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talpup · 4 years

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Light In the Darkness:69

Summary: Yami Sukehiro just wanted to join the Magic Knights and make his mentor proud. He knew there would be trails. He knew trouble would come his way. Knew he would be faced with discrimination for being a foreigner and a peasant. What he didn’t know. Didn’t expect. Was that literal Chaos would come his way. That he and his mentor’s sister would be at the center of world ending trouble. Or that he would fall in love with his mentor’s sister and face more than discrimination; but the jealously of Nozel Silva who loved the same woman he did.

Please remember this fic is rated mature and has warnings of violence, abuse, sexual tension, eventual sexual behavior, and other possible triggers. For a full list of story tags please check the fics AO3 (link to that at the top of my tumblrs homepage).

NOTES: No one mentioned any need for markers to avoid the assault scene with the intention of sexual assault and rape. So that made it easy to format to html for ao3.

***Also I'm seriously considering participating in No Content November. While I have some super amazing regular and occasional commenters for this fic, it's really disheartening to see yet another fellow writer friend give up posting for lack of feedback. Yes we write for ourselves. And I'm sure that friend won't stop writing. But we post to interact with readers and fellow manga/anime fans. Just because the content the you read is free doesn't mean it didn't cost the author time and effort to write it. We're not machines. We have lives and feelings.

Readers pay for content with enthusiasm, feedback, questions, a simple thank you, or smash of the keyboard. PLEASE interact with your content creators! You have no idea what hearing from you means to us.

Anyway, I have a couple more weeks to decide though I'm leaning to yes. Not just to support my fellow writer friends, but because the feedback on some of my BNHA fics is less than 1% hits to comments and I'm seriously considering a full stop on posting those. Not only will this break give me a chance to decide if I want to continue or stop posting my BNHA stuff but it will also give me a chance to get further ahead on writing this fic as I really do like the large buffer I have between the chapter I'm posting and what I have finished.***

Chapter 69

Teris paused and looked in the direction that Jax, Gendry, and Quince had set off in at first light. The three had continued to travel with them two days after Jamie and his team had splintered off. They had entered the Diamond Kingdom a week ago. And by Zara’s reckoning they were three to four days out from Morris’ seat of power. Teris just hoped that the Wizard King was right. That their getting there was really going to end this mess. Otherwise it was going to get ugly fast.

Though they had a hard go. Setting a pace each day that left them exhausted and dreading the morning. Teris knew they were the lucky ones, with thus far the much easier task. She worried about Yami, Julius, and her friends. She worried about all the Magic Knights. Nozel, she, and the rest were so close to achieving their goal. If they failed now all the others efforts to the southeast and southwest would be for not. No doubt there were horrible injuries, if not a few deaths by now. Teris shook her head. No. She couldn’t allow herself to think on such things. Not here and now. She’d go mad with it all, wondering how Yami, Julius, and the others she held dear were doing.

At least Teris knew Yami was still alive. She turned back to the southeast. Even from such a great distance she could clearly sense his mana. It was as if in place of them being able to trust letting their mana feed off each others they had been left with the ability sense the others mana no matter the distance. It was probably because their mana was so turbulent that she could sense his from so afar.

While Teris had mourned the lost of their ability to boost each others mana; preferring it over this ability to sense Yami’s mana no matter the distance. She now found herself grateful for it. She may not know exactly what state Yami was in. But she knew he was alive. That she would see him again. And be able to hold him and feel his arms around her.

Reaching the point Teris had descended to, Nozel came beside her. Wordlessly, he held out a water skin.

Teris shook her head.

“Drink. You need to stay hydrated.” Nozel told.

Teris wasn’t sure it was an order; but she pretended it was and took the skin. She drank deeply, not having realized how thirsty she was. Cold as the nights were. The days were baking and brutal. It was late September. How was it still so hot?

Satisfied by Teris’ drinking, Nozel nodded slightly and surveyed the landscape below. “Zara’s map showed a creek on the other side of that hill.”

“If I never see another rocky hill again I’d be happy.” Teris muttered.

Nozel smirked, dryly. “You and me both. This would be so much quicker and easier if we could use our magic.”

Teris looked at him hopefully. “Can we? Please!”

Nozel shook his head.

“You’re the Captain.” She argued.

Nozel huffed. That had been the first playful comment she had made toward him since the incident with Jamie on the cliff.

“Even Captain's have orders to obey.” Nozel reminded.

“Fine.” Teris sighed, handing him back the water skin.

From the corner of her eye Teris watched Nozel take a drink without first cleaning the spigot as he did when forced to share with anyone else. So he still liked her, she thought sadly. She had hoped all that would have changed after the dreadful encounter with the kiss. Or after he had seen how well Yami and she got on after having been together for nearly ten months. Teris blinked at that, realizing just how long Yami and she had been together.

“You alright?” Nozel asked, seeing her expression change.

Teris blinked again, shooing away her thoughts. “Yeah. Fine.”

“You sure?” Nozel pressed.

The acting Captain glanced at her unbuttoned blouse, faint scarring still visible on the flat of her chest. He didn’t doubt that Teris was at full strength. They wouldn’t have allowed her be out here if she wasn’t. Nevertheless, Nozel couldn’t help but worry about her. Concerned over the quick pace he was having them travel. He wondered about Teris’ thoughts and emotional state too. Being back in the field after what she had been through on the Summer Solstice.

Teris tapped down her annoyance at his obvious concern and gave him an overly sweet smile. “Yes, Captain. I’m sure.”

Nozel looked her over realizing he had once again pressed the boundaries of proper Captaincy and strayed into being a friend and Intended. His lips twitched, angry at his failing.

His tempter bled into his words as he said, more harshly then intended. “Then get going. We still have a long way to travel before we reach the proposed camp.”

Teris did as he said, wondering what would happen if it got too dark before they reached the predetermined locations. Without Jax or Jamie it would completely be on Nozel to decide. Knowing Nozel, he’d likely make them press on unless the way, weather, or lack of celestial light made progress too treacherous.

They reached the bottom of the hill, Fuegoleon and Zara waiting between the one they had just descended and the one yet to be climbed.

“What’s the hold up?” Nozel asked, stepping beside his Vice Captain.

“I swore I saw something.” Fuegoleon said, eyes searching the barren landscape.

Nozel knew better than to suggest an animal. Fuegoleon could at times be overly cautious; but he wouldn’t delay their progress if he didn’t feel real concern.

“Where’s Randall?” Teris asked, her eyes and Nozel’s joining Fuegoleon’s and Zara’s in looking for sign of movement.

“I sent him to scout on ahead.” Fuegoleon answered.

“Using his air magic?” Nozel questioned.

Fuegoleon nodded and apologized. “Sorry Captain. I know we were instructed not--”

“No.” Nozel cut off his Vice Captain’s words. “If you saw something. It’s best we know quickly and without calling further attention to ourselves stumbling about.”

Fuegoleon relaxed a bit at Nozel understanding.

“Is it possible that these are some of the men you use to run ore with?” Teris questioned Zara, eyes still searching for color or movement.

Zara shook his head. “None that I worked with. It’s the rainy season further north. Soon after the ground will freeze over. These are the few months we spent at home. There were others though. Those not working--” He cleared his throat knowing better then to admit that the Clover Kingdom employed people to bring ore from the north through the Diamond Kingdom. “During this time they switched from smuggling ore to other things.”

“Such as?” Nozel question.

“Anything profitable really.” Zara answered. “Many did that sort of thing all year if they had a gang skilled enough and willing to take the risks it brought.”

“Name a few of these other so called profitable things.” Nozel commanded, blue eyes narrowing as they surveyed the surrounding hills. They were in the worst possible location. Sandwiched between two hillsides with not even a boulder or scrub bush as cover.

Zara shrugged. “Food. Magical items. Labor.”

“People?” Fuegoleon questioned, making sure he understood correctly.

Zara nodded.

Nozel sneered. “Slave traders.”

Zara blinked thinking he had already warned his Captain and team of this. “Did I not mention--”

“Shut up.” Nozel commanded Zara, readying his magic as he watched and waited.

Teris glanced from Nozel to Zara and back. “This isn’t his--”

“Not now.” Nozel softly barked.

They heard small rocks being disturbed.

“Where’s Randall?” Fuegoleon asked, more to himself. He silently cursed. Had he just sent his friend to his death?

Randall appeared at the top of the hill. Fuegoleon released the breath he’d been holding.

Nozel knew better than to relax. Something wasn’t right. That’s when someone else appeared beside Randall. Tendrils of mercury formed around Nozel, ready to fight.

Fire blossomed from Fuegoleon’s hands.

“I can get to him.” Teris said, fairly certain she could control her light travel enough not to permanently blind Randall.

Nozel knew what she meant. Even if light travel didn’t take so much out of her, they still didn’t know the situation well enough. Even if it was anyone other than Teris, he still wouldn’t have allowed it.

“No.” Nozel told her.

Teris’ hand glowed as she aimed at Randall’s captor.

“Not unless he makes a move or I give the word.” Nozel told his team.

“Magic Knights.” Another voice called from behind them.

Nozel cursed. He and Teris spun around while Fuegoleon and Zara kept watch on Randall and his captor.

“Stand down. You’re surrounded. And so heavily out numbered that I almost feel sorry for you.” The voice said.

Fuegoleon glanced at Nozel. He didn’t want to give up yet; but would follow his Captain's lead.

Nozel waited, calculating what to do. He could rain down mercury; but if there were foes on both hills it wouldn’t be a dense shower. If the man was telling the truth about his numbers, without knowing where they were hiding, Nozel could miss a large portion of them. Even if the man was lying and Nozel was able to take most of them out; not knowing where they were and the wide dispersion of rain would likely leave many still able to move or attack. His mercury rain was dense and capable of poisoning. But if injury was only a small open wound it would take time for the effects for poisoning to incapacitate.

“Watch Randall and the one that has him.” Nozel ordered Fuegoleon. “Teris. Zara. Be ready for my word.”

Zara turned his focus back to the hill they had just come down. Teris switched her aim to the man that had spoken to them.

The man wasn’t standing too far from where Nozel and Teris had stopped and talked. Nozel remembered a gouge in the rocky hill face not far from that area, big enough to hide six or eight. He wondered how many such chasms scarred the hill; no longer thinking them natural, but created by these people for this very reason.

“Your bravery will get you and your people killed. Killing you will mean me and mine don’t get paid. Those who serve the Beast must always be paid.” The man said, referring to himself in the third person.

“Then let us continue on our way. We’d rather die than surrender to the likes of you.” Nozel said.

Beast gave a humored smile. “The likes of me? Now you’ve gone and hurt my feelings Magic Knight. You don’t even know me. Fine.” He sighed. “I’ll show you what you’re up against. Just how futile fighting is. Half of you stand.”

Nozel’s eyes widened at the force before him. Even if the man was blustering and this was all of his force; it was still a good sixty to seventy people.

“Stand down.” Nozel told the others.

Facing thirty plus on the hill Randall was on, Fuegoleon did as his Captain told. Zara followed suit.

“We can take them.” Teris said.

Fuegoleon glanced at her, angry that she was once again challenging their Captain. That’s when he saw the numbers on the hill Nozel, she, and Zara were facing.

“Stand down, Teris.” Fuegoleon told.

His voice made her turn. Seeing the numbers on her cousins side, Teris lowered her hand, the glow of light fading.

“That’s so unfair it’s not even funny.” Teris ground out in complaint about the near hundred scattered about on the two hills.

“We’ll get out of this.” Nozel swore to them, softly. “We just have to survive to be able to do so.” He turned back to Beast and called. “Well?”

“All your people.” Beast said.

Nozel’s brow furrowed. His eyes darted over to Teris, Fuegoleon, and Zara making sure they all had obeyed his command. He glanced back at Randall who still stood captive at the top of the hill.

“This is all my people.” Nozel said.

The Beast pointed. “Don’t lie to me! You think having them travel hidden and separate will keep them safe?”

“There is no one else.” Nozel told, wondering what kind of game the man was playing at. Maybe he had some kind of vendetta against Magic Knights and simply wanted a reason to kill them? But why then give them the option of standing down?

Thirty meters away an Invisibility Mage muttered. “This isn’t good.”

The Gravity Mage with her suggested. “Make Teris invisible and I’ll make her float up out of harms way. She’s the one that matters. We can just let the others die.”

“We’re tasked to protect her. What you’re suggesting would put her in danger.” The Invisibility Mage whispered back, harshly.

“In more danger than she’s already in?” The Gravity Mage retorted.

“No one’s attacking right now. If we do as you suggest they will be. Can you guarantee that she won’t get hit in the crossfire and killed?” The Invisibility Mage questioned

“This is a mess.” The Gravity Mage rumbled.

“I told you not to hover so close, Daryin.”

“So this is my fault?” Daryin asked.

“In a way, yes. If we hadn’t followed so close they might not know we were here.”

“But Teris would still be captured, Gwen.”

“But we’d still be free to watch over and protect her, unnoticed and unchallenged. I’m making us visible.”

“What! Gwen! No!”

All eyes turned to the two newly appeared mages.

“That’s better.” Beast smiled.

Beast, along with several others, jumped; his Air Mage depositing them safely before the Magic Knights. Others lept and landed around their other two prey.

Beast grabbed Nozel by the throat and lifted him up. “You’ll pay for lying to me, Magic Knight.”

Teris made for him. “Stop it!”

Fuegoleon reached to stop her; but was too slow. Beast released Nozel, who crumpled to the ground coughing and sucking in lungfuls of air. Beast grabbed Teris by the arm, pulling her to him.

Teris knew she wasn’t strong enough to pull away. Instead she allowed her feet to follow the direction she was yanked, using the added momentum. Her knee rose and smashed Beasts in the groin with all the power she could physically muster. Only her knee hit something hard and solid that made her jerk and wince in pain.

Teris wobbled on her still good leg, held up by her arm by Beast.

With a huff, Beast smirked down at her. “Think you’re the first wild one to try such a thing? I learned long ago to protect my favorite weapon against women such as you.” He leered over her, getting in her face. “In fact I may just use that weapon on you later. Take a sample to better know the worth of what I’m selling.”

“Leave her alone!” Nozel pushed to his feet, only to be kicked back down by one of Beast’s men.

Fuegoleon and Zara stepped toward Beast, only to be halted when the man standing over Nozel kicked him for every step they took.

Teris spat at the Beast. “I’d kill myself before I let you near me. You think you’re the worst I’ve faced?”

Beast hooted. “You are a feisty one! Aren’t you! I like that!” He got back in her face. “I may just keep you and break you myself.”

With great effort Fuegoleon kept his temper. Seeking to inform and divert the mans attention away from Teris, he said. “They’re not with us.”

Beast looked over at him. He pushed Teris roughly away and stepped toward Fuegoleon.

Nozel barely caught Teris before her head hit a gagged rock.

“What’s that?” Beast asked.

Fuegoleon looked up at Beast refusing to be intimated. The name, though not creative, suited the man. Beast had to be nearly seven feet tall. He was built like a mountain, his muscles seeming to have muscles. Though Fuegoleon had seen a number of men who were bigger than Tobin Giantsbane and Yami Sukehiro, he had never seen a person that made the two Black Bulls seem small. Till now.

“I said, they are not with us.” Fuegoleon repeated, wondering who the two were and how long they had been secretly following them. His first thought upon seeing them was that they were Magic Warriors or some sort of spy's working for the Diamond Kingdom. But that didn’t seem right. “If you look, you’ll see they’re not wearing Magic Knights cloaks. I know you think they were traveling hidden and separate to keep them safe. But, we didn’t know they were there.”

Beast looked back between the two groups and laughed. “And here I thought the Clover Kingdoms Magic Knights were suppose to be elite mages. You got caught in our trap and were being followed by those two and didn’t see any of it coming!”

Beast roared with amusement, his people following suit. Their mocking laughter echoed off the hills. Teris looked spitefully up at them. If only she could control her magic well enough to incinerate them all without turning her comrades to ash. She had done it at the Battle at the Border and on three other occasions; but that had been before the Summer Solstice. Before her mana had been churned into a raging, never ending whirlwind that she had to keep tightly harnessed at all times. It left her feeling angry and ashamed that she couldn’t protect her squad members and friends, and get them out of this.

“Don’t feel so down on yourself Magic Knights. I can’t speak for your stalkers over there, but us... No one, no matter how good, would’ve seen the trap we laid.” Beast said. “We’ve got this gig down. Still, we’ve never once caught us a group Magic Knights. There’s going to be a bidding war for the lot of you. Get ready for the best payday you’ve ever seen boys and girls!”

The surrounding gang of mages cheered.

Nozel gripped Teris’ arm as he surveyed the surrounding enemy. He was Captain. This was on him. Anything that happened to them was his doing.

“You don’t do anything unless I say.” He whispered to Teris.

Teris’ eyes turned to him. “What if--”

“That’s an order.” Nozel rasped, harshly.

After the attention Teris had already drawn to herself, Nozel wasn’t about to let her attempt something that would further these people’s attention and aggression toward her. As much as the thought angered and disgusted him, Teris was in the most danger here. Men like this didn’t respect a ladies honor. Their Leader had already threatened as much.

Nozel would never allow such a thing to happen. He was sure Fuegoleon, Randall, and Zara felt the same. They’d fight to the death before they’d let something like that happen to Teris. Just the thought that someone had dared to threaten her with such a thing filled him with such rage that his hands clenched.

“Nozel.” Teris winced.

He looked at her then followed her gaze. His bruised throat throbbed even more as he struggled to swallow a swell of new emotions. He quickly opened his hand, releasing her arm to find a red print marring her skin where he had held her. “I’m--”

“Button up.” Fuegoleon whispered, lips barely moving as Beast stepped over to survey the two that had been following them.

Fuegoleon trusted Randall and Zara enough to not look at his cousin in such a way. But men like this, even if Teris was covered up completely, would still stare and desire.

With slightly trembling hands, Teris did has her cousin instructed. The scars on her chest were still slightly visible under certain light but hiding them didn’t when faced with the heat of day. She would've taken off the thin over blouse, leaving her in just a tank top, if it hadn’t provided some sort of protection from the sun.

“We won’t let anything happen to you.” Zara promised her.

Staring at the two that had been following the Magic Knights, one of the gang members asked. “Are you sure you believe they aren’t with them? Could be that they’re nobility and the Magic Knights are protecting them.”

“Look at them.” Beast gestured to the two. “Even if they weren’t dressed like that, they don’t have the right look about them.”

“The right look?” The gang member questioned.

“Their hands. Their eyes.” Beast made his way back to the Magic Knights and pointed at Nozel and Fuegoleon. “I reckon those two are nobility. The girl has the right glare and attitude too. If it wasn’t for her hands, I’d have guessed she was high class as well. But there’s no way a fine noble lady would have hands like those.”

Teris scowled, fighting the urge to look at her hands. What was wrong with them? So it had been almost a year since Mistress had forced a manicure on her. But were her nails really that bad and different from Fuegoleon and Nozel’s?

Beast looked her over. He didn’t know what he had said to garner such a hate filled look from her, likely just continuing to exist was enough. The girl certainly had the hateful, haughty eyes and bearing of a noble. Maybe she had been one once or her house was near its end. Or maybe she had picked up the behaviors of the two noblemen she traveled with. Maybe one, or both of them, were grooming her as their courtesan. No. That didn’t sound right. If either of these two men had such designs on her, they’d make sure she was taken care of and looked the part. No man, even a prissy noble, liked their hands to be prettier than their woman's. Though there did seem to be a curious dynamic between the girl and two nobles.

No matter, Beast thought. If he were interested in a persons life story he would be doing something different. He looked up to where his man was holding the other Magic Knight. “Do it!”

The Magic Knights in front of him turned in time to seen their comrade fall to the ground. Before they could react Beast’s people knocked them out as was. He looked over at the other two that had been following the Magic Knights. “Anything more you want to say before we put you go to sleep too?”

