~ Word of the Day ~

Started by Blythe, March 21, 2017, 01:41:05 PM

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Daeva


Today's word of the day is....

nidus
noun:  NYE-dus

Definition

1 : a nest or breeding place; especially : a place or substance in an animal or plant where bacteria or other organisms lodge and multiply

2 : a place where something originates, develops, or is located

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATDVDGlc7oc
Absences Updated 6/15/22 Selectively Accepting New Stories
Ons and Offs & Current Story List | Desired RP's

Daeva

Today's word of the day is....

vitiate
verb:  VISH-ee-ayt

Definition

1 : to make faulty or defective : impair

2 : to debase in moral or aesthetic status

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHVIVNoIPVM
Absences Updated 6/15/22 Selectively Accepting New Stories
Ons and Offs & Current Story List | Desired RP's

Flower

#1627
Yesterday's word of the day is....

epitome
noun  ih-PIT-uh-mee

Definition

1 : a typical or ideal example : embodiment

2 a : a summary of a written work

b : a brief presentation or statement of something

3 : brief or miniature form — usually used with in




Today's word of the day is....

millefleur
adjective  meel-FLER

Definition

1 : having an allover pattern of small flowers and plants





To get in the holiday spirit, here's a bit of music to inspire your muse!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtZR3lJobjw

Hob

Today's word of the day is....

tchotchke
noun CHAHCH-kuh-ayt

Definition

: knickknack, trinket






https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9coPzDx6tA

Hob

Today's word of the day is....

frenetic
adjective frih-NET-ik

Definition

: marked by excitement, disorder, or anxiety-driven activity : frenzied, frantic






https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Q9GCAq__qk&list=PLkkIo0oQ5sUKeI4FVPeINBLn29Z0x5tet

Hob

Today's word of the day is....

solstice
noun SAHL-stiss

Definition

1 : either of the two points on the ecliptic at which its distance from the celestial equator is greatest

2 : the time of the sun's passing one such point on the ecliptic which occurs about June 21 to begin summer in the northern hemisphere and about December 21 to begin winter in the northern hemisphere






https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRthL6rqKMg

Mirrah

Galumphing through the snow in a one-horse open sleigh,
Over the hills we go, mayhem all the way.
Bells frenetically ring, marking solstice night,
Oh what fun it is to circumvent formalities, am I right?!
"Dream... not of what you are... but of what you want to be." - Margulis
Status: Closed. Semi Hiatus. | Have you taken care of yourself today?

Daeva

Today's word of the day is....

compendious
adjective:  kum-PEN-dee-us
Definition

: marked by brief expression of a comprehensive matter : concise and comprehensive


____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unDpOvyjYBc
Absences Updated 6/15/22 Selectively Accepting New Stories
Ons and Offs & Current Story List | Desired RP's

The Green One

A little girl sits up on her bed, listening the steps of her parents going into their room. She smiles and carefully slips down stairs, breaking the curfew to debunk Santa's urban legend.

Not available for new stories

Daeva

Today's word of the day is....

assuage
verb:  uh-SWAYJ
Definition


  • to lessen the intensity of (something that pains or distresses) : ease
  • to make quiet : pacify
  • to put an end to by satisfying : appease, quench

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oxSjw83u5E
Absences Updated 6/15/22 Selectively Accepting New Stories
Ons and Offs & Current Story List | Desired RP's

The Green One

He didn't want to participate in the always boring and mostly embarrassing annual competition of flamboyant Christmas sweaters.

Not available for new stories

Flower

December 24's word of the day was....

grinch
noun GRINCH

Definition

1 : one who spoils the pleasure of others : killjoy, spoilsport




December 25's word of the day was....

benison
noun  BEN-uh-sun

Definition

1 : blessing, benediction





To get in the holiday spirit, here's a bit of music to inspire your muse!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1DhfMEFOKE&start_radio=1&list=RDGMEMz3e4vKpJzevZUeQNb5kIlg

Flower

Today's word of the day is....

utmost
adjective UT-mohst

Definition

1 : situated at the farthest or most distant point : extreme

2 : of the greatest or highest degree, quantity, number, or amount




To get in the holiday spirit, here's a bit of music to inspire your muse!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXQViqx6GMY

Autumn52


She began with the utmost confidence. Her blog post was usually very upbeat but she couldn't find the courage
to tell her readers the truth. Rebecca knew if her fans knew that she a murderer, she would
vanish from existence like her predecessors. So in light of the holiday she started again and again until the lie
became the truth in her mind. It was nothing more than a tragic accident, nothing more than a tragic accident,
nothing more....
May light guide you through your turmoil and may darkness never cross your path.

