#witchcraft of amazing proportions

[gavillain]

Since you are the world’s leading expert on Disney villains, which villains have your favourite aesthetics/vibe? For me, Horned King is not even in my top 20, but his general aesthetic and the design of him, his castle and his army…I love it.

Oooh, I LOVE this question!

So, in general, I'm a very aesthetic and vibe oriented person, and in my case, for the most part, my favorite aesthetics and vibes correspond to my favorite villains. However, even though Maleficent is my top favorite villain, the one who has my favorite aesthetic and vibe is Queen Grimhilde.

I was talking with a friend of mine about which Disney screencaps most incarnate our vibes, and Grimhilde's very first shot was my pick for myself:

The color scheme with the purples, blacks, and blues, the dark medieval castle setting with its mixture of grandeur and mysteriousness, the star and moon curtains that represent the cosmos, the zodiac signs adorning the mirror, the magical witchcraft that is about to ensue with the queen and the mirror, the eerie looking dim torches on either side of her - it all just is so captivating for me right from the get go.

I love her outfit and how flowing it is and the way it catches the wind and flutters about. The purples, the reds, and the blacks are just the prime villain color scheme, and I'm here for it! And the spell to summon the mirror has such amazing writing in general that conveys the mythic feel.

I love fire and fiery aesthetics in general (Maleficent, Hades, and Jafar have entered the chat), so having her bring that in during the summoning of the mirror is great. This shot is just so dynamic and visually appealing to me. Speaking of...

The Spirit of the Magic Mirror in general is such a cool aesthetic to me. I love the way he's only a floating theater mask illuminated in greens and blues and kind of distorted by the billowing smoke behind the looking glass that obscures the view of a world of total darkness. It has such a classic mythic feel to it that he captures my imagination every time.

Me when the neighbor kids are making a loud ruckus outside XD

This shot is just so beautiful though! The carved balcony, the diamond design on the window pane, the vibrant blood red curtains, and the queen herself framing herself perfectly as she watches the hated youths below cavorting in her courtyard.

OPPULENCE! YOU. OWN. EVERYTHING! I love her throne room. The ornate peacock shaped throne is of course stunning and so thematically appropriate, but I also love the details of the coat of arms and the woodwork on the sides. It feels RICH and ROYAL. And I love the way that she drapes her flowing clothing over the throne when she sits. The scepter on the pillow next to her is a great background detail, and once again those deep beautiful red curtains are immaculate.

Shout out to Humbert the Huntsman. I like his design a lot - we don't really see middle aged men in animation who are designed to have realistic faces and body proportions any more.

Also take note of the castle detailing of the background and the shield with the crossed hatchets off to the side. All of that is part of Grimhilde too.

I love the box she has for Snow White's heart. The detail of the latch being a dagger piercing a heart is inspired, and the blood red color of it is so visually evocative. Also the pattern on the side is very visually interesting even if I'm not sure what it's supposed to represent.

Her castle's exterior is also worth noting. During the daylight, it's very pretty and regal, but it's more in Snow White's color palette. But at night...

Once the sun sets and Snow White has left its halls, it becomes every bit a dark and imposing fortress befitting Grimhilde's dark majesty.

I just love those star and moon curtains and her flowing cape so much XD But also notice those vibrant green eyes of hers! As a fellow member of the green eyes segment of the population, I feel seen XD

Wearing a blanket down the stairs vibes XD Obviously I love the whole flow of her clothing in this shot, but I also love how up until now, everything around Grimhilde has been very regal and imposing, but we see her leaving the majesty of the mirror chamber and descending into the depths of darkness and decay marked by the presence of rats and other vermin.

Any warmth is drained from the shot. Also, skeletons and skulls and chains. Love them!

And it just keeps going with coffins and cobwebs that obscure our view. It's spooky Halloween-core in its highest form now!

The raven is a great counterpoint to Grimhilde in a dark inverse of Snow White being kind and a friend to the birds whilst Grimhilde is scaring the living beejezums outta this poor thing. The heavy tomes, the skull on display, the hourglass, the melted candle, the bubbling beaker - it's all just so many great details that scream WITCH!

I love the detail of the globe in this shot in particular. Like it's down here with her macabre magical artifacts rather than anywhere more royal or diplomatic. You really get the feeling that she wants her dark magic to spread across the entire world. Also it hints at her being well traveled and worldly, which with what we know about her backstory is very true.

I don't want to hear anyone say that Grimhilde wasn't FULL of dark magic. We only saw her cast TWO spells out of all of these dark spellbooks. She has LOADS of power that we haven't fully seen, and those implications make her chilling. I'm also very intrigued by the nature of each of these. Astrology is obvious and harkens back to the zodiac signs adorning her mirror, which I love. But she's got the Black Arts, Alchemy, Witchcraft, Black Magic (which has the word DEATH at the bottom), Disguises, Sorcery, and Poisons. I wonder what the difference is between Black Arts and Black Magic since they're terms usually used interchangeably. Black Magic at least seems to be focused mostly on death based magic, so perhaps Black Arts are dark spells that extend beyond necromancy and killing curses.

Also I love hands and how expressive a person's hands can be, and Grimhilde's perfect manicure as she peruses the shelf is so visually appealing to me.

Look at her little skeleton man scale on the left! That's SO classic goth, and I LIVE for it XD He even has a little crown XD

This just has such cool and creepy vibes like finding an old worn book that has research material you need and having this vibe of unearthing long lost knowledge. Also look at the other page. It seems there may be some use for the heart of that pig after all ;)

But the ingredients are so classically witchy and spooky, and I enjoy the way they take the time to show Grimhilde adding each one and focusing on its unique visual properties.

Everything bubbling around her, and that unique light fixture right behind her always make this shot so dynamic and visually interesting as we begin the spell...

I love how the Black of Night slowly snakes its way down and engulfs the potion

An Old Hag's Cackle. I love how it's a sound that has been distilled in liquid form and when heated it bubbles up and unleashes the cackle.

A Scream of Fright! I love how the steam becomes a shrieking phantom as it rises.

I think this is genuinely one of the BEST and most dynamic shots in all of Disney history. The way Grimhilde's face is reflected in the potion as it bubbles and smokes, the green of it, the placement of the hand, it's all just MARVELOUS and I love how it's also our last real look at her before the transformation. Almost like she's getting consumed by the potion right before our eyes.

Then of course her Old Hag form is one of my favorite character designs in Disney. Look at how striking she is! How viscerally frightening! How utterly mad she appears to be! It's PERFECT!

Notice "Formulae Mortis" next to the raven hiding in the skull - more magic!

And the recipe for the Poison Apple with the beautiful and dark illustrations in the margins!

I love the aesthetic of cauldrons. I love the bubbling witches brew with the blue and the greens as it billows steam that clouds the entire room. I love the hag peaking through the curtain of fog as she dips the apple into the brew, eagerly anticipating her ultimate victory by this one dark act.

And of course...

THE APPLE! One of the most iconic pieces of imagery in film history. The dripping poison making the death's head as the magic seeps into the darkened fruit before turning it a luscious and tempting red to hide its malevolent purpose.

Her aesthetic and surrounding imagery is just so evocative and classically gothic and medieval and witchy that I just go gaga over it every time! She is that exact intersection between Halloween, fantasy, history, the esoteric, the mystical, and the deadly that captivates my personal tastes so much, and I just always find her and her vibes to be PEAK Disney Villain! And, when you think about it, every other villain in the lineup owes their entire existence to her, and their vibes and aesthetics are in turn derivative of Grimhilde and the gold standard that she set.

I could go on and on even further about Grimhilde and her aesthetic and her vibes, but I am unfortunately at the tumblr image limit and so I can't embed anything more XD But, yeah, you probably weren't looking for a deep dive answer, but you hit on two of my hyper fixations and so you get the info dump with visual aids! Sorry, not sorry XDD

[jaeminzie]

helping hand | l.jn

↳ lee jeno x gender neutral!reader

synopsis: being a transfer student in hogwarts, you felt the need to prove yourself and live up to the rumors of you being the best seeker in your previous school. though, in hogwarts, you had the lee jeno to compete against with. thankfully, he didn’t see you as a rival.

genre: fluff

word count: 1,959

part of ‘the dreamies in hogwarts’ series

everyone in hogwarts hears the name ‘lee jeno’ so frequently that it’s as if he’s professor snape who every student gossip over and try to keep an eye on. though unlike the notorious professor, the person who possesses the name ‘lee jeno’ has a pile of students from each of the different houses trying to score a date with him like how he scores the golden snitch every single quidditch match that he’s played. jeno — the sixth year hufflepuff who has struck everyone (even the professors) with his perfect manners, annoyingly good looks, and even more infuriatingly amazing abilities in everything he participates in. one of the many natural talents the boy has is making the people around him seem inferior.

being a new transfer student from ilvermorny school of witchcraft and wizardry, you weren’t aware of the man’s skill at first. heck, even if you did, that wouldn’t make you second guess joining your house’s team — slytherin which is the equivalent to your old house in ilvermorny, thunderbird. it only took a couple days for you to know random facts about the hufflepuff after constantly hearing about him in classes, the loo, the great hall, and even in the slytherin common room. still, you didn’t feel threatened since you were confident in your abilities, hogwarts was already starting to feel like a home to you. you navigate through the halls like you know every crevice of the campus. for some, it’s hard to believe that it’s only your first year in hogwarts since your name is the second most frequently talked about around campus.

everyone knew you of course, they were all curious on how wizarding school was like in the states. everyone, including jeno. although he heard many rumors about you being the best seeker in your old school, just like you, jeno didn’t feel threatened one bit, though, for different reasons. unlike everyone else, he honestly didn’t care about winning. he played for the fun of it, not for winning a piece of metal that’ll be eventually left for the dust. you, on the other hand, believe that the joy of playing quidditch is winning and you assumed every athlete thought the same.

the first game of the season is today and you have been practicing after school each day for the past three weeks. and never once, have you seen jeno practice in his own leisure time. the only times you did see him was during his weekly team practices that only lasted an hour and a half maximum. he must be that confident, huh? you were ready to teach him.

“we’re going out in three.” your captain yelled out in your little shared tent.

you straighten your green robe and flew out with your team on your broomsticks, forming a straight line. you flew in the air with a perfect posture and chin titled up, but not too high or that’d be trying too hard. your team halted when you all reached the middle of the field and met face to face with your opposing team dressed in yellow.

you and jeno floated directly across from each other and you slightly grimace at the smile he shot at you. a person with a functioning pair of eyes can recognize that jeno is indeed a handsome man with amazing body proportions, yet you would never admit it out loud. you are sure not to feed his ego further when he already has a crowd praising his every action each millisecond.

unaware of your opinions on him, jeno keeps the smile on his lips and eyes for you to see, hoping that you’ll reciprocate. before you could do so, you got into starting position with your full attention on the shaking case placed on the grass below your hovering bodies that held the golden snitch inside.

madam hooch opens the case and the snitch shoots up, flying around your heads in a mocking manner. everyone’s diverts their attention to the commentor in the stands, waiting for them to say the words as madam hooch throws the quaffle straight up into the air.

“the quaffle is released, and the game begins!”

everyone’s robes instantly flapped in the wind as people rushed to acquire the balls. you repeatedly hear the commentor yelling out various numbers as points for team hufflepuff which fueled you even more so.

everything and everyone surrounding your floating figure became a blur the second you get a glimpse of a tiny golden shine from afar. immediately, you fastened your pace to the ball.

jeno was amazed at how determined you are in catching the snitch, he followed suit right behind you, making you to see a hint of yellow at the corner of your eyes.

after many sharp turns and circles, you finally manage to catch up to the snitch, only having a finger length distance between you and the object while jeno seems to be too close by your side.

“lee jeno and y/l/n y/f/n are head to head!” the cheers and booing boomed louder. “who will be able to catch the snitch for their team!” all you heard were various yelled responses clashed together, almost making both your ears ring.

if you could just lean in a tiny bit more, you’d bring your house to victory. you scoot closer and closer to the tip of your broom in order to get be in reach with the shiny object. finally, you felt the cold metal brush your fingertips and it slinked into your palms. along with the feeling of coldness in your hand, you feel your entire body running cold as you plummeted down when you got too carried away with acquiring the snitch, causing you to lose balance on the tip of your broom.

“y/l/n has fallen from their broom!” there is a collective noise of the audience standing up from the benches and their gasps.

you look up to see your broomstick still floating in place, cursing at it and wishing you had upgraded the stick before transferring schools. what you can also see is jeno making his way towards you, seeming to get closer and closer every second as he went at a inhuman speed. instinctively, your grip on the snitch became tighter. his hair pulled back due to the power of the wind and his eyes wide open in panic as he approached you faster.

you look over your shoulder and realize how near the grass is, making you shut your eyes closed and hold the snitch to your chest since that is truly the only thing that mattered in your mind.

jeno inches closer to your falling body, forcing all his power to accelerate faster. he could feel his veins nearly popping from all the pressure and the wind, but he didn’t stop until he felt you secure in his arms.

everyone goes silent. “lee has caught y/l/n!” cheers erupt. you hesitantly opened your eyes as you could hear people ‘aww-ing’ and some praising jeno for the kind act toward his own opponent, only to make direct eye contact with the boy instantly. this is the first time you guys aren’t at a few feet distance from one another. previously, jeno would only be able to see you from afar, he didn’t get to see the marks and dots that splattered randomly on your cheeks, forehead, chin, and neck. nor was he able to see how adorably quick you are to get red whenever he’d step into the same room as you prior to this moment — you weren’t completely sure if it was out of frustration or timidness due to his overbearing presence — jeno made himself believe that it was out of coyness, that he was affecting you like this.

