#the situation is dire maria. there is no recovering from this

[claitea]

saw the word ‘natural’ and thought of you know who. is there any cure for this

no. it gets worse i think. if people use "n" as a shortening of "and", i've had to reread their sentence multiple times to make sense of it bc i registered it as a name and didnt understand what harmonia had to do with the topic

[vilevenom]

I took a break from writing for a bit, and now I'm dipping my toes into the Sonic fandom. This is essentially just a quick little thing I wrote to try and get a bit of a handle on how I'd like to characterize them. P.S - I wrote it mostly on a whim, and a little bit while recovering from a migraine, soooo...yeah. No Ray of Sunlight's Ever Lost Fandom: Sonic the Hedgehog (no specific media) Pairing: Gen, Sonic/Shadow Summary: The idea of Shadow getting injured wasn't new to Sonic. But the possibility of him dying was certainly new A.K.A: These boys are emotionally constipated Warning: Descriptions of blood/injury

Blue had always been a color that brought Shadow great comfort. His memories were clouded and distorted on the best of days, but he could vividly recall the light blue dress that Maria wore as frequently as she could get away with. He remembered how soft the fabric had been as he clutched at it while Maria held him tight after an especially harrowing battery of tests, and how warm he'd felt in her embrace as she scooped him into her lap to read from her favorite book on sleepless nights.

Later, when that sweet cornflower blue became tainted with red, a different shade would emerge into his life. A stark, vivid cobalt that would enrage and taunt him at first, only to later bloom into an odd sort of warmth in his chest. It was a constant that Shadow could count on, no matter how dire the situation seemed to be. That bright blue would appear and set everything to rights with a razer sharp grin and a handful of quippy remarks.

He never truly realized just how much he'd come to value it until it was, perhaps, a bit too late.

~

As long as Sonic had known Shadow they had fought against and with one another. Even if the later was often quite begrudging on the hybrids part. It was something Sonic never meant to take for granted, really, but when push came to shove, he knew Shadow would be at his side, if the situation called for it. He knew as dour and irritable as Shadow could be, there was a heart of gold buried somewhere in his chest. After all, the chaos loved him, and he'd seen how he acted around Cream.

So, when Robotnik had attacked, and Sonic was on the ropes, he'd only grinned as a familiar steak of black and red flashed across the battlefield towards him.

"Took you long enough to get here, slow poke," Sonic teased as Shadow came to a stop next to him, his quills already bristled and a scowl on his face.

"Some of us have red tape to cut before they can take action, faker," Shadow snarked back, folding his arms over his chest as Sonic snorted a laugh at him.

"That's your own fault for working for G.U.N," Sonic said with a shrug.

"I don't have time to have such a childish argument with you again," Shadow grunted, taking off without a backward glance. He took down a badnik with, perhaps, a bit more force than strictly necessary as he went, which caused Sonic to laugh.

"Ah, Shadow, So easy to rile up," Sonic muttered to himself, before following in his self proclaimed rivals wake.

The battle went on as such for longer than Sonic would have liked, but with Shadow and his friends helping to beat back Eggman's forces, it was obvious that the tide of battle was quickly shifting and coming to an end. Unfortunately, that was usually when Robotnik lashed out in one last, desperate attempt to flip the fight back in his favor. Sonic knew this, it was how all their battles tended to go. He should have been paying better attention. He should have been looking in the other direction. He should have heard Tails shout. There were so many things, looking back, that Sonic truly wished he'd done to change the way the last moments of their skirmish had played out.

He'd been grinning at Amy as she smashed her hammer into a badnik, taking a brief moment to catch his breath, figuring his friends could handle themselves and the last few bots scattered around. His ear had twitched in Tails' direction as he caught his brother yelling something, but he didn't turn to see what it was as his attention was caught by the sudden look of horror on Amy's face. He opened his mouth to ask her what was wrong, only to grunt as something slammed into his side, sending him flying from his perch atop a downed badnik and into the dirt. Finally, he turned his head to shout at whoever had pushed him, only to be met with a sight that would be burned into his mind eye, seeing it in vivid detail every time he closed his eyes for quite some time.

Shadow stood where Sonic once was, eyes wide as he stared down at the blue hedgehog. A choking little wheeze escaped his lips as time seemed to freeze as Sonic's mind caught up to what he was seeing. The metallic glint of silver was protruding from Shadow's chest where it ought not be, and thick rivulets of blood were oozing from the spot where the blade met Shadows fur. A stunned look of surprise was on Shadow's face, as if he couldn't quite fathom what had just happened.

As quickly as it occurred the moment was suddenly over, as Shadow was jerked backwards through the air, the blade sticking out of his chest attached to a chain that was being retracted by the robot wielding it. A scream that would haunt Sonic in his sleep ripped through the air as Shadow collided with the robot holding the blade, the impact inevitably driving it deeper through his chest.

By the time Sonic had shaken himself from his stupor and scrambled back up onto his feet, Robotnik had fled, Knuckles had crushed the robot that had skewered Shadow, and Rouge was gently lowering the hybrid to the ground with the blade very much still protruding from his chest.

Sonic rushed to Shadow and Rouge once he'd spotted them, Tails and Amy quick to follow, as both had witnessed what had happened. He skidded to his knees next to his fallen friend, Shadow hiccupping little breaths of air, foamy bubbles of blood trickling from his lips with each labored half-breath he managed.

"Take the blade out," Sonic said in a panic, reaching for the tip of the blade, only to flinch back as Rouge slapped his hand away.

"You want to watch him bleed out right here!?" she snapped, holding Shadow protectively close while being mindful of the blade. "It's got to stay put until we can get him to a doctor."

"Shouldn't his restorative powers keep that from happening?" Tails asked, fidgeting next to Sonic. "We've seen him heal from similar wounds."

"None that were straight through like this," Rouge grumbled, her ears perking up as she noticed Omega finally making his way across the battlefield towards them. "This is bigger and deeper than anything I've seen him deal with, and I am not gonna risk losing him just so Blue doesn't have a melt down."

When Omega halted next to the little group, Rouge had Knuckles help to settle the injured hybrid in the robots arms so he could be carried back to, assumedly, G.U.N headquarters. "We'll get you all fixed up, sugar, don't you fret," Rouge quietly assured Shadow, who looked dazed as he continued to struggle with getting air into his lungs and they began their trek back towards the city.

Meanwhile, Rouge's words to Sonic rattled around in his head. What did she mean by 'lose him'? Shadow would be fine. He was "ageless", after all. Didn't that mean he was practically immortal?

"I mean…Ageless just means he won't age. I don't think that means he can't die," Tails murmured next to him, Sonic jerked in surprise at his brothers voice. He hadn't meant to say any of that out loud. "He has an amazing capacity for healing, but Rouge had a point. If a wound is bad enough, and he doesn't have medical attention fast enough…well…" Tails trailed off, looking uncomfortable even as he spoke.

"I don't think that was as comforting as you thought it was, Tails," Knuckles snorted, folding his arms over his chest as the fox kit turned to look down at his brother with a wince.

"That's not to say he won't heal! They'll probably get him back to G.U.N in plenty of time, and with some surgery, I'm sure he'll be just fine!" Tails was quick to try and reassure, waving his hands through the air.

Sonic stared after Team Dark, shakily rising to his feet after a beat. "I'm going with them."

"Sonic," Amy sighed, resting a hand on his shoulder, "You know G.U.N doesn't like it when you show up at their headquarters unannounced. Rouge and Omega have Shadow. He'll be okay."

Sonic shrugged off Amy's hand, stepping away from her with a short shake of his head. "He's hurt because I wasn't paying enough attention. I need to make sure he's okay."

Before any of his friends could get another word in edge wise, Sonic took off after Team Dark, skidding to a stop and then trotting along next to Omega. Rouge cast him the briefest of glances, but otherwise didn't say anything as they walked with purpose towards a van that Sonic presumed would take them back to G.U.N. He glanced up at Omega, though the robot gave him no mind, before carefully reaching out to gently take Shadow's hand. The hybrid blinked sluggishly at the contact, tilting his head slightly so he could see the blue hedgehog keeping pace with them.

"Hey," Sonic said, forcing a lopsided smile on his lips, and forcing himself not to notice how the white fluff on Shadow's chest was now a vivid red that almost matched his quills, "Thanks for the save. I'm gonna make sure those goons heal you up, okay?"

A quiet little hitch of breath left Shadow, before he managed to make a low humming sound. Sonic's smile became a little less forced as Shadows fingers squeezed around his own.

~

Irritation and anxiety flowed freely through Sonic as he bounced his leg incessantly where he sat outside the room they'd rushed Shadow into. Predictably, they'd tried to keep Sonic from following Team Dark into G.U.N headquarters, but a quick, waspish remark from Rouge and an easy dodge from Sonic kept the blue blur at Shadow's side. It wasn't until a doctor forced Sonic out of the room with comments about sanitation and distractions that Sonic acquiesced to waiting outside.

Eventually, Rouge had Omega steal a couple of chairs from somewhere and the two sat in silence outside the room, Rouge with a book she'd produced from Chaos only knew where, and Sonic anxiously winding himself up.

The thought had never even occurred to him before that Shadow could get hurt enough to die. He'd seen the hybrid get stabbed six ways to Sunday, get beaten unconscious, hell, even falling to earth from orbit hadn't killed him! But now, the very real possibility of losing Shadow was gripping his heart in a way he never thought it would. The very idea that he could be facing a future without dragging the hybrid out of his apartment to race, or watching him zip into battle with a snarky comment shot in his direction was surprisingly paralyzing.

Finally, after what Sonic presumed was hours, as no clocks were to be seen in the hallway they sat in, a doctor exited the room. Sonic shot up from his chair as the door opened, his heart seizing in his chest at the sheer amount of blood on the doctors smock.

"He's stable," the doctor stated bluntly after staring Sonic down for a solid minute, before sauntering off down the hall like they hadn't nearly given the blue hedgehog a heart attack.

He didn't even given Rouge a glance as he rushed through the open door, halting at Shadow's bed side, his hands fluttering uselessly through the air over the hybrid's prone form. He had thought, for a moment, that Shadow was asleep, but was shortly met with a quite groan and red eyes peering up at him in mild irritation at his anxious movements. He did his best to ignore the bandages wrapped around Shadows chest and the seeping red stain slowly tinting them.

"Shadow!" Sonic breathed, "You're awake?"

"Mmm," the hybrid grunted, offering Rouge a small nod as she and Omega made their way into the room, "Can't use anesthesia on me. Metabolism is too fast."

Rouge offered Shadow a glass of water, which the hybrid took with a grateful little hum. As he drank he quirked a curious eyebrow at Sonic, who was simply staring at him with a dumbfounded little expression on his face.

"So you were awake for all that?"

Shadow simply nodded, handing the glass back to Rouge once he was finished.

"How did you not make any noise when they pulled the blade out?" Sonic blurted rather tactlessly, earning a glare from Rouge and a restrained snort of laughter from Shadow.

"I did," he said with a shrug, Rouge sighing next to him with a shake of her head, "All of the rooms in here are sound proof, though."

"Don't give me that look, Blue. You would've blown the door off its hinges if you'd heard him scream," Rouge said rolling her eyes at Sonic's affronted look. "Anyway, sugar, I have a feeling Blue wants to talk with you in private, so I'm gonna go do our paperwork. I'm glad you're okay." She leaned over and pressed a short kiss to Shadow's forehead, earning a disgruntled groan from Shadow.

"You? Doing paperwork? I must have died. There's no way you'd voluntarily do it otherwise," Shadow sniped, earning a light laugh from Rouge.

"I never said it was a free service," Rouge chuckled, blowing Shadow a kiss as she and Omega left the room.

Silence reigned for a beat after Rouge shut the door behind them, before Sonic let out a low whistle.

"So," he started, rocking back and forth on his heels, "You almost died saving me. What's that all about?"

Shadow slowly arched an eyebrow at Sonic, frown prominent on his muzzle. "..Tactful."

"I…Sorry, yeah. That was't-" Sonic cut himself off with a groan, dragging his hands down over his face. "Thank you. For saving me. I…You saved my life."

Shadow simply hummed, offering Sonic a slow nod. "Don't get used to it."

"I don't plan on making it a habit to put myself into that sort of situation."

"Liar."

"…Okay, you got me there," Sonic snorted, dragging a hand absently through his quills. "But…no, look, I…You scared me," he admitted quietly, "It honestly didn't even occur to me until today that you could get so severely hurt. What made you do it?"

Shadow sat silently for a moment, observing Sonic, before he finally shrugged, wincing slightly at the movement. "I moved before my mind could catch up with what I was doing."

"Ah," Sonic nodded, a sardonic little smile on his face, "Hero instincts finally kicked in, huh?"

Shadow frowned, grunting quietly as he shoved himself into somewhat of a sitting position, Sonics hands instinctively fluttering around him once again, obviously unsure as to what he could or should do. "Not hero instinct," Shadow sighed once he was settled back into his pillows, "I didn't want to see you get hurt."

"…You roundhouse kick me almost every time you see me."

"You know exactly what I mean. Don't be difficult."

Sonic let out an almost hysterical little giggle, moving to sit on the edge of the bed with a shake of his head. "I really don't think I do."

Shadow heaved a deep, but obviously difficult sigh, shutting his eyes as he tipped his head back into his pillows. He was silent for a moment, before opening his eyes and directing an intent stare at Sonic. "I've lost people who were important to me. It was an experience I am not eager to repeat."

"…I'm important to you?"

Shadow grunted, rolling his eyes at the slow grin spreading on Sonic's face. "Yes."

"Awww, Shadow!" Sonic cooed, placing his hands over his chest while fluttering his eye lashes at the other.

