#paige could visit to verify things

[sparks-chaotic-cove]

Fablesmp but it’s just the allays putting on a play for the younger souls in Elysium

[bravelywego]

Tahirah looked legitimately disappointed at the mention of Edea or Denys not coming over. "Aww...well, okay, that makes sense. But it would be nice to see them for tea sometime."

"I could try to contact Nobutsuna and see if he's up for murdering evil dragon people." Geist mused. "No guarantees that he'll say yes, though - I don't know how busy he is right now."

"Really?" Janne looked toward Yew. "That could work - hopefully Paige doesn't mind."

"Does that mean you're visiting after all!?" Tahirah's eyes immediately brightened, a smile spreading across her face. "That would be wonderful!"

"Feel free to slap DeRosa if he's being too flirty or whatever, Countess." Geist stated bluntly. "I know he tends to be like that."

Tahirah sighed, but there was still a little sheepish smile on her face. "Honestly, Geist, there are plenty of flirty people in Melodia anyway. He'd fit right in with Lukas."

Geist decided not to dwell too long on that subject. "We can talk later when we see each other in person...I'm sure you have a lot to work with before then."

"Of course! I'll try to keep all of you updated on what happened with things, and on that note, I'll see you very soon~!"

Janne just waved at her. "Bye, Countess. See you soon."

The image in the crystal faded, and Mona sighed.

"...Yeah, this just confirms that all of you are weird." She peered up at Geist. "Kamiizumi's the one with the katana, right?"

"Yes, that's him." Geist verified. "Maybe I should make a call to him just after we're done dinner...hope he's interested in a last-minute trip to Melodia."

[ Yew Finds a Wild Janne and Geist! ]

[charlieweasleyxmc]

Chocolate and Weasleys

(Y/N)(Y/LN) was a very unusual girl. In fact, she was very unusual even for a witch. How many other students at Hogwarts could say they broke the curse on four Cursed Vaults?

And yet, she was still plagued with very ordinary problems.

Her monthlies put her in bed like many other girls the first few days.

She only wished it hadn’t come on the carriage ride into Hogwarts.

But these things normally had very bad timing, especially for her, and she wasn’t surprised, though still disappointed, that she was missing the opening feast to her sixth year at Hogwarts. She decided to lay in the common room until the rest of her house came back to let her know how wonderful it had been.

She wasn’t sure why she tortured herself so much.

She was grateful though for the three House Elves that had visited her just moments ago to bring her some of the foods from the feast.

Aside from them, she had already spent a very sad half-hour alone in the common room. Looking at the meal in front of her, she couldn’t imagine eating it all, they had left her with a verifiable feast herself.

Then a very queer thing happened.

She heard a bang and clatter outside.

Jumping from her seat, she rushed out of the common room in a flash, for not even monthly pains could keep her from the instincts that had led her to breaking the curses on four cursed vaults.

Did she mention she had broken curses on four of them?

When she got out into the hall, she was more than a little surprised and amused to find Charlie Weasley staring up at her from where he was trying to clean up the remains of what looked like a whole roast chicken.

She now knew that the clattering and bang had been the silver platter falling out of his spell, for he had three other plates hovering in the air above them, his wand held aloft, obviously commanding the wingardium leviosa charm, while he tried to clean up the fallen chicken with his other hand.

“Need a little help?”

Charlie glanced up and then smiled sheepishly.

“It was supposed to be a surprise,” he said.

(Y/N) smiled, offering him a hand to help him up. Once he got up, she waved her wand and the mess was gone. They then clattered their way into the common room, the line of trays following them in.

Charlie looked a little disappointed when he saw the food that the house elves had already laid out for her.

“Oh. I didn’t realize…” he trailed off.

“Don’t worry.” She said. “This way there’s enough for the both of us.”

She collapsed onto the sofa. Charlie sat on the ground in front of her, letting his assortment of platters land gracefully on the table.

Until then, the plates had been too high up for (Y/N) to see what they held, but now that she did, she gasped.

“My favorites!”

Charlie smiled as she leaned forward to grab some chocolate.

“Oh!” he exclaimed as she was stuffing her face, “I almost forgot!” He swiped into his pocket, bringing out a small bottle in a crystal vial. “Tonic…for that,” he gestured at her with the bottle. “I stopped by the hospital wing and Madam Pomphrey prescribed it for you.”

(Y/N) lunged at him to grab the bottle, smiling as she added it to her chocolate diet.

“And,” he said, pulling off the cloth he had tied around his waist, “I brought you this. Somehow it made it into my suitcase even though I grew out of it years ago. I thought the cozy material might make it more comfortable.”

She stared at the item. It was a sweater, the green material set off by a perfect golden ‘C.’ She recognized it immediately for one of Mrs. Weasley’s sweaters that Bill, Charlie, and Percy wore.

Charlie handed it to her and she pulled it on, snuggling into the soft material.

“Charlie,” she said, leaning back onto the sofa in relief, “I love you.”

There was a moments pause and then she could hear Charlie’s voice, “you should probably eat something besides just chocolate.”

She obliged, stuffing her face with all of the favorites that Charlie had brought for her. They shared their feast with gusto. She finally got Charlie to eat one of the giant truffles that he had brought her.

“Don’t you trust me,” she asked, lifting it up to his face and smiling.

