#find a grave contributor

[mdickersonphoto]

🍂 Autumn in Ohio - cemetery edition! 🍂 Oberlin, Ohio

[eurydice-pens]

can i have forgotten vaugarde au info of some sort. i went through your tag and im obsessed with the concept

hi!! yes yes of course >:3c thank you for being interested! i am in the process of plotting out a big fic for the au so i will hold some cards close to my chest, but here’s a bit of info just for you 💗💗 /pos /silly

~

Forgotten Vaugarde AU

Concept / Story

Toward the end of the ISAT canon, the King makes a wish that “everyone would understand how he feels.” This results in a rewriting of the Universe such that Vaugarde, rather than the Island Country, was forgotten, and the individuals to whom this wish was most directly addressed (Mirabelle, Isabeau, Odile, Bonnie, and Nille by virtue of association with Bonnie) become Travelers with no identity and home or, in the case of Odile, becomes someone for whom half of her identity is even less accessible than before.

The King and Loop are thrown into this new reality with their memories intact. The King’s body, however, is not preserved, as he finds himself Loopified into a tear-headed creature. They end up sharing a decidedly unamicable life inside the home of the version of the King who has never lost his memories or home, Aesop, as the King (who eventually names himself Luke) contends with the fact that he has become the very force he had feared so gravely: the one that erased Vaugarde, the land that had welcomed and loved him, from existence.

Mirabelle, Isabeau, Bonnie, and Nille (who had a chance encounter with Luke when reality was first rewritten, at which time, out of guilt and painful empathy, he told each of the, their names) wander the Island Country until they are discovered by Siffrin, whose family essentially adopts and raises them into adulthood / preteenhood. Odile eventually joins the group when she is visiting the Island Country essentially as a tourist and becomes attached to the group through her friendship with Siffrin’s parents and with Loop.

Mirabelle knows that she is very lucky, to have a home, to have some semblance of family and belonging. Nonetheless she is the one out of the group who most feels the pang of something real, and integral, and important missing from her, who is the most loathe to accept the belief common among the people around her that things happen as they should, and Fate is immutable, and every change (…Change?) merely the slow erosion of bodies, minds, and souls against the winds of Time. So when the mysterious Queen emerges and begins to wreak havoc across the Island, when she agrees to journey to the tyrant and to protect the country from the Queen’s Remaking with her friends, she has some inkling that there is something wrong, something missing, some reason why every glimpse they’ve gotten of the white-haired Queen has felt so achingly familiar.

It all feels so strange, and so important, long before Time stops for the first time.

Interactions with Other AUs / Headcanons and Contributors (so far)!

This AU borrows and expands upon @the-bitter-ocean ‘s Islander Euphrasie theory and shares a heart with @felikatze ‘s Divorce AU.

@princemonarchempress , @floating-far-from-earth , and @the-bitter-ocean have all contributed ideas to and inspired parts of the story!

And a special thank you to @snickerpuffs-art for drawing Luke 💙💙

~

thank you so much for reading and for your interest in the au!! i hope to make a lot more things for it in the future <333

[duckprintspress]

Celebrate Aromantic Awareness Week with Our 8 Favorite Books with Aro Characters!

To celebrate #aromanticawarenessweek, we asked our contributors (some of whom chose to remain anonymous) to recommend their favorite books with aromantic characters (some explicit, some implied).

Here are our 8 favorites!

Loveless by Alice Oseman This is the funny, honest, messy, completely relatable story of Georgia, who doesn’t understand why she can’t crush and kiss and make out like her friends do. She’s surrounded by the narrative that dating + sex = love. It’s not until she gets to college that she discovers the A range of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum — coming to understand herself as asexual/aromantic. Disrupting the narrative that she’s been told since birth isn’t easy — there are many mistakes along the way to inviting people into a newly found articulation of an always-known part of your identity. But Georgia’s determined to get her life right, with the help of (and despite the major drama of) her friends.

Commit to the Kick by Tris Lawrence For eighteen years, Alaric has lived under the cloying politics of family and his Clan community. His freshman year is supposed to be a chance to explore a world where Clan and his shapeshifting Talent isn’t central to his life. But when his inner bear bursts forth during his first football game, endangering those around him, Alaric realizes that it’s not so easy to ignore his past, or his own internalized anger. In his quest for anger management, Alaric begins to train in taekwondo, and makes new friends in both sports. He finds that he is creating his own small community, where Clan, Mages, other Talents, and even humans come together and build their own found family. When Alaric receives news that something has happened to his brother Orson, he must return and deal with his Clan and his place in their world. He discovers that old prejudices are still strong between Clan and Mage communities, but that both may be in danger from a creature long thought to be only a legend. Alaric must figure out how to move forward and prevent a war and protect both his home and newly built communities, his found family with him every step of the way.

The Graverobbers’ Chronicles by Xu Lei Uncle Three loves good food, good booze, good card games, and bad women–and he’s never found a grave he wouldn’t rob. He can’t help it – it’s in his blood – grave robbing has been the family business for centuries. So when his bookseller nephew comes to him with a map to an ancient tomb, Uncle Three sets off to find it, in the company of some grave-robbing colleagues, his nerdy nephew, and a strange poker-faced guy that nobody can quite figure out. Uncle Three knows that the grave he seeks will lead him and his companions to “another kind of world,” but not even he could ever imagine what they are about to find. Lost in a labyrinthine cavern that is full of dead bodies, Uncle Three and his comrades fight for their lives as they come up against vampires, corpse-eating bugs, and blood zombies.

The Devil’s Luck by L. S. Baird Years ago, a foolish wastrel once played a hand of cards with the devil… and lost. Now Frey has inherited his uncle’s double curse: the Devil’s claim written on his body in crimson letters, and the impossibly good luck that comes with it. Death is Frey’s only escape from his destiny, but not even Etienne, an expert assassin from the Order of the Crimson Seal, can defeat Frey’s luck alone. And when Etienne finds himself growing too fond of his victim, he doesn’t know if Frey’s good nature or the luck is to blame. However, Etienne will give his all to preventing the Archdemon’s return, even if his all includes wearing a corset, and killing a friend.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells In a corporate-dominated spacefaring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. Exploratory teams are accompanied by Company-supplied security androids, for their own safety. But in a society where contracts are awarded to the lowest bidder, safety isn’t a primary concern. On a distant planet, a team of scientists are conducting surface tests, shadowed by their Company-supplied ‘droid – a self-aware SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module, and refers to itself (though never out loud) as “Murderbot.” Scornful of humans, all it really wants is to be left alone long enough to figure out who it is. But when a neighboring mission goes dark, it’s up to the scientists and their Murderbot to get to the truth.

In Good Company by Nicola Kapron Haruki no longer remembered what had been going through his head the first time he’d killed. All he recalled was the sight of those he’d once loved with all the helpless force of a scared, scarred child covered in red and utterly still. He hadn’t felt grief or triumph when he realized they weren’t struggling anymore. He’d just felt— Empty. Better to be hollow than to despair.

Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel I was born on the full moon under an auspicious constellation, the holiest of positions–much good it did me. So begins Kaikeyi’s story. The only daughter of the kingdom of Kekaya, she is raised on legends of the gods: how they churned the vast ocean to obtain the nectar of immortality, how they vanquish evil and ensure the land of Bharat prospers, and how they offer powerful boons to the devout and the wise. Yet she watches as her father unceremoniously banishes her mother, listens as her own worth is reduced to how great a marriage alliance she can secure. And when she calls upon the gods for help, they never seem to hear. Desperate for some measure of independence, she turns to the texts she once read with her mother and discovers a magic that is hers alone. With this power, Kaikeyi transforms herself from an overlooked princess into a warrior, diplomat, and most favored queen, determined to carve a better world for herself and the women around her. But as the evil from her childhood tales threatens the cosmic order, the path she has forged clashes with the destiny the gods have chosen for her family. Kaikeyi must decide if resistance is worth the destruction it will wreak–and what legacy she intends to leave behind.

Firebreak by Nicole Kornher-Stace New Liberty City, 2134. Two corporations have replaced the US, splitting the country’s remaining forty-five states (five have been submerged under the ocean) between them: Stellaxis Innovations and Greenleaf. There are nine supercities within the continental US, and New Liberty City is the only amalgamated city split between the two megacorps, and thus at a perpetual state of civil war as the feeds broadcast the atrocities committed by each side. Here, Mallory streams Stellaxis’s wargame, SecOps on BestLife, spending more time jacked in than in the world just to eke out a hardscrabble living from tips. When a chance encounter with one of the game’s rare super-soldiers leads to a side job for Mal–looking to link an actual missing girl to one of the SecOps characters. Mal’s sudden burst in online fame rivals her deepening fear of what she is uncovering about BestLife’s developer, and puts her in the kind of danger she’s only experienced through her avatar.