"Mmm, thank you for trivializing this," Shadow sighed, folding his arms over his chest with a barely perceptible wince.

"Wh-no! That's not what I-guh," Sonic grumbled, rubbing his hands over his face in frustration at himself, "I'm not trying to trivialize it." He fidgeted for a moment, his ears pinning back at the unimpressed stare down he was getting from the hybrid. "…You're important to me, too, Shadow," he finally said after a beat, letting his hands drop into his lap. "For a bit, there, I thought…I thought you were going to die. I thought one stupid mistake on my part was going to mean that I never got to see you again, and I…That's not something I want to think about again."

"Then stop doing stupid things when dealing with Robotnik," Shadow snarked, earning a light laugh from Sonic.

"No promises, but I'll do my best," Sonic hummed, offering his hand to Shadow, who looked momentarily startled by the action. Slowly he unfolded his arms and placed his hand into Sonic's, curling his fingers loosely around the other's palm.

"I'll hold you to that."

"Wouldn't expect anything less."

[utane-uta-town]

Hi, I'm Maria from Gaza.

I want your help if you can💔

. My family and I have been living under bombardment for 10 months. We just want to survive this genocide. Your help to me and my family, even with something simple, would make me happy. You can donate $5 or $15 to save me and my family.

Please don't skip that🙏💔.

https://gofund.me/2d3b6f8f

Fundraiser by Reem Alhayek : Urgent: Help Maria and her family survive the war in Gaza (gofundme.com) "My name is Reem and I’m raising this fundraiser for my dear friend Maria and her family.

Maria’s family, once settled in northern Gaza, has faced unimaginable hardship since the outbreak of conflict on October 13. At 21, Maria is a pharmacy student, dedicated to her studies despite the dire circumstances. The family of six was forcibly displaced, moving south multiple times as they endured relentless bombing, destruction, and displacement.

The war has ravaged their lives profoundly. Their home was destroyed, and Maria's father, who owned a perfume business, lost everything—his shops and warehouses burned to the ground. The family’s struggle is compounded by starvation, diseases, and the constant interruption of essential services like electricity and fuel. The family’s situation is further exacerbated by the loss of their livelihoods and the death of numerous relatives.

Currently, they live in a tent, struggling to rebuild both their home and their means of support. Despite these overwhelming challenges, Maria remains resolute in her pursuit of education and her determination to help her family recover from the devastation they have endured."

[dreamiekatie]

Urgent! Help raise money for Displaced Family in Gaza

I'm posting this on the behalf of @maria-gaza1 who reached out to me.

Please, it doesn't matter how much you donate, and if you're unable to, share to the best of your abilities.

(from the GoFundMe description)

"Maria’s family, once settled in northern Gaza, has faced unimaginable hardship since the outbreak of conflict on October 13. At 21, Maria is a pharmacy student, dedicated to her studies despite the dire circumstances. The family of six was forcibly displaced, moving south multiple times as they endured relentless bombing, destruction, and displacement.

The war has ravaged their lives profoundly. Their home was destroyed, and Maria's father, who owned a perfume business, lost everything—his shops and warehouses burned to the ground. The family’s struggle is compounded by starvation, diseases, and the constant interruption of essential services like electricity and fuel. The family’s situation is further exacerbated by the loss of their livelihoods and the death of numerous relatives.

Currently, they live in a tent, struggling to rebuild both their home and their means of support. Despite these overwhelming challenges, Maria remains resolute in her pursuit of education and her determination to help her family recover from the devastation they have endured."

If you go to Maria's tumblr page, you'll see her family was displaced and had to move again as recently as today. Again, please donate if you can and share sitewide.

I haven't been able to find specifics, but from tags on her GFM post, Maria's account and GFM have been verified by already vetted and verified sources.

[rainbowywitch]

Hi, I'm Maria from Gaza.

I want your help if you can💔

. My family and I have been living under bombardment for 10 months. We just want to survive this genocide. Your help to me and my family, even with something simple, would make me happy. You can donate $5 or $15 to save me and my family.

Please don't skip that🙏💔.

https://gofund.me/2d3b6f8f

My name is Reem and I’m raising this fundraiser for my dear friend Maria and her family. Maria’s family, once settled in northern Gaza, has faced unimaginable hardship since the outbreak of conflict on October 13. At 21, Maria is a pharmacy student, dedicated to her studies despite the dire circumstances. The family of six was forcibly displaced, moving south multiple times as they endured relentless bombing, destruction, and displacement. The war has ravaged their lives profoundly. Their home was destroyed, and Maria's father, who owned a perfume business, lost everything—his shops and warehouses burned to the ground. The family’s struggle is compounded by starvation, diseases, and the constant interruption of essential services like electricity and fuel. The family’s situation is further exacerbated by the loss of their livelihoods and the death of numerous relatives. Currently, they live in a tent, struggling to rebuild both their home and their means of support. Despite these overwhelming challenges, Maria remains resolute in her pursuit of education and her determination to help her family recover from the devastation they have endured.

[jtargaryen18]

All Heaven in a Rage

Chapter 1

Story Rating: Explicit, 18+ only Warnings: Non-con,  Kidnapping, Stalking, Explicit Sexual Content, Dubious Consent. Please read responsibly.  Relationships: Steve Rogers/Reader

On AO3 Jtargaryen18/SnowQueen79

A request for a dear friend. This takes place after the Infinity War but before Avengers 4. Steve Rogers has lost most of those he had left to the snap and loneliness is battle he's losing. What starts out as an honest intention to help a girl who has caught his eye in daily life becomes a dangerous obsession where the lines of what's real and what's fantasy are blurred.

I do not consent to have my work hosted on any third party app or site. If you are seeing this fanfiction anywhere but archiveofourown or tumblr, it has been reposted without my permission.

