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chudleycanonficfest · 3 years

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The Switch

Day 10, Story #2 is by @adenei

Title: The Switch

Author: adenei

Pairing: George Weasley/Angelina Johnson

Prompt: First Date

Rating: T

TW: Mentions of character death

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The shop is quiet as George locks the door to his office. It’s been a month since the grand re-opening of Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, and the steady thrum of customers has put the business back on track to where it was before the untimely closure due to the war. Things are different, of course, with Fred not being there, but George’s family and friends have stepped up and offered more support than George knows what to do with—not that he wanted it in the first place.

In retrospect, he is thankful for his family and friends, Ron and Angelina in particular. They helped him put down the bottle and get his life back on track.

“Fred wouldn’t want this.” Angelina had told him late one night while she and Lee were staying over in his flat that smelled of days-old Firewhisky and hadn’t been cleaned since before they’d gone into hiding at Aunt Muriel’s.

“How would Fred feel if you let everything the two of you worked for go to shit? How would you feel if the tables were turned and if it was—” Ron had yelled as he snatched the half-full bottle away from his brother and dumped it down the drain. The emotion was raw as the words caught in his throat, the end of the phrase hanging between them like the weight of a bludger pulling them down and grounding them.

At first, he’d been pissed, but they were right. Fred wouldn’t have wanted George to resort to any of that. And even though he’d been begrudging in accepting help to begin with, George knew he wouldn’t have gotten the shop up and running as swiftly as he did without everyone’s help. The hole in his heart still ached, and not a moment went by where he didn’t miss his brother, but finding a new stride in this post-war life is exactly the push George needed to not only move on but also honor and make Fred proud.

As George makes his way onto the main floor of the shop, a figure standing behind the counter makes him pause. He’d recognize that silhouette anywhere, the unrequited crush from his Hogwarts days now thrust back in his life, as if to taunt him of just another thing he’ll never have.

“You’re still here?” The exhaustion is apparent in George’s voice after a ten-hour day.

“Yeah, I wanted to make sure you didn’t stay on and try to do all the inventory yourself again like last week.” Angelina runs her fingers over the various displays of fireworks that are locked away behind the checkout area as she lightly teases George.

“Nah, I learned from that mistake. Besides, don’t you have your regular job that you need to get back to? Now that things are running smoothly again, we’ll be able to manage without the extra help. Especially once things die down after the first.”

“I don’t mind spending a few hours here after work, you know that. Things’ll start to pick up again soon once the Quidditch season gets underway, I’m sure, but right now, my corresponding duties are light. Call me crazy, but I’ve enjoyed spending more time with you lately. Almost makes me feel like we’re back in Hogwarts, you know? When real life and responsibilities seemed so far away.”

A chuckle escapes George’s lips. It was true, all this time they’d been spending together, especially with Lee and sometimes Alicia, almost made everything feel right again.

“Well, we can hang out in other places, too. I swear I don’t live at Wheeze’s.”

“George, you live upstairs.”

“Ah, bugger off.”

“I’m only teasing.”

“And all I’m saying is if you want to do something outside these walls, all you have to do is ask.”

“Are you hungry, then?”

A genuine laugh bubbles up into George’s throat at Angelina’s brazenness. “Bloody hell, woman! Impatient much?”

His outburst brings a smile to Angelina’s face, brightening the dark circles under her eyes from the extra hours spent helping out.

“You’re the one who said to ask. So, what do you say? Fancy a drink and a meal down the street? It’s late enough that the Leaky shouldn’t be too busy.”

“I s’pose it couldn’t hurt. Beats making something for myself, that’s for sure.”

“Great, let’s go.”

Angelina walks around the counter and reaches out to take George’s hand in hers. An electric shock shoots up his arm from the point of contact, and George has to stop himself from pulling away from the surprise of it all. A memory flashes through his mind of twinkling lights amongst a silver backdrop in the Great Hall all those years ago. He sees two figures dancing and twirling to the music of the Weird Sisters, one with flaming red hair much like his own and the other whose sapphire gown swished against the travertine floor. The memory brings a reminiscent smile to his lips as Angelina tugs him out the door.

When they reach the Leaky, the pair settles into a quiet booth in the back of the establishment, away from curious eyes. It’s late in the evening for a meal, which is made evident by the empty tables and chairs scattered throughout the pub. Only a handful of patrons litter the bar, allowing Tom to be attentive to their needs.

George takes a large swig when the barkeep returns with Butterbeers, and they place their orders.

“No shot of Firewhisky tonight then?”

George shakes his head. “I told you, Ange, I was serious about stopping. I can’t use the bottle as a crutch for grief anymore.”

Angelina nods as she observes him intently. George can feel the heat of her gaze trailing over him as he takes another sip from his drink.

“You’re staring.”

“Sorry, I was just thinking.”

“Oh? And here I was thinking I was mesmerizing you with my dashing good looks,” George quips.

Angelina smiles, and for a moment, George thinks he sees a blush on her cheeks before she recovers. For all the time they spent together during Hogwarts, and more recently in the months following the war, George finds it odd that they’re struggling with conversation now.

“Knut for your thoughts?” asks George.

“Just that it’s been nice reconnecting with you. And Lee. Circumstances are shit, of course, but with my hectic schedule during Quidditch season, I don’t get much time for socializing and friends. I even had to drop my registration for the semi-pro league I was hoping to play for.”

George nods, and his stomach twists as he processes her words. That would mean she’d be leaving soon once things got busy. He’s overcome with the urge to see if her job is something she’s passionate about.

“Do you love it? Your job, I mean.”

“Well, yeah, if I can’t play professionally, the next best thing is writing and commentating. Plus, I’ve gotten to see the world all on the Ministry’s dime. Can’t complain there…”

“But is it something you see yourself doing for a long time?” George presses. He doesn’t mean to sound judgmental, but he needs to know if it’s even worth it to pursue.

“Well, after graduation, it seemed like the right fit. The opening was there, my parents were encouraging me to see the world, and I didn’t have anything tying me down. Honestly, I think my parents thought it was safer for me to travel, especially with the war on...”

And what about now?

George is nodding his head up and down while the question ricochets in his mind. He opens his mouth, gathering the courage to allow the four words to escape his mouth when Angelina interrupts him.

“Well, there are some openings that would allow me to stay in London that have just come up. They’re looking for commentators and stats writers for the matches played in the Kensington stadium. So, if you needed an extra hand at the shop, I could stay—”

“—I don’t want you to stay for the shop. If you want to travel the world, you should. I doubt you’ve seen all the world has to offer in two seasons.”

No! What are you thinking!

George can almost hear Fred chastising him for his rash response. It doesn’t come out the way he meant it to sound, and he knows he messed up given the crestfallen look on Ange’s face.

“I only meant—”

“I-I’ve actually already put in for the London job, George. And I promise it’s not because of the shop. Lee promised to help me with commentating, and this way I can play again. I start training next week. You know how much I missed playing Quidditch, and now that England is safer, I can stay and have the best of both worlds.”

The longer she goes on, it feels like she’s rambling and going on with a laundry list of pre-prepared reasons, which doesn’t sound like the Angelina he knows. It’s almost like she’s trying to convince herself that those are the reasons she’s staying, and not for anything else.

“Oh.”

Ange rolls her eyes. “Don’t worry, I know you and Fred always used to think you two were the center of the universe, but I promise I didn’t choose to stay just for you.”

Her voice is light, and she’s smiling, but George can’t help but sense something else lingering beneath the surface. Disappointment, perhaps? Or maybe he’s just reading into things too much. Hoping something might be between them that really isn’t. He forces himself to stop overthinking and simply enjoy her company instead.

“Well, I, for one, am happy you’re staying. We’ll be able to get together more often, and it’ll almost feel like our Hogwarts days. Maybe I’ll even be able to convince you and Alicia to test new products again.”

Angelina nearly spits out her Butterbeer at George’s joke as Tom approaches with their meal. He knows he’s not fooling either of them; the irony is that the girls were always two steps ahead of him and his brother. They were the only two in their year who managed to avoid becoming test subjects to all of their prototypes.

The two fall into more reminiscing as they tuck into their fish and chips. George doesn’t realize how ravenous he is until he starts eating, and he’s even more grateful for Ange’s suggestion now.

As they are polishing off the remainder of their baskets, the topic of conversation falls on the Yule Ball, as Ange remembers how Fred had tossed the wad of paper at her.

“It was romantic, wasn’t it?” George jokes as he remembers his brother’s ridiculous attempt at asking a girl out. “Still don’t know why you said yes to that tosser.”

To this day, he’d always resented his brother for drawing his wand first and asking Ange to the ball. Of course, George knew it was all meant to be a bluff. It was Fred’s attempt to get his brother to buck up the courage and ask Angelina for himself.

George remembers it vividly. “Just ask her. What’s the worst she’ll say? No? Fine, if you won’t do it, I will.”

When Fred had gotten Ange’s attention, George had no idea what to expect. They were usually well in tune with each other, and George could anticipate Fred’s moves, but when his brother had asked Angelina himself, it took George by surprise.

“We were getting down to the wire, weren’t we?” Angelina interrupts George’s thoughts. “No one else had asked me, so I figured it was better to go with one twin than none at all.”

George chooses the wrong moment to polish off the last of his chips. The fried potato catches in his throat, and he coughs it up, all while reaching for the last dredges of his Butterbeer to clear things out.

Did she just say it was better to go with one twin than none at all? But then that would mean…

“Ange, don’t tell me you were waiting for me to ask you.”

She shrugs and averts her eyes from his gaze. “I mean, I wouldn’t have been disappointed if you’d asked, let’s put it that way.”

After this revelation, George burst into laughter. To anyone else in the near vicinity, it probably sounded like he should be admitted to the Janus Thickney Ward. He hasn’t laughed this hard since he and Fred were able to pull off a prank on Muriel shortly after arriving at her Manor at the end of March.

“You—Fred—I—me—” He can’t seem to formulate a coherent string of thoughts until Angelina goes from amused to offended.

“Honestly, George, I didn’t realize it was that funny. Forget I said anything.” She checks her watch and gathers her bag. “Maybe this wasn’t a good idea after all. It’s getting late, and clearly the thought of the two of us together appalls—”

She’s in the process of standing up when George sobers from the onslaught of irony and reaches out to grab her wrist.

“Ange, wait. I’m not laughing at that. Just—just give me a chance to explain, yeah?” He pulls her into the bench beside him, where she lands on her bottom harder than she needed to as she lets out a loud huff of indignation.

“Fred never intended to go with you when he asked.”

“Excuse me?” Her eyebrows have raised so high on her face that George is surprised they haven’t gotten lost in her braids.

“No, what I mean is, he’d been pestering me to ask you since the ball was announced. He knew I had a thing for you—obviously—and was being supportive.”

It felt weird for George to admit that he fancied Angelina in school now, after so many years of keeping it close to his chest. Fred and Lee were the only two who ever knew.

“So, what are you trying to say, then?”

“When Fred asked you...I was shocked, too. I didn’t realize he’d already devised a plan that I didn’t cotton on to right away.”

The look on Angelina’s face transformed from defensive to shock to comprehension, all in the span of a few seconds. “Don’t tell me…”

“Being an identical twin has—er, had—its benefits.”

“So.. are you trying to tell me that I didn’t go to the ball with Fred?”

“Nope.”

“And at the end of the night, when I kissed Fred in an attempt to make you jealous, I was actually kissing you all along?”

“Sorry if it was disappointing.” The wisecrack escapes George’s lips before he can stop it.

Half of him is expecting Angelina to slap him for the ‘switcheroo’ that he and Fred pulled, and in fairness, they deserved it. What if Ange actually had fancied Fred, and they’d pulled one over on her?

But to his surprise, Angelina does the opposite. She leans in and kisses George right then and there. The same shock he felt when holding her hand earlier ignites within him once more as he lets his body take control. He allows himself to get lost in the feel of her lips, realizing that it’s the first time he’s truly felt like himself since Fred’s passing. He even dares to let himself think he’s found happiness again.

Eventually, George pulls away as his lungs begin to burn from the lack of oxygen. They remain close, foreheads touching as he offers a weak smile.

“Y’know, I was going to tell you it was me at the end of the night, but how could I when I thought I was going to break your heart when you thought you’d kissed Fred?”

“You’re insufferable, you know that?”

“Yeah, but you can’t argue with sixteen-year-old George’s logic, can you?”

Ange rolls her eyes and leans back. George misses the contact as soon as it’s gone.

“What do you say we get out of here?” Ange raises her eyebrows in question as if tempting him to follow when she scoots out from the bench a second time.

George pulls enough money to cover their meals out of his wallet and leaves it on the table before scooching out behind her. He pays no mind to the remaining customers as he pulls Angelina back into him and whispers in her ear,

“I’d say we’ve wasted five years of pointless pining to wait any longer.”

#chudleycanonficfest2021 #HP fest #hp canon pairings #canon fest romantic #submission #george x angelina #tw: mentions of death

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quinnybee-writes · 5 years

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Title: Fire Meet Gasoline

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia/My Hero Academia

Rating: T+

Part: 3/?

Story Summary: A chance encounter between a villain and vigilante leads to an unwise deal made between unlikely allies; an unwise deal made between unlikely allies ends in a final stand neither would have ever dared to take on alone. Together, though, they just might have a fighting chance.

Part 3 Summary: Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, and thrice is just a big headache for everyone involved.

Part 1 on Tumblr / AO3

Part 2 on Tumblr / AO3

Part 3 on AO3

Hizashi gave the IT intern a tight but friendly smile as she waved to him before going to check on the status of the server migration. He hated having to do delicate research like this at work; every time one of his coworkers needed something in the room he shared with the server banks he couldn’t help jumping to attention, his hand poised on the lid of his laptop to snap it shut if they wandered too close. The cover it provided him was mostly worth the anxiety, however. A single IP using a VPN in the middle of an apartment block full of unsecured cable company wifi signals was suspicious; another VPN added to the tangle of secure signals emanating from a tech-heavy operation like a radio station was just another Tuesday. Hizashi waited for the intern to finish her checks before going back to what he’d been looking at before he was interrupted.

As far as he was able to find in the HR filings for Solo-Falcon Deliveries they only had one employee named Aizawa, first name Shouta. The photo that accompanied the digitized CV was younger-looking but the man was recognizable nonetheless; same perpetual look of knowing what a hairbrush was in concept but no evidence of him owning one, same dour, “are we done yet?” expression in his dark eyes. Said CV was as barebones as Hizashi had ever seen: eight years at Solo-Falcon Deliveries preceded by a plethora of short term post-middle school jobs; school transcripts from a dozen different private tutors that came to a sudden stop at the end of middle school. His permanent residence had been the same for as long as Aizawa had been working, cosigned by an adult family member with the stipulation that the lease would pass to Aizawa when he turned eighteen. As far as Hizashi could tell Shouta Aizawa had popped out of nothingness as a poe-faced fifteen-year-old looking for a job.

Trying to get any answers out of social media was equally fruitless. Retracing Aizawa’s online steps revealed a ghost town of abandoned accounts in his wake, all following the same pattern of non-use. He would sign up for a new platform, friend or follow one or two other accounts, make half a dozen posts over the course of about a year, then drop it completely without bothering to deactivate or delete. The posts were all the kind of non-entities one could expect out of someone who wasn’t expecting to stick around for very long. Even on the accounts he’d used the most they mostly consisted of inoffensive comments about the weather or work and slightly blurry cell phone pictures of cats.

Even the government seemed to have no luck in catching ahold of Aizawa longer than the time it took to confirm his address, collect his taxes, and send him back on his way. According to his Quirk registration, Aizawa had been something of an early bloomer, developing his nullification power before he even hit kindergarten and being switched from public schooling to private education soon afterwards for reasons of “health concerns”. Elementary and middle school records matched the near-yearly swapping of home tutors from his CV, but Hizashi noticed with interest that there was one massive omission between the two. Several records back in the Quirk registry’s access history was a request from the registrar of UA High School to confirm Aizawa’s personal and Quirk information. Raising an eyebrow Hizashi flipped back to Aizawa’s schooling history and found a perfunctory footnote at the bottom of the file: UA High School registration Apr 2004-Nov 2004; file sealed per subject request. Nothing else was said, just that short “by the way” on a digital post-it note before going on to document the work history and financial filings Hizashi already knew about.

