#and your coasts are terrifyingly beautiful

[damaged-graveyard]

girl I just got a taste of real coffee after 8 days in britain i wanna cry

[lunacat777]

Part 3/Final Mission: Songbird (Simon “Ghost” Riley)

Hello, hope everyone is enjoying the series, I just decided to repúlalos due to some HTLM issues and text but here it is. Warned you it was a slow burner but I think it’s worth it for the end.

Warning: 18+ only, mention of violence

Chapter 5:

Burning

The next morning we were ready to move out. Soap, Alejandro, and Rudy all head out to scope out the village to see if Alacranes are around. I stayed behind with Simon. I gave him back his cloak. He takes it and I see his arms. His veins are prominent, bulging out of his skin because of his muscles. On his left arm he has a tattoo sleeve. His arms are so attractive. They tense as he holds his rifle tight.

“You focused?” He breaks my thoughts.

“Yes,” I lied.

He stares at me. He knows. Shit.

Ghost gets terrifyingly close and I step back against the wall. He towers over me.

“I want to get you out of here alive. It’s more than just the mission now.”

“What?” I was stunned. “What do you mean?”

Before he answers, Soap appears at the door.

“The coast is clear. Everything alright?” He noticed that LT was towering over me.

“Yeah,” Ghost says. “Making sure she understands to stay low.”

We leave the distillery and climb into the very same small beat up Toyota truck from the gas station. Rudy is driving and Alejandro stays up front. Simon was on my left and Soap on my right. Simon’s thigh bumps into mine. I lean on him slightly. He doesn’t flinch or adjust, he lets me.

I’m tired. The last two nights have been restless and the constant need to move was catching up to me. I fall asleep.

The road started to feel bumpy and I awoke. My head was laying on Simon’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” I say standing up straight.

Simon didn’t say anything but Soap gave me a sly smile.

“Catching up on your beauty sleep?” Soap asked. “Ghost’s quite the softy, you’ll come to find out.”

We arrived at Alejandro’s home that night. It’s a one story home on a hill that overlooks farmland. It’s gated but hidden away by the large trees. It has red brick shingles and beige walls, covered by red vine-like flowers. It seems simple but it’s gorgeous and quent. A large wooden door leads into the parlor.

The room I’m staying in is a master room. A king sized bed stands tall against the wall. Lying against the headboard are mountains of the fluffiest pillows I’ve ever seen and covered satin sheets. Across the entrance stands two double french doors that lead into a balcony and I can see the canopy of the forest outside. A storm is rolling in. The sun’s rays peak through the cracks of the darkened clouds.

Alejandro, Rudy, and Soap decide that Simon should take the first watch. As they leave, Alejandro and Soap give Ghost a playful look.

Simon is standing outside of the bedroom door.

“I’m gonna shower,” I tell him.

“Alright, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Don’t you need to have eyes on me at all times?”

“Guess I do.”

He follows me into the room and closes the door behind him. I walk into the bathroom through its arched entryway. It has no door. It’s a luxurious open bathroom with a glass box shower at the center. On the left side there’s a double sink and a large mirror that extends from one wall to another. I look at myself. My face looks a little puffy, my eyes are dark and heavy, and my skin looks greasy. This is what I’ve looked like all these days? I think.

A small crystal chandelier drapes over the ceiling. I opened the shower door and turned it on. I turned around to see Simon had situated himself on the lounge chair that sat right across the room. He was looking at me with exciting speculation, gripping the arms chairs tightly.

I began to undress slowly for his enjoyment. Who knows when the last time was when he had a little bit of fun. I take off the clip that holds up my hair, letting it cascade over my shoulders. I lift up my shirt exposing my bra. I slowly unravel my pants and kick them away. Maybe this is too much, I think.

“Keep going,” Simon says. His words ripple through the air and take hold of me. It ignites me in a way I’ve never been.

I unclip my bra, exposing my breasts. I can hear the arm chairs crunch from underneath his strong hands. I’m already wet thinking about what they feel like on my hips and neck. I bend over to take off my underwear. My spine tightens and I start feeling nervous. I ran away and hopped into the shower.

COWARD! I thought. How stupid! Why did I do that? This situation was moving faster than I had anticipated.

I move closer to the hot stream of water and let it run over my head. I wanted Simon more than ever and I could feel myself grow warm, aching.I hear the door open behind me. I don’t turn. His face! I was scared to turn around, finally revealing his secret. I could feel his naked body come closer to my own. His hands wrap around my waist pulling me into him. He begins to gingerly kiss my neck. I can feel him slowly thrust his hips into me, pressing his hard cock onto my backside. I hang onto his muscular arms and move with his rhythm. He continues blessing my skin with his lips. His left hand creeps up to my chest and begins to caress my breasts. The other hand finds my clit and begins to pleasure me.

I can’t help it anymore and I turn to face him.

He’s handsome. Early thirties and scruffed up. His hair is short military style, charcoal black,and disheveled from the long days of wearing his balaclava. Though he looked roughed up he was generously gorgeous. He had strong features which contemplated his eyes. I could see his arm tattoo on his left arm extended up his shoulder and into his chest. Veins peek through his chiseled muscles.

He leans in and begins to kiss me passionately, grabbing my face with his large rough hands. Instinctively, I grab his cock and stroke it. Simon groans. The black shadow washes off his eyes.

His voice becomes more baritone and gentle. His cock is long and thick. It’s dangerously ample. I could feel it pulse in my hands as I caress it. He slams me into the wall but not enough to hurt. He starts kissing me again, ravenously, all over and leads down to my chest. Simon wraps his mouth around my breast, using his tongue to play with my aerola. His other hand finds it’s way to my clit. I desperately reach out to something as great elation washes over me. I grab onto his back and feel his muscles flex.

“I want to taste you,” he says in my ear. He picks me up so effortlessly, wrapping my legs around his hips and my arms around his neck. We head over to the bed.

The storm has rolled in and the balcony doors are wide open. Booom! Thunder and the lights go out. But the full moon showers us with iridescent silver light. He sets me on the bed gently and starts kissing my neck and collarbone. electricity is running through me. He starts to go down when…

“Wait!” I panic. “I’ve never had collingus before.”

“I’ll be gentle,” his voice is deep.

Simon goes down on me. His tongue is magnificent! As his tongue explored the crevices of my cunt he caressed my breasts all at the same time. His scruff scrapes against the inner skin of my thighs.

“You taste like a peach, darling,” he stands up. He starts to crawl atop of me when I stop him.

“Lie down,” I demand. He’s stunned by the sudden order but follows willingly.

I climb between his legs, bring myself down onto his cock and begin to pleasure him with my mouth. He lets out a soft groan. I play with the shaft of his cock with the tip of my tongue.

“Bloody hell,” he gripes. I giggle.

Simon grabs a fistful of my hair and he thrusts himself into my throat. I take it and feel his large membrane pulsating.

“I have to be inside you,” He sits up and brings my face up to him for a kiss. I straddle him, letting his cock finally submerge inside me. I yelp.

“You okay?” Simon asked concerningly.

I nod. “It’s bigger than I thought.”

“Oh, just you wait.”

He grips my hips and begins to guide me up and down his cock. I straddle him faster. He moans. Oh god, his moans. We both speed up. I wrap my arms around his neck and he pulls me in close. We both catch fire, enjoying the pleasure from this forbidden copulation.

Simon uses his right arm to lift me up and lays me on my back. As he finds his way on top of me, he slips it back in so effortlessly.

“You feel fucking fantastic,” he grunts. “You’re my girl, alright? I'm gonna keep you safe.”

I can’t speak. The feeling is so gratifying and holds me tightly that words cannot formulate in my mind.

He goes slow at first but as soon as he feels my cunt dripping wet he starts to fuck me hard. The sound of heavy rain and thunder washes out our sounds of midnight passion. Simon is ravenous for me and rams me with his cock. I bounce underneath him with every thrust and breathing in the rapture. He has a tight grip on me as if I were to slip away. I run my fingers through his hair and he buries his face into my neck. His hot breath nuzzles my skin. I can’t help but dig into his skin. His arms, back, and thighs. His moans are a big turn on and a loud one escapes my lips. He covers my mouth as he continues plowing into me.

“Good girl. Sounds like you’re almost there.” He thrusts harder. “You have to be quiet, though. Don’t want to give us away, right?”

“No,” I exclaim.

He growls again and my moans threaten to escape from my lips.

“Are you going to cum for me, Rosie?” He whispers in my ear.

I nod.

“I want you to say it.”

“Yes,” I whimper.

“Yes, what?”

“Please make me cum.”

“Good girl.”

He goes harder. My eyes begin to water not from pain but from pleasure. My toes curl. I’ve never felt this before. I hold onto his arms for dear life as he fills me with ecstasy. He’s going fast and I feel myself being stretched out. He’s hitting my G-spot. I tense up as I feel myself coming closer and closer. A moan escapes my lips and it turns him on. I explode in euphoria. I quake underneath him.

“That’s my girl,” he goes harder.

The euphoria doesn’t stop, it stretches to each part of my body. I’m in heaven. I scratch at his arms. He grunts with each thrust until he stops. I am still shaking.

I’m out of breath and so is he. Simon looks into my eyes. All this time that I thought he looked at me with disdain, in actuality, he looked at me with admiration.

“Simon.” I say his name.

“Rosie.” He kisses me. “I’m not done with you, yet.”

“What?” I was aghast. How much more can this man have?

He stands at the edge of the bed. The 6’4” man gently wraps his hands around my ankles and tugs me toward him. He turns me over and has me lay on my stomach. Simon props me up in a way that I’m on all fours, aligning our his together. He plays with my cunt with his cock like a toy, smacking it against my ass.

“You’re drenching,” he slips it in.

He carefully grabs a fistful of hair and pulls it tight. With the other hand, he grabs my hip and begins to fuck me doggystyle. It feels so good that my arms give out and forces me to have my face buried into the sheets. He lets go of my hair and goes for my hips, fucking me harder, his fingers digging into my skin.

“I’ve been looking at this arse wondering what it would look like bouncing off my cock.”

“How does it look?” I sputtered out.

“Bloody beautiful,” he plunges deeper. I can feel my ass bounce as he pumps his cock into me. He’s growling again. I hide my yelps into the bed sheets. He knows what he’s doing, toying with me, wanting me to scream. Simon’s hands glide down toward my back and push me down, forcing myself into an arch. As I try to pry myself up on my hands, he takes advantage and grabs my arm, locking it behind me. This makes me twist, facing him. His eyebrows were furrowed as he focused on fucking me but all in the while trying not to cum.

“You want to cum inside me?” I asked shrewdly.

“You’d like that, sweetheart?” he moans.

“I know you want to. Look at you, you want to do it so badly.”

“Fucking bloody hell,” he’s getting close.

He quickly turns me over and fucks me missionary, his rough hands on my hips again. He’s using a different rhythm, hard but slow. His dark eyes are on fire, looking intensely at me. He slows down and he takes out his cock, it explodes on my stomach.

After retrieving a towel from the bathroom and discarding it, he lays in bed with me. We kiss passionately and I feel his scruff grate over my neck as he explores the creases of my chest. I fall asleep on his chest, put to sleep nothing but the storm, his heart, and breathing.

Chapter 6:

Goodbye

Later in the night, Simon and I made love numerous times. We stopped only until the sun peeked over the horizon and the storm had evaporated.

“I have to go check up on Soap,” Simon says as he begins to dress. “Make sure nothing is going to haywire.”

“Simon?” I call out for him.

He looks at me as he’s about to put back on the balaclava.

“Why’d you show me your face? I thought that was something you never did.”

“I want you to know who I am when I see you again.”

“Will you want to?”

“I have to.”

He finished getting ready, putting the mask back on, becoming Ghost once again.

He comes over and dips his forehead against my own. Gently, we tap our foreheads together. Finally, he leaves.

I lay in bed, engulfed in the aftermath of our nightly passion. I could smell the petrichor from the nighttime storm. Twirling in the sheets, I snuggled in the space he had occupied. Pine.

A few moments later, he came back and said that it was time to leave. I get dressed and he stays in the room with me.

“You smell like pine,” I tell him.

“You smell like strawberries,” he says.

He has his combat attire and I feel safe with him. Extremely safe. We walk out of the room and meet with Soap.

“You sleep alright,” he asks me. He’s smiling.

Awe, shit, I think. He knows.

“Johnny,” Simon corrects him.

“Sorry, sir,” Soap’s smile drops but returns again before continuing, “just thought with a bed that creaks that much it didn’t sound comfortable at all.”

“It was plenty comfortable, Soap,” I said. “Best nights rest I’ve ever had.”

Simon sighs and we walk out to the courtyard of the hacienda. Alejandro and Rudy await for us.

“Didn’t need much help taking watch last night, did you, Ghost?” Alejandro said.

“Enough,” Simon got serious.

The men were pulling his leg. It was fun to watch but Simon was getting serious. He was a private man and I could understand.

“My men said that they haven’t seen much movement around the area,” Alejandro said. “It’s safe to move her out now.”

We arrive at a desert location, away from the forest. It’s a warehouse and it has a helipad on the side. Inside, Soap and Simon had called Laswell to verify that I had arrived safely and ready for pick up.

“Laswell,” Simon says before the end of the communication.

“Yes, Ghost?”

“I’d like to request that Songbird be transferred from the U.S. to England.”

Laswell looked uneasy.

“Why?”

“I want to keep a closer eye on her.”

Laswell squinted at the both of us. She looked carefully, putting the pieces together in her head and understood.

“Congratulations, Riley,” Laswell said sarcastically. “You’ve earned yourself a liability. Regardless, we need her and if you compromise this, there will be consequences.”

“I know, ma’am.”

A helicopter arrived shortly after. Simon escorted me to it and put his hands around me to lift me inside. He didn’t let go of my hand and made me turn to him. He wasn’t coming. I brought my forehead to his and gently tapped. Simon squeezed my hand and let go. He stepped away enough for the helicopter to advance into the air. I looked at the window and he stood there watching me fly away. He became smaller as we descended over the hills until I could see him no more.

Months Later…

I hadn’t seen Simon for the last few months. His kisses scorched my skin. It’s like I dreamt of him. Simon’s wishes of me transferring to England had come true. I had been living in this hideaway home for some time now. Though I missed the people of Las Almas, the warm weather, and food; England was reminiscent of Simon.

I had begun getting ready for my day. I could've worn slacks because I had nowhere to go. All I could do is watch the tele, read books, garden, or some small pass time of the sorts. But I wanted to get ready. In case he ever came back. If ever.

I headed toward the bedroom door and I saw him. Standing at the entryway.

“Who are you getting ready for, miss?” Simon asks. He sports a black hoodie, trousers, and tennis shoes.

“Simon!” I rush over to him and jump into his arms.

We embrace. I couldn’t believe it. What if I was dreaming? He held onto me tightly, not budging, not even an inch. Pine.

“Missed you, Rosie,” he said. “Bring over that pretty neck of yours.”

He takes something out of his pocket. A dainty chain. I turn, lifting my hair and let him drape the chain around my neck. He clasps it and says “Just for you.”

I look down at the gold pendant which is in the shape of a heart. I open it and I see a small picture of my mother.

“Simon.”

“Took me a second to find,” he says. “That’s why I couldn’t come see you sooner.”

We kiss.

I don’t know what sort of life this is for me now but I didn’t care. As long as it was with Simon Riley. We both had sealed our fate when we decided to pursue something more. His job was dangerous and I was a danger to him. Enemies could use us to get to one another. Like Lawell said, we were liabilities. Simon deserved love and he knew that I did, too. We were both broken but we knew that we’d risk it all for one another. Whatever may happen to me or him, I believe we both are happy in this moment, and that’s all that mattered.

[moonleeai]

Hello, friend!

11, 14 and 33? ♡

Weirder Asks

11- favorite extracurricular activity-

Hiking! It can get your heart rate going and give you an excuse to be in the middle of nowhere, enjoying nature's beauty. There's so much to see in this world.

14- do you love the smell of earth after it rains-

I do and for some reason it always makes me think of my adolescent years...playing lacrosse on wet fields since it's a spring sport on the US east coast.

33- the last adventure you’ve been on-

Hmmm...the last EXCITING adventure would be back in Feb, whale watching on a 20-30 person raft/boat! It was terrifyingly beautiful how close we were to humpbacks.

[wrongpublishing]

Review: Lindsay Hargrave's "paragloria (Judgment)"

by Robert Hamilton.

