#since they're planning to buy a house they want to buy one with an extra room / like a separate 'studio'-style area with its own

[kedreeva]

Okay, I haven't wanted to talk much about the peafowl lately, been just kinda dealing with Stan's passing, but! I have news I don't want to keep quiet, so here we go with a little announcement.

I've been helping a friend of mine with a bunch of peafowl genetics work lately, as he's trying to prove out a really neat phenotype of speckled and white peafowl that showed up in his breeding stock, and he just spent tens of thousands of dollars importing two new morphs from Europe: European violet (aka, my dream morph) and Ultramarine (pretty and only otherwise being produced by TWO breeders in the WORLD). When Bill heard about Stan, he asked if I was going to go to a large farm auction that's a few hours from my house. I don't, normally, since it's a few hours from my house and the auctions usually make me kinda sad when it comes to peafowl (they stress out SO MUCH) even though it's cool to see how much they're going for at a wider audience auction.

Then he told me he would be going, and that if I wanted to come down the day before the auction, he'd bring me another male, to replace Stan. I had already made plans to hang onto Bismuth, at least for a few years, and to pick up babies from Indie x Arcana/Eclipse this november, including a male, so I didn't really need another male, and don't have the cash for one anyway. He said no, he meant one of the split EUV males from last year's first-USA breeding. For free. As a thank you for helping him.

To put this into perspective, importing the birds is a ~$10k affair, per bird. I had fully resigned myself to never even SEEING one of these birds in person, much less ever owning one. Even if someone else got them imported, they would remain thousands of dollars for the first few years, and quickly become mixed with other stuff, potentially even be lost by people breeding to purple. He went in on a group import with another breeder and they have both just started selling the full-color birds for over $2k apiece (alongside Ultramarine, which before their import was bred by TWO people in the WORLD, and babies from that are going for almost $7k each, but EUV is more widely spread). Splits (like the one I will be getting) are being let go for $750. This is also the color I have desperately wanted since I first saw them 8-10 years ago (though I believe they've been around slightly longer), but that I had resigned myself to never actually having.

To put it mildly, I'm probably going to burst into tears when I see Bill and this bird. It's going to be super embarrassing. And then I'm going to have to build more pens. And then I'm going to have to get as plain-blue, pure-indian blue hens as I can find, and become one of the most serious curators of plain pure EUV in the US, because I know the other two who have them currently will be outcrossing to other patterns/colors immediately and the people buying them will likely be doing the same, and everyone will be clamoring to make them into high Spaldings ASAP, or won't know not to cross them to purples and wreck the color.

Here's the sire cock, the one imported:

You will notice that this bird is purple in full sun, from the sunny side. That's the main difference between European violet and US purple- a US purple looks blue until you get the right angle on the sun vs the bird vs the camera, and you have to get the bird between you and the sun, so the purple is often in the shadow side- visible to the eye but not the camera. EUV is just purple. Even from the sunny side!!

And the Ultramarine, in case you were wondering about their color:

(pics reposted w/ permission from Bill)

The breeder is Spring Creek Peafowl, and in case anyone is secretly a peafowl breeder or knows other peafowl breeders with too much money that want in on a new color morph, he DOES have UM pairs and EUV hens (and more split males) for sale currently, for less than the only other person in the US that has them. They're still pricey, but cheaper. I WISH I had the extra to have my friend add on an EUV hen, but alas, I will have to wait to make my own in a few years. Even just the opportunity to do so is something I never expected to have!

[trulybetty]

oct' 18 x picking apples

Prompt: picking apples Pairing: sequins!joel miller x gn!reader (A/N: main series Sequins is written as female, but here they're written gender neutral) Word Count: 508 Warnings: fluff, just domesticated fluff Summary: is this head canon for sequins!joel x reader? I'm not sure, but I wanted some domestic fluff and this just came out of that and a new addition for the miller household. thank you @gnpwdrnwhiskey for the image of grumpy joel at the apple orchard.

x. masterlist

“Tell me again why we’re picking fuckin’ apples when we could just go buy a bag from the H-E-B for half the price?” Joel asked as he looked down one of the many rows of trees that filled the orchard.

You smiled as you turned to him, shielding your sunglasses-covered eyes from the glare of sun that cast its warmth over the orchard. “Because it’s fun,” you replied.

He raised an eyebrow, “Darlin’ I can think of half a dozen other things that are more fun than drivin’ an hour out of town to buy more apples than we know what to do with.”

“Sarah wants to make apple pies this afternoon and apple butter.” You added a couple more apples to the basket you’d been handed on the way in.

Joel muttered something under his breath before you heard him say, “H-E-B sells those too, ten minutes from the house as well.”

You didn’t need to turn around to know he had a smirk on his face and he was actually enjoying himself despite his complaints.

It had been an event just getting you all out of the house that morning. Much like all the fall expeditions so far, they had been at the planning of Sarah. The night before her enthusiasm over dinner had led to a plea for you all to wear plaid, really get into the autumnal mood despite the warm temperatures of fall. 

Your yellow plaid was tied at your waist, one too many layers for you, Joel’s red plaid was hidden under his jacket, zipped up and the barest slither of it to be seen.

He came to stand beside you and you took a moment to take him in. He looked the same as always, rugged and handsome, some extra grey in his beard this year, a little more tiredness in his eyes, but there was something all so different today.

Something so new, something very much unplanned, a small addition to your fall traditions this year, and also the impetus of Sarah’s ramped up fall enthusiasm this year.

“You're really getting the hang of that, aren't you?” you remarked as you gestured to the slight bulge that could be seen beneath his coat.

Joel held out his arms, a mock-serious expression on his face. “I believe I've mastered the fine art of baby-wearing.”

You chuckled and leaned in to give him a soft kiss on the lips. As you pulled away, your eyes met, and you felt that same magnetic pull, the same indefinable connection that had existed since the moment you both met.

Sarah, retuning with her own basket, pretended to gag. “Guys, please. We're in public.”

You laughed softly as the both of you looked down at the tiny bundle cradled against his chest as she let out a tiny yawn.

Joel grinned, his gaze still fixed on you as he moved closer until your foreheads were pressed together. He groaned in mock frustration, “If it’s not the big one, it’s the little one.” But the smile that lingered on his lips told a different story.

[torahoes]

(IDOLiSH7) Haruka Isumi - An Idol's Daily Life Rabbit Chat: Part 4 - ŹOOĻ's sleepover situation

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Tsumugi Takanashi: Good work today...! I'm looking forward to the music program recording tomorrow!

Haruka Isumi: Good work today, Takanashi-san

Haruka Isumi: Looking forward to it as well.

Tsumugi Takanashi: It's been a while since we've done a live broadcast together!

Tsumugi Takanashi: I'm really excited about ŹOOĻ's medley.

Haruka Isumi: You can expect the best. I heard there's going to be an audience, so we'll make it the best stage ever

Haruka Isumi: I'm also looking forward to seeing IDOLiSH7's performance.

Tsumugi Takanashi:

Tsumugi Takanashi: By the way, did you use up your Old Maid commands?

Haruka Isumi: Yup

Haruka Isumi: I told everyone to hang out with me on our next day off.

Haruka Isumi: They said that it wasn't really a command, though.

Tsumugi Takanashi: I think that's a wonderful way to use it!

Tsumugi Takanashi: Where are you going to hang out?

Haruka Isumi: They're coming over to my place

Haruka Isumi: The last time they visited, they promised my grandma they'd look through my photo album together next time, apparently

Tsumugi Takanashi: Wow! It sounds like there will be a lot of cute photos!

Tsumugi Takanashi:

1) What kind of photos are you planning to show?

Haruka Isumi: Not sure; grandma seems to have a favorite from when I was in the choir. It's probably the one where I got my first robe and sang in it. The robe was so big it looked like it was wearing me lol

2) Do you have any other plans?

Haruka Isumi: Grandma is excited to cook, so I'll be helping her out. I asked them what they wanted to eat and they said rice balls, so I'll need to buy some fillings

3) Do you often visit the other members' houses?

Haruka Isumi: We often hang out at Torao's place. It's spacious and even has a theater room. Last time, we had a hand-rolled sushi party. The ingredients were so luxurious, like otoro and uni, that I was too nervous to roll them up lol

Tsumugi Takanashi: You must be looking forward to your next day off!

Haruka Isumi: Yeah, I guess

Haruka Isumi: Since IDOLiSH7 live in a dorm, do they do stuff like hanging out at each other's places?

Tsumugi Takanashi: They all have their own rooms, so I've heard they often visit each other's rooms and even have sleepovers!

Haruka Isumi: That's nice; having sleepovers

Haruka Isumi: Sounds fun

Haruka Isumi: I get a bit excited when we have overnight trips for shoots too

Tsumugi Takanashi: Do you have pillow fights or anything like that?

Haruka Isumi: Not really

Haruka Isumi: But that sounds fun

Tsumugi Takanashi: IDOLiSH7 have done it before too. You should try it next time!

Haruka Isumi: I'll suggest it to them

Tsumugi Takanashi:

Haruka Isumi: Come to think of it, even on those trips, we don't do much

Haruka Isumi: Before we know it, we're all gathered in Torao’s room, chatting away

Tsumugi Takanashi: So Mido-san's room is the gathering spot!

Haruka Isumi: Yeah. 'Cause Torao always brings along good stuff like a hairdryer and skincare products

Haruka Isumi: When I go to borrow them, Minami is usually there too

Haruka Isumi: Then after a bit, Touma comes with a bunch of snacks lmao

Tsumugi Takanashi: Mido-san does seem like he’d know good skincare products...!

Haruka Isumi: He uses stuff that looks expensive

Haruka Isumi: Touma was so nervous at first, he only used a tiny bit

Tsumugi Takanashi: I totally understand that feeling...

Tsumugi Takanashi: When I buy something fancy, I'm happy but also careful not to use too much since it's too precious > <

Haruka Isumi: Is that how it is?

Haruka Isumi: Torao just tells us to use as much as we want

Tsumugi Takanashi: How kind...! I wonder if he brings extra for everyone to use.

Haruka Isumi: Probably

Haruka Isumi: He used to bring small travel-sized containers, but now he brings the whole bottle

Tsumugi Takanashi:

Haruka Isumi: So when we go to his room, everyone brings something as a token of thanks

Haruka Isumi: Touma brings candies, I bring cards and stuff, and Minami recently started bringing disposable cameras

Tsumugi Takanashi: Disposable cameras! They're quite trendy these days.

Haruka Isumi: Yup. He converts them to digital later and sends it to us

Haruka Isumi: The photos have this nostalgic feel to them that I really like

Haruka Isumi: We even hang some of the developed ones at the agency

Tsumugi Takanashi:

End of Part 4.

