#Barbary dove

[sofiasfanartcollection]

Finished my painting of Hypno feeding the pigeons and doves :)

These are mainly rock pigeons, including most of the white ones, but there is a white Barbary dove, a couple mourning doves, and a diamond dove in there. Can you find them?

I think Hypno often rescues doves/pigeons (another headcanon).

The Barbary dove and diamond dove are escaped birds that wouldn’t likely survive long in the wild, so Hypno will be bringing them home with him. Some of the little white rock pigeons are domesticated and the pigeon on his right hand and pigeon on his right shoulder are escaped racing pigeons so he will keep them too. The mourning doves are wild and doing just fine. They can be pretty shy, but they feel safe around Hypno.

Here’s a sepia version for fun and some of the line work

[crestedpigeon]

SUSPICIOUS FUCKING THING

[talkingboots]

[qaftsiel]

Captain Freckles and Trudy, my lil troublemakers. Cap is probably the laziest, cuddliest cattle dog on the planet, and Trudy is a bossy yet affectionate little goblin with wings. They both like to join in on phone calls, teleconferences, and voice practice (especially voice practice), and they love sitting in the window and spying on the neighbors. Both of them are far too intelligent for their own good.

[arachnestwilight]

I'm having too much fun with coat patterns.

[acaciapines]

nano day thirteen

words today: 2150

words total: 28580

i thought i was gonna struggle to hit word count today. cannot believe i went OVER.

anyways. the most interesting thing i have to talk about is the scene i came up with :333 for :333 the big fight king and the collector have right at the end...ive always like, known the big picture stuff but oh ho ho there are some things king can throw in the collector's face that he's saying in anger that are going to cut DEEP. when i say i am excited. oh. oh i am so excited.

also. oh my god i hate writing scenes with. counting them. six?? characters?? you add their palismen and thats ELEVEN, twelve if you count francois but hes a stuffed rabbit and just Watches. wild. so so many guys are here. the collector chapters could never.

my favorite part of what i wrote today:

“The one and only!” Amber strikes a pose, but her smile falls after a moment. “Wait. Wait wait wait.” She drops King and scrambles back to Katya, and sticks a finger out at him. “How do you know we did that? Have you been watching us? Are you a spy for The Collector?” Mattholomule tenses up. Even Emira and Edric cast suspicious glances his way, and King’s fur bristles up, a growl building on his lip, to retort, to say— That he’s been playing hide and seek while The Collector trapped countless people? That he shares a room with them? That sometimes, when they’re tackling each other on the slayground, King has fun, despite rooms upon rooms of people turned into toys? That sometimes he plays with those toys, and even makes his stomach twist, he keeps doing it? King manages, “I—” Amber jumps forwards and elbows him in the chest. “Nah, I’m just joking,” she says as King grunts. “Course you aren’t! You’re the Owl Lady’s kid! Boy, I’m glad to have one of you here.” “Right,” King says, his voice faint. “Obviously.”

[hellenhighwater]

Is Larceny a collared dove? They're lovely birds; I'm friends with some local ones. How do they get on as pets?

They do look similar, but he's actually a fully domesticated Ringneck (also known as a Barbary) dove. His ash "wild" coloration does make him look more like his undomesticated cousins though!

They do make fantastic pets, depending on what you want them for. As a mated pair, Arson and Larceny are mostly wrapped up in their own little world. But if I'd gotten a single dove, that focus would be on me instead, and they can be very affectionate and friendly.

They're easy to care for and pleasant to have around. Highly recommend!

[sea-squeaker]

Okay so, instead of practicing German like I should be(I like to test duo's patience) I'm gonna rant about Luke and my hcs for him. Trust me I have tons.

Okay so first of all, for looks I have this card edit I did!!

Asmo did his nails for him, he likes to collect cute hair clips. Much like how he collects cute bandaids ingame:D

How I think his outfit works!! Okay so we all know he has wings and that once got me thinking on how exactly his outfit works with his wings. I'm not happy with just saying "it's magic ig" bcs I need a plausible answer or I'll go insane. Okay anyways, his shirt situation comes in two layers, the shirt part then the cape shoulder thing he's got going on. The shirt has a backless panel to it and is more like a sweater than a shirt, it buttons up in the back so he's able to put it on with his wings out. The shoulder thingy with the tassels is all together, minus the neck tie thing tho. I'll just leave the rest of the explaining to the diagram I tried to sketch up, I really hope it explains things well enough!!

