#this session was so much fun it was supposed to be travel and then we rolled Navy (teenage dragon) on the random encounter table

[windvexer]

I'm still looking for good astral projection techniques and readings. Doing it at night doesn't seem to work because I end up falling asleep and lucid dreaming. I can't even tell if I'm in the astral or in my imagination when I try it because all I see is darkness, yet I can kind of describe certain locations I often frequent in my mind. I've discerned two of them as inner temple spaces but some I'm not even sure if it's astral or just making up scenarios in my head. I think two of them are actual locations where I've met dragons but I'm having trouble with visions since all I see is darkness even though I can give a physical description, if that makes sense?

The rope technique doesn't work and counting backwards doesn't work. Unless I need more practice? Lucid dreaming I have down easy at least. Any recommended techniques or readings?

Howdy;

It's hard to say if you need more practice. Personally, some people pick it up very quickly, and others take a lot longer at it. Generally I find that most people I talk to about it are traveling, they just aren't sure if they are or not because they tend to have unrealistic expectations.

One of those expectations is vividness; obtaining a very high level of vivid immersion is IMO difficult, must more difficult than obtaining valid travel experiences in general.

Obtaining vivid immersion also isn't linear; I used to have very vivid experiences, but now I don't. I also have spent I suppose thousands of hours traveling, but after spiritual growth I lost the ability to travel at all for a while (a few years I think, but I haven't put thought into the timeline). After many years of practice and traveling, I still sometimes have "blackout" sessions where I can recount experiences, but I see nothing.

So although you haven't said as much, it's not something that you just unlock and then you get the skill forever; it's a living skill, like all magic (in my opinion).

Anyway, it's totally possible to need plenty of practice, but also possible to pick it up quickly. The question is how do you know when you've done it correctly, and IMO the best solution is to just try and do whatever it is you want to do in the astral and see if it works.

I mean, astral travel can be purely entertainment, in which case you never need to verify anything because it's like playing a video game; the experience is what matters. But if your goal is to do something, like say meet and commune with dragon spirits, then go ahead doing that and carry on as if you really have met them, and see what happens.

What's the end goal? To learn special names of dragons, and gain one as a familiar or a teacher? To learn how to do new kinds of magic? Set out to do those things and see where it gets you; see if you learn new kinds of magic you can do in dreams, or in the waking world. See if you learn how to call these spirits in and out of trance states.

See if what you do in these practice sessions is making your life better, or bringing you closer to goals - or not.

The benefit to this approach is that it can bring structure to practice; practice is no longer open-ended, but becomes, "how do I find this certain spirit?" and then "...next I'll explore his home" and "now I'm going to learn to make astral offerings to leave at the shrine," and so on. So it's less tedious, in my opinion.

Yes, try more techniques; have fun experimenting with a lot of them. Give them all an honest go. I recommend trying any particular technique a solid twenty times or so, just to gain the experience of it. Even attempts which do not appear to result in travel will bring experience and development.

I favor any technique which involves going downwards, especially through the trunk of a tree, or down through a well. As a relaxing method before sleep, I sometimes like to swim down through an endless ocean and look for a trap door, or a glowing crevice or something; then I go down through that. Or sometimes I don't.

If we can say that there's a pre-astral state, like existing in the space with the rope before you climb the rope, then that space in and of itself can be lovely and fun to play with, and you don't have to try to 'astral' at all.

Maybe you want to climb down through the trunk of a tree via a hollow; you can practice immersion skills by wandering around an imaginary forest, without actually trying to bridge the gap into the astral. And it's alright if it's just your imagination, because of course it is.

Another technique you may find to be very effective is to begin in a memory, especially a memory that positions you near to a convenient loci of travel (such as a favored childhood tree), and at first recall the memory with clarity, but then begin moving differently in it and seek out the astral doorway.

Also in general practicing trance is helpful.

Also, practicing calming and relaxation techniques before trying to travel.

Alright, I think that's enough novel. Also, I'm not sure what you mean by astral readings, but I hope the above is helpful.

[lambertdiary]

hiii can I request a fanfic where the lipstick demon is high key obsessed with the reader and taunts dalton about it in his dreams and then when it comes to him being possessed like in the movie he was daltons more scared for the reader than himself and when he wakes up his body is like mid way between hurting the reader and he just feels so guilty but clingy incase the demon comes back (I’ve had this idea for a while but I lack writing talent lol) ? thank u if u do write it 💞💞

A/N: omg thank you so much for your request! I’m obsessed with the concept and I had a lot of fun writing this. I think it turned out okay, so hopefully you’ll like it too and hopefully this is something like what you wanted. Please feel free to let me know what you think!!

Word count: 1.8k+

Warnings: established relationship, angst, the further, blood, language

MASTERLIST     ✩    SEND ME A REQUEST

Echoes And Shadows

Dalton is constantly worried about his ‘gift’, he’s terrified of his out-of-body experiences, the realm he travels to, the spirits that constantly stalk him and threaten to take his body, and the dangers that go as far as threatening the safety of his own friends. He was aware of all of them, but he was mostly aware of one of these things going after his girlfriend, so he tried really hard to stay away from that, although sometimes he couldn’t really help it. But right now, his biggest worry is his sick girlfriend.

“I’m sorry we can’t go to the movies today” Dalton said, dropping Chris off at her dorm. Y/N, Dalton and Chris were supposed to have a movie day together for their ‘third wheel session’ (as Chris liked to call it) of the week, but as soon as Y/N said she was feeling a little under the weather Dalton called the whole thing off.

“It’s ok, I get it” Chris opened her door and took her things from Dalton’s hands “Lover boy has medical duties, and I suppose no one can stop you” 

Dalton was slightly overprotective when it came to Y/N “I guess not” He replied smiling at his friend. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll get over it” Dalton just chuckled. He felt bad for canceling on Chris, he really did, but the last thing he wanted was for Y/N to get worse “Well, thanks for walking with me, tell Y/N she can keep my hooter” She exclaimed before closing the door.

Y/N was waiting for Dalton in his dorm, wrapped around his sheets and wearing her comfy pajamas. As he opened the door, he potted her still on his bed, sipping on a hot cup of tea she made for herself while she waited for her boyfriend to come back from class.

“Hey” Y/N whispered with bright eyes at the presence of Dalton.

“Are you feeling better?” He asked sitting next to her, taking the cup from her hands and placing it to the desk next to them.

“Yeah, I think so” Y/N replied, giving him a soft smile. Dalton’s hand went straight to her forehead. His face grew worried as he felt her hot skin against his hand.

“Are you sure you’re feeling better? You’re burning up” He questioned again.

“Dalton, I’ll be fine” She said, removing her boyfriend’s hand from her face “Come here, I just wanna cuddle” She confessed, tugging at his shirt forcing him to get closer “We can still watch something later, was Chris mad?”

“No, she can take it” Dalton softly laid next to her, carefully not to hurt her “Is there anything you need?” He asked as he tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, watching as she closed her eyes and burrowed her head deep into his chest.

“No, I just need to rest for a bit” She whispered.

And so they cuddled. Y/N fell asleep quickly, which was a good thing cause Dalton thought she needed it, and he just looked at her, admiring her relaxed face, the way her chest moved when she breathed and if he focused hard enough, he could feel her heartbeats against him. And before Dalton could stop himself, his relaxed state he soon drove him into a deep sleep. Which could only be a problem for him. 

He realized his mistake when he opened his eyes and perceived nothing but a suffocating darkness. He looked around him, trying to find a source of light but the shadows and echoes around him flooded his mind. As he took a few steps he felt his soul sink deeper into this realm, almost as if he was getting detached from his physical body.

Suddenly, a loud noise behind him caught his attention. Turning around, he saw the familiar red lit lair. Not seeing any other option, Dalton decided to walk into the demonic space looking for a way out of that place before anything could find him. Or his body.

Back in the real world, Y/N was still sleeping, holding his torso close to her. A few seconds later he opened his eyes and smirked as he gained consciousness in Dalton’s body. Standing up from the bed, he took a deep breath and examined the presence in front of him. There she was, so… defenseless.

Y/N opened her eyes at the loss of contact “Dalton?” She whispered with her eyes still tired, reaching out for him.

“Still scared of the dark?” He rumbled. Y/N rubbed her eyes quickly. The once familiar voice was now distorted and the soft blue eyes she was used to seeing in her boyfriend were nowhere to be seen. 

“Dalton?” She hopelessly repeated, fear consuming her and confusion fogging her thoughts, ‘How is this happening again? Didn’t Dalton and his dad close that damn door?’

“He can’t hear you” She heard the entity say, getting in the bed dangerously close to her “It’s just you and me” Y/N could feel Dalton breathing in her face, making wheezing noises as it tried to grab her cheek.  

Y/N squeezed her eyes shut, trying to avoid seeing Dalton's body in such a state. But even then, she could feel the demon’s malevolent intentions. Eventually, the demon took a step back, looking around the dorm for something he could use to cause harm to the girl sitting in the bed. A string of lights caught his attention, so he moved to the other side of the room to collect them. 

Y/N finally opened her eyes but didn’t dare to say a word, the unsettling atmosphere filling the room as she scanned it looking for Dalton. Finally, her eyes landed on him, watching him as he gathered something from the floor.

Y/N stood up from her spot on the bed and ran towards the light switch, desperately pressing it in a failed attempt to light up the dorm. When the entity noticed this, he turned around to face Y/N, as he slowly approached her, she paid attention to the yellowed eyes and dark features on her boyfriend's face, and as her eyes began to fill with tears with forced breath she yelled “Dalton!”

In the Further, Dalton had a bad feeling. He walked around for a bit, trying to be as quiet as possible to not draw any attention to himself. If the lipstick demon caught him, it would be impossible to get back to his body. Looking for a way out he spotted a lantern in the middle of the room, he quickly walked towards the light, and as he kneeled to grab it, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye. A string of lights hanging from the roof, the same ones Y/N brought to his dorm when the Red-Face Demon claimed his physical body a few months back.

With shaky hands, Dalton reached for the lights, and a different part of the lair lit up, revealing mannequins of Y/N and Chris making up a perfectly crafted scene of when they dealt with his possessed body for the first time “Dalton!” He heard an echoey scream.

It suddenly hit him: it happened again. His physical body was just a vessel for the demon he feared the most, probably using him to hurt the girl he loved the most. He turned around and started running, desperately trying to find his way out of the dark realm and back to his body.

Y/N saw Dalton lift his arm. Preparing for the worst, her body flew across the room, landing on the desk making a mess of Dalton’s stuff and probably damaging his sketches and canvases.

She quickly lifted her head to look at the thing, it was getting closer to her, with an intense stare and an evil smirk while his hands focused on the string of lights, wrapping them around his big hands. Blood started dripping from his mouth and eerie sounds were coming from everywhere.

Y/N’s mind was overwhelmed with dread. She looked at him, wondering if Dalton was okay on the other side. The demon stopped in front of her and Dalton’s face was almost unrecognizable, his hair being the only distinguishable feature, Y/N feared this was way worse than last time.

Dalton’s hands stopped adjusting the string, and he began to place it around her neck. She was unable to move, too scared to even breathe at that point. She closed her eyes and awaited her inevitable doom.

Suddenly, she heard Dalton gasp loudly. Still scared, she opened her eyes and found Dalton’s normal being, and with a terrified look on his face he quickly dropped the string and apologies began to fall from his lips as he held Y/N's face.

“Dalton?” She whispered.

“I’m so sorry. I should’ve never put you through this” He said with a broken voice.

“Is it really you?” She asked looking for the familiar blue eyes, relieved at the warm touch of her boyfriend, she inhaled deeply and gave him a soft smile.

