#a stormy last hurrah

[secondnightbeer]

Suggested by: @fatherfigurefusion

[kitsuvil]

Hallo :D

Im not sure if you write this type of angst so if you don't please ignore this.

Please can i request Neuvillette with a female reader who takes a blow for him in battle <3

— i'd take a blow for you 【neuvillette x reader】

warnings/notes; technically fem reader, but there's no use of pronouns so it can be read by any reader & it's quite angsty. ending is pretty open-ended, so no y/n death hurrah! i'm also not sure if this is to the requesters standards, but i had fun writing it nonetheless, tysm for the request!

summary; a stormy and foggy fight with a lawachurl goes wrong, but neuvillette is the one to pay for it after you save his life

p.s i listened to the regret duo by kami and gackt while writing this, so if you can, i beg of you to listen to it while reading ♡

wc; ~900 words

You squinted, trying your best to see through the fog and downpour. It offered virtually no help, so all you could do was return your attention to the monster in front of you.

It was tall, much taller than you. Yet still, the only time you'd see its form is when it cut through the fog with a large fist. So the flash of white fur lasted only for a moment before you heard the sparkle of ice, which meant another attack you had to spend all of your energy to dodge.

“Monsieur Neuvillette! Look out, I can't tell where the monster is aiming to hit!” You called. But other than that, the only thing you could do was keep your ears peeled. There was no visibility. None of your senses would help drag you out of this mess.

But if you would do anything, it would be coming out victorious.

“Thank you,” the voice came from some distance behind you. Neuvillette's voice was almost in sync with the large crash of ice and it sent a shiver down your spine.

Though perhaps, it was from the chilled air and not the thought of losing him to the monster. He was strong enough to survive this after all, was he not?

You questioned if you were only slowing him down. But in your foolish distracted mind, you nearly missed another slash from the monster.

One hit and you'd be instantly frozen. You wanted to curse the rain, but you couldn't find it in yourself to do so. The storm would rage on, as it was meant to. That was just the way of life.

The tip of your sword finally made contact with the monster after being tossed around aimlessly.

It screamed and it howled, begging for another chance. It hurt knowing this monster was not always this way. Lawachurls, just like the rest of their kind, used to be regular citizens of Khaenri’ah. You winced at the pain it was experiencing like it was your own.

You pulled your sword out.

“We did it. I'm still confused why a frostarm lawachurl would be in Fontaine, let alone bring a bundle of fog with it…” You turned to where you assumed Neuvillette was.

You were right in expecting him there, but what you didn't expect was him to be staring straight at you with a smile while the lawachurl—in its last few breaths of life—began to run straight at him from behind.

“Neuvillette!” You yelled, the rest of the sentence falling short as your brain was only occupied with the thought: save him.

Could you run fast enough, could you make it there? You were only a few steps away, but it felt like he was light-years far from you. Time slowed, but the lawachurl did not. Another step forward, another moment closer—

You pushed Neuvillette aside. He wore an expression of shock as he fell off balance, landing on the wet ground. The rain had already let up a few seconds ago, his stress getting lighter after the lawachurl was defeated and you weren't in danger anymore. But in the thick fog, he hadn't realized the monster still wasn't properly downed.

So when he blinked, trying to regain his senses after being knocked onto the ground, the sight he saw made him feel ill. There was not even a breath of time before the rain began to pour down harder.

Harder than it had ever been before. Not when he lost precious Melusines, not when he saw people lose themselves to the hands of justice, not when the people of Fontaine were doomed to fall.

The lawachurl was in the grass and the fog was nearly gone. But before him lay your body, claw marks covering your chest. It dawned on him exactly why he was on the ground.

You had tried to save his life. But now, you faced the consequences as a single tear streamed down your face.

“We were supposed to come out victorious, Neuvillette. We still did, didn't we? This was bound to happen…” You paused, “Right?”

He couldn't handle it.

“It wasn't, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, [Name].” He spoke, his voice low and shaky. “It was raining because of me. The fog– it wouldn't have been that bad if I hadn't been the reason for the storm. It was because I was scared you'd get hurt but here you are…” He mumbled. He didn't say it, but it was obvious he meant to say ‘because of me.’

“Don't look at me with such a sad face. I thought the Hydro Dragon doesn't cry,” sheepishly, you smiled. But you could no longer see after these words. It hurt too much to keep your eyes open.

A nap sounded nice.

“Maybe not the Hydro Dragon, but Neuvillette can cry. If not for the court, then perhaps for his beloved's injured state.”

“Who said I'm your beloved?” Somehow, you could still laugh. Albeit, it came out a lot weaker than you would've liked it to.

“I, Neuvillette, did. Please, don't fall asleep, [Name]. You mean too much to me,” even if he would be considered weak for having such feelings towards a mere human.

“I won't.”

You knew it was a lie. He knew it was a lie. Even as your eyes did close a minute later. Even as he picked you up into his arms, carrying you back to the Court of Fontaine bridal style. Even while it poured for days after, like a cursed storm. Even while Neuvillette, Iudex of Fontaine, beat himself up for such a ridiculous mistake.

He could only hope that you would wake up soon. If at all.

[ludi-ling]

Prompt 1 - Heroes

I knocked out prompt 1 like a rabid little plot bunny. 🐇 Thanks @lovethelebeaux for your suggestion!

Got a prompt? Post it in the replies of this post.

Happy Easter everyone! 🐤🐰🐥🥚

The prompt:

The story:

Heroes

               It’s a beautiful night.

               Warm, and sultry, like the woman he’s just spent it with.

               He slings his trench coat over his shoulder and whistles a dissonant little tune as he heads up the grassy incline to the mansion.

               He’s jumped the walls. He prefers not to trigger the cameras. His indiscretions are his own. In any other place, he wouldn’t care. But he does here, in this place where there are responsibilities, and truth, and justice.

               He doesn’t fit in. He knows this already. He won’t ever.

