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Rhododendrons. This ones raw.
Lyrics:
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
far flung angel with a crippled wing ptsd stare cuz she's seen some things can't take watching us silly little beings can't find a choir though she'd like to sing
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
and everything you thought was a motherfuckin' lie opened up like a book to a world so alive that it seemed clouds breathed and you swore trees sighed and you couldn't help but weep when you watched a flower die.
O' I couldn't help it... I couldn't...
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
so you pried and you pried till you got your third eye then stitched the ones shut that told you all the lies and you saw a truth written in the sand by the tides that love is the dark matter holding up the skies
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
rhododendrons speak to me, they're a nice flower
but they'll tell you what to do if you let em they'll tell you what to do if you let em they'll tell you what to do if you let em they'll tell you what to do if you let em but they're nice flowers.
The Train Station
(Also posted on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/38088436)
An older woman stands on an old and overgrown wooden station platform, waiting for a train to round the bend into the station. It’s foggy out, so foggy she finds herself unable to see anything past the platform and the bend where the tracks come from. In the corner of her mind is the faint memory of drifting onto the foggy platform and exchanging some coins for a one-way fare at the ticket booth.
She’s not alone in waiting, but she ignores all others in favor of looking at her watch. The hands don’t appear to be moving but she feels a strong anxiety in looking at the watch face.
“The train is late.” She mutters to herself, trying to explain away her stab of anxiety. “I don’t need to take a late train.”
She looks again at the watch with a frown. Making up her mind, she turns and walks through the crowd to the ticket booth. The young man stationed there has his feet up on the counter, leaned back with his hat over his eyes. Soft snores rise up every few seconds from under the hat. The woman huffs a sigh and rasps loudly on the window, startling him awake.
“Excuse me,” she said, but her tone held no politeness. “The train is late. I don’t even need to take this train, and I would like a refund on my ticket.” The man sits up, rubbing sleep out of his pale eyes and readjusting his hat. He takes a moment to look out over the station before leaning back into his chair.
“The train will be coming along soon, ma’am.” He mumbled sleepily.
She scoffed. “But I don’t need to take the train! I’m not sure why I wanted to take it in the first place, but I changed my mind. I don’t want to take the train. I would like my refund. Please.” She emphasized the last word like it was all she needed to get her way. The man just shrugged.
“Train’s coming. You got a ticket; you get on board. Look there.” He pointed down the tracks into the fog. She turned to see a bright headlight, a train following close behind. It emerged from the fog to come around the bend, breaks squealing as it slowed to a stop at the platform. Its cars were completely empty.
The woman resisted the childish urge to stomp her foot out of irritation at the whole situation. She wasn’t going to admit she was wrong.
“Fine!” she snapped. “I’ll take the damn train. Your customer service is terrible! You lazy kids nowadays. I should report you.” The man looked unbothered and slumped back into his chair to resume his nap. The sight only further irritated the woman, and she stomped off to join the others boarding the train.
She stood in the line as the conductor took tickets from the passengers. The conductor wore so much black that in the foggy station they looked almost like a shadow. People around her seemed to drift in and out of line with no real organization. She refused to look them in the face, their bodies like ghosts out of the corners of her eyes. She shoved past a few, who made no noise of objection as she did so.
“This train is late!” she exclaimed loudly to the conductor. “I came here to take the train, I expected it to be on time. This is unacceptable.”
The conductor offered her an apologetic look that looked out of place on their bony face. “There were more passengers today than normal ma’am.” They said in a soft tone.
The woman huffed. “That’s not an excuse. The train is empty! And this is your job, you do it every day! Shouldn’t you be able to do your job right?”
The conductor simply tilted their head and offered a small smile. “Apologies ma’am. Are you ready to board? I understand you are upset, but you are holding up the line I’m afraid.”
The woman scoffed. “I don’t know, are you going to do your job and get me where I need to go? You need to run a tighter schedule. This is ridiculous.”
The conductor sighed and shook their head. “This sort of attitude isn’t going to get you anywhere ma’am.” They said in that same soft tone. “If you aren’t ready to board, I suggest you wait a bit longer on the platform. But right now, you are disrupting the other passengers who are just trying to get on board.”
