chaosandken

[chaosandken]

Good Traits Gone Bad

Exploring good traits gone bad in a novel can add depth and complexity to your characters. Here are a few examples of good traits that can take a negative turn:

1. Empathy turning into manipulation: A character with a strong sense of empathy may use it to manipulate others' emotions and gain an advantage.

2. Confidence becoming arrogance: Excessive confidence can lead to arrogance, where a character belittles others and dismisses their opinions.

3. Ambition turning into obsession: A character's ambition can transform into an unhealthy obsession, causing them to prioritize success at any cost, including sacrificing relationships and moral values.

4. Loyalty becoming blind devotion: Initially loyal, a character may become blindly devoted to a cause or person, disregarding their own well-being and critical thinking.

5. Courage turning into recklessness: A character's courage can morph into reckless behavior, endangering themselves and others due to an overestimation of their abilities.

6. Determination becoming stubbornness: Excessive determination can lead to stubbornness, where a character refuses to consider alternative perspectives or change their course of action, even when it's detrimental.

7. Optimism becoming naivety: Unwavering optimism can transform into naivety, causing a character to overlook dangers or be easily deceived.

8. Protectiveness turning into possessiveness: A character's protective nature can evolve into possessiveness, where they become overly controlling and jealous in relationships.

9. Altruism becoming self-neglect: A character's selflessness may lead to neglecting their own needs and well-being, to the point of self-sacrifice and burnout.

10. Honesty becoming brutal bluntness: A character's commitment to honesty can turn into brutal bluntness, hurting others with harsh and tactless remarks.

These examples demonstrate how even admirable traits can have negative consequences when taken to extremes or used improperly. By exploring the complexities of these traits, you can create compelling and multi-dimensional characters in your novel.

Happy writing!

[chaosandken]

The symbolism of flowers

Flowers have a long history of symbolism that you can incorporate into your writing to give subtext.

Symbolism varies between cultures and customs, and these particular examples come from Victorian Era Britain. You'll find examples of this symbolism in many well-known novels of the era!

Amaryllis: Pride

Black-eyed Susan: Justice

Bluebell: Humility

Calla Lily: Beauty

Pink Camellia: Longing

Carnations: Female love

Yellow Carnation: Rejection

Clematis: Mental beauty

Columbine: Foolishness

Cyclamen: Resignation

Daffodil: Unrivalled love

Daisy: Innocence, loyalty

Forget-me-not: True love

Gardenia: Secret love

Geranium: Folly, stupidity

Gladiolus: Integrity, strength

Hibiscus: Delicate beauty

Honeysuckle: Bonds of love

Blue Hyacinth: Constancy

Hydrangea: Frigid, heartless

Iris: Faith, trust, wisdom

White Jasmine: Amiability

Lavender: Distrust

Lilac: Joy of youth

White Lily: Purity

Orange Lily: Hatred

Tiger Lily: Wealth, pride

Lily-of-the-valley: Sweetness, humility

Lotus: Enlightenment, rebirth

Magnolia: Nobility

Marigold: Grief, jealousy

Morning Glory: Affection

Nasturtium: Patriotism, conquest

Pansy: Thoughtfulness

Peony: Bashfulness, shame

Poppy: Consolation

Red Rose: Love

Yellow Rose: Jealously, infidelity

Snapdragon: Deception, grace

Sunflower: Adoration

Sweet Willian: Gallantry

Red Tulip: Passion

Violet: Watchfulness, modesty

Yarrow: Everlasting love

Zinnia: Absent, affection

[chaosandken]

Kaimelia + workout

kaimelia + workout

"There you are," Amelia smiled, sitting up in bed as Kai walked towards her and holding out her arms. "I'm not a big fan of waking up without you."

"Sometimes I work out in the morning." They leaned into Amelia's embrace and kissed her cheek.

"I can smell." She scrunched her nose as she dropped her arms around them and pulled back. "I do think you're a little insane for going to the gym at five in the morning."

"Well, I'm working for most of the day, and then my night is occupied by you, so I've gotta fit it in somewhere." They walked over to their dresser, dropping their gym bag and pulling open a drawer.

"You know, if you wanted to go after work, I would happily come watch."

"Yeah?" Kai grinned, turning to Amelia after slinging a shirt over their shoulder.

"You think I'd pass up on an opportunity to watch you work out?" She tsked. "I get to still wake up with you next to me, I get to watch you work out, and I get to shower with you afterwards."

