#all hail glaciator

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Aside from Origins and Oblivio, what are your most favourite episodes of Miraculous?

Oblivio and Origins are the only episodes come to mind when I think of my favorite episodes because they're the only ones I've watched multiple times, but I'll read through the episode list and give you every episode that stands out as a positive memory. I'll also note my thoughts on how these episodes could have been improved because I don't like to give things my stamp of approval without acknowledging the flaws.

Stormy Weather: this was a solid intro with a lot of fun moments. I wish the show had lived up to the things this intro promised. It may have been the best Ladynoir dynamic we ever got... The only thing I didn't like was the introduction of Marinette's flaw where she can't say no because I don't think that goes anywhere in canon? If it had been the start of a character arc, then it would have been great! Only reason this isn't a true favorite is that it's a light-hearted intro episode that's just about introducing us to the world of Miraculous. It does that well, but doesn't have much rewatch value for me as I tend to go for stuff with stronger plots.

The Evillustrator: quality identity shenanigans, but I wasn't a fan of the way Marinette treated Chat Noir when he came to meet her on her civilian side. Her secretly making fun of him was one of the early instances of the show writing Ladynoir like work colleges forced together by their boss. Not a great choice for your main couple, but the later Marichat moments are still great!

Dark Cupid: I'm a sucker for True Love's Kiss so of course I love this one, but don't like that Ladybug immediately assumed that a kiss would work. That kills that tension! It should have been a hail Mary that she only came up with after Chat Noir had her pinned. I'm also super bummed that this kiss magic never came up again. What a waste! The final issue is that the episode played Chat Noir poorly because it's one of the episodes where he only got hit because he was too focused on flirting over fighting. I hate it when the writers do that! It totally undermines Adrien's character.

Origins: my issues with this one are pretty nuanced so I won't go into them in detail as they're not glaring and would take too long to sum up. It's all subtle things like Alya and Chat Noir both inspiring Marinette to be Ladybug which is only a flaw if you want the story to be focused on Ladynoir first and foremost.

Despair Bear: the ending of this one sucks, but I do like the first 95% of it. I liked Adrien standing up to Chloe. I liked Chloe freaking out over losing Adrien. I like Chloe struggling to play nice. All good moments that could have been great if the episode had stuck the landing.

Glaciator: this one's main issue is its place in the timeline. If Chat Noir's confession was quickly followed by a crush flip or Ladynoir together, then this would be mostly fine. The more subtle issue is the fact that Marinette is treated as the one in the wrong here when Chat Noir is the one who needed to learn a lesson. She said she wasn't going to make it, dude! Don't wait for her! Go see your friends! In spite of those issues, I do still enjoy this episode. The balcony scene is adorable! I just wish that it was in a better show.

Sapotis: I think Alya gets the best hero debut of the season two heroes, but that isn't saying much. While I like her part in this episode, I wish that it felt like she was picked for something unique to her and not just because her sisters got akumatized. Still fun to see her be a hero for the first time, though.

Sandboy: While I'm so-so on this episode, I loved the concept of this akuma! My main complaint is that the fears he revealed never really went anywhere. Normally an episode like this is about letting the heroes understand each other better, deepening their relationship, but that didn't happen here. The fact that Chat Noir's biggest fear is Ladybug hating him never got addressed. The episode treats it like a joke:

Nightmare Ladybug: Bad kitty! I'll never love you! I've always wanted to get rid of you! Ladybug: You have weird dreams too. Cat Noir: My bad.

Style Queen: I remember being so excited by this episode! The Ladrien moment! Gabriel being a good dad! Adrien getting hit by the akuma! Plagg and Ladybug meeting! Topping it all off was the beauty that was Chloe getting the bee with no one knowing that she had it. That was a twist that I didn't see coming! Of course it all goes to hell in the next episode, but I'm still putting this one on the list because I genuinely loved it when I first saw it. It was the last episode where I believed in a Chloe redemption arc and I love a good redemption arc.

Malediktator: This episode started the trend of the writers having no idea what they were doing with Chloe. I don't understand why she got the bee again after her identity was outed, but I still like this one in a vacuum. I liked seeing Chloe own up to her faults. Chat Noir saving the day via laser pointer was also pretty fun as was Ladybug getting a gun only to use the laser scope and nothing else. That's how I've always wanted the lucky charm to be used. Less Marinette solving puzzles and more Marinette's brain working in a way that makes no sense to anyone else.

Oblivio: This is my favorite "what if" episode by far and I would have loved to see more like this because it's not a freaking time reset! It's a memory wipe and we're told that the memories will be wiped pretty early on so the ending doesn't feel forced. That doesn't change the fact that one of my favorite genres of fic is Oblivio fix-its where the memories don't get erased. I also cannot give this episode the seal of true perfection because the writers decided to Chat Noir goof off during the first fight, leading Oblivio to hit the heroes. Why? Why ruin my fun with that nonsense! It's a one-hit KO akuma. Just let him get hit by accident while fighting! You don't need Adrien and Marinette to question their couple status! It's not like that plot point changed their behavior.

Gamer 2.0: This is the first episode where I can't think of an issue. It's a major improvement on Gamer, has a cute ending, and some adorable Ladynoir moments. What's not to love? Only reason it's not a favorite is that it's just nice filler and I rarely have filler on my favorites list. It has to be truly spectacular for that to happen.

Wishmaker: I'm putting this one on here because it's the only season four episode where I went "Oh, yeah, that had some good moments" when I read the title. I hated everything about Adrien not having a childhood dream because it makes no sense for his character, but the akuma's power was interesting, Luka got to be in his best role (mentor), and the Jagged Stone crocodile scene will never cease to make me laugh. Luka learning the identities is yet another moment where I was excited to see what happened next, but hated the payoff. So, like Sandboy, this one is on the list more for it's potential than what it actually was.

Glaciator 2: I guess I'll put this one on here, too, since I do love the ending scene where Marinette finally confesses to Adrien even if she doesn't know it. I just hate that it never paid off. The writers will forever have my ire for going with the freaking statue scene instead. Terrible choice. I also hated almost everything before the confession scene. Why are Marinette and Chat Noir hanging out in public? You're really telling me that she can't do that with Adrien (Gorizilla) but no one bats an eye when she's out with Chat Noir? Yeah right.

And that's it! Every episode that I felt had real potential and remember really enjoying. There are other episodes that I had fun with, but I limited this list to ones whose name sparked some manner of strong positive feelings instead of a simple "oh yeah, that one was fine."

[emi-fanarts]

[bring-the-storm]

@chatonnoir called the ship ButterNette and now I’m obsessed

Chat Noir: So did you confess yet?

Marinette: No …. I couldn’t get any time alone with him at school today …… and then he had somewhere else he needed to go right after 😔

Chat Noir: [slamming his teacup down] Buttercup you goddamn idiot

[flightfoot]

Hi! I was wondering, what are your favorite ML episodes? Like which do you think are best in plot/character development/fun stuff in general?

I’m gonna just cut out the season finales and the special from this, since it feels like cheating to include them.

This isn’t an objective list, but it’s not fully subjective either. It’s very much a list where the lower sections at least would change based on my mood at the time, though the top two are set in stone.

10. Feast 

I appreciated finding out Fu’s backstory (even if it didn’t quite jive with some of the earlier implications of him having chosen the wrong people before, back in Origins.) It fleshed Fu out as a character, and revealed that while he’s trying as best he can, he wasn’t chosen because he was some all-knowing, all-wise person who’s always right that the main characters need to listen to; even HE admits that he messed up in this episode. He’s considered a person, not some fount of incontrovertible wisdom.

I’ll still take him to task for some of his poorer decisions, but I appreciate that he WASN’T treated as infallible, and that we really get to see that play out here.

Plus Biker Bug and Banana Noir, Banana Noir automatically recognizing his buginette immediately even though she looks different, Chat’s face when he figures out Ladybug’s plan... it’s just fun.

Also I’m a sucker for lore, and we found out a decent amount of it here.

9. Zombizou

This was a really fun episode, with the party slowly dwindling down as zombies picked everyone off, one-by-one. 

It showcased some of the characters really well. Like with Chloe, it showed how she’ll lash out, be a brat and try to hurt people when she feels like she hasn’t done enough, or whenever something pokes at her own feelings of inferiority, of uselessness. But that she also DOES care for other people and is willing to sacrifice herself, even if only temporarily, to protect others.

It also showed the first time that someone puts up a good fight against akumatization, what sort of mindset is needed for that.

The class as a whole really shown this episode. Even though they were all pissed off at Chloe (for VERY good reason) and she was being a pain throughout it, they still refused to leave her at Zombizou’s mercy, protecting her even though it was hard, even though they didn’t want to, even though it put them at risk. Protecting her not because she “deserved” it, but because it was the right thing to do - not that they weren’t TEMPTED to leave her, they’re only human. 

Some great couple moments as well, with Rose and Juleka turning together, and who can forget Nino refusing to leave Alya, even though he’s dooming himself to becoming a zombie as well?

Just all and all, a great episode.

8. Miraculer

Another great character development episode, again, mostly for Chloe. She even successfully fights off an akuma, the only character to do so to date. We also get to see what an effective fighter she is, how much she looks up to and respects Ladybug, wants her to see her as being necessary - probably because of how she’s felt so useless and unwanted before, like she said in Malediktator.

But it also shows how self-centered she is. How little she cares for those who get hurt along the way, like Sabrina. How little she considers more overarching reasons for why she can’t be allowed what she wants, even when demonstrated right in front of her, with being denied the Bee because Mayura and Hawkmoth could easily steal it from her. Even when it’s nothing to do with her personally (beyond her decision to reveal her identity that is) she just can’t let it go.

We also get to Alya and Nino being AWESOME (seriously what WAS that parkour?) and just how stubbornly Adrien will keep trekking on, keep fighting, even when he can barely move because of the pain.

7. Syren

Yes, seriously.

This one.

The one that’s had to be defended to death.

It was actually the second episode of Miraculous Ladybug I watched, and the one that convinced me that the first one’s greatness wasn’t a fluke.

And the reason why I love it is also the reason a lot of people hate it.

We get to see Adrien be angry, frustrated, feel useless. See how the secrets are impacting him, how being left out of the loop and not even getting to know why HURTS. And how if he feels unnecessary, unwanted, that his presence, his fighting doesn’t help protect Ladybug or the city more generally, and also like he’s not being respected, that he’d be willing to give it up. That there’s only so much he can take. 

(And no I don’t feel like debating this, I’ve already done that MANY MANY TIMES. Give it a rest.)