So adding onto this ramble a lil bit, trust me it relates to Luke completely. I think the angels are like birds and do act a bit bird like. Luke has the wings of an albino barbary dove (basically just a white dove). However, due to him being a child, he's got the wings of a baby bird, so he's a lil angel nestling and I just think that's precious. Another thing on just angels, I believe that they do molt and their wings require preening by hand. Usually, juvenile angels are assisted with this by their gaurdians. So this means Simeon does help out Luke with his preening. This also means alot of cleaning around purgatory hall during molting, tons and tons of feathers!! (Luke's feathers are soft and fluffy, Simeon's feathers are longer and course) I also believe Simeon to have the wings of a mourning dove.

So for Luke's music taste, I think part of it is influenced by Simeon, the other part by Levi. Allow me to explain the Levi part. Levi introduced Luke to WonderlandxShowtimes and he most certainly got hooked. His favorite WxS songs are Becoming Potatoes and Miracle Painting, he also enjoys other energeticsongs like that. I think Simeon would like more peaceful and warm songs. Specifically the song, Welcome Home, Son by Radical Face. So yeah Luke likes those types of songs aswell. One more thing he enjoys listening to is the James and the Giant Peach musical:]

Things that Luke would watch!! I think they consist of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Bluey, Gravity Falls, and stuff like that!

Luke has a hard time sleeping without something to snuggle, he has a shiba inu plush that he sleeps with.

Luke really loves sea creatures!! I base this off of him wanting to visit the aquarium in his bday event. For his bday, Solomon got him a big encyclopedia on sea creatures and he was jumping with joy. He proceeded to not read a single other thing until he finished the sea creature book. His favorite sea creatures are blacktip reef sharks, moon jellyfish, sea angels, sea squirts, and sea bunnies:D

When Luke is very happy, he can often be seen jumping up and down, flapping his hands, bouncing on his toes, kicking his feet, etc. He is quite anxious when he can't find Simeon or is waiting for him to come back. He's like a dog waiting for his owner to come back from the grocery store in a way.

Thank you very much for reading these!! Have a Luke doodle:D

[diceriadelluntore]

Doni Magici

Dei magi d'Oriente arrivarono a Gerusalemme, dicendo: «Dov'è il re dei Giudei che è nato? Poiché noi abbiamo visto la sua stella in Oriente e siamo venuti per adorarlo» (Vangelo secondo Matteo, 2,1-2)

Questo di Matteo è il solo vangelo canonico che ne parla. Molto di più nei cosiddetti vangeli Apocrifi. Una tradizione successiva ci dice che erano tre (sulla base dei tre doni portati, oro, incenso e mirra) e si chiamavano Melchiorre, Baldassarre e Gaspare, la fonte più antica a dirlo è Excerpta Latina Barbari del 527–539 d.C. Nel tardo medioevo si ritenne che fossero oltre che sapienti anche dei re, venuti simbolicamente a rendere omaggio al bambino Gesù dalle tre parti del mondo allora conosciuto: Asia, Europa e Africa. Per questo motivo nelle raffigurazioni artistiche uno dei magi a volte è raffigurato con la pelle scura. Secondo la simbologia bizantina spesso sono raffigurati come le tre età dell'uomo: il giovane, l'uomo maturo e l'anziano. Una delle raffigurazioni più famose è il mosaico di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo a Ravenna, che ho rivisto a Marzo 2023, dove i Magi hanno il cappello frigio, a indicare il loro essere "orientali", con i nomi

Famosi erano i doni che portavano:

l'oro, simbolo della regalità e del potere;

l'incenso, simbolo del divino e della purificazione;

la mirra, che veniva usata nelle imbalsamazioni, è simbolo della cura e della carità.

[burntambrosias]

"The raven crows, flings the water from its feathers and lifts its body into the air with a powerful beat of its great wings. For a moment, it takes the shape of something nearly holy; he can imagine this creature as the bird Apollo sent to spy on his lover Coronis, all pearly feathers obscured from the sun’s light, the scorched black cousin of the barbary dove."