“Where did I hurt you?” Dalton asked, desperately examining every inch of Y/N’s body, helping her get back onto his bed.

“You didn’t do this” Her voice was loud “You know this wasn’t you”

“This is my fault-”

“Are you okay?” Y/N asked in a worried tone. 

Dalton looked at her speechless, did she really just asked him if he was ok when she was the one attacked by a demon? One that he dragged into her life? “I only care if you’re ok” He said, bringing her arm up to his mouth after he spotted a bruise “Where else did I hurt you?” Dalton asked as he kissed Y/N’s arm.

“What happened? I thought the door was closed” Y/N was worried something like this would happen again, she was worried Dalton wouldn’t wake up next time.

“I- I’ve been having nightmares again” He replied with his head down “But I didn’t think they were strong enough to pull me out of my body again”

Oh, Y/N was worried, and honestly a little annoyed he never told her this.

“I know what you’re thinking and you’re right, I should’ve told you” Dalton left his bed and went to get a first aid kit, he sat carefully next to Y/N and started taking care of her, his blood boiling as she detailed how and where the spirit hurt her. After finishing up, Y/N insisted she wanted to cuddle again “I’m so sorry Y/N” Cupping her face, he leaned in for a kiss, a little worried she would reject him after what happened.

Thankfully, she kissed him back “Please, stop apologizing or I might break up with you”

After a few more kisses, Dalton stopped and looked at her "What do you need?" He asked her, softly rubbing her hair avoiding any harmed parts.

"I need you to be honest with me"

"I promise" Dalton chuckled and stood up, Y/N watched as he walked to the other bed, laying down and making himself comfortable  “Let’s be cautious tonight”

[mehiwilldoitlater]

If it is too much trouble could you write about Bián huá grooming Yuán Fèn after a big battle

When traveling, one gets dirty, and one doesn't have much time to clean themselves

Bajie would no doubt have fun at the youngster's expense 

"It's not necessary!"

"Yes, yes, it is. You stink." You smelled a little in your armpit; your nose frowned. "And so am I."

He looked around; the fog of the hotspring didn't give him enough visual of his surroundings, and that couldn't give you both a disadvantage in a fight. But the hot water... it was tempting.

He scratched his arm, but it was the nervousness that made him do that. To be honest, all of his body was in an itching mess, especially after your last mission.

You both had been on the road for some time, and you were returning from Yellow Wind Ridge. The sun, the bugs, the sand—you both were in need of a bath, and Yuán fèn? He needed a good grooming session. You could see the small flies jumping here and there on his furr, and trying to help himself wasn't helpful.

So, when you spotted the hotspring, you had an idea... that he regretted the moment you started to remove the upper part of your clothes.

"I can't smell anything! What if someone attacks us?!"

"Bajie is around, so it won't be a problem for now."

"I can do it by myself! I don't need you to help me with a grooming session!"

"You can't reach every part! Come on, you've been bathing with your sister when you were young!"

"That's... not the problem..." He mumbled, his cheeks and ears tinted in a soft shade of pink. You kept your top, and what it was supposed to be was a pair of boxers, so you weren't completely naked, you still had some privacy, and you immerged one foot in the warm water. 

"Off your clothes now."

"Do I have it?"

"I can't clen your back with your garmet on!" You try to reach his belt, but only to meet hair when he dodges and starts to oanick.

"Okay okay! I can do it myself!"

When he finally decided to get in the water, he kept his pants on, refusing to let you see more of his exposed body. By the movements of his tail, he must have been quite nervous. Despite the protests, the complaints, and his whining, in the right moment the warm waters of the spring touched his malnourished skin, a sigh of relief emanating from him. It was true; he really needed that, but he never said that he needed your assistance!

Sitting on a rock behind him, and with the help of a comb, you started to tend to his mane and skin, trying to catch every parasite or insect that had the luck to escape from the boiling.

He said that wasn't necessary. His skin was full of scratches and deep cute from his long and sharp nails. Scabs and new cute here and there, some lnots of fur that couldn't be reached, dandruff... Unnecessary your ass! He was a mess!

"Look at you. If you needed so much, you could just ask!"

"I didn't want to delay the mission." He mumbled, trying to clean his arm from more dust and dirt. The water had some spots from what was removed from him.

"It's a noble gest, but if you end up like this, then it's not a delay at all. Here, I'll do the head now."

You helped yourself with your bowl by pouring some of the water on his head, letting him lean against your tights. You started to scratch gently with the comb his furr, freeing him from more fleas and dead hair.

"Next time, let's bring some soap. It will help. We can even take out time and stay in a bath house."

"..."

"We can even deal with the money?....I mean, how many ingested bath houses can be found?"

"..."

"... Yuán fèn? Are you listening?"

Oh, how much he needed It. To the point that he completely lost consciousness. The water, the warmth, your soft skin, the head scratch... his senses were completely out. Then, you felt something, like a small vibration, coming from...

No, it couldn't be...

You brought your head nearer, avoiding sudden movements, and you felt it.

He was purring.

You had to cover your mouth to avoid to giggles and squeals for your new find out discovery.

Since when he was able to do that?! OOOHHH, how much you wish that your phone hadn't died a few days ago. After your arrival, you would love to have some videos of him like this!

You continued the session, enjoying the fact that he was literally melting in your hands. You both were completely in the moment when

"Enjoying the evening, are we?"

Bajie's voice was cracking by the laughter of the scene. The surprise of his sudden arrival caused your fall in the water, resulting in you gasping for air and him losing his balance on your legs, receiving a head bump on the rock.

You all left the hotspring for the night, with Bajie making some remarks about the sweet scene that he had witnessed, Yuán Fèn that still massaged his head, and you wondering how to make that monkey purr again.

@sun-jglim

@sleepingdramaqueen

@crimsonflameproxy

@everlastingmoonlightsworld

@biankanoir

@certifiedsimpinggalorempinggalore

@cromboloni

@miraclecherryblossomsblog

@masksandfeathers

@cinnamonroll-anon

@justrandomlypassing

@cute-angi @luckyangelballoon

@dressycobra7 @naarra

@virtualexpertanchor @phoenixeclipse-lmkau

@szynkaaa @kirax-the-lazy-girl

@sleepydang @weaverworks

@kishimiest @marcu-bug

[askamnesiamoonjumper]

uhhhh. how about alpine thoughts? or how your alpine lore works?

CRACKS KNUCKLES. I’m not proof reading any of this btw ok unfiltered yapping session GO

ok not gonna go too deep into it bc the next chapter is big alpine lore related so it would basically just be redundant but I can still just jot down some general hc stuff that I think will be explained in story but still just wanna have fun jotting down :3👍

-Ok so. Bc the twilight travels rift (that’s the name right??? The twigoat statue/bell one? That) has the three colored bells/statues (red blue and yellow) my thought was the bell might have been made by three people? Or goats in this case I suppose lol, haven’t thought much beyond just some kind of sorcerer/mage group of some kind, that’s basically it, not thought super hard on it beyond that but we’ll get there when we get there ig

-Accession/twilight spirits are essentially like the opposite of ghosts !! Even though they look similar I think they are actually more similar to mj, in that they still have their bodies. But for twi spirits it’s because they are basically frozen/immortal and NOT dead. As I said they are opposites, life and death and all that. The way they form is the same as corruption BUT the difference is they are calm/control their emotion/can accept the magic from their soul, where as corruption is rejecting it/being overwhelmed by it. I think a good example of this is in the prologue it was shown that snatcher makes flowers/plants wilt but twilight spirits have their whole flower thing going on yk? You get the idea

-the alps and subcon I think would be close/trade often!! (I think this got mentioned in the prologue Iirc?)

-Delilah’s mothers side of her family live in alpine while her fathers side of the family lives in subcon, hence she vaguely mentions it in fic a few times (but I also think she also clumped lotus in with her family too but more so to use as an excuse to not be super detailed abt her alp trips) (oh yeah uh if u don’t know Lotus is my TG follower twilight spirit goat oc who is dels guardian! :3)

-the bell isn’t supposed to ACTUALLY lead to the twilight realm, it’s more so meant to just a window/peek at what it’s like, …meant being the key word here (hence Hattie’s in game diary mentioning she thinks she wasn’t supposed to be there) probably gonna slip in some lore about it being under a spell/enchantment of some kind? Maybe only people tied to magic or the twilights specifically can enter, weither it be literal as in knowing TG/Lotus or following them, or more metaphorically like hat being from space counted her? Shrugs I’ll think on it a little more later ig all I know is if you got magic or ties to it you can go to the astral plane directly yayyyy :3👍 fun!!! I love going to the disorienting space afterlife for a visit it’s just an average Tuesday for me it’s fine dw about it

-twigoat religion/following is based more so on Buddhism/concepts of nirvana in my head, like there isn’t an underworld or hell or anything it’s all just one place, but TG isn’t actually a god or anything it’s like the game lore they were just a regular mortal goat who decided to protect the astral plane/watch over it after becoming a twilight spirit/traveling to the bell.

-Design detail is all twilight followers wear silver bells! :3 but NOT gold bc that’s basically saying they are doing it wrong/don’t care. (Examples of this: TG, Lotus, Dels, shady sunburnt, Rei (gold), shapes later/timeskip specifically for a different twilight character later that I’m not spoiling rn, and also party crasher has gold bells but not so much for twilight lore reasons but changeling council lore reasons which I’m not spoiling here sorry womp womp)

-I feel like believing in the twilight realm VS following the twilight goat are like separate things? Just bc the actual astral plane is a concept while TG is a person/religious figure so like most characters would know of or believe in the astral plane but not all of those characters actually follow TG youknow? Having proof of an afterlife basically means beleif in that plane isn’t part of the religion but following the religions morals/teachings IS if that makes sense???? hopefully u get the idea.. lol

-Lotus is TGs follower > dels was Lotus’s Follower > so I think @twipsai s oc zebu would be dels follower :3 (like I think they’d just be a reference and not an actual character in aau but idc I’d still kill for a!zebu <3 love that thing)

Uhhhhh I think that’s all bc my other hcs i think of either bleed into spoilers or I’m already gonna bring em up in the next chap sooooo yayyy :D👍

[codecicle]

Ash how is the fated watching going rn?? You’re braver than most

godd wampus im fucking THRIVING right now. this campaign sucks so bad it's genuinely unwatchable at times and I think that's the appeal to me <3 they spent like 10 minutes just describing and figuring out how the money system works and literally none of them sound like they've ever played dnd before and i don't think it will ever pass the bechdel test once the entire campaign even with velrissa trying her hardest but it goes crazy anyway

br'aad is my favorite character by a lot right now,, he's my FREAKK i love him and his idiot swagger so much. he's supposed to be charismatic but he sucks so bad at it everyone hates him but sticks around with him anyway. he's a warlock and his patron stops time and gives him insight on things/danger to come and kicked off the main plot in the sickest sequence I've ever seen. also his gayboy ass really did walk so every other gayboy slimecicle character could run !! they were so right !! and the party spent the first and second session hating everything he said and did . Took them sooooo long to be normal about him but they got it eventually when mountain (MY MAANNNNNN) defended him. Also he says everything with ^_^ . Just outloud you can hear it in his voice

for the rest I think the only other character that's talking enough to form an opinion on is taxi. and that opinion is STRONGLY a good one o(-( ! his banter with br'aad is so fun they're the only characters that feel Real and In The World so far and I love it so much. the names bit where br'aad kept getting his name wrong and calling him "saxi" and whenever he corrected him br'aad would just go "I know saxi. Nice to meet you im br'aad!" actually had me in tears at a certain point they're the only ones that have gotten me to laugh fr fr so far

sadly velrissa mountain and sylnan just Don't Fucking Talk so i don't have any real concrete opinions on them yet other than "hmm. Interesting ^_^" velrissa and her necromancy stuff is so neat so far I hope we get to see it in action soon instead of just small mentions here and there. same with the dynamic between sylnan and br'aad I NEEED to see more snockers scenes like their sibling scamming bullshit seems so cool I can't wait for them to emotionally rip my heart out through my throat. I can feel it coming

honestly the main appeal of it all is the characters and the characters alone. them slowly becoming friends and trusting each other will fuck with my brain permanently. I already cheered out loud when they so much as INSINUATED that they could stand br'aad and his charisma and they don't actually hate being around each other like that made me so happy. their meeting makes no sense but that's okay the Shenanigans with the solid snake box and br'aad trying and failing to stealth was so fun and "nice forearms, and a nicer staff!" and the little weirdo gremlin goblin following them around they're all very scared of and creeped out by (except for br'aad. he is strongly sexually attracted to goblins. this is canon and brought up over and over again) all make up for it. the story really doesn't matter to me here at all ^_^ all i care about are the characters being happy and traveling together and that's what makes the campaign enjoyable for me

[micheya]

The Sound of Music | Genshin x Reader

Characters:

Part 1: Cyno and Albedo Part 2: Dehya and Fischl (out soon) Part 3: Razor and Yanfei (out soon)

Prompt:

"Eggo, what instruments do you play?" "piano, cello, guitar, electric bass, double bass and ukulele"

Synopsis:

Of all the instruments you play, what's their favourite?