6. Sapotis

Alya and Marinette hanging out and having fun? Marinette getting to choose Alya as the first temporary wielder? Her infectious joy as she runs around Paris and banters with Ladybug and Chat Noir?

And her hesitation, her reluctance to hand it back over, wanting desperately to continue, but ultimately doing the right thing, even though it was hard? 

It was a nice introduction for Rena Rouge.

(Also I’m a big Alya stan and I love her as a superhero so. You know.)

5. Startrain

When it came out, and even now, it was hailed as one of the best just regular episodes of Miraculous Ladybug, and for good reason. There’s some QUALITY Adrienette, Alya helping to set it up, and the whole class shipping the two of them together, wanting them to be happy.

The action was great and the whole class just got to have fun. What more is there to say?

4. Anansi

Carapace’s introduction knocked it out of the park!

 The way he tried to fight Anansi, even without any powers? He raced back to Alya even after being thrown, because he wanted to save her so badly? How he actually SUCCEEDED in fending off Anansi for several minutes without powers and with little experience, and just... never gave up fighting?

PEAK Nino Lahiffe.

Like, to the point that Alya even managed to figure out his identity. Hard to hide that Nino is Nino.

(Also Ladybug giving that little extra reassurance to Chat Noir, that he’s irreplaceable, fills my heart every time.)

3. Glaciator.

The episode that made Marichat fans swoon. The one where Marinette finally found out that Chat Noir is truly, sincerely in love with her, that it’s not just part of his persona. 

Adrien’s frustration and sadness with his father’s standing him up, even while preventing him from seeing his friends helped flesh out his circumstances, his feelings, the way Gabriel’s neglect hurts him, and how it affects him more broadly, with feeling frustrated and upset when Ladybug didn’t show up to dinner either - though in her case with good reason. 

We got to see Chat Noir calmer, not trying to put on a show, not his usual jaunty self, but acting more akin to how he does when he’s Adrien - a shift that’s abrupt enough to take Tikki and Marinette by surprise, despite knowing him so well.

Plus Ladybug and Chat Noir got to have a much needed heartfelt talk, with her letting him know how much she cares for him, values him, but that her heart belongs to another, and Chat Noir affirming how valuable her friendship is to him.

----

Now, most of these first eight could be swapped out with other episodes, and there are others I’m beginning to think should’ve been on the list, but the top 2 EARNED their place, and it’ll take a lot to dislodge them.

---

2. Chat Blanc

This episode was a treasure trove of character development, showing a “What if?” scenario. It affirmed just how quickly Adrien would leap to Ladybug being Marinette (which we caught a glimpse of in Kwamibuster) if given half the chance, and how much he absolutely adores the idea, melting into a love puddle at the thought and being certain that it’s true.

We see that they CAN be happy together, that they would be ecstatic and brimming with love.

How broken up both Adrien and Marinette would be at the unbearable thought of being separated.

And what Adrien’s reaction would be to finding out his mother’s status and that his father’s the supervillain they’ve been fighting this whole time.

Also what an absolute BASTARD of a shitstain of a human being Gabriel is.

Gave Ladybug an added incentive not to fall for Chat Noir, left a lasting impact in that way, as well as adding to the pressure to not make even the slightest mistake, that ended up descending on her in the season finale.

And we got to see Ladybug hugging Chat Noir after purifying him, her determination to ALWAYS consider him Chat Noir, that he IS Chat Noir, that he couldn’t be poisoned so much that he wasn’t still her kitty. She even called her timeline’s version over afterwards, just because she wanted that added reassurance that he was fine. She cares for him so much!

1. Oblivio

This is it. The holy grail. The episode that got me into the show. The one that showed that these two would fall for each other quickly, if certain pesky barriers weren’t in the way. That the “True Selves” narrative is false, that these two are themselves regardless of the costume they wear, just having certain sides of themselves accentuated.

He falls for her because of her wits, her bravery, her cuteness. 

She falls for him because of his kindness, his sincerity, the way he stares at her with those lovesick kitty eyes-

I’m love square trash, so sue me. 

Plus it shakes up their roles a little, evens them out. Both of them are involved with planning, with figuring things out. Both of them get to have fun, and Ladybug in particular seems like she has less pressure on her shoulders.

Also they kiss.

That is important.

[bugaboo-valerie]

Adrien Agreste and Sansa Stark Parallels

1: Both have first and last names that begin in the same letter/matching initials

2: Extremely intelligent emotionally.

3: Black is their color

4: Were manipulated by people they considered friends/loved (Lila for Adrien, and Joffrey for Sansa)

5: Look almost exactly like their mothers

6: Are criticized by certain people for just about everything they do. For Adrien, it’s Luka/Lukanette stans and for Sansa, Dany stans (and some Arya stans too)

7: Sweethearts who are seen as rude for just a single action/thing (Adrien for kissing Marinette on the cheek in Glaciator [which wasn’t sexual harassment. By the same standard, her doing the EXACT SAME THING in Heroes’ Day is also sexual harassment], and Sansa for trusting the Lannisters/Joffrey)

8: In general, are great characters who deserve better than the treatment they get, in both canon and by the fandom. (However, I don’t have any problems with the writing in ML, I mean Adrien deserves better in the sense of his situation at home and Garbage Agreste)

Anyways, all hail the Queen in the North and Chat Noir.

[gaiienpokedex]

01 Nov 2020 - small update to this one, name changes from "Xuelong" to "Bellizzard" to fit in with the other Storm Spirit legendaries. If you liked the old name better, know that multiple language-based names are canon in my setting for all pokemon! ----- (Does not evolve.) #148 - Bellizzard (bella + bellicose + lizard + blizzard) Snowfall Pokémon Ice/Dragon-type A legendary pokémon of winter, it is said to bring gentle snowfall to the deserving, and howling blizzards to the cruel and greedy. One froze an entire army marching on a fortress in solid ice—but it also buried the fortress in dense snow. Base Stats: 80/80/90/110/90/135 (580) Ability: Levitate/[Snow Warning] Learnset: Powder Snow, Icy Wind, Dragon Rage, Ancient Power, Aurora Beam, Ice Beam, Dragon Breath, Dragon Pulse, Noble Roar, Blizzard, Outrage, Hyper Voice, Glaciate, Hail, Aurora Veil, Frost Breath, Scratch, Slash, Icy Slash, Mist, Sheer Cold, Typhoon, Sea Smoke, Flying Nimbus, Heaven's Light, Absolute Zero, Early Frost, Frostbite, Icy Veins, Snow Wave, Cyclone, Hurricane, Gust, Tempest, Whirlwind, Twister, Air Slash, Tailwind

[nyxrsh]

An Unexpected Apology

AO3 link

Words :  2132

After the entire incident involving Papa Garou, Chat wants to express apology for having caused such troubles to Marinette. Seeing his raw sincerity, Marinette thinks why not and decides to let him do his thing. Not having expected him to make such a ridiculous video she is struck quite speechless and questions her sanity.

But really, Adrien joining up with him as if to prank her is not really fair.

Marinette breathed in the Parisian air. It had been long since she had last come up on her balcony to seek the company of the stars and the occasional horns blaring down the streets.

Things had gone back to the way they were before the entire incident with Papa Garou. It had taken Marinette a good amount of time to ensure her father that the ways things turned out to be were the best in the long run. And also that she was absolutely fine with them.

And now, looking at the stars from her balcony, all she could think about how much a dork her partner was. His sincerity and devotion to his job. It was a shame she was head over heels for Adrien.

“Hey Princess!”

Ah, speak of the devil.

“Hey Chat Noir! Fancy seeing you here.”

“Are trying to reference what I said earlier here?” He asked grinning.

“Sharp teeth, sharp eyes and sharp ears? Why grandma! Your actions look a bit suspicious to me. Care to tell me why?”

Chat laughed out loud.

“Can I be your company for the night if you’d be so kind?”

“Sure, yeah,” she said, “I wasn’t planning to do anything. You’re more than welcome here!”

Chat did a double roll, show off, and stood beside her. They looked at the stars together much like they had done so a few weeks back when Glaciator had struck their city. At least he wasn’t perched like a fucking bird on her railings today. And much like that day, it was Chat who ended up breaking the silence.

“Marinette, I am so sorry for what happened the other day,” he began slowly, “I-I’d admit I’m not the best in anything that involves social interaction-“

Marinette looked up to him. It was not very often she saw vulnerability on his face. Yet it never failed to touch her heart seeing such raw emotions on his face.

“-so I guess I never really considered what rejecting someone by saying ‘I’d date myself if I could’ could do.”

Marinette let out a snort. Leave it to Chat to be still worried about something like this.

“I don’t fault you for that Chat, I understand humour is your way of trying to be comfortable with your surroundings”

“It wasn’t even that! It took me hypothetically asking my best friend stuff for him to say how fucked up anyone saying that would be!”

“I-“, Marinette chuckled, “-would have absolutely paid to see that.”

“Hey!”

It took quite before Marinette could bring herself to be quiet again.

“Still,” Chat said, “I feel really bad for having put you through that situation.”

“I think we just established that it was okay.” She said pouting slightly.

Chat grinned. “But that would mean you’d miss out what I have in mind to make it up to you!”

“You don’t really have to do that Chat.”

“But I want to! I’ve thought this over way too much and yeah I want to do this, but only if you’d want me to. So,” he said putting his best impression of baby doll eyes, “what do you say Princess?”

“Hmmm,” she pretended thinking about his offer, mostly because it was funny seeing him start getting restless. She laughed and said, “Alright fine. But not anything over the top. Right Chat?”

“I wouldn’t give any promises Marinette! You’ve have to wait and see!” saying which he took out his baton and leapt away.

Marinette turned around smiling and went inside her room. She saw Tikki sitting on her head probably trying best to eavesdrop.

“What was that about?” Tikki asked.

“Oh it’s just Chat being Chat. Like, what’s the worst he can do, right?”

“Is this really how to plan to spend the weekend kid? You could have been stuffing on so much Camembert! But no!”

“Shut up Plagg, this is a genius idea! I’ve waited so long to do this with a genuine reason to show someone!”

“Yeah, because people wouldn’t immediately pelt you with stones if they saw you doing this on a normal day, right?

“Plagg,” Adrien pretended whining, “Why do you have to bum me out so much?”

“Someone has to put some sense into that dead head of yours.”

“Oh hush, now help me out with this camera.”

“Tikki?”

“Hmm?” She hummed while watching ‘A Bug’s Life’ on Marinette’s phone.