               I’ll be sad, if you go, Stormy tells him. But if you must, you must.

               I ain’t cut out for this, he replies. I ain’t like all’a y’all.

               And she raises a gentle eyebrow at him, says; After all we have seen, all we have been through together, you can still say such a thing?

               We had some fun, p’tit, he concedes with a grin. But look at ya now. Ya all grown up, Stormy. You’re an X-Man. And I’m still just a thief.

               He’s worse. But no one here has to know that, and he doesn’t want them to know, not ever. Guilt is a heavier burden, in a place like this. You weigh your soul against the goodness of others. Stormy figures he can find some sort of redemption here. But she doesn’t know the sins he must one day atone for.

               Earlier that day, he’d started packing. But he hadn’t been able to resist one last hurrah before hitting the road once more.

               He’ll go back to his room, have a shower. Sleep what little he can, before a new day rises.

               Then he’ll bid his adieus and be gone.

               He skirts by the lake, and as he does, he hears a nearby splash of water. Once, twice.

               It’s too early in the morning for birds. He pauses. He steps around the dense trunk of the cedar tree and follows the sound.

               He stops when he sees her.

               Floating on her back in the water, eyes closed, her silver and cinnamon hair fanned out like a halo around her.

               She’s never like this.

               Rogue is brash and loud, and when she’s silent she’s sullen… sometimes sad. But she’s never like this. Calm. Peaceful. At home with herself.

               He looks aside a moment, feeling like he’s encroaching on a moment, and not knowing how to extricate himself from it.

               Truth be told, he doesn’t want to.

               He’s been avoiding her. Not because he doesn’t like her, but because he likes her too much. She’s a reason to stay, and yet a reason to go. He wants to touch her, but he can’t. He doesn’t stay for things he can’t touch, he can’t steal. What’s the point in stealing a heart from a body you can’t touch, after all?

               He hears her splash again, and his eyes move back to her.

               She’s standing waist-deep in the water with her back to him, her hair a coppery sheen down her back. She lifts her arms and wrings the water from her locks.

               She’s naked.

               His heart is thudding in his ears.

               He knows a thing or two about beauty, but something about hers stirs him every time, in places he doesn’t know could be stirred.

               He slinks back into the shadows of the tree, and when he hears her begin to the leave the pool, he turns aside and quickly leaves.

               He feels as if he’s intruded on something he shouldn’t have seen, that she would never have let him see. The sentiment has never stopped him before, but he tells himself this is self-preservation. If he sees her and she sees him, it’ll invite him to break a boundary he doesn’t dare articulate. After Belle, after Marissa, after all the women he’s fallen for, there’s too much at stake.

               There’s too much.

               He marches up the slope to the back entrance. He’d thought he’d worked out all his urges and then some tonight, but she stokes fires in him without so much as even throwing a look his way. Tugs at him with the memory of her kiss, one he can’t ever relive again.

               He reaches the flagstone steps, and walks up onto the veranda. The need hasn’t gone, and so he pauses in the doorway and lights up a smoke to calm his nerves. He closes his eyes and breathes. When he opens them again, he sees her walking up the hill towards him, dressed in nothing but a blue, terry-cloth robe, her feet bare. She ascends the steps, oblivious to his presence, and when she sees him in the shadows, she starts.

               “Gambit,” she almost exclaims.

               “Rogue.” He steps forward a little, into the porchlight. “I’m sorry. Didn’t mean t’startle ya.”

               She says nothing. For a moment they stare at one another, a little awkwardly, a little something more. He hasn’t spoken to her for about a week now; but he’s sensed her eyes on him, sometimes, across the dinner table, or from the other end of the Rec Room. He’d pulled away from their banter and light flirtation because he’d slowly been coming to the conclusion that it was better to leave, but here, now… he doesn’t want to go without saying some sort of goodbye to her first.

               Maybe he's even tempted to steal another kiss from her, her powers be damned.

               “You’ve been out late,” she breaks the silence first, noting his trench coat and his unbuttoned dress shirt. She’d been aiming for flippant; but the words are a little self-conscious, a little defensive, as if she knows, instinctively, what he’s been up to.

               “Looks like you’ve been too,” he responds quietly.

               She colours a little, tugging the robe tighter around her, as if suddenly aware of her nakedness beneath it.

               “I went for a swim, down at the lake,” she explains, almost in a rush. “It’s safer to do it now, when no one else is about. Don’t gotta worry ‘bout absorbin’ anyone.”

               “Hm.” He nods. “Bet it reminds you of splashin’ round in the Mississippi durin’ high summer too, neh?”

               She smiles then, a genuine smile.

               “Yeah,” she says. “Sure does.”

               Silence falls. She swallows. His heart is still crashing in his ears.

               He can’t stop thinking about their kiss.

               He guesses she can’t stop thinking about it either.

               “Listen,” she blurts, after a moment, “I was wonderin’… Wolverine and I gotta trainin’ session tomorrow mornin’. You wanna join us?”

               He’s surprised.

               “Heh. You want me to hand your ass t’ya again, chere?”

               She almost colours again – it’s less the ass-handing that bothers her, and more the kiss that had come afterwards.

               “Naw. Ya just been lookin’ so sorry for y’self lately, I figured you could use a distraction.”

               He laughs softly.

               “Thanks but no thanks, chere. Three’s a crowd. And I know Wolverine don’t like me much.”

               She quirks a small smile.

               “That old grump don’t like no one.”

               “He likes you.”

               She looks aside, reflecting on that a moment.

               “Well… I protected someone he loved. And in return… he gave me the gift of life.” Her voice had become quiet. “Before that… he hated me. Everyone here did.”

               He’s surprised to hear that.

               “Why?”

               She darts a look at him, awkward again.

               “Didn’t Storm tell ya?”

               He says nothing, and so she continues; “I was with the Brotherhood. I… I did a lot of bad things. To the X-Men. To other people. To innocents.”

               She clutches the robe tighter around her, as if to shield herself from her shame.