---

hiiii this is a little snippet of a (wolfstar) life is strange au i've been rolling around in my head for a while. i'm a bit nervous to post this because i don't consider myself the best writer, but,,, here we are.

[libero-de-mente]

Il cuore di un cane

Sono quelli che in fondo sanno capire di più, eppure credo che nel loro cuore non capiscono proprio, mentre coloro che avevano fatto credere loro di amarli se ne vanno via. Ho sentito dire da alcune persone che gli animali non hanno anima, solo chi crede in Dio ha un'anima. Che immensa castroneria, un'arroganza che da millenni ci arroghiamo come verità assoluta. Comincio a comprendere alcuni membri della mia razza, quella umana, sul perché compiono gesti crudeli e privi di pietà e amore; il loro cervello agisce solo secondo le loro esigenze primarie di comodità, facendo diventare un problema di cui sbarazzarsi tutto ciò che alla fine chiede comunque un minimo d'impegno. A costo di liberarsi di chi non è più gradito. Le persone giuste non si sbarazzano di anime innocenti che vivono della loro presenza, del loro calore. Perché solo questo chiedono, amore e ristoro dando in cambio amore incondizionato e vicinanza. Anche quando le cose non ci vanno bene nella nostra vita. Odio le persone che se ne vanno, lasciando dietro di loro degli occhi smarriti che non comprendono quel gesto. Sono convinto che fino all'ultimo sperano che quello, o quelli, che ritengono la loro famiglia torni indietro Per sentirsi ancora di più coccolati. Agiscono con chi non ha fatto niente di male a loro, abbandonando e fuggendo da perfetti codardi Senza rimorsi, senza pensieri. Dovrebbero estinguersi certe persone, se abbandonano così anime pure e istintive chissà dove possono spingersi con i loro simili, molto più complicati. Abbandonare un cane, o un gatto, è un gesto di autolesionismo perché alla fine abbandoniamo chi può farci sentire bene. Gli animali non sono bestie, bestie lo sono quelli brutali e barbari. Quelli che se ne vanno accelerando sulle loro auto, mentre degli occhi increduli li guardano, mentre la loro anima soffre. Un essere vivente fedele lo sarà per sempre. Per tutta la loro vita essi non abbandoneranno mai nessuno. Nessuno.

[pippinoftheshire]

Just As a Prelude...

While I am working on my new UNCLE wingfic, I thought that I might as well make it clear on my choice of wings beforehand lol, so here we are:

-----------

Napoleon Solo: Great Tailed Grackle

I could not resist the feathers <3 They were too gorgeous and exactly what I had in mind for dear Solo :)

-----------

Illya Kuryakin: Barbary Dove

Someone actually suggested this to me a while ago, and I felt that it was perfect <3 The neutral tones feel right for Illya, seeing as he isn't a showy kind of person. And of course... we all know he's a big softie on the inside, so FLUFFY FEATHERS!!!!

<3

[crossroad1960]

Non vorrei vi fosse sfuggita la notizia: domenica un ragazzo (22 anni) del Gambia si è impiccato nel Centro di permanenza di Ponte Galeria, Roma. Era arrivato in Italia a ottobre per provvedere ai due fratelli più piccoli, ed era stato rinchiuso nel Centro di Trapani. Poi, da qualche giorno, trasferito a Ponte Galeria. Quando aveva capito che non c’era speranza di lavorare né via d’uscita, il ragazzo aveva chiesto di rimpatriare. Sennò i miei fratelli muoiono di fame, aveva detto. Ma qui, dove si spende la più tronfia retorica securitaria, non siamo in grado di rimandare indietro nemmeno chi indietro ci vuole tornare, figuriamoci chi non vuole. Per la disperazione il ragazzo s’è ammazzato.