White Light be upon you if that is your wish

Autumn52


Carl was the epitome of what all males longed to be. His golden locks fell to the middle of his back.
He was nicknamed Thor for a reason, but only one woman knew the real reason. She snickered as
he whispered in her ear and pushed him away with a gleam in her eye. Gina wanted nothing more than
to leave her family Christmas party and return home with him but her sense of obligation kept them at
the party for another hour.


Once they departed Carl drove to their nearby home and as he opened the
passenger door and helped Gina out of the car he held her close and kissed her so that there would be
no misunderstanding of his intensions. Gina gasped, he had completely taken her breath away. They walked
as they with intention but a steadied pace. Once they entered the home they had shared for the past 14 years
Carl called out, "Janet, Cassey, and Jacob?" Three 20 somethings quickly arrived in front of their Mr. and
Mistress. Gina ordered them, "Go to the grey room and wait we will join you shortly." The three were
honoured to be of service to their Mr. and Mistress on Christmas day. Gina and Carl took their time in joining
their three lovely pets. It was the anticipation that made the experience so much more enjoyable.
May light guide you through your turmoil and may darkness never cross your path.

White Light be upon you if that is your wish

Hob

Today's word of the day is....

enervate
verb EN-er-vayt

Definition

1 : to reduce the mental or moral vigor of

2 : to lessen the vitality or strength of




To get in the holiday spirit, here's a bit of music to inspire your muse! (A lesser known version of the now controversial song.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpDLpz88V-I

Armphid

(I got a good idea.  I'm sorry if I get carried away.)

The snow crunched under Danny Finch's feet as he doggedly trudged along through the winter night.  He felt it more than heard both that sound and the soft grieving sigh of the icy wind that blew through the cemetary.  The stones about him all bore caps of white and here and the snow surged in a pile where it had fallen on a low lying head stone.  Danny had his earphones on, his "Not so Christmasy" playlist going.  Peter Murphy sang, I put on my mittens, one greed and one red, then I walked alone where they buried the dead. Danny shivered but smiled a little.  Appropriate considering his surroundings.  "The snow falls as I breathe, it's a gothic death rock Christmas Eve," the song went on.  It couldn't be much further.  He hoped not.  That sharp wind had refreshed him when he set out but every gust now enervated instead.

Not for the first time, he wondered if this was a good idea.  Danny was a short and slight seventeen year old boy, his eighteenth birthday waiting for him in the coming spring.  His wiry frame was surprisingly strong under his bulky winter clothes.  His skin was a creamy peach, though his nose was red from the cold.  The hair that stuck out from under his was a dark brown and had gotten hard and spiky from the cold.  Pale blue eyes looked out of a face that was neither handsome nor pretty but a generally pleasant in between.  He carried a small cooler in one gloved hand and a pair of heavily laden plastic bags in the other.

Danny had gotten the text from his girlfriend three days ago to sneak out and meet her here Christmas Eve after his parents went to bed, as well as what to bring.  He had confirmed the location and clarified her rather baffling instructions.  Apparently she wanted to cross from Christmas Eve to Christmas Day with a private party.  In the receiving tomb of the largest cemetery in the area.  He knew Perdy was goth but not this goth!  Still, he had agreed.  Of course he had.  Danny was still astonished that she was his girlfriend, even after almost two months.

He had a crush on the pretty girl who almost always wore black, though often with small splashes of pink or bright red to contrast, ever since she'd transferred to his school last year.  She was gorgeous, she was smart, she was sassy.  She had a certain level of popularity just on looks alone but had been cemented as an outsider with a public and humiliating rejection of the school's ace basketball star.  She didn't seem to mind her ostracization in the slightest.  That had been another thing that attracted him.  Danny was a geek who also played sports and thus didn't really fit in either clique but floated on the periphery of both.  They had bonded over that after he cautiously approached her and became something like friends.  He'd admitted his feelings to her on Halloween and she'd agreed to try a few dates.  She seemed bemused by his interest at the time.  They'd had several dates, kissed, even had some passionate makeouts.  He was into her even more and she seemed to have developed feelings for him.  At least he thought so.  She had talked recently about them "getting serious."

