#sooz answers things

[sooz-again]

I saw your post about cat and raccoon Jetko and then saw this picture and thought of you.

It's so them😍

[theroundbartable]

Arthur is stuck in a time loop.

At first, he doesn't really notice it, since every day feels the same anyway. It's Merlin's good morning that irks him, however, because Merlin tends to switch up the routine a lot. When then the topic of the court meeting is the same, Arthur knows what's up.

In loop three, he asks Gaius for help and the man explains that only a powerful sorcerer could do such a thing and that he'd need strong magic to break it.

The next morning, everything is forgotten. And Arthur researches on his own what's happening. He spends days at the library until one day, he's just really tired.

And so, he stays in bed for a couple days, and lets Merlin complain for hours. It's soozing in an odd way. As days go by, Arthur gets bolder. He approaches Merlin in broad sunlight, hands him food or flowers in front of people and receiving odd stares.

Arthur waits for Merlin's reactions and they seem rather hesitant if also positive. Yet, when Arthur finally gathers up the courage to confess, Merlin rejects him.

Arthur spends another few loops in bed, while Merlin no longer carries any memories of the incident. Arthur then asks Gaius dejectedly who the most powerful sorcerer is he knows.

And Gaius says Emrys and tells him the man lives in the woods, a two day march from Camelot. Arthur loses hope. One loop equals a day. He'd never make it. That is IF the man is even there.

On loop xy, Arthur asks Gaius again, during a different time of day, where Emrys lives. And Gaius answers: about half a day ride north, Sire.

Arthur is confused. That doesn't make sense. Why would Gaius say something different than last time? Gaius was clearly part of the loop! Unless he's lying. And each time he lied he just said the first thing that came to mind.

Arthur stops avoiding Merlin at one point and accepts that Merlin won't respond to his feelings. So, he approaches him and tries to discuss magic issues with him. While Merlin warns him of magic like read from a script, Arthur argues positive aspects. Because he's trying to talk himself into turning to magic to maybe manage to save himself if he trained himself in the arts. Even if it takes years of the timeloop.

Unprompted, Merlin hugs him tight and looks at him with so much affection that Arthur is sure Merlin likes him.

Needless to day, Arthur is more than confused. And Arthur notices another thing. Both Merlin and Gaius react differently to him, depending on how he talks. If he's positive about magic, they are eager to help. Merlin looks most carefree then. And almost like he wants to ... Well, what exactly?

One loop, Arthur tests the theorie: Merlin, I'm going to lift the magic ban.

Merlin stops in his tracks and stares at Arthur. Arthur repeats himself, nervous of the response. Almost more nervous than he was when he got rejected.

Arthur: merlin?

Merlin: why

Arthur: because magic isn't as evil as my father had me believe.

Merlin: is this a trick?

Arthur: a trick? No. I just understand now that sometimes magic is needed. And I need magic right now. *Explains situation*

Merlin: ... arthur, i don't know how many timeloops you've been through

Arthur: you believe me? Uhhhh... 200, probably

Merlin: ... I can help you

Arthur: how?

Merlin: because I'm emrys

[millenari]

hi i know you had posted about perth cats back way back in march but i was wondering if you knew anything more about the production? i’ve went down a rabbit hole trying to figure out who is what cat and who plays who using your list as a base to go off of and several hours and a good little stockpile of images later i still haven’t found anything more.

what i have found though is jemima’s actor’s full name is charlotte louise, victoria’s actor was an actor called avie grey (though i don’t know what cat is victoria) and other actors of unnamed cats include: lisa williams, tori brown, ella tweedle, rebekah wilson, lavina monk, caitlin atherton, jordy andrews and jaxon coke (all found through tagged images and birthdays posts by platinum productions on facebook) i can provide images of each of these unnamed actors so there is a cat face to attach to them just not any names still - @themagicoolcat

Not weird! I haven't looked much into Perth lately but I took another peek around with the names you listed. I didn't find much (but I did stumble upon some of those birthday posts you mentioned, I don't know how I didn't find them the first time).

It looks like Avie Grey played the clown cat, so if she's Victoria that means Vicky is the clown?

Plus Tori Brown would then be straight-haired pink cat, but I didn't see any names for that character.

I did find some of costume pictures of Sooz Bennet/Bennett? who plays Skimble, so based off of my (poor) sense of facial recognition, I think the orange long-haired one is Skimble

(Ignore the crazy person pin board vibe of my notes lmao)

Only other thing I really came up with is that I think (think) Tara Lynette Elliot mightve been on the production. Specifically and only bc she's been employed by the same company for other musicals + she looks a hell of a lot like the half pink-half orange jacket cat, which could mean nothing but I'm choosing to believe.

Given that it seems like none of the ensemble characters have ever had their names posted (by official or cast accounts) I honestly wonder if theyre just not named characters. Notably this cast skews heavily female, and quite a few of the usual Cats ensemble characters are male. So it's very possible that they just weren't named if their role wasn't 1-1 to some replica character's role (Demeter, Bomba, Victoria, etc).

I feel like the cast members would say something in the caption alongside a picture of their role ('had fun playing Alonzo in Cats this year!' or whatever) if they did have names and yet I have yet to come across anything of the like. Which is the lame disappointing answer unfortunately, but this production wouldnt be the only nonrep (or rep honestly) with a handful of unnamed ensemble or swing characters.

[orangepanic]

Hi! Do you take commissions by any chance?I missed the charity event a few weeks ago by like a few days and have been punching the air ever since

Ofc no pressure though

Love your writing!!

Hi! What a nice note to get, thanks for reaching out.

The literal answer to your question is of course no, because taking fanfic commissions violates copyright and sets fic writers and sites that host fics (like AO3) up for lawsuits. Not taking money for fanfic is pretty much the first rule of fanfic. We gotta protect the community, and we gotta save AO3's legal resources to fight better battles.

That said, there are plenty of ways to get fics out of me. The first and easiest is be my friend! Fandom is a community, and I've written so many silly little things for my fandom friends because I love them and that's how this works. Come off anon, slide into my DMs, leave long unhinged comments on my fics, join a discord to gush about your favs, etc. It works. I promise. And I'm very nice.

If that's a bit more than you bargained for, I'm also usually open to something like an exchange. Art for fic, fic for fic, etc. I'm happy to talk about this. There are also collaborative events, like Big Bangs, where writers, artists, and betas all work together on the same idea.

Finally, you could simply share your idea and see if it sparks joy. @sooz-again does this to me all the time by throwing out ridiculous rarepair ideas that I'm then compelled to do something about, and she's ended up with a few fics that way. What catches my attention isn't always predictable though.

Also there might be more charity events because Trump sucks, there's lots of need in the world, and that deserves money. But I don't know of any specific opportunities here.

[cryptic-underground]

I recently was going through my miscellaneous music playlist and I got reminded of the song "Woke Up" from Adventure Time: Obsidian, y'know the break up song. It got me thinking of a JTTW Shadowpeach fic idea!

Now I haven't read JTTW, I've only seen OSP's summarizes of the legend and they haven't covered Macaque in the original text so I don't know most of what goes down, this is just a fun idea I had based on LMK

I'm So Glad That I Woke Up

The sky began to set as pink and auburn hues were cast upon the mountains in dying light.

Sun Wukong mind and body were just about spent, and his friend Macaque wasn't helping any.

Tripitaka had been kidnapped, again. Some demons, which he didn't care enough about to remember their names, had showed up while Monkey was distracted and took him away. Macaque had shown up just a few seconds prior to the demons and the other monkey made quick work of getting on the king's nerves.