“you okay?” his arms are still holding you up bridal style. with his naturally moon crescent shaped eyes boring into yours, all you were able to do was nod into submission. now finally recognizing the reason why students and professors have only good words to say about the boy after he had just saved you from critical pain despite not been given the best treatment from you. surely, if it were you in jeno’s position, you would’ve sat there and enjoyed the show of your opponent falling to their doom. or the only reason you would go after him is the snitch in his hands. but he caught you and isn’t putting any effort in trying to get the ball from you.

you mumbled a ‘thank you.’ then you begin to feel the stiff wings attached to the golden snitch in your hands that you had shortly forgotten flickering against your palm. immediately, you get off jeno’s arms and placed each of your legs on both sides of his sturdy broom, facing his body and getting a better angle of his face. though, you are convinced that there isn’t any angle he didn’t look good in.

you shake away your thoughts and raised your hand up proudly with your back shot straight and the biggest smirk.

“y/n has gotten the snitch!” loud roars erupted from your house’s tower. “150 points to slytherin!” the smirk laid on your face turn into a smile which later turned into fits of laughter. you admired how your house cheered for you, almost too invested to catch the boy sitting in front of you staring shamelessly at you.

feeling as confident as ever, you joked, “enjoying the view?”

“actually, yeah. very much so.” you smirk at the smiling boy’s response. something about his smile right now was different from the previous pure ones he’s given you, he seems hungry. “the rumors were true, i’m impressed.”

you take off your gloves and clap your hands to dust them off, then shoving your gloves into the pocket of your robe. jeno maintained the eye contact. “yeah, you could put some more work, though.”

the boy dropped his head and shook it as he chuckled, tongue poking the inside on his right cheek. “maybe i could use some lessons.”

you quirk an eyebrow and hummed, waiting for him to continue. “possibly lessons from the best seeker in hogwarts, y/n.”

“so you admit that i’m the best?”

his lips turned up. “only if you agree to teach me and spend some time with me to build a bond, you know, so when we play, it’ll be easier-“

“we aren’t even in the same team.” your hands rested on your thighs and tilted your head while his hands came up to ruffle his own hair and waver them around as he tried to explain.

“well, it’s still nice to hav-“

you shake your head at his great reasoning. “deal but buy me a new broomstick.” jeno’s face relaxed and nodded firmly, his hands copied yours and found place on his thighs. he began to lower both of you down toward the grass without either of you speaking a word, just staring and smiling slightly.

you both hop of his broom, never leaving your sight on each other. you spoke first, “we practice everyday after school. we start on monday, don’t be late and don’t make me regret saying yes.” you point a finger at him and look him up and down to get a mental image of the boy’s figure for your own pleasure before walking away.

jeno took note of your last sentence as he stood there bashfully. now that you couldn’t see his face, he could let out the breath he’s been holding and his face heating — and for the first time, he wishes for monday to come sooner. smiling to yourself as you strutted back to your tent, you already knew you wouldn’t regret a single thing with lee jeno.

[oh-to-be-a-seeker]

Tanaka Naruaki Profile

IDENTITY

Name: Tanaka Naruaki

Gender: Male

Age: Variable on content

Birth Date: 22 April 18xx

Species: Human

Blood Status: Pureblood

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Alignment: Neutral good

Ethnicity: Japanese, and slightly Filipino

Nationality: Japanese

Residence: Tokyo, Japan, before his relocation to London, England

Myer Briggs Personality Type: ISTP-T - “The Virtuoso.”

~~~~~

THE MAGE

1st Wand: Cherry wood, fox spirit whisker core, 12 ¼ inches and quite flexible

2nd Wand: His father’s; technically stronger than his first wand, but he rarely uses it. Bloodgood wood, oni horn core, 11 ⅔ inches and swishy

Animagus: N/A

Misc Magical Abilities: Parselmouth

Boggart Form: A gaunt, skeletal form of his mother, rotting away and blaming Naru for her death and the decline of their relationship

Riddikulus Form: His mother flops down as though boneless, although Naru has considerable difficulty facing down boggarts

Amortentia (what he smells like): Black licorice, the spray of a waterfall, and a cherry orchard in blossom

Amortentia (what he smells): Early morning dew, burning incense, and his mother’s udon

Patronus: Jaguar

Patronus Memory: A day he spent in his first year at Hogwarts, by the lake, with a few of his new friends who had managed to make his life not so lonely anymore, and make him feel at home so far from the only place he had ever known

Mirror of Erised: Him and his mother, happy at home in Japan, eventually including his aunt as part of their family

Specialized/Favourite Spells:

Confringo

Incarcerous

Obliviate

Wingardium Leviosa, mostly for pranks

~~~~~

APPEARANCE

Faceclaim: Ito Kentaro

Voiceclaim: Ito Kentaro

Game Appearance: N/A

Height: 5′10″

Weight: 130 lbs

Physique: Slim but fit

Eye Colour: Brown/black

Hair Colour: Black

Skin Tone: Tawny

Body Modifications: N/A

Scarring: Naru has a scar on his left hand between his index finger and his thumb from a giant storm petrel nip he received in his early childhood, when he was being ferried back and forth between his home and Mahoutokoro

Inventory:

his wand (later, his father’s wand as well, once he acquired it)

a photograph of him and his mother when he was a young child

class textbooks and notes

his old Mahoutokoro robes, still very carefully folded

(he somehow never has any money on him, it’s something of a bad habit)

Fashion: Naru doesn’t like to dress extravagantly, he finds it pretty stuffy and uncomfortable, so he likes his clothes to be as simple as possible, which is generally something like a button-up with a few buttons left undone and some breeches

~~~~~

ALLEGIANCES

Hogwarts House: Slytherin

Ilvermorny House: Thunderbird

Affiliations/Organizations: The Tanaka family; the Genji family; Mahoutokoro School of Magic; Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; Slytherin House

Professions: Mahoutokoro student (7-14), Hogwarts student (15-17), Auror (18-)

~~~~~

HOGWARTS INFORMATION

Class Proficiencies:

Astronomy: ◆◆◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

Charms: ◆◆◆◆◆◇◇◇◇◇

DADA: ◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◇

Flying: ◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆

Herbology: ◆◆◆◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

History of Magic: ◆◆◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

Potions: ◆◆◆◆◇◇◇◇◇◇

Transfiguration: ◆◆◆◆◆◆◇◇◇◇

Electives:

Care of Magical Creatures

Divination

Quidditch: Seeker

Extra Curricular: N/A

~~~~~

RELATIONSHIPS

Tanaka Hiroto: Naru’s father. He was an infamous Dark wizard that terrorized the East Asian wizarding world for multiple years, as he was expelled at the age of 17 from Mahoutokoro for being discovered to practice the Dark Arts. Hiroto hid his identity and lived as Tanaka Minato in Tokyo until his wife, Kirika, discovered his true identity. She, an employee of the Japanese Ministry of Magic, revealed to the Ministry that she knew Tanaka Hiroto’s location, which culminated in a duel of epic proportions between Hiroto and the Ministry that resulted in his death. Naru was only three years old at the time, and has no recollection of his father. However, Hiroto has still managed to act as a dark cloud hanging over his son for most of Naru’s life.

Genji Kirika: Naru’s mother. Unfortunately, he and his mother maintained a very strained relationship for a good portion of his life, despite, deep down, both loving the other very much. Once Naru began attending Mahoutokoro at the age of seven, he was often resentful that he felt ostracized and lonely because the other children were scared of him from hearing about his father’s reign of terror. It was a frustration that he often took out with his mother to find someone to blame, and what with her job at the Ministry and Naru spending more and more time at Mahoutokoro as the years progressed, they simply didn’t see each other enough to heal their fractured relationship--one that simply soured further as Naru grew up into a stereotypical rebellious teen. When Naru was nearly fifteen, Kirika was tragically murdered by another wizard practicing Dark Arts, and leaving too much unsaid between them became Naru’s greatest regret.

Genji Sara: Naru’s aunt. After his father’s death, his aunt moved away from Japan, across the world to London, England, where she began working for the British Ministry of Magic. Naru, consequently, didn’t remember meeting her at all until he met her again after his mother’s abrupt death led to Sara being his only living relative and, consequently, legal guardian. Because Sara lived in England, Naru was forced to do as she had and move across the world from Tokyo to London, which also meant his transfer from Mahoutokoro to Hogwarts. The two didn’t get along very well at first, which can be attributed to Naru--it was only after his first year at Hogwarts that he came to terms with his mother’s death and began the process of trying to move on, and let himself start to grow close to his aunt and grieve with her. By the time he was seventeen, Naru and his aunt had a very good relationship.

Yamashita Shotaro: Naru’s rival. At Mahoutokoro, Shotaro was typically the instigator of conversations involving Naru’s relation to the infamous Tanaka Hiroto, which inevitably led to them consistently conflicting over the years. Shotaro was another reason it was particularly difficult for Naru to make any good friends, because he tended to scare people off with mentions of Naru’s ties to Dark magic.

Rival: Yamashita Shotaro (Mahoutokoro)

Enemy: TBA

Dormmates: TBA

Pets: Adzuki, his aunt’s bull mastiff. Growing up, Naru was never allowed pets, but moving to England taught him that he loves dogs.

Closest Canon Friends: N/A

Closest MC Friends: TBA

~~~~~

BACKGROUND/HISTORY

Pre-Mahoutokoro: Naru was born in Tokyo, Japan, to Tanaka Hiroto and, at the time, Tanaka Kirika. He was a quiet child, and certainly a mother’s boy when he was young--obviously, this was especially true after his father was exposed as a Dark wizard and killed when Naru was three. Only four more years passed, mostly cheerful ones during which he and his mother were quite close and happy, until he began attending Mahoutokoro at the age of seven.

1st Year: Naru began attending Mahoutokoro, and quickly discovered that he did not really like school. Once people learned his surname, he felt as though students began going out of their way to avoid him, finding him suddenly ‘creepy.’ It was a lot for a seven-year-old to handle, and impacted him negatively.

2nd Year: Much of the same events as the first year, though this was the year Naru was nipped by a giant storm petrel on his hand, a wound that scarred over. Furthermore, it was the year he was revealed to be a Parselmouth, the rumored sign of a Dark wizard. The year was also the beginning of the decline of his extremely close relationship with his mother.

3rd Year: The first year Naru finally began to make some friends, as children matured and realized it was an unfair judgement to compare Naru to his father immediately. His school life began not being completely horrible.

4th Year: Naru began Quidditch training, something Mahoutokoro was incredibly serious about. He was only ten years old, but had been recognized for talent, and trained over the stormy waters in pelting rain to join the team in two years. Being scouted for Quidditch also increased his social standing.

5th Year: Naru’s first year boarding at Mahoutokoro, which meant an absurd amount of training for his first year in Quidditch next year and a lot more conflict with his usual antagonist, Shotaro. For eleven-year-olds, they got into trouble quite often.

6th Year: His first year on the official school Quidditch team, as the new Mahoutokoro Seeker, which somehow led to even more training than he’d been doing originally. Subsequently, as Quidditch was his main focus--something the school supported--Naru didn’t get the best grades, which caused some issues with his mother at home.

7th Year: The ten-year anniversary of his father’s death, and weirdly, his all-time high of social standing. Being amazing at Quidditch, a very serious topic in Japan, had earned him more friends than his actual personality. The more people Naru had to interact with daily, though, the less comfortable he got, as his father was still something people brought up regularly and he was learning that too many people at once could be a bit overwhelming for him.

8th Year: Another uncomfortable year of being well-known at school--being liked for Quidditch and being gawked at because of the identity of his father. Unbeknownst to Naru, it would be his last year at Mahoutokoro. At the very end of the school year, just after Naru came home, his mother was tragically murdered, and he had to move to London to live with his aunt, which meant his transfer to Hogwarts.

Pre-Hogwarts: Naru spent the remainder of his 8th year summer in London with his aunt, mostly ignoring her attempts to get to know him better and talk about Kirika’s death.

5th Year: Naru began his first year at Hogwarts having to integrate into a student body that had been growing and forming friendships among themselves for five years, as well as being only semi-fluent in English and having to learn it as he progressed through the schoolyear. He was sorted into Slytherin House and tried out for the Quidditch team as soon as he could, becoming the Slytherin Seeker. His only relief was Quidditch, as well as the knowledge that very few people at Hogwarts knew anything about his father.

6th Year: TBA

7th Year: TBA

After Hogwarts: TBA

~~~~~

PERSONALITY

Impulsive: Naru isn’t one to plan, and is very prone to spur-of-the-moment decisions that don’t always end the best for him. In fact, his impulsivity got him into trouble pretty regularly at both Mahoutokoro and Hogwarts, and with his guardians.

Caring: Although he’s arguably obtuse and slightly emotionally stunted, Naru’s capacity for love is enormous, and he cares an immeasurable amount for the people he loves. Although he’s bad at showing his affection through words, he tries to show it through gestures such as taking care of something that had been bothering someone, or buying someone a gift, or cooking someone a meal.

Protective: Naru also developed very protective tendencies that only grew stronger after his mother’s death, and he would do anything to prevent the death of another loved one. He tries not to limit anyone’s freedom with this trait, but it does mean he’s very often on guard and keeping an eye out to make sure everything is in order and everyone is safe, and rarely relaxes.

Observant: Naru is particularly good at noticing things; moreso than most. He pays attention to small details, and treats insignificant things as though they are important. This typically means he’s quite good at deducing things about people based on body language, or spotting a hidden door, or something tucked away in a corner. It also means he pays quite close attention to his friends and family--for example, noticing a friend prefers a specific flavor of pastry, and making sure there’s always some left for them.

Secretive: It’s not that Naru actively keeps many secrets, but he also likes to keep things to himself, especially when he’s concerned people might judge or dislike him for revealing anything. He’s a tough shell to crack.

~~~~~

MISC

Naru wants to move back to Japan someday, but he’s not sure if he’ll ever leave England

he absolutely loves dogs, something he only learned after meeting his aunt’s bull mastiff, Adzuki

Naru was sorted into Slytherin based off of his cunning, not his ambition--he’s not the most ambitious, or proactive

he never loses his Japanese accent, but his English does significantly improve during his time at Hogwarts, mostly from help from his British friends

in London, at home with his aunt, they speak Japanese, so Adzuki’s commands are all in Japanese

when asked about what Mahoutokoro is like by Hogwarts students, Naru will often make up completely fake facts about it to confuse them

“We don’t have any Quidditch coaches, we learn from storm petrels. That’s why we keep winning the Cup.”