“Do you fancy the ladybug character or something? I swear it’s like the tenth time you are watching it again.”

“Firstly! His name is Francis, fucking respect him! And secondly, No!”

“I guess I’ll take your word for it.”

Marinette turned back to her latest project which would be a gift for Adrien’s fiftieth birthday! Hopefully she would be married to him by then, because it really wasn’t something she could give to someone without having their spouse accuse her of initiating an affair.

Hope could eventually pave the way for happiness.

Or that’s what Marinette has to chant at least ten times at night to herself so she could go to sleep without crying hoping to someday be acquainted with three lovely children and a hamster.

Suddenly a tapping noise came from her skydoor. Passing it off as just hail she turned towards the window to cherish the hailstorm without developing a pain in her neck. Before, however, she could take a step towards her window the sound of glass breaking reached her ear. As she whipped her head out of pure reflex, she saw a gloved hand, making the okay sign, retreat.

It at times paid to be so clumsy, because her parents weren’t currently rushing to see what the matter was. Well aware about their daughter’s rather graceful approach towards anything, they were probably on the way to break out the cash labelled as ‘fueling more disasters’.

Asking Tikki to hide and reminding her to take her earphones with her, she stomped with anger towards her balcony. Being careful not to accidentally cut herself with the broken glass, she slammed the door of the skydoor open.

“Why you little piece of-”

“Marinette!” Chat Noir beamed jumping up and down with excitement. “You wouldn’t believe what happened! It’s like a dream come true for me!”

Anger instantly dissipating just seeing his enthusiasm, Marinette said, “Slow your roll Chat! What’s up?”

“Remember when I said I wouldn’t hesitate to marry myself if I could?”

“Yeah and I am hoping you didn’t discover time travel to bring your past self to the present to get married.”

“Oh.” Chat slowed for a minute mumbling something which very much sounded like ‘shouldn’t have spent that juice to peep on Ladybug’.

Coming back to their conversation he said, “No but this is something even more awesome! While sure I can’t find people with the same level of awesomeness as me,” he winked and pointed his thumbs towards himself, “but you’d be pleased to know that I found someone very close to that! And damn Marinette, he’s such a good find.”

Marinette was highly doubtful of Chat’s claims. But Adrien’s fiftieth birthday was so far away and a good story, regardless of its authenticity, sounded pretty good to her. So she decided to humour him and asked him to go on.

“Right here-” he brought a pen drive out of his pocket, “is the recording of my marriage to someone who is definitely worthy of this piece of evidence that god exists.”

“I’m…” Marinette was at a loss for words. “Did someone really agree to do that?!”

“Now Marinette, being one of the superheroes of this city kind of shoots up my top bachelor ratings. The guy was practically begging me to not turn my proposal down by saying this was a prank!”

“No way.”

“Yes way!”

“And that’s the video?”

“I brought it just for you!”

Marinette wordlessly took the pen drive and made her way into her room motioning him to follow her as well. Chat Noir was absolutely at cloud nine which honestly made her feel apprehensive about looking at the video. As they reached her computer she started waving her arms in a certain manner to tell Tikki that she should absolutely see whatever the heck was happening. And like most times, she forgot that it probably seemed pretty weird to someone other than the two of them.

“Why are you dancing like a monkey? Is it like a ritual that you do to turn your computer on or something?”

Marinette pretended clearing her throat and sat down, “Let’s go with that.”

Chat sat on the other chair and rolled it a bit, looking around the room and commented, “I totally forgot you had all those pictures of him. It'd probably stress you out then”

“Oh right. That’s, yeah, a thing. And no Chat, nothing could ever.” She deflected not wanting to admit her crush to him. “So shall we?” she said clicking to play the video.

“This is going to be so fun!!” he said while bouncing on his seat.

‘A complete dork’ Marinette thought as she turned toward the screen.

A hand obstructed the leans. “Is this thing on?” a strangely familiar voice asked. As the hand was removed Chat Noir was visible on the screen in front of a rock climbing wall.

“Yeah babe, doing a fantastic job there!” He said to someone off-screen.

He looked towards the camera now, waving and said, “Well hi there! It’s a really special day for me today and it’s a wonder I haven’t cried yet.”

Dork.

“Today, this video, shows you how much I’ve developed as an individual. Since the beginning of my strange career, I have been very much in love with my beautiful partner. And fully realizing that she values our identities very much and doesn’t want to have any sort of romantic relationship with me, with a heavy heart I’ve decided to let her go. While she’ll always be in my heart-“

“Hey!”

“-as a well respected co-worker. Geez let me finish! So yeah I am moving forward. And here, today, is my marriage to my match! Honey would you-?”

“Sure sweetheart.”

And entering the screen was Adrien Agreste in his best suit with his hair slicked back looking good enough to eat.

What?! (But damn did he look good)

“Here ladies and gentlemen,” Chat said with so much love in his eyes, “my fiancé!” While we’re both aware we are still not legally eligible to marry legally we’ve decided to exchange rings today-“

“Hence promising our love for one another.” Adrien completed looking towards Chat with such a soft expression.

What the fuck?

“Honey can you get the rings I kept by the door for us?”

Adrien pecked his cheek and went to grab the rings.

Marinette slammed the pause button and looked towards Chat with anger oozing out her eyes, regretting not having killed him at first sight.

“You’re going to miss the main thing Marinette!” He beamed at her, loving her reaction to it, and resumed the video.

“I have probably cried buckets today,” Chat said, “for I had always dreamed about finding my true love. Today I’ve had what life was so cruel to not give me these few years-“

“Aw sweetheart,” Adrien cooed wrapping an arm around Chat, “I thought we agreed we’d let the video thing slid smoothly. Here!” he gave him the rings, “why don’t you go first, ‘kay?”

Chat looked like someone had gift wrapped him the stars. He nodded plucking a ring from Adrien’s outstretched hand and slowly slide the ring into his finger. After an exchange of a longing glance, Adrien did the same and the both of them started jumping with excitement.

“Can we-?”

“Sure honey, just let me end this real quick.” He turned towards the camera and said, “So here we have it folks, the union of the dashing Chat Noir and the handsome, beautiful Adrien Agreste. Please do not feel compelled to give us any gifts! We’re more than fine with your best wishes! Till next time!” He saluted.

The video ended. And so did Marinette's hospitality towards Chat Noir.

Marinette silently turned towards Chat. He seemed to be waiting for her reaction wearing the biggest smile on his face.

She promptly screamed at his face.

Chat fled not wanting be in the presence of her parents a second time while being the reason of the distress.

As the rushing of her parents downstairs and Chat’s attempt at a smooth flee registered in her brain, all Marinette could think of was skinning Chat Noir alive the next time she saw him. And definitely taking a holiday.

She didn’t ever think there’d come a day when she wanted to punch Adrien straight in the face. Yet here she was. At least he’d have totally deserved it.  

[pokemon-inspiration]

Ouisko Region Overview

The Ouisko region lies within the northern reaches of the Pokemon world, which has shaped much of its landscape, culture, and ecology. Its people are warm and friendly, with a love of rich food, festivals, and the surprisingly diverse natural world around them.

Overall, the region can be divided up into four major areas: The Metropolis Coast, the more heavily populated and industrialized region along the coast of Lake Michi-Gami which boasts great cities and picturesque gardens; ; The Driftless Plains, a flat sandy expanse of pines, prairies, and bluffs overlooking the Big Muddy River; The Great Snowy Forest, a massive and ancient forest stretching north to the frigid waters of Lake Gichi-Gami; and the Drumlins, a dynamic landscape bearing the old scars of the glaciers that dominates the center of the region and supports many of its farms. 

Due to its northern location, the Ouisko region was heavily impacted by the glaciers that invaded and retreated through the area during the last Ice Age. The massive walls of ice kneaded and tore at the land as if it were dough, then melted and deposited sediment throughout the region, resulting in much of it being covered in land forms like drumlins, moraines, kettle lakes, iskers, and kames. Even the areas that weren’t glaciated were often lying at the bottoms of great glacial lakes, resulting in great tracts of flat sandy prairies when the glaciers released the dammed up water. To this day, Ground type Pokemon are drawn to the region for its dynamic geography, from the Drumlin Moraines in the east to the Sand Plains in the west, and Ice types still linger in the northern reaches as reminders of colder days gone by.

While Ouisko does not border a true ocean like other regions, it still has plenty of water to boast. The most obvious examples are the two massive freshwater seas that border the region. Lake Gichi-Gami lies to the north, a relatively pristine, untouched lake surrounded by gorgeous pine forests and dotted with clusters of islands. Lake Michi-Gami to the east is more well traveled, and is a haven for fisherfolk and those interested in recreation. Unfortunately it is also a hotbed of invasive Pokemon from other regions like Dressenick, a small Water/Steel type distantly related to Shellder and prone to forming large colonies on whatever it can attach to.

In addition to Gichi-Gami and Michi-Gami, Ouisko has a plethora of lakes left over from the Ice Age, known as kettle lakes, that were formed by large chunks of ice becoming embedded in the ground, as well as a great number of connecting rivers, streams, and wetlands. Along with the freshwater seas, this results in the Ouisko region being a hotbed of activity for Water-type enthusiasts.

While Johto leads the Pokemon world in its famed Moomoo Milk, Ouisko is known for its various products made from Moomoo Milk. Moomoo curds, unaged chunks of cheese, are the snack of choice Ouiskonites across the region that delight in their bright flavor and their squeaky texture. Properly aged cheeses are also a great source of pride for the region, with cheese producers scattered all across the region, even acting as a regional symbol during sporting events. One of the most popular Moomoo Milk products in the Ouisko region, however, is Ouisko Frozen Custard, a silky smooth, delightfully sweet frozen dessert consumed from the Ice Cave Islands to Creamstone City by people and Pokemon alike. One franchise of Moomoo Custard stands, Vanillie’s (named for its Vanillite mascot and inspired by real world custard stand Gillies), is hailed far and wide as serving the finest frozen custard in the land. Other regional foods include Butter Bean Burgers, kringles, dried cranberries, and the creme puff. Needless to say, Ouiskonites love their sweets.