               “I nearly killed Ms. Marvel – someone who’s a real hero. I stole everythin’ that belonged to her – her powers, her mem’ries – everythin’ that made her her. Her mem’ries ate at me. Drove me nearly t’madness. She was so strong. So strong, I began to fear I’d lose myself. So I came here. Hopin’ against hope that the Professor could help me. And he did. Just not the way I was expectin’.”

               The words seem to take something out of her. She sits on the balustrade, still clutching the robe around her.

               “When I first came here, everyone hated me. I couldn’t blame them. I’d tried to kill them, hurt them, countless times. But I had nowhere else to go.”

               “And you earned their trust,” he finishes the story for her. “You became like them. A hero.”

               She smiles up at him faintly.

               “Everyone who comes here… somehow… we all end up heroes. Of one stripe or another.”

               He laughs self-deprecatingly and grinds out his cigarette with his heel.

               “I ain’t no hero,” he mutters.

               “You seem to be doin’ pretty well so far.”

               He shakes his head and moves to sit on the balustrade beside her. Close… but not close enough to risk brushing against all the naked skin she’s exposing right now.

               “You’ve moved on from your past, chere,” he mutters, rubbing his long fingers together. “Maybe I ain’t ready yet t’move on from mine.”

               She stares at him. There it is again. Her gaze, like fire on his flesh, in his gut and lower.

               “Nothin’ you’ve done can be so bad it’s irredeemable,” she says.

               There’s certainty in her voice. She believes it. Everything she’s experienced here, with the X-Men, has taught her to believe it. But he doesn’t. He knows what it is to stain his hands with blood.

               “Would ya say the same to the Shadow King?” he asks.

               She says nothing for a moment, and he thinks he’s caught her out – but she doesn’t take the bait.

               “Y’know somethin’, Gambit,” she begins softly instead, “for the longest time I wasn’t sure whether I’m here now, fightin’ the good fight, because it was Ms. Marvel’s mem’ries, her personality, her goodness and sense of justice, that brought me here. Hell,” she exhales a heavy breath, “I still don’t know. Scratch the surface, scratch away all the psyches I’ve ever absorbed… when you get to the core of me, the real me, who is Rogue? Is she a murderer and a terrorist, who became a ‘hero’ because she absorbed a hero? Or was she a good person from the get-go? I genuinely don’t know anymore. Since I was thirteen, all I’ve ever had is other peoples’ personalities layerin’ over mine, over and over, buryin’ me under.”

               She braves a look at him.

               “Sometimes I get scared that… I’ll wake up one day, and discover the real me that’s been hidin’ underneath all that shit. I get scared I’ll kill everyone in their sleep. That I’m not – and never really was – a hero.”

               Her eyes her greener under the porchlight. There’s an earnestness in them that tugs at him more powerfully than her body.

               And he can answer her question. Because he knows it. Because it’s been self-evident to him since he first laid eyes on her.

               “You’re a hero,” he assures her quietly. You’re somethin’ I’m not. He touches the sleeve of her robe because he can’t touch her hand, and he adds: “You’re a good person, Rogue.” He rubs the fabric between his fingers, because he can’t rub her own. “And… you’re beautiful.”

               The earnestness doesn’t leave her eyes. She doesn’t look away.

               “I think the same things about you,” she says simply.

               She puts a hand on his knee, and he feels the warmth of each finger through the fabric of his pants. His heart is crashing in his chest. A touch has never felt so intimate. He leans towards her, and, Dieu, she’s brave enough to lean back towards him. He wants to kiss her so badly, he thinks he might chance it. He thinks he might chance oblivion, and all his ugly secrets being ripped out into the open, to kiss and be kissed by this sweet creature who swears she’s no angel, yet is nothing but to him.

               For a few short, lingering seconds they remain there, a breath away from a kiss. She draws away first. He doesn’t know it now, but in the years to come, it will always be her who will draw away first.

               “I… I should go. Gotta get up early for that trainin’ session tomorrow.”

               She slips off the balustrade. He is still holding her sleeve, and somehow he can’t let go. She glances up at him.

               “Will ya be joinin’ us?” she asks hopefully.

               “What time?”

               “Eight.”

               He thinks about it. He’s been planning to be long gone by then.

               “A’right,” he says.

               She smiles. He loves her smile, because she doesn’t smile enough, not like the way she is right now.

               “Great. I’ll see ya then.” She pauses, adds a little shyly, “Goodnight.”

               “Goodnight.”

               He relinquishes her sleeve, and she pads up to the door in her bare feet, throwing him another smile over her shoulder before she leaves.

               He heaves out a pent-up breath.

               His senses are burning. She consumes him like the sun. She doesn’t need to touch him to do it.

               He gets off the balustrade and goes inside. He climbs the lonely stairs and heads back to his room. He stares at the bag on his bed, the bag he’d packed only just this afternoon.

               He thinks of his words. Words so painfully honest he’d never meant to say them until he’d said them.

               You’re a hero. You’re a good person, Rogue. And you’re beautiful.

               Her hand on his knee. The warmth of its imprint.

               I think the same things about you.

               He wants to be the person she sees.

               He doesn’t know if he can be. But he wants to be, for her.

               He makes up his mind.

               Slowly, methodically, he begins to unpack.

-END-

[fatherfigurefusion]

Do you know any not especially popular fangans to share with us kids? I wanna see more indie stuff!

Alright, you've come to the right person!

