#Emma reaches level 20

[darklinaforever]

Just because Emma D'Arcy says Daemyra is grooming doesn't mean that's the case. The actor, in the same interview, was literally wrong about Rhaenyra's age in episode 4.

Emma D'Arcy is an imperfect human being who can say stupid things. Especially today, many people use big words without knowing their real definitions.

I will add that even if Emma was talking about grooming, they did not agree and still did not find the scene where Daemon strangled Rhaenyra coherent, and rightly this time. Emma also said that they reads Daemyra fanfiction. So that basically means that they ship despite the problematic aspect. I wouldn't call it a victory for the antis.

Essentially, Emma D'Arcy seems neutral on Daemyra.

Also, Emma D'Arcy is an actor, paying to say certain things in interviews. Who's to say they's not just following the writers' stupid agenda ?

Then, I have already explained countless times that no, Daemon is not a groomer, notably in these posts, where I have also for some addressed the case of Emma D'Arcy and they grooming statements :

Moreover, even if the writers seem obsessed with a non-existent story of grooming between Daemyra, they do not seem to deny that it is a romance either. These people, and even HBO, obviously still have their ass between two chairs :

I will add that no, Daemon is not a pedophile either. Go to @nrilliree to get the definition because I'm clearly too lazy to explain again :

Especially since if you give me the example of the young prostitutes (which the antis also love to pass off as younger than they probably realistically are, like under 13 years old, just to make it really disgusting) when Daemon was in his 20s, know that they were all maidens.

“Maidens” is a term they use to refer to young unmarried women. In brothels these maidens were most likely between 15 and 17 or higher do to the lack of nutrition of the peasants. A bad nutrition causes someone's period to come later.

So no, they weren't little girls. This was for the time of young women literally according to society's of Westeros marriageable age.

The worst you can say about this case of prostitutes is that Daemon had a fetish for virgin maiden for a period in his younger years. (And even if it's obviously not great, I'm not sure #irony that we can put it on the same level as a groomer, a pedophile and a rapist... Yes I'm making an insituation in Aegon II for the last 2 points. We're getting there...)

Aside from that, Daemon was in a relationship with his then favorite, Mysaria, an adult, he also married Laena later, also an adult, and also married Rhaenyra when she was an adult (all according to our modern standards), although yes, he courted her when she was 14. But I remember that Rhaenyra had reached the age where she could marry and had already been courted by men. It's not surprising in the context that Daemon courted her. Especially since there is no evidence that anything sexual happened between them at that time. (One talking about sex is Mushroom, and we know to what extent he is obsessed with it and therefore that his testimony is almost worthless, and the second is Eustace, pro greens. And I remind you that the greens were already making up bullshit on Rhaenyra's sexuality before Daemon's return)

Basically, Daemon has always slept with maiden, and always of varying ages. (which is completely wrong with the definition of pedophile)

Limit, you can talk about ephebophile, but as @nrilliree already said, there is no evidence on this subject, especially since Daemon has also been with adult women several times (Mysaria for a little more than 1 year, Laena for 5 years, and Rhaenyra for 10 years), and this by our own standards modern.

Also, what makes me laugh is that these same people who will claim that Daemon only likes young girls who are essentially minors according to our time (because obviously they will look at age only according to our time, which is an error given that the historical context of this universe is completely different from ours, but in short), claiming that Daemon only married Rhaenyra for power and striving to say that Laena was 15 / 16 years old like in the HOTD show when he married her, while no, she was 22 in Fire and Blood. Well these same people will come and tell you and claim that Daemon did cheat on Rhaenyra with Mysaria, in addition to Nettles, during the dance.

An event whose veracity we also cannot prove and which seems somewhat strange when we take a closer look (so you will guess that I don't particularly believe in it either). See @horizon-verizon posts for that.

Why do I say it's funny ?

Well because Mysaria is an adult woman, much older than Rhaenyra and Laena.

But tell me... if Daemon is so obsessed with underage girls... why would he have slept with a former lover of his, who was already an adult at the time, and even older at this point there ?

We see that what really interests them is more to say bad things about Daemon whoever he is, rather than having any real consistency in their comments and accusations. (And if anyone dares to say that Daemon was sleeping with Mysaria to ensure he got her on his side... wtf ? Rhaenyra is the queen. She pays Mysaria and assures her safety. Why would sex with Daemon be the only way for Mysaria to ensure her loyalty to the team Blacks ? She literally hasn't seen Daemon in over 20 years I think. What would she care about him sexually or otherwise at this point, except perhaps for personal revenge ? And then, if Daemon really was with Mysaria to ensure her loyalty to his side... Well he's a bit much of an idiot if he really slept with Nettles after that. These people love to say that Daemon is a great master manipulator who places his pawns well in advance, especially when it comes to women, except that... Daemon does not seem to have been very intelligent if we follow this belief that I have already seen among antis, which is once again inconsistent with the speech Daemon was a master manipulator of women... I mean, according to their point of view, Daemon knew how to pretend for 10 years with Rhaenyra. Why couldn't he have lasted longer to play the charade with Mysaria ? Once again, the consistency of their words does not interest the antis. They only care about saying bad things about Daemon !)

And don't come for talk to me about Nettles, because I've already made some rather long posts on the subject, go see them if you want :

As well as I highly recommend the extremely in-depth analyzes of @horizon-verizon.

Basically, the story with Nettles could never be proven, and I personally don't believe it.

On the other hand, Aegon II is a character who could be described as a pedophile (by Westeros standards and ours) in Fire and Blood, having been with a girl (= child for Westeros. There is no adolescence in this society. Only childhood and adulthood. As a girl and not a maiden, a woman having her period and therefore marriageable, the individual with whom Aegon II was therefore indeed a child), and not a maiden, from precisely 11 / 12... And he's being also reported as having several inappropriate behaviors / touching towards women, strongly insinuating that he is a rapist (by the own maesters being on his side). And no, Eustace never denied the girl's age, and continued even though he referred to her as girl and tried to downplay the scandalous event.

And why am I talking about Aegon II fans ?

Because it's systematically them who come to me to tell me the bullshit about Daemon being a groomer and a pedophile while sometimes maintaining that their little favorite is not a rapist, and a potential pedophile.

Which is still pretty damn cheeky...

[hndrk]

Twenty-Three of '23

I have been varying levels of ill for pretty much the entire second half of 2023, so in a surprising turn of events a year that had my Blur boys release a fantastic new album plus me seeing them live at Wembley Stadium will still have to be classified as "yeah, this sucked". Here's hoping that 2024 is going to be better for all of us… well, at least on a personal level.

MY FAVOURITE SONGS OF 2023

1. The National, "New Order T-Shirt" 2. Wanda, "Bei niemand anders" 3. Blur, "The Everglades" 4. Romy, "Weightless" 5. Indigo De Souza, "Younger & Dumber" 6. Avalon Emerson, "Astrology Poisoning" 7. Sufjan Stevens, "Will Anybody Ever Love Me?" 8. Gorillaz, "Silent Running" 9. Middle Kids, "Bootleg Firecracker" 10. Sparklehorse, "Evening Star Supercharger" 11. Nicolas Britell, "Andante Risoluto (Succession OST)" 12. NewJeans, "OMG" 13. Caroline Polacheck, "I Believe" 14. Eddy de Pretto, "LOVE'n'TENDRESSE" 15. Casper, "emma" 16. The Blaze, "BLOOM" 17. Rosalía, "LLYLM" 18. Teleman, "Trees Grow High" 19. Lana del Rey, "Margaret" 20. (G)I-DLE, "I DO" 21. Pol Granch, "tiroteAo" 22. Zara Larsson, "Memory Lane" 23. Al Costelloe, "Badmouth"

Bonus track:

The National, “Hornets”

///

MY FAVOURITE ALBUMS OF 2023

1. Blur, The Ballad of Darren 2. Sufjan Stevens, Javelin 3. Sofia Kourtesis, Madres 4. The Blaze, JUNGLE 5. Lana del Rey, Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd 6. Gorillaz, Cracker Island 7. Avalon Emerson, & the Charm 8. Caroline Polacheck, Desire, I Want to Turn Into You 9. Olivia Rodrigo, GUTS 10. DJ Sabrina The Teenage DJ, Destiny

///

You in a bath on the phone, tellin' somebody That maybe they're better off leavin' Than stayin' in it alone When you cried at the beach and recovered in seconds And said, "Everything's fine," but I knew that it wasn't Then you stayed out of reach of me for almost a year I keep what I can of you Split-second glimpses and snapshots and sounds You in my New Order t-shirt Holdin' a cat and a glass of beer I flicker through I carry them with me like drugs in a pocket

///

PERSONAL YEAR IN REVIEW

"Do you guys ever think about dying?" 2.0

[avaelangel]

Thoughts on Laura & Max.

Hiya, cubs!

Important disclaimer: you may think what you think. If you don't like this couple, you have a right to it. It just my thoughts and I need to spill 'em.

So, I think Laura & Max are a pretty good match.

You definitely can catch the vibe of ''over-ambitious girlfriend dragging her doofus boyfriend along'', but in my opinion, it's very surface-level.

Let's talk about Max, since we saw less of him.

The website and fan-wiki describe him as lacking ambition, airhead, class-clown, but also friendly and loyal. I really do think he would be more content working or having his own repair-shop or something near Laura's college and it doesn't make him any less of a great guy. He clearly loves Laura and believes in her.

And let's be clear, he's so dorky. Him trying to scare Travis when sheriff's the one in the cell? So stupid. But he's okay wearing Laura's clothes and i take it as him being completely okay with his sexuality. That means we get another Ryan\Dylan stan, folks. He's not a full golden retriever, he get's annoyed with Laura, but still, doesn't like fighting. He also keeps his emotions and failures deep down, untill he forgets about them, maybe or they just come out. I think he hid the rejection letter because he's afraid to loose Laura.

There is also his quickness to give up. He does try to lighten up the situation first, but he does come to a conclusion that they gonna be stuck in the jail forever. Prone to depression? Maybe, he's not so upset about grad school itself, because college took a huge toll on him.

Let's speculate on the past a bit. They kind of seem like if they were together at school, Max would be bullied and some point Laura would fend off his or their bullies. Laura is not only hardheaded, she generally seems meaner than Max. Sister of multiple brothers\daughter of a strict\toxic parents and an only child of an over-bearing mother?

She cuts him off and corrects him during Chapter 7. But I feel like he have done it too, but in a different sence. Maybe, when she's being too mean in a group setting? Over selling a crude joke to its fullest extent? Play-fighting too hard? She does go full monster-hunter in two months, because she's so fed up with everything and just wants to help her boyfriend. She must know how to shoot and there's nothing wrong in winning plushies for your boyfriend.

They are very comfortable with each other. I don't really think that they were each other's firsts, but it does seem that they've been together for at least like a couple of years. College sweethearts? You can't deny that Max's rejection letter is from a graduate program. Laura, in my opinion, must be a biology major or something, and she would go to a vet school. She very much can be CPR-certified or something like that. Also, don't qoute me on that, not American. Maybe, they both didn't find the college scene amusing and just vibed together. It's sounds super nice, actualy.

I'm gonna go as far as saying that their families might not understand them to the extent they need. So, they just exept each other as much as possible and love each other very much. There might be a way to reunite them, when they both have blood on their hands. Story-wise, it's great both ways. Either way, they are tied together, issues or not. So. Much. Potential.

Considering everything, especially their (alleged) age being in early 20s, Laura and Max would be the most functional couple at camp. Max for sure would get along with everyone, when Laura might spook people like Abi, Nick or Jacob a bit. Kaitlyn or Ryan would take to her attitude a bit better, I think. We might not even have Jacob\Emma drama in the world where Laura & Max reached the camp in time. And just imagine kids crushing on them both, that would be so funny. Ten year olds trying to challenge Max for Laura? Or girls saying that Laura is too old for Max? I kinda hate kids while thinking about it, but it would make for a funny story.

In conclusion, they just seems as nice couple that doesn't really need to be broken up. So much was left to the fandom's imagination, everything can happen, but still. As Siobhan said in an interview, their backstory isn't set in stone. Do what you will!

I also might be a tad obsessive or...a good writer? I don't know. I just need to rid myself of a lot of Quarry speculation, but I someone enjoys reading my weird shi..stuff.

[ericleo108]

CosmicLuve.com April 2023 - Sun

Necessary prerequisite posts:

Sentientism 2022

Cosmic Love Feb 2020 - Emma Watson

Cosmic Love April 2022: Cary Charlotte or Mary

Cosmic Luve Aug 2022 - Coast

Cosmic Luve Sept 2022 - Hope

Intro

This post is a vindication or confirming post. It basically follows up on the semantics explained in the “Aug 2022 Coast” and especially “Sept 2022 Hope” posts. You won’t understand this post or it’s significance unless you understand the theory and journaled experience in this cosmic luve series.