Recommendations contributed by Nina Waters, softestpunk, Adrian Harley, and others.

Also: did you know? Duck Prints Press’s owner, Nina Waters, is aro! We’re an aro-owned company!

Who we are: Duck Prints Press LLC is an independent publisher based in New York State. Our founding vision is to help fanfiction authors navigate the complex process of bringing their original works from first draft to print, culminating in publishing their work under our imprint. We are particularly dedicated to working with queer authors and publishing stories featuring characters from across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum. Love what we do? Want to make sure you don’t miss the announcement for future giveaways? Sign up for our monthly newsletter and get previews, behind-the-scenes information, coupons, and more! Want to support the Press, read about us behind-the-scenes, learn about what’s coming down the pipeline, get exclusive teasers, and claim free stories? Back us on Patreon or ko-fi monthly!

[drivinmeinsane]

Don't Go Breaking My Heart

※Chapter One ※ Holland March x Jackson Healy ※

{ masterlist } ※ { ao3 } ※ { next chapter }

※ Summary: Even during the most wonderful time of the year, Holland March can't help but be clumsy. A stressful hospital trip to set the detective's re-fractured arm leads an unfortunate revelation about his relationship with Jackson Healy.

Part of the Butterfly Effect collection. Can be read as a standalone.

※ Rating: T for mature topics. Concluding chapter will be rated 18+ for mature content.

※ Content/Tags: Fluff and Angst, Established Relationship, Period-Typical Homophobia, Internalized Homophobia, Injury, Canon-Typical Alcohol Consumption, Reference to Religion, Typical Idiot Holland March, Insecure Jackson Healy, Holly just wants her dads to get their shit together, Mention of Christmas, Collaboration

※ Word count: 3,673

※ Status: Complete/Multichapter, Chapter 1 of 2.

※ Author's Notes: I'm back with another Healland collab with @danime25. She was a huge contributor to the outline and to the proofreading of this fic! This was originally going to be a bonus fic for our separate 12 Days of Goosemas projects but we (mostly I) needed a break from the seasonality of it all for a couple of days.

Holland had never been particularly fond of Christmas, even before the house fire that had taken his wife. He never would have expected to find himself being a participant in any festivities, and yet here he was, seated on the couch with the trappings of the holiday scattered around him. His daughter is laying on the floor in front of the television set flipping through the latest Nancy Drew book. His partner is tucked under his arm. They are all wearing appallingly merry sweaters. Holly had insisted, and neither he or Jack could deny her something so simple.

The appearance of Jackson Healy had really turned the March household on its head. Holland had been quite content to drink himself into an early grave, but then the other man had, quite literally, knocked some sense into him. Now, he is finding himself doing things like “paying the bills”, “being a better parent”, “celebrating holidays”, and “cutting back on his drinking habits”. He takes a long pull of his spiked eggnog. It’s Christmas, he could be allowed the indulgence, besides, he’s not the only one drinking tonight. Healy has his own glass of the stuff.

“This ain’t very festive,” his partner says suddenly as the men on the screen harpoon the shark’s fin.

Holland supposes that Jackson is right. Jaws isn’t the typical Christmas movie. He still decides to push just for the sake of it. “You don’t like seeing some idiots getting eaten by a shark?”

“I’m not sayin’ I don’t like it, March,” Healy argues back, clearly a little drunk. “I’m just sayin’ that it ain’t very festive.”

“So what?” The private investigator asks, rising from the couch, glass empty.

Intent on a refill, he crosses the room to the kitchen. Behind him, Healy drains the rest of his glass before following suit. Holland can hear the other man’s back pop in protest from across the room. Life hasn’t been kind to the bruiser. They meet at the counter. Both men’s glasses are placed side by side on the polished surface.

He takes a swallow of rum directly from the bottle before pouring a healthy measure of it into his cup. He sets it aside to fetch the eggnog from the refrigerator. Holland returns to his drink to find Healy adding a splash of alcohol to his own glass. The nog swirls into the rum easily, he doesn’t bother with stirring. He pours for his partner when the other man tilts his cup at him in a silent request for eggnog.

Feeling the weight of the rum bottle, the PI decides there isn’t enough left for another serving. He is poised to throw the remainder of it back when Healy’s hand on his arm stops him. The other man’s grip is strong.

“Careful,” he grouses.

“I was just going to get us another bottle,” Holland protests. He flashes a winning smile and a wink at the shorter man. Charm was unlikely to work here, but it couldn’t hurt to try.

Uncoordinated, his partner puts his glass back on the counter and puts his now free hand on the collar of his sweater, holds onto it.. “You,” he clears his throat, “you’ve gotta try staying a little sober for tonight. We got, y’know, plans.”

“Relax, I’ll be fine,” Holland says with a half-smile.

Briefly checking over his shoulder to make sure his daughter is still enthralled in her book, he bends down and meets Jack in a brief kiss. The other man tastes good, like spiced rum and eggnog. He pulls back only for his partner to tighten his grip on his sweater and draw him back in for a second kiss. It’s a little messy when the bruiser brushes his tongue over the seam of Holland’s lips, but he lets out a moan that he wishes was quieter at the sensation. The older man is having a hard time keeping it together. His partner has a way of making him feel at least twenty years younger.

In the other room, Holly turns up the volume on the television. The sound of yelling and the clanging of metal in water gets louder. It provides the cover Holland needs to drag a hand from Healy’s chest to his stomach, right above the waistband. He’s drunk enough to slide his hand right under the other man’s Christmas sweater and swirl his fingers through that rich forest of hair that adorns his soft stomach. The bruiser has just the barest trace of sensibility left and redirects Holland’s wandering hand out from under the fabric and to his waist instead. He is not deterred in his capture of his partner’s mouth. 

Somebody is moaning. It might be him. It might be Jack. He’s too out of his mind to tell, drunk on spiked eggnog and arousal.

“I love… your sweater,” Holland says in between kisses. It’s not exactly what he meant to say and Healy looks at him like he’s lost his head entirely. It’s a sobering moment, enough of one that he decides he’s going to need a second bottle of rum. The first is nearly empty and the PI is going to need a couple more drinks for courage. “I’ll be right back, let me grab another bottle.”

His partner tenses up initially at his words, but sags back. Jackson lets go of him and gives him a little shove towards the liquor cabinet. “Fine, knock yourself out.”

Briskly, he sets off. He’s so consumed with thoughts of how he’s going to finally tell the other man that he loves him that he doesn’t notice the wrapping paper strewn out on the floor. He goes down hard, slamming his previously broken arm into the wall on the way down. The detective makes a wounded, little noise when he makes contact with the carpet. The air is knocked out of him and his arm is throbbing with such pain that he feels like a strand of blinking lights.

“Jesus, March. I didn’t mean it literally,” comes Jack’s voice from somewhere above him. All he can do is let out a wheezed utterance of the man’s name. There is a rapid discussion between his partner and his daughter. His head is swimming and he suddenly feels sympathy for the men on the boat in the movie still playing in the other room. He was really too harsh in calling them idiots, just look at him.

“I’ll be fine,” he mumbles before trying to sit up only to let out a piercing yelp and fall back to the floor. He can’t string the words together to ask for a trip to the hospital so he settles on making a siren noise with his mouth. It gets the point across.

“Shit,” Healy groans. “March, we’re going to have to get you up. We need to take a trip to the uh… to the hospital. Holly, can you get the keys? I can’t drive like this.”

Holland feels him wedge an arm under his back and wrap the other around his chest. He is bodily hauled to his feet in a smoothly effortless motion. He often forgets just how strong Jack is. The other man murmurs apologies and soothing words when he wails in pain at his arm being jostled.

Stars erupt across his vision as he’s escorted out the front door and into the back of his Benz. He falls flat on his back across the leather seats, dazed from alcohol and pain. It’s a comfort to him when Healy wedges himself into the vehicle after him and carefully guides his head to rest on a broad thigh before combing calloused fingers through his hair. The PI distracts himself while Holly drives on backroads and sidestreets to the hospital. In the part of his brain that’s not consumed by his current predicament, Holland’s glad she’s taking the extra time to avoid traffic. It wouldn’t look remotely good for an unlicensed thirteen year old with two drunk, old men in the back to be pulled over.

