#easton mountain

[elhoimleafar]

Inhale pain, exhale healing. Do not forget that you are made of dreams, dances, and beautiful songs of your ancestors singing time ago under the stars, through your blood runs the magic of thousands of stories of warriors, sorcerers, healers, farmers, heroes, artists, troubadours, and alchemists.

When you heal; you reclaim your power back.

When you stand up firmly in your power, you heal your ancestors and give them the chance to reclaim their power too.

Hugs warm like warm alpacas.

Xxo, ELO.

[molybdic]

020 Sunrise, Day 3

2014.05.17

[Cool, but clear morning at Easton Mountain]

[hanlonrife]

Chapel entry

The Hermitage

Easton Mountain

[nooowestayandgetcaught]

Be Sure To Come Home

read on AO3

1.5k, Beth Easton/Jody Salerno, T-rating, for @yearoftheotpevent’s April prompt “canon divergence”

Summary: The last time Jody saw her, Beth was okay. So why wouldn't she be?

[scarecrow-and-huntsman]

 'I feed dogs and walk dogs. I not eat dogs.' Despite everything that was going on, Jack couldn't help but smile at that. 'I'm glad to hear you didn't eat my dogs.'

[pupsmailbox]

COWBOY ID PACK

NAMES ⌇　abeline. adeline. alfred. anderson. annie. archer. arthur. ash. aspen. austin. automata. axel. barett. beau. beckett. belle. bennett. betty. billy. blaise. boone. bree. brooks. bryce. cade. caleb. callen. callie. calvin. carson. casey. cassidy. chance. chase. clayton. clementine. clint. clyde. cody. colby. cole. colt. colton. connor. coraline. county. cree. cyrus. dagger. dakota. dallas. dalton. damon. darby. darla. delta. denver. dove. east. easton. edgar. eliza. elliot. ellis. emmett. emmylou. everett. everly. fallon. fang. farmer. fletcher. flint. flynn. fritz. gage. georgia. georgina. grant. graves. hank. harrison. harvey. hattie. hawk. hayes. heidi. holster. hudson. hunter. ida. jace. jack. jackie. jackson. james. jed. jesse. jessie. john. jolene. josh. joshua. jude. knox. leroy. lewis. loretta. lucille. luke. luther. lyle. maple. marshall. mason. maverick. meadow. millie. misty. myra. nash. nell. nina. oakley. oscar. otis. owen. pace. pamela. penelope. phoenix. pierce. pollyanna. prairie. quinn. ray. reed. reid. rhett. rhys. riley. river. rochelle. rory. roscoe. rosie. rudy. ryder. rye. sadie. savannah. sawyer. scarlett. sedona. selena. shep. shepherd. sienna. sierra. silas. skye. spanner. sparky. sterling. stevie. stormy sullivan. sundance. tallulah. tate. tess. todd. tucker. twila twyla. verily. wade. walker. walt. walter. waylon. wayne. weston. wilde. will. willa. willow. winona. wren. wyatt. zachariah. zane. zeke. zinnia.

PRONOUNS ⌇　ace/ace. aim/aim. badge/badge. bandana/bandana. barrel/barrel. boot/boot. boy/boy. brash/brash. buck/buck. bull/bullet. cattle/cattle. clad/clad. clash/clash. colt/colt. cow/boy. cow/cow. cowboy/cowboy. cy/cyborg. denim/denim. dirt/dirt. dive/dive. drive/drive. fang/fang. farmer/farmer. fence/fence. fire/fire. foal/foal. gold/golden. gra/grass. gun/gun. hat/hat. herd/herd. hill/hill. hit/hit. hold/holdem. holdem/holdem. hoof/hoof. horse/horse. iron/iron. jack/jack. jump/jump. kick/kick. lasso/lasso. law/law. lawful/lawful. lone/lone. mech/mecha. metal/metal. mount/mountain. mustang/mustang. noon/noon. officer/officer. out/out. outlaw/outlaw. poker/poker. protect/protect. pry/pry. punch/punch. punish/punish. ranch/ranch. ranger/ranger. rev/rev. rev/revolver. rev/rev. revolvers/revolver. river/river. ro/ro. robo/robo. rug/rugged. run/run. rust/rust. ry/ry. save/save. sharp/sharp. sheriff/sheriff. shoot/shoot. shot/shot. shot/shotgun. shout/shout. spark/spark. spur/spur. star/star. steed/steed. steel/steel. sun/sun. thief/thief. tumble/tumble. weed/weed. wheat/wheat. wood/wood. yee/haw. yeehaw/yeehaw.

[writingsfromhome]

Things to Learn

Request: hiii idk if youve thought about this but what about a mean girl!yn and nerd!harry high school fic or something like that :))

A/N: it is what the request says, idk if this is exactly what you wanted but writing a mean girl!yn was different for me. I also wrote this from Harry’s third pov so that’s also different lol. Hope you enjoy it? Thanks for the req :) <3

Part 1 / 2 / 3 /

———————————————

Harry hated girls like her. Hate was a strong word, he knew that. And he used it still.

He eyes her again as she sits on the lunch table and talks animatedly to her friends about something shallow or irrelevant. He goes back to the sandwich he had for lunch.

“She’s out of your league mate,” Harry’s best friend tells him.

“What?”

“YN? You’re staring at her. She’s out of your league. Like so far that even if you climbed a mountain and looked over everything you wouldn’t be able to see-“

“I got it,” Harry didn’t like her. He knew she was well out of his league and he didn’t care. He had one more year of this shite called high school and then he was off to uni. His sister always told him high school labels didn’t follow you there. “I don’t even like her. I was just looking.”

His friend makes a noise, he didn’t believe him.

“I’m serious. Ms. Easton partnered us in history probably because she’s not doing well. I’ve got the highest grade. But she’s insufferable.”

“You’re insufferable,” his friend shoots back. “If I was partnered with her I’d be shooting my shot. Every chance.”

“I’d rather shoot myself,” Harry mutters. He had history next period and he wasn’t looking forward to it. Their class had booked the library for research period and that meant suffering through it with YN.

He’s first to arrive at the library and books a computer. They were researching the royal family, he didn’t know what angle the paper was going to be from but he would figure it out later. Alone. Because YN was always too busy not giving a shit.