Naru became an Auror after Hogwarts to chase down Dark wizards and officially leave his father’s legacy behind

at fifteen, he received an inheritance from his father in the form of his wand

Naru is unable to produce a Patronus using any memories from Japan, because the only ones potentially powerful enough were with his mother

[pascalpanic]

Ooh I would love to know who you ship me with. I’m in my late 20s, recovered emo who still rocks the goth chick aesthetic, dark hair, dark makeup, dark clothes. Fair skin and blue eyes. Pretty chubby, but I’m a well proportioned hourglass so I have curves in the right places.

I’m a Gemini, so I have my outgoing “life of the party gets along with everyone” personality, and my very quiet, reserved, “can sit at home and watch tv and not utter a word for a week if you let me” personality. I like to smoke weed to help manage my mental health. I practice some witchcraft, mostly just read tarot and have a modest little altar with crystals and candles and such. I love to play video games (my favorite is Diablo III), cook, sing, read, play and listen to music. My favorite bands are Nine Inch Nails and The White Stripes, but I have a very eclectic taste and a wide array of music i love to listen to.

I’m a mental health social worker by trade but I’ve done every job imaginable at least once. I’m a very “Jack of all trades” type, I can become proficient at pretty much anything.

One final fun fact about me is that I’m a classically trained musician and I sang for the Pope at the Vatican when I was 19!

first of all, you’re so fucking cool I must say...

I would ship you with Din Djarin!

Din is not very outgoing- he’s very much embodying the strong and silent vibe. He loves the fact that you can be the one to talk and be the go-getter, but he also admires that you can shut up; he doesn’t enjoy ramblers much. Din isn’t a very spiritual man, other than his belief in the Creed, so he’d think your tarot cards and spirituality is absolutely amazing and he’d love to get into it.

The darker aesthetic is totally kickass to Din- if he wasn’t wearing beskar, he’d probably dress pretty similar to you! It seems that you’d fit right in in the bounty hunter trade by appearances, but Din can’t help but laugh at how warm and kind you are behind the aesthetic. He loves when you wear clothes that hug your body, as he thinks you’re the sexiest thing he’s ever seen.

Please for the love of God let Din relax and smoke a little weed with you. It would take him some time to be fully relaxed around you to do it, but he just needs to relax as deeply as he can and that would do just the trick! He loves your music- loves the deep bass and the energy it conveys- but his favorite sound is your singing. It’s ethereal and beautiful and Din cannot get enough of it. Hearing it around the Crest is his favorite little surprise.

it’s a party! come submit a request UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT, CST, and I’ll ship you with a Pedro character!

[shunliveshere]

This kit is probably the easiest MG I've built but the details on it was amazing. Wasn't a huge fan of the proportions on the original MG but this 2.0 is more of my style.

Also Bandai's witchcraft when it comes to their figure-rise series scares me. They could of totally used a sticker for those eyes but instead they used layered injection method to make it more detailed.

[animetrashlord-007]

OW ~ Wrath;; Yachi

Word Count;; 1.3k

Genre;; Suggestive

Pairing;; Oikawa x Yachi

Published;; 2017-07-09

My Masterlist

Oikawa Week Masterpost

   “You!” Yachi snarled, jamming her finger into Oikawa's chest, “What the hell are you doing here?”

   “Oh, hello down there,” Oikawa jeered. “You shouldn’t be so hostile. I was invited, after all.”

   “You had the audacity to accept?”

   “Why wouldn't I?”

   “Unbelievable! You're such an arsehole! You think you can stroll in here after how you’ve treated Kageyama over the years?”

   Oikawa smirked as he gazed down at the small girl. “I know I can.”

   “Get out! You're not wanted here,” she snapped as she attempted to shove him out the door. Her hands pressed against his toned chest and she couldn’t stop the gasp that slipped from her full, pink lips. While she expected him to be well built like all the Karasuno players were, she had never touched any of their bodies before and the sensation was foreign and new and nice. His abs were rock hard and tensed under her fingers as he took a step back with a scoff. He glared down at her hands that still hovered where his body was seconds prior. Yachi raised her pointer finger to his face, shaking it in anger as she spoke.

   “I hate you! We all do!”

   “Hate is a strong emotion, shortcake,” Oikawa said as he shifted his weight to one side, resting his hands on his hips.

   “You're so… so pompous! With your air of superiority and y-your smug aura!”

   “While I appreciate the effort you're expending on these insults, I'm sure you could do better.”

   “Listen here, you jerk,” Yachi growled, forgetting her anxiety as she invaded his personal space. “You think you can just come here wearing that cheap outfit with your stupid smirk and your bad attitude and your-”

   Oikawa sighed loud enough to cut her off. Waiting until he was certain she'd remain quiet, he spoke, “I can guarantee this ensemble wasn't cheap, but it would be a waste of my time. I mean, look at you. It's evident which of us is the cheap one here. It's been nice talking to you, but I have better things to do.”

   “Go ahead and leave, Oikawa-san. I doubt anyone would notice your absence. I'm sure your invitation was extended only as a mere courtesy.”

   “What a small, sassy child you are. Honestly-” the setter grinned as he pat Yachi on the head, “-your team would be so disappointed in you. I'm an honoured guest at this event. You should treat me with respect.”

   “I'll treat you with respect once you earn it!”

   “How mature.”

   “That’s rich coming from you. You owe Kageyama an apology for every interaction you've ever had with him. You owe all of Karasuno!”

   “My patience is wearing thin. I didn't come here to speak to you, whoever you even are. Where's your-”

   “Yachi Hitoka!”

   “Do you mind? Don't speak over me again.”

   “Maybe if you didn’t talk constantly just to hear your own voice, I wouldn't need to.”

   “Why don't you run along and fetch someone of importance? Your presence is no longer needed here, not that it ever was.”

   “Why should I? You're the athlete here, a little running wouldn't hurt you. Why don't you put those-” Yachi’s eyes shot down to his thighs and immediate regret washed over her. Her weakness, one of her major turn on’s, was broad thighs and his fit the build. Oikawa’s legs were muscular, so much so that his pants did nothing to hide their definition. Her mouth watered as she continued to observe his frame, her eyes flittering across his body. A voice in the back of her head insisted she reach out to grope his firm legs and caress his strong arms. “-those thick thighs and rippling abs and that tight ass and-”

   “Excuse me?”

   Yachi’s eyes widened when she realised what she had said. She backed up from the setter waving her hands in front of her. Her thoughts returning to her previous rant, she narrowed her eyes and waved an accusatory finger in his face. She refused to fall victim yet again to whatever witchcraft his delectable physique used to lure her mind away from her righteous fury. As long as she avoided gazing at his wondrous form for too long, she would be immune to his seduction techniques. Looking anywhere but at the man, she stood her ground with arms crossed. Oikawa scoffed.

   “Is that your attempt at flirting? How weak. Perhaps that works on the schmucks around here, but I'm out of your league. I suggest upping your game before you approach someone of my caliber again.”

   “As if! I would have to be pretty desperate to want someone like you!”

   “Stop lying to yourself. Take a nice, long look at me-” Yachi risked a glance, noticing how his hands ran down his sides as he spoke, “-I'm gorgeous.”

   He wasn't wrong. Yachi held a strong dislike for the man but everything about him oozed sex appeal. His strut was confident. His skin was smooth and clear. His eyes glowed and shimmered. His smile could blind, it was so large and bright. His hair looked silky and soft and Yachi yearned to entwine her fingers in it. All that in addition to his amazing body. Yachi couldn't move past it, her gaze always falling back to his chest and thighs. He looked like a god, crafted from the finest materials and sculpted to perfect proportions. He was beyond gorgeous.

   “You're vain,” Yachi murmured as she continued to appreciate his form. Perhaps her judgment of the man was a little too harsh considering it was based only on what other’s had said about him. It wouldn't hurt to get to know him better to formulate her own opinion. That would be the fair thing to do. Even someone as annoying as Oikawa deserved a chance, right? “Not everyone is interested in you, contrary to what you may believe, and I want nothing to do with you.”

   “Your words say one thing but your body betrays you. You just can't look away. There's a hunger inside you. You want me.”

   Yachi remembered his ability to ensnare the unsuspecting a little too late, already under his spell as she took a step forward. She reached out for Oikawa. Her skin flushed with heat and her cheeks burned with an unmistakable blush. No matter how enticing he had looked before, the sight did him no justice in comparison to how heavenly he felt. Oikawa didn't move or speak as she touched him, an indifferent expression gracing his features as he examined her reactions. He watched as her breath hitched in her throat, observing how her mind melted away into the fervent touches she placed across his entire body. Her heartbeat was erratic as she explored the curves and bumps of his physique. Courage mixed with desire urged her forward, her hands trailing down the length of his back. Yachi’s jaw dropped when she squeezed his ass, marvelling in how plump yet solid it was.

   “Enjoying yourself?”

   Yachi opened her mouth to speak but the sound of the door slamming open interrupted her train of thought. Peering over her shoulder, she squeaked when she saw Hinata’s and Kageyama’s dumbfounded expressions. Releasing Oikawa’s ass and mustering as much strength as possible, she shoved the setter away from her. He stumbled but caught himself before he fell. Standing straight with an obnoxious chuckle, he flashed the intruders a peace sign and one of his million-dollar smiles.

   “Tobio-chan! Shrimpy-chan! It's been a long time,” he shouted, pushing aside the stammering Yachi as he walked over to the pair. They mumbled a greeting, still too awestruck by the scene they had walked in on to articulate a full sentence. Uninterested in maintaining a conversation with them, he continued to the door before they could regain their senses. Looking over his shoulder, he winked at Yachi. “I wouldn't mind getting to know you better, Ya-chan!”

[cleavedsoul]

What made him decide to remain at Hogwarts and teach muggle studies??

META MEME META MEME 

ok so in reference to my previous post about quiri’s views on muggles , while he could’ve gone & like ... said bye to the wizarding world forever & gone to oxford to live the life he imagined he’d have as a child , quiri also wanted to share that amazing world with wizards . i’ll bet that muggleborns don’t take muggle studies , it’s not an easy O , either . because quiri challenges his students to dare & to dream . 

at the ripe old age of 16 , quirinus quirrell graduated top of his class from hogwarts school of witchcraft & wizardry . the previous muggle studies professor was retiring . quiri’s enthusiasm for the muggle world likely made him the perfect candidate to teach the class , & he saw it as an opportunity to share the world he loves so much with other students . a part of him also saw it as a way to connect to others , since he was barely older than his students , & some were older than him . 

as a ravenclaw , wisdom is very important to quiri ! as is knowledge , & the wizarding world is quite closed off & secretive . arthur weasley doesn’t know how airplanes stay up or what batteries do or what to do with a rubber duck , but quiri does . quiri knows that airplanes are built with specific proportions & have engines that allow them to go at high speeds to lift off . he knows batteries can power plenty of things depending on size & strength . he knows muggle kids just like playing with rubber ducks in the bathtub . he knows what it’s like to drive in a car on the road , to have a favorite tv show & a favorite movie . 

he also knows that those things can help make someone’s life fuller . while quiri loves furthering his own knowledge , he’s also not the type to leave others ignorant , so he set his dreams of being an oxford student aside so that he could help nurture the next great dreamers & revolutionaries of the world , & maybe bridge that horrible rift he saw between ‘ purebloods ’ & the rest of the world . 

[getoutofthewater]

@dbhrarepairs Monday Day 1: Laughter + Supernatural 

[Gavin/Leo]

Rating: T

Warnings: Canon Typical Violence, Horror Elements, Character Death (but happy ending)

Words: 3,546 [AO3 Link]

This wasn’t a good idea, Leo knew that, but common sense wasn’t his strong suit. You didn’t go into the thick woods when you were super fucked up on half a bottle of vodka and that new red-ice thing; you didn’t walk into a derelict, abandoned house, with junkies you called your friends but the truth was you barely knew them and they, as Matt’s troubled bird had said, would sell you to satan for one corn chip, or even less. Common sense may not be strong within him, but Leo was really good at predicting outcomes.

They came upon the house all of a sudden, one of those victorian monstrosities. Leo hadn’t actually believed it would be there, but here it was just like a corpse in the middle of the woods forgotten and rotting (just like he’d be all too soon), and something told him he should run back now, but he didn’t trust himself to tell right from left in his current state, when would he learn not to mix his booze with his drugs.

They sneaked in through a window; Leo cut himself with the broken glass, got dirt all over him. Everything was going fantastic, he thought he saw huge black blotches, blacker than black, run away from them as they walked through the house, spiders he guessed, kinda big ones, he didn’t mind spiders all that much (as well he shouldn’t, a few would be living inside his skull soon enough) but his whole body itched uncomfortably anyway, maybe because the house reminded him somewhat of his dad’s place, same expensive wood work, same icy chill of indifference.

There was a crash and then jarring laughter, his 3 companions were getting rowdy, breaking whatever they could find that wasn’t broken already. Leo didn’t feel like joining them, really all he wanted was to curl up somewhere and fucking sleep it off, maybe there would be a room upstairs, he’d do with an old mattress or whatever, he found a stairwell, but it looked unsafe, like it wouldn’t hold his weight at all. He heard doors opening and slamming shut upstairs though, and wondered if someone was living here, or if it was only the wind and the whole old house would come down on their heads, as if replying to the doors upstairs, a door right next to him slammed shut startling him. ‘Don’t be fucking stupid’ Leo told himself ‘it’s just a drafty, old, spooky house’

“Hey, check this shit out!” Vic called out

Leo went into the big living room to check that shit out, because again, no common sense.

The bright moonlight coming in through the window gave the room an eerie glow, there were rusty symbols all over the walls, all over the floor.

“That looks like real blood, man” Drew said, he sounded amazed but not scared

“Maybe, like, we shouldn’t be here when whoever did this comes back” Leo said, his head was starting to hurt, he felt like he was going to black out any second now, want it or not, and he shivered involuntarily when he saw the same rusty thing splattered on the wall, it put him in mind of, like, blood from a gunshot in a movie, execution style, that type of thing.