He sighed rubbing his temples to try and sooze one of his growing migraine, unfortunately the other continued to seat next to him and never halting his excessive chatter.

Macaque tossed small pebbles against a nearby mountain, them bouncing where after he'd catch it before throwing it again. The other disciplines had chosen to avoid the Monkey King in this moment, for fear they'd be the target of his frustration.

"Doesn't walking all this way in one direction boring Peaches? It's got to be so lame!" the other monkey, obviously not reading the aura his friend was casting, said "if you just left we could go in any of the cardinal directions! You already did it before."

Wukong breathed, this was Macaque; his closest friend and companion. He could handle whatever he throws at him, even though he wants to throw him a thousand miles across the East right now. He could handle it.

"Hey Peaches?" The shadow weaver called as he proceeded to poke his arm, when he didn't answer he poked again. And again. "Peaches are you listening to me?" He asked again loudly, placing his lips right next to the Monkey King's ear.

"AGH!! WHAT- WHAT DO YOU WANT MAC?!" The stone monkey yelled out, being quickly brought to his breaking point with the other monkey, "can't you get out of my face for five seconds?!"

Macaque sat silently, the first time since he had shown up. "I have more important things to be worrying about than entertaining you!" He announced angrily towards his friend.

The darker monkey nervously chuckled, he hadn't anticipated it be this hard to get the king to come back with him. "Then why'd ya invite me Peaches?" He said in an attempt to lighten the mood, it did not.

Sun Wukong growled in frustration, his tail swishing against the ground. "I didn't! I was tasked to help a monk on a pilgrimage and you came along!" Monkey shouted. It hurt him inside to be yelling this much at Macaque, he don't remember ever yelling this much at his friend.

The stone monkey sighed loudly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Go back to the mountain Liu Er Mihou, I can't deal with you acting like trash.." he stated, having his back towards the shadow weaver; his fist clenching.

Macaque stood shocked for a moment. Not believing that it had actually happened. Then his eyes narrowed, glaring at the other monkey, before quickly turning and opening a shadow portal.

The darker of the two monkeys scoffed, hesitating to go through with leaving. The words of an apology seated on his tongue but it dare not leave his lips.

"Goodbye, Sun Wukong.."

And just like that, Macaque had stepped through the portal he'd brought up. Wukong glanced over his shoulder and only saw empty air where the other monkey had previously occupied. The sage had felt his heart ache upon hearing his friend use his name, it had been a long time since the darker monkey had used "Sun Wukong" over "Peaches." He sighed, pushing anymore thoughts of the other in the foregone corners of his mind for now. He can talk this through with Mac later.

In the East, Macaque had arrived back at Flower Fruit Mountain. The population of monkeys that inhabited the mountain had heard the shadow's arrival but chosen to leave him to his own business upon seeing his expression, they had been aware Macaque had went to bring the king home and the look of sorrow and pain that displayed on the warrior's face meant it hadn't gone as planned.

The dark monkey made a b-line towards his room, making sure to lock the door before flopping onto his bed.

Macaque had thought they were close, or at least getting there. That Wukong would come back from a quest upon his request, put their decades worth of relationship over the minuscule amount he'd spent with those silly pilgrimage folk. He thought the sage cared about him, but he was wrong.

Macaque now knew what it was like to get close to the king. He was glad he woke up to that fact before he'd gotten too attached. It may be fun for awhile, you'll have a few laughs, get to know a couple things then a storm comes. It's devastating but the king isn't the one drowning at sea, you are.

He may throw you a life preserver, but he wouldn't actually jump in to save you. Because the king only looks out for number one...

[ackermanslov4r]

thank you for your request! and i hope the situation with your parents will get better ,or at least that this fic will help you <3

There was currently two weird things happening in your life. The first one was Levi's presence in your room,next to you,his books on your floor. And the second thing was the fact that Levi Ackerman was studying in your room,and perfectly able to witness the yelling and argument your parents were currently having.

The screams and insults they were throwing at each other were perfectly audible from where you were,and despite the composed figure Levi kept,you knew he heard everything. His pen hadn't stopped flowing over his exercise since you're parents had started ; but his behaviour only made you feel more uncomfortable. The silence between you had changed since the screaming had started,switching from a comfortable calm to an awkward situation.

You wanted to say something,but didn't know what,your brain unable to form sentences.

"I'm sorry." you finally muttered,your eyes focused on the now blurry copybook in front of you. You didn't want to cry in front of Levi,but all the tension and bad energy of your parents,all the weirdness of this and the shame you felt from letting him see this side of your life when you'd just wanted to spend a nice evening with him,made you feel terrible.

He remained silent as he finished what he was working on. Then ,finally,he put down his pencil,his grey eyes now on you,and the look in them almost made you forget your parents' fighting. He didn't look at you with compassion,as if you were some hurt puppy,or with anger or awkwardness . No,he simply looked at you,without judgement,the usual sparkles and sweetness he had only when his eyes were on you still there.

"Why would you apologize for that ?"

The question,taking you aback,left you mouth wide open for a few seconds,before you composed yourself again. "It's just...I mean,it's disturbing us in our work and ...I don't know,I guess I just feel like I need to apologize for the nuisance ."

Levi slowly shook his head,sliding next to you as he picked up your pen and began doing your exercise.His shoulder was brushing against yours,and for a few seconds,nothing else mattered, except the two of you and the closeness of your bodies.

"You don't have to apologize for your parents, y/n ." he added,eyes focused on the paper. "I don't mind them screaming as long as they don't get angry at you."

He turned his head to you,his piercing gaze making you feel like you were the only person in the world,the only one worth seeing and caring about.

"Do they get mad at you ? Or...does their fighting affect you in any way ?"

It was the first time since you'd knew him that Levi showed care to anyone,and the thought that it was you,and that he actually wanted to hear your answers almost made you cry. His tone was as usual,but you'd quickly learned while hanging out with him that Levi's emotions weren't in his voice,but in his eyes ; and right now,they were looking at you with such a sweet expression that you couldn't even think about lying to him.

"Yes.I mean,no,they don't really get mad at me,but yes,it affects me. It's just so...overwhelming,and annoying,and..."

Levi's hand unconsciously reached for yours as you rumbled,his eyes never leaving yours, even for a second ,as you talked. His thumb drew patterns on your hand,and quickly,the soozing feeling it gave you made you feel more relaxed than you'd been in a while. Your head dropped on Levi's shoulder,his body freezing for a few seconds before he relaxed in turn. After a while,he shyly wrapped his arm around,moving you so your head was on his chest,and that you were able to hear his rapid heartbeat.

And you both stayed like that,silent again,but feeling comforted in the other's presence. The world could have ended here,none of you would have cared or notice,too focused on your feelings,souls so connected that it felt like they were intertwined with each other.

[dark-giver]

GUYSSSS!!! HELP, WHICH PALADIN, I CAN'T FIGURE OUT!!!

If anyone didn't understand - Sooz has a story with questions and answers in Instagram... there are definitely some interesting things

[just-a-random-hobbit]

Tag 10 people you want to know better

Tagged by @sapphicastral and answering pretty late (sorry Sooz) .-. 谢谢你!

Relationship status: single-

Favorite color(s): green and brown

Favorite food: my panini al latte :p

Song stuck in my head: I love you baby

Last thing I googled: The summer book assigned by my chinese teacher lol

Time: 20:36

Dream trip: I'd love to go back in Cavalese or Tenno, in Trentino Alto Adige and staying there all summer. It feels like being in Italy, while not being in Italy, it's beautiful. Or I'd like to go in Poland in Warsaw and in the Netherlands in Amsterdam. Or literally any other part of the world lol, I'd like to see it all.