Either Aizawa was some kind of subterfuge wunderkind or he really was just this disconnected. Hizashi sighed and leaned back in his chair, turning that over in his mind. A sealed UA record was as tantalizing a morsel of intrigue as you could ask for, but he wasn’t arrogant enough to think he could go up against a security system as ironclad as theirs with nothing but a masked IP and an undeniable curiosity. There were favors he could call in, Hizashi supposed, people he could ask. Said people would want something equally backbreaking in return as insurance on their investments but that could be relegated to a date far in the future where he had the information in hand and could gauge its actual worth for himself.

Before he had time to start flipping through his mental address book, however, he was interrupted by a buzzing from his cell phone. The display showed an unlisted number being forwarded through his “business line”, a landline he’d had installed in a condemned fast food restaurant on the far edge of the city. Hizashi glanced at his door to make sure it was fully shut before swiping to accept the call.

“Mmn,” he muttered by way of greeting. There was a click, and an automated voice on the other end began to speak in choppy, text-to-speech sentences.

“Bird. Seguchi. Your backdoor into the Hero Registry failed.” Hizashi rolled his eyes. Of course he was the problem, it couldn’t possibly be that Seguchi's client was incompetant. “You owe me a workable solution, do it right this time. Meet tonight at nine sharp, no later. Directions to follow.” The message barked out the address and Hizashi scribbled it disinterestedly onto the back of an envelope. It looked like his pet project would have to take a backseat for something more pressing but way less interesting, he thought with a disappointed sigh.

Biting back a curse, Shouta stared daggers at the bland error box telling him he didn’t have the proper access clearance for the files he needed. He’d spent most of the morning trying to fake the new set of credentials the police database was requiring to view the updated version of the Mockingbird dossier. The security had never been what you could call lax, but the newest version required both the highest clearance level Shouta had ever seen as well as a password that from what he’d been able to glean was just a long randomly-generated string of characters that maxed out the number of available spaces. He gritted his teeth and decided the building headache at the back of his skull was telling him he needed to switch to something a little less frustrating, though such things felt thin on the ground at the moment.

Trying to reconcile the comings and goings of Hizashi Yamada with the known Mockingbird incidents was proving to be an exercise in futility. Yamada didn’t necessarily have an alibi for every time Mockingbird had been sighted in the act, but there was also no real reason for anyone to suspect him of needing one. Mockingbird was a serial offender with a list of potential charges that took up several single-spaced pages in his police file; Hizashi Yamada was the well-known and well-loved operations manager and late night host for a radio station that while not the biggest or wealthiest was far from needing any kind of criminal boost. The only link between the two was Yamada’s oft-abused Quirk, but even that information was a double-edged sword at best. The police had been smart enough to keep the press away from the more sensitive details of the Mockingbird case to avoid copycats and false reports but no one knowing the connection was possible left Shouta shouting into the void. If he went as a civilian witness to the police, he would have to think of a very good lie for how he knew Mockingbird’s M.O. but hadn’t gone to them before now; if he went to them as an admitted vigilante, they might take his report more seriously but he’d end up in handcuffs right next to Yamada. As with most things he’d have to go into this on his own, something that would be a much simpler undertaking if he wasn’t being actively locked out of the information he needed to do so.

“Computer trouble?” a voice above him asked. Shouta jumped, causing the large ginger cat in his lap to grumble and dig its claws into his thighs in retaliation. He gave the cat an apologetic pat on the head and looked up to see one of the cat cafe’s servers standing next to his table.

“Uh, no. It’s just old. Doesn’t like to load,” Shouta lied, swapping screens as casually as he could. The server nodded with a sympathetic smile.

“I getcha,” she said. “It’s such a pain when they still work but they’re too old to really do the work. Our whole register system is older than I am but we can’t get the old workhorse to give up the ghost and let us replace her.” She chuckled, shrugging. “Did you want a refill on that coffee?” she added, pointing to Shouta’s half-full cup that had gone cold long ago.

“Sure, thanks. One sugar, no milk,” Shouta said. He scratched the cat in his lap behind the ears until the server was safely back behind the counter putting his order in before switching back to his other window.

The page had blacked out, the error message now telling him that his session had expired and would not be renewed. He tried closing his browser and restarting it, but the window instantly dimmed and let him know that his session was well and truly dead for today. Shouta wondered if this was a new protocol being rolled out across the board or if he wasn’t the only one they were having to lock out. If the same gap in the digital fence was being used by someone with less scrupulous intents, Shouta supposed he couldn’t entirely begrudge the police for fixing the fault and adding a less easily manipulated system. Trying to channel his frustration into a more helpful direction, Shouta opened the spreadsheet he’d been using to build a Mockingbird timeline and added what scraps of new information he’d been able to screenshot. He highlighted the long periods of silence and typed each time period and Yamada’s name into individual browser tabs.

Hizashi Yamada was as easy to track as Mockingbird was impossible to pin down. Yamada put a lot of effort into propagating his breezy, unbothered persona, but seemed to put just as much into being a diligent employee; the gaps Shouta had found in Mockingbird’s movements didn’t generate so much as a sick day for Yamada. Shouta supposed if you weren’t actively looking for irregularities the lack of them wouldn’t have sparked interest, but to him it was both unnatural and damning. There had to be a weak spot somewhere, Shouta thought. Absurdly careful was one thing, but perfect was something else entirely. He had a suspicion that there was information in the locked sections of Mockingbird’s dossier that would mean nothing to the police without knowing Yamada’s civilian movements but would be the key to getting the upper hand on him for Shouta. But getting in there for a better look around would take time, and with his afternoon delivery shift fast approaching time was not something he had in excess. Another day with better luck, Shouta thought, saving what little progress he’d made and shutting his laptop.

Hebiko, Seguchi’s second in command and high-ranking candidate for Hizashi’s least favorite person on the planet, was waiting for him under the awning of the burned-out corner shop they were supposed to meet at. Hizashi groaned internally at the sight of her, fighting the urge to turn on his heel and cut his losses. Instead he raised a hand in greeting.

“Nice weather for it,” he said.

Hebiko fixed him with an unblinking stare and an emotionless smile. “It’s been a while, Bird,” she said, extending a hand to him like she expected him to shake it. Vivid memories of falling for the ploy and being subjected to the tetanus-like paralysis of her Snakebite Quirk the first time they’d met made Hizashi’s hands reflexively clench into fists. He meaningfully tucked his hands into his jeans pockets and looked around.

“Is your boss planning on joining us, or did he decide the B-team could handle this one on their own?” he asked.

“He had a more important appointment to keep,” Hebiko replied. Her smile widened without gaining so much as a scrap of good will. Hizashi was tempted to point out that Seguchi had thought this was important enough to call him out in the middle of a weekday evening, but his desire to get this over with before all of the good takeout places closed won out.

“His prerogative,” Hizashi said instead, shrugging. “Shall we, then?”

“After you,” Hebiko said, gesturing down the narrow alley between this building and the next. “We’re parked a street up from here,” Hebiko added when Hizashi didn’t move. “It’ll be easier to just cut through here.”

Hizashi scraped together the waning scraps of his patience, reminding himself that there was a takeaway curry and a quiet night at home with his cat on the other end of this nonsense, and headed up the alley where she was pointing.

“Good work today!” Shouta’s manager called over his shoulder as he left the employee changing room. Shouta’s two remaining coworkers called it back to him over the clang of closing lockers. Shouta muttered a vague reply a little too late, his mind already turning to what he had planned for after work.

With a last-minute change in the schedule he had somehow escaped an early shift tomorrow morning after tonight’s late shift, which meant he had until tomorrow afternoon to sleep and eat and all of the other things he usually had to cram into the few hours between clocking out and clocking back in. His heart ached to get out and stretch his legs on a long patrol, missing the routine in the wake of his recent garbage schedule. His head knew better, though. The late hour would mean fewer personnel working at police central intelligence, which would mean fewer eyes on what files were being accessed and by whom, and his newly-opened timetable would mean plenty of time to figure out what he was supposed to do about the lock on the Mockingbird dossier.

Shouta threw his bag over his shoulders, bidding his coworkers a hasty good night and walking quickly out the door before anything had time to interrupt his plans for the evening.

Hebiko followed at a distance that felt both too close and uncomfortably distant, her footsteps almost purposefully off-beat from his own. Hizashi opened his mouth to invite her to stop being such a stalker and just walk next to him, but instead found himself being slammed sideways into the alley wall by something that exploded out of a garbage bag next to a nearby dumpster. Hizashi staggered, breath catching short and sharp in his throat from the hit. Hebiko’s foot shot out from behind him, dead-legging him into an awkward half-crouch on the pavement. Hizashi looked up to see Takeshiro, one of Hebiko’s favorite minions, hopping out of the dumpster. The garbage bag that had assaulted him rustled and squirmed as a thick tangle of dessicated vegetable cuttings slithered out and stood ready by Takeshiro’s side. Hizashi choked back a gag at the smell of it, working to keep his face unconcerned.

“I feel like you might have taken that B-team comment from earlier a little too personally,” he said, the words coming out in a pained wheeze. For the first time Hebiko’s smile held actual mirth and Hizashi deeply regretted the development.

“You’ve been pissing a lot of people off lately, Bird,” Hebiko said.

“Including your boss, apparently,” Hizashi agreed. He pivoted on his toes and tried to keep his eyes on both of them as he straightened up. “He must be pretty irritated to send his pets to do his wet work without coming along to gloat.”

Takeshiro’s plant weapon struck out at him again, sending Hizashi skittering sideways to avoid it. Hizashi gritted his teeth. Hebiko and Takeshiro were each blocking an open end of the alley, closing ranks around him along with Takeshiro’s plant. The only other potential exit he had was a fire escape above the dumpster Takeshiro had crawled out of. If he could keep them distracted long enough to dart through and scramble up the escape there was a chance he could make it out of this in one fresh-scented fully mobile piece. He thought of the extendable police baton hidden in the holster sewn into the back of his jacket but decided it was better to keep it as a last resort. There was no point in escalating a situation already at the snapping point if he could find another way out of it.

“The boss doesn’t know you’re here,” Hebiko said coolly. “The cops caught him trying to get through the Hero Registry’s security net last week using the instructions he got from you. He’s been in custody ever since.”

“Sounds like user error to me,” Hizashi replied, “since the information wasn’t for him in the first place. Does he go through other people’s mail too?”

“That’s really cute coming from someone who makes a living out of digging in digital garbage looking for things to sell,” Hebiko snapped.

“Ooh, really hitting me where it hurts,” Hizashi said. He put on the biggest, fakest grin he could muster, putting a hand to his chest in mock offense. Hebiko’s eyes narrowed, her hands flexing at her sides like she was trying to resist the urge to throttle him. Takeshiro’s plant weapon was starting to twitch and writhe at Takeshiro’s side, belying the man’s outward straightfaced patience. His strategy was panning out for the moment, and hopefully a moment was all he would need.

“We’re about to find a few more places for it to hurt,” Hebiko said, lips curling back from her teeth in a cold smirk.

“Thanks but no thanks.”

Seizing his chance, Hizashi caught Hebiko hard in the jaw with a surprise right hook. She stumbled back a step before coming towards him with an open-palmed strike of her own, ready to freeze him where he stood. Hizashi managed to avoid it just in time, hooking his foot around the back of her knee and sweeping it out from under her. He felt a hand grab him by the back of the jacket and yank him back several steps, nearly taking him off his feet as well. Hizashi twisted sharply towards Takeshiro, forcing the man to loosen his grip just long enough for Hizashi to duck away. He made it all the way up onto the lip of the dumpster and felt his fingers brush the ladder to the fire escape before something grabbed him around the waist and pulled him hard down onto hands and knees on the pavement. Hizashi yelped as pain crackled through his shins and forearms. Before he had time to recover he felt a hand snatch his sweatshirt’s hood off of his head, followed by Hebiko’s sharp fingers digging into the back of his neck. Instantly his body went rigid, joints locking painfully together against his will.

“This is why I hate birds,” Hebiko said, her voice mockingly conversational in Hizashi’s ear. “Whenever things get a little intense, they try to flit away before you get to have any fun with them.”

Without any warning Hebiko grabbed him by the hair and jerked his head forward, slamming it with all her strength into the steel side of the dumpster. Hizashi went limp, the fading paralysis replaced by a dazed ringing in his ears and an unstrung feeling throughout his limbs. He struggled to keep himself awake as black static overtook his vision. Distantly Hizashi could feel hands turning him over and working to pick him up. He heard a second metallic clang, followed by Hebiko snapping something to Takeshiro at the far end of the sludge his brain was sinking into. Before he could make any sense out of any of it, he’d drifted too deep and everything was dark buzzing silence in his head.

Shouta had been trying his best to keep his head down and his eyes on the goal of getting home, but the instant he’d seen the two of them he knew there was going to be trouble. The street was mostly empty and the few people who were out were in motion, leaving jobs or late-night restaurants and heading to wherever they were going after that. The two under the awning, however, were just standing there, carefully keeping to the little bit of shadow the scraps of ripped canvas still cast over the sidewalk. Shouta slowed, pulling his hood up to make it slightly less obvious that he was watching them. One of the figures was tall and skinny with a sharp silhouette, the other at least a foot shorter with unnaturally stiff posture. They talked for a moment before the shorter one waved the taller into the nearby alleyway. Shouta’s eyes narrowed. Never a good sign. He unsnapped the pocket he’d sewn into the shoulder strap of his bag, pulling out one of the bolases he’d stowed there for emergencies. Tucking it tightly into his palm he approached the mouth of the alley. A quick check of the sidewalk confirmed no one else seemed to have noticed him or the two he was following, so Shouta edged up on the corner of the building and peered down the alley.

A third, stockier figured had joined the group from somewhere in the time it took him to approach; they and the short one had closed ranks around the tall one to prevent any potential escape. Shouta dropped into a crouch as he rounded the corner, scuffing his feet over the ground to keep his steps quiet. The group was too far away for Shouta to tell what they were saying, but the conversation seemed to turn sour very quickly. Shouta only managed a few steps towards them before whatever was said triggered a short, dirty fight and the attempt at a quick exit by the tall one via a nearby fire escape. Something fast and tentacle-like caught them around the waist before they made it and dragged them back down. A moment later the short one had them by the back of them neck and slammed them head-first into the side of the dumpster with a sickening clang of skull on metal that echoed out in the otherwise muted night. The tall figure lolled sidewise, dropping senseless onto the ground and for a moment Shouta thought the other two were just going to leave them there. Worse plans were being made, it seemed, as instead the two still standing worked together to roll the unconscious third over and the stocky one made to throw them over their shoulder.

As quickly as he could, Shouta spun the bolas in his hand and threw it at the stocky figure as they bent over. Just shy of wrapping around them, however, the tentacle thing reared up again and slapped the bolas aside. It wrapped uselessly around the bottom of the fire escape ladder with a metallic snap and both of the standing figures turned to see Shouta where he had broken his cover. He pulled another spare bolas out and started it spinning as he rushed them.

“Forget it, get to the car!” the shorter figure commanded the stocky one as they made a move to grab the unconscious figure again. Sprinting away, they made a cursory attempt at tripping Shouta with the tentacle thing, but the swipe swung wide and the tentacle melted into a glob of rotting vegetables as he darted past. The second bolas flew straight, but the two of them had a big enough head start on their side that it dropped and skidded along the ground at their heels without making contact. They had already ducked into a nondescript black sedan and were pulling into traffic by the time Shouta reached the other end of the alley. Shouta pulled his phone out of his pocket and just managed to get a photo of the back of their car. He realized too late that the car didn’t have any plates. Muttering a sharp curse under his breath, Shouta turned and walked back to where they had abandoned the body.

A cold, dawning recognition began to spread in the pit of his stomach as he approached. The figure lay face-down on the concrete where it had been dropped, a spill of long blond hair falling over the collar of a familiar feathered leather jacket. Gently turning the body over confirmed his worst suspicion. Mockingbird’s mask now sported a jagged crack along the top and was streaked with blood from where it had cut into his forehead when his head slammed into the dumpster. Under the blood he looked unpleasantly pale in the dim alley light. His eyelids flickered and he let out a small moaning breath as Shouta put two fingers to his neck to confirm there was a pulse. Not dead, Shouta confirmed with a tight grimace, just knocked out.

Shouta sat back on his heels, brain speeding off in opposite directions at the same time. He knew he was duty-bound to find the nearest patrolling officer or hero and turn Mockingbird in; it was the only good ending for the situation, even if his accomplices had managed to get away. Then again, those “accomplices” had knocked Mockingbird out and for all intents and purposes left him for dead. Whatever had gone south between them, Mockingbird had ended up a victim of it in the end. It seemed unfair somehow for him to get turned over to law enforcement when what he needed was help, like adding insult to injury. A police siren rang out on the street Shouta had followed Mockingbird and the others off of, making Shouta jump. He didn’t have time to debate it. Before better instincts could kick in, he shuffled off his bag and opened the farthest-back compression pocket.