List of Fangames:

Danganronpa Glacial Bullets

Danganronpa V4: Rocky Restarts

Danganronpa Eternal Endings

Danganronpa Overflowed Lies

Danganronpa Alter Nexus

Danganronpa Maiden's Voyage

Danganronpa Siren's Ark

Danganronpa Mauve

Danganronpa: REVIVE

(Not sure if this counts as a fangame, but: Danganronpa Dreadnaught Despair)

List of Written Fangans:

Danganronpa: Deadly Virtues, Heavenly Sins (@mythgirlimagines)

Things That Never Happened (@buried-stars)

Ultimate Danganronpa: Supernova at Sea

Danganronpa: A Stormy Last Hurrah and Danganronpa: Cross Your Aching Hearts (@crowkerus)

Danganronpa: Behind Bars

Danganronpa Requiem: City of Despair and Danganronpa Requiem: Camp of Adversity

Danganronpa 52: Despair from the Heart and Danganronpa: Hope's Chains (@mewmewchann)

[hpdrizzle]

🌈 HP Drizzle Fic 🌧️

☔ Scream If You Wanna Go Faster

💧 Pairing: Scorpius Malfoy/James Sirius Potter 💧 Explicit, 21,458 💧 Weather: Sunny, Stormy ⚡ Warnings/Tags: Harry Potter Next Generation, Gay James Sirius Potter, Bisexual Scorpius Malfoy, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Blow Jobs, Recreational Drug Use, House Party, Quidditch, Birthday Cake, Drinking, Demon Twink From Hell Scorpius Malfoy, POV Scorpius Malfoy, Fuckboy Teddy Lupin, Family Dynamics, DILF Harry Potter, Comeplay, The inevitability of crushing on your best friends brother, Horny for sportswear, Shorts (Clothing), Smut, Explicit Sexual Content, Last days of summer, Top James Sirius Potter, Bottom Scorpius Malfoy, shameless flirting, Boys Kissing, Smoking, Everyone is horny and queer, Recreational Potions, Original Characters

☔ Summary: 

James leaned forward to blow out the candles and for a brief moment their eyes met. Scorpius felt it like an arrow to his chest. His breath hitched as people cheered and the smoke from the candles climbed to the ceiling. “You’re going to ruin him.” Albus said, nipping at Scorpius’s shoulder. Scorpius sighed, “It would be fun to try.” Scorpius and Albus are determined to have one last hurrah before their summer ends. Featuring, ratbag twinks, progressive parenting with Harry Potter, the homoeroticism of sportwear, the dance floor as a love language and birds.

Read on AO3 

[einsteinsugly]

October (Fictober) 8, 2022. The Night Chicago Dies?

A/N: T7S, Eric and Donna. Super future fic (hence, do you remember), takes place in 2022.

*****

Donna's old, gray eyes glimmer, with bright flecks of blue. Like a vast ocean, sitting beneath a soaring sun.

And as they sit beneath the starry skies, amidst a buzzing, gurgling darkness, Eric can't help but smile. Pressing his hand into hers, as the city lights blur his vision. As once, those lights were once a warm welcome, like setting a fire in their young souls.

But now, he's tired. So, so tired. "Do you remember when we merely wanted to cross the Rio Grande? Now, we..."

"I'm not traveling the world with you on a sailboat, Eric." Her lips form into a lingering frown, etched onto her aging face. "You'd drive me crazy."

"Staying here would drive you crazier." His green eyes sink below the horizon, as years and years of the daily grind have rendered him hesitantly jaded. "Retire, at the end of the year. Leave those guns and cannons behind, and leave them for the..."

"No. Not yet." It's a battle cry, from a fading fox. Her scarlet locks have dulled and her stance has withered, even as her eyes desperately sparkle. Like the stars in the sky. "Give me some more time, and I..."

"You said that last year, and the year before." Eric sighs, tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, pressing his lips on her waiting temple. As her hands now thoroughly intertwine with his, albeit with some notable hesitation. "I've been twiddling my thumbs, waiting and waiting..."

But the frown deepens, like Mariana's Trench, where true darkness awaits. "I waited for you. For almost a whole year, and you dumped me."

"I was holding you back." The answer is apparently far from music to her ears, as her hands rip away from his now reluctantly wavering grasp, and he awkwardly clears his throat. "And that was a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away. Before we started at the rat races, at the very beginning..."

She glares at him, hitting him with a pitch black sky. Without even the faintest of stars. "It wasn't a very good start."

"But we got the hang of it, didn't we? Then we traveled the world, got married. Settled down, had the girls. It was a wild ride, but it's time to pass the torch. And it's time for us to really, really settle down. To hang out on a sailboat, or on a beach, and travel again..."

The sun still fails to rise again in her stormy eyes, though. Instead, the gray lingers, and refuses to fade. Until...

The front door swings open, and a redheaded boy proudly presents himself to the big, bad world. "Mina, you said I could teach you how to play Minecraft!"

Donna lovingly smirks, ruffling his hair. "Are you sure it wasn't Fortnite?"

As his wife feigns ignorance, the second grader predictably protests. Like clockwork. "No, I hate Fortnite!"

Eric can't help but wistfully smile, glancing at his loving, passionate wife, as their grandson amply reminds him of their daughter. Way back when, when things were simpler.

But back in the day, when the whole world was at their fingertips, it was also firmly on their young, boisterous shoulders. Weighing them down, and down, and down...

As he pats the young boy on his young, boisterous shoulder. "Hate's a strong word there, buddy."

He hates how Donna is forcing him to endure those youthful burdens, working herself to the bone, as he anxiously waits in the sidelines.

Where those burdens still hurt, like hell, as he anxiously counts down to midnight. Waiting for his wife to join him, to embark on their twilight years.

But she refuses to budge, and neither does their grandson. As he loudly clears his throat, to make a particular declaration.

"But I hate even more that you wanna move away, Poppy. On a stupid sailboat..."

Donna nods in agreement, desperate to shake things up. For one last time, for one last hurrah. One last fight, a type of written rebellion, now seldom seen on paper.

"This is my home, Eric." Donna lovingly gazes at the city lights, as if the sun is shining. "I don't want to leave."

And as she gazes at their grandson, at the brownstone they've owned for thirty-seven years, and then back at him, Eric sighs. Pulling her close, as Caleb loudly protests, falling on increasingly deaf ears.

Instead, Eric's green eyes glimmer, and he wistfully smiles. Kissing her temple, and holding her waiting hand.