Content warning:

No pronouns mentioned. Second Person. Can be interpreted as platonic or romantic

Genre: Fluff

Word count:

Cyno x reader - 1009 Albedo x reader - 969

@favonius-library my submission for the gift exchange for @egnengg

Cyno - Guitar

Leading on from the previous windblume festival and his quite strange but fun insistence to committing to his role as an adventurer, he thought it was perfect that you knew how to play instruments, even if you didn't get round to performing often, you had immediately acquired the role of "Travelling bard, tenacious and tactful with every touch made when playing their instruments." quite literally his words.

In any case, a guitar was just the most practical of the instruments you played. Carrying a double bass and piano around certainly wasn't efficient, and asking for someone to carry them or for a carriage to travel across the nation would be expensive. "That and we're supposed to be experienced and seasoned travellers,” he'd say, but really what's a TCG match without you playing some good background music as he once again takes Tighnari and Collei down. (You still didn’t know what being seasoned travellers had to do with you carrying what instrument. You assumed, maybe he was trying to say travellers don’t carry more than they can handle, and are efficient in terms of travel weight).

While the ukulele had the same benefits, and was technically easier to transport, he just much preferred the heavier sound and diverse range of a guitar. It would fit his range in voice when singing, and honestly it sounds a whole lot more dramatic when monologuing at the beginning or near the end of a match. 

“You really thought such a move would work on someone as well versed as me?”, “I commend your efforts, you fought valiantly, but alas fell an inch too short.” and “And now begins yet another fateful match, another block in the road I have yet to carve a path through. I will emerge victorious.” and…

Well, you get the point.

Tighnari is almost resentful with the way you’ve been enabling him, groaning in displeasure whenever Cyno was or wasn’t playing. He seemed to always have something to say when near a TCG match. You’d think every once in a while he’d pull a book worthy quote, then he’d pop a joke right after and you’d instinctively stop playing to wallow in your disappointment. “I thought it was funny.” 

And some were! 

“Just not this one” you’d reply. Putting your guitar to the side for a bit, to relieve yourself from the ache of that day’s session. 

When your hands would ache on the journey of your collective vacation, he’d often stretch out your hands, while massaging ointment onto them. You didn’t necessarily need the help, but it sure did feel nice, and getting free supplements for your skin at the request of Cyno to Tighnari surely could be counted as another win. Especially when he’d be the one insisting you play, “If our tactful and tenacious bard could play some battle music for the oncoming duel, we would be most grateful.”, “Y/n, how are your hands feeling, up for some practice with your guitar?”, “I really like that last song, could you play it again?”, “I found this music sheet being sold by a merchant, it looked like it’d sound good so I bought it. How about you give it a go.” 

He was your biggest supporter, along with Collei and Tighnari, almost too big of a supporter   (though in your heart you don’t think it’d ever be possible). It was endearing, and you were happy to have someone anticipate your next little performance, no matter whether you played perfectly or made a few to many  mistakes.

When asked of any hobbies outside of Genius invocation TCG, he’d smile fondly and answer playing guitar with his family. Collei had one day gone to Cyno talking about wanting to learn the guitar after watching you play for so long, she thought it’d be fun, she didn’t know if she’d be interested in the instrument in the long run for herself but figured it would be a fun way to bond and also help with the rehabilitation of her fingers. 

He nodded, humming thoughtfully too, he had often wished for the opportunity to play with you, the thought of spending more time with you never ceasing to warm his heart. So plucking up the courage to ask you to teach them, the two bashfully yet filled with a steadfast determination, approached you with their newly bought guitar’s. 

 ‘Why not?’, you thought, “You already have your guitars, and this would be good for Collei… Let’s make a schedule.” and therefore began what would be a weekly session with Collei and, if lucky, bi-monthly Cyno would join due to his work schedule, (with Tighnari popping in to watch with some snacks). 

Off duty, the way Cyno would express himself would sharply contrast with the deadly aura he’d exude when interrogating wrongdoers. His neutral expressions on and off duty, while similar, would often have his co-workers tilt their heads trying to play ‘spot the difference’. His eyebrows would ever so slightly relax their barely seen creases now completely unseen, the slight downturn in his lips instead changing into a slight upturn. 

Many couldn’t put their finger on what exactly on his face had changed, but then again the fear that they had done something unknowingly wrong for the general Mahamatra to even be in their presence often clouded any sort of thought process they had going on. 

“What brings you here today, General?” 

“Be at ease, I’m just here to report on my latest mission. The perpetrators have been turned in, and so I’ll be taking my time off for the next two days.”

“Ah, so that’s why you’re in a good mood.” The Professor unknowingly let out a sigh with his chuckle, that’s why he seemed a bit different.

“Yes, I wasn’t expecting it to be so obvious, but really it’s to be expected.” Unable to hold back his smile at the thought of the next guitar session with you and Collei he nodded, “I was very particular in finishing this job quickly, as I’ll be going to visit my family.”

Albedo - Ukulele

 One of Albedo’s most recent wonders in his life is how you make his synthetic heart beat with joy when around. It’s always a joy to spend time with you, even when he’s busy with his experiments and hardly sees anyone all day. Those little passing-bys he manages to squeeze in when in Mondstadt for work has him counting himself fortunate. 

Especially when he knocks on your door to be greeted by the sound of small excited footsteps and a joyful, “Y/n! Y/n! Big brother is finally here!”

Whenever he hears that, he’s only reminded of Klee’s answer when he had asked how she could always tell it was him at the door. “Wow, Klee, you were right.” You smiled standing behind her as she leapt onto her brother’s leg in a tight hug, “He does knock to that rhythm. You really do have a good memory, huh?” You praised the little girl as she nodded an even bigger smile on her face.

“I know my brother the best.” Letting go of said brother she puffed out her chest, arms by her side to further showcase the pride she held. It was endearing, and she almost seemed to glow in the afternoon sun that peered through the doorway.

“I’m grateful to have such a caring sister like you, Klee,” Albedo said, patting her head, before finally entering your house, “So, what have you been up to today? Drawing? Learning some new music?” 

Barely finishing his sentence, Klee grabbed his hand and dragged him through the building, with a “Follow me!”, taking him to your music room where pillows, crayons, drawings and instruments lay on the ground. “Look, look..! This is me….and this is Y/n and,” The ‘and’ was elongated, “we’re playing in front of a crowd, and” again the ‘and’ elongated, “We're singing a song-” She dropped her picture and picked up a ukulele, one of two, Albedo’s eyes followed her, a soft smile instinctively making way, as he took two of the stray pillows on the floor, handing one to you and sitting down next to you who soon followed suit. “We’re singing this.” 

Klee took a breath, a little cough rumbled to clear her little chest, as she sat down (more like suddenly dropping her body weight without caution) and wiggled a bit more to adjust herself. One more exhale escaped from her with closed eyes before she slowly opened them with a smile again. 

Clumsy, but clearly well practised, fingers played a C chord, her first ‘down down up up down up’ strums, a little slower than the original tempo, but in the beat (which she was proud of) it was supposed to be in, “...You are my sunshine-” An uncontrollably bright smile appeared on your lips, as you swayed and nodded along to her, even with the little pauses between the change of chords. “You make me happy, when skies are grey…” 

Albedo glances between the two of you, seemingly pausing, despite there not originally being any movement. He feels warm, and overcome with an overwhelming fondness to the situation, a stark contrast to the type of intrigue he feels when researching new alchemic breakthroughs. Truly a different type of revitalisation, he thinks when watching Klee fumble but finish the performance nonetheless, glowing at the applause, hi-fiving and running back to the image she was previously explaining. 

It was a bit longer than a pass-by greeting (He would have to apologise to Timaeus for the late report), the three of you ultimately eating lunch together talking about anything and everything. All taking turns listening intently to the topics of interest each person had. It was more than just a normal pleasant afternoon stroll, there was an emotional connection strengthening with each visit, an invisible link formed with every activity spent together and a bit of time invested into learning more about the other person, with making an effort to get along with those they also loved. 

“So, Klee, what song will you be learning next?” Albedo asked. His body shifted ever so slightly, inclined towards her.

“I want to learn piano next. Twinkle twinkle little star.” She replied, mouth still full of food, “Can we, y/n?” 

“Oh, really? But you looked particularly good at the ukulele, are you already done with it?” He frankly was a tad bit disappointed, he thought she looked especially cute when playing it, and thought he’d be able to see future performances with it. 

“Don’t worry. You can see Klee play ukulele more another time.” The young girl responded, “I just really really want to play the piano this time. It looks soooooo cool!” 

“You really do know me well, Klee” Albedo once again smiled.

There seemed to be no shortage of those that day. There also seemed to be no shortage of those same smiles the next time he dropped by for Klee’s next performance, which was as cute as the last. He supposed that it wouldn’t matter what she played, she'd still look adorable. However, he knew he still held a bit of bias to how her voice sounded when singing along to you or her playing the ukulele. Maybe it was because that was the instrument he had seen her playing first. The one he first witnessed you teach her, and the instrument out of size and cost convenience she bought to learn along with you, kicking off this new implicitly agreed on rendezvous.

Yes, he was quite fond of watching you play your other instruments. But the ukulele held a slightly different emotional weight to it, he figured it was also these little bits of bias held within the heart of a person that made them human. On days like these, any doubt of him being anything but, would fade away.

A/n: Please reblog :')

[jacksgreysays]

I'd like to know if there's anything you'd like to do with Aburame Chiyako, even if it's a project that's infeasible for you? (she's my favorite character to come out of DoS, bar Shikako herself)

Hi loveelemental! :D

I also love Chiyako: she is one of those parts of DoS that just really hit home about how much consideration and detail SQ put into making Naruto into a full and expansive world. And also she is very cute.

(,,> ᴗ <,,)

I did write what’s behind (and what’s before) which is Chiyako-centric, but that doesn’t really lend itself to further expansion/installments. Or, at least, none that interest me at this moment in time.

As I mentioned before, I would maybe want to do a Chiyako POV in the bleak!Primadonna-verse, mostly because it would be a lens to do further political shenanigans—what with Chiyako being the heiress to the Aburame but also, now a fully fledged adult jounin with a team of genin, some of whom would ALSO allow me to frame political shenanigans. But I suppose, just being able to write that team would be fun even without the bleak!Primadonna-verse.