The woman glanced around at the people in line behind her. Her eyes slid off their faces like water off a duck’s back but seeing that no one else was making a deal out of the lateness of the train she felt a bit embarrassed at making a scene. She turned back to the conductor, who was waiting patiently.
“I have old eyes and waiting for so long on this foggy platform didn’t help. Now you get here late and embarrass me. I have rights as a customer! You should do a better job to make your customers happy.” She said with an air of entitlement.
The conductor didn’t rise to any bait. “Alright ma’am. Would you like to board now then? I can show you to a seat.”
“Well can’t I get some sort of compensation for being made to wait? Some decent customer service?”
The conductor shook her head. “We don’t do anything like that ma’am. Either you get on or you don’t, but everyone paid the same fee to board.”
The woman though for a few seconds before trying again. “Can I get a refund then? There are other trains, I could just take my business elsewhere. Just fix this.”
The conductor leaned against the door to the train car. “Good luck with that. This is a train station ma’am, I’m not sure what you would have me do. If you don’t get on this train, you’ll have to wait for the next. Or you can hand me your ticket and hop on the train and be on your way.” They said, soft and slow like they were taking to a wild animal.
“That’s not good enough.” The woman said crossing her arms across her chest. “I’ve been waiting for so long and I have places to be. Can’t you just do something for me? What about customer satisfaction?”
The conductor opened their mouth to speak but was cut off by the woman’s rambling.
“I’ve been so stressed out and I just want to get where I’m going. Can’t you just find me a seat away from others or something? I’ve never been on a train, but I don’t trust people on trains. I want to sit by myself. Can you do that? Do something?”
While she rambled, the conductor had started taking tickets from other passengers as they slipped past her into the train car. She attempted to glare at them, but they were gone before she could get a good look at their faces.
“I’m sorry, but there’s nothing I can do. This train will be leaving soon, with or without you. That’s a choice only you can make, ma’am.”
The lady’s anger drained out of her body as frustrated tears filled her eyes.
“I’ve been waiting so long.” She choked out, trying to hold back tears. “I’ve been here in the fog on this falling apart platform, and no one is helping me! I just want to be on time and now I’m going to be late!” a few traitorous tears fell from her eyes. “Don’t you understand? I can’t be late! I can’t be!” she broke down in sobs as the conductor gestured to the few left in line to wait a moment. Carefully they circled their bone arms around her and gently coaxed her into the train car, slipping the ticket out of her hand and into the handful of others they had collected.
“Hush now, it’s okay. You’ll still be on time no matter what.” The conductor pressed a handkerchief into her hands as they lowered the woman into a seat by the window. With one final smile, the conductor slipped away to get the other passengers boarded onto the train.
The woman slowly stopped crying at rested her head on the cool glass of the train window. A few more passengers boarded the train before she heard the voice of the conductor ring though the car. “Now leaving the station. Thank you for riding today.”
As the train slowly started to pull away from the station, the woman saw that some people had stayed behind, although her view of them was quickly blocked as the train turned the conner into the fog. Suddenly she was aware of a figure sitting next to her. Turning, she met the eyes of one of the passengers who had taken the seat next to her. He seemed pale, no just skin but his whole person, like all the colors of him had been dulled.
“Hello.” He said, in a voice that struck a chord of familiarity in her.
“Hello.” She responded, suddenly feeling a bit shy. “Have we met before?” she asked. “You seem familiar.”
His face took on a thoughtful expression as a hand pushed his hair out of his face. She noted the wrinkles on his face and figured they must be around a similar age.
The passenger gave a shrug. “I can’t say I’ve seen you in the station before. I’ve been waiting around for a bit. I’ve never gotten on the train before today.” The woman studied him, the familiarity he carried making her heart ache with fond memories she couldn’t quite remember.
She leaned towards him. “What changed this time?” She whispered.
He frowned and said, “I don’t know. I was waiting for a while at the station. The train came and went a few times, but I just wasn’t ready to get on yet. Today I felt I had to.” Then his face broke out in a smile. “Glad I did, or I wouldn’t have met you.”