The truth was, he just didn’t understand girls like YN. How they could be so shallow and rude for no reason, he didn’t think the world was rainbows and unicorns but it was decent to just be a little nicer. She was judgemental, loud, and of course attractive as hell. But her personality ruined any good looks in his opinion. So even though he was staring at lunch, he didn’t find her very attractive.

“I guess we’re sitting here,” speak of the devil. Surprisingly YN is here before the bell goes off. She sits in the seat next to Harry and her bag is thrown on the floor.

“Hi to you too,” Harry mutters. He ignores her, continuing to flip through his textbook for the correct chapter.

“Have we decided on a topic?”

Harry grits his teeth. I don’t know YN have we? Instead he says, “No.”

“Oh, well why not just do it on what’s going on right now?”

“Because it’s a history class,” Harry finally look at her. He remembers it was a little nerve wracking to do that when they were first partnered but now his annoyance triumphed any nerves.

“And?” She scrunches her brows. “Isn’t that the point?”

She had no idea what she was talking about. He shakes his head and goes back to his textbook.

“You don’t have to be such a nerd all the time you know that?” She continues.

Harry ignores her.

“Hello?” She snaps her fingers. Who did she think she was?

“Can we just work?” Harry couldn’t stand her.

The bell rings. YN picks up her phone in a huff and Harry goes back to Googling for their project.

***

Harry packs his bag with the books he needs as students rush past him to go home. His bag weighed a million pounds and he’s pretty sure it aged his back 40 years but it was either his grades or his back that suffered.

“Hey Harry,” a voice calls out to him as we heads out the door. He turns to it; Raina, one of YN’s friends. She twirls her blonde hair and tilts her head. “It is Harry right?”

“Uhm,” suddenly Harry’s throat was parched. Raina was gorgeous and gorgeous girls never spoke to him.

“You’re cute,” she gets up close and personal with Harry and everything in that big brain of his liquifies and slides away. “So I heard you’re giving my bestie a hard time.”

“Your-uh,” what was wrong with him? Focus!

“My bestie! YN?”

“Oh,” the name snaps him out. Was this a prank, why was Raina talking to him? “W-what?”

“I thought you were smart,” she tilts her head again, this time Harry understands it to be condescending. “Did you not understand the question?”

Harry hears a snicker from behind him. His heart drops, he knew what was happening yet he walked right into it.

“Harry’s really smart,” YN’s voice comes from behind. “So smart he can’t even talk to me. Like, I’ll bring down your IQ or something right?”

“I never said that,” Harry turns, back to the wall like he was in some sort of fight for his life and he had to cover all his angles.

“Then what’s your problem?” YN demands. Her friend takes a back seat, staring at him from behind YN’s shoulder.

“I didn’t say I had one,” Harry mumbles.

“What? Speak up!” With one hand on her hip, YN was the image of a mean girl. Harry’s gaze flickers up to her face and he realizes she was actually angry. At him. He looks away.

“You’re so pathetic,” she tells him. “You can barely look me in the eye when I’m talking to you but you think you’re a hot shot just cuz you get straight As. You can take your intellectual superiority and shove it up your ass.”

He was surprised to hear her say intellectual superiority, then he realizes the irony of thinking that.

“This guy bothering you?”

Great. Harry hitches his backback higher on his shoulders. One of YN’s soccer star boyfriends had joined. He looks Harry up and down with a condescending smirk.

“No, I got it.” YN says but her friend opens her big mouth.

“He thinks he’s the smartest person here, he treats YN like shite.”

“Really?” He turns to Harry and now is when Harry realizes he was deep in. There was no way out.

“I’m sorry,” he looks YN in the eye and only her. He had to make a quick exit, find a way out of this before these meatheads decided to defend YN’s honour or something like that.

“Too late for sorry,” Raina says. Another guy—Brett joins the crowd.

“What’s going on?” He asks.

“Nothing,” YN says while her eyes stay on Harry.

“Hey Harry! Mate! This guy helped me pass my maths last semester.”

“Yeah he’s a nerd,” the other guy says to Brett. “That’s the point.”

“Hey Brett,” Harry nods. He should go, he thinks. Make a move. Get out of this circle forming around him.

“He’s a dick to YN,” Raina reminds everyone. What was her issue? “And he’s always staring at her like a creep.”

YN turns to look at her friend. Raina widens her eyes and shrugs.

“What the fuck?” The other guy, Harry had no idea what his name was, steps closer to Harry. “Are you a fucking perv?”

Statistically, this guy with his brute force and reactivity was probably more likely to be a perv over the years than Harry. But Harry doesn’t think it’s a good time to say that.

“Anyway,” YN says and with that all eyes are on her. “Apology not accepted. I’m over this let’s go.”

She walks away from him, Raina eyes him and follows. Their friend gives Harry the stink eye and follows too. Brett’s left. He shrugs and finally leaves Harry alone.

Little by little the breath comes back to his lungs and with shaky steps Harry exits the building. Some students lingering in the hall stare as he goes, probably the audience to what almost went down. And this was why Harry hated YN.

***

Over the next week Harry tries to be less intellectually superior to YN and practices looking her in the eye. He doesn’t know why it was so hard.

And it surprises him when the words coming out of her mouth aren’t entirely superficial and basic. But she continues to verbally abuse and belittle him and Harry continues to take it, his ire growing more by the day.

Just on Tuesday, at lunch she’d sent one of her boyfriends to sit at his table where he threatened Harry. Harry’s friend had stared at his phone the whole time, traitor. And yesterday YN had listed for him all the ways he could improve his appearance during class.

“Your hair could use a nice trim,” she tells him. “And your glasses are so 1970s. Like not in a trendy way. And honestly Harry why do you wear clothes that are too big and too old. Like seriously…”

It was hard not to be a know-it-all when that’s what she wanted to spend her time talking about.

“My appearance isn’t really a priority for me,” Harry had said hoping to shut her up.

“It really should be. Hey,” she’d called out to a friend of hers in class. “Don’t you think Harry’s style is sad?”

“Him?” Her friend had asked, like she wasn’t sure if she was supposed to say it in front of him. Harry had burned with embarrassment. “Yeah I reckon he could use a makeover.”

“Yeah maybe then he’d get a girlfriend. Get his nose out of his books.”