“Sorry about this,” Shouta muttered. Working quickly, he stripped off Mockingbird’s mask and jacket, stuffing them into his bag. Mockingbird was wearing a piece of homemade gear around his neck, partially hidden by the neckline of his hoodie. It looked like a series of spare audio parts wired into a tight collar; long wires stretched down under his sleeves to controls strapped to the palms of his hands under his gloves. The sirens were getting uncomfortably close as Shouta tried to find a way to get it off of him. Finally he just took each side of a join in one hand and yanked, pulling all of the wires free and and shoving the whole contraption in his bag as well. He managed to get everything strapped flat and his bag back over his shoulders as blue and red lights announced the approach of the police. Taking a deep breath and turning his gut-level panic into an expression of concern, Shouta half-jogged out of the alley to meet them.

“Hey! Hey over here, I think he needs help!” Shouta shouted, waving his arms to flag the car down.

The next hour was a hazy blur of trying to keep his story straight for every cop he had to repeat it to, from the scene to the ambulance to a private conference room at the hospital. He had been on his way home from work, he said in increasing tones of weariness, and he heard what he thought was a fight in the alley as he passed by. He tried to step in after the muggers threw Yamada against the dumpster, but they ran off before he could get a good look at them. No, he didn’t really know Yamada, he just recognized him from a delivery he’d made. No, he wasn’t the one who made the initial call to the police, he had been trying to check if Yamada was dead or just unconscious. No, he didn’t have any additional information, he had honestly just been in the right place at the right time. Each time the police seemed to get a little less interested in him, turning their attention to questioning Yamada when the doctors were done running tests. Finally they thanked him for his time and Shouta was allowed to sit by himself in the waiting room and catch his breath.

Every single part of him felt like it was trying to fistfight every other part, but his head was winning the pain battle by a longshot. Hizashi opened his eyes and immediately shut them again with a sharp grunt of pain as white fluorescent lights burned into his skull. He tried again more slowly, squinting his eyes open in slow shifts to let them adjust. A hospital room came into focus bit by bit.. His jacket and gear were gone and his feet were bare. He could see a doctor and nurse standing a few feet away, talking to a uniformed officer. All of them seemed relatively relaxed, considering where they were. There was an uneasy feeling of Wrongness about the situation, but before he had time to dwell on it, the three of them noticed he was awake and came to stand around his bed.

“‘M I under arrest?” Hizashi mumbled. It wasn’t the best opener, but putting thoughts into words and having them stay in the right order was proving to be a challenge right now.

“Nothing so drastic, Mr. Yamada,” the doctor said, smiling at the perceived joke. “Officer Fujiwara is just here to take a statement about what happened to you tonight after we run a few tests to make sure everything’s shipshape up here,” she added, tapping her own temple with an index finger.

“Okay,” Hizashi said slowly. The time delay between ears and brain was slowly shortening, but somehow that wasn’t helping things make sense. He wasn’t being detained (yet), and they’d called him Yamada, which seemed to imply better things than he had expected. How that better outcome had happened was still up for debate but he was more than willing to let it ride for the moment.

The doctor introduced herself as Dr. Watanabe before going through the usual battery of post-concussion memory and comprehension tests that a childhood spent roughhousing with four siblings had turned into second nature for Hizashi. Slowly but surely as they spoke Hizashi’s brain clicked up through the gears until he was mostly running on all cylinders. He kept the conversation going as they wheeled him out of the room for a quick brain scan and then back in once it was done. Too soon, however, came the moment when he had to explain himself to the police.

“I understand things may be a little bit confused at the moment,” Officer Fujiwara began, cutting off Hizashi’s excuse before he could even make it. “We can fill in the more minor details at a later date as they come back to you. For right now, just tell me what you remember.”

Hizashi hesitated, trying to come up with a story that was both plausible and matched enough of the details that it wouldn’t come back to bite him later. “Uh. I was out walking,” he started, trying to get his feet under himself as he spoke. “There’s a takeout place I like, but it’s on the other side of town from my apartment so I don’t go there much unless I’m working late.”

“Understandable. Where is it that you work, Mr. Yamada?” Officer Fujiwara asked.

“Asahi Radio. I manage operations and fill in when our hosts are out. I had some paperwork to finish up, so I stayed late tonight.” Nice, neat, normal little life, Hizashi thought, willing her to buy the excuse. Officer Fujiwara made no indication that she did or didn’t believe it. Instead she just nodded and scribbled down shorthand on her notepad, motioning for him to go on. “I was trying to get home before it got too late, so I took a shortcut to the restaurant, but…” Hizashi trailed off, stiffly shaking his head. “I don’t know. It gets kind of jumbled after that.”

“I see. Do you remember seeing or hearing anything out of the ordinary while you were walking? Anyone suspicious, anyone seeming like they were following you?” Officer Fujiwara asked. Hizashi shook his head.

“No, but I wasn’t really looking I guess. Too distracted by my stomach,” Hizashi replied, cracking a smile at his own joke. Officer Fujiwara gave him a thin smile.

“Anything else you can remember?” she asked. Hizashi pretended to think. Trying to remember things in the order that they had happened after Hebiko had hit him with her Snakebite was genuinely difficult and added a touch of realism to his stymied expression.

“Sorry, no,” he said.

“Not a problem, Mr. Yamada. Here’s my card, and one for my immediate superior,” Officer Fujiwara said, handing him a pair of business cards. “If anything comes to mind later, please feel free to give us a call and let us know.”

Hizashi thanked her and accepted the cards, giving her his number at the station in return in case they needed to call him back instead. Officer Fujiwara bid him a good evening and left. Hizashi allowed himself to breathe a long sigh of relief as Dr. Watanabe returned.

“Well, the good news is your scans came back looking clear as can be hoped for,” she said brightly. “We can go ahead and keep you overnight for observation if you would like, but you should be all right to go ahead home if you’d rather do that. I believe your friend’s still out in the waiting room if the two of you need to talk it over.”

A cold jolt sank into the pit of Hizashi’s stomach, but he tried to keep it off his face. “Uh, yeah,” he agreed. “That might be best.”

Dr. Watanabe nodded and left to go get said “friend”. Hizashi sat up, sliding his legs over to sit on the side of the bed. He wasn’t really feeling up to running for his life after the rest of what happened tonight, but if Hebiko had followed him all the way to the hospital it seemed like he wasn’t going to have much choice. Maybe the cops would still be down in the lobby when he got there and he could have a miraculous return of memory that the stringy, suspicious-looking woman who had said she was here to get him was actually here to get him.

The frantic train of thought had a massive derail, however, as Dr. Watanabe returned to the room with a tall, shuffling figure in tow. Hizashi blinked, sure he had to be seeing things as Aizawa awkwardly nodded in greeting.

“Hey,” Aizawa muttered. “Erm. How’re you feeling?”

“A little confused,” Hizashi said. He tried to raise his eyebrow, but relented when the motion pulled too hard at the stitches in his forehead. “But, uh. Okay, I guess. Are you my escort home?”

Aizawa gave him a slightly sour look at the question but nodded. “I guess so,” he said.

In a renewed haze of bewilderment Hizashi reclaimed what of his belongings hadn’t been thrown out as a biohazard and signed himself out of the hospital while Aizawa called them a taxi. A very stiff, silent cab ride followed, neither of them knowing how to break the silence without making this worse than it already was.

“How’d you know where I was?” Hizashi asked finally, eyes locked forward out the front windshield of the taxi. “Decide to follow me?”

“No,” Aizawa replied flatly. “Just bad luck I guess.”

“Yours or mine?”

“Both.”

Hizashi snorted. “For once we agree on something,” he said.

The cab pulled to a stop in front of Hizashi’s building and his door creaked open to let him out. Aizawa cleared his throat as Hizashi shambled up off the seat.

“Do you...want me to come with you?” Aizawa asked, with a note in his voice that sounded like genuine concern. Hizashi paused, amused in spite of himself.

“Not even a little bit,” Hizashi replied with a cheerful, insincere smile. He shut the door and waited until the cab had pulled back into traffic and rounded the corner before going inside.

#boku no hero academia #my hero academia #aizawa shouta #yamada hizashi #villain!mic #vigilante!aizawa #hizashi yamada #shouta aizawa #Fire Meet Gasoline AU #Quinny thinks she's a writer

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eirian-houpe · 4 years

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The Library Beneath the Clock Tower - Chapter 25

Fandom: Once Upon a Time (TV)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Belle/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold, Belle/Gaston (Once Upon a Time)

Additional Tags: Bookshop On the Corner, slightly AU, Cursed Storybrooke (Once Upon a Time), Alternate Universe - In Storybrooke | Cursed (Once Upon a Time), Eventual Smut

Summary: Storybrooke has no library, and neither does Belle, not since the library where she worked in Boston discovered her past as an inpatient at a mental hospital. Taking her future into her own hands, Belle travels to Storybrooke where her intention is to open up the town library, but all does not go according to her plan. Obstacles and false starts, and diversion along very wrong pathways interrupt her journey toward fulfilling her dream, as well as taking her rightful place and becoming a part of the Storybrooke community.

Read Previous Chapters on AO3

Chapter 25 - Unexpected Ally

Once word got around that the library was open, up and running, Belle had a very busy few days almost rushed off her feet with the number of new subscribers she had registered. She had no idea there were even so many people in Storybrooke. For a sleepy little town in Maine, it certainly seemed to have a lot of residents. Not that she was complaining, not really. It helped to keep her mind off the still missing Mister Gold - being too busy to wonder very much.

It didn’t help her to avoid noticing that there were still far too many spaces on the selves, and that she didn’t have sufficient books in the library for her liking, so she spent one of her lunch breaks sitting at the computer in the library looking online and trying to source new books. She found another branch library in a rural town nearby was closing down due to lack of public funding, and though it saddened her more than she could say, it also filled her with a sense of hope and excitement, and she telephoned the head librarian there right away, securing the bulk of the books to fill the self spaces in Storybrooke’s repository of books.

And not a moment too soon, as it should happen, because while her landlord and secret benefactor - or so it seemed anyway - was still notably absent, the mayor, fast becoming her greatest nemesis, was not. Regina Mills breezed into the library with her nose in the air, practically sweeping her fingertips along surfaces like a mother-in-law checking for dust.

“Well, Miss Marchland,” the mayor said after turning to look at her. “You certainly seemed to have managed to liven the place up a little, if nothing else.”

“Yes,” Belle replied, trying to keep her voice light and polite, although Regina was like a dark cloud over a picnic. “I’ve had a lot of people come in to register.”

“And to borrow books, it would seem.”

“What do you mean?” Belle frowned, wondering what the comment was meant to be criticizing now - because she had no doubt it was.

“The selves are somewhat… sparse, dear,” she said. “We did give you a budget for the library. I distinctly remember signing off on it - against my better judgment, I might add.”

Belle had had enough and folding her arms across her chest demanded, “Then why did you?”

“Everything to do with library was voted on and approved by the town council. I told them they were wasting their time and Storybrooke’s budget, that this little… social experiment wouldn’t last, but… it appears you have some influential people in this town already on your side.”

“I wasn’t aware there was a need to take sides,” Belle grumbled under her breath.

“What was that, dear?” Even before Belle opened her mouth to answer, the mayor waved her away. “Never mind. As soon as people see how limited their choices are, they just won’t be coming any more, and we’ll be able to close this place down.”

She turned on her heel then and headed back toward the front door, but Belle hurried from behind the circulation desk and put herself firmly in the mayor’s path. Forcing her to stop walking or run into her.

“Why do you hate me so much?” she demanded, throwing up her hands, “What have I ever done to you?”

Regina laughed, which fueled Belle’s irritation, and she could feel her color rising in the wake of her irritation.

“My dear Miss Marchland,” the mayor said as her laughter subsided a little. “Hate you?” She shook her head. “It’s as I told you at the ball, and it’s as true now as it was then. It is most fitting that you should be in peasants clothing - as a servant.” She looked around, then looked down at her immaculately painted fingernails as she added, “It’s all you’ll ever amount to, anyway. Besides…” she reached out and pushed Belle aside with two fingers as though she were touching something distasteful before she started walking again toward the door, as she said, “…why waste time hating someone who’s going to do your work for you?”

It took everything that Belle was not to run out after her; to keep her calm and not call after her with words a lady should never use. What the hell did she mean? What was it that Regina Mills thought she was going to do to further her seemingly twisted plans for the townsfolk of Storybrooke. It seemed as though the mayor just wanted everyone to be miserable.

Deliberately, she returned to the circulation desk and engaged in a few mundane tasks to try and rid her mind of the unpleasantness of the visit. It didn’t work. All she could think about was the way the mayor seemed to think that the library would fail, that the people in town were not really interested in patronizing the establishment so close to Belle’s heart. She looked at the stack of registration cards off to the left of the desk - completed registration cards - that still needed to be filed, and it made her chuckle. The sight of the tall stack was a comfort, a reassurance that whatever Mayor Mills thought was refuted by the facts, and that so long as she kept the books well stocked - and she already had that in hand without delving into the actual library budget - then the people would keep on coming.

She smiled, and glanced at her watch. It was almost time for the first of her planned community activities: Storybrooke Story Time, and she wandered over to the area she had already set up that morning with a large area rug, many colorful scatter cushions, and a place for the story-teller - which today would be her - to sit. She’d tried to make sure people knew about it, and had even asked Mary Margaret to let the parents at the school know when it would be happening. Still, after her morning visitor, she worried just a little that no one would come.

She need not have. The moment that the appointed time came around, beginning as a little trickle, at first, and then many people arriving together, parents and children came and took spots on the cushions and on the carpet. Some parents asked if they could leave their little ones while they ran to the store, and although Belle was uncertain at first, the looks of desperation she saw in their eyes - the need for the chance to shop without having to field wheedling requests for cookies and candy, to actually buy their groceries and sundries in peace - made Belle agree, “So long as you’re back by the end,” she would add with a smile and a light touch to their arm.

While she was putting the finishing touches to the event, and setting out small cups of juice, and little containers each with a healthy snack for later, when she suspected the children, especially the younger ones, would need a break, one of the parent’s who had stayed hopped into the ‘Teller’s Chair’ and began leading the children in a song. Belle smiled, happy that things were going well.

Of course, the thought was an invitation for something to go wrong. Even so, she was surprised when she felt a light tap on her shoulder as she was filling the last of the juice cups, and straightened up, turning to see the Sheriff standing behind her.

“Sheriff Humbert,” she greeted him with a smile, “Can I help you?”

“Good afternoon, Miss Marchland,” he began, but she could tell that he felt… awkward, uncomfortable just by the look on his face. “Miss Marchland,” he said again, “I’m sorry to bust in on you like this, but, well, I was passing just now, and I saw some of the parents leave the building without their children.”

“Yes,” Belle said, with a frown, not quite understanding what the Sheriff was driving at. “They asked to run to the store while I was reading the story to the children.”

“See,” Graham Humbert ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “This is very awkward, but… they can’t actually do that. The town of Storybrooke - your employer you understand - doesn’t actually have a background check on file for you yet, so…”

“Oh my God!” Belle exclaimed perhaps a little too loudly, as some of the parents looked around. Belle lowered her voice and leaned closer to the sheriff, speaking confidentially despite her mounting irritation. “Oh my God,” she repeated. “Regina put you up to this, didn’t she?”

“We have to abide by the law, Miss Marchland. I’m sure you understand,” he said, and his non-answer led Belle to believe that she had been entirely right in her accusation.

“Yes, but—” Belle began, but the sheriff held up a hand.

“And the law says you can’t be left alone with children that aren’t your own without first receiving a satisfactory criminal background check,” he offered her a smile then, and with almost a cheeky twinkle in his eye added, “Just so happens that I’m due for a break now, so… if you don’t mind reading a story to a grown up boy…” he gesture toward the circulation desk, and to the new flat packed office chair that leaned against the side of it. “I could even put that together for you while I listen.”

Belle let out the breath she’d be holding, and smiled broadly, throwing a quick hug around the sheriff before she realized what she’d done.

“Thank you, Sheriff,” she said as she pulled back.

“Graham,” he told her. “I’m off the clock, remember? Go on, go read your story. I’ll try not to make too much noise.”

