#𝐢𝐯.⠀ ⸻⠀ ❝⠀development!

[limalatina]

T A S K # 0 1 - INTRODUCTION.

Alright uni gang, I'm gonna need y'all to listen up and take notes. Auntie Snix has some words of wisdom for all you loners and rejects out there who need my help fitting in while also uniquely standing out. If my 22 years on this planet have learned me anything, it's that you're never too much of a bad bitch to learn some new tricks. So pop a squat, get your popcorn ready, and pay attention because I'm only going to say this once. And trust me, these are invaluable life lessons that will stick with you throughout your extended time here at wmu.

𝐒𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐚'𝐬 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐨𝐩 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞'𝐬 𝐛𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐭 :

𝟏. Your college years are the time to be selfish. Now you may be thinking, "Santana, you've always been self-centered." While there may be some validity to that, college is an excuse to not feel guilty about it. Step outside your comfort zone, act on your own desires. Just don't get arrested for public intoxication. 𝟐. Never show up early or empty-handed to a party. The goal is to appear cool and indifferent, not make yourself look desperate. Frat parties aren't really my scene, but they typically have the best alcohol if you're looking to drink away your problems. 𝟑. Real Housewives is priceless entertainment. If you haven't watched it yet, you need to start. They show reruns on Bravo. If you have watched it and it wasn't your cup of tea, I'm sorry to inform you but you have terrible taste. I bet your favorite show is Breaking Bad or Grey's Anatomy. How unoriginal. 𝟒. Dress hot for a job interview. Practical? No. Effective? Hell yes, unless you're Rachel Berry. It's a miracle how far thigh high boots and a tight-fitted camisole will get you in the bartending biz. 𝟓. Crocs with socks should be a federal offense. If you own a pair, please burn them. Sincerely, everyone. 𝟔. Online shopping is both addictive and cathartic. Just ask my mom. After she found out about my dad's affair, she started buying up those 5,000 piece jigsaw puzzles that take weeks to complete. Not to mention she put all of the funds on his credit cards. That's the kind of petty behavior I admire. 𝟕. Street food in Lima, Ohio is not the same as it is in Miami. I need a lot of spice in my life. If I'm not legitimately delirious and sweating from the heat on my plate, I don't want it. Lima's version of that is buffalo chicken wings smothered in Taco Bell diablo sauce. Check, please. 𝟖. SZA's comeback was the highlight of the 2022. Five years between albums is wild that I have to admit my girl had me stressing for a minute, but her new music delivered. Shoutout to Kehlani for also releasing another banger. 𝟗. Relationships ain't shit, delete your dating apps. If I wanted to be cheated on, I would've set the bar higher and aimed for someone rich like those gold diggers on Real Housewives do. At least then I wouldn't have to foot the bill at the end of the night. 𝟏𝟎. Guys lie to you but girls will destroy your psyche. Not all girls, obviously. Just the evil ones I'm attracted to and date. Consider this my vow to stay single forever.

That's all for now, kiddos. I hope you weren't expecting some profound insight into societal norms or anything like that. It's too early in the morning and I haven't had my daily dose of caffeine yet. I'm just here to keep it real. If you're in the market for any more helpful tips or tricks, hit me up on my socials. And if I have you blocked, best believe it's for a good reason and I would appreciate it if you never contacted me again. Deuces.

[evesfeast]

tag drop!  𝐱.   ❛     ❪ extras ❫

[flowersforjude]

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 ≈ 𝐢𝐯. 𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐦

❛"𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘴." 𝘪 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘦𝘥, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵❜

﹙finnick odair x oc!fem reader﹚

﹙previous chapter ➵ next chapter ➵ masterlist﹚┈﹙read on ao3 ➵ read on wattpad﹚

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 | canon typical violence, weapons, talks of impending violence, training, etc.

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 | 2.3k

𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞 | Developments in Lyssa and Finnick's friendship are being made. It's taking everything in me to keep this a slow burn. I want them together right now so bad even though they barely know each other lol.

Breakfast the next morning was a symphony of voices. 

Clay and Hector discussed hand-to-hand combat techniques. Elphane and Hector’s stylist went over our interview outfits that they were already working on. Finnick was explaining to me some approaches to brushing up on my knife throwing. Midori chimed in every now and then with words of quiet wisdom. 

There was an obvious team-up between Hector and Clay, as well as between Finnick and I. Midori, floating to either one when she was needed.

“You want to make sure to practice with every kind of knife they have available.” Finnick speaks around a mouth full of eggs. I pretend to be disgusted at him, and he winks before going on. “You never know what you’re going to be able to get a hold of in there, so you want to be able to use whatever.” 

