#brine-pumping

[jvnbkow71wh]

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[pookeeta]

I don't normally post my own content on here but I have a little project I'm super into at the moment and I had a happy about it today.

I often had sea monkeys when I was a kid. And a teenager. And an adult. I just think they're neat! But honestly, the plastic tanks that come with them don't super fit how cool the little shrimpies are, or my style so.

So I looked for teeny tiny (12 oz/350 ml) mini aquariums, thinking I could add something like gemstone chips as gravel, maybe a cool structure, coral or stones. Make it fancy, make it pretty, watch the teeny brine shrimp flutter around in style.

Well I couldn't find shit. To be specific, I couldn't find a tank, or kit, small enough. And I couldn't find a lot of aquarium decor the right size (or not made with plastic) either.

OK. Sounds like I'm going to make sea monkey habitats.

Starting with decor, and pottery class. I actually got 5 pieces into the next firing, including this little guy.

More to come. Glazing in a week, hopefully finishing 2 or 3 more this weekend.

[oh-katsuki]

We know gojo was doing them pushup in the sealed pickle jar, preparing himself for combat I love #buffgojo

he was literally in there lifting heavyweight jumbo pickles and it SHOWS

[hvacr]

[buckyalpine]

Babes, I just want you to know that if you ever need an excuse to post any Bucky with breeding kink (ofc alongside others and other sceneries maybe?)

You could always have an AU where Bucky and Reader decides to film all their sexual adventures while trying for a baby then posting it on corn platforms.

In that way, even the most random breedingkknk (and other kinks) would just make sense ✊🏻😭

This is me basically suggesting an AU where they “vlog” all their baby making, baby planning, all baby. 😭

Hell yes. 18+ AF

Warnings: Heavy breeding kink, sweet baby making smut , lots of dirty talking, body worship, lots of fluffff

AN: Tags are messed up so temporarily not using them until I figure out why I keep getting errors

(also if posting onto corn platforms isn't your thing, imagine they film for themselves/ use a mirror to watch themselves instead of a camera)

"Ready sugar?" Bucky set up the camera while you bit your lip, nodding and laying back on the pillows. He made his way over and crawled on top of you, his cock already leaking, the very thought of getting you pregnant making him throb. You draped your arms around his shoulders while he peppered your face with kisses, his hand cupping your cheek, stroking your skin.

"Hey pretty girl" He smiled, his precum making a mess on your tummy, humming as you brought your legs to wrap around him, your pussy dripping, aching for him to fill you. "Been waiting for this"

He dipped down to capture your lips before getting off and pulling you up with him, sitting against the headboard and moving you to sit on his lap, leaving you fully exposed to the camera. You squeaked as he spread your thighs apart top of his, his arm slung around your waist to keep you from squirming.

"Bucky please" You sounded needy, wanting him to stuff you full, too desperate for his teasing.

"Let's show the world how gorgeous you are, let me tell you how special you are to me" He gently nipped your jaw, stroking your waist, keeping your legs spread, refusing to let you hide how perfect you looked.

"But Bucky, need you" You whined, your pussy already clenching around nothing.

"I know sweets, I know, just let me love you for a minute okay?" He cooed, brining two fingers down to rub your clit in soft circles, lightly rutting his cock against you from behind "Wanna show you off sweets, show everyone how gorgeous you are, how perfect you are for me"

You moaned, throwing your head back onto his shoulder while he added a bit more pressure, focused on rubbing you sensitive bundle of nerves, your clit throbbing against his finger tips.

"I wanna worship my angel, my pretty baby who I get to fuck with my bare cock. My sweet angel who lets me pump her full of my cum, lets me empty my balls into her tight little pussy, isn't that right doll?"

He bit your ear as you mewled, bucking your hips against his hand, your arousal soaking the sheets as he began to rub you faster.

"Look at you baby, look at how wet you already are. Is all this for me?" He dipped his fingers into your sipping hole, gathering your slick onto his finger tips and shoving them into his mouth, his eyes rolling back at the taste. "Sweetest honey angel, got my cock so fuckin' hard"

He pressed you against his erection, pushing his cock right against your ass, grinding his hips up slightly so you'd feel all of him while he continued to toy with your clit.

"Are you wet for my cock baby? You know what I wanna do tonight, does me getting you pregnant make you all needy and soaked?" He groaned by your ear at the way your cunt glistened, chest heaving, your inability to speak telling him all he needed to know.

He moved you to lay against the pillows, kissing up your body before lining his cock up with your entrance while you moved your legs to wrap tightly around his waist, your ankles locked at his lower back.

"M'gonna love you so good tonight sweets, all just for you" He started to inch his cock in, the both of you moaning at the feeling of him filling you up. He stilled as he pushed his cock in as far as it would go, closing his eyes and collecting himself while your greedy pussy fluttered around him.

"You feel how full my cock is baby? S'all for you sweet girl, all the cum to get you pregnant. Promise there's so much angel, don't think I'll be able to stop tonight" He tucked his face into the crook of your neck as he began to thrust slowly, his hands coming to lace with your pinning you against the bed. You let one of your hands slip free so you could card your fingers through his hair while he suckled and kissed the sensitive skin along the column of your neck, the both of you lost in each other. "I love showing you off baby, love showing everyone how to love you, how to make love to you, want everyone to see how I make a baby with this perfect angel that's all fucking mine"

"Feels so good Bucky" Your thighs squeezed around his waist, wishing there was a way you could melt into him, loving the way his bare cock felt in you, feeling every vein and ridge as the swollen head of his cock rubbed against your sensitive spot.

"Feels so good for me too angel, s'fucking perfect"

As kinky as Bucky was, this was different. Any other occasion and he'd rail you, degrade you, fuck you till you couldn't walk, leaving your pussy sore and legs numb. He'd pull pleasure from your body as if it kept him alive.

Not this time though.

God, he couldn't get enough of you. He squeezed your hand tighter, moaning at the way you clung onto him, his forehead resting on yours.

"It's all you sweets, you're gonna be the mother of my child, y'know that?" He pulled away slightly so he could look at you properly, bringing his hand to cup your face, squeezing your cheeks slightly. "It's you babygirl, my beautiful baby mama"

You whimpered under him, your eyes glassy as he moved a little faster, his thumb swiping away a stray tear that rolled down your skin. He was so gentle with you as if you were made of porcelain, admiring the way your brows pinched together each time he pushed his hips forward, every moan and whine slipping past your lips because of him. "You're so beautiful, you know that? M'so in love with you baby"

"I love you James" You whispered pulling him down so you could feel his full body weight on you. Bucky moaned, his balls growing heavier, tapping against your ass as he braced himself to fuck you as deeply as he could, wrapping his arms around your body.

"Can't wait to see you with your belly swollen, nipples leaking" He could feel his cock start to dribble, his orgasm at the tip of his cock, desperate to fill you. "I wanna get you pregnant so badly sweets, want you to have my babies, c'mon, tell me you want it to angel"

"Oh fuck James" You cried out, the band in your belly ready to snap, his precum leaking out of your pussy.

"Say it, say you'll carry my child angel, you'll have my baby?"

"Want your babies Bucky!"

"Yeah? You want that baby, fuck, don't-don't stop" Bucky started to sound more needy, panting as he sped up his thrusts, his cock swelling more each time. "Makes me wanna cum when you say that baby, I wanna give you all of my cum"

"Get me pregnant Bucky! Please, I-Ohmygod fuck-fuck!" You let out a silent scream as your orgasm washed over you without warning, your fluttering walls greedy to milk Bucky's cock, pulling him back in with each thrust. "Fuck Bucky!!"

"M'gonna get you so pregnant angel, don't worry. M'gonna cum so deep in you over and over again till your full and stuffed with me" He hid his face against your neck, moaning and panting, sweat beading at his forehead. You gently played with his hair with one hand while the other scratched down his back while you moaned loudly at the feeling of him fucking you through your high. "you're choking my dick baby, fuck it feels good"

"J-James!!"

"Mmm, that's right mama, say my name, say your baby daddy's name when I get you pregnant, say my fuckin' name when I cum in you baby, c'mon say it" He locked his eyes with yours, fucking you into oblivion as you eyes rolled back from over stimulation. "Say my name pretty mama"

"Jameses" The sound of skin slipping on skin bounced off the walls along with the headboard steadily thumping against the wall as he started to chase his high, desperate to fill you till it took.

"Oh shit, m'gonna cum angel, gonna cum, gonna put my baby in you sweets, gonna put a fuckin' baby in you, GONNA FUCKING CUM" Bucky cried out against your skin, his pace growing sloppy as he continued to rut his cock in your cunt, barely pulling out, making sure he stayed as close to you as possible. "F-fuck theres so much cum baby, m'gonna fill you till your dripping onto the sheets. Take my cum angel, c'mon make a mess with daddy, so beautiful taking my cock sweetheart, so pretty"

"There's so much cum Bucky" you could feel his warmth squirt out of you while he kept pouring his seed into you, endless ropes of cum still steadily pumping out of his cock.

"I know babygirl, look at what you do to me mama, got me all fucked up when I make love to you, you feel too good, don't even know what to do with myself" He panted, whimpering and whining as he cock began to slowly soften, still occasionally throbbing while you cooed, rubbing his body. He hissed as he pulled out, admiring the mess he made inside you chuckling at your fucked outstate, your eyes barely able to focus.

You whined as he crawled off you to grab the camera, your eyes growing wide as he bent you in half, bringing the camera closer to get a shot of your soaked pussy. His cum was messy between your thighs; you squeaked as he shoved two fingers into you, pushing his seed back in.

"Bucky!" You felt your face heat up while he smirked, placing a sloppy kiss onto your sensitive clit, making you squeal.

"Gotta show everyone exactly how much cum I filled you with baby, gotta show them how fuckin' pretty this pussy is and how perfect our baby making was" He give you a wink before turning the camera off and settling by your side, spooning you from behind. His hand came to rub your tummy while kissing your temple, his cock already hard again.

"Rest for a bit mama, we still have all night"

[zombieunicorngamerzu]

(Warnings - GIP Lottie x fem reader with an awful breeding kink, manipulation, CNC, slight dubcon, breeding, basically Lottie being desperate for a baby and using the wild as an excuse)

“Please baby, don’t fight me, it’s what the wilderness wants..” Lottie whispers out in a slight plea as you stir under her awake, whining from the feeling of a sudden sensation between your thighs your usually used to, but you didn’t expect this.

Lottie hovered over you, hips pressed snuggly against yours as she slowly rocked and rolled her hips against yours, moaning softly with her quiet panting against your ear, holding you down with her face buried in your collarbone to hide her whimpers, the pelts slipping off her back down onto the floor, candles lit around you in the attic away from the others.

What you weren’t aware of was the fact that after Lottie had gotten back from the wilderness outside earlier, she had a vision, a vision of you and her… and an extra little bundle of joy with you, she was so overcome with emotions she knew the wilderness had sent her this vision for a reason, you and her needed to have a baby, it’s what she wanted, and it’s what the wilderness craved too.

Lottie did make sure you were comfortable as she continued to pump her cock inside you, shuttering as you whined and stirred awake, “Lottie… w-what are you doing?” You whimpered out before Lottie snapped her hips, making you Yelp and throw your arms around her waist to hug, your thighs spreading a little wider which only made her giggle and smile, nodding as she praised you, “Yesss baby, that’s it, just let me in… the wilderness wants this, wants you… needs me to make this sacrifice.” She spoke while leaning back a little to look down, she wanted to watch as she slowly pulled her hips back, watching her cock covered in your wetness slip in and out, brining her thumb to rub and press against your clit to help you too, moaning every time you clenched around her cock.

“W-what are you talking about?” *You whimpered out in confusion, you were just confused, moaning softly as you felt every inch of Lotties push deeper inside you with every stroke, she was already throbbing, and you could tell by the strained desperation on Lottie’s face and her sharper gasps as she shuttered and leant back down to brace her hands on either side of your head before thrusting harder and faster that she was close, her broken moans pouring out past her lips, only making you arch for her, scratching your nails up her back*

“I’m gonna give you a baby… please… let me baby- fuck, fuck! FUCK!” Lotties breath quickened before her splitting raspy moan as she bucked her hips into yours with loud groans and growls, panting heavily as she spilled inside you, making her giggle out breathlessly with that stupid adorable smile she gives you before she slumps down slowly against you with a shutter*

“Agh… baby… are you okay?”

You we’re more confused as to what that was about, concerned over her as you rubbed her back, shifting your hips uncomfortably at the mess between your thighs, you could feel her cum spilling out of you, but also, you hadn’t cum yet either, Lottie knew but she just needed a quick moment to drag her lips against your skin and down to your chest, her pretty doe-eyes looking up at yours as she kissed your nipple, rubbing your hips* “I had a vision again.”

“Oh?” You frowned with worry, you’d always known about Lottie’s visions, her schizophrenia, you were her girlfriend even before the crash, but at home you had birth control, lately you’d run out, or lost them.

Really what had happened was Lottie “accidentally” may have thrown them out on total accident after having various dreams of you being pregnant, and you were ovulating right now, Lottie knew, she could always smell you when you were, you always smelled sweeter.

“Yeah, I just- I needed you…” Lottie mumbles out quietly with that same innocent look she gives you when she’s caught doing something wrong, you can never be angry at her, it’s pretty much impossible when she looks at you like that. Reaching your hand down to stroke her hair gently with a soft look. “You could of just asked, baby.”