Story time, once it was underway, was a huge hit. Belle didn’t think she would ever get used to the sight of all the attentive faces, eyes wide, looking her way as she told the story as expressively as she could. Time flew past, and they even managed to get through snack time without too much of a mess or too many spills. One of the parents who had stayed through the whole thing volunteered to bring the juice and snacks for the next time, and all of the parents who had run their errands returned on time to collect their children.

“Seems like that was quite the success,” Graham said as he wheeled over the now constructed office chair, echoing Belle’s thoughts.

She smiled her thanks at him, and nodding at the chair, said, “And it looks like you were successful too.”

He chuckled, shaking his head and said, “Don’t say that until you’ve tried it out. If you want to come over to the office some time this week, I can take your fingerprints and get that background check done for you.”

“Thank you,” Belle said. “I’ll do that.”

“Not that I didn’t enjoy the story, by the way,” he added quickly.

“I understand,” she said, “and thank you for sticking your neck out for me.”

He shrugged as if to tell her that he didn’t see it that way, and he didn’t mind, but Belle knew, could sense that there was more to it than he was telling.

“I’d best be on my way,” he said.

Belle walked with him to the door, deciding to prop one of them open to let in some fresh air, and she noticed the same girl she had spotted on the day the library opened. The girl was hovering nearby, looking almost longingly at the library doors. Belle stepped outside and waved the sheriff off as he drove away, then as she turned she offered the girl a greeting.

“Hi,” she said, “have you been out here the whole time?” The girl shrugged, but this time didn’t run away, so Belle ventured, “Would you like to come in and have a look around?”

The girl was hesitant, but when Belle began to walk back toward the library doors, she followed and stepped inside. Belle didn’t want to spook her, or crowd her, because the girl seemed a little skittish, so she set about starting to clean up the discarded cups and paper plates, and after a while the girl moved to help.

“It’s lovely in here,” the girl said as she reached out to put some plates into the trash bag that Belle held open.

“Thank you,” she said. “I’ve tried to make it welcoming.”

The girl nodded, then asked, “What story did you read today?”

Belle paused in her tidying and picked up the book she had read from where she had set it on the Teller’s Chair. She held it out to the girl, who - still hesitantly at first - took it, and turned to settled on a cushion, and begin to read the book. Belle continued tidying, giving her time, and when the girl looked up Belle said, “You could have joined us, you know?” The girl shrugged, so Belle asked, “Do you like books?”

“I love books and stories,” the girl blurted out, then looked embarrassed as she handed back the book.

“You can borrow them, you know. That’s what the library is for after all,” Belle answered.

“But… I don’t have a card,”

“I can help you fill out a card, and then you can take it with you and get your parents to sign it.”

The girl shook her head, looking embarrassed. “Mother wouldn’t like it,” she said, and Belle frowned, but didn’t want to press the girl. It wasn’t her place to pry, after all. “Can I help you put the books away?”

“Of course,” Belle said, then after a moment’s thought she said, “I’ll tell you what, why don’t you stop by on your way home from school a few days a week, and you can help out with shelving the books and tidying up. It would be a great help for me, and if you wanted to read a little bit before you left for home…” she trailed off, letting the girl work things out for herself, then added, “My name’s Belle, by the way.”

“I’m Paige,” the girl answered. “And can you maybe help me with my homework sometimes?”

By the time Paige left, the library was practically spotless, and Belle was glad that she was able to help the girl, even though she still didn’t know very much about her. She liked her, and somehow she seemed strangely familiar, as if she’d seen her before, and not just in passing, or knew her parents even though she was certain that couldn’t be the case.

Though she was still trying to work out the library’s opening hours, Belle decided that she would close earlier than usual that day, posting a notice on the doors to the effect that library hours were under review. Then she headed upstairs, to the apartment, where she practically collided with Ruby who was coming out of the bathroom, in nothing but a robe, still toweling her hair dry.

“You’re early,” Ruby said.

“Yes,” Belle answered, “I thought we could maybe do something. We haven’t really had much time since you got here.”

Ruby’s face became a mask of regret. “I’m sorry, Belle,” she said, “I already have plans.”

“You have a date?” Belle asked, her tone one of surprise, though given what happened at the mayor’s ball it shouldn’t have been so unexpected.

“Sort of,” Ruby said, and Belle raised an eyebrow and said, “There are a bunch of us going to the Rabbit Hole. You should come. It’ll be fun.”

“No,” said Belle, rather more vehemently than she meant to, so trying again said more softly, “No thank you. It’s not really my cup of tea.”

“You sure?” Ruby looked guilty, and Belle didn’t want that. She wanted her friend to have fun.

“Yes, of course. You go, have a good time.” She told her. “It’ll give me a chance to try out that new cookie recipe that I found.”

“Belle—” Ruby started, but she cut her off.

“No, seriously, it’s fine.” Belle offered a smile, and then gave her friend a push toward the bedroom. “Get dressed, you don’t want to keep them waiting.” Ruby leaned down and kissed her cheek, and Belle gave her a tight hug in return, murmuring, “Knock ‘em dead.”

#rumbelle #AU (slight)#storybrooke au #cursed storybrooke #eventual smut

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genshin-impact-cheats-engxi · 2 years

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Genshin Impact Cheats + Moded Launcher Safe [NEW]

💾 ►►► DOWNLOAD FILE 🔥🔥🔥 The best working and current cheat for the game Genshin Impact is available for free on our website. If you want to easily pass the most beautiful game in the world, this hack is perfect for your requirements. It is very simple, it has a wide range of functions, easy to run, does not require any unnecessary programs. Genshin has a fascinating story, lots of content and a nice, cartoonish style. There is a large playable area to explore, but there is one significant quandary: you have to spend a lot of effort pumping up your character, and discovering all the hidden locations. Collecting resources can also get bored after a while, and repetitive scenes of battle with enemies tiresome. You can download this free hack to make the gameplay easier. Download binaries archive, unpack where you want. Close genshin if you have opened. Run injector. I would like to set up a button to disable camera movement input only while a certain key is pressed, so please add the function. Is there a way to make exploring easier? But the information of the device I was playing on once banned account is stored in HoYoverse. I think that is why the speed of banning has increased for subsequent accounts. Not one of the accounts had their data erased. I have two other accounts from that experiment, one is the main one and the other is the one that was banned. Oh hi, thanks yeah, I've been playing with no clip set at 5. I was wondering if higher values were also safe. Dont work! I used to be able to do it with CheatEngine , but now it will probably be banned, because Value hacks are easily found by developers. I already made a comment on how to avoid banning. You can read it down below. I asked a long time ago when pre-prepared confings will be available. Update please! Season 7 just arrived and the cheat doesnt work anymore! I need any cheat injector for it sry i willl try to startt my adventure with cheats but im fcking idiot. Sign in registration. Genshin Impact July, Copy the link to proceed to the file download Copy text. Only authorized users can download files. Please Log in or Register on the website. UP Comments: Views: 49 Is it still safe with the 2. Why UserAssembly. It doesn't work even though the menu opens. And, ESP is also useful to use with it. No clip up to x5 speed seems to be safe. I haven't seen anyone saying teleporting is safe. How about the inf stamina and cooldowns? Skill cooldown up to 5x reduction is okay, I haven't tried stamina yet. So, I have a question, Can I use this in another account and not got banned in my main? I have already experimented with 5 bans and all have been banned separately. But I hope it will be useful in some way. Okay, that partially answers my question. Do you have an account that you have NOT injected anything? And got banned? As a matter of fact, there is no account that I have not used this program on. The main account that I am currently using in progress has never been banned since 2. So I think it is ok, but I will leave the decision up to you. My game keeps freezing on the first loading screen when I open the game through injector. Hi guys. Could you tell me if auto run or alternative clip are safe? Is CLIP safe if more than 5? I would just use alt no clip at higher value and keep the normal no clip the same. Can we unlock the maximum explosion energy without being banned in the game? Not sure if it will be employed in this system Does this work if i install Genshin Impact through epic games installer? I think the damage multipliers might be broken. Is the game banning by ip or hardrive if detected. Or just account? Guys i dont know how many times i'll say this CD is safe even if 0 Godmode is not safe Auto chat is safe Auto burst is safe Dmg multi is not safe if more than 10 No clip is safe best at Read the comments dud lmao. There's an update in-game. Please update the cheat if there is one. New Comments. Related publications. Genshin Impact Public Cheat October, Log in Login:. Forgot your password? Log in Registration. Site design update.

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ask-the-phan-site · 6 years

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Phan Cam: The Fight Before Christmas (Part 1)

>Shibuya. On Central Street, a young boy wonders off from the pharmacy out of boredom.

Finally! Some time to myself without my parents breathing down my neck.

>He looked around to find something to help him kill the boredom. Then, he noticed someone... A certain king we all know.

Can’t believe I had to come all the way here to Shibuya to play Gun About. I really hope they finish renovations soon. Who even does this at this time of year?

Young Boy: Hey, Shinya!

Shinya: Oh, hey, Yuta! What are you doing here so late? I thought your mom didn’t like that.

Yuta: She and Ryuichi are in the pharmacy buying Grandpa’s medicine. He has prescription so they’ll be awhile. So I thought I’d sneak off, maybe get something from the convenience store.

Shinya: Do you even have the money?

>Hearing this, Yuta’s jaw dropped.

Yuta: Shoot! I forgot, Mom’s says I’m not old enough to have my own money. So what about you? Don’t you usually go to the arcade in Akihabara?

Shinya: The owner closed it down for renovations. He’s thinking of adding a second floor to put in a gamer’s cafe and use the other higher floors to rent apartments.

Yuta: Couldn’t you just play Gun About at home?

Shinya: We don’t have the Internet and my mom doesn’t really like that game. So I have to come all the way here which is taking a heavy toll on my wallet. Just hope I can make it back before dinner. By the way, how are things. Especially with...

Yuta: With my condition? Well, it’s still pretty much the same. I can’t feel pain, shouldn’t that mean I’m like invincible? Why can’t my mom see that?

I’m not sure if I’m the right person to tell you that, Yuta.

>Just then, they noticed something. Someone going into an alley next to the karaoke place.

Shinya: I know that guy. And who’s the lady with him?

Yuta: Doesn’t that go to that place where they sell model guns? Joe said I shouldn't go in there.

Shinya: But if he’s going to be there, I’m sure it will be alright. Wanna see what they’re up to?

Yuta: Well, as long as I get back before my parents notice I'm gone.

>The two boys followed into the alley... Not knowing they were being followed as well.

???: Little kids shouldn’t be going into an alley at night. I better follow them before Yuta worries Setsuko and Ryuichi.

>The managed to sneak inside.

Welcome back. Come to sell me something else weird? ... You’re even dressed weird.

The high schools in the city are having an event. I know I transferred out of Shujin, but my friends needed help and I said I would. We were hoping to go there after we talk with you.

Same here. I know me and my friend just graduated, but we just couldn't let them do this on their own.

What is it you wanted to talk about?

Makoto: Well, you know about that tournament Ren was invited to?

Kaoru: You mean Smash Bros.? Yes... Actually, shouldn’t you be there now?

I already did. The things about the Smash Universe is... Time is irrelevant.

Makoto: Since Smash Bros. consists of characters from other video game series, Nintendo needed a space were they can be together without disrupting the story of their games. And that’s when they made Smash Bros.

Kaoru: Amazing. But how did you get an invitation?

Ren: Sonic the Hedgehog.

Iwai: You mean your last heist?

Ren: Yes. Sneaky McBatty (Rouge the Bat) let is slip to Sonic that we’re the Phantom Thieves. Thankfully, he, the Thorndykes, and their friends decided to keep it a secret, but Sonic got the idea to invite me to be in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate... As DLC, of course.

Iwai: I see. But what does this have have to do with us?

Ren: After I did that, our first admin had the idea to sign me up for that fighting tournament that takes place every year here in Tokyo.

Iwai: You mean the Fight Before Christmas? I guess that means you’re here for the rule book.

Makoto: I’m entering as well. My former aikido instructor was going to enter due to bills piling up at the dojo and the prize money should be able to pay them off until he can find something, but the maximum age to enter is 59 and he’s 62. However, when he diced to find someone to take his place, I was the first one who came to mind.

Kaoru: Really? You must be really good at aikido to be chosen. Actually, I’ve always thought of taking up the martial arts... For sports.

Heh! That’s what I thought.

Kaoru: And what about you, Ren kun?

Ren: Like I said, Mishima thought it would be good for the Phandom if the leader of the Phantom Thieves was in the tournament and would get us more requests and, in light of the holidays, gifts.

Kaoru: That must be rough.

Yuta: (whisper) Why are they talking about the Phantom Thieves?

Shinya: (also whispering) Well, I’m not suppose to say anything, but...

Look, can you keep a secret?

>Yuta nods his head. So Shinya leans in close and whispers in his ear.

Shinya: ...

Yuta: ARE YOU SERIOUS!? YOU’RE FRIENDS WITH THE PHANTOM THIEVES!?

SHUSH! They’ll hear us!

>Too late. We notice them where they were hiding.

Shinya kun?

Kaoru: Holy smoke! The King of Akihabara! ... And I wish I had a cut-in to show my expression. And why is Yuta Koshu with you?

Yuta: Huh? You know about me?

Kaoru: Who in Shibuya hasn’t heard of you? ... Because of him.

>Kaoru was pointing to the door which was open and someone came in. Yuta was sure he had been busted... Until he saw who it was.

Yuta: Oh good. It’s just you. I was sure Mom and Ryuichi was here.

But I don’t think you’ll be out of trouble just yet.

Yuta: Why’s that?

???????: Because just as Joe followed you, we followed Joe.

>As this Joe person comes in... Two more followed.

(sighs) If we get anymore people here this place will either become a suburb or have people thinking there’s a sale going on.

Sorry. We just took our eyes off of him for just a minuet and he was gone.

Yuta: I’m sorry. I just met Shinya and we got curious about one of his friends.

Well, as long as you didn’t get hurt or did anything dangerous, I’ll forgive you this once. Just don’t scare us like that again. My heart almost dropped when we turned around and you weren’t there.

Iwai: Just goes to show you that you gotta keep a real close eye on the younger ones. Especially when you’re out in the city at night.

Yuta: (a bit offended) Hey! I’ll have you know I just turned 8.

Joe: Anyway, I guess you know about me too.

I also know about you as well, Joe Akamine. As well as you both, Ryuichi and Setsuko Suzuki.

Ren: Can you explain, please?

Makoto: Joe and Ryuichi are well known in the boxing world. Joe is one of the few expected to become the next Joe Yabuki. As for Ryuichi, he was in the prime of his boxing career but was forced into early retirement due to complications with his vision.

Ryuichi: I don’t think we need to talk about that. But there were a few good things that came out of it.

Setsuko: That’s true.

Shinya: You two are married, right? Yuta told me.

Yuta: That’s right. Ryuichi’s my step-dad now. Even though he can’t box anymore, I still think he’s great. Almost as much as Joe.

Ryuichi: (playfully offended) Aww, thanks.

>We couldn’t help but laugh.

Setsuko: Now hold on. Yuta, event though I’ve forgiven you, I’m still upset. Just wandering off on your own. And at night, no less. And you went into a gun shop.

Iwai: I can assure you, ma’am, these are just models. They only shoot pellets.

Setsuko: I see.

Joe: By the way, I also overheard you guys talking about the Fight Before Christmas.

Makoto: You know about it too, Joe san? I take it you’re also entering.

Ryuichi: Really? That’s what you wanted to talk about?

Joe: Well, Mr. Takizawa normally enters in the tournament, but as of last month, he turned 60 and has been declared too old to enter. But he asked me to enter in his place. He just told me this morning and I was going to tell you tonight.

Kaoru: Really? Do they allow boxers? She just said she practices aikido.

Iwai: Well, Kaoru, the Fight Before Christmas is a bit like the Street Fighter Tournament. All forms of fighting are welcome.

Kaoru: I see. They’re not very organized about this, are they? But why does Mr. Takizawa enter the tournament? Does he need the money?

Joe: No, he doesn’t do this for the money. He’s trying to become the next FBC Champion. But he said I can still get the money if I want.

Kaoru: Really? How much is the prize money?

Iwai: ¥900,000. ($7983)

Kaoru: (surprised) For real!? And I thought the money you won in the lottery was a lot.

Ren: You won the lottery, Iwai san?

Kaoru: We’ll explain another time.

Yuta: Joe, you’ve got to enter it. I know you can become the next Champ.

Joe: Well, if it means Mr. Takizawa would have his dream of the currant Champ being defeated, I guess.

Yuta: Yes!

