#Driving in Crete

[whereskatieandgrady]

Ano Vouves and Palaiochora

[portable-document-format]

finally listened to kimono my house for the first time today 😁🫶🫶

[astra-ravana]

Obscure Herbs

Here’s a list of rare or lesser-known herbs and their magickal correspondences, many of which are overlooked in modern witchcraft and occult practices.

1. Cock's Comb (Alectorolophus)

• Magickal Uses: Protection, strength, and victory in battles (physical or spiritual).

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Mars

• Associated Deities: Ares, Sekhmet

• Use: Burn as incense before conflict or challenging situations for courage.

2. Asarabacca (Asarum europaeum)

• Magickal Uses: Psychic visions, breaking hexes, uncovering hidden truths.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Moon

• Associated Deities: Hekate, Thoth

• Use: Place under the pillow for prophetic dreams or use in a tea for divination.

3. Balmony (Chelone glabra)

• Magickal Uses: Healing, emotional cleansing, renewal.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Neptune

• Associated Deities: Oshun, Brigid

• Use: Burn in purification rituals or use in healing baths.

4. Birthwort (Aristolochia)

• Magickal Uses: Transformation, banishing negativity, aiding childbirth.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Saturn

• Associated Deities: Ereshkigal, Demeter

• Use: Used in ancient childbirth rituals; can be burned for removing stagnant energies.

5. Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)

• Magickal Uses: Feminine power, protection of mothers, fertility.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Venus

• Associated Deities: Hathor, Freyja

• Use: Carried as a charm for protection during pregnancy.

6. Calamint (Calamintha)

• Magickal Uses: Clarity, focus, preventing deception.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Mercury

• Associated Deities: Hermes, Odin

• Use: Burned to enhance mental acuity or added to charm bags for clear thinking.

7. Clary Sage (Salvia sclarea)

• Magickal Uses: Psychic awareness, third-eye activation, dream recall.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Jupiter

• Associated Deities: Apollo, Isis

• Use: Used in dream pillows or burned to enhance trance states.

8. Dittany of Crete (Origanum dictamnus)

• Magickal Uses: Spirit summoning, astral travel, love spells.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Venus

• Associated Deities: Aphrodite, Hades

• Use: Burned to enhance spiritual contact, especially in necromantic rites.

9. Figwort (Scrophularia nodosa)

• Magickal Uses: Protection against hostile spirits, shapeshifting, banishment.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Saturn

• Associated Deities: Hekate, Anubis

• Use: Worn as an amulet for protection during spiritual work.

10. Fleabane (Erigeron)

• Magickal Uses: Exorcism, warding off pests (physical and energetic).

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Mars

• Associated Deities: Thor, Sekhmet

• Use: Sprinkled around a home to drive away negative energies.

11. Goat’s Rue (Galega officinalis)

• Magickal Uses: Strength, endurance, prosperity.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Saturn

• Associated Deities: Pan, Cernunnos

• Use: Carried for perseverance in long-term endeavors.

12. Golden Ragwort (Packera aurea)

• Magickal Uses: Wealth, success, protection of one’s legacy.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Jupiter

• Associated Deities: Fortuna, Lakshmi

• Use: Used in prosperity spells or worn to attract wealth.

13. Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum)

• Magickal Uses: Luck, secrecy, invisibility.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Mercury

• Associated Deities: Loki, Hermes

• Use: Carried to avoid detection in magical workings.

14. Ladies’ Bedstraw (Galium verum)

• Magickal Uses: Love, protection, attracting kindness.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Venus

• Associated Deities: Aphrodite, Freyja

• Use: Placed under the bed to attract love or harmony.

15. Lungwort (Pulmonaria)

• Magickal Uses: Breath control, speaking the truth, strengthening the voice.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Mercury

• Associated Deities: Hermes, Saraswati

• Use: Used in spells for eloquence and clear speech.

16. Masterwort (Peucedanum ostruthium)

• Magickal Uses: Power, dominance, authority.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Sun

• Associated Deities: Zeus, Helios

• Use: Worn as a talisman to strengthen personal influence.

17. Moonwort (Botrychium lunaria)

• Magickal Uses: Unlocking hidden doors, breaking barriers, lunar magick.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Moon

• Associated Deities: Hekate, Selene

• Use: Used to enhance lunar rituals and to aid astral travel.

18. Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium)

• Magickal Uses: Banishing, repelling unwanted influences, protection.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Mars

• Associated Deities: Ares, Lilith

• Use: Burned for spiritual cleansing or carried for warding off manipulation.

19. Self-Heal (Prunella vulgaris)

• Magickal Uses: Healing, self-improvement, resilience.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Venus

• Associated Deities: Brigid, Isis

• Use: Used in healing rituals or teas for emotional restoration.

20. Toadflax (Linaria vulgaris)

• Magickal Uses: Warding off curses, preventing deception, protection.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Sun

• Associated Deities: Apollo, Ra

• Use: Carried to prevent betrayal or used in warding spells.

21. Alkanet (Alkanna tinctoria)

• Magickal Uses: Protection, prosperity, hex-breaking.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Saturn

• Associated Deities: Hekate, Pluto

• Use: Used in protection sachets and to anoint tools for grounding energy.

22. Angel’s Trumpet (Brugmansia spp.)

• Magickal Uses: Spirit communication, trance work, crossing between realms.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Neptune

• Associated Deities: Hekate, The Morrigan

• Use: Placed on an altar to enhance dream work and astral projection. (Highly toxic—do not ingest.)

23. Azedarach (Melia azedarach) – Chinaberry

• Magickal Uses: Warding off evil, breaking toxic attachments, commanding respect.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Mars

• Associated Deities: Ares, Kali

• Use: Leaves are carried in a sachet for personal empowerment and protection.

24. Bistort (Persicaria bistorta)

• Magickal Uses: Fertility, purification, emotional healing.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Venus

• Associated Deities: Brigid, Freyja

• Use: Used in fertility rites or healing spells for emotional wounds.

25. Bog Myrtle (Myrica gale)

• Magickal Uses: Psychic enhancement, dream work, repelling negative energy.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Mercury

• Associated Deities: Odin, Hermes

• Use: Burned as incense to enhance lucid dreaming and divination.

26. Bugloss (Anchusa officinalis)

• Magickal Uses: Courage, strengthening the will, truth-seeking.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Sun

• Associated Deities: Apollo, Thor

• Use: Carried or worn as an amulet to boost confidence and resolve.

27. Carline Thistle (Carlina vulgaris)

• Magickal Uses: Warding off disease, exorcism, strength against enemies.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Mars

• Associated Deities: Ares, Sekhmet

• Use: Hung in doorways or carried as a charm to ward off malevolent forces.

28. Celandine (Chelidonium majus)

• Magickal Uses: Success, legal matters, prophetic visions.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Jupiter

• Associated Deities: Hermes, Zeus

• Use: Used in court-case spells or placed under the pillow for prophetic dreams.

29. Centaury (Centaurium erythraea)

• Magickal Uses: Strength, breaking bad habits, healing emotional wounds.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Sun

• Associated Deities: Chiron, Asclepius

• Use: Brewed into teas for spiritual cleansing and breaking negative patterns.