Lottie just blushed with a shy smile, she was afraid you’d say no and not let her finish inside you like she usually does, that’s one of her worst fears, you always feel so good, so wet and tight around her cock, she never wants to forget that feeling, smiling as she rocks her hips again against yours, making you sigh out with pleasure*

“Baby, I’m gonna turn you over, okay? Gonna make you cum.” Lottie mumbles out softly as she leans up to kiss you tenderly while delicately pulling out nod to hurt you, her hands on your biceps as she turns you over, hands going to your hips to pull them up before she uses her left to push down on your back, forcing you into a arch with a smile down at you. “Good girl, just like that.”

You could feel Lotties hands rubbing up and down your back before sliding to your shoulder to keep you pinned with one while her other hand gripped and stroked her cock, sitting on her knees behind you. Lottie was a solid 8 inches and she was usually shy about it, you were the first girl she’s ever been with, remembering your first time, you rode her, she was so shy, and it was in her car at one of Jeff’s parties. She had her hand covering her mouth with tears in her eyes as she turned her head to the side, whimpering and crying from how tight you were, she came as soon as you first sank down on her cock- which embarrassed her to the point of tears until you just smiled and started riding her to the point of overstimulating which made her sob more, that night, Lottie would never forget your care.

Now Lottie had the chance to return that care, out here in the wild, it was just you, her, and the team, but she was secretly a little happy about it, she had you all to herself. Now here she was, with you whimpering and gasping as she slowly pushed back into you, moaning as she bottomed out inside you, her hips sinking into your ass.

“Oh your so soft baby…” Lottie whimpered, praising you as she rubbed your back, her eyes fluttering before she gripped your shoulders and started to thrust, god… this position felt even better, for both you and Lottie. Your moans and whines only spurred Lottie on more, groaning as she snapped her hips against your ass in a fast-rougher pace, making you sing out a cry for her.

Lottie only grunted and moaned as she felt your walls squeezing around her cock, slipping her hand down to rub her fingers rapidly against your clit as she pressed herself firmly down against your back, keeping you pinned as she kissed your shoulder, panting heavily in your ear, her voice sounding so desperate* “Come on baby, cum, cum for me please… please!”

When you came, it was like Lottie just burst, fuck- you clamped down so hard on her cock she practically squealed, her cock shooting huge a fast huge load inside you as she made sure to rub your clit through your orgasm. You were both so sweaty and heaving by the time you were done, minutes of silence just listening to each other recover.

“Please be pregnant.” Lottie just blurted out so suddenly, pulling out of you slowly before turning you around to snuggle you close and pepper you with loving kisses, making you smile and giggle at her adorable behavior*

“L-Lottie, stop it, your acting like a deprived animal.”

“So?” She whined as she flopped down next to you with a pout, laying her chin on your stomach. “Please….”

You just laughed, “Lottie, I can’t control whether I get pregnant or not.”

She just whined and grumbled playfully with her pout as she lolled her head to the side to just press her ear against your tummy like she was already listening for something, her hand rubbing your stomach. “No I’m sure I did, I can feel them already.”

“Lottie, your acting crazy,” you just smiled in a playful manner, flicking her forehead which made her Yelp and look up at you with a offended look. “Hey, I’m not!”

You were both cut off by a loud banging at the cabin hatch door before hearing Taissa yell, “HEY, STOP FUCKING, SOME OF US ARE TRYING TO SLEEP YOU FUCKING WHORES!”

“SORRY!” You both blurted out at the same time before you both burst out into giggles, Lottie squealing as you shoved your finger into her side, making her curl up with a, “ow!”

“That’s what you get.” You hissed out with a smile, holding back a laugh before Lottie crawled back up to kiss your cheek and snuggle back up against you, pulling the covers up as you both slowly started to relax, one more moment of silence being broken as Lottie just mumbled out before falling asleep, “I hope it’s a girl… want it to look like you… love you so much.”

You only smiled at her sleepy slur of tone, watching her eyes flutter as she falls asleep in your arms.

[gripefroot]

Sleepy Law?

For once, he doesn’t wake when the sun hits his face. 

For all his pretending and blustering and attitude, he’d been tired. Of course. The more he protested something, the more it was true. Something about a man that saw danger around every corner if he lowered his guard for even a moment, even with you. 

There was something comedic about the juxtaposition. His barking from the afternoon before: “No, I’m not tired! I’m fine!” compared to the sun rising long past dawn after he’d been out cold for nearly fourteen hours. But it was less amusing when the dark lines beneath his eyes were so visible, when the bright sun cleared his face into something almost boyish. 

He pushes himself too hard. He always did. 

The sun warms the bed, too, making it too hot for this time of year. But rather than get up and disturb Law’s rare rest, you stick a foot out of the blankets for some coolness and move closer to him. 

Every moment is precious. Every stolen evening, every late morning pried from the clutches of fate and time. “I’ll be back in three days,” or “I’ll try to be back by summer solstice.” Sometimes he made it, sometimes he didn’t. When he was late, the nights he should have been there were spent at the window, watching weather roll across the sea. Each blot was his ship returning - until it wasn’t. Anger and resentment broiled like hurricanes, then, but by the time he eventually came, gratitude that he was alive and safe and present overwhelmed everything else. Besides, greeting him by throwing a pot at his head wouldn’t guarantee he’d ever come again. 

This parting had been the longest yet. A year at sea, with only two headlines months apart to prove he had drowned or been killed or wasted away from some disease. No, he was whole, relatively healthy (if thinner than before) and walking up the crooked steps to your house, he’d even smiled. 

“I was worried you’d moved away,” he’d said. His sword balanced on his shoulder, which was unusual. Before, he’d left it on his ship.

“How would you find me then?” you’d teased back. Clay dried on your hands from a half-finished project, but it could be completed later. Law could only be greeted now. 

“I’d follow the dead greenery.” He nodded at the yard; yellow patches now outnumbered green, the first victim in dumping leftover glaze that didn’t fire the right color or scraps of impure clay. He hoisted the sword from his shoulder to set by the doorframe, where you stood, and that was when he’d smiled. 

It was fortunate he’d never minded mud on his clothes. 

He smelled of brine and fresh air. Not the most pleasant, but beneath it was him, and difficult to pull away. 

“Mind if I stay over?” he’d asked between kisses. Your foot had caught on the lip of the door, stumbling backwards, but his arms had kept you upright and squashed against his chest. 

“Have I ever?” The words came out strained. His kisses stole breath as much as they stole sanity. Rugged as his worn coat, harsh as the tattoos long-memorized. 

“There’s a first for everything.” 

“Well, not today.” Your hands on his chest, feeling him like you would mounds of fresh clay. Something he’d joked about before: his lips twisted, ready to joke again. “Do you want to wash up first?” 

“Yes. Then I have a present for you.”

Surely not the sword. What use would you have for a sword? Spending days and nights with clay, turning pots and glazing and firing them in the tiny hut nearby wasn’t the life of a warrior, and living alone in a rickety cottage on a bluff above a port town so small it could scarcely be called a port not the prime target of pirates. 

Law had ducked his head beneath the water pump in the yard, not even waiting for you to fetch a bar of soap, and yelped at how freezing cold the water was. 

He had, miraculously, survived. 

But no present came. Dinner had been eaten early between yawns and crabby remarks about how he wasn’t tired. Then he’d gone straight to your bed, knocking into tables on his way, and halfway through what had sounded like a salacious invitation he’d started snoring. Pants still on and everything. 

So you’d smiled and washed up quietly before crawling into bed next to him. It was easier to sleep when he was there…

He clutches a worn pillow to his face, stretched out on his belly with his torso bare. Lingering flakes from a sunburn grace his shoulders, and a new scar stretched over his ribs. Your fingers want to trace it, but you don’t, hovering in the air above the graceful shape. You’ll learn it better soon enough. 

“Were you going to say anything or just keep staring?” 

Oops. His even breathing had ceased. Lifting your head, you see his eyes slitted open, glinting beneath his long lashes. 

“You have a new one,” you say. 

“Of course you noticed.” His voice is a rumble, fresh from slumber. 

“Of course I noticed,” you repeat, cheeks warming with embarrassment. But the corners of his mouth lift in a lazy smile. “It’s huge.” 

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” 

“Can I?” A vague request, but he understands. Law responds with a grunt. His kind of affirmation. 

The new skin is smooth beneath your practiced fingertips, but where new meets old a thick, calloused rope of skin rivers around his ribs. Like a snake of clay to be shaped into a handle or a spigot. A handsome scar, to add to his others. Your fingers trace back up around his waist and to his back, to the very end of the scar. His skin breaks out in goosebumps, his ragged inhale breaking your concentration. 

Immediately you pull your hand away. “Does it hurt?”

“No.” He rolls onto his side, taking the interest of the scar away to face you. His eyes are more open now, but not by much, his hair sticking out every which way. Law props his head on his hand, surveying you with just as much scrutiny as you had him. But why? You have no scars, no discernable differences to clock from last year. 

The bed is small, not really built for two, but it has never bothered you or him. He can never be outside of arm’s reach. Instinctively your hand traces over his chest, finding comfort in the pattern of him. Patterns that find their way onto cups and mugs and bowls whenever missing him hurts too much. Most sold, some kept. You stop over his heart. 

He’s smiling again. 

“How long can you stay?” you ask. 

His smile disappears. It takes your contentment with it. 

“I have time,” Law says. 

Time. The only thing that could give you enough of him, and the only thing he couldn’t give. He gave his attention, his company, his loyalty, and his affection. Your hand rises to his face, stroking over old whiskers on his cheek with your thumb. He catches your wrist, holding it to nuzzle your palm with his nose, and then his lips. 

“You smell the same,” Law mutters, eyes closed. “Like the earth.” 

“You smell the same,” you whisper back. The effect of his nuzzle is the same as you touching his scar: goosebumps race up your arm and down your back. “Like freedom.” 

His eyes open. Dark and assuring, and always a little sad. “C’mere,” he grunts, and reaches for you. 

It was like he’d never been away. Nothing forgotten, nothing misremembered. His mouth finds the right places on your throat, your shoulders; skillfully he thumbs away the sleeves of your shirt to bare more skin to him. If anything proves his absence, it's how quickly the heat between your bodies becomes unbearable, how your blood pulses almost painfully. With a whimper of a sigh, your fingers hook into the waistband of his pants, his hair tickling your chin. 

“All in good time,” he promises your breasts, hand coming up to cup one. If you weren’t already so dizzy from the prelude, you’d tease him for addressing them rather than you. It had been an excellent joke for so long…

Soon the only noises are your soft pants, his quiet groans as the reacquaintion became clumsy. Clothes hit the floor, blankets pushed away, the awkward patters of skin-on-skin. No matter how bright the morning light through the window, there is no time to feel shamefully naked: only wonderfully so, and perfectly worshipped. His hair is thick between your fingers, his mouth hot on your sternum, and then your belly button. 

“But,” you lick your lips, wishing your throat wasn’t so dry and creaky. “But, we just - ”

“Just what?” Law kisses the inside of your thigh, eyes darting up to your face with a quirk of his brow. “Don’t want me to?” 

“I do, it’s only - ”

“Only what?” He prompts when words fail you. His hands cradle your hips, lifting and straightening them before him like a treasure map. 

“I want you,” you manage to whisper. The sun makes his black hair red at the edges, a trick of the light. 

“You’re getting me,” Law says. “And I’m getting you. Let’s start slow, huh?” 

As if you could refuse him when you aren’t a puddle on the bed. Slow is the last thing you want, but he made it sound like a dream. It is a dream; fast or slow or hurried or lazy. Always enough to make the little time you have sweeter. And never enough. Always and never, always and never. 

“Let me know,” his voice is as jagged as his scar, his hands shaking until he digs his fingers into your thighs. “Let me know…if you want me to stop.” 

He doesn't look like a man who could stop. And the pounding, the rushing - you couldn’t have asked him to stop for anything. 

His knees hit the floor with a thunk. Yours go over his shoulder as he sucked in a trembling breath, his shoulders twitching enough to make the dark lines look like they were convulsing. 

“Oh…” is all he says, and it’s the same noise you make when his lips touch yours, his tongue barely a hint of a caress. Your spine arches, pushing yourself closer to his mouth. He takes the hint, delving in with less ‘slow’ and more ‘I-haven’t-seen-you-in-a-year.’ He remembers. He remembers; every bit that makes your head spin and he does it like a conqueror, until the sheets are fisted in your hands and your breathing has gone frantic. 

“Law.” Your head twists to the side, air growing scarce and body feeling out of control. Wild and frenzied like an animal, jumping at every stroke of his tongue. “Please, oh - ”

He knows. He knows, he remembers. With a reverberating grunt that you can feel through your legs and belly, his fingers grip your thighs. It doesn’t feel possible, but the intensity swells and grows like the waves of the sea. 

“Stop biting your lip.” Law’s pause is enough to bring you down enough to comprehend his words. “Stop that. I wanna hear you. Here.” 

One of your fists is unclenched from the sheets, to weave your fingers between his, instead. A grip on reality, an anchor while sensation crashes through you. It’s only a moment later the wave hits: the force of pleasure battering through your body again and again. He doesn’t stop. He never does, not while each of your cries echo to the roof and back down again. 

When it becomes too much you gasp, and he stops. 