They laughed and the sound was haunting. Harry stayed staring at his book, gritting his teeth. He’d never had a girlfriend, gone on two dates in his life. It didn’t usually bother him but somehow YN made it feel like an open wound.

On Thursday, they have another research period.

“And how are we doing here?” Ms. Easton leans down and balances on their table. Harry and YN opted for a table and books this period.

“Good,” YN sits up. “Just finishing our research.”

“Good,” Ms. Easton smiles. “Did you two decide on a topic?”

Harry doesn’t look but he can feel her rolling her eyes. “Yeah. Harry wanted to do the royal family and their war legacy.”

“Hm.”

Harry was sensitive to feedback. When you’re smart you don’t get a lot of criticism, and when you do, it’s a hard pill to swallow. That’s why he was so sensitive to the tone of his teacher’s voice. He looks up to her. Was it just him or did she look a bit disappointed.

“S’not a good topic?” Harry asks. YN glances at him.

“Well,” the teacher crosses an arm over her abdomen and waves the other hand. She was choosing her words. “I was hoping putting the two of you together would produce an interesting project. Something out of the ordinary.”

“Oh.” Harry feels his grade flash in front of his eyes. Well, not flash but plummet.

“Hmph,” YN says in satisfaction. “Well Harry here felt very strongly about the topic.”

“Okay,” Ms. Easton pursues her lips. “It is a good topic. I’m looking forward to hearing all about it at the end of the month!”

As soon as their teacher is out of hearing range YN turns to Harry.

“I told you so.”

With that, she gets out of her seat and walks away. Out of the library, swiping the hall pass on her way out.

Suddenly he was hot. Very hot. Harry could feel the sweat dampen his shirt and he pulls the collar away from his neck. His project was disappointing? He was doing something wrong?

He stumbles up and finds Ms. Easton.

“Yes Harry?” She addresses him when she’s done with the pair she’d been talking to.

“Um what you said,” Harry clears his throat. “About the project. And pairing me with YN. I don’t understand…should we change it?”

“Up to you two to decide!” She says vaguely. “I can’t pick your topics for you. And you should only change it if you think you have enough time.”

“But our topic is disappointing?” Harry didn’t understand why Ms. Easton would make those comments and not just tell them upfront what she wants.

“No not at all!” she guides Harry to a bookshelf where it’s quieter. “War is a classic topic. But it’s also a very…straightforward topic do you understand?”

Classic was good. Classic was timeless, is that not what she wanted!?

“Harry,” she chides when he continues staring at her. “Listen. You’re a bright kid. Really, proper smart. I know you’ll do amazing in your future regardless of what I say in this class.”

It was YN. There was a but coming and she was going to say something about YN.

“But I’ve had a few bright kids in my class before. The thing about history is it repeats and the pattern I see is that there’s a creative energy even in something like history that’s lost on big brains like yours. That’s why I paired you with YN. I thought you two would complement the way you think really well. I was hoping to see a new topic come out of it. That’s not to say your current topic isn’t fabulous. I think if you want to continue with it, I’m excited to learn more.”

Harry doesn’t have anything to say. Actually, he’s embarrassed. This whole time he thought being partnered with YN was because she was failing or doing horribly. When really it was because the teacher thought he could use some help. Intellectual superiority 100, Harry 0.

“You two are getting along right?” Ms. Easton probes.

“Yeah,” Harry lies.

“She’s letting you call the shots?” She asks casually.

“Ehm,” Harry wavers. He had taken the reigns immediately because he didn’t think she could handle them. He feels his face turn more pink.

“The great thing about this project is to collaborate. Throughout history some of the best things were brought from collaborating…”

Harry zones her out and looks back at their desk. YN is still not there. Maybe she was skipping. But he spots her bag, that wasn’t true.

“Oh I better go help out your classmate,” Ms. Easton points to where someone has their hand up. “You’re alright?”

“Yeah,” Harry shakes the funk off. Maybe he’ll listen to YN more now but they only had a week and a half and it would be crazy to change their topic now.

But as he sits in his seat and waits for YN to return, to collaborate with, he feels it again. The sinking feeling. Like something was his fault.

YN was the mean girl but he hasn’t been the most friendly either.

After another 10 minutes go by he gets out of his seat and grabs the second hall pass.

He spots around the toilets, moves through the halls, and makes his way back to a stairwell. There YN leans against a wall on her phone. She doesn’t look up as he walks down until he stands in front of her.

“Oh,” the glow of her phone moves off her face, muffled by her sweater. “I thought you were random.”

“Are you coming back?” Harry asks. Still, his eyes flit from her face to her neck, settling on the wall behind her.

“Why does it matter? You’re doing the project with or without me.”

His throat feels like it’s stuffed with cotton as he swallows. He should apologize. He should-

“Why are you so awkward for?” She demands. “Like. You’re smart and all but you’re kind of weird.”

Nevermind. He was so not apologizing.

“Hello? And then you go so quiet when I say anything direct. You can be smart as shite but you’re not making it anywhere if you can’t even talk to a girl without staring a hole into the space beside her.”

Harry’s mum always said to be himself. This was him, smart (nerdy—fine), quiet, awkward, and bookish. But it wasn’t easy to be this way when girls like YN existed. They were confident and loud, and she called him out like his sister did. But she was nothing like her. She was beautiful and she knew it. And she was rude, but maybe her mum told her to be herself too and this was it.

“What are you thinking?” She demands.

“What?” Harry asks in surprise.

“I want to know what the fuck you’re thinking in that big brain! You’re so awkward! Jeez!”

“I’m-I-why?”

“I don’t get you.” She gives him a once over. “So? What were you thinking?“

“Nothing.”

“Bullshit.”

“Seriously I-“

“Tell me.”

“I…” Harry trails away. He turns away from her and walks to the other end of the stairwell, pivots, and stands a few feet in front of her. “I was just wondering if this is who you really are.”

“Me? How am I?” Eyes narrowed, she sounds both curious and defensive.

“Really?” Harry meets her eye. “You’ve got such an attitude, you’re rude and loud and pushy, and I don’t know why you don’t like me but you’re always so condescending so I was just wondering if that’s who you are. Like when your mum says to be yourself, is that who you chose?”

Her mouth drops, then it snaps shut and her arms cross over in defence.

