#snowy wings publishing

[bitbybitwrites]

WIP ASK ME GAME

I was tagged by @wordsofhoneydew and @itsmaybitheway. Thank you so much for thinking of me! Sorry for the delay - it took me longer than usual to think of descriptions of all the WIP I've got in the works 😂

So here are some Klaine and RWRB fics I'm working on that anyone can feel free to ask me about if you'd like:)

A long WIP list can be found under the break!

Partially published WIP:

(Klaine) If I Can Make Your Heart My Home - (Klaine Reverse Bang 2023) Life in New York City and working in the restaurant industry wasn’t exactly what Kurt Hummel had expected it would be. He’s lonely, stressed out and miserable. He’s almost ready to throw in the towel and return home to Ohio when a chance meeting with a musician in Central Park changes everything. (Warning: an angsty rollercoaster of a ride. Soooo many cameos from Glee characters! 😉)

(Klaine) Falling For You -(Klaine Secret Santa 2023 - NOW COMPLETE AS OF 4/16/24) - Successful doctor, Blaine Anderson has his hands full heading up the pediatric wing of Sloan Kettering Memorial Hospital in NY City. Life with that job and his precocious 6 year old daughter certainly keeps him on his toes - so much so that he thinks he can avoid dealing with the hole left in his life from the death of his husband. Little does he know that falling in love is on the horizon, quite literally, when he meets a florist by the name of Kurt Hummel. (Kid!fic with a bit of angst but a happy ending)

(RWRB) Puppy Love - (RWRB NYE gift exchange 2023) The cold snowy day that Henry Fox discovers an abandoned beagle puppy in an alley brings handsome, flirty veterinarian, Alex Claremont-Diaz into his life. Alex is a single dad, recently moved to NY with his young son who Henry hasn't met yet - or so Alex thought. (Fluffy kid!fic)

(Klaine) Sanctuary - (Klaine Word Scramble 2023) Crown Prince Blaine has stumbled into a secluded glade, trying to escape the horrors of the bloody war his father had brought upon their kingdom. Mourning his beloved older brother and faced with the burden of taking his place in the kingdom, Blaine yearns for a place to hid from the world to deal with the issues weighing on his heavy heart. He encounters a mysterious elf, the guardian of the magical spring that Blaine has mistakenly defiled, whose growing connection to his life the young prince can't ignore. (Inspired by an idea/ artwork by @datshitrandom and @justgleekout)

Not published yet WIP :

(these are in various states of readiness: some outlined, some partially written, some still in the brainstorming/research phase)

(RWRB) I approach, and I withdraw (tentative title) - Historical fic - Alejandro Diaz was still a boy when he followed his father into the thick of the fight for Mexico's independence. A series of unfortunate events, however, led him and his family to flee his home and to adopt new identities for their own safety. Years later, after he finds himself well ensconced in his new life as an attaché to the office of the new American ambassador to England, Alexander Claremont soon finds his past catching up to him. (Inspired by these historical paintings by @stormtrooperjeff17004 as well as artwork from @artofobsession seen here and here.)

(RWRB) Shaken, Not Stirred (Spy!AU) - CIA Officer Alex Claremont Diaz is not new to working on joint operations with other foreign agencies. He does it often and he does it well, which is why his superior, Zahra Bankston, never hesitates to assign them to him. What he wasn't expecting that morning was to be put on a new assignment with his least favorite MI6 operative, Henry Fox - and that they had to use being a newly married couple as their cover to get the job done. (Inspired by this drawing by @noodles-and-tea )

(Klaine) Cuffed (a D/s and soulmate story and prequel to my first ever fic, Trick or Treat) - - Musician Blaine Anderson has always been lonely sub, yearning for a place to belong and someone to belong to. Kurt Hummel is the an overworked and high in demand designer - a Dom with no time to sit and relax and focus on what his needs are. When an old friend hires Kurt to revamp his new club, Kurt's life becomes intertwined with Blaine's in a way neither of them could ignore.

(Klaine) Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weenie (Day 2 /Bikini - Klaine Advent 2023/ PWP) - A casual little fashion critique while the boys are on a well needed vacation, leads to a little outdoor fun. (Set in my Trick or Treat AU)

(RWRB) how ardently i admire and love you (online auction!AU) - Alex is desperate to find the perfect birthday gift for Henry, and eventually finds himself in an online bidding war for the one unique item that he knows his boyfriend would just adore.

(Klaine) I Know You Wanna Take Me Home (tentative title) (Klaine Valentines Challenge 2024/Pretty Woman!AU) Well established business man, Kurt Hummel never thought he could find anyone of substance among the escorts at Dalton House. But after being convinced to visit the upscale club by his friend, Kurt's mind is quickly changed once he sets his eyes on a beautiful boy in a gilded cage who was up for auction that night.

(Klaine) Untitled Klaine fic (Klaine Advent 2022) - Set in my Klaine superhero AU - Under The Cover of Darkness) Blaine decides to go home with Kurt for the holidays and doesn't make the best first impression with Kurt's parents.

(Klaine) Untitled Klaine fic (Feudal Japan!AU) - based off of novel The Tokaido Road - On a personal mission to avenge the murder of his father, Kurt travels the Tokaido , braving its dangers and interesting characters on the way. As the son of a nobleman, Kurt travels in disguise, unaware that the person who sanctioned his father's murderer has also sent Blaine, a talented and deadly ronin, to find and kill Kurt as well.

(RWRB)- the phantom touch of your hand (tentative title) - (Fantasy/cursed tattoo fic!AU) Two young swordsmen are determined to vanquish a sorcerer who has laid a tragic curse on them both. The problem is, the curse keeps them from being together at the same time, doomed to travel alone, one by day, the other by night - the only reminder of the other being the cursed tattoo burned into their skin.

(Klaine) - Untitled Klaine fic (While You were Sleeping!AU) - Kurt Hummel always wanted to live in NYC - his dreams were to be on Broadway. Being on the Broadway stage that is. Not working on the corner of Broadway and 44th in one of those coffee/food carts parked out on the street. Things for him change the day that Cooper Anderson, Kurt's gorgeous repeat customer whom he secretly fantasizes about, nearly gets hit by a bus. After following him to the hospital, Kurt gets mistaken for being his crush's fiancee which should have been his dream come true - until he meets Cooper's sweet down to earth brother, Blaine.

(Sebklaine) Let you put your hands on me (PWP College threesome) - heavily influenced by "one of those movies" - wink, wink . . - Kurt's frustrated ( in more ways than one) and his good friends Blaine and Sebastian find a way to help him out.

(Klaine/RWRB) - Untitled fic (Scheherazade/ 1001 Arabian Nights !AU) - A lone traveler gets captured by a band of sex slavers in the desert. After being subjected to the horrors of slavery, the young man gets rescued by a desert prince in disguise, chosen to be his sole consort. Every evening, the consort tells his prince a story for him amusement. - planning a series of probably shorts all in the same style. Maybe it'll be a collection to do with other writers? Not sure yet. Might alternate with either Henry/Alex being the Prince and Consort and Blaine/Kurt being the characters in the bedtime tales or vice versa. Or maybe create 2 OC to be the Prince/Consort and have the other four boys be the characters in the shorter stories. I'm assuming it would be alot of mature/explicit shorts - but wouldn't mind a mix of other ratings in between as well.

Tagging ( only if they want to play): @myheartalivewrites, @clottedcreamfudge, @hkvoyage, @kirakiwiwrites, @gleefulpoppet,

@gleefuldarrencrissfan, @onthewaytosomewhere, @sarkyblueeyes, @madas-ahatters-world @rougedraconteur,

@yadivagirl @lilinas, @forabeatofadrum, @kiwiana-writes, @spaceorphan18,

@special-bc-ur-part-of-it, @fallevs @daisyishedwig @annepi-blog @wowbright

@backslashdelta @kurtsascot @coffeegleek @14carrotghoul @rockitmans

@teilo @iboatedhere, @orchidscript @welcometololaland

. . oh hell and anyone else who sees this and wants to share their WIP - go for it!