The woman smiled back before her face fell. “Where are we going?” she asked, suddenly worried when she realized she didn’t know the destination of the train. The passenger turned his whole body to face her in the seat and slipped his hand in to hers. When she looked down, she saw her hands too had that pale, dull tone. Looking back at the passenger’s face the woman noticed that he looked nervous as well.
“I don’t know.” He said honestly. “Does it matter?”
The woman pulled back. “Of course it matters! We got one-way tickets!”
The passenger’s smile returned, but it was sadder. “I don’t think the destination is important. In the end, we are just moving on. And that’s okay. The train won’t be late, and neither will we. We got on the train today, so it must be our time to move on.”
The woman again smiled back, a smile his eyes had seen many times before, although he didn’t know it.
“Well,” she started, “Your right. It doesn’t matter where we are going, only that we are going together. It feels right.”
As a blinding white light began to fill the train car, the woman stayed calm and for the second time in their intertwined existences, the last thing the two passengers were concerned about was seeing each other’s smiles one more time.
And somehow, that was enough.
“Touch Me” - Austin McKenzie, Alex Boniello, Sean Grandillo, Alex Wyse, and the Broadway revival cast of Spring Awakening October 26, 2015
Maybe the best version of this song ever performed.
Spring Awakening: An Autocorrect Nightmare
for just a little little…
Whitney was actually my second choice for snooty. I wanted Greta, but there's a huge lack of official/fanart of her! I need to right this wrong!
(......if I was better at drawing...)
And why do Marshal and Julian have to be so cute, it was difficult to choose!
Marshal art by justduet Muffy art by Bugsprout
Original
adrien: if i so much as touch marinette with one inch of my body i will surely lose every one of my scooter ride privileges and never again be considered a gentleman look she's already so nervous it must be scary driving i must sit as properly as possible it's fine it's not so bad my arms are almost long enough to hang onto the sides of my seat like this
marinette: if we hit one bump in the road i'm going to faceplant into the basket and adrien is going to fly into the sun seriously he isn't even holding onto anything why isn't he holding onto anything does he have that much faith in my driving or does he not want to hold onto me oh god was that a bump in the road just now i'm focusing i'm focusing i'm focusi
the relatable moment of ‘i don’t have to learn this skill because i can just get my sibling to do it’
i could make a 200 page PowerPoint presentation (with full slide animations and sound effects) explaining how to install the latest Minecraft Forge update but my sister would simply not retain the information.
yeah donnie has his tech skills so he can build cool things for his family, but I also see him helping them out in ways like these :)
t-cest DNI
(also if anyone’s struggling with my handwriting please let me know, i can type it out)
like my work? tip here!
Part 1
People liked the previous comic so here's part 2 of Leo experiencing the horrors of aging... and the horrors of just being a hairless reptile I guess
Also Big Leo finally figured out how to just tune Little Leo out, good for him.
Belphegor thinks you're terrified of him. You think he looks like a bitch without a smile. gn!reader, growing relationship, reader calls belphie a bitch lol, spoilers for lesson 16
BELPHEGOR doesn’t blame you whenever you flinch as he walks in a room, turn to stone when he sits next to you at breakfast and in class, and he certainly doesn’t blame you when you shuffle closer to Lucifer when he was lounging about. He tries to ignore it, but every time he catches you avoiding his gaze, guilt cages his heart. He knows he deserves it.
He watches you from afar. He sees how you offer Beel the sides of your breakfast even though he knows he can hear your stomach growl first period. He sees how you gently cut Mammon down, agreeing with whatever foolishness he was spouting. He sees you bring Satan tea when he’s cooped up in his room, and how you always match Levi’s excitement whenever a new game comes out.
Hell, you even like all of Asmodeus’ posts on Devilgram. (Belphegor wonders if you ever followed him back, and when he checks, he’s pleasantly surprised you are. He shouldn’t feel so happy about it.)
He notices how burnt you are before anyone else does. He sees the way your perfect posture slouches at breakfast, playing with your food – too tired to bring the fork to your mouth. He hears your textbook pages flip and papers crinkle at all times of the day when he walks past your room. Belphegor doesn’t smell the candles you light around your room anymore. It’s a shame, he thinks, he was always a fan of the one you claimed to be called ‘Witches Brew.’