“You know why I don’t like you?” She asks. “Because you’ve got an attitude. You’re rude and pushy and condescending to fuck. So let me ask you—is that who you are? Is that who mummy tucks into bed each night?”

Harry’s impressed how she’s turned it around on him. He doesn’t take it seriously until she breaks eye contact and looks away.

“If I listened to my mom’s advice, I would be a bloody doormat in this place. I’d be used and discarded like a wet wipe. I have to be rude and pushy. And don’t even get me started on boys like you, who call girls pushy just because they know what they want. I can’t afford to be who I am, like you can, because I don’t have the privilege of being a bloke.”

They have a stare-off, mostly Harry is just surprised at everything coming out of her mouth. She goes on.

“I know who you are Harry. I know you’ve got a mum and sister you’re close with. I’ve seen you around town. For someone with two women like that in your life you can look up to, you sure are a misogynistic prick.”

Harry’s left stunned. He didn’t think she ever noticed him let alone know him. He replays her words, her glimpse of vulnerability. If her words were an essay, there would be no red ink. It was hard for him to accept but she was right. From the start, when Ms. Easton paired them he made a million assumptions about her. That were all proven wrong. And Ms. Easton was right too: he was smart and good at being smart but maybe there was more than that.

“Now you’re quiet again!?” YN sounds defeated.

“No wait,” Harry speaks up before she leaves. “I’m sorry. Seriously.”

“Yeah whatever,” she rolls her eyes. “I’m over this.”

“Actually,” he steps in the same direction she does as she heads for the door. She stops in surprise. “Actually I am sorry. I was being intellectually superior. You’re smart too. I’m sorry.”

She looks at him warily, like he was going to laugh at her and tell her he was joking. When he doesn’t, when he maintains eye contact even though it kills him inside she backs away. Her face relaxes, like she’s accepted backing down. It was quite a sight for Harry, to see YN the Mean Girl who’s been making the last couple weeks hell for him, transform into something softer. Something that—he was still nervous to look at for too long, but one he could look at a little easier.

“I don’t want to write about the royal family and their fucking war legacy.”

Harry wasn’t expecting that.

“That’s basic as hell, I’m falling asleep just imagining us presenting it. It’s like buying drugstore when we can be buying Sephora.”

She squints at him, waiting for a rebuttle but he lets her have this one. After what Ms. Easton said, Harry was realizing that being smart didn’t mean you were right all the time. And he also had no idea what her example meant.

“Wow. Nothing?”

“No, I agree.” Harry smiles, a little embarrassed but wow. Her mouth splits into a grin and it changes her whole face. She’s suddenly younger, carefree, in that moment as Harry remembers how to breathe, he sees the person her mother tells her to be.

“What?” The staircase dims as she takes the smile back. “Are you going to go back to being mute.”

“No,” I was just admiring how beautiful you looked right now. Maybe you’re not who I thought you were. But you’re also way out of my league so now I have to act cool about it. “I just don’t know if we have time-“

“Stop.” She puts her hand up and walks towards him, back to the doors. “I’m going to come up with a pitch so good I’ll be picking your jaw off the floor and wiring it shut again. And…you can pitch your sad topic to me. The best one wins.”

“But we can just vote our own,” Harry points out the flaw in her plan, ignoring her threat.

“I think we’re both mature enough to hear each other out?” She opens the door back to the hall and Harry scrambles through it to keep up.

“I know I am,” Harry says it before he can think. Uh oh.

“You’re cheeky,” YN eyes him but she doesn’t look upset. Actually, she looks delighted. “Not just a quiet nerd hm?”

Harry shrugs, they had really been their stereotypes the last few weeks.

“So what you said before, you think I’m smart?”

“Well, yeah. I guess.” Harry felt uncomfortable now on the spot.

“So like you think I can be the future prime minister?”

“I…don’t know about that.” Harry side eyes her to notice she’s smiling. She was teasing him.

The bell rings out as they near the library.

“Talk to you tomorrow,” she says to him. She shoots him another smile and Harry tries to memorize it, second guessing he ever thought she was unattractive.

***

That Friday it’s like Harry and YN never had that conversation. She ignores him in the halls as usual, her friends sneer at him when they catch him looking their way. As much as Harry didn’t want to be disappointed, he was. Why did he think anything was going to be different?

But he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Her smile was a loop in his head any time his mind wanders. No wonder their whole grade was in love with her.

“You’re staring. Again.” Harry’s mate says at lunch. This time Harry looks away quickly, embarrassed. “What’s going on with you?”

“Nothing,” he says quickly. “She’s just been making my life hell since we partnered up.”

“Yeah I heard those guys roughened you up at lunch the other day.”

They didn’t. But they did aim a basketball around the net as Harry was walking by yesterday and it had hit him. His glasses had fallen off but luckily nothing broke.

“Just one more week,” Harry mutters. Earlier this week he was counting down the days. Now he wasn’t so sure.

When the bell rings signalling the end of lunch, Harry is surprised when YN falls in line with him to their class.

“Pitch ready?” She asks. She smelled amazing like flowers and tea. Focus.

“Yep,” Harry didn’t put much effort into it. He didn’t have the same passion he did before and he was curious what YN had.

They get the last 20 minutes of class to work on their project. YN sits behind Harry so he turns when their time starts.

“Me first,” YN brings out a binder. She pulls out a folded piece of paper that she hands. He opens it and glitter falls into his lap.

“Ugh!” Harry jumps up but despite that his crotch sparkles. “What is this?”

YN’s eyes are lit up and she hides her giggles behind her hand. Harry stares, turning pink. Why would she do that?

“I’m so-“ she covers her mouth again. “I’m sorry!” She’s shaking as she tries to stop laughing. It’s kind of contagious and Harry cracks a smile.

“My pants are covered in glitter,” he deadpans which send her head onto the table as she shakes with laughter.

“It was just supposed to lighten the mood ohmygod,” YN can barely finish her sentence.

That was it. Harry tries to pick up whatever glitter he can, using the paper (he realizes it was her pitch) as a dustpan. He taps her behind the shoulder and she jumps up to turn, in that moment he dumps the paper on her and sits back down in satisfaction.

“Now we’re even,” Harry tell her. Her mouth is open in shock.