[tsukkismoonlight]

HQ!! Types of friends || misc headcanons

Based on actual things I've done with my friends cause it's the little things in life <3

Ft. Atsumu, Kenma, Tsukishima, Akaashi, Bokuto, Daichi, Terushima, Oikawa, and Nishinoya

Atsumu is the one who has a water balloon fight with you, in your front yard, at 10pm. You were supposed to have it earlier, but the day had other plans. But when he saw you feeling bummed about it, he took the initiative to fill the balloons and put them outside for you two. Sure it was cold, but the way you two were laughing your asses off as you tried to hit each other, and failed half the time because of how dark it was? A memory you won't ever forget.

Kenma who calls you at 9:30pm, asking if you'd want to come over and play games with him. Sometimes the night consists of the two of you playing some multiplayer game together, while other nights are spent sitting quietly as you both try to complete your own games. When you stay over a little too late, he'll say that it's okay if you just crash there. And if you're the type who doesn't sleep until it's technically morning, just like him, the two of you will scrounge around the kitchen finding odd snacks for 4am, like left over pizza for kenma, and two uncrustables for yourself.

Tsukishima isn't one to be overly affectionate to his friends, everyone already knows this. But you easily notice that it's the little things that show he cares. Something he does often, is recommending movies or tv shows that he enjoyed, hoping that you'd like them too. He will usually wait a few days before asking if you watched them yet, and to ask what you thought about them. He likes to make sure that you enjoyed what he recommended, and of course it makes him feel better knowing that he's still up to date with the things you like.

Akaashi is the type of friend who will let you randomly come over, sprawl across his bed and just talk about your day. He likes to watch you recount your adventures, finding it funny how animated you can be while storytelling. Occasionally he'll add his own anecdotes, granted they're a lot less flashy, but it always brings your mood up just hearing about his day. At a point, he makes sure to have 'your spot' on his bed clear of anything that could get in your way, and even bought extra blankets for you to use while you're there.

Bokuto always gives you the biggest bear hugs when he sees you, as long as you let him do so that is. It doesn't matter if it's been a few weeks or a few days since he saw you last. He wraps strong arms around you, nearly squeezing the life out of you as he lifts you from the ground, a boisterous and infectious laugh that will rumble through his chest each and every time he does this. One time, when he went on a particularly long trip, he left you with a sweater of his, saying something about how hopefully it would take the place of his hugs until he came back.

Daichi is the friend who tries new recipes with you. If you're craving something, he'll find the recipe online, and go buy the ingredients. You take turns on whose kitchen you use, but you always cook them together. There's always a good mix of your favorite music artists, resulting in small dance parties while you wait for your food to cook. For the most part, you two wind up with a delicious meal or snack, but there have been times when something doesn't come out right, and you have to brainstorm on who to give the leftovers to.

Terushima goes on late night drives with you. If it's nice enough, the windows are rolled down, and the music is just slightly too loud to have any sort of conversation with him. Sometimes he's a little scary of a driver, in his words "the curbs just jump out at me sometimes" but regardless, you'll always think fondly of how terrible of singers you both are, though neither of you care that much. Sometimes, when you're feeling extra dubious, he comes up with the scheme of stealing a lone traffic cone, which has resulted in his room having two or three of the things.

Oikawa hates house sitting alone. He honestly just hates being alone in the first place, which is why you're the first of his friends that he reaches out to. He makes sure to tell whoever it is that he's watching the house for that you'll be there, and by now they've come to remember your name. Sometimes you two don't even do anything while you're there, but the comfort in knowing that neither of you are alone in an unfamiliar place is always welcome. On top of that, he likes to joke about how similar house sitting together is to if you'd be roommates. Slightly messy living room, sleepovers in your not so far rooms, and plenty of movie nights.

Nishinoya goes ghost hunting with you. He's practically the only one of your friends who even agrees to go. He'll help research any supposedly haunted areas in your town, and do his best to exaggerate the details in an attempt to scare you. While you're out on an adventure, he'll be sure to make sure he's prepared with all of the necessary items, flashlights, snacks, bandaids, some sort of protective ward, random coins to leave as gifts for the spirits. You love seeing how invested in the activity he gets, and how eventually he's the one inviting you to go out and explore.

[humanitys-strongest-bamf]

tagged by @postwarlevi!!! i wanted to reblog but it got long so i'm making a new thread 😅

this is so cute 🥺🥺 any chance to talk about katvi i'll take it (✿◡‿◡)

1. who is the better cook?

him for sure, although neither of us are too big of a fan of cooking. i think he just tolerates it more than i do, although i do think there are some recipes he legitimately enjoys

2. who takes longer showers?

me. idk if its the adhd but i tend to forget how much time i spend in there and before i know it, he has to poke his head into the bathroom as a passive aggressive way of telling me that i stole all the hot water 😭

3. who is more organized?

him for sure. a point of contention with us is that i'm way too messy and it drives him through the roof. some boundaries had to be established and while it still makes him grumpy sometimes, he respects my space

4. who generally spends more money?

neither? technically me because if i get fixated on something, i'll tend to impulse shop but usually limit it to small-ish things or wait until they're on sale! he likes buying specialty teas and coffees and sometimes those can get kinda pricey, so i think we roughly break even

5. who likes sleeping in more?

hmm. i think this is difficult to answer because we both suffer from pretty bad insomnia. i think if it's who ends up sleeping in for longer, it's me. i'm the type that'll take like 4-5 hours to fall asleep but i can stay asleep once the sun rises (which is incredibly annoying) his insomnia is the type where he can get shut-eye for like 20 minutes at a time, which usually translates to him getting out of bed as soon as the sun starts to rise regardless of if he slept or not

6. who is the better driver?

im a passenger princess (✿◡‿◡) but also because driving gives me anxiety because i've gotten into accidents before, so he just does it for me, so it's levi for sure

7. who is the most stubborn?

hard to say. i think me. he usually gives in first because he gets way too irritated and is just like "whatever".

8. who is the most romantic?

neither 👁️👄👁️ at least not in the traditional sense. maybe me because i'm a sucker for romantic sunset walks (✿◡‿◡) but also him because sometimes he'll leave cute little notes around the house for me and it makes me melt (i have a little collection of them :3)

9. who is more laid back?

me. i think he's overall more extra or particular than i am. and this isn't in regards to him needing clean spaces. that's fine. i'm talking about the extra amount of work he constantly puts into every little thing, especially when it comes to house projects or even picking out toys for the cats. whereas i'm just kinda like...as long as it's not doing harm, convenience is king

10. who is more likely to ask for directions?

me. and it's a silly reason. like yes, i'm directionally confused a lot but i think levi would want to just. wander around and hope we get unlost and i'm not interested in doing that.

11. who is the blanket hog?

also me 😅 i get very fitful when my insomnia acts up, which usually translates into me wanting to hug something (why, you ask? no idea), whether it's him, a pillow, my plushie, or (in most cases), the blanket.

12. who is more likely to lose their phone?

him. he's technologically confused, which translates him to just not really using his phone unless he has to. it also means he's shit at answering texts on time >:(

13. who initiated the first kiss?

him because i was too shy 😅 i still thought it was some kind of joke as to why he was even interested in me, so i never really made a move.

14. who fell in love first?

hard to say. probably me since i was crushing on him forever, but he was the one that reached out and started stuff soooooo who knows

15. who planned the honeymoon?

him, mostly? he decided what we wanted to do. he was very extra about it, wanting to make it worth our money and get like the maximum amount of r&r with the least amount of stress, which i lowkey appreciated sm 😭 i was the one that did all the booking and reservations tho lol

#: @romantichomicide95 @luvjiro @leviismybby @jayteacups @lucysarah-c @whoami-72 @sixpennydame @wyvernslovecake @stygianoir @einnyl @nube55 @svftackerman @roseofdarknessblog @bita-bita @averysmolbear @youre-ackermine @thevelria @crazychaoticizzy @littlerequiem @notgoodforlife @bloompompom @ackermendick @sad-darksoul + anyone who wants to join! if you don't partake in self-shipping, then please ignore! ＜（＾－＾）＞

[vanillafalvoredcoffee]

×++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++×

Daily life inside the Mukami Household

×++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++×

This is an alternate universe where Kianna goes to the Mukami mansion!

There's two ways she could get inside the Mukami mansion...the first is that Karlhienz switch his plans and send both Kianna and Yui to the Mukami mansion (for some reason) Second is...Kianna escaped the Sakamaki mansion after killing all of the vampires inside of it and lived inside the Mukami mansion since she doesn't know anywhere else to go

But...I'll just do the first one for now :)

When they arrived Kianna didn't care about moving to another house much...couldn't say the same for Yui though...(Yui's just a bit nervous don't worry)

They came inside the mansion just as the Mukami Brothers were having dinner, they were certainly surprised but they know that Karlhienz is behind all of this so they just let Kianna and Yui go and have lunch with them

Neither of them care much for them...well maybe except Azusa...

Whenever Kianna saw Yui got (not knowingly) mistreated by one of the brothers, she'll immediately have a fight with whoever that mistreated her...most of the time it's Yuma

Most of them treated Yui quite roughly so Kianna has to be the one to...what can I say...punish them?

Kianna kinda hates the Mukami Brothers but They didn’t really did anything back to her since they're afraid that Karlhienz would punish them severely for that

She just tries to avoid them as much as possible

Now onto her everyday routines!

Every morning she wakes up in the morning at a random time since her sleeping habits are...pretty bad, she starts the day by taking a bath and have some breakfast

She tries to wake up earlier than the Brothers did though...since she wants to eat breakfast without them bothering her

She cooks her breakfast herself, she just cook simple stuff like Eggs and bacon or just some reheated leftovers inside the fridge

Kianna shares some of her breakfast with Yui if she's still hungry

They always got to school really early so they have some time to talk inside their class before the teacher comes

Kianna and Yui bonded a bit more since neither of them needed to study as hard as when they're in Middle school

Kianna spent most of the day talking and hanging out with Yui or just spending time alone and wandering around the mansion

Sometimes she goes to the pool to chill for a bit

She got pranked pretty often by the Mukami Brothers but she couldn't care less about it

When it's time for Night school, Kianna prepares to dress herself up in her uniform and pack her bags....but Yui always manages to get ready before her....well Kianna's used to it...after all Yui is always extra early

Yui then came to get Kianna just as she finished dressing up and rushes to night school

Both of them likes to read but Kianna always misplaced one of her school books so Yui always have to share her books with Kianna....Kianna seems to be embarrassed about it while Yui doesn't seem to mind it in the slightest

They did really amazing in class because all the excess studying back in middle school, so the teacher and even some of their classmates praised them because of it

At lunch they always eat their food together

Sometimes Yui spends extra money to buy candy for Kianna

They got home pretty quickly at the end of class

At night, Kianna mostly spends time doing homework or napping

@nunezs-stuff sorry I accidentally deleted the ask :(

[braveclementine]

Chapter 2

Warnings: None. However, future chapters will contain sexual content so readers that are under the age of 18 may have to skip those chapters (Please keep note of the warnings).