It’s summer, and the news is once again full of talk of historic wildfires—on the west coast of North America, in southern Europe, in North Africa—and it hardly feels like we got a break from last year’s apocalyptic conflagrations. Given that this is all happening on top of a pestilence that we can’t seem to elude, there’s no doubt that news broadcasts, and even our daily lives, feel historic, perhaps even biblical. It’s difficult to think of a better summary of this feeling than the opening lines of Lindsay Hargrave’s fine poem “paragloria (Judgment)”: “Every day is judgment day so I’m / not sure what you’re waiting for.”

​Of course, the 2020s are not the first time we’ve collectively worried that the world was about to end soon, and Hargrave knows it. “Your hills,” she writes, “have been burning for / centuries.” Medieval apocalypticism was largely religious in nature, and Hargrave’s poem is steeped in religious iconography: “judgment day” itself, “Hades,” “angel brass.” But this is not the whole story: other images arise as if from everywhere and nowhere; I am certain no one has written lines quite like these before, and yet, in their beauty, specificity, and terror, they make perfect sense:

[...] Rise! open your eyes and feast your bare guts on a white sun molting to black dwarf beginning at wildfire sunsets.

If you think you’re in for an ultra-saturated, Baroque poem after reading these furious lines, well, you are—but that’s far from all Hargrave has to offer. She is just as adept at managing bathos in a way that grounds the poem in our own shared spaces of banality, even gives it air to laugh a little. Watch as a high-flown vision of the after-life (not religious, but simply “life after this”) morphs into something far more quotidian, easier to relate to:

​Rise rise rise and draw up a tub for next life’s bloodletting. You could live in a moon colony. Find out which friends were imposters all along and invent new ones. Finish scrapbooking.

Reducing the old religious judgment day, in which all things are revealed, to petty concerns about friends and unfinished tasks does not in any way dampen the poem’s effectiveness. Rather, it enhances it, and paves the way for a brilliant conclusion in which the quotidian and the apocalyptic perfectly merge: the flames and suffering are quite real, not spiritual; the voice seems to be that of a first responder at a fire, but of course we all know something more is going on: intentional, maybe inevitable destruction; a world steadily growing unrecognizable; all of the lurid trappings of a Dantean inferno, but right here, right now. This is a poem that storms to its conclusion in breathless, heavily-enjambed free verse, that endlessly varies its flexible tone without losing momentum, that by its final lines makes the mythic terrifyingly real.

​Still, this is not a poem of pure despair: “Rise!,” it commands, over and over again. There is something for the audience to do; whether we are to rise and flee, or rise like the dry bones of Ezekiel, is left open. Open, too, is that beguiling title, “Paragloria.” In Spanish, “para gloria” is “for glory.” Para- is a common Greek prefix denoting something that is alongside, accompanying, parallel to. And Perixera paragloria is a rarely attested binomial denotation of a rather nondescript moth—something that maybe, just maybe, has the power to flap its drab wings, rise, and get the hell out of all this." Read Hargrave's poem in Wrongdoing Magazine's first issue:

[sabxism]

But I’m Here In Your Doorway

Pairing: Poe Dameron x Reader

Based on these lines from this is me trying: 

Pulled the car off the road to the lookout Could've followed my fears all the way down And maybe I don't quite know what to say But I'm here in your doorway

Word count: ~2.6k

Warnings: mentions of and encounter with possible suicide, injuries (blood, bruises, etc), mention of (previous) deaths

Summary: reader loses everything. after she nearly makes an irreversible decision, she goes to Poe for help. 

GIF not mine

The screams of your squadron members bounce around in your head. It was your fault, you knew that. You shouldn’t have set off without checking your ship. Without checking for any trackers. So it wasn’t a surprise when, out of nowhere, a group of TIEs burst out of hyperspace, straight into your fleet like pins being knocked over by 30 flying bowling balls. You had watched, helplessly, as your friends - your family - were picked off one-by-one. As they went up into terrifyingly bright balls of gas and flame and smoke. It was your fault. All your fault. 

Part of you was trying to cling onto the notion that you couldn’t have known, how could you have known? But the majority of your mind beat back those thoughts, letting the sickening guilt take over and push you into a dark corner. Debriefing had been a nightmare. General Organa had, of course, told you that it wasn’t your fault, that it was nobody’s fault but the spy she hadn’t discovered in time. She could sense the weight on your shoulders, sense you falling into a pit inside of yourself. 

After the meeting, she had pulled you aside.

“Y/N. I need you to look at me,” she said, turning your head gently but firmly with her right hand. “It isn’t your fault. You did everything you could. Sometimes, things are just out of our control.”

“I know,” you lied, just wanting this conversation to be over. Leia could sense your apprehension, and sighed.

“Look, I know that nothing I say is going to change how you feel, because I’ve been there, and I know what you’re thinking. I know it’s hard. Trust me.” you look down at the floor, scuffing the tip of your boot across the dusty ground. “It will get better. I promise you.”

“Thanks, general.” 

“How many times do I have to tell you to call me Leia?” she asks lightly as you turn to walk away.

“A few more, apparently,” you respond, the ghost of a false smile resting over your face. With that, you turn on your heel and head to your quarters. 

You step through the door as it slides open and sit down on your bed. You reach for your datapad, wanting to distract yourself with something. 

You click the screen on, and your heart drops. Staring back at you are the smiling faces of your squadron. You’re all clustered around Mari’s new droid, with hands on its shiny purple head. She had been so happy to get that little guy. 

Now they were both nothing more than dust drifting through the empty expanse of space.

 You hurl the tablet at the wall, watching as the screen shatters and falls to the floor. 

You place your head in your hands, silent sobs racking your body. You clench your hair in your hands, knuckles turning white. You stand up, body shaking, and walk out of your quarters.

You pass Finn in the hallway. He smiles at you, but you can’t bring yourself to do the same. You feel awful as he looks back at you as you pass him, but at this point there’s no use trying to fix it. You trudge outside and up to your x-wing sitting on the tarmac, the edges of the wings blackened from smoke. You glance around, checking the coast is clear, then scurry up the ladder and into the cockpit. You check the time. 

1800. 

Sighing, you boot up your craft and quickly take off. You cruise over the base a few times, watching everyone go about their day. Like nothing happened. Like 10 of the most beautiful, vibrant souls hadn’t just been snuffed like a match. You swallow the knot in your throat and head for the atmosphere. You need to get away from here. 

-

“General Organa!” Leia turns, to see a frenzied runway tech sprinting towards her. “Y/N took off on an unauthorized flight.” 

Leia swallows thickly, her heart dropping. “How long ago?”

“We noticed she was left just now - but it looks like she’s been gone about an hour.” 

“Then there’s nothing we can do but hope she comes back safely.”

“That’s what I was worried about.”

-

You land on a nearby forest planet, after searching for about ten minutes for a place to touch down. You pick a plateau on the Western side, lowering your land gear as you begin to descend. You hop down from your ship onto the grassy earth, and look around. 

It’s quiet up here. There’s a soft wind blowing, and it weaves delicate fingers through your hair and across your face as you take off your helmet. You let it fall to the ground, and decide to walk around for a bit. You make your way to the edge of the plateau, and look out across the forest beyond. It stretches on for miles, a swath of dark green. The last rays of the sun blaze across the sky, painting the clouds with a pink-orange hue. 

You glance down, and your heart drops to your toes. It’s a long way to the ground below. You begin to back up, but for some reason you find yourself stopping. You get closer to the edge, still looking down. It would be so easy to just take another step. Just one more. All of this would be over. You wouldn’t have to feel this guilt anymore. 

Your knee lifts up slowly.

Realizing what you’re about to do, you scramble back, falling to the dirt. You brace your hands on the ground, digging your fingers into the earth to anchor yourself. Your chest heaves, and your vision spins. The ground seems to buckle, to toss you around. The sky bends and arches above you as you struggle to breathe. You roll over onto your stomach and wrap your arms around your knees. 

You don’t know how long you lie there, but by the time you have the courage to stand up and walk again, the moon is floating in the sky above you, and the stars glimmer against a black backdrop. 

You climb back into your x-wing and sit there, staring at your dashboard. Your eyes meet one of the few pictures leaned against the fuel gague. You and Poe lean against his x-wing a few months ago. You have your arms wrapped around each other. He’s kissing your cheek, and you’re laughing, open-mouthed, your nose scrunched up and your eyes shut tight. 

You take a shuddering breath. Poe. You couldn’t believe what you’d almost done - what you still might do, if you don’t get out of here. You couldn’t leave him like that. You rapidly go through your flight checklist and then take off, headed back to base. 

You land on the tarmac around 0200, exhausted and beaten down by your own thoughts. You hop out of your ship, landing on the ground with a thud. 

You start walking, not really knowing where your legs are taking you, but you end up at Poe’s quarters. You can hear movement inside the room. You raise a trembling hand and knock once.

He opens the door, and his eyes widen. His mouth moves silently, searching for words.

You swallow thickly, a nervous knot tying in your stomach. 

He takes a step toward you, not quite believing what he’s seeing. Leia had told him that you’d left suddenly after their meeting, and he had grown worried that you were hurt, or worse. But here you are, standing in front of him. Your form is limp and you’re drawn into yourself. Your face and neck are caked with blood and dirt, and your eyes are clouded and empty. 

“Hi,” you say weakly. He quickly closes the gap between the both of you, wrapping you in a tight embrace. Your arms hang limp beside you.

“Stardust,” he breathes, holding you tightly. “I was so worried.”

Tears prick the corners of your eyes, falling down your face and onto Poe’s shoulder. He pulls back, concerned. Cradling your face in his hands, his eyebrows crease with worry. 

He looks down at you, stroking your cheek gently with his thumb. There’s a silent question written across his features. You shake your head tearfully. You don’t know what to say. 

“Baby…” he whispers, pulling you close to his chest again. You clutch at the back of his shirt with shaking hands.“I’m here now - you’re safe. You’re ok, you’re ok, you’re ok.” He repeats those two words over and over like a mantra, equally to himself as to you. “Let’s get you inside, ok?” he says, and you nod. Placing a hand on the small of your back, he guides you into his quarters. 

“I’ll grab some clothes for you,” he says as you sit down on the edge of the bed. He rustles through his drawers, eventually coming up with a long-sleeved olive green shirt and a pair of grey boxer shorts. He sets them on the bed next to you. “Are you good to take a shower?” You think about it for a minute, and slowly shake your head. The idea of being pounded with thousands of tiny droplets makes you want to hide under a blanket. 

“Too much,” you murmur, and he nods in understanding. 

“Ok, love, that’s fine. We do need to clean you off and deal with these cuts, though.” he gestures to the lacerations across your skin. You nod weakly. You hear him pad over to the refresher unit and grab a medkit and some washcloths, which he wets under some running water from the sink. 

He kneels in front of you, and motions for you to take off your flight suit. You slip it halfway off, letting it rest around your waist. Poe sucked in a breath through his teeth as he saw the bruises blooming across your torso and arms. You’d gotten tossed around pretty bad, getting knocked through space by several of the TIEs. You’d slammed your sternum right into the dashboard at one point, and small fragments of something had slashed open nearly every bit of exposed skin and even some under your suit. 

“Y/N…” he says quietly, tearing up. You bite the inside of your cheek, hating to see him so upset. 

He gets to work cleaning your cuts. He’s as gentle as he can be, but you still hiss as the cold water on the washcloth cleans out your cuts, and tears start to fall as he bandages up a particularly bad cut on your stomach. He holds your hand the whole time, letting you squeeze his hand as hard as you need to, never even flinching as your vice grip tightens around his fingers. 

“Ok, baby, let me check your legs and then you’re all set,” he says, and you turn away, face flushing with nervousness. He’s confused for a second, then has a moment of understanding. He’s never seen you naked - you weren’t ready to get intimate yet, so you guys had been taking it slow, and now really wasn’t the best time to breach that barrier. “You can change into the shorts first,” he says quietly, and you look back at him gratefully. 

You make your way to the refresher unit, shutting the door behind you. You peel off your flight suit the rest of the way, followed by your undergarments, crusted with blood from the cuts on your stomach. You pile the discarded clothes in a pile by the shower, and slip on the shirt and shorts Poe had leant you. You take the opportunity to glance into the mirror above the sink, and grimace at the reflection that gazes back at you. Hair messy and tangled, face bruised and covered with small cuts, you were not a pretty sight to behold. Sighing, you head back into the main room. 

Sitting back down on the bed, you lean against the wall and stretch your legs out in front of you. Poe sits down on the mattress next to you, surveying your exposed limbs. They aren’t as bad as the upper half of your body, but they definitely aren’t good. He dabs at the cuts gently, taking your hand again. He mutters sweet nothings as you clench your teeth and shut your eyes tightly for the next few minutes as he finishes up. 

“All done,” he eventually says, and you relinquish your grip on his hand, wiping the tears from your eyes. He looks up at you, and you almost melt at the love in his eyes. You realize in that moment how lucky you are - that no matter what, he’ll always take care of you. Always. 

“Thank you,” you say quietly, and he smiles softly, opening his arms. You crawl over to where he’s leaned against the headboard and collapse into his embrace, breathing beginning to even out. 

“You need sleep, baby,” he says, and you nod. “You can stay here, if you want.” You nod again, and he presses a kiss to your hair. “I’ll grab some extra blankets from the closet.” He gets up and goes to retrieve them. You get under his comforter and lay your head down on one of the pillows. Your eyes drift closed.

 Poe pads back over to the bed and pauses, looking down at you. He swallows thickly, tearing up. He makes a promise to himself then and there that he’d never lose you like that. Never again. 

He lays another blanket over you, then switches off the lights. He quickly changes into some sleep clothes and then gets under the covers, laying down facing you. 

“Poe?” you mumble, searching for his face in the dark. 

“Right here, honey,” he says softly, and you inch closer to him, a bit nervous to get too close. He senses your unease and smiles softly. “Cmere,” he says, draping a hand over your waist and pulling you close to him. You tuck your head against his chest, a warm feeling creeping into your very core. Being this close to him is grounding. You take a deep breath in. The scent of the lavender soap he uses clings to his skin, and it washes over you. You listen to his breathing, feel the rise and fall of his chest. 

“I love you,” you breathe, eyes widening as you realize what you just said. The two of you haven’t exactly said it before. You feel Poe freeze beside you, and your heart drops. You mentally kick yourself. How could you say that right now?

“I love you too,” he says, and you can hear the smile in his voice. You blush furiously as he tilts your head up with his thumb and forefinger. “To the edge of the universe and back.” He presses his lips to yours, feather soft. 

“I love you,” you say again, just because you can. He smiles softly. 

“I’m proud of you, I want you to know that,” he says after a while. “For...getting through all this. I know it hurts, and it’ll stay that way for a bit, but…” he pauses, taking your hand in his. “But I’ll always be here if you need me. To talk, or just listen. You can lean on me, ok?”

“Ok,” you say quietly, looking up into his eyes. 

“Ok,” he whispers.

“Ok.” You smile, and his heart flips at the beauty of it. He pulls you into his chest once more, and you’re out like a light almost instantly. He presses his lips to your forehead before drifting off, holding you tightly in his arms.

[willowbird]

3! 4! 7! (for the prompts yo) .... oh. and. kandreil. (duh)

Be GAY do CRIME, on a violently orange yacht. Oh, and they kiss for the FIRST TIME 😘 For Kandreil!

This is my first Intentional Kandreil y'all (as opposed to like.. the three Accidental Kandreil I've done so far), I hope I don't fuck it up for you XD

----

"Kevin I swear if you peak I am going to go leak those photos of you from last Halloween."

Kevin snorted at Neil's empty threat, though he dutifully kept his eyes closed, letting Andrew tug him out of the car and lead him down what felt like a wooden walkway. A deck, maybe. Or a pier, Kevin thought as he registered the smell and sound of water, the squawking of gulls above and around them.

"Even if you did, no one would believe they were real."

"I'd leak them right to the Trojans." The laughter in Neil's voice warmed something right in the center of Kevin's chest. It wasn't so long ago that Neil was so... terrifyingly cold. He'd joined them as a rebellion against his father, the bogeyman of the east coast and loyal lapdog to the Ravens - who were the direct rivals to Kevin's much smaller, much wilder group of Foxes. But whereas the Ravens were a legit syndicate that dealt with such things like human trafficking and heavy drugs, the Foxes were a group of barely-organized criminals that mostly just liked to say 'fuck you' to the laws they didn't agree with.