The basic theory of cosmic luve is that the planet earth (and stars are or) is conscious due to her magnetism, is telepathic and molds eugenics and influences evolution by affecting mate behavior through cognition. The premise of this argument, that the earth is conscious due to magnetism, and the story of how I reached that conclusion, is outlined in my book “108 The Story of Discovering Earth’s Consciousness.”

Coincidences

These are the coincidences that are related to the previous posts (especially Sept 2022 Hope) in a summarized tweet. Hailee came out with “sunkissing” which I feel is a response to my Hope blog post. In the Hope blog post, I make a big deal of the semantics of the sun and even have a poem inspired by the sun.

Then I saw Emma’s new picture blocking out the sun with her hand and I immediately thought of “Sunkissing.” I knew all that and didn’t decide to make this post until I saw that Hailee has new IG story pictures that are by an Emma. As a cherry on top Hailee is in yellow in one of the photos.    

As a little update on my work. “Back to Life,” my song inspired by Hailee comes out November 3rd 2023 and is a response to Hailee’s work. My song “Earth” is kind of a response to sun kissing that I’ve had written before even coast, it still has to be produced. It will come out later this year. Cosmic Luve Brownies which is inspired by Taylor Swift and whose cosmic luve story can be read in the Oct 2022 Folklore post, comes out on December 13th 2023. I’m gonna remake the songs from “The Chalice Mixtape.” I already remade “Talk To Me” and “John Wick” is uploaded and comes out May 26th 2023. I’m definitely remaking “Charlottes Web.”

Marcus

Leaving off where I left in Sept 2022 Hope on trying to get help and find Marcus Lemonis. I sent Marcus a dm a couple weeks before, then on April 13th 2023 I took a trip to Chicago to try to find Marcus. I went to Camping World headquarters and shop Marcus. No one could help me.  It was basically pointless and reminded me why I don’t chase the prospects of love or opportunity. 

Marcus is having a public speaking event on May 11th 2023 in Denver Colorado. Basically, the only thing holding me back is money. It costs $500 for a Q&A. But with air fare and hotel, that’s too much bread. I would also have to go alone and plan the trip on short notice. I thank Marcus for making himself available and although it’s very tempting, I don’t wanna force it. It’s not the right time. The financial decision just wouldn’t be prudent. 

Goals 

I want 1000 tracks published, which is 50 a year for 20 years. But I don’t have the money to sustain the output and promote. I basically have the opportunity to buy a package of services that would take me to the next level through Ryini but I can’t afford them. The next step is to find a label to do a project and or tour with. I want to do business in Michigan. 

The truth is, I gotta start doing shows. I started to release once a week to grow my online following so I’d have an audience to show up to my shows. But I’m not growing online despite releasing once a week with a new word of the day Rhyme everyday. Even if I made a hit, I don’t have a large enough audience to launch it.

Limitations

Currently, I see my economic situation as limiting. I don’t care about succeeding that much. I could care less about validation from most people. What I really want is companionship and I see myself as unable to complete that feat without the economic means to sustain mobility. I ultimately see that as a failure of the American economic system, which doesn’t provide adequate opportunity and actively has a system that exploits my labor power. Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for the disability system and the life it provides me but it’s adequate at best and is rather lacking compared to peer nations. My life would be vastly improved by universal healthcare. Basically, I need the money to chase her and can’t have a family because I’m poverty-stricken.

You can hear all about how I didn’t get into the University of Michigan and don’t have funding at Western so I can’t go to graduate school in the Funk You Sunday Update. Between going broke to try and build a brand and ROI good enough to attract a cosmic luve, to being accepted into college but being unable to afford to go, dreams don’t come true in America, unless you have the money to afford them.

To put it simply, I basically try so hard to try and earn the intimate love of a cosmic love. If I had one, I would be much happier, appreciative, and loving. But I don’t, so it’s back to the drawing board and how to obtain a normal life in America’s POS government disability and economic systems. I basically see America as preventing me from thriving or even having a normal life because of corporate rule.

Communicating with Gaia

Before moving on, it’s worth mentioning the following. I hear about how many rappers predict their futures in their music. My song “Love the Mission” is my prophesied future. And Dave was in a yellow dress, as another instance, for this week's S3 Episode 4 “Wisconsin.”

Gaia has somewhat been predicting the future. She said a couple of years ago that “I would be shocked” and she stopped saying it once I found I had some money to be claimed. Then she basically did it again before I noticed I had some back royalties. She’s now saying I have two years before I’m financially free. I don’t see it but we’ll see. She also has been saying “Your mind goes to dark places and you wonder why we keep the worst from you” along with “we don’t tell you the future because you catalog it.”

I’m still not quite sure what it means but Gaia recently told me that she was going to “vomit.” I was watching John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight about immigrant farmers which just came out this week, and she said “I told you I’d vomit.”

Gang stalking

It’s worth mentioning, to set the record straight, I’ve seen a video pop up I made about gang stalking. To be clear those videos aren’t reality, they’re more about how I felt and perceived what I was feeling when I was mentally ill. I was never catfished by Lady Gaga.

The evidence I gave was not evidence. Alex Jones it’s not a credible source. As far as gangs go, that does happen but America is relatively safe. I felt like I was being mind controlled by electronic weapons because I was mentally ill. Gangs exist, so does stalking, but “gang stalking” is more likely a group delusion perpetuated by schizophrenics that are mentally ill. If it does exist it’s rare and they’re not using electronic weapons.

Why would the government stalk me just to give me health care and money to live if they were malicious? I was never tortured by electronic weapons, it just felt like it because I have schizo affective disorder.

If I was being stalked by anything it was Gaia. I talk about this experience in my life and how I think the planet is conscious and trying to communicate in my book “108 The Story of Discovering Earth’s Consciousness.” The machine doesn’t exist and if it does, it’s the planet Earth (tweet). You can read about how the machine is Gaia in my post Gaia: Environmental Tapestry Manifestation that is on this blog. 

I will say, I’ve come a long way. I basically wasted 10 years being mentally ill. It’s been a long journey and I hope someday it’ll bring me one of my cosmic luves. Please stream my music and buy your favorite track if you want to support me. Thank you for reading. 

[goddamnwebcomics]

My Brief Review of Letters on the Wall (Chapters 1-11)

When I started reading this comic, I was a bit suspicious. Anyone who has read this blog or has read webcomics in general knows that webtoon comics focusing on LGBT+ couples are either attempting to be a Coffee Shop AU levels of fetishized wholesomeness, or just are really insulting. Thankfully Letters on the Wall quickly proved itself to be more nuanced. But what is it about anyway?

Plot and Writing

Letters on the Wall follows Tara, an introverted artist who returns to Manchester after living in Spain for 5 years to get her bachelor's degree in arts. Tara can't handle big changes and unfortunately a lot of things have changed. She is forced to live in a campus because her mother is pregnant and out of town. There she runs into Emma, her childhood friend and a fashion designer. Tara is also forced to see how much his childhood friends and the city have changed to her dismay. But also, a romance starts brewing between her and Emma, slowly but surely as their shared passion for arts and moments of romantic tension keep happening between them.

Let me start my review by stating I am not on this comic's target audience. Not because of the lesbian relationship but more because of the setting, the comic focuses on two university students who are coping with the childhood's end and reaching their young adulthood, while I am slowly capping up my 20's. Thankfully since the comic is set in UK, it feels very European so the ever-present cliches of American college life aren't there to annoy me. It's also very mundane, there are no supernatural elements sprinkled in, aliens are mentioned but they play no role whatsoever.

In terms of writing, the comic is written very realistically, nothing is exaggerated for the sake of comedy or strawmen, which makes me think it may be mostly based on the author's own experiences and memories. Characters rarely feel like gimmicks, though some of them do require a bit of expansion, I will talk about that more on the characters section.

A lot of chapters begin with a random flashback, which gave me bad memories of Console Girl, but most of the time the flashbacks do have a convenient role in helping to build the relationship with Tara and Emma, or establish Tara's relationship with one of the secondary characters. I do think some of the flashbacks are too long, and take away from the present day, like the most recent chapter as of this writing, Chapter 11, is 80% flashback and 20% modern day. I think flashbacks could have their own chapter as long as it's framed well.

Now I know what you're thinking, on a scale of Tsuki and Kriti to Burke and Sulfur how does the main relationship of this comic rank? Well, what I like the most about it is, it's not Love at First Sight type deal, it's romance that started from a childhood friendship. Yes, both of them being in a career field that involves drawing is a bit too convenient in my taste, but I do like the contrasting personalities of the protagonists, while both of them are socially awkward Tara is a very introverted cynic while Emma is a sweet-tooth perfectionist with more of a social side. I do elaborate on my thoughts on them as individuals later. But the comic does dedicate a chapter to introducing both characters, instead of just throwing the love interest into the scene for the protagonist to flirt with like a lot of other comics do. Objectively it's easily the best written lesbian couple I've seen in any webcomic, but when compared to every couple in this blog I still prefer Lexx and Chel due to both of them having more screentime and Burke and Sulfur out of pure bias.

In terms of writing flaws, as you can see my synopsis of the story was very short. There are 11 chapters of the story out, and I can confirm the story progresses very slowly, though sometimes the chapter progresses an entire week within the span of one chapter, and sometimes it takes 3 chapters to go through one day's events. Webcomic pacing, especially with Webtoon comics, is nothing new, and a lot of the negative aspects of this comic can be attributed to the problems of Webtoon's structure, but I'll talk about that more in the art section.

Characters

We talked about the protagonist relationships, but what about protagonists as individuals?

Tara Muñiz is an introverted art student, she's never been a people person but also she is not incapable of having relationships. Deep inside she is afraid of becoming an outsider as the world around her changes. She also carries guilt for some past event that the comic only hinted at in the first chapter. Tara does tend to be somewhat pokerfaced when Emma is not around, which can be irritating sometimes. She is capable of showing a wider arrange of emotions but it takes people she likes to get them out, like Emma and her grandparents. She is still a good protagonist, in any other comic she would've been written as an edgelord whose only defining trait is her introvert personality and she probably would hate people to the point of being a misanthropist but when she meets Emma she goes so fucking bananas she might as well be out of character. But this is thankfully not the case.

Emma is Tara's childhood friend, a perfectionist fashion designer who's much more motivated at studying than Tara is. She is also a scaredy cat and a sweet tooth. Emma feels like a human version of Noelle Holiday from Deltarune, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. That being said, I think she is weaker than Tara because she doesn't get that much screentime when she isn't around Tara outside of her introduction chapter. It's not as bad as most love interests in this blog, but you know it's still a flaw. I do wish we got to see flashbacks with her that wouldn't involve Tara, so we could get a good idea of how she handles the world around her. This comic isn't always told from Tara's point of view, and the most recent chapter featured more of Emma's inner monologue. Retroactively this does make me appreciate the scenes of Lexx and Chel being separated in Alien Dice more because those scenes helped to build them up as individuals, even if every decision wasn't perfect, but I'm going off-topic here. Emma's foundation is good, but she needs a bit more independency to help establish her as a fully grown person and not just "person in Tara's life".

As for rest of the cast, we have Min. Tara and Emma's childhood friend and a neurotic nutcase who acts as Student Council President and campus's tour guide. I was worried that her quirk was going to be the "girl who scolds everyone" but while she does scold people a lot and basically act as the comic relief more or less, she is still a decent character. She was apparently bullied at school as shown in one flashback and Emma and Tara helped to fend off their bullies, but she looked so different I didn't realize it was her until while I was writing this part of the review. I'll go more in detail on the art section, again. She is decent but she still needs a bit more establishment.

Then we have Richard, the most important male character. Richard is even more of a pokerface than Emma. He is Min's boyfriend, son of a tech company owner, but he prefers baking. Richard never changes his facial expression, and he is often very blunt, but he is thankfully not a strawman of men in general, like other comics would portray him as. Still he is shown to be somewhat of a negative character due to the fact he isn't someone Tara knows from her childhood, and he also finds Emma still treating Tara like her childhood bestie weird. I think Richard is a very very very light anti-hero of the comic because of this. Richard could have potential to be the most interesting character in the comic, because his stonefaced nature is a sign that he is very heavily repressing his emotions, and him dating someone very emotional like Min is an interesting contrast to say the least.

The other guy in the comic, Ethan is a diabetic bodybuilder who used to be fat when he was younger. He has a good relationship with Tara because they go way back, but other than that, he is more positive male character than Richard is. He is even less established than Min, so moving on.

The final important characters I want to spotlight are Emma's grandparents, her italian grandmother and her sick but optimistic grandfather with a tendency to tell wild stories about aliens. These two are my favourite characters in the comic because the elderly being depicted positively AND realistically is a rarity in webcomics, and I think both of them work great, and them having such a wholesome relationship with Tara and eachother is nice to see.