Joe: So, where do I sign up?

Iwai: Normally, you can sign online...

But from what I've heard, a lot of people want to sign up in person at the TV station in Akasaka Mitsuke. Mostly because of one of the co-commentators.

Ryuichi: Why? Is it someone famous?

Iwai: You could say that... If you like girls based on edible meats.

Kaoru: You mean it’s... Her?

Joe: If it is, I guess we should get going.

Iwai: I don’t think you can go right now. The place is probably packed by now. But don’t worry, registrations will be open for a while, so you might have time.

Makoto: That’s probably good. We don’t have time today anyway.

Ryuichi: How come?

>Suddenly, the door opened again.

‘Bout time we found you guys! We’ve been waiting almost 20 minutes.

We thought you probably got held up for some reason.

>Joe, Ryuichi, and Setsuko just started at Ryuji, Yusuke, and Haru about what they were wearing.

Is something wrong?

Ren: I’ll explain later. Right now, we better go. Everyone’s waiting.

>With that, we leave and Iwai closes the shop for the night... And just when all was quiet...

Interesting...

>Sho notices Ryuichi walking off. Seeing him, Shoe makes a look of disgust.

#phantom thieves cam #christmas

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agent-nova · 6 years

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A Protector.

(I am so far unable to stop. I’m so so so so so so so not sorry. Thank you for your consideration.) [Link to previous]

Ellie passed the booth, doing her best to ignore the suggestion of any further competition. She couldn’t. She shouldn’t. Still, his suggestion repeated itself in her head, as if he were a devil on her shoulder. Shake it off, forget about yesterday. Try to gain back some dignity. Where had her confidence gone? Had she left it stuck in the mud yesterday?

She sucked in a deep breath and grimaced, mind warring over this decision. If there was a chance, she should be taking it. But this is exactly the mess she wanted to avoid. If he knew she was here, competing, he’d probably have something to say about it. She was in enough trouble as it is without him showing his face, crawling out from whatever rock he was currently under. The idea of being able to turn up and drop her entire debt at his feet was too sweet to ignore. She knew the risk was high, but the reward matched it in temptation.

She turned course and headed for the registration table, her face etched with worry.

The massive walled-off space was surrounded with spectators. Ellie tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she watched the gathered crowd grow in size. The sun reached its highest point in the sky, but the clouds ensured the combatants standing at the edges remained just cold enough to avoid comfort. Rain threatened, but the ground was mostly dry for the time being. If it did rain, Ellie would need to watch out for the slick grass underfoot. She didn’t need a repeat of the previous day.

“Couldn’t stay away, I see,” a stranger taunted. Ellie looked to her left and gasped, eyes wide. It was the same man from yesterday. The one who paid for her bath...

“What on earth are you doing here?” Ellie wanted to yell at him, to ask him why he suggested this to her when he himself would also be participating. Did he want an easy target? One less person for him to worry about?

“Competing, same as you.” He did his best to hide his smile. “Why do you look like you’re about to cleave my head clean from my shoulders?”

“Because I’m about to—”

A hush fell over the area as the King stood and began addressing the gathered crowd, as well as the combatants. She noticed the stranger move a bit closer to her. He leaned down as the King began his speech, breath warming the side of her face.

“I’d let you.”

Ellie nearly died. She did her best to pretend like maybe she hadn’t heard him, but she definitely had.

He stood up straight again, stepping to the side a bit to give her some space. She could see him trying to stifle the grin forming and wished she could smack him without drawing attention her way. Somehow she expected the King might frown on that.

She scanned the other opponents, the ones she could see, anyway, and swallowed. This was the dumbest thing she’d ever done, by far. How could she be so stupid? She looked up at the man standing beside her and found he was watching her too.

“You’ll be fine. Stick with me.” She let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding and nodded, thankful for his help yet again.

“Ah, uh, thank you for yesterday, by the way. I didn’t realize you were...paying for it.” She sighed at herself. “Just...thanks.”

“It’s no trouble. Glad I could be of service to someone,” he shrugged. “You clean up okay,” he commented. “Worth the price, I’d say.”

Ellie didn’t know if there was a more appropriate color to be seeing other than red. Both anger and embarrassment seemed to correlate, as well as...lust. She couldn’t wait for this to be over so she could give him a piece of her mind. Or a piece of herself… “Good lord above,” Ellie sighed. “I am so sorry. Just let me survive this fight,” she begged.

She swore she could hear him laughing.

“On your right!” Ellie narrowly missed the thin blade that had been thrown through the air. She heard it whistling as it passed right by her ear and fell to the ground a good distance behind them.

“I thought you said they would take each other out first?!” The stranger bumped into Ellie from behind. She reached back to steady him, her hand going to his side. They stood back to back, on one side of the arena, surrounded by a few of the competitors.

“I didn’t count on being a target,” he complained. He was. From the moment the battle commenced, people seemed to be aiming for him. The only other comparable situation was occuring on the other side of the arena, which was drawing most of the crowd’s attention. Ellie glanced over to check on things over there.

A great warrior felled multiple people with one swing, her height giving her an advantage. She easily kept them at bay. “She’s beautiful,” Ellie sighed. A knock at her back brought her out of her mild fascination.

“Maybe fantasize later, eh?” He managed a chuckle before deflecting another blade with the crossguard of his sword. “Can you do anything about that?” He drew his dagger and passed it over to Ellie. She took it from him, only allowing herself a moment to look it over before locating the knife-thrower. She threw the blade as hard as she could, hoping she’d land the hit. The figure slumping down, clutching their shoulder, seemed to indicate she’d done a good enough job. “Right, how many are left?”

Ellie quickly scanned the area. “Counting the wonderful woman over there, I see eleven still standing,” Ellie relayed.

“So that makes us twelve and thirteen—” His planning was cut off as Ellie shoved him back, out of reach of a particularly nasty looking mace, which was now stuck in the earth. The stranger turned to see why on earth she’d seen fit to push him so roughly, surprised to see the figure already on the ground, Ellie taking care of them while they attempted to pull their weapon free.

“Twelve!” Ellie grinned, kicking at the helmet of the unconscious attacker.

She saw that the stranger did his best to hide his smile. By this point he had streaks of dirt across his face, though Ellie found it didn’t reduce how nice he looked at all.

The clouds held, ground staying mostly dry, though twenty people moving around did kick up quite a bit of the damp earth. She spotted the King sitting high, above the crowd, above the arena carved into the earth. He knew people were desperate for the prize money these tournaments offered, and putting these desperate people into more dangerous circumstances did nothing but bring amusement to him. Ellie hated him.

“Look out!” Ellie was shoved into the earth. She watched in a panic as a greatsword fell closer and closer towards her, but she made no move to flee. A loud metallic clang met her ears. She looked up towards the tip of the large blade and saw the stranger’s arm there, holding the blade in place. “You—”

“I’m fine, move!” the stranger commanded. Ellie rolled away and returned to her feet. The attacker looked just as confused as Ellie. His confusion was short-lived, however, as a quick pommel strike to the side of his head caused him to fall unconscious. The attacker fell over, with the sword still wedged deep in the stranger’s right arm. Ellie quickly moved in to try to help, thinking of how small her own wound now seemed in comparison.

But there was no blood. She watched the stranger wrench the sword free, letting it fall to the ground with a clatter.

“Eleven,” the stranger smiled, pulling his sleeve back to expose the entirety of the metal arm. Ellie’s eyes narrowed.

“I was very worried.”

“Why were you worried?” he taunted. “Now you owe me double.”

“Double?! But I just saved your life only minutes ago!” Ellie argued.

“Now I’ve got to fix this, so, double,” he insisted. She frowned.

“You know how I feel about owing people,” she reminded him.

“Right, how is it that I know about a personal insecurity of yours but I don’t know your name?” She seemed to be running into him more than she expected. Perhaps a proper introduction wouldn’t hurt. So she could stop referring to him as a stranger. Because at this point he definitely wasn’t. Or she didn’t want him to be.

“Okay, it’s—” Before she could give her name, a great gasp came from the crowd gathered near the other side. Their own half of the arena empty of opponents, Ellie and the stranger turned and watched.

“She got it down to six,” the stranger commented, sounding quite impressed.

“Who is she?” Ellie asked.

“Brienne. She’s a fantastic fighter, Commander of the Kingsguard.” There was something else in his voice, besides respect and reverence. Ellie didn’t feel like now was a good time to ask. “And you are, miss?” he asked, turning his attention to Ellie.

“Ugh, don’t call me that, I’m not a ‘miss’, it sounds too…” she couldn’t find a word that fit her thoughts.

“Alright, my lady. Please, do me the huge honor of bestowing upon me your divine name,” he mocked, putting his hand to his chest.

She smacked his arm, his good one, and he groaned. Still, she laughed at him. “I’m Ellie,” she finally volunteered. “And?” she prompted.

“I’m Charlie, former Commander of the Kingsguard.” He said it nonchalantly, as if there wasn’t a story behind that. She looked him over, seeing the military training, the poise and awareness…he wasn’t lying. He looked down at her after she stayed quiet. “What?”

“You’re not going to explain?”

“Eh, if we make it out of here alive I promise I’ll tell you, over a nice dinner—” They were interrupted by someone who had made their way over in the ruckus. Both dodged on either side. Ellie knocked their blade out of their hand, while Charlie incapacitated them. “That leaves us with five,” he smiled.

“What are you going to do with your winnings, Ser Charles?” Ellie asked.

“Getting a little ahead of yourself, sweetheart,” he taunted. Ellie noticed Brienne was watching Charlie, now that there were so few of them left. Perhaps she recognized him, Ellie thought. She didn’t know if it was animosity or wariness in her eyes.

“What should we do?” Ellie asked as Brienne began making her way over. “Charlie?” she panicked. Brienne grew more intimidating the closer she got. She used her shield to easily sweep someone off their feet as they attempted to approach her, bringing the count down to four.

“Don’t panic. She’s fair,” he whispered. Ellie took a few steps back, though Charlie stayed right where he was, a relaxed expression on his face. “Hello, Brienne. What brings you down here, in the muck with the rest of us? Would’ve thought this was too low-brow for you, Commander.”

“Ser Charles, I see you refused the offer. Seeking coin to supplement your lifestyle here? Or just a thrill, something to ease your boredom?” She looked down at Ellie, and Ellie wondered if Brienne meant her as the thrill in question. She was burning with questions for her tentative companion.

Before Charlie could get a word in, he was struck across the back of the head and fell to his knees, groaning. Ellie wasn’t quick enough to respond to the threat, but Brienne was. The man was kicked halfway across the arena, a feat which caused the crowd great joy.

“Two…” Ellie mumbled, hoping she wouldn’t be meeting a similar fate.

“Kneel,” Charlie urged. Ellie couldn’t hear him clearly. She got down near him.

“What?”

“Kneel!” he ordered. Ellie looked up at Brienne who seemed to be waiting for Ellie’s next move. Fair, indeed. Ellie quickly dropped to her knees beside Charlie.

“Second isn’t so bad, is it?” Ellie asked, as Brienne moved away to receive whatever glory was about to come her way.

Charlie frowned. “You owe me. Triple.”

“Okay,” Ellie nodded. “I do.”

#warrior!nova #charlie hesketh #an alternate timeline #mild got au #I've got some explaining to do #don't I?

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vixx-fic-challenge · 6 years

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Fantasia Fic Bingo: FAQ

Challenge 🌹 Rules 🌹 Register

What is a fic bingo? Each author is given a bingo card of prompts, and completes fic to get a full row, or “BINGO”! It’s a good challenge to get people writing things that they might not normally try~

What are the requirements? To finish the challenge, an author must submit 4 works, each of which fills a prompt from their card and is minimum 1500 words.

The 4 prompts, to get “bingo”, must be from the card in a row, in any horizontal or vertical row, or on a diagonal. Examples of acceptable prompt fills are below:

Finally, all works must be appropriately tagged.

How do I sign up? You can find the registration form here. It’s very short! If your preferred platform is AO3, you should also joint the AO3 collection here. If you prefer Tumblr, follow this blog! (I mean, follow anyway! But especially if you’re posting to Tumblr).

Can I sign up on both AO3 and Tumblr? Yes, you can. If you’re doing this, though, please indicate that in the form!

How do I submit my fic to you when I’m done? On AO3: 1. Go to the collection, and make sure you’re a member (while logged in) 2. Either: - post a new work and make sure the “post to collections/challenges” box has the Fantasia Fic Bingo code (fantasia_1), - or go to the collection page and select “post to collection”, which does that automatically for you. 3. Fill in your AO3 form as usual and post! I will be notified and approve the fic, which completes the process.

On Tumblr: 1. Post the work to your blog, ensuring it is appropriately tagged. 2. Submit a link & short summary of the fic to this blog’s submission box. I will be notified and post the link to this blog!

For both methods, please make sure your works are appropriately tagged. You may post a submission whenever it’s complete.

What do I do if I don’t like my bingo card? As there are 10 different ways to get “bingo” on your card, you should be able to find a combination that you like. After all, it is a challenge to get you writing fic you wouldn’t normally try! However, if you absolutely hate a tile or two, you can request a new card without those (no questions asked). There are 24 prompts in total, so the card won’t be drastically changed, but it will be new.

If you need to change your card, you have two weeks from the day that you receive the card (whenever that is) to do so. After that, I will assume you are okay with it. If you have a serious problem with the new card, please contact me.

When do I start? You can start writing as soon as you receive your bingo card (as long as you’re happy with it, of course!).

What if I can’t finish? Since this is a personal challenge and not an exchange, there’s no need to worry if you can’t complete it. You don’t even have to tell me, if you don’t feel like it! Life gets in the way, & this challenge should be fun - not a burden.

If you want to finish the fic from these prompts after the deadline, you’re welcome to do so. They won’t count towards a ‘bingo’, and I won’t put them on the masterlist for the challenge, but I’m happy to post them and reblog them, so don’t be shy!

What if I finish early? Congrats! You’re a writing wizard. If you finish early, feel free to write more prompts from your card, or even try to get another ‘bingo’ (from the same card, or a second one!).

Do I need a beta? There’s no official requirement for a beta, but please make sure your fic is well edited (by yourself, or by others!).

Are there any check-ins or reminders? There are no official check-ins, though I will occasionally post general reminders to this blog (we’re halfway there... there’s two weeks left, etc).

However, if you want me to remind you personally by sending you a message, there’s a section in the registration form that lets you request that. Think of me as a personalizable Reminders app just for this bingo! I’ll put everyone’s reminders in a calendar & send you notes on the dates that you request it, if that’s what you’d prefer to help keep you on track.

Can I announce what prompts I’m working on? Absolutely! This exchange isn’t a secret, so feel free to hint at what you’re writing, talk about it with other writers (maybe convince them to join in the fun, too!), send messages in bottles and yell about it in the town square.

If I have a concept on my card, like ‘angst’, does that mean I can’t use it more than once? Not at all! Say you have ‘pirates’, ‘mermaids’ and ‘angst’ on your card (which you probably do. The bingo card generator really likes those prompts). You can write a fic that has all three of those elements, but it’ll only count for ONE bingo square (whichever of those three you choose).

Therefore, if you wanted to write three fics of pirate/mermaid angst, you could have each one count for a different square (as long as they are all separate stories). Hopefully this makes sense!

How do I tag my fic, and why are you so serious about it? There’s a whole set of tagging rules which I want y’all to make sure you read before you sign up, and that’ll tell you what guidelines to follow. It seems like a lot, but I give you a pattern/form that you can copy and paste at the beginning of your work (if you’re on Tumblr) or an idea of what tags I need to see if you’re on AO3.

I’m super serious about this because I want you all to be able to write whatever you please, but I also want you all to feel safe and comfortable when you’re looking through the content on this blog. That’s why bad tagging is basically the only reason I won’t post your work!

If writers make sure they have the tags on their works, they can post whatever without rude comments, and readers can filter through things that they don’t want to see. It’s a win-win for everyone, so long as it’s tagged!

If you have any questions, concerns, or tags that you want me to add to the rules, please contact me!

#vixx fic challenge #challenge faq #fantasia fic bingo

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thedivinefish · 4 years

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TGIWednesday and the gift that keeps on giving

TGIWednesday News

“it’s the most wonderful time of the year...” My mother Ruth used to sing that song. Her birthday was Christmas Day and she tells great stories of growing up just after the great depression. When she was born her oldest sister delivered her. The doctor showed up the next day and checked her out at the old farm house and did not charge them (next day? I would hope not) My mother Granny Ruth was the gift that kept on giving. Kind and generous and always with us still to this day. What is your gift to the world that keeps on giving? Be fully present, and as loving and kind as you can because it seems like the grumpiest folks need to hear, read and feel this the most. Scroll down for my gifts to you! You have 4 more days to go wild during our "12 Days of BOGO" sale when our MyBeliefWorks™ audio MP3/PDF collection in the library is Buy 1, Get 1. Click here for more info!