[pervcoded]

🍉 wips (for gaza!)

last updated: may 21, 2024

hello! luka here; this is my official post for @ficsforgaza. if you're interested in funding a work in progress, send me an ask with a screenshot with proof of donation to one of the reputable organizations here. please include the title of the wip in your ask. For every $1 USD you donate I will write one hundred words for the wip you've chosen. any information submitted through asks should have sensitive parts redacted. these asks will also not be published, for safety reasons. if nothing here interests you, check out the other writers on the @ficsforgaza tumblr!

wips available! DARK CONTENT BELOW THE CUT 🍉

BET ON iT toji + choso x gojo x getou

# GN!reader with genital/gender variants for the sex scenes. DD:DNE. main fic is finished. you can donate for the 4 variants: cis male, cis female, trans male, and trans fem. non-canon compliant, jujutsu sorcery is irrelevant here. involves gambling and betting human beings. huge non-con warning.

one-shot. you and toji are all but an item, even if he doesn't want to admit it. he has a closet, a drawer, rent free space in your mind... and you his. it's a shame then, how he lets his ego get the best of him, forces him to lose sight of what he has for the potential to have something bigger - better. a damn shame, satoru reckons; but it's just his luck toji's so simple-minded!

main fic: 10k/10k cis!m variant: 2,000 / 4,000 cis!f variant: 0 / 4,000 trans!m variant: 0 / 4,000 trans!f variant: 0 / 4,000

[] OF A FEATHER peacock hybrid!tengen uzui # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. dark content warning - power imbalances, coercion into marriage. sfw

one-shot. a too full of himself bird spies a pretty thing in a coffee shop. according to his traditions, you must "allow him" to court you. uh, yeah- hard pass. or so you say, but good thing uzui has undying persistence-and the law-on his side. wc: 700/2000

BEARY DEAR TO ME bear hybrid!gyomei himejima # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. sfw. fluffy.

one-shot. your boyfriend is well meaning, gracious and so kind, but not many people are willing to see him for who he is, because- well- he's a bear. even his own kind steers clear of him if they can help it. you never forget to remind him how much you love him, though; fuzz and claws included. wc: 0/2000

BLUEST EYE snow leopard!kisaki # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. nsfw. dark content warning.

one-shot. despite it being human-owned and operated (or maybe that was the appeal) a few yakuza have taken to your parent's establishment, and frequent it on their da off days. there's one in particular who fancies you, you think. the kitty cat, with his snowy down fur and pretty whiskers. you always were curious about what exactly he was staring at. wc: 0/2000

BRUNT OF THE SEA (CSM) beam # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. nsfw, fluffy, monsterfucking.

one-shot. you always underestimate how far beam'd go to please you. wc: 0/2000

IRON LUNG eelgirl!makima # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. dark content. waterboarding, attempted drowning, forced co-dependence.

one-shot. makima sees your disobedience as an exercise in futility. you'll never get away from her- and that's just how she likes it. wc: 72/2000

(CAGED BIRD, SING) (ALNSTG) toy poodle!luka # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. dark content. abuses of power, non-consensual intimacy, obsessive personality.

one-shot. for a supposed prince, things sure don't come as easily to him as he'd like. you for example - one of those lesser life forms. you were glad to be taken in by the Garden of Anakt, but it was only because you had something to offer to their segyein overlords. ah, that songbird voice; despite a lack of wing or feather. utterly fascinating. luka can't dream of anything but you singing for him. day after day. night after night. wc: 0/2000

UNDERSTUDY. (ALNSTG) pointer!ivan # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. angst. nsfw, unhappy ending, canon compliant. power dynamics (servant x master).

one-shot. you're not the one he wants and you know it. it rips your heart of your chest and punctures your lungs, but god do you know it. he never lets you forget. the name acrid poison on the tip of his tongue, curling around the delicate shell of your ear. till. till. till. wc: 0/2000

THE FOX; A HOUND fox! oikawa # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. angst. cheating, lying oikawa.

one-shot. you're too kind for your own good. it's not like you have a choice - oikawa figures it's a social conditioning issue, give more of yourself than there is to be had, smile gently, wave and nod, keep quiet. it's convenient for him; cute arm candy and piece of ass when he wants it. you're none the wiser, he thinks, because it's easier to assume your ignorance than accept responsibility for your despair.

JUST DON'T GIVE A FUCK! honey badger! ushijima # GN!reader - apart of DeND series. nsfw, dark content. disregarding of consent, lack of consideration for reader in general.

one-shot. ushijima doesn't care enough. he misses reservations, your anniversaries, and even your birthdays. you think something's wrong with him (and spoiler alert: there just might be). wc: 0 / 2,000

A LITTLE BIT OFF THE TOP! all of tenjiku! # GN!reader - older reader. reader is implied to have ambiguous hispanic origin and speaks spanish. sfw. no romantic pairings here.

one-shot. never has there been an affair more intimate than the act of cutting hair. you love your job, even if you don't quite get much traction on your lone street corner. that is - until you get an influx of new, younger customers. with strange manners and even stranger 'dos. wc: 1.6 / 3,000

OPERATION: NORMAL, ALL FOWLED UP gojo (and getou, later) # GN!reader - spy au for jjk. reader is a badass motherfucker. slow burn (gojo), dark content (later chapters), love triangles (all's fair in love and war), espionage. alternative timelines and backstories for jjk characters.

series. you're great at your job and that's all that's required of you, really. a cushy six figures and decent dental plan, just to be the thing that goes bump in the night, ah? it's all your dreams come true and more! though it is too bad it would seem your security conflicts with a certain someone else's big plans. oh well; it's not like you're gonna take that shit lying down. first chapter: 3.7 / 5000 each chapter will be about 5,000 words, each chapter fully funded will unlock the next chapter.

thank you for joining us on our journey to assist palestine. if none of the wips here interest you, perhaps you'd like to make a personal request of your own? i will not be accepting anonymous requests for sfw or nsfw content. all participating blogs should have an age indicator visible. i will only take requests from those who are 18+.

upon receiving screenshot proof of your donation, for every 1$ donated, i will write 100 words. i am liable to overshoot this, and if i do that's on me, not anyone who's donated. if you'd like to make a request, please read my BYF. if you're still not 100% sure your request will fly, shoot me a DM for any needed clarification. request donations max out at 1,000 words, or a 10$ donation. have fun requesting, and don't forget to check out the other gracious souls over at @ficsforgaza!

[kingdrawcse]

Secret behind Tree crickets

The tree cricket, Oecanthus, is the "most familiar stranger" of our summer nights. You may not have heard its name, but you must have heard its chirping! Belonging to the subfamily Oecanthinae of the cricket family, these crickets are named for their arboreal habitat. Males vibrate their wings at night to produce a chirping sound to attract the attention of females. The call of the tree cricket is clear and pleasant, long and continuous, with a strong sense of rhythm. Its chirping is often used as a symbol of summer nights and is added to the soundtracks of movies and television. The frequency of cricket chirping is usually related to the weather temperature, and this is especially true for tree crickets.

American physicist Amos Dolbear took the snowy tree cricket (Oecanthus fultoni) as the subject of his research and published a formula in 1897 that uses the chirping frequency of the tree cricket to calculate the temperature—the "Dolbear's Law". As a result, the snowy tree cricket is also known as the "thermometer cricket". Within the temperature range of 5 to 30°C, this formula has relatively small errors, and interested students can verify it.

[richincolor]

New Releases

I got an early look at Rez Ball and am really looking forward to seeing it out in the world. I'm excited for that and several others this week.

Rez Ball by Byron Graves Heartdrum

This compelling debut novel by new talent Byron Graves tells the relatable, high-stakes story of a young athlete determined to play like the hero his Ojibwe community needs him to be. These days, Tre Brun is happiest when he is playing basketball on the Red Lake Reservation high school team—even though he can’t help but be constantly gut-punched with memories of his big brother, Jaxon, who died in an accident. When Jaxon’s former teammates on the varsity team offer to take Tre under their wing, he sees this as his shot to represent his Ojibwe rez all the way to their first state championship. This is the first step toward his dream of playing in the NBA, no matter how much the odds are stacked against him. But stepping into his brother’s shoes as a star player means that Tre can’t mess up. Not on the court, not at school, and not with his new friend, gamer Khiana, who he is definitely not falling in love with. After decades of rez teams almost making it, Tre needs to take his team to state. Because if he can live up to Jaxon’s dreams, their story isn’t over yet.  This book is published by Heartdrum, an imprint that publishes high-quality, contemporary stories about Indigenous young people in the United States and Canada.

Those Pink Mountain Nights by Jen Ferguson Heartdrum

In her remarkable second novel following her acclaimed debut, The Summer of Bitter and Sweet, which won the Governor General’s Award and received six starred reviews, Jen Ferguson writes about the hurt of a life stuck in past tense, the hum of connections that cannot be severed, and one week in a small snowy town that changes everything.