The problem? The laws the Foxes didn't agree with tended to be the ones that directly benefitted the Ravens' front businesses. After all, the Ravens controlled several of the biggest corporations in the country, and they were regularly stepping all over average folks, ruining their lives.

Every member of the Foxes had, in some way, been hurt by the Ravens. They were all determined to get back at them in whatever ways possible. Sometimes that meant framing their executives for fraud. Sometimes that meant blowing up a few buildings. They were a multi-talented group.

The Trojans were a similar group of not-quite-but-still-criminals based on the west coast, and they'd combined forces a few times by now. They also were pros at anything that had to do with the internet. If Neil wanted to make something go viral, the Trojans were definitely the place to go to.

"Jeremy would never help you soil my good name."

"Jeremy would think it is hilarious, do not fool yourself, Day." Andrew's tone was dry and deceptively uninterested, but Kevin knew him well enough by now to hear the amusement hidden between the carefully articulated syllables.

Kevin rolled his eyes while still keeping them dutifully closed. He didn't bother to hide his smile though, knowing the other two would see it and not really caring that they would. It was kind of strange to think of, honestly - that he was here, comfortable being led around with his eyes closed, smiling without care. It was because of these two men, and that... that warmed something inside him. Made it glow. Made it blossom. Made it live.

"Okay, alright. Kevin, you may open your eyes." Neil's grin was audible in his voice, and it was the first thing that Kevin saw when he opened his eyes.

The second thing he saw, though, was the absolutely impossible-to-ignore explosion of orange directly behind him.

"What the actual fuck?" Kevin half-spluttered, but he was grinning, too. He could feel it. One did not look at a violently orange yacht and not grin. He laughed. "This is my surprise? You saw an orange yacht in the marina and had to show... me..." His voice drifted off, distracted and confused as he saw the name of the boat in sharp white script along the side.

The Brightest Day

"Neil?" Kevin blinked, and something giddy bubbled up right below his throat, catching and fizzing. He had to swallow it down, and it took effort to do so, especially as he saw the warm, pleased look on Neil's face, then turned to see a similar expression on Andrew's.

To see a similar expression on Andrew's face.

Kevin stared, because Andrew... Andrew wasn't one to emote. Even when it was just two of them, or the three of them. Even after all they'd been through. Kevin and Neil had learned to find the truths hidden behind his sturdy walls, to accept what Andrew was willing to give them when and however that may be.

And here was Andrew, in the open, looking at him with an almost-smile on his face and an expression in those natures-gold eyes that was unmistakably fond.

Kevin had to take a breath, and he wasn't at all surprised to feel it shake. Rough, strong fingers slipped between his own and Kevin looked over to see Neil's expression had shifted to understanding. If anyone would ever know what Kevin was feeling, how he was feeling it, at any given time, it was Neil. They were so similar in the way they processed the world, and how they appreciated the small gifts they were granted in a life that had been too dark and too unforgiving for far too long.

Andrew's smile was one of those gifts. Arguably, it was the grandest of all.

"Come on you idiots," Andrew sighed as he turned to walk up the short ramp already positioned to bring them onto the boat.

Without further word, and without unlacing their fingers from each other, Kevin and Neil followed Andrew up the ramp and onto the yacht. Something struck Kevin as inexplicably right about that. After all - no matter where any one of them went, the other two were sure to follow, hand in hand.

And when they needed to face a challenge they would face it hand in hand in hand.

"I don't understand," Kevin finally said as Andrew lead them across the deck. "The Foxes don't have the resource to --"

"It did not come out of the Foxes' coffers," Andrew cut him off. He nodded to the menace still holding Kevin's hand. "It came out of Neil's."

Kevin turned to Neil, staring at him in open shock. "You bought the Foxes a boat?"

Neil snorted. "No. I bought you a boat." He paused, then looked from Kevin to Andrew and something passed between them. Some kind of understanding, or agreement. Andrew stepped away from where he'd been about to lead them to the interior of the boat, instead joining the two of them. Once he had, Neil looked back at Kevin and said, "I bought us a boat."

It took a moment. Kevin wasn't stupid, but he also had never expected... This thing, this connection or relationship or whatever that was between the three of them - Kevin wasn't sure it would ever be defined and he had come to terms with that months ago. If they went on forever just being Kevin and Andrew and Neil, just as they were right now with no changes - he would be okay with that. As long as he always had these two men in his life, everything else, he decided, would work itself out.

"Us," Kevin said slowly, testing the word, making sure it really meant what he thought it meant.

"Yes," Andrew said. "Us."

And that... that was really all that needed to be said, wasn't it? At least he thought so, up until Neil tugged on his hand, bringing him a bit closer to the both of them, and said, "Kevin, can I kiss you?"

"Yes!" The word burst out before Kevin really made the decision to answer or even necessarily registered the question. A soft huff came from Andrew that might have been a laugh, but Kevin wasn't able to fully catch it when Neil was already pulling him down.

Neil smiled into the kiss. He kissed him slowly, with a graze of teeth and a hum of adventure. He kissed him like it was just the beginning. He kissed him like he knew it was a first kissed but by far would not be the last. Confident, pleased, satisfied.

Blood was pounding in Kevin's ears so hard he could taste the tremble of his own heart on the tip of his tongue, and when the kiss broke he gasped, already leaning in for more. This time, Neil was not the only one smiling.

By the time the kiss ended, they were no longer holding hands. Instead, Kevin had an arm wrapped around Neil's shoulders, keeping him tugged as close as possible, the other hand resting on the side of his neck. Neil was similarly wrapped around his waist and he was still smiling. Kevin rested his forehead against Neil's, then turned to look at Andrew to find the other man was watching them with heat and affection burning in his eyes.

"Andrew," Kevin said, and his voice rasped. He didn't say the words, but only because he was too high on Neil's fire to put the syllables together right now.

Andrew answered anyway, because he knew Kevin well enough to know exactly what question he was trying to ask.

"Yes," he said. And if Neil's kiss was fire and satisfaction, Andrew's was the ocean and determination. Andrew kissed him like he was going to carve his intentions on his bones. He kissed like he was going to take Kevin apart one sigh and tough at a time and Kevin melted into it, more than happy to yield to the power of that kiss. Anyone who lives near the sea would tell you the same - you don't fight the waves, you let them carry you - and that was exactly what Kevin did.

Neil's hand was stroking up and down his spine. Andrew's was cupped around the back of his neck. When the kiss broke, that hand squeezed firmly, then pulled him just a bit further down so Andrew could place one more kiss on his forehead before he turned to Neil.

Something perfect and delicate and yet, at the same time, positively indestructible filled Kevin up to the brim as he watched the way Andrew cupped Neil's face, the way Neil leaning into that touch, the way fire and ocean wave met in a promise while still in the circle of Kevin's arms. And finally, finally, Kevin had a word for it - for the feeling he got when he was with these two beautiful, thrilling, amazing men.

And it was, quite simply, home.

[spaceprincessem]

Flying

A Titans Dick/Kory meeting AU based off of the prompt: The ride won’t allow single riders so you are forced to sit with a stranger meet up AU (Can also read on AO3)

Dick loved his friends. They were his family, his partners, his backup in battle. He would do anything for them. Despite his fondness for his found team it wasn’t enough to stop him from internally groaning when Dawn suggested they go to the amusement park on their day off. It wasn’t that Dick didn’t enjoy the rides, he loved roller coasters and, when Donna convinced him to break his healthy eating habits, a funnel cake every now and then. The problem was their group consisted of five people, which meant someone would always be a single rider. Every time they had gone out to do something like this everyone was pretty good about splitting up taking that position, but now, it was pretty obvious who all the match ups were going to be. Hank and Dawn had been together a little over a year and Garth and Donna occasionally flirted. Dick knew Garth was wanting to take the next step, so how could he deny his friend the chance to grab Donna’s hand when the coast plunged to the bottom from it’s terrifyingly high drop? This meant that Dick would be the solo rider for the day.

“We could always make Hank ride by himself on this one.” Dawn suggested as they neared the front of the line for one of the parks most popular coasters.

“You know he’s going to need to hold your hand when he gets scared, Dawn.” Garth teased.

Hank wrapped his arm around Dawn, smiling. “I wasn’t the one screaming bloody murder on the last coaster, pal.” He said, lightly poking Garth in the chest, causing the others to laugh.

“It’s not a big deal.” Dick said with a shrug of his shoulders. “As long as the other single rider they put with me doesn’t puke this time.” Dick secretly thanked his god like reflexes and acrobatic skills. He had narrowly avoided the trail of vomit from his ride partner two roller coasters ago. The girl had profusely apologized, but Dick was just happy it didn’t ruin their trip.

“Yeah, that was almost a disaster.” Donna said as they moved to the front of the line.

“How many?” The ride attendant asked in a miserable voice.

“Five.” Garth responded before the attendant pointed them to their seats.

“Does anyone have a group of three to fill up this cart?” The attendant yelled to the fellow line goers.

 “Oh! Us!” A boy shouted as he jumped up and down in the air, a large grin on his face.

“Step forward.” The attendant motioned, letting them through the gate.

Dick watched a teenage boy with shockingly bright green hair, a small teenage girl with dark, blue hair, and the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen move through the crowd. Dick felt his heart hammer in his chest as she moved across the platform, fiery hair swishing down her back, her emerald eyes sparkling with joy as she watched the teens run to their spot. He realized with both absolute joy and terror that she was heading to the same spot he was.

“Kory, you don’t mind that Rachel and I ride together on this one, do you?” The boy asked as the girl named Rachel nodded her head in agreement.

 She laughed, a magical sound, as she said, “Not at all, Gar.”

He watched the two teens high five and start to move into the seats just in front of him. The woman, named Kory, walked over to where he was standing, still watching her with wide eyes. For a brief moment he could have sworn he saw Hank and Donna shoot him a thumbs up before they took their seats.

 “Mind if I’m your ride partner for this one?” She asked.

 Dick took a second to realize she was talking to him before he shook his head, returning her smile. “Not at all.” He moved into his seat and she climbed in next to him, her hand brushing against his as she reached for her seatbelt.

“You’re not one of those people who come to amusement parks by themselves, are you?” She asked with an inquisitive eyebrow.

Dick laughed. “No, I just have the unfortunate circumstance of being in a friend group of two couples.” He said as he nodded to the next car ahead where his friends were sitting. “Those your kids?” He asked as he indicated towards Rachel and Gar who were chatting excitedly about the ride.

Kory beamed with pride as she nodded her head. “Not biologically, but we’re a found family so to speak. We found each other when we needed it most. I would do anything for them.”

Dick could feel his insides melt as he bathed in her warmth and happiness. He understood what it was like to choose your family. “Even brave riding with a stranger on a roller coaster, how kind of you.” He teased as the ride attendants came around to check that they were properly buckled.

Kory laughed. “My name is Kory.” She said as she held her hand out to him.

Dick took it, noticing her skin was smooth and warm in his own rough and calloused ones. “Dick Grayson.”

“Well, Dick,” she hummed, her tongue clicking as she said his name, “now we’re not strangers.”

Before Dick could say anything more the two teenagers briefly turned around in their seats, their smiles wide as they looked at Kory.

“Don’t forget our themed pose for this one!” Gar said.

“Super serious super model smolder, correct?” Kory asked bemused.

“That’s the one!” Rachel agreed. “The camera is at the bottom of the second hill, so be prepared.”

“Will do.” Kory said before they faced forward again. The cart began to move up the tracks, slowly, the ticking of the chains growing louder as they went up hill.

“Themed poses?” Dick asked, curious.

“Our tradition is to take a bunch of themed photos on all of the rides that have cameras.” Kory explained. “We pick the funniest or best one and buy it to take home. You should see how many terrible roller coaster photos we have.”

Dick couldn’t even begin to tell her how much he would very much like to see that. He had been a single rider many times over the past year, but he had never met anyone quite like the woman that was sitting next to him now. He couldn’t stop his pounding heartbeat. “So smoldering super model, huh?” He asked, already thinking of the perfect pose.

Kory eyed him curiously, a small smirk playing on her lips. “Let’s see your best shot, Mr. Grayson.”

The roller coaster inched its way to the top and Dick looked out over the park. He loved the feeling of the first drop, it was like an adrenaline rush he could only mimic while he was fighting crime or speeding through the streets on his motorcycle. “The first drop is my favorite,” he said as they neared the peak, “it almost feels like-“

“Flying.” Kory finished for him.

“Yeah,” Dick said, a surprise smile over taking his handsome features, “just like flying.” He was able to meet her green eyes for a moment longer before the coaster tipped over the hill, starting their ride.

When the car pulled into the station Dick and Kory were laughing. Dick watched as Kory tucked her wind swept hair behind her ears. As soon as she was out of the cart Rachel and Gar grabbed her hands, dragging her down the ramp.

“I think this will be our best one.” Gar said happily. “I had the perfect lip pout.”

“I’m sure you did.” Kory said. She threw her head over her shoulder, her eyes meeting with Dick’s, a smile filling her lips.

Dick for his part was frozen in his spot for a moment, not sure what to do. His trance was only broken when he felt strong arms wrap around his shoulders, pulling him towards the exit.

“Please tell me you got her number.” Hank said, with Garth nodding in agreement.

“Yeah, if you don’t I will.” Donna agreed, elbowing her best friend playfully in the side.

“I-uh…” Dick was speechless as they moved into the guest shop to see their roller coaster picture. He looked up at the different faces flashing across the screen, laughing at Garth’s terrified expression.

“I told you my lips had the perfect pout.” He heard Gar say as he pointed up at one of the screens.

“Rachel your eyes are intense.” Kory noted as she looked at the picture, her hands on her hips.

“And Kory looks gorgeous as always.” Rachel said with a happy sigh. “I see that your ride partner also participated.”

Dick caught sight of their picture and grinned at his perfect model face. Rachel had been right, though, Kory did look simply gorgeous. Her lips were slightly parted, eyes staring directly at the camera with fierce intensity, her fiery hair perfectly blown around her face.

“We’re definitely getting this one.” Gar said.

Dick watched as Kory moved to the counter to buy the photo. He swallowed the lump in his throat, not knowing what to do. Before he could make a move she was already heading towards his group, the teens in tow behind her, grins plastered on their faces.

Dick cleared his throat as Kory stopped just in front of them. “Thanks for being my ride partner.” He said pathetically. He could go up against terrible villains and bad guys, but for some reason, when faced with a beautiful person, all of his courage faltered.

“Thanks for completing our photo.” She said as she handed him an extra one that she bought. “This is so you don’t forget about us.” She said.

He took the photo, smiling at the gift. Kory turned to leave as Gar suggested which ride to go to next. Dick caught sight of Rachel mouthing “turn it over” before she ran to catch up with her small family. Dick raised an eyebrow as he flipped the photo over. In neat handwriting was Kory’s name and telephone number. Dick grinned as he ran after the small group.    

[thirdtofifth]

Angel of Decay Large undead, chaotic evil Armor Class 18 (natural armor) Hit Points 209 (22d10 + 88) Speed 30 ft., fly 50 ft. Str 21, Dex 14, Con 19, Int 19, Wis 19, Cha 17 Damage Immunities necrotic, poison Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, poisoned, unconscious Senses darkvision 60 ft. passive Perception 14 Languages Abyssal, Common Challenge 15 (13000 XP) Magic Resistance. The angel of decay has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects. Rotting Aura. Whenever a creature that isn't a construct or undead starts its turn within 15 feet of an angel of decay, that creature must make a DC 17 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 17 (5d6) necrotic damage, and is poisoned until the start of its next turn. On a successful save, the creature takes half as much damage and is not poisoned. The angel of decay regains 5 hit points at the start of each of its turns if it has more than 0 hit points and dealt damage with its Rotting Aura since the end of its last turn. Actions Multiattack. The angel of decay makes two claw attacks. Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d8+5) slashing damage plus 9 (2d8) necrotic damage. If the target is a creature other than an undead or a construct, it must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or take 9 (2d8) necrotic damage at the start of each of its turns due to a necrotic wound. Each time the angel of decay hits the wounded target with this attack, the necrotic damage dealt by the wound increases by 9 (2d8). Any creature can take an action to staunch the wound with a successful DC 17 Wisdom (Medicine) check. The wound also closes if the target receives magical healing or takes radiant damage.