30. Cudweed (Filago vulgaris)

• Magickal Uses: Spirit communication, necromancy, ancestor work.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Saturn

• Associated Deities: Anubis, Hel

• Use: Burned as incense during séances or placed on ancestral altars.

31. Dropwort (Filipendula vulgaris)

• Magickal Uses: Love, attraction, enhancing charm.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Venus

• Associated Deities: Aphrodite, Freyja

• Use: Added to bath rituals for attracting a lover or enhancing beauty.

32. Elephant’s Head (Pedicularis groenlandica)

• Magickal Uses: Dreamwork, expanding consciousness, energy flow.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Uranus

• Associated Deities: Thoth, Morpheus

• Use: Used in rituals for astral projection and dream enhancement.

33. Fumitory (Fumaria officinalis)

• Magickal Uses: Exorcism, purification, breaking hexes.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Mars

• Associated Deities: Hekate, Kali

• Use: Burned to cleanse a space or added to baths for spiritual protection.

34. Great Burnet (Sanguisorba officinalis)

• Magickal Uses: Strength in adversity, courage, endurance.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Saturn

• Associated Deities: Odin, Athena

• Use: Used in talismans for resilience and overcoming hardship.

35. Hound’s Tongue (Cynoglossum officinale)

• Magickal Uses: Binding, loyalty, controlling gossip.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Mercury

• Associated Deities: Hekate, Hermes

• Use: Used in spells to stop malicious talk and encourage faithfulness.

36. Jacob’s Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum)

• Magickal Uses: Divine connection, wisdom, accessing higher knowledge.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Jupiter

• Associated Deities: Zeus, Thoth

• Use: Used in meditation to enhance spiritual insight.

37. Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)

• Magickal Uses: Peace, balancing emotions, calming conflicts.

• Element: Water

• Planet: Moon

• Associated Deities: Kuan Yin, Selene

• Use: Burned or carried for emotional balance and conflict resolution.

38. Mouse-ear Hawkweed (Pilosella officinarum)

• Magickal Uses: Clairvoyance, invisibility, sharpening the mind.

• Element: Air

• Planet: Mercury

• Associated Deities: Loki, Hermes

• Use: Used in vision-enhancing spells or to increase focus.

39. Pellitory of the Wall (Parietaria judaica)

• Magickal Uses: Breaking barriers, removing obstacles, gaining access.

• Element: Earth

• Planet: Saturn

• Associated Deities: Janus, Ganesha

• Use: Used in road-opening spells to remove blockages to success.

40. Scabious (Scabiosa columbaria)

• Magickal Uses: Protection against deceit, uncovering hidden enemies.

• Element: Fire

• Planet: Mars

• Associated Deities: Ares, Nemesis

• Use: Carried as an amulet for protection in matters of secrecy or deception.

[blueiscoool]

Greek Farmer Stumbles Onto 3,400-Year-Old Tomb Hidden Below His Olive Grove

The Crete local was trying to park his vehicle when he accidentally unearthed the ancient Minoan grave

Sometime between 1400 and 1200 B.C., two Minoan men were laid to rest in an underground enclosure carved out of the soft limestone native to southeast Crete. Both were entombed within larnakes—intricately embossed clay coffins popular in Bronze Age Minoan society—and surrounded by colorful funerary vases that hinted at their owners’ high status. Eventually, the burial site was sealed with stone masonry and forgotten, leaving the deceased undisturbed for roughly 3,400 years.

Earlier this summer, a local farmer accidentally brought the pair’s millennia-long rest to an abrupt end, George Dvorsky reports for Gizmodo. The farmer was attempting to park his vehicle beneath a shaded olive grove on his property when the ground gave way, forcing him to find a new parking spot. As he started to drive off, the unidentified local noticed a four-foot-wide hole that had emerged in the patch of land he’d just vacated. Perched on the edge of the gaping space, the man realized he’d unintentionally unearthed “a wonderful thing.”

According to a statement, archaeologists from the local heritage ministry, Lassithi Ephorate of Antiquities, launched excavations below the farmer’s olive grove at Rousses, a small village just northeast of Kentri, Ierapetra, in southeast Crete. They identified the Minoan tomb, nearly perfectly preserved despite its advanced age, in a pit measuring roughly four feet across and eight feet deep. The space’s interior was divided into three carved niches accessible by a vertical trench.

In the northernmost niche, archaeologists found a coffin and an array of vessels scattered across the ground. The southernmost niche yielded a second sealed coffin, as well as 14 ritual Greek jars called amphorae and a bowl.

Forbes’ Kristina Kilgrove writes that the high quality of the pottery left in the tomb indicates the individuals buried were relatively affluent. She notes, however, that other burial sites dating to the same Late Minoan period feature more elaborate beehive-style tombs.

“These [men] could be wealthy,” Kilgrove states, “but not the wealthiest.”

Unlike many ancient tombs, the Kentri grave was never discovered by thieves, Argyris Pantazis, deputy mayor of local communities, agrarian and tourism of Ierapetra, tells local news outlet Cretapost. In fact, the site likely would have remained sealed in perpetuity if not for the chance intervention of a broken irrigation pipe, which watered down the soil surrounding the farmer’s olive grove and led to his unexpected parking debacle.

“We are particularly pleased with this great archaeological discovery, as it is expected to further enhance our culture and history,” Pantazis added in his interview with Cretapost. “Indeed, this is also a response to all those who doubt that there were Minoans in Ierapetra.”

According to Archaeology News Network, most Minoan settlements found on Crete are located in the lowlands and plains rather than the mountainous regions of Ierapetra. Still, a 2012 excavation in Anatoli, Ierapetra, revealed a Minoan mansion dating to between 1600 and 1400 B.C., roughly the same time period as the Kentri tomb.

This latest find offers further proof of the ancient civilization’s presence—as Mark Cartwright notes for Ancient History Encyclopedia, the Minoans are most renowned for their labyrinthine palace complexes, which likely inspired the classic Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. According to legend, Queen Pasiphae of Crete gave birth to the Minotaur, a fierce half-man, half-bull hybrid, after falling for a bull sent to Earth by the Greek god Zeus. The Minotaur, doomed to an eternity spent wandering the halls of an underground labyrinth and killing anyone it encountered, was eventually defeated by the demigod Theseus, who relied on an enchanted ball of thread provided by the king’s daughter, Ariadne, to escape the maze.

Much of the Minoans’ history remains unclear, but Forbes’ Kilgrove reports that natural disasters, including the eruption of the Thera volcano, an earthquake and a tsunami, contributed to the group’s downfall, enabling enemies such as the Mycenaeans to easily invade. Analysis of the excavated Kentri tomb may offer further insights on the Minoan-Mycenaean rivalry, as well as the Cretan civilization’s eventual demise.

By Meilan Solly.

(Discovered in Summer 2018)

[mclqren]

ME AND MY BROKEN HEART ★ CL16 ( & MV33 )

PAIRING ✦ charles leclerc x fem!ex girlfriend!reader ; max verstappen x fem!reader

SUMMARY ✦ when charles leaves you heartbroken, you end up letting a certain red bull driver help mend your broken heart [ SMAU ]

WARNINGS ✦ cursing

REQUESTED ✦ here!

