#'the oracle's laughing at us' phew

[renaissanceousia]

"careful, i think you're abt to call me a friend" and percy fell to his knees boy get UP omg

[himebushou]

I've basically been doing very little with my time besides watching Shaman King 2021 so phew, here are some thoughts on Episodes 10-32!

Episode 10

The bit with everybody hanging out at the inn was adorable, hee.

I LOVE BOZ THEY'RE SO FUNNY

It's odd that Yoh is already paying that much attention to "Hao" considering the name has come up once? But yeah...

Ryu comes back!! And damn, he already qualified for the main tournament?

Bason and Ren are too cute. Also, it's interesting to watch Ren's mindset change and hee, we get the showdown against Tao En!

Episode 11

Phew — Ren gets captured by his Pops and the Zoldyck vibes INTENSIFY.

I don't remember the Tao family having their own Super Sentai Squad, but hey, it tracks!

It's a bit of a shame that these battles were concluded so quickly, but it was cool to see Horohoro and Ryu's upgrades!

Can't believe Tao Rn squeezed that poor baby panda to death only for it to be resurrected as a zombie in the next scene! SHEESH!

Episode 12

This episode also went at THE SPEED OF LIGHT! I cant believe we got Jun's dramatic rescue and the whole Tao En reveal and fight in the same episode! I mean, at this speed, Ren's deep loyalty to the gang does seem a bit goofy, but hey, I'll deal!

Ryu saying, "Just what exactly do you think wavering is?" had me laughing so much, oh man.

Episode 13

How is SO MUCH happeningin EVERY EPISODE?

Yoh and the crew leave home!

They meet Hao!

They get dropped out of a plane!

They meet Lilirara, who's really cool! There's sone backstory!

They go on their way — AND THEN LILIRARA DIES???

Wild!!!!

Horohoro continues to be adorable and guh, I'm really enjoying watching the episodes dubbed... honestly, the dub iis really, really good!

Episode 14

WHEEE LYSERG THE DOOFUS IS HERE... to be honest he's a lil green Sherlock. Isn't it nice that everyone has a colour-coded Oracle Bell lol Yoh's is orange and Lyserg's is green... it's been like 15 years but I still don't know if I've forgiven him for what comes later. Whoops.

Anna is such a great character and I love how much bearing she has on the story.

New ending! And it's Iron Maiden Jeanne!!

Also, the goof with 6 years versus 8 years... Lyserg's parents definitely weren't killed 6 years ago, sheesh.

Episode 15

Okay, so this was one of the eps where the pacing was definitely painful. Anna got a (hodgepodge) version of Hao's backstory — honestly, why didn't Yohmei just tell her the whole deal if he was going to reveal so much? And then, she dealt with Hao's familiars SO QUICKLY that there was like. No threat to them at all. I was expecting more boom bang...

But she did use the 1080 beads! We love the 1080 beads!

Horohoro is just one of the best characters and I loved his upgrade, gosh. Again, we could have had a whole episode dedicated to his time with Apollo, rather than 10 mins. I also don't know HOW Ranger Bluebell knew bout him wanting to become the Shaman King since that wasn't discussed

For obvious reasons, Morphin is renamed Morphia in the dub, hue.

Episode 16

Not much that I can say about this episode (I was a bit sleepy when I watched it). Ryu is getting an upgrade — at lastl! And this episode had some of the humour I love from Shaman King: the whole bit with the vampiric guys was SO funny. "If there are only 5 in the group, why do two of them look the same?!" Yoh/Ren/Horohoro are such a darling trio.

Episode 17

/inhales

THE X-LAWS ARE HERE

WHICH MEANS MARCO IS HERE

WHICH MEANS... ERIC STUART!!!

And man I hate Marco (thought ťhe X-Laws are great villains who basically permanently impacted mine and my friends' psyches; they're a specific type of evil) but boy oh boy, it is sooo good to hear Seto Kaiba in an anime again, sobs.

Lyserg... tbh, I don't think I ever forgave his betrayal back from 2001; THERE'S STILL A PART OF ME THAT'S MAD. I wonder if I might feel differently this time around but I half-expected the little green bean to run off with the X-Laws in this very episode so I was a bit surprised when he didn't.

And then a surprise! Hao chatted to Anna and Manta and Tamao! Anna looks so cool with the sunglasses, lol. Though... I feel like Manta's being from money is largely a plot device (because how else would everyone get to the States)... but I often find this with rich/wealthy characters. sighs!

Oh, also! The Shaman King timeline is SO WHACK. Like, Ryu says to Yoh: "You forgot about me in Izumo which is when I trained to be a shaman." But here's the problem. I think Ryu only went to Izumo in the he first place to take Manta there and THEN he trained with Yohmei — but the flashback reveals that Ryu had to wait for a week to get Yohmei to train him (why is Mikihisa Like That btw) which means that. Yoh would have already been back and fighting and drawing against Ren and therefore concluding prelims in the same time that Ryu was supposedly waiting for Yohemi to train him? And yet Ryu somehow had an Oracle Bell AND qualified for the main tournament? While Ren had only completed two battles?

fudjdjd stuff like this drives me absolutely cuckoo I NEED WRITERS TO HAVE CHARTS AND TOURNAMENT TABLES AND TIMELINES AND ALL ELSE. URHFJFJD

Episode 18

JOCO!!! HEART EMOJIIIS

Anna slapping Hao with her free hand!

Mihihisa being revealed to be Yoh's dad!!

And the whole bit with Ren deciding the teams fhdjd man I am CRACKING UP!

(I rewatched some scenes in English and Japanese and wow, some of the changes are completely unnecessary fjdjd)

Episode 19

I... finally caught the Mic the Jaguar / Mic Jagger joke.

