#leave the beautiful celtic nations out of this

[scp-69]

can we normalise saying english people instead of british people like actually

[elfboyeros]

Hallows Academy

Orientation

Hallows Academy Masterlist @karaboutmyart @jj-pines @lereneePlease Enjoy the first chapter of Hallows I have worked so hard on this chapter and I will continue to work just as hard if not harder on this series, just like with Bridgehid. Any questions comments or concerns you know where to leave them all 💚 - Cupid🍏

The video was playing on a cherry-colored smartphone that was sitting on a table inside a train.

“Solostica, once an English territory, is now a small European nation, and the 7th smallest microstate. This tiny island sits in the Celtic Sea. It is covered by beautiful mountains and large evergreen trees. Solostica is most famous for its prestigious secondary school, Hallows Academy.  It was at one time just a school for the children of the island, now Hallows Academy is the top school to send the troubled youth of all nations. The academy has gained a sterling reputation, with its top tier education and staff. The alumni have gone on to lead successful lives, which speaks volumes. With a variety of teaching methods from around the globe, this academy is a perfect place to send your teenagers to not only assess and improve their behaviors but also to elevate their education.”

A tan girl with long blonde hair sat in front of the aforementioned phone, but she wasn’t listening to it. Instead, she stared out the window and watched the world go by. She sighed and closed the video.

“It sounds kinda like that magic school in the North Sea that Bellamy told me about. ….But for messed up teens.” she muttered.

The girl’s impression of the school didn’t quite match that little video. She sort of expected some sort of dilapidated gothic structure, where students beat each other up. Not the sort of place she’d want to be, but one she would have to be nonetheless.

Amora, sweetheart, I’m sorry. I had no idea she was sending you to any school let alone a school in Europe!

She adjusted her earbuds as they sat in her ears, and she began to play her music before getting a text, she checked it, sent by someone labeled in her contacts as Dad 👨‍👧.

Amora sighed, her dark yellow-green eyes scanning, tapping out a message to her father: It’s fine, Daddy, I’m over getting angry about it. I’m just gonna have to live with it.

Her father did not respond, but he was a busy man, so she didn’t expect him to respond. Soon after she got a text from someone labeled with a wind chime emoji. 

🎐: You there yet?

Amora looked outside the window to see where she was before responding: Not yet, I think I’m close though.

There is a minute pause after she sends her message before she sends another one.

How is Edgar?

🎐: I’m pretty sure he’s got kitty depression.

The blonde teen then received a picture of a Maine Coon cat with dark black fur lying atop a bathroom counter.

🎐: He’s made himself at home, nonetheless.

Amora was then sitting another picture, of a hairless cat in a nice little sweater standing on top of a glass coffee table, its head tilted to the side.

🎐: J. Austen is all confused with him here.

Amora smiled down at the picture of the two cats, while also thanking the Gods and Goddess above that Bellamy was kind enough to take her cat before she left Washington, so her cat son wouldn’t be forced to live with her mother and stepfather.

Dad said he would come and get Edgar when he gets a chance to get off and fly to Washington.

🎐: Don’t worry about it too much, A. No matter when your dad gets here Edgar is safe with me and momma Lagoon. 

Thanks, Bell

🎐: 🫡 No problem, I’ll talk to you soon I gotta get ready for school.

Amora huffed. She stared out the window again but this time she saw a huge building in the distance. She couldn’t make out any of the architecture, but considering the size she assumed it was the academy.

The train stopped at a little train station, which allowed an attendant to start unloading the baggage. 

Amora put away her phone before grabbing her cherry red suitcase and large travel bag.

She entered the station and made her way to the ticket office. A middle-aged woman sat behind the window filing her nails.

“Excuse me?” Amora asked, “Can you tell me how to get to Hallows Academy...” 

The woman didn’t move at her request, “Please?”

The woman just stared at her for a moment before rolling her eyes and pointing to the exit with her nail file. “There are normally cabbies outside,” she finally answered.

Amora was taken aback by the older woman’s voice. What was a woman from Jersey doing all the way out here?

Despite her confusion, she decided to listen to that woman’s advice. She exited the station and glanced around for the cabs.

She finally spots one, but a strange man was standing next to it. He was obviously the driver based on his attire, but he was definitely an odd one.

The man was abnormally tall and definitely inhuman.

“Can you take me to Hallows Academy, please?” Amora asked him.

The driver didn’t speak, instead, he tipped his hat and opened the boot of the car for her to place her things inside.

Afterward, he opened the backseat door to let her in before he got in the driver’s seat and began the drive to the academy.

They passed by isles and isles of tall trees down a long dirt path. Some young people walked down that same unfinished road.

The pair finally arrived at the school.

It was gothic like Amora assumed, but not dilapidated.

It sort of resembled Princeton University, but also the University of Pennsylvania.

The brown, black, and gray building had stained glass windows and several large rotundas.

Amora sighed once the cab stopped in the circular driveway at the entrance. 

The students wandered about socializing and such. They didn’t look anything like Amora had imagined. There were even Fae and other non-humans amongst them.

While she was distracted by the scene in front of her the cab driver retrieved her things from the trunk of his cab. 

Amora attempted to pay for her ride, yet all he did was tip his hat and get back in his cab. 

“This place is odd,” Amora sighed.

She glanced around, taking in all of the sights before setting her gaze back to the school’s entrance.

There she saw a student with brown and dusty pink skin, dressed in a brown pleated skirt, a light orange button-up shirt under a cream sweater vest, pale tights, small leg warmers that resembled the vest, and brown clogs.

They looked kind of like a cookie…

The student smiled widely when their orange eyes locked with Amora’s greenish ones. They approached her gleefully.

“You must be the American transfer student!” they remarked.

Amora nodded hesitantly.

“I could tell. Most American students look super confused when they get here! It’s actually really funny! Like haven’t you seen a boarding school before?”

“Eh?” Amora asked in confusion. Jesus, they spoke super fast!

“Sorry, sorry. I’m Euphrasie Selke! Your tour guide for today!,” they informed her,”I also live in the dorms. …What’s your name?”

“Amora…  Amora Seawright.” Amora replied.

“Pronouns?”

“Uh… She/Her.”

Euphrasie nodded, “Mine are They/Them. Let’s get your things to your dorm and then I’ll take you around the school!”

Amora nodded before she followed Euphrasie as they led her down a path on the left side of the main school building.

“All the freshmen are going to orientation in the gym right now so it will be easier to get to the dorms.” they explained while looking at Amora over their shoulder.

“Uhm… shouldn’t I go to that?”

“Nah,” Euphrasie replied, “I mean you are a senior, you know? Besides, school is school no matter where you are.” 

“I guess. But this place is…” Amora paused. Should she really speak her mind right now? Euphrasie seemed friendly, but they are attending a school for “troubled teens”, they might kill Amora if she isn’t careful.

“This place is what?” Euphrasie asked as they turned around to face her, which meant they were now walking backward.

They tilted their head to the side for a moment before their mouth formed an o shape. “Oh! You’re here because you’re ‘one of the bad ones’, aren’t you?”

Amora nodded sheepishly.

Euphrasie sighed. “A mom back in the 90s sent her delinquent son here. Once he arrived he started beating people up, including a group of seniors. So of course.. they retaliated. By beating the hell out of him.” 

They groaned and rolled their eyes, “Okay so some students, like you, get sent here because they have ‘issues’. But that doesn’t mean that this is a school where we beat each other up at 8:00 every morning. That sounds more like your American school, if I’m not mistaken.”

Amora only stared back at them; her eyes wide. If Euphrasie was right then Amora was dead wrong about the entire school.

“You don’t have to believe me, Amora, but I would never lie. Now here are the dorms!”

Euphrasie motioned to the lovely gothic building to the side of them. It was like a beautiful work of art with its columns, pillars, dark stones, and large glass windows. 

Amora followed her guide inside.

The common area was rather nice, full of tables and brown couches. A few students were hanging out.

There are three halls,” Euphrasie remarked, once the two of them were greeted with a hall then a large staircase, “Hall Magnus, Hall Romanov, and Hall Osmanthus. You’ll be in Hall Osmanthus here on the first floor.”

Amora nodded, following them down Hall Osmanthus. The hall had wainscoted walls, rosemary green paint with little decorative white sweet osmanthus flowers, and dark wood floors.

“Room 345… 345…345, here!”  Euphrasie muttered, “Just sit your stuff inside, and we continue your tour.” 

“Thanks,” Amora muttered.

The room was a normal size, not too big yet not too small, large enough for two people to live comfortably. The room itself had cream-colored walls, with the same wood floor as the hallway. 

Amora sat her suitcase and bag near one of the two beds in the room, specifically the one farthest from the door, before returning to Euphrasie in the hallway.

“So, what part of America are you from?” Euphrasie asked as the two of them walked side by side down the hallway. 

“Washington State.”

“Is that where the capital is?” Euphrasie asked.

“No, Washington D.C. is in Maryland, which is on the east coast, Washington state is on the west coast, it’s the second state above California.”

“Is there anything fun to do where you are from?” they pondered.

“Eh, not really? At least not in my hometown. There’s a few bookshops, cafes, and a town museum, but that’s about it. But in Seattle there’s the Space Needle and the Museum of Pop Culture. That museum is pretty cool!” 

“What is the Space Needle?” Euphrasie looked over at Amora with stars in their eyes.

Amora pulled out her phone and pulled up a picture of the tower back in her home state, “It’s an observation tower, built in the 60s,” Amora explained, “you can look over all of Seattle, it’s really beautiful.”

“It looks like a spaceship!” Euphrasie gasped. 

“My dad took me and my best friend there before he moved to D.C., but that was a long time ago.” the American girl added.

“…Oh! I need to let Bellamy know I made it!” 

The blonde teen immediately pulled her phone away from Euphrasie’s view, typing away to send a message to her best friend. 

Due to her focus on her phone, she failed to notice the people in front of her. 

She bumped right into a girl around her age, who instantly huffed when Amora’s face hit her chest.

“I-I’m sorry,” Amora muttered, “I should have been paying attention…”

She honestly expected the girl to be scowling at her, or even to curse at her for her clumsiness. But instead, this girl, with brown hair and vibrant green tips looked at her with a shine in her moss-colored eyes, a small smirk on her peach-colored lips, and the slightest tint of blush on her white skin. 

“Hey Loki!” Euphrasie said cheerfully, “Lance, Luther.” 

“Hey, Euphrasie,” a deep masculine voice remarked.

“Hi, Phrasie,” a softer, shyer, voice commented.

Amora looked past the girl to see the two boys behind her. The boys were obviously related to her, if their chestnut hair, mossy eyes, and eggshell-colored skin were anything to go by.

One of them wore glasses and had his hand wrapped in bandages, the other was in an oversized honeydew-colored shirt. The honeydew boy seemed rather shy.

Both boys carrying a lot of boxes marked Loki’s. 

“It’s all right, lovely,” the schoolgirl replied, putting her finger under Amora’s chin, and moving her gaze from the boys back to her, “Truthfully, you are such a pretty thing to run into.”

Her voice was silky and smooth, her British accent made her seem posher than her grunge clothes would lead you to believe.

“I’m Loki,” she pronounced as her face got closer to Amora’s.

Amora’s face instantly became flushed, “You are too close,” she stammered out.

Loki smiled, immediately pulling herself back from Amora, “Sorry, lovely.” 

Despite her apology, Loki held an intense gaze. A smirk painted itself on her lips, “Are you the new one?”

“The new one?” Amora asked in confusion.

“We don’t get a lot of seniors transferring. Usually, it’s Freshmen.” Euphrasie commented, “You’ve been the talk of the whole island since the beginning of August.” 

“What made you come all the way here?” Loki chuckled.

Amora blushed a hot red.

“Oh ho oh, must have been something scandalous to have become so beet red,” Loki cackled, with a large smirk on her face, “I can’t wait to find out what all you’ve done!”

“Oi, Loki! Your shit is heavy, flirt with the girl later!” 

Loki clicked her tongue at her brother’s statement.

“Fine whatever, Luther,” Loki muttered, before walking away from Amora and Euphrasie, “I’ll see you later, lovely!”

The nickname made a shiver run up the American girl's spine.

“C-can we leave?” Amora asked, face still flushed as she stood in the middle of the hallway.

“If you are asking if you can leave campus, sorry, no can do, if you mean the dorms, yeah!” Euphrasie remarked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“Anything to get me away from her.”

“Yeah, Loki is an acquired taste.”

Acquired taste?! More like unbelievably creepy! Hopefully whatever being is above will have some mercy and allow Loki and Amora very little interaction in the future. 

Regardless of Amora’s feelings about her current situation, Euphrasie took her around the school's campus. 

It was full of greenery, English flowers, and little critters. 

The Academy had large beautiful green fields. Euphrasie explained that those fields were for football, or soccer as Amora would call it.

Hallows Academy had such gorgeous architecture and interior design. Whoever designed the campus had a clear love of Romanticism and Gothic aesthetics. That much was clear from all the dark colors, beautiful paintings, and nicknacks.

While the pair were on their way back to the dorms, they heard static coming from the intercom. The static filled the dark hallway which made Amora and Euphrasie jump.

“Amora Seawright to Mr. Densmore's office.”

“Where is that again?” Amora asked.

“Come on I’ll show you,” Euphrasie chuckled. 

On the way to the office, Amora’s thoughts started to spiral. Why’d he want to see her on her first day? Had she done something wrong? Did something happen and she needed to go back to America?  Did her dad manage to get her out of the school? Why? Why? Why?

After she was shown the office, Amora stood in a room that sort of resembled a waiting room. There was no desk, but there were some interesting paintings. Most of the decorations had astrological references. It was an incredibly lovely room, in shades of blues, browns, khaki, and navy.

There was a standing shelf in one of the corners of the room that caught Amora’s attention.

It was full of photos and a large map of a constellation.

The photos were of a couple, a light-skinned man with short black hair and a dark-skinned man with dreadlocks, in various places.

That couple seemed to be very in love, like how Amora’s parents used to be.

Amora looked to the corner near the shelf, “A double bass?” she muttered to herself. 

The large stringed instrument sat caked in dust, it obviously hadn’t been played for quite some time, as it just sat in the corner. 

Amora attempted to reach out to touch it, only to jump once a door closed heavily somewhere behind her.

“Do you play?” a voice said.

The voice was deep and incredibly masculine, yet so unbelievably soft and almost angelic.

Amora turned around slowly; her face flushed with embarrassment as she smiled awkwardly at the man in front of her. 

It was the same dark-skinned man from the photos, but he was significantly older, much thinner, and more tired. 

He ditched the locks for an Afro. He wore light brown suit pants, a tweed khaki vest, and a cream long-sleeved undershirt.

There was a medium-gray square of fabric poking out of his vest’s breast pocket, it looked so out of place given the color of the rest of his outfit. 

His eyes were rather piercing, those mignonette green eyes stared down at her as he smiled.

“Do you play?” he asked again.

“Huh? Oh! No, no,” Amora replied, putting her hands up to defend herself, “I was just admiring it… I didn’t touch it!”

The older man chuckled. 

“Come.” he replied, motioning her to follow him as he entered his office, a room much like the one before, just with more bookshelves and fewer little trinkets. 

“Sir, why—”

“Greyson,” he interrupted, sitting down at his desk. 

“Mr. Greyson… Sir… Uhm… Why did you call me in here?” Amora asked.

Greyson opened a file in front of him. “You have had no demerits in your entire educational career,” he began, “Your grades are honestly rather impressive. You took honor classes in English, History, and Mathematics. You were a part of a reading program for 3 years. It must have been so hard to tell those kiddies you were leaving.”

Why the hell did he seem so menacing all of a sudden? 

He looked at her with an undefinable gaze as he looked at her over the folder in his hands, “Yet you randomly stabbed a boy during your summer break and had an ‘emotional breakdown’ that caused a ‘personality change’. That’s why you are here.”

“Emotional breakdown?” Amora repeated.

“Okay, so when we consider outside enrollment, we give out a ‘Get to know a future student’ survey to be filled out. We also request transcripts and other documents.” Greyson explained before pulling out the packet from her file.

“This is yours.”

The packet is like the middle school “Get to know me” papers a teacher would hand out on the first day of school.

“I’ve never seen this before,” Amora stated.

“That explains why it is mostly blank,” Greyson commented.

There was a moment of silence as Amora flipped through the pages of the packet. Her mother had filled it out without even telling her a thing. Amora felt truly shocked and hurt.

“It is clear you were forced to be here. I could rescind your transfer and you would be allowed to return home.” Greyson informed her as he began to type away at his computer.

Go… home? Going home would mean returning to Washington, where her mother and stepfather were. Her mother would be furious if she returned.

“No!”

“No? But—”

“I just got here! If I go back now, I’ll never hear the end of it!” Amora exclaimed loudly, holding the packet close to her chest, “Even if you explained everything, including why you rescinded my enrollment, it would still be my fault! And that’s much worse than being here for my senior year!”

“Besides,” she sobbed, hot tears rolling down her cheeks as she thought of going back home to face her mother, “Home isn’t Washington anymore. …Even if Bellamy is there.”

“Amora—“ Greyson said to her so kindly in a way that reminded her of her father.