NOTES ✦ reader is a model for dior. for the timeline of this, reader & charles broke up in august 2023 and he got with another woman (choosing to leave her unnamed because there will be NO alex slander) in september 2023. as per request, the fc i've used is hannah harrell, but feel free to picture whoever you want! my requests are closed at the moment.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

liked by yourbsf, anyataylorjoy, and 691,221 others

yourusername had to learn that the hard way 👎

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user1 THE LAST SLIDE WHAT.

user2 NO WAY ARE HER AND CHARLES BROKEN UP NOOO

user3 MY FAV COUPLE 💔

user4 the way im so upset rn is not healthy.

user5 real like THEY WERE PARENTS

user6 okay but y/n is still glowing??

user7 righttt!! enough about the guy who drives in circles all day, lets talk about HER 😍

user8 he fumbled.

user9 realll!

yourbsf making that cake was wayyy too much fun 😋

yourusername breaking it apart was even better 😉

anyataylorjoy 😍😍

yourusername who needs a man when i have you 🩷

liked by yourbsf, maxverstappen1, and 651,212 others

tagged yourbsf

yourusername greek air to cure the breakup blues 🇬🇷💙

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user14 OKAYYY MISS Y/N YOU ARE SERVING AS PER!!

user15 she's living her best life and im HERE FOR IT

user16 her and her bsf are actually everything to me

user17 so trueee i need a friendship like theirs!!

user18 NOO I WAS JUST IN GREECE I CANT BELIEVE I MISSED YOU

user19 NO I WAS AS WELL I WAS SO UPSET WHEN I SAW THIS

user20 bet charles is missing you rn!!

user21 who cares abt charles? she's literally getting over him rn, he's so yesterday's news 😴

user22 what part did you go to?? im planning on going over the holidays in october, and i desperately need some recs!! 🫶

yourusername crete!! it was so so beautiful, can confirm 🩷

user23 one driver out of her likes, another (max verstappen) in her likes

user24 okay but they'd be such a good couple??

yourbsf GIRLS TRIP WAS THE BESTTT

yourusername NEXT ONE PENDING FOR SUREEE

mariloublg_ absolutely gorgeous gorgeous girlies 😍😍

yourusername MARILOU MY ANGEL 🩷

user25 i came here from the instagram gossip website and can i just say in that interview you SERVED

user26 REALLL

user27 wait what are you guys on about?? im so lost HELP

user26 go on @/f1wagnews and you'll see!

liked by user28, user29, and 871,291 others

f1wagnews NEW: Y/N L/N breaks her silence on the circulating paparazzi pictures of Charles Leclerc & his apparent new girlfriend. When asked by the media what she thought, she said: "Charles being in a new relationship not even a month later is naturally a shock, seeing as I assumed he would treat me and the times we shared over the past three years with the same dignity and respect that I am treating him. I don't know, I guess these sort of memories aren't as priceless to him as they are to me. Still, I hope he's happy in his new relationship."

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user28 OKAYY MISS Y/N IS BACKK!!

user29 THIS is what i was waiting for.

user30 she is actually handling this really maturely to be fair to her!!

user31 realll!! i wish i would've been like this with my ex

user32 okay so a lot of the comments are saying she handled this w grace or whatever but is it just me who disagrees? like she's literally being rude to him and his new girlfriend, and you're all hyping her up?? like huh??

user33 honestly this comment makes no sense to me; she didn't say anything rude about charles in this, she simply said that she was shocked to see him in a relationship when they were together for three years, and honestly she's valid for that! i don't think many girls would enjoy seeing their ex boyfriend and his new girlfriend all over the media, and so y/n is honestly handling this so well.

yourusername

( caption one: crazy huh 😉 | caption two: compensation acquired ✅ + tags )

liked by mariloublg_, maxverstappen1, and 667,891 others

tagged mariloublg_

yourusername america with my girl 🩷 (& her boyfriend...)

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user37 THE CAPTION LMAOO

user38 Y/N REMAINS HILARIOUS

user39 ASTON MARTIN SWITCH UP HELLOOO??

user40 I KNOWW marilou and her are so cute though i loveee

user41 it's so weird to see her in green after having seen her in red for the past three years

user42 i knowww but she looks like she's happy now and that's all that matters tbh!!

lance_stroll thanks so much for the shoutout y/n, appreciate you too i guess

yourusername listen stroll if you hurt her i'll be at ur doorstep.

lance_stroll im actually sort of scared of you at times y/n.

yourusername good! 😊😊

maxverstappen1 so you liked seeing me win then?

yourusername you've been winning since like the prehistoric ages mate i think ive gotten used to it by now 🙄 (yes)

user43 so like is it just me or is this flirty...

mariloublg_ MY GIRL FOREVERRR 🫶

yourusername 🩷🩷

liked by yourbsf, maxverstappen1, and 702,192 others

tagged maxverstappen

yourusername second slide is me when i finally manage to get my shit together

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user44 OKAY BUT ARE MAX AND Y/N DATING ORRR

user45 MAYBEEE!! honestly they'd be so cute i just KNOW he'd treat her right

user46 y/n you are my everything.

user47 the flowersss?? did miss y/n get herself another man?

user48 has to be max.

maxverstappen1 the second slide was uncalled for. ☹️

yourusername I COULDNT STOP LAUGHING IM SO SORRY IT WAS HILARIOUS 😭

maxverstappen1 the flowers 👀👀

yourusername yeah!! wonder who got me those 😍

anyataylorjoy you have a man now? ☹️

yourusername nooo ur the only one i need baby i swear 🩷

liked by mariloublg_, user49, and 921,933 others

f1wagnews NEW: Y/N L/N is a WAG again...but for a different driver on the grid! In a recent interview during the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Max Verstappen confirmed to the press that he and Y/N had entered a relationship a couple of weeks prior, after pictures circulated of the two in his car in Monaco: "Well obviously she came to the COTA grand prix and I had already known her before and we were good friends, so we fell right back where we left off, and here we are now! [...] Yeah things are going great, she's truly one of the best people I've ever met."

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user49 Y/NSTAPPEN LETS GOOOO

user50 MY GIRL IS A WAG AGAINNN I LOVE

user51 is it just me who misses charles and y/n ☹️

user52 yeah. 😊

mariloublg_ ❤️❤️

user53 MARILOUUUU?? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!!

user54 ONE OF Y/N'S BEST FRIENDS AND FELLOW WAG COMMENTING OH ITS SERIOUS.

user55 they are seriously adorableee 🫶🫶

yourusername

( caption one: third time's the charm? 😬 | caption two: wtf is this man thinking about now. )

liked by charles_leclerc, maxverstappen1, and 934,219 others

tagged maxverstappen1

yourusername MR WORLD CHAMPPP!! so so proud of you maxie, my winner always 🩷

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user59 Y/N AWWWW

user60 i have a feeling this one's working out idk

user61 oh absolutely

user62 so happy to see you happy again y/n!! 🫶🫶

user63 lost some race driver and came back with a world champion 🏆🏆

user64 ADORABLEEE

mariloublg_ MY CUTIES

yourusername OUR BIGGEST FAN

mariloublg_ well as your fairy godmother it IS an obligation to be ur biggest fan ever 🧚‍♀️🧚‍♀️

maxverstappen1 love you ❤️

yourusername my champ 🏆

charles_leclerc so happy for both of you ❤️

yourusername thank you so much charles, hope ur doing well w ur gf 🩷

user65 charles and y/n are talking again, i can officially sleep in peace.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

[insomniac4000]

Caught On Camera- Arthur TV

Sick of Arthur's Blogging the group try and get revenge but get more then they bargained for....