Copyright: I do not own any Wizarding World characters that J.K. Rowling wrote. I do however own Elizabeth Kane (main character) and Trang Nyguen (best friend). There should be no use of these two names without my permission. I also do not condone any copying of this.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

Trang and I did not leave right away. I admit, I actually snooped around the house for some time. Harry's bedroom was sparse, though I hadn't expected much. It wasn't like our Aunt and Uncle were people who would buy him anything to personalize the room. 

Still, there was something about seeing the house that felt special. Like a tourist at Anne Franks' house, or something like that. 

"Ready?" I asked Trang about twenty minutes after they had left. 

"Are you okay?" Trang asked softly, not answering me. She was standing in the Dursleys' kitchen, looking at all of the pictures of my cousin, Dudley. Not a single photo of Harry anywhere. Not even acknowledging his presence. 

I wondered, once again, if things would have been different if I had grown up here. If our Aunt would have favored me, treated me better than Harry. Of if because of me, she treated both of us well. She had seemed so sad everytime she saw me since I always reminded her of our mother. 

Would she have treated me like Harry anyways just because she hated magic so much? Would Dudley have hit me just as much as he had Harry? How different would my personality be if I had grown up here? Would I be far more timid and less confident than I was growing up under dad? 

"Sorry." I whispered, wiping my face, realizing tears were come down my cheeks. "I was just thinking about What ifs. If I had grown up here. If things would have been different for Harry. Or if I would have a completely different personality." 

Trang squeezed my shoulder and I splashed some water on my face. "Alright, let's go. We both know the way to Uncle Moody's house in case we get separated. It shouldn't happen, but considering I can't see our futures. . ." I looked over at her. "Do you still want to do this? You're overage now. You could take Hedwig and apparate away and I'll continue the journey myself." 

Trang scoffed, "Don't ask stupid questions. I'm with you to the end of the line Elizabeth and nothing changes that." 

I smiled at that and nodded. "Let's go then." 

Taking one last look around a house I would probably never step foot in again, I shouldered my broomstick, stepping into the backyard with Trang. 

Night had fallen quickly and looking up into the clouds didn't show much. We started a walk, hopping over the fences of the neighbords, steathily treking through their backyards. We finally reached the town and headed for an alleyway without lights to kick off on our brooms. 

Trang attached the cage to her cage while I spoke to Hedwig. "I need you to stay close to us. Preferably, either in the cage or you can sit on the end of my broom. This is very serious Hedwig." 

Hedwig hooted softly and as we flew up into the air, Hedwig settled on the end of my broom. 

Uncle Moody lived a decent ways away from Harry's house. We had about an hour to get there, which was twenty minutes more than what the others had. It would have to be a smooth flight though. 

As we got closer to the Muggle city and their tall office buildings, we started to see flashes in the clouds. Faint bursts of green and red and Trang and I exchanged a nervous glance. 

"We're to close to this." I muttered. "We're going to have to find a detour." 

"Elizabeth, this entire plan relies on us getting to that portkey in time." Trang responded doubtfully. "They're still above the clouds and we're below them. We're on firebolts and they're not. Let's speed up a little." 

We both put on extra speed, weaving in and out of the tall buildings. I was glad that we were in the city now, because no one would be working so late at night and no one would see us. Most of the people on the street would be drunk at this hour or looking down at the sidewalk, not up at the sky. And we were going by to fast now for them to really get a good look at us. 

Besides, they'd probably just claim that we were a UFO. Which worked fine for me. And it's not like the Ministry would do anything about it at this point. Although it might give them an excuse to attempt to arrest me. . . 

We started to hear shouts and Trang and I looked up simultaneously. But I saw nothing. I could hear the cries of the Thestrals now and the roaring of Sirius motorbike. I felt bad that it crashed and I hoped that Arthur Weasley would salvage it. Maybe after the war was over, I'd put it back together. Sirius had given me half of everything in his house and I'd always wanted a motorcycle. 

Dad might kill me though. 

"Look!" Trang gasped, and we saw a body falling down through the clouds. We swerved to avoid getting hit, but I saw it was just an unconscious Death Eater and felt a bit of relief. 

"We're going to have to go lower." I muttered. "Maybe even continued some of this on foot. Do you think you could do Disillusionment charms on us?" 

"Yeah." Trang nodded. 

I hated that I couldn't rely on myself for magic. I knew I would use it if it came to an emergency, but since we were surrounded by Muggle buildings, it would probably set off a beacon for Death Eaters at the Ministry. 

We continued without more problems for a little bit before I looked up again and said, "Cover! Cover now." 

Trang and I landed on the top of one of the Muggle towers- no skyscraper, that's the word. We flattened ourselves down, glad that our black cloaks helped us blend in and that there weren't any lights up here. 

A body crashed to the ground in a small park area in front of the tower. Trang and I peeked over the end to see four Death Eaters down there. 

I put a hand over my mouth so that I kept silent, despite being probably hundreds of feet in the air above them. They were jeering and laughing and it was Uncle Moody's body that they stood over. 

Trang reached out, grabbing my arm. She had tears running down her face and we watched as they took his eye, putting it in his pocket. I felt the anger burn in me. Then, they turned him into a park bench, to forever be sat on by Muggles. 

They didn't take back off for the skies, disapparating on the spot instead, the crack of their disappearing echoing through the air for a second like a gunshot. 

"Elizabeth?" Trang asked after I hadn't moved for a couple of seconds. Hedwig also seemed to sense my emotions, nuzzling under my arm, gently pulling at my robe with her beak. I took in a deep shuddering breath, remembering his words to me. 

"I can't let him stay there." I said, looking at Trang. "Do you think you can untransfigure him?" 

Trang hesitated and then nodded in determination. "What's the spell?" 

"Reparifarge." I whispered. "It's simple enough wand movement. It's like you're making a wide 'u' shape." I showed her with my wand. 

"Understood." Trang said. "What are we going to do when we get him back into. . . well human?" 

I hesitated. It would be to much for Trang to try and transfigure him into something smaller, like a pocket watch or something like that. But at the same time, just trying to tie him under our brooms seemed inhumane. 

"I. . . I don't know." I admitted, explaining the two scenarios. 

"We'll figure it out when we get him back then." Trang whispered. "And we need to hurry. It seems like the fighting is tapering off." 

And it was. We hopped on the brooms, flying down to the park bench. Trang was very nervous, but she managed to change Uncle Moody back. 

It was disconcerting, looking at him dead. Like it was a lucid dream or something like that. His missing eye stuck out and I felt nauseated. I looked over at Trang who looked like she was going to faint. 

"I don't think I can do another spell like that." Trang admitted. "I feel exhausted and your father explained about magical reserves." 

"Another one of those spells and you'll be to burnt out." I agreed. "We'll just. . . have to do it the inhumane way and hope he forgives us." 

Carefully, we fixed his body under Trang's broom, both of us feeling more uneasy about it by the second. This was never the way that I imagined we'd have to do this and I hated every bit of it and wished that I could use magic. 

We took back to the skies and flew higher than we probably should have to prevent muggles from seeing us along with wizards. It would not be as good if they saw a dead body hanging from a broomstick. 

The skies had gone silent and dark and it made my stomach turn. If the others had made it to safe houses, the Death Eaters were going to come down from the sky, and they would see us. 

Of course, Uncle Moody's house was also in opposite directions of several of the other safe houses, but still. . .

We went another long, twenty minutes in silence and something like peace. We were starting to near the end of the city too, when five Death Eaters swept down from the clouds. 

Trang and I turned sharply through the buildings, but someone gave a shout and we knew chase was about to happen. 

"Protego!" I muttered, breaking my magical celibacy. We turned another corner and heard Death Eaters cry out as the smashed into my invisible shield. 

"We need to find somewhere to hide." I shouted to Trang, throwing up more invisible shields all around us- except in front of us. 

"There!" Trang pointed to a construction site. It was plenty dark and we could probably hunker down in there if it came to that. 

We flew inside and landed, crouching down behind wooden boards and slabs of concrete. It was pitch black besides the moon and the shadows of the men on brooms sweeping by were mere shadows. It was good for us- we would be hidden. But it was also good for them. 

I could hear them shouting to each other, but couldn't actually make out the words. 

Suddenly, a pulsing light burst through the entire space and I was temporarily blind, lowering my head into my knees, pushing my knuckles into my eyes. Trang cried out, softly, but just enough to have them on us in seconds. 

I barely got a shield up before the spells started flying, still trying to blink the sun out of my eyes. It burned and I could still see the imprint of the spell on the back of my eyelids. I was so stupid. I should've realized that was a spell they were going to use. 

There was another spell that sent me flying off my feet, feeling like there was an Earthquake. I fell backwards, my arm scratching against something. I heard Trang give another cry, this time in pain. 

Nails. 

Of course. We were on an open construction site. It might've been a good place to hide, but it was detrimental to our health to fight in. 

I sent a few stunning spells, the figure in front of me sending the stunning spells off to the side. . . strangely stunning his own side. Hope blossomed in my chest for the first time tonight, continuing to try and stun only him, while the spells continued to fly towards his friends. I couldn't see Trang, though I could hear her fighting too. 

Finally, it was just that man and he slowly lowered his wand, taking his hood off. For once, I was not wrong in my hope. 

I nearly shouted his name, but decided to look around me instead. Trang was sitting up against a concrete pillar, but the Death Eaters around her were all stunned. And one wasn't even moving like he might've been dead. 

"Trang?" I asked gently as Severus started to tie the Death Eaters up and chuck their wands out of the building. 

"I'm okay." Trang gasped. "I hit my head on something though. It might be bleeding." 

"I'm bleeding somewhere too." I admitted. "Don't know where though." 

"You've got glass shards in your face." Trang breathed a laugh. 

I went to touch my face, but Severus was there, grabbing my hand before I could. He gently picked each of them out with care, before kissing them and then kissing me on the lips. I closed my eyes, sinking into the kiss. 

"Sweet. Really sweet." Trang grunted, pushing herself to her feet and the two of us broke apart. "But we really have to go." 

"I know." I whispered, unable to take my eyes off of Severus' warm black ones. "Remus is absolutely wonderful, just so you know. He's getting so big." 

"Good." Severus whispered, brushing his lips against mine once more. "Stay safe." 

He let his own wand roll under the table into the shadows like I hadn't seen it, sitting down against the Death Eaters, giving me a meaningful look. I nodded, binding him to them and then stunning him, tears mixing with blood on my face. 

"Go." I said to Trang, looking around. Hedwig came fluttering down, landing on my shoulder. 

Trang and I immediately took off for the skies. 

