#I recognise that's not super specific

[totkdaily]

Day 6: Lookout Landing and Hyrule Castle Gatehouse

I wake stiff and cold. It's been a while since I camped out. 

It’s so strange that nobody here seemed particularly astonished by all the floating islands, which suggests they've been there for some time. Even 100 years after the Calamity, people at the stables still talked about it. Maybe I was right, and the monumental changes in the landscape really are old news? Where does that leave me? 

I need more information. It's time to go to the tower. I whistle for Peaches, and we're off. 

On the way there, a very unwelcome development - some of the trees are uprooting themselves and chasing me. This is... frightening, but thankfully they are slower than a sprinting horse. 

The guards Drozer and Burwar recognise me at the gates to the tower - or, at least the gates to Lookout Landing, which appears to be the name of the settlement. It sounds as though I was last here in their lifetime... and Burwar says that Purah is here! Though she does have the secret to eternal life, so that doesn’t really give me any clues. 

I find Robbie here too! But then, I could absolutely see him trying out Purah’s method of life preservation. Surely I must know someone who doesn’t have a preternaturally long lifespan? 

The Castle looms darkly over this otherwise cheerful encampment. The Gloom is so thick it reminds me of Malice, but it seems more ephemeral. It pushes at the Castle from below, rather than simply coating everything in that ichor of Calamity Ganon. 

I find Purah, older than she was and in control. Her presence is somehow grounding. She listens to my experience of the last few days. She recognises the name Rauru - as the first king of Hyrule. I never did get on with kings of Hyrule, especially as ghosts. But how long ago did he live? Surely Zelda knew him as a ghost, then. She can’t have… no.

The Upheaval is what they're calling the Castle rising and the ruins falling. Those researchers yesterday said that the chasms turned up around the same time. So much change. Is it because Zelda and I went beneath the castle? Or would the same thing have happened without us there? That hand - Rauru's hand - only fell off the mummy creature when we arrived. And now I bear it… 

Purah thinks Zelda might be trapped beneath the castle, but I'm not so sure. What I saw on the sky island... I think it's more complicated than that. Still, I follow Purah's orders to meet with Captain Hoz’s search party. Surely they will know something.

Having to tell everyone, one by one, that I lost the Princess, that though I am back she is still missing, crushes me. I’ve failed. 

I meet a guy called Addison who works for... President Hudson! Well, sounds like he's thriving. I hope his wife is well.

The people who guard Lookout Landing and the road up to the Castle are a mixture of mercenaries and guards. I’m sure I once rescued Oliff from bokoblins in Gerudo Canyon… which implies I haven’t been gone for too long, as he still seems young and hale. Purpen at the gatehouse has amazing dress sense, and useful information - it seems all the weapons in Hyrule have decayed in the Upheaval. That creature’s Gloom had a similar impact on the Master Sword - if that blade couldn’t resist it, nothing could. Except… my gear from the sky islands seems untouched. Perhaps it only affects metal, or certain kinds of metal? 

This motley crew is a shallow facsimile of the Castle Guard I used to know - though I know that time has now passed beyond the living memory of most. Only a few of us are left who remember it. I’m sure these people are doing their best. 

I head up the hill as instructed and find Captain Hoz. I’m not sure he knows much more than me - they haven’t even made it past the Gatehouse. 

But then we see the Princess!! She faces us from the next tower in that strange Zonai garb, her face impassive - and then before I can move she turns into light and vanishes. 

Hoz orders me to report to Purah and I ignore him, racing to where the Princess stood. But there’s no sign of her. Nothing there but a Korok. What’s happening? Why can’t she send me some kind of message? If she’s away from me against her will, how can she have appeared here - and why would she leave? 

I stay on the tower’s edge until dawn. 

[spearxwind]

Question about the homosexueels! Do people ever see Talas and Hades in leviathan form together? (Murder dates?) Or do they take special precautions to make sure that doesn't happen? IK Talas kills pretty much everyone who sees his leviathan form tho

Ok so like. They DO take care to actually not let a lot of people see em, but Murder dates 1000% happen for real. It's a swag pastime <3

In general yeah anyone who sees Talas in leviathan form has to Die because then they can actually connect him to the worldeater and put two and two together that it's him, so he has to keep his appearance a secret.

Since there's usually no survivors to tell the tales all the info would be what comes in through radio contact before theyre cut, so there might actually be like. A witness or two of the big fucker who now has a smaller leviathan hunting alongside. So technically they probably do get seen its just people can never live for very long afterwards fkfkgnkg

And just for fun. Some other murder dates involve putting both strats together like uh. Morays and groupers do irl where they hunt together, Talas is more of an open water guy and Hades is more of a quick reef maneuver guy.

Also the other day i was thinking how fucking scary it would be if hades had his petals splayed and looking like the eyes of a big leviathan but the thing in front of him wasnt particularly shaken, and then Hades folds his petals back and Talas is like Right There.

Or even mer form Hades being completely unhinged and dragging someone behind a boat like live bait and Talas chasing them around. They do get creative basically

[steakout-05]

forgot how to draw Barry (again), learned how to draw Engineer TF2. not sure how that happened but hey i know how to draw texan bob the builder now! :D

[heartyearning]

the way i live my life is LIDORALLY just like doing whatever’s gonna make my friends have a laff. have a good chuckle. no matter how stupid the thing is or how silly it’s gonna make me look to other ppl if it makes them do a little snort come hell or high water i will do that thing

[longagoitwastuesday]

I was watching the Podalydès version of Cyrano de Bergerac this time from start to finish and... I'm so stupid xD

[g4l4xy-qu33n]

Okay, so I discovered something when re-reading Journal 3. The page that has the Oracle on it:

When I first read Journal 3, years ago, this didn't mean much. Oh look, it's the girl that saved Ford from Bill's possession by putting a metal plate in his head, hooray! (and some other stuff but anyway she didn't seem super significant at the time).

Well, this time around I recognised her, specifically because of the Book Of Bill AND thisisnotawebsitedotcom. She's Seveneyes! (the scratched out member of Bill's crew in BoB, and a blacked-out photo of her appears on the website when you put in 'seven eyes'.

I'm not sure if this means anything, but it certainly blew my mind!!

[sttoru]

dad!Toji losing megumi on his sight in a grocery store.

⟣ tags. dad!toji x female reader. fluff.

“where the hell did that brat go. . .” toji sighs in frustration as he makes his third trip around the numerous aisles, peeking through each gap between to see where his son could’ve possibly hid.

you had been gone for one minute to grab something you had forgotten in the car, leaving your husband and son alone at the grocery store. you thought toji would be more than capable of keeping an eye on megumi during the time you left.

he did succeed for a couple seconds, but then somehow lost sight of the little boy. it happened out of the blue—even for someone as quick as toji, his child seemed to have disappeared into thin air, without him noticing at all.

“tsk, just wait ‘til i catch ya..” toji scoffs and makes quick strides. the other customers seemed to scurry off to the sides as the dark-haired man passes them—the reason for this being his bulky and tall body and that cold yet pissed off expression on his face whilst walking forwards.

of course, toji was still secretly worried for megumi. he didn’t want to think of the worst case scenario at all. he needs to stay calm and collected in such situations. panicking will do him no good.

toji passes by a pit of plushies, paying it no mind until he hears a soft, muffled giggle from that same area. he stops in his tracks and turns his head to the right. that voice was one he could recognise from miles away.

“oh, y’re so done.” the dark-haired man mutters under his breath and digs through the many plushies, hands looking for the source of that giggle. there were a couple strands of dark blue hair sticking out from between the big stuffed animals and toji wasted no time, “c’mere, brat.”

he uses a bit of his strength and fishes out a child from under the pile of softness—his child.

“papa!” megumi squeals and was holding onto a plushie: a cute black dog one. it seems like he had waddled off and climbed onto the box to grab that specific plushie, but couldn’t get out afterwards, “papa, waf! waf!”

toji sighs and holds megumi up by the back of his shirt, walking back to your shopping cart. he gains some stares due to the obscure way he was carrying his son around, though megumi himself couldn’t care any less as he cuddles up to the plushie in his tiny arms.

toji puts the little boy in the baby seat and grabs onto the stuffed animal, tugging at it; “gimme that. ya can’t have it ‘cause ya ran off without tellin’ me.”

megumi whines and pulls the toy back in his arms, giving toji a pleading look. his lips formed a desperate pout and his eyes were starting to glisten with tears that appeared on his waterlines.

“yeah, stare at me all you want with those big bug eyes—y’re not gonna get that.” your husband shakes his head and grabs the plushie again, taking it away from his son to put it back.

megumi reacts to this by curling his chubby hand around toji’s index finger—still with that cute pout on his lips whilst trying to prevent his dad from stepping away. it’s specifically those shiny blue orbs that seem to mellow toji’s heart to the point he almost gives in.