For those who aren't familiar, below is a list of the 30+ audios in the series.... Find a topic that addresses your issue(s), click on the link to read more. We had a lot of help downloading & channeling these over the years & they keep getting better. Don't forget... you can share these with your immediate friends and family.

Abundance Abuse Addiction Body Scan: Head to Toe Bountiful Harvest Creatives Daily GPS Reset Dark Energies/Fears Decision Making Diet & Exercise Education & Learning Family & Relatives Financial Windfall The Gold Coin Healing Body Disorders Healing Mental Stress

Holiday Stress Increasing Intuition IRS & Tax Time Love & Romance Money Mindset Moving Forward Pain Relief Pet Healing Sales & Success Improving Sex Improving Sleep Traveling w/Ease Work & Career Weight Loss Youth & Vitality

Shop BOGO Here!

December LIVE Zoom Event

These monthly LIVE events are by invitation only exclusively to our TGIW subscribers held on the last Wednesday of each month. These calls are unique in that you have the benefit of tapping into a multitude of issues that many participants have submitted for the group. We compile that list of dozens of write-ins and one by one, we will clear it all together that evening. And know too that during the LIVE call, I bring in additional pieces from Spirit in the moment of reading each item that really expand on things and cover the clearings in a much deeper way. The value in this is tremendous! Instead of paying $68 for a half hour one on one with me where we might clear a dozen or so items, you can join our group each month for just $22 where together in 30 minutes you will watch in silence and amazement as you hear and feel the shifts of near 100 items - most of which you haven’t even thought of until you hear them LIVE!! Our next LIVE Zoom MySwitchWorks event

Wednesday December 30th at 7:30-8:00pm ET TOPIC: Intuition and Becoming More Psychic Registration fee = $22 (including replay)

This month’s Zoom event is all about your hidden gifts, intuition and clearing out blocks that are preventing you from reaching your highest potential.

Are you clear on what your gifts are and how to use them? What would you like more of? Intuition, discernment, clear purpose, more motivation, healing, better focus or alignment, better connection to angels and the Divine, prophecy cards, numerology, astrology? What are your blocks? Feeling stuck, disconnected, overwhelmed, frozen in fear, lazy, lethargic, procrastinating?

REGISTER NOW, SUBMIT YOUR TOP 3 issues and join us as we discover and erase the blocks allowing you to become more aligned with your divine gifts! NOTE: All who are registered will receive the REPLAY via email the following day. All participants will be muted, no video, listen-mode only.

Browse the previous MySwitchWorks catalog here.

TGIWednesday Download

~ THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING ~ I believe, think, know and feel that I can be the gift that keeps on giving. I am ready, willing and able to be giving this time of year and always. I know when, where, how and why to give expecting nothing in return because by giving the act alone opens my heart to boundless possibilities. I am asking in all languages and throughout all time lines and so it is.

From the Fish Box

Dear Jimmy, Let me start off by saying how much I loved meeting you Saturday. You're so amazing to be in the presence of. I felt so intensely aware of love from Spirit and still do. I am drawn to the energy I felt in your presence. It’s so very hard to explain but it’s almost like a feeling of addiction. Addiction to Spirit and Spirits touch! I just had my MRI this morning and prior to the results I told my nurse practitioner about being blessed by Spirit and how meeting you has changed my life. She said I seem lighter and my energy I put off made her feel lighter in conversation! My Dr. walked in after she told him my conversation with her. He was singing the “Jimmy Mack” song! He said I want “him” on my team here! He opened up my last 3 scans and he was speechless! September growth, October even more growth, Today......so much shrinkage that the blood vessel that was once pushed up like a crescent moon was now sagging a slight bit! He had no words for the progress except being dumbfounded! Thanks so much! I can’t wait to see you again! I will be back in December through the end of the year! If you have any free time for me during this time I would love to make an hour appointment with you again! Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for blessing me with Spirit and a renewed faith! All my love and gratitude, Rosemarie

Tampa Office Sessions

SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH SOLUTIONS THIS FRIDAY DECEMBER 11th from 10-4pm

Jimmy Mack will be offering sessions at Dr. Charla Tempone’s NEW office at Swann Holistic Health Solutions from 10am - 4pm on Friday December 11th 403 S. Habana Ave. Tampa, FL 33609 Just south of Azeele next to Skin Savvy http://www.ctholisticsolutions.com

Please call their office directly at ☎️ (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes $38 or 30-minutes $68. If you’re new to working with me, I suggest you schedule 30 minutes.

FRIDAY KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS

Friday sessions are back to being phone-only for folks that I usually see at Kodawari until further notice. You can book time with me in the shop and schedule online. 3965 Henderson Blvd Suite C Tampa ☎️ (813) 999-1874 http://www.kodawariyoga.com/

Fish Food

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

Tell the Fish - 365 Daily Inspirations and Affirmations - by Jimmy Mack DECEMBER 9th "Today brevity will be my guide. I answered the above "question" with a simple "Nope." I will ignore people who want to tell me their same sad story over and over again without doing anything to change the recording. I will ignore any inkling I have of an internal sad story too and I will persist creating changes and greater positive outcomes."

The Jimmy Mack Healing Show

WATCH IT LIVE TUESDAY'S at 4pm EDT / 1pm PDT Watch and Participate (via Comments) during the Live TV Show streamed on Goldylocks Productions YouTube Channel, Facebook Page and Periscope. NOTE: You will need to log into your YouTube (Google) or Facebook accounts to comment. If you watch the Live show from any other location other than the 3 listed below, your comments will not be seen by the Show Host or Producer. https://www.facebook.com/GoldylocksProductions https://www.pscp.tv/Goldylocks168/follow Or watch all live and replays in the archives here: https://thejimmymackhealingshow.com/

Instructions for the VIEWERS: 1. One reading/message per person. The first question posted will be answered, so please think about your question carefully before posting it. 2. If you want a longer and more detailed message, please book an appointment with the Show Host. 3. Spirit does come through and gives messages that can apply to many, not just the person asking the question. 4. It is not required nor should be expected that every question or comment will be addressed by the Show Host. 5. If you have any issues with the show host or show format, please contact the Show Producer... not the Show Host. 6. Contact the Show Producer, Rev. Tiffany White Sage Woman via email: [email protected]

Yesterday's Replay with Special Guest Marla Martenson | Author, Intuitive Reader, Tarot https://marlamartenson.com December 15th - Kimberly Marooney | Angel Expert, Author, intuitive http://kimberlymarooney.com/angel-expert-kimberly-marooney December 22nd - NO SHOW THIS WEEK December 29th Rev Debbie Dienstbier | Trans medium communication with your loved ones in spirit Visit her Facebook page

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Receive 24/7 Prayers from Jimmy

Nightly prayers include COVID-19. Each night we work on scrambling the frequency for everyone on the prayer list. Your name will be added to a special VIP Prayer list where Jimmy will use his intelligent computer software, src4you which runs 24/7, to delete the negative and increase the strength of the positive creating a higher probability of favorable outcomes for you.

In addition, throughout the full 30-days, Jimmy will be dialing into your energetic signature each day upon rising and make certain that you are a clear yes, unclear to no and running forward before you start your day. He is doing the heavy lifting for you around 3am NY time while most of you are asleep in order to smooth out your way and increase your most favorable life outcomes.

The 30-day service is now being offered exclusively and you also have the option of selecting an ongoing subscription ($95/month) which is managed through PayPal only.

Upon written email request, for each new order we offer a one-time email analysis via the intelligent healing software that Jimmy uses on your behalf. Most clients have had amazing results and outcomes!

You can add yourself and those living in your immediate household and yes you can include pets! Merely include everyone’s names and Jimmy will add them to his daily prayers. *NOTE if the MDP Service was purchased via a special telesummit or radio show offer, prayers will be limited to BUYER ONLY - and will not include family members or pets.

You can run this monthly and stop at any time after the 30 days is up, you will have the opportunity to renew and update your list each month but are under no obligation. I believe you will experience magical transformations and make progress every day!

Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime! Click here to watch the Mastery video playlist

The Certificate of Mastery Program includes 2 best-selling ebooks and 2 clearing audios plus written & video instructions, AND one-on-one time with Jimmy ALL for about the cost of a single 1-hr session! This online course is for anyone who is familiar with OR new to "fishing" and is ready to dive into the deep end & get results that are beyond the ordinary! It includes The Tackle Box & The Dowser's Handbook ebooks PLUS 2 MP3s "Clearing Dark Energies" & "Increasing Your Intuition" to help clear, strengthen and prepare your energy field for optimal “fishing” results. This is a work-at-your-own-pace curriculum that will TEACH & CLEAR you at the same time! In under 2wks you will be finished with the program and ready to fish on your own with greater results! Level II offers Practitioner Certification for those who qualify.

LEARN ABOUT CERTIFICATION HERE

TGIFunny

Forward

Jimmy Mack | Appointments Skype: Jimmy.Mack55 Clearwater Florida USA Book a 15 minute session Book a 30 minute session Book a 60 minute session Transformational Healing of Body, Mind & Spirit, People, Places, Pets & Situations! Download the My Liquid Fish® Starter Kit (*Updated May 2019) Audio MP3 Downloads and books to improve your life! Get Certified in My Liquid Fish® Change Made Simple® Watch Free Videos on YouTube Weekly Radio Show Archives Shop for Supplements http://www.jimmymackhealingshop.com www.jimmymackhealing.com Copyright ©1998-2020 All Rights Reserved

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com

Stay connected!

Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

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divinefishingtips · 4 years

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TGIWednesday and the gift that keeps on giving

TGIWednesday News

Shop BOGO Here!

December LIVE Zoom Event

Wednesday December 30th at 7:30-8:00pm ET TOPIC: Intuition and Becoming More Psychic Registration fee = $22 (including replay)

This month’s Zoom event is all about your hidden gifts, intuition and clearing out blocks that are preventing you from reaching your highest potential.

Browse the previous MySwitchWorks catalog here.

TGIWednesday Download

From the Fish Box

Tampa Office Sessions

SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH SOLUTIONS THIS FRIDAY DECEMBER 11th from 10-4pm

Please call their office directly at ☎️ (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes $38 or 30-minutes $68. If you’re new to working with me, I suggest you schedule 30 minutes.

FRIDAY KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS

Fish Food

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

The Jimmy Mack Healing Show

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Receive 24/7 Prayers from Jimmy

The 30-day service is now being offered exclusively and you also have the option of selecting an ongoing subscription ($95/month) which is managed through PayPal only.

Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime! Click here to watch the Mastery video playlist

LEARN ABOUT CERTIFICATION HERE

TGIFunny

Forward

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com

Stay connected!

Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

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365dailyaffirmations · 4 years

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TGIWednesday and the gift that keeps on giving

TGIWednesday News

Shop BOGO Here!

December LIVE Zoom Event

Wednesday December 30th at 7:30-8:00pm ET TOPIC: Intuition and Becoming More Psychic Registration fee = $22 (including replay)

This month’s Zoom event is all about your hidden gifts, intuition and clearing out blocks that are preventing you from reaching your highest potential.

Browse the previous MySwitchWorks catalog here.

TGIWednesday Download

From the Fish Box

Tampa Office Sessions

SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH SOLUTIONS THIS FRIDAY DECEMBER 11th from 10-4pm

Please call their office directly at ☎️ (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes $38 or 30-minutes $68. If you’re new to working with me, I suggest you schedule 30 minutes.

FRIDAY KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS

Fish Food

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

The Jimmy Mack Healing Show

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Receive 24/7 Prayers from Jimmy

The 30-day service is now being offered exclusively and you also have the option of selecting an ongoing subscription ($95/month) which is managed through PayPal only.

Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime! Click here to watch the Mastery video playlist

LEARN ABOUT CERTIFICATION HERE

TGIFunny

Forward

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com

Stay connected!

Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

0 notes

advancedthetapractitioner · 4 years

Text

TGIWednesday and the gift that keeps on giving

TGIWednesday News

Shop BOGO Here!

December LIVE Zoom Event

Wednesday December 30th at 7:30-8:00pm ET TOPIC: Intuition and Becoming More Psychic Registration fee = $22 (including replay)

This month’s Zoom event is all about your hidden gifts, intuition and clearing out blocks that are preventing you from reaching your highest potential.

Browse the previous MySwitchWorks catalog here.

TGIWednesday Download

From the Fish Box

Tampa Office Sessions

SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH SOLUTIONS THIS FRIDAY DECEMBER 11th from 10-4pm

Please call their office directly at ☎️ (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes $38 or 30-minutes $68. If you’re new to working with me, I suggest you schedule 30 minutes.

FRIDAY KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS

Fish Food

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

The Jimmy Mack Healing Show

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Receive 24/7 Prayers from Jimmy

The 30-day service is now being offered exclusively and you also have the option of selecting an ongoing subscription ($95/month) which is managed through PayPal only.

Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime! Click here to watch the Mastery video playlist

LEARN ABOUT CERTIFICATION HERE

TGIFunny

Forward

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com

Stay connected!

Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

0 notes

asfeedin · 4 years

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A Preparation Checklist for Marketers

Raise your hand if you’d rather watch a video to learn something new than read about it.

Go ahead — you’re not alone. 59% of executives say they’d rather watch a video than read text, too. And really, that number makes sense — we are a society of video streamers. (I mean, hello, Netflix.)

But if you’re not sure how to run a live stream event on social media, fear not. We’re here to make sure you don’t just hit the “Live” button on Facebook and stare at the camera like a deer in headlights. Instead, we’ve come up with a comprehensive checklist to help you plan your first — or next — live stream.

How Live Streaming Works

Live streaming is a way to broadcast your events to an online audience. It’s a digital alternative to something like selling tickets to an in-person event and allows you to reach people near and far with live video.

Brands use live streaming for a few different reasons, but according to a Brandlive survey, 74% of businesses used it to engage with their consumer base. So instead of being the proverbial “man behind the curtain,” you’re allowing viewers to put a face (or faces) to your organization’s name, all in real time.

Live streaming can be used for a number of different event types, as well. Everyone from the White House to fashion houses to chefs have live-streamed videos of economy briefings, runway shows, and cooking demos, respectively. Here at HubSpot, we’ve used it for things like interviews with thought leaders. So feel free to be creative — just make sure you’ve got your bases covered.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Live Streaming

When you’re ready to start learning how to live stream successfully, follow these steps:

1. Plan your live stream like you would any other event.

Think about some of the most popular talk shows. Can you imagine if the guests, sets, lighting, and schedules for something like “The Tonight Show” weren’t planned in advance? To say the least, it might be chaotic.

You’ll want to put the same thought and due diligence into your live stream that you’d put into an in-person event of its kind. And you’ll want to have your goals in mind as you begin to make those plans; those will dictate a lot of the logistics.

Who

Knowing your target audience will determine a few pieces of the planning process. If it includes an international population, that should factor into the date and time of your stream — be sure to think about time zones or holidays that might not be top-of-mind in your home country.

What

Then, think of what category your live stream falls into, and create a title for your event. In case you don’t find any of the above examples fitting to your business, we’ve got some ideas for ways businesses can use live videos.

HubSpot’s Social Media Marketing Manager, Chelsea Hunersen, stresses the importance of thoroughly researching the topic of your live stream in advance.

“Decide important points or stats to hit,” she says. And if you’re going to feature guests, “designate a moderator/host who can make sure these points are hit and can wrap up the conversation if necessary.”

Where

The platform you use (which we’ll get to in a bit) can also be dependent on who you want to view the stream. Different audiences use different channels, so you’ll want to pick the one that’s most likely to draw the crowd you want.

Finally, pick an optimal location from which you’ll broadcast your stream. Consumers have a low tolerance for a bad stream, watching for at most 90 seconds if the connection is spotty or poor-quality, so make sure your setting is conducive to a positive viewing experience. Does it have good lighting? Is it prone to a lot of noise? Is there a chance that your dog walker will barge in yelling, “Who’s a good boy?” loud enough for the entire audience to hear? (Not that that’s happened to me.)

Think of these contingencies, then pick a streaming venue that insulates you from them.

2. Choose your platform.

Here’s where you’ll really need to have your goals in mind since different platforms can achieve different things.