After almost 20 years.

SHEESH.

(I love Boz they're so funny fjljjd)

Episode 20

I never knew that Joco's backstory was so sad... my poor little guy...

I love how Ren pointed out that Horohoro did nothing, zero and zilch in the match dhdjd

Episode 21

Phew... to say that the X-Laws are brutal is putting it lightly... and looking at Jeanne and the way she was in this episode and knowing that she ends up with Ren is very. HUH?

I kind of can't believe just how laidback Yoh is sometimes. It kinda irritates me a tiny bit? Back in the day, I couldn't choose between Yoh, Ren and Horohoro for the Favourite Character Spot, but I'm not firmly Team Horohoro, ehe.

Poor Team Niles. Gosh.

Episode 22

Crying and sobbing... why won't Shaman King just give me. A TIMELINE? So now I discover that it's been TWO MONTHS since they were in the Patch village (???) and it's already the last battle of the first round of the tournament (???) and that Anna already taught Team Funbari Hot Springs EVERYTHING in Hao's big bad book (???) and? We didn't get to see any of that? Like I understand this decision if that's how it went down in the manga and the double OS was a major, unprecedented reveal, but if not... I LOVE A TRAINING MONTAGE. Give me these arcs...

Also, the dub's choices for which terms to leave in Japanese are messy. They use words like Onmyoji and Ultra Senji Ryakketsu, but 'Mana' replaces 'furyoku'... like I'm pretty sure the 4Kids dub used furyoku because it was a term I was v. familiar with.

Anyway, its nice to see a battle span two eps!

Episode 23

Wowee... this episode got me teary. Ryu's upgrade is NICE and Anna talking about the flexibility of Yoh's furyoku was so sweet. I also love the Icemen and their design — and it was particularly cute to see Pino and Horohoro chatting together at the end.

And then Hao's whole convo with Ren (the 4Kids dub called him Len and Yoh nicknamed him Lenny which was the cutest; gah, things I miss!) was really interesting

BUT WHY HAS YOH SOUGHT OUT LYSERG THE TRAITOR... ooft!

Episode 24

WAAAA WHAT A COOL EPISODE?

Okay, so it turns out that I was wrong about all the matches being over because this ep was HAO VS THE X-LAWS and damn, Hao using OXYGEN as his medium? That's bloody cool!!!

The OST in this ep was top tiiieeer and freaking — the X-Laws being humanised? A bit? I am SHOCKED.

Episode 25

Revelations galore... and Yohmei Tries to Commit Infanticide: Extended Edition.

Blimey. This anime is getting me so emotional.

(I love Horohoro I love what a good friend he is he is my FAVOURITE.)

Episode 26

WOW I LOVED THIS EPISODE.

The senior Asakura and Tao folks coming together to discuss Hao's bigtime book and the gang finally finding out about Yoh's origins! I got to see TAO RAN again (I love her) and freaking heck, Mikihisa is so cool? I guess jury has to be out with him a liiiittle bit because I've seen people commenting that he sucks. But. I have a major soft-spot for shounen dads (Goku, Echizen Nanjiroh, Van Hohenheim, Kurosaki Isshin...) and I reckon Mikihisa ticks cool points.

And freaking Ren! Why is everyone so cool??

Episode 27

NO TIME YO RECORD THOUGHTS MUST WATCH NEXT EP

Team Flower vs Jun / Anna / Tamao yeah!!

GOTTA SAVE REEEEN!!!

Episode 28

HOWLING

HOWLING!!

The Iron Maiden will save Ren (oh my GOSH — NOW, CERTAIN THINGS make more sense) and Yoh will be withdrawing from the tournament (?) and we got a new opening AND a new ending and Horohoro had that whole speech and buuu MY TEARS!

Episode 29

Mikihisa appears and just adopts everyone on sight and oh my gosh, the babies? Forget everyone else I want THEIR happiness and dhdhd what is this stuff about a golem?

HOW CAN I GO TO SLEEP WHEN THERE IS SO MUCH HAPPENING IN THIS ANIME

Episode 30

Ahhh we're entering a flashback! So this is what people were talking about when they kept bringing up "Osorezan Arc", huh?? YOH AND ANNA'S FIRST MEETING!

AND SHE WAS SO DISGUSTED.

Once again, the timeline is WHACK because there's really no way it can be the year 2000 at the time of the Shaman Fight unless I'm missing something huuuge... Yoh and Anna really should've been 8 when they met, not 10?

And I'm finally meeting Matamune!

But he was in the last Shaman Fight dhdhd i guess Hao couldn't have participated since he was a Patch that time but what happened at the fight 1000 years ago?

SO MANY MYSTERIIIES

Episode 31

Oh man, I can see why people were so obsessed with this arc... there is just so much emotion here from all sides: Matamune (having to defeat Hao!!), Yoh and Anna, Kino — everything.

You can see why Yoh and Anna are the dream team, wow.

Also, I looked up a timeline and I think I can make my peace with it being the year 2000 in canon... but the anime did not explain it AT ALL, which is pretty poor.

Episode 32

Wow.

Yoh and Anna are very, very special.

[mchiimii]

Jamais Vu | BTS [Twenty-Six]

➜ Genre: Fantasy; Fanfiction

➜ Tags: fluff; angst; alternate universe; Alice in wonderland AU; flower shop AU; reincarnation; magic; soulmates AU

➜ Rating: Teen & Up Audiences (T)

➜ Pairing: BTS x Reader/Reader insert

➜ Warnings: swearing

➜ Word count: 2.4k

➜ Notes: Phew. This chapter has been in my drafts since the day I uploaded the 25th. Anyway, hope you liked it! The upcoming chapters might be a little heavy so brace yourselves for the rollercoaster. There are still many stories to tell and unravel and I think this will be a great opportunity to delve into Yuna's previous lives and encounters with the guardians.