“I’ll do whatever I need to stay here, just let me graduate! I’ll fill out the packet myself, I’ll take extra classes, I’ll pay my tuition, just tell me where I can get a job, I’ll—”

“None of that is necessary, Amora.” Greyson stated firmly.

It caused her to stop her rambling, just to hear what he’d say next.

“If you want to stay, you can stay.”

“Th-Thank you,” Amora huffed, before wiping her tears with the sleeve of her sweater.

Greyson opened up one of his desk drawers to get another packet for her.

He handed it over, “If you may fill this out, if you’d like to.” 

She nodded.

“Oh, and if for some reason you have any issues or want to leave the school, you can come to me directly. My door is always open.” Greyson reassured her.

“Thank you, sir,” Amora replied.

He chuckled at how formal she was as she left his office.

Euphrasie was waiting for Amora out in the hall, ready to take her back to her dorm. On the way back; the two talked about many different subjects that had nothing to do with the Academy. 

Once the teens made it back to the dorms, Amora assured Euphrasie that she could find her way back to her own room. 

Euphrasie made sure to exchange numbers with her before the split up.

The blonde girl muttered the number 345 as she walked down the hallway before finding her room. 

She opened the door to find the girl she had met before with those vibrant green tips, Loki, standing on the bed in front of the door, hanging up a poster. 

“You!” Amora gasped, “God, no!”

“I knew it!” Loki exclaimed, hopping off the bed she had seemingly claimed.

“I am not okay with this!” Amora immediately said. 

“Why?” Loki questioned, a frown appearing on her face, “…What did Euphrasie say about me?”

“They said that you are an acquired taste, and I do not wish to acquire the taste of you!” Amora answered as she moved her luggage.

Loki leaned against her bedpost and laughed, while Amora began to go through her things. “Lovely. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, but I believe we’re stuck with each other.”

She sounded sincere, and if she didn’t have such a silky smooth voice Amora might have been angry enough to go back to Greyson to request a new roommate.

“Look, lovely. We got off to a weird start. I was too forward earlier. I’m sorry.” Loki said sincerely.

Amora turned around to look at her in shock. Loki didn’t seem like the sort to concede so easily.

“Can we start over?”

Amora just blinked as Loki stuck out her hand.

“Well, can I start over? Since you didn’t introduce yourself,” the British girl mumbled.

Amora took Loki’s hand and shook it, “I’m Amora… the new one,” the American girl introduced herself using a call back to what Loki had said when they first met.

Loki blushed slightly as she shook Amora’s hand back, “I’m Loki, I am of acquired taste.”

[sweetmorningdew]

I feel like talking about brownies!

These pint-sized house fairies have woven their way into the fabric of Celtic mythology, leaving behind a trail of delightful stories and enchanting traditions.

The origins of brownies can be traced back to ancient Scotland, where they were believed to be helpful spirits dwelling in homes and farms. The name "brownie" is thought to have derived from the Old English word "brounie," meaning "small or dusky brown creature." In appearance, brownies are often depicted as small, humanoid beings with wrinkled faces, adorned in earth-toned clothing.

Legend has it that brownies possess a mysterious and beguiling power - the ability to complete household chores under the cloak of darkness. While humans slumbered, these mischievous creatures would tidy up, mend clothing, and even assist with baking. However, there was a catch: brownies despised being watched or rewarded for their work. If caught, they would vanish forever, leaving behind only a faint whisper of their magical presence.

One beloved tale recounts the story of a weary farmer who found himself struggling to keep up with his never-ending tasks. Late one night, he decided to place a small bowl of cream and a handful of oats by the hearth, hoping to entice the fabled brownies of the land. To his astonishment, the next morning, his chores were completed, and a faint voice echoed through the air, saying, "Wee folk are pleased, so reward we shall not take."

Brownies were not just known for their helpful nature; they were also protectors of households and guardians of children. Stories are told of brownies who would watch over sleeping babes, ensuring they were safe from harm. Mothers would leave out gifts of milk or honey as tokens of gratitude, entrusting their little ones to the care of these mystical creatures.

Interestingly, the concept of house fairies similar to brownies can be found in various cultures across the world. The Scottish brownie shares similarities with the English hobgoblin, the German kobold, and the Scandinavian tomte. It seems that the importance of these tiny, benevolent spirits transcends borders and connects humanity through a shared fascination with the magical and the unseen.

While today, the belief in brownies may have become less prominent, their presence lingers in our hearts and minds. They remind us to appreciate the small joys in life, to find the beauty in ordinary things, and to cherish the magic that can be found within our own homes.

So, the next time you find a mysteriously folded shirt or a sparklingly clean kitchen counter, remember to thank the invisible helpers who might just be the delightful brownies, dancing through the night and bringing a touch of whimsy to your cozy abode.

Sources: - Briggs, Katharine. "An Encyclopedia of Fairies". Pantheon Books, 1976. - Campbell, John Gregorson. "Superstitions of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland". James MacLehose and Sons, 1900. - McNeill, F. Marian. "The Silver Bough - Volume 4: A Calendar of Scottish National Festivals, Halloween to Yule". Stuart Titles Limited, 1995.

[tahitiwoke]

I've forgiven, I've moved on.

phil misses the first half of the conversation - the first half of the entire meeting, really - except it's claire and chris and march and when he comes in, they all turn and stare. he'd been in the gym with ed, so his usual suit and tie has been traded for shorts - cheerfully described by his assistant as booty shorts, which they're obviously not, they've just got the exact right thigh to cloth ratio required for freedom of movement - and a boston celtics jersey. it seems to take all three off guard. there's a pause before march say anyway and gives him the download as to why chris had texted him emergency meeting. and phil is, obviously, late. because he was across town, getting his ass kicked. claire looks less than pleased when he shows up.

as of two hours ago, webber - some old school but relatively harmless senator out of iowa - has given out some pretty scathing comments during a vote on intelligence community allowances and blah, blah, blah. the bottom line: he's refusing to retract and nothing anybody seems to be able to say or do or offer has been enough. and of course when being polite doesn't do the job and when claire can't be seen to be strongarming this particularly touchy piece of legislation, naturally they turn to someone willing to be impolite.

phil calls the guys wife. ignores the look chris gives him when he says that he knows nancy, explains that she's c.i.a., that they overlapped at langley for a brief time.

he has no clue where she is these days, but he's got a good guess based on the information chris rustled up; he dials a familiar number and sticks it on speaker. joey's pizza. "seven-nine-seven-one..." he looks at his watch, reads the time. 13:22:07...13:22:08...13:22:09... "...thirteen-twenty-two-...eleven." connecting. chris's eyebrows are in his hairline. switchboard. " langley, nancy webber. " one moment. phil shrugs when claire raises an eyebrow at him and doesn't get a chance to say anything else before nancy's voice comes through the phone, a little tinny and little like she's having to shout over helicopter downwash.

phil coulson, kicking it old school. " you know me, nance, if it ain't broke don't fix it. " you're wasted in an office, you know. " yeah, but it's a very nice office. " i bet. being bossed around by a beautiful woman, sounds like your fuckin' dream job. let me know if you get bored by it any time soon, though, i've got a great spot open in kirkuk. " wouldn't you just love to give me orders -- look, nance, this isn't a social call. " yeah, no shit. the white house chief of staff calling me two and half hours after my husband called your boss a punk on national television? i'm not stupid. " she's your boss too. " technicalities. " but an important one. he needs to issue a retraction, we can't have this kind of shit spewing out of our own party. " sounds like a you problem to me. " and if you don't want me to make it a you problem, then i suggest you convince todd to publicly apologise. " i'm really not going to do that. we both know what these restrictions will do to the intelligence community, it'll handicap people like you and me. " well, maybe people like you and me deserve to be a little handicapped sometimes. " jesus. she really knew what she was doing when she hired you, didn't she? i've always wondered what it was that got you to jump ship. what could she possibly be giving you to make turning your back on your people worth it? " my people? what am i, moses talking to the pharaoh? " maybe she's not giving you anything, maybe she's takin-- " be very careful, nancy, and choose your next words wisely. todd is going to retract the comments within the next thirty minutes, and if he doesn't, then tonight when you and him and your kids come home, i'm going to be in your house. and if he still refuses, i'm going to leave. then, when your kids are asleep -- i'm going to come back. "

there is a long, audible pause. in the background he can hear the downwash ease up as the aircraft lifts off; there are people shouting out instructors. nancy breathes over it all. after a solid wait, they all hear consider it done. " good. it was nice catching up, nance. " fuck you, phil. and that's it.

there is another long pause -- march looking at claire who looks to chris who's been staring at phil like he's just implied he's going to murder some kids. which, c'mon, let's not all be so dramatic. threats are threats and promises are promises. it's only a few seconds this time before there's action; chris nods and says something about a press briefing, claire shakes march's hand and he goes off, satisfied that the problem has been dealt with. and claire looks over at him, still sweating on her couch.

" sorry i was late - ed was beating me to a pulp. " she laughs at him and waves a hand, dismissive and pleased, i've forgiven, i've moved on.

[tajmirrortours01]

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Organizing Your Quick Trip How to Choose the Perfect Tour Package To accommodate a range of schedules and tastes, Taj Mirror Tours offers a selection of tour packages. Everyone has their choice, whether they would like visit in the afternoon or begin their day early.

Secure Online Reservation for Your Tour With Taj Mirror Tours' easy-to-use online booking system, you can quickly schedule your day trip. You can customize your trip by choosing your chosen day, tour schedule, and extra services.

Arrival at Delhi and departure Point and Time of Departure Efficient departure from Delhi starts your day. Either your hotel or a prearranged meeting place in the city will be the place of pickup, contingent on the package you have selected.

Comfortable mode of transportation Experience a comfortable and stress-free drive from Delhi to Agra and return in air-conditioned automobiles.

Arrival at Agra From Taj Mirror Tours, welcome. Your experienced guides from Taj Mirror Tours will meet you when you arrive in Agra and will be with you the entire time you visit the Taj Mahal.

Visiting the Taj Mahal Experience the Taj Mahal with a guide as you learn about its construction, history, and the moving love tale that served as inspiration for the monument's design. Admire the stunning vistas and discover the exquisite workmanship that went into creating this marble marvel.

Investigating Optionally Agra Visiting the Agra Fort Continue your tour by paying a visit to the adjacent Agra Fort, which is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its historical significance and Mughal architecture.

Lunch & Regional Foods Lunch is a great way to experience the flavors and aromas of traditional Mughlai food. Enjoy a fantastic meal at a nearby restaurant.

Trip back to Delhi Leaving Agra Take a ride back to Delhi after saying goodbye to Agra and its priceless memories.

Thinking Back on Your Experience As you consider the history and beauty you have experienced on your day trip to the Taj Mahal, consider how rich India's architectural treasures are in culture.

To sum up An amazing journey full of history, culture, and breathtaking beauty awaits those who choose Taj Mirror Tours to organize their day trip to the Taj Mahal from Delhi. This tour is designed to make an unforgettable impact, regardless of your interests—history buff, photography enthusiast, or just looking for a fun day out.

Also Read :-

Boston Celtics: A Legacy of Excellence

Among the most illustrious teams in NBA history are the Boston Celtics. The Celtics have enthralled fans for years with a legacy based on greatness, collaboration, and a winning tradition. The Celtics' journey, from their early supremacy in the league to their current renaissance, is proof of the lasting force of skill and perseverance. We'll look at the Boston Celtics' background, significant events, and present situation in this blog.

Establishment and Initial Achievements One of the founding teams of the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which would eventually combine with the National Basketball League (NBL) to form the NBA, was the Boston Celtics. The NBA was established in 1946. With Red Auerbach as their head coach, the Celtics became a dominant force in the league very fast.

The 1950s saw the Celtics get their first taste of success, and 1956 saw a turning point with the signing of Bill Russell. Russell, who was well-known for his abilities to rebound and play defense, emerged as the team's mainstay. The Celtics went on to win an astounding 11 NBA championships between 1957 and 1969, including eight straight from 1959 to 1966, with Russell spearheading the charge. The Celtics were unquestionably one of the best teams in the NBA after this period of domination.

The Times of Larry Bird The Celtics saw a new phase of success in the 1980s under the direction of the great Larry Bird. The franchise's star player was forward Bird, who had remarkable shooting, passing, and basketball intelligence. In 1981, 1984, and 1986, Bird and colleagues Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, and Dennis Johnson helped the Boston Celtics win three NBA titles.

The decade was characterized by the rivalry between Magic Johnson's Los Angeles Lakers and Bird's Boston Celtics, which produced some of the most unforgettable moments in NBA history. One of the most memorable series in sports history is the Celtics' 1984 Finals triumph over the Lakers, which highlighted the skill and ferocity of both clubs.

Obstacles and Reconstruction The Celtics had to rebuild and overcome obstacles after the Bird era. The squad struggled to relive the glories of past decades, and the 1990s were characterized by ups and downs. The Celtics frequently found themselves losing in the fiercely competitive Eastern Conference, even with the efforts of well-known players like Paul Pierce.

The new year, nevertheless, offered hope all over again. A new era of competition was heralded in 2007 with the addition of coach Doc Rivers and the creation of the "Big Three" (Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen). With the help of a potent supporting group, this trio helped the Celtics win their 17th NBA title in 2008, defeating the Lakers in the Finals and rekindling the storied rivalry.

The Contemporary Period The Celtics have remained a formidable force in the NBA in recent years, often qualifying for the postseason and assembling a roster that strikes a mix between youthful talent and seasoned veterans. The Celtics have gained a reputation for their tenacious defense and team mentality under head coach Brad Stevens' direction.

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are two important players from the present period who have become stars in the NBA. The team's future is represented by Tatum, who is renowned for his flexibility and scoring prowess, and Brown, who is praised for his athleticism and defensive prowess. Their growth and leadership are essential to the Celtics' continued championship aspirations.

The Legacy and Culture of the Celtics The Boston Celtics are more than just a basketball team; they represent quality and heritage in the league. The "Celtic Pride" ethos, which is defined by a dedication to hard effort, teamwork, and selfless play, has been a defining feature of the brand from its beginning. This culture has been inherited by players and coaches over many generations, leaving a lasting legacy that motivates supporters and aspiring athletes.

Notable is the Celtics' commitment to their community. Positive effects are seen off the court as a result of the team's and its players' active participation in several community service projects and humanitarian endeavors. The Celtics' dedication to give back further strengthens their bond with their devoted fan base and upholds the principles that the team was founded on.

Gazing Forward The Celtics' objective is still the same as they look to the future: adding more titles to their already impressive record. The squad is ready to play at the greatest level thanks to a mix of young, talented players and seasoned veterans. Achieving this objective will require a combination of wise additions, great leadership, and players like Brown and Tatum continuing to improve.

As the Boston Celtics continue to progress toward greatness, their supporters have plenty to cheer about. It is a source of pride and a constant reminder of the high standards associated with donning the Celtics jersey because of the franchise's storied heritage. The Celtics take the hopes of their supporters and the legacies of their predecessors with them as they pursue greatness on the court.

[celtic-cd-releases]

https://oliviabradleymusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/OliviaBradleyMusic

https://oliviabradleymusic.bandcamp.com/

https://open.spotify.com/album/0n5H7PE4akTefCYoj4XN5q

[andersonmastronelli]

Unlocking the Beauty of Hairstyles: A Guide to Ladies Hairstyles

When it comes to exploring the world of hairstyles, one country that stands out for its unique and elegant hair trends is Ireland. 

In this blog, we'll delve into the captivating world of Ireland hairstyles, specifically focusing on ladies' hairstyles. Whether you're a local looking for inspiration or a curious traveler, let's unlock the beauty of Ireland's ladies' hairstyles.

1. The Celtic Knot Braid

One of the most iconic Irish hairstyles is the Celtic Knot Braid. This intricate style is a symbol of Ireland's rich heritage, and it's favored by ladies of all ages. It's a versatile choice for everyday wear or special occasions. The Celtic Knot Braid embodies the spirit of Irish beauty and charm.

2. The Wild and Windy Look

Ireland's climate can be a bit unpredictable, but the ladies have embraced it with their own signature style. The 'Wild and Windy' look is all about embracing your natural texture and letting the wind do its thing. It's a beautifully carefree style that captures the essence of Irish freedom.

3. Romantic Wavy Locks

If you're looking for a romantic look, Anderson Mastronelli has mastered the art of creating waves that seem to dance in the Irish mist. This style is perfect for any occasion, from casual outings to weddings. It's an effortless yet captivating choice.

4. The Shamrock Bun

The shamrock is an iconic Irish symbol, and it's beautifully incorporated into hairstyles. The Shamrock Bun involves creating a bun that resembles the three-leafed shamrock. It's a unique way to pay homage to Ireland and look elegant at the same time.

5. The Claddagh Twist

The Claddagh is a symbol of love, loyalty, and friendship. It's often worn as jewelry, we have ingeniously incorporated it into their hairstyles as well. The Claddagh Twist involves twisting your hair into a beautiful knot that represents the Claddagh symbol.

6. The Connemara Ponytail

In Ireland, ponies are not just for riding; they're also an inspiration for hairstyles. The Connemara Ponytail is a high ponytail with volume and bounce, inspired by the elegant manes of the Connemara ponies that roam the Irish countryside.