To help pass the time and to distract from his throbbing arm, Holland mindlessly sings. It’s a mixture of half-remembered songs he had heard on the radio and some improvised verses when he forgets the actual lyrics. He doesn’t have to see the other man’s face to know that Healy has to be gritting his teeth at the warbling voice filling the vehicle, even still the bruiser's hand doesn’t falter as he strokes Holland.

Upon arriving at the hospital, the detective gratefully allows his partner to help him out of the vehicle. He ends up clutching onto the shorter man as though his life depends on it. Through the haze of pain, he can make out the shapes of a couple of the nuns serving as nurses at this facility. They’re lingering in front of the building. He can feel their disapproval from here.

Holland remains cradled against Jackson’s chest as the other man soothes him with a tenderly calm “Easy, March, I got you.” before directing his next words to the girl waiting behind the wheel. “Park the car and meet us inside.”

The injured man can hardly walk under his own volition, head swimming, completely relying on Healy to support him into the waiting room and up to the check-in desk. His arm is dangling at an awkward angle with each dragging step. The appearance of it does not improve when the other man props him against the counter. The receptionist has a politely horrified expression on her face as she unceremoniously shoves a clipboard at the both of them. He can’t help but notice his partner is sporting a similarly nauseated face. A functioning human arm would not be moving around the way his is.

“So uh, pretty sure my partner has a broken arm.” He hears Jack tell the woman. Holland helpfully waves the limb in question to demonstrate the point just in time for his daughter arrive to reprimand him.

“Stop doing that, that’s gross and stuff,” Holly snaps.

March pushes down the pain and drunkenness for just long enough to scold his daughter, “Don’t say, ‘and stuff’, sweetheart.”

“What was that, March?” Healy asks, clearly not paying attention. Holly and the receptionist share a look.

“Don’t say, ‘and stuff’,” he replies, mostly ignoring the other man, “Just say ‘stop doing that, Dad, that’s gross’. Isn’t that easier?”

Immediately, he hears the bruiser start to speak before he cuts himself off. After a pause, he sheepishly speaks. “Oh, uh.. Your dad’s right, Holly,” he says, sounding choked.

With a long suffering look, the receptionist tells them that a nurse will come collect them shortly and to have a seat. His partner gamely drags him to a chair in the waiting area. Holland groans at the thought of having to wait while his arm continues to plague him. He’s barely seated before Holly shoves the intake paperwork into his good hand. The words on the paper are nothing but smears of black against white. He lets out a helpless whine and offers the clipboard back to his daughter for her to fill it out. God knows that she’s done this for him enough times to do it in her sleep. She takes it back with a frustrated sigh.

After Holly takes a seat in the chair beside him, Jack leans into his space, way too close to be appropriate. “Hey, you doin’ okay? I know your arm hurts, but you alright?” He takes hold of his hand and gives it a strangely, business-like squeeze. He doesn’t let go and instead just… clings to it.

Holland tries to give his partner a reassuring smile, but he’s sure it comes across as a grimace. Spots are floating across his vision in bright, sizzling flashes. The PI is feeling simultaneously more sober and faint as the minutes pass. His arm had just barely been freed from the cast before tonight’s re-fracture of it.

“Mister… March?” A nun approaches the group.

Holland stands up and winces in pain as the movement jostles his arm. “That’s me.”

The nun makes a gesture to follow her down the hallway and he does. He doesn’t even look back, knowing that his partner will be right on his heals. They’ve become damn near inseparable since they had finally danced around some of their mutual feelings. He makes it past the doorway, but Healy does not. The nun stops the other man at the door with a curt “Family only.”

Holland whirls around to see the woman physically blocking Jack. His temper flares, but before he can come up with a protest, the bruiser is already speaking.

“He’s my partner…. My business partner. We do business. Wherever he goes, I go.”

The nun scoffs and suddenly Healy looks cowed, all of ten years old again in front of his teacher, being lectured for holding another boy’s hand. He’s looking down at his battered shoes in a show of submission that makes Holland feel sick.

“I’m sure you do. But as I said. Family only,” she says, booking no room for argument. She silences Holland with just a look. His mouth audibly shuts as she glowers at the two of them in turns, tapping her foot impatiently.

“I’ll go.” Holly says, coming up to the small group. “C’mon dad.” She trails them down the hallway, leaving Healy to slink back to his chair in the waiting room.

Setting the fracture goes as smoothly as it can be with Holland as a patient. Despite his best efforts, he fails at keeping still and quiet. There’s screaming and flailing on his end of things and barely bitten off curses from the doctor’s. Eventually, sweating and hopped up on pain meds, the arm is secured once more in a cast and he’s turned over to the supervision of his exasperated daughter.

Holly promptly takes him by his good arm and drags him down the hallway into the waiting room where chain of custody continues and he becomes Healy’s responsibility. He can’t help the slightly drugged smile that spreads across his face at the sight of the gruff man.

“Doc said it’s not nearly as bad as what you did the first time you met, but he needs bed rest, and to stay away from the bottle for a while.” Holly rolls her eyes, knowing that her dad has at least been putting in a good effort in reducing the amount of alcohol that he’s been pouring down his throat.

Relived to nearly be done with tonight’s ordeal, Holland shuffles close to his partner and leans against him. He’s desperately craving some reassurance and comfort. He can’t bring himself to care about the heavy presence of eyes on the two of them. Two grown men should be able to have friendly contact without everyone getting upset.

“Let’s get him in the car,” Jack says to Holly, ignoring Holland further by shrugging away from him to walk out the door.

Stung, Holland follows after him. Surely the events of tonight wouldn’t have been enough to keep rattling the other man. Jackson Healy doesn’t get bothered, not like this. He’s always surefooted and reliable. Perhaps he himself had done something to personally upset him. Yeah, he had gotten a little drunk and hurt himself in a typical March fashion, but usually they would just laugh it off together.

The trio gets to the parked vehicle, and Holland shunts himself into the back again. He doesn’t bother to listen to the conversation between his daughter and his partner over who will be driving. His mind is too focused on pinpointing exactly where the night really went wrong.

He startles out of his thinking when Healy settles himself into the front passenger seat. It looks like Holly will be the one to drive them back to the house. Holland can’t help but feel as though he got slapped in the face by the other man’s decision to sit in the front rather than join him in the back again.

Leaning forward, he presses the side of his face into the headrest. The leather is cool under his cheek. “Jack, what-”

“Just sit back, March,” the other man responds before he can get all of his sentence out. It seems like everyone is determined to cut him off tonight.

Merry Christmas, Holland thinks bitterly, letting himself flop back against the seat. The ride back to the house is silent aside from Holly’s occasional sighs. Jackson keeps his eyes focused straight ahead through the windshield. He doesn’t speak a single word after shutting him down, doesn’t even make a noise until Holly hits the curb in the driveway by accident and forces an involuntary grunt out of the man.

“Christ,” Holland grumbles, getting out of the car as soon as it’s put into park.

He tries to initiate contact with his partner once they’re all on the porch waiting for Holly to unlock the front door, The PI is desperately hoping that the other man won’t slide away from him again. Slowly, carefully, he leans on him. Relief floods him when Jack doesn’t move. The porch is bathed in darkness, making it difficult to make out anything distinctive, and besides, it’s not like the neighbors haven’t seen already seen the two of them be affectionate with one another anyway.

A glance over at the man he’s leaning on reveals nothing blatantly transparent. Healy’s face is carefully blank. Even still, Holland can make out the tense set of his jaw. It’s enough to worry him further.

Holly gets the door open and immediately darts off to her room after dropping the keys in the bowl in the entryway. Holland is carefully escorted over the threshold by his partner who calmly closes and locks the door behind them. They’re left standing uncomfortably on the tile while Healy seems to be looking at everything else but him.

Fed up, the PI reaches out and takes the other man by the collar of his Christmas sweater and hauls him in for a kiss. He normally doesn’t have to fight for affection like this. Healy is still against him. He doesn’t resist the kiss but he doesn’t exactly return it either. The bruiser pulls away after a moment.

“You should go to bed, March, it’s late.”

“Come with me,” he instantly responds. He needs his partner with him. He hates nothing more than sleeping alone. It always makes him think of those sleepless nights right after Holly’s mom had died. He takes an unsteady breath and wraps his arms around the other man. “I love…”

Healy’s fists clench at his side for a moment before he hooks a broad hand over Holland’s shoulder. He holds it there while he’s hugged. Holland all but burrows against him. He feels the exact moment when the other man relaxes just a little and gives in. “Alright, I’ll stay with you for a while.”

“A while? What do you mean a while? I thought we had plans for tonight.”