I'll explain the rest next time so see you there!

Coma-Trance

ᵐ ˡᶦˢᵗ | ᵖʳᵉᵛⁱᵒᵘˢ | ⁿᵉˣᵗ

"A shadow?"

Jimin and Taehyung nodded.

"Then why didn't you stop it?" Seokjin interrupted.

After the oracle received a call from the goblin, the wingless angel and the former moon rabbit persuaded the sandman of the red kingdom to gather at the Magic Shop's lobby in the mortal realm. The six of them occupied the spacious interior to discuss the matters they need to resolve.

"We were unsure at first because we might have mistaken it as someone else." Jimin continued, "I was busy welcoming the guests to know it fully. Taeh already left the tea house to guard the shop instead when suddenly—"

"—An ambulance came to take her mother to the hospital," Taehyung interrupted abruptly.

"So you just watched her?" Hoseok sat on the sofa of the Magic Shop's lounge between Namjoon and Jungkook. He crossed his arms over the other and rolled his eyes frustratingly. He should have been in his kingdom doing his chores when the White King and the Reaper called him for an unexpected mission. It seems like the dream guardian is starting to feel impatient with all the heavy workloads.

"Yes. We did," Taehyung blurted. "But, I don't think it's necessary to interfere with her fate just yet." he shrugged.

Jimin agreed as he sat on the sofa near the center table. "Plus, if the shadow wasn't Yeomra's, then why was there a mishap?"

"That's true." Taehyung sat between Jimin and Seokjin before leaning on his back while fiddling with the emerald ring on his pointer finger. "If it didn't radiate intense negative energy, I wouldn't say it was his shadow. But it did."

"Bottom line is, you assumed it was his," Namjoon mused, "Which I think is hypothetically correct, considering that it might have brought an ill-fated omen. Were there any hints that you could've missed before we track her down?"

Jimin hummed, "A woman accompanied her to the hospital. Probably a witness."

"Or someone Yuna knows," everyone looked at the guardian who was silent the whole time. Jungkook exchanged glances with the five of them quizzically. He cleared his throat and then uttered another word that is enough to support the goblin's speculation.

"One of her friends could be the witness," Jungkook added, "If we want more answers, we should interrogate them."

Namjoon snapped his fingers, "Alright. We can assign an appropriate task for each of us. Someone who can interrogate the witness and track down Yeomra."

"Wait, you forgot something." Namjoon glanced at Jimin.

"Should we also look for Yuna?"

Hoseok laughed. "Didn't you hear? That seraph brought her to God knows where."

"Yoongi has her too..." Jungkook's doe eyes sharpened at the thought of the Cheshire cat. He scoffed once he broke the gaze he shared with the other guardians.

"But, shouldn't you also be capable of knowing her wellbeing? She's your maiden, remember?"

"Nah, I bet that pussycat knows a lot about her. I wouldn't be surprised if he knows something we don't know, especially if he meddles with the deities daily." Hoseok bitterly spat with a scornful expression.

Seokjin rolled his eyes at the Red King's insensitive tone. With a deep exhale, he glanced at the uninterested grim reaper with a light smile. "When it's something that concerns the human, it's either you or the Cheshire cat. Now that she's your maiden, you have no other choice but to take over the task that she's involved with."

"Can we all finalize the agreement already? I have more things to do."

"At least be nice for once?" Jimin questioned the Red King who happened to flick his middle finger at the flower guardian.

Jimin tightened his fists and was ready to haul an aggressive action when Taehyung held his arm to stop him from starting a fight with the embodiment of wrath. The flower goblin softened his grip and composure to ignore the Red King instead.

"Confronting the deities is the least he can do," Taehyung said as he was referring to the grim reaper. "If it's about rebellion, then it's Jungkook."

"Maybe if you could be more open-minded, try to re-think the situation, and be less impulsive with your actions," Jimin added.

"Easy for you to say."

"Well," Namjoon chimed in, "This isn't the right time to be petty. Unless you all want to perish in Underland."

Hoseok scoffed, "Which side are you on?"

"Neither. I didn't call you here to provoke us so stop with this bullshit."

The Red King pushed his tongue in his inner cheek with his mouth slightly open when Namjoon glared at him. Instead of bullying one of the guardians again, he fondled his rings in boredom.

"The least we can do is confront the higher-ups to defeat the vengeful spirit. It will be difficult if we don't."

The rest agreed except Hoseok and Jungkook. Namjoon looked at the youngest to see if he agrees but still had no response. The oracle called his name again and that's when Jungkook finally responded. He simply hummed with no follow-up remark and dared not to utter a word to finally end the meeting.

Nonetheless, each of them was given an assignment. As expected, Yoongi will be in the Hanok village with the deities where the human is currently recovering. Jungkook will be visiting them while Taehyung and Jimin will be at the hospital to interrogate the witness. On the other hand, Seokjin, Namjoon, and Hoseok agreed to find Yeomra—well, partially on Hoseok's side because he insisted on protecting Wonderland.

Although he's the most powerful yet the weakest, Namjoon refrained from arguing with him again. Perhaps, it would be best if a guardian stays in their realm to look over the kingdom and the spirits.

After all, guarding their realm will prevent another mishap from happening.

Meanwhile in the Hanok Village...

The camellia flowers twinkled and bloomed in the morning. A jacket of snow embraced its body; its petals smiled brightly at the rising sun. March has arrived yet the chilly, dry winter season stayed in the first week of the month. Maybe by April, the spring flowers will blossom in the morning. A variety of blooms will replace the colors of the meadows; creatures will traverse the captivating platform. The whole season will be decorated with floristry and flamboyance.