Angels of decay are nightmarish parodies of angels, terrifyingly ugly rather than hauntingly beautiful, their flesh constantly stripping from their bodies and floating around in the air nearby, skin peeling away and decaying into ash. Creatures that venture too close to the angel of decay can feel their bodies rotting from its necrotic aura, and those wounded by its claws find the life draining from them as they do. Angels of decay are found only in the most unholy places, as lieutenants of great undead lords, or even heralds of gods of the undead, or ancient entities such as Atropus, the World Born Dead.

Originally from Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead.  If there is a monster from 3.5 or Pathfinder that you want to see converted to 5e, feel free to send me a message or submit a monster request on the submit page.

I am nearing completion of my first monster collection! As Wizards of the Coast has put out monster cards to keep track of many of the stats of its monsters for 5e, I am hoping to provide a PDF soon containing the first 100 monsters I’ve converted, formatted on notecards you can print out on cardstock to use easily in your games. Let me know what you think! It may be a while before they are released.

[giantscauseway]

Giant fights Finn is having trouble with someone across the water. The Scottish giant Benandonner is threatening Ireland. An enraged Finn grabs chunks of the Antrim coast and throws them into the sea. The rock forms a path for Finn to follow and teach Benandonner a lesson. Bad idea – Benandonner is terrifyingly massive. Finn beats a hasty retreat, followed by the giant, only to be saved by our hero’s quick-thinking wife who disguised him as a baby. The angry Scot saw the baby and decided if the child was that big, the daddy must be really huge. Let us tell you about the legends surrounding Ireland when you book your Private Tour with Giants Causeway Tours, link to book in our bio or visit www.giantscauseway.tours #giantscausewaytours #beandonner #legend #finnmccool #giantscauseway #thegiantscauseway #greatoutdoors #irish #giants #fillyourheartwithireland #unescoworldheritage #discoverireland #scenery #beautiful #view #visitireland #visitnorthernireland #discoverireland #discover #discovernorthernireland #atlanticocean #failteireland #belfast #visitbelfast #ireland #northernireland #causewaycoast #landscapephotography #landscape #coast #instaireland (at The Giant's Causeway) https://www.instagram.com/p/CCgUwILhfIS/?igshid=cxajpqggarh1

[mayparkerblogs-blog]

Just Your Average Morning {Part 8: infinity war au!}

WOW does it feel good to post on a somewhat regular schedule! Just a heads up this was kind of a #struggle to write but whatever. Also my dudes, I’d really, REALLY love it if you all could reblog this post so all of your friends could see it to because, you know, that’s what heroes do. ;) Now don’t just stand there - get to reading!

Friendly Reminder: this post contains Infinity War spoilers. Although I am 90% sure the majority of you have already seen it (and if you haven’t then you should stop reading this right now and drive to your nearest movie theatre), proceed reading with caution if you are still yet to see the film.

New to JURAM or missed a previous chapter? Don’t worry, there’s no need to “not feel so good, Mr. Stark” - you can check out my very own master list right here! 

Avengers x fem!Reader (contains IW spoilers)

previously in JURAM...

You thought about all of these things as you looked at the great city surrounding you and all of the wonderful people which occupied it, the people that you were trying to save.

You thought about this as you took your last glance at the blue planet you call home.

As you stretched one second into a thousand beautiful moments.

As the doors closed.

And you were utterly, terrifyingly, alone.

Get out, get home. Get out, get home. 

The donut closed and you were instantly enveloped into unwelcoming darkness. You shivered as you looked around and saw the unfamiliar and strange alien architecture and technology surrounding you. Whatever force that was bounding you to the wizard suddenly ceased to exist, and you landed on the cold floor with a hard thud. You ran back to the doors which closed and locked only seconds before and desperately tried to free yourself from this pastry-looking alien vessel. After tugging, punching, kicking, and ramming at the heavy doors, they wouldn't budge - not even your trusty shield could release the iron gates.

There’s got to be another way! Think, Y/N, think!

You examined some of the technology on the ship, attempting to understand a mere morsel of what was written to the screen. You were frantically tapping and retapping until your heart suddenly stopped mid-beat.

Were those footsteps?

You looked around the corner and saw the shadow of a figure approaching, and it definitely wasn’t human. You began high-tailing it down a random hallway, but stopped in your tracks when you remembered that you had left the wizard all alone for whoever or whatever was strolling through the ship. 

Save the wizard!

You ran back over to the wizard, who was still suspended mid-air, and used all of your available strength and might to pull him down the hall with you and into safety - as much safety as you can get on an alien ship. Unfortunately he wouldn’t budge a single inch. In your head, this was a rather pathetic scene. After all, you, Lady Liberty, an avenger in training who possessed the super soldier serum, had been beaten by a trick that bad magicians show at birthday parties. You were snapped out of your self-depreciating daze to the sound of footsteps - even louder than they were before.

If I don’t leave now and let that thing over there find me, there's no chance that me or the wizard will make it home. Sorry, buddy, I’ll be back for you!

You carefully and quietly sprinted away from the wizard and continued down the long, dark hallway until you found a nice corner to park yourself into. 

vrrm

vrrm

vrrm

Shit! My phone! Wait, how am I even getting any reception?

You fumbled through the many pockets of your suit until you found your cell phone to discover that the one and only Steve Rogers was calling you.

Thank God! I know Steve can help me!

“Steve!” you whispered as you answered his call.

“Y/N? Is that you? I can’t really hear you all that well. Where are you? We’ve been trying to reach you for the past 30 minutes.”

“Yes, Steve, it’s me and I’m - um - I’m in the donut!”

“You’re in the what?” he asked, very bewildered and confused.

“The spaceship! I’m stuck in the spaceship with this wizard guy and Peter is stuck on top of it and Tony said he was coming to help but I don’t know where he is so please send somebody up to get me Steve I’m scared and alone and I don't know what to do I should have never taken my suit and shield with me I’m not ready for this and I don’t want to die yet please Steve please come get me.” you pleaded as tears streamed down your face.

“Y/N, Y/N, listen to me,” Steve said in between your sobs, “You’re ok. It’s going to be ok. We all saw how brave you were on the news and we are all very, very proud of you. You sure are braver than I ever was. You’re a very tough girl, ok? Don’t you forget that! You can handle anything, even this. Just be strong for a little while longer, ok? Nobody knows where Tony is but we’re trying to contact Rhodey right now and Sam is already suiting up. It might take us a fat second, but we’ll have you and Peter home for dinner. Stay hidden, stay quiet, and try to keep all of your communication systems on so we can get a hold of you when we need to. Don’t do anything rash or engage with any life form on the ship. Can you do that for me?” Steve spoke quickly and gently, his calm voice soothing you to a more rational state of mind.

“Yeah, yeah I can do that. Ok. But please hurry, Steve. Please.”

“What?” Steve asked. “What did you just say? I think you’re breaking up.”

“I said ok and please hurry, Steve!” you raised your voice a little bit and immediately looked around to make sure the coast was clear before you spoke again. “Steve?”

“Hang tight, kid!” 

Suddenly, your short phone call with Steve ended, rejoining you to the world of foreign solitude and fear. Echoes of a man screaming burst through the ship in waves, sending shivers up your arms and guilt for leaving the wizard all alone and defenseless into your mind. 

Backup will come soon enough, I know it will. Engaging the hostiles will only make matters worse. Do what Steve said - stay hidden and stay quiet.

Mere moments after your call abruptly ended, you heard footsteps coming down the hallway. 

Oh no! Somebody probably heard my voice and came to investigate. I blew it, I’m dead meat! Wait, no, don’t think like that! You can handle anything - Steve said it himself. Just quickly and quietly take down the threat and continue waiting for backup to arrive. 

The footsteps got closer, and you carefully removed your shield from its holster on your back and slid the straps into place on your forearm. You checked your helmet to make sure it was secure, shook out your neck, and transferred from your crouched position on the floor to an attack ready squat. You pressed your body against the wall and saw that the silhouette of a tall figure was nearly upon you.

Breathe in, breathe out. 

Just as the tall figure turned the corner, you smacked it in the face with your shield and quickly pinned it against the wall while it was still stunned from your hard blow. You wound up your arm and were about to deliver a mighty hit to the head with your trusty shield when suddenly -

“Y/N! Y/N! Stop! Stop! Stop! It’s me! Hey! Look! It’s me!”

You paused mid swing and looked at the now familiar face of the figure.

“Tony?”

“Yes, Tony! Jeez, kid, I thought you were going to kill me with that thing.” Tony said as your cheeks turned red with embarrassment. 

He noticed your burning cheeks and quickly came up with an alibi to ease your conscience. 

“Part of it’s my fault, part of it’s yours. I could have said something over the comm to let you know that I was coming to get you, and you could have waited a damn second before almost curb stomping me with that shield of yours. You could also say that it was payback for me leaving you stranded for the past 30 minutes inside of a donut, which is understandable.”

You softly laughed and smiled at Tony, glad that he was trying to ease up your current situation and lighten the mood. Your mind was at peace knowing that you would be back home within the hour, until you realized that Peter was nowhere to be seen.

“Wait, have you seen Peter anywhere? He was beamed up with me and the wizard but was bounced off to the top of the ship.” you asked.

“Yep. Saw him clinging on the outside as I was flying up to get the two of you. He’s safe and sound at home with May right now, and with a brand new suit for him to play with.” Thank God - I don’t know what I would do if Peter got hurt because of my stupidity. 

“Thank goodness. Wow, that relieved a lot of stress. Anyways, so, I saw this door right over by where I was levitated up so I was thinking that you could just blast it open and we could fly on out of here-” “Slow down there, Sparky,” Tony said, interrupting you, “I want to get back to earth just as much as you do. But first, we need to retrieve that necklace from the wizard. Then, and only then, can we skedaddle back home.” Your heart immediately sank in it’s chest. Nothing was making sense to you, and you didn’t care if it did or if it didn’t nonetheless. You were aching to be at home, on the couch, eating a bag of chips, and watching awful movies on Lifetime right now - but you knew that an average life style just wasn’t meant for you. Look at you, you’re an avenger! When Steve asked you to join the team 3 months ago, your agreement wasn’t to run away and hide when the going got tough. You agreed to stand up when nobody else would, to fight till your very last breathe, to protect the innocent, defend the weak, and to avenge the human race. You weren’t just Y/N Y/L/N anymore - you were Lady Liberty, guardian of the free world. It’s time you better start acting like her.

“Alright then,” you said, “let’s go save this wizard.”

You and Tony stalked around the ship until you found yourselves right above where the wizard was being tortured by the ugliest lifeform you had ever had the disprivellege of laying your eyes upon. You winced between his loud cries and almost threw up when you saw what the other guy was doing to him.

“So why do we need the wizard and his fancy necklace again?” you asked.

“It’s a rather long story, actually, but I’ll sum it up for you - this dude Thanos wants to collect all of these magical rocks called infinity stones so he can dominate the world and yadayadaya. You know, just typical antagonist dreams and wishes. Two of the infinity stones are on earth, because, you know, we’re in the way of everything. One of them, the mind stone, is that yellow gem in Vision’s forehead, and the other one, the time stone, is in the wizard’s necklace. We have to get the stone, and I guess the wizard too, back to earth because that vertical worm over there is trying to deliver him and the stone to his buddy Thanos. Makes sense, right?”

“So, once we get home with the stone, can’t we just stick it in a blender so Thanos can never have it and destroy the world?” you asked.

“That’s exactly what I said. Thank you, Y/N, thank you.”

After a brief moment of silence and self collection, Tony was ready with a plan.

“Ok, so here’s what’s going to happen. I’ll-”

“Don’t forget to add me!” Peter said as he dropped down from the ceiling on a web.

You and Tony jumped at his adolescent voice, but quickly realized that it was only Peter and not some alien brute who wanted to eat your stomach for breakfast.

“Wait, but I thought you said...” you began asking Tony.

“Peter! What the hell do you think you’re doing here? How are you still here? Better come up with a good explanation, and fast. Now that I have three people and not two, some live bait would be a great option to get the worm away from the wizard, so spill it.” Tony demanded.

You could tell that Tony was mad - so, so mad. Which, led to the conclusion that it would be best for everybody if you just stayed out of this conversation. 

“Please don’t use me as Squidward bait, Mr. Stark. I have a perfectly good reason for being here,” he paused and thought for a moment, “You know, now that I think about it, it doesn’t even make sense to me why I snuck back on so I’ll just keep it to myself.”

“Good. Save us all from five minutes of you trying to irrationally explain another ill thought out decision,” Tony said, “Now, for the plan.”

“From what I can tell, and I hope you guys can too, our magician friend Squidward over there possesses some form of telekinesis. He also obviously has the upper hand since it’s his ship, so we’re going to have to maintain an offensive position so we don’t get pushed into retreat and get lost in the maze of hallways. I’ll get his attention while you guys get into your respective positions. Y/N, you’ll be in that corner behind those boxes. Peter, on the ceiling. When it seems like the worm is about to engage in a hostile attack, Y/N will throw her shield at his face, hopefully breaking the force that has been keeping the wizard suspended mid air. Squidward will most likely go over and lash out at Y/N for hitting him, leaving Peter to transport the wizard to a safe location. You’ll have to give Peter plenty of time to get the wizard out of harm’s way, Y/N, so try and keep Squidward stalled for a couple minutes. I’ll run over to the ship’s controls, turn around our course, and finally neutralize Squidward. Sounds like a plan?” Tony finished, looking to you and Peter for recognition. 

You and Peter looked at each other, then nodded back at Mr. Stark.

“Ok. In positions, then. Let’s get this shit show over with.”

The plan was going perfectly. Peter was taking your new found friend to safety as Tony was seemingly successfully fiddling with the ship’s system and you were holding your own against Squidward, who was apparently named Ebony Maw. 

This nightmare is going to be over in no time, I just know it.

“There was a girl in my English class called Ebony, you know. Haven’t heard from her since she got arrested for doing cocaine, though. Hey, you two have a lot in common - for example, you both are crackheads.” you said noting to the several dents and horrendous wounds on his head as you launched your shield at him.

“Pathetic,” said the always disgusting Ebony Maw as he effortlessly flicked your shield away, “Your primitive remarks are just a ploy to cover up the fear and insecurities bellowing inside of you. No matter, I’ll find a way to get it out of you.” he said as he threw you up 10 feet in the air and pinned you against the wall.

So maybe I shouldn’t have jinxed myself by thinking this was going well?

“Try to stay as still as possible,” the rotting beetle said, “The more you struggle, the more they hurt.”

You watched as the same tiny glass spears which put the wizard in so much pain grew closer to your face, Maw laughing in joy at the pain you were about to endure.

I’m starting to think that Tony didn’t think out his plan as much as I thought he did. 

You didn’t want to ruin Mr. Stark’s chances of reversing course, or endanger Peter’s life for second time in the span of 24 hours, so you sat in silence and waited for the crystal daggers to pierce your smooth skin.

“Oh shit!” Peter said as he ran back into the room, “Uhhh, Mr. Stark?!” he yelled as he pointed at you to get Tony’s attention.

You watched as the red and gold iron man suit turned to look at you and froze in place once it saw what was happening. Thankfully, the man on the inside can process and fix a problem at rapid speeds.

“Hang on to something!” Tony yelled as he blasted a hole through the side of the ship, sucking Ebony Maw out into space. The wizard was almost lost to the black vortex as well, but Peter managed to get to him in just enough time.

You fell to the floor with a loud thud, and got up rubbing on the shoulder you landed on.

“Yep. That’s going to leave a mark.” you said, walking over to join Tony, Peter, and the wizard at the main console of the ship.

“You know, you could have just said something if you needed some help. I had nothing better to do, considering that we can’t turn this ship around.” Tony said.

“Oh be quiet,” you said, “It was all part of the plan. Well, my plan at least.” you responded.

“Yep, you just keep on telling yourself that.” Tony said with a little bit of smugness.

You looked at Peter and rolled your eyes, while Peter just shrugged at you in response. Peter and Tony started discussing ways to get back home while you turned around and retrieved your shield from the corner of the room that Maw effortlessly flicked it into.

Ew - I better disinfect this thing when I get home.

“Thanks, by the way.” the wizard said to Tony solemnly as you lightly jogged back to the group.

“Thanks? I mean, sure, all we did was sneak into a foreign ship and get stuck in space to save your sorry ass. But yeah, sure, ‘thanks’ is just enough.” Tony said as he finished up melding the giant hole in the side of the ship together.