“Arthur I swear to God I will ram your camera where the sun don’t shine,” Chris moaned as everyone made their way across the tarmac. Everyone being the aforementioned Chris, Bach and Liv, Arthur Hill, George, Chip, Sabina, Arthur Frederick and yourself. You and Arthur had been a couple for eight months. The fans knew, it had only been the odd Tiktok and Instagram post here and there for the past three months, people didn’t really know the full ins and outs of your relationship, it was a good balance. You had only been at the airport for twenty minutes and already Arthur had been told off twice for vlogging, once just now by Chris and once before by Arthur Hill. You hadn’t appeared in one of Arthur’s blogs before so this was going to be a new experience for you.

“Chris is grumpy as usual but we’re on the way to Crete and we’re joined by the amazing Y/N on the blog for the first time!” He panned the camera to you and you waved shyly.

“You can tell him to turn it off if you want,” George said placing an arm round your shoulders in a friendly way. George and yourself had developed a fun friendship over the past few months, you had started to grow close with all of them and they all knew just how much you meant to Arthur and vice versa.

“He hasn’t annoyed me yet,” you smiled up at him and looked at him only in the way a girl absolutely besotted with their partner.

Despite it being a morning flight you all grabbed some drinks, you chose an espresso martini as it was ten AM. You weren’t a big social media user, especially since you and Arthur had gone public, you posted about once a month you had no interest in being an influencer girlie. Not that there was anything wrong with that, it was just not your thing. You did decide to do a little photo dump of this trip however so started off taking  a photo of the cocktail and one of you, Sabina and Liv.

“Don’t tell me his vlogging ways are rubbing off on you,” Arthur Hill commented, you just smiled and shook his head.

“Don’t worry. You’re all safe. I’m not going to get the vlogging camera out yet.”

When it was time you all settled on the plane, Arthur let you have the window seat with Chris in the aisle, as he obviously needed the leg room. You weren’t the best flyer and Arthur knew this so held your hand on take off, allowing you to press your head firmly in his shoulder. He noticed whenever you got nervous and would rub circles on your hand with your thumb, squeezing it every so often when your knee bounced up and down with nerves. You knew it was a little irrational so it didn’t surprise you when you all landed fine.

You had hired cars to drive you all to the villa as the villa you all has chosen was just a little while from the town, you guys didn’t want to be disturbed.

The villa was luxurious, a pool outside, a big BBQ area on the patio, a games room inside and enough bedrooms for everyone to have their own if they wanted.

“I think this is one of the nicest places I’ve been to in a long time.” Arthur mused playing with his camera.

“Please don’t vlog the bedroom, I’d like at least some privacy this week,” You told him before reaching over and taking the camera, kissing him after placing it down. You had all agreed to just chill out for the next couple of hours before going out for dinner that night and you had something very specific in mind.

Dinner was at a nice place known for it’s steak and seafood. You were sat in the middle of a long wooden table, candlelight flickering in, and the scent of gorgeous food wafting through the air. Across from you, Liv and Sabina are laughing about something George just said, there was a translation issue on the menus which listed a soup as ‘meat juice’ only half listening though, because to your right, Arthur, your Arthur was mid-sentence to his camera again.

“...and this is our first night in Crete,” he says cheerfully, turning the lens toward himself “we are in this really nice restaurant actually the food looks so good. Everyone is here,” he panned the camera round the table, when it got to Chris the smaller man sighed

“Arthur,” Chris said, slapping the table for emphasis. “Put the camera down. You’re ruining the nice restaurant, mate.”

Everyone laughs, but there’s a weariness behind it. Chris leans back with his beer and mutters something to Arthur Hill, who echoes, “Seriously can we just eat our food in peace, we’re not doing this every night of this holiday or I’m flying home.”

Arthur just smirks. “This is the kind of content people want though!” He protested. You nudge him gently.

“Maybe film it later? Like when everyone’s not trying to have a normal conversation? At least until we’ve finished eating.”

He looks at you, camera still in hand, like he’s considering it. “But it’s the golden hour,” he says, sweeping the camera across the sunset like that somehow excuses the fact that Chip is now flipping him off from across the table. Sabina giggles and steals a sip of Chip’s drink while he’s distracted.

“Mate, I’m telling you—one more shot of me chewing and I’ll chew your camera,” George says. “On camera.”

“And Chris will probably bite you. Again.” Bach added.

Arthur finally lowered the lens, resting it beside his plate with a resigned sigh. “Fine. No more content. I’ll live in the moment, or whatever.”

“Thank God,” says Arthur Hill, tossing an olive into his mouth. “It was like eating with Attenborough narrating.”

With the camera gone, conversation flowed and spirits rose. Chip was  retelling a story from his latest video adventure which made Sabina cackle so loudly she nearly spilled her wine. Chris was trying to say something insightful about Greek architecture, but he keeps getting interrupted by a cat weaving under the table and George threatening to adopt it and bring it home which then caused Chris to go on a tangent about Smudge.

You feel Arthur’s arm slide around the back of your chair, his fingers tracing little circles at the top of your back. He leans in and murmurs in your ear, “You know I only film everything because the audience really love it, it gives my channel a bit of a purpose. Plus I really like looking back on things too.”

You glance at him, softening. “Yeah, but you’ll miss it if you never stop to actually be in it.”

“Alright,” he says, mock-serious. “Tomorrow, zero vlogging. I swear on Chris’s hairline.”

Chris looks up, affronted. “What the hell did I do?”

“Exactly,” Arthur says, snickering. The table erupts again.

“Not as bad as yours mate!” Chris replied.

Later, after the plates are cleared and the ouzo starts making the rounds, Arthur sneaks his phone out to take a blurry selfie of the table. You don’t mind this one. You lean into his side, cheeks warm from wine and laughter, and when he shows you the photo, everyone mid-laugh, the table lit by fairy lights and sunset you think about how lucky you are.

“Okay you can get the camera out now,” you tell him, even if everyone else wants to kill him for it.

The next few days followed a very similar pattern, on the beach, fortress tours and now on the boat trip Arthur would get out his camera and people complained.

You were all on a boat, The breeze whipped through your hair as you squint into the horizon, trying to ignore the growing nausea in your stomach, and the camera lens pointed in your direction.

“And here we have my lovely girlfriend pretending she’s not about to be violently seasick,” Arthur says cheerfully from behind his phone. “Give us a wave, babe.”

You shoot him a look. “Film me again and I will jump off this boat. And take your go pro with me.”

Bach snorts from the other side of the boat, draped dramatically across a bench like a Renaissance painting. “Let her suffer in peace, bro. You’ve already filmed her trying not to drown on the jet ski. That’s enough content.”

“I’m documenting the struggle!” Arthur grins, flipping the camera around to face himself. “Day four: We’ve taken to the sea. George has already dropped his sunglasses overboard, Chris is being suspiciously quiet, and Arthur Hill looks like he’s questioning every life decision that led him to this boat.”

