#sorry for the major delay! thanks for having interest in my lad!

[stoicstoryteller]

@unyieldingstar

“Hey— if you keep going in that direction, you’ll bump into the pole!”

He had barely caught a glimpse of the woman wandering forward seemingly aimlessly and scrambled forward to grasp her arm in an attempt to pull her back safely before it spirals into an incident that would potentially result in injury for her. Haochen would feel terrible if he didn’t at least try to stop her before then as an obvious witness to it.

[wowerehouse]

Shatter

In the wake of so much death, Azeroth still shuddering through the aftershocks of the greatest disaster in her history, it could be hard to justify laughter.

Some were never able to find a balance; Rinda Broadstone knew that better than anyone. She’d sat with too many of them, patiently talking them through their own guilt, pushing food and coffee and stronger things into their hands, ordering them to rest and maintain their strength. 

She’d done it since she was a child; sitting with classmates guilt-ridden over their inability to help a friend through any more relationship crises with their own problems unsolved. Crossing her arms and standing up to instructors who berated overwhelmed charges. Spending a few hours with struggling students to cheerfully guide them through finishing what assignments they could and not punishing themselves for the others.

It was two weeks now since what some were calling the Cataclysm and others the Shattering and others, muttering into their beer, things that would probably be inappropriate for a paladin to repeat.

The balance between tireless effort and necessary recuperation had been well-struck at Algaz Station, she reflected, laughing quietly in response to a joke she’d only half heard. The Loch was short-staffed, the vast majority of rescue resources having been diverted to the hard-hit Wetlands; but as aching and exhausted as they all were, it was good food, good company, and passable ale. The emergency here had passed; in the morning Rinda, too, would be leaving them to go north beneath the shattered dam.

A low, casual whistle from the lookout: “Gryphons from the south! Up from Thelsamar, looks like.” 

There were vague murmurs of curiosity around the bonfire; normal couriers and chartered gryphon riders would come up to the station on foot. Before anyone could hazard a guess as to what would bring more than one out here at the same time, the shadow passed over them and a pair of bronze-and-white gryphons landed just up the hill in a flurry of loud wings.

There was only a single rider, she noticed as the slight figure dropped to the ground and stumbled; the second gryphon was on a pony lead, unsaddled. Interesting choice in pack animal..

Rinda blinked and got to her feet.

“Teelic Silverspark,” she called as her young clerk pulled something from his gryphon’s saddlebags. “Is that you? What’re ye doing all the way out here, lad?”

Teelic winced, clutching a thick envelope to his chest. “I...need to talk to you, my lady,” he said. The glance he cast at her companions was uncomfortable, despite the concerned looks on their faces. “Something’s happened, I’m afraid. I’m sorry.”

“You’re not interrupting anything, lad,” Hammerfall reassured him.

Rinda placed a hand on the gnome’s shoulder, guiding him off to the side. At some semblance of privacy, he relaxed for a moment; then his shoulders tightened again.

“Talk t’me, Teelic,” she urged. “What’s wrong?”

He took a deep breath, then let it out. “It’s...about Miss Innri.”

“Aye? All right.” Rinda frowned, squeezing his arm. “What about my sister? I thought that mine out near Redridge was treating her well enough.”

“She’s dead,” said Teelic, and his voice was soft as ash.

Rinda closed her eyes. Faintly, she thought she felt another echo of Deathwing’s rage ripple beneath her feet.

“The mines,” she repeated.

Teelic swallowed and nodded toward the wreckage of the dam, and Rinda felt a wave of dread no dragon could match. “They had people down the main shaft when the shockwave hit. Stormwind only just got the confirmed casualties list through early this morning. I thought you would want...”

Rinda swallowed hard and gripped his shoulder, too tight. He didn’t wince. “Ye did right, there, lad. Thank you. Is Alvis home, do we know...”

“None of the little ones were hurt,” Teelic said quickly. “I haven’t been able to contact Miss Ironhorn, I’m sorry. I found her last known location, but I thought it would be cruel to send a letter there without being able to tell her where her siblings would be. So I waited. A letter to Stranglethorn won’t get to her for weeks either way, ma’am.”