“…”

you come back after five minutes and spot your family back in the candy aisle. the duo didn’t appear to have seen you yet since they were busy picking out some sweets for later.

“hi, my angels.” you creep up behind toji and tap his back. he instantly steps aside and your (surprisingly) super excited son comes into view.

megumi was smiling widely and that’s when your eyes land on something in his arms.

“oh, you got ‘gumi a dog plushie!” you gasp and seem to get excited for your child—megumi giggling right alongside you, “how nice!”

toji rolls his eyes, though wasn’t about to admit that he eventually did give in to megumi’s adorable tactics. he gently flicks the little boy’s forehead and looks back at you;

“didn’t get it for him out of my own free will.” your husband grumbles and then continues to squish megumi’s cheeks together using one hand, “this little brat threatened me.”

“i’m sure he did.” you chuckle and nudge toji’s side with your elbow. you knew just how much of a softie really is for his son.

“i’m not lyin’,” toji replies with a sigh and pushes the cart ahead, you following next to him with a smile, “he threatened me with those big eyes of his. i’m tellin’ ya, that stuff is dangerous.” —for my heart, he adds in his head.

you couldn’t contain your laughter as you hear your lover’s words. your gaze then lands on megumi, who was contentedly staring up at both his parents, cuddled up to the big stuffed animal.

“good job.” you gave megumi a thumbs up and ruffle his hair as a reward. the kid sticks his tongue out and almost looks proud of the fact that he got his way in the end.

toji really was just a big softie for his son. and for his wife as well, of course.

[professorcalculusstanaccount]

tintin is incredible at timing

(possibly) the final snippet I'll post from my story The Gypsum Maw, the previous part which follows directly before is here - I've been seeing comments asking about where to read the full thing, I'm afraid what I post is basically it - I have more pages in my sketchbook but I suspect they are only legible to me!

this post is already long so more notes and credits under the cut!

I asked for some help for coming up with friends for Chang! The gentle giant Masek was created by InkyTrink on Twitter and the super excitable Libby was created by dreamyopal, a discord mutual:

They came up with some great character notes and were super helpful providing feedback on my designs!

Writing this felt pretty odd in ways. I graduated in 2020 during the Plague Year so my class didnt get a public art showcase. I attended one last year and it was a bittersweet experience.

Reunions feel a bit like time travel, you see people after a few years and things change quite a lot. I wanted to explore this in my post canon series, Chang has grown up, found himself and has been able to live a fairly normal life with family and friends. Tintin in a way reflects that young adult insecurity about being stagnant, like you haven't been able to fully reach adulthood properly. His fame and status as a Young Boy Reporter is holding him captive, he longs for connection but is held back by expectations from both himself and the outside world.

I've also been inspired by the concept of 'queer time,' the concept that the lives of queer people progress differently to the lives of non queer people. It takes time to come to terms with yourself and to come out. Queer people are often excluded from milestones like marriage or having children. Tintin being confronted with his peers at a university highlights his insecurity about being left behind, but he's slowly making the journey to self acceptance by talking to others, and recognising common ground he has with others.

Chang's university isn't a one to one reference to a specific institution but in Belgium there was a secular movement in reaction to the dominance of the Catholic church, in which universities played a key role. There's references to art movements that were deemed "degenerate" by the Nazis here, such as Fauvism and Surrealism.

[seuonji]

彡 are they dating? —times your relationship was almost revealed / time you both got caught.

๑ idol!svt x idol!yn secret relationship series! no storyline, just fun.

—yn is a hybe artist!!

★my bestie that proofreads my writings gave me the wonwoo scenario <333

one ๑ two ๑ three ๑ four ๑ five ๑ six ๑ seven #mlist

laying down with jun/soonyoung/seokmin/mingyu on his bed and taking selfies using instagram for the filters until he drops his phone and accidentally clicks on the add to story button— you both screamed until one of you deletes it or turned off the wifi so it wouldn’t post but you guys knew how persistent your fans were, you didn’t know if deleting it was good enough. he would probably say, “should i just delete my account?”

when your group won an award at an award show, during your comment the camera briefly pointed at jeonghan/wonwoo/jihoon’s face which showed his sweetest and softest smile. that picture went viral the next hour. anon: “i want someone to look at me the way he looked at yn when they won an award.” / “he wouldn’t just look at them like that for no reason they have to know each other more deeply right!?.”

passing by the seventeen practice room where seungcheol/jeonghan/minghao’s was practicing alone. he recognises your figure even though the door was translucent. he practically ran outside and looked if they coast was clear before giving you a hug. little did you guys know the one or some of your fellow hybe artists from another group was walking around that floor— they instantly said they wouldn’t tell anyone but would also be in shock and would take awhile to process what they just saw.

after an afternoon of hanging with joshua during your short break in one of the rooms in the building, you had a schedule to go live when you got back to your designated room. you soon left and looked in the mirror to make sure everything was okay and you met up with the staff then went live. you enjoyed reading the comments and answered some until you saw a specific comment. anon: yn! your necklace is so cute! where did you get it?

you mentally froze for 3 seconds and looked at yourself in the screen. you touched your neck and saw that you were wearing the necklace joshua gave you literally 30 minutes ago. you nervously laughed and said that you recently got into the activity of making jewellery and that you were testing its durability. “do you guys want one?” you smiled at your viewers. you got comments that were constantly mentioning joshua— anon: “you’re like joshua!” // “joshua from svt also makes them!!“ — but the really annoying ones would tell you you’re copying him.

during a live, a fan pointed out that wonwoo was wearing more jewellery recently. “sort of, but it’s mostly rings,” wonwoo says as he placed the back of his hand infront of the screen to showcase his rings. later on in the live he started giving the origins of each ring, “this was from a recent trip, this one is from mingyu…”

he got to a simple silver ring and he held back a grin, “this one is a typical ring but i like it a lot.” he showed the rings once again. he faced his palm to the camera but realised, on the simple silver ring, your name was engraved onto it and it was legible. he mostly had it turned inwards for reasons like this tho. he quickly took his hand away from the camera and read other comments to change the topic— the fandom became super curious, they noticed there was some writing on the ring. it was the same curiousity as to when scoups was revealed to have a tattoo.

[agirlwithglam]

S.M.A.R.T goals:

How to set and achieve your goals

What does SMART stand for?

S - specific. don't just set vague goals like "i wanna get fit" or "i wanna get abs". how are you gonna know when/ where to start? if you want to get fit: your goal could be "go to the gym for 30 mins everyday" or "i want to run 5k in under 30 mins". whatever works for you. some other examples: -> if your big goal is to get high marks on your next test: your "mini" goals/ steps should be to study everyday for at least 30-60mins. -> if your big goal is to get money/ become rich: your steps/ mini goals should be to save $___ daily first. and also figure out a way you can make a mini business/ get a job.

M - measurable. make sure that your goals are measurable- meaning that you should be able to track them. some examples: -> if your goal is to read more: then create or find a habit tracker or something so everyday when you read, you can mark it down for that day. ! recommended resource: James Clear's habit tracker journal- you can find it on amazon.

A - Achievable keep your goals realistic and attainable. if you know you dont have the time/ energy to read a whole book in 1 week, dont do it- otherwise you'll get easily discouraged. the goldilocks principle: don't make it too easy, where it doesn't give you a challenge, but don't make it too hard either, otherwise you'll get easily discouraged.

R - Relevant basically a WHY. why do you want/ need to accomplish this goal? have a motivation which drives you. make sure your goal is relevant to you in some sort of way. example: -> if you want to learn a language such as spanish, why do you wanna learn it? because you want to travel to Spain one day? to be able to communicate with someone? even if the purpose is as simple as "wanting to be bilingual cus it makes me feel cool and impressive" - if that motivates you, then go ahead!

T - time bound your goals need to have some sort of deadline or urgency attached to it- otherwise you could take all the time you want to start and procrastinate as much as you want. having a deadline for the goal will motivate you to take action sooner, than later.

how to use SMART goals effectively:

decide on the goal. (something that you actually need/ want to accomplish.)

break it down into smaller steps. (very small. so small that you can start working on whatever it is NOW.) you want to get high marks on your test? lets break it down. study 30 mins everyday -> walk to desk -> get material out -> identify what you need to study -> find your weaker topics & write it out -> create a planner or smth -> start studying. // need help? find videos online, go thru material again, find study tips, etc.

write them down. (helps you stay accountable. also people who write their goals down are 42% more likely to achieve them than people who don't write it down.)

create an action plan. (relates to the 2nd point. outline the necessary steps to take, identify resources, set milestones, plan for potential obstacles.)

monitor and evaluate progress. (regularly review your goals, mistakes, and progress. what could you do better to be more efficient and quicker? how can you learn from your mistakes?)

stay committed and flexible. (you really need to be committed to achieve the goals, you shouldn't just start off super excited, doing great in the first week then slacking off. you've made a commitment to YOURSELF. respect yourself enough to stick to it! but also be flexible with your goals. if you're reeeallyy not able to do it one day, plan to do a bit more the next day. stay focussed and don't get discouraged by setbacks.)

celebrate achievements. (recognise when you've hit a major milestone, and celebrate it! this helps you maintain motivation and a sense of accomplishment. and reward yourself!!)

random additional tips:

visualisation. (such a strong form of manifestation. everyday visualise yourself with your goals, feeling all the emotions and thoughts that come with it! visualisation can also really boost your motivation and drive to achieve it.)

