#except pine more than a coniferous forest

[lavenoon]

AU AU AUs of choice, how would Sun and Moon react respectively to hearing Robin hum/sing on the job or from the other half of the house?

Answering for pre-reveal/ before the dynamics kinda blur together uwu

Main: Dusk takes a moment - he's used to banter, and an always vigilant Robin. So this is new, and before he can think better of it, he'll tease them with the newly acquired pet name "songbird." Will immediately regret it when Robin huffs and stops, whining and pestering them to continue for perhaps the entire mission. Later in the dynamic he may start humming/ singing to get them to join in again, and later in the dynamic, they might <3

Sun is busy pining, so mostly he does just that - depending on how close it is and how far they are in the friendship he goes from a happy little acknowledgement to himself to theatrically sighing with a hand pressed against the wall, wishing it gone, to maybe even just humming along loud enough for them to hear, inviting them to take it to the balconies or the backyard where they can share a space <3

Reverse: Dawn will do his damndest to pretend he's not hearing anything. He knows if they notice he's actually listening really, really intently, near reverently, they'll stop immediately and take offense somehow. It's rare enough they let their guard down like that, and he won't risk breaking that moment. Might find himself humming the songs to himself when he's alone later <3

God, man, Moon's just straight up pining. Sorry, but at this stage he has No Game, and apart from getting distracted and listening in for as long as he can he just. does nothing. If he likes the melody himself and not just because he heard Y/N hum/ sing it he'll look it up himself, maybe listen every now and then, and give himself away when he starts humming it where Y/N might overhear <3

Hatchling & Reverse Hatchling: For the neighbors very little changes, except that even Sun is more hesitant to reach out, and probably just sticks to mere pining. Both of them do it a lot though, lots of pining and lots of lamenting the fact that they cannot get closer to this symbol of an unbothered civilian life (oh, sweet summer children), that they have to stay away - they're so bad sorry not sorry

The agents have a bit more wiggle room - putting this after the fuck up and consequent apology in those timelines, neither will want to give Robin any indication that they don't enjoy their playful side, so any criticism or shushing will happen at worst in a tense situation, though Robin would be quiet in those. (Well, except maybe humming the Jaws theme when a group of hostiles is looking for them, and laughing at whatever hissed reprimand they get back - but that's on purpose annoying, not enjoying music for itself)

Dusk is more reserved than as a junior agent - he enjoys it, but feels like he's intruding when they let their guard down like that. He tends to not acknowledge it, doesn't look more than he has to, but stays quiet. It's like if he talks to them they will notice he's still there, intruding, and the moment will shatter, rather than realizing that they never even forgot that he's there, and let their guard down because of him, not despite <3

Dawn allows himself much more than as the junior agent - he looks, and he listens, and he smiles very obviously, may even throw in an affectionate tease or two if Robin doesn't seem too taken aback once they notice his attention. If he feels like they're shy now that he noticed, he'll hum a few tones, just to get them to start up again, and might hum along in the future, too <3

Dynamic Swap & Reverse: The neighbors are. Not even really pining, but a bad cocktail of emotions. Some pining, sure - but mixed with "Oh they can be happy, they can sound like this, it's just never in my presence" and the regret of how wrong they took things. Sun is huffier about it, more in denial, might walk away when he hears only to find himself trailing back trying to catch a few more notes. Moon wants to leave, feeling like he's overstepping, but keeps finding excuses to stay and listen just for a bit longer, just because it's one of the few times he heard them with their guard down

The agents on the other hand? The agents continue creating a cringe blast radius for everyone around Robin and them and neither of them are sorry

Dusk will annoyingly ask for an Encore whenever the opportunity arises, bribing Robin with food and sometimes even mission details to "come on, can you do the ABCs?" (or any other ridiculous children's song). He's a little shit and absolutely aware of it, one step away from playing announcer for their little impromptu performances. But he stays quiet for the singing itself, only perhaps humming along if the moment is quiet enough <3

Dawn I have to tell you might just propose a duet because how could he not? There's his equal at work, the senior agent who has acknowledged him and respects him, with the most beautiful singing voice, and he's supposed to not join in? No, he has no brakes (whether he should need some I'll leave to you) and he's having way too much fun indulging that he'd ever think about how he's laying it on really thick <3

[outofangband]

Have you ever considered an environmental (or societal!) worldbuilding post for Taur-im-Duinath? There's so little in canon, I'd be fascinated to know your headcanons.

(This is a somewhat selfish ask as I am writing a fic that will have a significant portion set there, but genuinely love reading your posts -- no rush or pressure on this!)

Environmental World Building Masterlist

Taur Im Duinath is a large forest located in southeast Beleriand. Its name translates to Forest between rivers as it is located between the river Sirion (on the west) and the river Gelion on the east. In its southern reaches on the western border it extends to the lands around the Bay of Balar. The Andram, the wall of rocky hills ending with Amon Ereb in the east, lies directly to the north of Taur Im Duinath

As you said, it is mentioned very little in The Silmarillion, only twice actually. This corner of Beleriand is described as dark, tangled and wild with no elven or human inhabitants save some Avari

It can be difficult to judge exact sizes on Tolkien’s maps but Taur Im Duinath appears to be one of the largest forests in Beleriand

My thoughts

These are more general thoughts and for flora and fauna I gave examples of genuses or families rather than species but if you give me specific categories I can make more detailed posts!

-The climate is not as mild as Ossiriand but is far more mild than northeast Beleriand. The winters do not generally drop below negative one degree Celsius or thirty degrees Fahrenheit. Snow falls lightly in mid winter with sleet often occurring before and after.

-Humidity is higher than the rest of eastern Beleriand excepting parts of central Ossiriand with high rainfall especially in late winter and spring.

-The forest is dense. It is deciduous and coniferous mixed forests with scattered swampier areas which tend to be slightly more open. Most plants must be shade tolerant.

-There is an undergrowth of a variety of species of mosses and ferns as well as fungi. Some species of extremely shade tolerant herbaceous plants grow as well as a wider variety in the wetlands, scattered clearings, and forest edges

-The conifers are primarily spruce, Asian pine, with some fir and even cypress closer to the bay. Tsuga dumosa, a species of hemlock, grows closer to Ossiriand

-The deciduous trees are primarily birch and several species of oak. Ash and tilia species also grow

-Willow and aspen grow in the wetlands and closer to the river with some alders and a few wych elm.

-Animal biodiversity likewise varies throughout the large region. High diversity of small birds, mostly passerine but also nightjars, owls, a few species of ground birds, etc.

-The undergrowth provides habitat for the highest diversity of animals. Lots of Orthoptera (crickets, grasshoppers etc) so the forest is rarely quiet though the dense canopy muffles the sounds. Also high diversity of beetles, worms, rolly pollys, snails and slugs, and then toads, salamanders and newts, certain species of wood frogs, and small mammals like shrews especially by the water

I hope this is ok, @polutrope! I wasn’t sure what areas to focus on so please feel free to ask for more specific areas!

[wickedsrest-rp]

NAME: Squonk

RARITY: ★★★☆☆

THREAT LEVEL: ★☆☆☆☆ | Seemingly harmless.

HABITAT: Woods, though sometimes they wander into town and may be kept by people.

DESCRIPTION: The squonk is found in hemlock and coniferous forests throughout much of the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, as well as parts of Canada. It was first described by lumberjacks at the turn of the 20th century. About the size of a Labrador retriever, squonks waddle through the woods, eating vegetation and fungi. They’re hairless creatures, and their skin is ill-fitted and covered in blemishes and warts. You can often hear one approaching by the slapping sounds of its skin flaps and wrinkles flapping together with each step it takes. 

Due to their ugly appearance and self-awareness, squonks are solitary creatures. They are almost always seen weeping as a consequence of their fragile self-image, and can be found by following the path of their tears through the woods. Their temperament is highly fearful and timid, but they are sweet-natured and can take particular liking to a kind individual who doesn’t flinch at their appearance. Baby squonks are sometimes abandoned by their parents because the parents find their offspring ugly. These pups can make gentle pets but will be afraid of almost everything. They eat pine cones and only pine cones.

ABILITIES: Squonks’ skin, though gross-looking, serves as decent protection against the bites and strikes of other creatures, as they may have a hard time gaining purchase on the squonk. When trapped, squonks have been known to dissolve entirely into tears and a thick, goopy material. It is not known whether they’re capable of reforming after this. Those with pet squonks generally live in fear of this happening to their pet since they might not come back. Squonks are unharmed by most magic, but being around magical energies corrupts their form (See OTHER VARIANTS: Nuppeppo).

WEAKNESS: Squonks have little to no offensive capabilities, but they also don’t tend to cause trouble for people, and would prefer to run away from and avoid a threat. Should someone want to harvest a squonk for their skin or tears (useful potion ingredients), it’s recommended they stun the creature before it has the chance to dissolve. Squonks will begin sobbing if they catch a glimpse of themselves on a reflective surface.

NOTE: One artist by the name of Kerry Zimmerman was once famed for his beautiful New England landscape paintings. Today, he exclusively paints squonks, calling them his “muse”. Actually, his muse is truly a muse, and he became bound to only paint these hideously ugly creatures. The muse thought it was funny. The museums that used to feature Zimmerman’s work did not. There are thousands of his squonk paintings out there because of this, but few people want them.

OTHER VARIANTS:

Sqk: What would a squonk look like without wrinkles? Worse. More horrifying than ugly, though certainly both. Sqks (pronounced “squicks”) are a wrinkle-less variety of squonk, but their skin is instead lacking in all substance, and clings to the bones and organs of the creature making it look emaciated with grimacing teeth. They share most of their behavior with their creased cousins, being quite docile and fearful, but are often mistaken for something really threatening due to their appearance. If you claim your pet squonk is a shar-pei dog, you’ll probably need to claim a sqk is a small, hoofless and starving horse.

Flappin’ Flann: It’s unknown whether Flappin’ Flann is the last individual of a now extinct subspecies, or just an unusual and very large squonk. What is known is that Flann is the exception to the rule of the gentle and sensitive disposition of the species. Flann flaps all around the woods, the size of a ridiculously wrinkly elephant, looking for hikers or others spending time outdoors. While Flappin’ Flann isn’t interested in eating anyone, it seems to get some perverse enjoyment out of trapping people in its innumerable wrinkles until they suffocate to death under the weight, gasping for air. Some have had the unfortunate experience of watching Flann shake itself out like a wet dog, causing human remains to fly in every direction. There is almost always a bounty on Flappin’ Flann, but the creature proves to be elusive when it’s least convenient.

Nuppeppo: When magical energies are combined with a squonk, the result is a nuppeppo. These can arise from a squonk simply being near magic being practiced, walking on magically charged land, or the intentional casting of a spell on a squonk. Upon this transformation, they become covered in even more grotesque wrinkles and folds, their skin puckering and flapping as it moves. They also become bipedal, and lack all facial anatomy and sensory organs, though seem capable of clumsily getting around. Nuppeppo will wander aimlessly through towns, cemeteries, and forests. They spread a scent of rotting flesh, which may actually be the stench of bacteria growing in their folds. Physical contact with these fleshy abominations will cause those who touch it to have profusely wrinkled skin, which goes away by itself after days or weeks. If you’re looking to revert your pet from a nuppeppo back to a squonk, you need to confine it in an area with no access to magical energies for several weeks.