A/N: I caved. Several of you asked and since most of us are quarantined... If you haven’t read it, I hope you like it. Apologies. This was my first reader insert story. 

~~~

The world was a different place following the snap.

It had taken months for the world’s routine to even resemble anything close to normal. Half of the world’s population had been eliminated in the snap and that had been devastating enough. To make matters even worse, so many people died that day as a result of the snap.

If pilots were snapped, their crafts went down with no survivors among those who’d been left. Engineers of trains, bus drivers, cab drivers, Ubers. There were endless reports of car crashes, freak transportation accidents. Clint’s family had apparently made it through the snap. They were killed when they were hit on the highway by a driverless car, its driver snapped. It had veered off into their lane and hit them head-on.

Clint had been stuck at home on house arrest. Steve Rogers knew his friend and fellow Avenger had to have been completely destroyed by his family’s loss. Steve would have been there for him. Only Clint had disappeared without a trace immediately after…

There were hundreds of deaths at hospitals, shelters, and nursing homes. Even more in everyday situations. Amusement parks, at schools, on battlefields, in shopping centers…

Everywhere…

Steve had been through a lot of loss in his life only to have Thanos take most of what he’d had left. He’d lost Bucky, and that was a bitterness that nearly consumed him at night as he stared at the ceiling in those long, dark, sleepless hours. Bucky had been his best friend, the one person he could never get over losing. It had been a miracle when he’d found him and he’d fought so hard for him, scoured the earth for him with Sam’s help.

Losing him for a second time had almost finished Steve off.

He’d lost Sam too. And Tony, though that had apparently happened before the snap when he’d left the planet accompanied by Dr. Stephen Strange and young Peter Parker. They’d lost Scott Lang, King T’Challa and his sister Shuri, Nick Fury and Maria Hill. So many good men and women were lost that day in a variety of ways, leaving a new broken world that was on the edge of chaos. They’d be years yet cleaning up from that day.

They’d never truly recover from the losses.

Steve had just left a support group he’d been sitting in on for the last few weeks. Natasha had been well-intentioned when she’d recommended it to him. Honestly, he hadn’t gotten a lot of benefit from it. It was hard to take in the coping mechanisms that the group leads shared when you were too busy picking apart your actions from those events, from that day.

Could he have done anything differently? Could he have stopped Thanos and saved his friends? Bucky? Everyone? There had to have been something he’d missed.

The questions haunted him endlessly. Sometimes Steve felt like he was losing his mind.

Life had resumed. People went on and most things you could do or have were still there, still available. The Avengers trudged on, missions much fewer now. Situations were less dire. Even the bad guys had taken losses, seemed to struggle with how to move forward.

There were shadows behind the eyes of every survivor he passed or encountered. Loss and grief swam in the eyes of men, women and children alike.

Steve was so lost in his thoughts that instead of taking the elevator up to his apartment at the front of the tower, he walked in through the lobby. When he got so far into it, he decided coffee might be nice. He wasn’t likely to sleep anyway, and the autumn air had been chilly. It would be a nice warm up.

Steve was almost ashamed to admit that he couldn’t remember the last time he’d been in the lobby. It had been months, since way before the snap. The coffee shop was just about to close, and he saw a young man and woman working there as he waited in line. The young man he hadn’t seen before, looked like a nice kid.

The young woman he’d noticed before. She’d worked there for at least a couple of years. Steve had always thought she was a beautiful girl, but it was more than just her physical appearance. She had a friendly smile that reached her bright, clear eyes. He’d admired the way she didn’t treat him any differently even though the slight tremor of her hands and the nervous lilt to her laugh when she waited on him told him she was very aware of who he was. Yes, she was shy, but her manners were exceptional for a girl nowadays. Even though Nat would probably call him a sexist asshole, her demure behavior appealed to him.

Steve was happy to see that she’d survived.

“What’s your number, sweet thing?” the man in front of him asked her in a tone Steve didn’t care for.

She handed him his order and tried to smile. “That will be $9.57 please.”

“Give me your number,” the man insisted now. “Then I’ll give you the money.”

“I don’t even have a phone,” she muttered, nervous now. “I’m sorry. Please let me finish your transaction so I can wait on our other guests, okay?”

“You lyin’ to me?” the man tried to sound like he was playing but he didn’t quite hit that note.

“No,” she said, her discomfort obviously growing.

She didn’t owe him an explanation. She didn’t owe the man anything.

“You sure?” the man pressed, moving closer to the counter.

“Pay for your order and move along,” Steve broke out his Captain’s voice, watching with amusement as the coarse-looking man, he wasn’t a lot bigger than her to be honest, angrily turned around to face him. It took him all of three seconds to recognize Steve and he enjoyed watching the other man diminish as she watched.

“Sure, yeah,” the man mumbled, nervously digging his wallet out of his jacket and slapping a ten down on the counter in front of her. He mumbled something that sounded like “keep the change” but he didn’t look at her again. Instead, he made a beeline away from the coffee shop in the direction of the front doors.

“Are you okay?” Steve asked stepping up to the counter, gazing down at her. No one was behind him. The young man grinned at him before dashing behind the counter, probably getting ready to shut down.

Her wide eyes had watched the retreating figure of the man for another beat before her gaze shifted to him. Steve loved her wide expressive eyes, especially when they shifted back to him.

“Thank you,” she said, smiling at Steve. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

“Has he done that before?” Steve asked her.

She swallowed hard, he could tell she was scrambling for an answer when the young man she worked with came up behind her.

“Yeah,” he explained. “Not often but…”

He got back to his efforts as she waited at the counter.

“Hopefully he won’t be back,” Steve told her, making a mental note.

Nodding, she dropped her gaze for just a second before glancing back up at him.

“What can I get for you?” she asked sweetly.

Was it wrong that he loved her demeanor? No artifice, no guile. She didn’t seem to have the snark and entitlement so many young people had these days. It was refreshing.

Steve ordered what he normally did, simple black coffee, and he watched as she went about getting it ready for him. She moved quickly, almost apologetically. When she had his order ready, she placed it gently on the counter before him.

Steve smiled. “What do I owe you?”

She shook her head, the lights shining off her hair. “On the house. With my thanks.”

Steve nodded, accepting it. He didn’t want to hold them up because he knew they wanted to get home, but he had one last thought. He reached for the order pad and pen lying on the counter next to their register and wrote down a number.

“If he shows up again, or you have any trouble,” Steve explained, “send a text to that number. It will get handled.”

Those eyes widened. It was delicious and it was working on him. He watched her pick up the slip of paper with a trembling hand, reading the panic that flashed in those eyes for just a split second. Then her gaze returned to him and she nodded.

So had she been telling the rude bastard he’d gotten rid of the truth? Did she not have a phone?

That wasn’t safe. What if she needed to call for help? For a ride?

“Thank you, Captain Rogers,” she said that sweet smile back in place. “Have a good night.”

“Good night,” he told her, taking her in for another beat before heading for the elevators.

His mind was swimming with questions, and he had to admit, it beat the hell out of obsessing about the snap and the aftermath of dealing with that as he had done for weeks.

Steve had just reached the elevators when he realized that he was concerned about her getting home. Would it hurt to follow her? He could easily do it without her noticing. If she had a phone, she’d likely check it on her way home from work. If she didn’t, well, he could make sure she made it home okay. He wasn’t doing anything else at the moment.

It only took about fifteen minutes for her to head towards the front door of the tower. She never noticed him where he’d tucked in near the elevators. Steve fell in behind her, tightening his coat around himself. His coffee had been perfect, and he’d already finished it.

She should have been wearing a coat as cold as it was. Only a thin jacket covered her as she walked along in her jeans. No sign of a phone. She walked with her head down, again looking for all intents and purposes like she was trying to avoid anyone’s notice.

The problem was such body language often had the opposite effect. Muggers and worse selected those they didn’t think would fight back and she definitely fit into that category.

Finally, she turned at a rundown apartment complex and Steve’s hopes sank. Poor thing. He didn’t know her story, what happened that left her living in the dark, dingy set of buildings heading for the bad side of the city. Probably all she could afford. He did know that a lot of drug and prostitution calls came out of the place and it left him feeling even worse about her situation.

Maybe he shouldn’t have followed her.

She wasn’t his problem after all.

But as he stopped, watching her pace pick up with her destination in sight, he remembered the warmth in that pretty face, the warmth in her eyes. It stirred feelings in him he hadn’t felt in many years.

No, he couldn’t ignore her or her situation now. He wanted to help.

But how?

Steve pondered that question long into the night.

[hikari-writes]

I haven’t seen other isekai villainess series yet, I didn’t even realize it was popular until after getting into my next life, so if you have recommendations, I’d love to try out more!

HameFura was my first Isekai villainess ever! Coincidentally, I'm also a fan of reverse harem so the series really excites me! I don't think there are other animes for isekai villainess (in fact, I think HameFura is the first of its genre to have an anime adaptation. I wish they'd adapt more in the future though) but as you'd probably guess, there are a lot of Light Novels featuring that genre! There are also many manga adaptations of them! Some of the popular and the ones that I'm currently reading are these, though i must tell you that some of these recs are just isekai in general/reborn/reincarnated/transferred to isekai. So these are a variation of isekai genre rather than just a "reincarnated as isekai/otome game villainess" (ho boi,,,, this is a long ass one forgive me)

The Villainess' Slow Prison Life Began With Her Broken Engagement (completed, pretty short but there are the continuation in the LN, which I'll def check in the future!)

Middle-Aged Man's Noble Daughter Reincarnation (haven't read it yet, but it seemed interesting, so I'll just add this too!)

The Vengeful White Cat Lounging On The Dragon King's Lap (this is a transferred into isekai but i thought it's pretty cute! Ongoing)

The Mage With Special Circumstances Wants To Live Peacefully (MC originally lives in the this fantasy world, so i wouldn't say this is an isekai, but it's cute and interesting, so i totally recommend it! Ongoing)

Since I Became A Saint, I'll Do Whatever I Want With My Second Life ~The Prince Was My Lover Who Threw Me Away In My Previous Life~ (reborn in the same world, really interesting and I love the MC. Ongoing)

I'm Thinking Of Quitting The Villainess' Entourage (This is cute 🥺🥺 still ongoing though)

This Time I Will Definitely Be Happy! (I LOVE THIS SO FREAKING MUCH IT'S REALLY INTERESTING AND THE MC IS JUST 👌👌👌 Completed 😢)

Tensei Saki Ga Shoujo Manga No Shiro Buta Reijou Datta (similar to HameFura where the villainess recovers her memories and changed for the greater good, but the setting for this one is shoujo manga rather than otome game. I think the MC is really cute and love how hardworking she is. Ongoing)

I’M A Villainous Daughter, So I’M Going To Keep The Last Boss (WHY DOES THIS HAVE TO END SMH 😢 Like, I love LOVE this manga so freaking much! Totally recommend it 10/10! Just a heads up, original otome game heroine who's kind like HameFura Maria in isekai manga/LN is considered rare. Original otome game heroine like this manga are considered to be more common. So,,, prepare yourself 💀)

Mahoutsukai No Konyakusha (the world the MC is reincarnated in doesn't have any relation to something from her past life, so this is a general fantasy setting. BUT IT'S CUTE SO WHATEVER 🤗 I believe this one is completed 🤔)

For Certain Reasons, The Villainess Noble Lady Will Live Her Post-Engagement Annulment Life Freely (interesting MC, story has main subject, which is medical stuff cause mc was a nurse in her past life, ongoing)

Of Course, I'll Claim Palimony! (This is just so interesting, and i love how straightforward the MC is, not a reincarnated MC or anything, she is originally from the world :) ongoing)

I Was Reincarnated, And Now I'm A Maid! (Reincarnated as the villainess maid instead! This is pretty heartwarming but there aren't many chapters currently, still ongoing)

Endo And Kobayashi’S Live Commentary On The Villainess (This is just so amazing and interesting! Not reborn/reincarnated, but instead, the ones from the normal world is playing the game and gave commentary on the game, one of the character (the prince) can hear them, even though he's in the game. Ongoing)

Milady Just Wants To Relax (reincarnated in a novel world as the villainess! Tells the story of the after life of MC opening up a cafe after she was exiled. So fluffy and the Love interests are beastmen)

Fiancée’S Observation Log Of The Self-Proclaimed Villainess (One of the most popular isekai manga after HameFura! Instead of the female MC's point of view, this is told in the villainess' (aka MC's) fiance's point of view! Also, the villainess in this one wants to confront her bad end rather than avoid it like in HameFura 😂 and she's as dumb as Katarina so 😔😔👌👌👌 ongoing)

When I Woke Up, Twenty Years Passed! ~The Villainous Daughter’S Afterlife~ (cute as shit and hot male LI 😌😌😌 ongoing)

Seijo No Maryoku Wa Bannou Desu (this one is transferred into isekai, i stan the MC so much, she was treated like shit at first, but it gets better dw,,, and the lead male is just so 😍😍😍)

The Villainess Want To Marry A Commoner (this is honestly just so cute and relatable! The reincarnated MC loves one of the supporting cast rather than the main LI in the otome game, so she gets engaged with him and decides to stay away from the heroine and the LI, ongoing)

The Result Of Being Reincarnated Is Having A Master-Servant Relationship With The Yandere Love Interest (reincarnated into yandere otome game! Male lead is a lowkey yandere for his master aka the villainess (MC), ongoing.)

Isekai De "kuro No Iyashi Te" Tte Yobarete Imasu (similar to seijo no maryoku, but still quite different! This is enjoyable too! Completed)

Inso's Law (the only manhwa I'll list here. I just love the relationship the MC and all the LI and original heroine. This one is set in a world of romance novel, but not one that the MC already read or knew. The MC just knew she got transferred and is forced to live in a romance novel world because of how all the laws that applied to a common romance novel is shown when she was living her life there. She was assumed to be the heroine's (normal looking) best friend. Ongoing)

The Banished Villainess! Living The Leisurely Life Of A Nun Making Revolutionary Church Food (ONE OF MY FAV! This is just so cute! (Heads up, shit may or may not go down 👀) but this is still the cutest shit ever, male lead is a scary looking guy that's actually really soft and dense and he loves the villainess (MC) but again, MC is too dumb to realize that 😔 BUT IT'S CUTE SO IT'S ALRIGHT! Ongoing)

May I Ask For One Final Thing? (BADASS MC! YES!! MC is originally from the world and she kicks ass at the people who wronged her, ongoing)

The Villainess Is Adored By The Crown Prince Of The Neighboring Kingdom (again, one of the most popular isekai villaines after HameFura. And again, the original otome game heroine is the exact opposite of Maria, so prepare yourself! This thing is cute as heck! It shows how the Villainess (MC) was treated like shit by one of the male lead (a prince)but then a hotter guy (the neighboring prince) came and proposed to her,, lmao serves the prince right, ongoing)

Isekai De Mofumofu Nadenade Suru Tame Ni Ganbattemasu. (Reincarnated to a fantasy setting world, and the smol MC is adored by all animals, SUPER FLUFFY, just like the title)

I Swear I Won't Bother You Again! (Reborn again in the same world,MC decided to stay away from the Heroine and won't bully her.....which backfired horribly 😜ongoing)

Marielle Clarac's Engagement (MC originally from the world, just shows the life of her as a romance novel writer in the noble world. This one is super cute too, ongoing)

I’M Not A Villainess!! Just Because I Can Control Darkness Doesn’T Mean I’M A Bad Person! (Set in shoujo manga world, and the MC was a misunderstood girl 😢😢😢😢 i love her sm 😔 ongoing)