He knows. 

Law lifts his head, kneeling on the floor at the foot of the bed and wiping his mouth on his discarded shirt. He smirks. “If nothing else,” he says casually, as if he hadn’t just made you climax with more fervor than a hurricane, “that makes me want to take you with me.”

Take you? With him? Where? Not on his ship, surely. 

Your expression must betray your bafflement, because he gives a rough laugh, tossing his shirt back down. 

“Oh, come on,” he says. “Surely you’ve thought of it yourself.” 

You hadn’t. 

His head tilts to the side, smirk fading. 

“You don’t want to come with me,” Law says. 

“No!” you blurt. “I mean - yes! I mean…that’s not what I’m saying. I’ve just never thought of it before. I hadn’t thought it was…possible.”

“And if it is?” 

Your heart hammers, from the aftershocks of orgasm and his question. “Possible?”

“Yeah. If I asked you to come with me.” He climbs over the bed on all fours. Normally you admire him; his tattoos and sculpted muscles. But your eyes are riveted on his face, on the strange sincerity shining in his eyes. 

“What would I do?” you ask. 

Law stops, hovering above you. You’re effectively trapped, but rather than confining, it’s comforting. Boundaries to bump up against, walls to keep you safe. His hair flops over his forehead, shadowing his features from the sun.

“Let me lick you anytime I want,” he jokes. 

So maybe it wasn’t sincerity after all. But you laugh, anyway, because laughing with him is always delicious, despite the heavy disappointment in your stomach. Reading into his joke would only hurt more. So you wind your arms around his neck, bringing him down for a languid, salty kiss. The weight of his body resting on yours transcends everything else, the craving for him lighting through your veins like popping fireworks. 

“How do you want me?” he asks before his teeth sink into the side of your neck. With his erection jabbing into your leg, the idea of options is surprising. 

“Like this,” you say. “Just like this.” 

Law releases your neck, his hips tucking between yours with familiarity. When his forehead rests against yours, his eyes are deep and bottomless for a moment before he closes them. 

“I mean it,” he murmurs. His hands unwrap your arms from his neck, bringing them down to the pillow to pin in place. “I’ll take you with me. You don’t have to do anything.” 

Does he mean that? Would he take you to sea just to…to what? Is he tired of coming back to this small island? Are you no longer worth it? 

Where is this going? A question flung into the stars, night after night, when Law is there and when he isn’t. Hope is difficult to cultivate year after year, but it blooms all the same at times like this. 

Where will you take me? 

A few thrusts gets him inside, enough to keep going. A few more have you moaning, tense in his grip as you move your hips to take him further. He groans, the further he gets, adding his own noises to yours. If this is where time stopped, if this could be forever, this is what you’d choose. Time and time again you’d choose. The sense of fullness, of complete joining - nothing has ever, ever, compared.

Law stops when he’s fully sheathed, panting for breath as his grip loosens on your wrists. Then his eyes open again; a mix of fierceness and tenderness that makes your heart want to explode. 

“Hey,” you say softly, wriggling your arms free to cup his face. He blinks several times. 

“Hey,” he says back, uncertain.  

“Thank you for coming back.” 

He huffs a laugh, a hint of a smile bringing more brightness than the sun. Resting his elbow by your head, he dips his to kiss your mouth. “I can’t stay away,” he says between that kiss and the next. 

His thrusts start slow, almost teasing. But they build fast, soon stroking a speed that breaks free as his kisses turn biting and his fingers find your hair. However he did it, each touch is a thousand starbursts at once, deepening the sensation in your core to spread across every limb, every muscle, every cell. Each stroke brings a small gasp from your lips to spill between his. 

“Don’t stop,” you beg at a higher-pitch than normal. Fingernails dig into his shoulders, hanging on for purchase as the legs of the bed scrape across the floor. Not the first time he’s done that, but it makes you want to laugh, all the same. 

“I’m not gonna!” His tongue is heavy against yours, his taste filling your senses. Touch, smell, all of it. With a shudder the bed hits the wall, and your shriek of unconstrained laughter has Law dragging himself away from you with a glare. But who wants to glare in the middle of sex? With another laugh you pull his head back down, lifting your hips against his for an angle that turns that kiss into a careening gasp. 

He knows. He knows, and remembers. He doesn’t stop, and he doesn’t slow. Your climax springs without warning, unable to continue the kissing in this condition. He doesn’t seem to mind, his head lowering to rest by yours as his groans start with a rumble. 

He continues long enough after the end of your orgasm for the delicious sensation to begin again before he jerks to a stop. A few more thrusts break his voice into a shivering bleat. 

The battering against the wall stops. And aren’t you so glad you have no neighbors? 

Your fingers run up and down his damp back, noting every rise and fall of muscle as he catches his breath. Even now, his weight isn’t uncomfortable. Because it’s him. It’s him and he’ll never be too much or too heavy. Blissfully your eyes drift shut, blocking out the morning light the tufts of black hair trying to cover it up. 

Law litters kisses along your hairline. Behind your ear, above it, and to your forehead, which must be as sweaty as his back. It doesn’t stop him. 

Then he kisses your eyes; first one, then the other. 

“Look at me?” A soft-spoken request. 

Look at him. And see what you don’t want. 

Your eyes open, hating that time brought this back. 

But Law smiles. He smiles as he gently smooths down your hair, his eyes skating over your face as if to memorize every pore. “Do you love me?” he asks. 

Now that is a question! Tempting you laugh, but you don’t. 

“Do the stars love one another?” you ask back, not quite hiding the bitterness in your voice. “Tracing and chasing their paths across the sky, never to touch except in dreams?” 

Law says nothing to that, but waits. 

“I love you,” you say. 

“That’s all I need,” he says. 

“What about what I need?” 

His face untwists from his smile into something confused, something a little belligerent. “I asked if you want to sail with me,” he says. “But I…”

“Didn’t mean it,” you finish. These conversations were like walking on broken glass. Delicate. Tentative. Someone was always bound to be hurt if rushed through. “The sea isn’t for me,” you tell him, hoping it will prevent a shard from breaking skin. 

But it seems to, anyway. Law frowns. “I wish it was,” he says.

So do I. But more than that, I wish you were for me. Not just sometimes, but always. 

He peels away at last, though if you had your way, he’d be in your bed forever. But he doesn’t go far: striding to the side of the bed where his pants had been tossed irreverently, scooping them up to rifle through the pockets. He pulled out something glinting, concealing it in his fist as he grins, returning to bed. Curious, you prop yourself onto an elbow. 

“Hold out your hand,” Law says. 

Dubiously you look for deception in his face, and see none. You put out your hand. 

Something cool and clinking drops into it. When he moves his hand away you see gold. Gold coins, strung together on a gold chain. A small one. 

“I can’t wear bracelets,” you say, bubbling into laughter. “Law! It’ll get covered in clay in ten seconds!” 

“It’s not a bracelet, you menace.” Law laughs, too, seizing your hand to pull your arm straight. He takes the bracelet-not-a-bracelet back. Evidently you’ve been judged too nonsensical to appreciate the gift yourself: he loops the chain around your upper arm, securing it with warm fingers. 

Oh. Not a bracelet. 

“I’m not stupid enough to get you a bracelet,” he says, quirking a brow in your direction. “Or a necklace. You’ve complained about those hanging into your work too. This won’t fall or dangle, so I thought it was the best option.” 

“You know what else doesn’t dangle?” Your fingers trace the gold coins. They’re hammered for texture; thin and delicate, reflecting the sunlight beautifully. “A crown. Next time, I want a crown.” 

Law’s laugh breaks into a bellow, filling every corner of the room with his mirth. You can count on one hand how many times you’ve heard that noise coming from him, and it prickles your skin with pleasure. 

“Fine,” he says, eyes crinkling at the corners. “Next time, a crown.” 

“Thank you,” you tell him. “For the gift. I mean it. I’m sorry for teasing.” 

“Don’t be. I love it.” 

“Do you love me?” The question blurts out without thinking. He jolts in surprise, eyes widening. “It’s only fair,” you say, trying to soften the abruptness of it. “You asked me. I get to ask you.” 

But his answer doesn’t come. Not right away. 

“Well, I’m not bringing jewelry for every woman in town,” Law says at last. 

“I hope you’re not licking them, either.”

He glares. You smirk. 

“I’ll answer your question,” he says. “But not today.” 

“When?” 

“When I return.” 

“Is there a reason you’re delaying?” you ask. “Do you need to break a prior engagement first? Let down any other lovers?” 

“No,” Law says. “None of that.” His teeth dig into his bottom lip. Something your teeth would like to do. He runs his fingers through his hair, sticking it on end. “If I tell you I love you,” he starts. Pauses. Takes a deep breath. “If I tell you I love you then I can’t leave. I wouldn’t.” Another pause, one that sinks his words past dread and into misery. “And I can’t…I can’t stay. Not yet.” 

“So,” you say. Your voice cracks a little. “You get to know I love you, but I have to wait in suspense for however?” 

His smile returns like the dawn. He leans over to kiss your forehead, wafting his manly scent over you. Inhaling deeply, the scent brands itself on your lungs. Never enough. “Luckily I know you like surprises. Besides, I thought you’d figure it out by now.”

Figure what out? Could he be any more vague? It was like searching for answers from a squirrel. A handsome, generous squirrel, but a squirrel all the same. 

“Oh, stop pouting,” Law laughs, attempting to smooth out your frown with a thumb. “Does the stream out back still have fish in it? I’ll catch breakfast.” He rises before you can answer, grabbing his pants once more. This time to pull them on. 

Ugh. Pants are the worst. 

“I’ll cook them too, if you want,” he says, buttoning the waistband with nimble fingers. You drag your eyes from his navel up to his face, with a very intelligent, 

“Huh?”

“Nothing.” He smiles. “You have clay beneath your fingernails.” 

Law disappears out the door before you can retort, and the view of his backside in his tight pants erases all thoughts from your head.

[fanfiction-blep]

HEAR ME OUT. Sub Norm spellmen. He has no fanfiction and its a real shame! You you imagine him begging to fuck reader? or reader teasing him and him begging to cum.😣😘

It will make my day if you do! I love seeing when you post. ❤️❤️❤️

OH MY GOD. yes, yes, yes. Did I mention yes? I love the idea of subby Norm. I see him more of a switch to be honest, with a hint of pleasure dom. This deleted scene from the movie tells you everything you need to know about Norm. This will be two parts as I'm not sure if you wanted human or Na'vi Norm ;) And thank you so much Anon, it means the world. Truly.

Human Norm x Human Fem!Reader

Warnings: slight dom/sub dynamic, sub norm. dom reader, hair pulling kink, cream pie. If i missed anything let me know.

Okay so he is a cocky little shit, nervous as hell. But when you actually get together he's so smug all the time.

He's so baby girl.

Imagine him being all flustered around you, not knowing what to do. You'll be in the lab or even in the filed giving him an order and he'll just look at the ground mumbling a 'yes ma'am'

The sight of you in different positions is just to much for his little dork brain, you tank top slips to the side a little? He's trying his best to divert his gaze, your cleavage squeezes together? His cheeks are dusted in a crimson blush.

If you make direct eye contact with him at any point before you fuck for the first time he will get all flustered stutter and not able to function.

Not one of these things goes unnoticed by you, and you push harder on his thin patience. Eventually you give up on the idea of him making the first move. So you do it.

You seize the opportunity when you are alone in the lab late one night and he placed some sample slides next to you, you turn your chair quick and place your hand on his wrist. Looking up at him you say. "Norm can you help me with something?" "Anything" He nods quickly swallowing hard. "I need you-" "Yes" He mumbles eyes latched to your lips.

He would lean down hesitantly until finally you pull his face down and kiss him harshly.

Eventually he leaned down and scooped you up holding you in his arm until he placed you down on an empty bench. Panting hands gripping your thighs. "Please" He whined settling between your legs that he was spreading further a little more each second. "Please what?" You hum, smirking at his vulnerability. You had him eating out of the palm of your hand and he knew it.

"Please let me fuck you" he ruts against your thigh his growing length prominent through his cargos. You sigh and lean into his next nipping at the skin. "Come on baby, fuck me" Norm groans hands desperately fiddling with your individual clothing. Once you were finally bare he ran his fingers through your folds collecting your arousal.

"Fuck I made you this wet?" He smiles and rubs his length with his free hands you nod aggressively. Thrusting towards his length desperate to feel him inside you. "Fuck me or I will do it myself." he thrusts inside you so fast you didn't expect him to be so forward. He bottoms out quickly, one hand flat against the surface beneath you to stable himself the other holding onto your hip.

he pulls out of you slowly, and pumps back in inch by inch. Embracing the feeling of you wrapped around him. He shudders as you clench around his length, the anticipation of the last few days leaving you already close.

You bring one hand up to grip the hairs on the back of his neck, pulling sharply, a moan escaping his lips at the feeling. "Your gonna make me cum okay? if you do a good job I might let you cum inside me" He shudders once again, his head falling against your shoulder his lips pressing soft passionate kisses along the skin.

"Please-" He whines his hand that was previously on your hip moving to rub furiously against your clit, brining you closer and closer to the edge. "Wanna feel you cum, wanna feel it all" You groan and moan push against him falling apart with a whine of his name. Norm keeps rutting slowly riding you through your orgasm.