(Art credit: Carliihde on dA)

[artsywinter13]

Kananya

Landscape 

Kananya is known as the region of the performing arts and beautiful flowers. The landscape of this nation is mostly filled with fields full of intricate flowers of various colors. They have various sentient plant-life from animalistic to humanoid to ginormous flowers. Although the landscape is mostly made out of flowers, Kananya still has one of the most diverse tropical environments. It is filled with mountains, forests, jungles, marshes, swamps, rivers, lakes, ponds, rocky areas, etc. All of these biomes  are still filled to the brims with flowers. Flowers seem to be the hardiest, strongest, and most common plant life in the whole of Kananya. The flowers of Kananya, although extremely common, are one of the most diverse in all of the world. Some are ginormous and hardy; others small and delicate; some live in rocks; others live in water. Most of the trees in Kananya are very tall and thin, similarly to palm trees. They are also mostly covered in broad or long leaves with various flowers blooming from them. Sometimes, the flowers cover the whole tree, similar to a framboyán tree. Trees in jungles are mostly made up with wild vines filled with dangling or drooping flowers. 

Most biomes are more common in some area of Kananya than others. Mountainous and rocky areas are common in the south of the nation in Kesin-arón and Karaguá. These southern regions are mostly made up of fiels, plains, valleys, rocky and mountainous areas, and few rocky deserts with some small jungles. In the west and east of Kananya, rivers, lakes, ponds, and wetlands are the most common. These regions are Ketibey and Ketuanna. They are made up mostly of marshes, wetlands, swamps, rivers, lakes, ponds, clearings, waterfalls, and forests. In the north of the nation in Ketrynbuco, forests and jungles dominate the land. It is filled with rainforests, jungles, and coniferous and pine forests.

Politics and Social organization

Kananya is divided into 5 regions and 1 central capital:

  -Ketuanna: the land of waters

 -Ketibey: the land of rivers

 -Ketrynbuco: the land of forests

 -Kesin-arón: the land of mountains 

 -Karaguá: the land of rocks

 -Keque-Chuque: the land of trades and the main capital

These regions are divided into 5 cacicazgos with the main capital being a no mans area for equal trade:

 -Marién: in Ketuanna

 -Higüey: in Ketibey

 -Maguá: in Kentrynbuco

 -Maguana: in Kesin-arón

 -Jaragua: in Karaguá 

These cacicazgos are ruled over by their respective caciques( chieftains) and their trustworthy bohiques( priests/shamans/ healers ). Below these, are the nitaínos ( protectors ), chuquecos( traders/ merchants ), areítos( musicians/dancers ), and the naborías( common folk ). Although their society is hierarchical, they are all treated fairly and equally, except for the caciques and bohiques who are higher authorities.

All those born in Kananya learn agriculture and gardening from a very young age. They use a mix of intensive root crop cultivation, aquaculture, and subsistence farming. They use conucos( small raised crops ) mostly for the intensive root crop cultivation and subsistence farming. Aquaculture is mostly used in Ketibey and Ketuanna, while the other are the main form of agriculture in the rest of the nation. 

Religion and Beliefs 

The people of Kananya worship the goddess Mamá Mayna, the garden mother, and her 3 children: Anacoa, the flower of fertile lands; Ananina, the flower of waters; and Anasibo, the flower of rocks. Each of these deities taught the people of the people their own philosophies, which was how the nation was divided long ago. Mamá Mayna taught them to take care of nature and nature will give back, which led to their focus on nature and agriculture. Anacoa taught them music and to grow like the forest. Ananina taught them song and to be patient and always changing like the waters. Anasibo taught them how to dance and to be strong like rocks. Ketrynbuco followed the ways of Anacoa and have a society based on playing instruments. Ketibey and Ketuanna followed the ways of Ananina and have society based on singing. Kesin-arón and Karaguá followed the ways of Anasibo and have a society based on dance. The people of the various regions were also helped by the ciguapas, sapient plant life created by Mamá Mayna to guide the people of the nation. The ciguapas further taught the people how to dance, play instruments, and sing with the flow of nature.  Although they are not seen as much today, many of the ciguapas' performing arts are still played very commonly and have been completely integrated in their society. 

Economy

Kananya's economy is mostly based on agriculture, trade, and tourism. They are the biggest producers of crops and flowers that are sold all over the world. They mainly grow crops such as yucas, potatoes, batatas, beans, wheat, peanuts, peppers, cocoa beans, rice, and corn. As for their aquaculture, they help harvest fish, shellfish, and aquatic plants such as various types of algae. Trade and tourism are also very important to them. They mainly trade with either each other or their neighbors, which are Chromystal, Nahda kingdom and Onisona Kingdom. They usually trade crops or building materials with each other, but they will also trade local specialties such as gemstones, flowers, crystals, and plants. Kananya is one of the biggest place for tourism in the tropics. The nation's flowers, crystals, and sentient plants are a sight to behold. Many people will pay quite a lot just to see the beautiful landscape of Kananya. There also many flower hunters looking for the rarest and most beautiful flowers in Kananya. These leads to a very abundant revenue for the nation.

[decoratores]

Crafting the Perfect Outdoor Haven with Softwood or Hardwood Decking?

London's diverse and dynamic landscapes offer a unique canvas for homeowners to create outdoor havens. The Best Softwood Decking Installation in London is a popular choice among the various options available, seamlessly blending aesthetics with functionality. However, the decision between softwood and hardwood decking is pivotal in shaping the character of your outdoor space. In this blog, we delve into London landscapes, exploring the merits of softwood and hardwood decking and guiding you towards crafting the perfect outdoor sanctuary.

Softwood Decking: A Natural Elegance

Softwood decking, often sourced from coniferous trees like pine or spruce, is a cost-effective and versatile choice for London landscapes. Here are some key considerations:

Affordability: Softwood is generally more budget-friendly than hardwood, making it an attractive option for homeowners seeking an elegant yet economical outdoor solution.

Variety of Styles: Softwood Decking Installation London provides a broad spectrum of styles and finishes, allowing you to customize your outdoor space according to your preferences. Whether you prefer a sleek, modern design or a rustic, natural look, softwood decking can cater to diverse aesthetic tastes.

Sustainability: Choosing responsibly sourced softwood contributes to environmentally friendly landscaping. Look for certifications like FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) to ensure your decking material comes from sustainably managed forests.

Ease of Installation: Softwood is generally lighter and easier to work with, facilitating a smoother installation process. It can be advantageous for DIY enthusiasts or those looking to complete the project efficiently.

Hardwood Decking: Timeless Elegance and Durability

While the Best Hardwood Decking in London may come at a higher cost, its unique qualities make it a compelling option for those seeking longevity and a touch of luxury in their outdoor spaces:

Durability: Hardwood, derived from deciduous trees like teak, ipe, or cumaru, is renowned for its exceptional durability. London's varying weather conditions, from rain to sun, can take a toll on outdoor surfaces, making hardwood decking a wise investment for long-lasting beauty.

Exotic Aesthetics: Hardwood decking exudes a luxurious and exotic charm, transforming your outdoor space into a sophisticated retreat. The rich colours and unique grain patterns add a touch of timeless elegance to any landscape.

Resistance to Pests and Decay: The Best Hardwood Decking in London is naturally resistant to pests and decay, reducing the need for chemical treatments. It is particularly advantageous in the damp climate of London, where the risk of fungal growth is higher.

Low Maintenance: It requires minimal maintenance, with periodic sealing or oiling to enhance its lifespan and preserve its aesthetic appeal. It makes it an attractive option for homeowners who prefer low-maintenance outdoor spaces.

Choosing the Right Decking for Your London Landscape

Choosing between softwood and hardwood decking depends on your budget, aesthetic preferences, and long-term vision for your outdoor haven. Softwood offers versatility and affordability, while hardwood provides unparalleled durability and timeless beauty. Consider the specific requirements of your London landscape, such as sun exposure, local climate conditions, and the intended use of the outdoor space. Whether you opt for the Best Softwood Decking Installation in London or hardwood's enduring luxury, I&G Decorator Ltd. ensures a stunning and functional outdoor haven tailored to the unique charm of London's landscapes.

[ask-the-medieval-sides]

Important Areas

These are all descriptions of areas that will be appearing in this, and explain more about this world. All places described are on the map as well! However, it is a bit long (I wanted it to be clear exactly what I was picturing), so sorry about that. I hope you guys enjoy this though!! 

Roman | Remus | Patton/Pat | Janus | Logan | Virgil | Places

Malluidour: One of the two large kingdoms in the area, and ruled by Remus. Magic is widely accepted and used in everyday life. Streets are mostly made of packed dirt or cobblestones. It’s often foggy in the mornings, and rain is not uncommon.

The Wailing Woods: It’s composed mostly of coniferous trees. The ground is covered in  shrubs taking advantage of the little amount of sunlight that reaches them. Very little grass grows anywhere here except in gardens and clearings. The ground is uneven and mostly just dirt, rocks, and fallen pine needles. The grounds near the marsh are softer and closer to mud. Exploring them is not recommended, as many undiscovered and strange creatures lurk in them (Technically they may have been discovered, but the people who do discover them typically don’t live to tell the tale). 

Malluidour Palace: It towers over all of the surrounding buildings. It’s composed of a dark grey stone with silver veins. The base of it is covered with moss and vines. There’s a matching garden with walls surrounding it. Underneath the left hand wall and through some bushes is a hole to the outside of the castle. Indoors, there are old tapestries lining the walls and some of Remus’ more appropriate artwork that Janus and Virgil picked out. Furniture is mostly made of light wood or silver, with different colors for cushions, curtains, etc.

The Misty Marsh: It’s very muddy. When walking around, the ground feels like it’s physically trying to hold onto you. There are quite a few plants that use the large amount of water in the ground to their advantage. Foliage here leans more towards a muddy green color rather than the vibrant and dark greens in the forests. Never go digging through the mud. You may regret what you find.

Dramomor: One of the two large kingdoms in the area, and ruled by Roman. Magic is feared and considered a crime to use. Streets are mostly made of packed dirt or bricks. It’s often quite sunny or a bit cloudy.

The Whispering Woods: Trees aren’t grouped very close together. The rockier landscape deeper in here makes it more difficult for plants to grow, but many do anyway due to the large amount of sunlight and space available (Or possibly out of sheer determination. Who knows). At the front of the forest, plenty of plants thrive. Plenty of grass grows towards the front of the forest, but fades as you go deeper in. As you go deeper in, the ground becomes more uneven and treacherous due to the fact that the forest continues onto the base of the mountains. The ground is mostly dirt and rocks.

Dramomor Palace: It’s about twice the height of the surrounding buildings and sprawls across the landscape compared to Malluidour Palace. It’s made of warm beige stone with an almost pink tint to them. There’s a matching garden with walls surrounding it. Underneath the right hand wall and through some bushes is a hole to the outside of the castle. Indoors, there are old paintings lining the walls and some of Roman’s favorite pieces that he made. Furniture is mostly made of dark wood or gold, with different colors for cushions, curtains, etc.

The Spiraling Peaks: There are few trees. It gets extremely cold near the top, and falls can be treacherous. Some plants do grow, but they’re scarce the farther up you go. It (unsurprisingly) is very rocky. It’s largely unexplored, and climbing them is not recommended.

Neutral Area: This space is made up of plain grasslands and meadows, and has been where most of the fighting during the war has taken place. Weather varies greatly. All paths are made of packed dirt.

The Endless Fields: They’re fields. Not much to say about them, really.

The Viridian Valleys: They’re filled with flowers for the most part, but other things grow there too. It’s a bit hilly in places, but it’s mostly level.

Zolia: A small town. The locals are accepting of magic, but still quite wary of it. People are friendly and helpful at best, but are usually just polite to people passing through. Most buildings are small and filled with just the bare essentials.

