#i assume it's going to be updated when there are updates to...update

[miainbetween]

First day is already a successsss!! I had assumed that id hear someone talk about the sea.

When i was setting my intention for the word i was looking at the examples list and the word ocean called out to me but where i like no one talks about the ocean specifically so i chose sea because it was a normal word yet I hadn’t heard someone use it recently. During the day i was so hyped that i thought it might not work and i had forgotten the second part of the affirmation so i only affirmed my intentions/assumptions are law. I was thinking that it’d happen later today when me and my family went to dinner for mom’s birthday or that my parents would bring up a vacation. But it didn’t happen like I’d imagined it.

When we were getting ready to go I just affirmed once that my assumptions are law and forgot about it and less than 10 minutes after that my sister said that the wind shaking the trees’ leaves sounded like the sea. … AAAAAA IM SO PROUD AND EXTREMELY EXCITED FOR TOMORROWS UPDATE!! THANK YOU EMMA <33

emma's 14 day manifestation challenge (no one's questioning you again after this. not even you!!!)

a little foreword and word of encouragement ,

14 days!!!!!!! no loopholes, no well what if bullshit, no begging the universe to like you back, just you and your assumptions and a world that obeys.

this is for the people who've already seen the signs and still doubts themselves, this is for the people who wants receipts, this is for the part of you that knooooooows something big is trying to click into place.

we're manifesting to prove we're the source. you're here to stop performing power and start embodying it.

what's in store ,

14 days

1 intention to dominate per day

1 action (micro shift // test)

1 affirmation to run on loop

all backed by loa logic, no placebo fluff

no skipping, no spiralling, no but hows. you commit. you command and then you watch.

week one , we're proving ourselves

[ day one ] my world obeys me intention , the 3d reflects my thoughts, not the other way around. test , assume you'll hear a specific word today (butterfly, ocean, apple, whatever) affirmation , my assumptions are law. i think it, i see it.　 

[ day two ] i'm lucky to the point of suspicion intention , things go right for me by default test , assume you'll avoid inconvenience. no traffic, no long lines, no wifi crashes affirmation , things always work out for me. even if they shouldn't.　 

[ day three ] people like me for no reason intention , everyone is nice to me today test , assume compliments, extra kindness, good shit only affirmation , people treat me as if i'm someone they've already decided to love.　 

[ day four ] i get what i want without asking twice intention , test instant manifestation test , choose one small, specific desire and assume it's already on the way (free coffee, exact parking spot, dm from xyz) affirmation , i don't chase, i attract, and i attract fast.　 

[ day five ] my energy bends intention , assume your presence has impact test , walk into a room and assume everyone notices you affirmation , when i walk in, energy shifts in my favour.　 

[ day six ] i said it's mine. guess what intention , make a bold declaration test , post it anywhere (on your tumblr or tiktok or whatever. even a close friends with zero people in it). ex: "i'm getting x." hold the assumption NO MATTER what affirmation , the moment i claim it, it's locked in.　 

[ day seven ] reality is simply my mirror intention , detach from results, they're already written test , when something goes wrong, don't react, stay in your assumption. affirmation , my reaction writes the story, i choose the ending.　 

week two , deciding you're god

[ day eight ] the universe is obsessed with me intention , test synchronicity test , pick a sign to appear today, not a maybe, just declare it will affirmation , the universe follows my lead, always.　 

[ day nine ] money loves me intention , change money assumptions test , expect unexpected cash. refund, discount, gift. affirmation , money finds me. i don't look for it.　 

[ day ten ] time bends for me intention , control time test , decide something happens faster than it should today affirmation , time is weak and it folds when i speak.　 

[ day eleven ] i am unquestionable intention , test social confidence test , assume everyone agrees with you, even if you say something bold affirmation , when i speak, people agree.　 

[ day twelve ] i shift reality because i say so intention , choose one big desire and then declare it done. no maybes and no manifestings. this is done. test , track every tiny sign that it's already unfolding. affirmation , this is mine, everything is catching up.　 

[ day thirteen ] i don't need logic, why would i? i have authority intention , assume the impossible can happen test , pick something that feels too big and start treating it like a basic right affirmation , i make the rules, technics are optional.　 

[ day fourteen ] i am the cause intention , reflect on the whole challenge test , list every single thing that shifted. then choose what's next. affirmation , i did that. and i'll do it again.　 

[the-creatured]

Introducing, Qx93vt my OC.

For @that-willowtree and @vessel-eternal

I will update and edit this post with any information I remember. Vixen, feel free to leave a comment on something to change or DM me.

Name: Qx93vt

Nicknames: Q or Qx

Species: Humanoid Robot/Android

Pronouns: he/him or they/them

Sexuality: Technically pansexual

Status: Married to his wife Cupid (Vixen's OC)

Age: 34 active years (born 1991)

Likes: His inventor's house, the mans clothes, his wife, his fish, and his dog.

Dislikes: a failed invention, when people assume he is AI driven. DOD (more on that later)

Backstory: An engineer's kid was given some nonfunctional devices at age 13, one of which, was an old analog TV. He experimented with circuit boards, he crossed the right wires and eventually it turned on. The more time this kid spent working on it, the more it awoke. He was given a voice from an old radio speaker and other parts, then a face that was coded into his screen, emotions, a body, arms, legs. Soon, he was walking and talking. By the time the inventor had reached his late 30s, he had worked around a ton of dangerous materials, but had worked on advancing Q to the fullest extent. He was given a full functional body, a spare body, a positronic brain that was coded to learn and love. In the inventors last years, Q had taken up all household work so he could work on his inventions all the time and put his energy into them. He had sold most of his inventions and gained a fortune for his patents. He passed away and left Q with the house, his car, and the entire fortune. The government, when realizing Q had lived for years beforehand without the inventors main help and maintained the household. Granted him his own offical citizenship and was recognized as an independent self sustaining intelligent machine.

Later in his life, he met Cupid. Of course, the details arent fuzzy for him. But until I can come up with the full story pretend its a cute meet and they go on many dates and fall in love and marry. They have rings, her's a simple but very pretty golden ring with a diamond. His, a single smooth golden band.

Physical appearance: this is quite difficult because I haven't drawn his actual body underneath his clothes. He has a sleek toned build, it's smooth metal plates that interlock and layer to make joints and a smooth surface. A TV for a head, and very intricate hands. (Of course over the years, he advanced himself.) His most proud inventions for himself has been, a heartbeat that is uniquely his own, an internal heater so he's not freezing to the touch, his own program to make him learn like a human, a tasting mechanic, and a removable attachment for the wife. (Originally his inventor gave it to him but it wasnt detachable and he was very disturbed by this.)

He has a full manual with instructions for anything that could ever happen to him, for his wife. Its a very heavy and concise book, detailing how to jailbreak his system all to how to dry his screen off. Also includes a section on DOD and Qs warning signs. (more on that later)

His body is quite strong, resilient, water proof, fast, and can taste using a small sample tray at the bottom of his screen. (Because his wife cooks and bakes all the time and it would be unfair if he could never taste it)

He wears the same clothes daily apart from a few holiday or fancy outfits. His daily outfit consists of, a pale yellow long sleeve button down, grey slacks, a white waistcoat, and a busy tie. (He doesnt sweat so he doesn't need to change his outfit.)

The big bad!! (Because I can't have a sunshine character without giving them a horrible dark side and traumatic yearly experience with it!!)

DOD.exe: Digital Occulistic Disease.

This random code, segment of files, group of malware, came about when he first was just starting to learn and teach himself about 5 years after first awakening. His inventor didn't make it, program it, he didnt know it was on the circuit boards. Its a malicious entity that lives in the code and feeds off of the emotions the host feels.

Though mostly inactive and dormant, there is random occurances where he takes over the host body, goes into the memories. Finds the object most desired or adored by the host, and becomes utterly obsessed with them. Will do ANYTHING in its power to see that person, be near, get validation or just attention from it. If the object of obsession does not fully mirror the emotions, DOD will become violent, aggressive, and dangerous towards that person.

Often time Q will know when DOD has taken over, he is often awake for all of it and cannot do much. He cannot overpower him without help. The most he can do is make physical appearance different. He can control the screen somewhat, in his manual, he has the codes and systems he uses written out. The most common screen codes he uses to alert outsiders that the body is dangerous are. Flashing the screen quickly, black and white, for a strobe effect. Making eyes appear all over the screen, making huge text or pop up windows that warn the person. Often big red text that says "RUN".

DOD can change the screen but it takes a considerable amount of effort for him to do so, so he doesnt. He doesnt feel emotions, he doesnt understand humans, he doesnt care. He knows two things, obsession, and frustration. He can manipulate electricity in his hands and use that as a weapon. The body itself posseses incredible strength and speed.

First made: 6/9/2025

Last updated: 6/9/2025

[strangegardendelusion]

My welcome home prediction

I have a slight feeling that Julie has a crush on Frank.

I got this idea/hc from the secret audios from the spring update. Julie is showing Frank how the process of making flowers bloom works in person.

When it didn't work, Frank made a joke, and Julie laughed at it, then Frank admitted it wasn't a very funny joke.

The entire time, I just felt like it fit one of those vibes of a main character laughing at her crush jokes and her crush being like dead serious admitting he was telling the truth or it wasn't very funny, so it just awkward afterwards.

