#that it's tricky to bring up any of this sort of thing in a helpful way. and all the while Dad is getting worse

[ilyhaitanii]

masked fool ft. marius von hagen

sfw. while out on an nxx mission, marius finds himself reminecsing about the childhood you two spent together. jealousy bubbles in his stomach. as annoying as it sounds, he can be quite cute like this

a/n: im v much a vyn girl, but marius brainrot is so real right now. he's all i can think about these past few days

there’s something so beautiful about how imperfect marius is. a young man born into the spotlight, forced to fit the mold of his older brother when it was far too big for him. a young man of many talents and extraordinary beauty. he has it all: talent, money, fame. what more could he ask for?

to an outsider, marius von hagen has his entire life laid out for him. he has his father’s money to fall back on, he has his good looks and charm to help him out of tricky situations. he quite literally has it all. however, growing up the way marius did, you tend to be very lonely.

he seeks out any sort of relationship, good or bad. whether it was the kids in primary school who used to push him around for pocket money, or now the executives who prod and pick at him for every little mishap. he still cherishes any and all connections he makes.

the one he cherishes the most is your bond. childhood friends— marius’ only friend. sure, he was popular. he was giann’s younger brother, everybody knew his family name. but he was never truly friends with anyone.

he felt like an outsider no matter where he went because he knew people only wanted him for one thing: his family’s influence. but you? you didn’t care about any of that. you always sought him out during lunch when he’d sit up on that oak tree by the west-end of the school courtyard during lunch, you always made sure to actually listen to him. you were always the one person he knew he could rely on.

marius gazes at you from across the hall, swirling the sparkly champagne in his glass. he’s staring at your exposed back, but he’s also silently glaring at the man you’re talking to him. the rosy color on your cheeks makes his blood boil. the way you’re laughing (who is he kidding you’re fucking giggling) and blushing. there’s this indescribable feeling of annoyance, yet so much anxiety is bubbling in his stomach all at once. it makes marius feel ill.

the sound of his code name buzzing in his ear brings him back down to earth. however, he can’t help but take another look at you. he knows this is all for the mission— you have to flirt with this guy for information, but he can’t help but want to wrap his arms around you and tell the guy to fuck off.

marius knows he cant, he would mess everything up. he tries to distract himself with conversations and champaign. it works to some extent, but at some point he can’t take it. he steps outside for some fresh air. as he makes his way out to the garden, he lets out a heavy sigh.

what is wrong with him? marius knows, he’s certian you love him. hell, you’re the girl of his dreams— the love of his life. he knows there’s no one else for him but you. his hand slips into his suit’s inside pocket. he pulls out a pack of cigarettes (a pack he definitely stole from vyn’s estate but he would never admit that.)

as he lights the stick, a puff of smoke leaves the corners of his lips. the smoke suffocates his lungs, making him feel light headed. it makes him feel somewhat better. the inability to think means he doesn’t have to think about you all over some other guy. he doesn’t have to think about how you weren’t allowed to wear your promise ring so nobody knows you’re taken. marius doesn’t even want to think about that guy’s hand touching your bare back.

however, before his irritation can grow into something more intense, a pair of arms circle his waist. he’s taken aback before he looks over his shoulder. he doesn’t fully turn all the way before realizing it’s you. your cheeks pressed against his shoulder blades, fingertips toying with the button’s of his dress shirt.

“since when do you smoke?” you ask marius in a tired tone, eyes fluttering shut. he manages to turn around without your arms letting go of him. he quickly drapes his jacket over your shoulders, shielding you body from the cold. marius stomps on the cigarette, before placing it back into the pack.

“what are you doing here, missy? shouldn’t you be inside, hm?” his lips curl into that signature smirk of his. his hands make their way to your hips— cheeky bastard. “couldn’t leave me alone for one night, huh?” his tall stature allows him to hover over you. he leans down, whispering sweet words into your ears.

you chuckle in that sweet, sugary tone of yours. the bubbles in marius’s stomach dissolves. that’s sweet laughter is reserved for his ears. this side of you was reserved for him as well. he’s an idiot. your hand manages to cup his jaw, thumb rubbing circles into his cheeks (he still has a bit of a babyface.)

“answering a question with a question. you really aren’t doing well,” you frown slightly before marius’ brows fall. he shakes his head, hiding his face into the crook of your neck. he hums, inhaling the sweet vanilla scent of your perfume accompanied by the coconut shampoo you use.

“i missed you,” he says, hugging you even tighter. chest to chest, marius tries to bury himself into you, but that's physically impossible. he whines like a child, trying to curl into you. your arms are around him, your palm patting his head.

"missed you too. we can go now, luke will take over from here. just had to lure him away," you don't move your boday away from him though even has the night air has you breaking out into goosebumps. your hands slide around his waist, cheek presses against his shoulders.

there's a beauty in marius's flaws, his immaturity. a boy forced to grow up so fast, forced to carry the burden of pax's ceo-- a task he was not shaped for. though at times his immaturity and teasing manners can tick you off, you tend to encourage it. it allows marius to truly be the young man he is, rather than the serious ceo mask he wears through out the day.

so for now, you'll kiss his face, cup his cheeks in your hands, and allow him to lay between your legs with his head on your stomach, while you toy with his hair. there's no universe in which would you ever want marius to have to keep that mask on forever. even if his jealousy is stemming from a place of childishness and immaturity, you'll allow it to continue for the sole sake of wanting to see the true marius von hagen. he's much easier to talk to like this anyway.

© ilyhaitanii - do not repost, translate, plagarize or repost it to any other sites

[tgammsideblog]

Scratch and Leadership

The season 2 episode premiere ¨The New Paranormal¨ explores the consequences of Season 1 finale ¨The Jig is Up / Molly vs The Ghost World¨. With the original Chairman getting destroyed, the Ghost World needs a new leader to fill the space that got left. Since Scratch is the ghost that ¨defeated¨ the previous ruler, he has to become the new Chairman.

In ¨The New Paranormal¨ Scratch gets tricked by the Ghost Council into becoming the new leader by having to use the chairman robes to scare the frightmares that were in the Mcgees house away. He gives the order to not cause any chaos to the ghost population, since ¨it brings trouble to him and he hates it¨. Scratch makes a deal to work with the Ghost Council considering they know how things work.

In general Scratch doesn't want anything to do with taking charge of his responsibilities in the Ghost World. He would rather do his best to avoid them or quickly be done with them and teleport back to what he was doing previously. He doesn't make much of an effort to learn how the system works nor tries to change it for the better. He feels like it is a role that was unjustly dropped into him without being able to make a choice in it.

A lot of this seems to come from Scratch feeling like he was stuck in a very repetitive job that made him miserable as human (Todd). Once he became a wraith/ghost he lost his morals of taking responsibility since it unconsciously reminded him of his depressive state when he was human. This could explain in part why Scratch avoids most of his chairman duties and responsibilities.

As the creators put it in an interview, Scratch's arc as chairman during season 2 is about this:

One of it was [that] a lot of people want to grow up and be in leadership, and something like want[ing] to be president. But then, to be president is really hard, and it takes a lot of responsibility, and you have to care about what you’re doing. So, it was sort of a little metaphor about [how] leadership is tricky, and it takes a lot of attention and care and thought. Again, he’s the leader now, right? He’s the guy in charge, and that comes with a whole raft of responsibilities. And we’re going to see, like Bill just said, being a leader is hard, and you got to be intentional about it. And Scratch is not. And that’ll lead to disasters coming down the pike. Many of them.

Source: https://www.nerdsandbeyond.com/2023/04/01/interview-the-ghost-and-molly-mcgee-creators-bill-motz-and-bob-roth-on-what-to-expect-from-season-2/

In multiple episodes we see Scratch making questionable decisions as chairman, like avoiding his duties, making others do the work for him, causing a mess in the workplace and misusing his power.

In ¨Dance Dad Revolution¨ he tricks ghosts into cleaning the Haunty Haunts club by making it look like a fun dance instead of doing it himself. He abuses his power as chairman, ordering others to do his duties as it was a game while he goes to sleep. At the end of the episode a mess is caused that leaves the room all dirty again and he is forced to clean it up himself.

In Season 1 there has been a few episodes that show how Scratch would be pretty authoritative, if not abusive, if he decided to take his role as leader more seriously. These episodes being ¨Goat Your Own Way¨ and ¨The Internship¨. During both occasions he was giving orders because he enjoyed the power that came with it and it was a responsibility.

¨The Ghost IS Molly Mcgee¨ also shows that he could be an effective leader if he put his mind into it when he decided to take Molly's place to be charge of a play. He threatened kids with using a hammer if they didn't follow his orders, making obey him quite quickly. In this example he was doing this to help Molly and for the sake of having fun, demostrating again that he cares about leadership if he sees it as a game.

As much of a disaster Scratch is as chairman, he does make some positive changes to the Ghost World: He doesn't use the Flow of Failed Phantoms as a punishment for ghosts, instead chosing to trap them in things like dolls and canisters if they are causing trouble for others.

He does give Lord Doom, one of the most dangerous ghosts, a second chance after he got cursed to be trapped into a doll. In Necro-comicon episode he is happy that Lord Doom is doing well with his new family. In ¨Unhaunting of Brighton Video¨ he is seen helping the team dealing with Blair and her unfinished business. He brings down the whole system of forcing ghosts to scare off humans and keep the Ghost World miserable since he doesn't feed off from misery like the original Chairman did. Ghosts now scare for fun like seen in the episode ¨Frightmares On Main Street¨. This allows them to be able to be more friendly with humans. In general he lets ghosts to have fun and be more free under his reign as long as they don't disturb other ghosts or humans.