Lastly there is Tara's deadbeat pregnant mother who Tara has so little respect for she only calls her by her real name instead of calling her Mom. She is still unseen as of chapter 11 but Tara tends to have very tense phone conversations with her. She has a tendency to be very controlling, she forced Tara to move back to Manchester from Spain, forces her to live on a campus and she disapproves of her career as an artist, and Tara herself believes she's only having a baby because she considers her only daughter to be a failure. I do hope the comic approaches her on a nuanced level and isn't just Author's Mommy Issues: The Character.

There's also a receptionist woman who appears frequently in the early chapters of the comic, she mainly works as the exposition character but she doesn't have a name so I guess for now she isn't that important.

The cast of the comic is very strong and at worst need a bit more time in the oven. I do think some of them having mystery to them is a good thing because it gives the reader some reason to continue looking forward to future chapters.

Art

Art is probably the section I have the most critical things to say about. The comic is on Webtoons so naturally it follows Webtoons toilet paper format, and a lot of scrolling is required just to get one speech bubble. Thankfully it's not as bad as in Console Girl, but if I ever were to riff this it would be incredibly tedious and difficult to turn the comic into a more traditional comic format.

But enough about formatting, for the art itself, it's passable on the first look, but something that I had an issue since chapter 1 is, most characters tend to default for the same expression. Tara has a constant bored look on her face (which is even acknowledged in the comic), Emma has a constant look of uncertainty, Min has a constant look of neurotic disapproval, Richard has a constant bored look similar to Tara but more refined and so forth. Characters get more expressive as the comic goes on, especially Tara, and the comic does a nice job to justify lack of change in Richard's part, and also Emma's grandparents are immune to this problem. However if the characters aren't having samey expressions, you do notice how samey their faces tend to be. I don't want to accuse the artist of having same face syndrome, as again, Emma's grandparents and Ethan look very different from everyone else, but some characters just have identical facial structure and it is a bit distracting.

Speaking of faces, I mentioned the flashbacks earlier and they're often set in either 2008 or 2011 while the main comic takes place in 2016. although they're younger, the faces of the protagonists barely change. They have different haircuts but they're practically the same, and it's rather distracting and see how the characters look like little adults in 2008 when they're supposed to be in middle school or something. Again, Emma's grandparents are immune to this because they have more wrinkles in the present than they do in the past, but then again adding more wrinkles is a bit more easier than making two characters who I presume are 18 or 19 look 10. With Ethan we see he was fat in his childhood, but he also looks like a child at least. Min also looks more like a child, to the point of being a bit too unrecognizable as I had no idea she was supposed to be Min when I first read the page.

Lastly, the comic for some reason treats facial expressions as sound effects. That doesn't help with the "lack of expression" criticism. Like here is an example.

I know this is one of the few manga-esque elements this comic has, but I find it dumb and the comic tends to overuse it instead of having it happen occassionally.

Lastly, the comic is very inconsistent about backgrounds, we see a real background in far shots, but in closeups we just see a gradient backdrop that doesn't match the color of the scene, and of course we get fades to black and white at times. Do you love the colour of the sky?

In a nutshell, while also not irredeemable, there are some things about this comic's art that need the most improvement.

Final Thoughts

Now some of you may be thinking "What the hell GW? Why are you reviewing a random lesbian webcomic out of the blue? Are they holding your family hostage?"

Well, the reason I am riffing this is because my friend became an english translator to this comic, and since I am the webcomic riffing man, I did decide to give it a look. I wouldn't have probably touched this comic otherwise. But I am glad I did.

Even if the pacing is slow, the comic is easy to digest and doesn't take too long to catch up. I found myself getting invested into the story and the characters. I do hope they don't mystery monger too much about the past event Tara feels guilty about, I hope they don't screw up with Richard or Tara's mother and make them generic soap opera bad guy characters and I especially hope they don't make Tara's mother a super homophobe who hates gay women more than Cydnee hates dogs or Siggy hates orcs. But I do have a lot of trust in the creators of this webcomic, and I don't think my friend would've become a translator for the comic if it was bad. She has a good taste.

The comic did have an old version that is still readable online, and while I haven't read it this old version had a goth butch woman who I presume might be making this a love triangle, which I really really hope isn't the case.

I will be returning to Letters on the Wall in the future as more chapters come out. You can read it here. If you're a fan of slice-of-life webcomics about lesbians that aren't fucking insulting, you'll definitely get something out of it.

[atlanticcanada]

High E. coli levels close beaches in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick

During Friday’s sweltering hot weather, some Maritimers visited lakefront beaches and were not able to swim due to high e. coli levels.

This was the case for Haja Nabay and her son who stopped by Albro Lake Beach in Dartmouth Friday, only to find out that the beach was closed to swimming due to high bacterial levels deemed unsafe for swimming.

"It was really hard on me because I was looking forward to getting my whole body into the cool water," said Nabay.

Titi Mashwama was a little surprised to see nobody swimming on a hot summer day but then saw the posted beach closure signs and a lifeguard approached to tell her the beach was closed to swimming.

"The first thing we see is there's no one in the water and that was a bit of a red flag," Mashwama said.

"Then we were told there was bacteria in the water and the beach is closed but it was open for people to come in and that doesn't make any sense."

Albro Lake Beach isn't the only supervised beach closed in the Halifax region because of high bacteria levels, Kearney Lake Beach is closed for the same reason.

Staff test the water quality at all supervised municipal beaches regularly, said Emma Wattier — HRM's environment manager. Recent tests show levels of bacteria levels that exceed Health Canada swimming guidelines, Wattier said.

"We sample weekly because bacterias grow and die off very quickly and so we need to have an on-the-pulse knowledge of that," said Wattie.

Samples are gathered at all 20 municipal beaches and testing will continue at both impacted beaches until safe levels are reached.

Wattie says it's not uncommon with the recent heavy rain for e.coli levels to register above health guidelines.

"We did have very heavy rain and thunderstorms on Monday and Tuesdays and so that probably did have some kind of impact on it," said Wattie.

Sources of e.coli can come from human waste, untreated sewage and animal and wildlife feces, said Shalom Mandaville, a lake water scientist.

"People have dogs and cats, cats also produce fecal coliform and birds and all that," said Mandeville.

He cautions that people should avoid lakes near stormwater systems and swimming in freshwater lakes and rivers after heavy rains.

Mandeville also advises against feeding animals, especially near waterways and beaches.

In New Brunswick, the City of Saint John has closed Lily Lake Beach and Tucker Park Beach to swimming following high e. coli samples.

Further testing will happen in both provinces but testing doesn't point to what caused the increased levels of bacteria, Wattie said.

"We just know it's e. coli," said Wattie. "It could be from birds...it could be from dogs, it could be from humans, it could be from deer, there's multiple different sources."

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/uXmrGdQ

[captainmdhridoyhossain-blog]

[ad_1] MELBOURNE, Australia — Emma Raducanu wasted no time in saying her presence in her first Grand Slam fit since her shocking run to remaining 12 months’s U.S. Open identify.After hitting a forehand winner down the road previous Sloane Stephens — the 2017 U.S. Open champion — Raducanu shouted a noisy “Come on,” punctuating the primary level of the fit.From there, Raducanu used to be off and working, sprinting throughout the first set in 17 mins with the lack of simply 4 issues. Although Stephens discovered her footing in the second one set and used to be in a position to extend rallies along with her foot pace and counterpunching, Raducanu regained keep watch over within the ultimate body to near out the fit 6-0, 2-6, 6-1 on Tuesday night time in Margaret Court docket Enviornment.When a backhand half-volley from Stephens hit the web to finish the fit, Raducanu dropped her racket and lined her face along with her arms, a response hardly ever noticed from a best participant after a first-round win. On the other hand, hardly ever has a participant reached the highest after having skipped such a lot of rungs at the ladder. Seeded seventeenth, that is Raducanu’s first look within the ladies’s festival on the Australian Open, and handiest her 3rd Grand Slam match over all. Throughout remaining 12 months’s Australian Open, Raducanu used to be ranked 348th, opting to stick house and find out about for highschool tests somewhat than touring to Australia.Tuesday’s fit, handiest the second one night time fit of Raducanu’s profession, used to be additionally the primary time she had performed a 3rd set at a Grand Slam: Her run to the U.S. Open title remaining 12 months, which started in qualifying, entailed profitable 20 instantly units throughout her 10 suits.“I believe 2022 is all about finding out for me,” Raducanu stated. “Being in the ones eventualities — profitable a collection after which having to combat in a decider — is surely all simply collecting right into a financial institution of enjoy that I will be able to faucet into afterward down the road. Yeah, more than pleased that nowadays I will be able to upload to that.”In spite of being a Grand Slam champion herself, Raducanu had by no means confronted one ahead of Stephens.“When Sloane used to be combating again in the second one set, I surely authorised that,” Raducanu stated. “I used to be nearly anticipating it, as a result of she is a champion and also you don’t simply transform one by means of rolling over.”Raducanu will play her second-round fit on Thursday towards the Montenegrin Danka Kovinic, some other early steppingstone for a participant who has already shot to superstardom in her house nation. Raducanu’s U.S. Open win propelled her to the BBC’s Sports activities Persona of the 12 months award, and she or he used to be named an M.B.E. — Member of the Maximum Very good Order of the British Empire — at the Queen’s New 12 months’s honors listing. In a while after her triumph in New York, a congratulatory message to Raducanu appeared on the Royal Mail’s postmarked envelopes throughout Britain for 4 days.Stephens, 28, admitted that whilst each she and Raducanu had gained in Flushing Meadows, their titles had little in not unusual. “We gained the U.S. Open, however our eventualities are very other,” Stephens stated. “I believe she is sporting a complete nation, and that’s fairly other than my win on the U.S. Open.”In spite of her swift luck, Raducanu has gained blowback from participants of the British media, who've urged that she has no longer targeted sufficient on her tennis after her effects dipped following a providence of endorsements. In Nike’s first video commercial that includes the 19-year-old, the corporate dramatized those criticisms, appearing Raducanu enjoying as words like “fluke” and “one-hit surprise” flashed at the back of her in capital letters.For many who had sought after to make uncharitable exams, there were some reason why for worry: Raducanu had misplaced 4 of the six suits she had performed since profitable the U.

S. Open, together with a brutal 6-0, 6-1 loss to Elena Rybakina remaining week in Sydney.Raducanu, whose coaching ahead of the fit in Sydney were restricted by means of a contemporary case of the coronavirus, stated she used to be “more than pleased to have grew to become it round so temporarily” after that stark defeat.“The remaining week I put some nice paintings in,” she stated. “Sydney for me, wasn’t a deal breaker. I used to be nonetheless feeling sure; I simply knew the place I used to be at that time.”Stephens, who famous the “large scream” Raducanu set free after the primary level of the fit, stated that she may just sense Raducanu’s readiness to silence doubters.“I believe the toughest phase is making an attempt to turn out that you're just right sufficient to be the place you might be or just right sufficient to stick the place you might be,” Stephens stated. “The extra you take a look at to do this, I believe, the extra emotion presentations and the extra issues are most likely out of persona than most often you could do, since you’re making an attempt so arduous to turn and turn out that you simply’re this individual, or this rating.”Raducanu stated she additionally has needed to learn how to care for self-criticism.“The most important problem is to be affected person,” Raducanu stated in her pretournament information convention. “I’m somewhat of a perfectionist. Whether or not that’s apply, whether or not that’s off the courtroom, I need to be the most productive I will be able to at all times; every so often it’s simply no longer very viable.”She added: “I want to simply loosen up. So long as the fad is trending upward, only a subject of small fluctuations, I believe I will be able to be proud. No matter problem this is, I believe roughly able to stand it now.”Whilst Raducanu’s profession continues to pattern upward, Stephens stated that her accomplishments have are available in a “very backward” collection.“It’s arduous to control,” Stephens stated of Raducanu’s uncharted trajectory. “However I believe in case you have the suitable folks on your nook guiding you, they are going to know when to take breaks. They are going to know when to push her tougher, and they are going to know when she’s up for it.”Stephens were anticipating to be on a destroy of her personal throughout this event. She married her longtime boyfriend, the football participant Jozy Altidore, on New 12 months’s Day, and stated she deliberate the marriage for January as a result of she had “absolutely deliberate on skipping” the Australian a part of this season. She stated she had no longer sought after to take the chance of getting to quarantine and of getting to retread upon the pain she felt here a year ago: Whilst enduring the necessary resort quarantine ahead of remaining 12 months’s Australian Open, Stephens attended the funerals of her grandparents by the use of Zoom.“Remaining 12 months, I had an overly traumatizing enjoy in quarantine, and I simply sought after to fully take away myself from that,” Stephens stated on Tuesday. “It doesn't matter what, despite the fact that it used to be like two days, I didn’t need to do it.”Stephens, who stated she had finished full-fledged low season coaching, stated folks just about her have been stuck off guard when she determined to make the sudden commute Down Underneath.“I believe everybody used to be a bit of bit shocked,” she stated. “However, yeah, I simply used to be like: ‘I’m able.’”Raducanu proved that she used to be much more able. [ad_2] #Emma #Raducanu #Defeats #Sloane #Stephens #Australian #Open

[toadeyes-miqote]

When your idiot brothers meet...