“No!” She tries to dust it off but her crotch, that Harry glances at, is also shimmering. “We were even after I did that to you! This is! Oh my god.”

She stands over Harry, her eyes glancing at his pants. A snicker escapes. Then she’s back in her seat laughing.

“I have to say your pitch is not going well,” Harry reminds her.

“Oh my god,” she tried to get serious but she’s still grinning. Harry doesn’t mind.

“Should I go first?” He asks.

“No no I got this. Okay. The royal family and…their influence on food. Now before you think it’s stupid did you know the matriarch actually has a list of forbidden foods. And if we go back, and look at the countries they invaded we can see…” YN grows serious, but passionate, as she begins pitching the topic. And before anything just her passion alone convinces Harry they had to do this topic. “From land to table.”

“Okay.” Harry says.

“Okay? Like that was just okay?”

“No, I vote your topic.”

“Oh my god really?” She lights up and it’s blinding. Harry wanted to make her light up every chance he got. Focus.

“Yeah I think it’s interesting. And different. But we only have a week.”

“That’s okay!” YN opens her binder and pulls out another sheet. “I did a bunch of research. I couldn’t really sleep last night cuz of…anyway. So our library has all these books that can help. And we can spend the weekend catching up right? We can meet at the local library and work. So we’re caught up by Monday.”

Wow. She really thought this through.

“Isn’t that too nerdy for you?” Harry has to ask. Didn’t she have something cooler to do on the weekend.

“Oh my god,” she rolls her eyes. That was the YN he knew. “Just because I’m not a nerd doesn’t mean I don’t care about my grades. You should know my lowest grade has been 82 this year.”

Wow. Even though Harry never scored below 95 that was still impressive coming from her. Which it shouldn’t be, he reminds himself. She was smart—just in a different way.

“Okay let’s do it!” Harry was excited. He suddenly understood what Ms. Easton was trying to say, he was missing creativity.

“Yay!” She squeezes his arm and Harry’s never felt more aware of his arm in his life. YN notices him freezing and she pulls away. “Sorry. I didn’t give you my cooties did I?”

She was quick. But it was funny and Harry can’t help but let out a snort.

“Is that a laugh? Are you laughing at something I said about you?”

Harry shakes his head and turns in his seat but his face is stuck in the grin. YN continues to heckle him from behind but she’s interrupted by the bell.

“Give me your number,” she says as he packs up. “So we can coordinate tomorrow.”

“Oh yeah,” Harry pulls up his contacts and hands her his phone. “Just put yours in.”

“Okay, I’m texting myself too,” she types for a while and then hands it back. It’s only later when she texts him at the end of the day does he click her contact.

Future Prime Minister YN ❤️

The picture is one of her from below with a serious face on. When he squints he realizes she’s flipping him off. It’s funny, and Harry feels like he sees her now. Even though she couldn’t always be herself like he could, Harry now understood her enough to recognize the glimpses of herself she was giving him.

It’s destined that every nerd falls for the mean girl. Harry never believed that until now. As YN becomes more recognizable to him, his crush grows a little more. He had to nip this in the bud, he realizes. Because she would never feel the same way. In a million years. But maybe they could be friends. Maybe it was time for Harry to discover who he could be when he wasn’t spending all his time being nerdy. He had a lot to learn from her, he realizes. And the one thing he was good at was studying.

[mia-does-nonsense]

Walkis headcanons b/c my brain won't shut up:

At first glance, their fancy uniforms are simultaneously cool and stupid. Like, those guys are probably dying during the summer (except for Kenny).

But from the brief shot we got in the manga of their school, I think Walkis is situated in a gloomy, cold-ass mountain area, and a good distance away from civilization like any emo school. Cloudy all the damn time and probably rains a lot too. The uniforms would at least have some practical use to keep the students from getting chilly.

Most, if not all, of the Walkis student body and faculty come from nobility and wealth, so it's kind of impossible to not have a reputation while attending. Like, "That's so-and-so from x family who does y at the Bureau of Magic" and whatnot, which will either make somone's life at Walkis a lot smoother or a lot harder.

The rigorous academics and competitiveness between dorms, years, individual students, new money vs old money, etc makes the shit that goes down at Easton look tame. Students like Finn and Lemon - who are average in academics and/or who come from lower/middle class families - will absolutely not survive there in the metaphorical sense...

...and likely also in the literal sense. Walkis is dangerous. When your parents are politicians, nobles, and just powerful people in general, school rules and even the law itself are merely suggestions. At Easton, the Magia Lupus kidnapped students, nearly stole Lemon's magic permanently, and didn't care about heavily injuring people, and then there's Carpaccio who was stabbing people left and right at the DV exam. Now multiply that by 10, and you'll have an idea what Walkis is like.

A good portion of the students are double-liners, and it's not uncommon to resort to underhanded tactics to get by, not to mention classes are highly advanced and deal with dangerous magic spells, potions, creatures, and such. If you're strong and influential enough to get away with it, you will almost certainly get away with it. If you don't, it's probably only because there was someone stronger than you to put you in your place.

Power is everything in Walkis, after all. And it got worse once Levis and Domina enrolled...

Of course, faculty tries their damn best to keep some semblance of order in the school, because 1. Walkis needs to maintain its prestigious reputation, and 2. These are the kids of the most important people in the magic realm, it would be very bad if something happened to them.

Then again, we know most noble families are shit when it comes to their children (Ex: the Crowns, Madls, Razors, and Rosequartzs) so I wouldn't be surprised if many parents don't care that much if their kid gets sent to the hospital or even straight-up dies. They probably just glanced at the school waiver when enrolling their kids about potential injury and death and were like, "If something happens to them, that's because they're weak blah blah blah" and signed it without a second thought.

The manga says that the majority of the Divine Visionaries in all of history came from Walkis - a whopping 85 compared to Easton's 11 and St. Ars' 4, if I remember correctly. It would be a stretch to assume that not all DVs in the magic realm's history were benevolent. Matter of fact, the current DV lineup was probably the best since Wahlberg and Adam Jobs' time, in terms of not just power but ethics and morality.