We made it to Uncle Moody's house with no problem other than Trang was starting to feel light-headed with blood loss, I was also feeling faint and- we'd missed the Portkey by about fifteen minutes. 

"Dad must be so worried." I whispered as we stepped into the house. "And the protections have to have dropped here if he's dead." 

We laid Uncle Moody carefully on the couch. I didn't even really notice the interior of the house, which was kind've sad because I would never see the inside of the house ever again, probably. 

"What now?" Trang asked. She'd grabbed a kitchen towel and was applying pressure to the wound, but I knew I needed to get her to the others quickly. She needed proper medical attention and I wasn't going to be able to provide it. 

"Okay." I murmured. "I need an object that we can use for a portkey." I whirled around, looking for such an item. It was very hard to create a portkey and it was the first time that I felt doubtful ever performing a spell. 

"Here." Trang murmured, pushing over a baseball bat of all things. I smiled a little at that. I had never known that he had liked baseball. 

"Okay." I murmured. I focused on the Burrow, focused on the time, and focused on the object. "Portus." 

It glowed blue and I nearly sank to my knees in relief. As it was, I nearly fell over as I approached Trang. This wasn't good. Both of us were to light-headed, we had to get to the Burrow now. 

"Just hold on Trang." I whispered, sitting down with my back to the couch. I kept my grip around it firm. I pulled my broom in my other hand, placing Uncle Moody's dead hand on the broom as well. I nearly smiled as Hedwig put a small talon on it too. 

Then we were pulled into nothingness which did nothing to help with me trying to not black out. 

It was silent for a second and Dad's voice broke the air first. "ELIZABETH? TRANG? IS THAT YOU?" 

"ELIZABETH?" Harry and Hermione's voice's joined in. 

"TRANG?" Ginny shouted. 

Trang stumbled, falling to her knees. The kitchen towel was still in her hand and was blood-soaked. I felt like crying, but I kept it together. I used my wand to levitate Uncle Moody's body, then got Trang to put an arm over my shoulder. With a purpose and destination in mind, my head seemed to clear some. Hedwig flew upwards and towards the Burrow. I dragged the two broomsticks in the same hand as my wand. 

Dad and Bill came running and Bill caught Trang just as I stumbled, nearly dropping everything. 

"You have Mad-Eye?" Bill asked in a hushed whisper. 

I nodded. "Yeah. H- He fell right in front of us." I started to cry. The emotional stress of the trip had caught up to me. "And Death Eaters got to us near Uncle Moody's house and we fought them off. We wouldn't have made it, except Severus was with them and he helped me fight them off. And the portkey was gone and-" 

Dad pulled me into a tight hug and murmured, "It's okay." 

"I couldn't stop him." I sniffled, looking up at dad. "I begged him to take someone besides Mundungus. Or for him not to go himself. But he wouldn't listen." 

"It's okay Elizabeth. C'mon." Dad murmured and shouted for Tonks and Mr. Weasley. 

Inside the house, Mrs. Weasley and Dad tended to mine and dad's wounds. Neither were bad, it was just the loss of blood that had been detrimental. 

Some of the others like Kingsley had already left and Dad was busy letting him know about Mad-Eye and what not. 

"So?" Fleur asked in an impatient voice. "Who is the spy?" 

"I don't know." I whispered, shaking my head, which hurt. I didn't think there was a spy. All I could really see was Severus talking to Mundungus, planting the idea of the seven Potters' in his head. But I didn't think that made Mundungus a traitor or a spy. 

"Its' fine. Don't think about it right now." Dad instructed. Uncle Moody's body had been taken away. Trang was already fast asleep on the couch that was adjacent to Georges' couch. I couldn't look at him without feeling guilty. 

"Go get some sleep." Dad kissed the top of my head. 

I went upstairs to the bedroom, finding Remus was awake in his crib. I picked him up gently in my arms, cradling him as I looked out the window at the stars. 

"There's a new star in the night sky." I whispered in his ear. "And soon, there will be more stars there. More than we will ever need."

⬅️➡️

[sam-the-pancake]

Saw a post talking about how you're never too young for a disability or illness or to need a mobility aid and we wanted to talk about our experiences. (It got longer than I was planning. I have more I could say but I managed to fuck up my thumb typing this on my phone and I know if I save this as a draft I'll forget it exists).

We were 8ish the first time we fainted. Nothing was thought of it or done. We fainted twice more between then and when we were 14 and fainted at summer camp. I have a feeling that if it hadn't happened at camp in front of a bunch of adults (who are mandated reporters) that my parents still wouldn't have done anything about it.

Following that time at camp our parents brought us to a bunch of doctors and had tests done. I don't remember much of it, but what I do remember is the neurologist. He was the last doctor we saw and he basically said "nothing's wrong just drink more water and electrolytes". So our mother started buying Gatorade and coconut water for us, but it didn't help much. It stopped it from being terrible, but it didn't make it completely better. By this point I was walking around the house with my vision fully blacking out every time I stood up to go to a different room.

When I was 16 the exercise intolerance was so bad that I couldn't work out anymore. I quit the rowing team that I had loved. I am almost certain that if I had been involved in a different sport that I would have had to quit sooner. I learned just a few years ago that rowing is an exercise that is more tolerable for exercise intolerance, like a recumbent bike. I got "lucky" in a way.

When I was 19? 20? and living alone at college I took matters into my own hands and told the nurse on campus (an amazing woman) that I believe I have EDS and POTS and want to see a specialist. She didn't really know about either disorder but she looked them up with me and decided to refer me to a cardiologist and a neurologist. In the few years since then they've both run many tests and found "nothing wrong". I convinced my cardiologist to send me for a tilt table test and of course that came back inconclusive.

When I was 21 I started using a cane anytime I left the house. I don't actually use it for balance but to reduce pressure on my lower joints when they're in pain, and day-to-day to reduce fatigue. If I don't use my cane I won't make it through the work day without my fatigue and back pain becoming crippling to the point that I can't sit up anymore.

In the last 6months I found an amazing GP who heard my story and decided to get shit done. She sent me to a physical therapist (also an amazing woman), got bloodwork to prescribe me various meds that are actually helping, got me on a waiting list to see an EDS specialist, and sent me to a sleep expert. At my most recent appointment I asked if we could talk about her possibly prescribing a wheelchair and she immediately said yes and wrote the script. Between her, my PT, and Gary the wheelchair guy from NuMotion's help I'm now waiting to hear if insurance is going to cover it.

I'm in my early 20's and I can't cut or mix my own food. I get home from my teaching job and I take a nap then eat the dinner my (also disabled) partner made, and then go to sleep for the night. I don't have a social life. I don't have the energy to do more than one thing in a day. Saturdays we do laundry and Sundays we grocery shop. That's what my weekend is. Sometimes if I have extra energy on a Saturday I can shower too. People don't talk about it much but struggling with personal hygiene is a major issue I have due to my disabilities. I started taking "cat baths" when I was less than 12 (washing the important bits with a washcloth while sitting on the toilet/floor). My sensory issues due to being autistic also affect this and make it hard for me to shower even when I do have the physical energy.

When I started physical therapy, my physical therapist asked what my goals are, long term or short term. I said I want to be able to shred my portion of chicken and mix it into the rice myself when we have dinner. My secret goal is to be able to do it for my partner as well so they can rest after cooking. I said my long term goal is to be able to rock climb again, but I understand that that might never be possible for me again.

I'm not even 25 and I'm mourning the loss of every interest I've ever had other than reading, and even holding a big book open is too much for my hands sometimes. I cannot live independently. I'm lucky that I have a low impact job that pays well enough for me to support myself and my partner. They can't work but they're able to take care of the housework and cooking and moving groceries and other necessities that I can't do myself. I try not to think about the future because I don't know what a progression of my disabilities would mean for our ability to live away from our abusers parents.

[someonelookingpraediti]

Sanderson Unboxing

03 - Cytoverse March 2023

Well, this was a vast improvement on the first box. But that isn't exactly saying much - it's still a huge waste of money.

This was the theme I was most looking forward to, because Skyward is my favourite series. I had some really high hopes before I received my first monthly box, but obviously I have since lowered my expectations.

The last box was just a handful of assorted logo-ed office supplies. This box actually contains the sort of things I would expect to find in a book subscription. But... only three.

Considering that this costs more than your average subscription box, and DOESN'T come with a book, I really would expect a minimum of six or seven items of this quality.

The first item is a silicone mould. This, apparently, can be used for ice, chocolate, wax, resin, etc etc etc. It's in the shape of Doomslug, and I'll have a go at making something. My speciality is wax melts, but from experience I really doubt the fine details would come out in anything soft. For resin it would probably work, though.

The next item is a deck of playing cards. It's billed as a "Go Fish" deck, but it's literally a standard deck of cards. Each suit features a different type of slug, and the different denominations feature different foods. These are actually really cute, and the first item I've liked from this subscription so far.

The last item is a diecast replica of M-Bot, the ship Spensa flies in the Skyward series. In my post about my hopes for this subscription, the one thing I said I didn't want was figurines - I'm including figures of non-human beings and objects in this classification. They're so not my style, I just don't want them lying around my house. That said, I can't deny that this is good quality, and there's a lot of Sanderson fans who will lose it over this.

The character pin in this box is of Steris, from Era 2 of Mistborn. I'm really peeved that they're trying to pass these off as box "items"... they were included because a set of 12 character pins was one of the Kickstarter "thank you" gifts. These were not originally planned for the boxes, they were meant to be an extra. To include them in the "value" of the box is not justified - it's not a gift if you're paying for it. Also, I really hate these chibi-esque cheap pins - they're such bad quality and they're just really... dorky?

Honestly, I feel so ripped off by this whole scheme.

The boxes are not even close to being worth the price that was charged for them, and they charged international shipping at three times the rate it should actually have cost for such a small package. I can only assume they're pocketing the rest.

And January's item - the first book - still hasn't even shipped.

This actually just feels like a huge con, one that Brandon Sanderson and his team have made millions on. He's been one of my favourite authors for over a decade, and now I've just completely lost faith. To make such an offer to your fans, to ask them to buy into a project like this, to pay hundreds of pounds up front - and then not to deliver? To just fob them off with, frankly, an embarrassment of a product? It's a betrayal of trust.

[purewooddoor]

Wooden Doors Online in India - Purewood Doors

Purewood Doors is a leading supplier of wood doors in India. Our products include Solid Wooden Doors, Front Wooden Doors and Interior Wooden Doors. We offer door manufacturing, maintenance & installation services to domestic and commercial clients.

Wooden doors in India

Wooden doors are the most beautiful and durable option for your home. The wooden door is a classic solution to your home décor needs, but if you want an ornate look, then this option is perfect for you. These doors come in various sizes and shapes which can be used to create different types of rooms or spaces within your house like kitchen cabinets or laundry rooms.