“You don’t know what this is?” Rod said “This is form 3 years ago, when that guy got killed here”

Oh, yeah, Leo remembered now, there had been a disappearance at the very least, but Rod always liked to blow things out of proportion especially when drunk or high.

“It was so messed up” Rod continued excitedly “He was killed right here, they never caught the guy that actually did it, but some drunk kids found the body, still warm, some say he was still alive when they found him. They were some weird fucks, like into witchcraft and shit, so they drew this crap in his blood, the next day one of them called the police because he was too freaked out about it, but when they came back with the cops the body was gone”

“Bullshit, you are making this shit up” Drew argued

“I’m not, my brother told me!” Rod hesitated, as if he’d said something he shouldn’t “Fucking google it!” he added

“I fucking will” Drew said, taking out his phone “Oh shit, no fucking signal”

The house creaked then, it sounded like heavy footsteps on the second floor you couldn’t get to, at least not by the rotting staircase

“Maybe we should put in new blood, to appease the house demons” Vic said grandly, walking into the weird circle in the floor, he said it loudly like someone who is suddenly afraid but won’t admit to it  

“Yeah, why not” Rod replied, always willing to play along “who is it going to be” he said taking his knife out of his pocket

“Leo’s just cut himself with the window” Drew gave him away

“Shut the fuck up” Leo said

“Perfect!” Rod said “Come on Leo, don’t be a pussy”

“Whatever” Leo said rolling his eyes, he walked into the creepy circle, and touched the floor, smudging a bit of his clotting blood on it “There, happy?”

Rod yanked Leo’s hand suddenly and cut through his palm, drops of fresh blood fell from the new wound.  

“Shit, man!” Leo exclaimed clutching at his hand, the cut wasn’t that deep, but it was painful “What the fuck, what’s wrong with you?!”

“It’s barely a scratch” Rod said “Why are you always such a whiny bitch?” He said shoving Leo’s shoulder, trying to provoke him, but Leo wasn’t stupid enough to get into a head on fight with Rod when they both were this fucked up.

“Yeah, whatever I’m out of here” Leo said, he felt his blood run down his arm soaking his jumper’s sleeve, still dripping into the floor, into the weird circle made out of  someone else’s old, dried up blood

“You can’t go yet” Rod spat, holding Leo by his arm

“Just let him go, Rod” Vic said cautiously

“No one is leaving if I don’t fucking feel like it” Rod said taking his gun out

The footsteps were louder upstairs now, but none of them noticed, focusing as they were in Rod and his gun, this wasn’t new, it was always like this, his tantrums.

“Come on, Rod, we are having fun here, right?” Drew said, he had the most practice deescalating these type of situations

Then everything happened all at once, the doors of the moonlight lit room slammed shut, and someone started knocking wildly at the other side of them, the black spiders upset by this (and were they actually spiders, Leo couldn’t really tell) ran all over the walls, Rod started shooting aimlessly at them, at the doors, at any shadow that startled him

“Don’t fucking mess with me, I’m going to fucking kill you!” Rod said wildly, apparently that red-ice thing only made him more volatile, good to know

Drew tried to grab the gun, Leo vaguely thought his head hurt more now and then he finally blacked out.

“Fucking wake up, you fucking idiot!” Was the next thing Leo heard, he didn’t open his eyes, someone kicked at his legs “Enough, fucking dumbass!”

“Jeez, stop fucking kicking at me, what the hell” Leo sat up feeling groggy, but in a nice way, as if he had just waken from a refreshing evening nap. The room was just as before, but quiet, his friends weren’t anywhere to be seen, a man he didn’t recognize stood over him, he looked slightly older than him, really pissed off

“I think I blacked out” Leo said, he tried to take his phone out to see the hour, but it wasn’t in his pocket, he may have dropped it anywhere in the woods, damn it.

“You think” The pissed off man said, “You shouldn’t have been here in the first place, stupid fucking kids, coming here, “I dare you to do this, I dare you to do that, let’s see which of us has less fucking brains hahaha” fucking hell!” the man said

“I’m not a kid, I’m 28!” Leo said, he could claim the upper hand on that point at least

“If anything that works against you, dumbass” The man said drily

“You were messing with us with the doors and the footsteps and shit, that is so very grown up of you” Leo rebuked, “You squatting here or what?”

The man shrugged “None of your fucking business”

Leo decided to take that as a yes, even if the man didn’t look at all like a homeless person. His leather jacket and his green v-neck shirt looked new, his hair was brushed back with one or two strands falling over his forehead, a bit of a vintage bad boy look, it suited him.

“So,” Leo said “How did you get on the second floor? Those stairs are like rotting out”

“So far, so good” the man said

“Can you show me?” Leo asked, because it was that, or get back to town alone by the dark woods, or try to find the others, but maybe this guy would let him stay until it was light out

The man scoffed, “Whatever,” he said walking out of the living room, Leo scrambled up to follow him

The man walked up the stairs with his heavy steps, Leo stood at the foot of the staircase looking at it dubiously, but if it held on to this guy stumping around, it would probably stand his lighter steps, he followed him up.

The rooms in the second floor were just as abandoned as the first although not as vandalized, maybe because not many dared walk up those fragile-looking stairs. If he was squatting here he was really living with nothing but rotting wood and bird poop. The man sat casually at the little bar, where there were still dusty glasses and full bottles as if whoever had lived here had just walked out and forgotten to come back.

“How you feeling?” The man asked with a frown that seemed to Leo more puzzled than angry or  worried

“Actually good” Leo replied, sitting at the window seat, “I was like, really messed up, but now I’m feeling better. What’s your name?”

The man glared at him

“Come on! Question for question, it’s only fair!” Leo insisted

“Gavin” Gavin said shortly

“I’m Leo!” Leo said with a smile, and turned to look out of the window “Hey! What’s that?”

There were colored lights floating in the distance, were they like car lights, or chinese lanterns, or even bugs? He couldn’t really tell. They floated up and down in different colors, blue and purple, and green and yellow and orange.

Gavin shrugged, “Dunno, weird lights, they show up sometimes”

“Wanna go check them out?” Leo said excitedly

“What the hell for?”

“Aren’t you curious to see what they are?”

“No,” Gavin said drily “unlike someone I don’t trip all over myself because I see something shiny”

“Oh, come on!”

After a moment of consideration Gavin scoffed, but he got up

“Yeah!” Leo said animatedly  

As they went back down the stairs there was a loud thump, this time it seemed to come from under them, Leo stopped to listen; maybe that’s where his friends had gone to hide without him

“Get a move on, dumbass!” Gavin called out to him “We’ll miss your lights or whatever the fuck”

Leo rushed after him, the lights did seem more interesting, and Gavin seemed like much better company than Rod with his gun. The woods felt eerier that usual, but maybe it was only because he was following a literal stranger off the path, it wasn’t a good idea, but he really wanted to trust this Gavin.

Again, Leo saw weird shadows through the trees, this time they seemed more human-like, or at least humanish, but they were too thin, their arms and legs too long, they gave him a really creepy feeling but maybe he was imagining things, maybe he was still under like red-ice hallucinations or whatever, he thought he saw them climb the trees with those long limbs, in a viscous way, like sap only going up instead of down, and fast, they crouched in three branches and Leo hoped that sap like thing wouldn’t drip on him

“Ignore them” Gavin said irritably

“You can see them too?”

Gavin shook his head and gave him a look, talking about them wasn’t ignoring them

Leo looked down at his feet and the dry leaves, trying to ignore the anxious, creepy feeling he was getting, he wanted to run away, he wanted to cry, he noticed with alarm he was starting to hyperventilate; he wasn’t this much of a chicken on the regular

“For fucks sake!” Gavin growled “That’s not fucking ignoring them!”

Leo looked up at him still breathing way too fast, he wondered if he was going to black out again. If Gavin would leave him in the middle of the woods alone, and with those things there.

Gavin scoffed, and looked around as if searching for an answer “Shit! I’ll hold your fucking hand if that makes you stop this bullshit”

“What?” Leo breathed

“Here” Gavin said, sounding exasperated but taking his hand “They have to go through me to get to you, just pretend they aren’t there”

“O- okay” Leo said, he did feel better now that Gavin was holding his hand, safer, he focused on Gavin’s back and tried to control his breathing, ignoring the weird viscous blobs of shadow he could still see in the corner of his eyes.

Leo expected to get to a clearing or something, but they were still walking through the trees when the lights started to shine through them, pretty orbs of light the size of a ping pong ball, floating about a bit like bugs.

“What are they?” Leo asked, looking around, his curiosity pushing away his fear

“Dunno, I’d never come this close”

“Why not?”

“What’s the point?”

“Look at them! They are so freaking cool! Doesn’t it make you feel happy just to see them?”

Gavin looked up, the different colors reflected on his face

“Guess it’s not too bad” Gavin shrugged

“Not too bad?” Leo asked “This is like, sick supernatural shit” Leo tried to touch one of the orbs, it felt weird, squishy in an unpleasant electric way, like water carrying a low electric current, that didn’t hurt you but felt very unpleasant to touch, Leo took his hand away startled by it

Gavin huffed as if he were holding on to a laugh,

“You always go around touching what you shouldn’t?” Gavin said with a smirk

“Maybe” Leo replied shamelessly

Gavin scoffed again. Is he annoyed, Leo thought, or amused? Annoyed or amused? Annoyed or–

“Watch it” Gavin said, grabbing him by the collar of his jumper, and pulling him a few steps back. Some of the thin weird shadows were coming closer, Leo saw one reach for one of the lights with his too-long, too-thin arm, fast like a frog’s tongue, it dragged the little blue light into the oily shadows, and right afterwards Leo could hear some crunching sounds that made him feel sick, like little bird’s bones being cracked and crushed

“What the fuck are those?”

“I don’t know, just ignore them and don’t try to fucking touch them” Gavin said, starting to walk back where they had come from

Leo followed him grabbing on to Gavin’s hand again without waiting for an invitation, guessing that was a given, especially with the crunching and the “Don’t Touch” and stuff. It occurred to him then that maybe he was dreaming, maybe he was still passed out, or like ODing and shit, but if that was so Leo didn’t really mind, this was a very nice dream so far, sure fucking weird, kinda creepy, but overall nice, the type were you meet someone you feel like you’ve known forever, someone you just feel happy and comfortable with and then you wake up and are heartbroken for a minute when you realize they don’t exist, and go about feeling stupidly lonely for the rest of the day. He squeezed Gavin’s hand, as he forced himself not to look back at those things, he seemed real enough.

“Hey!” Leo said when they came to the house again “Maybe we could go somewhere else sometime? Like in the city and things”

Gavin turned to look at him darkly, he was angry

“I mean, if you want” Leo said, feeling suddenly self-conscious

Gavin let go of his hand and went into the house, when Leo stepped in he could hear voices, which he immediately recognized as those of his friends, clearly coming from the basement.

“So, I guess” Leo hesitated “I’ll get out of your hair now; that was really neat though” he said awkwardly before going down the steps “Hey, guys!” Leo called out animatedly, trying to ignore the sorry feeling he had at having annoyed Gavin somehow “You won’t believe what I saw, it was crazy!”

“Did you hear that?” Vic said, “Like someone coming down the stairs”

“Stop being paranoid, and help” Rod spat

Leo walked up to his friends, and there on the floor was his body, although he recognized himself more by his clothes than anything else, he was lying on the floor, one of his eyes a bloody mess, the bullet had gone right through it into his brain. He turned to look at the stairs. Gavin was sitting there with that dark look still on his face, which now Leo recognized for an assholish way of being angry about the situation but not at him, Gavin shrugged, there wasn’t anything he could do.

“We can’t leave him here, it was an accident, we can explain that!” Vic was saying “what if his dad asks about him?”

“Please, don’t be ridiculous” Drew replied “Only real concerns while we bury the fucking body”

“I’m not going to fucking jail precisely because it was an accident” Rod said “nobody is going to look for him, plus he’ll have company”

He lifted a lose floorboard, a skeleton was already there completely anonymous except for the green V-neck, the leather jacket, his hands tied behind his back, a hole in his skull.

“How did you know he was in there?” Vic said in a low tone, Leo felt sorry for him

“My brother told me” Rod said dangerously “they never found him, or who did it. If you two shut up, they’ll never find Leo either”

“Shit, this is fucked up, man” Vic said, as the three of them dumped Leo’s body in the hole with the other murder victim. Placing the floorboards over them, dragging the old furniture that had been over the first grave just as they found it; there was a dead cat in one corner of the basement, already decomposing. Drew started to kick the sorry dead thing so it lay near the site of the grave.

“There, if anyone smells anything they’ll think it’s the cat” Drew said, giving it a last kick. Rod threw up

“Now, now you fucking throw up” Drew said

“The fucking cat has maggots in it” Rod argued

“Can we get the fuck out of here?” Vic said, “I keep hearing shit”

They ran out of the house, and were already joking about whatever when they were only a few feet away.

“Great friends those” Gavin said drily, still sitting on the steps

Leo walked up to him and put his arms around his neck

“What the fuck are you doing?” Gavin said, trying to lean back away from him

“I’m giving you a hug” Leo replied

“Whatever the fuck for?”

“I mean, I’m so sorry they never found you, and that you died and everything” Leo said softly “Like I didn’t even notice, it didn’t hurt or anything, but you should have been like really scared and things”

“You just died, dumbass” Gavin said, pushing him away gently “Worry about yourself”

“I mean, is this what being dead is like?” Leo asked, sitting next to him on the basement steps “or are you still here because you were never found or–“

“I don’t fucking know, first I thought I was in hell, then I thought maybe this was it for everyone. Now I think is something about that stupid circle or whatever, I have never seen anyone else”

“Damn” Leo said,

“Yup” Gavin said drily

“No wonder you are so cranky” Leo joked because that was his nature

Gavin glared at him, Leo ignored that

“So, like, wanna go exploring?” Leo said bumping against Gavin’s shoulder “wanna go find some kids with a ouija board to mess with?”