7. The Emerald Elegance Updo

Green is the color of Ireland, and the Emerald Elegance Updo pays homage to this beautiful nation. This updo is characterized by intricate braids and twists that create an elegant yet relaxed look.

Conclusion

So, whether you're an Irish local or a visitor, embracing Ireland's ladies' hairstyles is a wonderful way to connect with this captivating culture. The Celtic Knot Braid, Wild and Windy Look, Romantic Wavy Locks, Shamrock Bun, Claddagh Twist, Connemara Ponytail, and Emerald Elegance Updo are just a few of the styles that showcase the beauty of Ireland's ladies' hairstyles, and they're sure to leave you feeling both elegant and connected to this enchanting land.

[a-little-slice-of-fandom]

That's a pretty horrendous thing to say that immigrants shouldn't feel prideful of their culture or identity. I have friends who have never had the chance to know their culture. so when they find out they have irish ancestry, they aren't allowed to feel prideful or happy about that? Once a person immigrates, that's the end of their culture? how can you be diaspora but also not be allowed to leave your country and still be irish?

(Firstly I just want to clarify: I can only speak on Ireland and Irish issues, not issues relating to other cultures and other nationalities. I want to make that abundantly clear)

I never said that you can’t feel proud of your Irish heritage, in fact if you’d bothered to check my blog you’d see that I’ve said in other posts that I’m more than happy for people to look into their heritage. And even if you don’t have any Irish ancestory, you’re more than welcome to share in our culture and events! Irish culture is such a beautiful thing that was nearly killed off (the Irish language literally had to be revived) so I’m always super happy to see people celebrating Ireland.

But I think people (and I am so sorry but it’s usually Americans) don’t understand that there is a massive difference between having Irish ancestory and being interested in the history and the legacy that comes with that ancestory and heritage (which is totally fine and encouraged), and actively claiming that you are Irish because of a tenuous connection to Ireland at best.

If you immigrated from Ireland then you are totally Irish, no ifs ands or buts. And if you’re first, second or third generation Irish then no one is going to give you shit for saying that you’re Irish. In fact, go for it! You’re probably even entitled to an Irish passport which are like gold dust in today’s political climate. Immigration absolutely does not mean that you cut all ties with Ireland. I speak as someone who has family who live/lived in Australia.

However, that’s not what I was talking about. I was talking about the “Irish” folks in America who go around telling everyone that they’re Irish, just because they had one relative who immigrated due to the famine...which took place nearly 200 years ago. At that point, the cultural connection to Ireland (which is way more important than any blood nationalism crap that I’ve been seeing a lot of) is lost! And I’m being 100 percent honest, if you said to anyone living in Irish that you are Irish because of an incredibly strenuous connection...you would get laughed at! It’s literally a running joke in Ireland that Americans always find the smallest connection to being Irish and run with it. It’s a bit like if I found out that one of my great great great grandparents was from Sweden and started claiming I was descended from Viking blood. Now, the Vikings are an incredibly interesting bunch that I enjoy learning about immensely...but if I started saying I was Swedish or a Viking I’d probably get some strange looks.

And that actually links into a massive issue with these people who claim that they’re Irish through dubious connections, usually because they use these connections to justify systemic racism (usually under the guise of “we pulled ourselves up by the bootstraps” while completely ignoring all their anti-African American practices that they used to be accepted within the Anglo-American sphere of influence and the fact that Ireland as a county actually has a lot of ties to Native American tribes through shared hardship and the generosity of the native Americans during the Irish famine). There’s even been instances of Irish POC being told they’re somehow less Irish than white Americans...even though the former had lived in Ireland their entire lives and had grown up in the culture while the other just had great great great grandparents who had immigrated 200 years ago! And it’s also pretty concerning that a lot of these people who claim Irish blood and who are so proud of this Irish ancestors are also right wing neo-nazis, so much so that the Celtic cross, something incredibly important to Ireland, can be a dog whistle for these groups! So yeah, excuse me if the entirety of Ireland doesn’t want to be associated with that lot!

There’s also this horrendous article of an “Irish American” who said it was okay to culturally appropriate different cultures because isn’t Saint Patrick’s day cultural appropriation? It’s not by the way, it’s cultural appreciation. And also that author literally said he didn’t know where his Irish ancestory came from, he just had an Irish second name but still calls himself Irish...but his second name is actually Scottish. If you want to make your blood boil read this article.

Also there’s the total misconception of what Irish culture even is by these groups of people. Despite what many like to believe...Irish culture is way more than just getting hammered on Saint Paddy’s day and dying a river green. Irish culture is actually really beautiful - particularly Irish mythology which is my main area of interest. It’s so much more than what people talk about and it’s actually super sad it gets misunderstood.

I’m going to be really honest...people living in Ireland actively distance themselves from these eejits because we hate how they completely go against what we would consider Irish values. If right wing, conservative Irish Americans heard the Irish presidents Saint Patrick’s day speech...they’d probably start foaming at the mouth because it was overwhelmingly socialist and pro immigration!

Again, that’s not to say that these people who have one relative who came over to American from the Irish famine can’t be proud of their heritage or take interest in the Irish culture. In fact, everyone, regardless of their ancestory, is welcome to take part in our culture and celebrations and to learn about Irish history. But actively saying that they are “Irish”, not just “Irish American” but fully “Irish” are eejits, and I refuse to sugarcoat that.

[the-fox-jawed-witch]

Fairies aka The Fae

Belief in the fae are universal and go back to ancient times and vary in orgin. Celtic Fairy lore is the most common.

In Irish lore the fae are descended from the Tuatha de Danaan, the early inhabitants of Ireland. When the Mil invaded the Tuatha de Danaan used supernatural powers to become invisible and retreat to the hills. From them the gods, demigods, heros and fairies arose.

Other orgins clain that fairies are:

Souls of the unbaptized and pagan dead that are trapped between heaven and earth.

Guardians of the dead, living in the other world that exists between the living and the dead.

Ancestral Ghosts

Fallen angels (Cast from Heaven with Lucifer)

Nature Spirits

Supernatural shape-shifting creatures

Small human beings

Extraterrestrials

Many lores claim that the fae are invisible to most people save those who are clairvoyant. They are best seen at dusk. The Fae however do not like to be seen and some lore tells that if seen by a person the fae will punish the person.

If the fae decide to show themselves they may even give gifts of clairvoyance or even healing to the person seeing them.

Fairies are often described as little human like creatures with wings. They can be monstrous looking or beautiful. They can be shape shifters and can shift into which ever form they see fit.

In Ireland lore the fae most likely will take the form of black birds, crows in particular. In French lore they take the forms of magpies.

Some fairies prefer solitary, like Leprechauns, but others live in races and nations. Their homes are in the earth and can be accessed through mounds, burrows, caves and under piles of stones and rocks. However, you must not disturb these or else you'll envoke the wratg of the fae.

The land of the Fairy, or known as Elfland has characteristics similar to that of the land of the dead. Time is altered so that a day in the human world could be years in Elfland, there is no day or night but endless twilight.

Some lore tellings say that the fae kidnap children, or beautiful women to be their wives. The eating or drinking if fae food is considered taboo as it can alter the person in different ways. As discussed many of these lores believe fairies to be evil and tricksters though not all lores agree with that statement.

Some examples of good fairies are house brownies that will help with chores as long as they are being respected and left an offering. Once an offering is left for the fae it may not be consumed by human or beast.

Fairies are believed to have magical abilities and can bewitch humans into animals or other earthly things, if the fairies are spited to do so that is. Fairies, if displeased or insulted may even take their anger out on crops and spoiling milk.

Fairies occasionally leave offerings to the people nearby. Some lore believes that taking the offerings means that you are indebted to the fae and suggest that you kindly decline. However the option is up to you. If you wish to keep the fae away keep Iron on you and in your home.

[likestvrlight]

& we are the savage villains in fairy tales told to children . am i not the monster that your parents warned you about ?

tw for: murder , violence , mentions of eating human flesh , piracy , stealing , poison , death , rape

template & psd by goodvibesrph

name ; regula tisiphone age ; 2000+ birthday ; unknown nationality ; none species ; unseelie gender ; female orientation ; bisexual & biromantic occupation ; pirate , mother home ; il fiore della morte accent ; italian ( originally irish but her first crew was mostly italians and she picked up the accent once she spent more time speaking italian ) languages ; italian , celtic , english , welsh , scottish , spanish , french height ; tbd

BIOGRAPHY ;

tisiphone was born on the coast of ireland , while her unseelie mother was travelling away from her home. her mother was attacked by a group of hunters , and did not survive due to her attempts to save both herself and her daughter . the child fled , and was discovered by a pod of mermaids who lived nearby . they did not know where the entrance to the unseelie lands was , since regula was barely old enough to remember her name , so they took her in , raised her on the small island they lived near . they were aware of her true name , and were the ones to call her regula , to protect her .

   when she was barely twenty , she befriended a human . she fell in love with him , and he claimed to love her in return . he spent months convincing her of his love , and showed her around his town . he sang to her and played music . they made plans to travel together , after they married . and they did . the ceremony was beautiful , and then he convinced her to show him where her family was . she showed him the small , unmapped island she lived on , and in return , he brought ships and tried to capture her sisters . the whole pod was killed that day , and regula made sure that he did not survive either . 

   not too long after , she befriended a small group of sirens and began to help them to lure sailors and land men to their dooms , all as revenge for what her lover had done to her home and family . she blamed humans for her family’s deaths . it didn’t matter that it was the small group that her dead lover had convinced . they helped her in her revenge , she helped them by providing human flesh to keep them beautiful . 

   for the three hundred years following, she travelled along the coastlines of europe , leaving a trail of dead as she went . she remained friends with the pod of sirens , even as those she’d met initially eventually died of old age .

   when she was around 350 , she came across a pirate ship , il fiore della morte . the crew were cruel , the captain even crueler . they were a mix of vampires and humans and captured regula , made plans to use her . she saw the pitying looks from the cabin boys , when she was brought on board , gagged and bound . they discovered what she was when they discovered her ripping out the throat of the first crew member to try to bed her , despite being bound .

   after that , they tied a cloth around her head , and sewed her lips shut around it . she spent months aboard that ship , used by cruel crew members and the captain . in that time , when she wasn’t being used , she befriended the cabin boys , kaspar and william , who were treated similarly . they became close friends .

   will was much younger , barely even an adult in human terms , and kaspar was a demon , bound by a spell the captain had bought from a witch . they plotted to destroy the captain and his crew , to escape . they succeeded — they poisoned the crew , and when will was requested to bring the captain his meal , they poisoned the captain as well . but when he discovered what had been done , he ran the child through while he ran from his cabin . the captain fell at regula’s feet , dead , and she and kaspar hauled him and every crew member overboard . kaspar removed the gag and string from regula’s mouth , and then they buried will in ireland , on the island regula grew up on . they left quickly , intending to abandon the ship but not wanting to leave it so close to where they’d actually dumped the crew , so they fled to italy , where its original crew was from . 

   once they broke kaspar’s curse , they’d intended to leave the ship and italy behind , when they found a group of girls , held and forced into prostitution by their greedy mistress . they saved them , brought them back on the ship they’d stolen . they dropped most off to safety , and the rest remained as their crew by choice . 

   they became pirates , taking what they could and killing those who stood in their way . one of the girls they’d originally rescued , a human named nina , became regula’s first relationship since leaving ireland when she was young . she loved her , kept her by her side until she died when she was in her seventies . 

   as they grew older , kaspar and regula’s crew changed , and they began taking in some supernatural , though save for kaspar , the whole crew was made up of women . when the girls chose to retire or leave , they were left with enough to last them a lifetime and more , so they could take care of their families , in exchange for keeping regula and kaspar’s identities a secret . 

   regula left the crow for a time in the 1700s , after they were attacked . they won , as always , but her current lover , marlene , was killed . so she took a break . she pulled heists in london with a small group of friends for a while , and then met up with the ship in the caribbean . 

   she didn’t stray again until 1830 , when she stopped in florida and made her way up the coast . she ended up in new york where she befriended a human . they came to an agreement . he kept her safe , kept her secrets . she took out his enemies . while others could guess it was him , they could never prove anything , because he was always publicly visible somewhere else .

   when he died , she promised to check back in on his family every so often to make sure they’re doing well , and when they aren’t , she steps in and pushes them in the right direction . but she returned to her ship after his death , welcomed back by kaspar and her girls with open arms .

   at some point , they’d become a ghost ship to the humans and supernatural alike . unless a part of the crew , no one lived to tell the tale of what they’d seen on regula’s ship . but when they stopped back in new york again in the beginning of 2020 , regula and kaspar discovered that her old friend’s family was not , in fact , doing well . in fact , they’d dissolved into chaos . samuel orsini had married a seelie , and then betrayed her and gambled away everything regula had given his father . and then he’d turned himself into a demon in a debt to another demon he’d crossed , all before his children were born .

   the unseelie was furious . she let him live , but only because he was the descendant of her friend . rather than give him the cash to look after his family , his seelie wife — who had fallen in love when her husband was still human — begged regula to help her out of the marriage . she took them with her , but while they were trying to escape , he came after them . he killed his wife in his attempt to stop them leaving , and regula killed him for that . she took his infant children with her , and shortly after , she and kaspar were forced into the seelie realm . 

now , back in new york , she has a one-year-old and a two-year-old , zita and giada , and no experience with children . but they’re close enough to the ocean , and she has the help of her crew ... sort of . because of the children , she won’t return to sea , and the crew has opted to remain near her , rather than risk anything happening to her while she’s stuck on land .

CONNECTIONS ;

crew members

kaspar (her first mate)

those who knew samuel orsini and/or his wife

those who knew samuel’s ancestors maybe ?

friends

enemies

exes

[stardomyx]

blindbrilliance replied to your post “Hetalia people!”

Alfred is HP Lovecrafts inspiration.

Similarly, JRR Tolkien based his elves off of Arthur. You know how he always vaguely describes his elves except for constantly repeating how tall, beautiful, and tragic they are? How their immortality is a curse and a blessing? How humans are lucky to have the gift of a short life? That's the APH Nation vibe all the way through. Maybe Tolkien was one of the few who knew the secrets of the nations.

What about hivemind nations? In extreme points in history we've seen countries and the people within become almost a single entity, all driven by one unknowable force.

Nations can permanently scar each other, but they can do much more than that if given the chance. They drastically slow and disable their kin by cannibalizing them. When one nation gains victory over another after a great war, perhaps they display their power and dominance by consuming the other. The consumed will grow back of course, it just takes a while.

You know how Germany's land was divided into east and west at the end of the war? It wasn't just his land that was split in half, and larger than life superpower nations like America and Russia tend to work up quite the appetite after being at war for long periods of time.

All nations have excellent hearing. Not just for sounds in the present, but in the past as well. America hears old Native American chants no matter he goes, China is so old that he hears languages that were only ever scraped out on cave walls, and  ancient Celtic lullabies will lull Arthur to sleep. Norway is sometimes deafened by long melted glaciers grinding over his land, and Russia is still serenaded to the customary firing of three hundred canons to announce the birth of a future Tsar.

Oops I got carried away and just dumped all my headcanon trash in here, not just the stuff about how the Nations look

OP I just want to say that I absolutely adore this, and I’m sorry that it’s taken me so long to get back to you, I’ve been in a bit of a slump motivation-wise for a few days, but I’m starting to get back into the swing of things now.

Firstly I really want to touch on your points about Nations being inspirations to various writers, because not only are they amazing and absolutely something that would happen, but a long time ago I had a post in the works ft @hrharthurkirkland that revolved around how Nations inspired fashion. Mainly how Arthur unintentionally shaped the more ridiculous aspects of Tudor fashion.

-

We never finished it, but I feel like I could quickly plug at least the concept here, I’ll try to keep it short but:

In a nutshell: My body headcanon for Arthur may have ended up contributing to quite a few fashion trends, mainly the fashion trends seen throughout Tudor England and into the Elizabethan era too kind of. If any of you have ever looked at Tudor fashion before, you’ll notice that it looks pretty silly with their clinched waists and their horrendously padded out calves. But what if the reason why it all looks so strange and unnatural was because they were trying to mimic the body of something – or in this case someone – that wasn’t human. Enter: Arthur Kirkland, with his tiny waist, weird skin tone, jacked teeth and numerous other delightful qualities that would’ve stood out about him back then.

I need to draw up and post my body headcanon for Arthur, but if you look at Tudor fashion and how weird they all look, that’s my body hc for him. He just naturally looks like that, and that signature Tudor Look was because - well - who better to take inspiration from looks wise, than the dang Country himself.

So your little tidbit at the beginning about humans taking inspiration from the ways Representatives look and present themselves really took me back to that post that never was, so thank you!

-

CAN I SAY. THE HIVEMIND CONCEPT? Y e s. Please do elaborate on that because it’s something I haven’t really considered before OOF. Nations probably would resort to things like that when it comes to battle, which is why I also love your idea that they can straight up munch on one another?? Oof, that’s something I’ve discussed again with hrharthurkirkland but really that’s more up their alley than mine. I’ll leave this open for them to comment on since they know a bit more about it than me. Also since your example involves Ludwig, they’re bound to be all over this post like a rash.