I mean, obviously there was still the whole situation with Mash (looking at especially you, Orter), but it would be interesting if some previous DVs throughout history were very self-serving and corrupt, because the ratio of candidates from Walkis and the other schools is crazy and *gestures vaguely at Walkis' aforementioned values regarding power and magic ability, leading to class differences, nepotism, etc, etc.* This was also why Adam Jobs' legacy became so warped after his death, with his beliefs regarding noblesse oblige being largely forgotten or misinterpreted.

[elhoimleafar]

EM Spring Awakening WORKSHOP. I/III

Having an outstanding time teaching Cleansing methods and Protective ways of folkloric magic from South America during my workshop 'Auras & Shields' for my 6th time here at Easton Mountain Retreat Center during the 'Spring Awakening' event for gay/bi/trans/queer men.

Also, introduce my upcoming book 'Dream Witchery' (check on AMZN, which is available for pre-order). And talking about the decolonization of our magic and how to create safe, diverse spaces for BIPOC and LGBTQ members in events and other places.

Check my book Dream Witchery here: https://www.amazon.com/Dream-Witchery-Recipes-America-Witches/dp/0738774758/

And my next event OUR SORCERY HOUR focused on diversity and sorcery for just $40 (eight workshops for the price of one). Here: https://elhoimleafar.com/oursorceryhour/

[molybdic]

019 untitled

20140516_1222

[bark in a bucket]

[winterandwords]

Writer interview tag

Thanks to @deanwax and @sergeantnarwhalwrites for the tags!

This is a loooong one, so I'm going to leave it as an open tag for anyone who wants to do it. Remember to @ me so I can see your answers. Blank template is under the cut 💜

📝 About you

When did you first start writing?

Forfuckingever ago. Seriously. My childhood was littered with 'books' written on folded and stapled sheets of printer paper.

Are the genres/themes you enjoy reading different from the ones you write?

I read pretty widely and definitely enjoy reading the genres and themes that show up in my writing, among many others.

Is there an author (or just a fellow writer!) you want to emulate, or one to whom you’re often compared?

I don't try to emulate anyone, but I'm sure I'm influenced by what I read as much as anyone else is. Someone once described my writing as "if Anne Rice wrote a Bret Easton Ellis book" and I chose to take that as a compliment.

Can you tell me a little about your writing space(s)?

I have a desk in front of a window with a view that I'm in love with. Rolling farmland reaching to mountains in the distance. I've looked at it daily for almost three years and the novelty still hasn't worn off.

What’s your most effective way to muster up some muse?

Absorbing stories from other places. Books, TV shows, films, the persistent horrors of existence.

Did the place(s) you grew up in influence the people and places you write about?

Yes, but not intentionally. And the when is as significant as the where. I didn't notice this until someone else pointed it out and now I can't stop seeing it.

Are there any recurring themes in your writing, and if so, do they surprise you at all?

Drugs, violence, organised crime, fuck the system, weather symbolism, nice coats. No surprise at all tbh.

📝 Your characters

Would you please tell me about your current favourite character?

I can't choose between my children.

Which of your characters do you think you’d be friends with in real life?

Most of them, honestly. If I had to pick one, it would probably be Brett from November Breaks and Spin Cylinder because he's the one with the most of me in him, but it would be a total disaster because the parts of me I dumped on him aren't exactly the best parts.

Which of your characters would you dislike the most if you met them?

I don't know that I'd dislike any of them, but things would get frosty and weird pretty fast if I was in a room with Gillen from Bridge From Ashes and Name From Nowhere.

Tell me about the process of coming up with of one, all, or any of your characters.

There is no process. They just arrive in my head and I write about them to stop them yelling at me.

Do you notice any recurring themes/traits among your characters?

Obsessive tendencies, rejection of authority, masochism, recklessness, enthusiasm for recreational drugs.

📝 Your writing

What’s your reason for writing?

It makes me happy. I wish it was deeper than that, but it isn't.

Is there a specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating coming from your readers?

When someone notices some tiny detail I put in there and didn't expect anyone to pick up on. When someone connects with my characters. When someone feels seen because of something I wrote.

How do you want to be thought of by those who read your work? (For example: as a literary genius, or as a writer who “gets” the human condition; as a talented worldbuilder, as a role model, etc)

I've never really thought about it. Maybe if reading my writing gave someone else the courage to write what they wanted instead of what they've been told they should write? I struggled with that a lot so it would be cool to help someone else through it.

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

Character voice, I think? Dialogue? I don't know.

What have you been frequently told your greatest writing strength is by others?

See previous answer 🙈

How do you feel about your own writing? (Answer in whatever way you interpret this question)

It's cheaper than therapy.

If you were the last person on earth and knew your writing would never be read by another human, would you still write?

Yeah. If I was the last person on earth, at least my characters would keep me company while I lost my mind.

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely what you enjoy? If it’s a mix of the two, which holds the most influence?

I write what I enjoy and I assume that if I enjoy it, someone else will too. No matter what you do, there's going to be someone else out there who'll get a kick out of it.

About you When did you first start writing? Are the genres/themes you enjoy reading different from the ones you write? Is there an author (or just a fellow writer!) you want to emulate, or one to whom you’re often compared? Can you tell me a little about your writing space(s)? What’s your most effective way to muster up some muse? Did the place(s) you grew up in influence the people and places you write about? Are there any recurring themes in your writing, and if so, do they surprise you at all?

Your characters Would you please tell me about your current favourite character? Which of your characters do you think you’d be friends with in real life? Which of your characters would you dislike the most if you met them? Tell me about the process of coming up with of one, all, or any of your characters. Do you notice any recurring themes/traits among your characters?

Your writing What’s your reason for writing? Is there a specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating coming from your readers? How do you want to be thought of by those who read your work? (For example: as a literary genius, or as a writer who “gets” the human condition; as a talented worldbuilder, as a role model, etc) What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer? What have you been frequently told your greatest writing strength is by others? How do you feel about your own writing? (Answer in whatever way you interpret this question) If you were the last person on earth and knew your writing would never be read by another human, would you still write? When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely what you enjoy? If it’s a mix of the two, which holds the most influence?

[thedndgoblinwholivesinyourwalls]

HIIIIIIIIi hello larkkiiieeeee:)

Uhh idk what to say but If we don’t talk to someone soon I’m going to actually implode so here we are to tap at you!! Uhh idk exactly what to say

Hmmm

Ohh uh maybe we can give you a list of all the places in Morticaptia and you can ask about them if you want!!

