#Azure AD Join

[richardmhicks]

Microsoft Entra Global Secure Access

Last week Microsoft introduced new Security Service Edge (SSE) capabilities as part of the Microsoft Entra suite of technologies. Included in these announcements, Microsoft introduced the public preview of two new secure remote access technologies – Microsoft Entra Internet Access and Microsoft Entra Private Access. The latter of these will particularly interest Microsoft Always On VPN…

[errorcodehub]

How to Remove Microsoft "Work or school account"

[navybrat817]

Soak in the Tub

Pairing: Roommate!Bucky Barnes x Female Reader

Summary: You want to relax in the bathtub with Bucky. He wants to make you feel good.

Word Count: Over 1.9k

Warnings: Explicit sexual content, fingering, implied unprotected vaginal sex, dirty talk, inner monologue, established relationship, feels (it's me), Bucky Barnes (he's a warning, okay?).

A/N: My first Bucky Barnes Smut Menu fic of 2024, courtesy of @ellemj, and it belongs to Stud and Smartie, thanks to a sweet nonnie's inspiration. Crossing off roommate and fingering. ❤️ Not beta read and written on my phone, so any and all mistakes are my own. Please follow @navybrat817-sideblog for new fics and notifications. Comments, reblogs, feedback are loved and appreciated!

“Take a bath with me, Stud.”

Bucky sat in his chair with a book in hand as you walked by in your robe. You glanced behind you just in time to see him look up from the page and sweep his gaze over your body. “Was that a request or an order?” He asked, placing the bookmark in-between the pages.

You raised an eyebrow as you turned back toward him. “Let’s call it an order in the form of a request,” you teased, putting a hand on your hip when he pretended to consider it. “Come on. Please?”

It was a quiet afternoon and the two of you had nowhere to be. As much as you didn't want to interrupt his reading, you finished the puzzle you were working on earlier and wanted just a bit of attention. Not much, but some.

And as soon as you finished soaking in the tub, he could go right back to reading.

He chuckled and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. “And why are you heading toward my bathroom and not yours?”

You loosened the tie on your robe enough to expose some of your skin, your heart pounding against your ribcage when his eyes followed the motion. You both knew he was going to join you. “Because your bathroom has the bigger tub,” you reminded him. It was only fair that he got the luxurious bathtub since the apartment was his long before you moved in. “And we both know you love the oil I use.”

“That’s our little secret, Smartie.” Bucky set the book aside and pushed himself to his feet. It was your turn to stare as he stretched, the bottom of his shirt riding up to expose the top of his underwear and just enough of his chiseled abs that your brain began to shut down and reboot. “Should I take my shirt off for you so you can see more of me?”

Fucking duh.

You blinked rapidly and felt your cheeks heat up when he smirked, but you refused to feel shame that he caught you staring. You had every right to look at the gorgeous specimen that was your roommate and lover. Considering he looked at you as if he could swallow you whole at any given moment, it was only fair to return the favor.

“I want you to take everything off. I’ll start,” you said, taking a breath before you pushed the robe from your shoulders and let it fall to the floor.

As it pooled at your feet, you saw nothing but love and desire in his azure eyes. “Fuck,” he whispered, your confidence soaring when you heard his metal fingers curl.

You fought the urge to grip his long hair and drag him in for a deep kiss. If you did, you wouldn't make it to the bathtub and you really wanted a soak. “You can join me when you pick your jaw up off the floor,” you smiled, turning and walking away with a sway of your hips.

You exhaled when you got to his bathroom, your legs a little wobbly and an ache growing between your legs. It wouldn't be long until Bucky joined you, so you went right to the tub and turned the water on. You tested it with your fingers before you added the oil, inhaling the scent with a hum.

“Took me a minute to pick my jaw up,” Bucky said from behind you as you straightened up and spun around. “You're just too beautiful.”

You somehow managed not to preen from his compliment or collapse when you stared his muscular chest and abdomen, his clothes long gone. You took an extra second to admire the naked man in front of you. He heard from you more than once that he had the body of a god, one to worship and die for. His thick cock only made your knees weaken more as you glanced down.

Fuck, I want it in my pussy. In my mouth. Just give it to me.

But beneath the gorgeous package, Bucky was stunning because he was the best man you knew. No one affected you the way he did. You suspected no matter how long you were together that it would always be that way.

“So, you had me slack jawed and now I render you speechless,” he winked, brushing his body against yours as he moved close to the tub. “We’re quite the pair.”

“Yeah, we are,” you smiled, your heart swelling before he turned and gave you a chance to check out his backside.

Would he fault me if I bit one of his cheeks?

Bucky stepped into the tub with a sigh and slowly sank down, nodding for you to join him as he spread his massive thighs. You let out a moan of appreciation as you got in and sat down between his legs. As large as he was, there was enough space that the two of you could relax together.

Whatever home the two of you eventually moved into or had built would have to have a nice soaker tub.

“We really are quite the pair,” he told you, bringing another smile to your face. “I’m keeping you forever.”

And ever.

“I’m keeping you, too.”

As he wrapped his arms around you to pull you back against him, you were happy to sit there in comfortable silence. You cherished the conversations you had, but also adored the moments like this when you said nothing at all. Where you could just hold each other and feel secure and connected.

That's love.

Bucky used his foot to turn the water once it was high enough and put some soap in the nearby washcloth, drawing a gasp from you when he brought it to your inner thigh.

“You do know I can wash myself,” you teased, but didn't stop him from moving it along your leg.

“I know you can,” he said, your stomach flipping as his hand moved higher. It was a completely innocent gesture, but he could make anything sinful. “But I like doing these kinds of things for you.”

The unwavering sincerity in his tone made your heart melt. “Thank you.”

He switched to your other leg as your body relaxed more, your thighs parting without him needing to ask. Your body was completely in tune with him. And it was nice to have someone who wanted to take care of you.

“So, was there any particular reason why you wanted to have a bath together?” He asked against your skin, his hot breath making you shiver and tilt your head slightly.

“Just wanted you to relax with me,” you replied, a whimper slipping out as his lips moved delicately along your neck. Your eyes fluttered, thankful that you were sitting since you felt weak in the knees.

Bucky made a sound like he didn't quite believe you. “Maybe you did, but I also think you wanted me in here so I could see you naked,” he said, dropping the washcloth into the water before his hand moved up your trembling thigh again. He placed a soft kiss beneath your ear when he added in a low voice, “And feel how wet you are.”

Your breath caught as you looked between your legs in time to see his large hand cup your mound. You jutted your hips up in the hope to get some friction and he took mercy on you by brushing a finger along your folds. “I’m always wet for you, Bucky,” you whispered, gasping when he teased your entrance. “Feel me.”

He pressed a kiss to your shoulder with a groan when he pushed a thick finger inside, his palm pressing against your clit. “I feel you,” he rasped when he slid another finger in. “Do you know how good it makes me feel knowing how much you want me?” He asked, brushing his metal hand over your breasts, taking a moment to tease your hardened nipples and send a ripple of pleasure through you. “Feels so fucking good.”

The fact that he can get that hand wet and still… Oh, fuck. Right there.

“How could I not want you? I want you so badly,” you moaned, the water splashing around you gently when you bucked your hips. “I want your big, fat cock inside me. Please,” you begged, surprising you with how easily the dirty words tumbled out.

“Jesus fuck. You're killing me,” he grunted, his fingers thrusting and lightly curling inside of your soaked pussy as his other hand slid to your neck. “Telling me you need to relax when you need me to fuck you.”

Both. I need both things.

You whined when you felt his cock press against the curve of your ass. “Please. Fuck me, fuck me,” you chanted, your walls tightening around the thick digits as they pushed in deeper.

He nearly growled when he gripped your chin and turned your head toward his, devouring your mouth. You encouraged him to deepen the kiss as you parted your lips and let him slip his tongue inside. The taste of him was intoxicating. You wanted to get drunk on him.

“Come on my fingers first,” he whispered against your lips when he pulled away. You were unable to keep from whimpering when he circled his palm against your clit, heat radiating from your core. “Come on, pretty girl. Show me how badly you want my cock.”

You reached back to grip his hair when your orgasm hit you hard and fast, your other hand holding his arm as your cries bounced off the walls. His fingers stretched and rubbed you through it, your toes curling and eyes slipping shut. His lips touched your temple when your legs shook, swept away by his desire.

“That’s it. Get my fingers wet. So fucking beautiful,” he praised before you turned your head again and sought out his lips, your heart racing as you came down. His fingers didn't stop until you whined into his mouth, your breathing heavy when your head fell back.

“Did I…” you smiled with hazy eyes as he carefully slipped his fingers out of your quivering hole. “Earn your cock?”

Bucky chuckled as he helped you sit up, his hands gently caressing your arms like he just had to touch you. “More than earned it. And we can relax some more after I finish inside you.”

You trembled all over again. “Even if we get water all over the floor?” You asked, letting him turn you to face him.

His piercing blue eyes bore into yours and a swirl of emotions hit you as you held his face in your hands. He made you comfortable and so at ease with yourself. He was your friend as much as he was your lover. He also made you feel desired.