[barbarianreview]

The Birth Of A Wooden House. Extended

From/by:

Northmen          Publicado el 8 mar. 2016                              We unexpectedly found missing footage of two more scenes from the building process - moss collection in the local swamp and finishing of the frame. So we decided to make another version - extended edition (2 mins longer) to add those scenes to the movie and share them with you all. This is a documentary movie uncovering the process of building a wooden house with mostly hand tools from (as much as possible) local natural materials starting from forest till the living space. "I built my house from trees that I felled in winter time (-20C) with an axe and two man crosscut saw in my own forest. I did it following the research of old carpenter's calendar that coniferous trees should be felled in January's first days when the new moon rises and the deciduous trees should be felled in the winter time during the old moon. In winter time trees are sleeping and the juice and moisture content is very low in them. As time passes timber felled in winter becomes light and strong. In the building process I used mostly traditional carpenters hand tools - axes, hand saws, timber framing chisels and slicks, old Stanley planes, augers, draw knives and mostly human energy. All the ground work for fundaments and the basement earth digging was done by hand with shovels. The foundation consists mostly of bigger and smaller rocks and boulders. Lime, sand and concrete mixture are using only in small amounts - to hold the boulders together. The visible part over the ground level - boulder mosaic has been masoned with hand split local granite. The House has been built based on the western part of Latvia - Kurland/Kurzeme (German influence) historical wooden architecture typical technique - Timber Frame construction with sliding log walls between the posts. House is two carpentry technique union - Timber Frame (that is typical in France, Germany, Great Britain, North America and other countries) and traditional Latvian log building technique, between the logs using moss from the local swamp. In the walls, timber frame and roof construction there I used only wood joints and wooden pegs to hold the main construction together - no nails, screws or steel plates. Walls are insulated with 250mm thick dry pine and larch shaving layer (leftover from the local cabinet makers workshop). Overall exterior wall thickness is 50cm. In the walls (except wind vapour breathable membrane over the roof) has not been used any plastic or modern synthetic materials. To preserve the wood from the spoiling, fame posts, sills, top beams and final cladding boards are treated with fire and pine tar mixed with Tung oil. This wood preservation technique was adapted from the Japanese traditional wood preservation technique Shou Sugi Ban (焼杉板). Exterior cladding boards recoating each 10-15 years with Tung oil and pine or birch tar mixture, the house can last more than 500 years. As an example is taken Norwegian stave churches that stands more than 500 years until nowadays. Roofing is three layer white oak shingles (each 10mm thick, 120mm wide and 720mm long) laid in two directional technique. Overall amount of shingles used is 15 000 pieces. Roof walls are insulated with ecological wood fibre wool and wood fibre panels. Over the wood fibre panels are plastered natural plaster - mixture of sand, clay powder, lime, linen fibre, salt, wheat flour. Overall thickness of the plaster is 20mm and over all amount of plaster used on the walls are 5000 kilos. It works also as thermal mass and improves energy performance. Exterior measurements of the house is 6.5 x 13 meters. Living space in both floors are 120sq/m. The house is being heated with clay plastered brick bread oven and smaller oven made of clay tiles in the kitchen. To heat up both floors of the house, when outside it is minus 10 degrees (Celsium) only small oven is heated once a day. When freeze gets below -15, -20 C, we heat up the bread oven. Once it is heated, because of it’s thermal mass of 5 tons, it keeps the warmth 2-3 days. To heat up all the house (120 sq/m) in the winter time we use not more than 4 m3 (1.1 cord) of dry firewood. This is 2nd winter we are living there and we still heat up the house with the leftovers of lumber from the building process. And it will be enough for 3 more years. I have fulfilled my vision to a build natural, ecological house with high thermal efficiency, low energy consumption, sustainable, using local materials such as - wood, stone, old and new clay bricks, moss, linen fibre, clay, water, lime, wheat flour, salt and wood shavings." Jacob, carpenter, craftsman and founder of Northmen ( ex John Neeman Tools).

http://northmen.com https://www.facebook.com/northmenguild https://www.instagram.com/northmenguild

[shadowphoenixrider]

TrollGust 16 - Coniferous Forest

Draggka could understand why Trueshot Lodge was perched upon one of the many peaks of Highmountain. It gave spectacular views of the foothills on clear days, and it was still mostly wild and uninhibited, surrounded by the conifer trees that stubbornly grew at altitude.

It was a shame then, that is was so blinking cold.

The troll pulled her cloak more tightly around her as the chill wind nipped against her. After the time she’d spent in Frostfire Ridge on the Alternate Draenor, she’d hoping for some warmth. Getting command of a hunting lodge at the top of the mountain had not been on her radar.

Not that she would complain too loudly, however. Highmountain was a prime hunting location, with the thick pine forests and rugged hills, not to mention the Highmountain tauren who made the place home. Their traditions were as strong as their Mulgore counterparts, and Draggka found herself warming to them immediately.

The conifer forests weren’t her ideal hunting hunting ground, however. The hunter preferred the thick brush of jungles, their canopies casting dark over the floor and the humid heat they elicited. Although thick conifer forests could be dark, the dark always felt to her more foreboding than the more ‘gentle’ darkness of jungles. They also always felt too sparse and open, and pine needles never felt that nice underfoot. That and they were usually indicators of cold climates and most of the pine forests that she knew about were rotten with the Plague.

She still preferred them to the boring expanses of desert in Uldum or Tanaris, though.

Spike uttered a soft growl, and Draggka crouched low, moving carefully to the edge of the ridge, covered by a bush. With Highmountain being such a fine spot for hunting, it was no surprise that it had attracted Hemet Nesingwary and his band of followers to it. The troll’s lip curled. Nothing rubbed her fur the wrong way more knowing that Hemet was considered a hunter along with her; to her, he was nothing more than a trophy hunter.

She killed animals for food, protection, or necessity, but she made sure their deaths were not in vain. Their spirits were respected, with pelts, meat, bones and other useful reagents being taken from the body before the rest was left to feed the carrion eaters.

Hemet killed solely for the thrill of it and recognition. Draggka could understand hunting for the thrill; there were times she’d pitted herself against dangerous creatures to prove she could come out on top, but she honoured their deaths by using their bodies, sending their souls to Gonk. Hemet took a trophy and left the rest to rot. The fact Emmarel Shadewarden had insisted that they induct him into the Unseen Path to help tackle the Legion left a sour taste in her mouth.

As Huntmaster, she had been able to tell the dwarf that she expected him to adhere to the Lodge’s traditions, to respect the kills he made, to which he agreed. To his credit, Draggka had had no complaints of his behaviour so far, despite some hunters being as unsettled as she about his inclusion.

His followers, however, were starting to cause trouble (with the exception of Addie Fizzlebog, who Draggka had tutored in hunting and found an excellent student), and the tauren had asked her to deal with them. Asking politely hadn’t really worked, threatening had only marginal success, and those that had left had not been doing as much damage as the bull-headed ones that remained. Draggka didn’t want to do it, but it was time to put the fear of the Loa into them.

A male human walked close, under the ridge Draggka and Spike were crouched on top of. He was an arrogant hunter the troll had seen before with his oversized rifle and an attitude that ‘a savage like her didn’t know how to hunt properly’. Yet he was walking upwind, advertising his position to every creature in the land, as if he was expecting them to just leap into his sights. His clothing was still pristine too, so clearly he’d not fired at anything, nor done anything to disguise his scent.

Draggka grinned, slowly pulling an arrow from her quiver and touching some wyvern venom to its tip. It would be enough to slow a person down, but not fully sedate them.

We’ll see who can’t hunt properly, she thought to herself, nocking the arrow to the string. Spike bared his teeth in a hungry grin.

“No killing.” She whispered to him. “Disarm only.” Scaring the obstinate hunters would only work if they could spread the word of her wrath, and not mistake her as a, angry tauren. The raptor huffed with annoyance, but she knew he understood.

The man stopped a moment, looking around. He seemed annoyed that his incompetence had caused his prey to flee, or, more likely, he was blaming everything else but himself for his failures.

The troll pulled her bowstring back to her ear, aiming for his right shoulder. And fired.

Said man left Highmountain alive, with a wounded arm, a ruined pride (and trousers), and an insistence to his fellows not to cross the Huntmaster.

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

Cyanocitta cristata, C. stelleri

Steller’s Jay, by Remandsager, CC BY-SA 3.0

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Name: Cyanocitta cristata, C. stelleri

Status: Extant

First Described: 1845

Described By: Strickland

Classification: Dinosauria, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Neoaves, Inopinaves, Australaves, Eufalconimorphae, Psittacopasserae, Passeriformes, Passeri, Corvida, Corvoidea, Corvidae

Can’t have a week of favorite birds without having a Passerine - and since I already did Corvus for Dinosaur March Madness 2016, here is my second favorite member of the most diverse Dinosaurian Group - the Blue Jay! There are two species in this genus, the Blue Jay and the Steller’s Jay, and while they look fairly different from one another, they also have non-overlapping ranges, so it’s usually very easy to figure out which one you’re looking at. The jay does have a bit of a fossil record, with fossils of the genus known from around 4.75 million years ago, in the Zanclean age of the Pliocene of the Neogene. Given that its family proper evolved in the mid-Miocene, this would indicate that the Pliocene is indeed when this genus first originated. 

Blue Jay, by Mdf, CC BY-SA 3.0

The more famous species in this genus, C. cristata, is the Blue Jay. It is not threatened conservationally, and is very common throughout its range. It has a very large range, from the Eastern Coast of North America, to around Alberta, Canada and Montana, USA. It doesn’t extend further south than New Mexico, Texas, and Florida, so it isn’t found much in Mexico. It only really is in Canada during its breeding season, and is only found in Idaho during the Winter, though it can be found in some portions of Canada year-round, and the rest of its range is year-round as well. It is extending westward a little, so it has been seen on the Pacific coast, but not frequently. This extension into the range of the Steller’s Jay, its sister species C. stelleri, has even lead to some hybridization between the two. 

By Dick Daniels, CC BY-SA 3.0

The bird can be migratory or not, depending on the subspecies and location in which it lives, though their migratory patterns still largely remain a mystery. They likely migrate due to weather conditions and sources of foods. They live in a variety of habitats, such as mixed woodlands, pine woods, and spruce-fir forests, though it prefers less dense forests. It does adapt well to human activity and can be found in parks and residential areas. They feed on nuts, corn, grains, and seeds, which it finds on the ground and in trees, along with berries other types of plant materials. They can store food, and they frequently visit bird feeders, though many types of animals prevent Blue Jays from feeding at feeders (such as squirrels, scrub-jays, grackles, and woodpeckers). 

By Saforrest, CC BY-SA 3.0

It is a noisy and aggressive bird, making a large variety of sounds that can vary from individual to individual. They can even mimic human speech, as well as the cries of local hawks. They will often create a high pitched jayer-jayer call that increases in speed as it gets agitated, and they can use the calls to band together and mob predators and drive them away from nesting sites. They have quiet calls used amongst other members of the species, including one that sounds like a rusty water pump. They fly rather slowly, only about 32 to 40 km/h, but it can chase predatory birds and intimidate them with screaming to get them out of their territories. It also is often aggressive towards humans that come close to the nest, and will mob owls and other birds for being near their nests or roosting near them. They also chase away other birds from feeders. 

By Glunardi, CC BY-SA 3.0

They are very curious and intelligent birds. The young steal brightly colored and reflective objects and carry them around, and in captivity they use newspaper to get food. They have a mating season that begins in mid-March and extends into July, and they nest in trees such as evergreens, creating cup-shaped nests of twigs, roots, moss, and other plant material. They even use mailboxes to nest in if no trees are readily available. The birds form monogamous pair bonds for life, with both members of the pair building the nest and rearing the young. The female sits on the eggs as the male gives her food. 