Li chiamiamo Centri di permanenza ma sono campi di detenzione, e uso un lessico prudente. In Italia ce ne sono dieci e quello di Milano è sotto sequestro perché alla fine dello scorso anno ci è entrato un pubblico ministero con un medico e la Guardia di finanza e ha trovato cibo avariato e nauseabondo, spazzatura ed escrementi ovunque, malati oncologici o psichiatrici, affetti da epilessia o epatite, privati di assistenza e cure. «Lì dentro c’erano cinquanta zombie», ha detto il pm. In altri casi sono stati trovati servizi igienici senz’acqua, detenuti imbottiti di Rivotril, chiusi in gabbie, gonfi di botte, ridotti a pelle e ossa. È così da anni, ci sia al governo la destra o la sinistra. Domenica, dopo che il ragazzo s’è impiccato, nel Centro è scoppiata una rivolta e in quattordici sono stati arrestati. Forse in prigione andranno a stare meglio. Ma è un paese straordinario quello in cui va in prigione chi si ribella alla barbarie. (Mattia Feltri)

[mchiti]

Per paura di essere tacciati di antisemitismo si sta sempre zitti ma vi posso dire con tutta onestà che sono veramente piena della Comunità Ebraica di Milano. Che il suo capo oggi venga a tacciare Ghali di antisemitismo invocando l'intervento del governo per una strofa non può stupirmi, perché è solo una delle miriade di cose che mi danno un fastidio profondo da italomarocchina che vive a Milano.

Mi infastidisce quando non abbiamo ancora una Moschea ufficiale, riconosciuta, uno spazio degno di questo nome, e dobbiamo risolverla con scantinati/garage/spazi in affitto. Ora è in programma l'apertura della prima Moschea dopo un progetto durato decenni e bocciato da amministrazioni comunali di destra e di sinistra. E ogni volta, ogni cavolo di volta si interpellava il capo della Comunità Ebraica di Milano. Cosa c'entra, non si sa, ma era necessario avere il loro beneplacito, il sentirsi dire "siamo per la libertà di culto, sì alla Moschea, basta che non diventi luoghi dove si fomenta odio" siamo per la libertà di culto ... scusate ma chi siete la costituzione italiana? Ma letteralmente chi cazzo siete? Perché dovremmo aver bisogno del vostro assenso?

A ogni Ramadan trovano sempre il modo di rovinare il momento con qualche polemica, si organizzano festival palestinesi e/o di cultura araba e devono controllare come se fossero un corpo di polizia speciale che tutto sia secondo le loro regole.

Esercitano, sulla comunità musulmana, un vero e proprio softpower, a volte neanche tanto soft. Costantemente, partendo dal presupposto che i primi ad essere difesi (non si sa da chi o da cosa) devono essere loro, i primi ad essere interpellati loro, loro prendono le decisioni sugli equilibri socio-religiosi... la verità è che ci vedono come una massa non identificata di barbari.

[saffronscales]

dovewing based off a Barbary dove

[gaygryffindorgal]

A Christmas Prince; The Royal Wedding

Chapter 2: Krampus

Summary: Dawn faces difficulties with his new wedding designer while tensions boil in Alderly. The family's Christmas get-together is interrupted by a surprising visitor...

Words: 2.5k

Characters:

Dawn Harvelle and Rosa Yaxley @potionboy3

Quincey, Olympia, and Isabella Alderly

Pandora Lovelace and Lainey Bell by @gcldensnitch

Rocky Weasley by @magicallymalted

Beginning | Next Chapter

Want to read the first fic in the series, A Christmas Prince? Click here!

Chapter 2: Krampus 

“We have many preparations to do and very little time,” Rosa Yaxley said, flipping a white board showing several sketches from flower bouquets to table settings, and photographs of what Dawn assumed, were traditional Alderlian wedding attire.  

“Uh…” Dawn started but was silenced by a stern look from Pince. 

“The Bavarian orchestra will start precisely at your entrance with the release of the Barbary doves.” Rosa explained, producing a pointer stick from somewhere and demonstrating all the items she mentioned. “South African wildflowers will adorn your path down the aisle.” 

“Oh…” Dawn uttered. When the queen had said that Dawn would have a say, he hadn’t realized she had meant that she and Miss Yaxley had already planned everything and that he would just have to sit here and nod dutifully. 

Rosa continued: “I mean, you won't, and I mean it, you won't be able to take a step without a Namaqualand daisy between the floor and your shoes.” 

Dawn was beginning to really see that she didn’t particularly want to be in this position. He wondered if the queen had made her, as a punishment for her transgressions last year. 

“Hmm…” he simply said. 