The best thing about using wooden doors as part of your design plan is that they don't require much maintenance at all; only minor cleaning once every two weeks will keep them looking fresh! They're also very eco-friendly because they're made from natural materials such as hardwood timbers mixed with glue (or other bonding agents), so there's no need for plasticizers or paints which may cause health issues later down the line when exposed over long periods of time.

Wood Doors Online in India

If you're looking for Wooden Doors Online in India, Purewood Doors is the right choice for you. Our company has been providing its services to clients across the world since 2014. We have a team of experts who are passionate about creating beautiful products and providing them with superior quality at an affordable price.

We offer both standard wooden doors as well as bespoke designs that suit your needs perfectly. We also offer our customers free shipping on all orders over 5000/-

Purewood Wooden Doors are the choice of many a homes and offices.

Purewood Wooden Doors are the choice of many homes and offices. These doors are made of high-quality wood, making them sturdy, durable and long-lasting. It also looks beautiful in your home or office premises. Purewood Wooden Doors are available in different designs and styles that can be customized per your needs or preferences.

The Purewood wooden doors are available in various sizes such as:

1 Door size - This door size has 2 panels & comes with 1 glass pane on each side. It has a thickness of 3mm to 4mm which makes it stronger than other types (2 panels).

The experts in the industry, we supply and install high quality wooden doors across the country.

We are a leading manufacturer of wooden doors in India. Our range includes high-quality products at affordable prices, which we supply and install across the country.

We offer door manufacturing, maintenance and installation services to domestic and commercial clients.

We offer door manufacturing, maintenance and installation services to domestic and commercial clients. Our team of experts can help you choose the right door for your home or office. We have a wide range of wooden doors for you to choose from, including solid wood doors with glass inserts, laminated veneers and more. Our doors are made from high-quality materials that will last for many years without any maintenance required from you. In addition to this, we also offer installation services at no extra cost!

Purewood wooden doors are the choice of many a homes and offices.

Purewood wooden doors are the choice of many homes and offices. Wooden doors are a popular choice for homeowners and businesses because they offer durability, style and value for money.

Purewood wooden doors have been around for more than 15 years, meaning they have built an immense reputation in their field. They are widely used to create various types of wooden doors including sliding doors, front doors, etc., making them one of the best options available today when buying new wooden doors online at low cost without any hassle whatsoever!

Conclusion

Purewood Doors are the choice of many homes and offices. We offer door manufacturing, maintenance and installation services to domestic and commercial clients. We have been providing high-quality products for over 15 years in the industry. The experts in the industry, we supply and install high-quality wooden doors across the country

[getyourhomedecor]

Are Fuzzy Rugs Hard To Clean?

It's no surprise that shaggy rugs are so well-liked—they're soft, fluffy, and fashionable. They may be challenging to clean, though, due to their design. Fluffy rugs have longer piles than most other rug varieties because their fibres are cut longer to create the desired "fluffy effect." This may greatly facilitate the accumulation of dust and filth.

Although they may appear difficult to clean and maintain, shaggy rugs are undoubtedly trendy. They are, nevertheless, rather simple to maintain. Using a high-pile rug in the house will give it a vintage feel. When you get out of bed, your toes will welcome the plush, thick surface. If you want to buy Runner Rug for Hallway, Shaggy Rug, etc, visit Bedding Mill UK.

Easy Ways to Maintain Your Fluffy Rug:

Maintaining your rug regularly can help you avoid having to give it as many thorough cleans as possible, and it can also be finished really quickly. Regardless of the approach you choose, we typically advise performing weekly rug maintenance; however, this can vary depending on the volume of traffic your rug must withstand.

1. Eliminate Extra Dirt:

A crucial step in rug care is to remove any loose dirt, which entails pounding your rug to release any particles of dirt lodged in its fibres. To get as much dirt off the rug as possible, we suggest pounding it with the end of a broom or mop. This procedure is best done outside. After you're done, hang the rug in the sun for a few hours. This will not only help the rug dry more quickly, but the sun will also destroy several types of germs that grow in soft materials like rugs and bed linens.

2. Vacuuming:

Cleaning your rug with a hoover is an easy and fast method. It is usually advised to use the upholstery extension that is included with the main machine to prevent damage to your shaggy rug's long fibres and general beauty from being snagged or dragged.

After cleaning the rug's top thoroughly, it's time to turn it over and clean the bottom as well. Nevertheless, depending on how much foot traffic your rug receives, cleaning this side of the rug only needs to be done once a month. If your rug is smaller, push the hoover head away from you while standing on one edge of the rug to prevent it from getting sucked into a power head.

3. Dry Shampoo:

A specific dry shampoo can also be used to clean carpets and rugs. Since you don't have to worry about drying it out or breaking any fibres, this is a popular way to thoroughly clean rugs quickly.

All that needs to be done is dab a tiny bit of the shampoo into the carpet using the vacuum's cleaning head bristles, keeping the machine off the entire time. Then, simply let the shampoo air dry for the duration specified in the instructions. After that, all you need to do is hoover up the last of the granules, and you're done!

4. Steam Cleaning:

A shaggy rug can be steam cleaned by an expert, or you can buy or rent a machine and do it yourself. Excellent outcomes are obtained in a rather short and straightforward process. However, it should be noted that using a steam cleaner on a rug might harm the fibres, so proceed with caution if you plan to use one.

Generally, you should use the above methods to extract dirt beforehand rather than expecting steam cleaning to do so. As an alternative, it will eliminate any dust mites and allergies that may be hiding, reviving and refreshing it.

After cleaning, your rug will be damp, so before letting it air dry, carefully press out any remaining water. It may take some time because shaggy rugs absorb a lot of water, but if necessary, you can use a fan to speed up the process.

5. Wash by Hand:

You only need to add some delicate, bleach-free, and unscented laundry liquid to your bath and follow this approach (notice that fabric softener should not be used!).

Your shaggy rug should now be placed in the solution and gently moved around to wash. After allowing your rug to soak for thirty minutes, rinse it with cold water to remove any leftover suds. It's that easy: just gently press out any extra water and let it air dry!

Steps on hand-cleaning a shaggy rug:

Despite your best efforts, spills and stains might occasionally occur. However, if you move fast enough, you may be able to try a spot clean first, saving you from having to give your shaggy rug a whole cleaning.

This may be the easiest and fastest approach to cleaning a shag rug because you're simply focusing on the regions that require cleaning. You may also perform routine hand-deep cleaning of your shag rug by using this procedure, covering the entire rug in portions.

Verify the label to make sure your shag rug can withstand wet and water cleaning before beginning. Everything should be alright unless it says "dry clean only."

Apply a damp, light-colored cloth to the stain to remove any remnants. Rubbing the stain may cause it to get more deeply embedded in the fibres and more challenging to remove. Cleaning with a white cloth is usually advised, particularly for shaggy white and cream rugs. This will not only help you see how much of the stain is fading, but it also eliminates the possibility of any dye seeping into your shaggy rug.

Until nothing more spills onto the cloth, keep wringing the fabric and wiping up spills.

If some of the marks are still visible, try a solution of equal parts water and white vinegar, or use dish soap mixed with warm or hot water. To ensure precise dosing, transfer the mixture into a spray bottle. Apply one to three light mists and gently dab the stain until it disappears. If the stain doesn't go away, you can spritz it a few more times.

After the stain has disappeared, use a clean, moist cloth to remove any remaining cleanser, then pat dry.

To let it air dry, put your plush rug over a railing or clothes line.

[calicoups]

human shield

encountering strangers at a house party can be nice, while other times it can be...not what you expect. not to worry! here comes your big boyfriend to save you.

info seungcheol x reader, comfort (i lowkey don't know how to categorise this), reader is smaller than cheol, unwanted attention from strangers, 1139 words. hani's note i'm back pookies 😝 i have some more in store for you all coming soon! anyways, i hope you enjoy this and pls interact with it by liking commenting/reblogging <3

music boomed throughout the place and you watched as your friends move to the current song playing with grins on their face, belting out lyrics every now and then.

it had been a while since you all had hung out with each other, each of you being held down with work and taking up extra shifts or tasks to help colleagues. you were more than relieved when your friends realised that their free time had finally aligned with the whole groups and suggested an activity to do together which is how you all ended up at a...house party?

okay, maybe a house party wasn't something you would have liked to spend precious time with your friends. originally, you had planned to do a few rounds at go-karting but the place had turned out to be closed on the day you all agreed for the hang out. bummed out and a little annoyed, seokmin had been quick to bring up a house party that would be hosted by his friend. most of your friends had perked up and said that it would be a little refreshing to attend the party, that it'll allow you all to relax after facing all the stress from your respective work lives.

so here you are, leaning against the wall with seungcheol on your right. the two of you had been dancing with the others for a while but soon became a little exhausted and moved to the side to catch your breaths.

from the corner of your eye, you see seungcheol turn to you, "i'm a little thirsty, are you?"

"oh, yeah. i really need a drink right now, would you mind?" you tilt your head and watch as he smiles at you.

seungcheol shakes his head and pinches your cheek, "i don't mind at all, baby. stay right here, okay? i'll be back."

he disappears into the crowd and your eyes linger there for a few seconds before flitting away to look for your friends. as expected, seokmin and soonyoung are still dancing, they stop to drag wonwoo into the mix who protests at first but joins in with a smile.

however, your view becomes obstructed as two men approach you, your smile dropping. it's a little intimidating but you're sure you can handle a little chat if that's what they want.

one of them speaks up, "hey, cutie. are you alone out here?" he gestures behind him with a thumb before continuing, "we can keep you company!"

from the way he started his conversation you can tell how he definitely does not want just a little chat so you decide not to entertain him or his friend, "no, thank you. my boyfriend is here with me."

but they laugh when you say that and look at each other sceptically, "boyfriend?" one of them asks, almost in disbelief. there's a smell of cigarettes and alcohol coming from them and it makes your nose scrunch up slightly.

his friend steps forward, "where is he? don't see him here..." he pretends to look around and it begins to irk you the way they're both acting.

"we can't leave a pretty lady alone. lets go have some fun," the other man reaches towards you and tucks some hair behind your ear. you jerk backwards at the unwanted action, feeling disgusted.

“we’ll make sure you have fun, pretty." you don't answer but he persists, "let us buy you a drink, then.”

“no thanks, my boyfriend's got that.” you spit and divert your attention somewhere else with crossed arms, feeling a little suffocated from so much attention from two strangers alone. you can tell they’re getting a little annoyed but know that they won’t give up.

“why are you being so difficult? just come with us and relax,” one of them says with faint scowl. frustrated, you stare at them with fiery eyes, "i said no. you may fuck off, now."

you notice one of his hand reaching towards your face but it never touches you, a tall figure steps in front of you and blocks his way, the woody scent wafting into your nose.

seungcheol.

realising that it’s none other than seungcheol just from his scent, comforting warmth and built figure, you relax and let out the breath you were unintentionally holding.