A but to that but, though, is I don’t really know what that plot would look like—if it’s a mission fic, what mission is it? Or if it’s a time/dimension travel when/where do they go? Or, are they the “hosts” receiving the wayward travelers? In which case, who are those travelers? Since it’s Chiyako, I would assume Shino and Shikako because I will forever, forever, love JohnBurtonLee’s I Got You their dynamic in that is SO GOOD. SO PERFECT. A+ fic forever, forever. However, for symmetry’s sake, maybe it should be a different Team Eight—either the canon one we see with Team Kurenai, or my headcanon Team Hana with Chiyako, Hanabi, and Ranmaru.

I feel like I’m not being fair to her. Because god knows I’ve spun off at least a half dozen varying concepts around Aoba, for example, but it’s like… she is one of the rare cases where meeting Shikako has given her stability in her life? Like… most other characters when meeting Shikako are thrust into wild situations and are forced to either adapt or submit to the chaos pretty quickly. But for Chiyako she: has a cool new role model, doesn’t get bullied anymore, a regular invite to the kunoichi club, playdate/training sessions with several of her classmates (and possible future teammates) who seem to like her back. There’s not much drama there…

I mean, there’s clan politics that could be interesting—but I also feel like the Aburame are so logical/steady that there’s not much drama there either?

Ooh, I guess there could be like… a Chiyako-centric fic (feat. Hanabi) which nominally is a Team Hana fic but is actually about how Chiyako and Hanabi are foils for each other. Heiresses to their clans instead of their older siblings, but with vastly different relationships with said older siblings. Their respective clans themselves are similarly foils of each other: the Aburame reviled externally but internally warm with each other, the Hyuuga with their pretty privilege and position of being Konoha’s current most powerful bloodlimit allowing them to get away with a literal slave/torture seal. And of Team Hana they do have the sun-coded vs moon-coded vibes of the team.

Hm, yeah, I think something exploring Chiyako and Hanabi’s dynamic would be the most compelling to me—whether that is in a “canon” fic or a warring clans era AU or the bleak!Primadonna-verse or…

Okay, so this may be because I’ve been reading a lot of trash manhua lately, but I think that dynamic would be best displayed in that one unnamed royalty/nobility Shikaara AU (in which the tabloids have made minor-nobility!Shikako and youngest-brother-of-the-Sand-Queen!Gaara literally bumping into each other during Temari’s coronation the sort of fairytale romance of the century). BUT instead it would be about, a different aspect of the AU in which two young duchesses-to-be maneuver the difficulties of being nobility and teenage girls and also, unfortunately, paparazzi exist.

[elijahhendley]

7月24-25號: Hurricane days!!

Day 13:

So today we gained a new guest that will join us breifly on our trip, but make a huge impact. Typhoon Gaemi decided to waddle on through Taiwan. We are all safe and sound in our hotel but we will be staying here an extra day. I am not mad at it. I having an extra day in a hotel that is literally a hotspring. It is a pretty decent situation to be in. Although now we will miss a whole city that we were supposed to experience on this trip. But today I started off slow. I had breakfast and went on a run. It was so hot inside the hotel because they turned some of the power off. But I still ran on the treadmill and struggled to get to 3 miles. I ran at about a 8:15 pace which was pretty good because I haven't ran in a while. Then I thought I would go to the cold spring to cool down my muscles and help recovery like an icebath would, but the outside was closed so I could only go to the inside spring which was not as cold. Andy ended up joining me and we got to talk for a while, but then we both left.

I went out to try KFC in the rain and let me tell you, it was NOT worth it. India KFC is SO much better. After that all the boys met up and we played some cards together. It was so fun. Austin taught us a new game called Cambio. It's really fun and really competitive. After playing some cards, we all met up with the rest of the group and tried to go get mcdonalds for everyone. Me and the boys ended up walking almost a mile to arrive at mcdonalds and find out that it's closed. So we then walked back, and stopped by 7-eleven to pick up food for everyone. Then we all got to talk together and eat our food. After I finished my food, I left and went to bed. I felt like i really took care of myself and did something good for my body by running and then relaxing the rest of the day.

Day 14:

Today was another relaxing day where I really got to focus on myself and take care of myself in the morning. I woke up and had breakfast which consisted of the normal rice, pastries, watermelon, and braised beef. Then, after a bit, I thought it good to go down back to the springs and do some rehab. So, I did some exercises in the water for my leg and also stretched a lot. I am feeling somewhat better, but my knee is still injured. Very much debating on getting surgery when I get back to America. But after my PT session, I went with Austin, Jack, and Jacob to get our feet kissed. Pause. Feet kissed by fish of course. We got to experience a little bit of culture and stick our feet into a tub of fish that would eat the dead skin off of our feet. It was actually the funniest thing ever. We were all laughing so hard because it felt so weird and it tickled. There were SO many of the little fishies in there as well. Then we met back up with Andy after getting some more of our favorite snack/breakfast, Scallion Pancakes. They are DELICIOUS! After the pancakes, Austin found some poker chips so we could play poker. I was so excited! I love card games. Before poker we all went out for dinner which was pretty good. Then from about 9:30 to 12am we played poker and Cambio. It was a great night and a great day. The next thing to do on the list was pack for our long travel day for tommorow.

Until next time, 再見！

[secretsappyabode]

Fuck it it’s MY house I GET to make silly little fics about my fave turtle family. The POV will be in second person, but this is specifically about my insert rather than a generic x reader fic yknow?

I’m gonna try make a head canon/ fic for each member of the family, so everyone will get their own post basically. First up is Mikey.

In the past 5 years of…let’s call it “travelling”, you never expected to find friends, let alone a family

And yet here you are, getting roped into… whatever it is these turtles get roped into

Still, you have to admit, it’s nice not being on your own. Finally having company for once. It takes time to adjust, but eventually you go from bringing your dish to your room and eating alone, to actually joining them at the dinner table! And talking to them! Go you!!

Lord, since when did a group of teenagers intimidate you? You’re in your 20s for god sake

Your travels had made you more reserved, more serious, and survival mode hasn’t turned off yet. You’re not the silly, joyful, positive person you once were a few years ago, as much as you wish you could go back to what you used to be.

And now you’re living in the same quarters as a group of turtles who are anything but serious. They’re fun, goofy, and have this sincerity with each other that makes you feel the pit in your stomach grow because you yearn for that connection. You ache for even a moment of simple validity of your friendship with them.

But can you have it? Do you even belong with them? Can you even call yourself a friend? An acquaintance even? You feel a bit out of place…

But they don’t seem to think so. To them, you fit in just right.

Mikey

The first to warm up to you. He’s not sure himself, but he was somehow getting some good vibes from you.

Your initial reservation didn’t bother him, you find. Apparently the purple clad turtle is quite similar in disposition. He would ask you as many questions as possible, to which you listen quietly and answer casually.

You liked his youthful personality. So enthusiastic and earnest, it made you a little jealous. But he never clashed with your mellow energy, in fact he complimented yours. (You wish you had some of that energy. You miss being positive)

You don’t know how he did it, but he somehow figured out your drawing hobby. Damn it, this was supposed to be a private thing. “You’re an artist and you didn’t tell me??? WE COULD HAVE BEEN ARTS AND CRAFTS BUDDIES THIS WHOLE TIME??”

You sheepishly reveal your sketches and he excitedly shows his designs. This turns into art trades which turns into art sessions where you talk about your processes together. He teaches you some really good shading tips. You teach him about expressions and form. You feel good about your art for once.

If the teens have one thing in common, they love your hugs. Mikey is the first to know what they feel like.

It happened to you suddenly, where he was thanking you for some odd favour you did for him and he wrapped you up in a tight hug. You were caught off guard, but eventually wrapped your arms across his shell. But as soon as you did that he quickly retracted from you.

“Shoot! Sorry, I should have asked first. Usually I’m really good with this but I just got so carried away and-.”

You tell him not to worry about it. It’s been so long since you received a hug, or any sort of positive touch for that matter. You just weren’t used to it, is all.

“Oh! Okay! In that case, wanna try again?” You’re prepared this time and bring your arms around him again. He leans his head on your chest and you feel him snuggle in a bit. This…is nice. You try to ignore the long years you endured without any sort of positive affirmation or care or sign of love or anything like that. You ignore the fact that you haven’t felt a hug this warm and close in a long time. You’re gonna ignore the wetness in your eyes now.

Mikey uses the “youngest sibling” puppy dog eyes on you and always tries to pull the “baby of the family” move. This is to no avail. No matter how hard he tries, you just don’t give in. This makes it harder when the other turtles want you to do something for them (and totally not against the rules)

“How is this possible?? Mikey is our secret weapon he ALWAYS works.” “How do my undefeatable little brother moves not work on you??” he wails. “Jokes on you, brother. For you see, I am the youngest sister in MY family, so therefore I am immune to your tricks!”

“SHOCKED GASP” “Dangit!” “Aw come on!” “GAHH! So powerful……”

Eventually you meet the infamous Dr Feelings the more you show yourself. He’s convinced that you need to “come out of your shell” and “stop isolating yourself” and “allow the help people offer in your life”

That last statement, you tell him that he needs to follow that as well. That he doesn’t have to be the “family therapist” all the time and he’s still young and why is he taking on such emotional problems bro he is 15 who let a 15 year old tackle everyone’s mental health?? You tell him that it’s ok if it all gets to be too much sometimes.

He gets quiet at that. Silently absorbing your words in his mind. It feels a little eerie if you’re completely honest. Seeing him sit there fiddling with his “therapist” glasses and averting eye contact, it’s like someone stripped away his personality and pasted on somebody else’s.

All you can do is stare intently at him, hoping he gets your message. You’ve been where he is now, and you know how rough it can get. You’d hate to see him fall down that same rabbit hole, and you’d be damned if you would let that happen to him. After everything that’s happened to you, to him, to this family. He has to know what you’re saying. He has to listen.

Mikey takes off his glasses and you notice a shimmer in his eyes. “You know what? I think….Dr Feelings really needed to hear that.”

After that night, he comes to you whenever he feels his “tazz isn’t very razzy” so to speak. Something about you and what you said just makes him feel more comfortable to admit those not-so-good thoughts around you. “Maybe it’s my inherent wisdom” you joke. “You can only say that if you’re like “old” old. Like OLD old old. Dad old” (you hear splinter shout from the other room)

“Hey come on I’ve got more wisdom in me than the average dad.” “Oh yeah? Impart some sagely wisdom, your wisely wisdomness” “You stink” “THATS NOT WISDOM”

Expect a lot of hugs from him. Everyone in this family is pretty affectionate, but he makes up 90% of it

You used to go on errands by yourself, but now…maybe some company wouldn’t hurt

He’s the first one you invite, making it his and your Thing ™️. Errand time is bonding time. It’s sacred.

And then the other turtles found out and now it’s practically a family outing

During the early days when you joined them on missions, he would show off a little bit (maybe not as much as Leo did, but you could tell his tricks were getting more showy)

He just wants you to be proud of him

He’d call for you to watch him as he swung his weapon at their enemies, showing no remorse as he kicked their asses

Only to turn around like “Hey did you see me?? Was I cool or what??”

All you can do is stare gobsmacked as you give a thumbs up.

Mikey was the first for everything in your friendships with the Hamato clan. Your first friend, the first to confide into, the first you indulged in your hobbies with, the first you personally invited to hang out with-

He was your littlest brother.

And you would do anything for him. For all of them.

[roadandruingame]

RaR Musings #21: The Crossroads of Simulation, Storytelling, and Fun

I'd had this one on a tab for a minute, because a lot of things happened and I've had a lot of time to think about things.

Exertion has done a lot to emblemize division between major game design philosophies.