“I’ll stay with you until you fall asleep,” Jack supplies, nudging at him to walk to the bedroom.

“What about after?” He questions, his worry surging back up into his throat. Jesus, what he would give for a drink right now.

Unsurprisingly, his partner doesn’t respond right away, lost in his own troubled thoughts. He pulls back the covers on the bed for Holland, correctly assuming that he would struggle to get under them on his own. The other man doesn’t so much as look at him while he works his own holiday themed sweater off over his cast. Maybe he did something so heinous in the past few hours while inebriated and injured that Healy doesn’t find him attractive anymore? Could that be a possibility?

The younger man finally answers Holland’s question, abit unwillingly and still not looking at him. “Probably gonna clean up the living room.”

“Hey. Don’t be like this… Please.” He stops himself from reaching out, realizing that it likely wouldn’t do any good right now. He awkwardly drags himself into bed, motioning for Jackson to join him.

With clear reluctance, Healy sits stiffly on the bed with his back against the headboard. He looks down at his clasped hands. “I’m not your wife, March. I’m just your business partner,” he says suddenly without any preamble.

Holland is left reeling. “I... do you think I don’t care about you? About us? Is that what this is? Because I do. I care about you. I lo-,” he bites the confession off before it can fully escape.

“Care all you want. That nun was right, we’re not family. We can’t be real family.” The other man seems taken aback by his own outburst. He clears his throat unsuccessfully, poised to get off the bed, to flee from the conversation.

“Healy…” The detective’s heart breaks. This feeling is devastating. He’s not sure what to say. He can’t just tell a joke or make an asinine quip to smooth this over. He can’t argue that his partner is wrong. Even in his current, foggy state he knows that people won’t accept their relationship as being a legitimate one. It’s not going to be like it was with his wife. The silence hangs in the air.

Finally, the other man reaches over and gives him a pat on the shoulder. It's similar to one that another man would give a friend, nothing more. Reassuring but detached. “Look, March. We’ll deal with this in the morning.”

“Fine,” he agrees hollowly. He rolls over, putting his back to the man sitting beside him. He doesn’t want him to see the tears that have decided to start streaming from his eyes. Despite his best efforts, he can’t fully contain his sobs.

Healy doesn’t leave his side while he cries. Through his tears, he keeps looking at the analog clock on the bedside table. Every minute that passes feels like an hour. His crying slowly abates and he’s left to slip into an exhausted slumber.

{ next chapter }

[neverturnbackzine]

CONTRIBUTOR SPOTLIGHT

Here we show off a collection of stellar artists and writers that will be featured in the upcoming zine! Each showcasing a piece of their own that represents their unique artistic profile!

Find each of them here: @andva-ri //@bugbart // @fleetways // @chubbidust // GRAY32X // mimcanary

Writing Transcript Below The Cut!

GRAY32X

The first thing he detected was light.

Blinding, glaring, blazing light that burned his pupils from underneath his eyelids. The experience was not too unfamiliar to him: many a time in that sterile lab did he have a lamp shone directly in his face, blinding him temporarily.

But this time, the light carried a strange warmth. It soaked his fur in gold, and as he opened his eyes more, he saw it made the fragmented shards of glass around him glow intensely, making the green blood splattered across them barely visible. ---

Mimcanary

Amy squinted at the card. She knew what pulling the Fool as her Future meant. The figure, back drawn against the first two pulls, walked, one foot past the edge of the cliff, not seeing the bottomless pit; to get what she sought, she too had to abandon her Past and Present and jump into the unknown. She was all too familiar with the Fool–

“What are you doing?”

The voice that spoke in Amy’s head–she could only make it apart from her own thoughts by the grave quality of it, the voice he borrowed from Sonic–was void of any real curiosity.

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

The Grimoire of Grave Fates edited by Hanna Alkaf and Margaret Owen

goodreads

Crack open your spell book and enter the world of the illustrious Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary. There's been a murder on campus, and it's up to the students of Galileo to solve it. Follow 18 authors and 18 students as they puzzle out the clues and find the guilty party. Professor of Magical History Septimius Dropwort has just been murdered, and now everyone at the Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary is a suspect. A prestigious school for young magicians, the Galileo Academy has recently undergone a comprehensive overhaul, reinventing itself as a roaming academy in which students of all cultures and identities are celebrated. In this new Galileo, every pupil is welcome—but there are some who aren't so happy with the recent changes. That includes everyone's least favorite professor, Septimius Dropwort, a stodgy old man known for his harsh rules and harsher punishments. But when the professor's body is discovered on school grounds with a mysterious note clenched in his lifeless hand, the Academy's students must solve the murder themselves, because everyone's a suspect. Told from more than a dozen alternating and diverse perspectives, The Grimoire of Grave Fates follows Galileo's best and brightest young magicians as they race to discover the truth behind Dropwort's mysterious death. Each one of them is confident that only they have the skills needed to unravel the web of secrets hidden within Galileo's halls. But they're about to discover that even for straight-A students, magic doesn't always play by the rules. . . . Contributors include: Cam Montgomery, Darcie Little Badger, Hafsah Faizal, Jessica Lewis, Julian Winters, Karuna Riazi, Kat Cho, Kayla Whaley, Kwame Mbalia, L. L. McKinney, Marieke Nijkamp, Mason Deaver, Natasha Díaz, Preeti Chhibber, Randy Ribay, Tehlor Kay Mejia, Victoria Lee, and Yamile Saied Méndez.

Mod opinion: I've heard of this anthology before and while it does sound interesting, I don't think I'll read it myself, since interconnected anthologies like that rarely work for me.

[transbookoftheday]

The Grimoire of Grave Fates by Hanna Alkaf & Margaret Owen

Crack open your spell book and enter the world of the illustrious Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary. There's been a murder on campus, and it's up to the students of Galileo to solve it. Follow 18 authors and 18 students as they puzzle out the clues and find the guilty party.

Professor of Magical History Septimius Dropwort has just been murdered, and now everyone at the Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary is a suspect.

A prestigious school for young magicians, the Galileo Academy has recently undergone a comprehensive overhaul, reinventing itself as a roaming academy in which students of all cultures and identities are celebrated. In this new Galileo, every pupil is welcome—but there are some who aren't so happy with the recent changes. That includes everyone's least favorite professor, Septimius Dropwort, a stodgy old man known for his harsh rules and harsher punishments. But when the professor's body is discovered on school grounds with a mysterious note clenched in his lifeless hand, the Academy's students must solve the murder themselves, because everyone's a suspect. 

Told from more than a dozen alternating and diverse perspectives, The Grimoire of Grave Fates follows Galileo's best and brightest young magicians as they race to discover the truth behind Dropwort's mysterious death. Each one of them is confident that only they have the skills needed to unravel the web of secrets hidden within Galileo's halls. But they're about to discover that even for straight-A students, magic doesn't always play by the rules. . . .

Contributors include: Cam Montgomery, Darcie Little Badger, Hafsah Faizal, Jessica Lewis, Julian Winters, Karuna Riazi, Kat Cho, Kayla Whaley, Kwame Mbalia, L. L. McKinney, Marieke Nijkamp, Mason Deaver, Natasha Díaz, Preeti Chhibber, Randy Ribay, Tehlor Kay Mejia, Victoria Lee, and Yamile Saied Méndez

[beardedmrbean]

WASHINGTON (TND) — The House Ethics panel announced it has found “substantial evidence” that Republican Rep. George Santos broke multiple laws.

The panel conducted an investigation into the New York congressman and released its findings on Thursday, adding that it referred the information to the Justice Department.

A news release notes the panel determined Santos:

Knowingly caused his campaign committee to file false or incomplete reports with the Federal Election Commission

Used campaign funds for personal purposes

Engaged in fraudulent conduct in connection with RedStone Strategies LLC

Engaged in knowing and willful violations of the Ethics in Government Act as it relates to his Financial Disclosure Statements filed with the House

Santos, 35, who represents New York, has maintained his innocence, insisting he is the victim of a “witch hunt.” He has resisted all calls to resign, saying he intends to run for reelection next year.

He took to social media to speak out against the Committee's findings.

"If there was a single ounce of ETHICS in the 'Ethics committee', they would have not released this biased report," he wrote on X, whcih is the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. "The Committee went to extraordinary lengths to smear myself and my legal team about me not being forthcoming (My legal bills suggest otherwise). It is a disgusting politicized smear that shows the depths of how low our federal government has sunk. Everyone who participated in this grave miscarriage of Justice should all be ashamed of themselves ... I’ve come to expect vitriol like this from political opposition but not from the hallowed halls of public service."