That is if the curse never prevailed.

With the situation at hand, springtime will be delayed to make time for the withering season in the month of dispersion.

Snow flowers painted the pathway of the village. The striking hues grew prominent in the snow-covered village. Not all flowers charmed the visitors with their beauty because for a moment, the field of blooms had one particular sprout that looked dull and almost lifeless.

"Is she alright?"

The feline crawled just beside the unconscious female on the bed. The Cheshire cat frowned at the sight of the helpless human. He softly touched her face with his paws to caress her gently. Yoongi glanced back at the seraph with eyes glowing green. He asked him a question again but the angel could not answer him.

The fate deity hovered her hand over the human's face to spectate her wellbeing. She moved her hands around her features slowly, her fingertips glowing in pink. With a deep breath and a frown, Mari clicked her tongue and then shook her head. She glanced back at the cat and spoke.

"She has the oblivion curse."

Yoongi gazed back at the human with the softest expression he could muster, "Yeomra probably hexed her."

The wealth deity groaned as she bitterly locked eyes with her sister. Who knew that a simple modification of the fate string could lead to an awful turn? "Look what you did. You made her life miserable. If her soul avenges, she won't enter the Afterlife."

The deities of nature started tattling and muttering words enough for the fate deity to hear. Mari, on the other hand, decided to ignore them by watching the human sleep peacefully despite the noises.

"I hope the gods ban her from using her magic."

"Why not ban her from entering the gates of heaven instead? After all, she deserves it."

"Hey, isn't that a little harsh? You might get banned too for speaking ill to her."

The flower deity suddenly stepped forward to look at the injured human. She did the same thing with her magic to check her state. However, when the growing noises from the bickering deities grew loud, she flicked her wrist and ceased her magic for a moment.

"Enough!"

She glared at the three squabbling goddesses of wealth, river, and mountain respectively.

"We came here to help the human not noise around for a petty quarrel. If you all want a place to pick up a fight, then leave this place immediately."

Once the noises completely died down and silence finally reigned in the room, the flower deity received an apology before she continued what she was doing.

She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. Once her hands gleamed white, she opened her eyes and began rising from the ground. As her magic comes to a halt, the deity could not overlook the human's situation when she already had a glimpse of Yuna's fate. Her feet touched the ground softly and she was brought to the present once again.

"She won't be waking up soon." the flower deity looked at Yoongi with a small frown contorting her face.

"Yuna's under coma-trance, a state of prolonged slumber. The memories she will encounter becomes a hindrance to entering her present conscience. We cannot fully determine the length of her slumber because once she embarks on the pieces of her past, her soul will transfigure into a different character. She needs more time to recuperate her physical and mental well-being by venturing into the memory lane."

"How did this happen?"

"It's..." the fate deity looked at the cat with a worn expression on her face.

"It's because of the Smeraldo flower and the Tree Memoir. The flower recuperates her from the oblivion curse while the tree reminds her of the memories she once held. These memories are connected to her previous lives when she encountered the guardians before or after the divine punishment. The memory lane gives enough time for the recuperation."

Yoongi looked down at the female's face. He rested his paw on her face again and sighed. If she's experiencing slumber, then that could be one thing. He's the dream guardian, maybe he can do something with ensuring her safety if he couldn't stop the trance.

"Then I'll enter the dream realm."

The deities looked at him concerningly. The fate and the flower goddesses heaved a deep breath before interrogating him.

"You cannot simply intervene with her subconscious or else she won't make it on time!" the wealth deity interrupted.

"I'm willing to accompany her."

"But you're not her maiden. A simple lip contract is not enough." another deity spoke.

"Who says I'll do a contract?" Yoongi's eyes gleamed green again as he was ready to jump off the bed to leave. "If I can't interfere with the events, then she won't be my maiden. She can't call my name for help even when she's in danger."

"Then what will you do?" the mountain goddess asked.

"I'll be there if she wants someone to talk to."

"Someone, to talk to? Are you crazy?" the river deity laughed. "You can't interact with her or else things will only make it hard for her."

"Actually..." the fate deity spoke, "He can interact with her before she enters a new world. The coma-trance allows you to stay in the memory hub to rest for a moment. Yoongi may stay there with her but he cannot give any clues related to the memory she will encounter, especially if he suddenly remembered something."

"Look who's talking. Thanks to you, a lot of misfortunes happened." the wealth deity argued. "It's not a reasonable excuse." she eyed the cat with a stern look, "What is even the difference between talking to her versus waiting for her? Either way, you can't protect her."

The flower deity nodded, "She has a point. Entering the dream realm will be risky for both of you. You can't simply interact with her because you want to. Attachments may change the flow of events. It will affect the way she deals with her stories."

For a second, a pattern embroidered the clouds in the sky. The sun hid behind the overlooking patches of billowy clouds that gathered together. The wind blew a cold breeze the moment a visitor entered the village. From afar away, a towering man walked by the snowy pathway towards the entrance of the Hanok. He wore his usual headpiece, dark outfit, and combat shoes that made his steps loud. He approached the doorway with a cold demeanor after seeing the spirits of the immortal realm. With hands stuffed in his pockets, the grim reaper eavesdropped on their conversation.

Their noises grew audible and clear as he entered the room. Surprisingly, no one saw him lurking in the shadows to listen to their topic. The three deities' backs faced him while the seraph sat near the window. The two other goddesses stood beside the bed where the human slept peacefully. Consequently, the angel exchanged words with the cat on the bed to express his concerns.

Their unexpected visitor scuffed beside the three busy females where he can be easily recognized. The river deity felt a sudden shift in the atmosphere caused by the cold ambiance the grim reaper brought. She glanced to her side and gasped upon seeing the youngest guardian's arrival.