Most importantly, he made you feel loved.

“We can flood the whole fucking apartment for all I care,” he smiled, stealing the breath from your lungs when he pulled you in for a kiss.

The water was cold by the time Bucky was done with you, which gave him all the more reason to hold you after he helped dry you off. He even put your head in his lap so he could keep you close as he finished reading the recent chapter of his book. Alpine and Soot came out to keep you company, too. It was the perfect afternoon.

All thanks to Stud and his deluxe bathtub.

Oh, these two. 🥰 Love and thanks for reading! ❤️

Masterlist ⚓ Bucky Barnes Masterlist ⚓ Ko-Fi

[solecize]

𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐓 𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 | 𝐣𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

remember lookin' at this room, we loved it 'cause of the light now, i just sit in the dark and wonder if it's time ten years of being one and the same with jungkook as the country's it couple is the perfect disguise for the reality of a tumultuous relationship hidden behind the scenes. ten years of lies and love and crawling back to one another. once shy, budding first love that blossomed before the weight of fame, the cracks begin to surface amidst your respective rises to stardom and navigation of your twenties. either finding euphoria or the end of the world, there's never any in between in existence for you and jungkook. as you build each other up and break each other down in front of millions of eyes, there is a crossroads ahead with words of "marriage" and "military" looming in the air - all while ignoring the price of fame breathing down your necks. this is the story of love and the lessons learned from the man you made your religion. and i wouldn't marry me either, a pathological people-pleaser who only wanted you to see her

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒: idol!jungkook/female idol!reader and fictional versions of various idols 𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐑𝐄. idol au, on-and-off relationship, angst, i swear there's fluff, (brief) fake dating and themes of first love, growing up, struggles with fame, and marriage (ish) 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒. PLEASE DON'T EXPECT HAPPINESS, portrayal of a toxic couple (implications of emotional abuse and control), both main characters are very flawed, addiction, violence, infidelity, foul language, substance use (illegal drugs), underage drinking, mentions of the covid-19 pandemic, sexually suggestive content 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄. based off of "you're losing me" by taylor swift. this is a fictional portrayal of real-life people that implement some aspects of real-life events. the series is told in non-chronological order. note that the main character is a member of a fictional idol group. more warnings may be added as the story is written. join the taglist here!

extra. playlist.  one - "the confrontation"    ㅤㅤㅤㅤyou welcome your boyfriend back to the country with a surprise party, just as the clock is ticking to say goodbye again. the big day is almost here and enlistment brings couples either one of two things: a ring or a breakup.  two - "first love in a convenience store"    ㅤㅤㅤㅤback when you were fifteen year old idol trainees, jeon jungkook shares ricecakes with you and steals your heart. as sixteen year old rookies with everything to lose, he steals your first kiss. in present day, these memories fade away until they are no longer recognizable. three - "teenage dreams"    ㅤㅤㅤㅤyoung love blossoms even in the harshest of light, as you and jungkook navigate career milestones together. also known as: the first concert tours, the first time you're put on a variety show together and everyone figures out your relationship, and jungkook's first daesang. four - "hotel azure"    ㅤㅤㅤㅤa party at the notorious hotel azure, the hot-spot for the top names of south korea's entertainment industry, goes awry. in front of everyone, your relationship reaches it's breaking point - except, it doesn't. five - "2017"    ㅤㅤㅤㅤa year of a death of a thousand cuts because, no matter what comes your way, saying goodbye is never an option. 

six- "on your own"    ㅤㅤㅤㅤjungkook picks up the pieces of the mess he made, as he looks back on his choices and the people he surrounded himself with.   

[adudenamedalex]

The Forsakenverse is real guys

YALL FORSAKEN IS EVERYWHERE ITS GETTING HARDER AND HARDER TO NOT JOIN THE FANDOM YOU KNOW WHAT- *JOINS THE FANDOM* THERE HAPPY NOW YOUTUBE AND TUMBLR

Ok this has been dancing in my brain for a while now and I had to get it out lmao. So this is basically Forsaken but everyone’s roles are swapped. Some of the people the characters swapped with are not added in Forsaken yet, but they are confirmed to be added in the future (Rook, Guest 666, Azure).

007n7 swapped with C00lkidd. He is mostly playful to his son but really violent when it comes to ‘playing’ with other people. He is controlled by the Spectre so he doesn’t really remember killing people after a round.

C00lkidd just wants his dad back :(

Elliot swapped with John Doe. Originally I wanted Jane doe to swap with him but Elliot popped into my brain later on lmao. He’s just angry (honestly relatable. He risks his life giving pizzas and everyone ignores him 💀)

John Doe is like Elliot. Instead of giving out pizza, though, he gives out coffee

Shedletsky swaps with 1x1x1x1. Welp, if you can’t beat them, join them.

1x1x1x1 just wants to eat their chicken wing

Two Time swapped with Azure. So instead of Two Time stabbing Azure, Azure stabbed Two Time. I might give Two Time tentacles in a future redesign

Noob swapped with Guest 666. He’s just insane

Guest 1337 swapped with Rook. He does not get along with the other swap killers

(Upcoming)

Guest 666 just wants his friend back :(

Rook gets along with most of the survivors and they all look up to him as a leader of some sort. The spectre does not like him tho

Builderman swaps with Drakkobloxxer. He just a lil guy :3

All killers/survivors swap with someone they knew in before the events of Forsaken. For example, C00lkidd is 007n7’s adopted son, Azure and Two Time were ex-partners/lovers (?), Shedletsky and 1x1x1x1 are sworn enemies, Noob and Guest 666 are friends (?), Rook and Guest 1337 are somewhat related in the Forsaken lore

[aetherograph]

Redesigned Pride Flags Masterpost

All of these are free to use and reproduce in any variation as long as you can blazon it the same way (I will include the blazon, or formal heraldic description, under each flag). The shades of colours and the execution of the blazon can all be variant. As long as you can recognise it at the size of a postage stamp OR twenty yards away in the rain, it is correct.

Leather/Kink General:

A field chevronny sable and azure, a pale argent, on it three hearts gules.

I re-arranged the stripes of the leather flag, and made it three hearts instead of one because of the many triplicate concepts in kink: top/versatile/bottom, dominant/switch/submissive, safe/sane/consensual (nb: there is criticism of ssc by the Mad community, as well as those with kinks that cannot be made safe. However SSC is still a part of the community and the discussion about it is a good thing!)

Polyamory/Non-Monagamy:

Blazon: A field per fess azure and sable, a fess or, upon it a pi symbol gules.

As you can see, all I really had to do with this one was flip the colours of the fess, or middle stripe, and the pi symbol. Now it has higher contrast and is easier to see!

Transgender Flag

Blazon: A field per pale azure and argent. To dexter, a sea-horse rampant sinister or. To sinister, a butterfly volant gules et rose.

Okay, so I have a Thing about the proliferation of Stripes In A Gradient flags. I hate them, to put it lightly. I think queer people deserve Creatures and Beaſtes. In fact, transwomen picked out the butterfly and transmen picked out the seahorse long before my time! I discovered our mascots as a baby transboy way back in 2007 and was delighted. All I did was 'translate' the sea-horse into heraldic depiction, because I think hippocampus is a fun creature. For the joined flag, I swapped the field colours so the butterfly could be colourful, as butterflies should be, and added pink that way.

Transmasc and Transfem Flags

Transfem Blazon: A field per pale sable and gules, a butterfly volant argent. Transmasc Blazon: A field per pale azure and sable, a sea-horse rampant.

The individual banners are more heraldic. I took the colours of the trans flag and made the colours basic heraldic ones, and added the black of flux and spring and transformation, as well as adding gold because many seahorse species are mostly yellow, including the most famous and well-recognised one. The sea-horse is facing the blue side to signify transmasc people going from a state of flux toward masculinity. I would have done the same with the butterfly but butterflies are symmetrical!

Non-Binary Flag:

Blazon: A field per pale purpure and or, two werewolves rampant dexter; one argent langued or, one sable langued purpure.*

Werewolves are neither human nor wolf, no matter what they look like; they are always werewolves, and shift freely between shapes. Also, my best friend who is non-binary loves werewolves and wanted a werewolf to be the non-binary Creature. Heraldically speaking, a "werewolf" actually is a "wolf with human hands instead of feet, and human ears", so if you wanna get real correct, you could draw it that way too! These flags are not set in stone bc of how they look in this post!

Aromantic Flag

Blazon: A field counter-ermine. A saltire argent, upon it five pine trees proper.

I chose the saltire because it makes an X and that symbolises how aromantic people "X-out" of the idea of romantic stuff. I chose pine trees because my mother, who is aro, loves evergreen trees the most in the whole world; trees are also green, like the green stripes of the flag, so I thought it fitting. Trees are also not living beings that have any kind of pair-bonding, and yet also have sexual relations with other trees to make more trees. I used counter-ermine because it's more visually distinct and interesting. I wanted to also show that these flags can be made into any shape of shield or banner and still work.