After silence filled with tension and uncomfortable glances between you and Peter, the kid had decided to slice through the awkwardness with a light conversation starter.

“I’m Peter by the way.” Peter said, stretching his hand out to the wizard for a shake.

“Y/N.” you said as you joined Peter by the wizard.

“Doctor Strange.” the wizard simply stated, neglecting to shake either your hand or Peter’s.

“Oh, we’re using our made up names. Then I’m Spider-Man.”

Doctor Strange gave Peter a look of both discomfort and confusion at the same time, and then went back to ignoring you and the other minor.

“I think he likes us. What about you?” Peter asked.

“Eh - I think he’s undecided.”

“So, here’s the deal,” Tony began, gathering everybody’s attention, “F.R.I.D.A.Y said that the ship’s basically stuck on full throttle, meaning that we’re on a one way trip to Thanos’ man cave.” 

“We can just turn the ship around once we land, right? Or just find another one?” Peter asked.

“That won’t work.” Doctor Strange furiously retorted. “We can’t let the time stone get anywhere near Thanos. I swore to protect the stone, not hand deliver it to the cruelest malefactor in the known universe. You need to figure out how to turn this ship around.”

“With all due respect, sir, Tony Stark is the smartest man on Earth. If there was a way to turn the ship around, he would have already done it.” you said to Strange.

“Ok, guys, just hear me out,” Tony started, “We’ve got what Thanos wants. He’s going to be sending all of his resources down to earth to retrieve the mind stone, meaning that he will be virtually defenseless. Well, as defenseless as a Titan can be. Why not use that to our advantage? Storm the castle, slay the dragon, and prevent any further damage from being done. We don’t know exactly how many stones he has now, but we know he doesn't have them all. He won’t be expecting a fight on his turf - we’ll have the complete element of surprise.”

“Absolutely not. No, Tony. I can’t do that. If Thanos gets a hold of the time stone, there’s nothing we can do to stop him. Turn this ship around now, Stark.” Strange said, raising his voice.

“Come on, Strange. If we don’t get the jump on Thanos now and give him time to retrieve the other stones, there’d be no Earth left to fight for when we got back. We will get our assess handed to us, no doubt about it, but it’s better than letting our home suffer because we chickened away from a fight.” Tony said.

“It’s almost a suicide mission. We’ve got no backup, no knowledge of the land, no certainties about everything. All of this is theoretical. It’s just,” Tony sighed and took a moment to collect himself, “If we didn’t even try to stop Thanos, and he got to Earth and attacked an almost vulnerable planet, it’d be all our fault. We’d sit there saying “we could have prevented that, millions of people would still be alive if we would have just done something” - we have the chance to prevent that, right now. So why wouldn’t we?” Tony turned away from the wizard and walked over to the console, head in his hands.

“Fine, Stark,” Strange said after a few moments, “Just know that if I have to decide between you all and the stone, I’m choosing the stone.”

You looked at Peter, who furrowed his eyebrows at Strange’s last comment. He walked over and stood on one side of Tony and you followed, standing on the other side. The three of you sat in silence, staring at the vast realm of stars before you.

“Alright, gang, The landing sequence has begun. Peter, come over here.”

You and Peter had been sitting on the floor against a wall taking various naps and discussing the future for the past few hours, so having to actually do something was quite the change.

“Yes, Mr. Stark?” Peter said as he quickly hopped up and ran over to the console.

“We’ve got to land this thing manually, and I’m too small to reach the other handle. This thing was designed for a big boy like Thanos after all. Grab that other thing right over there. No, not that thing. Look where I’m pointing, Peter. There you go.”

You hopped up and strapped your helmet back on your head (you knew it wasn’t the best idea to take it off in the first place, but who takes a nap with a heavy thing like that crushing their skull?), and slipped your shield back onto your forearm. You considered offering Tony and Peter some help, but decided to stand out and watch with Doctor Strange.

“Are you Captain America’s sidekick or something? I apologize, but I’ve never seen or heard of you before.” he said.

I knew that question was going to come eventually.

“No, not a sidekick. Just an avenger.”

“So what exactly are you capable of doing, Miss Y/N?” Strange asked, not removing his eyes from the entertaining sight of Peter and Tony struggling to land the ship from two separate sides of the console.

“It’s a little hard to explain. I was in an accident, Steve was the only person who had the same blood type as me, he donated blood, and somehow, by the grace of God, I inherited the super soldier serum. So yeah, I’m something like Captain America.”

“Interesting. That didn’t sound too hard to explain.”

“Actually, doc, it’s a lot more complicated than that. But, I’ll save the rest of the story for another day.” 

“I’d share it now if I were you, Miss Y/N, since it’s not a 100% guarantee that we’ll have another day.”

“Alright, then, Strange, I’ll tell you my origin story. It was just your average morning in the Y/L/N household - my parents were out, my sister made cinnamon rolls, and naturally, since I didn’t have school, I found myself waking up at 11 am. Just as I was walking down the stairs to have breakfast, I -”

You were interrupted by a sudden and severe rattling of the ship, sending you and Strange tumbling about since neither of you were holding onto something to begin with.

“Hey, thanks.” you said as Strange somehow caught you - until you realized it wasn’t Strange, but his red cape.

“I guess chivalry isn’t dead after all.” Strange said, getting up from the floor.

“Look alive, people,” Tony said as he turned around from the console and joined you and Strange in the center of the floor with Peter slowly in pursuit.

“We’re here.”

TAGS ~ 

@infinite-exist-ence @sataninsatin @tinyclockss @markusstraya @sassyandclassyx @scarletracoon @peachiis @voidrivaille

[bugcthulhu]

Spanish/Iberian mythical creatures: Lots of Bogeymen and other weirdos edition

Calzadilla Lizard: A crocodile-like beast that went around slaughtering entire flocks of sheep until a shepherd killed it by shooting its open throat with a magical shotgun. Its spirit cursed the shotgun to break on the spot so that it would never slay anything again

Patinga: A newt/salamander that is not only intensely poisonous but makes parts of one’s body disappear just by touching them

Lusitanian Dragon: Ocean-dwelling and snake-like, with green scales. A heraldric beast associated with Trebaruna, a pre-celtic goddess of home, battle, death and water currents

Machu Lanu: A bulky, shaggy, bipedal goat with enormous horns and a deformed human face. Can speak, but its voice is terrifyingly loud. 

Tiznau: Though considered a kind of goblin, it is gigantic in size, with black skin and clothes. Bad-tempered, controls the weather

Oiulari: Unseen being that announces its presence with a distant bellow. Answering back typically earns death by huge rock thrown at your direction. Leaves ten-fingered handprints on what it touches

 Deminyo: Small servile demon created by injecting a drop of blood on an egg laid by a black hen, then incubating the egg in a pile of dung. Causes terrible maladies by entering people’s bodies. Independent ones are known as “Demachinyos” and far more dangerous. Only a skilled witch can hope to control them

 Long-Teats Dog: Exactly what it sounds like. This obscene female canine appears at night and is considered an omen of death. Can imitate the sounds of other animals and transform into either crow or a wool yarn. Splits in two or three if struck.

 Ahari: A cave ram. Noted as being servants of Mari, (goddess of earth and consort of the evil dragon god Sugaar), who takes naps on their woolly bodies as pillows and spins with their horns

 Peeira: Feral nymphs that protect, live with, and usually lead packs of wolves. Sometimes said to have the power to cure lycanthropy

 Lehen: Benevolent sea serpent that guides lost sailors

 Etsai: Dragon of devilish disposition that teached science, arts and letters to whoever came to him, with the “payment” that at least one disciple would have to stay in his cave and serve him forever. Under him studied Atarrabi and Mikelatz, the rival sons of Mari and Sugaar

 Akerbeltz: A protector of animals that appears as a male black goat, kind-hearted despite his sinister appearance and possessing healing powers. The arrival of christianism lumped him with the devil and witch covens.

 Maruxaina: A sea nymph/mermaid with luminous eyes. Some tales have her as helpful and warning about incoming storms, but oftentimes she’s malicious, luring sailors towards her death. Her charming ability is such she can make raging whirlpools appear to her victims as calm waters.

 Mulachini Del Cielu: Baby-like beings with only one eye that play in storm clouds and throw lightning bolts

 Camunyes:  Extremely frightful, enormous and filthy bogeyman with shiny eyes, long skeletal claws and huge sharp teeth to gnaw bones with. Partly based on the popular figure of a guerrilla that terrorized French soldiers to avenge the unfair death of his brother.

 Carlanco: Hissing, nondescript goat-eating monster that appears in some fairy tales of Spain and Brazil in a similar vein to the Big Bad Wolf. Claims to have enough strength to tear apart mountains, but tends to be rather ineffective and easily thwarted.

 Jampon: Goblin that sneaks inside houses and eats all the food within

 Traganarru: Sea dragon with power over storms and waterspouts, sinks ships and devours whoever approaches the coast.

 Llufa: Wind spirit/fairy, invisible and silent. Stalks those they perceive as naïve to prank them and laugh at them

 Maru: Subterranean humanoids with two horns that kidnap people and cattle close to their domain

 Pericó: Tiny spirit associated with metal that grows into a giant of solid iron when exposed to fire, smashing all in its wake. Blacksmiths strike their anvils three times before work in order to keep it at bay

  Simanya: Female bogeyman of monstrous appearance and boundless appetite for human flesh, their lairs bursting with the bones of past victims. Frequent mountainous areas traditionally held as belonging to ogres

 Black Bubota: A ghost that takes the form of a black doll to frighten children

 Rabeno: Tall, thin humanoid with pale skin and a short tail. Though it watches over animals, it is a lascivious being that wanders towns to abduct women. Believed to spread leprosy and other severe skin diseases

 Trastolillo: A particularly restless goblin with horns and black fur, making a nuisance of itself on nearby houses and constantly snickering. Particularly fond of making terrible moans at night, startling families awake. Loves milk and might be bribed with it, but it’s just as likely to steal it.

 Manlleu Serpent: A huge snake sporting a hairy mane and a large diamond on its head. Slain by a child that stole the diamond while it was distracted and hid it in a mortar; Trying to get it back, the snake constricted the mortar over and over until it died of exhaustion

 Urco: A large dog with horns, long ears and clad in chains. Emerges from the sea at night, howling furiously.

 Tinyosa: A beautiful, transparent woman that appears in densely fogged areas. A child eater that “sucks” on prey until she eventually swallows it whole

 Aborteiro: Tiny insect that enters the bodies of pregnant women and does exactly what you think it does

 Grunyu: A dark, demonic beast with a guttural voice. Lives in caves by day, roams the forests at night. Hard to see, but if anyone walks past it they will be cursed on the spot and their personality will change for the worse

 Eate: Entity that embodies fire, floods and hurricanes. Incredibly destructive and merciless, but sometimes its fury can be directed by someone holding “rainbow grass”

 Fumera: Bogeyman with seven eyes (4 front, 3 in the back of the head) that appears on Christmas and keeps watch on children, taking away those that succumb to gluttony

 Cul Pelat: Ferocious being that appears in days of strong wind, using it to hide its presence and kidnap children. For some reason its name translates to “Shaved Butt”

 Pollastre: A bogeyman in the form of a foul-tempered rooster that eats the legs off naughty children

 Bofarull: Small demon/goblin that appears within and controls whirlwinds

 Maridillo: “Little hubby”. A multi-colored toad, either velvety in texture or actually wearing small clothes, given to witches as a familiar. Constantly demands food, but also vomits a stinking, black-green liquid useful for poisons and spells

 Cuine: Red-and-white gnomes that live in trees or burrows in fields, watching over children. Rather than talk, they either whistle melodiously or squeal like piglets

 Cazamentides: A really tall bogeyman with iron arms and hooks for fingers. Knows when children have told a lie, and snatches them by the dozen to eat them at sea.

 Currucuca: A bogeyman best described as a disgusting mound of hair. So hairy, in fact, it keeps tripping over itself

 Momerota: Beast between bull and horse that launches fireworks from its horns. Chases after people, but is in turn killed for its wine-like blood.

 En Micó: A spirit of brine that turns everything it touches into salt, living beings included

 Bilbiana: Half-woman, half-otter bogeyman. Takes beating her with wooden clubs to drive her away.

 Ceocrobol: Strange beings described as riding enormous birds covered in grass that they feed upon, and thus rarely touch the ground

 Goja:  Water nymphs sometimes shown with dragonfly wings. Their ethereal clothes grant good luck and prosperity to the owner, but get caught stealing them and you’ll be turned to stone. Known to marry mortals now and then: end up vanishing forever the moment their significant others blurt out their true nature

 Mascard Bull: Black and wreathed in flames, runs around mountains.

 Furtaperas: A grotesque, humanoid bogeyman that actually craves pears above all things, only turning to children if it can’t find any

 Peladits: A tall, thin ogre covered in black hair that controls armies of lice.

 Marmajor: Mountain-dwelling bogeyman apparently so good at what it does it is ALWAYS encountered gnawing on children, and carries so many upon its back it leaves a trail of wounded toddlers in its wake.

 Trubinco: Goblin that enters houses and makes a mess of things unless the owners offer them their favourite toy: A pinecone slathered in tar

 Malacosa: Black, pointy-headed being of great size that does nothing but follow people anywhere they go, even waiting outside if they take shelter

 Gops: Extremely violent giants that not only prey on humans but also their own dead and wounded. Have disgustingly matted hair, long beards growing out of their nose, and a single fang

 Taranganyo: Goblins that enter the bodies of children and give them rickets.

 Peirot: Bogeyman that appears monstrously bloated from all the children its swallowed. Constantly dancing

 Carpia: A ghostly bird that brings bad luck, sometimes appears as a thin, wrinkled hag

 Drago: Enormous, has a human-like head an arms but the body of a snake or basilisk. Enslaved an entire region, threatening the locals via terrible bellows to feed its bottomless hunger. After having devoured all the cattle they had to offer, it went on to consume every last human in the vicinity. Beyond that its ultimate fate is unclear: some say it starved to death, where others claim it left to Africa.

 Moixina: Female bogeyman that stalked water springs. Some describe it as a beautiful nymph, while others claim it’s some kind of cat-like animal

Seven-Headed Cuca: Bogeyman that might be either a giant worm, or a dragon

[theoutdoorpursuit]

A Virgin Tip To Alaska

The Last Frontier, a vast wilderness tucked between Mother Russia and our friendly Canadian neighbors up North. It certainly didn’t feel like America, yet they spoke the language and happily accepted all of my American Dollars. To say the 49th state was unique would be a vast understatement, nearly as vast as its endless vistas. I grew up in the Appalachians, hiked the Rockies, yet these were but foothills compared to the monstrous Alaskan peaks. I put my boots on the ground, ate and caught my fair share of halibut, searched for Grizzlies, and soaked in the never ending sunlight. Here are my takeaways from a first-timing Alaskan Tourist:

Float Planes Are A Way of Life

Researching Alaska months prior to my visit, I had every intention of riding a Float Plane through the mountains and landing in one of the endless remote glaciers in Alaska’s wilderness. After an 8 hour flight across country from Atlanta to Anchorage, my desire to leave the earth had left me and it wasn’t because of the lack of access. The hotel we stayed at in Anchorage backed up to the busiest Float Plane lake in Alaska. Non-stop, throughout the day, planes cruised back in and took back off out into Alaska’s unknown. I can only imagine the views and the bumpy ride that entailed on one of these $100 dollar four hour excursions. 

Alaska is a sportsman’s paradise and almost all hunters and brave anglers reach their remote destinations by Float Plane. We learned that on a typical five day hunt, a plane drops off a group and are informed to draw an “X” in the sand if they need an early emergency pickup. A plane would fly by once a day. No phone service. No one else around. It doesn’t get much more primal in today’s world than a backcountry Alaskan hunt by plane.  

The Sun Never Sets

We arrived into Alaska during the first week of June which means one thing, The sun “set” at 11:15 PM and rose at 4:00 AM. But here is the kicker, the sun never truly set. It merely dipped down behind the mountains. It’s always light out in Alaska in June. Our first night in Anchorage we ate dinner at 7:30 PM… 11:30 PM at home. I struggled to keep my eyes open as I nibbled at a halibut burger, while the sun, high in the middle of the sky, taunted me as if to say “We’re just getting started buddy.” One morning, we left for a fishing trip at 3:15 AM and it looked as if the sun had been up for an hour. I’d advise looking into a hotel or cabin that has black out blinds or at least purchase an eye mask because the constant light was quite detrimental to the sleep cycle. I couldn’t help but wonder what the winters were like as they would be the opposite, dark nearly all day long. Talk about intense seasonal depression. I guess the light is better than the dark, but I had never been so excited to see the sun set as the day I returned home and climbed into bed. 