He went on to say that he "will remain steadfast in fighting for my rights and for defending my name in the face of adversity. I am humbled yet again and reminded that I am human and I have flaws, but I will not stand by as I am stoned by those who have flaws themselves. I will continue on my mission to serve my constituents up until I am allowed. I will however NOT be seeking re-election for a second term in 2024 as my family deserves better than to be under the gun from the press all the time."

In October, prosecutors said Santos allegedly stole the identities of people who donated to his campaign, as well as repeatedly used their credit cards without their permission. Prosecutors said some of the stolen money ended up in his own bank account.

As alleged, Santos was charged with stealing people’s identities and making charges on his own donors’ credit cards without their authorization, lying to the FEC and, by extension, the public about the financial state of his campaign," Breon Peace, who is a United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a separate news release."

"Santos falsely inflated the campaign’s reported receipts with non-existent loans and contributions that were either fabricated or stolen," Peace added. "This Office will relentlessly pursue criminal charges against anyone who uses the electoral process as an opportunity to defraud the public and our government institutions.”

The latest charges include the following:

One count of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States

Two counts of wire fraud

Two counts of making materially false statements to the Federal Election Commission (FEC)

Two counts of falsifying records submitted to obstruct the FEC

Two counts of aggravated identity theft

One count of access device fraud

Prosecutors said he also stole from his own family members.

The defendant -- a Congressman -- allegedly stole the identities of family members and used the credit card information of political contributors to fraudulently inflate his campaign coffers,” District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly noted in the release. “We thank our partners in the US Attorney’s Office and the FBI as we work together to root out public corruption on Long Island.”

According to prosecutors, Santos allegedly charged more than $44,000 to his campaign using cards belonging to contributors without their knowledge. In one case, he charged $12,000 to a contributor’s credit card and transferred the “vast majority” of that money into his personal bank account, prosecutors said.

The charges, said prosecutors, are in addition to the seven counts of wire fraud, three counts of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds, and two counts of making materially false statements to the United States House of Representatives that were charged in the original indictment.

He was initially arrested in May on a 13-count federal indictment, which charged him with using funds earmarked for campaign expenses on designer clothes and other personal expenses and improperly obtaining unemployment benefits meant for Americans who lost work because of the pandemic.

Santos was also accused of falsely reporting to the Federal Elections Commission that he had loaned $500,000 to his campaign in an attempt to convince Republican Party officials that he was a serious candidate, when he actually had less than $8,000 in his personal accounts.

Santos, who likely faces a lengthy prison term if convicted, was elected to Congress in November and sworn in as the U.S. Representative for New York’s Third Congressional District on January 7, 2023.

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 4/5

Book Blurb: Crack open your spell book and enter the world of the illustrious Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary. There's been a murder on campus, and it's up to the students of Galileo to solve it. Follow 18 authors and 18 students as they puzzle out the clues and find the guilty party. Professor of Magical History Septimius Dropwort has just been murdered, and now everyone at the Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary is a suspect. A prestigious school for young magicians, the Galileo Academy has recently undergone a comprehensive overhaul, reinventing itself as a roaming academy in which students of all cultures and identities are celebrated. In this new Galileo, every pupil is welcome—but there are some who aren't so happy with the recent changes. That includes everyone's least favorite professor, Septimius Dropwort, a stodgy old man known for his harsh rules and harsher punishments. But when the professor's body is discovered on school grounds with a mysterious note clenched in his lifeless hand, the Academy's students must solve the murder themselves, because everyone's a suspect. Told from more than a dozen alternating and diverse perspectives, The Grimoire of Grave Fates follows Galileo's best and brightest young magicians as they race to discover the truth behind Dropwort's mysterious death. Each one of them is confident that only they have the skills needed to unravel the web of secrets hidden within Galileo's halls. But they're about to discover that even for straight-A students, magic doesn't always play by the rules. . . . Contributors include: Cam Montgomery, Darcie Little Badger, Hafsah Faizal, Jessica Lewis, Julian Winters, Karuna Riazi, Kat Cho, Kayla Whaley, Kwame Mbalia, L. L. McKinney, Marieke Nijkamp, Mason Deaver, Natasha Díaz, Preeti Chhibber, Randy Ribay, Tehlor Kay Mejia, Victoria Lee, and Yamile Saied Méndez

Review:

A professor has been murdered and everyone at the magical academy known as the Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary is a suspect. Eighteen students, 20 hours, and a murderer to catch. Told from 18 different students, along with evidence, interviews, and notes, the mystery and events unfold all leading up to who killed the despised professor Septimius Dropwart and how each of the students could be involved. This was such a fun and magical read, especially when you get to see the events fold bit by bit from each student’s perspective all leading up to the events of the professor’s death and who could be involved. The mystery is revealed in tidbits and overall, it was a fun mystery read told in a unique format that definitely was an undertaking. i would highly recommend this for fans of mystery and fantasy reads! The students all had possible motives and all of them had some connection to the event. With so many unique perspectives and personalities, all the students were interesting to get to know and the overall villain was a fun one to figure out. Seriously, what a fun read!

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Children's, Delacorte Press for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[religioused]

Does Eternal Life Hurt?

by Gary Simpson

John 17:1-11 (NAB)The Prayer of Jesus. When Jesus had said this, he raised his eyes to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you, just as you gave him authority over all people, so that he may give eternal life to all you gave him. Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ. I glorified you on earth by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do. Now glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory that I had with you before the world began.

6 “I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world. They belonged to you, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you gave me is from you, because the words you gave to me I have given to them, and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you, and they have believed that you sent me. I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me, because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours and everything of yours is mine, and I have been glorified in them. And now I will no longer be in the world, but they are in the world, while I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are.

In Acts Chapter 1, Jesus is carried into the heavens, leaving the disciples looking up. Angels appear, asking Jesus’ followers why they are looking up, into the heavens. When people of faith are gazing into the heavens, the voices of angels can be heard asking, “Why are you standing there looking at the sky?” If I were an angel talking to the disciples, I might have added, “Heaven is around you, and above you. Enjoy the heaven God prepared for you here and in the heavens above. Eternal life starts now.”

We might need to review John Chapter 16 to get a better understanding of what is taking place in John Chapter 17. In John Chapter 16, Jesus is preparing His disciples for His ascension.(1) Chapter 17 could be described as the Lord’s prayer. Jesus prays for His followers. Theologian Merrill Unger divides the prayer into seven requests.(2)

• For Jesus to be glorified, and united again with the Creator.

• For the safety of Jesus’ followers.

• For the sanctification and unity of believers.

• For the world to believe.

• For believers to be united with Jesus in the heavenly.

In this Lord’s prayer, we get the sense that God the Son wants us to be one with God, and with each other. Jesus’ prayer is not just for the disciples who were alive when Jesus said this prayer. Jesus prayed for Believers in every age after His prayer.(3)

There are two different understandings of what eternal life means. The meaning we probably think of the most often is living forever. There is a second meaning, which we do not talk about very much. This second sense is that eternal life is not about the length of life, but the “quality of life.”(4) Contributors to The Life With God Bible indicate that this is “the only Biblical definition of eternal life.”(5) Both understandings of eternal life start right now. We start living more like Christ now. Because knowing God is eternal life, the eternal life that breaks the bonds of death and the grave starts now and runs into eternity.

Kyung-mi Park, who wrote the commentary about the Gospel of John in the Global Bible Commentary, observes that John does not give “empty promises” about the future, and does not make “hackneyed promises” about the present. Instead, John encourages those who are suffering to “find the eternal life of God amidst the changing time that swallows everything.”(6) To the Gospel writer, our present suffering, like the cross, is a blessing that is lifted up to God.(7)

Popular Bible commentator, William Barclay, states Jesus had “two things – belief in God and belief in humanity.” Barclay continues indicating that “one of the most uplifting things in the world is to think that Jesus put his trust in people like ourselves.”(8) I am going to zoom in on this for a moment.

A person I knew used to say how much she hated West Edmonton Mall. For years, the mall had a lot of mirrored walls. This person complained, “Everywhere I look I see a stooped old lady looking back at me.” Your mirror might be kinder, but my mirror could be charged with felony ugly and felony frightening. The pre-coffee, pre-comb look in my mirror is not a good look. Just saying. Jesus trusts the person you see in the mirror every day. Jesus trusts you with the love that Jesus expressed in His life, in His ministry, in His passion on Good Friday, in His ministry on Holy Saturday, and in His conquering of death on Easter Sunday. That is Christ’s love.

