#or still talking about chess?

[lured-into-wonderland]

once strides have guided them out of view, out of visions so piercing and full of uncalled judgement, did a calloused hand seek out. mirroring a devious serpent, as arm slides gracefully around golden princess' petite waist. a pull, a drag, alike the touch of a feather, does war incarnate guide the sun and seas into half an embrace. like a shield, found towering presence looming himself upon radiant existence, within his hold. a chuckle, rumbles upward, through the volcanic tunnel of a throat.

' - fear not. none is looking. ' he almost hums, and he sways two bodies from side to side, gentle, to the drum of faint musical instruments, in the far distance of the halls. war could not help himself, to brush those fair locks of hers, out of her stunningly shaped visage.

' do tell, dear princess, is it truly a round of chess you were seeking for? or have you had some ulterior motives, to such bold request? what was it again? you wish to mate me? ' - ( oseis/nunnally )

She could not blame the ladies at the court that they laughed at her. She should not have gotten involved in a game, in a competition that was not hers; that she could not win. Nunnally was proud, but not too proud to admit to herself that disturbing the cheerfulness of that circle around Lord Oseis, that proposing a game of chess, no matter the choice of words, was already that one step too far. Showing to the world - or rather to the court as what would the world care? – that she had the same feelings, and perhaps even the same desires, as everyone else. Something that she was forbidding herself to express as long as she remembered. Why was she so eager to toss aside her only shield against all those who despised her? What was it in that man that he was leaving her so fragile, so exposed?

She was grateful War did not laugh; Nunnally could stand all the soft mockery of the court ladies, but would not accept his (even if deserved?). She was used to such a treatment. The lonely princess whose only guilt was that she was not the expected son. A heiress and not a heir. Three letters that were changing so much. More like everything? His deep bow, the chivalrous reply and the light critique of what had just happened, but without having her tainted, without having her involved made Nunnally think that Lord Oseis was not only her sword but also her shield? Her armour against the world?

She happily accepted the arm offered to her, forcing herself to seem, to act casual and not eager. She spoke nothing; they did not deserve her words. Their giggles did not require her reply. And Lord Oseis, as well as everyone else, would simply understand what taking his arm meant. Their steps were quiet as they were leaving the ball room, but as they were being watched by those gathered there, they seemed to drown out all other sounds. A few more strides and she was safely led out to the refreshing coldness of the halls and their nooks and crannies that probably witnessed so many laughs and tears of lovers seeking their solitude…Why was she suddenly thinking about that?

( “(…) I do now vow and I do not kneel…(…)” ) his words were ringing in her mind like red flags when the War Incarnate gently pulled her into a hug…into a dance…his grip so feathery, yet so firm. Lord Oseis was almost not touching her, but why did it feel like he was caging her, tying, taking her proud…her freedom away?  

(“ Fear not. None is looking.”) – his luring words as if he could feel her blood quickening and her lungs desperately grasping for air; oh, how good it was that he was mistaken! That what Lord Oseis thought was a fear of being seen, of being discovered, was, indeed, a fear that she would allow herself to indulge into his touch…that she would let herself feel what she had decided she never would. But she never danced in such a way! She did not want Lord Oseis to be only her sword, her shield, her armour…she wanted him to be…no! Nunnally would not admit that even to herself as that could be the first sign to mark the beginning of her end…

His words…they terrified the girl…who was he? How could he read her so easily?

“My Lord…” – her voice seemed so distant, so unnatural – “Since when a game of chess has become a bold request?” – he was not human! Nunnally was sure of it by then, although she could still not decide on who he was. Was Lord Oseis her end? Or was he a new beginning for her? – “Unless you’re suggesting a game for much higher stake?”

(“I wish to mate you?”) – was it what she said? – (“You wish to mate me?”) – was that what he said? Her own words used against her? But she was going to stay truthful to them.

“That’s what it was, My Lord. I wish to mate you…don’t you wish to mate me?” – were they still taking about chess? Was she still taking about chess?

“Winning…seeing the king…the queen collapse…isn't that what you desire?”