“Our Master will not stand for this!” Daryin yelled, unwilling to be hushed by his companion. “You’ve made a grave mistake!”

Beast laughed, his people following suit. “And who is your Master? Tell me of his fearsome accomplishments.”

“He is Death himself.” Daryin said, lifting his chin proudly

Beast stopped at that. There was only one man he knew that was referred to in such a way.

“Pip.” Beast called to his second in command.

Pip stepped forward, her long hair tangling in the wind as she came beside him. “Boss?”

Beast nodded to two of his people, silently ordering them to knock out the tag-alongs.

The two Agents of Chaos crumpled to the ground.

Beast lifted his hand, giving his gang the signal to wrap it up and move out. A few others came down to help pick up and take away their haul.

“See that the Magic Knights and those two are put in different cell blocks. Then put the word out with our contacts. Let it be known we have a man and woman claiming to belong to the Agents of Chaos. Say that they were following a team of Magic Knights. And that we will wait three days before putting them on the market just in case the Master of Chaos has an interest or wishes to claim any of them.”

“Sure thing, Boss.” Pip nodded.

Beast looked around at his people. Raising his voice so the gang could hear, he ordered. “No one harms the men or touches either of the women. They may not be ours to toy with just yet.” He heard some of his men grumble and complain, and told. “Either way, you can be sure we’ll get paid a pretty sum for them.”

He wondered what two Agents of Chaos were doing following a squad of Magic Knights. That was if they had been telling the truth. But if they knew of the Master of Chaos, then they would know he was not someone to be mentioned so casually, even in the hope of freedom. There were far worse things than being sold into indentured servitude if caught misusing the Master of Chaos’ name. And pretending to be in league with him when not would see those worse things come to pass.

69.2

It had been four days since Mereoleona let Yami back on the front lines of the battlefield. Still, the Crimson Lions Captain had continued to watch him closely. Yami could feel the Vermilion’s eyes on him as he fought, making sure that he stayed in line.

The fearsome Lioness could watch him all she liked, Yami thought. He had learned his lesson and learned it well. He was not someone who sat back and cared for returning fighters. He didn’t have the temperament or emotional aptitude for it. Because of that he had made a whole host of new enemies among his fellow Magic Knights; having thrown them water skins from afar which had smacked them in the face, or simply told them to get their own damned refreshment. His eyes had never left the battlefield the entire time he had been back there. Those two long, seemingly endless days of not fighting alongside his fellows had killed him.

Returning from the front line, Yami collapsed under the shade of a tree, accepting the water skin that was handed to him.

Sitting a few paces away, Mereoleona commented. “You’re doing well out there. Never stepped out of line once.”

Yami said nothing. Though still on the lookout for the Smoke Mage Lotus Whomalt, he had stopped actively searching for him. He sighed, grateful that Teris’ cousin had let him back out to fight. He wasn’t about to ruin it by speaking up. Just give him a hour or two of rest and he’d be ready to go out there again.

The Crimson Lions Captain got to her feet. She had to report to Commander Greywright. “Rest up. We go again in four hours.”

“War is stupid.” Yami grumbled.

Mereoleona looked down at him. “Don’t tell me you were one of those idiots that thought it glorious.” “No.” Yami said. He might not be the smartest person around; but only a fool would think war was glorious. “Still, I didn’t think it was like this.”

“It’s not.” Mereoleona confessed. “Not really. Remember. We’re only fighting as a distraction. If this were a real war without trying for peace, it’d be different. Though no less stupid. Battles are fun and may have meaning. Wars.” She shook her head and sighed. “They’re nothing but foolish endeavors no matter how noble the cause.”

Yami made a face of disgust. The reason for this particular war was certainly foolish and far from noble.

“Get some rest. That’s an order.” Mereoleona told him, walking off.

Yami wasn’t the best at following orders; but currently that was a command he had no trouble obeying. He laid back on the dusty, packed earth. Stretching out, he closed his eyes. As usual when he had a moment of peace to himself, his thoughts drifted to Teris.

His sense of her mana told him she was alive. But that didn’t mean she was safe. Then again she was traveling with two men who loved and adored her nearly as much as he did. He trusted Nozel and Fuegoleon. Knew the two men were highly capable. Between Teris herself, Nozel, and Fuegoleon; Yami was confidant that no harm would come to her.

Yami recalled his birthday before the Crimson Lion and Silver Eagle arrived. He hadn’t meant to take things so far that morning. But could anyone blame him? He could still hardly believe Teris’ boldness. Referring to herself as his gift. Not that he hadn’t liked it. He had liked it a bit too much as the resulting outcome had proved. What he had liked even more was that Teris felt comfortable and free enough with him to show such a side of herself. Yami growled, his thoughts sending his blood south.

Eyes closed, hands laced behind his head, Yami drowsily told his growing erection. “I’ll beat you later. Just let me rest. And, no. I’m not talking to you.” He told, sensing Bronn’s presence.

“Didn’t think you were.” Bronn said, sitting a couple meters away with a tired grunt. “I think every man here is telling their spear pretty much the same. Why do you think so many little ones are born nine or so months after peace is made? Not that you’ll be doing any of that. You got yourself a fine bred lady and will have to wait. Won’t you? That’s if she’s good on her word and doesn’t end up wedding that royal brat like she’s told.”

Yami opened an eye and looked at the Vice Captain.

“I could introduce you to some clean lass’ who know how to keep quiet about their dealings.” Bronn offered. “Black Sheep need never know. I’ll even pay for your first go. Consider it thanks for saving my ass out there this morning.”

The offer was so ludicrous it didn’t even bare response. Yami closed his eye.

“Come on, kid.” Bronn urged, sitting forward. “If it all works out with Black Sheep the way you’re hoping, you’re gonna need some sort of experience. I’ve been in the baths when you’re there. That thing you’re packing will do more than scare the girl. It’ll--”

Yami’s eyes flashed open. He sat up, hand on the hilt of his katana.

Bronn held up his hands. “Got it! Got it! No talk of sex talk where Black Sheep’s involved. Geesh, you really do got a temper. Don’t you.”

Yami slowly released the blades hilt. Laying back down, he grumbled. “I liked it better when you hated me.”

“Don’t get me wrong, Boy. I still hate your troublesome, disrespectful ass. I certainly still think you’re making a big mistake pursuing that girl. Whether she’s willing to give it all up or not. Royals are nothing but trouble. Black Sheep even more so. Look at the mess you’re in with these zealots and the folk hired to kill you.”

Yami didn’t respond. He didn’t care one lick what Bronn thought. He only wished he hadn’t stepped in to help the Vice Captain, and instead left him to die. Then Bronn wouldn’t be here bothering him, trying to figure out a way to repay him. It didn’t matter that supporting and defending each other was what Magic Knights did. This was the two of them. Yami had saved Bronn’s life; and Bronn couldn’t go on feeling he owed Yami his life. The debt had to be paid.

Annoyed, Yami gritted his teeth. “You want to thank me. Go. Away.”

Bronn looked at him out of the corner of his eye. Was the young man that stupid? That’s not how this sort of thing worked. Yami had put himself at risk to help and save him. In order to clear the debt, Bronn would either have to do the same or provide a service of great cost. The woman he had in mind to service Yami was certainly that. Most of her clients were nobles, with a few wealthy merchants here and there. Before Gilly, he had occasionally visited her. The woman, looking for a good dirty romp without weak men or creepy kinks, use to call upon and take him without fee. It had certainly been a boost to his ego.

“What’s with that face?” Yami asked.

Bronn turned to the younger man, mind clearing of lewd memories. “What’s that?”

“You look proud. Almost—happy. It’s creepy. Stop it.”

Bronn picked up a small rock and threw it at him. “Shut up! I’m happy a lot.”

“When? I’ve never seen you happy.” Yami quipped

“That’s because you’re around and you piss me off.” Bronn said, throwing another rock.

The two started when rock passed through Yami.

“What are you doing.” Bronn demanded. He got to his feet knowing it wasn’t Yami.

Yami stood as well, hand instinctively gripping the hilt of his katana. “It’s not me.”

“Shut up and step through the portal.” Bronn snapped, recognizing a different form of transportation magic.

Yami growled but did as he was told. Bronn spun around, looking across the camp to where he had sent him. He cursed seeing that it hadn’t work. Yami was still fading.

Yami appearing in front of him, Bran blinked in surprise eyes clearing. The bees he was controlling to listen in on the enemies plans released from his hold. “Yami! What are you--” His head pulled back, brows furrowing. “You look weird. What’s the matter?”

Yami looked down at his hands. He could see through them now. Despite that, he could still feel himself. He was still able to grip his blade. Bran stood, the both of them seeming to have the same idea. The two reached out trying to grasp the others arm. Bran’s hand passed through Yami’s forearm. Yami’s hand doing the same with Bran’s.

Yami continued to fade. At this rate it wouldn’t be much longer before he completely disappeared.

“Captain Heath!” Bran yelled, worry taking over his voice.

Bronn stepped through a portal with someone in tow. He slapped Bran’s head. “Quit screaming. That singing fool can’t do anything about this.” He said of the Purple Orcas Captain.

Yami stepped back when the woman that had arrived with Bronn stepped into his space.

“Let her do her thing! She’s scenting you.” Bronn snapped at Yami.

Yami frowned, but stayed put. He looked down at the woman as she stuck her face into his chest taking long, deep breaths through her nose. Though he couldn’t physically feel her face passing through his chest; it was still a weird feeling.

“Hurry it up, lass.” Bronn urged.

The transport was nearly complete. Yami nothing more than a faint ghost.

“Done!” The woman declared.

Bronn felt a wave of relief wash over him. As Yami disappeared, he swore. “We’ll find you.”

“Where is he! What was that?” Bran exclaimed.

Bronn frowned. “Dimensional travel. Only a few types of magic can even track it. Lucky for us, such travel couldn’t have taken him far. We’ll have you look from the sky, and Etta here try to sniff him out. But first, go inform Greywright and Mereoleona what’s happened. Tell them we’ll need someone capable of busting their way in once we find him.”

Bran stepped to the Black Bulls Vice Captain. “I want--”

Bronn grabbed Bran by the shirt collar. “I don’t give a damn what you want, boy! Now get!” He shoved Bran in the direction of the Magic Knights Commanders tent.

Heath arrived, having hear Bran's call. “I know you’re his Vice Captain but--”

“Not now, Bard!” Bronn snapped. “They got the Lord of Destruction. Again.”

Heath straightened at that. “Who? Surely not the Agents of Chaos again.”

“I don’t know who. Muscle Head has all sorts after him.” Bronn said, snidely.

The Captain noted Bronn’s weakened mana. “At least let me help you out. Restore you before you go.”

“Fine. Sing us one of your little shanty's and make us feel better.” Bronn allowed.

He might’ve made light of Heath’s magic; but the Purple Orcas Captain was a powerful mage. And though he’d never say it, Bronn was exceedingly grateful for the mans efforts. By the end of the short song, Bronn was refreshed, his mana levels back to full.

Looking to Etta, Bronn urged. “Let’s go lass. I got a debt to cross off.”

69.3

“Teris. Teris. Wake up.”

Teris opened her eyes and found herself in an all too frightening familiar situation. She really had to stop waking up in cells. If she could just quit being captured all together that would be great.

She touched the base of her skull, wincing at the painful bump that was there. Blinking, she looked up. A small smile of relief crossed her face at the sight of Fuegoleon, Nozel, Zara, and Randall.

She looked around, taking in the iron bars. “You guys okay?”

“That’s what I was about to ask you.” Nozel said, watching her for sign of injury.

“Got the mana of all headaches. But I’m good.” Teris said, sitting up against the bars that adjoined with the boys cell.

She didn’t feel at all reassured that she was being kept in a separate cell from them; and she could see from their expressions and the way they kept on watching the door that they didn’t either. Teris laid a hand over the belt buckle Yami had given her. Grateful as she was for it, she hoped she wouldn’t need to use the blade hidden within.

“Has anyone been in? Said anything?” Teris asked.

“Zara woke first. He says it’s been quiet.” Fuegoleon told.

“Where are the other two? The cloaked ones that were following us.” Teris wondered.

“That was strange.” Randall commented. Though he hadn’t heard much from his captured position at the top of hill, seeing those other two had surprised him.

After Randall woke, Fuegoleon had relayed everything that had been said while he let Nozel think. Though Fuegoleon would never admit it, he knew Nozel had the better strategic mind.

Fuegoleon and Nozel looked at each other, both wondering the same thing. The Vermillion turned back to his cousin, Teris’ expression telling him she thought the same. That the Agents of Chaos or some other interested group had been following them.

Fuegoleon gritted his teeth. He wondered how long the two tag-alongs had been with them. If he had failed to notice danger stalking them, how could he hope to protect his cousin and fellows from harm?

The door opened and a man entered.

Fuegoleon fought the urge to make his way closer to Teris’ cell, knowing such an act would only draw further attention to her.

“Magic Knights.” The man said, setting down a tray of food in front of the men's cell. He eyed them. “Not so magical in a mana blocked hold are you? Beast is taking his time. Waiting to give first bid of you all to a particularly scary customer. I almost feel sorry for you if he’s the one who buys you lot. He’s a real nasty fellow. Slice you all up for parts and throw away the rest he will.”

Teris felt the blood drain from her face. Is this where Alowishus Spade got the mages for his sick corpse magic? But what about the two that had been following them? Were they not Agents of Chaos? If not, then who were they? And where were they now?

The man smiled. “Sorry. You boys will have to split the meal among the four of you. I only have two hands.” He moved and bent in front of Teris’ cell, setting a bowl of gruel on the floor. “Maybe you’ll be nice enough to share your portion with them. Are you a nice girl that likes to share?” He looked her over, licking his lips. “Want to share with me? I’ll see you get all the best cuts if you treat me real nice like.”

Teris’ hand drifted back to her belt buckle. Though she still had her grimoire, it would do her little good in a mana blocked cell.

The man looked back at the door he had come through. The Magic Knights tensed, none of them liking the feel of this. Almost as one, Nozel, Fuegoleon, Zara, and Randall reached through the bars when the jailer unlocked Teris’ cell. They started yelling, both to threaten the man and attract attention of any other guard that could stop this.

Teris pressed back against the shared bars of the guys cell. The man reached for her. He managed to grab her leg and tried to pull her away from the adjoining cell. Teris kicked out with her other leg, knocking him in the jaw. She pulled her leg back and tucked it under her, squeezing as close to the bars as she could. If they could make enough noise. Get someone else to enter, see what was going on, and put a stop to it.

She held onto the bars with one hand, the other free and clasping the hidden weapon within her buckle. She was tempted to pull the blade out now. Wanted to threaten the man with it. But such a thing wouldn’t work. If anything he’d bring in the weapon he had left outside the cell with the keys.

No. Teris had wait and do exactly as Yami had taught her. She had to leave the little knife hidden until the moment she had to use it.

The man laughed and tried to grab her leg again. The reach of her comrades outstretched arms kept him at bay.

Nozel’s hand gripped over Teris’ in effort to secure her hold on the cells bar. He could see the wild fear in her eyes, which only grew when the man once again managed to grab a hold of her ankle.

Though it had cost the man a good patch of hair and some scraps and bruises, he laughed, not feeling any of it. Getting a better grip on Teris, he pulled. Fuegoleon, Randall, and Zara now moved to assist Nozel in holding Teris fast.

The man was able to grip her around the waist now. He gave one last rough jerk. The others hold broke. Teris was slammed against the bars on the opposite side of the cell. If that hadn’t stunned her, the man adding his weight into the mix as he followed and rammed into her did.

The breath was knocked out of her. One side of her face screamed, throbbing in pain along area it had met one of the bars. Teris’ shoulder was grabbed. Before she could catch her breath, she was spun around. The other side of her face echoed in pain as she was back handed. Spots blurred her vision. It was a struggle to stay calm and remember what Yami had taught her.

The man thought he had won. He thought that she was some Magic Knight unaccustomed to fighting with anything but magic. But he was wrong. His arrogance was her strength. Teris waited a second after he let his guard down. His lecherous smile sickened as he looked her over.

Teris’ hand once again drifted to her belt buckle.

The mans smile grew. “You’re one those, huh? Likes to put up a fight but is all cooperative af--”

His words turned into a cry of alarm and pain as Teris charged him, driving the three inch blade into one of the key areas Yami had instructed her to. Again and again she hit, the blade puncturing and slicing with every punch she gave to his groin. Even when she had him against the opposite bars and Nozel was there to wrap an arm around the mans throat, Teris still didn’t stop.

As soon as the man had ripped Teris away, Nozel had taken a step back, frantically searching for weak points in the cells wall. They couldn’t rely on anyone hearing them and coming it. And what was to say that whoever came would put an end to this anyway? The person could just as easily help Teris’ attacker.

Judging where the weakest point was, Nozel had instructed the others and they began pounding themselves against it. He was pretty sure Fuegoleon had dislocated his shoulder as he had switched sides; but that didn’t matter now. Together they had loosened the connection point and begun to bend a bar up.

When Nozel saw Teris charge, not stopping till the man was within his reach; he was there to wrap a forearm around the mans neck, gripping his wrist with his other hand. Blind with rage, Nozel wasn’t going to stop squeezing till he choked the mans life out of him.

The others had managed to lift bend bar enough for the smallest of them to get through.

“Zara! The keys.” Fuegoleon ordered as the Purple Orca crawled through into Teris’ cell.

But all seemed to stop when Teris fell back crying and bloody.

“Teris!” Zara rushed to her.

Teris pulled away when he neared.

Zara held up his hands. He glanced at the man. Seeing him dead, Zara soothed. “Teris. It’s okay. It’s just me. He’s gone. Dead. It’s over. Are—are you okay?” He felt stupid for asking such a thing. Of course she wasn’t okay. “Are you injured?”

Teris touched her face, trying to take stock.

“This blood?” Zara asked, gently.

At that she shook her head. She looked down at the small knife she had instinctively slipped back into the belt buckle just the way Yami had taught her. “It’s—it’s not mine.”

The four male Magic Knights relaxed at that.

“The keys.” Fuegoleon commanded, again.

This time Zara listened. As soon as the cell was open, Fuegoleon was through the door and in Teris’ cell. He scooped her up to her feet with his good arm, the other still dislocated and pinned to his side.

“I got you. I got you.” Fuegoleon breathed, hugging her tight. He looked over her shoulder to Nozel who still held the man in a choke hold.

It was then that Fuegoleon saw what Zara had somehow missed. The torn fabric and bloodied mess all around the mans groin. He held Teris tighter, wondering where she had gotten a weapon. Off her attacker maybe?

Randall placed a hand on his Captain's shoulder. “He’s dead, sir. We should get out of here.”

Nozel gave a nod. Still, he found it difficult to let go of the hold. Slowly, he forced his hand open, releasing his wrist. The man slumped to the floor. Pulling his arm back from between the bars, Nozel looked down at the man.

“Sir?” Randall pressed.

With a blink, Nozel forced his mind to focus. He looked at Fuegoleon, silently inquiring about Teris. Not that it really mattered. They had to get out of here whether she was good to move of not. He saw his friend whisper something to her.

Teris nodded. She grabbed the Crimson Lions arm, and quickly and efficiently popped his shoulder back into place.

Fuegoleon gritted. A guttural groan escaped from clenched teeth.

Nozel huffed, realizing what Fuegoleon had asked as a barometer to see if Teris was alright.

Stepping out of the cell, the acting Captain ordered. “Let’s go.”

69.4

Before Yami managed to cloak his blade in darkness someone grabbed him from behind. Big mistake, he thought. Gripping the persons arm with his left hand, Yami threw them over his shoulder. ��He twisted the arm till he felt it slide out of place.

The figure below grunted in pain. Yami lowered his katana to the mans neck. It was then that Yami saw his attackers face.

Yami halted, though didn’t lift his blade. “Cin?”