“heard you were looking for this lovely lady’s boyfriend!” seungcheol jests, voice steady and dominating as he hands his and your drinks to vernon beside him. completely shielded by your boyfriends frame, your hand clutches onto his shirt at the waist and a finger from the other hand hooks into his belt loop as you watch him intimidate them effortlessly.

one of the men scoffs, “that’s you? move buddy, she’s no match for yo—”

seungcheol cuts him off, “and you are? that’s a good joke, maybe you should be a comedian!” he chuckles falsely and pats one of them on their shoulder before his smile vanishes, “don't ever think about laying that dirty hand on my girl or any other that clearly says no, for that matter. now, unless you don't want to keep being able to use that hand, you better fuck off like she said."

the guy sends seungcheol a dirty look and drags his friend down the hallway. seungcheol watches closely until the both of them are out of his sight.

"fucking creep," seungcheol mumbles.

"hey, you good?" vernon questions softly, earning a nod of you as a response.

a warm hand rests on your upper arm, you look up to see that it belongs to seungcheol who peers down at you with a worried look on his face. your name falls from his lips effortlessly, "are you okay? they didn't try anything, did they? I'm so sorry i took so long, i should not have left you alone like that."

"it's okay, they didn't do anything. i'm the one who sent you to get us drinks," you reassure him, "don't apologise, cheol."

"i'm still sorry, doll. i should have taken you with me," he pulls you closer, your chests meeting as he hugs you gently.

"i told you, it's okay," you kiss his jaw for extra reassurance before taking your drink from vernon, "thanks nonie."

vernon smiles and pats your head, "i got you. also, have you seen the others? i'll have to take their drunk asses home today."

seungcheol takes his own drink from vernon's hand, watching you nod and point to where the others were still dancing. wonwoo catches you pointing and taps both soonyoung and seokmin before tugged them along over to the three of you.

"hi!" soonyoung shouts with a wave. you wince at his volume and slap a hand to his mouth to which he speaks muffled words into.

seokmin, in his own drunken state, shushes soonyoung with a finger to his lips, "shh, soonie. you have to be quiet, okay?"

"see what i mean?"

WOOHOOOO!! you made it to the end! please don't hesitate to leave me feedback in my ask box or to like, comment/reblog! thank you for reading <3

[citynewsglobe]

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[casspurrjoybell-33]

Wreckless - The Beach House

*Warning Adult Content*

Emmett

Yesterday I got a text from Finnegan telling me that Megan had found us a place and with almost no begging and Peter gave me the go ahead.

He complained that he'd actually have to work for a week but was happy for me, for us.

This morning I worked, then came home and tried to get ready to leave the house for a week.

Andy said he'd come by and feed and play with Marten which was the biggest thing to take care of.

I did laundry, cleaned out the fridge and took out the trash.

I pulled the cooler out of the basement and filled it.

I've learned that Finnegan likes to snack at all hours and most of the hotel rooms near the beach have those little refrigerator/micro combos so I brought some fruit, string cheese, drinks and microwave popcorn too.

At the last second I remembered to grab one of his cups.

Finnegan is supposed to be back by now so I text him.

Emmett Locke: Hey darling. Is everything going okay over there?

Finnegan Walker: Stupid stupid-heads aren't even HERE YET. I have to see them before we leave so I have to wait.

Emmett Locke: Did you call and confirm?

Obviously big Finn would have but the whole 'stupid-heads' is making me think he may not be quite his normal work self.

Finnegan Walker: Of course. They're at another job and on their way. They have been on the way for the last two hours. I need a vacation.

Emmett Locke: You're getting one tomorrow. Anything I can do to help?

Finnegan Walker: Any chance you want to pack for me? I don't have much, we can buy stuff there right? I'll do my toiletries in the morning but my shorts and sleepies and a few t-shirts?

He's right, he doesn't even have a weeks worth of casual clothes because his dress clothes took up so much room.

I'm going to handle that for him since he handed me another huge check this morning.

Emmett Locke: I've got you, darling, no worries. I recommend going to the bathroom. People always show up as soon as you gotta piss.

Finnegan Walker: I'm desperate enough to try anything. TY :)

He's not the only desperate one, I can not wait to have some more time with him next week.

I try 'Old Navy' because they make slims, which will look amazing on Finn and they have some fun stuff that I think he'll like.

I end up scoring big and get him an extra pair of trunks with sharks all over them and a matching blue rash-guard shirt to protect his poor shoulders, two pairs of shorts, three t-shirts and a really cute short sleeve button-down.

I get him two fun graphic tees, a funny pair of socks and a pair of flip flops for the beach and pool because all he has are fancy leather sandals.

That will do him but still give him room in the suitcase to shop if he wants to.

I stop by the dollar store on the way home grab a few ridiculous things that we probably won't ever use.

I get two bubble wands, two squirt guns, a beach ball and a raft that probably won't hold either of us.

I pack his jeans because damn he looks good in them and if it rains the evenings may be cool, a pair of long pajama pants and pretty much everything else he has at my place that doesn't involve wool or need to be starched except for one outfit that I leave folded on my dresser for tomorrow and of course his night undies.

Then I let Marten out and play with him for hours before cleaning his cage.

Finally, hours after he should be, Finnegan is back home.

"Hi darling," I holler from upstairs when I hear the door.

"I'm done," he says gleefully.

He comes careening up the stairs and leaps into my arms.

"Can we go now?"

It's not THAT late but...

"I thought the booking started tomorrow."

"Nope. I had to do weekly Saturday to Saturday. I know it wasn't the plan, I just want out of here. I want to be with you and forget about work. I just need to change and pack some stupid work stuff but I can be ready in like ten minutes because you're amazing and packed for me."

He's not usually so impulsive but how can I say no to wanting more time together?

"I'll get the toiletries and put the suitcase in the car. I assume we're taking yours?" 

I'm looking forward to driving it, actually.

"Yeah, of course. I can't believe we're really going."

His excitement is contagious and I'm grinning like an idiot.

"Okay, in the car by six p.m. Darling. We'll stop and get something to eat on the way."

He kisses my cheek before dashing towards his office.

"Thanks, Emmett."

********

Finn has the address in his cell-phone's GPS so I pay no attention.

We're going east so I assume it knows what it's doing.

When we get close I ask...

"Which hotel is it?"

"She got us a house... a block away from the water. Sorry she couldn't find anything closer... we'll plan better next time."

He's kidding, right? I've never stayed within walking distance of the actual ocean and a house?

There are some adorable beach cottages all clustered together not far from the beach, maybe it's one of those.

That would be sweet.   

I follow along as the phone chirps directions at me and when Finnegan points and says...

"That looks like it."

I slow down. 

"Yeah, 303. That's us Emmett... the blue one, right here."

He's shitting me.

It's the cutest house I've ever seen and it's huge.

Well, probably not huge by his standards but it's a lot bigger than my rowhouse.

"This is crazy, Finnegan. Seriously?"

He doesn't answer, he jumps out of the car as soon as I put it in park and runs to the door.

He punches in a code and disappears inside as I grab my bag and his suitcase.

The porch light was left on for us but he's running around flipping on more.

"It's so CUTE," he squeals.

"Emmett... Emmett... look at the pool."

There's a pool? Of course, just what you need next to the beach.

My jaw drops open when I look through the huge window and there are fountains shooting water across the pool.

Finnegan is turning them on and off but soon tires of that game and runs upstairs.

"Our bedroom."

He meets me halfway up the stairs, grabs his suitcase and lugs it the rest of the way.

"There are three... well two and an office with a sleeper couch but this is ours."

It's beautiful.

I was in a torn up old palace once but this is definitely the nicest room I've ever been in.

It looks like the 'after' on one of those remodeling shows.

The whole house does, actually.

It even has a door to a little balcony and I'm pretty sure that in the morning we're going to be able to see the ocean because it's way too dark over there to be anything else. 

"Can you start unpacking while I get the cooler?"

I guess I shouldn't have worried about having a fridge.

"Okay but then I wanna go to the beach."

"Tonight? It's late."

"Please? I just wanna see it and smell it and hear it. Please? Ten minutes... that's all," he promises.

"Sure Finnegan, I could use a walk to stretch my legs."

[scifrey]

NINE-TENTHS

Part Three

As soon as I shoulder open my apartment door, someone shouts "Surprise!" from behind my sofa.

"Shit!" I drop my bag on my foot in shock, grabbing at my shirt over my heart. 

The shout is followed by coughing, which isn’t a surprise. It hasn't been vacuumed back there since my roommate Katiya left on her Grand Backpacking-and-Smelly-Hostels Tour of The Continent with her fiancé. Happily, this means I get the place to myself for the rest of the year. Even more happily, it also means she's not bugging me every weekend to spin the chore wheel. 

Less happy for Dikembe, my fourth year lab partner, who is streaked with gray and crawling out from behind the sofa.

The "surprise!" is echoed from a few other hiding places around the apartment—not that there are many, it's just a two-bedroom, first floor of a crumby, crumbling row house in the student-ghetto part of downtown—and two more people tumble into the front hall. 

"This is a gross misuse of the emergency key I gave you," I say as Hadi steps out of my front closet.

"Happy birthday!" she jeers, detangling the back of her purple hijab from the Velcro on one of my coats.

"Keep your shoes on," Dikembe says. "About face." He pushes at me until my nose is nearly against the front door.

"No, no, no," I complain. "I've been on a train for five hours. I want to go to bed."

"You want to go with us to the bar and get waaaaaasted!" Mauli says, coming in from the kitchen. They're in their Party Skirt, the sparkly blue one, which means they are planning to really properly drink tonight. Shit, is that the last of Katiya's vodka swinging from their fist? 

 Dammit, I'm gonna have to buy a new bottle before she gets home. Make it an apology present to sweeten her up to the idea that I might not be moving out right away after all. The hope was that I would find a job and be outta her hair before January. But I'm starting to think that won't happen.

"It's a school night," I protest.

"It’s summer! And, you graduated a year ago!" Mauli reminds us.

"So it's a work night." I aim an elbow at Dike so he’ll back up.

Hadhirah makes a noise like an old-fashioned telephone and lifts her palm to the side of her face. "Hello? Yes? Hmmm, you don't say. I'll let him know." She drops her hand. "Your boss says it's fine."

"Har har." I let them manhandle me outside and down the grungy cement porch to the broken sidewalk. "Just don't be on my ass tomorrow if I'm hungover."

"Hey, they're not my tips at risk."

⛾

We end up at The Brass Monkey, just down from Beanevolence. My apartment is a few blocks north of the main street, where both the bar and the café are located. It’s one of the few advantages to living in a place where the smells and stains of a hundred students who rented it before me are ground into the carpets.