On the one hand, a simulation-based game engine was necessary for a GM-less game, where creatures of theoretically infinite size difference could interact, in a way that everyone at the table can collectively intuit and agree on.

But, it did mean a lot more interaction with double-digit math, and 1m-wide tiles are far too granular to make the foundation of a "1 stamina = 1m movement, or swings 1 Size of weapon, for 1 damage" environment. Doing that math isn't fun, and held back use of storytelling as a driving force.

I transitioned to approximation-banding, and made only Tiring activities cost Exertion, shrinking the numbers so it was more about What Who was doing and Why, How, Where, and When it was supposed to happen if it wasn't Here. It meant you didn't actually even need a grid, or a map, instead keeping note of locations and settings by narrative impact, rather than how many spaces you had to move your little plastic man around the playmat.

But with the loss of specifics, questions about multiattack arise; how exhausting is it to attack more than once in a 3sec span? Anyone should be able to do it, and skill should have a positive impact, but how much does it change per weapon? It gets a little bit videogamey, in a completely different way than simulation is gamey, and in a way that has no mechanical consistency, leading to disagreements at the table.

More than that, are either of these systems even fun? While I have enjoy prompt-based creativity, and get a thrill when numbers come up in sub-1% statistical probabilities, that doesn't mean everybody will. And however it runs, it needs to be fun enough and easy enough to prevent players from suffering creative and emotional burnout, which leads them to becoming hesitant about sitting down for a session.

But I also, absolutely, abhor the recent trend of DND enthusiasts ignoring all the rules in favor of goofing off with friends. Having fun with your friends is good. Having fun with your friends while you play a game is great. Changing the rules of a game so that you have more fun playing it is fine. But dismissing the rules of a game wholesale to the point that they make zero impact on ANYTHING you can do? Why even pretend to play the game then?

Tabletop rpgs, unlike videogames, are work. Videogames don't progress unless you press buttons, but ttrpgs make you have to imagine the buttons and what they do, and require everyone present to agree on what the button actually does when you press it. Inventing these buttons has to be consistent, everyone should understand what happens when you press them, and everyone should enjoy the process of both making the buttons, and the fictional pressing of them.

You need to have fun, but simulation and storytelling are important for a game too.

___________________

I talked with two people of note lately.

The first was a prospective playtester, who (apparently, according to a third party) had no real interest in Road and Ruin, but still pursued me around multiple games of Warhammer 40k and ASOIAF to ask questions about it. And, as I so often do, I fell in love with my own game all over again. It's rapidly becoming my decade-long magnum opus, and everything it does is designed to excite me just as much as it is to entertain someone else. We ended up building him a Tatzl Plague Doctor, a plague-rat harpy unaffected by most diseases it carries, who travels the world transferring the diseases of others to himself, before bottling the diseases, and a Goblin Alchemist, part vampire, and pursuing science to one day rid themselves of the otherwise incurable disease. And, thanks to RAR's Story Roster, what is otherwise a nearly statistically-impossible task to discover at random, is given several boosts in probability, without guarantee, thanks to being a personal quest.

The second, was my dad. I owe my introduction to fantasy and sci-fi entertainment to him, and though he's never played a ttrpg, he's heard me complain about mechanics and players for years. His is the opinion that making a game that tries to do everything is senseless, and one should create a game to do one thing, specifically, and well. Many would agree with him. But his is also the opinion that if you force a player who enjoys Dungeons, to fight Dragons, that they'll absolutely hate it, and throw a tantrum over not getting to play the thing they joined the game for, and vice versa. A game that blends Dungeon players and Dragon fighters only stands to disappoint both parties, who will always end up playing something they don't want, eventually.

It's absurd, honestly.

Ttrpgs are a social fabric. Bringing the people who enjoy two different things together, to alternate their enjoyments, only strengthens the hobby, and ensures that it's easier to find people to play. By bringing this alchemist playtester into the fold, I get to see someone enjoying something they have an interest in, and work to make their quest come true. By joining with me, he gets to come along on my quest, and adding a little sprinkle of creativity that I'm not personally responsible for is just the kind of prompt I like in prompt-based creativity. The session becomes collaborative, between two or more people enjoying themselves, rather than confrontational, or one-sided legwork, which plagues the GM-dependent scene.

It's silly to disparage people on their preferences, but it's sillier to declare that other players couldn't possibly have something to improve your experience.

______________________

To that end, I think I have to lean heavier on variant rules.

Other games have them, but often, they're a little twist of math that alters the outcome slightly, or even devoid of mechanics at all.

No, I task myself with the rather silly task of creating a Simulation ruleset, and a Storytelling ruleset, based on the same variables and producing similar results. Players of simulation-like grid-based bookkeeping combat, as well as storytelling-focused, theater-of-the-mind, vague interactions, can come together and use the ruleset that they prefer, in order to get to play those Plague Doctor harpies and Vampire Alchemists.

As some say, the rules shouldn't get in the way of having a good time. But the rules should BE what someone USES to have a good time. And since my idea of a good time is different from someone else's, I should be just as welcoming of their preferences, as I ask that they are of mine.

The real risk is overcomplexity. Players already don't like having to learn one set of rules, much less variants of the same rules. There's every possibility that they balk when faced with the possibility of having to learn multiple types of rules for what amounts to the same game. But then, that's what the rules-lite version is for: the opportunity to completely ignore anything complex.

[foundtherightwords]

Come, You Spirits

Pairing: Ralph (Timewasters) x OFC (Thu from "All Our Yesterdays")

Summary: Stuck in the past (again) and bored during the Ghost Festival, Ralph and Thu decide to check out the most haunted building in Hanoi, with unexpected consequences.

Warnings: none, just a brief mention of a murder and some general spooky stuff.

Word count: 4.6k

A/N: This is both my submission for the JQ Spookathon (yes, I've decided to participate after all! Thank you to @palomahasenteredthechat for hosting and all the mods!) and a soft continuation of my Ralph fic, "All Our Yesterdays" (if you haven't read it, that's OK. I tried to make this a standalone.) I've never written horror before, so here's something on the silly side instead. Plus, out of all of Joe's characters (other than Eddie), I feel that Ralph is most suited to a spooky story, and when Ralph is concerned, everything takes a silly turn for me.

As with "All Our Yesterdays", this is based on an actual urban legend of Hanoi and the location is real (see the photo at the end). The title is a quote from "Macbeth" too.

"You want to do what?" Thu asked, thinking she'd misheard Ralph over the flapping of the bamboo fan she was using to dry her hair. There was a power cut, and she was already sweating despite having just showered.

"Check out that haunted building you told me about," Ralph repeated.

Right, so she hadn't misheard him then. "OK... why?"

Ralph shrugged. "It's something to do," he said. "We've eaten at every possible street vendor in the Old Quarter, we've seen every sight there is to see—I know you take pride in Hanoi being traditional, but when it hasn't changed much since sixty years ago, there's not much left to do."

"That still doesn't explain why you want to see a haunted house."

"Isn't it the Ghost Festival today? Shouldn't we do something to celebrate?"

"Our Ghost Festival is not Halloween!"

"You said it was the day all the souls are released from the Underworld to visit Earth. That sounds like Halloween to me."

"Yeah, but we're supposed to be avoiding spirits, not searching for them!"

"Ah, that's no fun," Ralph sighed. He picked up a paper with a listless hand and threw it down again.

"And anyway, we did go to the mausoleum to see Uncle Ho's mummified body," Thu pointed out. "That wasn't macabre enough for you?" The trip to Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum, a rite of passage for every school kid in Hanoi, had been less of a success than Thu had expected. Ralph had treated it less like a curious relic of Vietnam's past and more like a carnival sideshow. 

"No," now he said. "It was just... weird. It's not even real!"

"Oh, like you'd know!"

"You seriously believe that they can preserve a body that well?"

"Why not? The Soviets did it with Lenin."

"Have you seen that one?"

"... No."

"Well, I bet that's not real either."

Thu could tell they were in for another pointless bickering session, which had been happening with increasing frequency lately. Time traveling tends to do that to you, especially when it is as unpredictable as time traveling with Homeless Pete. No matter how in love you are with one another, it can be stressful when you keep ending up in different times throughout history, without warning. And this particular period hit a little close to home—in 1991 Hanoi, with her birth just six years away, Thu ran the risk of running into her parents and experiencing her own version of Back to the Future. She and Ralph had managed to find a place to stay on the other side of town, away from her parents' university, but the strain was getting to her.

Thu knew she should be thankful they had landed in peacetime—if it had been close to either of the wars, the suspicion on Ralph would make it impossible for them to stay. And they had managed to avoid the worst of the 1980s economic crisis as well—she still remembered too clearly her parents' half-humorous, half-painful stories about standing in line for hours to get their meager rations, the mortal fear of losing one's ration book, the stress of hoarding any product you could get your hands on. At least all of that was behind them now. But on a night like this, it was hard to feel grateful. The August air was muggy, the power was out for the third time that week, and the smoke from the burning of joss paper for the Ghost Festival only made the heat more unbearable. No wonder Ralph was feeling restless.

Still, she wished she hadn't told Ralph about that haunted building. They lived just down the road and had come across it while trudging around searching for Homeless Pete, who had disappeared yet again. Built in the Eastern Bloc style, all gray concrete and sharp corners, it squatted on an intersection like some scowling monstrosity, already exuding an air of inhospitality and menace despite being newly constructed.

"That's going to be the most famous haunted building in Hanoi," Thu said without thinking, pointing at it.

"Going to? What happens?" Ralph asked curiously.

Thu told him about how the building was meant to be the new Bulgarian Embassy, but was never put to use for some reason and was left empty over the next thirty years. "And in Vietnam, whenever a house is abandoned, it is said to be haunted," she said. "They say it was built on top of a cemetery or a hospital morgue, and people often hear strange noises or crying inside. The usual urban legend stuff. And then there was the murder—"

"What murder?" Ralph's eyes opened wide with fascination.

"Some woman stabbed her lover in his car right outside the back gate. In the early 2000s, I think. They say his ghost still lingers around."

"Wizard!"

Thu didn't share Ralph's enthusiasm. She didn't really believe in ghosts, but like most Vietnamese people, she had a healthy respect for the supernatural and avoided it when she could. Ralph had no such hang-ups, apparently. And now he wanted to check out the place! On Ghost Festival of all night!

"It's not really haunted, you know," she said, hoping to dissuade him. "Those stories are just made up by junkies and criminals, so they have a place to hang out."

"But you said those rumors only started after the building was abandoned," Ralph pointed out, and Thu silently cursed his memory. "So why was it abandoned in the first place?"

"It's probably just due to some bureaucratic crap."

"Where's your sense of adventure?"

"Let me get this straight," she said, rubbing her eyes. "We're stuck thirty years in the past with no IDs, and you want to sneak into an embassy to see if it's haunted, all because you're bored?"

"Yes," Ralph said, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"No. We are not doing that."

"Please?" He was practically pouting and batting his eyelashes at her, like freaking Betty Boop.

"Stop making that face. You know I can't resist that face."

"It's history!"

Thu sighed. Their apartment was cramped, and the fried fish that the family next door was having for dinner did not smell so great. Perhaps some fresh air would do them good. This was a time when you could still get fresh air simply by walking outside, without having to worry about pollution or traffic, so she might as well take advantage of it.

"Sometimes I do worry about your sense of self-preservation, you know," she said, getting up to find her shoes.

"Come on, that's what you love about me." Ralph grinned and gave her a kiss as she passed him.

***

They walked. Usually, during a power cut like this, they would meet plenty of people and families with kids all along the street, trying to cool down in the night air. That night, however, the street was deserted. The only person they saw was a scrawny student trying to read a book under a street lamp. Clearly, the night of the Ghost Festival was no time to be outside. And even if anyone had ventured out, the stifling, humid air would offer little relief. They really needed some rain soon.