You were utterly exhausted.
Exams in school should be easy as pie when you study the amount you do. Exams in a school of Hell, with different history you’ve never seen before, different wars from different realms, and the previous royalty that ruled over the underworld – God, it was too much. You were bleeding your brain dry, information upon information forced to retain.
Belphegor knows how hard it is for you to get sleep in the House of Lamentation.
His heart jumps out of his ribcage when he sees you walk into the planetarium. He eyes you as you stop, and stare at him. He half expects you to turn back on your heel and walk away- but you don’t. You stand there, letting the heavy door close behind you.
“Can I sleep here?” you asked, and he has to force himself not to do a double take. He doesn’t even realise it’s midday and you’re not at school.
Belphegor forces the lump in his throat down. He feels like his tongue is sandpaper. “You know you shouldn’t.”
“I know, that’s why I’m here.”
It’s… weird. You’re talking to him with no fear. You’re even meeting his gaze. Had he been misunderstanding how you have been feeling this whole time? His eyes narrow. Belphegor’s grip on his pillow tightens. Just what are you up to?
“Don’t you hate me for what I did to you?” he questions, lying back down and turning away from you on his makeshift bed. Where all chairs should be remained an open space, except for the heaps of blanket and pillows he had dragged down from the attic.
You tilt your head- like you’re the one who is confused. “No, why would I?”
“I killed you.”
“Dude, Lucifer has tried to kill me like a total of five times now. Levi has the lowest score of one. Your twin has tried to eat me when the fridge was empty!” You sound exasperated. “I think at this point you killing me that day has just became a normal day in Devildom.”
He doesn’t have to look at you to know you’re making your way over. Belphegor raises one of the blankets, and he feels the radiating, human heat of you when you slip in. It’s silent for a moment, and he rolls over, catching your eye.
“I feel awful,” he says so quietly, you almost didn’t hear him. “I thought you were terrified of me.”
You snort. “No,” you start, staring up at the constellations on the ceiling. “It’s just… You look kind of like a bitch when you don’t smile, y’know? I thought you still hated me or something.”
His brows furrow. “Rude.”
“Was rude when you killed me! I really thought you wanted a hug.” You see from the corner of your eye that his lips press into a thin line. “Bad joke.”
Silence rains over you both once again. Belphegor hasn’t been this close to you in a while. He vividly remembers how frail your body was, how easily it was to break – and now you’re just… laying here, next to him without a care in the world. Like he hadn’t ended your life and watched the light seep from your eyes.
The words tumble out of his mouth before he realises. Belphegor doesn’t care – but it’s hard owning up to your mistakes- your mistakes to a human, no less. “I’m not going to do something like that ag-“
You interrupt him with a wave of your hand. “It’s fine, don’t worry,” you say. “I trust you won’t. You don’t have to say you’re sorry, I can tell by the way you act.”
He sighs. “You humans are too nice. Are you sure you should be saying this to me? Are you not worried I’ll take advantage of your kindness or something?”
“Nope, not at all.”
“You’re so strange.”
“I guess, hehe. You’re different from all your brothers, though.”
“Oh?”
“Mhm. You don’t barge into my room at the crack of dawn every morning. Even Levi does it, and he doesn’t even attend school in person!”
He can’t help the tiny laugh that passes through his lips. “Sounds awful.”
“Why else do you think I’m here, huh?”
“Aw, and here I thought you wanted to spend time with me.”
Not even ten minutes ago you and Belphegor were as distant as parallel lines; to never touch, to never interact. And here you were, exhausted after exams and cracking jokes with him under the planetariums glowing stars - like you two were friends.
It conjures a weird feeling in his stomach. Belphegor doesn't know if he likes it.
You hum, thoughtfully. “I do want to spend time with you, though. I want to know more about you. Who knows how truthful all your stupid stories in the attic were, huh?”
“A few,” he utters through a yawn.
“Tell me more! I want a bedtime story.” And to get your point across, you wiggle in the duvets, and snuggled into the one over you, blanket to chin.