Okay doing that now

•Towcray

•Carlon town

•mock river

•kitastick lake

•genta

•tomar

•omniscient lake

•voreed

•rhinewood

•Easton

•fielde

•tail malley

•the twin mountains

Okay that’s most of the uhh towns/natural landmarks there is other stuff but don’t want to overload you lol

HIII FIGG!!! spins you around hihi :] I also need to talk to people rn so aghh me and you both bestie

Why must you come up with cool place names hellooo/pos I have questions about them all however what is the omniscient lake?

[bracketsoffear]

The Honeys (Ryan La Sala) "Mars has always been the lesser twin, the shadow to his sister Caroline's radiance. But when Caroline dies under horrific circumstances, Mars is propelled to learn all he can about his once-inseparable sister who'd grown tragically distant.

Mars's genderfluidity means he's often excluded from the traditions -- and expectations -- of his politically-connected family. This includes attendance at the prestigious Aspen Conservancy Summer Academy where his sister poured so much of her time. But with his grief still fresh, he insists on attending in her place.

What Mars finds is a bucolic fairytale not meant for him. Folksy charm and sun-drenched festivities camouflage old-fashioned gender roles and a toxic preparatory rigor. Mars seeks out his sister's old friends: a group of girls dubbed the Honeys, named for the beehives they maintain behind their cabin. They are beautiful and terrifying -- and Mars is certain they're connected to Caroline's death.

But the longer he stays at Aspen, the more the sweet mountain breezes give way to hints of decay. Mars’s memories begin to falter, bleached beneath the relentless summer sun. Something is hunting him in broad daylight, toying with his mind. If Mars can't find it soon, it will eat him alive."

What Moves the Dead (T. Kingfisher) "In this atmospheric retelling of Edgar Allan Poe's classic "The Fall of the House of Usher", Alex Easton, a retired soldier, receives word that their childhood friend Madeline Usher is dying, so they race to the ancestral home of the Ushers in the remote countryside of Ruravia.

What they find there is a nightmare of fungal growths and possessed wildlife, surrounding a dark, pulsing lake. Madeline sleepwalks and speaks in strange voices at night, and her brother Roderick is consumed with a mysterious malady of the nerves.

Aided by a redoubtable British mycologist and a baffled American doctor, Alex must unravel the secret of the House of Usher before it consumes them all."

[orange-cheetah]

[N1A1] Chapter 1: Mash Burnedead and the Forest of Forewarning

(from Mash Burnedead and the Book of Adventures) Choose what Mash does next! Poll under Read More.

[masterlist]

▷Aー1

“Where is this?”

It was a dark forest blowing with a damp breeze.

The presence of living things could be felt everywhere among the trees and flowers growing thickly in search of sunlight. However, only darkness could be seen when one turns to look.

“Just, where on earth……”

Mash Burnedead runs with his jet-black robes fluttering and his mushroom-shaped black hair flowing. He is a first-year student at Easton Magic Academy, a school near this forest.

Night falls early in forests.

Surely this place, too, will soon be swallowed up by the darkness.

Of course, there is a reason why this young man is running alone in the forest at this hour.

A few hours ago―

*

Easton Magic Academy is located at the top of a steep mountain with strangely-shaped rocks that reach for the sky.

After finishing class, Mash Burnedead returns to Adler House, one of the three student dormitories under Easton that symbolizes "courage and conviction."

The reason why he returned a little later than the other students is probably because he was off shopping somewhere. As proof of that, look, he has a paper bag in his hand―

"......?"

As Mash reaches out to open the door, he notices something.

The paper bag that should’ve been in his hand until just a second ago is gone.

"Huh?"

Mash flaps his long robe, taking it off a little and turning it inside out to search through it, but he can't find it anywhere.

"Why?"

It contained freshly-baked cream puffs that he had gone all the way into town after school to buy. He ate most of them on the way back to the dormitory, but he did save three as tomorrow morning's snack―

Mash, who is looking at his empty hands in wonder, hears a small noise.

"......!"

Turning around in a second, Mash sees it.

A small black creature crawled into the bushes beside him.

Wait, that creature is holding the paper bag containing the three cream puffs!

Clenching his fists, Mash was about to follow it when he heard his name called from behind.

"Mash-kun, what's wrong?"

"Ah, Finn-kun."

Turning his head in a matter of seconds again, he found his roommate, Finn Ames, who lives with him in Room 302 of house Adler. Finn, wearing the same Adler dormitory robe as Mash, asks in confusion.

“Your neck seems to be spinning; are you okay?”

"I'm not okay."

“Ehh!? Can I have a look?”

As he told a worried Finn that “it's not my neck,'' Mash sat down on his knees in disappointment.

"They took away…… cream puffs……"

"Eh, who did!?"

"A small creature, about this size, and black……"

Mash holds up both hands as though holding a cat and repeats “about this size.” Finn crouches too, saying “about this size?” and moved his hands like he’s holding a cat in the same way.

“No, maybe it’s more like this.”

“Eh? Isn’t it the same?”

“No, it feels a little bigger.”

Finn, who has gone along with Mash's particularity, corrected himself with an “about this size, right.'' Looking as though he’s reminded of something, he says:

"Ah, then it might be the work of a troll. There are rumors that trolls have been appearing around here lately, you know."

“Troll?”

"Yeah, it's rumored that even though it's small, it's a big eater. The other day, the cafeteria’s foodstuff went missing as well. Maybe Mash-kun's cream puffs too..."

Before Finn could finish speaking, Mash, who had been slumped until a moment ago, flew out.

"I'll go get them back."

*

Furthermore, there was something unfamiliar here.

It's a square mound of earth. Although it is only a few dozen centimeters high, it measures 6 or 7 meters square and looks like a small stage. But, it's only dirt.

Looking closely, one could see that a perfect circle has been drawn on the mound with straw or something.

Two short lines are in the center of that circle.

Just as he was wondering if this was a bit too simple for a magic circle, a small black shadow appeared without a sound in the center of the circle.

"!"

It's the troll.

The troll he had been looking for was beckoning Mash from the top of the mound.

●　It was convenient for the troll to come out, so approach it as invited　》》　To Ａ―７

●　This is a trap. Let's observe the situation without going up on the mound　》》　To Ａ―２４

[Notes: The circle seems to be a sumo wrestling ring.