"I'm afraid this isn't the vibe you're looking for," Thu said. "It's too hot to be spooky."

"That helps though." Ralph, always determined to make the best of every situation, pointed at the fat full moon shining languidly over the darkened street.    

Just a few minutes later, they reached the embassy building. The place was surrounded by a tall iron fence, sharp points piercing the moonlit sky. The wan light of the street lamps gave the concrete blocks a blotchy, moldy look, and when combined with the scraggly bushes around its courtyard and the leftover building material, the building looked old, ruined, abandoned even before it was inhabited. A giant banyan tree by the main entrance spread its twisted branches over the flat rooftop, its roots hanging down like a curtain, dark leaves rustling menacingly although there wasn't a breath of wind.

The sight of that tree gave Thu pause.

"What's wrong?" Ralph asked.

"They should have done something about that tree," she said slowly.

"Why?"

"A banyan tree, especially one this ancient, is usually home to spirits and ghosts," Thu explained, "but cutting it down will anger the spirits, so people often set up some sort of a shrine or an altar on the tree for them. There's no shrine here. Not even some rice and salt for the lonely spirits." She dug in her bag and found a packet of puffed rice, one of many she'd bought earlier that day as offerings for the Ghost Festival, and scattered the grains over the tree root. To do it right, there should be some incense as well, but she was sure the spirits would find the rice just fine.

Ralph gave her a sidelong glance. "I thought you didn't believe in ghosts."

"I don't."

"Then are you trying to frighten me?"

A corner of Thu's mouth lifted up. "Is it working?"

"Not a chance." Ralph walked around the back. "Come on."

The back was more of the same, sinister walkways leading deeper into the building, eerie shadows that seemed to appear just out of the corner of one's eyes, furniture piled up waiting to be moved in, creating all sorts of odd shapes. An empty swimming pool gleamed pale under the moonlight.

"OK, we've checked it out," Thu said. "There is no ghost or spirit to be found here. Are you happy now?"

There was no answer. She looked around, but Ralph was no longer by her side. He was at the back gate, unwinding the chain holding the gate shut. There was no lock. Shit.

"Ralph, stop! Come back here!" she called, trying to keep her voice low, but it was too late. He had slipped through the gate and disappeared into the murky depth of the building.

Shit, shit, shit. Ralph had always been game for anything, and he was right to say it was what she loved most about him—his endless passion, his ever-present optimism. But she was sure that, having spent time in an Indochinese prison, he would be more careful about putting himself at risk of getting arrested again.

Well, there was nothing to it. She slipped through the gate after him. If the lack of a lock was anything to judge by, the place was not very well guarded, being newly built and not yet inhabited. They may be lucky and not get discovered.

She caught up with Ralph, who was strolling down the covered walkway that connected the two wings of the building, looking for all the world like he was taking his constitutional along the Thames, despite his modern-day clothes. Apparently, one can take the boy out of London but cannot take London out of the boy.

"Get out of here before you get us into trouble!" she hissed.

"Relax," Ralph said. "There's nobody here."

"And there's no ghost either," Thu said, with more conviction than she actually felt.

It wasn't simply the fear of getting arrested that made Thu jumpy. She hated to admit it, but being in this building, knowing its history—or rather, future—made her hair stand on end. She didn't believe in ghosts, she told herself. But something about those cold, gray concrete walls, those dark, tunnel-like corridors, and the sheer emptiness of it felt like there was a razor pressed to the back of her neck, making her want to stand with her back against a solid wall. She fought the urge to take Ralph's hand. 

"So you have time-traveled, yet you don't believe in ghosts?" Ralph said.

"That's different," Thu muttered.

"How?"

They were now inside the main hall. The building must have its own generator—there was a naked light bulb on the ceiling, shedding its yellow light over a reception desk of cheap plywood and a floor that still hadn't been completely cleared of sand and mortar. They climbed the staircase leading to the first floor, where another bare bulb swung from the ceiling, bringing more shadows than light.

"Time travel is—is—science," Thu said lamely.

"Is that so? How does it work then?"

"It works by—by—I don't know, some wibbly wobbly, timey wimey stuff!"

Ralph looked blank. "What?"

Thu bit back a teasing smile. "You're probably the only Brit alive that doesn't know Doctor Who. If—when we get back to the present, we really need to sit down and watch it."

"To be fair, I was born ninety years ago—"

A heavy, drawn-out sigh echoed down the corridor, cutting him off. It was ringing clear, as though the person was standing right by them.

Ralph gripped Thu's wrist. "Did you hear that?"

"Oh, for Heaven's sake!" She shook Ralph's hand free and strode forward with long, decisive steps. "It's probably just the wind or something—"

She rounded a corner, and her heart stopped.

A figure wavered in the gloom at the end of the corridor.

Then the figure moved into the light, and Thu realized it was much, much worse than a ghost.

It was a middle-aged man, dressed like a security guard, wearing the green pith helmet of the Vietnamese army, with a baton in his hand and a startled expression on his face.

"Excuse me!" he exclaimed in Vietnamese. "Who the hell are you?"

Thu didn't know where she found the clarity of mind to stick out an arm and block Ralph, who was still hidden from view behind the corner. But block him she did, and she could hear him duck into an empty room, much to her relief.

"This is private property! It belongs to the government of Bulgaria!" the guard shouted, limping toward her. "What the hell do you think you're doing here?!"

"I'm so sorry, sir," Thu said, running up to the guard to prevent him from going further down the corridor and discovering Ralph. She decided the best course was to tell the truth—or a version of the truth anyway. "The gate was open, and I—my friends and I heard that the place is haunted, and they dared me to go inside..."

"Haunted?" The guard frowned. He had the yellow teeth and yellow fingertips of a chain smoker, and, as he got close enough to her, the breath to match as well. "I've worked here since they started constructing, never heard of no haunting."

"It's just what people say—isn't this place built on an old temple? Or was it a cemetery—"

The guard narrowed his eyes at her. "Aren't you a bit old to get up to such shenanigans?" he asked.

Thu was ready to get offended, but then she remembered that thirty years in the past, someone in her mid-twenties could very well be married and having kids already—her own parents were. "You're absolutely right, sir," she said. "I'm so sorry. I'm leaving now."

She turned to leave, but the guard put his baton up. "Hold on," he said. "Let me see your ID."

Thu's heart dropped. "I—I don't have it with me."

"Where do you live?"

"Just... down the street."

"Right, I'll go with you to get your ID then."

"No!" she exclaimed. Realizing she would not be helping her case by panicking, she tried to soften her voice. "Please. You'll get me in trouble with my parents. Please, sir. I haven't done anything. I just walked around—"

Her plea fell on deaf ears. The guard grabbed Thu's arm with vice-like fingers. "So you just admitted to trespassing. Come with me."

"Hey, you can't do this!" She tried to pull away, but his hold was too strong, despite his limp. "Do you even have the authority to detain me?"

"Ooh, like to use fancy words, don't we?" The guard's craggy face took on a harsh, unyielding look. "You're right. This is a police matter. I'm only detaining you until I can fetch them." Ignoring her protests, he dragged her down the corridor and threw her into a room at the very end. "And for your information, young lady, my authority is absolute here!" he said, before snapping shut the padlock at the door with a cruel click.

"Shit!" Thu said out loud. How could she have been so stupid? She should have dragged Ralph bodily out of here—no, she shouldn't have let him through the gate—no, she should never have agreed to come here in the first place!

When she first time-traveled, she had lived for six months in 1929 without any ID whatsoever, but things in 1991 were very different, and with the police getting involved, how was she going to explain herself? She could only pray that Ralph was smart enough to get out while the guard was preoccupied. She may be able to come up with some crazy story to the police to explain her lack of ID, but explaining the presence of a young Englishman who was actually born in 1904 was too much for her. She could see the headlines—"Mad Woman Claims to Come from the Future". "Mad Foreigner Claims to Come from the Past". Or worse, there would be no headlines at all. They would just get thrown into jail or a mental hospital and forgotten.

Thu looked over her jail cell, trying to figure out what to do. She was in a bathroom, lit by a bare light bulb as the rest of the building. The door was of sturdy wood, and the only window was a tiny square high up on the wall. Even if somehow she managed to wriggle through it, it was still a two-floor drop to the ground. No wind came through that window, and the room was boiling. Sticky sweat poured down her back.

A shadow passed by and stopped just outside the room, blocking out the narrow strip of light underneath the door. It was gone in an instant, followed by several more, rather like a group of children crowding each other to peer into a room. Thu pressed her ears to the door but heard nothing, no footsteps or even a rustling of clothes.

"Hello?" she whispered in Vietnamese. Receiving no answer, she switched to English. "Ralph? That you?" Still no answer, but there came that long, heavy sigh again, and the light went out.

The sweat on Thu's back turned to ice. She staggered away from the door, heart hammering, spine crawling, until she hit the wall with her back. The solid wall made her feel slightly better, though the tiles chilled her. She missed Ralph's warm arms.

She sat down on the toilet, trying to gather her wits. Some shadows, a noise, and a power cut were nothing to be so shaken up about. It was just Ralph's overactive imagination and those damned stories getting to her, that was all...

BANG!

She nearly jumped out of her skin, before realizing it was just a window on the ground floor. Probably just the wind. She took a deep breath—

BANG! BANG! BANG!

This time they came right above her, one after another, sounding too fast and uniformed to be caused by the wind. A quick glance out the window told her that the night was as still and muggy as ever.

The guard's voice came from somewhere in the bowels of the building, "Who goes there?" Thu heard a high, clear giggle, but it could be her imagination, or it could simply be from a kid playing in the street outside. This was followed by a long moment of silence, then a scream—more like a yelp, thin and far away, then silence again, ringing in her ears, endless, unbearable.

The silence was broken by running footsteps outside the corridor. Her heart in her throat, Thu cast wildly about for a weapon. She settled for the heavy porcelain cover of the toilet's water tank, though what good it would do against a ghost, she had no idea. But then again, ghosts wouldn't have footsteps, would they?

"Thu?" came Ralph's familiar voice, and the band squeezing her heart loosened, almost making her drop the cover on her foot. She scrambled to the door.

"Ralph! What happened?"

"The guard fell into the pool."

Shit. "What did you do?!"

"I didn't do anything!"

This was no time for more bickering. "He must have the keys on him," she told Ralph. "Find them and get me out of here!"

"OK. Hang on."

His footsteps receded. After what must be the longest five minutes of her life, he came back, the door was opened, and the next thing she knew, Ralph was pulling her into his arms. "Are you all right?" he asked. "I'm sorry, this was all my fault—"

Thu was so relieved she wasn't even angry with him anymore. After all, she had followed him into the building of her own volition.

"No time for apologies. Let's just get the hell out of here," she said.

Grabbing each other's hand, they ran down the corridor, down the stairs, and toward the back gate. As they passed the empty swimming pool, Thu glimpsed the dark shape of the guard lying in a heap at the bottom.

"Is he dead?" she asked, horrified.

"No. Just knocked out, I think," Ralph said. Seeing Thu slow down, he paused as well. "What are you thinking?"

Thu weighed the bunch of keys in her hand. "I have an idea," she said, motioning for Ralph to climb down into the pool with her.

They put the keys back into the guard's pocket and carried him into the bathroom where he'd locked Thu up. This way, Thu reasoned, when he woke up, the confusion would be enough to throw doubt over his story, and they would be off the hook.

"Are you still angry with me?" Ralph said as they made their way back to the apartment. "I won't do anything like that ever again, I promise."

"You better keep that promise," she grumbled, but when he tentatively reached for her hand, she didn't push him away.

