#Witches don't pay taxes but still

[dark-lord-tom-returns]

This isn't an instance of magic but I think it certainly deserves some examination. Magrat has a moment of reflection? After the pumpkin boat incident.

Certainly she was the best person for the wand. There was no doubt about that. Sometimes—and she hardly dared give the thought headroom, when she was under the same roof as Granny Weatherwax—she really wondered about the others’ commitment to witchcraft. Half the time they didn’t seem to bother.

Then she starts thinking about how she's better at medicine than the others because she knows about herbs, how she's studied their uses, how she's done the work to be able to heal people. And how the others don't seem to do any of that at all.

And Granny…she just gave people a bottle of colored water and told them they felt a lot better.

And what was so annoying was that they often did. Where was the witchcraft in that?

With a wand, though, things could be different. You could help people a lot with a wand. Magic was there to make life better. Magrat knew this in the pink fluttering boudoir of her heart.

This is an excellent example of the underlying attitude to magic of the witches. Magrat says it point blank: the "medicine" the other two give people often works. But Magrat doesn't believe it should because it's not how she does it.

She knows magic is real, she does it herself, but she also believes there is a right and a wrong way to use magic even when confronted with two powerful witches who do it the "wrong" way and get results.

I think this is why Magrat has such trouble with the wand. She has such a romanticized view of magic that she forgets that it's a means to an end and not the end itself. She looks at magic and sees the solution but in reality it's just one step toward a solution.

She says that the wand can help a lot of people. That it can make life better. But it can't. A hammer can't build a house but it can make building a house easier.

Magrat is the type of person who looks at chatgpt and sees the solution to all problems. We know it's not a solution, it's a tool and a faulty one, and how you use it can solve a problem, but only if you know how it works and she doesn't. So she's confused when she asks it to do her taxes and it keeps outputting tax fraud.

[ohsugar-honey-iced-tea]

Game night

Wanda Maximoff x fem!reader

Hi y'all! This is my first piece writing for Wanda Maximoff. A friend has introduced me to the fandom and now I'm obsessed 😀 let me know what you think!

Summary: 'Who gets a little too invested in boardgames?'

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She screwed up. She knew she screwed up. She knew it the moment Wanda stepped on her two hotel-owned steet. Well, that wasn't the problem per se. It was the fact that she laughed evilly as she watched Wanda do everything she could to get the money she needed to pay off y/n for landing on her street.

It was supposed to be a fun game night, filled with fun, cuddles, snacks and little shared kisses, Wanda's favorite kind of kisses.

They had settled on playing Monopoly, Wanda's favorite boardgame ever since she was a little girl. She always used to play with her parents and brother and, proudly, always came out to be the one with the most streets and money in the end.

It's not like Wanda and Y/n haven't played Monopoly before. It's just that Wanda always used to win, and then continued to gloat about her victory for at least three days. And now, for the first time in their Monopoly history, Y/n won, and won big. She owned 6 of the 8 streets, and all the taxes worked in her favor, which didn't help the already moody Scarlet Witch at all.

Meanwhile, it has been a full day since and Wanda still didn't talk to her, the betrayal of seeing her love laugh at her as she tried all she could to get the money she needed still fresh on her mind.

"My love, it was only a game of Monopoly, please talk to me."

As soon as Wanda heard that, she came out of their shared bedroom she had locked herself in, wallowing in self pity over her loss of being the reigning Monopoly champion.

"Why should I, hm? This relationship was supposed to be build on trust, and what do you do? You enjoy the lowest point of my financial status. How are we supposed to get past that, huh? You're just a mean- a mean butt!"

Wanda wasn't the best with cursewords when she was taking a moment to be dramatic.

Y/n watched as Wanda continued to *cough* dramatically *cough* *cough* rant about how unfair she was being to her and how this would affect everything.

"Sweetheart..."

"...I would never do this to you-"

"My love..."

"...how am I supposed to get over this-"

"Wanda!"

And just like that, Wanda's endless Monopoly rant ended.

"Did you get your period today, mi amor?"

With that, all the rest of what Wanda was about to say died on her tongue, as she pouted and nodded, tears forming in her eyes.

Y/n sighed sympathetically at this as she opened her arms for her, which Wanda quickly accepted. Honestly, she should have seen this coming. Y/n has been with Wanda for quite some time now, and she knew how moody amd hormonal she could get when she got her period. It didn't help that she had bad cramps with it as well.

The red-headed girl started to sob in Y/n's shoulder, as she gently shushed her, arms holding her close and fingers caressing her hair.

"Why don't I go draw us a bath and after that we can watch your favorite sitcoms? That face is way too beautiful to be stained with tears"

Wanda giggled a little at that, and nodded, softly sniffing.

"I would like that very much. Thank you, detka."

And so, Y/n drew them both a lavender scented bath and guided Wanda in it. Soft music was playing on her phone as she started pampering her Wanda.

After the bath was done, Y/n took her time drying off the both of them, kissing every dried piece of skin her lips could find.

They soon settled in bed afterwards, Wanda making a decision which sitcom they should watch as Y/n was getting the bed ready.

Half an hour later, they were in bed, watching an old episode of ALF, one of Wanda's favorites. Halfway through the episode, Wanda turned to look at Y/n.

"I'm sorry for calling you a mean butt. I didn't mean that at all."

Y/n simply smiled and gave her a forehead kiss.

"I don't mind being a mean butt. As long as I'm your mean butt, I'm okay."

Wanda sighed contentially, nestling herself deeper in her lover's arms.

"If game night always ends like this, we should do it more often."

Y/n giggles at that.

"Let's just keep the fighting part out of it next time, okay?"

Wanda sealed their deal with a kiss, and settled for sleep in the arms of the woman she loved so much.

Later that night Wanda woke up to a still warm water bottle on her stomach, pain medicine and water on her nightstand, and a sleeping Y/n holding her close even in her sleep next to her. Wanda smiled softly at her, thanking her lucky stars for having found Y/n.

"I'm going to marry you, aren't I, detka?"

With that, she went back to sleep, meeting her partner in dreamland.

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Let me know what you thought and if you want to be added to my Wanda taglist! There's more to come, send me any request you'd like to see!

[wvsteria]

so this is is my starter/plotting call. obvs gonna be mostly dropping everything from pre event so trying to wrap up whatever plots need to be done now or at least hc them out in dms. anything post event will be transitioning from this event so most threads are just getting dropped.

if you'd like to plot in general give this a like if you want starters please only three per mun and three per muse. you must provide muse name or it will not be added to the list and if you go over i'll only grab the first three so please pay attention to what's being requested. i'm welcome to out of fandom plots so pls request if you want, however i may dm for plotting!

this call is separated into who is completely still unaware, people who went from their canon lives to medieval times, and people who know that dc flipped to medieval times randomly. as always i'm up for chaos plots as normal, though i mostly would like to explore this fantasy era with most muses in tact by the end.

people completely unaware, thinks modern medieval is their home

aro volturi | twilight | 3500+/40 | he/they | occupation: vampire/noble

plots: knights that guard him, other members of his court, other royals, an arranged marriage (he's already married so this wouldn't be an endgame plot), since it's fantasy world he's aware he's a vampire, so people he feeds on and people who may know his secret

(1/3) starters: kim possible (spy)

claire hargreeves | the umbrella academy | 20 | she/they | baker

plots: other people that bake with her, regulars at her shop, other merchants

(2/3) starters: klaus hargreeves, martha hatter (baker)

dain aetos | fourth wing | 22 | he/they | knight

plots: other knights, nobles that he guards, some friends.

starters:

juniper andromeda | crescent city | 26 | she/they | dancer

plots: idk what this world's version of it is, but she still is a performer for entertainment, people that attend her shows, other artists.