There would be time, later, to mourn her older sister. Teelic had gone to no small amount of effort to find her in person, and he deserved better than to have Rinda fall apart on him.

“Aye, well,” she murmured. “Wouldn’t be fair on the poor girl to ask her to make that decision, anyway.” Alvis was barely into her twenties, and barely a year into the monk’s training she’d longed for since she was a child. With the weight of the world only just lifted off her shoulders, Rinda refused to drop that yoke on her again. “Where's the little ones, then? I know the clan will find places where they can stay together, but I want to keep an eye on that. Kemly’s old enough to apprentice, but you know the harm the wrong master can do to a sensitive heart...”

Teelic winced and tightened his grip on his carefully padded envelope. “There’s a problem, ma’am.”

“Always is,” said Rinda, as steadily as she could manage. “We’ll fix it. What’d be the problem, then?”

Her normally soft-spoken clerk bared his teeth. “Urind Goldhammer already filed a custody claim.”

Rinda felt her soul turn to stone.

“No.”

“I know.”

“He can’t have them.”

“I know, my lady,” Teelic said soothingly, reaching out like he wanted to comfort her but couldn’t bring himself to do it. “It won’t hold. But...he has money, and power, and he’s been pulling strings. If...I don’t know how safe it will be, to ignore him. He can argue that they’re better with their father than as orphaned wards, even if their next of kin made that decision.”

Rinda took a deep breath, squeezing and releasing the hilt of her hammer until she was calm again.

“Ye think he can press that claim?” She paid Teelic for a reason. He understood this world better than she did.

“If the children are wards of the clan,” the gnome said quietly, “I think he can. He’s already using the communications delay to argue that...I’m sorry, my lady, I don’t want to, it’s just...”

“I willnae shoot the messenger, Silverspark.” She forced a smile. “Get it out.”

“He’s saying you and Alvis aren’t interested in them, and they should be in the care of someone who makes them a priority,” he said in a rush. “That’s part of why I came out here myself. If we show you’ve made arrangements within a few hours of news getting through to Ironforge, no one will take that argument seriously.”

Alvis would take them. Knowing her niece, Alvis would come home out of a sense of obligation and take care of her siblings. Half-siblings, technically, but the distinction had always been meaningless to her. She would shelve every dream she’d ever had if Rinda allowed it. To shield her brothers and sisters from their sire, Alvis Ironhorn would move mountains bare-handed; she’d done it since she was seven. She’d earned her freedom.

Rinda swallowed hard. She hadn’t made arrangements, nor did she have even the vaguest idea of what might be involved. She wasn’t in a position to take in four children, even if their older sister did come back to Ironforge and make herself miserable helping. She was barely home three months of the year in peacetime. She wasn’t in financial difficulties; she could afford to pay Teelic properly, maintain her equipment, keep her war mount in good health, but that didn’t mean...

But damned if there was ever a choice to be made. That bastard would never touch her sister’s children.

“Here.” Teelic handed her the envelope. “I marked all fifty-eight places you need to sign.”

“Oh aye?” Rinda shook herself, opening the package on autopilot. “What’s...what’s all this then.”

“Everything, my lady,” he replied. “All the custody files, requests for transfer of their medical records, renewing the restraining order Miss Innri had keeping him away from you and the kids. I already filed applications for the twins and Kemly with a school in Stormwind that allows boarding, and there are five letters of inquiry to engineering guilds within the city limits that have a good reputation. The little one has a place reserved when he turns ten and in the meantime he can stay with your cousin Drodann in the Dwarven district, so his siblings will be close by. And a request for Alvis to grant control of most of her mother’s bank accounts to you, with the caveat that they can only be used to provide for her siblings.”

Rinda stared at him as he pulled out a second, smaller envelope.

“Stormwind refugee resettlement is already bringing them to Northshire on the next caravan, I chartered a cart from Stormwind to pick them up and bring them to the tram, and they’ll be here by this time tomorrow. These are all the receipts.” He put them back in the envelope and pointed to the pile of papers in Rinda’s hands. “All you have to do is sign those, my lady. I filled everything out and everything with a fee attached is already paid for. Don’t worry, ma’am. They’re going to be fine.”

After several more long moments of staring, Rinda choked down the lump in her throat.

“Lad,” she rasped. “Ye did all this since this morning?”