"Dang it Emma! Don't you dare lead my Bard Boys astray!!"

---

It almost scare me when I see the three of them interacting. I expect Guydelot to be the sensible one in this... I hope.

This pretty much makes my WoL's PR team being made up of Fortemps boys and Bard Boys funnier. I shudder to think the tales that G'raha would try to dig up if he ever find out about the Bard Boys and then realising Tataru is their boss. These guys were practically the ones involved in Heavenwards the book and ballads as both players and writers. And some are involved in compiling the Toad-Eyes/pool (aka the headcannon journal). Frankly which other bunch of guys can say that the Warrior of Light is their adorable little sister-in-arms (22yrs old)

Okay fine I should write this as the one where he wants to get to know the WoL as a person since all he knew of her is through the books. and eventually ends up on her PR team.

Over in Ishgardian Restoration, The dark hair Fortemps boys had shown that both are musically inclined. Artorial composes while Emmanellain plays the flute . So its not surprising that Emmanellain would seek the Bard Boys out. I see what you did there Devs.

I done Bard and Gunbreaker job quests before this, only Chuchuto of Pugilist team is here and Rostik is with the Scouts. A pity I'm short of sub time to go futher in Bozjan. I never went beyond level 20 as a white mage and red mage was forever 50(Sorry Alisaie)

It amused me. My WoL is bard to the Scions. Please bring in Thancred the fake bard as well and see what Guydelot says about that. Maybe have a singoff or something during one of the get together training sessions.

Please. When does Team Hildy get to meet main Team? Nashu and Estinien would hit it off over squids.

Emmanellain shirking off aggro... Over leveled bard gets things done faster that MSQ level Gunbreaker.

If we're to say her "brothers"-in-arms (including the Sisterhood), it be Thancred at the lead. Estinien, Lyse, Alisaie, Sanson, Guydelot, Cirnia, Yugiri, Lucia, Sadu and Leih. I need to get to writing that Big To-do in ala Mihgo

Another thing about Emmanellain. He probably finds his brother's friends Aymeric and Estinien intimidating since he kinda spent the Big Gathering hiding. And if he turns out to be part of Ishgard's intelligence network. He would probably be horrified that WoL's main aide is Thancred. For my WoL, that's who you go to if you want info to reach WoL ASAP or have fewest people catching wind of details.

He probably dosen't recognised the cleanup Thancred at first and is constantly wary and skittish.

[mmorgbooth]

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[emma-what-son]

Maybe their eyes have opened a bit, because they never thought she would date a guy like Brandon.Not to mention that they've seen her traveling all over while being an environmental activist - I also suspect her core group of fans are around her age group, so late 20s to mid 30s, and now mostly worldly-wise enough to know that people are nuanced, any kind of celeb PR (or really anyone in the limelight) is to be treated with a very large degree of scepticism, and to be now much more realistic in their view of their ‘idols’. BTW this is not to say that Emma, or indeed most celebs, are ‘bad people’. They’re no more likely to be than any group in society, but younger fans do tend to buy any crap story:agenda to fit their favourites into an unfeasibly perfect mould. Add in the Hermione factor for Watson and it reached ridiculous levels in her case

Celebs do what they have to do in order to stay relevant. Fans need to stop putting them on pedestals and realize that they are just human beings.

[ttylfedora]

10th March: 95/99

HAPPY BIRTHDAY REMUS!!!!!! Here is the first instalment of his birthday series!!

Characters belonging to @lumosinlove will appear throughout🥰

Thank you @madsholland for betaing this and fixing my many typos omg

Enjoy!!💚

10th March 1995

“Hope, I can’t believe he’s one already!” Cathy mused as she sat down beside Hope.

“Time has flown by. He’s almost walking too!” Hope smiled. She looked over to her husband, whose fingers were being gripped onto for dear life by their son.

Remus attempted to let go of Lyall’s fingers, wobbling slightly as he tried to gain his balance. He took one step before he fell onto his bum, bursting into a fit of giggles. He reached his arms up again, making grabby hands towards his father who lifted him back up onto his feet to try again.

“Mamamama.” he babbled. Hope smiled as he looked up at her with huge chocolate caramel eyes.

She reached her hands out for him and he set off with determination. Loosening his grip on his father’s fingers slightly, using them as a guide instead. He started wobbling slightly and reheld his father’s fingers until he could get his balance back. He set off again but managed to let go of his father’s fingers completely, stumbling and wobbling his way over to his mother, falling into her arms.

She looked over to her husband who had tears pooling in his eyes.

“My baby boy,” he whispered, unable to find his voice underneath the sheer pride he was feeling. He looked around the room to the rest of their family and friends. “Please tell me someone got that on video?” he asked. A random hand popped up in the back claiming that they did. He looked back to his wife who had Remus bundled in her arms.

“You are such a clever little boy, such a clever little boy,” she cooed, kissing his cheeks, his head, his nose, anywhere she could reach as the baby squirmed and giggled in her arms. Lyall walked over and placed a kiss on both of their heads.

This was certainly a birthday to remember.

10th March 1999

“Remus, honey, are you upstairs?” Hope called. The five year old had been upstairs for way too long and it was way too quiet for Remus to not be up to something. She made her way up the stairs anyway to find the bathroom light on and her son in front of the mirror, scissors held to his fringe, and hair in the sink. She couldn’t help but let out the biggest chuckle as her hand flew up to her mouth.

“Oh Remus,” she started, unsure as to whether to laugh or scold him. He had already cut a huge chunk from the front of his hair, one of which would be relatively difficult to hide. “Oh, baby,” she sighed.

“Can you help me?” he asked with the biggest grin he could muster, despite missing a couple of his baby teeth. He still had remnants of chocolate cake around his mouth and was very clearly still on a sugar high from the copious amounts of sweets and cake he had consumed throughout the day. He held out the blunt safety scissors towards her and she sighed again, placing her hands on her hips raising her eyebrows.

“Now Remus, you know you’re not allowed to play with scissors, don’t you?’ she asked. Remus’ smile faltered knowing well enough he wasn’t allowed.

“Sorry Mommy.”

“Yes, well, come here and we’ll see what we can do.” She held both of her hands out, one for the safety scissors and one for his hand. He placed his hand in hers and she led him to her own bathroom to get a better pair of scissors. She sat down on top of the closed toilet seat and guided Remus to stand in front of her.

“Wanted to give yourself a birthday haircut, champ?” Lyall laughed from the door.

“New year, new me, daddy!” Remus smiled, seemingly happy he used a phrase he had heard so much. Lyall chuckled, not wanting to upset his little boy by saying he was wrong.

“Indeed. Trying to look like your paps, huh?” he motioned to the balding spot on the top of his head.

“Lyall!” Hope scalded, not finding her husband particularly funny or useful in this situation.

He grabbed the camera that was sitting on the chest of drawers in the bedroom and took a picture. Hope’s disappointment was only hidden by the grin plastered across her face and Remus looked like he was going to be on a sugar high for the rest of his life.

[supercorpkid]

Once Upon a Time in…

Storybrooke.

Supercorp, Kara Danvers x Daughter!Reader, Lena Luthor x Daughter!Reader, Emma Swan x Reader, Regina Mills x Reader, Snow White x Reader, Prince Charming x Reader.

Word Count: 2900.

Previously on the series - Neverland, Camelot

“So we’re back at square one.” You sigh, looking at Henry, while he is reading his enormous book.

“Not entirely true. We know that we have to lift the curse so you can leave, and that we have to do it fast before you become a character of the book.” He says, without raising his head at you. You’re almost arguing when a plate with at least 20 pancakes is placed before you. That stops your mind mid-rant.

“Thanks, Granny.” You smile at her, who smiles back before leaving. “Except that we don’t know who cursed the town, so I might as well embrace my fate of being a fairytale character right now and forever.”

“You know, there is another way.” He finally looks at you and you encourage him with an eyebrow raise. “Too risky and honestly? I don’t even know if they would agree to it…”

“Would you go on with it already? No need to build up the climax, we’re already past that.”

“Another curse.” Henry says and you furrow your brows. Having two curses surely doesn’t sound like the solution. “A liftable curse, of course.”

You just blink at him when he doesn’t say anything for a while.

“Ok, what if my mom cursed you into believing you’re a part of the story? You would be written into the book-” You open your mouth to argue. “But it comes from someone who knows and can undo it. So, when the time comes, she lifts the curse and you’re not in the book anymore.”

“Uh.” You think about it for a second. “Sounds like it could work. It would be like if we had a countdown watch and after your mom’s curse it would just pause it.” You say and he nods in agreement.

“The protection spell around town gets lifted and she undoes your curse right after. The countdown restarts but you would be ready to leave.” He finishes your train of thought. “Only thing is whether she will agree to this.”

“Well, we’ve got to try, right? Might be our only hope.” You’re almost out of the booth when you look at the pancakes in front of you. “Give me a minute.”

“Can’t believe you’re thinking about food right now.” Henry rolls his eyes at you.

“Can’t believe you’re not.” You say inhaling the food in front of you in exactly one minute. “Ok, I’m done.”

“This was traumatic to watch.”

You ignore him and you both run out of Granny’s to Regina’s house at the end of the main street. You try to go slower so he doesn’t fall too far behind, but you’re still in front of her house way before he gets there.

“Next time, give me a ride.” He is breathing hard next to you but recovers faster than normal. “Mom? Are you here?”

“In the kitchen, kid!” You hear Emma’s voice, and you follow Henry to it. You find both Regina and Emma making breakfast together. The scene doesn’t fail to bring tears to your eyes. It’s too familiar. “Oh, you guys are together, great!”

“We think we have a, well, it’s not a solution. It’s more like a-” Henry looks at you.

“Band-aid.” You give them a forced smile.

“Let’s hear it.” Regina asks and you and Henry do your best explaining the whole thing. “So I would undo the curse and she’ll leave, huh?”

“I know it’s not ideal but-”

“But it’s pretty good.” Emma says. She comes closer to you, putting a hand on your shoulder. “Are you sure about that, though?”

“No. I know nothing about magic.” You shrug. “If this was science or anything related, I would probably be sure, but this is outside my area of expertise. If you two think it could work, then I trust you to bring me back when it’s time.”

“You should know all magic comes with a price.” Regina adds.

“What’s the price?”

“We’ll learn about it later.” She raises an eyebrow at you. You think of Lena and how you need to go back home to see her eyebrow raise.

“I’ll pay.”

“Well, then hold on to it, kid.” Regina says with a smile. “You’re about to become a fairytale character.”

You and Henry look at each other. As good of an idea this was, you didn’t consider all the outcomes. You’ll become a fairytale character; you won’t remember anything about your actual life. You won’t remember your moms, aunts, cousins, girlfriend, grandmas… You know it’s what you have to do, if you ever want to make it out of this reality and back into yours, but still. Not remembering Jamie’s laugh, Maya’s kisses, Kelly’s comfort, Alex’s shoulder squeezes, Lillian’s head tilt, Eliza’s soft voice, Lena’s green eyes, Kara’s smiles, it almost makes you want to forget about this and find another way.

“Ok, the curse is ready.” Regina says and you look up, coming back from your thoughts.

“Smells funny.”

“I know, sweetheart. It's a curse. It's not meant to be pleasant.” She says, making your heart beat faster on your chest. You hold your necklace strongly in your hands; remember your family one last time. Then close your eyes.

“Yay, food!” You open your eyes and look at your moms on the other side with a stack of pancakes in front of them.

“Hey, leave some for your brother.” Regina says, stopping you before you grab all of the apple pancakes she has made.

“Fine, you can have one, Henry.” You joke, putting just one on his plate from the stack in front of you.

“Be nicer, honey.” Emma kisses the crown of your head, before sitting next to you. You smile, putting two more on his plate.

“There, you’re eating just as much as me now.”

“Listen kids, today Emma and I will be working with Mr. Gold to see if we can lift the protection spell around the city. You two will spend the day with the Charmings.”

“Oh, come on, moms. We’re old enough to help!” Henry says and you agree.

“Of course you are. And we will need your help when the time comes. Just, well, you know how is like to work with Mr. Gold-”

“Always an adventure.” You and Henry say in unison.

“Something like that.” Emma agrees looking like she wanted to disagree, instead. “Besides, I thought you had archery lessons with your grandma today?”

“Yes!” You agree, excitedly.

“And Henry, you will be hanging out with your grandpa at the station, right?” She gets his answer in the form of a nod. “Well, great, we’re all very busy today. But we’re still meeting at Granny’s tonight for dinner, ok?”