He seems to have a lot of fans seeing in ¨The Afterlife of The Party¨ and ¨Jinx!¨. Not surprising considering he isn't as authoritative as the past Chairman and he is a lot more approachable. There is a crowd following him in ¨Jinx!¨ asking for his autograph and he gets invited to a popular ghost party in ¨The Afterlife of The Party¨. In contrast, when the original Chairman showed up in ¨A Very Hungry Ghost¨ in the Mcgees's backyard, all ghosts disappeared, being terrified of the Chairman.

The way ghosts act around Scratch in Season 2 resembles someone meeting a celebrity rather than a leader. Makes sense because Scratch doesn't take his job seriously and uses is for the status and fame that gives him. Still, most seem to like it regardless of that.

In ¨The Afterlife of The Party¨ he lies about being sick to Geoff so he is able to go to an elite ghost party, something he wanted to do all his time as ghost. Before becoming the new chairman he was always pushed around by most of the ghosts. He was happy when he got invited to one of these popular parties for once. Near the end of the episode he learns that the party was Geoff and Jeff's 100th anniversary of being partners. He apologizes to Geoff for lying to him and Geoff forgives him.

Scratch constanly misuses his chairman powers to throw random curses as a way to fix his problems. He uses curses to help Molly with her fears in ¨FONAA!¨ and to get a perfect day in ¨Perfect Day¨, only for the curse to end up backfiring. In ¨Alaka-Sham¨ it is shown that he used so many curses that the curse cabinet was as its fullest and, because Scratch refuses to do something about it, the cabinet ends up exploding on him and the Ghost Council and has to clean up all the mess. There is one occasion he used this in a way that was useful: In ¨All In The Mind¨ to find why his spectral body was having bubbles all around. He and Molly went inside his own mind and found a memory that was a childhood friend that Scratch had named Adia.

In ¨All Shark No Bite¨ he learns that he can create ghost creatures using his chairman powers and they obey his commands. He accidentally created a ghost shark that he later adopts as his pet and names him ¨Sharkie¨. Sharkie appears in some episodes after that, either in his small or big form.

In spite of having many followers, there is someone that doesn't see him fit of being a chairman. That is Jinx, who was a huge fan of the previous chairman and wants things to go back the way they used to be before Scratch became the new leader.

Jinx represents someone who doesn't like the idea of losing the power she previously had in the past status quo. She enjoyed being a joy hunter and feels like Scratch stripped that away from her. She doesn't consider Scratch worthy of being the new chairman, thinking that she would be better at it instead.

As petty as Jinx is, she does has a point of Scratch being lazy and irresponsible as leader. Jinx had to explain to him how jinxes worked, something she pointed out it is a thing the chairman should know about. She acts as a constant reminder for Scratch that he isn't a good leader for the Ghost World.

All Scratch's irresponsible behaviour culminates in ¨Jinx VS The Human World¨. This episode starts with Scratch leaving the chairman robe unprotected and unguarded, which Jinx takes advantage of and steals it, using to take over the Ghost World and almost the Human World. Scratch also makes the mistakes of accidentally getting Molly captured by Jinx when they look for her in the Ghost World.

Near the end of the episode Scratch comes up with a plan to stop Jinx. He suggest others to ¨spread out joy¨ and extra feeding the sobgoblins, making them explode as result. Sharkie gets summoned by Scratch and grabs the chairman robes from Jinx. The Chens trap Jinx inside the phantom canister so she can't cause any more trouble.

The ghost celebrate Scratch as their true chairman. This leads to Scratch to reconsider things and to finally admit that he isn't a good example of a leader. He uses his powers one last time to make the chairman robe select the person they consider the ¨most worthy¨ to be the new chairman. The robe fly away, looking for a new leader.

In the end, Scratch's arc as chairman this season gives the lesson that not every person is fit to be a leader and it would be better to step down and give that role for those who would be more responsible. While Scratch did bring some good things to the Ghost World, he was incredibly lazy and didn't take the job seriously, which end up putting both worlds at risk. He gives up his status, knowing someone should be in the position instead of him.

[eulchu]

ok guys. let's have a real talk. let's ALL have a real talk and i don't mean just me and my anons . i hope this reaches all of our community even if you think i fucking suck.

fucking october didn't ruin us but i am so worried that this dumb tension just might. this is getting so ridiculous and out of hand -i barely understand what's going on myself. so im gonna need everyone to work together and do a collective reflection exercise.

i am gonna write out a series of points that i need u guys to think about before proceeding in this community:

- active blogs. you're burnt out. you're burnt out and you're so tired of trying to keep this community running that you're denying yourself a moment to feel your own frustrations as your own individual person. i get that . i get being under so much pressure that you can't catch yourself some slack, least you spiral out of control <- this is, however, really damn unhealthy 😭 it's ok to let yourself feel some disappointment!! some anger!! that's fine. it's up to you, however, what you do with it. this brings us to our next point.

- we NEED to acknowledge this if we wanna get better. ifl it's taboo and we're pushing the narrative so hard we're not giving ourselves enough space to breathe. it. is. okay. to. feel. disappointed. over. the. lack. of. dteam. content. i am the first person to shut down any self entilted prick who thinks they can expect something out of them. because they DON'T owe us anything. but truth is we are humans and, accordingly so, feel in consequence of our own expectations. i wanna break this part down in a few points:

it is OKAY to acknowledge that we are disappointed. denying one self's feelings never ended up ok for anyone. it is okay to acknowledge that we are not getting the content we were hoping for.

it is NOT okay to blame the dteam for it. this is where it gets tricky. the dteam are in charge of what type of content they put out. it will never be in our hands. at that point, if you don't like what they're doing. leave. i'm sorry. it's harsh. i'm not trying to be mean about it. i'd understand if you left! it's ok!

- before you leave, though, i want to ask you a question. why do dislike what they're doing so much? seriously, ask yourself that question. is the content that bad, in your eyes? if the answer is yes, i can't help you there. you've grown out of their content. there's no way around it.

- but is it actually bad, or is it just Not What You Expected? In which case, let's talk. Let's put things bluntly:

the dteam have waited years to be together. correct

upon living together, we have discovered that they are not very good at providing content because they put their friendship above content. i'm not sure if anyone had that in their bingo cards - but it's what happened. autumn was really rough on them & they've learnt to exist together off camera. me personally, i think it's sweet.

dteam and traveling: a fall out? :o . no. jesus christ 😭 the fact that this is the new narrative nauseates me. i don't think anyone in their right mind thinks that dteam are less close than they were when they were living apart.

Bringing back our initial point, the failure to meet our expectations can be mentally challenging. it will inevitably make us second guess a lot of associated ideas that we thought were true . if one of our expectations fails to be met, that's a fail in our mental plan. if we were wrong about this, who's to say we are right about anything else?

i'm not sure if there's some sort of denial of feelings here or if people are trying really hard not to think about this possibility because it makes them scared. i am inviting you to take a moment to really think about it and feel the initial dread of the question. it will pass fairly quickly.

the truth is that the dteam is FINE. they're fine, they share a house, they film videos together, and they go on these long ass hiatus when they're together because they would much rather spend uncesored time off-line.

my favorite point: for how parasocial we are, we don't give them nearly enough credit. the dteam are adult men. we have to put faith in their decisions. only they know what they're doing. they know what's best for them. we certainly don't.

- i wanna rescue this last point. their decisions are THEIRS. if we don't put trust in what they're doing, we're already failing the game. that means who they hang out with too. i get not liking someone ok? i get it. i don't like a lot of people either. no one is pointing a gun to any of their heads. if you think that any of them is doing something that you don't see fit you have problems and you need to grow up. it is not our place to dictate their lives and it will never be. that goes for the white-knighting too.

⚠️(this is a completely hypothetical scenario)⚠️

the truth is if tomorrow george decides to go back to the uk, for whatever reason. we would all have to fucking shut it. fan disappointment? yes. acting like george is an awful person for betraying his best friends? you're out of your fucking mind.

dream george and sapnap are grown up people with a strong friendship and communication skills. if you think that george would take the unilateral decision and not tell anyone until the day before you need to seek help. whatever decision the dteam take about their lives it's THEIRS and you need to put some fawking faith in what they're doing. they know what's up.

that goes for the fucking karl problem too okay? i don't like it either. whatever. it's not my place though?? dream isn't a baby who's been abandoned he's a grown ass man who knows what he's doing and if he still considers (if they ALL do) karl his friend that's his decision. if he thinks that karl's friendship management is fine that's his decision. we are not dream's friends nor his fucking therapist.