Also not for the first time that evening, he really, really hoped she wasn't luring him out here to murder him.

He spotted the shadowed bulk of the receiving tomb ahead.  The solid stone was a pallid, silvery thing in the light of the yellow full moon overhead.  Danny heaved a sigh of relief, well, mostly relief.  He felt a tingle of dread and foreboding as he drew near the sinister building and trudged to the door.  There were other tracks leading to it and that too was a relief.  Mostly.  The teenager regarded the thick, iron banded door a moment and then lifted the hand with the cooler and thumped against it twice.  The sound seemed to swell and then fade away.  Then the door swung inward and dim light spilled out. 

"Danny!  You came!"  Perdy, as she preferred to be called, smiled at him.  He felt his heart lurch as he drank in the sight of her.  She was a good six inches taller than him with pale skin the hat reminded him of freshly fallen snow.  Her hair was a glossy raven glory save the ends of her shoulder length locks, which were dyed every color of the rainbow.  Her features were fine, elfin almost, and her lips were plush without being out of place, currently with a layer of holly red lipstick.  Her eyes were the bright gray of a knife's edge and were both welcoming and anxious in a way he hadn't ever seen in her before.  She was slender and supple, her modest curves looking larger on her petite frame.  She wore a strapless dress in black with ribbons of red and green tied across her chest, the skirt ending just above her knees, a pair of green tights with candy canes on them hugging her legs until they met a pair of calf length boots.  "Come in, we've got to get ready.  I almost thought you were going to be late."  She stood aside to let him enter and her expression grew a bit softer, "Or that you might not come.  I know this is...kind of crazy."

Danny took a deep breath as she closed the door behind him.  The air was cool in here but it felt positively warm compared to the outside.  "I wasn't going to miss out on being with you, especially not at Christmas." He began to glance around as she took the cooler and bags from him.  "Even if it's not exactly how I imagined it."  The interior was lit by candles that flickered here and there.  Their light glinted off of tinsel wound garlands that had been set in the mouths of the sepulchres of both walls.  A folding leg table had been set up in the middle of the vault with a cheery red tablecloth and place settings for five. Folding chairs were in front of each of them.  A pair of plastic skulls sat on the table, one with a Santa beard on it, both with a large candle burning on top of them.  They...yes, they were plastic.  They had to be.  They were just very realistic. 

Man, he hoped she wasn't going to kill him.  He really liked her.

He took his headphones off and turned them off, now hearing the faint Christmas music playing from one of the resting slabs where a small CD player sat.  Glancing up he saw that a string of multicolored lights had been taped to the high ceiling, a battery plugged into one end.  Perdy had set the cooler and bags down in one of the slabs.  She was still smiling but there was also that worry in her eyes, "So what do you think?" 

Danny paused and then shrugged, "It's a gothic death rock Christmas Eve."

She giggled, "Thanks!  I'm glad you like it."  The striking eighteen year old then began to remove the contents of the bags.  Her face was intent as she studied the contents and then she sighed with relief, "You did it right."  Then she laughed and spun about, hopping over and embracing him, "Danny!  You listened, you actually did what I told you, thank the Black Goat!"

He wrapped his arms around her, "Yeah, ia Shub-Nigguroth," he joked back.  She often gave praise or thanks to Mythos deities, part of her goth thing.  Right?  Danny stepped back from her reluctantly, "You said it was important that I did exactly like you said."  Well, texted.  "Everybody has their holiday traditions, you know?  Who am I to judge?"

Perdy beamed but then her expression darkened, "Just hold onto that thought, okay?  You're a sweet, really great guy, Danny.  I want this to go well."

He had started to open his mouth to ask what she meant when a deep alto voice spoke right behind him, "That's enough, Perdita.  Get everything ready now."  He was glad he didn't help but he did jump like a spooked cat, pulling Perdy with him away from the voice even as he spun to face it.  "My, he can certainly shift when startled."

The speaker was clearly a close relative of Perdy's, their faces not nearly identical but unmistakably similar.  She was older, though he would be hard pressed to say how much older.  He felt sure she was at least thirty but beyond that, he couldn't say.  She had the same pale skin and knife gray eyes, though her short, sensible bob was an ashen blond color rather than dark.  She was a little taller than Perdy, a little rounder, a good bit curvier.  The woman was unzipping a knee length parka with a smile, a dress of a dark red beneath it.  "You must be Danny.  I've heard a lot about you, young man.  You're quick on your feet, that's a plus."