“I am,” Hill says flatly, clinging to the side of the boat like it might tip at any moment and of course there’s just you narrating my trauma.”

Chris appears behind Arthur waving a bottle around like a weapon. “Mate, I swear—film me one more time without warning and I’m going to smash this over your head.”

“Content!” Arthur shouted, laughing, dodging out of reach.

You couldn’t help but smile despite the dizziness. He’s ridiculous, but there was an excitement and almost innocence about him which you couldn’t help but love.

Sabina and Liv were stretched out at the front of the boat, tanning and sipping something fruity while Chip tries to impress them by standing on the rail, arms out Titanic-style. “I’m king of the world!” he yells, just as the boat lurches and he nearly stacks it into the sea. Everyone howled with laughter and Arthur put up his filming device immediately in an attempt to catch it all.

“Jesus Christ, Chip!” George wheezes, doubled over laughing.

Arthur’s still filming, breathless from laughter. “See we can’t miss out on this stuff!”

Eventually you had convinced Arthur to put the camera down for a few moments and the pair of you sat inside to try and starve off the sickness, it was there that the others unbeknownst to you were hatching a plan.

“When do we do it?” Chip asked, they had all decided to surprise Arthur by flipping the tables over and were all going shove their cameras in his faces to see how he liked it. They hoped you would be a good sport about it all, afraid if you knew you would cave and tell him.

“Tomorrow morning, when he least expects it definitely,” George decided, it was a toss up between that and that evening but they were all in agreement the following morning, they would descend.

Oh how they wished they had told you. The next morning when the door swung open, the group were met with the sight of the pair of you, naked. You straddling Arthur, his hands on your breasts.

“OH MY GOD!” screamed Sabina, spinning on the spot with her hands over her eyes. “I didn’t sign up for this!”

“MY INNOCENCE!” Bach cried, clutching his chest like he’d just been shot.

“TURN IT OFF! TURN IT OFF!” Arthur Hill shrieked, stumbling backward into a lampshade.

Chris froze, eyes wide, phone still raised. “...Is this still part of the vlog or...?”

You yelped, diving under the covers with a squeak while Arthur instinctively threw a pillow in George’s direction. “GET OUT! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!”

“We came for  revenge but found a peep show!” Chip exclaimed. The group stood there in horror for a few seconds more before slowly retreating backwards leaving you and Arthur in peace.

“Point made,” Arthur sighed before flopping on the bed front first and groaning into the pillow. You bit your lip, never a dull moment dating a  Youtuber.

[fanaticsnail]

Apologetic Valentine

Masterlist Here

Word Count: 1,400+

Synopsis: Doflamingo has missed another Valentine's Day alongside anniversaries, holidays, and birthdays. He decides to make it up to you by gifting a variety of presents and indulges in watching you attempt to open it while his hands become a welcome distraction.

Themes: Doflamingo x afab!reader, MDNI, NSFW, 18+, smut, cockwarming, domflamingo, established relationship, overstimulation, love, kisses, lots of pet-names.

Notes: Massive shout out to @loganwritesprobably, @mermaniaa, @queenmimi2817, @thietanavenus and @vaadalt for keeping me company and giving me ideas for this one last night 🖤. Happy belated Valentine's!

The vast array of gifts littering the ensuite table was in hues of deep red up to pastel pinks. Crete paper and ruby-stained tissue was thrust amongst the peonies, roses and tulips: all a healthy dedication depicting the love from your partner sitting beneath your lap. Reaching towards the velveteen box clad in ribbons and tulle, your breath caught in your throat and a shocked moan tugged its way from your chest to your lips.

“Eyes on the gifts now, my sweet,” Donquixote Doflamingo’s voice poured like molasses down at you, “Open the next one of your many trinkets from me.” Your hands shuddered as they lingered over the fabric, your entire body being struck alight and unravelling beneath the skilled hands of Doflamingo while you shifted through your gifts.

Valentine’s Day had come and gone, birthdays were of a similar regard. Doflamingo was a busy man: king, warlord, and pirate captain all in one, giant, feather-clad form. As his spouse, you were accustomed to being left to your own devices while he sought out his orders and took to his mighty kingdom.

However, he regretted not spending every waking moment serenaded by your smile and illuminated with your laughter - which was why he spent so much time purchasing thoughtful items and an amassment of flowers for your enjoyment.

As you made to unravel the ribbon, a whine spilled from your lips as your hips rolled against your will, relishing in the contact of his hand against your bare cunt. Doflamingo’s cock pulsed deep within your abdomen, impaling you and holding you hostage to your whims while keeping him warm and secure inside of you.

“The next one. Please, mi amor,” he whispered softly while using his index finger to swirl against your clit. “Tug the ribbon and tell me what you think of it.” He rocked his hips against yours, allowing a small groan of his own to join with yours before remaining completely stationary seated within your pussy.

Slowly withdrawing the ribbon, you tugged at the cloth and reached for the fastening holding the box closed. While you opened the velveteen surface, your fingers halted while you attempted to ignore the call into bliss founded by the skilled fingers of Doflamingo. The pad of his index finger continued to drive you to the brink of insanity the longer he held you hostage on his cock, but the smooth pour of his voice lingering in your ear from behind kept you grounded.

“What is it, little dove?” his voice caressed the shell of your ear, “What can you see, hm? Talk me through it.” As his warmth spread from the nape of your neck down, igniting pebbled goose-flesh along your spine, you clenched hard around his shaft and arched your back while rolling over the box between your thumb and forefingers.

“I-I see,” you stumble over your tone while you open the box. The rolling of his fingers grinds to a halt, holding you stationary within the cusps of falling over the edge of ecstasy.

“Words, dove. You have them, you can use your pretty little tongue to draw them up and over your palate,” he whispered down into your scalp, flicking his lengthy tongue against your earlobe, “Try for me.” His fingers once again moved against that pebbled pearl at the top of your glistening cunt. His own voice constricted around his shuddering groan as he gazed over his rose-tinted glasses down towards the box in your hands.

“It’s-It’s-,” you again tried to elicit sounds to depict your insight, opening the box and peering down within its plush surface. Your fingers reached forward, caressing the interior of the silken padding of the gift as a cool metal caressed your skin. Each small divot was both smooth and rough within your hands, a ribbon of gold with a small, balled, spherical object at the base of the box.

Doflamingo purred through his soft mewl, his quivering cock pulsating thickly inside your cunt while he listened to you struggle to get the words out. He revelled in the flutter of your walls sucking in his length, gasping out at every soft quiver while he held you on that edge without ever letting you fall.

“I-It's a necklace with a b-ball on the end,” you whimper, brows furrowing in the centre of your forehead while you struggle to contain yourself. Doflamingo’s hand momentarily left your pussy as he reached up with the other to collect the charm from your hand. He rocked his hips to and fro to keep you right on the cusps of your release, biting back his own needs in order to tease you further.

Gently raising the chain, he draws it around your neck while he continues to gently rock his hips. His cock pinpoints your g-spot, dragging against it and forcing your jaw to draw slack at the intensity. He placed the necklace around you and joined the clasp at the nape above your spine. The large hands then resumed their position: one against your clit and rolling the pert bud in time with his gentle rocking, the other drawn over your chest and bracing your shoulders into his chest.