Grizzlies are Tough to Find… Moose are Not

The animal I wanted to see the most… from a distance, the ever elusive Grizzly bear, was not sighted. I saw plenty of black bear, but the majestic beast on every Alaskan postcard was nowhere to be found. I took the bear spray everywhere I went, even on the two mile hike in the backyard of the ski resort, looking like quite the tourist with a camera around my neck and a bear spray canister holstered to my hip. Thankfully, no bear spray was discharged in the making of this trip. 

Now what was surprisingly everywhere was the Alaskan state animal, the Moose. These things are the equivalent to white tail deer on the East Coast. They’re on your hiking trail, in suburban backyards, and terrifyingly close to the roads. The major Alaskan highways are lined with ten foot high fences to deter Moose from coming in contact with a car, which would not be a pretty sight as these beasts can be well over a thousand pounds. We certainly drove with caution as every few hundred yards a Moose crossing sign warned of potential danger. Go for the Grizzly, see a hundred Moose, as they say.

Everything is Far, Hence the Planes

Anchorage, where we stayed the first part of the week, was fairly convenient. It’s a normal, small sized city which has about 300,000 inhabitants, half the population of Alaska. While in Anchorage everything from restaurants to grocery stores was an easy 20 minute drive. Everywhere else in Alaska is a haul. We drove 8 hours total one day from Anchorage to Denali, 2 and a half hours to Kenai, and then a combined 3 hours of driving to our fishing trip in Seward. We put many of miles on the rental car and while normally traveling long distances after you’ve already traveled long distances is devastating, the scenery and roadside wildlife made the road time worth it. It’s no wonder planes are abundant. I saw but a small sliver of the massive state and felt like I drove the distance of my home state of Virginia. If you want to see it all, you’ll have to see it by air.

Pictured Below: While Alaska is vast, one doesn’t have to go far for an adventure. In the heart of downtown Anchorage, anglers can hook on to world class Salmon passing through the states largest city.

It’s Never “Warm” In Alaska

I left the balmy, Southern, 90 degree temps of Virginia, excited for some cooler weather in Alaska, but of course I underpacked on warm clothes. I wore my only sweatshirt every morning. The highs in Alaska during June are in the low 60’s, however the mornings were a chilly 40 something degrees. On our morning drive to our fishing adventure the car’s thermostat read 35 degrees. Nothing says summer vacation like long johns, a winter beanie, long sleeved Under Armour, and a rain jacket over top of a sweatshirt as a desperate attempt to keep in warmth. Again if this is what it was like in the summer, I cringe to even comprehend a cold, dark Alaskan winter. At first thought, conversing with our firstmate who had made the move from Virginia to Alaska, I was jealous, until I remembered this poor sap had to endure the cold for likely 9 months of the year.

Everyone Leaves With A Box of Fish

Enter into the Anchorage Airport and people all around you are hauling their catch in foam coolers. It is a sportsman’s paradise after all. We learned that freezing your catch and checking your cooler as a carry-on for $25 dollars is the most cost efficient method to get your harvest back home. Shipping frozen meat can add up quickly at over $6 a pound. We ended up with close to 40 lbs of halibut and after two days in our cabin freezer it easily made the 10 plus hour journey home in a foam cooler, still mostly frozen when we arrived at our house.

Don’t Drive To Denali Without A Camper And Couple Days to Spare

Mount Denali. “The High One” 20,000 feet of mountain, the tallest in North America. You can’t go to Alaska without seeing Denali right? That was our thought. Four hours there, four hours back. The drive itself may be worth the road time. Following adjacent to the mountains with Denali in the background was a scenic view unlike any other. However when we got there we soon found out that you could only get so far in your own vehicle. Only about 15 miles are available to personal vehicles, the rest of the vast national park has to be seen from a registered camper or tour bus. 

Fun fact: At least a few backcountry backpackers get lost every year in Denali and have to be rescued, searching for the “Magical School Bus” from the popular book and movie Into the Wild. 

“The Magical School Bus” was not in the sights of our day trip so we settled for one of three possible hikes. Albeit limited, the trail we hiked, “The Savage Alpine Trail” was possibly the coolest hike I’ve been on. 1,500 feet of elevation in a four mile hike was a workout, but the views were truly unbelievable. Near the summit we spotted a lone Dall Sheep which paid no attention to us as we climbed within a hundred yards of the rare beast. The hike, accompanied with Caribou and Sheep sighting, made the long day trek worth it, but a return trip to Alaska’s most infamous park will entail a multiple day trip into it’s never ending backcountry.

Everywhere You Look, is A Desktop Background

Since returning home, I’ve had many people ask me to explain what Alaska was like. It’s difficult to put into words how truly breathtaking the country is; you simply have to lay eyes on it. No words, picture, or 4k video would do it justice. From the plane ride into Alaska to driving around Anchorage, the surrounding setting is something unimaginable. The mountains touch the sky, the air tastes pure, its as if your walking around in a National Geographic documentary, constantly. 

I bought a DSLR camera before our vacation, I needed something more than an Iphone to capture this trip. While I got my fair share of solid pics, it became increasingly frustrating throughout the week as every turn on the road provided an image worthy of a Desktop background. You know the picture I’m talking about, pre-loaded on your computer, annoying beautiful to the point you wonder if such a place actually exists. I snapped away and each night I’d fume over which photos to keep. They were all, “Instagrammable.” Bring a camera and several memory cards.

[hrrytomlinson]

here are a bunch of fucking fantastic fics I’ve enjoyed and loved reading throughout the month of october. I recommend that you read these great fics in november, if you haven’t already!! also check out the Reverse Big Bang and 31 Days of Smut!

(all fics with a star are my favorites and if there are two stars then it was a favorite favorite)

1. Damn the Dark, Damn the Light 20k

“Why is this face of beauty ringing so true?” The genuine confusion in Harry’s voice causes Louis’ chest to painfully twinge. “You’re a complete stranger in my eyes, William Shakespeare, but not in my heart. How is that possible?”

Louis wants to live out every romance plot he has ever written in his own life. He wants to be the protagonist of his own narrative, the hero who finds true love and gets his happy ending. Instead, Louis is stuck with only dreaming of such wild fantasies and writing them down. He can create entire romances in his dreams, yet he can never live one.

2. Threadbare 20k**

Harry Styles was eight years old when Louis Tomlinson kept him from falling into a machine in a Manchester textile mill. He was 18 years old when nothing, not even the threat of death, could keep Harry from falling in love with Louis.

3. Don’t Come Down 6k

Louis takes Harry home to meet the family.

4. I’ll Take Your Pain 2k*

Or, soulmates have the ability to feel each other's pain, and Harry finds his after getting his arse waxed.

5. We'll Never Be Lonely in the Dark 6k

Detective Louis Tomlinson keeps getting blocked when he tries to use his psychic gift to locate a missing child. One late night he manages to get through but instead of finding who he's looking for he lands in the bedroom of a mysterious man.

Harry Styles, nursing student, baker, and all around exhausted medium, thinks he's having the best sex dream he's ever had when his fantasy man shows up in his subconscious. But is that really what's going on?

6. Aquarius 6k

Louis realises he's slept with a man of every star sign except for Aquarius, and that just won't do.

7. Forget-Me-Not 26k**

“I- I can't move” the elder one finally croaked out, and with more distress Harry came to see that the vines had wrapped itself around the lad's ankles.

With a dumb nod Harry took a couple of steps forward. He could see Louis flinch with his sudden movement but he tried not to think about it. Instead, he lifted his hands, and tried his best to concentrate, hoping his power would listen to him just this once around the other man and untie him.

Ever so slowly, the vines started to detach themselves from Louis's calves, and soon enough, the man was free. With shaking legs, Louis stood up from the position he was in, and suddenly the air around them got thicker. “You're- you're a witch.” Louis hissed under the harsh wind, making Harry flinch at the accusation in his voice.

Or, where Harry had something he did not wish to have. Louis was just trying to figure him out.

8. Gem and the Hunters: The Treasure of Babylon 34k**

Louis Tomlinson wished, for one thing, his whole life: to find the ancient city of Babylon. After one failed attempt, he swore to never again attempt a search for the city. His friend, Niall Horan never pushed the issue, but when his family finds themselves in trouble, Niall’s only option is to convince Louis to try and find Babylon again.

Niall enlists the help of two famous treasure hunters: Harry and Gemma Styles and their friend Liam Payne. Harry and Gemma love ancient cultures as much as Louis and would give anything to find Babylon. Liam is just along for the ride, running from a shade in his past.

The five embark on the adventure of a lifetime… and find much more than any of them bargained for.

9. I Never Did Believe in the Ways of Magic (Through I’ve a Feeling It’s Time to Try) 54k*

Louis can’t shake the feeling that there’s something in the woods, pressing close and watching him with a heavy gaze. It makes him antsy, fills him with jitters. He wants to run, or scream, but he knows to do so would only put him in danger if there’s actually something out there after all. He’s sure he’s just imagining it, but his heart nevertheless pounds in his throat.

When Louis Tomlinson goes on a songwriting retreat to the Laurentian Mountains of Canada, this isn't how he expects his evening to go.

Or the au where Louis is a singer who has been cursed to never make music again and Harry is a reclusive witch of the Canadian mountains who's going to help him break the curse.

10. Cancel Your Reservations, No More Hesitations 10k

Louis still has his eyes on the bill when he barges into Harry’s room without knocking because he doesn’t want to get evicted and the smell hits him first.

It’s overly sweet and unnatural, and his stomach drops because it smells like an omega. Louis eyes widen and he looks up and - Harry’s on his hands and knees, a half spilled bottle of synthetic omega slick next to him and a huge, knotted dildo pressing into his hole. Harry’s face is flushed and he looks fucked-out and -

“I’m sorry!” Louis squeaks out and quickly backtracks, face red, because he wasn’t supposed to see that and Harry’s an alpha but he - Louis isn’t going to judge him.

Louis is an alpha and so is Harry, but Louis helps him through his rut anyway.

11. Foothold 18k

Louis has crossed the galaxy with a ship full of crystals; they’re the only thing he has to offer in exchange for safe harbor. He thought getting to his destination would be the hardest part, hoping that once he got his family to safety everything would fall back into place; Louis struggles to adapt while his sisters thrive. Louis suspects Emperor Styles may have something to do with it.

12. Don’t Want Shelter 76k*

Louis and Harry have known each other all their lives. Friends as children, they danced around each other as teenagers, and have spent the last twenty-five years either screaming at each other or not speaking at all. Except for that one time ten years ago…

When Hurricane Nicole threatens the coast, they end up stuck together in their families' old vacation home that they begrudgingly co-own.

During the storm, and in the months after, they’re both forced to reevaluate their history and what they mean to each other.

13. Wasted Like a Memory 4k

Six years before Hurricane Nicole forces Louis and Harry together, Fizzy gets married. Harry wrestles with reconciling the different versions of Louis he knows. (Part of Don’t Want Shelter)

14. Taste and Plead 3k

Or, the one where Harry wants something, and Louis' never been one to deny his boy anything.

15. Home For Christmas 22k**

The Shameless Hallmark Movie AU you probably didn't ask for.

Or, the one where Harry didn't think he wanted a family, but with a little Christmas magic (and maybe one Louis Tomlinson) he realizes that he is very, very wrong.

16. A Million Stars 2k

Louis watches Harry perform at the Tower Theater, and the events of the night unfold in an unexpected manner.

17. No One Like You 19k**

Where Liam and Niall are art historians discovering the truth about two nineteenth century painters on opposite sides of an artistic divide.

18. Howls Like A Beast (You Flower, You Feast) 16k*

France, 1754. Château de Versailles.

“You don’t love me,” Louis had said, utterly blasé as he callously fractured the heart of a Harry that was just barely eighteen.

“I do,” Harry had insisted pleadingly, green eyes already watering.

Louis had rolled his eyes, exasperated and flippant in the way only beautiful, young boys could be when faced with the affections of a baby prince. He had run his finger down Harry’s cheek then, had forced him to look into his eyes as he delivered the final blow.

“You’ll change your mind once you’ve seen more of the world,” Louis had teased, pressing a brutally delicate kiss onto Harry’s lovely, pure cheek. “Once you’ve been properly defiled.” He had whispered filthily, delighted by the gasp he heard, the frantic pink blush that had rested high on Harry’s cheeks, the power he had felt at knowing he could make the Crown Prince squirm.

19. You Flower, You Feast 18k**

He's King of the Underworld, but don't assume Louis has it all. He could stand for some excitement in his monotonous, eternal life and maybe, even.....a soulmate.

(Despite not having a soul.)

And along came "Harry".

20. The Dead Things We Carry 25k*

September ‘49

He hasn’t seen him since that day in France, that horrible muddy day where for one terrifyingly long second, Louis really thought he was going to die. He winces with the phantom pain, the hand not holding his cane going to his stomach automatically, remembering the franticness, the tenderness, of Harry’s hands while Louis was bleeding out. This is the man who saved Louis’ life.

For one second, Louis fears Harry won’t recognise him, but his eyes widen when he turns to his left and they meet Louis’. He takes a step forward, reaching for him with a shaky hand before stopping himself.

“Louis,” Harry says with a shudder and Louis doesn’t think his name has ever carried more weight. This is the only man Louis ever thought about kissing for real.

“Oh,” Mrs. Padley says, clearly taken aback. “You two know each other?”

There are some things people never fully come home from. Until, one day, if they’re lucky, home comes to them.

21. Do You Like My Sweater 13k

When Harry's alpha fraternity decides to host a Sadie Hawkins dance, outspoken omega Louis has a thing or two to say about it.

22. Yellow 84k**

The city of Gotham turns blood red with a new, mysterious criminal element, a beautiful woman named the Blind Cupid. She threatens to tear the fabric of the city apart, aided by her deadly protégé, the Cat. Can Batman stop them? Will he resist the bewitching allures of the Cat?

A Batman/ Catwoman AU

23. Things That Go Hump in the Night 6k

Louis goes camping. Something horrible happens. Louis is miserable.

It’s science.

24. This Thing Upon Me (Howls Like a Beast) 8k

Harry and Louis weren’t meant to be together. They’d met when they were put together through their university’s AO MatchUp, a program that set up alphas and omegas based on the schedules of their ruts and heats so they had someone to help them through it. It was pure luck that they were put together.

25. Hands Clasped Tight 44k**

Or the one where Harry and Louis are high school teachers and their students have been playing matchmaker for over a year. Little do they know, Harry and Louis are already married.

26. And the Truth Shall Set You Free (...Maybe) 17k

Betism: A religion based on the belief that the beta gender has been chosen by God to protect and defend the purity and dignity of the human race by resisting and condemning the lustful ways and flawed biology of the alpha and omega

Harry is a Betist and Louis is an alpha who runs with a bad crowd. This is what happens when two worlds collide.

27. (We Will Be) As If Chosen 35k**

There's not a royal in the world who doesn't carry some sort of secret, and Prince Louis has more than his fair share. To protect himself and his family, Louis withdrew from the public eye and tried to live a quiet life, biding his time until his sister Lottie could take the throne in his stead. Unfortunately for him, the national media and the worst person Louis has ever met team up to bring him kicking and screaming back into the spotlight.

Under the watchful eyes of millions, Louis has to figure out how to keep his carefully constructed house of cards from falling, and the first step to accomplishing that is to keep from falling in love with the irritatingly charming Prince Harry, who just won't stop showing up and trying to whisk Louis out of the constraints of his boring life.

Or: the course of true love never did run smooth, because sometimes people are stubborn and sometimes people are scared and sometimes, just sometimes, love can cause just as many problems as it solves.

28. It’ll Be 13k

Louis has always wanted children and he decides he's done waiting for love to come first. However, after adopting a baby girl just days after she's born, he quickly realizes how hard parenting is. Louis hires Harry to be his Nanny, and it all works out great. Until Louis falls in love with him.

[lindoig7]

Saturday-Monday, 24-26 October

Saturday

Adventure Day!  It pissed down most of the night and promised more rain all day, but not to be daunted, we set off to do a relatively short (81 km) loop that ended up being well over 200 km by the time we got home for our fish and chips!