"Mom, you scared us!"  Perdy laughed but it was a nervous laugh.  She separated from the youth to walk over and give her mother a hug.

"I couldn't resist, dear," she answered with a smile.  Then the stepped forward and extended her hand, "Maudlin Graves." Danny took her hand in a firm shake that he was proud didn't tremble at all, "Before you ask, yes, I do blame my parents for that ridiculous name.  Please call me Maude."

"Thank you, Maude," he responded.  "I actually think it's kind of cool.  I mean, it's at least unique.  There's lots of Dannies in the world."  How had she gotten in without a sound like that?  God, and she was absolutely beautiful!  If he stayed with Perdy, he'd be a lucky guy.  Well, he would be anyway, but...ugh, just pay attention! 

"True."  He thought he saw a sparkle of approval in her eyes.  Then she nodded, "Now then, Danny, let's get our coats put up and Perdita can set the table.  Everyone else should be here soon."

As he followed her over to one of the open slabs, he heard rustling behind him, then the clicking ripple of zipped plastic being undone.  A stench rolled out and over them, a sweet rotten stink of meat that had turned.  "Wow, you did great, babe," Perdy said, relief in her voice again.  "This smells perfect!"  Danny blinked even as he felt a wave of nausea ripple through him.  Wait, she said perfect? 

Maude looked down at Danny as he nervously put his own coat and other items into the space where bodies awaiting burial had once laid, then at her daughter.  "He made Christmas dinner?  Well.  Interesting move, Perdita."  She smiled again at the younger man, "Your first time preparing a meal like this?"

A meal?  They were going to, but then what about what was in the cooler?  "Ah, yes, ma'am.  I hope it's, uh, done properly?"

She nodded and her eyes were bemused but sympathetic, "It certainly smells like it.  You may have a talent for cooking, young man."

"That'd be great," he answered.  What was going on here?  They weren't actually going to, to do that!  This was some Christmas prank, right?  Right?  When he turned back to the table, he swallowed as his stomach churned in his gut.  On three platters on the table sat the meat he had prepared as Perdy instructed; a beef roast, a long pork loin, and one supporating chicken.  He'd bought them three days ago, finding the ones at the supermarket that had been marked down and were close to turning.  Each got put into a ziplock bag after being rolled in dirt and then he had just let them sit in his closet.  Now they sat in reeking, spoiled, rot beginning glory as the main course.  Oh, God.  He then noticed that the pair of plates he had brought in the cooler with the pocket warmers under them were also out and set at two of the places.  There were also two large bottles on the table, one with the rotten food, one with the cooked.  "Um, Perdy, I, uh-"

She nodded and walked over to stand beside him, "Yeah, we can't have any of the "grown up" food,"  she said and rolled her eyes.  "I might when I'm older but probably not you.  It gives normal people problems, Mom says," she went on, "besides Mom says it's an acquired taste for most people anyway."

"Oh," he said, as if that wasn't the most insane thing he'd ever heard. 

Then there was a sound from back behind the receiving crypt.  It sounded like stone grating on stone and them a tumbling thump.  Danny started and his eyes whipped back to the rear wall of the vault, a section of the floor there was sinking down.  His body felt like he'd been dropped into ice water; lungs tight and skin numb.  "They're here," he heard Perdy's voice next to him as though she were a hundred feet away.  "Danny, remember what I said about holding onto that thought."

"Perdita."  There was a clear warning in Maude's voice.

"I know, Mom," she said and she reached out to give his hand a squeeze before both women moved away from him to stand in front of the door out. 

The section of floor had sunk down to meet a set of tough hewn stairs.  There were sounds of movement, a padding with a faint click and then it rose up the stairs and took a few steps into the receiving vault.  It, Danny's dilated eyes glanced down, no, he was of human size, taller than Maude by a few inches even though his shoulders were stopped forward and was powerfully muscled.  The head was mostly human save that the ears were long and pointed and nose and mouth were elongated into a canine-like muzzle.  Red, intelligent eyes surveyed the scene and locked onto the youth.  The creature had coarse, pale hair on his shoulders in a heavy pelt that grew lighter and finer as it went down to virtually disappear at the waist to then start again thickly below the knees.  His feet were largely human though the toes were more paw-like and had claws like a dog's.  The hands ended in scaly claws that were longer and thicker.  The thing's body was spattered with dirt and dust and it smelled of earth and faintly of sickly sweet decay. 