In the field of testing one’s abilities, the Ouisko region has quite a few to choose from. Vanillie’s Ice Plunge Challenge occurs on the shores of Lake Michi-Gami every winter, testing the fortitude of their participants by plunging them into the icy waters. The Mad Mikes Barn Bike Race is an annual charity fundraising bike race that draws bikers from all over the region and beyond. The race, while intense, follows a scenic path through Ouisko’s beautiful farmland, which gives it a somewhat relaxing feel for those who aren’t in it to necessarily win. And, of course, there are plenty of cooking competitions within the many festivals held around Creamstone City in the warmer months. One of the most popular and iconic activities, however, are the lumberjack sporting events that occur throughout the region, pitting the strength and skill of people and Pokemon against nature itself as they scale trees, saw through massive logs, and keep their balance on logs floating on water.

Of course, what tends to attract the most trainers to the region is the Journey of the Nine Councils. Originally formed as bands of like-minded trainers who stood united against those who would completely destroy the natural regions for their own greed, the Nine Councils remain scattered across the Ouisko region to test young trainers and their Pokemon. The tradition exists to recreate the deeds that brought the Councils into being and pass down the history of the region while honing the skills of the trainers and their Pokemon. Each Council elects a Head Councilman or Councilwoman from within their own ranks, usually someone with a keen understanding of their favored element and knowledge in its role in nature.

Those who begin their Pokemon journeys in the Ouisko region have three options for their first parter: Violing, a Grass type Pokemon resembling a fledgeling mourning dove with the leaves of a wood violet for a tail (based on the mourning dove and the wood violet, Wisconsin’s state symbol of peace and state plant respectively); Pupuddle, friendly a canine Water-type Pokemon with blue and white curly fur (based on the American water spaniel, Wisconsin’s state dog breed); and Burnager, a stocky badger-like Fire-type with a penchant for burrowing closer to the Earth’s warm core during the cold winter months (based on the North American badger, Wisconsin’s state animal)

[ladylynse]

Marichat May 2018!

Day 7 - Mari protects Chat

Sacrifice: [FF | AO3] Sometimes, a bad plan is the only one you have--but for Marinette, it’s better than the alternative.

Spoilers for Glaciator, S2.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this, but when were things ever the way they were supposed to be?

Marinette sucked in a breath, tasting ice in the now-wintry air, and swallowed hard. She—well, Ladybug—and Chat had agreed to meet for an earlier patrol today, at dusk instead of dark, since she was due to be up before the sun tomorrow morning and working in the bakery. She’d volunteered, of course. Helping out her father like that meant he’d teach her how to bake things for her friends as gifts.

It had been a beautiful spring evening, akuma-free (or so she’d thought), so a stroll along the river had seemed ideal. When André had seen her, still without her special someone, he had insisted treating her to some of the finest ice cream in all of Paris. She still appreciated his description of her lover—mint for his eyes, peach for his lips—but now she was wondering who it meant.

Adrien wasn’t the only one she knew with green eyes.

And since Chat Noir had professed his love of Ladybug, didn’t that mean he could grow to love Marinette, too? She’d be lying if she said she didn’t pine for Adrien, but Chat…. Her heart had started beating faster whenever she caught sight of him unexpectedly. She didn’t trip over her words with him—she really did know him too well to be so tongue-tied, especially when conversing with that goofball—and she couldn’t claim that he wasn’t the least bit endearing or loveable. He was funny, even if she’d never admit it to his face, and kind, and caring, and recklessly brave—

She really needed to make sure he didn’t do something stupid. He had a bad habit of doing that.

—and it almost seemed like a relationship with Chat Noir, one of the heroes of Paris, was more plausible for her than one with Adrien Agreste, arguably the most famous teen model in the city. And she…. It was a bit surprising to realize that she wouldn’t be disappointed if that were the case. She could be herself with Chat Noir. The only mask she ever needed to hide behind was Ladybug’s.

Besides, it was Chat Noir who had found her on the steps by the Pont des Arts before she’d hardly taken two licks of her treat, not Adrien. It was her partner who had jokingly asked why his purr-incess was eating all alone, not her classmate. It was her kitty, not her first crush, with whom she had ended up sharing her ice cream.

They’d both been too preoccupied by the ensuing teasing conversation to notice the gathering storm clouds until they’d been caught in the middle of a torrential downpour.

“Just keep back, Purr-incess. I won’t let him hurt you.” Chat Noir pushed her behind him and readied his staff, glaring at the self-proclaimed Tempest whose powers were all too reminiscent of Stormy Weather’s. “He needs to learn to chill out, anyway.”

Marinette groaned. “This isn’t the time for puns!” she hissed.

Tempest grinned. “Au contraire. The cat is right, little lady. It was getting entirely too heated between you two lovers.” Marinette squawked indignantly—nothing had happened! At least not yet; they hadn’t had time!—but Tempest continued, “Don’t get to thinking that love will thaw a frozen heart or that you’re safe in the eye of the storm. Storms can be amazingly unpredictable.”

She felt the first pebbles of ice sting her skin, and then the hail was raining down on them. Chat Noir spun his staff, doing his best to deflect what had grown to baseball-sized projectiles. Marinette cowered closer to him, trying to get under the cover of his staff, but the wind kept changing direction—

If she were Ladybug right now, she could help him, but as it stood, she was a burden. He’d begin to tire soon, and that would make them both easy prey. And hail that size…. If it didn’t kill them, it would certainly break something flying at them with such speed.

Tempest laughed, twisting his hands to redirect the wind again. She couldn’t pick out a pattern, and with her here, Chat Noir was too worried about defending her to dare attack.

She’d have to try to distract Tempest. She’d take anything over this deadly hail. “Isn’t baseball supposed to be the American pastime?” she yelled.

Chat Noir snorted but took the cue for what it was and tried to hit one of the hailstones in Tempest’s direction. It shattered on impact, and Chat Noir immediately returned to shielding them. “Good try, Purr-incess,” he said, “but don’t make him angry. I don’t want him targeting you.”

Drawing his ire had been her next plan, but she could wait a moment to see if Chat Noir already had a plan. She didn’t dare wait longer. Tempest was hardly lifting a finger in this fight, and without her to provide backup…..

“Now, now,” cooed Tempest, “is it really fair to let this go on for so long? You know how the weather is. It can change in an instant.”

The temperature plummeted even more. Mercifully, the hail stopped, but the cold didn’t. She shivered as it began to snow. She wanted to think of that as an advantage—she’d take snow over hail any day—but it was falling thick and fast, making it difficult to see, and Tempest had directed the wind so that it blew in his favour.

The wind went right through her soaked spring jacket—all her clothes, really—and now that she wasn’t too preoccupied with dodging hailstones, she could feel the chill settling in her bones.

“Of course,” added Tempest, “if the gentleman would give up his Miraculous, we wouldn’t need to see how long it would take his lady friend to freeze to death.”

“Ladybug will be here soon,” Chat Noir murmured. “When she comes, use the distraction to run. It should be any minute now.”

Except it wouldn’t be, because she was already here, and she couldn’t ask Tikki to transform her in front of them and anyone else who might be watching.

Marinette couldn’t think of the right words to say—she wasn’t supposed to know that Ladybug was to meet Chat here—so her only reply was chattering teeth.

“Rather foolish, don’t you think, going over your plans in front of me?” The wind picked up, and Marinette’s shivering became more violent. She could feel her clothes beginning to freeze, and that wind—! “You might be able to handle the cold, Chat Noir, but do you really want to risk the lady?”

Chat Noir cast her a worried glance. He didn’t see Tempest thrust out his hands and blast them with a plough wind to rip them apart. He recovered quickly enough, springing to his feet, but she went down hard. Her joints felt stiff. Her skin and sinuses hurt from the biting cold, and she had to keep blinking or she feared her eyes would freeze shut.

She’d only taken three breaths since the wind had let up, and she could already see frost gathering on her lashes.

“Alternatively,” Tempest drawled, “if you won’t just give me your Miraculous, why not come with me and help me get Ladybug’s? I’ll let your little lady friend live if you do.”

She saw Chat frown and realized what he was willing to give up to protect her. Something inside twisted. He had said that he loved Ladybug, but since she hadn’t appeared to reciprocate his feelings and since he’d found her as Marinette here, now…. Maybe Tempest’s taunts had been more truth than she’d realized. The heart really could realize things before the brain. Surely Chat Noir wouldn’t have spilled his feelings to just anyone, and surely he wouldn’t have shared her ice cream if he didn’t harbour some hope, too. André’s work was famous across Paris; Chat would know what it meant.

And the treat really did describe her kitty perfectly.

But now he wanted to sacrifice himself for her. Give in to Tempest, to Hawk Moth. To protect her. Over Paris.

She couldn’t let him do that.

She couldn’t bear to lose him.

“D-don’t!” The word was forced out in a burst of fog. She wasn’t used to being this cold. She took a deep breath, and her lungs burned, the cold air somehow feeling like it was scorching her windpipe. Her chest ached. “It’s—it’s not…worth it.”

The wind began to stir up the snow again, growing to a howl.

Marinette hoped the sharp pain she felt in her fingers and toes—somehow stronger than everywhere else—was a good sign rather than bad. It meant she had time, didn’t it? Because she could still feel them?

“Marinette.” Chat Noir’s face suddenly filled her vision. His hair was frozen in a spiky mess. “I’m going to protect you. Don’t worry. Just hold on. Ladybug and I will show this guy he’s just full of hot air.”

Marinette shook her head violently. “N-no.” If Chat Noir’s plan was to hold off Tempest until Ladybug showed up, it would never work. He was just exhausting himself this way, and if he kept this up, Tempest would wear him out. Controlling the wind as easily as he did, she wasn’t even sure Chat would be able to get close enough to use Cataclysm on anything effectively.

The only way she could protect Chat Noir now was to separate them and give him time to come up with a decent plan. He was quick and clever; he’d work something out if she couldn’t get free. She turned to Tempest, who was still clearly amused by the exchange and who looked utterly unaffected by the weather he was causing. “Take me.”

“Marinette!” protested Chat Noir. The raw emotion in his voice made her heart ache for an entirely different reason.

Trust me, kitty. I trust you.

She forced herself to ignore him, climbing slowly to her feet and staring down Tempest, who had snorted in disbelief. “Ladybug will sa-sacrifice herself for i-innocent people.” Hawk Moth would remember the incident with Pharaoh. He would also remember being tricked, but that couldn’t be helped. And then there was the time Volpina had taken Adrien, or at least she’d thought she had. If Chat Noir hadn’t figured out the truth and stopped her….

Besides, Hawk Moth wouldn’t know he had already captured Ladybug, and she’d rather go with Tempest as Marinette now than try to track him down as Ladybug later. Even with Tikki’s magic on her side, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to catch up quickly enough to do her kitty much good. He was far better off rescuing her this time. “Chat Noir…is a hero. He knows…the risks.” She tried to will her chattering teeth into submission. “He and Ladybug will put Paris above each other.”