And lastly YESS to their hearing being enhanced. Myself and others have also talked briefly about sounds like that being present in their voices when they shout. Nations have a v e r y impressive set of vocal chords and can scream down anything should they want to, and in that scream you probably would be able to hear things like cannon fire, the grinding of glaciers and the pounding of guns. Plus the little nod to them all taking comfort in listening to the past is,,, lovely.

I’m sorry if I didn’t cover all of your points, but please do know that I’ll be sticking this post in my save tag, please and thankyeuh.

[hms-chill]

RWRB Study Guide, Chapter 8

Hi y’all! I’m going through Casey McQuiston’s Red, White & Royal Blue and defining/explaining references! Feel free to follow along, or block the tag #rwrbStudyGuide if you’re not interested!

James I (203): James I/VI (First of England, Sixth of Scotland) is known for both translating the Bible and being just... so, so incredibly gay. The book mentions that he promoted a dumb jock to gentleman of the bedchamber, but it leaves out that 13-year-old James would just make out with dudes in public, and that the dumb jock (George Villers) was James’s third serious adult relationship. His friends introduced him to George because his last boyfriend was bad for the kingdom. 

George Eliot (205): Mary Anne Evans wrote under the pen name George Eliot to escape the stereotype that women could only write romances. She wrote seven novels, of which Middlemarch is the most famous, known for their realism and psychological insight.

Daniel Defoe (205): A pioneer of the English novel, Defoe wrote Robinson Crusoe as well as a series of divisive political pamphlets and tracts.

Jonathan Swift (205): Irish political writer most famous for A Modest Proposal, a satirical piece that suggests cannibalism of infants as a more humane response to the British treatment of Ireland than letting them grow to starve in adulthood.

Dickens... “woman who languishes away in a crumbling mansion wearing her wedding gown” (205): Charles Dickens wrote stories concerned with the lower classes. This quote in particular refers to Miss Havisham from Great Expectations, who was left at the altar and refused to take off her wedding dress or even put away the food set out for the wedding.

Sense and Sensibility (205): This is probably Austen’s second most popular novel (after Pride and Prejudice); it follows the four Dashwood women in their move to a new home following the death of Mr. Dashwood. Like most of Austen’s novels, the opinionated narrator follows the women through a series of romantic mishaps, culminating in a happy ending.

Green American Money (206): Fun fact, British money is blue and orange and purple and all sorts of fun colors! It also all looks different, because (at least in Scotland) four banks are allowed to print pound notes, so there are four different designs all in circulation.

Sean Hannity (206): A conservative American political commentator.

Harvard rowing (206): Rowing is like... the bougiest of sports.

Pleiad (206): In Greek mythology, the pleiades were the daughters of the titan Atlas who became stars following his entrapment under the earth. They are remembered for their beauty and loyalty. Myths of the missing pleiad explain why only six of the seven stars are visible to the naked eye. According to some sources, the missing pleiad is Merope, who was shamed out of the sky for her relationship with a mortal.

Minute Maid Park (206): The baseball stadium associated with the Houston Astros baseball team; it seats just over 41,000.

Politico (207): An American political opinion news source.

Drop-kick Murphys (208): An American Celtic punk band. (listen here and here)

The Klan (209): The Ku Klux Klan, an incredibly racist organization that has been responsible for the lynching of thousands of people of color.

Kim Nam-June (210): Kim Nam-Joon, known as RM or Rap Monster, is the leader and rapper of the K-pop group BTS.

Milwaukee (211): The largest city in and main cultural center of Wisconsin, which is a “swing state”, meaning that it could go either way politically in a national election.

Seth Meyers (211): An American talk show host and comedian whose creatively titled show, Late Night with Seth Meyers, is liberal-leaning. He hosts celebrities and often chats about politics or the news.

Clear Crystal Quartz (211): Apparently the most “iconic” crystal, it is believed to be able to help with clarity and the achievement of goals.

Wimbledon (213): The oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious.

Royal Box (213): The royal box at Wimbledon is a section of the best seats, reserved for royalty and specially invited celebrity/politically powerful guests.

David Beckham (213): A former professional soccer player and current fashion icon known for being hot and wearing nice suits.

McQueen (214): Alexander McQueen was an openly gay British fashion designer who rose from a lower class background to become one of the most famous designers in the world. Though he died in 2010, his brand continues to be known for unconventional fashion shows and theatrical imagery. 

Dashikis (215): A colorful, ornate piece of clothing somewhere between a shirt and a tunic originally from West Africa.

Orangery (218): A very large greenhouse or conservatory designed for growing orange trees.

Woman at her Toilet (218): This painting shows a woman in her bedroom putting on her socks with a little dog next to her; you can see it here.

Baroque bed* (218): Baroque art was designed to show off a monarch’s power; it is incredibly extravagant (Versailles is pretty much the iconic Baroque thing; you can see more about it here).

The Killers (219): An American rock band formed in the early 2000s and known for having donated over $1 million to charity (they did “Mr. Brightside”). (listen here and here). According to McQuinston’s twitter, the song Henry plays is “When You Were Young”, which you can listen to here.

Dred Scott (219): In the 1857 Dred Scott v. Sandford case, the US supreme court ruled that the constitution did not extend to or protect Black folks. 

Nina Simone (219): An American singer/songwriter/political activist whose music spanned a variety of genres and whose activism focused largely on the civil rights movement and was largely influenced by her “friend” Lorraine Hansberry, a Black lesbian playwright. (You know Hozier’s “Nina Cried Power”? She’s Nina) (listen here and here)

Otis Redding (219): Considered one of the greatest singers in American pop music and was one of the foundational soul artists in the US. (listen here and here)

Brahms (219): A German composer known for sticking to more classical forms of music while his contemporaries often leaned toward more dramatic or opulent styles. (listen here and here)

Wagner** (219): A German composer who wrote both the music and the librettos for his operas; his works tend to be very complex, and he has been credited with beginning modern music. (listen here and here)

Romantic (219): Artistically, the Romantic movement was a direct response to industrialization that called for a return to and celebration of nature. Queerness was very much a part of this movement, as it was seen as a return to or celebration of one’s natural state (think Byron).

War of the Romantics (219): A music history term used to describe the split between conservative composers like Brahms who wanted to stick with the Baroque, opulent styles of the past century and radical progressive composers like Liszt, who favored newer styles that blended music with narrative and morals.

Liszt (219): A Hungarian composer known for a diverse body of work and his position as the leader of the radical progressive group in the War of the Romantics. (listen here and here)

Alexander Scriabin (219): Russian composer known for his atonal or dissonant music. (listen to the piece Henry mentions here)

Elton John’s “Your Song” (219): A song written before Elton John came out, but with his queerness in mind. In a 2013 interview, John referred to it as “a perfect song”, and that the lyrics (written by Bernie Taupin) got even better as he got older and sang it more. (listen here)

Consecrated (220): made holy.

DNC (221): The Democratic national conference, when members of the Democratic (liberal) party get together to prepare for a presidential race.

College Republicans of Vanderbilt University (221): Vanderbilt University is a private (and therefore more expensive) school in Nashville, Tennessee. Its location in the South and its price tag would both mark it as being more conservative.

Cage match (221): A type of wrestling match that takes place inside a steel cage; the most common way of winning is by escaping the cage, usually by climbing over the top.

Paul Ryan (222): A conservative retired politician and former Speaker of the House.

The Second Amendment (222): The second amendment grants Americans the right to bear arms (have guns).

Salon (222): An American news and opinion website with a politically liberal editorial stance.

Air Force One (222): the president’s plane

“My Canadian girlfriend” (223): A running joke that someone (often a high schooler) whose partner goes to another school or lives somewhere else is made up.

Five Guys (225): Five Guys Burger and Fries is a popular fast food burger chain across the US.

Vampire Weekend (225): An American indie rock band.

The general (226): the general election in November, when Americans would vote for their president

Plainclothes (226): out of uniform

The Beekman (226): A very fancy hotel in Lower Manhattan, near the Brooklyn Bridge.

NATO (233): the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; an intergovernmental military alliance between 29 North American and European countries.

----

*every time I read this, I flinch just a little bit. Baroque architecture is just... so much, and the concept of a Baroque bed when beds/bedrooms are supposed to be simple to help you rest... It’s just so much and I hate it with all of my being. I’m sorry if you like Baroque furniture, but especially for Henry, who dreams of a simple life where he can just write and be anonymous... It’s a big yikes.

** Literally no one asked, but his stuff is just... it’s so boring? Like I’m sure it’s great to fall asleep to or calm down to, but I tried to listen to it while I wrote this and I just couldn’t. Liszt is better, but he’s no Mozart. Also? Mozart wrote BOPS. ONLY. “The Birdcatcher’s Song” slaps and no one can change my mind on that.

----

If there’s anything I missed or that you’d like more on, please let me know! And if you’d like to/are able, please consider buying me a ko-fi? I know not everyone can, and that’s fine, but these things take a lot of time/work and I’d really appreciate it!

—–-

Chapter 1 // Chapter 7 // Chapter 9

[kathyprior4200]

The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno

(What it says on the back)

 “You poor sack of former human skin and sin. You died and are stuck in Hell. Now what? Fear not, for in this book, you shall find the answers to seek on what you need to know to survive the inferno. You’ll learn how to stay safe and entertain yourself during the Extermination. You’ll get a sneak peek on the origins of voodoo, radio, and Jambalaya. And as for becoming a better person and getting out of this mess? You’re probably stuck here forever until you die again, but this book will provide you with handy information and a much needed cure for your boredom!”

 *Includes a free pamphlet for the Hazbin Hotel and how to tune in to 66.6 FM.*

 About the author: Alastor “Hazbin” Cajun was born January 24, 1896 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He died in 1933 and is now one of the most powerful demons Hell has ever seen. In his spare time, he loves broadcasting his murders on the radio, cooking meals, making dolls, and performing. As of 2020, he is 87 years old in Hell and 124 years chronologically. However, his friend princess Charlie is 200 + years old, despite having the appearance of a teenager!”

  This is a story of a book, a book called “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno”--not an Earth book, never published on Earth, and until the Exterminations occurred, no Earthling has ever heard of it.

 It is a remarkable book in Hell, though.

 It is highly successful, written by the one and only Radio Demon Alastor. It’s more successful than Angel Dust’s “Guns, and Poses: Turf Wars in Style,” “Lust is a Must,” and “Being Gay in a World of Macho Sinners.” Unfortunately for the following authors, Charlie Magne’s book “Rainbows Inside Everyone” remains one of the lowest ranked books along with Vaggie’s “Men Are Pigs.”

 Alastor got his book revised by his associate Niffty and published by Husk (after bribing him with money and booze. Niffty had to help him with the publishing process and stop him from using his money to bet on who would win the local Hellhound races.) Alastor hopes that his book will soon topple Hell’s number one bestseller from the king of Hell: Lucifer Magne’s “Fall From Grace.”

  It has many passages that may be inaccurate, and it does warn the reader never to cross said Radio Demon, unless they’re curious about what their organs look like from the outside.

 The majority of this story is broadcasted on radio, for if all the info were piled in a book, it’d take several leagues of demons to carry it.

 There are many benefits to this book. This book is slightly cheaper than Angel Dust’s works and it has the word “Smile!” written in large friendly letters on the cover. In an old fashioned TV is the number 66, the meaning of life in Hell.

   Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Jambalaya: (Page 14)

“Jambalaya is a traditional dish that originated in Louisiana in the 18th century. The dish was a result of attempts to make a variation of paella for Spanish colonists. Although the recipe was adapted by the Spanish, but Senegalese slaves brought the knowledge of rice cultivation form West Africa. German immigrants brought their secrets of sausage making to Cajun country. And one can’t forget the influence of French and Native Americans, whom contributed more flavor. (meaning they likely added peppers and seasoning, not their own flesh).

 “Jambalaya consists of rice, sausage, shrimp, and a variety of vegetables mixed together in a tasty gumbo. The “holy trinity” mixture consists of diced onion, celery, and bell peppers, a necessity for flavor in regards to the traditional method.

 Common meats used are smoked pork sausage, paired with chicken, though diced ham, shrimp, crabmeat or crawfish can also be added.

 There are two main types of Jambalaya: Red Jambalaya, also known as Creole Jambalaya, due to the use of red tomatoes and Brown Jambalaya, more often used in Cajun country. Both are equally tasty.

 Jambalaya is a rice dish, thus it is not a gumbo nor is it etouffee. Gumbo is more like soup and etouffee is more like a stew.

 Fun Fact: hunting is a beloved pastime in south Louisiana. It’s not uncommon for hunters to add game like duck, pheasant, and venison to their Jambalaya recipe. (Venison is my personal favorite, especially after a good hunt.) If you really want to go bold, feel free to add small slices of human meat to create a unique lighter pork flavor.)

 Do be warned: Jambalaya is no simple dish to make at times. It is a bad idea to add gunpowder and or wasabi to the dish. Doing so will likely result in the dish exploding in your poor mother’s face. Indeed, my mother’s recipe nearly killed her when she drank too much Southern Comfort Whisky ™ and decided that adding gunpowder was a great idea. Her face was burnt badly afterwards and there may have been a few slabs of her dark skin that fell into the dish. When I tasted it, the kick was straight outta Hell! The spice and chaotic spin of flavor…fantastic!”

 Here’s how to make it in a nutshell: brown your meat, sautee your vegetables, add rice, add liquid bring to a boil, stir, reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes. Add them all together.

For full instructions, see the next page.

For instructions on how to hunt deer, see page 20.”

  Reference:

McCormick, “Jambalaya Recipes, History, and FAQs.”

https://www.mccormick.com/zatarains/jambalaya

  Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Voodoo, Hoodoo and dark magic (Page 177)

“According to Benjamin Radford, Voodoo is a pop-culture subpart of Voudon, an Afro-Caribbean religion that originated in Haiti. Followers can be found all over the world, including the United States. Leslie Desmangles, Haitian professor at Hartford’s Trinity College describes Voodoo as a system of ethics, stories, songs, proverbs, and folklore that is passed down through generations. It is an elaborate folk medical practice system and to her, it is a way of life. (“The Encyclopedia of the Paranormal” Prometheus Books, 1996.)

 In Voodoo belief, Bondye is the unknowable and the supreme creator God. Voudon emphasizes the worship of spirits called Loa, each one who represents a different aspect of life. Loas can help or impede human affairs by possessing the bodies of their worshippers. They can be good or bad or anywhere in between, so it’s best to always treat them with respect and leave proper offerings (not human sacrifice but more like animals, plants, gems etc.) Spiritual possession in Christianity is considered to be evil, but not in Voudon. In a ceremony guided by a priest or priestess, a connection to the spirit world and the ancestors is said to be an invaluable experience. Many practitioners believe in reincarnation.

 Voodoo deities are as follows:

   Loa Nations:

Rada – (creation, orderly, beneficial, water spirits)

Petro – (destruction, aggressive, warlike, New World)

Ghede – (spirits of the dead, loud, rude fun family, eating glass and hot peppers)

Kongo – Marinette, Simbi (water serpents, plants, poisons)

Nago – Ogoun –Loa of craftsmen, metalwork

  Deities:

 Bondye: The creator god in the Voodoo religion and the loa answer to him. The loa serve as intermediaries between man and Bondye.

 Papa Legba:  Sun god Loa associated with the crossroads and serves as an intermediary between man and the spirit world. In some places, he is seen as a fertility god, portrayed with a large erect phallus. In other customs, he is a trickster, or he may be a protector of children. He is associated with red and black, portrayed as an old man with a straw hat accompanied by a dog. He is always the first god to be invoked in ceremonies.

 Kalfu: moon god and ruler of the night. Patron deity of sorcerers, and those who practice black magic. He rules bad luck, destruction, and injustices. His favorite drink is rum laced with gunpowder. He is often seen as a darker version of Papa Legba.

 Maman Brigitte: Loa associated with death and the underworld. She is the consort of Baron Samedi and is often represented by a black rooster. She is also considered a goddess of justice. Rum and hot peppers are her favorite diet.

Maman Brigitte is portrayed as a light-skinned woman with red hair, it is said that she could be descended from Brigid, the Celtic goddess of the hearth fires and domestic life.

 Baron Samedi: Husband of Maman Brigitte, Baron Samedi is the god of death and is both respected and feared as the keeper of cemeteries. He often appears skeletal, wearing a top hat and formal tails and dark glasses. He is also a god of resurrection; only he can welcome a soul to the realm of the dead.

He is known for lewd behavior, swearing, and mating with other women. He is connected to powerful acts of magic and is the leader of the Guede, the family of loa who work with the dead.

 Erzulie: goddess of beauty and love, epitome of femininity and womanhood. She represents the cosmic womb in which divinity and humanity are conceived. Erzulie often grieves that which she cannot obtain, and sometimes leaves a ceremony weeping. She is sometimes represented as a black Madonna and other times as an upper class woman in fine clothing and jewelry.

Her three husbands are the war god Ogun, the sea god Agwe and Damballah. Erzulie feels sadness due to the broken hearts of humans.