Teelic blushed. Noticing Rinda looking around for an inkwell, he held out a thin steel tube--one of the new gnomish self-inking pens, sturdier than feathers.

“I got angry,” he mumbled. “Is there anything I missed, ma’am? I brought a spare gryphon for anything you need to bring back; I thought you should be there when the tram comes in. I can ride Capriole home for you.”

Rinda only barely resisted the urge to hug him. “Get yourself a meal, Silverspark.” A sudden thought occured to her, and she frowned at the beasts he’d brought with him. “Do I own a gryphon?”

He blinked. “No, ma’am. Not unless you’ve been committing tax fraud and bought one off the books.”

She ignored that, noticing now that both the birds Teelic had flown in on wore identical barding.

“Teelic, lad,” she said slowly. “Did ye commission an Ironforge courier gryphon as a pack animal?” At his sheepish nod, she added, “How’d ye manage that?”

Big, serious eyes gazed back at her.

“I can pull strings too,” he said quietly.

[askaceattorney]

(Previous Letter)

Dear starry-nightengale,

You know, that’s a good question.  There was at least one thing the judge said in T&T that made me think the death penalty was the default sentence for murder:

But now that you mention it, it’s entirely possible that isn’t the case.  In fact, the word “subject” doesn’t mean anything definite, so maybe there is a chance that some of the less heinous criminals (ex. Acro, Mimi Miney, Godot, etc.) only received a prison sentence.  I’ll keep that in mind for future letters to them.

Dear call me pinky,

9-year-old Maya is off-limits since she doesn’t appear in any of the games, but if you want to, you can write to the young Maya or Mia depicted in Misty’s photo:

Since their ages at the time weren’t given, you can refer to them as “Child Maya” or “Child Mia.”  I hope that works for you.

Dear Fulbright,

Me too, pal.  Me too.  *shudder*

Interestingly enough, I imagined Machi and Thalassa as having Indian accents, while the voice I imagined for Zinc LaBlanc sounded more German for some reason.  Also, as I just learned from the Ace Attorney Wiki, the Borginian (or Borginese) language has a lot in common with Egyptian, including the use of symbols rather than letters.  Your guess as to how they actually sound is as good as mine.  The developers are the only ones who really know, most likely.

Dear PumpkinGeist,

No such thing as a dumb question here.  Allow me to explain!

It’s a pretty simple process.  First, I go to the inbox and scroll waaaaaaay down to where the oldest letters are.  Then I use a thing called Snipping Tool (something I didn’t know existed until I started on this blog) to capture each submitted letter and save it as a PNG file on my desktop.  For Mac users, there’s a number of equivalent tools that can do the same thing.

After grabbing twelve letters or so, I check each one to see if it has an “anonymous please” or “only hide email” tag.  For anonymous letters, I use Paint to erase the icon, name and email address, or just the email for “only hide email” letters.  Then I go to the blog’s “Queue” page (you can also go to the home page if you don’t have a queue yet) and click the “Text” button on the white bar near the top of the screen.

From there, I click the camera icon and upload the letter I want to answer, type out a response (definitely the toughest part of the process), and add all the necessary gifs and hashtags.

Finally, I click the arrow on the bottom-right of the box, select “Schedule”, and enter the day and time I want the letter to be posted (ex. Sunday, 1pm).  You can also select “Add to Queue” to have Tumblr set a time for it to be posted automatically, but I’ve found that to be a little less predictable.  Also, if it’s a post you want to save for later (like we do for these Mod letter posts), you can choose “Save as Draft”.

I hope that all made sense, and sorry if it was too wordy.  Best of luck with your blog!

Dear James CyberLink,

Right back at you, lad!  Thanks for the idea, and sorry you didn’t get the chance to participate.  I thought you’d left this blog a long time ago, to be honest.

We do still have your original letter in the inbox -- we can post it in our next Mod letters post if you want.  If anyone else has an idea for a future holiday event, please feel free to send them our way!  We can always use the help.

Dear C.,

Well, you know something?  You’re entirely correct.  I really let you all down with that one.  I still stand by my claim that hurting feelings is never a goal of mine, but I definitely could’ve (and should’ve) seen that one coming.  My sincere apologies go out to everyone who took that letter as a personal offense.