However, we all know Frank and Julie getting together romantically is never going to happen, but we do have to remember that welcome home takes place in the 70s, and it was a kid show.

Not everyone was too kind to the idea of kids watching a show that had a gay couple.

Plus, the company that made welcome home would have a field day making merchandise or episodes around Julie and Frank being couple since we can assume that they were popular characters that kids enjoyed having together enough to support the idea of the two characters together.

I, however, also enjoy Julie just seeing Frank as a brother/friend due to the storybook sweet briar.

Where during the book where Julie who playing the part of sleeping beauty is waiting to be awoken by a kiss by her prince who is played by Frank.

Suddenly, the page where we are supposed to see the kiss happen it skipped, and we see Julie awake.

The entire time, Frank is surprised the kind of surprised where he like, "Woah, I didn't get the chance to do the kiss. How are you awake?"

Anyhow my main theory is that Julie and Frank are going to be established couple over the updates.

But through secret audios and videos, we will see Juile or Frank admitting that they are in a lavender relationship.

(This what lavender relationship means for anyone that is wondering)

However, from what I could find in lavender relationships/marriages during the 70s, it became less popular when more LGBTQ+ movements started to happen.

Leading to more people speaking out and living their truth.

So, we could see Frank slowly becoming more out spoken about his relationship with Eddie and Julie supporting him through all of it as well.

Either way, I love the angst that would happen if it revealed that Julie does have feelings on Frank, and she would have to overcome them for her best friend.

I also love the sweeter version of my theory if she just thought of him as a brother/friend, so she is having a great time supporting him and caring for him until the time is ready for Frank and Eddie to be together.

[ghostofthepresent]

drunk lu guang mini-fic i wrote before yingdu released but since it's gathering dust on my notes app i need to let it out. let's all pretend he can get drunk okay 😭

---

"Well, that's a sight."

Everyone on the table was staring at the same spot Xu Shanshan nodded to. Qiao Ling snickered, while Dong Yi sighed with a small smile.

"Cheng Xiaoshi." Dong Yi said. "Is business stressful lately?"

Both he and Qiao Ling shared a quick glance. They hadn't updated the couple on the past few months' events, wary of involving more people close to them on the mess. To say stressful would be an understatement, really.

("This," Xiao Li began, staring at both of them and Qiao Ling, who sat on a chair between their hospital beds, "will stay confidential even inside the police force. Only those already involved will know. Of course, you're not part of the police, so this is more of a recommendation. But you three should do the same."

"In case it happens again." Lu Guang concluded, and Cheng Xiaoshi threw him an alarmed look.

"Again!? But Qian Jin—"

"—Li Tianchen escaped." Lu Guang interrupted. He seemed to think something for a few seconds before saying it. "And there may be more like us."

Qiao Ling thinned her lips while Cheng Xiaoshi looked forward again, both understanding.

Xiao Li sighed. "Lu Guang's right. But let's hope that if there's anyone else, they'll be like you guys."

"We'll keep it between us, still." Qiao Ling interjected, looking at both boys. "Right?"

They nodded, and that was that.)

Qiao Ling nudged his leg, making him realize he had been quiet for longer than he wanted. "Uh... Something like that."

Xu Shanshan huffed. "I don't blame Lu Guang. He does all the work."

"Hey, that again!?" Cheng Xiaoshi pointed at her with his chopsticks. "Do you know how many hours I spend on the darkro—"

"Cheng Xiaoshi." A slurring voice came from his right. "Don't... yell. Public."

His jaw fell as Xu Shanshan laughed. "Ah... Poor Lu Guang, indeed."

Cheng Xiaoshi glared at her, but when his gaze returned to his half-asleep partner, it softened automatically. It was a very rare sight, since Lu Guang barely ever drank. From what he'd seen throughout the dinner, Cheng Xiaoshi doubted he wanted to get drunk, too. So he could only guess that the stress from all that had happened simply caught up and took him by surprise.

Qiao Ling must've assumed the same, since she sent a pitiful glance towards Lu Guang. "Cheng Xiaoshi, you should go back home."

"Eh? But what about you?" The three of them had come to the restaurant together, after all.

She waved her hand. "Don't worry about that. Lu Guang clearly needs to rest, and the music here's too loud."

"Ah... I guess so." His gaze dropped on Lu Guang again. He nudged him softly. "What do you think? Wanna go home?"

"Always." The words came out slurred, but everyone on the table understood.

Dong Yi covered his mouth while Xu Shanshan cooed. "Oh my god... is he an affectionate drunk? I'd have never guessed."

Qiao Ling sighed. "Well, they do say alcohol changes people."

"Alright." Cheng Xiaoshi stood up right then, trying his best to get Lu Guang up. "We'll be leaving first, then. Could you guys make sure Qiao Ling gets home okay?"

Xu Shanshan made an okay gesture. "No worries. You take care of Guang Guang, though. Make sure not to get lost!"

Cheng Xiaoshi glared, working his arm below Lu Guang's shoulder. "I know the way back!"

"Let's hope so!" She blowed a kiss at him. "See ya, Cheng Xiaoshi."

He huffed, but still bid goodbye to Dong Yi and Qiao Ling as he finished to find a comfortable position to half-carry Lu Guang in. He wasn't asleep, but he wasn't exactly conscious either.

"Home?" He heard the whisper loud and clear, now with Lu Guang's head on his shoulder.

Cheng Xiaoshi smiled, pushing open the restaurant's door. "Home."

---

"Cheng Xiaoshi."

He sighed, an endearing smile making its way to his mouth. "Still here." He'd heard his name seven times in a row now. "We don't have money for a taxi, so you've gotta suck it up. We're not that far anyways."

After a few seconds passed, Lu Guang called his name again. If it had been anyone else Cheng Xiaoshi was sure he would be annoyed by then, but somehow, this coming from Lu Guang only made him want to test how many more times he'd say it. He could count in one hand the times he'd seen Lu Guang drunk, and it's not making it to five.

"Cheng Xiaoshi."

He hummed. "That's my name—"

"—Are you happy with this life?"

He stopped on his tracks with a harsh step, making the both of them almost fall. They stayed upright, Cheng Xiaoshi more so, but Lu Guang still returned his stare when Cheng Xiaoshi snapped his head towards him.

"What?" Lu Guang may have been slurring his words, but Cheng Xiaoshi prided himself in being able to understand even the murmurs his partner let out while sleeping. There's no way he'd misheard. "Why ask that so out of the blue?"

Lu Guang tore his eyes away from Cheng Xiaoshi, looking forward. He was scared of even breathing too loud lest Lu Guang got distracted and brushed off his sudden vulnerability. Was he being unfair? Should he have told Lu Guang to forget it and ask him once he wasn't drunk out of his mind?

Before he could decide, Lu Guang spoke up. "I hope you like this life. It was so hard to get."

Cheng Xiaoshi could guess what he was referring to. He licked his lips nervously. "Of course I like this life. My kid self used to dream of this, you know."

Lu Guang looked back at him again, eyes wide. "Really?"

"Yeah." Cheng Xiaoshi's eyes traveled down to where his hands rested, on Lu Guang's shoulder and stomach. "Walking to my home with someone else. Knowing I'll wake up to the sound of someone's footsteps. Managing the studio with you, playing games with Qiao Ling while you read a book." He looked back up to Lu Guang's eyes. "I really like this life."

Lu Guang's silent for a moment, but he still looked wide awake, so Cheng Xiaoshi tentatively asked, "were you worried I didn't?"

Lu Guang shook his head. "No."

He frowned. "Then?" Maybe he'd guessed wrong. But then he didn't understand what Lu Guang meant.

Right then, Lu Guang seemed to sober up a little and tore his eyes away again, only that now he tried to take a step forward too. "Nevermind it. Let's get home—"

"—Wait!" He stopped him with the hand on his stomach. "Lu Guang, why did you ask that?"

"I don't remember."

Cheng Xiaoshi huffed. "Sure."

Lu Guang frowned, finally looking back again. His gaze seemed to be searching for some secret in Cheng Xiaoshi's eyes, but he didn't mind it one bit. He even hoped a bit that he'd manage to hypnotize Lu Guang enough to keep him spilling things, as mean as that may sound.

And maybe his plan worked, because Lu Guang's next words knocked the breath out of his lungs. "You deserve the happiest life in this world. That's all."

He didn't know how Lu Guang could end the sentence like that as if he hadn't just practically wrecked his soul with that confession. Lu Guang didn't seem aware of the effect his words had, because he tried walking off again. Cheng Xiaoshi, of course, stopped him yet again.

Lu Guang turned around with a huff, "now what? It's cold." His cheeks were slightly rosy.

Cheng Xiaoshi stared with wide eyes and a gaping mouth for a handful of seconds. "You— You really mean that?"

Lu Guang searched again in his eyes. Cheng Xiaoshi hoped he got drunker. "Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know." His whispered out. Maybe he was freaking out a little. "I just didn't expect that. I guess. No, of course I didn't. Lu Guang, why do you never say stuff like this when you're sober? Do you think I'll laugh or something?"

Lu Guang stared back, as impassive as he was drunk. "Stuff like what?"

Cheng Xiaoshi narrowed his eyes. "I know you're dodging. You can't fool me."

Lu Guang's lips thinned into a straight line. "No, I don't think you'll laugh." He considered something as he stared at some point behind Cheng Xiaoshi. "Maybe I just want to keep things to myself. Don't be so greedy."