Thanks Heavens for a tank with low-ratio 4WD capability!  We headed for Stringer’s Knob – a historical fire lookout – but en route to the Monument Track (a short-cut to the Knob) we detoured a little to Long Point.  Now that sounds simple doesn’t it!  Long Point is quite close to Woods Point where we ventured yesterday – just the other side of the Snowy River if you don’t count the mountain in between – just another big loop in the Snowy.  It is just 8 clicks off the ‘main road’ (the narrow gravel track) from Orbost to Buchan (subject to detours).  But there are 8 clicks and there are 8 clicks!

When we started this little jaunt, it was raining and the water was running down both sides of the track and the track itself was very narrow, winding, muddy and slippery.  There were huge deep potholes everywhere and big puddles 30 metres long and sloshy areas where simply staying out of the bush was a challenge.  I had to constantly steer to the high side of the track so we didn’t fall into the gutter when the car slid sideways - as it did on many occasions.  There were some terrifyingly steep patches where we were in bottom gear in low ratio and sliding down the hill with the brakes almost full on – and places where the brakes simply didn’t make any difference anyway.  We both said ‘thankyou’ for the 4WD courses we did a few years ago.  As I said, it was only 8 clicks in, but we never made it. The last 1-200 metres was so steep, muddy and terrifying that I wimped out and reversed 50 metres to where we could do a 9-point turn and get out again.  Of course, by then, the rain was much heavier and the rills on either side of the track had become rushing rivers and the gravel track a gluey quagmire.  Despite it being one of the most challenging 10-15 km drives I have done, it was fun and we really felt we had achieved something when the (slightly) more passable ‘main road’ reappeared.

We went on to Monument Track where we were supposed to turn, but the first 50 metres looked so incredibly rocky, steep and almost impassable to me – and without knowing what was on the other side of the hill, we decided that discretion was the better part of valour and headed straight ahead to Buchan.

Buchan was a quiet pause in the day with lunch in the car as the rain poured down, then it was off again down the Mottle Ridge Road to the Trestle Bridge near the Princes Highway.  On the way, we passed (or didn’t pass) the opposite end of Monument Track and an advertised stand of Spotted Gums – the only group of such Gums in Victoria.  We had visited the only stand of Cabbage Tree Palms in Victoria a week ago so decided we had to see the Spotted Gums too so off we went.  The road wasn’t too bad at first and the Gums were absolutely beautiful but we kept on, probably until we got almost to the scary other end of Monument Track, where it simply became impossible to go any further. We had dragged numerous small fallen trees off the road and dodged around others prior to this, but a big log across the road made it quite impossible/impassable at this point.  Another long reverse up a hill to a turning place and we were on our way again.

The Trestle Bridge was an interesting artifact, but I wouldn’t have been wanting to take a train ride on it because it barely crossed the road before becoming a scattered moraine around the carpark 20 metres or so below.

The Bridge is only 3 clicks from the Princes Highway and when we reached the Highway, we just crossed it to another rough gravel track and headed for the coast at Pettmans Beach.  It was still raining (it didn’t stop at all during the whole day) but we rugged up and walked to the beach.  The sea was pretty wild, but given the wind and rain, we just had a quick look and retreated to the comfort of the car.  Heather had photographed a few flowers at various places along the track but I never took a photo all day.

We then wound our way home via a very circuitous route, including quite a few more kilometres of challenging track, part of which was the Old Orbost Road. We crossed the Highway again and followed more tracks on the northern side, only returning to the Highway to traverse the last kilometre to the caravan park. Boy, were those hot showers welcome!

I entered the results of my accumulated BIBY surveys that I had completed in the last few days and we bought fish and chips for dinner and fell into bed.

We are more than halfway through our DVD set of Justified and one feature is the music.  We often fire it up and let it play its theme music umpteen times before actually starting an episode.  It is almost impossible to listen to it without jigging around, tapping your feet, drumming on the table or clicking your fingers. Maybe we are becoming C&W fans in our dotage.

Sunday

We had a couple of gentle showers overnight, but it was fine for most of the morning and we walked around the adjacent footy oval to straighten out some of the kinks from yesterday.  I then went off to do some more bird surveys – it was the last day of the BIBY week.  I got 3 done fairly quickly before the rain set in for the rest of the day.  I did one more, late in the day in the immediate neighbourhood, huddled in my raincoat and finished the week with 30 surveys recorded, including 80 different species, and a count of 1445 total number of birds.  There were other people counting birds in the Orbost area because the stats for postcode 3888 were 93 checklists, 103 species and 3302 birds.  (I am not quite 100% sure that all the birds were correctly identified because some of the other sightings included species that are not actually seen in this area.)

Our HWS is still not operating quite normally (or maybe it is normal to misbehave on an intermittent basis) so we had another attempt to fix it.  We can usually get it working sporadically, but not consistently.  We also had a couple of minor carpentry jobs inside the van that we have been putting off for ages so we finally knocked them off.

The BOM has been promising damaging gale force winds and flash flooding in the past few days (to continue for several more as well) but although we have had plenty of rain, the winds have been confined mainly to the coast and the only real flooding we have seen has been right at the bottom of the caravan park, well away down the hill from us.

Monday

The weather forecast was looking a bit better so we decided to tackle the Lakes Entrance Coastal Walk to teh actual entrance tothe lakes – stated in various official documents or signage to be 4.2, 4.5, 4.6 or 4.8 kilometres return.  When we measured it with our Fitbits, it was about 3.3 km out on the marked track, but we walked back along the beach (the lake beach rather than the surf beach) and it was about 2.5 km – just another example of the misleading information provided by the forests, parks and tourism authorities in Gippsland.

The walk was pretty uninspiring with few birds and a surprising sameness in the flora compared with all the wonders we have seen in our other recent travels. The actual entrance to the lakes was inaccessible due to them repairing a lot of storm damage there, but we sat and ate half our lunch under the signal flagstaff and watched the sea crashing in.  I was watching a cormorant skimming the waves through my binoculars when I thought I saw a seal close to the end of the pier.  I kept watching and saw it cross into the surf between the heads.  The surf was roaring in and the tide was ripping out and there was a veritable maelstrom for maybe 50 metres.  What I had seen was a dolphin and as we watched, we saw at least 3 of them cavorting around in the surf.  They were having great fun surfing the waves and I saw one jump right out of the water and do a back flip in the air.  I only had my short lens on the camera so my photos are even worse than usual, but I will crop and post the best of what I have on the blog.

We had a bit of rain on the walk out to the entrance, but our raincoats protected us pretty well – but it pelted down as we were approaching the car on our return and we had to run for it or get drenched.

We ate the rest of our lunch beside the lake and drove out to Bullock Island where we saw hundreds of seabirds sheltering from the wind, including a couple of species we had not seen before on this trip. Our trip count currently stands at 146 species.

We set off for home but detoured to Lake Bunga, a small lake, probably tidal, just out of Lakes Entrance.  We walked to the beach, but as usual, it was raining so we scurried back to the car to get dry again.  We also called in at Lake Tyers, but just looked and left.

On the way back to the main road, we saw a road to Fisherman’s Landing, another access point on Lake Tyers and an interesting track in with a couple more short side-trips to spice up the adventure.  We also explored another very rough and muddy track along Burnt Bridge Road.  There is a walk almost at the end of the road that we may do later but it is essentially just another way to access Stony Creek at the northern end of Lake Tyers.

Although the driving had not been quite as hazardous as yesterday’s adventure, I enjoyed the challenge of the dirt roads, particularly the Burnt Bridge Road section, but by the time we got home and ate dinner, we were buggered and more than ready for bed.

[mermaidmafia-official]

“she was tied to the moon by long threads of red tangled blood. she moved like a woman tied to the moon… it enveloped her and it opened her to an absolute night without dawn.” —anaïs nin

Name: Violaine-Iris Chatelet

Title(s): Queen of Iphis, Violaine-Iris, First of Her Name

Age: 21

FC or Features: Lauren de Graaf … but if she were terrifyingly gaunt from constantly poisoning herself, making her face a lot sharper looking and dark circles under her eyes; gold inlay protection runes etched into the enamel of her teeth (all on inward facing except for her canines). Everything about her is angular and sharp.

-

Likes: placing bets on gladiators, garnets (colour and gemstone), brushing her own hair, tormenting Maladroit ‘playfully’, candied rose petals (possibly to hide the stench of her rotting gut from poison abuse), musing in the bath, the flickering of Tenebris’ tongue in her ear, floral teas, incense, ensuring that something is out of order if she enters a room before Popa has (or, if she knows Popa will frequent), generally being the centre of attention, the smell of fresh blood, dancing, making other people uncomfortable, propagating the rumour of Popa’s blood drinking

Dislikes: being a diarch, how uncomfortable it is to sit on a throne for extended periods of time, wasting time watching fights in the arena (at least until there’s considerable bloodshed), Daphnis’s poor attempts to sway her decisions by flirting (Tenebris is more of a flirt), court singers, whispering, knowing someone has been talking about her before entering a room

Goals: To convince her betrothed to join her plot to eliminate her sister(s) / to shuffle Popa off the mortal coil sooner rather than later / to completely immune herself to the effects of every known poison (by slowly poisoning herself) / to be THE ONLY QUEEN OF IPHIS no more sharing of throne

Fears: everything Popa does; a disagreeable prince; being poisoned by a sister or someone else/being dethroned, the lycanthrope disease, the rising rumours of the werewolf queen in the north

Rumours: the skull of her first husband sits in her chambers on a pillow and she speaks to it sometimes, especially of late (true) / Vitalion and Violaine-Iris were more … intimate than siblings ought to be (questionable, but never denied) / Violaine-Iris made a passing comment about Alexon’s *interest* in the lycanthrope prince to Popa in hopes of riding the family of the male Chatelets completely (unfounded, but never denied) / delighted by the discovery of a hermaphroditic servant in the palace and made them her personal servant (partially true – Maladroit is more of a grotesque than anything) / she used her poisoned claw rings to strike the eyes out of someone who greatly displeased her/she thought was plotting against her in the name of her brother and/or sister(s) (untrue, although it pleases her to hear this rumour creeping around every so often as it has persisted for several years) / Tenebris is a rare venomous snake given to her by her late husband as a wedding gift (true, although Tenebris’s venom is not as deadly as everyone thinks) / that she gave birth to a stillborn child and went into hysterics when they interred the babe in the royal tomb, screaming for a metal cage to be placed over the small sarcophagus for fear that the child would come back to life as the babe was believed to be born of incest (partially true – Violaine-Iris did give birth and the babe died very shortly after taking its first breath, however she was not present for the interment. Oddly enough, a cage has since appeared over the very small marble block that houses the child) / she poisoned Thalestris by turning everything her mother had taught her about poisons against her (very true)

Scale of 1-10, how likely is your Chatelet to kill a family member: 11.5, depending on the hour and her mood

- Typical -

Wardrobe: often wears thick choker-like necklaces with heavy jewels and gold (to protect her neck for fear of knives in dark places); (golden) claw rings (frequently coated with or dipped in poison); either draped in velvet or muslin, all of which has been styled with the appropriate emblems and symbols of protection; Tenebris often curled around an arm or over her shoulders; pomander; when the occasion calls for it, robes for sacrifices and other pieces for performing rites

Places most likely to be found: in the throne room, her own chambers (particularly a secret chamber inside her wardrobe room in which she spends time preparing her poisons), sometimes in her personal garden or reptile house (although you’re likely to find Maladroit scuttling about)

People mostly likely to be with: Maladroit (dogsbody and handmaiden); Daphnis (lady’s maid trying to style herself as a vizier to Vi, barely trusts); Tenebris (pet snake, small, pure white with golden protection markings along its body); other various (unnamed) servants and handmaids, sniveling courtiers

Strongest character trait: fairly maniacal and paranoid

Mannerisms: tends to drum her nails slowly when thinking; tends to smile at the wrong things; languid; tends to be vague on purpose mostly for her own amusement (tends to throw people into a panic trying to figure out what she means or wants, also makes it easier to pick on or punish someone later when the mood strikes her)

- Relationships -

[if anything doesn’t gel with what you loves have for your characters, let me know and i’ll change it!]

with Anxélica: Due to the eldest’s “exile” to the coast by their mother, Violaine-Iris remembers very little of Anxélica, all tinged with the fog of childhood memories. Since Thalestris’ death, Violaine-Iris has become more aware of Anxélica’s visits to the palace and with whom she visits. What she doesn’t know, exactly, is what goes on at the Duchess’s residence. Since the eldest Chatelet has shown little interest in being a queen, Violaine-Iris tends to oscillate between thinking of Anxélica as a non-threat (categorized with Otrera) and thinking that the Duchess of Macar is amassing an army at her estate to overthrow both she and Popa to claim the throne as rightfully hers.

with Sabela: Considers the Serene Lady to be the weakest of her sisters due to her docile nature, therefore not a threat. Yet. Violaine-Iris is also somewhat convinced that Sabela is whispering conspiracies and rumours about her into the ear of Otrera to turn her against Vi and make the child a queen. More worrying, her closeness with Anxélica. She sees Sabela as no queen, but a potential queen-maker. For now, her watchful eye is upon the Serene Lady, but no action is taken.

with Popa: Currently wary of Popa, Violaine-Iris has been on high alert every time her sister queen’s name is mentioned, every time she walks in a room, sits on the throne next to her, when her servants pass by in the hall … Popa has become Violaine-Iris’ most recent obsessive fixation for her paranoid delusions. There might have been a time when Vi and Popa were on somewhat friendly terms, but Violaine-Iris’s ascension to the throne and Alexon’s death has dramatically altered this. Vi is often the butt of Popa’s jokes and barbs, which Vi takes in ‘good humour’ in a public setting, but often will return calmly to her chambers to smash several things (often an antique or two because the shattering is just so satisfying~ and she feels as though her anger is reverberating straight through the core of their ancestors)

with Otrera: Though a child, Violaine-Iris watches her closely. She’s convinced that Sabela is whispering things in the child’s ear about her. She has considered poisoning Otrera on and off as the mood strikes her (but has typically decided against it mostly on account of the legion of nannies that appear out of thin air), but wonders if the Treasured Lady would be a better bargaining chip if it came down to it.

Maladroit: Typical master and servant relationship. Maladroit is wholly devoted to Violaine-Iris (who both tolerates and abuses this devotion) as she is probably the only person to not wrinkle her nose in disgust or shudder every time Maladroit comes near, for which Maladroit is grateful. They’re also grateful that Her Radiant Highness hasn’t seen fit to throw them into the arena for an afternoon or children’s showing.

Daphnis: There’s days when she’s like nothing more than to skewer Daphnis, but she’s also the person who has known her the longest that is not a sibling. It’s a tenuous friendship at best, if you can call it that.

-

- Bio -

Violaine-Iris is a scary figure among the Chatelets for the simple fact that she sits in a seat of power but can sometimes lose her grip on reality and act on unfounded paranoia. Strikingly beautiful as she is often unhinged, she’s the only one of her sisters who has been married and is set to be married again in the following days. Her first husband- an unremarkable noble- she feared was poisoning her meals, and in a fit of terror, she knocked him from the balcony outside her chambers and he ended up quite expired on the stone of the courtyard below. This new soon-to-be-Prince has yet to arrive in the Iphian palace despite his wedding date visible on the horizon. Most within the palace expect a bad ending. As Popa said (loudly) on the day the new engagement was announced, “This one will be dead soon, too.” But Violaine-Iris’ suspicions lie elsewhere these days- with none other than her sister and co-ruler Popa. Violaine-Iris has never believed in the need for a diarchy, but she’s largely kept that to herself. She would like to be the sole Queen of Iphis, but Popa, she (rightly) believes, would kill her first- that, in fact, Popa is trying to kill her first. Driven by this delusion, she’s hoping to recruit her new husband into solving the problem for her. But, perhaps, it’s only a matter of time before either Queen ends up like the poor courtyarded Prince.