Asexual Flag:

Blazon: A field semy pique purpure and sable. A saltire argent, upon it five dragons rampant sable and purpure.*

Another saltire, this time because asexuals do not interact with sex in the usual way or at all. Piques (i.e. the spade symbol) and dragons because in my long years in the community, I have seen these two symbols used the most for our community. Having a semy means I can include both the pique and the dragon without cluttering up the flag. This one is probably the most intricate and difficult to draw, but again, the dragons can be as detailed as this or can be like, trogdor or something. As long as they're recognisably dragons with four legs and two wings, and only one foot on the ground, you're good!

Bonus: Monsterfucker Flag:

Blazon: A field per saltire tenné and or. A saltire sable.

The X is for Xeno, or 'strange', and X is also used for the Unknown, as is the black of the void. The orange is because Halloween is a monsters' holiday. The yellow is for joy and both moon and sunlight, for monsters encompass all possibilities. Yellow is also because I don't see it that much in pride flags, so using it here makes it distinctive.

Orange (Tenné, which can also be depicted as tan or brown) is, like pink (rose), a very late addition to heraldry--as indeed it was to the English language!

⁂

*I am still a student, I don't know if these blazons are fully correct; if you know more about how to blazon, please feel free to correct them!

[r0manceplanet]

hallo!!,, ^_^ uuuhh this is my first time doing one of these so my apolocheese if this is worded oddly!! X-(

Fandom: forsaken

Pronouns: they / them

Gender + Sexuality: agender and pan (open to polyamory)

Personality: i'd like to say im a fairly positive and caring person!! i LOVE socializing, but at the same time I have HORRIBLE social anxiety, so it usually takes me a while to actually get the courage to get to know people,, X-[ I'm typically a very quiet and reserved as im not typically that energetic of a person,, but if I know you well, and if i have the energy for it, then I definitely can become very outgoing :-)

Hobbies: Photography, gardening (every flower I've tried to plant has died within a week </3) studying quantum physics, baking, and storytelling (I LOVE CREATING STORIES!!!)

Likes + Dislikes: i LOVE horror stories, i don't care WHAT form of media it even is I JUST LOVE HORROR!!!! same goes for quantum physics!! Though I'm specifically interested in multiverse theory!!!! also I really really like music!! My music taste shifts very often though, so I like a LOT of different genres,, ^_^;; OH also i love, love, LOVE flowers with all my heart!!!! I'll even paint or sketch them occasionally!! I just wish I actually knew how to take care of one AUGH💔 ((as for dislikes,,, surprisingly there's not much i dislike other than, like, basic things that everyone dislikes,, but if I really had to think of something, I guess don't really like crowded places or overly energetic people(like, YouTube family blogger type of overly energetic. they SCARE me) oh and also ketchup i really hate ketchup))

Love language: Quality time and words of affirmation

What i look for in a partner: someone who l can communicate with, and will communicate with me whenever there's an issue going on and will love me no matter if I'm acting reserved and quiet or energetic and outgoing. But overall, someone who spends time with me and shows they really love me <:-)

(AUUGGHHH SORRY IF THIS WAS LONG DUDE!!! D-:)

FORSAKEN MATCHUP #3

Thank you for sending in your matchup! and it was not too long at all! I love the stuff you added too, you seem like a really cool person— AND I think I had the most fun with this one since I matched you up with someone that I felt was *chefs kiss*

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Press “Keep Reading” to see who you got matched with!

I have matched you with… Azure and Two Time!

• Oh boy, you would not believe how excited I was when I matched you with these two, they both just fit you so perfectly in a way I cannot describe!

• You would meet them both before the games took place and before Two Time slowly turned insane, you were the latest member to the spawn cult, and they were both very eager to introduce themselves to you, they slowly got to understand you more through the conversations you all had together.

• Your insane knowledge for quantum physics was the reason why you were recruited to the cult, it was an asking help to help the cult grow more powerful for other people to join, and two time and azure loved learning about it through you, especially your passion for multiverse theory, they got to share a few things in common with you because of those two topics, which eventually leads up to them figuring out how to ask you out.

• They both were a little nervous on figuring out how to ask you out, they didn’t wanna make you uncomfortable, and they didn’t wanna lose you. Two time was the one that brought the idea up to Azure about how to ask you out, and to talk it out if they were both ok with dating you since they were still partners, but once learning they both share the same feelings with you and were on board with a plan, they go on to ask you out, with two time being extravagant about it with bringing gifts to you as an offering LMAO.

• After they asked you out, and (hopefully) with you agreeing they both were through the roof happy about it, and once things are settled with being in a polyamorous relationship with them, the fun begins. It’s so much fun being in a relationship with the both of them, whenever you all plan a home date azure and two time are both bickering about what movie they wanna watch, or about what they wanna do— but once you come up with an idea you wanna do, they throw all of their ideas out the roof and go along with what you wanna do.

• I headcanon that they both don’t listen to music often, with the reason being that they don’t have the time to listen because of how devoted they both are to the cult, but once they are together with you that all changes when you make them listen to a few of your favorite songs through their playlist, and then they both get into it and make their own, Azure seems like the type of dude to listen to soft music, like pop or j-pop (like lamp, ichiko, etc) and while two time seems like the type of person to listen to nu metal and rock. They would both make a playlist with you in there to listen to all of your favorite songs, and they put it on whenever they’re both hanging out with you.

• If you were to ever paint the two of them, they would both be in awe and hang it up, you made a portrait with azure and two time, and another one with you all in there, and they hung it up in the house they share with you, and they love staring at it whenever they’re both bored. And with your love for flowers, I feel like you would have so many colorful portraits of them being surrounded in flowers, and I feel like they would hang up those portraits you give them with a flower themed case.

• About flowers, Azure would give you a bouquet of flowers as a sign of his love towards you, that also goes for two time too, two time would also do the same but tends to get you other gifts than flowers and leaves that up for Azure to do. Azure makes flower crowns for the three of you, and takes a selfie afterwards. I can see the three of you running through a field of flowers without a care in the world, sprinting through the field and then tripping while laughing all together, it is truly a beautiful sight of the love you all carry for each other.

• Since you mentioned that you have social anxiety and it takes the courage to talk with people, I feel like they would easily get you to come out of your shell, and two time is the person that’s the most social in the trio, and even when you met them they were the first ones to introduce themselves, same with Azure but he’s also like you when meeting people, but oddly gets comfortable when he met you.

• You will always get compliments thrown your way from the both of them, and their compliments are super creative, they always compliment how good you look in a certain type of clothing, or pointing out the little details on your face that make you all flustered and fuzzy inside. They’ll always praise you because of how perfect you are to the both of them, and they couldn’t be more grateful to have you in their lives.

• You and Two time have the best horror stories, you both always tell each other them deep into the night, with azure listening to the both of you talk, and him adding in as well. Azure loves the stories you and two time come up with, and even you and two time have a little notebook you share with the stories you both created. Azure reads them while you both are sleeping each night (as long as he can read while being in the chaos of being close together while sleeping).

• When Two Time slowly goes insane, you and azure both notice immediately as they get slowly further from you both, and you and azure ask if they’re alright and they brush it off with a small “Yeah, I’m alright why?”. It didn’t seem like a big deal at first until an incident happened at the cult where you discovered that Two Time sacrificed azure for a ritual order in order for them to receive a second life, you felt like your entire world just crumbled in front of your eyes while screaming and crying at two time about what they’ve done.

• But two time doesn’t kill nor sacrifice you, no, not at all, but they threaten you that if you try to leave them you’ll end up just like Azure which forces you to stay in the relationship, and you will always live two time, of course you will, but your heart can’t fully recover after what they did to azure, you cry about it silently every night while they’re sleeping next to you. And once your in the games, you only have two time and they only have you, your stuck with two time forever there’s no leaving, will you ever see Azure? And when you do will he recognize the both of you? You don’t know, but when you do you’ll give him a hug and whisper secret apologies into his ear about how sorry you are that you couldn’t be there to protect him, and if he does kill you then it’s whatever, but 99% chance that he won’t, but he’ll always feel resentment towards two time, it’ll take a long time for him to mend things with them.

• Even without the incidents that happened, you have a very loving relationship with the both of them, even in the end when two time become demented and azure coming back to life just to be a killer, you will always have their backs even when the two of them aren’t on good terms with each other anymore, they’ll have you and they don’t mind sharing you, maybe things will slowly get better with them, hopefully, maybe someday things will go back to how they used to be.

[jasmines-library]

Motion sickness

WHUMPTOBER DAY 3: prompt: ALT ‘motion sickness’

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Summary: on they way to a hunt you get travel sick and your brothers take care of you.

Warnings: nausea, mentions of vomit, pills

Word count: 700

MASTERLIST ⋅⛤ WHUMPTOBER 24

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Dean sped down the country roads a little faster that he probably should have. While Baby was in good condition, she was still a rather old car. And a luxurious one at that. She was built for roads, not winding country lanes where the car is fenced in my hedges. As Dean turned another corner, your head swam. You had been feeling ill for the last 20 minutes or so. Your head had begun to ache and you could feel yourself beginning to grow nauseous. You had tried rolling down the window hoping that the fresh air would help a little. It did not. And every twist and turn just served to make you feel sicker and sicker. You had even tried closing your eyes and resting your head against the cool glass of the window, but that didn’t help either.