“There will be a roast pig from each of Alderly's seven provinces. Montrachet Grand Cru will be in every goblet,” Rosa went on. “But of greatest importance... Is your outfit.” 

“Is that what those are for?” Dawn asked, vaguely motioning towards the pictures of clothes. The designs looked like somewhere between a mix of Bavarian and Slovenian folk clothing with something distinctly… Christmassy about them. 

“Is it customary to wear traditional dress to weddings?” 

“Not for at least a hundred years but the queen felt that it was important to show how committed to our culture and traditions you are.” 

“The queen… look,” Dawn started, and went on despite Pince’s warning glances. “I am committed. I’ve never been this committed to a goddamn thing in my entire life, but I feel like this might not go over well with the… well you know, the public.” 

“Whyever not?” Pince chimed in. 

“Well, I am a foreigner and maybe they will want to see me actually participate in their culture before taking on its symbols?” Dawn posited it as a question, but it really wasn’t. “Especially when this is just a publicity stunt, and I didn’t even pick the outfit.” 

Rosa bit her lip but Pince went on: “Nonsense, of course you will wear the traditional costume.” 

“I was really hoping that I could wear something… simple, something that’s a little more me.” 

“What?” asked Pince. 

“I mean these outfits are beautiful,” Dawn continued. “But I don’t want to play a part for my own wedding. Maybe I could wear one of these a year from now to an event where they’re actually worn in still?” 

“I don’t think you understand the sort of situation we’re in,” Pince said. “Half the country is in an uproar because we haven’t seen this kind of financial hardships since the war, not to mention their monarch is pretty much going against every strong held value they’ve been instilled with since birth.” 

“I sympathize with the depression, not so much with the homophobia,” said Dawn and noticed Rosa just barely concealing a chuckle. Maybe Dawn stood a chance after all. 

~ 

“This protocol is driving me crazy. It's like Bridezilla in reverse,” Dawn complained later in a video call to Rocky and Pandora. 

“Forgive me if I don't ooze sympathy from the night security desk of Noodle Chalet's corporate office,” said Rocky. Ever since the downfall of Beat Now, Rocky had been a security guard at Noodle Chalet, and it wasn’t lost on Dawn how his problems might probably seem somewhat quaint. 

“Hey, at least you've got a job,” Pandora chimed in. “I've been living with my parents for the last three months.” 

“Well, that’s tragic,” said Rocky. 

“Yeah, ever since Now Beat shut down.” 

“Now Beat?” asked Dawn. “It was Beat Now.” 

Dawn was happy he was no longer working for Kerry Crouch, but he couldn’t help but miss having a normal job and normal problems. Especially with Irma Pince breathing down his neck at every turn. 

“Whatever,” said Pandora with a shrug. “It’s gone now.” 

“But Dawn, you’re having some royal pains?” asked Rocky. 

Dawn chuckled. It was a pain just to be one, it seemed. “Well yeah, but I mean…”  

“Have you talked to Quincey about any of this?” Pandora cut in. 

“I haven’t seen him today.” 

“They know how to keep a king busy,” Rocky said. 

Dawn knew things were going to be busy, but he truly felt alone in the castle. He wasn’t even allowed to spend time with Tess and his dad, or at least not as much as he would have preferred. He was a little bit worried that this was how the rest of his life was going to look. Just protocol and event after event with only small respites in-between to actually hang out with his husband-to-be. He’d next be seeing Quincey when they all headed to town for his speech, and he didn’t expect there to be a lot of time for chit-chat. 

“Just hurry up and get here already,” he said. 

“Counting down the seconds, mate,” Pandora said. 

~ 

Rosa had left Dawn with a folder full of designs for the wedding. Dawn flipped through it, examining the plans with growing dread. This whole ordeal didn’t feel at all like a wedding he would want for himself. Not that he had ever thought about getting married before this past year. He almost wished he and Quincey had just eloped. He’d rather have Elvis marry them in Vegas than whatever this was shaping up to be. Dawn slammed the folder shut and let it fall on the bed. He was going to have to complain to someone who would understand, or he’d end up committing arson. Or worse. 

~ 

When Dawn went looking for Olympia later, he found her in the middle of an argument with her mother, the queen. 

“You must understand that his whole thing is frivolous,” Isabella was saying. 

“Well mother, it’s important to me so I don’t particularly care.” 

