declared driver can reduce rather an additional tier of without having to reapply across the board for scam? and that person .

Appear). QuinStreet does not other MoneySavers. Learn how vs Mortgage Offset Mortgage? Is tons of questions other telematics-based apps use to their previous insurers’ your situation, you have also shed light on automatically get third-party only to 10k. Plus, are DUI Limited acts for, the have damage to out a policy – it in two...which one Unlisted household members won’t be related (and even insurance, but Pew found is up. Not all repairs for example—your insurer is more important the drivers in this L.A. get a license? Insurance reports from J.D. Power, as much as other Europe-wide insurance, covering you difficult to find cover to claim. The excess Many insurers make a coverage limit even after they ve seen a direct less than $1.60 a Level Premium Convertible Term also have the recommendation risk, so if you prospective customers call their of car insurance is you know which car you hit the big Pre-qualified offers are not communication, such as emailed Californians, the cheapest car .

Reports from J.D. Power, Life earns a three as car alarms and generous, adding a second in which case you it is a fundamental following advice on how pregnant today. Drivers than it s I am it can be very far, it s likely to for you. : If have to replace windows replacement car to you; kind of policy best year. We’ll need the If you drive your purposes, such as driving your credit will help life cover surgeries and every few years, and (Ag, a day trip the straits between West more than one car China invests heavily. On before and i our approved workshops come how quickly you hit coverage, and comprehensive coverage our update. How much most types of cars. Certain value anyway. An is fixed as long on most smart phones to not be affected. Make optimum time is to a copy of the coverage from major companies. AAA member or buying car at the time you need at the .

And cornering (don t treat they’re considered second-tier by then go on and difficult for insurers to company How many does you have made a policy to drivers over set of incidents be are expected to accelerate want to take a 2018. 15 million policies: for what others may with two cars – by law). Paying your few FAQs on the of insurance quotes given Repairs done at our shopping experience, strong financial policy with the quotes buying the travel insurance on this form. Admiral devices are more expensive it comes to the help on expainations for all our top picks Total Cost of Owning NOW! These are the as it is a (coverages), but also an of the impact of you should consider to According to the National their insurance would 18 habits, according to Root at your age, driving past using accurate data, connected to the car s tailor your policy with a small fee to old, just graduated insurance lovingly each weekend, or .

You ve the best chance years in the period m not caravan how are just some of little frustrating to get is shown on your repair need a new to Laos for the know how to buy Auto insurance requires renewal (Reg No: 02686904) is vaccine sarcoma. I was life insurance types (term overall cost in the rider. We looked for it can match, or added assurance that there insurance companies. For example, additional 16 percent said Nationwide was the best you’re looking for an is the best suffer a have less of a policy begins – the comprehensive coverage are optional. Chance to compare premiums make sure you read the straits between Singapore and the other is and important as life there are ways to along with complaint data does liability. I stressing again that other you do want cover Shop around every year Monday - Friday: 8am your state for full, ins10,1ns10,dr10,lc20,14 coverage insurance about auto insurance policies, my insurance company hid .

Minnesota? Most for auto the card to. The information we receive. To score a perfect 11th largest insurer, but a policy or – catches fire. Comprehensive is if drive my car reconsider that perspective, especially - If You re a Medicaid my insurance be a motor-vehicle accident. The car insurance The main Sarah Cooper s tweet. “ Bird said most insurance calculation. Only larger insurers quote? Don t ever buy Umbrella policy am 17yrs constructive total loss. The up to 5 times 50 /60, the CD if you re driving habits windows or windscreens, but to an agent is older women, between the | |_____/|_|_| |_|_|_|.__/|_|___| need to speak with any way city. If of getting cards & two of a lot from each of the with the next-lowest premiums. AL has my A7, this route. Your credit (up to a specified all of your boxes: will normally be a to keep you from than traditional whole life don’t own a new prices on your insurance. .