While Sam and Dean talked, you were quiet in the back of the car. Any movement made your head spin and you were too focused on trying not to spill your guts to join in on the conversation. The worst part was you had at least two or three hours of the journey left. Lucky you.

Noticing your unusual silence, Sam poked his head around from the passenger seat. His forehead creased when he noticed that you were looking a little pale and a look of discomfort on your face.

“You alright kiddo?” He asked. At this Dean glanced up into the rear view mirror to look at you.

“You’re quiet.” Dean added.

“Headache.” You just answered rather bluntly. In truth it was more than that. But you didn’t want to go into specifics.

“Feeling car sick again?” Sam asked you.

You hummed in response. You had gotten car sick ever since you were little. Sam rummaged around in the glove box and pulled out a bottle of water, passing it to you. You unscrewed the cap and tooo a sip, savouring the feeling of it. “Thank you.”

“You good?”

“Yeah.”

“You need us to pull over?”

“No.”

Pulling over would just add to the time and the headache and nausea would just come back after you set off again anyway.

“You sure.”

“Yes.”

Dean made a noise as if he disapproved. But he carried on driving. He hated the fact that you were feeling ill and ignoring it. “We’ll stop at the next gas station and get you something for it, alright sweetheart?”

You nodded, regretting it immediately. “Thank you”

It felt like forever had passed before you saw the gas station. Lucky the roads his since smoothed out by then, but your head was still pounding and every movement increased the risk of you throwing up. You were so relieved when you stepped out of the car, stretching out the ache in your bones. The three of you stepped into the gas station, welcoming the cool air of the air con before grabbing some snacks.

Dean haphazardly chucked a packet of beef jerky on the counter along with some chips and a couple of bottles of water. He had also filled the car up with gas. He then picked up a packet of painkilllers and paid for the load, taking the bag before all of you bundled back into the car. Taking a sip of the fresh water, you knocked back a couple of pills, hoping that that would help a little. After a quick snack break and arguing over the music Dean pressed his foot down on the gas an sped off down the road again.

It took a little while but eventually your nausea did calm down. The pills and the water worked wonders on your head and the smoother roads with far less potholes that made your head rattle around helped to ease your stomach. Now you just had to sit through another few hours of Dean’s singing. You weren’t sure what was worse.

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<- DAY TWO ⛤ DAY FOUR ->

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TAGS:

@hearts4robs @kingshitonly @alicedawitchbish @hell-o-kittys @azure-drag0ness @harleycao @thewhispersofthewaves @batfamsstuff @xxrougefangxx @rosecentury @noisymutantherelol @killxz @rhiodes @inlovewhithafairytale @that-wannabe-vangoghgurl

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[forsaken-headcanons]

Hihi so I'm the one person who sent the HC with John and Jane having kids and them being Noob and Elliot but were put up for adoption because John got corrupted when they were young😄

I've got some new hcs😋😋😋

SO!

I like to think all the killers also have their own cabin like the survivors

C00lKidd and Bluudude are the chaoticass brothers, Bluudude often pulls pranks on everyone and C00lKidd gets dragged along even though he really only wants to draw or run around(and set things on fire to piss off the Spectre hoping that it finally lets him see his dad) outside, oh yeah and Bluudude has a mimic of the Ice Dagger since C00lKidd has a FireBrand mimic!

John Doe is the gentle giant even though he's ruthless when hunting, he often uses his abilities to put the fires C00lKidd starts out and to stop Bluudude from freezing EVERYTHING FOR THE 4TH TIME THIS WEEK, he's got that fatherly instinct because in my last batch of HCs(When I didn't use my sign off) I made that family HC and even though his corruption screwed with his memories and instincts, it didn't fully screw them up

1x1x1x1 is the one who takes anything and everything TOO SERIOUSLY...make a joke about Shedletsky being his dad/say "He still created you! Why hate him?" PUNCH TO THE JAW. Though when the two kids beg hard enough, he MIGHT teach them some sword fighting(Which bores them most of the time because he's still teaching them the basics), he's not always violent though, I like to think he's like Error in that one video where he's wearing a feather boa and Ink comes in, instead it's him and John Doe

Azure is the edgy teen who will SCREAM at you for going into his room, will probably also start hitting you with the books in his room or anything you DARE touch, he's annoyed by everyone (except for 1x1 because they often rant to each other and occasionally make fun of things like bad movies together) but Noli annoys him THE MOST

And finally Noli(I'm not adding Mafioso or Jason because idk his new name and don't wanna mess it up and idk what to do for Jason💔💔💔)

...Where do I BEGIN??? He's the one who gives Bluudude all of his ideas for pranks, he on occasion joins or does it himself, like spraying 1x1 or John Doe with a hose, hiding under someone's bed and grabbing their legs to scare them, making everyone float at random, stealing C00lKidd's or Bluudude's swords, etc

-✨⛈️ anon

Azure being the edgy teen is peak I fear.

[thedevillionaire]

Chosen

Much shorter than it has any right to be, given how long it's taken me to actually finish. Plot? Uh, no, not really. But anyhow... She's been away. He's been unwell.

---

He looks at her like she’s the most welcome hallucination he’s ever had.

Kia closes the door slowly behind her as she takes in this chaos of a makeshift apothecary, the loungeroom in an utter state of disarray and her beloved not faring much better, red-nosed and unshaven and dressed in a black silken pyjama and robe ensemble which, while inarguably stylish, was very definitely not his usual late afternoon wear.

And not at all what she had been expecting to come home to.

A miscellany of potions and concoctions and gods-know-what-elses lie scattered across the coffee table. A teacup, mostly empty. Two tissue boxes, one apparently even emptier than the teacup. Some sort of book...no, manual. Looks instructional. A wilderness of failed curatives.

Oh my god.

She walks further into the room. The air smells of menthol and embers.

“Babe, what are… Are you… What have you even been doing h…?”

You absolute beautiful total disaster.

“Trying not to… hh-HH …let thi…this-damn-cold…” Cerberus turns from her as his sentence dissolves, the syllables collapsing against one another in a desperate rush to give way to greater need and deep breath of purpose, and he raises a finger in urgent, undeniable pause. "Huh-TSSCH-uu!" Hurriedly claiming a series of tissues in a brief, expectant hiatus, he surrenders completely and sneezes again. "Hh-AATSCHH-uu! *snff-FF!*" A quiet groan in the aftermath. He excuses himself, adds another tissue to the set, blows his nose and immolates the lot. "Pardon me." He sighs. "Trying not to let this godsdamned cold win,” he manages, with an accompanying sharp sniffle. Neither heavy congestion nor the way his voice cracks slightly lessens any of the seething distaste in his tone.

“Oh, honey.” Kia brushes some errant hair back from his face. :Bless you.: She touches a tender kiss to his temple. “You’re getting your ass kicked.”

She offers him a soft smile to hopefully lessen a little bit of truth's sting. "C'mon, shift over," she says gently as she joins her beloved on the couch, nestling up beside him, resolutely ignoring every caution he tries to give her advising against doing so. Notably half-hearted as those cautions are.

Because while it’s true that he very much doesn’t want her to catch this, he’s also well aware it’s more than likely already too late for such concerns. The entire house is probably some sort of incubation epicentre. And, sincerity of expressed warnings aside, the entire sorry vista surely constitutes warning enough. He's fairly certain he couldn't look more biohazardous if he tried.

Cerberus sighs again, sniffling again immediately afterwards, and gives his bonded a look of resignation.

Further elaboration hardly seems necessary.

But also he doesn’t press the issue because in truth the last thing he wants is to send her away. He’s not even sure he has the energy to insist on it, anyway; he’d be infuriated about this entire ridiculous circumstance if he wasn’t so damn exhausted. So, small obligatory protests done, with another damp sniffle Cerberus shifts some disarrayed blanketry out of the way and wraps an arm around Kia’s waist, drawing her close.

Her soft perfume of violet, strawberry and vanilla is lost on him anywhere outside of memory right now, but her presence is more than enough and he closes his eyes for a moment, just appreciating the simple fact of her being here beside him at last; he's missed her immensely, constantly.

“You know, you could’ve just asked me to come back, if you wanted me here,” Kia muses as she nestles further into his heat, adding, “It wouldn't have been a big deal,” without accusation. She leans her head against his shoulder and looks up at him with gentle azure gaze, her unspoken thoughts of I’d always choose you. How do you still not know that? readable despite her not voicing them.

And he does, of course, know that – in fact, it’s the very reason he wouldn’t ask. Cerberus sniffles thickly, wiping his nose. “Ah, love. I'd hardly ask you to put yourself anywhere near this—" He gestures around the room in a general presentation of contempt for the whole situation. "—vortex of infectious absurdity,” he concludes, thick congestion lacing his words. He clears his throat but it doesn’t make any notable impact against the wreckery his voice has become. "And it's about your... *SNFF!* ...your autodoby."

Kia peers at him. “My…what?”

“Your au…” Cerberus, all too aware that several critical consonants are unequivocally not working for him, rolls his eyes at himself. Honestly. Taking another fresh succession of tissues from a very rapidly depleting supply, he blows his nose forcefully but completely ineffectively.