Belphegor almost doesn’t want to- but if a bedtime story is all your asking for? He guesses he could dig up memories from his past to tell you in murmurs and yawns. It’s the least he could do when you show him such acceptance. But still- he can’t help but think shouldn’t you be the one telling him a bedtime story? He was the Avatar of Sloth, after all. And your ‘stupid stories’ were far more entertaining than his.
And so he talks. He talks until his throat hurts, and his own voice starts to fade into background noise. Belphegor stares at the stars, throwing in the occasional hand movement. He talks himself tired, and his words slowly start to drawl, spoken through yawns until it fades completely.
He steals a glance at you. You’re asleep, he realises. And you look so peaceful, so content. Belphegor wouldn’t do anything to dare wake you up. He likes your face like this, he thinks, and pushes some hair out of your face.
Belphegor rolls over to face you, lazily draping an arm over you, nuzzling his face into your hair. He listens to your slow, light breathing. He smells your hair, your shampoo, and the body spray you put on this morning before you decided to skip school.
He decides that maybe, just maybe, giving into his selfish feelings for you just once couldn’t be so bad.
FOUND FAMILY — ALL 7 BROTHERS W/ GN!READER
"okay, we will take family portraits next."
a few shuffles could be heard here and there after the photographer had announced that they would take a group picture once all the individual portraits had been done.
it had only been four months into the student exchange program and a lot had happened since the beginning, so you— who was just a mere human that they didn't know for so long— had never imagined to even have the honour of being in their own family picture. of course, things have calmed down after the incident with belphegor, yet you had never thought that they saw you as part of their family until now.
out of respect, you moved out of sight and stood behind the camera while the others got their clothes fixed for their next photo. they had been close brothers for thousands of years— even some time before their fall. it made you feel a bit dejected since you hadn't had the chance to visit your own family members back home, though you were glad to see that they looked a bit joyful to take their pictures together after such a long period.
"alright, we'll start taking pictures if everyone is set." the second and third oldest let out a couple curious mumbles as their eyes focused on the spot you were supposed to be sitting on. they all had consciously— yet maybe a little unconciously— left a space for you. the rest of the five demons looked over to the empty place on the gold and velvet couch as well before the seven pair of eyes scanned the room in search for you.
you were spacing out a bit as you sat on a chair near the photographer, staring at the humongous ceiling and back to the gold walls. you had taken self portraits a few moments before this, so you had thought that you finally got to remove the accessories that sat on your skin. fumbling with the metal, you were unconcious of the brothers' gazes on you.
"mc!" a familiar voice, which belonged to the avatar of greed, was the first one to snap you back into reality. there was a second of silence before you cocked your head to the side, a puzzled look sat on your face; why were they waving at you— some even pointing to an empty space next to lucifer on the sofa?
"come on, hon! we're waiting on you!" asmodeus exclaimed as a bright smile tugged on his lips. "maybe they needed to take a break to eat something really quick." beelzebub mumbled loud enough for you to hear. "i'm also quite hungry after all those photos that we shot."
the youngest brother chuckled at the red haired demon's comment. "that's only the case with you, beel. we've had plenty to eat this morning." you slowly stepped forward after a few more seconds of them staring at you fondly. there was a giddy feeling in your chest as you realized that they all had been waiting for you to sit on your designed place— in front of them, next to their oldest brother.
"isn't uhm– weren't you about to take a family portrait?" you muttered from under your breath, fidgeting with the material of your clothes. there was still an unsure feeling resting in your stomach because you didn't want to intrude their own special picture. "yes, we were."
lucifer spoke up and you lifted your head to look at him— his voice unusually soft. a slight smile appeared on his face as he reached out his gloved hand for you to hold on. "you are a part of our family now, aren't you?"
his response was followed by a few humms coming from behind him and so you took the demon's hand and slowly filled that empty space with your presence.
it was in that instant that you knew that you are going to be with them for the rest of your life, as a big and loving family. the fact that they accepted you this early on without you knowing or even thinking about that possibility, made tears swell up in your eyes.
you had finally found your own safe place— your own caring family. all eight of you completed each other.
Main Dishes - Beef - True Cheeseburger Pizza In this dish for the whole family, a pre-baked pizza crust is topped with all the flavors of a traditional cheeseburger.
Italian Wedding Soup with Venison Meatballs - Soups, Stews and Chili