"We don't have to go anywhere. I don't care where we live, as long as I'm with you."

[breakingnownews]

Labor Day Weekend Forecast: Will Summer's Last Hurrah Be a Washout? As we gear up for the Labor Day Weekend, often heralded as the unofficial farewell to summer, many are hoping for sunny skies and outdoor festivities. However, it looks like Mother Nature has other plans in...

[internationalnewz]

Kim Jong Un shows off daughter, missiles at N. Korean parade

The parade was the fifth known public appearance by Kim’s daughter, Kim Ju Ae, his second-born child who is believed to be around 10 years old.

SEOUL: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his young daughter took center stage at a huge military parade, fueling speculation that she’s being primed as a future leader of the isolated country as her father showed off his latest, largest nuclear missiles.

Wednesday night's parade in the capital, Pyongyang, featured the newest hardware in Kim’s growing nuclear arsenal, including what experts said was possibly a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile he may test in coming months.

That missile was part of around a dozen ICBMs Kim’s troops rolled out at the event, an unprecedented number that underscored how he continues to expand his military capabilities despite limited resources in face of deepening tensions with his neighbors and the United States.

The parade was the fifth known public appearance by Kim’s daughter, Kim Ju Ae, his second-born child who is believed to be around 10 years old. On Tuesday, Kim Jong Un brought his daughter to visit troops as he lauded the “irresistible might” of his nuclear-armed military.

State media have signaled a lofty role for Kim Ju Ae. She's been called “respected” and “beloved,” and a photo released Tuesday showed her sitting in the seat of honor at a banquet, flanked by generals and her parents.

North Korean photos released Wednesday showed Kim, wearing a black coat and fedora, attending the parade with his wife and daughter. Kim smiled and raised his hand from a balcony as thousands of troops lined up in a brightly illuminated Kim Il Sung Square, which is named after his grandfather, the nation’s founder.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said all of the soldiers and spectators at the square raised “stormy cheers of ‘hurrah!’” and chanted the name of their ruler, a “great brilliant commander” who is “beefing up the military muscle with his outstanding military strategic ideas.”

The parade marked the 75th founding anniversary of North Korea’s army and came after weeks of preparations involving huge numbers of troops and civilians mobilized to glorify Kim’s rule and his relentless push to cement the North’s status as a nuclear power.

Photos released by state media showed transport and launcher trucks carrying about 10 of the country’s Hwasong-17 ICBMs, which demonstrated a flight range that would allow them to reach deep into the U.S. mainland during a flight test last year. Those missiles were followed by another large missile encased in a canister and transported on a 9-axle vehicle.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether the missile was a mockup or an actual rocket, but Kim Dong-yub, a professor at Seoul’s University of North Korean Studies, said the missile was likely a version of a solid-fuel ICBM the North has been trying to develop for years. He added that the unprecedented number of Hwasong-17s paraded in Wednesday’s event suggests progress in efforts to produce those weapons in larger numbers.

State media reports didn’t immediately mention whether Kim Jong Un delivered a speech during the event. The parade came after Kim met with his top military brass on Monday and ordered an expansion of combat exercises, as he continues to escalate an already provocative run in weapons demonstrations in face of deepening tensions with his neighbors and Washington.

“This time, Kim Jong Un let North Korea’s expanding tactical and long-range missile forces speak for themselves,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.

“The message Pyongyang wants to send internationally, demonstrating its capabilities to deter and coerce, will likely come in the form of solid-fuel missile tests and detonation of a miniaturized nuclear device,” he said. He was referring to U.S. and South Korean assessments that the North could be preparing to conduct its first nuclear test since September 2017.

The KCNA confirmed that the parade featured a variety of nuclear-capable weapons, including tactical nuclear weapons targeting South Korea. The agency described the ICBMs as crucial weapons supporting North Korea’s ongoing stance of “nuke for nuke and an all-out confrontation for an all-out confrontation” against its enemies.

Lee Sung-jun, spokesperson of South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, said during a briefing that the South Korean and U.S. militaries were closely analyzing the North Korean photos and reports to evaluate the weaponry.

North Korea is coming off a record-breaking year in weapons testing, and the dozens of missiles it fired in 2022 included potentially nuclear-capable systems designed to strike targets in South Korea and the U.S. mainland.

The intensified testing activity was punctuated by fiery statements and a new law threatening preemptive nuclear attacks against its neighbors and the United States in a broad range of scenarios.

Kim doubled down on his nuclear push entering 2023.

During a major political conference in December, Kim called for an “exponential increase” of the country’s nuclear warheads, mass production of battlefield tactical nukes targeting “enemy” South Korea and the development of more powerful ICBMs that could reach the mainland United States.

In December, Kim supervised a test of a “high-thrust solid-fuel motor” for a new strategic weapon he said would be developed in the “shortest span of time,” which experts said likely referred to a solid-fuel ICBM.

All of the ICBMs the North has flight-tested since 2017 used liquid propellants. Solid fuel could allow shorter preparation time and more mobility on the ground.

Solid-fuel ICBMs highlighted an extensive wish list Kim announced under a five-year arms development plan in 2021, which also included tactical nuclear weapons, hypersonic missiles, nuclear-powered submarines and spy satellites.

Analysts say Kim’s decision to bring his daughter to public events tied to his military is to send a statement to the world he has no intention to voluntarily surrender his nuclear weapons, which he apparently sees as the strongest guarantee of his survival and the extension of his family’s dynastic rule.

An official from South Korea’s Unification Ministry, who spoke on condition of anonymity during a background briefing, said it’s too early to determine whether Kim Ju Ae is being groomed as the fourth heredity ruler of North Korea but added that “all possibilities are open.” The official said her repeated appearance in major events and her prominent exposure in state media is aimed at urging “ultimate loyalty” to the Kim family.

[dr-epitome]

happy third anniversary to the all that remains universe!