Danny's heart was madly thundering in his chest as the loathsome beast man began to walk around the table towards him.  He felt lightning burning through his limbs and a screaming roar of instinct in his mind that bellowed at him to act.  Throw the women out of the way and run!  Grab a knife and kill it!  There was one two feet away on the table.  As good as a mile.  His knees were bent and his hands were clenched into fists.  The smell of soil grew stronger as the thing came up to him.  Danny was now aware of other shapes behind it.  Two more!  He risked a glance back at the door.  Maude's arms were crossed over her chest and her expression was mysterious.  Perdy's hands were clutched together in front of her.  Her lovely face was silently pleading.  She was begging the creature for mercy?  No, no, she was watching him. 

Danny took a deep breath and straightened himself up.  The male monster was within arm's reach now.  The other two had gone around the other side of the table and were watching, nostrils flaring as they took sniffs of the air.  They were all waiting for his reaction.  The monsters could have torn him apart by now.  Okay.  Okay.  He took another breath then forced a smile, "Mer-" his voice was high and warbled.  Danny coughed and swallowed, "Ahem, I-I mean, Merry Christmas, sir." He held out a hand that only shook slightly, "D-Daniel Finch.  I go by Danny.  Nice to meet you."

The ghoul looked at the quivering smile and outstretched hand.  Then it laughed, a deep guffaw that sounded like a kettle drum being beaten with a lead pipe.  "You've got some steel in you, Danny boy."  One clawed hand caked in dirt and what he sincerely hoped was more dirt took his hand in a stinging grip and gave a hearty shake, "Robert Pickman-Graves.  Call me Bob."

Bob?  Really?  This nightmarish beast thing went by Bob?  "Thanks, Bob," he managed. 

"Didn't run, didn't fight, cute, and polite," one of the other, female, creatures.  She nodded, "Does one of you girls have dibs?"

"Mother," Maude said with fond chiding in her voice, "He's Perdita's boyfriend."

Mother?  Danny started and blinked.  That-they-what? 

"Better watch yourself, Danny boy," Bob snickered.  "She was quite the man eater in her day."  All three monsters and the two human looking women laughed at that.  Danny felt the hairs on the back.  "Let me make introductions.  That's Maude's mom, my mother-in-law Georgina," the older female ghoul waved and winked.  Danny waved back, fingers trembling.  "And this is my sister Barb."

"Charmed," the younger female ghoul said.

There was a rush of motion and Perdy threw herself past Danny and into Bob's arms, "Daddy!"  Her voice was joyous and loose with tension.  "I'm so glad to see you.  And-and," she shook her head and both males saw tears on her cheeks.  "Thank you, f-for not-"

"Now,  now," Bob patted her back.  "It's all right, sweetie.  I've missed you too.  And don't thank me.  Your young man kept himself from harm, not me.  No more crying, now, eh?"  She nodded with a sniff, "How about a smile for your old man?"  The teenager laughed and hugged him again. 

Danny just watched.  It was heartwarming and horrifying.  And he had so many questions.  He was amazed he was taking all this so well.  Either he had gone completely insane or he'd have a breakdown later, in private.  Given that part of his mind was internally screaming, probably the latter.  "Why don't we, ah, all have a seat?" Before his legs gave out.

"Right!" Bob gave Perdy a final squeeze.  She took Danny by the hand and guided him over to a seat.  His relief as she took the sole seat beside him was almost embarrassing even to his own mind.  "Wouldn't want the food getting too warm now!  And Maude, love, you've outdone yourself!"  He took in a deep breath of the retch inducing stink and sighed, "That smells fantastic!."

Maude took her seat beside her monstrous spouse as the others settled in, "Actually it was Perdita's beau who prepared the feast."
There were pleased and impressed sounds from the ghouls.  Danny did his best to look humble instead of shell shocked.

"He cooks too?" Barb looked at Danny with new appreciation in her blood red eyes, her nose twitching.  "Perdy, if it doesn't work out, I'll take him."

Purdy laughed while Danny tried not to faint.  Then she shook her head and took his hand, "We're doing just fine, Aunt Barb, but I'll keep it in mind."

Bob stood up, "All right, you can tease the boy later.  For now, a toast!"  The glasses at each place setting were already full.  Danny sniffed his experimentally.  Perdy noticed and reached out to turn the bottle closest to them.  It had a label for sparkling grape juice and she pointed at him and then herself.  Oh, thank God.  "To my wonderful family, it means so much to be together as we so seldom are.  To a new friend, who may yet be family," Bob gestured at Danny.