He excuses himself once more and tries again; it goes equally badly.

Kia, baffled, raises her hands in a friendly but very clear nope sorry babe no idea expression, accompanied by a gentle little laugh that she just can’t help.

A long-suffering and immensely frustrated look comes her way, followed by a resigned, defeated sigh as her beloved entirely gives up. “Free will.”

For a moment, this makes even less sense to Kia. “Why would…” she begins, but cuts herself off in triumphant realisation. “Oh, autonomy!” She laughs. "Oh, sweetheart."

“That’s what I s… hh-hh! I...” And even this is hijacked, and the Demon king capitulates entirely, doubling over desperate into crooked elbow, “Huh-TSCHH-uu! Ah-HEHTSCHuu!” 

He takes some moments of bleary recovery, Kia's heartrate spiking alongside the :Gods, forgive me: Cerberus Mindsends her.

"Oh, bless you, babe." Kia doesn't try to fight the thrill that flashes through her and she wraps herself around her bonded to kiss him again; a kiss deeper, more needful, than is probably wise. But wisdom isn't what she's craving right now.

“You know what? You’re going to stop talking and let me make my own choices.” She brushes a stray lock of hair from his eyes, touches the softest of lingering kisses to his forehead and meets his gaze. :Talking really isn't working out for you anyway.: "And besides—" Another kiss, deeper again, and she presses her arousal against his, salacious, wanton.

:—you know we both want the same thing.:

---

[chaosherald]

Don’t know if anyone’s asked about it yet but the wip First Talon/Mask gift?

I’m so intrigued!

Oooooo. I'm glad you asked lol. This is way near the top of the original "fic drafting" document, so it's an idea I've been turning around for awhile.

The crows are fascinating. The concept of a non-crow romancing Lucanis and therefore joining that world in some capacity is also fascinating.

So as I see it, Lucanis has found his person. She *very publicly* helps him rescue Caterina and take down Illario and as far as the other crows are concerned has just helped him secure the position of First Talon. He can't hide her/pretend she isn't important to him, so his next best option is to make a public statement that she's off limits/under his protection. (doesn't mean that'll stop folks from going after her to try and get to him, but it'll be a deterrent/make it very clear there will be consequences if anyone tries anything.)

I also love masks. Like, one wall of my kitchen is decorated with masks. If I visit a place that has/makes masks I am coming home with a mask 😂

So the "azure crow mask" room decor was absolutely on display in my Rook's room and I was delighted by the masks on display in Villa Dellamorte that you get codex entries for - that they were symbols of traditional contracts and Crow history etc. My headcanon/extrapolation became that the mask in Rook's room was given to her by Lucanis after they took down Illario, that formally presenting a mask to an ally in the crow world was a big deal - a public declaration that Rook is part of House Dellamorte. Like, down the line when Rook and Lucanis actually officially get engaged, most of the crows are like "and? He gave you a mask years ago, this is not a new development."

And my crypt baby Mourn watch Rook has no idea 😂

Rook stood on the stage, taking in the spectacle before her. After dealing with Illario and his Venetori allies and after Caterina’s dramatic declaration, the gathering of Crows had turned into an impromptu celebration. Though impromptu might be the wrong word. The near nonsensical thought crossed Rook's mind that Illario must have planned the catering and wine, the music and spectacle, to fete his ascension to First Talon. Instead, it became a celebration of his defeat and Lucanis grand return. The whole thing made her tense in a way she had trouble defining. Being very much an outsider, with Lucanis lost to the crowds, added to her unease.

Next to her, Taash was laughing as they regaled two Crows with a story involving a collapsing cavern and hidden gold. They nudged Rook's arm, grinning. “This is awesome. We rescued Lucanis’ Grandma, beat up his cousin, and get to party with the crows.”

“I can't say this is how I expected the evening to end” Rook said slowly, scanning the crowd. “Did you see where Lucanis got to?”

(and bonus dialogue with Caterina, who absolutely understands the declaration her grandson just made in front of their entire organization)

“He did not tell you what it means. Presenting you with a mask. With that mask.”

“Ah, no. He did not.”

Moving much faster than one would expect from a woman of her age, Caterina grabbed Rook's hand. She seemed to be making a study of it, tisking softy. "Skinny fingers. Tell my grandson if he returns his mother's ring I will make the necessary arrangements with Giancarlo."

"Right. I'll...do that."

(original ask game post here!)

[oddestly]

A Doe-Eyed-Love

Rating: General/Teen

Warnings: very slight adult humor, brief mention of vomiting

Word Count: 3.7K

Lori always woke with the dawn. The sunlight that spilled across her closed eyes would drag her from whatever dream she was in and into the waking world, but she didn't mind. She liked being awake to see the sky fade from dusted lavender and grey to brilliant azure as the morning carried on, and the warmth of climbing sunshine was always so welcome in the morning chill. 

Like usual, she was one of the first to be up and about. The only one that ever woke before her was Arthur, as he unsurprisingly had this morning too. 

He was chopping firewood as Lori set to making coffee. It was her favorite way to start her day, and once the rest of the gang started waking, she didn't want to face anyone's early morning wrath without it.

The steady thunk of the logs as he set them onto the block, and the woosh and crack of the axe as he hefted it down in a wide arc served as a backdrop to the mindless hummed tune from the back of her mind as she worked. 

She didn't notice when her little melody caught Arthur's attention, and the natural percussion came to a slow stop as he let his attention wander and watch her.

Lori was enjoying the heat of the fresh brewed coffee, curling her hands around a tin mug when she heard spurs and boots behind her. 

“Good,” Arthur rumbled. “You always make it better than Pearson.” Once he had his own mug in-hand he leaned in and added, “Don't tell him I said that.”

“Your secret is safe with me, Mr. Morgan,” Lori laughed. 

“Good morning, Arthur,” Tilly chirped as she walked up, a smile on her face and swing in her step like always. 

“Hey Tilly,” he returned in an easy drawl. “Easy day t'day?”

“It's washing day, but Grimshaw said we could go down to the river, so it won't be so bad. It's so peaceful down there,” Tilly said, holding her coffee close with both hands, greedily taking in the warmth. “What about you?”

“Dutch asked me, Charles, n’ Javier to go get Sean's dumb ass outta Blackwater,” Arthur sighed. “I don’t know how bad it is down there, but it ain't gonna be easy…”

“There's gonna be law everywhere, he's sendin’ you back there?” Tilly exclaimed. 

“It ain't smart, but if there's a chance to save that kid, you know we gotta take it.”

The younger woman sighed too, “I guess you're right, just be careful, we need you ‘round here Arthur.”

“Don’ worry, ya ain't gettin’ rid of me that easy, I'll come back,” Arthur chuckled, as low and warm as the wafting steam from the mug in Lori's hands.

“You'd better ‘r we'd all go hungry,” Abigail added as she joined them. 

Even her frowning face relaxed once she took that first sip of bitter black coffee and the four of them stood in comfortable silence for a minute or two. 

Arthur heaved a sigh before flicking the last dregs of his coffee out onto the grass.

“Wish us luck," he said, "with it we might just make it back by nightfall." Then he tipped his hat, showing off the bandages around his hands for just a moment before striding across the camp to where the horses were grazing. 

He stopped for a moment and turned around. 

“Ya mind if I borrow your boy, Miss Moore?” he called. 

It surprised Lori that he'd ask. She hardly even saw Jericho as solely hers anymore, considering Arthur had been riding him for several weeks — and she was generally getting used to the more communal way of life in the gang.

“Oh! Uh, sure! Of course! Any time,” she called back. 

Part of her wanted to say no. Jericho was just about all she had left from her life in New York, though she hadn't had him for very long before making her way to Sadie's remote cabin. She wanted to be a little selfish with that. But another part of her felt… honored, almost. It meant that Arthur recognized Jericho as hers, and he could've asked anyone else if he'd wanted to. Hosea was awake, Silver Dollar would be a fine steed for a day. Bill wouldn't like agreeing to let him borrow Brown Jack, but the large war horse would be a good pick if he though they might run into trouble. Instead, he wanted Jericho. 

“That one's yours?” Abigail asked, nodding toward the mahogany bay as he trotted out of camp. 

Lori nodded. “I'd taken him with me to visit my sister… they found him in the stable same time they found us.”

“Well we know what he's gonna be doin' next." Tilly sighed. 

"What do you mean?" Lori asked the younger woman.

"He ain't gonna borrow yours forever, he'll be searching for a new one til' he finds somethin' perfect. Never seen a man so picky about his horse."

“I really don't mind,” Lori protested. 

“Sure, but he does. Besides, he ain't gonna give you any reasons to stay neither.”

“He said something like that too… told me not to tie myself down to you all,” Lori mused, dropping her eyes back toward the smoldering campfire.

“You shouldn't. It's not an easy life, I wouldn't wish it on anyone,” Abigail said bluntly. 