 Loco: The god of wild vegetation, herbs and fruits for killing or healing. He is also the patron deity of doctors and Voodoo priests. His wife is the market goddess Ayzian (also deity of Voodoo priestesses).

 Shango: God of fire, judge, fighter, symbolized by double-axe or ram’s horn.

 Ogun: War god Loa associated with blacksmiths, warriors, and justice. Practitioners call upon Ogun for matters related to war and conflict and likes offerings of male roosters and dogs. He is symbolized by an iron knife or machete and has a fondness for pretty women and rum.

Ogun stood as Ghede Nibo’s godfather and adopted him.

 Oya: goddess of wind, fire, sea, nature and sudden change.

 Damballah: The creator of gods and humanity who helped Bondye make the cosmos and is represented by a giant serpent. His coils shaped the heavens and earth and he is the keeper of knowledge, wisdom, and healing magic. Damballah looks after the crippled, albinos, and children. Erzulie is his consort. He loves silver. His son, Simbi is a white snake god who brings rain.

 Ayida: The goddess of the rainbow and primary wife to creator Damballah. The pair manifest as intertwined serpents. Ayida also serves as a fertility goddess. Her favorite offerings are white food. Ayizan, her daughter, is goddess of the marketplace and of initiation into the sacred truths, making her the head Mambo (Voodoo priestess.)

 Oshun: One of the Orishas, Oshun is a goddess connected to rivers and water. She is associated with wealth, pleasure, love, beauty, and sexuality. Oshun’s colors are orange and golden yellow, green and coral.

 Yemaya: motherly goddess of the sea

 Obatala: Goddess of the heavens, personification of creative energy: old with white hair

 Agwe: The god of the sea and patron deity of sailors and fishermen. Agwe taught humans how to fish and build boats. He is one of the husbands of the love goddess Erzulie. Agwe is green-eyed and dresses like a naval officer.

  Zaca: The god of agriculture and the harvest. He dresses in denims and a straw hat. Zaca smokes a pipe, drinks from bottles of rum and wields a machete.

 Marassa: Mawa and Lisa: divine twins: male and female energy, personify sun and moon

  Radford states that Roman Catholicism imposed their religious beliefs onto many civilizations, including African slaves. The Africans and African Americans combined Catholicism with their West African beliefs. A 1685 law forbade the practice of African religions in the U.S. In fact, slavery was accepted as a tool to convert Africans to Christianity. In the process, many of their spirits became associated with Christian saints.

 Even though slavery ended in the 1800’s, followers of Voudon were still persecuted by authorities, and their religion was demonized. In an 1889 book titled “Hayti, or the Black Republic” (Filiquarian, 2012), Voudon was falsely attributed to cannibalism, human sacrifice, and other atrocities. This helped to spread fear of the religion…portraying certain aspects like voodoo dolls, dark magic, zombies etc. in media and literature. Added onto that, it also strengthened racist stereotypes: African Americans were viewed as “primal,” and “savage,” due to their practices and behaviors as perceived by those outside their culture.

 Voodoo has gained more respect in modern times, but all too many people don’t know the truth about it. Even today, many Christians associate Voudon and Voodoo with Satanism and the occult. Interestingly enough, voodoo dolls have little to do with the actual rituals.

 Here’s how I found out about Voodoo. It started a long time ago back when I was alive. My mother Loretta was Creole, and her ancestors came from Haiti. She told me that my grandmother Antoinette Duvalier was a powerful Voodoo priestess who once lived in Haiti but immigrated to the U.S. as a slave. Even though she was treated like dirt by the predominant owners and whites, she was well respected by those who knew her. Legend states that she was related to Marie LaLaurie, (1787-1849), New Orleans serial killer, cruel to Creole slaves. In fact, my cousin is Clementine Barnabet, a Louisiana voodoo priestess and serial killer, killed families with an axe.

  Needless to say, my mother followed in her footsteps as much as possible. Though during her life, she mostly had to work in low level secretary jobs as women didn’t have many opportunities. She taught me everything there was to know about Voodoo, cooking, singing, sewing, (and yes, cannibalism in dire circumstances, though she didn’t like to talk about that.) She warned me multiple times that magic was, indeed, real, and to never use it for evil. There were “evil” Loas as well as “good” ones. She told me that Voodoo wasn’t about cannibalism or sacrifice.

 As you can imagine, I didn’t listen in the long run. For several reasons.

 One was my father, Louis. A white, strong man with black hair, a mustache and French heritage. He constantly tried to shove the Bible down my throat. He would whip and abuse me whenever I didn’t meet his expectations of being a man. That bastard would sleep with other women behind my mother’s back but of course, she couldn’t do anything about it.

 I was scared of him. I was tempted to cry whenever he would hit her for no apparent reason. But both my parents told me to always smile, so I did. I’ve learned to hide my emotions and keep up a façade ever since. It’s necessary when you’re a radio host by day and a serial killer by night. Nobody would suspect a friendly comedian to be the Bayou Butcher/Louisiana Lunatic of New Orleans. It’s how I managed to get away with my actions for so long until my brutal death by dogs and being shot in the head.

 Two was the opportunity for power. I learned that in a hard life of bullying at school, and blatant racism for being of mixed heritage, you take any opportunity that comes your way.

 I was so caught up in the prospects of deal making that even I started to believe the cannibalism and misconceptions of Voodoo.

Basically, I came across a Satanic ritual book dropped by a group of imps from Hell on accident. It was in this book that I learned about spells, cannibalism, and black magic. I came upon a passage with instructions on how to gain near unlimited power in the afterlife. I made a deal with Kalfu and the Petro Loas of destruction. (My mother supported the benevolent Rada like I did once.) It was a risky one: to gain such power, I would have to bear witness to at least three deaths, a victim, a loved one…and myself. Turns out it all happened, after I killed many victims in Kalfu’s name, and when I eventually died. My mother died from the Spanish Flu and my father got what he deserved after I tracked him down and tortured him. Strangely enough, whether it’d be guilt or his meat I ate, I felt sick for several days afterwards.

 My deal with Kalfu and the dark Loas was how I got my current powers in Hell. You probably noticed my use of blood magic and how red voodoo symbols hover in the air whenever I use my powers. Not to mention me having control over voodoo imps, dolls, and shadow spirits. I am quite powerful, but I can’t use too much at once…it can be very taxing to use dark magic. But that deal was well worth it and now I make deals with other demons around at times. It’s how I got Husk and Niffty on my side…I summon them and they have no choice but to assist me!”

  References:

Radford, Benjamin, (2013). “Voodoo: Facts About Misunderstood Religion” LiveScience. https://www.livescience.com/40803-voodoo-facts.html

https://www.white-magic-help.net/About_White_Magic/Voodoo_History_Basic_Principles_Background.html

https://www.learnreligions.com/voodoo-gods-4771674

© Edward Wozniak and Balladeer’s Blog 2014. https://glitternight.com/2014/08/13/the-top-eleven-deities-in-voodoo-mythology/

      Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Cannibalism (Page 65)

 “Along with deer meat, jambalaya and many other kinds of food, I also have a rare fondness for eating humans and demons. You’re probably thinking: ‘Oh god, how gross and horrible! Who in their right mind would eat their own kind?’

Apparently, there are some tribes and a few cultures in the world that still engage in the practice. Not to mention several killers throughout the years. There are many kinds of animals such as the cane toad and redneck spider, who eat their own kind.  Human ancestors have engaged in the act for survival, or ritual purposes. And in Hell, it’s as common as getting into fights with other demons.

 In early history of human species, human and Neanderthals coexisted together, interbred, ate together and sometimes ate each other. Homo antecessor, the last common ancestor between Neanderthals and modern humans would often eat rival group members. Early humans in Europe practiced ritual cannibalism.

 Around the 12th century, human remains were incorporated into medical practices for remedies. “Corpse medicine” remained in use until the late 18th century. The Aztec and the Inca engaged in cannibalism as part of a sacrificial religious rite. In Germany, some executioners would sell leftover body parts as medicine. Human fat was sold as a remedy for arthritis and broken bones. Apothecaries stored fat, flesh and bone…and let’s not forget that some people eat their own placentas in modern times.

 The word “cannibalism” comes from the name that the Spanish gave to the Caribs/Canibales. The Caribs were engaged in anti-colonial battles with European powers…claiming they were cannibals may have been a fear propaganda tactic by the Spanish.

In Montaigne’s late 1500s essay “Of Cannibals,” shows an anthropological record of the Tupi people in what is now Brazil. They would taunt their captives by “entertain[ing] them with threats of their own death.”

 In early America, while some Native American tribes practiced cannibalism, some colonists had to resort to it, such as the Jamestown colony in 1610.

But the public commonly associates cannibalism with the Donner-Party, groups of people that were snowbound in the Sierra Mountains in 1846-47.

 Famine in the USS in the 1920s and 30s took millions of lives and forced survivors to turn to cannibalism, an event known as the Great Chinese Famine.

In modern times, cannibalism is still an acceptable practice in some tribes in New Guinea, like the Korowai tribe. Until the 1950s, the Fore people ate the bodies of relatives as they believed it would cleanse their spirits.

  Also, do not try self-cannibalism…you will die and I will find it hilarious. In fact, eating humans is considered taboo nearly everywhere because eating humans can make you sick. This is especially true if you eat the brain. Eating the brain can cause kuru, a brain disease similar to mad cow disease. Like any kind of meat, human meat much be properly cooked and prepared. But as I’m an undead demon, I can eat myself and others no problem. I don’t really know how I managed to survive when I ate my victims more often when I was human.

 There are tons of ways to prepare humans and demons and I have used them all:

Baking in the oven

Grilling

Frying in a pan

Steaming in a pot

Barbeque

Cooking over a fire pit

Chopping them on a board and eating raw pieces

Swallowing whole

  References:

Edwards, Phil. (2015) “& Surprising Facts About Cannibalism” Vox. https://www.vox.com/2015/2/17/8052239/cannibalism-surprising-facts

 Talal Al-Khatib (May 13, 2015) “Cannibalism: A History of People Who Eat People.” Seeker. https://www.seeker.com/cannibalism-a-history-of-people-who-eat-people-1769840684.html

 (Using a website with Vox’s name on it…life is a big slap in the face.)

 Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Radio Broadcasting (Page 5)

“Many folks call me the Radio Demon for good reason. One of my signature skills is the ability to broadcast what goes on around me anytime, anywhere. I’ve always loved being on center stage…I was a bit of a theater nut back in primary school. Fun fact: My shadow and I can travel through radios and produce static in the outside world in Hell.

 One of the neat things about being a radio host is you can spread news to anyone in different places in the world…and no one even has to see you. In my human life, it provided me with a stable career and something to occupy my mind. My favorite things to talk about were dad jokes, cooking food, singing songs, and of course, murders that had happened. My broadcasts had to go underground when my descriptions of murders became graphic, both when I did them and when other killings were reported on the news.

 My career wasn’t easy to start off with…it was quite a competitive business and I was lucky to start off as a janitor and radio repair man for a few years. My dad thought it was a worthless job but my mother supported me all the way. I slowly moved up the ladder, learning more techniques as I went along. Soon, I decided I would start my own show…become self-employed. My career really reached its peak during World War One and the start of the Roaring Twenties. I could describe all the casualties of the war to the public, talk about my own victims to my followers, all while ending with “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile,” my favorite song! I felt like I was on top of the world…not even my dad nor the ignorant folk could stop me. Like many people during the age of jazz and splendor, I basked in riches, ate good food and drinks…had tons of ladies at my feet. They were good friends, and even better victims! I was never interested in sex and romance…too many messy emotions. I didn’t want to be touched and nor down by anybody.  (Thanks a lot, father.)

 All this was before the police found me, my show was canceled, and my beloved radios destroyed by those seeking revenge. I smiled, I fell from grace, and I died during the Great Depression. Life really does have a twisted sense of humor.”  

 Experimental radio broadcasting began at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City, 1910 with a program made by Lee De Forest. The WWJ Detroit station is considered the first radio station in the U.S. The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) presented the first national broadcast in 1926, when I was in my late twenties. From 1925 to 1950, radios were a major source of family entertainment, where people could listen to music, stories, and the news. The success of NBC brought the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) into creation by William Paley.

 Some radio stations transmit radio signals using amplitude modulation, which became the term for AM radio. AM broadcasts can be received at long distances, but the signals and sound are affected by static. In contrast, other stations transmit signals using frequency modulation, hence the initial FM. FM waves reproduce sound better.

 I died in 1933 when radio was popular. But my rival, Vox (name means Voice in Latin) died in the 1950s, when television was becoming popular. He hosted his own program and did picture shows seemingly all the time. I remember him: tall, white skinned, slick short dark hair, eyes the color of dull metal. He advertised drugs, phones, cars, and a whole bunch of things…he enjoyed money a lot. Anything new he liked, new toys, new tech, new girls, then when they didn’t work, he’d replace them. Made me sick.

 In Hell, I confronted him once and told him he was a big showoff. I was quite mad that picture shows took over radio…he even called me an outdated geek with a voice of static! He had this stupid robotic voice that I couldn’t take seriously. When he shot me in the head from behind, I had enough. I held him in place with black tentacles, figuring out how he died. Then I heard someone mention his death…

So…with a loud crash, a large TV appeared out of nowhere and crushed his stupid face. I was doubling over with laughter as I left, he picked himself up and yelled, his screen face all cracked.

 So, what should you do in Hell? Listen to the radio, of course! Picture shows are fun as well, but even they can’t beat the classic radio. I know you techno folk flock to TV’s and computers thanks to Vox…both are annoying in my opinion. But radios are a great source of entertainment, especially when I’m on the air. My show starts at 6AM and 6PM every other day at 66.6FM. You can find radios in a whole bunch of stores and at the Hazbin Hotel…and if you’re brave, you can find cursed ones at the Black Market (all owned by me of course). If any demon gives you trouble, you can turn the dials a bit and the radio will either crush them or suck them inside. But be careful…listening for too long may cause you to sing, dance, experience your fears, and stab anyone within six feet of you.  I have plenty of radios in my lair in the shadow world beneath Hell, but you’ll never be able to go there. But just say the word and I’ll gladly store your remains in my icebox.”

 References:

“Broadcasting: The History of Radio” https://law.jrank.org/pages/4873/Broadcasting-History-Radio.html

   Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Sewing Voodoo Dolls (Page 38)

 “I have made tons of voodoo dolls both as a human and in Hell. I have my own collection of ones that resemble Charlie, Vaggie, Husk, Niffty and many others. Niffty helps me sometimes after she helps make me more clothes. Don’t tell anyone this, but I secretly snuggle with a doll I made to resemble my mother. She briefly went to Hell in the form of a powerful voodoo deer, but went up to Heaven before I got a chance to see her. It’s been decades.”

 Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Jazz (Page 72)

 “Music has always held a special place in my heart. Growing up in New Orleans, I was surrounded by jazz, live music, and theater. Playing instruments, singing, dancing, and performing were not just fun pastimes. Doing these hobbies also helped during certain times. Take the Great Depression or the Roaring Twenties or my way to bask in the spotlight as examples. I can play lots of instruments: piano, saxophone, trumpet, violin and furby organ. If you don’t know what that is, it’s an organ made from furry robotic toys made by this “LOOK MUM NO COMPUTER” human.”

    According to the National Park Service et al., the early development of jazz (1895) is associated with Charles “Buddy” Bolden, a popular bandleader. Throughout the 19th century, diverse ethnical groups cumulated their cultures and styles together, creating an evolution in music. Musicians of diverse backgrounds were united by their common love of music.

 One of my role models was real life Edward “Kid” Ory, a guy who lead his own band at age 14 and entertained dancers. He was the son of a White Frenchman and a Creole Woman of Afro-Spanish and Native American heritage, pretty much like me. I’m surprised we aren’t related. During my human life, I played in bands at Economy Hall, a dance hall that provided social services such as brass band dances for the Black Community. Many well-known jazz stars included real life Louis Armstrong, Joe Oliver, Johnny and Warren Dodds etc. During the Jazz Age in the 1920s, I was quite busy indeed with radio broadcasting career, playing jazz, performing at clubs and killing people on the side in the name of Kalfu and Satan. Music helped me get through the loss of my mother’s death via the Spanish Flu. I did also get my revenge on my father and uncle but that’s a story for another time.”

  References:

National Park Service. (2015) A New Orleans Jazz History https://www.nps.gov/jazz/learn/historyculture/jazz_history.htm

  Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about the Exterminations (Page 665)

“The annual Exterminations sure are fun to watch! It’s the one day out of the year where the dark angels travel from Heaven and into Hell to purge the citizens at random. This is done to reduce the abnormally high population down here. During the 24 hours, I relax in the safety of my lair, occasionally going up to watch the slaughters from inside a building, Niffty and Husk by my side. I broadcast what goes on so other demons can have their share of entertainment. Not only am I in a safe place, but anytime the Exterminators try and surround me, I just tear them to pieces, throw them into portals or just scare them off by staring at them. There is a collection of horned Exterminator heads I have for decoration along my mantle and near the stuffed deer heads on display. Their sinister smiles and Xs over their right eyes adds to the place. Niffty sometimes comes down to my lair to help spruce it up and even when she leaves, a strong spell ensures that she will never tell anyone about its location.”