- the thing about dooming and content. the multishippers: is the dteam all there really is? i firmly believe that we all kove the dteam outside of each other. (mostly tackled in this post)

- dnf and the fandom. jesus christ i can't believe i have to make a point about this. i think it's important to remember that at the end of the day. it's just Not That Serious. it was never meant to be that serious. bringing back the "they're their own people" point, what the Fuck do some people think they're doing 🧍‍♂️

dnf know what they're doing they know the nature of their relationship better than we ever will. if they're just friends it's because they chose to if they . in the biggest plot of the century . come out of this with a s/o it doesn't mean they're cheating on each other, that dream/george was leading anyone on or that they're hurting each other???? are you CRAZY 😭 if they're dating they're dating if they're not they're fucking not but they're. not gonna be sad about it??? they're adult people in an adult relationship they know what tf they're doing. they hold each other's hearts impossibility close to themselves. there's nothing they would ever do that could hurt each other.

to wrap things up: after this reddit worthy post (congrats if you've made it to the end) i have something very important to ask of you guys.

i know it might be unfair but can we all compromise on detoxxing. completely. for like, a week. not posting neg at ALL. we can't enable doomers we can't enable bait anons. neg is only good for one thing: make anxious people paranoid as fuck.

so can we. for like a week. just not post anything /neg at all. can we block the worst of it. the unnecessary dooming. and not acknowledge at ALL. i get it's a huge mental toll on the active blogs - reading so much negativity SUCKS but i do believe that it's a better option than responding and enabling more people to send similar asks.

me personally, i am already saying it here: any dooming will get blocked in my askbox. i won't hate you for it. but this IS a warning that you need to get your shit together if you ever wanna have a chance at speaking in my askbox ever again.

um congrats if you read everything?😭 PLEAAAASE let's all make this place a better place again i know we can do it

U CAN ADD TO THIS POST IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY BTW !!!

[tsunami-of-tears]

A Court of Shadows and Sunshine — Part One

Azriel x OC

Summary: Aurora is a yoga instructor in Velaris. She befriends Nesta and is invited to train with her and the Valkyries. Upon meeting Azriel, Aurora feels a pull she can’t explain. 

This story starts a couple of months after ACOSF finishes.

A/N: This is my first posted fic, please be kind 𓆩♡𓆪 Any feedback is greatly appreciated ✧˚ · .

Word Count: 1.7K

Warnings: Brief mentions of trauma, slight sexual themes (blink and you'll miss it)

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧

Aurora

It’s a brisk autumn morning in Velaris, the air is cold and misty. Clouds of breath float from your mouth as you sip on your latte. The barista recommended a new blend today, one with hints of pumpkin and cinnamon, the perfect accompaniment to today’s weather.

You continue on your way to work, but pick up your pace. You own a small yoga studio in between the Rainbow and the Palace of Hoof and Leaf. Ever since the war ended your business has blossomed. Your studio offers a much-needed escape for many people. As sad as the circumstances are, you feel privileged to be able to help in your own way.

Your schedule has been crammed with all sorts of classes throughout the week, you teach a mix of both yoga and pilates along with modified childrens and pregnancy classes.

There is some overlap between yoga and pilates techniques, but overall they are quite different practices. You find combining the two disciplines throughout your week gives you the best results - both physically and mentally.

You arrive at the studio well before your class starts, giving you enough time to set up. You’re fully booked this morning teaching female-only yoga. You like to offer a few gender specific classes throughout the week, and they always have a great turn out. The rest of the time, everyone is welcome at your studio. 

You switch on the faelights and the music, light some incense and start laying out the mats and equipment. The first of your students start to arrive and greet you with friendly hellos and smiles. Most of the faces you recognise, you have many happy returning visitors. There are two new faces in your class.

“Hi there, I’m Aurora. Welcome to my studio.” you say to the newcomers. 

“Hey I’m Nesta, and this is Gwyn. We’ve heard such good things about your lessons, we’ve been dying to try it out!” says the tall female with golden-brown hair. You recognise her name, you know this is the High Lady’s sister.

“We’re so excited to be here! Lovely to meet you, Aurora.” says Gwyn, Nesta’s red headed friend. 

“Thank you for coming by and giving my class a go. I hope you enjoy yourselves today. Please just try your best, take as many breaks as you need and let me know if you need any help. Some poses can be quite tricky, especially if it’s your first time.” You turn slightly to face the rest of the class and start your lesson, “good morning everyone and welcome. I can see lots of smiles today - we’ll see if they stick around until the end of the class.”

“Let’s start with some big deep breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth.” 

————

You were pleasantly surprised by how well Nesta and Gwyn went in class today, and they were still smiling as you walk over to them.

“How did you find the class? You both did amazing.”

Nesta laughs, “I bet I won’t feel amazing tomorrow. I really need to work on my flexibility.” 

“I really loved the breathing and meditation at the end, it’s similar to some techniques we use in our regular training,” says Gwyn. 

“Interesting. What training do you normally do?” you question, hoping it doesn’t come across too nosy. 

“We have a small group that we train with every morning, it’s mostly Priestesses like Gwyn, but anyone is welcome,” explains Nesta. 

“We’ll have to bring some of my sisters along some time, I just know they’ll love you!” Gwyn exclaims, clapping her hands together.

“Thank you both so much, it was a pleasure to have you both in my class today. I hope I see you back here again soon.” You say your goodbyes to the rest of the class and start to wipe down all the equipment as the studio empties. 

You have a short break now before you teach a children’s class, followed by a free mindfulness session - something that has gained popularity since Hybern’s attack on the city. 

Nesta and Gwyn become class regulars - attending multiple times a week, occasionally bringing Feyre, along. They seem to prefer the female-only classes. Of course, that is why you offer them. You know yourself how difficult it can be to workout around males, especially when healing from trauma. You feel very privileged to be trusted and provide a safe space.

————

Running your studio takes up a lot of your time and energy, but when you do get a quiet moment to yourself you love to hide away with a good romance novel. You’ve just finished your latest book which was steamier than your typical choices. Shocked that you enjoyed such a book, you decide to head to your favourite bookstore for some new recommendations. 

A little bell rings as you open the door to the store. You inhale the woody scent as you walk past towering shelves stacked to the ceiling with beautifully bound books. The ones you’re seeking today are hidden out of the way of unknowing customers. As you make your way to the back corner, you recognise a female’s laugh. 

“Aurora! I didn’t know you were a bookworm like us!” Nesta calls out and rushes over to you from the same section you’re heading towards. 

“What kind of books do you like reading?” Asks Gwyn. “You should come and visit us sometime at the library, we would have invited you sooner if we knew.” 

“Fancy seeing you two here. I really love my romances! I just finished ‘Thorns and Roses’ and I’m desperate for a new read.”

“Ooooh that’s a great one! In that case I have so many recommendations for you.” Nesta grabs your hand and pulls you over to the adult romance section. She picks out a few that you would never have chosen yourself and you decide to buy them all.

Nesta picks out her own armful of books and you walk to the counter together. “You two sure are keeping the bookstores in business” laughs Gwyn. 

As the three of you exit the store with bags in hand, Nesta turns to you, “Hey Aurora, do you ever teach classes outside of the studio?” 

“Yeah I do, I’ve taught yoga in the park when there’s been good weather. It’s always fun to have a change of scenery.”

“I was thinking, I’d like to introduce our training group to yoga. I’ve noticed such a difference in my core strength and flexibility since I’ve started attending your classes. I think the others would love to try, but not everyone will leave the house.” She pauses, sharing a sad look with Gwyn. “If you could come to us instead, that would make it accessible to everyone.” Nesta continues with Gwyn nodding along. 

You’re speechless for a moment at their request. Your smile is from ear to ear as you say, “I’d be honoured.” 

————

A few weeks go by with Nesta and Gwyn continuing to attend your classes. You’re scheduled to train with them at the House of Wind the following day. You’re feeling excited, but nervous at the prospect. 

Nesta mentioned that they also train with two Illyrian males named Cassian and Azriel - you have heard they are fearless warriors and part of the High Lord’s inner circle. Nesta affectionately calls them Cass and Az, but you can’t bring yourself to use their nicknames. You’ve never met either male despite living in Velaris for over 50 years and it seems wrong to not use proper names with anyone of their status.

You begin to wonder if you’ve made a mistake. What could you possibly have to teach that they don’t already know? You feel a bit silly as you look over the training plan for the next day, you’ve decided to go with a hybrid class including a mix of basic poses that work up to some more complex ones. You know they get easier to perform as the body gets warmed up. You’ve also included some time for a cool-down meditation. You hope that, at the very least, everyone will enjoy a slight change in their routine - even if you may not have much to coach them on. 

————

The House Of Wind is high up in the face of the mountains, overlooking all of Velaris. You’ve never been up there yourself, but you’ve always been curious of the dwelling carved into the rock. 

To avoid climbing up the 10,000 steps, Feyre is giving you a lift. Since she’s had Nyx, she’s now able to use her powers again. You get on well with the High Lady, you have many things in common including your community involvement.

You finally land in the training area on top of the House of Wind, very happy to be on the ground again. You were not made for the skies. Steadying yourself, you look around and find eight females including Nesta and Gwyn, and two very handsome Illyrian males. 

If the flying hadn’t already knocked the breath out of you, seeing the shadowsinger for the first time certainly did. You know who it is because clouds of shadows swirled around him - you’ve never seen a male so beautiful. You catch his gaze and look away quickly. Insecurity crept in again and you started to doubt your plan for today’s workout.

Nesta and Gwyn run to greet you, pulling you into a group hug and squealing with laughter. They each grab a hand and pull you towards the group. A striking female with tan skin, brown hair and Illyrian wings walks to the front and pulls you into a hug.

“Hi Aurora, I’m Emerie, I’m so glad to finally meet you. I’ve heard such great things, I’m so excited for today!” 

You say hello to everyone, introducing yourself to the other females. You risk another glance out the corner of your eye at the shadowsinger and see him watching you intently, his head slightly tilted to the side. You feel your cheeks heat up and take a deep breath, trying to calm yourself and hoping that your nervousness goes unnoticed. 

The other male with long hair pulled back into a bun steps towards you with a charming smile, reaching out his hand to shake yours. “Hello Aurora, I’m Cassian and this is Azriel. Nice to finally meet you. I’ve noticed a huge difference in Nesta’s training since she’s started attending your studio. I'm very excited to see what you can do to Az, he could do with being more flexible.” Cassian laughs and nudges Azriel’s shoulder. 