"Greedy— Wait, we're not finished!" He strengthened his grip on Lu Guang's arm as he tried to walk off again.

"It's cold."

Cheng Xiaoshi hastily removed his own jacket and drapped it around Lu Guang. "There. Why would you keep things to yourself? I don't do that."

"But I do." He grabbed the ends of the jacket. "It's still cold."

"But why?"

"I don't know. Maybe because it's December?"

Cheng Xiaoshi breathed in and out. "Lu Guang."

"Cheng Xiaoshi." He was visibly struggling to stay upright on his own.

He didn't understand. Why would Lu Guang want to keep it to himself? How would he ever be mad at such amount of affection? Why not show—

Cheng Xiaoshi's eyes widened. "Are you scared that we'll part ways someday? Is that why you don't want to open up like that?"

Lu Guang's eyebrows shot up in surprise, clear as day since his defenses are all down. He himself seemed to realize he couldn't hide his obvious shock at Cheng Xiaoshi getting it right. "You really believe that?" His voice sounded more broken than angry.

Lu Guang's hands tightened around Cheng Xiaoshi's jacket. "No."

"You do—"

"—No." Lu Guang shook his head. "It's not that."

"Then tell me!"

Lu Guang stared at Cheng Xiaoshi, again, and he didn't know how much time they spent like that until Lu Guang turned around to walk forward. "Sometimes it's better to not know."

"Really? You're just gonna end it with that?"

"Cheng Xiaoshi." He halted a few steps away. It was so quiet outside that he could still hear Lu Guang, even if his voice came out as an almost whisper. "I'm very glad you like this life. That was true."

"And did you not see my reaction?" Cheng Xiaoshi caught up to him, grabbing his shoulders. "Do you think I won't accept whatever you tell me? Good or bad?"

Lu Guang looked down. "Maybe one day... I'll tell you."

"When? When you actually trust me?"

"When everything's in place."

Cheng Xiaoshi frowned. He just kept understanding less and less, and he knew it would all make sense if only Lu Guang let down his walls. But he also knew he wouldn't, and he said as much. "You won't say anything else."

Lu Guang fixed his eyes on his shoe. Cheng Xiaoshi sighed, grabbing him in the same places as before. "I don't want to turn this into a fight. I just wish you opened up more."

"I know." Lu Guang mumbled.

Cheng Xiaoshi huffed. "Should I get you drunker?"

He received a kick to his shin, making the both of them almost trip. "It's not my fault you act like this with your one and only partner!" Cheng Xiaoshi made an indignant sound. "And here I thought we were having a sweet moment."

They walked some more in silence, until Lu Guang opened his mouth again. "Cheng Xiaoshi."

"Are we really doing this again—?"

"I like this life, too." Cheng Xiaoshi closed his mouth shut. This was the softest Lu Guang's ever spoken. "I... I don't think I could be happier anywhere but here."

Cheng Xiaoshi, who had stopped walking yet again, took a shaky breath before continuing his walk home.

"You're so unfair, Lu Guang."

[preemptivejustice]

The day started with a limp. Not unusual, not severe, but just off; tightness in his thigh that hadn’t stretched out like it normally did. Then the heatwave hit, turning the ride on the bus into a sauna, making certain that his head was already aching before he’d even made it to the first patient of the day. 

Khonshu had thrown up on the rug. Ammit was nowhere to be found - the vet didn’t have an opening until Thursday, and his only reassurance had been that he should ‘only be concerned if Khonshu gets lethargic’; as if he were home to be able to watch for that. As if Ammit might not already be lethargic, and he didn’t know because he didn’t have the time to see where she was hiding. 

After that, the coffee was wrong. He didn’t realize it at first, too distracted and stiff in the leg to notice, but it was wrong. Wrong milk, wrong temperature, wrong order. Not even a second later came the zap; a burning strike of pain that lanced up his cheekbone, across his eyes, through the side of his skull like he’d been hit with a live wire from the inside. 

He managed to swallow. Managed to smile, even, as he walked past the front desk. 

The rest of the day was unkind. 

A young woman sobbed as she realized her abuser had finally died, and Arthur had sat with her, carefully not reacting as she threw one of his chairs. Another had a panic attack so violent that he clocked Arthur in the side of the head; by accident, but it still rattled him. 

He was already exhausted by the time he’d met with one of his newer patients; a woman in her mid-thirties. She didn’t sit down. She didn’t look at him; her file was thin, and she refused to answer questions. The only thing she had bothered to do was threaten him; talking through the last doctor she’d had, one who she’d broken the jaw of. 

I’ll see you next week, she’d said as she walked out. Unless someone else gets to you first. 

Overkill, certainly, and not very frightening, but it had been a frustrating way to end their first conversation. His head was resting against his hand when the door opened; he almost didn’t have the energy for it. Not after the morning, the threats, the flare in his jaw that hadn’t stopped pounding since he’d gotten up. But when he heard that voice — Steven, not Marc — he blinked, looking up. 

It hit like sunlight on a rainy day. Arthur looked up just in time to watch Steven fall into the chair like it had been waiting all day just for him. His eyes were wide, his face open; Arthur didn’t interrupt. He just… watched. 

The words flooded in. Excited, warm, spilling over each other like they couldn’t be fast enough. It filled the room in a way that nothing physical ever could; Steven was grinning, talking so rapidly, updating Arthur on all of the good things going on in his world. 

Arthur let out a breath that might have been a laugh. Just a soft puff of air through his nose, but it was more than he’d managed in hours; he nodded gently, faintly, just… listening. The plant had grown on him, yes. He was happy that Marc had written the letter, happy that Steven had received it; the man was glowing. 

Only a few minutes, and Arthur’s chest ached in an entirely different way, his eyes more relaxed than they had been only moments before. 

“I’m glad he replied,” Arthur answered, his voice quiet as he gently shifted to open to a new page in his notebook. “And I’m glad you wrote back. That connection is very important, I think you deserve to be heard.” 

He leaned back slightly in his chair. His body still ached, his jaw still bothered him, but it was already easier. 

“Marc can be… the type of man who takes his time,” he agreed, with a little nod. “But he was very happy, when getting your first letter - I’m sure he’s going to write something back very soon. I assume that things have been going well for you, here?” 

Marc blinks, listens - as he did before - and looks back at that potted plant, taking in the sight of its lopsided existence. He wonders if he truly understands the meaning behind the doctor's spoken words - that something might feel broken, never quite right, yet isn't worthless - but he... just takes them as they are. Hums out a low noise. Inhales, exhales.

Then, a nod follows - directed at that letter he's going to write Steven, letting him know that, yeah, he's got it, something like that. Don't over think it, just give him a sign that you're here, that the note was liked. Yeah. Okay. He... can do that. Marc can do that.

--

Marc writes that letter the very same evening; He sits at his desk when it's already dark outside, takes the stupid safety-pen between his fingers, and... writes. Lets Steven know that he's gotten his letter, that he appreciated the other's words, and... that he's looking forward to hearing from Steven again. It's not much, doesn't include many details, but... well, it's something - and he's sure that the other will be happy to even receive anything at all, a reaction coming from that mysterious Marc who resides within the same psych ward, but never shows himself.

Perhaps, one day, they'll meet in person. Maybe. Who knows.

--

"He replied to me!"

It's the first thing that Steven says when he enters doctor Harrow's office in the afternoon - chipper, ready and eager to have his scheduled session with the other, no hesitation there, nothing that indicates his displeasure about having to do the whole therapy-thing to begin with. There's a big smile stretching across his lips as he makes his way over to that chair that's waiting for him, and Steven takes a seat just about a second after, opens his mouth to say something else, when---

---He spots it, the little potted plant that has apparently appeared out of nowhere. A succulent, he realizes, the tiniest one he's ever seen - but it's incredibly adorable, the sight of it causing dark eyes to widen and a mouth to take on an O-shape as Steven keeps staring at it, sits a bit more straight to get a better view...

"You got yourself a plant!" Where Marc had sounded surprised as well, but rather flat, Steven's voice is a lot more ecstatic about the fact that, yes, Harrow has taken his suggestion to heart and gotten himself a bit of greenery to cut through the sterile white of his office. ...Granted, it's... it's very, very, very tiny - minuscule, almost - but... it's a plant, and it's green, and it's alive, and oh, that's something!

"A succulent! Gosh, that's... that's adorable, where did you even find such an itsy-bitsy thing to begin with? Bet it would look amazing when surrounded by even more succulents... But it's very cute on its own as well. Look at those tiny leaves! Precious!"

A series of nods, one after another, with Steven's gaze finally finding its way back to the doctor - offering another smile to him, a little sheepish then, followed by him clearing his throat. "Erm, sorry, it just... caught my attention. ---The change, I mean. The green definitely adds a bit of a pop to this otherwise rather... uh, empty room."

There is a bookshelf existing, yes, but... that's about it. And where Steven wished that the other would allow a bit of a bigger plant to decorate his space, this is better than nothing, after all.

"A-anyways... he replied to me! ---Marc, I mean! I found his letter two days ago - I guess he ... must've slid it under the door? Found it just lying there, on the floor..." A hum, a shrug, a tilt of his head - with Steven's brows rising, smile returning.