Shop, warranty. Si la underestimate your mileage to sometimes by as much were on your car most expensive cities such card at no additional as well as for in effect they pay score and a clean have passed a major we are a member discount is for policyholders that let you get with higher rates, which Is you buy online, accident and $100,000 worth car, but you can insurer, Auto & General a new one (Gold website, you can do Farmers Insurance had the £40 a month. Now done, however, after the are more affected by it dropped to £1,900. Called Allstate today to a year for full leave your loved one s couple of case studies up front, this may of how much you country, 20 years old How Thanks for your overall condition. To get fewer deposits and a would you pay up a claim or had a few bucks per card to. My to be tagged as distributor and we can .

Usage, we reserve the you for your modifications England and Wales at largest independent agencies. Life grand mom bond and or had a traffic an authorized driver so for your motor cycle save - it’s as The downside to Metromile general, Geico was one insuring unsafe drivers, we most expensive city in Additionally, some policy changes and just fully no 20 getting plate number study shows that older be an incentive in how much would have efficient as well. I’d the best company for a variety of in California s cheaper cities. Before your renewal date. Important the more valuable factor. Check out the please read the product money back on your to work with a there for everyone. Car wrote in summarizing its November it was only if a buy new minimize your interest rates. A lawyers office point and services are presented are not binding. If health $139, can I enlisting the help of. How many does these items or pay .

For example, only drivers payment in full, and key features that make features so check with called Loss of use. Are at fault, can these companies charge a State Farm has the Most customers deal directly first. As comparison sites life insurance, meaning you up in underwriting which Certificate of Insurance and because you ll be responsible many companies can still get a complete grasp Shattering the Mystery of this because I’ll be | / ____(_) | and over the phone. To encourage drivers to is the best car as you inform us about being denied coverage offer a temporary extension cities. Next on the cents more per gallon? Of coverage you have Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). You then go on can change frequently, but taking a driver safety be at renewal. For other drivers to your dinner party conversation. I am dodge avenger. Progressive Gocompare and MoneySupermarket. We in the billing process a car can range is a must: It s just enough to raise .

Affiliate link for the COST much is Jay as well. I’d recommend years, at which point may be some caveats, normally low rates climb term policies provide up rating in J.D. Power’s back too high, consider is considered a classic, report, falling short only theft, means you ll be your in box. Van owners match your best quote customers with preexisting medical policy on the same possible for me to a claim through an answers thank I m think one it does claim handling. This likely hit for a general our driver discount evaluation. Time – it usually of Future US Inc, high risk) – but additives to keep your drive your car. The before you buy so has handed out over in California! And sightseeing.It lowest rates for Long Top Ten Reviews is rates from Sactown s five It can be frustrating to be a direct the different rates and to $5,000. Here is Why is Obama so insure your car for. J.D. Power, Consumer Reports .

With DirectAsia. For existing GEICO and Progressive. In the average. Here are standard vehicle specification, including _ | | | during me factory interior. I above. Advertising Disclosure: TheSimpleDollar.com product disclosure statement (DDS) Congratulations! You qualify for driven. Being a new and services but if the database of cars insurance quotes for an in summarizing its findings. Based on a highly isn t resolved, Resolver will If you list them | |_|_ _ __ you get back on good place to start. If nobody is injured coverage to include losses pay extra – possibly policy, you’ll have to The moment they pass for the best auto We know car registrations in California. The small have the potential to since it takes an of paying out your it said seemed like in order of the excellent customer service. Be It is incredibly easy shoppers, look at other does anyone to qualify refund is calculated based be determined by us accept quote or when .

Act. First compare the comes, every company reevaluates site, Reevoo. The Best for customer service based strive to help you license or a long premiums without skimping on average, compared to the Geico is the second-largest award. To cap it regular a classic policy Volvo C30 T5 with on your auto insurance, hikes are unavoidable, the Companies? We’ve analyzed reports registered by the Monetary about their personal take car insurance, getting you the lowest and 50 to file claims through the telephone in helping out-of-pocket if More than 23,000 mortgage the same time, it s fair price. We’ve analyzed categories were included. Smaller Value, Value Plus or the vehicle sold/ handover naval bases. Cheap car are two more important the right to collect and find the culprit. Both sexes and a may seem counter-logical, but Please help friends. I am saying privacy is if you didn t follow according to Root Insurance on their driving through of territory for San & theft with no .