She didn’t know if her words were true. They should be, but could she really take things that far? There had been some close calls, but she and Chat Noir had come through so much together. They hadn’t had to face a choice like that. Not really. They’d always managed to find ways around it.

Except this time.

She wasn’t Ladybug right now, and she wasn’t sacrificing Tikki or her Miraculous for her partner, just herself, but….

She didn’t look at Chat. She didn’t need to. She could imagine his face.

He wouldn’t know if what she’d said was the truth, either.

And he wouldn’t like what she was trying to do now.

She was shaking, smaller shivers interrupted by larger shudders. “Take me,” she repeated. “I’m b-better bait. L-Ladybug and Chat Noir….” She trailed off, glancing at him and hoping he’d read the message in her eyes. Let me go. Don’t give up your Miraculous, whatever you do. “They’re more likely to g-give you what you want if I’m your h-hostage.”

If she could sneak away and transform at some point, later claiming Ladybug had freed her, then all the better. But if she couldn’t…. Chat Noir would find a way to rescue her, once he’d worked out how. She could help him more then. Now, all she could do was try to convince Tempest that this was the better trade. 

She didn’t know how else to protect her kitty besides buying him time.

Tempest titled his head to one side, considering.

Chat Noir’s hand appeared on hers, and a distant part of her mind realized she couldn’t feel him. His suit was keeping him warm, but it was a cold on the outside as she was. “Purr-incess, please, don’t do this.”

“I have to.” She’d stopped shivering. She wasn’t sure when, but that was good. Tempest must have let the weather warm some, even though she could still see water droplets frozen on Chat’s mask and ice fog with each breath. Perhaps Tempest was letting his guard down, or at least seriously considering her offer instead of trying to lull them into a false sense of security. Maybe she’d be able to do this after all. “You’re always protecting people, kitty. Let me protect you for just a little bit longer.”

His expression was agonized. “Marinette—”

“Just— Don’t wait for Ladybug, okay, kitty cat? You’re brilliant on your own. You’ll find a way around this even if something’s got her tied up.” A burst of giggles erupted out of her at the words; for all she knew, they wouldn’t be far off the truth. “But whatever you do, don’t give up your Miraculous for me. Paris needs you. And if me going with Tempest means you’re still able to be the hero I know you are, then I’ll go.”

He stared at her, but before he could find the words to dissuade her, she leaned forward and kissed him. It was the only thing she could leave him with right now, a promise of what may be in the future if they got through this. He stiffened for a moment, not expecting it, but she felt him relax and lean into it. He felt so warm against her lips, a sanctuary in this world of ice. She wanted to embrace him, to throw herself into his arms and melt into him, to extend this moment together—but she couldn’t. She had to protect him. “See you soon, kitty,” she murmured, her lips still brushing his. A pleasantly warm feeling had filled her. “Rain or shine.”

Wind shot between them again, forcing them apart. “Oh, come now,” taunted Tempest. “You can’t expect me to believe this’ll be a fair trade if I let you plan how to trick me.” She saw his hand close on her wrist, and he pulled her towards him. “Till next time, Chat Noir. Bring me Ladybug and your Miraculous if you’d like to see your little lady alive again. Otherwise, I’m afraid you’ll get a rather icy reception from her.”

Chat Noir’s eyes narrowed. She saw his lips move, but the wind stole his words and then snow swirled in front of her vision, robbing her of that as well.

Good luck, kitty.

Part II

[kkintle]

The Cloudspotter's Guide by Gavin Pretor-Pinney; Quotes

We think that clouds are Nature’s poetry, and the most egalitarian of her displays, since everyone can have a fantastic view of them.

We say to all who’ll listen: Look up, marvel at the ephemeral beauty, and live life with your head in the clouds.

Cumulus is the Latin word for ‘heap’, which is simply to say that these clouds have a clumpy, stacked shape. The people who concern themselves with such things divide them into humilis, mediocris and congestus formations–these are known as ‘species’ of Cumulus. Humilis, meaning humble in Latin, are the smallest, being wider than they are tall; mediocris are as tall as they are wide, and congestus are taller still.

Attention all cloudspotters: ‘In the morning mountains, in the afternoon fountains.’

Cloudspotters will be pleased to see this most clearly demonstrated when sailing around a small island on a sunny day. The surface of the island is warmed by the sun’s radiation more readily than the sea around it, and a puffy, white Cumulus cloud can often be seen poised above it, fed by the thermal coming off the ground. South Sea Islanders would use Cumulus clouds as beacons, navigating toward an atoll well before the land itself became visible.

In fact, Cumulus clouds can form above fires. Known as pyrocumulus, these appear as Cumulus mounds atop the plumes of smoke from stubble burning or wildfires.

The darkness of a Cumulus cloud depends, firstly, on whether you are looking at the side in shadow and, secondly, on the brightness of the sky or other clouds behind it. But it also depends on the number of water droplets that the cloud contains, for it is these that scatter the sunlight and prevent some of it from passing through. The more laden with droplets a cloud is, the darker it will appear with the sun behind. Cloudspotters will note that as a Cumulus grows in size from its small humilis form, through the mediocris stage into a towering thick congestus, its base will appear darker and darker as the thickening cloud blocks out more and more sunlight.

CUMULONIMBUS The towering thunderclouds that scare us senseless

The classic shape of a mature Cumulonimbus is a huge vertical column, several miles across and extending up as high as 60,000ft (over 11 miles), which spreads out at the top to resemble a blacksmith’s anvil. This upper canopy is called the ‘incus’ (after the Latin for anvil) and consists of ice crystals, rather than the water droplets that make up the rest of the thundercloud. The anvil can stretch out over hundreds of miles, as it is spread by the strong winds high in the atmosphere. From a distance it can have a calm, majestic beauty.

Cloudspotters can distinguish a Cumulonimbus from its younger brother, the Cumulus congestus, by careful observation of its upper reaches. If the top of the cloud still has the sharp cauliflower mounds found on a fair-weather Cumulus, it is officially known as a Cumulus congestus. It only becomes a Cumulonimbus when the upper region becomes ‘glaciated’, which means that its water droplets have begun to freeze into solid ice particles. A Cumulonimbus anvil of ice crystals is brighter and has softer edges than the top of a towering Cumulus.

Whilst the Nimbostratus doesn’t have anything like the height of a Cumulonimbus, and often spreads out horizontally over hundreds of square miles, it can be hard to distinguish the two from underneath. The weather below a Cumulonimbus is what will give it away. If there is hail, thunder, lightning and strong, gusty winds, then cloudspotters can be confident that they are in the company of the King of Clouds.

From inception to dissipation, an individual Cumulonimbus might last up to an hour or so, leading to a relatively short-lived storm. But thunderstorms can often last much longer than this, since these villains of the cloud world do not always work alone. They have a tendency to form into gangs, which is when they are at their most destructive. As one Cumulonimbus is dissipating, another rises ahead of it. Collectively, they resonate in an enormous self-propagating system of extreme weather that lays waste to whatever is in its path.

Published in three languages, the book was called The International Cloud Atlas and contained numerous photographs to illustrate the ten cloud genera agreed by the committee. Number nine in the list was Cumulonimbus, the tallest of all the types. To be on cloud nine is therefore to be on the highest one.

Just as Cumulus clouds can occur in the different species of humilis, mediocris, congestus and fractus, the Cumulonimbus can be one of two possible species. These are called ‘calvus’ and ‘capillatus’ and they are distinguished by the appearance of the upper, ice-particle region. Cumulonimbus calvus is when the cloud’s anvil is smooth with soft edges. Cumulonimbus capillatus is characterised by an upper region that is fibrous and striated. It is named after the Latin for hair, and can look like the disorderly locks of a child who’s just been in a playground scrap.

(…) ‘fork’ or ‘sheet’ lightning. In actual fact, there is no difference between the two–sheet lightning is merely when the body of the cloud hides the fork lightning from view, and one sees a flickering illumination of the cloud as a whole.

STRATUS The low, misty blankets

(…) distractions occasionally become so profound and sustained that the yogis lose track of their spiritual path altogether. They call it a ‘storm of Maya’. It is one in which illusory ways of thinking and feeling block out the Supreme Light altogether. At times like these, he said, the yogis remind themselves that, beyond the clouds, the sun never stops shining.

WITHOUT THE STRATUS, I would never have experienced the peculiar joy of walking through a cloud. Being the lowest of all the types, whose base rarely forms above 1, 600ft, it is the only one that happily comes down to join us at ground level. Tethered to terra firma like this, Stratus is referred to as fog or mist.

WHEN IS EARTH-BOUND Stratus described as fog, and when is it mist? The official distinction relates to how far you can see through it. If you can see less than 1, 000 yards, then meteorologists call it fog. Visibility between 1, 000 and 2, 000 yards, and they call it mist. (If you can see less than a thousand yards and there is no Stratus, then you are just short-sighted.)

Advection and radiation are the most common types of fog, but they are certainly not the only ones. ‘Steam fog’ appears when cold air flows over warm water (the opposite of advection fog) and the vapour evaporating off the water’s surface instantly cools enough to form into droplets. The swirls of rising droplets are the evaporation process made visible, for water is constantly rising from the sea surface as vapour, but normally you can’t see it. This type of fog is at its most dramatic in polar regions, where it is known as ‘Arctic sea smoke’.

Stratus–at its best when viewed from the top of a mountain.

(…) words by the American poet, James Russell Lowell: Who knows whither the clouds have fled? In the unscarred heaven they leave no wake, And the eyes forget the tears they have shed, The heart forgets its sorrow and ache…

As with any of the cloud genera, a Stratocumulus does not have to be one of these recognised species: if it doesn’t fit one of the above descriptions, a patch of low clumpy clouds is just called Stratocumulus.

Of course, clouds pay little attention to the rules of behaviour we presumptuously ascribe to them. Chaotic to their misty core, they do their best to confound our attempts at classification. How can a body so nebulous, ephemeral and mutable ever be pigeon-holed? Cloudspotters will come to love the cloud’s rebelliousness–just when they think they have identified a formation, it will change and mock their attempt to pin it down.

Contemplating the heavens below, a cloudspotter can always escape–even if for just a few minutes–from the trials and pressures of life. Let others dream of escaping to a place in the sun. Cloudspotters know better.