The Reborn Witch Foretells Destruction (reborn to a fantasy world, and the artstyle is my personal fav! I just love the relationship the MC has with the love interests)

I Am Troubled That My Fiance Is A Villain (just sum cute shit, MC born as a side character, but somehow caught the attention of the otome game Villain and was proposed by him. Also the original otome game heroine is....i think you already get it by now)

The Villainess Will Crush Her Destruction End Through Modern Firepower (BIG BAD BITCH ENERGYYYYYY even though she's a freaking loli, lol remind me of Youjo Senki...villainess MC was reincarnated to an otome game and one interesting trait of her from past life, she loves guns and revolver,,, and all those stuff, ongoing)

It Seems Like I Got Reincarnated Into The World Of A Yandere Otome Game (again, yandere otome game, but the yandere flags are all taken down, so it's safe, (still have some of those yandere tendencies tho) ongoing)

Fake Cinderella (just a patisserie reincarnated to a fantasy world, and she was engaged to a prince that is really fond of her (i say fond because their age gap is a little....questionable) ongoing)

Koushaku Reijou No Tashinami (i barely understand what's going on half of the time but i love the romance the MC villainess has with her LI. (And the LI isn't one of the capture targets from the og otome game) focuses on the subject of politic so.....RIP. but i still love the romance 🥳)

Lady Rose Wants To Be A Commoner (I 👏 LOVE 👏 THIS 👏 It's just freaking amazing and cute! MC is reincarnated as the otome game heroine, but she lets the event flowed to her bad ending, so she got to be exiled and live her life as a commoner. Interesting MC and amazing artstyle! Ongoing)

I Reincarnated Into An Otome Game As A Villainess With Only Destruction Flags... In A Dire Situation!? Verge Of Destruction Arc (HameFura spinoff! This one is set in the world where Katarina is already bullying Maria because her past life memories came like, 5/7(?) years after the incident with the scar with the prince unlike in the OG. I actually just need more HameFura content so,,, 🥺😔👉👈 Katarina's still the same ol dumb so dw,,,also more side characters are introduced! Ongoing)

The Villainess, Cecilia Silvie, Doesn't Want To Die, So She Decided To Cross-Dress! (Haven't read it yet, but i LOVE the genderbend idea!)

The Earl's Daughter Was Suddenly Employed As The Crown Prince's Fiancée (MC is already originally living in fantasy setting world, and her interactions with the crown prince is just so freaking cute i can't,,, ongoing....i think?)

The Daughter Of The Albert House Wishes For Ruin (This is so much fun to read! Same as fiancee observation log, the villainess MC wishes to confront her dead end for some reason, ongoing i think?)

AND THAT'S ALL I CAN GIVE! This post is long as heck, and i haven't even talk about ALL of them, plus there's also the manhwa. 😂😂😂 but i hope you'll like these!

[desertrose-kagalli]

Here's an angsty canon-divergence prompt I thought of thanks to the lack of v7 whiterose interactions:

Silver-eyed warriors are destined to eventually become blind to the one they love the most... the same one that they think about to make their eyes shine the brightest. Which is why Ruby and Weiss barely acknowledge each other in v7. Because Ruby is starting to lose perception of Weiss.

The more Ruby uses her silver eye powers, the more Weiss fades from her vision. Ruby can save the world using this superpower but will eventually lose her ability to see or perceive Weiss... or she'll have to find another way to save the world without depending on silver eyes... if there even is another way.

While I'm not a writer, I threw together some thoughts:

*Ruby calls a Team RWBY meeting* Ruby: Hey you two, where's Weiss? Yang: Literally right next to you. I know it's hard to tell since she's so short! Weiss: Very funny 😑 Ruby: *looks to her left and subtly squints* ... haha uh yeah... heya Weiss! 😅

Maria remembers at some point to warn Ruby about the silver-eye side-effect because it happened to her too back when she still physically had her eyes. Ruby ends up telling her team and continues the world-saving quest with this knowledge weighing heavily in her mind.

Fast forward to final battle... everyone is barely hanging on. Weiss is barely visible to Ruby at this point even though Ruby has been trying to use her silver eyes sparingly on their adventure. For this entire final battle, Ruby has been refusing to use her silver eyes on Salem and her army of Grimm even though the situation is dire. Weiss and Ruby still fight perfectly in sync with each other, even if Ruby can barely see her, because of the strong connection they share.

Something Bad™️ happens to Weiss that forces Ruby to unleash the most powerful silver eye blast. When the light dies down, the battle is won. Ruby, exhausted, falls to her knees and sighs in relief. But then looks around frantically, realizing the implications of her actions and hoping it isn't true.

She suddenly feels the slightest warmth envelop her, and tears start pooling in her eyes. "Weiss? Weiss?! Is that you? Are you here?!"

Blake and Yang limp up behind Ruby and share a pained, knowing look with each other. Blake says gently, "Yes, Ruby, she's here. She's passed out, but she's here." Ruby, simultaneously full of relief and despair, lets her tears flow.

If anyone actually ends up using this prompt, I'd love to read it!

And if anyone needs this to not end with quite so much angst:

A month or so later, after everyone's relatively recovered from the battle, Remnant works on rebuilding. Team RWBY, however, sets off on a new adventure trying to find a cure or fix to reverse this condition for Ruby. 

[blackleatherjacketz]

My Brother’s Keeper: Chapter 16

Negan x Reader, King Ezekiel x Reader

Summary: Your brother runs away from the Sanctuary and you pay the price. This Chapter: You try to hide and recover from your first meeting with Negan in the woods.

Author’s Note: Sorry it’s been a while, I was going through some emotional turmoil and couldn’t write for a while, but I’m back. Enjoy! (Gif by @godlaughingwhilstyoumakeplans )

Featuring: King Ezekiel, Morgan, Richard

Warnings: Fluff, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Medical Supplies

Word Count: 2137

Read the rest of the story HERE!

Your walk back to the Kingdom was a mixture of both hot and cold, the open skin on your back saturated with sweat, cooling your body down while the blazing summer sun burned its hottest at high noon. You could feel your body begin to shiver as your brain tried its best to regulate your temperature. Sure, it was just a scratch if you broke it down to the bare basics, but it was still an open wound, a potential source of infection, something you needed to clean as soon as possible.

By the time you made it back to the infirmary, you only ran into a handful of villagers along the way. You’d kept your greetings short and your back against the wall as you tried to seem normal, creeping along the faces of each building like some sort of paranoid version of Spider-Man. That’ll do it, you told yourself, no one would suspect anything if you acted like that, right?

Too focused to really care, you shut the door behind you when you noticed that Dana had already left for lunch. You closed the blinds, taking your shirt off before twisting your body around in front of the mirror to get a better look. The scratches were deep and hurt like hell, jagged as they throbbed and drug you down to the ground as your blood pulsed through them. You pulled your skin toward the mirror, eyeing the damage he’d done before waltzing over to the cabinet for a bottle of normal saline. With all the shit he was up to these days, who knows what kind of bacteria was growing beneath Negan’s fingernails?

The door opened more quickly than you could anticipate, forcing you to curse yourself for not locking it as Morgan, Ezekiel and Richard all barged in. You didn’t have time to hide yourself from them before they saw the scratches on your skin. Instead, you clasped your arms around your chest and abdomen as they stared at you, Richard’s face swollen from several punches with burgundy blood dried just below his nose.

“Maria!” Morgan approached you without pretense, turning you around so he could inspect the markings on your back. “You’re bleeding. What happened? Did you get bit?” he asked shakily, slowly circling around you as he inspected the rest of your body for further injury. Apparently Richard’s situation wasn’t all that dire.

“Nothing, it’s nothing,” you lied to him. “I scratched myself hopping over the fence is all.”

“Hopping over the fence?” Those skeptical eyes squinted again, practically shrinking you with their lids as they closed together.

“Maria was…” Ezekiel interjected, stepping in between the two of you, “On a special mission for me outside the Kingdom.” He looked over at you with sympathetic eyes.

“With the Saviors?” Morgan challenged, shifting his weight from hip to hip as he faced his king. “She’s a nurse, not a fighter like me.”

“Yeah, you’re some sort of fighter, alright,” Richard piped in.

“Enough!” Ezekiel shot a scolding look at Richard before returning his gaze to Morgan. “Tensions are high enough after today’s events as it is! We don’t need them heightened between our own people.” He paused, noting the bottle of saline on the counter next to your hand. “Maria’s mission involved the Saviors, yes, and she’s encountered them before. Everyone in this room knows about our deal with them now, and it shall stay that way, not a single soul more, is that understood?”

Morgan nodded reluctantly, pressing his lips together in defeat.

“Morgan, take Richard outside and get him cleaned up. Maria and I have much to discuss.” He smiled at you as his eyebrows raised into his soft gray hairline, the usual sparkle in his eyes dull with heavy burden.

“You okay?” Morgan whispered into your ear before leaving your side.

“I’m alright,” you nodded, squeezing his shoulder. “I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Okay,” he trusted, taking your word.

Ezekiel waited until Morgan’s footsteps had died down the hallway before locking the door and entering your personal space. “I was going to ask how your meeting went with him, but it seems that I need not even ask.”

“It went about as good as you’d expect,” you told him, turning around to look for a gauze pad large enough to cover your lower back. “And what about you? Does Richard always get punched in the face at your drops, or is that new, too?” You wanted to deflect the attention away from your reddened skin, from your jealous thoughts of Negan and your sister to find out what had gotten them all riled up.

“That’s a new development, actually. Gavin is usually very good to us, but for some reason he and his crew were on edge more than usual today.” He took a few more steps in your direction. “Maria, seeing you like this...”

“I’ll be fine, I just need to clean it and go on with my day,” you reassured him.

“Will you be?” His face softened with his words, enveloping you with the comfort he always brought with him. “Fine?”

“I have to be, right?” You laughed at this menial conversation, grabbing the bottle of saline before walking over to the mirror and attempting to pour it over your back.

“Let me help you.” He lifted his hand out as you failed miserably to clean your own wound, splashing the extra liquid onto the floor. “Please, Maria, let someone else care for the caregiver.”

You took in a deep breath as you decided to let him help you, worry weighing him down with whatever happened at the drop today. You quickly realized that both of you wanted to forget what happened on your mission, to distract yourselves with each other’s problems, and maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing. Maybe he needed you as badly as you needed him.

“Okay,” you resigned, turning toward the cabinets. “Just pour the liquid on my back to clean out the wound.”

“Was this from him, or...?” He asked, taking the bottle in his hands.

“Yeah, it was.” You tried to keep it simple, to spare Ezekiel’s ears from all the dirty details of your violent romp with your ex in the middle of the woods, if you could even call him your ex.

“I can understand if you don’t want to talk about it. A man does this to you, and...” he took in a timid breath, “It makes the mind wander to places I’d rather it not go.” He unscrewed the top of the bottle, setting the cap down gently on the counter next to you. “Is it always like this with him: painful?”

He brought the bottle to your shoulder blade, pouring the healing liquid over your spine in a baptism of searing comfort until he reached the other side. He stopped as you winced, the solution trickling down over your skin like rain pouring down a mountainside, cleaning out the brooks and creeks with water from the heavens.

How could you make Ezekiel understand that Negan was an ocean of anguish, raging like the tides with violent rogue waves and tsunamis of pain? That you’d been out of the water for years until your family came to the Sanctuary, and that you were stupid enough to dive in head first without dipping your toes to test out the water?

“It didn’t start out that way,” you began. “I thought Negan was something I could handle,” you admitted, breathing out as the clear liquid dampened your jeans. “I thought he was something the world out there had hardened my heart enough to deal with, but…” you trailed off, letting a tear fell onto the counter, “I was wrong.”

You leaned forward and wiped the tear from your eye, taking a paper towel and soaking up what was left of it on the counter. “I wasn’t… strong enough.” You bit your lip as Ezekiel brought the gauze pad up to your back, listening silently as he pressed the clean bandage onto your healing wound. “I wasn’t strong enough,” you repeated.

Ezekiel held onto you and finished taping a border around your lower back, reinforcing the bond with his fingertips before stepping away to give you room to turn around. “Quite the contrary, my lady,” he comforted. “You’re much stronger than you give yourself credit for.”

You grinned at the blind support, his smile almost making you forget how much pain you were actually in. “I didn’t really have a choice in all this, but thank you anyways, you’re very sweet.”

Smiling back at him, the two of you grinned at each other like idiots until you realized that neither of you were talking anymore. Every time you looked at him he seemed to grow a little warmer, a little happier and more handsome. Maybe it was just one of the side effects of living here in the Kingdom, a comparison of him against Negan, or maybe he actually was one of the most beautiful men you’d ever laid eyes on.

“He’s not worried about you, about your loyalty to him,” you interrupted yourself, making sure you didn’t fall down the rabbit hole of Ezekiel’s good looks. “There’s another community that’s giving him trouble, and he’s focusing all his energy on them right now.”

“Hilltop?” Ezekiel handed you your t-shirt, helping guide your arms through the sleeves so you wouldn’t mess up your dressing.

“No, I don’t think so. It’s someone new, someone named Rick.” You pulled the hem of your shirt down and looked at yourself in the mirror, the dried blood still pretty evident. “Maybe that’s why tensions were high at the drop today?”

“That may be so, my lady,” he paused, looking you over like a glass figurine that was about to break. “Did he say anything else about this Rick character?”

“No, not really. We didn’t do a whole lot of talking.” You regretted your words as soon as they left your lips, watching Ezekiel’s joyful features fall into solemnity. Did he care for you that way? Was he concerned for your well-being or was it something more than that?

“Your brother was here that day.” The sentence came out of his mouth so quickly you wondered how long he had been keeping it in. "Forgive me for not telling you sooner, I couldn't find the right moment."

“Alex? But you said he wasn’t here, y-y-you said you hadn’t seen him, y-you said that they would have brought him to you for review if he came looking for safe passage!” Your scratches started stinging again, the thought of your brother safe inside these walls messing with your mind.

“I know what I said,” Ezekiel stated calmly, placing a hand on your shoulder. “I said what I had to keep my people and your brother safe.”

Unbelievable! How could he have gone all this time without telling you something so big when you thought your brother had died never seeing this heavenly place? That he had escaped the Sanctuary for nothing but the death of his mother and the hot sticky road.

“So he got to see this place, then?” You felt more tears start to well up in the corner of your lids, the fluid filling up your sinuses as the possibilities of his life flashed before your eyes. “He got to meet you, and see Shiva? The gardens and the children? He always wanted children, him and Bethany, they did. I couldn’t see it in a world like that, but in a world like this, well, I could see it,” you rambled on, joy and anger mixing together in a nervous dialogue.

“Yes,” he answered. “He and his wife were very kind and grateful people.” He released his grip on your shoulder and sat down next to you, leaning against the counter. “He told me that they were travelers looking to work for their keep, and I almost believed them. His wife looked a little too taken care of for them to be on the road as long as they claimed, but I had Benjamin show them around anyways.”

Benjamin, the boy with your brother’s eyes, of course he was the one to show them around. “How long was he here?” You sniffled and rubbed your nose with the back of your hand.

“A few hours. They got a good meal before our scouts caught wind of the Saviors and helped them escape out the back wall.”