Charlie sighed, leaning forward to accept the delicacy when she smashed it into his face.

“You’re mistake!”

They both laughed and Charlie went to work cleaning the bits of chocolate off of his mouth and cheeks.

“You know,” he said, “sometimes you remind me a lot of my brothers, Fred and George.”

(Y/N) leaned forward, feeling much better and suddenly curious about his family. She had met his parents and knew Bill and Percy well, but she didn’t know much about the rest of his younger siblings.

“Yeah?” she asked.

“Yeah. Sometimes. You’ll meet them in a few days, I’m sure. This is their first year at Hogwarts. You should have seen them saying goodbye to mum and jumping onto the Hogwarts Express. They were so excited.”

(Y/N) smiled, “how long till Ron’s old enough?”

“Oh. A couple years yet. We’ll be gone once he comes to Hogwarts.”

She fiddled with a piece of chocolate in her hands. Having gorged herself to the limit, she couldn’t bring herself to eat anymore.

“I always wanted to have more siblings,” she said, “the one I have…well, it’s complicated.”

Charlie nodded, understanding.

“Really, though,” he said, moving one of the plates away from him, “you remind me most of Ginny.”

(Y/N) smiled. She knew how much Charlie loved his little sister.

“She sounds much more fun than even me.”

Charlie nodded, “she is going to bring someone a lot of joy someday.” He paused, and they were both silent for a while. “Hey,” he said suddenly, “did I tell you I read a lot about the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary over the summer?”

“What’s it like?” she asked.

And so Charlie told her, eventually falling onto his side and laying on the floor while she cuddled into the couch.

They stayed that way, Charlie on the floor, (Y/N) on the couch, until their words became more blurred and they both dozed off. When the other students got back to the common room, they didn’t have the heart to move them.

...

Hey, Friends! I hope this chapter finds you well! I wanted to get this short clip out quick to brighten your week! Happy Sunday!

[otnesse]

Rebel Rose and Belle’s Role in the French Revolution

So, I learned a few days ago that Disney made a book called “Rebel Rose” which involved Belle and the French Revolution. From what I heard, it goes into depth toward the French Revolution, and Belle at least had some sympathies towards the Jacobin cause (though that said, she also seemed to at least be smart enough to realize the violence was not good from what I heard).

I had a similar idea regarding a Beauty and the Beast sequel that dealt specifically with the French Revolution. However, I would have ultimately made Belle more into a villain, largely because I can’t help but get the nagging feeling that she ultimately would buy into Voltaire, Diderot, Rousseau, and Sade’s various books, drink the kool aid, and basically backstab Adam and... well, let’s just say she probably would end up doing essentially the same thing to her village that Sephiroth did upon reading research books into his origins at Nibelheim in Final Fantasy VII:

The main reason I think, actually, no, not even think or know this, I outright FEAR this is because that’s exactly what people of Belle’s intellectual caliber and even her outlook in life ended up doing during that time. Robespierre, before helming the Jacobin Club, was a lawyer, a man who was very well read, and most certainly had to have read the likes of Voltaire and Diderot, not to mention D’Alembert and especially Rousseau, and the last of whom was cited as his biggest influence. Jean Paul Marat likewise was an aspiring doctor, also read Voltaire and Rousseau, was primarily influenced by the latter, and he became a demagogue and orchestrating up and out lynch mobs via his pamphlets before being stabbed to death inside his own bathtub. And then we get into Jean-Baptiste Carrier, aka the guy responsible for the drownings and republican marriages. He was trained at a Jesuit school (before the Jesuits were expelled from France largely thanks to the Philosophes’ radical anti-Christian agendas), and became a clerk and lawyer, and eventually became enamored enough with Sade’s writings that he specifically referred to his republican marriage executions as being the torch of philosophy, a key phrase by Sade (and Sade, unlike Voltaire and the other Enlightenment philosophes, was very much active during the revolution. In fact, he arguably helped jumpstart it by inciting a mob via a makeshift megaphone at the Bastille). There’s also Joseph Le Bon, well known for his massacre at Arras, who taught rhetoric, literally, being a professor in the subject, and thus most certainly was well-read, and he also ended up drinking the kool-aid regarding the Philosophes. In particular Sade, whom his grisly murders at Arras were in fact partly modeled after Sade’s infamous book “120 Nights of Sodom”. Even stripped the freshly guillotined corpses of his victims naked and put them in poses mirroring that of Sade’s illustrations in that book. That’s just a few examples that come to mind right now. What’s worse? There’s sufficient evidence put forth by Timothy Dwight and Augustin de Barruel that the Philosophes, in particular Voltaire, D’Alembert, and Diderot, specifically counted on France’s huge amount of literacy specifically to engineer this horror, which they succeeded in post mortem. Even took over the French Academy during their lifetime. And don’t get me started on the Vendee massacres. Belle I fear will ultimately succumb to the exact same path ultimately, especially going by some of her behavior in the original film. Doesn’t help either that we don’t get an actual indication that she practiced discernment of literature (yes, she might be a huge bibliophile, but there’s a huge difference between being well-read and actually being able to discern what’s a good book and what’s bad), not to mention the villagers, who are compared unflatteringly to her throughout the film, are depicted as Christians based on some of their statements, which creates the implication that she’s an atheist and she’s better in that regard (well, at least in the original film and certain extension media. The remake fortunately fixed that bit by having her get books from a church, with the implication that she might have some respect for the church for that reason, plus her being born during the 1731 plague, meaning she’s probably dead by the time the revolution actually occurs). It doesn’t merely end there either. Marx admits he was directly inspired by the Philosophes and the Jacobins when creating Communism. And even Vladimir Lenin, aside from obviously basing his actions on Marx’s ideology, made it VERY clear he was inspired by the French Revolutionaries, the Jacobins in particular.