Over-achievement isn’t a bad word—for Berlin, it’s the goal. She’s securing excellent grades, planning her future, and working a part-time job at Pink Mountain Pizza, a legendary local business. Who says she needs a best friend by her side?

Dropping out of high school wasn’t smart—but it was necessary for Cameron. Since his cousin Kiki’s disappearance, it’s hard enough to find the funny side of life, especially when the whole town has forgotten Kiki. To them, she’s just another missing Native girl.

People at school label Jessie a tease, a rich girl—and honestly, she’s both. But Jessie knows she contains multitudes. Maybe her new job crafting pizzas will give her the high-energy outlet she desperately wants.

When the weekend at Pink Mountain Pizza takes unexpected turns, all three teens will have to acknowledge the various ways they’ve been hurt—and how much they need each other to hold it all together.

Ab(solutely) Normal: Short Stories That Smash Mental Health Stereotypes edited by Nora Shalaway Carpenter & Rocky Callen Candlewick Press

Channeling their own experiences, sixteen exceptional authors subvert mental health stereotypes in a powerful and uplifting collection of fiction.

A teen activist wrestles with protest-related anxiety and PTSD. A socially anxious vampire learns he has to save his town by (gulp) working with people. As part of her teshuvah, a girl writes letters to the ex-boyfriend she still loves, revealing that her struggle with angry outbursts is related to PMDD. A boy sheds uncontrollable tears but finds that in doing so he’s helping to enable another’s healing. In this inspiring, unflinching, and hope-filled mixed-genre collection, sixteen diverse and notable authors draw on their own lived experiences with mental health conditions to create stunning works of fiction that will uplift and empower you, break your heart and stitch it back together stronger than before. Through powerful prose, verse, and graphics, the characters in this anthology defy stereotypes as they remind readers that living with a mental health condition doesn’t mean that you’re defined by it. Each story is followed by a note from its author to the reader, and comprehensive back matter includes bios for the contributors as well as a collection of relevant resources.

With contributions by: Mercedes Acosta * Karen Jialu Bao * James Bird * Rocky Callen * Nora Shalaway Carpenter * Alechia Dow * Patrick Downes * Anna Drury * Nikki Grimes * Val Howlett * Jonathan Lenore Kastin * Sonia Patel * Marcella Pixley * Isabel Quintero * Ebony Stewart * Francisco X. Stork

Monstrous by Jessica Lewis Delacorte Press

Forced to spend her summer in her aunt’s strange small town, a teen girl discovers dark secrets hidden in the woods. From the author of Bad Witch Burning comes another pulse-pounding novel perfect for fans of Supernatural and Lovecraft Country.

Don’t go outside past dark. Come straight home after church. And above all—never, ever, go into Red Wood.

These are the rules Latavia’s aunt tells her as soon as she arrives in Sanctum, Alabama for the summer. Weird, but Latavia isn’t here to solve any scary small town mysteries; she’s here for six weeks and six weeks only, and then she’s off to college and won’t look back. Still, Sanctum has its perks—mainly, the cute girl who works at the local ice cream shop.

But Latavia can’t ignore how strange her aunt’s tiny town is. The residents are suspicious of her and at times hostile, and it’s clear she’s some kind of outsider. That’s proven when Latavia is dragged out of her house in the dead of night, into the forbidden Red Wood, and presented as a human sacrifice to an ancient monster.

Latavia won’t be eaten without a fight. She’ll do whatever she has to do to survive—even if that includes making a deal with the monster, endangering her crush and family, and even risk turning into a monster herself.

The Name Drop by Susan Lee Inkyard Press

New from the author of Seoulmates comes a story of mistaken identities, the summer of a lifetime, and a love to risk everything for.

When Elijah Ri arrives in New York City for an internship at his father’s massive tech company, Haneul Corporation, he expects the royal treatment that comes with being the future CEO—even if that’s the last thing he wants. But instead, he finds himself shuffled into a group of overworked, unpaid interns, all sharing a shoebox apartment for the summer.

When Jessica Lee arrives in New York City, she’s eager to make the most of her internship at Haneul Corporation, even if she’s at the bottom of the corporate ladder. But she’s shocked to be introduced as the new executive-in-training intern with a gorgeous brownstone all to herself.

It doesn’t take long for Elijah and Jessica to discover the source of the they share the same Korean name. But they decide to stay switched—so Elijah can have a relaxing summer away from his controlling dad while Jessica can make the connections she desperately needs for college recommendations.

As Elijah and Jessica work together to keep up the charade, a spark develops between them. Can they avoid discovery—and total disaster—with their feelings and futures on the line?

Goddess Crown by Shade Lapite Walker Books US

In this thrilling Afro-fantasy, the first set in the lush, opulent kingdom of Galla, a girl raised in secret must leave her sheltered rural home for the subtle dangers of the royal court, where she becomes caught up in deadly power struggles and romantic intrigue.

Kalothia has grown up in the shadows of her kingdom, hidden away in the forested East after her parents were outed as enemies of the king. Raised in a woodland idyll by a few kindly adult caretakers, Kalothia can hunt and fish and fend for herself but knows little of the outside world. When assassins attack her home on her sixteenth birthday, she must flee to the king’s court in the West–a beautiful but lethal nest of poison, plots, and danger, overseen by an entrenched patriarchy. Guided by the Goddess herself, can Kalothia navigate this most worldly of places to find her own role? What if she must choose between her country and her heart? Excitement, romance, and a charismatic heroine shine in this first book set in the unforgettable kingdom of Galla.

[annachu-cannot-write]

Finding our Way Back

[published on archive 5/3 2023]

[a loz botw fanfic, link/revali, 3474 words]

We loved each other  And we lost each other  But we found our way back

Revali was flying over the snowy Hebra mountains, patrolling the area. Something that wasn't actually a duty as a Champion, but something that he liked to do when he had time. 

Usually on his nighttime flights, he spotted camps filled with either Bokoblins or Lizalfos. Those monsters were easy to get rid of with just a couple of arrows, but they would always come back, making patrolling the mountains more or less pointless. But it was at least something to keep Revali busy with. 

On this particular snowy night however, it wasn't a Bokoblin or a Lizalfos that caught the Rito's eye, but something much smaller. On the white, glistening surface of the snow covered hill lay a little figure motionless. 

Revali immediately changed course and dove down to inspect what it could be. 

Reaching closer to the small figure in the snow, Revali saw that it was a Hylian boy. But not any Hylian boy. It was Link. 

Taken aback by the sight, it took the Rito a minute before he decided to pick up the young boy. 

With a firm grip around the small figure, Revali started to flap his wings profusely, then shot up into the sky. 

~

Stopping at the landing in Rito village, he adjusted his grip on Link so that his wings were now under the boy's knees and back, and started heading towards the inn. 

As Revali walked down the wooden staircases, a couple of passing Ritos stopped to look at him. 

"Is that Link you're carrying?" 

"What ever happened?" 

But Revali ignored them, his gaze only pointed forwards. 

Upon reaching the inn, Cecili, the innkeeper, briskly walked up to the other Rito, a concerned look on her face. 

"Oh my, quickly lay him down here." 

Cecili, was indeed, used to getting weary travellers to her inn; those who hadn't dressed properly for the cold weather, or those who simply hadn't eaten enough and had worn themselves out, but none had come in looking quite as rough as Link had. 

And Revali usually wasn't the one to bring them in. 

"May I know what happened?" Cecili asked after she had tucked Link under several thick Rito blankets. 

Revali just looked at her first but with a sigh, answered the question. 

"I found him unconscious up in the Hebra mountains. Seems like the boy doesn't care for his own life… Such recklessness."

He muttered the last bit, turning to leave. 

"You mustn't talk about the poor boy like that." 

"Poor boy?" 

With a scoff, Revali left the inn and Cecili sighed as she watched him leave. 

~

Link stirred in the bed he was lying in, groaning as he felt how his body ached with every movement. He couldn't remember what he had done to be hurting this much. But it must have been something. 

Little by little, he noticed that he was lying in bed, but he couldn't remember lying in bed either. 

Where was he?

Slowly opening his eyes he realised, as he took everything in, that he was in fact in the Rito village inn. 

He certainly couldn't remember going to the inn. 

It must have been one hell of a blow to the head. 

With as much strength he could muster, Link tried to pull himself up, only to fall back onto his pillow. He let out a frustrated groan, and tried again. 