"Daddy," Perdy hissed in protest.

He ignored her and went on, "To traditions, our Old ways and this new Christmas thing that's taken hold!  Tonight, we'll eat and then go out under the moon to dance and sing the Old songs.  Ia Shub-Nigguroth!  The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young!  Cheers!"

"Cheers," came the answering call and glasses clinked together, even the one that wobbled in a terrified grip. 

Danny took a long drink.  God, this...this was so crazy.  What was he doing here?  He felt a warm hand on his and lifted his gaze to meet Perdy's eyes.  "Don't worry about not knowing the songs," she said.  Her cheeks got a bit rosy, "I'll teach you for next year, okay?  Um...are you, are we...?"

He turned his hand over and threaded his fingers through hers.  "Yeah.  Yeah, we are.  I'm, uh, we're going to have, several probably, long conversations, but yeah." He moved his head slightly to just see her.  "I mean, family stuff is always weird at Christmas, right?"

(I am so, so sorry.  I just got this idea in my head and got carried away!  Please let me know if I should have put this somewhere else.)
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My ONs/OFFs and Other Info

One-on-One Ideas/Interests

Group Ideas/Interests[/td][td]     [/td]
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Hob

Today's word of the day is....

canorous
adjective kuh-NOR-us

Definition

1 : pleasant sounding : melodious




To get in the holiday spirit, here's a bit of music to inspire your muse! (A lesser known version of the now controversial song.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kg2T3zRfIRc

Daeva

Today's word of the day is....

fulcrum
noun: FULL-krum
Definition


  • prop; specifically : the support about which a lever turns
  • one that supplies capability for action
  • a part of an animal that serves as a hinge or support

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBXl4Mq3jho
Absences Updated 6/15/22 Selectively Accepting New Stories
Ons and Offs & Current Story List | Desired RP's

Lilias

I love my sister dearly. I just don’t want to be seen out with her.

Nastia is the sweetest person I’m ever likely to meet in my life, but she’s also impossibly gorgeous. It’s not her fault, but when she alights from the carriage as the epitome of grace and poise in her glossy black zibeline cape and not a hair out of place, I can only appear like a galumphing camel in her wake.

I would have gladly stayed at home, but there was no circumventing Great-aunt Lizaveta’s demand we both attend her Yule ball. So here we are, Nastia dazzling and I clinging to the shadows.

I don’t envy Nastia her lot; she’s the one who will have to make an advantageous match for the family’s sake, not I. Although, with every eligible bachelor’s attention focused on her, she should have little trouble choosing someone acceptable to herself as well as the family council. She’s going to be fine.

I slip out of the ballroom as soon as I’m able. I attended, and my obligation is fulfilled. Now I can find somewhere better to spend my time until it is time to go home.

I thought the study would be deserted on such an occasion, but apparently I’m not the only grinch in the house tonight. There’s an elderly lady in widow’s weeds sitting by the window, the samovar burbling softly on the little table before her. She looks me up and down with a keenness that belies her age. White hair and lined face aside, her elegance would easily match Nastia’s.

‘I’m sorry to intrude,’ I start, already wondering where else I could go hide.

‘Don’t be,’ she says, and beckons me closer. ‘There is always at least one in every gathering that would rather be anywhere else. I was like that when I was young. Have some tea?’ She gestures at the empty armchair on the other side of the table, where another cup sits, empty, as if she was expecting a guest. ‘We may have more interesting things to discuss here than downstairs.’
To go in the dark with a light is to know the light.
To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight,
and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,
and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.
~Wendell Berry

Double Os <> Double As (updated Feb 20) <> The Hoard <> 50 Tales 2024 <> The Lab <> ELLUIKI

Daeva

Today's word of the day is....

obdurate
adjectvie: AHB-duh-rut
Definition


  • stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing
  • hardened in feelings
  • resistant to persuasion or softening influences

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ChayT4uNLM
Absences Updated 6/15/22 Selectively Accepting New Stories
Ons and Offs & Current Story List | Desired RP's

Lilias

‘Here you are, Black Forest hot chocolate without even having to go out for it,’ said Anna, setting two mugs that could easily hold a pint each onto the table. Faith stared at the mountain of whipped cream, cherry sauce and chocolate sprinkles. It seemed a shame to demolish it, even with the promise of hot chocolate with blackberry syrup that lay underneath. ‘I’ll never consider cocoa with mini marshmallows an indulgence again.’