PRIORITIES. (remember that also, all goals aren't equally important. prioritise the ones that really matter. this doesn't mean that you can't focus on the other goals, just make sure the ones that need more attention, get more attention.)

positive language. (use kind and encouraging words towards yourself. know and understand that you are that girl who can achieve ANYTHING she sets her mind to.)

seek support. (ask friends and family or a mentor for help. if you want, be careful tho, share your goals with them to help you stay accountable. and if you know a person who's achieved your goals, GET ADVICE FROM THEM! where better to get advice from than someone who's been through what you're going through?)

stay organised. (self explanatory. just stay organised. messy space = messy mind. clean space = clean mind.)

maintain balance. (of course your goals are important, but so is the age you're currently at. especially if you're a teenage, DONT WASTE THESE YEARS!! get out of the house! make friends! go to parties! LIVE LIFE TO ITS FULLEST. also make sure that you get the adequate rest needed!)

write about your journey. (write about the struggles, the obstacles, how you overcame them, insights you got on this journey, etc. trust me, it'll be so interesting and helpful to read when you're older.)

[cagandante-communistoide]

being tma + intersex and seeing all this tumblr discourse about intersex people "proving" that tme/tma is useless makes me feel like i'm living in an alternate reality sometimes

and it's especially annoying when i see even (usually perisex) transfems say shit like "well i'll admit i don't know much about intersex people so maybe intersex people who were assigned female can be tma" like literally NO THEY CAN'T the whole thing about transmisogyny is that it's based around your assigned gender omfg have we just forgotten that assigned gender exists or what?

like everyone acts like the moment you bring in intersex people it's super nuanced and complicated and we can't determine who is or isn't tma but actually it's pretty fucking simple: if you were put in the female box by society then you can't be tma, it's as simple as that!! intersex people are still shoved in either the male or female box whether we like it or not.

and it's even worse knowing that the first thing people think of with transmisogyny and intersex people isn't literally tma intersex people but tme intersex people who get *mistaken* for trans women by strangers, that's literally it. *mistaken* for a trans women (while still literally being recognised as tme EVERYWHERE ELSE IN THEIR LIFE)

like i'm sorry you're being harassed by strangers for having a body outside of the norm but it's just NOT THE SAME, there's no kind of body a transfem can have that will make them exempt from transmisogyny, no amount of transitioning early, perfectly passing as female, having a vagina or everyone around them being accepting will make them exempt from it, even if they quite literally have a uterus and can give birth (something some intersex transfems *can* do), they are STILL tma because tma isn't about being some huge hairy infertile deep voiced woman it's about being placed in this specific position in society that you CAN'T escape, even if you perfectly pass as female

like genuinely, if i could say one thing to intersex people who were assigned female: i honestly couldn't care less that you were kicked out of the woman's bathroom that one time or whatever, you've completely exhausted all my sympathy because all you care about is appropriating our struggles. if you really cared about intersex people you could call it what it is: intersexism, but clearly we're the intersexist ones for acknowledging that society DOES in fact put us in a binary whether you want to pretend it exists or not.

^

[thefirstknife]

Okay, this is it for Act I and now we have to stew for 20 days, I'm okay and not feeling abnormal at all (lie). But there's SO MUCH that I want to mention.

The mission starts normally, we're just collecting samples for Failsafe, but then Osiris calls us to come help him with Saint. And then shit hits the fan. Saint has apparently walked off alone into Nessus and isn't answering his comms. Normal and cool!

I'll go into the whole thing, under read more for length (long ass post, I'm having normal thoughts and feelings about this whole thing):

Right away, no more lake where we were fishing (only in the mission though):

Strange! The Vex appear to have let Saint pass through here without a fight. Once again, there's a mix of Vex in this area; some are normal Vex units with collars and some are Precursors without (the boss, the cyclops and the hobgoblins are Precursors):

The Precursors aren't collared, but they still participate in this and are also changed ("uplifted choral cyclops" = part of the chorus even without a yoke). This is incredibly strange. And then more strange information:

Okay!!! What is going on! We've seen in the last week's lore page that the Vex are behaving incredibly strangely. In short, they seem to be behaving more like individuals, rather than what we're used to seeing from them. This adds to that. They are developing tactics and changes that they previously weren't engaged with because, essentially, they didn't have to be.

Anyway, we get to finally hear Saint and he's... Talking to himself. About how he's not real. We find him collared and he appears to be hearing a voice talking to him; the voice is only identified as a "Conductor." At this point, I don't think there's any doubt about this being Maya. The same term was used by her in her experiments with the Veil: she needed someone to be a "conductor" to the "chorus" of minds when she was trying to merge fabricate consciousness (which she succeeded in with Lakshmi). Maya died in the "conductor's chair." What we don't know is ... Well. Anything else. What is she doing and why and what state is she in. The assumption right now is that she's using the Vex as a chorus, but why are they allowing this and why are some of them participating even without the collars? No clue.

What's interesting is that she seems to have analysed Saint and knew about him, either from her own analysis of him after observing him during our expeditions or from the Vex themselves. Or both. I suspect a combination of both because he's been involved with what we've been doing so she would've been interested to see why, and then she would've also gotten additional information from the Vex who recognise him. I would assume the Vex also had information about the rest of us, including Osiris and YW, but Saint was easiest to control.

With what she was telling him, it also means that Maya now knows how we saved him. His entire story is directly linked to the Vex and Vex technology so naturally all of this would be recorded with them and would allow Maya to find out about it. She knows that in some timelines he dies and he is saved in this one. She filled his head with the idea that he doesn't belong here, that he shouldn't have been saved. That he's an error that's "corrupting the true timeline."

As a sidenote, when you come into this room, Curse of Osiris music starts playing, again, as it has been playing for a lot of stuff this episode (specifically the Panoptes fight track). I'm super glad to hear that OST again. I'm also insane about them dropping Mercury music and Precursors at me.

Saint has more concerning lines:

And then we reach him:

Totally okay scene to see. Saint in his bubble, with a yoke, Vex arranged around him in their worshipping pose and the mysterious figures hovering above him. Saint continues:

Okay! *cries* He snaps out of it when Ikora reminds him of Osiris. Old man yaoi wins again!!

Then there's the conversation between Osiris, Saint, Ikora and Failsafe where Osiris is desperately trying to convince Saint that he's real and fine and that there's nothing wrong with him. I crode.... Man, they really said "you WILL watch these old men lovingly put hands on each other." But also, Saint confirms that he just heard a voice speaking to him on Nessus and that he couldn't do anything except obey its commands. It wasn't a Vex; Saint describes it as something that "connected to his mind" and called itself the "Conductor."

Failsafe pointed out that the Vex and Exo share radiolaria as a "base material" and that the Vex were perhaps trying to interface with Saint for information about what we're doing. But Saint said that they did not care about that at all. Instead, they "measured" Saint's "humanity" and "legitimacy."

Osiris does his best to convince him otherwise:

Bro. I am crying in the club what the fuck. Osiris had access to other Saints, but he didn't want to mess with them. He wanted to save the Saint he knew. It was the whole deal with the Sundial being so specific to find "the right moment" and "the right Saint" to save him and why it didn't work for Osiris, because of the paradox with the Young Wolf.

Ikora points out that this is all just a tactic against us and Saint does seem to understand that, and Osiris' reassurances, but it's still difficult to deal with. Saint has previously already dealt with the feelings of not being sure if anything he's experiencing is real. He's spent decades in the Infinite Forest surrounded by simulations. It's a hard thing to adjust to, especially with all he's been through since.

He'll need time to process this. He needs to be alone.

Failsafe is normal about it:

You and me too bestie!

But wait! There's more! We still have the radio message which is between Osiris and Ikora talking about the changes to Nessus and the Vex. It's naturally Osiris' way to distract himself from the issues with Saint, but also we really do need to keep researching what's going on so he's got a good idea. Nessus is "changing rapidly" according to Osiris, "moreso than when the Vex first assimilated it, if Red War records can be trusted." Osiris also notes that this isn't just limited to Nessus, but to everything, including our data and the radiolaria that we collected. They're "mutating."