"Link! You're awake - oh you really shouldn't be getting up. You need all the rest you can get… though you also need to eat something, you must be so weak right now." 

Cecili hurried out of the inn, and Link tried a third time to sit up straight but eventually just gave in. 

Shortly after, Cecili came back with a steaming bowl of soup and sat it down on the shared table.

Walking over to Link, she wrapped one wing around the Hylians back and pulled him up. 

"Here, we'll set you down on a chair so you can have some food."

Link sat down on the little stool and looked at the bowl of soup in front of him. He could definitely feel how hungry he was now. 

"Dig in and you'll feel better in no time!" 

Cecili gave Link a smile before returning to her desk. 

The soup did indeed make Link feel better, almost instantly upon taking the first spoonful. It was almost as if the ache in his body completely vanished. 

Soup had never tasted this good. 

"Oh by the way, it was Revali who brought you here… Thought you wanted to know." 

Link stopped at that, brought his spoon down from his mouth, and stared forwards. 

That came as a surprise to him. It just wasn't the thing Revali would do.

Just as his brain started to come up with different possibilities as to why Revali had done such a thing, something caught his attention. Or rather someone. 

Who else but Revali was walking by right outside the inn just in that moment. 

Where was he heading?

Link wanted to shout out to him, but Revali was already down the next staircase. 

He pushed away his bowl and made to get up when Cecili shouted at him. 

"Where do you think you're going? I said to eat your soup, not run away." 

Link turned to stare at her. 

"Just stay one more night, alright? Then you can go find him." 

Sighing, he headed back to his bed, the soup abandoned on the table. 

~

Link was awake enough to hear the creaking of the floorboards, the loud thump and the squawk that followed it. 

Pretending to be fully asleep, he stayed still and kept his eyes shut. 

He couldn't hear anything after that and wondered if, whoever had entered the inn, had already left. Then he heard a small scraping sound, as what he imagined was one of the stools being dragged on the floor. And the sound was coming towards him. 

At this point, Link debated whether or not to open his eyes and check who it was. He didn't like being crept up on. 

But whatever decision he was going to make was cut short by a soft voice calling out. 

"Link, you absolute fool."

It was Revali. 

With all his might, Link fought the urge to open his eyes, wrap his arms around the Rito and thank him for saving him. 

But instead, he stayed still on his back, his eyes closed. 

"What were you thinking?" 

"Don't you have any self-preservation at all?" 

Even though this was the softest Link had ever heard Revali's voice to be, there was still an undertone of the characteristic sneer. 

"Making me carry you like you're some helpless little creature." 

There was a scoff with that one. 

"Don't think I wanted to… but I couldn't exactly leave you there, you would have died." 

There was silence after that and Link thought that he must have left. Though he hadn't heard any creaking floorboards. 

Suddenly, he felt something soft touch his face. He fought, yet again, the instinct to open his eyes because he didn't want the Rito to know that he had been awake this whole time. 

"Link…" 

He could hear Revali sigh as Link continued to feel soft feathers on his face and he realised that the Rito must be stroking his cheek. 

Link didn't know what had gone into Revali. The Rito was never easy to deal with, making it difficult to even have a conversation with. Always thinking he was superior to everyone else and boasting about himself every time he opened his beak. But yet here he was, talking in a soft tone, stroking Link's cheek. 

But Link wasn't complaining. 

Though he knew that this wasn't going to last. Surely, Revali only did this because he was alone and thought Link was sleeping. He would never show this side to him otherwise. 

That little thought grew on Link's mind more than he wanted to admit. 

Eventually, he fell asleep and whether or not the Rito was still there beside him, he wouldn't know. 

~

When Link woke up the next time, it was already noon. Cecili wasn't tending to her desk and Link saw this as the perfect opportunity to get away from the inn. He had already stayed there long enough. 

Getting to his feet, he realised that his body still ached, but pushed the pain aside and with a grimace finally stepped out of the inn. 

He made sure that no one saw him as he wandered up the multiple staircases, up to the little hut that was Revali's house. It was thankfully an easy task as no Ritos were nearby. Though there was no Rito in Revali's hut either. 

He must be at the Flight Range. 

Using his Sheikah Slate, he found the shrine he was looking for and teleported himself. 

Only seconds later, Link was standing at Sha Warvo and snow hit him hard in the face. 

Pulling the furry collar of his shirt up closer to his face, he started heading towards the Flight Range. 

He knew he was getting closer when he could see tiny little lights up ahead, coming from the wooden hut. 

He tried to look out over the range to see if he could spot the Rito he was looking for, but the snow blizzard made it nearly impossible to see anything. 

Link could only hope that Revali was in the hut. 

Climbing the ladder proved to be much more difficult than it usually was. With each step, Link's body protested. But Link was tired of the pain, and just pushed through it anyway. 

Finally up in the hut he could see, to his surprise, that Revali wasn't sitting by the fire either.

With a sigh, Link sat down on one of the pillows and started to warm himself up. He figured that he might as well stay here and wait for the Rito. 

And wouldn't you know it, almost immediately, a gust of wind blew in over the hut and Link could see a figure descending. 

Just then, Revali landed on the small platform, flapping his wings to dust off all the snow. 

His eyes shot immediately to Link's. 

"What are you doing here?" 

He turned his gaze away from the other boy, and set down his bow and arrow. 

Link, however, continued to look at Revali, and decided to ignore his question. 

"Were you out there training in this weather?"

Revali sneered. 

"The weather stops for no one. As a champion I should be able to tackle any challenge."

Then he looked up and met Link's eyes again. 

"As should the Hero of Hyrule." 

"To think that a simple little blizzard could be the end of you -tsk tsk tsk- how pathetic."

"Maybe next time, you shouldn't be out in the mountains when you can't even handle it." 

Then it hit him. A wave of memories. 

He was up in the snowy mountains, traversing the snowy landscape, when suddenly he got ambushed by a Lizalfos. With one blow from their sword, he was sent down the mountain, his body repeatedly hitting the rock wall. 

No wonder he blacked out for such a long time. And no wonder his body still ached. 

"Thank you."

"For whatever reason?"

"For saving me." 

Revali looked at Link again, squinting his eyes a bit. 

"You would have died up there if it wasn't for me."

"I know, and that's why I'm thanking you."

"What were you doing up there anyway? You should know that the mountains are dangerous."

"I was just exploring." 

Revali let out a loud HAH. 

"Exploring?”

Link shrugged and looked away. Quietly he then asked:

"Why do you care?" 

The Rito sighed in frustration. 

"What was that?" 

"I said, why do you care?" 

Link looked up, and met Revali's gaze. 

"Why should you care if I die on a mountain?"

The Rito scoffed loudly. 

"Oh don't be ridiculous! We can't have the Hero of Hyrule rot away on some lonely mountain when there's a war to be won." 

Link, admittedly, felt a tinge of disappointment from that answer. 

But what had he expected? It's not like Revali saved him for selfish reasons. 

The Hero of Hyrule. 

That's why he saved him. 

But that couldn't be all that Revali thought of him as, could it? 

Link tried not to show the sadness that had washed over him, instead he rose to his feet. 

"I think I'm going to head off…" 

He didn't want to actually. He hoped for nothing else but Revali to soften up and be open with him, but this conversation wasn't going anywhere. 

"... Seeing as I'm a bother to you."

"And why do you think you're a bother to me?" 

Link could feel the Rito's gaze burn a hole in his back. 

"You don't need to say it with words, your body language speaks loud enough." 

With that, he jumped down the ladder, ignoring how pain shot through his body, and ignoring the Rito that was still in the hut. 

~

Yellow butterflies circled over him where he lay in the tall green grass. Flowers of white surrounded him, giving off a wonderful scent. A croak from a frog could be heard not far away. 

Link was back at the Great Plateau, a place he found comfort in. In a way, it felt safe, like it was far away from everything else. 

He would often come here when he wanted to clear his mind, and this time was no different. 

A week had passed since his and Revali's conversation at the Flight Range and he could still not get the Rito's words out of his head. 

The Hero of Hyrule. 

It wasn't like he had never been called that before, he just didn't like the fact that Revali called him that. 

Was that really all he saw him as? 

Link sighed heavily and brought up his hand to cover the sun. 

This one little thing had grown so strong in Link's mind and troubled him so much. 

How was he supposed to be focused on the task ahead of him, of aiding Princess Zelda in the fight against Calamity Ganon, when all he could think about was his stupid feelings for a certain Rito Champion? 