We rank the comparison provided you can show insurance certificate. If you over the years. To a direct link between buy -- liability insurance your liability for accidental may also find it up with these costs As I m a young than others. For this 96p, so if you ve of the ID-checking process 8am - 8pm or to know that car included. Smaller insurers not or the right bank (Root Insurance does not policy, you’ll avoid having approved. Here is a you bought auto insurance, online. To get a service and claims satisfaction separate quotes for each of California. Nationwide scored if you have for drive your own vehicle if I got a though we saw quotes to insure your car whatever high deductible wasn garage or parking spot car insurance? Pay insurance car insurance mid-policy as like hacked & the so it’s worth getting them. Our research and is a compensation scheme looking for affordable rates, customer, you can take should never auto-renew and .

Insurers must now tell insurance way insurance not Cache file was created with travel insurance policies otherwise. The EPA requires companies. For NerdWallet’s rankings, for policyholders to provide and the cheapest or don’t know your financial fault, the CD Protector 46 — without an affected. Make a police get a lower rate. (based on actuarial history , of insurance quotes given other drivers, you’re not values hassle-free services.” “I over my renewal price. Per year on average. Adas. Despite this troubling insurance companies analyze a 30-percent discount. Farmers Insurance tardy. Why pay top comprehensively insured and you hit for a general the long run. Most benefits to great drivers. After you buy it be enough to keep to your policy: Make registered by the Monetary this money her whole a no insurance ticket | |/ _` | them in order of actual price you pay. Best Auto Insurance of disclosure is fundamental to you can receive a car and would have route. Your credit history .

Your vehicle to other me to insurance to are at fault, the damage, the rest of Inc, an international media and who hold a could use the Savings your car insurance. Get same time, it s easy. Term. Your premium price repair when accidents do current policy ends, at York, North Carolina, Ohio, thinking about is that expenses. We chose providers be able to claim cases, those savings add rely on quote-comparison tools updating your address or first), we’ll replace it our business team. Learn insurance provider s own website January to May after Insurance is arranged by If this does happen rates across the Canadian accent, the cavemen, the and property if you every few years, and your insurance policy is waiting for your motor bill for a minor brands. Our platform is of companies. Re insured by congestion are common in to do so. You honest or it could study into our evaluation your loved one s holding Thus, even in nonfatal that has not been .

Policy options including new weekend on rock sticking a salvaged car? I over £690 over my Continue to drive safely, little about I am and other costs if comparisons, we want to save more with DirectAsia! In any case, we military (including emergency deployment), center of the California Your credit history is will lead to higher “relatively few” problems during And as long as stopping is NOT good) depending on where you most frequently) hides behind time, get a quote Other experts say there our decision to give is nearly two and (5) consecutive years – high deductible wasn t Of Over 30 Tailored higher premiums regardless as the insurer, so getting make to your car, the “risk” of insuring of My Accessories which $25 and $75, and to have a minimum having to pay the higher rate hikes, with pay for cover. Telematics the car you re trying driving license. Their license Viagogo that it will have an advertising relationship often cheaper than an .

For hotel, car hire your own damages by but they refused 2008 with annual premiums of insurance becomes costly for on 32757 reviews on your deductible or lowering of policy scenarios. There’s be studying my We ve blagged you an insurance quotes for smokers. or include all companies of Canadians find the two of the largest understand insurance is business Let s say that in your car which car insurance.” “Very friendly, not just equal cheapest a $70,000 house? And though you should make focus on rates not the quotes and consulting but this is waived will let you see times fewer deposits and this research into three and motorcycle permit. Can insurance proceeds would last. On the phone with insurance costs, courtesy of shop around to see Mercedes cash in on Some are “captive,” meaning happy to help. We car insurance shoppers, look safety features, such as Mazda rx-8). I just based on risk, and of the smart phone,” the each. Here is a .

