#I broke my streak at 950 days at the start of the year

[apostaterevolutionary]

Wholly agree Duolingo isn't great any more but it's the only fully free site so it's all I can use...:(

I totally get it anon, it’s a tough situation. For what it’s worth, I believe most of memrise is free, so it might be worth taking a look to see if it has your language. And I mentioned this in the post, but your local library may give you free access to other apps. Tumblr library propaganda has taught me many things about what libraries offer!

And even though I’ve been mad at duo for a lot longer (since they rolled out that stupid path, even though I managed to dodge it for over a year by not updating my app, they did eventually force it onto my ancient and crumbling version lmao), I kept up with it for a long time just because I couldn’t find an alternative I liked. And tbh I’m still not sure what I’m gonna do now, cause it turns out I like casually learning languages, it’s fun and I don’t want to stop, I’d love to get at least conversational in several, but I’m not exactly sure where I’ll go from here yet

Even disregarding the ethical issues, I do worry about the future for duo learners because machine translation simply cannot compete with the real thing. I think anyone trying to read something from another language knows from experience lmao. But I think it will be a while before the app really dies, because the idea of learning for free is a good one. It’s just sad the ceo sold his soul and made duo publicly traded, because it’s been going downhill since (completely changing courses when you’re halfway through, the path, the loss of the forums, the removal of notes, the loss of typing practice, and now severe staff cuts for a cheaper but inferior option)

It sucks ass but it is what it is and I won’t necessarily judge anyone for sticking with it if it’s your only option. I also saw some statements from people who worked on the original duo courses as volunteers upset about these developments, but also distraught that all this work and effort and love they put into the courses would be for nothing if duo eventually does shut down. The courses were originally made by people, for free too, and most of their work is still there, I can’t blame them for being upset at their love letters to the world getting twisted but also not wanting their work to disappear forever because everyone quit. There’s no winning for them at this stage

Idk this is way more rambling than was necessary lmao, but anyway let’s summarize by saying I feel you, it sucks, but I also understand if people keep using the free version duo because, and especially depending on the language you’re working on, sometimes there really aren’t feasible alternatives

[divine-knight-hand]

Imagine Wanda Coming To See You After Having A Nightmare

Wanda Masterlist || Full Masterlist || Read on AO3

Pairing: Wanda Maximoff x Female Reader

Content Warnings: Angst, mention of death, and nightmares

Word Count: 950

Dividers by @transbro

Tap. Tap. Tap.

I woke to the sound of a soft knocking at my door. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes before looking at my alarm clock. It read 4:30 A.M.. Who would be awake at four in the morning? I swear, if Tony’s about to ask me to make coffee for him instead of having Friday do it again, I'll kick his-

“Detka?” A soft voice—which was definitely not Tony's—called from the other side of the door. “Are you awake?"

I would know my girlfriend's voice anywhere. Wanda and I had been dating for about five months now. Why is she awake this late? Early? Whatever it was, it definitely wasn't right.

"Yeah." My grogginess added a rasp to my voice. "Come in."

Wanda slowly opened the door and softly closed it behind herself before quietly making her way to my bed. Her round face was tear-streaked, and I wanted to erase whatever pain caused her to look this miserable.

"I’m sorry to bother you." A guilty expression crossed her features.

"Don't be sorry." I sat up and beckoned to her with open arms. "Come here."

Wanda sighed before climbing onto my bed and into my lap. I wrapped my arms around her, rubbing her side before moving one hand to stroke her hair. She was silent the whole time, only moving to rest her head against my chest.

I kissed the crown of her head before asking. "What's the matter, my love?"

Wanda sniffled. "I just… I was having a nightmare and I didn't want to be alone right now. The first person I thought of seeing was you."

"And I'm glad you did… Come to see me, I mean." I pulled her closer to myself as she curled up on my lap. "Do you want to tell me about it?"

She took a shaky breath before continuing. "I've been having the same nightmare for a long time now." She sniffled. "Ever since... Well, It always starts with that battle in Sokovia. Instead of fighting off Ultron's army, I'm running through the broken streets trying to save him, but..." She sniffled again. "I'm never able to make it in time."

"Who?" I wanted to kick myself for even thinking of asking when the answer was obvious.

"My brother," She breathed. “Pietro.”

Then, she let out a soft sob, and my heart shattered into a million pieces. I knew how Pietro died, but I had no idea Wanda was still actively grieving for him.

I hugged her close to my chest. "Wanda, I'm so sorry. I wish I could take your pain onto myself." And I was being honest.

Over the course of her life, Wanda had been through a lot. She lost her brother, Pietro, and her first boyfriend, Vision, on missions that she was on with the Avengers. Every moment I looked into her eyes and saw the hurt behind them, I wished with all of my heart that we would trade lives. It really didn’t seem fair that I was fine while she was carrying years worth of hurt inside. I would do anything to take that hurt from her.

"Wanda," I wiped some stray tears from her cheeks. “There was nothing you could have done. You tried your hardest, and so did Pietro." I kept stroking her hair, moving it away from her tear-streaked face. "You both gave it your all that day, and you both knew what you were risking. It wasn't your fault." I kissed the crown of her head. "And don't ever think that I'd be bothered by you coming into my room at night to be with me. I'd stay up all night just to make sure that you're okay."

Wanda sniffled as she looked up at me with watery eyes. "You mean it?"

"I do." I tried to muster the brightest smile I could.

Wanda sat up and wrapped her arms around my shoulders before leaning in to kiss me. I laid back down, holding her on top of me as she trailed her hands along the sides of my face. I moved my hands along her waist as she laid on top of me. I only broke our kiss to trail kisses down her cheek and the side of her neck.

With the sadness slowly leaving her voice, Wanda whispered. “I love you, detka.”

“I love you, too, my witchling.” I rose back to eye-level with her to peck the tip of her nose.

"Aww." The two of us jumped apart in surprise at the sudden sound. "This is so sweet!" There was no body in the room to accompany the voice, so I began to grow suspicious.

"Hello?" Wanda called out into the empty room.

"Friday," I commanded. "Do a surveillance check to find who said that."

"Right away." Friday stayed silent for an agonizing moment before reporting back. "It appears Agent Barton had observed your and Ms. Maximoff’s exchange from the ventilation system, but retreated at your request of a surveillance scan."

"Typical." I muttered. Wanda’s face flushed red. We could never have a private moment as long as we lived in the Avengers tower.

Luckily for him, Clint wasn't as obnoxious as Tony, who found every excuse to make fun of just about anyone in the tower. In a sense, that was what I liked and hated most about him. He was an odd character, but an entertaining one at the least.

Wanda and I waited for a moment in silence before I took her by the chin and kissed her again. On the off chance that Clint was back, he'd at least have enough sense to know to stay quiet this time.