R.V.G. Tasker, author of the Tyndale New Testament commentary for John makes an interesting observation. Tasker notes that Jesus does not pray that His followers will be “immune” from hate. Jesus prays that His disciples will fulfill their godly vocation of proclaiming God’s love and reconciliation.(9) Skip Heitzig is a pastor of Calvary Chapel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.(10) Heitzig indicates that God saves us from the mess we are in, cleans us up, and sends us back into the mess, “with a message,” and our job is to get rid of the mess.(11) As we work to show God’s love, the prayers of Jesus go with us. This love is with us as we make the world a more just place. Jesus prayed for you in the Lord’s prayer for the church, and is praying for you now.(12) We call that interceding. And Jesus is ever interceding for you.

Jesus Christ’s interceding prevents us from being cut off from God. Our sins, our spiritual and physical weaknesses, and our diseases do not separate us from God. Albert Mohler, the pastor of Third Avenue Baptist Church, shared, “My Mom had Alzheimer’s disease. We lost her inch by inch.”(13) Later in his sermon, he says, “Not even Alzheimer’s disease can sever me from” God.(14)

Lady Gaga and Liza Minnelli presented the Oscar award for the Best Picture Oscar in 2022. I do not follow the Oscars. I only know that, because someone recently played a video clip of the presentation for me.

I gather that there might be some controversy about Liza Minnelli being in a wheelchair. I am going to step away from that controversy. In the video clip, Liza Minnelli appears to be a little unsettled and uncertain about what to do. The subtitles on a video on the Icons+ Facebook account say there were “nervous glances” in the audience. At one spot, Liza seems to be reviewing through the cards she has, and she says, “Oh, yes. But what do I have to do? I don’t understand.” Lady Gaga kept her hand on Liza Minnelli, possibly to give Liza assurance of support. Lady Gaga whispered to Liza, “I got you.” And Liza Minnelli replies, “I know. Thank you.”(15)

Listen carefully. From the heavenly, you can hear God whisper. The whisper is coming down through the centuries. “I got you.”

Notes

(1) Merrill F. Unger. Unger’s Bible Handbook: An Essential Guide to Understanding the Bible. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1967), 560.

(2) Unger (1967), 560-561.

(3) Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, and David Brown. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary on the Whole Bible. (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1961), 1065.

(4) William Barclay. The New Daily Study Bible: The Gospel of John. Vol. 2. Kindle ed. Edinburgh, Scotland: Saint Andrew Press, 2001.

(5) Richard J. Foster, et al., eds. The Life With God Bible. (New York: Harper Bibles, 2005), NT, 183.

(6) Kyung-mi Park. “John.” Global Bible Commentary. (Nashville, Tennessee: Abington Press, 2004), 410.

(7) Park (2004), 410.

(8) Barclay (2001).

(9) R.V.G. Tasker. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries: The Gospel According to St. John. (Leicester, England: Inter-Varsity Press, 1983), 190.

(10) “Skip Heitzig.” Wikipedia. 17 March 2023, 18 May 2023. <https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:History/Skip_Heitzig>.

(11) Skip Heitzig. “John 17 – Skip Heitzig.” Calvary Church With Skip Heitzig YouTube. 26 January 2017, 18 May 2023. <https://youtu.be/wqi1T8n-XJg>.

(12) Heitzig (2017) <https://youtu.be/wqi1T8n-XJg>.

(13) Albert Mohler. “John 17:1-5.” Albert Mohler YouTube. 14 March 2021, 16 May 2023. <https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Svpz7VTxJk0&feature=youtu.be>.

(14) Mohler (2021) <https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Svpz7VTxJk0&feature=youtu.be>.

(15) “She Treated Her With Dignity:” Lady Gaga and Her Applauded Gesture to Liza Minelli at Oscars.” Icons+ Facebook. 30 March 2022, 20 May 2023.

<https://m.facebook.com/upsoclicons/videos/she-treated-her-with-dignity-lady-gaga-and-her-applauded-gesture-to-liza-minnell/272455605083413/>.

[mdickersonphoto]

🍂 Autumn in an Ohio cemetery 🍂

[kp777]

By Lauren Sommer, Seyma Bayram

April 2, 202311:37 AM ET

A new study has uncovered that forest loss is changing weather patterns in the world's three largest remaining tropical rainforests.

The study, published in the journal Nature last month, found that clearing wide swaths of trees — what's known as deforestation — reduces rainfall in tropical rainforests which actually generate their own rain. When it rains, trees soak up and use that water. They then release that moisture, both through evaporation and through their leaves. That humid air rises and helps create clouds, which in turn create more rain.

This process, called precipitation recycling, accounts for up to 41% of the rainfall in the Amazon and up to 50% in the Congo, according to the study's authors. When trees are cut down, it breaks this cycle, hampering the formation of rain and leading to drought. Reduced precipitation recycling due to forest loss, the researchers say, has grave repercussions for agriculture, hydropower generation and climate resilience – as well as for the rainforest itself.

"Global efforts to restore large areas of degraded and deforested land could enhance precipitation, reversing some of the reductions in precipitation due to forest loss observed here," the authors wrote. They called for renewed efforts to protect rainforests and urged world leaders to act on their pledges to stop deforestation.

The study looked at satellite data on rainfall and forest loss in the world's largest rainforest, the Amazon, which covers nine countries; the Congo Basin, the second largest rainforest spanning six countries; and Southeast Asia, home to Indonesia's thriving Leuser Ecosystem.

Each of these rainforests is losing trees primarily to agricultural land use. The Amazon has lost a significant amount of its forest cover – more than an estimated 60 million acres from 2000 to 2010 alone. Much of the deforestation in the Amazon is due to soy cultivation and cattle farming.

In Indonesia, peatland forests are burned to the ground for lucrative palm oil plantations – a cheap oil commonly found in packaged foods, cleaning and cosmetic products and increasingly in biofuels. The palm oil industry, illegal logging and deforestation by small-scale farmers in West-Central Africa are also decimating the rainforests in the Congo Basin.

"When we're removing trees, we're making the environment drier and that lack of moisture that's the big cloud above those trees just disappears," said Callum Smith, a PhD researcher at the University of Leeds in England and co-author of the study.

In the Congo, deforestation could reduce local rainfall by 8-10% by the end of the century, the study points out. Scientists are also seeing the impact in the Amazon.

"The important thing to remember is that this is just due to forest loss," Smith said of the Congo prediction. "We're screening out the effect(s) of climate change."

Stopping deforestation

Robin Averbeck, forest program director at the Rainforest Action Network, said global forests are critical for producing rainfall and regulating global temperatures. They also capture carbon dioxide which is a major contributor to human-caused climate change. That gas releases, though, when trees are cut down or burned.

"Once we deforest, we lose one of our greatest natural defenses in protecting ourselves from climate change. This is not only true for forests, but also other ecosystems," Averbeck said. Draining and burning peatlands for palm oil plantations, particularly in Indonesia, also releases carbon into the atmosphere, they said.

Averbeck said banks, corporations and governments need to adopt and meaningfully enforce regulations and policies to prevent future deforestation while not funding or using crops or products cultivated on deforested land. They also said ensuring and protecting indigenous land rights is a critical step in preventing deforestation and rights abuses before they occur.

Indigenous lands contain 80% of the planet's remaining biodiversity, Averbeck pointed out. For this reason, Averbeck said it is critical for Indigenous people to be able to resist development and for governments and companies to respect their decision.

In Brazil, deforestation dramatically decreased through law enforcement under Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who was president from 2003 to 2010. The country saw deforestation surge and reach a fifteen-year high in 2021 under former president Jair Bolsonaro. Lula, who assumed the presidency again this year, campaigned on preserving the Amazon and protecting Indigenous communities.

Read more.

[woodelf68]

AO3 tag game

Tagged by @luthienebonyx

1. How many works do you have on ao3?

75

2. What’s your current AO3 wordcount?

272,188

3. How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

For fics that I've published/posted to share with others: Robin of Sherwood, Wizards and Warriors, Zorro (the Family Channel series), Lord of the Rings, Once Upon A Time, Stargate: Universe, The Tournament, Thor -- and like 99% of that is OUAT, SGU, and Thor. Everything pre-OUAT was no more than one or two fics per fandom. (I am not a natural story writer. I find it easy to write missing scenes, or extend existing ones, but a proper fic with a beginning, middle and end? At that age, the only thing that could force me to come up with enough words to count as a proper fic were those magic words "free contributor's copy". I did do a lot of art and poetry/filks for RoS, though.)