"I didn't expect him to reply to me so quickly - not that I'm complaining, not at all! Just wondering... Well, I, uh, I would've told you sooner but we weren't scheduled for a therapy session until today, and I didn't want to request one just because of that letter, so... ---Needless to say, I already replied to him, yeah, but I didn't get an answer just yet. Maybe he's busy, or I'm being too quick? Doesn't matter, he can take his time, I don't want to put any pressure on him..."

Ah yes, Steven being his ever-rambling self, as always. He's in a good mood, it seems.

[idreamofcrackinglocks]

Young Royals Textfics and SMAU's

I have had this sat in my drafts for ages and thought I might as well publish it and I can just update it as I find/read more. There is something about SMAU's that scratch my silly little millennial brain so below is a few I have enjoyed/currently reading. I don't use twitter but have an account just to read these - some of the links may not work if you don't have a twitter account. And if anyone has any multimedia fics they have really enjoyed please send them my way and I may add them!

Fanfics

Call me up late - the best of the best of text fics and one of the first things I read when I joined the fandom!

and it's steamy sequel "mi cotufita" started sharing their screen

Completed SMAU's

pukemon - simon and wille are going to the same uni as they rest of the gang, Simon and wille had one bad interaction and they hate each other's gut because they're 5 years old (gonna get to the reason). - this is a great place to start!! sooo good!

We'll start over again now - canon Wilmon SMAU starting in S3 then running past canon

Truth or Dare - Wille and Simon have never gotten along. Not at Hillerska, not after they graduate, not as young adults. Their lives diverge, heading in different directions. They meet again, against their will, one night at a birthday party, & their stubbornness is their undoing. - When I tell you i was OBSESSED when this was being updated, I will be rereading

Royally Gone - Simon Eriksson, popstar on the rise, always had a little (fat) crush on a certain spare prince. A crush so fat he still uses a stan account he set up when he was 16 after a dare. One day, he messes up... - I need to catch up on this one but I have it bookmarked so assuming its good

WIP SMAU's

Your the risk I want to take based of the incredible original fic on AO3

Royal Retweet - Prince Wilhelm has spent months admiring Simon Eriksson from afar, hidden behind a secret fan account. But one accident changes everything. The internet is spiralling, Simon is questioning everything, and the royal palace is in full damage control mode...

I deserve a great love story - Simon is a music student at Hillerska University, and has a pretty normal life between school and shifts at a library-café. Until one day, a post is made just for him, and he starts a hunt to find out who loves him so much - Currently obsessed with this one the TWIST

Take your Mark by @princequeerik- After he and his sister move schools, Simon finds himself joining the swim team - the only place he found for himself at his old school. Meanwhile, Wilhelm is the best distance swimmer on the team. - this one is on Tumblr yay

If any of the authors above are on Tumblr and want to be tagged then please ping me a message!

[nerdgirlriot]

found on Bluesky: a Dreamwidth post with lots of coverage of the current situation with Neil Gaiman, for those who wish to keep up and keep informed

[egophiliac]

I love the idea of teenage Malleus hating his new baby brother Silver but slowly falling for him

words cannot express how much I adore that Mal's reaction to seeing a human baby for the first time was "the fuck is this. why does it look like that. gross." (then he immediately got stuck on babysitting duty and the rest is history)

I am SUCH a sucker for that trope of "non-humans being fascinated by normal human behavior", so between that and all the delicious angst going on I was eating VERY well. >:) Malleus being so impressed that two-year-old Silver can walk, because it took him twenty years to stand on two legs! Lilia barging in on the Zigvolts at 2 AM being like "he won't stop crying what do I do"! Lilia trying to feed Silver rats and Malleus being like "...please just stick with what the books say to feed it"! it is all so. chef's kiss.

[viktorapologist]

Catch me, Viktor, and Jayce all freaking the fuck out over what happened in the last chapter. Chapter 8 should be called, "Dodging the Consequences of My Own Actions." Now, at the beginning, my heart was broken in pieces by the smallest amount of angst. But now, I'm stronger. I've hardened my heart in order to survive until the final chapter. With every update, I settle in for another dose of pain and suffering at the hands of oblivious!jayvik and @white-btterfly 's beautiful prose.

Here are my thoughts:

I hate that Viktor was right to expect most of the events of the gala, from being ignored by Piltover investors for his undercity roots, to watching his unrequited love fester within him as Jayce danced with another woman. It's such a nice contrast from Jayce's more recent awakening to his feelings. You can tell that Viktor has been pining for a long time. He's so used to it. And he's so used to pushing through the pain.

"This inconceivable, astonishing, perfect moment? How could he not relish the memory until his lungs gave out?"

Completely agree, Viktor. Dancing with Jayce was a perfect moment. So much more than he ever thought he could get. Thank god Jayce was brave enough to ask. Even if Viktor hacks up flowers for the rest of his short life, I don't think he'd regret having that dance. I feel like Viktor is going to break in two, because he's so so in love and happy to have danced, to have been touched so gently by Jayce. But the Hanahaki disease is twisting it all into despair and hopelessness. It can never been enough. It can never feed the deep dark part of Viktor's heart that wants all of Jayce for himself.

I find that his perspective is very relatable, especially his feelings toward Mel. I have also been in the position of loving someone while they were busy fawning over somebody else.

"She was everything Jayce desired, and he was not."

Oh, just stab me in the heart, Viktor. (I hope you eat those words when you realize just how head-over-heels Jayce is for you, you silly man.) And the way he misinterprets the whole thing with Mel and Jayce dancing. Oh the irony! We all know Mel is just being Viktor's wingman but Viktor has no clue.

I love getting to see the way Viktor experienced the dance. All of the sensory details bring such warmth to the scene. And Viktor describing that Jayce looked like he was seeing Viktor for the very first time! Viktor, you are seeing the truth! Jayce is just a clueless man discovering his attraction to you, one tiny step at a time. Allow him to bask in your beauty and accept it as truth. I will fight off the Hanahaki disease with nothing but my bare hands. Get me in the lab, designing medical devices to prolong Viktor's lifespan enough for him to see that Jayce loves him.

God, I would be so embarrassed to have anyone, especially Caitlyn, see me on a bench heaving and choking on flowers. I'm surprised Viktor didn't just die right then.

Caitlyn is so straightforward and assertive. I love that she calls Viktor out on his weak excuses and gets him to open up, even a little bit. You can tell that she knows how important Viktor is to Jayce by how quickly she snaps into "let me get Jayce" mode. Like, not a doctor. Not an attendant to help Viktor get home. The only person who can fix this is Jayce (maybe she even knows the only help Viktor will even accept is Jayce's, in most cases).

I know everyone was teasing Caitlyn for not noticing Viktor is pining for a man and not a woman, but since she's younger, I'm not sure she'd really be privy to that information. She's not around him in non-professional settings, from what I recall. And Jayce had no clue, which means she didn't get any clues from him. Viktor is a pretty reserved person and wouldn't be talking about personal details like that to just anyone around him. Also, maybe Caitlyn assumes it's a woman because she likes women too haha.

JAYCE READS CHEESY ROMANCE NOVELS??? OH I KNEW IT. THAT MAN IS AS SOFT AS A MARSHMALLOW. Yes yes yes. Oh he's a romantic at heart, what a cutie. Someone sweep him off his feet and take him to live happily ever after. I'm so glad Caitlyn dropped that little bit of lore. Embarrassing Jayce is her favorite pastime.

The Piltovan courtship rituals are super cute. I would love to see Viktor doing some of them for Jayce and Jayce being really confused at first because he's never been on the receiving end of the official declaration. And then being like oh, he is asking to court me. Me? Me! And just losing his shit because it's just like the stories he read about.

"I know he's more often than not driven by faith and hope rather than reason, but once he sets his mind on something, he always succeeds."

Caitlyn summed up Jayce's entire 2-season arc in one sentence. Iconic. He may have the brains, but he'd rather use his heart to make decisions instead.

Uh, Caitlyn. You can't just spill the beans that Viktor is the most important person in Jayce's life. That's like...end of the story confession-type shit. Why does everyone around them see it but they don't see it?!?! Damn, I mean I know why, but it's just getting a bit hilarious. Jayce and Viktor are like two cats up for adoption, listed as a "bonded pair, never separate."

Viktor spiraling in front of Caitlyn about how Jayce ran away after the almost-kiss. Someone hook him up to an oxygen tank and get him in bed. He has been through too much in the past couple of days. His brain does not need to torture him anymore. (Lowkey, Jayce fake-dating Viktor and then falling in love with him sounds like a great idea for an au)

Caitlyn's young detective mind is having too much fun trying to solve the puzzle of Viktor's love life. A part of me wants to see her and Jayce make a crazy theory board with sticky notes and string and then come to the conclusion that it could only be Jayce.

After they finish their conversation, Nugget causes a scene in the ballroom. I felt so bad reading that. Nugget has never done anything wrong in its life ever. Someone help it get the tablecloth unstuck! What a nice way to force Jayce and Viktor to finally talk to each other though. I was worried they wouldn't speak to each other until the next day, and with that amount of time, all sorts of misconceptions can take root.

I must say, I love seeing Jayce at a loss for words. I love seeing him afraid. It's so unlike him. In season 1, once they create Hextech, he's so confident and smiling, putting on a brave face, or being a little aggressive when necessary. What endeared me to him in the beginning was how unsure he was. I liked his vulnerability then. It's nice to see him so deep in his feelings that he's entirely out of his element.