YouTube Live

YouTube Live Events tend to have “two goals,” says Megan Conley, HubSpot’s Content Marketing Strategist. “Registrants and attendees.”

So, if you’re looking to boost revenue — which 75% of marketing professionals are using video to do — YouTube Live is one of the best platforms to use.

Here’s how that works. First, if you don’t have one already, you’ll need to create an account on Google, which you’ll then use to create one on YouTube.

Once that’s done, you can use YouTube’s Live Streaming Events dashboard to schedule a future stream — just click on “Enable live streaming,” if you haven’t already set it up.

YouTube requires a 24-hour buffer between the time that you enable live streaming and your first live. Once that 24-hour period is up, all you have to do is log into your YouTube Studio.

Then, click the “Create” button in the top right corner.

This will prompt a drop-down that asks you to choose between uploading a video or going live. Choose “Go live.”

YouTube will then prompt you to complete some basic info such as its title and what age group the video is made for. You’ll also need to decide if you’re going live right away or scheduling it for a certain time.

After that, you’ll need to indicate if you want your event to be public or private — here’s where you’ll decide how you want to use your live stream to generate leads.

The Unlisted option accomplishes two things:

I’ll be able to generate a link that attendees will get only after they fill out a registration form.

It won’t stream directly onto my YouTube page.

Once you’re done, click “Next” You will be asked to smile to take a thumbnail, so make sure you’re camera-ready. From there, you have the option to “Go Live” or “Share” your content.

Click “Share,” and that will generate your event’s URL. As I mentioned above, you can keep that behind a landing page where attendees fill out a form to register.

Conley says that, generally, this type of live stream is embedded on a thank-you page behind a landing page form.

If you use the HubSpot COS, all you’ll need is the link, and the system will generate the embed code for you.

Just click “insert media,” paste the link you copied from YouTube, and you’re done.

If embedding isn’t an option, you can still just put a link there — the embed code just creates a seamless design that you can place right on your thank-you page. Either way, be sure to use the thank-you page as a place to remind your attendees of the date and time of the event.

There’s also the option to make your YouTube Live Event completely open to the public. That’s a good option, Conley says, for a major event that you “want anyone and everyone to be able to find.” But if you make your stream public, she points out, make sure you use the event to promote gated content you want your audience to download.

“An image CTA would do,” she notes, as would holding up clearly printed short links throughout the stream (Make sure you have those printed out in advance!). In the image above, you’ll also see that you can add a message to your video — you can mention your gated content there, too.

Facebook

Facebook Live has been making quite a few headlines lately, and businesses stand to benefit from it — Facebook Live videos produce 6 times as many interactions as traditional videos.

Even without pre-registration, you can definitely promote streams on this platform in advance, which we’ll touch on later. In the meantime, if you haven’t used it before, check out my colleague Lindsay Kolowich’s overview of Facebook Live.

The interface for Facebook has recently changed, so you’ll have an easier time live streaming from your mobile Facebook app.

Depending on your device, you may see the “Live” option right under the Composer when you open the app. Alternatively, you may need to click “Create Post” at the top of your News Feed, then select the three horizontal dots in the Composer.

You’ll have a chance to write a comment about your video. Once you’ve done that, you can select “Go Live” in the bottom left corner.

Instagram Live

You can also live stream on Instagram. With Instagram Live, a functionality in the Instagram Stories feature, you’re able to broadcast video streams and save the replay to your Stories. Users are able to engage through likes and comments during the stream.

This is a great platform for live streaming since Instagram Stories are used by 500 million users per day, and one-third of most-viewed Stories are from businesses.

Keep in mind that you cannot post to Instagram from your browser, so open the mobile Instagram app to begin your live stream. Then, select the camera icon in the top left corner next to the Instagram logo.

At the bottom of the camera viewer is a menu that scrolls horizontally. Select “Live.”

The shutter button will change to a broadcast icon. This will immediately take you live if you tap it, so make sure you’re camera ready.

Twitter Live

Twitter’s advantage is that you can easily share and promote content to a large audience, even if you don’t have a large following. In addition, hot topics spread more quickly than other media outlets.

If you want to hit the ground running and generate buzz, Twitter is a great choice. However, you cannot go live on Twitter from your browser, so open the mobile Twitter app when you’re ready to start your broadcast.

Once there, open the Tweet composer by clicking the button with the feather and plus sign.

Select the camera icon.

At the bottom of the camera viewer is the choice between “Capture” and “Live.” Choose “Live.”

The shutter button will be replaced with a button that says “Go Live.” This will immediately take you live, so make sure that you have everything set up before pressing it.

TikTok

Since 2018, TikTok has had major buzz as the newest big player in the social media game as a platform for short-form videos. While TikTok’s audience trends younger with 41% of users between 16-24 years old, more people and brands are taking to the platform, as evidenced by its place as the fourth most downloaded app in 2018.

One big drawback is that you can only go live on TikTok if you have 1,000 followers. For accounts where this isn’t a problem, here’s how to broadcast live:

Open your TikTok mobile app and select the plus sign at the bottom of the screen.

Then, enter the title of your stream and select “start.”

It’s that easy!

The live streaming options certainly don’t end there. Major brands have also used platforms like Periscope, Livestream, and Twitch. They all have their own sets of features and advantages, so definitely take the time to look into which one best suits your needs.

3. Choose your equipment.

When it comes to the actual hardware required for your live stream, some of it is fairly intuitive: A camera is pretty standard, for example, or a device with one installed (like a laptop or phone).

But if you do use your phone, Conley says, be sure to use a tripod. “There’s nothing worse than recording a Facebook Live and having your arm start to fall asleep five minutes into the recording,” she advises. “Use a phone tripod to give your live streaming a professional look.”

Consider how professional you want your sound quality to be, too. Your camera might have its own microphone, but if your setting is more prone to noise, body mics might not be a bad idea, either.

And when you’re using an external camera, says Hunersen, you’ll also need some sort of encoding software (Facebook has a great step-by-step guide to that). That’s what converts the camera footage into a format that your streaming platform understands and can broadcast to viewers. The software you use might depend on your budget, but to get started, check out this one from Adobe.

Also, think about setting up a professional backdrop, like one with your logo. That can help to brand your videos and give them some visual consistency, which is a particularly good practice if you plan to do a lot of live streaming in the future.

Want to take that a step further? “Set up a makeshift studio in your office to speed up the prep time for all of your future recordings,” Conley says. “A beautiful, branded backdrop could be just what your Facebook Live needs to help grab the attention of someone quickly scrolling through their News Feed.”

4. Promote your live stream.

Congratulations! You’ve now completed a lot of the major planning and setup for your live stream. Now, how do you get people to watch it?

As we’ve covered, using a landing page is a good way to get enrollment on a platform like Hangouts On Air (or, as of September 12th, YouTube Live). Here’s an example of how we recently used one at HubSpot:

There’s a clear CTA here — “View The Video” — which, when clicked, takes the visitor to a registration form. (And check out this rundown of which channels drive the best conversion rates — it’s got some tips on getting people to your landing page in the first place.)

Once someone fills out the form on your landing page, it should lead them to a thank-you page, where you can share some promotional information about the live stream.

HubSpot’s Co-Marketing Demand Generation Manager, Christine White, suggests creating a “Next Steps” section here with actionable items like “add this event to your calendar” and “check back here on [the date of your event]” to remind viewers that’s where they’ll go to view the live stream.

And once you have contact information for your registrants, Conley reminds us, “you can email the people on that list on the day of, and remind them when it’s going to go live.”

But to promote your Facebook Live stream, says Conley, “It’s really about doing a social image and spreading the word that you are going live at a specific time.”

Don’t rule out using social media to promote live streams on other platforms, too. Some of them, like YouTube, allow you to link your social accounts and push content in multiple places. And if your guests are active on social media, leverage that by including links to their handles in any related content, and ask them to promote the event with their own networks.

5. Do a dry run.

There’s a reason why we do dress rehearsals. When I was in a high school show choir — a humiliating but factual piece of history — it was to make sure I didn’t trip over my dance partner in high-heeled tap shoes.

In the world of live streaming, though, we do dry runs to avoid more technical, but equally embarrassing, missteps. Improv can be hilarious, but not when it means you’re verbally unprepared or your equipment stops working and you don’t have a backup plan.

6. Prep any guest speakers.

Is there anything worse than a moment of awkward, dumbfounded silence?

As part of your dry run, make sure your guests are prepared for any questions they might be asked. Don’t over-rehearse, but do what you can to prevent catching them off-guard.

“It may help to give some questions in advance to a potential guest,” says Hunersen, “but save some follow-up or in-depth questions for on-air, so that you’re able to let them be both prepared and react in the moment.”

7. Test your audio and internet connection.

You might want people to talk about your live stream, but not if all they’re going to say is, “We can’t hear you.” Make sure all of your audio equipment is working both during your dry run and on the day of the stream. Having an extra microphone and batteries on hand probably won’t hurt, either.

Make sure your network can handle a live stream, too. If you’re streaming high quality video, for example, you’ll need both a wire connection and a 3G/4G wireless connection, according to Cleeng.

In other words, make sure your WiFi is working, but also, “grab an ethernet cord,” says Conley. “One thing you can’t help is if your internet connection unexpectedly goes out.”

We know — even the sound of “ethernet” seems terribly old school. But if your WiFi suddenly drops, you’ll be glad you busted that cord out of storage.

8. Set up social media monitoring.

One great thing about live streaming is your audience’s ability to join the conversation and comment in real time.

Juliana Nicholson, Sr. Marketing Manager at HubSpot, advises to “Have a plan for audience engagement. Know when and how you plan to incorporate audience feedback and Q&As and then clearly communicate that information to your attendees.” This will make it so much easier to encourage participation.

But that’s not all you should do with regard to engagement. If you’ve watched any Facebook Live feed, you’ve seen that the comments roll in fast. So while it’s awesome to invite and answer viewer questions, it can be overwhelming, especially if you personalize your responses.

That’s why it’s a great idea to dedicate someone to monitoring social media, comments, and questions during the live feed.

That task can be made a bit easier with something like a branded hashtag created specifically for this live stream. For platforms with built-in comment feeds, for example, you can ask your viewers to preface any questions with it — that can help qualify what needs to be answered.

You could even take that a step further and use the hashtag throughout the planning process, making sure to include it on your landing page, thank-you page, and promotional messages leading up to the event. That helps to create buzz around the live stream. And if you use HubSpot’s Social Inbox, here’s a great place to take advantage of its monitoring feature, which lets you prioritize and reply to social messages based on things like keywords or hashtags.

After Your Live Stream

It’s always nice to follow up with your attendees after your live stream has ended. Thank them for their time, give them a head’s up about your next event, and invite them to download a piece of relevant content. If you’ve followed these steps, you’ve probably done a great job of using your live stream to generate leads, so keep up the momentum and nurture them.

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drferox · 7 years

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20 Questions with Dr Ferox #17

Time for another post of 20 questions and comments I’ve been asked recently. I’m not sure how well the tagging system is working at the moment, so if you’re waiting for a question to be answered I’d recommend checking manually.

@Its-janeway-or-the-highway said: For other useful bits of strine see also: Spitting the biscuit: throwing a tantrum out of sheer frustration, Bitzer: a dog that is of mixed, unknown origin (bits of this, bits of that), blood worth bottling: someone who is such an excellent individual their blood is worth bottling, such as Dr Ferox. I think your Aussie followers could have a field day with this subject.

We probably could, but the lingo also varies from state to state. For example, I didn't know for the longest time that 'Freckle' is also slang for 'anus', which gives a whole new meaning to “wouldn't give a fat rat's freckle” (means I couldn't care less)

Anonymous said: Guinea pigs or Hamsters? Which one is your fav?

I have been asked about hamsters several times, so I say it again. Never seen one. They're not available as pets in Australia.

Anonymous said: Can you tell us more about the issue of cropping and docking dogs ears and tails? Or if you know some good sites to read up on this info, where I might be able to read more about it? Thank you!

We're talked about it before on this blog. There's a handy dandy search function you can use as there's lots of posts that are worth a read, including those tagged with docking and cropping.

Anonymous said: As a Brit, and largely thanks to our celebrity chefs who like to advocate for ethical and sustainable meat-eating practices, I know that our welfare standards for veal calves are better than Europe at large, and also that, thanks to that preconceived notion of milk fed calves locked in a tiny crate, Brits are too horrified to eat veal at all. I wish people knew properly sourced British veal was much more ethical than exporting or simply shooting a male calf at birth :/ I'd support it if I could!

In Australia, a 'veal calf' is just a steer that hasn't been weaned yet, usually 200+kg, so is still being fed by its mother. Then they have one very bad day where they're 'weaned' and slaughtered on the same day, which isn't all that much worse than regular beef, in context.

Anonymous said: My cat passed away from kidney failure earlier this year. He'd been diagnosed very young but last year the vet decided to give him an ultrasound because he was curious and found out that his kidneys were terribly misshapen. He believed they had been like that since birth, and that his kidney function had always been compromised. I decided to cremate his remains, but now I am thinking that over again. Is it weird to tell a vet that they can keep organs as a teaching specimen if they want to?

Yes it's weird, but it's also very welcome if that vet has any connections with a university or teaches students. After death arrangements are a highly personal choice, and I wouldn't judge anyone for the choices they make. Keeping organs as specimens is a difficult conversation for a clinician to have.

Anonymous said: QT: came for mythical animals, stayed for the stories. Question: my dog will sometimes get his ear (not very long, and soft/semi-floppy) flipped/stuck inside out when he rolls around on the sofa cushions (which he loves to do). I flip them back by petting along the ear (it's super easy and there's no resistance, physical or behavioral) but I'm curious: does it hurt? It looks like it should. He doesn't seem to mind, but I don't know if that's just because he knows he can't fix it without help.

It probably causes no pain at all. And I dare say he could flip them back himself by shaking his head, most dogs can.

Anonymous said: What's your opinion on heated cat beds? Worth it if it's an older arthritic cat? Useless? Just curious. Also, Question Tax: Came here for the stories, stayed because I'm an aspiring avian vet.

Cats certainly enjoy them in the colder weather. I don't really like leaving the electrical ones with cords on while they're unsupervised, in case they get chewed or urinated on, and personally prefer the microwavable ones for that purpose. Care should be taken with cats that have mobility concerns to ensure they don't overheat.

Anonymous said: What is your opinion on cats eating bugs? If there is a fly in the house or a silverfish, basically anything non-threatening I can identify, I let my cats get it. However I am increasingly worried about spiders since I can't really identify them beyond daddy long legs and black widows (the only deadly type in my area) and even not so dangerous ones can have pretty painful bites. For the tax: what dinosaur would you have most liked to be a vet for?

Good luck trying to stop them from eating the bugs. I haven't figured out how to stop my boys from eating any bugs they catch.

@bighugmug said: Those capsule backpacks for cats are cute, but they look quite confined! Is there a vet opinion on how comfortable these are for kitty?

I don't know, and it probably depends on the cat. Cat's are not that bothered by being confined in transport, most cats like a box, and they tend to like a good vantage point to survey their surrounds, but it's not a carrier I see a lot of and I imagine would take some getting used to.

Anonymous said: If an animal is overstimulated and/or overly energetic, are they self-aware enough to try and calm themselves down?

Probably not.

Anonymous said: QT: I was actually sent one of your posts on euthanasia by a friend just after I'd had to put my 16yr old cat down & it really helped, so I followed! Anyway: my (~3yr old, 50lb, unknown mix breed) dog is friendly but cries literally continuously at the vet (& ONLY there), to the point that they told us they had to give him a treat to distract him long enough for them to hear his heart beat. How big a problem is something like this? Any stress reduction techniques you'd recommend?

Sounds like positive reinforcement with treats is probably the way to go. Short, consistent training sessions of 'happy vet visits' that allow your dog to associate the vet clinic with wonderful treats should make him feel more positive about the experience.

Anonymous said: feel free not to get to this for a while! i know your inbox must be bursting. i'm just wondering how preventable you think a urinary blockage in male cats is? mine doesn't have one but for some reason i am SUPER PARANOID about him getting one and i wanna do everything in my power to prevent it

I'm super paranoid about it too. Spending Friday night trying to catheterize a tiny, slippery cat penis is not my idea of fun, especially if it ends up being my own cat. Keeping them active and at a healthy weight is the single most important thing you can do to reduce their risk.