For all those journals filled with fannish scribbles that I wrote just for myself? Various soap operas, with the most being from Days of Our Lives probably, since I had a couple of big OTPs there. House. Highlander. Beauty and the Beast (Ron Perlman series). A bit of Hercules the Legendary Journeys? I remember writing something for Aphrodite and Hephaestus and at least one thing based on Tyr from Andromeda. More of all the shows that I listed as having posted online or had published in zines. Maybe some ST:TNG for Picard and Crusher? It's hard to remember, it's so long ago; I'm sure I've missed at least one fandom.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Bearing in mind that most of the Rumbelle and Rushbelle ones were posted on tumblr years before I copied them to AO3 (thus having most of their likes over here), these are all my more recent Thor fandom ones: Measuring Up, Child of Love, Tumblr Prompt Fics, Mornings, and Trust.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not.

Yes, always. I very much appreciate any and all comments and I want those who leave them to know that.

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

*Scrolls through my fics on AO3* Hm, I can't decide, my three fics in which I accept Neal Cassidy as being dead all make me sniffly. It's either 'Rumple and Henry at Neal's grave', 'Rumple names a star after Neal for Henry's birthday present', or 'Years after Neal's death, his sister visits the grave of the brother she never met'. I debated rewriting that last one when the Rumbaby turned out to be a boy, but was too pleased with the way the fic came out to mess with it.

7. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve ever written?

I've done several Rushbelle ones and one Macelle one that springboarded off a Bad Faery fic. Craziest one was a prompt for SGU's Nicholas Rush to turn into a unicorn. It somehow ended up not feeling like crack at all, though.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

I got a few critical reviews from someone this past winter, but nothing strong enough that I would call it hate or be bothered by it. Like 'this is too fluffy and OOC' and I was like 'if you're looking for angst, you're in the wrong place, but thanks for reading!' I was having quite a bit of fun responding to this person tbqh, I was kind of sad when they stopped after three fics.

9. Do you write smut?

Yep. My brain keeps providing me with ideas, rudely not caring that it's much easier to play out sex scenes in my head for my own pleasure than to actually write them down.

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

No. (At least that I know of!)

11. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No

12. What’s your all time favorite ship?

Oh boy. *Drums fingers* I'm going to go with Vincent and Catherine from Beauty and the Beast, because their journey was cut short when Linda Hamilton left the show and I was left feeling unfulfilled and cheated of everything that they could have been. Fic was good, but they were canon, and we did not get enough of them. I wish they had either tried recasting the role or just cancelled it without doing what they did in the third season. Their romance was just so beautiful.

13. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

If little isolated scenes I just wrote for my own pleasure (often extending an aired scene to make it fluffier or smuttier) in a journal counts, then Days of Our Lives, I think. Or maybe General Hospital. That was the first soap I got hooked on at the tender age of 12, thanks to my mom. For a proper fic written to be shared with others...it might have been a very short Robin of Sherwood scene where Robin wasn't killed due to some Herne-sent Magical Mist™ shrouding him from view of the Sheriff's archers and allowing him to escape back into the woods. (My more experienced self is asking what good that would have done, when the dogs could have just tracked him right back down. I DON'T KNOW, OKAY?)

14. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

Oh man, I've got too many to choose from. The best I can do is say that for Rumbelle it's probably one (or all) of the fics in the Floofy!verse, and for Thor, one (or all) of the completely self-indulgently fluffy kid Thor and Loki fics.

Open tag for anyone who wants to do it!

[centralbiohubgermany]

Get the best peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with various autoimmune disorders

Immune system problems are a group of interesting circumstances where the safe framework miss-distinguishes its own sound tissues and goes after them by an instrument called autoimmunity. In immune system problems, the body produces autoantibodies against its generally expected blood proteins to obliterate them. There are a few hereditary and ecological variables answerable for causing immune system problems. Be that as it may, the specific reason for this strange invulnerable reaction is as yet a secret.

Usually seen immune system issues incorporate Type 1 Diabetes mellitus, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, foundational lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid joint pain, fiery gut illnesses, various sclerosis, psoriasis, Graves’ sickness, and so forth. As per the appraisals, a large number of individuals are determined to have different immune system problems consistently, no matter what their age. Nonetheless, ladies have a higher gamble to foster immune system conditions than men. Obviously, immune system problems are deep rooted messes with no long-lasting fix. In this way, it is critical to increase examination to comprehend immune system issues and their pathway more significant. Finding the particular reasons for safe framework overactivity assists with uncovering potential ways of controlling the diseases later on.

Job of Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells In Autoimmune Research

The muddled infection pathway and obscure etiologies are the fundamental road obstructions for specialists for finding a super durable remedy for immune system problems. These days, Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells (PBMC) are viewed as a successful tissue hotspot for driving atomic and immunological investigations in clinical exploration. As we probably are aware, fringe blood mononuclear cells assume an essential part in changing human resistance. It is guessed that the foundational idea of immune system problems can carry clinically applicable changes or modifications to quality articulation of the inclined people’s fringe blood mononuclear cells. On top of it, the high awareness and explicitness of Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells towards hereditary variety and compound openness assists the scientists with looking further into versatile invulnerability and hyperimmune reaction. More or less, Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells studies can manual for new skylines of pharmacogenomic exploration to treat immunological problems.

Best quality PBMCs from Autoimmune Patients

Might it be said that you are searching for Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells for your next research project? Then, at that point, look at the most up to date stock of Central BioHub. www.centralbiohub.de keeps on driving the online biospecimen upset by giving morally obtained, very much explained human biospecimens from patients and willful contributors. Focal BioHub offers great many precisely tried, very much safeguarded Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells separated from fringe blood of patients determined to have different immune system problems to speed up dynamic examination on immunological issues around the world. It offers PBMC, human serum and tests from patients with Type 1 Diabetes mellitus, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, fundamental lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid joint pain, provocative entrail infections, various sclerosis, psoriasis, Graves’ illness, coeliac sickness, and that’s just the beginning.

For subtleties on the examples and requesting process, peruse their most recent stock of banked human examples at https://centralbiohub.de/Biospecimens/Specimen-Matrix/Peripheral-Blood-Mononuclear-Cell and find the effortlessness of biospecimen obtainment.

[carboledger]

What is Product Carbon Footprint?

In an era where environmental sustainability is more than a buzzword, the spotlight shines brightly on how businesses contribute to carbon emissions and what steps they can take to mitigate their impact. Among the myriad concepts floating around in this green sea, one stands out for its specificity and utility: the Product Carbon Footprint (PCF). At its core, PCF represents a measure of the total amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted throughout the lifecycle of a product, from raw material extraction to end-of-life disposal. This metric serves as a critical compass for sustainability professionals and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) experts, guiding them in crafting strategies that not only curtail emissions but also align with broader environmental goals. Understanding PCF is essential, not just for its immediate benefits in reducing carbon footprints, but also for its role in fostering a culture of transparency and accountability in environmental stewardship. As we delve deeper into the nuances of PCF, our aim is to provide a comprehensive overview that obviates the need for further resources, offering crystal clarity to those embarking on or advancing their journey in sustainable practices.

The Relevance of Product Carbon Footprint

As the world grapples with the escalating challenges of climate change, the importance of understanding and managing the Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) has never been more pronounced. This urgency stems from a collective realization across the global community: the path to mitigating climate change is paved with informed and deliberate actions toward reducing GHG emissions. Businesses, as significant contributors to carbon emissions, find themselves at the forefront of this imperative. The calculation and management of PCF emerge as pivotal processes in this context, enabling companies to pinpoint hotspots of GHG emissions within their product lines and supply chains.

The relevance of PCF transcends environmental conservation, touching upon regulatory compliance and market competitiveness. In numerous regions, legislation now demands that businesses disclose their environmental impact, making PCF data an indispensable element of corporate reporting. Moreover, consumer awareness and preferences are increasingly tilting towards sustainable products, further emphasizing the need for transparent PCF data sharing. For sustainability and LCA professionals, mastering the intricacies of PCF is not just about adhering to best practices; it is also about navigating the evolving landscape of environmental regulation and consumer expectations. In essence, understanding PCF is fundamental to driving forward the sustainability agenda, fostering innovation in product design, and achieving long-term ecological and economic resilience.

We’ll continue to explore how PCF is calculated and why sharing PCF data is beneficial and challenging in the next sections. This deep dive aims to equip sustainability professionals with the knowledge and tools necessary for making informed decisions and driving meaningful change in their organizations and beyond.