-

- Extra -

Playlist:

Mistress – VIXX

Power is Power – SZA, the Weeknd

Can You Find Her Place – Lydia Ainsworth

you should see me in a crown – Billie Eilish

Bravado - Lorde

Kingdom Fall - Claire Wyndham

The Hunt - Johnny Greenwood

Headcanons:

Has always been somewhat paranoid with violent outbursts, but this has increased tenfold since the deaths of Thalestris and Vitalion (both of which she was directly responsible for)

As queen in residence (as opposed to Popa’s warmongering and preference for military action), Vi has taken a leaf out of her mother’s book by taking up the mantle of the mystic/spiritual queen (which tends to add to everyone’s fear of her). She performs every ritual and rite to ensure the protection of the queendom and the people. She never used to believe in any of the rites or took with the beliefs of the Iphian people, but since the death of Thalestris she’s become more… spiritual. Vi says all the right prayers with the most solemn face, performs every ritual dance with as much fervour as she can muster, and takes great delight in making sacrifices, especially blood rites.

It was normal for her to talk to the skulls in her rooms, but now she keeps seeing Vitalion hanging about in corridors

Wants to employ spies, but ultimately does not trust them and is fairly certain they’d be working for Popa anyway

She surprised herself with how much she enjoys the ritualistic dancing, how swept away she becomes. Her worries slide away and she just keeps dancing, working herself further and further into a frenzy until she feels like she’s being unmade

Pinterest board:

https://www.pinterest.ca/fleetingfanfan/collab-suffer-a-chatelet/violaine-iris/

[rhegar]

Dearly Beloved, Chapter 2

Fic Summary: Elia Martell passes away after giving birth to Aegon from complications. Rhaegar Targaryen, now widowed, realizes how fatal his mistakes were to his family.

Chapter Summary: Rhaegar arrives at Sunspear for Elia’s funeral, and has a favor to ask Prince Doran Martell.

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: TW for rape

This is Chapter two. Read on Ao3 here

The journey from Dragonstone to Sunspear had taken a month at sea, and now the ship was hours away from arrival. Rhaegar could see Sunspear's dome and walls from the distance.

For the duration of the whole voyage, Rhaenys asked him, every single day, if the sailors had run into Elia at sea, and every day, the answer was no. Today, though, Rhaegar and Prince Lewyn decided to teach her a lesson.

Prince Lewyn had fetched Rhaegar a map from the captain's chamber, and Rhaegar unscrolled it for his little girl. "Look," he said, pointing at Dragonstone. "We were here; this is Dragonstone. We are now going here," he said, pointing at Sunspear. "We can't run into Mother because our route is unlike hers. Mother has travelled east, to Essos." He ushered with his hand in a broad move to the vast lands of the eastern continent. "In Essos, my princess," Prince Lewyn said, "men and women have invented for their children toys unlike any you've ever seen. They say that some in Essos have also acquired dragon eggs. Princess Elia has travelled there, and we are still here, on the coast of Westeros."

Rhaenys looked disappointed. "Oh, don't be sad, my love," Rhaegar said, "you will soon meet uncle Oberyn, and uncle Doran. I hear he has a lovely little girl who looks just like you, you will enjoy playing with her."

Her eyes widened. "A girl? Like me?"

Rhaegar pitied his daughter. It was necessary to keep her and her mother away from Aerys, he knew, since the man had already expressed dislike for her, but by keeping her away from King's Landing and on Dragonstone, where there were no other noble children to play with, had doomed Rhaenys to loneliness. "Yes, my dear, and Prince Oberyn has four." Oberyn's girls were bastards, all. But he wouldn't have minded that Rhaenys plays with them if it would distract her, and because he had no intention to snob a Prince of Dorne, least of all Oberyn. "Share your toys with them, be sweet to them as mother would have instructed you, and they will be good company."

Rhaenys smiled, seemingly happy with the thought of having company of her age. He called on her maid to take her and prepare her to meet her uncles. When Rhaenys had left, Rhaegar thanked Lewyn for the help in a low voice, then asked him where Arthur was.

"He is posted by Prince Aegon's door, your grace."

He remembered that he had only seen Aegon once the previous day, so he descended the wooden stairs to the cabins, thinking of his son, of Arthur, of Rhaenys, and thinking most of all of Elia. What life would have been if Elia hadn't passed was all that had occupied his thought of late, and he knew why: He did not want to think of what was going to happen; what he had to do.

By Aegon's door, stood Arthur, all in white, tall and glorious and dutiful. He had turned his head at the sound of Rhaegar's steps.

"How is the princess today?" Arthur asked.

"Good. She liked the notion of playing with Doran and Oberyn's daughters."

"Aegon is good too. He's being fed."

Rhaegar was surprised. "You've been checking on him?"

Arthur gave half a smile. "Why, of course, your grace."

The prince frowned. "Ugh. Don't call me that." Arthur chuckled.

Rhaegar twisted the door's knob. Inside, Aegon's milkmaid was sat on a chair near his crib, and she had taken her breast out to feed him. He had forgotten her name. He lowered his gaze as she tucked her breast back into her dress. "Your grace," she said sheepishly.

"You can continue to feed him later, please leave us for a moment."

It wasn't that he had need of being alone with his son; it was that, other than the more familiar few people in his life, he wasn't always comfortable being around others, more so lately. When she left, she had put his child back in his crib. Rhaegar crossed the room and looked at his baby son, standing just over him.

The few hairs on top of Aegon's head had been as silvery as Rhaegar's, and when he opened his eyes, they were just as purple, albeit lighter than indigo. The color reminded him of that of his brother's eyes. He carried the little thing with his two hands and rose him to his chest.

He was such a calm child. In comparison to Rhaenys who had woken Elia from her sleep many a night, Aegon seldom wept or screamed in the night, but only softly whimpered when he wanted to be fed, and he always was, right away. And he would always be, Rhaegar swore to himself. He will always be well-fed, and well-cared for. He will always be safe and secure. He will be the king of Westeros, even if I never become. And his sister… she will be strong and kind and well-loved, and I will protect her with my own life. He swore it to The Father.

He carried the child for minutes, thinking of what's to come; of his plans, only this time, the plans had one prime purpose: To protect his family. Mother, Viserys, Rhaenys, Aegon… I will not have them endangered by the obsession of a madman. He lay his son back down in his crib and called on the milkmaid to continue feeding him; he didn't want him to hunger for long.

On the coast of Sunspear, stood a sublime entourage: The Dornish lords and ladies were known for their lavish silks and embroideries in warm rich colors, and even while they were in the black and dark-grey of mourning, they still looked terrifyingly elegant. At the center of it all, stood two men and a girl: Prince Doran Martell, in a black surcoat with a golden sun pierced by a spear fastening a black cape to his back; handsome and imposing even in sadness, the fearsome Prince Oberyn Martell in a similar garb; younger than his brother and more lethal, and the little girl must have been Arianne Martell, dressed in a simple dark-grey gown.

Prince Rhaegar had ensured that Rhaenys and Aegon stay on the ship for the moment, for behind him, was a wooden coffin painted black and emblazoned with red stones; some true rubies, and some garnets. The stones formed the sun pierced by a spear of House Martell, and inside the coffin, lay the body of his wife, wearing the gown she wore to wed him and the bridal cloak he gave her.

Rhaegar took Prince Doran's hand and shook it. "Your grace," the prince of Dorne said to him politely and knelt his head solemnly. Rhaegar returned the courtesy. Prince Oberyn did the same, but Rhaegar didn't fail to notice the look that Oberyn had shot him with prior. He was too tired and too guilty to answer it appropriately, so he only knelt his head as well.

"Your grace," Doran repeated, "I introduce my daughter, Princess Arianne, the heir to Dorne."

Rhaegar knelt and took the little princess' hand and gave it a light peck, and gave the princess a tired little smile. She smiled widely. He noticed how much she looked like Rhaenys. When he stood back up, he whispered in her father's ear: "Does she know?"

"She knows," Doran replied, a note of pain in his voice.

"Rhaenys doesn't. She thinks her mother has traveled to Essos. If they're to talk, could you please ensure…" Rhaegar couldn't complete the sentence. Doran nodded. "We are fathers, both. I understand fully."

"Thank you. Prince Doran, my understanding is that the funeral starts at dawn. Until then, I must speak with you and Prince Oberyn in private." Rhaegar had weighed whether or not Oberyn should be included in that, but he concluded that he should be. Princes Oberyn had an influence over his brother, and over Dorne, and he and Elia had been the dearest to each other's hearts.

He turned around and let Prince Lewyn embrace his nephews privately. "Once the coffin is inside the walls, send for Rhaenys and Aegon and their maids. Ensure that Rhaenys doesn't see it," he told one of his men, and didn't even pay attention when the man nodded and said, "my prince" in obedience. In that moment, he felt so entirely alone. Arthur was still back in the ship, guarding Rhaenys and Aegon. He was among his brothers in law, but none of them felt familiar, only Elia did, and Elia was long gone.

From the time that the reception was over to the moment that they stepped into Prince Doran's quarters overlooking the water gardens, it was all a blur; Rhaegar could not remember a thing. He was too drowned in his thoughts, and was woken rudely by the sound of Prince Oberyn slamming the door shut. He then went and stood next to the chair his brother was seated in, with the balcony behind them. Their faces were in the shadow, he could hardly make them up until his eyes adjusted to the sun.

"Well, your grace… you look dreadful."

He looked at Oberyn in wonder. No one had ever said that Rhaegar Targaryen looked dreadful. If he ever did, certainly no one ever dared to.

Prince Oberyn was smiling bitterly. "Your new haircut… it's fine, but not what your hair used to be. Remember how perfect it was? It doesn't matter for how long I grow my hair, it never reaches that length or feels that soft. And your face… you look like you haven't eaten in weeks, the perfect bone structure of your face is beginning to show way too much; your cheekbones might as well pierce your skin. And what is that I see on your face… is it stubble? Where you were always so perfectly shaven, with a face smoother than a maiden's hands? It's so pale it's barely visible, but it's there. Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm glad." His smile was now starting to disappear. "If you had still looked just as annoyingly perfect as you always have, I might have wanted to punch you in the face. An ice statue is what you looked like. The statue of a god. Perfect, beautiful, but cold. Not someone I want to sleep next to on a cool night. At last, you feel something, brother."

The biggest surprise of all was being called brother by Oberyn. Were he, Doran and Oberyn still brothers-in-law now that Elia was dead? He couldn't remember what his maester had told him about that in his childhood, and he didn't care. "I'm sorry about Harrenhal."

"You don't owe it to me, you owed it to her. And now it's too late."

"And I said it to her while she was alive. But I know that wasn't enough, it was only enough that I never do that in the first place. I disgraced Elia as I disgraced myself. I'm sorry."

"You asked for a private audience with us, your grace," Prince Doran said diplomatically. "Why?'

"Because you're the only people out there who I know will want to protect my children as much as I do. For Elia."

Before either of the princes got to answer Rhaegar, the door was knocked on. "You may enter," Prince Doran said. The door was opened and Arthur came in. Rhaegar hadn't felt more relief in weeks. "Princess Rhaenys and Prince Aegon are now safely inside the walls of Sunspear, your grace. They are being guarded by Prince Lewyn, and the princess is happily playing with Princess Arianne in the Water Gardens."

"Good," he said to Arthur, grateful for his presence. "If you will allow it," he asked Doran, "I would like Ser Arthur to be here with us. None can doubt his honor, I trust him with what I'm about to say as I trust him with my own life and the lives of my children. He and I have an understanding about the subject of this hearing."

"I would trust Ser Arthur with my life too. You have a good taste in men, Prince Rhaegar."

Rhaegar chose to ignore Oberyn. "My father doesn't like me, he doesn't trust me. And he is a madman. I do not know what he might think to do."

"And why should we have to protect you?" Oberyn asked.

"Because, brother, you heard of what he said when I presented Rhaenys to him."

Both of the brothers were silent; they had heard of the vile comment as many have. "He does not like my children as he has no trust for Dornishmen. My children are half Dornish. Should he attempt to remove me from the line of succession in favor of my brother Viserys, what do you think will come of Rhaenys and Aegon?" He turned towards Arthur. "Ser Arthur, please, tell them what you told me on the ship."

Ser Arthur nodded courteously. "My princes, I have received news from my most trusted brother, Ser Oswell Whent, of the king's deteriorating sanity. He has been burning lords and knights and servants, he has been consorting with the likes of Guild of Pyromancers and a foreign eunuch who has been named the master of whisperers, and… he has been taking Queen Rhaella by force, quite violently. Some say he has even attempted to assault Prince Viserys, but Queen Rhaella stood up to him."

Now, Prince Oberyn pursed his lips, and was silent. "When my mother was alive," said Doran, "Queen Rhaella was her dearest friend. They arranged for your marriage to my sister together."

"And now she is being violated by… him. My own mother… Every time he feeds a man to the flames, it feeds his desire for…" Rhaegar could not even say it.

"And how do we know that that is true?" Oberyn asked. "How do we know you aren't trying to use us against your father when he has done nothing?"

"I thought you said you trusted Ser Arthur with your life, Prince Oberyn? But even if you did not, I imagine the news will reach you here soon, if they have not already. The real danger is not only my father, my lord."

"What other danger is there?" Oberyn asked with a frown.

"Lord Hoster Tully," Prince Doran said, "has promised his daughter Catelyn to Brandon Stark."

Rhaegar was too surprised to speak for a moment. Somehow, Prince Doran was on the exact same note as him. "And his other daughter Lysa to Jon Arryn." Rhaegar said, with half a smile.

"Jon Arryn is fostering Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon," Prince Doran said, answering Rhaegar's smile with an understanding one.

"And Robert Baratheon is set to marry Lyanna Stark." Rhaegar said, finishing Doran's sentence for him. "Compliments, my lord." He nodded in recognition.

"Why, your grace, you aren't the only one who observes these matters."

"There's an alliance happening. An alliance between the Warden of the East, the Warden of the North, the lord of the Riverlands and the lord of the Stormlands. It won't be long before they add Tywin Lannister to their fold, finding one husband or the other for his daughter, and her prospects are quite high; she's quite the famous beauty."

"And now that you are unmarried, have you not considered this famous beauty for yourself, my lord?" Prince Doran asked, quite politely.

"I will never remarry." Rhaegar attempted for his tone to be neutral, but it was solemn beyond his control. The brothers looked surprised, but Rhaegar resumed. "We're out of this alliance, my lords. And that is too dangerous an alliance to be out of. As of now, it's only us, Lord Mace and Lord Tywin. And we're not a force to be underestimated, that is true, but what will come of us when we're fragmented and they are one? I don't know what their ambitions are, but if my father gives them an excuse, just one excuse… burn this wrong lord or that wrong knight, they will rain fury on us."

"And what do you mean to do with that?"

"I mean to ease their fears, to give them some boons, to find some good matches for those of them with children still unmarried, maybe foster a child or two with my son and daughter at court, and find a future queen consort and a lord husband for my daughter among their children. I mean to make them find an ally and a friend in me, and to trust in the future of House Targaryen as a stable and fair dynasty. I mean to protect my mother and my brother. And," he took a deep breath, "I mean to be crowned within the year."

Now, Prince Oberyn smiled. He truly smiled. "Come close to me, your grace."

Rhaegar was confused, but he was not going to refuse the grieving prince in his home. He approached Oberyn, and when he was by his side, he could finally see the dashing view of the Water Gardens. He saw Rhaenys play with Princess Arianne and Oberyn's girls; she had never looked happier. And he saw Aegon, carried by his milkmaid. And in a corner, ever attentive, he saw Prince Lewyn, his eyes not lifting from the prince and princess.

"You see what I see," Oberyn was looking at the balcony too. "Your own children are in my home. You are in my home. The only guard you have who isn't a Martell within the walls of Sunspear is in this room with us, and though none of us would question his prowess, what could he do if we decided to attack you, Princess Rhaenys and Prince Aegon with a small army of five hundred men?" Prince Oberyn directed his gaze at Rhaegar, and smiled. "And yet here you are. You're not afraid, you trusted Prince Lewyn with your children, and you came here to ask us to help you depose your father. Why aren't you afraid?"

"Because of Elia," Rhaegar answered, his voice filled with trust. "She may have despised me for what I've done at Harrenhal, as was her right, but she gave her life for Aegon, and would have given it for Rhaenys just as well. I would give my life for them just as well. And so would you. For Elia."

"For Elia," It was Prince Doran who answered Rhaegar this time. "It is for her that I promise you this, your grace: You will be crowned within the year. You children will be safe and happy as she would want them to be. But you must promise me that House Martell will be protected, and that you will be the father that Aegon and Rhaenys deserve, as you were not the husband Elia deserved."

Rhaegar nodded. "I swear it, my lord. I swear it by fire and blood."