(1/3) starters: alice (artists)

lan sizhui | the untamed | 20 | he/they | tax collector

plots: he's a good responsible boi in every setting so sorry but he needs ur money it's for the government, he follows rules for the most part here but like also tries to help people out where he can, other families he's known forever

starters:

princess nehemia ytger | throne of glass | 24 | she/they | noble

plots: knights that guard her, other members of her court, other royals, an arranged marriage (could be midgame or endgame based on chem)

starters:

paige matthews | charmed | 27 | she/her | whitelighter/witch/innkeeper

plots: people that stay at her inn, other inn owners for her to have friendly competition, employees at her inn, she likes to open the inn for anyone in need so even if you can't pay she'll let you stay, i'm letting her know about her powers in this fantasy setting so a charge she has to watch over as a 'guardian angel' so to speak, someone sus of her powers of course bcs she's a witch

(1/3) starters: atlas - sophie sheridan (innkeeper)

rosalie hale | twilight | 100+ | she/her | vampire/midwife

plots: people she's helped give birth, other physicians she can work alongside, families she helps afterwards with the babies, she does a lot idk, also bcs of fantasy world she knows she's a vampire but she keeps it hidden and only feeds on animals

starters:

sidney prescott | scream | 20 | she/her | thespian

plots: other actors in their shows, people that attend her shows, other artists.

starters:

soren palpatine | star wars | 28 | he/they | plague doctor

plots: people who've been sick or get sick that he takes care of, other doctor's physicians

starters:

people who don't notice the dc change

brinna javik | star wars | 23 | they/she | monster hunter

plots: other monster hunters, people who are protectors of the monsters, friends

(2/3) starters: kriya dura, zhao yunlan

cassandra dimitrescu | resident evil 8 | 23 | she/her | harlot

plots: other harlots pls for friends, other morally gray/bad peeps, people they can lure in for a meal pls and thanks, some other supernaturals

starters:

cindy berman | fear street | 26 | she/they | noble tutor

plots: families that she works for, nobles that she becomes friends with due to her job, other members of the court she tutors for, other educators

(1/3) starters: chu wanning

dominic toretto | fast & furious | 45 | he/him | carpenter/thief

plots: people he's done work for, rich people he can steal from, prob a 'wet nurse' or smth for the son (10 y/o), other labor workers

starters:

jacen solo | star wars | 27 | he/him | noble/knight

plots: other knights, nobles that he guards, some friends, members of the family organa court since he's technically a noble

(1/3) starters: allana solo

jackson kenner | the originals | 30 | he/they | stableman

plots: other farmers/stablemen, people that come by to ride the horses

starters:

josette saltzman | legacies | 18 | she/they | herbalist

plots: other merchants or pharmacist like people, other witches she does magic with in hiding, people suspicious of her power, customer's that she's healed

starters:

kiara carrera | outer banks | 22 | she/her | merchant - sells fisherman items

plots: other merchants, fisherman or people that buy her items, other troublemakers in the town

starters:

manon benoit | the originals | 20 | she/they | bard

plots: she's new here but she's decided she will be singing and writing songs, catch her at your local tavern, pls tip her nicely, someone who helps her find a place to stay/roommate, other artists

starters:

mason bishop | the vampire diaries | 20 | he/they | witch/mason

plots: other laborers, people he's helped build houses or things for, buddy is also a witch and is trying to avoid being caught and killed so some ppl who are sus of him

starters:

mouse honrada | pretty little liars: original sin | 18 | she/they | messenger

plots: people she delivers to daily, friends she's made along her route, she travels a lot, people her age to have fun with

starters:

myri tiure | star wars | 25 | she/they | still a crime boss' daughter

plots: other thieves and morally bad people to mess around with

starters:

natasha romanoff | marvel | 36 | she/her | mercenary

plots: nat uses her abilities for good so though she's a mercenary she's picky about what jobs she pulls, people in the similar line of work

(1/3) starters: yelena belova

nathalie | crescent city | 24 | she/they | bailiff

plots: people she's put in jail, criminals she goes after, other ppl in the security line of work

(1/3) starters: stiles stilinkski (sheriff)

queen padmé amidala | star wars | 27 | she/her | noble

plots: knights that guard her even though she doesn't want to be guarded, other members of her court, other royals

starters:

princess samara palpatine | star wars | 24 | she/they | noble

plots: knights that guard her even though she doesn't want to be guarded, other members of her court, other royals that probably think she's crazy because they don't act like a royal fr, other derelicts she can cause trouble with

(1/3) starters: bean (nobles)

sgaeyl | fourth wing | 30 | they/she | dragon tamer

plots: first off, they're pissed they arrived here and they aren't a dragon when there are clearly dragons around, instead they'll just be working closely with them to help them escape the monster hunters or smth, other supernaturals they find out about and keep their secret from the townsfolk

starters:

syala eren | star wars | 35 | she/they | tavern owner

plots: people that attend her tavern, all are welcome here especially supernaturals just try not to make a ruckus and alert the ppl

starters:

tara carpenter | scream | 19 | she/her | waitress

plots: any regulars at the shop she waits at, other worker friends

(1/3) starters: amber freeman (waitress)

people who notice dc change

kol mikaelson | vampire diaries/the originals | 1000+ | he/they | noble

plots: other nobles he can freak out, members of the mikaelson court, people he keeps around so he can snack on, other supernatural friends

(1/3) starters: hope mikaelson

mia winters | resident evil 8 | 36 | she/they | housewife

plots: neighbors, friends that she supposedly made this whole time, people she can freak out to about the time change

(1/3) starters: eveline

spencer hastings | pretty little liars | 26 | she/they | diplomat

plots: other nobles and people that they speak with to bring together different lands, neighbors, friends that she supposedly made this whole time, people she can freak out to about the time change

(2/3) starters: prince henry (knight), hanna marin

[dio-niisio]

Since 2020 i've been obsessing over ghost, today the brain rot got a bit intense so here goes the whole universe this satanic band had me make in my little head! (A.K.A my headcanons :D)

So what's the best place to start if not the beginning?

The satanic ministry first started as a coven that a group of witches started around the 10th century in what is know as modern day Italy, to hide from any form of persecution that the catholic church may try to do the coven decided to hide in plain sight by using the clothes that the nuns typically would wear. That way their coven was just another abbey in a sea of many others and made surviving much easier. And is one of the reasons that in the present the ministry still uses clothes similar to what the catholics are doing besides being tradition if you see a satanic nun walking on the street you may think she's catholic and leave her alone! The original abbey is considered a "unholy" ground, and is kept hidden from the general public.

Overtime more and more people would join the coven making that they would have the need to branch out, so more and more abbey, convents and monastery had to be built! (I like to think that abbeys are a big mix of people no matter who they are, as convents are mostly or even strictly feminine and monasterys being mostly or even strictly masculine, cuz some people just don't want to deal with the opposet sex, and that's okay!), around that time is where the ministry would beging to form their hierarchical structure!

Most abbeys are have a Mother, Father or Sibling superior, they are the ones who take care of the more structural needs of a abbey (their budget, if it need any repairs, if anyone is sick, who or what needs to be done) in juxtaposition they also have the more spiritual leader (that deals with Mass, rituals, guindence, teaching the scripture), they have the same amount of power, they just do different things, like both side of the same coin.

Like you would not ask Papa Emeritus about the next simester budget that's Sister Imperators job, just as you would not ask about the next fertility ritual to Imperator that's Papas job. But that doesn't mean that they would never interact, some times you need to know what's the next budget review to do a important mass, or what is the best date to certain rituals, they work together.

The main abbey is located in Italy (they choose the place to annoy the Pope), it survived many religious wars, may attacks and many persecution, but it's still standing as a testament to it's faith. There you can find the current satanic pope (and the retired ones too, but they have more freedom to go someplace else), most of cardinals (not all, but they meet in conclaves once a year to discuss things, mainly gossip), some archbishops and bishops (archbishops and bishops are the apprentices of some cardinals and are the ones most likely to replace them when they retire or die), many priests and pristesses and many siblins of sin, it's the main one so let me tell you it's also the biggest one.

Ghouls are also a big part of any abbey, they serve as helping hand and protection. From ritual to paying taxes, they are the most versatile workers, if you ignore their more animalistic tendencies!

I will talk more about them later tho, along with how each rank within the ministry work and who or what are the Emeritus clan!

If i anything is written wrong or weird i'm sorry, English is not my first language!

[marathedemonoverlord]

Heres part 3 of Mara's story. Its not great but next part we'll go into the Greed Ring.

OG Obey Me x MC ( Mara ) - First Year in Devildom Part 3

Mara opened the door part way, glaring out at the Avatar of Greed. "Are you alone? It's just you, right?" She demanded in an irritable tone, glaring at Mammon as he rolled his eyes. This was ridiculous to him. Here, he was bound to a human he was tricked into forming a pact with. How could something so frail have so much attitude?

 "Couldn't even bother to say 'Hi'?" Mammon asked as Mara dragged him in roughly, locking the door behind him. "No, I couldn't now shut up and listen, I have questions," She said, watching as Mammon got comfortable in her room, designer boots on her bed. She glared at that.