Anonymous said: I really hate to bother you, but I was wondering if tumors in a dog's anal glands is very serious. I recently took my dog to the vet for an unrelated reason and she told me that when she went to express his glands, she wasn't able to express anything and the glands felt very hard. She believes that it's either due to scaring or a tumor. If it is a tumor, the surgery is too expensive for me to ever afford. Will my dog be in pain without surgery? Could this be life threatening?

Unfortunately anal gland tumors usually are life threatening, and usually diagnosed too late to prevent spreading to the sublumbar lymph nodes. Malignant anal gland tumors will eventually make the dog sick, and as they grow they may prevent the dog from being able to defecate. You should discuss this with your vet.

Anonymous said: What are your thoughts on when to spay a bitch? We had a German Shepherd who passed away last year of hemangiosarcoma. We always wonder if this cancer was accelerated by the fact she was taking oestrogen- due to being incontinent- which we wondered about being caused by her spay. She was spayed at 4/5months old. I just wondered if you could sum up the possible implications of a spay pre and post the first oestrus, particularly for German Shepherds, but really all dogs. Thank you!

She probably did not develop the haemangiosarcoma (HSarc) from taking oestrogen. She probably developed it because she is a German Shepherd and it's one of the things that they very commonly do. Desexing does increase the risk of certain rarer cancers like HSarc and lymphoma, but not desexing drastically increases the risk of mammary cancer and pyometra. If hip dysplasia is not an issue, I'd consider desexing between 9 and 18 months for a female large breed dog. I am still very pro desexing.

Delayed desexing has also been discussed here.

@animaljunkie said: I'm an American vet student who is seriously considering practicing in either Australia or Ireland. Would you have any advice on career choices or practicing outside your home country?

I've never practiced outside Australia, but I would check what the requirements are for your employment with the national or state vet registration board for your country of choice, and it's probably wise to chat to other expats before committing to that idea.

Anonymous said: Hi Dr. Ferox! My roommate keeps buying her cats different types of food, and I was wondering is this could be harmful to them? The brand stays consistent, but she tends to buy whichever type (senior, weight management, indoor, etc.) is on sale. The cats are ~1 year and 5 years. And she doesn't do the 'wean off one food and onto another' thing. (Question tax: I hc that you -all vets really- look at animals with a mix of "you're so adorable" and "so many things could go wrong with you") Thanks!

If it hasn't caused an issue yet, it probably wont. Most issues from sudden food changes are vomiting or diarrhoea, and I'm sure you'd notice if it was an issue. Some animals have tougher stomachs than others, some are exquisitely sensitive and can only stomach one flavour of one food without gastroenteritis.

And yes, there are so, so many things that can go wrong with every singe animal. When you're trained as a hammer it's hard not to see everything as a nail.

@2goldensnitches said: Doc, we've recently acquired a kitten. Sometimes he knows how to use the litterbox, sometimes he wants to eat the sand. Why?

The whole world is a toybox to a kitten. It's most likely just learning and playing, but I can't guarantee it doesn't have some sort of pica and you should check with your vet.

Anonymous said: What kind of information should a vet be expected to know before I consider seeking help elsewhere? I recently had an avian vet do a house call for some birds, and he seemed knowledgeable. He was detailed and came up with a treatment plan that suggested he knew what he was talking about. Then he said, "Nothing's using the lower part of the aviary. You could put some reptiles in here." Is that a huge red flag? It seemed very wrong to me, but maybe that sort of thing isn't in a vet's wheelhouse?

It might not be part of that vet's knowledge base, though it seems a really odd thing to say. I can't imagine what they were thinking. If you're satisfied with the treatment of your birds then don't feel like you have to change vets, unless you want to of course.

@knikna said:Non-vet question for a bit of fun! If you had the Doctor's Tardis and could travel anywhere in space and time in this universe, where would you go first?

I would chose to go see a Thylacine. Past or future, I don't care. That way I'm unlikely to stuff up any kind of time-space continuum, and my own microflora wont cause any sort of massacre.

Anonymous said: Hi I just wanted to let you know I've been laughing at the fact your cat's name is trash bag for about an hour. I hope you and trash bag have a wonderful day

See, I knew it was a funny name.

Trash Bag has recently learned about the whole new world under the blankets, and how wonderfully warm they are for snuggles.

#20 questions #blog housekeeping #veterinarian

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maisie445credits-blog · 5 years

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starsaboveyouadoption · 4 years

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leap of faith - choosing an agency

For this and the next few blogs, I’ll be taking you step by step through the actual stages of the adoption process, as I understand it from my experience. Exact protocols are likely to differ between agencies and region, but I hope to be able to provide you with an overview of what you can roughly expect at each stage of your journey.

Today’s blog focuses on one of the first steps you will take after making the decision to adopt, and doing some initial research about the process. Choosing an agency.

In the UK, there is no such thing as private adoption, a major distinction between the UK’s system and the American model. In the UK, it is illegal to make any payment for adoption services, and so while there are costs associated with things such as adapting your home, or fairly minor one-off fees for the odd court process or document, it is by and large free to adopt* (*unless you are pursuing an international adoption). In order to apply to adopt, your first major task will be to make enquiries with several adoption agencies (and I would recommend speaking with a variety of agencies to truly find your best fit), and choose one to apply through. Whilst you are free to make enquiries with however many agencies you choose, you are only able to make an application with one agency at any one time.

Choosing an agency can be incredibly daunting. When starting out, it can feel a bit of a minefield to understand who you can and can’t apply with, how you should make the decision, and how you will know which agency is right for you. A little practical distinction may help to give you a sense of the types of agencies out there.

There are broadly two types of adoption agencies in the UK: what you’ll hear referred to as Voluntary Agencies (VAs) or Local Authority (LA) agencies. LA agencies are operated by local councils, and in recent times, many have moved to consortium models which represent a geographical area, clumping together an area of London say, or one or two neighbouring counties. LAs are a branch of social services and so have for want of a better term “direct” access to children. These teams will have been directly involved in the safeguarding cases that lead to the child being removed and adoption orders being granted etc, and so these are the first teams that adopted children will pass through when placed for adoption. For example, if say Manchester’s council safeguarding team remove a child from their birth family, responsibility for the child will be passed to Manchester as a Local Authority, and their internal adoption team will be involved in securing a permanent adoptive placement for the child. You don’t have to apply to your “local” council’s adoption team, and in many cases, you will be encouraged to explore a neighbouring LA as councils can be hesitant to place adopted children within the same borough as birth families due to risk. However, some LAs will have a discretionary limit as to how far afield they are willing to travel to assess prospective adopters – say an hour or 2’s drive away. Potential positives of LAs are that while not always the case, they usually have more “direct” access to children than VAs, and it can be easier to link up with the connected social workers who can inform you about your child’s history without too much of a “middle party” of a VA. This is rumoured to sometimes result in slightly quicker matching because LAs already have the knowledge about available (I hate that term, sorry) children, and may be able to keep certain children in mind for you whilst assessing you. I would be dubious about rumours such as this though as my experience is that this is not necessarily the case in reality. And to counteract this, LAs can often have an understandably vested interest in placing “their” children first, so are less likely to conduct national searches for you until they have tried to match with you with their own children within a few months, which can delay things slightly as there is a smaller group of children within their care. However, potential drawbacks are that as they are operated on tighter council budgets, LAs are usually less likely than VAs to be able to offer extensive post-adoption support beyond some basic courses, and their preparation training may be more “no frills”. Having said that, we adopted through an LA and couldn’t fault them for the support we received albeit slightly pared back compared to our VA counterparts.

VAs are independent agencies usually with charitable status. They can be smaller regional agencies or more nationally recognised names – for example, some big names are Coram BAAF and Barnardo’s. VAs still employ adoption professionals but they don’t (typically) have “direct” access to children, in that they are a middle person between the prospective adopters and local authorities, and so when matching, they will be liaising with a number of councils across the country to look for your potential child. This isn’t exclusive to VAs – in a future blog, I’ll explain how matching works and how an online tool means that even those applying through an LA usually have the opportunity to search nationally after a certain time period, but it is probably fair to say this can happen more quickly at a VA (mostly). VAs do have a reputation for having more (again, apologies for what will feel a crass label) “hard to place” children; children who are older, or who may be considered to have more profound additional needs. I can’t comment too closely on this as we didn’t use a VA, but from what I’ve heard whilst there is some truth to this as LAs sometimes commission VAs to support matching difficult to place children for them, VAs are also less restricted by matching children in their immediate geographical area, so it can be swings and roundabouts really. VAs also have the extra benefit of usually being better funded to provide more “glossy” support packages. They are often asked to provide preparation training courses on behalf of an LA, and their wraparound support is generally more comprehensive. My experience has been friends adopting via VAs have more frequently been offered more intensive training support such as e-learning, additional training without charge, and more in the way of post-adoption support like social meet-ups and buddy schemes. But again, this is a generalisation to be taken with a pinch of salt. We certainly learnt that a lot of the generalisations can be unfounded, and there are pluses and minuses across LAs and VAs, so it really comes down to several factors you need to consider.

Whichever agency you choose, the process is mostly the same, in that your initial first steps are:

· Making an initial enquiry via online or phone – usually a social worker will call back and ask some basic information to screen your eligibility to adopt with them (see eligibility blog)

· You will typically be invited to an open evening where together with a group of other prospective adopters, you are able to learn more about the children in their care, their approach to the process, ask any questions you might have, and usually hear from more experienced adopters who have applied via the agency (which can be the most invaluable part of the whole thing)

· You will then, if you wish to proceed with your chosen agency, will submit a Registration of Interest Form, which is a more in-depth questionnaire which will help the agency to establish in more detail if you are suitable to be accepted onto Stage 1

Below are some considerations I’d recommend should play into your thought process when deciding on an agency:

How does the agency make you feel?

I cannot emphasise enough how important this aspect is. Believe me, you will spend so much time with your social workers throughout the coming months that many people not-so jokingly refer to their social workers knowing them better than some family do! It is therefore vitally important that you feel as comfortable as possible with them from the get-go. Some things to think about:

· Were you greeted in a warm, friendly, and approachable manner? Did the person you spoke to on initial contact make you feel at ease and welcome, and answer your questions without making you feel silly or judged?

· How proactive were the agency in responding to your enquiry and sending any follow up information? (Everyone will tell you how much waiting is involved in the adoption process, and the last thing you want is an agency who aren’t at least proactive as they could be. Our agency really helped move things along by sticking to their word about timescales whilst managing our expectations, and doing what they said they would when they would, which was in sharp contrast to some of my friends’ experiences, so my advice would be do take note of this in the early stages – as it can tell you a lot about what you can expect of them in ensuring your court papers are filed in time, your assessment completed for panel, or how quickly you are matched)

· Was the agency realistic and down to earth in describing their approach to you, or did you leave feeling they may be over-promising or minimising anything? (Be wary of agencies who appear to want to gloss over answers to difficult questions – a good agency will be honest with you about the children in their care, and any potential challenges)

· If any potential challenges arose about your eligibility to adopt at the screening stage, did they encourage you to see solutions to hurdles, and did they show some commonsense flexibility, or did you find them overly rigid or black and white in their stance? (This was particularly relevant for us – we chose our agency because of their ability to see us as well-rounded human beings and their ability to work through obstacles with us rather than writing us off)

· Were their active listening skills good? Did you get the sense they really took the time to listen to and absorb your story or do you sense a misunderstanding?

· Did they strike a balance between giving a realistic view of adoption challenges but also giving you hope and positivity, or was it all doom and gloom? (This is a terrible habit of some agencies and really put us off one or two agencies)

Children in their care

There is no right or wrong to this as it’s so personal to you but do take time to ask about the typical profiles of children in their care, and whether this fits your initial vision of your child. Agencies can be notoriously vague about this as so much changes about which children are in their care by the time you are in the matching stage. However, an agency should be in a position to share with you the general demographics of their children, the typical number of children in their care at any time, very broadly how long matches typically take (bearing in mind how individual this is to your circumstances), and the types of additional needs they find to be prevalent for children they have removed. Some agencies will have a proportionately higher percentage of say older children, or children for certain ethnicities or religious backgrounds owing to their locality or types of cases recently processed by the courts.

Geography

A practicality that it’s worth thinking about now. Depending on your agency, you may be expected to do a lot of travelling to their offices for appointments (in stage 2, for example, it wouldn’t be uncommon to have up to 15 appointments of several hours in length) so consider what will feel doable for you, especially if you don’t drive or need to book time off work. Also, on this point, it is worth asking a little more about the matching stage approach. For LAs in particular, ask if they support national searches for your child straight away, or if they will be quite strict about placing you with a child only from their area, at least for the first few months which cans be standard for some. For example, our agency allowed us to look nationally from day one which was a big selling point for us.

Timeframes and service delivery

Agencies will shy away from a very specific response when asked the question “how long will it take me to adopt with you?” as there are so many unknowns which make this impossible to quantify exactly. This may be in relation to your circumstances, whether you take a break during the process, any obstacles that arise, your matching certiteria etc, but there ate some general guidelines. When the government overhauled the adoption process a while back to make it less beaurocratic and speedier, the assessment process is supposed to take a maximum of 6 months from the point of acceptance on to stage 1 through to your approval at panel. This allows up to 2 months for stage 1, and 4 months for stage 2. Whilst agencies are measured on their performance on these objectives, we cannot forget that we are talking about real life children here with very complicated legal and social circumstances, and it would be very unusual to see an adoption application without any type of delays – it also doesn’t take into account any time you may spend researching beforehand, or in the matching phase, and many agencies are quite clever about when they start the clock. For example we were accepted onto stage 1 technically in the July but couldn’t access a preparation course until September so our clock didn’t start until then. That said, we had a very efficient team who got us approved by early February. My advice would be to conservatively plan for the process to take around 12-18 months without any major bumps in the road.

I would also ask about how flexible the agency can be on appointments. Most modern employers who have adoption specific policies will allow you the right to attend 5 adoption appointments within work time (it seems to be the standard) but as I say, you will need to allow for anything up to 15/20 appointments, and then phone calls, to grips to submit documents etc. An agency who are able to visit of an evening or weekends could really help you balance work with your application. Some may not be able to offer this, but always worth asking. We were lucky that our LA were very flexible but anecdotally, I’d say it is more likely that a VA can be more flexible in service delivery times.

Support

As above, it’s our experience that a VA will typically offer more well-rounded and more tangible support, especially in relation to post-adoption services. This is a generalisation though and very much depends on the agency and the local council funding etc. Think about what might be important to you in terms of support, especially if you are considering adopting a child with significant additional needs. I can tell you that for many adopters, it’s after your child moves home that you may come to most need support and that sadly, can be the time when it is least available. Do take note of support mentioned, and make sure you are clear on what that tangibly means. Support might be anything from adopter meet ups, annual adoptive family parties (our LA do Summer and Christmas events), access to support groups, right through to bursaries and grants, equipment for your home, or funded therapy. What may seem inconsequential at the beginning may prove to be a lifeline once you’ve been at home with your child some months, so don’t be tempted to minimise any concerns about this.

Reviews

The most invaluable advice you may ever receive may be from adopters who have been there and done it with the agency you are considering. Many agencies will offer to put you in touch with adopters on their books who will be willing to talk to you about their experiences with the agency. There are also great support groups online such as Facebook’s Prospective Adopters UK, Mumsnet’s Adoption forum, or the Adoption UK forums, where you can ask others for feedback which may prove helpful in shortlisting the agencies that feel right for you.

To conclude, ultimately you want to ask yourself these key Questions:

· Can I work with these people? Do I see myself feeling able to go on a long, intense emotional journey with them and do I trust them to help me find my child?

· Is this agency a good personal fit for my family and our lifestyle?

· Have I come away feeling mostly positive about them despite nerves?

· Do the agency come highly recommended?

· Were there any red flags that stood out to me about their approach or manner?

Once you’ve found an agency which satisfies the above criteria for you, congratulations, you’re ready to submit your Registration of Interest!

One final word…expect to feel challenged and even actively tested at times. Agencies are looking for grit and determination as key characteristics of prospective adopters, people who don’t give up when the going gets tough. Therefore, if you hit an obstacle or are challenged on an aspect of suitability at the screening stage, don’t necessarily take this lying down. The agency may be testing you to see if you have a considered response and can evidence you’ve thought about this element, and have planned for it – and that you really do want to prioritise adoption over all else at this stage in your life. Some conversations you’ll have in the very early stages will sound like the social workers are being overly despondent about your prospects of success or like they are being facetious…take this with a pinch of salt, usually all will be revealed later in the process and you’ll come to understand what they were trying to do!

Coming up, what to expect from Stage 1…until next time!

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