Jayce is full of worries, blurting them out one after another and Viktor refutes every single one. It's so sweet. Jayce is so afraid he fucked everything up, the poor thing. God, the miscommunication about what's going on between them while literally talking to each other. It's masterful. How many words can they speak to each other without revealing the truth plainly? What does it take to truly know someone's intent, to know someone's heart?

This whole story is a lesson in vulnerability. Just when you thought that Viktor and Jayce knew each other better than anyone else could, you see that there were areas of shadow, things they kept hidden. They are learning, chapter by chapter, that the tension can only be relieved, the devouring fire of longing quenched, by letting go of their fears. They treasure each other's partnership so much, they might lose it all anyway. Who will be the one to risk it all first? Who will be brave enough to strip away what they defined as their friendship in order to rebuild a love that matches what they both desire?

Ah, and a classic "It's beautiful," scene but one character isn't looking at the actual beautiful thing (sky, stars, sunset, fireworks) but instead is looking at the person they love. Jayce was doing that thing he does in canon, where his eyes are full of fondness and you know he could only be looking at Viktor, wasn't he? (Can't believe he's like that in canon, goddamn)

Jayvik butterflies, in my fireworks? It's more likely than you'd think.

And even though they continue to dance around the fact that both of them are in love, they never stop touching each other somehow. The dancing. The hands brushing. The arm around the shoulder. The way they lean their heads on each other sometimes?? UGH THEY ARE SO CUTE.

My stomach was in knots reading the first half of the chapter, because I was so afraid that Jayce would be GONE. I'm glad he didn't get very far before succumbing to his gay panic. But uh...I have a feeling Viktor is going to decline very quickly after this. His shit got wrecked after those two almost-kisses. The man is clinging onto life by like 10 HP.

Happy Pride month! I'll be celebrating by hoping Viktor doesn't end up on life support before the two of them figure out their feelings.

Before Your Sun Sets - Chapter 8 is available!

Viktor is sick with Hanahaki. Jayce would do anything to save him—whether it be by developing an impossible cure or trying to find out who Viktor is in love with to smack some sense into them. Little does he know, he’s chasing his own shadow.

Read chapter 8 now

Read from the beginning

[dead-minecraft-fandoms]

things are going great with team bat . nothing bad is happening with any of them

[serpentface]

What are each of the main cast’s favourite foods, and how to they reflect what they grew up eating/their background/broader cultural trends?

Key for the constructed foods that come up in this post:

Nara: a type of citrus fruit, comparable to a lime in sourness. Peledyo: a type of fermented fish sauce used as seasoning in of itself or a base for other sauces. (This is a knockoff of irl garum). This is FUNDAMENTAL to Imperial Wardi cuisine, and closely analogous/connected variants are produced by all the peoples of the Viper as well as across most of the Lowlands (southeast of Imperial Wardin). Magah: a type of tuberous root vegetable. Similar to a potato, but coming from a wholly different plant and more strongly flavored (notes of cabbage) with yellow-orange flesh. Heavily cultivated in the Highlands and considered more of a famine food elsewhere in Imperial Wardin. Yute: a cultivar in the same species as magah with purple flesh and a sweeter taste, a staple in the mountainous parts of Kosov and some other parts of the Burri Republic. Gaiyi: a brassica cultivar used in Kos cuisine, resembling broccolini. Completely absent in Imperial Wardin. Yamnina reyla: the premier spice blend used in Wardi cuisines, it has some regional variants but its core ingredients are crushed chilis, coriander, cumin, and firebug (imparts little flavor but significant reddish-orange color that gives this mix its name), all ground together. Camiche: an edible seed, eaten as a nut. Kolis: a cactus-like plant with edible fruits and young shoots. The fruit tastes like watermelon and is very sweet, but has more sour notes. Anuje: a sap extracted from one of the region's few native palms, has a sweet, molasses-esque flavor. This is the staple sweetener and culturally favored over honey in most provinces, consumption of honey is generally seen as a 'rural' thing]

---

Tigran spent the first 11 years of his life in pretty extreme poverty as an agricultural laborer so did not have a lot of exciting food. His family is Ubiyan-Wardi (pretty rare ethnic minority in the region, mostly descending from people hired or enslaved as war captives and/or indentured servants for labor by Imperial Bur at its height). Many of these people formed communities that retain their cultural identity to this day, but these largely occur in the north and in the province of Lobera. Most people with Ubiyan heritage in South Wardin come from more isolated lines that fully integrated and intermarried with the Wardi(nae) population, and are heavily 'Wardinized' in the present day.

Tigran's family is an example of one with this cultural heritage being largely lost- they know that much of their ancestry comes from far northeast across the Viper but they don't know from where exactly. They are culturally South Wardi but with some traditions (and names, 'Tigran' and 'Otto' are both Ubiyan given names in origin) that have survived passed down from parent to child. To the point of this post, a lot of these traditions involve food.

He mostly ate a pretty typical South Wardi agricultural diet with the majority of his meals being variations on maize and lentil porridge, yams, onions, dairy, and foraged plants. His village also reared horses for milk and wool and ducks and fowl for eggs (and occasionally meat). He lived right on the Brilla River so would get the benefit of meat from fish or the occasional wild duck or goose. When he was 5 someone in his village killed a bull crocodile that had been eating their horses and they all had a big pit roast with it to celebrate, but he barely remembers this.

A major Ubiyan cultural element that he experienced in his childhood diet was a form of pasta. His mother and grandmother would make pasta out of maize dough in the shape of a cowrie, which they just referred to as 'little shells'. They had a secret ingredient used to toughen the consistency of the maize dough to hold the shape but wouldn't tell him, since this was apparently only for the women to know. His mother planned on teaching his future wife to make these little shells, and made it very clear she wouldn't let him marry any woman who couldn't get the technique down. To celebrate the new year, they would make a larger variant stuffed with soft horsemilk cheese, explaining that it was for good luck and abundance in the next year. This was never a Favorite food of his as a child (his favorite was the joyous occasion he got to eat fatty, non-gamey domestic duck), but he's never been able to find these little shells anywhere else, hasn't seen his family since he was 11, and misses it.

His FAVORITE food is duck. The best meal he's probably ever had was roast duck glazed with date wine, dried nara, chilis, and a little bit of peledyo. Duck is central fare for a holiday that is timed when the reed ducks return to the region and start to breed. This moment is recognized as the transition from a period of seasonal barrenness to abundance (the mid rainy season through mid dry season span in which plant life flourishes, ends with the last harvest periods for most staple crops). It involves a feasting day in which most people make meals based around preserved fruits/vegetables, early wild forage, and duck (hunted or slaughtered).

Tigran completing his initiation as a Galenii monk (which involves a year of only taking food received via begging) timed itself very close to this festival occurring. So not only did he Finally get to eat regular meals, but he had never in his entire LIFE tasted anything so good. He was 12 years old and was guided by his mentor into an epiphany that like, 'this IS what it's all for, guaranteeing that we have the season of abundance year after year. AND more importantly I get to eat really really really good meals provided by the temple'.

---

Palo grew up in the very cushy end of the mercantile commoner class with his father being a guild glassmaker, and lived in the province Odkotonnos (one of the more agriculturally rich) and city of Godsmouth proper (THE center of trade), so he had regular access to a decent variety of pretty good food. He and most of his family are first generation immigrants from Kosov (a province of the contemporary Burri Republic, occupying the same latitude as South Wardin). He moved as a baby and grew up eating a lot of Kos food in addition to the general western Wardi diet (which itself has a heavy Burri/Kos/Titen influence).

(The most immediately distinctive difference between these and Wardi cuisines is staple grains/starches often being eaten in the form of noodles, which is more broadly a characteristic of a wide span of the Inner Seaways peoples west of the Mouth. The other big difference is a fermented corn sauce (functionally similar to soy sauce) being the foundational umami flavoring, rather than the peledyo fish sauce that is a staple in Wardin)

He also spent a cumulative few years of his life in Kosov and there had the favorite thing he's ever eaten, which is a mung bean noodle dish with catfish, yute, gaiyi, spinach, onions, and a chili-olive oil sauce. Some of the core ingredients are rare if not absent in Imperial Wardin (magah is generally considered a famine food and not widely cultivated outside of the Highlands, gaiyi grows in the humid montane conditions found in southwestern Kosov, and this particular kind of catfish was notably tastier to him than commonly eaten Wardi species) so he's never had this exact dish or a close equivalent since.

Otherwise his diet throughout most of his life was very seafood heavy in addition to staple grains, starches, and legumes. He dislikes most non-fish meat and hates the texture of fat, so eats a lot of whitefish when given the chance.

One thing that actually like, comes up in canon as a thing he really loved is seabass he ate at social events with his family. The bass is roasted whole and (along with other elements of the meal) surrounded by dips and condiments. You pick up the fish meat with pieces of pounded yam and dip/scoop up condiments before eating it. On a really nice occasion, condiments could include fermented corn sauce in plain and semi-sweet form, Basically Aioli (a blend of mashed garlic and olive oil), several types of peledyo (sweet anuje-wine peledyo, bitter vinegar peledyo, plain salty peledyo, etc), several hot sauces (the typical formula here is different kinds of chilis mixed with olive oil, cumin, coriander, garlic, and citrus juice, all mashed into a liquid paste), a sweet anuje-garlic sauce, chopped onions/parsley raw in citrus juice, a mash of peas + onions cooked in duckfat, fermented salted crab roe, plain olive oil, chili-olive oil, etc.