On that note, another reason I fear her future of becoming a Jacobin or at least buying wholesale the propaganda and parroting it is also related to her intellectual caliber in a different sort. Sartre, for example was praised as a very intelligent man in France, a philosophical giant, and he ended up spending his time singing praises for mass murderers and tyrants, including infamously stating that Che Guevara was the most complete human being of the century. And on that note, might as well cite Big Boss and Kazuhira Miller in Peace Walker and that game’s rather shameful praising of that monster as if he were the second coming of Christ (I’ll do a topic on THAT at another time, probably closer to his death day, or at least the anniversary of Peace Walker’s release): 

Bear in mind, Big Boss already encountered someone like him in person, Colonel Volgin, didn’t like him at all, and was implied to not be fond of Communism at all in the games. Yet he sang praises who, given his CIA background, would have at least known about his more inhumane and evil nature, including his role in the CMC. If Big Boss could fall for that tripe, I don’t think Belle can stand any chance on that front.

I’ll give Emma Theriault credit in that she at least seemed to imply she didn’t support the Jacobin’s actual murderous actions, but on the other hand, I’m not sure if that’s what Linda Woolverton and/or Paige O’Hara thought either. For all I know, they probably support her becoming a mass murdering Jacobin. I would have asked Paige O’Hara during Comic Con Atlanta a couple of years back had her appearance been an actual meet and greet (settled for Jasmine’s voice actor instead as I mentioned in a prior post). As far as Linda Woolverton, I actually planned on tracking her down in California last year, using my cousin’s wedding as an opportunity to do so (as well as visit the Screenwriter’s Guild Association archives to research the BATB materials and to an extent Star Wars), but the COVID19 pandemic (or as I’d call it, scamdemic) killed those plans, and I suspect I probably won’t be able to do it this year either with what Biden’s pretty much doing in office. Until I actually verify it from them whether my view of Belle or Emma’s view of Belle is correct, I’m keeping Belle at arms length. If anything, I’d argue the triplets are more trustworthy than her at this point since they’re at least Christian and don’t show much signs of being swayed by the mob based on their absence in the climax of the original film (and incidentally, said fanfic would have had them as the main protagonists).

[star-nova]

The Lives of the RiffRaff:  James Weaver-The Preacher

Previous: 

We Are the RiffRaff Rickie Johnson-The Art of War Vera Sherwood-Little Sister Kali Muburu-Hair Tracy Kwan-Vergil Franz Fawke-Hecklers

I used to be a churchgoer way back when I was a kid. My family was Presbyterian, and they were the kind of churchgoers that took the roaming reverends into the guest rooms of their houses. In a town with a largely-Christian populace, it was a very big deal to be the house that was hosting the preacher. The neighborhood treated you like saints and commented on your goodwill and generosity for the entire duration of the preacher's stay.

I'm not a churchgoer anymore. I haven't been since I was sixteen years old, and I haven't hosted a preacher since long before that. In Tanager, the role of hosting the preachers was reserved for those dedicated Good Christians that show up every Sunday and spend the rest of the week attending all of the functions and running the charity drives; people like my parents. These were the same Good Christians who considered anyone who chose not to set foot in a church to be a lost cause. These same Good Christians shook their heads at me and my friends and called us RiffRaff, and every so often some particularly condescending soul would come up to one of us and say, “I'll be praying for you.” For what, existing? For being us?

In Tanager, church is considered a duty rather than an option, and to deny a roving reverend a place to stay while he was oh-so-generously spreading the good word is to open up a place in hell with your name on it. That's all right; I already know I'm going to hell, and I'll meet my buddy Arthur there.

Arthur is the only person in the world who regularly hears my voice, because he's the only person in the world worth talking to. The guy's wild even by RiffRaff standards, and wears the judgemental eyes of Others and fellow RiffRaff alike on his sleeve. He's the most interesting guy I know because you never know what the hell he's going to do next; one day he decided it was much better on the roof than it was on the ground, and spent the entire day up there without a shirt on. He got bored and started flinging chunks of slushie at the feet of everybody who passed by, until somebody threatened to call the cops. Another day, he shot off an entire canister of fireworks at ten PM in the middle of September. When I asked him what the occasion was, he said he just felt like blowing things up. He used to walk around with a black Zorro mask on, until a cop pulled him over and told him he had to take it off. “It isn't Halloween, man,” the cop had told him. Now he wears a hood pulled just over his eyes, even in the summer heat.

Arthur was an enigma because he was Arthur, and I was an enigma because I wouldn't talk. In Tanager, refusal to speak meant that you thought yourself too good to speak. In reality, I've never really talked except when I couldn't get along without it. The world, I figured, was already full of more than enough mindless noise. It didn't need me adding any more to it. Arthur talked enough for both of us and four additional people. He wouldn't shut up, and when it became apparent that I could let him do the talking for both of us while I absorbed the rest of the world's sound, I knew I had a friend for life.