"Yeah, but then you have to deal with me sweaty on the way home. I'm not a fan of showering at the gym."

"We'll stick your cologne in your bag." She hopped out of bed, trailing her hand across their back as she walked past them. "Just get me some coffee and stick me in a corner with my computer, and I'll be all set."

"Sounds like a plan." They shut their drawer, holding their hand out to Amelia after she gathered clothes from her bag. "How about that shower now?"

[chaosandken]

Flower

kaimelia + flower

this is so awkward I wrote this without realizing I wrote a diff version but uh enjoy<3

"I'm gonna have to wash my hair tonight," Amelia chuckled, shutting her eyes as Kai brushed the front strand of her hair behind her ear. "Unless you want to be sneezing from pollen all night."

"I'll help you wash it." They kissed her forehead and set another flower in her hair. "Stay still, because these are gonna start falling out."

"Here!" Scout shouted, running over with a fistful of dandelions.

"Thank you," Kai grinned, turning to Scout and holding their hands out for the flowers. "You wanna get some of those pink flowers?" They pointed towards a tree, and Scout ran back into the grass.

"Please don't put those in my hair," Amelia muttered, taking one of the dandelions.

"Yeah, we just gotta get rid of them before he gets back." They held out their arm, shaking the flowers until all the seeds blew away in the wind. "We're not about to have these spread throughout the house for the next month."

Kai tossed the stems into a nearby patch of taller grass, brushing off their hands before returning to Amelia on the picnic blanket.

"Make a wish," she smiled, holding up the dandelion she'd taken from them.

"You better turn because the wind is going to blow these right into your face." She leaned to the side, and Kai blew onto the flower.

"What'd you wish for?"

"I'm pretty sure telling you would go against the rules of dandelion wishes."

[chaosandken]

Kaimelia + suit

kaimelia + suit

“If I had known you would look this good in that suit, I would’ve kept us way more on track in the lab,” Amelia muttered, walking up behind Kai in the mirror and wrapping her arms around their waist. They chuckled, fiddling with the buttons on the cuffs of their sleeves.

“You still aren’t ready.”

“I don’t wanna put on a dress and heels yet,” she spoke against the fabric of their suit jacket. “Once I put them on, we have to go and be social and listen to a bunch of men tell us how they were just about to do the same exact thing we did, but we happened to beat them to it.”

“I know, but we do that,” they turned to face her, “you get a big, fancy award, and then we come home to celebrate.”

“I appreciate your optimism, but,”

“No buts, Shepherd.” Kai placed their hand under her chin, gently guiding her face upwards. “We both know that you’re going to be on that stage in a few hours accepting a Harper Avery award, and I’m not going to let you be humble about this.”

“You deserve it just as much as I do.”

“This is an award for a surgeon. It’s specifically for the incredible things you did, things that I and 99.9% of this population cannot do. My name’s in all the research, and anyone who matters will find it there.” They placed their hands on her hips. “This is your day, Amelia Shepherd, and you better enjoy every minute of it.”

“Fine,” she whispered, biting her bottom lip and doing up the buttons of their shirt. “Will you at least help me get ready?”

“Oh, absolutely.” They pushed down the waistband of her sweatpants.

“I thought you said no butts, Bartley.”

“I guess I’m a hypocrite.”

[chaosandken]

Birthday

kaimelia + birthday

Happy Birthday 🩷

Kai smiled down at their phone screen as balloons obscured Amelia's text message.

Thank you ❤️

Although, I don't think it's my birthday yet back in Seattle...

There are many things I would do for you, Kai Bartley, but staying up until midnight when I'm working at 8 AM is not one of them.

They opened their camera roll and swiped through their favorited photos, photo after photo of Amelia they couldn't bring themself to get rid of.

Things between them had ended mostly amicably, and Kai would be lying if they said they hadn't wanted to ask her to come visit for their birthday. But, a nearly 10-hour flight for someone you were no longer in a relationship with seemed a bit much to ask, and they knew Amelia being in their London apartment would make everything that much more difficult.

She would see the dozen photo frames holding pictures of their time together and know that Kai hadn't been able to let go as much as they liked to pretend. Amelia exploring their new space would just be a painful reminder of the new distance and changed relationship between the two of them.