“Yami!” Cin looked up. He held up the hand of his good arm, staying the gang around them. “What the hell, man!”

Yami blew a strand of hair out of his eye. Teris was right. He really did need a haircut.

Yami took in the surrounding gang. “Was about to ask you the same. We good?”

“Yeah. Yeah, we’re good.” Cin winced, sitting up. “Stand down everyone.”

Seeing the gangs magical attacks that had been ready strike disperse, Yami relaxed a bit.

Cin looked up at him. “You mind?”

Yami sheathed his katana. Holding his hand out to the mans good arm, Yami pulled him up. As he did so he gripped and popped Cin’s shoulder back into place.

“Son of a--” Cin shouted. Some of his people laughed while others looked ready to attack again. “Damn it! Your touch is still as gentle as a hammer.”

“Thought I’d gotten better.” Yami mumbled, mildly chagrined. Though he hadn’t had as much practice putting joints back into place as he use to.

Cin huffed. “What are you doing here?”

“What do you mean? Wasn’t it one of yours that brought me. I certainly didn’t come willingly.”

“Sorry about that.” Cin apologized.

Yami looked about at the surrounding mages. “So you’re running a gang?”

“You could say that, I guess.” Cin admitted, carefully. “What about you? Never thought I’d see you on a battlefield fighting for the Clover Kingdom.” He looked Yami over. “A Magic Knight. When did that happen?”

Yami shrugged. “Few years back.”

“So, who is she? Was she worth it?” Cin asked.

The slight tension that have never left Yami, grew. “What?”

“The girl who’s father hired us to kill you.” Cin said, assuming their employer was some girls father.

“Who’s that?” Yami asked, hoping for a name. Though he had no doubt who had sent them.

Cin chuckled. “What? There’s more than one girl?”

“No. But her father’s dead. So.” Yami lifted a shoulder, staring at his old friend.

Cin shook his head. “I remember when you didn’t have interest or time for girls. Said they were nothing but trouble and a distraction.”

“Well, she certainly is that.” Yami admitted.

“Hence why you’re keeping women to the one.” Cin smirked.

Yami didn’t answer. Let Cin fill in the blanks however he liked. Good as it was to see him, Yami didn’t know him anymore. It had been years since they had last seen each other. Years since Yami had left the tunneled home that housed a pack of fellow boys who had followed him after he had kicked each of their asses.

A couple of those boys had even doubled up in fights against him. Cin and Damon had been two of those. It still hadn’t made a difference. Yami had laid them out like the rest. Before he knew it he had a gang answering to him. Nice as it had been. He hadn’t wanted it. Hadn’t asked or demanded any of them follow him. Rather he had done his best to shoo them off. But they had still followed. Feeling lost and without purpose, Yami had gotten restless and wandered off one day, never to return.

He had met Julius soon after; and from there his life was changed. Yami had occasionally wondered what had happened to his pack of friends, but never enough to go back and look for them.

“What happened to you?” Cin asked. “One day you were just—gone. You get pinched or something?”

“Or something.” Yami answered.

Cin glowered. This was the Yami he remember. Quiet. Distant. Hard to read and difficult to work with. Which was why he was so surprised to see Yami was a Magic Knight. Following orders wasn’t Yami’s style.

Yami looked around, wondering if there were any other familiar faces. “The others? Damon?”

“We all kind of went our own way after you disappeared. Damon, Rigel, and I stuck together for a while. Rigel left a couple months back. Got a girl pregnant and wanted to do right by her.”

“And Damon?” Yami asked, remembering that he and Cin had been inseparable.

“Dead.” Cin answered.

Yami’s lip twitched. “Damn.”

“Yeah.” Cin said. He didn’t want to go into further detail. Yami didn’t deserve it.

“So how much did Nathyn Silva pay you?” Yami asked.

Cin looked up, knowing without a doubt he had never mentioned a name. Mainly because he didn’t know the name himself.

Working through a broker, Cin never met his clients. It worked better for all involved that way. A letter detailing the target, along with half the fee, came in. He and his gang did the job, and the second half of the pay came in after. It worked for him. While he had his ways of figuring out who hired him; he had rarely had a mind to know or need to figure it out. Nobody had ever tried to stiff him, so he never had reason to put in the effort of learning a clients name.

“I didn’t mention no Silva.” Cin said. “I wasn’t even sure I guessed right about it being about a girl. I just figured it wasn’t a gambling debt. You were too good at games to wrack up a sum someone was willing to kill you over.”

Yami massaged the tension out of his neck. “So you’re really not going to tell me, even though I know.”

“Not that I’d tell you if I knew myself. But I really don’t know.” Cin said. He looked his long time friend over. “Sounds like you do though.”

Yami sighed. “Yeah. Not that it’ll do me a lot of good.” He watched Cin a moment. “How do you want to handle this?”

Cin raised a questioning brow. “What do you mean?”

Yami looked around at the others still surrounding him. “Well, you were paid to take me out.”

Cin shook his head. “Ain’t happening.”

“Come on.” Yami bolstered. “You got what? Fifteen. Twenty. At your command.”

Cin shook his head again. “I saw you on the battlefield from afar. I had my concerns then. But a job’s a job. Now that I know it’s you. No way.”

“A job’s a job.” Yami echoed, tempting.

“I thought we left on good terms. Despite your sudden disappearance.” Cin said. His anger over Yami leaving without word creeping into his voice.

“We did.” Yami agreed.

“Then why do you wanna kick my ass?” Cin questioned.

Yami shrugged. “For old times sake I guess.”

Cin smirked crookedly and shook his head. Same old Yami, he thought. “I’ll have you know that I’ve gotten better. Stronger.”

Yami mirrored the crooked smile. “So have I.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of.” Cin chuckled.

Yami finally, fully relaxed. His sense of Cin’s Ki told him the man meant what he said. His long ago friend had no interest in trying to collect his pay by finishing the job.

“So, what are you going to do?” Yami asked. “You may not know who hired you, but I’m near positive. Nathyn Silva isn’t someone you want to cross.”

Ignoring the difficult question, Cin looked Yami over. Despite all the past hurt and anger, it really was good to see him again. “You should be asking yourself the same. If it really is that royal bastard calling for your head, you’re in trouble, Yami. Folk like that don’t like to be thwarted and have all the money in the world to hire more gangs.”

“I know. This is his second attempt that I’m aware of.” Yami told.

Cin blinked at that. “What the hell did you do?”

Yami smirked and shook his head. “You’d call me a fool if I told you.”

“I’ll call you a fool anyway.” Cin remarked. The two stared at each other a moment before Cin offered. “Come with us. With me. Leave this war and the Magic Knights.”

“And run under you?” Yami asked.

Cin shrugged. “Could be worse. You could die out there fighting a soon forgotten war for a prideful, child-like King who will never be grateful and doesn’t even know your name. Or get caught unawares by the next hired gang sent to kill you.”

Or get pulled into a crazy zealots sick ceremony, Yami thought. “Tempting. But I can’t.”

“That doesn’t sound like you. The Yami Sukehiro I knew did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. If he wanted to leave this mess and join me, he would do so without a backwards glance.”

“I would have at that.” Yami agreed. “But there’s things you don’t know and would never understand. Things I barely understand.”

“It’s that girl. Isn’t it?” Cin guessed.

“Mostly.” Yami admitted.

“Then we’ll go get her.”

“Now that does sound tempting.” Yami said. He wondered if Teris could sense him while he was in this dimensional sphere. If she couldn’t, he had little doubt that she was going as crazy as he had during the Battle at the Border. He had to get out of here so she could sense his mana and know he was alright. He gestured to the surrounding space. “Can we--”

Understanding, Cin commanded. “Oliva.”

They were returned to normal space. Yami looked about. They were on some barren hilltop overlooking the battlefield that was more than ten kilometers away. Yami hoped that it was enough. That Teris would sense him and be alright.

“You won’t come. Will you?” Cin said, watching him.

Yami shook his head. Though it really was a tempting offer, he didn’t feel the least bit torn by saying no. For the first time since waking up in this strange land, he had a life here in the Clover Kingdom. And it consisted of more than just Teris. It didn’t matter that Teris would never go for the life Cin was offering. Yami didn’t want it either. He was, dare he say, happy with the life he had made as a Black Bull in the Magic Knights. And he would be even happier once Bronn was gone, and he and Teris were made co-Vice Captains.

Cin sighed. “I knew you wouldn’t. You wouldn’t be out there fighting if you didn’t want to be there.”

“Oh, I rather be almost anywhere than on that battlefield.” Yami said.

“I meant as a Magic Knight. In this life you’ve made yourself.”

Yami thought of Teris, Julius, and the Black Bulls. “You’re right there.”

Cin shook his head and sighed. “I suppose I’ll just have to let you pay the royal bastard back. And also pay me and mine the second half we’re due.”

Yami had been afraid of that. Still, he understood. “Gotta keep them loyal.”

Cin nodded.

“Do me a favor.”

Cin huffed. “You mean other then let you buy your life and live?”

“Oh, you’re letting me live now?”

“Shut up! What do you want?”

Yami grinned, imagining the scene and sight of Lord Silva’s face. “Let me return the funds.”

“You?” Cin questioned. “You’re not even positive it’s him.”

“It’s him.” Yami said. The only way he could be more certain was if the Silva came forward and confessed.

Cin shook his head. “Guess you haven’t changed as much as I was beginning to think. Fine. You agree to pay us the second half we would’ve received for the job. And I’ll let you pay the Silva back the first half. But if you’re wrong you’re paying whoever did hire us his portion back too.”

That sounded reasonable. Yami held out his hand.

“Crazy bastard.” Cin muttered, shaking on the deal.

“So how much do I owe you?” Yami asked.

Cin shook his head. “Now he asks.” He muttered. To Yami, he answered. “Ten thousand yules.”

“Ten thousand!” Yami repeated. He didn’t know whether to be insulted, or upset that this would take all of his savings.

“Twenty thousand yules for your life. Not a bad payday if it wasn’t you and so much work.” Cin told.

“Maybe the next gang will demand more.” Yami complained.

“You really think you’re worth that much?” Cin questioned, humorously.

“I would've kill you and yours easy.” Yami told.

“Really? And I suppose that’s what happened to the group before.” Cin joked.

Yami nodded. “Exactly.”

“What?” Cin questioned, in disbelief.

“Dead. All of them.” Yami told, not saying that there had been other Magic Knights backing him up.

Cin blinked. “All of them you say?”

“All twenty.” Yami affirmed.

Cin gave a low whistle. “I’ll spread word of that. Maybe it’ll make other groups think twice before accepting the job if Silva or anyone else thinks to try again.”

“Don’t. They might demand more pay. But they’ll still come. Only they’ll have a better idea what their walking into. With all that’s going on right now, I’d rather not have to try all that hard fending off gangs of assassins.”

“You mean there’s worse than people being hired to kill you?” Cin asked, not all that surprised.

“It’s a long story that you don’t care about hearing and I’d rather not get into.” Yami said.

“Fine.” Cin held out his hand.

Yami clasped his friends hand, firmly.

“Just get that money back to our hire as quick as you can. Me and mine can wait a bit for our second half. Let you finish up here before bugging you.” Cin grinned at him. “It’ll give us a chance to see each other again. Maybe have a drink or two and talk about old times.”

“And if I’m wrong?” Yami asked, not showing how much the thought of meeting Cin again disturbed him. At least once his old friend got the second half of his pay, they would hopefully have no cause to ever see each other again.

Cin raised an eyebrow. “Thought you said you were positive.”

“Just in case. How do I get a hold of you to find and pay the correct person back?”

Cin eyed Yami’s Magic Knights cloak. “We’ll just get a hold of you all the sooner.”

“That’s comforting.” Yami muttered.

“Don’t worry. Once we’re done, I won’t be paying you an friendly visits.”

“Those aren’t the type of visit I’m worried about.” Yami said, even though he wanted nothing more to do with his old friend.

Cin chuckled. “Then don’t be wrong. And don’t go pissing anyone else off.”

Yami huffed. “No promises there. Seems all I gotta do is breathe for that to happen.”

“You’re the one who wants to stick around.” Cin looked at his friend, smiling fondly at the memories seeing Yami brought. “Hope she’s worth it.”

Yami fought a smile at the thought of Teris. “She is. She’s worth it all, and more.”

69.5

Beast entered the cell block where the Magic Knights had been held.

“Want us to pursue them?” Pip asked, by his side.

Beast took in at the mangled cell and corpse, piecing together what had happened. “No. They’ve done what was ordered.”

Pip looked up at the towering man. “Boss?”

“Word came quickly from Death. We’ll get paid later.”

“But if he wants them...”

“He wanted them released and unharmed.” Beast said. He looked down at the dead man in disgust, hoping the girl got away undamaged. He didn’t know what the Master of Chaos wanted with the Magic Knights; but he didn’t want to experience the mans wrath if they had been injured. Turning away Beast ordered. “Have this mess cleaned up. Take that filth out to the pens for the Saber Cats. They haven’t had a decent meal in a while.”

“Sure thing, Boss.”

“Oh, and put the word out. We’ll be hosting a gaming battle tomorrow.”

“Boss?”

Beast turned back. “The two Agents of Chaos. I was instructed to make their demise as drawn out and painful as possible. It never goes well when you’ve displeased Death.”

69.6

Once they were free of the compound, Nozel had created an eagle of mercury large enough to carry them all. He flew at top speed, unconcerned about lasting the day or keeping up his energy for the next. All he cared about was getting Teris and his team as far away as quickly as possible. Even so, he had flown in the direction of the Diamond Kingdoms capital. Despite all that had happened, they still had a mission. Nozel had flown until he didn’t think his could take it anymore, and then flew some more.

“Captain. Can we stop by that stream and let her get cleaned up?” Randall asked, from behind him.

Nozel looked back at his squad for the first time since they had taken flight. His eyes lowered to Teris. She was covered in dried blood. Though apparently none of it was hers.

Nozel swallowed, struggling to control his emotions. He noted that though Fuegoleon didn’t hold her, the Crimson Lion hovered protectively over her.

With a nod, Nozel directed the shining silver eagle toward a more sheltered area of the stream. They had left the dry, rocky landscape behind for a more green, though far from lush, area. This growth may have afforded them a bit more cover; but it was still bare enough that he felt safe from possible lurking enemies.

The sun was already dipping below the horizon when Nozel had the eagle land. He looked over his squad and declared. “We’ll camp here for the night. Zara, set your traps. Make them capable of catching small mammals. We lost our rations along with our packs.” He gave Teris a small, tentative smile. “Looks like you’ll get to cook after all if you want.”

When Teris didn’t even register hearing him, Nozel’s forced smile fell. She had had a scare. They all had. Seeing her attacked like that… Nozel had never felt so helpless and furious. He would have killed himself trying to get to her. It had taken everything he had to pull himself back and think clearly when his instinct had been to rage and go mad, frothing uselessly from his cell.

Fuegoleon gripped his Captain’s shoulder, trying to comfort him. He hoped Nozel didn’t take Teris’ silence personally. Teris hadn’t spoken since they had taken to the air. At least she had slept a good portion of the flight. Though she had woken up with a start, calling Yami’s name. There had been a moment after her waking where it appeared as if her fright would bubble over; but she had quickly calmed, taking in a shuddering breath as if relieved.

“Randall.” Nozel called, taking a step rather than shake Fuegoleon’s hand off his shoulder. He didn’t want to be comforted. He didn’t deserve it. He had failed his team.

Randall straightened. “Captain?”

Nozel hated the mans use of the title. He hadn’t earned it in the first place. And with all that had happened, he had proved just how unworthy he currently was of holding the rank, even as an acting one.

“Gather some wood and build a pit to roast whatever’s caught. Then see if you can find a stone sharp enough to skin and cut.” Nozel looked back at Teris, wondering if she still had whatever blade she had taken off the man. But he didn’t want to bring it up by asking her.

Nozel watched Zara and Randall moved away to do as they were ordered. Turning back, he looked at Teris, once again fighting a swell of raging emotions.

“Teris.” Nozel said, gently. When she still appeared dazed and distant, he turned to Fuegoleon. “Why don’t you two get washed up. I’ll keep watch.”

Fuegoleon nodded.

The two men looked at Teris, waiting for her to move or show any signed she had heard. When she just stood there Fuegoleon looked back at Nozel, the two sharing a look of concern.

“Stop it!” Teris snapped, suddenly coming to life. “Quit looking at each other worrying about me. I’m fine.” She spun around and marched to the stream.

“She’s not fine.” Fuegoleon told his Captain, softly.

“At least she’s talking again.” Nozel said, relieved at that.

He had never witnessed it, but Nozel had heard that occasionally people who went through traumatic events had left them changed. Sometimes all but dead to the world. Without any type of healer, they would have had a real problem if Teris had suffered something like that. As important as their mission was, Nozel didn’t think he would have been able to go on if Teris had stayed lost in herself. The thought of returning to face his father’s and the Kings displeasure sent a shiver down his spine. But none of that bore thinking. Teris would be fine. She was strong. Teris had already been through and survived so much. He was certain that she would survive this too.

Nozel watched Teris make her way to the stream, Fuegoleon in her wake. Sure she would likely have some underlying issues for a while. He would too. But a selfish part of him hoped that this would bring them closer together. Not that he would take advantage of anything the horrible scare may bring about. But if some good could come from it, at least there would be that. Not that any good, no matter how great, that came from this would make it worth Teris experiencing the scare she had.

Teris dipped trembling hands into stream. Collecting a fistful of course dirt, she scrubbed away the blood. At first the motions were slow and gentle but then they sped, growing rough.

Tears began to fall. She brought up her hands, covering her face.

Fuegoleon watched her from a short distance. He usually knew what to do to best comfort people. It was a gift he had. But in this instance, when his cousin needed him most, he was at a loss. He didn’t know what to do. Likely because she didn’t know what she wanted. He decided to go with his own need and hoped it helped without driving her further away.

Moving to her, Fuegoleon knelt on the hard, rocky bank. Ignoring the muddy damp that instantly wet his pants, he pulled her into a hug. Teris cried into her cousins chest. Stroking her hair, Fuegoleon wondered distantly if that was her trembling or him. Never in his life had he felt so helpless. Never in his life had he wanted someone dead so badly that he would have bashed their skull in if given half a chance.

The thought frightened him. The desire to commit such violence. Even now Fuegoleon wanted to kill the man over and over again, his mind playing over the ways in which he would do so.

Fuegoleon sniffed back his own tears; his fear, anger, and gratitude that the worst of what could have happened hadn’t. Overwhelmed, he burrowed his face in her head and let the tears fall.

After a time, Teris ceased crying. “Leon? Are you wiping your tears on my hair?”

Fuegoleon lifted his head, stroking her moistened locks. “It’s good for hair.”

Teris laughed at that. “So that’s how your hair is always prettier than mine. You cry into it.”

“I usually use the tears of my enemies.” Fuegoleon played, amazed at how resilient she was.

Looking up at him, Teris soothed. “It’s alright.”

“That’s my line. No taking my lines.” Fuegoleon chastised, lightly.

Teris pulled from him, her small smile falling as she grew serious. “Scary as that was, I’ve faced worst fears.”

“You shouldn’t have to.” Fuegoleon told. He tucked a lock of her hair behind an ear, wondering how her saying such a thing was suppose to make him feel better.

“It’s just--” Teris swallowed. Try as she might to push the memory away, she could still feel the slick warmth of the man’s blood. Could still smell the metallic scent that had invaded her nostrils. “I’ve never killed anyone. Not like that. Not so close and physical. Not with my own hands.” She blinked back tears, hating the sign of weakness.

Though Fuegoleon knew better, he said. “I’m pretty sure it was Nozel that killed him. Broke his neck.” He hoped lie was believable. He doubted Nozel would like taking credit that wasn’t his. But given the reasoning, he was sure the acting Captain would allow it.

Teris looked up at him. “Really?”