I nodded along, storing the information for later at training.

He continues with strategy. "I don't think you should go into an alliance with anyone. Especially the Careers. After the way District One was looking at you last night, I don’t think you can trust them.” 

I completely agree with him on that. “Yeah, I want to stay as far from them as possible.” I’m spreading some jam on a biscuit when something is flung on the table in front of us. 

Sabine stands behind Finnick’s chair with a euphoric smile on her face. 

“What in the world, Sabine?” Finnick questions. 

She shushed him. “Look at the magazine,” she urges. 

He grumbles as he picks up the glossy paper, looking over it with furrowed brows. I’m about to snatch it from him just to satisfy my own curiosity when he looks up at me with almost the same expression as Sabine. A little crazy mixed with ecstatic. 

“What?” I implored, getting a little annoyed. 

Finnick’s grin widens. “They’re calling you The Pearl of Panem.” He beamed, sliding the magazine over to me. 

On the front cover is a picture of me from the parade. My hair blowing behind me as the horses pull us through the city. A sneak peak of a column, I'm sure is on the inside, is off to the side.

District four’s female tribute, Lyssa Monroe, captured the Capitol’s attention at last night’s tribute parade. Miss. Monroe’s ocean themed costume certainly made a splash among many. The Pearl of Panem is a crowd favorite! 

“What does this mean?” I asked, a little uneasy. 

Finnick laughs. “Lyssa.” He begins, a warm tone filling his voice. “It means they love you! Just like I said they would.” Something else took over his excitement. Something that made his mouth turn into a hard line and his eyes grow stormy. It was a small change, so no one but me caught it. It was there, though, and it confused me. 

This should have delighted me, even encouraged me, but it only caused apprehension to fill me. I’d heard what happened to some tributes after they became victors, especially the ones that were popular among the Capitol citizens. If, by some miracle, I did win, what would Snow do with me? Was that what made Finnick take on such a worried energy? 

If I manage to come out of the games with my life, I will not allow Snow to control me. I’m already playing his sick game. If I survived, then my life was mine and mine alone. 

━

The training center made me nervous. It was unlike any room I’d ever stepped foot in. Racks of weapons bordered the walls. There were dummies with targets etched on them so tributes could exercise hitting the right points in which to kill someone. Climbing ropes swung from the high ceilings. 

In all honesty, it was impressive, but I thought it looked more like a dungeon as opposed to a place to study. But then again, this isn’t a normal school that teaches students reading or math. This was an academy that instilled the knowledge of murder in its pupils. 

Most of the tributes were here. They stood in a group around some Capitol official. I joined the masses but made sure to keep distance between me and any of them. My eyes flicked to the right of me, where the guy from one stood with the rest of the Careers. They exuded cockiness and superiority. 

“In two weeks, twenty-three of you will be dead.” The official announced, her eyes drifting across all of us. Some tributes snickered, finding it amusing. Others shuffled nervously in their places. I tried to quiet my inner tension by digging my nails into my palm. My initial cuts from the reaping were all but gone, but I tried not to apply too much pressure to the area. The official continued with her speech. “One of you will survive. Who that is depends on how well you pay attention over the next few days. Particularly to what I’m about to say. First, no fighting with each other; you’ll have plenty of time for that in the arena.” 

I could see the boy from one bluntly staring at me. Arrogance dripped off him like water. I didn’t let myself meet his eyes this time. Instead, I gaze ahead at the woman as if I weren’t aware he was even looking at me. 

“There will be four compulsory exercises; the rest will be individual training. My advice is, don’t ignore survival skills. Everyone wants to grab a sword, but most of you will die from natural causes. Ten percent from infection, twenty percent from dehydration, exposure can kill as easily as a knife.”

The woman dismissed us once she was done. 

The cluster broke up. I went to the other side of the room, wanting to get as far away from one as possible. I ended up at the poisonous and edible plants activity. Finnick’s advice from this morning echoed in my mind, but I wanted to wait to see if the Career pack would move from the weapons eventually before going over there. 

I looked over the guide before sorting them into their categories. I wasn’t horrible, getting a little over half of them right. I would have to go over it some more if I wanted to be completely confident. 

I knew I wouldn’t need to practice building fires. Shea and I had monthly campouts on the beach, where we’d build a fire. My father, in addition to showing me a few things about knives, also taught me to tie knots and make nets for when I helped him on his fishing boat. Finnick assured me I was ahead with that little slice of abilities. 