But, still, they wanted nothing more than to relive the last twenty-four hours they'd spent with Amelia, visiting her one last time in Seattle before saying goodbye indefinitely.

Their phone buzzed with a text, and Kai grinned widely as they opened it.

You can absolutely say no, but I've been thinking about taking a vacation sometime next month...

I'd love nothing more.

[chaosandken]

Kaimelia + (kitchen) dancing

Kaimelia + (kitchen) dancing

"Hey Google, play my 'romantic kitchen songs' playlist on Spotify!" "Romantic kitchen songs?" Amelia questioned, raising a brow. "...I may have made it when I was a little tipsy...and you were in surgery...and I was missing you..." they admitted, smoothly wrapping their left arm around her waist and grabbing her hand with their right. Slow, sensual instrumental music began to play from the little speaker. They quickly dipped her down, causing Amelia to yelp. "Sorry." The surgeon started giggling as they swooped her back to a standing position, then twirled her around, and pulled her in close to their body. "It's like the movies," they murmured, grinning down at the brunette in their arms. The couple began to sway gently to the seductive music, and Amelia let Kai's hand go, moving to wrap her arms around their neck. In response, the tall scientist snaked their newly freed hand around her waist and down her back. As the music continued, Kai's hands gradually moved lower, landing on their partner's ass and squeezing as they danced their hips against her in time with the music. Their foreheads were together, breaths mingling as they began grinding against one another. Their lips finally met as they rolled their hips in tandem, breaths heavy as they kissed.

When their lips parted, a smile broke on Kai's lips as Amelia cleared her throat.

"I think this movie is going to be rated R," she breathed, jumping up into their arms, Kai gripping under her ass and kissing her as they carried her to their bed.

[chaosandken]

Kaimelia + crayons

Kaimelia + crayons

"Did you ever eat crayons when you were a kid?" Amelia asked. Kai eyed her skeptically, eyes wide, clearly horrified. They were cleaning up the kitchen after having supper, Scout in his high chair, scribbling happily with a new box of crayons. "No, did you?!" they responded, scraping some crumbs into the garbage can. "...more times than I would like to admit," Amelia murmured.

"Why does that make so many things about you make sense?" they teased, grabbing a towel and flicking it toward Amelia's ass. She gave them a warning look, trying to contain a grin, then glanced behind her shoulder at her son, who was oblivious to anything else but his drawing. "I'm just teasing," they offered. Kai reached out and pulled Amelia into a hug and the couple held each other as they observed the blonde boy, who dropped a blue crayon, then picked up a yellow one, inspecting it. He began to move the crayon toward his mouth, and his mother yelled out in a panic, quickly moving to take it from him. "Scout, no, baby," she told him. "We only put food, drinks, and medicine in our mouths."

"I guess the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree," Kai chuckled. If looks could kill, they would have dropped dead from the glare their partner sent across the room.

[chaosandken]

Bruise

kaimelia + bruise

"Shit."

"What?" Amelia flipped over in bed to face Kai; concern spread across her face as she met their eyes. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine; it's just-" They scrunched their nose. "Your back, it's," they sighed.

"What is it?" She hopped out of bed, taking the knitted blanket covering their feet and wrapping it around her body before turning around in front of the mirror. "Oh my god." She watched as Kai got up and pulled on their shirt and boxers that'd been discarded on the floor the previous night.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to." They bit their lip and walked up behind her. "Did I hurt you?"

"Kai," Amelia chuckled, making eye contact with them in the mirror and leaning back against them, "I'm fine. I think we can agree that this is a little funny."

"Your entire back is practically covered in bruises; I think this needs a bit more attention than a laugh."

Kai brought their hand up to her spine, gently tracing the red spots on her back.

"Luckily, no one besides you is going to be seeing my back because that would definitely be something to explain." Kai chuckled. "But, for the record, I think it's kind of hot."

"Really?"

"Really."

[chaosandken]

kaimelia + spring <3

kaimelia + spring

(this is gonna be my last one for now, but I’ll do some more tmr night! feel free to keep sending prompts, im really enjoying doing these again :)) <3)

"So, I'm still coming to visit, but I have a request."

"That sounds a little scary," Amelia chuckled, snuggling down into her bed and propping her phone up against the empty pillow beside her. "What is it?"

"Lots of tissue boxes. Allergies are absolutely kicking my ass."

"So, out of everything in this world, a little bit of pollen is what gets you?"