“Are you going to be as chickenshit as you were back there?” Gavin said “Because that was fucking embarrassing”

“Uhm, Yeah” Leo said “Some of this shit is really freaky”

Gavin actually laughed, it was a gruff, low sound, almost like a bark, but Leo thought it was rather nice, he wouldn’t mind staying here, 20, 50, or 100 years if he could hear that sound often

“We going?” Leo insisted

“Sure, why not”

[ropuszysko]

DIY tarot deck

hey, it's me, ya toad! since being a lil tadpole i loved herbs, gemstones and secretly tried to understand, how tarot works (ofc hiding it, as my country and family is christian af). recently my amazing friend @corviknightvevo encouraged me to try witchcraft and not gonna lie, i'm really getting into it. and as my biggest dream was to research tarot, that's what i've started with.

so of course i wanted my own deck. now, my problem was: i couldn't find any, that i would like spend so much money on, because they all lacked something. also having card's name in few languages made them kinda fake and commercial for me (of course that's just my own feeling) and actually i wanted my deck in Polish. so now i'm in a process of making one. here are the details:

skills needed:

ability too use paint

drawing on the level, that will satisfy you

tools needed:

two decks of normal playing cards (i used trefl's cards bought in auchan)

50 ml tester of wall paint (i used goodhome in color hempstead from castorama)

paintbrush

drawing supplies (black liners in my case)

total cost (in Poland):

assuming, that you have paintbrush and drawing supplies at home: around 15 zł (~5$)

pros:

you have your own fully costumized deck

it is relatively cheap (15 zł vs 50-100 zł)

possible cons:

takes time and effort

if you are in a same situation as i am, you need a system of hiding it

it's much thicker than it is tall, so proportions are a little bit off

because paint is wet, they curl just a tiny little bit (but so do cards, that are used a lot)

backs will probably get dirty so won't be exactly the same

possible modifications:

instead of drawing you can:

glue on printed images

do collages

do decoupage

any technique that will work for you

actual instructions:

1. take out all the cards you need (doing a lot at once speeds up the process)

2. paint them in thin layers of your paint to the point, when you're content with coverage (it took around 6 for me), letting every coat dry before you put the next one (i still doing it, if you decide to glue on images)

3. let dry (it shouldn't take more than 20 minutes)

4. draw! or glue, or paint or whatever you like (here's my king of wands):

5. optionally, you can coat it with something protective

6. that's it, you're done! 🐸

i know, it's an easy one, that anyone can come up with, but i hoped to inspire someone

[fire-and-flight]

So the Sephora witch kits are done and over with...

My initial reaction to the news was “Why is a makeup company selling witch kits?” Then the whole thing was blown out of proportion and they’re off the shelf.

Should a makeup company sell occult related items? I don’t wear makeup; I do appreciate it. Yet, I don’t see how the two - make up and occult items - correlate so my opinion is that Sephora should stick with selling make up.

Should Pinrose sell them instead? I had to find out what this company does because I’ve never heard of them before the Sephora witch kit saga. (And the only reason why I know what Sephora is, is thanks to the internet because there ain’t no Sephora shops on this island. You want makeup? Go to Franks or Chemimart, or - if you wanna show off/be ultra fancy - go to Inglot).

Pinrose sells perfume.

Should a perfume company sell witch kits? Again, I don’t see the correlation so maybe they should stick to perfume. I’ll give them credit though. The sage is sourced ethically and the artwork for the tarot deck was actually purchased from the artist, so they’re good in my book. But - again - should they sell witch kits??

Honestly, the most valid reason against either of these companies selling the kits is that they’re taking away customers from small businesses, as well as from actual practitioners who know what the heck should belong in a witch kit.

Then this lady on Facebook makes a petition to bring them back because she thinks they’re a lovely idea. Either she doesn’t know of Etsy, or Storenvy, or the myriad other websites where you can actually purchase a decent witch kit... She says she believes it’s a good way for new witches to get into the craft. Sure, cute witch kits available to all right off the shelf from wherever - cool. Buying these from Sephora and/or Pinrose? Not cool.

I deeply respect her and she’s an amazing lady and a doubly amazing witch, but please leave the occult stuff to the occult people. 

I wouldn’t put a tarot deck, nor a piece of rose quartz, and I wouldn’t put a sage bundle either. These aren’t necessary to witchcraft (even though, nothing is actually). I’d place a small selenite wand, a white votive candle, a calendar with the moon phases, and a vial of anointing oil (still undecided on what kind and possibly some ribbons because I love ribbons). This is my take on a witch kit.

Big corporations do not need the money.

That’s my two cents, and I’m out.

[mikejryan]

Bertrand Russell Quotes...

Several years ago I was in a bookstore in Toronto, the World’s Biggest Bookstore, and perusing one particular section looking for something to work my brain and spirit, and I happened upon Bertrand Russell’s “Power”.  These quotes come from that amazing and prescient work.

- “To admire collective enthusiasm is reckless and irresponsible, for its fruits are fierceness, war, death, and slavery… We have therefore to consider the kind of education which will make societies least prone to collective hysteria, and most capable of successfully practising [sic] democracy… On the one hand, men must have a certain degree of self-reliance and a certain willingness to back their own judgment… on the other hand, men must be willing to submit to the decision of the majority when it goes against them… If democracy is to be workable, the population must be as far as possible free from hatred and destructiveness, and also from fear and subservience… Some parents and some schools begin with the attempt to teach children complete obedience, an attempt which is almost bound to produce either a slave or a rebel, neither of which is wanted in a democracy… Every man and woman in a democracy should be neither a slave nor a rebel, but a citizen, that is, a person who has, and allows to others, a due proportion, but no more, of the governmental mentality.”

- “Fanaticism is a defect which is partly emotional, partly intellectual; it needs to be combated by the kind of happiness that makes men kindly, and the kind of intelligence that produces a scientific habit of mind… Truth, it holds, is neither completely attainable nor completely unattainable; it is attainable to a certain degree, and that only with difficulty.”

- “Each hypnotised [sic] automaton feels that everything sacred is bound up with victory of his side, everything most horrible is exemplified by the other side.” [I could vary this and quote Oscar Wilde, D. H. Lawrence, Edward Bernays, Walter Lippmann, Marshall McLuhan, William Shakespeare…]

- “There have been in the past eminent orators and writers who defended, with an appearance of great wisdom, positions which no one now holds; the reality of witchcraft, the benefits of slavery, and so on. I should cause the young to know such masters of eloquence, and to appreciate at once their rhetoric and their wrong-headedness.”

- “ …just as we teach children to avoid being destroyed by motor cars if they can, so we should teach them to avoid being destroyed by cruel fanatics, and to this end we should seek to produce independence of mind, somewhat sceptical [sic] and wholly scientific, and to preserve, as far as possible, the instinctive joy of life that is natural to healthy children.”

Some food for thought from a wise, thoughtful, and critical fellow.   

[notwhelmedyet]

The Rehab Job

There needed to be more mtmte heists.  Heists are hard to write, so I stole a plot from the show Leverage and adapted it to my needs.

Title: The Rehab Job

Plot: There’s a chance to recover a copy of the starmap!  Unfortunately, an organic has stolen it and hidden it somewhere in the library of Yelsid.

Pairings: Rewind/Chromedome, future Drift/Ratchet?

Rating: General

Length: 7375 words

I’ll probably post this to AO3, eventually.  After I get back into my account.  In the meantime, enjoy!  If you see any weird mistakes, let me know, I wrote this on my phone during a roadtrip.

"What did you need from me, Captain?" Rewind asked. He hadn't expected a comm message from Megatron, let alone a pair messages from him and Rodimus, both requesting his presence on the bridge halfway through third shift. Luckily he didn't get much sleep lately and didn't even have to unplug in order to head to the situation room to respond to the pair of "Urgent" and 'VERY IMPORTANT" messages.

It took him just as long as if he had, because Chromedome had heard him sneaking out and then had to come along. But in any case, they weren't command staff, they weren't supposed to be manning comms continually.

As expected, both Megatron and Rodimus were there, along with Drift and Ultra Magnus. Nobody raised a fuss over Chromedome showing up uninvited, which was good, it was way too early to be dealing with him whinging.

"I have a favor to ask of you, Rewind," Megatron said.

Rodimus, following just long enough after that he could plausibly deny having spoken over him said, "We've lost the map."

"I'd heard. It was destroyed along with half the matrix when you took down Tyrest."

"No, we lost the-"

Megatron held up a hand to stop him. "We should start at the beginning, Rodimus." He turned back to Rewind and said, "Drift had a copy of the starmap made before the Lost Light first launched."

Chromedome leaned forwards, catching Rewind's eye. "Umm, that's not possible," he put in skeptically.

"Apparently just because Percepter says a thing is impossible, that doesn't make it so," Rodimus said.

Drift cut in excitedly, "It was protected against mechanical copying, but couldn't erase your mem-"

"The details aren't important right now," Megatron said. "A copy was made and entrusted to a NAIL named Litho. He was working at the great library on Yelsid. He made the mistake of lending the map to an organic for safekeeping."

Ultra Magnus cued up one of the monitors with an image of a round blue organic in brightly colored robes. "Jek Puln of Quentine was a well respected safe and secret keeper until a week ago, when it was discovered he was stealing any hard currency left in his safes and he made himself disappear. He took the starmap with him."

"We don't have a map, but we have a chance to recover one if we can get this organic to return the starmap."

Chromedome drummed his fingers on his leg in a familiar nervous tic. Rewind could tell right where his mind was going and leaned closer. "What part to you expect me to play in all this?" He asked.

"The Galactic Council has a protection agreement with Yelsid. We know Jek hasn't left the planet, he's down there somewhere. But the council refuses to accept a war party of Cybertronians visiting the planet. They would be willing to accept one archivist, coming to visit the Great Library," Megatron said.

"Absolutely not," Chromedome said. "Rewind is not going to play spy, all alone, on an alien planet."

Rewind couldn't imagine anything more wonderful. Away from the ship, away from the ghosts, away from the new three shift system that was getting on his last nerve. And to go on a proper adventure, to do something of value for the mission...

"You're his Conjunx, Chromedome, not his sparkmaid. Rewind gets to choose if he goes," Rodimus said, eliciting a rumbling growl as Chromedome flared in anger.

Rewind stepped forwards to position his back to Chromedome, a restraining hand on his leg. "I want to go. I will not go behind Chromedome's back. Is there not some way to negotiate my going with him? Do organic conjunx's not have co-travel rights?"

Ultra Magnus nodded slowly. "It merits investigation. I will hail the guard sergeant again, please excuse me." He nodded curtly to each of the captains, then excited the room.

"We want Ratchet to upgrade your inter-Autobot radio to work for planetary distances. Percepter and Brainstorm think they've cracked it," Rodimus said.

Drift added, "Not good for long-term, too high draw for the aux systems, but it'll be very minor surgery to refit it and put it back to normal. Me and the Captain," he inclined his head to indicate Megatron, "already got the upgrade."

"Well, if Domey is okay with it, I'm game."

Ultra Magnus walked back in, and if Rewind didn't know better, he'd have said Magnus was chuckling. "Section seventeen, pssh," he muttered before catching sight of everyone's expectant gazes. "Apparently you have 'spousal' rights. We are cleared to proceed."

"Alright! Let's steal a thief!" Rewind said, jumping a bit on his pedes.

"I think abducting Jek would be taken poorly by the Galactic Council," Megatron said. "Let's aim to merely recover the starmap."

The Yelsid library was amazing.  The data hookups were designed for of organics but with a little fiddling could be coerced into giving up all sorts of information that weren't officially stored on the actual library network.  And, since the average organic customer in Yelsid was pretty close to Rewind's size, everything was weirdly in proportion for him.  For once, Chromedome found himself squeezing to fit through doorways and into waiting room chairs instead of Rewind having to ask for help reaching everything on the counters.  It was weird and had put Domey in a bit of a bad mood.

"Did you get everything you were looking for?" Chromedome asked as Rewind skipped down the stairs to meet him.

"Pretty much.  I uploaded a copy to the crew.  From the looks of it, our thief is a bit of an addict."  {What do you think, Rung?}

{I am still offended that you all think I am going to be able to psychoanalyze a random, organic I have never met solely on the basis of his credit logs.  What do you think my profession is, witchcraft?}

{Please cut the unnecessary chatter on the frequency} Megatron cut in. {We do not want to catch anyone's attention with a sudden rush of of activity}

{Apologies, Captain.  Yes, an addictive personality.  If you compare this credit history to a local map, he stays within a near constant radius of his work.  He doesn't like change, he's likely to have retreated to one of his places of comfort when threatened.}

{Me and Domey will check all of them.  We can pull the local cameras into my network when we get there and then monitor for him remotely. Rewind out.}

"So what are these local haunts?" Chromedome asked, tapping on a public vidscreen to bring up a local map.

"Oh, you know, the usual organic obsessions. Gambling, all sorts, Syn dens, a few bars, sex fairs, a couple of food places."

"So when Rung said he was addicted to everything..."

"Well, he's not taking Syk, but that's only addictive for Mechs. Other than that, pretty much."

"We're not going to be welcome in most of these establishments," Chromedome said.

Rewind nodded, "we're really just checking the docking bays for his personal light flyer. It's a planetary-bound shuttle."

"Well then, let's get on the road."

14 pizzerias, 3 brothels, 2 strip clubs and one seedy card den later, tensions were running a bit high.

"He is not going to be in any of these places," Chromedome said. The sound was always a bit more rumbly when he was in his alt mode, something about the acoustics changed.

"The captain was sure he hadn't gone off world," Rewind said from inside the cab. They'd stopped for drinks between the prior stop and this one, and he was nursing the iced engex slush he's gotten, letting it give him a good excuse to avoid eye contact with any passers-by.

"Since when was Megatron 'the Captain' anyways?" Chromedome said.

"Nobody bothered to tell me," Rewind said. "I assume there's a story there.". He caught sight of someone exiting the distillery via the side exit and set down his drink so he could lift up and get a better look.