(No pressure) Tags:  @caiitvi, @0llee, @liqhtgreenn, @glimmerofgold, @hoe-zeus. :) ♡

I'm done now hehe ♡

[stdennard]

Hi Sooz!!! First of all, congratulations on your growing family. I’ve been following your journey on Insta and Twitter but I don’t always know what to say since it’s such a big thing. I’m sorry for all you’ve had to do and go through to get here but I’m really happy for you that you’re here now. ❤️❤️❤️ Do you have a general timeline for when Iseult’s book is likely to come out? I ask as I need to pace myself while I reread everything for the millionth time and count down the days!

Thank you!!!!! 😊😊🥰🥰

So here’s the deal. I’m not finished drafting Iseult’s book. I’m getting there, and I have a lot written. But it’s not complete yet.

Baby Cricket is due in May. I will have this book done by May.

My *guess* though is that my publisher will want to keep me in the same season I’ve always been in, which is winter. So my *guess* is that the book won’t come out until early 2021. That allows them time to produce the book on their end without rush + allows me to have my baby and deal with new motherhood before I need to start promoting + touring.

This definitely wasn’t what I wanted--making readers wait, I mean. But I needed the extra time after 2019. It was a hard year personally, as I’m sure you already know from following me.

Plus, Iseult’s book has been technically challenging in a way I did not anticipate. Literally the most technically challenging of my career. For reasons I won’t get into, I have essentially had to cram 2 books into one (though, don’t worry: Iseult’s book isn’t the last in the series).

I have started and restarted and written and rewritten and outlined and re-outlined so much trying to find the Right Story that would allow me to basically cover ALL the plot points and character arcs of 2 books....in 1 book. While also not making the book massive. (Because, as you also know from following me, I despise needlessly long books. Why write double the scenes when you can just make each scene do double...or even quadruple the work?)

That was a long answer, I know. But it’s one I want to share as the year closes and I now have a clearer idea of what 2020 will be bringing.

Thank you for asking and thank you for being patient. 💚

AND, because it’s Christmas and I feel bad making everyone wait for this book, here’s a teaser. It’s the opening lines of the book:

~~~

The Rook watches from an oak branch.

His feathers rustle. His beak clacks. It has been a long time since he saw the Sun and the Moon come together.

It has been even longer since he saw them heal a Well.

A hundred people attend, arranged in stiff rows around the wide pond. Some have weapons, most have uniforms, and all have bored scowls. Behind them, long dormant beech trees stand sentry. Six—always six.

Snow fell in the night, a light dusting that has turned the pine forest to fragile white. But it never touches the Well, nor the mossy flagstones surrounding it, nor the beech trees waiting to come alive.

The people call the Sun ‘Domna.’ They call the Moon nothing at all. Both girls wear matching brown shifts that come to their knees, but this is where their likeness ends. The Sun, with her golden hair, is annoyed and does not try to hide it; the Moon, with her black hair, is impassive, all her feelings and thoughts kept tucked away behind lucent nothing.

She reminds the Rook of someone he knew long ago. Someone who broke the world just to make it new again.

~~~

(I’ll tease more as the year progresses!! And the full prologue + first chapter will be at the end of the US + UK paperback editions of Bloodwitch, out in May.)

[aonrivers]

Elder-Futhark Runes

Runes are closely related to Norse Mythology; specifically, Odin – the King of the Gods. Odin had become jealous of the Norns and their great knowledge. The Norns are known as the fates and, most of the time, used the Well of Urd to gain their wisdom. And if there's one thing you should know about Odin is he loves wisdom. Odin had even given his eye away in order to gain knowledge, so when he learned that the runes only showed themselves to the worthy – he went to the extreme.

Odin went to a branch of Yggdrasil (pronounced: Ing-Dra-Sell) and hung himself upside down over the Well of Urd, then pierced himself with a spear. As he hung there, he called to the runes, but they did not show. As Odin dangled over the well, the other Gods would stop by and offer him help with food or water, but he refused the help. Which eventually was in his favor because on the ninth night of hanging, the runes appeared to him in the well. The runes accepted his sacrifice and revealed their true forms to him, providing him with their knowledge and secrets.

Because of Odin's actions, he was not only able to learn the meaning of the runes, but was able to learn their magickal aspect as well; such as: healing, making charms, using the symbols on weapons, making friends stronger and safe while making his enemies weaker.

This story also feeds into the theory of 'The Hanged Man' in the Rider-Waite tarot deck. This man is depicted as Odin.

In the Elder-Futhark, there are 24 runes; 25 if you count the blank rune. Each rune has a meaning and a letter associated with them. Runes have been around since 150AD and is actually a Germanic Language. These symbols were used as a form of writing before the Latin alphabet was adapted.

An example of using runes to spell the word "RUNES":

Often, you'll hear runes associated with the word "Futhark" (pronounced Foo-Thark), which is Scandinavian and is the first six letters of the runic alphabet.

Besides the Elder-Futhark, which this booklet will be using, there are three other types:

Anglo-Saxon which has 29 symbols and over the years have gained 4 more; making it a total of 33.

Marcomannic Runes which is a mixture of the Elder Futhark and Anglo-Saxon.

Younger Futhark which is a reduced form of the Elder Futhark, but only have 16 symbols. They are also curvier and missing "arms" and "legs".

There are many things you can do with runes. You can ask yes or no questions, lay them out the same way you read tarot, throw them on a table and read the ones facing up. You can also use runes for magickal purposes; for example, when creating a charm for protection, you can write Algiz to enhance the magickal properties.

Before using your runes, the first thing you need to know is runes hold energy; and this is why you need to put your energy in them. You can do this by constantly holding them when you can, carry them with you, sleep with them under your pillow.

Remember to do this if you have bought your runes. Creating your own runes already has your energy in them, but store bought runes made by machines or another person has a different form of energy in them.

It's also important to take care of your runes. Remember that wood runes can soak in water and stone runes can break so be gentle with them. To keep them together, use a pouch or a box. And no matter what material they are, always remember to cleanse them!

You can cleanse your runes by:

Laying them in the morning sun or under the moon.

Burying them in soil for a few days and dig them back up.

Let natural water run over them – not tap water, there's too many chemicals.

Pass them through smoke of incense or sage.

Blow on them

There are multiple ways to cast your runes, but before we go into this, don't forget to call in protection. It is always a good idea to call in your guides when performing any time of divination. Then when you're finished, thank whoever you asked to help and protect you. (Spirit loves to be thanked.)

First, we will start with structured readings, or casting runes like they're tarot cards. When you do this, you may run into the issue where you pull a rune and it's sitting in your hand at a weird angle. To correct this, just turn the rune at a 90-degree angle so they're in your hand or in its placement vertically. If you place your runes facing down, turn them over like a page (right to left). Then begin to read them.

Here are some examples of structured readings:

Pull 1 for the day

Lay three runes in a row for past, present, future.

Pull 5 runes and place three runes in a row for past, present, and future; one above for what influences you, and one below for what's beneath you or holding you back.

Read the runes in a Celtic-Cross layout like you would with tarot.

Next, we will go over unstructured readings AKA tossing the runes. You may cast your runes on either the floor or a table; or even into a circle. In the back of this booklet, I created a "runes map" for myself when casting, it's just to give it a little structure while still letting the runes do what they need to do.

