#feb 22 2023

[abybweisse]

What do you think was UT first reaction and how did he find out about the Phantomhive house on fire? Did he see it on fire? And what the hell was he even doing during the time the twins were being held captive? How did he found out about the place they were? (because he rescued the RCiel at point)

Undertaker's whereabouts

There are just too many things we don't know. Too many gaps to fill in, and I don't think it would be all that wise for anyone to try and fill too much of it in... just yet. I do expect to get canon answers to a lot of this, but I'm not sure how to form headcanon or even theorize too much about it.

However, I can break this down into the individual questions and give you some ideas I've been considering. A mix of headcanon, theories, and (probably) pure fantasy. Conjecture, basically.

What was his reaction when he first found out -- and how did he find out -- about the (attack and) house on fire? I see two major possibilities here.

Either he was shocked and wished he'd been there when it happened, so he could have tried to stop it, but his plans were to show up during the party and just enjoy their 10th birthday without bringing too much attention to himself. He might have ended up scaring the twins, like before (the day the photo was taken), but it's not like he was going to reveal his true identity or anything like that. He shows up as he'd planned to do and sees the fire has already consumed Vincent and mostly ruined the rest. He searches for the remains of the children but can't find any. Even though he's initially shocked, he gets over that quickly, the queen's watchdog position being what it is. Then he starts to question whether the whole thing was planned by someone who knew what he is and knew he wouldn't be there yet. And where are the twins? So, he starts gathering as much information as he can and starts the search.

Or he has been expecting something to happen, and might have even been tipped off somehow about when and where, but he's physically delayed from getting there in time. By the time he arrives to the scene, he's way too late. He has ideas who's behind it, but he cannot confirm much of it, because the only victims not completely consumed by the fire were killed without even seeing it coming. Vincent and Rachel would have had valuable information in their cinematic records, but they've been burned to ashes. Whoever did this must know what Undertaker is. He can't find remains of the twins, so now he has to search for them.

Did he see the manor on fire? Possibly, but the major damage would have been done by then. I theorize that the fire was started with Vincent's and Rachel's clothes (or something) or at least in that room. Madam Red is shown arriving while the fire still blazed. I don't recall whether Lizzie shows up in time to see the fire; I know Paula tells her about it while they are still at the Midford's estate. I want to say Lizzie got there before the fire was completely put out. I don't know if Undertaker can handle a fire that's already collapsing the building; the only time we've seen him enter a burning building is when he collects real Ciel's body, but that was not long after the fire had been started. In this case, he either arrives when the fire's too widespread, or it has already died down... just embers perhaps still glowing here and there. I imagine him arriving once most of the flames are out and walking around among the burning embers, ignoring the heat and smoke and the soles of his boots starting to melt. Looking for bodies. Looking for clues. Maybe even looking for other things worth salvaging.

What was he doing while the twins were being held captive? Simply put, I think he was trying to find them.

How did he find them? Figuring out where our earl and Sebastian are going to go (once they had made their contract and moved back into the manor) is one thing; he can follow them around or keep tabs on them pretty much as he pleases. At least when he actually has the time and energy. But some people that he's maybe seen, if he was lucky, in some damaged cinematic records? Does he even know where to start? I suspect he had to keep his eyes and ears open for any hints about twins (or even just children) popping up somewhere. Since the cultists had conducted sacrificial rituals on more than one occasion, it's possible that he was able to figure out that reapers had made collections of children's souls from the same place over time, perhaps on a monthly basis, like coinciding with full moons. But it would be difficult, since he no longer has access to the death lists. Perhaps he interrogates people in the ranks of the Evil Nobles, since some of them seem to be involved in that demon cult, and some are definitely into the occult. Maybe he even confronts the human traffickers who sold the boys. But then, once he figured out that's probably where they were, he still had to get into the place. He might have had trouble getting into the building. Again, someone might have delayed him. Particularly if that mystery person in ch137 is John Brown or anyone else who might not want Undertaker to have access to the twins (or even access to their bodies). The mystery person disappears, and I'm pretty sure the demon didn't kill then, so where did they go and what did they do? They might have gone outside and confronted Undertaker. Or they might have simply left to make their report... to whomever. Even if no one physically blocked him from getting into the building sooner than he did, he still had to figure out where to go, and that might be why he was so late.

I hope that helps a bit. I really don't know what will end up being canon answers, though.

[dailyscottficrec]

Wed Feb 22, 2023

second nature by idc_chan

Author summary:

“You had an orgy?” Stiles shrugs. “You had an all-night masturbation session at a tree.” 

AKA: The really sweet polypack fic that also happens to have sex at a magic tree as a very thinly veiled excuse for an orgy.

Reasons to love the fic: Basically, it's my birthday, so I can rec weird tree porn if I want to. This is Scott/Stiles/Malia/Kira/Theo/Lydia, which is one of my favorite polypack configurations. It turned out really sweet for all that it's also my Scott/Nemeton crack ship. I think it's fun and like it, so you get to see it.

Feel free to let the author know if you enjoy the fic!

[rv-there-yet]

Feb 22 2023 - Assembly of horizontal stabilizer

Horizontal stabilizer assembled - for the moment :)

[sammy-writes-sometimes]

Note: This was a prompt request from @casuallywritingandhyperfixating who send in an ask for a writing game! Also, this is part of the Wings of Hermits AU so name changes are below

Ibis - Impulse; Salamander - Skizz; Torch - Tango; Moss - Bdubs; Evergreen - Etho; Diamondback - Cleo

Word Count: 406

---------

Winters hit mudwings harder than most thought. Their marsh, the home that Ibis longed for, was rather warm with barely a drop in temperature even in winter.

But Ibis wasn't in the Mud Kingdom, he was somewhere far away, in the perpetually unclaimed territory high in the Night Kingdom's mountains. A place no one would ever look for a sandwing rebellion… theoretically at least.

So not just was it winter, but they were far in the peaks. Ice, glaciers even, surrounded them for miles.

Which is why he even allowed Salamander to curl up against him, the two mudwings looking for warmth as Torch sat on the larger mudwing's back. 

Though what was once comfortable turned uncomfortable as his larger brother ended up covering him entirely in. The bigwing wrapping him in a cocoon of sorts as Torch sprawled out on top of Salamander.

It seemed even Evergreen, an icewing-rainwing hybrid, seemed to become cold in this weather as he curled up an top of the.

Ibis could barely shut his eyes for a second as Moss slid into the sleeping cave - Ibis' sleeping cave might he add - and apparently decided to go along with it.

It had to be several hours before he was found like that. Wings sour under the weight of multiple dragons, especially under Salamander who has fully pinned him down at that point.

Lady Diamondback, a large sandwing and the group's actual leader, seemed to do a double take as she saw all of them.

Confusion shifted to a mischievous glint in her eyes and a smirk on her snout, one talon moving into the room.

"Don't." Ibis warned with a whisper.

"Why? It's so cold, Ibis." She said, stepping forward once again.

"Don't." He insisted.

"Or what? You don't exactly look able to fight with several dragons on top of you." Diamondback said with another step.

Ibis huffed, not exactly accepting his fate entirely, but also not wanting to wake anyone. Moons forbid he wake up Moss or Evergreen, only the stars would know what way they'd kill Ibis for doing that.

Diamondback took the silence as an invitation, though luckily didn't actually crawl on top of him. Instead she lay next to him, one wing extending to cover Moss and Evergreen.

Though his wings, and his spine, continued to complain, Ibis still found himself slowly falling asleep. Minor pains almost melted away as Salamander rested his head onto Ibis.

[maraczeks]

+

[askarsjustsoswedish]

Flashing Gif // Alexander Skarsgård – Infinity Pool Q&A – Berlinale 2023 on 22 Feb ’23. Berlinale Official Video (x)

[the-badger-mole]

No Sound But Silence: Gusts (Repost)

Katara spent two nights in the hospital. Once she was cleared to go home, Zuko and Hakoda seemed determined to make sure that her feet never touched the ground. Iroh even dug up a wheelchair from his storage closet. This, Katara found a bit excessive, but in the face of such strong insistence, what could she do? Sokka and Gran-Gran couldn’t make it to be with her in person (Sokka was going to meet Suki’s family and Gran-Gran and Pakku were out of town, too), still Sokka and Gran-Gran managed to call and text often enough to make Katara a bit relieved that they weren’t able to make it.

“I set you up in the living room,” Hakoda said. “Easy access to the kitchen and the downstairs bathroom. Plus, TV.”

“Dad-” Katara sighed.

“I’ll be here all week,” Zuko told her. “So if you need anything, just ask.”

“Guys-” Katara tried again.

“After two days of hospital food, I’m sure you’re starving,” Hakoda said. “I made some stew last night. How about I heat you up a bowl?”

“I can walk to the kitchen,” Katara reminded him, but Zuko was already steering her to the couch.

“The whole point is you’re supposed to rest,” Zuko said. “That’s the deal, remember? You rest and if Aunt Wu gives you the go ahead, you can go to school next week.”

“Yes, I know,” Katara huffed. “But I can do little stuff, like fix my own food. I broke my wrist, not my leg.” Zuko froze partway through putting a blanket over Katara’s legs. Katara shook his hand after a moment.

“Hey,” she said. “What’s wrong.” Zuko let go of the blanket and looked up at Katara. She was startled to see the tears in his eyes.

“I’ve never been that scared before,” he admitted.

“Zuko-” Katara’s hands cupped the sides of her fiance’s face. “Hey… I’m fine. The baby’s fine.”

“Yes, but there was a while when I didn’t know that,” Zuko said. “I just want to be sure you’re okay. Both of you.”

“Oh, Zuko…” Katara tugged on his arms and pulled him into a hug. Zuko held as tightly as he dared.

“Let us take care of you,” he pleaded. “Just for this week at least. Just until we know everything is okay.” All of Katara’s arguments died in her throat. She turned and kissed Zuko’s cheek.

“Alright,” she relented.

For the rest of the week, Katara was as good as her word. During the day, Zuko seemed to take great pleasure in running to fetch anything Katara wanted or needed. He sat through every cheesy romcom and crime thriller Katara was interested in seeing without complaint. Even in the evenings, when Hakoda was home to relieve him of his duty, Zuko stuck around until well after dinner to make sure that Katara was comfortable and safe.

“You can stay, you know,” Hakoda told him one night when Katara was getting ready for bed. “It’s not the most comfortable, but the sofa does pull out into a bed.” Zuko took him up on the offer. Katara didn’t know until the next morning when she found Zuko sleeping on the sofa.

“That pulls out into a bed, you know.”

“I know,” Zuko sat up and made space beside him on the couch. “Trust me, it’s more comfortable this way.” Katara sat beside him and curled into his side.

“We’ll need a nice big mattress when we move,” Katara said. “One of those ones where you can’t feel it when the other person is moving, and you can rest a glass of wine on one side and jump on the other.”

“I’ve slept on one of those,” Zuko said, wrinkling his nose. “They’re not as comfortable as they look. I like the hybrid mattresses. They’re soft, but have good support.” Katara made a face at him.

“We should see about getting a 30 day trial,” she said. “We take two months and try both types out, and then we decide which one to make our marital bed.”

“That’ll be fun,” Zuko groaned. “A two month mattress trial with a newborn,” Then he leaned down and kissed the bridge of Katara’s nose. “But you’re right. We should do it that way.” Katara settled into his side again and sighed contentedly.

“You want to watch Love Amongst the Dragons?” she asked. Zuko let out a heavy sigh.

“If you insist,” he replied with exaggerated exasperation as he stood up. “But after breakfast. Do you know if your dad wants anything to eat?”

“Dad left for work an hour ago,” Katara said, stretching her arms over her head. “He had a consult this morning.” Zuko froze and looked at Katara in horror.

“Did you come down the stairs by yourself?” He demanded. Katara glared up at him crossed her arms.

“Aunt Wu cleared me,” she reminded him. “Besides, I’m going back to school on Monday, so I may as well get used to getting around on my own again.”

“Katara-” Zuko pinched his nose and huffed.

“Zuko.” Katara folded her arms stubbornly. “I know you were scared when I had my fall. I was, too. But I can’t go the rest of this pregnancy in fear, alright?” Zuko tried to look stern, but faltered. Katara tugged him back down to the couch with her. “I’m fine. I’ve been checked and double checked, and we are both fine. You did an amazing job taking care of us this week, but we can’t live in fear because of this. I have another three months until the baby is born. I can’t spend them all avoiding stairs.”

“I know,” Zuko sighed and pressed his forehead to Katara’s. “I just wish I could be there with you.”

“Yeah, me too,” Katara laughed. “But I promise I’ll be very careful. Very, very careful.” Her promise was good enough for Zuko. It had to be.

They spent the day as they had spent most of spring break; on the couch watching old movies and bad reality TV. Despite her assertion that she was fine, Katara allowed Zuko to carry out frequent kitchen runs for snacks (mostly healthy at Zuko’s insistence) and to keep her covered in blankets, although the late winter weather had been surprisingly warm. She was both touched and exasperated by Zuko’s attentive care, but she ultimately submitted to it with little more than a token fuss. The truth was she loved it when Zuko was attentive like this. She just also hated feeling helpless, and she had felt helpless since the pregnancy test had come back positive. It made it difficult to fully enjoy Zuko’s efforts, and it made it difficult to tell him how grateful she truly was.

“Made us some tea,” Zuko said, pouring Katara a cup from the teapot Iroh had gifted her some time ago. “Uncle says this blend is supposed to help with calcium and bone health.” Katara stared at the cup for a moment before accepting it and setting it down on the table. Zuko looked at her in confusion for a moment before she pulled him into a tight hug.

“Thank you,” she said, blinking hard against the sudden sting of tears. “Thank you for taking such good care of me and our baby.” Zuko took a second to recover from his surprise and returned Katara’s embrace.

“It’s my honor,” he told her. “I love you.”

-:-:-:-:-:-:-

Katara was napping when Hakoda got home, carrying takeout for that night’s dinner.. Zuko stroked her back absently while he flipped through the channels for something to watch. The grim set of Hakoda’s face made the younger man pause in his search and furrow his brow.

“Got a call from Katara’s principal,” Hakoda said. “Can you wake Katara up?”

A few minutes later, the three of them were sitting around the table with full plates, but no one was eating. Katara tapped the edge of her plate with her hashi distractedly.

“Maybe it’s nothing,” she said hopefully. “Maybe he just wants to check in because of the fall.”

“Maybe,” Hakoda agreed hesitantly. “He sounded pretty grim, though. Even after I told him that you and the baby were fine.”

“Do you think he’s going to kick me out?” Katara’s hand tightened around her hashi to the point where Zuko worried she’d snap the sticks in half.

“Piando isn’t like that,” Zuko assured her. “I’m sure it’s not that. Maybe he’s going to try to talk you into having a buddy when you’re going down the stairs.” Katara rolled her eyes at that.

“Great,” she snorted. “So he wants me to have a babysitter.”

“We don’t know what he wants,” Hakoda reminded her. “And there’s not much use making yourself crazy over it for the whole weekend. We have a meeting with the principal on Monday. We’ll find out what he wants then, and deal with whatever it is. Alright?” Katara reluctantly agreed, and before her father and fiance could say anything, she began to eat her meal.

-:-:-:-:-:-

Zuko insisted on going to the meeting on Monday with Katara and Hakoda. Privately, Hakoda was grateful. If Piando delivered bad news, it would be good to have extra support for his daughter. Katara’s temper could be quick at the best of times, now that she was pregnant and injured, the ice, Hakoda knew, was thin. Piando greeted the trio kindly, however, and if he was surprised to see Zuko, he didn’t mention it. His eyes landed on Katara’s cast and his face grew drawn.

“I’m glad to see you’re doing well, Ms. Imiq,” he said kindly. “You gave us quite a scare.”

“Thanks,” Katara said a bit too brightly. “I rested all last week, and I’m feeling just fine. If you’re worried about me attending classes-”

“Oh, no,” Piando said shaking his head. “That’s not why I asked you here today.” Katara sagged with visible relief. Her biggest worry was gone just like that. She thought she could handle whatever else Piando might say.

“The reason I called you in is because we were going through the schools security cameras last week, and we found something a bit disturbing.” Piando cleared his throat and turned his computer monitor so every one could see. The picture on the screen was grainy, but it was clearly from the stairs where Katara fell. He pressed play and a figure that was recognizable as Katara by her clothes and distended belly appeared on the screen. She took two steps down the flight when suddenly, a figure in a dark hoodie came up and shoved her. The viewers could see where Katara reached up and caught the rail to slow her fall, but then she landed head first on the hard floor at the bottom of the stairs. The figure hurried down after Katara, looked at her for a second and took off towards the gym locker rooms. There were no cameras in there, and if the person reemerged through the doors, it was after that period’s gym class in the rush of students hurrying to their lockers. Katara had already been rushed to the hospital by then. The video ended and Pianod turned to the family with a grim face.

“Someone did this to my daughter on purpose.” Hakoda’s voice was low and dangerous. “Who did it?” Piando shook his head solemnly.

“I’m trying to find out,” he said. “Unfortunately, our security cameras are very old, and there were at least 10 students who were late to class or skipped altogether. Our culprit was probably among them, and I’m sure we’ll figure out who it was sooner or later. Until then, I’m going to recommend not walking alone, Ms. Imiq. I’ll let your teachers know to excuse any tardies for you any whoever escorts you.”

Katara’s eyes were still fixed on the screen, and she hardly heard what was happening around her. Someone had tried to hurt her and her baby, she realized. Who, she wondered, would do that to her?

Part 1…, Part 27, Part 28, Part 29

[skyfire85]

Does this mean some Raptor driver gets to stencil a balloon on the side of his plane now?

[heldinhishands]

Battlefield On The Meadow - Christina Hopp

If you were to try, right now, there would be

a forest waiting for you. A mess of causes

and reasons, an unholy grief to break through.

But I could never mistake that air, the heavy

sense of purpose that wafts through the walls

and aligns to our star-crossed bones.

I know I would soften at a moments notice,

and you would open me up to spit me out,

leave me stagnant, shaken, and you would

be there with me. This worship sounds different,

do you hear it? When the psalmist speaks,

does she fulfill you? Infinity is so far away,

a longing and the last thing I want. 

This anger is on the tip of my tongue in a

split second, I still don’t know what you think

of me, and I worship your altar. I’m terrified

of you, I’m enraged with you, and I somehow

adore you. At least once a day, I am 15 again,

weak in the knees at your blessed, living word

and when she comes around, she is so confused

at the duality, at this wretched body, at what

could have possibly happened to her intimate land.

[sandumilfshou]

AFTER OVER HALF OF MY LIFE SUFFERING THROUGH EVERY SINGLE SYMPTOM OF ENDOMETRIOSIS BUT NOT GETTING A DIAGNOSIS OF IT BC OF NO VISIBLE CAUSE AND 8 YEARS OF BEGGING FOR A HYSTERECTOMY WHICH KEPT GETTING DENIED BY THE MEDICAL SYSTEM I AM FINALLY HAVING THE SURGERY IN THREE WEEKS TIME!!!!!!!!!!

[cyber-fucc]

I have always toned myself down for other people. This year I am being unapologetically myself.

[msbarrows]

Feb 22 - very hard to get out of bed, though at least once I finally did I showered and changed to clean pyjamas. Hauled a tub of chili out of the freezer to have with rice.

Feb 23 - brother bought groceries today, so my thing for today was dealing with most of the things I needed to do related to that. Like he bought multiple packages of bacon, so one went in the meat drawer in the fridge for short term use, but the rest I unpackaged and layered individual slices on strips of waxed paper that I accordion pleated back and forth between them. They then went into a large freezer bag and into the freezer, so future me can easily remove and cook however much bacon is needed. Also cut up a pineapple (yum!), and made a start on portioning out 8lbs of ground beef he also picked up.

For supper I made dilly ground beef, egg noodles, and green peas.

Also, since I keep forgetting to write and post these until approximately 3 minutes after shutting down my computer, I have grudgingly installed the app on my phone. Because these don't do much to help me remember how often I've done stuff if I don't actually post them.

[askarsjustsoswedish]

Alexander Skarsgård - Berlinale 2023 - Infinity Pool ‘23 Pr, 22 Feb ‘23. My edits, thanks to SwedishDelish.

[urbanadventureleague]

The Snow in Portland, 22-25 February 2023

The scene in front of my house, 23 Feb 2023. Note the shoveled walk. Olympus XA/Fuji C200 Hello all. In my long-winded post last week I talked about the unexpected snowstorm we got on Wednesday February 22nd. While the forecast said there was a chance of flurries, instead we got ten inches, the biggest one-day total in about 80 years. Any snow in Portland grinds the city to a halt, but it’s…

[missrosemaris-stuff]

Feb. 22. 2023

““Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.”

‭‭Joel‬ ‭2‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

[iwan1979]

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/feb/22/exercise-and-satisfying-relationships-are-the-secrets-to-good-health-in-later-life New research finds strong social networks and physical activity in mid life can help prevent long-term health conditions