“They didn’t escape,” you informed him, crossing your arms over your chest. You closed your eyes as the sound of Lucille cracking into Alex’s skull shook you into standing up. “No, they couldn’t have, could they? Somebody had to pay, and I’m glad it wasn’t one of your people, but…” you trailed off, walking toward the door. “Thank you for patching me up, Ezekiel. I’m gonna go to my quarters now.”

-----------------------------------------------------------

Tags: @genevievedarcygranger @letsby @negansdirtygirl22 @annablack1102 @irrelevantwriter @negans-network @rasa1945 @chamberofsloths @flames-bring-a-ton-of-ash @collette04 @namelesslosers @bishsposts @bodhi-black @chloejanedecker1, @mblaqgi @haleyea @ptite-shit @jamiekingofmen @ibelongtonegan @divadinag @you-are-electric-temptation-girl, @dxloverpunk @tylersblurrylittleface @marriedtonegan @astrobabezblog @death-unbecomes-you @toxic-ink

[thegreenfairy13]

A Gotham Ghost Story

A Gobblepot fanfic. Oswald Cobblepot shoots Jim Gordon on the pier. Unable to move on to the afterlife, Jim is doomed to haunt the infamous mobster. Tied to Earth but unable to live, Jim only wants to find peace in death. His path there might be bumpy. Read it on Ao3 here.

Thank you @mexican-texican for the beta <3!

Jim Gordon is five years old when Elijah Van Dahl decides to have another cup of coffee to calm his racing heart. This decision is - quite obviously - absolutely wrong.

The very second the bitter, scalding hot liquid touches his lips, every ounce of courage he might have possessed mere moments ago leaves his body. He doubles over, coughs, and bites down delicately on his burnt tongue to assess the damage done to the one organ designed for talking and instantly decides it’s a bad omen, a sign from the heavens for him to hold his tongue, literally.

Elijah had always been superstitious so it shouldn’t come as a surprise he believes in forewarnings. Sadly, he gets this specific token wrong. Or he doesn’t get it wrong at all; it all really depends on your point of view. Yet, given the man Elijah is, he would have jumped up and stormed off right this instant if he had known his decision to drink a cup of coffee on a hot summer day in the middle of July, missing the undeniably most important date of his entire life in the process, would lead - among others - to the deaths of Gertrud Kabelput, the love of his life, two college students, a cook’s assistant, a postman, Maria Mercedes Mooney, a waitress named Grace, Tabitha Galavan, Butch Gilzean, and, most recently, the death of the cop James Worthington Gordon.

Most people on this list are arguably not what you’d call nice people but they are undeniably people; Elijah firmly believes that murdering a human being, although it can be forgiven, should never be justified. Therefore, should he have even assumed what was about to happen, he would have regained his courage and walked right out of his kitchen and into his future.

But as our tale is set in Gotham, a city known for its wicked, malicious ways, Elijah stayed put, opened his fridge and started nursing on a cube of ice, wondering what could have been.

One could argue this all started even earlier. Maybe over two-hundred years ago, when Elijah’s great-great-great-great-grandfather decided to leave the Netherlands and go on an adventure. Or maybe only three years ago, when his father decided to employ a very young, very pretty, and very talented cook. Or maybe one and a half years ago, when Elijah came back from university and his mother introduced her son to said cook. Or…

Well, we could go on and on with his list, but it truly was the aforementioned moment when a future, a future that had been in flux up to this minute, stuttered to a halt. Fates were decided, a decision was made, options vanished, and infinity took its turn, leading directly into a dire future.

In this future, James Worthington Gordon and Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, né Van Dahl, face each other on a cold, windy pier for the second time in their lives. The air around them smells foul, like heavy oil, bird droppings, and very soon - blood, too. Blood smells like metal; it has a sweet, heady scent, that can make a sensitive person slightly nauseous. Luckily, Oswald Cobblepot isn’t very sensitive. Not when it comes to blood, that is. The same goes for Jim Gordon, but very soon, his sensitivities won’t count any longer anyway.

Jim Gordon isn’t surprised he ends up on this pier. He might have hoped things would go differently but hoping doesn’t equal knowing. Heknew it would end this way.  

Therefore, he spent the days leading up to today with his daughter. They went to the ice-cream parlor two times a day for a week, visited the Gotham zoo, ransacked the toy-store and rang the door-bell on uncle Harvey Bullock’s home, despite the man currently recovering from a terrible hangover, until he woke up, only to run away really quickly when he ripped open the door clad in his underwear.

“I’m going to kill you, Jim Gordon!” he yelled when the younger cop gripped his daughter’s hand tightly and started running. Jim only laughed it off, knowing it wouldn’t be Harvey, not ever.

Barbara, his former fiancée, argued he would spoil their common child, but Jim wasn’t listening to her, not when being certain he would no longer have that opportunity in the future.

Mainly, because he has no future. At least not in the traditional sense of the word.

Jim Gordon would never blame Elijah Van Dahl for his fate. Even if he knew about the coffee, which he doesn’t, he would be adamant about being the architect of his own fortune, for the fault does not lie in our stars. One cannot deny the countless mistakes Jim has made throughout his path in life. Innumerable wrong decisions on his part sealed his fate, yet it still ultimately boils down to one cup of coffee. But we’ll get to that coffee later.

The man in question, the current Captain of the Gotham GCPD, is undeniably a man full of remorse; he would never admit it, not even now, but he deeply regrets the wrongs he did.  Despite the fact that he never had a true choice when it comes to some of his actions, and definitely not to the last nail in his coffin, he’s still deeply sorry.

Ten years ago, he was forced to arrest a man who considered him his friend, a man called Oswald Cobblepot. The sentiment had not been mutual back then, but almost . Jim had respected this man, still does. Therefore, he resigns from giving Oswald pathetic excuses, especially when he had only recently been released from the jail Jim locked him up in.

Instead, he obediently walks up to the edge of the pier, completely aware of the gun trained on his back. He turns around when ordered, taking in his former ally, nemesis, almost-friend, and even one-time lover.

Oswald looks good. He hasn’t aged a single day, despite spending the last ten years in Blackgate, Gotham’s infamous prison for felons. They fed him well, Jim thinks when taking in his middle. Undeniably the criminal known as the Penguin has put on some weight, leading to him now truly resembling a flightless bird.

Once, Oswald had been so scrawny, so delicate, Jim was secretly afraid a slight wind would carry him away, never to be seen again. The truth is, he can withstand even the deadliest, most destructive storms. He had been the center of more than one storm, too, and will carry on to be.

Jim considers telling him he made sure Blackgate provided him with three nutritious meals per day. He considers apologizing, he considers justifying his actions all those years ago.

He decides against it when Oswald rolls his shoulders and raises his gun again, visibly enraged. The Penguin is screaming at him, throwing one of those tantrums he’s so famous for. Jim has witnessed his wrath before, but it had never been turned directly at him - not like this.

After everything they have been through, after everything they have accomplished together, after almost falling in love, it feels weird being the object of such searing hatred. It’s not as if Jim doesn’t feel like he deserved himself this hostility, but it’s still odd.

Oswald yells again. His whole body is shaking, vibrating with all the pent-up anger that had been nurtured for over a decade by now. The air around him seems to sizzle by the sheer power of his emotion, becoming almost tangible in the process.

Once again, Jim thinks this is probably his last chance to explain, to make the horror he put Oswald through comprehensible but every explanation feels cheap. Whatever he has to say, it’s too little, too late. There would have been countless opportunities in the past to disclose his true motivations for his betrayal, but right now, it would not sound sincere. Besides, Jim isn’t sure himself if he has ever been honest with Oswald.  

Therefore, he opens and closes his mouth, mumbles the gangster’s name and watches the other man quietly. He’s working himself up on his fury, swelling from anger until his words are nothing but a slur, the howling of a deeply wounded animal that is no longer able to cope with the pain.

Maybe there’s really no point of arguing with him. Maybe Jim must. After all, he has a daughter to care for, to live for. It’s truly his time to speak up but when staring into the barrel of Oswald’s gun, into this all-engulfing darkness, he’s paralyzed. He deserves what is about to come.  

Besides, Jim is stubborn. Oswald deserved his fate, too. He had it coming the second he pulled the trigger for the first time, ending the life of a nameless thug Jim is about to join in the Gotham-river. Anger flares in Jim’s veins as well as self-righteousness. Oswald is cruel, he’s a psychopath, a schemer, and conspirator. He’s selfish and murderous and he destroyed the lives of everyone he’s ever touched.

Jim doesn’t say a word, though.

“Our story is over!” Oswald screeches and if the situation wasn’t so serious, Jim would laugh. He sounds like a banshee. His voice comes out as a high-pitched squeak, he’s even spitting into the night’s air and that’s when, at last, the horror settles down in Jim’s gut, joining the remorse.

There’s a difference between knowing and realizing. Right now, when Oswald Cobblepot forgets his well-crafted manners, Jim realizes he’ll never see his little daughter again. He might have spent the week before the criminal’s release saying farewell to her, but still, grasping the situation entirely hits him with the force of a truck. With the same force, he wills his brain to draw to a blank.

Oswald keeps on screaming and spitting, looking especially comically in his well-tailored, shiny purple jacket, sporting a ridiculous monocle, this imitation, this caricature of a gentleman. He’s nothing but a wild animal enshrouded in layers and layers of luxurious garment, a wolf in sheep-clothes. He’s the monster underneath your bed, this seemingly cute, adorable little man who still stumbles over his own words when excited and blushes like a teenage-girl when being complimented.

The man who resembles a penguin is the same who can club a person to death with his cane. He’s capable of stabbing formerly close friends so vigorously he paints the walls red. He finds joy in torture, he’s a sadist who revels in the pain of others.

Jim can’t look at him any longer. Taking a deep breath, he clings to every sin Oswald has ever committed. He remembers the bad things, the things he deserved his destiny for and pushes away other thoughts. He doesn’t want to think back to his awe-stricken expression the first time they kissed, or the way his skin flushes when...NO.  

He doesn’t want to think how everything could be so much easier if he just hadn’t betrayed Oswald, if he had never slapped those cuffs around his wrists. He doesn’t want to remember how his face fell when realizing Jim was about to rob him of the second most precious possession a human being has: time.

Instead, he pushes those thoughts far away and focuses on the present. Maybe, if he turns around and jumps into the river, he can save himself. All it would take is holding his breath for a while and diving so deep the bullet wouldn’t reach him. He could make it if he was quick enough. He could turn around and swim back to his little girl, who needs him desperately, far away from his past and start running. Jim Gordon should probably leave Gotham and never return again.

Instead, he hesitates. He’d be hard pressed to admit why he does so, though. Maybe, because he knows deep down that he owes Oswald, owes him his life, his soul, and body. Maybe he’s just a bit too slow.  

Either way, the Penguin fires. Jim is about to jump into the river, but he cranes his neck one more time, looks over his shoulders and sees the tears streaming down Oswald’s face. They are genuine. Jim knows he hurt him like no other before. Not even Ed’s betrayal went so deep.

“I’m so very sorry,” he thinks, readying himself for the deep-dive.

It’s too late.

Oswald Cobblepot is a good shot. The bullet from his gun hits Jim right between his eyes with a speed of 340 miles per hour. It punctures his skull effortlessly, makes its way right through his brain, and exits his skull before he even feels the slightest amount of pain.

He wants to open his mouth in surprise, but lacking the time, he stumbles backward into the muddy water instead. How Oswald could have shot him so smoothly with those trembling hands is beyond Jim. It’s not like he especially cares when currently being engrossed with sinking to the river’s bottom, wondering when or if he’ll either see a bright, shining light or finally find peace in blessed darkness.

Neither of that happens while Jim’s body hits the ground with a soft thud he shouldn’t be able to hear but does anyway. Being still aware of his surroundings, he wonders when the pain will set in, or when he’ll feel the cold of the water. Again, his expectations are not being met.

Lying flat on his back in the filthy water, he looks up, noticing the pale moonlight illuminating the surface above him. He isn’t quite sure one is supposed to see moonlight when lying at the bottom of a river, but at least he got the light he asked for - well, a toned-down version.  

As he’s obviously still coherent, he turns around, trying to push himself back toward the surface. When doing so, he first thinks he’s staring into a mirror. He sees himself, stretched out on the ground as if resting. He halts his movements, stops struggling and simply looks. Considered everything the Gothamites dump in there, finding a mirror on the bottom of the river shouldn’t even come as a surprise.

It’s only when Jim moves his hand, trying to swim, and his counterpart’s arm just keeps floating in the water, he notes something could be wrong. He inspects further, stares at his forehead and tries touching the wound on his head. Again, the man in the mirror doesn’t lift his arm. He also realizes how he doesn’t feel anything. Jim doesn’t pay it much mind first. After all, the water is cold and his hands might already be numb.

It only dawns on him something is very wrong when he continues staring at his face underwater for a fair amount of time without running out of air. Startled, he draws in a deep breath. He realizes his mistake instantly, expects the water to flood his lungs, finishing him off in the process but nothing happens.

The water keeps flowing, Jim keeps existing.

Opening his mouth further, he lets out a horrified scream, hoping he might be hallucinating. Maybe, it’s only his remaining brain-cells’ last attempt at clinging onto life. He touches his chest on instinct, expecting to find a rapidly beating heart, forgetting that only moments ago he decided he was a hallucination.

There is undeniably something solid beneath his fingers yet he can’t feel a pulse. The body in front of him is being lifted from the ground by the tide and floats past him. Jim reaches for the hand but is unable to hold on.

The body rises from the ground again, shifts against two rocks and gets stuck. The cop stares at his body, unable to properly process what just happened. Torn between horror and wonder, he tries to calm himself down, to be a cop, a detective. This is merely a puzzle for him to solve he tells himself.

It’s the blood around the body, his blood, that gives him certainty, though. For some reason, Jim is so very sure he’s watching his own body.

This is probably some out of body experience his brain procures for him to make dying easier. It will pass any second, Jim thinks, prays. He hasn’t prayed in years but now he’s screaming for any deity to come and rescue him.

Any minute, he’ll see a bright light, he’ll see his family, he’ll see his entire life stretched out before him. He just has to pray. Just one more moment and this will pass. The horror of watching his own dead body will dissolve and give way to beautiful memories. His thoughts will wander to Barbara, to his sweet, little baby-girl. Jim forces himself to think about pony-tails and patent-leather shoes, positively clings to the memory of her face, but the image escapes his mind like the water his hands. Maybe Jim is simply a man who doesn’t deserve this kind of comfort.

Sitting down, he waits for his body to shut down, to become a corpse. He knows he is dying, knows he is unable to do anything about it, even and especially if he so desperately wants to live. He wants to slip back inside this body, tries even, with more and more urgency, but of course, that’s impossible.

An indefinite amount of time passes and Jim starts getting frantic. He reaches for his corpse over and over again, unable to touch it, to feel it.

A fish swims past him, a second one right through him. Jim swats at it, annoyed, but the living being doesn’t note him. It’s enough though to distract the terrified man for a moment. Unsure how much time already passed, he stares at the clock on his wrist, cursing when he finds it stopped four seconds past midnight.