She should be ashamed at how much better that made her feel. It didn’t matter who had killed the man. Even a no good, sick, fiendish person like that didn’t deserve to die without trial. A life was a life. And as a Magic Knight it was her job to protect and uphold the Clover Kingdoms law; not meet out judgment. At least that’s the way it was suppose to be. Sadly they didn’t live in a perfect world where things were the way they were suppose to be.

In her short time as a Magic Knight, she had seen so much death. Delivered so much of it herself. Teris had known that being a Magic Knight was a dangerous job and there would be death. But she had never imagined it to be at this scale. She tried to think of how much more Julius had seen during his many years of service. How much more she would see over the years, and stopped. Unwilling and unable to imagine.

“Really.” Fuegoleon told her.

“Am I horrible for being relieved at that?” Teris asked.

“No. Not in the least.” Fuegoleon assured.

Teris shook her head, lowering her gaze. “Poor Nozel.”

Fuegoleon looked at her, amazed. Even after all Teris had been through, she was thinking of and sympathizing with others.

“I’m pretty sure he’s not all that upset about it.” Fuegoleon remarked, thinking Nozel wouldn’t have been if this fiction had been reality. “I think he’s more upset about us getting captured in the first place.”

Teris lifted her head. “This wasn’t his fault. None of us realized what we were walking into. Or that we were being followed.” She stopped and thought about the other two.

Not only had they not been in the cell block with them; but they hadn’t been in any of the other cell blocks they had passed. A part of her felt silly for wondering if they were Agents of Chaos. What would they be doing all the way out here just following?

“Try telling him that.” Fuegoleon said. “If I were leading this team I’d be feeling the same. And so would you.”

“I suppose.” Teris said, wondering what they could do to make Nozel feel better about his role as Captain.

“Come on. We can’t take forever.” Fuegoleon took his cloak off. “You should wash your clothes as best you can.” He untied the sash around his waist and removed the blue over coat, holding them out to her. “You can wear this while you wash and dry yours.”

Thank you to those who have left hearts. And a special THANK YOU to those who have recently left comments or re-blogged. They really mean a lot.

Next chapter snippet:

Alowishus glared. He could end King Morris’ life here and now but that would only cause further war and problems as the Diamond Kingdom would be thrown into chaos. Funny how all his life he had been trying to wake Chaos so he could bring about death and destruction and yet here he was trying to prevent such things from happening.

#yami sukehiro #nozel silva #fuegoleon vermillion #zara ideale #randall luftair #Black Clover #light in the darkness

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douchebagbrainwaves · 4 years

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I'VE BEEN PONDERING BUSINESS

Since what you need to be able to phrase it in terms of something the incumbents are overlooking. And by convince yourself, then convince them. And of course there's another kind of thinking, when you're starting something new, that requires complete quiet. So better a good idea. Your niche both protects and defines you. They are all too physical. They come from investing in the companies that weren't. Another startup might have needed a database guy, or someone with connections in the movie business. You couldn't get from your bed to the front door if you stopped to question everything. If you look at a list of US cities sorted by population, the number that moves is the valuation and thus amount invested rather than the average.

Nearly all good startup ideas is a question of seeing the obvious. Particularly as you get older and more experienced. You sense there is something druglike about them, in the same way taking a shower lets your thoughts drift a bit—and thus drift off the wrong path you'd been pursuing last night and onto the right one adjacent to it. Almost every company needs some amount of bullshit is inevitably forced on you than on your competitors. And notice the beautiful mountains to the west of 280: Woodside, Portola Valley, Los Altos Hills, Saratoga, Los Gatos. The distinctive feature of successful startups: a rapidly growing business as software. They come from investing in the companies that weren't. To the popular press, hacker means someone who breaks into computers.

When we were in grad school, one of the rare ideas of that type. For example, can this quality be taught? A investors often make companies take more money than they have in the past. The word is used more often in the former than the latter sense, probably because ugly solutions are more common than brilliant ones. Formidable is close to confident, except that someone could be confident and mistaken. It may be that less bullshit is forced on you, the bullshit that sneaks into your life by tricking you is no one's fault but your own. Getting work makes him a successful actor, but he doesn't only become an actor when he's successful. Let's start with a distinction that should be obvious but is often overlooked: not every newly founded company is a startup. I've read was not in a book, but the extra money and help supplied by VCs will let them grow even faster. The VC business backed into it as their initial assumptions gradually became obsolete. The best notebooks I've found are made by a company called Miquelrius. If instead of seeming evasive and ashamed about having been turned down and thereby implicitly agreeing with the verdict you talk candidly about what scared investors about you, you'll seem more confident, which they like, and you'll probably also do a better job of presenting that aspect of your startup, and misleading them about how far along you are with other investors seems the complementary countermove.

But if you're looking for startup ideas you can sacrifice some of the most promising startups, that series A investors often make companies take more money than they have in the past. For example, a social network for pet owners. What's going on here? If you look at the way successful founders have had their ideas, it's not uncommon for a startup to work on it more enthusiastically. Having kids showed me how to convert a continuous quantity like time, 8 is not a lot of equally good startups that actually didn't happen. That's a reasonable proxy for revenue growth because whenever the startup does start trying to make money and to get attention, and a pen. Which in fact it will usually be. And if you can get. But there are different kinds of prosperity. So many of the biggest startups almost didn't happen that there must be a lot more startups.

The mercurial Spaniard himself declared: After Altamira, all is decadence. The fact that startups need less money means founders will increasingly have the upper hand over investors. Also, you've never been to this house before, so you need a lot of different cafes, but there won't be many of them. The total amount of desirable startup stock available to investors will probably increase, because the degree of risk an existing investor or firm is comfortable taking is one of those problems where there might not be an answer. An ordinary slower-growing business might have just as good a case as Microsoft could have for being on a path to dominating a big market. But if you want to do, rather than whether it's going to succeed, just that you think about it no more than an instance of scamming a scammer. It is sometimes hard to explain to authorities why one would want to be online. And when you convince them, use the same word for a brilliant or a horribly cheesy solution. It's also more formal and distant, which gives the reader's attention permission to drift. Once we reach that point, we take one of two routes. And of course there's another kind of thinking, when you're starting something new, that requires complete quiet.

But in Silicon Valley. If you can make as good a case as Microsoft could have for being on a path to dominating a big market. Both components of the antidote is chance meetings with people who can help you. Certainly some rejected Google. If you're not a master of negotiation and perhaps even if you only have to compete with other local barbers. The truth is disappointing but interesting: if you're in a place with restaurants and people walking around instead of in an office park is not where they started; it's just where they were forced to move when they needed more space. The narrow focus makes it a sort of plaque. Few investors understand the cost that raising money from them imposes on startups. I don't know enough to say. Obviously that's false: anything else people make can be well or badly. I can think with noise. Data is by definition easy to copy.

But while demand shaped like a well. You'll see a lot more startups. Which means you can't simply plow through them, because you don't know that number, they're successful for that week. When you think of successful people from history who weren't ruthless, you get mathematicians and writers and artists. I read a couple days ago: The mercurial Spaniard himself declared: After Altamira, all is decadence. But there are limits to how well this can be done, no matter how much experience you have. And the probability of a group of sufficiently smart and determined founders succeeding on that scale might be significantly over 1%. When people say a discussion has degenerated into a religious war, because so many programmers identify as X programmers or Y programmers. Best of all is when you can say that they didn't have the courage of their convictions, and that few others realize are worth doing. When you find the right sort of hunches.

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department-shoe-stud · 5 years

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MC & Jacob asks 1-7 :33

Gladly!!!! (You have no idea how ready I am to talk about OC’s just all the time)

1) Do you have any face claims for your MC and Jacob?

My MC (Her name’s Anna Louise, so I’ll be calling her Annie) and Jacob look eerily similar, yet still look like their opposite parent. Annie has her dad’s bronze complexion and bright amber eyes. She spends a lot of time outside during the summers taking care of her pets and camping because she’s one of those people, so she comes back to Hogwarts every year with freckles and bug bites. From ages 15-17, Annie hits a growth spurt and shoots up from around 5’ 2” to just over 6’. My FC for Annie is Gina Rodriguez (A goddess, she’s so pretty, I love her).

My Jacob (Sorry Canon Jacob, you’re just really… ugly isn’t a nice way of putting it, but man, is it an accurate way) looks more like their mom, with really curly black hair and ice-blue eyes, which stick out against his olive skin tone. They look really intense and make Jay and his mom look really scary and intimidating, but that fades away once you learn their mom embroiders in her free time and Jay still needs someone else to kill the spiders he finds in the house (The one who takes care of them is their dad, he puts them outside). I don’t have a FC for my Jacob, sorry!

2) Does your MC/Jacob’s family have any relation to canon characters/families? Are these relations impactful to MC and their story?

Honestly? Who knows if they are! Their mom was a closed adoption case so they don’t really know much about her family, only that they think she’s from Ireland.

Their dad, on the other hand, knows exactly who he’s related to and can name it up to four generations back, the first to move to America (Oh yeah, their dad is from Pennsylvania, that’s why her parents were visiting relatives in the Christmas event. They’re direct relatives). He has a plethora of siblings who went on to have plethoras of children, so who knows who’s married who and knows who?

3) What was Jacob’s friendship with Duncan and Olivia like? What was their dynamic before and during working with R?

Okay, so Jacob and Duncan actually met in their first year, after Jay kept asking potions questions with increasing idiocy. It was obvious that he was just messing with the teacher, but he said it with such a straight face that you just had to give him props for not breaking character. It was pretty funny. After class, Duncan immediately asked him to grab lunch together, ‘even if you are a half-brained Gryffindor’. Jay punched him in the arm and they ate in the courtyard. They became pretty good friends, and Jay did mention it to his family (he really did love his family, honest) but he called him by a bunch of different nicknames, which is why Annie didn’t know who ‘Duncan’ was.

Olivia met Duncan and Jay sorta on the way? It was less of a ‘bonding over shared stupidity’ type thing that Jay and Duncan had, and more of a ‘well, someone has to babysit you two, and I guess I’ll do it’. They all got pretty close, sparking a few rumors of ‘fighting over Olivia love triangle’ among their classmates, which couldn’t be farther from the truth in Jay’s case (If ya catch my drift *wink wink nudge nudge*). When they started working for R, Olivia and Duncan expected to get caught up in it, being Ravenclaw and Slytherin, but it surprised them both to find out that Jay actually got really into it. Like, scarily obsessed. (That’s basically canon though, right? I think?)

4) Is Jacob physically and/or mentally different after he is released from the vaults? How does he change?

Whoo boi, this is a fun one. Yes, Jacob obviously looks a lot worse when he first gets out. Scraggly, deathly pale (well, as pale as he can be), and in desperate need of a shower. When they get him well fed and washed up, looking better, he needs a new prosthetic left leg, and has a few scars from the vaults’ dangers (Seriously, how has MC and their friends not gotten seriously harmed after all of this? It’s crazy!) He also has really deep bags under his eyes. When this is pointed out to him by Annie’s friends, he gets quiet and pouty, and Annie tells them he’s always had them, yes, he knows he looks like he needs a nap.

Also, anxiety up the wazoo! I mean, destroying cursed vaults, getting locked away, best friend literally dying, I’d be scared too! That’s gotta be some serious PTSD! It’s okay though (Well, sorta okay) because Annie got some anxiety along the way (Her brother went missing for how many years?? She’s had to do how much to save him?? No duh she’s messed up!) and Ben obviously has some, so at least Jay doesn’t have to suffer through it without any coping or support.

5) What career does/did Jacob want to pursue? Does it change after he was freed from the vaults?

Jacob, in case it wasn’t clear, loved finding curses and breaking them. He wouldn’t have done all this if it was begrudgingly, right? Also, I feel like he really did do it because he wanted to keep people safe from the vaults. At first, anyways, but obviously working with R messed with him. I feel like he wanted to be a curse breaker at first, with his amount of dedication and willingness to help others, but he probably was scarred after the vaults and finally getting out.

I think he had a few years to just get away from everything: the reporters, the school, the wizarding world, everything. He goes and lives with his maternal grandparents’ in Castlebar, Ireland (They’re muggles, so they keep him pretty well sheltered from everything magic). After a few years of peace and quiet, I think he would probably settle down with a much less stressful job. He always really loved creatures, magical or otherwise, so he’d probably take up a job at an adoption place, or a vets office maybe! Jay has other interests in life besides curses.

6) What’s Jacob’s opinions of prefects, especially the ones 4 years older than MC?

Okay, so my Jacob is six years older than Annie, so Annie’s prefects would have been there when he was going there. Jay, pre-missing, was nice to everyone (canon for the house elves, at least), he got good grades, he was funny, and he was really charming overall. People looked up to him, and he kept his vault studies under the radar. He was a model citizen on the surface, so the prefects probably looked up to him, or at the very least knew about him (How big is Hogwarts? It can’t be that big, plus word travels fast there, right? Everyone always seems to know everything about MC).

Jay himself, however, didn’t really care for prefects. He just thought of them as glorified hall monitors, and he couldn’t risk them stopping him from finding the vaults. Wasn’t it enough that they yelled at him for harmless pranks?

That being said, Jay thinks that the fact that Annie, his first partner in crime, the ‘rambunctious’ O’ Reilly child, the one who was breaking just about every rule and ignoring every caution just to find him, that Annie, his Annie, is a prefect? Are you serious? Really?

It took until the coughing attacks came for him to finally stop laughing.

7) What memory or thought does MC/Jacob use when conjuring a Patronus (if they can even conjure a corporeal one at all)? What form does it take?

Jacob’s Patronus is a lion. He likes his Patronus because lions are sick as hell. He also kinda hates it because, and he knows he can never tell anyone at school this, his middle name is Leon and he has always said he hated his middle name, and he feels like this is probably some kinda cosmic justice, isn’t it?

His memory was getting the family Crup. Jay was twelve and he got to name it. He named it Furry Mercury and Furry slept in his room until he was too big to fit in the bed without pushing Jacob out.

Annie’s Patronus is corporeal but it’s pretty weak. It’s a tabby-cat if she can conjure it. The first time it was corporeal enough to actually touch, it licked her hand and she almost cried (Annie is pretty emotional and I think it’s bull that JamCity won’t let MC cry!).

The memory Annie thinks of is when her parents took her and Jay to Disney World when she was seven. They bought Mickey Mouse ears for all of them, ate a bunch of cotton candy (Papa O’Reilly’s stomach did not care for that), went on the Haunted Mansion ride no less than three times, and ate dinner at Gaston’s Tavern. None of this was the part she thinks of though. Her memory is being on her dad’s shoulders, tired from the long day and half-asleep, when the fireworks came on. She sat in awe watching them and didn’t talk for the rest of the night as they went back to their hotel. Her mom asked if she had fun and she just nodded and quietly said, ‘Today was a good day.’ (Okay yes, that’s my own happy memory, but what’s a good character if it doesn’t have a little self-projection?)

Oh man! I really went off, didn’t I? But yeah! That’s just a bit about my MC and her idiot brother! Thanks for this, I never get to talk about my OC’s (In case you couldn’t tell.) If you’re the one who started the meme, I do have a playlist on Spotify. Message me if you want it, okay?

Questions from here!

#wow i can TALK huh #hphm #about me

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earthling-liya-blog · 5 years

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little things we can do for the environment

a/n ok before anything GURL there are a lot of links tagged bc i didn’t rly expect this to be a long post and some will be further explained in a separate post ! maglilink naman aq pag nagawa na may edit button naman HAHAHAHA but ya this is a bit taglish but mostly english kase conyo tayo chz but yaaaaa

i would say disregard any grammatical errors or flaws but i like comments and criticisms. this isnt formal writing at all kase this was rushed kase naexcite ako,,,,, ayun ok i shld stop talking leTS GET DIS BREAD

nowadays, a lot of people have been inventing machines that help in saving the planet but the easiest and most simple thing that have a huge impact on our environment is following the 3R’s.

REDUCE

here is a list of things on what you should reduce

1. single-use plastic consumption

this is the most obvious material we should refrain from buying. i know it’s tempting but don’t buy that candy, or that water bottle. as they say:

if you don’t buy crap from companies they’ll stop making crap.

think about it, that candy you’ll buy comes with a plastic food packaging. that plastic’s purpose is to cover the candy from anything that can contaminate it, but once the candy is opened he plastic no longer has purpose and will be thrown away on the trash can. that piece of plastic was used once but will LAST FOR DECADES, and in those decades the plastic will go through a lot of.. things. y’know like…

other than plastic interrupting the food chain, we can literally kill all animals with the plastic bags choking them or filling up their stomachs with plastic. we’ve all seen the turtle with a straw stuck inside its nose.

truly heartbreaking. this video started a petition to ban straws, but please STRAWS ARE NOT THE ONLY PLASTIC PRODUCT HARMING MARINE LIFE.

here are videos that prove so:

Plastic Ocean | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ju_2NuK5O-E

Plastic is killing marine wildlife | #OceanRescue | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhksqkC6WV0

See How It Feels to Be an Ocean Animal Stuck in a Plastic Bag | National Geographic | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaDx-WJAsaE

now you can say “I don’t litter so how am I harming these animals? I throw my trash properly.” but no, buying from companies that produce plastic makes YOU part of the problem.

the plastic you throw away “properly” adds into the landfill. as i’ve mentioned before, plastic lasts for decades. if we don’t reduce our plastic consumption, we will soon have a mountain of plastics. less plastic u buy, less plastic is produced.

next time you buy from the mall, don’t tempt yourself from buying beverages and/or foods that come with plastic food packaging. if possible, bring your own food containers and a reusable tote bag or don’t buy at all. quit saying “it’s just one time” a lot of people say that everyday and see what problem we’re facing now? overproduction and overconsumption of plastic asshole. say no to single-use plastic !

2. printing

this one’s new to me and im sure most of you are as shocked as i am. i always thought it was only because we were wasting so much paper by printing documents and other things that don’t really mean anything (tama na pagprint ng pix ng kras niyo mga burnok), but we keep buying cartridges.

here’s a tip: use recycled paper and reuse toner cartridges. I got that here https://www.colorado.edu/ecenter/zero-waste/reduce/paper-and-printer-waste. it says here that it costs wayyy less money cause duh reusing and reducing??? lam mo na yan mag-isip ka chz

3. electronics/appliances anything that consumes electricity

this one. this is something that’s hard for many of us to reduce and i admit im one of those who have a hard time letting go of their phone and uses the light the whole night.