You can cast all the runes at once or take a handful and toss them. When they land, make note of where they land and how they land. This will give you a more in-depth reading. Any runes that have falling face down can be removed from the reading – the runes don't want you to know these secrets or they're not affecting your situation or question at the moment. The runes facing up are the ones you want to be conscious of – they have meaning in your life at this moment.

When you toss your runes, here is what needs to be taken in account (view screenshot below):

The runes closest to you are related to your situation.

The runes farther away is further into your future.

Runes that are closer to each other affect one another.

Closer to the center means the sooner the event.

Runes turned to the left (3) are saying that something is being forced, or it's too aggressive – or you're living in the future.

Runes turned to the right (5) are telling you that not enough effort is being put into something. Maybe you're too passive or living in the past.

Reversed, or facing the wrong way, (7) means there's a strong influence, or a negative force involved. There's also opposition which means the symbol is reversed horizontally.

Upright means there's a strong influence as well but it's a positive force involved.

Rune face down (1) means you're not meant to know.

Overlapping (6) means the runes are related so read them as a pair.

If there are three in a row (3, 4, 5), read them as past, present, and future.

Yes or no questions can also be answered by the runes. Ask your question then pull a rune. If the rune is pulled angled, rotate at a 90-degree angle then place down on the desk. If the rune is face down, turn right to left to see what it says.

If the rune is upside down – the answer is NO

If the rune is right side up – the answer is YES

Because some runes like Gebo or Isa are the same either way you look at it, go by your best judgement. There are also runes like Kenaz where the symbol normally opens to the right (<), if it's looking to the left (>), then the answer is NO. Because of these neutral runes, you can pull 3 runes – 2 out of 3 is your answer.

How I read my runes:

I hold my runes in my hand and breathe into them three times.

As I move the runes in my hand, I have the person place their hands underneath in a cupping formation.

I then drop the runes into their hands and ask them to ask their question, setting their intention, then when they're done, I place my hands underneath theirs and they drop the runes back into my possession.

I toss the runes and begin to read.

If I don't use the map I have added to the back of the booklet, I use the same idea when casting into a circle.

If there are runes with symbols faced down, I remove them from the reading area.

When I finish, I collect the Runes and blow into them again three times. I say thank you and place them back in my bag I carry them in.

RUNES MEANINGS:

As I said before, there are 25 runes (including Wyrd (pronounced "weird" or "word") and each have a meaning and letter associated. Below you will find these runes' names, how to pronounce them, the associated letters, the God or Goddess the rune is sacred to, the upright meanings (just think opposite when reversed); and in some cases the magickal purpose of that rune. (We will not be using Wyrd, just remember it means "leave it up to fate".)

1st Rune - FEHU

Pronounced: "fay-who"

Associated Letter: F

Sacred to: Freya the Goddess of fertility and love

Meaning: fortune, money, happiness.

2nd Rune - URUZ

Pronounced: "oo-rooj"

Associated Letter: U

Sacred to: Thor the God of Thunder and Lightning

Meaning: luck, sudden changes.

Magickal Uses: enhance healing.

3rd Rune - THURISAZ

Pronounced: "thur-ri-saz"

Associated Letter(s): TH

Sacred to: Loki the God of Trickery and Shape-Shifting; Thor the God of Thunder and Lightning

Meaning: protection, faith, right time at right place.

Magickal Uses: protection and defense against adversary.

4th Rune - Ansuz

Pronounced: "aan-sooz"

Associated Letter: A

Sacred to: Odin the Ruler of Gods and the God of Wind and Spirit

Meaning: stability, order, changes, blessings.

5th Rune - RAIDHO

Pronounced: "rrye-doe"

Associated Letter: R

Sacred to: Thor the God of Thunder and Lightning

Meaning: movement, travel, end of conflict.

6th Rune - KENAZ

Pronounced: "kay-naz"

Associated Letters: C, K, Q

Sacred to: Heimdall the Underworld Watcher

Meaning: creativity, knowledge, quest, sheds light on issues.

7th Rune - GEBO

Pronounced: "gay-bo"

Associated Letter: G

Sacred to: All Gods and Goddesses as it is a gift to them.

Meaning: good fortune, gift, union.

8th Rune - WUNJO

Pronounced: "wun-yo"

Associated Letter: W and V

Sacred to: Odin the Ruler of Gods and the God of Wind and Spirit

Meaning: happiness, wishes granted, success.

9th Rune - HAGALAZ

Pronounced: "ha-ga-laz"

Associated Letter: H

Sacred to: Heimdall the Underworld Watcher and Mordgud the Keep of the Underworld's Icy Bridge

Meaning: destruction, disruption, controlled crisis.

10th Rune - Nauthiz

Pronounced: "now-theez"

Associated Letter: N

Sacred to: Norns the Weavers of Fate and Nort the Goddess of Night that Gives Birth to Day

Meaning: desire and demands, hardship coming

11th Rune - ISA

Pronounced: "e-sa"

Associated Letter: I

Sacred to: "intensity" as it intensifies any rune associated with it.

Meaning: frozen in place, standstill

12th Rune - JERA

Pronounced: "yay-rra"

Associated Letter: J and Y

Sacred to: Freya and Freyr the Bountiful Couple

Meaning: continuity, time and change, conception and success.

13th Rune - EIHWAZ

Pronounced: "eye-hwaz"

Associated Letter: Ê

Sacred to: Odin the King of the Gods who gathered the dead souls for their journey to Valhalla or the Underworld.

Meaning: death and rebirth, defense and protection, reliability and strength

14th Rune - PERTHRO

Pronounced: "perth-row"

Associated Letter: P

Sacred to: Frigg the All Mother.

Meaning: follow your intuition, luck, unknown results, revelation

15th Rune - ALGIZ

Pronounced: "all-yeese"

Associated Letter: Z

Sacred to: Heimdall the Underworld Watcher

Meaning: defense, shelter, and protection, victory and success, no news is good news.

Magickal Uses: add to charms and talismans for protection; you can also use it to protect yourself and your property.

16th Rune - SOWILO

Pronounced: "so-wee-lo"

Associated Letter: S

Sacred to: Baldur the Beautiful God of Joy and the Solar Wheel

Meaning: success and victory, positive changes are coming.

17th Rune - TIWAZ

Pronounced: "tee-waz"

Associated Letter: T

Sacred to: Tyr the God of Heavens and War

Meaning: victory, achievements, compassion, courageousness.

18th Rune - BERKANA

Pronounced: "bear-ka-na"

Associated Letter: B

Sacred to: the Earth Goddess

Meaning: new beginnings, personal transformations, birth of an idea or child.

19th Rune - EHWAZ

Pronounced: "aye-hwaz"

Associated Letter: E

Sacred to: Freyr the God of Fertility, the Summer Sun, and Erected Men

Meaning: momentum, moving locations, teamwork, loyalty.

20th Rune - MANNAZ

Pronounced: "ma-naz"

Associated Letter: M

Sacred to: Odin the All Father and Heimdall the Underworld Watcher

Meaning: devotion, willingness to change, unselfishness, find the middle ground.

21st Rune - LAGAZ

Pronounced: "la-gooz"

Associated Letter: L

Sacred to: Njord the God of Wealth at Sea

Meaning: reflect and consult the heart, follow instincts.

22nd Rune - INGWAZ

Pronounced: "ing-hwaz"

Associated Letter: Ng

Sacred to: Ing the Earth God and Freyr the God of Fertility

Meaning: harmony, unity, love, listen to yourself and live in the now.