"pLeASe" Hi voice cracks as his own release draws closer. "You gonna cum for me baby boy?" He whimpers against your skin only able to nod in response. "Words" You snap fingers digging into his bicep. "Yes Ma'am" He thrusts one or two more times before he starts shaking against you. "Cum for me" He follows through, filling you to the brim.

Every time after this, he shoots you smirks across the room. He's so proud to be with you. He knows he's not conventionally attractive, so being with you is a big ego boost and a flex (Not in a toxic way, more a 'i'm so lucky to be with you, your so hot' way) he will rub his hands on your arms or lower back to get your attention when he wants to fuck.

He doesn't care if someone see's or hears. In fact he wants them too, he wants people to hear that even if your in charge, it's his cock that makes you cum every single time.

If it's not his dick, its his fingers or his mouth. He wants every one to know he's yours and you are his.

Hickeys! So many hickeys, he wants to cover you in them. He adorned your body with marks and kisses while fucking you because he is so overwhelmed he just doesn't know what else to do.

Long story short, Norm is a cocky shit who is good with his cock.

[dailyoverview]

Evaporation ponds are seen at the Intrepid Potash Mines near Carlsbad, New Mexico, USA. These mines produce muriate of potash and sulfate of potash magnesium, two mineral salts used in fertilizer. Salt is dried in these massive solar ponds after being pumped to the surface from underground brines. Water in the ponds is dyed with vibrant colors to reduce the time it takes for potash to crystallize — darker water absorbs more sunlight, causing it to evaporate more quickly.

32.510823°, -103.955313°

Source imagery: Maxar

[quaranmine]

Gadus morhua

Atlantic cod, scientific name Gadus morhua, is benthopelagic fish in the family Gadidae. A series of three scenes from the Cod Empire, focused on the hydrological, ecological, toxicological, environmental, and engineering problems Jimmy tackles as the Codfather.

In which I use my college education to do worldbuilding for MC roleplay, and have entirely too much fun with it. Jimmy-centric, but other characters appear: Joel, Lizzie, fWhip, and Scott. No content warnings. Set in at a vague point in Empires S1!

Words: 6142

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1.

It was a casual sort of meeting day with Joel down by the docks of the Cod Empire. Jimmy had invited him over to do some fishing and some talking, and to well–just hang out. They were best allies, after all. They’d been out here for an hour or so already, but being a ruler was unfortunately a ‘round the clock sort of job, and even leisure time with other emperors was often punctuated by work. 

“So what did you invite me here for?” Joel asked. He was laying on his back on the dock with the sun shining on him and a hat over his face, while Jimmy slowly reeled in the line he’d thrown. 

“I wanted to talk about water,” Jimmy said. 

“Fish people,” Joel muttered. “It’s all you do.” 

“Hey!” Jimmy said, lightly smacking Joel’s shoulder. “Water happens to be the most important part of life. You wouldn’t exist without it!”

“Fine, fine,” Joel said, sitting up and pulling the hat off his face and on top of his head instead. “What about water did you want to discuss?”

“I wanted to talk about your desalination plants,” Jimmy said. “I was thinking about getting a few for my empire.” The corner of his mouth twitched up a bit as he said it, because he knew that asking this was tantamount to asking for a spiel on how much Joel loved his wife. It had been one of their most important trade agreements, and it’d apparently left quite the impression on Joel because he never stopped going to see the Ocean Queen after that. 

“Ah, those,” Joel said, and clapped his hands. “Built through an agreement with the love of my life. You, know, that was our first really important trade agreement–”

Jimmy bit back a laugh. Yes, he’d known. 

Joel continued. “Mezalea is a rich land blessed in many things. What it’s not blessed with is water. It’s dry and hot.”

“And yet you export moss,” Jimmy said. “Isn’t that known for growing in wet places–”

It was Joel’s turn to smack Jimmy. “Yes. Don’t talk about that.”

Jimmy raised his hands placatingly. “Fine, fine, just tell me about the desalination plants.”

“We have aquifers and reservoirs in Mezalea for water, but I know that in the future they might be drained. It’s not good for the growth of the kingdom–if we try to raise exports of moss, we’ll need more water, and as the economy grows we’ll need more people and clones who will need more water, and then we’ll start drawing more water than can be recharged. So we needed to find more options, and the ocean was right there.”

“So you went to talk to Lizzie.”

Joel twirled the wedding band around his finger absentmindedly. “Yeah, I went to talk to Lizzie. Didn’t know if she’d approve but she seemed more than happy to provide the technology when I told her how she could benefit as well. Desalination’s tricky. It’s not always efficient.” Joel squinted off into the ocean in the distance. “And I didn’t just need her help, I also needed her permission. Can’t be pumping ocean water without it. It can harm sea creatures, you know, but Lizzie’s able to keep ‘em away from that area.”

“What do you do with the leftover salt?” Jimmy asked, tossing his fishing line out again. Maybe he’d catch some salmon today, but so far he’d just got a pufferfish and an old useless book. It wasn’t really about the catches, though. It was about sitting here and enjoying himself. 

“Give the brine back to Lizze as part of the agreement,” Joel said. “She exports it. Scott buys a lot. It’s good for deicing apparently, but it never snows in Mezalea. Or here, for that matter.”

“And it works?”

Joel beamed proudly. “Come on Jimmy, you’ve been to my empire before. Would it look so good if it didn’t work?”

“I dunno mate, everything’s still a bit to dry for my liking over there.”

“Ugh,” Joel said, waving him off. “I don’t know why I bother with you, you’ve got no taste out here in the swamp. Just mosquitoes.”

“If you put on the slime, the mosquitoes wouldn’t bother you–”

Joel put a hand on Jimmy’s shoulder and said solemnly: “Jimmy, I wouldn’t be caught dead wearing slime. I would rather be carried off by the mosquitos first.”

Jimmy just laughed loudly at that. It wasn’t his fault that he told everyone how to live in the swamp and they refused. He thought they were all a bit too pretentious. After all, they’re surrounded by water here–you could wash the slime off any time you’d like. 

“Why do you want desalination facilities, Jimmy?” Joel asked. “You’ve got so much water here. I mean, it’s literally a swamp.”

“It’s brackish.”

“What?”

“Salty?” Jimmy said, and then pointed to the wide expanse of ocean on the horizon. “We live on the coast, and the river comes out here. This is an estuary. That means that the saltwater and freshwater mix, making the water brackish.”

“And can’t you just . . .” Joel trailed off, and gestured vaguely at his throat. Gills. “Like Lizzie does?”

Jimmy subconsciously brought his hand up and brushed the edge of his gills. “Well, I can,” he said. “Me and Lizzie both can. Doesn’t matter if it’s air or freshwater or saltwater. We were born in the ocean, after all. But that doesn’t mean all my people can. Most of them still need freshwater.”

“What about your wells though? Surely you get enough rain to keep them full?”

Mezalea was arid, and rain was infrequent enough that depleting the aquifer was always a worry. The water underground was thousands, if not millions of years old, and it was no guarantee that it could be recharged quickly enough through rain to keep up with the demand of a growing empire. 

The Cod Empire was wet. The water table was at ground level or above ground in most places, leading to soft muddy ground, marshy pools, and little ponds. It rained frequently, and the river came in from the south. But the river mixed with the ocean throughout the empire, and the water around them was not fresh as a result. 

Jimmy nodded. “We do. But it’s just . . .” He fixed Joel with a look. “Joel, you’re my best ally. This is important alliance matters. This is being told to you in confidence.”

Joel stared back at him. “Okay.”

Jimmy glanced over his shoulder as he talked. The tips of his walls were just visible over the trees. “The wells are a weak point for us,” he started. “They’re too far on the edge. They’re vulnerable to attack from my enemies, and that would be dangerous for my people to be left without freshwater.”

He’d always been on shaky relations with Sausage. He didn’t think the man would attack his water supply, but he wasn’t sure with all the corruption on the server. Jimmy also knew he wasn’t always on the best of terms with a lot of people–he was often a bit too bold or brash or impulsive, which didn’t suit him as an emperor and had caught him in hot water more than once. 

He also knew he wasn’t the strongest empire on the server. He knew what other people said about him, and he was too proud to admit to any weakness. But he was still pragmatic enough to see the truth: he didn’t even have enough resources to guard the wells all the time, anyway. They’d always be a risk. 

Joel scowled. “So why don’t you just move them closer to the middle of your empire? You’ve got water running out your ears, can’t you just drill further until you reach freshwater?”

Jimmy shook his head. “Can’t. If we move them closer, we’ll just start sucking seawater in and ruin them. We’ve got freshwater, but just like on the surface, it mixes with saltwater underground too at a certain point. They also have to be far enough away from the coast that they can keep up with the demand of the empire, because we can only take up so much water at a time safely.”

“Oh.” Joel blinked. “So, desalination.”

Jimmy smiled. “It’s just for backup.”

Joel clapped a hand on Jimmy’s shoulder. “Well, Codboy, I won’t go tellin’ your empire’s weakness to anyone. If you ever need help, Mezalea’s on your side.” He leaned over. “I don’t understand, though. Why’d you invite me here to ask me this, and not Lizzie? She’s the one you’d have to actually talk to about getting it built and she’s the one who knows the ocean better than any of us.”

“Oh,” Jimmy said, amused. “That’s because it’s not nearly as fun to do this with Lizzie. She just swims too well.”

“What-”

And with a great shove, Jimmy pushed Joel off the dock. He hit the water with a splash, leaving the hat floating behind him. 

Seconds later, the man popped up above the surface, sputtering in anger. “JIMMY!” he shouted. “Did you plan this all day?”

Jimmy didn’t answer, because he was bent over double laughing so hard he could barely breathe. He wiped a tear from his eye. 

“That could be considered an act of war, you know!” Joel yelled. 

“You wouldn’t,” Jimmy wheezed. 

“Oh, I will,” Joel said. “In fact, here’s my first attack!”

And with a great effort, Joel grabbed Jimmy’s foot from where it dangled over the dock, and pulled him in after him, and Jimmy laughed the whole way down until water filled his lungs and forced his gills to start working again. 

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2.

Jimmy was not having a good day. Or, well–series of days. 

Yesterday, he’d received word from one of his merchants who had been traveling home via the river of a fish kill upstream. Dozens of fish, all inexplicably dead and floating in the water. They’d come straight to his governing office to report it as soon as they were back in the bounds of the empire. 

It wasn’t within his borders. The reported fish that were killed were all salmon. Some people would likely think that would make Jimmy happy but . . . he winced.

It’s for the greater good. 

Salmon were large fish. It was the wrong time of year for spawning season, where salmon frequently died after laying their eggs. If something had killed many of them, then it was undoubtedly screwing with the rest of the river too. It was likely that smaller fish, plants, amphibians, invertebrates, and more were also killed. 

And water flowed. 

And Jimmy’s empire was downstream. 

It could be a magical accident. Jimmy had made sure his advisor questioned the merchant about that, but the average person could not detect magic like Jimmy could, and thus the merchant didn’t know. It could also be some form of pollution–something that lowered the oxygen in the water, or perhaps a chemical. And that was why Jimmy had ordered his staff hydrologist to take samples.

Samples whose lab work were now laying on his desk. Jimmy squinted at the papers. He was no scientist–he was the Codfather, it was his job to rule, he had governmental officials for this sort of work–but he did know a little about it. It was good to know, because it was important and he might have to make final decisions over it. He couldn’t be totally out of the loop on issues that could mean life or death in his empire. 

Either way, he knew enough about the reports he was reading to know they weren’t good. There were no reported cod deaths in his empire so far, but the ecosystem was stressed. Jimmy could feel it. They couldn’t afford the problem getting worse. 

Before he could examine the paper much more, there was a fast knock on his door. 

“Come in,” he called. 

The door swung open to reveal one of Jimmy’s advisors, who spoke quickly. “Sir, the Ocean Queen is–”

Lizzie ducked past the man and walked through the door. “I don’t need an introduction to see him, I can come anytime I like. Isn’t that right, Codfather?” She winked. 

Jimmy rolled his eyes and set down the paper. “You’re always welcome in my empire, Lizzie. Come sit down.”

“See?” Lizzie turned to the advisor and smiled a little too sweetly. Jimmy just shrugged apologetically and waved him away. He appreciated the effort of the warning but it wasn’t really necessary for his sister. She’d have climbed in a window or mined through the wall if his advisor had said no, anyway. 

“What do you need?” he asked. “‘Cause I’m having a busy day.”

“You? Busy? I doubt it,” Lizzie said snarkily, before stopping and correcting herself. “No, wait, nevermind, the thing I’m here about is probably the same thing you’re busy with. See, I’ve got some papers of my own.” She pushed them across the table. 

Jimmy picked them up, but he already knew what they were. He scanned the headings of the lab reports. 

2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, 2-amino-4,6-dinitrotoluene, and 4-amino-2,6-dinitrotoluene. 

Those were the same chemicals from Jimmy’s report. Lizzie’s listed a few more complex chemicals–2,4,6-trinitrobenzaldehyde, 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, 2,4,6-trinitrobenzoic acid, and 2-amino-4,6-dinitrobenzoic acid–and less of the first one than Jimmy’s had. The numbers were a bit less concentrated, but overall similar. Jimmy didn’t need his hydrologist to tell him it was the same problem. 

“Yeah,” he muttered. “Me too.”