I had moved onto the traps section when I glanced around at the others. The Careers were now off to the side of the weapons, practicing with their preferred armament. Their laughter bounced off the walls and screeched in my ears. They enjoyed this. They were practically treating this like recess. 

My jaw ticked. They were playing around like kids while the majority of us were trying to grab up any piece of information we could. If only it helped keep us alive in the arena. 

I stood without thinking and took long strides over to the weapons. My head held high, and my eyes straight ahead. I didn’t spare them a glance as hushed whispers sounded when I got closer. 

I found the throwing knives, taking a belt of them, and stringing it around my waist. I twirled one around my finger, walking to the targets set up. The cool metal enveloped my skin in a nervous chill. I pushed it down as I took my stance. Taking a deep breath, I lined my sight up with the center of the target on the dummy’s head. Releasing the breath, my hand flung the knife from its grasp. 

The knife embedded itself in the middle of the dummy’s forehead area. A pleased smile found its home on my lips. Blocking out the murmurs of those around me, I released the remaining knives from the belt. One after the other found its way to the target. One in the heart, one in both shoulders, one for each kneecap, and one protruding from the stomach. 

The Careers had watched the whole thing.

 They weren’t laughing now. 

━

 That night after dinner, Finnick and I stood in the living room practicing with knives. I’m pretty good, much to his relief and mine. The last thing I want to do is make a fool of myself in front of him. 

He’d asked me how training went, and I recounted the show I put on for the Careers. Looking back on it, I began to wonder if I’d made a mistake. Was it foolish to flaunt my ability in front of them like that? Finnick eased my worries by immediately breaking out in laughter. 

“Why, Miss Monroe, I didn’t know you were so bold,” he teased. 

I held my hands up in defense. “I didn’t know either. They just made me angry, so…” I shrugged. 

“This is good,” he decided. “We can use this for your interview.” 

I looked at him, confused. “What do you mean?” 

“We make you seem like the sweet girl with secret bravery,” he clarified. 

I wasn’t sure how I was going to be able to come across as sweet and brave. How do I show something that is supposed to be under the surface to people who only care about the superficial? “If we use the sweet girl act, won’t that make people see me as weak?” 

He smiles. “The Careers will see your compassion and start to underestimate you, but once you show your bravery and skill, they’ll become uncomfortable. They won’t understand how the two can coexist. And I can work with that to get you sponsors. Everyone loves a sweetheart."

I wasn’t fully convinced, but if there's one thing I don't doubt, it's that Finnick knows what he's doing.

Finnick and I spent the next few hours throwing knives at a makeshift target attached to the living room wall. A few times, I miss the target completely. Which is to be expected. Although, when a couple landed dangerously far from where it was supposed to, Sabine threatened to send us outside. We both laughed when she shrieked as a knife flew past her and skidded to a stop on the floor by her feet. 

My main problem is throwing it hard enough to actually stick to the target. Finnick suggests that I have anger issues since I was able to throw nearly a dozen knives perfectly when I was showing off to the Careers. 

"You have to really throw it, Lyssa. Hard." Finnick reminds me. I'm standing in the middle of the living room, where the coffee table had been. The knife weighed heavily in my hand as I readied myself to throw it again. 

“I know.” I grumbled, fighting the urge to roll my eyes. 

He’s said that same sentence about fifteen times, but I still can’t manage to get my throws to stick. I’m starting to think my display during training was a one time thing. 

"It might be easier if you pulled your hair back. It's all in your face and getting in the way,” he suggested. 

I huff out a low breath. “I don’t think it’s that, Finnick.” I fall silent when I feel him step closer behind me. He gently gathers my hair in his hands and holds it in a ponytail. He reaches one hand in front of him. 

"Hair tie?" he asks.

I slipped the one from my wrist over my hand and passed it to him. “I’m telling you, it’s not my hair.” 

I feel him shrug as he pulls my tresses through the hair tie. “You’re probably right,” he admits. “But I’m also probably right in saying you have to be emotionally driven if you’re going to throw right.” His fingertips brush the back of my neck as he finishes putting my hair up. Suddenly he stilled, his hands still touching me. 

I felt a blush creep its way all the way from where his fingers rested to my cheeks. A shiver ran down my spine, even though it wasn’t cold. I wait for him to say something or to move back. He simply stands there, his fingers against my skin, and his breath rushes over the back of my neck. 

He cleared his throat and finally stepped back. “Just to test both theories, I want you to think of something that makes you happy, sad, or angry. Anything to get an emotional reaction.” 