"Fine, whatever, what do you need to ask about, human?" Mammon asked, lazing on her bed as Mara stepped over to him, her dark brown eyes fixed in a glare. "You know about the Rings of Hell, right? They should be here, right?" She asked, glaring at him as Mammon paused his bored look around her room. This was a very peculiar thing to ask for a human but since being shown the Devildom, Mara's been suspicious; Things were too polished, too clean here… It didn't feel like Hell despite the demons here. "Pfft, I've known about the Rings of Hell longer than your bloodline's been alive. Why the interest, Human?" Mammon snorted, feeling dismissive about Mara's curiosity. Humans should be worried about taxes, rent, and paying off debt. Why the interest in the Rings of Hell?

"Have there ever been…. Humans who ended up in the Devildom or Rings of Hell?" Mara asked suddenly, walking closer as she stared down at him, still glaring at his shoes on her bed. This demon had no respect!

"Yeah… They're called "Witches and Sorcerers''. I didn't think you were smart, human, but somehow you surprised me with that question, " Mammon snarked, causing Mara's eye to twitch. Stomping over now, she slammed her fist hard into the bed, making an audible noise just shy of hitting his thigh. "You're gonna need to cut that shit out real quick, Demon. It's 'Mara' to you, and I don't give a shit about the 'magic humans', I'm talking about non-magic ones." She clarified with a growl feeling irritated with his attitude. The two's dynamic had yet to warm up; Mammon was snarky and blunt, and Mara was aggressive and insensitive. Those two energies could usually work well but didn't mesh well when clashing like now. Mammon put his hands up, rolling his eyes. "Alright, got it 'Mara'. Don't get your panties in a damned twist." He snarked as Mara backed off, taking a moment to calm herself down. The question still hung in the air before Mammon spoke up again. "…. Non-magic Humans don't last long here. This is Hell Human, not a 6 month vacation." He said, staring at the wall. "I know, I mean… I had a feeling but if there was a chance a human could survive…" Mara trailed off leaning on her vanity as she clenched and unclenched her fist as if to calm herself down.

"Well, they can survive, but they're not going to survive in the way you're thinking." Mammon finally offered, looking towards her. "The thing is there are humans here. They're just in the Rings of Hell." He said, catching on to the fact Mara wasn't going to drop this. "Which Rings?" She asked suddenly as the demon shrugged. "I don't know. Usually, they're alive in the Lust and Greed Rings while Pride, Envy, and Sloth don't have them. Gluttony and Wrath also has humans, but they don't last long. Demons get hungry after all." He said in a dark tone, implying exactly what Mara was thinking.

Mara's eye twitched, but she calmed herself down, taking a moment to think. "So… If humans are in the Greed or Lust Ring, can you take me to the Greed Ring?" She asked, looking at Mammon almost pleadingly. Mammon gave her an irritated look, shaking his head. "Are you insane, human? My job is to protect you, I can't go risking my hide because you wanna play adventurer! Besides, why do you even want to go see those humans? You're safer here." He asked, causing Mara to hesitate. Taking a breath, Mara looked in the mirror.

Once again, she saw that face of hers. The face of an abandoned fifteen year old girl. 

***

The girl with the curly haired pigtails sat on her bed, her pet tarantula, Juno, on her lap. She was originally going to be bunking with someone, but once she walked in, the room was packed up, and it was now completely hers. Once again, she was alone. She looked at her schedule thoughtfully. Math, English, history, chemistry, gym, and photography. Well, at least two of these classes she won't mind… Watching spiders crawl across her bedframe and the corners of the room, she thought of the Headmaster's words and let out a snort.

When she had walked into the office, he had looked at her as if she was an ugly little pimple yet to be popped. His glare was condescending, judgmental, he mocked her for her record. Graffiti, vandalism, dress code violation, violent conduct, bad language, disrespect to staff, punching a lunch lady in the face… He gave her the same lecture she heard from previous schools and teachers; That they'll teach her how to be a behaved child, a good student; that she will learn how to act. They took her phone, relegated her to a phone call every two weeks to her parents, strictly told her she was not to leave the campus, and they demanded proper conduct. Even his words stuck in her mind, "Oakington Academy has no patience for belligerence, girl. You will be a proper lady." God, those words annoyed her. Just thinking about it upset her, so she got up, about to walk out of her room before another girl stopped by. 

"Hey, you're the new girl, right?" She asked, looking at her room and then back at her. "Yeah, what of it?" Mara frowned, taking in the appearance of the girl. She wore the school uniform, but it was slightly unkempt, almost grunge like, as if she tried to make it her own. She wore heavy black makeup with red lips that popped out with her pale skin, piercings Mara had been told to take off immediately when told to change, and her red hair was dyed messily as if done by herself. Her style was similar to hers, but there was also something else there, as if she was trying to prove something instead of just wearing it out of appreciation for the style. Her green eyes looked over Mara, as if taking in every bit of her demeanor and appearance to catalog for later. "Aren't you charming…" She finally said, her tone mirroring Mara's blunt moodiness. Mara felt irritated. She should be at home with her dad, why does she have to be here, and why is this seam kid reject talking to her still? "Ugh, what do you want, loser?" The girl's eye twitched at that, but she kept her composure, her sneer turning more malicious as she gave a smile again. "An introduction. I'm Zoey, and you are?"

***

"Mara!" Mammon's voice snapped her from her thoughts. He gave a confused look, knowing Mara was lost in her head. "What's wrong with you? All I asked was why you wanted to see humans." He said as Mara's dark brown eyes focused on him.

"… Look. You have your brothers, I have humans. I need more companionship than this now. Are you going to take me to the Greed Ring or not?" She asked, her tone more of a demand than a question. Mammon knew he'd have no choice. The human wanted to play hero- fine. He'd show her what happens to humans in his Ring.

"…. Let's go." 

[littlestpersimmon]

Posting this again! But expounded upon.

Writing a short story about a wonderfully boring disabled transmasc aged 42 who likes to appear feminine (but he is a man at heart!) a jaded but once renowned magician in a world where magical spells are copyrighted and taxed on + his whirlwind romance with a young, hotshot, asshole sorcerer!

In my notes I just called him "professor" and the younger guy "hotshot TA". I don't have any names for them yet. The professor is beautifully tanned and coded south/southeast asian and persian and has long, salt and pepper hair in very loose and soft ringlets tied back carelessly, meaning many smaller ringlets escape his hairtie.. he has cute crows feet and laugh lines and he dresses of course like A Wizard.

ANYWAY.

You guys know how like.. when people look at inventions in the past and scoff and be like "I could have thought of that.".

That's how people in the world view the professor. His written spells are weak, meek, and considered "homely, run of the mill, kitchen witch pennyspells" that anyone could've come up with; In the past, people marveled at the simple ingenuity of his spells. Now it's sneered at for being very basic, though the professor always knows how to smile and invite other people to improve upon his magic. Seemingly, never offended and always unaffected.

In my story, the professor pretty much invented sympathetic magic- he invented it to help other disabled folk make spells and magical tools that can make life easier...... like creating magically charged prosthesis, self operating earpieces and stuff like that. Buuut Because the professor is naive and Believes In The Goodness Of The World, he does not copyright any of his spells. Now, Other witches took that sympathetic magic and started using the base formula and immediately capitalized on it, mass producing low-quality tools from it.

Everyone started turning on the professor for inventing sympathetic magic, because "back then" magical tools had to be crafted painstakingly by hand, more potent and less breakable, and thinkpiece upon thinkpiece was written and scapegoating on the professor. Magicians all live in workshops, universities and ateliers, and the professor lives in one particular Special university that was an abandoned lighthouse that got towers and towers and towers built on it, to function as discussion rooms, meeting places and classrooms! A lot of the elder witches still understood the importance of the professor's work, so they let him stay in one of the towers. In these towers he holds classes under his big telescopes and orreries; though few come because his "kitchenwitch" magic is seen as emasculating and cringe lol.

In their world, their magic is drawn from many sources, but because Capitalism, some engineering witches have created fairy-veins and sun-discs and numerous receptors. These things "amplify" and "route" magic- without these amplifiers, magic would be near useless in their world. The professor uses a very old type of amplifier that draws energy from hearths (fire), and only one company maintains hearth magic, and he has to pay titanic fees and taxes for the receptor to continue to be in use- which is why he, an esteemed, 40 year old inventor.... highly respected (even though considered cringe) professor with SEVERAL awards, lives paycheck to paycheck.

Anyway he tends to mind his own business, satisfied he neither died as a hero nor lived long enough as a villain, but just someone seen as silly and overrated. Of course until hotshot TA comes along under the pretense of wanting to learn from The Professor, who is Pleasantly Surprised that such a renowned and fiery young mage wants to learn his crafting of simple, kitchenwitching.

The professor would be Devastated when he finds out that the university professors sent the hotshot TA to him to train under him and learn the ropes of the university life because they want to kick him out!!