23rd Rune - DAGAZ

Pronounced: "da-gaz"

Associated Letter: D

Sacred to: Heimdall the Underworld Watcher

Meaning: transformations, breakthroughs, new day, major changes, balance.

24th Rune - OTHALA

Pronounced: "oo-thee-la"

Associated Letter: O

Sacred to: "heritage"

Meaning: home, stability, inheritance, family.

Recommended books:

"A Practical Guide to the Runes: Their Uses in Divination and Magic" by Lisa Peschel

"Runes in Ten Minutes" by Richard T. Kaser

"Runes: The Ancient Magical Secret to Diving Your Future" by Shamira K. Leigh

"Runes: Theory & Practice" by Galina Krasskova

"The Runes Workshop: A You Know Intuition Workbook" by Jennifer Halls

Recommended sites:

http://norse-mythology.org/runes/

http://sunnyway.com/runes/

http://www.crystalinks.com/runes.html

http://www.runes.info/artindex.shtml

[sooz-again]

hey i love your artwork! I was wondering if it is okay to use your line work for coloring practice? And if its okay to post it later on with credit of course.

Hey Anon, thank you!

This is such a nice ask; yes, of course you can use my line work to practice coloring. I would just prefer it not to be of the Kanna/Hama drawing or the TimeBomb one, since those are gifts for other people that I've drawn to their request, and I don't know how they'd feel about it. Any others are fine though! I can even post some .PNG files of just the line work of any particular drawings you're interested in coloring. If you're interested in that, just let me know which ones :)

[krastbannert]

M, R, Z

M: What’s the weirdest AU scenario you’ve ever come up with? Did it turn into a story?

Weirdest? Oh, geez. Um. The Go For Broke AU is probably up there, since it's basically the Korean War replicated in the world of ATLA. I guess the Ashmaker AU (firebender!Longshot AU) is kind of odd, too. But to be honest I don't think any of my AUs have been really that weird? The rarest, from what I've been told, are probably the dark!Zutara and dark!Maiko+Azutara AUs that I came up with recently.

I did have a platonic soulmate AU I was thinking of writing for Azula where she wasn't born with any soulmarks, as most people are - but then they suddenly appear during "The Chase" and her entire world is upended. Never really got any concrete ideas for it, though, so I ended up canning it. Gave the title to another WIP, though, so like 1/5 of the way there, I suppose.

R: Which writers (fanfic or otherwise) do you consider the biggest influence on you and your writing?

There's a few on this list. Robert Jordan (The Wheel of Time), David Eddings (The Belgariad and The Malloreon), and Andrzej Sapkowski (The Witcher), all in different ways. Jordan for the level of worldbuilding and the sprawl, Eddings for the more lighthearted, positive take on epic fantasy that those two series were, and Sapkowski for the more personal tale that the Witcher was.

Fanfic-wise...huh. The stories and AUs that @ultranos has come up with and written kind of inspired me to go all-out, and their style also compelled me enough to change mine (only slightly, but it gave me the idea to actually experiment with portraying character's thoughts in a different way). @its-sooz's encouragement to try things that are outside the box, and her advice and just her friendship in general, has also influenced my writing for the better. And I don't recall who it was, exactly, but whoever's story it was that convinced me to change from using past to present tense for my writing really influenced my writing. I'm sure there's more, but those are the big ones off the top of my head.

Z: Is there a story you’ve written that doesn’t seem to get much love?

Answered here.

------

Asks came from this ask game!

[cosmosogler]

hi guys. peeled myself off my bed in time to leave for physical therapy. i had a good hard workout and then i biked down to the office, where i worked and worked. i said hello to everyone as they popped in and out, and talked to sooz about how stressed she is, and jake told me a stupid joke that i loved. i can’t remember what it was. i enjoy that i have successfully turned my office into a checkpoint that my classmates tend to hit whenever they pass down the hallway. i put a lot of work into that.

i was going to get lunch with them after their class and before my psychiatrist appointment, but then they kept me waiting for 20 minutes. harrison and taylor came down and then taylor said he wanted to stop by his office to pick something up before we left for krishna lunch. so harrison and i waited in the lobby for another 10 minutes, and then i got angry, because i no longer had time to sit and relax and eat my lunch. so i marched off to the plaza myself, and harrison followed me. 

the food was pretty good. would have been better if i wasn’t shoveling it in my face as fast as i could. taylor showed up eventually, as harrison and i were finishing up. he’s very... sleep deprived. more obviously than i am. then i hurried to the bus stop and got over to the psychiatrist’s office. my medication dosage got increased... i don’t mind. i think they are starting to do that thing where they stop working after a year or two. i have been on this combination for over a year, now. hard to tell for sure, right now. we’ll see if the higher dosage helps. 

i went back to the office and worked more. i actually did work with tia and harith, for the first time in over a month. it felt great! harith explained the problem to me and i bumbled through the answer and checked it with him and then helped tia at the spot where she’d gotten turned around. we finished the problem in like, just an hour and a half. it was Efficient. it wasn’t a hard problem but i was really happy to just be, like, combing through my class notes and using what i knew from class to propose solutions and then troubleshoot them. you know? instead of having a classmate just tell me how to do it with their assignment. 

yeah... i walked my bike home in a downpour. when i got home, snoopy startled me. her eye looked terrible. i have to take her in to see the vet tomorrow morning. rebika said she’d give me the class notes if we did anything interesting. i saw on the schedule we were just covering a section i’d already read in the textbook. i can tell snoopy’s in a lot of pain, even though she’s playing with her cookie dispenser (oh my god??? she finally learned how it worked) and sitting in a happy position and making purring noises. she keeps her eye kinda closed unless she’s actively looking at something and the drainage is a nasty color. 

i also worked on homework for an hour and i graded for an hour. i’m finally halfway done with this section after putting it off for over a week. hopefully the second half won’t also take 4-5 hours. i finished the em homework due tomorrow, too. still haven’t finished homework 8 (due two weeks ago), but i’m 2/3 done. i need help with the last question.

overall today, between the 6 hours of work sessions and the traveling to / attending appointments and the cooking and taking care of housework and inching forward progress with the comic, i put up a sustained effort for almost a full 14 hours straight. it was... good. i finished everything on my to-do list AND an extra item (finishing up the em assignment). hopefully tomorrow won’t be too rough. i won’t have a lot of time to grade, between taking snoopy to the vet and class and writing club. and, you know, it being friday night in general and i’ll want to rest.

i never rest. 

my psychiatrist said something that kind of concerned me today. she said i might not have felt happy when raul asked me about my writing (which i wanted to happen so bad) because, while i really wanted it to happen, i wasn’t emotionally prepared for it to actually happen. it was really frustrating and disappointing. i was disappointed with myself. she said that’s a skill i have not developed at all. she asked what might happen when i go to give my presentation to get my doctorate and the committee takes a great interest in my project. 

like, with raul, with my comic, i could talk about it forever. i have all the information in my head and i know it. but when he was asking stuff, or talking in general, i just... didn’t know what to say. that happens REALLY bad when i try to talk about it in front of multiple people in club. 

in undergrad when people asked about my research, if i felt comfortable about it i could launch into an hour-long explanation of moessbauer spectroscopy or nanoparticle propulsion and the brownian motion tracking program i wrote. if i hadn’t been emotionally prepared to talk about it, though, i know i would have clammed up. even though i knew what i was doing and i knew what i was talking about. 

it happens in class, too, with my professors... when i go to ask for help or i want to talk about my tests or something... i suddenly have nothing to say. i stutter around my advisor and my answers to his questions get stilted and meandering- and i LIKE my advisor!

i like raul and when he wants to talk about something i care deeply about i suddenly start mumbling and i get a horrible headache! amazing.

i even get like that with compliments. even compliments that i know intellectually should mean a lot to me and are things i worked really hard on. i can’t hold on to them because they turn into garbled nonsense the minute they hit my brain. 

it’s frustrating. i feel like i can’t express myself because i’m not having the reactions i want to have, when i finally get things i want to get (appreciation, attention, whatever it is). i just feel all scrambled.

might help to not be sleep deprived. that could help. if only i could sleep.