@equos

[todayisafridaynight]

they‘re exes your honor

[sloyla]

Once again thinking about all of the Adrien-Felix dialogues in the orginal Felix episode (the script) we were robbed of

[neige-leblanche]

also y'all

does anybody have the original japanese of this line from book 5 ch 27???

bc rereading it i was like. O_O. is he. not talking about vil.

i was thinking like "the first read through you're definitely meant to think so, and vil did absolutely change rook's life, but with context from both book 6 and his halloween vignette, what he's describing here leans more towards the latter" which is like. masterful gaybait i can't even be mad. it's like that post saying "some gaybaiting is like a box propped up with a stick and a block of cheese underneath" except this has all the intricacy of a steampunk clock.

but my VERY shoddy japanese skills r telling me the line translates more to "beauty in your eyes and the darkness, lighting up your entire life for you—in a time in your existence when you'll be able to have [such an experience] (expanding on the prev line where he says they'll be able to understand his ideology in the future)"

^ and i probably mangled this so bad but the main point is i didn't hear him refer to a "someone" like he does in the english tl & i'm wondering if i missed it or if it was in fact added!!!

[ying-doodles]

// novel spoilers (chp 390)

this chapter feels like super smash bros' "everyone is here!" cause good lord there's a lot of people there to fight.

the mermaids simply jumping over to the estate is truly insane.. but them and the orcs wanting to have competitions of strength is funny lolol-

I do wonder what secret lloyd's going to say,, is it time for the big reveal?? O-O but then again, javier knows he's not lloyd*.. so maybe just another minor thing like the ear swabbing?

[ceru-at-hogwarts]

Checkmate! (O.G. x S.S.)

[SFW. 1K words. I don't know what I'm doing, I was just imagining Ominis and Sebastian playing blind chess and this happened. Slice of life trying to explore their relationship I guess? Disclaimer: I don't know anything about chess but my father is huge fan and I borrow one of his favourite chess matches of all time: The Opera match from 1858]

My writing master list

The heavy door was closed behind them with what sounded like finality as if their life was about to be cut short. For a moment, Sebastian Sallow was persuaded that it was indeed the case. Ominis and he were trapped here now, in this room, for the rest of eternity, wasting precious minutes of what was left of his sister's life. They should have been in the library's Restricted Section, looking for any potential cure. They should have been in a mysterious cave that probably held an ancient magic's secret of healing. Bloody hell, they should even be in the Common Room doing their homework. They should have been anywhere else but here, locked until hell froze over.

To be fair, that was not entirely true, as technically it was only Professor Weasley who was locking the door behind them with magic in the Trophy Room, after confiscating both Sebastian's wand and instructing both him and Ominis to polish every single trophy in the room until it was gleaming, without any magic at all, for the rest of the evening. They were caught sneaking in the Restricted Section earlier, and Madam Scribner's gaze had never been sharper as she dragged both boys by the ears to the Deputy Headmistress.

Now sitting here with a bottle of polish and a small pile of rags, all Sebastian wanted was to kick the bottle sitting between him and Ominis. And of course, Ominis, being the good boy that he was, had already taken the first trophy from one of the shelves and carefully started to polish it manually, his wand safely tucked in his pocket. 

"You could have just polished all of these trophies with your wand and we'll be done for the evening," Sebastian grumbled. How can Weasley even let Ominis keep his wand during detention? She did not even let Sebastian keep his despite his protestation.

"I don't think you understand how detention work, Sebastian," Ominis said calmly, as he continued working on polishing the trophy's handles. "Weasley would know. If you haven't noticed already, there was an anti-magic charm put on these trophies. They cannot be cleaned unless they were manually scrubbed."

"Bloody damnation, that's sadistic," Sebastian spat angrily.

"Language, Sebastian, please, let's not get ourselves into more trouble if ever Weasley comes back suddenly." 

All Sebastian want at this point was to take the trophy Ominis was polishing and throw it out of the window. But it would cost them at least a month's worth of detention. Anne was wilting by the hour, they had outstanding homework piling up and that he was trapped in detention here with Ominis did not help Sebastian's mood. At all.

From his side, Sebastian could feel Ominis tilting his head slightly as if he was carefully assessing Sebastian's mood. After nearly four full years of friendships, Sebastian could tell. Ominis had this way of looking at him without actually looking at him at all. Those pale milky eyes were unfocused, looking into a space behind Sebastian, yet Ominis was observing Sebastian carefully.

"Pawn to E4," Ominis said suddenly.

"What?" Sebastian blurted. 

"Sebastian, please. I'm giving you a bit of practice. Didn't you say you want to beat Imelda AND Amit in the school championship? You don't seem like doing any polishing tonight so why don't we play a match? Pawn to E4."