… 

Feelings… He had feelings for Revali. 

Then suddenly, with a force so strong, Link felt a jolt of pain from inside of him. A pain that had been there ever since he woke up on this very plateau all those months ago, but he had always tried to push away. But never before had it hurt this much. In this moment it was unbearable. 

He grasped his shirt, right over his heart, and clutched his hand so hard because he was hurting so very much. 

Just then, another jolt of pain shot through his head, causing him to scream out in agony.  

… And then all the pain he was feeling disappeared and all he could see was flashing images. A memory of old revealing itself. And he understood. 

… He had to go find Revali. 

~

Enlightened with a newfound memory, Link was back at the Flight Range, sitting by the fire yet again. 

Revali was nowhere to be seen, however Link knew he would turn up eventually and so he waited patiently. 

An hour passed and there was still no sign of the Rito. The sky had grown dark and it was getting colder and colder. Link nuzzled closer to the fire, trying to stay as warm as he could. In his mind, he went through all the things he wanted to say to Revali. He had decided it was best to just spill everything, spill his whole heart if he had to. Anything to get the Rito to understand, anything to get him to remember. 

… 

Realisation dawned on him as he noticed that it had gotten brighter inside of the hut - he had fallen asleep whilst waiting for Revali. 

Rubbing his eyes, he sat up from the uncomfortable position he had been in and immediately met the eyes of that exact Rito. 

Revali was sitting down next to him, leaning against the wall. 

"Did you sleep well?" 

Link blinked. 

"What?" 

The Rito sighed. 

"I found you fast asleep when I came back late last night. I thought it would be best to let you sleep." 

Link blinked again. Then he remembered why he was here. 

"I actually wanted to talk to you."

Revali nodded. 

"We should talk, shouldn't we?" 

Then he stood up, walked over to the little landing and extended his wing towards Link. 

"There's a place with a good view of the sunrise - I can take us there if you want?" 

Link stared at him for a second, to try and register what he had just heard. 

Then he couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. 

"I'd like that." 

And so Link walked over to Revali and let himself be wrapped inside of the others wings, the smile on his face only growing wider. 

~

Revali came to a halt right next to Vah Medoh, on the highest peak in Rito Village. 

He carefully put Link down and drew back his wings. He then walked over to the very edge of the cliff formation, looking out over the soft orange sky in front of them. 

"The sunrise has always been my favourite. The stillness of it. How peaceful and quiet it is." 

He turned his head to look back at Link. 

A look on his face that the Hylian couldn't quite read. 

"I usually don't share it with anyone." 

Link fought with all his might not to break down then and there. 

Revali coughed and looked away from him. 

"Anyway, you wanted to talk to me?" 

Link took a deep breath, steadying himself, and went to sit down on the rock so that his legs were dangling off the edge. He patted the ground next to him and looked up at the Rito. 

Revali scoffed lightly, but sat down nonetheless. 

Summoning his confidence, Link uttered the words he had been so afraid of. 

"The moment I woke up at the Shrine of Resurrection, I had this strange pain inside of me. Something strong that I couldn't really understand. In a way, I felt like it was something that had been there since before I died. 

When I saw you for the first time since coming back, that pain only grew stronger. It was as if I was longing for something that I used to have. I kept pushing it away, telling myself that it didn't mean anything. 

And it was not until recently that I understood the pain I was feeling. 

…We loved each other.

…And we lost each other."

He choked out the last words, his eyes filled with tears. 

Revali softly placed his wing under Link's chin, and lifted it up, a sad smile on his face. 

"But we found our way back."

Link could only stare back at Revali, tears now streaming down his face. 

Sobbing out the words, he responded:

"Did you know?" 

"I had my suspicions, yes. But it didn't fully occur to me either until very recently."

"Then… all this pain - have you felt it too?" 

Revali turned away from Link, and looked down. 

"Yes -" 

Then he let out a dry chuckle. 

"- But I was so determined to push it away that I didn't stop for even a second to think about what it could actually mean.

… But now I know."

Revali turned to face the Hylian again. 

"And I'm happy I do."

Link, now crying violently, threw himself over the Rito in such a speed it almost toppled them both over to the side. 

But Revali steadied them with his wings, making sure they didn't both fall off the edge. 

They stayed like that for a while, just holding each other, neither of them letting go. 

"I'm sorry." 

Link's words came out muffled from where he had his face buried in the Rito's neck. 

"What could you possibly be sorry for?" 

"For leaving you back then." 

Revali grabbed Link's shoulders and looked at him straight in the eyes. 

"Link, what happened is not your fault. Neither of us could have done anything."

Link frowned, his eyes still filled with tears. 

"That's not true. I could've done something to prevent it, I should have done something, anything." 

"Link - beating yourself up over it won't change anything, what happened, happened."

Revali gave him a soft, sad smile, and then leaned in, touching Link's forehead with his. Link brought up his hands to cup them around the Rito's face. 

"It's okay." 

… 

The orange sky gleamed in the distance, slowly melting into yellows and blues as the sun rose higher. 

On the very top of Rito Village, sat a Hero and a Champion. 

For the first time in a century, they were both happy. 

[ganymede-princess]

Winter Wine | Rick Wright (Pink Floyd)

ship: Rick Wright (Pink Floyd) X fem!OC

warnings: drug references

summary: In the winter before the Summer of Love, Rick meets a young woman at one of his gigs.

word count: 3629

a/n: This is an adaptation of a story I wrote 4-5 years ago, and I have done a fair amount of re-working to make it more readable and to remove some of the pick-me energy that was pretty prevalent in my old stories. If you happen to read this and recognize the plot from way back when I first published this; hello! Please do reach out if you remember my work, I'd love to reconnect with the community again.

written by  @ganymede-princess

It was New Year's Eve, 1966, and I could smell a change in the air. I could tell that the dawn of ‘67 would bring revolution to the history of young people everywhere, but not even a new era of mankind could shake off my nerves. I was supposed to be meeting a girlfriend for a shindig at some underground club in celebration, but she had cancelled our plans at the last minute and I didn’t like the idea of being carted off somewhere to be murdered. That being said, it was the biggest night of the year and I was hardly going to let a little imminent danger stop me. So I armed myself with a little kitchen knife, a can of toilet refresher spray, a lighter, and a bottle of champers. One last time, I looked myself over in the mirror. I had donned a little white tassel dress with bell sleeves that fell just above my knees, over which I wore a lichen green Afghan coat to stave off the English weather. I had even done my eyes like Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra with golden lids and black swirling wings, and spritzed myself with Belle De Rauche. I felt sexy, but I knew that feeling sexy and being sexy were two entirely different breeds of cat. With one last tousle of my hair, I headed out.

After walking a while I noticed flurries of soft snow filling the air. It fell down like floating pearls to leave little burning tingles on my nose and cheeks. I fluttered my eyelashes as the snow weighed them down and giggled. All through the street people were stumbling around grinning, their eyes locked on the sky. I had seen a panorama of different people in this part of Cambridge, but one thing that united us all was a universal love of snow. Outside the UFO Club I noticed a line of people in all kinds of fancy dress were huddled together beneath the eaves of a building. I cursed under my breath and pulled my coat closer around myself, ready to turn around and go home when I heard a familiar voice call out to me.

“Jenny!” It was my cousin Rodney Maudsley standing right at the front of the line. His auburn hair was a splat of blood on the snowy street.

“Hi Rod!” Grinning, I hurried over and flung myself on him. “Fancy seeing you here!”

“Where else would I be?” He cackled, tossing an arm around me. “Look, Adam, this is me cousin, Jenny. Cute huh?”

A tall man with short, black hair was standing by the door. He had a grey woolen blanket bundled around his body to keep himself warm and a little paper name tag around his neck.

"Indeed she is. Rodney." He grinned eerily as he greeted me in a cockney accent. "It’s wonderful to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, mate.” I smiled, grateful to have a clear voice for once.

“Orright, in yous go.” Adam ushered us inside. “Don’t want you to freeze now do we?”

“Many thanks, mate, many thanks." Rodney winked and sauntered inside, causing a small uproar in the waiting line.

The UFO Club was a miasma of alcohol, cigarettes, and a mingle of a hundred perfumes. Strange wailing sounds emanated from the far end of the room, catching me in a cobweb of curiosity. The noises did not sound organic, so I could only assume it must be a kind of music.