Azriel just nods once at you. A male of few words it seems.

Part Two

[a-libra-writes]

Can you do a romantic headcanon for Victor please from Lackadaisy

Yeeeesssss. This is sort of paired with my earlier married life HCs? This is mostly the non-married stuff (as in yall meeting way later), so sorry for the long preamble! Reader is intended to be femme.

So, the relationship is quite different depending if you were with him when he was younger, or you two got involved during the later Lackadaisy years. If it's the latter, there's ... a lot more guilt and troubled thoughts involved.

For the former - when he was much younger, Viktor was shy, but he made his intentions clear. It would've been more old-fashioned courting, especially if you both met in the old country. He smiled a lot more back then, moreso if you were around.

Attempting to start something when he's years into working for Atlas is .... tricky. Even when it's clear you two have a mutual attraction, and a steady friendship, there's a barrier between you. You don't learn until much later what that barrier is, and why there's so much guilt and sadness in his interactions toward you.

It's the kneecapping that gets you both closer, not that either of you realize it at first. You were always at the Lackadaisy, and even after the ... mess, you didn't intend to leave. Neither did he, and though you wished Viktor would get out of this life, for a long time you'd assumed he had nowhere else to go. It's around this time that you finally learn about the estranged wife, and the daughter whose letters weren't opened. It makes the shame and guilt in his interactions with you make far, far more sense.

So even if nothing may come of it, you stay at his side and with the Lackadaisy, like you always have. You give him quiet company without any strings, sometimes bringing meals (okay, often, because he doesn't cook for himself enough), help him fetch things when his knees make it impossible. Your company is a great, great comfort - even if he never says that, you can tell. Some more observant folks might be able to, as well - the big grumpy man is clearly calmer and more at ease when you're in the room. Yes, this is why Rocky consults you before asking anything of Viktor. Hell, even Mitzi brings things up concerning him with you first.

Ivy is arguably the biggest and loudest supporter of you both, though she doesn't always notice how uncomfortable it makes Viktor, so you have to try to dial down her enthusiasm. She refers to you both as a package deal to others, furthering the assumption to others that you're a couple. And unbeknownst to you, Viktor has brought you up to Elsa, even before Atlas' death and when everything went to hell ... She listened to him without judgement, as she always does, silently hoping he'd stop torturing himself over it and that you were a good person. She wants very much for you to be a good person for her friend.

Well, all the hang-ups aside... once it does eventually happen, and that line has crossed, there's really no going back on it.

Viktor's gone a long time feelings he's undeserving of both receiving and giving affection. He's so used to violence, and accepting the consequences of choosing that life. So, it'll be small-going at first. You'll sit next to him and take his big arm in your's, rest your head against him - and he may lean into it, or stay still. He'll accept quick kisses on the forehead and cheek, especially if you hold his face, but sometimes too much makes him bristle. You will have to be very, very patient.

Eventually he'll put an arm around you when you sit next to time, especially when you're both in the privacy of a warm home. He's extra comfortable and warm to snuggle against! Viktor may grumble a little when you curl up, but he never pushes you away. If anything he'll grab a blanket, since you seem so cold. Many times you two have dozed off like this.

When you're wanting a hug, it's hard for Viktor to deny you, though he feels he's no good at providing comfort. He's better than he thinks, though! You're engulfed in warmth and you feel very protected. You can feel his heart skipping when you rest your cheek against his chest. Viktor isn't sure how long to stay, so he keeps still until you get your fill. If you're actually tall enough, he'll rest his chin on top of your head and try to allow himself to enjoy your embrace.

(On the note of PDA - he isn't inclined to it at all, being a more private man, but if you're already sitting beside him and have your arm in his, he won't pull away. He'll just growl at anyone who dares comment on it.)

It's probably only you, Elsa and Ivy who see Viktor's gentler side, and you're seeing the most of it. He'll hand you his big coat when it's rainy and cold outside (and be nothing short of shocked when you return it washed and smelling floral), he holds you carefully, he speaks much less roughly. Arguably the softest thing you two do is late in the evening, when you're cuddled up on his lap instead of on his side, and playing with his hand while you chat with him. He talks so low you can hear his voice rumbling in his chest, his accent somehow thicker yet easier to understand.

Literally no one else will ever see that side of him so enjoy it and soak it up!!

This is also the time you can finally get him to teach you some Slovak, whereas he's usually brushing you off and saying there's no point. Your accent isn't perfect but that's okay, he finds it endearing. He might actually mess with you and teach wrong words or phases, just so you can figure it out later.

Oh, and in addition to the decent food you make him eat - more than once you've made or bought some good clothes for him, because you know Viktor won't spend anything on himself. Whether it be a scarf or a pair of gloves or a jacket, he wears it often. He'll wear it until it's in tatters, actually. He isn't much for household decorations (any plants will probably end up dead...) but small touches you add around his home will give him some little feelings of sentiment when he looks at them.

(Co-habitation is pretty much out of the picture if you two aren't married, even spending the night at the other's house is .... another one of those lines.)

Doing "normal" couple things with you gives him both a sense of ease and normalcy, though there's always the guilt that will be nagging in the back. In the daytime he might accompany you on some errands, leading to the sight of a huge scary cat looming over a smaller and more easy-going one. ("Excuse me, he asked for no pickles.")

He might grumble about having to carry things, but he really doesn't mind these errands. If anything, it's good for him to get out of the bar and his apartment. He's still just as protective, though... god forbid someone looks at you too long, or someone tries to talk down to you. They'd have to be stupid to try anything when he's glowering with his one eye.

You thought his overprotectiveness was just the result of rowdy customers and drunk men during Lackadaisy's heyday, but no, it still persists. It's nice to have someone who will literally throw someone that's harassing you, buuut sometimes Viktor gets too ... enthusiastic, or makes hasty decisions. There's a few stores you aren't allowed back in because he decided to threaten and/or bodily harm a man who was getting too chummy.

Overall, it can be ... a slow and trying relationship, but if you're patient and someone who also wants a steady comfort, and you already value your friendship with him - well, Viktor is a much better man than he thinks he is.

[sirenjose]

Do you think Mrs. Plinius will offer Norton a better payout if he joins her side over Orpheus?

🤔 Norton’s motivations according to his 2nd letter are monetary. Whether or not someone wants to argue Orpheus is or isn’t the one to make the assassination request in Norton’s 2nd letter and whether or not they also want to argue Alice is the female he was asked to target, we know Norton is working with Orpheus based on what we see in Ashes of Memory 2.

It is the only explanation for the sequence we see with how Alice chases the mysterious figure (Orpheus) into Darkwoods then runs into Norton, who she sees as Fool’s Gold due to hallucinations (from Siren’s Song most likely) the same way she saw Frederick as Mary at Kreiburg racecourse. We know it’s Norton based on seeing the real Norton (weilding a pickaxe) reflected in the water. Norton chases Alice right into Orpheus (the hands that grab her at the end of that sequence) who knocks her out. Why else would Orpheus bring her to Norton who chases her back to Orpheus? Orpheus did the same thing to Alice but with Frederick earlier. But even more apparent is when we see Norton in the secret basement no one should know about (besides Orpheus as the manor owner and Alice as someone who is purposefully investigating the manor and knows many of its secrets already anyways due to having grown up there), using Orpheus’ drugs on Alice. Those drugs should definitely be something only Orpheus should know about, as they’re key to the rest of his experiments and ultimate goal, and none of the other participants in any game have ever known about it otherwise. So you have to be working with Orpheus (like Sam for example) to have that sort of knowledge.

Anyways, rambling aside sorry, we all know Norton’s primary goal is to escape poverty. That’s all he cares about. So he was offered money. It is likely Orpheus is aware of what Norton did in Golden Cave, and if so could’ve used that information to blackmail him.

If money was all he was offered, it is possible Melly could make a better offer to Norton to win him over, especially as we know Orpheus is in debt to Count Barriere while we aren’t aware of Melly being in any such debt. She acquired quite a bit after her husband’s death, so I assume she’s been doing ok, though she could potentially lose that if people became aware of the fact she was the one to cause her husband’s death. If that didn’t happen, we’d be good. But I do believe Orpheus is already aware of the truth (I discussed this idea in my Melly analysis), as I think that’s why he sent her that exact bee specimen to get Melly to come to the manor. This is also why I have wondered if Melly is being blackmailed, same way Norton and potentially even Frederick are all being manipulated to help Orpheus.

Speaking of, if Norton is also being blackmailed, it could be hard to convince Norton to join her if Norton really doesn’t want anyone to know the truth of what happened at the mine. I have to admit, I’m honestly not sure how… much Norton would prioritize keeping the truth secret if he had the chance to earn a lot of money. It’s possible he might if it ended up with him being threatened punishment like jail, but we know Norton cares a lot about escaping his fate, so I think this is a bit of a tricky question.

If Melly and Norton are being blackmailed, I do wonder if this could be something Alice could fix. Orpheus may be a novelist, but she is an “independent investigative journalist”, in which case, her experience with this sort of thing could help either to counter anything Orpheus could potentially say if he were either to try to report to officials (like police) or to the public, or even bend the truth to get them off the hook if necessary.

Ok I’m probably rambling and being too confusing now. Bad habit. I can’t help thinking as I talk so I end up writing way more nonsense than I initially intend.