PHONE: for iphone users like me (weird flex but ok), apple produces a new model every now and then and it makes a lot of apple users buy the newest model. don’t be like them no matter how much money u have that u want to flex (money cant help you survive when earth is dying sis) also, iphones don’t really last a looong time for many users since it’s kinda breakable and well it slows down after a while lmao

my tip is buy what you think will last for a long time (coming from me eh) for you and if you want, try buying secondhand phones. for phones you broke that you piled up in a box (yep i do that), you can replace some parts of it that broke it or give it to recycling centers. According to the University of Colorado Boulder, phones have metals that can still be “reused and salvaged such as aluminum, gold, silver, copper and iron.” NEVER THROW AWAY PHONES OR ANYTHING ALIKE ! “The circuit boards contain arsenic, lead, mercury, and other toxins. The batteries contain heavy metals that are lethal to the land. Many of the chemicals in cell phones have the potential to be released into the air when burned and can create air pollution.” (Second Wave Recycling, 2013) This means that the phone you’ll throw away will intoxicate the landfill. just think about insects flying around and possibly animals eating garbage

4. water

do i even have to explain myself? hm maybe.

shower with a partner shower together

jk but seriously, save water. take shorter showers and please refrain from using the heater. here’s an article to further elaborate https://slate.com/technology/2009/10/exactly-how-bad-should-i-feel-about-taking-hot-showers.html

5. fast fashion

oh you have no idea how much shopping can affect the environment. i didn’t know before either. but not only is the environment affected but also who work for companies that sell fast fashion.

a. people have been treating clothes as disposables. clothes that don’t fit the trend nowadays either get thrown away or just stay in the corner of a cabinet.

b. theyre cheap. and by cheap, i mean CHEAP. most of fast fashion clothing don’t last long that they end up in the landfill. even if you donate/sell it, chances are they’ll be rejected due to poor quality.

c. “. . most garments (especially fast fashion ones) are made with inexpensive, petroleum-based fibers that don’t easily decompose (such as polyester, nylon, and acrylic), they’re going to be taking up landfill space for decades to come.” (Wood, K.) As Cline points out;

“people generally recycle plastic bottles or avoid buying them in the first place, but people are pretty okay with buying lots of plastic clothing”

next time you think of buying from forever 21 or zara, think about it. they are simply made NOT to last. think about the exploited workers, the products you could’ve gotten for a cheaper price if they were made locally, and the effect on the environment. do you really want to support companies that only gives a fuck about their sales?

read more in these articles: 8 Reasons to Rethink Fast Fashion| https://www.lifehack.org/articles/money/8-reasons-rethink-fast-fashion.html

Fast Fashion Is the Second Dirtiest Industry in the World, Next to Big Oil | https://www.ecowatch.com/fast-fashion-is-the-second-dirtiest-industry-in-the-world-next-to-big--1882083445.html

6. meat and dairy

as a meat-lover myself, this was the hardest thing to do. im basically a carnivore since i hate veggies but i do eat a lotta ass fruits so no need to judge sis. but yeah this is so important yet so hard.

if you can, only buy products that are vegan. it doesn’t necessarily have to be food if it’s too difficult for you to let go. you can also have a #meatlessmonday or not eat meat 1-2 days a week.

this post is long enough so here’s an article to help u: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/may/31/avoiding-meat-and-dairy-is-single-biggest-way-to-reduce-your-impact-on-earth

7. waste

all in all, reduce waste. avoid throwing away literally anything. aim for a zero waste lifestyle and i can give tips in my next post on how you can reduce waste.

REUSE

this is soooo hard to do. trust me, i would know BUT it is doable by an average person so shut the f*ck up and use that ugly reusable water bottle your aunt gave you. i don’t care how rich you are and how you can afford a lot more, but what does it matter if they wont be used much and be thrown away when it gets old?

avoid throwing things away and think about how it can still be useful to you or someone else. not everything useless to you is useless to everyone. let someone else find purpose for it or repurpose it yourself.

donate, not discard. choose reusable, not disposable.

RECYLE

1. plastic

this is the most important thing we have to do now especially with plastic. now note that not all plastic can be recycled. it’s important to know what type of plastic can be recycled and what shouldn’t

so as it states, 1&2 are recyclable which is what you would see on a water bottle. it means you should throw your plastic bottles in the recycling bin. here are things you should avoid and things you should recycle

BUT OK BEFORE YOU DO THROW THAT BOTTLE IN THE RECYCLING BIN JUST A QUICK NOTE

PLEASE REMOVE THE PLASTIC LABEL AND DO A QUICK RINSE ON THE BOTTLE! IT LITERALLY TAKES A FEW SECONDS OF YOUR TIME.

bottles that still have the label on are considered trash and are thrown away instead of being recycled. if u ask “why don’t they just take off the label? it takes a few seconds as u said” well dipshit they have more bottles to worry about so if i were you i wouldn’t be lazy piece of shit and take off the label.

bottles that contained sugar drinks should have a quick rinse & make sure there is no left over ! not rinsed = trash. do i have to go scientific and geeky as to why they should be rinsed? i think not lmao

for the plastic i find that can no longer be recycled (ex. shopping bags, food packaging, small pieces of plastic i see lying on the ground), i put them in an ecobrick which i will explain in my next post.

2. paper

paper can also be recycled. collect all those newspapers, cardboard, cereal boxes, failed quiz papers, rejected thesis papers and notes from your ex-boyfriend. all of them. don’t throw them away, or worse burn them. papers can still be given another chance at life by being remade. all of the papers should not be mixed with any plastic or wax coating.

TRIVIA: Recycling one ton of old paper saves 17 trees; 2 barrels of oil (enough to run an average car for 1,260 miles); 4,100 kilowatts of energy (enough power for the average home for 6 months); 3.2 cubic yards of landfill space; 7,000 gallons of wate; and 60 pounds of air pollution.

3. glass materials

products that are packed in glass glass jars and bottles like RC or your local nata de coco jar are recyclable as well although i’d prefer to reuse them.

TRIVIA: Recycling one glass bottle saves enough electricity to light a 60-watt bulb for four hours.

4. books

no. i don’t mean sell it to the junkshop but if u want to, go for it. although there are a lot of people who’d rather secondhand books than new ones so sell/donate your old books to those in need !

5. clothes

i’ve mentioned this before already but i’ll say it again. buy secondhand clothes. theyre not gross and you wont look like those typical katip pipol that all wear the same shoes and/or polo shirts charet. you’ll even help save the planet.

*note: it is still better to reduce than recycle so still avoid buying plastic and lessen use of paper. but, you do gain money from selling paper and plastic so start collecting your friends’ and family’s junk.

by doing the 3R’s, you can save energy and natural resources and help prevent environmental issues coming from the landfill and pollution. not only are you helping save the environment but you’re also saving money by reducing your purchase, reusing what you already have and promoting recycling.

a/n ulet this is my first post and i’ll be sure to post more tips and help raise awareness. my writing may have flaws and i accept any criticisms to improve ! help me be better and to save the environment:)

check out another article related to this one:

http://www.irondequoit.org/community/green-initatives/16-community/125-why-should-i-reduce-reuse-or-recycle

0 notes

lundiivith · 4 years

Text

unfortunately i will talk now about pelinal whitestrake

hello its juliens hour of posting things to tumblr that i talked about on discord/twitter first and then queued up to post on here. heres some Thoughts on pelinal whitestrake

specifically on his madnesses

if this shows up in the tag im gonna cry i tried very hard for it to not show up in the tag.

i’m gonna put a read more here before i embarrass myself. this is kinda Babys First Lore but im ngl for the first like... nearly 2yrs of being a tes fan (ive been here since 2018 babyyy) i barely touched uesp

but okay

‘cause, alright, the night i wrote this i was fuckin... reading the song of pelinal whole properly, which my eyes could actually parse thanks to the mercury reader extension which rips jsyk, and makes reading uesp’s tiny print and ugly fucking theme way easier, god bless

anyways i was reading volume three, and

so pelinal was a relatively normal sort of... immortal butchering near explicitly nonhuman ada, until he found love in Huna, whom he freed from the ayleids and then made him a hoplite. right.

and then he LOST huna. and THATS when he started going on Madnesses

and then it establishes his madnesses destroy the landscape, just fucking like, erase bits of the continent (”He wrought destruction from Narlemae all the way to Celediil, and erased those ands from the maps[...]”)

(SORRY IF HOW I QUOTE STUFF FEELS CONDESCENDING i probably have add and this would help me process text if i was readin it. i have 1 braincell and make content for others with 1 braincell)

and then in volume six,

and like, the Madness was initially born out of pelinals grief from huna's death and it permanently changed him, right, like he was violent before but now he was Big Mad

and pelinal is an ada, descended of the et’ada, and ive already seen redditors speculate on whether he knew abt the godhead or not but whatever who cares about what redditors think

and fuck me, i’m not an expert by any means on like, the whole fuckin... chim, godhead or whatever business, is it bullshit, is it not bullshit, whatever, i dont really care about mickey kinkster beyond what he can give to me, a transgendy and nonbinarius, what he can put in my mouth like a baby cuckoo,

but mother fucker

“Like when the dream no longer needs its dreamer” feels a LOT like describing some kind of, like, end of the world scenario

also note, “Pelinal could only answer”. not “Pelinal answered”, but “Pelinal could only answer”.

WHAT THIS SOUNDS TO ME A LOT LIKE, BASICALLY, IS THAT PELINAL IS LIKE... STRAIGHT UP COMPARING LOSING THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE TO SOME FUCKING ABSOLUTELY APOCALYPTICAL SCENARIO

AND THERE’S MORE

‘cause, like, in volume 5, they talk abt his relationship with Morihaus

and they like, establish Pelinal calls Morihaus a nephew and their relationship is very sort of, older family member and younger family member, uncle and nephew, yeah. and they’re both ada

and then i’m posting this screenshot mostly as like, evidence Pelinal said the stuff im gonna talk abt in a sec below AFTER he started going on Madnesses, ie AFTER huna’s death

and pelinal tells morihaus this

and right let me fucking unpack

(if you’re not caught up, perrif is another name for alessia, i wasnt caught up either until very recently, ik Deep lore is unaccessible as shit, dont worry)

this is already sad enough, considering this is AFTER pelinal loses huna, but look at his following words

(sorry for my sihtty highlighting)

"We are ada, [...] and change things through love. We must take care lest we beget more monsters on this earth. If you do not desist [...] you will transform all Cyrod[...]"

which given context, turns into

"We are immortal and inhuman, and as our love changes us, we change reality. We need to be careful unless we want to cause horrible things. If you don't desist on loving Alessia, you will transform all Cyrod.”

AND THE THING IS, BASED ON WHATS ESTABLISHED IN THE PREVIOUS VOLUME, HES TALKING FROM EXPERIENCE, CAUSE HE DELETED TWO ENTIRE PLACES FROM THE MAP, MAYBE MORE, BECAUSE OF HIS GRIEF AND LOVE FOR HUNA

so hes LITERALLY TELLING MORIHAUS, “Don’t fall in love with mortals. They will take you to museums, and parks, and monuments, and kiss you in every beautiful place, so that you can never go back to them without tasting them like blood in your mouth. They will destroy you in the most beautiful way possible. And when they leave you will finally understand, why storms are named after people.“

ough idk i just have emotions about pelinal whitestrake sometimes. despite the murder and all

here’s a pelinal opera meme

1 note · View note

mojput-mypath · 6 years

Text

Good / Bad / No Middle

HRVATSKA VERZIJA ISPOD!

NAUGHTY, I AM, YES.

Being naughty is finally giving me a headache. I was so happy to arrive to a new level of directness, to the point it started coming back like a boomerang. You cannot do too much of nothing. I cannot remember exactly the reason for it, but for a few days there I lived in pure hatred. Pure evil and hatred were my constant companions. Watching people smile, saying nice things, was twisted in my eyes into a distorted world, where everything seemed so weird and ugly, like when you’re on acid (acid or trip=a hallucinogenic called LSD). Like a bad trip, everything became a botheration. It must have been Mercury Retrograde. In my personal chart, that planet is burned, retrograde and I was also in a small period of Mercury – three out of three indications that you will not be having a good time.

GOODY GOOD, SHE AND HE. WERE.

I want to tell you about empathy. About how I tend to feel other people’s pain and then I am pain. Every time that happens I usually know if the emotions are mine or from someone else. Depending on the intensity of other’s feelings, for sure. But, this is not about me. This is…to say that I have compassion, or rather I feel the pain of those close to me. People I feel closer to, the pain becomes stronger. This is difficult to utter, but I will have to. These are my feelings now: A great white soul has decided to go to another place. Maybe she got bored with us. Dasha. Dasha is a doggy. Chau and Samojed breed, if this is important to anyone. By the name of Dasha. She was an undivided part of my family for quite a few years. Long enough that I cannot remember the exact time when she showed up. She was here. She is here no longer.

Except Dasha, a few more people have gone. One such person is Dharma. Sova. He left me a bhajan (mantra song) that he played and loved to play, so I remember him. Often. How come that we spend such a sweet and short time together 6 years earlier to meet again suddenly and unexpectedly not so long ago? I don’t know. Do not ask.

Entire lives come and go, yet, the smallest moments are heavy as stone. When life gives you a good squeeze. When a brick flies in your direction. When you do not know where you are nor where you would even like to be, but you do know that where you are at is not where you have to be. Is this feeling always present? That this is not IT. Is this an eternal state, that nothing is ever as it should be?

Dharma & Daša

GOT ENLIGHTENED, AHA.

Yoga Vasistha (a part of a Veda, coming from India, something someone once wrote) starts off with Rama’s incessant complaining how everything sucks. First we’re babies, so we are not really aware of anything, then we go into teenage, which is especially disgusting, living the life of a hormonal monster. Then we become young adults, seemingly start getting something, but actually not. Then supposedly the best age comes. I am looking at people around me and it does not seem they’re so excited and happy, more like in a state of crisis. Then old age. You feel young, but you cannot get why things are not like they once were and you start panicking that you’ll die and how everything passes. That is all only one life. How many were there? How many more to come? Until when will this continue? Rama is complaining and complaining, and so am I. Later the sage Vasistha nicely explains him how nothing is real. The rest of the book is how everything is unreal and eternity is the only thing that exists. In short.

You thought I would not mention the Guru, did you? Did you secretly hope I will not be mentioning Him this time? This time he is not the author, but retells a story: two shepherds, one kind, the other less kind. The less kind one was sitting and wondering when he would get enlightened, so God sent him word that it would be in a couple of lives. The guy went berserk, lamenting on how all his meditation and efforts in this life were in vain… While the kind one was not even much interested, but God’s message had reached him, nonetheless. It stated that he would be enlightened after living as many more lives as there were leaves in one tree. He considered this to be really cool and started celebrating and dancing, went crazy. It is said he got enlightened there and then. Wise, huh? You can basically stick it with all this wise stuff, when even Rama felt all was in vain and boring and good for nothing, because one has not yet got enlightened. That shepherd had a great time, he was so relaxed. Did he arrive to this state of being so totally relaxed about life, or did this happen just like that? When that basic mathematics would actually be accurate (if…then…), that would have made me quite happy.

Like in the game “Black and White”, if you are naughty, the reward is less. But if you are goody good, the rewards are more useful, the process itself becomes more complex, asking for a greater investment. You can use the intellect and effort to solve the riddles and puzzles, or you can break everything down and go to the next task immediately. Just, the reward is less if you are naughty.

GOOD ALWAYS WINS?

So, two things. What does it really mean to be naughty? (This takes me back to the 4 years of a high-school subject called Ethics). And the 2nd thing is Karma, the always returning one. Karma. Everything you do, boomerangs back. What you reap, you shall sow. Yes, I keep getting my boomerang back, but others are getting their boomerang back through me. being naughty cannot be avoided.

1. Naughtiness is a relative term. Let us limit it to something I would call “allowed naughtiness”, expressed verbally or mentally (emotionally) and physically. Let us say that it is allowed to show displeasure and criticism verbally. Whichever tone of voice we use all of the above, depends of the person accepting the complaint, how they will take it in. Another factor is included here. Words are one, and another is the energy behind the words. (I keep having this nagging feeling that I am just going in circles with my egg/chicken, chiken/egg first, packed together with “All is relative”. That is how the day is going, that is how this period is going. Anything is possible!) Let’s move on to something a little more concrete: He says to Him: Come, come on time today, so we can finish on time as well. He turns to us and says: How can he be so impolite? What an attitude! He didn’t even say good morning, nothing! Such rudeness! Two people having a simple conversation turns into a complete misunderstanding of souls. Everyone else present felt the same sentence and approach were diametrically different: a kindly put, simple request. Have I already mentioned how everyone creates their own reality? What I wish to convey here is that person number 1 thought nothing malicious, and even the energy behind the request was benevolent. Person number 2 (Him) experienced the lack of an introduction and kinder words as an insult, a request as an order, and therefor had not even noticed the true softness in the energy behind the appearance.

2. Continuing on number 1. We perceive people and what they tell us differently in each next moment. In reality, we behave like mental hospital patients. Today you say one thing, and I perceive it as one thing. Tomorrow you say the same, and I perceive it in a completely different way. And on top of that, we demand of others to change THEIR behaviour! At the same time completely inconsistent in all we do and demand. We keep wasting our lives in debating spoken words, or what we assume the other person had thought, but not said at all. If I have the impulse to react to you in a certain way at a given time, I don’t know in what way it will be perceived. If I have good intentions, maybe you will not recognise it. Even if I have bad intentions, maybe you come over and give me a big compassionate hug? If I have done something bad in my past, and that has to boomerang back one way or the other – someone’s gotta be the executioner! Are you an evil person, just because destiny has chosen you to be the bloody executioner?

There is no third thing. There are a few more tiny things running in circles inside my little head. One of them is that there is no good or bad, only that what is. Did I just knock everyone out with this amazing epiphany? I truly have touched the universal truth of the entire existence, the universe and living beings in it. To repeat it: There is only what is. Now you know. I know this is the truth, as it comes from the very depth of my existence, the most intuitive corner of Me, and now I am sharing this with You. You must feel special now, privileged, enlightened? Me to!

Now, seriously. There is such a thing as bad behaviour, whether on purpose, or not, but it depends on the receiver (the victim of the naughtiness), how they will receive it. It depends on the scale of naughtiness the individual carries along. Therefore, no one is bad to me, nor am I bad to anyone! That is my ethically-logical conclusion of the day!

THE MUNDANE

Except all of the above, strictly speaking in an earthly more, I had a short sick-leave, too much of screen-staring. I still don’t really know how to balance between what I like to do, but tires me, and what I do to feel charged and rested. I spent my sick-leave staring at the ceiling, sleeping and listening to all sorts of stuff, as I was unable to even peek at screens

After having slept like a baby, day and night, I am feeling much better. The headache that carried the pain as powerful as a sonic boom must be, is gone. Why would I have such a headache? Because my digestive system is weak. And why is it weak? Because I am constricting myself. Unbelievable how much this entire stomach and abdominal area is stiff, trapped and contracted. How my digestion has deteriorated in the last half-year. Am I alright? What is the emotional reason behind all this stiffness? Will I manage to save myself? Will someone be able to cure me?

Read about it in the next episode about Passion of Gordana. Because this is my life. A Great Passion. And Great Dispassion. One, then the other, in constant alteration.

Enjoy the snow!

_________________________________________________

ZLOĆKA, TO SAM, DA.

Zloćko me došao glave. Toliko sam se veselila tom novo-postignutom nivou direktnosti, koji me došao glave. Ne može ništa u prevelikim količinama. Ne znam što je točno bilo povod, ali nedavno me nekoliko cijelih dana prao hejt. Čisto zlo i mržnja me obuzeli. Gledam ljude kako se smiju, kako govore lijepe stvari, a čujem i vidim distorzirani svijet, u kojem je sve izobličeno i kao na tripu (trip=halucinogena droga zvana LSD). Kao na lošem tripu, kad ti sve smeta i loše je. Mora da je to bio taj Retrogradni Merkur. Kod mene osobno kao planeta u horoskopu spaljen, i retrogradan, te također i mali period merkura – sve tri indikacije da će te merkur opaliti po nosu krasnom, ako te to zanima.

DOBRICA, ONA i ON SU. BILI.

Želim pisati o empatiji. O tome kako osjećam tuđu bol, i onda bolim. Svaki puta kad se to dogodi, obično znam jesu li to izvorno moji osjećaji, ili tuđi. Ovisi o intenzitetu tuđih osjećaja, svakako. No, ovo nije o meni. Ovo je…za reći da suosjećam ili pače, osjećam tuđu bol, kada su mi bića bliska. Bliska bol i bliski ljudi. Teško je samo to reći. Ali morat ću. Ovo su sada moji osjećaji: bijelo klupko mira i lagodne sreće nije više s nama. Velika bijela dušica je odlučila otići negdje drugdje. Možda smo joj dosadili. Daši. Daša je pas. Pasmine Chau i Samojed, ako je to ikome važno. Imena Daša. Bila u milosti i nemilosti moje obitelji dugi niz godina. Dovoljno dugo da se ni ne sjećam kada se pojavila. Bila je tu. Sad više nije.