This bit in particular is important and concerning because that's just not how the Vex do things. As Osiris said, when they change, they change because they have time shenanigans so they essentially gather data in the future and transmit it back, then alter themselves from the past, to appear as if they were always that way. But now? They're adapting "in real time." They learn linearly and adapt on the go.

This is bizarre with the utilisation of Precursors because they are the past Vex. However, they do not have the collars so they're not directly "compelled" and yet, they still participate and change alongside all of the other collared Vex. They also send their minds, again, not collared, to control the collared Vex and lead them. This is baffling.

Ikora is linking this to the impact of the anomaly, the echo. While Saint was down there, Geppetto mapped some of it, including the radiolaria around the site; apparently, the Vex are "swirling around the impact site for miles below the surface." It's also "causing disturbances in the planet's EM field." Ikora concludes that the Vex must be doing "something big."

Osiris also mentions the importance of Saint saying that it was a singular voice directing him, not a collective one, like a Vex would be. He reminds us that this isn't how Vex do things usually and this thing with Saint was just a test. He speculates, and Ikora agrees, that the Vex behaviour is like this because they found "a new leader." Obviously, the Conductor.

That concludes Act I. The seasonal activity, Breach Executable, has new lines as well. I've only played one, got some more sad Saint lines and then had to pause to stop crying. Act II starts in 20 days.

But wait. There's MORE! Of course we can't forget the seasonal lore page. And this is also where they went straight for the jugular. The lore page is about Mithrax visiting Saint and finding him not feeling well. Saint is distressed and Mithrax is trying to help him feel better, especially about his feelings of not belonging. Mithrax understands those feelings and he's trying his best to help Saint not feel that way. A little bit of joy in the gloom:

Saint groaned and waved the question away. "Do not say something smart to me now. Osiris does this, and I have had enough of it."

I LOVE when Saint compares Osiris and Mithrax, it's so good and also funny. But anyway, let's get back to the pain. As Saint realises where Mithrax is going with his questions, he relents and accepts that yes, sometimes we feel like we don't belong, but that is clearly not true.

And then Mithrax experiences something strange:

Suddenly, his vision narrowed and darkened. His headache shrieked, filling his mind with blinding pain. He doubled over as a terrifying urge—RULE, KELL—roared through his chest. The pigeons burst away in harried flight, leaving the seed untouched on the ground. Saint was still watching the pigeons wheel through the sky and down into the City. Mithrax wrapped his arms around himself until the shaking subsided and took a deep draw of Ether. "You are good friend," Saint said quietly, his gaze fixed on the City. Mithrax walked over slowly and sat down next to him again. "I try," he said softly.

Hello? Okay. So on top of Saint having massive issues, we're still seeding the future plot of something getting absolutely the fuck worse with Mithrax. Cool. Cool. I'm jumping off a bridge.

And Mithrax doesn't tell Saint about this, obviously. Saint is preoccupied with his own problems now and this is the way of Titan; care for others first, then yourself. Mithax should NOT be copying this from Saint, but alas. Enjoy brewing in this little piece of terrifying information until we get more on it next episode, I presume.

But wait. There's EVEN MORE! For finishing Act I, we got another lore page, from another lore book called Dynasty. We had no clue what this would be until now.

And well. It's a completely separate story from ancient past, about the Qugu civilisation. This is an incredibly packed lore page, one of the longest I've seen to be honest and it features a lot of bizarre alien stuff from an ancient civilisation, but the gist of it, for now until I can truly dive into it; it follows a member of the Qugu species as he's rising in the ranks to become a military leader. The Qugu are ancient civilisation we first learned about in the Books of Sorrow, as they were wiped out by the Hive. We got an update on them in Inspiral, telling us they were Darkness users, utilising the psychic abilities to connect each other's consciousnesses and talk to their ancestors.

In this page, we see some stuff about their culture, their connection to the creatures they're in symbiosis with, the way their civilisation worked in regards to how they ruled and how many planets they occupied. It's a fascinating read, but fairly hard to get through. The page ends with the Qugu discovering the Hive and the Black Fleet that attacked one of their systems and they try to get back to warn the others. I assume the rest of the book will be about the Qugu as well, to further flesh out this plot.

Why this now? I am unsure. Possible setup for something going forward down the line? One other idea I've had is that this will somehow relate to the "ally" of Maya we speculated about when I talked about the lore pages from the seasonal exotic gear. It makes sense that this "ally" is an alien because of Maya mentioning his fascinating origin, culture and biology. This would also explain why we got this lore book for finishing Act I, as it would make it relevant to what's going on. But this is, for now, a really big speculation. We'll need more pages, which I assume we'll get for finishing other Acts, so good look not exploding in curiosity until then (I've already exploded). I'll most certainly analyse this lore page more in-depth because there is NOTHING in this world I am more interested than digging into ancient space civilisations.

[jokeroutsubs]

[ENG translation] Joker Out: Playing on the main stage of Sziget means the success with capital letters for us

An interview with Joker Out published in the August 2024 issue of Rockstar magazine. Original article written by Viki Erdős, photo by Viki Erdős. Translation and review by X ddrflctns and X brnbergeron, proofread by @flowerlotus8.

In the former Yugoslavia they have won the 'Artist of the Year' and the 'Song of the Year' awards several times. With two albums under their belt, they entered the Eurovision Song Contest with their song 'Carpe Diem' last year, which put them on the Spotify Viral Top 10 list and then on the Main Stage of Sziget. We met the Slovenian five-piece Joker Out before their first concert in Budapest, where they told us: their biggest dream came true by playing for us at the Island of Freedom on 8 August. Read more of our interview on rockstar.hu!

What's your first impression of the Sziget Festival, now that you've spent a few hours here?

Jan: Actually I already came here yesterday to see L'Impératice. It's definitely the biggest festival I've been to, yet it doesn't seem too crowded. I really like the atmosphere, somehow despite the noise it's calming, and the line-up is incredible!

Jure: It's going to be the biggest stage we've ever played on.

Bojan: I didn't even see you on the stage during the soundcheck, because there was so much smoke! I turned around and just blinked 'where is everyone'?

You posted concert photos from 2016 on Instagram just yesterday. Did you ever think you would play on the main stage of Sziget?

Bojan: Performing at Sziget was always our biggest dream, we somehow thought that playing here, on the main stage would mean success with capital letters. I think we always believed that it will happen one day.

Last year your Eurovision performance brought you international success. How to imagine this? Are you getting recognised on the street, for example?

Bojan: We're constantly being recognised in Slovenia, but there are other countries, for example the Balkans, or Finland and The Netherlands, where we have a big fanbase. So the bottom line is that it's all unbearable and we're huge rock stars. (they all laugh)

Kris: And to top it all off, we are doing an interview with Rockstar Magazine.

How do you handle fame?

Bojan: Oh, it's all terrible! I can't even have a cup of coffee without being surrounded by people! (laughs)

But seriously!

Bojan: No, it's super good, in my opinion, our fame at the moment is perfectly manageable. We’re not recognised by a crazy amount of people yet, and the people who do recognise us are usually very nice. Sometimes a few fans wait for us at the airport, weirdly specifically it always happens in Finland. They tell us about how our music helped them getting through tough times or how they found new friends thanks to us. Only at times like this, we realise that we're getting closer to our goals, that music is no longer just for our entertainment, but also for the pleasure of others.

You recently came out with an animated music video for your song 'Šta bih ja'. How did you come up with this idea and how did you find the right artist for the job?

Kris: It was quite liberating to make a music video without having to be in it. Jokes aside, I thought it was a great time for an animated video, which we've never done before. We had a lot of gigs and time was tight, so it was a perfect move. We've been working with a lot of our fans over the last six months, who are great artists, by the way. We keep an eye on what they post, and we're always completely blown away by it and try to collaborate with them whenever possible. For example, they've made merch and a cover for our single for streaming platforms. The new music video was also made by one of our fans.

How much do they freak out when you contact them?

Kris: A lot, I feel like. But they try to be chill about it.

What is the story behind 'Šta bih ja'?

Bojan: We moved to London for two months to write new material, this was the first song that was written there. It was the first time we really felt what it was like to be away from home and miss our loved ones. In additional to how it feels to be a stranger in a new city, the song is also about what it's like being in love when you can only keep in touch with your partner over the phone.

I've noticed on your Instagram that you like lame photoshopped pictures. Is there an expert in the band responsible for these, or is it a team effort?

Jan: That would be me... (laughs) I don't even know how it started. I always use the same picture, it was taken for our Eurovision campaign, we all look hilarious on it. I noticed that our faces fit perfectly on any picture depicting people. It started as a joke, but now it's become our general marketing strategy.

Bojan: You've already extended the scope to foods, animals...

Jan: Yes, last time I photoshopped Nace onto a sausage.

Earlier this year, your concert film and it's accompanying live album was released. Was this a big dream come true?

Jan: The concert film and live album itself was not a dream, but playing in the arena where it was recorded was. It's nice to relive that experience.

Bojan: I haven't watched it at all. It's really about the fact that we had the opportunity to record and release it, and we took it. That's how the market works. We had to have something to spend our money on, so that we would have as little left as possible. (laughs)

Your festival season will be over soon. What's in store for the rest of the year?

Bojan: Before the tour we had already recorded most of our third album in Hamburg, but we knew that we would need to come back [to the studio] for a few more session. So we spend all of our day-offs in the studio, but now in Ljubljana.

How would you describe the new sound in three words?

Bojan: Makes. No. Sense. (laughs)

[n0t0lucky]

¤ Goatman / Jeffrey Bonavita ¤

~~General Headcanons~~

my first time doing something like that._. /im thirsty for past month in case of his content, art is not enough!!

¡enjoy!

》he loved working at Hawthorne Exotic Zoo from the stars, eaven before that for sure found stray dog and/or cat as his friends.

》At the beginning of that 'job' had issues with bigger animals during feeding time. Being cornered with a bucket of fish by few bears or tiped over by lions to take steaks just to fight for it among themselves.

》Huge, maybe not super tall, but he's visibly hunged, due to his problem with knook-knee and added weight of big horns, and space in the cage.

》 strong enough to lift a bear or two, did so in the past for sure.

》always wanted to go see the circus, but was threatened by Mr.G that they'll hurt him.

》when he was a bit older, would sneek out at night when Mr.Gardener was asleep, to see the performance at the Hullabaloo Circus.

》he has a dairy with each animal that was in the zoo, theyr own names, preferences, dislikes, specific way of acting and markings to ease recognision, probably gave it few times to his boss, who didn't had much use for it in the end ,and gave role of Beast Tamer to Jeffrey.

》i belive he likes to draw animals, so the notebook had to include some tiny sketchof of them.

》with time, as he helped around the zoo, he grew closer to animals than his caretaker, with resulted in seeing them as his real family and he was the one who needs to take care of them, He was just giveing them a place to be.

》 didn't had much experience with humans, observation was all he did, untill the "meet and great" era, where he lead guests to interact with animals under his guide, teaching mostly younger kids, how to imitate sounds and comunicate with sayd species.

》taught monkey capuchins and lemurs to fetch stuff for him, at the start it would be something simple like a pen, dairy, bag of snack; that would be handet half empty for some reason and keys.

》personally striked Mr.Gardener to dust, for everything he did to him and his 'family'

》Jeffrey is.. people say he's horrendous. But he wasnt always this way. was treated as one of the animals after longer period if being against Mr.Gardener's plans for the Zoo

》He loses control over himself at violet moon (werewolf stye would say). It is rare situation, once in two years, with could be reason of him being chained in the cage durning blue moons phases.

》durning that time, most shows woud be canceled, due too incressed agresion of all animals, including him. Zoned out, acting agresive toward his boss, resulting in being caged together with bigger critters.

》schackles on his wrist, head and ankle are a reminder of what happened, he lost his only family, yet it was a prison. Now, everyone from there is free.. expect him stuck at the mannor now.

》Jeffrey has PTSD, due to everything that happened, he's scared of closed off spaces. pretty ironic looking at his skills, but it triggers "fight or flight" in him. He once again trapped in a cage, having that boiling felling inside.. he needs to strike harder to get freed

》feeds local critters together with Bane at daily basics.

》definitely bff with Morro, both being keept in closure in the past, and haveing animal friends.

》befrends anyone in the manor who likes animals, no matter if they are hunter or survivor. He enjoys sharing his hobby with others.

》for sure has some Cat Lovers club activities on hunters side with Ann and Alva.

》never saw sooo huge Lizard, woud mistake Luchino at first for a comodo dragon in human clothes, will get stared at in disgust. but later happily will listen about all kinds of reptiles from both Professors and Reptilian and would share some of his experiences with haired animals at the zoo, to them.

》when he sees cat's scattered around the map during a match, Jeffrey's sure to give every single one a scratch if he sees one. Durnign chase, after downing survs, woud turn back to spot he saw one and pet it, then later chair his pray.

》Man plays on pan's flute, surely likes to do so in mannors garden, if noticed may apologize for disturbing who found him and move to different spot, he was main performer in Hawthorne Zoo, it is not stage fright.

》 if it's Antonio who noticed him, he will complement the melody and tr to recreate it on his violin. Ifit'ss Frederick.. he's definitely going to call out how bad the notes sound, and he would do it better, making Jeff simply stare at him coldly and walk away without a word. Until the next match..

》if you ask him to stay, he'll asks you if ther are any requests for him to play on the instrument.

_________________________________________

~Jeffrey simps ¤ Including Reader~

》 sometimes when you call him, instead of 'what is it?' or 'yes?' You get 'baah' or 'rawr' in responce. Embarrassed about it a bit, not letting you notice, but his ears turn slightly red and start to twitch.

》 not used to physical tough from a human.. but after some time he would not let you go. Could say he's a big cat, with horns ofcorse! you are traped in his grip, until he says so.

》 he has horns as we know, so prepare for some headbutts. Rare but not non-existing urge to smack something with his horns, may be reason he's hiting them with his hand so offten.

》seeing him without the uniform? Oh boy, hes covered in scars on his back. He doesn't like them, but you say they are beautiful and show how much he went through. Bonus: if you try to trace them, he shiverss slightly.

》 instead of kisses would simply rub noses together or his face against yours.

》loves going on night walks with you watching stars, listening to nature surrounding you both, that's what he always wished for; freedom.

If no one got my people, i got them! can we get an amen?

[badchoicesworld]

hello hello hi ! i hope you're doing well ! may i request a miles!42 and hobie with like a butterfly mutated reader (masc) ? ironically he's more bug than beauty and has alot of features that he tries to hide (antennae, long ears and :3 mouth that opens up to a long tongue to suck up food ? he has teeth too but theyre sharp with fangs in the splatoon inkling way. skin is like a bug's sort of hard and exoskeletonly and bro is just really fluffy. like his wrists and neck have fluff)

reader is a result of like a weird science experiment gone wrong so he sort of feels like an alien trying to fit in whenever his features pop out. he just wants to live an ordinary life but somehow keeps on gettinh pulled in the middle of every superhero fight there is :'). also ! ARTKIDDD

im sorry if the req got really specific to work w aha :') hope you have a good one !

hobie brown and miles42 with butterfly mutated boyfriends !

huge fan of these mutated readers, i am however a tmnt man so (i fuckin see you btw, my most active friend and that tmnt blog)

separate, established relationships

warnings: nah

pairing: hobie brown x masc!reader, miles morales!42 x masc!reader

requests: check out my guide/masterlist

★⋆ ⋆☆⋆ ☠︎︎ ⋆☆⋆⋆★✧

we all know hobie’s a massive fan of making a statement, so he thinks that you look absolutely incredible with your mutation

will likely go through a phase of insisting you should embrace it and flaunt it, he’s gotta be told a few times that you just wanna live an ordinary life

sounds a little boring to him, but whatever suits you, y’know?

he’s not the guy to go to however for tips on how to blend in, do not ask

you’ve got a butterfly mutation, he’s got a spider mutation- he calls you the bug boys sometimes when he’s feeling hyped up and you can feel how you wanna feel about that

if you ever tell him about your mutation, about the experiments and such, it just fuels hobie’s habit of antagonising authority n all that

you’re like walking proof of the government taking advantage of the people through the systems they put in place to protect them but in reality are just some form of propaganda to give the public false hope and sense of security

yeah, hobie wasn’t surprised when you told him

not too pressed over it either since it’s been and done, no point in getting worked up over something thats irreversible and apart of you now

feels disrespectful to even feel bad to a degree

of course he feels bad that you were experimented on, but he’s not gonna say anything about your actual mutation

does however have something inappropriate to say about ur tongue im sorry

yknow what hard skins good for ? drawing on, let him please

yknow what fluff around you ur neck and wrists is great for ? hobie and his desperation for contact, ur mad comfy dawg

he likes to wear his studded collars and wrist bands in the same places as your fur sometimes, matching innit

hobie absolutely recognised how badly you want to have an ordinary life, so can honestly empathise and sympathise when you somehow manage to find yourself sucked into every super scrap in the city

he can try diverge the fights, but can’t promise a thing since they tend to be unpredictable

hobie’s plenty happy to diverge from large crowds with you if it helps you stick out less, he’ll navigate for the two of you and somehow come up with insane routes to get to where you need to be

will diy you clothes tailored to your mutation, shirts with holes in the back for your wings just so they don’t have to be uncomfortably folded under clothes n stuff

miles42

i feel like with society going up in flames, standing out is something you generally wanna avoid in earth42, just doesn’t seem so safe

so miles definitely goes the extra mile (ha) to make sure you’re not gonna stick out too much

if you’re smaller than him he’ll for sure lend you certain things to wear if they cover you up well enough, he knows just about every nook and cranny in the city to hide in whenever your features decide to make a guest appearance

like if you’re ever just walking down a street then your antenna poke out, he’s very fast to act and doesn’t make a big deal out of it

now you either just chill in an alley together or start making your way home through the intricate backstreets miles can effortlessly navigate

he appreciates your mutation though, it’s one of them things that he can silently admire and daydream about instead of worrying about the future

realistically ? you could be a result of a really shitty human experiment gone wrong at oscorp, god knows they can take advantage of the people without a spider-man to protect them

if you ever reveal this to miles, he’s obviously upset, but it’s probably predicted at this point

i imagine in his universe that they’re a force to be reckoned with

asks his mum to make things for you sometimes, to help you feel better about your appearance and to help hide certain features that you wanna

can completely understand your desire to want an ordinary life, he does too

he’ll help you achieve it, it’s one of his dreams and he can only hope to share it

your mutation takes time to get used to but it gets to the point where miles simply won’t bat an eye at your mutation, he treats you like any other person in the world except he loves you- wants so badly for you to feel normal if that’s what you want

in the least condescending way he will insist from time to time for you to stay home, just for your own safety if he starts to notice a particular rise in stats

he completely understands your desire to just blend in, but it’s not worth it if you’re genuinely at risk

he gets into the habit of doodling butterfly features on scraps of paper, on the back of his hand during classes- you’re on his mind a lot

says that he’s indifferent towards ur fluff but then he’ll fix it up for you after putting a shirt on and it’s a lil outta sorts

★⋆ ⋆☆⋆ ☠︎︎ ⋆☆⋆⋆★✧

sorry this is kinda brief and not great, i’ve been out of it for the longest time but i’m tryna provide 💪💪

[cressidagrey]

Something good and right and real - Chapter 3

Summary:

Azriel had spent centuries believing that he of all people didn't deserve a mate. And if anything, the last three years had just galvinised that particular belief. And then he meets her.

The first time Oriana met Azriel, she thought that he reminded her of a skittish cat. Shy and a little bit broken. Good for him that she absolutely excelled in fixing the things around her.

Warnings:

Rhys Bashing, Azriel has a horrible time

Notes:

I put a lot of world building into this. If you don't recognise it from canon, I probably invented. Or I forgot that canon existed.

(thanks to @firefly-graphics for the super pretty dividers!)

“What exactly are you doing?” Oriana finally asked after she had spent a good five minutes watching Azriel fuss at his armour. 

She had first started watching because seeing the way the scars wrapped around his hand fascinated her. And then she continued to watch because, for the life of her, she couldn’t understand what he was trying to achieve. 

He was keeping her company in the forge for the evening, mostly because he would be going away for a few days somewhere. She didn’t ask, he didn’t volunteer…she just hoped it wouldn’t end with him bruised and dazed sitting at her kitchen table again.  

“I burned out one of my siphons. So I need to fix that,” Azriel answered, still fussing with it, until finally he managed to pop out the siphon…out of a side seam?

Now, she was interested. She watched more carefully, having realised that he had opened one of the side seams as the siphon was held in place between the two layers of leather. 

It was the stupidest construction method she had ever seen. 

“Why do you take apart the whole armour for that?” she asked him carefully. What was she missing? 

“It’s not armour. It’s fighting leathers,” he corrected her with some amusement. 

She just raised an eyebrow and he held them out for her perusal. 

She took them, and one quick look made her realise that there wasn’t one bit of metal in there at all. It was all just…leather. Not even particularly thick in places. How was that supposed to stop anybody from stabbing him?

“Is there a specific reason why you don’t wear armour?” she asked him. Wouldn’t that…be much safer? 

“I need to move to be able to fly,” Azriel gave back like it was crystal clear why he couldn’t possibly wear anything but this. 

Still, Oriana couldn't believe that there wasn’t a way to somehow make the metal work so that it wouldn’t be too heavy for him to carry around and also not impede his movement. 

That was just impossible. 

She stared at the hole that held the Siphon in place, thinking back to the leather straps with a similar construction method that she had seen wrapped around his hands. 

“And why do you take it apart to put a new siphon in?” she asked. 

Why like that? Why not some kind of setting, where the siphon was held in place and there was a mechanism to remove it easily? A setting that didn’t mean that he spent a good 20 minutes easing it out of the place it was.

“It’s the only way to do it. It’s held in place between the layers of leather,” Azriel explained, grasping hold of the chest piece and showing her the hole. 

“Is there a reason why it’s done like that?” she finally asked. “Do the siphons get hot with use so they would melt metal or…” she trailed off and he shook his head. 

“No?” he responded questioningly. “This is just…how it always was,” he admitted. 

Right. And because this was how it always was nobody ever thought about the idea that maybe…maybe there was another way? A better way?

Oriana’s mind was already reeling with all her ideas to improve it. This was what she used to do. She found something that already existed and then she perfected it. 

“Do you have an old set of these that I can borrow?” she asked, still staring at the black leather. 

She had used to do leather work, more of a hobby than anything, and she hadn’t been bad at it…if she had something that she could copy…then she had a chance. 

“Why?” Azriel asked her. 

“Because I am going to fix your Siphon problem,” Oriana said drily.  “Or do they have some kind of religious significance that I should be aware of and trying to make them better is blasphemy?” she wondered and he snorted. 

Out of thin air, suddenly the shadows dropped an old pair of fighting leathers on her workbench and she couldn’t help but grin. 

“Thank you!” she sing songed. “Do you also have some old siphons I can use? Burned-out ones preferably that are still intact?” They were dropped right next to the fighting leathers moments later. “There we go,” she said pleasantly. “I’ll get back to you in 3 to 5 business days, Azriel,” she told him, already pulling the old set of fighting leather closer to herself for a new perusal. 

She was going to fix this and they were going to be so much better when she was finally finished with them. 

“You don’t need to do this,” Azriel finally said quietly and she looked up to find him staring at her, dark eyes earnest. “You don’t need to…” he trailed off, seemingly searching for the right words. 

Right. 

She still had her work cut out for her on that front. 

She came back around her workbench, walking towards him who was still sitting in the chair that she had gotten him…and then sat sideways down on his lap, ignoring the soft noise of shock that he made. 

She settled the dress she wore around him, as always floor length, tight around the waist, laced shut at the back. 

Even when she no longer lived in the mountain, she was still…more comfortable in the fashion off the mountain than she was with the cropped tops and flowy pants of the Night Court. 

Azriel said nothing as she made herself comfortable, scarcely breathing as she settled on his lap, curling one hand around the back of his neck. 

“Look at me,” she murmured, waiting until hazel eyes settled on her. She took in the flecks of emeralds in the dark brown that reminded her of a smoky, dark and beautiful quartz. A thumb gently swiped over his cheekbone, holding him like he was the most precious thing in her life.“You are my mate ,” Oriana said. 

“And you still don’t need to do this,” Azriel disagreed. She smiled at him, softly, leaning up to press a chaste kiss against his lips. Her necklace warmed in warning and she pulled back slightly. 

“I am always going to do anything in my power to make your life easier for you,” she whispered. “I want to do this. I am going to do my damnest to keep you safe. Even when it’s the last thing I do.”

 It was the most she could say right now, the most she wanted to say. She wasn’t sure if it was enough, but it was the right words because there was Azriel, his eyes bright and near golden as suddenly strong arms pulled her against him tightly, burying his face against her neck. He said nothing. 

She said nothing as well, just trailed a hand through the edges of his hair and hummed softly. 

Still, it made her wonder if he ever had that before. A person willing to go to the ends of the world to keep him safe. A person willing to make his job even a little bit easier. She didn’t think so, especially not if such tiny things garnered this sort of reaction. 

The more puzzle pieces she collected that made Azriel who he was…the more Oriana’s temper flared. 

Not at him. 

Never at him. Not when he had done absolutely nothing other than thinking that she was going to turn him away again every time he turned up on her doorstep. Not when he thought that clearly, she deserved so much better than him, regardless of how ridiculous that notion was. 

At all the people surrounding him who seemingly took and took from him and never thought about the consequences of their actions. 

There was seemingly only her who was there to protect him when Azriel took on the world of the world on his broad shoulders and didn’t expect anybody to help him, to take some of the weight off him.

And Oriana was going to do her damnest to keep him safe. 

And so, when he left for his next mission, she handed over the shop to the two females she kept hiring for a few hours then and there, and buried herself in her work. 

She didn’t just do things that involved Azriel. She still needed to keep her shop stocked, though Azriel was at the forefront of her mind. 

Always was. Especially with his tendrils of shadows keeping her company. 

She talked to them, a non-stop commentary on her work and sometimes they answered her once again. Most of the time they stayed wrapped around her wedding necklace and out of the way as she soldered and engraved. 

She wasn’t one step closer to a prototype of armour that was actually useful and not just something that would hinder his movement, but she did manage to solve the Siphon problem in less than the 3 to 5 business days she had told him. 

Mostly because after she had spent a day trying to solve it the magical way and nearly signed off her eyebrows because siphon didn’t like it at all if you put magic on them that wasn’t the magic that they had been locked onto in the first place apparently…well, Oriana had solved it the mechanical way. 

A holder that slid in the hold the siphon had used to sit in that the siphon then clipped onto from the outside. To open it, you needed a simple screwdriver and it would take less than 3 minutes to change it out. She knew that. She had tested it. 

And as in the evenings she crawled into her bed and left her forge behind…Oriana was happy. She had missed this. 

There was only so much jewellery she could make which was a challenge to her. 

All the things she sold these days were not a challenge to her anymore. 

But having a problem and figuring that out… made her fingers itch to go back for more. 

And so she did. 

The longer she spent in her forge, the happier she was, giddy with excitement, her brain flowing over with ideas upon ideas of other things to make, to create, to enchant, to learn and to work…

She couldn’t even remember the last she had felt like that. 

She was in a good mood when Azriel suddenly stepped out of the shadows a few days later, even when she nearly lost control of the flames that danced in her hands as she finished with the pieces she had been working on. 

She looked up, decided that she was jealous of his shadow-travelling abilities and then pushed up her magnifying glasses into her hair, only to hop off from her stool and happily throw herself at Azriel who caught her with a surprised oomph. 

“You are in a good mood,” he told her with a laugh, the sound one of the most beautiful things she had ever heard. 

Oriana grinned wildly at him. 

“I spent all my time in my forge, I solved your Siphon problem, I still have no clue about armour, and I need to do some research, but it was so much fun!” she told him excitedly, as he leaned down to press a kiss against her unresisting lips. 

“Want to show me?” he asked her and her grin widened. 

She got to show off her new toys to somebody willing to listen to her ramble on? Perfect. 

He did watch her new Siphon mechanism with the kind of intense focus that she had gotten used to from him, fingers carefully probing the edges and listening to her. 

“Test it in training. Tell me if you have any problems that I need to iron out. I’ll fix it and then we go again,” she told him as she pressed them into his hands. 

“You are remarkable, Oriana,” Azriel said quietly and she couldn’t help but blush. 

“Well, thanks on remarking on it,” she quipped but pressed his hand in thanks. “And now as you have listened to me ramble on and on, what’s new in your life?” 

He snorted in amusement at that segway. 

“Do you have any plans this afternoon?” he asked her and she stared at him. 

“No?” she answered. “Penelope has the shop in hand for the day…she can lock it up too, if…we have somewhere to be?” she told him questioningly and he nodded. 

“I want you to learn to defend yourself,” Azriel told her earnestly. 

He looked like he was getting ready for an argument but Oriana was really not holding out to argue with him, right now when she just got him back. And really, how bad could it possibly be? 

“Alright,” she agreed and he looked so taken aback by her agreement that she couldn’t help but laugh at his dumbstruck expression. “What, did you expect me to complain?” she teased him.

“You keep surprising me,” he muttered under his breath. “I should be getting used to it now.”

“I’ll keep you on your toes,” Oriana corrected him brightly. “And if me learning to defend myself gives you any kind of peace…then I’ll do it,” she promised. 

It was such a small thing for her to give him. She could spend a few hours a week trying to learn it. What was the worst that could happen? 

The last thing she had expected was for him to suddenly push her back against her workbench or the way his hungry mouth descended on her…but Oriana was nothing if not highly adaptable. Hey, her mate wanted to make out with her, she was on board with that . 

Especially if that meant that she could bury her hands in his wavy curls and keep him as close to her as possible, as his tongue hungrily licked into her mouth and she moaned in response. 

The necklace of her throat warmed up, heated up to something that would have burned another person and for her was nothing more than a nuisance. (She really needed to figure out how to deal with it.) 

Still, she pushed it out of her mind, because she was going to do her best to enjoy that lovely kiss, to feel Azriel wrapped around her, and even ignore the way her workbench was biting into her hip. After all, it meant that he was still keeping her cornered against it, broad chest and arms casing her in. 

He pulled back a moment later, pupils blown wide, breathing hard. 

“I…sorry,” he apologised, his voice hoarse. 

Oriana wasn’t having that. 

“Don’t. It’s all good,” she told him fiercely, pressing another peck on his lips. 

“I still have both my arms,” he said nearly wonderingly and she couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Definitely not complaining,” she promised him. (Note to herself: Fix that stupid necklace.) 

He stepped back and she let him go, even when there was heat knotting low in her belly in a way that she…couldn’t even remember. 

Azriel cleared his throat. 

“I brought these for you,” he told her, holding out a a pair of knives that were very much not the ornamental, gem-studded ones that she made. 

These were far more practical. “I know you can make your own, but these are a bit more practical than your works of art,” he explained, reaching out for her hands and placing one of them into them. He mustered it for a moment, changing her grip until she held them in a way that he judged to be right. “They should be lightweight enough for your hands. Looks about right for size,” he murmured under his breath.  

“Am I supposed to throw these?” she asked him finally and he shook his head. 

“No. Stab people, yes,” he told her seriously. He said that like that was fully something he expected in her future and she wanted to grimace at that. Her people kept out of fighting and wars out of principle. “We’ll practice, of course,” he added. 

That was probably for the best. Just so that she didn’t accidentally stab herself. 

“Alright,” she agreed. “…So where do you want to practice?“ Oriana asked him. “I don’t think the forge is a good space for it.“ 

It was probably. going to mess up her careful organisation that only she understood. And she would much rather not fall into her own fire. She would be fine, but her clothing wouldn’t. And she liked the dress she wore. 

“It’s definitely not. Not enough room,” Azriel agreed. “So…how do you feel about flying?” he asked her, a hesitant smile on his face. 

Oh. 

Oh, yes.

“Well, I am willing to try anything once,” she finally said. Did that mean that she was finally going to see his wings in all their glory? 

“Do you have anything to wear that’s not a gown?” Azriel asked her and she stared at him. 

“Well, will somebody that wants to hurt me allow me the time to change my clothing?” she gave back drily. “Shouldn’t I train in the clothing that I would most likely wear when I need to use my newfound fighting abilities?” 

She much preferred gowns over trousers. 

“You are right,” he agreed and she shrugged. 

“I often am,” she quipped. “So, do we need to go on the roof or something?”

They did not need to go on the roof. They did find themselves in her stamp-sized backyard though, and the wings unfurled off his back with one single stroke. 

They were bigger than she thought they would be. That was her first thought. They were massive . They reminded her of a bat, with their black colour, though it seemingly shifted through a dark rainbow as the spring sun shone through them, shoving every vein. They were tipped with claws, so sharp that it seemed like he had honed them like she had seen him do with his blades. 

It was…beautiful. 

She couldn’t help the shocked sound that escaped her.

“You are beautiful,” she whispered, still staring at them. They shifted again, nearly like they had a mind of their own as Azriel held out a hand for her and she took it, because what else was she supposed to do? 

He pulled her closer to him. 

“You need to hold onto me. I won’t let you fall,” he promised her. She swallowed. 

It had seemed great in theory. In practice, it scared the shit out of her to be completely honest. 

“You have done this before, right?” she asked hesitantly and she could nearly feel the amusement rolling from him in waves. 

“Yes,” he promised her. “I swear, you’ll be perfectly safe,” he told her. “I wouldn’t have suggested it otherwise.”

“Alright,” she agreed, carefully holding onto the back of his neck with both hands as he leaned down slightly to hoist her up like she weighed nothing at all. 

And then, with one mighty flap of these enormous wings, they were airborne. 

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

The noise that she made when he launched them into the sky was something between a squawk and a whimper, her hands clawing themselves into his leathers, and she kept her eyes tightly closed. 

He did his best to keep his movement as even as he could, easily adjusting to the extra weight that he was carrying. 

“Are you alright?” he asked her when they had finally reached a proper height and he turned towards the mountains and the forest. He had a clearing in mind for their training, somewhere where there would be more than enough space for them to move around freely. 

“I think I just realised that I am terrified of heights,” Oriana admitted and he bit back a laugh, feeling the wind whip around them. “Don’t you dare laugh at me,” Oriana complained.“Leave me alone, I was literally born underground.”

“Sorry, sorry,” he apologised but couldn’t help against the laugh bubbling up inside him. 

Every time he was with her, he felt so much lighter. Like all the weight in the world had been taken off his shoulders. Something in Oriana made him feel invincible. 

She still kept her eyes closed, her lips tightly pressed together.  “I am not going to let you plummet to your death,” he promised her instead. 

He wasn’t. And there was a part of him that wanted Oriana to love flying as much as he did. Love the feeling of freedom that it brought, the wind that was whipping around them, the sigh of Velaris beneath them. 

“I trust you, I don’t trust my stomach,” Oriana shot back. 

“Come one, just one look,” he cajoled her.  She blinked open one eye, staring over his shoulder.

Her stomach held strong and he relaxed as he felt her muscles stop being quite as locked up as they had been. “Sometimes I forget how beautiful Velaris is,” she said softly, the muscles that held her close to him relaxing a tiny bit. He chalked that up as a win as he circled the forest until he started a slow descent that brought her to cling to him tighter once again. 

He took more care to land than he would have if it was just him, making sure that she wasn’t jostled all too much and then slowed to a stop right there in the middle of this clearing. 

It was just at the edges of the land belonging to his house and there was a reason for that. If something went wrong, he would only need to push Priana over the ward boundaries he had set and she would be as safe as he could manage. 

“Alright?” he asked her and she hummed. 

“I’ll get used to it,” she murmured and he couldn’t help a grin, because that wasn’t a I am never going to do this again, you lunatic.

He let her down to stand on her own two feet, even when he would have gladly kept holding on to her for longer. 

“So, you promised me to show how to stab somebody?” she asked him and he couldn’t help but grow serious.

He wished that he didn’t need to teach her that. But he wasn’t stupid. And he was very much aware that Oriana was the biggest weakness anybody could exploit. He would lay waste to an entire world to protect her.

“We’ll start with the most important thing,” he told her and she raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Don’t stab myself?” she suggested and he snorted. 

“That’s a given,” he gave back. “Balance. You don’t want to be knocked off kilter.” 

He demonstrated the way every Illyrian boy was taught so that he could move in any direction immediately and easily. 

Slightly bent knees, ready to be attacked at a moment's notice. Keep on your feet, because if you don’t, you are dead. 

Oriana watched him, moving slightly. It was hard to tell if she had the stance right, especially with her swathed in the long dresses she tended to favour. They were modest to a fault, with a high neckline, and sleeves that always at least reached her elbows, leaving her hands and forearms free, because otherwise, she was going to accidentally set them on fire while working in the forge. Swishing along the floor at the wide hem. 

Still, this would be easier, if she wasn’t wearing them. 

His brain came to a screeching halt. 

If she was wearing trousers . 

Trousers. Not…not nothing at all, that wasn’t what…

Yeah, that was exactly what had been engraved into his mind now and he swallowed against the sudden stab of arousal.

“Azriel?” Oriana prodded, staring at him. 

“If you stand like this, you can move easily,” he said calmly, his voice not betraying everything that he had thought about just moments before. 

She moved a step to the left, then to the right, a hand tucking up her skirts so that he could see the surprisingly sensible and sturdy leather boots that she wore on her feet. 

He opened his mouth to correct her, but she already moved her feet exactly like he would have corrected her. 

“Oh, it’s like dancing!” she exclaimed happily. He blinked. 

Well, he supposed, it was…not that different? 

“You like dancing?” he asked her dumbly. 

Oriana nodded, a fond smile taking over her face. “I do. In the mountain, we used to dance every evening after dinner. I miss that,” she said softly. “One of the few things that I miss from there.”

“What don’t you miss?” he couldn’t help but ask. He was still hoarding every bit of knowledge he got to have about her and feeling horrible that he couldn’t get his mouth open to tell her much if anything about himself. It was like…there was a block there that he could do nothing against. 

“The fact that you are surrounded with the same people day in and day out. I was my mother’s daughter and that brought with it some…courtly duties of sorts. There wasn't really much to do other than being in the forge and dancing after dinner,” Oriana said with a shrug. “In Velaris…I can go out and about as I please and nobody gives me a second look.”

He could understand that. 

“So I move like that?” she asked him and he nodded. 

“Yes. Try to keep the distance between us the same,” he told her. Oriana frowned, brow furrowing in concentration. 

He stepped forward, and she stepped back, easily keeping her balance. 

And so they continued. He was surprised at how quickly she caught onto it, and that she had a surprising amount of stamina but then he supposed, she spent her days in the forge, using a surprising amount of magic and strength to bend metal to her will. 

“Alright. Good job,” he said, her cheeks growing pink. He held out one of the knives he had bought for her and she palmed it carefully. He reached out to correct her grip so that it wouldn’t go flying the first time she moved faster. “Try to get used to the weight.” She nodded. 

They picked it up again. 

The knife didn’t seem to match her, not when he had seen the kind of knives she made. Deadly works of art. just like the hairpins she had made. Nesta had gotten a kick out of them. 

These weren’t the prettiest knives he could have picked out, he had bought a lovely one set with ruby and given it to Morrigan, mostly because he had felt horrible that he had given Feyre and Nesta both gifts and hadn’t given one of his oldest friends one. 

He called an end to that round of practice quite quickly. 

“Good. Now try to stab me,” he told her and Oriana stared at him. 

“Excuse me?” she asked him. 

“Try to stab me,” he repeated. 

“This is life steel. What if I hurt you?” she asked him and he bit back a smile. 

“You won’t,” he assured her.

“How could you possibly be sure?” Oriana said, crossing her arms. “I could have beginner’s luck! I don’t want you to bleed out!”

He considered that. “Fine.” He held out a sheath for the knife. “Put the sheath on, and try to hit me with the covered blade. Go as hard and as fast as you possibly can. And I’ll show you why I am sure.”

He’s genuinely impressed by how hard and fast she moved. Still, he was faster. 

He didn’t survive 500 years without honing his reflexes. And so he caught her wrist in his hands, as gently as he could, gently enough not to bruise her and held down her weapon away from him. 

“See,” he whispers in her ear, breathing in the scent of warmth and fire and she grinned at him, the fire in her eyes flaming. 

He hadn’t actually thought that he would enjoy this any more than sitting in the forge with her. Enjoy it because he liked spending time with Oriana and not enjoying it because…well. 

Still, seeing her with a knife was surprisingly appealing. 

He hadn’t expected that. 

He didn’t think that he would like to see her in an actual battle, he would be too worried about her but like this, right here, where he knew that nothing bad was going to happen…and she had some fun with it, a grin covering her face…

He did enjoy it. 

She stepped back, and he let go of her, only for her to lunge for him again. 

And so they continued until she had enough, sweat covering her forehead. The sun was starting to come down and on the flight back to her house she was watching Velaris wide-eyed over his shoulder. 

All in all…a pretty good way to spend his afternoon. 

He was still in a good mood the next day, even when Cassian cornered him and had for some cauldron-blessed reason decided that…Azriel didn’t even know. 

The only thing he did know was that Cassian was really interested in the knife that he bought Mor. 

“Where did you get it from?” Cassian asked him and Azriel just stared at him. 

“I picked it up in a market in the Summer Court?” he answered. “I saw it and I thought Mor would like it.”

It wasn’t even a lie. 

“It’s…nice that you…thought of her,” Cassian said, even when his words were in stark contrast to his facial expression. 

“Cass…just spit it out,” Azriel said with a sigh. “What does it matter that I bought Mor a knife?”

Why should Cassian even care? If his brother was pissed off that he gave Nesta a pair of hairpins at least that would make sense. She was his mate after all. But about Mor and a stupid knife? 

“I just mean that…Mor and Emerie are really happy together,“ Cassian blurted out. 

So what, did Cassian think that Azriel was trying to steal Mor from her girlfriend? 

But as he looked at his brother, he realised that that was probably exactly what Cassian was thinking. 

“Yeah, they are,” Azriel agreed. Cassian stared at him like he had gone insane. “Cassian, whatever you are thinking…that’s not why I bought Mor the knife,” he said drily. 

“Well, why did you?” Cassian challenged him. 

“Because I bought Feyre paint and I got Nesta these hairpins,” Azriel gave back drily. “Seemed unfair to Mor.“ 

“Az, you hate giving people gifts,” Cassian said, sounding aghast. 

Yeah, he did. Or at least he hated trying to desperately come up with one and failing horribly. 

But none of these things had taken any time out of his day. They had appeared before him and he had thought the recipient would like them. Maybe he should just start to stockpile gifts away over the whole year for solstice. Why hadn’t he come up with that decades prior? 

“Yes, I do,” he agreed, “but I just across them,” he said with a shrug. “Don’t worry I’ll bring you back something next time if you feel like I am neglecting you,” he teased Cassian who made a squawking sound in protest. “Maybe some flowers.” 

“You are an asshole,” Cassian said darkly. 

Azriel bit back a smile.