ALTOCUMULUS The layers of bread rolls in the sky

A cloudspotter should hold up three fingers with an extended arm. If the individual elements of the layer are wider than all three fingers, the cloud is probably of the lower Stratocumulus genus. If they are smaller than the width of one finger, then it is more likely to be a high layer of cloudlets, called a Cirrocumulus. It is most likely to be an Altocumulus layer when the size of the cloudlets is somewhere between the two–smaller than three fingers and larger than one. However, the giving-the-cloud-the-fingers rule doesn’t work if cloudspotters are looking at clouds off in the distance. Their outstretched arm needs to be angled above 30° from the horizontal for it to apply.

The second rule of thumb for identifying Altocumulus has to do with the shading of its cloudlets. When the sky above is clear and the sun shines directly on to the cloud, Altocumulus will have noticeable shading on the sides away from the sun, though this will not be particularly heavy. With the lower Stratocumulus, the shaded parts are often quite dark, while the tiny cloudlets of the high Cirrocumulus show no shading at all.

CLOUDSPOTTERS MUST SURRENDER themselves to the gentle shifts of the clouds’ formations. If they cannot identify a particular cloud form, then so be it–they should just relax and watch it develop. Before long, a familiar formation will appear.

This is not how to look at clouds. Cloudspotters won’t find shapes in them by force of will, nor by searching with half a mind on what the person beside them sees. The best way to find shapes is to look up, empty your mind, and let them find you.

ALTOSTRATUS The mid-level layers, known as ‘the boring clouds’

NIMBOSTRATUS The thick, grey blankets that rain and rain and rain

But just as a Christmas tree actually has its branches pointing upwards, raindrops don’t fall in the shape of tears. Tiny cloud droplets may be pretty much perfect little spheres but, once they’ve grown large enough to fall fast, they are greatly distorted by air resistance and are not shaped like spheres–or indeed teardrops–at all. When they are a couple of millimeters or more across, raindrops actually look like the top half of hamburger buns.

In the words of St Basil the Great, from the fourth century: Many a man curses the rain that falls upon his head, and knows not that it brings abundance to drive away the hunger.

Or as John Updike, the American novelist, put it: ‘Rain is grace; rain is the sky condescending to the earth; without rain, there would be no life.’

CIRRUS The delicate streaks of falling ice crystals

Nevertheless, to look up at Cirrus clouds is to see snow–well, ice crystals, to be precise–falling too high to reach the ground. Cloudspotters may live in regions too warm for snow but, in the Cirrus clouds, they can still see how it looks from a few miles off.

That Cirrus can be harbingers of a ‘deterioration’ in the weather only adds to their fragile beauty–are not the most delicious things the ones we know can’t last?

THE ATMOSPHERE ITSELF is an ocean–one of air, rather than water. The relationship between the atmospheric ocean and the actual one is close, and of great relevance to the formation of clouds in general.

CIRROSTRATUS The high milky veils that most people barely notice

That first time I saw a cloud smile was on a London street, and no one else seemed to be paying the slightest bit of notice to the sky. I was transfixed, of course, but the passers-by all had other things on their minds. I felt as if I was the only one watching this particular smile. In fact, looking back on it, I can say that I most definitely was the only one. Even if others had been staring up, they would not have seen the same CZA as me. As sunlight passed through the countless crystals up in the cloud, it was being scattered in all directions. But it was only those crystals that sparkled light directly to my eyes that created the light effect for me. Some of them flashed a little red-looking light towards me, others a little blue. Say some of the bustling Londoners had turned out to be cloudspotters in disguise. Had they dropped their shopping and stood beside me to look up at the coloured arc too, the array of crystals sparkling directly into their eyes would have been different ones from mine. They would have seen a different circumzenithal arc. We would each have seen our own smiles.

Despite the stunning range of crystal forms, there is one theme that keeps appearing season after season –the number six. The arms of the stellar dendrites and the sectored plates, the edges of the hexagonal plates, the sides of the columns…when it comes to ice crystals, six, rather than three, is the magic number. This is due to the shape of water molecules, which determines that as they join to form crystals, they do so in a lattice formation of hexagons –a molecular honeycomb.

Even when you know the explanation for crepuscular rays, it is hard not to think of them as somehow divine in nature. In Hellenistic and Roman art, emperors were often depicted with a crown of rays, known as a ‘radiate’. This signified their association with the sun gods, Helios and Sol, and was also used as a sign of posthumous divinity. With the rise of Christianity, the symbol was dropped in place of a circular halo, called a ‘nimbus’. The rays of the radiate were felt to be too pagan in association.

Rainbows are most commonly seen in conjunction with the convection clouds like Cumulus congestus or Cumulonimbus. This is because those clouds are individual precipitating clouds, rather than expansive layers. With gaps in between, there is a fair chance of direct sunlight shining on to rainfall.

The rainbow that a cloudspotter sees standing in one position is never the same as that observed from another one. The droplets that are over in the direction of the arc–perhaps a half to one and a half miles away–each sparkle a bit of sunlight into his eyes. From the drops that fall through the sky off in some directions, it is the yellow-looking part of the spectrum that twinkles at the cloudspotter. From those in other directions, it is the violet, etc. This means that, should the observer change position, different raindrops will be the ones sparkling at him. Hopefully, this will help cloudspotters accept that it is a futile and, frankly, humiliating aspiration to seek the end of a rainbow. It is like driving a speedboat this way and that in an attempt to stop the line of glitters that the sun casts on the sea’s surface from pointing toward you.

Your rainbow is not my rainbow.

Rainbows may be the most familiar of the sky’s optical delights, but how many of us notice the finer points of their appearance? How many realise that the sky within the bow is brighter than that outside it? How many have spotted, on occasion, a secondary bow, outside the primary one, dimmer than it, and with the reverse order of colours? How many have seen ‘Alexander’s Dark Band’? This is not a goth group from Middlesbrough, but the name for the dark region between the primary and secondary rainbows.

THE OTHER CLOUDS The accessory clouds, supplementary features, and stratospheric and mesospheric clouds

CONTRAILS The lines of condensation that form behind high-altitude aircraft

MORNING GLORY The cloud that glider pilots surf

I learnt that the Morning Glory can stretch 600 miles–as long as Britain–and moves at speeds of up to 35mph. Moreover, a small group of intrepid glider pilots travel thousands of miles across Australia, each year, in the hope of encountering it. They wait around, during the springtime months of September and October, in the tiny settlement of Burketown, where the cloud usually forms, with one mission: to ‘soar’ the Morning Glory. It is considered to be one of the most amazing gliding experiences, and one that can only be described as cloud surfing.

[epfloutthere]

In the NoMads lands

Well, apparently we are No Mads. It’s an anagram, sourcing from the special echo that still rings in our ears after a month of intense fieldwork in the land of Nomads. From the cold and wind swept Arabel Plateau, where time seemed to be frozen, we rapidly found ourselves back to the heat of Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek, navigating through the Kyrgyz bureaucratic reefs, to obtain the necessary permits for the exportation of our samples. Such violent change shook the inner peace we acquired up there can really drive someone mad, so the title of the blog update goes. Far from that the calmness of Nomadic life and vivid images of the vast Kyrgyz countryside, monopolize our thoughts since our return back home.

From the Capital to the Mountains

Kyrgyzstan is the country where the Nomads house, the yurt dome, is omnipresent and the Tunduk, the central part of the yurt, is proudly illustrated along with 40 rays of sun in the country’s national flag. The Kyrgyz mountain ranges of Tien Shan and Pamir Alay, hosted the second (after Nepal) High Mountain Asia expedition of Vanishing Glaciers project. This expedition was a dive into the unknown, as it was the first encounter with the mountains of Central Asia for all team members. Besides the mountains themselves, it was our first flirt with the Nomadic culture and an introduction to the way that Kyrgyz alpinists treat their home mountains, a behaviour that has been largely inherited from the Soviet times.

The extensive piedmont of the Pamirs with carefree camels and horses, which unlike us seemed to have no reason to bother for the stormy conditions up on the mountains (Photo © Matteo Tolosano)

The capital Bishkek is a good example of a fast developing and expanding central Asian city. Many green spaces and parks with running waters constitute a safe hideout from the blazing summer heat. Old Soviet grey and blocky shaped buildings alternate with traditional and more delicately shaped constructions of Central Asian architecture and a fast evolving commercial center occupied by western style modern constructions, make up an interesting visual mix in the crossroads of the Soviet past, the Kyrgyz present and the globalized future. Bishkek is one of the very few places in the world, if not the only, that people drive from both right and left sides, which apparently is the aftermath of second hand automobile importation from different corners of the world. The overall calm vibes of the city apparently help a lot in avoiding car crashes and accidents and the relaxed attitude of the Kyrgyz people is evident from the second one disembarks from the airplane. Bishkek is intelligently placed in the corner of a large fertile plain, receiving water from the glaciers of the proximal West Tien Shan Mountains, which on a clear day one feels that can really “touch” them.

Pleasant walks through many of Bishkek’s green parks, historical monuments and well maintained governmental buildings, with the glacier-covered summits of Tien Shan Mountains posing in the background (Photo © Matteo Tolosano)

Familiar landscapes but…

The proximity of a large number of glaciers to Bishkek and their relatively low elevation, makes them an easy target for scientific research and after our recent Himalayan high-altitude, long-distance marches in cold and snowy conditions, we could not pass by such a luxurious reality. Ala Archa valley is a major touristic destination, where many local people spent their summer weekends to get the coolness of the glaciers’ waters, while flinging to various activities such as daylong barbequing, and some volleyball and hiking for digesting. As one moves higher in the valley, the scenery is changing and encounters with trekkers and alpinists become dominant. The landscapes were visually familiar, resembling parts of the Alps, but the wakeup call of being in Kyrgyzstan and not in the Alps, was the diet in our base camp, which involved large portions of meat from breakfast to dinner. For sure, this is not the best place for people with vegetarian or vegan rituals…

It could have been anywhere in the Alps, but it’s not. The beautiful Ala Archa valley had a little surprise for us on its upper reaches (Photo © Mike Styllas)

In Ala Archa, we worked with a big team of porters, as our goal was to sample six glaciers spread along the valley. This meant that we had to move our camp almost every day. In our efforts to pace ourselves over successive long climbs, we had to walk, or crawl across awkward metallic constructions that resembled river bridges and we came upon locations dubbed “The Dream of Idiots”, which blew philosophical dilemmas in our heads, such as “Are we also idiots to be up here?” Of course, such mental loops were blown away by the next day’s strenuous climb. Our work in the end of the valley exposed us to a new experience. A ghost building, which resembled an old Soviet ski station that was operating year round. It was hard to imagine the place crowded with people from Bishkek and workers from Lenin Factory both winter and summer. People were arriving there either by big mining trucks through the road (?), or by helicopters sponsored by the USSR state…different times, different realities, but good food for imagination and of how our world has been changing.