“Sure thing, mom.” You get up and kiss her head. “See you guys later, I’m late to meet grandma.” You kiss Regina’s head right after. “Bye, mom. Squirt, wanna a ride?”

“Stop calling me squirt.” Henry complains, getting up from the table. “See you later, moms.” He follows you to the front of the house. “Don’t run so fast, I just ate.”

“You know I only have two speed levels. Fast or breaking the sound barrier.” He jumps on your back and out you go, fast enough to be at the station in a blink of an eye. “See you later!”

It doesn’t take long before you and Snow White are walking in the woods close to the city. You love spending time in the woods with her. You love just sitting in silence and letting your senses become even more refined. Sure, you have super hearing, but she teaches you how to focus even on the simpler things. Leaves in the wind, steps in the woods, birds chirping. There’s no other place you feel as in peace as in the woods with Snow.

“So? How are the woods today?” She asks, hand on your shoulder.

“Was there ever a time where there wasn’t anyone in the woods doing weird stuff?” You ask, making Snow laugh loudly next to you.

“Not in Storybrooke.” Snow agrees with a smile and points a direction for you both to walk.

“How do you want to do this?” You ask, putting your bow into position and closing one eye, looking around.

“Like we shall do everything.” You look at her and she winks at you. “Together.”

You miss the shot. You try again. Your arrow breaks. You try again. You lose your temper. You try yet again.

Day after day. Week after week. Month after month.

‘Together’ is the word to live by.

“Mom, can you help me take control of the panic attacks?” It’s late at night when you ask her that. Regina is happy that you’re asking for her help, and you two sneak into her office while Emma and Henry watch Space Paranoids.

“Remember,” She holds you, before she starts. “These are nightmares I’m putting in your mind. None of them are real. You’re safe and sound at home with us. Say the word and I’ll stop.”

“Ok.”

“But sweetheart, you’ve got to fight it. With all the strength and courage I know you have. Concentrate and fight it.” Regina says, and you nod, closing your eyes.

Your mind is filled with visions. Terrible ones, by the way. You see people dying, by shot guns and swords. It’s a war inside your mind. You know it’s not real, but the feeling is the same. You try to run but your legs feel wobbly and weak, and you fall on your knees. There’s a pool of blood under you and when you look to the side you see Henry with glassy eyes, completely lifeless.

“NOOOO!” Your heart starts beating into your ribcage, as you shake before reaching for him. “Please, please don’t be dead.”

“Concentrate. Focus.”

“HE IS DEAD! IT’S MY FAULT!” You yell, with tears wetting your face.

“It’s not your fault.” Regina says in your ear. “Breathe, sweetheart. Breathe.”

“HENRY! PLEASE COME BACK!”

“What’s going on?” You hear his voice. Regina has already stopped filling your mind with visions, but still you see his glassy eyes staring at you. “Hey, open your eyes. I’m here.”

You see him. But your body is still reacting harshly to the vision. You cry and shake. You’ve failed, but you’re not the one to back down.

Day after day. Week after week. Month after month.

You’ll overcome your fears.

“Hey honey!” Emma wakes you up, with an excited greeting, and you roll to the side not opening your eyes just yet. “I could really use your help with something.”

“What is it?” You mumble, still too sleepy to talk.

“We’ve gotta help Ella. And I thought we could have some mother-daughter bonding time.”

“You’re my mother. Isn’t that enough of a bond?” You ask, as a joke, and you get a chuckle in response.

“Come on. It would be much faster if you could fly around and find her for me. Otherwise I would have to use magic to find a shoe and then more magic to track her, and then-”

“Oh my God, ok. I’ll help.” You get up and get ready in seconds. “I know you just want my help because I’m faster than the Flash.”

“Faster than a flash, honey.” Emma corrects you. “Let’s go!”

So you find Ella, just before her evil stepmother shoots her, and you stand tall in front of her because you’re indestructible, and your mom uses magic to contain her evil stepmother, and it’s just another day in Storybrooke. You know, for a really small town, there’s always something going on in here.

“Saving the town with my kid.” Emma throws her arms around your shoulders with a smile. “What mother could ask for more?”

“I don’t know. Sometimes I think being saved probably doesn’t sound so bad.” You complain, getting a tight squeeze from her.

“Sitting around waiting to be saved, with no idea whether someone’s actually going to come for you-” She sighs, loudly. “Trust me, I know doing all the saving all the time sounds exhausting. But waiting around is-is as bad as it can get, honey.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

Day after day. Week after week. Month after month.

Heroism comes first.

“Are you ready?” Snow asks and you agree excitedly. Bow and arrow ready to shoot. You look at her getting in position. “Together.”

You nod, and you two aim at the same spot. Both of the arrows travel together and land side by side in the middle of the target. You smile, excited. “I feel like the Green Arrow!”

“Who’s that?” Snow asks and you look at her furrowing your brows.

“I-I don’t know.” You think and think about how that name just easily left your mouth. Huh. Weird.

Days. Weeks. Months.

“Here comes the town’ superhero!” Emma says when you walk in the kitchen.

“Here is the town’ savior!” You answer with a smile.

“I could use your help out there today, kid!” She widens her smile.

“Doesn’t this town have enough heroes?” You sit next to her, and she kisses the crown of your head, before placing a plate of hot waffles in front of you.

“But only one is super.” She winks, making you giggle in excitement. You’re convinced right away.

Days. Weeks. Months.

“Focus. Concentrate.” Regina says, close to your ear. And you breathe deep trying to do so.

“It's kind of hard when you're talking in my ear.”

“And when the wind blows, or it's raining, or someone's shooting arrows at you. Yes, concentration's hard. That's the point.” She bumps her shoulder on yours. “Sweetheart, you told me you needed help.”

“And I do.”

“Then let me help.” She runs her fingers through your hair slowly. “The world will always throw disappointments, sorrows and pain on our backs. It’s our job to learn how to handle them. I worked very hard for my first reaction to be as Regina and not as the Evil Queen.”

“I know, mom. You said that a million times.” Your answer makes Regina lose her cool a little. And you smile, apologetic. “I’m sorry, you’re right. I asked for help. I need to know how to handle the pain. Please, I’m ready to go on.”

“Close your eyes.” She asks again and you comply. “Are you ready?” You shake your head in agreement.

You see images. Like a lucid dream in your mind. Regina is using magic to alter what you see. And you see destruction, death everywhere. You see Snow’s head detached from her body, Emma bleeding with a sword on her heart, the only thing left from Charming is his hand, still clinging to his sword.

You should be ready by now. In fact, you should be used to it somehow. It’s not the first time you and Regina do this kind of exercise. But it doesn’t matter how many times you see your family bleeding out, totally lifeless in front of you, every single time, without fail, makes your heart beat faster, your lungs stop working, you shake, you start crying and hyperventilating, ready to destroy everything.

“Focus! No fire from the eyes.” You hear Regina’s voice and you come back to yourself a little bit, just to hold back your first reaction. It’s always the eyes.

“But mom is dead.” You cry out, clenching your fist.

“Concentrate. You can do it.”

You can do it.

You kneel before Snow’s head. Breath in while counting to 3. Hold your breath for 3 seconds. Breath out in the same amount of time. You know this isn’t real. Snow is home, and safe. You’re not in the enchanted forest. Nothing here is real.

You unclench your fist. Steadying your breath. You fight the images. Snow’s head goes back to her body. Charming’s hand disappears. Emma opens her eyes.

“You can do it.” You hear again. And you feel the thump in your heart settling back in your ribcage. Beating normal again. Soon enough the entire thing vanishes in front of your eyes. You open your eyes again. Your hands are still shaking a little, but you’re home with your mom, and you’re safe. She smiles fondly at you. “See? I knew you could do it.”

“I did it. I stopped my panic attack.” You say with excitement planted on your face and she hugs you tightly. It doesn’t matter how many months it took you to do so, you still did it.

“How about we celebrate? Guess who lifted the town’s protection spell this morning?”

“Wait, really?” Your eyes widen in excitement.

“Yes! You know what that means?” Regina asks, and you can barely contain yourself, jumping up and down.

“Pizza from the neighborhood city!” You squeak. “Can I go get it? Please mom, let me go get it!”

“Here.” Regina gives you the money. “Bring enough for your grandparents. And Belle. Maybe Hook too. Just anyone who happens to be at Granny’s.”

“So basically the entire city?”

“Basically.” She smiles and you’re almost out the door, when you look back at her and add.

“Did I have any plans for when we could leave town?” You think and think, but nothing comes to mind. “It’s weird, I swear I feel like I’m forgetting something important.”

“Maybe to give mom a kiss?” Regina asks and you smile. Rushing to her and hugging her, before kissing her forehead.

“Yeah, it was probably just a kiss.” You chuckle.

Days. Weeks. Months.

[whimsicallyenchantedrose]

Fluffy Fridays—Chapter 172: What a Lovely Way To Burn, or,  Killian Learns the Upsides of a Storybrooke Heat Wave

Fluffy Fridays—Chapter 172: What a Lovely Way To Burn, or,  Killian Learns the Upsides of a Storybrooke Heat Wave

Pairing:  Captain Swan

Summary:   A series of unrelated, fluffy one shots featuring Killian Jones and  Emma Swan and the relationship that makes us all swoon. Will contain  both canon and AU stories. My contribution to Operation Rainbow Kisses  and Unicorn Stickers (aka, my attempt to drown out the season 4 finale  angst with ridiculous levels of fluff.)

Other Chapters: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) (11) (12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17) (18) (19) (20) (21) (22) (23) (24) (25) (26) (27) (28) (29) (30) (31) (32) (33) (34) (35) (36) (37) (38) (39) (40) (41) (42) (43) (44) (45) (46) (47) (48) (49) (50) (51) (52) (53) (54) (55) (56) (57) (58) (59) (60) (61) (62) (63) (64) (65) (66) (67) (68) (69) (70) (71) (72) (73) (74) (75) (76) (77) (78) (79) (80) (81) (82) (83) (84) (85) (86) (87) (88) (89) (90) (91) (92) (93) (94) (95) (96) (97) (98) (99) (100) (101) (102) (103) (104) (105) (106) (107) (108) (109) (110) (111) (112) (113) (114) (115) (116) (117) (118) (119) (120) (121) (122) (123) (124) (125) (126) (127) (128) (129) (130) (131) (132) (133) (134) (135) (136) (137) (138) (139) (140) (141) (142) (143) (144) (145) (146) (147) (148) (149) (150) (151) (152) (153) (154) (155) (156)  (157) (158) (159) (160) (161) (162) (163) (164) (165) (166) (167) (168) (170) (171) (173) (174) 

(ao3) (ff.net)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Genre: Season 3b canon divergence–I realize it was winter during 3b, but for this story’s purposes, I needed a very not-winterlike heat wave.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Killian frowned fiercely as he felt a bead of sweat make its way down his back beneath his thin, cotton shirt.  He’d long since shed his leather duster and even the vest beneath. Damn this infernal heat!

Had Swan brought him back to Storybrooke in that yellow vessel of hers, or to the pits of hell? Being a seaside burg, he’d been under the impression he was in for a temperate climate.

He had most assuredly been under the wrong impression.

This morning, when he’d ventured from his room into the common area of Granny's establishment, one of the other guests had turned on the moving picture box (the TV, he believed he’d heard someone call it), and a man stood before a map of the area and detailed the weather they could expect for the day.

“Well folks, we’re in for a hot one,” he said. “A heat wave of epic proportions is set to hit the Storybrooke metropolitan area today. Temperatures are expected to hit the high nineties. We might even hit triple digits!  We haven’t seen weather like this since the curse broke–the first curse, that is.  I have no idea what the weather was like during the missing year, mainly because I have no idea about anything during the missing year.”

Killian shook his head as he sipped at his morning coffee. First wicked witches, then flying monstrosities, and now a heat wave.  Why had he ever come back from the Enchanted Forest?

Emma walked from the back room into the diner, her arm slung around her lad and a lovely smile on her face. Ah yes. This was why.

He’d endure far more than a hot day in order to be with her.

“Hey, Killian!” Henry said, hurrying over to his booth and taking a seat. “You guys making any progress on the skip you’re chasing?”

Killian hurriedly moved his left arm under the table so as to hide his hook from the lad. He knew Swan wished to keep up the ruse, as Henry’s memories had yet to return, but he wondered how much longer they could keep him in the dark. There were, after all, flying monkeys about, and Henry was a perceptive lad.  He was bound to figure out something was amiss sooner or later.

Emma reached the table, face reddening. “Henry! You can’t just intrude on someone’s breakfast!”

Killian waved to the other side of the booth where Henry had already taken up residence. “It’s no intrusion, love. You both are more than welcome to join me.”

She smiled gratefully at him, before sliding into the booth.  “Looks like it’s gonna be a hot one today,” she said, glancing up at the TV. 

“Aye,” Killian said with a grimace. “So it would seem.”