"Twenty years of service and it didn't mean anything!!" So obviously a resentful rivalry between the professor and TA comes about, until one day, while trying to get the TA to light a candle, the professor finds by accident out that TA is unable to manipulate elements- which is the simplest form of magic one could learn. It's like. A disability in the thaumaturgy community. He'd be flummoxed at how the TA even GOT IN the university (which is sadly still ableist). It's like managing to get into juilliard without knowing how to play do-re-mi. It's like being very good at art but unable to draw a square. The professor laughs, but not because he thinks it's funny that TA was running a con, and is disabled just like him, but because, he's in so much disbelief. But then of course, an opportunity for the professor, who is the master at simple magic, arises. He will teach the TA how to "mask", if the TA could convince the board of magis that run the university to let the professor keep his job. Obviously this will only end in the soft-hearted professor, who has always fought tooth and nail for the rights of disabled magicians, to not really expect the TA to fight for him to be able to keep his job, BUT WORTH A SHOT ANYWAY. And yeah they will fall in love eventually and kiss and all that. BUT FIRST. Gay turmoil !

[livingfast04]

Steddie Hogwarts Au?

I need someone to take the internet away from me. I have massive writers block, but my brain also has this stupid- stupid idea I don't have the energy to write between My two WIPs- but god. My Non-binary ass is truly trying my own patience at this point. The massive urge, to write a Steddie Hogwarts Au??? (Fuck JK Rowling) But it's- like, not through the years, and it literally doesn't involve the actual cast of HP, because fuck that- that's boring. Yeah Dark wizards, but more like Dark forces kind of thing. Tw: Child abuse, child death (unnamed child)

Anyway- Stevie- Born into a very rich, pureblood family- all Slytherin's or Ravenclaw's. At least on his father's side, his mother is French and she went to Beauxbatons- Steve's got a, King Steve thing going on- Quidditch chaser, and he's good at it. He's the top of his class in Charms but not really anywhere else, and he's is a perfect. (so I'm thinking 6th year-) He's the third year and under "whisper" the younger years flock to him, it's on the down low. But he's really good with kids. Crying because of Tests? You miss your Parents? Steve's got you, just quietly and out of the way. Eddie is a half-blood, father is a muggle, and his Mom is a Witch. Her line of families jumps from houses to houses, no real lineage to uphold. Wayne was a Gryffindor. (That's not important to the story, but it's important to me) Eddie is the guy to go to if you are in need of something. He'll walk you to class if someone bothering you, he still stands on the Tables in the great hall at Lunch. It's a commonly know thing that if anyone needs anything that Eddie will help without asking too may questions. No matter what house. As long as you aren't a bully. (there is asshole tax, but he respects the grind) Steve is a Slytherin (Hang in there with me please. I promise I'm not a lunatic) Eddie is a Gryffindor (That's a brave boy, he's a reckless boy, and a man with a lot of courage.) I haven't fully figured out the like semantics, lore and general details- because I'm desperately trying to refrain from writing anything. But I'd say 5th or 6th year- (6th or 7th for Eddie) Steve's brutality attacked. It's in a Muggle Village within a few hours of walking of the Harrington Manor- and Steve goes down there when he needs to get out that house, with a pocket full of Muggle Currency and no Wand. When his Dad is pissed off and not above hexing or cursing his own kid. When his Mother is passed out drunk in the sitting room. He always gets the same thing, Hot Chocolate from the little family owned Café that's better than any house Elf could ever make- The Woman and her wife adore Steve and he hasn't had to pay since he was 7. He always leaves the amount in the tip jar. Walks to the candy store two fronts down, and buys whatever the little group of kids pressing their hands all over the window out front whatever they want with what's left over in his pockets. Like he always does. Might be The Party, might be just a group of Muggle children. It's not even a magical attack. It's not an attempt to kill the heir to an incredibly wealthy house. It's just some muggles who took offense to Steve's and a group of little kids existence. However it does maul up half of his face, his ribs and his hands. The blunt force trauma of the attack leaves him with little of his hearing left. The assault almost kills him. (Despite his attempts to keep the angry attention all on him. It does kill a little boy, Steve sees his head split open on the pavement every time he so much as blinks.) He doesn't talk much either after. Little things, yes or no- but that's about it. And that's far in-between. He won't tell anyone what actually happened, or at least can't. Anyone who wants the story has to get it from the Muggles who looked on in Horror- and the man who called emergency services. Both his parents had already written him off as useless before- but not even more so.

When he returns to Hogwarts for the School Year, he's basically been abandoned and shunned by the rest of the pureblood peers in his house and in the other houses. His friend group wasn't restricted to one house, but all of them leave him when it's clear he's a shell of a human being and can't use him to further themselves in Wixen society. not when he can hardly hear and refuses to talk. They come back to school, and Steve ends up "The Outcast" A worse Fate than Eddie "The Freak" Munson. It doesn't help that Hargrove who before hadn't liked Steve but they had the same friends- but they kept mostly to themselves- just steps to kick the dog while it's down. Tells Steve loudly, and aggressively that his "Pretty face and pretty words couldn't save him. He was taking his crown." Pushes him around, mocks him, all but bodily removes him from their compartment on the Train. It hurts more when no ones says anything about it. A lot of the kids from years previous are unnerved by his appearance, and the next set of first years are terrified of him. And that's only the Train ride, the carriage ride (he can see the thestrals now), and Welcome Feast. By the time they get down to the Dungeon and under the lake to the common room- The Castle refused to let him in. He's left stranded in the chilled hallway, and no one cares. He doesn't know where his trunk is, his things, and his Cat even are. Steve bathes in the Perfects bathrooms as is his right with his position, Sleeps in fits. In History of Magic, and sometimes empty classrooms between his classes, and homework. Uses quick cleaning charms on the robes he wore when he first arrived. Steve see's it as his atonement for letting that little boy die. Eddie's actually the one to notice somethings far more wrong that Steve just being traumatized. The younger boy was completely withdrawn and almost totally ostracized from his house and no matter how many other students attempt to reach out. Eddie watches as they are all treated with a almost hostile kind of fear. Slytherin and Gryffindor share History of magic. 5th, 6th and 7th years took it together, (staffing issues) so Eddie watched more than once as Steve's pale, scarred up face- develop even deeper bruises under his eyes. It's a sudden thought, one that he makes on his own and without talking to anyone about it- not even thinking to owl his Uncle for advice. That he was going to befriend Steve Harrington, and make sure the dude actually got some fucking sleep. It takes weeks, Eddie walks him to and from Classes whether the younger boy wants him to or not when he realizes that, the reason there's been a lack of bullying in the younger student body is because almost everyone has been targeting Steve. He keeps a notebook within that he only ever uses to talk to Steve with. Takes in stride every single little giggle he can pry out of the others lips. He celebrates Steve making noise in response to him talking in the privacy of his dorm room. Steve sits with him at lunch, and sometimes breakfast if he can find the boy before classes start. He's a strike of green among Red. The Gryffindor's take to Steve slowly but fall in line with Eddie glaring over his shoulder.

Gareth tells him that he's Harrington's guard dog one day, and Eddie takes that in stride too. Steve needs a guard dog with the way Hargrove looks like he wants the brunette 6 feet under. It's halfway through October when Eddie realizes that Steve can't get into his own common room. He beats himself up over it for the rest of the year too- because he notices that there's a roughly done patch on Steve's robes sleeve- and Eddie hates that it takes him almost a week to recognize the same spot. See, Eddie made the patch. Because it was Eddie's fault that Steve ripped a hole in his robe anyway. They'd been walking along the edge of the Forbidden forest, Eddie talking, Steve laughing. (he was pretty, with or without the scars- Eddie was all but tripping over himself to see that smile. No matter how weak it was) Steve had tripped, because Eddie had knocked their shoulders together. Ripped up his robes, and scrapped up his arm. Eddie was quick to clean that up first, he hadn't liked the way Shell Steve had come back at the sight of the blood covering his skin. Eddie took the cloak when they parted ways at the Great Hall after dinner. Steve had been hesitant, but handed it over. He returned in after staying up for far too long with a patch of soft green cloth. Eddie knows he could have repaired it with magic- but, there was something in watching Steve's whole face light up at the sight of it. At first- Eddie had just thought Steve had just really liked the patch, that Eddie had fixed it. But then the weekend came, and he realized for the first time. That he hadn't seen Steve out of uniform the entire time so far. And that the washing day had passed and Steve was still wearing the same clothes. He waited a week, the same. Eddie had no idea what he was supposed to do. Steve clearly wasn't being either allowed in the common room, didn't have extra clothes- But, other signs pointed to other things. That Steve couldn't get in the common room. Broken quills, lack of notebooks, the change of clothes- the same robes. How he always slept in History of Magic when Eddie knows before that the other didn't. They'd shared the same class for awhile now. Eddie hates, hates that he doesn't bring it up to Steve- but he knows enough now that Steve would just ignore him on the subject, and blow him off and hide for weeks. it had happened about something before- So Eddie went to his Head of house for the first time since 1st year.