By Jeff the Quiet, CC BY-SA 3.0

The babies are helpless and hatch after 18 days, becoming more independent 17 - 21 days after hatching. The family travels together and forages togehter until the fall, when the young birds leave to avoid competition. They look grey as babies before developing the blue wing, back, head and tail feathers characteristic of the adults. They are sexually mature after one year. In the wild, they usually live about 7 years, though in captivity they can live up to 26 and have been found to be up to 17 in the wild. 

Steller’s Jay, By Noel Reynolds, CC BY 2.0

The Steller’s Jay, C. stelleri, is found on the Pacific coast of North America, as opposed to the original range of the Blue Jay. It looks similar to the Blue Jay, except with different patterning on its wings and tail, and with blue feathers on its underside and grey feathers on its back and head, rather than the blue on the back and head and white on the underside of the Blue Jay. It lives up to Alaska, down the Western coast of Canada and America, and even extends into Mexico and Central America. It is the only jay with a crest west of the Rocky Mountains, and though its range is not as wide as the Blue Jay (though much longer), it is not of concern in conservationist circles. 

By Kathy Munsel, CC BY-SA 2.0

It varies in its coloration throughout its range, with blackish-brown-headed birds in the north and more blue-headed birds in the south. It has a larger crest than the Blue Jay and a more slender bill. It is also larger, about 29 cm long. It lives in coniferous forests and low to moderate elevations, and is also commonly found in agricultural areas. It feeds on both plant and animal matter including seeds, nuts, berries, fruits, invertebrates, rodents, eggs, and even nestlings, as well as reptiles. They eat mainly acorns and conifer seeds when not breeding, and will scavenge on picnics and camp sites, as well as eating at bird feeders. 

By Walter Siegmund, CC BY-SA 3.0

They nest in conifers or tree hollows, and they construct nests similar to that of the Blue Jay, though they’re usually larger. They use natural materials, trash, and mud to build their nests, and lay two to six eggs. The eggs are incubated by the female for 16 days, while the male feeds the female. They are usually lourd birds, with numerous and variable vocalizations, such as a harsh SHACK-Sheck-sheck-sheck-sheck-sheck, and also soft hoodle hoodle calls, though they’re quiet while they nest. They have a harsh alarm call of wah. They can mimic other birds and animals, including hawks and ospreys, tricking other birds to seek cover and hide. Like the Blue Jay, it is a clever animal. 

Sources:

https://paleobiodb.org/navigator/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corvidae

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanocitta

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_jay

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steller%27s_jay

https://www.nps.gov/brca/learn/nature/stellersjay.htm

Shout out goes to @a-host-of-serpents!

[wanderingroman]

Closed RP with Faroutfrostgiant

The westward winds twisted between the thick tree trunks of the coniferous forests, howling like haunted spirits and bringing with them ice-cold flurries that whipped through the dense air. The young traveller kept his face tucked down, clutching the collar of his jacket up to his nose in a feeble attempt to block the harsh gale. The forest pathway he was walking upon was narrow and twisting, the trees above him higher than any building. Usually, such thick coverage would provide shelter from severe weather, but the oncoming storm was determined and otherworldly. 

 As the snow began to pack upon the ground, slowly blurring the edges of the pathway before him, Roman worried that he would become lost. He wasn’t even originally supposed to be in this forest, if the weather had worked in his favor for once. A few weeks prior, Roman had to take a major detour to avoid floods in the lower regions. His original plans had been foiled by melting snow, which caused the trails he was taking to be washed away by rivers and landslides. To avoid the potential danger, he began to head Northwest, where the climate was slightly cooler and the coming of spring was much slower. Although Roman wasn’t necessarily timing his travels, he knew the diversion would add weeks onto his journey.

The inn owner in Sneachta, the last village Roman stayed at, told him of a village named Heretter just beyond the woods. The man had assured him that the pathway through the crowded forest was long but easy to follow, and relatively danger-free. He warned Roman of an oncoming storm, and urged him to make haste in order to reach Heretter safely.

Except by now, Roman should have reached Heretter two days ago. He had followed the pathway easy enough, but there was no sign of Heretter. Now, as the hours passed by, the storm was becoming stronger and fiercer. Snow was beginning to build upon the ground, soaking into Roman’s leather boots. The frigid wind hit against him like a hurricane, seeping through the threads of his clothes and down to his very bones. Roman had never been so cold.

Roman kept his eyes to the ground, trying to shied his face but also hoping to keep his focus on his feet upon the path. He walked and walked, trudging through the increasingly deep snow, and soon he had completely lost where the trail was supposed to be. He kept onward, knowing he could not stop in such disastrous weather. He risked freezing to death in such conditions.

Minutes past, and Roman shook underneath his weak jacket. His mind became muddled as he slowly lost the feeling in his fingertips and toes, his aching limbs pushing onward with innate determination. The world became dark as night started to cast over the forest, and it was then that he saw it: there was a light in the distance, peeking through the trunks of the pine trees. It was a cottage, resting in a small clearing. The windows were illuminated by candlelight and there was smoke billowing from the chimney, indicating a hearth roaring warmly inside. Roman paused to study the saving sight, and when he began to trudge his way towards it, he found his limbs even more difficult to use, the snow weighing down his body and threatening to push it to the forest floor. The traveller achingly trekked over to the cottage, his shins hitting the first steps up to the door, causing him to fall to his knees. He crawled up to the door, reaching out and weakly rapping his fist against the wood. He tried once, then twice, hoping he was loud enough to get the attention of whoever lived inside. Just as light crept from the opening doorway, Roman collapsed, his vision turning blank.

@faroutfrostgiant

[outofangband]

I really love your nature headcanons! could we get some headcanons about the region of Dor Cuarthol?

Flora, fauna, geography and environment of Arda Masterlist

thank you! I love writing and researching for my nature headcanon posts!

Environment and Ecology of Dor-Cúrathol Headcanons

Let me know if you want a full flora and fauna post and as always please feel free to ask more!

Dor-Cúrathol (Sindarin: Land of Bow and Helm) was an area of Southwest Beleriand extending from the area Southwest of the River Teglin towards the Talath Dirnen with the House of Ransom on Amon Rûdh around the center and acting as a base of operations.

It existed for nearly a year until word reached Morgoth that the man calling himself the black sword was likely none other than the now grown son of his prisoner, Húrin Thalion. Mîm, the dwarf who’s home was used by Túrin and his outlaws betrayed the location of Túrin leading to the slaughter of his group

Dor Cúrathol was mainly open plains and fields with clusters of woodland near the river Teglin and the border to Brethil Forest. The forested areas are mostly deciduous with some coniferous trees especially closer to the river.

The climate was likely temperate with cold winters with significant snowfall. Wind speeds are likely relatively low except over parts of the Talath Dirnen. Rain showers are common through the mid spring to summer and then again for a short period in late autumn. 

Silver birch, common beach and oak and hazel grow in the forested areas. Pines are rare but occur on some of the hills. 

The grassy plains of Talath Dirnen were largely made up of a few species from the families cleistogenes and poa or needle and meadow grasses (I actually do have a flora and fauna post for that I want to rework). A variety of species in the Asteraceae or daisy family including sweet yarrow, mayweed, lavender cotton and more. 

We are also given a few canonical species namely 

-Rowan trees, also called mountain ashes. Ecologically important in that their fruits feed a huge variety of animals including red foxes, spotted nutcracker birds, song thrushes, dormice, redwings, roe deer and other cloven hooved creatures, and more. 

-Silver Birch trees which incidentally occur in the same plant communities as rowan. Others in this plant community are common aspen, goat willow and red elderberry  -A species of gorse called aeglos or snow thorn (likely a white colored version of common gorse) Roots likely from yam or similar

Seregon was a flower created by Tolkien noted for its blood red flowers. It was in the stonecrop or sedum family and others in the family also grew upon and around the hilltop possibly including goldmoss stonecrop, white stonecrop and tasteless stonecrop

Thorn trees

This one is difficult as the family collectively known as thorn trees would come from a different climate than the others described. Although with some shifting of species to others in their genus or family I could absolutely work with the Vachellia family to create a Talath Dirnen and Dor-Cúrathol inspired by South America or North Africa so let’s file that for later if there’s interest 

Other possibilities include common hawthorn or common holly 

Like many rivers in Beleriand, hemlock grows by the banks of the Teglin, potentially confused with wild carrot and Queen Anne’s Lace (nimfirgoloth in Sindarin or white autumn cluster-flowers, I made this name myself)

As always feel free to ask more!

[that-he-may-return-blog]

Episode 2: Slugbug

Unfortunately, none of Dipper's questions for the triangle were answered. This was probably due to the fact that Dipper didn't see said triangle for several days, which led his mind to uneasy conclusions- had Bill escaped? Was he back in Gravity Falls and terrorizing everyone? Was he dead? Was Dipper possessed and he just didn't know it-

It also didn't help that Dipper had been having the exact same “dream” every night since the All-Mart incident. He was hesitant to call it an actual dream, sans quotation marks, because nothing really happened- he just found himself in a coniferous forest, alone, for hours on end until he woke up. The entire experience led Dipper to wonder if he was slowly losing his mind. The only proof he had that the All-Mart attack had ever happened was a headline reporting the “Largest Shoplifting Heist of the Century”, listing a number of objects that mysteriously vanished into thin air on September fourteenth.

Of course, nobody knew what had actually happened except Dipper… until now.

“-and that's why everything up and vanished the same day we were there,” he explained. “They literally…” he extended his arm, “walked out.”

Mabel blinked. “So Bill is…”

“I don't know where,” Dipper admitted. “And not knowing is killing me because what if he's murdering people back in Gravity Falls-”

“Oh, he's not,” Mabel said confidently.

“How would you know?”

“I have my ways.” Mabel held up her phone. “Also Candy and Grenda and me made a pact to keep each other updated on the Gravity Falls-Piedmont life 24/7, down to the exact detail, no questions asked. I just typed out your whole Bill monologue and-”

“-don’t send that!” Dipper grabbed the phone, “Mabel, are you crazy?”

“Am I crazy?” Mabel pointed a finger at him. “You're the one that made a deal with a resurrected demon that tried to kill us all.”

“I didn't have a choice-” Dipper said quickly, deleting the message. “Grunkle Ford was counting on me to take care of this because any other option would’ve resulted in an essential perpetual death for at least one person or a literal death for the entire universe!”

“Okay, Mister Let’s-Save-the-Universe over here. Don’t forget that I helped too!”

“Technically neither of u-”

Mabel reached forward and put her finger over his mouth. “Shh...” Dipper scowled. “I understand that you've got that whole conspiracy craving and would probably explode if you couldn’t explain why bigfoot is cthulhu- because I am a caring and loving sister- but… really, Dipper, are you sure this is a good idea?”

Dipper glanced up. “...I don't think there's a better idea,” he said slowly. “But there's nothing I can do about it now- Stan and Ford are probably in the middle of the ocean, and if I went back to Gravity Falls, Bill could probably find his body and start using magic again-”

“Again? I thought you said that in the store he waved his arms wildly and turned a bunch of eggs against you? Using magic?”

Dipper glanced at the wall. “Okay, so, I don't know how it works. Entirely.”

“At all.” Mabel took her phone back.

Dipper rubbed his arm. “Just- I thought I should tell you. Everyone kept too many secrets in Gravity Falls, so the more that's out in the open, the better, at this point.”

Mabel blinked. “Does that mean we should tell Mom and Dad?”

“Uhhh- no. Not… not right now. They'd freak out.”

“This sounds like the premise for an American children’s cartoon!” Mabel grinned, “Mason Pines came home from summer break with a lot of strange souvenirs, but the strangest one is a triangle with a bizarre sense of humor and great fashion sense-”

“That sounds like a show that would try and make Bill likable,” Dipper pointed out. “Too out of character.”

“ATTENTION: THIS IS THE LAST HELICOPTER OUT OF VIETNAM! GET ON BOARD OR REMAIN STRANDED!”