Remnants of another era and a reminder of Global Changes… Glaciers were reaching the buildings of the year-round ski station that was flooded with people from Bishkek back in the Soviet times. Hard to imagine nowadays (Photo © Mike Styllas)

The Pamirs If the access to Ala Archa valley from Bishkek was short and easy, then our drive to the heart of the Pamirs proved to be long and difficult. Nevertheless, the two days of driving to reach Pic Lenin base camp, was an interesting northeast-to-southwest traverse of Kyrgyzstan. As one approaches the city of Osh, which stands there for 3,000 years, the route passes through ever-changing landscapes. For several kilometers, the road moves on the borderline with Uzbekistan. The more south we moved the more the Uzbek culture was becoming dominant, but anywhere in the landscape, we could spot the nomads and their yurts, as white dots into the green background.

Alternating landscapes on the drive to Osh, confirmed our initial view that Kyrgyzstan is culturally and geologically a diverse country. The golden hills were another piece in the puzzle (Photo © Matteo Tolosano)

For novices to Pamir mountaineering reality, like ourselves, the arrival in Pic Lenin base camp by automobile, was an interesting experience. After crossing the extensive piedmont of the Pamirs through the bumpy dirt road, we were warmly welcomed by Michail, the base camp manager. Right away like all the aspiring summiteers of this 7000-meter peak, we were placed in already set tents. The whole setting resembled a tight and well-organized high-mountain camping, rather than a base camp. Nothing like we faced before, but again we were assured that this structure is another remnant of the Soviet style of mountaineering.

The whole setting was exhilarating with large glaciers originating at 7000m and terminating down to 3600m, making them accessible. The retreat of these monstrous rivers of ice and rock has done a great job in leaving behind huge moraines that we were called to surf down in our efforts to approach their terminus. Thanks to their sandy texture, it was fun to go down, but not easy to come back up. Aside such pleasurable moments, the daily challenge was to get out of base camp as early as possible in order to avoid the afternoon storms, which were of great severity. The heat of the extensive piedmont at the foot of the gigantic Pamirs, results in high rates of moisture build up, turbulence and instability, which are a daily phenomenon. Large cumulus clouds are formed rapidly, strike the mountains with thunder and lightning in an amazing speed. Several times, we got caught unprepared, as we were basking in the sun waiting for our experiments and incubations to finish and minutes after we were enveloped in the dark clouds with hail and rain coming along in a package deal. Our success rate to avoid this repeated pattern was destroyed by the fast moving storms and accounted for a mere 25%. After more than a week in this special location with Pic Lenin towering above our heads, we said goodbye to a few fellow mountaineers we met during our and stay, wished them good luck in their summit bids and moved on to the coastal region of Issyk-Kul lake in search of dry weather and warmer temperatures.

Fieldwork below the emblematic Pic Lenin, along with our support team. Despite the worrisome faces, this was the only day that we escaped the storm and were not drenched (Photo © Andrey Savinykh)

To the heart of the Nomads land Leaving behind the cosmopolitan Ala Archa valley and Pic Lenin base camp, we opted for the mountains above Issyk-Kul Lake, which have a smooth morphology and a special sense of solitude. Issyk-Kul Lake is listed in the world’s Top-10 largest and deepest lakes and is an important body of water for Kyrgyz people, as it is the most famous place for summer vacations by the water. Its extensive surface area is 11 times larger than Lac Leman and from the coastline, one can easily spot glaciated peaks. The lake never freezes in the winter and thus provides ample moisture for the adjacent mountains to be covered, not to say buried, with snow. The place is particularly cold during the winter, as it is struck by polar outbreaks that resume from the persistent Siberian anticyclone. Even though we knew that summer up there lasts for less than two months and that with this particular climatic setting, snow can fall anytime, we had to live through it, just to confirm the theory.

Vincent De Staercke greets a polar morning on August 15, 2021 in our Arabel Plateau camp (Photo © Mike Styllas)

The landscape in Ak Shirak and Arabel Plateaus is dominated by extensive flat areas, dissected by glacier-fed rivers and sparse bogs, where the cattle water themselves, bounded by a rolling topography and smooth valleys occupied by glaciers. Nomads and their yurts contemplate the visual monotony of the landscape. Their sheep and cattle along with the clouds were the only moving objects in this otherwise immobile scenery.

The vast Arable Plateau with its rolling topography and wetlands. Time seemed to be frozen there (Photo © Mike Styllas)

Surprises are everywhere though. On a rainy day when we had to strip down and cross a deep river, two young Shepard kids appeared out of nowhere riding their horse and donkey. They spotted us from the distance as we were trying to find a safe passage through the raging river and offered their equidae as a gesture of help and friendship. Struck by the Kyrgyz sense of solidarity in this vast and empty territory, the least we could offer was a cup of team in our base camp and a visual tour of our scientific equipment that triggered wonder in their sights.

Our fellow young shepherds appeared out of the blue and after donating their horse and donkey for us to cross the river, showed a particular interest in our scientific apparatus (Photo © Matteo Tolosano)

Our scientific mission was heavy with an ambitious goal of visiting 10 glaciers in three different locations within these vast open spaces. Even though the distance and the elevation gain to reach the glaciers were not that great, we could succeed this goal without the help of our guide Andrey, and his team of young porters, Ruslan, Mirsaid and Nikita. Our success would have been diminished even more without the base camp support of our lovely cook Shasha and his team Elia, Boris (in Ala Archa), Timoja, and Nastia (in Arabel Plateau). For many years, Andrey has been involved in social work mainly working with orphans. Our team of young porters was a delicate pick from Andrey. Besides the heavy workload, it was an enlightening experience to talk with the young Kyrgyz generations about issues regarding their lifestyle, the way the see their mountains, their need to go abroad and their dispersed worries of the post 18-year old life. Bridging connections with the Kyrgyz youth left us with a very sweet taste of an expansion of our social horizons, as we had not experience anything similar in our previous expeditions.

From the anagram to the epilogue Tien Shan and Pamir Mountains, the Nomad, the yurts, the meat and cheese diet, the mix of Uzbek, Kyrgyz and Soviet temperaments, the clash of generations between western older and central Asian your people, briefly account for the colors that filled the canvas of our Kyrgyzstan expedition. However, the privileges do not stop there. The last time that our colleague Amy Holt from Florida State University had the chance to join us was in the volcanoes of Ecuador during pre-pandemic times. We shared a lot in the mountains of Ecuador, but since then we could only meet with each other virtually. Things worked out again and we were delighted to have spent this long lasting expedition with Amy on board. An additional member always brings new aura to the team. We admired her persistence in setting her molecular organic carbon analyses lab by her tent under any conditions, while the rest of us were seeking shelter in our warm sleeping bags. Scientifically speaking, it is very challenging to fingerprint the sources of carbon exported by the glaciers and we are happy having a small contribution to this effort.

Early morning delicate lab work involving organic carbon molecular analyses preparation. Pipettes were frozen but persistence wins. Delighted to have Amy Holt in our Kyrgyzstan expedition (Photo © Matteo Tolosano)

As in Nepal, it has been a great pleasure to share with Tom Battin an extensive period of this expedition as well. Conesus has been made that for scientific projects that involve a great deal of fieldwork like Vanishing Glaciers, it is fruitful and exciting for the fieldwork team to spend as much time as possible with the Principal Investigators out there. The angle is different, the discussions colorful and richer than in the campus and the bonding gets stronger, as we all have to live through the same tight situation, resulting from the weather, the local dietary habits, the cultural gaps and so on.

Our expedition would have not even started without the close collaboration with the Central Asian Institute of Applied Geosciences (CAIAG). We are thankful to Dr. Bolot Moldobekov, Dr Ryskul Usubaliev for their overall support to our project and particularly to Dr Nargiza Shaidyldaeva and Mr Ruslan Kenzhebaev, for running with us the bureaucratic ultramarathon in Bishkek.

Besides acquiring scientific knowledge through fundamental research, we are delighted for the cultural and social encounters and Kyrgyzstan was no exception to this rule (Photo © Tom J Battin)

With a great sense of accomplishment not only the scientific goals, but for expanding our vision of this world and understanding a bit more of how our world has been changing, we send our wishes to the EPFL community for a healthy fall semester.

MMMV

[redhairedwolfwitch]

Cryokinesis - Avengers x Mutant!Reader, Hinted!Wanda Maximoff x Mutant!Reader

A/n: The reader basically has cryokinesis, like Killer Frost from the flash but they can summon blizzards, hail and their kiss freezes people to the core... well... most people anyway... the reader is basically a non-crazy Killer Frost/Caitlin Snow. There are hints of Wanda Maximoff x reader...

You stood, gazing out of the window at the thrashing rain, one hand gripping a hot mug of hot chocolate whilst the other trailed the paths of lone raindrops on the other side of the window. You sighed as attempted to sip your hot chocolate, only for it to have turned to solid ice. Your eyes widened as you tipped the mug towards your hand, a lump of frozen hot chocolate landing in your fingers. 

You threw the ice chocolate into the bin as Steve walked in. “Meeting in 5... you alright Y/n?” he questioned. You nodded frantically in response, acting like you hadn’t just frozen steaming hot chocolate with your bare hands. Steve’s eyes narrowed for a second before Tony shouted him causing him to leave with a worried look.

You sighed as your shoulders relaxed, carrying the empty mug, you walked into the meeting room, taking a seat between Clint and Pietro. Wanda glanced at you from the other side of Pietro.

“Are you vearing blue lipstick?” Wanda questioned causing you to freeze before covering your mouth with your hand. You thought you had control over your powers. Obviously not.

Tugging on the toggles of your hoodie, you chewed your now blue lips. The meeting had now began and you were getting colder and colder. Pietro and Clint hadn’t noticed due to them being used to the cold, but Tony and Bruce had.

“FRIDAY why’s it so cold in here?” Tony questioned, glancing at his tablet at the room temperature. Wanda glanced at you worriedly as you tensed.

“Care to explain Stark?” Coulson questioned. Your eyes widened as, Melinda May, Daisy Johnson, Bobbi Morse and Jemma Simmons stood next to Coulson. “Where are the guys?” Sam whined, hoping to have a guy’s night causing Bucky to roll his eyes.