My initial plan was to have the poll up for two days, but apparently polls on tumblr can only be set to either one day or one week. I'm going with one day for now; we'll see how it goes!]

[sandybrett]

WOE.BEGONE Character Playlists, Part 2

Here are all my character playlists for WOE.BEGONE characters who are not, have never been, and will presumably never be Mike Walters. Listed in order of first appearance. Cut for length and possible vague spoilers.

Matt

"The Magician" by Dizzy "The Winding Stair Mountain Blues" by the Turnpike Troubadours "Cuyahoga Canal" by The Taxpayers (suggested on the Discord) "Down Here" by the Turnpike Troubadours "Research Me Obsessively" from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Anne

"She Lives (In a Time of Her Own)" by The Judybats "A Shot in the Arm" by Wilco "Bravado" by Lorde "We Can Build a Fire" by Autoheart (from a collaborative Ty/Mike playlist) "Shot at the Title" by Curtis McMurtry "The Bonnie Dell House" by Sarah and the Safe Word (from @fortunechaos's Cowgirl Anne playlist)

Ryan & Cannonball

"Turn The Lights Off" by Tally Hall (suggested on Discord) "Blast Doors" by Everything Everything (from Percival's playlist)

Hunter

"So-Called Friend" by Uncle Tupelo "Hanging Tree" by Tim Easton "Heel Turn 1" by The Mountain Goats (suggested by @solipsistful) "Chaplinesque" by Curtis McMurtry "Harvest" by I See Hawks In L.A. "Heel Turn 2" by The Mountain Goats (from @solipsistful's playlist) "Burning Bed" by The Backsliders "When Will You Die?" by They Might Be Giants "Gaucho" by Steely Dan "Can't Cheat Death" by The Ballroom Thieves (from @fortunechaos's Mikey playlist) "my tears richochet" by Taylor Swift "A Fond Farewell" by Elliott Smith

Chance & Shadow

"Emmylou" by First Aid Kit (suggested by @woebegonepod on Discord) "Trouble's Here" by Jann Browne "Don't Follow" by Shelby Merry (from @auxilion's playlist)

Marissa & Charlie

"Old Slew Foot" by Rose Maddox "Miss Marissa" by Reckless Kelly "The Girl I Can't Forget" by Fountains of Wayne "Wilder than Her" by Dar Williams "Don't Follow" by Shelby Merry (from @auxilion's playlist) "it's time to get good at darts" by Brian David Gilbert

Edgar

"What A Heavenly Way To Die" by Troye Sivan "Flaws" by Bastille (from Scholastic Arson's Edgar playlist) "FOOLS" by Troye Sivan "Don't Ask Me Why" by The Backsliders "Body Paint" by Arctic Monkeys (suggested by @fortunechaos) "Out of the Picture" by Son Volt "When Anger Shows" by Editors (from Scholastic Arson's Edgar playlist) "Happiness Will Ruin This Place" by San Fermin (from @ante--meridiem's Mike/Edgar playlist) "I Saw It Coming" by Reckless Kelly "A Lifetime to Find" by Wilco "In Our Bedroom After the War" by Stars (from Scholastic Arson's Edgar playlist) "Mesa, Arizona" by Jeffrey Foucault "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?" by Paula Cole "Expert in a Dying Field" by The Beths "IDK You Yet" by Alexander 23 (from @auxilion's playlist) "Ours" by Joe Pug (suggested by @woebegonepod on Discord) "Somewhere in Time" by Reckless Kelly

Ty

"This House Is a Circus" by Arctic Monkeys (suggested by @fortunechaos) "Erase" by They Might Be Giants (from @solipsistful's playlist) "I Love You for Psychological Reasons" by They Might Be Giants (from a collaborative Ty/Mike playlist) "My Ugly" by Cloudfodder (from Scholastic Arson's Ty/Mike playlist) "Skullcrusher Mountain" by Jonathan Coulton (from a collaborative Ty/Mike playlist) "Cowboys are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other" by Ned Sublette "Panoply" by WOE.BEGONE (from @fortunechaos's Tex/Outlaw playlist) "Otters" by Ryan MacIntyre (from @fortunechaos's Tex/Outlaw playlist) "Expert in a Dying Field" by The Beths "Pot Kettle Black" by Wilco "Outlaw Ty" by WOE.BEGONE "Jenny" by the Mountain Goats "It's All Part of the Plan" by the Punch Brothers "Sway" by The Rolling Stones "Blood Orange Morning Light" by Andrew Montana (from finch's Tex/Outlaw playlist)

Felix

"This House Is a Circus" by Arctic Monkeys "Parallel Universes" by Dan Warren (from @ante--meridiem's Mike playlist) "3 AM" by Matchbox Twenty "Working for the Knife" by Mitski

August

"Cowboys are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other" by Ned Sublette "Seven Shells" by Fred Eaglesmith "Almost (Sweet Music)" by Hozier "IDK You Yet" by Alexander 23 (from @auxilion's playlist) "I Saw It Coming" by Reckless Kelly "The Curse of the Blackened Eye" by Orville Peck (from Icarus is Falling's Michael/August playlist) "Mostly Major Chords" by Shayfer James (from @fortunechaos's Mikey playlist)

Jam

"Goody Two Shoes" by Adam Ant "Fun" by Troye Sivan "Gaucho" by Steely Dan "Tonight's the Day" by Wilco "ilomilo" by Billie Eilish "Ours" by Joe Pug "The Ballad of Cowboy Jam" by WOE.BEGONE

Eagle

"Kill a Man" by James and the Shame (from @auxilion's playlist) "Eye" by The Scarring Party (from @auxilion's playlist) "War on War" by Wilco "Epithet Erased: Countdown" by plasterbrain and Dawn M. Bennett (from Percival's playlist)

Songs that I desperately want to put on *someone's* playlist but I don't think they currently fit anyone

"Leavin' Yesterday" by John Howie Jr. and the Rosewood Bluff "Tired of Walking" by James McMurtry "Perhaps Vampires Is A Bit Strong But..." by Arctic Monkeys "Man Out of Time" by Elvis Costello "Broken Bed" by James McMurtry "Twist the Knife" by Neko Case