 Someday when I rule Hell, the Exterminators will be the ones who are exterminated. Exterminators carry spears, swords, and harpoons which can kill any demon instantly. So I always try to be careful. I know that some demons can sell them on the black market so they can kill their enemies. I have several of them in a safe to use in emergencies.

 What should you do in an Extermination? Stock up and lock up, if you’re smart. Make sure you have plenty of food, drinks and things to keep you entertained during the 24 hours. And be sure to get the stuff early unless you want to fight a dozen sinners for groceries. Exterminators fly in the open, so barricade yourself in a building with few windows and openings. If you’re unlucky enough to be out in the open, run for your life and say your prayers! You will know when it starts by the sounds of air raid sirens. When it is over, Charlie will go out to her balcony and shoot fireworks in the sky, signaling that it’s safe to go out. Feel free to fight for territory, sing, grab a drink or feast on the deceased…but get in my way and you’ll regret it.”

  Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Taking Over Territory (Page 187)

“When I first came to Hell, I was filled with bloodlust and dark power. Excited to be granted a new form by the shadow spirits, Satan and the Loas, I took full advantage. I toppled overlords who had ruled for centuries, and I broadcast my carnage and victories. I defeated that snake lord guy and grew my supernatural army. Many of the previous overlords didn’t have much magical power or they were easily fooled by my speeches and schemes.

 But I knew that just having shadows at my beck and call weren’t enough. I needed corporeal demons to do my deeds as well. Thus I made deals with Husk, Niffty, and several others. Niffty admired me and my powers the moment I summoned her from the flames of the burning lake and into a fireplace at the hotel. She was happy to be free from the fires. My appearance and charming nature had her blushing and flustered. I told her she can do the things she enjoys: cooking, cleaning, sewing, reading and writing. Husk was more reluctant to serve me but I bribed him with money and booze… promising him “wealth and true love.” Both are beneficial: Niffty is quick on her feet and Husk is strong and good at gambling. Oh, it sure is fun to mess around with them.

 Additionally, I spend time with my dear friend and performer Mimzy and Rosie, a fellow overlord. All three of us are pretty close. The demons know that I’ve conquered a territory by the presence of tall radio towers nearby. Or whenever some demons go to a certain area, they encounter some voodoo creatures and shadows who warn them to stay away.”

 How do you take over territory? Choose your battles well. Don’t rush into a fight thinking you can win. Gather allies or if you’re powerful enough, just rely on yourself. The time right after the Extermination is the ideal time to claim land since many demons have perished. It’s also when many other demons fight over different areas. It’s fun to hear about it on the picture shows, especially when I’m mentioned.”

 Here’s what “The Radio Demon’s Guide to the Inferno” has to say about Asexuality (Page 221)

 “Some of you may or may not know this, but I’m asexual and aromantic. I’m not interested in sex nor romantic relationships with either men or women. Many of you fans have shipped me with Charlie and Angel and pretty much every other demon in Hell. Tell me mortals…why in the nine circles would I ever be into my rival Vox, or a pathetic loner scientist…or Hell forbid, Lucifer? Charlie is a lovely lady and a good friend, but if she’s no use to me for my plans in the long run, then she’s not worth it. And Angel…he’s alright, if not annoying and clingy. He invades my personal space and I certainly do not want to know what goes on in his perverted head. I’d rather get shot a dozen times than allow Angel to lay his hands on me (who knows where they’ve been). I don’t really love anyone, save for myself and my mama. It’s just the way I am.

 In my time, sexuality terms did not exist. Anyone with an abnormal obsession with the opposite sex was called heterosexual. And homosexual was a derogatory term for those who were outside the norm in regards to sexuality. It was bad enough that my father and uncle chided me for not being into girls and sex like a “real man” should. The thought of merging my body with someone else’s was gross. I invade personal space, but I feel repulsed when other’s touch me…it’s like I’m not in control in the situation. Plus, even if I wanted to have sex, there’s no point as sinners can’t reproduce down here. And I don’t like to be tied down…having to accommodate my needs for someone. Aside from dancing, having the occasional dinner with someone nice, there are better things to do in my time than typical romantic antics.  I learned very early on in my life that the only person I could really trust was myself…Alastor. It wasn’t hard to put up a charming exterior to make many women fall for me…including my dear friend Mimzy. The other women and men who stayed around for a while got tied up in my basement and screamed as I stabbed them and split their throats. Hey, you never know who will come into your life.”  

   Asexuality is defined as a lack of sexual attraction. Asexuals are not sexually attracted to anyone. Those who are aromantic are not romantically attracted to anyone. However, like sexual individuals, asexuals are different and have their own needs and levels of comfort. Some asexuals might be romantically attracted to males, females, or both. Others might desire intimacy and many are in relationships with asexuals and sexual individuals. Sadly, many asexuals feel broken and out of place due to cultural portrayals of sexuality in the media and other institutions.

References:

https://lgbt.williams.edu/homepage/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-asexuality/

Asexuality Visibility and Education Network. https://www.asexuality.org/

[fabulousquel]

GreedFall: Tips + My Review

So I picked up this game out of curiosity because I’m currently working on an RPG style historical fantasy that draws inspiration from a similar time period. I wanted to see how someone else handled the ‘flintlock’ genre and told a story with elements of this era. I am in no means a pro game reviewer but I completed the entire game yesterday and I have a lot I want to say.

There are some spoilers in this, so if you’d like to avoid reading them, don’t read the "Story” section. 

Tips:

Do your companion quests early and as soon as they pop up. There are some incredible lore bits and development of your character as well as your companions within them. Also if you sideline a companion for too long, they might leave your party in ways that might surprise or unsurprise you.

Certain dialog options will give you more quest content. For example, you’ve caught a criminal and you are given the choice to kill them on the spot, or capture them for trial. If you kill them, your quest line ends there. If you decide to trial them, another quest line opens up and you get a lot more flavor.

You can essentially just follow the main quest line if you want to speed-finish the game, but you lose a lot of context and additional dialog options if you do so. You will also wind up fighting the final boss at a much lower level, thus making the fight harder, but not impossible. They may have made this an option for people coming back wanting a challenge or to try a different build. But in my opinion, they should’ve made the side quests a mandatory thing because it’s a huge disservice to the context of the main story without them.

Don’t forget to give your companions gear upgrades- especially if you’re playing on more challenging modes.

If you want to avoid bloodshed and sneak into a camp, make sure you put on a chest piece of that faction. 

Put some skill points into Stasis no matter what build you roll with.

The Soundtrack:

It’s amazing. The snare drums going off in combat sequences create a very distinct and powerful mood. The zone music is very well orchestrated. It’s now up on spotify as well! 

Combat & Talents:

Of the RPGs I’ve played, this most reminded me of a combination of Red Dead Redemption, Final Fantasy with the option to semi-turn style with spells & traps, and a very versatile talent tree system that is really...fun. It’s the first time in a while that I felt I could make an effective solid build and playstyle around what I wanted to do most. Combat takes getting used to but I set up my keybinds to be a lot like ESO and I adapted very quickly. I went shortsword / gun tactical and it was immensely satisfying. 

The Story:

[SPOILS AHEAD]

The difference between historical fiction and historical fantasy is that a historical fantasy does not seek to retell history accurately, but rather take inspiration from it. How heavy this inspiration goes varies from story to story. This is how I approached interpreting the story, even in its very realistic parts. As I played through, there were several themes that became very clear to me. Keep in mind that I played through the game with De Sarde taking the Neutral Good alignment choice in most dialog options. 

The Elephant in the Room: Colonialism. This is one of the big criticisms I see with the game, and truth be told, it is a point of criticism for myself. The game treats the colonizing factions exactly like colonizers of real history, and it’s a subject that still rightfully touches nerves. One faction seeks to profit, another nation seeks to convert, and another seeks to experiment on. While there are subgroups of these factions that are more extreme than their leadership- the leadership seems complacent about it until condemning evidence is brought up. While extremely problematic this is, it is very true to what has happened in history surrounding colonialism, and places you in one uncomfortable situation after another in a frighteningly realistic way. It makes your decisions as De Sarde in some instances painful but it can be satisfying to see how your actions affect justice in these matters.

Some critics have said that De Sarde’s choices do not always condemn truly objectionable events enough. I agree that more depth could have been added. But in my playthrough, De Sarde’s role starts out as a truly neutral party looking for truths, and they gradually became more adamant on stances as the game progressed. By the end, my De Sarde was about to 1v1 Theleme, and drag out the Bridge Alliance governor. So I am unsure if this is a perspective coming from those who haven’t completed the game in its entirety with all side quests which influence reputations more & seem to flesh out more dialog options. 

Humanity Has a Sickness This was written both physically and metaphorically in how humans are as susceptible to committing atrocities as they are to growing ill. Throughout the story as De Sarde, you play almost a detective in uncovering the truth about the people you were raised to believe were benevolent. De Sarde does not take these accusations of corruption lightly, but they also treat it very seriously. Piece by piece, De Sarde learns more about each factions true intentions, and the lies, corruption and greed that intertwine. But at the same time, the story attempts to reveal the potential for all people to ‘do better’ and change- and some of this is seen when you use De Sarde’s charisma + intuition dialog options. This theme especially became clear in the arc when De Sarde finally gets to speak to the god of the island, En on mil Frichtimen, who expresses to him that the malicor (sickness) is a result of them poisoning their own land with their lack of care or concern for it.  En on mil Frichtimen urges that the colonists need to listen and learn from the Islanders’ ways if they wish to heal the sickness.

Where to Draw the Line at “For The Greater Good” I feel like this is a theme that crops up with any story involving Utopian ideas. GreedFall does a good job of backing up each faction’s actions with their point of view, whether it is morally misguided or not. This truly emphasizes the human element in the mix, underlining that no perspective comes without its flaws. As De Sarde, one thing you are constantly faced with as a detective is defining a line of where something has gone too far. It is sobering and somewhat frustrating to watch factions step over a line that could have easily remained morally sound. But it is also equally satisfying to see how much influence you can have in swaying others to make a different choice. This theme becomes the summit of De Sarde’s character progression when he is forced to make the choice of taking your dear cousin, Constantin, out of power, or joining him. And when you’ve done all the side quests there are in the game, the decision becomes far more meaningful than this just being the final boss fight.

This theme also seems to come full circle by the end of Petrus’s quest line, when you discover your true origin- how your mother was kidnapped from the island in a rash attempt to bring a healer to the continent. This realization that everything you’ve known has been a lie and kept secret from you...all for the “greater good”. 

Things I Liked:

I appreciated how much love and care went into the worldbuilding- especially with the native Islanders. From what I understand, a linguist was hired to write a language for them that was a mash-up of Flemish, Breton, Gaelic and Irish. I appreciated that they brought forth inspiration from the Gauls and Celtic nations of the Iron Age in Western Europe before they were subjected to Christian Missionary activity.

The art & atmosphere was amazing. While there are a few clipping issues with hair, even big AAA games have them. The level of detail put into the game art wise is just very visually pleasing.

The devs did a good job in making a fantasy world that was LGBTQ+ friendly, and giving us diverse character customization. Anyone from any faction had a diverse set of features.

Things I am Critical of:

While I understand that there is a point of growth to watch De Sarde go from neutral to invested in a cause, I really do think they should have been given less complacent responses earlier in the game. I understand limitations but I don’t think it helped with handling colonialism in a truly neutral way.

I wish you could start the game as someone from a faction of your choice, rather than only the Merchant Congregation, especially considering how your origin is written.

IT’S DEPRESSING. A lot of the game is depressing... which maybe makes all the little things you do that shine some shred of goodness still in humanity all the brighter. But it definitely hurt my soul in places and back to point #1, I wish I could have been more aggressive with De Sarde earlier in the game.

Recycled assets: there were quite a few of them- mostly noticeable with buildings in the main cities, which is probably what marks the difference between an AAA game and a more independent studio.

Potential Triggers:

There’s a lot of heavy subjects in this game including religious abuse, manipulation, some body horror (though it’s not super grotesque), one instance of suicide that I know of, xenophobia, and general violence. 

Features I Wish it Had:

You can’t ‘jump’...but you don’t really need to. I still wish I could though.

For all this beautiful scenery, I wish they gave us better screenshot taking options.

Different fights for the different Coin Arenas and a meta achievement for completing all of them.

I wish I could play it with friends.

More armor options!

I wish the companions had better and more in-depth romance options. They fall a little flat in diversity of personalities.

Final Thoughts:

I personally enjoy diving into stories that we should be morally critical of, and I like it for what it reveals in the best and worst of humanity. Colonialism has done and continues to do irreversible damage to peace and prosperity among people and nations in real life. Spiders picked a topic that nearly everyone has been affected by in one way or another and it’s understandably a heated subject. Some folks do not want to dive into such deep subjects, just as there’s some stories I cannot stomach comfortably. So I respect and understand that.

Overall, GreedFall exceeded my expectations but there’s definitely some hiccups. It’s a fun game if you’re into a detective-style RPG, political intrigue, history, and interested in exploring this sort of setting. While I think the story could have been written better in places, I was satisfied with the outcomes I triggered, even if that satisfaction took a very slow build up to. It left me feeling hopeful? That perhaps people still have a chance at treating each other better than they do.

[theheartofpenelope]

Simple Things : Chapter nine

Excerpt - As she hurried down the hallway her eyes fell onto the sight she’d somewhat feared... A bespectacled man was reading a paperback at the door of her hotel room. There he was; casually leaning against the door case. The man who had comforted her to sleep, the same man who had urged her to Ystad to ease her mind. Was it silly of her to feel tingly all over as she set eyes on him? Tag list: @winterisakiller, @devikafernando, @scorpionchild81, @messy-insomniac-bookgirl, @smutsausage, @hiddlesbitch1 @noplacelikehome77 @wolfsmom1 @meh1217 @dina-bln @lilaeye39 @tinchentitri @fairlightswiftly @nonsensicalobsessions @wolfsmom1 @stmeiou @ink-and-starlight @givemecocoaa @profkmoriarty13 @nikkalia @massivelemon @lotus-eyedindiangoddess @argo-shila @emoietmoi @redfoxwritesstuff @sweetkingdomstarlight-blog @raining-litter Author’s Notes/Warnings: tags will follow later on Anyway thank you in advance for feedback - would love to know what you think…Also on AO3 through this link Masterlist available through here Bonus: click here for the pinterest moodboard (always updated)

Chapter Nine Edinburgh, Scotland– day one

1.  July turned to August. And just like every other year Edinburgh was transformed to accommodate the Fringe Festival. Scotland’s capital was turned upside down as a wide range of performers of all arts and nationalities touched base in the city. Countless stages were being set up all over the city, ready to present spectacles of all kinds and for every taste.

This year Tom would be partaking as well, albeit for one night only. It was a childhood dream come true. He had decided to turn his stay into some sort of a city break, allowing himself some extra days on site because, well, Fringe. With relatives nearby he’d been wanting to visit and a list of performances to explore he granted himself the gift of time.   “A mini-break, Charlotte would be so proud,” he’d laughed to himself.

But first and foremost, true to his words, Tom had made his arrangements to meet up with Charlotte. It had been settled that he would pick her up at her hotel after she concluded her seminar for the day. He wanted to show her the city that held plenty of his childhood memories, he wanted to introduce her to the wonderful world of Fringe - certain in every way that this would be a festival to her taste. He wanted to take her to the Theatre and see her revell in the experience as she did in London. He wanted to talk to her, spend time with her without having to keep an eye on the clock. He wanted every second, as long as it was with her.

She had been on his mind ever since he’d ran into her at the airport that day. On the weirdest moments and in the strangest situations. However when Tom turned down his cousin’s invitation for an event occuring on the night he was to meet Charlotte, he was quick to inform said cousin he was just simply meeting up with someone; a friend. It was most definitely not a date, merely a friendly get-together. The sentence had rolled of his tongue as it had done many, many, times before, in other situations, with other people. This time however the words left him somewhat hollow. Strange.

In the elevator Charlotte glanced at her watch for the umpteenth time, fully realising she was - in fact - still running late. As the steel sliding doors finally opened to her floor, she rushed down the hallway on her white heels, her off white dress flowing casually along, a binder closely held to her chest while her other hand balanced her purse.

As she hurried down the hallway her eyes fell onto the sight she’d somewhat feared... A bespectacled man was reading a paperback at the door of her hotel room. There he was; casually leaning against the door case. The man who had comforted her to sleep, the same man who had urged her to Ystad to ease her mind. Was it silly of her to feel tingly all over as she set eyes on him?

If anything the setback in the seminar’s planning had been a blessing in disguise to Charlotte as it had left her with no time to stress about meeting up with Tom. The afternoon transitioned into early evening without granting her even the slightest second in which she would be able to worry about anything at all. Besides running late of course.

“I’m sò sorry I made you wait,” she apologised. Tom only greeted her with a lopsided smile, urging her not to worry about any of it. They had the rest of the evening, he reasoned before greeting her with a casual peck on the cheek. Her loose hair smelled of citrus and a hint of white musk.

“Do I have time to freshen up just a little bit? Slip into something more appropriate?”