“The ball has a small port you can see into,” he hummed down against your smaller frame, “I had an image placed within of when we first began seeing one another.” He picked up his pace, finally bouncing you atop his lap and seeking out that familiar grip and contraction of your pussy sucking greedily on his thick cock. He grunted while listening to your gasps and mewls spill from your lips, holding you firmly against him while the crude ‘plap, plap, plap,’ of his hips meeting yours grew in relentless intensity.

There were no thoughts behind your eyes while your spouse continued to tug you towards that edge he had held you hostage to from the moment you first started this small gift exchange. Only pleasure seeped into your veins and ignited your blood with sharp and unyielding euphoria. Your abdomen pulsed and began to simmer with popping flashes, like water in hot oil fizzing on a cast iron surface. The gateway into bliss had parted, and that familiar desperation had reared its face in the tingles expanding from your cunt to your toes.

“Say: ‘Thank You, Doffy’, little dove,” he moaned down onto the crown of your head at every bobbing pass, “‘Thank you for your gift’.”

“Thank you, Doffy!” you cried out, lips parting as your pussy gushed over his cock. The pulses of your ring of muscle sucking on him was enough to push the king behind you over his edge, flooding your cunt to the brim with heavy bursts of his thick and pent-up ecstasy.

He groaned your name, revelling in the small world the two of you had set aside with one another as he drove your body hard to ride the waves of bliss together. Your body desperately convulsed in a bid to curl inwards, legs shuddering to winch themselves closed. Doflamingo angled his legs to hold yours open, shepherding you both through overstimulation while you churned through babbles of incohesive pleas.

Doflamingo finally relinquished his assault in holding you hostage to your pleasure as you both slumped forward against the pink-shrouded table. He chuckled deeply against your neck as he pressed his lips in a lengthy line of kisses from your spine up to your temple. Each kiss depicted his apologies, his gratitude, his lust, and his pure, unbridled devotion to you and you alone, all while dwelling in the afterglow of your accumulated passion.

“Okay, little dove,” he whispered softly, “Only five more gifts to open. Go on, my darling. Slowly use those little fingers to open the packages, and I expect a ‘thank you, Doffy’, after each one.”

You panted and heaved, sweat beginning to drop from your forehead as your glossy skin recuperated from a glimpse of the heavens by his skilled hands. In lieu of reaching for another gift, you tilted your head and drew your hand to his cheek from behind you.

Slowly drawing his face closer to yours, you joined your lips against his and slowly bled your emotional outpour in a timid and intentional kiss. Tongues only floating together momentarily, you focussed on depicting your love and gratitude that he spared a moment of his busy schedule to do this with you. Your breaths became one while your bodies were still joined at the hips, your kiss lingering on his skin as you pulled away from his face. Darting your eyes between his own, your lips shared an outpour of soft and pure love in the formation of three words.

“Thank you, Doffy.”

“You're welcome, little dove.”

Tag list: @mfreedomstuff @daydreamer-in-training @mermaniaa @gingernut1314 @writingmysanity @i-am-vita @indydonuts @feral-artistry @the-light-of-star @empirenowmp3 @racfoam @sunflowersatori @carrotsunshine @skullfacedlady @jintaka-hane @thenotsofantasticlifestory @ane5e

[seat-safety-switch]

"For the love of God, Switch!"

"Yes, for the love of God!" I chirp. A scraping sound cuts short the frivolity of my revenge. I have run out of mortar, and the wall encapsulating my hated enemy will remain incomplete. Shit. This always happens.

"Okay, actually, hold on," I plead with the hole in the wall. "I gotta go to fucking Home Depot. Stay right here."

Fifteen minutes later, I've given up on trying to find what I came for myself and I am now asking an employee for help.

"Uhhhhhhhhh... no, I've never heard of mortar. We got quick 'crete, that'll work."

"I'm pretty sure it won't."

The employee scoffs, and blows a vape cloud directly into my face. From the centre of the vape cloud emerges a billion pinpoints of light, which form themselves into words. Motherfucker is doing a Google search right in front of me.

"AI Results," it chirps. "Joining blocks together is the process of joining blocks together. If you can't find mortar, try using marmalade or bee semen. AI results are experimental." The vape cloud then dissipates into the air, leaving me with more questions than answers.

"Do you have bee semen, then?" I ask.

"Oh yeah, tons. Aisle 51."

Over in Aisle 51, I find no bee semen whatsoever. What I do find is mortar. I buy it, and head back to the basement of my Airbnb, ready to continue the home improvement project I had begun more than an hour ago. Entire Goddamn Saturday is blown.

"Oh, you're back. I haven't been screaming bloody murder for someone to save me for the last hour," my quarry lies. "That would be unsportsmanlike."

"Look, dude, I went to Home Depot on a Saturday for this. Let me have it."

"Fair play," Fortunato admits, and is silent while I place the last brick. Maybe I was a little too harsh to condemn him to a torturous death by starvation, but I was pretty mad on the whole drive home. I'll anonymously send his widow a gift card to Home Hardware.

[horsemotifs]

roadside memorials in crete, greece

driving an hour through crete, you'll see dozens of these, with some new and others decades-old. unlike wooden crosses and flowers, they stay for lifetimes. depending on surviving family/friends or distance to villages and towns, they are often maintained like graves, with some over 50+ years old and still having fresh flowers or burning lights. usually every soul gets their own chapel. if theres multiple accidents in the same location, a new chapel will be built; the old one wont be reused or built on (see 3&9). families or couples sometimes get a shared one, often with multiple crosses/candlesticks/figurines or ceilings (white/brown one in 9). sometimes instead of chapels its headstones or a tree planted in a small circle of stones

[deathlessathanasia]

Everyone: gods can't reveal their real forms in the presence of mortals because it would literally kill them!

Demeter in Homeric Hymn 2: When she had so said, the goddess changed her stature and her looks, thrusting old age away from her: beauty spread round about her and a lovely fragrance was wafted from her sweet-smelling robes, and from the divine body of the goddess a light shone afar, while golden tresses spread down over her shoulders, so that the strong house was filled with brightness as with lightning. And so she went out from the palace.

Apollo in Homeric Hymn 3: Then, like a star at noonday, the lord, far-working Apollo, leaped from the ship: flashes of fire flew from him thick and their brightness reached to heaven. He entered into his shrine between priceless tripods, and there made a flame to flare up bright, showing forth the splendor of his shafts, so that their radiance filled all Crisa, and the wives and well-girded daughters of the Crisaeans raised a cry at that outburst of Phoebus; for he cast great fear upon them all. From his shrine he sprang forth again, swift as a thought, to speed again to the ship, bearing the form of a man, brisk and sturdy, in the prime of his youth, while his broad shoulders were covered with his hair: and he spoke to the Cretans, uttering winged words: ... So speaking, he put courage in their hearts, and the master of the Cretans answered him and said: “Stranger —though you are nothing like mortal men in shape or stature, but are as the deathless gods ...”