More sea dwellers come across, probably attracted by the blood emanating his corpse. Jim forces himself to calm down, wonders if he’ll have to wait until his body is gone. The thought alone sends another wave of panic right through him. He wants to leave, dammit!

The moment he thinks about leaving, his mind is being propelled towards the surface and he’s back where he started: on the edge of the pier. Jim blinks in surprise.

Looking up, he sees the sun going up but something in his mind stops him from grasping that information. Everything still feels like the middle of the night.

Frowning, Jim looks up and down the pier, wondering if his colleagues are already looking for him and then gasps: he sees himself again - and Oswald. He watches himself stumbling into the water, notes the blood painting the black surface pitch-black despite the sun still going up.

When blinking, the vision is gone. Jim squints again and is almost certain for a moment to catch a glimpse of something purple. Maybe Oswald’s frock?

He doesn’t want to dwell on it, though. Not now. He’s currently too busy figuring out why thinking solely the word ‘Oswald’ moves his mind again through space at sickening speed, causing Jim to find himself in the Van Dahl manor’s living room.

The Penguin is seated on his couch, a blanket wrapped around his shoulders. His eyes are puffy, as if he had been crying, and the mascara he uses is smudged. Jim waves his hand before his eyes, wondering why Oswald isn’t surprised he just materialized out of thin air in his house; he for fuck’s sake is. The man before him shivers and pulls the blanket closer but else keeps ignoring him.

That’s about the moment Jim seriously considers he might be a ghost.

[tacticalshit]

Puerto Rican Politicians Have Been Hoarding Relief Items!!!!

So aid was sent but the puerto rican goverment is ran by assholes… sounds about right.

The Conservative Tribune reports

Some Puerto Ricans breathed a sigh of relief this week when, after 112 days of being without electricity since Hurricane Maria devastated the island, power finally returned to their homes, schools and businesses — but no thanks to the corruption and incompetence of their own government.

According to The Intercept, federal government officials learned that “a massive store of rebuilding materials” needed to restore Puerto Rico’s electrical grid was being hoarded by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, a state-owned corporation operated by the territory’s government.

Armed with this information, federal agents then raided PREPA’s warehouses on Jan. 6 with a security detail and thereafter “began distributing (supplies) to contractors,” confirmed USACE spokesman Luciano Vera.

“Among the materials recovered so far are ‘2,875 pieces of critical material to contractors’ along with the sleeves of full-tension steel, a component of Puerto Rican electrical infrastructure required to erect new power lines,” The Intercept reported, quoting Vera.

This encounter reportedly occurred as around 50 percent of Puerto Ricans still remained without electricity.

Now fast forward to Wednesday, when power finally began to flow in the Academia Bautista de Puerto Nuevo in San Juan, spurring cries of joy from teachers and students alike.

The Washington Examiner further notes that by Wednesday, “83 percent of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority customers (had) power.”

Talk about a big improvement — and again, no thanks to the local government’s extraordinary incompetence.

But it gets worse. The Intercept pointed out that even “(a)s PREPA hoards crucial resources that could help remedy the island’s dire situation,” Puerto Rico’s government “is attempting to annihilate the power provider’s only regulator.”

“When the current administration was in the opposition, they opposed all the energy reform bills,” said former Puerto Rico state Sen. Ramón Luis Nieves, referring to the so-called New Progressive Party.

Advertisement – story continues below

  “Now that they are in power, they have been trying to eliminate the energy regulator and the reforms that were passed.”

Here’s another interesting tidbit of information: Because of PREPA’s hoarding, some mayors tried “taking matters into their own hands, reportedly buying grid restoration supplies out of municipal budgets,” according to The Intercept.

That sounds like a local elected official using personal initiative to get something accomplished in the face of a system that’s completely dysfunctional.

Not surprisingly, that list didn’t include San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz, who’s made it her personal mission to waste valuable time and resources constantly smearing President Donald Trump and his administration instead of doing her job.

Except that if it weren’t for the Trump administration’s raid last week…

Read more!

The post Puerto Rican Politicians Have Been Hoarding Relief Items!!!! appeared first on Tactical Sh*t.

from WordPress http://ift.tt/2EYw4x3 via IFTTT

[livinginlandmarketing]

At the heart of the state’s latest coronavirus stay-at-home orders, which Southern California triggered over the weekend, sits a single metric:

Available intensive-care unit beds.

That metric, established by the California Department of Public Health, is the most-recent wonky medical term to take a starring role in gauging the state’s fight against the coronavirus — and it is one that officials say is key to preventing the healthcare system from being overrun.

Under the new state policy in California, the stay-at-home order goes into effect within 48 hours of available ICU beds in a given region — of which there are five — falling below 15%. Southern California dipped below that threshold on Friday. The shutdown began late Sunday and will last at least three weeks, with indoor and outdoor dining banned, hair and nail salons shuttered, and retail stores capped at 20% occupancy.

Health officials say having enough ICU beds — a national challenge of late — is important in fighting the renewed surge in cases and hospitalizations that has battered California in recent weeks. That’s because, health officials say, those critical-care units are where the sickest coronavirus patients receive specialized attention with machines such as ventilators, and where only doctors and nurses with specific training treat patients.

But questions remain:

Why did state officials key in on ICU beds as the deciding factor for the new shutdown, rather than positivity rate and new daily case rate, the metrics used under the previous tiered system? And how does the state calculate available beds, a number continually in flux based on patients recovering or dying?

Primary objective

In the days since Southern California triggered the stay-at-home order, the region’s ICU bed capacity has only declined further, hitting 9% on Wednesday, Dec. 9, according to the California Department of Public Health. Before this current surge, Long Beach officials said Wednesday evening, ICU capacity at nearby hospitals was about 50%.

And ICU patients statewide increased from about 1,400 two weeks ago to 2,506 as of Wednesday.

But the decline in available ICU beds is just one of multiple signs that the winter coronavirus surge is worsening. Positivity rates and hospitalizations have been on an upward spike for weeks. Daily coronavirus cases regularly shatter records. Deaths have increased.

Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, however, public health officials have stressed the need to ensure hospitals have sufficient resources to treat patients, explaining that shutdowns and shelter-in-place orders are intended to slow the spread of the virus and prevent a situation where intensive-care units get flooded to the point certain patients can’t be treated.

Enter ICU bed capacity.

While state officials haven’t disclosed why they chose 15% as the threshold for triggering the regional stay-at home order, they have made it clear why having enough ICU beds is crucial.

“We are certainly worried that with so many new patients with COVID being admitted to (the ICU) system, that important-but-fragile system, may be overwhelmed,” Dr. Mark Ghaly, the state’s Health and Human Services director, said in a Tuesday, Dec. 8, briefing.

The state wants no more than 30% of patients in ICUs to have COVID-19, L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said on Tuesday. Intensive-care unit admissions across California were around 36% as of Wednesday, state data shows.

If resources become too scarce, healthcare providers may be forced to make decisions about who receives care and who doesn’t, a triage scenario more familiar to the battlefield or disaster zones. People could die unnecessarily for lack of care. Morgues could become overrun — like what occurred in New York at the pandemic’s onset.

With case counts and admissions higher than ever, officials say, such horrific scenarios could very well become real in Southern California this winter.

“I’m sorry it’s frustrating for people, but we don’t really have any other tools. There’s no easy answer,” said Dr. Brad Spellberg, chief medical officer at L.A. County+USC Medical Center, the county’s busiest hospital. “I sympathize. But you really don’t want your health system practicing battlefield medicine.”

Flexibility factored in

How the state calculates ICU capacity, though, is a bit nebulous.

The state’s calculation accounts for existing staffed critical-care beds and staffed ICU surge beds, but excludes those for newborns and children needing intensive care.

And the number of beds free at one time, health experts say, can depend a great deal on surge flexibility and a daily census that fluctuates as patients are released and admitted. State officials seem to realize this, since they will assess projections of Southern California’s overall intensive-care bed capacity twice each week, after the initial three-week shutdown, to determine when to lift the stay-at-home order.

When Southern California can begin reopening, though, remains an ongoing question.

Hospitalizations related to COVID-19 have hit at an all-time high throughout the region recently. L.A. County, for example, had 3,433 people in hospitals as of Wednesday, 793 of those in ICUs, based on a state dashboard that reports a day earlier than the county.

L.A. County had 462 available ICU beds on Wednesday, according to the state. But the number of staffed beds available immediately, according to the county’s Department of Health Services, was 112 out of roughly 2,500 as of Tuesday — or about 4%.

On Sunday, when the county reported a record-breaking 10,000 daily cases, officials said there was a real chance the county could need more than 1,000 additional ICU beds in two-to-three weeks. By next week, roughly 700 daily new admissions could be coming.

L.A.’s neighbor, Orange County, doesn’t face a situation as dire yet. But the number of patients requiring ICU treatment there has been spiking as well. Available ICU beds at several Orange County hospitals dropped into single digits on Sunday. The county as a whole had 111 available ICU beds as of Wednesday, state data shows.

Riverside and San Bernardino counties have also been setting hospitalization records lately — and ICU beds are filling up.

In Riverside County, 70% of licensed hospital beds and 90% of ICU beds were in use, county Emergency Management Director Bruce Barton told the Board of Supervisors Tuesday.

About 62% of San Bernardino’s total beds — including surge beds — were occupied as of Wednesday, according to that county’s dashboard; 75% of ICU beds were in use.

“All of our (county) ICUs are at capacity or just short of it,” Dr. Troy Pennington, an emergency care physician at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, said in an interview Tuesday. “We’re seeing what we feared would happen starting about 12 days after Thanksgiving.”

So things must change now, officials said — especially with the specter of Christmas and the new year weeks away.

“As difficult as things are right now,” Pennington said, “if they go up again for Christmas and New Year’s, a few more weeks of this would be catastrophic.”

In LA County, existing surge plans and shifting some resources will be enough to manage the spike in hospitalizations, Ferrer said, if residents alter their behavior — such as not gathering.

“We don’t have an overwhelmed healthcare system today,” Ferrer said. “We have some time, but very little, to get ourselves to a place where that is not the case in L.A. County. But it will take each and every one of us working together to make that happen.”

Those on the ground, meanwhile, have also expressed concerns about surging hospitalizations.

Sylvain Trepanier, chief clinical executive for Providence Southern California, said the health network’s hospitals across the region are stretched on critical-care capacity, though they remain fully able to care for anyone who needs it.

Respiratory Care Practitioner Cornell Coca sets up a ventilator at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton, CA on Tuesday, December 1, 2020. An older ventilator is at right. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Because a hospital’s sum of staffed ICU beds ebbs and flows daily, Trepanier said, the bed count on a given day becomes almost “irrelevant” in the scope of complex surge strategies.

Providence hospitals update surge plans multiple times a day based on the latest patient traffic, in-house coronavirus test results, staffing and supplies, Trepanier said.

“We’ve been preparing for the longest time,” he added. “We still have additional room and capability to assist critical care patients and ventilated patients as of today.”

Hospitals also have permission from the state to be more flexible given the challenges, though they’ve run up against some labor groups. Nurses at Antelope Valley Hospital, in Lancaster, protested last week against a waiver request by the hospital to reduce nurse-to-patient ratios.

“Many of us have worked here for years, before we had staffing ratios and after,” said CNA Chief Nurse Representative Maria Altamirano. “We know what it’s like when we don’t have ratios. We become overworked and patients suffer. We are already exhausted. A waiver does not help anyone.”

Staffing shortages

That exhaustion underscores one of the primary reasons state officials homed in on available ICU beds:

Ensuring hospital staffers don’t get crushed under a stampede of patients needing critical care is paramount to keeping the healthcare system functioning — outweighing questions of physical space and ventilators.

By now, the state has more than 21,000 available ventilators. And while several field hospitals around the region are preparing for patients, including in Riverside and Orange counties, such precautions are not as widespread as during the spring. There are no plans to re-staff Los Angeles Surge Hospital, for example, or to resurrect the makeshift ward at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The U.S.S. Mercy will not cruise back into L.A. Harbor anytime soon.

But healthcare workers who are exhausted or sick — more than 1,700 tested positive last week in L.A. County — or are simply too few in number to handle the surge could prove fatal to coronavirus patients.

“That has a tremendous impact on the capacity throughout our healthcare system,” Ferrer said.

“The biggest issue we face as a county is not around having a physical bed,” she added, “but having the staff to support those beds.”

The state has several strategies, some in the planning and others under way, to respond to potential staffing shortages.

Officials are looking at a two-day training program for registered nurses to get them qualified to care for patients in intensive-care units, Gov. Gavin Newsom said recently.

The state has also contracted with a staffing agency for 815 healthcare workers, including 435 to support ICU teams, and about 300 at skilled nursing facilities and alternate-care sites. Roughly 560 will be available by mid-December.

The California Health Corps, made up largely of retired doctors and nurses, now has up to 900 members, some of whom have been deployed while others stand by.

And a plan was also in motion to provide home oxygen to coronavirus patients to help minimize hospital admissions.

“Fundamentally, staffing or human resources are going to be the most challenging for not just California but every state to address,” Newsom said Monday. “How do we get enough people who are not fatigued and exhausted?”

Related links

LA County posts stunning 10,000-plus coronavirus infections on Sunday

It’s official: Southern California stay-at-home order goes into effect late Sunday night

‘We’re inundated’ says chief medical officer at L.A. County’s busiest hospital

Southern California ICU capacity hits 13.1%, likely triggering stay-at-home order

California’s new regional coronavirus stay-at-home order: What you need to know

Surge plans ready

Hospitals throughout Southern California, for their part, have begun putting their surge plans into effect, shifting resources and creating additional ICU capacity — to boost their own dwindling resources.

At UC Irvine Medical Center, in Orange, all but two of the 68 ICU beds were taken on Wednesday morning — 34 with the coronavirus, 32 without. The hospital, however, still had some room to flex, said spokesman Tom Vasich.

“We have capability to double our ICU bed capacity,” Vasich said, “and have enough ventilators to staff them if needed.”

PIH Health’s Whittier facility, meanwhile, has seen the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 shoot up over about the last month. The hospital, in a Nov. 6 Facebook post, reported having 12 coronavirus patients. But by Tuesday, that number was 96 — with 54% of those getting admitted since Nov. 25.