"So how do you know the bouncer?”

“Oh, friend of a friend..." Rodney responded, slipping his arm off my shoulder. "Y’know. You meet people, you like ‘em. In- a- anyway. Have a good one."

With the smell of Eau Sauvage lingering in the air, he was gone. I peered through the gathering crowd at the bar that had been set up at the end of the long shed, and decided not to follow him, as much as I wanted to. Instead I decided to stick to the wall and make my way towards the stage at the far end of the hall. I slipped into the shadows by the wall, dodging a mob of speed freaks who were debating Whitman so hotly that I wondered if a physical fight might break out. It was quite easy to get to the stage, as I was very petite and could easily sneak through the dim concert hall. I soon found myself in a little nook a few feet from the side of the speaker where I could see the whole stage from end to end.

Four men were littered over the stage, two standing with guitars, another sitting at a drum kit behind them, and at the far side was a man sitting at a keyboard, his face obscured behind a fall of mousy hair. I let my attention sit on each of them individually, allowing them each the opportunity to enchant me. Firstly, I looked at the bassist; he must have been very tall, since he awkwardly stooped over his instrument. He ran random objects such as bolts, washers, and screws over the strings of his bass, each one creating a unique noise effect.

The lead guitarist was painfully cute. His hair was a mass of black curls which trembled with every movement and I could see his face lit up with excitement at every pleasing sound his guitar produced. His whole body shook as he bent the sounds coming from his guitar into strange, wobbling frequencies using quick finger movements and occasional movings of the tuning knobs on the neck. It was a strain to pull my eyes away from him to look at the drummer who tapped at the drums in a seemingly experimental manner, almost as though he had never played them before. I soon looked back at the guitarist and watched him plucking at the strings for a while with a dreamy smile on my lips, but soon remembered that there was one last man I had not observed.

Regretfully, I looked away from the lovely guitarist and made my way to the far side of the stage, sticking close to it so as to avoid any dancers. I found a decent spot to stand, and looked up at the keyboardist who was sitting only about six or seven feet away. Just a moment ago I had thought that the guitarist was the most attractive man on the planet, but I was soon proved to be sorely mistaken. That little keyboardist who hid behind his hair was like heaven on earth: shy as a pixie and dainty to boot. He frowned down at his hands while he played, carving little furrows in his brow. In that moment I would have given my right arm for the privilege of knowing what was going on behind his eyes. I felt my heart start to thud as the song came to an end.

"That was Interstellar Overdrive." The guitarist mumbled into the microphone. "Next we're going to hand over to our keyboardist, Rick, for one of his songs."

"Er, yes, um..." Rick stammered in a voice like a wind chime. "This is called Remember A Day."

The music kicked in with a bluesy bass line, arpeggios on the keyboard, and a groovy, off-beat drum line. The guitar swooped from low to high like a police siren. I found myself beginning to sway gently to the music.

"Remember a day before today,” Rick's singing voice was gentle and ambient. It was similar to the voice of the guitarist, only it had a unique dreamy quality. "A day when you were young, free to play with time... evening never comes..."

His eyes roamed around the room as he sang.

"Sing a song that can't be sung without the morning's kiss..." It was that very moment that our eyes met. I could feel my cheeks growing hot as his attention lingered on my face. A small smile grew on his lips before he sang the next line. "Queen you shall be if you wish. Look for your king."

My face became a garden of blush. I looked away, feeling a foolish flutter in my stomach. When I found the strength to lift my head, he was looking back at his hands. I wasn’t sure if I should be disappointed or relieved. The song continued for a while, and it seemed as if he was purposely avoiding my eyes, so I slipped away into the shadows by the side of the stage. I could see no point in putting him off his playing by lingering.

"Alright, it's half-past ten," The bassist announced as the song came to a close. "And we'd all like to go and watch the fireworks, and I'm sure you all would too. So, have a good night everyone, and don't hesitate to come and say hello if you liked the show."

Nobody seemed to be listening to him as he spoke, just as nobody had seemed to be truly listening to the music. All of the bodies in the hall started to syphon out of the room before he had even finished speaking. With those words, all four of the performers shuffled off the stage and out of an exit door that I could see in the wing. I sighed regretfully as I watched the back of Rick's white frilly shirt disappear through the door. I stayed in my nook for a few minutes with my eyes fixed on the door, wishing with all my might that it would open again to reveal the gorgeous young keyboardist with a smile on his lips and love in his heart. Eventually I gave up and made my way to the visitors exit, which was clear of people by then. I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned with a hopeful smile, but was disappointed when it was the drummer who greeted me. I hoped it didn’t show.

"Are you the girl with the Afghan coat?" He inquired, folding his arms.

"Erm..." I frowned. "Well, yes, I am wearing one, but lots of people do. I don’t think I’m who you’re looking for."

It was a bold-faced lie on my part, that keyboard boy had to be looking for me. I couldn’t tell you why exactly, but my confidence crumbled at the thought of talking to him.

"Oh no, I don't think so." He smiled. "You fit the description perfectly. Listen, my friend, Rick the keyboardist, he wanted to talk to you, but he has an awful chip on his shoulder about girls."

"What?" I was really in for it now. "A chip- look. I'm really, truly sorry if I distracted him. I don’t usually stare like-"

"No, no!" He shook his head, giggling goofily. "He's not angry, not at all. Listen, he told me not to tell you this, but he said that you're the most beautiful girl he's ever seen."

"If this is a joke, it's not funny!"

"I'm not joking!" He exclaimed. "I promise. He'll even tell you himself. Please, just don’t run off. If I don't get you to see him, I'll never see the end of it."

“Surely he’s exaggerating?”

“No, no.” He beamed. “Rick’s plenty of things, girl, but he’s not a liar.”

“God…” I buried my face in my hands, my cheeks burning. “I hope you aren't playing with me."

"I'm not." He took me by the arm. "Just come here for a sec.”

He led me around behind the speakers and up a few steps onto the stage. We picked our way over the snaking auxiliary cords and various instrument stands to the far side of the stage where we came to the exit door. I stopped short, suddenly apprehensive. What if everything was not as it seemed?

"Now, you just wait here," The drum boy smiled sympathetically. “And don’t worry. Oh, and my name’s Nick, just by the by.”

"Jenny." We shook hands.

“It’s good to meet you, Jenny.”

“Alright.” He laughed. “Just stay here, yeah?”

I nodded as Nick disappeared through the door, leaving a trickle of cold air behind him. I caught the door before it fully closed and peered through the crack into the ally beyond. My Rick had his back facing me, and the other two stood around him. The bassist leaned against the back wall smoking a fag, and the guitarist fought a losing battle to spray him with what I assumed was perfume.

"Syd, stop it." Rick snapped. "I smell fine."

Syd muttered something unintelligible and backed off. Nick cleared his throat and Rick spun around on his heel, almost tripping over. My heart gave a little squeeze.

“Oh.” He breathed. “You didn’t find her?”

Gently, I closed the door. I sat down on a stool near the mic stand and fought to find a breath that I didn’t know was missing. I closed my eyes and buried a hand in my hair. He was so cute it was like a knife in my guts.

"Hello..." Rick’s voice was so soft that I almost thought I had imagined it. I must have jumped in my seat because he laughed a little. “Did I scare you?”

“Just a little." I responded, letting out a breath.

"I'm Rick." He padded over the wires and stuck his hand out.

"Jenny."

I placed my hand in his and waited for him to shake it, but instead he took my hand and pressed it to his lips. I felt as if there was a bird struggling to burst out of my chest.

"Enchanté." Before he had the chance to say anything more, soft little noise came from the open door. The bassist peeped through the doorway with an equine gawp across his face. Rick chuckled awkwardly and itched the back of his neck. "Do you perhaps want to go for a walk?"

I nodded, and we made our way out into the open street. People milled around, kicking snow and laughing. I felt the familiar magic that comes with shared happiness.

"So erm..." Rick mumbled. "Won't you tell me about yourself?"

"Well I'm not very interesting, y'know." I clawed for something to say. "I'm twenty-two years old, I love the Beatles just like everybody else... um, I'm a Scorpio if you happen to be interested in that kind of thing. I like to write poetry and go out to clubs... like I said, there's nothing interesting to know."

"Well, you sound very interesting to me. I like poetry too. What kind of things do you write about?”

"Just things that I see that make me think about life… the rhythm of samsara and all that. For example I'll write a little something about the snow when I go home tonight... and perhaps a few words about my new friend Rick."