[dr-astormylasthurrah]

wo-ow wo-ow~

basard. basard snake man

stills under the cut!

[achristopaganbreviary]

Wheel of the Year Prayers

Imbolc (Feb 1- March 20 or 21) We give thanks for early spring, time of fresh skies and budding shoots. Frigid frosts melt and crocuses bloom. Daffodils and tulips spread their color. Sacred are the cross and candle, symbols of inspiration. May Mercury guide us this Imbolc season, bringing us cleansing and new beginnings. 

Ostara (March 20 or 21 - May 1) We give thanks for late spring, time of flowering trees and returning songbirds. Gentle rains nourish azaleas and camellia blossoms. Hyacinth and forsythia bloom. Sacred are the hare and egg, symbols of regeneration. May Venus guide us this Ostara season, bringing us hope and joy.

Beltane (May 1 - June 20 or 21) We give thanks for early summer, time of virid grass and shady boughs. The forests are greening and the roses begin to bloom. Poppies, irises, and peonies are tossed in the stormy weather. Sacred is the bonfire, symbol of our passion and desire. May Mars guide us this Beltane season, bring us passion and vitality.

Litha (June 20 or 21- Aug 1) We give thanks for late summer, time of sunny warmth and fiery blooms. Fireflies glow and rabbits sprint through the grass. Honeysuckles, hydrangeas, and cactus flowers fill the air with sweetness. Sacred is the bee, symbol of industry and enlightenment. May the Sun guide us this Litha season, bringing us confidence and clarity.

Lammas (Aug 1 - Sept 22 or 23) We give thanks for early fall, time of starry nights and fields of rippling gold. Thunderous skies release heavy rain. Hibiscus and sunflowers bloom beneath flowering crepe myrtles. Sacred are bread and stalks of wheat, symbols of abundance and nourishment. May Jupiter guide us this Lammas season, bringing us prosperity and expansion.

Mabon (Sept 22 or 23 - Nov 1) We give thanks for late fall, time of fiery treetops and cooling breeze. Leaves transform and preparations for winter begin. Black-eyed susans, anemone, and roses give their last hurrah. Sacred is the harvest, symbol of unity and generosity. May the Earth guide us this Mabon season, bringin us stability and security.

Samhain (Nove 1 - Dec 21 or 22) We give thanks for early winter, time of cold rains and stark shadows. Treetops shiver as they shed their leaves. The last of the daisies nod their heads. Sacred is the skull, symbol of our mortality. May Saturn guide us this Samhain season, bring us transformation and necessary endings.

Yule (Dec 21 or 22 - Feb 1) We give thanks for late winter, time of falling snows and warm hearths. Pine trees stand tall beneath the solemn night sky. Sacred are the evergreen and holly, symbols of resilient life in the midst of darkness. May the moon guide us this Yule season, bring us contemplation and companionship. 

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

Parade Celebrates 73rd Founding Anniversary of Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) 

Sept. 9: The parade of paramilitary and public security forces for celebrating the 73rd founding anniversary of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea was held in splendor at Kim Il Sung Square.

There was a special entrance ceremony of the combined militant band. Parachutists showed landing skill, covering the nocturnal sky in September with national flags. A column of escort planes flew past the sky above the square and fighters in the form of a fan shot off crackers, revving up the festive mood. The Ensemble of the State Affairs Commission and the Central Military Band of the Ministry of National Defence for playing music for parade took their seats at the square for rendition.

Parade columns of paramilitary and public security forces entered the square throwing out their might all around, to the tune of entrance music. At 00:00 on Thursday, the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, came to the platform of the square. The moment, thunderous cheers of "hurrah!" and loud chanting of "Kim Jong Un" and "devoted defence" resounded through and fireworks shot off, presenting fantastic sea of fireworks.

Kim Jong Un extended warm greetings to all the people of the country celebrating the founding anniversary of the dignified country, waving back to the enthusiastically cheering participants in the parade and in the celebrations. Kim Jong Un and cadres of the Party, government and military were presented with fragrant bouquets by members of the Children's Union. Taking the platform were Choe Ryong Hae, Jo Yong Won, Kim Tok Hun and Pak Jong Chon. Taking the platform also were cadres of the Party and the government, leading officials of the Cabinet, commissions, ministries and national institutions, labor innovators and persons of merits who made distinguished contributions to the development of the DPRK. Also taking the platform were leading officials of the armed forces organs. Present at the platform on invitation were Kim Yong Nam, Pak Pong Ju, Kim Ki Nam, Choe Thae Bok, Kim Kyong Ok and Kim Jong Im who worked for the Party and the government for a long time. 

The reviewing stands were taken by the participants in the celebrations. There was a solemn ceremony of raising a national flag. All the citizens expressed noble respects for the national flag. There was a 21-gun salute amid the playing of the song "The Glorious Motherland". 

Ri Il Hwan, member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of the WPK, made a speech. Then there was an inspection for the preparations for the parade. Commander of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards Kang Sun Nam reported to Jo Yong Won, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau and secretary for Organizational Affairs of the WPK Central Committee, that units of parade have lined up to get their preparations checked. Jo Yong Won inspected the units of parade. He courteously reported to the General Secretary of the WPK that paramilitary and public security forces are ready to start the parade for celebrating the 73rd founding anniversary of the DPRK.

The solemn parade of paramilitary and public security forces began. Entering the square first led by the lead car of the commander of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards was the column of the Pyongyang City Division of Party members. They are the creators of feats and fighters who devotedly carried out the Party's policies to win a victory in the campaign for protecting the people as fitting the detached corps dispatched by the Party Central Committee to the sites for recovery from disaster last year.

Following them were the column of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards of Pyongyang City, militia force defending the capital city, led by Chief Secretary of the City Party Committee of the Kim Yong Hwan and the columns of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards in North Phyongan Province and South Phyongan Province, standing guard over the border and the gateway to the capital as an impregnable fortress, each led by Chief Secretaries of the Provincial Party Committees Mun Kyong Dok and An Kum Chol. 