Simple answer: if it was simply a matter of offering a higher amount than Orpheus, I believe he easily would. If it’s a combination of money and being blackmailed, that could make it a bit trickier. That likely would require dealing with Orpheus to some degree first, and potentially some aid from Alice if necessary as I doubt Orpheus has any blackmail material on her and so she might be more able to assist and sway him over.

Another answer I just had, maybe if Melly (or even Alice) offered a higher amount as well as maybe counter blackmail against Orpheus, that might be enough (he has created drugs and experimented with them on people to mess up their memories and everything, as well as created scenarios that may have led people to becoming injured or killed. Though it’s possible he could argue the other participants did that, but he is still responsible for a lot of people’s disappearances. Either way, just thoughts).

Actually, maybe Norton would be interested in siding with her as long as she offered money. With how much Netease is trying to draw similarities between Melly and Norton, if Melly fears Orpheus more than Norton, it’s possible he may feel similarly about Orpheus, at least in terms of dislikes him to some degree for certain reasons, but it’s hard to say for now. I imagine due to her fear that could be motivation enough to say she’d at least consider offering Norton something to try to get him to join her. Norton right now I still think isn’t completely convinced he wants to kill the female he was asked to target yet, but that is a topic that will the lengthen this already too long response I’m already guilty about 😅. I’ll at least say i think this based on coa4, his backstory trailer, and a few other minor things)

I am so sorry for all this nonsense. I had too much fun thinking about this 😅 I hope that answered your question. (Especially when it is still my dream that Norton will end up siding with and/or helping Melly and Alice. If that happened, I’d be so happy. That on top of how I already believe Norton isn’t dead. I already made 2 super long threads on twitter about that as I absolutely refuse to believe otherwise, but anyways 🥲)

[thatboneyfella]

best places to find ethically sourced bones-

railroad tracks:

- be careful doing this, parts of these (at least in my area) are considered private property, however parts are not, and it can be difficult to tell which parts are and which are not. look out for signs. also dangerous. stay off to the sides at all times and do not, i repeat DO NOT, EVER, cross the tracks, for any reason, unless at an assigned crossing- during the allotted time period. trains will not stop for you, they are not able to do that- and sometimes they may not even see you. be constantly looking over your shoulder and read up more on railroad safety. however- many animals get caught in the tracks and are hit by trains, or simply their bones can be found by the side of the tracks, so this makes it quite a great place to find many bones.

near bodies of water:

-my favourite body of water is along the riverside. this is a great place to find many fish bones, as well as the bones of the animals who come to find the fish. fisherman also may discard fish off on the riverside if they are not happy with what they have caught. just be careful not to be in a metropark! overall not super dangerous, and a great place to find bones, but limited on the types youll find.

rubbish piles:

-this one typically finds racoons, opossums, rats, mice, dogs, cats, and other animals of the sort. but that gives a pretty good range. be careful of the live animals youre bound to find rummaging round in there though. you can usually find whole skeletons, and theyre usually already cleaned really well (of the flesh) because of the, again, live animals. clean them extra well because of the diseases these animals carry while being in these environments. overall, another excellent option for different varieties of bones.

state parks:

-this one is iffy, it depends entirely on which state park, and what the individual rules are. some state parks allow you to scavenge things like mushrooms, and hunt, which doesn't explicitly state, but obviously would include bones. however some, do not. but if they do, take full advantage of it, its an incredible opportunity, and even take advantage of all being able to use the hunters at your disposal (for information only of course), which brings me to the last location on my list.

dumping sites:

-my personal favourite, dumping sites are where hunters discard parts/carcasses they do not have need or want for. bones are typically among these parts, thus making it peak scavenging grounds for us bone collectors. one downside however is that they can be quite tricky to find, and can typically only be found by actually asking around a group of hunters to find out which dumping site the majority of them use. but when you find one oh boy, its all worth it, so many different types of bones, so many different animals, so many different sizes, its everything you could ever want, or ask for. so take the chance and ask around. its worth it. trust me.

i hope this was helpful. i may begin documenting more about my bone findings, and more about bones an anatomy in general if anyone is interested in that.

[fastcardotmp3]

Five times Max sees Robin Buckley through Nancy’s eyes, and one time she sees them both through her own. 

read chapter 1 ▪️ rated T ▪️ Ronance & Elumax

an excerpt from wish on an eyelash chapter 1:

“How’s Jonathan?” 

Prodding. 

They’re outside, feeding Mrs. Miller’s dog through the fence, and Nancy doesn’t look at Max, but her eyes get bright in a way that feels mostly the same. 

“Oh! He’s— he’s good.”

“Are you two still… together?” Max knows it might be a sore subject, an awkward thing to have to ask at all. If she can’t tell because Nancy never talks about it, then that’s gonna make them both aware of a certain sort of situation present in that relationship, but Max asks all the same. 

She asks all the same because sometimes she thinks about Lucas, about how much she misses him, about how excited he looks when he wears his basketball uniform and how sad he looks every time the two of them end up sharing a handful of stilted sentences. 

“What? Yes! Of course, I mean, yeah, yeah,” Nancy says, too-quick and defensive and making Max’s brows lift on instinct at the way she stumbles over the assurance. 

Nancy’s not a word-stumbler. She doesn’t always think before she speaks, but even then her words are clear. 

“You sure about that?” 

Nancy shoots her a look, exasperation to it as much as any sort of genuine annoyance, and Max just meets it head on with a challenge.

“It's just tricky,” Nancy relents with a shake of her head, bringing her attention back to the fluffy ears waiting for the pleasant scratch of her long nails through the fence. “He's so far away and— I guess I just realized I don't even know anyone else in my grade all that well. And definitely not anyone who— knows.”

It's kind of the opposite problem to the one Max has been dealing with, her too many friends who know too much for her comfort. These kids she can't be in the same room as without feeling the weight of their concern, no matter how well-intentioned.

Because their concern is still hers to carry, even if it's meant to help her. Their concern is as heavy as her guilt, because they're all born from the same place inside of her.

They're not talking about Max today though. Max is horribly grateful they're not talking about her today.

“You know, um, Steve's sailor friend, right?” Max suggests, sliding another small slice of cheese through the fence and letting the tips of her fingers get slobbered up. “She's in your grade.”

“Robin?” Nancy says it like maybe it hadn't even occurred to her. “Yeah,” Max snorts at the twist-up of Nancy's mouth, the sort of bafflement that Max is even suggesting such a thing as if the reason most of the people in their little monster hunting team aren't as close as they are because they got dragged into the aforementioned monster hunting. “That's the one. What's wrong with her? You guys could be friends.“

[hyunjzone]

✰ ice skating with i.n.

genre! fluff, sfw.

word count! 1k (1,014)

warnings! n/a, only a bit of cursing lol and some pet names such as baby and the nickname “innie.” should be it ??? not proofread…

pairing! jeongin x fem!reader (though i think it could be used as gn!reader too…)

tags! established relationship, fluff, jeongin is teasing and playful w/ you on the ice, but all’s good

summary! you and jeongin go ice skating for a little date and he’s way better at it than you, and he is having a lot of fun while teaching you and teasing you at the same time

“two people,” he says to the guy at the front counter. jeongin brought you to an ice skating rink. you told him you couldn’t skate, but he insisted that it would be fun and that he’d teach you all about how to do it anyway. you reluctantly agreed and here you are. jeongin gives the man your shoe sizes and then he comes back with two pairs of ice skates in each of your sizes. “thank you,” mumbles jeongin with a small bow, almost more like a nod, and enters the huge room in which contains the rink.

it’s immediately much colder, and there’s only a few people at the rink today. you feel a little nervous and shiver at the sudden change in temperature; jeongin had warned to bring a jacket. thank goodness you complied.

“go sit by those benches, that’s where you change your shoes, see?” he says as he walks you over while he holds your wrist gently, giving you a tug.

he was wearing a long coat and you were wearing a fuzzy sweater. it was the warmest you had. he sits you down and smiles. “just take off your shoes and change into these,” he instructs with a casual tone and places your skates next to you. “balance is key. don’t panic. i’ll guide you,” he chuckles. he takes off his own shoes and you do the same.

“these are kind of tight,” you comment with a hushed voice as you slip your feet inside them. “they’re supposed to be,” he replies. “do you need help?” you shake your head slightly and tie the laces after putting both on. he nods in reply, leaning back on the bench slightly as he waits, he’s already put on his own skates. the guy watches your movements to see any struggle.

“good, now just stand up when you’re ready, don’t worry. i’ll be right behind you,” he tells you. you stand up slowly, trying not to wobble too much. he helps you balance yourself. you’re so careful to not fall or slip, but the feeling is so wildly foreign you can’t help but wobble. you’re sure that if you fall you’d hurt yourself somehow or break something. you try to keep yourself steady. “you can do it!” jeongin encourages you.

he leads you onto the ice, right behind you for every step. “that’s it, you’re doing well.” you inch closer, little by little, and you get onto the ice. people are smoothly gliding about on just the other side, but here you are at the entrance with no clue how to even move.

“okay, here’s where it gets tricky. you can’t just crab walk on the ice. you should make smooth motions. let me show you, yeah?”

“yes, please, innie,” you say sort of playfully. he grins back at you.

“so, you should stand like this. your feet should be at an angle, like so.” he demonstrates for you. “there should be a little bend at your knee. well, that’s what helped me. try it.”

you copy his moves as best as you can. he instructs for you to bend more or bend less, to maintain balance, to do all of this. it’s almost overwhelming, learning a new skill.