“Jimmy,” Lizzie said. “This water came from you. Your estuary opens out into my ocean. These readings are from the edge of our border.”

Jimmy gave her a sharp look. “You can’t think this is me,” he said, a little too hotly. 

Lizzie raised an eyebrow, and crossed her arms. “Of course not,” she said. “I came here to see what you want to do about it.” She gestured at the paper. “These concentrations aren’t enough to bother the ocean. The ocean’s big, so it’s all diluted. But it is large enough to prompt a visit to an ally. So since you clearly already know, what are you going to do about it?”

Jimmy leaned back in his chair, tipping his head back and staring at the ceiling. “I need to talk to fWhip,” he said finally. “Trinitrotoluene. That’s TNT. The hydrologist told me that the other chemicals are what it degrades into when it’s exposed to sunlight in surface water.”

“Well, I can stay here for the meeting if you’d like,” Lizzie said, reading his mind. “Two empires are more intimidating than one.”

Jimmy sighed and rubbed his eyes. “I don’t wanna have to intimidate him. I just want him to take me seriously.”

┈ ┈ ┈ ⋞ 〈 ⏣ 〉 ⋟ ┈ ┈ ┈

fWhip arrived alone, and Jimmy thought he should feel snubbed about that. 

Casual meetings between rulers were rarely accompanied by guards or advisors, especially between allies. Lizzie and Joel certainly didn’t bring any of their people to Jimmy’s when they visited, for example. They didn’t even make appointments or let him know they were coming most of the time. They didn’t even always knock.

Hell, Jimmy preferred to go places alone too. He wasn’t a fan of pomp and circumstance and making a fuss and having people follow him around. But this wasn’t a casual visit, this was official serious business. And Jimmy and fWhip were not allies. And fWhip hadn’t even brought any of his environmental personnel. Jimmy had brought along his chief advisor, staff hydrologist, and staff ecologist. 

Hence, Jimmy felt like he wasn’t being taken very seriously right now. 

Nothing made him angrier. He couldn’t show that though, lest he was taken even less seriously. If fWhip knew he was riled up, he’d continue to push his buttons and try his luck. No, he had to be calm. He grit his teeth a little behind his smile. 

fWhip was measured, but standoffish. He listened patiently to Jimmy’s explanation of water pollution and how it had to have come from a spill upstream, but his expression was closed off and unreadable. Jimmy knew he had to explain the connection to be listened to. Whatever happened further up the river wasn’t located in his empire, and he had no ability to clean it or fix it. But it was affecting the Cod Empire just the same, so he needed help.

Or a threat. This was the safety of his land and people on the line, and while the problem wasn’t an imminent mortal hazard, he still needed to guarantee it wouldn’t happen again. If he failed to talk it out now, he’d have to escalate this. A threat with fWhip was unlikely to go down very well though, and Jimmy didn’t want to make the relations between their empires any more tense than it already was. 

As such, Jimmy needed diplomacy.

Before he could bring out the lab reports though, fWhip spoke up. “I don’t understand why you’ve called me over here,” he said, crossing his arms. “Why not Sausage? He’s your nearest neighbor upriver. Or even Joey is further upstream. I’m a lot further away than the rest of them. How can you prove this came from my empire?”

“I’m so glad you asked,” Lizzie said, and when she smiled her sharp predator teeth glinted dangerously. She handed fWhip the Cod Empire documents. “Tell me, what do you see in there?”

fWhip was silent as he flipped through the papers. He didn’t respond, but he scowled. Jimmy knew he recognized the chemicals. There was no way that fWhip–alchemist, tinkerer, engineer, inventor–didn’t know what he worked with. 

“Is your empire not the server’s leading manufacturer of gunpowder and explosives?” Lizzie asked. What a leading question! Jimmy almost wanted to reach over and high five her, except that it’d be terribly unprofessional in such a serious meeting. 

“I am,” fWhip said cooly, returning the documents. He looked at Lizzie and Jimmy. “This looks like the result of discharge from TNT manufacture. There’s TNT, compounds from the degradation of TNT, and chemicals associated with red water that’s produced during the TNT purifying process. It’s highly toxic.” He paused for a moment. “It’s also illegal to dump this in my empire.”

“Are you following your own laws, fWhip?” Lizzie asked. 

“I always dispose of my waste properly,” fWhip snapped. 

Jimmy cringed a little. He was certain it was from the Grimlands–not only did the chemicals match up with his manufacturing processes, but the location of the reported fish kill matched up for a place further upstream than Sausage. He had no jurisdiction, though. He couldn't fly over to the spill, document it and prove it was from the Grimlands, and go home. He wasn’t allowed to collect data from there–he was barely allowed as a guest in normal times. 

Well, it was time to pull out his secret weapon. 

“Do you know how I knew to test for this?” Jimmy asked. 

“No.”

“One of my people was traveling between empires and found a fish kill upstream, which they reported right away. They reported that the dead fish appeared to have hemorrhages, which can be caused by this type of exposure.” He made eye contact with fWhip, and really tried to drive it home. “They were salmon, fWhip. Don’t you want to protect them?”

 Don’t let pride get to you, he wanted to say. Just because you have to admit I’m right.

fWhip sighed. “I don’t know anything about any waste discharges,” he said. “If one of my forges has been disposing of waste by dumping it in the river, they are breaking the law. If it was a spill, then I haven’t been notified, which is also breaking the law. But it’s definitely explosives manufacturing waste, and I can’t risk the salmon.” He frowned. “I would have thought you wouldn’t care about that, Jimmy.”

Jimmy shook his head. “For the greater good,” he muttered. “It affects all of us.”

fWhip nodded once, then stood up and quickly gathered the copies of the reports that Jimmy’s hydrologist had supplied. He tightened the strap on his elytra. “Well,” he said. “Thank you for bringing to my attention.”

“Thank you for listening,” Jimmy said, and he meant it. 

fWhip headed for the door, but before he went he threw a glance back and called over his shoulder. “Don’t get your scales in a twist, Codfather,” he said. “I’ll fix this. You’ll be hearing from me again soon.”

And then he was gone. Jimmy let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding, and laid his head down on the desk. 

“I think we did well,” Lizzie said. 

“Ugh,” Jimmy groaned, muffled by the wood. “That was almost a disaster.”

“What do you think he’ll do about it?”

“He’ll do something,” Jimmy said. “I don’t know what, but he won’t want to look like he’s not in control of things happening in his empire.”

The staff hydrologist stepped up. “If I may,” she started.

“Of course,” Lizzie said. 

“I can tell you what he might do,” the hydrologist said. “It’s not up to us to choose how to handle it since it didn’t happen within our borders. But we’ll probably be fine anyway if the source of the spill is stopped. For rivers, time and dilution can work wonders. The further it dilutes into larger bodies of water, the less concentrated the contamination will be, and it will be less likely for our ecosystem to be badly harmed. We’ll likely be able to get by with increased monitoring until all the contamination diffuses.”

“What about the source?” Jimmy asked. 

“It’s hard to say. He could try some bioremediation methods, or even install a filter across the mouth of the river. He could divert water and try and treat it before it is redirected back into the river.  Most importantly, he should ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

Jimmy sighed. “Thank you,” he said. “I suppose this is the best we can hope for when it’s not actually within my borders. He put his arm around Lizzie and pulled her into a half-hug. “Thanks for staying, Lizzie. Definitely made it look more legit.”

“I know,” Lizzie said. “What would you do without me?”

“Probably start a war with fWhip.”

┈ ┈ ┈ ⋞ 〈 ⏣ 〉 ⋟ ┈ ┈ ┈

3.

“So, Jimmy,” Scott said. “What am I here for today?”

“Um,” Jimmy said, raising his hand over his eyes and squinting at the sunlight behind Scott. The sun rises in the east, and Rivendell is southeast of the Cod Empire. Sometimes in the morning Jimmy looked at the rising sun and wondered if Scott was awake yet. He was definitely awake this morning, since he’s standing in the Cod Empire with his back to the rising sun. It’s like a halo of light around his head. 

“So?” Scott prompted again, gesturing with one hand. “I don’t have all day, you know.”

Jimmy blinked. “I was wondering if you wanted to build an embassy.”

Scott cocks his head. “Didn’t I already build one over there?” He gestures to the lily pads where all of Jimmy’s allies have built little statues. 

“Yeah, well, it’s just . . .” Jimmy trails off. “Too small? I mean, you couldn’t stay the night there if you wanted. It’s just for decorative purposes. I mean, I built one at your empire . . .”

“Ohhhh.” Something changed in Scott’s stance. He leaned forward, a little too closely, and made direct eye contact with Jimmy, who until that point had mostly been looking just off to the side of Scott’s eyes. The edge of Scott’s mouth tugged upwards. “Are you trying to invite me to spend the night, Codfather?”

“No, no, no, it’s not like that, I just mean-” Jimmy’s face was suddenly hot like the sunburns he’d learned to avoid in the swamp. Scott was nearly bent over laughing at him. “Well, now you’re not invited to my empire anymore,” Jimmy said, trying to retain at least a little of his dignity. 

“You’re banning me?” Scott said. He raised an eyebrow skeptically. 

“Yes. For life.”

“Hm,” Scott said. “Seems like a blessing, honestly. Your empire has so many mosquitos. And it’s so not cute here.”

“Hey-”

“Where do the Ocean Queen and the King of Mezalea stay?” Scott asked, interrupting before Jimmy had a chance to sputter any indignant defense of his empire. Slime worked perfectly well as a repellent, even if Scott refused to touch it. The Cod Empire’s aesthetics might not be as grand as the other empires’, but they serve their purpose and Jimmy finds more comfort and familiarity in them than anywhere else. 

And, well. The question. Jimmy wasn’t not sure how to say Lizzie is always welcome in my house and Joel just comes by and crashes without any prior warning. They were more than just old friends, they were literally family. Even before Jimmy had found out Lizzie was his sister, they’d felt a little like family. 

Scott was different. Rivendell was a new ally to the Cod Empire. They didn’t have years of prior relationship between them. Jimmy thought it was, well, a little too personal. Maybe someday. 

“They stay in my house,” he said finally. 

Scott’s mouth dropped open in mock offense. “So I’m not even special enough to stay in the Codfather’s house? Wow, I guess it’s a good thing I’m banned then.”

Jimmy rolled his eyes, but fought to keep a smile off his face. “Enough! Enough. Do you want to build an embassy or not, Scott?”

“Sure.”

“Great. I have a spot in mind for it, and I can call over my engineers to discuss your plans. You can bring in one of your royal architects, to make sure that the decorative elements of Rivendellian architecture make it into the final product. The project will be overseen and constructed by my team–”

“No, no,” Scott said, shaking his head. “You don’t have to give me your engineers, I have my own. I don’t want to end up with some Cod Empire building, I’ll ask them to build something cuter than that.”

Jimmy frowned. The insult to his building hardly even registered to him at this point–it might as well have passed through his brain like water through his gills. He knew he didn’t have the prettiest empire, it wasn’t new knowledge. And he knew Scott liked to tease him about it. But what caught Jimmy’s attention this time was that Scott really, really wasn’t making the sensible choice here. 

Did he even realize? “Um,” Jimmy said. “This isn’t Rivendell, this is the swamp. You need my engineers. They’ll provide–”

Scott waved his hand. “Don’t worry Jimmy, I’ll still report to them. I won’t build anything where I’m not allowed and I won’t ‘harm the swamp.’ But if this is to be a Rivendell embassy, then it is part of Rivendell and I won’t be building a Cod Empire building.”

Jimmy opened his mouth to object again, but a larger, pettier part of his mind made him shut it again. The rising sun was still behind Scott, but it was higher now, shining less like a halo around the edges of his hair and instead beating down on his head. Maybe Scott could afford to be knocked down a few pegs. 

It was ill-advised, inefficient, and possibly even irresponsible, but Jimmy thought the satisfaction of seeing Scott flounder would be worth it. What better way to gain a little respect for the Cod Empire than direct action?

It’s not like Jimmy didn’t have a precedent for doing ill-advised, inefficient, and irresponsible things. 

The Cod Empire’s buildings weren’t grand or beautiful like other empires. The nicer rulers said his buildings were “simple” or “homely,” while the ruder ones outright called them ugly. Jimmy knew this. Aesthetic architecture had never been a part of Cod Empire culture and he was fine with that. After all, floods and typhoons can cause significant damages. 

But what the Cod Empire was really good at was making buildings that last.

Fluctuating water and particulate matter levels? Some areas of the swamp were anoxic, leaving submerged wood practically preserved without any special treatment since it couldn’t rot without any oxygen. In other areas, the constant moisture caused severe decay. Flooding? Many buildings in the Cod Empire were built on stilts because of this, depending on elevation. Typhoons? Houses in the Cod Empire were built with thick and reinforced walls, but flexible enough to move with wind instead of breaking, if needed.

There were parables that reminded the reader that good things came from having sturdy foundations. Unfortunately, the point was always moot in Jimmy’s empire. Sturdy foundations didn’t mix with wet, submerged, and sinking soil. So the Cod Empire drove piles into the ground until it hit solid ground, and made floating foundations. They made amphibious houses to float on floodwater when required to. The Cod Empire had developed special engineering techniques that as far as Jimmy was aware, hadn’t made their way to other empires yet. 

So no, the Cod Empire’s architecture was not pretty, but it was sturdy. Jimmy didn’t care if it had awe-inspiring castles and steep spires. It just needed to last, and it did. 