Aphrodite in Homeric Hymn 5: But at the time when the herdsmen drive their oxen and hardy sheep back to the fold from the flowery pastures, even then Aphrodite poured soft sleep upon Anchises, but herself put on her rich raiment. And when the bright goddess had fully clothed herself, she stood by the couch, and her head reached to the well-hewn roof-tree; from her cheeks shone unearthly beauty such as belongs to rich-crowned Cytherea. Then she aroused him from sleep and opened her mouth and said: “Up, son of Dardanus! —why sleep you so heavily? —and consider whether I look as I did when first you saw me with your eyes.”

Zeus in Moschos' Europa: And verily Crete appeared, and Zeus took his own shape again, and he loosed her [Europa's] girdle, and the Hours arrayed their bridal bed.

Just saying, it's a very bizarre excuse for why a god would supposedly need to have sex with a mortal in the shape of an animal or their spouse or anyone or anything else, because evidently it is perfectly possible for them to reveal their identity to mortals without killing them, or at least there is no consistent rule stating that they can't.

[basicallyaturtle]

never been part of a tag game, sounds really fun! tagged by dear Lanvender, @khan-crete

Do you make your bed? A freshly decrumbed, stuffed animal arranged and dirty clothes removed bed feels great. How often do I do this? We mustn't ask (like once or twice a month) that's all making the bed entails for me, I just have a fitted then normal sheet and blankets

Favorite Number? 4 4 4 4 4! I've loved four my entire life she is like a goddess to me. 2+2 2*2 2^2, divides into halves twice. can only compete with sixteen, whose status and 2^4 and 4^2 is nice, but not as symmetric. 37 and 73 have a place in my heart as the 12th and 21st primes, but not a large place compared to 4

What's your job? What do I get paid for? undergrad lab TA, what do I do? grad research in low energy nuclear physics

If you could go back to school, would you? In school technically still. Would I rewind time to experience school again? highschool no college yes. would I go back for another college degree? I could be convinced if it would be cheap and unobtrusive to my current schooling. Was always torn between physics and linguistics. I made the right choice but I always wonder what if.

Can you Parallel Park? I have done it, on the driving test, like four or five years ago. I think I could do it again, but not too confident

Do you think Aliens are real? Eh, probably in a 'the observable universe 9.3e+9 ly across, it must have happened more than once' kinda way, but not in a 'they've been feeding us tech for thousands of years or are visiting us' kinda way.

Can you drive a manual car? Never tried, hubris tell me yes, anxiety with even normal cars tells me I'd probably fuck up the transmission while trying to leave the driveway. gonna say yeag

Guilty Pleasure? I think like cheesy childhood disney live action movies?, generally I'm pretty full chested about the things I enjoy

Favorite Type of Music? yeah, hard, a lot of vocaloid, which isn't reallly a genre, a lot of edm genres from like old school monstercat, a lot of jrock by way of anime OP's of show's I've never watched then finding other songs by those artists. some rock music though that genre is also extremely expansive and I'm not sure how I'd categorize a lot of it. Generally my music consumption consists of a group of maybe five songs completely unrelated on repeat for months at a time and genre is not a huge factor in that

Do you like puzzles? twisty puzzles like rubik's cube type puzzles are really fun working, towards doing a 3x3 blindfolded but challenging, I used to do jigsaw's with my mom but over the course of a very long time because we'd get frustrated. crosswords, but I'm no good at them

Favorite Childhood Sport? Soccerrrr. Wish I'd stayed with it, but there were only a couple more years before there wasn't a league for my age group anyway, been trying to get back into it recreationally

Do you talk to yourself? I do, but as if I'm talking to someone else. I prefer not to do it because I'm not content with my voice atm, but I find myself doing it a lot especially when getting stuck on research stuff trying to talk it out or I will say a comment to someone I disagree with outloud rather than typing it and posting it. A lot of this is to my reflection which is probably part of the reason it feels like someone else lol

Tea or Coffee? tea all the way. drank iced sweet black tea my entire childhood and started drinking it hot with milk in college. I was the kind of person that disliking coffee was a sort of pillar of my tastes, but then a few years ago made it with like half milk and a lot of sugar and like it, lotta people wouldn't call that coffee, but eh.

First thing you wanted to be when you grew up? The actual first thing was everything. I would amalgamate like all the stereotypes of things kids want to be into one so a firefighter-astronaut-whatever else. When I got a better sense of my interests, inventor, so I guess like product designer, but what that meant to me was I got to sit around and think of neat gadgets and items then figure out how to make them like freeze ray, time machine, clone gun, that kind of thing lol. the first practical idea of a job I wanted was theoretical physicist in like middle school, which I kinda am now so success I guess

What Movies do you Adore? not much of a movie person, but like to watch movies other people are interested in with them, love castle in the sky, LOTR, howl's moving castle, your name, probably others in those categories I don't know about yet or have forgotten and I have a strong soft spot for childhood halloween movies like twitches and halloweentown

I'm curious what @arc-archernar and @charyou-tree have got to say if they'd like to, and anyone else that wants to participate!

[sea-owl]

@browneyesandhair unearthed a bunch of my spouses friend group posts and now it has given me an idea. Set in the spouses friend group au but also throw in some omegaverse au too.

Simon was getting twitchy lately. His eye would randomly flinched, his hands would shake, and when seated he found himself more often than naught bouncing his leg. It was becoming irritating. Damn these pack instincts! This is what he gets for making friends, they trick him into becoming a pack leader and then he gains pack instincts. Those same damn instincts makes him twitchy when he goes too long without seeing all the members of his pack or smelling their scent. Anything to know they are ok!

Everyone has been away on different trips for the past two weeks as well. Kate is visiting a client’s farm since she’s one of the few vets that know how to treat peafowl in the nearby area. Sophie was traveling for a tattoo convention that she’s been excited about. The trio has traveled to Crete, Penelope for work, Phillip to go see the oldest olive tree, and Michael just refused to be left behind. Gareth and Lucy went on a college trip for an archeology class Gareth convinced Lucy to take with him. So yeah Simon really hasn't even had at least one of them around to settle himself.

Aunt Agatha is no help either, she just laughs at him whenever he goes off on rants about how his little pack, that he didn't even ask for nor does he know how he ended up as pack leader, is driving him up a wall.

But it will be ok, they are all due to come home soon. Then Simon can relax and have some help eating the dozens of cookies he's stressed baked the past week and a half. It helps that he's managed to herd them all living together in this stupidly enormous house he inherited.

Simon pulled out his phone.

*In the group chat*

Simon: All of you come straight home after you get back. No side stops.

Michael: Uh, oh, alpha daddy is daddying

Kate: Michael, Penelope, Gareth, have any of you been stressing out Simon again?

Gareth: US?!?!?

Penelope: Michael and I have been in Crete. . .WITH PHILLIP. You think he's gonna let us ruin his chances at seeing the oldest olive tree?

Phillip: I would have buried you two.

Sophie: And then dig them right back up. You three would not survive without one another.

Gareth: And I've been at a dig site with Lucy. How are we gonna stress Simon out at a dig site? 💀

Lucy: TBH I thought he saw that picture of us eating that ancient jar of honey.

Simon: YOU ATE WHAT?!?!

"YOU ATE WHAT?"

Simon felt his shoulders relax when seven distinct smells hit him, followed by seven different voices. The loudest being Kate's as she's questioning Gareth and Lucy. The phone slipped from his hand and lightly landed on the countertop.