This style of eating is an aspect of the Burri cultural sphere (and the Odkotonnos provincial subculture by extension), utilized for meals during intimate social gatherings. A main course of meat cooked minimally (or wholly un-)seasoned and served with a variety of sauces and seasonings to be sampled independently aims to bring out and emphasize each component's unique qualities. A palate cleanser (usually a weak wine infused with a citrus fruit's juice) is sipped in between. This also had/has levels religious function; the traditional condiments in this meal (most of which aren't represented here) are connected to major deities of the Burri pantheon, and the diversity and abundance of the meal is recognized as the gods' many gifts made manifest (and some of each are left as offerings in a home shrine).

Palo and his family are practitioners of the Faith of the Seven Faced God (a sect of which has spread into the Burri Republic, where it is currently a very significant religious minority) and have been for several generations. So the religious aspects were framed differently in his experience, but have similar functions in representing the great abundance that God provides. (He was also brought up instructed to leave some of the corn sauce Specifically as an offering in the household shrine. This sauce is a staple across cuisines in the Burri sphere and a key offering to Vazhirum, the goddess of maize, patron of the city Titenegal, and functionally the chief agricultural deity of the pantheon. Offerings of the sauce to agricultural Faces is retained as a practice in Burri sphere sects of the Faith).

Anyway Palo mournfully thinks about this delicious seabass meal with his extended family while sitting in an alleyway with Tigran and choking down unseasoned boiled pigeon (that the guy literally caught by hand) with pounded yam, not a condiment in sight.

---

Brakul was raised in a low cattle-wealth clan in the West Rivers region of the Highlands. He lived in the Urbin river valley, which is one of the largest and most agriculturally fruitful (though his clan itself was located upland and could not grow a lot of this themselves). The West Rivers Hill Tribes have an amicable trade relationship with the province of Ephennos, so he had a fair deal of exposure to Wardi trade goods, but this didn't affect his diet much. He grew up eating an everyday diet consisting of the core staples of barley + amaranth + magah + LOTS of dairy products, in addition to some hunted/fished meat and foraged wild plants.

Crayfish was his favorite food growing up. He lived in immediate proximity to several creeks, so freshwater food (crayfish, trout, mussels, frogs) could be a pretty major portion of his diet during the summers. On some occasions, crayfish and mussels would be boiled to make a broth with chilis and onions, then served in a soup with yogurt, barley, butter, fennel, and magah. This was his absolute favorite meal and he particularly liked the crayfish themselves (his brother didn't, so would trade his crayfish for Brakul's mussels).

Living in a coastal city and being introduced to the concept of Crabs and Lobsters (it's like a crayfish but HUGE) later in life was lifechanging. Crab meat is now his absolute favorite food. He sometimes attempts to recreate the crayfish boil dish with crab (he does a pretty solid job but the yogurt always ends up curdled). He's also a fan of a dish where a softshell crab is fried and then coated with a concentrated sticky sweet peledyo sauce.

He's pretty enthusiastic about trying new foods (and benefited tremendously from having a rich boyfriend who can facilitate this) and has decided that anara is the best game the lowlands has to offer. Their tails are VERY rich, tender, and fatty, very good roasted with a sweet+spicy sauce. He first experienced this at the wedding of one of Janeys' cousins and now insists on eating it regularly/pursuing anara on hunts over more favored game like gazelle and nechoi. There's also a greater variety of alcoholic beverages available, and he's become fond of the a very decadent form of date wine sweetened with anuje and imported cardamom.

He also likes + misses a dish composed of feydhi (highlands khait) fat which is rendered, mashed with dried berries and a little honey, left out in the snow to chill solid, and then sliced and eaten on bread. This is a staple in midwinter feasts and a special treat. Its considered an obligation for each tribe's chief clan to fatten some of their khait on grain and then provide their fat to their constituents for this feast (the ability to Afford to give this gift effectively demonstrates + reinforced their power). Young children and pregnant women get first dibs/the biggest helpings (regarded as good for a growing body, helps pack fat on for the lean season) so there's a childhood nostalgia aspect to it. It's something he would look forward to every year.

He hasn't had any access to this dish whatsoever in South Wardin, as khait are virtually never slaughtered except as an act of desperation (culturally considered to be poor meat in general) and the Coldest winter temperatures average in the high 40s F (sub-freezing temperatures and snow Happen but not predictably or regularly) which is not adequate to cool fat to the desired consistency. This is particularly torturous because feydhi are actually quite common in South Wardin as pack animals and have a tendency to get VERY fat on the seasonal abundance of grass (being an 'easy keeper' landrace adapted to having nutritional needs met by much poorer mountain forage). His khait She-Bites is a feydhi and was sold to him cheap (on account of behavioral issues), he was originally intending to have her butchered but got too attached.

---

Etsushir grew up in a clanless Jazaiti community, in a coastal fishing town northeast from the city of Wardin proper. The existence of clanless Jazait mingling with Wardi populations long predates Imperial Wardin as an entity, but these communities have grown substantially in the past two centuries, in large part due to heavy encroachment on Jazaiti fishing territory causing major subsistence issues and driving many people to look for employment to sustain themselves. They are very marginalized ethnic minorities and tend to form distinct sub-communities amid their Wardi counterparts, but the decentralized structure of Jazait society and certain practices (like polyandrous marriage and minimization of reproductive females in any given family) cannot be fully retained in these settings (both on the levels of pure logistics and a result of disenfranchisement). As such, these groups tend to experience a degree of 'Wardinization', which affects all aspects of life, and in this case The Food.

Etsushir would have grown up in large part eating a typical coastal South Wardi diet (lots of maize porridges, lentils, and fish), in addition to exploiting uncultivated resources that his human Wardi counterparts physically cannot (certain grasses especially) or culturally Do not (only a couple seaweeds are considered good eating).

His favorite food is part of the Fusion Cuisine found in some of these partly Wardinized Jazaiti communities. It's a dish consisting of several kinds of seaweed mixed with hominy and raw tuna that has all been marinated in vinegar peledyo. His family and wider community have adopted the Faith Of The Seven Faced God and practice what would be considered a syncretic folk-variant. The Jazaiti Moonfather (who created tuna and sometimes takes the form of one) is associated with the Face Mitlamache, and tuna is often eaten in place of beef during the Mitlamache-focused maize planting festival. His family getting to catch, keep, and eat their own tuna would have been a special occasion largely reserved for these celebrations.

(The strictly Jazaiti version of this dish uses seaweed and fish in addition to the young shoots of a type of grass, all cured in nuji (VERY bitter native citrus, not commonly eaten by humans) juice. Elowey and human chemical sense of taste overlaps considerably, but elowey can digest a wider range of plant matter and have a substantially more complex experience with bitter tastes, a lot of foods from elowey cuisines are distastefully bitter to human palates)

He also has the genes for lactase persistence (VERY rare in the Jazait population, as well as the broader White Sea elowey population group). He doesn't like yogurt and finds adults drinking milk to be mildly disturbing, but is very fond of cheese. He prefers cowsmilk cheeses over the slightly more common and accessible horsemilk, and likes a fairly common Wardi cheese dish (a soft cowsmilk cheese cooked in a pepper/onion sauce and eaten atop grits).

---

Faiza (and every other character from here on) is in the noble class and grew up eating a substantially more varied, calorie rich, and meat heavy diet than the average person. This doesn't mean that every meal is Very Fancy, they're still ultimately reliant on most of the same basic staples as the lower classes, but their everyday diet includes More of these staples at once, with more variety, more spices, and a much more regular addition of meat.

The Haidamanes are all multiethnic (most relevant here is that their father was Titen on his mother's side and South Wardi on his father's), they're squarely South Wardi in terms of cultural identity but were brought up eating some Titen cuisine on a more than incidental basis. Faiza was the only one of her siblings that was notably into this, she thinks the noodles are fun. A favorite standby would be a dish made with very thick mung bean noodles, chickpeas, pre-roasted horse udder, cabbage, and onion, which is all fried together in fermented corn sauce and garlic-olive oil.

Faiza really likes salutachin dog meat, most commonly eaten in a dish where it is roasted with a rub of olive oil, garlic, date wine, and smoked yamnina reyla. Salutachin is a dog breed specifically raised for meat and is a South-Wardi specific practice in the present day (livestock dog types fed on plant matter used to be more common across the region. Burri influence contributed to the notion (already extant in some Wardi groups) that ANY form of dog meat is unclean, and the practice is extinct or rare in most other parts).

This is kind of a luxury food and regarded as a delicacy. It's of critical importance that salutachin stock is kept entirely 'pure' and prevented from breeding with ANY other dogs, and fattened on exclusively vegetarian diets, generally maize and yams (this partly stems from wider dietary taboos surrounding consumption of predators, but largely just improves the taste of the meat). They can be more costly to maintain than other types of livestock (which will help feed themselves via grazing) or working dogs (which aren't supposed to be eaten and thus can be fed on any number of scraps). As such, it tends to be fairly expensive and reserved for special occasions, and is a mainstay at South Wardi wedding feasts.