It was Jek! Or at least a similarly colored organic of similar stature. Rewind brought up the database entries for Jek sale tried to compare, but their probable match stepped out of his line of sight. He tried to get a better look and bumped into the canopy of Chromedome's cabin.

Something went squish.

"What was that?" Chromedome asked. "Did you just spill something?"

"Yes, but we need to focus on Jek right now."

"Was it that blue energon slush you ordered? Oh Primus, I can feel it dripping."

"I'll clean it up, Jek is right over there."

"Scrap, you're right. And he's got company. Out of the car, Rewind, I'm gonna need arms for this."

There was a group of tall, pale skinned organics wearing black tailored skins trying to force Jek into a light flyer. Two of them were brandishing laser pistols, blunt tipped 870s, banned by the Galactic council due to their tendency to straight through their target and then the next few buildings in their path. Rewind charged while, behind him, Chromedome shifted back.

Rewind hit his target from behind and sent them both sprawling, the pistol skittering out of their hand and across the pavement. They thrashed, reaching for it. Rewind smacked their hand back and something made an unsettling crunching sound. He looked away from his target to the rest of them, one of whom had shifted his aim away from Jek to point at him.

Rewind had a brief moment to panic before Chromedome bowled into the group, scattering them like bowling pins. The group fell under a blur of white and gold and a barrage of clanging and meaty thuds. They were Taranian syndicate members, Rewind suddenly realized. The costumes were distinctive, as were the gill tattoos.

"Rewind, he's getting away!" Chromedome yelled, but Jek's light flyer was already lifting up and zipping down the street.

They bolted after him, but he didn't make it far. They found the flyer crashed into one of the municipal building around the corner. Jek was inside, unconscious.

{Captain, we have an emergency. Jek is about to be picked up by the police and turned over to the Galactic Council. We need more time.}

Drift cut in. {They can't take him if he turns himself in.}

{Turns himself in to where?} Megatron asked.

{Rehab.}

The Mental and Physical Rehabilitation Center on Lois 3 wasn't famous. It wasn't particularly well known or large. It was, however, free, and quite close to the library, and insignificant enough amongst the millions of addiction facilities that littered the galaxy. It would serve to hide Jek until they located the starmap.

Rewind and Chromedome were staying on Yelsid to follow up on any clues that could be extracted from Jek. That meant the team undercover had to be pulled together quickly from the members of the crew who'd already gotten their inter-Autobot radio upgraded.

"Mister Ratchet, I'm sorry, what are the correct honorifics for your....species?"

Ratchet looked down on the tiny doctor, practically sprinting to keep up with his slow stroll through the corridor. "Doctor would do."

"Doctor Ratchet, then. We're very honored to have you join us, but I must ask, why Lois? We've never treated a Cybertronian before, much less had one as part of the clinical staff."

"We had my two patients come here for exactly that reason. One is addicted to Syk, which he could acquire from nearly any Cybertronian with ease, this is putting him farther from temptation. The other recently had a nervous breakdown in response to being attacked by one of his patients and finds large-statured Cybertronians triggering. It's difficult to isolate him from anyone who is tall."

"Taller than you?" The little doctor asked.

"Two, three times my height. You know, tall." Ratchet said, smiling toothily.

{I do not understand why Rung is not the clinician in this harebrained scheme} he said dourly.

{I wanted three on the ground and I felt you less capable of passing for a patient} Megatron said.

"Well, Doctor...Ratchet, if you'd like to see your first group? Get right into things?" The doctor asked.

"By all means," Ratchet said as they tromped down the hall to a group therapy room. Inside there was an old organic, seemingly composed mainly of wrinkles, Rung, Drift, Jek and an Onyx Cryptid sitting in a circle awkwardly mis-sized folding chairs. Rung was doing an excellent job of acting the nervous wreck, eyes going everywhere, probably trying to analyze all of the patients in the room. Drift was similarly jittery, but the low fan hum and fluttering optic lights were a clear indication of actual Syk withdrawal. Ratchet could strangle him.

He made himself walk to the central folding chair and sit down. It creaked, but it held. First bad thing that decided not to happen all day.

"Okay. My name is Ratchet. I'm a doctor, but if you call me Doctor Ratchet, they're going to need to transfer you to a different sort of hospital. That clear?"

Blank faces, those of the group that had faces. Drift was ticking his left pede against the chair leg in time to the opening of the Empyrean Suite, which was either an indication the shakes had set in, or the flashbacks or perhaps he was just bored. Hard to tell because he'd completely shut Ratchet out after they'd argued about him going under cover.

"Alright, well then. We're going around the circle. Your name and why you're here, we don't need to hear your life story or any unimportant tangents. I'm easily bored. You first," he nodded at the wrinkly one on his right.

The thing gibbered something completely incomprehensible. Ratchet considered asking for him to repeat that, remembered he did not care, and moved on to Rung.

Adjusting his spectacles and hunching a bit under everyone's gaze, Rung introduced himself. "Rung of the Pious Pools. I'm not, I'm used to being on the other side of these little talks. I'm a psychotherapist by trade. There was a bit of an incident recently with one of my patients, which is to say I was held hostage by one of my patients and shot in the head and now I'm not doing so great. Umm, I think that's everything and we should move on now."

"I'm Drift. I'm here because I sometimes take Syk and someone felt it interfered with my work," Drift said into his knees.

"Not because it's a highly addictive drug actively known to melt Cybertronian nervous systems?"

"I have everything under control."

Ratchet barked a laugh. "Of course you do."

"Maybe the next person would like to introduce himself," Drift said.

"Oh, yes," Jek said. He rubbed his hands together nervously. "Umm, my name is Jek Puln and I'm an addict. Mostly alcohol, but also food, and sex, and drugs, and race sideways, and feeling plugins at the cinema. Card, of course.  But mostly alcohol. I don't even remember checking myself in here or how I got here from Yelsid. But apparently I realized I was in a bad place and I walked myself to the shuttle ferry and I made-"

"I think we've got the picture."

{Ratchet!} Rung said. {The whole point is to get Jek talking, you can't just cut him off.}

Jek bobbed his head in agreement.  "I'm sorry, you're right, I was monologuing a bit there. I just hope I paid the parking fee for my shuttle before I left. You know how sometimes you start worrying about something and it's stupid, but now that you've started you can't stop worrying, when though you're pretty sure you actually have nothing to worry about?"

Ratchet frowned. "That sounds irrational. In any case, I was told you crashed your flyer before you turned yourself in."

"Oh, shit. No, not the light flyer. Though I did like that thing. She was a beauty. I had a second shuttle for transporting client goods, it was parked in long term parking on Yelsid."

"There is nothing in here," Chromedome said, peering through one of the windows of the docked shuttle.

"I doubt he would have left the map sitting out in the open," Rewind said. "Help me with the door?"

The combination for the drive-lock was easily disabled, but actually opening the door took some leverage as the hydraulics had lost pressure sitting out. After Chromedome got the door open, Rewind climbed aboard. It was a small shuttle; only a pilot's seat, a small storage bulk and a relief area tucked in between. Certainly not intended for long haul flights. Rewind scanned over each of them superficially with Brainstorm's provided 'starmap detector' but didn't get any hits.

"No luck with the gadget, we'll need to do a full search. It'll be a tight squeeze, but I think you'll fit. Come on board and help, detective," Rewind said.

"I haven't been in mechaforensics for a long time, I don't think the title still applies," Chromedome said, hoisting himself into the space. "I'll take the cabin, you can start searching in the bulkhead."

Click.

"Rewind, did you hear that?". Chromedome asked, freezing halfway through the doorway to the cabin.

"Weird clicking sound? I heard it."

"It sounded unpleasantly familiar. Get out and check under the shuttle for me?"

"What am I looking for?" Rewind asked as he scooted under the docking platform to get a look at the underside of the shuttle, turning on his projector to use as a light. The light skimmed across heat panels, rivets, a maintenance port for the engine computer, a tangle of wires-

No.

"Domey, do not move. It looks like the floor is wired into a pressure sensor, which is wired into some sort of frag bomb."

From above, silence.

After a few moments, Rewind called out again. "Domey, did you hear me?"

"Yeah. Sorry. It must have been set to only trigger near Jek's weight. Scrap it, I should be down there, I disarmed hundreds of rigged shuttles in my day."

"Great, you can walk me through it."

"No! You need to get out of the blast radius. I can go into standby while you call for help."

The little countdown readout ticked along. "There isn't time for that, we're on the clock."

"Rewind, get out of there! You aren't-you can't do this and I need you to be safe."

"I'm sorry, Domey. I can't do that." Rewind shut off his audials and then dimmed his visor, scanning for any relevant information in his database while he kept his hands busy opening up his chestplate and hunting down the right wire.

Yes, a match 3.2 million years ago, procedural videos, Autobot search and rescue. Using the gap of the seam between his hand and wrist, he slowly stripped the trigger wire. Then, with one of the cables from his emergency self-repair kit, he spliced from that wire to the grounding line in his left leg.

He brought his visor back up to full and his audials back online to the timer hitting single digits and Chromedome shouting at him. It ticked down and Rewind wished there wasn't the metal hull of the shuttle separating him from Chromedome's arms. At one, he let his visor dim again and took himself back to a night before the launch of the Lost Light, safe and together under a familiar Cybertronian sky.

The electrical impulse from the trigger jumped to the splice and lit down his leg in a crackle of sparks and sudden pain. Something popped in his knee and then his ankle and he ripped the trigger wire out of the whole assembly. The bomb didn't go off. Residual tremors shook up and down his leg. He steadied his hands and disconnected the pressure sensor. Chromedome had fallen silent at some point, he must have heard the commotion below.

"It's disarmed!" Rewind called. "You should get down here and detach it from the ship. I don't think I can."

He last there and let himself shake, feeling suddenly drained, probably from the high processor demand of locating that footage and the fright more than anything. Chromedome crawled in beside him and laid his hands, reverent, on the sides of his face. Then he let his head rest over Rewind's spark chamber and breathed, voice box hissing out undignified staticky sounds.

"I'm sorry Domey. I know you want to protect me. But I can't lose you either."

Domey's hands clamped tighter. "I've never been able to save you," he choked out.

"I let you die too," Rewind said. "And you still act like I could lose you again and be okay." The shuddering had traveled up from his legs, his shoulders rattling against the pavement.

"We need to talk about this, really talk about it. Not right now. Did you disarm it using a Machspeed grounding? I haven't seen anyone do that in centuries. That maneuver was never intended for a frame your size." He ran his hands soothingly down Rewind's left leg as if to smooth out the shaking like a wrinkled cloth.

He unhooked the splice and began to disconnect the bomb from the underside of the shuttle, fetching a few small tools from his subspace to finish the job. "You're going to see First Aid right away. You could have blown out all the nerves in your leg with that stunt. It'll be a miracle if you can walk on it."

"Chromedome..." Rewind whined, very much not in the mood for a lecture.

He paused his work, took one of Rewind's hands and squeezed. "I'm sorry. You were amazing. Thanks for saving both of our afts. I over-think when I'm scared, I'm really proud of you right now."

"Mm," Rewind mumbled as his rudimentary self-repair system finally gave up on fixing the damage and cut off all sensory and tactile readings from that leg. The feeling of nothing washed over him like bliss.

It only took a few more minutes for Chromedome to get the bomb safely disconnected. Carrying it in on hand, he eased his other arm under Rewind, lifting just a little to crawl them out together.

They emerged into the glare of a dual star noon and a barrage of laser pistols. The Taranian syndicate was back, but there was another group, this one short and somewhat insectoid looking mechs.

"Where are the artifacts?" One of the mechs hissed.

"Okay, I don't know what all this is. We're just looking for something Jek Puln stole from our... employer. If you're in a similar situation you're welcome to search the ship," Chromedome said, angling his body so he was between Rewind and the line of fire.

"You helped him," one of the Taranians crackled through a budget universal translator.

"We were worried you were going to kill him before he divulged the location of our stuff," Rewind said.

That didn't seem to move the criminals, who kept their guns aimed at the pair.

After a long moment, Chromedome held up the bomb. "We just nearly died getting this bomb out from under the pilot's cabin. I've got it rigged to a psychic trigger. Upset me too much and this baby is going to blow you all to scrap and little fleshy bits. Me and my friend might make it. You all look a lot more fragile."

The two gangs cursed. "The Zoabs," one of the mechs muttered. Chromedome shook the bomb a bit, narrowing his visor to look even grumpier. They scattered.

"Bluffing?" Rewind asked after a moment.

"Obviously. Though psychic triggers totally exist. Brainstorm was using them for that paintball game in Swerve's."

"I guess we should actually check the shuttle, while we don't have company," Rewind said.

"Alright. But right after we're getting you to a medibay."

"Well, Rewind and Chromedome didn't find anything at the shuttle," Ratchet said.  "So we're going to have to get more information out of Jek.  Which should be pretty easy, since he's an incessant babbler and you're roommates."  He looked over at Drift, laying on the bed.  "Or it would be pretty easy, if you could stand up."

Drift buried his face in the pillow, finials catching on the thin fabric.

"I would like to emphasize, for the third time today, that your plan was monumentally stupid.  You need to go back to the ship; we can try to shuffle the room arrangements and get Rung in with Jek.  Leaning on the addict angle was smart, but you can't even function, Drift.  And I cannot get anything fragging done when you're over here, suffering, in my line of sight!"

"You could leave the room," Drift moaned.  "Then it would be quiet in here."

"Oh yes, excellent and sound medical advice.  All good medics advice going cold turkey on Syk while lying alone in a room, surrounded by clueless organics that wouldn't know a coolant line failure from an transformation cog impaction."  

Ratchet sat down on the bed.  "This whole thing is idiotic.  We just corner Jek and hit him a bit till he tells us the location of the starmap.  None of this mincing about, sneaking and telling lies. Shortest way between two points is always a straight line and usually involves hitting someone, has been my experience."