Rivendell had rock foundations, blasted and carved out of the mountainside. 

Jimmy’s foundations were floating, ever complicated and up to the whims of nature.

This could end up being fun, on second thought. 

Jimmy shrugged. “Do what you want,” he said with an easy smile. “It’s your embassy.”

┈ ┈ ┈ ⋞ 〈 ⏣ 〉 ⋟ ┈ ┈ ┈

“Codfather.”

“Iris.”

She stood in front of him, on the balls of her feet. A large grin split her face, crinkling the corners of her eyes. The gill-fins on the side of her head twitched a little in excitement. 

“I just wanted to say, to start, that this is the best thing you’ve ever asked me to do.”

Jimmy shook his head, unable to keep the corner of his mouth from turning up. “I hope you’re not enjoying this too much.”

“Well, it is a lot of fun to watch them. I’ve never found construction work so interesting.”

“What’s the latest?”

“Cracking foundation. They had to repour it twice, and then it didn’t dry properly and sank.”

Jimmy laughed. “And how distressed is Scott over this?”

Iris tilted her head. “Pretty annoyed. His engineers were convinced that the soil substrate wouldn’t pose any problems and they promised him a much faster timetable than this.”

“Iris,” Jimmy asked. “I’ve known you for a long time. You’ve been my closest advisor. Tell me: is this really evil of me? Like, on a scale of one to ten, how bad of a person am I to let this continue for this long?”

Iris tapped her foot, making a big show of thinking it over. “Well, sir . . . if you asked me, I’d say Rivendell has had this coming for a long time. So maybe it’s like a 5, sort of rude, but hey, you did offer our engineers to them and they refused it. So yeah, I think this will make them put a little respect on the Cod Empire name.”

“So you don’t think this will, like, cause a war or anything?”

“You can fire me if it does.”

“I don’t think I could manage this place without you.”

“I know you can’t,” Iris winked, before twirling around and walking out, braid swinging behind her. “Besides,” she called back just before she stepped out of the door, with a certain tone in her voice Jimmy had trouble placing. “I don’t think Scott exactly wants to fight you.”

Well, he’d never been very opposed to the idea of fighting in the past, Jimmy thought–although they were allies now. But he also insulted the Cod Empire a lot, so maybe he deserved this a little.

Jimmy pushed back in his chair and looked out the window. The builders had been at work for a few weeks now. They had previously made blueprints for other embassies and were using the same one, so architecture hadn’t been a concern. Only the site condition and foundation remained an issue. The Rivendellian engineers had surveyed the site though, to their credit. 

They just . . . didn’t have the knowledge of how to build in a swamp. They had no experience trying to build on a moving, unstable, saturated surface. The mountains in Rivendell didn’t move at nearly the pace the swamp did. 

And as such, they were struggling. Hard. 

They didn’t just have to keep the foundation and building from shifting, but they had to make sure that it didn’t flood. And they had to do this within the rules of Jimmy’s empire–wetlands were very important ecosystems, and Jimmy didn’t want them going in and messing anything up. Of course, constant construction and tearing down failed foundations wasn’t great for the land either, but Jimmy found he didn’t worry about that so much when he was enjoying Scott’s frustration. 

He went outside to supervise them in the afternoon. He didn’t have much paperwork to do for Codfather duties and was already through for the day. He never did. Not that’d he tell the other emperors that, though. They’d probably turn up their noses and make some comment about how of course he had nothing to do, he wasn’t a legitimate empire. 

Jimmy thought a lot of that red tape was unnecessary if you ruled properly, made things simple the first time, and had people who respected you. And that it wasn’t a bad thing if your people saw you enjoying some free time once and a while–especially if they felt comfortable enough to join in. He found he got to know a lot of people better like this. 

He decided to use his free time to lounge around the edge of the construction site with a smug look on his face and see how long it took for Scott to come up and start yelling at him. 

It took about five minutes. 

Scott, engaged in some sort of argument with an engineer, turned and saw Jimmy leaning against another building in the shade, and stalked over. It looked like he was muttering to himself. His hair, normally perfectly styled, was a little sweaty. That just made Jimmy even more smug, because Scott wasn’t exactly used to exerting himself in the hot sun since Rivendell was so cold. 

“What did you do?” he demanded. 

“Me?” Jimmy said. “I didn’t do anything. I’m just standing here. My people aren’t involved in this project at all.”

“Stop smiling,” Scott groaned. “There’s nothing here to smile about.”

“I disagree,” Jimmy said, still grinning. “My advisors and I are having a great time with this.”

“Well I’m not,” Scott said petulantly. “Why didn’t you warn me? Why won’t you help me?”

“Huh,” Jimmy said. “Last I remember you didn’t want any input from the Cod Empire on your design. You said you’d build something cuter instead.” He looked over Scott’s shoulder to where someone was somewhat frantically trying to fashion a water pump for the foundation. “I figured your grand Rivendellian architects could handle a little water. Aren’t they the best in the land?”

“They are,” Scott hissed. 

“Then why don’t they know how to build something on wet ground? I mean, I guess they could be the best in the ‘land’ but not the best in the water–”

“Rivendell is not this wet!” Scott cried. “Or muddy! There’s no saturated ground and sinking foundations. They’re perfectly good engineers.”

“So you agree that your engineers only know how to build in Rivendell?” Jimmy asked. “Because I offered you mine and you refused them.”

Scott glared at him. “My engineers could build in any place. It’s just your swamp that’s stupid.”

“The swamp,” Jimmy said sternly, “is just existing. And it’s been the home of my people for generations before, and will be for generations to come.”

Scott sighed, picking up Jimmy’s not-so-subtle irritation. As much as Jimmy got teased, there was a limit that all the rulers recognized where teasing dropped into true offense. Scott backed off, but he didn’t apologize. “Your swamp’s fine,” he mumbled. “It’s just difficult to build in. I can’t believe you all live like this.”

“It’s difficult for you to build in,” Jimmy said. “My people do it just fine.”

Scott turned partially away from Jimmy, scanning the horizon full of houses. He had a look on his face like maybe it was the first time he’d actually seen any of this and properly paid attention to it. “How do you do it?” he asked finally. “My engineers don’t know the techniques.”

“Well,” Jimmy said. “How about I show them? Or, well, I guess it wouldn’t be me specifically showing you, I’ll call my head engineer and architect over here, ‘cause I’m not the one who actually does the calculations for these things, I just sign off on them–”

“Jimmy,” Scott interrupted. “I’d like that.”

┈ ┈ ┈ ⋞ 〈 ⏣ 〉 ⋟ ┈ ┈ ┈

Thank you for reading! :D Sources, links I used or found while writing this, cool things I found (well I thought they were cool) etc can be found in reblog of this post!

[kengan-daddies]

Only You Saw Paing

Anime : Kengan Ashura Pairing: Saw Paing x (F) Reader Warnings: mention of blood and bruises

ONLY YOU SAW PAING X (F) READER

ONLY YOU SAW PAING X (F) READER

You stood out in the hall with Saw Paing, he was covered in bruises, blood pouring from his wounds. His face was covered in blood too, but he didn't seem fazed in the slightest as he bounced on his toes, pumping his fists into the air as he spoke excitedly about his match with the fisherman.

You stared up at Saw with a look of worry, admiration and love. He was your stronger half, your bigger half, your louder half. He was the love of your life, your sweet husband going on for 10 years now. You sighed. "Saw, you need to go to the infirmary, you should let Hanafusa check you for any internal injuries, your bones may be the hardest but that doesn't mean your organs are." You spoke in an even tone.

He stared down at you, his honey colored eye always full of fire and love, a confident smile on his face. "AH COME ON HUN!!! I'M MORE THEN FINE!! I DON'T NEED TO GO SEE THE DOC!! I'VE NEVER FELT BETTEEEEERRRRR!!!!" He shouted towards the sky as he flexed his arms and tightened his fists. You gave him an unimpressed look as you placed your hand on you hip. He seem to notice your stare, and he calmed down, his arms coming down to his sides as he stepped closer to you. "Listen, (y/n), I'm fine, but if it makes you feel better, I'll go and give the doc a visit." he spoke. You stared at him a little longer before you gave him a smile and he smiled in return.

"Good, I want you to always be at your top peak, Saw, no matter how strong you get, I'll always worry for you." You spoke as you gently reached up to grab his head, brining your foreheads together, he stared into your eyes, the ever raging fire in his eyes softening some as his blazing love for you grew stronger in them. "With you by my side, I'm already 100% stronger then before." He said, as he gently rubbed his thumb against your cheek. Your heart fluttered and your stomach did flips.

You felt like a child again, back when Saw first ask for your courtship. You could still see him, a young teenage Saw, hope and fire in his eyes as he stood on the outside of your parents fruit stand, a full crate of fresh apples slammed on the wooden stand aggressively, as he shouted. "WILL YOU ALLOW ME YOUR HAND IN COURTSHIP, (Y/N)!?" He shouted. Your heart fluttered and your eyes widen. Saw Paing, the strongest boy in your age, the loudest boy in your age, the sweetest boy in your age. The boy with all the girls after him, came and asked you?

You felt special, but you weren't going to make it easy on him, you never did. "No." You said, a small smile on your face, he never lost his confident smile as the fire only seem to burn brighter. "THEN I'LL ASK YOU EVERYDAY UNTIL YOU AGREE!!!" He shouted his promise. You gave him a small nod. "And I'll just keep on denying you."

'We were so young, just children, who knew nothing of the world.' You thought, your forehead still pressed to Saw's, he gave a chuckle and you opened your eyes. His eyes were gentle, sweet and full of love, but they never lost their fire. "What are you thinking about?" He asked you. You smiled. "Oh nothing, just thinking of the past is all." You said in a fond voice. "Congradulations, Saw Paing." Came Kaolan's voice. You both looked over, seeing the man walking towards you both.

Saw smile widen and the fire in his eyes grew bright again as he turned towards Kaolan. "GAOLAAAAAANNNNN!!!! I WON!!! DID YOU SEE THAT!?" He asked... more like shouted. Kaolan's face didn't change much, aside from the annoyed sigh he gave. "Of course I saw, why else would I be congratulating you?" He said, but Saw didn't seem to care. "WHEN WE HAVE OUR ROUND, I'LL BE SURE TO WIIIN!! SO DON'T YOU LOSE OUT THERE GAOLAN!!!" He shouted as he curled his fist in determination. Kaolan scoffed at him.

"Hmph, as if, I don't plan on losing, not now, not ever." He said, confidence in his voice. "OH YEEEEEAAAAAAHHHH!!!! I'M SO FIRED UP!!! LET'S HAVE A ROUND RIGHT NOW, GAOLAN!!!" He shouted as he took a fighting stance. You shook your head as you stepped forward, placing you hand on his shoulder, he looked back at you in question as he slowly dropped his stance. "OH NO YOU'RE NOT!!! You still have a doctor's appointment to make." You scolded. He smiled at you. "Ooops!! I forgot about that!!" He said. You shook your head and you gave a tired sigh. "Without me, you'd probably be dead by now." You said, he gave a chuckled at your words and you smiled.

"Come on, ya big oaf, let's go." You said as you patted his back. He looked back at Kaolan. "Ya hear that, Gaolan? I've got a doctor's appointment, but once I'm done, WE'LL HAVE OUR MATCH!!!" He shouted. Kaolan sighed. "We'll have our match in the ring, you moron." he said. Saw chuckled at him. "HELL YEEEEAAAAHHHH!!! COME ON HUN!!! LET'S GOOOO!!!" "Hey, wait a minute, don't run!!" "THE SOONER WE GET THIS DONE THE SOONER ME AND GAOLONG CAN FIGGGGGHHHHHHTTTTT!!!!" He shouted over you as he ran off towards the doctor's office.

You and Kaolan stood there for a moment, staring after where Saw ran off to. "He's going in the wrong direction." Gaolan said. You gave an annoyed sigh. "Yeah, I know." You said. You both stood there a little longer before the sound of running came and you both stared on in shock as Saw can running around the corner. "HAHAHAH!!! I REMEBER THE DOCTOR IS THIS WAAAAAY GAOOOLAAAAAANNNN!" He shouted as he ran past you both.

"Why did he address me in that?" Kaolan asked, you shook your head. "I guess so you'd know that he remembered." You spoke. You both looked at one another before you sighed. "Only Saw." "Only Saw paing." You both said, before you both began following after him, at a much slower pace.

[pommunist]

(same anon about appologies fucking you over in us law)

i also think a lot of people forget that as a mexican man in the US, there's a highger layer of danger for him at being doxxed than some people might know about.

the US system is made to harm people like him. people were threatening to SWAT him, this has happened to streamers before. and the US is a place where people go out with assault weapons with the specific intent to hurt immigrants and anyone who is not "the norm"

so genuinely, seeing the ex-admins like tweets saying he's only victimizing himself, claiming he's being to emotional, and post messages like "womp womp" at Q's stream.... i cant help but to feel horrified

i understand the anger. i understand feeling upset at him.

i dont understand dehumanizing him to the point of mocking his emotions or his feeling scared for his physical safety when he ltierally got sent pictures of his house with threatening messages

Putting your previous ask here so I can do a 2-in-1 answer.

I had actually seen the post you linked but thanks anyway for brining it up to my attention, especially because I should have been more specific answering that one anon when i said that saying sorry can’t lead to legal consequences !