Sebastian blinked, for a moment sounding surprised but really... Now Ominis wanted to play chess match with him? 

"Ominis, we don't even have a chessboard!"

"Even if there was one, I won't be able to see it, Sebastian," Ominis replied sardonically. "How do you think I played and won against Imelda all this time? Who do you think Hogwarts' reining secret champion was?"

Sebastian groaned again. "You... you've been playing against Imelda? All these years? You're the Secret Champion?"

"Yes. Why do you think she kept giving me chocolate frogs? I won the tournament, every single one. Are you playing or not? Pawn to E4, last call, Sebastian." Even in the dim light, Sebastian could see Ominis' head tilted, a proud smile on his face. Dammit!

"Black Pawn to E5," Sebastian said finally, groaning. In the dark, he could see Ominis grinning. "And here I thought she wanted to try recruit you to the Quidditch Team or that she was sweet on you."

"Imelda, sweet on me? How much butterbeer did you drink tonight for dinner, Sebastian? And how could you even imagine my being on Quidditch team? Really? Knight to F3," Ominis' voice was soft now, amused, yet clear, commanding.

"The hell... Pawn to D6." Sebastian threw himself beside Ominis, feeling like he wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. "Talking about butterbeer I'd like to remind you that three mugs of butterbeer are enough to make you drunk. You did sing Odo the Hero all the way back while I had to drag you to your bed back last week."

"Sebastian, please, if Weasley heard you, we would be in trouble. Pawn to D4." Ominis threw his head back. "And I'm not going to go beyond one single butterbeer the entire evening ever again, thank you very much."

"To hell with you and your rules, Ominis. Bishop to G4." Sebastian's head was pounding, trying to imagine the chessboard. What was the moves again?

"It's called common decency in polite society, Sebastian. D4 to E5. Pawn eats pawn."

"Fine, up to your bloody rules. I'll get you drunk next time we're in Hogsmeade. Don't tell me you haven't been warned. Bishop to F3. Eat your own Pawn."

"With pleasure, Sebastian, you're welcome to try. Queen to F3, you're one Bishop down now."

"Blasted damnation. D6 Pawn to E7, what the hell, I'll just eat one more of your pawn." 

Ominis grinned cockily. Sebastian could see dimples forming on his cheeks. Ominis was clearly enjoying this and he, Sebastian Sallow, the main challenger to the title of the best wizard chess player in Hogwarts, was flustered to no end. But for real, he did not care anymore. In a swift movement, he cupped that face he had been craving for so long and kissed this infuriatingly beautiful face in front of him. He couldn’t care less should Professor Weasley come suddenly. He could feel Ominis' surprised gasp, but Ominis kissed him back, timidly at first, tentatively, but with intensity after some time. All his cockiness from earlier had gone, and in the dim light, Sebastian could see Ominis looking slightly lost yet hopeful in equal measure. 

"Sebastian I... I don't know what to say," he whispered finally, his voice quivering slightly.

"Then say nothing. Checkmate," Sebastian whispered back, cockily but very gently, before pulling him into another long kiss. The trophy Ominis was polishing fell to the floor with a loud clang, and they had never finished that match, but neither of them cared.

[wild-at-mind]