Hadi spends a few minutes chatting with the bartender, while Mauli opines on the wonders of microbreweries. Dikembe makes eyes at the girls at the table next to us, and tries to look as cool as he can with a Chez Levesque dust bunny stuck in his twists.

One of the other nice things about living and working within the same few blocks is that you get to know everyone else who does the same. And sometimes they give you free shit because of it. 

"Turn that frown upside down," Hadi says in a syrupy voice when she comes back with a basket of Cauliflower Bites. There's a candle in the curry mayo. "Look, on the house."

I didn't realize I was frowning. Must be more tired from the trip than I thought. I blow out the candle, and Mau and Dike pound me on the back like I've scored a winning touchdown. Our tasting flights come with an extra shot of Jaeger for the birthday boy, courtesy of the table of girls, and I tell Dike to go thank them for me. I even brush the dust bunny away first.

"You're not going with him?" Hadi asks as I down the shot.

"Nah, Too bagged. Long day, crappy travel."

I'm not… 

I'm not going to do it. 

I'm not. 

Somehow my phone is in my hand already, though, and from a distance I hear myself saying: "Rebekah usually has Mondays off. I could—"

"No!" Hadi shouts, so quick it's actually kinda insulting. 

Mau pulls the phone outta my hands. They're tipsy enough that they fumble it. If they drop it into one of their glasses, I'm going to eat their soul. But they shove it down the front of their skirt instead, right into the boxers below it.

"Don't think I won't go in there after it," I say, pointing at their nose. "You know the saying about a bi person sticking their hands in someone's pants and being happy with whatever they find."

"Buy me dinner first," Mau says, sticking out their tongue. I make a swipe for it and miss.

"What do you call this?" I Vanna White the cauliflower.

"Didn't buy it. No Gs, No Os."

"I can get my own Os!"

Hadi snorts, and I realize what I just said.

"I can do that, too," I say, leering cartoonishly. "Masturbation is a normal and healthy part of—" She shoves me. "Abuse! Abuse! This is homophobia!"

Hadi finally breaks out a real smile, instead of that tight, sardonic thing she likes to call one. Score.

 "If you can get your own, go get one from them." Mau leans across the table and flicks their eyes at someone at the bar. "They've been staring at you since we got in."

I turn to glance over my shoulder and—It’s him.

Previous Part | Next Part | Read on Wattpad

[dysthanasia-series]

Phagophobia Part 19

Words: 3,364

Summary: They took him out to the forest to die. That would turn out to be their first mistake.

Content Advisory: Blood, gore, body horror, broken joints, violence (knife, gun, physical, magical), biting, abusive authority figures, begging/pleading, bad bargains, undead, being trapped, field first aid, nobody gets out unscathed, it's trauma all the way down

A/N: All right, this will take a bit of explaining. Since it became apparent that the rewrite is going to change many, many things, I decided to skip straight to the end. What you need to know to fill in a few gaps between this part and the last:

-Isaac and Renato leave Breezy's house together the next night. They head back to Renato's clocktower apartment. The plan is to pick up Dorian and start the trip up north toward Walsh's territory.

- Problem is, they notice the enforcers entering the clocktower lobby. Though Renato tries to stop him, Isaac gets out of the car and gives himself up to the enforcers as a distraction. He figures this will buy some time for Renato and Dorian to slip away, and that he's less likely to be harmed if captured.

- He's right about the first point.

- Watts and his team keep Isaac under guard back at their own hotel, trying to pry more info out of him. It's clear the enforcers are divided on what to do with him. Watts and Yi are firmly on the side of letting the Coven higher-ups determine Isaac's fate. Quinn, Zamora, and Curry want to force answers out of him by any means necessary.

- After a couple of days, they're tired of waiting for orders. With the help of Curry, Quinn and Zamora shove Isaac into a car. They intend to interrogate, then execute him.

Lastly, I integrated a couple of ideas in from the first few chapters of the rewrite. Namely the ouroboros chasing Isaac, and Isaac referring to Renato by last name. Oh, and I moved/repurposed a bit of scene from chapter six. You'll know the one when you see it probably.

With all that out of the way...I hope you enjoy this finale, rough as it is. And thank you for reading this far. Expect a wrap-up/epilogue chapter in the near future.

They took him out to the forest to die. Isaac wondered if they’d tailored that extra layer of cruelty for him or it was just the most practical place to murder somebody. Maybe a little of both, he decided.

Zamora sat with him in the backseat, gun in her lap, while Quinn drove. The sound system remained off. Nobody talked, not even to gloat. Isaac wished he could come up with some last words. An epitaph that would haunt them forever. Empty fantasies, of course. At best, the enforcers believed they were doing the Coven, the world, a favor. At worst, they just didn’t care. No matter where their reasoning fell, he was trash to them. Something to be buried and never thought about again. So, he stared out the window at the shadowy pines flashing by and didn’t waste his final breaths.

His heart migrated up into his throat when Quinn turned off onto a dirt side road leading deeper into the forest. Not long now.

Isaac jumped at the sensation of something wriggling against his hip. He looked down to find a thin black shape emerging through the gap between the seat and the side of the car. Coming from the trunk. The tips of fingers with short but immaculate nails appeared behind the thing, pushing. Jiggling it to get his attention. Isaac’s eyes went huge.

A folding knife. He took it from the offering fingers. Ran his own thumb over the etched rose and looping thorns on the handle. His attention darted to Zamora, then Quinn, but neither paid him any mind, as if he were already a corpse. The car was bumping along the dirt track too fast to jump out yet. Isaac needed to choose his moment wisely. Wait for them to come to a stop. Get out of the way quick and let Dimas—the stowaway couldn’t be anyone else—take care of the fighting.

The deer that bounded out of the treeline and smashed into the hood offered an opportunity sooner than expected.

Impact turned the windshield into an opaque web of fractures. Quinn stomped on the brakes. Isaac’s whole body cracked like a whip and slammed against his seatbelt. The world went black. Adrenaline slapped him conscious again. He gawked down at himself. At the air bags wedged between him, the door, and the back of the front passenger’s seat. Isaac patted himself down. His quaking fingers came away with no blood. No sign of splintered bones. Okay. Okay, he was okay.

But he wouldn’t be for long if he didn’t run.

“Oh, no you don’t, you fucking weasel,” snarled Zamora as he threw off his seatbelt and gripped the door handle. Her gun no longer waited in her lap. Dropped during the crash maybe. So, instead, she lunged, grabbing at his hair and arm.

Isaac fumbled the knife open while she clawed at him. Didn’t aim as he turned. Just brought the blade slashing down. It buried itself in her upper thigh with a sickening little jolt of impact. Zamora, shrieking, turned her hands into fists. Howled again when Isaac ripped the knife out but never stopped whaling on him. He scrabbled at the door while shielding himself as best he could, shoved it open, and tumbled out onto the ground. Isaac pushed himself up, a layer of dirt coating the blood smeared across the knife and his hands. The trees cast a phalanx of long, distorted shadows away from the car’s headlights. He doubted Quinn or Zamora’s night vision was any better than his. Dimas could take care of the rest while he hid.

A stomach-dropping series of wet pops and crunches kept his feet locked in place. Isaac spun to find a shaggy figure towering over the car. Antlers as long as he was tall crowned its head. The deer—no, the elk that had crashed into them. It stood fully reared up on its back legs, the fore ones stuck straight out like a caricature of a sleepwalker, and watched him with a glassy black eye. Twitching tremors gripped its massive body. Something rippled, pushed, bulged within its belly. Hands, gaunt and sinewy, erupted through the barriers of flesh and hair. They peeled the skin apart to reveal a bald head with burning scarlet eyes and a sneering mouth filled with piranha teeth. Like a monstrous mythical birth, the ouroboros emerged from the animal as it crumpled, shrank, and retracted into its rightful place on the patchwork cloak. Drawing its hunting knife, the necromancer leveled its black-flecked blade at Isaac and gave a cannibal smile.

He didn’t need any more encouragement. Isaac ducked behind the car and pounded a fist against its side. “Dimas! A little help!”

On cue, the trunk sprang open. The bloodborn rolled out and landed in a crouch, rumpled, disgruntled, but service pistol in hand. Glinting eyes landing on the ouroboros, he bared his fangs and let out a hackle-raising hiss. The undead sorcerer returned the greeting. Pleasantries exchanged, they rushed in for the kill.

Isaac shielded his ears from the worst of the close-range shots fired. His vision wasn’t so lucky. Dimas and his opponent became pale streaks smeared across a black canvas, appearing in a spray of kicked up dirt as they stopped to grapple in one spot. They crashed into a tree under a rain of pine needles and cones in another. Isaac gasped and went sprawling on his ass when they collided with the car, busting the opposite side windows.

Zamora, still partially hanging out of the open passenger door, rocked with the impact. Her bullet splintered pieces off a distant tree trunk instead of Isaac’s skull. He didn’t give her a chance to adjust her aim. Pushing himself up, he grabbed the door and slammed it shut. Didn’t even care that her gun hand got caught in between. Zamora screamed curses and thrashed in an attempt to free herself. Isaac kept his weight against the door until he’d pulled the weapon out of her grip. Better arrmed, he scuttled away to the tree line.

Quinn shouldered open the driver’s side. A small, roundish something dropped into view from under the car. Isaac’s neck hairs stood on end when the object sprouted squiggling little tentacles. They burrowed into the ground, disappearing from view. Isaac clambered to his feet at the first tremor that rolled through the earth. It didn’t slow down Dimas or the ouroboros, though. Not even when tendrils began worming up from a patch of dirt near the car. Dozens turned to hundreds at a breathtaking rate, spreading out in a wave, writhing, seeking, size and reach growing by the second. Vines, Isaac realized. A living net of vines. The rustle of countless, tri-pointed leaves made an ominous hiss as they slithered over one another.

On a mysterious cue, they lashed out and caught hold of both combatants’ legs, no longer willing to be ignored. Necromancer and bloodborn went from battling each other to fighting to move at all. No matter how fast they ripped, stomped, and slashed, the vines grew more quickly. Both were entombed in woody stems and quivering leaves. The unnatural growth slowed. A hush fell over the forest.

Isaac lifted the gun when the enforcers dared to get out of the car, but their attention wasn’t on him. Quinn and Zamora watched the pair of botanical mummies for any signs of life. He jumped along with them when the ouroboros’s bulged and twisted. A series of snaps and flying bits of vegetation announced imminent failure. An arm, thicker than a human torso and coated in dark fur, burst through. Claws like railroad spikes sheared through the remaining restrictive vines. A full-grown grizzly bear emerged from its green cocoon, gave its massive bulk a shake, and roared.

The enforcers couldn’t dive back into the car fast enough.