‘Say what you want about Madame Vera - her concept of daily food is positively decadent by our standards,’ commented Anna around a spoonful of cream; she had no qualms like Faith.

Faith snickered. ‘I’ll leave the saying anything to Sophia,’ she said, and Anna chortled in response. Despite some real bitch lines delivered on both sides, in keeping with the two Traditions’ long-standing antagonism, it was common knowledge that the two venerable adepts got along quite swimmingly, and their apprentices even more so. Which was why they were currently gorging themselves in the covenstead kitchen and making plans for New Year’s festivities.

‘My dad is going up north for Hogmanay, as usual,’ said Anna. ‘We could always tag along, if you fancy a wee dram or five, and drunken mayhem galore.’

‘Drunken abandon sounds good, but on the flipside, it would be accompanied by caterwauling bagpipes and followed by Sophia admonishing the hell out of me. I’ll pass.’ Faith slurped the last of her chocolate, then scraped any cream and syrup residue off the sides and bottom of her mug, for good measure.

‘Wimp,’ teased Anna. ‘How about early to bed, then--Faith Ember Donnelly, don’t you dare throw that towel at me!--and join the arboretum people for their dawn hike in the woods, then breakfast at the clubhouse?’

Faith put the tea towel down, giving up on the effort to keep her scowl in place. ‘Now you’re talking… Treehugger.’
To go in the dark with a light is to know the light.
To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight,
and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,
and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.
~Wendell Berry

Double Os <> Double As (updated Feb 20) <> The Hoard <> 50 Tales 2024 <> The Lab <> ELLUIKI

Flower

Today's word of the day is....

hark back
verb HAHRK-BAK

Definition

1 : to turn back to an earlier topic or circumstance

2 : to go back to something as an origin or source




To get in the holiday spirit, here's a bit of music to inspire your muse!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPnhaGWBnys

Lilias

The only thing worse than hearing Christmas songs all the time in shops and on the radio is working with someone who loves them. You can’t move away or change the channel.

‘What on earth do you find in such mawkish claptrap?’ I muttered as Evan started singing another of those under his breath while he worked.

Quiet as I was, Evan heard me, and broke off. ‘What exactly do you find mawkish about Veni, veni, Emmanuel? Claptrap is out of the question--nothing in Latin is ever claptrap, at worst it sounds like a demonic invocation--but I’m interested in the mawkish part.’

‘Okay, I probably chose the wrong moment to speak up,’ I grouched. ‘I just have no use for that whole… sentiment.’ A woefully inadequate word, but it would have to do. Overworked and overstimulated in the worst way possible don’t exactly contribute to one’s range of expression.

‘You just need to hark back to what the angels sang about,’ Evan grinned. I groaned.

‘You may be the king of bad puns, but I swear I’ll cut you if you go on.’

‘I’ll tell you what,’ Evan said, snapping his laptop shut. ‘It’s nearly seven o’clock. That’s most definitely enough work for one day, especially a festive one. Come down to the pub for some proper wassailing?’

‘The first good idea you’ve had all day. If you buy the first round, I might even appear to be a merry gentleman.’

Evan guffawed. ‘That’s the spirit! We’ll indoctrinate you yet.’
To go in the dark with a light is to know the light.
To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight,
and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,
and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.
~Wendell Berry

Double Os <> Double As (updated Feb 20) <> The Hoard <> 50 Tales 2024 <> The Lab <> ELLUIKI

Miss Lilly

Lilly muttered beneath her breath, clearly annoyed at being told she had to leave a tip.  Their server had been the worst she'd seen since arriving in the country.  The service had been appalling, and the multiple mistakes with their order were, in Lilly's opinion, unforgivable.  But the locals she was with were adamant that she couldn't leave no tip, and by only leaving ten percent, their server would be suitably insulted.

The practice of tipping, she knew, was a hark back to the Great Depression.  Restaurant owners couldn't afford to pay wait staff, however if people were willing to work for whatever they could encourage the patrons to pay direct to them, then they had themselves a job. It made sense back then, when money and work were hard to come by.  Now, however, Lilly felt that it was an obsolete, archaic custom that should have gone the way of the dinosaurs.

She threw the appropriate money on the table and walked out, her companions following in her wake.  This was one place she'd never come back to!
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