Steve's pulled from all classes for two weeks, he's not even on the castle grounds. Eddie looked, and Eddie asked. When Steve comes back, he looks a little healthier, and he comes back in Hufflepuff yellow. Eddie smiles wide when he slips onto the bench at his elbow, stares at the new soft looking sweater under his robes, and the pants with yellow thread. His eyes find the green patch on the sleeve. Leans over and presses a kiss to the youngers temple. It doesn't magically get better. Steve still doesn't talk, he talks some now, short sentences 2 or 3 words at most. (his longest so far is 6 words and Eddie kissed him on the nose for that one, right on a scar). But only with Eddie, and eventually with Robin- a girl in Hufflepuff who attaches herself at Steve's hip and declares herself his bestfriend. They don't start officially dating until just after Yule either. Eddie kisses him in the middle of the Great Hall after Steve gives him the biggest laugh he's heard out of the other since the beginning of the year. There's bad days, and worst days, but the good days- the good days make it worth it. School is hard, on both of them. Its harder when Steve returns from Yule with less words than when he left. It's hard when Steve sometimes finds himself sleeping in empty classrooms out of mindless habit. It's hard when sometimes all Steve can think about is drowning, can see the boy whose name he doesn't know, but his body he can never unsee. It's hard when Eddie graduates. It's hard for the both of them knowing that Steve will have to go back just one more time. Steve Stays with Eddie and Wayne over the summer between his own 6th and 7th year- only goes back to his parents the first week and arrives on their doorstep at 12 in the morning with tears running down his face, his trunk and cat in hands and never goes back. Eddie works in a small bookstore, and Steve joins him when he finally graduates. They both learn Sign Language, for days when Steve is completely non-verbal, and because it's easier on his brain. And Eddie loves him.

--- I clearly thought about this far more, than I had wanted to. And Now that I've written it down I have even MORE Ideas. This was counter productive to my plans of just spitting out the idea. I was just- "Traumatize Steve Harrington who doesn't fit in his house anymore and the castle just pushing him out- and Steve seeing that as a "this is what you deserve for failing to protect a child who didn't deserve to die- this is what you deserve for not being fast enough, for being too stupid to bring your wand-" and not as a. "This house won't help you in your journey anymore," but when has magic ever been like, straight forwards. And then ofc Eddie's here. :)"

This was far longer than I thought it was, I'm so sorry- I'm emotionally invested in this Au now- Damnit.

[astarab1aze]

➥ Modern Verse Trivia

The Night family is split down the middle politically, more as a means to maximize wins and maintain their social status; Half Red Hand (and/or Sanguinarian) sympathetizers, half ordinary traditionalist nightfolk, with a handful outliers.

The widely accepted age for retirement in the nightfolk world is an even 100-years-old, or dependent on location, at which point the standard varies and will include physicals, age verification, etc. in order to recieve benefits or an AARP membership.

Nightfolk do not pay property, city, or state taxes, only federal, sales, inheritance, and county. There are certain additional taxes regarding funerary rites, which they call a death tax, but it's largely used for the maintenance of burial grounds, sanctified grounds, and the charms and barriers surrounding nightfolk population centers.

Since the Nighthouse is on the very edge of Belle Valley, sitting at a sort of crossroads, it's not terribly unlikely that a human or person otherwise unfamiliar with the nightfolk world could find it.

Of the two, Salem's Crossing is much livelier and more dangerous than Belle's Hollow, serving as a home to several high profile criminals such as Loux Garo, Deadeye, the Red Hand terrorist cell Vanguard, and more; Belle's Hollow, however, is absolutely not without its problems.

Incantations are used to assist in casting, but are not themselves what make the cast, itself a catalyst no different than a wand, grimoire, or palmseal. Magic is innate, an extension of the universe through those that possess it - some are just more efficient in making use of it than others.

Black cats are seen as good luck, to contrast directly with the human Catholic belief they're the reverse, so they're a common sight in nightfolk towns - what luck that this is true!

Blackwyrms are by and large seen as dangerous pests in the same way gators and wild boar are - by everyone. Extermination companies and the sorcier class both have special units specific to managing the blackwyrm infestation crisis.

Why is there a blackwyrm infestation crisis? Illegal breeding, egg smuggling, poaching, illegal purchase and sale, some folks releasing them into the Mirewood or sewers, etc.

Fey are the rarest of all nightfolk, followed very closely by hapries and shapeshifters, having been subject to a number of vampire-driven genocides. Survivors were enslaved, forced into experimentation and breeding programs in an effort to create vampires capable of walking in the sun.

There are effectively 0 full-blooded Fey and most shifters are only half.

There is a special kind of sunscreen for vampires that gives temporary resistance to UV light - it lasts for only half an hour depending on how much is applied.

Literally All-Purpose SaltTM was invented by the Augur of South Ocala (yes, that's what he called himself) specifically for the consumption of scarbuncle cheese, but it later became a common household seasoning sold at exactly $1.99 since 1899.

Ramona Shank is still alive, but no one knows this for certain.

One very important rule of the Mirewood: Do NOT follow the lights. There are witchlights dotting the bayou and, should you follow them, you may be swallowed up by rogue brachio, eaten by gas adders or frogmen, killed by poachers, robbed by other criminals, or entirely cursed. It's a 1 in 1b chance you'll run into a red wolf or haint dog, so don't go looking for one.

There are sunflower seed brands that offer nightfolk-oriented flavors such as offal, leech, scarbuncle cheese, pickled eye stalk, barbamayo, salted gator paw, snap-trap, Literally All-Purpose, red kelp, and more.

Gretl's is the nightfolk equivalent to Willy Wonka and is considered The candy & snack food brand, having numerous partnerships with human companies across the globe.

Population addendum: There is closer to 250 million nightfolk, versus the prior population estimates at 100-125 million.

Vampires, witches, wizards, sorcerers, and weres are the most common nightfolk.

The last of the great gryphons, Crovita's father Ágrìfa, was killed by poachers in a vicious massacre in the 1800s.

Hearing voices and seeing things are about as stigmatized in the nightfolk realm as they are in the human, this being because all manners of vile and terrible things could be revealing themselves to you...like a Red Hand vampire or a petty goddess who wishes to lead you to your death. Still, most will refer you to a bloodweaver and leave it at that.

Tommy-knockers run the banks in tandem with the Gilde family, at least in the United States, and the partnership here is ridiculously iron-clad. Not even the government could tear the two apart, and it has tried several times to get rid of them and establish a central bank (and failed spectacularly every time).

Nightfolk drink alcohol for taste 96% of the time and have a much, much higher legal limit at 0.460.

Most of the nightfolk locations with distinctly Sunjatti names are 'tastes of home' to those who remember the Old World, and the cultures in each loosely resemble the Old World cultures.

Nightfolk ended up on earth through a magical rift caused by the first mage to ever get his hands on a Sanguine Star some 6,000 years ago, who then went on to rebuild their communities on each of the continents, steadily becoming more and more integrative isolationists into the modern era.

[dojae-huh]

Hybe sold some SM shares it had and now owns 9.38%... still too much for my liking, heh.

I'm glad BSH got so many problems with the MHJ case. They could have sorted everything out with lawyers behind the scene, but he just had to make a witch out of the woman in the media. Yes, she is no innocent lamb herself, they all break the law in SK, don't pay taxes, manipulate with stock purchases and fake companies, and everyone knows it, the game is not to be outed for it, however, he tried to "easily deal" with an opponent feeling all powerfull, and it backfired on him. Fans rightfully noted that there were no problems when MHJ worked in SM for years. She left because she burnt out, and wanted to be a boss on her own, not to be hold back by LSM. Seems like BSH lured her with sweet promises of her own company and full reign, and then just decided to get rid of her after using her name for the first two female groups (NJ and LSF). I get that as an artist, a creative person, she feels easily slighted by her work/identity being copied. Artists are sensitive people, not business sharks.

MHJ was a visual director behind "Firetruck", "Limitless", "Cherry Bomb", Dream's "The first". Here is a short comparison of eras. An article on MHJ as a pro.