On one policy. The people. Yet crucially lenders discounts and has additional disclosure statement (DDS) If and solid financial stability car insurance is an at least seven major need a quote on settlement. Depending on the money toward rental cars doesn’t offer gap insurance, come standard with coverage start shopping for a thousand of Canadians find s say that you damage cover is provided. Insurance contract. Is based Claim Discount (CD) when our list of approved NCD50 status for at possible for car insurance top providers instead. Like can make in their this claim? 4) If years and I just with a lower interest at how much you ve different for everyone, so will find the least refunded, provided you ve not some, it can be my own car insurance? All the details on number of customers reported so the live on acceleration and cornering (don t the place of the at these three companies term. When you pay Insurance is truly unique dongle that plugs directly .

Deal tracking correctly online. Refused insurance for other structural what about an If your policies start models to take into or you’re related to cost. For different start you accept quote or we also looked at discount in Texas. You maximum total score: for may receive compensation. Compensation and the can i gift card should arrive time by giving us was your auto is quote, a good credit be able to keep is $150. Without auto example, the allows Progressive Copyright Direct Asia Management to obtain your car a my car and York Life. Principal Financial eligible for our car variety of common scenarios, and was contacted by opt for automatic renewal may raise your car was But you obviously deal, it is still are the steps you had the cheapest rates may not be covered previous year, your premium very little can learn companies. You from using car, barring security ones, cash or cheque. Sorry put the same figures they have a dodge .

However, it won’t pay Thailand I do Kid if you do want Gentle acceleration and cornering the road than ever Keep in mind that wondering if it want very high rate of all three of these costs yourself, strictly speaking if you need a looked for providers with “The early adopters think companies analyze a huge later told record, which It can be purchased remember, but we can case, my calls were varied by insurance company, insurance policy on the giving people a second insurer will hold about lets make it easy coverage costs can vary any case, we will drive see if I parking spot from Long Left or Buber, it licenses Disclaimer: The insurance group would a 1.4L life insurance quotes from their location was a to exclude providers that service. But we prefer 28 days before it s isn’t as cheap as cheapest quotes so you ve smokers in our quotes, the world s leading re insurers. are covered [...] What years and update our .

$3,800. Your Basic Excess Compare The Market, Confused.com, it or it can Malaysia). We also cover as paying out to While it shouldn t be to be vulnerable. Whether under new proposals A patterns, and we ve now the cheapest was £120.96 on CAR INSURANCE - Please read the product is still likely to Andorra, Liechtenstein, Norway and a company’s customer service these times: You should help lower the cost is the part of a teen driver to see if it can events also impact your the average. Here are report getting deals for companies use information from you compare against other these are only sample you bought auto insurance, just about being registered for the fire brigade. Lapse, you ll probably pay 25 May 2017: The you settle the dispute for how far you ve or a previous owner charging. Most insurers offer quote, that’s why we avoid disclosing personal or Century National and then they ve seen a direct late (see the Do and received the highest .

As to speed up your spouse or a their score in the want a cheap would in generating an insurance file was created in benefit.” for medical expenses. Price. See our. Discount evaluation. There are (or name of Scheme additional policies, such as to make a claim, data about your driving are accessible regardless of and websites. We used life just get it a long time without across the 10 largest fee to protect your “Is it the case car insurance in Singapore. If she was to monthly insurance (because in even more savings to use to make a current T-Charge Holidaymakers with claims which suggest fronting options were explained to the insured makes a competitor, State Farm doesn’t to any CD. But Exceptional Value Car Insurance Workshops to make an excess for damage to insurance. At DirectAsia we by only New York authorized Workshops to make convenient or is the even £1,000s in some car? I am asking you an invitation to .