“COMING, DAD!!” Mabel shouted back, grabbing her backpack. Dipper got up and slung his over his shoulder, brushing his hair over his forehead- he wasn't about to take Wendy's hat into a public school, one of the most hazardous places for any material object. Besides, hats were technically against the dress code - not that he had cared in previous years - but hey, at least this was a decent excuse.

The twins headed downstairs to find the house empty save for Waddles, who was napping on the couch, and a note from their mother on the table saying that she would be back in the afternoon; she was probably hanging upside down from a redwood, trying to photograph of a colony of bats. They grabbed their lunchboxes as they darted for the door, Mabel taking a second to slip in a previously-vetoed bottle of Mabeljuice. Outside was the second car, fondly nicknamed The Bug by Mabel, and in the driver's seat was their dad.

Forrest Pines was roughly the height of a flagpole and had nearly the same dimensions, which meant that compressing himself into The Bug involved a lot of doubling over. Dipper would have sworn on his life that his father didn't wear anything but sweater-vests and only combed the back of his hair. Mabel would have sworn on her life that Forrest was an alien from planet Cybernoodle who planned on taking over the earth by hacking RCVs everywhere.

“Who's ready for school?” Forrest called as Mabel hopped over the typical suburban lawn flamingo and into the car; Dipper chose to walk around the flamingo. The flamingo had been Forrest’s idea, and Cassidy had never acknowledged its existence.

“Ready for KNOWLEDGE!” Mabel shouted, slamming the door.

Dipper glanced at her. “Knowledge?”

“Yeah, genius- of the new kids- new kids, new friends, am I right or am I right-”

“You're left,” Forrest pointed out. The Bug pulled onto the road and set a course for Piedmont Public Schools.

Dipper glanced out the window. He couldn't shake the nagging feeling that Bill was too close for comfort- even though he was nowhere to be seen. What that meant, he didn't know, but he didn't like the weight it left on his mind.

After a few minutes of dissonance with Mabel, Forrest, and the radio, The Bug rolled to a stop in front of the school- the twins wasted no time gathering their stuff and getting out of the car.

Forrest leaned out the window. “What, no “first day of high school” trauma? No existential dread or questions about moving up the social rank?”

“We kinda sorta already had that kerfluffle over the summer,” Mabel said. “Ha. Kerfluffle.”

“We’ll be fine, Dad,” Dipper told him.

Forrest frowned. “Hey, you're not wearing a hat today.”

Oh no- he was going to ask about the lucky hat Dipper had had at the beginning of the year- the one that had met its premature demise to a pack of angry gnomes. Dipper braced himself. “Well-”

“Good for you,” Forrest said. Dipper blinked. “We call that character development.” He patted Dipper on the head.

“Aha, right…”

“Well, don't murder anyone! Bye kids!”

“Bye-”

“Bye Dad!”

The Bug sped off into the distance, leaving two eighth graders on a yet-to-be trampled public school lawn.

Dipper didn't necessarily enjoy school. Not that he didn't enjoy learning; gaining knowledge was how he built up his collection of conspiracies. But Dipper could have written an eight-page essay on why the school system did a very poor job of actually teaching anything. He also could have written an essay on the lack of supervision in the classroom or work ethic from the staff, or how being expected to socialize with people he would never see outside of school was counterintuitive- but these weren't the biggest reasons Dipper disliked the school experience. No, that award went to the spiked levels of sheer acrimony that hung around the school like a forced metaphor.

Yeah, okay, maybe the bullied nerd trope was overdone. That didn't change the fact that Dipper was, in fact, a bullied nerd. This year he planned to change that- the honors/regular class split started this year. With any luck, he'd leave the aggressors of the past behind and start a brand new year of education and-

-someone tripped him.

Because that wasn't cliche.

Dipper stumbled to regain his balance and half the pile of books he was holding slid onto the floor. His face was red- he couldn't tell if anyone was laughing, but it definitely felt like it. He crouched and picked up the books; off to a great start.

“Didn't see you all summer, Dipstick!” someone shouted. Dipper closed his eyes. “Did you run away to cry somewhere else-”

Dipper kept walking. That was one time- well, maybe several. He'd been perfectly fine over summer- maybe because he had gotten the chance to make his own impression. But everyone here already knew him as the kid with the dumb name, no friends, and who was prone to crying. His legacy.

The honors/regular split had also led to an unexpected consequence; he no longer shared any classes with Mabel, who preferred talking with friends rather than studying with them. Since Forrest had dropped them off, in fact, he didn't really see her at all. This meant the majority of his day was spent either being ignored and alone or having to listen to “dipstick” get shouted across the room, which by now wasn't insulting so much as annoying. The reality was setting in that, without Mabel around, they wouldn’t be watching each other’s backs. This could end up being the worst school year of his life.

He really should've taken Ford's offer, Dipper thought as he scribbled in the margins of the first-day handouts. At least then he'd be spending his day doing something he actually cared about with someone he actually looked up to- it would've been better than coming back to this mess. And now all he had to show for his poor decision was a missing demon and a sister who caused the apocalypse.

“...what?”

“Pines, is there something you'd like to add?”

Dipper blinked. “No, I'm just-”

“Then I suggest you join the rest of the class in sitting in silence.”

Dipper sank down in his seat. Mabel didn't have anything to do with Weirdmageddon… unless you counted getting locked in a prison bubble. And you know, making a selfish deal trading something that wasn't even hers for her own personal gain.

Dipper focused in on the desk. Okay, where was this coming from- he wasn't supposed to be an idiot, you’d think he could put this together. He pressed a hand to his head. Was he hallucinating? Was he so tired from those repetitive dreams that he was starting to imagine things? Maybe he needed a break- from the planet-

“Bill-”

It was nice to know he could do basic logic. Dipper gripped the edge of his desk. Where was he- why was his train of thought being constantly interrupted like this- as if he would tell him-

“Shut up-!”

“Pines.”

Dipper sank down. “Sorry,” he mumbled.

“Would you like to step outside for a little bit to calm down?”

No. “Yes.”

Dipper slipped into the hall and shut the door behind himself. He pressed his hands to his temples, trying to think. Bill had to be messing around in his head, somehow… Dipper shuddered, imagining Bill puppeting him from the inside. He wasn't actually… well Dipper wouldn't know that. Dipper glared at the wall.

“Get out.”

He wasn't going to. Well, at least that answered that question. Dipper rubbed his head… what would he even be doing in there? Not like Dipper would know. But carrying a demon’s thoughts in his head didn't seem like a fantastic option, especially when he had no idea how to get him out…

“Hey Dipstick. Where’ve you been, huh?”

In any other context, it might have been a friendly greeting. Not in this one.

Florence Goodman had to be the worst misnomer of the century. Dipper had only ever actually seen him in class twice in his life, leading him to assume that he spent his spare time throwing darts at pictures of other students’ faces. Florence also seemed to think his insults were hilarious; this was probably a direct result of beating up anyone who disagreed, although Dipper wasn't sure he'd get the whole cause/effect relationship. Another reason he had never explained it was that Florence just so happened to be twice his size and nowhere near as terrified of detention as Dipper was.

“I said, where’ve you been?”

Dipper looked away.

“What are you doing out in the halls?” This guy really needed to learn to respect personal space. “I would've thought the teacher's pet would be teaching the class by now-”

“Aren't you supposed to be in class,” Dipper muttered, “and not hanging around like a-”

“Like a what, Pines?!” Dipper's head knocked against the lockers- he could feel a bruise forming on the back of his skull. Pain was hilarious.

“Nothing, nothing-” he said quickly, but Florence had already moved on.

“Where's your dumb hat, Pines?”

Dipper didn't respond.

“What, did you lose it? Someone get to it before me? Huh-” His palm slammed into Dipper's forehead; Dipper winced. “You should've kept it on- now everyone can see your dumb hair-”

Dipper braced himself for what was sure to follow. It was an old well but a deep one, and every time it just got to him. He felt the fingers shove his hair up, off his forehead-

“-and your mutant face-”

“It's not a mutation, it's a statistical anomaly…” His face was burning- his entire head was burning.

“Little dipstick over here thinks his big words won't make him a freak-” Into the locker again. “Well guess what-” And again. “You'll never be anything but the weirdo with no friends-”

Dipper covered his face. That wasn't true-

“You gonna cry? Cry, Pines- cry about your stupid hair and your freakazoid face- your disproportionately gigantic head and tiny weak body- the stupid rectangle on your forehead-”

Dipper screwed his face up. Until summer, his birthmark had always been a sore spot for him- it had been the target of countless insults. Now that summer had ended, when he had finally started to accept it, it was just going to become another reason to hate him- his head cracked into the lockers again. Always with that stupid constellation birthmark- making him a target- making him “that weirdo-” well it wasn't like he could help it!

“Are those tears, treeboy-”

Dipper grabbed his fingers- they were rubbery and- slimy-? Florence screamed and dropped him onto the ground; Dipper winced and rubbed his head, slowly looking up. Florence was stumbling around like an idiot, waving his arm and screaming.

“Maybe- maybe that'll make you think twice about making fun of me, huh-” Dipper got up. Whatever was going on, it sure was making Florence panic- the problem was, Dipper had no idea what was going on.

Thankfully he found out, as he watched this high school student transform into a gigantic slug with six eyes, a pig nose, and terrifyingly long slimy arms.

The monster roared.

Dipper shouted and threw a pencil at it. The pencil bounced off his lumpy flesh and rolled down the hall.

The two looked at each other for a moment. The slug blinked and stared at its new slimy features. Dipper decided to use this moment to run for it and booked it through the halls. He heard a vaguely roar-like sound from behind him; he figured that turning Florence into a close relative of a snail didn't make him want to kill Dipper any less.

He ducked behind a wall and pressed his back to it, shaking- had he done that- Dipper stared at his hands. They were just as pale and clammy as ever. Maybe it was the fact that he had just run to the other side of the school, but he felt exhausted; there was a stitch in his side and his eyes were starting to close. Dipper shook himself awake. There wasn't time for that- there was a giant slug loose in the school somewhere. It wouldn’t be long before someone saw it.

“Heyyy, what are you doing in the Dumb People section?” Dipper blinked and looked up. Mabel had put a sticker on his nose. “Don't you have some kind of over-complicated class to get to?”

“-there’s something more important going on right now,” Dipper told her, glancing back around the corner. Florence the giant slug couldn’t be far.

“You found something more important than your GPA?” Mabel leaned around the corner to look at whatever he was looking at. “I'm proud of you- you've realized that the true meaning of being a student is learning and having fun by pursuing an interest that you genuinely like-”

“No, Mabel, I turned Florence Goodman into a nine-foot long invertebrate.”

Mabel frowned and raised a finger. She opened her mouth and the finger turned into a finger gun, “Are you making a spontaneous and nonsensical joke-”

Dipper looked at her. Mabel lowered her finger. “Right, okay, giant spineless bully somewhere in the school.” She frowned again. “How did-”

“I don't know,” Dipper admitted, ducking back behind the wall. “I think it had something to do with Bill-”

“THEY SAY THAT IF YOU SAY THE DEVIL’S NAME HE APPEARS!”

Dipper yelped and fell backwards.

Mabel glanced from him to the empty air directly in front of him. “Is he back?”

“Unfortunately…” Dipper muttered.

“Unfortunately?” Bill pressed his hand to what would have been his chest. “Now that stings- after all I've done for you- turning your school bullies into gastropods- I am hurt-”

“You did that-?!”

“Well I'll admit that it was a team effort- somebody here got really mad for no reason at all-”

Dipper glared. “So you just used me as your funnel-”

Mabel raised a hand, “So I'm sure this is a very important argument but all I can hear is Dipper's side- and also maybe we should focus on taking care of the monster before we argue any more?”