“Hey Mom! Are you gonna be busy with your case all day?” Henry asked excitedly. “Maybe if you guys have a little extra time, we could go swim at the beach!”

Emma shrugged. “I mean, we’re kind of at a standstill right now. No sign of the Wick–uh, I mean the skip. I don’t see why we couldn’t get some beach time in. What do you think, Killian? Wanna join us?”

Killian’s smile lit up his entire face. “I’d be delighted.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

By the time their beach excursion began, Killian was rethinking his state of mind.  She was trying to kill him.  There was no doubt about it.  She was trying to burn him alive with desire–in a way that was most certainly not appropriate with her lad about.

It all started about an hour after breakfast ended and Killian, Emma,, and Henry went their separate ways.  Swan had knocked on his door and presented him with the strangest article of clothing he had ever seen.  They appeared to be short pants of some sort, but never had he seen pants like these.  They were a deep, royal purple, and throughout were drawings of songbirds.  Across the arse was emblazoned the single word “Charming”.

“So, I figured you probably didn’t have any swimming trunks,” she said, her tone a touch self-conscious.  “I asked David if he had any spares, and he gave me these.  Apparently Mary Margaret had them custom made to reflect who he is or something, and when I told him they were for you, he thought it would be hilarious.  Told me to take pictures.”

“I’m…I’m meant to wear this to go bathing in your realm?” he asked, holding the abomination of an article of clothing between two fingers and pouring over it.

“I mean…you can’t exactly swim in your leathers,” she said.

He grinned saucily at her, playfully wiggling his eyebrows.  “I could always not wear my leathers.”

She rolled her eyes, grinning and shoving him playfully.  “Yeah, let’s try not to traumatize my son any more than we have to.  Plus public nudity’s a crime.  I’d rather not have to arrest you on my day off.”

He chuckled.  How he’d missed this–the flirting, the playful teasing.  He’d missed everything about her, but he’d especially missed how buoyant she made his spirits.

“Very well,” he conceded. “In the interest of not corrupting your son–and not seeing the inside of your brig–I shall wear these–what did you call them?--swim trunks.  But what manner of shirt am I meant to wear?”

She looked flustered at that, averting her eyes. “Uh…well, most guys just wear the trunks and no shirt.”

He grinned again.  “Why Swan, I’m shocked.  If you wished me to get half-naked for you, all you had to do was ask.”

She rolled her eyes again.

Suddenly it occurred to Killian that he had one more difficulty that most men of this realm did not.  He reached up to scratch behind his ear.  “But what am I meant to do about this?”

He waved his hooked arm before her.

“Well, I mean, you can leave the brace and cuff on if you want,” Emma said, “but Killian, you can also take it off.”

“I rather doubt you wish to be subjected to the sight of my stump, love,” he said in a small voice, eyes looking at the carpeting. “The wound had to be cauterized and stitched quickly, and I’m afraid it is rather unsightly.”

She was silent for a moment, and then she reached up, turning his face toward her.  “You don’t have to be ashamed of your missing hand, Hook.  You know that, right?  Neither Henry, nor I care about your stump.  It’s just a part of you.”

He felt warmth suffuse him.  Though he didn’t have Swan’s superpower for detecting lies, there was no doubt that she spoke with absolute sincerity and conviction.  “Thank you for that.”

“Welcome,” she said breezily, “although I can’t guarantee Henry won’t ask you awkward questions about amputation.  He is a twelve-year-old, after all.  I’ll talk to him about appropriate topics of conversation.”

Killian chuckled.  “I’m well aware of the inquisitiveness of the pre-teen lad.  Not to worry, Swan.”

They stood smiling at each other for a moment, and if Killian didn’t know better, he’d have believed Emma wished for his company–perhaps even wished for a repeat of the kiss he’d tried at her apartment door (preferably without the knee to his nether regions this time).  But after a moment, she seemed to think better of it, shaking her head slightly and taking a step back.

“Yeah, so I’m going to get Granny to put together a picnic for all of us.  Meet out in front of the diner in, say, half an hour?  We can take the bug down to the docks.”

“Sounds good, love.”

Seeing the blatant look of interest–maybe even want–in Swan’s eyes when he emerged from the diner and headed toward her vehicle almost made it worth his while to wear these absolute travesties of “swim trunks”.

“Like what you see, love?” he purred as he reached her, standing tall so his chest–bare of all but a generous peppering of hair–showed to full display.

Her cheeks reddened, and she stammered, “Just get in the car, Hook.  Henry’s waiting.”

Apparently the lass was so flustered she couldn’t even come up with her normal witty repartee.

He grinned as he obeyed and got into her vehicle, but his grin turned to a groan when she reached over to help him with the buckle of the car’s restraint and her hand brushed his chest.  Had the temperature suddenly risen even higher?

But it wasn’t until they reached the beach that Killian realized he was in serious danger of spontaneous combustion before this day was at an end.  

While the lad ran toward the water, ready to frolic, Killian helped Swan spread colorful towels along the sand, and then she reached for the hem of the short, rather formless bathing dress she wore, and before he could divine what she was about, she pulled it up over her head, displaying far more creamy white skin than he had ever expected to see outside of his lurid daydreams.  Indeed, she was clad only in two tiny swaths of fabric which left very little to his imagination.

Killian felt his jaw drop.

“Like what you see, Hook?” she asked, turning his own question back upon him.

For a moment he merely swallowed hard, unable to speak, sure his desire for this woman would consume him whole.

“It’s…” he began, voice squeaking like an inexperienced lad.  He cleared his throat. “It’s rather…daring, isn’t it?”

She laughed, before sitting gracefully on her towel and rummaging in the bag she’d brought with her.  “It’s called a bikini,” she said, “and I had my suspicions you may like it.”

“Is this the customary attire for women of this realm when bathing?”

She shrugged.  “For some.  Others like a one-piece suit, or some combination of the two.  Have I shocked you, Hook?  I never would have taken Captain Hook for a prude.”

He scoffed, before looking her slowly up and down in a way that brought the heat to her cheeks. “A prude I am not.  I’m just not accustomed to seeing a woman in this state of undress outside of the bedchamber.”

“So my question remains,” she said, leaning toward him.  “Like what you see?”

He groaned again.  “Gods, yes.”

Henry took that moment to reappear.  Probably for the best.  The thoughts Killian was having were hardly conducive to a public place.  “Hey guys, hurry up!  The water’s perfect!”

“Hold on just a second before you go running off again,” Emma chided, reaching once again into her bag and pulling out a plastic bottle.  “Don’t forget the sunscreen.”

Killian watched curiously as Swan opened the bottle and squirted a generous dollop of white, coconut scented cream onto her hand and then began applying it to the lad’s skin.

“What precisely is sunscreen?” he asked curiously.

“You don’t know what sunscreen is?” Henry asked with a raised eyebrow.  “It keeps you from getting a sunburn.”

Killian felt his face reddening yet again.  “I’ve lived a rather sheltered life, I suppose.”

Swan snorted.  “A swashbuckling pirate leading a sheltered life?  That’ll be the day.”

“A pirate?” Henry asked, turning to him with eager eyes.  “You were a pirate?”

“Er…” he said, looking at Swan, unsure how he was meant to answer that.

“Uh–yeah,” Emma said.  “Didn’t I tell you, Henry?  Killian, um, well, he does this pirate reenactment show thing on a ship.  That’s why he was dressed like that.”

For a woman with the ability to spot lies, she was hopeless herself at prevarication.  The lad, however, did not seem to notice her falsehood.  Instead, he looked eagerly back at Killian.

“A pirate?  Like Captain Hook?”

Killian shot a startled look at Emma, but she just shrugged.  “Aye, I suppose so.”

Henry narrowed his eyes.  “You don’t look like Captain Hook.  No curls or mustache or anything.”

“Perhaps,” Killian said, “the problem is that your Captain Hook doesn’t look like me.”

Henry shrugged.  “Can I go back to the water now?”

Emma nodded and the lad scampered off.

“Nice save,” she murmured as soon as Henry was out of ear shot.  “I need to be more careful what I say around him.”

“No harm done I suppose,” Killian said.  “I find myself quite curious, though, to see a rendering of what your world believes to be Captain Hook.”

She laughed.  “We have got to watch Peter Pan sometime.  The look on your face when you see your Disney counterpart is going to be priceless.”

Killian raised one skeptical eyebrow.  “Something tells me I’ll rather dislike what I see.”

She laughed again.

“The lad is perceptive, though,” Killian continued, going back to the main topic of conversation at hand. “He’s bound to–”

He stopped abruptly as he watched Emma squirt another generous dollop of the sunscreen onto her hand and then begin applying it to her arms, her legs, her chest, her stomach.

Was the woman trying to kill him?

“Bound to what?” she asked.

Killian cleared his throat.  “Bound to notice things are amiss at some point or another.”

“Yeah,” she answered, sounding utterly unaware of what she was doing to him with her ministrations.  “I guess we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.  Hey, can you do my back?”

His eyebrows raised nearly to his hairline.  “Do…your back?”

“Yeah,” she said, holding out the bottle to him.  “I can’t reach it on my own, and I don’t want to burn.”

She…she wished him to rub lotion onto her back?  She truly was trying to murder him, burn him alive with the want of her.

He must have taken too long to answer, because she turned toward him with questioning eyes–that slowly widened as she saw the look in his own eyes.  “I…um…I can have Henry do it if you don’t want to.”

Killian closed his eyes and groaned.  He was on fire, but what a lovely way to burn.  “The wanting is not the problem,” he muttered.  “But no matter.  I’m fully capable of completing the task you’ve assigned me.”

As he applied the lotion, caressing her silky soft skin, moving steadily from the nape of her neck down toward her delectable arse, he began to wonder if he’d spoken the truth.  The thoughts he was having were most assuredly NOT fit to be engaged in in public or in the company of a child.

He was in need of a cold and bracing shower.

“Come on guys!  Aren’t you ever going to be ready?” Henry asked, running back to them once again.

Saved by the lad again!

“As it happens,” Killian said, getting to his feet, “I’m ready right now.  Lead on my boy.”

What followed were several of the most enjoyable hours Killian had spent in years.  He was reminded of the days of his boyhood before his mother had passed.  She’d often take Liam and him down to the beach, where they’d frolic and play until the sun went down.

Killian helped Henry build a sand castle–complete with moat and drawbridge built of twigs they’d found along the shore.  They swam, all three playfully splashing each other.  They dined on sandwiches prepared by Granny, and they combed the beach for interesting rocks and seashells.

Finally, as afternoon turned to dusk and then night fell, it was time to return to the inn.  They gathered their things and headed back to the car while Henry chattered a mile a minute about all they’d done that day.

Later, back at their rooms, Emma closed the door behind Henry and then turned back toward Killian.  “Hey, thanks for joining us today,” she said, smiling happily up at him.  “I think we all needed a little break from the stress of Wicked Witch hunting.”

He reached up and brushed a flyaway lock of hair behind her ear, returning her smile with a tender one of his own.  “You’ve no need to thank me, love.  It was my very great pleasure.”

She smiled again, looking at his eyes, and then focusing on his lips, her hands flexing at her sides.  He wanted nothing in the world more at this moment than to pull her toward him and kiss her breathless–and from the way she was looking at him, it would seem she wanted the same–but Killian was determined to let her set the pace.  And so he waited for her to make up her mind.

After a moment where the tension between them sizzled as hot as the pavement that day, she took a deep breath, and then stepped back.  For a moment Killian felt an intense stab of disappointment, but then he schooled his features.  Swan may not be ready to give herself over to her feelings for him yet, but they were there.  If there was anything this day at the beach told him it was that.

He was a patient man.  He could wait until she was ready to move forward.

“Well…” Emma said awkwardly after another moment.  “Guess I better hit the sack.  No doubt it’s only a matter of time before the next crisis hits.  Need to get rested up.”

“Goodnight love.”

He watched as she disappeared into her room and then shut the door before turning to his own room across the hall.  No, Killian had never been a fan of hot, summer weather, but if it was to afford him days like this, he may need to reassess his opinion.

 Notes:

–Like many places in the U.S. right now, my little corner of the country is experiencing a significant heat wave right now.  Some of the ladies on my OUAT Discord decided we should use that fact to our advantage–keeping in mind the fact that literally EVERYTHING can be made into a CS fic if you try hard enough.  And when I think of heat waves, what comes to mind?  Swimming–it may be the only outdoor activity that feels even remotely tolerable in weather like this.  And with swimming involved, I could not resist introducing Killian to the modern wonder that is the bikini.  I suspect Emma’s right.  He’d rather like the article of attire when it’s being worn by a certain blonde savior-princess!

–But lest this fic venture into territory far more explicit than a T rated fic should, I decided to add Henry into their swimming excursion.  And after all, who doesn’t love Captain Cobra and Captain Cobra Swan?

–Shout out once again to the ladies of the OUAT discord for helping me design the swim trunks David lent Killian.