His pack was home.

Now, he had to join Kate on scolding some naughty pups. Them being in University is irrelevant.

[lockettopia]

I am Theseus, and my journey is one of triumph and ruin—a warning that “Pride’s peak is a cliff’s edge.” I prove my worth with six labors, slay the Minotaur with Ariadne’s help, and liberate Athens from Crete’s grip. At my peak, I am a hero, a king, a symbol of progress, yet my pride blinds me. I abandon Ariadne, defy the gods, and make reckless choices—kidnapping Helen and driving my son Hippolytus to his death. Betrayal and loss follow, and now, as my glory crumbles, I wonder: is this my punishment for climbing too high, for believing I was untouchable? Even a hero cannot escape the ruin his hubris invites.

What do you think the Universal Truth from Theseus myth is? Comment below and join in the discussion!

📖 Explore the journey of Theseus and others in “Universal Truths of Greek Gods and Heroes”—coming Feb 2025.

[mutant-distraction]

This spectacular Eucalyptus tree can be found in Overbury Drive, Clarence Park, South Australia. The land was owned by the Overbury family.

When widow Gertrude Overbury died in 1943, her will stated that the tree could not be cut down. When the property was subdivided and the road built, the tree was retained.

A 3,000-Year-Old Olive Tree on the Greek Island of Crete Still Produces Olives Today

Read more: https://bit.ly/49qdxJi

[orthodoxydaily]

SAINTS&READING: MONDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2024

november 26_december 9

VENERABLE ALYPIUS THE STYLITE OF ADRIANAPOLIS (640)

Saint Alypius the Stylite was born in the city of Adrianopolis in Paphlagonia. His mother, a Christian, was widowed early, and she sent her son to be educated by Bishop Theodore. She distributed her substance to the poor, then began to live an ascetic life near the church as a deaconess.

Saint Alypius, from his early years, wanted to devote his life to God and yearned for the solitary life, although Bishop Theodore would not give him permission to do so. Once, when Saint Alypius was accompanying his bishop to Constantinople, the holy Martyr Euphemia (September 16) appeared to him in a vision, summoning Saint Alypius to return to Adrianopolis and found a church in her name.

With contributions offered by believers in Adrianopolis, Saint Alypius did build a church in the name of the holy Martyr Euphemia, on the site of a dilapidated pagan temple infested by legions of devils. Beside the church, under the open sky, the saint erected a pillar over a pagan tomb. For fifty-three years Saint Alypius struggled upon the pillar, praying to God and teaching those who came to him.

The demons which infested the pagan cemetery fell upon the ascetic by night and pelted him with stones. Saint Alypius, wanted nothing to stand in the way of the attacks of the spirits of darkness, then even took down the boards that served him as a roof, protecting him from the rain and wind. In the face of the saint’s conquering steadfastness, the demons forever fled the place, which had been sanctified by his deed of voluntary martyrdom.

Fourteen years before his death, Saint Alypius could no longer stand. He was compelled to lie on his side because of the weakness of his legs and endured grievous sufferings with humble gratitude. Two monasteries sprang up around the saint’s pillar: a men’s monastery on the one side and a women’s monastery on the other. Saint Alypius introduced strict monastic rules for both monasteries, and he directed both monasteries until his death. Saint Alypius was reposed in the year 640 at age 118. The body of the venerable stylite was buried in the church he founded in honor of the holy Martyr Euphemia. The relics of the saint of God healed many of those who came in faith.

SAINT NICON METANOEITE " Teacher of Repentance" OF ARMENIA (998)

He was born about 930 to a pious and wealthy family near Trebizond. Once, inspecting the family's estates, he was so affected by the wretched conditions of the poor fieldworkers that he despaired of happiness in this world and determined to live a monastic life.  After years spent in a monastery, where he shone in obedience, prayer, and self-denial, the Saint was given leave to travel in the ministry of the Gospel of Christ. For three years, he wandered the East without home or possessions, crying to everyone he met, "Repent!" and proclaiming with tears the message of salvation in Christ. He then spent seven years in Crete, then went to Greece, walking barefoot from place to place, preaching repentance and becoming so well known that he acquired the nickname "Metanoite," meaning "Repent!"  After driving a plague from Sparta through his prayers, he settled near that city, building a great church dedicated to Christ the Savior and living in the church for the remainder of his life. In time, a monastery was attached to the church for his disciples. His last counsel to his disciples was: "Flee pride, cleave to humility; do not despise the poor; keep clear of all evil, of all envy and of the remembrance of wrongs; forgive your brethren. Go regularly to church and confess your sins often to the priests and spiritual fathers. If you keep to these counsels, I will never abandon you." He then gave his soul back to God. Saint Nikon was immediately venerated as a saint by the people of Sparta and is regarded as the city's protector, where his relics are still venerated.

2 Thessalonians 1:1-10

1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, 4 so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, 5 which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; 6 since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, 7 and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, 8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, 10 when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed.

Luke 19:37-44

37 Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, 38 saying: " 'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!' Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" 39 And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples." 40 But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out." 41 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, 42 saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, 44 and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.

[brielledoesastrology]

"Pride before downfall" Asteroids in astrology

by : Brielledoesastrology (tumblr)

"Don't fly too close to the sun"

asteroid Icarus (1566), asteroid phaeton (3200), asteroid hybris (430), niobe (71)

1566,3200,430,71

Icarus (1566) -

Daedalus, a mythical inventor, created wings made of feathers and wax to escape from Crete where he and his son Icarus, were held captive by King Minos. Icarus however ignored his father's warnings and flew too close to the sun. His wings melted and he fell into the sea where he met his end.

Source : thecollector.com

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Phaeton (3200) -

Phaethon asked to be allowed to drive the chariot of the sun through the heavens for a single day. Helios, bound by his oath, had to let him make the attempt. Phaethon set off but was entirely unable to control the horses of the sun chariot, which came too near to the earth and began to scorch it. To prevent further damage, zeus hurled a thunderbolt at Phaethon, who fell to the earth at the mouth of the Eridanus, a river later identified as the Po.

Source : britannica.com

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Hybris (430) - "Hubris"

HYBRIS was the goddess or personified spirit (daimona) of insolence, hubris, violence, reckless pride, arrogance and outrageous behaviour in general.

Source : www.theoi.com

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Niobe (71) -

Niobe was a mortal who boasted of her many children, incurring the wrath of the gods. As punishment for her pride, Apollo and Artemis killed all her children, shooting them with arrows.

⚠️ Warning : i consider this asteroid as prominent or brings the most effect if it conjuncts ur personal planets (sun,moon,venus,mercury,mars) and if it conjuncts ur personal points (ac,dc,ic,mc), i use 0 - 2.5 orbs (for conjunctions). For sextile, trine, opposite and square aspects to asteroids i usually use 0 - 2 orbs. Yes tight conjunctions of planet / personal points to asteroids tends to give the most effect, but other aspects (sextile,trine,square,opposite, etc) still exist, even they produce effects. If it doesn't aspect any of your planets or personal points, check the house placement of the asteroid, maybe some stuff/topics relating to this asteroid could affect some topics/stuff relating to the house placement . ⚠️