"I'm going to write a song about tonight, for sure." Rick smiled at the floor. "It's far too beautiful not to capture. I feel so lucky to be walking around in this lovely new snow with a gorgeous girl like yourself."

"Don’t be like that." I laughed and gave him a friendly punch on the arm. "If anybody's gorgeous here, it’s gotta be you!"

"Shh!" Rick smiled. "If you keep up like that your nose'll grow."

“Don’t talk bad about yourself.” I stopped walking and looked into his eyes. “You’re lovely.”

“I’ll stop if you stop.” Roses bloomed on his cheeks.

Time breezed by, and an hour of conversation and a bottle of champers later, I felt as if I had known Rick for years.

"You remind me of somebody, Rick. Like a character in a story, but I don't remember who."

"You remind me of someone too. Perhaps... Cathy and Heathcliffe?"

"Oh!" I giggled. "So you're going to run off on me and I'll end up wasting away in bed?"

"You won't waste away. Not if you can catch me!" With that, Rick took off running in his Sunday best.

For a moment I stood gaping like a codfish, then shook off the shock and pelted down the street after him. Laughs burst like champagne bubbles between us, and our feet pummelled a rhythm as we ran through the neighbourhood. The bystreets grew deserted as we ventured into the built up part of town, though a few daring people sat on top of their roofs to watch the fireworks. I slowed to look up at the couples, families, and groups of friends, all huddled together. Something in me ached. Rick slowed to a jog.

"Come on slow poke! Come and catch Heathcliffe!"

"I can't!" I called back with an empty grin.

Rick sighed and jogged over to me, coming to rest so close that I could feel the heat radiating from him. Our breaths billow in white clouds, mingling like twin souls.

“Is something the matter?”

I shook my head, my loneliness melting away. An impish grin grew on his face, and swiftly he bent his knees and lifted me off of the ground by the waist. I squealed and clutched his shoulders, not so much afraid of falling, but afraid of the moment ending. An unexplainable magic crystalised in his silver-grey eyes and I was so stricken with it that I almost kissed him. Instead, he just placed me back on the floor. He wordlessly took my hand and pulled me away from the footpath and through a gate. I realised we had run all the way to the local park. Rick looked at his watch.

"Seven minutes until midnight." He grinned. "Come on!"

I followed him down the gravel path that ran through the park, watching all the trees glittering white in the snowfall. In the very middle of the park there stood a chestnut tree with a platform and canopy made of wood planks nestled up in its huge branches.

"Can you climb?" Rick inquired as we stood beneath the bough.

I did not respond, only ran up to the tree and clumsily pulled myself up into the branches. I clambered up the tree and onto the platform, which was quite a bit smaller than I remembered from my childhood, and huffed in embarrassment. Rick looked up at me and laughed, then climbed up to join me. I offered him my hand to pull him up, but he refused and managed on his own. The tiny seat forced us to press together, and I relished the warmth of him beside me. We sat in silence for a moment, while I ruminated upon what Nick had told me.

"You didn't have to lie to Nick, y'know." I muttered. "I'm sure he would have come to find me anyway."

"What do you mean?" His blessed brow furrowed at my statement.

"Well, he said that you thought I was the most beautiful girl in the world..."

"That bloody bastard!" Rick slapped his thigh in annoyance. "I told him not to say!"

"I think he was just being cheeky. Besides, I was afraid you were angry with me, so I think he told me to stop me from bolting."

"Why would I be angry with you?"

"Well, I thought I distracted you from your playing. I didn't mean to. I just couldn’t help but stare at you."

Rick blushed lightly and avoided my eyes, smiling to himself. There was conflict on his face for a moment, as though there were two ideas warring in his mind.

"I wasn't lying, y'know..." He mumbled, still refusing to look at me. "You really are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

"Thank you, but surely I’m not the most beautiful.”

"No, no, no, you are!" He looked at me finally, visibly distressed. "I've seen plenty of pretty girls, but there's never been one that's quite as lovely as you. I don't know, there's just something about you that I can't put my finger on. You're just bewitching."

"To tell you the truth, I'm thinking something very similar about you. You look like an angel."

I looked up into his eyes, like silver coins shining in the weak light of the moon. Snow flurries had caught themselves up in his soft locks, and I suppressed the urge to comb them away with my fingers, settling on simply brushing the powder off his shoulder. Rick's cheeks and nose were flushed with fervor and I knew I must look the same. Words were rising in my throat like some unstoppable force. Words that I knew I would regret.

"Rick, do you believe in love and first sight?"

"Well, I never used to..."

"Did something change your mind?"

Rick just nodded and leaned in ever so slightly. His gaze was fixed on a point below my eyes.

"How long 'till midnight?"

Rick broke concentration to look at his watch. "One minute."

I gave away to my urge and tangled my hands up in his hair, watching as the snow fell away. Rick's hands lurked on the back of my neck, thumbs stroking gently at my skin. He leaned in and our lips almost touched, but I ducked away.

"How long now?"

"Fifteen seconds." Rick whispered. "Fourteen, thirteen, twelve, eleven..."

"Ten," I joined the counting. "Nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one."

I took Rick by the chin and pressed my lips gently against his. For one dreadful moment his body tensed and I thought he was going to break away from me, but then he melted into the kiss. His hands found my waist, and mine rested behind his neck, lips moving together in a wordless incantation. The champagne on his lips tasted of starlight, and my head swam with patchouli and tobacco.

"Happy New Year." Rick whispered.

"Happy New Year." I returned and leaned in for another moment of bliss.

[buddhismnow]

The Buddha and the Swan.

A flock of wild swans passed, voyaging north. ‘The Buddha and the Swan.’ https://wp.me/pFy3u-6Tc

From The Light of Asia by Sir Edwin ArnoldFirst published in 1879. In the Royal garden on a day of spring,a flock of wild swans passed, voyaging north to their nest-places on Himala’s breast.Calling in love-notes down their snowy linethe bright birds flew, by fond love piloted;and Devadatta, cousin of the Prince, pointed his bow, and loosed a wilful shaft which found the wide wing of the…

[gertlushgaming]

Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story Review (PlayStation 5)

For this Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story Review, a single-player story adventure developed by Tequila Works. Dive headfirst into an immersive narrative set in the undiscovered reaches of the Freljord, where every snowy step brings you closer to the truth about Nunu and Willump’s past.

Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story Review Pros:

- Decent graphics. - 10.90GB download size. - Platinum trophy. - You get the PlayStation 4 and the PlayStation 5 versions of the game. - Controller options - two layouts, speaker volume, Invert axis, and sensitivity sliders. - Accessibility options - subtitles size, subtitles background, subtitles color, colorblind mode, combat assist, QTE assist, climb jump assist, climb visual hint, auto iceball, the field of view slider, Crosshair size, and story mode (never take damage). - Built-in digital artbook. - The notepad fills in as you play with locations, moves, enemies, and tutorials. - Third-person action-adventure gameplay. - In-game cutscenes with seamless transitions. - Excellent voice work. - Haptic Feedback. - Tutorial pop-ups as you play. - Hack and slash combat with a simple light and heavy attack combo system. Finishing an enemy gives health. - Your flute plays a huge part, you use it to play notes in the world to move levers and pillars, find song shrines to unlock them, and much more. - It's the story of a boy (Nunu) and his best friend a last-of-its-kind Yeti called Willump on an adventure to find Nunu's mum and the center of the winged mountain. - Story mode settings still unlock trophies. - Glorious-looking locations. - At times you ride on the back of Willump and can do attacks, climb walls, and run around. - Puzzle elements throughout from pillar switching to light puzzles and more. - Tight controls. - Excellent presentation as it jumps between gameplay and story scenes. - Collectibles are murals and Pora which are a small animal species that need help. - Excellent writing and a masterclass of friendship. - Memorable characters. - You can skip the cutscenes. - You can throw snowballs and trigger a snowball fight with Willump at any time. - As NuNu you get unlimited snowballs to throw at enemies and the environment. - Fast-loading screens when you get them. (it's quite rare) - Dream sequences happen as you progress and they give a lot more backstory. - Be prepared to fall in love with Willump. - I finished the game in around 5 hours. - The credits have funny take-style images. - Serves as a great story showing off the characters of the League of Legends series. - A cool after-credits scene that helps lay the groundwork. Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story Review Cons: - Cannot rebind controls. - No game difficulty setting. - Combat gets very mashy. - The puzzles are not always straightforward. - Never sure if the game has been saved. - Infuriating puzzle mechanics where the controls or the camera angles make it harder than it should be. - They do talk about the characters and locations you should know all this already way. - A few set pieces repeat themselves. - Nunu will use the same canned phrases over and over. - Slight performance hiccups here and there. - Boss fights feel very cheap. - During certain sequences, they lock the angle and general motion which is less than ideal. - Bad checkpointing has you replay chunks again. - Forced stealth sections have you walking even slower and fill like padding or filler. - The back end of the game is loads of tedious timing-based puzzles and forced stealth sequences. - The last level is dragged out. Related Post: ROAD Review (Steam) Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story: Official website. Developer: Tequila Works Publisher: Riot Forge Games Store Links - PlayStation Read the full article

[oldion]

Portrait of an anthropomorphic raven over a snowy moutain. She is a guardian of the sky and has luxurious noble clothes. The wings were pretty easy to obtain but the head was much harder. I tried many thing like "harpies", "bird head" or negative prompt like "human head" "woman head". In the end, it was much easier to do a collage (directly add a bird head with the canvas) and regenerate it with a high image strenght. It is the first anthropomorphic image that i publish but i like this type of content and will publish more later with many different sort of animals (fox, cat, lion, phenix etc..)