"Jungkook? What are you doing here?" Yoongi locked eyes with the grim reaper. The grim reaper disappeared for a moment before a blue, glittering smoke appeared in front of the two deities and the cat.

Yoongi looked surprised upon seeing the grumpy guardian settle his feet on the house of goddesses. He always held a grudge with them and seeing him up close in his dominating demeanor implied an unusual reason.

"I believe you came here solely for the human," he sat on the bed with eyes sparkling with curiosity. "Rest assured that she's safe but—"

"We need to talk."

Yoongi remained unfazed at his blunt remark. The goddesses started whispering again, something about the infamous guardian. Jungkook ignored them, still eyeing the feline on the bed.

"What do you want to talk about?" he chimed.

"I want to talk to you alone."

The Cheshire cat exchanged glances with the fate deity. After hearing Jungkook's response, he signaled Mari to leave along with her sisters and the angel.

That's when the plans mayhaps turned a little different for both of them.

ᵐ ˡᶦˢᵗ | ᵖʳᵉᵛⁱᵒᵘˢ | ⁿᵉˣᵗ

[sorensfw]

Hello!! I hope you are doing well, wonderful person! I was wondering if I could have a tarot reading? I wanted to ask the cards what obstacles are in my way and how can I overcome them? Also, can I ask the cards where should I look to continue to find strength and resilience? Thank you so much!!! Sending you lots of love.

Aww! Thank you. Having these readings really picked me up today, so...I’m doing well now. On to your reading, which kind of got big.

Deep Images[1], what obstacles are in Imisterk's way, and how can she remove them?

Deck: Silicon Dawn

This is going to be interesting, because the SD is the most Occult Magick X-Filezzz Mysterious deck I have. I keep expecting it to tell me where the aliens are landing and how to help them dethrone the reptilons embedded in the secret one world government. Adjust your tinfoil hat psychoacoustic filters accordingly. I recommend setting Alpha-six point Gamma on the flourenstein scale[2]. It's also capable of rendering serious doom and gloom readings, which is probably why it was right for reading obstacles.

Obstacles (first row, in order):

1. Fleeing ghosts of the past is leading to doing something Foolish--but this might be Foolish in the tarot sense (the physical version of this card has reflective overprinting that catches the light at the right angle and shows phantom butterfly wings on the Fool and ghostly tentacles chasing them), because it is a Fool card (this deck has four Fools).

2. A fight that just wont end, but would if you could just talk things out. Probably with someone close to you--think seventh house relationships in the astrology sense (enemies are 'close' because why bother being enemies with someone you can just forget about).

3. (Shadowed, incomplete reading here) Something about masks over your uniqueness rubbing it out (The physical version of the card looks completely black unless seen from the right angle). You're special and unusual, and this is an obstacle against having a face that isn't just the mask you wear to fit in at the party. Something I can't read for, which could be shrouded by something really powerful, or could be that I'm running into reading someone's private thoughts who isn't consenting, which is something I specifically intend my readings not to do.

4. (Shadowed again) There's a place inside you that's always watching a lightless black sun go down over the edge of a dying world where even the swords made of rusted shards of Before The Fall the last survivors have been using to squabble over the dregs of lost joy are played out. It's making everything feel as apocalyptic as that vision looks, and it's sapping a precious bodily fluid spiritual resource in a way that's not obvious, because this whole drama is happening in darkness where you don't see it going on.

Solution (second row, read left to right): Don't do complicated magic or call for help. Small actions will accumulate into world-shattering consequences if you trust and fall with it and don't make a big deal of things or try to rekindle stuff whose time is past.

This a surprisingly un-Silicon-Dawn answer, so take that into account.

Phew. Onward:

Deep Images, where should Imisterk look to continue to find strength and resilience?

Deck: Mystic Manga

...when it didn't come up Silicon Dawn again I was going to say we were back to the real world, but with the Mystic Manga it's more like we're off to read right-to-left about about the hapless Fool not noticing that all sixteen court cards have a crush on his bishie ass and are vying for his hand in mawwiage--but it's also off to a colorful happy fantasy land where everyone including you is suave and sexy and omigod those outfits right?

The reading is a mini-love-story spread, but that can mean self-love, too. Left to right the cards go:

1. Your role

2. Your work

3. Happily Ever After

4. Their work

5. Their role

It's read from the edges in.

Because of my other-people rule this usually means both partners are the querent, but that might be false if you have someone I don't know about who wouldn't mind contributing to this reading, so I'm going to read that aspect ambiguously and let you decide which you think it is.

Your role: R. 5 Wands. Something's happening. Whatever it is, don't fight it, even if the fighting-it doesn't seem that serious or is like a game. If and only if that feels fucking wrong, instead it's the other extreme: go nuclear and fight for your life--but I really doubt that for such a happy-cuddly deck.

Your work: 5 Cups. Things look kind of wrecked, and feeling better feels as far away as that castle, so the work is to see where they're not wrecked. It might seem like only two small little cups out of the many you had before, but there's enough water there to throw a party like the star is throwing in the next card. It may or may not be necessary to doff that wonderfully melancholy cape-and-buckles grief-chic ensemble, but I notice the Star's going for a more minimal look fashion-wise.

Their role: R. 6 Cups. Nostalgia, however much old times might look good, they're not a kid anymore and it's time to grow up.

Their work: High Priestess. Take a critical look at things, and don't hide your disgust (she's clearly editing her Abridged List of Things She Hates), but remember to look to your intuition, not what logically makes sense, or you'll end up just as Scroogy as she looks. Traditionally, there's a body of water peeking through the High Priestess' veil, and I read that as present here, too.