Calculating Product Carbon Footprint

Understanding how to calculate the Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) is crucial for sustainability and LCA professionals. The process begins with a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), a systematic analysis of the environmental impacts associated with all the stages of a product’s life from cradle to grave (i.e., from raw material extraction through materials processing, manufacture, distribution, use, repair and maintenance, and disposal or recycling). Here’s a closer look at the key stages and methodologies involved in calculating PCF:

Raw Material Extraction and Processing: This initial phase involves assessing the emissions from extracting raw materials and processing them into usable forms. It accounts for direct emissions from the extraction process and indirect emissions from the energy used.

Manufacturing: The manufacturing phase considers the GHG emissions from producing the product, including energy consumption, waste generated, and emissions from chemical processes.

Distribution and Transportation: This stage evaluates the emissions associated with distributing the product to the consumer, including transportation from the manufacturing site to retail outlets or directly to the consumer.

Use Phase: The use phase encompasses the emissions resulting from the consumer using the product, which can vary significantly depending on the product type and usage patterns.

End-of-Life: This final stage assesses the emissions involved in disposing of or recycling the product, including transportation to disposal sites and processes like landfilling or incineration.

For calculating PCF, emissions are categorized into three scopes:

Scope 1 includes direct emissions from owned or controlled sources.

Scope 2 accounts for indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating, and cooling consumed by the reporting company.

Scope 3 includes all other indirect emissions that occur in a company’s value chain, including both upstream and downstream emissions.

The accuracy of PCF calculations is greatly enhanced by adhering to established standards and protocols. Notably, the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14067 are widely recognized frameworks that provide guidelines for quantifying and reporting greenhouse gas emissions, including product carbon footprints. These standards ensure consistency, transparency, and credibility in PCF reporting, making it easier for businesses to communicate their environmental impact to stakeholders.

Navigating the complexities of PCF calculation can be daunting, particularly for organizations without specialized in-house expertise. This is where consulting services play a pivotal role. Firms specializing in sustainability consulting offer tailored support to businesses embarking on their PCF journey. These services range from conducting detailed LCA studies and identifying emission reduction opportunities to helping companies align with global standards and prepare for PCF disclosure. Leveraging such expertise not only streamlines the PCF calculation process but also empowers companies to integrate sustainable practices into their core operations, driving meaningful environmental improvements.

The challenge in calculating PCF lies in the meticulous collection and analysis of data across these scopes. Accuracy is paramount, as is a comprehensive understanding of the product lifecycle and the emissions associated with each stage. Despite these challenges, the insights gleaned from PCF calculations are invaluable, enabling businesses to identify areas for emission reductions and efficiency improvements.

Sharing PCF Data: Benefits and Challenges

Once a company has calculated its Product Carbon Footprint (PCF), the next step is to consider sharing this data. PCF data sharing can significantly enhance transparency, providing stakeholders with clear insights into a product’s environmental impact. This transparency can foster trust among consumers, differentiate products in a competitive market, and even facilitate collaboration between businesses for sustainability initiatives.

Benefits of PCF Data Sharing:

Enhanced Transparency and Consumer Trust: By openly sharing PCF data, companies can build trust with consumers and stakeholders, demonstrating a commitment to sustainability.

Benchmarking and Continuous Improvement: Sharing PCF data allows companies to benchmark their products against others, identifying areas for improvement and innovation.

Regulatory Compliance and Market Access: In regions where environmental reporting is becoming mandatory, sharing PCF data can ensure compliance and facilitate access to new markets.

Challenges in PCF Data Sharing:

Data Sensitivity: Concerns about revealing sensitive information that could potentially benefit competitors.

Standardization and Comparability: The lack of standardized methodologies can make it difficult to compare PCF data across products and industries.

Ensuring Data Accuracy: Maintaining the accuracy and reliability of PCF data requires rigorous data collection and validation processes.

Despite these challenges, the momentum towards greater environmental transparency is clear. Initiatives and platforms that support standardized PCF reporting are emerging, helping to overcome some of the hurdles associated with data sharing.

The Future of Product Carbon Footprint

The landscape of Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) is evolving rapidly, driven by technological advancements and a deepening commitment to sustainability across sectors. Emerging trends indicate a shift towards more dynamic and transparent methods of measuring and reporting environmental impacts. One of the biggest trend is about use of Digital Tools and Real-Time Tracking. Innovations in digital technology are enabling more accurate and real-time tracking of emissions, making it easier for companies to measure and manage their PCF.

As the importance of PCF continues to grow, sustainability and LCA professionals are encouraged to stay at the forefront of these developments. Engaging with new methodologies and technologies not only enhances the accuracy and credibility of PCF calculations but also opens up new avenues for reducing environmental impacts and driving sustainable innovation.The journey through the intricacies of Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) underscores its critical role in steering businesses towards environmental sustainability. From understanding its calculation to the nuances of data sharing, PCF emerges as a vital metric for transparency, innovation, and regulatory compliance. As we advance, the collective effort of sustainability and LCA professionals in embracing and advancing PCF methodologies will be pivotal in shaping a more sustainable future. Let this exploration serve as a foundation, empowering businesses and professionals alike to prioritize and refine their sustainability strategies with PCF at their core.

[halaldua]

Powerful Duas To Stop Divorce and Strengthen Marriage

In Islam, divorce, known as "talaq” or “Khula” is allowed as a last resort when all other options fail. We believe marriage should be filled with love, compassion, and peace. Each partner has rights and responsibilities to fulfill. However, sometimes marriages encounter difficulties. If you want to take a “Khula” or “Talaq” from your spouse, then you should read dua to stop divorce. Both spouses need to understand the procedures and Islamic teachings. Our Molvi Ji is available for appointments to support you through this challenging time. Feel free to reach out to our website to schedule a meeting.

5 Main Reason of Divorce

In Islam, divorce is a serious matter and should be approached with careful consideration. While the reasons for divorce can vary greatly depending on individual circumstances, here are five main factors that may contribute to divorce in Islamic marriages:

Lack of Communication: Communication breakdown is a significant contributor to marital discord. When spouses fail to effectively communicate their needs, concerns, and feelings, misunderstandings can arise, leading to resentment and distance between them.

Financial Issues: Financial strain can place a significant burden on a marriage. Disagreements over spending habits, debt, and financial responsibilities can create tension and conflict within the relationship, ultimately leading to divorce if not properly addressed.

Infidelity: Infidelity, whether emotional or physical, is a serious breach of trust in a marriage. In Islam, adultery is considered a grave sin, and it can have devastating consequences on the marital bond. Lack of fidelity can erode the foundation of trust and intimacy, often leading to irreconcilable differences and divorce.

Incompatibility: Despite efforts to make a marriage work, some couples may find themselves fundamentally incompatible. Differences in values, goals, lifestyles, or personalities can create ongoing conflicts and prevent the couple from building a harmonious relationship.

Abuse: Physical, emotional, or verbal abuse is never acceptable in Islam or any other religion. Unfortunately, abuse within marriages is a harsh reality for some couples. Islam condemns all forms of oppression and injustice, and spouses have the right to seek divorce if they are subjected to abuse or mistreatment.

It's important to note that divorce is considered a last resort in Islam, and every effort should be made to reconcile differences and preserve the marriage. Seeking guidance from religious leaders, engaging in counseling, and addressing underlying issues can help couples navigate challenges and strengthen their marital bond.

Dua To Stop Divorce

Recite this powerful dua to prevent divorce, pleading to Allah, the merciful and compassionate, for His divine intervention in restoring harmony and unity within your marriage. The dua is straightforward yet profound, requiring sincerity and faith.

"O Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate, Grant us strength to overcome our differences, Fill our hearts with love, understanding, and patience, Guide us towards reconciliation and forgiveness, Protect our marriage from the whispers of Shaytan, And bless us with a lasting union built on Your divine grace. Ameen."

Recite this dua to stop divorce sincerely and with conviction, especially during moments of distress and uncertainty, to evoke a sense of peace and reassurance. Remember, practical efforts such as seeking professional counseling, open communication, and mutual support are essential in addressing marital issues and strengthening the bond.

How To Prevent Divorce

When a marriage is in trouble, couples should try everything to fix it before considering divorce. Divorce is allowed but not encouraged in Islam. The Prophet Muhammad once said that Allah dislikes divorce the most out of all lawful things.

So, the first thing to do is to really think about the relationship and try to make it better. Every marriage has its ups and downs, and deciding to divorce shouldn't be easy. Ask yourself, "Have I tried everything to make it work?" Think about your own feelings and flaws. Remember the good things about your spouse and try to forgive the small problems. Talk to your spouse about how you feel and what you need. Sometimes, it might help to talk to a Molvi Ji during this process.