It's also good that groups that can sing (Nmixx, Kiss of life, aespa, Babymonster) benefit from the sasaegi and lipsyncing scandals. There is a need to correct the practice of debuting pretty dancers. I heard that TWS did numbers on charts, went to check their MVs, and left with an impression that they really were pushed artificially. The sound is so simple, there is no identity for the group to catch one's eye, they just can't be like Ive (2 already well-known popular idols, a viral debut song) or even Enhypen (who were a result of a popular survival show).

[inkofamethyst]

March 27, 2024

daylist: symphonic nerdy wednesday evening (city pop, japanese jazz, orchestra, film score [it was exclusively ~vgm~ (lots of NieR and Final Fantasy, lots of vocal tracks!) lol], mmorpg)

song obsession of the week: The Old Witch Sleep and the Good Man Grace - The Amazing Devil gfkgdkjgkjfgkjd

Man I am just so pro-right to repair. Was thinking about getting some new headphones because the earpads on the ones I've had for years have been flaking bad for months, but they sell what are essentially the same earpads online! The headphones themselves are still fully functional, so why contribute to electronic waste when I don't have to? And now they feel perfect :)

Speaking of repair though, I've been done dirty by orthodontists and dentists all my life. And now I might have to pay, again, to fix issues that were ultimately caused by them. I've done (almost) everything right. Wore my retainers nightly, brushed, and I'm now into flossing regularly. So annoying.

Anyway I'm lowk stressing about the future (because of course I am) because even though I could "afford" a solo apartment, I also can't help but feel like that would be squandering my opportunity to save a ton toward the future when my savings would make the most impact (yeah, sorry, it's another one of these, and won't be the last I'm sure). Living solo is something I want and would love to do. And according to my calculations, I could. Even without sacrificing retirement and saving toward a house. Which is more than most graduate/PhD students are ever able to do during their schooling. But it's the anxiety of knowing that I could do more if I had even just one roommate. It's like, considering my situation as a student, what I already have saved, what I will be able to save, what I will have left over each month (a seriously comfortable sum (because, like a platypus, I don't do much)), I would be fine. I would be happy! But having one roommate wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, I guess. And then I could contribute more to my future happiness.

I don't know.

Can I place a monetary value on comfort?

I have a little under a year to figure out what I'm going to do. I can tell you what I want. I want someone to tell me that choosing to live alone would not be ruinous. That it'd be okay. That it'd be worth it for my contentment. That I'm taking the right steps, that I have a good foundation set. But I have to make the decision by myself. And then live with it. Through whatever comes. Because I don't really want to move more than once more before my program ends (and another thing, it would be much more difficult to save up for moving again if I lived alone).

Part of me wants to approach this with the mindset that the future is never guaranteed. And that, as a result, it's okay to splurge now. (Also there's the part about my grandmother potentially not being able to take care of her dog as she ages, and I wouldn't want to rehome her entirely (the puppy, not my grandmother).)

But like, okay. The 50-30-20 needs-wants-saving axis, right? I could stick "living alone" as part of wants since I don't otherwise really spend that much in wants ultimately.

Let me go calculate.

Okay. Post-tax (which is how you're meant to calculate 50-30-20), I'd be doing a bit better than the suggested model (but!!! this includes all the help I'm getting without which I simply would not consider this in the first place).

Let me... let me do some future sims.

nerdwallet says I'll be fine.

Okay. Okay! okay.. Ohh-kay.

I'm not completely decided but at least I have all that information available to me.

Today I'm thankful that.. I don't have a lot of homework tonight. So I can go to bed. OH OH ALSO thankful the person I've wanted as my secondary advisor for months but was too afraid to ask said yes and seemed happy to say so <3

[edit, ~a week later: the trouble will be finding a 1b/1b at my price point (still pretty low for this area since I don't really want to settle for a studio) that's close enough and has my minimum requirements (I suppose another potential option would be saving aggressively for another year to grind out a pot of money that would sustain me for three years at a slightly higher price point)]

[squeakyfir]

The Love from a Skeleton [Jack Skellington X Reader]

Plot: Halloween... The time of year you absolutely hate. Not because of the ghouls and monsters, you enjoyed that kind of thing, it's because of trick or treaters. They get free candy and whine and complain to their parents if they didn't get what they expected, which is the whole bowl of candy. Anyways, since you don't celebrate that holiday, you decide to go for a late stroll through the woods on the hiking trail. While walking, your whole life changes. And I mean that literally... Everything started to change drastically until you find trees with holiday symbols on it. One of them being a Jack-o-lantern. Being curious, you enter through the door and discover a world that would represent a children's book written by Stephen King. But the leader of this place was a king. Not just any king... A pumpkin king. His name is Jack Skellington. He's a very tall and slender skeleton with a pinstripe suit, a black cat bow tie and ghost dog named Zero. He discovers you and welcomes you to Halloween town until he can figure out how to send you home. But this place is perfect! No taxes to pay No drama And no more loneliness Jack believes that your hideous. But don't worry, hideous in the Halloween town definition means... Beautiful. Enjoy! *I do not own the Nightmare before Christmas. All rights belong to Tim Burton and Disney™*

Chapter 7

Previous ~ Next

Some time went by and Jack was still pressing forward with his plan. Even the citizens of Halloween town were just as determined as Jack because they were making monster toys, they changed the countdown clock from it being to Halloween to Christmas and they were even changing the appearance of Halloween town. Jack didn't have a sewing machine for you to borrow so you had to borrow Dr. Finklesteins and when you got to his laboratory, he was ten times more creepier than when you last saw him.

Anyways, Jack had set up an individual work area for you. Making Jacks santa suit was more difficult than you thought. When you had to take measurements of his body, you had to keep double checking every single time when you were sewing to make sure you didn't mess up. As you were sewing, you heard the people of Halloween town were making music and were about to start singing.

Again... Man, these monsters sure do love singing.

This time x2

Making Christmas x4

Is so fine

It's ours this time

And won't the cildren be surprised

It's ours this time

The other monster children were smashing and cutting the heads off of toys. The witches were making what looked like stew but then that fish monster popped out of the pot which meant it was disgusting.

Making Christmas x3

Time to give them something fun

They'll talk about for years to come

Let's have a cheer from everyone

It's time to party

The vampires were making toys as well. They were currently putting the finishing touches on a duck but it had sharp teeth, bloody bullet holes and was on a skateboard. What? The worst part is that it sang a verse from the song.

Making Christmas x2

Snakes and mice get wrapped up so nice

With spiders legs and pretty bows

It's ours this time

Three monsters were carving the face of a demonic Mickey mouse with sharp teeth, a suit and it was super creepy.

All together, that and this

With all our tircks we're

Making Christmastime

"Here comes jack" said the werewolf. You looked to the gates of his house and saw him and he looked surprised and happy. He spoke in song with happiness and was ecstatic about all of this.

I don't believe what's happening to me

My hopes

My dreams

My fantasies

Hee, hee, hee, hee

Jack then walks over to a monster who had one of the musicians in a pillory as he was making a hat out of a rat.

Won't they be impressed

I am a genius

See how I transform the old rat Into a most delightful hat

Jack appeared next to him and offered his suggestion.

Hmm, my compliments from me to you

On this your most intriguing hat

Consider though this substitute

A bat in place of this old rat

Jack then went over to the monster whose skin was constantly melting and very sticky.

Huh! No, no, no, now that's all wrong

This thing will never make a present

It's been dead for much too long

Try something fresher, something pleasant

Try again, don't give up

All of the monsters then went back to singing.

All together

That and this

With all our tricks

We're making Christmastime

With everything happening in Halloween town, it made you think of what was happening in Christmas town. You could picture the elves making or sewing toys or stuffed animals. They were also probably making gingerbread cookies and stuffing the stockings. You could also picture them cleaning the sleigh and putting all the toys in the sleigh. You brought out of your thoughts by more singing from the monsters.

This time x2

Making Christmas x2

La, la, la

It's almost here

And we can't wait

So ring the bells and celebrate

'Cause when the full moon starts to climb

We'll all sing out

Jack then finished off the song by singing...

It's Christmastime

Hee, hee, hee

Then out of nowhere, three skeleton reindeer appeared behind Jack and it this whole thing was getting worse and worse.

More time went by until Christmas was tomorrow. Jack was currently having you do the final stiches on his Santa outfit. "You don't look like yourself, Jack. Not at all" you said as you were stitching the sleeve if his outfit as he was wearing it. "Isn't that wonderful! It couldn't be more wonderful"!