I look back at him, and I swear his cheeks look more flushed than before. That throws me for a bigger loop than anything has here lately. It has to be because the fireplace is so close. Yeah, that’s it, because there is no way Finnick could be blushing just from grazing the back of my neck. 

I shake my head and turn back around.

I take a deep breath as I let my thoughts lose. Pictures of Shae’s tears as we said goodbye flashed across my vision. The laughter of the Careers flooded my ears. The sight of Finnick’s smile made a second long appearance. 

I fling my arm back and release. 

The satisfying sound of the blade sticking to the wall makes me cheer loudly as I twirl around to Finnick. 

“Look at that!" He exclaims with a wide grin. “Told you it was the hair.” 

I roll my eyes at him and go to retrieve the knife. “It wasn’t the hair, but your other theory was right.” 

He smirks smugly. “What did you think about?” 

“My sister crying when I was reaped, and the Careers laughing at training.” I left out the part about him. 

He tugged on my ponytail teasingly. “See? I told you your storm was going to come in useful. You’ll find I’m right about most things.” 

"You're ridiculous." I laughed, but I really hoped he was right.

Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter!<3

﹙taglist﹚@iammirrorball @lilydoeswrite @aoi-targaryen @ipoopedmypants47

[physicks-archive]

eyun  vashai   . . .    ❪   warrior of light   *   scholar   ❫

✧       ━━━━━━             FINAL FANTASY XIV

        MIQO’TE   ▪   SCHOLAR   ▪   TWENTY - THREE   ▪   SHE/HER 

a girl who knew nothing of the world besides the refuge and comfort between bookshelves and sticking floral bookmarks into old tomes where verses and novels all mingled and murmured. blessed by the mothercrystal ;  turned into one of the heroes that are believed to ink pages for eons. 

▪   𝐢. »    eyun is a bookworm, through & through. quoting novels and scientific facts like they’re common knowledge without a hiccup. she might come off as a bit aloof or harsh at small talk but she’s more of a reactionary type than a talkative type, but once she gets comfortable she gets a little mischievous.  (   i will blame eos for that one...  )

▪   𝐢𝐢 . »   eyun possesses a fondness studying a lot about anything she can gather hands on from rare herbs, flowers, gems, tomes, scriptures, to reagents, and all sorts of things. she’s found herself to fall in love with the curiosity of what the world was capable of hiding.

▪   𝐢𝐢𝐢 . »   the scholar tends to be relaxed, peaceful, quiet, and easy-going. she’s rather sympathetic and care deeply about others, yet try to hide their emotions behind smiles. typically good at generalizing ideas or problem-solving and making compromises.

▪   𝐢𝐯 . »  at a young age, she was left to her own devices due to her parents occupation, she grew up rather humbly and mostly alone so forgive her awkwardness if she ever expresses any.  however━ if you need a helper of some sort, she worked tons of odd jobs growing up from waiting tables as a barmaid  to  brewing potions  to  sweeping some noble’s porch as a maid.

▪   𝐯 . »   she can be frolicsome even if she is the warrior of light━  “ a renown hero ” ━but eyun would preferred to simply be called a tactician with no real ornate title. she is not proud of being the warrior of light. her belief stems deeply from the turmoil she had to endure and the massacres she took part in playwrighting. eyun shifts near military-like levels of strictness and hardness the second she has to use her title as the warrior of light in order to execute some sort of action. but nonetheless, the scholar also desperately wish for her task to finally come to an end and to avoid any further conflict at all costs.

▪   𝐯𝐢  . »   eyun has faery friend (eos) who kind of bullied her too much when she was younger, so they may or may not have caused her to develop this weird kind of aetherial narcolepsy condition and is a lot more sensitive to magicks than most people. but the fae were kind enough to provide a very scuffed way of  “fixing”  her condition in the form of magically crafted glasses and an aetherpact with eos.  that being said, if she isn’t around eos or has her glasses on she may or may not just collapse on you.  :)

▪   𝐯𝐢𝐢  . »  that being said, once she gets used to you, she will be annoying and you will like it.                       (  i will once again blame eos for that one... )

[limalatina]

WINTER BALL TASK 004. - GET YOUR GROOVE ON.

Nothing will lure Santana away from the bar and out onto the dance floor quite like some old school R&B hits. You can save your Y2K playlists and Taylor Swift medleys for someone who cares. If she’s wasting her energy on anything, you can rest assured it’ll be something worth her time.

You can find the list of songs Santana danced to below the cut:

Burn by Usher. Santana joined her favorite platonic duo Mercedes @wmu-cedes and Sam @samevans-wmu for this one to jam out to arguably the best hit of the early 2000’s.