"I'm not deathly allergic. Spring is just not my friend, and if you're going to laugh at me, you'll probably get sneezed on."

"So, tissues, hand sanitizer, allergy medication, anything else? I can wash my sheets and give the place a good vacuuming."

"That is all perfect." They sniffled on the other side of the phone. "You do have a point, though. It is a bit pathetic that some pollen is enough to nearly knock me out."

"Especially with you being an avid plant lover. I think that's some pretty strong form of toxic love, right there."

"Well, thankfully, I get some healthy love to fix that soon."

"You're gonna let me take care of you?" Kai rolled their eyes and grabbed a tissue.

"I'm not dying, but if you'd really like, I'm not going to say no." Amelia grinned.

"You don't even know how excited I am to see you, now."

[chaosandken]

kaimelia + braid

Kaimelia + braid

"Funny that you know how to braid hair, and I don't," Amelia chuckled.

"I did grow up with a sister, you know," Kai replied, securing a hair elastic on the bottom of their partner's hair. Amelia was sat on the floor, back leaning against the sofa, Scout in front of her pushing a wooden train along its tracks. One side of her hair had been plaited into a perfect dutch braid, and the tall scientist was sat behind her on the couch, running a hairbrush through her hair, which was still loose on the other side of her head.

"I grew up with three," Amelia defended. "They just suck, and I spent most of my time with Derek, who wouldn't let me touch his hair long enough to learn."

"Wait, don't you wear your hair braided in surgery?" they asked, weaving her dark hair into itself with ease as they worked their way back on her head.

"I always find Mer, or Maggie, and twice I even asked Teddy, to do it for me," she admitted, blushing. Scout giggled as he crashed two trains into one another. Kai quickly secured another elastic at the end of the second braid, then leaned down, kissing Amelia on the head. They turned their gaze to the blond boy playing below them, sizing up the length of his hair. Determining that his hair was long enough to work with, they spoke.

"Hey, Scout, buddy. Do you want your mommy to do your hair so it looks like hers?"

"What do you mean, mommy do his hair?"

"I'm going to teach you to braid."

The boy turned from his toys, then looked at his mother.

"Pretty, mommy," he said, reaching out and touching her hair.

"Thank you, Scout," she replied, grinning up at Kai. She turned her gaze back to her son. "Do you want mommy to do yours?"

The little boy nodded, then turned and sat down in front of his mom. She looked up in question at Kai, and they passed her the hairbrush.

"You got this."

[chaosandken]

kaimelia + tent

Kaimelia + tent

"Camping? In the back yard?"

"Duh!" Kai responded, tossing more pillows and blankets on top of the air mattress they had blown up in a small tent that they had pitched in Amelia's back yard. "You never did this as a kid?" "I grew up in New York City," she quipped. "I couldn't exactly pitch a tent overnight on my fire escape." "Right. Well, now you'll officially be able to say that you took your son camping!" "He'll love it," she said with a smile, wrapping her arms around their waist, peering up at them. They returned the gesture, pulling her into a hug and kissing the top of her head. "What time did you say Link's dropping him off, again?" they pondered, hand moving lower down Amelia's back, fingers toying at the waistband of her jeans. "Hmm, not for another two hours." They let her go, beginning to unbutton their shirt, their stormy eyes meeting her bright blues with a smirk. She grinned back, biting her lip at them as they spoke. "Get in the tent."

[chaosandken]

Kaimelia + blanket

kaimelia + blanket

"Toss me that blanket," Kai pointed towards the arm of the couch, and Amelia tossed them the green throw blanket. "Okay, we're all set."

They stepped back and placed their hands on their hips, looking at their creation with pride.

"It's beautiful," Amelia grinned. She rounded the structure and kneeled. "You coming inside?"

Kai dropped onto their hands and knees and crawled into the pillow fort, laying their head on Amelia's lap after cautiously moving around. "You're really good at pillow forts," she chuckled, threading her fingers into their hair.

"You get a lot of practice being the designated babysitter at every family holiday, so I've pretty much mastered the craft at this point. But, I may have to work on making it more adult-sized."

"You just wanted an excuse to snuggle up, huh?" She pressed her thumbs into their temples. "I like it; it's calm in here."

"I think it's sorta healing for my inner child. Build a pillow fort and hide in it all day? Wonderful." They shut their eyes and smiled. "How about we grab some snacks and a computer? Have a little movie night in the pillow fort?"