I’m honestly not sure why I thought it’d be a good idea to answer that letter in the first place.  It was most likely to show that I'm not afraid to address issues like that one in letters without promoting either side of them, but that obviously backfired this time around.  Hopefully someday it’ll be possible for people to discuss things like this without any tempers flaring, but in the meantime, I’ll be keeping my nose out of this issue on this blog, and I promise to do a better job of filtering out letters that might cause problems like this in the future.

A huge thanks, by the way, to everyone who’s been willing to forgive our missteps and keep trusting us to do better.  You guys are awesome, and I definitely don’t take that for granted.  Your trust means a lot to me, so I plan to do everything I can to keep earning it.

Dear Friend,

Thanks for pointing that out -- that makes this letter canonically incorrect, doesn’t it?  I don’t know how I could’ve forgotten that.

(Someone has some replaying to do.)

And thank you for providing some perspective on that little fiasco.  As I’ve stated before, there’s practically nothing you can say on the internet that won’t offend somebody, but I at least want to stay away from topics that result in a huge controversy like that one -- that’s not what this blog is for.  That being said, I certainly don’t intend to censor every controversial topic.  As ugly as arguments can get, they’re a huge part of why Ace Attorney is so enjoyable.  I don’t agree with everything that’s said in the games, but if I let that bother me, I’d be missing out on the parts that I’ve come to love.

So, while I do aim to be sensitive toward specific groups of people in my letter responses (and I obviously could be doing a better job in that regard), if controversial topics are something that easily upset you, then I’m sorry to say that this blog probably isn’t for you.

...And by “you” I mean anyone reading this -- not you personally.

Dear kuromajinevil,

Nice!  These look like the sort of sprites you’d find in an Ace Attorney minigame that came with the full game, similar to “London Life” in the Professor Layton series.  Whatever you plan to use these for, I think they’re pretty cool.

I’ve seen the Dahlia sprites in a letter that's still in the queue, and will probably be answered within a month.  I’m sure the recipient will enjoy them as well.

(Previous Letter)

(Video in Letter)

Dear Mothmouth,

Interesting.  I might’ve realized that myself if I’d noticed the first line on the Wikipedia page.  I’d imagine Bonny and Betty might’ve watched the show when they were younger until their parents decided it was too scary for them...or for Bonny, at least.

(Song in Letter)

Dear Anonymous,

I’ve seen this video before, and I love it, too.  Recreating video game music is a fun and tricky challenge (I’ve done so with other songs using Cakewalk), so I love it when it sounds as good as the original.  My favorite pursuit theme is, and likely always will be, the one from Dual Destinies.  I think it’s one of the greatest tunes Ace Attorney has given us, and I like how this medley resolves it on a major chord.

-The Co-Mod

P.S. I would've posted these sooner, but I wanted to give the Modthorne a fair chance to add her responses.  She’s still too busy, as it turns out.  Sorry for the delay!

[haroldssfedora]

Support (Harry Styles Imagine)

Warning: swearing 

I’ve finally done my dream imagine! I’ve been wanting to write a dramatic imagine for a while now. Thank you to those who voted for this and for those who even personally messaged me. I really do appreciate the help.

It took me quite a lot of time to finish this because I had a lot of scenarios in mind. Sorry for the delay. Hope I didn't disappoint.

Anyways… Hope you guys like it! 

Feedbacks are very well appreciated.

ENJOY!!

~~

They say that after the honeymoon phase comes the biggest bump in one’s relationship.

For four years now, I’ve been Harry Styles’s girlfriend. I met him when I started working for Lou as her assistant stylist for the Where We Are Tour. At first, I was adamant to do it. But with a little push from Lou, I finally agreed. I’m glad that I agreed. Each passing day on the road, Harry and I grew closer until he finally asked me to be his. And I said yes.

Throughout the course of the On The Road Again Tour, I was asked yet again to join the crew. But this time, no decision was needed to be thought out. I was going to be with the love of my life 24/7 and that was enough reason to agree once more.

 I was with them when they had to perform for the first time without Zayn in Manila. Nerves were wrecking around backstage about who’ll sing Zayn’s part in which song and what’ll happen to their positions onstage with one member missing. I was even there when Zayn officially said goodbye.