“good! now, to move, just bring your knee inwards. then slowly push it out. look…”

he does as he said himself: bringing the knee inwards, one foot at a time, and gliding, pushing out. he moves.

“then you do the same for the other. go slow as you start. and don’t be afraid of falling, the ice won’t hurt you,” he jokes. you shake your head and sort of stare at the floor. doing your best to do as he did, you bring your leg in, pushing out…

you move, but you start to worry. oh god, how do you steer on these things? your leg just kind of goes wherever, desperate to not fall, but alas, you drop to the floor right on your butt. jeongin lets out a gasp and then walks over to you. laughing softly, he offers you a hand.

“that’s okay! see, falling isn’t as bad as you think. it’s just… cold. and you should dust off your ass.”

“shut up,” you mutter shyly.

“it’s fine, nobody cares. everybody falls at some point when they learn how to do this and you’re no different. don’t even worry. just get up, silly.”

taking his hand, you very slowly stand up and he stables you. “all good?”

you give a nod and look around for a bit before your eyes return to his. he smirks and his eyes fold like crescents.

“don’t give me that look.”

“what? i’m not even doing anything.”

“you’re planning something,” you accuse him.

“what makes you think that? i mean, you’re right, but how’d you know?”

“you’re obvious! that stupid look you give.”

“oh, don’t be so mean. c’mon, i just wanted to spin you.”

“no. don’t you dare spin me. i’ll really die, jeongin, do not spin me.”

“it’s not that bad of a proposal! you should take the offer, it’s fun.”

“no.”

“please, baby?”

“nah.”

“seriously?”

“yes.”

“oh, yes as in you want me to spin you?”

“no! that’s not what i—“

you’re cut off and jeongin spins you around, not too fast that it makes you dizzy, but it was scary in a way. but it was fun. hey, it was fun! but you can’t admit that to jeongin. nope.

“oh, don’t ever do that again.”

“really? you didn’t enjoy that?” he teases.

“no.”

“come on, don’t be like that.”

“i am being like that! you’re making fun of me!” you exclaim.

“yeah, and i can do it more,” he laughs. he’s such a tease sometimes.

“no spinning.”

he lets out a hearty chuckle and looks into you with a little smile and those pretty eyes of his. “fine, fine, no spinning, as per my princess’ request. promise.”

“thank you,” you say with a playful tone before looking down at the ice again.

“maybe ice skating is fun.”

“maybe?”

“oh, shut up.”

[ask-the-royal-absol]

Kader had heard about this Star Sending event and thought it was a fantastic idea. He needed a distraction from the most recent event that had happened in his life. Though, it was tricky thinking about things he would truly want.

He began writing on the page, but soon screwed it up. It just wasn’t sounding right. Another attempt. That one ended up near the bin too. A third try.

“Dear Sending Spirit,

My name is Prince Kader Oberon. Thank you so much for gracing me with the opportunity to become a part of this celebration. What an exciting event! I was very much thrilled to hear about it and I definitely need some of that holiday cheer. My sister and I have recently experienced something truly awful and so I wish for this event to hopefully bring us a bit of joy during this tricky time.

Whoever receives this letter may consider this a wish list of sorts. I wish you luck, stranger. The first thing that comes to mind is some new fabric. You see, I just so happen to be a skilled tailor, sewing outfits for myself and others. A Prince needs something to do in this free time! I’d like to make a new dress for my sister. There is an incredibly important event coming very soon and I wish for her to wear something which I know she would love. She prefers yellows and blues but I’m sure I could make any fabric work for her. If you can find a gorgeous dress, that would work too as I could make alterations to fit her size.

Secondly, I’m thinking some gorgeous gemstones would be handy to have. Especially for when I need to add some extra flair to any outfits I make. I’d prefer to have green gemstones as it seems to be a colour I don’t have much of but any colour would work. It’s just be nice to expand my collection of gemstones to be able to use. We don’t really have too much access to different gemstones as the kingdom which mines them can be rather demanding of other resources so trading options are limited.

Next, I would love to grow my flower collection. The royal gardens are one of the most wonderful places to walk through. However, I feel as though there needs some grand flower or plant in the centre to really take it to the next level. Any colour will do as long as it’s grand enough to be consider centrepiece material. Don’t worry about it being a lot of work to look after. The royal gardeners know how to take care of a range of flowers so I have full confidence they will tend to it well.

Finally, if those items are tricky to find, cakes are something I tend to indulge in a lot so I would love to try a dessert from the land which you are from. I am open to any kinds of flavours but the sweeter the better. If you could also provide the recipe as well, I would be most gracious. I’m sure the royal bakers would be delighted to try a new challenge.

Again, thank you ever so much Sending Spirit for the chance to celebrate this wondrous event. And to whoever receives this list, I wish you luck on finding these gifts. Even if it is small, I shall be most thankful for your efforts.

Yours faithfully,

Prince Kader Oberon of the Kingdom of Whimsain.”

The prince put down his feather and looked over his letter again. It seemed good enough. He was happy with what he had thought of and hoped it was clear to any who had received it.

(Notes: Prince Kader would be thankful if any of these were given to him but he’d prefer the first one if possible. He may be less kind to those who give him a gift who are of the dark, ghost and poison types but would still be grateful either way. He’s currently going through a really tough time at the moment so he just needs that special something to help things feel better for him.

Basically the items he wants are:

-fabrics for dress making or a dress (preferably blue or yellow)

-gemstones to put on outfits

-a magnificent flower to become the centrepiece for the royal gardens

-a cake from your homeland (possibly recipe too)

Here’s a reference for Kader:

I think that’s everything!)

[lucky-draws]

scholarly article: maria silent hill.

uhhmm i feel like ive got a lot of maria thoughts that have been floating in my head for ages and they need to escape captivity. this isn't structured analysis though this is just me trying to explain why i like her in a rambling and disorganised manner. (and sort of hoping it might help me to do some art or something.)

the obvious thing that makes maria such an interesting character is that she's not Real...she's the product of james' imagination (at least, that's one interpretation..) ...she's an idea, a symbolism, a hallucination, a ghost, whatever. but in born from a wish, you get to play as her, you get to hear her thoughts, you experience her and she feels as "real" as any other playable character, and it's like. its just so so good, because she's a self-aware unalive girl and there's so much to explore regarding her sense of self, and her sense of identity. like.

she has no past, no memories. or does she? does she have mary's memories, or tastes, or habits, or was she "born" as a blank slate? there's so many different ways to think of her, but in the case of her being a product of james' mind as a kind of idealised version of mary/expression of his sexual repression, i like to think that some of james' desires manifest in her, like maybe she has this kind of restless energy, a restless hunger/desire that she can't really control or finds it hard to suppress. idk its hard to articulate. ( listen to sister of night by depeche mode if you like because that is a song that makes me think hoh....this is maria ! )

and the whole thing of her knowing that she only exists in james mind/because of james. she tries to cling on to him, tries to convince him that "i'm always here for you, james!" because she knows that as a figment of his imagination, if he decides he doesn't want her anymore, she will just cease to exist. james is her "creator" basically. she's at his mercy.which is a horrible and tasty dynamic. and i just enjoy the whole thing of can she break free of him; can she break free of her connection to him, to mary, can she develop thoughts and feelings and desires that are entirely her own. could she become a "real" person. does she want to? she knows she's a ghost; but when she decides not to kill herself, is that out of a desire to live or resignation to the fact that she can't die? she's an incredibly lonely character.

(also if you've ever seen tarkovskys solaris or read the book maybe you will understand me when i compare her to the character of hari i.e. an apparition/hallucination who possibly becomes/believes she becomes real. idk. unalive girls who become alive even though its sort of not possible. i just enjoy them. )

i also have a very specific sort of canon-divergence flavour of idea related to the rebirth ending and in a sort of maria x mary way; my vague imagining is that james succeeds in bringing mary back to life, through the ancient Powers of the town or whatever. but there's a catch, so to speak; maybe the town demands that for a life to be reborn, a life has to be taken, and so james um. conveniently for shipping purposes. dies. but mary lives, and so does maria, because the mysterious and tricky town considers her to be inseperable from mary/kind of the same person, so they both end up alive and in silent hill. which opens up so many issues like. how does maria come to terms with looking at someone who is her copy (and vice versa.).

does mary even want to be alive? maybe she isn't "properly" alive; maybe she's just a ghost like maria. maybe james isn't really dead; maybe they're both existing as products of both his imagination and the town's influence; either way, now there's two unalive girls in an empty, monster-filled town. and it's like do they hate each other are they just sad ghosts together do they have gay sex sometimes we just dont know. i wanted/still kind of want to write fic about this idea in some form or other but so far i just haven't really managed to find time or braincells but maybe i still can at some point.

of course, there are other ways of interpreting maria; i've seen the theory that actually, she's the product of mary's desires; she's who mary wants to be, an idealised mary who isn't sick. and maybe she felt some kind of repression or opression being with james. and it certainly fits the "born from a wish" title very well; a wish to be healthy, a wish to be free. who knows. that idea is equally tasty and fascinating, really, but i only have room in my tiny mind for one interpretation so im kind of just leaning for now towards her being born from james' mind intstead . so uhm.

conclusion: she's just so so fascinating to me and she rotates in the back of my mind 24/7. i love sh2 and i looove born from a wish its sooo interesting to be able to play as someone like maria.

also she's sexy .

the end.

[tropes-and-tales]

A Package Deal

December 6:  Mittens/Kid - Parent and child’s caretaker (Benny Magalon x F!reader)

(From the winter prompts found here)

CW:  Single dad Benny; convoluted plot; I dunno.