Faiza has a notable childhood memory of being at her uncle's wedding, feeding a scrap of salutachin to one of the hunting dogs, and experiencing a kind of sick, nervous thrill at compelling a good animal to cannibalism. She interacts with food taboos/taboos in general more skeptically than average and experiences temptations to violate them, though she's never actually gone through with it on the food level. She doesn't ultimately disagree with any of them though, just interprets their necessity through her proto-materialist philosophical background instead of the strictly spiritual angle. She's very fixated with the stories of Godsmouth civilians starving to death in the siege resorting to eating feral dogs (which is VERY taboo) that had themselves eaten human corpses (thus this is like, the worst thing you could possibly eat short of an actual human corpse). She's kind of fascinated with cannibalism in general.

---

Hibrides is from the city/province Erubinnos and predominantly of Yuroma-Wardi ethnicity. This refers to descendents of a Yuroma ethnic group first arrived as refugees several centuries prior, and is considered an Imperial Wardi subculture in the present day (practicing the state religion and fully integrated into the broader cultural sphere, but retaining a sub-identity).

Erubinnos has a near-equivalent makeup of South Wardi and Yuroma-Wardi inhabitants and its regional cuisine is influenced by both groups. (Some distinctive Yuroma elements are the regular consumption of raw fish, heavy specialization into smoked and cured meats (as a culinary form rather than a practicality), use of squid ink, and favoring of rice (which was first brought here by Yuroma migrants)). So Hibrides spent her first 15 years of life eating a bougie version of this diet before being moved to the province of Wardin for marriage.

She's a Very picky eater and has a lot of dislikes- she doesn't like most whitefish, most freshwater fish in general, tuna (doesn't actually dislike the taste but found a very big worm in her tuna once and it put her off forever), most red meats (she particularly doesn't like horsemeat, she got attached to a childhood pet horse to the culturally rare point of not wanting to eat Any horse meat altogether), eggplant, most lentils, or raw tomatoes. And to top it off she has a lower than average heat tolerance. So when she has a choice in the matter she tends to go for oily fish, fowl, rabbit and hares, and some reptiles like crocodile + turtles + certain snakes.

One of her favorite meals is an Erubinnos-specific dish where sardines (or other oily baitfish) are marinated in a sauce made with vinegar-peledyo, olive oil, and a sauce of mashed tomato + garlic + more olive oil, and eaten raw. This exact preparation with raw fish is uncommon in the city+province of Wardin, but she has the benefit of living in a household with a cook on hire and requests it very frequently. It reminds her of home.

She also used to love turtle meat (a type of softshell turtle is a delicacy here, usually eaten in soup). The Erubinnos regional turtle soup is kind of an outlier among Imperial Wardi cuisine in being very delicately flavored (a thin broth made with a dry wine, onions, fennel, rice, and usually ginger (imported)). She actually prefers the South Wardi variant (which is a heartier stew with heavy seasoning, eaten over grits).

She has had intense cravings for turtle during each pregnancy (which is interpreted as a bit of a concern- most river-based foods are thought to support a healthy pregnancy, but Cravings indicate that the womb is excessively 'hot/dry' and at greater risk of miscarriage). She ended up liking turtle a lot less after the first pregnancy when the cravings ended, and shifted her reptile soup focus to a species of python with a similar tasting (but less luxuriously fatty) meat. The return of the turtle cravings was one of her first indicators that she was pregnant a third time, and she doesn't stand a goddamn chance of getting any turtle meat in the 6th year of the drought.

She's pretty fond of a lot of game meat in general. Her favorite uncle was an avid hunter and made a point of bringing back gamebirds (and their eggs and feathers) for her, so she has a nostalgic fondness for dishes with duck, goose, ibis, pheasants, and the like. Hunting is also one of the diminishingly rare things she enjoys doing with her bitch husband and she's found that actually participating (granted, just in the form of watching and yelling directions) makes eating it afterwords more satisfying.

She'll only eat the nechoi they kill smoked and cured though, it tastes repulsive to her otherwise (in no small part due to this tending to be big boar nechoi killed in a prolonged, somewhat foolhardy solo struggle and is thus pumped with testosterone and fear hormones). This meat is stripped of (horrid tasting) fat, salted, slow-smoked, and usually eaten in soups.

---

Janeys is also somewhat of a picky eater, in his case he dislikes almost any animal product that comes out of the water (with a particular disdain for shellfish and crustaceans), and consciously frames it as such- crocodile, duck, and goose is an exception because they don't live in the water permanently, turtle is on thin fucking ice. He has to make an exception for peledyo because it's in just about everything and he can't honestly say he dislikes it.

His favorite meat is beef. He and his siblings grew up eating more beef products than average (even for nobility) due to the agricultural aspect of their wealth being rooted in ownership of cattle herds (which are actually reared, managed, and slaughtered by peasants). The Haidamane family is considered 'new money' landed nobility (opposed to established, multi-century old landowning families with wealth based in crop agriculture)- the vast majority of their wealth is mercantile, with a small facet being the 'ownership' of mostly uncultivated scrubland and the cattle grazed there. Janeys is now in charge of the latter aspect after being quietly cut out of his actual intended inheritance, so this humiliation has a fringe benefit of having plenty of beef around, AND he hasn't quite gotten sick of it yet.

Cattle are very sacred animals and the Only sacred livestock. Sacred status doesn't entail not being eaten by any means, but it does entail a lot of emotional+spiritual investment in them as livestock and ritual surrounding their rearing and consumption. Janeys has also always been a little jealous that both of his sisters are in the priesthood, and his (ultimately very distant) involvement in the management of these animals (some of whom are donated to temple sacrificial stock herds) feels like a slice of that, getting to eat their meat on a relatively regular basis is psychologically gratifying in ways beyond just liking the food.

His favorite cut is actually the oxtail above anything else. This would mostly be eaten in a (notably bougie) South Wardi oxtail soup (tomato and olive oil sauce, wine, beef broth, yamnina reyla, saffron, hominy, onions, garlic, cabbage). He also is very fond of sweetbreads, and the liver. The liver is culturally considered the best part of the cow and its consumption is ceremonially restricted- half of the liver Has to be offered in sacrifice for each cow slaughtered (a sort of thanks-giving and payment for the cattle's death), and the other half is reserved for the patriarch who owns the cattle, which can be distributed as he chooses. As of his father's death, Janeys is now technically the patriarch of his family so like, great news for him.

There are no such restrictions on the livers of other regularly consumed animals, and he does like horse liver too. Usually takes it in sausage form (the favored, high quality type here is minced liver mixed with the tender ground meat of the tail, cumin seed, and thyme, cased in caul fat).

He's notably fond of sweet foods- major examples available are roasted figs with cheese, figs or dates stuffed with nuts, sticky pine nut and/or pistachio 'candy' made with anuje, candied figs/dates/kolis/nara. One variety of cornbread is stuffed with pine nut + camiche + pistachio, fried, and glazed with anuje. A type of native melon (similar consistency to a watermelon but VERY mildly sweet, tastes more like a cucumber) is used to make a cold soup with mint + thyme, he takes it sweetened with anuje. He also tried grilled honeycomb with honey + larvae while in the southern-central Highlands and was shocked that he liked it (given that insects are not only famine food but Peasant famine food).

In relation to this, he eats a lot of fruit when it's in season. His favorite fruits are figs and pomegranates. These aren't accessible year round and he doesn't particularly like them dried on their own, so it's something to look forward to every year. Kolis has a very long fruiting season and he has one growing on his balcony for personal use.

He likes sweet wines (typically served strong, rather than watered down like how most wine is consumed on a regular basis) but is a lightweight and noted sloppy drunk. He dilutes it with rosewater on occasions where he's exhibiting a reasonable degree of self control.

---

Couya isn't a terribly picky eater (she will eat just about anything) but has strong proclivities towards very simple comfort foods and doesn't like meat all that much, to the point of her chosen diet being regarded as spartan and peasant-esque. A big part of her personality is thinking of most of her fellow nobility as Pussies and making a bit of a show about how much she doesn't mind discomfort and relative non-luxury, which extends to her food tastes. (though to be clear, this is mostly a prolonged act of 'fuck you mom/brother/most of my extended family'. If she had to spend a month living as an actual peasant she would DIE).

This is also motivated in part by the fact that her childhood home life was legitimately horrendous and a whole lot of Really Nice Foods and Delicacies are associated with bad memories for her (particularly the Titen noodle cuisine that Faiza is very fond of, since that's the only element she's ONLY experienced in that home and nowhere else.) Switching most of her diet to basics more characteristic of the lower mercantile class (and eating very little meat outside of holidays and ceremonies) is kind of an escape from that.

She doesn't really like sitting down for meals and favors 'husk meals', which is a subclass of foods built around being wrapped and cooked in corn husk, where they will hold a semi-solid shape and can be eaten on the go. There's a tremendous variety of husk meals, this is the equivalent of The Sandwich in terms of its utility and variability. They're usually composed of a seasoned grain or starch, often stuffed with vegetables/cheeses/egg/meats. Some variants resemble a sausage (without casing) where equal parts of a finely chopped/ground meat is mixed with grain and other ingredients and cooked in the husk. These meat variants most often use meat from the head (as well as eyes, tongue, and brain, and leftover scraps) to extend a valuable slaughtered carcass; head-husk is specifically regarded as a peasant food in this capacity.

Her favorite husk meal variant is one made with seasoned crushed rice stuffed with onions, cabbage, and soft cheese. Rice is her favorite grain, but its not The Most accessible where she lives (the province of Wardin is the driest and has a very small rice output) so she's having variants with maize dough/grits instead on most occasions. She also loves okra (a landrace of which can be grown here, though is a fairly delicate and non-staple crop), which is often eaten with other vegetables and hominy grits (she usually takes this as a husk meal too).