Reverend Taylor Applegate is this season's preacher man. He'll stay till the second week in August, then go off into the horizon, his purpose in educating the lost souls of Tanager well fulfilled. He's a tall, lofty dude (Arthur bet me a steak at McEvoy's that they chose a tall one because he was “closer to heaven”), with corn-yellow hair cropped close around his head, because longer hair is “sinful” and “tempting” or something like that. He's got blue eyes like ninety-five percent of the people in this area, and he wears the ugliest grey and brown suits because color is “worldly” and black is “morose.” Outside of church, he wears t-shirts and button-downs like a normal person, but pairs them with neatly-pressed khaki pants even in ninety-degree heat. This town treats him like he's the Angel Gabriel himself. Arthur and I hate the guy.

My first encounter with the preacher was at the cultural festival where he made his grand debut. I'd only even gone to the fest because Arthur would be there with his fire batons (Arthur just loves fire; last year he did ground pyrotechnics and nearly set the stage ablaze). I was walking around in search of a decent food truck. Ramona Reinhart and Paige Wright were hosting foot races in the grass. To their right, Reverend Taylor Applegate of the Tanager Community Chapel was handing out pamphlets and preaching the good word. He was a young and good-looking guy, and must have been quite flustered by the sight of women in shorts tumbling in the grass beside him. I passed by on my way, and he shouted, “You! Yes, you! God bless you, my good man!”

Good man? Nobody who regularly hung out with Arthur Ratliff was considered a “good man.” I glanced at him, and his smile was so stupid-bright I had to look away before I was blinded. “May the rest of your day be filled with the blessings of the Lord!” he called out as I made a beeline for a barbecue stand. My silence was a shield against people like this.

A few weeks later, I was horrified to learn that he was one of those door-to-door preachers. They were the worst; the ones who thought they had every right to walk up to your door and interrupt you at your own house because their spiel is so much more important than whatever it is you're doing right now. Usually, these guys never took no for an answer, likely because in Tanager there's very few who would ever say no to a preacher, lest they lose their well-earned Good Christian points. They not only expected you to listen, but came to your door under the hard assumption that you would.

It was nearly five PM on a Saturday. Arthur and I were killing people on Black Ops 4, using the queue times to take bites out of the loaded nachos I had made. Every so often, our hapless opponents were treated to a nacho-crumb-laden stream of obscenities courtesy of my good friend. When he loudly declared that his most recent sniper victim had “Just got F'd in the A by his big, hard D, mothafucka',” I had to bite down on my lip to keep from losing it. Once the game was over and we were out of voice chat, I let it all go. Once I start laughing, it goes out of control, so only Arthur heard the doorbell rang. He continued chanting “F'd in the A by my big, hard D” as he got up to answer it.

I didn't see who it was that Arthur slammed the door on, but whoever it was rang the bell a second time. This time, I got up to answer.

“Don't open it,” Arthur said, but it was too late. There was the preacher man, the exalted Reverend Taylor Applegate, standing at my door in one of his ugly grey suits.

“Hey there, my man!” the preacher said, as if we were just the best of friends. “I think I remember you...didn't I see you at the cultural fest not too long ago?”

There was silence except for the game's BGM and Arthur crunching on more nachos.

“I think I did,” Reverend Taylor said. “I remember your face.” This is why Arthur would rather hide his. “Do you mind if I come in for just a moment?”

Arthur started up again: “Y'all got F'd in the A by my big, hard D! My big, hard D in her big, wet V!”

Oh dear god. I think I actually seized up in my attempt to suppress that laugh. The preacher took a step back, like I had morphed into a mad dog poised and ready to strike. His eyes darted back and forth like he didn't know what to do with himself. “Yes, well...” He looked up at the awning as if a suitable response was written up there. “I see you're...preoccupied.” He took another step back, off of my porch step. “God bless you, good men.” He turned to leave, and then it happened.

The guy ripped the loudest, wettest fart I had ever heard in my entire life.

The sound sent Arthur running to the door, to verify if it had really happened and the preacher had really, truly let out a legendary fart like that. In that moment, I would've given anything to see what his eyes looked like under that hood. The preacher visibly quickened his pace as he made his way towards the Bagarozzas' place. I closed the door slowly and returned to my spot on the sofa.

And then the two of us laughed until we choked on our own breath.

Sundays in Tanager were socially-enforced “quiet days.”

Only the stores and the restaurants remained open, and the two with liquor licenses would never sell booze on Sunday. Nobody went out anywhere or left town on Sunday, and to do so opened you up to an entire can of scrutiny and speculation. Of course, people still went to visit friends and neighbors, stopped at the deli for a ham and cheese sub, and occassionally went out of town to visit a sister or a mother or something. Only RiffRaff like us could be found running all over town on a Sunday afternoon, chasing eachother and running around the hills and getting up to some mischief as only RiffRaff do.

Early Sunday mornings were the best because nobody was around—everybody was out at eight AM service at the Tanager Community Church, including many of our fellow RiffRaff. In the summer months, some members of the clergy decided that the good word was better received in God's outdoors, and moved services out to the park underneath the circle of dogwood trees.