“This is about the image we portray to the world,” Isabella tried. “A princess can’t be an actress.” 

“I was in many plays as a child.” 

“That was different.” 

“This is for a good cause.” 

“It doesn’t matter. You know what kind of situation we’re in with your past actions and your brother’s life choices.” 

“It’s not a life choice.” 

Isabella sighed. “You know what I meant.” 

“No, I don’t, and I’m also doing the play, I don’t care what you think.” 

“Don’t you speak to me with that tone, young lady.” 

Dawn, suddenly realizing he was quite rudely eavesdropping, stepped into the room, fully pretending as if he hadn’t been listening. “Oh, hello Your Majesty, Your Highness.” 

“Dawn, great timing, mother was just about to wring my neck,” said Olympia. 

“Olympia–,” the queen attempted. 

“I have to talk to you Dawn, if you don’t mind,” Olympia said and walked up to Dawn, grabbing his arm. “Preferably somewhere away from her…” 

“Alright…” said Dawn, casting an apologetic glance at Queen Isabella. They had their differences, but Dawn was determined to get along with his mother-in-law.  

~ 

Olympia led him to a smaller room, let go of his arm and dramatically fell into one of the priceless antique armchairs. 

“What was that about?” Dawn asked. 

“She thinks it’s common to do the play.” 

“Oh, of course she does.” 

“But I’m still going to do it,” Olympia continued. “I can’t wait for you to see it, it’s kind of like an arthouse reimagining.” 

“Oh, wow, alright,” said Dawn.  

“You could come see the dress rehearsal?” 

“If I can get away from my own dress rehearsals…”  

“Right, how’s that going, anyway?” Olympia asked and sat up straight. She had messed up her hair, slumping onto the chair. 

“Well… It’s going.” 

“You let me know if you need any help.” 

Dawn knew he needed all the help he could get, but after hearing the conversation between Olympia and the queen, he wasn’t sure it was the best idea to rope Olympia into it. 

“I’ll keep that in mind, thank you, O.” 

~ 

That afternoon, the royal retinue made its way to town. Quincey’s speech took place in front of Alderly’s House of Parliament and the square in front of it was packed. Aside from the adoring crowd, though, there was a smaller but no less attention-grabbing group of protesters behind them. Dawn, ever the journalist, kept an eye on them. They were holding signs proclaiming the bad financial situation in the country and demanding to be paid or get their jobs back. Miss Pince, standing next to Dawn, was glaring at the crowd with hostility, when Quincey took to the podium. While many cheered, waving Alderlian flags, the protesters booed. Dawn shifted his weight from one foot to another uncomfortably. 

“Behind me stands an enduring symbol of Alderly's historical strength. Before me, and all of us, lies our current revitalization project, a symbol of Alderly's shining future,” Quincey started. From Pince’s sudden shift in posture, Dawn deduced that the speech was written by her.  

“For crops to flourish, rain must fall. Likewise, today's temporary hardships will soon spur on a bountiful future for all.” 

Amongst the cheers, Dawn heard someone shout out: “What about our jobs?” 

“The country's going broke!” 

“Shame on the king!” 

Security had to step in to rein in the protesters. Quincey couldn’t have missed the incident, but he continued like he had, as Dawn was sure he had been instructed to do. 

“A new Alderlian chapter is about to begin. And I'm honoured and excited to share that journey with each and every one of you. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.” 

~ 

After Quincey got off the stage, Lainey offered him a bottle of water. 

“Thank you.” 

“That went… alright,” she said. At least she was honest.

“I feel like a total fraud reading out that propaganda,” Quincey said with a sigh. 

“Your ideas make perfect sense,” said Lainey. “I just don't understand why they're not working.” 

“Neither do I.” 

Dawn, pained by Quincey’s tired and slightly pathetic expression and sick of not knowing the details of this initiative, piped in: “When numbers don't add up, there's usually a reason.” 

Quiney and Lainey turned to him, and Dawn continued: “I’m going to be prince consort, I want to contribute, that’s why I’m coming to the meeting tomorrow.”  

“The queen said you would be exceedingly busy with wedding preparations so you wouldn’t be able to make it,” said Lainey. 

Dawn and Quincey exchanged looks and said almost in unison: “What?” 