Dr. Graham Tse, chief medical officer at MemorialCare Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach, said that facility had a large ICU and an emergency backup plan to increase capacity if needed. And, he said, patients with the coronavirus ending up in the ICU is not a fait accompli.

“Many of our COVID-19 patients,” Tse said, “are triaged to dedicated isolation rooms on other units in the hospital.

“Patient placement can change based on the level of care needed,” he added. “The number of ICU beds available, therefore, fluctuates based on patients’ needs.”

But the hope, health and elected officials have said, is that the demand for critical care doesn’t overwhelm the ICU system.

“The goal of saving lives becomes threatened,”Ghaly said, “when that system isn’t as robust and as strong as it can be to deliver care to as many Californians as needed.”

Staff writers Ryan Hagen, Chris Haire, Jeff Horseman, Hunter Lee, Haley Munguia, Mike Sprague and Ian Wheeler contributed to this report.

Sign up for The Localist, our daily email newsletter with handpicked stories relevant to where you live. Subscribe here.

-on December 09, 2020 at 09:13AM by David Rosenfeld

[keepingupwithlinmanuel]

HISPANIC FEDERATION RAISES $14 MILLION FOR PUERTO RICO RELIEF AND RECOVERY EFFORTS

Hispanic Federation has raised $14 million in just 24 days through the Unidos Disaster Relief & Recovery Program, which was established after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico on September 20.

Facing the worst natural disaster in Puerto Rico’s history, people of different backgrounds and from different places have come together as one to provide a helping hand. As of October 14, donations have been received from more than 100,000 people from all 50 states, every US territory, and from 23 countries around the world. The average donation is $103.

“We are grateful to the tens of thousands of people who have donated to the relief effort, and while we are making progress, the situation is still dire in Puerto Rico,” said José Calderón, president of the Hispanic Federation. “Nearly four weeks after Hurricane Maria, most of the island still does not have power, and people are grasping for the most basic needs, including food, water and medicine. This is a humanitarian crisis, and we will continue to do everything we can to uplift and strengthen families and communities throughout Puerto Rico. We appreciate the continued generosity and kindness of our fellow American citizens and individuals from all over the world, and we cannot emphasize enough the immense gratitude we have for Lin-Manuel Miranda and others who have kept Puerto Rico top of mind and encouraged people to donate.”

The support provided so far has allowed Hispanic Federation and its partners to deliver relief aid directly to Puerto Rico and families in need across the island, including:

More than 1 million pounds of emergency provisions delivered to distribution centers in San Juan, Toa Alta, Toa Baja, Dorado, Vega Alta, Humacao, Ponce, Guayama, Arroyo, Salinas, and Peñuelas. Additional routes and distribution points are currently in development.

Eleven relief aid flights sent to Puerto Rico, transporting hundreds of thousands of additional pounds of essential goods, including food, water, medication, and first responders. These flights were coordinated with our community, government, and private sector partners.

We have established communications with municipal mayors and suppliers on the island that specialize in collecting, packaging, and moving goods throughout Puerto Rico to create fast, reliable routes to hard-hit areas outside of San Juan – an immense challenge due to lack of power, limited gasoline, damaged and destroyed roads, and a communications black-out.

Beyond extensive, ongoing relief, Hispanic Federation has also seeded an initial $2.5 million fund to support grassroots nonprofits on the island with the goal of strengthening the support and social services infrastructure available to families and communities in Puerto Rico.

Just two days after the storm hit, Hispanic Federation was the first to land a plane with aid and first responders in Puerto Rico, working with the Office of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio to send 22 first responders to help with immediate relief efforts in Puerto Rico. The team included emergency managers to coordinate logistics and help manage recovery operations, members of the New York City Police Department, and staffers from the Department of Buildings with experience in building inspections and checking structural integrity. The Federation has also supported the opening of the City and FDNY donation sites at 17 New York firehouses and continues to promote its donation collection and distribution work on a daily basis.

And we have been at the forefront of local and national advocacy efforts pushing Congress and our federal government to provide American families and communities on the island with the relief and resources they need to recover and heal.

Much more work remains to be done in Puerto Rico – 84% of the island still doesn’t have power, and an unbearable number of Puerto Ricans remain without regular access to potable water and food. Hispanic Federation will continue to use the Unidos fund to support much-needed relief efforts and the long-term recovery of Puerto Rico.

[Source]

[cutepresea]

6-10 Innocent Sister: For the Me Who I’m Not

Sorry again for the spam.

If you want to blacklist these, you can use either the tag #innocent sister for just this event, or #xdu event scripts or #xdu scripts

Reminder that these are copied straight from XD Unlimited itself, so any grammatical weirdness, mistranslations, and/or mischaracterizations are not my doing.

Tsubasa Kazanari: "How's Tachibana doing?"

Nastassja: "She didn't sustain any life-threatening injuries. She's currently being treated in the medical room."

Maria: "Thank goodness..."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Good grief. I don't want to think about what will happen if Kohinata ever finds out about this..."

Serena: "You have to make her all better, Mom..."

Nastassja: "There's no need to worry. Her external injuries aren't so bad, and we haven't found any internal damage yet."

Nastassja: "She lost consciousness due to extreme fatigue and exhaustion. She should recover from simply resting."

Serena: "That's a relief..."

Nastassja: "I must apologize. I thought Dr. Adolf was dead. I would never have thought he would be behind this."

Maria: "There's no need for you to apologize, Mom. Only he is to blame!"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Please let us know as soon as you have a lead on his whereabouts."

Nastassja: "Understood. Now, you girls should use this time to rest and recuperate as much as possible."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Your concern is much appreciated."

Maria: "Yeah. I don't know about you, Tsubasa, but I feel like I could sleep for a week."

Nastassja: "That goes for you too, Serena."

Serena: "I will, Mom... Please take care of Tachibana-san."

Serena: "...Sis, you're still awake?"

Maria: "Yes. Don't worry, I managed to get a little sleep while you were out."

Serena: "Sis... I have a favor I want to ask of you."

Maria: "What is it?"

Serena: "Go back to S.O.N.G. with the others. I'll be fine."

Maria: "What?! Serena, what are you saying?! I can't do that!"

Maria: "You're terrified of Nephilim, I saw how you were shaking back there! I'm not letting you fight it alone!"

Serena: "I know... I know it scares me. But right now, I'm more scared about something happening to you."

Serena: "Seeing you and the others get injured like that... What if something worse were to happen?"

Maria: "Serena..."

Serena: "I really want to be with you and the others... But I'd never be able to forgive myself if you got hurt."

Maria: "Serena... I'll be here for you whenever you need me. I'll be here to comfort you."

Maria: "When I'm feeling down, you're there for me, and when you're feeling down, I'm here for you... Remember?"

Serena: "Yeah..."

Maria: (I could never leave her on her own!)

Maria: (I may be an imposter, but I still need her love!)

Maria: "Ugh... I guess yesterday really took a toll on me."

Maria: (I want to protect Serena, but the situation here is awfully dire.)

Maria: (Even if I muster all the strength I have, will it be enough to protect her?)

Maria: (What can I do for her?)

Maria: (Well, for now, at least, I can put all of my effort into training. I can't afford to just stand around!)

Nastassja: "Good morning, everyone. I gathered you all here because I believe I have uncovered something of interest."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "What did you find?"

Nastassja: "It's concerning Dr. Adolf. I discovered--"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Good morning everyone! Sorry I'm late!"

Nastassja: "Are you sure you should be out of bed yet?"

Hibiki Tachibana: "I don't really need that much rest! I guess I am still a little out of it, though..."

Serena: "Please, you shouldn't push yourself. You have to recover!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Oh, don't worry about me. Once I get some food in my belly, I'll be right as rain!"

Maria: "Honestly, that girl..."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Well, it's good to know even a little trauma isn't enough to change her."

Serena: "Incredible..."

Hibiki Tachibana: "Anyway, please continue with what you were saying, Professor Nastassja!"

Nastassja: "Ah... Well, if you say so..."

Natassja: "Now, after your recent fight, I looked into Dr. Adolf and discovered a paper called Document F."

Maria: "Document F? What does it say?"

Nastassja: "Document F appears to be an old research paper, containing accounts of Nephilim and the Karma Noise."

Maria: "There was a researcher here that knew about the Karma Noise?"

Nastassja: "I searched Dr. Adolf's lab and past residences, and it seems that Document F is the origin of all this."

Nastassja: "He had his own copy of the paper, as well as his own data. Document F also explains how to control Nephilim."

Natassja: "Seven years after the failed experiment, he revived Nephilim to act as a solution for the mutated Noise."

Natassja: "In fact, this facility was built for that very purpose. He likely acquired the paper before coming here."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "So he waited patiently for his opportunity, right from the initial stages of research."

Maria: "Is there anything in that paper about Nephilim giving birth to other Nephilim?"

Nastassja: "It didn't mention anything of the sort, no. Perhaps that was due to the relic fragments it consumed."

Hibiki Tachibana: "Well, Dr. Adolf did say that those fragments were from a relic embelmatic of fertility or something."

Nastassja: "Fertility, you say?"

Nastassja: "One of the relics Serena activated in the past was the great lotus flower, one of Kubera's nine treasures."

Nastassja: "Perhaps that was what Nephilim consumed? It is said that in ancient India, lotus flowers symbolized birth."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "It seems even the doctor didn't see it coming. How frustratingly lucky for him."

Nastassja: "But relics should only decompose and be converted into energy. It is highly unusual for them to reproduce."

Nastassja: "As Nephilim's unexpected growth continues, we still don't know what other abilities it could acquire."

Nastassja: "Still, we cannot afford to ignore it, or indeed Dr. Adolf. Will you continue to help me, wielders?"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Of course!"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "We never had the slightest intention of standing down."

Nastassja: "I assume you and Serena are happy to help too, Maria?"

Maria: "Um, yeah, of course..."

American F.I.S. Official : "How's the Nephilim case coming along, Professor?"

Nastassja: "We're taking care of it. Hopefully now that the secret service has been deployed, they'll find Dr. Adolf."

American F.I.S. Official: "The government is discussing him now. Many in there hate relic research, and won't act without proof."

American F.I.S. Official: "However, F.I.S. wants to do whatever it takes to secure Nephilim."

American F.I.S. Official: "If we can secure it, we'll have the upper hand."

Nastassja: "You can't be serious. Surely securing a powerful Nephilim with yet unknown abilities is far too dangerous?"

American F.I.S. Official: "Well, we don't mind sacrificing a few relics and wielders, if that's what it takes."

Nastassja: "Absolutely not! You may be prepared to do that, but I shan't dirty my hands so callously!"

American F.I.S. Official: "It seems you misunderstand, Professor. You're going to secure Nephilim, regardless of what it takes."

Nastassja: "But--"

American F.I.S. Official: "We are not a charity. Is that clear?"

Nastassja: "...Understood. I will do everything I can to further the mission."

American F.I.S. Official: "I expect to hear good news the next time we talk."

Maria: "That's three Karma Noise down, but there's still more Noise to deal with!"

Maria: "Yaaah!"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Without the key to close the Treasury of Babylonia, they'll just keep on coming!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Yeah... This is... too much!"

Serena: "Raaah!"

Serena: "Are you all right?!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "My Gear feels a lot heavier than usual today..."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Tachibana! Behind you!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Huh?!"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Tachibana!"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "N-Ngh!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Tsubasa-san!"

Maria: "Tsubasa! Grr... Damned Noise!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Tsubasa-san, are you okay?! I'm so sorry!"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Ngh... Worry not. It'll take a lot more than that to break this sword."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "And even more to break my spirit! Time to finish off the rest!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Right!"

Maria: "Yah!"

Serena: "Yaah!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Guh... Phew. Thank goodness that's over."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Yeah... Should we head back... to the facility?"

Maria: "Are you two all right? You look very pale."

Hibiki Tachibana: "Really? I guess that might have been a little rough on me..."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "At least that last attack didn't hit any vitals..."

Hibiki Tachibana: "Sorry to put you through that Tsubasa-san."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Heh... I could say the same thing to you."

Serena: "Maria-nee-san!"

Maria: "I know. They're both suffering from severe fatigue. You two need to head back."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Yes, I think heading back to the facility sounds nice, but--"

Maria: "No, Tsubasa. You will return to S.O.N.G. HQ."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "I... I suppose so. I'm guess we're not use to you as we are right now." [1]

Hibiki Tachibana: "Fine..."

Maria: "Go get some rest, okay? Honestly, you two are far too reckless for your own good."

Maria: "Want to train together again, Serena?"

Serena: "Yeah. I have to get stronger as soon as possible."

Maria: "We're going to have to fight the Noise by ourselves from now on. We need all the training we can get."

Nastassja: "Did the other two get back home safely?"

Maria: "Yes, although I practically had to push them through the gate."

Serena: "Sis made them promise that they would get themselves treated once they got back to their HQ."

Nastassja: "I see. Well, thank goodness they weren't seriously injured. I hope they can get some rest."

Maria: "Well, they'd have fought themselves to death if they'd had the chance. We're lucky we retreated when we did."

Nastassja: "I have something I need to discuss with Serena. Could you give us a moment, Maria?"

Serena: "How about I meet you in the training room later, Sis?"

Maria: "Sure thing."

Maria: "Yaaah!"

Maria: "Now it's your turn!"

Maria: "Take this!"

Maria: "...Phew. I wonder what's keeping Serena?"

Maria: "(Mom never was a woman of many words. What's going on?)

Maria: (Maybe I should go see if everything's all right.)

Maria: "There you are, Serena! I was starting to get worried."

Serena: "......"

Maria: "...Serena?"

Serena: "Oh, Sis... It's you..."

Maria: "What on earth is the matter, Serena?"

Serena: "An operations order came through for me. Mom told me--"

Serena: "...No, F.I.S. told me that I have to act as a bait to lure out Nephilim."

Maria: "Bait? They want to use you as BAIT?!"

Maria: "Absolutely not! What the hell is Mom thinking?! I'm going to--"

Serena: "No, Sis, wait! I'm begging you!"

Maria: "Why are you trying to stop me?!"

Serena: "Because Mom... She just looked so sad."

Serena: "That's why I have to--"

Maria: "Forget it! I'm not letting you do something so danger--"

Serena: "......"

Maria: "Serena..."

Maria: "I will protect you, I swear."

Serena: "Sis... We'll always be together, right? No matter how far apart we are, we'll still always be sisters?"

Maria: "Of course we will. I'll always--"

Maria: (I may not be her real sister... If this is going to carry on, though, then I have to act the part.)

Maria: "...I will always be your older sister. No matter how far apart we are, I'll always love you, Serena."

Serena: "Then I'm going to be okay. As long as you're with me, I can do anything."

Maria: "But look at how much you're shaking... You don't need to hide your true feelings from me, you know."