Charlotte rambled on, unaware how he cautiously admired her attire while cautiously reminding himself that this was not a date.

Charlotte inserted her key card and headed into her room, wordlessly inviting him inside. And while she rummaged around in the bathroom, Tom curiously laid eyes on the books that lay scattered on her nightstand. He started flipping pages before coming across a thin hardcover book titled ‘the Amsterdam Canals’.

“See anything you like?” her gentle inquiry startled him and Charlotte quietly laughed at her realisation of it. Tom chuckled slightly and readjusted his glasses before turning his attention from the books back to her as she made her way towards him.  

“That one is for you actually,” she picked up the slim book, presenting it to him.

“I spotted it on a flea market; it’s from an Ecuadorian photographer. Thought you might like it better than the crappy shots I sent you.”

Her lips curved into a kindhearted smile as she admiringly pointed out some of her favourite images to him. However his eyes were fixated on her rather than the book.

“Are you serious?” he gave her an incredulous look, “you shouldn’t have....”

“Hmmm, I have this thing,” she shrugged, “with books. I don’t know. An accidental discovery, I couldn’t just leave it there… ”

“That’s very thoughtful of you,” he nodded while a genuine feeling of happiness snuck up on him, “I appreciate this. Thank you.”

“Well, it’s no Paulo Coelho…” Charlotte felt a blush coming up and swiftly steered away from the subject. Buying that book had seemed an attentive gesture to her at the time, but in retrospect, maybe it had been a strange and foolish thing to do?

“So, what do you think,” she switched her hip in good fun as she fake-modeled a casual short-sleeved sweater dress, “am I good to go now?”

“You’re perfect,” the words rolled of his tongue. And it wasn’t a lie.

Remember Tom, not a date.

2. His long legs climbed the Scottish hillside at a very steady pace; Charlotte suspected this was a regular visit to him. Had to be. She gave herself thumbs up for wearing a pair of sneakers while she marched up the (sometimes not so gentle) slope. She may have lost the benefit of added height, but was ever more grateful for gaining the ability to ease through the brisk climb.

Tom was clearly in his element and this amused her greatly. He explained how Edinburgh was built on seven hills and Charlotte was thankful they would only be climbing up just one that evening. It was clear she had been sitting too much these days. All these seminars were a professional blessing, but a physical curse. This, combined with the heat wave, has created this bizarre yearning in her mind to go swimming, not climbing hills. But she had no say in this tonight. She’d agreed to letting him surprise her with what he reckoned a ‘sightseeing-de-luxe’. He made her promise to not take any notice of the view while climbing up, but to allow herself to get surprised at the summit. And who has she to deny him of this - obviously great - pleasure?

“So this one, is called Arthur’s Seat and they say it’s a sleeping dragon,” Tom elaborated. “An old Celtic story says that a dragon used to fly around the sky, terrorising the region and eating all the livestock. Eventually it ate sò much, that one day it lay down, went to sleep, and never woke up again.”

It wasn’t hard to imagine his inner 10 year old that still awed over the legend.

Charlotte smiled to herself, taking in all the information while playfully addressing him as ‘Tourguide Tom’ for the rest of the hike. It had only spurred him on though; under a thick Scottish accent he directed her attention to St. Anthony’s Chapel, the Royal Mile, etc.

“Ye ken, traditionally oan main day, yoong kimmers woods climb th' hillside an' wash their coopon in th' dew,” he continued with a smirk, “legend has is 'at thes woods keep them lookin' yoothful an' bonnie.” (*)

(*) “You know, traditionally on May Day, young women would climb the hillside and wash their face in the dew. Legend has is that this would keep them looking youthful and beautiful.”

It might as well have been Chinese to Charlotte. While she did have English under her belt, the Scottish dialect was just a bit too far out her reach. Except for maybe some easy basics…  

“Ur ye feckin' kiddin' me?!”

If anything, Tom did not see this one coming. His hand flew to his chest, he threw his head back and laughed. Loudly and without reservation.

“Com’n then love,” Tom tittered on, while guiding Charlotte up the hill for those last few feet. Charlotte chuckled along. He seemed so happy, carefree, a bit flirty, probably without trying to be. He was in good spirits and it was quite catchy...

Against all of her expectations, the summit was quite touristy. A lot of vacationers promenaded around, their cameras in hand while they were alternatively in awe of the view and anxious to take that perfect vacation picture so they could relive the moment at home.

But when she herself was standing near the edge of that particular hillside, Charlotte finally understood; the view was nothing short of spectacular. She fell silent at the sight of Edinburgh at her feet, the old city centre was buzzing with activity, with mood lighting everywhere. The people down below were crawling all over the streets like ants, the cars and bicycles seemed almost toy-like.

She heard Tom approaching behind her. It sounded like a gently sigh escaped his lips, mere moments before she heard him quietly murmuring into her ear, “now if I remember this well, you are a sea girl before anything else…,”

In their messages post-Hamburg he had learned about Charlotte’s affinity with water. With the sound of crashing waves, the effect of the surf that could always, always calm her down and relax. Something about childhood memories and Oyster Festival Parades (but she hated oysters. It cracked him up.). Also something with boats, the sounds of the marina. He never told her, but that was exactly why he’d urged her to Ystad. Out of the city. Closer to nature. In a cottage close to the beach; the promise of a deserted shore where you could sit for hours on end just enjoying the silence...   

He gently placed his hands over her upper arms and guided her a bit to the right, changing her position so her eyes could catch the entire panoramic view he had in mind.

“You need the full perspective,” he whispered.

WIth a gasp Charlotte noted the ocean coming within view; the dull cry of seagulls in the distance, little boats making their way back to the safe harbour.

“Oh my…”

“Yah,” a proud smile and he nodded. “I couldn’t bare the thought of you visiting Edinburgh and not coming up here.”

“Something tells me you couldn’t bare the thought of not coming up here yourself.”

Tom looked at her out of the corner of his eye and chuckled as he admitted to her speculation with an ambiguous nod.  

“There is pleasure in the pathless woods, there is rapture in the lonely shore, there is society where none intrudes, by the deep sea and music in its roar; I love not Man the less, but Nature more.”

Charlotte, however, could only frown at Lord Byron’s beautiful poetry, and declared that she knew melancholy when she saw it. A lazy smile curved among Tom’s lips as he cast his eyes down, “and how are you?”

“Don’t digress Tourguide Tom,”

“Says the evasive lawyer,” he quickly retorted.

“Not evasive,” she defended; a caring sympathy lingering through her voice, “I was just first.”

“Are we five?” he cocked his eyebrow in good fun, which promptly urge a giggle from Charlotte.

She looked upon him gleefully and he wondered what it was that made her feel so… familiar and honest and ‘good’?

“What is wìth you today?” Charlotte chortled, “someone ought to teach you manners again. Am I going to speak with your mysterious blonde over this?”

Tom shook his head with a laugh as he quickly retorted the mystery blonde was simply not for him. It had been a casual answer but it didn’t make Charlotte feel any less mortified for mentioning it. Tom sweetly shrugged Charlotte’s apology off. Because there was nothing here to be sorry about. Not one thing at all…

“But,” he raised his index finger proudly, “you will be happy to know that I’m taking a mini-break. Right now.”

“You’re not!” she exclaimed excitedly, “finally! Is that why you’re so…”

“So? So what?” he curved his brow comically, “oh really, finish that sentence for me now.”

Charlotte cackled and admitted she’d rather not. “Oh my, but you’re really doing it. Slowing down. Zoning out. La dolce far niente…” she teased while rubbing her arms. Strands of her hair circled around, dancing freely on the fickle wind.

“Are you cold darling?” he ran his hand over her back, but Charlotte only shook her head, “nah, only surprised how much cooler it is up here. Brisk breeze here,”

“I should’ve told you, it’s always quite windy up here…” he pondered for a little while, “What do you think - Fish and chips?”

Charlotte threw her head back, in an attempt to shake her long tresses out of her face and dramatically bellowed, “god yes!” After days and days of fancy food and finger sandwiches, fish and chips was just perfect. The ideal amount of grease and calories and she was up for it.

He winked and slanted his head to announce their descent.

“There,” he inched nearer and ran his hand from the top of her head of her to her sides, brushing her hair down as he did, “you look like a rockstar.”

There he was, it was as if the clouds had somehow lifted and she for the first time saw him for who he really was. All pretences stripped away. Nothing but his friendly charm, his familiar support, she felt as if she was coming home to an old friend. She could feel his body radiate as they stood close and noted how a soft frown came over him, his eyes scanning her expression.

Her heart skipped a beat. Actually more than one.

Oh, for Pete’s sake! Pull yourself together Charlotte!

She was acutely aware of their proximity and the crazy things it started doing to her, she was even more aware of individuals that kept on roaming around, closer and closer still.

“I erm,” she croaked, “I think you have been spotted,” she raised an eyebrow.

“You think?” a frown of disbelief came over him. This was Scotland, he was good in Scotland. There were no paparazzi here. Or were there?

“I erm, I spy some hesitation, I think they’re going to come up closer to make sure,” her eyes concernedly flashed back at him. Beautiful dark orbs mirroring nothing but honesty and concern. Tom nodded.

3. And, in fact, the small group did just what Charlotte had carefully predicted. As usual, Tom was polite and charming. He offered the vacationists a kind word but rapidly apologized himself to the group when he’d noticed Charlotte had started the descent on her own. Though he found it really defined her and her headstrong, independent, I’ll-be-just-fine-attitude, in his heart this was just not right.

Unbeknownst to him, Charlotte’s heart had been beating rapidly in her chest. And the overwhelming need to shake the nonsense out of her head demanding her to do something about it. And soon. So she started walking downhill, rubbing her arms along the way and taking deep breaths while repeating her new mantra in her head.

Oh dear, oh my, do not make a fool out of yourself Charlotte!

She was thankful though, when Tom caught up with her again and escorted her further down the hillside where he proceeded to gladly introduce her to one of his favourite fish and chips shops. It took her mind of her recent embarrassment and, truth be told much more than this, it stilled the appetite she’d been nurturing during the hike.

To Tom it was clear the woman had no shame in enjoying her food. At all. He liked that. And promptly ordered them a couple of Brewdog’s brown beer, because ‘if you’re doing this, you have to do this right.’

Charlotte had her eyes lowered and focused on skewering chips onto her fork when she casually slipped that she was grateful for him taking her around town and curiously questioned him about Fringe. He gladly and enthusiastically informed her.

When they finally set foot into the centre of Edinburgh, ready to immerse themselves into the experience of the Fringe Festival, the amount of visitors in the streets dizzied her. Charlotte had jokingly mumbled she’d go wherever he would lead, Tourguide Tom, just as long he wouldn’t lose her in the crowd.

And so - after only a few minutes mingling in the streets, he’d wordlessly grabbed a hold of her hand. Without looking. She was sure his only agenda was to guide her safely through the mass in the streets. His hand was large and warm and held onto hers with a caring confidence. Charlotte was surprised at the gesture, but gladly succumbed to it. How could a gesture so small, result to an effect this grand. Oh god, this would not end well.

Don’t let go.

4. Tom safely led Charlotte through the crowds on the streets, towards venues she would not be able to find on her own given the chance. Charlotte looked around in amazement at the liveliness of the city and its visitors, willingly following Tom wherever he guided her.

He explained there were a few acts he thought she might enjoy and led the way and Charlotte followed curiously. The venue was - she guessed - an old concert building. Obviously no longer in use. Shame though. It was dark and crowded. The audience was quite diverse which left her utterly clueless on what she was to expect. The viewers were elated though and anxious. An intriguing start…

He ushered her further down the parterre and towards the front of the stage, where she would closer to the music and away from the blinking neons that blinded her and left her under his control. Not that he mind doing just that.

He turned to the right as they got closer to the podium and asked her if she would be alright standing there. She noted it would leave them with a close view of the performers, but they also escaped the harsh lighting thanks to the overlooking balcony, which she did not mind at all.

Relatively soon the spotlights died down and the hall was enclosed into shades of blue. Spotlights brought the audience attention up to the ceiling. Tom however could not help but sneak a peek at her, curious towards her experience, just to see if he had made the right choice with this. Would she be enjoying herself?

He could see her look up above the stage with big curious eyes, and how her lips slowly curved themselves into a wondrous smile as a pair of aerial ballet dancers came tumbling down.

Her smile was only getting wider and wider by the second as she watched the performers play and as the amazement of their craft settled in. She was rapt, there was no denying that.

That smile was all he longed to see. An emotion came across his heart. Not the sense of pride he was expecting, this was different.

Tom brought his gaze back onto the scene himself, until he felt her eyes on him mere seconds later and wordlessly drawing him in. They sparkled and it was all the answer he’d ever needed. They exchanged the broad smile she thanked him with.  

Her eyes conveyed beauty, wondrous amazement, appreciation and pure delight. It warmed his heart because he felt just the same, just looking at her.

The dancers swept the audience away, moving them from cautious emotion to elation and from grief to hope with such a flexible ease.

When the male dancer came tumbling down, some of the spectators gasped and Charlotte was no exception. Her hand was covering her mouth and Tom instinctively ran his hand over her spine, inching closer to ask her if she was alright. She merely nodded, never taking her eyes of the stage.

When the music swelled, implying the woman would follow the man’s path suit, Tom could swear he felt Charlotte tensing up under his gentle touch.

A closer look indeed revealed her hesitating whether or not to keep looking. She ultimately squeezed her eyes shut and turned around slightly, gratefully clasping her hands over his forearms. The viewers gasped once more and she immediately scanned Tom’s expression for clues.

“What happened?"

But Tom only stood, gawking at the stage in stupor.

"What happened?" she pressed on before eventually turning her head back to see what had the growing whispering and gasping behind her back.

She heard Tom, brought back out of his daze, softly whispering “I thought you didn’t want to see this…?”

Dirty tease.

“I’m curious,” she defended as she looked back up to him again, “also, you were no help at all.”

“I’ve gathered that by now,” his lips gently brushed her ear as he mumbled on.

“It’s a problem, I know,” she sighed, “but I hàve to… else I’ll just imagine the worst.”

“You’ll imagine the worst?” he tilted an eyebrow in good humour.

“My imagination is my worst nightmare, I’m afraid…” her eyes twinkled as she joked.

 She could feel his eyes settle on her while he suppressed a laugh. Suddenly she was well aware of the fact that his hand had remained on the small of her back and her hands still clasped over his forearm. She found herself teetering on that fine line between composure and absolute surrender again. How could she not? After spending this perfect night with this charming man...

Glancing back up at him, only to find him looking right back at her, she wondered if she  balancing thin border alone or not. It didn’t help that the music was compelling, or the fact that shades of blue enhanced the mystery within his handsome features.

 Charlotte’s eyes travelled from his eyes to his lips. Everything about him called her in. Even hours prior, on Arthur’s Seat. Like a moth to a flame. She felt her pulse racing, her heartbeat deafening her ears.

She could vaguely see his lips parting slightly as if he wanted to say something but last-minute decided against it. Did he lean in closer or did she? She failed to remember. All she realised was that at some point she was close enough to feel her nose softly brushing against his cheek while her thumbs softly stroked his arms.

Her lips seemed to search out his but neglected to kiss them, instead they hover over his as if to sense whether they would fit, whether he would consent? Her eyes fluttered shut when she finally did dare to sweep her lips onto his.

It felt as if the world suddenly had stopped turning, as if all sound had left the venue and nothing else existed apart from them. There. Together.

It was silly, impulsive maybe, but there was no way running back from it now. And if all went to hell, well then, let it. At least she would feel no regret. After a while.

When her lips left his, she stood frozen for a moment, eyes closed, afraid to move, afraid to break the spell and afraid of how he might react.

Images of the World Cup Semi Final Party drift back into her mind. Sensations of a satisfying, yet tipsy kiss. Much less chaste than the one they shared now. But just like that night, she pulled back a little. And when she did dare to search his eyes again, she found they simply glistened at her in honesty; radiating warmth and looking at her lovingly.

His thumb grazed her soft lips. His weight shifted closer and she swore she heard him whispering her name while the distance between them was closed once more. He moved his fingers along her jaw, sliding them into the side of her hair when his lips capture hers in return.

Charlotte gladly and unreservedly surrendered to him, to his warmth, his taste, his scent and his touch. She adored how those first few kisses just lingered, although remaining featherlight before their eager lips parted, longing and desperate for so much more.

She easily moulded herself to his rhythm, her fingers drifting over the skin of his neck and proceeding to ghost over his bearded skin.  

She adored the fact that his hands gently but firmly enclosed themselves around her waist, so he could hold her firmly against his own body. Cradling her so devotedly moments before they both lost themselves in a very amorous embrace.

She felt as though her heart might burst.

Good lord. Don’t stop.

The sound of an enthusiastic applause in the venue brought them both back to earth quickly, cruelly ending their passionate embrace.

As the outside world started to slowly seep back in, Tom rested his forehead against Charlotte’s, basking in the sensation of her hand that still remained splayed out on his chest. His fingers combed through her hair and he relished in her sweet perfume that enticed him ever so much.

“We seem to have a knack for bad timing,” he chuckled to her amusement.