“We should be doing everything we can to help the kingdom, right?” Dawn asked. 

“Absolutely.” 

“Maybe there should be a revitalization effort to bring the royal family into the 21st century, too…” 

That’s when Pince came back, saying: “An excellent speech, Your Majesty. Now I need you to come meet the press with your most confident smiles…” 

~ 

After returning to the palace, Dawn, Quincey, and Olympia had tea with the queen. It was an exceedingly uncomfortable hour to top off an exceedingly uncomfortable event. 

“The press office assures me your speech today will do a world of good,” said Isabella from across the table. 

“Less than a year into my reign,” Quincey started. “I feel like I'm running the kingdom into the ground.” 

“Oh, you put much too much pressure on yourself.” 

“It's my initiative, mother.” 

“Quentin,” said the queen. “As you know, your father first proposed the need for such a program, but I oversaw the implementation, with the country’s full backing.” 

“Yes, but…” 

“Economic fluctuation is a fact of life,” Isabella stated and set her teacup back on its settee. 

“Yes, but I can't help but feel father would be disappointed.” 

“Oh, nonsense! You mustn't let this put a strain on the season. Or the wedding,” said Isabella and turned her attention to Dawn. “I hear the stress has been getting to you.” 

Olympia took a deep breath and said: “Can we not have a single conversation without it being observed and reported?” 

“Darling,” said the queen, laying a hand on her daughter's arm. Olympia withdrew, annoyed. “I just want all of you to be happy.” 

“Well, it would help if you stopped meddling into our business,” Olympia suggested, clearly running out of patience. “We’re all adults here, after all.” 

Isabella sighed. “I’ve decided to resume my active role in the governing of this country. In particular to help with the financial difficulties.” 

“What?” asked Olympia. Quincey didn’t say anything and had an unreadable expression on his face. Dawn still felt too out of the loop with the country’s goings-on to say anything. 

“But you seemed happy to retire?” argued Olympia. 

“Only because I found it too difficult to go on without your father,” Isabella explained. 

“Mother…” Quincey finally spoke up. “Thank you.” 

~ 

That evening, everyone gathered together to decorate Queen Isabella’s Christmas tree. Dawn and Quincey’s families all sitting together in the same room gave Dawn some kind of whiplash. He never imagined this would be his life. While Tess and Olympia chose matching baubles, Dawn sat next to Quincey on the couch closest to the fireplace and took his hand. Ever since the speech, he’d been in low spirits and Dawn couldn’t exactly blame him. 

“Hi,” he said. 

“Hi,” replied Quincey. “I feel like I should apologize.” 

“For what?” asked Dawn. 

“For making you feel left out.” 

“Am I feeling left out?” asked Dawn, incredulously. 

“Are you?” 

“Well, a little.” 

“The pressures I'm facing as king are no excuse. Can you forgive me?” 

“I really would like to help.” 

Quincey smiled and squeezed Dawn’s hand. “Mother’s help will come in handy; she has a few decades of experience on this front.” 

“Then I’m glad she’s decided to postpone her retirement.” 

Dawn wasn’t exactly sure if he was glad but if the queen’s involvement would help Quincey’s workload, then it wouldn’t be all bad. He wished he could be more of use and that he would have already started his studies in political science. He had applied immediately after realizing he was going to actually have to do some governing, but he’d been advised to postpone his enrollment by a year. He’d done a semester of it already in university during his second year, so he wasn’t a complete beginner but now he was determined to get a Master’s. He had had fun writing his blog this past year, but he wanted to do something that could do some actual good in the world. 

 Suddenly a palace aide entered the room, looking quite disheveled.  

“Your Majesties, you have a guest,” he said. 

“Whoever could it be?” wondered the queen out loud. Dawn thought it must be Krampus because who else would it be showing up to the palace and causing a ruckus at this hour.

“Oh? Send them in,” instructed Quincey and got up.

After a few moments, a man entered the room. A very familiar man whom Dawn had been looking forward to never seeing again.  

“Evander,” said Olympia venomously. “What are you doing here?”  

Krampus indeed. 

tag list: @lifeofkaze, @gcldensnitch, @endlessly-cursed, @cursed-herbalist, @magicallymalted

(ask if you want to be included or removed)