Serena: "My true feelings..."

Maria: (There's no way I'm going to let her get hurt. I swear on it.)

Kirika Akatsuki: "And heeere we are!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "I wonder what Serena's facility is like?"

Kirika Akatsuki: "I wanna see how Mom's doing, too. Hopefully she isn't hurt, or sick, or anything like that."

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "Yeah... The last time she was healthy was when we were kids. I hope she's okay."

Kirika Akatsuki: "But first, we gotta do something about Nephilim!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "It must be pretty strong... Just look at Tsubasa-san and Hibiki-san. We shouldn't underestimate it."

Kirika Akatsuki: "Anyways, let's head to the facility!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "Okay."

Kirika Akatsuki: "--Aaand there's the Noise, right on cue!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "And they're quick, too! Let's take them on as soon as we get the call on our comms."

Kirika Akatsuki: "Sounds like a plan!"

Kirika Akatsuki: "...Hello?"

Nastassja: "Are you two back already? I know I asked you to rest, but we're currently dealing with an outbreak of--"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "We're on it. We're already on the scene."

Nastassja: "...Wait, is that you--?"

Kirika Akatsuki: "We're their replacements! You can just sit back and relax!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "Right! Let's go, Kiri-chan!"

Kirika Akatsuki: "One step ahead of ya!"

Kirika Akatsuki: "And so we thought we may as well take them out, seeing as we were already there!"

Nastassja: "I can't thank you two enough."

Kirika Akatsuki: "Hmm... This feels really weird. Like, you're Mom... but you're not Mom. And yet, you are Mom."

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "I know... It's surreal."

Nastassja: "I know exactly how you feel, girls... I didn't think I'd ever get to see you two again."

Nastassja: "Please, make yourselves at home."

Kirika Akatsuki: "Don't mind if I do!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "Thank you very much, Mom."

Kirika Akatsuki: "Wow... So this is where Serena lives? It's pretty snazzy for an F.I.S. facility."

Nastassja: "Well it may seem that way, but I can't say we are overflowing with researchers or resources, though."

Nastassja: "Anyway, our main problem now is Nephilim. This facility can't withstand another attack."

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "If you're looking for a solution--"

Kirika Akatsuki: "--You're lookin' right at it!"

Nastassja: "Well, I'm glad to see you two haven't changed a bit. I trust you'll do everything you can to stop it."

Kirika Akatsuki: "You know, I haven't spotted Maria or Serena yet."

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "Maybe they're napping?"

Kirika Akatsuki: "This isn't Hibiki-san we're taking about..."

Nastassja: "About that..."

Serena: "...I'm not sure about this."

Maria: "It's fine. We're better off taking things into our own hands, anyway."

Serena: "But if I'm not there, Nephilim will--"

Maria: "You don't need to bear their burden alone, especially not if they're planning to use you as bait."

Serena: "But won't there be consequences?"

Maria: "Serena... You slept for seven years after trying to activate Nephilim the first time."

Maria: "And then the minute you wake up, they have you fighting Noise alone, and activating Nephilim again."

Maria: "They made you face Nephilim a second time, even though you could've died!"

Serena: "......"

Maria: "You deserve to be happy, Serena. I'm not going to let them keep using you as a sacrifice."

Maria: "You're such a kind girl, but iif you keep living like this... You're going to end up broken."

Maria: "I'm going to protect you from that fate, Serena!"

Maria: (That's the least I can do for her. I'll throw everything away if I have to!)

Serena: "Yeah... Thank you, Maria-nee-san."

Serena: (I'm so happy she's here with me... But is this really the right thing to do?)

Notes:

[1] The "I'm" should be "I." "I guess we're no use."

[thisisjamaica]

In Puerto Rico, a Dedicated Arts Community Commits to Hurricane Relief Since hurricane Maria hit, the arts nonprofit Beta-Local has been working with a network of artists and organizations on the island to take matters into their own hands.  A report by Cristina Sanchez-Kozyreva for Hyperallergic. I was in radiant, tropical Puerto Rico in February this year, sharing writing workshops with the artists from La Práctica, a research initiative developed by Beta-Local. This artist-run nonprofit started in 2009, and is currently co-directed by Sofía Gallisá, Pablo Guardiola, and Michael Linares. In old San Juan, they run a welcoming ground floor space and library. For the local art scene, Beta-Local is a connecting hub and a support system. It’s hard to exactly pinpoint what they do, as it includes residencies, educational programs, financial and logistical support for art projects, and an overall commitment to connecting Old San Juan with the rest of the island and the world. Little did I know then, however, that Beta-Local would be reshaping its mission to help with hurricane relief just months later, and that instead of getting back in touch with Gallisá about a show we had discussed, it was to know how they were dealing with life in the aftermath of the strongest hurricane in Puerto Rican modern history. The island is in dire straits. The economical recession has hit hard since 2006 — Puerto Rican government debt now exceeds 70 million dollars — which has pressured its 3.7 million population to a sustained exodus to the US. The island still bears the marks of the colonial hold it came under in 1898, when the US acquired it from the Spaniards (along with Guam and the Philippine islands) following the Treaty of Paris that ended the Spanish-American war. The Philippines became independent in 1946, but Puerto Rico and Guam have remained under the sovereignty of the US. In 1917, the Jones Act granted citizenship to Puerto Ricans (who then were drafted to World War I), restricted its ports to US ships only, and barred the territory from statehood, thus from participating in presidential elections or having congressional representatives. Puerto Rico’s dependency on imports makes its living costs higher than on the mainland, and just more vulnerable to world changes, including, as it happens, climatic perils. Since hurricane Maria’s brutal onslaught on September 20, the island has nowhere near recovered. The lack of gas, electricity, clean water, and supplies transform simple acts of daily life into an obstacle race. “It just keeps getting more and more complicated,” said Gallisá. She was in Los Angeles setting up two shows when the storm hit, and couldn’t get back to her family for a week and a half. But as the island’s communication was down in the wake of the hurricane, leaving many desperate for news from their loved ones, Gallisá threw herself into helping coordinating relief efforts with the Puerto Rican diaspora. “I spent a year in Rockaway, New York after Hurricane Sandy as a volunteer relief worker, so oddly enough I had previous experience,” she said. Once back, Gallisá saw the “devastated landscapes” as she made a trip through the mountains to visit artisans who previously collaborated with one artist from La Práctica. On the day we spoke online, she was preparing to go back with a group of people to help the ceramicist Alice Cheverez to fix the roof of her workshop, hoping to re-open it for pottery classes. On October 12, Beta-Local started giving free meals to their neighbors in old San Juan, feeding around 50 people the first day, and now also delivering meals for the elderly who are stranded in their homes. Supermarkets and pharmacies are either closed, or empty, due to lack of power.“Our cultural scene has persisted precisely because of solidarity, mutual aid, and resourcefulness for decades,” Gallisá said. Earlier this month, Beta-Local launched El Serrucho (the Handsaw), the Hurricane María Emergency Fund. On October 17, the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, and composer Lin-Manuel Miranda each donated$100,000 to El Serrucho. Beyond the recovery of damaged studios and exhibition spaces, the fund aims at helping artists help their families and communities. “We’re in the process of identifying needs for our emergency fund and I can already tell you that we know of several artists who lost their homes, studios and jobs,” said Gallisá. The website offers the possibility to donate money or directly buy supplies from a provided Amazon list. “Local and federal government relief operations have been completely inadequate thus far. I have a hard time believing the fact that we’re soliciting tarps and distributing them to people who, three weeks after the storm, still don’t have anything to cover the roofs of their homes while it continues to rain on the things that they’ve managed to salvage,” said Gallisá. And yet, President Donald Trump threatened in a tweet on October 13 to pull aid from Puerto Rico and blamed the island for its disastrous economics. Celebrity Chef José Andrés, who has prepared and delivered one million hot meals to residents — more than the American Red Cross — recently denounced in Time what he calls the failure of the American government. The Washington Post described Puerto Rico as a “victim of colonial neglect.” Beta-Local has been working with a network of artists and nonprofits on the island to take matters into their own hands. “Every day people wake up with a to-do list of things that they need in order to eat, work, repair their homes, and help others,” said Marina Reyes Franco, a curator and researcher who was making her way back to the island from Mumbai via the US, bringing supplies such as water filters and toiletries. While she was waiting in Brooklyn for a flight to clear towards Puerto Rico, she volunteered with the Ecokit Duffle initiative, and received donations to take back home. “I probably traveled with $800 to 1,000 worth of supplies, I also had to pay United a $100 fee for my extra bag. But friends in New York and as far as Utah sent money or things with me back to the island.” Other involved artists include Chemi Rosado-Seijo, who has worked since 2002 with El Cerro, a community in the center of the island, on a project aimed at painting all of the community’s houses in shades of green, echoing its lush environment as well as the color of Puerto Rico’s independence party. Now he is helping El Cerro in its reconstruction efforts. Urban participatory design nonprofit La Maraña has also been collecting donations in the form of construction material and practical kits, specifically to implement repairs. Project and music space El Local in Santurce has been organizing meals, as well as collecting and distributing donations towards those harder to reach beyond San Juan. “The bigger misconception about Puerto Rico is the lack of visibility given to the amazing efforts the community develops to move forward,” Fernández lamented, explaining that, considering its infrastructure and administration, it takes that much effort on the island to get things done, and credit isn’t given to a community that is both dynamic and dedicated.“Like always, emergency situations reveal the weakness of the system,” shared Noelia Medina Fernández, a Spanish artist who has lived in Puerto Rico since 2009, and owes her artistic cultivation to the academic and experiential education she received in the island. She was at home when Maria struck, and despite the collapse of part of the roof, she reassured me no one was hurt. But weeks after, she confirmed that damages kept amplifying, through contaminated waters and people dying in hospitals because of lack of power that rendered impossible even common procedures. At last, she managed to take a boat to the Dominican Republic and fly to Spain, back to her family for a while. Studies mentioned by the Independent in an article mid-October suggest one in seven people could leave the island in the next few months. Despite the counter-productive efforts of the country it belongs to, Puerto Rico is helping itself and getting organized on its own, and the question of its statehood — or even more radically, independence — is becoming more and more pressing.

[catsynth-express]

Fire and Water (Northern California and Puerto Rico)

We at CatSynth are staying safely ensconced at HQ as the rather poor smoke-filled air reaches our doorstep. Fortunately, we are safe and have everything, which no longer true for so many to our north in Sonoma and Napa. This is still an on-going situation which we are following on social media and through local sources like SFGate. It is just devasting to see scenes and places I recognize going up in flames.

As things are still in the emergency and evacuation phase, the focus is on shelter, and of course fighting the fire.

Bring Crucial Supplies & Volunteer at Shelters

To accommodate the estimated 20,000 evacuees, a number of local landmarks have opened their doors to the growing influx of escapees. Below is a list of shelters, organizations, schools, and businesses we’ve found that are currently operating as safe spaces; they need able-and-willing volunteers and donations of essential supplies.

Veterans Memorial Building and Hall, 1351 Maple Ave. (Santa Rosa), sonomacountry.ca.gov Petaluma Community Center, 320 N. McDowell Blvd. (Petaluma), cityofpetaluma.net Sonoma County Fairgrounds (open for large- and medium-sized livestock and farm animals), access via Gate 7 on Aston Ave. (Sonoma), sonomacountyfiar.com Ramekins Culinary School and Inn, 450 W. Spain St. (Sonoma), remekins.com Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds (open to accommodate small livestock and other farm animals, access via Gate 4 on 175 Fairgrounds Dr (Petaluma), sonoma-maringfair.org Crosswalk Church (currently at-capacity and in need of aid), 2590 1st St. (Napa), crosswalknapa.org Napa Valley College Gym, 2277 Napa Vallejo Hwy. (Napa), napavalley.edu

Here are some resources for those needing to evacuate with pets. Please share with your friends in the area:

Multiple shelters are open to assist pet owners. They are: Napa County Animal Shelter at 942 Hartle Ct, Napa Santa Rosa Fairgrounds at 1350 Bennett Valley Road. Access the Fairgrounds via Gate 7 on Aston Ave Cloverdale Citrus Fair at 1 Citrus Fair Drive, Cloverdale Californians: If anyone has a horse trailer, Chalk Hill Ranch near Healdsburg needs emergency help. They have 54 horses in dire need of transportation off the ranch. 13426 Chalk Hill Road, Healdsburg, CA 95448 707-433-1804

To help animals and their humans, Donate to the Humane Societies and SPCA

Natural disasters of this magnitude affect more than human lives. Donate your time—and extra bags of dog and cat food—to the North Bay branches of the Humane Society and SPCA as they go about the tough work of accommodating new shelter animals.

Humane Society of Sonoma County, 5345 CA-12. (Santa Rosa), sonomahumane.org Humane Society of Napa County, 3265 California Blvd. (Napa), napahumane.org Yuba-Sutter SPCA, 745 Sutter St. (Yuba), yubasutterspca.org

Animal shelters in the region are evacuating some of their residents to places south here in SF and in Oakland. In some cases, it may the shelter is in danger. In others, they are making space for animals lost or otherwise affected by the fires. Our friends at the SF SPCA and Cat Town Oakland are helping out.

Many wineries and other institutions are affected. We haven’t heard updates from some our favorite places around St Helena and Calistoga. We did hear that the di Rosa Art Center galleries and staff are all safe. Friends have reported in safe as well. We will continue to follow things – it is so hard to watch but also so hard to look.

Thousands of miles to the east and south, our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico are trying to recover. We have fire; they have water. The recovery phase sometimes falls off the outside radar as new disasters happen – though in a dark twist the toxic politics will ensure that it does stay in our consciousness longer. It was pretty outrageous to see the lack of response, then the embarrassingly poor response, and cheap shots and criticisms of the people suffering through this disaster and trying to help them. But we persevere…

In general, organizations helping humans, pets, and preserving culture need cash more than stuff (and it’s also best to allow it to go to general funds). For disaster relief, friends have recommended Oxfam America. As in our local conflagration, and after the hurricanes in Texas and Florida, organizations are helping rescue and evacuate pets and other animals. From a recent story in The Atlantic:

The Humane Society of the United States, anticipating a deluge of lost and abandoned pets after the recent natural disaster, began coordinating flights of animals already in Texas shelters to other parts of the country. Eventually, they relocated hundreds of adoptable cats and dogs in the days before and after the storm. The same happened with Irma in Florida and the Virgin Islands. The same is happening after Maria in Puerto Rico.

HSUS is collecting and distributing donations for animal and human relief work. Many local organizations are helping as well. You can find out more from The Humane Society of Puerto Rico’s Facebook Page on current status and needs.

You can see feline evacuees from Puerto Rico to Safe Haven for Cats in North Carolina in this video, via this article.

.mcclatchy-embed{position:relative;padding:40px 0 56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;max-width:100%}.mcclatchy-embed iframe{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%}

Fire and Water (Northern California and Puerto Rico) was originally published on CatSynth