Yes, saying sorry can incriminate you if you word it in such a way that it turns into you admitting a wrongdoing, this is actually the . Wacky exemple but if you steal 5$ from someone and then tell them « I’m so sorry I shouldn’t have stolen these 5$ from you », you’re admitting of having done so. But if you say something like « I’m sorry that happened I wish I could help you get these 5$ back » you’re good.

OP’s post and the article they quoted expressed that pretty well so I’ll link it here too :

———

About your second ask : First, anyone who goes out of their way to spread Q’s personal information and/or uses it to threaten and harass him are proper freaks and I will never stand for that.

This is especially gross because, as you rightfully said, it’s particularly dangerous in the US because of police brutality during swatting and well, guns. Even more so if you’re an immigrant like it’s the case for Q.

I don’t think some of the admins reacted the way they did in relation to Q expressing fear for his safety, there are still a lot of things that were said and, I would argue more specifically, unsaid in his stream that can be criticised. I wanna do a post about his stream later when I’ll have thought about it more in depth (it’s a nonsensical draft sitting in notes app rn i still need to pump myself with more caffeine to get the braincells properly working)

[snowcandyz]

CW: Hurt/comfort

It has been two weeks since Levi left for a job, and you're not sure when he'd be back. 

His playful and introverted behaviours made it hard to remember that he is the Grand Admiral of the Navy's Hell. Times like these quickly reminded you how important and respected Levi really is in Devildom. 

Before entering his room, you knocked on his door, 100% aware no one was even there to answer it. 

The sight of his mangas and action figures neatly arranged on his shelves, the dishevelled blanket on his bed tub, the gaming consoles left on the floor—Everything looked just the same. 

It wasn't cluttered, but it wasn't exactly tidy either. You've helped with cleaning every day, but you didn't want to remove the hints and traces of Levi from this room, so you made sure to leave everything just the same as before he left. 

This messy little room is the only thing that can help soothe the pain, even for a bit. 

Wearing Levi's favourite sweater for today, you made your way to Henry 2.0's massive fish tank. 

"Henry!" you sang, "Are you ready for dinner?" 

The goldfish giddily swam towards you in circles. 

You smiled at his cuteness, sitting in front of the tank to accompany him while he enjoyed his brine shrimp dinner. 

Only white noises from Henry's air pump filled the room.  It was quiet and lonely.

A tear slipped down your cheek without you noticing. Perhaps the stress had finally caught up to you. 

It has been a rough week, and not having Levi beside you only worsened your condition. Everything has been weighing you down. You've tried your best to not let it get to you, but it's still hard. Life is hard. 

Before you knew it, your soft crying had turned to loud sobs as you tried to hug yourself to soothe the ache. 

You really wished Levi was here. You yearned to hear his voice and to hold him tight.

"MC?"

Yes, yes, like that. 

"MC, are you okay?" You heard a panicked voice. 

A pair of arms snaked around your waist and pulled you backwards. You felt your back hitting someone's chest; purple locks were seen when he laid his head on your shoulder as he held you tight. 

"–Levi?" 

"Yes, my Henry. I'm here."

You couldn't believe your ears. Or your eyes—no, all of your five senses. 

He's really here? 

You quickly wrapped your arms around his neck and hid your face in the crook of his neck. You didn't care if this was merely your imagination or reality anymore. He's here! Levi's here! 

Levi tightened his grip on you and rocked you slowly to soothe your cries.

What a shocker this was. He planned to finish his work early and surprise you back home, but apparently, he was surprised. 

Seeing you wearing his jacket and interacting with Henry made him ecstatic, though the joy soon died when he heard you cry.

A part of him felt so guilty for leaving you without any contact. He'd be sure to propose a plan to Diavolo to have Devildom equipped with internet connections and phone signals everywhere. At least this mistake can be avoided in the future. 

"I miss you, Levi." He heard you say in between your sobs. 

"I miss you too, MC." He kissed the crown of your head before hugging you again, "I'm so sorry for leaving."

"It's not your fault."

"But I really do feel guilty. I made it seem like you're alone." 

You couldn't refute Levi's words. 

"Henry, I'm always here for you. I'm sorry if I made it seem like you have to go through this alone. And I'm sorry that I can't be here for you when you need me. But everything's going to be alright now. I don't have to work far away for 100 years now. I can be here for you—and with you. You're not alone, MC."

You embraced him tighter, feeling yourself melting inside his arms from the comfort and care that Levi offered. 

-

You leaned towards his chest, eyes closed and hands clasping slightly onto his shirt. 

Your breathing calm and organised, and your lips parted slightly from the exhaustion. You've fallen asleep on Levi's lap and there's no way he would want to wake you up now. 

He made sure to have his arm supporting your back while you were resting. His tail also aided it by wrapping itself around your body. 

Devildom is chilly at night, so Levi wished you were warm and comfortable inside his arms. He adjusted his jacket that was slowly sliding down your shoulder, heart still throbbing at the sight of you wearing something of his. 

Staring at your sleeping face once again, Levi couldn't help but gently kiss your forehead a few times. 

And now that his lover's asleep, he could start logging in to his games, instantly turning down the volume to avoid stirring you up. 

It was another normal night in Devildom, and Levi couldn’t feel happier that he had sacrificed a few sleepless nights just to return home earlier to you.

A fic for Noelle @amistytown ♥️ Sorry that it somehow turned to hurt/comfort :') I was aiming for comfort fic actually 😭

Taglist: @jerw-inne @levia-barisol-irl @rakshamon @sparkbeast20 @highly-functioning-mitochondria @everlasting-elegy @poetofthedyingstars @drrkives @rubird--playsotome @uredgelordroomate07 @trumoia

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[oomisluvr]

greek mythology au! sakusa x reader

SAKUSA AS THESEUS, retelling of theseus and the minotaur, original myth is changed to fit my narrative, mentions of death (the minotaur eats people!!), mentions of child marriage (ancient greece was sick), flirty and charming sakusa, hero!sakusa, 2.5k words.

the flowers were blooming early this year, speckles of color in the fields of green behind your small home. a sign of good fortune, the prophets of apollo had proclaimed, hard work will certainly be highly rewarded; the year of the bull. you grit your teeth and pulled harder, the weeds pestering your small garden uprooted entirely, their evil roots still gripping the flecks of soil that had nurtured them.

with deep reverence, you send a prayer to demeter, thanking her for an early spring.

sweat beaded at your hairline, curtesy of helios and his mighty chariot brining light to the sky overhead. it was just before noon now, with the sun directly overhead. collecting the clump of weeds you had uprooted, along with a few parcels of lavender, your feet carry you away from the forrestline and back to shelter.

inside your home lived your younger sister and father, your mother residing in the realm of hades after king minos had sent his navy to decimate athens. unlike most men in greece, your father was an honorable man, and his heart thumped only for his two daughters. though you were a girl, you were his eldest, and therefore his most prized possession in all of his lifetime. you were worth more than gold, in his eyes, more than any ore or meat or plant or man could offer. his pride and joy, a title you wore with honor.

lost in your thoughts, a series of screams tore you from your revere, the cries of your father to let her go, please! take me instead!

you hadn't thought twice before your feet carried you up the hill, powerful legs pumped full of adrenaline that pushed you to the forefront of your small home.

six cretan soldiers stood in the doorway, you could spot their royal purple linens from miles out. in their hands was your sister, tears spurting from her eyes like palace faucets, her arm contorted unnaturally under the pressure of the soldier's hands.

"let her go." you demanded, eyes aflame, "she is my sister, not a sacrifice. i suggest you find another family to tear apart."

you had thought your distance from the main city would protect your family, but the evil of minos extends everywhere, you suppose. once a year, fourteen athenian children are sent as sacrifices to feed the minotaur living under the cretan palace floors, trapped in a maze designed by the world's greatest engineer. there was no point to it, really, other than a cruel display of power, a boast to the world that one man could bring the great city of athens to its knees.

it was cruel, you know. to try and gift tragedy to another family, as if it were bread at a dinner table. but you would welcome the selfishness, just this once, if it meant preserving your sister's life.

"king minos was clear in his decree," the biggest one smiles down at you, his soul more rotten than his brown teeth, "seven girls and seven boys. your sister makes the last sacrifice. though, i wouldn't mind having her as my bride."

the soldiers laugh at his comment, their greedy eyes hungrily taking in your sisters figure. she visibly trembled under their touch, fear falling from her in waves.

you and her were different in that regard, the brutality of the world forging stubbornness and bravery in the chasms of your heart, instead of the petrefying fear that plagues your sister. you were not afraid of the world; you would burn it with your bare hands. if it meant preserving her smile, you'd destroy the earth ten times over; you'd set olympus aflame.

she's so young, too young, and terribly afraid of the world, not fully understanding what it means to be a woman or the shackles that come with marriage and children. she's already lost so much.

you clench your hands, stepping forward, muscles tense not from fear but from anger. poised, one might call it, in the way a mountain lion stalks its prey, ready to strike at even the smallest of openings.

"you will not touch her," you spit, harsh enough that the soldiers were unnerved, just for moment, "you will take me instead."

women were not protectors, you had been told, they are homemakers. gentle, subservient creatures to serve as vessels in aiding the next generation in conquering the world. you were no such thing. you were headstrong and unshakable, stubborn in a way that made men hate you, and you would protect what was left of your family with everything in you.

"it makes no difference to me," another soldier grinned again, wider and more terrible than the last, "you'll be dead before the end of the week."

in a quick exchange, your sisters life had been swapped for yours, the mark of death transferred to your head. you father wailed and hiccuped, you sister torn between shouting thanks and mourning her living sister; her only sister.

with the courage of a roman gladiator, you offer a warm smile to your father, and a gentle nod to your sister. it's okay, the crinkle of your eyes told them, take care of each other. don't forget to say your prayers. there's bread and cheese out on the table. don't forget to put it up after dinner.

with a rough yank, the band of soldiers marched you from your childhood home and down the way to the athenian port. there was no fear in your heart, you'd realized, only pride. your sister was safe and taken care of. the cretan solders never took from the same houses.

chin held high, you would sail from your home in athens to a foreign grave, and you wore your crown of death with pride. a bruise of honor.

as you approached the dock, you saw that there were more cretan soldiers than just the six escorting you, as there were at least forty more aboard the massive cretan ship and scattered around the port.

there, you saw the other sacrifices, six other girls and seven boys, perfectly lined by the shore, shackled to each other and teary-eyed. the youngest child was easily six or seven years of age, distraught and confused as to what was happening; to what would eventually become of his delicate life. with a sudden shove, you were pushed in line with them, the unexpected force knocking you on your knees. you feel skin break, exposing the soft tissue underneath, warm blood pinpricking the fabric of your lose clothing.

rough hands grip you by your shoulders, and you quickly lift your head to spit in the face of your assaulter. it lands right underneath his eye, and satisfactions burns in your stomach at the way it oozes down his cheek. cretian scum.

"almost. i'd say an inch higher and you would have really blinded me."

you blink away the haze of your hatred and take in his appearance. normal clothing, athenian features, metal shackles binding him to the other children down the shoreline. he was a sacrifice, you realized, and you had spit on him. his grip was so strong, you had thought he was one of the soldiers for sure.

but he was just a boy, easily the eldest of the athenian scarifies, but a boy nonetheless.

"i'm sorry," you rush to apologize, "i reacted too quickly. i thought you were a soldier."

his hands were rough to the touch, but gentle in nature, as he carefully helped you stand back to your feet, "it's quite alright," he wipes the glob of spit from his cheek, "if anything, i'm impressed by your aim."

at this you smile, "my sister taught me. she's the worst."

the stranger laughed, tall and broad-shouldered, but still soft in the face in the way all boys are. his clothes were dirty, his hands and feet shackled, but his skin glowed in a way that could only be described as divine.

the athenian people were distinct in their features, and there were no new faces in a city you've resided in for a lifetime, so who was this strange man, offering himself as an athenian sacrifice? athenian by blood but foreign otherwise.

"who are you?" you suddenly ask, speaking lowly as not to be heard by the patrolling cretan soldiers, "in all my years in athens, i have never met you, foreigner. you are not from here."

"well, i have never seen you before," he presses, "why is it that i am the foreigner and you are not?"

his quick remark catches you off guard, and you search for a witty response, "because i have lived in the heart of the city my whole life. i would have remembered a face such as yours." that damn glow.

the implication of your words are not lost on him. he wants to tease you, take your mind away from the metal around your wrists. "why?" he asks, "because you find me handsome?"

"because you are different," your face burns at his accusation, "you are unlike any man i have known."

"i thought i was a stranger," he says, "now you claim to know me?"

"i know enough," you huff, eyes pressing him for more information, "call it intuition." he smiles and you're heart nearly stops. you avert your eyes.

"i lived in the outskirts," he reveals, more serious, "as a fisherman. rarely did i ever find myself in the city."

you accept his answer, considering for a moment. the fishermen really only came to the city to sell their catches. it's likely that he simply sent a younger brother or apprentice to sell what he caught. strange, but anything was possible.

"why are you here then, if you aren't in the city often? and you are too old to be an ideal sacrifice."

"you have a brilliant mind, princess." he continues, noting your observance, "i was on my way to the palace steps, when i saw a few soldiers dragging a boy away from his mother. i traded myself in place of him."

you're at a loss for words. sure, you had done the same, but it was for blood, your only sister. this man, this foreigner, had traded his life for a stranger's, and still has the heart to joke and laugh about.