                                                                            NEXT CHAPTER -->

[uelden]

Vanity Fair interview translated

Just a side note before the actual translation; I don't know why, but instead of reporting the full questions and answers in full as she should, the journalist decided to report only summarized fragments of what Måneskin said and patch these fragments up into messy clusters. She also worded a couple phrases in a very confusing way (and yes, she's fully Italian). In short, she did quite a poor job, so the final shape of the interview is not that good. I didn't expect top-tier journalism from Vanity Fair but ffs. You'll see what I mean.

I translated it as it is, adding just a couple footnotes to give you insight on Italian pop culture references.

Translation under the cut

Måneskin: "Different from whom?"

by Lavinia Farnese, 09 June 2021

"True justice is being judged for what you do and not for what you are." The ones who are convinced of this are Damiano, Victoria, Ethan and Thomas who, by being the emblem of a generation that is finally free, refuse labels and conformism. In life, in love and on the stage. Where, maybe precisely because of this, they're winning everything

With the still unexpected (first place at Sanremo Festival) and the incredible (triumph at Eurovision) in their eyes, Måneskin are on the sofa of the house-studio they rented - to resume writing songs and rehearsing them - like you are after a won battle: lying in a calm and unreal silence, alert and a bit irreverent, happy.

In the garden there's the tennis table and the pool, the light of summer when it's starting and calming the country all around, and it filters inside from the large windows, and it goes onto the shining black of Ethan's hair, which blends with Thomas' eye shadow and the butterfly he has tattooed oh his naked forearm, which completes the picture of Victoria's golden crucifix hanging between neck and tank top and ends on the black nail polish of Damiano's stretched hands.

It's a human fresco, a Theatre of wrath [translator's note: "Teatro d'ira"] - to call it with the title of their latest album, a platinum record already - where their flaunted 20 years of age, their irregular femininity and virility are grown into proud and challenging custom, a pop glam rock generational manifesto of hard-earned liberties in a finally-unconditional expression of the self.

To watch them from any angle and from another age is to think that a great love will be born in those who'll understand: this new way of being in the world, the true and sovereign realm they hold where "diversity=exceptionality", the power of the artistic and cultural revolution of which they are healthy carriers in establishing in all lyrics and gestures the right to live according to one's own nature past the "people (who) talk, the people (who) unfortunately talk, and don't know what the fuck they're talking about." [tn: "Zitti e buoni" lyrics]

We go where we're afloat, where the air isn't gone. [tn: journalist's own variation on "Zitti e buoni" lyrics]

Miley Cyrus says hi – The numbers of a phenomenon

"The streams of Zitti e buoni are growing by the second, and they bring us above Muse, at the top of English charts, twelfth in the Spotify Global Chart. Followers almost tripled, in the post-Rotterdam period (from 1,4 to 3,3 millions, ed.) Contagious and universal folly: t-shirts and merchandising sold out in 10 minutes. Like the records, the tickets for a tour that keeps adding dates and expanding over geographic maps. They're contacting us even from some festivals were The Rolling Stones went." Thomas

"After the pretextual controversy over cocaine that France built against us, later disproven by my drug test, some graffiti popped up in Spain depicting me as a “No drugs” poster guy. Some tweets made us laugh: "Congratulations, Italy! I've never been more certain that four people have had sex with each other." Miley Cyrus started following us -You're great. -You guys are greater." Damiano

From the garage to the stars – Story of a flight

"It was only 2016, and we played in restaurants, in the streets, in via del Corso. Damiano without even a microphone, Thomas' guitar with wonky strings, Ethan was drumming on a cajón. During Rome highschools' sit-ins (Kennedy, Virgilio, Mamiani) we had our first confirmations and half-hours of celebrity, playing among those who criticized us and those who went "wow they're really cool." One of the rare times when they would have paid us – 50 euros each – we gave the money to the next band in the lineup so that they would make us play in their spot, later in the day, when there would have been more people. We had already realized how things worked. Visibility mattered more than money. And we still think that." Victoria

The intimacy of rock – Choice of a genre

"Music allows us the miracle of extending to others some very personal and private topics, sometimes even difficult and thorny ones. They are and they remain deeply your own, but at the same time they become a confession that reaches a wider audience, and in this passage that is alike a delivery, they find a place in you as well, a processing of them. You overcome them, you accept them. One second it's something aggressive, the next it's a ballad. Cathartic». Damiano

Against panic – The stage as therapy

"I've suffered a lot from anxiety and panic attacks, it's an issue I've worked on thanks to a psychotherapy course, my friends and my family. Playing helped me in not letting myself be paralyzed by my fears, not making myself limited in my private and professional life. I've learned to accept, to live with this side of myself. I don't hide it. I don't feel ashamed of it." Victoria

Analysis as necessity – Relying on someone saves you

"This belief that only madmen go to the psychologist is a widespread ignorance. No-one's born learned. [tn: common Italian saying] And it's often hard to understand the very reason why we're here, let alone the origin and direction of our desires. It's a long and legitimate journey towards lucidity, a kind of backing to become transparent." Damiano

Being out of our minds – But different from them [tn: "Zitti e buoni" lyrics]

"When you feel a strong passion towards something that is not a canonical job but an artistic language, that already puts you on a level of anomaly, which is not superior or inferior to other people, but it puts you in the position of the one who breaks the mold and also works at a loss, the one who sustains great risks while trying to do something that who knows if it will take you anywhere. "Why do it if it doesn't pay?". You want to give this dream of yours an aesthetic, but it becomes "You're dressing so weird! You must be gay!" - now that I'm 22 I laugh about it, but when I was 17 it had an effect on me, too." Damiano

The beauty of uniqueness – Of believing in it and defending it

"And I mean, at the end of the day if we're all different it's not because we want be alternative but because, really, no-one is the same. Justice is being judged on what you do and not what you are. Justice is equality, respect, beauty." Ethan

Fluid sexuality – Pride is freedom

"Heels for men that like themselves in them, kisses among ourselves, we have an open, extended mind, and we're proud of it. The horizons become vast, past the oppression of conservative families. With the information on the web knowledge becomes greater and with it the possibility that minorities will be less and less minorities, because the majority will be less of a majority. This way we'll make insults and bullying grow quieter. If social media get to a village of 50 souls and reveal to a girl who's afraid of the dark that someone has felt her same fear, then there's no reason to give a name to that fear, to mark it with labels which also limit and restrict. Definitions always had this effect on me. You shouldn't even consider the gender when judging someone, let alone their orientation." Victoria

Sexism – A culture to be dismantled

"Emma [tn: Emma Marrone, Italian singer] drops the bomb: “At Eurovision when I was there they massacred me for a pair of shorts, while they said nothing to Damiano – bare-chested and in heels.” The easy judgment against women is more fierce, constant, debasing (if I have a lot of sex I'm cool while Vic is a whore, where I show myself strong I'm a leader while Vic is despotic and a pain in the ass who reached success because she's hot.) As a male I'm privileged, the abuse I get is not comparable to those a woman has to live through, the comments over my aesthetic are centered only on my aesthetic and don't insinuate anything about my professionalism and my competence, while women are victims of this kind of thought in a systematic way. It happened though to find myself standing with a woman who while pulling me to herself to take a selfie, started licking my face out of the blue... I mean, what the hell do you want? Who asked you? Consent exists, and it's due." Damiano

Grow yourself – The only commandment

"To me conformism is the opposite of education [tn: could also mean "politeness"] and is the asphyxia of expression. I fortunately never endured heavy bullying, heavy enough for the the judgement of others to change me. But the mold of the small crumbs of bullying I got and of the kind of aggression that scars is the same. If I'm a kid who dances and likes dolls you have to let me do what I like. I was a kid who wanted to keep his hair long and played with Barbie. As a teen, my friends looked at my hair: " You have to find a girl with short hair to be at your side." My grandparents took away my dolls: "Stop it, they're not for you." Ethan

"When I was six I was already sick of them, the distinctions between masculine and feminine. I've always had strong ideas about how I wanted to be. I refused things that were typically defined as girly, and all around me they mocked me because I went skateboarding, I played soccer, I didn't wear skirts, I was giving myself the chance to be as I wished. I endured it a little, I suffered a little, but I had courage, and now thanks to that courage I know that I could have gotten even much more hurt, otherwise I would have left to others the most important choice: the one about myself." Victoria

Love in progress – Music, girlfriends

"I've been married to music for the last 20 years. I can't wait to celebrate our golden wedding anniversary." Ethan

"Everyone makes their own experiences, sometimes it goes well, sometimes it goes wrong, but it's always not anybody's business." Thomas

"When I first felt feelings and attraction towards a girl it was a bit disorienting because I had never had the courage of going beyond the limitations I had put for myself. For society being heterosexual is the norm and so you often define yourself in that way automatically, depriving yourself of the freedom to live many shades and faces of love. Once I overcame the initial insecurity of having to call into question my certainties I've lived my sexuality in a very natural and free way, as it should be for everyone." Victoria

"I had paparazzi at my door every day and night. So, after four years of relationship, I revealed her name. I still have paparazzi at my door every day and nigh, but at least I don't have to hide anything anymore." Damiano

The worth of the group – Phenomenology of protection

"The true engagement though, the true family is among ourselves, our band. We've believed in it since day zero, even before we called ourselves Måneskin (Moonlight in Danish), even before Ethan drew a giant moon on the flier for the first concert we ever did. We share everything, even the pain for the tragedy of Seid Visin, who committed suicide at 20 because of racism. [tn: I think the journalist asked them their opinion about Seid Visin's death, which was a current events topic in Italy, and then pasted it syntaxically in the middle of Thomas' answer, which was not a great move] A group is what we all should be: stay united and not back down an inch in the face of oppression that is generated by a distorted view of diversity." Thomas

I'm not of the right age – Like Gigliola [tn: Gigliola Cinquetti won Eurovision with her song "Non ho l'età", which means "I'm not of the right age"]

"Before you the only one who won both Sanremo and Eurovision on the same year was Cinquetti (1964). If there's anything I feel I'm not of the right age for? No, honestly no. Maybe having children. Regarding children I'll be honest: I'm not of the right age." Damiano

Having touched the sky – The fears that remain

"We're more than inside the dream, we're in the conquered dream. When you fly high there's the risk of plummeting and hurting yourself, but we'll work hard not to end up like Icarus, who burns his wings with the sun. Everything is in our hands. And this - a bit pretentiously - reassures us rather than scaring us." Damiano

[mistressemmedi]

Måneskin: "Different from whom?"

Greetings from Miley Cyrus - phenomenal numbers.

The streams of Zitti e Buoni are growing by the second, and ahead of Muse, on the top of the English charts, twelfth in the Spotify Global Chart. We almost tripled followers after Rotterdam (from 1.4 to 3.3 million, ed). Contagious and universal madness: T-shirts and merchandise sold out in 10 minutes. Like records, tickets for a tour that adds dates and expands on maps. They are even looking for us in festivals where the Rolling Stones have played. - Thomas

After the whole cocaine scandal that was started against us from France, which was later denied by my drug test, in Spain there people have been making murals with my face saying "No drugs". Some tweets made us laugh: «Congratulations, Italy! I have never been so sure that four people have fucked each other ". Miley Cyrus started following us. "You are great". “You are more” . - Damiano

From rags to riches - what a story

It was only 2016, and we were playing in restaurants, on the streets, in via del Corso (famous street in Rome). Damiano without a microphone, Thomas's guitar with broken strings, Ethan drummed on a cajón. At the occupations of the high schools in Rome (Kennedy, Virgilio, Mamiani) we had our first gigs and half an hour of fame, between those who criticized us and those who said "these guys are so cool". One of the rare times in which they offered to pay us to play - 50 euros each - we offered that money to those after us, in exchange for the chance to play during their time slow, as we knew there would have been a bigger crowd. We already understood then how it worked. That visibility was worth more than the money. We still think so ». - Victoria

The intimacy of rock - Choice of a genre

Music allows is this miracle which allows one to talk about very personal and private topics, even difficult and delicate ones. They are and remain deeply yours, but at the same time they become a confession that reaches a wider audience, and in this passage which is like a delivery, they also find their place in you, their elaboration. They are overcome, they are accepted. One moment it feels aggressive, one moment later a (soft) ballad. It's very cathartic. - Damiano

Against panic - The stage as therapy

I have suffered a lot from anxiety and panic attacks, it is a problem that I have worked on thanks to a course of psychotherapy, to my friends and family. Playing has helped me not to let myself be paralyzed by my fears, not to be limited in my private and professional life. I have learned to accept, to live with this side of me. I don't hide it. I no longer feel ashamed. - Victoria

This belief that only crazy people go to the psychologist is widespread ignorance. Nobody is born learned. And it is often difficult to understand why we are here, let alone the derivation and direction of our desires. It is a long and legitimate journey towards one's clarity. - Damiano

Essere fuori di testa – Ma diversi da loro (Be out of your mind - But different from them)