[lyssachiavari]

One month from today, One World, the last book in my debut series, The Iamos Trilogy, will be published by Snowy Wings Publishing.

This has been a series that's meant a lot to me emotionally. It's also the first YA series that was ever published to feature a canon, on-page demisexual protagonist (Isaak), and it was one of the first to feature an asexual protagonist (Nadin). Bringing their story full circle has been an incredible experience and I can't wait for everyone to read it!

(And I'm so excited that my publisher managed to schedule the release of the last book to take place during Ace Week!)

Here's what one of the first early readers, RoAnna Sylver, author of Chameleon Moon, had to say about it.

[finishinglinepress]

NEW FROM FINISHING LINE PRESS: Balm for the Living by Angie Minkin

ADVANCE ORDER: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/balm-for-the-living-by-angie-minkin/

Balm for the Living offers poems of #hope and celebrates our very human urge to connect with each other. These poems lift us with kestrels and cedar waxwings, anchor us solidly to the earth, show us how to ebb and flow with life’s tides, and help us to consider profound loss. Reading these poems, we contemplate stars, tango in Havana, and celebrate #life in all its beauty and mystery.

Angie Minkin is a San Francisco-based poet who stands on her head for inspiration. Angie volunteers as a poetry editor of Vistas & Byways Literary Review. Her work has been published in that journal, as well as The MacGuffin, Rattle, The Poeming Pigeon, The Unbroken Journal, Persimmon Tree, Rise Up Review, and several others. Angie is a coauthor of Dreams and Blessings: Six Visionary Poets, published in 2020 by Blue Light Press. Her work has been included in Fog and Light, San Francisco through the Eyes of the Poets Who Live Here and Pandemic Puzzle Poems, also published by Blue Light Press. She has won awards in the Soul-Making Keats Literary Competition in the Prose Poem and Sonnet Categories, and in the Ina Coolbrith Circle Annual Contest. Angie is inspired by the political landscape and the voice of the wise woman. Some of her favorite authors include Elizabeth Alexander, Ellen Bass, and Jane Hirschfield. In addition to writing, Angie practices yoga, takes dance classes, and travels to Oaxaca, Mexico as often as possible.

PRAISE FOR Balm for the Living by Angie Minkin

Balm for the Living offers poems like stoppered jars that hold the essence of our humanness—generational memory, our urge to connect to one another and the natural world, the exultation of our creative play, our staunchness in facing war, pandemic, and even, especially, ordinary loss. The dying, too, are allowed their humanity in these poems, which pay unusual, careful attention to last words, last breath, and the “slide between worlds.” Throughout the collection, Angie Minkin’s verve and wit are evident in the variety of lyrical forms—abecedarian, cento, erasure, prose poem, sonnet, villanelle, and free-line—that she capably employs. Though these poems are permeated with lemon, eucalyptus, salt marsh, and cedar, San Francisco is less a setting than a confluence of energies—wind, waves, and, penetrating everything, the starlight at which we gaze to trace “the arc” of our mysterious lives.

–Erin Redfern, author of Spellbreaking and Other Life Skills

In this glorious collection, birds are cherished everywhere. The opening poem meditates on the healing magic of homemade chicken soup, and the closing poem sings the praises of cedar waxwings who “arrive/ to show us how to feast fully.” In between, in both formal and free verse

Angie Minkin celebrates sparrows, hawks, “an unseen thrush,” blue herons, finches, a kestrel that “lands in the hawthorn tree,” pelicans, snowy plovers. Among these marvelous birds, we also hear children dancing and “hollering wishes to heaven,” as well as old women “humming private melodies” and retracing steps “in this origami life.” Angie Minkin’s poems brim with wonder, vitality, and reverence. They lift us off the ground. They give us wings.

–Kathleen McClung, author of A Juror Must Fold in on Herself and Temporary Kin

Angie Minkin’s Balm for the Living is a joy to read – superb crafting of language, nicely sensual, woven with memories and tenderness. In these poems, you can conjure spells in a dented soup pot, follow the reverberations of a meditation bell, and tango in Havana. You can get drunk on wild cherries with the cedar waxwings, hear “whistles of an unseen thrush rise / on a collective sigh of cedars.” I love the wisdom and compassion in these poems, and everything speaks emotionally. Poems like these are elixirs of beauty in our deeply troubled world.

–Diane Frank, Chief Editor, Blue Light Press Author of While Listening to the Enigma Variations: New and Selected Poems

Please share/repost #flpauthor #preorder #AwesomeCoverArt #read #poems #literature #poetry #hope #life

[petnews2day]

Avian flu outbreak killing Bay Area wild birds, no cure in sight

New Post has been published on https://petn.ws/WeTZ

Avian flu outbreak killing Bay Area wild birds, no cure in sight

A Western gull’s wings seize up as it huddles in a crate. The yellow eyes of a snowy egret tremble uncontrollably. Those are some of the patients at International Bird Rescue in Fairfield with symptoms of avian influenza, part of an outbreak far more deadly than California has ever seen. “This outbreak with this particular […]

See full article at https://petn.ws/WeTZ #BirdNews

[publishedtoday]

A Darkness at the Door -  Intisar Khanani (Dauntless Path #3)

Only Rae knows the extent of the corruption at the heart of the kingdom of Menaiya, from the noble lord who betrayed her, to the Circle of Mages whose wards protect the slavers from discovery. Injured and imprisoned on a slave ship, Rae’s options are quickly running out. When a desperate escape attempt goes terribly wrong, she finds herself indebted to a terrifying Fae sorceress. Now Rae will not rest until she has rescued her fellow prisoners and freed her land from the darkness that has taken hold. To succeed, she’ll need every ally she can find—including Bren, the thief who may have stolen her heart. But Bren is hiding his own bloody secrets, and the curses that encircle Rae have sunk their claws into her mind. With her debts coming due and time running short, all the truths in the world may not be enough to save her kingdom, or herself.

tw: child abuse, human trafficking/slavery, memory loss, violence

[lauren-m-jankowski]

Images from the upcoming trailer for book three ("From the Ashes") of my series, "The Shape Shifter Chronicles"

Directed by @brittyleafilm (my girl, Blitz, just kicking all sorts of ass in this trailer)

[jewishbookworld]

The importance of neural Shabbat; thoughts on Tracker220 by Jamie Krakover

The importance of neural Shabbat; thoughts on Tracker220 by Jamie Krakover

The saying “it’s all in your head” used to mean you are imagining things. But what if there was really something in your head that can influence how your brain works, including how you access information. It is not a new idea: Johnny Mnemonic, a 1981 William Gibson short story already assumed a future where the brain had an extension where one could carry data. Ever since the advent of the…

[buddhismnow]

The Buddha and the Swan.

A flock of wild swans passed, voyaging north. ‘The Buddha and the Swan.’ https://wp.me/pFy3u-6Tc

From The Light of Asia by Sir Edwin ArnoldFirst published in 1879. In the Royal garden on a day of spring,a flock of wild swans passed, voyaging north to their nest-places on Himala’s breast.Calling in love-notes down their snowy linethe bright birds flew, by fond love piloted;and Devadatta, cousin of the Prince, pointed his bow, and loosed a wilful shaft which found the wide wing of the…