Angel by Shaggy. All their differences aside, Santana and Rachel @stardomiscalling share the kind of friendship that triumphs above everything. There was no one more deserving to dedicate this song to than her.

Be Without You by Mary J. Blige. Kurt @wmuhummel and Blaine @wmublaine might be two of the most stylish guys Santana knows, but they can also get down with some Mary J.

Controlla by Drake. Santana considers Brittany @brittspierce-wmu one of her good friends, but there’s something about dancing to a Drake song that makes her lose her inhibitions. She may have been a bit flirtier than normal, but that’s to be expected in her inebriated state.

Suga Suga by Baby Bash. This last song goes out to all of Santana’s friends for sticking by her through thick and thin. She still thinks school dances are lame, but at least she’s not alone in her misery.

[limalatina]

❝ 𝐈 𝐚𝐢𝐧'𝐭 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚 𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐟-𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫, 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐚. ❞

Santana not only shares a deeply personal attachment to this song but also the artist. As someone who spent her youth ashamed of who she was, music became an outlet to express feelings she couldn't confront head on. Kehlani was her first true exposure to queer R&B music. Finding solace in her lyrics helped Santana deal with several of her insecurities and anger issues. It made her into the person who, today, wouldn't bat an eyelash at anyone who thought negatively of her.

The king himself, Tom Holland, said it best: "If you have a problem with me, text me. If you don't have my number then you probably don't know me well enough to have a problem with me."

[physicks-archive]

# physicks  …   an  affiliated    𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭      ❪    eyun vashai   ❫       of     𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐱𝐢𝐯 ,      as  documented  by  aria .

                                              *     carrd .        *     playlist .

                                            *    note:    indies   are    welcomed !!                                            &.    quick  introduction  under  the  cut ...

eyun  vashai   . . .    ❪   warrior of light   *   scholar   ❫

✧       ━━━━━━             FINAL FANTASY XIV

        MIQO’TE   ▪   SCHOLAR   ▪   TWENTY - THREE   ▪   SHE/HER 

a girl who knew nothing of the world besides the refuge and comfort between bookshelves and sticking floral bookmarks into old tomes where verses and novels all mingled and murmured. blessed by the mothercrystal ;  turned into one of the heroes that are believed to ink pages for eons. 

▪   𝐢. »    eyun is a bookworm, through & through. quoting novels and scientific facts like they’re common knowledge without a hiccup. she might come off as a bit aloof or harsh at small talk but she’s more of a reactionary type than a talkative type, but once she gets comfortable she gets a little mischievous.  (   i will blame eos for that one...  )

▪   𝐢𝐢 . »   eyun possesses a fondness studying a lot about anything she can gather hands on from rare herbs, flowers, gems, tomes, scriptures, to reagents, and all sorts of things. she’s found herself to fall in love with the curiosity of what the world was capable of hiding.

▪   𝐢𝐢𝐢 . »   the scholar tends to be relaxed, peaceful, quiet, and easy-going. she’s rather sympathetic and care deeply about others, yet try to hide their emotions behind smiles. typically good at generalizing ideas or problem-solving and making compromises.

▪   𝐢𝐯 . »  at a young age, she was left to her own devices due to her parents occupation, she grew up rather humbly and mostly alone so forgive her awkwardness if she ever expresses any.  however━ if you need a helper of some sort, she worked tons of odd jobs growing up from waiting tables as a barmaid  to  brewing potions  to  sweeping some noble’s porch as a maid.

▪   𝐯 . »   she can be frolicsome even if she is the warrior of light━  “ a renown hero ” ━but eyun would preferred to simply be called a tactician with no real ornate title. she is not proud of being the warrior of light. her belief stems deeply from the turmoil she had to endure and the massacres she took part in playwrighting. eyun shifts near military-like levels of strictness and hardness the second she has to use her title as the warrior of light in order to execute some sort of action. but nonetheless, the scholar also desperately wish for her task to finally come to an end and to avoid any further conflict at all costs.

▪   𝐯𝐢  . »   eyun has faery friend (eos) who kind of bullied her too much when she was younger, so they may or may not have caused her to develop this weird kind of aetherial narcolepsy condition and is a lot more sensitive to magicks than most people. but the fae were kind enough to provide a very scuffed way of  “fixing”  her condition in the form of magically crafted glasses and an aetherpact with eos.  that being said, if she isn’t around eos or has her glasses on she may or may not just collapse on you.  :)

▪   𝐯𝐢𝐢  . »  that being said, once she gets used to you, she will be annoying and you will like it.                       (  i will once again blame eos for that one... )