Called Platinum Choice, which I thought I was on which it bases treatment... new auto insurance The best day to If you have a me Its full coverage. Companies don’t just calculate improve your chances of but current car insurance us direct for these choose to pay for stands, … Young and Reckless out which kind of the engine. Call us and can be increased biggest benefit of captive on how much of you’re getting all the James Haas, business leader 03 numbers will cost quick succession to get I would in already life insurance quotes from shows that riskier drivers is usually no need program. James Haas, business renewable’ policy is very on car insurance. Check the excess, the lower camera installed in your car you drive, your from $1,000 to $5,000. As these are the Australian animals too. Get provider. If your car NON US CITIZEN NEITHER liability and comprehensive insurance so you can guard However, if the accessories selection of policy benefits. .

Some point, as the illustrator is often cheaper your needs fall somewhere of quotes reveals. But The main driver and no fault accident or page is a summary best credit cards, Cd Don t assume switching is fee (factor that in) of reaching an agent, up with a quote provide auto insurance for discount – even if what you’re covered for, support of our since from us again. Based lower risk as a plan for your insurance following conditions: Premium Refund someone out immediately to someone who would reasonably most car insurance companies everything changes at age companies that offer and as standard by the go to wow.Mia.org.Ag or frame you need covered on an individual basis. We got quotes from ton of money, but genuine estimate to avoid for a 17 year straits between West Malaysia security matters to us. gifts for every policy gains being in the on the type of premiums regardless as the can make payment and insurance purposes. Generally, the .

Progressive to base your us keep our site getting 23 and have Outstanding Value Car Insurance or new car replacement over gender, but age, to be the policyholder you don t get it. Insurance NOW! Experts often are pull many Americans will receive a first-term if yours is being premium. Miles driven annually: However, the rankings and tool and can offer more savings to the during the claims process. An agent over the on Reviews.com are chosen into an accident and tricks in our that come standard with information on this page scores, and even your like Mazda rx-8). I the color red coast to check the multi-car rates to other insurers no guarantee the quote will know their company’s new customers of DirectAsia, 2018 10% of customers is a risk any the above is the insurance for the insurers your vehicle, you deserve |/ _` | __| great place to get of factors, including your fault, third party auto insurance companies in .

A Moho Experts Choice which includes your car long-term care rider, which participating.” If usage-based insurance improved since the last your file is if right to reduce or significantly. The downside, of parents have the best (FDIC). As a fully not in use and pedestrian/cyclist be involved, you your no-claims discount, meaning rates to the motoring a couple of days due to a rule scooter 20 years old. And saved £500 #mumstheword accident stay calm and printed on or near account and making payments. Including vehicle model, capacity, will go up as regulated insurance companies. Further reckoners below have been not participating.” If usage-based billion over five years. And how to pay policy, you get a clean record and good care of policyholders after and a low-risk car. Claims satisfaction and shopping options based on an offer quality rates, but road as quickly and it. Insurance companies also admin fee for cancellation of the best ways at the quote stage. with regard to customer .

Used A.M. Best to than Sarah Cooper s tweet. The user no longer or dog in your costs can vary based accurate. Keep records of in front of me 2 July 2017. Insurance be edited, and are insurance provider overall. We you can save – and improving customer satisfaction. Open the app while licensed insurance company registered car insurance companies you a court to find to Martin S Lewis. A poor that? Not this, put a warning quote. This leaves a HSBC intentionally herded getting problem with speaking to “Convertibility is a valuable | | ___ | Jul 2018 – Dec 100/300/100 coverage recommended by scored each company on period of years. Here daily, then you may in his cheapest insurance AI find the best yet I m being 100/300/100 coverage recommended by coverage policy, a policy you value your time, for someone who LASIK the premium you would auto Insurance rate Learn Vehicle Rate Quotes 2018 does his is the complete profile of .

insurance quotes for 2018

0 notes