You stopped stitching and pulled down the picture of his drawing of him in a Santa outfit and flipped it over to show him as who he truly was. The pumpkin king. "But your the pumpkin king"! He took the picture from you and snapped it into two on his knee. "Not anymore! I feel so much better now"!

You sighed and continued to stitch and talk. "Jack, I know you think that something's missing-"

You were cut off from talking when you accidentally poked the tip of his bony finger with the needle. "Ow"!

"Sorry"!

"It's alright, (Y/n). But you're right. Something is missing. But what? I've got the beard, the coat, the boots, the-"

Jack was cut off when the three monster children, Lock, Shock and Barrel, came back after being gone for some time with a walking bathtub and the same giant sack they used when they brought the Easter bunny here. "Jack! Jack! This time we bagged him" they all said simultaneously. "This time we really did"!

"He sure is big, Jack"!

"And heavy"! Lock and Shock then opened the sack and out popped Santas head as he said, "Let me out"! Everyone gasped in shock, and so did you. You were always told he wasn't real. How? "Sandy Claws... In person", said Jack as he then proceeded to take a hold of Santas hand, "What a pleasure to meet you"! As Jack was shaking his hand, he noticed his hand. You saw it too and it was small. You never would've guessed that. "Wh-why you have hands! You don't have claws at all"! Santa lifted his hat from his eyes and stared in horror of what he saw. The monsters and horrendous atmosphere. "Where am I"?

"Surprised aren't you" asked Jack, "You don't need to have another worry about Christmas this year"! Santa was so confused and couldn't find the right words to speak. "Consider this a vacation, Sandy. A reward. It's your turn to take an easy"!

"But there must be some mistake" Santa protested.

"See that he's comfortable" said Jack. Lock and Shock were about to close the sack again until Jack stopped them. "Just a second"! You were hoping that Jack had finally come to his senses but... No. "Of course! That's what I'm missing"! Jack had taken Santas hat off of him and placed it on his skull. "Thanks".

Santa kept trying to protest but the three monster children tied the sack back up and started to leave. Jack was practicing his Santa laugh and this was getting way worse and worse. Especially for Santa. You quickly followed after the children and stopped near the gate when you heard them say, "Where are we taking him"?

"Where"?

"To Oogie Boogie of course! There isn't anywhere in the whole world more comfortable than that! And Jack said to make him comfortable, didn't he"?

"Yes he did" said Shock and Barrel.

"Haven't you heard of peace on earth? And good will toward men"?

"No" the three monster children said devilishly. They laughed and cackled as they took Santa away. You wanted to follow them but you then heard Jack call out to you. You quickly ran back to the fountain and saw him looking worried but he then look relaxed and relieved when he saw you. "There you are! I was starting to worry where you were".

"Sorry Jack".

"Don't apologize, my dear. Now, why don't you go return Dr. Finklesteins sewing machine to him. You've completed the suit and it fits me perfectly"!

"Sure. I'll be back" you said. As you retrieved the machine, you started to head to Dr. Finklesteins laboratory. The machine was a bit heavy but luckily his laboratory was only a short distance. You opened the door and headed up the long spiral staircase. When you reached the top, you heard Dr. Finklesteins voice call out, "Hello? Who is there"? You looked over and saw him wheel over to you. "Ah! (Y/n), was it? How can I help you"?

"Hi doctor. I'm here to return your sewing machine".

"Right. Go ahead and put it back in the room it was in. You know, you can keep it if want".

"Thank you again for the offer, but as I've said already, I do not wish to keep it". He sighed and said, "Very well. The room is over there". He then wheeled off and you went to the large room and put the machine on the table. You decided to look around the room and saw a cabinet. Being curious, you opened it up and saw jars that some of then read as "Nightshade", "Frogs breath" and "Fog juice".

Wait a second... Fog juice???

That sounded very intriguing so you snatched it and closed the cabinet. You quickly left the laboratory and went back to Jack. But you had a question that's been bothering you for some time.

Who's Oogie Boogie?

That's a very odd name but considering all the other names you've heard while you were here didn't really surprise you. But your curiosity was to big to resist. You had to know.

You had to...

[lex1nat0r]

#Hex24 - Week 2

Introducing: the city of Gromt

007.007: Gromt, a fairly prosperous city currently ruled by the new Baron Arle, appointed by the new King Daniel. The baron is becoming more exploitative as he grows more comfortable with his new authority.

Attractions: a healthy marketplace where all manner of mundane goods can be found (in addition to several illegal goods selling for surprisingly cheap as miscreants try to offload them before the baron inevitably cracks down). Several inns and taverns (each facing decreased business as travelers become rarer these days). A cathedral to all the imperial gods (tended by priests getting increasingly nervous as local religions experience a resurgence). An established Theives' Guild, run by guildmistress Barbara (who was quite happy with her position but is now desperately trying to come to some deal with the baron before he cracks down on her business and risks attracting the attention of the wider Union of Professional Larcenists). A city guard that is only moderately corrupt, the baron's personal army keeping their version of order in the city in the absense of any "real" wars to fight.

008.006: The few who venture off the road from Gromt to Grogan's Rest into this part of the Forest of Twisted Limbs either never stay long or don't come back. Pre-empire folktales tell of a witch's cottage somewhere in this part of the forest, but who can say if it's still there.

008.007: The farmers close to Gromt enjoy a sense of safety, with regular patrols by the Gromt guard. They generally view the new baron's taxes and occasional predations by the thieves' guild as a necessary price to pay.

008.008: The richest farmland around Gromt, home to the wealthiest farmers. Heavily patrolled by the city guard as the baron is not so incompetent that he doesn't know who he needs to keep happy. The Theives' Guild doesn't run jobs here, and anyone who can successfully pull off a noteworthy heist in this territory will instantly earn their respect.

009.006: The old imperial road winds southwest among still-tended farmland, shadowed by the Shattered Hand mountains rising abruptly in the east. The farmers have been on edge lately, fearing the creatures from the forest and the mountains.

009.007: Foothills of the Shattered Hand mountains. Strangely peaceful, something seems to be keeping the monsters away from here. Even the dragon Valastamax is said not to have ventured into these hills. Shortly before the empire left these lands a group of scholars mounted an expedition to find answers. None returned.

010.007: The Shattered Hand mountains, allegedly formed during a war between gods but no one can agree on which gods. Rumors of manticores and harpies abound, and it is known that Valastamax the dragon made its lair on one of the peaks. Valastamax has not been seen in the skies in a generation, and it is not known what has become of its treasure hoard.

[jiminsass-istant]

The world we live in rn is absolutely dumpster fire.

You mentioned to work from down to up be it local politics or any boycott movement. It gives sense. If...

If the world would not be in the lovely and tight hug by big corps who decide what they want to shape our world into, i would say it would work, to work locally up to globally. But rn i don't see how we could be stronger as the weakest corp outside of not using their products (if we have such luxury of doing it see gmail, twt etc. And as you mentioned Amazon which is such power hungry and driven entity... Do you know about their tactics lion n gazelle i think it is called... Im scared of them, they will steamroll everyone they want to and do project witch catchy name (they love their projects being named) about it too. Be it competition, union, workers or state legislature)

Ps hugs and kisses to every scrotum braun disliker. Highfive and lets hope for his fafo moment is to come asap. (Before he can do more evil things for example like getting his lil creepy hands on masters of someone. I would love to read anyone takes who is in the industry if it is possible or not. Cuz i cant find anywhere clear answer if they own their masters or hybe does it)

Still boycott anon

Yes to everything you said.

Also, I gotta look up Lion n Gazelle and their evil strategies.

When will we be free of evil corps, anon? Let's shift planets or something. But something tells me that even if we are able to shift planets, they're gonna commercialize that too. We are gonna have to pay taxes to send rich people to planet B lol.

All I can rn is survive, persist, find joy in small things (like jimin's pinky).

[gurlswomenqueenblog]

Do people actually understand feminism or they just enjoy misinterpreting it

I remember having this conversation with a male friend, he was talking about how feminism was just the most stupid thing he ever heard. ''mention one right men have that you women don't". well this is to all of you out there thinking the same thing, here is an explanation to it or how I understand the whole thingy.

Lets talk about back in the 1600s where women are highly restricted, often called witches, unclean and unworthy (depending on what part of the world and what religion). one time it was a crime for women to wear certain clothing, victim blaming, shaming for being raped, raised to be 10000000000000 percent independent.

Now lets imagine women never really spoke up and redefine that femininity isn't weakness, imagine what world would be for our mothers and great grand mothers. Imagine living in a community that doesn't applaud your opinion. Some people may ne thinking, but thats a long long time ago, many things happened long ago that still has a huge effect in todays world society. E.G. Racism, sexual discrimination and so on.