At seven in the morning, Arthur showed up at the door with his old hoverboard and said, “Let's go.” He and I were the only ones I knew over the age of thirteen who had hoverboards, and I only had mine because of him. I fished it out of the back of the closet and we hovered on down to the park, the world completely silent except for the birds that didn't care it was Sunday. It was a dreamland.

We made our way around the central fountain, where Arthur and his buddy Talia often filched tossed “wish” pennies. We passed by the drinking fountains and the curbside where the hot dog and ice cream trucks set up on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. We hovered down one length of the walking trail and back the other way. Arthur chattered the whole way, first telling me about Franz Fawke's new barbecue grill “which he planned to take advantage of at every opportunity,” then switching over to the subject of Talia's upcoming birthday, and how she told him if he gets her yet another knife she will surely cut his throat with it. She had enough knives to build a Game of Thrones style throne out of them all. When he wasn't talking, he sang: “Little Sally Walker, walkin' down the street. She didn't know what to do so she jumped in front of me...”

After a while we detoured to the corner deli and bought breakfast sandwiches. We sat down on the edge of the fountain to eat them, and then took off our shoes and waded right in. No one was around to tell us not to; after all, it was just about time for eight AM service.

I expected Arthur wanted to clear out before the park got populated at eight AM, but oddly enough, he hopped back on his board and made his way to the dogwood trees. I followed after him, figuring he was planning to meet with Craig or Aaron, who would be at the service.

At eight AM service in the park, you brought your own chair or you sat on the grass. Arthur did the latter, taking a seat right up in the front and propping his hoverboard up beside him. I couldn't believe my eyes! I sat down next to him and asked, “What are you doing, man?”

“You'll see,” Arthur said. Of course he was up to something! Now I was dying to see what it was.

To say that it was shocking to see Arthur at a church service was an understatement. The Good Christians and RiffRaff alike who filed in with their lawn chairs seemed in equal parts alarmed and fascinated by his presence. Mara Tushud said, “Hey, Arthur, you're the last person I'd expect to see here,” while her father, Kane, gave him a look that indicated he'd better be on his best behavior or he'd know the reason why. His pal Aaron said, “I never knew you had it in you, Arthur!” His other buddy, Craig, walked right up to him and asked, “What are you doing here?”

His only response was, “I dunno, what are you doing here?”

The sight of me at a church service was just as rare, but nobody really paid attention to me, and that was how I liked it. My silence allowed me to fade into the background, and going around with someone like Arthur meant that he bore the scrutiny of others so I didn't have to. People said, “Hi, James,” and “'Sup, James,” and “Never thought I'd see you here, James,” but that was all. Until the reverend stepped up to the pulpit, Arthur had the floor.

Reverend Taylor greeted everyone with one of his characteristic angelic smiles, and then led the opening prayer. Even though I wasn't a Christian man anymore, I hoped Arthur would save his antics for after that; getting up to mischief during a self-indulgent church service was one thing, but I drew the line at interrupting a prayer with antics. Thankfully, Arthur remained silent for once in his life. He didn't bow his head to pray, but he was perfectly still and quiet as the Good Christian prayers commenced all around him.

Reverend Taylor opened up his Bible and began his spiel with a reading from the Book of Leviticus. I had been hoping for Revelations; it had always been my favorite due to the apocalyptic imagery and the sense of urgency in the reading. There was nothing special about Leviticus and my mind went elsewhere. I could have sworn I saw Ramona Reinhart flash a little smile at the reverend. I felt like gagging. She was a real pretty girl, but much too good to be making doll eyes at this clown. Besides, wasn't it a colossal sin to flirt with a preacher during a sermon?

I thought I was going to fall asleep, and I was about to nudge Arthur and ask him if we could go back to my place for Black Ops 4. I poked him, and he turned to me and held up one finger. While the preacher was going on about the many things that made a person unclean, Arthur pursed his lips, cupped both hands over his mouth...

“Pffffffffffffffffffffffffh!”

The entire world stopped what it was doing. It was as if time and space had compressed into a singularity at this very moment, right here in the park under the dogwoods, where Arthur Ratliff was making pooting sounds in the middle of a preacher's passionate speech on the unclean. “Pfffffhpffffhpfffffhpfffffffffffh!” Eagle-eyed Kane gave us both the coldest, sternest old-man look I had ever seen in my life. Sophia Bolshevik covered her mouth with both hands and looked as if she longed to sink right through the ground. The Others looked at us with some of the most prominent disgust I had ever before seen on human faces. Up on the pulpit, the preacher's awkward attempt to smile it all off was betrayed by his visible discomfort; he shuffled his feet and fiddled with his cuffs, and his eyes were darting around like they had that Saturday at my doorstep. I caught Craig, Paige, and Aaron trying their damnedest not to laugh, and when I felt the laughter brimming up inside of me I bit down so hard on my lip that I tasted blood. But it was no use.

I erupted.

“James!” Ramona cried when the first bellow escaped me. It was followed by another, and another and another, until I was screaming, shaking, and gasping for breath. I slumped all the way down to the ground and wrapped my arms around myself in a desperate attempt to keep the rest of it from coming out, but there was just no stopping me once I started. Tears stung my eyes and my sides were in agony. Beside me, Arthur suffered largely the same afflictions. We screamed, choked on air, and snorted like pigs. I'm pretty sure I farted a few times myself, but between my hysteria and Arthur's, there was no way anybody heard anything.