[batgirl-87]

HPHM Character Profile

Tagged by @unforgivablecurse-breaker in @cynicaljapanophile‘s awesome profile maker for our MC’s - Thank you so much for tagging me and creating this! =D

Okay, think I’m finally finished with it! Really, thank you for tagging me because it helped me figure out some new things about my MC, as well as help me more with creating her parent’s backstory, and even helping me with the godparents as well who I had no real information determined yet! So this was very beneficial for me, thank you! (I also kind of want to do this for my Jacob too...)

General Information -

Name: Nereida Adelyn-Keira Black

Age: 16 (currently)

Gender: Female

Nickname(s): Keira, Adelyn (primarily, doesn’t like her first name much like Tonks) 

Ady (by Jacob and Charlie), 

Reida (by Remus), 

Black (by Merula primarily, sometimes Andre especially if it’s on the Quidditch Pitch, sometimes Talbott when she calls him Winger, sometimes others), 

B (Penny and Jae), 

Lyn (sometimes by Jacob, usually when he needs her attention for something serious), 

Cuz (by Tonks), 

Beater Buddy/Roomie (by Barnaby), 

Canada (by Jae when she agrees to bring him things to sell from the country, by Andre when it’s revealed she’s playing for the country in the World Cup) - (there’s probably more personal ones her friends call her)

Date of Birth: 11 February 1973

Astrological/ Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

Ethnicity: Irish, French, English

Nationality: Irish & Canadian

Species: Witch, Undine

Blood Type: AB Rh+

Blood Status: Half-Blood

Family:

Father: Orion Black - 

Husband and second-cousin of Walburga Black

Father of Sirius, Regulus, Jacob, and Keira

Met Vivian-Caer while out in Knockturn Alley one day, became infatuated with her and eventually wooed her into becoming his mistress (post about Orion and Vivian-Caer and their relationship to come)

Attended Hogwarts - Slytherin

While he supported Voldemort and the Death Eaters and believed in blood purity, never became a Death Eater himself

The more powerful and forceful the Death Eaters became ultimately leading to a war led to him placing more and more protection spells on his home (possibly realizing how bad this all was and backing away a bit from the Death Eaters beliefs)

Passes away in 1979

Mother: Vivian-Caer LaFontaine - 

Named after the Lady of the Lake and the Celtic goddess of dreams and transformations known for her beautiful, hypnotic singing voice.

Born in Nice, France

Attended Académie de Magie Beauxbâtons

Moved to Ireland (home of her mother and maternal side of the family) where she eventually met Orion

Passes away in November 1978

(A post about Orion and Vivian-Caer and their relationship to come)

Godfather: Owen Pearce - 

Welsh/English heritage

From Prince Edward Island 

Played Professional Quidditch in Vancouver where he met his wife

Met Vivian when she travelled over to work with his wife. Developed a brother-sister type relationship with her.

Godmother: Alona Pearce -

First Nations from British Columbia

Practices her culture’s alchemy which is more focused on the elements (Earth, Water, Fire, Wind) than metals 

Met her husband when he searched for a Healer outside his team for his persistent shoulder pain (he didn’t want to just keep drinking potions to manage it)

Met and worked with Vivian when she travelled over for her job. Became fast friends, almost like sisters.

Other: 

Remus Lupin - Guardian while she’s in the UK/Ireland and going to school. Calls him “Uncle Remus” (post on their relationship to come)

Nymphadora Tonks - They were very surprised to find out they were related to each other when Tonks confided in Keira her aunt was Bellatrix LeStrange which Keira recognized from the family tree in 12 Grimmauld Place she just recently moved into after Walburga’s passing. Andromeda had been burnt off the tree and her husband and Tonks were never added so Keira had no idea! Call each other cuz/cousins (even though Keira would technically be her aunt but since they’re the same age they feel more like cousins. Keira would call/consider Bellatrix her aunt)

Sirius and Regulus Black - Older half-brothers. Awkward introductions by Orion after Vivian demanded that her kids meet their siblings after having Keira. Neither Keira or Jacob really remember Regulus much after their one time meeting. Sirius however was taken by Vivian’s kindness and warm welcoming, much different than living with his mum, and would sometimes stop by to ‘hang out’ with his little siblings in a much more comfortable environment than at his home. While living with the Potters gave him loving parents he lacked, visiting Vivian, Jacob, and Keira gave him the sibling bonding without feeling like he was competing with them or was lesser than them. (Probably wished he was raised with them like he wished he was raised by the Potters his whole life instead). Continued to write to them when they moved to Canada. Told the Marauders about them.

Alpharden Jacob-Taylor Black - Her big brother, best friend, and partner in crime. It’s them against the world. 

Affiliation(s)/ Organization(s): 

The Most Ancient and Noble House of Black

Orion - Affiliated with the Death Eaters although never joined himself and possibly began to disagree with them while the threat of war was imminent. 

Vivian-Caer - Académie de Magie Beauxbâtons

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Team Canada

Occupation(s):

Vivian-Caer LaFontaine - Magical Historian, Archeologist, and Author specializing in Native cultural beliefs, practices, and artefacts

Owen Pearce - Quidditch Scout/Recruiter, Former Professional Quidditch Keeper

Alona Pearce - Healer and Alchemist

Jacob-Taylor Black - Professional Quidditch Keeper

Adelyn-Keira Black - Student (currently); Curse-Breaker

Magical Characteristics -

Form of Boggart: 

Being manipulated and betrayed by her friends/those she cares about, who never truly were her friends/cared about her and only used her 

Leaves her feeling humiliated, ashamed, and completely alone praying on her insecurities, trust issues, and pride

Being open and vulnerable and trusting others is hard for her so to do so and then find out it was a lie would be incredibly hard on her and make her feel violated

Realizing and admitting she had been manipulated would be a huge blow to her pride and intelligence. She doesn’t like feeling stupid or being blindsided, prefers to be prepared and have the upperhand.

Form of Patronus: Arctic Fox (might change)

Form of Riddikulus: 

(This is such a great question, I’ve never really thought about it and have no real idea what would make this funny)

Maybe her friends laughing, dancing, and messing around together, probably reminiscent of past happy moments.

What do they see in the Mirror of Erised?: 

Jacob and her reunited together again

Their mom, godparents, Remus, and some other shadowy silhouettes representing their family 

She’s no longer alone and lost and feels supported 

Wand(s)

First Wand -Length: Eleven and a half inches -Flexibility: Solid -Wood: Hazel -Core: Undine Hair Description:  

Hazel often reflects its owner’s emotional state, and works best for a master who understands and can manage their own feelings. Others should be very careful handling a hazel wand if its owner has recently lost their temper, or suffered a serious disappointment, because the wand will absorb such energy and discharge it unpredictably. The positive aspect of a hazel wand more than makes up for such minor discomforts, however, for it is capable of outstanding magic in the hands of the skillful, and is so devoted to its owner that it often ‘wilts’ at the end of its master’s life (if the core is unicorn hair, however, there is no hope; the wand will almost certainly have ‘died’). Hazel wands also have the unique ability to detect water underground, and will emit silvery, tear-shaped puffs of smoke if passing over concealed springs and wells. 

Undine Hair Core - (Swear I wrote something about this but I can’t find it!) From grandmother (possibly her mom’s old wand); Elegant spell casting; Temperamental but loyal; Skilled in Transfigurations and Charms.

Solid - Extremely loyal. Owners of this wand are generally known for their reliability, their friendliness, and their character. They may find it difficult to understand views that differ from their own but are usually able to politely disagree. (Not exactly sold on all the flexibilities but nbd)

Stained grey with detailed carvings

Second Wand:

-Length: Eleven and a quarter inches -Flexibility: Hard -Wood: Ebony -Core: Dragon Heartstring. Description: 

This jet-black wand wood has an impressive appearance and reputation, being highly suited to all manner of combative magic, and to Transfiguration. Ebony is happiest in the hand of those with the courage to be themselves. Frequently non-conformist, highly individual or comfortable with the status of outsider. In my experience the ebony wand’s perfect match is one who will hold fast to his or her beliefs, no matter what the external pressure, and will not be swayed lightly from their purpose.

Dragon Heartstring Core - Produces wands with the most power, and which are capable of the most flamboyant spells. Tend to learn more quickly than other types. While they can change allegiance if won from their original master, they always bond strongly with the current owner.Tends to be easiest to turn to the Dark Arts, though it will not incline that way of its own accord. Somewhat temperamental.

Hard - Loyalty is not easily won. Great for complex and advanced levels of magic. This type of wand is best suited for wizards and witches who are gifted, stubborn, and never give up. Some people may find them intimidating or difficult to approach. (Not exactly sold on all the flexibilities but nbd)

Black with a slight sheen, carved out handle

Third Wand (What?! Yes =p):

-Length: Eleven inches -Flexibility: Surprisingly Swishy -Wood: Blue Spruce -Core: Undine Hair Description:

First Nations have used Blue Spruce for medicinal and ceremonial purposes, twigs given as gifts for good fortune - therefore, this type of wand is more commonly passed down as a gift rather than bought, typically done in families; this may mean this wand chooses those who have strong ties to their families. Also like other spruces, the Blue Spruce does not do well in nervous, cautious hands but will bond to its chosen partner, typically a bold spell-caster with a good sense of humour, be intensely loyal, and capable of producing dramatic effects. However, while other spruce variations may be hardier, the Blue Spruce is more flexible and adaptable. It has also been shown to do well with non-verbal magic.

Undine Hair -  Elegant spell casting; Temperamental but loyal; Skilled in Transfigurations and Charms.

Surprisingly Swishy -  Either is surprisingly loyal or surprisingly unloyal and is most often known for doing the unexpected. Great for charm work. Owners that are matched with wands of this flexibility are usually the type of people who have a hard time coming out of their shell or opening up, but once they do, others will find themselves drawn to their charming, fun-loving personalities. The owner usually adapts well to unexpected changes but may find it difficult to make hard decisions. (Not exactly sold on all the flexibilities but nbd)

Gift passed down from her mom (given by her godmother since her birth mother is dead); Her mom (with help of her godmother) chose and had this wand made for her to be given to her (as well as one for Jacob as well).

Silvery-Blue with intricate symbolic carvings and carved out handle

(Post about Keira’s different wands and her personal growth to come)

Animagus: Arctic Fox

Amortentia: 

Rain/Petrichor (reminds her of the Quidditch Pitch which she associates with Jacob; rain has always been very calming and peaceful for her) 

Salty Sea Air (reminds her of her mom and Jacob) 

Honeysuckle (reminds her of Charlie and the burrow/Weasley family)

Chocolate (reminds her of Remus)

Maple (reminds of her Canada and her ‘adopted’ parents)

Appearance -

Height: 5′6″ / 169 cm

Weight: ~135-145 lbs 

(Currently probably around 135, but when she starts training and competing in the World Cup over the summer and for Year 6 will gain more muscle)

Complexion(skin tone/ conditions): 

Pale

Cold to the touch, particularly hands and feet (ice cold =p)

Somewhat sensitive skin, becomes red easily

Commonly has some bruises from Quidditch and Cursed-Vaults adventures. 

Earns some scars as well from Quidditch and Cursed-Vaults adventures. 

Watermark - her skin will begin to grow scales if she doesn’t regularly consume water or submerges herself in it; quite painful.

Hair Color/ Style: 

Black with hint of red, primarily visible in the sunlight. 

Has a natural wave to it. 

Length is either to bottom of shoulder blades or just above the tops of the shoulders - When she started Hogwarts her hair was longer but cut it shorter for Fifth year and will probably keep that length for a while. 

Normally wears it down or up in a ponytail. Sometimes will put it up in a messy bun mainly to get it up out of her face and off her neck. 

She can wake up with it looking perfect/”perfectly messy” - Classic House of Black Hair =p 

Eye Color: Grey-Blue

Hogwarts Information -

Worst Class(es): 

Herbology - No green thumb and she doesn’t really like digging around in the soil/fertilizer and getting her hands literally dirty.

Potions - She just hates this class because Snape can be such an arse to her because of Jacob (and Sirius) and while sometimes it can be fun for her to exchange quips with him other times it is very distracting and he’s not at all helpful when she’s trying to learn how to brew potions. (He was much worse towards Jacob though).

Elective: Arithmancy - Just no. She’ll let Bill handle that =p

Best Class(es): 

Charms - She loves Professor Flitwick and truly does love this subject and has shown a natural talent for it. 

Defense Against the Dark Arts - She has a protective nature and fighting spirit, enjoys fighting/duelling and the rush of adrenaline 

History of Magic - Actually likes history, although she may not exactly enjoy the boring lectures by Professor Binns, she does love reading and learning about the subject on her own. Also likes getting to have a sort of free period with her friends.

Elective: Alchemy - Her ‘adopted’ mom piqued her interest in the subject and she is eager to learn all aspects of it even if she has to demand to be taught this course as a lone student interested in it.

Least Favourite Teacher(s):

Professor Snape - While they have a more complex relationship than he has with Jacob (or Sirius) and he treated Jacob way worse than her, Keira struggles a lot in Potions because of the lack of help from Snape and his constant hatred towards members of her family. Although they are able to get along sometimes, normally when it benefits them both, or when it’s a sort of Slytherin vs. others type of situation. Even though he can give her a hard time Keira still teases him that he truly likes her deep, deep...deep down. (If he hasn’t yet,) I headcanon that he does teach her Sectumsempra. (But she will never forgive him for what he does to Remus)

Professor Trelawney - Seriously?! How is she supposed to take this class and this Professor seriously? She can’t. This class is riddikulus. 

Favourite Teacher(s): 

Professor Flitwick - He has always been on of her favourite teachers - great teacher, passion for his job, kind and helpful to his students, overall and understanding and warm person. But what really does it for her is Flitwick’s views on Werewolves. She hates ever having to lie to him and honestly tries not to. 

Quidditch:

Beater (Joins team in Year Four)

Captain (Year Five-Year Seven)

World Cup Champion - Team Canada (1990 - summer before Year Seven)

Favourite Spell(s): 

Any water/ice or fire related spells (e.g. Aguamenti, Aqua Erecto, Glacius, Freeze, Incendio, Firestorm, Flagrante Curse, Fumos) 

Any spells that can knock back an opponent or cause an explosion (e.g. Bombarda, Confringo, Depulso, Everte Statum)

Snowflake-creating spell

Protego

Carpe Retractum

Sectumsempra 

Arania Exumai (she hates spiders!)

Cantis (yes she will make people burst into song =p)

Trivia -

(Random facts about them, future job, face claim, theme song, etc.)

Random Facts: 

Speaks English and French, and knows a little Russian, ISL/Irish, and Carrier

Plays piano

Jacob was supposed to teach her to play guitar

Hat stall between Slytherin and Ravenclaw

Slytherin Prefect

Has a Siamese Cat

INFJ-A

Probably a True Neutral (or somewhere on the Neutral spectrum)

Uncomfortably with physical affection and needs plenty of time to feel comfortable with someone before engaging. (Honestly probably took until Year 5 for her to comfortably hug her friends, although some she felt more comfortable with sooner than others like Tonks)

Beautiful singing voice, used to be shy about it but grows to be more confident with it (and in general) since she does love to sing - also didn’t like singing without Jacob though

Normally good at hiding her negative emotions

Can become overwhelmed and anxious which causes her to submerge herself in the nearest body of water to calm herself down (e.g. Black Lake, Prefect’s Bath, Courtyard Fountain) Might be because of her Undine genes but being underwater quiets everything down and helps her calm down and brings a sense of peace

Wants to be able to create her own spells like Badeea - teach her the ways!

Fiercely protective of those she cares about, primarily Remus

Receives and sends out a care package once a month from and to “Uncle Remus” - normally filled with chocolate (and wolfsbane which she takes to making after learning how)

A female Sirius =p 

Can be quite flirtatious as long as there are no real feelings behind it (she doesn’t believe anyone would actually be interested in her romantically, surprised she even has friends who like her for her, but if someone convinced her they did have feelings for her she might not know how to function =p)

Moves into 12 Grimmauld Place after Walburga passes (and no one else is doing anything with it!)

Moves Barnaby in with her officially summer before Year Six (even though summer before Year Five her basically spent all his time there and stayed with Keira either there or at Hogwarts during the holidays)

Her interest in History most likely stems from her mom

Her mom spending time in Egypt as a Historian/Archeologist before she was born probably influences Keira to become a Curse-Breaker there to feel a sort of connection to her mom - like maybe she explored this tomb too or shopped at this market. Maybe someone here worked with her and remembers her. (Not just about Bill =p)

Sentimental Items - Celtic Warrior Ring (given by her mom to her and Jacob); a quilt made by her mom (on for her and one for Jacob); an old Golden Snitch from Jacob; a House of Black crest cameo necklace

Has no interest or plans to get married or have children

Gifted Bill his leather jacket (that becomes a signature look for him =p)

Future Job: Curse-Breaker (with her partner Bill Weasley)

Face-claim: 

Megan Fox 

Or Alexandra Daddario

Bonus: Jacob & Keira (although she’d probably never wear pink =p)

Tagging (if you haven’t done it already and want to): @bluerosesburnblue @arnyan @gryffinpuffthunderbird @jadeowl19 @cptaincarswell @changeling-fae