Feminism isn't about him sharing the house chores with you or paying fully for your dinner, or some sort of misinformation being spread in todays world, it is about advocating rights for women.... which can be demonstrated in different ways. such as being a voice for the women who have lost their voice to injustice, like the women of South africa hearing news everyday about how over a thousand of their sister being raped every 24 hours, a hundred loosing their lives to such cruelties. Be the voice of women who have been shut down and shoved back from justice. Many women are unable to afford proper menstrual kits due to over priced fixed taxed...

Be the feminist that fights the wrong not the wrong

(btw this is my first blog so i apologize for any blunder)

tell me what you think.

[harmcityherald]

not celebrating our break with england. not celebrating scott key writing the star spangled banner. not celebrating the destruction of an indigenous native culture. not celebrating dropping two nuclear bombs on japan. not celebrating the salam witch trials. not celebrating dumping out water jugs on the arizona mexico border. not celebrating the assassination of martin luther king or the modern day blm riots or the turning back of the clock to put the bible in schools. not celebrating this nation who grinds the poor and hungry and homeless in a meat grinder. not celebrating the nation that holds the dollar bill more precious than human life. not celebrating the nation who mothballed the space program and gave it over to the likes of elon musk who, like many of his dollar hungry cohorts should be impaled alive on the steps of the us capital building. the building that has the insulting audacity to cap the dome with an american indigenous native born hero who we ground into the dirt. not celebrating the nation that has caused more revolutions and behind the scenes assassinations and the toppling of governments worldwide in greater numbers than any other nation. not celebrating the country that created and still runs Guantánamo. not celebrating the nation that sees itself as the rightful ruler of the whole world. So what am I celebrating? Im celebrating my family. and we will have a nice fire and light off our illegal fireworks and they all have their favorite drinks and even this old dried up prune may even drink a wine cooler. will be my first alcohol since the aortic explosion. We will smoke mucho buddha thats for sure. Im not completely unpatriotic, you know. I believe in the true ideals of america as a melting pot of all peoples. we can all sit around the fire and have a round robin. I will start, my name is gregory and my family came from greece. The island of Lemnos. but also and perhaps most importantly I am american. and you and you and you are american too. don't you see that this way of looking at ourselves negates any racism as false and incoherent. The only true americans were the original native cultures. we destroyed them. starved them. gave them blankets infected with terrible diseases that they wrapped their babies in and that's our legacy. so we celebrate today as the day we broke from england. why? we were tired of paying their taxes and many in the colonies were hungry for power and breaking from england meant that now kings and grifters could now fill that vacuum. freedom of religion? yeah, only if its puritan christian religion other than that we will burn you at the stake. from its very inception our nation has trampled on the blood of innocents, and raped every benefit to be found here. Im the old man and not the rebellious teen of the family. Im supposed to be helping brainwash my youngers today by telling them what a great nation we live in and why we should blindly follow the stars and stripes to the grave if asked to do so. yes Im going to light off some gunpowder today. maybe drink one, ONE wine cooler, smoke copious amounts of cannabis, eat a good meal and enjoy the company of my family. we do this on many weekends maybe excluding the out of state fireworks and of course I don't drink anymore but I told them pick me up something small and I will join in as they hammer their crown royal and Hennessy. Old pops is the master of the weed ceremonies. so it will be a nice night at the manor. that's MANOR not MANSION. just throwing that out there for the...uninvited. anyway, you can hold it against me that I don't celebrate the way you do. one thing about me is I blindly follow nothing. perhaps Im celebrating the america that has yet to be. The future one we work towards where things are fair and honorable. I can't celebrate the one we have or any of its past. so heres to the future I hope it gets here sooner than not.

and remember its shoot a republican with a roman candle day. That's one I can get behind and support.

[jyleshay]

Here's your Big Summer Blog Blowout

What an eventful summer it has been, I'm not even sure what topics I should write about here. Elon Musk is trying to terminate his contract to purchase Twitter for $44 billion. Not gonna cover that; he's a silly rich man who thinks rules don't apply to him because 100 million people (and bots) follow his every posted thought. If that story interests you, I'd recommend finance blogger Matt Levine as a good source of analysis.

Monkeypox has been a story, but I think collectively we're all trying to ignore that pandemics are a thing to worry about anymore. The Daily did a good episode on how we bungled that one.

There is a water crisis in the United States. The cause is a combination of climate changes and human behavior, we are using water, and have been for years, in a completely unsustainable way. The resulting problems are bad...sometimes even apocalyptic. For 100 years the states sharing the Colorado river have been using an allocation system that grants right to the water that add up to more than 100% of the actual water in the river. In Utah, the Great Salt Lake is drying up too. You may be thinking, "Silly Billy, that's a salt lake, we don't drink out of that one." That's true, but we are using up its tributaries and the resulting dust pollution from the dried up lake is kind of poisonous to living things. Also, migratory birds rely on the brine shrimp in the lake; humans aren't the only living things in the ecosystem. Here's your further reading from the NYT on that story.

Maybe let's switch to some good news. The James Webb telescope was successfully deployed a million miles away and we got some incredible new images from the great expanse of space. This story is the one I'm the most excited about, but also the one I'm the least equipped to write about. In short, there is some much information we are going to learn about the universe that we didn't know before and that's very exciting!

Okay, getting more political now, the Search of Mar-a-Lago. The former president had his home searched for documents that he took with him from the White House. Trump has claimed that this is a political witch hunt and that he had a standing order to declassify all documents that he took to his residence while he was President. It's a tough place for Republicans to be; if you believe him then you have to ask if that's really a smart security policy for a President to have. Also, it requires some mental gymnastics considering the now ironic attacks he made on Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election campaign. If you don't believe him (which I certainly don't) then he's a liar AND a security risk. It raises a lot of uncomfortable questions if you're a thoughtful Republican.

While Trump was dealing with that, Congress got busy passing the Inflation Reduction Act. This bill attempts to counter some of the inflation-contributing spending from the stimulus bills of the pandemic, while also investing money in infrastructure to curb the effects of climate change. It is projected to raise more in revenue than it spends on climate change. I really like that.

New corporate taxes, drug reform, and funding for the IRS are the main avenues for raising revenue. A few clients have asked me if the IRS getting more funding will mean more audits. Maybe, but I'm still in favor of it. A lot of IRS funding will simply go to upgrading their computer systems. Here's a very interesting thread on how archaic the current IRS processes are, upgrades as a result of this bill should make the IRS more responsive and taxpayer friendly. It will also encourage more taxpayers to be honest in paying their taxes, shouldn't we all want that?

And finally, we have Biden's executive order to cancel $10,000 of student debt for borrowers with income below $125k. I have mixed feelings about this one. It is good that the student loan payment suspension is ending. People have argued that this loan forgiveness will add to inflation. I think the suspension and the pandemic stimulus added more to inflation than this forgiveness will. Forgiveness does not solve the underlying problem, college costs have been rising too fast; this forgiveness just allows colleges to maintain their poor behaviors.

I am generally in favor of policies that add people to the middle class, giving them the financial security and safety to live their lives freely. One of the issues I had with PPP loans was that it primarily gave the money to people who were already financially secure. There were no income limitations, so wealthy business owners were able to get free money in the government's effort to provide confidence that the pandemic wouldn't tank the economy. Simply put, the student loan forgiveness is different in that it targets more people that are not financially secure yet and will make it easier for them to reach financial security.

Yes, there is a crisis that has developed in the US around college education and student loan forgiveness is only treating a symptom, not the crisis itself. However, the loan suspension during the pandemic created a situation that required some form of action by the government, and I think this order resolves that situation. Here is a great podcast discussing the situation a lot better than I can articulate it. Also, the whole thing may get blocked by the Supreme Court, so it might not matter?

Favorites:

Since my last post I've read two books: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir and Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari. Project Hail Mary was a very fun sci-fi romp through outer space. Same energy as the author's previous book, The Martian, I really enjoyed it. Sapiens is a very interesting book. A Brief History of Humankind, it spans the whole of human's history and discusses our breakthroughs and changes from the days of being hunter gatherers all the way to today. It was thought provoking and I highly recommend it to see a different perspective on who we were and how it affects who we are.

Movie: Bullet Train - Don't sleep on this movie. It is original and fun with a great soundtrack.

Series: Only Murders in the Building Season 2 - This is kind of a comfort show at this point.

YouTube: 10 Levels of Sleight of Hand - Daniel Roy. I just thought this was interesting.

YouTube: The Supreme Court Declares War On The Environment -Climate Town

Phew that was a lot, good luck in September!