We kept on laughing as the Others around us slung the words “disgraceful,” “shameful,” and “absolute scene” around. We kept on laughing as an angry old lady confronted us, standing over us with both hands on her hips and looking at us like two unruly boys in her fifth grade class. “Both of you need to get your nasty selves up,” she barked, “and get out of here right now!” We kept on laughing as we picked up our hoverboards and stumbled to our feet, rushing down the trail as the Others apologized for our disgusting behavior and assured the preacher that “Those two are nothing good.” I knew our fellow RiffRaff would get them back for it later; they may have been ashamed of us now, but RiffRaff look out for one-another.

It wasn't until we reached the safety of the fountain that we could finally breathe again. When we got there, Talia was wading around in the water and picking up handfuls of coins.

“Where the hell were you two just at?” she asked, flicking pennies at our heads just to show us that she could.

“Church,” Arthur said, but  it was only partly true. He neglected to mention that we had just come back from the darkest depths of Hysteria, where twenty-six years of unused sound had escaped all at once, likely never to return again.

On the way back to my place, Arthur snuck up behind me, pursed his lips, and cupped both hands over his mouth. “Pffffffffffffffh!”

I punched him in the face.

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Moving - Tips, Tricks And Hacks For Doing Everything Better

Call moving company. Sort through toiletries. Buy new sheets. An added bonus to using the calendar method is that breaking up your tasks by day makes them seem more manageable. Also, don’t forget to add “celebrate with wine” somewhere in there to give you something to look forward to. Pay a visit to your local liquor store (that’s where you can buy the aforementioned wine) to see if they recycle their used boxes.

Just make sure the boxes are very gently worn and that you only use them to hold lightweight items like linens and towels. You don’t want to deal with ripped boxes and broken valuables on the big day. You might think your flat screen TV could withstand a 30-minute drive across town in a cardboard box, but alas, it’s a fragile piece of technology.

House & Office Moving Tips By Better Removalists Adelaide

Check to see if you stashed these boxes somewhere — attic? Garage? If you don’t have them, make a list of what you’ll need to buy or borrow to properly cushion your stuff. Quilted blankets, bubble wrap, and sturdy tape all work well to protect TVs and similarly delicate items.

Learn all of them here. How, you might ask, is one trip to the hardware store even possible? Here’s how: lists. Make one and make it really thorough and detailed. Sit down with your family, partner, or roommates and brainstorm every possible item you will need to help you get through the moving process.

25 Stress Busting Tips For Moving Day - Make Moving House Easy

Packing tape, cardboard boxes, packing paper, extra screws, putty, a measuring tape, a new industrial-size broom, you name it. Buy it all in one big haul. Don’t forget the “just in case” items when you’re making your master hardware store list. Stock up now on extra supplies like light bulbs (check your lamps to verify the type you need), extension cords, and power strips so you’ll be set to go when you start moving things in.

Helpful Moving Tips - Arnold Property ...arnoldproperty.com.au

Make sure you leave enough time in your schedule to gather any necessary items — like cords, remotes, or cable boxes — you may need to return. If you’re relying on friends and family to help with your move, be courteous and give them a month’s notice. Do the same with babysitters for your children.

Moving House & Packing Tips - Complete Removals

33 Moving Tips That Will Make Your Life ...buzzfeed.com

17 Moving Tips and Packing Advice for ...realsimple.com

Packing little by little is far less stressful than trying to tackle it all in one day. As early as a couple months out, start packing the stuff you know you won’t be using. This can be anything from off-season clothing to books you’ve already read to mementos, pictures (here’s how to store and preserve old photographs), and keepsakes.

These pieces can be some of the trickiest to store because they’re fragile and often oddly shaped, so having a bit of extra time to figure out how to properly cushion them is crucial. Sure, your walls and mantels will look a bit stark, but when you’re running around the house a week before the move feeling like you’re about to lose your mind, you’ll be so glad your grandma’s landscape painting is already nestled in its precious bubble wrap.

Moving Checklist - Printable To-do List For When You're ...

Top Tips for Moving House with Children ...beafunmum.com

Best Packing and Moving Tips: How to ...lifestorage.com

Change your address ahead of time so your bills, credit card statements, and packages can arrive on time and without hassle. The key to finding your stuff easily is labeling all your packed boxes accurately and clearly. When you’re stacking boxes in a van or car you won’t be able to see their tops, so make sure you label the sides as well.

Label the boxes by category and by room (for example, Books, Library and Books, Bedroom) to speed up the unloading process. If you’re more of a visual learner, use color-coded electrical tape to label your boxes. Paige Smith If you want to take your box labeling a step further, create a number system.

40+ House Moving & Packing Tips To Save Your Time And ...

successful house move ...locoremovals.com.au

Write the list in a Google doc, or use a handy organizing app like Sortly, and then give the box a number. This genius strategy has two major benefits: You can go straight to box #16 with the plunger instead of digging through every “Bathroom” box just to find it.

It sounds obvious, but if you’ve ever known the struggle that is carrying a large cardboard box stuffed full of college textbooks across a parking lot, then you also know this advice cannot be overstated. Fill your small boxes with heavier items and use large boxes for light things like decorative pillows, towels, and linens (here’s how to properly clean and store your bedding).