"i did the same," you say, "for my sister."

"i thought she was the worst?" he asks.

"she is," you confirm, "but she's still my sister and i am still hers."

it's quiet for a moment, your ears only catching the sound of poseidon's mighty waves folding against the shoreline. this would be the last time you see these waters, hear the ocean surrounding your motherland.

"it's honorable," he speaks suddenly, snapping you from your daze, "to trade her place for yours. to ultimately decide that her life was worth more." he turns to you, curiosity and adoration lighting his face, "what is your name? your bravery moves me."

"yours first." it isn't a question.

his eye catch yours and something like lighting flashed within them, offering a sly smile as if you'd solved his riddle, "i am kiyoomi, son of king aegus, and i have come to destroy that which ails my people."

laughter finds you easily, bubbling from your throat in dry chuckles, "athens does not have anyone to inherit the throne," your eyes narrow into slits, "and king aegus certainly does not have a son. why lie, with such little time to live?"

"you were right to say i was different from other men," he smiles, "but it makes no difference whether you chose to believe me. you will see soon enough."

his vagueness baits you, "see what? what are you planning? we will sail to crete and die under the palace like the multitude of athenian children before us. it has been the same story for years; there is no other ending."

"we will sail to crete, yes," he says, "but no more blood will be shed at the hands of that beast. i will kill the minotaur and return to athens as crown prince," he turns to look at you, "then athens will be free."

"how do you plan to kill the minotaur? you'd have to find him before he finds you in his maze of tunnels."

"you ask a lot of questions, princess," he chides, "and i'll forever be sorry that i cannot give you all of the details, but please, rest assured that my plan will come to fruition. athena is on my side, the battle already won. the fates have already declared it centuries ago."

the wind whispers comforts to his ears, that can be the only reasoning for the calmness that shrouds him. his inky hair curls gently at the movement. you want to believe him, and a small part of you does. he is different; perhaps there is some truth in his tale. you're touched by his declarations, the fires of his determination. he reminds you of yourself.

"my name is y/n, daughter of y/f/n," you say, and his eyes crinkle happily at the sound of your name, "and my father was a blacksmith. i am no princess."

"you will be." kiyoomi says, certain, "when you return from crete as my bride."

you flush at his flirtation, your body betraying you, "did the fates tell you this, too?" you snap.

"no," he says cooly, "i decided it when you spat in my eye with the precision of an archer. surely, there is no other woman for me."

"again, you have my sister to thank for that."

"i most certainly will," he clarifies, "when she dances at our wedding."

and with the blow of a horn, the fourteen of you are escorted onto the foreign ship, with the promise of death on the other side of the ocean.

you smile down to yourself, the metal binding your wrists feeling less heavy, less permeant. perhaps he is who he says he is: the son of a king, in the lineage of a god. maybe he can save athens. maybe he can save you. regardless, you have little else to lose; why not play into his tale?

"slay the minotaur," you say, placing one footing front of the other, "before you even think of asking for my hand."

"please," he playfully scoffs ahead of you, "at least give me a challenge. you're as good as mine now."

take this as my apology for disappearing :((( i fell out of love with writing, but i'm slowly gaining it back. i have some drafts i want to put out soon but this is my favorite :))) i hope u don't hate me im so sorry

[jeanjauthor]

What can I do to show a country with an inspired time period of Western and southern European renaissance/Tudor times but without guns, gunpowder or corsets? I do have theatre coming and religion but nothing

A country with a time period inspired by Western & Southern European renaissance / Tudor... no buns, gunpowder, or corsets...

Architecture and furniture, for one. A lot of people know what the iconic Tudor style is like: beam-and-plaster. Big thick heavy timbers (some light, some dark) with plaster in between, the beams can be straight, curved, or angular. But they also have a lot of brick in some of those buildings, too, such as in Germany (not sure if that's far enough West for you, but it's pretty architecture).

You can look up furniture as well. Most of it will still be hard wooden (not quite sure when upholstry techniques were discovered), but it will definitely be decorated with cushions, a lot of carvings, and some curvature to the seats & backs have started to develop.

Walls will definitely be painted, and there might be tapestries. NOT just embroidered ones! Painted wall hangings became quite popular...and were considerably cheaper for modestly prosperous farmers & artisans to afford, plus they cut down on drafts in winter.

Glassware has started to join pottery as a thing more people can afford. Mirrors are becoming popular, too, especially silver-backed Venetian glass mirrors...though if this isn't set in our world, or at least in an alternate-history Earth, you'll want to come up with a name & a place for such luxury goods to come from.

Without gunpowder, etc, the bow & crossbow will still be the top tier ranged weaponry (not counting magic, etc) for personal combat, but they'll also probably have the arbalest & ballista. Catapults are not as good as Hollywood pretends they are; their max weight at launch isn't very much, maaaaaybe 40 pounds-ish? Trebuchets are where it's all at, those effers can hurl whole cows. (Not advocating the flinging of live livestock, but also flinging dead livestock is kind of a "biological weapon of terror" thing, so it's not all that nice, either.)

Roads are slowly getting better, but they'll still be rutted and awful when it rains. Mostly it'll be roads inside the towns that will be graded and cobbled, and even the villages will start getting some decent streets. Shoes will still be problematic, though: hobnails are for mud and grass and slippery terrain that the nails can dig into, but they will slip on the hard stones of settlement streets, so your townies will want non-nailed shoes that won't slip quite so much.

Oxen will still be in some of the fields, but horses will gradually be taking over the pulling of the plows. Same for pulling wagons. The advent of the iron horseshoe goes a long way toward helping them, but they'll have the same slipping issue on cobbled roads. Donkeys and mules are still very much a part of everyday work & transportation for small carts & itinerant worker's & trader's loads.

Harvest time will still have very significant cultural importance, because although farming will have had a few innovations to help things along (mostly in terms of crop rotation, compost & manuring the fields, etc), it's still going to be close to 90% of your population devoting their lives to growing & preserving the food that everyone needs to eat the rest of the year...and most foods will be seasonal, because there's only so much you can dehydrate, smoke, salt-pack, salt-brine, or fermentation-pickle.

But in colder climates (think the Alps & Pyrinees) where the mountains get freezing cold, you can have ice houses, packed with straw and carefully ventilated & drained, with plenty of sawdust.

Also, industry will start to use water-powered "engines" for doing things. Not just turning the mill wheel to grind grain into flour, but to pump the bellows for a blast furnace, to smelt iron. ...This does lead to other problems, however, and that is the deforestation of the area around a smelting foundry. So your people will either have to figure out how to do forestry management, or they will need to discover other burnables, such as coal deposits (which cause their own problems) or natural gas (which China had discovered & started using well over a thousand years ago, piped via bamboo sealed with clay from the gas fields to the furnaces for pottery, etc).

...With all that said, one of the things you can do to look up inspiration is the BBC's Life on a Tudor Monastic Farm series. They did an outstanding job of re-creating daily life in England (which counts as Western Europe even if it's not Southern Europe) in the Tudor time period. You even get to see them going to other locations, which means seeing what the buildings looked like, as well as showcasing daily life.

[lolliepopcrusader]

Sea monkeys – a great pet for the CFS person!

Having CFS is exhausting (pun intended), and it takes a lot away from you in life. I really noticed it in the pet department. I couldn’t play as long with my cats, and their general upkeep became more of a challenge to me. Thankfully I have my husband who has stepped in and can assist me in keeping the cats happy and healthy. Having a dog is unfortunately out of the question, there’s no way I’d be able to keep up with one and give it a good quality of life.  

For years, even before CFS made itself properly at home, I had begged my husband to let me have Sea Monkeys as pets, but he’d always said no, or “not right now”. And being the good wife that I am (lol) I would leave the topic alone until I would find a way to slip it into conversation the following year. 

I’m now housebound with CFS and having mysterious joint pains, preventing me from moving as freely as CFS allows us to. Keeping myself entertained when I couldn’t do anything became the bane of my existence. To sum it up in three words; I. Was. Bored. And you know what annual topic finally rolled around? You guessed it, “can I have Sea Monkeys as pets?” 

To my absolute surprise, my husband said yes; but with a few conditions; 

We had to get them a proper little tank, not those gimmicky ones they’re typically sold in. 

We had to have the tank completely set up before putting the Sea Monkeys into it. 

My husband would buy me the tank and the tank accessories, but I needed to buy things like the gravel, decorations, food, the Sea Monkeys etc. 

I needed to research how to properly care for them before starting the hatching process, since it was my first-time having Sea Monkeys. 

Obviously, I agreed to all the conditions (while my husband doesn’t like Sea Monkeys, he does care for their wellbeing, as with every animal), so down the research rabbit hole I went. I clicked on every website with the mention of Sea Monkeys, learnt the water pH they like, what they eat, their lifecycle, everything – you name it, I did my darndest to research it. I even came across a subreddit dedicated to Sea Monkeys and instantly hit that subscribe button. 

We ended up buying a cute little 500ml fish tank on Aliexpress, which is plenty of space for the little guys. The water circulator that came with the tank is too strong for the Sea Monkeys, so we don’t use it, but the tank itself is perfect. 

Other accessories that we purchased were; 

A tiny bit of driftwood for decoration. 

An air pump. 

Java moss and a Java fern plants from the local aquarium store. 

Some very fine gravel substrate. 

And finally, the Sea Monkey (brine shrimp) eggs themselves. 

All up we spent around 100 NZD. My husband helped me set up the tank the way I wanted it to look and helped me mix the correct ratio of salt into the water for the Sea Monkeys. I’ll gloss over the nitty gritty of setting up the tank for now, but if you’re interested, I’ll put all the details at the bottom of this post! 

For days after adding the eggs, I found myself staring into the tank, eagerly awaiting some confirmation that they’d hatched. It wasn’t until about 1-2 weeks later that I managed to properly glimpse my first Sea Monkey! I ended up buying a magnifying glass to see the little dudes because as babies they’re so dang tiny! 

The pros of having Sea Monkeys as pets is they’re hardy little guys and can tolerate a lot. They’re cruisy when it comes to their tank so that’s a bonus! On average, they should be fed at least once every 10 days, but I just feed them when their water becomes clear as then I know they’ve eaten their food. 

I love sitting at my desk and watching them swim around their tank living their little lives. I probably spend a couple of hours a day doing this. It's been a real boredom buster for me! I never thought they would have their own personalities, but early in the Sea Monkey journey I discovered that they formed two cliques. There were two well defined groups, the bigger ones occupied the left-hand side of the tank, whereas the smaller ones made the right side their homebase. As they grew bigger, they joined the lefties, and eventually they merged into one big group once they were all a decent size – how high schoolish of them! I couldn’t believe my eyes. I messaged a close friend of mine who is raising Sea Monkeys of his own and he confirmed that they do indeed form cliques. 

I’ve noticed that my mental health has gotten a bit better since having the Sea Monkeys to look at. I believe it's because I find them so relaxing to watch and I can focus my attention on them rather than wallowing in my own self-pity at my CFS circumstances (yay, pity party!) My husband doesn’t enjoy Sea Monkeys like I do (too many legs apparently) but when he comes home from university, he’ll happily listen to me talk about what my Sea Monkeys got up to during the day because he knows how happy they make me feel and how they’ve filled a void in my life. I love my little dudes so much; Sea Monkeys make great pets for a CFS person like me! 

The nitty gritty of setting up the tank; 

Sea Monkeys (a hybrid of brine shrimp) love a high salinity environment so a pH of 7.5-8 is needed for them to hatch. We mixed pure sea salt with distilled water to get the right ratio, however if you can get your hands on aquarium salt, that’s a better option. Aquarium salt has minerals in it that your environment would benefit from, especially if you are having plants in your tank.   

The plants we used are called Java moss and Java fern. These are the only aquatic plants (in New Zealand) that I could purchase that would be able to survive such a high salinity environment.   

The Sea Monkey subreddit recommends using fine gravel as your substrate instead of the usual tank pebbles because Sea Monkeys are stupid and will get themselves trapped in the pebbles and die.   

They need highly oxygenated tank water so getting an air pump with an air stone is a must! HOWEVER. You need to make sure that the pump isn’t too strong that it blows the Sea Monkeys away, it just needs to be a light trickle of air bubbles.   

In the wild, Sea Monkeys eat algae and yeast. I feed my Sea Monkeys spirulina powder mixed with distilled water to make a tincture. I use a 1ml syringe to drop it into their tank.   

Those simple little dudes are attracted to light. Need to clean an area of their tank? Shine a light on the opposite side and within 5 minutes they’re over there trying to get to the light.   

DONT stick their tank in direct sunlight! The heat of the sunlight will change their water temp and kill them. In the mornings, I slide their tank into the indirect light on my desk and they love it! But I only do it when I’m around them so that I can keep an eye on them. I give them about 30 minutes of time in the light daily.   

Over time their water will evaporate. Top it up in small increments with distilled water. Do not add additional salt to the water as even though the water evaporates, the salt is still in the tank! As the water evaporates, the salt concentration increases. Adding more distilled water reduces the salt concentration of the water back to the original salinity that you started with. If a lot of water has evaporated, don’t add lots of water to bring the tank to full right away because the sudden change in salinity can shock the Sea Monkeys and kill them.