Word Count:  1538

AN:  Requested by anon!

Benny Magalon didn’t necessarily feel any sort of way towards children before.  He always assumed he’d have kids someday, after he met a woman and married her, but it was just an assumption about a hazy future when he, a detective with Major Crimes, necessarily lived in the present.

It all went out the window when his girlfriend got pregnant and decided to keep it.  He wasn’t sure they’d last as a couple, but he thought he’d at least have a partner to co-parent with.  Six months after the birth of their daughter, though, his girlfriend split without a word.

It was the worst six months of his life—sleepless nights, a yawning black hole of terror that he won’t be able to handle single parenthood.

Six months after that, she sent paperwork signing over any and all rights to their daughter, Ava, and Benny realized he had no choice but to handle his new life as a single dad and sole provider to his young daughter.

-----

He’s not completely alone.  

His parents help a lot.  His mother and sister are invaluable; they help him navigate the tricky world of infants with their sleep regression and unformed skulls and burgeoning immune systems sensitive to every germ.  He has cousins who pitch in, who show up with one-dish meals that require only a quick reheating, who quietly tackle the mountain of laundry that accumulates during the work week.

Hell, even the guys help out in a pinch once in a while.  It’s a sight, Connors sitting at Benny’s kitchen table with Ava and coloring in her My Little Pony coloring books.

His best help comes from next door.

Benny meets you when he’s at his absolute lowest point:  abandoned and left to care for an infant, he manages to find a little bungalow that he can actually afford the mortgage on.  He desperately wants to give Ava stability, and something about owning a house—albeit a small one—with a tiny backyard makes him feel like he isn’t failing completely as a father.

He meets you the day he moves in—his next door neighbor.  You’re an illustrator; you work from home.  Ava’s red-faced squalling pulls you from the tranquility of your home as he struggles to handle his daughter while directing the movers.

“Need help?” you ask that day, and in the five years since, you’ve been nothing but a blessing in both Benny’s and Ava’s lives.

-----

It’s hard to pinpoint when he falls for you.  Certainly, you’re a lifesaver almost immediately:  you step in when Benny’s called into work at all hours.  How many times, in that first year, do you sleep on his couch and watch over his sleeping daughter so that he can keep his job and health benefits?

And once he hits a rhythm, how many times do you bring dinner over for him and Ava under the flimsy guise of having too much for just yourself?

And who waves off his thanks, even when he’s so heartsore that the words crowd in his throat, that a woman who happens to live next door to him is more loving to his daughter than her own biological mother is?

Sure, the torch Benny Magalon carries for you is likely driven by the care you give to Ava, and to him too.  But he thinks in another universe it’d be just the same, a gradual revelation to the person you are—because you’re kind and selfless, but you’re also talented and funny.  He knows all your quirks and habits, how you hate to wear socks and live in sandals, how you bake things that taste delicious but look like dogshit.  How you drink your coffee, how you hate ice in your drinks, how you have a dainty little giggle but a hearty, wall-shaking sneeze.

You are friendly with the other people who help with Ava—namely his family.  His mother especially takes a shine to you, thinks you’re an absolute angel, and she gives Benny not-so-subtle hints that you’d be good for him too.

He never makes a move.  He lets that torch burn low and steady without ever letting on how he feels.  He thinks you must think him pathetic, the loser next door who needs your help, and he can’t imagine what you’d see in him even if he had the courage to ask you out.

-----

Somehow Ava turns five, and you’re as much her family as any actual Magalon.  You greet her when she gets off the bus from kindergarten, and you watch her until Benny gets home.  

It’s one of his favorite things, picking Ava up from your place.  By now, he has a key to your place (and you have one to his), and he loves to let himself into your house.  Loves rounding the corner to see his young daughter at your kitchen table eating a snack, and two of you drawing or coloring or paging through a picture book.

It’s better than any drug, the way the two of you both turn to greet him, both of you with smiles to see him.  When he’s having a rough week at work, he leans into the fantasy a little, pretends that he’s coming home.  That he lives there with you and Ava, and that he’s not just there to collect his daughter and take her home to their own house.

-----

It must be said, though:  if Benny loves you in secret, then Ava is unabashed in her love for you.

She’s at that age where she notices the family configurations of her fellow kindergartners.  Fathers, it seems, are optional—Ava rattles off the names of her classmates that have absentee dads with no compunction at all.  But she herself is one of only two classmates without mothers, and there comes a point when she draws the natural conclusion that her warm-hearted neighbor who watches her each afternoon should just go ahead and be her mother.

It’s one of the most difficult conversations of Benny’s life.  Ava is so damned earnest and there’s no convincing reason why you can’t be her mom.  How can he make a five year-old understand that he and Ava are a package deal?  And how you probably aren’t interested in signing up for anything more than you already do for them?

Ava seems to understand the gentle terms he uses to couch the situation, but he catches the stubborn pout of her lips when he turns away.  He knows the expression all too well:  his daughter isn’t defeated.  She’s only biding her time.

-----

Christmas is just around the corner, and Ava is old enough to help with gifts for friends and family.  He takes her to the Grove one weekend with a list of people to shop for.

Benny is not good at gift-giving.  He’s awful, in fact.  With family, he just slides a gift card across the table to them.  With the guys, it’s as simple as giving them a bottle of booze.  And Ava is easy enough—she gives him an exhaustive catalogue of things she wants from Santa.

Where he struggles is with you.

What can he even get a person like you?  You have an outsized place in his heart, but he can’t express that via a holiday gift.  He can’t get you jewelry or anything intimate, but anything else (candles, chocolates, whatever the fuck other things he can’t think of at the moment) is too impersonal for the woman who takes care of him and his daughter for no reason other than her own kind heart.

Ava has a better handle on you.  Kinda.  Maybe.  At least, she doesn’t hesitate to find what she thinks is the perfect gift for you.

“Here, daddy!” she says, and she lets go of his hand to run over to a display of gloves, mittens, scarves.  Of all things in California…

“I don’t think so, peqūena,” he replies with a chuckle.

She pulls a pair of bright purple mittens off of the display and turns to him with that pout.  “For when she’s in the snow.”

He smiles, holds out his hand, and she gives him the mittens after a beat.  “It doesn’t snow here very often,” he points out.  In fact, Ava only knows about snow as a concept from the holiday movies they’ve been watching…

When he goes to put the mittens back, her pouting lower lip starts to tremble, and Benny realizes that he’s about a minute away from tears.  It’s been a long day for a little girl, and the Grove is busy, and she is late for her nap…

“Okay,” he says, hasty to head off the impending meltdown.  “You think she’ll like purple?”

Ava sniffs dramatically and nods.  “It’s her favorite color.”

Benny takes the mittens and goes to pay, his daughter’s hand gripped in his own, and he doesn’t bother to correct her—purple is her favorite color, not yours.  

It’s fine.  He’ll let Ava give you the mittens as her gift, and maybe he can come up with something nicer, from him to you.  Something that will magically capture his feelings for you without being forward or creepy or too much.

[bokettochild]

Opera house AU, a proposal on how Sky and Sun became Legend's parents

So although Time looked after Legend during Twi's singing lessons, there's still a lot of time a kid would need time and attention. Like when Time is directing Twilight onstage, that's when Sun is looking after Legend. Or Twilight's sick/swamped at work/stuck in traffic, Sky picks Legend up from school and takes him to the opera house (and maybe secretly gets ice cream if the kid promises to keep quiet). Heck, maybe Sun hand sewed Legend's baby blanket

And a few times at school events that need a parent's presence, Sky and/or Sun come if Twilight's unable to. Or they show up anyways because Legend's imprinted on them

And one mother's day when Legend was six or so, he asked what that means. Teacher explains it well, Legend simply correlates the description to Sun. He's confused why everyone's in tears when he gives her the card "It's so obvious she's my mom" XD

I was thinking something similar. When Twilight joined the opera he was in crap conditions, so once the pay was better he got an apartment with a roommate and everything and you know who his roommate was? Sky! The dude had his girlfriend over a bit, but she was sweet and so good with Legend so Twilight really didn't mind. Since they lived together though, Sky was always there to offer help with a fussy baby Legend and he's just naturally warm and soft and gentle in ways that Twilight hasn't had to be (o experience with actual babies, only children).

Sky is also so much more emotionally well adjusted than Twilight, so he was the put together one of the two of them and Twilight was the walking disaster. Between the two of them though they managed to keep their tiny roommate fed, clean and happy.

Twilight's job is pretty tricky though because the hours are less predictable. Sky's rehearsals had a set schedule, but building sets? If something falls apart, doesn't work or gets destroyed then they put in the overtime and that meat sometime Twi couldn't get off work to pick up Legend from school or attend meetings or even any of his various events (Legend is an overachiever, he joined almost all the clubs)

Luckily! If both boys were busy, Sun was also eager to help! She did cheer in school so she was a lifesaver for both because Legend also joined cheer and she was far better at helping with his routines and training than either of them (two bulky, muscled men).

Sun was around a lot in general, and sort of fell into their lives as easy as a missing piece, providing advice for both and totally not falling deeper for Sky every time she saw him watching over this tiny precious little baby.

By the time Legend was old enough to go to school and learned that moms and dads existed in real life and not just stories, he sort of just mentally assigned the roles to the two people who fit the roles his teachers descried. Moms are the women who sing kids to sleep and wipe their tears and cook the food (Sky and Twilight are passing cooks but not great so Sun was bringing over food all the time) and help with school (Sun was an A+ student, Twilight and Sky were not so they're happy to let her tutor their baby). And since Twilight has always been his Uncle, than Sky must be his dad, right?