Happily Ever After: Star. Clothes have been a huge theme in this reading, and we weren’t even the doing anime-standard Deep Cleavage, when suddenly--! Both work cards have unhappy people in super-restrictive clothing and a distant body of water, and now here we are having a relaxing bath in the magical flowery lagoon of innocence with an expression that says to me “why yes I did suplex the angel with a flaming sword that turns every which way to get in here, and I’d do it again and still not give any fucks at all”. This is what happens when you and whoever it is move beyond your respective challenges and leave the armor behind. Maybe it means being vulnerable together, maybe it means sexy sex, or maybe it literally means busting out the bath bombs and essential oil diffuser and giving yourself a spa night every so often. The concrete advice depends on who's involved and whether you're in a position to figuratively or literally get naked wth them--but if you can, it will be like drinking the nectar of the gods for you both. Whatever it is, you may need to throw down a manifestation of patriarchal or religious shame or guilt or two to get at it, so don’t be afraid to rush the gatekeeper if they look like a republican senator. This would be that nuclear option from before, actually.

Good luck, and I hope this helps, and if you’re totally weirded out I hope you at least laughed along the way.

[1] It’s what I call the collective-unconscious imagery galaxies that underly the tarot archetypes and many other visual oracles. Past life thing, long story.

[2] I'm reasonably sure none of that is a real thing, but you never know.

[spread images created using BlackMirror]

[debbiehross]

Cruising to the Sporades

Sporades means scattered or sown -  like its many islands which are dotted in an arc towards the north-east.

Sunday June 18th.

 It was a wet afternoon when we headed out of Ag Konstandinos with a great team of jetlagged Kiwi’s on board, full of excitement and anticipation.  Al and Margie Clarke, Vicky Fulton, John Bridgewater, and Leslee Ross ready to explore the Sporades on our inaugural cruise.

Waiting on the wharf at Ag Konstandinos

Ag Konstandinos was a perfect place to pick up our guests, as its only an hour and half taxi ride north from the airport, and meant we were poised to head straight out to the Sporades Islands, once we’d enjoyed a traditional Greek lunch in the square.

A happy little team - Vicky, me, Al, Margie, John and Chris - Aunty Leslee taking the pic.

They came bearing gifts -Thanks Pete and Sal.  And .....

The antique ships ‘log’. Thanks guys - a beauty - now where to hang it?

Showing Leslee where we are on google map.

Captan Kosta, our Deckhand Hesham, Chris and me.

A pod of dolphins put on a welcome show for us - magic!

We anchored for the night in a little sheltered bay (Vathikelon), at the top end of the big island of Evia, so as to be on our way first thing in the morning. The excitement intensified that night as we all huddled around the TV to watch the first America’s Cup races between Team NZ and Oracle.  What a night! Go Team NZ !

Les Gals, shopping for supplies in Glifa.

We awoke to a glorious day, and after a delicious breakfast on board (of muesli, fresh fruit salad, Greek yoghurt, drizzled with honey), we set off for the fishing town of Glifa to stock up on fresh supplies. We found a delightful little coffee shop there too. The Octonogerian owner was a real character, and charmed us with his delightful compliments then sent us on our way with a large bottle of his very own olives, as a gift.

We all fit nicely into the Tender - heading back to Awanui

We motored on to a little island called Tsoungria, where Captain Kosta knew of a fabulous beach ideal for paddle boarding and swimming. It didn’t disappoint, and we stayed here for the day.  Basking in the sun and swimming in gin clear water.

Esham was looking at the rocky end of the bay longing to do some fishing.  We hadn’t thought about getting fishing equipment, as the fish are pretty small, and scarce and we are so used to the great fishing in NZ.  Esham made it quite clear that he would definitely catch us fish and octopus if he had the right gear.  We promised to shop for a spear gun and lines in Skiathos. His face lit up.

Skiathos: Known as The Greek Riviera.

Much later that afternoon we headed into the port town on Skiathos.  The most striking thing about the islands in the Sporades Group is the lushness of the pine covered hills. Interspersed with clusters of Olive groves.  The architecture of these towns is also very distinctive.   The houses are white, blue and pink with grey or terracotta slate covered cabled roofs. Quite unlike those further down in the Cyclades.  Their beautiful little balconies overflowing with bouganvilia and washing.  What a picture it was as we motored into port.

The quay was relatively quite as the season is just beginning, and Captain Kosta skillfully berthed us stern into the waterfront which is lined with bars and tavernas.  

Heading out for dinner (and shopping!)

Alan unfortunately experienced a painful pinched nerve in his shoulder, and was laid low, plied with drugs administered by Dr Margie – thank goodness for that!  whilst the rest of us headed off to explore, and to choose a taverna for dinner.  

The guys went off in search of a dive shop in the hope of buying fishing gear, while we girls discovered a great little clothing store up a winding cobbled street, and all had a fabulous time trying on linen and cotton garments – to the thrill of the very good humoured Shop owner.  She thought we were all a bit mad – excitement does that to you.  But lots of laughs later and everyone wearing the same shorts, we found the boys and headed further up the winding road to the west of the port where many tavernas hug the side of the cliff.  All with fabulous views out to the Aegean.  

Rockng the white shorts!

Back to the boat, and luckily Al was coming right. We decided he might have been too eager on swimming too far too soon.!?  Phew – disaster diverted.

Chris took Esham first thing in the morning to the fishing and dive shop, which was now open, and purchased a spear gun, lines and catch bag.

After a hearty breakfasted ashore, (we are now on the Mythos Taverna web site!) we motored to a beautiful bay called Ormos Siferi.  More paddle boarding and swimming. The clarity of the water is unbelievable.