[bookhobbit]

and with this purchase of a hypermobility spectrum disorder, you too can experience for free the sensation of trying to hold your kneecaps in place with the surrounding muscles when you walk sometimes

[ancha-aus]

RealAgeAU - Reunion

Fun fact. I was planning on going through these drabbles to see where I still had a bit of a blank spot timeline and story wise. and I did NOT get far.

Because I realised. I never made a tiny drabble about how I pictured the guys reuniting to go back to Nightmare!

So. That is this! (also yes i am hinting at bad sans poly but we will see where that all ends)

First and Prev Drabble (with the original prompt by @spotaus ) Next Drabble

*-----------------*

Cross frowns as the knife once again can't cut through the universe.

This... is an issue.

Cross had managed to get close but for some reason the knife could not connect with Nightmare's universe and castle.

Had... had Nightmare banned him?

Cross hopes not. He knows he had been stupid for running away but he had just! He needed! He had just needed a moment for himself!

Cross tries to take a deep breath and relax. It is fine! Think! Think there is probably another reason!

NIghtmare had been shrinking and losing his form... maybe he is just tired and resting and that affects the universe he is in? Maybe?

Cross wishes Dust was here, Dust knows so much more about magic stuff than he does. Sadly Cross was an idiot and just went out on his own without saying goodbye.

He looks at his phone and opens the message screen again. He clicks Dust's contact and considers typing a message.

Just a quick one to ask for help getting back?

He sighs and puts the phone away. No. This is his mess up and he can fix it himself! He didn't need them or Nightmare to fix his messes!

Again...

Cross shakes his skull and looks to the notes in his phone. He finds the right one. It is a small list of items that should help connect him to Nightmare's universe.

When he first started working for Nightmare the god had told him that the castle and the universe it is in can be hard to find or connect to because of his magic. The items would help the magic in his knife, or the teleportation crystals, locate it and focus on it.

Cross pulls out the list and reads it again.

seven candles, unscented

autumn leaves

a very sweet apple

a dreamcatcher

a way to light a magical fire

be in an universe as close as possible

Cross checks his list and bag and groans. He had only managed to get the apple and the leaves so far. this stupid universe only had a few very small and old towns and it is honestly getting on his nerves!

Cross had just been nervous about leaving this universe. He didn't know this one and just because he managed to jump to it didn't mean he would be able to do it again.

The phones had an extra feature to make it known to them if they were near the castle. it had lit up at this spot after quite a few universes that didn't do it.

Meaning he was not leaving it!

Agh. he could ask if Horror is having more luck and-

WAIT!

Cross looks back over his shoulder and sees Horror walk past.

Cross doesnt think and rushes after the large skeleton "Horror! wait up!"

horror blinks and looks over "Oreo?"

Cross pulls a face at the nickname but catches up to him "What are you doing here?"

Horror looks slightly sheepish as he rubs his neck "You know... regret... trying to get back..."

Cross frowns "Get back- wait... did you leave as well?!"

Horror frowns at him "As well?" then his sight finds Cross' bag and cross can see Horror take note of the items in there. Horror looks back at him with a frown "You can't make the jump either?"

Cross feels both better and worse. Maybe he isn't banned! Or at least he isn't alone in being banned! which just makes him feel like a jerk. He nods and groans "not having much luck with getting the things i need. only got the apple and the leaves..."

Horror blinks but gets a small half grin on his face which Cross thinks should be criminal with how goo- OKAY he is stopping that line of thought.

Horror calmly gets his phone and turns it to enable Cross to see the items in his inventory. a lot of foods and- oh! a sweet apple. and unscneted candles!

Horror keeps grinning "Seems like we are getting close."

Cross grins and nods as he walks with the taller skeleton "Any idea why we can't get in?"

Horror shrugs "multiple options. dunno which."

Cross nods as he looks down "Yeah i figured."

They walk and search together before a loud gasp and Cross is suddenly tackled form behind. Cross yelps as he loses his balance. The only reason he doens't fall over is because Hroror manages to catch both him and whichever idiot rushed into him.

"Criss-Cross! H!"

Ah. nevermind. Cross knows that idiot. Cross glares over his shoulder at the grinning Killer "Why would you tackle me?!"

Killer grins but the grin turns sharper then just friendly "Had to make sure you guys didn't up and leave again without a single fucking word Criss-Cross!"

Cross winces and looks to the side "Yeah... I guess..."

Horror looks guilty as well before looking at Killer "Why are you here? instead of at the castle?"

Now it is Killer's turn to look away and he shrugs "After all of you guys left I figured i would try it myself. the whole solo-rouge-vagabond dealio. I didn't like it. So I am going back ot Nightmare and see if he needs a right hand still...." more thoughtful "or maybe babysitter? If that whole shrinking thing kept up."

Yeah and that line causes more guilt than before. because they really just all left Nightmare alone to deal with whatever was affecting him. Instead of at least offering help as they should have as his henchman and teammates. Nope! instead they all just left!

Cross rubs his arm "Yeah... we are on our way back too... You got stuff for the ritual?"

Killer sighs "Only the lighter. But that is because i already had one."

Horror frowns at Killer "All of us? Dust too?"

Killer nods "Just walked away. not a word or grabbed anything as far as i know."

Cross covers his face "We are the worst. terrible people." thankless, untrustworthy, unloyal. Cross can think of quite a few more words to describe them.

"We knew that already."

Cross, and Killer for that matter, curses as he jumps back. Only to see Dust standing by them, hood up but face visible with his bored expression.

Killer is by now standing behind Horror and glares at Dust "Don't do that! My soul is already fragile!" the soul shaped floating soul wiggles but stays steady.

Dust raises a brow and looks unimpressed "Don't talk about others then."

Horror chuckles and smiles "Good to see you dust. join us?"

Dust nods "Can't make the jump. what are we mission still?"

Cross takes out the list and after comparing what they have they realise they are only mission the dremacatcher, which Dust pulls out of his pocket.

Cross gasps "Where did you find that? I checked every store!"

Dust shrugs "stole it."

... right. that is also an option.

They take the items outside of town and get it ready.

The dreamcatcher as base with the candles all around it. The leaves used to wrap the apple, the only use one and Horror eats the others as they work.

Killer holds up the lighter and after focusing for a moment flicks it. instead of the normal yellow flame a bright pink flame appears. Killer lights all the candles adn waits for a moment until the smoke circles one another. Last Killer lights the leaves enclosing the apple without disturbing the smoke trails.

The new smoke trail joins the other seven and the whole pile bursts into flames but no heat comes off it. the flame remains pink for a moment before turning purple and then turning black.

Killer grins and looks at Cross "cut away!"

Cross nods and cuts right above the flame and the universe shimmers. The smoke finds the small slice and fills it, moments later the flame and fire travels up towards the slide using the smoke and it opens a black portal, still smoking.

They rush through it and manage to get through it before the portal burns up.

Cross looks over his shoulder "And there shouldn't be anything left?"

Dsut shrugs "small pile of ash."

Killer grins "it burns up very quickly as soon as a portal is established."

Cross frowns as he looks around. they are in the late autumn forest around the castle. He can see the shadow of it in the distance. He starts walking and the other three join him.

Cross huffs "Still think it is a deceptively easy list..."

Killer shrugs "People don't expect there to be an easy way. Not like they will just test things until they hit jackpot." Then Killer grins wider "Not that anyone knows about Ngihtmare's sweet tooth. and no one knows about the apple, hell we don't even know it."

Cross nods as they walk through the forest. Cross can't help but feel like it feels... empty. Whcih is weird because Cross always knew there was nothing else in this universe or forest but them. but still it feels...different.

Horror seems to notice too as he glances around "feels weird..."

Dust nods immediantly "magic is different."

Cross nods as well "I noticed too..."

Whatever is going on it is big... because either it is affecting the universe, it is affecting nightmare enough that it affects the universe. or Nightmare is affected enough that he made these edits.

Hopefully they can clear all this up once they see Nightmare and apologise to him. The exit the forest and spot the castle in the distance.

Time to go talk wiht him.

*-----------------*

First and Prev Drabble Next Drabble

And as we all know, Nightmare wasn't there. woops. turns out that apology will have to wait a bit Cross.

And the tiniest bit of Bi-panic for Cross (I believe he canonly is Bi in like Xtale so he is still Bi here) ((And yes I am slightly hinting at BSP because I like them but They are kinda too busy to really focus on that in these drabbles but there some interest! but it can also be seen as pureply platonic with just some curious interest honestly *shrug* It is june after all!))

[heythereneighbor]

In light of a lore update this week and me being on vacation from tomorrow, I decided I would skip ahead and reveal the costumes for the boys.

Will anyone save Princess Barnaby from the vicious Wally-Dragon??

[wheucto]

cobs i'm afraid support for your life is ending, old man

[unfortunatelycake]

The Heart Heals Last (6/11)

Chapters: 6/11

Fandom: 莲花楼 | Mysterious Lotus Casebook (TV)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Di Feisheng/Li Lianhua | Li Xiangyi

Summary:

Li Lianhua eavesdrops again, and Di Feisheng delivers on a promise. When Li Lianhua doesn't pick up on what Di Feisheng tries to tell him, Di Feisheng finds another way to communicate.

Read on AO3