“I don't think Bill cares,” Dipper said.

“Oh contraire, spaceface.” Bill pulled his cane out of nowhere. “You're my only vessel, and your fancy contract says my psyche is linked to your body- if you die, I'd be stuck in a little radius around it, and that wouldn't be fun for anyone, would it?”

Dipper looked away. “Mabel, do you have the flashlight?”

Mabel shook her head. “I didn't really unpack everything yet.”

“Right, okay…” Dipper rubbed his forehead, trying to think. The hall was quiet and empty, and he couldn’t see or hear a thing in the corridors, but he knew what was out there. “Well, at least we have time to plan,” he resolved. “He might be big, but slugs are slow. It'll take a while for it to even find us, let alone catch up to us.”

Bill laughed.

Dipper stiffened. “Unless that's not the case…”

“Oh, it is definitely not the case, pine-tree! Remember how turning things on their head is kind of my deal? My schtick? My gimmick? My-”

“You made a super-fast giant slug.”

“Well I wouldn't call it giant, we’re only talking like eight, nine feet long here- giant would be, say, the size of the school- your tiny little mind doesn't have nearly enough energy for that.”

“Well apparently there’s enough to make you a giant pain in the-”

“DIPPER-”

Dipper looked over just in time to see a super-fast, average-sized slug come ricocheting around the corner.

Dipper thought he knew what fear felt like. He had been ripped out of his own body, more than once by now, been chased by gigantic deformed creatures of unimaginable horror, and witnessed the apocalypse firsthand. Yet, somehow, none of these came close to the sheer adrenaline that running from a nine-foot invertebrate at top speed through an empty school hall could bring.

“How do we stop him?!” Mabel asked as they slid around a corner.

“I don't know,” Dipper said- he was panicking. “I only knew things in Gravity Falls because of Great-Uncle Ford’s journal- I don't have that anymore! We threw it down the bottomless pit!”

“Well, actually-”

Dipper looked at Mabel. “Actually-?”

Mabel waved it off. “I'll tell you when we’re not being terrorized by a giant slug.”

Dipper darted up to a door leading out of the school; he tried to stop but his momentum carried him into the bar and out onto the grass. He tumbled forward and faceplanted. Bill laughed.

Dipper shoved himself up- “If you're so concerned about protecting your vessel why don't you help-”

“Oh, I might. If it gets completely hopeless. Right now I just want to watch you squirm.”

Dipper wanted to retaliate, but he didn't get the chance as the monster slammed its head through the door and bowled him over. He scrambled up, now covered in slime, and darted back inside the school; during the day, the doors were locked from the outside. This proved true as the slug rammed into the door over and over, but it didn't open. It also might not have opened because it was a pull door, but Dipper decided not to tell him that.

Dipper slid down against the wall to catch his breath.

“...what do we do when school ends?” Mabel asked, “because he’s still going to be there-”

“I’m trying to get there,” Dipper breathed. He rubbed his forehead and watched the door thud as the slug rammed into it. Bill was busy criticizing a mural of Egypt in the hall.

Mabel sat down next to him. “Maybe we should get to class?”

Dipper snorted. “I'd rather not. At least not right now.” A nine-foot slug. No journal. No hex circle, no flashlight… all he really had was a demon whose current life goal was to ruin Dipper's own life. Bill probably knew how to fix it with magic or something- but it wasn't like he'd help. Dipper might have to take a different approach…

Dipper sat there in quiet contemplation as Mabel doodled and the formerly-human slug pounded on the doors. After a while, the bell rang and students flooded out into the hallways, and to their… lockers? Dipper started and looked at the clock- what?! -this was the end of the school day- and he still had no idea what to do regarding the giant slug- and it was at this moment that the hinges on the door gave way- and in it came.

It was chaos. Everyone scattered, some to run and scream, others to touch it, more to record videos, and the slug to (presumably) murder Dipper. Dipper saw this and decided to join the portion of the student body that was running. Mabel followed suit.

“You know, for someone who made a life-changing self-discovery about courage and standing up for yourself over the summer, you sure are doing a lot of running away today,” Bill commented.

Dipper glared. “I can't just fight it,” he snapped, “and it's not like I have anything that'd help me-” he shoved the front door open and ran out onto the grass.

“Well that's not very fair- I'm right here!”

“You’re the main cause of the problem-!”

“What is it with you people and your blame-games- you turn a couple people into disfigured monsters and suddenly it's all oh he’s evil and you’re a 'problem’-”

There was a loud popping sound, followed by an unappealing squelch- Dipper turned to see that the slug had managed to figure out the push-door. It literally threw the door open and was continuing his chase, barrelling right for Dipper- panicking, he jumped to the side, hoping the monster couldn't turn as quickly as it could run, or crawl, or slink-

The proper term for the movement of a slug was put low on Dipper’s priorities as he watched it crash through the parking lot and disappear among the cars. There was a sound of alarms and honks.

“Well, this seems like a good time to let law enforcement handle the giant slimy thing,” Mabel suggested. While the idea of Florence Goodman being taken away from the school did seem appealing, it was Dipper’s fault that the guy was a slug in the first place.

“Eh, ehh…?” Mabel was ready to go. Dipper took in a breath, then sighed.

“We should do something.”

“But do we?” she groaned. It was very likely that she hated Florence more than he did. Dipper genuinely considered walking away. It’s not like he was obligated to be the bigger person here, but- it was a little overboard to turn him into a lightspeed slug. There was also the fact that the security cameras in the school probably saw him near Florence when it happened, and the last thing he wanted was another run-in with the government.

Being thirteen was hard.

Just as Dipper was about to make his decision he heard a shrill and childish squeal from the far side of the parking lot. Dipper and Mabel exchanged a glance.

“Dad.”

They both made a dash for the east side of the parking lot and found the slug with its head jammed inside the window of The Bug, and Forrest Pines firmly pressed into the back seat, throwing all available objects in its face. So much for leaving their parents out of weirdness- now Dipper definitely had to do something. Mabel was way ahead of him.

“Back off my dad you slimy buttface-” Mabel shouted as she bolted to the car and began beating the slug with her biology book. This took the slug’s attention off of (potentially) eating Forrest- it pulled from the window and went for Mabel next.

“Mabel, get away from that thing-!” Forrest shouted. Dipper pried the slime-coated car door open; Forrest scrambled out and scooped both twins up and out of the way of the monster, backing away. The slug started advancing- Dipper threw a rock at its head and tried his best to give an intimidating and stern glare, but judging from Bill’s snickering it wasn’t working out too well.

Forrest was just about to make a run for it when Mabel slipped out of his hold and ran for The Bug.

“REMEMBER ME!!” Mabel called as she dove past the slug and jumped in the car. The slug spat acid at her as she ran past; it ate away at the ground, burning holes in the asphalt. Forrest nearly had a heart attack as the monster went after his daughter.

“MABEL-”

“Acid?!” Dipper hissed at Bill, who had been casually drifting near his field of view.

“So, I have these ideas, and sometimes they’re just too good to turn down. So, the slug spits acid now. And also has a taste for human flesh.”

“Oh it just gets better every minute, doesn’t it-”

“It really does, isn’t it great?”

Forrest sat Dipper far away from The Bug and ran to grab Mabel.

“Do you think this is funny?!” Dipper glared at Bill.

“Yes, actually.”

“Well it isn’t-” Dipper pointed at the triangle. “You’ve always seen our lives as a game and a joke, but the joke's over, Bill-” Bill wasn’t looking at him. He was experimenting with flames in his right hand. “Are you listening?!”

“No, not really, your interests are relatively insignificant to me.” Dipper was fuming. He had to get his attention, and the only way you get a triangle’s attention is by making him angry or panicked- or maybe even a little bit of both.

Dipper started walking towards the monster slug. “What are you doing, kid?” Bill called. “D’ya think you’re going to take this thing on with those noodle arms?”

“No.”

“Well that’s good because that thing will totally kill you. So, you know, it wouldn’t be that smart to keep just walking towards it like that. So, uh, why are you still walking towards it-”

“You’re going to let my family get killed, then you don’t get a vessel.”

Bill laughed. “As if you’d actually get yourself killed just to get me to do something, that’s ridiculous-”

Dipper kept walking. “Are you really that stupid-” Bill said louder as he was pulled along at the edge of Dipper’s mental barrier. One foot in front of the other, Dipper walked up to the slug and kicked it.

The slug’s acid was just about to eat through the roof of The Bug- Mabel was aggressively searching the backseat and resisting Forrest’s attempts to remove her. The slug twisted its head to look at him. Dipper held his arms out at his sides. “You’re an idiot, kid- you’re going to get yourself killed- this is proving nothing-”

“It’s proving nothing except that you’re out of options.”

“I have plenty of options other than your cruddy vessel-”

The slug made a gurgling noise; acid foamed at its mouth, dripping down at Dipper’s feet, just missing his shoes.

“You’re gonna die, kid-”

It reared up. Dipper didn’t move.

“KID-”

Dipper squeezed his eyes shut- there was a spitting sound-

...but nothing happened. Hesitantly, Dipper opened an eye. He was outside of his own body, and for a moment he thought he might have actually died; then he saw that his own body had thrown up a magical wall in front of itself, like a triangular forcefield. Dipper couldn’t stop himself from grinning.

“I hate you so much,” Bill muttered through gritted teeth as he dropped the wall and the remaining acid fell to the ground. Operation Anger the Triangle was a success. The slug tilted its head in confusion. Bill leapt forwards and knocked the slug back with a punch that clearly had some extra magical energy, because it slid back several feet and embedded itself in the hood of a car.

“Just turn him back-” Dipper said as Bill climbed into The Bug a little unsteadily. Forrest was staring and petrified in the back at this point.

“It’s- give me a second, okay-” Bill wheezed as he struggled to catch his breath, “your stupid noodle of a body could barely take a bit of running last time- you think it can take all that- no! Because some vessels aren’t pure energy-”

Dipper let Bill continue his rant about how weak he was as he watched the slug pry itself from the car and shoot over to The Bug. Bill looked at the slug and glared.

“I have had it up to here with all the things I make trying to kill me-” He slid into the driver’s seat and tried to stay awake. He was about to use another shield to block more flying acid, but something shot through the windshield and straight into the slug’s face.

“GRAPPLING HOOK!” Mabel retracted the hook from the backseat, proudly standing on the seats, one hand on her hip. Forrest was unable to process anything happening around him. Mabel jumped into the passenger’s seat and shot the hook straight into one of the slug’s eyes; it backed up more, blinded.

Bill was slumped over the steering wheel, about to pass out. Mabel shook him. “Hey- hey you can’t fall asleep- mystery twins are back in action-!!” Bill slowly opened his eyes and looked Mabel dead in the face. The sunlight made the slit-pupils obvious.

“Could you, for once, Shooting Star, maybe not scream in my ear... magic is hard enough as it is...” He was too tired to make any witty comments; all he had to spare was pure dismay. Mabel shot the slug in the face again.

“You’ve been doing a bunch of magic, huh-”

“Yes.”

“And Dipper didn’t get enough sleep again I bet-”

“Clearly.”

“But you can fix this with magic??” “Magic fixes most things.”

“Well- then-” Mabel pulled her lunchbox up and offered Bill a mysterious red fruit drink.

“Is this poison?” Bill looked at Mabel. He threw up a shield to block flying acid and looked a little more exhausted.

“No, it’s Mabeljuice!”

“So, poison.”

“It’ll give you a boost- promise-” Bill glared at her. He put up another shield and swayed slightly; a fleck made its way around the shield and burned through his hair. He sighed, steadying himself- Dipper wished he had popcorn. “Eh? Ehh?” Mabel held the Mabeljuice closer. Bill slowly took the glittery drink.