***

For a few days afterward, Thu avoided going past the embassy, just in case the guard still remembered her face. One evening, she and Ralph were going to dinner when they found their path was taking them past the building again. There was a great bustle as workers went in and out, carrying furniture and cleaning up the leftover building material. Seeing a woman struggling with a heavy chair, Thu came over to help.

"Are the Bulgarians finally moving in?" she asked in Vietnamese.

"No," the woman replied shortly. "They're moving out."

It was then that Thu noticed the furniture was being loaded on carts and taken away. Did this have anything to do with their misadventure the other night?

"Why?" she asked the woman. 

"No one wants to work here," the woman said. "The locals say it's haunted."

Startled, Thu looked back at Ralph, whose eyes were open so wide they threatened to pop out of his face. He hadn't learned much Vietnamese, but he had certainly caught the word "haunted" and understood what it meant. Có ma. Inhabited by ghosts.

"What happened?" Thu asked the woman, trying to sound casually interested.

The woman cast a look around, before dropping her voice. "On Ghost Festival, a security guard was working there alone. He said some woman showed up, telling him the place is haunted. He thought she was a trespasser and locked her up to wait for the police. Did everything by the book, right? Only she vanished! And the guard found himself locked up instead! What do you make of that?"

Thankfully, Thu didn't have to answer that, because another worker was calling to the woman irritably, "Hey, move it! Some of us want to get out of here before it gets dark, you know!"

As the woman scurried back to her work, Thu gave Ralph a brief summary of what the woman had told her.

"I guess we were the ones that started that whole haunted rumor," she said ruefully.

"Well, at least now we know why it was abandoned," Ralph replied, cheerful as ever.

Thu shook her head at him, half exasperated, half affectionate. She should really stop letting him draw her into these harebrained adventures, but it was hard to say no to those puppy eyes.

"So tell me," she said, slipping her arm through Ralph's as they continued on their way, "what did you do to that poor security guard, exactly? How did you know where the breaker was?"

"The what?"

"The electricity. You turned it off to scare the guard, didn't you?"

"I thought that was another power cut?"

She slowed her steps, puzzled. "But you did slam the shutters, right?"

"Yes, the one on the ground floor. I thought it might make a good diversion."

"And the ones on the second floor too."

"No, I didn't go on the second floor."

"But I clearly heard three slams, right above me."

"I heard those too. I thought that was you!"

Did he think she was that gullible? "Come on, Ralph. You're messing with me."

"You're messing with me! How could I have gotten from the ground floor to the second floor so quickly?"

"Right, and next you're going to tell me you didn't make the guard fall into the pool either."

"I told you I didn't! He was already there when I found him!"

Thu finally stopped and looked straight at Ralph. "What are you saying?"

"I am telling you the truth," Ralph said slowly. "All I did was slam the shutters to draw the guard away. Then I hid. I didn't see anything. I only heard giggling and panting, and the guard's scream. When I found him, he was unconscious in the pool."

They stared at each other, neither uttering a word, minds running wild with all sorts of possibilities, while a strange, oppressive feeling—not quite fear, but a vague unease—clutched at their hearts. Thu could feel the razor on the nape of her neck again. As one, she and Ralph turned to look at the building. The workers had finished and left, and the building was deserted once more, looming gray and silent in the last rays of the sun.

"Perhaps the ghosts were helping us because you gave them some puffed rice," eventually Ralph said.

"I don't believe in ghosts," Thu snapped.

"Maybe you should," Ralph said. "They believe in you."

Thu looked over her shoulder again. It could be her imagination, or it could be a trick of the dying light, but the banyan tree looked like it was winking at them.

Definitely her imagination. Maybe.

"Don't say things like that," she said, trying to shake off the crawling sensation on her back. "It sounds so creepy!"

"Sorry."

She glared at Ralph. His eyes were full of earnest concern, with no hint of the twinkle he usually had when he was teasing her.

"You're lucky you're cute, you know that?" she said.

Face brightening up, he grinned back at her. "I know."

For all her bravado, Thu's grip on Ralph's hand was tighter than usual as they walked home in the gathering dusk. Then again, perhaps that was what he was aiming for, the cheeky tosser.

[ecrisparfois]

skydive

summary : Y/N involuntarily went skydiving with her boyfriend.

warning (s) : possible inaccuracy of skydiving thingies (I never actually went skydiving, bear with me).

words count : 1.1k

A/N : it's a reupload from my old blog. I made a few changes to save y'all from reading my old writing. It was full of grammatical nightmare.

.

Bad idea. It was such a bad idea. Y/N knew it, of course, she did. She always thought there’s something mentally wrong with people who voluntarily threw themselves off of a plane for fun! Ironically, her boyfriend, Draco Malfoy, has been a skydiving instructor for almost a year. He went skydiving once during his travel across Europe with his two best-mates. He never stopped jumping off a plane since. In fact, he become so obsessed with the sport that he decided to take courses to become a professional skydiver. Once he got all the required licenses and certificates to register his name to be a skydiving instructor, off he did to a nearby skydiving centre. Draco did not need the money; he simply enjoys skydive, plus, he thinks it was fun to watch people pissing themselves – not literally – a second before the jump. Evil git.

And evil he did. He was fully aware of how much Y/N hate what he does, despite the fact that she never skydives her entire life. So, he booked one session of skydiving with her for her birthday gift. He did deliver the news gently. Although, she still nearly had a heart attack right there and then at the fancy restaurant he brought her to celebrate. He even bothered to make a full presentation of reasons as to why she should just accept her fate to threw herself off a plane with him. He won, and she begrudgingly let him attached the harness to her torso.

“I still think it’s a bad idea,” Y/N fretted while he tugged on the knot to double-check it’s properly attached to her body.

“It’s all gonna be good, you won’t regret anything,” he mumbled the same words he had recounted over a hundred times since last night, tucking a strand of hair falling to her face.

“I’m still mad at you, you know,” Y/N dramatically pout while Draco struggled to tie her hair in a ponytail.

“I’m not worried. You’ll forgive me once you realise how irrational your fear is,” Draco cockily said. 

“I’m not afraid, and it’s not irrational,” she protested, earning a sarcastic brow lift from the blond, “You wouldn’t be so cocky if we land in the afterlife,”

Draco let out a chirpy laugh, “If that’s the case, at least, we’ll die together,”

“How romantic,” Y/N sarcastically retorted, rolling her eyes.

After the harnesses are all set, the couple made their way to the plane. Draco helped her to hop on and sat on his lap, attaching the harness to connect them to each other. He also helped her put on a goggle that Y/N always seen him wear in every footage of him skydiving. Draco holding her sweaty hand, squeeze it every once in a while. If her heart wasn’t beating so frantically right now, she would complain about the fact that he always had someone on his lap every time he was guiding a tandem skydive. Nearing the jumping point, Draco clutches her chest, right where her heart beating painfully fast. He holds her close, as if to help her heart not to pound out of her rib cages. The weird sensation as if her ears were stuffed of cotton candy did not help with her growing anxiety.

“There’s no need to be nervous, I’m here with you, aren’t I?” he whispered softly, almost unheard from the loud noise of the plane engine. He is earnestly comforting her, unlike the last few hours when he had the teasing tone when he was supposed to be reassuring his lover. “Do you trust me?”

“We’re not Jack and Rose, you know,” her tone was stiff, failed her intention to defuse the jittery feeling in her heart.

Draco chuckled, “That is true, but, still, do you trust me?”

“Yes,” Y/N defeatedly concurred. There’s no backing away for her now.

When Draco decided it was time, he scooted closer to the open door. Y/N felt sick when her feet dangling out of the plane.

“I’ll jump in the count of three,” he shouted right next to her ear, “One, two, three!”

“Holy sh-“ Y/N shrieked when she felt her body jerking forwards. She immediately shut her eyes, too terrified to look at the ground.

She waited for the drop, nauseating feeling in her stomach like the one she always had during a rollercoaster ride, but it never came. Instead, she felt like she was floating, wind swiping her cheek softly. She tried to open her eyes and immediately amazed by the view. The ground unfolds before her eyes; she could make out the cornfield and the river from the distance, right beneath her was a vast green field. She almost forgot Draco was right behind her, attached by the harness. He took her hands and spread it wide. The scenery was too stunning from above, she couldn’t bring herself to feel disgusted by the fact that she actually enjoying the experience. They were free falling for the next few seconds.

“I’ll pull the parachute!” Draco announced, and before she could even register his words her body was pulled by a violent tug preventing the gravity to pull her too fast to the ground. Y/N shrieked in response but she laughed gleefully right after reciting string of curses. Draco just chuckled in amusement.

“How was it?” He asked when they float down slowly. She still could see the farthest land from the height.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, still in amazement.

“You should see the one I saw in Switzerland,” his soft tone faded, switched back to his usual smugness.

The landing was much too swift for her liking. She still wanted to float around and enjoying the scenery from above with Draco. The gravity decided otherwise, pulling the couple down to debark to the place they both should belong. Y/N stretched her feet to the front, like Draco had instructed her before the flight. She could be heard letting out a relieved breath when the harness attaching her to her boyfriend was untied. She looked around to found his hair had ruffled into a mess by the wind, and she suddenly overcame with jealousy at the thought that she had missed this view thousands of times. It’s not until this moment she noticed a device on her lover’s wrist.

“Are you recording me?” she scolded him playfully, slapped his arm to add dramatic effect. 

“Of course. It’s your first and only skydive. I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to document such event,” Draco defended himself, securing the camera from her attack.

The awaited attack never came, instead she looked at the ground bashfully.

“Actually,” she began, “could we, maybe, do that again?”

Draco smirked in victory.

Oh boy, she would never hear the end of it.

[redheadspark]

Winter Prompts, Round 1!

Hello my lovelies!

I hope you all are doing well in November and you have a great time with the Holidays this upcoming week!

I have a few new followers here on my blog: WELCOME! I'm so happy you're here and I hope you like what I write! If you ever get lost, come to the Navigation Page! I know December is not here yet, but I also know we are all going to be beyond busy when it's officially Christmas season next week, so I figure I can get a head start with a new Prompt Session! Now I will do TWO Sessions, not just one, and I'll make sure to do them right before we all travel to see loved ones for Christmas, so don't worry!!

This Prompt theme is:

Christmas and Winter Prompts 🎄🎁❄️

Here are my rules with this prompt sessions:

1.) You maybe chose ONE character from my list that I have Here . It’ll have the list of characters that I write for or have written for in the past.

*(If you have a character not listed that you wish for me to write, PLEASE MESSAGE ME AND CLEAR IT WITH ME FIRST TO SEE IF I CAN OR WILL DO IT!)*

2.) The Prompt list found below has two sections: Scenario and Dialogue. You may choose ONE FROM EACH, not two from one and two from another. Also, Please provide the number AND the line that you wish for me to write for you so I don't get confused!

*I write out the request I get as first come first serve. I will try my best to fulfill every request that comes my way, but please bear in mind I work full time as a teacher. Because of that, I’ll be busy most of the day so please be patient and I’ll write on my spare time as much as I can :) *

3.) You can request in my ASK box neither as yourself or anonymously. Although I would LOVE to give you a shout if you request as yourself, anon is perfectly fine!

4.) I will close this prompt session Sunday, November 27th, at 3:00 pm (Pacific Standard Time or California USA time).

5.) Have fun and enjoy! If you miss this request session, don't worry! I'll do another December Prompt session around December 4th!

*Prompts created by @mirclealignr* SCENARIOS;

Decorating the tree

Dancing in the snow

Present shopping

Gift giving

Wrapping gifts

Making a gingerbread house

Gingerbread house competition

Snowball fight

Sledging

Mistletoe

Christmas baking

Christmas market

Making snowmen

Christmas party

Watching Christmas movies

Dancing to Christmas music

Going ice skating

Christmas dinner

Making Christmas dinner

Fake dating for Christmas Ball

Secret Santa

Both reaching for the last cookie

Making Christmas decorations

New Years Countdown

NYE Party

DIALOGUES;

"Stop trying to get me to walk under the mistletoe.”