Next minute – Esham is in the water with mask, snorkel, fins, and spear gun in hand.

I paddled over to him about 30 minutes later as I could hear him calling out, and to all our surprise he held up is catch - an octopus at the end of the spear gun which was gripping tightly around his arm.  He wore a grin from ear to ear.  Very exciting.

Hesham extracting the Octopus from the spear.

Leslee’s first encounter with an octopus.

Of course there is always a lot of preparation with octopus – much beating and washing in the sea.  And then some more beating! If the Octopus is ifresh and hasn’t been hung up to dry in the sun, you really have to stew it. Otherwise is can be BBQed.

This is how he did it :

Recipe for Octopus Stifado : with tomato and orzo

Turn the Octopus inside out and Place in a heavy based pot.

Do not put in any water yet, and cook on high. The juices come out of it and begin to stew the octopus.  After 15 mins in pan add a cup of white wine and continue to stew on high for least 40 minutes.

Add a tin of chopped tomatoes,( plus a chopped fresh tomato if you want), and a cup of orzo, and cook till orzo is tender. Approx 10 minutes.

Delicious!

[friendlyoceangiant-blog]

Red string of fate

Leave “Red String of Fate” in my inbox… To see what is in our muse’s destinies then I’ll write a drabble for it. ||No Longer Accepting||Note: I’m putting all under readmore bc length (or any other reason), numbers are on the bottom for a surprise, and i’ll make use of any AU I can to make these work. ((Geebs, this took me forever to come up with an idea for. Sorry you had to wait so long! I forgot about doing this over the hiatus OTL))

Fate, Destiny, prophecies, all sorts of ways to ringing people in to fix the messes that others can’t be bothered, or are too scared to get involved with. It was the year XXXXX whenever the oracle had prophesized children born in that year during the passing of the Salaur comet would gain unearthly ‘powers’ so to speak.

This comet was one that would visit twice every half a millennium, which equates to every 500 years. Not every child would come to have powers, however. The comet would hang in the sky for a period of a week before disappearing once more to return once more in the summer time before it would disappear into the galaxy once more. As this was the case, a good number of children would be affected by the comet’s unusual effects, and some having more aptitude for stronger powers.

It was rare, but in written history, it’s been said that some come to not possess any powers. Poor children born with no talents or skills to speak of have been forsaken by the comet and are left powerless.

With every raise of power, there will always be an equal opposite. As children were born with supernatural powers, so would evil sleeping beneath the earth. Having absorbed enough energy of the earth during the past half millennia, they would rise up once more in hopes to finally subjugate human kind.

The reason behind children gaining powers has been theorized to be because fate does not wish for the human race to be subjugated and thus grants special powers to children.

Mizumachi being one of these children who was granted powers had the mastery of mater. Some call him ‘Poseidon,’ for reasons he couldn’t quite understand, but accepted. His friend was often called ‘Trident,’ perhaps to match his name. He always thought that the name ‘Anchor’ or something would do just fine for Kakei.

A kid from a different village was known for his immense speed. He’d run so fast he needed something made to cover up his eyes. Don’t ask what his nickname was, Mizumachi didn’t bother remembering. He’s never met the guy after all.

Kakei had gone off on his own mission to subjugate the vile demons spawning in a nearby cavern. He’d left before Mizumachi because he was determined to not leave until he could convince another person he wanted to join their team.

The guy was someone that he found on his own abandoned as a kid, and he brought him home with him. The only thing they knew about him was that his name seemed to be ‘Mika’. He had two differently colored eyes and they were born days apart from each other—however, he had no powers.

This being the supposed reason he may have been abandoned by his family, if he had one still alive. Mizumachi often liked to look on the ‘bright’ side (if it could be considered bright) and suggest that they didn’t abandon him and he may have accidentally been misplaced. For all they knew, he was the only one left.

Sad to think you were thrown away, right? Since that’s the case, just come up with the theory that you weren’t thrown away, but ‘misplaced.’

The blond never could understand why anyone would want to abandon the guy. He was an angel (a nickname Mizumachi gave to Mika), wasn’t he? It was hard to think that he had a single bad bone in his body. He was gentle, generous, and just so full of happiness! Like a ray of happiness!

“Come on dude, stop struggling! You’re already here! You aren’t gonna be a burden, trust me!” Mizumachi had dragged Mika all the way to Ravern’s Trench, which housed many evil creatures. Every so often the gifted children would be tasked to ridding a good percentage of the monsters to prevent them from overtaking the town that was only 30 minutes away on foot.

Their town wasn’t too big population-wise so if they were attacked, it spelled certain doom for everyone in it.

Kakei was already fighting alongside a few other gifted children further down into the trench. Mizumachi looked around and set Mika up high in a tree on a sturdy branch with the instructions to stay there.

“Why did you bring him here? You know he can’t do anything.” A voice came from behind the blond. “Ah! Kakei! Sup, dude? I brought Mika along for moral support! As long as I see his smile, it gives me energy to keep going! He’s got that super sunshine smile, ya know? He’s not useless.”

This was something Mizumachi said often in regards to the other male. “I never said he was. Look, I understand how you feel, but It’s still too dangerous for him to be here. Take him back to town. I can hold my own for another hour.” Kakei argued, clearly disgruntled.

Mizumachi shook his index finger, making ‘tut tut tut’ sounds.

“Mika will be fine! I’ll look after him and he can fend for himself!” Mizumachi was the only one who seemed to believe in his words. Wherever Mizumachi got this idea was beyond comprehension. “Alright, let’s go!” Grabbing onto the back of Kakei’s shirt, he jumped down into the trench whilst sprouting water from the bottom of his feet as if he were riding the waves with Kakei in tow.