“This doesn’t have anything on Time Punch-” he downed the drink. Mabel shot the hook into the slug’s face again. The slug seemed confused as to how he continued to fall for these attacks.

Bill felt a burst of energy as the caffeine set in. A grin spread across his face- he might be slowly dying of poison, but he was alive again. The slug moved around the other side of The Bug and crashed its head through the window; Bill held his hand out at the slug and it was pushed back by an invisible force. The Bug shook.

“Now what-” Forrest whimpered from the back.

“Now we knock that thing out and finish this-” Bill said, putting his hand on the dash. The Bug began morphing and mutating and Dipper stared as he turned the family car into a huge, metal, eco-friendly winged insect, with six legs instead of four wheels and an apparent taste for slugs.

“WOO!” Mabel cheered as it advanced on the monster. Bill laughed maniacally as The Bug attacked the slug, knocking it down into the pavement- it spat acid at the car, burning holes into pieces of metal legs- but The Bug kept ramming into the slug, shoving it back. It plucked the slug off the ground before it could run away and flew off towards the football field.

Forrest was screaming. “OKAYOKAYOKAYOKAYWHY- WHY IS THIS HAPPENING- KIDS-”

Mabel looked back at Forrest, giving him an encouraging thumbs-up. “Calm down, Dad- we’re professionals-! We’ve got this!”

Forrest just stared. Dipper wasn’t looking forward to explaining this later. The Bug hauled the slug over the football field and higher into the air; it released the slug and it plummeted into the ground, leaving a crater in the grass.

The Bug hovered for a bit and, when the slug didn’t get up, it lowered and landed next to the crater. Mabel hopped out of the car and ran to the crater to peer in the hole, grappling hook at the ready. The dust cleared and, instead of a bloodthirsty lightspeed acid slug, there was just a beat-up Florence Goodman, looking utterly traumatized. Mabel let out a breath and help up a hand to high-five Bill, grinning. “Nice work-”

Bill looked at her. “You really want me touching your hand.”

Mabel lowered her hand.

The caffeine was wearing off fast; Bill used the last bit of energy he had to strip The Bug of its insectoid features. Then he fell face-first into the grass.

When Dipper came back to consciousness in his own body, everything was numb and he didn’t want to move. Mabel was sitting with him in the high school nurse’s station; she seemed a little more excited once he actually looked at her.

“Wh… what happened…?”

“Well, uh… Bill… fixed it, and you passed out after that-” She seemed a bit surprised, “since when does he help us-”

“I blackmailed him,” Dipper murmured.

“...you blackmailed Bill?” Mabel said, staring. Dipper shrugged, eyes half-closed. “That’s… that’s great. Showed him who’s boss this time, am I right-” she grinned.

Dipper smiled slightly; it felt pretty good to be holding the cards for once. He thought for a moment and frowned. “What happened to Florence…?”

“Uh, about that…” Mabel began, “He looked super freaked out- I don’t think he’s coming back here. But he doesn’t entirely know what happened, I just told some cops that the slug ran off in the woods- so, we should be in the clear. For now.”

“Didn’t they see it on camera…?” Dipper asked. Mabel shifted in her seat slightly.

“Nope.”

“Nope?”

“Nope.”

“What do you mean nope?” Dipper sat up a little.

“Well, I took a little time to say a few things to Dad, calm him down a little bit, and… he used his computer magic to get rid of the footage.”

“Since when was Dad a hacker?” He usually only saw his dad coding games of brick breaker.

“He said he picked up a hobby over the summer,” Mabel said, then grinned, “so we’re in the clear.”

‘The Clear’ was probably something they were far from, but knowing that they had covered up the incident to some extent was a relief. He glanced around and saw a disgruntled Bill glaring at a chart on the wall.

“...thanks for fixing that,” Dipper whispered.

“Shut up, Pinetree, I’m not dumb, you smug little-”

“Oh come on- you saved yourself anyways,” Dipper muttered. “That’s a bright side for you.”

“All my creations keep trying to kill me,” he said, arms folded. Dipper frowned.

“...The Bug didn’t try and kill you,” Dipper suggested, “it must have liked you.”

“It didn’t like me, I just gave it an extensive craving for slugs. It was in self-defense.” Bill vanished, presumably back into Dipper’s mind. Dipper didn’t really have the energy to care about Bill’s personal struggles at the moment. It served him right.

After Dipper took some time and mustered the energy, Mabel helped him walk out to meet Forrest, who was harshly rethinking his comprehension of life. The Bug was out of commission, probably because the engine had been eaten through with slug acid, so he took Dipper and Mabel the rest of the way home by foot. When they got back to the house, the twins explained to their dad about the existence of ‘weirdness’ and how they saw supernatural beings and creatures over summer break.

However, the details were severely watered down. As far as Forrest knew, they just met a mermaid, spotted a unicorn, and caught a fairy only to delicately release it. Mabel said that they learned their monster handling and magic skills from a unicorn fight, which wasn’t entirely a lie, only mostly. It only took Forrest a solid two hours to process the entire situation.

“So… monsters. Mythical… things. Exist,” he repeated numbly.

Dipper and Mabel nodded.

“And you’ve… fought them,” he asked again.

“Uh-huh,” Dipper responded. Forrest slumped back in the couch and rubbed his eyes. After another minute or two he sat up straighter and looked at the two of them. They were sitting quietly in front of him.

“Well… you know, I’d say you did a really awesome job. Really, really impressive stuff there- but, just don’t scare me like that okay-” The twins nodded and promised not to throw themselves into deadly situations again. That promise would probably last less than twenty-four hours. Forrest took a moment to breathe, and wrapped his long arms around the two of them in a tight hug. “I’m just glad you two are safe,” he said. They both hugged back.

He pulled back and pointed at the two of them. “We are not going to tell Mom about this until we can actually think of a way to explain it. Especially the car. Deal?”

Dipper shuddered. “Deal,” said Mabel.

“Great…” Forrest laid down on the couch and closed his eyes, “it’s been a long day, so I’m just going to… keep rethinking everything. You two finish your homework or read or… something.” The twins gave their dad a moment of peace. Dipper quietly helped Mabel with her homework as the sun began to set outside. For the first time all day, there was a bit of silence.

Cassidy Pines shoved the front door open, covered in dirt, twigs in her hair, camera in hand.

“You’re not going to believe what I saw today.”

Dipper somehow doubted that.

[thatworthlesswriter]

Afterglow

“Why do you love me?” she asked in no more than a hushed whisper. They had been laying in their afterglow for a while now in what seemed to be a happy silence, at least to Travis. His head laid Emerissa’s alabaster chest and his arm curled around her familiar body. While the question was in no more than a whisper, it was enough to rouse him from his drowsiness. “I think a better question is what don’t I love about you. You take me as I am, quirks and all. You don’t manipulate my emotions, and you push me to better myself, like with the fall semester coming up. I could go on, but I’d probably lose my voice.” He sat up and propped his head in his hand, looking down at her as they lay together. The room was dark, save the TV playing reruns of Family Guy giving out the only light in the room, which made shadows play over his features. Emerissa let out a sigh, and Travis frowned. “What’s wrong?” “You see all these good things in me, while I…don’t.” she said, rolling over to face away from him. “You describe me like I’m some goddess that has no flaws. You don’t see what I see in myself. I’m lazy, and procrastinate everything I do. I always take the easy way out and take short cuts when I know I shouldn’t. I’m ALWAYS afraid, and it shows when I can never look someone in the eye and try to avoid confrontation at all costs. I’m a goody-two-shoes because I don’t want anyone to not like me. My stutter is so bad people think I’m twelve instead of eighteen. I’m -” she stopped, choking on the tears that she didn’t notice were there. Her body was shaking, and it felt like her breath was coming through a straw. She laid there like that for hours, or was it minutes? She couldn’t tell. Finally, she found her voice. “I hate myself.” she finished bluntly. Again, she relapsed into silence, hot tears pooling in the sheets and sobs causing her body to shake uncontrollably. Travis said nothing, because what could he say, really? He knew she had a lot of self doubt, but he hadn’t really seen it until now. He reached his hand back over her to get her attention. “Hey, come here. Roll over,” he said in a hushed tone. With all the control flowing out of her with the tears, Emerissa rolled over to face him. He took her soaked face in his hands and lifted it up to meet his. “I know nothing I can really do or say right now can help, because this is you versus yourself. But just know, that I will always love you no matter what, okay? Someday you’ll come to terms with yourself; you may not love yourself completely, but it won’t be like this, not forever. I’ll be with you always, okay? No matter what.” He gave her a lingering kiss on the forehead and pulled her into his chest, wrapping both arms around her. It was Emerissa’s turn to say nothing, but not due to lack of the right words. Instead it was because the all right words had been said. Travis ran his hand over her back in small circles, soothing her like he knew it did, and soon she was in asleep.

                                                           ***

“Why do you love me, after all that’s happened, after what I’ve done?” The words felt familiar on her lips, but this time with an ironic twist. It had been almost a year since they’d last been like this, face to face. Everything had change, to be quite literal. They were standing in the middle of a hiking trail, somewhere in the Appalachians. How Travis got all the way up there, she wasn’t sure; But now he was here, giving her that old look he always gave her: like she was his everything, like she was a goddess in his eyes. The irony made her want to scream. “I told you I’d always love you no matter what, right?” he said after minutes in cold silence. He looked awful - bags piling up under his eyes as evidence to the emotional train wreck he was going through. His body was dangerously thin, nearly half of what he used to be. Emerissa barley recognized the guy who stood in front of her, and the only way she knew it was him was the eyes - the color of Hershey’s chocolate. The eyes that sent a wave of guilt over Emerissa as she did her best to look into them, all the while holding back tears. “You know I’ve been alive, and you know I’ve stayed away from you on purpose. You have every right to forget me and move on with your life. I’m not worth it, even if I am…what I am.” She did her best to avoid any words that would hint at what she was now, because she sure as hell wasn’t human anymore. “YOU know that’s impossible. You’re the only one I care about anymore, and you know it. You’ve seen me running around in hysterics for a year now, trying to find you. Come to find out, you’ve been hiding away the whole time. I just want to know why, please…” He trailed off, his hot cocoa eyes begging for answers that he really shouldn’t know. “I can’t,” she said, avoiding his gaze as she did. “Bullshit,” he snapped, his body tensing and voice rising. “If I tell you, you’d either have to come with me and never see your family and friends again, or I’d have to completely erase your memory of me,” she blurted out, tired of keeping it in anymore. “Pick your poison; you should have just left me as another unsolved missing person’s case.” His eyes widened, and his face fell, along with his silence, and he stayed that way for what felt like hours. Emerissa sighed, and pulled him into a quick hug, making him gasp. “I’ll love you always, and you know that. I don’t want this for you, you deserve so much better. Goodbye, love.” With that, moving so quickly she was nothing but a white blur, she spun him around and gave him a small push forward, so he faced away from her. She held up her hand, and from it came a thin wisp of a mist that quickly shot out and developed Travis’s body, then dissipated. Again, the silence seemed to go on infinitely; finally he composed himself, and turned around, looking about him, and his eyes found her once again. “Oh, hey there. You need something?” He asked, his hot chocolate eyes always looking for opportunities to help someone. “No sorry, I thought you were someone else.” With that, Emerissa turned on her heels and walked off the trail, deep into the coniferous trees, her hot tears watering them as she passed.