There was a clatter at the door and Jek stumbled in, big smiles and flopped onto the bed.  "Man, Drift, you've gotta go to the pharmacy. Everybody told me withdrawal was awful, but it turns out science is great and there are these pills and...wow, I feel floaty and cool." He turned his head over to look at the other side of the room and blinked slowly as he took in the scene.  "Hey Doctor Ratchet. Hey Drift. You don't look very cool right now.  Maybe you should get a doct-oh, wait, you already have a doctor here.  What's wrong with him, Doc?"

Ratchet gestured at Drift, who was now curled up in the bed, visor entirely offline so they couldn't see the flickering, digits rattling involuntarily against the bedsheet.  His temperature was high, but not so high he needed any sort of medical intervention yet. "There aren't a lot of drugs that work on Cybertronians, mechs like Drift. There are circuit boosters, which either kill you or make you high. There's engex, which you can clear up with a good whack to the FID chip.  There's Absyne and Strelin, but those are expensive enough there aren't a lot of addicts.  And then there's Syk, which is what Drift here is struggling with.  Cheap as dirt, been popular in the gutters of Cybertron since before I started practicing.  Fries your nervous system, eventually it starts rotting the actual brain module."

Jek took all this in, nodding slowly.  "And there's nothing you can do to help him?"

"I could shut down his sensory array, but that can trigger brain module hot spots and seizures.  Safest thing is to go offline entirely, into cold storage for a couple of months.  The withdrawal symptoms still happen, but they happen slower and the patient can't feel them."

Drift shook his head into the pillow.  Since the pillow was hooked into his finials, it ended up moving with him, which was almost comical.  "I'm not losing time over this again, Ratch," Drift moaned.  "I can do it."

"And there's nothing else?  No drugs that can help?  Nothing? Aren't you guys, like, billions of years old?" Jek asked.  "Sheesh, it only took us Bidarieks six hundred years to have all of this." He wiggled his fingers, as if to indicate his dubiously coherent mental state.

"Syk was never a priority.  There was a war, and there was a lot of time and energy poured into finding new ways to kill people and new ways to put them back together," Ratchet said, unhooking Drift from the pillow, one finial at a time.  He tossed the offending and slightly shredded pillow on the floor.

"Gasket always said," Drift mumbled, "nobody cared as long as it was just the guttermech and the drones that were addicted."

Ratchet winced.  "He probably wasn't wrong." At some point he'd started running a hand absently up and down Drift's spinal strut. There was no specific medical purpose, but Drift wasn't complaining. Perhaps it would distract him from the pain.  "Research budgets were generally determined by the Council in early days.  And then they were determined by command.  And even if you went your own way, you probably picked a project likely to get you famous.  Nobody was clamoring for a cure for Syk addiction or something to ease the withdrawal process."

"Nobody with a voice," Drift said into the mattress.

"I hope you don't mind my asking," Jek said, "seeing as we're strangers and all, but why take it again if you knew it was going to be this bad?"

"A friend asked me to," Drift said.  "I didn't want to let him down."

Ratchet opened his mouth, remembered they weren't alone in the room and shut it again.

"Oh, I know all about that feeling," Jek said.  "I have a bunch of friends that I help out.  I work in item securement and protection.  Do you have any idea how many stolen artifacts people ask me to keep safe?  So many.  So many.  I've been having duplicates made so I can return the artifacts to their rightful owners.  But then the feds bust in and check the books on a low cashflow day.  So now they think I'm a thief.  It's a mess."

{Ratchet, Drift, you both need to get out of there.  I've sighted eighteen intruders, all armed with laser guns.  I have a sinking suspicion they're the same sort that Chromedome and Rewind ran into, and that they are looking for Jek.}

"Jek, do you trust me?" Drift said, reaching out a hand.

Jek reached over and grabbed his hand.  "Yeah, of course, I trust you."

Drift smiled, all fangs.  "Look at that, Ratchet, he trusts me. Biiiiig tick, right there.  Jek, you and Ratchet need to leave right now. Some of your angry customers are coming to kill you.  I got a friend on radio," he tapped the side of his head, "who saw them coming down this hallway."

"Oh Gen, is it the Taranians?  Or, wait, it could be the Yelsid black ops police force.  Or the dark librarians.  Or those little mech people, what were they-"

"Enough of that," Ratchet said, hoisting Jek up by the arms.  "We're leaving.  You're walking.  Drift, I'm going to carry you, but we need to get out this window and along the roofline first, so I can't get into ambulance mode yet."

"You can turn into an ambulance? Woah, dude, that's awesome," Jek said, swaying a bit on his feet.

Drift shook his head.  "You two go on, they're not looking for me."

Ratchet said, "They're angry and armed.  I'm not leaving you helpless in the room where they were expecting to find their target."

From outside the door, there was a loud clattering sound, and then the high tones of Rung apologizing.  He sounded very high, actually. "Oh, I met you yet.  What what were your names?  I'm telling everyone this story, you tell me if it's unreasonable.  So I'm with this patient and things seem-"

Ratchet knelt next to Drift's bed.  "Rung's stalling for us.  Jek, help him get onto my back."  With great difficulty and a mess of caught legs they managed to get Drift out of bed, his arms locked around Ratchet's neck and his legs looped around his midsection. Slag, that medical reader must need recalibration, Drift was much warmer than he should be at that reading.  Ratchet stood, knees clanking as his hands clamped Drift's legs tighter.  They walked to the window and inspected the anti-escape laser array.

"And then he ripped my thumb out!  It was deep wired.  Deep wired, I tell you.  Why are you walking away?  I'm not even to the best part yet."

{Captain, I need the power out here, right now} Ratchet said.

{Right now is not possible.} Megatron radioed back.

{Sure it is} Rodimus said, a moment later and everything went dark.

{Rodimus, do not just push random buttons, especially if Brainstorm has labeled them 'do not touch'.  Do you have any-}

Ratchet tuned out Captain Drama, lifted a pede and kicked the window out. The glass, settled on the ground below with a satisfying tinkle of destruction.  He stepped through with Drift, ducking low to keep from catching anyone's finials on the edges of the broken window.  Jek stepped out after them hesitantly and they walked out across the roofline as Ratchet called in Skids and the emergency shuttle.

"We are not helping this organic moron," Megatron said finally, gesturing to where Jek was cooing over the height difference between Chromedome and Rewind, face hidden behind his hands.

"We can't just leave him," Drift said.

"You need to get your aft back to the medibay," Ratchet growled. Drift looked up at him, head lolling.  He widened his optics in some feeble attempt to look harder to send away to a medibay, which was stupid.  Ratchet was implacable when it came to patient care.  "It wouldn't take much more time out of our day, the plan Rewind came up with.  And Jek has promised to fetch us the starmap when we're done."

"We just finished cleaning up a small system wide power outage due to Rodimus's..." Megatron seemed to struggle to find the words. "So keep it quick, small and not important enough for authorities to deal with.  Have the day off, do what you wish.  And where is Rung?"

"He stayed on Lois 3.  He seemed to be having a very nice time," Ratchet said.  "We'll go pick him up after this."

"I'm coming," Drift said.

Jek looked over.  "Oh, buddy, no.  You have an awesome spaceship and, like, three hot robot nurses.  Stay here."

"All medics currently have temperatures within standard parameters," Ratchet said dryly.

"I can help," Drift insisted from his spot on the floor where he was sitting, leaning up against Ratchet's leg.

"No," said Rewind.

"No," said Rodimus.

"I will flay you alive," said Ratchet.

"I am staying out of this conversation, but we definitely don't need more than three people to pull this off," said Chromedome.

Drift huffed, sending a hot burst of air out of his vents.  "Fine. Ratchet, carry me."

"I am not carrying you to the medibay.  If you can't walk, get a First Aid to bring you a circuit slab."

Carrying Drift was a very pointy experience, even the second time around.  He had far too many pointy bits for one mech, even when he wasn't wearing any of the swords.  And the stupid wide parts of his arm bracers kept getting caught in Ratchet's shoulder joints.  No less than ninety percent of the frame he'd picked up in Crystal City was entirely pointless frippery.  Speedsters and their stupid frippery bits.  You'd think they'd want to be aerodynamic, but no.  They just had to be covered in delicate little bits that were always breaking and stabbing you in the optics and which caught on you when you tried to get them off your back and onto the circuit slab.

Seeing as they weren't on any sort of timetable, Ratchet took the time to go over Drift's patient file with First Aid and Velocity.  Then to check that the stores of medicinal coolant were doing good and that they had a few cooling pads already prepped.  Good to be thorough.  He checked in with Drift one last time and made a note that the other medics should try and convince him to go cold sleep, but he doubted they'd succeed.  Then, before he left, he made a quick note in his calendar to follow up on whichever member of the crew had supplied Drift with either this moronic plan, the actual drugs or both. Wouldn't need more his normal shift break to settle that.

He noticed Drift had sunk into recharge on his way out and took the time to rearrange the cooling mats a bit before heading out the door. Wouldn't want him thinking Ratchet was getting attached.

Three shuttles hovered and then docked in the long-distance parking bay of Yelsid, just south of the Great Library.  Out came a few representatives from the three groups of angry customers they'd encountered so far, swaggering over, armed to the teeth.  From where he stood between Chromedome and Ratchet, Jek quaked a bit.

"Our deal is simple," Ratchet said, laying a proprietary hand on Jek's shoulder. He did his level best not to shudder with revulsion while thinking about skin oils getting in his finger joints. "You get the thief.  And when he tells you the location of our stuff," he held up a card with a universal communicator code written on it, "you can give us a ring.  No hard feelings, everything forgotten."

"You can't just hand me over to these guys," Jek said, looking between Ratchet and the oncoming syndicate members.  "Just call up the police!  I'll go willingly, I promise."

"We're not big on getting our hands dirty," Chromedome said.  "It's difficult to wash all the...fluids out of your joints after a good convincing."

"I can't do this!  You can't do this to me!" Jek shouted, whirling to run the other way, towards his shuttle.  The doors still lay open after Chromedome and Rewind had busted them open the day before.  He made it through the doors before Ratchet and Chromedome had managed to give chase.

Click.

Chromedome froze, putting out an arm to stop Ratchet.  "Get back!" He shouted.  "He's triggered another bomb!"  Everyone bolted to the nearest shuttle, putting as much space-rated hull between them and the blast area.

There was a long silence and then the air caught fire.  Little bits and pieces of shuttle ricocheted off the surrounding spacecraft and smoke poured down from on high.

"The Zoabs went and murdered our guy and probably blew up the merchandise," one of the Taranians said finally.  They were all dusted in a thin layer of smoke.  "You two should have kept a better grip on him.  How hard can it be to hold onto one slippery little thief?"  He shook his head.  "Move out, guys."

Grumbling about Jek and the finish on their spacecraft, all three loaded up and lifted off again.  Ratchet let the silence and the dust settle companionably for a moment, then said, "That blast was slightly bigger than I'd pictured."

{Rewind, you guys okay?}

Rewind skated over, wearing a pair of boots with wheels and little booster packs.  They were apparently popular in the library for stocking shelves.  He was dragging a small wagon with Jek crammed inside. "We're good," he said.  "The lift went fine.  I got the wagon right under the hole you cut out of the hull.  We went under a few ships and holed up on the other side of the blast shield you put in.  These boots are pretty great," he said, letting go of the wagon to do a tight circular turn.  "I might have to keep them."

"Just don't wear them where Swerve can see them or we're going to have an incident on our hands," Ratchet said.

"That was great work rewiring the bomb," Chromedome said, nodding at Ratchet's hands.  "You ever do that before?"

"Not in a long time."  He held out a hand to Jek.  "Starmap please."  Jek carefully lifted a small spherical object out of his pocket and passed it over.

"Where was it?" Chromedome asked.  Rewind shook his head frantically.

"Bidarieks can store small objects in their anterior folds.  It's where you'd nurture the hatchlings, if you were pooling," Jek said.  "Want me to show you?"

"No."

“I'm just disappointed we didn't get to hand Prowl's number over to a bunch of organic gangsters,” Rewind said mournfully.  

"I think it's high time you were getting back to the rehab facility, Jek," Ratchet said.  "You're going to need a good support team in order to stay clean.  The bad news is you're dead now.  If you were to pop back up here, under the same name, those people we just convinced to stop trying to murder you would be back here faster than you can blink.  The good news is we had to make you a fake identity in order to check you into the rehab facility in the first place."

They all went to the shuttle back to the Lost Light, Jek carefully hidden in Rewind's wagon under a pile of books.  From there they shuttled back down to Lois 3 to drop of Jek and pick up Rung.  He met them in the shade of the front entrance, running to meet them at an jog. When he reached the group he pulled Rewind into a hug.  "Hello guys!  I've been learning so much here.  There are so many types of emotional intimacy in the cosmos.  And physical affection!"  He broke off from that hug to bomp Rachet on the chest plate.  "And so many emotional disorders.  This vacation has been a dream come true."

"It wasn't really a vacation," Chromedome said.

"I haven't taken a day just for myself and my research in decades.  Oh, it has been amazing.  Rewind, if you would hold still, I have categorized all the types of hugs and their social contexts.  This is fascinating."

It was early in the second shift when Ratchet found the time to actually leave the Medibay the next day. There had been quite a bit of drama earlier in the day when it was discovered the starmap had gotten corrupted at some point during the rigorous disinfection process Red Alert had subjected it to.  But when he checked the logs, the captain was marked as being off duty, and thus in his habsuite.

When Ratchet knocked, the door opened with no word from within.  It was well lit and Megatron was sitting at his desk, which was somewhat of a disappointment.  He'd expected dim shadows and looming thrones, somehow.

"Captain, may I come in." He said.

Megatron looked up at him.  "Ratchet, of course.  I've been expected someone, I wasn't sure it was going to be you.  I assume this is about Drift."

"I know you and Rodimus were together when the topic came up, but I'm assuming you were the supplier.  And frankly, I am relying upon you to be the voice of reason.  What justification could you possibly have for forcing him through that again?"

Megatron shook his head.  "Dea-Drift is a terrible actor.  There was no way he could act the part of a struggling addict."