They were followed by the columns of the red guards of North and South Hwanghae Provinces, ranks of those taking charge of the agricultural front, led by Chief Secretaries of the Provincial Party Committees Pak Chang Ho and Pak Song Chol. The columns of the red guards of Jagang and Kangwon Provinces led by Chief Secretaries of the Provincial Party Committees Kang Pong Hun and Kim Su Gil showed well the unusual pride and self-esteem of creating the spirit of the times while overcoming grim difficulties before the country and the revolution. Marching past in fine array next were the columns of the red guards of North and South Hamgyong Provinces and Ryanggang Province, being led by Chief Secretaries of the Provincial Party Committees Kim Chol Sam, Ri Jong Nam and Ri Thae Il.

Kim Jong Un sent militant salute to the columns marching past in fine array.

The columns of the Ministry of Railways and the Air Koryo Administration marched past the square. As the column of the Kim Chaek Iron and Steel Complex which is the large-scale base of metallurgical industry in the northern part of the country, the column of the Huichon Ryonha Machine Factory that gave an origin of industrial revolution in the new century and the column of the Hungnam Fertilizer Complex which is an arsenal of socialist agricultural front entered the square, the people warmly congratulated the ranks of the heroic working class. It was followed by the column of the Rakwon General Machine Enterprise and the Chollima Steel Complex.

Entering the square following it was the columns of the Ryongsong Machine Complex, the Sunchon Area Youth Coal Mining Complex and the Pyongyang Kim Jong Suk Textile Mill. The columns of emergency epidemic prevention and the Ministry of Public Health were full of patriotic enthusiasm to display the advantages of the socialist system all over the world, while firmly protecting the security of the country and its people from the worldwide pandemic. There were also the column of the State Academy of Sciences, and the column of men of culture and art and sportspersons made up of those artistes, moviemen and sportspersons who contributed to exalting the honor of the country and opening up the efflorescence of socialist culture.

Then there were the columns of Kim Il Sung University, Kim Chaek University of Technology and the Young Red Guards. Following the paramilitary force columns, ranks of public security forces marched past the platform.

Kim Jong Un sent encouraging salute to the parading columns marching past in fine array, displaying the invincibility as the dependable political guard force of our Party and the elite force holding a share of the revolutionary armed forces.

The first column was the cavalry task force column of the Public Security Forces.It was followed by a military dog search column. The mechanized columns of the Worker-Peasant Red guards entered the square, demonstrating the vitality of our Party's military line for self-defence. Following the column of the motorcycles, those in charge of the farm mechanization who were operational in the socialist cooperative fields rolled past the square driving tractors hauling artillery pieces to pound the aggressors and their vassal forces with annihilating firepower in case of emergency. The mechanized columns roared past the square, reminding that our country has turned into an impregnable fortress with a powerful militia capable of carrying out whatever operations and battles independently together with the invincible regular army. 

The column of fire brigade of the Public Security Forces was the last one that concluded the parade. At the end of the parade, fireworks shot off again and an evening gala of youth and students began at the square. The spectacular fireworks added to the enthusiasm and optimism of youth and students. 

After the evening gala and the display of fireworks, stormy cheers of "hurrah!" for the General Secretary again rocked the heaven and the earth. Kim Jong Un warmly acknowledged the enthusiastically cheering crowds for long. All the participants presented the greatest glory and the deepest gratitude to Kim Jong Un, a peerless hero who is fully demonstrating the new era of overall prosperity of the country and the era of our state-first principle with his ardent love and self-sacrificing dedication to the country and the people.

[matt0044]

Chloe’s Failed Redemption Arc works and is something we don’t get very often.

Now... I get why some might’ve felt cheated out of a redemption arc they were getting into around Season 2. There is a compelling story about “the worst” given a chance to actually reflect upon herself and become better despite how low she could go.

However, I can’t hate how her corruption arc turned out because of how well it was handled. Sometimes, a slowburn reformation can make for an interesting story but something that’s equally valuable can be how not everyone sticks the landing. Be it circumstances or their own undoing, some people will turn back around and decide that bettering themselves isn’t worth it.

Like it or not, Season 2′s finale showed her willing to be a team player yet still be a bit of a glory hog vs-a-vie insisting on her hero name above all else. While a small gag, her forgetting the magic words shows that she’s not exactly has been working on her better nature.

Come Season 3, we get moments from various episodes where she insists to Ladybug on getting in on the action. They’re small moments that can be viewed mostly in any order starting with “Bakerix” having her ask Chat if Queen Bee could get in on this.

With my order on Netflix, “Miracular” showed her already breaking out the Bee Signal when new reporters mentioned Carapace and Rena Rogue. Though Ladybug lays down how this was to be Queen Bee’s last hurrah, we end on Chloe refusing to accept it. Her exact words being, “I will always be Queen Bee.”

After this we get Stormy Weather 2 and StarTrain where she’s hoping to wear down Ladybug. Even with the Horse Miraculous, she was turned down when trying to put her hero on the spot around others. Thus Heart Hunter is the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

This wasn’t out of nowhere nor an arbitrary decision from the writers just because. She had a good heart, yes, but her self-centered nature tipped the scales when Hawk Moth offered her not just her Miraculous but EVERY Miraculous in the box.

[wingsofvoltron]

Coming soon: Thirteen Hours by Redjay

Summery: 

Sometimes the new door opens before the old has shut. Sometimes the fall comes before the jump. The spark without a match. The thunder with no lightning. The beginning without an end. 

Such things ignite chaos, mess with the order the world has so kindly offered. But chaos isn’t always bad and leaping before you look can lead to adventures far greater than ourselves. Given time, the chaos becomes clear and the universe opens up before us. 

Who knew that thirteen hours could lead to revelations the heart could never dream of? 

Keith certainly didn’t. 

Hey guys. I haven’t just been sitting on my hands. In between writing some other stuff I’ve been working on this beauty right here. It’s a little different from what I usually write but I’m super excited for it and I hope you guys are too. 