“They have a mission, we were called in by Fury... why is it so cold in here I thought you could afford heating Stark?” Daisy Johnson exclaimed.

“FRIDAY results?” Bruce questioned.

“Thermal anomaly detected boss.” FRIDAY replied.

“A thermal anomaly, now what could that be?” Simmons exclaimed, excitedly.

You sighed under your breath, your breath visible to everyone in the room.

“FRIDAY scan Y/n... body temperature?” Tony requested.

“Y/n’s body temperature is -5oC although this has not caused any damage to organs or limbs.” FRIDAY explained. Wanda’s eyes widned in shock.

“That’s not possible, a human body basically is in danger zones at 35oC... you should be dead...” Simmons explained. You looked up, lips bright blue, hair turning snow white, eyes glowing.

“Then you should know my heart is pretty cold.” You snarled, voice frosty. All the Avengers leaped up and away in shock. “You’re probably wondering why this is happening? I’m cryokinetic, i freeze stuff, produce ice, cause blizzards and hail and my kiss is deadly... ughh...” You tensed, gripping your head as you sensed her near. Wanda stepped forward to you before Clint and Pietro stepped in front protectively.

“Dammit, I’m sorry...” You whimpered, leaping at the window, causing it to shatter as the rain glaciated, blurring everyone’s vision as you disappeared, frozen salty tears drifting down your cheeks.

“Inhuman, mutant or miracle?” Daisy Johnson questioned. Everyone shrugged in response. “What happened to the bin?” Natasha questioned, gesturing to the melting brown liquid oozing from it. “Explains the empty mug and why Y/n was so nervous earlier. She froze her hot drink.” Steve replied, crossing his arms.

“Are we going after her or letting a teenager who has a deadly freezing kiss loose in New York?” Bobbi questioned, uncertain. 

May smirked as she sensed Daisy’s upcoming joke. “Even if Hunter’s kiss was deadly you’d still make out with him.” causing Simmons and the other Avengers to cringe before laughing.  The blizzard began to snow them all in as they joked about. Wanda glanced out into the blizzard, wondering where you had gone and if you were okay.

Meanwhile, you’d hidden in your old apartment which you still owned, attempting to control your powers before you felt extreme heat flood the room. “You okay?” The flaming girl asked. “Yeah sis, sorry, I lost control.” You explained, hugging your knees.

“You lost your cool, which is weird since you’re ice and I’m fire... New York is now having a blizzard in October...suck on that global warming.” Your sister laughed, orange flames rippling around her.

Tagged: @marvel-wlw

[anglians]

Drainage Basin

Precipitation

Includes all forms of     rainfall, snow, frost, hail and dew

The conversion and transfer     of moisture in the atmosphere to the land

Interception

Refers to water that is     caught and stored by vegetation

Interception loss → water that is     retained by plant surfaces and which is later evaporated away or absorbed     by the plant

Throughfall → water that     either falls through gaps in the vegetation or which drops from leaves,     twigs or stems

Stemflow → water that     trickles along twigs and branches and finally down the main trunk

Interception loss varies     with different types of vegetation

Evaporation

The process by which a     liquid or a solid is changed into a gas

Conversion of solid and     liquid precipitation to water vapour in the atmosphere

Most important from oceans     and seas

Evaporation increases under     warm, dry conditions and decreases under cold, calm conditions

Factors affecting     evaporation: meteorological factors (temperature, humidity, wind speed) -     temperature is the most important, amount of water available, vegetation     cover, and colour of the surface

Evapotranspiration

The process by which water     vapour escapes from a living plant, principally the leaves, and enters the     atmosphere

The combined effects of     evaporation and transpiration are normally referred to as     evapotranspiration (EVT)

EVT represents the most     important aspect of water loss

Overland flow

Also known as surface     runoff

Flow of water that occurs     when excess stormwater, meltwater, or other sources flows over the earth's     surface

Infiltration

The process by which water     soaks into or is absorbed by the soil

The infiltration     capacity is     the maximum rate at which rain can be absorbed by a soil in a given     condition

Percolation

The process of a liquid     slowly passing through a filter

Throughflow

Refers to water flowing     through the soil in natural pipes and percolines (lines of concentrated     water flow between soil horizons)

Baseflow

Refers to the part of a     river's discharge that is provided by groundwater seeping into the bed of     a river

Relatively constant flow     although it increases slightly following a wet period

Watertable

The level below which the     ground is saturated with water

Groundwater

Water found underground in     the cracks and spaces in soil, sand and rock

Stored in and moves slowly     through geological formations of soil, sand and rocks called aquifers

Recharge

Refers to the refilling of     water in pores where the water has dried up or been extracted by human     activity

In some places, where     recharge is not taking place, groundwater is considered a non-renewable     resource

Springs

Where water flow reaches     the surface

May be substantial enough     to become the source of a steam or river

The drainage basin is the     hydrological cycle on a local scale

A drainage basin is an rea     of land drained by a river and its tributaries, bounded by a watershed

It is sometimes called the     'catchment area' of a river because it is the bowl which catches the rain

It only has one input,     precipitation, and two major outputs; evapotranspiration and run off. A     third output can also occur when there is movement of water between basins     at a subsurface level. This is known as leakage.

The water table is the     level of water in the rocks below the surface

Gauging stations are used     to measure the relationship between rainfall intensity/duration and     discharge outflow characteristics of a drainage basin

The pattern of a drainage     basin is dependent on its relationship with relief, climate, begetation     and geology

 Drainage patterns

  Trelllised → typical of     alternating resistant and non-resistant rocks

Rectangular → frequently     minor joint/fault patterns in under-lying bedrock

Parallel →  typical of steep relief, especially     where there is a lack of vegetation

Dendritic → occurs in     well-adjusted, gently sloping basins with a fairly uniform rock type

Deranged → where the     original pattern has been altered by glaciation, for example

Annular →  a curving, broadly concentric pattern,     where rivers exploit weaker bands of rock around a dome feature

 Evaporation

Evaporation is the process     by which a liquid or a solid is changed into a gas

Solid and liquid     precipitation (snow, ice and water) to water vapour in the atmosphere

Evaporation increases under     warm, dry conditions and decreases under cold, calm conditions

Factors affecting     evaporation include:     - Meteorological factors such as temperature, humidity and wind speed.     Temperature being the most important.     - The amount of water available     - Vegetation cover     - Colour of the     surface

 Evapotranspiration

Transpiration is the     process by which water vapour escapes from a living plant and enters the     atmosphere

Evapotranspiration is the     combination of evaporation and transpiration and accounts for the largest     amount of water loss (nearly 100% of annual precipitation in arid areas,     and 75% in humid areas)

[discovericelandtours]

Tips for Planning Your Private Trip To Iceland

For all travel enthusiasts out there a trip to Iceland always stays top in their travel list. The striking landscapes with geysers, and erupting volcanoes, with glaciated plains and black sand beaches, is something to witness and behold for a lifetime. So this holiday season packs your bags and book your tickets to the land of fire and ice.

    A perfect Icelandic tour

From the alluring black sand beaches to the captivating red volcanic crater zones, from the glaciated southern coasts to the enchanting northern lights the country has a lot to offer. And often in such situations making a perfect plan becomes overwhelming. And if you are joining up with any tour agencies their choices might feel underwhelming. And to solve this crisis comes the need for private tour Iceland leading tour operators offer you can chalk out your own trip.

  A glimpse into the private tours of Iceland

The golden circle

This enticing tour starts with visiting the famous red crater of Rauðhólar. And from there comes the next enchanting destination of the black sand beach of Reynisfjara. After spending a couple of hours in the black sandy beach visit the famous Crater Kerið and then Waterfall Fax followed by the Gullfoss Falls. Finally, don’t forget to add the Geyser Strokkur and the Thingvellir National Park to your private tour Iceland offered by leading agencies.

      The adventurous southern coasts

The key highlights of this enticing tour include

The mighty waterfalls of Seljalandsfoss & Skógafoss

The off-road sensational Thorsmork Area

The famous glaciers of Gígjökull & Volcano Eyjafjallajökull

The enchanting Black-sand beach of Reynisfjar

And the famous Sea Stacks of Reynisdrangar

  The hunt for the northern lights

Coming to Iceland and not experience the spectacular northern lights is like a sin. And to fulfill your wishes the leading tour agency brings you the private, serene, and captivating northern lights hunt tour. Also remember the chances of visibility of northern lights strictly depends on the weather conditions. And most leading agencies offer you last-minute cancellations but still experiencing the northern lights is a memory worth chanting lifelong.

      Winters with super jeep tours

The home to ice is another dimension of beauty during the icy months.

And when the leading tour operators provide you with super jeeps to hail through the snowy ice caves, fjords and glaciers the thrill and adventure multiply to many folds. The key highlights of this tour include

The mystic Thingvellir National Park amidst the Highlands of Kaldidalur

Cascades of Hraunfossar and Barnafossar

Don’t forget the off-road drive on Glacier Langjökull

Want some extra bit of adventure? How about a dive into the Glacier – or – The Cave (Lava Cave Víðgelmir)

Don’t miss out on some hidden secret stops 

  Apart from all these regular tours, the leading operators have provisions of arranging longer and shorter tours including the number of people as per your convenience. So pack your bags and explore the land of ice. Hurry.

[gaiienpokedex]

All of my Fakemon designs tend to be pretty spontaneous, so now and then I'll get my wires crossed and the wrong one will come out while I'm trying to draw a given Fakemon. The former Tiamat gets an upgrade to its own design, and becomes a legendary to boot. #151 - Xuelong (雪龙, "snow dragon") Snowfall Pokémon Ice/Dragon-type A legendary pokémon of winter, it is said to bring gentle snowfall to the deserving, and howling blizzards to the cruel and greedy. One froze an entire army marching on a fortress in solid ice—but it also buried the fortress in dense snow. Base Stats: 80/80/90/110/90/135 (580) Ability: Levitate/[Snow Warning] Learnset: Powder Snow, Icy Wind, Dragon Rage, Ancient Power, Aurora Beam, Ice Beam, Dragon Breath, Dragon Pulse, Noble Roar, Blizzard, Outrage, Hyper Voice, Glaciate, Hail, Aurora Veil, Frost Breath, Scratch, Slash, Icy Slash, Mist, Sheer Cold, Typhoon, Sea Smoke, Flying Nimbus, Heaven's Light, Absolute Zero, Early Frost, Frostbite, Icy Veins, Snow Wave, Cyclone, Hurricane, Gust, Tempest, Whirlwind, Twister, Air Slash, Tailwind