The 109 Best Moving-tips Of All Time - Apartment Therapy

Always make sure your boxes have tops, but don’t do the interlocking fold method with the flaps of your box tops — just tape them closed. It’s much more secure this way. Flickr/Guy Kilroy Remember that packing paper you put on your master list when you stocked up on supplies at the hardware store? Use it to pad all your fragile dishware and decorative items.

Make sure you wrap each of your fragile items separately, so they’re fully cushioned. If you don’t have packing paper, opt for bubble wrap or a quilted blanket. Don’t stack your dishes horizontally inside a box. Instead, wrap your plates and bowls in packing paper, gently place them into a box on their sides like records, and then fill the empty spaces with bubble wrap to prevent cracking and breaking.

5 Best Packing Tips - How To Pack For A House Move ...

Unscrew the cap of your shampoo bottle, wrap a piece of Saran Wrap (or a Ziploc bag) over the top, and screw the cap back on. Simple and surprisingly effective. This can include toilet paper, a shower curtain, hand soap, towels, sheets, snacks, or whatever else you think you’ll need for the first day or night in your new home.

Chances are you won’t get everything unpacked in the first day, so bring whatever you need to feel relaxed and settled on your first night. A change of clothes, your toiletries, a water bottle, and your laptop can go a long way in making your new place feel more like home.

[briannaslist]

Power Play

A Pretty Little Liars Recap (7x14)

This episode is kind of better. Not difficult to do, but a welcome change. It’s amazing – all you need to improve quality is have something actually happen.

Aria is sitting in the kitchen when Ezra comes in. He’s immediately apologetic about Nicole being there and he says he didn’t know that’s where she was going. She felt caged at the rehabilitation facility and she took off when no one was looking. Aria says she doesn’t know what Ezra has said to Nicole about their relationship, but she points out that all her pictures and  stuff are all over the apartment, so if Nicole didn’t know, she’ll know now. She picks up her purse to leave because Nicole is already asleep upstairs in the bed.

Aria goes to stay with Ali, who is very sweet to her. She wants to get Aria some food and take care of her. I’ve always felt that Aria was Ali’s second favorite. It’s nice to see someone other than Emily interacting with Ali for a change. And it’s such a quiet moment. Of course, it doesn’t last; as Aria and Ali head toward the kitchen they see that the game board has moved to her house. Ali calls Spencer the following morning.

Now it’s awkward for Spencer because she has a guest being in her bed. That guest being Detective Marco Furey. Ali is asking Spencer when they decided to move the board to her house and Spencer says they didn’t; she just woke up and it was gone. It’s so creepy how many times their houses are broken into – often times while they’re still inside. It doesn’t even phase them anymore. It’s Ali’s turn at the game.

Hanna’s on the phone with someone – Caleb I guess – explaining that the investor meeting didn’t go too well. She thinks Lucas did the best he could, but that it was a result of her not being there.

Emily is late for work and rushes into the teacher lounge. She apologizes to Paige for missing the meeting. Emily offers to take her to lunch, but Paige says she has a meeting with Hackett. Paige got an offer for another position at a college; it’s a much better job and Emily asks if Paige is gonna take it. She says she’d be stupid not to take the offer; I agree Paige, take the job. They would have talked further, but Ali walked in. Emily greeted Ali for like 10 seconds and Paige just walked off.

You know, Emily doesn’t interact with anyone else of consequence until the end of the episode, so let’s just breeze through this: Ali tells Emily that she made an appointment to terminate the pregnancy; she’ll take one pill at the clinic and then another at home. Emily offers to go with her to the clinic.

Later, Emily talks to Paige about the job offer. Paige says that the other school will need a decision soon. She says that she really shouldn’t have come back to Rosewood (I agree). Paige says being like there is like being back in high school. Maybe that’s due to everyone around her being emotionally and relationally stunted. Instead she goes with feeling like the odd one out all over again because Emily and Ali are keeping secrets. Because she should know everything that they talk about.

This left-out feeling causes Paige to snoop in the teacher’s lounge. Though she wasn’t actively looking – Ali’s bag was just haphazardly on the table with a brochure sticking out. She just rudely took it out. The brochure is about making a decision about pregnancy (naturally) and when Paige picks it up, she sees the appointment card. That’s when Ali comes back in and she snatches it right out of her hands. Beautiful moment.

Finding out Ali’s secret seems to have given Paige more perspective. Emily said she thought with Paige being back that they could rekindle things. When was that even a thing? She never seemed reinterested until this episode where she explicitly said it. Paige suggests they race to figure out if she leaves or stays. Please Emily, please lose. They get on their bikes and start racing. Paige got a head start and disappears on Emily. Emily stops, calling out for Paige, who walks over to her and says that she’s already decided to stay. Then they kiss.

Let’s move on to Aria. It’s Ali’s turn at the game, but A.D. has been messing with Aria, to nobody’s knowledge. First she got a message saying that they have a file on her and if Ezra were to know the secret, he would choose Nicole and she’d be visiting him in jail. She who? Nicole or Aria? I guess Nicole. So wait, Aria’s big secret could also implicate Ezra? Clarify AD.  Aria gets upset, so she picks up her Aria board game piece and throws it at a wine glass. Aria that dramatic outburst is gonna cost you…another wine glass. It’s not even your house.