This will be a 13 part story with each chapter depicting what happens in one hour of the story. And it’s Klance so like...it’s gonna be good no matter what. 

And because I’m so excited, I’ll even give you a sneak peek:

6pm

Palms came down hard on the table, causing Keith to jump, glancing up in the process. He wasn’t surprised to see stormy blue eyes shifting between him and the others seated at the table. He’d been expecting the outburst for awhile now, it being over an hour since anyone had said a word.

Piles of books and papers were spread out in front of him, not in the least bit disturbed by the sudden motion of his tablemate. Keith had been reading through his psychology notes, trying helplessly to understand the never ending list of vocab that he had to have memorized in only a few short days. A half-chewed pen cap rested between his teeth, forgotten as he examined the brown-haired boy across the table from him.

Tan skin was flushed, whether from frustration or exhaustion, Keith wasn’t sure. Soft strands of short brown hair were disheveled, a product of stressed fingers pulling at the locks. Lips were pressed together in a hard line, jaw clenched far too tightly. Steely eyes scanned over the table, making sure all attention was on him before he spoke.

“I can’t take this anymore!” Lance practically shouted, causing glares from the surrounding tables to be shot his direction. He didn’t seem to pay any mind to them as he continued. “The semester is over in, like, a week and all we do is study and drink way too much coffee. We’re going to go crazy from caffeine overdose at this point.”

Keith couldn’t help the glance he threw at his currently empty coffee cup. He had been debating making another run to the library cafe. It would’ve been his fifth cup that day.

It was Shiro who spoke up first, an almost apologetic look on his face. “Exam week is right around the corner, Lance.” His tone was even and understanding. “And some of us are graduating. We can’t afford to make any mistakes.”

“That’s my point!” Lance argued, a slight whine to his voice. “In a week we probably won’t see you or Allura for a really long time. Do you really want our last memories together to be studying in some stupid library for an exam you probably won’t remember anyway?”

“They’re not dying.” Pidge said, snickering from behind their laptop screen while pushing their glasses up.

“I know that.” Lance shot at them sharply.  “But Allura’s going to be moving all the way across the country and Shiro’s just straight up going to work in Japan for a whole year. They might as well be dying.”

“Okay, buddy.” Hunk cut in, setting down the pencil he had been taking notes with. “That’s a bit of an overstatement, don’tcha think? We can still call and text them and stuff.”

Lance shook his head. “I know, I know but…” He took a deep breath before continuing. “We won’t be able to do anything all together. No more movie nights. No more late night food runs. No more weekend trips to the beach.”

“Lance…” Allura said, voice soft and eyes gentle. “We’ve known that doing stuff like that has been coming to an end for awhile.”

“But it’s not the end yet.” Lance countered, glancing around the table again. “Look, it’s Friday night. Our last Friday night before the semester is over. We should do something fun. Something that doesn’t include textbooks and coffee.”

“What? You wanna do like a one last hurrah kinda thing?” Pidge asked, giving Lance a curious glance, intrigue gleaming from behind their glasses.

“Yes! Exactly!” Lance replied, eyes lighting up and head nodding frantically. “One last big, exciting, fun, wild night. Just the six of us.”

[hpdrizzle]

🌈 HP Drizzle Weekly Round Up Post #2 🌧️

Hello everyone and welcome to our second round up of 2023!

💧 Don't let anyone rain down on your parade and enjoy this week's works underneath the cut!

🌈 HP Drizzle Art 🌧️

☔ Forgotten

💧 Pairing: Harry Potter/Severus Snape 💧 General Audience, Traditional Art: watercolors, inks, acrylic, and colored pencils on 7.75" x 9.95" mixed media paper. 💧 Weather: Sunny ☔ Summary: Before, I used to be your whole world, now, I’m nothing more than a stranger in your eyes. Why have you forgotten me and not anybody else?

🌈 HP Drizzle Fic 🌧️

☔ Letters In the Rain [G, 3274]

💧 Pairing: Harry Potter/Severus Snape 💧 Weather: Rainy ☔ Summary: Harry Potter’s always hated the rain, though perhaps certain events make him change his mind.

☔ Unbuttoned [E, 2402]

💧 Pairing: Harry Potter/Severus Snape 💧 Weather: Rainy ☔ Summary: Due to the change in weather, Snape starts leaving a few top buttons on his robe undone. It drives Harry crazy.

☔ Weathering Malfoy [T, 6,806]

💧 Pairing: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter 💧 Weather: Rainy, Stormy ☔ Summary: The war is over and all Harry wants is a normal year at Hogwarts. But he hadn’t counted on hanging out with Draco Malfoy and liking it. Not to mention Malfoy’s bizarre obsession with the weather. Or is there something else behind Malfoy’s odd behaviour?

☔ Scream If You Wanna Go Faster [E, 21,458]

💧 Pairing: Scorpius Malfoy/James Sirius Potter 💧 Weather: Sunny, Stormy ☔ Summary: James leaned forward to blow out the candles and for a brief moment their eyes met. Scorpius felt it like an arrow to his chest. His breath hitched as people cheered and the smoke from the candles climbed to the ceiling. “You’re going to ruin him.” Albus said, nipping at Scorpius’s shoulder. Scorpius sighed, “It would be fun to try.” Scorpius and Albus are determined to have one last hurrah before their summer ends. Featuring, ratbag twinks, progressive parenting with Harry Potter, the homoeroticism of sportwear, the dance floor as a love language and birds.

☔ A Work Trip to Spain [E, 1443]

💧 Pairing: Victoire Weasley/Blaise Zabini 💧 Weather: Rainy, Stormy ☔ Summary: Victoire Weasley had been looking forward to lounging on the beach during her work trip to Spain. When a thunderstorm strikes, she ends up at the bar spending the evening with Blaise Zabini. Little did she know how it would progress.

[dr-epitome]