Osim Daše, još par ljudi nema više. Bar ne u obliku u kojem sam ih ja poznavala. Jedan takav čovjek je Dharma. Sova. Ostavio mi je jedan bhajan (pjesma s mantrama) koji je svirao i volio pjevati, pa ga se sjetim. Često. Kako to da smo se kratko i slatko družili 6 godina ranije i onda iznenada ponovno i dosta kratko, no intenzivno, samo par mjeseci prije nego je odlučio otići iz meni poznatog svijeta? Ne znam. Ne pitaj me.

I tako životi dolaze i odlaze, a nama mali trenuci teški k'o teret jedne oveće klade. Kad ti život stisne glavu. Cigla kad te zvizne. Kad ne znaš gdje si i gdje bi želio biti, ali znaš da tu gdje jesi – nije to. Jel' uvijek taj osjećaj da nije to to? Jel' to vječna stavka, da ništa nije ono što bi trebalo biti?

PROSVIJETLIH SE, AHA.

Yoga Vasistha (dio jedne Vede, potekle iz Indije, ono što je tamo netko pis'o) počinje s tim da se mali Rama tužaka kako ništa ne valja. I kako je cijeli svijet teško nje-sra. Prvo smo bebe, pa ništa ne kužimo, onda smo tinejdžeri, a to je božemesačuvaj, hormonalna čudovišta. Onda smo kao mladi odrasli ljudi, tek tada ništa ne kužimo, onda k'o fol najbolje godine. Gledam ljude oko sebe, i ne djeluje mi baš da su najbolje, više bih rekla da djeluju krizno. A onda starost. Osjećaš se mlado, a ne kužiš zašto stvari nisu kao što su nekad bilo i krene te hvatat panika od smrti i prolaznosti svega. To je samo jedan život. Koliko ih je bilo? Koliko će ih još biti? Dokad tako? Žali se Rama, žalim se i ja. Poslije njemu svetac Vasistha sve lijepo objasni, kako ništa ne postoji. Ostatak knjige je većinom o tome kako je sve nestvarno, i samo je vječnost ono što jest. Ukratko.

E da ti ne bi propustila spomenuti Gurua! Jesi se malo ponadala/ponadao da neće biti njega ovaj put? Ali ovaj put nije on rekao, već prepričao pričicu: dva pastira, jedan zgodan, drugi nezgodan. Ovaj nezgodni se pitao kad će se više prosvijetlit i javi njemu Bog: ono, nakon još par života. Ovaj poludi, ajme meni i kuku lele, zar sav moj trud i meditacija u ovom životu uzalud? Dok zgodnog nije ni zanimalo, ali nekako je došla do njega poruka: Bog mu je poručio da će se prosvijetlit nakon što proživi još života koliko je lišća na jednom stablu. Njemu to bilo super, pa počeo slavit, plesat, razludio. Kažu da se tog trena prosvijetlio. Eto, mudro, a? A džaba ti to sve mudro, kad ti je ko Rami sve uzalud i bezze i dosadno, jer se nisi još prosvijetlio. Super je tom pastiru, kad je bio opušten. Jel' on došao do tog stanja potpune opuštenosti sam ili mu se samo desilo? Kad bi ta osnovna matematika (ako….onda….) šljakala, to bi me razveselilo.

Kao u igrici 'Black and White', ako si zločest, nagrade su manje, ako si dobar, nagrade su zanimljivije, korisnije, i sam proces je kompleksniji, iziskuje veće ulaganje. Možeš razriješiti zagonetku intelektom i trudom, ili možeš sve razrušiti i doći na sljedeći nivo odmah. Samo. Nagrada je manja kad si zločest.

DOBRO UVIJEK POBJEĐUJE

Dakle, dvije stvari: Što to uopće znači biti zločest? Što je to točno zločesto ponašanje? (ovo me podsjeća na sve četiri godine predmeta Etike iz srednje škole). I druga stvar je – milo za drago? Karmetina. Sve se vraća – sve se plaća. Jest da se meni vraća i plaća, a također jest da se i kroz mene vraća drugima što se njima treba vratiti. Zločestoća je neizbježna.

1. Zločestoća je relativan pojam. Ajmo se ograničiti na nešto što ću proizvoljno označiti kao „dozvoljena zločestoća“. Izražena verbalno tj. mentalno (emocionalno) i fizički. Recimo da je verbalno dozvoljeno iskazati negodovanje, nezadovoljstvo, kritiku i tako dalje. Isključimo ružno neosnovano vrijeđanje za sada. Kojim god tonom izrazimo sve ovo gore navedeno, ovisno o tome tko kada prima verbalnu primjedbu, kako će je primiti. Još je jedan faktor. Riječi su jedno, a energija iza riječi je nešto sasvim drugo. (Cijelo vrijeme imam podmukli osjećaj da samo pričam meljem bezveze, izmjenjujući priču jaje/kokoš, kokoš/jaje upakirano sa „sve je to relativno“. Takav mi je dan, takav mi je period. Sve je moguće!)

Ajmo na malo konkretnije, da bude lakše: Kaže on Njemu: Ajde dođi danas na vrijeme, da završimo na vrijeme. Kaže On nama na to: Kakav mu je to nastup? Kako je samo nepristojan! Ni dobar dan, ni molim te. Bezobrazluk! Dakle, dvoje ljudi razgovara, to je sasvim jasno. Jedan kaže rečenicu. Drugi doživi rečenicu na gore navedeni način (Bezobrazluk!). Svi drugi dožive rečenicu na dijametralno suprotni način, kao najobičniju, uljudno iskazanu uputu. Jesam li već spomenula da svatko kreira svoju stvarnost. Ono što želim napokon reći jest to da osoba 1 nije mislila apsolutno ništa loše, i čak je energija iza riječi bila sasvim benevolentna. Osoba 2 (On) je doživjela nedostatak uljudnih riječi kao uvredu, zamolbu kao naredbu, i nije zbog toga osjetila stvarnu mekoću iza riječi.

2. Nadovezano na 1. Doživimo ljude i ono što nam kažu u svakom trenutku drugačije. Zapravo se svi ponašamo kao pacijenti bolnica za mentalne smetnje. Danas mi kažeš jedno, ja doživim na jedan način. Sutra mi opet kažeš jedno, a ja doživim na dvadeseti način. I onda još tražimo ljude da isprave SVOJE ponašanje! Dok smo sami potpuno nedosljedni u svemu što radimo i tražimo. Provodimo živote svađajući se oko izgovorenih riječi, onoga što pretpostavljamo da je druga osoba mislila, a nije uopće rekla i slično tome. Ako sam ja ponukana da reagiram na tebe na određeni način u određenom trenutku, nemam blage veze kako će tebe to dotaknuti. Ako imam dobre namjere, možda me zauzvrat upravo napadneš. Ako imam ružne namjere, možda me požališ i zagrliš? Ako sam ja u svojoj prošlosti učinila nešto loše i to mi se ima vratiti, netko mora biti krvnik! Jesi li ti zločesta osoba samo zato jer te sudbina odabrala da odradiš ulogu krvnika?

Nema trećeg. Ima još par stvari koje mi se vrte po glavi ovih dana. Jedno od tih je da nema dobrog i lošeg, ima samo ono što jest. Jesam ga sad odvalila, ha? Baš sam pogodila univerzalnu istinu cijelog postojanja, svemira i svih bića u njemu. Da se ponovim: Ima samo ono što jest. Sad ti je sve jasno. Ma znam da je, kad to dolazi iz najintuitivnijeg kutka mog postojanja. I sada to dijelim s Tobom. Mora da se osjećaš privilegirano, posebno…prosvijetljeno? I ja!

Sad za fakat. Postoji loše ponašanje, bilo namjerno ili nenamjerno, ali ovisno o osobi koja je žrtva zločestoće, kako će primiti to ponašanje. Po mjerilima osobe koja je primatelj će se mjeriti visina razine zločestoće. Zato nitko nije prema meni zločest, niti sam ja prema ikome zločesta! E, to ti je sad najbolji etičko-logički zaključak ikad.

ZEMALJSKA DOGAĐANJA

Osim toga, ovako zemaljski: bila sam na kratkom bolovanju, jer sam se prenaglila s buljenjem u ekran. Još ne znam baš kontrolirati koliko radim onoga što me veseli, ali i umara, a koliko, proporcionalno tome, radim stvari koje me odmaraju i pune. Bolovanje sam provela buljeći u strop, spavajući i slušajući svašta, jer nisam mogla skoro uopće buljiti u ekran.

Naspavala sam se kao bebica, i sad sam puno bolje. Glava me više ne boli bolju koju bih mogla usporediti sa silinom probijanja zvučnog zida. E, a zašto me boli glava? Jer mi ne radi probava. A zašto mi ne radi probava? Jer sam se stisnula u se. Nevjerojatno koliko mi je cijeli taj predio trbušne šupljine ukočen, zaustavljen, stisnut. Koliko mi je probava pogoršala u zadnjih pola godine. Jesam li dobro? Koji je emocionalni razlog moje stisnutosti? Hoću li se uspjeti spasiti? Hoće li me netko izliječiti?

Pročitajte u slijedećoj epizodi Muke po Gordani. Jer to je moj život. Jedna Velika Muka. I Jedno Veliko Olakšanje. Jedno, pa drugo u neprekidnoj mijeni.

Uživaj u snijegu!

#snow #good and bad #personal blog #spirituality #life is fleeting #bad antogast #gordana tihomirovic #yoga vasistha #rama

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chriscope · 6 years

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I am standing at my bedroom window, looking down at the 2017 Triumph Tiger 800 XRT parked in my back garden, light rain plinking off its aluminum panniers and top box. A wave of melancholy comes at the thought of the mysterious red dirt embedded in the bike’s nooks and crannies now washing away.

YOU CAN MAKE MORE ADVENTURES LIKE THIS HAPPEN Become a Patron of The Motorcycle Obsession

The dirt is unlike any you’ll find in the United Kingdom. It’s clearly from somewhere far away, somewhere warm, somewhere far more interesting than Cardiff. It was one of the first things I spotted when Triumph delivered the bike to my house earlier this morning. Digging into the battered cases I also found a soggy, lone sock in the top box. This bike has been places; it has done exciting things.

Plotting my route from the warmth of the 1902 Cafe.

It is at my house because I’m supposed to be riding it to EICMA. Every November, I borrow a bike and ride to the Milan-based motorcycle show to see the newest bikes being revealed, as well as put my business card in people’s hands. It would be cheaper, faster, and easier to fly but, you know: motorcycles, man.

It’s become clear, however, that I won’t be going this year. Red tape. I’ve lived in Her Majesty’s United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for nigh 12 years but am still classed as a foreigner. Every two and a half years, I have to renew my visa – a process that involves sending every official document I have, including passport and driving license, to a small town in northeast England. Said stuff was sent months ago, but it has not yet been sent back.

Such is the joy of being an immigrant, man: they can do whatever they want to you. Without my passport I can’t leave the country. But damn it, this bike still deserves an adventure.

2017 Triumph Tiger 800 XRT

A week later, I’m making my way north to Scotland. My frequent riding buddy and occasional cameraman, Cam, and I have decided to ride to the Isle of Skye. An island famed for its mercurial weather, where else would you go with winter coming on?

RELATED: The European Adventures of Shuffles, Jon, and Me

Cam lives in Dunblane (famously home to tennis champs Andy and Jamie Murray), which is roughly equidistant from Glasgow and Edinburgh. Some 430 miles from TMO headquarters, it’s easily within a day’s ride for a comfy, all-bells-and-whistles machine like the Triumph Tiger 800 XRT (cruise control, heated grips, and heated seat are standard), but I’m in the mood to keep things slow. Using a map from Bikers’ Britain, by Simon Weir, I’m doing my best to avoid motorways and taking two days to get to Dunblane.

It is markedly cold but unseasonably dry. I’ve purchased a Keis V501 premium heated vest and am happily nestled in its warmth – the bike’s heated grips and heated seat both cranked to high.

This is more or less the route I followed on the first day, hopping on at Monmouth, detouring to Triumph’s factory cafe, and spending the night in Burnley – a little west of Hebden Bridge.

This is the second-generation Tiger 800 XRT, rendered obsolete by the third-generation Tiger lineup announced at EICMA (Hence the reason I’ve felt no pressure to write up the experience until several months after the fact). A few months from now, I will get a chance to ride the new Tiger 800, as well as the new Tiger 1200, and discover that third generation models aren’t really all that different from second generation. In the moment, though, I feel I’m riding on the last of a breed and wondering why Triumph would want to change a bike as good as this.

I’m also wondering what’s changed about me. Last time I rode a second-generation Tiger 800 – a little more than two years ago – my response was lukewarm. I described the bike as “disappointing” and couldn’t find much about it that I liked over the Suzuki V-Strom 1000 I owned at the time. Maybe my tastes have changed? Certainly I’m a more confident rider now. And I’m more willing to seek out a bike’s upper rev range. With the Suzuki, there’s little reason to explore above 6,000 rpm – it’s mostly just noise from that point to the 10,000 rpm redline – on the Triumph 800, however, that’s really where the fun starts. Maybe I was riding the Tiger wrong last time.

Another reason I originally disliked the Tiger 800 is that it’s just so ugly.

Whatever the case, things now feel right. The bike’s 800cc triple puts out a respectable 94 horsepower, and delivery of that power is so sublime that I’m feeling foolish for having bought the more powerful but also more expensive and much heavier Tiger Explorer XRX. Everything I need is right here.

KEEP READING: Riding the Blue Ridge Parkway on a BMW K 1600 B

A late start means I don’t make it to the Peak District until early winter sunset has turned the sky a dirty orange. Roads are relatively quiet this time of year but soon I’m battling against commuters making their way home for the day. I give in and take main roads to be able to get to my hotel in time for a late dinner.

Sunset in the Peak District

The next morning, I’m on the road at sunrise. Which is to say, I intend to be on the road at sunrise. I don’t actually get moving until a full hour or so later. This is frustrating; the days are short at this time of year, especially as you push north. In early November, the sun sets around 4 pm in Scotland, with darkness beginning to creep in as early as 2 pm. You don’t want to be wasting daylight.

Perhaps I wouldn’t have wanted to be out any earlier, though. There are patches of ice on the sides of the road as I make my way through Yorkshire Dales National Park. Hitting these roads “late” has given the sun time to melt away the worst of it. The scenery is incredible and this is clearly the time of year to visit – no tourists.

I really wish I had taken a few pictures. But, as I say, it is cold. I am cocooned in the warmth of heated gear and disinclined to stop. I want to fuss with the heated vest as little as possible. It’s a useful bit of kit, but Sweet Baby Jesus, is it a colossal pain in the ass.

The Keis V501 is nice to have in cold weather but it is also, as the Welsh like to say, a massive ball ache.

The controller’s wires aren’t very long, so, in order to turn it on/set it I have to open my jacket. To unzip my jacket, I have to take off my Klim Adventure gloves, which I’m wearing with liners. To be able to look down at the controller, I have to flip up the lid of my Schuberth C3 Pro. Meanwhile, to operate the controller the bike has to be on. So, every single time I want to set off, the process starts with me straddling a running bike – jacket open, helmet face flipped up, and gloves stuffed between the bike’s windscreen and dash. I set the controller to medium because the heated vest’s instructions say not use it on high (THEN WHY THE HELL DID YOU MAKE IT AN OPTION, KEIS????), then zip up my jacket. I pull my neck buff up over my face, lower the front of the helmet, then carefully – making sure not to drop the gloves, else I be forced to unplug the heated vest, get off the bike, and do this all over again – put on the liners, then the gloves. Frustrating. Pain. In. The. Ass.

By lunch I’m in Lake District National Park, making good enough time I could probably make it through most of southern Scotland before dark. “Could probably” – were it not for my need to run up and down Kirkstone Pass, a narrow, winding stretch that connects the Ullswater and Rothay valleys on the eastern side of the park.

SIMILAR: Exploring the Indian Scout Sixty’s Irish Heritage

The elevation of the pass is just shy of 1,500 feet, the road is wet, and the Tiger 800’s external temperature readout says it’s 3ºC (37.4ºF). That readout is optimistic, so it’s more than likely only just above freezing. But the sun is out and the road abandoned. I push the bike as hard as I dare through the corners over and over and over, up and down the pass. Even with loaded 35-liter panniers and a 35-liter topbox the bike is surprisingly nimble, and I lose track of time.

Kirkstone Pass – The road was all mine. I had to ride it.

I jump on the motorway just before sunset, cruise control locked at 85 mph as I cross the Scottish border. I arrive at Cam’s house a few hours later in pitch dark – just in time to say goodnight to his children before they are are sent off to bed. We open a few bottles of beer and tuck into takeaway curries, discussing the various bikes revealed at EICMA. Cam’s wife, Tracy, manages to feign interest for a while but eventually leaves us on our own.

The next morning I’m up before sunrise, before anyone else. After showering and organizing my kit I head down to the kitchen. Tracy had set out pastries the night before. I make a cup of tea and enjoy a danish or three, watching the slow morning light reveal a back yard completely covered in frost. Cam’s house is warm and modern, and quite large by British standards. It feels American to me, which is a good thing. Knowledge of the welcoming family of five that occupies the house makes it feel even warmer and I feel like Peter in that 1980s Folgers ad.

The frost is still there a few hours later when Cam and I finally gear up and hit the road. The Tiger 800’s temperature gauge reads 1º C and we ride gingerly through his neighborhood, which has not been salted. To add warmth, I’ve taken to wearing my Dainese D-Crust Plus jacket and pants. I feel a little like Randy in A Christmas Story (“I can’t put my arms down!“), and the heated vest palaver is now even more a pain in the ass, but I’m at least comfortable.

Cold Chris is cold (notice the snow on the mountains behind me).

Half an hour into the ride, Cam’s swearing over the intercom (we both have Schuberth C3 Pro helmets, and are each using the somewhat glitchy Sena SC10U system to communicate while riding).

“Gah,” he exclaims in his lightly Glaswegian burr. “I’m boilin’!”

MORE TRAVEL IN CELTIC COUNTRIES: Great Welsh Tea Towel Adventure: Aberaeron

This always happens when we ride together. A Texas guy and a Scottish guy. I come close to freezing to death while he melts. Other than our thermal incompatibility, however, Cam’s a good riding buddy. I’ve mentioned before the importance of choosing people you can tolerate for long stretches of time when traveling by bike. Cam’s that guy.

I do my best not to complain about the cold because the day is gorgeous. I had been expecting pure Scottish misery but instead the air is crisp, the sky blue. And there are no tourists.

Are you picking up a theme here? The United Kingdom is roughly the size of Oregon in area (I say “roughly;” Oregon is bigger than the United Kingdom by more than 5,000 square kilometers, which is about the size of Puerto Rico), while being home to an estimated 67 million people. That means that there are, on average, 271 people filling up every square kilometer. Whereas in Oregon there are just 39 souls occupying the same amount of space.

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom plays host to some 37 million visitors each year. That’s equivalent to the population of Canada. Most of those visitors come in the summer, when the 67 million people who live here are inclined to take vacations. The two-lane roads that serve an area of beauty like the Scottish Highlands – where we’re riding now – become scenic parking lots.

Happy to freeze for views like these.

To see it now in the early winter, relatively empty and more or less as God made it, kicks me in the chest. It’s worth the numb fingers. The beauty feels surreal, to the extent you almost feel as if you’re being taunted. Each time we come around a bend or through a pass to yet another sweeping vista I’ll shout, “Fuck you, Scotland! Fuck you for being so gorgeous,” and Cam bursts into laughter.

Scotland is, of course, pretty far north. The country’s southern border sits more or less on the 55th parallel, which geography nerds will know is north of every US state save Alaska – it is a line that runs above all of Canada’s major cities. Travel four hours north of that line and you reach the Scottish town of Fort William. At this time of year especially, Scotland feels like it’s on the top of the world and Fort William feels like the last reasonably sized town on earth; there be monsters beyond.