"That should be our Christmas card this year."

"Why'd you turn the music off?"

"I know we said no presents this year but..."

“I hate Christmas shopping.” - “I love Christmas shopping!”

“Do you want to put the star on the top of the tree?”

“What do you think? Like the tree?”

“Open your stocking!”

“It’s snowing!”

“What are you doing?” - “Making a snow angel.”

“Do people even use nutcrackers?”

“Do you still believe in Santa?”

“You’d make a cute elf.”

“Look! Reindeers!”

“Is that supposed to be a snowman?”

“Do you have any carrots?”

“This is the best gift you could’ve given me.”

“You have snow on your eyelashes, looks cute.”

“Come here by the fire.”

“Please don’t make me wear this, I look ridiculous.”

“You’ve really made my Christmas this year.”

“I thought you were going home for Christmas.” - “Well, I couldn’t leave you all alone.”

“I’m never letting you convince me to go carolling again.”

“Hey, if we don’t find someone by midnight…you and me…maybe?” - “Ask me properly and I might consider it.”

“Here, you can have one of my gloves.”

“What are you wearing?”

“Did you get us matching pyjamas?”

“You look so beautiful in the snow.”

“It’s bold of you to assume I haven’t eaten my entire advent calendar.”

“Christmas hot chocolate is not normal hot chocolate. Where are the marshmallows?”

“Smell this candle, it’s amazing.”

“Aren’t you going to write your letter to Santa?”

“I’ll let you sit on my knee.”

“You’re my Christmas angel.” - “Wow that was…intense.” - “Just take the compliment.”

“Will you be my new years kiss?”

“But I wanted to be Santa this year!”

“Did you make me a tinsel crown?”

“I can’t get the star on, would you give me a hand?”

“Looks like you’ve had a few drinks!” - “You haven’t had enough if you’re noticing. Come on, bar’s over there.”

“Will you make me a hot chocolate?” - “Name all the reindeer and I will.”

Once again, This Prompt Session will close at 3:00 PM PST on Sunday, November 27th.

Happy Writing!

Tagged: @a-lumos-in-the-nox @botanicalbarnes @heartofwritiing @basicrese @hottpinkpenguin @heliosphere8 @virtueassassin

[fantastic-wizards]

Continued from HERE. || @fallencrowns

He didn't need to see Corvinus' face to know that this invitation had taken him off guard, but why shouldn't it have? It wasn't as if Albus spent much time chatting with him. After their last one on one session, Albus had been avoiding him. He wasn't going out of his way to do so, but he wasn't stopping to chat whenever they met in passing either. And it had everything to do with a small difference of opinion that, in Albus' mind, was almost unforgiveable. His love of Muggles and almost obsessive need to protect their rights trumped a lot of things, including relationships.

That aside, he supposed it was good to know he wasn't setting himself up for potential drunken chatter from Corvinus. Should the man let slip something of importance, Albus had no idea what he would do or say. He wasn't used to it… unless it was Aberforth and even his brother was quite versed in holding his liquor --- far better than Albus anyway.

❝Ill be honest. It does not take much at all to spark a few rumors,❞ Albus added quietly. ❝There is very little going on within the staff so everyone's always looking for something to run with,❞ he explained. ❝And well, you are the hot new professor --- according to my teens anyway. You are going to be the topic of conversation for a while… at least until the newness wears off.❞

He led the way, grateful that their only obstacle was the Bloody Baron. Were it Peeves, well, no doubt he would have dropped a few water bombs or worse, yelled loudly that they were hanging out. Stupid poltergeist. Peeves aside, waved his hand and his office door opened up. He led Corvinus inside a quaint, homey looking room. Two arm chairs were adjacent before his desk, worn and made of dry oak. Another arm chair was behind it while next to it was a bird quietly perched atop a cage. He appeared to be sleeping --- Fawkes. He was a phoenix, Albus' animal companion who was a lot smarter and stronger than most could ever know.

To the right of the room, a fireplace came to life lighting the room some. Shadows danced about the room, actuating the various trinkets and bookshelves that made up Albus' place of study. He had loads of objects, many that appeared to be dark objects but there were not. Most were gifts from his travels; keepsakes that made for fun studies in class. Despite all the objects decorating the office, it appeared very neat --- as if everything had its place.

Albus removed his trenchcoat where it floating across the room, nestling atop a coatrack tucked in the far corner of the room. The troth that was often hidden beneath his sleeve or button downs was in plain sight around his neck. To the unlearned eye, it was nothing more than a gorgeous silver chain with an odd sort of pendant but it was so much more than that. Tonight it had decided to stay coiled about Albus' neck. Had it sensed Albus' treacherous thoughts earlier in the night? It was difficult to say. There was still much about his own magic he did not fully understand.

A space was magically cleared upon Albus' desk and a tray with two glasses, an ice bowl and some whiskey appeared. Albus poured them both a half glass, handing one off to Corvinus before sitting in the chair next to his own. They were not teacher and student tonight, or even professors discussing business'. Therefore he would not sit behind his desk. This was… supposed to be 'pleasure'. Or something. Certainly not a business moment.

❝Not that you care to know or asked, but I was returning from a Hogsmead visit. I had a butterbeer, some taffy, enjoyed a wee bit of harmless attention and then I left,❞ he offered truthfully. ❝Had I been caught by another, I would have confessed all the same had they inquired. We are allowed to leave, but I know our coworkers would have felt some type of way. I don't dislike them, but I suppose some of them fail to understand that the holidays hit differently for some of us.❞

Albus looked to Corvinus curiously. He didn't press the matter much more; merely left the topic open should the other wish to vent about whatever was bothering him. Either way, Albus would be content.

[jynersq]

i’m going to start. fucking. SCREAMING.

so, my university has a summer program which invites undergraduates from underrepresented and underserved communities in STEM fields to come and work in a lab for 8-10 weeks. they get paired with a lab where they’ll have an advisor and a “big sibling” grad student mentor.

they get a biweekly stipend as part of their experience here, to allow them to pay for food and fun and to replace the loss of income from another summer job.

anyway. we are now a few weeks into the program. the students were supposed to be paid at the very start of the program 2.5 wks ago, to offset food and travel costs and to tide them over until the dining halls opened for the summer session. as of yesterday, they should have received 2 payments (and reimbursement for travel costs, though that often takes longer).

as of this morning, my mentee had received no payments. zero. zip. nada. fortunately, they had family and savings to rely on, but i cannot emphasize enough how much this program is specifically targeted at underrepresented minorities, which of course includes all kinds of situations which may make having savings or other safety difficult to impossible.

afaik, my mentee and the rest of their cohort have all been paid both stipend amounts as of late afternoon TODAY, as in, they were paid FINALLY today after SOME OF THE STUDENTS (and my own advisor who emailed instead of allowing me to send out an extremely feral email myself, which. understandable) but in my opinion it is too little too fucking late. they deserve back pay AT LEAST. but it’s just so fucking emblematic of the problem STEM has with understanding the difference between recruiting and keeping minorities in STEM, particularly in academia.

you can probably guess the demographic of the program heads, but i’ll tell you anyway: they’re a handful of white male tenured faculty between the ages of 50-80, mostly PhDs or MD/PhDs making well over 100k a year. some of them, 200k. i want to tear my hair out because this is the problem. this is the cause of the problems academia is having with life science students (i am specifying because this is my field - not that it isn’t a problem in other disciplines!) especially women and people of color fleeing en masse as soon as they graduate. or leaving before they graduate because this system is not built to consider anyone but the stereotypical white, wealthy, able-bodied person, especially males.

when i die i want academics to lower me into my grave so they can let me down one final time. i am - we are - SO FUCKING OVER the blatant disregard and disrespect. anyway i will be tearing several people a creative range of new assholes in the IMMINENT future.

[xiv-wolfram]

Raubahn's Recovery

Heavensward - lvl 53

Another WolfBahn linkshell call… This one’s about assassination! 😀

Wolfram Saga Comics (Chronological)

This is the script for a future comic. Posting for those who don’t want to wait to get the story. Numbers indicate frame number.

Zoomed out shot of Wolf hanging around outside Moghome. He's speaking on the linkshell. Narrator - "Wolfram has been traveling with Alphinaud, Ysayle, and Estinien in search of a way to end the Dragonsong war. They've been staying with a tribe of Moogles for a few days, helping them with tasks in exchange for their aid. Wolfram finally has some free time and decides to check on Raubahn (his friend and former partner), who has been recovering from his injuries at the Waking Sands."

Wolf concerned - "And what of Nanamo? Have there been any updates?"

Raubahn, walking around the Waking Sands, worried - "I still don't know when we'll be able to free her. This is so frustrating."

Wolf smiles sadly - "Aye, I hate that we have to wait like this. Yet knowing she's alive and in no real danger - that does bring me comfort."

Rau sneers - "I don't like those bastards having any sort of control over her. I think of her as their prisoner and keep hearing Teledji calling her a puppet…"

Wolf clenches his jaw - "Aye, and Lororito is barely better…at least he kept her alive."

Rau sighs - "Aye, at least there is that…"

Rau sad - "I…I was supposed to protect her."

Wolf scoffs - "So was I. So was Papashan. They outsmarted us all." Thought - 'What she really needs is the means to defend herself…not have to rely on others.'

Rau smiles awkwardly - "Aye, you have the right of it. I just …can't help but be protective of her."

Wolf smiles and looks over at Alphinaud across the field who's talking with a moogle - "I believe I know how you feel."

Wolf looks away. Uncomfortable expression - "Rau I…" B) Serious face - "Once we have her location I would like to take care of Lolorito…for good."

Rau shocked - "Wolf, I can't let you do that."

Wolf smiles sadly - "I know it’s not the ‘hero’ thing to do but… I can't bear the thought of her having to look over her shoulder for the rest of her life."

Rau smiles sadly - "I know. I meant I can't let *you* do that. If it needs to be done then I'll handle it…discreetly."

Wolf surprised - "Oh… I see. Good."

Rau rubs his temple in frustration - "I pray it will not come to that… I will hear him out first."

Wolf nods - "Alright then… but you'll let me know if you need any help, right?"

Rau looks hurt - "I may not be the warrior I once was but I doubt he'd put up too much of a fight for even this one armed old man."

Wolf worried - "Oh gods! No Rau! I meant like… with cover up or moral support!" 

Wolf glares comedically - "You'd better stop calling yourself old. If you're old that means I'm old - I won't allow that. And you may be down a limb but I'd bet you could still best me in a fair fight."

A) Rau smirks - "Oh yeah? Is that a formal request for a sparring session when next we meet?" B) Wolf blushes, beaming - "Mayhap…"

Estinien walks up to Wolfram - "Are you almost finished with your 'very important call'? If I have to do this menial labor I refuse to do it alone. I hardly think whatever you're discussing is more important than stopping a war."

Wolf grins, blushing lightly, looking away from Estinien but speaking loudly into the linkshell - "We'll have to continue this conversation later General Aldynn. Unfortunately the Azure Dragoon needs the Warrior of Light's help with slaying the local pests."

Raubahn laughs as his linkshell clicks.

Estinien /aback - "No! I merely wanted you to be aware of the urgency here!" Wolf shrugs smugly - "Well, it's not my fault if you're unaware of the intricacies of Ul'dahn politics. These discussions take time."

Wolf looks over at Ysayle who’s playing with the Moogles and smiles. Though - ‘Nice to see her having fun.’

Wolfram Saga Comics (Chronological)