I was with Harry when they announced to the public of their decision regarding the hiatus. It was hard for the lads to end up with that decision, but they all knew that it was for the greater good of the band. They knew that if they went on with a heavy heart that they might end up resenting what they do or worse, each other.

 I was there during their last show in Sheffield. Hugs were given as soon as the show ended. Tears were pouring everywhere. I have never seen Harry cry so hard before. Even I shed a tear or two. Of course, I’ve been with these people for two years now. I’ll miss seeing them everyday. But whatever happens, we all promised to support one another in any way or form.

**

Now, it’s been a few months since the hiatus started. Harry and I decided to go home to Holmes Chapel to unwind for a few weeks. Anne was kind enough to have accommodated both of us. Gemma even stopped by everyday to chat with us. It seemed like I was in a normal relationship and not in a relationship with a superstar.

A few weeks after that, Harry was casted for Christopher Nolan’s new movie Dunkirk. To say that I was proud of him was an understatement. In the midst of shooting the movie, Harry asked me to join him because he was feeling lonely. With a smile on my face, I gladly joined him. Plus, Cillian Murphy was another reason to drop by. (wink wink)

After the movie, Harry decided to start writing for his first solo album. I was so happy that he’d be back in the comfort of his beloved studio where I knew he was genuinely happy. He decided to take a small trip to Jamaica, which was such a breather. It was away from all the flashing light and spying eyes. Harry’d spend his time in the studio with Jeff and Mitch. While I, on the other hand, started drawing my dream fashion line.

Every since I was a kid, I have loved dressing up. And finishing my degree in fashion designing really was a dream come true. Dressing people up like how I did with the lads on tour was not the job that i was expecting but it was a great experience. I’m much more interested in designing my own fashion line and flaunt my designs on the runway.

**

One normal day back home, I got a phone call from the biggest fashion company in London. They heard from Lou that I was a fashion major and wanted me to send drafts of my designs for their upcoming fall collection. I was beyond ecstatic.

This is it.

 My dreams are becoming a reality. I immediately called Lou and thank her over and over again. I then excitedly told Harry and he was so proud of me. That night, me, my family, friends and Harry went out and celebrated but I noticed that Harry wasn’t into it. My best friend even asked if he was ill. It was like he wasn’t even there. I just took it as stress and agreed to go home earlier than expected.

The day of his album launch came. It was a whirlwind of emotions. I was so proud of how people responded to Sign of the Times, but the response to the album was much better. Knowing how hard Harry worked for it and how much people appreciated it made me so happy for him.

And to add to that happiness, pieces from the collection that I sent was chosen for the London Fashion Week Fashion Show a few months from now. I had already told Harry the night before about it but he just nodded and told me he was proud.

Maybe he’s just tired? Or maybe he’s just nervous for the launch the next day? I thought. 

His entire team went out to celebrate that night. Of course, I was there during dinner with his family. I told Gemma about the the fashion show and she promised to be there to support me. Anne even let out a sound of excitement and kept on hugging me, making me feel how happy she was for me.

The dinner ended quickly, so they decided to have a few drinks. Me, on the other hand, had a very important meeting with the company so I had to be presentable and hang-over free.

 “Love, let’s go?” Harry asked.

 “Babe, I have that meeting tomorrow remember?” I asked, with a ‘duh’ tone.

 “What meeting?” He asked. I was shocked. His facial expression really showed no signs of him knowing what was going on.

 “The meeting for the fashion show?” I asked, hoping that something will spark up.

 “You got the job?” He asked.

 “Harry, I told you that last night.” I said, a small frown now starting to form on my face.

 “Ohh yeah. That.” He said. I was kind of disappointed that he forgot but I just shook it off.

 “Anyways, it’ll probably be best if I head home first. Go enjoy the night.” I said giving him a kiss on the cheek.

 “You sure?”

 “Of course.”

 And with that, I left him and went home.

**

The meeting the next day went very well. I met with the tailors who’ll make my designs a reality alongside me and explained to them how I wanted it to turn out. They were nice enough to have understood my worries and assured me of my creative works. The models were also chosen and among those are some of the most well known models. The feeling of Cara Delevingne wearing my work was unbelievable.