When Aria talks to Ezra, he tells her that he didn’t mention the engagement to Nicole because the therapist didn’t think it would be a good idea. But considering Nicole saw Aria’s wedding dress in the closet, she kind of got the gist of what was happening. She also found the book and she wrote a heartfelt note in the margin of one of the pages. Aria starts reading it, but Ezra realizes that that can be damaging and he takes the page from her. I don’t even know how the rest of this goes with them – I lost interest and tuned it out.

Spencer’s dad finally comes home. Spencer sees his passport and when Peter comes in to apologize for not being there she’s like, “Your passport says that you were in Philadelphia a week ago.” Peter tells her that he was working with a private investigator to track down Mary.

The girls pair up because no one has a good storyline on their own. Hanna goes with Spencer to investigate the lead that Peter’s private investigator got on Mary. They end up at the home of Ted – the pastor that was going to marry Hanna’s mom. I forgot what happened with them. Anyway, he’s happy to see Hanna, but he says he hasn’t seen Mary. He invites them in for tea, but Spencer says they can’t stay. Too bad she did since Mary is actually staying there.

Meanwhile, Ali and Aria follow AD’s coordinates and find a baby store. Aria of course is confused about the significance, but before they can go in, Aria gets another message from AD. She says it’s from Ezra and tells Ali to go ahead.

Now if you can believe it, things actually get interesting. Let’s start with Ali. She goes in and the sales associate was expecting her. She gives her the scanner for a baby registry and AD messages her telling her to pick 10 items. Ali does as told and tells the saleswoman that she’s finished. The woman gives her a gift and Ali is confused. The saleswoman says that Ali asked for a personalized gift for the donor; she says it’s customized.

The rest of Ali’s moment may have been exciting if not for a few factors – the “customized gift” for the donor is like a child’s craft necklace that says Emily in craft beads; it would have taken less than a minute to make. But that makes Ali remember being in that treatment hospital, being drugged to unresponsiveness, and having a procedure done. Unfortunately, this also would have been better had they not played an audio clip of Emily saying “my eggs” over and over again. We got it – she’s carrying Emily’s child.

So not only did AD make someone who was getting an abortion go to a baby store, AD also artificially inseminated someone against their will? Truly, what the hell? Oh and wait – how did AD even do this? Either AD has he knowledge and skill to do this, or knows someone who does. More importantly, who’s the father. Please no twist where one of the boyfriends say that they were once a sperm donor.

While outside the baby store, Aria tell AD that she isn’t playing the game. AD tells Aria to meet them, so Aria leaves Ali. She gets into a waiting limo only to find Sydney. Great. Guess we’re stuck with her too.

Aria is like, “Why are you even involved in this? We barely know each other.” Aria’s making sense; now there’s your twist. Sydney spouts some nonsense about choosing to be on the “winning” side and offers Aria a spot with the winners. She says leaving Ali at the store was a good first step in earning trust with AD.

Peter was waiting for Spencer to come home. He knows that she was tracking down Mary. He gives her some answers. Soon after Spencer got out of rehab, Mary showed up to the Hastings’ house because she wanted to see Spencer. But she also wanted Peter’s help getting revenge on Jessica for telling her that Charlotte was dead. Peter said he wouldn’t help, but he thinks Mary stole his pills and used them to kill Jessica. Spencer is skeptical about Mary doing this because she and Jessica are twins…as if those two didn’t treat each other like shit all the time.

Oh and Hanna gets the best one: Ted was feeling uncomfortable after talking to her and Spencer, so he asked Mary to come clean about stuff. He and Mary dated for a bit back in college and in that time she became pregnant; he’s Charlotte’s father. Now that came from nowhere and I’m convinced they just went with that since they wanted to bring everyone back at least once. But please, no more surprise parents. The better surprise is that Ted know Charlotte, before Charlotte transitioned. But he had no idea about that child being his.

He met Charlotte as Charles back at a camp he ran for troubled boys. Glossing over how Charles was institutionalized, yet got to go to a summer camp, Ted shows Hanna picture of him, Charles, and another boy at the camp. Hanna asks who the other boy is and Ted says it was Charles’ only friend; he thinks his name is Luke or something along those line. Hanna asks “Lucas Gottesman?” and Ted verifies that that’s the name. Now that’s actually interesting; that’s a development I can get behind. Lucas has always been sketchy. It’s probably a red herring, but at least it’s one that makes sense.

Ali tells Emily about the ridiculous egg thing and cancels her appointment. They call the others, but Aria is late. When Aria comes in everyone is on edge; Emily being on edge the most. Emily yells at her for leaving Ali. Spencer then informs Aria about the pregnancy. Spencer says that they need to stick together though, since Aria’s turn is next.

The game starts making noise and they go over to see what it’s about. It’s “randomly” selecting and ends up on Hanna. Hanna is understandably pissed, but her fit about getting chosen seems a little bad since it comes across more as, “Why me? Aria should be getting her life wrecked this time.” Spencer says maybe Hanna is getting a do-over for missing her turn. Emily says that the game must have made a mistake and Ali says “the game knows exactly what it’s doing” and she gives Aria a look before following the others (who went to follow Hanna). Alone, Aria gets another message asking if she’s decided yet. All while a (once again too loud) music selection plays where the word “devil” is repeated as it focuses on Aria. We…we get it.