Already feeling a strong passion for something that is not a 'regular' profession but an artistic language, it puts you on a level where you're an anomaly, and while you're neither superior nor inferior to others, it places you in the condition of what breaks the mold but you're also being at a loss, leaving it to you to be bold and to take risks, hoping that they will pay off and land you somewhere. "What good is it if you don't stand out on your own?". You want to give it an aesthetic to your artistic dream, but to others it boils down to " You dress differently! You must be gay! ”, I'm 22 now and it makes me laugh, but at 17 it had an effect on me too. - Damiano

The beauty of being unique - Of believing in that and defending it

After all, we are all different not because we want to be alternative but because really no one is the same. Justice is being judged on what you do and not what you are. Justice is equality, respect, beauty. - Ethan

Fluid sexuality - Pride is freedom

We appreciate heels on men, we kiss each other, we have an open, extended mind, and we are proud of it. The horizons become vast, beyond the oppression of conservative families. With information on the web, knowledge is enriched and with it the possibility that minorities will be fewer and fewer, because majorities will be fewer and fewer. This will lower the volume to insults and bullying. If social networks can reach a village of 50 souls to reveal to someone, who is afraid of the darkness, that someone has felt that same fear.. There is no longer the need to give it a name, to define that "something" to fear, to brand it with labels that only limit you. Definitions have always had this effect on me. Gender should not even be considered in a person's judgment. Let alone orientation ". - Victoria

Sexism - A culture to be dismantled

Emma (Italian singer) dropped the bomb:" When I went to Eurovision, they insulted me over a pair of shorts. Damiano - half naked and in heels - was never criticized ". The judgment against women is constant, ferocious, and demeaning (if I have a lot of sex I'm cool but Vic a whore, where I show myself strong I'm a leader she is domineering and pain in the ass, who is successful because only because of her looks [and not the hard work she puts in]). As a male I am privileged, the harassment I suffer is not comparable to that experienced by a woman, the comments on my aesthetics are focused only on my aesthetics and do not insinuate anything about my professionalism and my competence, while women are victims of this kind of thinking in a systemic way. But I did find myself in a situation, out of nowhere, with someone who, pulling close to her for a selfie, started licking my face ... "What do you want, did you ask me?" Consent exists, and it is a must ». - Damiano

To grow as a person - The only rule to follow

For me, to conform is the total opposite of educating oneself, and the asphyxiation of one's expression (of freedom). Fortunately, I did not suffer heavy bullying, to the point where I felt I needed to change to adapt to how others saw me. But the matrix of who I am and the aggression that marks me is the same. If I'm a kid who dances and loves dolls, then allow me the freedom to do so. I used to be a kid who wanted long hair and played with Barbies. My friends, as a teenager, looked my long hair and teased me: "You have to find yourself a girl with a short hair to make up for it". My grandparents took the dolls away from me and said: “Stop it, they're not for you” ». - Ethan

“I was six and I already could not tolerate the distinctions between masculine and feminine. I've always had strong ideas about how I wanted to be. I refused things typically defined as feminine as a child, and they made fun of me for skating, for playing soccer, for not wearing skirts, for giving myself the chance to be as I wanted to be. I suffered a little, as I was bullied, but I had courage to stay true to myself, and today thanks to that courage I know that I could have been much more hurt, or I would have risked leaving the most important decision to others: the one about being just me". - Victoria

Love - music and girlfriends

I've been married to music for the past 20 years. I cannot wait to celebrate our golden wedding anniversary. - Ethan

Everyone goes through their own experiences, sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, but it's never other people's business." - Thomas

When, for the first time, I developed feelings and attraction for a girl it was a bit disorienting because I had never had the courage to go beyond the limitations I had imposed on myself. For society, being heterosexual is the norm and therefore often one automatically pegs himself in that way, giving up the freedom to experience many different shades and facets of love. Once I got over the initial insecurity of having to question one's own certainties, I lived my sexuality in a very natural and free way, as it should be for everyone. - Victoria

I had paparazzi under my house morning and night. So, after four years of relationship, I finally revealed her name. I still have the paparazzi under my house morning and night, but at least I don't have to hide anything anymore. - Damiano

The value of the group - Protecting each other

But the real relationship, the real family, is between us. Our band. We believed in it from the first day, even before calling ourselves Måneskin (moonlight in Danish), even before Ethan drew a giant moon, on the poster for our first concert. We share everything, even the pain of the tragedy of Seid Visin, who committed suicide at 20 because he was a victim of racism. Being a group is what we should all do together: stay united and not retreat in the slightest in the face of abuses generated by a distorted vision of someone "being different|. - Thomas

Non ho l’età – like Gigliola (It references Gigliola Cinquetti who won both Sanremo and Eurovision with her song "Non ho l’età" which translates to Not old enough)

Before us, the only one to win Sanremo and Eurovision together was Gigliola Cinquetti (in 1964). Is there is something for which I feel I am not yet old enough for? No, honestly no. Maybe for kids. I'll be honest, I'm not enough to be a dad. - Damiano

Reached the sky - What fears still remain

We are more than in the dream, we have conquered the dream. To fly high this high, there is the risk is to fall and get hurt, but we will try not to end up like Icarus, who burns his wings with the sun. Everything is in our hands. And this - somewhat presumptuously - reassures us rather than frighten us ". - Damiano

(ORIGINAL INTERVIEW IN ITALIAN)

[Please note that I have changed some words or structure sentence, trying to make it so that the interview made more sense lol - I skipped the first two paragraphs, which was basically the interviewer gushing over how pretty the band is lmao (relatable).

Any mistakes in the translation are sorely mine, nothing was proofread, so apologies in advance]

[wagner-fell]

Mari kicked down the dressing room door with a bang so loud Kevin jumped and spilled his hot coffee cup all over himself. Hearing his yelps of pain, Astrid peaked her head out of the curtain, laughed at his expense then shut it again. Maria ignored that.

They strutted out to where the boys were sitting and struck a pose. “Can I rock cottage core or can I rock cottage core?”

Kit didn’t trust himself to speak. He simply nodded instead. While the baby blue dress with short, ruffled sleeves looked a bit out of place paired with Mari’s bulging muscles, she looked absolutely stunning.

The Merry Hoes were located in the back room of the antique store Kevin’s family owned. The Chu’s just got a large donation of vintage clothing. Mari had just gotten their pay check from the downworlder gym she worked at. Kit and Astrid really didn’t want to do their maths homework. It was destiny.

Despite being downworlders both Blessica and Kevin still lived at home. Mari, though, lived with the rest of their pack in an old Edwardian mansion a few blocks away from school. However the five of them slept over at each other’s place of residence so often they blurred together in the young Herondale’s mind. He could really only tell them apart by their smells.

Mari’s reeked of dirty laundry as they were one of four folks on the feminine side of the gender scale out of the lycanthropy of London, Blessica excluded. Her house smelled like Ube, a type of yam her Filipino parents put in everything. Kit couldn’t complain. Ube flavoured ice cream was the best thing he’s ever eaten. Aside from Mari. Though he wasn’t usually the one… Nevermind.

Kevin’s house smelled of Longjing tea and red wine. A peculiar combination that oddly enough, worked quite well.

Astrid had two homes as her parents divorced at the age of six. Stepping into her mom’s house was like stepping into a cookie factory. Which made sense as her mom owned a bakery and lived above it. Kit didn’t know exactly what Astrid’s dad’s place smelled like, let alone looked like, but he could make an educated guess that it was similar to the Los Angeles Institute because it was in LA too.

After they separated, Miss Yang fled to Devon to dodge the possibility of seeing her ex-husband when they exchanged Astrid. Kit related to her on a deep, personal level.

Now Astrid spent her summers in America and Kit drained his battery on international phone calls.

Her three months in the USA each year helped him bond with her better when they had first been introduced. For example, her ringtone was the Perry the Platypus theme song. Blessica, Kevin and Maria had no clue what it was but when the music reached Kit’s ears, the two sang an epic duet that put Kiss Me More (the second most iconic duet in history) to shame.

“How much is this anyway,” asked Mari, turning in a circle to see if there was a price tag. In the process she sent the fabric fluttering as she went. It made them look more magical than ever.

“There is no price on fabulousness,” said Astrid. She had on loose, black dress pants, a white shirt, and black suspenders with gold blemishes.

“Yes there is,” replied Kevin. “54 euros.”

“54 euros,” exclaimed Mari.

“Well it would have been €34 but you made me spill my coffee and this shirt was 20 so..”

“Seriously, Kev. I will fuck your mom. You think I won’t?” A pause. “Wait, only twenty €20?”

“Oh, I know right! There is this incredible thrift store down on Fleet Street and-”

“Don’t care,” interrupted Mar. She took one last look in the mirror before turning back to him. “I’ll give you your parents' price, not your dramatic ass’s one.”

Kevin rolled his eyes. “Fine. But it’s an extra €10 for the shoes.”

Mari looked down at her tan sandals. They leaned against the door they just excited to take the footwear off. “Racist,” she muttered under her breath.

“I’m literally Chinese.”

“Homophobic, then.”

“Pansexaul,” he sang.

Mari was silent for a moment before she banged on the door into the room Blessica was changing into her rose pink gown. “Blessie! Do I have permission to call Kev transphobic in your name?”

“Hey,” said Kevin, looking up from his task of rubbing a paper towel across his sheer, white shirt. “That’s cheating. Blessie, don’t listen to them!”

The nickname ‘Blessie’ was what her family exclusively called her. She turned red when they had first found out. Granted, it wasn’t hard to make Blessica blush. All she had to do was stand in Kevin’s general area.

“Blessica,” called Mari once again. When she still didn’t answer, Maria stood up and pressed their forehead against the changing room door. “You okay?”

“No,” Blessica croaked out finally. Her hoarse voice was laced with sorrow. Upon hearing her speak, Kevin abandoned any hope of saving his top and joined Mari at the door. Kit and Astrid were quick to follow.

“Hey,” said Astrid gently. “What’s wrong?”

Blessica began to sob. “The dress doesn’t fit right,” she whimpered.

“That’s okay,” soothed Kevin. “We have other sizes.”

“Kev, it doesn’t fit my body because it wasn’t made for my body. I just feel so ugly.” All the other Merry Hoes made various sounds of distress. Kit was instantly reminded of Dru,

He was suddenly fifteen again. In Ty’s bedroom as he told him of all the times she’d been told she wasn’t pretty by members of the Shadowhunter society. And all the times Emma or Julian or another member of her family had reassured her that she was. The thought occurred to Kit that maybe they weren’t Emma-y as Blessica needed them to be.

“It’s just like,” started Blessica, “I started taking Estrogen seven months ago, you know? And I still don’t have anything to show for it.”

His mind was racing a mile a minute. “Yes you do,” he said.

“I do?” she asked, sounding dubious.

“Your voice!”

“You do have a really nice voice,” agreed Astrid. “You could totally narrate audiobooks or something.”

“No it’s not,” grumbled Kevin.

“Kevin,” said Mari, glaring daggers at him. ‘Kevin’ in this case didn’t mean Kevin. It meant ‘Shut your mouth right or I will actually kill you’.

“No, not like that! It’s just…” he was blushing profusely now. “Her voice is like the rain. Most of the time it’s soft and warm and it wraps you in one big, wet hug. You can’t help but feel, well, blessed to get to feel it touching your skin.. But when it rains hard you feel every single drop land. But no matter what kind of rain it is, the impact is always enormous. Uh, yeah, her voice is like that.” There was a moment of prolonged silence, where Blessica had stopped crying but no one was brave enough to talk.

The door opened and Kit, Kevin and Astrid stumbled backwards. Mari didn’t. Stupid gorgous jock, Kit thought as she survayed her inferiourors.

Blessica stood in the open doorway. Her eyes were puffy and red. The dress looked perfect on her. Not that this style hadn’t looked perfect on Mari but their arms were so thick, they filled up the entire selve. Blessica was so petite you could see her bones clearly through the skin. It highlighted the flowness of the gown extremely well. “You guys like my voice?” Then, “why are you all staring at me, is it that bad?”

“Blessie,” said Mari. “You can’t just put on that in front of four people who like women and expect them not to stare.”

“Respectfully, of course,” added Kit.

“Just tell us if it makes you uncomfortable,” agreed Kevin.

“Step on me,” breathed Astrid.

“But then again,” said Mari, “you validate yourself too.”

“Run me over with a cement truck.”

“We can see your hot as fuck. But more importantly you have to believe you’re hot as fuck.”

“You could literally kill me and I’d get on my knees to thank you.”

Blessica was blushing as hard as Kevin now. They sheepishly smiled at each other before turning away. “Simp,” said Kit and he held out his hand. Astrid dutifully rewarded him with a high five.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I am on the trans spectrum but I am not mtf. If you are and you feel misrepresented please feel free to private message me or just leave a comment tell me how I can fix it.

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