These two operated by Mizumachi mainly paving the way and Kakei summoning a pair of long heavy chains with anchors attached at the ends of them and slamming them into the evil creatures. See? Anchor suited him better than Trident.

It wasn’t as though Mizumachi couldn’t fight himself. He could very well flood the entire trench if he wanted to (but he won’t) and drown everything in the water aside from him. He was good friends with the water and it wouldn’t ever harm him.

When you’re in battle, your sense of time gets messed up. He didn’t know how long he was fighting the evil demons when he heard a distressed cry for help. Immediately, Kakei was on it. He was the quicker of the two when it came to maneuvering rough terrains. He was going to have to save Mika who was clutching onto the tree for dear life as he was watching his friend fight off these grotesque creatures that could make anyone feel sick to their stomach.

Mizumachi just found them really ugly playthings for him to use his powers on. These creatures were just condensed manifestations of power that had spells cast on them. They weren’t alive, and were only acting out of what task they were given, which was destroy and subjugate humans.

Focusing on fighting off the creatures while Kakei went off to defend Mika, the blond was trying to keep a good understanding of his surroundings. He had to keep good focus, but that was hard when you were worried about your friends.

Just a second, that’s all he took to look up to see whether or not Kakei had eradicated the evil creature that had somehow made it up the trench. That one moment of being distracted was all an evil hound needed to lunge at Mizumachi to tackle him down to the ground.

All the guy could hear was his name being shouted before he could feel poisonous fangs sinking into his shoulder. The pain didn’t last too long considering the anchor that came flying afterwards flew towards the hound  to throw it off and effectively kill it.

“You should know better than to be distracted! You idiot!” Kakei grabbed Mizumachi and with the help of the other gifted children nearby who cleared the area, he hoisted Mizumachi all the way up to the top of the trench, to safety.

While being dragged up the trench, Mizumachi was laughing quietly to himself. It hurt. His shoulder was full of searing pain and he felt faint. Sweat was running down his forehead like a flood. Weird, because he wasn’t activating his powers anymore.

Ahhhh… he could hear people yelling at him. Maybe some crying. He couldn’t really tell. He could only hear a loud ringing sound in his ears. “Kakei… where is Mika? Is he okay?” The poison of the evil hound was very potent and scarily effective. It was no joke to say that he would croak in the next minutes.

This was no time to be worrying about someone else right now! Of course, even if either of them told him that, he couldn’t hear them.

“Haha… ya know, Mika always thinks of himself as useless, or like… a defective person. He’s not any of that. He’s my …good friend.” His breathing was becoming more ragged and heavy. Words were coming out much breathier. Sweat still beading up and rolling down his face. His whole body was heating up. “I like him…ya know? Always …smiling and …trying to make the best out of l-life. He doesn’t know it, //cough//  b-but he’s something …really special.”

He wasn’t sure what was going on, but he felt something warm around his shoulders. Maybe someone hugging him? That might have been it. It was so warm and comforting. It had him feeling a sense of peace and calm.

“O-oi! What are you…? Is that…? Hey! Mizumachi! Are you okay?”

The strong searing pain in his shoulder was residing and the ringing in his ears was growing quieter and quieter. Was he… dead?

Blink blink.

He could see his friends around him and he could definitely feel Mika hugging him. Nope, he’s not dead! Judging by the way his shoulder looks and feels—yep, all better now. Healed up well!

“What’s going on?” Kakei was very confused by the looks of things.

“He’s got the Holy element. Really super cool and rare, right? Phew, I almost died there!” Mizumachi laughed tiredly.

“You!” Kakei smacked him upside the head, not appreciating how he was making light of this situation. If not for this ‘miracle’ he would’ve died!

This was definitely not the time to be so happy and carefree! They were still on a battleground after all. Geez this guy had no sense of danger right now! Such a bother.

“Mika has always had the Holy element. He’s really good at healing and expelling impurities. That’s why I always get so quickly after getting sick. This guy sometimes holds your hand, ya know?” Another laugh. Mika may have thought he was being slick, but Mizumachi has caught him doing so sometimes. During one of those times, he happened to notice that Mika’s hands were glowing a very bright golden color.

The element of the legends in the hands of the one people thought was an invalid. The reason no one could determine which category his ‘powers’ belonged to was because they simply overlooked the possibility he could have the ability of the legends.

A pure heart of gold, that’s what he had. He was full of warmth and love. Makes sense as to why he holds the Holy element, right?

“Since he never truly awakened his abilities everyone thought he was an invalid. That’s why I kept dragging you around you know? I thought for sure you’d awaken one day. Who knew I had to almost die to get you to awaken? Geez!”

This bothered him because each element had special criteria needed in order for them to awaken. For those who had the water element like Mizumachi, all you needed was boundless amount determination. Fire required endless amount of pride. Each element had something like that.

No one knew what the Holy element needed, but Mizumachi was sure it was either confidence, or the feeling of being accepted. He could be wrong though! That’s just a theory of his!

Maybe you gotta feel desperate? Feel brave? Fall in love?

Haha! He kids, he kids.

Anyways, what matters is that Mika awakened his powers—finally.

“Nhaa~ There was a reason I call you Angel, ya know. Now that you awakened your powers, you need to train and learn how to control it! Then you can join Kakei and I to make a unit! Gotta make sure I don’t kill myself right? Let’s save the world!”

46.) Our muses are destined to fight along side each other to save the world from the end

((Ahhhh this is the best idea that I could think of. I think having the Holy element like an angel suits lil ol’ Mika. Saving the world though, such a grand thing. Obviously super heroes and the like are the only option. I tried. Hopefully this is satisfactory. As I had to build the world, I had to go into some story building before I could get started-- thus the length.))