"That is what he is.  That is what he has been every moment you've known him.  You were probably too busy with the warlord gig to notice him drowning."  Ratchet did his best to keep his voice level, his hands still and unclenched at his side.  "Frankly, you and Rodimus both, the way you steer him around to do your bidding borders on abuse.  Borders is probably too generous.  It is abuse."

"You are free to your opinions," Megatron said lightly.

"Well I will put this as a statement of fact, then.  If Drift pulls this stunt again, he could go offline, permanently. He will be dead and beyond your power. Whatever else you have on board I will take now. I will take it down to the incinerator and I will burn it.  Captain."

"You're not even Chief Medical Officer, any more Ratchet.  We have no bond of friendship.  How do you hope to give me orders?"

Ratchet bared his denta in a sharp smile.  "I may not be chief medical officer, but who are you going to call the next time someone blows you halfway into the afterspark to put you back together?"

Megatron nodded. "A fair point.  It was a mistake," he said, off-hand. "You're right, it was a mistake."

He reached inside his desk and came up with a small metal case that would hold several injection cannisters.  He pushed it across the desk towards Ratchet.

"I know it was," Ratchet said, taking the case and leaving.

[turtleduckie]

Clexa Fic Recs

So it's been a while since I last made one of these, and these are some of the fics that helped me through some rough patches.

Clexa with family feels

C_AND_B's Lasting Impressions - Lexa is a gay disaster who walks into a painting because she's too busy ogling at Clarke, who also happens to be the teacher of Lexa's younger brother, Aden. Gay disaster x 10. Bonus points: Anya and Aden are little shits, as all good siblings are, and Tris(!!) also makes an appearance. (While you're at it, check out the rest of C_AND_B's fics; you won't be disappointed.)

thrace's But still good - Clarke's got the hots for the new kids' soccer coach and her Saturday mornings just got better. Really cute with minimal drama. Bonus points: there's a Mother's Day special, Little, not broken. (Like with the previous author, check out the rest of thrace's works. They're amazing.)

transientpermanence's The Three Truths - I'm not gonna lie, I'm still hella confused as to how/why the rift between Clarke and Lexa had gotten so bad (before the events in the fic, touched on in flashbacks), but the bonding with the Griffin family is hella cute. Bonus points: the analogies. Extra bonus points: the bonus chapters (find them at the Miscellaneous collection).

Same author, Present Day - Clarke hates Lexa, she's hated her since childhood. Actually, no, she loves her, Clarke's just pretty dense. Good thing the technicalities of her father's will meant that she'd have to spend 6 months with Lexa, supervising the company. Bonus points: Lexa's got an adorable kid.

--

Clexa holiday feels (because where I'm from, the Christmas season ends in February--it also starts in September)

onemilliongoldstars' been lovin' you for quite sometime - Lexa's a Grinch forced to spend the holidays with Clarke's family and friends, and her Grinch heart grows three sizes bigger. Bonus points: there's sex. Extra bonus points: there are feelings involved.

smallamountsofmonster's Home For Christmas - Clarke spends Christmas with Lexa's family and gets embroiled in a vicious war between Lexa and Anya and the munchkins. It's up to Clarke to broker a deal, and win the war. With bribery and pies. (P.S. Check out their other fics too.)

Bucklethorpe's The 300 - Clarke sets fire to Lexa's 300 finest Blue Spruces. Blood. Must. Have. Blood. Bonus points: Gays in Space.

whyyesitscar’s may we stay lost on our way home - Clarke's not having a good day, so she's taking it out on vehicles. One of which is owned by Lexa.

--

And I'd be remiss not to mention these fics:

AmyBot3000's The Spectator - Former tennis champion Lexa gets caught on-cam ogling at Clarke, the wild card in the US Open. The whole world is rooting for them. #AdvantageClexa (while you're at it, check out the rest of the author's fics, you'd want to.)

coldmackerel's the business of caring - Campus Police Supervisor Lexa Woods is on a thrilling task of tracking down the Mural Marauder, the culprit behind the series of beautiful artworks--sorry, vandalism on-campus. Actually no, Lexa just wants this year to end and move on with her life. If only Maya of the school paper left her alone, and sole daytime dispatcher Clarke Griffin stopped terrorizing her with her... with her entire charming being.

DreamsAreMyWords' Those Icy Fingers Up and Down My Spine - It's the Triwizard Tournament once again and there's some shady stuff going on in the world of witchcraft and wizardry. If you're looking for mystery and mayhem of epic proportions, and love and friendships that are equally epic, then this fic is for you.

aeveee, magicalzebra and scryves' Chasing Down Silver Linings - An explosive confrontation in the art museum marks the start of an eventual friendship  between two individuals recovering from the loss of someone they loved dearly. (Not gonna lie, this fic is going to hurt, but it deals with grief and pain with such grace, such care and sensitivity that as the characters embark on their journey to healing, I found myself healing with them.)

[inkyardpress]

IRL Inspired Reads

1.            Rebels Like Us by Liz Reinhardt

Back in 2013 the story of the first integrated prom in Georgia rocked the headlines and shocked the nation. Although it’s been sixty years since the Supreme Court put an end to segregation, certain school districts apparently have disregarded the memo. This is the inspiration behind the story of Nes who, upon moving to the South, discovers there are some lines drawn at her new school where they shouldn’t be. With two proms (one for whites, one for blacks), Nes can’t keep her head down as she’d planned. Every rebellion starts with just one person speaking up.

2.            Amity by Micol Ostow

In 1975 the Lutz family unsuspectingly moved to Amityville and into a house where, the year before, a man had brutally murdered his entire family. The Lutz family only stayed in the house for 28 days before being chased away by the paranormal activity within its walls. The bone-chilling horror story Amity tells the story of another menacing home, following the dual narratives of Connor and Gwen who, 10 years apart from one another, try to live in a house chock-full of evil. It’s enough to give us nightmares for weeks!

3.            The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Heroine Hazel Grace was inspired by Green’s real-life friend Esther Earl. John Green met the young teen at a Harry Potter conference where neither of them felt much like dancing and instead became fast friends. Hazel’s story is not a retelling of Esther’s battle with thyroid cancer. As John Green has said before in interviews, that story belongs to Esther and her family. But Esther did inspire many of the fictional Hazel’s personality traits.

4.            Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley

This next unlikely story of friendship between Sarah and Linda was inspired by the true events of school integration in 1959. Sarah Dunbar’s high school experience is anything but normal. When you’re expected to pave the way for change, things are bound to get messy. As one of the first black students to attend Jefferson High School, Sarah knows she’s going to face massive resistance. And that face just so happens to belong to Linda, the daughter of a vocal opponent of school integration.

5.           Conversion by Katherine Howe

Conversion, an eerie tale of the hysteria, paranoia and possible witchcraft that seem to grip a group of teen girls at an elite private school, was inspired by a real incident in LeRoy, New York. There 14 students (13 girls and 1 boy) began presenting with a bizarre series of inexplicable physical symptoms that included verbal outbursts, tics, seizure-like activity and slurred speech. Eventually most of the students were given the diagnosis of conversion disorder and thought to be suffering a mass delusion. Author Katherine Howe couldn’t help but notice how the symptoms closely resembled those that seemed to befall groups of women during the Salem witch trials, and she used that comparison to fuel her work on the very spooky Conversion.

6.            Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

Kissing took on a new meaning when two young men decided to take part in a 32-hour smooching marathon. Their kiss was of epic proportions and even set a new Guinness World Record. Levithan takes takes inspiration from their amazing achievement to explore, not only the kissing couple’s feelings about one another, but also the thoughts of other gay teen boys struggling with their own issues as they watch the event from afar.

7.            Something in Between by Melissa de la Cruz

Cruz’s writing is as real as it gets. Inspired by her own immigrant experience of coming from the Philippines to the States, she gives us the brave story of Jasmine de los Santos. All Jasmine knows is that she’s done everything right to get her hands on a full college scholarship. What she doesn’t know is that her parents’ visas expired years ago, which makes her entire family illegal. And suddenly the threat of deportation becomes very real.

8.            The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

This stellar story based on the Black Lives Matter movement will have you flipping pages nonstop. With Tupac references sprinkled throughout and an incredible heroine, Starr, who must navigate through two different worlds—her poor neighborhood and her fancy suburban school—this book breaks down all the walls.  

9.            My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows

You’ll never be able to regard Tudor history the same way again after reading this hilarious retelling of the tragic Nine-Day Queen, Lady Jane Grey. There are magical transformations, out-of-nowhere weddings and laugh-out-loud fun. My Lady Jane is based on the real-life conspiracy to snag the throne of England from under the noses of Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth I via a hasty wedding. Did we mention there’s a horse involved in this version?

10.          Empire of Dust by Eleanor Herman

Need more history? Then check out this magical retelling of Alexander the Great, and meet the young Prince Alex before the fame and the glory. After winning his first battle, he finds himself unsure of what kind of leader he wants to be—can a tyrant be a great leader? Meanwhile, Hephaestion, an outcast general, is on a dangerous mission that leads him to Egypt with the prophetic Katerina. There’s also Jacob, the heartbroken warrior who’s intent on destroying the ancient Blood Magics. Oh, and there’s an imprisoned Persian princess too. And you thought history would be boring!

[thewitchescircleamino-blog]

Looking Back and The New Year

Hello witches.

Most of you probably have no clue who I am, so let me give you a quick introduction. 

I’m Toastiel, the creator and *Leader of The Witches’ Circle amino community. Feel free to call me Toasty, that chick, ‘hey, you,’ or pretty much anything else that comes to mind. I doubt any of it would be the worst I’ve ever heard. 

I started this community (at the time it was dubbed The Mega Coven) as sort of an offshoot to the Supernatural Amino, in the hopes of giving those of the fandom that were interested a look into what real witchcraft is (because as much as I love Rowena, that’s just not how magick works). I never expected it to be more than a few dozen members, and I figured it would probably die out in a few month. 

Six months later, we’re at almost 4,500 members, with at least 400 of them active on a daily basis. To say it has exceeded my expectations would be a ridiculous underestimate. Another underestimate would be that I thought leading a community like this would be easy (haha!). Far from it. I spend at minimum three hours a day responding to blog posts, chatting with members in the community chats, setting up lessons and challenges, organizing the community catalog, and just maintaining the community in general. But I don’t do all of this alone. I have a wonderful team that is just as dedicated to the growth and prosperity of the community as I am, and I honestly don’t think it would have survived without them. 

That said, I’d like to give a quick shout out to my leadership team for being so incredibly amazing. I love you guys and I hope we have many more seasons together. 

In the new year, I’ve got quite a few plans for this little community. I want to see it grow to unimaginable proportions. In order to do this, we’re reaching out the the witch community beyond Amino, and beyond Tumblr. We’ve set up a Facebook page, an Instagram, and a Twitter account, and we have plans (once we find someone with the skills and availability) to set up a YouTube channel as well as a website that will serve as a directory of vetted, reliable information on all things witchy, crafty, and beyond. 

Thank you to everyone that has followed this blog thus far, and to everyone that will do so in the future. Your support is appreciated and we’re honored to have it. 

With brightest blessings,

Toasty

[carlerinle]

The Opposite Of God

Sunday 3rd November 2019 Heb. 6:13 – “For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself,”

A huge proportion of believers today are highly superstitious, and/or have a lot of faith in fetish power. They are much more aware of evil than they are of God’s power. The culture and rural traditions many Christians were brought up with or exposed to over time also helped to ingrain the belief in the power of the devil. We find many believers scared of witchcraft, curses, and medicine men. It’s like we believe in God’s power for salvation, but not for victory over the devil. This double-edged belief is indicative of a lack of understanding about who God is, and ultimately speaks to a lack of faith in Him (Heb. 11:6). But God is either who He says He is, or He is a liar. This is something you have to deliberately meditate on, who God is, and what He’s capable of. The enemy has waged a campaign to believers and the world, to make himself seem more powerful by appearing scary. But when you contemplate the power of God, the works of His hands, you will realise that the devil is absolutely no match for God. They are not even close to being in the same category. Let’s talk about God and Satan for a bit.

Lucifer had thought to contest with God for His seat, and rebelled. He forgot that He was a created being, and every power he has was programmed into him by a Master Programmer, and you can’t beat the Programmer. Of his fall, Jesus told us how He saw Satan fall. Consider the force by an angel must have been hurled out of heaven to be unable to stop his fall all the way down to the earth. The devil has sold himself as the opposite of God, and Satanism pushes that idea. Nothing could be further than the truth, and he knows it yet pushes the lie because he can’t help himself. The Biblical truth is that Satan is not the opposite of God. God has no opposite. Satan is not an equal and opposite force to God. No, he is a created being, an angel created to do God’s bidding by default. He has no power outside what was given to Him by God, and he’s counting down to when that power will be taken away.

Our God is supremely sovereign and all-powerful, lacking nothing, needing nothing. In our focal text, God wanted to give the highest assurance of His promise to Abraham, and He swore by the highest power there is, Himself. If He could have found something or someone higher, He would have sworn by that, but because He is the highest of all, He could swear by no other. In addition, the name of Jesus is the highest and most exalted name there is, a name that all other names answer to compulsorily. It is a name that stops every force on earth. Sickness, death, sin, and every other name is subject to this powerful name of Jesus. Another aspect of God that shows His supremacy is His Word. The Word of God is irrevocable, unbreakable, and unchangeable. No power of hell can counter the Word of God spoken. The amazing thing is that we have access to all these things.

The reason believers fear the devil more than they fear the power of God is that they have little or no understanding of the Word, and of the power of God (Matt. 22:29). What we find, unfortunately, is that the agents are more willing than believers to pay the price that power manifestation demands. The devil’s fleeting power comes from God, and that means the power of the Giver of power is far above. You can harness that power of God; you can live above fear of the devil and superstition; and you can walk in the absolute authority of the power that is accessible to you as a son of God. The power at work in us is far greater than the enemy, because God has no opposite. He is absolute and supreme. Glory!

Have a blessed day.