[atypicalkataangist]

The Avatar’s love

Type: Oneshot [Family] Summary: Little Bumi misses his father and his mother tries her best to comfort him. Word count: 854 Author’s note: First one, here we go! Enjoy! :)

"But I'm not tired yet!" The six year old nonbender sat  upright  in  his  bed, his arms crossed in front of his chest, pouting.

His mother only laughed, cupping his cheek with her hand, gently stroking it with her thumb. "Come on, sweetie. You know it's time to go to sleep. It's getting really late and there is a lot to do tomorrow."

"But I don't wanna! I wish Dad was here." Everytime she heard one of her children mention their father while he was gone made her shudder and filled her tender, loving view with sadness and remorse. She missed him too, whenever he was on one of his trips to save the world. Of course, everytime he returned, they had a great time together as a family, but inbetween days like these, he was gone for days, sometimes even weeks. She forced a loving smile and stroked through his dark brown hair that kept sticking out haphazardly, no matter what they tried to fix it. He looked really sad right now, his legs pulled to his chest, holding them close against his upper body with his arms. "I know, sweetie. I miss him, too. But you know what?", She asked with a motivating voice, trying to cheer her son up, "he will be back in no time. And the more you sleep, the faster the time will go by until he returns. And when he's here, you two will do something really special together while I take care of Kya. Sounds good?"

Her son only nodded. "I suppose..."

She kept smiling to cover up her own sadness. "Good night, sweetie. Tomorrow's gonna be a new day, alright?"

He only sighed and nodded, laying down and facing the wall. She knew that he missed his father and felt bad about it, but she also knew that her son had to tell her if he wanted to talk. He was pretty stubborn if someone interrogated him. He only talked when he was the one initiating it. Now, all he seemed to want was some time alone, so she reluctantly stood up and went towards the door.

"Mommy?"

As she turned around, he was sitting up again, rubbing his eye.

"Yes, sweetie?", She asked nervously, feeling that he was all other than alright.

"Does...", he sobbed, his lip trembling slightly, "does Dad still love us? Love me?"

Her jaw dropped and her eyes brimmed with sadness and tears as she heard the serious doubt in her son's voice. "Oh Bumi..." She sprinted to his direction, sitting next to him in his bed, opening her arms. "Come here, sweetie. Listen to me, okay?" He directly climbed into his mother's arms, resting his head against her bossom, sobbing silently while listening to his mother's soozing voice. She began to speak quietly, in all her seriousness.

"Oh Bumi... I know it's hard when your father is gone. I miss him, too. So much. But you know, Daddy's the Avatar."

He nodded slowly. "I know that."

"I know you need him, love. It's hard to accept, but the world needs him, too. He saves so many lives, every time he leaves. As much as he is your dad, he is also a very important person to maintain peace in the world."

"I... I understand.", He answered coldly.

"It's okay to be sad about it, honey. And I don't expect you to understand it yet. But look at me for a second, Bumi." He looked up to his mother and his eyes locked with her's.

"I beg you to believe me what I'm about to say, sweetie. Your father loves you and your sister more than anything else in this world. He would die to protect us. I understand that you can't see that yet, but he is a hero."

"You... You really think so?"

Her eyes softened again as she tightened the tender hug she shared with her son, rocking him in her arms to make him feel more comfortable. "I know it. If there is one thing I know for sure, it's that Daddy loves us more than anything."

"Okay, Mommy.", He whispered, his voice muffled while his face was still pressed gently against his mother's upper body. "I believe you."

"You feel better now, sweetie?", She asked with her calm, gentle voice.

He slowly loosened up, looking up to her and gave her a sweet smile. "Yeah, I think so. Thanks, Mommy." He yawned. "I think, I'll go to bed now."

She smiled at her son, tugged him in and kissed his forehead in a loving manner. "Good night, sweetie. I love you. And Daddy loves you, too."

He smiled as he buried himself into his sheets. "Good night, Mommy."

She smiled and turned away to the door, only to be stopped halfway one last time. "Mom?"

She turned around. "Yes, Bumi?"

"I hope Dad returns soon."

She smiled warmly at her son before closing the door to his room behind her. "I hope so, too, sweetie."

[loudsoulgentlemen]

Sunday Word

Baby Jesus.

What Are You Working On Today?

Solving The Universe.

Do You Write?

Write.

And I'll Tell You.

So He Wrote. And Jesus Asked:

If Your Righting Can You Be Wronging.

Cause As Far. There Is Right And Left.

But, As Me.

There Is Right Left Front Back Up Down.

I Am Solving The Universe.

It's Important!

GOD!

*

***

JEsus!

The Pots Out Of Water.

They Cant Be Out Of WAter They Always Have Water.

So He Picked A Pot And Went To Fill It With Water For His Mum.

How Can They Be Out Of WAter?

This Is A Dessert.

And That Was The Joke.

:)

***

EverBody Is Thinking About Climbing Mountains. I Am Solving That.

Go Through The Mountain OnTo My Elevator.

Could Be Quite God

I Just Need Rope A Stone Leverage And Fulcrum.

Ascendtion.

Could Be Expensive.

Could Be Alot Of Money.

Changes The Way We See Mountains!

Go Through The Mountain

And Let GOD!

A New Way To Look At Things.

They Are Not Our Limits!

There's MORE!

I AM SURE THERE'S MORE!

.

Yes Jesus.

***

If SomeOne Is Pretending To Be SomeOne You Love

Is It Right To SAy ThEy Work For SomeOne You Love?

It's Just Destiny. Throwing His Hands Out

Yes Jesus.

***

CAn You Make A Carriage WithOut Horses?

Why WithOut Horses?

Its Still The Same Path.

O.O

***

If You Can Tell Your Mother WithOut Scaring Her Your Back. What Would You Say?

I Miss Your Cooking.

And She Will Cook.

.

Jesus.

***

Have Any Of You Ever Wondered...

Who Were Jesus's Friends When He Came BAck?

Its A Good Question. Trust Me.

And Where Did He Go?

Where's The Bible?

What Did He Do?

Who Did He Live With?

How Long Did He Rest?

Obviously He Completed His Mission.

We Are Here TodAy!

.

JEsus's MiNiStry!

***

My Friend. If I Give You This Cookie I Am Giving You Half Of Me.

For I Am Hungry Too.

But You Look More In Need.

Thank You Jesus.

First Trip? o.O

***

Did You Ever Think.

The First Man To See Water.

I Drink That. So Scary. So Huge.

Did You Ever Think He Knew. He Floats?

How Long Did He Take To Figure ThAt Out?

Curious Questions.

Dont You Think?

Why Dont You Have Any?

Your Either Superior Or Inferior.

Havent Made My Mind Up Seeing As You Found Me.

That It'Self Is A Merit.

:)

***

Jesus. Seeing As You Know EveryThing.

Do You Smoke Maruana.

And The Pipe.

Helps Pass Time On Days Off.

As Much As Days On.

Also Medicine. For The Soul.

Who Would Hate Drugs?