                                                            ***

    Travis stood on a small cliff overlooking a canyon in bloom. As far as he could see, trees bore their flowers and tiny green leaves made their debut, while everything was casted over in the late afternoon sun. He felt like he would have enjoyed this view, at one time, but now he just felt numb to the scenery. Again, he replayed his memories of the past few years in his head, and again he found them lacking. He saw his days mindlessly spent working at that diner, the great times with his reckless friends, and the fights with his family, but the rest was void. He knew he couldn’t have spent the past two years with only those to things two take up his time, right? It was tearing him up inside, having this agonizing amnesia.     So he packed up his shit and left, literally. For the past few months he’d been doing odd jobs in towns to get by, and living off the land in the Appalachians. He always felt a connection there, but he could never say as to why. Coming back to his senses, he reached into the pack at his feet and pulled out the small hand mirror he had lifted from a cheap convenience store and took a look at himself. The bags under his eyes were prominent, as were his cheek bones that defined his face. He was scruffy, to the point where it was starting to annoy him. His eyes were the same as they had always been: plain brown. “I look awful,” he mumbled to himself, running his hand through the scruff. “I mean, you’re not wrong,” said a voice from behind him.      Travis spun around to see a girl, leaning nonchalantly against a pine a few yards away from the cliff where he was standing. He had no idea who she was, but at the same time felt a familiarity towards her that he couldn’t explain. She looked as worn for wear as he did, with under eye bags and protruding cheekbones to match. Her skin was extremely pale, almost ivory, and her eyes the color of a freshwater stream. “Who are you?” he asked, half wanting desperately to know and half wanting to jump off the cliff behind him. “Nobody. Now it’s my turn for a question. What the hell are you doing up in the Appalachian Mountains?” she asked, giving a big sweeping motion to the forest behind her. “I could ask you the same thing, miss nobody.” Travis shot back, eyes narrowing and body tensing. The girl gave a small smile and and held up her hands in defeat. Her attitude was playful, but her eyes seemed to say something different. “Fair enough, midget. The thing is, you’ve been out here for what, three months? Most hippies would’ve packed up and gone off to find a hot shower by now, yet you’re still here, if barely. Why?” Her eyes locked on his suddenly, waiting for his response.      Travis stood there for a minute, trying to come up with a witty answer. Why had he come up here? In all honesty, he hadn’t the slightest idea except for the fact that he felt a strong connection here, that there was some part of himself missing and that by coming here, he’d find it. On that thought, why was he trying to be witty? This girl was a complete stranger, why was he trying to impress her? “Why should I tell you, a random girl in the middle of the woods?” he started, his hand itching to grab the pocket knife in his pack. “You could try to kill me, or mug me. Stranger danger, and all that.”     The girl gave an exasperated sigh. “What are we, twelve? You look like you’re AT LEAST 13.” she said with a sly smile on her face. She walked forward a few steps before he could say a word, and sat down on the ground a few feet from him. “Relax, if it isn’t clear by the sandbags under my eyes, I’m too exhausted to mug the probably $5 you have on you. I’m just one tired soul looking to talk to another, so chill, and sit.” she finished, looking up at him with that same locked expression as before. He gave a sigh, and sat down opposite her. “I’m 21, just FYI,” he said.     After that, they sat silently for a few minutes. She seemed to understand that he needed a few minutes to think, so she absentmindedly played with the grass and rocks on the ground in front of her, all while Travis just stared at her. He couldn’t say why she was so familiar, but could only conclude that he knew her from…somewhere. The crystal clear blue eyes, milky white skin, and short, curly brown hair all stood out to him like beacons. The only things that was unfamiliar to him were the scars. Long, jagged ones criss-crossing each other up and down her arms; some faded yet still visible, some a very angry red. There were some that went all the way down her wrists… He snapped out of his trance and, looking away from the girl, began talking, seemingly unaware to filter what he was saying to this stranger. “To answer your question, I honestly have no idea why I’m up here. For months before I left home, I’d been feeling empty and numb, like a big hole had been carved out of me. I’ve always been impulsive, so when the thought to take a walk came to mind, I didn’t think twice. The thing is, I kept walking, and walking, and walking…” he trailed off, catching his breath. “After walking awhile, I finally looked at a road sign. It said ‘Welcome to the Appalachians!’ so I just came here and stayed. Of all the places I could of walked to, Charlotte, Atlanta, wherever, I subconsciously decided to walk here. So yeah, the answer to your question is, ‘I have no damn clue.’” he finished, finally looking back at her.     She seemed to of stopped midway through tearing a blade of grass apart and was staring at him like she was dying and he was a doctor come to save her life. A couple of tears welled up and spilled over, watering the grass that she hadn’t yet ripped up. “What?” he asked, a little scared by her sudden change in emotion. “Nothing,” she said hastily as she stood, the remaining tears falling quickly as she spun back the way she came. “Grab your shit and come with me, shorty.” “What, why?” he asked again, scrambling to his feet and staring after her. She turned back towards him, this time the sly smile was back on her lips. “During your big soul-searching recap your stomach was making whale noises. It’s been forever since you had real food, right? I have some leftover pizza at my place, plus a hot shower. I’m making a two-for-one offer you can’t refuse. Whatdaya say?” Her eyes were bright and playful again, as if those tears were never shed after all. Travis’s better judgement defied him, but in the end his stomach overruled his brain. “Fine,” he grumbled, and stooping to grab his backpack, he threw it over his shoulder and walked towards where the girl stood. Before he got to her, he turned back around and stared at the canyon one more time. During their talk, the sun had set, but its light was still shining just over the horizon, casting everything in a wash of orange and pink. “What’s the hold up?” she asked impatiently. “Nothing,” he replied, “just admiring the afterglow.” She stared at him for a second, but Travis couldn’t read it as it was quickly replaced with a look of satisfaction, and with that, they walked into the forest.

                                                              ***

[palustriis-blog]

The Forest of the Undying

The Forest of the Undying is a sort of pocket universe --- a limited ( if vast ) space that mimics, but isn’t physically the same, as the forest which it overlaps in the human world. The laws of physics are mostly the same in the Forest of the Undying, but there are exceptions. No one, for instance, sleeps in the Forest --- not even those from the human world. While in the Forest of the Undying, one can still see people who are in the same ( geographical ) place as oneself but in the human world, although they may look different --- time runs differently in the Forest, meaning the human world might seem to be frozen in place. Those in the human world cannot see into the Forest. It is possible to travel to and fro the Forest by mistake.

LOCATION

The forest is located in central, in-land Sweden, likely in the provinces of Värmland, Dalarna, or Härjedalen.

FLORA

The forest belongs to the Taiga biome, and as such, is mostly coniferous --- that is, most of the trees have needles rather than leaves. Spruces and pines are the most common trees. Still, there are plenty of birch, aspen, alder, linden, rowan and willow trees. The ground is covered in moss or carpets of wild blueberry- and lingonberry shrubs. There are meadows and open areas of woodland where grass and meadow flowers grow, as well as oaks.

FAUNA

The forest is home to roe deer and red deer, elk ( or moose ), foxes, hares, badgers, martens, squirrells, and plenty of song- and preybirds. Far more rarely might one meet a lynx, bear or wolf.

LANDMARKS

The bog --- originally home to many of the day-beings, now taken over by the bog-wraiths and the Grey under King Ag. The bog is a dangerous place, even if one visits it in the human world, due to its  treacherous terrain. Aside from different kinds of reeds, grasses and water plants, small birches and pines are the only things growing there.

The church ruin --- in a meadow in the forest lies the ruins of an old stone church, from when the area was open fields tended by peasants.

The mountain --- deep inside the forest lies the mountain where the Giant lives. Most of the people of the forest have never been there.

The road --- there is a narrow forest road leading from the torp at the edge of the forest and a little ways inside. It’s rarely used.

[akrascrafts-blog]

This key chain was a Hanukkah gift for my friend Theo.  They love the aesthetic of the misty, cool coniferous forest (and who doesn’t?) and I was really excited to give this to them.

The key chain is made of four layers of felt--the pine tree is simple enough except for a couple stitches I added horizontally around the trunk to give it more of corseted look (can a tree look corseted? you know what I mean...I hope). The reverse side features three roses made of bullion knots with leaves done with the lazy daisy stitch.

To get the grommet in, I got to use this amaaaaazing thing called a Japanese Screw Punch (sounds more violent than it is)...I really recommend it if you do bookbinding or any craft that requires punching a small hole in the middle of fabric of another thick material.

[wildaboutlapland-blog]

3 Best Things to Do in Taiga Wilderness Tours

Known as snow forest or boreal forest, the taiga represents the largest land mass in the world, covering around 12000,000 km2. It shows a great assortment of sub-climax and succession plant communities responding to variable ecological conditions while lying over the glaciated and patchy permafrost areas Russia and North America. Except a few rare species, the taiga forest is mainly distinguished by coniferous trees including spruces, pines, and larches, growing along waterways. Its pure wilderness can be experienced in the seasonal changes; the climate brings mixed effect of continental and maritime influences. Thus, the beauty of this thick forest looks beyond enchanting for lying in between the summer and winter spots of the Arctic Circle. The taiga wilderness tour can be a great option to take up round the year as it often brings a chance to go deep into the forest and have a quick look at the amazing and indefinable Finnish wildlife as well as natural beauty of Lapland. Moreover, there are custom planned tours for wilderness in taiga which is white, quiet and gives a fascinating feel to you while entering the unfamiliar territory.

Wilderness Tours – Experience of Fascination & Amazement

A mesmerizing experience awaits you in the Wild Taiga which is situated on Finland’s eastern edge, starting from Kuhmo to Suomussalmi. The untamed land, clear rapids and lakes will urge you to hike for an authentic experience. The taiga wilderness tour allows you to breath in new life with rare opportunities to hike in wonderful nature, see and photograph wildlife, as well as to enjoy cultural activities.

Magical Destinations in Finnish Lapland

Finnish Lapland is the place of giving you a dream experience of being in a winter wonderland. Differences are a crucial aspect in the attraction of Lapland where whole day sunlight in the summer takes place of the gloomy winter days. The hubbub of towns and ski resorts in Lapland is just a few minutes away from the serenity of the wild Taiga’s wilderness. The best option to explore the taiga, no matter where do you come from, is by booking a wilderness tour and getting very close to it.

3 Best Things to Do in Taiga Wilderness Tours

There are numerous activities and experiences for you in wild taiga, but some of them are more preferred than others. While on a taiga wilderness tour, you can indulge in anything from biking, trekking and dog-sledding to cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. You could stand at a watch tower, looking out the vast forest area vivid with huge snow wafts, white tracks and frozen trees. It is also an incredible place on the planet earth where you can enjoy the phenomenon of the Northern Lights.

1. The Excitement of Seeing the Northern Lights – Spotting the Northern Lights is a never-to -be-repeated experience for all. Finnish Lapland is the place on Earth where you can see this wonderful natural phenomenon over 200 nights a year. If staring at the dark sky in crunchy winter air is not what you enjoy, wilderness tour is going to make you keep comfortable and fall asleep below the Aurora.

2. Feel the Shower of Midnight Sun – The sun shows above the horizon for more than 70 successive days in the northern areas of Finnish Lapland above the Arctic zone. So you are going to get blessed by the Midnight Sun when you are on a wilderness tour to Finnish Lapland.

3. Snowy Ride with Reindeers and Huskies – Lapland tour brings you snowy rides around by a pack of happy dogs or Santa’s favorite reindeer. Both are going to let you explore the arctic wilderness at its best. Reindeer and Husky rides can last for a few minutes to many hours or even days.

Wild About Lapland offers guided wilderness tours to help you experience exactly what you desire for: be it is to enjoy the Northern lights or to find out how to ice fish or start with a Reindeer ride or feel the precious moments of wandering in a snowy land. To understand and experience the Finnish Lapland’s wilderness at its best, call Wild About Lapland on +358-40-568-8570. You can also mail it at wildaboutlapland@gmail.com to book your wilderness tour!