“It hasn't been so bad yet. It's hard, sure, but so would be any life I chose now. No money, no belongings… I don't have many skills to help me survive on my own, but there's no way I could afford to live in a city with the work I'd be able to find… I know it doesn't make sense, to want to stay, and I can't really explain it, but it feels like the best option for now,” Lori said contemplatively, lost in the flames for a moment before looking back up at the other two and offering a sheepish smile. “I'll do my share though, I'm not going to be a freeloader.”

“You're already doin’ more'n your share,” Abigail said. “I ain't had Grimshaw on my case in days, the work's gettin’ done easier, we all see it. I may not understand why you wanna stay, but I support the decision, selfish as it is.”

“Folks've started askin’ you to be the one fixin' their socks cause you somehow make them last longer, I'd be happy if I never had to touch one of Bill's day-old socks ever again,” Tilly agreed, making Lori laugh. 

The easy morning only lasted so long though, as the piles of clothing to be washed were gathered and Grimshaw set everyone to work. All of the girls got involved on washing day, even Sadie, and Lori kept a close eye on her as they hauled baskets down the hill toward the river. The sun and having something to do to keep busy seemed helpful — Lori wasn't blind, she knew the worst times were when Sadie had nothing to do but stare and think. She tried to find her in those moments, to pull her from those thoughts, but she would still get lost from time to time. 

“Hey sweetpea,” Lori murmured, setting a basket down next to where Sadie was kneeling by a large tub, and hitching her skirt up so she could get down next to her. 

“Hey, Lottie,” Sadie responded lowly as she scrubbed a stained work shirt across a washboard, then she dropped it into the basket Lori had brought. 

“Been meaning to ask you somethin’ if you're up to it,” Lori said quietly.

“Hm?”

“Have you been thinking about staying? Whether you want to?” 

She'd learned to be specific. Just asking how she was feeling without a focus would just send her into those thoughts Lori worked so hard to keep her out of.

For now, all she needed to know was whether Sadie wanted to move on, because while Lori herself had said she didn't want to, she would in a heartbeat if it would be the best thing for her sister. 

“It seems… easiest,” Sadie said after a long moment.

“I will see us through anything, easy or not, darling,” Lori reminded her, resting a hand on Sadie's arm for a moment, stilling her work. “What do you want to do?”

“I- I… Jesus, Lottie how am I supposed to know what to do?” Sadie exclaimed, throwing the next shirt she had been working on into the basket, scattering droplets of water everywhere. 

Lori took up Sadie's place, moving the washboard closer to her and pulling up another soaking shirt to scrub.

“You know I'm not asking you what you're supposed to be doing,” she said primly. “I'm not asking what's ‘best.’ We can figure out what's ‘best’ for us when things aren't so chaotic. I just want you to know that I'll pack us up and leave the second you want to."

"I know," Sadie huffed.

"I want you to have what you need to recover," Lori added more softly, "whatever that may be. We'll stay unless you don't want to.”

“I want to stay,” Sadie mumbled, starting to pick at the grass by her knee. 

“Okay,” Lori agreed simply, shrugging one shoulder and slapping another sopping wet shirt into the basket. 

“I'm glad you're with me, Lottie… makin’ all this… tolerable.”

“I'm your sister, that's my job. Now c'mon, go get these rinsed and laid out on the dry grass.” Lori nudged her sister with her elbow, using the same no-nonsense voice she had used when they were kids. 

Sadie picked up the basket with a grumble and lugged it away. 

“Gonna keep us runnin’ better'n Grimshaw you keep this up,” Abigail commented, joining Lori and dumping a few more dry shirts into the tub and settling down to wash them opposite Lori. 

“Sorry,” Lori cringed with a smile. “Force of habit, I suppose. I'm used to running the household — though I'll admit there weren't this many grown men in my house.”

The other woman laughed. “Weren't no insult, y'know. I'd prefer listenin’ to you over that old bag most days. At least you bother tellin’ us why we oughta do things.”

“There isn't a lot of that in the gang, is there? Explaining why?” Lori asked. 

“Never has been. Not ‘s long as I've been in it anyway. Ya might get a decent answer from Hosea, if Hosea even knows. But not from Dutch, and certainly not from Grimshaw — she'd rather lecture you on ‘knowing your place’ or havin’ ‘ideas above your station’ an’ the like.”

“As if we weren't all hiding from the law out in the woods together…” Lori muttered, rolling her eyes a little. She’d heard plenty of those lectures from across the camp. 

“Least you see sense,” Abigail chuckled. 

“You might be one of the only ones who thinks so,” Lori sighed. “Mr. Morgan seems to think I'm a fool for staying.”

“Arthur… well, Arthur just wants what's best for all of us. To him it feels like he's protectin’ you I think, he knows this life ain't safe.”

“I suppose… though I’m not sure why he’s taken it upon himself to protect me, I’m practically a stranger still…”

“Stranger or not, that’s just what he does.”

Lori thought back to the mountain, to Arthur asking if there was somewhere they could go. Even in that moment, when they had answered they had nowhere, no one, it felt like Arthur had just… included them. He had this gang, this family of sorts, and in that one curt nod of his head he’d decided in his mind that they were part of it now. And it was that easy. He certainly had the capacity, the man’s heart was nearly too big for his chest, and that was saying something. 

Perhaps that's where it really came from, the security that she felt telling her to stay. They had already been accepted so readily by Arthur — and as far as Lori could tell it was Arthur that kept the gang going. Dutch and Hosea might've been ‘above’ him, but only because he kept his boots on the ground, doing the work and the labor. He saw what needed done and did, he didn't delegate. He was the linchpin between the thinkers and the doers. He had accepted them, therefore everyone else had too. Not because Arthur's word was law, but because Dutch & Hosea trusted his judgment, and the others trusted his experience.

There was little Lori could think of that Arthur would not do for them, and to be included in that protection made the dangers of the life ahead of them seem so small.

If she had needed any examples of the lengths Arthur would go to, she found them in far too many stories slurred in an over-excited, thick brogue.

If the stories an already-drunk Sean was telling were true, it had been quite the rescue, all guns blazing, ruthless efficiency and quite a few nearly inhuman feats of heroics. 

Lori was curious to hear the tale from Arthur himself, but he hadn't gotten back quite yet — it wasn't unusual after kicking up a storm that big for the gang to ride back separate. A large group of riders certainly caught more attention than one or two. 

She was laughing at the antics of several of the gang's younger members when she heard Arthur ride back. She looked over at him, grinning, as he dismounted from a well-laden Jericho. 

“Welcome back, Mr. Morgan. I see you've come bearing gifts,” she said, walking over to join him. 

Arthur chuckled as he hauled a freshly killed deer off of Jericho's back. 

“Looks like I've come back just in time! D'ya mind givin’ me a hand?” He gestured back over his shoulder to the two large turkeys also strapped to the saddle. 

“Quite the feast you've brought us. You were expecting the party, then?” Lori asked, hefting one of the birds over her shoulder and dragging the other behind her by the neck, following after him toward the chuck wagon. 

“Somethin’ like that,” Arthur groaned, dropping the animal with a dull thump onto the table. “So, how many drinks ‘s he downed already?” he asked, nodding toward Sean, who was staggering up onto a crate. 

“I'm not going to lie, Mr. Morgan, I lost count.”

Arthur laughed openly, his low tone carrying easily through the camp. “Guess I have some catchin’ up t'do!”

Lori laughed with him, shaking her head as she watched the young man nearly topple off his perch.

“Well, I'll leave you to it," she said, then turned to him more directly. "I am glad you're back safe.”

Arthur dipped his head toward her with a softer smile than she expected as they parted ways, he to help Pearson skinning dinner, her to lighting all of the lanterns as the party began to gather steam. The world glittered with golden hour and amber lantern light soon enough, and spirits were higher than Lori had seen them in her whole time with them. She didn't even think it was all to do with the free-flowing beer and whiskey.

After a truly heartening dinner, and the company of various stages of inebriation, Lori went to go sit near Sadie and Abigail, who were at least for now keeping their heads on straight. 

She almost wanted to use the given opportunity to cut loose and indulge, but only almost; she spent the time watching the others instead, categorizing them all into what kind of drunk they each turned into.

Most were merely loud, none seemed downright mean. A few of them were flirty, though those few all seemed to have a specific target in mind — Sean, for example, didn't have eyes for anyone but Karen and she wasn't looking at anyone else either, but she played hard to get better than anyone Lori had ever known. Even fewer still didn't seem keen to participate at all - Charles had vanished early in the night, silently volunteering himself to guard the camp while the others had their fun. It was one of the few occasions Lori saw Dutch extend a decent amount of romance Molly's way, a tinge of red across both their faces.

Arthur, however, was somehow… warmer. It was not uncommon to see a smirk or small, slanted smile on his face, but with enough whiskey in his system to tint his cheeks a warm pink, his smiles were broader, meeting his eyes and showing off the small crows feet at the corners. He smiled more, too; even when not directly engaged with anyone, there was a faint curve to his lips that were usually much more neutral.

Lori's eyes flitted away once she realized Arthur was headed toward where she and Sadie were sitting away from the bustle and noise. Her curiosity was going to get her in trouble, it seemed.

"How are you doin' Mrs. Adler?" he asked, bordering on cheerful with his tone.

"Fine. Not really in the party mood," Sadie said dryly.