I went home that afternoon with a tired body, yet a big smile on my face. Harry was in our bedroom getting ready to go out and celebrate with his friends. I quickly gave him a kiss on the cheek and a quick ‘hey babe’.

“Love, go get ready. We’ll meet them at five.” He said, buttoning his shirt.

“Babe, is it ok if I pass tonight? I’m so tired and I just want to lie down and relax.” I said, slumping my body in the bed. His face showed how much he wanted to go. “Go on without me. Enjoy babe.”

“Don't you want to celebrate the success of my album, love?” He said with pleading eyes. Of course I want to but having sewed a few pieces myself, I was exhausted.

“It’s not that babe. It’s just that… I’m so tired.” 

“Oh. Ok.”

What’s with his attitude? I don’t know why his tone suddenly sounded like he’s implying that I didn’t want to go just because I don’t want to go. “What’s with you?” I suddenly asked. I don’t know what ticked inside me, but I had a feeling that me asking that question will lead to a fight.

“Nothing. It’s just that I feel that you’re not happy for me.” He said while fixing his not-so-long-anymore hair.

“What are you saying? Just because I don't want to go out tonight doesn’t mean I’m not happy for you.” My voice started rising.

“Then make me feel it! All you care about is your stupid designs.”

Oh hell no. 

“Excuse me?”

He’s gotta be kidding right now.

“I said it! All you care about is your stupid runway fashion show. You never support me in any of my works. It’s like I don’t even have a girlfriend who supports me. All we talk about is how excited you are for the show and how happy you are that YOUR dreams are coming true. What about me, huh? Ever thought about me? My album? My dreams?”

 “Oh for fuck’s sake Harry. Don’t you ever say that I didn’t support you. I spent two years on the road with you… two years which should’ve been spent on designing my OWN fashion show. I’ve been beside you through all of the rumors, the hiatus, and now your solo career. So don't you dare point a finger at me and say that I don't care about your dreams because I do.” I said. My blood’s now boiling that I don't think it’ll be enough cooling off just for tonight.

 “Then make me feeling like you care and join us tonight.” He shouted.

 “Why are you so fucking selfish? Can't you see that I’ve been working my ass off for MY dream? All I ever thought about for the past few years was you and your damn career. Can’t you think about mine? All I’m asking is a night in tonight. Heck, I’m not even asking you to stay with me!” Harry was about to say something but I cut him off.

 “You know what Harry? I realized now… All I ever did in this relationship is give, give, and give. And I’m getting tired.”

 Flashbacks of how Harry reacted with me getting the job came to mind… he didn't even care. Heck, he even forgot that I told him about me getting it. I’ve talked about this with a friend of mine and what she told me really hit me.

 “It sounds to me like there’s only one person in this relationship.”

“Love, I’m not saying that your dream is not that important. It’s just that -” he said, but I cut him off.

“You feel that your accomplishments are far more important and extravagant than mine.” I said in total realization. No words were needed, his facial expressions were enough to assure my assumption.

“I can’t believe you!” I shouted. “A relationship between two people is about trust and support, and you can’t even support your girlfriend of four years? Your girlfriend who was beside you, supporting you since who knows when!” I started crying.

 “Love, it’s not like that…”

 “Then what is it like Harry? WHAT?” My head started to ache and my breathing started to quicken its pace.

 “Love…”

 “You know what? You’re not the Harry that I fell in love with anymore. You’re just a big-headed pop star who only cares about his fame.”

 “You’re not the girlfriend that I used to know as well. My girlfriend supports me in everything that I do.”

 “And my boyfriend also does the same.”

 “I’m still that person!” He said in exhaustion.

 “No you’re not.” I said with tears now streaming down my face.

 “Then what are you implying?” For a split second, I saw the man that I fell in love with - the man who’d swim the oceans just to make me smile.

 “I’m sorry but if you’ll continue, it’d be best if I left.”

 “Love, no… Don’t do this.” Desperation was very well heard from that one sentence.

 “I’m sorry.”

 I grabbed my bag and with that, I left the man who still had my heart.

 They said that there’s always a rainbow after the rain. But with this kind of relationship, seeing a ray of light might be impossible.