As of time of writing, Rishi Sunak is still refusing to apologise for the jibe at trans women in PMQ. (Apologise specifically to Brianna Ghey's parents, her mother at least being definetly present at the time.) What will the fallout for this be? This is only days after normally transphobic tabloids splashed the mugshots of Brianna's killers all over their front page with headlines like 'PURE EVIL'. It seemed the spectacle of 16 year old murderers overrode the fact that they normally don't care about trans people. Rishi's remark streamrolled one of the most important optics rules on most parts of the political spectrum- don't say things that upset the grieving family. On the other hand, Sunak was making a jibe that revealed the fact that most people currently in UK politics seem convinced that if they say 'trans women are women' it will not only prove catastrophic for their chance of being elected, it will also cause mobs of people to thrust stats at them supposedly proving that cis women will be in mortal danger. And that may happen! The statistical evidence isn't there at all, though, so I believe it would come to nothing if he rode it out. Anyway, it's the right thing to do. I believe that after a certain point, continually insisting trans women are not women makes you look deranged. I have a trans woman friend who told me she once asked a transphobic/gender critical aquaintance of ours during calm conversation 'how do you see me? What am I, if not a woman?' The aquaintance said 'you're a man dressed up.' Now, these gender critical people claim to be super duper pro GNC cis men (they aren't, because they are worried the GNC cis men might start IDing as trans, and they hate men anyway especially weird queer ones, so it's a non-starter.) But this person was essentially telling my friend 'you aren't what you have clearly demonstrated yourself to be'. It's often said that 'trans women are women' is an opinion, but in my eyes saying that trans women are not women is an opinion. This aquaintance was saying what she had been indocterinated to believe by her TERF online circles, and I don't think she's reachable (my friend is no longer trying, it was a one off conversation as far as I can tell). I've said this before but I maintain that politicians should stop dignifying the question of 'what is a woman? Define what a woman is!' because it's a question that is never asked in good faith. It's a gotcha, and you don't need to answer it and fall into whatever trap they are setting. You just need to put forth policies that support both cis women and trans women- showing support with your deeds and words. And Starmer should have a fucking backbone- Sunak isn't wrong there. If anything what Sunak did was very revealing because it shows he's used to being surrounded only by people who guffaw at the very idea that 'trans women are women' is something true in both theory and practice. Meanwhile trans people are becoming more visible and I truly believe within 20 years, both Sunak and Starmer will look like dinosaurs in much the same way as the homophobic politicians of yore were following a public zeitgeist that was quickly becoming outdated. It's a shame we never seem to learn from the past.

[dykeogenes]

that post got me mad about irene adler again. baby the thesis of a scandal in bohemia was “underestimating women will make a fool out of you.” we simply cannot keep doing this. cmon now!! cmon!

[forcedhesitation]

I finished act 2 again, but properly this time. and I cannot even begin to put into words how satisfying and beautiful all of that was. I loved act 2 the first time I played, but figuring out how to save the last light this time, properly completing halsin's quest, storming moonrise towers with jaheira and her harpers, seeing aylin reunite with isobel...all of it. I love it even more. and the beginning of act 3 feels all the more rewarding, having fixed my past errors.

[cuntwrap--supreme]

What is it about me that makes old white men think I'm a conservative? I need to know so I can change that.

[shadow0-1]

What's the biggest headcanon/idea you have rattling around in your brain about Graves and Jax?

Vehchdhbfjebv oh boy get ready cause this is gonna be a ride

Sometime after recon by fire and before the enemy at the gate cutscene, Jax uncovers the truth about the missile shipments. He doesn't tell Laswell about it yet cause What The Fuck. Some things start clicking together, like Dipaolo, Vance and Erikson being MIA or "on medical leave"

So he goes and confronts Graves about it and they get into a massive argument cause Jackie's pissed and confused but deep down he knows he can't pin the whole blame on Graves. Shepherd got into his head and he knows that but all rational thinking flew out the window. He's mad about the cover up, mad that Graves trusted Shepherd over him, mad that Graves lied to him.

It's messy, they're yelling and seconds away from throwing things and Graves says something that just makes Jackie freeze. "You never cared about me." And Jackie's fucking crushed. Is that what he really thinks or are they both just saying shit in the heat of the moment? He says "all I've ever done is care about you," and turns and leaves. He knows that they'll both say more shit they'll regret if he doesn't

It was that argument that made Graves realize just exactly how badly he'd fucked up. It might be too late to make amends but dammit if he isn't going to try, even if it kills him. So he continues playing as Shepherd's lapdog, does what he says, and starts a war with the 141 to stay in his good graces.

On his way out of Las Almas, he sets up a meeting with Shepherd at some abandoned warehouse near the US/Mexico border. Graves starts asking questions and Shepherd doesn't like that.

Of course, Graves never realized he'd been stuck in a losing game of chess the entire time. It had been rigged since the start, with the threat of checkmate breathing down the back of his neck. He'd pushed away the one person he trusted the most. In Shepherd's eyes, Graves is nothing more than a loose end, nothing more than a rusty tool that's outlived its purpose. It was always going to be Graves against Shepherd, his word against a well-respected General's. No one would trust someone who's basically a mercenary

Graves doesn't remember a whole lot from the incident, but he knows Shepherd shot him and that the fire suppression system was disabled long before he he arrived, and that's enough to feed into some pretty nasty nightmares. A prominent one is Jackie being the one to light the fire and leaves him for dead