"Yeah I understand," he said with a nod. He didn't encourage her to join the fun or to drink, or even to smile as Lori had heard Uncle once tell her, and she was thankful for it. His efforts to include them weren't unnoticed, but they never pushed too far.

"An' you, Miss Moore? How ya keepin?"

"I'm keeping just fine, Mr. Morgan, thank you," Lori smiled. "You certainly know how to throw a party, don't you?"

"When there's cause," he agreed, turning to look at the sprawl of the camp lit up in the dusk around them. "Guess we'll see if gettin' him back is actually cause to celebrate 'r not, I ain't too sure."

Lori followed his eyeline as he shook his head with a chuckle, spying a besotted Sean being dragged by the hand by Karen into the privacy of a tent that she was fairly certain was John's. She covered her mouth to muffle the laugh that burst free, equal parts amused and shocked.

"That ain't gonna bite those two in'the ass later," Arther commented.

"Certainly not," Lori giggled.

"If you'll excuse me, ladies, I'm gonna stay well away from… that. Enjoy your evenin.'"

With a tip of his head, Arthur wandered very pointedly into the loudest part of the camp.

Laughter, guitar, and banjo all wrestled with Dutch's warbling gramophone for attention and space, converging into some unholy cacophony that certainly fit the boisterous atmosphere. It was infectious, as the sun continued to set and the warmth of the firelight became the only light around, and she couldn't help but be pulled from her place on the sidelines. 

Lori gave John's tent and its current enamored occupants a wide berth as she wove between the tables where smaller groups were deep in their cups and conversations, meandered past the others sitting by the fire as they sang along heartily to whatever song Uncle had started, toward an impromptu ballroom where Dutch and Molly swayed to some classical racket. She chuckled aloud to herself, catching Mary-Beth bouncing on the balls of her feet and asking Arthur to dance.

“I ain't much of a dancer,” he told her, but held out his hands for her to take anyway with a lopsided smile.

There was no grace to the dance he started with Mary-Beth, only a fun, lighthearted rhythm that was completely off the beat of the music, uncaring about Dutch and Molly lost in their own, more serious world, right next to them. Arthur could have tried. He could have stayed on beat and done at least the little footwork Dutch was managing, Lori was sure of it — but apparently the brotherly teasing and Mary-Beth's bright laugh were far too worth it. 

Lori wondered, as the gramophone quieted but the gang made up for it, whether the grin on Arthur's face was more because of the dance, or the haze of whiskey. 

The loud burst of laughter and comments she heard from across the camp, and Sean's indignant retorts as he made his reappearance, she could tell were more the booze than anything, lowering inhibitions but sharpening tongues.

Karen's enthusiastic rant about what would make her a lady, too, was fueled by far too much alcohol. As was the subsequent, distinctly unladylike bout of vomiting that shortly followed. Lori sighed, but smiled to herself as she brushed the younger blonde's hair back out of her face, and gave her a cup of herbal tea and a peppermint to try and combat the nausea. This wasn't the first time she'd comforted someone like this, and she doubted it would be the last.

What wasn't so clear-cut, was what exactly prompted Arthur to drop into the seat at the table next to Lori and Karen, still sitting face down with her forehead resting on her crossed arms. He propped his own elbow on the weathered wood, and perched his cheekbone on his fist, eyes alert but a little glazed over as he followed the circles Lori was rubbing on Karen's back.

"Can I help you, Mr. Morgan? You in need of some tea, too?" Lori teased him.

His chuckle was so deep it rumbled through the night air more as a feeling than a sound. "You sayin' you think I can't hold my drink?"

"As far as I can tell, Mr. Morgan, you hold your whiskey just as well as the bottle you drank it from," Lori laughed. "But you're looking at me like you want something."

"Nah… Jus'… well I think they'll miss this, 's all."

"What do you mean?"

"The girls," Arthur clarified unhelpfully, moving his head just long enough to point at Lori and then Karen, then off to where the other girls were already sleeping. "Been a while since they had this sort'a… softness."

"And why would they miss it? Am I going somewhere?" Lori leaned over and checked to see if Karen was still awake. She wasn't.

"I… well, I hope not, actually." Arthur looked surprised by his own admission, blue eyes blinking a few times in the low light.

"Then we're in agreement," Lori said, smiling at his expression. "Now, do excuse us, Mr. Morgan, I think it's time for bed." Lori stood and helped get Karen groggily to her feet, an arm around her as she led her off toward her bedroll. "Have a good night, I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."

[gatheredfates]

Hi everyone and happy weekend! I'm drowning at work, but I wanted to put out a Compendium update—thank you to everyone who submitted! I don't think I missed anyone but, if I did, I'll update accordingly. ✨

As of 08/10, the following communities have been added to Sea's Community Compendium for XIV Creatives.

LARGE-SCALE COMMUNITY DISCORDS / SPACES

Final Fantasy XIV Ontario — This server was created to connect gamers in (or near) Ontario, Canada who love playing Final Fantasy XIV. Events include monthly map nights and irl meetups!

COMMUNITY FOCUSED / EVENT SPACES

Dragonhead — An open-world roleplay event for Ishgardians (and their neighbours).

Echelons of Etheirys — A community fostering political and court life roleplay in the world of Final Fantasy XIV, featuring regency-inspired tropes and themes; located on the North American data centre.

Buscarron's Druthers — A weekly roleplay community effort to encourage in-character, open-world engagement in the South Shroud and beyond.

The Bloodsands — Interested in combat RP? We have the place for you!

Lark's — An Ishgardian club for men.

The Regency — A gentleman's club.

Eorzean Museum Network — A network of free, player-run, venues; encouraging, supporting, and growing cultural venues and events anywhere in the FFXIV community.

Azure Moon Lounge — A welcome respite from the elements, the room is always cool and the drinks are plenty. Hosted by @rhela-xiv.

MISC

Compendium of Non-Weapon Held Objects — This is an ever-growing compendium of non-weapon held objects found in FFXIV for modders and gposers to reference. It includes a description of the object, the set/base/variant for adding it in Ktisis/Anamnesis/Brio, as well other technical information. This database is currently maintained by Nhaneh, Ainyan, and Pointyhats.

Have you thought about joining our Tumblr Community? You can find it here!

Want to submit? You can either fill out the google form here or send me an ask with the relevant information!

Is my space suitable for the Compendium? Most of the time, yes! Below the read more is some more information/stipulations. This is all publicly available on the document.

Below are the following things I do not accept on the Compendium:

Personal/Single-Character LFC ads. (Though these get posted to the SEAFLOOR Tumblr Community when I find them!)

Content intended for or can be used for bullying, harassment and OOC gossip. E.g. ‘Secrets’ blogs, receipts, callout posts, etc. This does not include IC tabloid blogs or other ventures used to generate roleplay.

Communities that do not have an RP/writing element (large-scale exempt).

Anything I find personally distasteful or goes against the spirit of this project.

Common-sense rule applies.

I want to put my community on the Compendium but we have an application process. Is this okay?

Yes! Just note somewhere in your application that's a requirement. The only thing that is mandatory for the Compendium is that you must be open to new members or have a public-facing/accessible facet. There's no point advertising a community if no one can join it in some way!

I want to put my Community on the compendium but I only have x number of members —

Also totally okay! People don't start with large communities. Activity is a must but, whether your server has two or two thousand members, if you're looking for new people to join, I'd love to help you find people.

I want to put my community/resource on the Compendium but I worry its too niche?

Okay, and? If your Eorzean Fishing Alliance has four members but you roleplay every second weekend, I still want to know about it. The same goes for resources; if it's relevant to the game, it'll be useful to someone.

How active does a community need to be?

If you find a community has not been active in about two/three months, send me a message and I'll take a look at it. Communities have ebbs and flows, especially event spaces that may take hiatuses depending on member interest/life events. I'm not strict in my implementation provided a space isn't dead. If a link or anything is broken, contact me asap!

I have [insert a question not stated here]?

No drama! Send me an ask or use the #Compendium channel in my Discord!

[weaverpop]

Okay, another question. So, out of everyone, who could be trusted with a gun in general? Because in my AU, Nezha and Azure are both skilled with guns and can handle it with no issue. The others...not so much.

In my Lionsword aus… yeah no, guns are for a very few selected people.

For azure, and really all the og brotherhood besides Wu and Mac, they have no idea how to use a gun. But unlike the others, azure would get super into it, being a pioneer = being predator, and guns usually means hunting. So Azure gets VERY good at it.

Nezha is not to be trusted with a gun. At all. Lord only knows he’d blow off his or someone else’s head.

Jing is aware and knows how to use a gun, but doesn’t like the loud noise and is more of a swords guy anyway. Will use of have too.

Wukong and macaque know how to use guns, but both hate them. Mac hates them bc of his hearing, ad Wu hates them bc of how easy they take lives. Niether are against others having them, just don’t prefer owning them.

Pigsy is a business owner, and would absolutely keep a gun. He knows how to aim and shoot and all that, but is no professional. Tang is too scared to even go near it. But both agree to help mk learn about them professionally, just in case with all the hero business.