It serves as the obvious choice for lunch. It’s Armistice Day and the town is bustling with people who have come in to either see the parade or do a bit of shopping, or both. We pick a middling pub on the main road offering the traditional British fare of foodstuffs served exceedingly hot and dripping with cheese to mask absence of flavor or nutritional value.

Scotland, tho

We take our time – too much, in fact. Checking his mapping app, Cam suddenly realizes it will take an hour and 15 minutes for us to get from Fort William to Mallaig, where we’re scheduled to catch the one ferry of the day to Skye. It’s 2:30 pm, the boat sails at 4:30, and our tickets insist we be there half an hour before departure. Work in the time needed to walk back to the bikes and for me to go through the whole heated vest routine, and we should have already left.

Cam takes care of the bill and I start walking back to the bikes, gearing up as much as possible en route. When I get to the bikes I dig into my pants pocket and… the Triumph’s key isn’t there.

I’m wearing my Hideout Hybrid leather riding pants beneath the D-Crust waterproof trousers, so getting at the hip pocket is a little tricky. I dig my hand fully inside to feel around – nope, nothing there. I check the other hip pocket. Nothing. Cam arrives and I’m swearing.

Cam takes in the scenery

“Perhaps it slipped down the trouser leg of your waterproofs,” he says. “Might be in your boot or something.”

I slap at my thigh. Not feeling anything, I go back to checking my pockets. No key in the waterproof jacket’s breast pocket. No key in the right external pocket of my Hideout Touring jacket. No key in the left external pocket. No key in the right internal pocket. No key in the left internal pocket. No key in the right pocket of the heated vest. No key in the left pocket. No key in the breast pocket of my mid-layer shirt. I check them all again, several times, swearing more and more profusely.

“And it’s definitely not slipped down into your waterproof trousers?” asks Cam.

“Well, if it did, it will have fallen out the leg as I was walking,” I say, jogging back toward the pub. “Let’s retrace our steps.”

I scour the ground. Cam runs to the pub, checks there, then makes his way back. We meet halfway and start checking with nearby businesses, asking if anyone’s handed in a key. This is a small town, so the shop attendants are unnecessarily inquisitive.

ME: “Excuse me, has anyone turned in a lost key here?” ATTENDANT: “A key? What sort of a key?” ME: “To a motorbike. I’ve lost the key to my bike.” ATTENDANT: “Oh, dear. What sort of a bike is it?” ME: “Uh… it’s a Triumph.” ATTENDANT: “Oh, aye. What’s the key look like?” ME: “Well, uhm, you know, like a car key – metal bit and a black plastic bit that you hold on to. There’s a T on it, for ‘Triumph.'” ATTENDANT: “I see. Nay. We’ve not had anyone hand in any keys today. Have you looked in all your pockets?”

After checking the shops, I retrace my steps again, walking slowly this time, paying close attention to the ground. My mind is spinning on thoughts of what happens now. I’m not worried about missing the ferry but how to explain this to Triumph: “Uhm, hi guys. I’ve lost the key to the Tiger 800 XRT. You’re going to need to come get it. It’s at the top of the world. All my stuff is locked in the panniers, so if you could get here quickly, that’d be great…”

Back to the bikes, Cam again suggests I check the legs of my waterproof trousers. I look at him, ready to snap.

“OK, fine! Here’s what I’m going to do, you nagging son of a bitch,” I say. “I’m going to strip down to my bare ass in this parking lot and show you that there is no key on my person, which is what I have told you several times.”

No, that’s not at all what I say; I’m just thinking it. The words that actually come out of my mouth are simply: “Well, maybe you’re right. I’ll take them off, so I can check thoroughly.”

Which is a fortunate thing to have said, because you’ve already guessed what happens, right? The key plops to the ground as soon as I unzip the leg of my waterproofs; it’s been stuck in the top of my boot this whole time. And we now have less than an hour to get to Mallaig.

In the movie version of my life, the scene would now shift to the placid shores of Loch Eilt, a quiet lake in the middle of nowhere, along the north side of which runs the A380 – the road from Fort William to Mallaig. Picture yourself there now. It’s quiet and bewitching; the sky is beginning the long, beautiful, shimmering process of winter sunset. Everything is good and right with the world. Then…

WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH WAH WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH BRRRRRRRRRRRRRR VWHA-WHAAAAAAAAAAAAA BRRRRRRRRRR WHAAAAAAAAAAAAA-WHAAAAAA

Turns out motorbikes are loaded onto the ferry first. Had we not arrived in time to get aboard before everyone else we would not have been allowed to board at all.

That’s the sound of the Tiger 800 screaming as I push it to its max speed, tipping into corners so hard that some faraway back-of-the-mind thought imagines the panniers touching down. Cam is nowhere to be seen, but I figure that if I can get there before final check-in I can drag my feet long enough for him to show up. A few miles short of Mallaig, though, I get the yips and become convinced there’s a cop lurking just around the corner.

There isn’t, but it’s OK. I’ve made up enough time. Cam catches up just as we get to Mallaig and we check in with exactly one minute to spare. A few minutes later we’re directed to ride onto the ship. The ride to Skye is short and we never lose sight of land – indeed, it feels more as if we’re crossing a big lake than venturing into the cold north Atlantic Ocean, but I feel about as far from home as I can ever remember. It’s a hell of a long way from Houston, y’all.

As we cross, night begins to rush in. Our hotel is only a few miles from where the ferry docks and we arrive with the very dying of the light. Picked completely at random because Google Maps had identified it as being on our route, the hotel turns out to be one of the best I’ve stayed at in a very long time. Cam and I are put into a cottage that looks out on the sea. Walking to the water’s edge, I look up and see little moving windows of dark, star-filled sky – breaks in the cloud cover.

We eat dinner in the hotel’s rustic restaurant/pub, which is packed with the warmth of people. Every seat is full. Some are hotel guests, but many are locals. Cam and I find a spot next to the fire and I scratch the ears of a dog that’s excitedly trying to angle himself to capitalize on anyone’s dropped food. With each consecutive pint of Guinness the desire to stay for several more days grows stronger. I mean, hey, I’ve got my laptop; the hotel’s got (subpar) WiFi; I could work from here…

Few sights could be more welcoming on a dark, freezing Scottish night.

Warm and cozy inside

So happy…

When we eventually call it a night and stumble out into the pitch black my head spins with that incredible mix of fresh air and booze. This is so much better than going to EICMA.

A light snow falls over night, and turns to squalls of freezing rain by sunrise. They come and go within a few minutes of each other, interspersed with brilliant, glowing sunshine. Because it’s a Sunday, breakfast isn’t being served until 8:30 am, which means we won’t be on the road until at least 9:30 (remember the sparsity of daylight at this time of year), but we don’t care. This place is beautiful.

The smug look of a man who is somehow able to claim that doing all this is his job.

We walk around a little before breakfast, taking pictures and making internal plans to bring our respective loved ones back here. I can’t wait to show Jenn this place some day. Breakfast is hearty and delicious – you wouldn’t have expected any less – and we manage to roll away from the hotel shortly after 10. It’s Sunday and we’ll be heading our separate ways today. Cam has a real job, so has only had a weekend to spare. And, well, technically I have a job, too – which I’m better able to do from my office at home than a hotel room.

The goal is to spend the daylight making our way south, then split up once we hit Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park. Cam will head southeast to Dunblane and I’ll push straight south en route to an overnight stop in Lancaster. Before we go our separate ways, however, I want to make sure Cam gets a chance to spend some time riding the Triumph.

Cam, about to ride the Triumph Tiger 800 XRT.

Within 45 seconds of his getting on the bike he’s giggling on the intercom and saying, “Wheeeee!” as he twists the throttle to make it leap forward. Meanwhile, riding his F800GT behind him, I can fully understand why he has fallen out of love with the thing. I feel a deep sense of guilt for having been the person to suggest the bike to him in the first place. Six months later, he will buy a brand new 2018 (third-generation) Triumph Tiger 800 XRT and he will still giggle each time he rides it.

We take the long way back down, leaving the island via the Skye Bridge, a loping structure that looks to have been inspired by a child’s Duplo train set. It’s Remembrance Sunday and at one point we get stopped to allow a parade to march past. We’re on the A87 – pretty much the only road in these parts – and it tickles me that officials and locals are perfectly content to see the whole thing shut for the sake of a brass band and some bagpipes. Scotland is great.

Cam and I are making lots of tea-and-cake stops today. Partially because, hey, tea and cake, but also in a subconscious effort to postpone having to part ways and head back to regular routines. We’ve lucked out this weekend. There’s no way you could predict such good riding conditions up here at this time of year. Indeed, less than a week from today I’ll note from Cam’s Facebook feed that they got 3 inches of snow in Dunblane.

At our final tea-and-cake stop, the Green Welly, we say our goodbyes and exchange slapping hugs, then speed off into the oncoming night. When I get home to Cardiff late the next afternoon, there is an official-looking package on my desk. My visa has been renewed, my passport returned. I find myself thankful for government inefficiency. I didn’t get to go to EICMA, but the Tiger 800 still got an adventure. So did I.

Take a look at the registration plate on the Triumph (KW16 YNS), then take a look at the registration plate on the red Triumph in this story, which I commissioned for RideApart last year. I guess that explains the origin of the red dirt.

MORE PRETTY PICTURES I TOOK OF SCOTLAND

Fishing traps on a dock near my hotel on the Isle of Skye

I’m a sucker for a good ol’ snow-capped mountain.

Technically I was on an adventure bike, but I chose not to follow this track into a river.

Look at the house off on the right. Sure would suck to live there…

Side note: The Google Pixel phone takes pretty decent pictures.

This was the view from my hotel bedroom when I woke up.

It's the middle of summer, but we're remembering when we rode a @OfficialTriumph Tiger 800 to the Isle of Skye last winter and had a great time. I am standing at my bedroom window, looking down at the 2017 Triumph Tiger 800 XRT parked in my back garden, light rain plinking off its aluminum panniers and top box.

#Adventure bikes #Road trip #Scotland #Touring #Triumph #United Kingdom

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furiousconnoisseurcomputer-blog · 6 years

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im 19 year old i got my full licence for 2 years now and im looking to buy a car a cheap second hand one any would be good to be honest just need it to be 1. big so people can fit in comfortably 2. reliable 3. good mpg 4. not ugly 5. 1 litre - 1.4litre 6. and ermm it must be a car nice to drive and can go on motorways without struggling thanks i was thinking about a vw polo or a vw golf but im not sure if they would be cheap on insurance thanks :)

Should i tell my parents about the car accident i got into?car insurance question?

I got into a small car accident. I bumped into the car(98 avenger) in front me on the way heading to school. It was a acquaintance that i knew in high school.well we didn't get the insurance involved,we exchanged information. there's a small dent on his bumper i thought i could pay him off out of pocket with out my parents knowing since they've been trying to find a new car for a while now we even went to a dealership the day of the accident,i dont want to look irresponsible. but the trunk of his wont open. He went to a place to get an estimate they would charge him about 1,700$ which is wayyy more than i expected. I called other places around my area to see if they can fix the trunk and they basically said they to see the condition its not bad it just can't open.being a unemployed college student its hard to find money to pay of the pocket,so i was thinking of just asking my parents what happened,only if the body shops around my area are to expensive to pay. I know im under my parents insurance name but i wasn't sure at the time would the insurance company pay for all of it or would i need to pay out of pocket?would it go up?. need advice or suggestions this situation had been bothering a lot. dont know much about car insurance any additional information would be appreciated!""

Lying to insurance company?

The other night I hit into a pole in a parking lot and no one saw, and caused the pole no damage. However, the front of my car has a small damage. Money is tight. What if I were to tell my insurance company that I did not know how it happened and I'm looking to repair it...""

How much is insurance rate on 97 camaro?

Insurance!!?!?!?

So , i live in England , and my neighborhood is like really nice ! ( Houses are like 300000 pounds) , so like my car would be parked in my drive with a gate closed , and it is in insurance group 7 and it is a convertible ( renault megane ) 2006 one how much would i be paying around if i am a driver under my dads name on the insurance and i have had my license for around 6 months and i have had more lessons than needed when i took lessons?""

Do you have life insurance?

If so, at what age did you obtain your policy? How much did you purchase? How much do you pay a month? Is it a Term or Permanent?""

""18-yr-old driver, new liscence, needs insurance?""

In the suburbs of Dallas, Texas. I know that a major company won't take a new driver on as first-time insurance, or the rates would be really high, so what's the best suggestions? Thanks!""

Which insurance company is cheapest for young drivers?

MY MOTHER HAS 4 YEARS NO CLAIM BONUS AND I JUST GOT MY LICIENCE AND LOOKING TO GET INSURED ON A CLIO 1.2 OR CORSA1.2 WHICH INSURANCE COMPANY IS THE CHEAPEST?? THANKYOU!

Do i need to be a full time student to be covered for medical insurance?

i've always been told that i need to have at least 12 credit hours a semester in order to be covered for health insurance. with the new obama health care is this still true since most 23-26 year olds do not attend school anymore?

Should you Always have health insurance whenever going under the knife ?

I would like to get a breast augumentation, and I was wondering if most people has health insurance whenever going under the knife? My credit is not good,but I've heard of something called Credit Care, is the health insurance included? If not,which health insurance is the most affordable and covers cosmetic surgery?""

Does my insurance go up?

i only have liabilities with my insurance. i got into a car accident but my car was the only one damaged and im paying for the repairs myself, would my insurance go up?""

Where can i get cheap car insurance?

Car insurance questions?

1. if I have 5 years no claim bonus, can I use it on 2 different cars? different insurance companies 2. if my car insurance will ask for my no claim bonus will they return it or keep it? 3. lets say I bought a car for my dad, for his birthday but put my name as the owner of the car by mistake, can I just call DVLA to change the owner name before they send the documents to me? 4. which companies give no claim bonus for second driver? is it only Direct Line?""

""Car insurance sent me SR-1 form, What to do on SR-1?""

I got into a solo or at-fault accident cause i skidded off the road due to the road being wet after the heavy downpour. Nothing major and my first ever accident so i decided to report it to the insurance for a claim but decided to disregard the claim since nothing needed to be repaired except an alignment because i work on cars so nothing seemed broken. Now that it's been disregarded, mercury insurance sent me an sr-1 form stating i must fill it out or my license will be suspended within 10 days. If i fill it out and since there was no damages over $750, will there be an inspection to my vehicle?""

""Full-time college student, where and how can i get some kind of free health care?""

I am a colleg student. I don't have any kind of health care insurance. I cannot afford to buy health care for me. Is there any kind of health care I can get from that state? BTW, I live in Charlotte, NC. Would like to know if I can get some kind of coverage.""

New insurance companies?

I need a list of newly opened Insurance companies.

CALIFORNIA DRIVERS-Insurance question?

am about to test for my license tomorrow, and on the list of requirements, it says I need proof of insurance. That just means for the car I am using right? It's not like you can insure a person...My friend keeps telling me I need driver's insurance but that does not exist, am i right? I guess the question is: What needs to be insured?""

How does exhisting back injuries affect your insurance health car life?

I was hit on the head with a 68lb box. I have 3 herniated disc in my back, major nerve damage etc.... How does this effect my car insurance? If I get in a wreck am I not covered because ......What if the meds I'm on or my vertigo is the cause? I'm screwed right? How does this effect health insurance... am I un-insurable? Any web link would help. I'm 26 and its been 7 months... I still cant lift over 5lbs.""

What is the cheapest insurance if you have a DWI?

Transfering from Missouri where I have American Family. I am moving to Louisiana and American Family doesn't write there. I've only looked at progressive and they were pretty expensive, mass mutual wouldnt take an SR-22. Any suggestions?""

How does life insurance pay off or cover most of a funeral?

-I want to become a Lic. Funeral Director & Embalmer I work part-time in a family-owned independent funeral home (i don't like those chains) and by family-owned i mean it is independent and is owned by the original owners (not SCI, Dignity Memorial""

How much would insurance be on a Nissan 350z?

Hi guys!! Ok so I'm soon to get a 2003-2006 Nissan 350z Touring or Enthusiast. Maybe around 9000$ to 15000. I'm almost 18 and what would insurance be like for me??? Allstate, State Farm, ect. I just need a basic monthly quote! Thanks!!""

Liability Insurance?

I'm organizing a concert, and I'm having an issue with liability insurance. Where can I get some? And what is it all about anyway?""

How do insurance comparison sites work?

Sites like go compare and compare the market? I have searched for car insurance using both and get the same company coming up but offering a different price, why is this?""

How much will car insurance cost for a 17 year old in the UK?

I'm 16 years old, and 17 in a few months. I have a car already, in the garage. It's a Peugot 106, and my mum bought it for 350. I live in Newcastle, and I would like to know a rough price on the insurance? Realistically, around the region of 1000-3000 ect...""

cheapest car insurance quote ever

How do I get Renter's Insurance?

It's required for college dorming, but i'm not sure how to get it. Help?""

How much is teen car insurance?

how much would it be for teen car insurance? im a 17 y/o female in Long Island, NY good grades and will be taking the defensive course first. thanks""

Car insurance. A question about car insurance.?

Hey people. So I haven't brought a car yet. But I was just on the car insurance site today and I decided to fill it in and get an idea of what I may have to pay. And the cheapest I got was 6,241. Now my friend he's 18 years old and he passed he's test last week and has a 2 door ford focus that's not including the trunk/boot and he only pays 1,200 for he's car insurance and all I know is, that he is on somebody else's insurance that has been driving for years. Could anybody explain to me why my car insurance is gonna cost me 6,241 and he's only costs him 1,200. I'm 18 also by the way.""

Retroactive auto insurance premium?

I obtained an auto insurance policy in August 2007. In January 2008 (five months after the policy was purchased) I received my policy renewal. The renewal price was substantially more than the initially policy cost because the insurance company had written my original policy with innacurrate information (assumptions they made that were incorrect, there was no falsification on my part). I cancelled the policy and found a new provider. The insurance company then sent me a bill retroactively charging me for the original policy with the new information and premium changes. Can they retroactively charge me for the policy that I had already paid in full based on our original agreement? Does the insurance company have any legal recourse or right to collect this money? I already filed an official complaint with the NJ Dept. of Banking and Insurance and am waiting to hear back. BTW don't need people's opinion, looking for response from someone who knows the laws in regards to this""

What does initial debit mean in health insurance?

I got a mail for recently applying for health insurance from Blue Shield of California. It says: Your coverage (individual) is currently paid 12/12/10. Effective 01/01/11, your monthly dues/premium will automatically be debited from your account on the first of each month.Your first debit will be in the amount of $142.09 to cover the period from 12/12/10 to 02/01/11. After this initial debit, regular withdrawals of $87.00 will be made on the first of each month. Ok, so I understand I am supposed to pay $87 each month. But I don't understand the initial debit where it says I have to pay $142.09. What is that amount for? What does it mean? Why is it covering from December to February? Almost about 1 to 2 months. Is that some sort of special payment everyone has to pay for health insurance? Can someone please explain this to me? I never applied for health insurance, so I'm not familiar with how things work. Thanks.""

Cheap car insurance UK?

I'm a young driver 17 I have no provisional experience or pass plus Im a girl and I'm hopefully getting a ford Ka 2002-2003 Do you know what the cheapest place to get insurance is? I've looked everywhere! Any help appreciated :)

Wantings to buy Renter's Insurance?

I want to have renters insurance. How long do I have to wait to make a claim

Does anyone know the average cost for car insurance for a 18yr boy for a firebird?

Where is the best place for cheap insurance for a 100cc scooter in northern ireland?

age 26, honda scv100 lead 2007""

What happens if im a day late on my car insurance?

i pay monthly with gieco.today my payment is due but i wont have the money untill tomorrow.will they cancel my insurance?will i have to pay some type of fee? will my car insurance go up? Plz help

How much lower would car insurance be if I started driving at 18 not 17?