The undead bear dropped to all fours, causing a minor seismic event, and charged. In two great bounds it bulldozed into the side of the car, crumpling metal and glass. Crouching back on its haunches, it hooked its paws below the chassis and lifted. Screams came from within as the vehicle flipped, then increased in intensity when the beast pulverized and pounced on the undercarriage, its added weight causing the roof to buckle.

Isaac’s brain shrieked at him to flee into the trees. Disappear into the night and never look back. His heart and body overruled the impulse. He dove and crawled into one of the shattered windows, chips of glass and shattered plastic biting into his chest. A dazed and bloodied Quinn grabbed his outstretched hands. Isaac joined in the general sounds of terror as he helped yank em out of the doomed vehicle.

His attempt to go back for Zamora was thwarted by a jarring crunch. The roof collapsed further, crushing the side windows until they were too narrow to pass through. With a satisfied huff, the bear backed off. On four legs again, it paced around the demolished car. In no hurry. Confident its prey wasn’t going anywhere. With its cinder-red eyes fixed on Isaac and Quinn, the ouroboros didn’t catch Dimas, smeared in green from tearing his way out of the vines, creeping up behind until the bloodborn leapt onto its back. Jabbing fingers put out the sullen light of the necromancer’s eye on the right side. Bellowing in fury, it lurched to its full height. Its arms were powerful enough to crush bone into powder but not nimble enough to grab the tiny predator still ripping and clawing at the soft parts of its face.

Isaac cut the wires to his blaring self-preservation alarm system. While the monsters fought, he scrambled into the more accessible back window of the car. Zamora, huddled against the inverted front seats and cradling a likely broken wrist, bared her teeth at him. She kicked at his offered hand.

“Look,” he panted, blinking stinging sweat out of his eyes, “I know you’re scared and in pain—”

Like a cornered raccoon, she uncoiled and lunged. Her nails raked burning lines down Isaac’s cheek. Gasping, he squirmed a hasty retreat. Clumsy but with no shortage of spiteful determination, Zamora pursued by crawling on elbows and knees. Not how he’d planned it, but he wasn’t about to argue with results.

The bear was in the process of deflating from the head down when Isaac pulled himself from the wreckage. Dimas crouched several feet behind the reverting necromancer, jaw shivering and teeth softly clacking like a cat watching an unsuspecting bird. Ready to pounce at the first wrong move. Dizzy, trickling blood from a dozen scrapes, Isaac scooted just out of reach of the emerging Zamora. He checked to make sure the safety on the gun was still off before resting his head on his knees. Whoever attempted murder next would have to come to him. Because he was exhausted and not getting back up until he caught his breath.

Ursine form neatly folded into a patch on its cloak once more, the ouroboros turned to face Dimas. With both eyes intact, Isaac noted, although their smoldering glow had cooled into an eerie, ash-gray. Its posture had completely shifted as well. Spine erect, shoulders squared at prim angles. Any trace of feral glee had been smoothed from its expression, leaving it aloof beneath the grid of scars.

“Bloodborn,” the new, gray-eyed dead thing said.

Dimas’s teeth stilled. He rose partway out of his crouch before thinking better of it. “Hawthorne?” The shock in his voice was still audible beneath its hoarse rasp.

“Your sire and I have reached an agreement. You’re under new orders. Is Mayer’s pawn alive?”

Dimas’s gaze led the ouroboros to Isaac. He tensed, prepared for violence. But Hawthorne only glanced at him before moving to Quinn.

“Why is there a second here?” A downward tick of the mouth as its eyes flickered to Zamora sprawled halfway out of the ruined car. “A third?”

“They’re enforcers. They were going to execute So—Mayer’s agent.”

“On whose orders?”

“Their own.”

“Loose ends then.” Hawthorne gave a bored wave of its borrowed hand. “Kill them, bloodborn. Then bring the pawn to the common house. His loyalty must be assured.”

“No!” Isaac would’ve launched into a speech about how if the others died he wouldn’t cooperate. That they’d have to get rid of him too.

Except Quinn interrupted by wrapping one arm around his throat from behind and shoving eir gun against his temple. “I’ll spray his brains across this forest as fertilizer if y—”

Mass slammed into Isaac, sending both of them bowling over. The roar of the gun going off reduced one ear to receiving only a tinny whine. Even so, he could still hear Quinn’s screams before he rolled over and got a look at the cause.

Dimas had the enforcer pinned to the dirt, jaws clamped on eir shoulder. There was no romance to the scene. No seduction or grace. He snarled and shook his head like a (giant wolf on two legs) dog mauling (his dad, his tía, his cousins) a shrieking rabbit. Quinn’s clawing and thrashing just tore eir wounds wider, deeper. Blood bubbled around Dimas’s lips, splattering his cheeks. Teeth still clenched, he jerked away, ripping fabric and flesh to ribbons. He darted back down to seal his mouth over the hemorrhaging fountain he’d created. Quinn’s sounds ebbed into more sob than scream.

He had Zamora’s pistol this time instead of his dad’s rifle, but Isaac figured it would do him the same amount of good against a bloodborn as it had with a werewolf. Thought faded away after that. He pounced on Dimas from behind. One arm wrapped around his waist for stability while his free hand darted to the bloodborn’s face. Fingers delved against hot gore. Wormed their way under snarling lips, aided by the life spilling out of Quinn. Sharp teeth split his skin, but Isaac tugged. Gentle but insistent.

Dimas rumbled with a warning growl.

Another tug. “Don’t,” Isaac whispered against the back of his neck. “Please. Don’t do it. You don’t have to. Please, please, please.”

He gave a tiny pull again. Wondered if bone was showing through his fingertips yet.

An elbow to the ribs knocked him from his perch. Dimas was on him before his skull had finished bouncing off the ground. He managed to get his already injured arm up to intercept incoming fangs. The bruising pressure made him cry out more than the sting of his skin breaking. Breathing through his nose and praying he wouldn’t pass out, Isaac brought the pistol to the side of the bloodborn’s neck.

“Don’t make me do it. You fucking asshole. Why don’t you do something besides hurt me?”

Dimas’s stare locked with his. The nocturnal-green glint hid any spark of recognition or humanity. But, by degrees, the jaws latched to Isaac’s arm slackened. With a full-body shiver, the bloodborn shut his hungry eyes and released his grip. He sat back on hands and knees, panting. A steady rain of red dripped from lips and chin.

“I see I’ll have to complete the chore myself. Typical.”

Face as animated as a mannequin’s, the ouroboros stalked toward Quinn. Shock left eir skin pale enough to glow against the darkness. The enforcer didn’t uncurl eir tall frame from its fetal ball if e noticed the footsteps of eir approaching death at all.

Isaac wobbled to his feet and staggered into the necromancer’s path. His arm shook so badly he doubted his ability to raise the gun.

“I won’t let you—” he began anyway.

Hawthorne blurred forward. Hooked fingers dug dirty nails in a ring around Isaac’s solar plexus. He believed he’d experienced the cold before. Midwinter winds howling down the streets back home. Digging his car out of four feet of fresh snow. The shock of jumping into a fast-flowing stream after the spring melt. A touch from the ouroboros, though, forced a spreading sheet of ice beneath his skin. Frost thrust razor-tipped crystals through his chest, skewering his lungs and heart. His senses distorted, dimmed, connection between mind and body glitching. It wasn’t slipping into the deep end of warm oblivion like with Kinslayer, no welcome release. This hurt. And, somehow, he knew Hawthorne hadn’t really taken the gloves off yet.

A hellish hiss drew the necromancer’s gelid attention. It caught Dimas by the throat mid-lunge with its free hand. No expression flickered over its scarred face, even when the bloodborn sent an uppercut into its tricep and forced its elbow out of joint with an obscene pop. It simply glanced back over to Isaac.

“Pawn, do you wish me to show mercy to my servants?”

He gave a short, affirmative gargle.

At that, the barest hint of a smile curled the ouroboros’s gray lips. It launched him and Dimas away with deceptively casual shoves. Hitting the ground on his back shattered the paralysis caging Isaac. Mind and aching body reunited in a fit of coughing and shivering.

“Very well. I suppose I can find use for them. One at least shows minor potential.” Another horrendous snap and the necromancer’s elbow bent at the correct angle once more.

Isaac waited until his heart rate approached something close to normal to speak. “Quinn needs a hospital.”

“Noose will tend to both of them.”

The ouroboros’s name, he realized. Or what passed for one. “You swear they won’t be hurt?”

In reply, Hawthorne bowed its head. A shudder rolled down the cloaked form from head to toe. The red reignited in its eyes, burning off the lifeless gray.

“Goddamnit,” the ouroboros said through a grimace. “Are you happy? I’ve been demoted to babysitter.”

“Are you going to help em?” Isaac pointed to Quinn.

“Don’t have a choice, do I?” It—Noose—jerked the hood of its cloak up and stalked toward its new ward.

The shock had faded enough for em to turn a terrified stare in its direction. With a whimper, e pushed emself into a painful crawl. Isaac winced at how much dirt must be invading eir wounds. He stepped forward to offer some reassurance if nothing else.

A vicious yank on his jacket collar dragged him back.

“We’re done here.” Reason had returned to Dimas’s eyes if not humanity. He scratched a flaking streak of blood from around his scowling mouth.

“No, I have to—”

“What, Soto? What are you hoping to accomplish? Clearing your name? Getting an apology? Gratitude? Do you think either of these humans are about to call you their hero?”

Isaac looked back over at Quinn. Noose had grabbed em by the scruff of eir own coat, forcing em to roll over. It slapped away eir attempts to fend it off and started pinching the edges of the nastiest gash together. Though ugly, puckered, and still seeping, somehow the wound remained shut. A temporary measure, and probably no good against infection, but better than nothing. Better than anything Isaac could have done.

“What’s going to happen to em? And to Zamora?” he asked Dimas.

Rather than answer, the bloodborn seized Isaac’s arm. With fingers as gentle as his expression was severe, he rolled up both torn jacket and shirt sleeves. The bitemark he’d given Isaac qualified for neither neat nor pretty. A bruise had already spread out beneath the broken skin in a dark halo.

“Hold still,” Dimas told him. “I’ll put a few drops of my blood on it so there won’t be any scarring.”

As he moved to prick his thumb on one fang, though, Isaac wrestled his arm free.

“Yeah, I bet you’d prefer not to have any reminders.”

They locked stares. Hypnosis didn’t have a real chance to take hold before Dimas pulled his tab from his pocket and turned away.

“We’ll be picked up out on the main road.” Airy. Detached. Like they’d been discussing which restaurant to pick for breakfast. “Let’s go.”

A last look at the people he was abandoning to an unknown fate eroded the last of Isaac’s will to fight. Aching all over on the outside but numb everywhere else, Isaac limped toward the future he’d wrought.