[angered-box]

i think my obsession with enstars has gotten worse

[simikae]

while i don’t really mind the “all fire emblem fans hate fire emblem!!” joke by itself i do think it is miserable that some people are unironically stepping into the “fire emblem has always had bad writing” territory like… well first of all that is WILDLY inaccurate (not even me being a biased gbafe girl like have you played awakening. tellius even. hi. what) and second of all it’s just sad that some people use it as a means of being so cool and ironic like are you afraid of expressing a genuine interest in something

[buttercuparry]

In these past few months I came across a few popular blogs which have been very vocal about Palestine and to be very honest I got to learn so much information from these bloggers and it is through them, that I came across Palestinian voices on tumblr as well...so I am very grateful for that.

Now having said that I have a concern here. i am not sure, but i think there is something suspect in their allyship. Somehow I feel like they cannot go beyond their american identity. And I know this sounds weird because of course someone's american identity would matter- seeing as how USA is being a bitch about ceasefire and in its unfailing support of Israel- but I am not talking about that. I am talking about centering the vileness of America and therefore centering America in every conversation. And what happens when you center America in your conversations regarding politics of another country, regarding land back movements, resistance etc every single time, is that, you form an ideology and become so committed to it that you don't see anything else. And by this I mean your despair and anger over the wrong doings of your country takes precedence over people facing subjugation and oppression in another corner of the world. And I have seen a funny thing happen when American treachery becomes the centre of gravity of all conversations- those who are victims of this treachery are given a voice, while those who might be victims of powers that compete with America, are dismissed.

I don't think this is how you build a better world. Listen I know nothing about nothing and have countless prejudices which I am slowly recognizing ( and trying to leave behind), but one thing I believe in, at least for now, is- your ideology shouldn't blind you to oppression. Your faithfulness to a political movement shouldn't get precedence over human lives. We, who are in the global south, aren't pieces in your fantasy of revolution. To use people from the global south to stoke the fire of revolution within yourself, to use us as show pieces in your fantasy of taking down the capitalist West, when it suits your narrative and then turn away from us when it doesn't, shouldn't be a thing. I mean how can you in the same breathe say-free Palestine and then say that the Uyghur genocide is a myth? Do you hear yourself?

[daisydisciple]

People usually seem to mean something about service/giving when they talk about "the Christmas Spirit" but I think to me the primary characteristic feature of Christmas as a holiday is the spirit of anticipation.

That's like the whole point of the concept of advent, for one thing. In a way, we are honoring and embodying the anticipation of all who lived before Christ's coming and looked ahead to their redemption, "speaking of things to come as though they had already come," who looked forward with the eye of faith and prophecy. "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined" wrote Isaiah, centuries before Christ's birth. They borrowed joy from the future, and we, in turn, borrow joy and anticipation from the past.

Whatever time of year Jesus was actually born, I do appreciate the symbolism of celebrating his coming shortly after the winter solstice—the greatest darkness has passed, and more light is yet to come. (And my southern hemisphere friends can enjoy basking in the most light the year has to offer—fitting in its own way). We superimpose the overarching narrative of mankind's redemption onto the smaller repeating seasons of our present lives, interpreting the unknown to the familiar. We celebrate the gifts of Christ in our personal, mundane little lives—service, forgiveness, charity, community, reconciliation, love. We fill the darkness with light in His honor.

And celebrating the past joy and anticipation of Christ's historical coming, along with our present holiday joy and anticipation also leads us to look forward to the future joys that will be ours because of Him. Some of my favorite Christmas carols are the ones that emphasize this: Jesus was "born that man no more may die," "to raise the sons of earth," "to give them second birth." "In His name all oppression shall cease." It isn't just that he was born—everyone that ever lived was born. We are celebrating everything that did and does and will happen because of his life and atonement and death and resurrection, including the things that haven't even happened yet. The great story of mankind's liberation from death and reconciliation with God isn't even over yet.

And so just like those of old who looked forward to Christ's coming, we today are also in a state of anticipation: that He will come again, that all of God's promises will be fulfilled, that we will live again with God in a state of glory. And so we, too, borrow joy from the future. "We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ."

As Christians, it is our right and our duty to embrace every joy—that of the past, that of the present, and that of the future. And that's what Christmas is about to me, ultimately.

[sunshine-in-a-bottle]

I need one of you to hold a gun to my head while I write but also tell me I'm doing a good job and enthusing with me while I write it I think that would fix me