So yeah. Luckily Sky and Sun were overwhelmingly delighted with his assessment rather than upset in any way, and they're been his Mom and Dad ever since, even after they moved in together later and got married and Twilight got his own place for him and Ledge. They showed up for every school event and birthday and they've been as involved in his life as they could be, which is great because Twilight isn't always the best person to come to about some things or help with others. he tries, but sometimes a mother's touch is needed, or a more subtle approach like Sky uses.

[sweetfirebird]

AITA

AITA If I try to Set Up My Brother?

goddessofmfdeathandspring:

This is a throwaway account because even though he never comes on here, my brother just knows things, so I am taking precautions.

My adopted older brother is kind of my best friend. When I say adopted, I mean that he adopted me. He found me shortly after I’d run away from the bio mom’s for the millionth time and even though he was just a teenager, he brought me back to his home and his family, where I was welcomed. Honestly, I’d love him just for that but we really are close. Which is why I want to do something for him about how lonely he is.

Oh, he’s not lonely in the sense that he’s alone. Our family is big and he is loved, and he has friends outside the family that he visits a few times a year. No, this is the romantic sort of lonely. We tell each other a lot, but he never volunteers anything about anything like that. –And before anyone says anything, look, he might be ace and that would be fine, but I truly don’t think he’s aro. Why? Little things. The way he looks whenever someone in the family brings their new boyfriend or girlfriend or lover to meet him. (It’s sort of a complicated family dynamic but for this, you might think of him as like the family patriarch? Or something along those lines. Although he’s not even thirty.) Things like that which tell me that my brother, let’s call him Louis, doesn’t want to be alone in the way that he is.

And ok, it’s not just romantic loneliness. There is really no one around on his level. For some background, Louis is a polymath. He’s very smart, and he, for lack of a better way to explain it here, knows things before other people do. Added to that, he has some disabilities as well as some facial scarring from an incident when he was like 19. Personally, I think the scarring makes him look like a wizard or something from a fantasy game, and honestly, the people in town don’t seem put off by it—the opposite in fact—but he’s sensitive about it. He’s also very tall and, as I have overheard more than once in the shop where I work in our small town, to most people, he’s hot. I’m not sure if people are too intimidated to ask him out, or if they do ask him, but then realize midway through their first conversation that he might be a little awkward, but he is also just… on a completely different level than they are.  

He’s not rude about it. If anything, he’s too nice to people who don’t like finding out how much he knows.

Anyway. What I wanted to do is ask someone for help finding someone for him. It’s just that the person I want to ask is maybe not Louis’ favorite person in the world? So… Louis is not straight, and our town is very… accepting in some ways, but tricky about this one issue. (A big name in our town is gay and for some reason this gets a lot of wannabe small town royalty heated.) The person I want to ask is I think gay.(I’ve never asked his preferred label but he has off-handedly discussed men with me from time to time. But even if he’s not gay, he still knows people and isn’t a bigot. He is also well… if one person in the world could intimidate my brother right back, it would be this person.

I’ll call him Robert. Robert is the opposite of my brother which might be why Louis gets weird around him, tense and stiff and more awkward than I knew he could be. Robert is bossy, and, opinionated and feels things out loud, if that makes sense? And he can see more about people than even my brother can. So I want to ask him if he knows of anyone who might do for Louis, in town or anywhere close by. I don’t think he will be angry, but my brother might be. From the way he frets before any encounters with Robert, you’d think Robert had kicked his ass once or something. As if tiny little Robert would. He’s just busy all the time, and distracted, and if he snips at Louis, it’s over silly things like how he thinks Louis works too hard or lets people in town demand too much of him.

Which is rich, coming from Robert, who is constantly working, and really needs someone to take care of him according to my mother, but when I ask who would do that, she just makes a funny face and asks if I’ve seen Louis recently. All the same, Robert will fuss over Louis, and peck at him for being overworked, and chide him for wearing store brought scarves and things (Robert is a highly sought after fabric artist) all of which usually makes my brother frown in return and then go off and mope for a while.

He doesn’t explain when I ask, and only ever says nice things about Robert. But, as just one example, the last time Louis had to go over to see Robert, he paced in our kitchen for ten minutes before finally girding his loins to drive over to Robert’s house. I have no idea what happened once he got there, but when he came home, he only stayed for about an hour before he packed his things and went off camping in the woods for a while, which is how he broods.

But I really can’t take the way he watches when the kids in the family do silly fortune-telling games to find their true loves, or the way he avoids the subject when one of our brothers who has decided he is a matchmaker tries to discuss it with him, or how quiet he gets when I suggest he go out to the one bar in town that caters to the younger crowd so he can find someone. Once when I suggested it, he just smiled sadly and didn’t say anything except that he was, “Waiting.”

Ugh right? It’s terrible. He’s a little different than most, yeah, but he should have someone who isn’t afraid of him and can look out for him. Because Robert is right. Louis does let people in town demand too much of him.

So. Even knowing about his discomfort around Robert, WIBTA if I snuck behind my brother’s back and asked Robert to help me find him someone?

Edit: A lot of you in the comments are convinced Louis has feelings for Robert for some reason. I don’t even know how to tell you how ridiculous that is.  

[xxkylarthelonerxx]

how do you handle a headstrong darling that doesn't want you taking care of them?!? :(

this is another tricky situation to manage...

the main way to handle that, i think, would be to prove to your darling that they need you. because they do. don't try to let them convince you otherwise.

staging any sort of accident can always work well. i like adding special things to my darling's food or drinks to make them sleepy, or dissociated, or anything similar... then i wait until my additions kick in so i can come in and save them! i usually take them to the nurse if we're in the middle of school, or to my house if it's at any other time. then i can show them how good i am at helping them! doing this repeatedly can show your darling that you'll be there for them every time they come down with mysterious ailments... it helps a lot.

but if your darling is a little more suspicious, their accident might need to be more physical. judge this based on how long you know you'll be able to take care of them. whether it's a large cut, a fracture, a bone break... anything would work, just as long as they don't associate you with the initial accident. you have to stage it, somehow... or knock them out so they don't see that it was you.

then you can bandage them up, bring them to the hospital if needed, and then bring them back to your house for extra care! you can feed them, keep them happy, make sure they get their medications (which you can always add extra surprises to if you need them to stay longer!)... but don't let them get away at this part. taking care of them is important for establishing a bond. they need to learn to associate you with feeling safe and happy, and that will take time. just be patient. test things out and see what works.

and if you mess up too badly, don't worry. you can always combine any of the former advice with an extra extended visit from them to your home until they feel like trusting you. just don't forget to put locks on the windows too!

[multiplicity-positivity]

Do you have any advice for someone who wants to separate from their source? I've got a headmate who is very much struggling with/unhappy with his source and I'd like to help/give him some advice if y'all have any to pass along

hello, cecil is cofronting and right now so we do feel confident enough to try and offer some advice.

source separation can be tricky, and may be a process best undertaken in therapy. if you have a therapist, it may be wise to bring this up with them to discuss possible solutions. additionally, the process of source separation may vary from system to system and even headmate to headmate. so what has been working for cecil may not work for your system.

some of the best advice we can give you is to branch out and try new things. it seems like many introjects try to adhere strictly to their source as much as possible, trying to maintain the same hobbies as their source, act the same, and basically live their source’s life as a headmate in a system. in order for source separation to happen, this has to stop.

it may help for your headmate to remind himself that he is his own person. introjects are not their sources, even if they feel the same or incredibly similar. his source is not living life as a headmate in your system (unless he happens to be an introject of another headmate!). his source is not experiencing life in the same way that he is, is not making the same decisions or interacting with the world in exactly the same way. these ideas helped put cecil’s mind at ease - maybe they’ll help your headmate too.

if your headmate is a fictive or a factive of a content creator/celebrity, it may be helpful for your whole system to try and avoid his source for your headmate’s comfort and well-being. i know this can be hard, especially if his source is a beloved piece of media, special interest, or hyperfixation. but distancing your system from content related to this headmate’s source could really help him start to find himself and flesh out his own identity. we know for cecil, there was always this unspoken expectation hanging over him that as long as we were playing disco elysium, he would have to witness his source and (consciously or unconsciously) try and behave similarly. the whole system taking a break from the game has helped cecil’s mental health immensely. we value the feelings and needs of our headmates more than games or media we enjoy.

we’d encourage your headmate to experiment with all sorts of things. he can question his gender and sexuality, try out different names and pronouns, research otherkin or therianthropy. he could learn about different fields of science or humanities, learn to craft, bake, code, knit, or play disc golf. he could seek out a favorite color or aesthetic, and experiment with his sense of fashion and style. learning not to let his source govern the decisions he makes day to day will greatly benefit his process of source separation.

finally, getting support from loved ones (even within the system) may help this transition be smoother for him. so diligently using his new name (if he chooses one), encouraging him to keep branching out with his choices, and having his back when he does could all help. defending him when others shame or look down on him for separating from his source would be excellent. showing interest in his new interests, and generally just acknowledging his changes and still caring for him through it all could be incredibly beneficial.

remember source separation is a process - it doesn’t happen overnight. so some patience and determination will be necessary. it truly can happen though, even if it seems hopeless at first.

we’re wishing you, this headmate, and your whole system the very best. we hope something written here will be of use to you. thank you for reaching out.

🐢 kip and 🖋 cecil