DreadFul People Who Needs Them.

See. Question Answered.

Do You Need More?

Yes.

Go To The Store. I Have Plenty.

Ehe! You Are Definately My Type. I'll Keep You.

Quick To UnderStand The Devastation Of The World From Bad People. Excellent.

It Would Sooze.

It Would Become Standard.

The Parties Would Be Better.

Who Would HATE ThAt!?

Dreadful People.

But Your A Force For Good.?

Are They Not Available?

O.o

THAT WAS YOU!?

THAT 'IS' ME!

GOOD People STILL Around. :)

Your Minstry! He Bowed In Respect.

***

A Children Of A Nation Move With Their Rights.

The Children Of A Great Nation Are Not Even Questioned About Their Rights.

World Over.

When Is It Going To Happen?

That You Become A Great Nation?

Will You Be Allowed As Them?

How Long Will You Have To Fight?

Will They Allow Your Rise?

Frought And Fight Frivel And Straightened.

Allow Us Our Rights!

Good Men.

They've Done.

Why Not On Us Still?

How Did They Enslave The Nations While Allowing Them Their FREEDOM!?

THEY ARE GREAT!

A FORCE FOR GOOD!

UNCOMMON!

THAT IS WHY THEY ARE ACCEPTED!

THEY ARE BENEVOLENT.

A NEW NATION SHALL RISE.

IT TOOK TIME.

World Over.

Will They Be Patient

Or WILL They FIGHT!

Time Is SomeThing We Dont Have.

Unless Your Immortal.

And Even Then The Boredom Stands Still As You Wrongly Wait Instead Of Forcing The Issue.

Literature Darling.

Goons Of All Goons.

Marching EveryDay.

World Over.

How Long Does It Take?

For A New Nation To Rise.

A New GREAT NATION To Rise.

If World Be Fair. Many Have Risen.

They Have Not Stayed.

Crumbled And Shackled.

Is The Race For The Top War.

Why Are They Not Welcome?

Where Are All The Good Men?

With The Good Women Sir.

You Want Us To Take Away Good Women So Good Men Will Work.

Think Maths Peasant. Think Maths.

Dont Just Pull And Push The Diagram Thinking This Is The Way Forward. THINK!

You Have Paper.

Models Are Premature And Faulty And Delicate As First Best Made. The Only Way You Prove A Model Is To Let It Work. GOD!

Do You UnderStand?

Yes. JUST DO WHAT YOU WANNA.

EXCELLENT.

Next Order Of Business.

The Limitations Of A MAn.

None. But Their Own Imagination.

Next.

Good Women Good Men.

Why Should A Good Man Be With A Bad Woman. And Why Should A Good Woman Be With A Bad Man?

DISCIPLINE!

No no Child. You've Been Hurt.

Do Not Seek To Destroy What You Dont UnderStand.

This Alone Is God.

Who Doesn't UNDERSTAND WOMEN!?

AT THIS AGE!?

EVERYBODY!

AT THIS UNION!? MY UNION MADE? EVERYBODY!

You Live With A Bad Woman Long Enough She Becomes A Good Woman.

Your Woman.

Simply Said.

Thank You Jesus.

***

Why Is Laughter A Laughing Curse?

Cause They Could Be Looking At You Looking At You.

HAhaha.

Great Answer.

The Swing Of The MAss Could Be Left Or Right

Front Or Back

Up Or Down.

Is Laughing A Curse?

A Jolt. Not A Curse. Perhaps A Curse.

A Silver Tongued Devil?

Quite Gruesome!

It's Either His Innards Or His Outards.

Master Of Ceremony.

Obvious.

Unloved.

If Attacked By His Virute.

Beautiful IF HeartFelt?

Explain The Human Condition?

He Either Loves You Or He Doesnt.

And In This Love, Envy, Jealousy And UnderStanding And Standing.

Allow Laughter.

Misery Of Things.

You Are Still One?

O.o

Yes Jesus.

No!

.

Say It!

Yes Baby Jesus!

It Is Both Rocking And Frivellous! HAha My Son Haha

HAhaha!

GREAT JOKE!

I DO HAVE A FEW!

As Of Age.

And Wisdom.

;)

***

GOD!

***

Sanila. My First Wife Is About To Arrive. Watched 'Up'. I Just Can't Believe We Go Together ThAt LONG! O.o . o.O ! Scary. And Comforting At The Same Time! I AM A GOOD MAN! *Smiley! YOU ARE A GOOD WOMAN! *Smiley! SAy HEllo To The Kids Who Else Are You Gonna Be Friends With As SMart As YOu!? Your Wife? Your Husband? Hahaha! EXACTLY :) O.O :)

! ! .. ! ! . . ! !

[it-refused]

Working Title: Forward, Back (13/?)

Summary:  Knowing what’s going to happen doesn’t mean Sans can stop it.  Maybe he could’ve put it off forever.  Sans decides to go.

Rating: T

Part Summary: Sans and Soozen have a chat.

>>First Part<<

C/N: Mental Illness, references to the death of background characters

The layer of dust on the tarp covering Sans' telescope reminded him it had been a few months since the last time he messed around with it.  He suddenly wondered if condensation had gotten under the plastic.  He should have put it in long term storage the last time he checked on it.  He'd just tossed something over it so he wouldn't have to see it.

He stood completely still in front of the tarp.  Minutes ticked by.

A lightning bug flew in front of him, blinking slowly.  Sans' hand shot out and he caught it, cupping his hand around it in the air so he didn't crush its tiny body.  He felt its legs tickle his bones and he opened his hand.  The insect climbed up to the tip of his finger and flew off again.  He watched it go.  

Before he started to think again, he pulled the tarp off his setup.  A few more bugs - spiders and beetles, it looked like - fled.  

Sans fussed with it, trying to figure out how neglect had damaged it.  

A light turned on in the house behind him, and the back door opened.

"Sans?"  Soozen slid out onto the porch.  She was in her pajamas, oozing onto floor in a slow, sleepy way.  

"hey, sooz."  Sans peered through the eyepiece on his telescope.  All the metal was rusting and he was pretty sure insects had gotten inside, but the lenses didn't seem damaged.  It was kind of tough to tell, though, since it seemed to be completely stuck in place, now.

"There's nothing that way," she said.  "Can I look?"

"eh, if you want to be a huge nerd," Sans said.  

"That means you're a huge nerd, though," she said.  She yawned.

"nope.  i'm not a huge nerd. i'm the head nerd in this house.  don't forget it, kid." That actually sounded like too much work.

She laughed.  

"just in the house, though. don't tell your hero i said it, either."  If Undyne found out someone was claiming to be the head nerd, she'd be force to defend her wife.  "she'd kick my butt."

Soozen slid over next to him.  He let her look through the eyepiece at the tree it was still aimed it. "Boring."

"uh.  aren't you grounded, by the way?"  Sans asked.

"No," she lied.

"should you be out here?" Before she could answer, he continued.  "wait.  i guess you can't be grounded in the house.  you have a better shot at that outside."

"If I was inside, I'd be floored!" she said, laughing.

"just like i'm floored by that great joke," Sans said.  He didn't care that she was outside when she was grounded.  

She giggled and relaxed. She knew he wasn't going to make her go back inside.  "What're you doing?" she asked.

"not much.  it'll be too much work to fix this."  He already had a really great telescope he'd gotten from Grillby and a couple other ok ones.  