"Best plant I've ever heard."

[chaosandken]

surf 🏄‍♀️

Kaimelia + surf

"How did I get so lucky?"

Amelia was sitting on the beach at Addison's house, she and her sister stretched out on a blanket, enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun. She watched her sexy, tall neuroscientist easily balance on their surfboard, looking more perfect than she could ever imagine.

"You really like them, huh?" Addison asked. It had been several months since they had started seeing one another, and Amelia had finally gotten around to taking Kai on a little vacation to LA to meet her second family.

Amelia turned to Addison, smile on her face, then turned back to watch as Kai smoothly rode on a wave, their toned abdomen and long legs glistening in the sunlight.

"I really do," she responded.

"I guess it doesn't hurt that they're a sexy surfer, either," Addie joked with a chuckle. She leaned closer to her sister, lowering her voice so her son and husband, building a sand castle a few feet away, couldn't hear. "Is the sex good?"

"Addie...you have no idea."

[chaosandken]

saint noodle

kaimelia + saint noodle

"Do I even want to know why there's a pile of uncooked noodles on the windowsill?" Amelia muttered, walking up behind the couch and wrapping her arms around Kai's neck. "Or is it something better left unsaid."

"Scout got in the car and started asking me about God." They leaned their head back to look up at her. "We had a very, very odd conversation about religion, which ended in the conclusion that God exists in the form of macaroni and cheese, so," they gestured at the window, "we made a shrine to Saint Noodle."

"I think I was better off not knowing that," she shook her head, leaning down and placing a kiss on their forehead.

"I never thought I'd teach a kid how to pray, but here we are." Amelia rounded the couch and sat beside them, leaning against them and laying her head on their shoulder. "We live in a religious household now."

"You two are absolutely ridiculous."

"We do get to decide if we want to play God and answer his prayer. He asked for mac and cheese tomorrow night; he's a very simple man."

"Can we get rid of the noodles and pretend they were a sacrifice?"

"You want me to explain sacrifice to a four-year-old?"

"I want there not to be noodles on various surfaces in my house, so however you want to play this out is up to you, Saint Noodle."

[chaosandken]

Kaimelia + flower

kaimelia + flower

"Did you really think I needed flowers to make a cake?"

"I followed exactly what your text said," Amelia shrugged, setting a bouquet of supermarket flowers down on the kitchen counter. "Eggs and white flower."

"Stupid voice-to-text," Kai shook their head, leaning onto their hands. "But you could've used context clues to figure out what I meant."

"I don't bake; how was I supposed to know?"

"Can I trust you enough to send you back for actual flour? Like, the baking type?"

"You may wanna send me a picture just to be safe." Kai chuckled and pulled out their phone.

"How many years in school, and you don't know what flour is?"

"How many years in school, and you can't type?" They picked up the hand towel beside them and chucked it at Amelia. "You know, some people may have just accepted the romantic gesture."

"That's what we're calling it? A romantic gesture?"

"Maybe I just wanted to get you flowers."

"Maybe you need to head back to the store." The neurosurgeon rolled her eyes and tossed the towel back at her partner. "Maybe Facetime me once you're in the aisle."

[chaosandken]

Kaimelia (because I miss them dammit) + cowboys

kaimelia + cowboy

also, hi! long time no see 🙃 feel free to send one word prompts<3

"I look ridiculous."

"I think you look adorable," Amelia grinned, sliding her arm around Kai's waist and standing beside them in the mirror. "One might even say udderly adorable."

"I think we need to not take that kid so literally and tell him that a cowboy is not a male cow."

"First of all," she muttered, tugging up the zipper on the front of their onesie, "you're the one who's been playing along with that for months. Second of all, no one forced you to purchase this and put it on."

"It's Halloween. I wasn't going to crush a small child's dreams and wear jeans to go trick-or-treating like someone in here." Kai pulled the sleeves over their hands and brought up the hood of the cow onesie. "That kid doesn't ask for much, so when he asked me to be a cowboy with him, I couldn't really say no."

"Well, you also didn't need to put it on hours before Scout will be here."

"I need time to acclimate to my new lifestyle," they nudged Amelia. "I'm not going to half-ass this; I'm committed."

"Dr. Kai Bartley. Neuroscientist by day, male cow by night."

"That's cowboy to you, Dr. Shepherd."