Does anyone know how much lower your own policy would be to insure a car if you start at 18 instead of 17?

""Court date for driving w.o car insurance, what are my likely outcomes?""

I got tagged for driving w.o car insurance in January, now I got a letter in the mail to attend court in a week for the incident. I live in MA where it is illegal to be uninsured and by law your registration also expires as well. I've already been towed and got my car back, now I just have to attend court. Any ideas what's going to come out of this? I have a perfectly clean driving record.""

What is the average auto insurance cost for young drivers?

I know there are many variables, but I really want general monthly cost for young drivers please""

Insurance for a Range Rover Sport?

I'm turning 16 in about two years, and i was thinking about getting a 2010-2012 RR Sport Supercharged. I was wondering how much it would cost for me to get insured. Do you have a range of what it would be around? My parents are already letting me practice driving and stuff. The car would be around $30,000-$45,000. My family is in the upper-middle class. So we're not all that rich. I will be working by that time and paying the car off.""

""My car insurance company sent me forms to fill out, after an accident. Do I need to do it?""

The police report states that I am not at fault. The passenger in my was badly hurt. My insurer wants me/my passenger to fill out a medical release/history form. I see no benefit in doing so. If the other driver does not have insurance, and we are not yet sure that they do, my insurer would pay my claim/my passengers claim under my uninsured coverage. If they have my passenger's medical history, they could try to find reasons to limit how much to pay out. They also want me to fill out a Report of Traffic Accident form. I have given a statement to the police, who said I'm not at fault. The other driver was cited, and I have also given an oral/recorded statement to my insurer. I don't' see the need to fill out an accident form. It just seems that my insurer is trying to cover their on *** in case my uninsured coverage kicks in. What if I don't fill these form out?""

Car road tax and insurance costs?

Can anyone direct me to a website which will tell me the insurance group or cars. Also one which will tell me how much road tax per year. Looking to buy a car but would like an idea of these costs first. Looking at a Honda Civic se executive... 1600cc... 2003 model.

""Rear-ended, can I ask car insurance to compensate for inconvenience of not having a car?""

Got rear-ended in NJ by a woman and my car was determined a total loss. Her car insurance took over a week to come to a decision that they would take 100% liability for the accident. They made me an offer for the dollar amount of value of the car which was honestly more than what I thought the value was going to be. I have 2 questions... Can I ask for compensation for the inconvenience of not having a vehicle during the time that they were making their decision? And two, I went to the hospital after the accident but haven't received the bills from that yet. If I accept their offer for the damage done to the car can I still get reimbursed for my medical bills later?""

I am looking for a good insurance company. Do you have any recommendations?

I am a full time student and require more insurance than just what I can get from being a student. Does anyone know of a good insurance company for the state of NC?

What automotive insurance companies insure right-hand drive cars in Ontario?

I'm looking to get insurance on a right hand drive import (Nissan Skyline) in Ontario, Canada. Prior to January 2012 this wasn't the hardest thing to do. It's gotten increasingly difficult. Anyone know of a company that still insures these imports at a reasonable rate?""

Will my insurance company find out? If so how?

I got into a fender bender the other day, it was my fault, I can either pay for the damages to the other car out of my pocket, or I can let him tell his insurance company about it and he has a $500 deductable, I do not have coalition insurance, only liability, so if he reports it to his insurance will I still have to pay his $500 deductable out of my pocket or will my liability insurance company have to pay the $500? Or will his insurance company pay the $500? If he reports it to HIS insurance company will MY insurance company find out about the accident?""

How much will insurance cost after getting a DUI?

Does someone know how much roughly insurance will probably cost after a DUI? Perhaps someone who has had one in the past could tell me.

How can i legally make my parents dependents for medical insurance?

i want to legally file for my parents to be dependents for medical insurance. we live in the state of IL. what is the prerequisite? how should we proceed? we would preferably like to do this without involving a lawyer. thanks in advance for reading this and offering any suggestions!

Which auto insurance company is better? Geico or Mercury? Please share your personal experience.?

How do I obtain Auto Insurance Declaration Page(s)?

My insurance company is asking about Auto Insurance Declaration Page(s). I don't know what it is or how to obtain it. I have never had auto insurance before this is my first time. Where can I obtain an Auto Insurance Declaration Page(s)? Thanks

What is an approximate cost for life insurance?

cheapest car insurance quote ever

""How to save more money as a teen, for a car and motorcycle?""

I'm about to turn 16, and would like to save up for a reliable, cheap (2k-4.5k), good-looking, car. It has to be American, or anything other than Honda, Subaru, Toyota, Lexus, Hyundai, etc. cause dad works for GM. I am paying for the car on my own, most likely, but maybe I can convince parents to pay 1k or so. Money is tight right now in my family. Dad got demoted last year during GM's bankruptcy, and may get a promotion in spring. My Mom is opening a restaurant this year, which is going to cost a lot. I got a job in November at a brand new Kroger grocery store, where I get minimum wage and cannot work over 16 hours per week because I'm only 15. I have saved a little over 1.2k in the bank. I also have invested $500 of my own money this year into stocks, which are up a little. This might sound dumb to some, but I have dreamed of buying a motorcycle. I want a Kawasaki Ninja 650R. AND YES, I KNOW INSURANCE COSTS MONEY, (FOR CAR AND MOTORCYCLE) I'M NOT AN IDIOT. I also need to plan on how to save for that. Any tips, help, and info would be great! Thanks so much.""

Insurance on car?

My dad said insurance on the car I want will be $700 a month.(I'm 18 and its for full coverage) Is that the price I pay if the car is insured under my name? I know if my dad insured the car under his name the price for insurance would drastically drop. My question is would I still be able to drive the car if its insured under my dads name and still be part of the whole insurance thing. You guys, the reason I sold my old car is becouse I wanted this newer car I've wited 3 months so far and I'm planning to pay for the car myself. But insurance is going to kill me. If you can also tell me about some good insurance companies out there that are cheap(we have something century rite now). When I heared how much it would cost I almost cried.""

16 year old's Car insurance?

I'm and I have my permit. I turn 16 in may. Im going to get my license (or atleast take the test ) on my 16th birthday. Im not going to buy a car, and im going to just drive my parents cars. What I don't understand is why I have to pay for car insurance, since my parents already insure the car. And the car is ensured for any driver of the car.""

Affordable insurance for children in Texas?

Does any one know of any insurance for children living in Texas? I had medicaid for my children; but, got disqualified because of a vehicle that we recently purchased. Our income really stinks. But, we never thought that it would affect us. But the resources count against us.""

Cheap Auto Insurance?

I know for a 17-yr-old newly licensed female its expensive, but what auto insurance company would you recommend. I live in New York, drive '93 Ford Explorer thats in satisfactory condition.""

Why did the health insurance for my employees just go up 32% for next year?

Thanks Obama, Pelosi and Reid! The AFFORDABLE Health Care Act. BS""

Car Insurance vs.Health Insurance?

I was in a car accident a few months ago. I was at fault 100%, so my insurance company paid for the property damage but the amount for bodily damage is set too high by their attorney.Does n't health insurance contribute to an extent for the injuries and medical bills etc. or is it the 100% responsibility of the car insurance company to pay for the whole amount that is medical bills etc. incurred by the individuals and their health insurance combined?""

""Why is insurance important, 20 pts for the best answer?

Your best friend says they dont think insurance is important. Explain to them why it is important to have insurance. How is having insurance important for successful financial management?

Car insurance__________________?

How much do you pay for car insurance? (in a year), mine is going to expire in november (november, 30) when I am supposed to go to the agency to renew it? Can I go for example on november 1st?""

Cheapest Insurance for a Yamaha R6 in the U.K?

hello, im thinking about getting my CBT and 125cc licence, because i dont want to get a 125cc bike, i want to get a 600cc yamaha r6 and restrict it to 33bhp, so that it runs like a 125, but the thing is that i dont know how much the insurance on it is going to be, as im gonna be a new biker i guess, so its scaring me, buying an r6 (second hand) alone is expensive enough. im a male, 19 turning 20 next month, i have no car or bike licence, if i buy the bike it would have done around 10000 miles and be around a 2000 model, i think r6's have a standard security system on them or something, if i had it i would put it in my room, or outside infront of my room, in the driveway, im a student studying in university and i dont have a job so moneys tight. thanks for your help!!""

""Car insurance, Comparison Websites and Credit checks?""

Car insurance renewal time, now need to shop around for the best deal available to me. Firstly though, Do car insurers check your credit rating and leave search footprints on your report? Also, do price comparison websites for insurance also check your rating? Also, where would be the cheapest place around for a 23 male, to get insurance. Thank you""

Do you have to add your child to insurance if get a drivers license?

My kid just got his drivers license but cannot drive and wont be able to for 6 more months is it still required that I add him to the insurance right now or can i just add him to the insurance when he is able to drive?If i do not, does that mean that he will have to turn in his license or have it revoked?""

How much would car insurance cost for two 16 year old boys?

My son and my stepson just got their license. My son wants my car; 2006 Porsche Cayenne which means I have to get a new car & My stepson wants a 1989 Nissan 300ZX. Me and my husband are on Nationwide currently. How much would insurance cost a month for 2 sports cars with teen drivers?

Cheap health insurance for college students?

Hi im a college student who is broke. Can someone help me out with cheap heath insurance? I cant even afford the insurance that the school offers. Please help me out.

How much did you pay for your motorhome tires?

i am curious about the cost of tires on the different types of motorhomes? i am also curious about the cost of insurance? routine maintenance? and whatever else may be important in the cost of ownership between a class A and a class C motorhome?

How to get Get Affordable Car Insurance in Detroit Michigan.?

Is there any information i read about this?

""Oklahoma speeding ticket, 9 mph over; will it affect my insurance?""

I got a ticket for going 49 in a 40 a few days ago. I don't usually speed, generally I just do 5 over. Wasn't aware that the section of road I was on was 40, the officer was sitting just in front of where it goes up to 45 apparently, but I was still speeding, and I'm going to pay it. My roommate mentioned that any speeding ticket that's 10 mph or less over the limit won't affect your insurance rate. Is this true? That would be really helpful, I used to be a habitual speeder and I've got quite a few tickets still on my record. Also, please don't answer based on what you THINK, I don't know how often that happens on here. References would be great.""

What should the governments role be in healthcare?

What are you ok with the government touching, concerning your personal health care.""

Do you need full coverage on a vehicle thats 4500 thaht you put a 1500 down payment on?!?!?

Because it doesn't make sense for the insurance to be more than the cost of the car

Is there any major medical insurance for pre-exsiting conditions???

I take care of my 50 year old mother, who is on COBRA, which went up to 700.00 monthly. We cannot afford this, but she needs medical insurance due to her pace maker. We've tried medi-cal, SSI, ect. Her ex-husband will not help her. He actually left her because she is sick, with the woman he was cheating on her with. Then he married her a year later. I am out of options and she needs help. Someone, anyone, everyone....please help. If she doesn't get medical care for her conditions and medicines for her heart, she eventually will die.""

California auto insurance?

back in may i was driving someone else's car someone backed out of the drive way and hit me minor damage on back bumper. i gave the insurance info of the owner of the car since i didnt have any and it was her fault didnt think it was that big of a deal to do that if it was not my fault i recorded my statement months back but now they want me to re record my statement they said they lost it so giving the insurance of someone else that was not driving is that illigal what kind of trouble can/could i get in to? IF ANY??

Do U think it's fair women's insurance is cheaper because they have an 'innie' and men have an 'outie'?

I see just as many women being careless drivers as men. Why should their sex organs have anything to do with car insurance?

If I got a car video-recorder is my car insurance going down?

I bought a video-recorder for my car as project.Keeping in mind cyclists and other motorist are driving mental sometimes in London can I get my insurance down if I got a recording device in my car.Did anyone managed to do that?

Im a 29 single mother of 4 I was wondering should I get whole life insurance or term?

I dont know which one is the better choice at my age

Why were the republicans threatening to collapse the country just to save the insurance companies?

If the costly disagreement was all about obamacare and the effect that its having or going to have on the insurance companies(not the citizens), it seems to me that the insurance ...show more""

cheapest car insurance quote ever

Should I get life insurance for my children (13 yrs & 8 yrs. old) ???

If yes, Do you know of any trusting life insurance companies that are affordable ?""

Car Insurance when selling Car?

Ok the situation is as follows: I am selling my car for a new one. I have asked my current insurer to transfer my policy to the new car which is fine. However I then questioned about temporarily insuring my old car under the policy and they wanted a ridiculous amount of money for a week - I also do not know how long it will take to sell the car. I questioned the amount and asked what customers generally do when they wish to keep an old car insured. I was told that I could drive my old car on a 3rd party basis as my policy going forward covers me fully comprehensive. I thought fantastic - but then I was shocked when I was told that if I drive the car it is insured 3rd party only but as soon as I park it up somewhere it is uninsured and could be towed away by the police. I have since read my policy document which claim that I can drive any other car 3rd party providing I do not own the car and that there is already insurance in place? Can anyone clarify the above or provide advice. I am so confused and unfortunately are unable to call my insurer back now or over the next couple days? Thanks in advance

""I'm getting my permit soon, insurance?

Okay. I'm turning 15 soon and in Florida that means getting your permit. My dad said that he won't let me get my permit because he doesn't want to pay for my and my older brothers insurance. Since I really need my permit because my dad and stepmom aren't that sober and I want to get a job and a form of transportation between marching band and my house. He doesn't get that. So What I am asking is where could I get really affordable insurance but not skimp on the coverage. I would be paying for it myself. I also need to find a job. Uhg. I have a little over 2 months until I become of age. Any help would be most appreciated. Thanks!

Looking for a car around $6000?

so im looking for a car that i can make my baby and put some time in to.. not looking for a full restore project. needs to driveable when i need it to. i have 6000 to spend and really want awd. stock turbo or supercharger would be a plus but not a must. would love to have an audi a4 but a little worried about how much the maintenance and insurance will cost me. cars that i have been thinking about instead honda accord coupe vw jetta/passet/golf nissan maxima ford mustang v8 (of course) acura tl/rsx toyota celica Mitsubishi Eclipse gsx any input to help make up my mind would be nice

Cheap car to insure for young driver?

So I've been looking around the internet for a cheap car to insure for my first car. The only ones I seem to find are newer cars which are around the 3000 mark to buy. I'm looking to spend something between 500 and 1000 on the car but everything I've looked at, the insurance has been about 3500 for TPFT. Anyone got any ideas for a nice cheap little car that's going to be cheap to insure, and if so, where to look for insurance? I'm 20 and only just got my license, so no no claims bonus or anything, just want a decent deal that isn't extortionate! Thanks.""

Which is the Best Children Insurance Plan to buy in India?

my little niece is 5 years old and my sister is planning to start investing for her education early ( i know this is too early but she wants to give her the best!). She is very creative and paints really well but then she wants to become an Astronaut like Kalpana Chawla :-) now-a-days there are a lot of child insurance plans coming up-all look the same to me. Was thinking if someone can tell which one is the best : Aviva Child Insurance, ICICI, Kotak, etc..""

Insurance.. Buy out a car or pay monthly payments?

I know it depends on the cars but say I bought out a car for 6-8k or I payed monthly payments for a 13k car, put 2k down. How much more would it cost for insurance instead of buying out a car?""

A teenager with no health insurance...?

I'm 17 and from California and have NO health insurance... My mom no longer has custody of me and I'm living with my father who has no job and no way of getting me health insurance. To be quite honest, my dad is a drug addict and lays around the house all day, so to sum it up... he's no help at all. I usedd to have mediCal with my mom but since I no longer reside with her, im not longer under that anymore. I'm really really scared... I think I may have strep throat and I have NO idea what to do... since I have no insurance. Can anyone help me? Thanks.""

Will my insurance rise if the accident was not my fault?

i was involved in a minor car accident which took place at a drive thru and the car in front of me reversed his car, and at the speed he had applied to the gas pedal was enough impact to smash my entire hood in and damage my front bumper. I filed a claim with my insurance as soon as I got home. The following morning the insurance company of the OTHER driver contacted me and verified that he will take full responsibility therefore my repairments will be covered by his insurance. Ive been reading online relating to my question, but in my case, will my insurance rate go up? This is also my very first accident and I've been ensured for 1 year since I've been driving.""

Insurance help when modifying a car?

hi im thinking about doing my vauxhall corsa c up its a 03 plate. at the moment im insured on my uncles buisness fleet. which is very cheap for me as im 17 nearly 18. question.. will i need to tell my insurance about modifiying my car. and will it go up?

Auto insurance on new car?

I am getting a new car under my name. Is it ok to put the car under my sisters insurance?? Its too expensive if im on the insurance.

I need Auto Insurance?

I'm in a dilemma! I need auto insurance to get my drivers license back but I don't own a car. I need a non-owners policy but I can't get coverage because theirs a car in the household. how can I get a policy?

How much would my car insurance be when I move to california?

I will be 25. I am male and I drive a 2008 Kia optima. Car is paid off. No accidents on my record. (Knock on wood). I want to get the most affordable coverage. So in an estimate, how much am I looking at monthly? I will be living in San Diego""

Insurance - Cheap Car?

hello, my sister has just passed her driving test & she's wanting a cheap little run around. a ford ka 1997. She's seen one for exactly 300, and they're allowing her to go view it tomorrow. the reg is - 13 jan 1997 it's a petrol engine size - 1,299 cc does anyone know how much insurance will cost on it? & how much tax/mot costs on it? thankyou..""

Is Geico car insurance good or bad? What's your experience?

I've had Allstate for 11 years but now I need to cut costs and Geico is SO much cheaper than Allstate. The thing is, there's no local agent or office. Maybe that's why they're so cheap. Anyhow, I'd like to hear your experience with Geico, good or bad?""

Life insurance? i dont feel right about this company?

Hi i applied for life insurance through sun life financial. are they a good company? who do you get your life insurance from? is it even important? anyways, they still havent drawn up my policy since i have applied, even though was approved. All i was looking for was a simple life insurance i can afford, and they added in a whole bunch of accessories to go along with it. anyways, they keep coming back for many tests. which would have been hell of a lot convenient if they did these tests all in one place in one time. rather than having to do 4 or 5 tests over the past 4 months. it drives me crazy now that they are always phoning, needing this and that...now im starting to consider if i even want my life insurance with them also, is it even necessary to have life insurance along with critical illness and disability? i am just a studetn on a budget with two young boys at home. whats your take?""

Who is the cheapest car insurer for 2011?

my car insurance has gone up 140 this year

Car insurance advice needed?

My nephew passed his driving test yesterday and has a P reg Volkswagon Polo for his first car. I've seen adverts on the tele for Direct Line car insurance and they aren't on comparison websites, does anybody know if they are averagely cheaper or not? Are there any other companies that don't appear on comparison websites? Thanks.""

What is the cheapest car Insurance ?

I own my car. What do I have to carry?

""Non owner SR22 insurance, a cheap website?""

Non owner SR22 insurance, a cheap website?""

Any suggestion base on your experences with Health and dental insurances?

My Health and Dental Insurance from my old employer (under cobra with Kasier) will expire soon. I plan on buying my own Health and Dental, any suggestions in Northern California?. Thanks""

Insurance on a '98 Mustang?

16yr old girl in Ohio, just wondering the cost before i try and sell the idea to my dad lol. Yellow w/ body kit. Help? :)""

I have private health insurance and insurance from work?

I have private health insurance from blue cross blue shield, I also get blue cross blue-shield from the work I do for the state What is the best solution for my health insurance?""

Ca insurance for teens cost?

how much does car insurance for a 16 year old person cost?

What type of insurance protects your car against theft?

I know there's Liability which is mandotory. Collision covers damage to your own vehicle, but does it actually cover a stolen vehicle with let's say a deductible of $1000?""

cheapest car insurance quote ever

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/do-i-have-pay-car-insurance-am-overseas-robert-ryan/"

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