Sans sat down on a plastic patio chair and tried to get comfortable in it.  Someone - and he wasn't going to name names - must've burned a hole in this particular one.  He vaguely remembered dumping kerosene down the back of someone's shirt, and maybe surprising them a tiny bit.  The other chairs scattered around were in just as bad shape, in different ways.

"But you built the whole thing, right?  How's fixing it more work?"  Kids her age were smartasses.  

"it's less fun," Sans said.  "anyway."  He stretched.  He decided to change the subject from his own uncomfortable subject to hers.  "i bet they really had it coming."

"I don't want to talk about that!" she said, drooping down until she was almost a puddle.  

"ok."  He shrugged.

"But she really did!  It's not fair!"  

"the other kid started it?"

"Yes!"  She somehow got even flatter.  "No!  But she'd been mean for a really long time."

"you know bro doesn't care about friendly duels, or little fights."  He kept his tone mild. "but he heard you two really tried to hurt each other."

"It doesn't matter!"  She splurched back into shape, angry.  "I didn't hurt anyone!"

Soozen hadn't won.  Poor kid.  Had to be a blow to her dignity, considering how much she idolized Undyne.  

"sure, sure," he said, holding up his hands.  "it's unfair, right."  

"I shouldn't be grounded when I can't even hit anyone anyway!  I'm too slow!"  

Well, she'd hit at least once. Sans had heard that much.  It was true that slimes weren't monsters designed for speed, though.  "sorry, kiddo."

She splattered some slime onto the porch and let out a loud sigh.  "I don't even care that I'm grounded.  I just...why did I have to lose?"

"everyone's gotta lose a few," Sans said.  

She sloshed into a lawn chair and hunched up.  Apparently his "oh well" reaction wasn't helping much.   "Win a few, lose a few!  Who cares?"  

"look, this kid wasn't some tv show villain.  she's just some brat."

"If I can't fight bullies, then how can I fight really bad people?" she asked.  "I hate being weak and slow."

"i dunno.  it's not so bad being weak, once you get used to it," Sans said.  

Her little orb eyes, floating in slime, directed themselves towards him.  "At least I could win against you."

"yeah."  She had way more HP than he had.  "look, kid, if you want to get better, it doesn't just happen.  bro trained for a long time.  i sit on my butt, so a baby could knock me out."

"I want to fight like Undyne." she said.  

"sure.  so did papyrus, but he still uses bone and blue attacks.  not spears.  you gotta fight like yourself to get as good as she is, right?"

"What does that mean?" She crossed her nub arms.  "There aren't any slimes around to train me."

"hm.  what about that lady who watches your sib sometimes?"

"She thinks that...ugh!  She thinks that being violent 'betrays the values that led us all to freedom!'"

"heh.  you gotta admire that, right?"

"It wouldn't matter if my mom was here to teach me," she said, and then went still.  She hadn't meant to bring up her mother.  

"tough lady, your mom?"

"Not tough enough."  Ouch.  Soozen drooped in her chair, slime oozing out from underneath and hitting the porch floor.  "Sorry.  Papyrus is really great, I just...I just really wish..."

"bro is really great," Sans agreed.  "but, hey, of course you wish stuff was different."  He thought they were getting to what was really bugging her.  "he's not the only one who cares about you. you're both good kids."  He aimed his smile at her, and winked. "but, eh, if stuff could be different, we'd all be ok with that. your parents had you guys 'cause they wanted to love you.  they should get to see you turn into cool grownups."  He looked over his telescope again, mostly so he wasn't looking at her.  

There were bumps here and there, but his brother was really good at this parenting stuff.  He was the best at it because he was willing to keep trying to get better when he messed up.  

Still.  The kids had lost their parents.  It wasn't fair.  He kind of knew the feeling, and how much it could make someone obsess over going back and fixing everything. Well, maybe that was just him, but he did know the feeling.

Maybe it could make someone else obsess over getting strong enough to protect themselves.  Maybe it could make a kid lash out.  

"Sorry," she repeated.

"nah.  i still wish my old man was around," Sans said.  In a way he could talk with and be around in a normal way.  "even though i've made tons of cool friends since he fell down."  

"I guess everyone's lost someone," she said, miserable.  

"yeah.  it sucks, right?"

She nodded.  

"i'd say it sucks big stinky doo doo butts," he continued, very seriously.

"Sans!"  She giggled. "Gross!  I'm not a little kid anymore.  You can't cheer me up that way!"  She had brightened, considerably.

"man, even angel's outgrowing fart jokes.  you're both breaking my heart."

"Well...I did figure out a way to make even louder fart noises," she admitted. "Wanna hear?"

"god, kid, you've got my number.  let's hear it."

"Ok.  But just for you." She sucked air into her slime body until a huge bubble formed in the middle.  Once she'd gathered enough air, she pushed it out again.  PBHTHTHTHT!

"i'm getting tears in my eye sockets," Sans said.  "kid.  you're a real winner."  

"No I'm not, but thanks," she said, slumping.

Oh, right.  He’d kind of hoped he’d distracted her.  "look.  what kind of monster were you up against?  something with eyes?"

"Yeah?  Some jerk dog."

"if paps asks, i never said this, but...ok."  He sighed.  This was a bad idea.  "i guess that was a really great fart noise."  He had to repay that somehow.  "so you're slow.  so what?  you got one hit in, right?  you just have to make it count, and you're golden.  dog monsters see better with their noses, but the eyes are pretty vulnerable and it'll make their nose run.  they can't sense you to hit you and they're distracted 'cause it hurts."  He shrugged.  "work with what you got, kid.  you got acid slime to throw around?  practice your aim.  maybe you can train and get a little faster, but, eh.  if you can't jump, climb a wall and fall down on 'em.  if your hp is low, figure out how to get them to miss you."

"I've never seen you fight anyone," she said.

"hey.  what's the easiest way to get monsters to miss me?  never let them throw a punch in the first place.  i'm too lazy to fight."

"I guess practicing my aim is something I can do on my own," she said, doubtful.

"ask bro to train you.  he'll cry.  it'll be nice.  and he's actually pretty good at it."

"He beat up that human," she agreed.  

"yeah."  He still didn't like to think about that.  

"He'll probably turn me down, though, since I’m in trouble."

"heh.  papyrus?  nah, he'll want to make sure you fight responsibly."

"If you say so."  She climbed down out of her chair.  "Hey, Sans?  You won't tell Papyrus I came out here, right?"

"nah."

"Sans?  You're ok."

"gross.  don't get too mushy, kiddo."

She laughed.  "I can't help it!"  

He chuckled.  She slid over to him and he got up off his chair.  She gave him a brief, damp hug and went back inside the house.  Sans watched her go, until she switched off the light inside and disappeared from view.

There wasn't much he could do for her, other than make immature jokes to get her to laugh and give her some cheap fighting advice.  Right?

Losing her parents at such a young age had done a number on Soozen.  She was doing better, but it was going to mess with her in one way or another for the rest of her life.  Even if she stopped being sad about it, her personality was built up out of what happened.  That was how it was for everyone, Sans figured, but with her...just with her and her sibling, he thought maybe there was something he could do.  Just for them, there might be a real permanent fix.

All he needed was a place, date, and time, and a few simple instructions.  He would make it so that if they all got yanked back underground, the kids erased from existence like all the other kids born after the barrier fell, something good would come of it.  

It wouldn't be hard to leave himself a note.  

He shook his head.  Bad idea.  He didn't like the idea of giving some other Sans that responsibility. And, hey, there were lots of other kids with dead parents who he could help.  What made these two more important than them?

Well, because he cared about these two in particular.  

He tossed the tarp back over his telescope and went back inside. 

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