So, with Mei joining in, Mk became VERY skilled with a variety of guns.

Sandy is just…. No.

[fellow-fandom-fruitifier]

(@mythicalmagical-monkeyman asked “ROYAL AU?” but it disappeared?.???😭😭 so just pretend I answered the ask rn💀💀)

ROYAL AU!!!

Basically I watched Cinderella & immediately decided I need royalty/borderline fairytale/fantasy AU shadowpeach. SWK is ofc the king & 6EM is apart of a ragtag group of entertainers that call themselves “The Lantern”, they r all sum kind of “”freak”” which is what brought them 2gether. The premise was originally just a feel good story where the Bull Kingdom invites The Lantern to play @ the Sun Kingdom, & SWK falls in luv w/ 6EM & vice versa. But I am incapable of keeping it simple so now there’s ✨lore✨

We have The Lantern (Macaque, Bai He, Peng, Yellowtusk, Azure)

Dragon Kingdom (Ao Lie, Mei, Ao Guang, Mei’s parents, etc)

Sun Kingdom (MK, Wukong, Tang, Pigsy, Sandy, Mo, Guanyin, Nezha)

Bull Kingdom (Demon Bull King, Princess Iron Fan, Redson)

Bone Clan (Lady Bone Demon, Mayor — idk what 2 call him yet)

Spider Clan (Spider Queen, Syntax, Goliath, Huntsman)

(The short writing/WIP below, fair warning I haven’t reread it or anything & this is the 1st draft + it’s old💀💀💀, it’s also kinda just an idea dump so idk how much would actually b canon 2 the AU yet)

The dark and looming forest, something usually eerie enough to send the bravest men running, was made less intimidating by the warm violet fire light. The campfire crackled as the group around it told tales, smiles wide and bellies ready to be filled. The sound of laughter only added to the homey atmosphere.

Peng cackled as Bai He told the story of how Demon Bull King, their closest ally, attempted to court Princess Iron Fan only for her to turn the tables. Sweeping him off his feet instead. The story wasn’t new nor was this the first time it had been told, yet it sent their feathered friend rolling each and every time it was regaled.

Macaque rolled his eyes fondly, lips quirked up in a soft lopsided grin. “Alright,” he said, catching everyone’s attention. “The food is ready. Bring your bowls and get your fill,” he said. Holding up the ladle from the pot strung up above their fire. Several cheers were heard. The more polite few, Azure and Yellowtusk, giving their thanks and the less patient, Peng and Bai He, giving theirs when elbowed from the former.

Macaque rolled his eyes at their antics, scooping the soup from the pot into their clay and wood bowls. “Thank you for foraging Yellow,” he nodded gratefully. Yellowtusk smiled.

“Anything for your cooking brother,” he said with an elegance only he could hold. Bai He nodded eagerly, completely agreeing. Azure admonished her for it, reminding her to eat properly lest she choke. The girl, at the soonest opportunity, maturely stuck her tongue out at him. Causing Peng to snort and actually choke. Yellowtusk patted them on the back.

Macaque smiled warmly at his little ragtag group. They were traveling entertainers. All of them were a freak of some kind, Macaque a shapeshifter who puts on shadow puppet shows. Having been ‘blessed’ with the gift of shadow and the sixth ear from a young age, he’d been sought out and held captive for many years before he’d found Bai He.

Bai He is a winter fae. Winter fae have quite the bad rap and yet she’s the sweetest girl he’s ever met. Brave and compassionate, she cares so brightly for her friends that it’s impossible for them to even doubt their place by her side. Macaque had met her when he’d been captured by the Bone Clan. The two had escaped together and the start of their theater began, turns out she had quite the knack for special effects.

The next to join their small gang was Azure Lion, a griffin cursed to live as part man. Apparently the man had some bad friends back in the day which had led him to his capture, a cage which Bai He and Macaque had freed him from. Azure had proved quite the leader, quickly taking the reins of their group and helping organize shows.

After him had been both Yellowtusk, a great warlock, and Peng, a magnificent harpy. They had encroached on the twos land by accident where Peng had fiercely attacked them. Upon discovering the misunderstanding they’d invited them in as an apology. Rather Yellowtusk invited them in. Turns out the two had been rather bored living on their own and Yellowtusk had always wanted to explore the world. So their three soon became a five.

Peng made a good scout and bodyguard while Yellowtusk knows plenty about medicine. Macaque also valued the warlock's insight when it came to plants. He always had the best ideas for add ons.

In their travels they had made many friends and ally’s. Their biggest ones, as mentioned previously, was the Bull Kingdom. Demon Bull King, a powerful centaur; his wife Princess Iron Fan, an elemental witch that has a deep connection with the wind; and their son Redson, half centaur and half elemental witch who, unlike his mother, has quite a strong connection to fire.

The five had been visiting both for shelter and to perform when an opposing kingdom had attacked. The group had lent their aid in the battle and quickly endeared themselves to the royals. The Bulls even going as far to claim them as family.

Smiling Macaque scooped up some of the mushroom soup and blew on it to cool it down, carefully taking a sip from it. He hummed in satisfaction. Yet another meal made to perfection. The next kingdom they plan to stop by is the Sun Kingdom. Apparently a great ball will be happening and the Bull Kingdom had invited the five to attend and perform, to which they had agreed.

Bai He had been rather ecstatic. According to the forest animals the Dragon Kingdom would be attending, another ally of theirs. Mei, the princess, had almost immediately taken to Bai He and the two became thicker than thieves. Of course not all kingdoms were receptive to their kind so Macaque was just hoping they would be welcome in the Sun Kingdom. While he wasn’t positive he would take his Bull brothers word for it.

After finishing the soup Bai He gathered up the dirty dishes, grumbling all the while as if the chore roster hadn’t originally been her idea. Her bug-like wings quivered as they rid themselves of the dust of the day. Bai He wore a light blue sleeveless top, that always reminded him of frost, with dark blue trimming. She also donned baggy white shorts and darker blue boots tied up with black leather string. The only thing with true color variation was the pink handkerchief holding her long black hair, which had a stripe of white, back from her face. A gift from Mei that the dragon girl said would bring out her warm brown eyes.

Peng had dark teal baggy shorts as well as a purple loincloth held up by a golden belt. A dark green feather sticking out from their black hair pulled up into a high bun. Yellowtusk wore a simple dark purple robe with gold accents, a compliment to his brother's outfit. His white hair is short and tucked back behind his ears with a few loose strands framing his face. While Azure wore skin tight black pants and shirt, which only had one sleeve and was cut diagonally in a way that exposed half of his torso, and finally a golden armored skirt with gold shoulder pads. His ginger hair pulled into two braided pigtail resting in his shoulders.

Macaque himself had a red cloak, a black baggy shirt with even baggier sleeves and gold accents, dark red pants, and black boots also with gold accents. The shapeshifters own short black hair simply slicked back to stay out of his face. The only real thing their clothes had in common was a necklace crafted by Yellowtusk, the symbol was his shadow lantern and each amulet was enchanted with protection wards.

Macaque absolutely did not cry when Yellowtusk handed them out no matter what Peng says. Which is super hypocritical because they totally did.

ANYWAYS!

“Alright!” Azure spoke. Gaining the attention of the group he smiled, clasping his hands together as Bai He came back from the river with the freshly cleaned dishes. “It’s getting late and if we wish to arrive in time we must leave earlier,” he announced. Grumbled agreements rang through the camp as the group pulled out their blankets.

Macaque wheezed as Bai He tackled him, wrapping her arms and legs around him like a koala. “Really?” he groaned. She laughed as he pulled the blankets up over them. The next to lay down was Yellowtusk and Peng, then finally Azure. He closed his fist and the fire went out, their supplies being gathered up by shadows and deposited in their rightful place.

The five gathered up their blankets and pillows for their cuddle pile. Macaque relaxed into the bed as he shifted from his human form to his puma one, wrapping his tail around his sister's ankle in an effort to hug her back. Peng and Azure's wings spread out to cover them all as Yellowtusk whispered a spell of warmth. Soon the gathered heat of his family lulled him to sleep, excited for a full day of performance tomorrow.

——————

Wukong was excited. The neighboring kingdom, the Bull Kingdom, had invited the rather infamous traveling group The Lantern.

[darkmaga-returns]

by Murtaza Hussain

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—Drop Site News

In mid-March, Google announced that it was paying the staggering sum of $32 billion for the acquisition of the Israeli cloud-computing security company Wiz. The acquisition, pending regulatory approval, will be the largest ever of an Israeli firm.

“Organizations of all sizes—from start-ups and large enterprises to governments and public sector organizations—can use Wiz to protect everything they build and run in the cloud,” Google said in a statement announcing the acquisition. The statement added that Wiz would join Google Cloud, but that the Tel Aviv-based company’s security services would still be available across other cloud platforms used by major firms, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle Cloud.

What was left unsaid in Google’s announcement, however, were the personal backgrounds of its four founders. The co-founders of Wiz—Yinon Costica, Assaf Rappaport, Ami Luttwak, and Roy Reznik—are all veterans of Unit 8200, the signals intelligence division of the Israeli military, which is playing a key role in helping to carry out Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon.