#Red rope agate

[thewillowoaklady]

The listings are live!

This is available on Ebay, Etsy, and Facebook Marketplace.

Here's the description for it.

A unique handmade sea themed suncatcher windchime. 

Suncatchers and windchimes are a personal favorite and I wanted to make some. This one is vibrant and fun. It's perfect for anyone who loves ocean themes. The sun catches the glass, shiny wire, and gems perfectly. The wooden pieces at the bottom make a gentle sound in the wind. It's large enough to hang in almost any window or porch. 

Product Details-

Total length while hanging- approximately 36 inches

Total width of the hanging stick- approximately 18.5 inches

String length (longest)- approximately 26 inches

Weight- Approximately 1.5 pounds

Number of strings- 9

Time spent crafting- approximately 24 hours over the span of a week.

Materials- 

1 maple branch fallen naturally from a local maple tree. 

Rope for hanging.

Burlap net ribbon.

Silver plated sea green copper wire.

Various metal jump rings.

Crimp beads 

9 polished agate slices wrapped in the wire. 

1 colored agate slice. 

4 hand polished natural quartz spires wrapped in wire. 

Small conch shells

Blue dyed quartzite, blue dyed quartz, multi colored jasper, green aventurine, rose quartz, citrine, lapis, red agate, and  turquoise gem chips.

Turquoise colored stone starfish and sand dollar beads.

Red dyed bamboo coral beads.

Fluorocarbon nylon clear fishing line

9 mini glass bottles wrapped in wire, filled with sparkling mica rich native sand. 

Colorful glass fish beads.

Colorful frosted glass beads. 

Colorful crackle glass beads. 

4 hand carved sea creatures made from reclaimed wood and painted with glitter infused blue paint.

[thoughtsonhurtandcomfort]

Zodiac Themed Whump Prompts

Thanks for the idea @funky-little-torturer !

These can be interpreted as individual prompts, groups of prompts, or just ~vibes. They're intended to be open to interpretation!

(astrology info source)

☆☆☆☆

Aries - The Ram - Element: Fire - Ruler: Mars - Season: Spring - Metal: Iron - Stone: Diamond - Color: Red

Keywords: independent, aggressive, impatient, combative, assertive

Scalding

Scrape

Failed escape

Punishment

Mauled

Metal

Taurus - The Bull - Element: Earth - Ruler: Venus - Season: Spring - Metal: Copper - Stone: Emerald - Color: Green

Keywords: persevering, stable, stubborn, possessive, physical

Ownership

Breaking

Rough landing

Survival

Illness

Buried

Gemini - The Twins - Element: Air - Ruler: Mercury - Season: Spring - Metal: Mercury - Stone: Agate - Color: Yellow

Keywords: adaptable, flexible, responsive, sociable, inquisitive

Abandoned

Stress position

Experiment

Isolation

Narrow escape

Suffocating

Cancer - The Crab - Element: Water - Ruler: the Moon - Season: Summer - Metal: Silver - Stone: Pearl - Color: White

Keywords: gentle, feeling, nurturing, defensive, contemplative

Sharp

Vulnerable

Fighting back

Tended to

Shock

Pouring

Leo - The Lion - Element: Fire - Ruler: The Sun - Season: Summer - Metal: Gold - Stone: Ruby - Color: Gold

Keywords: bold, caring, driven, open, passionate

Traps

Hanging on

Human shield

Feverish

Endurance

Bound

Virgo - The Virgin - Element: Earth - Ruler: Mercury - Season: Summer - Metal: Mercury - Stone: Sapphire - Color: Blue

Keywords: analytical, intelligent, reserved, critical, helpful

Merciful

Brutality

Deprived

Fading

Manipulation

Unsteady

Libra - The Scales - Element: Air - Ruler: Venus - Season: Fall - Metal: Copper - Stone: Marble - Color: Pink

Keywords: just, refined, diplomatic, indecisive, artistic

Heavy

Lost

Imprisoned

Headache

Revenge

Stumble

Scorpio - The Scorpion - Element: Water - Ruler: Pluto - Season: Fall - Metal: Steel - Stone: Citrine - Color: Purple

Keywords: perceptive, resourceful, determined, fixed, focused

Pressure

Poison

Ruthless

Pinned down

Tight Grip

Chain

Sagittarius - The Archer - Element: Fire - Ruler: Jupiter - Season: Fall - Metal: Tin - Stone: Topaz Color: Turquoise

Keywords: optimistic, restless, adventurous, honest, irresponsible

Accident

Awake

Hunted

Puncture

Out of breath

Falling apart

Capricorn - The Goat - Element: Earth - Ruler: Saturn - Season: Winter - Metal: Lead - Stone: Garnet - Color: Brown

Keywords: tenacious, resourceful, disciplined, prudent, constant

Hiding

Shiver

Fracture

Thirst

Strained

Endless

Aquarius - The Water-bearer - Element: Air - Ruler: Uranus - Season: Winter - Metal: Uranium - Stone: Amethyst - Color: Sky Blue

Keywords: assertive, inventive, eccentric, idealistic, detached

Icy

Blunt force

Improvised weapon

Sobs

Storm

Cough

Pisces - The Fish - Element: Water - Ruler: Neptune - Season: Winter - Metal: Tin - Stone: Jade - Color: Sea Green

Keywords: intuitive, dreamy, sensitive, perceptive, tender

Bait

Ropes

Submerged

Faint

Nightmares

Bruises

[blood-red-bumblebee]

For this

Junia Junia Junia Junia

👁️👁️

(before you know it I'll have literally tossed all my OCs at you lol. With Junia, that's 3 down, 5 to go hehe)

👀👀👀

I see the macabre as a hobby so I kinda want to rope in a little discussion I had with @screamintoad about Agate, one of his OCs :)

~~~

"Yoohoo! Oh, Agate~" The door to the Lounge opened, the Ramshackle prefect Rose strolling in. Agate groaned from where she was wiping down counters. "Oh, hi Junia!" Rose gave a small wave to the redhead, plopping down on a barstool. "Ok, so, Agate, you know how you got a couple teeth knocked out in that Spelldrive game yesterday?"

She was talking to the other girl, but Junia's interest was piqued. Surely, they wouldn't mind if she joined in?

"Yeah, and?" Agate started up the coffee machine and started a kettle, pulling out three mugs. Junia took it as an invitation to stay.

"I already told you, they'll grow back, no need to worry."

Right, Agate was a leviathan. She had something like seven sets of teeth. Fascinating!

"Well, obviously! I was thinking something else. An intimidation tactic, if you will. Only if you're willing though." Rose's hands were steepled in front of her face and her glasses glinted, concealing her eyes in the dim lighting of the Lounge. Agate raised an eyebrow and set about preparing their drinks. "Hmm. What did you have in mind?"

Rose rubbed her hands together and chuckled menacingly. "Tooth crown."

What?

"What?" Agate passed out the drinks and leaned back against the counter, crossing her arms. "Do I want to know what exactly that is?"

Rose giggled, sipping her coffee. "Oh, you know, we just string up the teeth you lost, braid it with a couple flowers maybe. Scare the piss outta your opponents next game."

"Ooh, you should paint them too! Sparkly red, like glittery blood!" Junia chimed in, sipping her tea. She wasn't much for Spelldrive, but the idea was certainly entertaining. Rose turned to her, brown eyes sparkling. "You get me. That is a beautiful thought, and I love it. Agate, please, let me make you a sparkly tooth crown."

Agate sighed, scratching her chin. "I do have that jar of my old hatchling teeth laying around..."

Rose squeaked and clapped her hands together. "Is that a yes?"

Agate rubbed the back of her neck and went back to wiping down the counter. "Yeah, I'll give 'em to you tomorrow."

Rose squealed, hopping off the stool and rounding the counter to give her a hug. "Junia! Do you want to help me?"

Everyone on campus knew of Rose's more chaotic attributes, but the girl was absolutely glowing at the thought of making a crown of teeth for her friend. To be fair, so was Junia. "I would love to!"

~~

I really hope I got her voice right and didn't take over your ask with Agate! <3

[vintagebitchgifts]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: New Handmade Natural Red Agate Faceted Cross Shape Stone Necklace.

[tamkrikori]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: 🆕New Lava Rock 7 Chakras Aromatherapy Essential Oil Diffuser Bracelet.

[pennysrecoveco]

Check out this listing I just found on Poshmark: Estate Mexico Sterling Silver 925 Brass Rope "ECG" Monogram Bracelet Cuff 6.5".

[beautytreats]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: 6pcs Handmade Pendant Necklace Set Healing Amulet Natural Gemstones.

[ar-rc]

Dictionary of Roe

Modifying Grammar Noun -> Adjective Noun+i Ais (Ice) + i = Aisi (Icy) Ex: Aisibhir (Icy Ale)

Verb -> Noun(er) Verb+a Braen (Break) + a = Braena (Breaker) Ex: Aisbraena (Ice Breaker)

Verb -> Noun(ing) verb+n Floer (Lead) + n = Floern (Leading) Ex: Floernmann (Leading Man)

Spelling Rule Always remove doubled letter when combining a word that ends in the same letter the following word begins with. Rostn + Noez = Rostnoez (Rusty Walnut)

Words classified as both adjective and noun, including those under Minerals and Colors, will not change in structure when they are used as an adjective. For example Agat (amber) will NEVER become Agati.

Misc Jho……………… And Oebb…………… Above

Numbers Aerst…………… First Agynn………….. Beginning Helb……………. Half Jarr……………… Year ---- Eyn……………… One Does……………. Two Drys…………….. Three Foer……………. Four Pfym…………… Five Saes……………. Six Syvin…………… Seven Aht……………… Eight Nyun…………… Nine Zaen……………. Ten Eynli……………. Eleven Zwelf… ……….. Twelve Ahtza…………… Eighty

Colors Bloe……………. Blue Broen………….. Brown Fhil……………… Yellow Gryne………….. Green Hast/Hastal…… Hazel Keim…………….Violet, Purple Kest…………….. Chestnut Rhot……………. Red Swar……………. Black Thosin…………. Gray Wyzn…………… White

Animals Aent……………. Duck Ahl……………… Eel Ahr……………… Eagle Bhar……………. Bear Born……………. Boar Elak…………….. Elk Falk…………….. Falcon Farr…………….. Bull Fhis/Fhisk……. Fish Floh……………. Flea Fohc……………. Fox Folg…………….. Bird Frusk…………… Frog Gaez……………. Goat Hund/Hundr…..... Dog Hwab…………… Hawk Khra……………. Crane Kilb…………….. Calf Koel……………. Coeurl Lahz……………. Salmon Lorh……………. Rabbit Loug……………. Leech Mhar…………… Horse Mhol…………… Salamander, Eft Mhus…………… Mouse Rael…………….. Doe Ramm………….. Ram Skapf…………… Sheep Skrat……………. Goblin Spaer…………… Sparrow Thuv……………. Dove Troeg…………… Monster Urs……………… Auroch Uwil……………. Owl Wilf…………….. Wolf Wyrn…………… Snake

The Body Ahrm…………… Arm Baen……………. Bone Benn…………… Leg Broes…………… Chest Foet……………. Foot Fyst…………….. Fist Gara……………. Skin Gybal…………… Skull Haerz…………… Heart Hanth………….. Hand Harr…………….. Hair Krepf…………… Claw Maga…………… Stomach Mynd………….. Mouth Oeya…………… Eye Oura…………… Ear Pfyn……………. Finger Zagyl…………… Tail Zant……………. Tooth Zeh……………… Toe Zoeng………….. Tongue

Seasons Bryn……………. Spring Some/Soemr… Summer Hyrt…………….. Autumn Wint……………. Winter

Food/Nature Ahct………………………. River Ais………………………… Ice Bera………………………. Berry Berk………………………. Mountain Bhir……………………….. Ale Bhrat……………………… Meat Bluom……………………. Flower Blyss……………………… Blossom Brem……………………… Bramble Brot………………………. Bread Byrm……………………… Tree Cwaen…………………… Pine Cwin……………………… Wine Doen……………………… Thunder Dornn…………………….. Thorn Eyha………………………. Oak Eyhil……………………… Acorn Faeld…………………….. Field Fedar…………………….. Feather Frut……………………….. Fruit Fyr………………………… Fire Hana……………………… Hemp, Hempen Himal…………………….. Sky Hylt……………………….. Forest Isil…………………………. Island Kyrss……………………… Cherry Laent……………………… Land Loef……………………….. Leaf Merl………………………. Sea Myst………………………. Mistletoe Opyl………………………. Apple Orn……………………….. Maple Pfef……………………….. Pepper Noez……………………… Walnut Pfrym…………………….. Plum Roegan/Roega…………. Rain Saelb/Sylbei……………. Sage Saelz……………………… Salt Saem……………………… Seed Seik/Sfiek………………. Lake Snoe…. ………………….. Snow Swaen……………………. Mushroom Synt……………………….. Sand Tu………………………….. Dew Tyl…………………………. Valley Ulm……………………….. Elm Weitz…………………….. Wheat Wolk……………………… Cloud Wurt/Wurth……………. Herb Wyda……………………… Wilow Wyta……………………… Water Wyrst…………………….. Sausage Zedyr… ………………….. Cedar

Nouns Abyl……………. Rage Alyr…………….. Alder Anka…………… Anchor Ansa……………. Scythe Aren……………. Harvest Ask……………… Ash Bhaln…………… Plague Blaet…………… Blood Borg……………. Castle Brytt……………. Bridle Byrt…………….. Axe Ceig…………….. Sail Ceil…………….. Rope Dhem………….. Dusk Dorpf…………… Village Dyn…………….. People Dyrf…………….. Farm Eidin……………. Oath Ent……………… End Garr…………….. Choir Geim…………… Jewel Geiss/Geyss….. Ghost Glac…………….. Bell Graeb………….. Grave Hyll…………….. Hell Hyml…………… Heaven Hyr……………… Army Ingil/Inghil…… Angel Itar……………… Knight Gybet………….. Prayer Haemr…………. Hammer Halp……………. Side Khezl………….. Kettle Kirz…………….. Candle Klet…………….. Burdock Liht……………… Light Lleid……………. Pain Lora…………….. Laurel Mhas…………… Scar Moen………….. Moon Moht…………… Mind Murl……………. Wall Myna…………… Love Myrgan………… Morning Nagl……………. Nail Nahct………….. Night Nort……………. North Nyst……………. Nest Oefyr………….. Sacrifice Ost……………… East Pfrew………….. Joy Raen/Raen…… Circle Raet……………. Chariot Ronn…………… Current Ruht……………. Smoke Ryhhe………….. Empire Rymm…………. Frost Sald…………….. Luck Sath……………. Knife Satz…………….. Dance Skaet…………… Shadow Skoef………….. Poetry, Poet Skyf…………….. Ship Skylt…………… Shield Spyr….. ……….. Spear Stral……………. Arrow Stymm………… Voice Styr/Styrn……. Star Styrm………….. Storm Sund…………… South Sunn…………… Sun Sweig………….. Herd Swerd.. ……….. Sword Sygg……………. Victory Syng……………. Song Toum…………… Dream Trach…………… Dragon Twyr……………. Dwarf Tyrn……………. Tower Tyrb/Terbin….. Cyclone Und…………….. Wave Waek………….. Battle Waen/Waent… Wind Ward…………… Watch Warg…………… Truth Wein…………… Woad Wist……………. West Woerd…………. Word Wyrk…………… Work Zahr….. …………Tear

Titles/Professions Ahtyn…………………….. Judge Blyda……………………… Maker Broda…………………….. Brother Bryda…………………….. Bride Daeg……………………… Soldier Draga……………………… Carrier Fatyr………………………. Father Fian……………………….. Enemy Froe/Froa……………….. Lady Fryn………………………. Friend Germa……………………. Conjurer Goht………………………. God Gohta……………………. Goddess Klin/Klind………………. Child Koen……………………… King Koena/Koenyb………… Queen Kympf…………………��. Champion Kynd………………………. Virgin Leita………………………. Bringer Lon/Lona………………… Gatherer Mann…………………….. Man Skal……………………….. Servant Smyd……………………… Smith Swys/Swysta…………… Sister Syn………………………… Son Thota… ………………….. Daughter Thuba…………………….. Mage Waht……………………… Guard Wyb………………………. Woman Wykra……………………. Worker Zwyn……………………… Twin

Adjectives Abar………………………. Lone, ALone Aerg………………………. Ambitious Aerm…………………….. Poor Ahld………………………. Old Awyr……………………… Absent Bara………………………. Bare, Naked Bhald…………………….. Bold, Brave Blei……………………….. Pale Blyn………………………. Blind Bylg………………………. Fertile Caer………………………. Sad Dani………………………. Narrow Denkyr…………………… Thinking Denn……………………… Thin Doer………………………. Dry Dyrst……………………… Thirsty, Thirst Eifa……………………….. Bitter Elil………………………… Exiled, Foreign Erna………………………. Earnest Ewan……………………… Even Eyri……………………….. Wandering Faez………………………. Fat Fhruh…………………….. Early Flaz……………………….. Flat Flekk……………………… Spotted Frae……………………….. Free Fyril……………………….. Lost Ganz………………………. Perfect Ghim……………………… Modest Greh………………………. Calm Grym……………………… Cruel Guht………………………. Good Guol………………………. Glorious Hael………………………. Healthy Haer………………………. Grand Hald………………………. Kind Herl……………………….. Elder Hezz………………………. Hot Hint……………………….. Behind Hirsk………………………. Agile Holas……………………… Bald Holl……………………….. Hollow Holsk……………………… Fast Horsk/Horsam…………. Obedient Kelt……………………….. Cold Khus………………………. Chaste Klyn……………………….. Small Kneh……………………… Near Kroem……………………. Bent Lamm…………………….. Lame, Injured Loet………………………. Loud Loetr……………………… Pure Loez………………………. Short Lyna………………………. Linen Lyng………………………. Long Maeti…………………….. Mighty Moeg…………………….. Able Nazz………………………. Damp, wet Nedyr…………………….. Low Niu………………………… New Nortyr……………………. Northern Ostyr……………………… Eastern Ofan………………………. Clear Pfar……………………….. Walking Phati……………………… Late Rhen……………………… Clean Rheti……………………… Straight, Lawful Rhit……………………….. Right Rhyl………………………. Plentiful Roeh……………………… Rough Rostn…………………….. Rusty Skaen…………………….. Beautiful Skarn……………………… Horrible Skoen…………………….. Shining Slae……………………….. Dull Slaf……………………….. Sleeping Slett………………………. Plain Solk……………………….. Blessed Stael……………………… Still Sterr………………………. Strong Sundyr…………………… Southern Swoz……………………… Sweet Swyg……………………… Silent Swyn……………………… Round Swyr………………………. Big Syhr………………………. Fearless Syk………………………… Sick Syngi……………………… Singing Syzn………………………. Sitting Thor………………………. Torn Toff……………………….. Deep Trachyn………………….. Dragon Tragg……………………… Slow Trahg……………………… Lazy Troe/Troeb……………… Confused Tymb……………………… Dumb Ubyl………………………. Evil Unsyn…………………….. Innocent Unta………………………. Other Usyn……………. …………Ashen Waem……………………. Warm Wakk……………………… Awake, Woken Wann…………………….. Empty Wast……………………… Sharp Whei……………………… Soft Wilt……………………….. Wild Winst…………………….. Left Wistyr……………………. Western Wunt……………………… Under Wuot……………………… Berserk Wyss……………………… Wise Ybolg……………………… Enraged Zaes………………………. Right Zoer………………………. Sour

Minerals (work as nouns and adjectives) Agat……………. Amber Blau……………. Lead Caepf………….. Slate Glaz…………….. Glass Grein…………… Bronze Guld……………. Gold Iyrn…………….. Iron Kryd……………. Chalk Kryst…………… Crystal Kupf……………. Copper Loh……………… Cloth, Clothes Lydir……………. Leather Marm………….. Marble Sthal……………. Steel Sylb…………….. Silver Webb………….. Silk Whaz…………… Wax Woll……………. Wool

Both noun and adjective Blan…………….. Darkness, Dark Fryd…………….. Peace, Peaceful Keten………….. Chain, Chained Knod…………… Knot, Knotty Lubb/Lubd……. Poison Myte…………… Middle Ryss…………….. Giant Thubyr………… Magic Toeg……………. Secret Zirn…………….. Fury, Furious

Verbs Braen………….. Break Byld…………….. Make Byrg……………. Protect Draeg………….. Carry Edz……………… Eat Fhet……………. Fight Firk……………… Explore Floeg…………… Fly Floer…………… Lead Gheb…………… Give Grina…………… Howl Gyft…………….. Sell Hwyz…………… Know Jaeg…………….. Hunt Khan……………. Laugh Lago……………. Lament Moer…………… Kill Ronth………….. Run Skrib……………. Write Sthan…………… Stand Sweig………….. Herd Syz……………… Sit Waeb………….. Weave Wall……………. Boil Wegg………….. Provoke Wezzn…………. Punishment Zent……………. Send

[littlebeeweavingclub]

Handwoven Red Rope Agate Bracelet

[theclockworkkidart]

Fly Me To The Moon 2

Part 2 of this

Unfortunately, Aechmea doesn’t get his wig snatched in this one. 

Just Dumb and Dumber letting Phos know that if there ain’t no trees, there ain’t no Red Fox and Choco. 

[phae-undergrove]

GREEK DIETY CHEAT SHEET PART 2

(8 Greek gods and their correspondences)

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

A SMALL UPDATE ON PART 1&2

part one HERE

HECATE— Goddess of Magic & Witchcraft, Ghosts & Necromancy, Crossroads, & the Moon

🎨Colors:

Black🖤

Silver 🪙

🌏Element:

All of them (She is the goddess of magick, after all)

🌳Plants & Trees:

The asphodel, the aconite, the belladonna, the mandrake, the hemlock, the poppy, the dittany, the lavender, the dandelion, the hellebore, garlic, the mugwort, the yew tree, the cypress tree, the pomegranate tree, the oak tree, the black poplar tree, the willow tree, the hazel tree, the cedar tree, the almond tree

💎Stones & Gems:

Moonstone,

Sapphire or star sapphire,

Any stone that is dark & luminous (i.e. Black tourmaline, Hematite, Jet, Obsidian, Onyx, etc.)

💨Incense:

Myrrh,

Pomegranate,

Mugwort,

Cypress,

Poppy,

Cinnamon,

Frankincense,

Mint,

Saffron

🗝Symbols:

Triple moon, Dark moon, The crone,Cauldron, Torches, Keys, Daggers, Rope, Crossroads, Entry ways & gates, Dogs (especially black ones), She-wolf, Frogs, Snakes, Weasels, Black ewes, Crows, Owls, Horses

🕊Proper Offerings:

Dandelions, Poppies, Lavender, Garlic, Almonds, Raisins or currants, Figs, Black olives, Wine, Water, Honey, Cookies or cakes made to look like one of Her symbols, Eggs (especially boiled), Leaving a plate of food at a crossroads or burying a small cake/libation at a crossroads, Blood offerings (just a finger-prick) or mock-blood offerings, Appreciating the weird & uncanny

ZEUS — King of the Gods & God of the Sky, Weather, Law & Order, & Justice

🎨Colors:

Sky blue

White

Gold

Purple

🌬Element:

Air

🗓Day of the Week:

Thursday

🌳Plants & Trees:

The wild celery

the artichoke

the oak tree

the olive tree

the white poplar tree

the linden tree

💎Stones & Gems:

Opal

Diamond

Quartz

Sapphire

Lapis lazuli

Blue topaz

Blue zircon

Blue agate

Citrine

Amethyst

💨Incense:

Frankincense

Oakmoss

Vervain

Sage

⚡️Symbols:

Lightning bolts

Clouds

Scepter

Throne

Crown/wreath of olive leaves,

Aegis

Eagles

Cuckoos

Swans

Bulls (especially white bulls)

Goats

Lions

Wolves

🕊Proper Offerings:

Eagle feathers (obtained humanely, i.e. discarded),Oak branches/leaves,Gold (gold coins, gold bowl or cup, etc.),Wreath of olive leaves,White wine,Honey,Figs,Vervain, Damiana, Hyssop, Ginseng, Saffron, Cookies or cakes made to look like one of His symbols, Beef or mutton, Cotton candy, Whipped cream, Writing or reading poetry in His honor, Honoring commitments

PAN — God of Nature, Music, & Fertility

🎨Colors:

Brown

Green

Red

🌱Element:

Earth

🌳Plants & Trees:

The reed

the mountain pine tree

the violet

the musk

the thistle

the hemp/Indian hemp

the orchis

Apple

the civet

💎Stones & Gems:

Jasper

Amber

Tiger's eye

Unakite

Smoky quartz

Mahogany obsidian

Crystal, Bloodstone

Turquoise, Azurite

💨Incense:

Frankincense

Musk

Civet

Violet

Hemp

Pine

Birch

🐐Symbols:

Syrinx (set of panpipes)

Goats

Goat Horns

Rams

Shepherd's crook

Phallus

🍯Proper Offerings:

Panpipes, Wine/mead, Beer, Milk (especially goat's milk), Water, Honey, Grain, Fruits, Honey-cakes (for his nymphs), Cookies or cakes made to look like one of His symbols, Mutton, Hemp or cannabis, Pine needles, Making lots of noise (music, chanting, etc., so as not to startle Him), Eating/drinking/being merry, Having sex or participating in sexual acts, Not disturbing Him around noon (when He likes to nap)

IRIS — Goddess of the Rainbow & Messenger of the Gods

🎨Colors:

All of them

🌬Element:

Air

🌱Plants & Trees:

The iris

💎Stones & Gems:

Rainbow quartz

Moonstone, Rainbow moonstone, Opal, Pearl, Rainbow obsidian

💨Incense:

Iris

Violet

Lavender

Myrrh

Frankincense

🌈Symbols:

Rainbows

Golden wings

Caduceus

Pitcher of water

Clouds

Fleur-de-lis

Sun/sunlight

🕊Proper Offerings:

Water, Wine, Honey, Wheat, Figs, Cakes or cookies made to look like one of Her symbols, Irises, Feathers, Prisms, Postage stamps, Cotton candy, Whipped cream

HESTIA — Goddess of the Hearth & Home

🎨Colors:

White

Gold/Yellow

Orange

Red

Lavender

🔥Element:

Fire

🌳Plants & Trees:

The lavender

the chaste tree

the datura

the California poppy

the goldenrod

the hollyhock

the yarrow

the purple coneflower

all white flowers

💎Stones & Gems:

Garnet

Vanadinite

Quartz

Amethyst

💨Incense:

Lavender

Chamomile

Myrrh

Frankincense

Iris

Angelica

Peony

🏡Symbols:

The hearth

Fire/flames

Home

Head veil

Kettle or cauldron

Architecture

Pigs

Cows

Donkeys

Cranes

🕊Proper Offerings:

First/last foods & libations from a meal, Candles/flame, Wine, Honey, Pork, Cakes or Cookies made to look like one of Her symbols, Bread (especially homemade), Cooking herbs (such as basil, thyme, rosemary) & spices, Lavender or chamomile tea, Keeping a candle/hearth fire or lamp constantly burning, Welcoming others into your home, Keeping the peace (especially in the home), Donations of time & money to Habitat for Humanity, Lavender, White roses

ERIS — Goddess of Strife, Discord, & Chaos

🎨Colors:

Blood-red, Black

🔥Element:

Fire

🌳Plants & Trees:

The apple tree

💎Stones & Gems:

Ruby

Red agate

Bloodstone

🐍Symbols:

Golden apple

Poniard (which She keeps hidden)

Snakes

A torch

🕊Proper Offerings:

Apples, Golden apples (oranges), Social protest, Recognizing the positivity of dark times/negativity

HERA — Queen of the Gods & Goddess of Women, Marriage, Childbirth, & Motherhood

🎨Colors:

Purple

Dark green

Royal blue

Silver

White

Gold

🌱Element:

Earth

🌳Plants & Trees:

The lotus

the lily

the white rose (white flowers in general)

the poppy

the iris

the honeysuckle

the pomegranate tree

the apple tree

the willow tree

the cypress tree

the chaste tree

💎Stones & Gems:

Lapis lazuli

Diamond

Moonstone

Quartz

Pearl

Sapphire or star sapphire

Amethyst

Azurite

Turquoise

Tourmaline

Chrysocolla

💨Incense:

Myrrh

Rose

Jasmine

Iris

Honeysuckle

Patchouli

Frankincense

🦚Symbols:

Diadem

Scepter

Throne

Peacock feathers

Peacocks

Cows

Cranes

Cuckoos

Panthers

Lions

Pomegranates

Apples

Pears

Oranges

🕊Proper Offerings:

Peacock feathers, Lotuses, Lilies, White roses, White flowers of any kind, Poppies, Irises, Pomegranates or pomegranate seeds, Apples, Pears, Oranges, Staying faithful in a relationship & keeping the romance alive, Supporting women's rights, Donations to a women's shelter, Donating old maternity clothes or baby things to those less fortunate

ATHENA— Goddess of War, Wisdom, & Arts & Crafts

🎨Colors:

Royal blue

White

Gray

Yellow

Red

🌬Element:

Air

🗓Day of the Week:

Tuesday (war)

Wednesday (wisdom)

🌳Plants & Trees:

The olive tree

the oak tree

the cypress tree

the citrus trees

geranium

tiger lily

mayweed (chamomile)

💎Stones & Gems:

Lapis lazuli

Turquoise

Ruby

Onyx

Star Sapphire

💨Incense:

Frankincense

Sage

Patchouli

Cinnamon

Cedarwood

Orange blossom

Musk

Dragon's blood

🕷Symbols:

Aegis (shield with Medusa's likeness)

Spear

Helmet & armor

Spindle

Owls

Spiders

Eagles

Doves (symbol of victory)

Rams

Snakes

Olives

🕊Proper Offerings:

Olives/olive oil, Owl-shaped cookies or cakes, Wine, Handmade crafts especially textiles & pottery, Donations to educational institutes

Please feel free to use this whenever you’d like! I hope it helps some people out! if you haven’t already please check out my GREEK DEITY CHEAT SHEET (PART1) post!(just click ^^)🥺🥰

*all art creds to Yliade on Deviant art! Please check them out!(you can do so HERE)*

If you like what I do here please feel free to check out my Mothers Etsy store! Moon Circle Insights She’s got a wonderful assortment of detailed spells on there✨🥰

until the next time! Merry meet, merry part, merry meet again✨🔮 -B

Follow for more!

[tarotbee]

Ways of Worshipping Tyr

(For @forgotten-fate-andlosthope )

⚠️TW for blood⚠️

- offerings of wine, strong beer and liquor

- food offerings such as: salt, honey, barley, wheat, bread, oats, beef, pork, potatoes and flax or even a portion of your own home cooked meals

- draw the Tiwaz rune on the items on his altar

- Holly, juniper, pine, valerian, thistle, blackthorn and mustard seed

- sandalwood and jasmine incense

- Black Sardonyx (associated with Tuesday), steel, bronze, grey agate, carnelian leather and oak wood

- knotted rope to symbolise a binding oath

- a candle of dark red, silver, grey, orange, yellow/gold and blue or green

- wolf imagery

- go to a gun range

- axe throwing

- axe imagery

- study a form of fighting

- War memorabilia

- study law

- live your daily life practicing bravery and justice

- do the right thing even when no one is looking

- pray to him on Tuesdays

- meditate on hard decisions with him

- buy/give him a knife, sword or other weapon and take care of it

- sword imagery

- helmets/helmet imagery

- scales and scale imagery

- a hand statue or a glove

- star imagery

- hawk and eagle feathers or imagery

- keep your oathes and promises

- learn about the roman god Mars and the Dutch/German aspect Mars Thinscus

- some sources say specific or scheduled worship is not required for him as he simply prefers to be honoured and respected in day to day life rather than being specifically honoured

- do not spread lies, live a noble and honest life

- set firm FIRM boundaries, do not allow yourself to pushed around, you are dishonouring yourself and him

- remove yourself (and others) from needless harm, this can mean painful honesty to prevent later catastrophe

- learn to be comfortable in silence

- learn to be comfortable and confident in yourself and stand up for yourself

- donate to charities

[novantinuum]

Fandom: Steven Universe

Rating: Teen Audiences

Words: 6.3K~

Summary: In another world, he doesn’t have his mother’s sword or shield to hide behind when Bismuth lands her strike. The bubble pops.

Steven falls apart.

Chapter summary: In which freedom is a future worth fighting for.

Finally finished this chapter, yay! I promise I throw canon off a ravine entirely next chapter, I just needed to set up some stuff. Hopefully the Ruby POV makes things somewhat fresh.

If you read this and enjoy, I’d greatly appreciate your support through reblogs here, or kudos/comments on AO3. Thank you! <3

____

Chapter 13: system/REBOOT, Part 1

The whole mission is Garnet’s idea. 

By this point, they’ve known about Homeworld’s rushed Beta Kindergarten project for about fifty years. Frankly, its composition leaves much to be desired. The area is rich in the iron and silicon deposits necessary to produce a strong batch of quartzes, but the foundation they incubated all their new soldiers within is red clay cemented sandstone; it’s soft, and in constant danger of erosion. According to all the rebellion’s peridots, many of them top Homeworld kindergarteners before their eventual defection, this type of stone is critically unfit for Gem production. It can’t compress the inclusions of injector fluid at the correct pressure, can’t reliably bar the excess from draining through the porous material. As a result many of the individually incubated sites are predicted to ‘weep’ and lose critical volume, which will inevitably cause the emergent quartzes to be ‘off-color’ in some fashion. Some may be under regulation height, some may exhibit crystal twinning, some may be incapable of standard abilities like shapeshifting or weapon summoning, so on and so forth.

As a fellow off-color herself, Garnet carries a deep empathy for all those who are forsaken and unwanted. She can foresee the dire fate of these Beta Gems creeping over the dawning horizon even without the benefit of future vision, can foresee that despite all of these soldiers’ loyal programming, they’re ultimately cursed to be eliminated within the cruel machine of Homeworld. One day beyond the battlefield, the so-called Great Diamond Authority will see no further use in their existence, and then they’ll be purged. Harvested for scrap. Trapped within a myriad of Gem-powered objects. Crushed and used within their drop ships for fuel. 

It’s pure tyranny. 

Thus, she refuses to let their cruelty stand without a just fight. They have to give these Gems a chance beyond Homeworld’s rule, because abandoning them would be abandoning everything that their brave rebellion stands for, that she stands for. She refuses to stand powerless and idle in the face of a Diamond’s commands like the Sapphire and Ruby she once was, refuses to let another tragedy slip by without at least attempting to mend its damage. She is Garnet, she is freedom, and she is love.

And deep within her core, she believes these soon-to-emerge soldiers deserve the same opportunity for renewal and hope as any other Crystal Gem.

 __

For all Ruby’s aware, a whole geological era could have passed between that fateful moment she first set eyes on Jasper and the shards-late arrival of Amethyst and the others. All three of them duck behind the low rock formations she’s hiding in the shade of, Steven still breathing heavily from the no-doubt harried and concerned exertion of their sprint towards her. Hard light coursing from the gem in her palm to all other extremities at random intervals amidst crackling cinders of immobilizing terror, (she’s almost surprised her form isn’t flickering at this point), she desperately attempts to babble an explanation. She’ll admit— it’s not a particularly coherent one. Ask her mere minutes later, and there’s little chance she’ll be able to repeat what she said. Heck, she’s not confident about her words now, in the heat of the moment. It’s probably something about holes, something about injector scrap, about all those Gem monsters, a-and—

"Whoa, what the heck!” Amethyst blessedly interrupts, raising her head above the rocks and pointing across the clearing at the orange and red striped quartz diligently prowling the area like a true squadron leader. “Jasper’s here, too? Did everyone decide to skip on over to Beta today, or somethin’?!”

Peridot’s face scrunches in confusion as she regards her former mission partner.  “What is she doing?”

“She’s got all those corrupted Gems in cages,” Steven murmurs with realization, a tiny spark of outrage lighting up behind his eyes on those creatures’ behalf. “They’re not even bubbled, they’re just… trapped, and scared!”

Ruby brings her fist to her mouth, nervously nibbling at her fingers for a moment to anchor herself back to this present. Above all else, ignoring every thread of trepidation and insecurity she bears, there’s one burning question that pulses at her core with an unmatched luminosity about this whole scenario:

“B-but why would she want so many corrupted Gems in the first place? Doesn’t she know she can’t tame them?”

The purple quartz growls, the fringe of her hair casting a dark and menacing shadow over her features as she tilts her head down and glares at her self-proclaimed rival. “I don’t think she knows nothin’.”

And as— instinctively, mistakenly, running off of over five thousand years of deep engrained habit— she attempts to open her third eye towards the winding tributaries of potential futures they may soon find themselves wading through and fails, it slowly dawns on her just how isolated and lost they all are, without Sapphire’s sight. Without her love.

“Neither do I…” she says softly, her stature shrinking in the throes of that suffocating inadequacy. Riding an abrupt wave of frustration, she slams her foot into the coarse dirt, gripping thick chunks of her coily hair between her fingers. “Aughhh, this is a terrible time to not have future vision!” she huffs, spitting out each word staccato.

“Pipe down!” Jasper hollers at the poor corrupted Gem cornered in the distance as she kicks one of the bars of its cage, her booming voice easily reverberating off the cliffs’ curvature.

All four of them can’t help but bite back their gasps upon this clamoring startle. Peeking her head just above the rim of the rocky outcropping, Ruby watches the fur covered quartz visibly shrink back at the soldier’s command. Jasper continues, her unwavering act of confidence currently undeterred by this reaction. 

“You take orders from me now. You used to be a quartz too, didn’t you? What happened to you?”

Utterly failing to comprehend any of her words in this vulnerable, animalistic state, the corrupted Gem merely snaps its fangs at the bars, and then tilts its head sideways to begin chewing on one of them. Jasper scoffs, her lips rising in a mild sneer. Taking the risk to edge closer, she continues to verbally berate the poor thing, talking the same sort of smack Ruby’s former Homeworld commanding officer, Condor Agate, used to dish out. Ruby grinds her teeth together so hard as she watches this display that the pressure and heat alone might be enough to form a brand new batch of Gems. Jasper even finds a moment to rope Amethyst into her insults, which almost has the stone in question summoning her whip in pure unfiltered fury. It’s only Steven and Peridot’s quick clutch on her shoulders that holds her back from steamrolling into the clearing with zero preparation and potentially making a terrible mistake. Still, she’s gotta admit, the temptation to whoop this Homeworld brute’s butt right this minute is devilishly hard to resist.

Ruby growls, one of her gauntlets emerging into existence on her clenched fist with a burst of light. “Oh-hoh, do I wanna launch this baby right into her dumb, chalky face…!”

“But maybe first we should go back to the temple and grab reinforcements?” Peridot whispers hastily, whirling around to face her. Panic visibly tightens its grip on her form with each passing second. 

She pauses a moment to let the logic of this suggestion sink in, gaze hardened, and self-consciously aware of how her fellow Gems are (wrongfully) looking towards her as their leader in this chaos. What options do they even have? They can choose to fight, that’s one. They could disengage. They could retreat to Beach City and seek backup. If they were truly desperate, they could surrender. (Although she’s not confident Jasper would gracefully accept anyone’s defeat, not until it ended with their poofed— maybe even shattered— gemstones littering the coarse sand.)

As the gears are still pirouetting in her mind, she turns towards Steven, who nods in vehement agreement of Peridot’s strategy, his mouth stretched thin.

Sighing with frustration, she loosens her grip, recalling how even Garnet was barely able to match up with Jasper’s might. “Yeah, you’re right. She’d beat us into the dirt without Pearl or Sapphire.”

“Okay, so far we got three votes for retreat,” he says, holding up the appropriate number of digits as a visual. “Amethyst?”

In sync, the trio turn towards where the quartz just stood and find nothing but faint granules of recently upended dust filtering through a beam of sunlight. Both Peridot and Steven let out a fearful squeak at her absence.

“W-where is she?” the former Homeworld technician cries, craning her neck over the top of the rock formation to try and secure a visual.

“Up there!” Steven exclaims under his breath, pointing at a ridge a good ten feet above them that crosses from the arched entrance of this natural amphitheater all the way to the other side where Jasper stands, her back still turned to them.

Following the path of his index finger, Ruby catches a flash of purple, black and lavender stealthily advancing along the narrow rim towards the very soldier who reportedly poofed her with a single strike about a week back. The light sustaining her form nearly drains from all her limbs and rushes back to her gem. 

“Oh, shards no…”

Stars above, what the hell is her problem? she thinks, her mind riding in a narrow track between exacerbated vexation and dread. Does she have a death wish, or something?? Surely the last place a rational person would choose to run is directly into the arms of the Gem who clobbered them into a senseless cloud at their last meeting. Surely a rational person would instead choose to retreat and regroup. However, as she glumly reflects upon the dour happenings of the past few days, Amethyst’s actions prove she’s currently unable to think rationally about Jasper or any other kind of conflict. She’s been markedly sullen at everyone around her ever since she first got her butt whooped. Obsessed with her private training sprees. Emotionally stand-offish. Prone to making rash decisions, like letting her mouth run off at poor hapless Steven about matters that aren’t his fault, or slashing her whip right at people’s feet to push them away, or… or rushing directly towards Jasper in an enclosed space with little to no backup just because she’s desperate to show her up for the sake of her own self-worth, or whatever.

And Ruby gets it, to an extent. She understands how cripplingly powerless it can feel to be written off as ‘the weak one,’ as nothing but an expendable. She understands the vivid temptation to let one’s anger drive such antagonistic confrontations. However, she’d also like to believe that she carries enough self respect in this gem to not throw herself right on an enemy’s anvil. Whether or not Amethyst possesses the same level of restraint is another question entirely. She flexes nervous, twitchy fingers at her side as she watches her dear friend creep further along the rim, ever closer to what she fears will be her unquestionable demise. 

With the corrupted Gem’s racket still occupying Jasper’s undivided attention, Amethyst leaps from the cliff’s edge and into the clearing, pulling her whip from her gem in midair. The moment her toes touch the ground again, she slashes its barbed ends at the bars of the cage, right next to the quartz soldier’s hand. Jasper yanks her digits back. Her entire body snaps tense upon this disruption. Watching from behind their rocky cover, Ruby, Steven, and Peridot bite back the urge to gasp in shock. 

“HEY!” Amethyst yells, lowering on her haunches right behind her opponent. 

Now, there’s obviously no way to prove it without somehow obtaining intimate knowledge of her headspace, but upon external observation, Ruby swears that this big, buff Beta Kindergarten quartz is masking surprise. The sentiment is visible in the alignment of her shoulders, lifted high and tight against her neck. It’s visible in her narrow stance, light years away from the proper form of a soldier expecting battle. Flexing her thick, dexterous fingers at her side, she makes a blatant show of puffing out her chest before she turns to face her challenger, an almost predatory smile curving upwards on her lips as she regards her.

“You back away from her,” Amethyst hisses, nodding towards the Gem in the cage.

Jasper lets out a hearty chuckle. “Oh-hoh, what do we have here? You finally decide to crawl back for a rematch, runt?”

She grits her teeth, tightening her fist around the pommel of her weapon. “That’s right. I’m back, and I’mma wipe you all over these cliffs!”

“Perfect,” her opponent practically purrs, cracking her knuckles in anticipation. “I’ve been needing a light warmup.”

 __

Rose approves her mission without question, when she first brings her the idea. Of course she would, in retrospect— the hidden diamond she was. 

Garnet takes forty of her fellow soldiers and friends with her to the Beta Kindergarten. They don’t wield any weapons. These Gems are brand new, stepping into the light for the very first time. There’s no need to threaten them; all she wants is to peacefully talk, to introduce them to the concept of freedom, of choosing their own path beyond the Diamonds’ rule. 

At the time, all she wanted was to follow her beloved leader’s example and choose peace and harmony over subjugation and brutality.

But with the bitter truths they know now, and reflecting upon the horrid atrocities they themselves participated in amidst the war… despite Rose’s self-proclaimed ‘pacifism,’ despite the shaky justifications of their cause being different than Homeworld’s brand of violence... she’s increasingly unsure if any of them ever had a choice.

 __

Tragically, it only takes mere seconds for the initial triumphant beats of Amethyst’s war against Jasper to devolve into a one-sided thrashing. 

With a mighty, almost frenzied yell, Amethyst moves one foot forward for counterbalance and slings the weighted, barbed tip of her weapon directly at her opponent’s face. Jasper catches it midair, mere inches from her gem. An arrogant smile paints her visage. After winding the whip’s end around her hand, she yanks its user towards her with a snap of her wrist, swings her in a wide arc, and effortlessly slams her into the nearest cliff wall, blowing up a huge plume of pulverized rock and dust. It all happens so fast that the rest of the party barely has any time to react. As the rubble settles, Ruby finally spots her friend amidst the chaos, collapsed on hands and knees in the dirt. The poor Gem’s hands are nearly trembling as she vies to rise to her feet again, vies to stand her ground and keep fighting. 

There’s only one thing she knows for sure, watching all this: if hard light were consumable rather than indelible, she would quite literally be chipping away at her knuckles with her teeth by now.

His expression blown wide with fear, Steven breaks their communal silence to holler Amethyst’s name. Hands flexing in and out of fists, he darts away from their hiding spot. And they tried to stop him, they really did— it’s simply that he’s far too nimble for either of them to catch in time.

“Steven!” Peridot cries, trying and failing to grab his hand to hold him back.

“Steven, no!” Ruby yells, arms outstretched, as he sprints into the clearing— entirely blowing any remaining amount of cover the three of them had, placing his gem at Jasper’s mercy, and causing a thousand living nightmares to flood into her consciousness in but a millisecond. “Come back!!”

“Wait! Wait,” he gasps, waving his arms wildly to catch the larger quartz’s attention as he passes into the center of this natural coliseum, firmly planting himself at Amethyst’s side. “Stop! We don’t need to do this!”

Giving a growl that would rival that of a corrupted Gem’s, Ruby clenches her fingers around thick coils of her hair at either side of her head and yanks. “Aughh, why does nobody listen to me when I’m short??” 

A faint trail of glowing embers marks a record of her path as she leaves Peridot by their rocky outcropping and storms right into the open after him. Oh, hoh, hoh— that boy can disobey her clear, simple orders all he wants, but in his folly he’s forgetting one very important fact: rubies are stubborn Gems. And she’ll fight to protect him from the crossfire of Jasper’s hubris and Amethyst’s self-destruction even if that means braving her deepest terrors to run out there and drag him back to safety herself.

(Ideally, she’d be able to drag Amethyst with her out of the thunderdome as well, but she’s also quite the stubborn one. So try as she may, that’s not likely to happen.)

Ruby strides towards the middle of the clearing and defiantly plants her feet in the sterile soil right in front of Steven, and adjacent to Amethyst. She summons her gauntlets, her features twisting in a scowl. “Stand down and let them go!” she shouts up at that bulky orange quartz with all the Garnet-like confidence she can muster. “This is not a Homeworld controlled planet!”

“Steven, Ruby, get out of here!” Amethyst hisses under her breath, her battle-ready stance solidifying with a strange mixture of apprehension and anger as she regards the two of them.

“No!” she shoots back, tugging at her arm. “Come on, you know I can’t just leave you here.”

Jasper’s molten amber eyes narrow, her steely gaze colliding right into her.

“ You,” she says, enunciated as sharp as a dagger. “One half of that vile war machine.”

“War machine?!” Steven cries, distraught by the very implication. “She’s not a war machine! Garnet fuses for love!”

“Yeah!” Ruby jabs her fist in the air loud and proud.

The Homeworld warrior scoffs, seemingly not impressed by their display of solidarity. She folds her arms solid across the Yellow Diamond insignia emblazoned upon her chest and steps closer to address her directly. “And where’s this love now?” she spits, mockingly stooping to her level.

And despite the faint, triumphant memories of her last incursion with this quartz, (well… Garnet’s last incursion), she can’t help but cower in her presence, can’t help but crumble like the deficient sandstone of this very kindergarten under the cruel, personalized precision of her blunt words. Because... she’s right. Because that’s the whole problem, the pulsing heart of life’s cruel game. Fusion offered her a tantalizing taste of freedom, a glimpse of a reality where, together, a lowly guard and her sapphire could achieve literally anything through the strength of their love!— but that world feels like nothing more but an unobtainable mirage now. She’s absolutely useless on her own, just some pathetic waste of resources! No authority, no power, no wisdom of foresight— she brings nothing to the Crystal Gems’ cause. She never did. It was always her. Tears bead at her widening eyes, her gauntleted fists already beginning to tremble at her sides. 

“I-I…”

“Where’s any of your power now?” Jasper continues as she raises back to her full height, lifting both open hands towards the empty, cloud-streaked skies. She throws her head back as she offers them all a bright, boastful chuckle. “To think I used to view you traitors as a threat, but now even your disgraceful cause is falling apart, isn’t it… Rose?”

Still standing a step behind her, Steven’s immediate reply brims with tones of frustration. “I’m not—“

“But you’re wrong!” a high, familiar voice urgently calls out from behind them all. 

This whole messy confrontation breaks to a halt as everyone turns to gape at the lone Gem poking her head out above the rocky outcropping. Peridot gasps at the sudden influx of attention, and hastily ducks for cover again. 

“What are YOU doing here?” Jasper growls with annoyance, grinding one of her feet in the dirt as if inwardly hoping she could shift the very earth they stand on and finally gain the advantage of surprise once more.

“I-I…” the green Gem stammers, slowly creeping out from her hiding spot, summoning newfound confidence as she lays her eyes on each and every one of her friends. “I’m here because our cause hasn’t fallen apart! We live on Earth to be free, to learn new things about ourselves. Like how I can bend metal to my bidding!” she exclaims, tossing enthusiastic fists into the air.

On the cliff face over twenty feet away, a skinny length of metal from one of the injector’s legs slips from the device, falls straight down, and noisily clatters as it collides against the rocky soil. Amethyst facepalms. Meanwhile, Jasper appears so underwhelmed by this display that in any other circumstance, her glazed-over expression could be comedic.

Peridot briefly scowls at her botched handiwork. “And sure,” she shrugs, nodding towards that shard of metal, “nothing’s ever perfect here, but together, we work to help and support each other, just like we’re supporting Amethyst now. Isn’t that freedom worth fighting for?”

A few beats pass as the heart of this proclamation sinks in, the ticking seconds seeing Steven beam in pride at his friend’s progression since the beginning of her stay on Earth, and Jasper’s features scrunch inwards in an almost sour manner. Between the stifling roots of her own despair, even Ruby herself can’t help but feel a little uplifted by this hopeful sentiment. It’s a well-timed salve to an old burn, a naive yet ultimately truthful promise of lighthearted days to come. After all, hasn’t her time as a Crystal Gem taught her by now that no circumstance is permanent? That a single unifying cause can collapse empires like a wildfire, can continually reshape one’s entire understanding of existence? Her gauntleted hands shift at her side as a new spark of timid confidence ignites at her core. What was she thinking, letting this brute of a quartz tower over her and define the very pillars of her own story? She’s better than this. For the very sake of her friends she has to be!

But alas, before this newfound bravery can see its hour of triumph on this secluded battlefield, she finds herself once again cast aside by one of the very friends she’s vying to protect.

Amethyst growls in frustration at their continued presence, and summons her weapon. “UGH, you GUYS!” She slashes its barbed tips against the cliff face right above Peridot, not close enough to hit her, but certainly with enough force that it spooks her into diving behind the low rock formation again. Scowling, she then turns and plucks an actively protesting Steven right off the ground. “Get out of here!” she yells, tossing him back towards the clearing’s entrance. “This isn’t your fight!”

Ruby gives a sharp yelp as she just barely leaps backwards to dodge the business end of her whip, swinging low in a vain attempt to tangle up her feet. “Hey—!”

“It’s just you and me, Jasper,” the purple quartz breathes heavily, and abruptly whirls around to jab her finger towards her opponent. “ONE-ON-ONE!”

Silently, a consenting smirk riding over her lips, the taller Gem summons her ramming helmet in a glittering flash of light.

 __

The mission is— in the terms of the brave humans they sometimes fight alongside— a bloodbath. 

When they first warped in, Garnet only expected to find a small handful of disoriented jaspers, citrines, and carnelians roaming about. Gems they could talk to. Gems they could reason with, just as Rose reasoned with her fellow quartzes at the very start of this bold rebellion. Instead, what emerges soon after their arrival is more shocking and unpredictable than any future Garnet could’ve ever visualized.

Bursting from the very heart of this slapdash, rushed Kindergarten, despite every single locational and structural disadvantage this place stacks against one’s favor, is Her.

The strongest, most perfectly formed jasper she’s ever laid eyes on. She’s seven feet tall, built as solid as diamond, her flawlessly faceted gemstone gleaming bright and proud in the rising sun. She wastes no time in following the miserable orders the Great Diamond Authority cruelly embedded deep within her soul, immediately calling the hundreds of scattered and confused off-color Gems surrounding her to action.

Garnet and her squadron simply don’t have enough time to intervene, to try and settle this skirmish halfway peacefully. They don’t have the numbers. 

Twenty three Crystal Gems are shattered that day. Numerous more on both sides are cracked or poofed.

And yet one of the greatest tragedies, in her mind… is that these emergent Gems never got the proper chance to consider any purpose beyond their assigned station. Never got a chance to glimpse the promise of their own freedom. 

Everything happened so fast. 

She took this place for granted— thanks to her own preconceived notions about the kinds of Gems that could emerge here, utterly failed to foresee this potential turn of events— and in the end it cost lives. Both those of her fellow Crystal Gems, her friends … and those of the Beta quartzes she failed to save from Homeworld’s damaging influence.

That night, as she bitterly weeps for the recovered shards of the beloved they lost, clenches her gauntleted fists tight around her gemstones, she vows to never let such a harrowing tragedy escape her vision again. No more.

A leader like her is not allowed to fail.

 __

With the mighty roar of a lion, Amethyst stamps her leading foot to the ground to center her balance and rears her weapon-wielding arm back, wholly intending to defend her pride from this boorish bully. The first and second slashes are fruitful, one striking Jasper in the face, and the next hitting her chest with such intense force that it slams her into the cliff wall a few feet back, but Ruby can’t help but dread the litany of unknown possibilities haunting their future as she watches, powerless in her lack of second sight to influence their present. Could Amethyst win this fight? Sure. There’s gotta be at least one river of time where that occurs, where Jasper is so wrapped up within that facade of insufferable hubris that she fails to take her seriously as an opponent and pays the price. But on the other hand, she senses so many chinks in Amethyst’s armor that she can’t help but fear the opposite. She’s blinded by her anger, unable to consider consequence rationally. Her form in battle— compared to her usual performance— is notably sloppy, as if she’s throwing herself at this fight with such an explosion of tangled, raw emotion that her years of training and refinement have all but melted away in the inferno. Her fingers are trembling as she tightens her grasp on the whip’s pommel.

All of this stated, Ruby may not possess the gift of Sapphire’s future vision, but she has more than enough experience on patrol and on the battlefield to recognize a soldier who is woefully unprepared for a fight. Something terrible is about to happen, she can just feel it.

“Be careful!!” she cries, cupping her hands around her mouth.

“It’s fine, she’s totally rocking this!” Steven says with a huge grin, seeming uncharacteristically calm, given the circumstances. He whoops, and punches his fist in the air. “Go Amethyst!”

Ruby and Peridot briefly match eyes, the noted concern in their gazes pointing towards the fact that they both think that Amethyst’s insistence to fight is reckless and naive. In retrospect, of course her friend would agree with her. She spent a lot of time cohabiting with Jasper on their journey to Earth, so she’s bound to be well aware of her fundamental nature.

At the moment however, given the shorter quartz’s tunnel vision, she’s certain that any of their valid concerns would fall upon deaf ears. 

“Who’s weak now, huh?” Amethyst spits from across the clearing, flicking her wrist to activate the triplet spiked balls at the ends of her whip, an upgrade gifted by Bismuth she surprisingly hasn’t seemed to have abandoned. With a holler, she swings her leading arm back and around to build up momentum and then slashes at Jasper’s chest three times in succession. The last hit comes with enough force to push her backwards in the dirt a few feet. “Who’s powerless NOW?!”

Then, just as Ruby fearfully predicted, the winds shift. 

The firestorm doubles back upon them, Jasper merely swatting the flail ends away like they were nothing more but a momentary nuisance. Her expression narrows into a scowl. Emergent shock mingles alongside the dark cloud of Amethyst’s anger like wayward lightning bolts as she growls in frustration, the side-swept fringe of her hair shadowing her features. In retaliation she summons a second whip and immediately slashes them both against the soil, endowing them with a crackling, purple-tinged energy, almost a fire of her own making. She tucks into a ball and literally hurls herself at the quartz warrior, her form only recognizable in the heat of that moment via a dazzling blaze of light.

The resulting collision throws up so much dirt and smoke that Ruby has to throw her small body in front of Steven’s to shield him from the worst of the debris. 

When the thick curtains of dust finally part, the consequences of this overly-impulsive move are revealed. Jasper still stands proud and tall, her mettle unaffected by this attempted show of strength. Barely a scuff even marrs her uniform. Meanwhile, Amethyst lays hunched over on hands and knees, hacking up fragmented remnants of sandstone she likely swallowed amidst the impact. (Alas, that’s the price she pays for choosing to always reform with an semi-operational digestive system.)

“Is it sinking in yet?” Jasper queries pointedly, advancing towards the trembling Gem on the ground.

Amethyst is so exhausted she can’t even muster the strength to respond, her arms quivering beneath her as she vies to hold up the simulated weight of her hard light form.

Her foe roughly kicks her in the chest, her foot striking mere inches under her gem. Ruby visibly cringes at both the shallow huff of distress that this hit elicits from her, and Steven’s cries of fear in response. 

“It doesn’t matter how long or hard you fight,” Jasper boasts, her imposing figure hovering like a bad omen over her quartz sibling’s, “because I’ll always be stronger! Runts like you never had a chance. Runts like you are worthless.”

Angrily, she grinds her teeth together, cradling the vulnerable gemstone on her hand. 

Worthless.

Worthless.

Who the hell does this square hunk of stone think she is, slinging such heavy-handed words around like the blunt end of a mallet?

“Get your worthless, sorry forms back in formation!” wretched old Condor Agate used to scream at her and the others in her squad, back when she spent eternity guarding empty corridors, back before she was eventually reassigned to Sapphire’s personal guard. “You’re an embarrassment to your commanding agates, all of you!”

Ruby growls, finding her resolve. That’s it. No more. She can’t bear to stand at the sidelines gripped in fear while some bully is literally beating her friend into the ground, both physically and emotionally. She can’t bear for Amethyst to fall prey to the same type of unwavering torment she herself experienced all those years ago on Homeworld, torment that utterly deformed her sense of self-worth until recognizing any ounce of good in herself became a gargantuan, near-impossible task. Admittedly, she still hasn’t healed from those days. Not entirely. Sometimes she’s unsure she ever will. But it’s her duty to put an end to this, to what’s happening in the here and now. After all, what’s the point of being a Crystal Gem if you don’t look after the people you love?

“We have to separate them,” she says firmly, turning towards Steven and Peridot. “She’s gonna get clobbered!”

The former kindergartener’s expression warps to despair under her visor. “But how? She doesn’t even want us to be here! And none of us are strong enough to face Jasper…”

“Could we make a distraction?” Steven suggests, his voice tinged with the same sort of urgency she feels thrumming like a frantic drum line at the depths of her core.

Humming in thought, Ruby considers the status quo. To no success, she attempts to ignore her friends’ expectant gazes, trustingly falling upon her exactly like all those fellow rebellion soldiers used to look at Garnet… as their de facto leader. But she’s no leader, far from it. Garnet would barely have to think before coming up with a genius, foolproof plan, but she’s going into everything blind. She can’t weigh out potential consequences before rushing into action. She has no ability to pinpoint the most ideal outcome and work backwards from there. With all this in mind, it’s really no wonder that Garnet passed command of the group to Pearl instead of her. At least Pearl has experience leading missions solo.

And yet desperate times call for desperate measures.

She scans their surroundings for inspiration, considering what options may be open to them. At this point there’s no time to double back to the barn or the temple for reinforcements. (And she strongly doubts Lapis would care to so much as match eyes with Jasper, anyways.) One or more of them could always charge into the fray to attempt and break up this small skirmish by force, but that would risk their safety, too. The last thing she wants is to knowingly throw her friends into harm’s way. No, the best option would be breaking the two quartzes up using something in their immediate environment, something large and heavy but capable of being quickly moved, something like...

Her eyes snap wide. “That injector!” she whispers excitedly, pointing to the hulking piece of junked equipment precariously hanging from the cliff wall, only stabilized by a few legs that still penetrate the cracked sandstone. “It’s right above them. If we knocked it down, then maybe…”

Peridot flashes a hopeful smile, and nods.

“We’re on it,” Steven says, summoning his shield. The two of them glance at each other, perhaps silently coordinating their plan, and then leap into action.  

“Metal powers activate!” she exclaims, and throws her hands up in the direction of that rusted injector. 

Subtly but noticeable, its legs begin to shift and creak under the force of her ferrokinesis, loosening from the eroding stone. Licking his lips, Steven aims his weapon and hurls. It strikes the device directly at its center, clanging against solid metal. The injector wobbles for a moment, its delicate balance obviously destabilized by this force, and then begins to slide free from the porous kindergarten wall. One still-impacted leg snaps under the torque as the cylinder’s immense weight plummets towards the ground.

“Heads up!” Steven calls out, causing a bemused Jasper to flick her gaze skyward, towards the falling object staining the soil with an ever-growing shadow.

The collision of the junky old injector almost appears like a small explosion, flinging dirt a good ten feet into the air and resolutely separating the two quartzes. But Ruby barely has time to high five Peridot and celebrate their success before the kid she’s supposed to be keeping safe darts off into the clearing once more. She hisses a small curse under her breath. Drat, of course he’d run straight to Amethyst’s side again at his first opportunity! She should’ve seen that coming a whole star system away. At least Jasper’s been temporarily marooned on the other side of that busted Gem tech, though.

The real question is, for how long? 

Nibbling at her lip, she hastily sprints towards the edge of the injector to keep a watchful eye on their opponent as Steven attempts to have a mid-battlefield heart-to-heart. (At least, that’s what she assumes he’s doing. Admittedly, they kinda failed to hammer out the fine details of their plan before sprinting into action. Her fault.) Thankfully though, at first glimpse it seems the impact’s force has effortlessly knocked Jasper clear off her feet. She seems slightly dazed, but beyond that remains unscathed. Time will only tell if this strategy was a beneficial one. Briefly turning back towards the group, Ruby watches Steven crouch next to Amethyst. She’s muttering something to him, she thinks— her expression raw with fresh tears— but her words are far too hushed to make out. Whatever she shares, however, it’s clearly enough to elicit a strong emotional reaction from her companion.

“No, no!”  he pleads, hurt painting his features. “My mom- Rose, she doesn’t matter. Whatever Jasper thinks doesn’t matter. She's the only one who thinks you should be like her!”

“But-”

“Stop trying to be like Jasper. You're nothing like Jasper! You're like me!”

“But even you’re different!” she explodes at first, but any anger present in her form immediately evaporates into something more innately hesitant, more self-conscious. Her fingers claw thick troughs into the reddened soil as she curls them inwards. “I’m not like you at all, I’m not some di—”

“No, that’s not the point!” he says, tears of his own budding at the corners of his eyes. “You’re like me because we’re both not like anybody. And yeah, it sucks. Everyone always expects us to be someone we’re not, but you know what? At least I've always got you. And you've got me! So stop leaving me out of this!”

Slowly pushing herself to her feet behind the junked injector, Jasper groans, her voice strained with newfound exhaustion Ruby never imagined she possessed. 

“Y’guys, she’s getting up!” she calls out to her friends behind her, equally a warning as it is a call to action. After all, if this bold stunt finally managed to crack through the first layer of their opponent’s armor, then they might genuinely stand a chance now.

She’ll never know if they heard her, though— because in the same split second she turns back to check on them, the now embracing pair is engulfed in a blinding white light.

Even in the absence of a soldier's fire, everything turns to smoke.

[vintagebitchgifts]

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